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Gukesh Defuses Ding's 1.Nf3 Surprise As Game 4 Ends In Draw
Gukesh and Ding Liren make a draw in Game 4 in Singapore. Photo: Maria Emelianova/Chess.com.

Gukesh Defuses Ding's 1.Nf3 Surprise As Game 4 Ends In Draw

Colin_McGourty
Colin_McGourty
Staff
| 68 | Chess Event Coverage

World Champion Ding Liren was joined by GM Richard Rapport on the way to game four of the 2024 FIDE World Championship, and 1.Nf3 and the offbeat opening that followed felt right out of the Rapport playbook. GM Gukesh Dommaraju reacted quickly and calmly, however, and neutralized the position with active play. He even dreamed of being better, but the game ended in what seemed an inevitable draw when the players repeated moves and shook hands on move 42. That leaves the scores level at 2-2 with 10 games to go. 

Game five starts Saturday, November 30, at 4:00 a.m. ET / 10:00 CET /  2:30 p.m. IST / 5:00 p.m. local time in Singapore.

Match Score

Name Rating 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 Score
Ding Liren 2728 1 ½ 0 ½ . . . . . . . . . . 2
Gukesh Dommaraju 2783 0 ½ 1 ½ . . . . . . . . . . 2
How to watch the 2024 FIDE World Championship
You can watch the 2024 FIDE World Championship live on Chess.com/TV and on the Chess24 Twitch and YouTube channels, while GM Hikaru Nakamura is streaming on Kick. IM Andras Toth is analyzing the games in a Chessable course. 
Watch the live broadcast, hosted by GM Judit Polgar, GM Robert Hess, and John Sargent.
Gukesh and Ding are locked at 2-2 almost a third of the match played. Photo: Maria Emelianova/Chess.com.

Grandmaster Game Analysis, By GM Rafael Leitao

GM Rafael Leitao has analyzed game four of the match below.

The Rapport-Ding Dream Team Is Back

If there's one thing the current world championship match had been missing, it's Rapport and his wild T-shirts, which brightened up the 2023 match in Astana and ultimately helped Ding to the world championship crown. Ding's second had been spotted in the hotel, but it was only for round four that he walked with Ding to the game, with the shorts this time providing the color. 

Ding explained to FM Mike Klein after the game: "Last time he always accompanied me to the playing hall and welcomed me back after each game. Today, after the loss the last time, he came here to accompany me." 

It wasn't just Rapport who was spotted, however, but also 41-year-old Chinese GM Ni Hua, who Ding described as "a newcomer to my team." Why did he pick him? "Of course he comes up with many new ideas in the opening. Also he shares a lot of stories—he has a very good memory!"

He shares a lot of stories—he has a very good memory!

—Ding Liren on his second Ni Hua 

It was never pinned down exactly who had come up with the plan for game four.  

Ding Springs An Opening Surprise

Former Women's World Champion Xie Jun was also on hand to give Ding support. Photo: Maria Emelianova/Chess.com.
And five-time World Champion Vishy Anand made a ceremonial first move for Gukesh. Photo: Maria Emelianova/Chess.com.

So far, neither of the players is repeating moves in Singapore, with Ding switching from 1.e4 in game two to 1.Nf3 in game four, a move he only played once in the match against GM Ian Nepomniachtchi in the penultimate rapid playoff game. Of course, the third most common move for White is not going to shock anyone, but by move five, we'd left almost all games in the history of chess behind.

Ding would sum up the game in the press conference:

Since I had a rest day to recover from the tough loss, today I’m in a very good mood, and I chose this opening idea to try and surprise my opponent. It worked well, or not so bad, but the advantage is very, very small, and he neutralized my initiative. It was a very balanced game and a [well]-played game. 

It was good to see Ding back smiling after his loss in game three. Photo: Eng Chin An/FIDE.

Gukesh admitted he'd been surprised, commenting, "It was not a completely new line for me, I had seen it before somewhere, but it was a bit of a surprise and I was playing over-the-board from very early on, but I think I reacted well enough."

One of the places he might have seen the idea was in a game of his compatriot GM Vidit Gujrathi.

Ding explained what appealed to him about the opening: "This line is new to me, but with reversed colors it reminds me of some kind of Queen’s Indian—e6, b6, Nf6, and I have very good memories in the Queen’s Indian. I play White like Black, but a tempo up."

I play White like Black, but a tempo up. 

—Ding Liren 

Ding said he "tried to play it safe," but at the same time, he felt that his plan of pushing 11.b4 instead of a more standard plan of putting a pawn on d4 was taking some risks. 

Both players felt White gained some kind of advantage, but Gukesh would find a sharp way to react.    

Gukesh Counters And Ding Backs Down

Gukesh took over the momentum in the game, even if both players could be happy with a solid draw. Photo: Maria Emelianova/Chess.com.

The move that ultimately avoided any trouble for Gukesh was 13...Ne5!?. 

Ding admitted that he was surprised by the move since it allowed him to drive the knight away with f4. Gukesh explained that his idea was "basically trying to kick his knight with some b6, c5 at some point—it just felt like a good move, placing the knight in the center." He was happy to provoke f4 since he felt that "looked like a move which would turn out to be risky in the long run."

Ding came to the same conclusion as he went for 14.a4 instead, and after 14...Rc8 15.a5 we got 15...b6, a big move for that pawn!

It was also a key move in the game. GM Robert Hess, in his recap, described this as "probably the last moment the game could have had some fight in it."  

Both players saw that 16.f4?! here is dangerous due to 16...Nc4!, and if White takes on c4, he actually ends up significantly worse in the tactics that follow. This is where Ding decides to abandon his winning attempts for the day by bringing his knight back with 16.Nf3!?. At the press conference, he noted the computer might still point out some chances:

I thought maybe it’s time to settle for the draw. I didn’t see the way to press. Maybe the computer points out some great ideas, 16.Ba6 first, but I didn’t see it.

When Gukesh got to play d4 and force exchanges, it seemed we were hurtling toward a draw, but things wouldn't be quite so fast. 

Gukesh Shows Fischer-Like Ambition As He Delays Draw

In a pre-match interview Gukesh talked about how it was "a huge honor to be in the same sentence as Bobby Fischer," and so far he's done what Fischer did against GM Boris Spassky in 1972—beaten his opponent for the first time during the match.

In the post-game press conference after game four, he was asked which historical player he'd like to face, and answered Fischer, "He’s someone I really admire and I think it would be cool to play a game against him."

Gukesh seems to have Fischer-like levels of confidence. Photo: Eng Chin An/FIDE.

Gukesh was also asked if he believes in numerology, and whether he'd thought about becoming the 18th world champion at the age of 18, just as GM Garry Kasparov had become the 13th world champion after being born on April 13th. He responded: "I guess I should say I kind of believe more in Fischer’s quote—I believe in good moves!"

I believe more in Fischer's quote—I believe in good moves!

—Gukesh Dommaraju

One thing Gukesh seems to share with Fischer is huge ambition and optimism. Just as Fischer famously grabbed a pawn on h2, got his bishop trapped, and lost to Spassky in game one of the earlier match, Gukesh kept fighting to the end in game four in Singapore when almost everyone in the venue and beyond was certain we would get a fast draw. There were some crude blunders White could commit, but they were unlikely to be made by Ding, while 30...f5!? was verging on risky. 

The risk was especially real if you'd already released your recap of the game.

GM Judit Polgar said it was the kind of move she might have made herself, but that wasn't the same as giving it a whole-hearted vote of approval. 

In the post-game press conference, Gukesh talked about pushing, and even had some regrets ("Towards the end maybe I had some chances to press better, so with Black, this is all you can expect in a match,") but ultimately, there would be no Fischer-like drama. In the final simplified position, there was no way White could press for a win, and Ding accepted a draw by repetition.

The players exchange scoresheets after making a second draw. Photo: Maria Emelianova/Chess.com.

That leaves the match perfectly balanced at 2-2, with both players now set to have the white pieces once this weekend before the second rest day on Monday. Gukesh will be White on Saturday and will be looking to repeat his success in game three and take the lead in the match. Don't miss it!      

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The 2024 FIDE World Championship in Singapore decides the next world champion. 18-year-old Indian Challenger Gukesh Dommaraju takes on Chinese Defending Champion Ding Liren in a 14-game match, with the first to 7.5 points winning. The players have two hours for 40 moves, then 30 minutes to the end of the game, with 30 seconds added each move from move 41 onwards. The prize fund is $2,500,000, with $200,000 for a win and the remaining money split equally. If tied 7-7, a playoff will take place, starting with four games of 15+10 rapid chess.

Previous world championship coverage:

Colin_McGourty
Colin McGourty

Colin McGourty led news at Chess24 from its launch until it merged with Chess.com a decade later. An amateur player, he got into chess writing when he set up the website Chess in Translation after previously studying Slavic languages and literature in St. Andrews, Odesa, Oxford, and Krakow.

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