With the match tied at six points and a half and only one classical game left, nerves are strained to the limit. At this point, any mistake could be decisive, and both players are displaying remarkable composure under intense pressure.
Reigning World champion, GM Ding Liren from China, was on the verge of losing this afternoon. A mix of excellent defensive skills and a fair share of luck allowed him secure a much better outcome than expected. Let’s take a closer look at the game.
After greeting both players, FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich performed the ceremonial first move, playing 1.Nf3. Gukesh, however, quickly returned to g1 and opened the game with 1.e4, his choice for games one and five.
Ding took a moment to collect his thoughts and responded once again with 1…e6 – the French Defence, an opening that has worked fine for him in the match. Gukesh followed the same line as the first game, the Steinitz variation, but introduced a small modification on move five, playing 5.Nce2 instead of 5.f4, reflecting his team’s had work preparing new ideas.
Gukesh sprung a surprise on move seven with 7.a3. Ding spent more than fifteen minutes of his time trying to grasp the subtleties of the position. The move had been tried out before in a few master games, but never at the highest level.
“I was surprised. He played a move-order trick, I was confused, and I had to figure it out during the game. By delaying f2-f4 in some lines he will play f4 and in other lines he will play Nf3 and Nf4,” Ding explained in the press conference.
"This is Gukesh's preparation, his match strategy. He's been picking these off-beat rare lines," added GM David Howell in the commentary booth.
After eight moves, Ding had already used over fifty minutes of his time, while Gukesh spent less than a minute. A few moves later, the engines suggested a solid advantage for Gukesh after 12.Qg4 attacking the g7-pawn, but instead the challenger preferred to complete his development. “I briefly saw that 12.Qg4 was possible, but I didn’t think it was very strong. I thought that what I played was also very good,” he explained later.
After both opponents castled, Gukesh suddenly stopped to think. Co-commentator IM Jovanka Houska explained what was going on: “Black holds all the long-term trumps: if Gukesh doesn’t try to pose any problems, Ding is going to be better.”
“If somehow we could magically take the queens off the board, Black would undoubtedly have an advantage. Ding has the three-against-two queenside majority and Gukesh has a backward d-pawn: he has to go for the mate,” GM David Howell added.
After Gukesh transferred his knight to h5, threatening to swing over his queen to g4 and start an attack, Ding decided it was time to weaken his pawn structure but activate pieces and went for 15…f5.
At this point, five-time World Champion and FIDE Vice President GM Vishy Anand proclaimed: “There is about 60% chance that the match will go to the tie-breaks”.
The position remained more or less equal for a few more moves, with both players maneuvering to find the best squares for their pieces. With twenty moves to go to the time control, both players were in their last thirty minutes: time trouble was looming.
Gukesh kept pressuring on the board and on the clock and from the outside. Visibly nervous, Ding was trying to keep it together. After the game he admitted: “I also missed his excellent moves 19.Qe2 and 22.Bf4. He was able to gradually improve his position.”
Suddenly, Gukesh unexpectedly decided to trade off his dark-squared bishop for Ding’s knight, leaving his opponent with a bad bishop on c8 and some other pawn weaknesses. “This is a game of two results now: Ding is holding on, but he doesn’t seem to have any winning chances,” David Howell observed.
“He is so nervous visibly; he knows he is walking a tightrope” said Howell. Online, 30,000 chess fans were following the game on FIDE’s YouTube channel, holding their breaths. On X, GM Pavel Eljanov also chimed in.
With only six minutes for ten moves in a highly complex position, things looked very grim for Ding. Disaster struck on move thirty – Ding should have swapped his queen for Gukesh’s two rooks, with decent chances to hold the draw, but instead he played 30...Qf7, allowing Gukesh to win.
Put yourself in Gukesh’s shoes. Would you play 31.Ne4, angling for the d6 square or would you exchange rooks first?
The challenger missed a key defensive idea. “I thought I played quite a good game. When I played 31.Ne4 I missed his defense idea with 31…Rf8 and 32…Rc7. My initial intention was to exchange rooks first and only then Ne4, which should be winning,” he explained after the game.
Once both players reached the 40-move time control, there was not much they could do to unbalance the game. Ding took the practical decision to go into a rook ending a pawn down, but considered a technical draw and they signed the peace on move 68.
“I am quite tired after this long game. We will decide the strategy for the next game, which will be a golden game,” said Ding in the press conference. “I don’t think you will see a short draw tomorrow” were Ding’s final words before joining his team to prepare what might be his most important game of the year.
“It will be an important game, and I will try to do my best. As close as the match gets, it’s more exciting. My approach will be the same: to go with the same energy and just give it my best and see what happens,” Gukesh reflected after the game.
After thirteen of the fourteen scheduled classical games, the match is tied at 6.5 – 6.5. The final classical game will take place on Thursday, December 12, at 5 PM local time in Singapore, with Ding Liren playing White. If the game ends in a draw, the rapid tiebreaks will be held on Friday, December 13, at 5 PM.
FACT SHEET, Game 13, FIDE World Championship:
White: Gukesh D
Black: Ding Liren
Result: 0.5-0.5
Game length: 68 moves
Opening: French Defence
Variation: Steinitz Variation
Match score: 6.5–6.5
Although the FIDE World Championship takes central stage, the local organizers along with FIDE have arranged a wide range of side events for all the fans coming to Sentosa for the match.
The highlight of the day was the screening of the movie “FIDE 100: The Game is Just Beginning”, hosted by FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich. Following the screening, special awards were presented to several journalists, cameramen, and photographers who have contributed to promoting chess worldwide.
Written by IM Michael Rahal (Singapore)
Photos: Eng Chin An, Maria Emelianova and Singapore Open
Official website: worldchampionship.fide.com/
Full programme of side-events: worldchampionship.fide.com/events
About the event
Current World Champion Ding Liren, representing China, and challenger Gukesh D, from India, face each other in a fourteen-game classical chess match. The player who scores 7.5 points or more will win the match, picking up the better part of the $2.5 million total prize fund.
The first of the fourteen scheduled games took place on Monday, November 25 at 5 pm with Gukesh opening with White. Hosted at the luxurious Resorts World Sentosa the match is broadcast live with expert commentary on the FIDE YouTube Channel.
