What next for Magnus the Magnificent?
The victory of the young, dynamic Norwegian GM Magnus Carlsen in dethroning world champion Viswanathan Anand in their title match last week has sent an electric thrill through fans of the game worldwide.
The genial, unassuming Anand has been a worthy world champion, a brilliant competitor and an inspiration for a generation of chess stars in his native India, but it was clear many in the chess world were rooting for the media-friendly, model-handsome 22-year-old Norwegian to be the new standard-bearer for the game. The 16th undisputed world champion, Carlsen is the second-youngest titleholder ever — Garry Kasparov was a few months younger when he took the title in 1985 from Anatoly Karpov — and is the first champion from Western Europe since Dutchman Max Euwe briefly ruled the chess world in the mid-1930s.
Carlsen has already sparked a craze for the game in his native Norway, and here’s hoping his new prominence will attract new fans and new sponsors for the game here in the United States as well.
The match, thankfully, was decided at the chessboard, with a complete absence of the outside distractions, controversies and personality clashes that have marred other title matches. Carlsen, who has long been the world’s top-rated players, overcame what he himself admitted was a shaky start to score a no-doubt-about-it 6½-3½ victory, with wins in Games 5, 6 and 9 to go with seven draws.
After the match, the new champion cited his ability to draw Games 3 and 4 as critical, allowing him to “settle in” and play his brand of implacable, grind-it-out chess that repeatedly forced blunders from Anand at crucial points.
Game 9 was easily the most dynamic struggle over the match, packing a ton of tension into just 28 moves. The inability of Anand, a legendary tactician and calculator, to negotiate the positional thickets here virtually sealed his fate in the match.
Well behind in the match, Anand finally got the sharp opening game he was seeking with the 4. f3 Nimzo-Indian Saemisch. Black’s 8. e3 c4!? was part of Carlsen’s pre-match preparation, but it also plays into White’s plans, as Anand will have a relatively free hand to attack on the king’s flank.
After 16. e4 Nxc1 (removing what could be a dangerous attacking piece) 17. Qxc1 Ra6 18. e5 Nc7 19. f4!? (the most aggressive tack, but many thought White should take just a move for the prophylactic 19. Rb2 to restrain Black’s queenside expansion and avoid an exchange of rooks; the passed pawn Carlsen will obtain on b3 proves critical to the outcome of the game) b4 20. axb4 axb4 21. Rxa6 Nxa6 22. f5 b3, Carlsen later admitted he was playing “scared” for the remainder of the game, as White’s kingside pawn armada becomes truly imposing.
Anand thought for 40 minutes before playing 23. Qf4 (h4-h5 was another way to continue the attack, while 23. f6 g6 24. Ne2 Nc7 25. Nf4 Bf5 seems to lead nowhere), and Black shows nerves of steel in the ensuing play: 23…Nc7 24. f6 g6 25. Qh4 (looking for mate either on g7 or along the h-file; Black’s position hangs by a thread, but no one so far has found a forced win for White) Ne8 26. Qh6 b2 27. Rf4!?, allowing Black to queen with check while still searching for the elusive breakthrough. Black also defends on 27. Ne2 Qa5 28. Nf4 Be6 29. Nxe6 fxe6 30. Bh3 Qa6.
Anand’s crown was effectively surrendered on the next moves from Black and White: 27…b1=Q+, and here Anand’s legendary calculating skills deserted him as he got lost in the thickets while calculating 28. Bf1! Qd1 (the only move to stop mate along the h-file) 29. Rh4 Qh5 (Carlsen gives up his queen, but, luckily for the Norwegian, it is his extra queen) 30. Nxh5 (Rxh5?! gxh5 31. Nxh6 Qa5 32. Ng7 Qxc3 33. Nxe8 Qxd4+ 34. Kh1 Qe4+ 35. Kg1 Qg6 and wins) gxh5 31. Rxh5 Bf5, and a fierce debate is still raging over whether White can keep up the attack. The consensus seems to be that after 36. g6! (Bh3 Bg6 33. e6 Nxf6 34. gxf6 Qxf6 35. e7 Qxe7 36. Re5 doesn’t give White enough to win) Bxg6 33. Rg5 Qa5 34. Rg3 Qa3 35. h4 Kh8 36. Bg2 Rg8 37. Bxd5 Qa1+ 38. Kh2 Qa2+ 39. Rg2 Qa5 40. Rxg6 Qxd5 41. Rxg8+ Kxg8 42. Qg5+ Kh8 43. Qh6 Kg8 allows Black to escape with the draw.
Unable to find a win with 28. Bf1, Anand hastily went with the alternative and overlooked the huge hole in the alternative 28. Nf1?? Qe1, and 29. Rh4 Qxh4 30. Qxh4 Bf5 is an easy win for Black; White resigned.
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Needing just a draw in Game 10, Carlsen actually came very close to winning in a Rossolimo Sicilian. Black never gets any counterplay going and the Sicilian pawn on d6 just becomes a backward weakness on a half-open file. The players exchange blunders on 28. a5 Qg5? (Rcd8 29. b4 Qg5 30. Nc3 is better, but White had nothing to fear in this position either) 29. e5! Ne8, when 30. Nc3! (eyeing either e4 or the b6 square via a4) Rcd8 31. Na4 Qe7 32. Red3 f6 33. f4 fxe5 34. fxe5 would have cost Black at least a pawn in light of the looming 35. Nb6.
White’s uncharacteristically hasty 30. exd6? Rc6 31. f4 Qd8 32. Red3 Rcxd6 33. Rxd6 Rxd6 Qxd6 35. Qxd6 Nxd6 36. Kf2 Kf8 37. Ke3 costs him the immediate win, but even here Carlsen has the better chances in a knight-and-pawn ending with his more active king.
White can even allow his knight to be trapped on 47. Nxh6 gxf4 48. gxf4 Kg7 49. Nxf5+ exf5 50. Kb6, because he will obtain three pawns for the lost piece. Even though both players obtain new queens, White keeps the draw always in hand, and forces things with the pragmatic 60. Kb5 Nxb3 61. Qc7+ Kh6 (if the Black king retreats, White’s queen just keeps checking) 62. Qb6+ Qxb6+ 63. Kxb6 Kh5 64. h4 Kxh4 65. c5 Nxc5, and Anand conceded the draw which make his opponent the new world champion.
Anand-Carlsen, Game 9, World Championship, Chennai, India, November 2013
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 c5 7. cxd5 exd5 8. e3 c4 9. Ne2 Nc6 10. g4 O-O 11. Bg2 Na5 12. O-O Nb3 13. Ra2 b5 14. Ng3 a5 15. g5 Ne8 16. e4 Nxc1 17. Qxc1 Ra6 18. e5 Nc7 19. f4 b4 20. axb4 axb4 21. Rxa6 Nxa6 22. f5 b3 23. Qf4 Nc7 24. f6 g6 25. Qh4 Ne8 26. Qh6 b2 27. Rf4 b1=Q+ 28. Nf1 Qe1 White resigns.
Carlsen-Anand, Game 10, World Championship, Chennai, India, November 2013
1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. Bb5+ Nd7 4. d4 cxd4 5. Qxd4 a6 6. Bxd7+ Bxd7 7. c4 Nf6 8. Bg5 e6 9. Nc3 Be7 10. O-O Bc6 11. Qd3 O-O 12. Nd4 Rc8 13. b3 Qc7 14. Nxc6 Qxc6 15. Rac1 h6 16. Be3 Nd7 17. Bd4 Rfd8 18. h3 Qc7 19. Rfd1 Qa5 20. Qd2 Kf8 21. Qb2 Kg8 22. a4 Qh5 23. Ne2 Bf6 24. Rc3 Bxd4 25. Rxd4 Qe5 26. Qd2 Nf6 27. Re3 Rd7 28. a5 Qg5 29. e5 Ne8 30. exd6 Rc6 31. f4 Qd8 32. Red3 Rcxd6 33. Rxd6 Rxd6 34. Rxd6 Qxd6 35. Qxd6 Nxd6 36. Kf2 Kf8 37. Ke3 Ke7 38. Kd4 Kd7 39. Kc5 Kc7 40. Nc3 Nf5 41. Ne4 Ne3 42. g3 f5 43. d6 g5 44. Ne8+ Kd7 45. Nf6+ Ke7 46. Ng8+ Kf8 47. Nxh6 gxf4 48. gxf4 Kg7 49. Nxf5+ exf5 50. Kb6 Ng2 51. Kxb7 Nxf4 52. Kxa6 Ne6 53. Kb6 f4 54. a6 f3 55. a7 f2 56. a8=Q f1=Q 57. Qd5 Qe1 58. Qd6 Qe3+ 59. Ka6 Nc5+ 60. Kb5 Nxb3 61. Qc7+ Kh6 62. Qb6+ Qxb6+ 63. Kxb6 Kh5 64. h4 Kxh4 65. c5 Nxc5 Draw agreed.
• David R. Sands can be reached at 202/636-3178 or by email at dsands@washingtontimes.com.
• David R. Sands can be reached at dsands@washingtontimes.com.
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