There is still nothing to separate between D Gukesh and Ding Liren in the World Chess Championship 2024. Round 9 saw both the ace grand masters settle down with a draw after 54 moves with just bare kings left on the board. As things stand, both the grand masters are now left tied at 4.5-4.5 each, after 9 rounds.
Another Draw!
The duo will get a rest day on 6th December and will resume their fight for the World Championship on 7th December. In was Ling Diren the defending World Champion who showcased why he is the best in the world with his defensive skills. Playing this game with the black pieces, he fended off all attempts by Gukesh.
Gukesh fails to capitalize
Gukesh had the golden opportunity in the game to grab full points against his formidable opponent. But the Indian youngster failed to make the best of his moves. Starting with the white, in the middle of the game he was in a comfortable position with around an hour to spare. On the other hand, Ling Diren had almost half of his time remaining. But eventually, in the end, both had to settle for a draw.
Bare Kings left after 54 moves
At the 40th move, it was expected that the game would be going for a draw. But both the ace grandmasters continued to battle against each other. With time ticking by it was a last dash by both to fluster the other. But it eventually didn’t yield anything as both the players were left with bare Kings after 54 moves.
“In the last few games I have managed to play very good chess, for me the main thing will be to just go there with the same energy, play same level of chess I’m playing and slightly improve on some critical moments,” Gukesh said after Round 9 in Singapore.
Complete results list
- Round 1: Liren started his title defence with a strong performance, defeating Gukesh with black pieces in the opening round.
- Round 2: Gukesh and Ding played a lacklustre draw in the second round.
- Round 3: Gukesh bounced back, securing a win with white pieces to level the score.
- Rounds 4, 5, 6: The next three rounds ended in draws, with both players adopting a cautious approach.
- Round 7: Despite Gukesh having a notable time advantage early on, Ding rallied to stop the Indian Grand Master from taking the lead.
- Round 8: Gukesh pulled off a draw to keep the scores tied. Despite being in an uncomfortable position, Ding Liren pulled off a draw after 51 moves.
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