In chess, when not playing well, finding the best moves is not easy. Consistently making the best moves is more difficult. In spite of all the worries, to filter out a SCHOOL-BOY FINISH — sacrificing the strongest piece on the board — to keep the world title is not expected from lesser mortals. Magnus Carlsen did it all in welcoming his moment of glory. Not many doubt that he is firmly on course to attain greatness.
Magnus Carlsen has doneit again. With his third world classical chess ti-tle in three years, the Norwegian had an added reason to celebrate his 26th birthday.
In what was clearly his toughest world chess championship match, Carlsen overcame spells of self-doubt, a frustrating loss and a gritty rival in Sergey Karjakin to keep the title he snatched from five-time winner Viswanathan Anand.
THE TWO YOUNG TALENTS, with proven credentials, battled for 12 games in classical format in New York. A 6-6 deadlock, after Karjakin won Game Eight and Carlsen bounced back in Game 10, meant it was time for tie-break rapid games. Carlsen won the four-game decisive phase 3-1.
Since the latest world title was also decided on the results of the rapid games, the debate stood reopened regarding the format of the championship. How could rapid games decide the world champion in the classical format? The debate continues with Carlsen, in spite of coming through the format three times in as many attempts, not in favour of the current system.
Coming back to the championship, the progression from Game 1 reflected Carlsen’s superiority that he eventually asserted in the tie-breaker.
THE WORLD OF CHESS appreciated Karjakin’s resilience throughout the contest and the spirit with which he took the result. The Russian challenger was also candid in admitting that he committed some mistakes and could not recall, in time, from the huge amount of opening preparation right through the match.
Pre-match poll suggested that every eight out of 10 chess fans thought Carlsen would win. Not surprisingly, the duration of the classical battle saw Carlsen looking better 80 per cent of the time, pressing for victory on more occasions than Karjakin.
This story is from the December 17, 2016 edition of Sportstar.
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This story is from the December 17, 2016 edition of Sportstar.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
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