Ringwood's roving reporter, Steve Deall (pictured below), was in Toronto to see the FIDE Candidate Tournament. Below is his fascinating report with previously unseen photos, taken by his own fair hand.
The “Earthquake”
An Inside Look at the 5 hours 44 minutes That Changed Everything
Drama before “The Drama”
As I unloaded two weeks’ worth of bags from the tram, I couldn’t quite believe I’d eventually made it to downtown Toronto. A delayed flight from Heathrow to Holland followed by a number of improbable but apparently unstoppable dominoes meant I was24 hours late having spent the night in Amsterdam and with my replacement flight subsequently delayed five times! It would turn out to be a fitting warm-up act for the drama that would unfold in the 14th and final round of an unforgettable FIDE Candidates tournament.
Pretty much all predictions from World Number #1 Magnus Carlsen down the rating ladder, had world #2 Fabiano Caruana, world #3 Hikaru Nakamura and winner of the last two Candidates tournaments, Ian Nepomniachtchi as the favourites to win the tournament. With one game left to go all three still have a chance to claim the crown, tied on 8/13.
However, there has already been an unanticipated plot twist. 17-year-old Indian Gukesh D, the youngest man in the tournament (in either the Open of women’s sections) has emphatically gatecrashed the party was leading the tournament with 8.5/13. The final round pairings ensure that stage was set perfectly for maximum drama with Caruana white against Nepomniachtchi and Nakamura white against Gukesh.
The Final Round Rollercoaster
The final round starts at 14:30 and there’s an air of anticipation running throughout the venuewith people especially intrigued by the possibility that Gukesh really could win the tournament. A Gukesh win vs Nakamura means he will be the tournament winner irrespective of the other game. A draw and it will be a blitz playoff tiebreak with the winner of Caruana – Nepomniachtchi if that game is decisive or Gukesh will be crowned the Candidate if that game is a draw. If Nakamura wins, he will be in the same position as Gukesh would be with a draw. Its all to play for.
15:10 After setting up in the media centre and watching some of the openings unfold, I head over to the Fan Zone to check out what host GMs and commentators Aryan Tari and Aman Hambleton think of the early developments. They agree the Queens Gambit Accepted is a solid choice by Gukesh with Hikaru in a must win situation. No such safety considerations in Fabi – Nepo with both needing a win. They go for Queens Gambit Declined, Exchange variation with Nepo choosing 7...g5. Hambleton remarks: “Both Fabi and Nepo came to play.”
14:30 I’m scanned and searched after surrendering my phone, wallet and ear pods before getting access to the media/VIP spectators’ balcony. Caruana looks to have the upper hand in his game after 21. d5 h4, 22. dxc6 Nc5. At the exact same moment Hikaru had just played 24. Qb5 offering a queen trade that if accepted would most likely lead to a drawn ending. While remaining at his own board Gukesh then spends a good couple of minutes looking over and intently studying the other game, presumably factoring that into his decision about how much to push for a win in his own game. Caruana is pacing the playing hall looking confident.
18:01 Heading into the last round the women’s tournament has only two possible winners – both Chinese. Just before 6pm we get news that former world champion Tan Zhongyi has drawn her final round game with Ukrainian Anna Muzychuk, a heavy piece ending she had been slightly better in, meaning that Tan can’t be caught even if her compatriot Lei Tingjie wins. Tan comes to the press room to discuss her victory and receives deserved congratulations for everyone.
19:25 It looks like we’re likely to get tiebreaks as Nakamura – Gukesh heads for a draw and Caruana continues to have the advantage in his game. However, there is some doubt starting to mount as he is looking uncharacteristically shaky and isn’t finding the easiest way to convert his advantage. Meanwhile, as an excited crowd gathers outside The Great Hall, things have changed from the quiet early morning calm (left)!
19:33 No big shock as we hear Nakamura vs Gukesh ended in a draw. Nakamura says Gukesh did well to navigate the couple of moments where he could have faced some pressure if he hadn’t found the best moves. As the press conference concludes the host Anna Burtasova asks what the evaluation in the Caruana – Nepo game is. “Plus 5” is the initial answer, quickly followed by “Plus 2.5 – it just changed with the last move”. Anna says it seems like we’ll have tiebreaks tomorrow but the Caruana – Nepo rollercoaster is just beginning!
19:57 My jet-lagged brain is struggling to process the nuances of the final game, but I’m reliably told that Caruana has to play 41. Ka2 to maintain a winning advantage according to Stockfish. He instead chooses Ka1 meaning that the evaluation swings back to 0.0 so Nepo can draw if he finds the right path. Members of the media huddle around Lichess Director of Operations, Theo Wait’s laptop trying to understand why choosing the other King move was so crucial. It seems Caruana still has chances, but the tension is building and confidence he’ll get over the line is starting to decrease.
20:14 It's over! News breaks that Nepo has managed to hang on, Caruana has missed the best way forward one time too many and the game has ended in a draw meaning that Gukesh has won the tournament and has earned the right to challenge Ding Liren for the title of World Champion later in the year. All smiles from ChessBase India’s Sagar Shah who as a top enthusiast and encourager of Indian chess is obviously delighted by the result. We all offer him our congratulations. Someone cheekily remarks “Oh – has Sagar won the Candidates?”
20:20 Fabi and Nepo show up for a decidedly subdued press conference. Nepo won the last two candidates and led for much of this tournament despite often not playing his best. Fabi uncharacteristically blew a big advantage at a crucial moment on the biggest stage, apart from the World Championship match. Both are clearly gutted not to win here. They’re fluent when running through possible lines but outside of that both are struggling to articulate their thoughts which is totally understandable at such a moment of acute disappointment. When Anna asks the media if we have any questions, I’m sure many of us had a lot we’d like to ask but we all correctly read the room and let the players leave without having to endure any further torture.
20:37 The contrast couldn’t be starker as we get all smiles from winner Gukesh and his coach Grzegorz Gajewski. It is striking to me that when asked how he feels about winning Gukesh quickly states that he only considers the job to be “half-done” – making it clear that his goal wasn’t just a good Candidates performance or even winning the Candidates tournament. He has his sights very firmly set on becoming World Champion. When asked when he first thought he would actually win the tournament he gave a surprising answer saying that it was after round 7 – his only loss of the tournament because on the rest day that followed, he felt like he had got himself into such a good state of mind. Mindset is something he is very deliberate about – he has read many books and autobiographies by the sporting elite. It is no accident that he carries himself and performs in a way that belies the fact he is only 17 years old! Although he wasn’t favoured to win this tournament, he will pose a significant threat to Ding Liren in the World Championship match later in the year.
20:53 Last man standing! First order of business after a tournament win that chess legend Garry Kasparov would later dub “The Indian Earthquake”? A video call with the New York Times! Congratulations Gukesh!
Steve Deall, April 2024
