World Championship Game 7: Black is fine

No breakthrough

Tension keeps rising in London, as the uncertainty that surrounded this match before it began has been extended until more than half its course. Leading up to the event, we saw how Fabiano Caruana got increasingly closer to Magnus Carlsen's previously insurmountable first place in the ratings list. Nonetheless, the Norwegian somehow held on to his post despite, for example, facing lower-rated opposition at the European Club Cup. It seems like Magnus feels the danger looming and is trying to keep things under control. After all, he stated prior to the match:

On paper this is my absolute worst opponent. That's why I think the match will be different than previously.

We could also speculate that some memories from his previous experience in New York might be playing a role in the champion's mind. Lars Bo Hansen recently posted an article where he analysed what went on in the 2016 match, stating that in game eight — the first decisive encounter, which favoured Karjakin — "Carlsen over-reached in his attempts to finally break through". This time around, Magnus might not want to make the same mistake.

These are only two of the many factors that lead us to think that the psychological component might play an increasingly bigger role in this duel. Certainly, getting a win after seven draws will be a bigger deal than if the win would have come in game two, for example.

Master Class Vol.8: Magnus Carlsen

Scarcely any world champion has managed to captivate chess lovers to the extent Carlsen has. The enormously talented Norwegian hasn't been systematically trained within the structures of a major chess-playing nation such as Russia, the Ukraine or China.

Magnus with Shreyas Royal, the 9-year-old prodigy that made the opening move on Sunday

From Caruana's side, on the other hand, losing might actually give him a boost of confidence. At least that is what happened in the last Candidates Tournament, where he pointed out that his loss in round twelve — against Karjakin, curiously — was in fact helpful: 

After I lost that game I felt awful for a few hours, but then the next day I felt much better. It was like a weight was lifted from me. My play was so heavy for a few days and it culminated in that loss, and after I lost that game I started to feel much freer in my play and more confident.

Fabiano Caruana had no trouble with Black

Who will crack under pressure? We will find out in the next week and a half.

Game 7 summary

GM Daniel King is in London and encapsulated Sunday's action in a short video:

Power Play Vol.23 and 24

On this DVD, Grandmaster Daniel King offers you a repertoire for Black with the QGD and against the Catalan. The repertoire is demonstrated in 20 stem games, covering all White's major systems.

A quiet killer

When we think of surprises in the opening, we might recall Kasparov's big theoretical breakthroughs in sharp Najdorfs or Kramnik's extensive analysis of the Berlin Defence, but sometimes a quiet move can also have a large effect on the outcome of a game. Caruana showed precisely that in a Queen's Gambit Declined. After repeating nine moves from game two, Carlsen deviated with 10.Nd2, and a well-prepared Caruana quickly responded with a surprise:

10...Be7 and 10...Bb4 are the most common moves in this position, but the American went for the more conservative 10...Qd8. Carlsen took around 10-15 minutes in each of his next four moves, signalling that this was not what he expected — although, of course, he knew the variation.

Natural developing moves continued and, after 14...Ne5, Carlsen castled, which in his own word is "an admission that the position is equal":

The Queen's Gambit Declined

The Queens Gambit Declined, Orthodox Variation is an opening choice for Black which will never be refuted. It perhaps has an unjust reputation of being solid and passive, but this all-new ChessBase DVD will challenge that perception. Basing his Black repertoire on the Cambridge Springs variation, Andrew Martin takes you on a tour of classic games, showing how Black may conveniently sidestep the dangerous lines with Bf4, whilst retaining good chances and providing comprehensive coverage of the lines where White captures early on d5. This is a repertoire which will suit all levels of player. Video running time: 4 hours 23 min.

Magnus could have played 15.Nce4 instead of 15.0-0, getting a sharper position. However, he did not think it was worth the try — Caruana (and computers) also thought Black was fine in the ensuing complications.

Eventually, the game petered into a draw by move 40. On Monday's game, Fabiano will have the white pieces again. Will we see another Rossolimo Sicilian? Anish Giri thinks so: 

Game 7 analysed by GM Daniel Fernandez

English GM Daniel Fernandez closely analysed a game that took place in "...one of the thematic battlegrounds of the world champions".

The Reliable Petroff

The Petroff (or Russian) Defence which is characterised by the moves 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 has been popular at the highest levels for many years and enjoys the reputation of being an extremely solid defence.

Match standings

Round-up shows

The Vienna Variation - a reliable and ambitious weapon against 1.d4

The Vienna Variation is a particular and independent system of the Queen's Gambit. It arises after 1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 dxc4, when Black's capture on move 4 is strongly reminiscent of the Queen's Gambit Accepted.

All games of the match

Links

• Official site
• All World Championship 2018 stories