We'll Meet Again

John B. Henderson • September 29, 2023

The self-proclaimed “final boss of chess” does what the final boss of chess does best of all: Magnus Carlsen beat Maxime Vachier-Lagrave in the final of the AI Cup winners’ bracket, the sixth and final leg of the 2023 Champions Chess Tour regular season, to reach yet another Grand Final in the novel double-elimination contest.


But it wasn’t without an epic bare-knuckle street fight from both players, as MVL proved to be a worthy opponent for what looked to be an unstoppable Carlsen, who narrowly prevailed in the Armageddon to take the match 3-2. "This is the sort of thing that happens when you play Sicilians in every game," said a magnanimous Carlsen in victory after four fighting Sicilians left the match tied at 2-2.

The pundits and punters were similarly complimentary of the no-holds-barred fight from both players - and they relished the thought of these two battlers going at it again, as MVL had a second possible shot at Carlsen by winning the losers bracket. And that’s just the dream scenario that played out for the fans, as MVL went on to beat Ian Nepomniachtchi 2-0 to meet up again with Carlsen in the 2023 AI Cup Grand Final.


And perhaps with the exception of Carlsen himself, many will not begrudge seeing MVL going on to beat the world #1 in the AI Cup Grand Final. The Frenchman is so far behind in the Tour leaderboard standings, that winning the AI Cup and an automatic qualifier spot increasingly looks like his only possible path into December's live and in-person $500,000 Tour Finals in Toronto, Canada. 

GM Magnus Carlsen - GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave

AI Cup Div 1 W, (3)

Sicilian Najdorf, English Attack/Scheveningen

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 Like Bobby Fischer and Garry Kasparov before him, MVL is a creature of habit by being the only elite player willing to risk all by playing almost exclusively the Sicilian Najdorf.

6.Be3 The English Attack only became a potent force in tournament praxis during the early 1990s, following a string of impressive results from the English (then) top trio of Nigel Short, Michael Adams and Dr John Nunn. 6...Ng4!?

Time was when 6...e5 (or even 6...e6 - as the game soon transposes into - and going into a Sicilian Scheveningen) was almost the universal reply here - but this is an interesting way to combat the popular English Attack. The idea is to hassle White's bishop, so either it is 7.Bg5 and the double-edged complexity of 7...h6 8.Bh4 g5 9.Bg3 Bg7 10.h3 Ne5, or the bishop retreats with 7.Bc1 and Black has nothing better than the mutual retreat with 7...Nf6 and we're back to square one. 7.Bc1 Nf6 8.f3 Regardless of the time control, both these players would simply baulk at the thought of offering up a quick repetition draw with 8.Be3 Ng4 9.Bc1 Nf6 etc. So as often happens in the English Attack, the game now transposes into a Sicilian Scheveningen of sorts, which is very usual from MVL. 8...e6 9.Be3 b5 10.Qd2 Nbd7 11.g4 b4 12.Na4 h6 13.O-O-O Ne5 14.b3 Bd7 15.Nb2 d5!? The most dynamic move, looking to create active counterplay quickly before White can take a grip of the position. 16.Bf4 Nxf3!? A thematic sacrifice in such e4, f3 g4 pawn formations in the Sicilian - and very typical of MVL to want to up the ante with sharp play! 17.Nxf3 Nxe4 18.Qd4 Rg8 A little of a surprise, as the engine wants to play 18...f6!? with the possibility of ...Bc5 and preparing the groundwork for a later, central pawn push with ...e5. 19.Ne5 The solid option was 19.Nd3 to stop ...Bc5 and reinforce the e5 outpost for the knight - but Carlsen has a cunning plan! 19...Bc5 20.Qxe4! Carlsen takes the game on a wild rollercoaster ride with his early doors squeen sac. 20...dxe4 21.Nxd7 Qxd7 After careful consideration, MVL decides it is better to give the queen back now rather than trying to fathom out the complications that arise after 21...Qe7 22.Be2 g5 (There's no quick solution. After 22...Rd8 23.Bxa6! and already White has a big advantage, with the three minor pieces being better than the queen) 23.Be5 and with Nf6+ coming, Black will be forced into ...Qxd7 anyway - so best to do it on your own terms. 22.Rxd7 Kxd7 23.Nc4 Let's be honest, this is the natural move everyone instinctively would play - but the engine sees just a little deeper, and it wants to head for the rim instead with 23.Na4!, the point being that 23...Bf2 24.Bc4 and suddenly Black's position is looking decidedly "iffy" with multiple threats, not just of Rd1+, but also Rf1 and Bd2 with the pawns on b5 and f7 hanging, not to mention the long-term weakness of the a6 pawn. 23...g5 24.Be5 Ke7! A nice touch from MVL. Some of the online punters were calling out for the rash push 24...f5 which looks good in the heat of the moment, but the engine - and we would presume Magnus also - soon capitalises on this with 25.Bh3! f4 26.Re1 e3 27.Bg2 Raf8 28.Bf3 where all of Black's pawns are now fixed and White's pieces ready to strike at them. 25.h4 Rad8?! Up to this point, MVL had been more than a match for Magnus by dampening his creative play - but this is the moment when the game firmly swings Magnus' way. The correct continuation was 25...gxh4! 26.Rxh4 as there's the cunning little resource of 26...h5! that leads to equality after 27.Rxh5 Rxg4 28.Bh2 f5, and because of the long-term dangers with the Black pawns rushing down the board, White has to take the bailout option now with 29.Rh7+ Kf6 30.Be5+ Kg5 31.Rg7+ Kh4 32.Rh7+ Kg5 33.Rg7+ Kh4 34.Rh7+ Kg5 35.Rg7+ etc and a repetition. 26.hxg5 Rxg5 The alternative faired much worse. After 26...hxg5 27.Bg2 e3 28.Bf3 and White will be looking long-term to pick off the e3-pawn - and the b4- and a6-pawns too! 27.Be2 Rg6 28.Bf4 The h6-pawn looks doomed - but can MVL muster up some compensating counterplay? 28...Bd4 29.Ne5 When you have the initiative, the hardest thing to do in chess is to play a retreating move - but after he better 29.Bd2! suddenly Black is in deep trouble, as 29...Rb8 30.Rd1 f5 (The obvious 30...e5 sees 31.Ne3! and suddenly the knight swinging into f5 looks set to pick off a few loose pawns) 31.gxf5 exf5 32.Ne3! all but forces 32...Bxe3 33.Bxe3 h5 34.Bc5+ and with the bishop-pair and active rook, White holds all the cards and should go on to win. 29...Bxe5 30.Bxe5 f5 31.gxf5 exf5 32.Bf4 Mr Engine quickly points out the stronger plan of 32.Bc4! Rd7 33.Kb2! a5 and White's position is primed to start picking off some pawns, starting with h6. Just not an easy endgame for Black to play. Carlsen though gets the full point thanks to a little time-induced help from his opponent! 32...a5? As ever, sadly time errors start to creep in to spoil this enthralling encounter - the only way for Black to stay in the game was with 32...Rh8! 33.Bd2 and now 33...a5 leading us to 34.Be3 h5 35.Rd1 with an intriguing battle ahead for White to convert the win. 33.Bxh6 Rg2 In his time-trouble haste, MVL missed that 33...Rh8 allows 34.Bg5+ Rxg5 35.Rxh8 Rg1+ 36.Kd2 Kf6 37.Ra8 and White will start picking off all of Black's pawns to convert the win. 34.Bf1 Rg6 35.Be3 It's now just a technical win for Carlsen - and he quickly and almost effortlessly goes about it. 35...Kf6 36.Bc4 Ke5 37.Rh7! f4 38.Rh5+ Kf6 (see diagram) A last desperate throw of the die from MVL. 39.Bb6! And Carlsen doesn't fall for the mega-swindle of 39.Bxf4?? Rg1+ 40.Kb2 Rdd1! and, in a reversal of fortunes, it is the White king that's being mated! 39...Rd7 40.Bxa5 Rg1+ You could try 40...Rg5 looking to trade rooks and make something with the passed pawns - but White doesn't need to play that game, as 41.Rh6+ Kg7 42.Ra6 f3 43.Bxb4 e3 44.Bc3+ Kh7 45.Re6 e2 46.Kb2! Rg1 47.Re3 f2 48.Bxe2 f1=Q 49.Bxf1 Rxf1 and White easily wins with the three queenside pawns. 41.Kb2 f3 42.Bxb4 f2 43.Bc3+ It's basically much the same as the note above. 43...Kg6 44.Re5 Re1 45.Re6+ Kg5 46.Rf6 e3 47.Rf8 Rc7 48.Bd4! And Carlsen very efficiently and ruthlessly clears up now. 48...Rxc4 49.Bxe3+ Rxe3 50.bxc4 1-0 And MVL resigns in view of 50...Re2 51.Kc3 Kg4 52.Kd3 and not only does the f-pawn drop, but Black's king is also going to be cut off on the kingside with it.

The 42 Paradox

By John B. Henderson • October 2, 2023
Well, well, well. After rampaging his way through many of the finals and opponents throughout the 2023 Champions Chess Tour, Magnus Carlsen’s “final boss” reign came to a screeching halt in what proved to be an enthralling AI Cup Grand Final on Friday, as the favourite was beaten not once but in three games, and over two matches, by Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, who sensationally grabbed the last remaining spot in the Champions Tour Final in December. Earlier, Carlsen had defeated MVL in the final of the winners’ bracket, before the Frenchman gained the right to a rematch in the double-elimination contest by beating Ian Nepomniachtchi in the final of the losers’ bracket. In the Grand Final, buoyed up and firing on all cylinders, MVL beat Carlsen by a 2½-1½ score.

Tiers For Fears

By John B. Henderson • September 27, 2023
Fans were treated to arguably the greatest online rivalry in chess history recently, with the Chess.com Speed Chess Championship Grand Final showdown between Magnus Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura seeing the Norwegian narrowly snatch victory by a solitary win to end the American speed maven’s hopes of a sixth successive victory. But Carlsen’s narrow win left the salivating fans feeling they’d been denied seeing this epic gladiatorial speed contest going into overtime - but they didn’t have to wait long for the rivalry redux, as a couple of days later, both Carlsen and Nakamura went head-to-head yet again in the opening day of the AI Cup, the sixth and final leg of the 2023 Champions Chess Tour regular season.

Bossing It

By John B. Henderson • September 25, 2023
Magnus Carlsen more than lived up to his self-proclamation of being “The Final Boss of Chess” with a revenge-is-sweet narrow victory over fellow chess influencer Hikaru Nakamura, as he denied his long-time arch-rival a sixth successive Chess.com Speed Chess Championship title last Friday. Last year, it was Nakamura who narrowly squeaked home by one point - this time, in yet another thrilling match consisting of three different speed limits - 5+1, 3+1 and 1+1 (more commonly known as ‘bullet’) - between the two speed titans, it again ended with the same scoreline, though this time seeing Carlsen triumph by a solitary win after two pulsating hours of thrilling play, as he took the $150,000 2023 Speed Chess Championship presented by Coinbase, 13.5-12.5.

Death, Taxes, Magnus & Hikaru

By John B. Henderson • September 22, 2023
With a smorgasbord of online chess events out there now, the granddaddy of them all is surely the Chess.com Speed Chess Championship , with a $150,000 prize fund that determines just who is the best blitz and bullet players. It has become the perennial fan-favourite with arguably the best viewing experience - and the fans are set for yet another spectacular finale later today, as the two rivals who dominate the roll of honour, Magnus Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura, get set for another explosive showdown in the 2023 final. Friday’s final and commentary, free to view, starts at 14:00 ET (11:00 PT; 20:00 CEST; 23:30 IST) on Chess.com. Carlsen and Nakamura have won each edition since the inaugural Speed Chess Championship event in 2016 - Carlsen won the first two speed titles before taking a hiatus, only for Nakamura to rule the roost, winning four more times.

A Messi Kid

By John B. Henderson • September 19, 2023
India today is a land of amazing young talents and prospects in chess, with the country seemingly having a never-ending production line of prodigies rolling off the factory conveyor belt. But for some countries, such as Argentina, prodigies only seem to come around with all the regularity of Halley’s Comet . One of the first notable post-war chess prodigies was Oscar Panno from Buenos Aires, who became the first world-class player born in South America. In 1953, at the age of 17, he became only the second World Junior Champion , having won the coveted youth title ahead of a strong cadre of future elite-level Grandmasters such as Boris Ivkov (who in 1951 was crowned the first World Junior Ch), Bent Larsen, and Fredrik Olafsson.

The Great Rook 'n' Roll Swindle

By John B. Henderson • September 14, 2023
“Chess is a cruel game. We all know that feeling when your position has gone awry and everything seems hopeless. You feel like resigning. But don’t give up! This is precisely the moment to switch to swindle mode. Master the art of provoking errors and you will be able to turn the tables and escape with a draw or sometimes even steal the full point!” So wrote David Smerdon, an Australian chess grandmaster and one of his country’s leading behavioural economists, on the back cover of his witty and wickedly entertaining, not to mention the much-lauded and deserving 2020 ECF Book of the Year winner, The Complete Chess Swindler (New in Chess).

No Country For Young Men

By John B. Henderson • September 11, 2023
With the top teenage talents being overshadowed in the Tata Steel Chess India Rapid in Kolkata by a dominant performance from seasoned veteran Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, there were hopes of a homeland comeback in the follow-on Blitz tournament - and one looked to be on the cards, only for another “old guy”, this time Alexander Grischuk, crashing the teenage party by capturing the second, even faster speed title. Early doors, all eyes were firmly on Rameshbabu “Pragg” Praggnanandhaa, with his flying start of a perfect 5/5 on the opening day of the two-day double-round contest. But that was as good as it got for the 18-year-old Candidate-qualifier, who could only finish the day on 6.5/9, and despite being the sole leader, he held what looked a very slender half-point lead over nearest rivals Santosh Vidit and Grischuk, ominously the only unbeaten player.

My Indian Summer

By John B. Henderson • September 8, 2023
The past couple of years have proved to be a major one for India - not only a global player with world leaders descending this week in New Delhi for the G20 Summit and recently successfully landing a spacecraft on the moon but now also a fully-fledged chess superpower, with many exciting young talents set to make the country a dominant force for the foreseeable future. Many would even speculate that Indian Chess could well turn into a hegemony, in much the same way as the Soviets dominated the chess scene in the 1945 post-war period until its collapse and ultimate dissolution in 1991. The latest big chess tournament to be held in India coincides with the G20, with the fifth Tata Steel Chess India Rapid & Blitz - a spinoff from the larger Dutch super-tournament, the Tata Steel Chess Masters in Wijk aan Zee - taking place 5-9 September in Kolkata.

Me & The Kids

By John B. Henderson • September 4, 2023
The fifth and latest leg of the Champions Chess Tour , the Julius Baer Generations Cup more than lived up to its name with the world No.1, Magnus Carlsen, after overpowering Alireza Firouzja in the winners’ final, to effortlessly cruise his way into the Grand Final, declaring: “It’s just me against the kids now!” After three clean kills that included a brace of back-to-back 2½-½ victories over Iranian Amin Tabatabaei and his old title foe Caruana, Carlsen proceeded to sweep Firouzja 3-0 to reach the Grand Final of the contest - but it wasn’t lost on the “old man” that non of his old rivals were left in the competition, and that meant that Denis Lazavik (16), Nodirbek Abdusattorov (18), and Firouzja (20) were the only three left standing to see who would go forward to meet him in the Grand Final.

Vanity Fair

By John B. Henderson • August 29, 2023
The game’s world governing body, FIDE, has launched yet another World Championship event, the inaugural World Team Championship , that was held over the past weekend in Dusseldorf, Germany - but this one is mildly controversial, as the clue can be found in the eventual final result, as it took on the air of a vanity project dominated by the event sponsor’s own powerhouse WR Chess team. It had its attractions though, with forty-two sponsored teams registered to take part in the tournament and a unique blend of professional players, top women, and amateurs on each team. The novel format, faster time control (15 minutes per player, with a 10-second increment per move), and inclusion of amateur players alongside professionals aimed to make the event accessible to a wider audience (and that part failed, apparently).
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