Garry Kasparov, who held the world title from 1985 to 2000 and is regarded as Magnus Carlsen’s rival as the greatest player of all time, said next month’s Ian Nepomniachtchi v Ding Liren world title match “should include the strongest player on the planet, and this match doesn’t … It’s a kind of amputated event … The match between Nepo and Ding is a great show, but it’s not a world championship match.”
Comments on Kasparov’s assertion have been mostly negative, pointing out that the match is actually between the two highest rated players who are ready to participate, which Carlsen is not. There is also a direct recent precedent in the Vishy Anand v Boris Gelfand 2012 world title series, which took place at a time when Carlsen was already the world No 1, but had declined to take part in the qualifiers because he objected to the candidates being played as a knockout rather than an all-play-all.
Realistically, the degree of public acceptance for Nepomniachtchi or Ding as world champion will depend significantly on whether the new title holder can demonstrate achievements in the match itself and in following tournaments. Long ago in the late 1960s, Tigran Petrosian was world champion, but his achievements were continually disparaged in chess media due to his inferior tournament performances compared to Bobby Fischer and Boris Spassky.
Kasparov also said: “We will have the ‘world champion’ and the strongest player on the planet in the same tournament in a month’s time.” This is a reference to the Superbet Classic, starting in Bucharest on 4 May, the opening event in the St Louis-organised Grand Tour. Kasparov is a leading member of the organising team.
Bucharest’s announced entries so far are headed by Nepomniachtchi, Ding, and the world No 4, Alireza Firouzja, 19. Also in the field are the world Nos 6, 7 and 8 Anish Giri, Fabiano Caruana and Wesley So. There is a wildcard yet to be announced, and Kasparov is implying that this will be Carlsen.
It looks as if the No 1, immediately after renouncing his official crown, is ready to dice with destiny in May 2023. The bold plan seems to be to demonstrate his continuing superiority to Nepomniachtchi, Ding and Firouzja in Bucharest at the start of the month, and then to similarly outperform the world No 5, Hikaru Nakamura, plus the cream of the teenage generation in Stavanger at May’s end.
Nakamura is a player in form. After a break of several years from classical tournaments to develop his career as a popular streamer, the five-time US champion returned with impressive performances in the Fide Grand Prix and Candidates. This week the 35-year-old has reached the final of the $ 300,000 American Cup in St Louis, where he will meet Levon Aronian or So on Friday and Saturday. Games are live and free to watch online.
An eight-game solidarity match this week between the England No 1, Michael Adams, and the two-time Ukraine champion Andrei Volokitin had its opening ceremony at Westminster hosted by the speaker of the House of Commons, and coincides with the renewal of the Lords v Commons series last played in 2016. After a draw in game one, Volokitin beat Adams in Thursday’s game two in 54 moves. Friday’s game three was drawn.
A prime mover in the revival has been the Shadow Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, who in a Sky News interview on Wednesday showed herself very well informed about the Adams match, Volokitin now being a refugee in Poland, the match arbiter Shohreh Bayat’s experiences with Iran, and her own background as a former junior champion.
Online chess in Britain is booming as never before, if chess.com is correct. The largest chess website recorded around three million active UK users, 4.4% of the population, in January. Even this elevated figure is not among the top 10 countries, which are headed by Iceland with over 10%, while Ireland ranks fifth with over 5%.
Comparable over-the-board numbers are much lower. At the last English Chess Federation board meeting, it was estimated that there are about 130,000 active players, many of whom are juniors. The number of paying ECF members is around 10,000, while some local clubs and leagues are in decline, principally due to venue costs and availability.
A new campaign for more official support for chess is under way. Backing of £60,000 a year, which started more than half a century ago, was withdrawn in 2010 and has never been renewed, despite the surge in player numbers in recent years.
In most European countries, chess is recognised as a sport. Its educational significance in Britain has been boosted by the success of the charity Chess in Schools and Communities, which has introduced chess teaching to many inner-city schools and even prisons.
It would be interesting to start an online petition asking for more official support for chess, and to publicise that petition on chess.com with its huge UK numbers. If it reached 100,000 signatures, the petition would probably trigger a parliamentary debate.
3860: 1 Ba7! e4 2 Kd8! Kf8 3 Nd7 mate. The subtle 1 Ba7! creates a flight square for the black king at move two, thus avoiding stalemate.
