Federer pulls out of Montreal

Montreal, QC – On the heels of three straight surprising early tournament exits, struggling legend Roger Federer pulled out of next week Rogers Cup Masters event in Montreal.

The former world No. 1 did not give a reason for his withdrawal.

"I am disappointed not to be playing in Montreal next week," Federer said in a statement. "It is a great tournament with amazing fans. I look forward to competing there in the future."

The 17-time Grand Slam king captured the Rogers Cup in 2004 and 2006 and lost to Novak Djokovic in the 2007 finale in Montreal and Andy Murray in the 2010 final in Toronto, as this event shifts between Montreal and Toronto each year.

The 31-year-old Federer was shocked by 116th-ranked Sergiy Stakhovsky in the second round at Wimbledon last month, then gave way to world No. 114 Federico Delbonis in a semifinal in Hamburg, and succumbed to 55th-ranked German Daniel Brands in his opening match last week in Gstaad.

The world No. 5 star dropped out of the top four for the first time in 10 years last month.