Novak Djokovic had to save three match points before eventually seeing off Germany's Philipp Kohlschreiber in the third round of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells.
Winner of the ATP tournament in 2008, Djokovic had taken the first set with relative ease and was 2-0 up in the second when another lapse in concentration allowed Kohlschrieber claim the second to ensure the match would go the distance.
They were pretty well-matched in the third but Djokovic found himself serving to stay in the tournament when 4-5 down but it was looked as though he would be heading for an early exit as Kohlschrieber set up three match points.
At 0-40 down Djokovic needed to up his game smashed a forehand volley winner to save the first before Kohlschrieber made two errors to allow his opponent to level.
A tie-break was eventually needed and Djokovic made no mistakes, clinching it 7-3 to complete a 6-3 2-6 7-6 win.
"Fighting through, it's another win so I try to look on the positive side, the things I did well. He easily could be the winner of this match, and he would deserve it," Djokovic told reporters.
"I am still trying to find rhythm, to feel good on the court. For the next match, I want to maintain focus right up to the end and not have any mental breakdowns in the middle."
Djokovic will face Croat Ivan Ljubicic, a 6-2 6-3 winner over Brian Dabul, in the fourth round.
Rafael Nadal was up next on the stadium court but he encountered no such problems as he defeated Croat Mario Ancic 6-2 6-2.
"I am feeling confident, I am playing well. I am playing at the good level," Nadal said. "My serve was important but more important was my rhythm from the baseline. I lost only a few points because I didn't make many mistakes, only seven unforced errors in two sets."
Spaniard Juan Carlos Ferrero, however, was a third round casualty, losing out 7-6 3-6 6-3 to Juan Monaco of Argentina.
Elsewhere there were wins for John Isner, Guillermo Garcia-Lopez and Tomas Berdych.