FIDE World Championship -Gukesh fails chance, Ding ties to even out in Game 13

Day 13 Game 13 of FIDE World Championship

Gukesh fails chance, Ding ties to even out in Game 13. In the picture, the FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich made the first move in Game 13.

Observers anticipated Gukesh to rebound with a victory in Game 13 following a well-deserved break. 

Gukesh with the white pieces played again the Kings pawn opening move e4 on the board with a solid French defence from Ding as in the previous game. As the moves were played with slightly different order of moves compared to the first game, a set of minor pieces were exchanged. Ding responded with strategic precision, leading to a careful exchange of minor pieces and mutual castling.

Ding maintained a strong defence, protecting his pieces and avoiding any errors until the rooks and queens moves were played frequently alongside the Knight & and the opposite colored Bishops.

Gukesh's calculation led to excellent moves, including the dark square bishop attacking the Rooks with a tactical plan. The early exchange of the dark square Bishop for a Knight presented a trade opportunity with the Rooks, but the failure to exchange resulted in a draw with 6.5 points each.

Both the players exhausted and experiencing mixed emotions after a long tournament will play the final round of classical time control.

Ding plays with the white pieces in Game 14, needing a win to retain the title. Short time control games may determine the winner if game 14 ends in a draw.