New Delhi: Five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand opined that the fiery reaction of world no. 1 Magnus Carlsen after losing to D Gukesh in Norway Chess was probably because he saw his authority in the game being challenged by someone so young to him. He also indicated that Fédération Internationale des Échecs (FIDE) could have a discussion over the incident “very soon.”
Carlsen was visibly frustrated after his defeat to Gukesh in Round 6 of the event being held in Stavanger, as he slammed his fist on the table, sending all the chess pieces into disarray before shouting “Oh my God” and leaving the playing arena in a huff. The game was watched online by millions of followers across the world, leaving some bemused and some bewildered.
Anand, well known for his calm demeanour and gentlemanly style, felt that the 34-year-old Norwegian desperately wanted to win against the current world champion to “draw some line in the sand”. What did he mean by this?
“But it (beating Gukesh) mattered a lot to him. Even if all the other games he’s kind of going through emotions (here)… But in this game (against Gukesh), I think something he wanted to establish. He wanted to draw some line in the sand and tell all these kids ‘hang on a few years’, whatever. But this meant a lot. I think a 2-0 (win against Gukesh) here, he would have been very, very happy,” Anand told PTI on Wednesday.
And the fact that he dropped the game from a winning position further exacerbated his frustration, said Anand, who is the current International Chess Federation’s (FIDE) deputy president and has been in Stavanger for broadcasting commitments as well.
“Against any opponent on earth, he would have hated losing such a good position. I mean to miss that the knight comes back. I felt exactly the same way when I blew my game against Magnus three years ago in 2022 in Norway,” Anand added. Anand perceived that several other factors could have been responsible for the meltdown of Carlsen.
“Certainly, the game meant a lot to him, and he came close, and he slipped, but it could also be fatigue. It could be this new time control (in Norway Chess). Here we have this thing where we have Classical chess and then we have a sudden-death Armageddon tie-break (after every game in the event of a draw)…” he said. He further hinted that the issue will be discussed by FIDE when asked if a soft warning can be given in the future for such happenings.
“Laws means definitions. It gets tricky. I guess it will come up (in FIDE discussions), I think. But, you know, on the other hand, if you take someone like (American GM) Hikaru (Nakamura), he says, ‘let’s have more of it’ (Carlsen incident). It gets attention. So, we’ll have to balance these things out. But certainly, I think it will be discussed very soon,” added Anand.
(With PTI inputs)
