Abraxas
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- Joined
- Mar 6, 2021
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Game 2 gave away that his prep is shoddy for this level of match. Plays h3 to opt against the Catalan, worse within 14 moves, probably lost within 20. That's pretty poor for a line he has come up with which his opponent couldn't possibly have expected. That would rarely happen to the best prepared players in a line they go for.It's a fairly even match. I don''t really see what makes Ding look less prepared especially when both players gained advantages with white. The one thing that people need to keep in mind is that neither is playing for draws, so they both avoid lines with theoretical draws which are the majority of main line plays and what we are used to see in big tournaments.
I think he needs to be more prepared than Nepo. I'm not saying he can't come back in this match, he easily could, but he's always had a fairly narrow repertoire he plays extremely well. Which also suits his style. He seems to gain a lot of confidence in that. When they're just free styling from early on I think that's a pretty good situation for Nepo more than Ding as he's been comfortable playing many openings in classical, he's going to pressure on the clock, I think that situation works for him. Then he has prep with white, especially.
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