Stanislas Wawrinka has suffered defeat at the third-round stage of the Paris Masters, having fallen in three sets to Kevin Anderson.
The third seed, who has already safely qualified for next month's World Tour Finals in London, was edged out 7-6(2) 5-7 6-7(3) this afternoon.
Both men held their serve in the opening set which ensured that a tie-break would be needed to separate them, with Wawrinka holding his nerve to take an early advantage in the match.
The second looked to be heading a similar way as the two held serve once more, although Wawrinka lost his service game in the 12th game to see the contest levelled up overall.
Anderson prevailed in the decider when he came out on top in the tie, having already squandered two match points to end the contest.
It was not to matter, though, with the South African now poised to meet either Tomas Berdych or Feliciano Lopez in the quarter-finals.
Daniel Lewis
