The opening game of a world chess championship is often tense and overly tepid. But there was fire on the board in London as the Norwegian champion Magnus Carlsen sacrificed a pawn for a venomous attack against his challenger Fabiano Caruana, only to throw away victory in a dramatic time scramble.
Eventually Caruana – who is bidding to become the first American since Bobby Fischer in 1972 to win the world title – was able to claim a draw. But he had to endure 115 moves and seven hours of slow torture before the players called it a night.
The day started with the Hollywood star Woody Harrelson, who was chosen to make the ceremonial first move on behalf of Caruana, knocking over the white king – much to the amusement of Carlsen. It initially appeared to be the first blunder of the championships, but the actor later insisted it had been a “joke”.
However, the Norwegian was not smiling at the finale. For after playing a near-perfect game as black for the first 34 moves in a sharp and unusual Sicilian, he failed to spot several knockout blows as his clock ticked down to the 40-move time control, including the fact that he could give up his rook for bishop for a winning advantage.
As he began to realise that victory had slipped away, Carlsen grimaced several times, although he kept trying for several more hours to conjure something out of nothing. He is the highest ranked player in history. But even the greats make mistakes.
The players
Norway's Magnus Carlsen is defending the world chess championship against Fabiano Caruana of the United States. The best-of-12-games match is taking place at the College in Holborn between 9 and 28 November, with the winner earning a 60% share of the €1m ($1.14m) prize fund if the match ends in regulation (or 55% if it's decided by tie-break games).
Carlsen, 27, has been ranked No 1 for eight straight years and was considered the world’s best player even before he defeated Viswanathan Anand for the title in 2013. Caruana, 26, is ranked No 2, having earned his place the table by winning the candidates tournament in March. No American-born player has won or even competed for the world title since Bobby Fischer in 1972.
It marks the first title match between the world's top two players since 1990, when Garry Kasparov and Anatoly Karpov faced off for a fifth and final time.
The format
The match will consist of 12 classical games with each player awarded one point for a win and a half-point for a draw. Whoever reaches six and a half points first will be declared the champion.
The time control for each game is 100 minutes for the first 40 moves, 50 minutes for the next 20 moves and then 15 minutes for the rest of the game plus an additional 30 seconds per move starting from move 1. Players cannot agree to a draw before Black's 30th move.
If the match is tied after 12 games, tie-breaks will be played on the final day in the following order:
• Best of four rapid games with 25 minutes for each player with an increment of 10 seconds after each move.
• If still tied, they will play up to five mini-matches of two blitz games (five minutes for each player with a three-second increment).
• If all five mini-matches are drawn, one sudden-death 'Armegeddon' match will be played where White receives five minutes and Black receives four minutes. Both players will receive a three-second increment after the 60th move. In the case of a draw, Black will be declared the winner.
The schedule
Thu 8 Nov – Opening ceremony
Fri 9 Nov – Game 1
Sat 10 Nov – Game 2
Sun 11 Nov – Rest day
Mon 12 Nov – Game 3
Tue 13 Nov – Game 4
Wed 14 Nov – Rest day
Thu 15 Nov – Game 5
Fri 16 Nov – Game 6
Sat 17 Nov – Rest day
Sun 18 Nov – Game 7
Mon 19 Nov – Game 8
Tue 20 Nov – Rest day
Wed 21 Nov – Game 9
Thu 22 Nov – Game 10
Fri 23 Nov – Rest day
Sat 24 Nov – Game 11
Sun 25 Nov – Rest day
Mon 26 Nov – Game 12
Tue 27 Nov – Rest day
Wed 28 Nov – Tie-break games/Awards and closing
The games commence each day at 3pm in London.
Another 11 games will be played over the next two-and-a-half weeks and such is Carlsen’s popularity that 15 Norwegian journalists are in London to cover the event. Every move of this 12-game match will be shown live on NRK, Norway’s equivalent of BBC One, and 25% of the population is expected to watch at least one game.
That may come as a surprise but Carlsen has long been a celebrity back home. By the age of five, when his father introduced him to chess, he could recite the populations of all 422 Norwegian municipalities and name every capital city in the world; by 13 he was a grandmaster.
Yet Caruana, the world No 2, is a serious challenger. His parents estimate they spent as much as $50,000 a year paying for coaches and training before he started making significant money in his late teens. That could look a wise investment if he claims the €600,000 (£525,000) winner’s prize – especially given the endorsements that will ome his way if he triumphs. The loser will still walk away with €400,000.
Spectators at the match, which is being played at the College in Holborn, were offered live commentary from Judith Polgar, the strongest female player in history, as well as the opportunity to see every move from behind a giant glass screen. Among those riveted by the action was the American film director Bennett Miller, who was twice nominated for an Academy Award for Capote and Foxcatcher. He, of course, knows a thing or two about slow-burning drama.
