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Roger Federer lost his first set of the tournament but still managed to conjure a comfortable 6-3 6-2 6-7 6-1 victory over Germany's Philipp Kohlschreiber at Wimbledon.

The 27th seed was meant to provide a stern test for Federer after disposing of Novak Djokovic at the French Open last month but the gulf in class was immediate as the Swiss maestro opened up a one-set lead in just 37 minutes.

The second was in the bag 30 minutes later but the German rallied from 2-0 down in the third to take it to a tiebreak which he won with a wonderful angled backhand 7-5.

Federer snuffed out the rising threat by racing to a 3-0 lead in the fourth and finally booked a fourth-round berth with a thunderous forehand winner.

The five-times Wimbledon champion set up a repeat of the French Open final with Swedish 13th seed Robin Soderling, who beat Spaniard Nicolas Almagro 7-6(7) 6-4 6-4.

Ninth seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France could find no solution to the problem of Ivo Karlovic's massive serve as the Croatian ran out a 7-6(5) 6-7(5) 7-5 7-6(5) winner on Court One.

Tsonga failed to create a single break point against the 2.08 metre player from Zagreb, who blasted 46 aces and has this week spectacularly broken a run of four successive first-round exits at the All England Club.

After sharing the first two sets with tiebreaks, Karlovic carved out the match's only break in the 12th game of the third set to give him the initiative and he clinched the fourth set breaker 7-5 with his final ace after two hours and 44 minutes.

He will next play seventh seed Fernando Verdasco, after the Spaniard recovered from a set down to beat compatriot and 32nd seed Nicolas Almagro 4-6 6-1 6-4 7-6(2).

Fourth seed Novak Djokovic made serene progress into the fourth round at Wimbledon with a 6-4 6-4 6-4 win over American Mardy Fish.

The Serbian, who made a shock exit in round two 12 months ago, seems to be peaking at the right time and barely put a foot wrong in a match lasting just under two hours.

Djokovic, largely ignored so far amid all the hype over a possible Federer-Andy Murray final, fired an unreturnable serve to win the match then threw his wristbands into the crowd.

The 2008 Australian Open champion next faces Dudi Sela, who became the first Israeli to reach the last 16 of a Grand Slam since Amos Mansdorf at the Australian Open in 1992.

Sela recorded the win of his career when he battled past Spain's 15th seed Tommy Robredo 7-6(8) 7-5 2-6 7-5.

Croatian 12th seed Marin Cilic was locked in an epic battle with 24th seed Tommy Haas when play was suspended at 9:36pm due to lack of light.

Haas took the first two sets before Cilic hit back to level the match, and play was eventually suspended with the score at 5-7 5-7 6-1 7-6(3) 6-6.

The winner of that clash will face either Russian 29th seed Igor Andreev or Italian Andreas Seppi, with that match also being suspended due to lack of light, with the Russian leading 6-1 7-6(5) 4-6 5-5.

Reuters