Ding Liren strikes back hard after poor start against Ian Nepomniachtchi
China’s Ding Liren has fought back strongly from a disastrous start against Ian Nepomniachtchi in the €2m world championship match in Astana, Kazakhstan. The Russian, playing under a neutral flag, blew the nervous 30-year-old title debutant from Wenzhou off the board in 29 moves of zestful attacking chess in game two of their scheduled 14-game series, before an increasingly confident Ding comfortably drew game three, then found a winning rook for knight sacrifice to score in 47 in Thursday’s game four. The score was Ding 2 Nepomniachtchi 2 before Friday’s rest day.