“One of us is very wrong about the evaluation”, said Hikaru Nakamura after a tense battle in the second game of the Berlin FIDE Grand Prix final suddenly ended in a draw. It was perhaps Hikaru who was wrong, since Levon Aronian did have a significant advantage until blundering into that draw, though it certainly wasn’t the kind of advantage that you expect to easily convert into a win against a top player. Hikaru and Levon will now play a rapid tiebreak on Thursday to decide who wins the first leg of the 2022 FIDE Grand Prix. 

Both Levon Aronian and Hikaru Nakamura finish unbeaten in classical chess in Berlin | photo: World Chess

You can replay all the knockout games from the Berlin FIDE Grand Prix using the selector below. 

And here’s the day’s live commentary from Raluca Sgircea and Arturs Neiksans. 

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Levon Aronian has been taking things seriously in Berlin. When asked how he’d spent his Valentine’s Day he said he and his girlfriend decided “chess comes first”.

I spent Valentine’s Day in a romantic atmosphere of my room analysing chess!

Then Levon had tried every trick in the book in the first game of the final. After finding a clever way to save a difficult position he accompanied the key move with a draw offer. 

I offered it after Qa7. I saw that it was a draw, and I wanted Hikaru to think even longer and maybe perhaps try and find a win for him, which would end up as a win for me, so it was a strategic offer.

In Game 2 of the final Levon had White and played the Giuoco Piano, dodging the rock-solid Berlin that would likely have awaited him if he’d played the Ruy Lopez. 

Both players played fast until Hikaru took a 30-minute think over 15…Qc7!?. The double-edged 15…d5!? seems to be good, while after the move in the game it was Levon who got to advance his d-pawn a 2nd square with 16.d4.

Hikaru was relying on 16…exd4 17.Qxd4 c5!? and later said that his new relaxed approach — the success of his streaming means he has no financial or career concerns — allowed him to relax despite realising the danger. He summed up:

I think it really hinges on whether this 16.d4 exd4 17.Qxd4 c5 is ok for Black, or not ok. I thought either it’s completely fine, or I’m much worse, one of the two. I don’t know what the correct evaluation is. 

Overall Hikaru felt he was “completely fine”.

I think one of us is very right about the evaluation and one of us is very wrong about the evaluation in the game, because to me I thought that overall it was probably completely fine for me the whole way mostly, so either Levon’s right or I’m right, but one of us is definitely very wrong on how we evaluate the position. 

“Very wrong” was pushing it, but the truth seems to have been closer to Levon’s view that he had “a big advantage”. It all turned, however, on move 22.

Levon later regretted not playing 22.Ra2, “my position is very pleasant — a slight plus and I’m pressing”. The computer also likes 22.Rb1 or 22.b3, i.e. any way of defending the b-pawn. Instead in the game Levon blitzed out 22.Nd2?!

Levon confessed that he’d “completely blundered that Black can play 22…Qxb2”. He hadn’t blundered the simple point that 23.Qxg4 is met by 23…Qxc2, but had thought he could play 23.Rb1 Qxc3 24.Rb3. 

Here he thought the only move was 24…Qa5, when 25.Nc4 is at least interesting, though the computer slightly prefers Black after 25…Qa2! Levon realised only after the b-pawn was gone, however, that Black has 24…Qd4! and is simply winning. 

After that unpleasant turn of events, Levon understandably decided it was time to take a draw, as he did by going for the forced line 23.Nc4 Qxc3 24.Nb6 Rab8 25.Nd5 Qb2 26.Rb1 and chasing the queen from b2 to a2 and back. 

That means the 1st leg of the 2022 FIDE Grand Prix goes to tiebreaks, with Levon and Hikaru playing two 15+10 games on Thursday. If it’s a draw they switch to two 3+2 games and then, finally, Armageddon, where White has 5 minutes to Black’s 4, but a draw counts as a win for Black.

Levon didn't look thrilled with the draw | photo: World Cup

Both players can already celebrate one fact: they’ve gone through the tournament unbeaten in classical chess. Hikaru commented, when it was suggested his rapid and blitz skills might help him in the tiebreaks:

I’ve exceeded my expectations, and not losing a classical game is very nice. I don’t know what I’ll do tomorrow, but I’m pretty sure I won’t hang a queen or anything like that. 

The jinx feels real, but Hikaru is taking everything in his stride. When asked if he would stay in Berlin until the 3rd Grand Prix he understandably answered in the negative. 

Obviously I’m going home. I have a real job to do for the next month!

Don’t miss the final day of the Berlin FIDE Grand Prix live here on chess24 from 15:00 CET! 

See also:

• Official website
• All the FIDE Grand Prix games on chess24: Combined Pools, Pool A, Pool B, Pool C, Pool D, Knockout
• Nakamura and Dubov get Grand Prix wildcards
• FIDE Grand Prix series announced for Feb-Apr 2022
• Giri, Vidit question World Chess FIDE Grand Prix sponsorship demands
• Berlin FIDE Grand Prix: Candidates last chance saloon
• Dubov on forfeits, masks, testing positive and playing in Berlin
• Grand Prix in turmoil as players forced to pull out
• FIDE Grand Prix starts today in Berlin
• Berlin Grand Prix 1: Aronian, Wojtaszek and Fedoseev win
• Berlin Grand Prix 2: Nakamura statement win, Rapport masterpiece
• Berlin Grand Prix 3: So takes lead as Aronian pulls clear
• Berlin Grand Prix 4: Wesley So takes sole lead
• Berlin Grand Prix 5: Aronian storms into semis
• Berlin Grand Prix 6: Nakamura's great escape
• Berlin Grand Prix 7: So out as Dominguez and Rapport advance
• Berlin Grand Prix SF 1: Nakamura and Aronian strike
• Berlin Grand Prix SF 2: It's a Nakamura-Aronian final!
• Berlin Grand Prix Final 1: Nakamura and Aronian both dodge bullets