29 February 2016

Levon Aronian: I'm Ready to Play a Match With Carlsen Anytime

The grandmaster answered questions of Barsky and Zangalis.

The nominee of the Candidates tournament organizers was interviewed for the Sport-Express newspaper by Vladimir Barsky and Kirill Zangalis. Below is an excerpt from the interview.

Q: Do you like the current World Championship cycle – the Candidates, and then the championship match?

Aronian: I really like the Candidates tournament. I realize this is just a single tournament, anyone can win it. However, usually only the strongest succeed in it... For example, Vishy Anand played brilliantly in Khanty-Mansiysk in 2014, and won by a large margin. Or Magnus Carlsen and Vladimir Kramnik, who played really well in London in 2013. I think there has never been an undeserved winners of the Candidates, ever.

Q: What is your mood before the tournament in Moscow?

Aronian: I travel to Russia quite often. One of my first trips with my bride Arianne was to Moscow and St. Petersburg. I remember she was surprised seeing that many book shops are open until very late. My cultural background is largely based on a Russian language culture. This is a part of me, and I enjoy staying in Moscow. 

Q: We are talking after the Zurich tournament, which saw a new format of serious chess – two games with a shorter time control per day. Did you like it?

Aronian: This was interesting! It is like you are playing a rapid game, but still have time to think. Getting used to it was somewhat difficult, but I enjoyed playing. 

Q: Does it have future?

Aronian: I think we could even play three games per day with such time control, and it would be the same as a single classical game.