Losing their heads

Chess players tend to fidget while they think. They crack their knuckles, stir their coffee, and bounce their legs. I have watched Boris Gelfand and Daniil Dubov twiddling a captured pawn in their fingers, with notable dexterity, despite being deep in thought. It’s a common tic, so when Sam Sevian reached out to pick up a piece while contemplating the position shown in the first diagram, I presume the motion was entirely unconscious.

But it was odd for several reasons. First, it wasn’t Sam’s move, and the unwritten etiquette is to refrain from fiddling while the opponent is thinking. Stranger still, his outstretched hand didn’t settle on a stray pawn. In fact, he picked up the enemy king, which must have come as a shock to his opponent, since it was still very much alive and soon to capture a pawn on b2.

Fun fact – the pointy bit at the top of the king is called a finial, like the decoration at the end of a curtain pole. Sevian revolved the king in his hands, and the appendage broke right off. His opponent, Hans Niemann (yes, him), made a natural gesture of bemusement at this behaviour. Instead of replacing the king’s body on its square, Sevian casually plopped it back on the other side of the board, his glare offering no hint of apology.

All this was captured on video (www.spectator.co.uk/kingshead) in one of the most bizarre incidents I have ever seen at the chessboard. After the game, Niemann was keen to downplay what took place, insisting that there had just been a misunderstanding. Apparently, Sevian had muttered something about gluing it back on. Maybe so, but many observers, myself included, found it hard to look past the obvious Freudian symbolism.

The rook endgame occurred in the fifth hour of the 12th round of a fiercely strong event. Nerves were surely frayed, and despite being two pawns up, Sevian was the player in greater difficulties. Niemann’s participation was itself a matter of controversy, in view of the much publicised cheating allegations levelled at him by Magnus Carlsen just weeks before.

The day after the event, Niemann’s announcement of a $100 million lawsuit shot him straight back into the mainstream headlines again. He has sued Magnus Carlsen, Play Magnus Group (his company), Chess.com, Danny Rensch (the public face of Chess.com) and Hikaru Nakamura for Slander, Libel, Violation of the Sherman Act, Tortious Interference with Contract and Business Expectancies, and Civil Conspiracy. The lawyers are cracking their knuckles.

Samuel Sevian-Hans Moke Niemann

US Championship, St Louis, October 2022

(See diagram)

45… Kxb2 46 f5 b3 47 f6 Rg2 48 h3 The decisive error. 48 Rh5! adequately meets the threat of Rxh2+, while preparing to swing the rook over. 48…Rf2 49 Kg5 Ka2 50 Rh7 b2 51 Rb7 Rxh2 52 f7 Rf2 53 Kg6 ultimately leads to a draw. Ka2 49 Rh7 b2 50 Rb7 Rg6 An important move, separating the pawn from the white king before attacking it. 51 f7 Rf6 52 Kg5 Rxf7 53 Rxf7 b1=Q Now, 54 Rxa7 loses to a check on g1. The rest is straightforward. 54 h4 Qg1+ 55 Kh5 Kb3 56 a6 Kc4 57 Rg7 Qc5+ 58 Rg5 Qe7 59 Rf5 Kd4 60 Kg4 Qe6 61 Kg5 Ke4 62 Rf6 Qe7 63 Kg6 Ke5 64 Rf5+ Ke6 65 Rf4 Qe8+ 66 Kg5 Qg8+ 67 Kh5 Ke5 68 Rf1 Qd5 69 Rf8 Qd1+ 70 Kg5 Qd2+ 71 Kh5 Qd7 72 Rf1 Qb5 73 Rf8 Qxa6 74 Kg5 Qe6 75 Rf1 Qg8+ 76 Kh6 Qh8+ 77 Kg5 Qd8+ 78 Kh5 a5 White resigns