Relief for Roger Federer as he stages great escape

Roger Federer battled back from the brink of defeat today to reach the French Open quarter-finals and stay on course for a record-equalling 14th Grand Slam title.

Just 24 hours after four-time champion Rafael Nadal suffered a shock exit on Court Philippe Chatrier, the No2 seed appeared to be heading for a similar fate when trailing by two sets against German Tommy Haas.

But Federer produced a stirring comeback to win 6-7, 5-7, 6-4, 6-0, 6-2 in three hours and seven minutes to set up a meeting with either Andy Roddick or Gael Monfils on Wednesday. Champions are defined by moments such as the break point Federer had to fend off trailing 4-3 in the third set which, if converted, would have enabled 31-year-old Haas to serve for the match.

Federer had been suffering with an erratic forehand throughout the tie yet after a gutsy second serve, he struck a stunning cross-court winner.

"When I hit that forehand to save break point, I had the feeling it could be a turning point," said Federer (right), who has his sights on Pete Sampras's slam record. "After that, the atmosphere was great. Tommy played great, I struggled to get into the encounter."

Meanwhile, top seed Laura Robson staged a comeback of her own to recover from a set down and beat Karina Pimkina of Russia 2-6, 6-3, 63 in the girls' singles.