Battle of attrition continues as Gukesh and Ding draw Game 8 in world championship match

Exciting chess match between Ding Liren and D. Gukesh at World Resorts Sentosa ends in a draw.

There has been no decisive result since Game 3. But nobody is complaining. Ding Liren and D. Gukesh are playing some exciting chess in their World championship match here in this small island of Sentosa.

The eighth game was drawn on Wednesday (December 4, 2024). So, after the fifth straight draw, the score is 4-4 at World Resorts Sentosa. The one who moves to 7.5 points will be the champion. Six games of classical chess remain.

Game 8 may not have lasted as long as Game 7 – it was a five-and-a-half-hour thriller and 72 moves were made – but there was plenty of action. As in the seventh game, Gukesh had an excellent opportunity to force a win, but as in the seventh game, he missed.

Ding showed his resourcefulness yet again and even had his younger rival in trouble. But, Gukesh defended well enough. He also showed his willingness to strive hard, letting go of the chance for an easier draw, which he could have got by choosing three-fold repetition. He had done the same thing in the sixth game.

The eighth game saw the English Opening, but Gukesh seemed to be prepared for it, as he played his moves quickly. White, on the other hand, needed much more time to respond. At one stage, he had to make some 21 moves in 33 minutes, while Gukesh had more than an hour.

The Chennai lad could be ruing his 26th move, though. He missed the opportunity to create a potentially winning position by taking the wrong knight to the ‘c5’ square. Now his advantage had disappeared, and just two moves later, following an unwise bishop move, the tables turned.

It was now Ding who could put Gukesh under real pressure, but he too erred with a knight move. He manoeuvred the knight to the wrong square, ‘d4’, instead of the ideal ‘e1’. He may have gone an exchange up, but gone was the chance for a possibly decisive advantage.