Upset

Magnus Carlsen was, as he said, ‘completely crushed’ in the second round of the Qatar Masters earlier this month. His opponent, 23-year-old Alisher Suleymenov from Kazakhstan, is a grandmaster, but on paper nowhere near to the level of the world elite. He played the game of his life, but his achievement was undermined by Carlsen’s intemperate comment (on X) that ‘as soon as I saw my opponent was wearing a watch early in the game, I lost my ability to concentrate’.

Predictably, this began a frenzy of gossip, though the world no. 1 soon clarified that he was not accusing his opponent of cheating. The sad truth is that a miasma of mistrust is encroaching year by year. That paranoia is not baseless – technology is getting smaller and cheaper, and there is a perception that the sporadic reports of busted miscreants represent only the tip of the iceberg.

In top-tier tournaments, players are familiar with a few standard measures. Airport-style metal detectors are prevalent, and watches and personal pens, which might conceal some receiving device, are forbidden. Smartphones are banned in the playing hall, even for spectators, and games are broadcast online with (say) a 15-minute delay, to make it harder for a remote assistant to transmit timely advice. Players broadly assent to these disruptions, although many (including me) believe a determined cheat could circumvent them.

Carlsen’s exasperation was aimed primarily at the organisers for not even taking care of the basics, although they took steps to address his concerns in subsequent rounds. Suleymenov’s splendid win is shown below.

Alisher Suleymenov-Magnus Carlsen

Qatar Masters, October 2023

1 d4 Nf6 2 c4 e6 3 Nf3 b6 4 a3 Ba6 5 Qc2 Bb7 6 Nc3 c5 7 e4 cxd4 8 Nxd4 Bc5 8…Nc6 is a decent alternative, but the game Christiansen-Karpov, Wijk aan Zee 1993 ended abruptly: 9 Nxc6 Bxc6 10 Bf4 Nh5 11 Be3 Bd6?? 12 Qd1! forked knight and bishop so Karpov resigned.