Paris: By Roger Federer's standards, defeat came early in the French Open. And it came quickly. The 17-time Grand Slam champion lost on Tuesday in the quarter-finals to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France, 7-5, 6-3, 6-3.
Federer was eliminated before the semi-finals for the second time in past three Grand Slam tournaments, but only the fifth time in the past nine years at a major event. Tsonga was responsible for two of the losses - he also beat Federer in the quarter-finals at Wimbledon in 2011.
"I'm pretty sad about the match and the way I played," Federer said. "He was in all areas better than me today. That's why the result was pretty clean."
Tsonga earned his first berth in the Roland Garros semi-finals and is trying to become the first Frenchman to win the tournament since Yannick Noah in 1983. He's the first Frenchman to reach the semi-finals since Gael Monfils in 2008.
"I can't have better a dream," Tsonga told the centre court crowd. "So far I play very well. I played against a champion today, a guy who has won everything. Today it's my turn." On Friday he'll play No. 4-seeded David Ferrer, who beat fellow Spaniard Tommy Robredo 6-2, 6-1, 6-1.
Tsonga was runner-up to Novak Djokovic at the 2008 Australian Open, his best Grand Slam result. Ranked No. 8, he dominated Federer with his blend of power and athleticism. "Give some credit to the old Jo-Willy Tsonga, please," Federer said.
Federer took a 4-2 lead but played like a mere mortal after that as the match rapidly slipped away. He blew three overheads, missed several easy volleys, hit no aces, dropped serve six times and took a shot to the body on the point that put Tsonga ahead to stay in the final set.
Facing a break point, Federer sliced a drop shot and Tsonga raced forward to scoop it up. He whacked a backhand that clipped the net cord and then drilled Federer under his right arm. That made it 4-3, and Tsonga quickly won the final two games. When he closed out the victory, Federer greeted him with a gracious smile and a congratulatory pat on the stomach.
A jubilant Tsonga then went spinning across the court, waving his arms as the partisan crowd roared. Federer, long a fan favourite in Paris, also earned a lusty cheer as he headed to the exit. He responded by applauding the crowd. "I should have won the first set," Federer said. "Unfortunately I couldn't regroup."
The last time Federer lost to a player ranked so low in a major tournament was at Wimbledon two years ago, when the No. 19-ranked Tsonga overcame a two-set deficit to beat him. The French Open has always been the most difficult major event for Federer. He won his lone Roland Garros title in 2009 to complete a career Grand Slam and tie Pete Sampras' record of 14 major titles.
Now 31, he has yet to win any tournament in 2013, his longest drought to start a year since 2000.
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