Peter Ebdon produced a remarkable comeback to snatch victory from Matthew Stevens in a thrilling semi-final at The Crucible.

Ebdon came back from 14-16 down to edge out his Welsh opponent 17-16 and reach his second Embassy World Championship final.

"I'd just like to say that Matt is an outstanding player," Ebdon said.

"I'd love to see him in the final. He's one of the nicest guys on the tour and it's a shame there had to be a loser today."

The danger looked minimal for the Welshman but Ebdon bravely took on and potted a difficult pink, when a miss would have almost certainly handed victory to Stevens.

Ebdon suddenly found the inspiration which had been lacking earlier in the evening and cleared the table to drag himself back into the match.

He followed that with a 138 break to pull level and the match came down to the final frame, with Stevens looking shell-shocked.

A confident 55 break looked to have clinched it for Ebdon, but though Stevens fought back, he was unable to recover.

"I can't believe I won," Ebdon said. "I won a few frames I shouldn't have done.

"I feel sorry for Matt because I know how he feels right now.

"That was certainly the best match I've ever been involved in."

Ebdon now goes on to face Stephen Hendry for the title in a repeat of the 1996 final which the Scot won 18-12.