The final of the 2nd Ranco Cup Trilogy will be held on August 19-22, with Gu Zihao 9 dan and Shen Zhenzhen 9 dan duel, who of them will have the last laugh?
Coincidentally, the two have already competed once in the first Ranco Cup finals, and as a result, Gu Zihao relied on his super fighting ability to win two games in a row and became the champion under the unfavorable situation of losing one set first.
Gu Zihao nine paragraphs
In the same World Championship, two masters of the same world tournament can meet on the final stage twice in a row, which is rare in the history of the World Go Championship.
There had only been two times before that, in the first two Fujitsu Cup finals from 1988 to 1989, Masaki Takemiya and Lin Haifeng played twice, and finally the originator of the universe became the first world champion and the first double champion in the Go world.
The indomitable Lin Haifeng continued to reach the finals of the third Fujitsu Cup, this time he defeated Nie Weiping Jiudan and was finally crowned the World Champion, while our chess saint was very unlucky and missed the World Championship Gold Cup for life.
In the two Fujitsu Cups from 1993 to 1994, Yoo Chang-hyuk and Cho Hoon-hyun won the finals, with the former winning the sixth cup and the latter on the top podium in the latter.
This time between Gu Zihao and Shen Zhenzhen, it is the first time in 30 years that a similar show will be staged again, will Shen Zhenzhen miss the opportunity this time?
Let's first take a look at the opponents defeated by the two sides in the process of advancing to the finals.
Shin Zhen Kudan
In the final journey of this year's Ranke Cup, Shen Zhenzhen successively defeated Zhao Chenyu 9th dan, Zhang Tao 8th duan, Yang Dingxin 9th duan, Ding Hao 9th duan, Gu Zihao Lianke Gu Lingyi 7th duan, Ueno Aisakimi 5th duan, Park Tinghuan 9th duan, and Iyama Yuta 9th duan. Obviously, the road to conquest of Shengong Intelligence is much more difficult.
Looking at the competitive state of the two sides this year, Gu Zihao's performance is far worse than last year, except for this Rotten Ke Cup, other events have lost more, such as the record of the Weijia League is only 3 wins and 3 losses, and the first round of the 10th Ying Cup was defeated by the Korean genius girl Kim Eunzhi Jiudan.
Shin Zhenzhen's record in the last three or four years has been relatively stable, and he has won the world championship title every year. At the beginning of February this year, Bian Xiangyi Jiudan won the 28th LG Cup crown, and this time he entered the final of the Bad Ke Cup, so he naturally hopes that good things will come in pairs.
In terms of comprehensive chess strength, especially the proficiency of AI and the level of officials, Shen Zhenzhen is obviously above Gu Zihao; Gu Ba's strengths are amazing combat effectiveness and explosiveness, and his psychological state is slightly better than that of his opponent, so it is difficult to determine who will kill the deer.
In the world championship rankings, Gu Zihao is a double champion, ranking 17th. Shin Zhenzhen, the world's No. 1 person today, is already a six-time champion and ranks seventh.
If Gu Zihao defeats Shen Zhenzhen to win the Rotten Ke Cup, he will become the triple crown winner, tied with Chang Hao 9 duan, Tang Weixing 9 duan, Kong Jie 9 duan, and Chen Yaoye 9 duan.
Shen Zhenzhen and Gu Zihao
Shin Zhenzhen is only 24 years old this year, and he is at the peak of his Go career, and if he wins the podium of the Ranke Cup, it will be a stone's throw away from the eight-time champions Gu Li Jiudan and Ke Jie Jiudan, and it should be a matter of time before he surpasses their status.
There is still a month and a half to go, and the final of the second Ranco Cup will be staged. The second duel between Gu Zihao and Shen Zhenzhen, is it Gu Zihao who defends his title, or is Shen Zhenzhen ashamed? Let's wait in silence.