Carlsen - Caruana Match: Game 9 Is Drawn
The score is 4.5-4.5.
The ninth game of the World Championship Match between Magnus Carlsen and Fabiano Caruana took place in London on November 21. The World Champion played with the white pieces. The opponents chose a line in the English Opening which they had played before in their fourth game. The Norwegian grandmaster applied a new continuation on the 9th move, but it didn't bring him any special dividends - Fabiano solved his opening problems. But then the challenger, who was trying to simplify the game, agreed to a little bit worse but quite solid position with the opposite-colored bishops .
Carlsen, in his turn, hastened with a pawn breakthrough on the kingside and Caruana caused a waive of new exchanges with two precise moves. A minimal accuracy was required from Black in the endgame with the opposite-colored bishops which appeared after that. The grandmasters agreed to a draw on move 56.
The score is 4.5-4.5. The tenth game is to be played on Thursday, November 22. Fabiano Caruana will have the white pieces.
Sharing his impressions with our website is grandmaster Ernesto Inarkiev:
– The opening part in this game was interesting - Magnus uncorked a fresh move 9.Bg5; I have never seen it before, at least. Nevertheless, I did not grasp his idea, to be honest. In general, this whole line is uncharted territory; however, Fabiano’s already employing it in game four obliged Carlsen, in theory, to come up with some sort of special preparation. The structure arising after 9...Nxc3 10.bxc3 f6 is, of course, interesting, but Black is absolutely fine because all his pieces are well placed. The essence of Magnus’s idea is not very clear.
There are two moments I would like to point out. Fabiano's voluntarily agreeing to a worse position after 17...Bxf3 is, perhaps, due to the fatigue taking its tall - it is hard to explain it otherwise. His position being fine, he could have maintained the tension since trading on f3 was an option available to Black at almost any moment. It is very hard for White to carry out e2-e4, so there is nothing to fear. I think Fabiano saw a setup with opposite-colored bishops and, believing it not that dangerous, thought he would stay his ground without any risks.
Another point of interest is Magnus’s 25.h5, although he could go on keeping up the tension. It seems to me there shouldn't have been any big problems for Black anyway. Of course, White's position is nice and he can mark time indefinitely, but I still believe Black should keep his position together with simple means. Anything can happen, but it is unlikely that Black would have had extremely complex defensive tasks to face.
25.h5 was met by two precise moves - 25...gxh5 and 26...f5, upon which Black had obviously nothing to worry about.
– Did Magnus underestimate this idea?
– He was making the moves so quickly that by that moment he had about 1 hour and 20 minutes left on his clock, while Fabiano had half an hour only. And the champion continued to play in a similar manner. This desire to make a move as quickly as possible can also be considered as one of the signs of fatigue. Obviously, he did not expect 25...gxh5 and 26...f5, leading to massive simplifications – otherwise he would have avoided it.
The match situation is very interesting now. With only a few games remaining, the probability of opponents’ playing with a margin of safety is high since any error gives little room to bounce back. I wonder, what this is going to lead to? It can lead to a completely dry game, with both opponents aiming at simplifications.
– Being a professional player, is it interesting for you to watch the match?
– It is interesting because none of the opponents tries to avoid the fight. Yes, an excellent preparation makes it hard to gain an edge, but they continue fighting till the end. It is important to note that Magnus fails to outplay Fabiano in equal positions, something that Magnus is well known for. Fabiano is ready for this - both psychologically and chesswise. If we recall Carlsen's matches with Anand, the latter was starting to get nervous when it was about endless maneuvering in equal positions. Fabiano is ready for this, and Magnus hasn’t come up with anything special yet. In my opinion, Fabiano looks even more interesting - in game eight he had an opportunity to strike first. None of the players is for choice in the openings, and Magnus fails to outplay from level positions.
– If it comes to tie-breaks, will the champion be a favorite?
– A lot depends on the further match course. If the remaining games are dictated by Caruana, Carlsen will not feel very comfortable going into a tie-break, I believe. However, if three draws are made in a viscous fight, then Magnus is a favorite, I think. This is not only because he is higher-rated in rapid, but also due to his having experience of winning tie-breaks.
– Do you watch the knockout championship in Khanty-Mansiysk?
– I do. Today’s was a tense game, too.
– Are the women's games more spectacular than men's?
– Women's chess is more reckless. On the other hand, the world championship match sees the opponents demonstrating their best in chess. Not only are they very strong chess players, but entire teams have been working for them for several months now... One can learn a lot from this match anyway. Women’s chess is more daring, including the openings. It is the King's Indian Defense that Lagno employs in the final match! In men's chess, this is practically a taboo. It is hard to imagine anyone playing the King’s Indian in the men's crown match.
– Only if the match situation is utterly desperate!
– Indeed, if this is the only chance left. Women seem to enjoy such full-fledged games! Besides, it's a knockout, with both players having already passed many opponents along the way.
Curiously, two titles are at stake at the same time; I do not remember it ever happening before. I wonder if it is worth adopting this practice?
– Women players seem other than happy about this circumstance: all attention is focused on London, while they remain in the shadows ...
– Do they? You seem to have a point here; I have never given it a thought. I am not watching both competitions.
– Is there anything worth mentioning about chess life in Ingushetia?
– The Youth Championship of the North Caucasus Federal District recently took place in Nazran, which I am very happy about. It is true that we have already held festivals before, but this is an event belonging to the official calendar of the Russian Chess Federation. The championship, taking place at the home field, saw more of our children participating - as many 46. This is why good results have been demonstrated. As many as five Ingush chess players have qualified for the Russian children's championship (whereas it was only two a year ago), and another four into the first league.
It's nice to see guests coming to us. As you know, there was some unrest in the republic, but it is over now. It was very positive of our neighbors to come support us. We did our best, and I hope everything went off smoothly.
– What was the venue of the children’s event?
– It took place in the Cultural Center of Nazran that housed our matches with Boris Gelfand. The Center was given an extensive repair this summer, resulting in the club looking more beautiful and convenient now. We organized the broadcast, in which I commented the decisive games online. Therefore, chess is on the rise in Ingushetia, both children and adults taking interest in it.
Questions by Vladimir Barsky
Tournament page
Official website
Ian Nepomniachtchi's broadcast
Photos: Press service of the World Chess
