FIDE World Championship - Gukesh equals Ding in Game 3 with a trap

My thoughts....

Day 3 and Game 3 -  Gukesh made the bold move with the Queen's pawn d4 in Game 3, setting the stage for an unusual variation from Queen's Gambit. Ding reply with a Knight to the natural square followed by d5 locking the queen pawn.

An early trade of c4 pawn with d5 and early Queen move by Gukesh misplaced Ding's pieces after exchange of Queens. This followed by a pawn storm on the King's side to trap Ding's white square Bishop.

After this strategic sequence of moves, Ding found himself in a precarious position with limited options for retaliation and in losing the Bishop. Although, Ding calculation was accurate in finding accurate moves, he got in time trouble and was never able to recover from a complex and tactical position.

With less than 40 moves on the board, Ding chances to secure a draw slipped and found himself in a losing position

Gukesh demonstrated exceptional strategic thinking and resilience by making precise moves to secure a victory.

The excitement must be palpable among Gukesh loyal supporters after his impressive victory in the World Championship and in levelling the score chart.

With day 3 game results of 1 - 0 both the players have tied with 1.5 points each after 3 games. A  fresh start for both in Game 4 after tomorrow's rest day.