Thoughts on Candidate 2024 last round

Candidate 2024 Fabiano Caruana vs Ian Nepomniachtchi Thoughts

This is by far the most emotional, tactical, impactful chess game I’ve witnessed in my life time, and it’s not even close.

Last round of the tournament, with both players needing a win to force a tiebreak with Gukesh for another chance at the crown. There is tremendous poetic bitterness, in the sense that the two players of Magnus’ generation who in my opinion deserve the world champion title the most (Ian after two heartbreaking losses at WCC 2020/22, coming back for a third candidate win in a row; Fabi being the best player to have never been WC, very close to winning in 2018, in his 5th candidate attempt, and whom I was rooting for the entire time), now find themselves in a deadlocked situation in which neither player can proceed. Fabi missing several chances to not convert a decisive advantage that a player of his caliber would have under a different circumstance, and Ian to defend tenaciously just to put the final nail on the coffin for both of them.

In the end they both said “I’m very sorry” to each other, knowing they’ve killed each other’s chance, yet they are also the ones that understand the other person because they want it themselves so much. This is just Greek tragedy, you can’t make this shit up.

Many people thought the decisive mistake was 41.Ka1, but I think 41.Ka2 was not an obvious move at all. To me the mistake was 39.Bh7, my immediate thought after 38.Nc5 was 39.Bc2 and turns out engine agrees with my 2000 level analysis. I have no idea why 39.Bh7 was played that allowed more complication on critical juncture with 30 seconds on the clock. The blunder at 66.Qc6+ was also very inexplicable, admitted after first repetition with the help of engine I knew 64.Qc6+ was a mistake, but it was not difficult to realize that Qe8+ followed by Qe2+ threatens mate and pawn on h2 because it was literally the only alternative check. Tough, very tough, in the end it all comes down to nerves.

The post-game conversation between Ian and Fabi should be adapted into some scripts (The conversation actually happened, I just added some literary elements, with the help of some reddit comments):

The tension in the room was palpable as the king slides to b3, marking a critical moment in the game. Across the board, Fabiano glanced up at his opponent, a silent exchange passing between them. “Draw?” he whispered, hardly able to hide the pain in his voice, the words barely audible over the hushed murmurs of the spectators. With a resigned grimace, Ian looked into the distance, rook in his hand, as if to fight back tears. After a while, Ian nodded, and the clock was pressed, sealing their fate.

How twisted it was, Ian thought, that a draw could feel like a loss on both sides. As he wrote the move on his scoresheet, a pained smile played across his lips, belying the disappointment he felt.

“I’m sorry. I’m very sorry,” Fabiano whispered, his voice barely above a whisper. Ian offered no words in return, the silence echoing the somber mood that had settled over the room. A few claps from the balcony above broke the silence, culminating into a round of applause that felt hollow in the aftermath of the draw.

Clicking the clock, Ian threw up his hands in a gesture of defeat and sat back in his chair. The mention of Alireza’s performance hung in the air, a reminder of the missed opportunities and what could have been. “Ali threw the tournament for everyone.” Ian complained, referring to the penultimate round loss that gave Gukesh the half-point advantage. Fabi shrugged with a face of resignation. But despite the disappointment, the players wasted no time in delving into the analysis of the game they had just composed, dissecting each move with precision.

“Maybe queen a5”

“Now I can play h3”

“…but after d5 it looks just very bad,” Fabiano remarked, his gaze drifting to the upper level of the room. Ian sighed, burying his head in his hands as the weight of the moment settled in.

“I’m very—I’m very sorry,” he responded, his voice heavy with regret.

The moment hung sharply in the air, the silence broken only by the rustling of papers and the soft murmurs of the spectators. With a heavy heart, Fabiano reached for his badge.

“It’s my fault,” he said quietly, his footsteps fading into the background as he disappeared into the crowd.

Someone once said chess is a contributor to net human unhappiness, as the joy of a victory is overwhelmed by the pain of a lose. Who would’ve thought the most painful game is a draw. I hope they can come back next candidate to have another shot at the WC.