A tale of two brains: Wishful thinking vs deep calculation
How many moves do you think grandmasters can calculate? It’s somewhere between ‘a lot’ and ‘are they even human’. Their brain works like a high-speed engine. They can see countless variations in seconds. They can spot traps before they even exist. And a Woodpusher? They might stare at the board, see one move ahead or maybe two on a good day, and hope for the best. This article explores the bizarre gap between ‘deep calculation’ and ‘let’s see what happens’.
Eureka!
Recently, I was talking to a friend about my favorite chess performance so far. I haven’t played in many tournaments, but there is one that holds a special place in my heart: the Inter-Collegiate Senior Chess Tournament held in Jalgaon. I usually play random, intuitive moves without much calculation, but this was the only tournament where I played mindfully. It was the only tournament, where I realized for the first time that calculating before making a move actually works. Like, who knew that before?
From the very first move of the first game to the last move of the last game, every move I made was calculated. Let me tell you my definition of deep calculation: It’s thinking 2-3 moves ahead! At that tournament, I felt like a machine. I felt like I was the strongest player there. I was so sure that no other participant had even ‘thought’ of ‘thinking’ through their moves as much as I did. I knew that if I calculated just a few moves ahead and played carefully, I would win.
God knows what made me believe that, but somehow, it worked! (Maybe I was the first example of ‘Delulu is the solulu’). I won the tournament, but what truly made me happy was not the victory. It was the realization that I had actually calculated my moves.
This happened about 5-6 years ago. I couldn't stop smiling as I recalled the tournament. Just then, a YouTube notification popped up: “INSANE calculation by Abdusattorov.” (Video: Tata Steel Chess Tournament) It felt like some kind of cosmic alignment! A few minutes ago, I was bragging about my genius calculations, and now here I was about to watch someone’s insane calculations. I clicked on the video.
It was a game between Jorden van Foreest and Nodirbek Abdusattorov at the Tata Steel Chess 2025. I was excited… and then, within a few seconds, I was humbled. The game had some crazy lines. I decided to challenge myself and check the entire game to see what I would have played.
My first challenge started from the very first move. After Jorden played 1. e4, Nodirbek responded with 1. c6, the Caro-Kann Defense (I only knew that because of the commentary.) Usually, I would have countered it with e5 (I always play e4 or e5), but I was up for the challenge!
After a couple of moves, the position actually looked familiar. Jorden played 7. a3, usually in my games, I just take the knight with bishop, because it just feels satisfying to me. I don’t have any tactical reason behind it. But Nodirbek played 7. Ba5. This move looked weird to me. According to the commentary, it was a risky move that gave White more space. So, my doubt was valid… just not for the right reason.
On the kingside, Jorden attacked another bishop. In this position, I would have developed another piece and hope White exchanges the bishop. But Nodirbek opted for 9. Bg6 followed by 11. h5 Bh7. Either I love trading bishops too much or he really, really likes keeping them.
An interesting moment came after 21. Bxd5 when White had an amazing checkmate idea (Bxb7+ Kb8 Ba6 threatening Qb7#). If I were White, I would have acted like I did not notice it. I would play my move, casually leave my chair, and return hoping to see a blunder on the board. But of course, these were two grandmasters playing and such things don’t happen in their world! Nodirbek calmly played 21. Kb8 and saved himself from checkmate.
White was in full attack mode when he played 28. b6. If Black captured with axb6, the a-file would open up. White could easily double the rooks or bring the queen on the a-file to threaten checkmate. “A very scary move” I heard the commentary. So my fear was justified! I knew that exchange would be dangerous. My instinctive response would be Bd6. Not necessarily the best move, but at least I would save my bishop. Priorities! Losing a piece was scarier than a checkmate for me.
The critical moment of the game came after 31. Rd4. White needed just one chance to invade the a-file and deliver checkmate. Meanwhile, White king seemed quite safe as Black’s major pieces were far from giving a single check, forget the checkmate. Using this logic, it was natural for me to attack the a-file. The best move for me was Qe2. Jorden played exactly that! I felt validated. Great minds think alike! I thought I was on the right track.
For me, the position looked very bad for Black. But when I saw the engine, it was winning for Black?! I wondered what did the engine see that I didn’t. What was I missing?
The commentator understood my confusion and decided to explain it. There were many tactics hidden in this position. 32. Rxf4 33. Rxf4 Qxe5 34. Qa2, both White’s rooks were hanging. The best way to protect them was playing Qa2 or Ra4 to threaten a mate.
Possibility 1: Qa2
If you are tempted to play Qxf4, you are about to experience heartbreak, because Qa8# is coming your way! I wasn’t stupid enough to think of this move, but I wasn’t smart enough to find the best move either. The commentator helped me again. The better choice was Qe3+.
I could understand his frustration...
On the live feed, Jorden looked stressed. He seemed to realize that he was losing. If I were White in this position, I would still be very much positive. Come on, there is still hope. One small blunder from Black and I would be dancing. I even had the punchline ready to tell my friends, “Queen ate with Qa8.”
But then I realized... opponent was a grandmaster. Such mistakes don’t happen in their world. Back to the commentary...
Qe3+ Rf2 Bg3… White’s rook was pinned and so were his hopes.
Qa8+ Kc7 Qa5+ b6 Qa7+ Kc6 Qa4+ b5 Qa6+ Kd5 Rd1 Ke5. No more checks to the king now! Basically, once the king comes on d5, he can finally breathe.
According to the engine, Black was still winning. I had no choice but to agree since Qa8# was not a possibility anymore.
Possibility 2: Ra4
Qh2+ Kf1 Qh1+ Kf2 Rf8+ Ke3 Re8+ Kd3.
In this situation, if I were Black, I would immediately capture the QUEEN! Even if there exists a better move, I wouldn’t care. What if I blunder later and lose the game? I have seen my friends ignoring a hanging piece thinking they have a better idea… only to blunder later and lose. So, if I see a queen hanging, I am taking it! I would think about the checkmate later.
But according to the commentator, there was a stronger sequence than capturing the queen…
c4+ Kxc4 Qh4+ g4 b5+ Kxb5 Qg5+ Kc6 Qf6+ Kb5 Qb6+ Kc4 Qc6+ Kb3 and finally… Rxe2!
I understood nothing out of this. But my point is… why go through all this? If you really wanted to capture the queen, why didn’t you do it earlier? You were winning then and you are winning now. I was very confused. Maybe that was the reason I was watching and they were playing.
After all this crazy analysis, it was the time. Jorden had to choose between the devil and the deep sea. He chose the devil, Qa2! The same sequence followed and Jorden resigned after a few moves. If I had managed to calculate something like this and win a game, I would have flexed it for years. Every conversation, every gathering, I would find a way to bring it up, even if the topic was completely unrelated.
Then I saw Nodirbek explaining the sequence to Jorden with so much excitement.
This was a reality check I didn’t think I needed. I always knew chess was about looking a few moves ahead… but how many moves? The maximum number of moves I had ever calculated was maybe five. And even that felt like an achievement. But what I witnessed in this game was absolutely INSANE.
I found Ba5 weird, but for Nodirbek, it was a part of a bigger plan. What I think as a development is a well-planned strategy for these players. I often panic after a small attack, but these players calmly maneuver around it. Where I would have played a simple, natural move, these players find moves I didn’t even know existed. That’s what separates the best from the rest. RESPECT!
A video that will make you rethink your entire approach to calculation:
