6 Shocking Blunders Top Grandmasters Made Last Year

Last year was a phenomenal year for chess successes as well as chess blunders. Critical mistakes by top grandmasters capture our attention. Here are several shocking blunders that the best players in the world made in 2024. Do you remember them?

• Ding’s Blunder Of The Year
• Mate-In-Two Blunder By Ding
• Tragic Blunder By Nepo Gives Game To Caruana
• Back-Rank Mate Blunder By World Champion
• Gifting A Lower-Rated Player
• Does Carlsen Ever Make A Blunder?

Ding’s Blunder Of The Year

The Blunder of the Year, in the eyes of many, occurred in game 14 of the 2024 FIDE World Championship in December. In the game, defending title holder GM Ding Liren seemed to have a risk-free chance to press for a win but instead liquidated into a pawn-down endgame that was objectively drawn.

However, challenger GM Gukesh Dommaraju kept pushing, and Ding blundered as the pressure grew. After the game, Ding said: "I was totally in shock when I made a blunder." Ding offered a trade of rooks—a strategy that had previously been viable—in a position where it was a losing move: 55.Rf2?? (diagram by Chess.com writer Colin McGourty).

Ding Liren has blundered and Gukesh is going to win the World Championship! #DingGukesh pic.twitter.com/8cP7P4Dy4Y

— chess24 (@chess24com) December 12, 2024

I was totally in shock when I made a blunder.
—Ding Liren

Gukesh soon realized that he could exchange rooks, then the bishops on d5, and the pawn endgame would be simple to win. Ding could have resigned on the spot, but he played a few more moves until an easy win for Gukesh was apparent. Ding’s reign as champion ended a year after he had won the title.  

Mate-In-Two Blunder By Ding

Even earlier last year, as the reigning world champion, Ding made another sensational blunder. In a game against GM Magnus Carlsen in round six of Norway Chess 2024 in June, Ding blundered into mate-in-two. GM Rafael Leitao, who analyzes the Games of the Day in Chess.com tournament reports, describes it as "the worst move ever played by a world champion." The board below is set up after White’s 29th move just before Ding blundered. See if you would have avoided his misstep.

Tragic Blunder By Nepo Gives Game To Caruana

GM Ian Nepomniachtchi made a shocking blunder in the sixth round of the 2024 Sinquefield Cup in August against GM Fabiano Caruana. With more than two hours on his clock, Nepomniachtchi made a move too quickly that cost him the game. First, see if you can calculate the winning lines in this puzzle by NM Vanessa West as Caruana did to attack and win the game after Nepomniachtchi made his blunder.

Black to move and win.

About Nepomniachtchi’s blunder, Caruana said: “After he played 18.g5, I just didn't understand. But I spent probably like 20 minutes because he's playing instantly. It's possible that he prepared it or something, and I should understand if I'm losing.... I looked at every individual move here to make sure.” Here is the full game with the board position set after Black's winning move.

Back-Rank Mate Blunder By World Champion

Have you ever blundered a back-rank mate? Even a world champion can succumb to making such errors. In the semifinals of the 2024 Julius Baer Women's Speed Chess Championship in September, five-time World Champion GM Ju Wenjun lost sight of her king’s safety, and GM Kateryna Lagno pounced to end the game. The time control was 3+1. Here is the board position just before the blunder.

Gifting A Lower-Rated Player

Can you imagine a grandmaster blundering a piece to a player with a rating more than 600 points lower? In round one of the 45th FIDE Chess Olympiad in September in Budapest, GM Levon Aronian did just that. Aronian’s material disadvantage should have been sufficient for his opponent to win.

After Aronian made the blunder, he lost a knight that was attacked by a pawn but couldn’t move in a game against FM Andre Mendez, a teenager. If Aronian had moved the knight, Mendez could have potentially grabbed a queen in a discovered check. This game is proof that everyone always has a chance against higher-rated players. However, sadly for Mendez, he lost his opportunity. Aronian pulled off a swindle and went on to win—also proof that winning “won games” is not always easy.

(For more about blunders made at the Budapest Olympiad, see the article “6 Surprising Blunders At 45th Chess Olympiad In Budapest.”

Does Carlsen Ever Make A Blunder?

Of course, he does. Every player blunders. In Carlsen’s case, however, he often can recover from a blunder and keep his opponent from reaching a favorable endgame. A great example from 2024 is his play in round one of the Julius Baer Generation Cup 2024 in September. After four regular games were drawn, he and Nepomniachtchi met in an armageddon game. Carlsen defended with the black pieces and had seven minutes and 28 seconds. Nepomniachtchi had 10 minutes with the white pieces.

On his 19th move, …Rae8??, Carlsen blundered a full exchange that should have given Nepomniachtchi enough advantage to pursue a win. About his mistake, Carlsen confessed: “Obviously, that was a massive blunder.”

Obviously, that was a massive blunder.
—Magnus Carlsen

However, Carlsen swindled Nepomniachtchi to win the game after sacrificing a second exchange with 22…Rxe5!? that opened up an attack on White’s king. Facing checkmate in seven moves, Nepomniachtchi resigned after Carlsen’s 31st move. Asked how he usually manages to defend or even win losing positions, Carlsen retorted, "I don't. Sometimes I just lose."

Now it’s your turn. Do you remember these blunders? Are you surprised that they were made by top grandmasters?