Winning starts with what you know
The new version 18 offers completely new possibilities for chess training and analysis: playing style analysis, search for strategic themes, access to 6 billion Lichess games, player preparation by matching Lichess games, download Chess.com games with built-in API, built-in cloud engine and much more.
We have a new world champion! Numbers seem to favor him, as 18-year-old Gukesh Dommaraju from India has become the 18th world champion of classical chess! He managed to secure victory in the final game of the match against Ding Liren, converting what initially appeared to be a drawish endgame after his opponent blundered. This allowed Gukesh to claim the title of world champion.
When Ding realized the gravity of his mistake and found himself in a lost pawn endgame, Gukesh was visibly emotional. Ding quickly shook hands with the new champion and left the stage, leaving Gukesh overwhelmed with emotion. With his face in his hands, Gukesh struggled to hold back tears as he began to reset the pieces, though the emotions of the moment clearly weighed on him.
Earlier in the day, the position on the board seemed destined for a draw. The endgame featured three pawns against two on one wing, along with a rook and a bishop of the same color on both sides. It appeared that tiebreaks scheduled for the next day would decide the championship. But the match took a dramatic turn, reflecting the unpredictable nature of this contest, which featured many attractive games with momentum shifting back and forth.
Throughout the match, the defending champion Ding Liren demonstrated deep preparation in several positions, but his extensive time usage often left him in severe time trouble. This contributed to the "rollercoaster" nature of the match, with victories and defeats alternating between the two players.
The first game set the tone, as Ding surprised everyone by playing the French Defense with Black against 1.e4. Although Gukesh started well, he lost his way, allowing Ding to secure a rare victory in classical chess—a result he hadn’t achieved in ages. The second game ended in a balanced draw, but Gukesh struck back in the third game with a spectacular win. Notably, Ding collapsed in a position that still seemed defensible.
A series of draws followed, with missed opportunities for both players. The tension finally broke in games eleven and twelve. Gukesh won the eleventh game, but Ding delivered a stunning counterpunch in the twelfth, winning in brilliant fashion. The excitement peaked in the penultimate game, where Gukesh came close to victory again. In typical fashion, Ding, under time pressure, managed to escape with a draw.
This set the stage for the decisive fourteenth game. Ding achieved little from the opening and voluntarily entered an endgame a pawn down, likely believing it was still drawable with all pawns on one wing. However, Gukesh had significantly more time on the clock, while Ding, as in many games of the match, was running dangerously low on time. Ding appeared visibly nervous, shifting uncomfortably in his chair. Yet, most observers believed he would hold the draw.
Ding’s critical mistake came when he placed his bishop on a8, defended by his rook on a4, to avoid constant harassment by Gukesh’s rook. While this setup seemed impenetrable, a devastating blunder soon followed. After Black's move 54...Ke5, Ding, under immense time pressure and fatigue, played the losing move 55.Rf2??
Do you understand the problem with this move? Can you provide the winning sequence of moves that secured Gukesh’s world title?
Key Concepts of Chess - Pawn Structures Vol.1 and 2
In this two-part course the emphasis will be on typical pawn-structures.
This week’s show (for Premium Members only)
| Advertising |
