Carlsen responded when the audience supported Nakamura - Photo: screenshot
But the highlight was Carlsen's reaction to the crowd cheering for Nakamura.
Carlsen, holding the white pieces, got off to a winning start in the first game. In the second game, despite having the advantage in white and a late-midgame advantage, Nakamura missed the opportunity by choosing a draw by repeating the same move three times, instead of finding the decisive winning move.
The third game saw Nakamura show his mettle by trapping Carlsen's queen to level the match, which brought a huge cheer from the local crowd, who support Nakamura's Saudi Team Falcons.
The passionate response seemed to have touched a nerve with Carlsen. Carlsen plays for Team Liquid in the Netherlands. Nakamura represents the home team, the Falcons.
That's why the entire stadium in Riyadh almost completely leaned towards the Japanese-American player. There was enthusiastic applause and cheering for Nakamura throughout the match.
Carlsen immediately re-established his lead in the next game with black. After the decisive 34...a4! move, when he was sure he had the upper hand, the Norwegian turned to the stands and raised his index finger to his mouth, signaling silence - a direct response to the cheers of the crowd.
The moment Carlsen responded to the audience - Video : Social Network X
The match continued to be tense, with the fifth game ending in a draw, forcing Nakamura to win the sixth game to keep his hopes alive. Nakamura showed his determination by betting just 6 minutes and 12 seconds on his time to take black in the deciding Armageddon game - a very short time compared to Carlsen's 10 minutes, showing confidence in his ability to move quickly.
He came very close to winning the game with a great position. However, while he was busy attacking, Nakamura made a mistake.
Carlsen seized the opportunity to launch a tricky double attack with the b1 queen move, threatening to capture the black rook on a2 while also threatening to move the white rook to b8 to capture the queen, leaving Nakamura with no way out.
The Queen's move b1 helped Carlsen gain the advantage and win the deciding game - Photo: Chess.com
Regarding the decisive moment, Nakamura admitted with regret: "I had a great position in this game. If I had played [28...] Bxa4 instead of Rxa4, I think I might have made it to the final. It's frustrating, but it's true."
Carlsen also admitted the immense pressure: "I was very nervous in the last game. I somewhat knew what moves I should make but I was still nervous. It was really difficult!". However, another mistake by Nakamura opened the door to victory for Carlsen.
With a 4-3 overall victory, Carlsen officially won the right to enter the finals of the Esports World Cup 2025.
He will face Alireza Firouzja of Gaimin Gladiators, who have won all their matches so far and easily defeated Arjun Erigaisi 4-1 in the first semi-final. Nakamura will face Arjun Erigaisi for third place.
The Esports World Cup 2025 final between Magnus Carlsen and Alireza Firouzja promises to be extremely exciting, taking place at 11:05 p.m. tonight (Vietnam time).
Source: https://tuoitre.vn/noi-gian-vi-khan-gia-ung-ho-nakamura-carlsen-dap-tra-bang-hanh-dong-gay-soc-20250801122659453.htm
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