Federer suffers 'humiliating' exit from Shanghai Masters following third-round defeat

Swiss ace Roger Federer has suffered a humiliating exit from the Shanghai Masters on Thursday following a damaging defeat by Frenchman Gael Monfils in the third round, crowning a miserable season for the Swiss great.

Monfils went toe-to-toe with the 17-time Grand Slam champion, who was playing his first tournament since the US Open, and eventually emerged on top 6-4, 6-7 (5/7), 6-3, despite a vocal support for the Swiss from a partisan crowd.

According to Sport24, Federer, who made early exits at Wimbledon and the US Open, came to Shanghai seeking much-needed points as he bids to reach next month's World Tour Finals which he has won a record six times.

Meanwhile, the report mentioned that Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga brushed aside Kei Nishikori to reach the quarter-finals as Juan Martin del Potro progressed with a walkover, while in another third round action, Spanish third seed David Ferrer beat Germany's Florian Mayer 6-4, 6-3.

The top three seeds in Shanghai, Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Ferrer, have already qualified for the Tour Finals, which feature the season's top eight players, while Del Potro is fifth in the Race to London, just behind Ferrer, the report added.