Madrid Candidates 16th June to Tue 5th Jul 2022

[IM Jack Rudd]

A draw by agreement can't be shorter than 40 moves in this event.

[Ian Thompson]

A draw by agreement can't be shorter than 40 moves in this event.

However, if a quick draw is wanted, one of the players has drawn within 15 moves at least 60 times by playing

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. dxe5 Nxb5 7. a4 Nbd4 8. Nxd4 d5 9. exd6 Nxd4 10. Qxd4 Qxd6 11. Qe4+ Qe6 12. Qd4 Qd6 13. Qe4+ Qe6 14. Qd4 Qd6

All but one of the players have drawn with this line at least a few times.

[Jonathan Rogers]

Rapport v Firouzja does seem to be the hardest game to call. Both survived bad/occasionally lost positions with Black yesterday and will feel as good about that as Duda and Radjabov will feel bad.

Not that I necessarily expect either of the latter two to lose today. Their own opponents both lost yesterday! Generally, while I can see Radjabov doing badly as he did in 2013, I wouldn't expect him to lose very often at this stage. Players who come last in the candidates more often collapse in the second half (e.g. Wang Hao, who was even on 50% at the half-way stage last time).

[JustinHorton]

Eccentricity-hunters are also directed to the position of Caruana's queen's knight

And today, to Ding's queen

[Jonathan Bryant]

It occurs to me that there are fewer 1 e4 players than usual

Although all four games begin 1 e4 today.

[Jonathan Rogers]

It occurs to me that there are fewer 1 e4 players than usual. Various random reasons for this: the replacement of Karjakin by Ding, the postponed participation of Radjabov included. In fact Caruana and Nepo are the only likely committed 1 e4 players among them, I think, although Naka and Rapport could try almost anything. Having those latter two in the event already makes almost one half of the openings in games very difficult to call!

Indeed, both Naka and Rapport have opted for 1 e4 in their first White game. So we have a full set of 1 e4 games, since it now seems that Duda is to be included within the regular 1 e4s. perhaps little surprise which of the four games did not start 1 e4 e5.

Not that 1 e4 e5 must be dull. Naka's 8.d4 looks interesting.

[NickFaulks]

Caruana's 10...Ng4 is presumably the result of some exceedingly heavy duty computer prep.

[JustinHorton]

Definitely the "if I played like that" position of the round

[Jonathan Bryant]

RE: Nepo - Caruana,

I'm reminded of Keith Arkell saying that if he can get ... g5 on the board as Black it's a sign that things are going in his favour.

Although obvs not with positions like this in mind.

[JustinHorton]

Duda and Ding draw

[JustinHorton]

Caruana agrees a repetition with Nepo. I put it to the panel that Magnus Carlsen would not have done that.

[JustinHorton]

Meanwhile sensational events in Rapport-Firouzja where Black blundered (32...Ra1??) in an apparently harmless double rook ending, only for White, with quarter of an hour still on the clock, to throw away most of his huge advantage with 38. Ke4?.

[NickFaulks]

only for White, with quarter of an hour still on the clock, to throw away most of his huge advantage with 38. Ke4?

The lobotomised Stockfish admits one move later that it got that wrong.

[LawrenceCooper]

Meanwhile sensational events in Rapport-Firouzja where Black blundered (32...Ra1??) in an apparently harmless double rook ending, only for White, with quarter of an hour still on the clock, to throw away most of his huge advantage with 38. Ke4?.

Rapport-Firouzja drawn albeit after white may have missed another chance on move 52.

[NickFaulks]

Very impressed with Rapport's scrambled draw yesterday. Will we discover how he can handle a good position?

Had his chance today, surely that ending was winning when he had two rooks on the seventh rank?