In horse racing, “winning by a head” represents a very small margin between the winner and the runner-up. In tennis, the same phrase could accurately characterize the way in which champions so frequently fend off talented challengers in the early rounds of Grand Slam tournaments. After surviving a scare from amped-up Argentine Jose Acasuso in the second round of the French Open, Roger Federer once again showed why the mind–even more than a monster serve or a lethal forehand–is the biggest single weapon in the sport that’s made him a global icon.

On a cloudy Thursday in Paris, Federer–on the verge of trailing two sets to one–rallied from a 5-1 third-set to topple Acasuso, 7-6 (8), 5-7, 7-6 (2), 6-2. The four-set triumph, achieved in 3 hours and 25 minutes of unpredictable parrying, sends Federer to the third round, where he’ll meet Frenchman Paul-Henri Mathieu on Saturday.

The second seed at Roland Garros, intent on playing a full two weeks in France, came perilously close to playing merely two matches at the year’s claycourt major. Based on the disjointed form he displayed over the past three months on tour, one might have been inclined to think–without seeing this match live–that Federer once again shanked a stack of shots and never found a groove against Acasuso, a wondrously artistic performer who reached the fourth round of this tournament in 2005.

That wasn’t the case, however, on a day when a light rain slowed the clay and reshaped the calculus of the confrontation on Court Philippe Chatrier.

Federer entered the match with a 3-0 head-to-head record against Acasuso, but those three wins all came on hardcourts. Acasuso’s impressive but expansive strokes–not economical or compact, but formidable if the Argentine gets a good look at the ball–are better suited for a slow clay court, and after a first round in which hot conditions hardened the red clay of Paris, the damp second-round conditions played right into the hands–not to mention the wheelhouse–of the South American.

Acasuso spent the first two and a half hours of the match (essentially, the first two and a half sets; the first three sets took 2 hours and 55 minutes to complete) keeping Federer on the defensive. The Argentine hit with consistent depth and appreciable spin to deny the world No. 2 the ability to unload his forehand for winners. With that said, Thursday’s throwdown wouldn’t have been very competitive if Acasuso didn’t have a big arrow in the bag, and that devastating weapon was put to good use to supplement the South American’s tactically sound approach.

While generally playing with a high margin for error, Acasuso brought the heavy artillery he needed to close down points against the Swiss superstar. The 26-year-old routinely uncorked a hard, flat, inside-outside forehand that repeatedly pinned Federer to his comparatively weak backhand corner. Rarely employing a down-the-line forehand, Acasuso–not wanting to hit backhands of his own–was able to gain leverage in rallies by employing his favorite shot. Federer didn’t spend this match hitting the shoulder-level backhands that have given him trouble on red clay, but with Acasuso pounding the forehand to the left sideline of the court, Federer’s backhands were rendered impotent in an unusual but unquestionably effective manner. The Swiss was fortunate to win the first set after surviving four set points, and unfortunate to drop a second set in which he made 69 percent of his first serves. All in all, though, the larger storyline had solidified: Acasuso was contesting the match on even terms, and deserved to fight through at least four sets of tennis. When Federer’s game unraveled at the start of the third set, Acasuso–to the amazement of everyone in the stadium–roared to a 5-1 lead and appeared ready to put the world No. 2 in a hole.

That’s when forehands and tactics ceased to matter, and the brain–that most potent yet puzzling of organs–took hold of his high-drama donnybrook.

Acasuso tweaked his ankle when serving at 4-1 in the third, but the ATP trainer never came on court. When the Argentine held for 5-1, it seemed that the incident would have little bearing on the remainder of the match. But then a wound greater than a tiny ankle twitch sabotaged the South American: A complete loss of composure.

Even when leading 5-2 (a double-break advantage as opposed to a single break), Acasuso’s body language began to acquire a noticeably hangdog appearance. Federer, smelling an opening, broke for 3-5 and held for 4-5. Given a second chance to serve for a two sets to one advantage, Acasuso continued to spray and sail the shots he’d been so consistently converting just minutes before. Federer broke for 5-all and–in a telltale third-set tiebreak–sniffed the finish line when the Argentine blew an easy backhand pass at 1-3. From that moment on, Acasuso–muttering to himself and his coach in the stands–painfully but plainly folded the tent. The fourth set came and went in 30 breezy minutes, nd Federer had made his great escape.

Inside-out forehands and clay-friendly groundstrokes are all well and good, but if the mind isn’t right, Grand Slam matches won’t fall in your favor. Just ask a gutted Jose Acasuso and a relieved Roger Federer after another Houdini act for the 13-time major champion.

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