JOIN USFederer came into the third round encounter seeking revenge on the Frenchman 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.
The venue may have changed but the result was the same, as Tsonga again proved stronger in the closing stages than the world number three, winning an entertaining contest packed with dazzling rallies that delighted a packed centre court crowd.
Federer's exit capped a surprising few days on the Canadian hardcourts with three of the world's top four failing to reach the quarterfinals. 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.
Djokovic, winner in 2007, continued to settle into his new role as world number one with a business-like 7-5, 6-2 third round victory over Croatian Marin Cilic that extended his season record to a spectacular 50-1.
Federer and Tsonga appeared on centre court wearing almost identical blue shirts and white shorts but their play was a dramatic contrast in styles, the silky smooth Swiss sparring with the beefy Frenchman.
French Open champion Li Na played like a "junior" while Vera Zvonareva, Maria Sharapova and Petra Kvitova were all also sent packing after rusty performances in the third round at the Toronto Cup.
Serena Williams emerged as a tournament favourite with a 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 win over Chinese qualifier Zheng Jie that puts her into the quarterfinal of a draw without 12 of its 16 seeded players.
Li, who had a first-round bye and a walkover in the second round after her opponent withdrew, looked out of sorts during a 2-6, 4-6 loss to number 10 seed Samantha Stosur.
Sharapova fell 3-6, 5-7 to 26-year-old Kazakhstani qualifier Galina Voskoboeva, who has become an upset specialist this week after having beaten three top 25 players en route to a berth in the quarterfinal.
In other action, third seed Zvonareva fell 4-6, 6-7 to Agnieszka Radwanska, Azarenka breezed by Spanish qualifier Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez 6-1, 6-2 and an inspired Roberta Vinci beat Ana Ivanovic 7-6, 6-2.