Chess
World Chess C'ship 2024: Gukesh hits back with victory in game 3
The supremely confident teenager appears to have found his mojo.
After round 9, Gukesh has taken a solo lead at the Tata Steel Masters 2025. (Photo Credit: Eng Chin An)
India’s D Gukesh roared back into contention with a resounding victory over Ding Liren in game three of the World Chess Championship 2024 in Singapore on Wednesday.
After being outsmarted by the Chinese in the first game and earning a draw in the second outing while playing back, the Indian challenger found his mojo in game three with white pieces.
With this victory, the Indian challenger has levelled the championship with the scores now tied 1.5-1.5.
Setting the record straight
Going into game three, Gukesh had never beaten Liren in classical chess while the latter had a 100 percent win record over the Indian with black pieces.
But the Indian teenager wasn’t going to let that record bother him.
Right from the outset in game three, the challenger displayed remarkable calculation and established a firm grip over the game.
Within the first ten moves, both players exchanged their queens and Liren's hasty move to the c2 square with his bishop on the 10th move - intended to put pressure on Gukesh’s unprotected pawn – backfired.
And by the time Gukesh made his 13th move, the Chinese was a in time-trouble, having fallen behind by a stunning 60 minutes on the clock.
“He is literally paralyzed mentally,” was how Chess legend Susan Polgar called the situation, citing the trouble that Liren had gotten himself in.
A resurgent challenger
Speaking to the media after the game, Gukesh said the he “felt great,”
“The last two days I was happy with my play. My play today was even better, I feel good at the board and today I just managed to outplay my opponent which is always nice.”
When asked the long time he spent thinking before a certain move midway through the game, Gukesh said that he was ‘”pretty confident.”
I was pretty confident at that point. I was just thinking about the position at that time, because I knew I should be winning. I wasn’t playing for time. I just like to finish it off clean."
Thursday is a day off and the player will get to reflect on the progress thus far.
