Arnaud Di Pasquale, ranked a lowly 62nd in the world, won a titanic battle with Switzerland's Roger Federer to claim the bronze medal in the Olympic men's tennis tournament on Wednesday.

Di Pasquale, who eliminated three seeds on his way to the semi-finals, won 7-6 (7/5) 6-7 (7/9) 6-3 to take France's first Olympic tennis medal since the sport returned to the Games in 1988.

It was another inspired performance from the 21-year-old who had to bounce back from the disappointment of failing to convert a match point on his own serve in the second set tiebreak and then needed on-court treatment for a strained leg after the fifth game of the final set.

The momentum looked to be swinging behind the Swiss when he broke Di Pasquale's serve in the third game of the final set.

But the Frenchman pulled himself together to break straight back. Another service break gave him a 5-3 lead and he made no mistake the second time around, serving out for the match.

AFP