Marathon man Isner out as Belgians set up clash

Exhausted record-breaker John Isner was knocked out of Wimbledon in straight sets yesterday as Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin set up a fourth-round clash of the Belgian comeback queens.

Later in the day, defending champion Roger Federer swept into the fourth round with a 6-2, 6-4, 6-2 win over France's Arnaud Clement.

Isner dragged his battered body back to the All England Club after his epic, record-shattering encounter with French qualifier Nicolas Mahut.

The American 23rd seed was clearly feeling the strain, losing his second round match 6-0, 6-3, 6-2 to Thiemo de Bakker of the Netherlands.

Less than 20 hours earlier, Isner eventually defeated Mahut 6-4, 3-6, 6-7, 7-6, 70-68 after 11 hours and five minutes and an incredible 183 games, comfortably breaking the longest match record for games and duration.

Drained Isner had rained down a world record 112 aces against Mahut but could not even muster one against De Bakker.

Meanwhile, Belgian duo Clijsters and Henin set up a fourth-round encounter after they both saw off Russian seeds in straight sets.

The former world number ones have unfinished business at the All England Club, where they are both seeking to add the Wimbledon crown to their already impressive list of titles after coming out of retirement.

On Clijsters' last appearance at Wimbledon in 2006, she was beaten by Henin in the semi-finals.

Clijsters brushed aside Maria Kirilenko 6-3, 6-3 on Court Two. Henin made her first appearance back on Centre Court since coming out of retirement. She last contested Wimbledon in 2007. She defeated 12th seed Nadia Petrova 6-1, 6-4.

Federer had dropped three sets during unusually sloppy displays against unheralded pair Alejandro Falla and Ilija Bozoljac in the previous two rounds at the All England Club.

But the Swiss top seed was back in the groove on Centre Court as he gave a sublime display to set up a clash with Austrian 16th seed Jurgen Melzer at the start of next week.

The six-time champion was unstoppable as he reeled off a series of almost contemptuous winners past Clement to break twice and book his place in the last 16 in one hour and 35 minutes.

Elsewhere, five-times Wimbledon champion Venus Williams saw off another Russian seed, Alisa Kleybanova, 6-4, 6-2. She faces Australia's in-form Jarmila Groth in round four.

Serbian men's third seed Novak Djokovic saw off Spain's Albert Montanes, the 28th seed, in straight sets. He next faces Australia's 2002 Wimbledon winner Lleyton Hewitt, who beat Gael Monfils, also in straight sets.

In the women's draw, Serbian fourth seed Jelena Jankovic beat Ukraine's 28th-seeded Alona Bondarenko 6-0, 6-3. She has reached the Wimbledon fourth round three times before but has never made the quarter-finals.

French 11th seed Marion Bartoli, the beaten finalist in 2007, went through, as did fellow seed Vera Zvonareva of Russia and Bulgaria's Tsvetana Pironkova.