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The twelve-game match between Hans Niemann and Awonder Liang, played at the Blitz Society in Paris, ended in a clear victory for the rating favourite. With three wins and no losses, Niemann gained almost 14 rating points from this all-American encounter, climbing from 20th to 12th place in the live rantings list. Liang, meanwhile, dropped from 24th to 31st.
The match was played from 10 to 15 April in the shadow of the Candidates Tournaments in Cyprus. The time control was 60 minutes for the whole game, with 30-second increments per move. Two games were played each day of the competition.
Of the first eight games, six ended in draws, while Niemann won the two, in rounds three and eight. He also won game nine:
After that game, the tension appeared to fade. Niemann was probably content to secure overall victory in the match, while Liang had seemingly given up hope of a comeback. Games ten and twelve, in which Liang had White, both ended in this position:
Between these two rather uninspiring repetitions, there was also an 80-move draw, which likewise followed well-known Spanish Opening theory until move 25. Thus ended the match in rather underwhelming fashion, with a clear victory for Niemann.
Aside from its sporting value, the match also had a charitable aspect: the loser committed to donating 10,000 US dollars to a charity of his choice.
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