Novak Djokovic battled back from a set down to defeat top seed Alexander Zverev and book his place in the China Open semi-finals.

The 39-year-old Serbian triumphed 4-6 6-4 6-4 against world number two Zverev and will play Daniil Medvedev in the last four.

Djokovic's victory over Zverev dented the German's quest to finish the year as the world's number one-ranked player.

"These are the kind of moments that I still play for, compete for," Djokovic said.

"The motivation is big when you are feeling good and competing at par with the best players in the world in front of 15,000 people.

"These are the kind of moments that define dreams, I think, of every tennis player."

In their first meeting in just under 16 months, Djokovic initially struggled to handle Zverev's power, and the 29-year-old secured the first set after capitalising on a break in the first game.

However, Djokovic managed to work his way back into the contest, and the 24-time Grand Slam winner seized an opportunity with a break at 5-4 in the second set to level the match.

Little separated the pair in the third set, but the veteran struck again at 5-4 on Zverev's serve to clinically seal victory.

It took Djokovic's unbeaten tally in Beijing to 32 matches as he moved a step closer to a seventh China Open title and a first trophy of what has been a difficult 2026, with form and fitness proving challenging.

"It's been a struggle this year for different reasons," Djokovic added.

"But I'm still there, still grinding, still making the youngsters work for their money. I'm just glad to push it through."

Djokovic will face third seed Medvedev, who earlier overcame Francisco Cerundolo 7-6 (7-4) 6-3, on Monday.

Poland's Hubert Hurkacz also progressed to the semi-finals with a 7-6 (7-2) 6-2 win over Karen Khachanov.

He will play Australia's Alex de Minaur who was off the pace in the first set against Andrey Rublev before he stepped up to record a 1-6 6-2 6-3 victory.