The unbeaten duo of Magnus Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura stayed on course of a much-anticipated title-clash after reaching the semifinals of the New in Chess Classic rapid online tournament on Wednesday.
No tie-breaker was needed as all four semifinalists made it without dropping a match.
Carlsen broke Teimour Radjabov’s resistance after five straight draws and then drew twice for a 2.5-1.5 verdict in Match 2.
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Carlsen’s next rival Levon Aronian knocked out Champions Tour leader Wesley So with a dominant display. He drew two games and won the third to advance with a game to spare.
Nakamura, in serious trouble in Game 1 and 3 against Liem Quang Le, won 2-1. He escaped to victory in the first game and then managed to draw the next two.
Nakamura next plays Shakhriyar Mamedyarov who raced away to a 2.5-0.5 win over an off-colour Alireza Firouzja, after winning the first and third games.
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The results (quarterfinals, Match 2): Magnus Carlsen (Nor) bt Teimour Radjabov (Aze) 2.5-1.5; Levon Aronian (Arm) bt Wesley So (USA) 2-1; Shakhriyar Mamedyarov (Aze) bt Alireza Firouzja (FIDE) 2.5-0.5; Hikaru Nakamura (USA) bt Liem Quang Le (Vie) 2-1 .