Ding Liren, the Chinese grandmaster, has scored a career best in the Classical time limit section of the Grand Tour in St Louis which concluded late last month. Ding tied for first prize with world champion Magnus Carlsen in the main tournament, and then went on to crush the champion in the quickplay tie-break.
Carlsen was on the verge of holding a draw in this game, until Ding decanted a vintage win in the endgame.
Ding-Carlsen, St Louis 2019 (see diagram 1)
This is the position from the first play-off game where Carlsen lost on time. Black has control over the g8-square so the win is not straightforward. The key to White’s winning plan is to relocate the rook to the a-file and establish the bishop on the a1-h8 diagonal. White will then win by creating threats of sacrificing the rook for the bishop. The following line is certainly not forced but it gives an idea of how this can be done.
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