Novak Djokovic overcame an apparent stomach injury to come from behind and reach the Western and Southern Open final with a 4-6 7-6 (7-5) 6-2 victory over Alexandr Dolgopolov.

The world number one fell a break down early in the first set and, after restoring parity, immediately lost again on his own serve to put Dolgopolov on the path to victory in the opener.

Djokovic then survived two break points in the first game of the second before receiving treatment on a problem that looked likely to threaten his involvement in the match, as well as his preparations for the US Open which gets under way on August 31.

But the Serb recovered and eventually came out on top in a tie-break that saw him initially go 3-0 down, as well as coming within two points of elimination.

World number 66 Dolgopolov's chance to clinch a memorable victory - and career first over Djokovic - looked to be slipping away and, at 5-1 down in the decider, his time was almost up.

The Ukrainian - who struggled with a foot injury during the third set - won a service game to bring the score back to 5-2, but Djokovic converted his third match point to seal a clash with Roger Federer or Andy Murray in Sunday's final.