Like any mass-rumoured, self-esteem broken hearted or hanged (by chess) person, GM Ding Liren is believed to have sought out a bunch of fellow players to play some trippy team games of ‘Bughouse Chess’. After he lost the world championship title to D Gukesh.
According to Dutch GM Benjamin Bock, Ding, who handed over his crown to the Indian, was seen playing a team variety of chess on Chess.com after the title fight.
Bughouse Chess is considered to satisfy both chess hangovers and heartbreaks, where four players play on two boards in teams of two. Most chess rules apply, but pieces captured in the bughouse are passed to teammates on the next board, who can gain an advantage on their own board. Results are clinched by checkmate or time out.
Ding Liren lost in the final round of the World Chess Championship just 4 hours ago.
…and he’s already playing Bughouse Chess online 😂 Talk about a bounce back! pic.twitter.com/wIo5ar3awb
— Chess.com (@chesscom) December 12, 2024
By 2315 IST, a Twitter observer noted that Ding had finished 22 games of Bughouse, where the capture rules give it names like Siamese Chess, Swap Chess, and Exchange Chess. It’s interactive chess where partners can tag team to checkmate enemy pieces and opponents.
In a 3-minute snap match, Ding and Indian Cuisinemaster, a registered British player, beat Chinese Yushalrose and Momoko 105.
While it was speculated that Ding was happy to be unburdened by the world champ – very believable – others said that the flippy bughouse chase could be anything from looking for support, to anger, to complete relaxation. But most wanted the ‘ding chilling’ trophy to continue, and Chefhouse assumed he was resting after a grueling three weeks more than the “oopsie daisies” mistake.
Speculation is rife about how treacherous his path is to ensure Ding will continue in Classical or qualify for the next cycle of candidates.
Meanwhile, news is awaited whether De Gukesh will actually bungee jump as mentioned after his historic title, following reports that he is actually afraid of heights. With $1.3 million (roughly Rs. 11.03 crore) in his pocket, after the title, Gukesh can float a few feet above the ground, and that’s enough for a very exciting year, some say.
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