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Library / Games / Caruana, Fabiano vs Carlsen, Magnus
Clutch-ch June · Lichess.org INT · 14 June 2020

Fabiano Caruana vs Magnus Carlsen, Clutch-ch June, R3.11

Caruana, Fabiano 1–0 Carlsen, Magnus
Caruana, Fabiano vs Carlsen, Magnus
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Clutch-ch June, 14 June 2020

Game 3.11 of the June 2020 Clutch Championship was won by Caruana as White. The day-match between Carlsen and Caruana was near its end; Caruana’s win here was one of the games that kept the match close in clutch-weighted scoring.

The opening was a Sicilian Najdorf. Caruana’s preparation again produced a sharp middlegame; Carlsen’s defence was challenged beyond what blitz time controls usually allow. The conversion took 40 moves and required Caruana to find several precise tactical sequences.

Caruana’s blitz/rapid wins against Carlsen during 2020 came disproportionately from sharp Sicilian or Spanish positions where home preparation could produce concrete tactical wins. In quieter positional games Carlsen’s intuitive edge usually prevailed; in preparation-heavy tactical positions, Caruana’s home analysis sometimes won the day.

The cumulative head-to-head pattern across 2019-2020 online events favoured Carlsen by approximately 5:2 in won games (with about half of games drawn). Caruana remained Carlsen’s most consistent classical-format rival but conceded the rapid/online format to him across the pandemic period.

Game record

This game between Caruana, Fabiano and Carlsen, Magnus was played at the Clutch-ch June in Lichess.org INT in 2020. Played in round 3.11. At the time of the game, the players were rated 2835 (White) and 2863 (Black). The game lasted 40 moves, ending with White winning. It is part of the modern AI-era of elite chess.

Opening context

The opening sequence runs 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 e5 4. O-O Bd6, after which the players entered the middlegame proper.

See also

For more on this game’s protagonists and theory, see Caruana, Fabiano and Carlsen, Magnus.

Match notes

This Clutch-ch June game sits in post-Carlsen and new generation era. Master-level chess of the period was published in tournament bulletins, magazine annotations, and — for the most-studied games — in published opening monographs by the participants and their successors. This game is preserved in the open historical record and can be replayed in full above.