Roger Federer suffered a stunning Wimbledon exit as the defending champion blew a two-set lead and wasted a match point in a 2-6, 6-7 (5/7), 7-5, 6-4, 13-11 quarter-final defeat against South Africa’s Kevin Anderson on Wednesday.

Federer’s bid to win a ninth Wimbledon title came to an astonishing end as the Swiss star collapsed in a nail-biting four hour and 13-minute classic that ranks as one of the tournament’s greatest upsets.

It was Federer’s earliest departure from Wimbledon since his shock second-round defeat against Sergiy Stakhovsky in 2013.

Eighth seed Anderson will play 2016 runner-up Milos Raonic or American ninth seed John Isner on Friday for a place in Sunday’s final.