World Chess Championship 2024 Game 6 Highlights: Gukesh, Ding Liren agree to draw after 46 moves

The champion Ding Liren was content with the result, and that the match is even with several more games still to be played. At the same time, he understood that he needed to tighten up his game. “I feel like I am letting my advantage slip away at a critical moment. I have to improve this in the following games” were Ding’s thoughts after the game.

Here are all the moves from the game 6 of the world chess championship which has ended in a draw:

1 d4 Nf6
2 Bf4 d5
3 e3 e6
4 Nf3 c5
5 c3 Bd6
6 Bb5+ Nc6
7 Bxc6+ bxc6
8 Bxd6 Qxd6
9 Qa4 O-O
10 Qa3 Ne4
11 Nfd2 e5
12 Nxe4 dxe4
13 Qxc5 Qg6
14 Nd2 Qxg2
15 O-O-O Qxf2
16 dxe5 Rb8
17 Nc4 Be6
18 Rd2 Qf3
19 Re1 Bxc4
20 Qxc4 Qf5
21 Qxc6 Qxe5
22 Qd5 Qe7
23 Qd6 Qg5
24 Qd5 Qe7
25 Qd6 Qg5
26 Qd5 Qh4
27 Red1 g6
28 Qe5 Rbe8
29 Qg3 Qh5
30 Qf4 Qa5
31 a3 Qb5
32 Rd4 Qe2
33 R1d2 Qf3
34 Kc2 Qxf4
35 exf4 f5
36 h4 e3
37 Re2 Re7
38 Kd3 Rfe8
39 h5 gxh5
40 Rd5 h4
41 Rxf5 Rd7+
42 Kc2 Kg7
43 Rg2+ Kh8
44 Re2 Kg7
45 Rg2+ Kh8
46 Re2 Kg7

After 46 moves, Gukesh allows a draw by a threefold repitition. He made a really courageous move to reject a draw by three-fold repitition which was on the board. 

His opponent Ding Liren was trying hard to get a draw at that stage. But Gukesh, despite being in a bad position o nthe board, chose to fight on. 

Eventually though, the game ended in a 46-move draw by threefold repitition. 

Grandmaster Srinath Narayanan praises Gukesh.

"Gukesh is playing vs Ding like I used to play vs 2300’s and like I now play against 2100’s," he says on Twitter. 

Even the players have spent plenty of their time on the board for their first 40 moves as we edge past the time control for both armchair Gladiators. 

Look at the this FIDE graphic showing how much time both players have spent on the board. 

So both Gukesh and Ding Liren make it past move 40 which means they get an additional gulp of extra time. 

On the 41st move, both players got 30 additional minutes for the rest of the game. They also start getting 30 additional seconds on their clock starting from move 41.

Here is what the board looks like after 40 moves: 

Susan Polgar praises Gukesh for his ambition. That risky set of moves Gukesh did in the middle game to evade a draw by repitition, has earned him praise from the Hungarian chess legend.

"Even in an inferior endgame, Gukesh is trying instead of opting for a draw. Is it risky or is it the right decision? We will see. But he wins the respect from a lot of fans!" tweeted Polgar. 

Ding Liren's position is now worrying, just a little bit. The 34th and 36th moves from Ding cost him a significant advantage on the board as the eval bar showed. 

Just take a look at the graphic below and spot the points lost on the bar with these two moves: 34.Kc2 and 36.h4

Here are all the moves so far:

1 d4 Nf6
2 Bf4 d5
3 e3 e6
4 Nf3 c5
5 c3 Bd6
6 Bb5+ Nc6
7 Bxc6+ bxc6
8 Bxd6 Qxd6
9 Qa4 O-O
10 Qa3 Ne4
11 Nfd2 e5
12 Nxe4 dxe4
13 Qxc5 Qg6
14 Nd2 Qxg2
15 O-O-O Qxf2
16 dxe5 Rb8
17 Nc4 Be6
18 Rd2 Qf3
19 Re1 Bxc4
20 Qxc4 Qf5
21 Qxc6 Qxe5
22 Qd5 Qe7
23 Qd6 Qg5
24 Qd5 Qe7
25 Qd6 Qg5
26 Qd5 Qh4
27 Red1 g6
28 Qe5 Rbe8
29 Qg3 Qh5
30 Qf4 Qa5
31 a3 Qb5
32 Rd4 Qe2
33 R1d2 Qf3
34 Kc2 Qxf4
35 exf4 f5
36 h4

Since move 13, Ding Liren has been trying to get rid of his queen in an exchange. On move 35 does Gukesh finally accept his offer and the queens are traded off the board. 

And we're now in a race to promote pawns. Both players have five pawns and two rooks on the board now after the queens are off. 

And now Gukesh's queen is sitting on the e2 square eyeballing Ding's king and a rook at the same time. 

32.Rd4 Qe2 doesn't really change the eval so much. But Gukesh is still trying things. 
 

After rejecting a draw offer, Gukesh is now contemplating his 31st move. 

He now has 24 minutes to make 10 moves, before he gets a boost from the time control along with a 30-second increment for each move.

The FIDE graphic shows he's now spent about five percent of today's game meditating with his eyes closed on the board. 

Here's how the game has played out so far. Look at the moves between 22 and 26, that's where all the action happened. 

1 d4 Nf6
2 Bf4 d5
3 e3 e6
4 Nf3 c5
5 c3 Bd6
6 Bb5+ Nc6
7 Bxc6+ bxc6
8 Bxd6 Qxd6
9 Qa4 O-O
10 Qa3 Ne4
11 Nfd2 e5
12 Nxe4 dxe4
13 Qxc5 Qg6
14 Nd2 Qxg2
15 O-O-O Qxf2
16 dxe5 Rb8
17 Nc4 Be6
18 Rd2 Qf3
19 Re1 Bxc4
20 Qxc4 Qf5
21 Qxc6 Qxe5
22 Qd5 Qe7
23 Qd6 Qg5
24 Qd5 Qe7
25 Qd6 Qg5
26 Qd5 Qh4
27 Red1 g6
28 Qe5 Rbe8
29 Qg3 Qh5
30 Qf4

As Gukesh moves his queen out of way to accept a draw offer, the queen is now threatening Ding's rook, which slides out of harm's way. Now the e file has both of Ding's rooks and the queen as well. 

So here's what was happening. We saw Ding Liren almost playing for a draw. He is playing for a three-fold repitition draw. Gukesh just has to move his queen to e7, where his queen has been twice already.  If he moves there, he gets a draw by threefold repitition. 

Instead of 26.Qe7, Gukesh goes 26.Qh4 to nullify a draw. Ding Liren gives him a look after his move. 

We're now looking a position like this. The world champion's now thinking. 

Ding Liren has a 32.9 percent chance of winning while Gukesh has 12.7 percent chance of winning as per Leela Zero, an AI-based chess model whose predictions we're seeing on top of the official FIDE broadcast.

So FIDE has a new feature from Game 6. The organisers are now calculating how much time Gukesh spends with hsi eyes shut on the board. The FIDE graphic shows he's spent about 4 percent of his time with his eyes shut. 

Finally, Ding elects to pick off a pawn with his queen after spending over 30 minutes on that move (21.Qxe5). That's the top recommended move by the computer. 

At least twice in that phase, Ding Liren shooks his head twice. And he doesn't look happy about something. 

After Gukesh's queen rolls back (20.Qf5) after the Indian teenager has a long think, Ding Liren is the one doing all the thinking now.

The world champion has spent 30 minutes now on his 21st move.

Vishy Anand is speaking on Ding Liren's slump and the puzzling decision to let Gukesh get off the hook yesterday. 

Gukesh said he was worried, but Ding said he had not noticed he held an advantage.

“Towards the end of the game, I was very worried about my position after the manoeuvre 27…Be6 followed by 28…Rc8. I was quite relieved when my opponent played 27…Bc6, as I thought it would be a draw,” Gukesh explained in the postgame press conference after Game 5. 

The world champion meanwhile admitted that he had missed a big opportunity: “I didn’t see the idea with 28…Rc8, I was thinking of moving the king to the kingside, like some kind of Berlin pawn structure. I didn’t realize that it was a big advantage for me.”

Speaking today, Anand says: "Ding Liren's play yesterday I liked. Why he gave up was a mystery." 

Vishy Anand on how the 14-game World Chess Championship has played out so far after Game 5 ended in a draw yesterday: "Contrasting approaches. Ding is very, very solid with white. It's not like his ideas are lacking venom. But not taking a lot of risk yet.

"Gukesh pushing a bit more. But every once in a while he stumbles. Yesterday, practically a mircale he got away. Gukesh putting more pressure, but need to be more exact."

.. Ding Liren has spent a lot of time in his private player's lounge after he played . The FIDE stream shows Ding Liren sitting and having a banana as he stares at the game situation from the comfort of his private lounge. 

The world champion has spent almost 15 minutes away from the board. His opponent hasn't left his seat AT ALL an hour into this game .

Here are all the mvoes on the board so far as Gukesh still thinks long and hard about Move No 19.

1 d4 Nf6
2 Bf4 d5
3 e3 e6
4 Nf3 c5
5 c3 Bd6
6 Bb5+ Nc6
7 Bxc6+ bxc6
8 Bxd6 Qxd6
9 Qa4 O-O
10 Qa3 Ne4
11 Nfd2 e5
12 Nxe4 dxe4
13 Qxc5 Qg6
14 Nd2 Qxg2
15 O-O-O Qxf2
16 dxe5 Rb8
17 Nc4 Be6
18 Rd2 Qf3
19 Re1

Gukesh enters the 6th minute of his thought as he tries to decide his best option for move no 19. He's fallen behind 30 minutes on the clock as compared to the world champion, who has spent just over 6 minutes for his 19 moves. 

With this, Gukesh now has all five times spent on a move in Game 6. 

Here are the times spent on a move so far. Once Gukesh makes hsi 19th move, it will push that last time from Ding out of the top 5. 

GRAPHIC: FIDE YouTube

The Indian is now 20 minutes behind the world champion on the clock. Ding is still in his prep, so he's only spent six minutes for his first 17 moves. 

Gukesh thinking about his response. 

Leela Zero, an AI-based chess model whose predictions we're seeing on top of the official FIDE broadcast, now likes Gukesh's chances.

It gives the 18-year-old from India a 13.6 percent chance of winning while it's giving the world champion from China a 9.9 chance of getting a win. Meanwhile, Leela Zero thinks there is a 76.5 percent chance that this game ends in a draw. 

Ding Liren has no real pawn posse to protect its king. Gukesh's king though has found refuge behind a set of three pawns at one corner.

Gukesh has a pawn sandwiched between two of Ding Liren's pawns on the e file.

Here's how the game has developed after the flurry of moves: 

Ding Liren comes out swinging with white pieces. We have a London System on the board. And we have plenty of pieces getting picked off. We have 15 moves on the board from both players in the span of a few breakless minutes. And in those minutes and moves, we have seen Gukesh go up a pawn and an extra bishop. Meanwhile, Ding has no bishops left but has taken out both of Gukesh's knights. 

Gukesh is the first one to arrive in the playing hall, called the "fishbowl". So clearly, Ding spening time in his private lounge. Gukesh has some adjustments to make first, in his chair. 

"Ding chillin" is a phrase that has been gaining traction on the internet as the first week of the world chess championship has rolled along. 

And we see a visual of world champion Ding Liren sitting in his private lounge. Once again, the Chinese GM is the first one to arrive to the playing hall. 

Ding Liren's teenage challenger from India, Gukesh, yet to arrive. 

We're about to have game 6 of the 2024 world chess championship in less than half an hour. For the third time, Ding Liren will have his shot with white pieces. Given how the past two games with Ding playing with white pieces, this could be a slow boring draw. 

Gukesh fought back to salvage a draw after a major blunder in the fifth game of the World Chess Championship against Ding Liren. After making a careless move, the teenager from India who is bidding to become the youngest ever world champion found himself in a precarious position. He could have been staring at defeat if he had not found the accurate set of moves. 

However, with a series of precise moves, Gukesh managed to neutralize the threat and secure a draw. This escape act showcased his exceptional skill and resilience under pressure.

READ MORE on how Gukesh hit the snooze button on a ticking bomb in Game 5 against Ding Liren  

Nov 25: Ding Liren wins Game 1

Nov 26: Game 2 drawn

Nov 27: Gukesh wins Game 3

Nov 28: Rest Day

Nov 29: Game 4 drawn

Nov 30: Game 5 drawn

Dec 1: Game 6 TODAY

Dec 2: Rest Day 
Dec 3: Game 7
Dec 4: Game 8
Dec 5: Game 9
Dec 6: Rest Day
Dec 7: Game 10
Dec 8: Game 11
Dec 9: Game 12
Dec 10: Rest Day
Dec 11: Game 13
Dec 12: Game 14
Dec 13: Tie-Breaks (if required)

Magnus Carlsen has expressed disappointment with 18-year-old Gukesh's performance in the ongoing World Chess Championship. He believes that Ding Liren, the Chinese grandmaster who succeeded him on the world champion's throne, has exceeded expectations, while Gukesh has not lived up to his potential. Carlsen noted that Gukesh has had opportunities to gain an advantage, especially with the white pieces, but has failed to capitalize on them.

“Gukesh has generally not impressed me so far. Ding has probably done a little bit better than we had thought. Well, we didn’t expect much (before the start of the world chess championship). But Gukesh has probably been a little bit worse,” said Magnus Carlsen in a recap video on the Take Take Take app.

READ MORE: What Magnus Carlsen thinks will happen in game 6 today

The fifth game of the World Chess Championship between Gukesh and Ding Liren ended in a draw after 40 moves. Ding Liren opted for the French Defense, but Gukesh's third move of 3. exd5 surprised many, including chess legend Judit Polgar. Polgar expressed her disbelief at Gukesh's choice, stating that it was not in line with his usual aggressive style. She expected a more dynamic approach from the young Indian talent.

“I’m just speechless to tell you the truth. I just couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw this. I was like ‘what is this?’ Polgar said.

READ MORE on why chess legend Judit Polgar was left ‘speechless’ by Gukesh’s 3rd move in Game 5

Here we go, game 6 of the World Chess Championship is fast approaching. The scres are level. Bioth players are on 2.5 points each. 

Ding Liren plays his third game with white today.