Why Ding Liren, reluctant ex-world champion of chess, needs appreciation for his grace and courage under fire

Last year in Astana, the Chinese grandmaster had risen to become the world champion despite off-the-board troubles.

He was depressed, he had no qualms in revealing in a press conference as his opponent, Ian Nepomniachtchi, sat a few feet away. Like wars, the course of world championships are decided by the littlest nuggets of information about the opposition camp. And here Ding Liren was, telling the world and his opponent exactly the areas where he was exposed. Vulnerable.

Despite his troubles, and the fight put up by Nepomniachtchi, Ding prevailed to join an elusive list of world
champions.

Ding Liren stares out the window before the start of a World Chess Championship game against Gukesh. (PHOTO: FIDE YouTube screengrab)

In April last year, right after winning his title, Ding sat for an interaction with the official FIDE YouTube handle. In it, he was asked the most obvious question that every athlete answers at least once in an interaction with the media: about how he’s feeling.

“Mixed feelings about being world champion. Proud, but it means I have to devote more to chess,” said Ding Liren, clearly trying to process his emotions.

READ MORE: How a rook-ie mistake cost Ding Liren the game, match and the crown

Later in that interview, he also offered another insight into his mindset.

“There were times before the world championship match where I thought that if I lost, I would quit the sport after this year. Retire totally from chess.” Then Ding Liren started grinning, like he could not control it. “But things went in the other direction.”

After his game 13 draw in Singapore, he was reminded of these words at the press conference. Would he still retire if Gukesh prevailed?

“I think I will continue my career. Maybe just play lesser tournaments. Instead I will play more rapid and blitz than classical,” he said.

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Asked which was the more psychologically draining world championship to play in — the one where he was fighting to be world champion last year, or the one where he was dueling to remain in the seat — Ding offered: “Last time was more stressful.”

Battling depression

He almost did not recover from last time. He told a German newspaper that he was treated twice in a clinic for depression.

Since he became world champion, he has not seemed to enjoy the very act of sitting on a chess board and moving pieces. Coming into the 2024 world championship, the Chinese grandmaster had endured a run of 300 days without tasting success in classical chess. His rating had tanked to 2,728 and his ranking was 23 in the world. He had looked a feeble facsimile of himself from the heady days of 2018 and 2019, when he had gone 100 games unbeaten.

Understandably, Ding Liren went as far as to say that he was worried about “losing too badly” at the hands of Gukesh before the battle in Singapore began. Other elite grandmasters agreed. There were predictions of a “massacre” in the 2024 world championship. Top GMs said Ding would be demolished on the board. Even as late as the 11th game of the ongoing world championship, when Ding lost to Gukesh, the Chinese world champion’s predecessor on the throne, Magnus Carlsen, prophesied that Ding “crumbling is most likely scenario”.

The best assessment of who Ding Liren is has come from the 18-year-old who has spent the past two weeks trying to outwit him with no-holds-barred chess.

“We all know who Ding Liren is. He has been one of the best players in history for several years, and to see how much pressure he had faced and the kind of fight he still gave at the world championship, it shows what a true champion he is. I’m really sorry for Ding and his team and I would like to thank him for putting on a show,” Gukesh said about Ding at the press conference.

During another act of public self-reflection yesterday after the loss to Gukesh, Ding spoke about how he had erred in the final moments of his reign. He ended that answer by looking at the bright side.

“No game tomorrow,” he smiled.