I wanted to write my comments under the below video. However maybe because the comment is so long the system is auto deleting my comments
I would have written this on Reddit however my comments get downvoted based on my username
The below is my assessment of the entire Kramnik vs Danya scandal.
I have no inside information on any of this matter but it is only my assessment/guesstimate.
I have tried to be as honest and neutral as possible.
Viewpoint from Kramnik's angle
Kramnik started playing online since 2019 (his words) and he has probably developed the suspicion of cheating since then. Since 2020 Chess has changed with online money events.
He has a very strong conviction about cheating occurring on a large scale online.
Chess is where he has spent all his time and energy on and he does not want to see the game being damaged.
He cares about chess and he has spent a great deal of his time , emotions and life for the game.
What the game means to a person like Kramnik is totally different that what a 2500-2600 GM feels about the game.
Chesscom is a commercial company which does not care about chess but making money out of chess. In other words Chess com is in the business of chess.
Kramnik seems to be working independently on this matter but seems to consult some top players who are also having similar conclusions.
He also seems to have formed a huge team of people with varied skills to investigate this.
Kramnik's point of view from what I can gather is that no body is above questioning.
Let us say that you enter a departmental store and the shopkeeper "suspects" you of shoplifting. He has a right to frisk you to ascertain whether you have indeed stolen something.
So Kramnik basically wants to every player who shows abnormal results to be frisked. Merely frisking you does not mean you are convicted. It is just that you are being suspected and called for enquiry.
In this case Danya has the habit of looking to the side multiple times and add to that he indeed used an engine in that game vs a 1100 adds a lot of fuel to the fire.
English is not Kramnik's first language and unlike Arturs who has learnt English pretty well, Kramnik hasn't.
Due to his poor English skills he has ended up mis-communicating a lot. He also seems to be quite impulsive going after players like Nihal Sarin and David Navara which is harming his image.
He needs to realize that in serious matters he needs to be careful about his words.
Add to this chaos the fact that people like Nepo and Grischuk are also accusing players of cheating and it is creating an impression that It is Russians vs Chess com. However it seems everyone are working independently.
I am very worried on what is going to happen after the WCH because I feel we are going to hear some one say Gukesh's play is suspicious and we will end up having more chaos.
As an independent chess fan what stumps me is how the entire eco system went up against Hans Niemman but seems to be a lot more lenient towards Danya.
I talked to a lot of people over the past few days and many of them are not even ready to accept the fact that Danya could be wrong. For many Kramnik is 100% wrong.
Some of the people I talked to do not view online chess seriously and it is like a gambling site to them. Hence they do not care if cheating happens. It does not affect their lives.
Under the current circumstances, unfortunately none of us are going to arrive at a definitive conclusion. We are all taking sides based on our emotions which is based on one of the following:
a) Love/Hate for Kramnik.
b) Love for Danya (dont think anyone hates that guy).
c) Hate for Chess com which is transferred to Danya at the moment. (Why Chesscom is hated is a separate story in itself.)
Viewpoint from Danya's angle
Though I am not a regular viewer of Danya's videos I distinctly remember seeing the below video and being captivated with his enthusiasm for teaching. He is a really good teacher.
For what ever reason,Danya has used an engine in an online game vs a very low rated player during his speed runs. It is irrelevant whether he was +90 in terms of evaluation when it happened, opponents rating is irrelevant.
The fact that he can easily load an engine in short time coupled by him frequently looking sideways are adequate grounds for suspicion.
Maybe he never cheats. Maybe he does sometimes. But what we have is adequate grounds of questioning.
So I do not see anything wrong with Danya or any player being questioned. Questioning does not mean being convicted of cheating.
The good thing is that he himself is open for questions and is not trying to hide.
Danya also plays on Lichess for a long time and he has finished at the top of multiple Arena events. He was never ever flagged for cheating on that website. So maybe he is indeed clean and him (foolishly) using an engine once is being exaggerated to suit Kramnik's narrative?
Sadly questioning Danya is something Chess com must have done. (Assuming they did indeed investigate Danya)
From what I gather chess com is silent about this.(sorry if I missed anything - too much is happening). At least asked him what was he constantly looking at?
Since this matter is now public anyway Chess com with the permission of Danya (who seems to be keen to come clean and would agree I guess) release their investigation report.
When Kramnik went after Danya ,chess com should have said Shut up Kramnik, we have already done our investigation and he is clean 100%. But nothing of that sort is happening
Danya constantly looks sideways but we have heard Kasparov say that a strong player does not need constant advise. Just 1-2 hints during a game is enough.
So why will a strong player like Danya constantly need to look at the engine? (assuming he uses assistance)
If he doesn't use assistance then where is he looking at? Maybe it is just his OBS screen?
On the other hand Mr Pipi Petrosian who was banned for cheating, inspite of being a strong player was constantly looking downwards. So what is the truth?
Smart Online cheating in chess is hard to prove and unless caught red handed or a confession arising out of guilty conscience happens it is going to be impossible to prove anything.
Kramnik seems to have extremely strong conviction in what he is doing and hence he is not going to stop even if he is the last man standing.
To me Kramnik's intent seems to be clean and devoid of personal vendetta.
My Conspiracy Theory Angle
A few days back Ilya Merenzon posted that they are glad to invite Kramnik to their anti cheating team.
Ilya is the CEO of World Chess the same holy organization which tried to prevent the broadcast of the WCH 2016 and tried to put the broadcast under a paywall. The Wch moves could not be relayed on any website without the permission (paying) world Chess.Only a few companies fought for Chess and one among them was Chess24. Chess24 drained a lot of its financial resources fighting the case against World Chess in the court of law.
Chess com fell in line with World Chess and did not fight. It was a good economic decision for the company but bad for Chess. Money which Chess24 could have spent for its site development was spent in the case which ultimately was a major factor in the demise of the company.
Kramnik was a played in 2016 and maybe he wanted to focus only about his career.
But now, If Kramnik really loves the game why would be team up with a person who tried to prevent free access to PGN and stop broadcast?
It is quite possible that World Chess wants to kill chess com and become the numero uno of the Chess world. Maybe they paid Kramnik a ton of money to destroy the image of chess com. Maybe Kramnik is ignorant of their motives and is being used by world Chess to achieve their corporate goals
The game of chess is above any player, who ever it may be (Kramnik/Danya/Kasparov) and I hope our game remains in safe hands
As a chess fan and also Kramnik fan the past few days has been chaotic and mentally draining. I feel as if all this is taking a toll on my mental health and want this stuff to end soon.
But it seems that we have only started entering the rabbit hole. The deeper you dive the more questions you get.
This is not going to end anytime soon. The longer it lasts only chess would be the loser.
