David Ferrer battled back to beat Simone Bolelli 6-3 1-6 5-7 6-0 6-1 in the third round of the French Open this afternoon.

It seemed that Ferrer, who was a finalist at Roland Garros two years ago, was heading for a routine victory when he took just 39 minutes to claim the opening set.

However, his Italian opponent rallied to not only draw level in sets, but take the lead by winning the third.

Thirty-three-year-old Ferrer was now seemingly heading for an early exit from the competition, but, of the next 13 games that followed, the experienced Spaniard won 12 of them to book his place in round four.

Next for Ferrer is a clash against ninth seed Marin Cilic, with the winner advancing through to the quarter-finals.