Magnus Carlsen prepares for London chess finals: ‘I’m the man to beat’

World champion sets record Tour total and regains No 1 in rapid but loses twice in blitz in Kolkata to China’s Ding Liren

Magnus Carlsen was back to his dominant best this week as Norway’s world champion, who turns 29 on Saturday, set a record total for Grand Tour rapid and blitz in Kolkata, despite being unwell on the final day when he made several short draws. “I think with this result, I showed I’m still the man to beat.”

Carlsen regained the No 1 ranking in half-hour rapid which he lost during his disaster at St Louis in August, though in five-minute blitz he is still behind Hikaru Nakamura of the US. His only defeats in Kolkata were by Ding Liren at blitz, including a powerful attack.

Carlsen’s win against Ding at rapid was even more impressive and probably his best game in Kolkata. The Marshall …d7-d5 pawn sacrifice in the Ruy Lopez is usually a draw where Black’s active pieces compensate for the sacrificed pawn but Carlsen saw deep.

In his own words: “I wanted to play it fairly safe. So we get this position where I have an extra pawn, and he has the bishop pair, so basically it’s just equal. I felt that I wasn’t risking so much and for the tournament situation it was a good choice. I felt Ding might not show the necessary patience required in defence and that is exactly what happened!

“He got a bit frustrated with making most of the defensive moves and reacting to my ideas. And when this happens things can go astray very soon. You could see this in the game. I got a little more ground each time. And Ding missed a few things and I won.”

Next up for the champion is his Tour semi-final against France’s Maxime Vachier-Lagrave at London Olympia starting on Monday, probably followed by the final against Ding or Levon Aronian on 6-8 December.

Form points to Carlsen v Ding. Carlsen’s year so far has been highly successful with the exception of the St Louis speed games and his Oslo debacle at Fischer Random.

However, to lose both the Sinquefield Cup tie-break and then the Grand Tour final to Ding would cast a shadow over his overall 2019 performance, while Carlsen’s 100+ unbeaten record in classical games would also be on the line. If the dream pairing happens, expect the three-day final to attract a sellout audience both at the venue and online.

As a child, Carlsen had an exceptional memory. At five, he could recall the areas, population numbers, flags and capitals of all the world’s countries. Faced at Kolkata with a quiz of nine positions from Vishy Anand’s games, he quickly remembered the action on the board, the venue and the year of eight of them.

Between rounds, Carlsen also demonstrated his football skills. He plays Fantasy Premier League every week and currently is among the top 50 in a global entry of over seven million.

Apart from the Grand Tour finals, the big attraction at Olympia next week will be the annual British Knockout championship for a £10,000 first prize. England’s four multi-medallists, who won gold, silver and bronze at the World and European team championships and the European Club Cup, are all taking part, and the narrow margin between them means that this year’s event will be significant in their struggle to become undisputed leader.

Michael Adams, who turned 48 this month, is back as the England No 1 in the live ratings but his younger rivals David Howell, Gawain Jones and Luke McShane are all close behind. The quartet are seeded to meet in the semi-finals on 2-4 December.

3647 (by José Paluzie, 1910). The black king could not have legally reached a2 (or a1 or b1) past White’s unmoved bishop and pawn trio, so the king has been dropped off the board, then replaced on the wrong square. Place the king anywhere else on the board where it is not in check, and White has a simple mate in one.