The Australian was a set and 4-2 down in the second set tie-break before rallying to win 4-6 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 in cool, windy conditions in Eastbourne on Thursday.
Stosur battled in the gusty conditions on the English south coast early on before fighting her way to victory in two hours and 48 minutes against the world No.3.
News that makes sense
Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox.
The third grand slam event of the year starts on Monday.
Stosur's result sets up her third semi-final appearance at Devonshire Park, she will meet another former Wimbledon finalist in Frenchwoman Marion Bartoli on Friday.
It was Stosur's seventh straight win over Zvonareva, the Russian coming off a three hour plus epic against Serena Williams only 24 hours before hand.
"It was very tough conditions. Very, very windy but considering that I think we both played pretty well," said Stosur.
"It is always nice to win matches in a lead-up tournament before a grand slam, these three matches have been good. So win or lose tomorrow, I will be feeling very good going into Wimby."
Stosur struggled throughout the match with her ball toss on serve but managed to find a way to carve out the win in the challenging conditions.
The Queenslander has appeared to have shaken off the disappointment from her shock third round exit at the French Open last month.
She has tried to use the extra time to tighten up her game on grass and looked in decent touch in Eastbourne this week.
Grass has tended to be Stosur's weakest surface, she has only reached third round once at Wimbledon in eight visits.
