Cilic dethrones Youzhny in Zagreb
Top seed Marin Cilic remained on course to win his third PBZ Zagreb Indoors title after knocking out defending champion Mikhail Youzhny in the semi-finals.
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Russian Youzhny was victorious in both the singles and doubles tournaments here last year but his bid to retain his crown came to an end following a hard-fought three-set clash with home favourite Cilic.
Youzhny, the third seed, won the opening set but Cilic hit back to clinch the match 4-6 6-4 6-3 in two hours and 29 minutes to take a step closer to reclaiming the title he won in 2009 and 2010.
Standing in his way is fourth-seeded Austrian Jurgen Melzer, who progressed through to Sunday's final with a 7-6 (7/2) 6-3 victory over Dutchman Robin Haase.
Cilic has won six of his eight previous ATP clashes with Melzer.
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