Sixth seed Marin Cilic moved into the final of the AEGON Championships at Queen's after beating 2010 champion Sam Querrey 6-3 3-6 6-3.
Cilic survived nine break points in the first set to move ahead, but Querrey broke his 6ft 6in opponent twice in the second in what was a match of poor quality thanks to windy conditions.
Cilic's power proved too much for the world number 77 in the end as the Croatian kept his composure to win the third set and set up his first Queen's Club final.
Cilic struggled to land his first serve during the opening stages of the match due to the wind, but Querrey failed to take advantage.
The American had nine break points in a 20-minute long third game, but he wasted them all and his opponent held to move 2-1 ahead.
The failure to break seemed to affect Querrey psychologically and Cilic earned three break points in the eighth game.
He needed just one as Querrey, now wearing a plaster on his right thumb after developing a blister, wastefully netted.
Cilic then clinched the set by holding to love, the winner coming in the form of a sweet passing forehand.
Cilic broke Querrey early in the second set when he went long with a forehand, but the Croatian broke back immediately to leave the set finely poised.
Querrey then seized the initiative in the following game, breaking his opponent to move 5-3 ahead before taking the set with a powerful ace in the following game.
Cilic hit back straight away, breaking Querrey at the beginning of the third set after the American double-faulted.
Querrey wasted a break point - his 13th of the match - in the seventh game but he earned another one after deuce and he took it when Cilic hit a woeful forehand long to put the set back on serve.
Cilic was back on top in the following game, however, after Querrey's decision to play a sliced drop from the back of the court backfired and the Croatian world number 25 had the break he needed for victory.
Serving for the match, Cilic buckled slightly, allowing the game to move to 30-30 but he recovered to clinch victory with a smart volley at the net after just under two hours play on centre court.
