D Gukesh Vs Ding Liren, FIDE World Chess C'ship 2024 Game 1 Highlights: Chinese Shreds Indian Defense, Claims First Win

The D Gukesh vs Ding Liren, FIDE World Chess Championship 2024 match will be played between November 25 and December 13 at the Resorts World Sentosa in Singapore.

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The weight of expectations sits lightly on his teenaged shoulders and Grandmaster D Gukesh would bank heavily on his calm mind when he takes on Chinese Ding Liren in the World Championship showdown beginning in Singapore on Monday, aiming to become the first Indian after Viswanathan Anand to win the coveted title.

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Gukesh and Ding have locked horns thrice in classical time control matches so far, out of which Ding has won twice with black. Their last match at the Sinquefield Cup was a draw.

For more on this and the prediction, read it HERE

The total prize money on offer for the Gukesh vs Liren match is around $2.5 million (approx. INR 20.8 crore).

Just as cricket and football have an umpire and referee, respectively, Chess have an arbiter, to manage a chess game.

According to the FIDE Arbiters' Commission's, an arbiter has four main responsibilities:

• Ensure that laws of chess (rules) are followed

• Prevent cheating

• Act in the “best interest of the competition”

• Observe the individual games

As of now, there is no clear indication as to who is Gukesh’s seconds ahead of the World Chess Championship 2024. Gukesh enlisted Paddy Upton to his team to strengthen his mental game for the upcoming showdown.

As for Ding Liren, the Chinese has revealed Richard Rapport as his second for battle vs Gukesh.

Arjun Erigaisi has provided an 'important advice' for D Gukesh ahead of the game 1.

"If I were Gukesh, I would not think that I am a huge favourite. I would just try to focus on my preparation and everything. And, I am sure, Gukesh is also doing the same," said Erigaisi, who earned the title of GM as a 14-year-old and achieved a peak rating of 2799 in September this year, making him the 15th-highest-rated player in history.

We are minutes away from the big, titular clash between Ding Liren and D Gukesh.

Till then, here's what Magnus Carlsen had to say ahead of the big match.

"I'm not going to have anything particularly unique to say about the match. Based on the current form, Gukesh is a significant favourite," Carlsen said on Friday after winning the TATA Steel Chess India Rapid tournament in Kolkata.

Game 1 - November 25, 2024 - Monday 

Game 2 - November 26, 2024 - Tuesday 

Game 3 - November 27, 2024 - Wednesday 

Rest Day - November 28, 2024 - Thursday 

Game 4 - November 29, 2024 - Friday 

Game 5 - November 30, 2024 - Saturday 

Game 6 - December 1, 2024 - Sunday 

Rest Day - December 2, 2024 - Monday 

Game 7 - December 3, 2024 - Tuesday 

Game 8 - December 4, 2024 - Wednesday 

Game 9 - December 5, 2024 - Thursday 

Rest Day - December 6, 2024 - Friday 

Game 10 - December 7, 2024 - Saturday 

Game 11 - December 8, 2024 - Sunday 

Game 12 - December 9, 2024 - Monday 

Rest Day - December 10, 2024 - Tuesday 

Game 13 - December 11, 2024 - Wednesday 

Game 14 - December 12, 2024 - Thursday 

Tie-breaks (If needed) - December 13, 2024 - Wednesday

D Gukesh, Indian grandmaster, is being introduced first and enters the match room.

Demis Hassabis, CEO of DeepMind Technologies, made the first move for Gukesh. Talking about him, Hassabis was handed a Nobel Prize this year for his work with proteins.

And here comes, the reigning world champion, Ding Liren.

After all the pre-game events that include two mascots of India-origin, American chess player Maurice says, let the game BEGIN!

Chinese GM Ding Liren makes the first move in the mouth-watering clash against D Gukesh in Singapore. Indian chess player Tania Sachdev, on ChessBase, says Ding isn't looking 'super confident' in this clash. Interesting opinion.

IA Abd Hamid Abd Majid is arbiter for the game 1 between Gukesh and Liren.

Here are the first few moves:

1 e4 e6
2 d4 d5
3 Nc3 Nf

Ding Liren has not made any move.

So speaking on the time control, there are 120 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by 60 minutes for the next 20 moves and then 15 minutes for the rest of the game with an increment of 30 seconds per move starting on move 61.

Gukesh makes an aggressive move, pushing his g-file pawn to the 4th rank. This sets the stage for a likely follow-up with f5, aiming to break open the center and accelerate the pace of the game. Such a plan could lead to a quick unraveling of the position, adding pressure on Ding Liren as he decides on his next move.

Here are the moves played so far:

1. e4 (White) e6 (Black)

2. d4 - d5

3. c3 - f6

4. e5 - fd7

5. f4 - c5

6. ce2 - c6

7. c3 - a5

8. f3 - a4

9. e3 - e7

10. g4

The World Champion, Ding Liren, is now trailing Gukesh’s notably rapid pace by over 40 minutes. This time disparity could become a critical factor later in the game. Ding’s body language, as always, reveals little, offering no hint of confidence or concern, a hallmark of his composed demeanor.

India’s D Gukesh is playing with the white pieces against reigning champion China’s Ding Liren in the opening round of the FIDE World Chess Championship 2024 on Monday.

Ding finally gets his queen out to a5 after a long think, and his clock shows 1:11:11, got to love those repeating numbers.

For the first time, Gukesh slows down, eyes closed, deep in thought, running through the kind of calculations only grandmasters can manage. Ding, looking a bit more relaxed now, stares across the board, trying to figure out what Gukesh is up to.

Last Three Moves

10. g4 (white) - a5 (black)

11. g2- a3

12. b3 - cxd4

Gukesh moved his white bishop to g2, and Ding responded by advancing his a-pawn. This started a series of moves, with Ding eventually capturing Gukesh’s d-pawn. Gukesh then forced Ding’s queen back to c7 and took the c-pawn Ding had used to capture his own.

At this point, Ding has less than an hour left on the clock, with 52 minutes remaining, while Gukesh has about 90 minutes.

The last few moves were:
12. b3 - cxd4
13. b4 - c7
14. exd4 - b6

And things are heating up now.

Gukesh castles, moving his king to g1, and Ding quickly strikes with a knight to c4, forcing Gukesh’s bishop to retreat. But Gukesh isn’t fazed, he responds by advancing his white bishop to d7.

Last Three Moves

14. exd4 (white) - b6 (black)

15. O-O - c4

16. f2 - d7

Gukesh continues to hold onto his time advantage, with 1 hour and 20 minutes remaining on the clock. Meanwhile, Ding is running low on time, with only 36 minutes left to make his moves.

Ding has 36:28 left to make 14 more moves, while Gukesh has just entered his final hour with 59 minutes on the clock. Both positions are looking solid, but Gukesh is holding a huge time advantage, could that make all the difference?

Last Three Moves

17. e2 - xd4

18. xd4 - b2

19. e3 - c8

Gukesh is taking his sweet time

He plays it safe, moving his queen to e2. Ding, on the other hand, decides to trade knights, capturing one off d4. With Gukesh’s other knight on f3, the exchange is pretty much set.

Then Gukesh takes a quick bathroom break, and suddenly, the time gap shrinks to just about ten minutes. Back at the board, Gukesh makes the expected knight trade, and Ding moves his last knight to b2. Gukesh steps his queen up to e3.

With 38 minutes left for Gukesh and 33:20 for Ding, the game’s getting even more intense as Ding shifts his rook to c8.

Last Two Moves

20. ac1(white) - c4 (black)

21. f5 - d3

For the first time in this match, Gukesh finds himself behind on the clock. He's taking a moment to plan his endgame strategy, and wow, he’s going for it! He advances his f-pawn to f5, seemingly setting up for a checkmate.

But Ding is ready to counter. With confidence, he moves his queen right alongside Gukesh’s at d3.

This is why Ding's the world champion! Not only is he on the attack, but he’s also in the lead on time, with 32:02 left, while Gukesh is down to 29 minutes and ticking. The pressure’s on.

Ding is on fire now. Gukesh plays rook to c2, but Ding instantly fires back, moving his rook to c4. He’s picking up speed, leaving Gukesh scrambling. Will the young Indian go on the attack, or will he play it safe and hold his ground?

Ding has 29:51 remaining, while Gukesh is down to just 22:30 and ticking. Gukesh has his head in his hands, something we haven’t seen from him this whole game.

22. e1 - g5

23. c2 - c4

Gukesh shifts his queen to b1, forcing Ding to take a moment and reassess his position.

24. h4 - f4

25. b1 - xc3

Gukesh's accuracy has slipped to 92.7, while Ding has kept his at a steady 97.1. The young Indian now has just 12 minutes left to make the next 13 moves.

26. xc3 - xc3

27. fxe6 - fxe6

28. e2 - xe5

29. xf4 - xf4

30. c2

Gukesh shifts his queen to c2, playing a defensive move, and now Ding has multiple options to consider. It's a crucial moment for Ding, will he have the confidence to take control of the game?

While Gukesh is still in the game with opportunities of his own, Ding is pausing to think carefully about his next move. The clock is ticking for him, he’s down to 15:10, while Gukesh is in a more precarious position with just 4:27 remaining. The tension is building!

30. c2 - c4

31. d2 - O-O

32. d4 - d3

Gukesh has just 46 seconds left to make seven moves after shifting his queen to e3. Ding, on the other hand, still has six minutes remaining, which feels like a lot of time given the current situation.

35. xe5 - xg4+

36. g2 - f5

37. g3 - e4

38. h2 - h6

39. h3 - d1

40. d6 - c2+

Gukesh is putting up a brave defense, but Ding is closing in for the finish. With just one second left on the clock, Gukesh manages to make his 40th move just in time. Ding still has two minutes to play his final move.

Gukesh’s quick decision has left him in a tough spot, and with only a minute remaining, Ding delivers the first check. Gukesh holds his ground, and the game resets the clocks, giving each player another 30 minutes.

Gukesh offers a handshake, acknowledging the inevitability of the situation, and DING LIREN CLAIMS VICTORY. This marks the first time in 14 years that Game 1 has ended with a result, and Ding Liren begins his title defense with a statement performance.

Gukesh resigns on the 42nd move, giving defending champion Ding Liren a 1-0 lead over the Indian challenger. This marks Ding's first win in 304 days.

1.e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e5 Nfd7 5. f4 c5 6. Nce2 Nc6 7. c3 a5 8. Nf3 a4 9. Be3 Be7 10. g4 Qa5 11. Bg2 a3 12. b3 cxd4 13. b4 Qc7 14. Nexd4 Nb6 15. O-O Nc4 16. Bf2 Bd7 17. Qe2 Nxd4 18. Nxd4 Nb2 19. Qe3 Rc8 20. Rac1 Qc4 21. f5 Qd3 22. Qe1 Bg5 23. Rc2 Rc4 24. h4 Bf4 25. Qb1 Rxc3 26. Rxc3 Qxc3 27. fxe6 fxe6 28. Ne2 Qxe5 29. Nxf4 Qxf4 30. Qc2 Qc4 31. Qd2 O-O 32. Bd4 Nd3 33. Qe3 Rxf1+ 34. Bxf1 e5 35. Bxe5 Qxg4+ 36. Bg2 Bf5 37. Bg3 Be4 38. Kh2 h6 39. Bh3 Qd1 40. Bd6 Qc2+ 41. Kg3 Qxa2 42. Be6+ Kh8

When asked how this loss affects his game plan, Gukesh responds, "The game plan stays the same. I’ll approach each game with the same energy and make the best moves based on the position," maintaining a calm and focused expression.

Game 2 - November 26, 2024 - Tuesday  at 2:30 pm IST.

That’s all for this match. We’ll catch you soon with the next one. Until then, take care and goodbye.