CM R14: Ding commits seppuku – Gukesh XVIIIth world champion at the age of 18!

12/12/2024 – Irritated by the fact that he hadn’t surprised his opponent in the opening and that the opposite had happened, Ding Liren decided to force a final in which he would have to defend the draw, revelling in a fast-moving final in which all the specialists saw him as the clear favorite. Fatigue and accumulated tension, not to mention the mental problems from which the Chinese player suffered the day after his victory at the last World Championship and which seemed to have disappeared after his surprise victory in the first round of the match – despite a relapse in the 11th round which was imperially repaired in the following round -, did not allow him to achieve this objective. The man who should never have become the 17th world champion, had it not been for politics and other improbable circumstances, relinquishes his title on a beginner’s mistake. At least he will have saved us from yet another world championship decided on the basis of fast games… | Photo: FIDE / Eng Chin An.