FIDE World Chess Championship: Gukesh Overlooks Opportunities, Ding Makes a Comeback as Thrilling Game Concludes in a Stalemate

Singapore, Dec 4 (NationPress) For the second consecutive game, India's D. Gukesh was unable to leverage a substantial advantage, ultimately landing in a less favorable position as Game 8 concluded in a draw against reigning champion Ding Liren from China. Ding's strong and clever defense turned the tide in what can be described as a thrilling roller-coaster match at Resorts World Sentosa on Wednesday.

The match was intense throughout and will be remembered as one of the most exhilarating games in chess history. Both players presented alternatives in their strategies, but the game ended in a draw once again after Gukesh declined a draw by threefold repetition.

At one point, Gukesh, playing with the black pieces, had a significant positional and time advantage, making it appear that Ding was on the verge of defeat, similar to Game 7 from Tuesday. However, Ding executed a bold strategy, seizing the opportunity to reclaim the advantage. Despite having a slight edge, he proposed a draw by repeating moves, which the 18-year-old Indian player bravely turned down. The game persisted for over four and a half hours, culminating in a draw after 51 moves.

After eight games, both players remain tied at 4-4. Gukesh is likely feeling frustrated, having failed to convert promising positions into victories for the second consecutive match. This marks the fifth draw in the 14-game series, with the initial three encounters yielding two victories.

The game commenced with Gukesh in command.

Ding chose the English Opening, while the Indian challenger executed the first few moves at a rapid pace, introducing a new strategy (moving his pawn to the f6 square) on the seventh move. He continued to make quick moves, quickly gaining a 30-minute advantage over the reigning champion. Gukesh skillfully disrupted Ding's planned system, leading the Chinese player to spend increasingly more time on each move, resulting in Gukesh having double Ding's remaining time. A positional error by Ding, moving his rook to b1, caused his pieces to become somewhat precarious.

Before long, the 32-year-old Chinese player was down to just 16 minutes to complete 16 moves before the first time control, leading to rushed and poor decisions that worsened his position.

However, Gukesh also lost some of his advantage due to an inaccurate move that allowed Ding some leeway. The Chinese player then played ingeniously, opting for a risky sacrifice and making a king move that forced Gukesh into another suboptimal move, causing his lead to dissipate and his position to destabilize.

Gukesh made three consecutive weak moves from turns 26 to 28, shifting the advantage to Ding. He found himself in a precarious position, facing a deadly double pin on his knight and rook while having less than 10 minutes to execute 10 moves.

The pivotal moment of the game occurred on move 26. In a highly complicated scenario, Gukesh overlooked an opportunity to solidify his material lead. During the post-game conference, he expressed regret over his choice.

“Blocking with 26…Ndc5 (instead of 26…Nac5) seemed strange to me. I believed my move was winning, but I missed his pivotal move 28.Qe1, where 28…Nxd3 falls to 29.Qc3. Had I recognized this idea, I would have likely taken more time to consider my options. It was a tricky position, and he quickly identified these tactics – excellent defense by my opponent,” Gukesh remarked.

Ding continued to fortify his position, gaining an advantage as the Indian star from Chennai fought tenaciously from a disadvantaged stance. Yet, Ding faced challenges as Gukesh possessed two connected pawns on the a and b files that posed potential threats.

Ding Liren appeared satisfied with the outcome. “He outplayed me once again, but then he overlooked some critical details and allowed me back into the game,” the champion acknowledged.

The players managed to reach time control just in time. Although Ding had an exchange advantage, he presented an opportunity for a draw through repetition, which Gukesh declined, opting to continue despite the material imbalance and Ding's slight edge.

Ultimately, the game concluded in a draw after Ding executed a queen exchange, culminating in 51 moves.

Despite the outcome, Gukesh expressed satisfaction with his opening strategy: “I want to extend my congratulations to my team, especially my head coach (Grzegorz) Gajewski, and all the other coaches. They are doing an exceptional job, and I appreciate their innovative ideas,” he stated after the match.