Gukesh Dommaraju vs Ding Liren | Game 11 | World Chess Championship 2024

[@PowerPlayChess]

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[@Akash_ACash]

Giri offered an explanation for Ding's long think in the opening: advancing d4 and c5 is the principled approach to the position, and is Ding's usual repertoire - now imagine you're Ding, and you've played a sharp line years ago from there but can't fully remember the prep ~20 moves deep. So you spend a few minutes reconstructing it. Your opponent has recently reviewed that line and analyzed it with his team + modern engines. Now you need to decide if you willingly go into this line (where a trap is likely waiting for you), or if not, where to deviate. This means you need to think about every move in the line and weigh pros/cons of deviating at various points, which could easily take an hour. As Giri stated, "the worst [scenario] is when you know a lot, but not everything". Because of this, both commentators suggested that the long think should have been on move 2, rather than move 4!

[@Muziejininkas]

What surprised me was that Ding kinda forced this line himself. When he made commiting moves I expected him to remember the lines. And what was even more interesting, that even after 40 mins of thinking he got surprised by Gukesh next move.

[@hylen26]

Well explained.

[@robinesperoza]

The time-usage was radical in this game. I was watching it live and had plenty of time to do the dishes meanwhile.

[@BrennenChua]

Chess and dishes! I always watch power play while doing dishes.

[@andreasgrunder7003]

[@baoboumusic]

I slept through the first 2 hours and was surprised how few moves they'd played. I then caught up a bit later seeing a slightly worse position for Gukesh and looming time trouble, and the next glance it was all over. What a weird game. Many matches have a game like this when the pressure just gets too much, but here I just felt really sad for Ding and very happy for Gukesh at the same time.

[@Yornek1]

This was literally me as well….. when I came back to the game when I was some way through Dung hadn’t moved yet!!!

[@himanshuagarwal4492]

Miss the days when you were there for WCC presentation and press conference

[@lalocura9052]

This is getting so exciting. Let's go Ding, I'm still rooting for you

[@mirao-u9p]

Finally an interesting game. Daniel, thanks for the analysis and a bit of opening theory.

[@uppgifter]

Finally, we may rejoice! We had a GREAT game in all aspects. And thanks for an amazing analysis as always Daniel.

[@vladimirstrasser5105]

Love your coverage! Good job!

[@myopenmind527]

I’ve been waiting for this analysis all day. TYVM ❤

[@davidcopson5800]

At last an exciting game, and wonderfully revealed here by Daniel, who never gives the game away before time. So much time spent over crucial moves - hours not to reason why! I saw e6 straightaway, but I'm not under the same pressure as Ding. The closing games will be exciting. We can only hope Ding has a special moment and pulls a rabbit out of a hat, as he has done before when needed.

[@paulgreen7906]

I watched the game live, I felt Ding handled his clock poorly. Used way too much time early on, then was rushing at the end and blundered as a consequence. Going to be very exciting finish to the match. Excellent analysis as always GM King!

[@davidwillacy4796]

Now that’s what you call a great game of chess. Guess who will be happy with draws now!!!

[@utkarshx27]

Great match and analysis

[@triscuit5103]

Love these videos, thanks a lot Mr. King ❤

[@edwarda9403]

60 minutes on the first 5 moves is pure insanity. Why would Ding play 2...d4 and then think for 40 minutes on move 4? It's a failure of both preparation and common sense. Ding didn't have to play this opening at all.

[@xCupressocyparis]

It was a strange moment. I was sure that Ding was going to play 2...e6 and it'd be another dry game. I can only imagine he hadn't prepared for 2.c4 and was following his usual repertoire on semi-autopilot until move 4 when he smelled a rat and got worried, but it's definitely odd. Not that I'm complaining we got a full-blooded struggle and a decisive result! 😅

[@jhhung1017]

thank you,love your analysis

[@ForTomorrowToday]

i like the arrows as you describe

[@davidcopson5800]

There's always a point to arrows.

[@Playergamer02]

Nice analysis as always. Thanks. I have been watching your channel since 2012. Thanks.

[@mevansthechemist]

Happy to report I spotted …e6 and the …Bd6 resource. Surprised (and bummed) Ding didn’t go for it. I hope he bounces back next game! Thanks as always for the great coverage, DK.

[@PowerPlayChess]

Let’s see 😉

[@7709959209]

As always best recap ❤...

[@surfaceoftheoesj]

Well done Gukesh 🔥

[@Matthew-bu7fg]

this feels very much like the seminal moment

[@drewe9514]

Or the semen-hole moment 🤔

[@Caleb-zu1pk]

Patiently waiting for your recap 👍🏻

[@alexanderkurz3621]

thanks for the dramatic game and reporting to Ding, Gukesh and Daniel

[@Pedone_Rosso]

I guess now we'll see if the younger potential Champion can be balanced and active when he's in the lead. VERY tense match, very entertaining. Thanks for your videos!

[@phiggins54]

‘…the worst is not so long as we can say, ‘This is the worst.’’ As Edgar shows, tumbling off the cliff, at least mentally, can be therapeutic! There may yet be no more tame draws from Ding!

[@edwarda9403]

Ding has achieved chess immortality, though not in the way he wanted. The tactic after ...Qc8 will appear in every beginner tactics book until the end of time.

[@aarongifs]

WOW!! You called it in one of your last videos that the onus is on Gukesh to push things with Ding the favorite in rapid, and he did not disappoint! Can't wait for the final games

[@Uchebuike]

We were discussing the current match situation before one of our league matches today and I was afraid that if Ding loses one game at this point, after feeling Gukesh was the one pushing, the probability of a comeback would be really low. I hope he turns it around once more!

[@jozefserf2024]

Absolutely brilliant clash of preparation. Gukesh shocked Ding inside 4 moves!

[@davidcopson5800]

Yes, Gukesh is a Dangerman!

[@tommytraddles]

Hard to see a way back for Ding. I think he was in a strong position at one stage but he let things drift. It seems he just can’t capitalise on the advantages he’s had in a couple of games. I agree that spending so much time on early moves shows lack of confidence and poor preparation. Gukesh taking one hour on what looked like a simple move was also bizarre.

[@MrCrchandler]

Having played this 3.b4 line a couple of times as white, I've found one of the most annoying responses is 3. ... a5 immediately. White is reluctant to start clarifying, really 'rigidifying,' his queenside pawn structure that early. 4. b5 or 4. bxa5 are met by 4. ... c5.

[@sandeepsathe9480]

Gukesh looked more aggressive throughout the tournament. Ding has been very defensive

[@davidcopson5800]

In his defence, I would say Ding is not a natural attacker. You can draw your own conclusions from that.

[@thomasdavidson6666]

Great video as always, Daniel. One thing: I have yet to see anyone mention Tigran Petrosian in the context of Ding's achievement in this game. Prophylaxis, prophylaxis, and then uncorking the pent up potential of the position for a masterful win.

[@ThusISpake]

Exciting game!

[@Greew11]

9:08 Bishop b2 looked like an obvious move but I doesn't actually work after rook d7 to cover queen so d3 is threatened

[@seop1721]

Further evidence, I think, that we need shorter time controls to allow for slips like this. It makes it more exciting, as Magnus knows. We loved this game because it gave a decisive result, and that itself came from the factor of time. I also like the idea of classical draws being followed by a game of freestyle. That would be cool.

[@skinthekat0530]

I don't put a lot of time into chess, but 38 minutes on move 4 isn't a "think" - it's a trance.

[@cleon_teunissen]

About Ding taking the pawn on b5 with his queen. You state about a parallel variation "white gets tremendous compensation for that pawn'. So my expectation was that Ding took that pawn not with the intention to hold on to it, but with the intention to offer that pawn back in a way that would level out the game. But that didn't happen. It would appear that Ding attempted to hold on to the pawn. Did Ding have an alternative there?

[@loulasher]

Ding's got his Bishop in Vladivostok.

[@synchronium24]

6:28 I don't see any way for white to avoid material loss after Nb3 here, despite the hanging b7 pawn. Am I missing an immediate tactical defense? Or would white's queenside passers serve as compensation for the material deficit? 17:26 Wow, my instinct was better than a world champion's! Now to remember that the situation would be reversed 999,999 times out of a million.

[@jwizansky]

This - has anyone addressed the question at 6:28? Would be nice to explain why an obvious fork doesn't work.

[@alexandershorse9021]

Wonderful game, Gukesh needed to take risks and was richly rewarded by Ding’s blunder.

[@salmarwow]

"Collapsed" is very fitting word here. For the last 4-5 moves Ding was very nervous. Time pressure, lost advantage and he definitely felt things aren't moving to a wrong direction, despite being a pawn up. White had initiative and with lack of time Ding just blundered. Still remains a mystery why he spent 40 minutes on his 4th move.

[@edwarda9403]

It seems that Ding played 2...d4 without doing any preparation at all. He could have played 2...e6 and likely transposed to the Queen's Gambit Declined or Catalan, which would give him familiar positions.

[@diggitus]

Spending an hour by move six has to also be a sign of poor nerves

[@rggndfw]

Good thoughts. Ding was a mess all year, so he is leaning on RR to get him thru the openings. But his time usage is so bad that he can not recover from a real attack. I expect Ding to fold from here on in. He does not look well over the board.

[@hakim7894]

​@@rggndfwHe never look well on the board lol. Just never

[@joseraulcapablanca8564]

A tragic blunder from doing. I am happy for both, Gukesh who becomes the champion and Ding who gets rid of his burden. Great analysis thanks Daniel.

[@davidcopson5800]

Gukesh is not the champion yet!

[@joseraulcapablanca8564]

@ no indeed a comeback though seems unlikely. But yes maybe a litt early with my congratulations.

[@sar14cos]

Hum! I would called this opening a Reti advance variation.

[@potzysk2]

GM King makes a very interesting video. Kramnik just says "Sad, no recap today".

[@synchronium24]

Kasparov shares the unfortunate view with Kramnik that this isn't a legitimate world championship match. Importantly, only one of them is using their position to make crackpot cheating accusations against everyone and their uncle.

[@thomasherbst6771]

Ding's use of time is suicidal. An hour for moves 4 and 5. What good is it to get a favourable position if you then collapse in time trouble and lose with a beginner's mistake?

[@the117man]

Cant gamble online where I live, but I would definetly have betted on: - Jake Paul (vs. old-man Tyson) - Gukesh (stronger nerves than Ding) Ding is in trouble now

[@adamrubinson6875]

13:12 why not Rxb7?

[@synchronium24]

24. Rxb7 Qxb7 25. Qc7. Not an obvious defensive move for black, and I could easily see myself falling into the trap of exchanging on c6.

[@adamrubinson6875]

@@synchronium24 You mean 24. Rxb7 Qxb7 25. Qxc6 Qc7. Yes, I missed that.

[@prathamchess]

Nice analysis, why he can't see simple pawn capture on d3

[@tennisblood]

e6 was obviously better than g6 (it was obvious to me after 5 sec) as the black bishop prospects on the diagonal a3-f8 are significantly better than on c1-h6. The fact that Ding failed to see this and his obviously weak play throughout this game makes it doubtful he will successfully defend his title

[@philipstevenson5166]

world championship seems more about mental stability than good chess

[@PowerPlayChess]

Not just the World Championship.

[@kevinwinter4514]

….Qc8, oh I say, ding dong !! 😉

[@DG-ss2zd]

That bishop doing absolutely nothing on h6!

[@ComtedeMonteC]

Hope Gukesh wins the world championship.

[@czechpirc3212]

What we thought would happen finally did, Ding losing his nerves. You arent human if you dont feel for him

[@michaelblankenau6598]

Bit of a stretch that .

[@czechpirc3212]

@@michaelblankenau6598 Respectfully...where u been the last yr?

[@michaelblankenau6598]

@ You claim someone isn’t human if they don’t feel for someone playing a game who has had bad results. Get real .

[@czechpirc3212]

@@michaelblankenau6598 Thought u meant Ding losing his nerve but i see ur just a troll, gl mate

[@michaelblankenau6598]

@ Not a troll at all . But when we people say stupid things , they should be called out .

[@arkadiuszjandylewski152]

Ding will play aggressively in the next game.

[@dimitarbushkalov2380]

I enjoyed the review Mr King, but I think it would have been better to introduce the record breaking hours think by Gukesh during the game walkthrough and not at the end. It was a huge moment. Thank you for the video

[@johnferguson880]

Yesterday, King argued that Ding may be playing for draws as he is better than his opponent in rapid/blitz. Today, Ding did not play a solid/safe opening with black which contradicts this idea.

[@PowerPlayChess]

Yes, for me his opening choice was surprising.

[@hylen26]

Poor Ding.

[@enginekid88]

Split Rooks!

[@davidcopson5800]

Almost as bad as split infinitives. Ding will have to go boldly where he has never been before!

[@nederlanditisnederlanditis5529]

I'm slightly confused. I thought Ding was expected to commit something like this, wasn't he? Blunder is such a term. When you've walked at the edge of a cliff for hours, and you finally tomble, would people say, it was one unlucky step? As confusing as the putative blundering is the preemptive cheering. Dommaraju equalized within two games. Also, why shouldn't he get sweaty hands?

[@MoneyMan28]

Ding spent 1 hour on 4th and 5th move, didn't memorize opening moves

[@JS-ec3xc]

i wtf'd at g6

[@chrisgroves4097]

Why does Ding appear so woefully unprepared, using 1 hour by move 5? Perhaps the crown is too heavy for this King

[@bastianstieg819]

Why couldnt black play Nb3 instead of Ne5?

[@aleksandrailic5818]

First of all, fantastic analysis. Secondly, b6 and Ba3 manoeuvre pinning the Queen on d6 is classy. Last but not least, Ding chose the wrong plan. Before you even mentioned e6-Bd6, it went through my 2200 ELO mind. Look at the black bishop at h6 in the last position before the blunder itself - freezing in Syberia, doing literally nothing. Truly, this is all claimed with hindsight and without any intent to show off.

[@michaelblankenau6598]

Then why mention your Elo rating ?

[@Playergamer02]

​@@michaelblankenau6598 This guy often mentions his rating

[@aleksandrailic5818]

@michaelblankenau6598 To give you sth to hang onto.

[@thearm95]

e6-Bd6 went through my 1200 ELO mind too

[@richardmcdougall6161]

Really bad blunder and he knew as soon as he played it too. Just goes to show that even Super GMs are mortal. Last three games will be fascinating!

[@AllThisOverASliceOfGabagool]

I can't believe that Ding bottled a position that was better by playing g6 instead of e6! Fianchettoing the bishop looks wrong instinctively and was a poor decision. Fair play to Gukesh but he's lucky to be playing a risk-averse player in incredibly dire form. I dont know any super GM who has such a proclivity for getting better positions and constantly screwing them up like Ding in this world championship.

[@PowerPlayChess]

World Championship matches have their own dynamic that is quite distinct from tournament chess. Try to imagine playing with the expectation of millions (billions?) of people on your shoulders.

[@davidcopson5800]

@@PowerPlayChess Indeed. Spassky must have felt this in 1972.

[@chrissicaras7339]

Clearly Ding needs to hire a sports psychologist. He seems to have become pathologically cautious and is thus unable to take advantage of favorable opportunities in his games. His excessive use of time on early moves or obvious moves indicates he is worrying excessively. Ding has a great understanding of chess but at present he lacks the fighting qualities a a top player. If these problems can't be fixed Ding should retire.

[@reddevilkev]

Ding was never a true World Champion in my eyes any way and it was just a matter of time when Gukesh could capitalize.

[@mitchellfelder2420]

Unfortunately, it appears that Ding has collapsed psychologically. Taking a full hour at the beginning of the game for two moves shows how psychologically crushed he is at this point. Chess at this level is absolutely brutal. 😢

[@jonathanbaxter5821]

I didn’t love this game. Unfortunately reinforces for me that we’re not watching anything close to the top 2 players in the world playing for the title.

[@PowerPlayChess]

Think back to previous World Championship matches, not just the recent ones. You will find a lot of errors. The World Championship title should be decided by two players that qualified by playing, not by rating. That’s what we have.

[@arwanpawar3260]

Gukesh effectively using time with the accurate position every single pawn. On the other hands Ding to much sleep spent more and more time for nothing. Gukesh will really be the good champion so far.

[@ashleyoakes7300]

Always trying to flog us something these days, Danny.

[@PowerPlayChess]

I am very proud of the products that I’m associated with as well as my own books and courses. I think they are well worth the investment and I also let you know when they are on offer. In any case, would you prefer it if the video was behind a paywall?

[@SREPL]

Such a sorry world championship match

[@michaelblankenau6598]

Much more interesting than Carlsen vs Caruana though .

[@fundhund62]

​@@michaelblankenau6598Not sure about that. I'd agree Nepo-Ding was more interesting, but this match had it's fair share of boring games. And honestly, even the decisive games weren't all that exciting.

[@michaelblankenau6598]

@ Just a matter of opinion in the end .

[@tamboresdomundo8156]

I for my part am loving the match as a whole and the games. Many takes on this...

[@PowerPlayChess]

I am really enjoying the match!

[@ExcelStrategy]

priapism going wild on chessbase india today...

[@sam-lz6pi]

Superb commentary as always, but I must confess I just don't get these guys; why would you spend about one hour over the first five moves, all of which look like quite natural developing moves?And then Gukesh taking an hour and coming up with a move like g3? There are sports where entire games may take less than an hour.

[@hakim7894]

Yeah chess is a sport. And Ben Finegold is an athlete

[@tamboresdomundo8156]

That is because they play and think about chess on another level than 99.99 percent of all chessplayers. You would have to live it like them to understand (not saying that I do!)

[@PowerPlayChess]

Well said!

[@saeeddashti3685]

Ding quixote

[@davidcopson5800]

It must be the windmills of his mind?!