US Open finalist Anderson falls to Edmund in Aussie Open 1st round

MELBOURNE - U.S. Open finalist Kevin Anderson has lost in five sets to Kyle Edmund on Show Court 3, the first seeded man to lose at the Australian Open.

The 11th-seeded Anderson twice led by a set but couldn't fend off Edmund, who got the decisive break in the seventh game of the fifth set and served out at love for a 6-7 (4), 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 win.

It was the only meeting since Anderson beat Edmund in five sets in the third round of the French Open.

Edmund, the only British man in the draw after Andy Murray withdrew to have surgery on his injured right hip, had one just once in his previous 12 matches against top 20 opposition.

Anderson warmed up for the first major of the season by reaching the final of the ATP event at Pune. Edmund lost a quarterfinal to Grigor Dimitrov at the Brisbane International and withdrew from the ATP event in Auckland, New Zealand, with a right ankle strain.