 "FIDE WCC Game 4: D Gukesh and Ding Liren settle for a 42-move draw")
India’s 18-year-old chess grandmaster Dommaraju Gukesh once again faltered after a strong start in Game 4 of the ongoing 14-game series of the FIDE World Chess Championship final on Friday, November 30. The reigning world champion, China’s Ding Liren, forced another draw to level the score at 2-2. Both competitors earned 0.5 points each for the draw in Game 4, keeping the overall score tied.
Earlier, Gukesh, who was trailing 0-1 after Game 1, put Ding Liren under pressure in the next two games. After forcing a draw in Game 2, Gukesh secured his first win in Game 3, bringing the score to 1.5-1.5 before the rest day.
As it happened
Gukesh was once again the aggressor on Friday. At one point, he was leading the game by 16 minutes. However, he took 30 minutes for his 13th move, giving Liren an opening in the match, which the world champion eagerly accepted. Liren slowly gained ground, and by the 28th move, it was clear the game was heading towards another draw. After 14 more moves, both finalists finally agreed to a 42-move draw.
They will now face each other in Game 5 on Saturday, December 1.
Finalists’ take
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At the post-game press conference following Game 4, world champion Ding Liren discussed his approach to the match. He explained that he had taken a rest day to recover from his tough loss in Game 3, which helped him enter the match with a positive mindset. Ding aimed to surprise his opponent with his opening strategy, and while it worked to some extent, the advantage he gained was minimal, as Gukesh managed to neutralise his initiative.
Meanwhile, Gukesh was asked whether he was caught off guard by Ding's opening. He responded that although it wasn’t a completely new line, he had seen it before, and it was a bit surprising to encounter it on the board. Gukesh admitted that at one point, he felt Ding had a slight edge, but he was confident in his ability to neutralise it as the game progressed.