The only player to score today is Aronian vs Ivanchuk. Even though his position was really bad, I do not think that Ivanchuk should have resigned at this stage. Players have won in much worse positions in previous rounds of the World Cup. When so much is on the line, nerves can play a major role.
Quarterfinals – Game 1 results
| Aronian, Levon | – Ivanchuk, Vassily | 1-0 | |
| Fedoseev, Vladimir | – So, Wesley | ½-½ | |
| Rapport, Richard | – Ding, Liren | ½-½ | |
| Svidler, Peter | – Vachier-Lagrave, Maxime | ½-½ |
I know Ivanchuk deliberately plays slightly dodgy moves to get his opponents into unfamiliar territory but it’s risky trying that against a stronger player and instead of … b5 he had a good alternative in … e5 followed by … Be6