Doha, Qatar, Gatra.com- Kazakhstan’s grandmaster (GM) Alisher Suleymenov, 23, created the biggest shock of the year by ‘eating’ world number 1 and favorite to defeat Magnus Carlsen in the second round of the 2023 Qatar Masters Open at Lusail MultiPurpose Lobby. , 12/10. Alisher could be called a fluid GM because apart from being young, he was only given the GM title earlier this year. So The Qatar Peninsula report.
Suleymenov (2512), ranked 47th in the tournament, played a fantastic match with the white pieces to defeat the Norwegian superstar while Carlsen (2839), 32, a five-time world champion, suffered his first defeat against a player ranked in below 2520 since the 2006 Norwegian Championship where he lost to Berge Ostenstad (2480).
“I don’t know what to say honestly. I still can’t believe what happened,” Suleymenov said after his impressive victory.
“It’s unreal. I am surprised. From the first match, I dreamed of this excitement, of this fantastic result. I spoke to my coach today. He told me not to think about winning, a draw would be fantastic. And he told me to play according to my position,” Suleymenov said.
Meanwhile, Carlsen admitted to losing concentration early in the match. “I was absolutely devastated by my match today,” he posted on ‘X’ after the loss.
“This is not to accuse my opponent of anything, who had an extraordinary match and deserved to win, but to be honest, as soon as I saw my opponent wearing a watch at the start of the game, I “I lost the ability to concentrate,” Carlsen added.
“I definitely take responsibility for my inability to properly manage those thoughts,” Carlsen added, before pointing out that distractions such as spectators walking around the game room with smartphones added to his frustration.
In other Grandmasters matches, world number 4 Hikaru Nakamura of the United States beat his Chinese counterpart Changren Dai, while Uzbekistan’s Nodirbek Abdusattorov drew against Iran’s SEED Khalil Mousavi.
India’s Arjun Erigaisi, 20, also won his match against Uzbekistan’s Abdimalik Abdisalimov to take the top spot, while Iranian grandmaster Parham Maghsoodloo lost to Uzbekistan’s Mukhiddin Madaminov, 17.
Indian grandmaster Gukesh D defeated his compatriot Avinash Ramesh, while another Indian international master Vaishali Rameshbabu stunned grandmaster SP Sethuraman.
The international master of Qatar, Hussein Aziz, ranked 141st in the tournament, lost his second consecutive match, against the German Rafael Lagunow, after his defeat against the Uzbek Mukhiddin Madaminov, ranked 61st in the tournament.
President Qatar Chess Association (QCA) Al Madahka expressed his satisfaction with the atmosphere of the tournament and added that the fans had the opportunity to witness some great confrontations, including the matches between Carlsen and Suleymenov, as well as Nakamura against Changren.
Al Selamatka thanked SC for their presence at the tournament and said the distribution of prizes to all players was a positive initiative.
He also said that the Qatar Masters B tournament also featured several exciting matches while the young players of the Qatar team recorded positive results.
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