ROGER FEDERER finally overcame his nemesis Gilles Simon although it took him five enthralling sets to reach the third round of the Australian Open.

Simon came into the contest having beaten the world number two on their previous two meetings and he looked set to cause another upset when he hit back from two sets down to take it all the way.

But the Swiss, defending champion in Melbourne, upped the tempo to squeeze through 6-2 6-3 4-6 4-6 6-3 and avoid his first exit at a grand slam before the third-round stage since 2003.

The match was delicately poised until Federer broke in the decider for a 4-2 advantage which quickly became 5-2.

The world number two wasted four match points as Simon indulged in one final act of defiance but there was to be no reprieve as Federer sent down a booming ace out wide to set up a third-round clash with Belgian Xavier Malisse.

“He (Simon) is a great player,”

said Federer.

“Matches against him don’t come easy, every time we go the distance. Hopefully we won’t play each other anymore.

“I am happy to get through, just keep moving on in the draw and try to find an opponent who suits me more.

“I thought the match was great, it was played at a very high level for a long time, I thought I played great and am very happy.”

Simon felt the point at which his comeback stalled arrived at the start of the final set.

“At the beginning of the fifth he played a very good game,” said the Frenchman.

“We were one-all 0-30 on his serve and he played four good points in a row. From there he did much better on his serve and the second shot.

‘‘There aren’t too many players who can go longer than me but Roger is one of them.

“I am just sad I had to play Roger at this stage because I was feeling good.”