Magnus Carlsen on the verge of winning the Charity Cup

by Shahid Ahmed - 26/03/2022

Magnus Carlsen needed only three games to win the first set of the Finals of Meltwater Champions Chess Tour Charity Cup. The first game was a well-fought draw. However, Jan-Krysztof Duda faltered in the next two games which means the world champion won the set 2.5-0.5. The Poland no.1 now must-win the second set to force tie-breaks. He has already mentioned of trying hard to hide his Candidates preparation, early in the tournament. Will he able to bounce back and force tie-breaks? Or will Carlsen shows his superiority and win second straight tournament of the season? Second set of the Finals start tonight at 10:30 p.m. IST. Photo: chess24 live stream

Can Duda bounce back?

Same pose by both Carlsen and Duda | Photo: chess24 live stream

Carlsen - Duda: 2.5-0.5

The first game was a grueling draw which went for 73 moves. Duda lost the second game when he decided to save the wrong pawn.

Duda - Carlsen, Game 2

Position after 28.Be4

White had to play 28.Kf2 to defend the e3-pawn and let go of h2. Instead, he opted 28.Be4 which hurriedly worsened his position after Rxe3 29.Bb1 Rxa3. White resigned after five more moves. Carlsen took 1.5-0.5 lead in the first set of the finals.

Duda once again misjudged Carlsen's threat in the third game.

Carlsen - Duda, Game 3

Position after 32...Qg6

Black's response 32...Qg6 was no good to 31.c5 as 33.cxd6 Nxd5 34.dxc7 needed to be met with Nxf1 to have a fighting chance. 34...a4 35.Rd1 made things quite difficult for Black. Soon Black incorrectly sacrificed the pawn 38...a3 and White won the game eventually, thanks to his passed pawn at c7.