D Gukesh Vs Ding Liren, World Chess Championship Game 9 Highlights: GMs Agree To Draw After 54 Moves; Scores Tied At 4.5-4.5

Checkmate, it's great to see you all, we’re back with another live blog. Game 9 of the FIDE World Chess Championship is happening today, (Thursday, December 5). Indian Grandmaster D Gukesh is set to face China’s Ding Liren with the match tied at 4–4. Gukesh is looking to break the deadlock and take the lead. Stay tuned to Outlook for all the live updates and moves.

The D Gukesh vs Ding Liren, FIDE World Chess Championship 2024 game 9 is set to start on Thursday, December 5, 2024 at 2:30 PM IST at the Resorts World Sentosa in Singapore.

We’ll provide all the live updates right here. But for those who wish to watch it live, the D Gukesh vs Ding Liren FIDE World Chess Championship 2024 match will be streamed on FIDE’s social media handles (YouTube, Twitch), as well as chess.com’s YouTube and Twitch channels. It will not be telecast on any TV channel in India. But you can watch it live here.

Results so far

Game 1 - November 25, 2024 - Ding Liren Won

Game 2 - November 26, 2024 - Draw

Game 3 - November 27, 2024 - Gukesh Won

Rest Day - November 28, 2024 - Thursday 

Game 4 - November 29, 2024 - Draw

Game 5 - November 30, 2024 - Draw

Game 6 - December 1, 2024 - Draw

Rest Day - December 2, 2024 - Monday 

Game 7 - December 3, 2024 - Draw

Game 8 - December 4, 2024 - Draw

Score line - 4-4

The 2024 World Chess Championship match between D. Gukesh and Ding Liren will consist of 14 classical games. The first player to reach 7.5 points will be crowned World Champion. If the match ends in a tie after all 14 games, a tiebreak will be held the following day to determine the winner.

Each game will have a time control of 120 minutes for the first 40 moves, followed by 30 minutes for the remaining moves, with a 30-second increment per move starting from move 41.

On Wednesday, the two players signed peace after 51 moves. Liren decided against risking much and took home a draw while it was possible in a complicated position. The game lasted more than four hours.

Gukesh will have the advantage of playing white in the ninth game. If points are level after 14 rounds, there will be games under faster time control to determine the winner.

The game is about to begin, with Gukesh playing white today. He has shown a willingness to take risks in recent games, regardless of color, and it's expected that he'll continue that approach.

Ding, on the other hand, has been more daring when playing black compared to white. It will be interesting to see if Gukesh’s bold style causes him to adopt a more cautious strategy today.

Gukesh kicks things off with 1.d4, and Ding wastes no time, responding with knight to f6.

Gukesh opts for a Catalan, pushing up his c and d pawns to set the stage for his queen's and queenside bishop to make their move.

Ding, not to be outdone, delivers a quick check before pulling back into a waiting position. This opening is like a well-rehearsed dance, both players clearly in sync with their moves.

Gukesh (White) vs Ding (Black)

1. d4 - Nf6

2. c4 - e6

3. g3 - Bb4+

4. Bd2 - Be7

5. Bg2 - d5

6. Nf3 - O-O

7. O-O - c6

8. Qc2 - Nbd7

9. Rd1 - b6

10. Bc3

During the Chess24 broadcast, Dutch grandmaster Anish Giri shared his thoughts, predicting, "Gukesh will win."

He added, "In modern chess, you have to take bigger risks than ever before, and Gukesh does it time and time again!"

Ding plays Be7, and Gukesh quickly responds by moving his knight to d2. Ding pushes his queen to c7, fully occupying the second rank.

After breezing through his first 12 moves with solid opening preparation, he spends over five and a half minutes on move 13, with the clock still ticking.

Gukesh (White) vs Ding (Black)

1. d4 - Nf6

2. c4 - e6

3. g3 - Bb4+

4. Bd2 - Be7

5. Bg2 - d5

6. Nf3 - O-O

7. O-O - c6

8. Qc2 - Nbd7

9. Rd1 - b6

10. Bc3 - Bb7

11. Nbd2 - Qc7

12. Rac1 - Rfd8

After a long pause, Gukesh plays b4, and Ding takes nearly as much time to respond with a move of his own, advancing the c-pawn to c5. Both players are now focusing on the queen's side.

Here we go, the first exchange of the match finally takes place. Gukesh captures the pawn on c5 with bxc5, and Ding quickly responds with bxc5, trading pawns for the first time.

Gukesh (White) vs Ding (Black)

1. d4 - Nf6

2. c4 - e6

3. g3 - Bb4+

4. Bd2 - Be7

5. Bg2 - d5

6. Nf3 - O-O

7. O-O - c6

8. Qc2 - Nbd7

9. Rd1 - b6

10. Bc3 - Bb7

11. Nbd2 - Qc7

12. Rac1 - Rfd8

13. b4 - c5

14. bxc5 - bxc5

With a casual stroll, he heads out of the playing arena and into the player’s lounge. Meanwhile, Ding sits alone in his glass enclosure, scratching his head, pondering his next move.

But not for long, Gukesh is back. The AI has ever so slightly shifted in Ding’s favor, but it’s hardly anything to worry about. The board remains as even as ever.

Time pressure is building on Ding. He’s already used over an hour and now has just 57 minutes left to make 26 more moves.

Gukesh slides his bishop to a5, putting that recently moved knight in the hot seat. Is he looking for a quick piece exchange, or is there a bigger plan in motion?

Okay, the time difference now is looking scary, Ding has only made 15 moves but is spending what feels like an eternity on move 16. With under 37 minutes left to reach the two-hour mark for 40 moves, time is ticking fast.

Ding makes his move, taking the c-pawn, only for Gukesh’s knight to swoop in and capture it immediately. But here comes the surprise, Ding launches his bishop forward to take out the knight positioned in front of the castled king.

It’s a bold move, but could this sacrifice be the game-changer that shifts the momentum?

Gukesh trades his dark-squared bishop, capturing Ding’s knight on b6. He follows up by taking Ding’s light-squared bishop, leaving both players with opposite-colored bishops on the board.

Gukesh is slowing things down now. With a solid half-hour advantage over his opponent, he’s got the luxury to sit back, calculate, and ramp up the pressure on Ding. Meanwhile, Ding is feeling the heat—he’s got just 27 minutes and 35 seconds to make 20 moves.

The Chinese player is wearing the same colored shirt or the same shirt he wore during the 2023 World Championship, which earned him the title of World Champion. A lucky color or shirt, perhaps? We'll see if it works against Gukesh today.

Gukesh (White) vs Ding (Black)

1. d4 - Nf6

2. c4 - e6

3. g3 - Bb4+

4. Bd2 - Be7

5. Bg2 - d5

6. Nf3 - O-O

7. O-O - c6

8. Qc2 - Nbd7

9. Rd1 - b6

10. Bc3 - Bb7

11. Nbd2 - Qc7

12. Rac1 - Rfd8

13. b4 - c5

14. bxc5 - bxc5

15. Qb2 - Nb6

16. Ba5 - dxc4

17. Nxc4 - Bxf3

18. Bxb6 - axb6

19. Bxf3 - Ra6

20. Qb5 - Rxa2

21. Nxb6 - Qa7

22. Qb1 - Rb8

23. dxc5 - Ra6

Gukesh spent nearly an hour on his last five moves, and by the 23rd move, the time situation has now balanced out.

It seems like Ding is in control. He’s in a strong position, but it will be interesting to see if he pressures Gukesh to explore his options. A draw remains a likely outcome from here.

The game is clearly heading for a draw after black's queen, rook, and dark-squared bishop, along with white's knight, were removed from the board.

Gukesh (White) vs Ding (Black)

1. d4 - Nf6

2. c4 - e6

3. g3 - Bb4+

4. Bd2 - Be7

5. Bg2 - d5

6. Nf3 - O-O

7. O-O - c6

8. Qc2 - Nbd7

9. Rd1 - b6

10. Bc3 - Bb7

11. Nbd2 - Qc7

12. Rac1 - Rfd8

13. b4 - c5

14. bxc5 - bxc5

15. Qb2 - Nb6

16. Ba5 - dxc4

17. Nxc4 - Bxf3

18. Bxb6 - axb6

19. Bxf3 - Ra6

20. Qb5 - Rxa2

21. Nxb6 - Qa7

22. Qb1 - Rb8

23. dxc5 - Ra6

24. Qb5 - Bxc5

25. Qcx5 - Qxcb6

26. c6 - Rxc6

27. Rc6 - Rxc6

28. Bxc6 - g5

29. Kg2 - Rb2

30. Kf1 - Kg7

31. h3 - h5

32. Ra1 - Rc2

33. Bb5 - Rc5

34. Bd3 - Nd7

35. f4 - gxf4

36. gxf4 - Rc3

37. Kf2 - Nc5

38. Ke3 - Nxd3

39. exd3 - Rc2

40. Kf3 - Rd2

41. Ra3 - Kg6

Both players have made 40 moves each. Rook to d2 poses a slight threat to the d-pawn, and now both are heading to the player's lounge/restroom.

Both players now have ample time to make their moves, but the board has fewer pieces to work with.

That’s it for game 9, marking the sixth consecutive draw, which was pretty much settled from the start.

Game 10 will be the day after tomorrow, we have a rest day, with the scores still tied at 4.5 - 4.5.

"In the last few games, I've managed to play very good chess. For me, the key is to maintain the same energy, continue playing at this level, and make slight improvements in critical moments."

"It was high-quality game," adds Ding Liren.

 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 Bb4+ 4.Bd2 Be7 5.Bg2 d5 6.Nf3 0–0 7.0–0 c6 8.Qc2 Nbd7 9.Rd1 b6 10.Bc3 Bb7 11.Nbd2 Qc7 12.Rac1 Rfd8 13.b4 c5 14.bxc5 bxc5 15.Qb2 Nb6 16.Ba5 dxc4 17.Nxc4 Bxf3 18.Bxb6 axb6 19.Bxf3 Ra6 20.Qb5 Rxa2 21.Nxb6 Qa7 22.Qb1 Rb8 23.dxc5 Ra6 24.Qb5 Bxc5 25.Qxc5 Qxb6 26.Qxb6 Raxb6 27.Rc6 Rxc6 28.Bxc6 g5 29.Kg2 Rb2 30.Kf1 Kg7 31.h3 h5 32.Ra1 Rc2 33.Bb5 Rc5 34.Bd3 Nd7 35.f4 gxf4 36.gxf4 Rc3 37.Kf2 Nc5 38.Ke3 Nxd3 39.exd3 Rc2 40.Kf3 Rd2 41.Ra3 Kg6 42.Rb3 f6 43.Ra3 Kf5 44.Ra5+ e5 45.fxe5 Rxd3+ 46.Ke2 Rxh3 47.exf6+ Kxf6 48.Kf2 h4 49.Kg2 Rg3+ 50.Kh2 Kg6 51.Rb5 Rg5 52.Rxg5+ Kxg5 53.Kh3 Kf6 54.Kxh4. Game drawn.

That’s all for this game. We’ll see you again for Game 10 after a rest day. Until then, bye bye.