After eight played rounds at the FIDE World Chess Championship in London, the challenger and reigning World Chess Champion are still in a tie with all eight games finished in a draw.
Although the result seems very peaceful, all the games were fulfilled with great fights and chances for leadership in the match. The willing to sharp the things out in the match was already shown in the game five, where Caruana played with white pieces and surprised with 6th move b4, going into the sharp position with pawn down in the opening. The evaluation of position changed through the game, with small advantages on the both sides, but after exchange of Queens in the move 16, the position was drawish, and the game finished as a draw in the 34th move.
The 6th game opened with Petroff variation, with Carlsen having the white pieces. After the opening, Caruana took the initiative and the pressure was on Carlsen to defend an endgame with compensation of two pawns for the Knight. The fight lasted 80 moves in total, and players agreed to a draw.
Defender of the World Chess Champion title, Magnus Carlsen, had white pieces also in the 7th game, and all spectators expected to see the pressure on Caruana. The game started with first move d4 and Caruana kept the equal position throughout the game, to shake the hands for a draw in the 40th move.
Caruana once again sharped the things entering the open Sicilian in the round 8 with whites. After the opening, Caruana found a motive to get the small advantage but missed the opportunity to upgrade it enough for a win, and the game, likewise the other ones, ended in a draw.
The 9th round of the match will be played tomorrow at 15:00 (local time) with Caruana having the white pieces. The live transmission of the game can be followed through the Official Website of the Championship, together with live commentary done by GM Judit Polgar and IM Anna Rudolf.
Official Website of the Championship
Photographs by: Niki Riga
