Ding Liren returned to the game with a victory with the whites against D Gukesh in game 12 of the FIDE World Chess Championship 2024. After a demoralising defeat in game 11, the reigning world champion proved his worth with a masterfully accurate game to finish 6-6 in the overall draw.
The championship heads into a rest day tomorrow, after which the last two matches will decide the fate of the championship. A win for either player would virtually guarantee the title, or we will head to the play-off after game 14. However, game 12 was all about Ding’s recovery in the competition, just as he did on his way to becoming world champion in 2023 against Ian Nepomniachtchi.
With high expectations of having prepared a surprise for Gukesh, Ding opted for the English opening with c4, while Gukesh responded with the Agincourt defence (e6). Ding immediately gave it some thought, taking 3 minutes to move the pawn to g3. The opening moved from the Agincourt defence to the neo-Catalan defence on the fourth move.
Until move 7, the line that had been taken was exactly that between Richard Rapport and Ni Hua in 2019, who are Ding’s seconds in Singapore. As the game progressed, Gukesh thought about it for the first time at move 10 (h6, 15 minutes), making the game a first.
Both players took their time with their next moves, while calculating lines that gave Ding a slight advantage. The pawn moving to d4 was considered the main threat, and it happened at move 18 of the game, which came after a long deliberation by Ding at move 17. It was a precise move that the engines loved, giving Ding a major advantage.
As the players approached time control on a level playing field, Gukesh was aware of the squeeze but continued to play conservative moves, until a small inaccuracy on move 22 (bishop on g5) gave Ding a major advantage. The world champion’s demeanour became much more confident as he watched his way back into the game after yesterday’s defeat.
Even as the clock was ticking, Ding played another very precise move (knight to f4) that increased his advantage. Gukesh’s time was reduced as he tried to get out of a difficult position, with Ding always responding with precise moves, trapping all of Gukesh’s key pieces.
The Indian continued to play bravely, but with Ding suffocating his pieces at every turn, the world champion went up by two pawns as they approached time control and move 40. It ended at move 39, when Ding checked with his rook and Gukesh had no choice but to give up. The Indian was visibly dejected, his head in his hands as he took a moment to compose himself, grappling with being outclassed by Ding, who had scored his first victory with white.
Reflecting on the result on the Chessbase India stream, Viswanathan Anand noted that both players need the day off tomorrow, saying ‘We are back to draws, but it is different from two draws. They have both been on a rollercoaster, they will both collapse on the rest day and hopefully come back ready for more. They will really need the rest day tomorrow, but Ding will sleep well tonight’.
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