M. Carlsen vs Ding Liren, Saint Louis Blitz 2019

Round 13 of the 2019 Saint Louis Blitz tournament saw Carlsen win against Ding Liren as White. The Saint Louis Blitz was the third section of the 2019 Grand Chess Tour stop in Saint Louis (after Classical and Rapid sections). The blitz format used 3+2 time control over 18 rounds.

Carlsen’s win was a sharp Sicilian Najdorf in which time pressure played a decisive role. Ding Liren — at his peak in 2019 with a rating above 2800 — defended accurately for many moves but committed a small inaccuracy in the final minute that Carlsen converted into a won endgame. The result added to Carlsen’s lead in the blitz section.

Carlsen won the 2019 Saint Louis Blitz with 13/18. Ding Liren finished fourth on 10/18, behind Aronian and Nakamura. The result confirmed Ding’s status as one of the top-five players in the world at this period, though he was still establishing his blitz credentials.

Ding Liren’s 2017-2019 period was the peak of his career before his 2023 World Championship win. His unbeaten streak of 100 classical games ran through 2017-2018; his 2018 World Cup final against Aronian nearly took him to the title-match level; his 2019 Sinquefield Cup win established him as the strongest Chinese player ever and a future World Champion candidate. The Saint Louis 2019 blitz section, while not his strongest format, was part of his establishing elite presence across all time controls.

Game record

This game between Carlsen, M. and Ding Liren was played at the Saint Louis Blitz 2019 in Saint Louis USA in 2019. Played in round 13.1. At the time of the game, the players were rated 2882 (White) and 2805 (Black). The game lasted 49 moves, ending with White winning. It is part of the modern AI-era of elite chess.

Opening context

The opening sequence runs 1. c4 Nf6 2. Nc3 e5 3. Nf3 Nc6 4. d3 d5, after which the players entered the middlegame proper.