He was said to be out of it, poorly recovered from the depression that plagued him after his hard-fought world title in 2023 against Ian Nepomniachtchi. But Ding Liren is still there, and never ceases to surprise chess aficionados. The world champion defends his title fiercely and has unsuspected resources at his disposal. He created a huge surprise by winning, with black, the first round of his confrontation with Dommaraju Gukesh, after 304 days without recording a single classical success. The emphasis was on the challenger’s young age and inexperience. The Indian came back to match the Chinese in the third game, and it looked as if he was going to take control of the proceedings.
But the rounds went on and on, and Gukesh never managed to outrun Ding. Several times he dominated, several times he had the advantage, sometimes benefiting from the incredible blunders of the Chinese who regularly battled with the clock, to no avail. On several occasions he came close to crashing, but Ding Liren, who alternates between strokes of genius and unexplained absences, always managed to get back on his feet. Beaten in 11e round, he reacted immediately to equalize in the 12th. This Wednesday, he once again flirted dangerously with the void before restoring the situation and securing a share of the points. A real miracle, as Gukesh seemed to have found an advantageous position.
For his part, Gukesh was seething inside. If he remains phlegmatic, it’s hard to imagine that the Indian isn’t infuriated by stumbling day after day over his opponent’s incredible resilience. The two men are at 6.5-6.5. Before a possible tie-break where the pressure of the clock will be increased tenfold, he has one last classic game left to become the youngest world champion in history. But it’s Ding Liren who will have the whites. Advantage to the Chinese? ” You won’t see a fast draw tomorrow (Thursday)”, he warned…
