But...endgame has been highly emphasised for quite some time now. I've been studying the endgame for years.
Welcome to a new chess era !
Sort:
Of course many people have highly emphasized it. It's more about the general trend though. Karpov recently stated in an interview, that today's top players aren't that good endgame technicians as people were back then. The elite seems to care mostly about sharp lines and a little edge from the opening nowadays, learning vast amount of opening theory most of their time. Kasparov was the prototype for that approach, no one matched his opening knowledge, which he combined with a tactical, agressive style.
After this match in Chennai I guess the chess trainers around the world will give endgame knowledge even more room than before. In addition to that many people like to play in the style of the best player around there. The world champion, if charismatic enough, serves as a role model and sets the general course and fashion trends during his period of reign. And with Carlsen on the world champion throne I think the emphasis will not be on sharp openings but endgames and solid positional play. If for example Nakamura were world champion, we'd have an exact opposite trend.
The chess world is changed. I feel it in the water. I feel it in the earth. I smell it in the air.
While before the leading ideals were attacks, forcing opening advantages, sharp lines and tactics, the chess world will now re-discover calm strategic play and a high emphasis on endgame as the new supremacy vector of the game.
The last change took place around 1985, where the agressive attacking chess defeated the style of Capablanca, Petrosjan and Karpov. But now the Magus of Norway has shifted it back again.
Kasparov once predicted that Carlsen will change chess - and this is exactly what we are witnessing right now !
Ladies and Gentelmen, forget your 25 forcing moves in the Najdorf and get out your dusty endgame books from the shelves !