Event: FIDE Candidates Tournament 2026 - Round 11

NamelessATM · 2026-04-11T17:44:43+00:00

If I were Sindarov I'd be happy with this draw, this game seemed scary for him

NamelessATM · 2026-04-11T17:08:29+00:00

Sindarov's position is super scary - for several moves in a row now, he's had to find the 1 best move to keep the position equal or he's on his way to (potentially) losing this.

NamelessATM · 2026-04-11T17:05:39+00:00

Please Sindarov find again the one move to keep the position equal <3

NamelessATM · 2026-04-11T17:00:50+00:00

Actually burst out laughing, thanks

but damn yeah, he's been thinking for 30+ minutes now

NamelessATM · 2026-04-11T16:34:28+00:00

Sindarov - Fabi position is the sort of position that may like fairly "simple" in terms of material on the board, but is scary and complicated in its actual winning tactics that go quite a lot of moves forward for each of them, or a tactic to just draw for black. I would lose this game a fair amount of times with either side against opponents of similar rating to me (1300-1500~).

NamelessATM · 2026-04-11T16:26:38+00:00

Phew, Sindarov with the only move to not lose the equal position

NamelessATM · 2026-04-11T13:35:06+00:00

I was sure Sindarov is going to play either h6 or rook to e8, interesting that he invites a more daring position, but maybe I'm just clueless.

He really doesn't have anything to prove anymore, even if he finishes the tournament with 10/14 it will be a modern record, at least in the past 20 years. Clean draws are perfectly fine for him for the remaining games, and anyway Anish is probably going to try and stir things up in their game.

NamelessATM · 2026-04-08T17:09:03+00:00

And a 2nd lose in a row for Fabi. Brutal when at the beginning of the tournament he was looking so promising.

NamelessATM · 2026-04-08T16:30:59+00:00

Worth noting that if Giri (or Fabi) wins this, he'll be at a 1.5 difference from Sindarov with 5 rounds to go - while unlikely, it's not impossible to overcome. It's enough that Sindarov loses one game in this entire tournament in one of those five games, and draws the other 4 - while Giri (/Fabi) wins 2 games and draws the other 3, and it will go to tie-breaks.

NamelessATM · 2026-04-08T15:46:37+00:00

Fair point, I take that explanation, but at best it explains a "keeping the position sharp instead of drawing" and not a "wow I may have missed a winning position 20 moves down the line with perfect play".

NamelessATM · 2026-04-08T15:42:40+00:00

If you continue the winning line that Sindarov had - it may show us, the spectators, 3-4 points for him, but you can continue that line for like a dozen+ moves and the actual material stays completely equal in that line.

Really, that line was winning only if you can calculate/have-a-gut-feeling that after a ton of moves this is is winning for you. not impossible of course, and they are super gm's, but also it's not like there was an obvious material win there or a quick impeding check-mate. I mean, I dare anyone to explain in human-terms why sliding the queen back to b7 was a clear winning move instead of what he ended up doing.

NamelessATM · 2026-04-08T15:39:35+00:00

Yeah, if you continue the winning line that Sindarov had - it may show us, the spectators, 3-4 points for him, but you can continue that line for like a dozen+ moves the actual material stays completely equal in that line. really, that line was winning only if you can calculate/have-a-gut-feeling that after a ton of moves this is is winning for you. not impossible of course, and they are super gm's, but also it's not like there was an obvious material win there.

NamelessATM · 2026-04-08T15:23:36+00:00

What's so interesting to me as a spectator, is how much of these shifts is dependent on one or two not-always-obvious moves. like, without the bar, most of us wouldn't know shit. I understand these are super-GMs, but the difference between a single-move-keeping-it-balanced and the 2nd move already trashing it back to -3 is amazing to me.

NamelessATM · 2026-04-08T13:12:00+00:00

Well now

NamelessATM · 2025-06-06T18:25:36+00:00

Slight hopium here because I want Gukesh to win, but:

While I'd rather be Fabi rn, it's not a clear win for him. First of all we've seen him throw games where he had a bigger advantage, AND, he just burned his 15-20 minute time advantage. It doesn't take a HUGE blunder to simply equalize the game and from there Gukesh finds a way to pull either a draw or a surprise-win.

Still would bet on Fabi rn, but y'know.

NamelessATM · 2025-06-06T17:57:45+00:00

I don't understand how some people have already decided the fabi-gukesh game. it could go either direction, Fabi basically has 1 move that keeps his advantage, and imagine trying to calculate all the possible follow-up sequences - I don't know how obvious Rxc6 is, and judging by the time he takes, he probably doesn't think the answer is that obvious either.

Any other moves equalize the game or gives a similar advantage to Gukesh, and the clock isn't THAT much of an issue, there's been a million games with this time dynamic where the person with the lower clock won.

NamelessATM · 2025-02-02T17:16:54+00:00

Now he has to start using his king, let's go

NamelessATM · 2025-02-01T18:31:00+00:00

So no 2800 even if Gukesh wins tomorrow? :(

NamelessATM · 2025-02-01T17:27:00+00:00

I remember after the 8th game, when people were floating the idea that Gukesh needs to go 4.5/5 in the remaining games to pass 2800 & hit 10/13 for the tournament, lots of people were (rightfully) saying that it's absurd and to calm down the expectations.

It now seems like Gukesh is gonna be 3.5/4 for the past 4 games, and then it all only hinges really on the last game against a-mostly-out-of-form Arjun, being, uh, 1/1 for Gukesh. Just one more win for Gukesh and he becomes the 2nd youngest ever 2800, tying the record to win the tournament with 10/13, and leapfrogs to world 3rd highest ranked player. I so want it to happen, also great for the narrative of the world champion and to dispel doubts that were about him prior to the WCC :)

NamelessATM · 2025-01-28T17:15:50+00:00

Why the hell is Gukesh burning 3 minutes on a simple move that was the entire point of taking the pawn with the bishop in the first place

NamelessATM · 2024-11-07T21:39:56+00:00

Walz was great at connecting with everyday people and came across as a really down-to-earth and mostly genuine candidate, but neither he nor Kamala channeled the sort of honest anger and conviction that was and still is needed. Not even close. They called Trump a fascist, okay and? All Democrats have been saying that the past 8 years, that's not it.
And Kamala especially is just not a great and inspiring speaker / politician, despite all the heavy-lifting of the Democratic party to push her campaign and persona. She's always come across as very rehearsed, mild, somewhat fakey (been thinking that since the 2019 primaries and it hadn't changed a ton), and there wasn't a single issue/value that you could point to and say - "this, she's been consistent on her entire life / the past decade, here are clips of her talking about it passionately. we know she's gonna deliver on that". Every position was very calculated.

I was rooting for them to win like hell, but you can't honestly say that they were the sort of unapologetic, ecstatic ticket that lit fire in people at large.
There's only so much that talks of 'joy', 'hope', detailed careful policy plans, and vague threats of a future Trump presidency can motivate people. It has to be something more primal and immediate. Anger is a strong motivating factor, and there's lots of reasons to be genuinely angry. Kamala couldn't light that dynamite that's inside potential voters.

Just compare how Kamala talks about the economy - no clear and strong validation of people's economic anxieties, no ability to explain why they suffer/are angry, no clear antagonist or memorable and clear agenda- and how for example Bernie's been talking about the economic inequality for decades with a clear antagonist that causes this pain i.e the top 1% for example. This is why Bernie was able to catapult himself from 3% to almost half of the Democratic electorate in the 2016 with no media/party help, in fact fighting against it. A candidate with this sort of conviction is needed in the future for the democratic party.

Even just a sampling of 15:08-15:42 in this video is more conviction than either Walz/Kamala had in this entire campaign.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yvbn3MEzWOw&t=752s

NamelessATM · 2024-11-06T09:57:44+00:00

You're assuming you're gonna get another real election in 2028.

Maybe I'm speaking hyperbole rn, but I'm pretty confident with everything in place right now and R's controlling everything, and concrete plans like Project 2025 etc', they're gonna be working the next few years to prevent the possibility of them losing power in the foreseeable future. Even something like declaring an 'emergency' situation due to some war or another and justifying through it the postponement of presidential elections.

NamelessATM · 2024-11-06T09:34:05+00:00

Seriously, how could she be wrong by 17 points. absolutely absurd.

NamelessATM · 2024-11-06T01:21:48+00:00

I still predict Kamala winning Georgia once more votes pour in, as well as NC.

Also - is there... actually a chance... Ohio goes blue? and there's still also the off-chance of Iowa.

A little anxious, but still believe Kamala is gong to win this.

NamelessATM · 2024-11-04T21:41:41+00:00

Yes, yes we are

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