World Chess Championship: D Gukesh and Ding Liren play out draw in Game 4

World Chess Championships: G Dukesh and Ding Liren played out a draw after 42 moves in Game 4. Resuming after the rest day, the two players played a tense match which fizzled out to a draw.

In Short

• D Gukesh held on a a draw while playing with black pieces
• Ding's opening moves took Gukesh by surprise in Game 4
• The World Championship match is tied at 2-2 after four games

Indian chess grandmaster D Gukesh held China's reigning World Champion Ding Liren to a draw in Game 4 of their World Chess Championship match on November 29 in Singapore. The game ended in a draw after 42 moves as D Gukesh, playing with black pieces, overcame a shaky initial phase.

The World Championship match is tied at 2-2 after four games. The first player to reach 7.5 points over 14 games will win the prestigious title. 18-year-old Gukesh, who became the youngest challenger to the world championship crown, recovered from a defeat in Game 1 and has been improving consistently. China’s 32-year-old Ding Liren took the lead by winning the opening game, followed by a draw in the second. In a tightly contested third game that reached a Rook endgame, both players opted for a draw through repetition on the 42nd move.

The first ceremonial move for Gukesh at Game 4 of the FIDE World Championship was made by legendary Viswanathan Anand on Friday. Grandmaster Xie Jun, four-time Women’s World Champion, made the first ceremonial move for Ding.

MY OPENING IDEA WORKED WELL: DING

Ding Liren, playing with white pieces after the rest day, came up with a unique set of moves at the start to take Gukesh by surprise. Gukesh took 15 minutes for the first five moves before managing his time well.

He took five minutes for his third move (b3 Bf5) and seven minutes for his fifth move (Ba3 Nbd7). Gukesh needed to focus hard after the solid opening combinations from Ding, and the Indian Grandmaster did exactly that to regain his hold of the game.

"I had a rest day to recover from the tough loss. I am in a very good mood. I chose this opening idea trying to surprise my opponent. It worked well, not so bad," Ding said.

Ding looked devastated on Wednesday when he lost to Gukesh while playing with black pieces. He was leading the World Chess Championship match 1.5-0.5 before losing on time to the Indian in Game 3.

Ding conceded he tried to play it safe in Game 4, knowing he could afford to hand the momentum to Gukesh after the rest day.

"This round, I tried to play safe. It turns out I got a little bit of an advantage. The score is still balanced. There are more games to come," he said.

The two will face off again in the fifth round on Saturday.