February 10th 2003.
A mass audience followed
the game over the net while many more watched live on cable television.
Chess had finally hit the big time. It was 2.5 all and everything hinged on
the final game. Was this the last chance saloon for man to demonstrate his
superiority over silicon?
Unfortunately
mankind’s worthy representative, probably the greatest chess talent of all
time (at least up until this millennium), Garry Kasparov, holding a pretty
good position with the black pieces, lost his bottle. He offered a draw. It
was turned down by the machine operator. A short while later the machine was
deprived the opportunity of playing on in its rather dodgy position when the
operator returned the offer of a draw and Kasparov accepted.
Thus ended a great
sporting spectacle. The match had started well with interesting and
hard-fought games but descended into minor farce at the end with the final
draw in a far from played out position ruining the good publicity value of
the contest and also somewhat tarnishing the image of chess as sport. What
about the punters betting on the outcome of this chess match? Anybody not
betting on the draw will certainly feel cheated by the way the result of the
final game was ‘decided’ without being allowed to run its natural
course.
What happened to the
great showman that Kasparov once was? What happened to the man who was once
as tough as nails psychologically and played so many daring and intricate
sacrifices? Has a quarter of a century of chess at the top damaged the nerve
and sinew of Garry Kasparov as he approaches 40? There was a time he would
have been too proud to take that draw and would have believed in himself a
little more…
The jury is still out on
these questions. Certainly there is some evidence of him cracking up a
little: for example the final phase of his London match with Kramnik was
rather sad to watch. Yet it is also clear that Kasparov has not lost his
talent and can still produce the goods, as he demonstrated in fine style not
long ago at the chess Olympiad.
A psychologist friend
of mine once explained that most people like to bully someone. Typically a
man will bully his wife a bit and the wife will in turn bully the children.
Kasparov, like many other players, is certainly happier at the chessboard
when he is psychologically dominant. When he found an opponent who could not
be bullied (Kramnik) he had difficulties playing his normal game and the
same again now against the computer. He started well but did not have the
energy and strength to stay on top of his fears through to the end of the
match. Conclusion: he only failed to win because he is human.
Redisunification
The squabble over the
Kasparov-Ponomariov match is indeed unfortunate for those of us hoping for
an organised, harmonious chess world. Of course some might find it rather
more entertaining just the way it is…
Essentially the
reunification negotiations were made without full regard for the
youngster’s wishes and preferences and now the precocious schoolboy is
showing the audacity to stand up for his rights. There are issues involving
both the time-limit for the games and over what might happen should the
match be tied. So far FIDE’s response has run along the lines of ‘go to
the back of the line Ruslan and stand against the wall’.
More details can be
found at: http://chess-sector.odessa.ua/
While technically
Ponomariov is quite correct to fight his corner, one cannot help feeling
that the publics’ emotions will be against him:
1)
He is so young
2)
He was a little lucky to beat Ivancuk (who had so conveniently beaten
Anand)
3)
Kasparov is a legend
4)
Although he is clearly a great talent, Ponomariov is not yet the
world’s best player so why does his opinion matter?
5)
He could just play the match and stop causing trouble. If he wins
then he has proved himself and if he loses he will learn a great deal and
come back a true and greater champion in the future.
6)
He really is rather young.
Meanwhile
with Kasparov, Kramnik, Anand, Leko and Ponomariov
all competing, we can look forward to some good, spicy chess at Linares,
which starts on the 22nd February.