Carlsen beats Caruana in tie-breakers to retain World Chess crown

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Norwegian Magnus Carlsen won the world chess championship for a fourth time on Wednesday after winning three tie-breakers against U.S. rival and world No. 2 Fabiano Caruana.

Caruana had drawn 12 out of 12 classical games through November, and the stalemate forced the pair into the faster-paced, best-of-four rapid tie-breakers.

"Frankly speaking, in the last couple of years my game hasn't been great," the 27-year-old defending champion told a news conference in London. "In that sense, this match and the classical portion was a step in the right direction."

Challenger U.S. player Fabiano Caruana (L) fights in the tie-break matches of the 2018 World Chess Championship against reigning world chess champion Norway's Magnus Carlsen (R) in London, November 28, 2018. /VCG Photo

The failure of Caruana, 26, to defeat Carlsen means the United States has not won the chess title since the Bobby Fischer beat Russia's Boris Spassky in 1972.

"I have some regrets about the classical portion but I don't think I can really be upset about it," said the American. "I was hoping to play my best chess today but I didn't even come close to that.

"I felt a lot of pressure but I don't think I had added pressure because I was the first American challenger in a long time," he added.

Carlsen has been the world's top ranked player for the past eight years and has now defended his title three times since he first won it in 2013 by beating Indian grandmaster Viswanathan Anand.

This year is the first time the Norwegian had won the championship without losing a single game.

Source(s): Reuters