Federer falls to Tsonga in Montreal

Swiss tennis star Roger Federer is out of the Montreal Masters, having been beaten by his Wimbledon nemesis, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.

The Frenchman beat Federer 7-6 4-6 6-1 on Thursday to book his place in an unlikely quarter-final line-up.

Federer came into the third-round encounter seeking revenge on Tsonga who had dashed his bid for a seventh Wimbledon crown five weeks ago by storming back from two sets down to steal a shock last-eight win.

But Tsonga again proved stronger in the closing stages than the world number three, winning an entertaining contest which was packed with dazzling rallies that delighted a packed centre court crowd.

“He beat me at Wimbledon, so I don’t know how much of a surprise it is,” Federer, a two-time winner in Canada, told reporters. “He’s playing well.”

Federer’s exit capped a surprising few days on the Canadian hardcourts with three of the world’s top four failing to reach the quarter-finals.

World number two Spaniard Rafael Nadal, a double winner in Canada, and number four Briton Andy Murray, the two-time defending champion, both lost their opening matches to leave Novak Djokovic as the only former champion left in the draw.