Federer: My knee felt really good

Federer had not played since losing to Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals of the Australian Open in January following arthroscopic surgery on his left knee, but the 17-time grand-slam champion was too good for Guillermo Garcia-Lopez.

Roger Federer said he was hardly troubled by his knee in his first match after a two month injury break.

Roger Federer said he was able to move freely after making a triumphant return from a knee injury at the Monte Carlo Masters.

Federer had not played since losing to Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals of the Australian Open in January following arthroscopic surgery on his left knee, but the 17-time grand-slam champion was too good for Guillermo Garcia-Lopez in his first match back on the ATP Tour on Tuesday.

The 34-year-old Federer - a four-time losing finalist in Monte Carlo - posted a 6-3 6-4 second-round victory.

Federer was relieved to make it through. "The knee felt really good, like in practice. Felt like I didn't have to worry about it. I could just go freely," he said.

"I think in a way it was a perfect match. It was close in the beginning, then I was able to go on a roll. Points were cut short by virtue of me serving better and returning better, getting second serves, taking advantage of that fact. 

"At the end, again, I had to fight for it. I went through different phases in the match. Also emotionally, I was excited and tense in the beginning, just because it's a first round. It's my first match back. So it was nice to go through all these emotions."