Lower than every week after Ding Liren grew to become the seventeenth World Champion he’s again in motion immediately in Bucharest, Romania as he takes on Maxime Vachier-Lagrave within the first spherical of the Superbet Chess Basic. It’s not simply Ding making the journey from Astana, as Ian Nepomniachtchi faces Ding’s second Richard Rapport. The road-up options 2022 Grand Chess Tour champion Alireza Firouzja in addition to Fabiano Caruana, Anish Giri, Wesley So, Jan-Krzysztof Duda and native wildcard Bogdan-Daniel Deac.

After the World Championship match went the gap in Astana there have been fears that one or each of the gamers would skip the primary occasion on the 2023 Grand Chess Tour, however each have made it to Bucharest for the Superbet Chess Basic. The 9-round classical event begins at 14:00 CEST on Saturday Might sixth, with $350,000 and a prime prize of $100,000 up for grabs.

Ding Liren can’t assist himself taking first, as he drew the no. 1 seed for the event.

He begins with the white items towards Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, the French star who has quietly returned to the brink of the Prime 10.

Essentially the most eye-catching Spherical 1 conflict, nevertheless, is between Ian Nepomniachtchi and the person he fought a proxy battle towards in Astana, Ding Liren’s second Richard Rapport.

Will we get to see any of the concepts that didn’t fairly make it into the match, maybe even one of many traces that was burned when Ding and Richard’s coaching video games have been found on-line?

Anish Giri, the winner of this yr’s Tata Metal Masters, takes on Polish no. 1 Jan-Krzysztof Duda.

19-year-old Alireza Firouzja, the world no. 4 behind no. Ian Nepomniachtchi and no. 3 Ding Liren, hasn’t performed a classical recreation since he received the 2022 Sinquefield Cup, and with it the Grand Chess Tour, again in September. In Spherical 1 he takes on Wesley So, who has had loads of time to get better from a frenetic begin to the yr.

Fabiano Caruana will now, like Anish Giri, change from commentary to enjoying, and he begins towards native star Bogdan-Daniel Deac, who’s the one wildcard within the occasion however already a 2700 participant.

Essentially the most anticipated recreation of the event, nevertheless, is prone to be Nepomniachtchi-Ding Liren, which can already happen in Monday’s Spherical 3.

Given how the match went it’s potential Ding will battle with the black items, although his freshest reminiscence might be of how he received the ultimate speedy recreation with Black.

Don’t miss all of the Superbet Chess Basic motion stay right here on chess24 from 14:00 CEST on Saturday, Might sixth!

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