Round 3 of the World Championship between Ding and Gukesh. Gukesh’s second game with the white pieces. He lost the first one in round 1 after a tactical battle in the French.
Gukesh lost round 1 after Ding’s remarkable game in the French Defense. I was anxious to see whether Gukesh will repeat 1.e4, and, if so, will Ding go for the French again.
But.. 1.d4 was played. Gukesh can play anything on move 1, of course, but sticking to e4 would have been a brave statement in my opinion.