No 1 lost first game to Germany’s Vincent Keymer through endgame blunder, but ground his way to 62-move victory in second
Magnus Carlsen, Norway’s world No 1, faces a speed tiebreak at midday on Friday as his mini-match against Germany’s Vincent Keymer, 18, is tied at 1-1 after two epic endgames at the $1.8m World Cup in Baku, Azerbaijan.
The format of the 206-player knockout is brutal and unforgiving, as lower ranked grandmasters have seized one of their few opportunities to upstage the elite who monopolise the richly rewarded invitation tournaments.
About Author
More Stories
Former Socceroos boss Graham Arnold named Iraq head coach
‘We have to show fight’: Arteta confident of kicking on despite pain of Paris
Slot confident Liverpool will make ‘new stars’ after Alexander-Arnold’s exit