Novak Djokovic eased past second-seeded Grigor Dimitrov at Queen's Club with a 6-4, 6-1 win on Thursday.
Former top-ranked Djokovic, who accepted a wild card into the Wimbledon warmup tournament, had little trouble against the 2014 champion and advanced to the quarterfinals.
Djokovic won the last of his 12 Grand Slam trophies at the French Open in 2016 and has battled motivation and injury issues, but he looks confident ahead of next month's Wimbledon.
Djokovic defeated the fifth-ranked player for the seventh time in eight ATP Tour meetings, taking just over an hour to get the result as he claimed eight of the final nine games.
"I'm still finding my form," Djokovic said. "This was a great test, playing against one of the top players in the world, a player that prefers this surface the most."
The 12-time grand slam champion will face Adrian Mannarino, who saw off Julien Benneteau 7-6 (7-4) 6-3, in the in the quarter-finals.
Djokovic uncharacteristically made three double faults in the same game but he went on to wrap up the win via deuce.
The former world No 1 then explained how he felt the pressure crank up on Centre Court before he booked his place in the last eight.
“I am what I am, that’s all I can say,” Djokovic said.
“I made three double faults in the last game when I was serving with new balls, which is usually easier.
“Serving at 5-1 I made it stressful for myself but I am glad that I have managed to close it off.”
Djokovic only returned from injury this year but he is building some good momentum heading into Wimbledon next month.
And he is delighted with his own performances in west London.
“I would have taken that before the match, definitely,” he added.
“He made some crucial double faults today which handed me the set and he loves playing on grass.
“He is a great quality player and has had a lot of success here.
“So being able to get the first set under my belt gave me a huge confidence booster.”
