Qe2!!, a move that Caruana suggested: "Nepo might have missed." The move, which left Ding's bishop en prise with a dangerous threat of a king and rook fork, shifted the momentum. With two minutes and 30 seconds left on the clock, Ding played the brilliant 42. Photo: Maria Emelianova/.īoth Caruana and Hess were alert to the fact that Ding's best remaining chance was to play into an ending where the a-pawn could become dangerous, and it seemed that Ding had the same intuitive feeling. Piling into the hallway outside the playing hall, hundreds of fans were ready to greet the players as the tense encounter drew to a close. "It was hard to imagine I could lose" were the self-admitted thoughts of the Candidates winner about this moment, and most viewers probably anticipated that it was a two-result match. With the chess world waiting with bated breath, Nepomniachtchi soon played an inaccuracy, 35.Ra1?, which brought the position back to equal, although the position still looked easier for Nepomniachtchi. Both numbers are records for the website. During this time, viewership across all platforms peaked at 441,000 viewers, almost doubling the average viewership of the broadcast which had been 220,000. Ding would later state: "The white pieces are not always the advantage." Will Ding's play encourage a new generation of players to play more ambitiously with Black? Photo: Maria Emelianova/.Īs the position opened up, Nepomniachtchi's bishop pair began to look ominous, and many viewers began to write Ding off. After finding success with the opening in earlier games where he had, in his own words, "had every chance," Nepomniachtchi declared his intent to play for a win with the unusual 13.Bb1.Īs the middlegame progressed, both players made decisions that implied that they were playing for a win. The Anti-Marshall was the arena for the 18th game.
With the scores locked at 1.5-1.5 in a match that White had statistically dominated overall (five wins for White and one for Black in the first 17 games), very few people expected that Ding would look to press with Black in the final game. His family and friends were the first people he thanked after winning the title. Ding embraces former women’s world champion Xie Jun. With this victory, Ding becomes the first-ever classical world champion from China, also the home of Women's World Chess Champion GM Ju Wenjun. "I feel that this was the match that reflects the deepest part of my soul," Ding said at the press conference after dedicating the victory to his friends, mother, and grandfather. The meaning of life should be in those special, sparkling moments.Īn emotional moment for Ding and his fans around the world. The scene recalls what Ding had said in 2019: “The meaning of life should be in those special, sparkling moments.” With his head in his hands, the realization and relief hit Ding all at once. Regis Hotel in the moments after Nepomniachtchi had resigned in the fourth and final rapid tiebreaker in Astana. Tears of joy and a rare outpouring of emotion from Ding were the first scenes coming out of the St. The live broadcast was hosted by GMs Fabiano Caruana, Robert Hess, and IM Tania Sachdev.
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