‘He has no obvious weaknesses’: Carlsen’s rare praise for Sindarov after GCL clash

“I think he had more draw options that he didn’t go for, because his team desperately needed him to win. And I think he understood that and because of that he was putting himself in a difficult position. Overall, he’s very well rounded, doesn’t have any obvious weaknesses,” Carlsen said.

Carlsen hasn’t had the best of starts on the individual front by his standards at GCL 4, even though his team, defending champion Pipers, are cruising. They lead the points table with nine points from three wins in four games.

Magnus Carlsen in action for Alpine Pipers during GCL 2026. (GCL)

“It has been a little bit underwhelming. But the team is doing fantastic; as long as they are doing well, I’m happy,” the legend said.

Carlsen came to the GCL on the back of a dominant win at the Esports World Cup in Paris, where he didn’t lose a single game. In the GCL too, he is yet to lose, but there have been multiple occasions when he seemed under pressure. His mastery, however, has allowed him to wriggle out of difficult situations, with one win and three draws to his name.

ALSO READ | Why Nepal tragedy moved Dutch chess star Anish Giri to lend a helping hand

He was critical of his own game. “I feel like my play with limited time is not great.”

Analysing his game against Sindarov, Carlsen said: “I was quite happy with the way I navigated the early-middle game, but it took a little bit too much time. Towards the end, it was very shaky. I changed the rhythm from more or less trying to think to just blitz. So that part has been a little bit difficult so far.”

Something new

Carlsen played an odd move, 3. f6, in the opening against Sindarov, which looked like a mistake or a deep tactical line for the longest time. He revealed the idea came from a misclick from his coach during training, but they used it to good effect.

“It was originally from my coach, it was a misclick. And then he started looking at it and I like the general idea of taking a random move in the opening. With computer analysis, you can make pretty much anything work,” he explained.

Magnus Carlsen’s Pipers thrashed Javokhir Sindarov’s Gambits 15-3 to lay down a marker. (GCL Photo)

Carlsen flagged Viswanathan Anand in the clash between Pipers and PBG Alaskan Knights. Anand held a slight advantage in the opening, but Carlsen used his clock well to put pressure back in the middle and endgame, eventually winning after Anand ran out of time.

When asked about the game with the Indian legend, he said: “I felt like I was outplaying a little bit in the middle game. Was pretty happy with the position from the opening and then later on. And then, again, I was a little bit shaky with little time, and I think for a period there he was defending very well, not making it any worse. And then I just obviously resigned myself to a draw, and then I randomly glanced at his clock and saw that it was out. That’s how it goes sometimes.”

Ian Nepomniachtchi had Carlsen in a stranglehold for the majority of their game but failed to convert the winning endgame. Carlsen credited his luck for wriggling out of the position. “It was very tough. I kind of almost got what I wanted from the opening, but I misjudged something later, and he completely outplayed me. It was certainly a combination of luck and skill to get out of that one, because you don’t do that without any help.”

(The writer is in Bengaluru at the invitation of Global Chess League)