Federer set for night session debut

He may be turning 40 in a couple of months but Roger Federer is still experiencing firsts on the tennis tour.

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On Saturday, the Swiss 20-time major champion will compete in his first night session at Roland-Garros where he takes on German lefty Dominik Koepfer.

Back on Parisian clay this fortnight for the first time since his semi-final appearance here two years ago, the 2009 champion has shown strong form in his opening two matches, with victories over qualifier Denis Istomin and former world No.3 Marin Cilic.

Federer played down his chances ahead of the tournament having only contested just three matches this year coming into the event.

But his performances suggest he is in better form on the clay than he expected, and he will be a tough nut to crack for Koepfer, the world No.59, who is searching for a maiden fourth-round spot at Roland-Garros.

The eighth-seeded Federer spent over a year out of action as he recovered from two knee surgeries. He is pleased with how his knee has reacted so far and is keen to see how it will feel as the tournament goes along.

"For me, my knee, the good thing is that I got a lot of information out of a match like this," Federer said after his four-set battle with Cilic on Thursday.

"We will keep on getting information tomorrow and the next day, so I hope I can back it up with hopefully another good match. And whatever the outcome is, I know it was definitely the right choice to come here to Paris, which I'm very happy about."

The night-session showdown with Koepfer will take place at 9pm local time.