INDIAN WELLS, California, (Reuters) – Second seed  Novak Djokovic saved three match points before scraping past  Germany’s Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-3 2-6 7-6 in the third round  of the Indian Wells ATP tournament yesterday.

Trailing 4-5 and 0-40, Djokovic took advantage of a spate  of unforced errors by his opponent to claw back from the brink  of defeat at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden.

The world number two, champion here in 2008, won that game  when Kohlschreiber netted a forehand and he went on to clinch  the tiebreak 7-3 as the German’s resistance crumbled.

The Serb will next meet either 20th-seeded Croat Ivan  Ljubicic or Argentine qualifier Brian Dabul.

After Djokovic battled though in just over two-and-a-half  hours on the stadium court, twice champion Rafa Nadal of Spain  eased home with a 6-2 6-2 demolition of Croat Mario Ancic.

Nadal, who beat Britain’s Andy Murray in last year’s final,  broke Ancic twice in each set to line up a fourth-round  encounter with either John Isner or Sam Querrey of the U.S.

Djokovic, who appeared to be in total control after  sweeping through the opening set against Kohlschreiber and  leading 2-0 in the second, let out a loud yell of relief after  sealing victory with a forehand winner.

“Fighting through, it’s another win so I try to look on the  positive side, the things I did well,” the 22-year-old told  reporters.
FINDING RHYTHM

“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.”

Kohlschreiber, who beat Djokovic in straight sets when the  pair last met at the 2009 French Open, took the second set  after winning six games in a row on a sun-splashed afternoon in  the California desert.