Ian Nepomniachtchi, who lost the match for the world title, announced the names of assistants at the final press conference in Astana . Grandmasters Nikita Vitiugov, Ildar Khairullin and Maxim Matlakov helped him prepare for the games against Ding Liren, who told Sport about the secrets of chess behind the scenes.
— How did you get into Nepomniachtchi's team?
Everyone knows that Khairullin is Nepomniachtchi's longtime second, Vitiugov helped him in the Candidates Tournament. Enormous work has been done and a huge base with debut developments has remained.
— and Nepomniachtchi, or did they try to remain incognito?- We tried not to shine again. Although, I think, everyone understood who was working in Jan's team, but only Vitiugov was always next to him.
— for the title of world champion is announced only after its completion, and even then, someone is left a secret?
— Knowing the composition of the seconds, it is possible to predict the opening preparation with a high degree of probability. After the appearance of the Hungarian grandmaster Richard Rapport, who plays for Romania, in Ding Liren's team, we assumed that he was invited to add creativity. The debut repertoire of the Chinese has always been rather narrow. Having learned about Rapport, they had no doubt that it would be expanded. This is what happened during the match. Already in Astana, we had to reorganize.
— Apart from Rapport, who else was in Ding Liren's headquarters?< br>
— At the final press conference, only Jan was asked about the team. I have no doubt that Ding Liren had a large team and leading Chinese chess players worked for him. .jpg»/
— The main work took place during the preparation for the match. Did you manage to do something in Astana?- The strategy for the match was worked out in advance. The stock of opening ideas is stipulated. It's impossible to foresee everything. In addition, the match immediately went according to an unpredictable scenario. Nobody expected that the first productive game would be played so early. The strategy changed, and then the match became completely unpredictable. Yes, and Ding Liren, to be honest, surprised. It was understood that in the match for the world title he would be different, but with white he never played his favorite Catalan opening. Instead, he chose to go off the beaten path from the very beginning.
— What did your analytical work at the applicant's headquarters give you?
— Too little time has passed since the end of the match to appreciate it. All in all it was a very interesting experience. I saw how a top chess player is preparing for the most important competition in his life.
— Has the role of seconds changed since the advent of the computer?
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— I am sure that there should be strong grandmasters next to the participant of the World Championship match. If you rely only on the computer, then everyone will be given the same recommendations. It is extremely difficult to find a new opening idea in general. We need a non-standard approach that will make the opponent make a mistake.
— Were there any opening novelties or surprises in the match in Astana that would make the opponent make a mistake?
— Several profound ideas were demonstrated already in the first games, when Nepomniachtchi played with White. In nondescript, as we say, positions, he found directions that made Ding Liren nervous and mistaken. There were no bombs. They are generally difficult to prepare. We can say that in the games that Ian played with white, we were surprised, and when Nepomniachtchi had black pieces, we were surprised. How to explain Jan's mistakes in the 12th game of «classic» and in the fourth game in the tie-break?
“These are two different stories. In the classic game, Nepomniachtchi had a winning position, but in the tie-break it was still a long way off. Of course, the nervous tension also affected, and, probably, the thought was already spinning in Jan's head that now everything would end. The position in the 12th game was actually not so unambiguous. Yes, the computer showed Black's victory, but over the board it was not so easy to find the way to it. In the fourth game of the tie-break, Nepomniachtchi had chances to win, but at the decisive moment he did not find the strongest continuation. In an already equal position, Ding Liren took a risk, and this risk was justified. It would be incorrect to tell all the nuances without Jan's permission.
—You are a longtime fan of Zenit. Is it possible to draw an analogy between a shoot-out in football and a tie-break in a chess match for the title of world champion?
— In the sense that this is a lottery? No. And in football, all teams practice penalty kicks, and in chess, four games in rapid are generally closer to classical chess than to blitz. If we draw analogies with football, then a tie-break is extra time. Two halves of 15 minutes, when you can miss, and recoup, and snatch victory.
— Do you believe in the return of Magnus Carlsen to the chess throne? br>— After all, he himself refused to defend the title, and I don’t see his motivation to again break through to the championship match through the Candidates Tournament. There's just no logic to it. Magnus will certainly continue to play in tournaments. Perhaps if FIDE changes the format of the championship match by accepting Carlsen's proposal, he will return. Only this is unlikely.
— The RCF was the first of the All-Russian sports federations to go to Asia. How will this affect Russian chess players?
— As they say, let's wait and see. This is still a unique precedent, and it is difficult to predict something. The careers of most Russian chess players have so far been associated with European tournaments and qualifiers. With Nikita Vitiugov and Ildar Khairullin, we successfully played for the Bronze Horseman team in the European Club Cup. For many Russian grandmasters, this was one of their favorite tournaments.