Don’t have idols, Carlsen says he is his ‘favourite’
NEWDELHI: The sequence of draws in the World Chess Championship continued with Magnus Carlsen splitting the point with black pieces against American challenger Fabiano Caruana in the fifth game in London on Thursday.
However, Norwegian Carlsen, 27, the world No 1 seeking his third title and known as much for his modelling and cool image, perhaps gave the quote of the year after the tame 33-move draw.
In the post-game media interaction, both were asked who their favourite player from the past was. Caruana, 26, who has won admiration for the manner in which he has so far countered the Norwegian maestro, picked the late Bobby Fischer. The chess legend was the last American to feature in a World Championship Match, beating Boris Spassky of the USSR in 1972, at the height of the Cold War.
“The results he achieved and the way he played at his peak,” Caruana said, explaining his choice.
Carlsen, however, stumped everyone.
“I’m not really the person to have idols. I admire what people can do, not necessarily who does what,” he said. “And keeping in that in mind, my favourite player from the past is probably … myself, three or four years ago.”
Carlsen has been the reigning world champion since 2013, when he defeated Viswanathan Anand in Chennai.
The match with Caruano itself is slowly building momentum. The Italian-American, playing with white pieces, sprang a surprise with his sixth move (b4) but the fifth game ended in a draw, leaving both on 2.5 points and waiting for their first win.
The reigning champion, though frustrated at his inability to bring a thorough Caruano under pressure, was solid in his response to ensure a draw following a game which saw the American’s Rossolimo Variation countered with the Sicilian Defence by Carlsen – the third they have opted for this.
Carlsen though has the advantage in his next two games – he plays white in Friday’s sixth game and Sunday’s seventh.
Caruana described the opening moves as “fireworks”, but acknowledged that it didn’t really bring his opponent under pressure.