China's Wu Yize produced a stunning late comeback to edge Northern Ireland's Mark Allen 17–16 in a classic semifinal at the Crucible Theatre on Saturday, becoming only the third Chinese player to reach the World Snooker Championship final.

The contest was finely balanced throughout, with the score tied 10 times in a gripping battle that swung both ways. Frame 14 alone lasted more than 100 minutes – the longest in Crucible history – underlining the tension on display.

Wu, 22, trailed 16–14 after 30 frames but remained resilient. A composed break of 67 in the 31st kept his hopes alive and set up a dramatic finish.

Under immense pressure in frame 32, Wu made 52 before failing to pot a red into the bottom corner. Allen pounced and looked set to seal a long-awaited first world final appearance when he brilliantly cut in a long pink and landed perfectly on the black.

However, with the finish line in sight, the black rattled in the jaws and stayed out. Wu seized the lifeline, calmly knocking in the black to force a decider.

"You don't deserve to be in the world final if you're missing balls like that," Allen admitted. "That was just pure pressure to be honest. I normally handle those moments well, but not today."

The drama wasn't over. Allen responded with a solid 47 in the final frame, only for fortune to turn against him again as a split of the pack left him without a red. After a couple of missed chances, Wu stepped in and produced a superb match-winning clearance of 71 to complete the turnaround.

"It's incredible," Wu said. "I'm still trying to wrap my head around it. I came so close to losing, but somehow won in the end. I've never experienced anything like this before – that's the beauty of sport."

Wu will now face England's Shaun Murphy, the 2005 world champion, in the final.