Chess Blog

The 42 Paradox

Mon, 02 Oct 2023 21:00:00 GMT

Well, well, well. After rampaging his way through many of the finals and opponents throughout the 2023 Champions Chess Tour, Magnus Carlsen’s “final boss” reign came to a screeching halt in what proved to be an enthralling AI Cup Grand Final on Friday, as the favourite was beaten not once but in three games, and over two matches, by Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, who sensationally grabbed the last remaining spot in the Champions Tour Final in December.

Earlier, Carlsen had defeated MVL in the final of the winners’ bracket, before the Frenchman gained the right to a rematch in the double-elimination contest by beating Ian Nepomniachtchi in the final of the losers’ bracket. In the Grand Final, buoyed up and firing on all cylinders, MVL beat Carlsen by a 2½-1½ score.

But as Carlsen hadn’t been beaten, he also got a double-elimination ‘reset’ in the Grand Final - and remarkably, a resounding 2-0 victory from the Frenchman saw him grab the title ahead of the Norwegian favourite.

Magnanimous in defeat, Carlsen praised his opponent’s play throughout the AI Cup, after many pundits and commentators had begun the process of writing MVL’s career as being close to over. “That was a fair outcome. [...] Maxime was strong and I failed at the critical moments,’ said the world #1.

“It’s [a] great feeling to play this well and beat Magnus twice,’ commented a jubilant MVL following his heroics that not only bagged the Frenchman the $30,000 first prize but also qualified him into the series’ finals, where he’ll be joined in Toronto in December by overall Tour leader Carlsen.

In overall Tour standings final order , the eight going forward to the $500,000 Tour series’ final will be: 1. Magnus Carlsen (Norway) 645-points; 2. Fabiano Caruana (USA) 325; 3. Nodirbek Abdusattorov (Uzbekistan) 325; 4. Hikaru Nakamura (USA) 290; 5. Wesley So (USA) 235; 6. Alireza Firouzja (France) 180; 7. Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (France) 180; 8. Denis Lazavik (FIDE) 175.

As the brilliant writer Douglas Adams of The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy fame wrote in his comedic pan-galactic odyssey, the "Answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything", as calculated by the enormous AI supercomputer named Deep Thought - which went on to inspire IBM’s chess supercomputer nomenclature - over a period of 7.5 million years, is 42. And paradoxically in the AI Cup Grand Final, move 42 proved to be the turning point in a scintillating key game that ultimately decided everything!

GM Magnus Carlsen - GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave

AI Cup Grand Final, (2.1) 

D20: Queen’s Gambit Accepted

1.d4 d5 2.c4 dxc4 MVL's persistence in the past of sticking to his favourite defences, such as the Sicilian Najdorf, and more particularly, the Grunfeld Defence, whatever the outcome, has been his mythological Achilles' heel. But he's wised up by chopping and changing his defences, particularly against 1.d4 - and after one earlier sparkling encounter with Magnus in the QGA, we get another that's simply a joy to watch, as both players trade blows in a stand-up bare-knuckle fight. 3.e4 e5 4.Nf3 Bb4+ 5.Nc3 Nf6 6.Nxe5 b5 7.f3 O-O 8.a3 Ba5 9.Be3 c5 10.dxc5 Qe8 11.Qd6 Be6 12.O-O-O Qc8 13.Nxb5 a6 14.Nd4! All part of Carlsen's legendary opening prep, and similarly, also known by MVL - so kudos for both players willing to duke it out with some amazing risks and play. 14...Bc7 15.Nxe6 Bxd6 16.Rxd6 fxe6 17.Bxc4 Re8 MVL admitted here that he "momentarily forgot" his home prep - which apparently was 17...Kh8 just to remove the king from the fray, the point being that now 18.Bxe6 Qe8 19.Rhd1 Qe7 with the follow-up plan of with ...Ne8, ...a5 and ...Ra6. to consolidate. 18.c6 This is one of these amazing imbalanced positions from the opening - a little like David Bronstein's innovative queen sac in the Samisch KID he uncorked against Boris Spassky at the 1956 Amsterdam Candidates - where a couple of minor pieces and pawns are more than a handful for the queen, as Black's position right now is a bit messy and not easy to play with his pieces being diss-jointed. 18...Re7 Also possible was 18...a5!? 19.Rhd1 Na6 20.Bb6 Qb8 which looks to force a repetition after 21.Nd7 Qc8 22.Ne5 Qb8 23.Nd7 etc. 19.Bb6 Nbd7 Taking advantage of the pin down the c-file. 20.cxd7 Nxd7 21.Nc6! Re8 Once again, another option is just to remove the king from the equation with 21...Kh8!? leading us to 22.Bf2 (The only move with the position on a knife edge. After 22.Nxe7? Qxc4+ 23.Kb1 Nxb6 24.Rxb6 Qd3+ 25.Ka2 Qd7! 26.Nc6 Qc7 and White is set to lose the knight) 22...Nf8 23.Rhd1 Rd7 24.Kb1 Rxd6 25.Rxd6 Qc7 26.Bg3 Qb6 27.Nd4 Qc5 28.Bb3 Re8 (There's no time for 28...e5? 29.Rd5! Qxd4 30.Rxd4 exd4 31.Bd5 and with the d-pawn vulnerable, as well as the a-pawn, White has a close-to-winning endgame advantage) 29.Nxe6 Nxe6 30.Bxe6 Qg1+ 31.Ka2 Qxg2 which Mr Engine tells us is set to fizzle out to a draw after 32.Be5 h5 33.Bf5 Qxf3 34.Rh6+ Kg8 35.Bh7+ Kf7 36.Bg6+ Ke7 37.Rxh5 Qg4 38.Bxe8 Kxe8 39.Rh8+ Kf7 40.Bc3 Qxe4 41.Rd8 g5 42.Rd2 with an ideal fortress, with Black unable to make any progress. 22.Be3 Qc7 23.Rhd1 Nf8 24.Kb1 Kh8 25.h4 h6 26.g4! You got to admire both players for their fighting spirit - a fighting spirit that prevailed in both of their final matches in the AI Cup. 26...Qf7 27.Ne5 Slightly better first, according to the always reliable Mr Engine, was 27.Be2! Rec8 28.R1d2 the reason is that life isn't easy here for Black, and White should be in no hurry to rush things. The disadvantage of Carlsen's haste is that he allows MVL's queen to come into the game, which doesn't happen in the above note. 27...Qf6 28.Bd4 Qxh4 29.Bxe6 Typically for Carlsen, he continues to push the envelope regardless - but safer here was first playing 29.g5!? hxg5 30.Bxe6! Kh7 31.Bf5+ Kg8 32.Ng6 Qg3 33.Bc3 Qxf3 34.R1d3 Qf1+ 35.Rd1 Qf3 where both sides can opt for the repetition bailout - yet paradoxically, this is just not in the nature of these two legendary bruisers! 29...Qh2 30.Bd5 Kh7 31.g5? We can't all play with the accuracy of AI's Mr Engine in the heat of battle. Unfortunately, this is the only bad move in what has been an enthralling battle between these two warriors. And with it, Carlsen's position begins to seriously drift. He had to play 31.Bxa8 Rxa8 32.Bc3 Re8 33.R6d5 Ne6 34.g5 hxg5 (Slightly more confusing was the alternative capture 34...Nxg5 35.Ng4 Qe2 36.Rd7 Re7! 37.Nf6+ Kg6 38.Re1 Qxf3 39.Rxe7 gxf6 40.Ka1 which the engine laughingly calls a "decimal draw" with the nothing-happening-here AI "0.00" assessment) 35.Ka2 Rc8 36.R1d2 Qg3 37.Rd1 Qh2 38.R1d2 Qg3 39.Rd1 repeating moves, and what would have been a very fighting and deserving draw for both players. 31...Rac8! MVL pounces on the ...Qc2+ game-changer - now in a complete reversal of fortunes, the Frenchman is well on top. 32.Rc6 Rxc6 33.Nxc6 hxg5?! Even stronger and more accurate was 33...Qe2! 34.Rg1 Ne6 35.g6+ Kh8 and Black is on top with his queen picking off some key pawns. 34.Bf7?! The only move to fight on was 34.Bc3! Ne6 35.e5! Nf4 36.Be4+ Kh6 and really any three results for either side is quite possible here! 34...Rc8 35.Be5 Qg2 36.Nd4 g4 Even stronger was 36...Nd7! 37.Bd6 Nb6 with the big threat of ...Na4 - but in the mutual time-scramble, you can't blame MVL for going for the natural-looking move breaking up the pawns. 37.fxg4 Qxe4+ 38.Ka2 Rd8 39.Rf1 Qg2 40.Rf5 Threatening Rh5 mate, which is easily parried. 4 0...g6 41.Rf6 Qxg4 42.Nf3? (see diagram) This is where Douglas Adams’ #42 AI paradox comes into play. It is natural to be single-minded and want to point all your pieces in the general direction of your opponent's king - but the saving move 42 was to head to the other wing with 42.Nc6! Rd3 43.Rf4 Qh3 44.Rf2 Rf3 45.Rh2 Qxh2 46.Bxg6+! Kxg6 47.Bxh2 Rh3 48.Bd6 Nd7 49.Nb8 Rd3 50.Nxd7 Rxd6 51.Nc5 Kf5 52.b4 Ke5 53.Kb3 Kd4 54.Ka4 and a very likely draw with Black's a-pawn set to fall soon. 42...Rd3! I t takes just one very accurate and brave move 42 from MVL, and Magnus is on the morphine drip as his pieces start to hang. 43.Bd5 If 43.Nh2 Qe4 44.Bc3 Rxc3! with ...Qg2+ picking up the knight to follow. 43...Rxd5 44.Rf7+ Kh6 The king runs up the board to safety, leaving Magnus to deal with his wreck of a position. 45.Bg7+ Kh5 46.Rxf8 Qc4+! 47.b3 Qe2+ 48.Bb2 Kg4! MVL's king turns out to be the silent assassin as he moves in for the kill. 49.a4 Qxf3! Black having the g-pawn makes all the difference in winning now rather than drawing, as we saw in the above note to move 42. The rest is now a very effective clear-up by MVL, as the Frenchman wins the first of two amazing back-to-back wins over Carlsen to sensationally snatch the AI Cup title and the final berth in the Tour finals in Toronto in December. 50.Rxf3 Kxf3 51.b4 g5 52.Kb3 g4 53.Kc4 Ke4 54.b5 axb5+ 55.axb5 g3 56.b6 g2 57.b7 Rd8 0-1

We'll Meet Again

Fri, 29 Sep 2023 20:40:51 GMT

The self-proclaimed “final boss of chess” does what the final boss of chess does best of all: Magnus Carlsen beat Maxime Vachier-Lagrave in the final of the AI Cup winners’ bracket, the sixth and final leg of the 2023 Champions Chess Tour regular season, to reach yet another Grand Final in the novel double-elimination contest.

But it wasn’t without an epic bare-knuckle street fight from both players, as MVL proved to be a worthy opponent for what looked to be an unstoppable Carlsen, who narrowly prevailed in the Armageddon to take the match 3-2. "This is the sort of thing that happens when you play Sicilians in every game," said a magnanimous Carlsen in victory after four fighting Sicilians left the match tied at 2-2.

The pundits and punters were similarly complimentary of the no-holds-barred fight from both players - and they relished the thought of these two battlers going at it again, as MVL had a second possible shot at Carlsen by winning the losers bracket. And that’s just the dream scenario that played out for the fans, as MVL went on to beat Ian Nepomniachtchi 2-0 to meet up again with Carlsen in the 2023 AI Cup Grand Final.

And perhaps with the exception of Carlsen himself, many will not begrudge seeing MVL going on to beat the world #1 in the AI Cup Grand Final. The Frenchman is so far behind in the Tour leaderboard standings , that winning the AI Cup and an automatic qualifier spot increasingly looks like his only possible path into December's live and in-person $500,000 Tour Finals in Toronto, Canada.

GM Magnus Carlsen - GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave

AI Cup Div 1 W, (3)

Sicilian Najdorf, English Attack/Scheveningen

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 Like Bobby Fischer and Garry Kasparov before him, MVL is a creature of habit by being the only elite player willing to risk all by playing almost exclusively the Sicilian Najdorf.

6.Be3 The English Attack only became a potent force in tournament praxis during the early 1990s, following a string of impressive results from the English (then) top trio of Nigel Short, Michael Adams and Dr John Nunn. 6...Ng4!?

Time was when 6...e5 (or even 6...e6 - as the game soon transposes into - and going into a Sicilian Scheveningen) was almost the universal reply here - but this is an interesting way to combat the popular English Attack. The idea is to hassle White's bishop, so either it is 7.Bg5 and the double-edged complexity of 7...h6 8.Bh4 g5 9.Bg3 Bg7 10.h3 Ne5, or the bishop retreats with 7.Bc1 and Black has nothing better than the mutual retreat with 7...Nf6 and we're back to square one. 7.Bc1 Nf6 8.f3 Regardless of the time control, both these players would simply baulk at the thought of offering up a quick repetition draw with 8.Be3 Ng4 9.Bc1 Nf6 etc. So as often happens in the English Attack, the game now transposes into a Sicilian Scheveningen of sorts, which is very usual from MVL. 8...e6 9.Be3 b5 10.Qd2 Nbd7 11.g4 b4 12.Na4 h6 13.O-O-O Ne5 14.b3 Bd7 15.Nb2 d5!? The most dynamic move, looking to create active counterplay quickly before White can take a grip of the position. 16.Bf4 Nxf3!? A thematic sacrifice in such e4, f3 g4 pawn formations in the Sicilian - and very typical of MVL to want to up the ante with sharp play! 17.Nxf3 Nxe4 18.Qd4 Rg8 A little of a surprise, as the engine wants to play 18...f6!? with the possibility of ...Bc5 and preparing the groundwork for a later, central pawn push with ...e5. 19.Ne5 The solid option was 19.Nd3 to stop ...Bc5 and reinforce the e5 outpost for the knight - but Carlsen has a cunning plan! 19...Bc5 20.Qxe4! Carlsen takes the game on a wild rollercoaster ride with his early doors squeen sac. 20...dxe4 21.Nxd7 Qxd7 After careful consideration, MVL decides it is better to give the queen back now rather than trying to fathom out the complications that arise after 21...Qe7 22.Be2 g5 (There's no quick solution. After 22...Rd8 23.Bxa6! and already White has a big advantage, with the three minor pieces being better than the queen) 23.Be5 and with Nf6+ coming, Black will be forced into ...Qxd7 anyway - so best to do it on your own terms. 22.Rxd7 Kxd7 23.Nc4 Let's be honest, this is the natural move everyone instinctively would play - but the engine sees just a little deeper, and it wants to head for the rim instead with 23.Na4!, the point being that 23...Bf2 24.Bc4 and suddenly Black's position is looking decidedly "iffy" with multiple threats, not just of Rd1+, but also Rf1 and Bd2 with the pawns on b5 and f7 hanging, not to mention the long-term weakness of the a6 pawn. 23...g5 24.Be5 Ke7! A nice touch from MVL. Some of the online punters were calling out for the rash push 24...f5 which looks good in the heat of the moment, but the engine - and we would presume Magnus also - soon capitalises on this with 25.Bh3! f4 26.Re1 e3 27.Bg2 Raf8 28.Bf3 where all of Black's pawns are now fixed and White's pieces ready to strike at them. 25.h4 Rad8?! Up to this point, MVL had been more than a match for Magnus by dampening his creative play - but this is the moment when the game firmly swings Magnus' way. The correct continuation was 25...gxh4! 26.Rxh4 as there's the cunning little resource of 26...h5! that leads to equality after 27.Rxh5 Rxg4 28.Bh2 f5, and because of the long-term dangers with the Black pawns rushing down the board, White has to take the bailout option now with 29.Rh7+ Kf6 30.Be5+ Kg5 31.Rg7+ Kh4 32.Rh7+ Kg5 33.Rg7+ Kh4 34.Rh7+ Kg5 35.Rg7+ etc and a repetition. 26.hxg5 Rxg5 The alternative faired much worse. After 26...hxg5 27.Bg2 e3 28.Bf3 and White will be looking long-term to pick off the e3-pawn - and the b4- and a6-pawns too! 27.Be2 Rg6 28.Bf4 The h6-pawn looks doomed - but can MVL muster up some compensating counterplay? 28...Bd4 29.Ne5 When you have the initiative, the hardest thing to do in chess is to play a retreating move - but after he better 29.Bd2! suddenly Black is in deep trouble, as 29...Rb8 30.Rd1 f5 (The obvious 30...e5 sees 31.Ne3! and suddenly the knight swinging into f5 looks set to pick off a few loose pawns) 31.gxf5 exf5 32.Ne3! all but forces 32...Bxe3 33.Bxe3 h5 34.Bc5+ and with the bishop-pair and active rook, White holds all the cards and should go on to win. 29...Bxe5 30.Bxe5 f5 31.gxf5 exf5 32.Bf4 Mr Engine quickly points out the stronger plan of 32.Bc4! Rd7 33.Kb2! a5 and White's position is primed to start picking off some pawns, starting with h6. Just not an easy endgame for Black to play. Carlsen though gets the full point thanks to a little time-induced help from his opponent! 32...a5? As ever, sadly time errors start to creep in to spoil this enthralling encounter - the only way for Black to stay in the game was with 32...Rh8! 33.Bd2 and now 33...a5 leading us to 34.Be3 h5 35.Rd1 with an intriguing battle ahead for White to convert the win. 33.Bxh6 Rg2 In his time-trouble haste, MVL missed that 33...Rh8 allows 34.Bg5+ Rxg5 35.Rxh8 Rg1+ 36.Kd2 Kf6 37.Ra8 and White will start picking off all of Black's pawns to convert the win. 34.Bf1 Rg6 35.Be3 It's now just a technical win for Carlsen - and he quickly and almost effortlessly goes about it. 35...Kf6 36.Bc4 Ke5 37.Rh7! f4 38.Rh5+ Kf6 ( see diagram) A last desperate throw of the die from MVL. 39.Bb6! And Carlsen doesn't fall for the mega-swindle of 39.Bxf4?? Rg1+ 40.Kb2 Rdd1! and, in a reversal of fortunes, it is the White king that's being mated! 39...Rd7 40.Bxa5 Rg1+ You could try 40...Rg5 looking to trade rooks and make something with the passed pawns - but White doesn't need to play that game, as 41.Rh6+ Kg7 42.Ra6 f3 43.Bxb4 e3 44.Bc3+ Kh7 45.Re6 e2 46.Kb2! Rg1 47.Re3 f2 48.Bxe2 f1=Q 49.Bxf1 Rxf1 and White easily wins with the three queenside pawns. 41.Kb2 f3 42.Bxb4 f2 43.Bc3+ I t's basically much the same as the note above. 43...Kg6 44.Re5 Re1 45.Re6+ Kg5 46.Rf6 e3 47.Rf8 Rc7 48.Bd4! And Carlsen very efficiently and ruthlessly clears up now. 48...Rxc4 49.Bxe3+ Rxe3 50.bxc4 1-0 And MVL resigns in view of 50...Re2 51.Kc3 Kg4 52.Kd3 and not only does the f-pawn drop, but Black's king is also going to be cut off on the kingside with it.

Tiers For Fears

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 20:16:20 GMT

Fans were treated to arguably the greatest online rivalry in chess history recently, with the Chess.com Speed Chess Championship Grand Final showdown between Magnus Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura seeing the Norwegian narrowly snatch victory by a solitary win to end the American speed maven’s hopes of a sixth successive victory.

But Carlsen’s narrow win left the salivating fans feeling they’d been denied seeing this epic gladiatorial speed contest going into overtime - but they didn’t have to wait long for the rivalry redux, as a couple of days later, both Carlsen and Nakamura went head-to-head yet again in the opening day of the AI Cup, the sixth and final leg of the 2023 Champions Chess Tour regular season.

The tournament, which runs September 25-29, again features the trendy new format of three divisions, each a double-elimination knockout, where losing one match drops the player to a lower bracket — but he/she can still come back from the dead to win the tournament. Each match is a maximum of four games. In the event of a tie, a sudden-death game of bidding Armageddon follows, with 15 minutes for the player who bids the higher amount of time.

But unlike the closeness of Friday evening’s Speed Chess Championship, Monday’s slower time control of the AI Cup between Carlsen and Nakamura turned into something of an easy crush for the former, as the world #1 went undefeated to effortlessly beat his US rival by 2.5-0.5. "In terms of rivals, there are tiers,” explained Carlsen firmly tongue-in-cheek during his post-match interview victory. “The first tier is like no rivals, and then a little bit after that, it's Hikaru... He's definitely second after no rivals.”

But there will be no zombie-like comeback for Nakamura to stage yet another showdown with Carlsen later in the tournament, as he was knocked out of the contest good and proper by also being beaten by Anish Giri in the losers’ elimination bracket on Day Two.

GM Magnus Carlsen - GM Hikaru Nakamura

AI Cup, Div 1, (1.3)

E91: King's Indian Defence, Classical, Kazakh variation

1.Nf3 Nf6 2.c4 d6 3.Nc3 g6 4.e4 Bg7 5.d4 O-O 6.Be2 Na6 The slightly odd-looking knight on the rim Kazakh variation was brought into popular usage in the early 1990s by the innovative Russian GM and theorist Igor Glek. This approach was chiefly used to sidestep the annoying exchange line that follows 6.Be2 e5 7.dxe5 dxe5 8.Qxd8 Rxd8 9.Bg5, where White can play Nd5 and/or O-O-O with quick development and a slight but annoying initiative. 7.O-O e5 White has now committed to short kingside castling, so ...e5 is OK to play. 8.Be3 Ng4 9.Bg5 Qe8 10.dxe5 dxe5 11.Qc1 h6 12.Bd2 Kh7 13.c5 c6 14.Bxa6 While this does shatter the pawn structure, Black does have good compensation with the bishop-pair and open lines - so the battle lines are now drawn. 14...bxa6 15.h3 Nf6 16.Rd1 Qe7 17.Be3 Ne8 Clearing the way for the KID thematic ...f5 push, but also a possible knight hop via e8-c7-e6 to pressure the c5-pawn/or possibly the knight swinging into d4. 18.Qc2 f5 19.exf5 gxf5 It's the time-old question in chess: will the hanging pawns be a help or a hindrance to Black? 20.Re1! Strategically, the White rooks are best placed now on e1 and d1 - and Carlsen wastes no time in doing this. 20...Qf7 21.Rad1 Rg8?! I can see the attraction for Nakamura with his intentions to generate play down the g-file - but the better option might well have been 21...Rb8 first, as not only does it bring the queenside into the game down an open file, but a later, strategic ...Rb4 lift could come in handy. 22.Ne2 Carlsen wastes no time in trying to exploit the f5 weakness created by Nakamura's last move - and with it, it is remarkable how quickly Black's game now implodes as the White knights wreak havoc on the kingside. 22...Be6 23.Ng3 Kh8 Nakamura fails to react to the dangers in his position, thinking that if he removes his king from the awkward x-ray attack down the b1-h7 diagonal, he can start pushing his hanging pawns. Instead, after the better 23...e4! 24.Nd4 Bxd4 25.Rxd4 Bd5 26.Bf4 Ng7! heading to the ideal e6 outpost, we have a balanced game. 24.Nh4! Now suddenly Nakamura realises he's in deep trouble with his hanging pawns due to his misstep with ...Rg8. 24...Rf8? Nakamura may well have realised the errors of his ways by removing the rook from the f-file, but returning to f8 only compounds his problems. The best now was 24...e4 25.Qe2! and try to find a way to cope with the double threat of either his queenside pawns falling, or a knight 'happening' on the kingside. 25.Bd2 Frankly, i t is amazing how, in such simple positions, Carlsen easily finds all the best moves to relentlessly torture his opponents. Here, the little retreat to d2 not only stops any ...f4 tricks, but it also threatens Bc3 and suddenly those hanging pawns look set to hang high! 25...f4? Carlsen is certainly giving his rival a bad time at the office, as can clearly be seen in Nakamura's frustration at being outplayed here, as he wildly lashes out. But then again, quite understandable when you realise that the engine suggests that the only "possible" try was 25...e4 26.Bc3 Kh7 allowing the tactical response 27.Nxe4! fxe4 28.Qxe4+ Bf5 29.Nxf5 Qxf5 30.Rd7! Kg8 (If 30...Qxe4? 31.Rxe4 Kg8 32.Rxe8! wins due to the 'windmill' rook capture on g7) 31.Qc4+ Kh8 32.Bxg7+ Nxg7 33.Ree7 and Black is in dire straits - and not in any good way with Mark Knopfler on lead guitar! 26.Ng6+ Kg8 27.Nh5 The rest is just carnage. 27...Bh8 28.Nxf8 Kxf8 29.g4 fxg3 30.Bxh6+ Kg8 31.Nxg3 Bxa2 32.Qe4 It's effectively game over with the queen coming in for the kill to secure the strong knight outposts on e4 and f5. 32...Bd5 33.Qg4+ Kh7 34.Qh4 Kg8 35.Ne4 There's no answer to the looming Rd3-g3+ threat. 35...Qf5 36.Rd3 Ng7 37.Nf6+ Kf7 (see diagram) 38.Nxd5! Allowing Nakamura to restore the material imbalance - but at the cost of his king's safety! 38...Qxd3 The alternative, 38...cxd5 39.Rxd5 didn't even bear thinking about for a deflated Nakamura. 39.Qe7+ Kg6 40.Qd6+ So many ways to mate now, but for the purists and Mr Engine, the quickest way was 40.Qg5+ Kf7 (Or even quicker 40...Kh7 41.Nf6#) 41.Qf6+ Kg8 42.Ne7+ Kh7 43.Be3! and the only way to avoid the Qh6 mate is to give up the queen. 40...Kf7 41.Qd7+ 1-0 And Nakamura resigns as 41...Kg6 (or 41...Kg8) allows 42.Ne7+ picking up the loose queen on d3.

Bossing It

Mon, 25 Sep 2023 19:57:53 GMT

Magnus Carlsen more than lived up to his self-proclamation of being “The Final Boss of Chess” with a revenge-is-sweet narrow victory over fellow chess influencer Hikaru Nakamura, as he denied his long-time arch-rival a sixth successive Chess.com Speed Chess Championship title last Friday.

Last year, it was Nakamura who narrowly squeaked home by one point - this time, in yet another thrilling match consisting of three different speed limits - 5+1, 3+1 and 1+1 (more commonly known as ‘bullet’) - between the two speed titans, it again ended with the same scoreline, though this time seeing Carlsen triumph by a solitary win after two pulsating hours of thrilling play, as he took the $150,000 2023 Speed Chess Championship presented by Coinbase, 13.5-12.5.

Unlike last year, when Nakamura dominated the first, more slower blitz time control of 5+1 that ultimately proved decisive, it was Carlsen who got off to a flying start this time - but Nakamura being Nakamura stormed back later with a hat-trick of successive wins in the 3+1 session, inflicting on Carlsen his first-ever successive three-game loss in the SCC.

It all came down to the final bullet session, where Carlsen stopped Nakamura’s comeback with a valiant last-game do-or-die attack from the American, who unfortunately missed a mating attack that allowed the Norwegian to brilliantly hit back with his own stunning double-rook sacrifice that not only saved the game but denied the match going into overtime.

“I thought I was lost for sure, then I just gave a check,” was Carlsen’s succinct summary of the decisive game. “I was not going to be anywhere near to the level I was against Wesley [So],” referring to his 22-7 semifinal shellacking over the world’s number 10). “My brain just shut off during [time] scrambles,” before ominously adding “I still haven’t managed to achieve my goals in the Speed Chess Championship.”

“Considering the start, I was pretty happy with the match overall,” said Nakamura in the post-match interview. “I suspect we will have some fun matches coming up in the future, and it will be pretty hype as well,” he added with a wry smile.

This was Carlsen’s third victory in the Speed Chess Championship, long after his first two triumphs in the inaugural events of 2016 and 2017. Since then, the high-octane, high-stakes competition popular with chess fans has proved to be Nakamura’s fiefdom. The Roll of Honour now stands at Nakamura with five titles and Carlsen three titles.

The latest victory for Carlsen also sees the world #1 continue his amazing string of performances in his last six events, both online and over-the-board: Speed Chess Championship (first), Julius Baer Generations Cup CCT (first), FIDE World Cup (first), Bullet Chess Championship (second), SuperUnited Rapid & Blitz GCT (first) and Aimchess Rapid CCT (first).

GM Magnus Carlsen - GM Hikaru Nakamura

Chess.com SpeedChess Ch. 5+1m (2)

 C65: Ruy Lopez, Berlin Defence

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6 4.d3 The so-called 'Berlin Wall' endgame after - 4.0-0 Nxe4 5.d4 Nd6 6.Bxc6 dxc6 7.dxe5 Nf5 8.Qxd8+ Kxd8 is considered the most testing line - but Carlsen of late has preferred this innocuous, slower and solid line that keeps the queens on and is growing in popularity. 4...Bc5 5.Ba4 O-O 6.O-O Re8 7.c3 Bf8 8.Re1 h6 9.Nbd2 d6 10.d4 Bd7 11.h3 g6 12.Bc2 Bg7 Chess can be remarkable at times - we started off this game as a rock-solid Ruy Lopez Berlin Defence, and now, by a series of manoeuvres and transpositions, we are basically in a Modern Defence, Geller Quiet System! 13.Nf1 Qe7 14.Ng3 Qf8 Not just played to get the queen off the potentially problematic e-file - in the King's Indian/Pirc/Modern Defence, we sometimes see this strange queen retreat being followed up with ...Kh7, ...h5 and ...Bh6 to ease the pressure by exchanging off the dark-squared bishop; also, as happens in the game, ...h6 sometimes just needs to be defended. 15.Be3 Rad8 16.Qd2 Na5?! A wasted move that Nakamura soon comes to regret, as Carlsen literally just steamrolls up the kingside with his attack. In such KID/Pirc/Modern positions, you also have to look at liquidating the centre whenever possible, and here, simply 16...d5!? releasing all the tension in the centre of the board seems to do the job nicely - and very efficiently! 17.b3 c5 18.Rad1 b6 Nakamura has wasted too much time with his ...Na5 set-up - and now watch Carlsen take full advantage. 19.Qe2 Eyeing up a potential annoying flick to the queenside with Qa6. 19...exd4 20.cxd4 Nc6 21.d5 Ne5 22.Nxe5 Rxe5 23.Qa6 Re7 24.a4 Bc8 25.Qf1!? And just as Nakamura thought he had the queenside under control, Carlsen flicks the queen all the way back to f1 to set up a potential kingside pawn storm. 25...Nd7 26.f4 h5?

(see diagram) At the critical moment of the game, Nakamura blinks - and with it, he's quickly overwhelmed by Carlsen's thematic attack. In order to stay competitive, he had to play 26...Bc3 27.Bd2 Bd4+ 28.Kh2 Qg7 and make your stand here. White has the space and the attacking possibilities - but as the attack pushes forward, there will be holes in White's position that could well be exploited. 27.e5! dxe5 28.f5! It's a thematic pawn-storm more commonly seen in the Modern Benoni - White sacrifices the e-pawn so as to push the f-pawn to open up all the lines of attack for his better-placed pieces. 28...e4 The only try, looking to generate some sort of counterplay down the open e-file, as allowing the knight to swing unchallenged into e4 would lead to a desperate position to have to defend. 29.Nxe4 Rde8 30.Bf4 Even stronger was 30.Bg5! Re5 31.fxg6 f5 (Definitely not 31...fxg6? 32.Qc4! Nf6 There's no time to move the king out of the way of the annoying discovered check. After 32...Kh8 33.Rf1 Rf5 34.Rxf5 gxf5 35.Ng3 Bd4+ 36.Rxd4! and Black's position soon collapses) 33.Nxf6+ Bxf6 34.Rxe5 Rxe5 35.Bf4 with a big winning advantage. 3 0...gxf5 31.Nd6 Ba6?? Such game-losing blunders in blitz, as you increasingly find yourself short of time, do happen when you think you are being pummelled - but after 31...Rxe1! 32.Rxe1 Rxe1 33.Qxe1 Nf6 34.Qg3 h4 35.Qf3 Ne4!? 36.Nxc8

(Better than 36.Nxe4 fxe4 37.Qxe4 f5 38.Qe1 Bf6 39.Bd3 where White is clearly better, but in blitz with both sides having queens and the bishop-pair, anything can happen) 36...Qxc8 37.Bxe4 fxe4 38.Qxe4 Bf6 39.Kf2 and again, White is clearly better, but with blitz it is not so easy to convert for a win. 32.Rxe7 1-0 Nakamura resigns, realising the folly of his piece-losing blunder in a difficult position.

Death, Taxes, Magnus & Hikaru

Fri, 22 Sep 2023 17:06:47 GMT

With a smorgasbord of online chess events out there now, the granddaddy of them all is surely the Chess.com Speed Chess Championship , with a $150,000 prize fund that determines just who is the best blitz and bullet players. It has become the perennial fan-favourite with arguably the best viewing experience - and the fans are set for yet another spectacular finale later today, as the two rivals who dominate the roll of honour, Magnus Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura, get set for another explosive showdown in the 2023 final.

Friday’s final and commentary, free to view, starts at 14:00 ET (11:00 PT; 20:00 CEST; 23:30 IST) on Chess.com. Carlsen and Nakamura have won each edition since the inaugural Speed Chess Championship event in 2016 - Carlsen won the first two speed titles before taking a hiatus, only for Nakamura to rule the roost, winning four more times.

And last year, Nakamura won his fifth successive title in the closest match-up yet in the event’s history, as he dramatically defeated Carlsen by the very narrowest of margins, 14.5-13.5, in what proved to be a gripping final.

Such is the dominance of this event from both Carlsen and Nakamura, that some pundits and commentators have already jokingly suggested that, when both are competing, there should be no knockout qualifiers, and instead the two big speed rivals should be seeded directly into the finals!

And as sure as death and taxes, the two long-time rivals and chess streamers/influencers are set for what’s likely to be another gripping showdown that won’t disappoint, as they easily powered their way into the 2023 Speed Chess Championship Final presented by Coinbase.

Defending champion Nakamura’s route to the final has seen the American beat Yu Yangyi (19-9), Fabiano Caruana (18.5-8.5, and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (16.5-11.5). But Carlsen, the self-proclaimed “Final Boss of Chess”, has been even more dominant, and the Norwegian has said he’s going all-out for revenge after narrowly losing out to Nakamura last year. Carlsen got to the final by beating Santosh Vidit (17.5-8.5), Ian Nepomniachtchi (20.5-9.5) and Wesley So (22-7).

Of the two, Carlsen’s path to the final has proved the smoothest - especially his 22-7 semifinal mauling of Wesley So.

In today’s diagram, Carlsen played the innocuous-looking 21.a3! only for So to fall into his fiendish hidden trap, as the game ended abruptly after 21…h6 22.f4 g6? 23.b4! b5 24.Rhe1 Re3 25.g5 hxg5 26.hxg5 Bg7 27.Be4 and, with the rook lost, So resigned.

GM Hikaru Nakamura - GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave

Speed Chess Championship SF, (1.4)

 A06: Réti Opening

1.Nf3 d5 2.b3 c5 3.e3 Nc6 4.Bb5 After going 3-1 behind in the first blitz 5+1 session, Nakamura restores some order by playing his favourite Reti/Nimzo-Larsen Attack - and after winning this game, and as the time-limits got speedier and speedier, he went on to massacre the Frenchman. But the recovery started with this game. 4...e6 5.Bxc6+ bxc6 6.Bb2 f6 7.d3 Bd6 8.c4 Ne7 9.Nc3 In essence, we basically have a reversed Nimzo-Indian Defence - and one where Nakamura is going to ruthlessly hone in on those weak doubled c-pawns. 9...e5 10.Qc2 Be6 11.Na4 Rc8 12.Ba3 Ng6 13.O-O-O Invariably in such positions in the Nimzo-Indian, Black (here, White) would castle kingside and we would see a battle of ideas where one side goes all out for the kingside attack, while the other tries to consolidate the long-term queenside endgame advantage with the weak doubled- c-pawns. Here, Nakamura - with the extra move with the colours reversed - opts for something more riskier by daring to castle queenside to avoid the kingside push. 13...Qe7 14.Kb1 f5?! If Nakamura had castled kingside, then this would have been the near automatic response - but here, with the White king on the opposite wing, this is weakening and makes no sense. Better was just 14...O-O with the follow-up of ...Rfd8 and ...Ng6-f8-d7-b6, as it not so easy for White to now take advantage of those doubled c-pawns without opening up lines of attack to his own king. But we can't all be purists when we come to blitz, and MVL was probably flying high here with 3-1 start. 15.h4! Hikaru gets right into the root of the matter, and now we see why ...0-0 and ...Rfd8 was the way to go, as Black's knight can't get to the desired b6 square. 15...O-O 16.h5 Nh8 17.h6 g6 18.Rc1 Better would have been 18.Qc3! not only eyeing up the opening of the long a1-h8 diagonal, but more crucially, a sudden flick over to a5 highlights the problems of Black's chronically weak c5-pawn. Not easy to see how Black can cope with this with his knight stuck on h8. 18...Nf7 19.cxd5 cxd5 20.Bxc5 Bd7 21.Bxd6 Nxd6 I can appreciate the opportunity to bring the knight into the game - but the better recapture was 21...Qxd6!? 22.Nc5 Bb5 with more chances for Black to hold the line. As it is, Nakamura has just taken an easy pawn and manages to avoid any complications. 22.Nc3 d4?! Desperate times call for desperate measures, and Black was as well as going 'all-in' now with 22...e4!? 23.Nd4 Rc5 24.Qd2 exd3 25.Qxd3 f4 26.exf4 Rxf4 and take his chances here. Black's pieces are at least active (always a saviour in blitz); but then again, Nakamura would say he has the big advantage by having "the knight pair"! Anyone who has ever played against Nakamura in speed events, where the American has wrecked havoc with the knight pair, will understand this! 2 3.exd4 exd4 24.Nxd4 Qf6 25.Nde2 Unless MVL can conjure up an attack out of nowhere, Nakamura just has a couple of pawns and all he needs to do is safely transition down to a winning endgame - which he now easily demonstrates. 25...Nb5 26.Qb2 Rfe8 27.Rc2 Nxc3+ 28.Nxc3 Bc6 29.f3 Rcd8 30.Na4! It's basically game over here - not only does Nakamura have an extra couple of pawns, but because of the mating threat on g7, the queens are now forced off leaving an easy endgame conversion. 30...Qxb2+ 31.Nxb2 Bb5 32.Rc7! Nakamura's energetic handling of the transition to the endgame is very instructive. Here, as more pieces are set to be traded, his rook on the seventh rules.

32...Re2 33.Rhc1 Rd7 MVL is a dead man walking - it was either this voluntarily trading more pieces or 33...Bd7 34.Rxa7 Kf7 35.Rcc7 Ke6 36.Nc4 Rxg2 37.Ra6+! Ke7 38.Ne5 Re2 39.d4 Rd2 40.Rb7! and the threat of Nc6+ easily wins.

34.Rxd7 Bxd7 35.Rc7! The second rook continues the domination theme. 35...Be6 36.Rg7+ Kh8 The game is hopelessly lost for Black. If 36...Kf8 37.Rxh7 Bf7 38.Nc4 where the h-pawn could well be the least of Black's problems.

37.Re7 Kg8 There are no tricks with a ...Bxb3+ swindle after 37...Re1+ as White has his own trick with 38.Nd1! Rxd1+ 39.Kc2 Re1 40.Re8+! winning the rook. 38.Nc4 Kf8 39.Rxh7 f4 It's blitz, and MVL is playing on for the sake of playing on. 40.Rxa7 Bf5 41.h7 Re1+ 42.Kb2 Rh1 43.Ne5 1-0 And MVL resigns, faced with

43...Rh2 44.Rf7+ Ke8 45.Rg7 and the h-pawn queens after Rg8+.

A Messi Kid

Tue, 19 Sep 2023 17:00:46 GMT

India today is a land of amazing young talents and prospects in chess, with the country seemingly having a never-ending production line of prodigies rolling off the factory conveyor belt. But for some countries, such as Argentina, prodigies only seem to come around with all the regularity of Halley’s Comet .

One of the first notable post-war chess prodigies was Oscar Panno from Buenos Aires, who became the first world-class player born in South America. In 1953, at the age of 17, he became only the second World Junior Champion , having won the coveted youth title ahead of a strong cadre of future elite-level Grandmasters such as Boris Ivkov (who in 1951 was crowned the first World Junior Ch), Bent Larsen, and Fredrik Olafsson.

After winning the World Junior title, the legend who became the star protagonist of the golden age of Argentine chess through the 1950s went on to compete in five Interzonal events and finished clear 3rd at Gothenburg 1955 ahead of the leading troika of Soviet newcomers Geller, Petrosian and Spassky to qualify for the 1956 Candidates tournament in Amsterdam.

Now at the age of 88, and looking very sprightly and lucid, octogenarian Panno was recently cheered from the rafters as he appeared as the guest of honour at a memorial tournament in his hometown to commemorate his famous World Junior Championship victory 70 years ago in Copenhagen. And as chance would have it, another promising young star on the rise was also playing in that special Panno anniversary event.

It was 9-year-old FM Faustino Oro - and back in March, the Argentinian prodigy hailed by the media as the “Messi of Chess” made history by becoming the youngest player ever to break the 2300-rating barrier.

Last week, the pre-teen seen as a potential world champion by several pundits and commentators went one better with an incredible performance of 6.5/9 to finish second-equal in the ITT Cop Ciudad de Comodoro Rivadavia closed round-robin, which, along with a performance rating of 2452, saw him grab his first IM norm to also become the youngest to do so.

Final standings: 1. GM D. Flores (Argentina) 7.5/9; 2-3. GM N. Delgado (Paraguay), FM F. Oro (Argentina) 6.5; 4. FM A. Aguilar (Argentina) 5.5; 5-6. WIM J. Gomez Barrera (Chile), IM J. Romero (Venezuela) 4.5; 7-8. FM D. Belmonte (Argentina), C. Vasquez (Chile) 3.5; 9. M. Aguinaga (Argentina) 3; 10. G. Slomka (Argentina) 0.

Young Master Oro at the board: © Federico Marin, El Mundo .

FM Andres Aguilar - FM Faustino Oro

ITT Comodoro Rivadavia, (5)

E35: Nimzo-Indian, Classical, Noa variation

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.Qc2 The Classical or Capablanca variation was popular in the early days of the Nimzo-Indian, made famous by being adopted by the great Jose Raul Capablanca. The idea is for White to try and gain the bishop pair without compromising the pawn structure after ...Bxc3, and at the same time possibly planning on domineering the centre with e4. 4...d5 The Noa variation can often lead to a sort of Queen's Gambit Exchange variation, as happens in the game. 5.cxd5 exd5 Safe and sound, heading for a sort of QGD Exchange variation as mentioned above - but for so long the critical line has been 5...Qxd5!? 6.Nf3 Qf5!? looking to keep game more dynamic, holding a firm grip on the e4 square. 6.Bg5 c6 7.e3 O-O 8.Bd3 h6 9.Bh4 Be6 10.Ne2 Bd6 11.h3 Nbd7 12.O-O Re8 13.Rad1 Also a good plan was 13.a3 with the idea of b4 and Na4. 13...Rc8 14.a3 Nb6 15.e4 dxe4

Better was 15...g5! 16.Bg3 and now 16...dxe4 17.Nxe4 Nxe4 18.Bxe4 Bc4 19.Bh7+ Kg7 20.Bd3 Bxd3 21.Qxd3 Nd5 and despite the f5 weakness, Black has a solid position. 16.Nxe4 Nbd5 17.Nc5 Bxc5?! It is around here when the youngster starts to stray, losing the thread of the game - all Black had to do was keep things solid and his dark-squared bishop on the board with 17...Rb8! to retain equality. These are just little things young master Oro will pick up with experience. 18.dxc5 Qa5 19.Nd4 Bd7 20.Bf5 Suddenly White finds he has a dominating position - and even more so had he found 20.b4! Qc7 (Snatching the pawn soon crashes to 20...Qxa3? 21.Bxf6 gxf6 22.Qd2! Kg7 23.Bf5 and Black is lost due to the perilous state of his king) 21.Bg3 Qd8 22.Nf5! with a big positional plus and a potentially winning kingside attack. 20...Rcd8 21.Rd3 Re1! After taking his eye off the ball, Oro is back in the game - but it is still a difficult position for Black. 22.b4 Rxf1+ 23.Kxf1 Qa6 Without this move, Black would be in dire straits. 24.Bxd7 Rxd7 25.Bxf6 Nxf6 26.Kg1 Rd5 27.a4 Re5?! The rook was ideally placed where it was on the strong d5 square - the move to find was 27...Nd7! with the better idea of trying to put the knight on e5! 28.Nf5! Suddenly, with just one mistake, all of Oro's hard work of hanging on in a difficult position has gone - and from here he should really have lost. But kudos to the 9-year-old for not completely capitulating in a difficult position. 28...Re8 (see diagram) Ever resourceful, the engine finds the better/losing move(!) with 28...Nd5!? 29.Rg3 Kf8! 30.Nd6! Nf6 where at least White has to play the unhuman-like move of 31.Re3 to retain good winning possibilities; the (full) point being that if Black exchanges rooks on e3, White has excellent chances of converting the win with threats of Qf5 or even Qb3. 29.Rg3?

After slowly but surely pushing his young opponent almost off the board with a well-played positional squeeze, White inexplicably cracks in a close-to-winning position. Aguilar has the right idea but the wrong execution - the way to win was 29.Qc3! where the direct threat is next Rg3! with a mating/winning attack. But get the sequence wrong, and it doesn't take a 9-year-old long to spot a saving tactical resource! 29...Re1+! 30.Kh2 Qf1 Just keeping the rook on d3 preventing ...Qf1 for one move longer would have made all the difference between White winning and not. 31.Rxg7+ Kf8 32.Kg3?? I can only speculate that this had to be a blunder induced by time-pressure, and White thought he was losing any way to the threat of ...Qg1+ and ...Nh5+ - but then again, we have Mr Engine chugging away in the background, gleefully telling us that after the remarkable resource 32.Rh7! the game fizzles out to a draw after 32...Nxh7 33.Qc3! f6 (It's much the same after 33...Ke8 34.Ng7+ Ke7 35.Qd4 f6 36.Nf5+ Ke8 37.Nd6+ Kf8 38.Nf5 etc) 34.Qd4 h5 35.Qd8+ Kf7 36.Qd7+ Kg6 37.Nh4+ Kh6 38.Qf5 Kg7 39.Qg6+ Kf8 40.Qxh7 Qxf2 41.Ng6+ Ke8 42.Qg8+ Kd7 43.Qf7+ Kc8 44.Qf8+ Kc7 45.Qd6+ Kc8 46.Qf8+ and a repetition is on the cards. 32...Nh5+ Fortune favours the lucky today! 33.Kf3 Nxg7 34.Ne3 Rxe3+ 0-1 And White resigns with 35.Kxe3 Qxg2 being hopelessly lost.

The Great Rook 'n' Roll Swindle

Thu, 14 Sep 2023 15:42:24 GMT

“Chess is a cruel game. We all know that feeling when your position has gone awry and everything seems hopeless. You feel like resigning. But don’t give up! This is precisely the moment to switch to swindle mode. Master the art of provoking errors and you will be able to turn the tables and escape with a draw or sometimes even steal the full point!”

So wrote David Smerdon, an Australian chess grandmaster and one of his country’s leading behavioural economists, on the back cover of his witty and wickedly entertaining, not to mention the much-lauded and deserving 2020 ECF Book of the Year winner, The Complete Chess Swindler (New in Chess).

There’s this hidden netherworld, as some describe it, of not-quite-resignable positions that can be saved just by mastering the dark arts of the swindle, so claims the author, where, with just a little training and some nous, “you can use tricks from psychology to marshal hidden resources” in lost positions.

Now there are lost positions and then there are really lost positions, and today I’d like to look at a game that was so overwhelming winning for White, that everyone felt that resignation was soon to come; only it didn’t, and there lurked a truly remarkable swindle that didn’t just save the game but witnessed an amazing reversal of fortunes to claim the full point - the highest dan you can achieve as a practitioner of this dark art of the chess ninja.

The amazing thing was, while swindles are more often the preserve of weekend tournaments and club chess, this one came about at the very highest level of elite praxis, in the recent Champions Chess Tour Julius Baer Generation Cup (Division II quarterfinal), as Ian Nepomniachtchi, the two-time world championship challenger, perhaps couldn’t understand why Vladimir Fedoseev wasn’t resigning a “completely lost position”, only to instead see his opponent outrageously swindle his way to victory.

Some have already dubbed this gem of a game as “The Swindle of the Year” - and while there’s no such official annual award, you could almost envision Smerdon laughing to himself as he typed away at the relevant chapter to his eagerly-awaited accompanying second volume to his hit tome.

Read about The Complete Chess Swindler here.

GM Ian Nepomniachtchi - GM Vladimir Fedoseev

Julius Baer Rapid Div 2 W, (2.1) 

C43: Petrov, Modern Attack, symmetrical variation

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 The Petrov Defence - well, nothing exciting ever happens with this opening! 3.d4 Nxe4 4.Bd3 d5 5.Nxe5 Nd7 6.Nc3 Nxe5 7.dxe5 Bb4 8.O-O Nxc3 9.bxc3 Bxc3 10.Rb1 O-O 11.Bxh7+! All seen before, and although not a full "Greek gift" with an ensuing mating attack, good enough to gift Nepo the more promising position to build on. 11...Kxh7 12.Qd3+ Kg8 13.Qxc3 a5 14.Qd3!?N One thing about being a two-time back-to-back world championship challenger, is that your databases will be crammed with a plethora of interesting new opening novelties - and this looks like one of them from Nepo. Previously seen here has been 14.Rd1 that soon petered out to a draw recently with 14...Ra6 15.Rb5 Rc6 16.Qxa5 Rxc2 17.Rbxd5 Qh4 18.R5d2 b6 19.Qb5 Rxd2 20.Rxd2 and both players shook hands here in Svane,F-Cheparinov,I FIDE World Cup 2023. 14...Qd7 This weakens Black's dark-squares - but obviously, Fedoseev smells a rat here, fearing some deep prep from the ex -world championship challenger, and wanted to avoid the similar set-up with 14...Ra6 15.f4 Rc6 16.Rb5! and suddenly Black's in trouble with the d-pawn set to fall. 15.Rb5 Qc6 Also a good option was 15...d4!? The obvious move looks like the solid 15...c6 but after 16.Rb3, long-term Black will have problems developing his queenside bishop and rook due to the b-pawn; and also White can heap more pressure on the dark-squares with Bc1-a3-d6 etc. 16.Ba3 Re8 Fedoseev misses a trick here with the engine-accurate 16...b6! 17.Bxf8 Ba6 18.Rfb1 Rxf8 19.f4 Bxb5 20.Rxb5 Rd8 which, if anything, is marginally in Black's favour. 17.Rc5 Qb6 18.f4 c6 19.h3 Qa6 Fedoseev seeks to trade queens, after which the game is equal and heading for a draw - but Nepo isn't going to play ball, recognising that keeping the queens on the board is his best hope to win this otherwise equal position. 20.Qg3! Bf5 21.Qg5! All the momentum is certainly now with White, as Black's pieces are somewhat misplaced, especially with the queen being offside on a6. 21...Be4 22.Bb2! With the major threat of e6 looming. 22...Qb6 23.Bd4 Qd8 24.Qg4 Re6 Hoping to get ...Rg6 in - but although Nepo easily thwarts this, he inadvertently forces the black rook to a vital square for the outcome of the game! 25.f5 Rh6 26.Rf4 Qf8 27.Kh2 b6 28.Rc3 Renewing the e6 threat. 28...c5 29.Be3 Rh7 30.Rb3 The massed, misplaced Black pieces are indeed a sorry sight - and from such position you would expect White to be easily winning. 30...Qd8 31.f6 Also good and winning was the exchange sacrifice 31.Rxe4! dxe4 32.Qxe4 Rh4 33.g4 Rb8 34.e6! fxe6 35.Qxe6+ Kh8 36.Kg3! Rh7 37.Bf4 Qh4+ 38.Kg2 Rd8 39.Qxb6 and it is hard to see how Black is going to survive this with all his queenside pawns dropping like fall leaves from trees right now, not to mention his back-rank predicament. 31...Qe8 32.e6! The breakthrough looks imminent - and indeed, I would imagine Nepo was waiting for his opponent to resign at this point. Oh, how cruel chess can be! 32...Rb8? A bad move in a bad position - but unwittingly, it lays the groundwork for a remarkable swindle that doesn't just save the game but wins it! Nepo probably just banked on the "better" 32...Qxe6 33.Qxe6 fxe6 34.f7+ Kf8 35.Rxb6 and White's on easy street with just about all of Black's pawns dropping. 33.Bxc5! Y ou can't help but feel for Nepo here, as he's finding all the best moves in a clearly winning position to force a pawn promotion..but all to no avail! 33...g6 The only move. If 33...bxc5 34.exf7+ Kxf7 (Forced, otherwise 34...Qxf7 35.Rxb8+ Qf8 36.Qe6+ Kh8 37.Rxf8#) 35.fxg7+ Ke7 36.Rxb8 Qxb8 37.g8=Q and Black can resign. 34.Bd6 Rc8 35.e7 Rc6 36.Be5 Rh5 37.Bd4 Rxc2 38.Rg3! If this game were an opera, valkyrie Brünnhilde would be in the wings adjusting the horned helmet atop her head right now! But Usually in such scenarios, you just sit back and bask in your your wonderful play as you wait for the opponent to meekly resign. But here's the truth in the nugget that you should never resign, as chess can sometimes throw-up the miraculous 'Hail Mary' outcome. 38...Kh7 39.Bxb6 Rxa2 40.Qd1 Blissful unaware of the hidden dangers, Nepo just gets carried away about how best to promote his e-pawn that he fails to see the hidden dangers. Simple and winning almost immediately was 40.Rxe4! dxe4 and only now 41.Qd1! Qb8 42.Qd7! where the engine is just that more alert to the pitfalls than the human! 40...Qb8?? Bad, in a bad position - yet strangely paradoxical at the same time, as it sets up the great rook 'n' roll swindle win! 41.Rxe4! dxe4 42.Qd8?? There's a good reason why Mr. Engine more cannily wants to play Qd7! 42...Qe5! And with it, suddenly all the engines start screaming "0.00" - but Nepo, blissfully unaware of the dramatic turnaround in the position, continues with his "winning plan". 43.e8=Q?? (see diagram) And with two queens on the board and mate to follow in a move or two, you sit back in all confidence, fold your arms and wait for your opponent to resign...but there's a little snafu! The only saving move was 43.Qd1 Ra3 44.Bf2 e3 with a draw looming. 43...Rxh3+!! Never mind the contrasting looks on both the players' faces by now, just picture the wicked smile appearing on David Smerdon's face as he watched this game, seeing more wonderful material to include in The Complete Chess Swindler II! 44.Kg1 Played more in a state of shell shock rather than realising that the jig was up and you had to resign. Nepo was probably oblivious to the fact that 44.Kxh3 allowed 44...Qh5#! 44…Qa1+ 0-1 As the Sex Pistols' lead singer, Johnny Rotten (aka John Lydon) once famously said at the premature end of the Winterland concert in 1978: "Ever get the feeling you've been cheated?"

No Country For Young Men

Mon, 11 Sep 2023 21:00:18 GMT

With the top teenage talents being overshadowed in the Tata Steel Chess India Rapid in Kolkata by a dominant performance from seasoned veteran Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, there were hopes of a homeland comeback in the follow-on Blitz tournament - and one looked to be on the cards, only for another “old guy”, this time Alexander Grischuk, crashing the teenage party by capturing the second, even faster speed title.

Early doors, all eyes were firmly on Rameshbabu “Pragg” Praggnanandhaa, with his flying start of a perfect 5/5 on the opening day of the two-day double-round contest. But that was as good as it got for the 18-year-old Candidate-qualifier, who could only finish the day on 6.5/9, and despite being the sole leader, he held what looked a very slender half-point lead over nearest rivals Santosh Vidit and Grischuk, ominously the only unbeaten player.

The Russian speed maven, playing under the neutral FIDE flag due to the Ukraine invasion, then went on to reinforce his blitz credentials and reputation with a powerhouse performance on day two, as he went on to win the title with a final tally of 12/19, edging out Nodirbek Abdusattorov and overnight leader Pragg, who finished in second and third place respectively, a point behind on 11 points each.

In victory, in his typical "thug life" persona, Grischuk said it was about time that he “won something”, as it was four years since his last tournament win! He also warmly praised the fighting performance shown by today’s young players: “It is great that all these youngsters, they have amazing fighting spirit. When I was young, we used to be afraid of Garry [Kasparov], Vishy [Anand], Vladimir [Kramnik]... They are not afraid of anyone. Maybe, they are just slightly afraid of Magnus [Carlsen]!"

Tata Steel Chess India Blitz:

1. A. Grischuk (FIDE) 12/18; 2-3. N. Abdusattorov (Uzbekistan), R. Praggnanandhaa (India) 11; 4. A. Erigaisi (India) 10½; 5. M. Vachier-Lagrave (France) 9½; 6. P. Harikrishna (India) 8½; 7. S. Vidit (India) 8; 8. Gukesh D (India) 7½; 9. V. Keymer (Germany) 6½; 10. T. Radjabov (Azerbaijan) 5½.

GM Alexander Grischuk - GM Gukesh D

Tata Steel India Chess Blitz, (12)

 D53: QGD, 4.Bg5 Be7 5.e3 O-O

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Bg5 d5 4.e3 Be7 5.Nc3 O-O 6.Qc2 h6 7.Bh4 Nbd7 8.cxd5 exd5 9.Bd3 c6 10.Nf3 Re8 11.O-O Ne4 12.Bxe4 Bxh4 13.Bh7+! A subtle little move - and we will soon see why in a few moves. 13...Kh8 14.Bd3 Be7 15.Rae1 We've reached a QGD Exchange Variation, which is not always all about the Minority Attack with the b4-b5 pawn push to break up the queenside - sometimes, it can also come with a direct kingside assault, as happens in this game. 15...Nf6 16.Ne5 Kg8 Now we see the importance of Bh7+, as Grischuk gains a vital move to crank up an imaginative kingside attack. 17.a3 Bd6 18.f4 a5 19.h3 c5 Also, an alternative option is 19...Be6 followed by ...Qc7 and trying to keep the queenside pawns solid. 20.Qf2 Be6 21.g4 Rf8 It's blitz, and facing a potential pawn storm on the kingside, Gukesh D panics somewhat by moving the rook back to where it came from, rather than "getting on with it" by playing ...Rc8 - and the hesitation is enough for Grischuk to seize his big chance.

22.Kh1 Rc8 23.Rg1 cxd4?! You know things are getting a bit "iffy" when Mr. Engine wants to try the desperate defence of 23...g5. 24.exd4 Ne4 Gukesh is hoping that, by sacrificing a pawn, he can clear the board with a mass of exchanges to find a holdable endgame - but Grischuk just has the telling advantage in all the resulting lines. If anything, with Grischuk's notorious bad habit of being a compulsive time-trouble freak, it might have been wiser to keep all the pieces on the board to keep the position complex for now rather than any simplifications. 25.Nxe4 dxe4 26.Bxe4 Bxe5 27.dxe5 Bd5 28.Qg2 Bxe4 29.Qxe4 Qb6 30.g5! Grischuk carries on with his kingside attack; an attack that now forces Gukesh's hand into trading the queens. 30...hxg5 31.Rxg5 Qc6 Anything else is going to end with utter carnage on the g-file. 32.Qxc6 Rxc6 33.Reg1 g6 34.f5 Kh7 35.e6! And with this accurate pawn push, Black is consigned to a losing R+P ending. 35...fxe6 36.fxg6+ Kg7 37.Rh5 Rh8 38.Rxh8 Kxh8 39.Kh2 Kg7 Black is losing the R+P ending, and no better was 39...Rc2+ as 40.Rg2! Rxg2+ 41.Kxg2 Kg7 42.a4! and the transition to the K+P ending also lost despite the equal number of pawns, as 42...Kxg6 43.Kf3 Kf5 44.h4 e5 45.h5 and the outside passed h-pawn is used as a decoy as the white king captures the e-pawn and then scoots over to hoover up the b- and a-pawns. 40.h4 Rc5 Once again, if 40...Rc2+ 41.Rg2 and any transition to the K+P ending, as in the note above, is losing for Black. 41.Kh3 We can't always be pin-point accurate as Mr.Engine in a R+P endgame when it comes to blitz and the clock flags metaphorically hanging - but more accurate was 41.Rg4! 41...b5? (see diagram) The only possible try to hold this, and the reason for why Rg4 was the more accurate previous move, is that with 41...a4! 42.Rg4 Ra5 Black just makes it all difficult, as White still has to put a shift in to win this ending. 42.Rg5! One of those "oft!" moments, when you suddenly realise that you are stone-cold losing the endgame, whether that by of the R+P or K+P variety - but kudos to Grischuk for being alert to this possibility. 42...Rxg5 43.hxg5 Kxg6 44.Kg4 It's much the same as the note given to move 39 - the Black king is going to be too far away from the queenside to save the game. 44...e5 45.b3 a4 46.b4 e4 47.Kf4 e3 48.Kxe3 1-0 And Gukesh resigns with 48…Kxg5 49.Kd4 and both the b- and a-pawns fall in rapid succession.

My Indian Summer

Fri, 08 Sep 2023 18:08:44 GMT

The past couple of years have proved to be a major one for India - not only a global player with world leaders descending this week in New Delhi for the G20 Summit and recently successfully landing a spacecraft on the moon but now also a fully-fledged chess superpower, with many exciting young talents set to make the country a dominant force for the foreseeable future.

Many would even speculate that Indian Chess could well turn into a hegemony, in much the same way as the Soviets dominated the chess scene in the 1945 post-war period until its collapse and ultimate dissolution in 1991. The latest big chess tournament to be held in India coincides with the G20, with the fifth Tata Steel Chess India Rapid & Blitz - a spinoff from the larger Dutch super-tournament, the Tata Steel Chess Masters in Wijk aan Zee - taking place 5-9 September in Kolkata.

It features many of those young Indian talents facing some experienced elite-level players. The full line-up includes: Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (France), Nodirbek Abdusattorov (Uzbekistan), Alexander Grischuk (FIDE), R Praggnanandhaa, Santosh Gujrathi Vidit, Teimour Radjabov (Azerbaijan), Arjun Erigaisi, Gukesh D, Pentala Harikrishna and Vincent Keymer (Germany).

But the first half of the tournament, the rapid, didn’t exactly go to the expected script for the home crowd with Frenchman Maxime Vachier-Lagrave admitting that he rode his luck throughout, as he secured first place with a round to spare by amassing an unbeaten tally of 7/9, a full 1½ points ahead of his nearest rival, Teimour Radjabov, trailing the leader with 5½ points!

And as MVL rolls back the years with an exceptional first-half performance, will the momentum be enough to secure him an Indian summer double title as the tournament now moves to the double-round blitz with a time control of 3+2.

Tata Steel Chess India Rapid (final standings):

1. M. Vachier-Lagrave (France) 7/9; 2. T. Radjabov (Azerbaijan) 5½; 3-5. R. Praggnanandhaa, S. Vidit, A.Grischuk (FIDE) 5; 6. Gukesh D. 4½; 7. N. Abdusattorov (Uzbekistan) 4; 8. V. Keymer (Germany) 3½; 9. A. Erigaisi 3; 10. P. Harikrishna 2½.

GM Santosh Vidit - GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave

Tata Steel India Rapid Open, (3)

 B94: Sicilian, Najdorf (6.Bg5)

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 Just as a leopard never changes its spots, MVL can't stop playing his favourite Sicilian Najdorf - the fabled uber-sharp variation of the Sicilian named after Miguel Najdorf, and championed by world champions Bobby Fischer and Garry Kasparov. 6.Bg5 Nbd7!?! The latest wrinkle in the Najdorf. The main line, as favoured by Fischer, runs 6...e6 7.f4 etc. But MVL eschews those well-trodden lines in preference for one of the murkier Najdorf sidelines. 7.a3 A little bit timid, you might think, but what Vidit wants to play is a Sozin-like approach with Bc4, but wants to avoid any complications with ...b5 and ...b4. 7...g6 8.Bc4 Bg7

What MVL has now, is what's known as a sort of "Dragondorf", a cross between the Sicilian Najdorf and the Sicilian Dragon - but avoiding all the mainline complications of the critical lines in both cases. 9.f3 O-O 10.Qd2 Ne5 11.Bb3 Bd7 12.O-O-O Rc8 13.h4 Nc4 14.Qd3 b5 15.g4 h6 16.Be3 Nxe3 Even 16...h5!? looks good. But who can blame MVL for the human gut reaction of going for the bishop-pair? 17.Qxe3 Qa5 18.Nde2 Perhaps caught a little off-kilter with MVL's 6...Nbd7, Vidit misses the critical line of 18.g5! which, according to the always reliable Mr. Engine, seems to force the typical Sicilian exchange sacrifice 18...Rxc3!? 19.Qxc3 Qxc3 20.bxc3 Nh5 21.Ne2 Be5 22.gxh6 Nf4 23.Nxf4 Bxf4+ 24.Kb2 a5 25.Rhe1 Kh7 and Black appears to have good compensation for the sacrificed material.

18...b4? The complications work out well for MVL in the long-term, but there's a good reason why Mr. Engine wants to first play 18...e6!? 19.e5 Ne8 20.exd6 b4 and a typically murky Najdorf/Dragon-like position. 19.axb4 Qa1+ 20.Kd2 Qxb2 21.Ra1 Rxc3 22.Nxc3 Rc8 23.e5 dxe5 24.g5 e4!? A totally bonkers position where Black is just flat-out busted - but as MVL explained at the end of the rapid tournament, he carried his luck with him into the tournament!

25.gxf6 Bxf6 26.Nxe4 Bd4 27.Qxh6 Bg7 28.Qe3 Bb5 29.Rhb1 Qe5 30.Kc1 And with it, you just sit back and wait for your opponent to resign - but that's simply not a word to be found in MVL's vocabulary! 30...Rd8 31.c3 Qh2 32.Bc2 f5 33.Ng5 Bc4 34.Kb2?? A monumental blunder, as Vidit believes he's unravelling with his king move, and set to next play Rd1 - but he doesn't even get the chance to do so! The simple win was 34.Rxa6! Bxa6 35.Bb3+ e6 (If 35...Kf8 36.Ne6+ and 35...Kh8 36.Nf7+ etc.) 36.Bxe6+ Kf8 37.Bb3 Be5 38.Ne6+ Ke8 39.Nxd8 Kxd8 40.Qd2+ with the simplest of endgame wins with the extra material. 34...Rd3! What a sudden reversal of fortunes, as the game turns with the blunder in a completely winning position, as now Vidit's king is caught in the crossfire. 35.Qe1 Rxc3? I dare say in the adrenalin rush of realising he's not losing, and with both players by now somewhat short of time, MVL played the obvious move - and in doing so, most likely seeing the Frenchman wiping his brow in relief. But with a little thought, MVL might well have realised that White was now totally lost if he had found the move Mr Engine screams out, namely 35...Rd2! 36.Rc1 Qd6! 37.Ra4 Bxc3+!! 38.Kb1 (The bishop is, of course, taboo: if 38.Kxc3 Qd4#) 38...Rxc2! 39.Qxc3 Rxc3 40.Rxc3 Qd1+ and White can resign with the Ra4 hanging. 36.Qxc3 Bxc3+ 37.Kxc3 Qxh4?? It's hard to be critical given the time constraints and this being the most obvious move under the circumstances - but alas, as ever, the engine with no nerves sees deeper and wants to play 37...Bd5! with ...Qc7+ being awkward to meet. 38.Rg1? The mad dash with the metaphorical ticking of the clock shows the human frailty in chess, as the engine quickly finds 38.Rd1! and White is winning again with the threat of Rd4 and Black's bishop being the crucial factor.

38...Bd5! 39.Bb3 Qh8+! The single most difficult thing to spot in chess, according to many experts, is a long backward retreat from the queen that wins - and here kudos for MVL to have spotted in the mad time-scramble the long check down the h8-a1 diagonal that tips him the win. 40.Kc2 Qh2+ 41.Kc3 Qe5+ 42.Kd3 It's effectively game over now as 42.Kc2 Qe2+ 43.Kc3 Qe3+ and White can resign. 42...Bxb3 43.Ra5 Qb2 44.Nh3 Kf7 The stone-cold winner was 44...e5! but with little or no time left on the clock, sometimes the easy, unthinking move is the best. 4 5.Ke3 Bc4 46.Rc5 Qxb4 For the rest, it's just a simple mopping-up exercise for MVL, as he prepares the ground to rapidly push his a-pawn up the board. 47.Rc6 Bd5 48.Ng5+ Kg7 49.Rcc1 f4+ 50.Kd3 a5 51.Rge1 a4 52.Re5 Qd6 53.Rce1 e6 54.Kc3 Qa3+ 55.Kc2 Qb3+ 56.Kd2 Kf6 Now 57.Nxe6 just sees a mass trade down to a winning K+P endgame. 57.Ne4+ Bxe4 58.R5xe4 g5 59.Rh1 Qxf3 60.Rh6+ Kf5 61.Rexe6 Qd5+ 0-1 And Vidit throws the towel in with ...Qxe6 leaving the simplest of K+P endgame wins for Black.

Me & The Kids

Mon, 04 Sep 2023 22:45:47 GMT

The fifth and latest leg of the Champions Chess Tour , the Julius Baer Generations Cup more than lived up to its name with the world No.1, Magnus Carlsen, after overpowering Alireza Firouzja in the winners’ final, to effortlessly cruise his way into the Grand Final, declaring: “It’s just me against the kids now!”

After three clean kills that included a brace of back-to-back 2½-½ victories over Iranian Amin Tabatabaei and his old title foe Caruana, Carlsen proceeded to sweep Firouzja 3-0 to reach the Grand Final of the contest - but it wasn’t lost on the “old man” that non of his old rivals were left in the competition, and that meant that Denis Lazavik (16), Nodirbek Abdusattorov (18), and Firouzja (20) were the only three left standing to see who would go forward to meet him in the Grand Final.

A more sanguine Carlsen has of late been accepting that his “golden generation” from the 1990s could now face a serious group of emerging teenage talents who are all hungry for success and on the rise, specifically singling out Indians Gukesh D and Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaam who both look destined to be future world championship material. “Finally now with these youngsters,” said Carlsen recently, “we have a generation that’s worthy of succeeding us when the time comes, and the time could be fairly soon!”

Once it was Firouzja who was perceived to be a major threat to Carlsen - but he’s gone cold after taking a year sabbatical from the game to pursue an alternative/rivalling career in fashion. Since coming back to the elite game, Firouzja seems to have lost the intense hunger that propelled the then-teenager to the Sinquefield Cup and the world No.2 spot last September.

But Firouzja managed to battle his way past the other two teenagers to earn a second crack at Carlsen - and he almost defied the odds in what turned out to be a much more hard-fought encounter, with a brace of rapid draws and a win apiece in the blitz, that went to the wire of an all-deciding Armageddon showdown - with Magnus having 9 min to Firouzja’s 15 mins, but a draw winning the Norwegian the match - that went totally random at the end.

It turned out to be Carlsen who would narrowly “triumph on a choppy day” against what proved to be a very resilient Firouzja in the second time of asking - and the Norwegian was the first to admit that luck was on his side: “It was not my day at all today. To be honest, I think I was pretty lucky to even make it to the armageddon. My brain was not working today at all. I had a nice dinner with my family before I played, and even before that, I felt that it was not working. Especially after that, it was just dead. Some days are good. Some days, you have to get through them, and I'm really happy that I did.”

But like the old trooper that he is, through the day is just what Carlsen did, and with it the Norwegian won the $30,000 first prize (and 150 Tour points) as he collected his third Champions Chess Tour victory of the season, as he solidifies his lead at the top of the Tour points and money standings over his nearest rivals. Five players - Carlsen, Abdusattorov, Caruana, Hikaru Nakamura and Wesley So - are already qualified for the finals in Toronto, leaving just three places now to be filled.

GM Alireza Firouzja - GM Magnus Carlsen

Julius Baer Grand Final, Armageddon (5)

B40: Sicilian Defence

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.b3 I believe it was the legendary Israeli champion IM Moshe Czerniak (1910-1984) who was the first (although he much preferred it via 2.b3 first) to experiment successfully with this timid-looking anti-Sicilian system in the 1950s and through the early '60s - but it only gained popularity in the late '70s after Boris Spassky adopted it. For the 10th World Champion, it was the 'lazy man' approach as he ust wanted a position to play that avoided all the main-line Sicilian theory. 3...a6 4.g3 With the double fianchetto, we are removed from the Czerniak/Spassky approach. 4...d5 5.exd5 exd5 6.Bg2 Nf6 7.O-O Be7 8.d4 O-O 9.Nc3 Nc6 10.Na4 cxd4 11.Nxd4 Bg4! A standard good move that is typical in such positions - and one that should force White's reply. 12.Ne2? And this wasn't it! White had to play 12.Nxc6 bxc6 13.Qd3 Qa5 14.Bd2 Qb5 15.Rfe1 Be6 16.Nc3 Qb6 17.Be3 Qb7 and equality.

12...Re8! The reason why Firouzja's 12.Ne2 was bad - now because of the looming threat of the pin, White has to play an uncomfortable move, and one that shows Carlsen is now in the driving seat. 13.f3?! The position is starting to go a bit "wonky" early doors for White, but Firouzja simply had to try 13.h3 Bxe2 14.Qxe2 b5 15.Nc3 Bb4 16.Qd3 Ne5 17.Qd4 Bxc3 18.Qxc3 Rc8 19.Qd4 Ne4! 20.Bb2 Rxc2 21.Rad1 Qa8 22.Ba1 where Mr Engine will tell you that this is the only chance White has in trying to quickly capture the d-pawn, and now 22...Nf6 23.Rde1 Ne4 24.Rd1! and see if Black wants a draw by repeating the position with 24...Nf6 25.Rde1 etc. 13...Bd7 14.Be3 b5 15.Nac3 Rc8!

Carlsen is simply bossing the position by bringing both his rooks into the game via the only open files - and this one has the more potent potential, as any efforts from Firouzja to capture on d5 will see the vulnerable c2-pawn becoming easy prey. 16.Bf2 Ba3 17.Rb1 Nb4 Just look at how harmonious Black's pieces are placed in comparison to all the awkwardness Firouzja has to endure with his pieces. Not the sort of position you really want to be defending against Carlsen, even if you have a time advantage! 18.Re1 h5?! (see diagram) I'm giving Carlsen the benefit of the doubt that he couldn't believe he'd easily find himself in such a crushing position, and with it being Armageddon, missed the killer punch of 18...d4! that would have left Firouzja in dire straits, and not in any good way with Mark Knopfler on lead guitar! Now White has to play 19.Ne4 (The pawn is taboo. After 19.Bxd4? Bf5 20.Bf2 Bxc2 21.Qxd8 Rcxd8 and Black has an overwhelming position.) 19...Nxe4 20.fxe4 Bg4 21.h3 Bxe2 22.Rxe2 Nxa2 23.Be1 (The d-pawn is still taboo on both counts. If 23.Qxd4 Nc3 and 23.Bxd4 Bc5! 24.Bxc5 Nc3! 25.Qxd8 Nxe2+ 26.Kf2 Rexd8 27.b4 Nc3 28.Ra1 Na4 where in both cases, easily winning) 23...Nc3 24.Bxc3 Rxc3 25.Qd2 Bd6 and Black is easily winning with too many White pawn weaknesses not to mention holes in his position. 19.Qd2 Nxc2! This really should have been a "light's out" scenario for Firouzja, but Carlsen misplays his wonderfully dominating position. 20.Qxc2 b4 21.Qd3 bxc3 22.Nxc3 Rxe1+ 23.Rxe1 Bb4 The immediate 23...Qa5! would have been toast for White - toast and marmalade even! 24.Bd4 Qa5 25.Re3 Better was 25.Rc1 with good survival chances. 25...Bxc3 26.Bxc3 Qxa2 27.h3? This move has got all the hallmarks of "rabbit caught in the headlights" syndrome. But then again, the slightly better 27.b4 Bb5 didn't look appetising either. 27...Qxb3 Not unreasonably snatching the pawn, but Carlsen's initial instincts were good, and he should have followed up with 27...h4! and it is hard to see how White survives for much longer, especially as 28.g4 and now 28...Qxb3! 29.Bxf6 Rc1+ 30.Kh2 Qxd3 31.Rxd3 gxf6 32.Rxd5 Bb5! 33.Rf5 Kg7 and the endgame looks horrific for White. 28.g4 Qc4 Also good and winning was 28...Qb6! 29.Qd2 d4 Not as good as the simpler 29...hxg4 30.fxg4 Bb5! 31.Qd4 Qxd4 32.Bxd4 Rc1+ 33.Kf2 Rd1! 34.Bc5 d4 35.Re5 d3 and Black should easily win from here. 30.Bxd4 Qc1+ 31.Qxc1 Rxc1+ 32.Kh2 Rc2 33.Re7? It's a tense Armageddon decider, and by this stage both players are in time-trouble, which a few of the coming moves reflect. More resilient was 33.Rc3 Rd2 34.Be3 Ra2 35.Bg5 Be6 36.Rd3 and Black still needs to put a shift in to convert the win. 33...Bb5 34.Re1 You could try 34.Bxf6 gxf6 35.Kg1 but after 35...h4! 36.f4 Rd2 37.Rc7 Kg7 38.Bf3 a5 39.Rc5 Rb2 40.Bd5 a4 and with the a-pawn running - not to mention White's vulnerable h3-pawn, should the king stray too far away - it is hard to see how White defends this. 34...Nd5 35.Be5 f6 36.Bd6 Ne3? That's the vagaries of Armageddon for you, as Carlsen gets distracted by the potential power of his own pieces, when, in fact, the job at hand was to start pushing the a-pawn with 36...a5! 37.gxh5 Nc3 intending ...Ne2 and Black's on the road to converting the win. 37.Rxe3 The trouble with Carlsen's previous move is that he leaves on the board the potential scenario for White to save the game with the opposite-coloured bishops. 37...Bf1 38.Kg3 Rxg2+ 39.Kf4 Rd2 40.Bc5?! It's that metaphorical sound of tick-tock in your ear. After 40.Re8+ Kf7 41.Re7+ Kg6 42.Bb4 Rd4+ 43.Re4! the win is slipping from Black's grasp due to the threat of the opposite colour bishop ending. 40...Rd5 41.Re8+ Kh7 42.Bf8 g5+? In Carlsen's defence in the Armageddon finale, and the one with less time on his clock (though only needing to draw), this is a natural human move to make. However, much better was 42...Bxh3! more or less forcing now 43.gxh5 Rxh5 44.Ke3 Rg5 45.f4 Rg6! 46.Kf2 (Or even 46.Ra8 Bf1 47.Kf2 Bb5 with a big plus) 46...Bd7 47.Ra8 Bb5 48.Ra7 Kg8 49.Bc5 Rh6 and Black should go on to win - but White still has good saving potential here. 43.Kg3? Again the vagaries of Armageddon for you, as Firouzja walks right into a mating threat! After the much better 43.Ke4! what does Black do now, as 43...Rd7 44.Re7+! will be an easy draw with the opposite bishops? 43...Rd2 44.f4 h4+ 45.Kf3 Bxh3 46.Be7 Bg2+ 47.Ke3 Rd1 48.Kf2? I suppose it's little comfort for Firouzja that he simply had to play 48.Ke2 as after 48...Rd4 49.Bxf6 Rxf4 50.Bxg5 Rxg4 51.Bd8 h3 52.Re7+ Kg6 53.Re6+ Kf5 54.Rh6 Rd4 55.Bb6 Rf4 and Black will soon be converting with the two passed pawns. 48...h3 49.Bxf6 gxf4 50.Be5 Rd2+ 51.Ke1 f3? It's all getting pretty random now due to the clock. The clear win was 51...Ra2 52.Rh8+ Kg6 53.Bxf4 Ra4 54.Bc7 Rxg4 and Black should be able to convert. 52.Re7+?? Sometimes it is good to be Magnus Carlsen, as it looks like Firouzja took the world No.1 at face value that 52.Kxd2 f2 53.Rf8 f1=Q 54.Rxf1 Bxf1 was winning - but in the jittery mad dash of the Armageddon, he probably didn't realise that 55.Ke1 Bd3 56.Kf2 is just going to draw out - this is one of the classic examples of why you should always try to avoid opposite-coloured bishops like the plague when you go a pawn or two up in the endgame! 52...Kg8 53.Kxd2 f2 Now Black is winning as the rook can't get to the f-file. 54.g5 f1=Q And Firouzja soon resigns. 55.g6 Qf2+ 56.Kd3 Qf5+ 0-1

Vanity Fair

Tue, 29 Aug 2023 21:32:44 GMT

The game’s world governing body, FIDE, has launched yet another World Championship event, the inaugural World Team Championship , that was held over the past weekend in Dusseldorf, Germany - but this one is mildly controversial, as the clue can be found in the eventual final result, as it took on the air of a vanity project dominated by the event sponsor’s own powerhouse WR Chess team.

It had its attractions though, with forty-two sponsored teams registered to take part in the tournament and a unique blend of professional players, top women, and amateurs on each team. The novel format, faster time control (15 minutes per player, with a 10-second increment per move), and inclusion of amateur players alongside professionals aimed to make the event accessible to a wider audience (and that part failed, apparently).

The controversy is that it is the brainchild of Wadim Rosenstein, the chess-playing founder and CEO of the WR Group who, along with his Dusseldorf-based logistics company, has “allegedly" had some "questionable” Russian business dealings and political connections - which, to be fair to Rosenstein, he recently stated he and his company does not any more. But apart from being the main named sponsor, and bankrolling the chess equivalent of the Harlem Globetrotters, he also got to play in his own victorious team…and he was on hand to pick up the cup!

The open-world rapid team event certainly had a distinct mercenary feel to it, with all the major stars signing up for various privately sponsored club teams rather than national teams, such as Fabiano Caruana, Ian Nepomniachtchi, Wesley So and Levon Aronian. In addition, there were former world champions Vishy Anand and Vladimir Kramnik - and let's not forget the newer generational teenage wannabes now on the cusp of a major elite-level breakthrough: Gukesh D, 17, and Rameshbabu “Pragg” Praggnanandhaa, 18, who was the breakout star of the recent World Cup in Baku, where he lost to Magnus Carlsen in the final.

They may well have been second seeds on paper, but WR Chess simply dominated from start to finish to take the inaugural title with a round to spare, unbeaten on 22/24 match points, to secure victory by two points ahead of top seed rivals “Freedom”, led by Vishy Anand. The overall star performer, and for the victorious WR Chess team, proved to be Pragg, who followed on from his stunning performance at the recent World Cup to top-score with an unbeaten 6.5/7, ceding his only draw of the contest to former world champion Kramnik.

Final standings can be found on the official site by clicking here

GM R Praggnanandhaa - GM Raunak Sadhwani

World Rapid Team Ch., (6) 

C50: Giuoco Piano

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 The Giuoco Piano - meaning 'quiet game' in Italian - is one of the oldest recorded openings in chess, played and analysed in the 16th century. 3...Nf6 4.d3 Bc5 5.a4 d6 6.O-O O-O 7.h3 h6 8.Be3 Bxe3 9.fxe3 This is all similar to Pragg's tiebreak loss to Magnus Carlsen last week in the World Cup Final in Baku, so the Indian whiz-kid will be in familiar territory with this. 9...Be6 I n the aforementioned game, Carlsen opted to bring the knight back to e7 and then play ...c6, ...d5 and ...Qd6 with a tense struggle. Rather than that, Sadhwani opts for something less complex. 10.Bxe6 fxe6 11.c3 a5 12.Nbd2 d5 13.Qb3 b6 14.Rae1 Qd6 15.exd5 Qxd5 16.e4 Qxb3 17.Nxb3 Rad8 18.Re3 Nh5 19.Nbd2 Nf4 20.Ne1 Superficially, the Black knight looks menacing on f4 - but the reality is that Pragg only needs to rejig his pieces a little and he'll soon be kicking the knight from its glorious outpost.

20...Rd7 21.Kh2 The key to evicting the knight from its f4 outpost. 21...Rfd8 22.Rff3 h5 On reflection, perhaps better was 22...Rf7!? 23.Nc4 (Or even 23.g3 Ng6 24.Rxf7 Kxf7 25.Nc4 Kf6 26.h4 Nh8! and a better position to defend than happens in the game, with the knight re-emerging again on f7) 23...Rfd7 24.g3 Nh5 25.Rf2 and a similar struggle ahead for both players as in the game - though here, Black is a little better placed to defend. 23.g3 Ng6 24.Nc4 Nb8 Right idea, wrong knight and wrong wing of the board! As noted above, Black can retreat with 24...Nh8!? 25.Rf2 Nf7 and it is just harder for White to find a way to make a breakthrough. 25.Nc2 Na6 The knight regrouping from b8-a6 would be good if Black can get in ...Nc5 - but Pragg soon puts the kibosh on that freeing idea. 26.b4 axb4 27.cxb4 Rb8 28.Re1 b5 Now given a longer time-control, I dare say Sadhwani might well have found a successful way to hold this position - but in the faster time-control, Pragg makes life extremely difficult for his fellow teenage countryman with some imaginative hard pressing. 29.axb5 Rxb5 30.Rb1 c6?! A wasted move that allows Pragg to take the initiative - much better was the immediate 30...Rd8! looking to tie White down to defending the b-pawn with ...Rdb8. 31.h4 Rd8 32.Ra1! From nowhere, suddenly Pragg's pieces are springing to life - and probably at the wrong moment for his opponent as crucially we come closer to the time-control. 32...Nxb4 33.Nxb4 Rxb4 34.Ra7 Rf8?!

It's one of those tricky positions where you are trying to stop White from doubling rooks on the seventh, and Mr Engine being Mr Engine nonchalantly just tells you it is no biggie to allow the rooks to double on the seventh! It wants to play the very unnatural 34...Kh8! 35.Ra5 (Of course, there's a saving resource spotted by the engine that stops 35.Rff7 with the stunning 35...Nf4! 36.Rxg7 (No better is 36.gxf4 Rxd3 37.Rxg7 Rxc4 and with both sets of rooks threatening mates, the game is going to soon peter out to a draw by a perpetual after 38.Rae7! exf4 39.Rh7+ Kg8 40.Rhg7+ Kf8 41.Rgf7+ Kg8 42.Rg7+ etc) 36...Nxd3 37.Rh7+ Kg8 38.Rag7+ Kf8 39.Ra7 Kg8 and a draw) 35...Rb3 36.Nxe5 Nxe5 37.Rxe5 Kg8! Bringing the king back over helps secure a technical R+P endgame draw, as we'll soon see. 38.Rxe6 Rdxd3 39.Rxd3 Rxd3 40.Rxc6 Rd2+ 41.Kh3 (If you try 41.Kg1with the idea of shuffling the king across to e1, then Black will simply play ...Rg2 - either way, White can never make anything of his extra pawn) 41...Re2 42.Rc4 If the king was back on h8, then White could have some chances with 42.Re6 but here, Black easily holds the draw with 42...Kf7 43.Re5 g6 and no way to stop ...Kf6 and ...Kf7 harassing the rook on the e-file defending the extra pawn) 42...g6 43.Ra4 Kg7 44.Rb4 Kf6 and White can't make any progress with his extra e-pawn. 35.Rxf8+ Kxf8 36.Ra6 Rb3 37.Rxc6 Rxd3?! It is extremely difficult with the digital clock metaphorically ticking in the background, but the drawing technique again pointed out by the ever-resourceful Mr Engine, was 37...Kf7! 38.Rc7+ Kf8 (Not 38...Kf6?! as you give yourself difficulties with the self-mate themes with 39.Nd6! Ne7 40.Ne8+ Kf7 41.Nxg7 Rxd3 42.Nxh5 Rd4 It's probably still a draw, but suddenly White has "chances" he never had before with the passed g- and h-pawns) 39.Rd7 Rb1 Looking to get behind the d-pawn with ...Rd1 40.Nd6 Rb3 41.Nb7 Kg8 42.Nc5 Rb6 and White can never make any progress here.

38.Rxe6 Rd4 39.Nd6! Pragg continues to find the moves that make life difficult for his opponent, rather than the automatic capture of the pawn with 39.Nxe5 quickly ends in a technically drawn R+P endgame after 39...Nxe5 40.Rxe5 Rd2+ 41.Kh3 g6 and see the above note) 39...Ne7 40.Kg2 Rd2+ 41.Kf3 Rd3+ 42.Kf2 g6? Black implodes under the pressures and the time constraints - but the game is probably lost anyway after 42...Rd2+ 43.Ke3 Rd1 (Or alternatively 43...Rg2 44.Kf3!) 44.Nb7 and with the e5-pawn falling next, White is ideally placed to go on to win. 43.Nc4 Kf7 (see diagram) 44.Nxe5+? Zeitnot, pure and simple - and the only loose move from Pragg in the whole game. I can see the attraction, but this is bad, though paradoxically winning, down to the big time squeeze - the correct technique to win was 44.Rb6! with Nxe5 to follow. But anything goes in rapid at the dying embers of a game, what with the mad dash of mutual metaphorical flags hanging. 44...Kxe6 45.Nxd3 Kf6 46.Nf4 g5 47.Nxh5+ Kg6 48.g4 gxh4? Everything suddenly goes "all random" with the time scenario - but drawing was 48...Nc6! 49.hxg5 Kxg5 50.Kf3 Ne5+ 51.Ke2 Nxg4 52.Ng3 Kf4 and in the worst-case, Black can always sac the knight for the passed e-pawn.

49.Nf4+ Kf6? The final, fatal mistake. After 49...Kg5! 50.Kf3 Nc6 51.Nh3+ Kf6 52.g5+ Ke5 53.Ke3 Nd4 54.g6 Nc6 55.Nf4 Kf6 56.Kf3 Ne5+ the game will peter out to an easy draw with the g-pawn falling soon. 50.Nd5+! Oopsie! Pragg is alert to the fact that the knights being traded will leave him with a winning K+P endgame. 50...Nxd5 51.exd5 1-0 And Black resigns with little or no time left on his clock, and certainly with enough time on Pragg's clock to find the K+P endgame win after 51...Ke5 52.Kg2 Kxd5 53.Kh3 Ke6 54.Kxh4 Kf6 55.Kh5 Kg7 56.Kg5

and White's king takes the opposition to now push the g-pawn home.

Career Slam...Tick!

Thu, 24 Aug 2023 18:06:12 GMT

The hoodoo is finally over for Magnus Carlsen. The former World Champion can now lay claim to having “won everything in the game”, as he completes - what is known in professional tennis and golf - a ‘Career Slam’ by ticking off in Baku his first FIDE World Cup to his record title haul, the one notable omission from the Norwegian’s already crowded trophy cabinet.

But it was not without some problems for the ex-world champion en route to victory, as Carlsen admitted to suffering a little food poisoning following his semifinal victory celebratory meal. Unable to eat, Carlsen looked drained during his first two classical final games against Indian teenager Rameshbabu “Pragg” Praggnanandhaa, as he played it safe by conserving his energy with two very tame and lacklustre draws to take the match to a deciding tiebreak.

After being slightly better and looking to be comfortably drawing the first tiebreak game, it turned into nothing short of a pure heartbreaker for the rapidly rising teenager, as he lost the thread of the game during a crucial stage of a tense endgame struggle - and one where, taking no chances whatsoever, and with the trade of each piece, effortlessly rewarded Carlsen with the sort of position he’s become famous for grinding out trademark wins.

And with his latest victory, speculation now increasing mounts that Carlsen’s illustrious career, reigning unmatched as the world #1 for the best part of 12+ years now, could inexorably be heading towards his last dance, having won every major tournament and title there’s is in the game, whether that be online or over-the-board, classical or speed events.

For the record, the tally from the Norwegian journalist and unofficial keeper of all stats Magnus, Tarjei J. Svensen posted on X, formerly Twitter: 1 World Cup, 5 World Championship titles, 4 World Rapid titles, 6 World Blitz titles, 1 Candidates title, 8 Tata Steel titles, 5 Norway Chess titles, 4 London Classic titles, 4 Shamkir titles, and 4 Sinquefield Cups, to name but a few of his top honours.

In the third-place playoffs, America’s Fabiano Caruana managed to come back from the dead to convincingly beat the unlikely local Baku hero Nijat Abasov in both rapid tiebreaks for a 3-1 victory to take third place.

And with Carlsen already heavily hinting that he wouldn't be taking up his automatic Candidates slot, all three finalists - Pragg, Caruana and Abasov - have now qualified for the 2024 Candidates tournament, which is due to take place next April in Canada.

The final FIDE World Cup brackets/pairing tree and full scores can be found by clicking the link .

GM R Praggnanandhaa - GM Magnus Carlsen

FIDE World Cup Final, Playoff (1)

 C50: Giuoco Pianissimo

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 The Giuoco Pianissmo - or more commonly known as the Giuoco Piano - is one of the oldest recorded openings in chess, played in the 16th century, and means 'quiet game' in Italian. And like its name, it is initially very quiet with a slow build-up as both sides position their pieces for the middlegame battle. 3...Nf6 4.d3

Living up to the "quiet game" reputation - the critical line in the Two Knight's Defence is 4.Ng5 d5 5.exd5 Na5 6.Bb5+ c6 7.dxc6 bxc6 8.Qf3, or, alternatively, the Nakamura pet-line of 8.Bd3 with Black having compensation for the pawn and a complex struggle ahead for both sides. 4...Bc5 5.a4 d6 6.O-O a5 7.Be3 We are more used to see this neutralising line with the colours reversed, and Black playing ...Be6. I suppose, in reality, Pragg just wants to try and keep things controlled and not give Carlsen too much to work with - and his containing plan almost worked. 7...Bxe3 8.fxe3 O-O 9.Nbd2 Ne7 10.Nh4 c6 11.Qe1 d5 12.Bb3 Qd6 Indirectly covering the vital f6-square, as we'll soon see. 13.Qg3 Nh5 Black simply can't allow White's attack to build momentum. 14.Qg5 g6 15.Nf5 It looks a tad dangerous, but Carlsen has it all under control. 15...Bxf5 16.exf5 Kg7! Carlsen continues to cover the vital f6 square, denying Pragg from playing the awkward f6 himself. 17.Kh1 I don't think there's much to quibble about here, as Pragg tucks his king away from any potentially awkward ...Qc5+, should the game burst open - but perhaps marginally better was 17.Rae1!? as White can keep the tension for now and can answer 17...Qf6 with 18.Qg4 Nxf5 19.e4 Nh6 20.Qd7 Rfd8 21.Qc7 Qd6 22.Qxd6 Rxd6 23.exd5 cxd5 24.Rxe5 and White has the obvious edge with his rooks active and Black's knights on the rim. 17...Qf6! Carlsen doesn't hesitate to force the exchange of queens with immediate relief - and about this time, the Norwegian's body language seemed to be more confident. 18.Qxf6+

There's a subtle difference now preventing White from playing 18.Qg4?!, as in the above note, as Black has an added resource. After 18...Nxf5 19.e4 Ne3! 20.Rxf6 Nxg4 21.Rd6 Rfd8! 22.Rxd8 Rxd8 23.Re1 f6 and Black now is on top heading into the endgame. 18...Nxf6 19.fxg6 hxg6 20.e4 dxe4 21.dxe4 The best recapture, as 21.Nxe4 Nxe4 22.dxe4 Rad8 Black takes control - and another reason not to recapture with the knight, is that in certain lines, a Nc4 hitting e5 and a5 could be awkward for Black. 21...Rad8 22.Rf2 Rd4 This is one of those endgame "creep" positions most fear when facing Carlsen, as in general he rarely makes a mistake while finding all the awkward little moves that ups the ante in the grind stakes. 23.Raf1 Neg8 24.c3 Rd7 25.Re2 Re7 26.Bc2 Nd7 27.Nc4 I thought Pragg was doing OK here, and fully expected the game to halve out - but instead, the Indian teenager sadly seems to lose the thread of the game that allows Carlsen to ruthlessly sneak in to take control. 27...Ra8 28.g4 f6 29.Rg2 Nh6 30.g5 fxg5 31.Rxg5 Nf7 32.Rg2 Re6 33.Rd2 Rf6 34.Rxf6 Nxf6 35.b4?! Far too ambitious, and from here, regretfully Pragg's position just gets a little more difficult with each move. When faced with such equal positions against Carlsen, the rule of thumb is keep it equal and don't give him something he never had! For those good reasons, there was no shame in 35.Nb6!? Rh8 36.Nc4 Ra8 37.Nb6 Rh8 to take the draw now and extend the match. 35...axb4 36.cxb4 Kf8?! 37.Kg2?! This was Pragg’s last chance to bail out with 37.Nb6 Re8 38.Nd7+ Nxd7 39.Rxd7 Re7 40.Rd1 Kg7 and now 41.Kg2 with a likely draw on the cards. 37...Ke7 38.a5 Rh8 Without any real effort, over the last few moves, Carlsen has managed to improve all his pieces to somehow alchemise a win out of nothing. 39.Re2?! All these little miscues from Pragg are now beginning to accumulate. The way to proceed was with 39.Rd3 with the plan of Ra3 and a6 to start the process of liquidating the pawns. For example, now if 39...Nh5 (You can snatch the pawn on e4, but it makes no difference. After 39...Nxe4 40.Re3 Ned6 41.Nxe5 Nxe5 42.Rxe5+ Kf6 43.Rc5 and with a6 coming, the game is destined to arrive at Drawsville) 40.Ra3 Nf4+ 41.Kg1 Rb8 42.Kf2 Rh8 43.Kg1 and it is hard to see how either side makes progress here, considering that 43...Ne2+ 44.Kg2 Nd4 45.Bd1 Rh4 46.a6 bxa6 47.Rxa6 and Black can't play 47...Rxe4?? 48.Ra7+ Ke6 down to 49.Rxf7! and the Nd6+ fork. 39...Nh5 40.Kg1 Nf4! Carlsen is now in his element in this simple yet tricky position. Or, as one social media wag put it: “It’s easier [for India] to take an SUV-sized lander to the south pole of the moon than to survive and endgame squeeze by Magnus Carlsen”! 41.Rd2 Rh3 42.a6?

Not unsurprisingly, Pragg finally cracks under the pressure - he had to try and hold the line with 42.Bd1!? but easier said than done with his digital clock metaphorically ticking down now, and Carlsen confidently flicking out more and more "pressure-point" moves. You live and learn...well, you live anyway. 42...bxa6 43.Ba4 Rc3 Carlsen is somewhat spoilt for choice now in wins - but I was surprised he didn't opt for the immediate aesthetically attractive option of 43...Ng5! rendering White helpless with a double attack on e4 and the fork on f3. 44.Na5 Ng5! Oh well, b etter a little late than never, I suppose. 45.Rc2 Ngh3+ 46.Kf1 [see diagram] 46...Ra3! The back-rank mate decides the game and the destination of that the elusive final major title missing from Carlsen's already-laden trophy cabinet! 47.Nxc6+ Kf6 0-1 And Pragg resigns facing either a back-rank mate or the loss of the bishop.

The Generation Game

Mon, 21 Aug 2023 22:13:42 GMT

The Chess World finally gets its “dream final”, not to mention a new name on the FIDE World Cup , with an almost to-script big generational clash for the ages set to get underway on Tuesday, as the World No.1, Magnus Carlsen, will go head-to-head against Rameshbabu “Pragg” Praggnanandhaa - fast becoming another serious young pretender to the world crown - following a series of big performances from the young Indian prodigy in Baku, Azerbaijan.

First into the final though proved to be the big odds-on favourite Carlsen with a 1½-½ victory over Nijat Abasov, the surprise hometown hero - but the score on paper was a flattering one, as Carlsen could well have lost the match. Looking to be heading towards a draw in the opening game, suddenly the position turned wild and random in the mad dash to make the time-control - and one where Abasov squandered his golden chance to become the new hero of Azerbaijan.

And not content with that slip-up, Carlsen proceeded to also make an oversight in game two that almost turned an easy draw into what would have been a dramatic loss and a tiebreak-decider after Abasov - unfancied and seeded 69th going into the contest - cunningly sprang a very unusual bishop sacrifice in the ending that had the Norwegian top-dog scrambling, sans a piece, to secure a technical draw and scrape his way into his first World Cup final.

But all eyes are firmly now on new hope Pragg, yet another young Indian talent on the rise and who is hungry for his first major title and an elite-level breakthrough. After eliminating Hikaru Nakamura in the quarterfinal tiebreaks, the 18-year-old proceeded to take down another American in the tiebreak-decider, Fabiano Caruana. And having taken down the FIDE world no. 2 and 3 respectively, he now has a date with destiny against Carlsen, world no.1, and greatest of all time!

Already Pragg is rejoicing in having already secured his pre-tournament objective of a place in the Candidates - as also have Abasov and Caruana, with Carlsen declining his spot following his abdication of the crown - and is now looking forward to a crack at the world No.1. And if Pragg does beat Carlsen in the final, then ominously it could be a portent of things to come, as a bevy of Indian prodigies would have ousted the top 4 seeds in Baku.

For Carlsen, now officially heading towards his classical last dance, it is all about honour and the one remaining title left in the game to complete a ‘Career Slam’ before he possibly hangs up his pawns, as he’s never won the World Cup.

Semifinal scores:

Carlsen 1½-½ Abasov

Caruana 2½-3½ Praggnanandhaa

The final and third place playoff start on Tuesday

The FIDE World Cup brackets/pairing tree can be found by clicking the link .

GM Magnus Carlsen - GM Nijat Abasov

FIDE World Cup, Semifinal (1)

B30: Sicilian, Nimzowitsch-Rossolimo Attack

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Popularised by Aaron Nimzowitsch, the Rossolimo Variation - a perennial favourite of Carlsen's - took off by being almost the exclusive weapon of the one-man Olympiad, GM Nicolas Rossolimo, the US-French-Greek-Russian, who started his Olympiad career playing for France in 1950, then played for the US until 1966, before reverting again to the French tricolour for his final Olympiad in 1972. 3...e6 More challenging from Black has been 3...g6. 4.Bxc6 bxc6 5.b3 d6 6.e5 It's a temporary pawn sacrifice from Carlsen, because with Abasov's pawn structure shattered, White should have no trouble regaining the pawn. 6...dxe5 7.d3 f6 8.Nbd2 Nh6 9.Rg1!? It's all strange brew stuff, but this is the most testing line from White, threatening g2-g4-g5. 9...Ba6 10.g4 Nf7 11.Qe2 With Black's pawn structure compromised, Carlsen is in no hurry to regain his pawn. 11...Be7 12.Bb2 Qa5 13.c4 g5

You could try 13...O-O-O but there comes 14.g5! Rd7 15.O-O-O! and a slightly better version for White than what comes in the game. 14.h4 h6 15.Rh1 O-O-O 16.O-O-O! Taking full advantage of the fact that Black can't capture on a2. 16...Qc7 If 16...Qxa2 17.hxg5 hxg5 18.Qe4! Kb7 (Not 18...Kc7? 19.Qg6! Rdf8 20.Rxh8 Nxh8 21.Qg7 Nf7 22.Kc2! threatening Ra1! 22...Qa5 23.Ne4 and Black's position is on the brink of collapse) 19.Rxh8 (This time, Black has excellent survival chances after 19.Qg6 Rdf8 20.Rxh8 Nxh8 21.Qg7 Nf7 22.Kc2 Qa5 23.Ra1 Qd8! 24.Ne4 f5 25.gxf5 exf5 26.Ng3 Bf6 27.Qg6 g4 28.Nd2 Ng5 29.Qxf5 e4! 30.Bxf6 Rxf6 31.Qxg5 Qxd3+ 32.Kc1 Qc3+ 33.Kb1 Qd3+ 34.Kc1 Qc3+ and a perpetual check) 19...Rxh8 20.Qg6 Nd6 21.Qg7 Re8 22.Kc2 Qa5 23.Ne4 Nxe4 24.dxe4 Bxc4! 25.Rd7+ Kc8 26.Rxe7 Rxe7 27.Qxe7 Bxb3+! 28.Kxb3 Qb4+ 29.Ka2 Qc4+ 30.Ka3 Qb4+ 31.Ka2 Qc4+ and again, there's no escaping the perpetual check. 17.Ne4 gxh4 18.Nxh4 Rhg8 19.f4! exf4 20.Nxf6 Bxf6 21.Qxe6+ Kb8 22.Qxf6 Bc8 23.Rde1 Carlsen has a little edge, but nothing much to write home to Oslo about. 23...Rd6 24.Qxf4 Rxg4 25.Qe3 Re6 26.Qd2 Ne5 27.Kc2 Kb7 28.Re3 Qe7 29.Nf5 Qg5 30.Bxe5 Rg2 31.Re2 Rxe2 32.Qxe2 Qxf5 33.Rh5 Qf7 34.Qh2?? (see diagram) A dangerous moment in the game that passes by both players who, to be fair, are oblivious to this move being a blunder due to the mutual time-scramble - but not missed by the ever-vigilant Mr Engine! For reasons that will soon become clear, Carlsen had to first play 34.Kb2 Qe7 and only now 35.Qh2 with equality and a likely draw. 34...Rg6?? It's the famous Morecambe & Wise Grieg Piano Concerto syndrome - Black is playing all the right moves, but not necessarily in the right order! The stone-cold killer was 34...Qf1! where there's no defence to ...Rg6-g2 or g1 winning on-the-spot. 35.Bf4 Rf6 36.Be3 Bf5 Now if 36...Re6 looking to "find" the win again, there comes 37.Bxc5! Qf3 38.Kc3! Re2 39.Qg1 Bg4 40.Rxh6 Qf4 41.Rh7+ Kc8 and the king runs to safety with 42.Kb4 as there's no danger to 42...Qd2+ 43.Ka4 Qxa2+ 44.Ba3 and Black's king is now set to be mated after Qxa7; either that or his loses the bishop. 37.Bxc5 Qg6 38.Kc3 Just stepping out of the way of the check, and a possible bolthole escape to b4 and Black's in a bad way. 38...Re6? It goes from bad to worse for Abasov. If 38...Bxd3 39.Bxa7! the bishop is taboo due to the little matter of Qc7+ and Ra5 mate! But the best Abasov could hope for is 38...Bg4 39.Re5! Re6 40.Bd4 Rxe5 41.Qxe5 Qg5 42.Qxg5 hxg5 43.Be3 and going sans two pawns but 'Hail Mary' possibilities with an opposite coloured-bishop save. 39.Rh4? It is all getting a bit "random" running up to the time control, with both players clearly showing signs of frayed nerves, as now Carlsen missed the open goal of 39.Bxa7! Re8 The (full) point, as Mr Engine, tells us, is that 39...Kxa7 40.Qc7+ Ka6 41.c5! Qf6+ 42.Kc4! Bxd3+ 43.Kb4 Qd4+ 44.Ka3 and there's no checks left and the Rh5 defends the c5-pawn, leaving Black unable to stop Qb6 mate. 40.a4! Bxd3 41.Rxh6 Qe4 42.Qf2 Bb1 43.Kb2 Ka8 44.Bb6 Bd3 45.Ka3! the king has a safe haven on a3. 45...Qe7+ 46.Bc5 Qe1 47.Rxc6 Qa1+ 48.Kb4 Rb8+ 49.Bb6 winning, with White having abig material plus and Black running out of checks and moves.

39...Bg4 40.Bxa7? Any move in a time-scramble, but particularly the one nearest your clock, as Soviet-era blitz king phenom Genrikh "Smart Chip" Chepukaitis would say. But perhaps with more time on his clock, no doubt Carlsen would have found his only way to try to win on his own merit with 40.Qf4! h5 41.Rh1 Qf6+ 42.Qxf6 Rxf6 43.a4 Rh6 44.Re1 Rh7 45.Re4 Bf5 46.Rf4 Be6 47.b4 h4 48.Rf6 Bd7 49.Bg1 h3 50.Bh2 and take it from here. 40...Qf6+? Ditto with the "any-move-in-a-scramble" bit. The only way to draw was with 40...Qg7+! 41.Bd4 (This time if 41.Kb4? simply 41...Kxa7 with the threat of Qc7+ covered) 41.Kb4! The king can run up the board from the checks, as now 41...Qf8+ 42.Bc5!) 41...Re5 42.d4 More accurate, according to our reliable silicon friend Mr Engine, is 42.Rxh6 Qf8+ 43.Kc3 etc. But by this stage, Carlsen doesn't matter how long the journey is to Rome, so long as he gets there! 42...Qe7+ 43.c5 1-0 And Abasov throws the towel in, faced with 43...Rg5 44.Qb8+ Ka6 45.Qb6#.

The Magic of the Cup

Thu, 17 Aug 2023 19:18:34 GMT

It proved to be an instructive masterclass from Magnus Carlsen, who turned on the style to beat India’s rapidly rising star Gukesh D. in their FIDE World Cup quarterfinal tussle in Baku, as the Norwegian World No.1 edged ever-closer to winning the one major title that so far has managed to elude his over-crowded trophy cabinet.

Carlsen comfortably won the match against Gukesh - the new Indian No.1, after he recently supplanted Vishy Anand -by a score of 1.5-0.5, thanks to his superior endgame technique - a discipline that his teenage opponent himself pointed out beforehand that: "It's his best quality and I would like to add it in my game.”

"For me, it is just talent and practice,” said Carlsen in victory, on just how he honed and developed his endgame skill as a young player to studying endgames in general. “At the start, I wasn't so good at endgames; but, with a lot of practice, I got better at practical endgames, and, eventually, I started to be okay at theoretical endgames when I studied them as well.”

But in reaching the World Cup semifinal stage, Carlsen immediately dispelled any faint hopes his fans might have of seeing their hero playing in the Candidates and a chance once again at regaining the World crown he only recently abdicated. Carlsen’s focus is clearly on winning the World Cup for the sake of winning it. In golf and tennis, winning all the major titles is called a “Career Grand Slam” - and this is what Carlsen is playing for.

After his victory over Gukesh, he also added that he wouldn’t be taking the Candidates spot: “Under the current format there is absolutely no chance. I think everybody should operate under the assumption that I will not play at the Candidates and that everybody else who's in the semifinals is qualified.”

All of which was good news for the big surprise package of the World Cup, local hero Nijat Abasov, who extended his miracle run in the competition - beating Makato, Fressinet, Giri, Svidler, Salaeh and now Santosh Vidit - with the 69th seed now making history in his hometown by becoming the lowest-seeded World Cup semifinalist ever. And now, by Carlsen's clarifying admission, not only a magical cup run but now an unlikely spot in the Candidates! "I feel amazing! I couldn't even imagine in my wildest dreams I can come this far," said a smiling Abasov after he was confirmed as the first semifinalis.

Also, Fabiano Caruana is through to the semifinals of the FIDE World Cup! The American Grandmaster was on the brink of losing the first game to his compatriot Dominguez Perez but somehow he managed to save a draw from the jaws of defeat before vanquishing his opponent in another tense affair in game two.

The only match to go to a nerve-jangling tiebreak keeps the dream of a teenage Indian winner alive, as 18-year-old Rameshbabu “Pragg” Praggnanandhaa prevailed in his all-India showdown against Arjun Erigaisi to become the fourth semifinalist.

Quarterfinal scores:

Gukesh ½-1½ Carlsen ; Vidit ½-1½ Abasov ; Dominguez ½-1½ Caruana ; Praggnanandhaa 5-4 Erigisi

Semifinal pairings:

Carlsen v Abasov

Caruana v Praggnanandhaa

The semifinals start on Saturday following Friday's rest day

The FIDE World Cup brackets/pairing tree can be found by clicking the link .

GM Gukesh D - GM Magnus Carlsen

FIDE World Cup quarterfinal, (1)

 A45: Queen's Pawn game

1.d4 Nf6 2.Bf4 It's amazing how many commentators, pundits and punters described this game wrongly as being a "London System" - right now it is a Mason Attack, and would only transpose into London System territory with follow-up moves of Ngf3, e3 and c3. 2...b6 3.Nc3 Bb7 4.f3 e6 5.e4 a6 6.Qd2 d5 7.O-O-O Bb4 8.a3 Bxc3 9.Qxc3 dxe4 10.d5!? And so much for those that were also describing this game as being a "boring London". 10...Nxd5 Slightly better, I am sure, was 10...exd5 - but Carlsen takes the low-risk option that sees the queens coming off early doors and into endgame territory that plays to his strengths. 11.Qxg7 Qf6 12.Qxf6 Nxf6 13.Be5 Ke7 14.Bxc7 Nbd7 15.Bg3 Rhg8 16.Be2 The immediate 16.Bh4 may well be slightly better for Gukesh, but there's nothing much in it. 16...Ke8!? A move of genius from the maestro himself - and not one you would readily think about, as this one demonstrates the GOAT's superiority over those looking to take down and follow in his footsteps. The true beauty of the move, however, is what Carlsen is looking to do, in that he wants to play ...Nh5 without having to face the problematic Bh4+. For example, if 16...Nh5 17.Bh4+ Ke8 18.fxe4 and the ...Nh5 is under attack. 17.fxe4 It was either this or 17.Nh3 Nh5 18.fxe4 Nxg3 19.hxg3 Bxe4 that is all very annoying for White who is facing a very difficult endgame after 20.Nf2 Bxg2 21.Rxh7 Rxg3 22.Rg1 Ke7! and Black clearly has the better of it, though not necessarily winning. It's just all uncomfortable for White - and probably compounded for Gukesh with the guy who would be having all the fun being a certain Magnus Carlsen! 17...Nxe4 18.Bf3 Nxg3 19.hxg3 Marginally better was 19.Bxb7 but after 19...Ra7 20.hxg3 Rxb7 21.Rxh7 Rxg3 22.Rd2 Rc7 23.Nf3 Ke7 Black still has a minuscule edge and is something that Carlsen will only too happily grind away at all day long. 19...Bxf3 20.Nxf3 Rxg3 21.Rxh7 Ke7 22.Nd4 Ne5 23.Re1 Rg4 Also good was 23...Kf6 - but no matter which way you cut this, Black has marginally the better of the endgame prospects. And when you go into an endgame against Magnus Carlsen, then you are playing on his home turf. 24.Rxe5 Rxd4 25.Re2 Gukesh is clearly concerned about the future vulnerability of his g-pawn - but better was 25.Re3 with the idea of 25...Rad8 26.b3! Rf4 27.Rc3! Rd7 28.Rc6 and unlike in the game, White's rooks are at least active and creating problems for Black. But unfortunately for Gukesh, his passive rook on e2 proves problematic and leads to some compromises. 25...Rad8 26.c3 Rf4 27.Kc2 (see diagram) 27...Rg8! Suddenly, the game begins to shift ever further in the direction of Carlsen with both his rooks being so active, whilst Gukesh's e2 rook in comparison is somewhat passive. This alone doesn't dictate the outcome of the game, but it does add to the mounting pressure on any young up-and-coming player when they face Carlsen who is a past master at squeezing blood out of a stone in such endings. 28.b4 b5 29.Kb3 It would be beneficial for Gukesh to keep both sets of rooks on the board - but Carlsen isn't having any of it, as the wily fox trades down to a R+P endgame where he not has only the advantage but, quite frankly, a wealth of experience. 29...Rfg4 30.Rf2 R8g7 31.Rxg7 Rxg7 32.a4 The correct way to continue - but to safeguard the half-point, Gukesh continually has to walk the high-wire act of finding the most precise moves.

32...f5 Rightly mobilising the pawns. 33.axb5 axb5 34.Ra2? It all starts to go South here for Gukesh, who picks what looks like the easy move to make - but it is, in fact, a wrong 'un. He had to be brave and find 34.c4! to create his own passed pawn. Now if 34...Rg3+ 35.Rf3! bxc4+ 36.Kxc4 Rxg2 37.Rf1 Rb2 38.Kc3 Rg2 39.Rd1! f4 40.b5 and the game is going to end in a technical draw (most likely the Philidor position , one of two famous R+P endings, with Black's e-pawn remaining on the board) and the with the Black king cut off from the queenside and both pawns running up the board. You live and learn - or at least you live anyway! 34...Rg5 35.Ra7+? And this is yet another obvious though bad move that just compounds Gukesh's problems. The activity of both the king and rook are vital to defending a bad R+P ending, and he had to try 35.Ra5!? f4 36.Kc2 Rxg2+ (If 36...Kf6 37.Kd3 and, with the White king better-placed to deal with Black's running pawns, and the rook hitting b5, it is hard to see how this game ends up in anything other than a draw) 37.Kd3 Rg5 38.Ke4 Rf5 39.Ra7+ Kd6 (If 39...Kf6 40.Kf3 e5 41.Ra6+ Kg5 42.Re6! Kh5 43.c4! bxc4 44.b5 c3 45.Rc6 e4+ 46.Kxe4 f3 47.Rxc3 f2 48.Rc1 f1=Q 49.Rxf1 Rxf1 50.Kd5 Is just a technical draw with Black's king too far away on the edge of the kingside to stop the b-pawn, supported by the White king, from queening) 40.Ra6+ Kd7 41.Kf3 and a likely draw, but White will still have to put some work in to show it. 35...Kf6 All Gukesh has achieved is to push Carlsen's king to where it wants to go! 36.Ra2 It's too late now for 36.Ra5 as in the above note, as 36...f4 37.Kc2 Rxg2+ 38.Kd3 now 38...e5! is winning. 36...f4 37.Rc2 You know the jig is up when you have to play such passive rook moves in a R+P ending. 37...Rg3 38.Ka2 What a transformation in Gukesh's chances of saving this game in just a few moves, as he goes all passive - and with it, Carlsen almost effortlessly moves in for the kill. The difference between the newer generation and Carlsen is clearly still the Norwegian's mastery of converting simple endgames into won games. 38...Ke5 39.Kb2 Kd5 40.Rd2+ Ke4 41.Kb3 e5 42.Re2+ Kf5 43.Rd2 e4 44.Rd5+ Kf6 45.Rxb5 e3 46.Rb6+ Kf5 47.Rb5+ Ke4 The king easily ushers the e-pawn home. 48.Rb8 e2 0-1 And Gukesh resigns, as 49.Kc2 is going to be easily answered by 49...Re3 50.Re8+ Kf5 51.Rxe3 fxe3 and the doubled e-pawns serve a purpose, as the White king can't get to d2 or d1 to head the lead queening pawn off at the pass.

Be Like Pragg!

Mon, 14 Aug 2023 20:14:04 GMT

The FIDE World Cup is heading for an intriguing generational quarterfinal marquee match-up on Tuesday, as the former world champion and World No.1, Magnus Carlsen goes head-to-head against the rapidly rising teenage Indian star, Gukesh D., after both won through their round of 16 clashes in Baku, Azerbaijan.

On Sunday, Gukesh, 17, comfortably disposed of China’s Wang Hao, 1.5-0.5, to not only progress to the quarterfinals of the $1.8m contest but also continue his rampage further up the World’s Top-10, now up four spots, to No.7 on the unofficial live ratings list as he ushers in the end of an epoch by supplanting the legendary figure of Vishy Anand as this country’s new No.1.

And with Carlsen quite brilliantly beating the veteran Ukraine ace, Vasyl Ivanchuk, 2-0, the scene is now set for a big generational clash of the ages in Baku, as he - and US no.1 and new World No.2, Fabiano Caruana - could be set on a collision course with several other rising Indian teenage stars if he’s to win the one major title that has so far has eluded the Norwegian legend.

After sensationally beating second seed Hikaru Nakamura in their tiebreaker, Carlsen even interrupted his own game to congratulate 18-year-old Rameshbabu “Pragg” Praggnanandhaa on his victory - and in doing so, he inadvertently coined a new chess catchphrase of ‘Be Like Pragg’.

The Norwegian explained on the FIDE World Cup broadcast : “My chess club Offerspill, they have a camp right now for young talented players where Ramachandran Ramesh, Pragg’s coach, is the main coach. One of my friends who attended it told me that Ramesh was always telling them ‘be like Pragg, be like Pragg’. So I told Pragg that we all want to be like him today.”

And the on-fire Pragg continued to ‘be like Pragg’ as he almost effortlessly progressed even further in the behemoth knockout contest, by now demolishing Ferenc Berkes of Hungary in the last 16 on Sunday, to go forward to the quarterfinals where, apart from Gukesh, he’ll also be joined by Erigaisi and now the fourth Indian, Vidit Santos, who sensationally knocked out two-time World Championship challenger Ian Nepomniachtchi in their tiebreak playoff.

And with the Caruana beating reigning World Cup champion, Jan-Krzysztof Duda of Poland, the quarterfinals are now shaping up for the two past generational stars, Carlsen and Caruana, possibly having to battle their way through a bevvy of newer generational stars from India - a sure sign of India's growing superpower status, being the only nation other than Russia to have had four players in the World Cup quarterfinals - all looking to make a name for themselves by taking even bigger scalps and hungry for their first major title plus automatic spots into the Candidates.

Last 16 results:

Carlsen 2-0 Ivanchuk; Wang Hao ½-1½ Gukesh D .; Abasov 2-0 Salem; Vidit 4-2 Nepomniachtchi; Caruana 1½-½ Duda; Dominquez 1½-½ Sarana; Grandelius ½-1½ Erigaisi ; Berkes ½-1½ Praggnanandhaa

Quarterfinal Pairings:

Gukesh v Carlsen; Vidit v Abasov; Dominguez v Caruana; Praggnanandhaa v Erigisi

The FIDE World Cup brackets/pairing tree can be found by clicking the link .

GM R Praggnanandhaa - GM Ferenc Berkes

FIDE World Cup, (5.2) 

C02: French Defence, Advance variation

1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.e5 The Advance French was pioneered by the likes of Aron Nimzowitsch in the 1920s, who believed this to be White's best choice and enriched its theory with many ideas and strategies. We don't see it so much in elite praxis, but it has become a popular choice at club level as it involves a simple, straightforward plan with attacking chances and extra space. 3...c5 4.c3 Nc6 5.Nf3 Qb6 6.a3 Bd7 More usual here is 6...c4 designed to stop White playing b4. 7.b4 cxd4 8.cxd4 Rc8 9.Bb2 Nge7 10.Nc3 Na5 11.Bd3 Nc4 12.Bc1 a5 13.O-O axb4 14.Rb1 Qa7 15.axb4 b5 16.h4 Gaining some valuable real estate on the kingside. 16...Qb6 17.Re1 h6 18.Re2 A clever mini rook-lift from Pragg, with the plan of Re2-a2 to dominate the open a-file - a plan that Berkes completely underestimates. 18...Bc6 19.Ra2 Bb7 20.Ra5! This is what perhaps Berkes missed, not realising that Pragg wasn't just going for the straight Rba1. 20...Bc6 Accepting the exchange sacrifice is not losing per se, but it does look like more fun for White to play than for Black to defend against - and analysing some of the lines might well have looked a bit scary for Berkes. After 20...Nxa5 there comes 21.bxa5 Qxa5 22.Nxb5 Nc6 23.Bd2 Qd8 24.Na7! Ra8 25.Rxb7 Rxa7 26.Qb3 Be7 27.Rb6! that forces Black's hand into 27...Kd7 but according to Mr Engine, it looks like White has no better than the amicable bailout with 28.Rxc6 Kxc6 29.Qb5+ Kc7 30.Ba5+ Rxa5 31.Qxa5+ Kb8 32.Qb5+ Kc7 33.Qa5+ and a perpetual check with the draw being a fair result. 21.Qe2 g6? ! Too slow. The typical French Advance knight move of 21...Nf5!? seems to offer Black excellent counter-play with chances now for both sides - and note how 22.Rba1? as in the game, backfires to the tactics of 22...Bxb4 23.Ra6 Nxd4! 24.Qd1 Nxf3+ 25.Qxf3 Qc5 26.Na2 Ba5 and White is in trouble. 22.Rba1! The wasted move from Berkes allows Pragg to now dominate the a-file, where there's no looking back. 22...Nf5 Too little too late - but s natching the rook now is no solution. After 22...Nxa5? 23.bxa5 Qb8 24.Nxb5! Black is forced into the danger zone 24...Bxb5 (There's simply no time now for 24...Nf5? 25.g4! Ng7 26.a6 Be7 27.a7 Qb6 28.Nd6+ Bxd6 29.exd6 with numerous winning threats, such as Ne5 or Ra6 followed by Ba3-c5 - take your pick of what you fancy) 25.Bxb5+ Nc6 26.Be3 Be7 27.Rc1! and the Bb5 pin consigns Black to a miserable defence and game. 23.Ra6 Qd8 Berkes went into the tank here, probably trying to make 23...Nxd4 work for him, only to realise that White simply plays 24.Qd1! Nxf3+ 25.Qxf3 Qd8 26.Bxc4 bxc4 27.Ra7 Rc7 (The only move. If 27...Be7 28.b5 Bd7 29.Be3! and Black is in dire straits, though not in a Mark Knopfler playing lead guitar sort of way) 28.Nb5!! Bxb5 29.Rxc7 Qxc7 30.Qf6 Rh7 31.Ra8+ Kd7 32.Rxf8 c3 The only threat Black has - but the c-pawn alone is not enough. 33.Rxf7+ Rxf7 34.Qxf7+ Kd8 35.Qxe6 Qc4 36.Bxh6 c2 37.Bg5+ Kc7 38.Qf7+ Kc8 39.Kh2! Qc6 (If 39...c1=Q 40.Qg8+ Kb7 41.Bxc1 Qxc1 42.Qxd5+ Bc6 43.Qf7+ Kc8 44.Qxg6 etc) 40.Qe7 and, with White threatening Qc5 trading queens and the c1 queening square covered by the bishop, if now 40...c1=Q 41.Qd8+ Kb7 42.Bxc1 Qxc1 43.Qxd5+ Bc6 44.Qf7+ Ka6 45.Qxg6 Qf4+ 46.Qg3 Qxb4 47.h5 White not only has too many pawns for the bishop, but they are threatening to quickly run up the board. 24.g4 Nxh4? Ultimately the losing move from Berkes. He had to hang tough with 24...Ne7 25.Nd2 Bd7 26.Bxc4 bxc4 27.b5 and a difficult game ahead with the kingside knight, bishop and rook effectively out of the loop for the foreseeable, and the only logical continuation being 27...Rb8 28.Nf3! Ng8 (Again, it is too dangerous to snatch the b-pawn as 28...Bxb5? 29.Nxb5 Rxb5 30.Qa2! Nc8 31.Ra8 Qd7 32.Qa6 Rb7 33.Rb1!! winning.

29.Rb1 Ne7 30.Qa2 with a big advantage) 25.Nxh4 Qxh4 26.Bxc4 bxc4 (see diagram) 27.Rxc6! It is hard to imagine that Berkes overlooked this tactical hit, but this is the only conclusion one can draw after the big error of 24...Nxh4. 27...Rxc6 28.Ra8+ Kd7 29.Qf3 f5 Even worse was 29...Qe7? 30.Nxd5!! and Black's position collapses. 30.b5 Rc8 31.Nxd5!! Pragg now concludes matters in a sparkling fashion - a clear warning to all that he's a coming force for everyone to reckon with. 31...Qxg4+ 32.Qxg4 fxg4 33.Nb6+ And Black's position implodes, with the rest of the game now being a formality. 33...Kc7 34.Nxc8 Kb7 35.Ra6 Kxc8 36.Rxe6 Kb7 37.Rxg6 c3 38.Rc6 Bb4 39.Bxh6 Our perennial sidekick, Mr Engine, is being somewhat pedantic here, but it does point out that the killing kill was 39.d5 Ra8 40.Bf4 and the two central passed pawns supported by the rook and bishop will soon crash up the board with impunity. 39...Rd8 40.Rc4 Ba5 41.e6 Kb6 42.e7 Re8 43.Bg5 Kxb5 44.Rc5+ Kb6 45.Rd5! As ruthless as ever, Pragg again finds the the tactical route to victory. 45...Bb4 The alternative was 45...c2 46.Rc5! Bb4 47.Rxc2 Bxe7 48.Re2 and the pin on the e-file wins the bishop. 46.Rd8 Rxe7 47.Bxe7 Bxe7 48.Rc8 g3 49.Rxc3 1-0 And Berkes resigns with his king cut-off on the b-file.

Vincent

Fri, 11 Aug 2023 20:01:39 GMT

A FIDE World Cup match-up in Baku with Magnus Carlsen is every 18-year-old’s dream scenario. But for Vincent Keymer, it turned from a starry, starry night into a disaster with the German teenager missing a winning tactic that not only would have sensationally knocked the World No.1 out of the $1.8m competition but also denied the Norwegian a possible lifetime slam of major titles.

After winning the opening game of their mini-match with a nice positional squeeze and endgame grind, Keymer held a big advantage going into game 2 in the “brutal and unforgiving” knockout format with Carlsen facing a must-win scenario to stay in the World Cup, the only major title the Norwegian has never won.

But a clearly nervous Carlsen not only got nothing from his White opening in a solid Ruy Lopez but looked set for a shock exit in today’s diagram position - but he received an unlikely reprieve when Keymer played 17…Qxc3? rather than the big tactic of 17...Nxe4!! 18.Qxe5 Rxe5 19.fxe4 Rxe4 that would have won back the piece plus an extra two pawns.

But instead of the the top seed having to pack his bags and headed back home to Oslo without the one major title in the game he’s never won, the oversight allowed Carlsen to go on to grind the teenager down in typical fashion to take the match into a tiebreak-decider - and a clearly exasperated Carlsen offered up a very frank explanation of his feelings in his post-game interview.

”Progressing in the World Cup is one thing... but honestly since day one I was wondering what am I doing here, why am I spending all this time playing classical chess which I just find stressful and boring. But it's also not a good state of mind. First of all, you should try to do well. But these were my thoughts. If I'd lose, that's gonna be another humiliation in the World Cup.”

But not so fortunate proved to be Carlsen’s arch-rival and second seed, Hikaru Nakamura, as the popular US streamer sensationally was knocked out of the competition by another rising star in the tiebreak, with the 18-year-old Indian Rameshbabu “Pragg” Praggnanandhaa prevailing - and with it, the young talent everyone fears now moves a step further to emulating the Bobby Fischer teenage-feat of a possible automatic place into the Candidates.

Also crashing out went another American seed, with Wesley So losing to Alexey Sarana. And in the Women's World Cup, Women's World Champion and top seed Ju Wenjun crashed and burnt, losing to Germany's Elizabeth Paehtz in the tiebreaker.

Last 16 results:

Carlsen 3.5-25 Keymer; Sanal 2.5-3.5 Ivanchuk ; Svane 4-5 Wang Hao ; Esipenko 1.5-2.5 Gukesh D. ; Abasov 2.5-1.5 Svidler; Vocaturo 1-3 Salem ; Bacrot 0.5-1.5 Vidit ; Sarin 1-3 Nepomniachtchi ; Caruana 1.5-0.5 Robson; Maghsoodloo 2.5-3.5 Duda ; Dominguez 3.5-2.5 Wojtaszek; Sarana 1.5-0.5 So; Santos 0.5-1.5 Grandelius ; Erigas i 1.5-0.5 Sindarov; Ponomariov 0.5-1.5 Berkes ; Praggnanandha 3-1 Nakamura

Final eight pairings:

Carlsen v Ivanchuk; Wang Hao v Gukesh D.; Abasov v Salem; Vidit v Nepomniachtchi; Caruana v Duda; Dominquez v Sarana; Grandelius v Erigaisi; Berkes v Praggnanandhaa

The FIDE World Cup brackets/pairing tree can be found by clicking the link .

GM Vincent Keymer - GM Magnus Carlsen

FIDE World Cup, (4.1)

D35: QGD, Exchange/Ragozin Variation

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 d5 4.cxd5 exd5 5.Bg5 The Exchange variation is not a dynamic line you would normally associate with a young rising star of the game - but in truth, Keymer, under the tutelage of Peter Leko, is developing into a positional player with a style that is very reminiscent of Anatoly Karpov. 5...Bb4 Carlsen is aiming to play the trendy Ragozin variation, although the king's knight is still on g1. This yields White an additional and important possibility of ..Nge2 at once or after Bf1-d3. This is apparently the best option for White. 6.e3 h6 7.Bf4 Bf5 8.Bd3

This is a pet-line for Keymer, playing it last year against Gukesh D at Biel. Carlsen was obviously well prepared for this - but things went astray with the World No.1 missing a brilliant tactic that turned the tables. 8...Bxd3 9.Qxd3 c6!N And this is what Carlsen had cooked up for Keymer. Previous, we'd seen 9...O-O 10.Ne2 c6 11.g4! in the aforementioned Keymer-Gukesh D encounter at Biel 2022. 10.Ne2 Nh5! Carlsen obviously has no intentions of transposing into Keymer's game with Gukesh! 11.Be5 Nd7 12.h3 It's the London System treatment, as Keymer creates the ideal retreating square on h2 for the bishop. 12...Nhf6 13.Bh2 O-O Now Carlsen can castles, as g4 is going to be well-met by ...Re8 and ...Ne4. Safe to say then that the opening homework has worked out well for the World No.1 early doors.

14.a3 Ba5 15.O-O Re8 16.Rac1 Qe7 I suppose it would have been too simplistic for Carlsen to look at exchanging bishops with 16...Bc7 - but Keymer soon persuades him otherwise. 17.b4 We're back into more familiar QGD Exchange variation territory with the minority attack. 17...Bd8 18.Ng3 Heading to the wonderful knight outpost on f5.

18...Bc7 An admission from Carlsen that he has a battle on his hands, as with the knight heading to f5, he now desperately wants to trade the bishops. 1 9.Nf5 Bxh2+ 20.Kxh2 Qe6 21.Ng3 Qd6 It's hard to imagine seeing Carlsen losing from this simple position - but he takes his eye off the ball at the crucial moment by missing a clever tactic from the teenager. 22.Kg1 a5 23.Qb1 Also, a solid option was 23.bxa5 Rxa5 24.a4 - but with 23.Qb1, Keymer clearly wants to retain the minority attack option. 23...Nb6 I don't necessarily blame Carlsen for this wrong move, as heading to c4 looks like the most natural move.But if you dig a bit deeper, you discover there's a flaw in Carlsen's plan with a clever tactical trap laid by Keymer. The best move was 23...b5! to better prepare the knight hop Nd7-b6-c4. 24.bxa5 Nc4 25.Qb4! The b-pawn is strictly taboo with 25.Qxb7?? Reb8 26.Nf5 Rxb7 27.Nxd6 Nxd6 winning a piece and the game to boot. 25...Rxa5 Trying to avoid the trade of queens with 25...Qc7 runs into 26.e4! with the prospects of lots of counterplay for White. 26.Nxd5! A wonderful resource from Keymer, and suddenly Carlsen finds himself in a tough struggle against a hungry rising teenager. 26...Nxd5 The only option now, given that 26...cxd5 27.Rxc4 Qa6 28.Rc5 Rxa3 29.Rb1 Ra1 30.Rb5! and White has a big advantage as his heavy furniture bosses the b-file.

27.Qxc4 Rxa3 28.Qc5 Qxc5 29.Rxc5 Rea8 It would have been more prudent first to restrict the knight's mobility with 29...g6!? 30.Nf5 h5 31.g4 hxg4 32.hxg4 Ra2 33.Rb1 Ra1 34.Rxa1 Rxa1+ 35.Kg2 Kf8 36.g5 Nc7? Probably still in shock at missing Keymer's resourceful 26.Nxd5, Carlsen walks into a blunder losing a pawn and with it the game. His only option was 36...Ne7 37.Nd6 b6 38.Rc2 Ra5 and Black should easily hold. 37.Nd6! g6 Losing a pawn and the game, as defending b7 with 37...Ra7 offers no salvation as it runs slap-bang into 38.Rf5! and Black loses the f-pawn.

38.Nxb7 Losing the b-pawn was Carlsen's least worst option - but it is really downhill with all the velocity of Franz Klammer now for the World No.1. 38...Rb1 39.Nd8! As Keymer himself opined after the game, he had so many ways to win here but this is by far the best way to go about it, as forcing the exchange of rooks leaves Carlsen less of a chance for a miracle save in the ending. 39...Rb5 40.Rxb5 cxb5 41.Nc6 Ke8 Carlsen is in dire straits here - and so much so that threatening to run the b-pawn with 41...Na6 will see 42.Kf3 b4 43.Ke2 and the b-pawn falls in a couple of moves. And it's much the same for 41...Nd5 42.Kf3 b4 43.Na5! Ke7 44.e4 Nc7 45.Nc6+ picking off the b-pawn.

42.Nb4 Nicely blockading the b-pawn and denying Carlsen the d5 or a6 squares for his knight. The end is nigh, as the placard-carrying street doom-monger's would have it. 42...Ke7 43.f4! A nice clamp-down move - and once e4 comes, Black will be close to the resignation point. 43...Kd6 44.Kf3 Ne6 45.Ke2 Ng7 46.e4 Nh5 47.Kf3 The rest is academic, as Keymer pushes Carlsen to resign. 47...Ng7 48.Nd3 Nh5 49.Ke3 Ng3 50.d5 Kc7 51.Kd4 Kb6 52.Ne5 b4 53.Nxf7 b3 54.Ne5 Ne2+ 55.Ke3 Kb5 56.Nd3 Nc3 57.d6 Kc6 58.e5 1-0

Unforgiving

Tue, 08 Aug 2023 12:11:02 GMT

“It’s a very unforgiving tournament” was Fabiano Caruana’s take on the demanding knockout format of the FIDE World Cup in Baku, Azerbaijan, as the newly-minted US No.1 on the live ratings bemoaned the whirligig of the mini-matches followed by a nervous series of sudden-death tiebreaks, where just a minor slip can often see a top seed dramatically heading home early.

It didn’t happen to Caruana, but the fear lurks for the seeds as the field whittles down round by round - but not so lucky proved to be Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, with the Frenchman eliminated in the third round, after he lost his match to Javokhir Sindarov, the rising 17-year-old Uzbek teen star.

Also heading to the departure lounge was the ultimate chess power couple, Alexander Grischuk and Kateryna Lagno, with the Russian husband and wife team - playing under the neutral Fide flag due to the Ukraine war - were both sensationally knocked out by relative unknowns in the round two tiebreaks. Grischuk lost to 17-year-old Iranian GM Bardiya Daneshvar, while Women's fourth-seed Lagno was sent packing by Indian WGM Mary Ann Gomes.

And the seeds continued to fall at the hands of the underdogs. Out went another of the favourites in the women's competition, with the 2021 World Cup winner and former World Champion, Alexander Kosteniuk, now playing under the Swiss flag, crashing out to Serbia’s Teodora Injac. And not to be outdone, crashing out also in the open competition in the third round went Anish Giri (who dramatically lost on time in the tiebreak to Nijat Abasav), plus the 2019 cup-winner and local hero, Teimour Radjabov.

And in the same round of tiebreaks, Hikaru Nakamura and Wesley So both flirted with disaster but still managed to live to fight another day, going through to the next round, where they now join fellow US star Caruana, along with Magnus Carlsen (who comfortably beat fellow Norwegian No.2, Aryan Tari), lan Nepomniachtchi and Jan-Krzysztof Duda, along with the teenager to watch out for, Gukesh D, who has crashed his way into the world top-10 for the first time, with the 17-year-old supplanting Vishy Anand to become the new Indian No.1.

While top seed Carlsen plays the German teenage ace Vincent Keymer in the final 16, all eyes are firmly on the plum pairing of the fourth round, with second seed Nakamura facing what potentially could be a very dangerous opponent in Rameshbabu “Pragg” Praggnandhaa, yet another young Indian teenager who inexorably continues to climb his way towards the top-20 and beyond.

The FIDE World Cup brackets/pairing tree can be found by clicking the link .

GM Magnus Carlsen- GM Aryan Tari

FIDE World Cup, (3.1),

E46: Nimzo-Indian, 4.e3 O-O

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.e3 O-O 5.Bd2 An old line that was big in the 1950s and now coming back into vogue - and it has become a firm favourite for Carlsen of late. 5...c5 6.a3 Bxc3 7.Bxc3 Ne4 8.Ne2 b6 9.d5 Just throwing a spanner in the Nimzo-Indian works, hoping that the d5 wedge will disrupt Black's normal play. 9...Ba6 10.f3 Nxc3 11.Nxc3 Bxc4 12.Bxc4 Qh4+ 13.g3 Qxc4 14.h4 exd5 15.Nxd5 Nc6 16.b3 Qa6 17.Nc7 Qa5+ 18.b4 cxb4 19.Nxa8 bxa3+ 20.Qd2 Rxa8?! M ore awkward for White would have been 20...Qc5! as the knight can't really get out so easily; and Nxb6 axb6 just opens the a-file for Black's rook to make the passed a-pawn a monster. So now 21.Nc7 Ne5! 22.Na6 Nxf3+ 23.Kf2 Nxd2 24.Nxc5 bxc5 25.Rxa3 Nc4 26.Rxa7 Ne5 27.Rha1 Re8 28.Ra8 Kf8 29.Rxe8+ Kxe8 30.Ra8+ Ke7 31.Rg8 g6 32.Rh8 h5 33.e4 d6 and Black has excellent holding chances. 21.Qxa5 Nxa5 22.Rxa3 Nc4?!

I don't know what Tari was thinking here, as this just gives Carlsen the sort of position he thrives on squeezing wins out of. More resilient, and to the (half) point was 22...Kf8! 23.Ke2 Ke7 24.Rb1 (Tempting was 24.Rc1 but after 24…Nc6! Black's ready to play ...Rb8 looking to follow up with ...a5 and ...b5 and suddenly the passed pawns are a headache for White) 24...Rc8 25.Ra2 Rc5 where Black has excellent holding chances. 23.Ra6! Carlsen seizes his best chance to convert an unlikely win against his fellow countryman. The point is that if Black plays ...Na5 looking to entomb the rook, White will simply play Kf2 and Rb1! with a promising endgame squeeze with the ever-present threat on the board of R1xb6! 23...Nxe3? Tari goes from bad to worse. It wasn't too late to realise the errors of his ways by playing 23...Ne5 24.Kd2 Nc6 25.e4 Rd8 26.Ke3 and White is only marginally better. But in chess, it's always the case that a player is too proud to admit mistakes by immediately moving a piece back. 24.Kf2 Nd5 25.Rha1 Kf8 26.Rxa7 Rxa7 27.Rxa7 If Black's two queenside pawns were connected, then there would be a problem of saving the game - but with the pawns isolated, something has to give as Black can't defend both of them and the kingside pawns. 27...Ke7 28.Rb7 h5 29.g4 g6 You would imagine that better was 29...hxg4 30.fxg4 - but Tari rightly judges this to be worse, as White will soon turn the h-pawn into a big passer that will be difficult to stop. 30.Rb8! Slowly but surely, Carlsen is looking to get his rook in behind his opponent's kingside pawns. 30...Kd6 31.Kg3 It is indeed a difficult ending to fathom out, but more accurate was 31.Rf8! Ke7 32.Rh8 that at least serves to crucially push Black's king further back - which is vital, as the next note explains. 31...f5?? The final, fatal mistake from Tari, who commits pawn structure hara-kiri. The key to survival, as Mr Engine ingeniously works out, was the power of the passed b-pawn and not to give a fig about the other pawns. After the correct 31...Kc5! 32.Rh8 b5! the b-pawn off to the races forces an unlikely saving scenario of 33.gxh5 gxh5 34.Kf2 b4 35.Ke2 (The resource that the engine finds is almost study-like, and you can't capture the h-pawn with 35.Rxh5? as 35...b3 36.Rg5 b2 37.Rg1 Kc4 38.Kg3 Nf6! 39.Kf4 d6! 40.Kg5 Ng8! 41.h5 d5! 42.h6 Nxh6! which is going to lead to a textbook draw with 43.Kxh6 d4 44.f4 d3 45.f5 Kc3 46.Kg7 Kc2 47.Kxf7 b1=Q 48.Rxb1 Kxb1 49.f6 d2 50.Kg6 d1=Q 51.f7 Qf3 52.Kg7 Qg4+ 53.Kh7 Qf4 54.Kg7 Qg5+ 55.Kh7 Qf6 56.Kg8 Qg6+ 57.Kh8! and Black can never bring his king up the board due to this stalemate trick of tucking the king in the corner) 35...b3 36.Kd3 Nf4+ 37.Kc3 d5! 38.Rf8 b2! 39.Kxb2 Kd4 40.Rxf7 Ke3 and a draw, with White's f-pawn falling and Black's knight protecting both the d5- & h5-pawns. 32.gxh5 gxh5 (see diagram) 33.Rh8! With all of Tari's pawns now isolated and vulnerable, Carlsen ruthlessly and expertly stretches Black's resources which can't control things on both wings of the board at the same time. 33...f4+ 34.Kf2 Nf6 35.Ke2 Ke5 36.Kd3 Black's pawns are all isolated and vulnerable - when one falls, the endgame falls with it. And it is only a matter of time for Carlsen to engineer this scenario. 36...d6 37.Rh6 d5 38.Rg6 b5 39.Rg5+ Ke6 40.Kc3 Black is effectively in zugzwang with the end coming very swiftly now. 40...Nd7 If 40...Kd6 41.Kb4 and White will start to pick off the pawns, starting with b5. 41.Kd4 Nf6 42.Rg7 b4 43.Ra7 Ng8 44.Ra6+ Kf5 45.Kxd5 b3 46.Rb6 Ne7+ 47.Kc4 Ng6 48.Rxg6! It's not a brazen act of showboating from Carlsen - the sacrifice leads to an easily winning K+P endgame. 48...Kxg6 49.Kxb3 1-0

The Big Guns of August

Thu, 03 Aug 2023 23:58:32 GMT

The top 20 players in the world have the most opportunities in chess and can earn a good living. But it is considerably more difficult for the players ranked just below them to earn a decent crust. Their appearance fees are much lower, and they rarely are invited to the tournaments that can put them in the spotlight and offer the best prize money.

For those players, the Fide World Cup in Baku, Azerbaijan, is a great opportunity to shine. With an original starting field on 30 July of 206 players and prize money totalling an unprecedented $2.5 million, not to mention qualifying spots directly into the 2024 Candidates tournaments, the stakes are higher than ever before, with the behemoth knockout tournament giving some second-tier players (and many promising juniors looking to make a name for themselves as a giant-killer) a golden chance to compete against the world’s elite.

But the task to progress further became even more daunting with the arrival of August and the little matter of the 50 seeded big guns who got to miss the opening round, such as Magnus Carlsen, Hikaru Nakamura, Fabiano Caruana, Ian Nepomniachtchi, Anish Giri and Wesley So et al., who now join the fray in the Caucus country by starting from round two!

And many of those big guns of August easily won their round two mini-matches to progress to the next round, with Carlsen leading the way with a crushing 2-0 victory over the jobbing Georgian GM Levan Pantsulaia - but it wasn’t all plain sailing for the favourites.

Second seed Nakamura was held to two draws by India’s Karthik Venkataraman, with the US speed maven and popular streamer now having to return for the sudden-death tiebreaker. But the biggest upset witnessed 20-year-old Tin Jingyao from Singapore eliminating one of the top seeds and local Baku legend Shahriyar Mamedyarov, to record the best Singaporean chess performance in history!

There is also a swath of Indian juniors that could well use the World Cup as the launchpad to go on to become the next big thing in chess. Already, with a brace of impressive wins to his name, Gukesh D could well be the teen to watch at the World Cup, as the 17-year-old rather has now crossed the Rubicon by moving into the World top-10 for the first time on the unofficial live rankings , bringing with it the end of an era as he supplants Vishy Anand - after many decades - as the new Indian #1.

And Anand himself singled out another of his country’s young tigers, 17-year-old Rameshbabu “Pragg” Praggnanandhaa, hailing his stunning round two win over the French champion Maxime Lagarde to be nothing short of a “masterpiece” that many are already putting on the short-list for the Game of the Year award.

GM Maxime Lagarde - GM Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa

FIDE World Cup, (2.1)

C60: Ruy Lopez, Cozio Defence

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nge7

The Cozio Defence - named after Carlo Cozio , the Count of Montiglio and Salabue (c. 1715 – c. 1780) no less, who was one of Italy's leading players and theorists of the eighteenth century - is seldom seen today in top-flight chess. It's a cousin to the more popular Smyslov/Barnes defence with 3...g6 followed by ...Nge7 and ...Bg7 that has received a revival of late - though here, the blot in the Cozio copybook is that the knight temporarily blocks the king’s bishop. However, the bishop could be developed to g7, a la the Smyslov/Barnes, or it could wait until the knight moves again (probably to g6, as happens in the game). 4.Nc3 I would imagine that the somewhat rare bird of the Cozio Defence had to have come as a complete surprise for Lagarde, and wouldn't even have featured at all in the Frenchman's opening prep for his mini-match against the young Indian whiz-kid. And when grandmasters are faced with such a scenario, they rarely play the best reply, fearing a well-prepared line - and hence the reason here for Lagarde opting for the respectable third choice behind the more popular 4.0-0 and 4.c3. 4...Ng6 5.d4 Nxd4 6.Nxd4 exd4 7.Qxd4 c6 8.Be2 Qb6 This position has been seen several times in grandmaster praxis. 9.Qd3 Be7 10.f4N A novelty here, but more a serendipitous one created at the board rather than some nifty piece of homework. More common is the natural-looking 10.0-0 - but also an interesting shot is the pawn sacrifice with 10.h4!? Bxh4 11.g3 with complications. 10...O-O 11.h4 d5! Pragg is a sharp cookie. With the White king still stuck in the middle of the board, he rightly seizes his chance to blow the doors off the position. 12.h5? Lagarde blunders his way into enormous complications. He had to bite the bullet and accept the challenge with 12.exd5 Rd8 13.h5 Nh4 when Mr Engine calmly plays 14.Kf1 with a claim of equality. 12...dxe4 13.Qg3 I completely understand Lagarde's reluctance to play 13.Nxe4 Nh4 and the game taking a Lou Reed-like walk on the wild side - but if the Frenchman thinks he's stopped the annoying ...Nh4, he's in for a rude awakening! 13...Nh4! Pragg has gone all-in - and holding the nuts! 14.Rxh4 Qg1+ 15.Bf1 e3! This “quiet” move is what Lagarde probably missed as his position turns critical, as there's no need to immediately recapture the rook with the major threat now being ...Qf2+! 16.Nd1 It's a day trip to Awkwardsvillie for White after 16.Rh2 Bc5! 17.Ne2 Qf2+ 18.Qxf2 exf2+ 19.Kd2 Rd8+ 20.Kc3 a5! 21.a3 Rd1 22.Rh1 Bg4 23.Ng3 Bd4+ 24.Kb3 a4+ 25.Ka2 Re8 and White is close, if not already in, zugzwang. 16...Re8 17.Ke2 Be6!

The alternative of 17...b6 threatening ...Ba6+ looks "sexy", but according to Mr Engine, it forces a R+P endgame that is far from winning after 18.f5! looking to defend against ...Ba6+ with c4, where now 18...Bxh4 19.Qxh4 Ba6+ 20.c4 Re5 21.Nxe3 Rae8 22.Qf2! Bxc4+ 23.Kf3 Qxf2+ 24.Kxf2 Bxf1 25.Kxf1 Rxe3 26.Bxe3 Rxe3 27.Rc1 Re5! 28.Rxc6 The best try to save the game. 28...Rxf5+ 29.Ke2 h6 30.Rc8+ Kh7 31.Rc7 Ra5 32.a3 Rg5 33.Kf2 a5 34.Rxf7 Rxh5 35.Rf4 Kg6 36.Rd4 Kf7 And Black has to be preferred - but with it being a R+P endgame, White still has good saving chances. 18.b3

Much as in the above note, the more practical try is 18.f5!? Bxh4 19.Qxh4 Bd5 20.Nxe3 Re4 21.Qf2 Bc4+ 22.Ke1 Qh1 23.Kd2 Bxf1 24.Nxf1 Rae8 25.Ng3 Qe1+ 26.Qxe1 Rxe1 27.c4 where, despite numerically holding a small material advantage, White is in deep danger as it is almost impossible to unravel. 18...Rad8! Pragg is in no hurry to land a haymaker as he just brings his remaining piece into the game. 19.Nxe3 Bf6 T he most scenic road to Rome - and also winning was 19...Bxh4 but Pragg goes for the more prosaic approach with his opponent's hapless king caught in the crossfire in the middle of the board. 20.Rb1 Bf5 Commentating on this game, the Indian legend and five-time ex-world champion, Vishy Anand, rightly called this game a "masterpiece" from Pragg. 21.Qf2 (see diagram) Hoping to take the pressure off with the queens being exchanged - but Pragg has seen a little deeper into the position. 21...Bxh4!! The queen sac offer certainly seals the deal on the "masterpiece" tag. 22.Qxh4 If 22.Qxg1 Bg4#

22...Bxc2 23.Qxd8 There's no defence now. If 23.Rb2 Bd3+ 24.Kf3 Bxf1 25.Qf2 Bxg2+! 26.Nxg2 Qxc1 and Black will easily mop up from here. 23...Rxd8 24.Nxc2 Qc5 25.Ne3 Re8 26.Kf3 The pressure is relentless from Pragg - and note how 26.Bd2 soon crashes to 26...Rxe3+! 27.Bxe3 Qc2+ picking up the rook. 26...Qd4 27.Ke2 Qc5 Again threatening ...Qc2+. 28.Kf3 Qxh5+ 29.g4 If 29.Kf2 Qg6 30.Rb2 Qf6! wins due to the twin threat of ...Qxf4+ and ...Rxe3. And note how 31.Nc4 Qd4+ and something has to give, as 32.Kg3 Qc3+ 33.Kh2 Qxc1 34.Rf2 Re1 35.Be2 Qc2 and White is set to lose even more material. 29...Qh1+ 30.Kg3 Re6 So many ways to win now, but the stone-cold killer was the immediate 30...h5! 31.gxh5 Qxh5 32.Bd3 Rd8 33.Bc2 Qe2! and no answer to ...Re8 followed by ...Rxe3+ and the dominatrix Black queen picks up the remaining loose pieces. But when your opponent is on the morphine drip, then what's the hurry? 31.Bd2 h5! Now Pragg ruthlessly moves in for the kill by snaring the White king in his mating net. 32.gxh5 Qxh5 33.Re1 Rg6+ 34.Kf2 Qh4+ 35.Kf3 Qg3+ 36.Ke4 Or, alternatively, the slightly slower death with 36.Ke2 Qxf4 37.Kd1 Rd6 etc. 36...Rd6 37.Re2 f5+! 0-1 And Lagarde throws the towel in as 38.Nxf5 (Or even 38.Kxf5 Qg6+ 39.Ke5 Qe6#) 38...Qd3+ 39.Ke5 Qd5#

World Cup Fever

Tue, 01 Aug 2023 17:35:57 GMT

The race to become the next world champion has now officially started, as the jamboree that is the Fide World Cup got underway on Sunday in Baku, Azerbaijan, with the field of 206-player doing battle in the mega knockout event. Each round is a two-game mini-match, followed by rapid and blitz tiebreaks - and there will be many nerve-jangling moments for those looking to progress.

Magnus Carlsen may well have abdicated the main world crown, but the Norwegian is the No 1 seed in the only major individual event he has never won - hence the reason for his participation. The top seeds are already into the second round of the contest that gets underway on Wednesday - when the tournament will already be over for 117 players heading for an early flight home - and Carlsen’s main rivals could well prove to be Hikaru Nakamura and Fabiano Caruana of the US.

By convention, with it being an automatic qualifier into the Candidates, the world champion doesn't normally play in the World Cup (Carlsen proving to be the exception in 2021!), and absent from the line-up is the new world champion, Ding Liren - but another notable and more puzzling absentee is the 20-year-old world No 4, Alireza Firouzja, once deemed to be the young pretender to Carlsen’s throne, who is pursuing a parallel career in fashion design.

The KO format for the World Cup always throws up the possibility of an unknown going on a giant-killing run. In the last World Cup in 2021, it was the young Serbian newly-minted GM, Velimir Ivic. Ranked 110th, he defeated Robert Hungaski 1½-½ in the first round, 19th seed Francisco Vallejo Pons 1½-½ in the second round, 46th seed Matthias Bluebaum 1½-½ in the third round, and 14th seed Dmitry Andreikin 3-1 in the fourth round. His heroic run only ended in the fifth round when he lost to Vladimir Fedoseev.

Once again, Ivic found himself in the media spotlight - but for all the wrong reasons, as the World Cup star of 2021 was sensationally crushed in dazzling style in the opening game of his two-game mini-match by the possible new star of 2023, the cherubic and fresh-faced fourteen-year-old Turk, IM Ediz Gurel, the youngest player in the competition.

Ivic duly survived the possibility of an early exit by winning game two to take the match into a sudden-death tiebreak, where the more experienced Serbian finally managed to overpower the rising star, as he went on to win both rapid games to record a 3-1 victory.

IM Ediz Gurel - GM Velimir Ivic

FIDE World Cup, (1.1)

C83: Ruy Lopez, Open

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Nxe4 It was the late, great Danish legend Bent Larsen who once suggested that the Open Variation was the only 'correct way' for Black to play against the Ruy Lopez. And indeed, Larsen was the one to rehabilitate the Open Lopez at the elite level; writing many articles supporting it, and famously using it to beat Bobby Fischer during the Second Piatigorsky Cup in Santa Monica, 1966. 6.d4 Be7 7.Re1 b5 8.Bb3 d5 9.dxe5 Be6 10.c3 O-O 11.Nbd2 Nc5 12.Nd4 Nxd4 13.cxd4 Nd3 14.Re3 Nxc1 15.Rxc1 a5 16.Rec3 a4 17.Bc2 a3? Right idea but the wrong execution of creating counterplay, as Ivic walks into an epic tactic that turned the young 14-year-old into an overnight star of the World Cup. Correct was 17...c5! 18.dxc5 b4 19.Rg3 Bg5! And Black does have genuine compensation for the pawn after 20.Qh5 (A minor detail, but this time - unlike in the game - the 'Greek gift' with 20.Bxh7+?? backfires as Black has 20...Kxh7 21.Qh5+ Bh6! and White is losing big-time) 20...h6 21.Qe2 Qe7 22.Qd3 g6 23.Qd4 Ra5 24.Bb1 Rc8 25.c6 Qa7! 26.Qxb4 Ra6 27.h4 Raxc6! 28.Rxc6 Rxc6 29.hxg5 Rc1+ 30.Kh2 Qxf2 31.Rc3 Qg1+ 32.Kg3 Qe1+ 33.Kf3 Qd1+ 34.Kg3 (Definitely not running the king with 34.Ke3?? as Black ends up with a forced winning position after 34...Qg1+ 35.Kf4 Qxg2 36.Rxc1 Qg4+ 37.Ke3 Qxb4 38.Nf3 hxg5 39.Nd4 Qxb2 40.Rg1 g4 and Black is easily winning with the extra couple of pawns but, more importantly, the queen dominates the position)

34...Qe1+ and a perpetual check. 18.bxa3 Bxa3 19.Rb1 c5 20.dxc5 d4 In Ivic's head, and in his calculations, he probably thought he was doing OK here with his menacing bishop-pair and a juicy target on a2 - but he's missed a crucial tactic. 21.Rg3 Bxc5 (see diagram) Ivic has what can only be politely described as a brain freeze, making a complete Horlicks of it in his head by probably thinking the game was going to continue 22.Rxb5 Rc8 with Black has genuine compensation and counter-play for the pawn. 22.Bxh7+! The 'Greek gift' strikes yet again, only for about the millionth time in chess! 22...Kxh7 23.Qh5+ Kg8 24.Qh6 g6 25.Ne4 B lack can't stop the looming Nf6+ hit and a mating attack. Time to lick your wounds and get the game over and done with, and move on to Game 2 and look to equalise to take the game into a dramatic tiebreak, which happens in the match. 25...Be7 26.Rf3 Bf5 27.Rxf5! Ra6 What else is there now? If 27...gxf5 28.Nf6+ Bxf6 29.exf6 and Black can't stop Qg7 mate. 28.Rf3 1-0

Teenage Kicks

Fri, 28 Jul 2023 19:33:11 GMT

In 1955, aged 18, Boris Spassky became the first teenage grandmaster and, conversely with it, the youngest in the world. Three years later, Bobby Fischer smashed the record at 15 years, 6 months and 1 day. But records are made to be broken - and the latest to follow in those famous footsteps is Abhimanyu "Abhi" Mishra, with the New Jersey teenager holding the historic record he broke two years ago at the age of 12 years, 4 months and 25 days.

And as part of a trifecta of National Junior and Senior Championships hosted by the ever-inventive and always-supporting Saint Louis Chess Club , Abhi has taken yet another monumental step in his burgeoning chess career by clinching his first US Junior Championship title.

Now aged 14 - and showing a level of maturity that continues to belie his age - Abhi has bested a strong field of prodigious prodigies, in what became a very competitive contest, to take the top prize of $12,000 and earning a golden ticket in this year’s U.S. Championship. Not only that, but there was a also bonus taken en passant of a $10,000 scholarship to the university of his choice thanks to the generosity of Dewain Barber and US Chess.

After winning his first US Junior crown, a delighted Abhi is now looking forward to future challenges , commenting: “The U.S. Junior Championship is a strong tournament and my main purpose was winning so I would be able to play against America’s best in the U.S. Championship later this year.”

Another teenager who got her kicks in Saint Louis is IM-elect Alice Lee , 13, who already has a record haul of American age records to her name - and now she’s captured the US Girls’ Junior Championship crown, with her commanding performance earning her a $6,000 cash prize, $10,000 scholarship to the university of her choice and a seat to compete in the U.S. Women’s Championship this fall.

In today’s diagram moment Alice (playing Zoey Tang in Round 4), ruthlessly found the stone-cold killer move of 36.h3! - the tactical point being that 36…Rxh3 37.Rxe8+! Kxe8 38.Rb8+ Kf7 39.Rb7+ Kf6 40.Rxg7 Rxe3 41.Kf2! Ra3 42.Rc7 Rxa2+ 43.Kg3 Ra3+ 44.Kh4 Ra6 45.Bh5 e5 46.Rf7+ and Black resigned with 46…Ke6 47.f5 mate coming.

US Junior Championship

1. GM A. Mishra 6/9; 2-5. GM B. Jacobson, GM A. Hong, GM B. Daggupati, IM A. Guo 5.5; 6-7. IM J. Wang, IM K. Ghazarian 5; 8-9. IM J. Liang, IM J. Stearman 3; 10. FM A. Xu 1.

US Girls’ Junior Championship:

1. FM A. Lee 7.5/9; 2. FM R. Yan 6; 3-4. IM C. Yip, FM Z. Tang 5.5; 5. WIM I Mou 4.5; 6. FM R. Wu 4; 7. WCM S. Mangalam 3.5; 8-9. NM K. Liu, WFM G. Prasanna 3; 10. NM R. Atwell 2.5.

GM Andrew Hong - GM Abhimanyu Mishra

US Junior Championship, (4) 

C18: French, Winawer, Advance

1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.e5 c5 5.a3 Bxc3+ 6.bxc3 Ne7 7.Qg4 Qc7 8.Bd3 Back in the day, due to the influence of leading Francophile devotees such as Mikhail Botvinnik and Wolfgang Uhlmann, the big critical theory line was 8.Qxg7 Rg8 9.Qxh7 cxd4 10.Ne2 dxc3 with a complex game ahead for both players. But such forcing lines are generally avoided in today's digital age and the influence of the engine. 8...c4 9.Be2 Qa5 10.Bd2 Nf5 11.a4 Nc6 12.Nf3 Bd7 13.Qf4 Rf8 14.h4 O-O-O 15.h5 f6 16.Qh2 h6 17.Ra3 Rh8 18.O-O fxe5 19.Nxe5 Nfxd4! Abhi is always tactically aware at the board, and this exchange sacrifice offers Black genuine long-term winning chances.

20.cxd4 Qxd2 21.Nf7 Rhf8 22.Nxd8 Rxd8 23.Re3 Nxd4 It's generally never a good sign for White in the Winawer when he sees his centre imploding in such a fashion. 24.Qe5 The engine prefers 24.Bg4!? Qxc2 25.Qf4 Nf5 26.Re5 but after 26...Rf8 27.a5! Rf6 28.Bxf5 Rxf5 29.Rxf5 Qxf5 30.Qd4 a6 31.Qxg7 Qxh5 32.Qf8+ Qe8 33.Qxh6 but analysing such positions deep in your head, the human gut reaction would be to fear the coming endgame with Black's mass of queenside pawns. 24...Nf5 25.Rd1 Qa5 26.Rf3 Qc7 27.Qa1 Bc6 28.a5 a6 29.g3 Nd6 30.Re3 Ne4 31.Qd4 Rf8 32.Rf3 Nf6 33.Re3 Ne4 34.Rf3? Right square, wrong piece! White would have offered up better resistance with 34.Bf3! Qf7 35.Rf1 Qf6 36.Qb6 but after 36...Qf5 despite the engine saying the position is a digital decimal draw with "0.00", long-term, Black has the easier game to play with winning chances, especially his white-square grip and if those central pawns start pushing up the board. 34...Re8! Rightly avoiding the trade of rooks that would only have served to ease White's game. Now Black has easy pickings of the loose pawns on both wings of the board on a5 and h5. And that's not all White has to worry about, as there's the little matter of Black's central pawns becoming mobile.

35.Qa7 Nf6 Both rook pawns are now sitting ducks. 36.Re3 Better would have been 36.Qa8+ Kd7 37.Qa7 Qxa5 38.Bxc4 Kc7! 39.Be2 Qb6! 40.Qxb6+ Kxb6 41.Rb3+ Kc5 though long-term, the endgame is winning for Black with ...e5 coming. 36...Qxa5 37.Bxc4? I can only presume that White lost the plot completely in the mad dash to reach the time control, thinking this was a clever trick to save the game, only to realise it was to be a losing blunder. 37...dxc4 38.Rxe6 Crossing your fingers and praying your opponent falls for 38...Rxe6?? 39.Qa8+ Kc7 40.Qd8 mate. But unfortunately for White, there's a little snafu. 38...Kc7! 39.Qd4 No better was 39.Rxe8 Nxe8 40.Qd4 Kb8! 41.g4 Qg5! and Black is easily winning with g4 under strain and ...Qh4 a major threat. And note that 42.f3 doesn't work, as 42...Bxf3 43.Qd8+ Ka7! 44.Qxg5 hxg5 45.Re1 Nd6 46.Re7 Bxg4 47.Rxg7 Bxh5 48.Rxg5 Bf3 and Black wins by carefully pushing up the queenside pawns. 39...Kb8! Once again, nicely sidestepping the cheapo of the Qd8 mate. 40.Rxc6

With all the endgame scenarios favouring Black, this is the best hope for a miraculous 'Hail Mary' save. 40...bxc6 41.c3 Qb5 Removing the only threat White has with Rb1+ - now it is just a matter of time for Abhi to convert his material advantage. 42.Ra1 Kb7 43.Qd1 Qc5 44.Qb1+ Kc7 45.Rxa6 Re2! With f2 now under attack, White can't exploit Black's loose king to save the game. 46.Qf1 Qe5 47.Ra1 Qe4 The clinical kill was 47...Ng4! not only hitting f2 but also a major mating threat with ...Qxh5! and ...Qh2+ etc. But by this stage, with so many ways for Black to win, Abhi takes a slightly longer and more scenic road to Rome. 48.Qc1 Qf3 49.Qf1 Ne4 50.Ra7+ Kd6 51.Qd1+ Nd2 52.Rf7 Qxf7 Or even better was 52...Qd3 53.Qc1 Qb1 and White can resign. 53.Qxe2 Nf3+ 54.Kg2 Ne5 55.f4 Qd5+ 56.Kf2 Nd3+ The rest is a futile exercise in commenting on, as Black eventually converts his superior material advantage into a crucial win that proved vital for Abhi to go on to win the title. 57.Kg1 Qe6 58.Qa2 Qe1+ 59.Kg2 Qxc3 60.Qa8 Qb2+ 61.Kh3 Kc5 62.Qa7+ Kb4 63.Qb6+ Ka3 64.Qxc6 Qd4 65.Qa8+ Kb3 66.Qg8 Nb4 67.Kg4 Kb2 68.Qe6 c3 69.Qe2+ c2 70.Qh2 Kb1 71.Qg2 c1=Q 72.Qh1 Qd7+ 0-1

The Senior Moment

Thu, 27 Jul 2023 01:45:34 GMT

It can literally be tagged “one for the ages”, as the always-innovative Saint Louis Chess Club more than lives up to its mission statement by providing chess for all with the showcasing and sponsoring of a trifecta of national titles ranging from the stars of yesterday to the stars of tomorrow, with the invitation-only US Senior , US Junior and US Girls’Junior Championships all running in parallel and under the same roof.

First up in our series of reports is the US Senior for players over 50 with a generous $75,000 prize fund, as the battle-hardened “old masters’ duke it out for the top prize of $20,000 first prize and an automatic berth into the main event of the US Championship in October, also hosted, supported and sponsored by the Saint Louis Chess Club.

This year saw a surprise, though very popular winner in Melik Khachiyan, with the Azerbaijan-American grandmaster, more famous for being an influential coach and guiding his many students to tournament success, scoring, as he himself put it, the biggest achievement of his playing career by clinching his first US Senior title - and how!

Baku-born LA resident Khachiyan, 53, got off to a flying start, first beating top seed Vladimir Akopian in the opening round, and then going on to win five of his first six games (only dropping a draw to Joel Benjamin in round three) to have his “Senior moment”, as he went on to top-score on 7/9 as he cruised to victory with a round to spare.

The rest of the field was left behind in Khachiyan’s ruthless wake of a barnstorming and undefeated 7/9, with defending 2022 US Senior champion GM Alexander Shabalov in (5.5/9) second-place, 1.5-points behind the winner, and GM Vladimir Akopian (5/9) taking the third spot.

Final standings:

1. GM M Khachiyan 7/9; 2. GM A. Shabalov 5.5; 3. GM V Akopian 5; 4-5. GM G. Kaidanov, GM M. Dlugy 4.5; 6-7. GM P. Wolff, GM J. Benjamin 4; 8-10. GM I. Novikov, IM D. Root, GM D. Gurevich 3.5.

GM Melik Khachiyan - GM Max Dlugy

US Seniors Ch., (5) 

D05: Colle System

1.Nf3 c5 2.c3 d5 3.d4 e6 4.e3 Nc6 5.Nbd2 Nf6 6.Bd3 Things don't come much simpler in chess than the Colle System, named after the early 20th century Belgium master Edgard Colle - and the creator of the system blazed a trail with many "Greek gift" Bxh7+ brilliancies that made his eponymous opening an attractive option for club players. 6...Bd6 7.O-O O-O 8.dxc5 This is the Colle at its simplest form, the idea being to play a quick e4 with the mass trade of pieces and pawns in the centre - including the early exchange of queens - offering White a no-risk easy game.

8...Bxc5 9.e4 Re8 There's been many tournament praxis and club games that have witnessed 9...dxe4?! 10.Nxe4 Nxe4 11.Bxe4 Qxd1 12.Rxd1 only for Black to realise how difficult this position is to defend with White's rook not only dominating the only open file on the board but also stopping the development of Black's light-squared bishop.

10.e5 Ng4 In essence, we have a sort of French Defence Tarrasch, where instead of 10...Nd7 11.Nb3 Be7 12.Re1 and White with more space and the more harmonious development of his pieces, we have something a bit more spirited!

11.Nb3 Bb6 12.Bxh7+ It all looks scary, but normal fare in the Colle - and with careful play, Black should be OK. 12...Kxh7 13.Ng5+ Kg8 14.Qxg4 Nxe5 15.Qh4 Qf6 16.Bf4 With the big threat of 17.Bxe5 Qxe5 18.Qh8+!! Kxh8 19.Nxf7+ Kh7 20.Nxe5 and an extra pawn and a big positional advantage to boot. 16...Qh6 Better and simpler was 16...Nc4! as the complications after 17.Nd2 e5! 18.Nxc4 dxc4 19.Qh7+ Kf8 20.Bc1 Bf5 favours Black. Still, with the text, Black should have nothing to fear. 17.Qxh6 gxh6 18.Bxe5 The alternative of 18.Ne4 was equally a good option.

18...hxg5 19.Bf6 g4 20.Rae1Kh7 Dlugy just doesn't want to walk into any Re5 and Rg5+ nastiness. 21.Bd4 Bd7 22.f3! Khachiyan isn't winning, but it is just a little awkward for Black, and Dlugy makes things worse with an error.

22...e5 23.Bxb6 axb6 24.fxg4 Kg6 In hindsight - always 20/20 in chess! - better was 24...Kg7 which saves a move, as it avoids Rf6+. It doesn't seem a biggie, but this is where it all starts to go awry for the drifting Dlugy. 25.g5 Rxa2 26.Rf6+ Kg7 27.Nc1 Rxb2 28.Nd3 Rb3 29.Nxe5 Re7 30.h4 Rxc3 31.h5 Be8 It is never easy in the heat of battle, especially as your digital clock is metaphorically ticking down, as Dlugy suddenly panics about f7 and any mating threats associated with Ref1 - but rather than being cramped, the ever-resourceful engine finds 31...Bb5! 32.h6+ Kg8 33.Rxb6 Rc5! 34.Nf3 The threat of ...d4 picking up the g5-pawn is a potential game-winner, so has to be avoided. 34...Rxe1+ 35.Nxe1 d4 36.Nf3 d3 37.Rxb7 which all seems to peter out to a draw after 37...Bc6 38.Rb8+ Kh7 39.Rf8 Bxf3 40.Rxf7+ Kg6 (Also drawing is 40...Kg8 41.g6! Rc8 42.Rg7+ Kh8 43.Rh7+ Kg8 44.Rg7+ etc) 41.Rf6+ Kh7 42.Rf7+ Kg6 43.Rf6+ and a draw. 32.h6+! Black's game just becomes critical at the wrong time for Dlugy, with the time control looming. 32...Kh7 33.Kf2 Rc2+ Dlugy had to hang tough with 33...Rcc7! and White has nothing other than 34.Rxb6 d4 35.Rbb1 (If 35.Rd6 Rc5 36.Nf3 Rxe1 37.Kxe1 Rf5 with ...Bc6 coming that will see all the pawns being liquidated in the ensuing R+P endgame after a timely...Bxf3) 35...Bd7 and Black is easily holding a game that's ebbing towards the inevitable draw. 34.Kg3 Kg8? (see diagram) Things are getting difficult for Dlugy, as his game has started to drift in a bad way, but this is his "senior moment”, as he more or less gifts Khachiyan a critical free move that turns the game on its head. Instead, after 34...Rc3+ 35.Kf4 Rcc7 36.Rxb6 Bc6! it is just awkward for Black rather than outright losing. 35.Rff1! When you have the advantage, possibly even winning, a long retreating move is the most difficult move to find in chess - but here Khachiyan finds it, with the full retreat of the rook not only defending the e1 rook but also threatening the winning knight hop of Ne5-g4-f6+ 35...Rc8 36.Ng4 Rxe1 37.Rxe1 Bc6 38.Nf6+ Kf8 39.Kf4 I love how Mr Engine just nonchalantly kibitzes in your ear that 39.Nh7+! is a forced mate in 10 after 39...Kg8 40.g6! f5

(After 40...fxg6 41.Re7! then the only way to stop the mate on h7 with Rg7+ and Nf6 is 41...Rf8 42.Rg7+ Kh8 43.Nxf8 and a heavy loss of material) 41.Kf4 d4 42.Re7 Be8 43.Kg5 and the White pieces are moving in for the kill. 39...Ra8 40.Nh7+ A little repeating of moves first to safely navigate through to the time control. 40...Kg8 41.Nf6+ Kf8 42.Kf5 d4 43.Nh7+ Kg8 44.g6 fxg6+ 45.Kxg6 Kh8 46.Nf6 The ingredients are all there for a mate with the Black king entombed on h8. 46...Ba4 47.Re7 Bc2+ 48.Kg5 b5 49.Rxb7 Black is paralysed: his rook can't move from the back-rank, and the d-pawn can't push forward as the bishop is covering the h7 mate. 49...Rd8 50.g4 It's game over with the g-pawn now running up the board. 50...b4 51.Kh5 Rf8 52.g5 Bd1+ 53.Kh4 Bc2 54.Rxb4 Rd8 If 54...d3 55.g6 quickly mates. 55.Rb7! And with the Rh7 mate threat renewed, and Black again unable to play ...d3, there's only one option left now - as forlorn as it is. 55...Bg6 56.Rg7 d3 57.Rxg6 d2 58.Rg7 Even with Black promoting the pawn, there's no stopping the inevitable now with a Rh7 mate. 58...Rd4+ 59.Kh3 Rd3+ 60.Kh2 1-0

The Menchik Month

Mon, 24 Jul 2023 21:11:51 GMT

The month of July was always a happy hunting ground for the phenomenon that was Vera Menchik (1906-44), who was the only women’s world champion in her tragically short lifetime. The World Chess Hall of Famer won the inaugural title in 1927 and went on to successfully defended her world crown six times, with quite an astonishing overall tally of 78 wins, four draws and one solitary lost game.

Her last title defence came right on the eve of war in 1939, a portent of bad omens to come perhaps for the best women player of her era, as she died - along with her mother and sister - on June 27, 1944, all too young at the age of just 38, the result of a fearsome German V1 rocket attack that obliterated her family home in South-West London.

July was always considered to be the “Menchik month”, with four of her title defences coming in that month. And as a tribute of sorts by FIDE to the fallen icon, the game’s governing body traditionally looks to stage the women’s world championship in July - the latest, which ran 5-24 July, being an all-Chinese affair , shared between Shanghai and Chongqing, respectively the home cities of the defending champion, Ju Wenjun, and her challenger, Lei Tingjie.

The 12-game match proved to be a very tense battle from start to finish, with the first half being edged by challenger Lei on the champion’s home turf, only to see Ju staging a dramatic comeback in her challenger’s patch, winning games 8 and 12 for a fitting finale as she edged home 6½-5½.

The decisive game proved to be a nervy and fluctuating affair of missed opportunities that took a turn for the worst for the challenger after a series of miscues and mishaps leading up to the time control, with any chances of saving the game and taking the match to a tiebreak playoff quickly evaporating as the cool head of the champion produced the accurate moves needed for a clutch win.

Ju Wenjun, 32, from Shanghai, grabbed the women’s crown for the first time in 2018 and has successfully triumphed in title battles now four times, first claiming the crown from Tan Zhongyi, and successfully defending her title three times against Aleksandra Goryachkina, Kateryna Lagno, with the latest being Lei Tingjie.

GM Ju Wenjun - GM Lei Tingjie

Women's World Chess Championship, (12)

 D04: Queen's Pawn Opening

1.d4 d5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.e3 c5 4.dxc5 e6 5.b4 a5 6.c3 axb4 7.cxb4 b6 8.Bb5+ The opening has similar characteristics to the Semi-Slav Defence Noteboom Variation, but somewhat lacking the bite usually seen in this sharp line. 8...Bd7 9.Bxd7+ Nbxd7 10.a4 bxc5 11.b5 The passed queenside pawns are the only thing that gives Black a headache.

11...Qc7 12.Bb2 Bd6 13.O-O O-O 14.Nbd2 Rfc8 15.Qc2 c4 16.Bc3! Lei naturally sees her c4-f7 pawn chain as an asset - but Ju stays calm by first containing, and then pushing her own passed pawns up the board, as the deciding game in the match starts to dramatically swing the way of the defending champion. 16...Nc5 17.a5 Nb3 18.Bxf6?! This looks wrong, but amazingly, with the complications and time pressure, it spins the game Ju's way - stronger and better was the natural 18.Ra2! the point being that the a4-pawn can't be snatched as 18...Nxa5? 19.Rfa1! pins and wins the knight. 18...Nxa1 19.Bxa1 Qxa5 20.Qc3 Qxc3?! Lei trades queens and heads to the endgame, thinking she's easily going to pick off White's b-pawn - but she's misunderstood the complexities of the position. If Black wants to try to take the advantage, then she had to find the only try with 20...f6! that more or less forces 21.Qxa5 Rxa5 22.Bc3 Rxb5 23.Nd4 Rb7 24.Nxe6 Be5! 25.Nd4 Bxd4 26.exd4 Ra8 and Black's rooks become very active, and it is not so easy here to undermine Black's pawns, as happens in the game. 21.Bxc3 Rcb8 22.Nd4 e5 23.Nf5 Bf8 24.Bxe5 Rxb5 25.g4 Stopping the tricky pawn push ...d4 winning a piece. 25...g6 26.Nd4 Rb2?

(see diagram) It’s the all-too-human reaction - but this starts the game spiralling out of control for Black. The engine wants to play the better 26...Rb6 27.g5 (stopping ...f6) 27...h6 28.h4 hxg5 29.hxg5 Bg7 30.N2f3 Ra3 and we do have an intense struggle ahead; and one not so easy for White to win, though not for Black to defend. 27.Nb1! Like a laser, Ju quickly hones in on the troubles in the Black camp, as there's no way to prevent Nc3 forcing Black into a passive defence of the d5-pawn. 27...Bg7 28.Bxg7 Kxg7 29.Nc3 Ra5 30.Rd1 Rb6 31.Nde2 Rb3 32.Kg2! Strong than the immediate capture of the pawn, which, to be honest about it, isn't going anywhere anytime soon - and Ju Wenjun realises this, as she just gets her ducks in a row by first bringing her king into the game and the middle of the board for a stronger endgame. A very wise decision for the defending champion in a crucial game, as can be seen with a very hasty snatch of the d5-pawn with 32.Rxd5?! (Probably a little better is 32.Nxd5 but again, after 32...Rd3 33.Ndc3 Rxd1+ 34.Nxd1 Ra1 35.Nc3 g5 36.Kg2 h5! Black should be holding easily enough) 32...Rxd5 33.Nxd5 Rd3! 34.Nec3 g5 35.Kg2 h5! 36.Kf3 Kg6 and Black has excellent prospects of holding the game, the difference being his strong rook and the pawns being liquidated on the kingside. 32...h6?! Better was 32...g5, though White continues with 33.Kf3 much in the same vein as in the game. 33.Kf3 f6 Lei Tingjie is being uber-cautious here, hoping not to play anything too committal - but this just plays into her opponent's hands, as she masterfully re-arranges her furniture to pick off the d5-pawn. Trouble is, when d5 falls, the c4-pawn will not be far behind it! 34.Rc1 Kf7 35.Nf4! d4 The only forlorn hope now - if White is allowed to play Nfxd5, then there will quickly follow Kf3-e4-d4 to corral the c4-pawn. 36.exd4 g5 37.Ne2 f5 I t's all too little too late now for Lei, as Ju almost effortlessly finishes off the game to once again retain her title. 38.gxf5 Rxf5+ 39.Ke3 g4 40.Nf4 Rb8 41.d5 Rf6 42.Rc2 Slowly and safe gets you the title, as Ju first covers the second rank weakness before moving in for the kill of the c4-pawn. 42...Ra8 43.Nb5 Rb6 44.Nd4 Ra3+ 45.Ke4 c3 46.Nfe2 Rb2 47.Kd3 The c-pawn is doomed - and resignation will not be far behind when it falls. 4 7...Rb1 48.Nxc3 Rh1 49.f3! Allowing White's passed d-pawn to be safely shepherded up the board by the knights and king. 49...gxf3 50.Nxf3 Rf1 51.Nd4 Ke7 52.Kc4 Rf4 53.Rb2 Rh4 54.Rb7+ Kf6 55.Rb2 Ra8 56.Kc5 Rh3 57.Ncb5 Re3 58.d6 Ke5 59.Nc6+ Ke4 Black would really like to track back with her king, but, alas... 59...Ke6 60.Nc7+ easily wins. 60.d7 Rd3 61.Nd6+ Kf4 62.Rb8 1-0

An Old Man & His Bad Habits

Fri, 21 Jul 2023 22:15:33 GMT

Leading Danish chess author, coach and former British champion GM Jacob Aagaard once famously derided the club player’s favourite London System (1.d4 2.Nf3 3.Bf4) as “the Old Man’s Bad Habit, not dangerous and not very interesting” - but the opening once exclusively associated with the greybeards has turned into a potent weapon for one of the early leaders in the US Senior Championship .

The event, being held at Saint Louis Chess Club , not only sees the stars of yesteryear doing battle, but a trifecta of generational national titles up for grabs that also includes the US Junior Championship and the US Girls' Junior Championship - but making the early running in the venerable US Senior Championship proved to be GM Max Dlugy, who used the London System to good effect to spring into the early joint-lead on 3.5/4 with GM Melik Khachiyan.

The London System is the ideal opening for those who do not wish to get heavily involved in a sharp, theoretical duel, nor to explore reams of opening theory, but prefer to simply complete their development in a solid, triangular non-confrontational way. The set-up of d4, Nf3, Bf4, e3, h3 and c3 can indeed be frustrating to play against - and this makes it an ideal opening not only for the busy club player but also at senior level.

I suppose if we are being pedantic about it, then 2.Bf4, as seen in today’s game, is not the London System, but rather the Mason Attack, named after James Mason ; no, not the Hollywood actor, but rather the great Irish-born British/American player who in the late 1880s was considered to be one of the world's best half-dozen players in the world - but invariably most games starting with Mason's eponymous 2.Bf4 tend to quickly transpose to “the London” with an early Nf3.

While the first recorded game was Labourdonnais-MacDonnell, London 1834 - which also started with 1.d4 2.Bf4 - it only truly evolved as an opening through Mason’s early championing of it, before reaching the pinnacle of recognition and development in theory praxis through its wide use during the great London International Tournament of 1922 .

But what’s in a name? And indeed, for over half a century it was simply regarded as being a "Queen's Pawn Opening", and only really receiving its metropolis nomenclature through the publication in the late 1970s of Tim Harding’s Batsford opening book, Colle, London and Blackmar-Diemar Systems , with the Irish author being among the first to coin it "the London System" in print.

GM Maxim Dlugy - GM Alexander Shabalov

U.S. Senior Championship, (4)

A45: Mason Attack/London System

1.d4 Nf6 2.Bf4 d5 3.e3 e6 4.Nd2 Bd6 5.Ngf3 As usual in the Mason Attack, invariably we reach the London System via a quick transposition. 5...O-O 6.Bd3 c5 7.c3 There are two-ways to play the London after ...Bd6 - one way is to retreat the bishop with Bg3, and the other, more interesting try for White, is to allow the exchange of the bishop on f4 and use the total control of e5 to be the fulcrum for your attack, as happens in this game. 7...Bxf4 8.exf4 cxd4 9.Nxd4 White doesn't want to be lumbered with an isolated queen's pawn early doors - what Dlugy intends first is Nd2-f3 followed by Re1 with a total grip of the all-important e5-square. 9...Nc6 10.N2f3 Qc7 11.g3 b6 12.O-O Bb7 13.Re1 Rad8 14.Ne5! g6 With White having a firm grip of the e5 square, now he can allow the isolated queen pawn, not fearing 14...Nxd4, as after 15.cxd4 White will be following up with Qa4 and Rac1 and promising play. 15.h4! Shabalov's last move was like a red rag to a bull for Dlugy, as suddenly the "boring opening" takes a turn for the vicious with the Caveman-lunge ! 15...Nxe5 16.Rxe5! Threatening a potential h5 sacrifice. 16...Rfe8 17.Re3

With the vital e6-pawn protected (and a little escape 'luft' created for the Black king through f8 and e7), not so dangerous now is 17.h5 Nxh5 18.Rxh5 gxh5 19.Qxh5 as Black has 19...f6 (Definitely not 19...f5?! 20.Bb5 Re7 21.Re1 Bc8 22.Nc6 Rf8 23.Nxe7+ Qxe7 24.Qd1! and Black faces a rather awkward defence with Qd4 and Re5 coming) 20.Bb5 Re7 21.Re1 a6 22.Bd3 Bc8 23.Qh4 Rf8 24.Qg4+ Kh8 (Bad is 24...Rg7? 25.Nxe6! Rxg4 26.Nxc7 and the position is not something Black can easily defend with so many weak and vulnerable pawns on the board) 25.Nxe6 f5! 26.Bxf5 Qd6 27.Re5 Rxf5! forcing White to seek the bailout with 28.Qxf5 Rxe6 29.Rxe6 Qxe6 30.Qf8+ Qg8 31.Qf6+ Qg7 32.Qd8+ and a perpetual. 17...e5 18.Rxe5 Rxe5 19.fxe5 Qxe5 20.Bf1! A clever, strategic full retreat from Dlugy, with the intention of a later Bg2 and pressure on the IQP. 20...Re8 21.Qa4 Another deft little touch from Dlugy, as it forces Shabalov to compromise his queenside pawns a little, that become a later target in the endgame. 21...a6 22.Qb3 Qd6 The only move, when you take into consideration that 22...b5? 23.a4! and Black's queenside collapses with the potential loss of pawns. 23.Rd1 Bc8 24.Qc2 Qe5 25.Qe2 Qd6 26.Qd2 Qe5 27.Nc2 Another nice little touch with Black having removed his bishop from defending the IQP, as Dlugy looks to increase pressure on the d5 pawn with Ne3 and Bg2 etc. 27...a5 28.Qd4! The more pieces that are exchanged now, the bigger White's endgame advantage becomes, as Black's queenside pawns quickly become liabilities. 28...Qxd4 29.Rxd4 The scene is set for an intriguing endgame tussle. There's not much in the game, but White has a little edge as it all becomes "awkward" for Black defending d5. 29...Kf8 30.Ne3 Re4?! Nobody likes being pinned down to a long-term defence of an isolated queen's pawn but, on reflection, more resilient would have been 30...Re5 31.Bg2 Be6 and it is not easy to see how White can formulate a winning breakthrough. 31.Rxe4 dxe4 32.Nc4 Be6 33.Nxb6 Bxa2 34.Bc4! Taking full advantage that Shabalov can't trade bishops, as 34...Bxc4 35.Nxc4 a4 36.Nb6 and the N+P ending is doomed for Black. 34...Bb1 35.Kf1 Ke7 36.Nd5+ Nxd5 37.Bxd5 If it were a bishop of opposite-colour ending, then you could probably bank on a draw soon, even if Black loses a pawn - but here, with the bishops being of the same colour, with all of Black's kingside pawns on white squares, and with a 2-1 queenside pawn majority, White does have genuine winning chances and rightly presses on. 37...f5?! Tempi can often be crucial in whether such endings can be drawn or even lost, and here, more logical was 37...Bd3+ 38.Ke1 f5 39.Kd2 Kf6 which would have been a more resilient defence, although White still retains some winning chances. 38.Ke2 Kf6 39.Ke3 Not easy finding the crucial calls coming up to the time-control territory, but more exact was 39.Bc4! with the threat of Kd2 and Kc1 forcing Bd3 and White winning the K+P ending after Bxd3 cxd3 and Kd2 picking off the pawn. This forces Black's hand somewhat, and now 39...Bc2 40.Kd2 Ba4 41.b4 axb4 42.cxb4 Ke7 43.Ke3 h6 44.b5 g5 45.hxg5 hxg5 46.g4! and a winning K+B endgame. 39...Ke5 40.Bf7! Looking to stop Black pushing his kingside pawns up the board with ...h6, ...g5 and ...f4+.

40...Bc2? How many times in chess have we witnessed a bad move played in haste on move 40 or even 41? Here, Shabalov just fails to see the subtle differences of what he played and what he should have played, the saving 40...Bd3! 41.h5 g5 42.h6 f4+ 43.Kd2 Kf6 44.Be8 Bc4 and Black more than easily holds the draw. 41.h5 gxh5 It was probably just dawning on Shabalov how stupid he'd been, realising only now that 41...g5 42.h6 f4+ (If 42...Kf6 43.Be8 Bb3 44.Kd4 Bc2 45.c4 is winning with the c-pawn running and the constant threat of Bg6 should the Black king move away from f6) 43.gxf4+ gxf4+ 44.Kd2! Vive la difference, as the French might say, as the tempi attacking the bishop proves decisive, as now 44...Bb1 45.Bg8 e3+ 46.fxe3 fxe3+ 47.Kxe3 is winning. But all is not lost for Shabaolv with 41.gxh5,,so long as he remains careful. Famous last words there! 42.Bxh5 Bb3 43.Be2 Bf7 44.Bb5 Bb3 45.c4 h5??

(see diagram) Shabalov truly has a “senior moment” as his h-pawn over-shots the runway! It's not easy to see how White wins after the correct 45...h6! 46.c5 Bf7! 47.Bd7 Bc4 48.c6 Bb5 and the train heading for the destination of Drawsville. 46.c5 h4 If 46...Kd5 47.Bd7 and White will systematically pick off all of Black's kingside pawns. 47.gxh4

I just love how nonchalantly Mr Engine chips in here that the most exacting, winning move 47.f4+! exf3 48.gxh4 Bd5 49.Bd7 Kf6 50.c6 etc. But there's nothing wrong with Dlugy's all-too-human winning plan. 47...f4+ 48.Kd2 Bf7 With passed pawns on both wings, Black is dead. The alternative was 48...Kd5 49.c6 Kd6 50.Kc3 Bf7 51.Kd4 much as in the game. 49.Kc3 Bh5 50.c6 Kd6 51.Kd4 Bf3 52.Ba4! 1-0 And a nice zugzwang to end the game, with Shabalov resigning as 52...Kc7 53.Bc2 nicely transposes down to a winning K+P ending for White with two extra kingside passed pawns.

Bobby's Blitzkrieg!

Wed, 19 Jul 2023 21:11:29 GMT

Many talking heads and pundits raved over Magnus Carlsen’s recent blitz performances in the same week, at the SuperUnited Rapid & Blitz in Zagreb, and online at Chess.com’s highly-competitive Titled Tuesday event, comparing them favourably with Bobby Fischer’s blitz feats from over half a century ago.

But point for point, opponent by opponent, Bobby’s performances through 1970/71 was arguably the more impressive, not to mention stunning in their execution, with the lone wolf American being well and truly in his pomp en route to seizing the world crown from the Soviet chess machine.

Fischer's phenomenal score of 19/22 (17 wins, four draws, and one solitary loss to Viktor Korchnoi) at Herceg Novi in 1970 is considered to be the ‘gold standard’, the best blitz performance ever. And just like Carlsen, many don’t realise that the American followed this up with another monumental blitz performance for a similar brace of results to the Norwegian.

Bobby’s feat in the first unofficial world blitz championship and the strongest speed tournament of the 20th century in then Yugoslavia saw him devastating a world-class field in the double round-robin, with "the deadly gamesman" of the era - as he was subsequently dubbed by Life Magazine - finishing 4.5 points ahead of Mikhail Tal in second place, as he obliterated the Soviet contingent, 8.5-1.5, whitewashing a troika of world champions in Tal, Tigran Petrosian and Vasily Smyslov, six-zip.

Another crucial factor in Fischer’s favour was that his play in Herceg Novi was extremely accurate throughout, whereas, in Zagreb, Carlsen rode his luck somewhat in more than a few games - even old foe and friend Tal was moved to marvel at Fischer’s play, commenting that “During the entire tournament he didn't leave a single pawn en prise, while the other players blundered knights and bishops galore!”

And you can see what Tal was getting at in the quality of Fischer’s games throughout at Herceg Novi, my own particular favourite being today’s King’s Indian Defence masterpiece against Korchnoi, where apparently he used only 2.5 minutes on his clock (!) to create this enduring and sparkling win.

And Bobby followed that epic blitz scoreline with another monster score of 21.5-0.5 in a very strong speed tournament held at the Manhattan Chess Club in August 1971 - with Fischer’s winning streak only coming to an end as he was held to a draw in a R+P endgame by Walter Shipman, the multi-time Manhattan club champion and former US championship contestant.

All told, Bobby’s blitzkrieg tally amassed 40.5-3.5 (+38 -1 =5, or 92 per cent) in two major back-to-back speed tournaments – Herceg Novi and the Manhattan tournaments – against players ranging from strong masters to world champions.

GM Viktor Korchnoi - GM Robert James Fischer

Herceg Novi Blitz 1970, (10)

E97: King's Indian Defence, Orthodox, Aronin-Taimanov variation

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.Be2 O-O 6.Nf3 e5 7.O-O Nc6 This usually heralds in the Mar del Plata Variation, pioneered by Svetozar Gligorić, who finely worked out this daring do-or-die variation for Black in his successful opening round match-up with Argentinian legend Miguel Najdorf at Mar del Plata 1953. 8.d5 Ne7 9.Nd2

The crunch line of the Mar del Plata variation usually sees 9. Ne1 and resulting carnage on both wings - but this more positional line, first played in early 1969 by Mark Taimanov, was favoured by the Soviets as being "best" at the time of this game. 9...c5 At the time, Fischer thought this to be the most logical move, slowing down White's queenside aspirations, and he even went on to successfully deploy it during his whitewashing of Bent Larsen in their 1971 Candidates Match semi-final. 10.a3 Too slow. It was Larsen, in the aforementioned match with Fischer, who discovered the best reply here to be 10.Rb1! - despite his loss to Fischer - going on to render the American's "logical move" of 9...c5 to be a waste of time, as White seizes the advantage on the queenside. 10...Ne8 11.b4 b6 12.Rb1 f5! With Fischer now having made all the necessary precautions on the queenside, he's ready to launch his kingside attack - and what a memorable attack it turns out to be! 13.f3 Better was 13.Nb3 as seen in the game Gligoric-Tringov, Belgrade, 1969. 13...f4 14.a4 g5 15.a5 Rf6! 16.bxc5? As Fischer observes, this was a "terrible mistake" that even Korchnoi acknowledged after the game, because now it is impossible for White to get any breaks/initiative on the queenside, whereas Black now has a free hand to wreak havoc on the kingside. 16...bxc5 17.Nb3 Rg6 18.Bd2 Nf6 Also good for Black was the direct 18...h5! The bottom line, though, is that with Korchnoi's mistake on the queenside, just about any direct move on the kingside from Fischer crashes through. 19.Kh1 g4 Fischer himself admitted that more exact was probably 19...h5! 20.fxg4 A forced move from Korchnoi, as he simply can't allow Fischer to play with impunity 20...g3 as 21.h3 will be hit by 21...Bxh3 etc. 20...Nxg4 21.Rf3? Fischer thought that 21 Bf3! was better, with a more tenacious defence. 21...Rh6 22.h3 Ng6 23.Kg1 Nf6 24.Be1 Nh8!! Such strange retreating knight manoeuvres are crucial in this KID 'Death Variation', as it remerges via h8-f7-g5 both hitting e4 and ready to inflict the decisive blow on White's king. 25.Rd3 Nf7 26.Bf3 Instead, 26.h4!? may have held up the attack - but it would only delay the inevitable, as Black's forces are poised and ready to strike. 26...Ng5 27.Qe2 Rg6 28.Kf1

(see diagram) Sensing the imminent dangers from a sacrificial "moment" on h3, Korchnoi flees with his king - but to no avail. And note that if 28.Kh2 Rh6! just intensifies the threat of a looming sacrifice on h3. 28...Nxh3! It was only a matter of time for this sacrifice to crash through for Black. 29.gxh3 Bxh3+ 30.Kf2 Remarkably for this well-executed attack from Fischer, he was only spending about 2-3 seconds per move (!) - and it almost backfired, as he admitted momentarily his "hand hovered over White's Pawn on e4", but at the last second, he realised that 30...Nxe4 would be answered by 31.Qxe4! and White wins. 30...Ng4+ 31.Bxg4 Bxg4 0-1 And here Korchnoi, seeing no defence to the double threat of 31...Bxe2 and 32...Qh4+ resigned.

Touring Toronto

Mon, 17 Jul 2023 21:28:30 GMT

He may well be sans the main world crown, but Magnus Carlsen showed he’s still the ‘king’ with yet another tournament triumph to add to his impressive haul of late, as the Norwegian ace crushed Wesley So in the Division 1 Grand Final of the Aimchess Rapid, the fourth leg in the $2m Champions Chess Tour 2023 season.

The in-form world No. 1 has hit a rich vein of form over the past couple of weeks with a series of dominant performances. He raced his way to the Grand Final without losing a game, and then cruised his way to the title in the Grand Final, going 2-0 up against So, before his only loss with the American winning game 3.

But Carlsen was never in any danger of seeing the match going to extra time of a tiebreak-decider, hitting back immediately by winning game 4 to claim victory 3-1 to take the $30,000 first prize and a maximum of 150 Tour points. The defending Tour champion now retains the lead at the top of the Tour leaderboard, as he leapfrogs Hikaru Nakamura - who didn’t qualify via the play-in for the Aimchess Rapid - who slips to fourth place, with Fabiano Caruana and Nodirbek Abdusattorov now in second and third place respectively.

There are now only two events (to be held in late August and late September) still left to play in the regular Tour season before the split for the megabucks playoffs - and news was released recently about where the Tour climax of the playoffs and final will be taking place.

Last week, Chess.com announced Toronto as the host city for the Live 2023 Champions Chess Tour Finals. At stake in the Canadian city will be the little matter of the split of the $500,000 prize money and the title of the 2023 Tour Champion. All Tour winners during the regular season already have a ‘golden ticket’ into the main event, who are: Carlsen (Airthings Masters and Aimchess Rapid), Nakamura (Chessable Masters) and Abdusattorov (ChessKid Cup).

The remaining spots up for grabs in the final two events of the regular season will therefore likely be hotly contested, and after that, spots distributed via points scored in the season-long Tour Leaderboard.

Tour Leaderboard:

1. M. Carlsen (Norway) 375 points; 2. F. Caruana (USA) 280; 3. N. Abdusattorov (Uzbekistan) 275; 4. H. Nakamura (USA) 270; 5. W. So (USA) 205; 6. J. van Foreest (Netherlands) 95; 7. V. Fedoseev (FIDE) 90; 8. L. Aronian (USA) 80; 9. Yu Yangyi (China) 69; 10. D. Lazavik (FIDE) 60.

GM Magnus Carlsen - GM Wesley So

Aimchess Rapid Div 1 Final, (1) 

E05: Catalan Open

1.d4 d5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.c4 e6 4.g3 Carlsen is a relative newcomer to the Catalan - but it seems to suit his style of play where he's not averse to sacrificing a pawn for long-term piece activity. 4...Be7 5.Bg2 O-O 6.O-O dxc4 7.Qa4 a6 8.Qxc4 b5 9.Qc2 Bb7 10.Bd2 An innocuous little move that actually contains some bite, as left to his own devices White will play Ba5 making the defence of the c-pawn difficult. 10...Be4 So wants to play ...c6 without locking his bishop in behind his pawns. 11.Qc1 c6 12.e3 Nbd7 13.Nc3 Bg6 14.Nh4 Bh5 15.Qe1 The Catalan is full of strange strategic manoeuvres - this one facilitates Nc3-e2-f4 and at the same time threatens Ba5 and Rac1. 15...Rc8 16.Ne2 c5 Black's game would be very uncomfortable if he couldn't get in the freeing ...c5. 17.Ba5 Qe8 18.Nf4 Bd8

The purists among you would no doubt have opted for the more natural and Slav-like 18...Bg6 19.Nhxg6 hxg6 with a minimal edge for White. 19.Nxh5 Nxh5 20.Nf3 Nhf6 21.Rc1 c4?! All of So's problems stem from this wrong 'un. Better first was 21...Nd5 looking to lure White into 22.Qd2 and now 22...c4 as 23.b3 is well met by 23...N7f6! and Black seems to be unravelling nicely with his knights taking up excellent outposts. 22.b3! With this intuitive counter-punch, Carlsen doesn't give So a chance to regroup his pieces, with the American having to tread carefully just to stay in the game. 22...Nd5 23.bxc4 bxc4 24.e4 N5f6 25.Bc3! Carlsen has emerged with a promising position with the bishop-pair and more space due to his central pawns - and more crucially, there's now a long-term target with Black's fractured queenside pawns that could become a big liability heading into the endgame. 25...Nb6 26.Qe2 Be7 27.Rc2 With the plan of either doubling rooks on the c-file or Rb1 and there's no way to defend the c4-pawn. 27...Na4 28.Rb1 Nxc3 29.Rxc3 Qd7 30.Rxc4 Rxc4 31.Qxc4 Nxe4 32.Ne5! It's always trouble for Black when the Catalan knight ominously swings into e5! 32...Qd5 33.Qd3 Just about the only miscue from Carlsen in this game - I fully expected 33.Qxd5! exd5 34.Rb7 and a typical Carlsen grind-o-rama . 33...f5 34.Qxa6 g6?! (see diagram) Very strange - the logical counterplay continuation was 34...Ra8!? 35.Qd3 Bf6 36.Rb5 Qxa2 37.Bxe4 fxe4 38.Qxe4 Rd8 and White still has a lot of work left to do at the office to convert for a win. 35.Rb5?! Carlsen readily admitted after the game that So's last move confused him - and so much so that he missed the winning plan of 35.Rb7! leaving Black struggling to survive. with the bishop attacked and Rd7 and Qxe6+ threatened. If 35...Qxd4 (The alternatives fair no better. If 35...Qd6 36.Qa7 Re8 with a decisive, winning advantage or 35...Bf6 36.Bxe4 fxe4 37.Rd7 Ra8 38.Qb6)

36.Qxe6+ Kh8 37.Bxe4 fxe4 38.Nf7+ Kg7 39.Qe5+! Qxe5 40.Nxe5 transposing down to a winning K+P ending)

35...Qxd4 36.Qxe6+ Kh8 37.Bxe4 fxe4 38.Nf7+ Kg7 This was the reason So opted for...g6 - and with it confusing Carlsen, it almost saves the game for Black. 39.Qe5+ Qxe5 40.Nxe5 Ra8! Activity in the endgame can often safeguard the draw - but alas, down on the clock, the American fails to follow up with the right plan to save the game. 41.Nc6 Kf7?? Snatching a loss from the jaws of a draw! The logical move to continue the counterplay and save the ending was 41...Bf6! and Black defends, as now 42.Ra5 (If 42.Na5?! Bc3=) 42...Rc8 43.Ra6 (If 43.Nb4 Bd4! targeting f2 and covering a7 stopping the pawn from advancing) 43...Re8 44.a4 e3 45.fxe3 Rxe3 46.a5 Ra3 47.Ra7+ Kh6 48.Kg2 Rc3 49.Ra6 Ra3 50.Ra8 (If 50. Rb6 Bg5! 51.Rb5 Be3 52.Re5 Bd2 53.Kf2 Kg7 54.Ke2 Bc3 55.Rc5 Ba1 56.Nb4 Bd4 57.Rc7+ Kf6 58.a6 Ke6! 59.Rxh7 Bc5 60.Nd3 Ra2+ 61.Kf1 Ra1+ 62.Kg2 Ra2+ 63.Kf3 Ra3 64.Ke2 Ra2+ etc White can't make progress with his extra pawn due to Black's active R+B) 50...Rc3 51.Rc8 Ra3 and with careful play Black holds the draw. 42.Rb7 1-0 So resigns as White transitions down to an easily winning K+P after a series of forced exchanges on e7.

Sonic the Hedgehog

Fri, 14 Jul 2023 20:27:54 GMT

Freed of the shackles and responsibilities of being the world champion, it’s a more laissez-faire and freewheelin’ Magnus Carlsen we are now witnessing in tournaments, as seen in his two maximum performances of late: 11/11 in Chess.com’s Titled Tuesday immediately followed by 9/9 in the SuperUnited blitz in Zagreb, the latest leg of the $1.4m Grand Chess Tour.

Hard on the heels of those performances, Carlsen continued with a breath-taking start to Chess.com’s flagship $2m Champions Chess Tour Aimchess Rapid , with the world #1 easily securing his seat in the Grand Final as he clinched a troika of unbeaten wins over his former aide Jorden Van Foreest (2½-½), old title foe and US champion Fabiano Caruana (2½-1½), before dispatching Uzbek rising star Nodirbek Abdusattorov (2½-½)

And the Carlsen carnage continued, with the unstoppable Norwegian almost effortlessly overpowering Wesley So by 3-1 in the Grand Final. The only scant conciliation for the US #3 - who remarkably completed a spectacular Losers Bracket run - in their best-of-four-games match was that, unlike the others, he managed to at least take a game off of Carlsen!

The emphatic run to the Grand Final and victory, allowed Carlsen to walk away with the $30,000 first prize and a very valuable 150 Tour points - and being the only player with two Tour titles to his name this year, he now ominously moves up two spots in the Leaderboard , up to 375 points, as he takes the lead at the top by leapfrogging Hikaru Nakamura, now in second spot, on 250 points.

One of Carlsen’s key wins en route to the Grand Final witnessed the return of a once-popular defence seldom seen in elite praxis these days: The Sicilian Hedgehog - which can also be reached via the English/Reti Opening - one of the most remarkable theoretical milestones of the 1970s. The Swedish Grandmaster, Ulf Andersson , was one of the earliest proponents. Many leading Grandmasters followed, notably Ljubomir Ljubojevic , followed suit - and even Garry Kasparov - as they realised not just the rock-solid defensive qualities of the Hedgehog system, but, more importantly, their counter-attacking chances.

All good and well, but you can see an early Tal-like knight sacrifice in the middle of the board that, despite being a common Hedgehog sacrificial motif, yet no matter how many times you see it, or face it across the board, the shock value alone is priceless.

GM Magnus Carlsen - GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov

Aimchess Rapid Div 1 Final, (3)

 B40: Sicilian Defence, Hedgehog system

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Bd3 d6 6.c4 The Maróczy Bind, named after the early 20th-century Hungarian grandmaster Géza Maróczy , aims to put a big clamp on the d5 square to stifle Black activity in the center of the board. 6...Be7 7.Nc3 a6 8.Be3 O-O 9.O-O b6 10.f4 Qc7 With ...Nbd7 and ...Bb7 soon to follow, we have the basic "Hedgehog formation", chiefly characterised by its third-rank pawn formation acting as fourth-rank "quills" stopping any white advance. 11.Rc1 Nbd7 12.g4 Nc5 13.Bb1 Bb7 The full Hedgehog; the strategy for black is, as white moves forward, to counter-punch with a timely breakthrough with either ...d5 or ...b5 levers. 14.Qf3 g6 15.b4 Ncd7 16.g5 Nh5 17.Nd5!? It’s that Tal-like knight sacrifice that’s often seen in the Hedgehog - mostly you can just play around it, as Abdusattorov does, or it can lead to a total meltdown for Black if handled badly. 17...Qd8 It's really tough facing Magnus Carlsen across the board, rather than having Mr Engine kibitzing that the "safer option" was just to take the knight. But just a glance at some of the variations might have been enough to convince Abdusattorov not to take the knight - but there's the rub as, with very accurate play, it is, indeed, Black's best option. The lines run 17...exd5!? 18.Nf5! Qd8 (Bad is 18...gxf5? 19.cxd5! Qb8 20.Qxh5 fxe4 21.Bd4 Qe8 22.f5 with a winning attack. Meanwhile 18...Rae8 19.cxd5 Qd8 20.Qg4 Bc8 the engine says is marginally better for Black, but you try convincing yourself of this when you have a rampant Magnus Carlsen facing you over the board!) 19.exd5 Ng7 20.Nh6+ Kh8 21.Qg2! Preparing the way for crashing through with f5 while defending g5. 21...f6 22.Bd4 The engine soon finds the accurate way for black to play, but with the alignment of White's pieces, when you start to see such visions in your head, doubt creeps in - but after 22...fxg5 23.fxg5 Qc7! 24.Rf7 (If 24.Qb2? Ne5 and Black has a big advantage both materially and positionally) 24...Ne5! White has nothing, and has to seek the bailout now with 25.Rcf1 Rxf7 26.Nxf7+ Kg8 27.Nh6+ Kh8 28.Nf7+ and a repetition. 18.Nxe7+ Qxe7 19.Qh3 Rae8 The whole rationale of the Hedgehog is to counter-strike - and here, the best move was 19...a5! 20.b5 Rac8 with the queenside pawns fixed, and a big hole again on c5 for the knight to jump into and hit e4, Black is more than holding his own in a balanced position. 20.Rce1 Qd8 21.Ne2 e5? The young Uzbek cracks under the pressure and lashes out unwisely. Best was to look for good waiting move for now, such as 21...Qc8! 22.f5 f6 23.Qh4 Rf7 24.Rd1 Qc7 25.Bd3

Abdusattorov is just managing to stay in the game - but he's eaten up a lot of clock time and allowed Carlsen too many easy moves to get his pieces into prime position for the attack. 25...Ref8 26.gxf6 More convincing was the rook 'luft' 26.Rf3! with the dual plan of either doubling rooks on the f-file or jumping over to the h-file and pressure down the h-file. 26...Ndxf6 27.Bh6 g5? This is just a blunder that should lose - this is what happens when you crack under severe pressure when you play Carlsen. There was nothing wrong with the retreat 27...Ng7 28.Ng3 b5! (Taking full advantage that White can't double capture on b5 due to ...Qb6+) 29.cxb5 axb5 30.Qg5 Qb6+ 31.Kh1 Qd4! and a finely balanced game with both sides having weaknesses and their kings exposed. 28.Qxg5+ Kh8 29.Bxf8 Rxf8 30.Ng3 Rg8 31.Qh6 Qf7 It could well be as simple as Abdusattorov imploding under the clock pressure, and that his intended move 31...Qg7 is easily met by 32.Qxg7+ Rxg7 33.Bb1 and Black's position collapses after 33...Nxg3 34.hxg3 Rd7 35.c5! 32.Be2?! The only miscue for Carlsen in this game, and down to his clock pressure - what was needed was the subtle move 32.Rf2! b5 (The reason for Rf2 is that 32...Nxg3 33.hxg3 Nxe4 34.Bxe4 Bxe4 35.Rxd6 Rxg3+ 36.Kh2 and there's no ...Rg2+ threat) 33.c5! dxc5 34.bxc5 Qe7 35.Kf1! You got to admire the resourcefulness of the engine in such double-edged positions! 35...Qxc5 36.Rf3 and Black has nothing better than 36...Nxg3+ 37.hxg3 Qe7 38.Re1 with White having everything covered and retaining a big material advantage. 32...Nf4? A blunder too many, and it should really be game over. The only hope was forcing the R+P ending with 32...Nxg3 33.hxg3 Nxe4 34.g4 Nc3 35.Kf2! once again, the engine finds the most resourceful move. 35...Nxe2 36.Qxd6! Re8 37.Qd7 Re7 38.Qd8+ Re8 39.Rd7 Rxd8 40.Rxf7 Be4! and it is not easy for White to win, as 41.Kxe2 Bd3+ 42.Kf2 Bxc4! 43.Rb7 Bxf1 44.Kxf1 Rd4 45.Rxb6 Rxg4 46.a3 a5! The only move. 47.b5 (A mistake is 47.bxa5? Ra4! and we have a textbook R+P drawing ending) 47...Kg7 48.Ke2 a4 49.Rb8 Rg2+ 50.Kd1 Kf6 51.b6 Rg7 52.Rf8+ Kg5 53.f6 Rb7 54.f7 Kf6! 55.Ra8 Rxf7 56.Rxa4 (It is easy to go wrong in a R+P ending with 56.Ra7? Rf8 57.Rxa4 Ke6 58.Ra7 Rb8 59.Rxh7 Kd5 and a technical draw) 56...Rb7 57.Rb4 Ke7 58.a4 winning. 33.Rxf4! Black's position is imploding - but both players face a horological horror challenge due to a lack of time leading to a series of mutual blunders. 33...exf4 34.Qxf4 Nxe4 35.Kf1 The simple way to win, just nudging the king out of the pin down the g-file and asking your opponent the big question: What do you have now?

35...Qg7 36.f6! Nxf6 37.Ke1? (see diagram) The simple way to win was 37.Qxd6 Rf8 38.Kg1! Ne4 39.Qd4! Rf6 40.Qd7 forcing the queens off with 40...Nxg3 41.Qxg7+ Kxg7 42.hxg3 and a clear winning endgame with the extra pawn and better potential for the rook on the d-file. 37...Qe7? Right idea, wrong execution! After 37...Re8! 38.Rxd6 Ne4 39.Nxe4 Bxe4 Black should easily hold with White's king exposed and in the open. 38.Qxd6 Qg7 A sure sign from Abdusattorov that he realised he has blundered away any chance he had of saving this game. 39.Qxb6 Re8 40.Rd8! Gifted a second chance to win the game, Carlsen doesn't waste it! 40...Rxd8 41.Qxd8+ Ng8 42.Nf5 Qc3+ 43.Kf2 1-0 And Abdusattorov resigns, as Carlsen can easily trade down to a clear winning endgame after

43...Qe5 44.Qd4 Qxd4+ 45.Nxd4 etc.

The Magnus Carlsen Show

Tue, 11 Jul 2023 01:35:23 GMT

After a sub-par rapid performance from Magnus Carlsen in the SuperUnited Rapid & Blitz in Zagreb, once again the “time to retire” chatter resurfaced - only for Carlsen to defy his critics by storming back on the opening day of the blitz with a truly Carlsen-esque performance, with the World #1 scoring a perfect 9/9!

Many often hail Bobby Fischer's 19/22 at Herceg Novi in 1970 to be the greatest blitz performance of the 20th Century and perhaps of all time. But after Carlsen blew the field away with his sensational start of 9/9, the pundits and talking heads began to speculate that the Norwegian could possibly match or even better Fischer’s phenomenal feat that’s stood now for over half a century.

But it wasn't to be. Carlsen came right back down to Earth on day 2 by scoring 6/9 - but the damage had already been done, and this was more than enough for Carlsen to take outright victory with three rounds to spare, as he finished on 26/36 - just a point shy of his own 27/36 record-score in the 2019 Tata Steel Rapid & Blitz - to claim the first prize of $40,000.

Despite the big comeback victory, Carlsen would have been disappointed that he lost to 3rd place Alireza Firouzja, as this meant he narrowly missed out on reclaiming the blitz World #1 spot (https://2700chess.com/blitz), with only 9 rating points now separating the top two, as American speed maven Hikaru Nakamura slips down to #3.

Nevertheless, Carlsen was euphoric in victory, and especially pleased with his opening day perfect streak, as he stated in his presser: "That achievement feels sweeter than almost any tournament win because it's something I've never done before and won’t do again."

Final Standings:

1. M. Carlsen (Norway) 26/36; 2. I. Nepomniachtchi (FIDE) 22.5; 3. A. Firouzja (France) 22; 4. F. Caruana (USA) 21.5; 5. Gukesh D. (India) 19.5; 6. R. Rapport (Romania) 19; 7-8. JK. Duda (Poland), V. Anand (India) 16.5; 9. I. Saric (Croatia) 12; 10. C. Lupluescu (Romania) 4.5.

GM Magnus Carlsen - GM Jan-Krzysztof Duda

SuperUnited Blitz, (2)

 E04: Catalan Open

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.g3 It has only been in the last few years that Magnus Carlsen has taken up the Catalan - and it has added a new dynamic to the world No.1's game with an opening jam-packed with tons of hidden ideas and permanent positional pressure to terrorise opponents. 4...dxc4 5.Bg2 a6 6.O-O Nc6 7.Be3 Bd7 8.Qc1 b5 9.b3! A common pawn-sacrifice motif in the Catalan, with White's compensation coming with lots of open lines for his active pieces to explore; and an added bonus being that it is not easy for Black to unravel without either returning the pawn or seeing White dominate the centre. 9...cxb3 10.axb3 Nd5 11.Bg5 Be7 12.Bxe7 Ncxe7 13.Nbd2 b4 14.Ne5 Bb5 15.Re1 O-O Not an easy position to asses with the vagaries of blitz, but one potential pitfall is the obvious 15...Nc3?! that soon backfires after 16.Bxa8 Qxa8 17.Qc2! Qd5 (Not recommended is 17...Nxe2+?! 18.Rxe2 Bxe2 19.Qxc7 Qc8 20.Qa7 Bb5 21.Ndc4 Qd8 22.Qc5! where, despite the engine declaring it digitally drawing with "0.00", the position is just all the more awkward for Black) 18.Ndf3 O-O 19.e4 Qd6 20.Nc4 and once again, just a little awkward for Black, especially with the impressive looking ...Nc3 all dressed up but nowhere to go, and likely to become a handicap in the long-term. 16.Ne4 Qb8 More solid looked 16...Ng6 17.Nc4 c6 but I can understand Duda's desire to try to move things along and not allow a knight to potentially swing into d6. 1 7.h4 Qb6 18.e3 a5 19.Nc4 It was about now, as Carlsen started to take more control, that we begin to see the difficulties of Duda's position - but at least he has hung on to his extra pawn. 19...Bxc4?! The positon is just "awkward" for Black, so Duda lashes out with a promising exchange sacrifice, putting his faith in his passed queenside pawns - but Carlsen easily contains the pawns. 20.bxc4 Nf6 21.Nxf6+ gxf6 22.Bxa8 Rxa8 23.Ra4 In the ensuing blitz mayhem, Carlsen misses the more accurate 23.Qd1! immediately with the major threat of Qf3, leaving Black to consider 23...Nc6 (If 23...Qb7 24.Qg4+ Kf8 25.Ra4! Nc6 26.Rea1 Rb8 27.Qf4 Kg7 28.Qg4+! Kf8 29.d5! exd5 30.cxd5 Ne5 31.Qe4 and the loose state of Black's king and pawns offers White good chances of winning; and if 23...c5 as in the game, then 24.Qg4+ Kf8 25.Qf3 is close to killing) 24.Qg4+ Kf8 25.Ra4 Rb8 26.Rea1 Qa6 27.Rc1 Qb6 28.Qf3 Kg7 29.Qg4+ Kf8 30.Qd1! with the plan of Qb3 and Rca1 and the threat of d5 picking off the a5-pawn. 23...c5! This move should be enough to save Duda - but he has used up a lot of time on his clock just to get to this position, and it is not as easy to make the accurate follow-ups needed. 24.Qd1 f5?! Duda begins to panic about Qg4+ - with more time to properly asses the situation, he would have realised that 24...Nc6! 25.Qf3 Kg7 26.Qg4+ Kf8 27.dxc5 Qxc5 28.Qf4 Kg7 and with the queenside pawns posing a long-term danger, Black is easily holding for the draw. 25.h5 h6 Duda continues to worry about kingside threats - and this time, there's no chance to try 25...Nc6? as now comes 26.d5! exd5 27.Qxd5 Re8 28.Qxf5 h6 29.Rea1 Re5 30.Qg4+ Kf8 31.Rd1 and Black's king is in grave danger. 26.Qa1 cxd4 Once again there's no time for the consolidating 26...Nc6 as 27.d5! and Black is bust with the Qa1 covering e5, and now 27...exd5 28.cxd5 Nd8 29.e4! and Black's king in again in danger as the game bursts open. 27.exd4 f4! Duda is fighting hard to stay in the game - and he almost does. 28.g4 Nc6 29.Re4 b3 With the flag on his digital clock metaphorically hanging, Duda reaches for the obvious threat of pushing his b-pawn. Now admittedly, this position is difficult, and given its blitz even more so, but in chess one of the hardest moves to spot is a retreating queen move, and here 29...Qd8! saves the game with the queen coming to g5, as 30.Kg2 Qg5 31.f3 Rd8 and Black has more than enough resources here to hold for the draw. 30.Qb2 e5 31.dxe5 Rd8 32.e6 It's amazing how easily things begin to fall apart first for Duda, and then for Carlsen, due to their mutual clock predicament. 32...Rd1+ 33.Kg2 f3+ 34.Kxf3?

Mutual zeitnot - the accurate way to play was 34.Kg3! Qb8+ and only now 35.Kxf3! fxe6 36.Kg2 Qb7 37.f3 e5 and a mess of a position that, jokingly, the engine claims to be "0.00" - easier said than done with the vagaries of blitz, as either side is quite capable of losing this position within a few moves. 34...Nd4+ 35.Kg2 Nxe6 36.c5 (see diagram) A good a punt as any from Carlsen in the blitz time-scramble, but it's enough to confuse Duda, who somehow manages to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. 36...Qc6?? By this stage, with both players bashing out the moves, it just isn't easy to see the subtle winning moves as the engine does. And here, instead of dropping the all-important b-pawn, after 36...Qb5! due to the ...Qf1+ threat, White is simply lost. If 37.Rac4 (What else is there? If 37.Qe2 Nf4+! wins the queen) 37...a4! 38.c6 a3 39.Qf6 b2 40.Rxe6 Qd5+ 41.Rce4 fxe6 42.Qg6+ Kf8 43.Qf6+ Ke8 44.Qh8+ Ke7 45.Qg7+ Kd6 46.Qf8+ Kxc6 47.Qc8+ Kb6 48.Qb8+ Qb7 with no checks left and resignation next for White. So Carlsen's streak should have been over even before it started! 37.Qxb3 Rd5 In his haste not to lose on time, Duda probably intended 37...Ng5 only to realise at the last moment that 38.Qxd1 Nxe4 39.Qd8+ Kh7 40.Rd4! and the discovered check with 40...Nxc5+ is meaningless after 41.Qd5 - such is blitz life! 38.Rac4 Nxc5 39.Qb8+ Kg7 40.Kh2! A number of ways to win now, but cool as a cucumber, Carlsen just steps out of the pin down the long a8-h1 diagonal to leave Duda close to the point of resignation. 40...Rd2 41.Qe5+ Kh7 42.Qxc5 1-0 And with a heavy loss of material, Duda resigns.

The Circus is in Town!

Thu, 06 Jul 2023 19:26:38 GMT

The chess world is almost resembling a travelling circus these days. There are rivalling big-money tours, online tours, team-franchise events and an ongoing Armageddon Series, to name but a few. And with little or no rest to breathe between them, “one town’s very like the other,” as the lyrics to Chess the Musical's hit One Night in Bangkok would have it.

And following hard on the heels of the inaugural Tech Mahindra Global Chess League in Dubai, a number of the big names packed their bags and headed straight over to Croatia for the Superunited Rapid & Blitz in Zagreb, the third leg and midway point of the $1.4m Grand Chess Tour ; a series of five classical and speed tournaments held in Europe and the USA that will conclude in Saint Louis through November and early December with the season-ending Sinquefield Cup.

The GCL in Dubai might not have ended in success for Indian legend Vishy Anand, but it definitely blew away all the rust from lack of tournament praxis for the five-time ex-World Champion, with the wild card hitting the ground running in Zagreb with two wins and a draw (with the rapid scoring 2 points for a win and 1 point for a draw) to take the opening-day honours, as he leads the 10-player field by a point.

Tied for second place are World No.1 Magnus Carlsen, Jan-Krzystof Duda, and Richard Rapport, each just a point behind Anand. And while a rejuvenated Anand impressed, another opening-day standout performer proved to be the always-entertaining and enlightening Rapport, with his brace of impressive wins over Fabiano Caruana and Duda.

The 2023 SuperUnited Rapid & Blitz can be followed live each day starting at 7:05 AM CT with Grandmaster commentators Yasser Seirawan, Evgenij Miroshnichenko, Cristian Chirila and International Master Nazi Paikidze on the official Grand Chess Tour site and on the Saint Louis Chess Club’s YouTube and Twitch.tv channels.

Rapid Day 1

1. V. Anand (India) 5/6; 2-4. M. Carlsen (Norway), JK Duda (Poland, R. Rapport (Romania) 4; 5-6. F. Caruana (USA), I. Saric (Croatia) 3; 7-9. A. Firouzja (France), I. Nepomniachtchi (FIDE), Gukesh D. (India) 2; 10. C. Lupulescu (Romania) 1.

GM Richard Rapport - GM Fabiano Caruana

SuperUnited Rapid 2023, (1)

 C00: French, King's Indian Attack

1.e4 e6 2.d3 The King's Indian Attack against the French Defence is very rarely - if ever - seen at the top-level anymore these days; but this was a big favourite of the young Bobby Fischer , who saw no wrong in it, as he would get a King's Indian Defence with an extra tempo. 2...d5 3.Nd2 Nf6 4.e5 The KIA of 4.Ngf3 c5 5.g3 Nc6 6.Bg2 has all been well-worked out with the correct Black set-up to stop the vicious kingside assault that a young Fischer used to revel in. 4...Nfd7 5.f4 c5 6.g3 Nc6 7.Bg2 f6 8.exf6 Nxf6 9.Ngf3 Bd6 10.O-O O-O 11.Re1 Qc7 12.Qe2

The early battle is over control of the vital e5-square - White cannot afford to let Black play ...e5 to burst the game open. 12...Bd7 13.c3 Kh8 14.Nb3 b6 If 14...Rae8 15.Ne5! with d4 coming next. 15.d4 Ne7 16.Be3 Nf5 17.Bf2 Ne4 18.Nbd2 Nxf2 19.Qxf2 Rac8 20.Kh1 cxd4 21.Nxd4 There's really nothing in the game with Rapport happy to see pawns and pieces being exchanged off. 21...e5 22.fxe5 Bxe5 23.Nxf5 Rxf5 24.Qe3 Bd6 25.Nb3 Now the focus moves to control of the d4-square and the battle over Black's isolated d-pawn - but as usual in these IQP scenarios, Black has the bishop-pair and active play for compensation. 25...Rcf8 26.Nd4 Rf2 27.Re2 R2f6 28.Rae1 b5 Two better alternatives looked like 28...Qc4!? 29.a3 Bg4 30.Rd2 or just cut to the chase with 28...Bg4!? 2 9.a3 a5

Caruana is looking to break-up the queenside with ...b4 and open the game more for his active pieces - but he is handicapped somewhat by the awkward IQP. 30.Qg5 b4 31.axb4 axb4 32.Re3?! Simpler and better was 32.Qxd5 bxc3 33.bxc3 Qxc3 34.Ne6 Rxe6 35.Rxe6 Bxe6 36.Qxe6 and next stop is Drawsville. 32...bxc3 33.bxc3 Bc5 Also good was the alternative of 33...Qc4!? with the looming threat of a "happening" on f1 indirectly protecting the IQP. 34.Qe5 Qb6 35.Qxd5 Bc6 36.Nxc6! Rapport gets to "mix it up" a little with a queen sacrifice, but not one that should be winning - though enough to make Caruana eat well into his clock time that ultimately proves fatal for the American. 36...Bxe3 37.Ne5 Bf2 38.Rd1 Qc7 39.Nd7 Rd8 40.Nxf6 Rxd5 41.Nxd5 Qe5 42.Ne3 h5 43.Nf1 g5 44.Rd5 Qe7 45.h4! The reason for Rapport's last move, as now both of Black's remaining pawns fall. 45...gxh4 46.Rxh5+ Kg7 47.Rxh4 Qe2 48.Re4 Qc2 49.Kh2 Retaining the second passed c-pawn can't be wrong, so better was 49.c4 and 49...Qd1 50.Kh2 Qh5+ 51.Rh4 but after 51...Qg5 I can't see how White makes any meaningful progress that would lead to a win. 49...Bc5 Taking the c3-pawn looks right, but I can imagine in the time-scramble that Caruana might fear that his king was going to be cut off on the h-file after 49...Qxc3 50.Rg4+ Kh8 - but I don't sense any mating dangers and, indeed, the engine just throws up total digital equality with "0.00". But the fear would have been there in the back of anyone's head, let alone Caruana's, that cutting the king off on the h-file potentially could be dangerous. 50.c4 Qf2 51.Rg4+ Kh6 52.Rf4 Qc2 53.Kh3 Kg7 54.Bd5 Bd6? This is where it all starts to go Pete Tong for Fabi - the draw was to be had with 54...Qh7+ 55.Kg2 (There's no escaping the draw. If 55.Rh4 Qf5+ 56.Rg4+ Kf6! and the king is out of the corner, leading to 57.Nh2 Ke7 58.Nf3 Kd6 59.Be4 Qd7 60.Kh4 Be3! and no progress that can lead to White winning) 55...Qc2+ 56.Kh3 Qh7+ etc. 55.Rf7+ Kh8 56.Ne3 Now the White pieces are mobilising with menacing intent - but it takes Caruana's time-trouble to help Rapport win this. 56...Qg6 57.Rf3 Qh7+ 58.Kg2 Qd3 59.Nf5 Qe2+ 60.Rf2 Qe5 61.Kh3 Be7?? (see diagram) Black holds the draw with 61...Qf6 62.Kg2 Qe5! - but easy for me to say aided by an engine and not having to worry about my flag metaphorically hanging on my digital clock! 62.Kg4! 1-0 And Caruana resigns, only now realising the sting in the tail being that Rapport's king coming forward opens up an unexpected and unstoppable mate with Rh2!

Snatching Victory!

Tue, 04 Jul 2023 02:08:09 GMT

There were lots of twists and turns in the latter qualifying rounds of the Tech Mahindra Global Chess League , with nothing going to the perceived script as surprisingly both Magnus Carlsen’s SG Alpine Warriors and Vishy Anand’s Ganges Grandmasters dramatically collapsed, with neither of the top two favourites going through to contest Sunday’s Grand Final, which took place at the Le Meridien Hotel in Dubai.

The Alpine Warriors needed just to win one out of their last three matches to go through to the final, but they contrived to press the self-destruct button by losing all three matches - and likewise, a similar fate also befell the fancied Ganges Grandmasters.

All the unfolding drama opened the door for an unlikely team to snatch a famous victory, as upGrad Mumba Masters (Maxime Vachier-Lagrave) and Triveni Continental Kings (Levon Aronian) both came through with a late surge to go forward to contest the inaugural final of the big-money, six-team franchise contest.

And the two-match rapid final proved to be a veritable nail-biter in ever sense of the words that ended up tied on match points, and then two additional rounds of blitz also saw the points being split - leaving the winner to be determined by a tense series of four sudden-death individual tiebreaks, three of which being drawn, before the decisive outcome came in spectacular fashion.

In today’s diagram, 17-year-old Uzbek GM Javokhir Sindarov had just played 70. Bd5?? but could only look on in horror along with the rest of his team, as 19-year-old Danish GM Jonas Bjerre - who had previously gone 0-4 to the Uzbek in the final - proved to be the unlikely hero of the hour by quickly spotting that 70…Nb4! 71.Be4 Ra2 mate !

And with it, Bjerre not only clinched the inaugural GCL title for his team, but it also won them the $500,000 first prize. “The last game was incredibly tense,” said a euphoric Bjerre in victory, before adding that his team captain, Levon Aronian, took him aside before his crucial tiebreak game, and told him to “just fight; if you win this game, you will win the event.”

The victorious Triveni Continental Kings celebrate their win: GM Levon Aronian (with cup), GM Yangyi Yu, GM Wei Yi, GM Kateryna Lagno, GM Jonas Bjerre, GM Nana Dzagnidze and IM Sara Khademalsharieh.

Photo: © Tech Mahindra Global Chess League

Also crucial to Triverni’s victory was China’s Yangyi Yu doing the “double” on Board 2 over Russian Alexander Grischuk by winning both rapid games - the first being all the more crucial and remarkable, as somehow Grischuk managed to self-destruct in his habitual time-trouble.

GM Alexander Grischuk - GM Yangyi Yu

Global Chess League Final, (1.2) 

B90: Sicilian Najdorf, English Attack

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be3 The English Attack, as popularised by John Nunn, Nigel Short, Mickey Adams, and Murray Chandler et al. - but long before the top English players were hammering people to bits with it, to have it re-christened, Robert Byrne, the New York Times columnist and former US champion was really the first to deploy this easy-to-play and more positional system in praxis, as it avoided all the tricky big Sicilian Najdorf mainlines. 6...e6 7.f3 b5 8.Qd2 b4 9.Nce2 e5 10.Nb3 Nc6 11.c4 Be6 12.Ng3 h5 An important little move, as it not only prevents a future g4 from White, but it also grabs a little space on the kingside by harassing the Ng3 that has no good retreating square to land on. 13.Bd3 h4 14.Ne2 Be7 15.h3 Grischuk over-worries about Black playing ...h3 - but in preventing this, he creates holes in his own kingside position and weakens his own dark-squares. 15...a5 16.f4?! Maybe now was the time to think about "hunkering down" first with 16.a4!? and then follow up later with Nbc1 and b3. But by lashing out now, Grishcuk just gifts his opponent the initiative. 16...a4 17.Nbc1 Qa5 18.Rb1 Bd8 With the idea of ...Bb6 trading bishops and a grip on the dark squares. 19.b3 Bb6 20.O-O O-O 21.Kh1 Bxe3 22.Qxe3 Qc5 More accurate, according to the ever-present oracle of Mr Engine, was 22...axb3 23.axb3 Qa7! 24.Qd2 Qe7 25.Na2 (No better is 25.f5 Bc8 26.Na2 Bb7! and Black's hit on the e4-pawn is potentially more dangerous than White's b4-pawn) 25...Rfb8 26.f5 Bc8 and Black will be following up with ...Bb7 and ...Rbd8 for the easier and better game. 23.Qd2 Ra7 More in the spirit of the Sicilian Najdorf is 23...exf4!? 24.Qxf4 Qe5 25.Qxh4 axb3 26.axb3 Rfe8 with long-term and lasting pressure on e4. 24.f5 Bd7 25.Qg5 Grischuk is now beginning to take the initiative - but to snatch the loose h4-pawn comes with risks, as Black's pieces spring to life. 25...axb3 26.axb3 Rfa8 27.Qxh4?!

The pawn was never going to be defended and not going anywhere anytime soon - and, as we previously said, snatching the pawn comes with inherent risks for White. And for this reason, Mr Engine is a little bit more wary and instead wants to play 27.Kh2 Ra1 28.Rb2 Nd4 29.Qxh4 Bc6 30.Rd2 R8a3 31.Re1 with a dynamic and intriguing struggle ahead for both sides. 27...Ra1 28.Qg3?! Grischuk really starts to lose the plot around here and pays the penalty. As explained in the above note, what was needed was 28.Rb2 but this time it is met by 28...Qe3! (Most likely the reason why Grischuk played 28.Qg3, trying to stop the queen infiltration) 29.Rf3 Qh6! 30.Qxh6 gxh6 31.Kh2 Na5 where, despite being sans a pawn, Black has a good position with White's pieces all awkwardly placed trying to defend the twin pawn weaknesses on b3 and e4. 28...Rxb1 29.Bxb1 Ra1 30.Bc2? Awkward is as awkward gets, and trying to untangle, Grischuk walks into a big blunder. The only move in town to stay in the game was 30.Qd3 Nd4 31.Kh2 Bc6 32.Ng3 Qa7! 33.Nce2 but White can never realise his extra pawn, as Black has 33...Ra3 34.Nc1 Ra1 forcing a repetition, if he so wishes. 30...Nd4 31.Qd3 Bc6! Black's active pieces now ultimately prove decisive in the outcome of the game. 32.Nxd4 exd4 33.Qf3 Qa7 The coming ...Qa3 is going to be hard to meet. 34.Bd3 Qa3 35.Ne2??

Under pressure both on the board and on his clock, Grischuk blunders big-time - but he momentarily gets away with it in the ensuing time-scramble mayhem. Simpler was 35.Qf4! which keeps White in the game due to the hit on d6. And if 35...Nh5 36.Qg5 (This time bad is 36.Qxd6? Kh7! and White can't take on c6 due to ...Ng3+ with a big loss of material) 36...f6 37.Qxh5 Rxc1 38.Rxc1 Qxc1+ 39.Kh2 Qf4+ 40.Kh1 Qc1+ and a mutual bailout repetition. But then again, for habitual time-trouble freak Grischuk, there's the little matter of the tick-tock issue. 35...Rxf1+?

Of course, with a cold unbeating heart, Mr Engine finds the knockout blow with 35...Bxe4! 36.Bxe4 Rxf1+ 37.Qxf1 Nxe4 38.Qf3 Qa1+ 39.Ng1 (If 39.Kh2 Nd2 40.Qd3 Qe1! effectively putting White in Zugzwang with no good moves left, and 41.Ng3 Qe3 easily wins for Black) 39...Qe1 40.Kh2 f6 and White is basically sitting in Death's Waiting Room, the most likely scenario to losing being 41.Qd3 Nc5! 42.Qg3 (White can never take the d4-pawn, as 42.Qxd4 Qe5+ 43.Qxe5 fxe5 44.Nf3 Nxb3 and no way to stop the b-pawn running nor protect c4) 42...Qe3 etc. 36.Qxf1 Qb2 37.Qf2??

This should have been the final, fatal mistake from Grischuk. The only move to stay in the game was 37.Qb1 Qd2

(Not 37...Qxb1+? 38.Bxb1 Bxe4 39.Bxe4 Nxe4 40.Nxd4 and White has easy pickings on b4 or d6) 38.Nxd4 Bb7 39.Nf3 Qf4 40.Qe1 Nxe4 41.Bxe4 Bxe4 42.Qxb4 Bxf3 43.Qb8+ Kh7 44.gxf3 Qxf3+ and a forced draw as White can't stop the queen check repetition. 37...Bxe4? The mutual time-trouble blunders from the players had to be giving both team captains heart palpitations! Obviously, Yangyi Yu's focus of attention has been on e4, and he captures, unaware that the simple win was 37...Qxb3! 38.Qxd4 Qd1+ 39.Kh2 and now 39...Bxe4! 40.Bxe4 Qxd4 41.Nxd4 Nxe4 as Black wins with no way for White to stop the b-pawn from running nor defend his c4-pawn. 38.Bxe4 Nxe4 39.Qf3?? This time it is game over for Grischuk, as he tragically blunders by walking right into a big ...Ng3+ knight fork. The draw-saving move was 39.Qh4! Qxe2 40.Qd8+ Kh7 41.Qh4+ and a repetition. 39...Qxe2 0-1

Endgame of the Icons

Fri, 30 Jun 2023 16:08:11 GMT

Despite losing to Magnus Carlsen on Day 2, a team event is a team event by its very definition, and Vishy Anand’s Ganges Grandmasters were the ones making all the early running in the inaugural edition of the Tech Mahindra Global Chess League in Dubai - and even more so when the legendary Indian ex-world champion began to dust off the rust of his lack of tournament praxis by putting together a series of wins.

By the halfway stage of the qualifying rounds, the Ganges Grandmasters and Carlsen’s SG Alpine had established themselves as the big front-runners in the innovative new double-round all-play six-team franchise chess league - which the organisers say “will revolutionise the chess ecosystem” - and looked all but certain to go forward to contest Sunday's Grand Final.

It was nip and tuck at the top between the two teams, and by Day 7, when the Alpine Masters and the Ganges Grandmasters met up again, all eyes were firmly fixed on another clash between Anand and Carlsen - only this time the two icons with 10 world titles between them didn’t disappoint, as they produced an epic endgame for the ages that was even replete with dramatic study-like stalemate traps plus a cunning under-promotion to a knight for victory.

Carlsen’s victory saved a 3-3 draw in the match to allow his team to stay in touch with Anand’s Ganges Grandmasters, but heading into the closing stages of the qualifying rounds, the race is still somewhat open as to which two teams will go forward to contest Sunday’s grand final.

“It's exactly what the team needed,” said Carlsen after his crucial match-saving victory over Anand. “It started pretty quietly. After he exchanged queens, the position was pretty equal. Then I was trying, he first set-up a fortress, then creating counterplay, and then there was an amazing stalemate idea that I thought... Yeah, this is really nice... It was pretty insane. I felt like from the very beginning that I probably had to win today, for the team. So I was just trying, pushing. He was fighting back and it was just a lot of fun.”

Standings after Day 8:

1. Ganges Grandmasters 15MP (75GP); 2. SG Alpine Warriors 15MP(61GP); 3. upGrad Mumba Masters 10MP(52GP); 4. Balan Alaskan Knights 9MP(56GP); 5. Triveni Continental Kings 9MP(48GP); 6. Chingari Gulf Titans 7MP(56GP).

Photo: An iconic endgame for the ages, as title foes Carlsen and Anand clash again. © Tech Mahindra Global Chess League

GM Viswanathan Anand - GM Magnus Carlsen

Tech Mahindra Global Chess League, (7) 

C18: French, Winawer, Advance variation

1.e4 e6 Carlsen is not a big player of the French Defence - but it is now real big surprise as he has used it from time to time. The big difference is that Anand's response will be well known to him, as the Indian has never changed in his career how he plays against the French. 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.e5 c5 5.a3 Bxc3+ 6.bxc3 The French Winawer sees White's pawn structure damaged - but in return, he has lots of space to rapidly develop his pieces menacingly on the kingside. But it is a double-edged sword, because If the attack fails, then, long-term, Black has he better endgame prospects with his solid and intact pawn structure. 6...Nc6 7.Qg4 g6 8.h4 h6 9.h5 g5 White has a big space advantage and all the early running, whereas Black has to play with great caution - but that said, again the point is that if we get to an endgame scenario, Black's better pawn structure is the ace in the hole. 10.f4 Qa5 11.Bd2 f5!

The only game in town for Black - the point is that it is bad to capture with 12.exf6 Nxf6 13.Qe2 gxf4 as it all works out in Black's favour with his better development. 12.Qg3 g4 13.dxc5 I believe the more testing line is 13.c4!? 13...Nge7

White's pawn structure on the queenside is shot to such an extent that Black can afford to ignore the automatic recapture for now and just concentrate on developing his pieces - after all, those crippled queenside pawns aren't going anywhere. 14.Bd3 Qxc5 15.Ne2 Na5 16.Qf2 Anand could have kept the queens on the board with 16.Be3 - but in seeking to trade the queens, Carlsen's position easies considerably, which would have pleased the Norwegian as this plays to his strengths. 16...Qxf2+ 17.Kxf2 Bd7 18.a4 Stopping the somewhat awkward ...Ba4 (or even ...b5) and looking to bring the dark-squared bishop back to life via Bd2-c1-a3. 18...Kf7 19.Rhb1 b6 20.Bc1 Nec6 21.Ba3 Nd8 And now Carlsen comes up with his own imaginative redeployment of his pieces, with the plan Nd8-b7 to prevent Anand from playing Bb4 (and Bd6), to support ...Rhb8 looking to play ..a6 and ...b5 to expand on the queenside. 22.Bb4 Ndb7 23.Nd4 Rhb8 24.Nb3 Nc4!? It is clear that Carlsen needn't have played such a committal move - but it is also clear that he is "playing for the team" by looking to complex the position and taking advantage of the fact that Anand lacks tournament praxis and is not as sharp and alert as the "Tiger from Madras" was in his pomp. 25.Bxc4 dxc4 26.Nd4 Rc8 27.a5 Anand wants to blockade the game out - but a critical little slip spoils his chances of doing so. 27...b5 28.Rd1 Be8 A strategical retreat, as long-term Carlsen is looking to hit the h5-pawn, thus tying down Anand's knight to defending it. 29.Ne2 The critical line looked to be 29.a6!? Nc5 30.Kg3 Heading to h4 to protect the marooned h5-pawn before Black can get in ...Ne4+ preventing this. 29...a6 30.Rd4 Rd8 31.Rad1 Rxd4 32.Rxd4 It is a complex position where, if all the rooks come off, Black could well emerge with the better endgame. But more than that, prolonging the game and making it more complex seems to tire out Anand, who takes his eye off the ball. 32...Bc6 33.Rd2 g3+! A cunning pawn sacrifice from Carlsen that stretches the game out longer with more complexities that Anand has to deal with. 34.Kg1 It may well be safe to capture with 34.Nxg3 but the game takes a sharp turn after 34...Rg8 35.Rd1 Rg4! 36.Ne2 Rxg2+ 37.Ke3 Rh2 38.Nd4 Rh3+ 39.Kf2 Be8 40.Kg2 Rh4 41.Kg3 Rxh5 where the engine tells you that, despite being a pawn down, the position is equal as it is not easy to get the Black rook back into the game - but the realities of the heat of battle would have thrown some doubt into Anand's head, so he ops instead to try to keep things solid. 34...Rg8 35.Nd4 Rd8 36.Bd6?! Anand begins to wobble, and this is all that Carlsen needs to now dominate the position. What was needed was a cool head and 36.Re2! Be4 37.Re1 and Black has nothing. 36...Be4! Now the position begins to reach critical mass for White - and Carlsen would be in his element here, as his tactic of complexing the game is now beginning to pay dividends.

37.Bb4 Rd5! The threats are now mounting for Anand, as Carlsen plans ...Nd8-c6 with White's position on the point of imploding. 38.Kf1 Nd8 39.Ke1 Nc6 40.Ne2 Rxd2 41.Kxd2 Bxg2 42.Nxg3 Bf3 43.Ke3 Bd1 44.Kd2 Bg4 45.Ke3 Anand is just hanging on here - but the game has taken its toll on the Indian veteran with another slip-up.4 5...Ke8 46.Kd2 Ne7 47.Bxe7 Kxe7 48.Kc1?? A sure sign that the prolonged struggle has exhausted Anand, who makes a monumental error that should have decided the game here and now - he simply had to play 48.Ne2! Bxe2 (Alternatively, if 48...Bxh5 49.Nd4 Be8 50.Ke2 where, despite being a pawn down, the Black king can't get through to key c5 square, so the White king heads over to the h-file to hold the passed h-pawn and a draw) 49.Kxe2 Kf8 50.Ke3 Ke8 51.Kd4 Kd8 52.Ke3! (It is so easy to go wrong here in this complex K+P ending, as 52.Kc5?? Kc7 53.Kd4 Kc6 54.Ke3 Kc5 sees Black winning) 52...Kd7 53.Ke2 Kc6 54.Kf2 Kc5 55.Ke3 b4 56.cxb4+ Kxb4 57.Kd4 c3 58.Kd3 Kxa5 59.Kxc3 Kb5 60.Kb3 a5 61.Ka3! and we have a drawn K+P endgame, as White cunningly leaves the c-pawn on c2 so that Black has to waste time to capture it, allowing the White king the time to track round to the kingside. 48...Kd7 49.Kb2 Kc6 50.Ka2 Kd5 White's position is on the verge of total collapse - but the ending is still tricky. 51.Ka3 Kc5 52.Kb2 Bd1 53.Kc1 Bf3 With Anand's knight rendered impotent, having to constantly guard the h5-pawn, Carlsen simply has to find the right way to engineer ...b4 winning. 54.Kb2 b4? A tad too hasty. It is a complex position where nuanced manoeuvres are needed, and the accurate way to win was 54...Bc6! 55.Ne2 Be8 56.Ng3 and only now 56...b4! 57.cxb4+ Kd4! and the Black king waltzes in to e3 to pick-off the f4 & e5 pawns for a simple win. 55.cxb4+ Kd4

Carlsen probably can't believe that he's not winning, and avoids the "automatic recapture" 55...Kxb4 56.c3+ Kxa5 57.Kc1 Kb5 58.Kb2 Kb6 59.Kb1 Kc6 60.Kb2 a5 61.Ka3 Kc7 62.Ka4 Kb6 63.Ka3 Kb5 64.Ka2 Bc6! 65.Kb2 Be8 where the engine can't quite see right now the ending horizon with no entry squares for the Black king and, with careful play, White holds for the draw. 56.c3+ Kd3 57.b5! Somehow, it looks as if Anand has snatched a draw from the jaws of certain defeat - but there's still more twists to come in this game! 57...axb5 58.a6 Kd2 59.a7 Bd5 60.Nxf5??

The complexities of this game could well have exhausted Anand, who mixes up his moves in a complicated ending. The drawing line was 60.Nf1+! Ke2 61.Ng3+ Kd2 (The endgame backfires on Black if he plays 61...Kf3?? as now 62.Nxf5!! exf5 63.e6! is winning for White) 62.Nf1+ Ke2 63.Ng3+ Kd2 and a draw. 60...exf5 61.e6 By getting his variations mixed up, Anand has missed the big sting in the tail. 61...b4!! 62.e7 Hopeless was 62.cxb4 c3+ and the Black pawn queens and then mates. 62...bxc3+ 63.Ka2 c2 64.a8=Q Bxa8 65.e8=Q Be4 66.Qd8+ Bd3 67.Qd4?

(see diagram) The final twist in this exhausting and enthralling game. To draw, Anand had to play 67.Qb6! c1=Q

(The key difference in the game between putting the queen on b6 rather than d4 is that if Black again avoids the stalemate by under-promoting to a knight, there comes 67...c1=N+ 68.Ka3 c3 69.Qxh6! and the extra tempo to capture the pawn makes all the difference. 69...c2 70.Qc6 Be4 71.Qc4 Nd3 72.h6! Nxf4 73.h7 Nd3 (Bad is 73...Ng6?? 74.Kb2! and White is easily winning) 74.h8=Q c1=Q+ 75.Qxc1+ Kxc1 76.Qa1+ Kd2 77.Qd4 and this position is a draw with no way for Black to make progress with the f-pawn and also avoid lots of queen checks) 68.Qe3+!! and a stalemate. This is what Anand was angling for in the game - but to his horror, he discovers that there's a subtle difference now by putting his queen on d4. 67...c1=N+!! It was only now, as Carlsen reached across the table to grab a knight, rather than a queen, did it finally dawn on Anand that with the under-promotion, he was losing rather than having a stalemate/draw. 68.Ka3 c3 69.Qb6 The loss of a move is the difference between drawing and losing for Anand. Such is (chess) life. 69...Ne2 70.Qxh6 c2 0-1 Anand resigns, as this time 71.Qc6 c1=Q+ 72.Qxc1+ Kxc1! 73.h6 Nxf4 and the knight tracks back to g6 next to cover the h8 queening square.

Team Chess

Tue, 27 Jun 2023 16:05:45 GMT

Chess and cricket are not exactly the most natural of bedfellows, but the analogies are striking in the inaugural Tech Mahindra Global Chess League (GCL), as it seems to model itself on the very lucrative Indian Premier League (IPL) that revolutionised cricket with its ten city-based franchised teams.

Just like the IPL, the new franchised-team system of the GCL consists of icons/legends, colourful team outfits (emblazoned with sponsor logos and player names on the back of the shirts), to even similar catchy sponsor team names of the SG Alpine Masters, Ganges Grandmasters, Triveni Continental Kings, Chingari Gulf Titans, UpGrad Mumba Masters, and Balan Alaskan Knights.

As happened in cricket, the GCL aims to shake up and redefine the world of chess by bringing together the brightest stars in the game, including Magnus Carlsen, Viswanathan Anand, Ding Liren, Ian Nepomniachtchi, Hou Yifan, Kateryna Lagno et al, and other renowned players, alongside distinguished sports entrepreneurs as franchise owners.

Backed by Tech Mahindra, a deep-pocketed Indian IT company, the league - also a joint venture with the game’s governing body, FIDE - will offer salaries that the organisers say will revolutionise the chess ecosystem. Another much-welcomed twist is the diversity involved in the new venture, with the six teams of six including an icon of the game, two elite GMs, two women GMs and an under-21 junior.

The two-week event runs through 2 July in Dubai, where Carlsen leads his SG Alpine Warriors into the inaugural season. Launching the venture to the media, Jagdish Mitra, chair of the league’s board, said it all hinged on recruiting the world’s top players. “You don’t compromise on talent. ... Magnus — there’s no bigger name than him in the game of chess.”

Carlsen is one of six “icons” - the others being Vishy Anand (Ganges Grandmasters), Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (UpGrad Mumba Masters), Jan-Krzysztof Duda (Chingari Gulf Titans), Ian Nepominiachtchi (Balan Alaskan Knights), Ding Liren (Triveni Continental Kings) tapped to lead his team, the SG Alpine Warriors. The Norwegian was searching for something new and said he was intrigued by what the league was trying to do: take a board game known all over the world and package it in a team-based format that’s popular with traditional sports fans.

One of the early rounds saw the inevitable marquee match-up of the icons on Day 2, as SG Alpine Warriors met the Ganges Grandmasters that came with an epic clash of the GOATS between five-times ex-world champion Carlsen and the man he beat in 2013 to win the title, six-time ex-champion Anand.

One of the early rounds saw a marquee match-up on Day 2, as SG Alpine Warriors met the Ganges Grandmasters with an epic clash between five-times ex-world champion Carlsen and six-time ex-champion Anand. It didn’t live up to its hype, as Carlsen ruthlessly exploited an early rust-induced blunder, with a masterclass on how to transition down to a won ending.

Photo: It's the ultimate clash of the icons, with Carlsen vs Anand |© Tech Mahindra Global Chess League

GM Magnus Carlsen - GM Viswanathan Anand

Global Chess League, (2.1)

 A36: English/Reti Opening

1.c4 c5 2.g3 Nc6 3.Bg2 g6 4.Nc3 Bg7 5.d3 d6 6.Qd2 Nf6 7.b3 O-O 8.Bb2 There's no big theory battle, just a slow English/Reti Opening - arguably a wise choice from Carlsen, as Anand is lacking tournament praxis, so no big prepared line and White with just a little edge to work with, as he builds up to a timely d4 break. 8...Bd7 9.Nf3 Rb8 10.O-O a6 11.Nd5 e6 12.Nxf6+ Bxf6 13.d4 b5? And this was just the scenario Carlsen was probably hoping for with his deliberate slow opening choice, as a rust-induced miscue from Anand ultimately proves early doors to be the deciding factor in the game - but not before we receive free masterclass from Magnus on how best to transition down to a winning endgame. The correct move was 13...Qe7 where 14.dxc5 Bxb2 15.Qxb2 dxc5 16.Nd2 Rfd8 17.Rfd1

(It's too soon for 17.Ne4 as 17...f5! 18.Nf6+ Kf7 19.Nxd7 (Not 19.Nxh7?? Rh8 and the knight is lost) 19...Qxd7 with total equality) 17...e5 18.Ne4 f5 19.Nc3 e4 20.Nd5 Qg7! 21.Qa3 Nd4 22.Qxc5 Nxe2+ 23.Kf1 Nc3 24.Nxc3 Qxc3 25.Rac1 Qb2 26.Qe7 and while there's still some minor discomfort for Black, this is really nothing that a player of Anand's calibre shouldn't easily be able to hold - for example, one continuation being: 26...Be8 27.Rxd8 Qxc1+ 28.Ke2 Rxd8 29.Qxd8 Qb2+ 30.Ke3 (White has to accept the inevitable of a perpetual, as 30.Qd2 Qa1! and Black now has a very slight initiative) 30...Qc1+ 31.Ke2 Qb2+ 32.Ke3 etc and a draw. 14.dxc5 Bxb2 15.Qxb2 dxc5 16.cxb5 axb5 17.Rfc1!

Always the trouble for lesser players in such positions is, when given the choice, which rook to move - and here, Carlsen rightly opts for the "unnatural" rook move, the (full) point being that he can envision the coming ending where his passed a-pawn, supported by the Ra1, pushes up the board and proves to be a big game-winner. 17...c4 18.bxc4 bxc4 19.Qc3 e5 20.Qxc4 Qe7 21.h4 Rfc8 22.Qe4 Bf5 23.Qe3 e4 24.Ng5! When the dust settles, Anand will be sans two pawns, though Carlsen's pawn structure will be wrecked - but the deciding factor is the looming power of White's passed a-pawn as it gets set to run unhindered up the board. 24...Nb4 25.Rxc8+ Rxc8 26.Bxe4 Nc2 27.Bxc2 Qxe3 28.fxe3 Rxc2 (see diagram) 29.Kf1! You have to be careful not to jump the gun by pushing the a-pawn right away, as 29.a4 Rxe2 30.a5 h6 31.Nf3 Rxe3 32.Kf2 Re7 offers Black realistic drawing chances as the a-pawn can be blocked with ...Ra7 and ...Be4. But with 29.Kf1!, Carlsen just simplifies the position down to an easily won ending where he's in no immediate hurry to start pushing his a-pawn, and he just concentrates first on solidifying his position and then bringing his knight to the dominant d4 square. 29...Bc8 Anand is basically just going through the motions here of trying to make some nebulous threatening moves for the sake of making nebulous threatening moves, and no better is heading directly for the R+P ending with 29...Bg4 30.Nf3 Bxf3 31.exf3 Rh2, as it will be easily answered by 32.Kg1 Re2 33.e4 Re3 34.a4! and the a-pawn is off to the races. 30.Nf3 Ba6 31.Nd4 Rc3 32.Kf2 Ra3 33.Nc2 Ra4 34.a3 Nicely freeing up the rook to come into the game - and that alone will soon hasten Anand's resignation. 34...Bb7 35.Nb4 Kg7 36.Nd3 Heading to c5 or even b2, and looking to shunt the a-pawn a little further up the board. Once the a-pawn starts running, the game is over. 36...Ra5 37.Rb1 Bd5 38.Ra1 Be4 39.Nb2 Kh6 Not the most resilient defence, but then again, there's just no way to stop the a-pawn running. If 39...Rb5 40.Nc4 Rc5 41.Nd6 Bc6 42.Rb1 Kf8 43.Rb4! Ke7 44.Nc4 Bd5 45.Nb6 Be6 46.e4 Kf6 47.Rd4 Rc1 (Alternatively, there's 47...Ke5 48.Ke3 etc.) 48.Rd3 Ra1 49.Kf3 h5 50.Nd5+ Ke5 51.Nb4 and slowly but surely, with the Black king cut-off from crossing over to the queenside, after Nc2 and Rc3, White will find the ideal position to usher the a-pawn ever further up the board.

40.Nc4 Ra6 41.a4 There's no stopping the a-pawn, and with it Anand's coming resignation. 41...Kh5 42.Nd2 Rf6+ 43.Nf3 Kg4 44.a5 1-0 Anand resigns as 44...Bxf3 45.exf3+ Rxf3+ 46.Ke2 and the Black rook can't get back in time to stop the a-pawn.

New (Global) Challenges

Thu, 22 Jun 2023 17:45:37 GMT

Having abdicated his classical world crown, his world ranking on the slide after an abysmal failure at the recent Norway Chess Tournament, and his own online company sold off to a one-time rival, Magnus Carlsen could be looking for new challenges with the formation of the Tech Mahindindra Global Chess League (GCL), the first franchise-based team chess event.

The GCL - a cross venture with Indian and Dubai funding - officially launched on Wednesday and is being played in Dubai, running through to 2 July. With no online play, the unique twist is that six teams of six will include an icon of the game, two elite GMs, two women GMs and an under-21 junior.

“Now I’m probably more concerned about going for events that I find interesting,” Carlsen said in a recent interview. The GCL seems to have ticked all the Norwegian’s boxes, and he’s one of the six “icons” on show, with his opponents including the new world champion, Ding Liren, the defeated 2021 challenger, Ian Nepomniachtchi, and the former six-time champion Vishy Anand.

Carlsen’s team, SG Alpine Warriors (the “SG” standing for Sanjay Gupta, CEO of its sponsoring firm), includes three top Indian talents Dommaraju Gukesh, 17, Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa, also 17, and Arjun Erigaisi, 19 - and not unsurprisingly, they are among the favourites to win the inaugural title.

“I especially like being on a team with younger players. That excites me a lot,” Carlsen added. “Any questions they have, I’m happy to answer, to try and inspire them for the future. Hopefully, I can learn a thing or two from them as well.”

One of Carlsen’s young team members who probably excited him this week was Gukesh D, with the world #13 on top form as he convincingly trounced GM Raunak Sadhwani by a seven-point margin, 17.5-10.5, in the all-Indian grand final to become the Chess.com 2023 Junior Speed Chess Champion .

Apart from earning $21,582 in total for his overall performance - winning every single match against his fellow best juniors in the world by at least a six-point lead - the world’s top teenager (now that Alireza Firouzja recently turned 20) also gets his ticket to play among the "big boys" in the main Chess.com Speed Chess Championship in December.

GM Gukesh D - GM Raunak Sadhwani

Chess.com Junior Speed Chess Final, (3) 

B08: Pirc, Classical System (5.Be2)

1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.Be2 Very Karpovian! The Classical against the Pirc Defence was the favoured approach of Anatoly Karpov, the Soviet who supplanted Bobby Fischer as World Champion. His approach was less dashing, like Tal or Kasparov, but more of a positional squeeze - and in Karpov's hands in the period of the mid-1970s through to the 1980s, that squeeze was very python-like. 5...O-O 6.O-O a6 During peak Karpov times, more usual was 6...Nc6 or even 6...c6 (followed by ...Nbd7) - but for those playing ...Nc6 lines, it was discovered that playing ...a6 first was more beneficial, as forcing White to respond with a4 offers up an ideal square on b4 for the Black knight. 7.a4 Nc6 8.d5 Nb4 9.Re1 c6 10.dxc6 Nxc6 11.Bf1 Bd7 12.Nd5 As typical in the Classical, White enjoys a little space advantage, and Gukesh ruthlessly exploits this in true Karpovian style. 12...Rc8 13.c3 Bg4 14.h3 Bxf3 15.Qxf3 Nd7 16.Bg5 Nc5 17.b4! There is nothing much in this position - but with some deft handling, Gukesh makes the most of his tiny advantage by expanding on the queenside. 17...Ne6 18.Bh4 f6? Panic seems to be setting in early doors for Raunak. Black has to fight more energetically to stay competitive, and the only to do so was with 18...a5 19.bxa5 (The only move. After 19.b5?! Ne5 20.Qe3 f6 Black is very solid) 19...g5 20.Bg3 Nc5 21.Rad1 Ne5 22.Qe3 h6 and take your chances here. 19.Qe3 Kh8?! Again, another timid/cautious move - and with it, this gives Gukesh all the momentum he needs for a total stranglehold over his opponent. 20.f4 Nc7 21.Nb6 Rb8 22.b5 Na7 23.Rab1 More testing, as the engine is quick to spot, is 23.f5! that just totally blocks Black in. 23...Nc8 24.Nd5 As in the previous note, better again was 24.Nxc8 Qxc8 25.f5! 24...axb5 25.Bxb5! Black's b-pawn is now a liability. 25...e6

No better is 25...Nxb5 26.Rxb5 e6 27.Nb4 as long-term, the b-pawn will become a big liability. 26.Nxc7 Qxc7 27.Red1 Gukesh has the bishop-pair and the better rooks, so what's not to like here for White? 27...Ne7 28.Bf2 f5 29.e5! Offering up a pawn sacrifice that Black dare not accept, as the game opening up will only be to White's advantage with his rampant rooks and bishops lurking with intent. 29...Nd5 It's getting desperate now for Black. And while slightly better was 29...Nc8 it is no answer as White comes in over the top with 30.Qd4! dxe5 31.Qc5! Qxc5 32.Bxc5 Rg8 33.Bc4 and the bishops and rooks will soon be mopping up a lot of material. 30.exd6 Qxd6 (see diagram) 31.c4! This might be blitz, but Gukesh's masterful handling of the game and now the transition to the endgame, easily sees him going on to win with ease. 31...Nxe3 32.Rxd6 Nc2 33.Rxe6 Nd4 34.Re7 Bf6 35.Rd7 Ne2+ 36.Kf1 Nxf4 37.Ba7 Rbd8 38.Rxb7 It's not just the matter that White's a pawn up, the decisive factor is that his a- and c-pawns are passed and well supported by his bishops and rooks. The end comes swiftly. 38...Rd2? This whole game had to be agony for Raunak, who, frustrated, now decides he may as well hang for the sheep as for the lamb.

39.Be3 Rd4 40.Bxd4 Bxd4 41.a5 Nh5 42.Ke2 Bc5 43.Rd7 Nf6 44.Rc7 Ne4 45.Kd3 Nf2+ 46.Kc2 Ne4 47.a6 f4 48.a7 1-0 Black resigns with no answer to the coming Bc6 and Rb8. It is a blitz game, but nevertheless superbly executed in true Karpovian style by rising star Gukesh D!

Alice in Wonderland

Mon, 19 Jun 2023 20:07:00 GMT

In our previous column, The Cinderella Story , we reported on Anna Zatonskih, 44, who late in life scored the biggest victory of her long career by dominating the Cairns Cup to attain her first GM norm. Now comes the opposite-end-of-the-generation-gap story of rising female star Alice Lee, 13, who enters the record books by becoming the youngest American-born female in history to earn the IM title.

Lee, from Minnesota, turned in a tour de force result recently at the 2023 Canadian Transnational Chess Classic in Montreal, as she placed highly in a tough field to gain her third and final IM norm. She faced eight grandmasters and one international master and achieved a performance rating of 2531.

Alice found herself in wonderland indeed, as she started with a comfortable draw (and with Black) against the highly-experienced and very strong GM Lazaro Bruzon Batista that proved to be a confidence-boosting launchpad for the teenager, who then went on to defeat GMs Arturs Neiksans and Bator Sambuev in rounds two and six; and then drawing with an additional four grandmasters.

Lee credits her recent success to the persistence and patients of her highly-respected longtime coach, GM Dmitry Gurevich, who has transformed her game - and how! The first major breakthrough came with a first IM norm at the 2022 Southwest Class Championships, and then she went on to gain her second norm by finishing a full point ahead of the field at the St. Louis IM Norm Tournament back in January.

Now, with a third and final norm, Lee joins a very select club by becoming one of only three female players to earn the full IM title at the age of 13, a feat only ever achieved previously by GMs Judit Polgar and Kateryna Lagno. She now also becomes the second-highest-rated woman in the U.S.― only behind eight-time U.S. Women’s Champion GM Irina Krush.

IM-elect Alice Lee is congratulated by the new World #2, Hikaru Nakamura, who made a surprise appearance at the Canadian Transnational Classic, en route to taking a well-deserved break after his sensational big victory recently at the Norway Chess Tournament.

Read about the rise of Alice Lee on Chess Life Online .

GM Lazaro Bruzon Batista - IM-elect Alice Lee

Canadian Transnational Classic, (1)

 D10: QGD Slav Defence, Exchange variation

1.c4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.cxd5 cxd5 The Slav Defence is an easy-to-play system for players of all levels looking for a reliable Black defence to the Queen's Pawn opening. The problem for higher-rated players is that, with the Exchange variation, the symmetrical set-ups on both wings make it difficult to avoid a lot of draws - but being a seasoned GM with a hefty 250+ rating advantage, Bruzon hopes to grind his younger opponent down, but to her credit, Lee holds her nerve and the draw. 4.Bf4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Nc6 6.e3 a6 7.Bd3 Bg4 8.Nge2 e6 9.O-O Bd6 10.f3 Bh5 11.Na4 O-O 12.Nc5 The ideal square for the knight, as it can't be kicked with ...b6 due to Nxa6! This is a position though that has become a focus for attention, as we reach a crossroads of plans. 12...Bxf4N The current debate in this line is the move 12...Rb8!? championed by a young JK Duda in 2014 that worked well for the Pole in the stem game against Bruzon himself! That game continued 13.Rc1 Nb4 (Also, a further twist has seen 13...e5!? scoring some upset victories, but mainly in online blitz events) 14.Bb1 a5 15.a3 Na6 16.Bxd6 Qxd6 17.Qd2 Nxc5 18.Rxc5 b6 that soon ended in a draw (32) in Bruzon-Duda, Tromso 2014. Rather than playing into a well-analysed line that Bruzon would be familiar with, Lee rightly decides to "mix it up" with the GM. 13.Nxf4 Qe7 14.Rc1 Bg6 15.Nxg6 Both automatic moves from either side. 15...hxg6 16.f4 Putting the "Big Clamp" on Black playing the freeing ...e5. 16...Rfc8 There's not much in this position - it just takes the teen to hold her nerve against the GM by finding the correct way to rejig her knights, after which, Bruzon doesn't have much to play with to force a win. 17.a3 Rc7 18.Rf2 Rac8 19.Rfc2 Nb8 The knight has to retreat to directly contest the c-file, and perhaps slightly better was 19...Na7 20.b4 Ne8 21.a4 Nd6 with equality and both sides having their pieces on their most optimum squares. 20.h3 Ne8!? As noted above, a more than useful manoeuvre as Lee's knight has more scope operating from the d6-square. 21.g3 Nd6 22.h4 Nd7 23.b4 It is indeed a fascinating tussle of experience vs youth - many teens would crumble under the extreme pressures, but Lee shows her mettle by not giving anything away to the GM. 23...Nf5 The engine prefers instead 23...Nf6 - but Lee rightly spots that White has weak points on g3 and e3 and something for Bruzon to worry about. 24.Nxd7 Bruzon was probably trying to make 24.Nxb7 work in his favour - but Lee was ahead of the game with her previous move, as White has nothing after 24...Nxe3 25.Rxc7 Rxc7 26.Qe1 Rxb7 27.Qxe3 a5! 28.b5 Qxa3 29.Rc8+ Nf8 and the engine says White now has to take the tactical bail-out with 30.Qd2 Qa1+ 31.Kg2 Qxd4 32.Qxa5 Qxd3 33.Rxf8+ Kh7 34.Qa8 Qe2+ and a perpetual check. 24...Qxd7 25.Kf2 Rxc2+ 26.Rxc2 Nd6! With the knight again controlling e4 and c4, and pieces being traded freely, Black has no problems as she achieves complete equality and a draw on the cards. 27.Qc1 Rxc2+ The more pieces that get exchanged, the easier the draw. 28.Qxc2 Qc8 29.Qc5 The only try left for Bruzon is to try and "boss the position" with a very actively-placed queen - it does look strong, but it is not enough on its own as Lee finds all the right moves to stay competitive. 29...Qd7 30.a4 (see diagram) Left to his own devices, Bruzon would like to tighten the squeeze with b5 - but Lee cunningly avoids this from happening. 3 0...Ne4+! Freeing up the d5 square for Black's queen to take up a similar dominating post, and with it Bruzon by now had to realise this game was petering out to a draw. 31.Bxe4 dxe4 32.b5 axb5 33.axb5 No better was 33.Qxb5 as 33...Qxb5 34.axb5 f5! leads to a similar impasse as in the game, though with a little twist, as 35.Ke2 Kh7! 36.b6 Kh6 and White's king has to stay within the f2/g2 zip code otherwise the Black king marches in via g4 to f3 (or even h3, if White doesn't get his king to g2 in time) and xe3 to queen the e-pawn first. 33...Qd5 Kudos to Lee, who has finely calculated that the K+P ending is just a draw due to a blockade. 34.Qxd5 exd5 35.g4 f6 36.f5 g5! 37.hxg5 fxg5 38.Ke2 White would like to play 38.b6, but can't, as his king is one square too far away, where now 38...Kf7 39.Ke2 Ke7 40.Kd2 Kd6 41.Kc3 Kc6 42.Kb3 Kxb6 43.Kb4 Kc6 44.Ka4 and he's on the worse end of a drawing K+P ending where, despite being sans a pawn, the White king saves the day by (just) holding the opposition. 38…b6 ½-½ The perfect blockade with no pawn breaks and neither king able to cross their own fourth rank. A well-played game from 13-year-old Alice Lee against a very experienced GM.

The Cinderella Story

Thu, 15 Jun 2023 18:03:25 GMT

Elite-level invitational tournaments for females are very few and far between, whether that be in America or organised via Fide elsewhere in the globe. But one outstanding event is the Cairns Cup , the equivalent of the Sinquefield Cup, similarly organised and hosted by Saint Louis Chess Club - and with the same family connection and sponsorship!

Inspired by its mission to further promote the game of chess to females, the always-innovative Chess Club aptly chose the name “Cairns Cup” in honour of co-founder and US Chess Hall of Famer Dr Jeanne Sinquefield ’s maiden name: A 10-player, nine-round classical event with the strongest female fields ever, with a record-breaking $180,000 prize fund on offer.

The 3rd Cairns Cup ran June 3-12 with top seeds Humpy Koneru, Alexander Kosteniuk, Nana Dzagnidze and Harika Dronavalli expected to duke it out for the title and the lion’s share of the generous prize fund - but it didn't go to the script for the favourites, with the Cinderella-story proving to be a US veteran turning in the performance of her long career to become the unlikely winner.

Sadly, due to an ongoing medical issue, India’s Humpy Koneru had to withdraw after four rounds; with the results of her games, as per the FIDE rules, being cancelled - these withdrawal rules have been around for decades and have always proved controversial, and this was no different, as it directly hit Kosteniuk, who saw an early win over a main rival being annulled, which crucially could have seen the two-time former women’s world champion possibly finishing on 6/9.

But through it all, the player who got off to a storming start was the lowest-rated player in the field, the four-time US Women’s Champion, IM Anna Zatonskih, who defied the rating and the age odds to clinch the tournament with a round to spare, who with some memorable big wins - most notably against Kosteniuk, who fought back with a very strong winning run to take second place - notched up an undefeated score of 6/8 to take the title and $45,000 first prize.

In the process, Zatonskih, 44 - the lowest-rated player in the field by some 150-points - not only had the biggest victory of her long career, but late in life she also attained her first full GM norm, as she ecstatically proclaimed in victory: "Very happy. Wow, unbelievable! Yes, the best achievement in my chess career, definitely, the best in many years… Ketevan Arakhamia became a GM at the age of 40; she’s one of my role models.”

For the record, at 44 years and 11 months, Zatonskih now becomes the oldest American to achieve a full GM norm, eclipsing the past feats of John Donaldson (44y 9 m) and Enrico Sevillano (44y 4.5m). Larry Kaufman doesn't count in this respect, because with no previous GM norms, he only achieved the full title at the ripe-old age of 61 by virtue of winning the World Senior Championship title.

Final standings:

1. IM A. Zatonskih (USA) 6/8; 2. GM A. Kosteniuk (Switzerland) 5; 3-4. GM B. Khotenashvili (Georgia), GM I. Krush (USA) 4.5; 5. GM N. Dzagnidze (Georgia) 4; 6-7. GM H. Dronavalli (India), GM E. Paehtz (Germany) 3.5; 8. IM G. Mammadzada (Azerbaijan) 3; 9. GM Z. Abdumalik (Kazakhstan) 2.

GM Alexandra Kosteniuk - IM Anna Zatonskih

3rd Cairns Cup, (4)

C02: French, Advance

1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 Zatonskih has been a lifelong devotee of the French Defence. 3.e5 Rather than the more standard replies of 3.Nc3 and 3. Nd2, the Advance variation is the reserve for those souls with more enterprising spirits! 3...c5 4.c3 Nc6 5.Nf3 Qb6 6.Na3!? More usual in the Advance is 6.Be2/6.a3 (or perhaps even 6.Bd3 and the Milner-Barry Gambit) - but this an interesting, relatively newish millennium move championed by Russian original thinker Vadim Zyjaginsev with a speciality of surprising opponents with an early Na3, such as his provocative line against the Sicilian Defence with 1.e4 c5 2.Na3!?. 6...cxd4 7.cxd4 Bd7 The principled move is the immediate 7...Bb4+ 8.Bd2 and then 8...Bd7 (Highly dubious is the pawn snatch 8...Bxa3 9.bxa3 Nxd4 10.Qa4+ Nc6 11.Bd3 Ne7 12.Rb1 Qc7 13.O-O and White has excellent compensation for the pawn) 9.Nc2 (The reason behind 6.Na3) 9...Bxd2+ 10.Qxd2 Qxb2 11.Bd3 Nge7 12.O-O Qb6 13.Qg5 Ng6 where White has compensation, but Black does have the pawn! 8.Be2 Bb4+ 9.Kf1

It's no biggie, but the difference is the little king shuffle to f1 does at least preserve the bishop-pair. 9...Bxa3 As explained in the above note, this is a little suspect as White has the bishop-pair and open lines to attack - but on the other hand, Black has a solid position and the better pawn structure. 1 0.bxa3 Na5 Looking to play ...Bb5 to trade off the light-squared bishops. 11.Qd3 A little puzzling, as I thought the way to continue for White was 11.Bd3 Bb5 12.Rb1 Bxd3+ 13.Qxd3 Qc6 14.Bd2 Nc4 15.g3 with a space advantage; though once again, Black having a solid position and the better pawn structure. 11...Ba4 12.Bd2 Nc4 13.Rb1 Qc6 14.Qc3 Yet another puzzling queen move - I thought White had to play 14.Kg1 followed by h4-h5 etc. 14...Ne7 15.Qb4 Rc8 16.Bg5 The pawn is taboo for the obvious reason that 16.Qxb7?? Nxd2+ 17.Nxd2 Qxb7 18.Rxb7 Rc1+ winning. 16...Rc7 17.Bd1? A blunder that leaves Kosteniuk struggling to stay competitive. Once again, better was 17.Kg1 with the plan of h4-h5 etc. 17...Bxd1 18.Rxd1 (see diagram) 18...Qa6! T he reason for playing Kg1 earlier now becomes abundantly clear. 19.Kg1 Nc6 20.Qb3 Qxa3 What's not to like here for Zatonskih? She has an extra pawn AND the position. 21.h4 It's all too little too late now for Kosteniuk, as she has to defend a bad endgame sans a pawn. 21...Qxb3 22.axb3 Na3 23.h5 h6 24.Bd2 Nb5 25.Rh4 O-O Also, a good option was 25...Ne7 followed by ...Rc2. But either way, Black stands much better with an easy endgame squeeze. 26.Rg4 Kh7 27.Be1 Rfc8 Zatonskih just gets on with the job of building up her position. 28.Rd3 Ne7 29.Bd2 Rc2 30.Bb4 Nc6 Better was 30...Rc1+ 31.Kh2 Nc6 32.Bd6 Rc2 as this gains a move, leading to 33.Kg1 Rd8 34.Rf4 Kg8 and White is set to lose a second pawn as the bishop has no retreating squares. 31.Bd2 Ne7 32.Bb4 R8c7 33.Nh4 An awkward move to have to make, but White has to stop ...Nf5 somehow. 33...Nc3 34.Bd6 Rd7 35.Bb4 Rc7 36.Bd6 Rd7 Zatonskih just repeats a couple of moves to gain time on the clock heading to the first time-control. 37.Bb4 Ne4 38.Rf4 Nc6 39.Ba3 Ra2! Rendering White's bishop somewhat impotent - as well as the rest of the game, which just becomes academic for Zatonskih as she easily goes on to win a vital game against the tournament top seed en route to a famous victory. 40.b4 a6 41.f3 Losing the h5-pawn, but then again, what else to do considering that 41.g3 allows the forcing sequence 41...g5! 42.hxg6+ fxg6 43.Rff3 g5 44.Ng2 Kg7! 45.Ne3 Rf7 46.Rxf7+ Kxf7 47.Nd1 Rd2! 48.Rxd2 Nxd2 49.Bb2 Nb3 and the d4-pawn falls. 41...Ng3 42.Rg4 Nxh5 43.b5 axb5 44.Bc5 g5 45.f4 Nxf4 There are so many ways to win now, so it's a case of take your pick - but the engine being the engine, goes for the jugular with 45...f5! winning a piece with 46.exf6 Nxf6 etc. 46.Re3 Ne7 47.Nf3 Nf5 48.Rb3 Kg6 The rest is elementary for Zatonskih. 49.Kh2 Kh5 50.Rxf4 gxf4 51.Ne1 Ne3 52.Kh3 Kg5 53.g3 Nf5 54.Nf3+ Kg6 55.gxf4 Rf2 56.Bb6 Re7 57.Ba5 Re8 58.Be1 Re2 59.Rxb5 Ra8 60.Ba5 b6 61.Bb4 Re3 0-1

Stealing First

Mon, 12 Jun 2023 20:06:08 GMT

To win a tournament, you first have to win the tournament! Sage words indeed for Fabiano Caruana who looked to be on the verge of back-to-back classical tournament victories at the 11th Norway Chess Tournament in Stavanger, only on the last day to see Hikaru Nakamura winning the all-American final round showdown to steal first place.

It all proved to be a self-inflicted wound for front-runner Caruana who mostly led throughout after beating Magnus Carlsen on the opening day. He badly miscued in the opening in his classical clash with long-time rival Nakamura, who went on to easily convert his big material advantage to claim the maximum classical bonus points that not only gave him the title and $70,000 first prize but also reclaim the World #2 spot on the live ratings !

It’s indeed quite the haul for "semipro" Nakamura now: An almost flawless performance to capture the Norway Chess Tournament title (with three classical wins and no losses), the #1 streamer (with his YouTube channel recently breaking a landmark 2,000,000 subscribers on the back of his Stavanger victory), and now installed as the new World #2 as his rating spikes 12-points to 2787, less than 50-points behind a crashing Carlsen.

So what helped Nakamura to the title and his recent run of good form? He’s certainly more relaxed than he’s ever been during his long career, and he explained his financial security through his popular online streaming to be a big part of the reason during his post-victory presser: “I think the bottom line is the fact that there’s no pressure on me versus all the other players, where there’s a massive amount of pressure.”

And as one chess influencer rises, another falls. For ex-world champion Magnus Carlsen, there was no epoch-making five-in-a-row at Norway Chess, with his lacklustre bottom-half performance leaving Norwegian journalist Tarjei J. Svensen (the official keeper-of-all-stats-Magnus) to tweet : “For the first time in 16 years, and after 72 tournaments straight (my unofficial count), Carlsen goes through a classical tournament without a single win.”

Final Standings:

1. H. Nakamura (USA) 16.5/27; 2. F. Caruana (USA) 16; 3. Gukesh D. (India) 14.5; 4. A. Giri (Netherlands) 13; 5. W. So (USA) 12.5; 6. M. Carlsen (Norway) 11.5; 7. S. Mamedyarov (Azerbaijan) 11; 8. A. Firouzja (France) 10.5; 9. N. Abdusattorov (Uzbekistan) 9; 10. A. Tari (Norway) 6.

It ain't over till the big chess influencer smiles! | © Norway Chess

GM Hikaru Nakamura - GM Fabiano Caruana

11th Norway Chess, (9)

 C58: Two Knights Defence

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Ng5 It's amazing in today's game how many erroneously still described this line of the Two Knights to be the "Fried Liver Attack" - this only comes about after 4…d5 5.exd5 and the "dodgy" 5...Nxd5?! with enormous complications with 6.Nxf7! Kxf7 7.Qf3+ Ke6 8.Nc3 Nb4 9.O-O c6 10.d4 and it is a very brave player indeed that's willing to defend this position. 4…d5 5.exd5 Na5 6.Bb5+ c6 7.dxc6 bxc6 8.Bd3!? There is a great American pedigree attached to this slightly unnatural move impeding the d-pawn, having first been played - I believe - by Paul Morphy, then suggested by Bobby Fischer, and also going on to become a favourite of Nakamura since he was a kid, where he’d bash all-comers with it on the ICC. But when I first started playing, in 1972, Yakov Estrin's blue-clothed bible was the gospel in the Two Knights Defence, and the more orthodox preaching was 8.Qf3 (or even 8.Be2) exploiting the pin on the a8 rook. But lately, 8.Bd3 has become the fashionable punt. 8...Nd5 9.Nf3 Bd6 10.O-O Nf4 11.Nc3 Nxd3 12.cxd3 O-O 13.b3 Re8 14.Re1 c5 15.Ba3 Nc6 16.Ne4 Bf8 17.Rc1 f5? Played after two minutes of thought, and already this "novelty" is a game-losing blunder for Caruana, who seems to have missed a crucial tactic for White. What he should have played was the obvious 17...Nb4! 18.Bxb4 cxb4 19.Nc5

(Or even 19.Ng3 Bb7! 20.Nxe5 Qd6 21.Nc4 Qd5 22.Re4 Qxd3 23.Rxe8 Rxe8 where the bishop-pair and active play offer excellent compensation for the pawn) 19...Qd5 20.d4 Bg4 21.h3 Bxf3 22.Qxf3 Qxf3 23.gxf3 exd4 24.Rxe8 Rxe8 25.Nd3 g6 and White can claim nothing with a slew of crippled and weak pawns, as seen in Sindarov,J-Matlakov,M Tashkent 2021. 18.Nxc5 Qd5 (see diagram) The quizzical look on Nakamura's face, after Caruana had badly erred with 17...f5? painted quite the picture. And as Nakamura himself explained in his post-game presser, "I think Fabiano missed 18...Qa5 19.Ng5!! and White is completely winning" - it certainly has the "Ooft!" factor, especially when you see lines such as 19...Qxa3 (No better is 19...g6 20.Qf3! Ne7 21.Qxa8 Qxa3 22.Qb8 Nd5 23.Qb5 and Black is on the verge of resignation) 20.Qh5 h6 21.Qxe8 hxg5 22.Qxc6 etc. 19.Qc2! Cool play indeed from Nakamura, both stopping ...e4 and with the threat of Qc4 exchanging queens that is going to leave Caruana in dire straits - and not in any good way either with Mark Knopfler licking the riffs on lead guitar! 19...Rd8 20.Qc4 Qxc4 21.Rxc4 Rd5 22.Rec1 As the wonderfully placed Nc5 seriously hinders Caruana from being able to develop his light-squared bishop, Nakamura just gets on with the job of building up his forces to take full advantage of his extra couple of pawns. 22...Bd6 23.Bb2 With the Nc5 suitable protected, Nakamura switches his bishop to prepare the groundwork for a possible d4 advance to free his game. I can only imagine the agony Caruana had to be in here, as he's basically just waiting for Nakamura to get his ducks in order before he makes a decisive breakthrough. 23...Ne7 24.R4c2 Rb8 25.d4! And as the game opens up, it is clear that, despite having the bishop-pair, Caruana has nothing to hope for apart from praying for a miracle or a sudden earthquake hitting Stavanger. 25...exd4 26.Nxd4 a5 27.Nf3 h6 28.Na4 Ba6 29.Nc3 Also good and strong was 29.d4!, but Nakamura just goes for the simplicity of trading pieces to take full advantage of his extra couple of pawns heading into the endgame. 29...Rc5 30.Ba3 Rc6 31.Bxd6 Rxd6 32.Na4 Nd5 33.Rc6! Nakamura continues with his simple strategy of just trading pieces and taking the big endgame plus. 33...Rxc6 34.Rxc6 Nb4 35.Rd6 Bb7 36.Nc3 Re8 37.h4 f4 Well, you could try the "better" 37...Bxf3 but after 38.gxf3 Kf7 39.h5 it is just a matter of time before White wins this endgame. Rather than that, I think Caruana just wanted the game to end as soon as possible to stop the hurt. 38.Rd4 Rf8 39.Ne5 Re8 40.Nc4 f3 41.gxf3 Bxf3 42.Kh2! The end is nigh, as the placard-carrying street doom-mongers would say, as now Nakamura gets his king off the back-rank to play an active part of the endgame via h2-g3-f4. 42...Nc2 43.Rd3 Ba8 44.Kg3

It doesn't take long for Nakamura to unravel to realise his big endgame material advantage. 44...Kh7 45.Ne3 Nb4 46.Rd6 Nc6 47.Ncd5 Rf8 48.Nc7 Bb7 49.Ne6 Rf7 50.f4! In all honesty, Nakamura has very skilfully unravelled and Caruana could well have resigned at this point. 50...Ba8 51.h5 Ra7 52.a3 Looking to meet ...a4 with b4. 52...Kg8 53.f5 Re7 54.Kf4 Ra7 55.d4 1-0

USA! USA! USA!

Fri, 09 Jun 2023 15:39:54 GMT

The Stars & Stripes is flying high at the 11th Norway Chess Tournament in Stavanger, as the top spots are occupied by three of America’s top players, with the charge being led by revitalised Fabiano Caruana who continues his classical winning ways to be on the cusp of a famous victory heading into Friday’s final round.

Caruana is almost back to his peak as he rides high following a sixth-round victory over Nodirbek Abdusattorov; a crucial win that not only maintains his lead at the top, but also reinforces his grip on the constantly changing World #2 spot in the live ratings , as he just edges ahead of Hikaru Nakamura and Alirezja Firouzja.

And despite a penultimate round eight armageddon loss on time (and from a winning position too) against Indian rising teen star Gukesh D, the US champion still holds his lead at the top as he inches ever-closer to victory. But behind him still lurks a dangerous Nakamura - whom Caruana faces in the big all-American final round clash for all the marbles - and he’s now joined in the mix by another American, Wesley So, who inflicted back-to-back USA defeat for Abdusattorov, as he now joins the chasing pack.

Explaining his resurgent form of the past year, and his performance so far in Stavanger, an upbeat and increasingly confident Caruana with his eyes firmly on a future world title-tilt, explained: “You work for a long period of time and the results don’t really show, but at some point, everything just comes together and you start to play better.”

And as one big star is back in the groove, another looks set for what could be an epic Edward Gibbon-like “decline and fall” on his home soil. Caruana’s opening-round victory over old foe Magnus Carlsen seems to have set the tone for the ex-champion, as he struggles to find his golden form of old and yet to see a classical win to his name, in the process shedding 16 rating points and set for the worst tournament result of his adult career.

Standings:

1. F. Caruana (USA) 14.5/21; 2. H. Nakamura (USA) 12.5; 3. W. So (USA) 10.5; 4-5. A. Giri (Netherlands), Gukesh D. (India) 10; 6. A. Firouzja (France) 9.5; 7-8. M. Carlsen (Norway), S. Mamedyarov (Azerbaijan) 9; 9. N. Abdusattorov (Uzbekistan) 6; 10. A. Tari (Norway) 3.

Fabiano Caruana is back in the groove and could be on the cusp of back-to-back classical victories| © Norway Chess

GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov - GM Fabiano Caruana

11th Norway Chess Tournament, (6)

 C65: Ruy Lopez, Berlin Defence

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6 4.d3 This timid little move is all the rage now, as everyone avoids the tabyia of the so-called "Berlin Wall" endgame with the early exchange of queens 4.O-O Nxe4 5.d4 Nd6 6.Bxc6 dxc6 7.dxe5 Nf5 8.Qxd8+ Kxd8 that's notoriously tough for White to breakdown. 4...Bc5 5.Bxc6 dxc6 6.O-O Bd6 Also a popular option is 6...Qd6. 7.Nbd2 Be6 8.Nb3 The main line is 8.b3 looking to finachetto ther bishop and pressure on e5. But 8.Nb3 has become fashionable of late. 8...b6 9.Ng5!?N A novelty from the Uzbek that must have come as a surprise for Caruana, who himself championed a similar square novelty, though with 9.Bg5, which the US champion played against Levon Aronian at St Louis 2023. 9...Bg4 10.f3 Bh5 11.Kh1 The logical break looks like 11.d4 but this is well answered by 11...Nd7 12.Nh3 O-O 13.Be3 f6 and White has nothing. 11...Nd7 12.Nh3 f6 13.Be3 Qe7 A canny waiting move from Caruana, who keeps his options open for a little longer, just to see what Abdusattorov has in mind. 14.Nd2 And ditto from Abbusattorov - we're in for a patient waiting game here. 14...Nc5 If 14...c5 then 15.Nc4 Bf7 16.Nxd6+ Qxd6 17.f4 and again, not much for either side. But Caruana wisely decides it is better for him to keep the tension in the position for now. 15.Nc4 Ne6 16.Ng1 Also possible is 16.Nxd6+ Qxd6 with White having a little influnce with his control of the light-squares - but nothing to write home about. 16...g5 17.Ne2 Bf7 18.Qe1 h5 19.Nxd6+ cxd6 20.a4 h4 21.a5 b5 Now the game starts to get complex - and that seems to favour the more experienced Caruana, as Abdusattorov burns up too much clock-time and runs into time-trouble. 22.h3 a6 23.d4

Abdusattorov bravely begins the process of breaking the tension in the game. 23...c5 24.c3 Kf8 The strategical manoeuvrings continue, as Caruana prepares the ground for the game breaking open. 25.Rd1 Kg7 26.Qf2

The talking heads on the commentary team thought Abdusattorov missed his best chance with first playing 26.b4!? Rac8 and now 27.Qf2 forcing 27...c4 and the queenside effectively placed in lockdown; which at least would be one less thing for the Uzbek to worry about as he continues to burn his clock time. 26...Rac8 27.Rd2 Qc7 28.Ra1 Rhd8 29.b4 cxd4 30.cxd4 Qe7 31.Rad1 Rh8 32.Qe1?! Now was the time to strike with 32.d5!, but by squandering his chances with an inane move, Caruana seizes the chance to dominate. 32...Rc4 33.dxe5 Now no longer an option is 33.d5 as there comes 33...Nf4! 34.Bxf4 gxf4 35.Rc1 Qc7! and Black is starting to take a firm grip of the game. At least by exchanging on e5, Abdusattorov has some activity for his pieces. 33...dxe5 34.Rd6 Rd8! Managing the potential of White's pieces getting more active than they need to be, as Caruana swiftly exchanges a set of rooks.

35.Rxd8 Nxd8 36.g3? Abdusattorov's time-trouble now plays a big part in the outcome of the game, as he's rushed into making some "dodgy" decisions. Best was the more natural 36.Bc5 and 36...Qe8 37.Nc1 Ne6 38.Nd3 Qc6 39.Kh2 Nd4 40.Rd2 Nb3 41.Rb2 Nxc5 42.Nxc5 Rd4 and despite Black having the better rook and the bishop, the Nc5 hitting a6 will effectively stymie Black's chances of winning. 36...hxg3 37.Nxg3 Be6 38.Qd2? Another rushed move made in time-trouble - and with it, the game begins to swing towards Caruana. The best chance that the engine concurs with, was 38.h4! Nf7 39.hxg5 Nxg5 40.Qf2! Kg6 41.Bxg5 fxg5 42.Qb6! and it is hard to see how Black can possibly win from here. 38...Nf7 39.Bc5 Qe8 40.h4 Qh8 41.h5 Qh7 42.Kg2 Qh6 43.Kf2 g4 44.Be3 Safer was 44.Qxh6+ Kxh6 45.Be3+ Kh7 46.Rc1 Rxc1 (No better is 46...Rxb4 47.Rc6! as Black has to seek the bail-out now with 47...Rb2+ 48.Ke1 Rb3 49.Kf2 Rb2+ and a repetition) 47.Bxc1 gxf3 48.Kxf3 Nh6 49.Be3 with a draw on the cards. 44...Qh8 45.fxg4 Qc8 46.Bc5 The young Uzbek continues to sup at the Last Chance Saloon. What was needed, according to all-seeing, all-saving Oracle of the engine, was 46.Rc1 to contest the c-file, where now 46...Bxg4 47.Rxc4 Qxc4 48.Kg2! Qb3 49.Kh2 where apparently Black has no better than 49...Qd1 50.Qxd1 Bxd1 and a likely draw on the horizon. 46...Bxg4 47.Rf1? The final and fatal mistake. It was still not too late to admit that move needed was to contest the c-file with 47.Rc1! where after the more-or-less forced sequence of 47...Rxc1 48.Qxc1 Ng5 49.Be3 Qxc1 50.Bxc1 where it is hard to see how this game is going to end in anything other than a draw after 50...Kh6 51.Bd2 Bxh5 52.Nf5+ Kg6 53.Ne7+ Kf7 54.Bxg5! Kxe7 (Slightly worse is 54...fxg5?! 55.Nc6 and White has the better of the ending despite sans a pawn, but even here, after 55...g4 the game will also peter out to a draw with 56.Nb8 Bg6 57.Nxa6 Bxe4 58.Nc5 Bc6 59.Kg3 Bf3 60.a6 Ke7 61.a7 Kd6 etc.) 55.Be3 Ke6 56.Bc5 and, despite being a pawn down, this is just a technical opposite-coloured bishop ending where White will cement his king on e3 and oscillate his bishop between f8 and c5. 47...Bh3 48.Rg1 Abdusattorov must have been seeing "ghosts" if he thought he had a promising attack against Caruana's king. 48...Kh7 49.h6 Qg4! He who dares wins! And that's just what Caruana does, as White's h6-pawn - for now, at least - making an ideal shield, he demonstrates just how badly Abdusattorov had mis-assesed this position. 50.Nf5

White just has too many loose pawns hanging and his king too exposed. If 50.Be3 Qh4! the pressure just dials up for White. 50...Qxe4 51.Rg7+ Kh8 52.Ne3 Nxh6! 53.Nxc4 Kxg7 54.Bf8+ Kxf8 55.Qxh6+ Kg8 I can only assume that Abdusattorov had a brain freeze of some sort, and thought Black had to play 55...Ke7? 56.Qg7+! Ke6 57.Qg8+ Ke7 58.Qg7+ where it is just a draw by repetion, as the Black king can't escape the queen checks. You live and learn. Well, you live anyway! 56.Ne3 (see diagram) 56...Bf5! The real reason for this move will soon be revealed, because, with no checks now, the only worry Caruana has is the White queen sneaking in the back door, and he squashes this possibility to now comfortably convert with his extra two passed pawns. 57.Qh5 Bg6 And there it is, the White queen is effectively locked out of any "Hail Mary" game-saving possibilities. 58.Qh3 f5 A very imaginative "defence" from Caruana, stopping any possible game-saving repetitions while at the same time mobilising his passed pawns.

59.Qh6 And also note that impossible is 57.Qxf6 as it loses to 57...Qf4+ 58.Ke2 Bd3! picking up the loose queen on f6! 59...Kf7 60.Qh8 Qd4 61.Ke2 f4 62.Ng4 f3+! 0-1 And Abdusattorov resigns as 63.Kxf3 e4+ picks up the loose queen on h8!

Who's On Second?

Tue, 06 Jun 2023 20:34:29 GMT

The fabled “ Who’s On First? ” baseball comedy routine is one of the lasting legacies of Bud Abbott (1897-1974) and Lou Costello (1906-1959). So good, that Time magazine proclaimed it to be the “Best Comedy Sketch of the 20th Century” in 1999; and such is the skit’s standing, it was even inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown in 1956, where it has played in a continuous loop since 1967.

The routine has also become something of a cultural touchstone, transcending comedy as a metaphor for miscommunication, multiple confusion, and double-talk in business, politics, and everyday life - and it could well be about to be reworked for chess’ pecking order, as the World #2 spot sees musical chair-like daily changes with almost every round of the Norway Chess Tournament in Stavanger.

In the world rankings, while we all know that the numéro uno is, of course, Magnus Carlsen - and indeed, unbroken since July 2011 - but as each round ends in Stavanger, you can almost envision Bud & Lou’s argumentative contortions not being about who’s on first but rather just who’s on second?

We started Norway Chess with teenager Alireza Firouzja in the World #2 spot behind Carlsen, and he was then leapfrogged momentarily on the live ratings by Fabiano Caruana; only for a couple of rounds later, Firouzja being numéro dous overnight. Then, with a brace of wins over Gukesh D and Aryan Tari, Hikaru Nakamura got in on the act by leapfrogging both Firouzja and Caruana for his overnight stint as World #2!

That lasted only 24 hours, because with a fourth classical win, over Nodbirbek Abdusattorov in round 6, Caruana not only extends his lead at the top but he’s also back in the World #2 spot; though with things likely to remain in a state of flux with just three rating points separating the Carlsen-chasing trio!

And while a resurgent Caruana has dominated in Stavanger, the US champion is not only involved in a three-way dogfight with Firouzja and Nakamura to be World #2, he's also now involved in an increasingly two-horse race with home-front rival Nakamura for the tournament #1 spot, as the US duo begin to break from the chasing pack going into the home stretch.

And through all the musical chairs shenanigans going on behind him, a yet classical-winless Carlsen continues to dip in the pecking order, with the gap between the World #’s 1 & 2 dramatically closing with the Norwegian haemorrhaging 14-rating points - and a fifth straight Norway Chess Tournament title looks extremely remote now, a distant dream, as he's six-points adrift of Caruana, as his former title foe looks to be staking his claim to become World Champion.

Standings:

1. F. Caruana (USA) 13.5/18; 2. H. Nakamura (USA) 11; 3-4. A. Firouzja (France), Gukesh D. (India) 8.5; 5 . S. Mamedyarov (Azerbaijan) 8; 6-7. M. Carlsen (Norway), W. So (USA) 7.5; 8. A. Giri (Netherlands) 7; 9. N. Abdusattorov (Uzbekistan) 6; 10. A. Tari (Norway) 3.

Hikaru Nakamura is in an All-American battle with Caruana for both the World #2 spot and Tournament #1 | © Norway Chess

GM Hikaru Nakamura - GM Aryan Tari

11th Norway Chess, (5)

C24: Bishop's Opening, Berlin Defence

1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 It was the 'Great Dane' himself, Bent Larsen, who almost single-handedly is responsible for reviving the Bishop's Opening in the 1960s and 1970s at the top level, as it was a long-forgotten system first studied in the 16th century by Greco. And sometimes the Bishop's Opening can come as a total shock to the system when deployed against younger players, hence Nakamura's wisdom of using it as a surprise weapon against the Norwegian #2. 2...Nf6 3.d3 Bc5 The Bishop's Opening can be used as a conduit into the Giuoco Piano - but Larsen's original thinking, which Nakamura concurs with, is a completely separate agenda. 4.Nc3 c6 5.Bb3 d6 6.h3 O-O 7.Nf3 a5 8.O-O Nbd7 9.a3 b5 10.Ba2 a4 11.Nh4 Ba7 12.Qf3 Nakamura goes for control of the crucial d5 square and a firm grip of f5 for his knight - but Black has a simple development plan that should guarantee not only total equality but an intriguing tussle ahead. 12...Nc5 13.Nf5 Bxf5 14.Qxf5 Re8 15.Bd2 Ne6 16.Ne2! Heading for the ideal f5 outpost for the knight. 16...d5! And Tari reacts correctly and energetically by pushing in the centre of the board.

17.exd5 Nxd5 Not bad or losing in any way, but with the e-pawn taboo due to the discovered attack down the e-file, there was a view among the talking heads that more dynamic was 17...cxd5! and the plan of pushing on with ...e4 due to the x-ray attack down the d-file, and if 18.Rad1 to defend d2, then plan B is 18...Qc8! looking to play ...Nd4 or even ...Nf4, which offered Black good prospects. 18.Rae1 Qd6 19.Qg4 Rad8 20.Ng3 No shortage of good options for Nakamura's knights, with both the e4 and f5 squares ready to slip into. And from here, Nakamura is in his element with some timely trades, as his knight dominates Black's bad bishop. 2 0...Nd4 21.Bg5 Rb8 22.Be3 Qg6 23.c3 Nxe3 24.fxe3 Nb3 25.Ne4! Creating a force majeur moment in the game for Nakamura, as Tari feels compelled to trade queens, which just makes the endgame easier for White. 25...Qxg4 26.hxg4 c5? Tari starts to lose the plot at this point, and he soon pays for it with the game. Correct was keeping the tension for now with 26...Rbd8 27.d4 Re6! 28.Ng5 Re7 29.Nf3 e4! 30.Bxb3 (If 30.Nh4 simply 30...g6! 31.g3 Rd5! and a major headache for White, with the Black rook ready to jump over to g5 to hit the double g-pawns) 30...exf3 with equal chances. 27.Bxb3! Nakamura jumps on the good knight v bad bishop scenario - and what's not like about the promising endgame prospects for the American? 27...axb3 (see diagram) 28.c4! Effectively the winning move now, as it locks the bishop out of the game. 28...Red8 29.Rd1 Rd7 30.Kf2! Excellent play from Nakamura, who uses his king to defend d3 to free up one of his rooks - and with it, the ending is so easy now for White to convert. 30...h5 In dire straits, Tari goes for a last throw of the dice to try - somehow - to activate his pieces. 31.gxh5 f5 32.Nc3 b4 33.Nb5 f4 The desperation continues for Tari, but then again, after the better 33...bxa3 34.bxa3! Black's b-pawn falls with a bad endgame in prospect. 34.axb4 Bb6 35.exf4 cxb4+ 36.Kf3 exf4 Tari opts to hang for the sheep as for the lamb now, rather than going down meekly in the endgame after 36...Rbd8 37.Ke2 Re8 38.f5 Ra8 39.g4 Bd4 40.Rd2 etc.

37.d4 Rbd8 38.Rd3! A nice final touch from Nakamura, as 38...Bxd4 will be strongly met by Rfd1 resulting in a self-pin down the d-file and a heavy loss of material for Black. 38...Rc8 39.Rc1 Nakamura has masterfully re-arranged his furniture and is now ready to start pushing his central passed pawns. 39...Rd5 40.c5 Rg5 41.Nd6 Winning both material and the game! 41...Rc6 42.cxb6! 1-0 And Tari resigns, faced with the impossible defence of

42...Rxc1 43.b7 and the pawn can't be stopped from queening.

Take My Rooks

Sun, 04 Jun 2023 18:46:09 GMT

In the introduction to the thoroughly entertaining and recommended double rook sacrifice tome Take My Rooks! - co-written with coach/author Nikolay Minev - Yasser Seirawan urges readers to "lose yourself in fantasy" as playing this scenario is akin to entering "a dream world, a world of fantasy where [the player] may come out a magician.”

I can only imagine that the legendary four-time US champion-turned-commentator had to be licking his lips during round 4 of the 11th Norway Chess Tournament in Stavanger, as he saw the reigning US champion, Fabiano Caruana, indulge in such a fantasy sacrifice against Alireza Firouzja, as he beat his nearest rival to establish a now seemingly unassailable lead at the top.

With the innovative scoring system in Stavanger, Caruana is turning in a blistering performance that is almost on a par with his 7-0 start to the 2015 Sinquefield Cup, as he demolishes the field with his an equally sensational start of three bonus-point classical wins over Magnus Carlsen, Aryan Tari and now Firouzja (his only draw being ceded to Anish Giri).

Caruana not only leads his nearest rival, Hikaru Nakamura by a clear four points (!), on 10.5/12, but he also now sees a seismic spike in his live rating by jumping 24 points, to 2788, as the third highest-rated player in history (behind Carlsen and Garry Kasparov) jumps four places and back to World #2, and within reach of returning once again to the 2800 Club.

And as the third highest-rated player in history rises, another of the trio falters, as Carlsen’s nightmare continues on his home soil. A fifth-straight Norway Chess victory all but evaporated despite the ex-world champion winning a crazy armageddon to 17-year-old Indian rising star Gukesh D., with the Norwegian World #1 slumping precociously close to the bottom of the crosstable.

Standings:

1. F. Caruana (USA) 10.5/12; 2. H. Nakamura (USA) 6.5; 3. A. Firouzja (France) 6; 4. Gujesh D (India) 5.5; 5-7. A. Giri (Netherlands), W. So (USA) N. Abdusattorov (Uzbekistan) 5; 8. M. Carlsen (Norway) 4.5; 9. S. Mamedyarov (Azerbaijan) 4; 10. A. Tari (Norway) 2.

Caruana bounces back to top form | © Norway Chess

GM Alireza Firouzja - GM Fabiano Caruana

11th Norway Chess, (4) 

C11: French, Steinitz,/Boleslavsky variation

1.e4 e6 The French Defence is a long-time favourite of Fabi's, going back to his junior days. As he made the progression to GM and elite-level GM, it had to be abandoned in preference for answering 1.e4 with an Open Game with 1...e5 or the Sicilian with 1...c5 - but nevertheless, he sometimes surprises opponents by dipping back to those days of yore playing the French, as in this game. 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.e5 The Classical French Steinitz- named after the first World Champion, Wilhelm Steinitz - sees White gaining a big advantage in space, but Black has a rock-solid position with his pawn formation that can come into its own, if we get to the endgame. 4...Nfd7 5.f4 c5 6.Nf3 Nc6 7.Be3 And now we come to the second part of the name-share, the Boleslavsky variation, named after the early Soviet-era player and leading theoretician, Isaac Bolesavsky, who became a mentor to David Bronstein, the first Candidates' winner and his eventual son-in-law. The idea behind 7.Be3 is to try and force an early release of the tension on d4. 7...cxd4 T wo good alternatives are 7...a6 or the Hikaru Nakamura favourite of 7...b6. 8.Nxd4 Qb6

Caruana cuts to the chase by going for the pawn grab. And with being surprised in the opening, Firouzja wanders blindly into a complex position. 9.Qd2 Qxb2 10.Rb1 Qa3 11.Ncb5 Qxa2 12.Rd1 Rb8 13.Nc7+ Kd8! "Show me the compensation,” said Caruana on this move; the best king move, as it keeps the development integrity of the dark-squared bishop. 14.Ncb5 Nc5 15.Bd3 Nxd3+ 16.Qxd3 Bd7!?N Caruana’s novelty immediately sees Firouzja getting carried away with delusions of grandeur. Previously seen here has been 16...Qa5+ 17.Kf2 Nxd4 18.Bxd4 Bd7 19.Rb1 Rc8 20.Nd6 Abregel,T-Fridman, D Germany 2016 - which is probably where Firouzja gets mixed up with his coming Nd6 idea from, but there's a subtle difference now due to Caruana's TN. 17.Nd6? A "crazy move," according to Caruana, who up to this point was more than happy to draw with his nearest rival, but suddenly gets gifted the golden opportunity to extend his lead at the top. Caruana was more expecting a "peaceful settlement" with 17.O-O Qc4 18.Qxc4 dxc4 19.Nxc6+ bxc6 20.Nd6 and there's nothing in this position due to Black's crippled queenside pawns. 17...Bxd6 18.exd6 Qc4 19.Qd2 f6! Very clever from Caruana. He doesn't intend expanding in the centre with ...e5 - the exception being only if White goes for f5 etc - but rather the king-run with ...Kd8-e8-f7 to connect his rooks and build on his material advantage. 20.Nxc6+ I think by now Firouzja began to realise that he was well and truly busted, so has no other option than to go down in flames. 20...bxc6 21.Qa5+ Ke8 22.Qxa7

(see diagram) 22...Rb2!! With Firouzja unable to castle, Caruana expertly polishes off his opponent with a stunning double rook sacrifice. 23.Qa8+ Kf7 24.Qxh8 Qxc2 25.Bd2 No better is 25.Rd2 Qxc1+ 26.Ke2 Rxd2+ 27.Bxd2 Qxh1 28.Kf2 (You still pick up the d6 pawn eventually after 28.Qd8 Qxg2+ 29. Kd1 Qg1+ 30.Be1 Qd4+ etc) 28...Qd1! 29.Be3 (or 29.Be1Qd4+ 30.Kf1 Qxf4+ etc) 29...d4! winning. 25...Qe4+ 26.Kf1 Qd3+ 27.Ke1 Not so much to start rolling the passed pawns but rather to accommodate...Bb5 and more mating threats on e2. 27...c5! 28.h4 With the White king caught in the middle of the board, there's simply no defence. If 28.Rf1 Bb5 29.Kf2 (If 29.Rf2 Qe4+ quickly mates.) 29...Qd4+ 30.Kg3 Bxf1 31.h3 Qd3+ 32.Kh2 Rxd2 33.Rxf1 Qxf1 and Black soon mates. 28...Bb5 29.Kf2 Rxd2+! The second rook sac decides the game, as Caruana's queen all but whips off White's remaining pawn and king coverage. 30.Rxd2 Qxd2+ 31.Kg3 Qe3+ 32.Kh2 Qxf4+ 33.Kg1 Qd4+ 34.Kh2 Qxh4+ 35.Kg1 Qd4+ 36.Kh2 Qe5+ 37.Kg1 Qxd6 38.Rxh7 In a desperate situation, Firouzja opts for the relief of a quick death rather than 38.Qxh7 Qe5 39.Rh3 c4 40.Ra3 Bd7 41.Qc2 Qd4+ 42.Kh1 e5 and the pawns will eventually just march down the board. 38…Qf8! 0-1 The forced exchange of queens leaves White defending a hopelessly lost endgame, hence Firouzja's resignation.

Falling Down

Thu, 01 Jun 2023 17:50:07 GMT

It’s one for the annals, as it is not often in chess, especially in classical, do you see the World No’s 1 & 2 falling on the same day and in the same tournament - but that’s just the scenario that played out in a spectacular start to the 11th Norway Chess Tournament in Stavanger, as first Magnus Carlsen fell, and quickly after there came the fall of the young teenage wannabe, Alireza Firouzja.

All eyes were on the marquee match-up between former title challenger Fabiano Caruana and Carlsen, with the latter - now sans the main crown - looking for a fifth straight Norway Chess victory on his home soil. But things didn’t go to the script for the Norwegian, as he lost the plot in a critical position to all but gift Caruana his first win in classical over the World No.1 in eight years.

And with the win, the US champion continues his much-welcomed return to form, as he jumps back up the Top 10 and is now involved in a dogfight with Hikaru Nakamura to be the top US player in the world rankings, with less than one rating point separating the top two on the live ratings .

Less than 18 months ago, Firouzja, after winning the Sinquefield Cup, and storming up to No.2 in the world rankings, was seen as the obvious young pretender to Carlsen’s crown. But his career-change sabbatical from the game has seen many young Indian rising stars now hot on his tail to be the top teen - one of which being Gukesh D, who outplayed Firouzja to gift himself a belated 17th birthday present, as he joined Caruana in the early lead on 3 points.

As eve, there’s an innovative scoring system in the Norway Chess Tournament with a win in classical counting 3 points and all games drawn going to an armageddon speed playoff, with winners taking 1.5 points, and the losers one point.

And in the opening round, the remaining games all went to Armageddon and won by won by Wesley So (against Hikaru Nakamura), Shakhriyar Mamedyarov (vs. Aryan Tari) and Anish Giri (vs. Nodirbek Abdusattorov).

GM Fabiano Caruana - GM Magnus Carlsen

Norway Chess, (1)

C11: French, Steinitz, Boleslavsky variation

1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 Theory-wise, the Winawer variation (3...Bb4) is more popular - but the venerable Classical French is still today a very solid option. 4.e5 A little like the Advance variation in the French (3.e5), this way of playing against the Classical French was popularised by the first World Champion, Wilhelm Steinitz. 4...Nfd7 5.f4 c5 6.Nf3 Nc6 7.Be3 The Classical French sees White gaining a big advantage in space, but Black has a rock-solid position with a pawn formation that can come into its own if we get to the endgame. 7...a6 8.Ne2 Carlsen playing a French Defence came as something of a surprise to Caruana, who opts for a sideline he's used in the past rather than 8.Qd2 that's more popular here. 8...Qb6 9.Qc1!? Previously, in a 2021 Chess.com blitz event, Caruana played 9.Rb1 against Maxime Vachier-Lagrave. Caruana certainly knew that 9.Qc1 was harmless and just a sideline of a sideline, but he had a hunch it would be better to stay clear of any of Carlsen's prep. 9...Be7 10.c3 O-O 11.g3 f6 12.Bg2 cxd4 13.cxd4 Qa5+!? Played after going 18 minutes into the tank - but the key to Black's position here, according to Caruana, is to play a ...Qb5 at some moment, and it is probably at this moment, as 13...Qb5! prevents castling and all but forces 14.Qd2 (This time 14.Kf2? is just a big blunder, as 14...Nb4! 15.Qc3 Nd3+ 16.Kf1 Qxb2 and Black has a winning advantage heading into the early endgame.) 14...Nb6! 15.exf6 (Not recommended is 15.b3?! Bb4! 16.Nc3 Qa5 17.Rc1 Bd7 and Black has a very comfortable game with easier development.) 15...gxf6 16.Nc3 Bb4 17.Nxb5 Bxd2+ 18.Bxd2 axb5 19.b3 Bd7 20.Bf1 Ra3! 21.Bc1 Raa8 22.Bxb5 Nb4! 23.Bxd7 Nxd7 24.Kd1 Rxa2 25.Rxa2 Nxa2 26.Bd2 Rc8 and Black has slightly better of equality with White's two isolated queenside pawns. 14.Nc3 Nb6 15.exf6 Bxf6 16.b3 Bd7 17.O-O Rac8 18.Qd2 Be7 19.Ne2 Qxd2 20.Bxd2 Rc7 21.Rac1 Rfc8 22.f5! Finely timed by Caruana, and now Carlsen finds himself in a difficult position as the game threatens to break open with White's pieces ideally placed to take advantage. 22...Ba3! The best move in the circumstances, given that the pawn is taboo. If 22...exf5? 23.Bf4! and Black is set for a serious material loss. 23.Rce1 Bb4 24.Bxb4 Nxb4 25.fxe6 Bxe6 26.Nf4 Bf5 27.Ne5 g6 28.g4 Be4 29.Bxe4 dxe4 30.a3 N4d5 31.Rxe4 Rc3? (see diagram) The wrong choice at the wrong time, and with it Carlsen's position soon falls apart. The key move to find was 31...Nxf4! 32.Rexf4 Nd5 33.R4f3 and now 33...Rc3 where, despite White having the extra pawn, it is difficult to see how he can make headway as Black's pieces are primed to undermine the loose queenside pawns. Now, if 34.Nd7 as seen in the game 34...R3c7 35.Rf8+ Rxf8 36.Rxf8+ Kg7 37.Rd8 Nf4! 38.Ne5 Re7 39.Rd6 Ne2+ 40.Kf2 Nxd4 41.Rxd4 Rxe5 42.Rd7+ Kf6 43.Rxb7 Kg5! 44.Kf3 Rc5 and, with careful play, Black will easily draw the R+P endgame. 32.Nd7! The subtle difference is that this time this move is winning! 32...Rxb3 The (full) point is that 32...Nxd7 33.Nxd5 and Black is set to lose the exchange with the rook on c3 attacked and the double threat of Ne7+ forking king and rook. You live and learn - well, you live anyway! 3 3.Nxd5 Nxd5 34.Re5 Nc3 35.Nf6+ 1-0 Carlsen resigns faced with 35...Kf7 (It's much the same after 35...Kg7 36.Re7+ Kf8 37.Ree1!) 36.Nxh7+ Kg7 37.Re7+ Kg8 (There's a mating net after 37...Kh6 38.g5+ Kh5 39.Nf6+ Kxg5 40.Re5+ Kh6 41.Ng4+ Kg7 42.Re7+ Kh8 43.Rff7 etc.) 38.Nf6+ Kf8 39.Nd5+ Kg8 40.Re3! Kg7 41.g5 that leaves Black paralysed, all but sitting in Death's Waiting Room for the killing blow.

Tour de Force

Fri, 26 May 2023 18:19:55 GMT

He may well be sans one world crown, but Magnus Carlsen - despite a jittery start - showed he is still a force of nature at the chessboard by staging a stunning comeback to claim victory in the Superbet Rapid/Blitz Poland , as the Norwegian wildcard won seven games in a row in the blitz tournament en route to capturing the overall title and $40,000 first prize in Warsaw.

Going into the fifth and final day of the second leg of the Saint Louis-organised $1.4m 2023 Grand Chess Tour , Carlsen’s remarkable comeback was such that he was on track to score one of the best results ever achieved in the Grand Chess Tour, but he fell short of repeating defending Tour champion Alireza Firouzja’s dominant score of 26/36 during last year’s Saint Louis Rapid and Blitz Tournament.

Carlsen was chased all the way to the finish line by local hero Jan-Krzysztof Duda - who topped the rapid tournament - and he also had to be at his most resourceful in order to survive a final round scare during a 124-move marathon against the Polish No.1, with an awkward and complex endgame of king and rook against king, bishop, and two connected central pawns.

After Carlsen’s bad start to the rapid tournament, some had even ventured to suggest that the World No.1 might well be ready to call time on his career. With a wry smile etched on his face during his victory presser, Carlsen was quick to quip: "Nice to show that my retirement only lasted a couple of days!"

More importantly for Carlsen, this tournament would have served as an ideal warmup ahead of next Monday’s Norway tournament in Stavanger , where in his homeland he pits his wits and puts his classical skills to the test against some top-notch opposition. The ten-player field includes the American top-10 trio of Fabiano Caruana, Wesley So and Hikaru Nakamura, plus teenage newer generational wannabes Firouzja, 19, Nodirbek Abdusattorov, 18, and Dommaraju Gukesh, 16.

Superbet Rapid/Blitz combined final standings:

1. M. Carlsen (Norway) 24/36; 2. J. Duda (Poland) 23; 3-4. W. So (USA), M. Vachier-Lagrave (France) 21½; 5. L. Aronian USA) 20½; 6. R. Rapport (Romania) 18; 7. A. Giri (Netherlands) 15; 8. K. Shevchenko (Romania) 13; 9. B. Deac (Romania) 12½; 10. R. Wojtaszek (Poland) 11.

GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave - GM Magnus Carlsen

Superbet Blitz 2023, (10)

B12: Caro-Kann, Advance variation

1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.e5 Just over sixty years ago, Mikhail Tal electrified the chess world by beating Mikhail Botvinnik in the 1960 World Championship Match. But the following year, he lost the 1961 return match - but this was a match that saw the Advance Variation getting a renewed interest by becoming a potent weapon with a new Tal twist. 3...Bf5 4.h4 Tal's twist was based on meeting the most common response, 3...Bf5 with the strange-looking move 4.h4; hoping to gain space on the kingside and "squeeze" the otherwise well-developed Bf5. In fact, 4.h4 remains a topical - if rather difficult - variation today. 4...h5 5.Bd3 Bxd3 6.Qxd3 Qa5+ 7.Nd2 Qa6 The trade of queens only makes life easier for Black, who - given the right circumstances - will be following up with ...c5 where we have a French-like position, but without the problems of what to do with the light-squared bishop usually locked behind the pawn chain.

8.e6!? If you are intent on keeping the queens on, then there's also the popular line 8.c4 that's become a big favourite of Hikaru Nakamura, even deploying it against Carlsen in the 2020 Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz. But with 8.e6!?, MVL just wants to put the kibosh on Carlsen having an easy life with a good French-like set-up, as described in the above note. 8...Qxd3 9.exf7+ Kxf7 10.cxd3 Nd7 11.Ndf3 Nh6 12.Nh3 Nf5 13.Nhg5+ Kg8 14.Ne6 g6 15.O-O Bg7 16.Nxg7 Kxg7 There's really not much in the position, with both sides having strengths/weaknesses- but at the end of the day, it is Magnus who makes the most of his slightly better pawn structure. 17.Re1 Rae8 18.g3 Rhf8 19.Kg2 a5 Alternatively, 19...c5, a la the French, is a good option - but true to form, Carlsen opts to hold the tension in the position for now, just biding his time for a more telling break. 20.b3 Ra8 21.a4 Forced, otherwise ...a4 and Black has the more useful breaks with the a-file bursting open. 21...Rfe8 22.Ba3 Ra6 23.Re2 A better option was 23.Ng5 as 23...Rb6 24.Ne6+ Kf7 25.Rab1 and Black faces a more difficult task of trying to squeeze blood from a stone here. 23...Rb6 24.Rb1 Kf6 25.Bc1 Kg7 26.Bd2 Ra6 27.Ng5 There was more merit in 27.Re6!? Nf8 28.Ree1 Rc8 but we are not saying it leads to a whole world of difference. But the difference does soon come as MVL gets impatient in the ensuing waiting game, allowing Magnus to seize the advantage he never had. 27...Kg8 28.Ne6 Rc8 29.Ree1 Nf8 30.Nf4?! There was more merit in keeping the "holding pattern" with 30.Ng5! 30...Kf7 31.Bc3 b5 32.Re5?! Another little impatient miscue from MVL - it was time to bite the bullet now with 32.b4 axb4 33.axb5 cxb5 34.Bxb4 Ne6 35.Nxd5 Rd8 36.Nc3 Rxd4 37.Nxb5 Rxd3 and a likely draw on the cards with 3 v 3 on the kingside. 32...Rb8 33.Rc1? MVL has completely lost the plot. Best was 33.Ree1! Rb7 with Black only having a small advantage due White's doubled d-pawns. 33...bxa4 34.bxa4 Rb3! Carlsen's rook coming into the game gives him a winning advantage - it just takes a little bit of imagination to arrange his pieces in the right order, and White's pawns will soon all be set to drop off. 35.Kh3 Ra3 36.g4 hxg4+ 37.Kxg4 e6 38.h5 gxh5+ 39.Kxh5 Ng7+ 40.Kg4 Rxa4 41.Nh3 (see diagram) 41...Nh7! A nice touch with the strategic retreat, as the knight is set to remerge on f6 and then to d7; possibly even to f8 to cover e6 - and tragically, MVL overlooks the possibility of a simple knight fork in the time scramble. 42.Rb1 White is in a bad way now, and if 42.Ng5+ Nxg5 43.Rxg5 Ra7! 44.Rh1 Ra3 Black is just hoovering up all the loose pawns and will start to prep pushing the a-pawn. 42...Ra7 43.Rb6? In the time scramble, MVL didn't realise he was walking into a knight fork. Best was 43.Nf4 Nf8 44.Ree1 Nf5 45.Ne2 Ng6 46.Rh1 Kg7! and Black has all the entry squares covered with his knights and king, and now threatens ...Ra2 and pushing the a-pawn. 43...Nf6+ 44.Kf3 Nd7 45.Ng5+ Kg6 46.Nxe6 Nxe5+ 0-1

Pole to Pole

Thu, 25 May 2023 00:25:43 GMT

The Superbet Rapid & Blitz Poland in Warsaw opened with Magnus Carlsen playing to the hearts of the very patriotic Polish spectators by sportingly venturing a Polish Defence against a Pole, only to see the crowds going even wilder as Radoslaw Wojtaszek went on to beat the ex-world champion.

Now the Poles have more to cheer for, with defending champion Jan-Krzysztof Duda re-finding the form that took him to a famous World Cup victory in 2021, as the Polish No.1 ended the third and final day of the rapid tournament with an unbeaten score of 13/18, to take the sole lead and a crucial one-point advantage going into the concluding two-day blitz tournament.

With 18 rounds of blitz left to play in the second leg of the Saint Louis-organised $1.4m 2023 Grand Chess Tour , Duda finds himself in pole position and once again in with a shot at the overall title in his homeland - but tucked in tight behind him on the grid is Levon Aronian in second place with 12/18, with Wesley So and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave tied for third with 11/18 points.

And after two days, one loss and six games without a win, top seed and favourite Carlsen - while clearly a little out of match-praxis - is staging a comeback of sorts, as the Norwegian hit back with a brace of wins over the Romanian back-markers, Bogdan-Daniel Deac and Kirill Shevchenko, to end day three in clear fifth place.

Carlsen is back to his usual winning ways again - but it is going to be a big ask even for the World No. 1 in the blitz tournament to overhaul the pace set by the tournament leaders.

Tune in to the final day of the Superbet Rapid & Blitz on Thursday, May 24, with all the action starting at 7:05 AM CT with Grandmaster commentators Yasser Seirawan, Var Akobian, Cristian Chirila and International Master Nazi Paikidze on grandchesstour.org and on the Saint Louis Chess Club’s YouTube and Twitch.tv channels.

Rapid final standings:

1. J. Duda (Poland) 13/18; 2. L. Aronian (USA) 12; 3-4. W. So (USA), M. Vachier-Lagrave (France) 11; 5. M. Carlsen (Norway) 10; 6. R. Rapport (Romania); 7-8. R. Wojtaszek (Poland), A. Giri (Netherlands) 7; 9. B. Deac (Romania) 6; 10. K. Shevchenko (Romania) 4.

GM Jan-Krzysztof Duda - GM Anish Giri

Superbet Rapid 2023, (1)
E60: King's Indian Defence

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.f3 A very popular Anti-Grünfeld system. The normal 3...d5 is scoring well for White, so much so that Black players are avoiding the Grünfeld and instead opting to play a Sämisch King's Indian or a hybrid KID/Benoni set-up, as we see in this game. 3...e6 4.e4 c5 5.d5 d6 6.Bd3 Bg7 7.Ne2 Nbd7 8.O-O Ne5 9.Nec3 exd5 10.cxd5 Nxd3 11.Qxd3 Black may well have the bishop-pair, but right now there's a major problem of how to develop the light-squared bishop with White's formidable d5-g2 pawn chain effectively locking it out of the game. 11...O-O 12.Bg5 h6 13.Bh4 g5 14.Bf2 Nh5 15.Nd2 Nf4 16.Qc2 b5!? It was either this typical Benoni pawn sacrifice or see White putting the "Big Clamp" on the queenside with a4 and then swinging the knight into c4. 17.Nxb5 Rb8 18.a4 a6 19.Nc3 Rxb2 This speculative sacrifice was the whole raison d'être for Giri's provocative queenside play - but while it looks stunning, it only works if White panics, which Duda doesn't. 20.Qxb2 Bxc3 Worse was 20...Ne2+?! 21.Kh1 Bxc3 22.Qb3 Bxa1 23.Rxa1 and Black will just have wasted a move as the knight will have to sheepishly retreat back to f4. 21.Qa2 Of course, losing on the spot was 21.Qxc3?? Ne2+ forking king and queen. 21...Bxa1 22.Qxa1 The problem for Giri, is that while the b2 tactic has solved the problem of a Big Clamp on the queenside, long-term Duda could well exploit the dark-square weakness down the long a1-h8 diagonal to launch a kingside attack. 22...a5 23.Be3 Ba6 24.Rb1 Bd3 25.Rb7 Ba6 Hindsight is always 20/20 in chess, but the alternative looked more promising, with 25...Ne2+!? 26.Kf2 c4 27.Bb6 (There's no time for 27.Ra7?? g4! 28.g3 c3 and Black is already close to winning.) 27...Qa8 28.Rc7 Rc8! 29.Rxc8+ Qxc8 30.Qf6 c3 31.Nb3 Qb8! Forcing the endgame with the trade of queens, where now 32.Qd8+ Qxd8 33.Bxd8 c2 34.Bxa5! Bc4 35.Bd2 Bxb3 36.Kxe2 Bxa4 and a draw with the opposite-colour bishops. 26.Rb3 Nd3 27.Nf1 Nb4?! The game begins to swing out of control for Giri at this point - he simply had to go proactive and play 27...f5! 28.Ng3 f4 29.Nh5 Rf7 30.Bd2 Kh7 just offering a little bolthole for the king on g6, in case of a Nf6+ trick, and a complex position with chances for both sides - but likely one where each side's threats will cancel the others out, ending in a draw. 28.Ng3 Bc8 29.Nh5! The knight swinging into h5 forces a concession from Black with ..f6, and a further weakness for White to exploit. 29...f6 30.Bd2 Nc2 If not this resource, then White will play Bc3 with no way to defend the f6 weakness. 31.Qb2 Nd4 32.Rb6 Qe8 Giri has found an imaginative way to stay in the game - and it almost succeeds! 33.Ng3 Qxa4 34.Bc3? The critical move to find, and recommended by the engine, is a touch of prophylaxis with 34.Kf2!, because if 34…Qd1 there then comes 35.Bxa5! and White is on top. There is a subtle difference with what comes in the game, as we'll soon see. 34...Rd8? For whatever reason, Giri has a panic attack over the d6-pawn, missing that, in the grand scheme of things, it wasn't really all that important, as after 34...Qd1+! 35.Kf2 the subtle difference is that 35...a4! and White can't snatch on d6 with 36.Rxd6? because of 36...a3! 37.Qxa3 Qc2+ 38.Kg1 Nb5 39.Qxc5 Qc1+ 40.Nf1 Nxd6 with a big material plus advantage. 35.Ne2 f5 The only way to save the game again, was the move that was screaming out to be played, namely 35...Qd1+! 36.Kf2 Nxe2 37.Qxe2 Qxe2+ 38.Kxe2 a4 39.Bxf6 Rd7 40.Rb8 Kf7! When in doubt, head for the R+P endgame that invariably ends in a draw! 41.Rxc8 Kxf6 42.Rf8+! Ke7 (The king is forced back, as 42...Ke5?? 43.Ke3 and Black has walked himself into a self-mate!) 43.Ra8 Rb7 44.Rxa4 Rb2+ 45.Kd3 Rxg2 46.Kc4 g4 and the game is fizzling out to a draw. 36.Bxd4 cxd4 37.Qxd4! This time with the queens off, the endgame is close to winning for White, as Black can't get his bishop into the game quickly enough due to the d6 weakness. 37...Qxd4+ 38.Nxd4 fxe4 39.fxe4 Kf7? The engine offers up the last chance to save the game - but in Giri's defence, it does involve a few moves you just wouldn't consider with the time constraints by this stage, such as 39...a4!? 40.Nb5 Kf8 41.Nxd6 a3! 42.Nxc8 Rxc8 43.Ra6 Re8! 44.Rxa3 Rxe4 and a technically drawn R+P endgame. You just don't see such finesses with little to no time left on your clock. 40.Kf2 a4 Too little too late now, as White's king secures the all-important e4-pawn. 41.Ke3 a3 42.Rb3 Bd7 43.Rxa3 Rb8 44.Ra7 Ke8 Not 44...Ke7? 45.Nf5+! with an easier win. 45.Kd2 Rb2+ 46.Nc2 h5 47.Kc3 Rb1 48.Ne3 Rc1+ If Black goes for the kingside pawns with 48...Rh1 49.Nc4! wins, as 49...Rc1+ 50.Kd4 Rd1+ 51.Ke3 Black runs out of checks and will either lose the d6-pawn or the bishop. 49.Kd4 Kd8 (see diagram) 50.e5! The crucial breakthrough, as Duda's king comes in to force a winning R+P ending. 50...dxe5+ 51.Kxe5 Re1 52.Kd6 Rxe3 53.Rxd7+ Ke8 54.Rg7 g4 55.Rg5 Re2 56.Re5+! 1-0

Polish'd Off in Poland

Mon, 22 May 2023 17:53:53 GMT

The chess circus now moves to Warsaw with the Superbet Rapid and Blitz Poland now underway, with all eyes focused on the wildcard invite for the world No 1 and now ex-world champion, Magnus Carlsen - but things didn’t exactly go to script for the Norwegian on his return to the elite circle since abdicating his crown.

There was no media hoopla with the prospects of an early showdown with Ding Liren, as the new classical world champion, citing fatigue, very wisely pulled out of the second leg of the St Louis-organised $1.4m 2023 Grand Chess Tour last week, following his disastrous showing in Bucharest that came hard on the heels of his bruising title encounter in Astana.

Despite abdicating the game's main crown, Carlsen, who is still the world champion in both rapid and blitz, was nevertheless the big favourite to win in Poland - and a more free-style and free-spirited Carlsen attempted to be a crowd-pleaser with his opening round encounter against Radoslaw Wojtaszek, as he played the Polish against the Polish No.2, only to see it spectacularly backfire as he was duly polished off much to the pleasure of the very patriotic Polish crowd!

Carlsen now joins Boris Spassky in being the only two world champions to have adopted the suspect Polish Defence with 1.d4 b5!?! at the top level. Needing a do-or-die win against Tigran Petrosian during their 1966 World Championship Match, Spassky attempted to surprise the defending champion with the Polish, only to see it similarly backfire as Carlsen did, as an unfazed Petrosian easily beat the unsuccessful title challenger to retain his crown.

Spassky then made an unsuccessful attempt to revive the opening 24 years later, only this time to see the four-time US champion, Yasser Seirawan also inflict an equally excruciating miniature win over the ex-world champion - a fact that wouldn’t have been lost on the Grand Chess Tour lead commentator, who no doubt was quick to recall and regale the online masses with yet another entertaining anecdote!

While Spassky only had himself to blame for adopting the Polish Defence, Carlsen was quick to throw his coach, Peter Heine Neilsen under the bus during his presser for the unwise decision to play the crowd-pleasing opening. “It was something Peter suggested a couple of days ago and I was like, sure, so when you make such an opening choice that obviously increases the variance quite a bit, and against an unprepared opponent I don’t think it’s that bad, but unfortunately I didn’t remember what I was supposed to do, and then my position was pretty bad early on. I suspect I had some chances to come back a little bit after that, but it was always difficult, and he deserved the win. Polish in Poland didn’t work!”

And that fateful opening game loss from Carlsen proved to be the pre-cursor to an off-kilter comeback performance for the Norwegian, as it was followed by a series of five draws, and he now finds himself well off the pace set by front-runners Wesley So and Jan-Krzysztof Duda, who lead the field by one point going into Tuesday's third and final day of the rapid section.

Standings:

1-2. W. So (USA), J. Duda (Poland) 9/12; 3. L. Aronian (USA) 8; 4. M Vachier-Lagrave (France) 7; 5-6. R. Rapport (Romania), R. Wojtaszek (Poland) 6; 7. M. Carlsen (Norway) 5; 8. B. Deac (Romania) 4; 9-10. A. Giri (Netherlands), K. Shevchenko (Romania) 3.

GM Radoslaw Wojtaszek - GM Magnus Carlsen

Superbet Rapid & Blitz Poland, (1)

 A40: Polish Defence

1.d4 b5!?! 2.e4 Bb7 3.Bd3 Tigran Petrosian preferred the slower 3.f3 against Boris Spassky in their 1966 World Championship Match - but 3.Bd3 is the best and most logical move. I suspect Petrosian played 3.f3 just to avoid Spassky's prep; which worked well, as the defending champion went on to record a crushing win. 3...Nf6 4.Nd2 c5 5.c3 cxd4 Twenty-four years later against Yasser Seirawan, Spassky opted for the more "conventional" Polish set-up with e6 and a6 that, due to missing a key tactic, ended in the four-time US champion recording a nice little miniature over the ex-world champion. 6.cxd4 e6 7.Ngf3 Nc6 8.O-O a6 We've transposed into a sort of Sicilian Defence - but the crucial difference is that White has total control of the centre with his pawns on d4 and e4. 9.Re1 Be7 10.d5!

Finely timed by Wojtaszek, who blows the game open early doors to cause maximum concern for the Black king as it gets marooned in the middle of the board; and from here in, it's all downhill for Carlsen. 10...exd5 No better was 10...Nb4 11.Bb1 etc. 11.e5 Nh5?! It's starting to get desperate already for Carlsen - so desperate that the engine even opts for the humiliating retreat of 11...Ng8 rather than throwing the knight on the rim. 12.Nb3 g6 13.Bh6!

Carlsen now has a huge problem with the safety of his king - and with it, just how to connect his rooks. 13...Rg8 14.Be3 Ng7 15.Nc5 Qc7?! Carlsen really had to bite the bullet here with 15...Bxc5 16.Bxc5 Ne6 17.Bd6 h5 and figure out how best to hold on from here. 16.Rc1 Ne6 17.Nxb7 Qxb7 18.Bf1 Bb4 19.Re2 Ne7 20.Rec2 Nf5 21.Bg5!

After this move, Carlsen was probably beginning to regret playing to the home crowd with the Polish, as the Pole polishes him off in Poland! 21...Be7 22.Bf6 Nfg7 It is never a good sign when you "fianchetto: the knight. Black could try the alternative of 22...Bxf6 23.exf6 Nd6 but after 24.Bd3 there's just no way for Black to co-ordinate his pieces, and White will soon be playing Qd2-b4 or h6 to exploite the dark-square weakness. 23.Qd3 Bxf6 24.exf6 Nh5 25.Qc3! Rd8 Carlsen's position is so critical he's on the morphine drip here - so bad that even the engine offers up the truly desperate try of 25...d4 26.Nxd4 b4 27.Qe3 Nxf6 but after the simple 28.Qe5 Ke7 (No better is 28...Ng4 29.Qd6 with a crushing attack.) 29.Rc7! White is coming over the top with his brutal winning attack. 26.a3?! A tepid move that almost lets Carlsen off the hook - the cold killer to find was 26.Qe5! forcing Black into 26...d6 27.Qe3 Nxf6 If not this, then Rc7-e7+ and Qh6+ is crushing. 28.Nd4 Ng4 29.Qe2 Ne5 30.Nxe6 fxe6 31.f4! with a winning attack. 26...Qb8 27.g3 g5?! This puts Carlsen back on the "hook" - better first was 27...Qd6 with the threat of ...d4 and ...Nxf6 which diverts White's focus, as he'll need to play 28.Rd1. 28.Re1! g4 Threatening 29.Qc5! - and now there's no time for 28...Qd6 with 29.Nd4 swinging the knight into f5 followed by Qb4 crushing. 29.Nd4 Rg5 30.Bd3 Re5 The killing move is going to be a Qb4 hit - so much so that the engine suggests the desperate 30...b4 pawn sacrifice just to avoid this.

31.Nf5?! Too hasty from Wojtaszek. The subtle move to find was the engine-recommended 31.Rce2! that just leaves Black in dire straits - and in no good way with Mark Knopfler licking the riffs on lead guitar! 31...Rxe1+? In time trouble due to his early opening troubles, Carlsen missed the crucial move 31...d4! that seems to hold, as 32.Qb4 Rxe1+ 33.Qxe1 Nxf6 34.Re2 Nd5! and Black now has a very playable game, as 35.Nxd4 Ne7! and, with f5 covered, Black has complete equality. 32.Qxe1 Nxf6 (see diagram) 33.Qb4! The unexpected mating threat on e7 totally discombobulates Carlsen - and this time it proves fatal for the ex-world champion. 33...d6 34.Qc3! Nd7 35.Qh8+ Ndf8 36.Qf6 Ng6 There's no defence now. If 36...Qb7 37.a4! and White is either taking twice on b4 or playing Bxa6!, as the chronically over-worked queen can't defend the mate on e7. 37.Re2 Qc7 38.Ng7+ 1-0

Grip of the Iron Tigran

Fri, 19 May 2023 13:16:19 GMT

In the immediate aftermath of Fischer-Spassky in Reykjavik 1972, one of my first “proper” chess books picked up from a visit to my local William Patrick Memorial Library in Kirkintilloch was Bob Wade’s account of another world championship clash from a decade earlier, between Tigran Petrosian and Mikhail Botvinnik , that took place in Moscow 1963 and concluded 60 years ago tomorrow.

Petrosian got off to the worst of all possible starts in the two-month epic struggle, with a horrific loss in the first game but equalised in game 5, after famously adjourning with his (White) rampant king deep in the enemy’s bowels; and the challenger used this brilliant game (see below) as the launchpad for going on to win 12½-9½ and subsequently crowned the ninth world champion.

A crucial historical side-note to the match was that Petrosian had marshalled sufficient political clout within the Kremlin to deny postwar multi-time champion Botvinnik his usual automatic 12-month rematch clause, which the cunning Patriarch had successfully availed himself of after losing to “ Winter kings ” Vasily Smyslov (1957) and Mikhail Tal (1960). Petrosian then went on to successfully defend his title against Boris Spassky in 1966 before the latter defeated him in 1969; Spassky was, in his turn, famously dethroned by American lone wolf Fischer in 1972.

Nicknamed “Iron Tigran”, Petrosian became a hero in his native Armenia, and it’s said that when he was preparing for Botvinnik, they closed his street in the capital, Yerevan, to traffic so that he could concentrate fully ahead of the match - and his victory sixty years ago proved to be the catalyst for the outbreak of a big chess fever that inspired an entire generation of Armenian players, who went on to capture - in their own right, following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 - gold in three Olympiads (2006, 2008 & 2012).

"That [Petrosian’s victory] was what started it all. It was a fantastic example of the development of chess in Armenia," once observed Armenia’s national chess team coach, Arshak Petrosian (no relation). "Chess quickly became a national obsession, thousands of families named their children Tigran in his honour, and enthusiasm for the game has only grown in the decades since."

“Oh, those exclamation points! How they erode the soul of the innocent amateur, removing all hope of allowing him to examine another player’s ideas critically.” This is one of my favourite Petrosian quotes about the chess notation “!” indicating a good move. There are several in his famous game 5 recovery win over Botvinnik, but each and every one of them is fully deserved and crystal-clear in the creation of this instructive endgame masterclass.

GM Tigran Petrosian - GM Mikhail Botvinnik

1963 World Championship Match, Game 5

 D94: Grünfeld, 5.e3

1.c4 g6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 d5 4.Nf3 Bg7 5.e3 Slow systems became a hallmark for Petrosian against the Grunfeld Defence. 5...O-O 6.Be2 dxc4 7.Bxc4 c5 8.d5 e6 9.dxe6 Qxd1+ 10.Kxd1 Bxe6 11.Bxe6 fxe6 12.Ke2 Petrosian actually trailed by a point when this game was played, but stays true to his style with a low-key opening contest to seek the tiniest of advantages. In his pre-match preparation on this line, Petrosian confidently predicted Botvinnik would lose if he went for the queen trade owing to the isolated Black e-pawn and the dominance of the White knight - and how right his assessment was of the position! 12...Nc6 13.Rd1 Rad8 14.Rxd8 Rxd8 15.Ng5 Re8 16.Nge4 Nxe4 17.Nxe4 White's knight arrives at its perfect square - a square from where Petrosian demonstrates his supremely deft handling of knights. 17...b6 18.Rb1 A subtle little move, typical of Petrosian, that aims to neutralise Black's primary compensation: the queenside pawn majority. 18...Nb4 19.Bd2 Nd5 20.a4 Rc8 21.b3 Bf8 22.Rc1 Be7?! Mikhail Tal, a great contemporary of both Botvinnik and Petrosian, suggested that now 22...Rb8! to sidestep White's next move - a move that sees Petrosian take a clear advantage. Hindsight in chess, as always, is 20/20! 23.b4! Petrosian allows Botvinnik a passed pawn, but it is not going anywhere. 23...c4 24.b5 Now Black's cut-off c-pawn can't be saved in the long run. Botvinnik had to realise here he was facing a very tough defence - not something anyone would relish against Iron Tigran! 24...Kf7 25.Bc3 Ba3 26.Rc2 Nxc3+ 27.Rxc3 Bb4 28.Rc2 Ke7 29.Nd2 The c-pawn is just too vulnerable - and if that falls, the ending with the isolated e-pawn will be bad for Black, as Petrosian masterfully demonstrates. 29...c3 30.Ne4 Ba5 31.Kd3 Rd8+ 32.Kc4 Rd1 So why not the tempting 32...Rd2, you may well be asking? It fails to the calm riposte 33.Kb3! and next comes Nxc3 picking off the c-pawn. 33.Nxc3 Rh1 34.Ne4 Rxh2 35.Kd4! A remarkable winning concept from Petrosian. 35...Kd7 If 35...Rxg2 36.Rc7+ and White easily wins after Rxh7 first followed by the a7-pawn. 36.g3 White dominates the board. His rook controls the only open file, his knight is ready to pounce, and everything is defended. The crucial winning ingredient now is Petrosian's king marching into the enemy’s gut to dominate. 36...Bb4 37.Ke5! With White's king joining the fray, Petrosian finishes things off with pinpoint accuracy against Botvinnik's misplaced forces. 37...Rh5+ 38.Kf6 Be7+ 39.Kg7 e5 40.Rc6 Rh1 ( see diagram ) 41.Kf7! Petrosian's sealed move - and he makes no mistake with it being the winning move. There's no escape from here - not even for Botvinnik, who was the absolute master of the lost art of adjournment analysis that saved and won many games. 41...Ra1 42.Re6 Bd8 43.Rd6+ Kc8 44.Ke8 Bc7 45.Rc6 Rd1 46.Ng5 Rd8+ 47.Kf7 Rd7+ 48.Kg8 1-0 Botvinnik throws in the towel, facing lines like 48...h5 49.Ne6 Re7 50.Rxc7+ Rxc7 51. Nxc7 Kxc7 52.f4! Kd6 53.Kf7 exf4 54.exf4 with an elementary K+P endgame win.

Twice in a Lifetime

Mon, 15 May 2023 19:31:11 GMT

The reigning US Champion, Fabiano Caruana continued his recent and much-welcomed return to form as he almost effortlessly cruised to outright victory in the Superbet Chess Classic Romania with an unbeaten score of 5½/9 to not only take the $100,000 first prize but also with it, the early lead in the St Louis-organised five-tournament, $1.4m 2023 Grand Chess Tour .

After being caught in the lead by the returning teenage ace, Alireza Firouzja, at the end of Round 7, Caruana benefitted from an unwise decision in the penultimate round from his 19-year-old co-leader, when he opted to press the gamble button against Jan-Krzysztof Duda as he looked to continue his winning streak and possible victory rather than accept the draw, which backfired to allow the American frontrunner to again take the sole lead, from which there was no looking back as he eased to victory.

Play a tournament straight after a World Championship match. It'll be fun, they said. That could well be the story of the Superbet Chess Classic, and while it might have sounded like a good idea at the time, that decision to play came back to haunt Ding Liren and Ian Nepomniachtchi, as both showed extreme fatigue from their exhausting world championship match feats, that clearly affected their play with a lacklustre and stuttering performance in Bucharest, as the two title combatants finished very close to the bottom of the table.

And Ding indeed did decide that enough was enough and he now needed to rest up by officially pulling out of the second leg of the 2023 Grand Chess Tour, the Superbet Rapid & Blitz Warsaw that starts this coming Sunday in Poland. The World Champion has been replaced in the line-up by Levon Aronian.

But ironically, the decision by the newly-crowned champion to play in Bucharest so soon after capturing the crown did offer up an opportunity for Anish Giri to become the founding member of a very select club of one, with the Dutchman now holding the unique feat in the annals of the game by beating two reigning classical world champions in the same calendar year!

Back in January at the Tata Steel Masters, Giri beat abdicating king Magnus Carlsen en route to finally winning his first Wijk title; and now, in Bucharest, in round 7, in his only win of the tournament, he also beat the new king Ding - and with it, set to become the subject of a future trivia question as he becomes the first player on record to secure wins in the same year over two reigning classical World Champions!

Final standings:

1. F. Caruana (USA) 5½/9; 2-5. A. Firouzja (France), W. So (USA), R. Rapport (Romania), A. Giri (Netherlands) 5; 6-7. J. Duda (Poland), M. Vachier-Lagrave (France) 4½; 8. Ding Liren (China) 4; 9. I. Nepomniachtchi (FIDE) 3½; 10. B. Deac (Romania) 3.

GM Anish Giri - GM Ding Liren

Superbet Chess Classic, (7)
C50: Giuoco Pianissimo

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 The name Giuoco Piano - one of the oldest recorded openings in chess, played in the 16th century - means 'quiet game' in Italian. And like its name, it is initially very quiet with a slow build-up as both sides position their pieces for the middlegame battle. 3...Nf6 4.d3 Bc5 5.Bg5 h6 6.Bh4 d6 7.c3 a5 8.Nbd2 Ba7 9.a4 O-O 10.h3 g5?! With Giri quickly and confidently flicking out the moves here, Ding is living dangerously with this provocative move. 11.Nxg5! So much for my 'quiet game' theory! And indeed, as Giri explained in his post-game presser, he had put the work in on this position with his second, Jan Gustafsson, explaining "I remembered that this move order is not very good, because the sac here is strong… I was fortunate that I’d looked at this." 11...hxg5 12.Bxg5 The 'forever' pin on the knight is very uncomfortable for Black and more than enough compensation for the sacrificed material. 12...Kg7 13.Qf3 Be6 14.Nf1 With Black all tied up having to deal with the pin on the ...Nf6, there's even the option of 14.Bd5!? that more or less forces 14...Qe7 15.Bxc6 bxc6 16.Qg3 Rg8 17.Bxf6+ Kxf6 18.Qh4+ Rg5 19.Qh6+ Rg6 20.Qh4+ Rg5 21.Qh6+ Rg6 22.Qh4+ and a repetition. 14...Rh8 15.Ne3 Qe7 Chopping the knight on e3 is taboo, as opening the f-file will eventually prove fatal, as seen with 15...Bxe3?? 16.fxe3 Nb8 17.O-O Nbd7 18.Qg3! Nh5 19.Bxe6!! Nxg3 20.Rxf7+ Kg6 21.Bxd8 Nc5 22.Rf3 Ne2+ 23.Kh2 Raxd8 (Worse is 23...Nxe6 24.Rf6+ Kg7 25.Rxe6 Rhxd8 26.Re7+ Kg6 27.Re1 and the knight is lost, leaving a won ending for White.) 24.Bc4 Rh4 25.Rf2 Nxc3 26.bxc3 c6 27.Kg3! Rh7 (Or even 27...Rdh8 28.Raf1 R4h6 29.Rf6+ Kg7 30.Rf7+ Kg6 31.R1f6+ Kh5 32.Rf5+ Kg6 33.h4! d5 Forced, otherwise Rg5+ is mating - and there's no salvation with 33...Rxh4 34.R7f6+ Kg7 35.Rxd6 and White will either be mating or hoovering up more loose pawns.) 34.exd5 Rxh4 28.h4 and with the kingside pawns on the move, White will easily win. 16.O-O-O Rag8? It is a mystery why Ding played this move, as in a stroke he offers Giri chances to win he never had. Now was the time to force the bailout with 16...Bxe3+! 17.fxe3 Nb8 18.Bd5 c6 19.Rhf1 Nbd7 20.Qg3 Nh5! and a better equalising line than the note above, which will see the game fizzle out after 21.Bxe7+ Nxg3 22.Bxe6 Nxf1 23.Bxd7 Nxe3 24.Rd2 f6! The d6-pawn can't be taken due to ...Rad8 picking up one of the bishops. 25.Rf2 Rh6 26.Kd2 Kf7 27.Bxd6 Nxg2 28.Bxe5 Ke7 29.Bg4 fxe5 30.Rxg2 and a draw will be on the cards as neither side has enough to win without the offer making an error. 17.Rhf1 Nb8 18.d4 Stronger, and almost killing, was the engine recommendation of 18.Nf5+! Bxf5 19.Qxf5 Nbd7 20.Rde1 Kf8 21.h4 Rg6 22.f4! c6 23.g4 exf4 24.d4! Bb8 25.Kb1 Rhg8 26.Bxf4 Nxg4 27.Qxa5 etc. 18...exd4 19.cxd4 Nbd7 The obvious knight move - but there was a very subtle finesse with the alternative knight move 19...Nc6!? 20.e5 dxe5 21.d5 Nd4 22.Qxf6+ Qxf6 23.Bxf6+ Kxf6 24.dxe6 fxe6 25.Ng4+ Ke7 26.Rfe1 Nc6 27.Bb5 (Or even 27.Nxe5 Nxe5 28.Rxe5 Rh6 29.Bd5 Bxf2 30.Bxb7 c5 31.Re2 Bd4 with excellent drawing/ holding chances with the opposite-coloured bishops and more active rooks.) 27...Bd4 28.f4 Na7 and, like the above note, Black again has excellent chances of drawing/holding. 20.e5 Best first was 20.h4! 20...dxe5 21.d5 Qb4 22.Qe2 Bxh3? It is indeed complex, but Ding simply had to find his only saving try that the engine recommends, with 22...Bxe3+! 23.fxe3 Bg4! 24.Bxf6+ Nxf6 25.hxg4 Rh4 26.Rf5 Ne4! 27.Rxe5 Nd6 The knight wonderfully defends, attacks and blockades from d6. 28.Rg5+ Kh8 29.Rxg8+ Kxg8 30.Bd3 Qxg4 31.Qc2 Qxa4 32.Qxc7 Qa1+ 33.Kc2 Qa4+ 34.b3 Qb4 35.Qc3 Rg4 and it is very hard to see just how White can win this, even with the extra pawn. 23.gxh3 Kf8 24.h4 Bd4 (see diagram) It's getting desperate and dire now, and even after 24...Rg6 25.Nf5 leaves Black's position in a mess. 25.Rxd4! The temptation to sac the exchange was pure human gut instinct, rather than opting for the cold, exacting engine win of 25.Bb5 that more or less forces 25...c6 26.dxc6 bxc6 27.Bxc6 Qc5+ 28.Qc2 Qxc2+ 29.Kxc2 Nb8 30.Bxf6 and Black is hopelessly lost. 25...exd4 26.Nf5 Setting up the mating threat with d6! 26...Rxg5 27.hxg5 Ne5

The only thing keeping Ding going amidst this agony was the adrenalin rush of the ensuing time scramble. 28.Bb5 Nfg4 29.Kb1 Just offering the king the bolthole of a2 in case of any queen perpetual tricks. 29...Kg8 Hopelessly lost, Ding opts to hang for the sheep than the lamb - slightly better was 29...Rh2 but after 30.d6! cxd6 31.Qe4 we're back to the mating threats after Qxb7. 30.Nh6+ Nxh6 31.Qxe5 Ng4 32.Qxc7 Kg7 33.g6! Blowing the doors of the defence of Black's king. 33...Rf8 Or even 33...Kxg6 34.Qf4! f5 (White quickly mates after 34...Nf6 35.Rg1+ etc.) 35.Bd3 and Black can resign. 34.gxf7 d3 35.Rg1 Rxf7 36.Qc3+ 1-0 For the purists, yes, 36.Qe5+ is mating - but why tax yourself when the trade of queens wins the knight (with check first) and the ending? Hence Ding's resignation.

Sartorial Hit

Fri, 12 May 2023 20:04:55 GMT

As one ex-title challenger in Fabiano Caruana holds on to the sole lead in the Superbet Chess Classic Romania , the contest in Bucharest took a dramatic twist in round 5 with a brace of losses by the two recent title combatants, newly-crowned Ding Liren and loser Ian Nepomniachtchi, as Alireza Firouzja, the returning teenage catwalk wannabe, once again climbs back up the world rankings!

The back in-form US champion retains a slender half-point lead in the opening leg of the St Louis-organised $1.4m Grand Chess Tour heading into the homestretch - but hot on Caruana's tail is a four-strong chasing pack that includes Firouzja - once seen as the ‘young pretender’ to Magnus Carlsen’s crown before his sabbatical to seek a second career as a fashion designer - who seems to be shaking off all his early troubles following his near year-long tournament praxis layoff.

After beating local wildcard invite Bogdan Deac in round 4, Firouzja, 19, then went on to follow up with a crazy wild win against Ding, and in doing so, the defending Grand Chess Tour champion recorded his first-ever classical win over a world champion, who with a wry smile very observantly added: “For sure, it’s an easier world champion than Magnus.”

It could well be that a fatigued Ding might now be regretting his decision to play in Bucharest so soon after such an exhausting and demanding match in Astana - but already, and somewhat cruelly premature, the comparisons are already being made with the new champion to Tigran Petrosian, the mid-1960s double world champion, whose reign was bookended by a string of lacklustre tournament performances.

But nevertheless, a win is a win is a win, and with it, Firouzja leapfrogs Ding to snatch the world #3 spot on the live rating list - and he didn’t have long to wait for his return to #2, as two-time title loser Nepo also looked to be ruing his Bucharest call-up, as following his round 4 loss to Caruana (which lifted the US champion up a spot to #6, ahead of Anish Giri), he crashed and burned to yet another Frenchman, as Maxime Vachier-Lagrave made the most of his 'playing on-tilt' opponent to win a scrappy game.

And that’s how it still stands at the top with all the games from round six ending in draws, as Caruana, who missed a golden chance to beat the returning and resurgent Firouzja, continues to lead the pack by a half-point going into the decisive final three rounds.

Standings:

1. F. Caruana (USA) 4/6; 2-4. A. Firouzja (France), W. So (USA), R. Rapport (Romania) 3½; 5-6. M. Vachier-Lagrave (France), A. Giri (Netherlands) 3; 7-9. I. Nepomniachtchi (FIDE), Ding Liren (China), JK. Duda (Poland) 2½; 10. B. Deac (Romania) 2.

GM Alireza Firouzja - GM Ding Liren

Superbet Chess Classic, (5)

Ruy Lopez, Berlin Defence

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6 The notorious tough Berlin Defence that Vladimir Kramnik dramatically rehabilitated, as he successfully bamboozled Garry Kasparov with it to take his title in London in 2000. 4.d3 If you are looking for dynamic play against the Berlin Defence, then this is now the way to play, as it avoids the tabyia of the so-called "Berlin Wall endgame" with the early exchange of queens after 4.O-O Nxe4 5.d4 Nd6 6.Bxc6 dxc6 7.dxe5 Nf5 8.Qxd8+ Kxd8 that's tough for White to break down. Instead, Firouzja wants to keep the queens on with this tepid-looking little move that's grown in popularity over the last few years. 4...Bc5 5.c3 O-O 6.O-O d5 7.Nbd2 dxe4 8.dxe4 a5 9.Qc2 Qe7 10.a4 Nb8 11.h3 Up to this point, we were following Game 9 of the Nepo-Ding Liren from the recent World Championship tussle in Astana. 11...Rd8 12.Be2 Nbd7 13.Re1 Nf8 14.Nb3 Bb6 15.Nfd2 Be6 16.Nc4 Bxc4 17.Bxc4 Ne6 Like his match against Nepo, once again Ding has got a good position from the Berlin. But in essence, this is an equal position, and one where Firouzja says Ding just got "a bit too aggressive" with his next move. 18.g3 h5

Ambitious, if nothing else. But sometimes when you are the king, you try to use that crown to intimidate an opponent.

19.Kg2 h4 20.Qe2 g6?! "A terrible move," according to Firouzja, as this leaves Ding's king vulnerable and weak. But right now we probably can't see why - but for a super-GM at this level, it soon becomes clear. 21.Nd2! Firouzja quickly highlights the weakness with Ding's previous move, as the knight coming to f3 opens the f-file and pressure piling down on f7, and even more so with the pawn sacrifice as the knight looks to land on g5. 21...Nc5 22.Nf3!

Strategically, White is much better but Firouzja was the first to admit in his post-game presser to now "losing his way."

22...hxg3 23.fxg3 Ncxe4 24.Ng5?! Initially Firouzja just thought that 24.Qc2 was winning, only to discover the instant "cold shower" of 24...Qc5! and Black is winning! The (full) point is 25.Ba2 Rd2+!!. It was only after the game that it suddenly dawned on him that the prophylactic retreat with 24.Ba2! was better for White, but nevertheless, he felt that with his 24.Ng5 Plan B, he should be no worse - but he hadn't noticed a big flaw that could have proved fatal.

24...Nd6 25.Ba2 Re8 26.h4 Kg7 27.Rf1 Rad8! The pendulum has swung back to Ding - but at the critical moment, he goes astray with dire consequences. 28.Bd2 e4 29.Bf4 e3 30.Rad1(see diagram) 30...Nfe4? The position has just gone random crazy, as ironically the simply winning was the other knight move with 30...Nde4! the subtle difference is that 31.Nxf7 Rxd1! 32.Rxd1 Nf2! 33.Rf1 Qd7! with the double threat of ...Qh3+ and ...Qc6+ that can't be easily met. 34.Ng5 Qc6+ 35.Nf3 9Much worse is 35.Qf3?? e2! 36.Re1 Nd3 winning.) 35...Qxa4 and Black has a material and winning advantage. 31.Bxd6 Nxd6 32.Bxf7! Despite the seemingly strong Black e-pawn at the end of the rainbow, all the tactics are winning for Firouzja. 32...Nxf7 33.Rxf7+ Qxf7 34.Nxf7 Rxd1 35.Qxd1 Kxf7 Amidst the maelstrom, it could well be that Ding initially thought he was winning with 35...e2? but there's a big sting in the tail with the very unlikely mate with 36.Qd7! e1=Q 37.Ne5+ Kf6 38.Ng4#!! 36.Qe2 Ke7? This is an illogical move that goes against the grain of saving the game with the advanced e-pawn. What was needed, as one of the talking heads on the commentary team pointed out, was the consolidating ...Bc5 looking to bring the bishop to d6 covering some awkward checks on d7, and Black having the better coordination of his pieces to hold the game. It was a strange decision that Ding almost immediately regretted the moment he made it. 37.Kf1! The king coming to e1 blockading the e-pawn is the key to freeing up Firouzja's queen to wreak havoc on Ding's loose position. 37...Rf8+ 38.Ke1 Rf2

Looks can often be deceptive, and here, the rook only looks threatening - but it it isn't, and so long as White doesn't panic, he should easily start mobilising his kingside pawns up the board. 39.Qg4 The (full) point is basically that Black can't now play ...e2 as the e-pawn becomes a liability and restricts Black's rook. 39...Kf6 40.Qg5+ Kf7 41.Qd5+ Kf6 42.g4! Rxb2 43.g5+ Ke7 44.Qe5+ Kd7 45.Qg7+ Kd6 46.Qxg6+ The rest needs to further comment, as Firouzja successfully shepherds his kingside pawns home for his first classical win over a world champion! 46...Ke5 47.Qe8+ Kf4 48.g6 Rb1+ 49.Ke2 Rb2+ 50.Kd3 Rd2+ 51.Kc4 Rg2 52.Qf7+ 1-0

AbFab-i!

Wed, 10 May 2023 20:35:51 GMT

It’s real wheels-on-fire stuff going on at the Superbet Chess Classic Romania in Bucharest, as reigning US champion Fabiano Caruana burns up the field with a brace of breathtaking back-to-back victories to take the sole lead in the opening leg of the St Louis-organised $1.4m 2023 Grand Chess Tour .

Caruana is definitely the one making all the early running in the tournament, first in round 3, with an outrageous takedown of Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, as he rattled his opponent to such an extent with the early caveman move of a 3.h4 Anti-Grunfeld that witnessed the Frenchman succumbing to a stunning 23-move miniature.

And pumped up by his fabulous win, Caruana then went on to also make the most of his back-to-back Whites in the pairing order by outplaying Ian Nepomniachtchi in the big round 4 marquee match-up, in a game that looked at one stage destined to be ending in a draw, before the Russian (playing under the neutral FIDE flag following his country’s invasion of Ukraine) unwisely let his position drift with disastrous consequences.

“This is a very, very important game,” readily admitted Caruana during his post-game presser. “It’s really satisfying also because Ian just played a World Championship match and I didn’t achieve anything in the opening, but still I was outplaying him.” And remarkably, despite their longevity in the game, this was also Caruana’s first classical career-win over Nepo.

And coming hard now on the heels of yet another world championship defeat, this is the sort of eye-off-the-ball loss that could well compound Nepo's misery, with a faltering game that could well see him go on to be remembered as only a footnote in the annals by joining a very select club of four previous players - Mikhail Chigorin, Efim Bogoljubow, Viktor Korchnoi, and Veselin Topalov - twice defeated in a title match without ever winning the world crown.

Standings:

1. F. Caruana (USA) 3/4; 2-3. W. So (USA), R. Rapport (Romania) 2½; 4-7. Ding Liren (China), I. Nepomniachtchi (FIDE), A. Firouzja (France) 2; 8-9. M. Vachier-Lagrave (France), J. Duda (Poland) 1½; 10. B. Deac (Romania) 1.

GM Fabiano Caruana - GM Ian Nepomniachtchi

Superbet Chess Classic Romania, (4)

QGD, Tarrasch Defence

1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 d5 3.c4 e6 4.Nc3 c5 The Tarrasch Defence often leads to wildly complex and dynamic play, with the battleground normally concentrating around Black's Isolated Queen's Pawn - but will it be a strength or will it be a weakness? 5.e3 An old-fashioned method of sidestepping the big mainline of the Tarrasch that we normally see after 5.cxd5 exd5 6.g3 Nc6 7.Bg2 Be7 8.O-O O-O 9.Bg5 and seen in two World Championship matches: Petrosian-Spassky 1966 and Karpov-Kasparov 1984. 5...Nc6 6.cxd5 exd5 7.Bb5 cxd4 8.Nxd4 Bd7 9.O-O Bd6 10.Nf3 Be6 Also an option is 10...Bg4 played in the past by Nepo. 11.b3 a6 12.Bd3 Ne5 13.Nxe5 Bxe5 14.Bb2 Rc8 15.Rc1 O-O 16.f4 Bc7 17.Ne2?! Caruana said he regretted this move almost as soon as he played it, and the commentary team concurred, as stronger was 17.Na4! denying the b6-square for the bishop and leaving White with a pleasant position. 17…Bb6 Perhaps better first was 17...Bg4!? the idea being that if 18.h3 now 18...Bb6! is more potent, and one where White has to accept that a draw is forced with 19.hxg4 Nxg4 20.Bd4 Qh4! 21.Rf3 Qh2+ 22.Kf1 Qh1+ 23.Ng1 Nh2+ 24.Kf2 (Anything else loses. After 24.Ke2?? Rxc1 25.Qxc1 Bxd4 26.Bxh7+ Kxh7 27.Rh3+ Kg8 28.exd4 Qxg2+ 29.Kd3 Qe4+ 30.Kd2 Qxf4+ 31.Kd1 Qf1+ 32.Kd2 Qf2+ 33.Kd3 Qf5+ 34.Kd2 Nf1+ 35.Kd1 Re8 and Black will soon snare the White king.) 24...Ng4+ 25.Kf1 Nh2+ and a threefold repetition. 18.Bd4 Bxd4 19.Nxd4 Qa5 20.Qe2 Rfe8 21.h3 Bd7 22.Rxc8 Rxc8 23.Qb2 Qc5 Seeking the trade of queens with 23...Qc3 24.Qxc3 Rxc3 may well be equal and looks easy, but after 25.Rd1 White has the simple plan of Kf2-f3 followed by Rd2 and long-term pressure on Black's IQP. 24.a4 a5 25.Qd2 b6 26.Rb1 Qa3 27.Kh2 h6 28.Rb2 Qe7 29.Rc2 Rc5 30.Nf3 Rxc2 31.Bxc2 Qc5 32.Bd3 Kf8 33.Nd4 The blocking of the IQP by commanding the square in front of it is always the correct plan in such scenarios. White has slightly the better of it, but this is total equality - but somehow Nepo goes astray with some strange decisions that will allow Caruana to take full advantage. 33...Kg8 34.Kg1 Kf8 35.Kf2 Ke7 36.Qb2 Kf8 37.Nc2 Ne4+?! In essence, it all starts to slide from here for Nepo, as trading off bishop for knight - despite the fact it solves the IQP issue - only allows Caruana's knight to dominate from the central d4 outpost. A better try was 37...Qd6 just looking to 'hold the tension' in the position - and difficult to see how White can possibly make any constructive progress from here. 38.Bxe4 dxe4 39.Nd4 Bc6 40.Qe2 Qc3 41.Qa6 Qd2+ 42.Ne2 Qb4 43.Qc8+ Be8 44.Qc2 Bd7?! The little series of miscues from Nepo soon build up. Better was 44...f5 45.Nd4 g6 which looks easier to hold.

45.Nd4 f5 There's a subtle difference between this move now and the previous note. 46.Qc7! With the knight able to retreat to e2 to fend off the checks, Caruana's queen bosses Black's loose position. 46...Qd2+ 47.Ne2 The knight both dominates the bishop and defends supremely! Now Nepo is left in a quandary trying to hold his position together with so many loose pawns. 47...Be6 There are no easy answers to defending everything, as 47...b5? 48.axb5 Bxb5 49.Qc5+! picks off the bishop. 48.Qxb6 Kf7 49.Qd4 Qa2 50.Qa7+ Kg8 ( see diagram ) 51.Qa8+! T his little finesse is s tronger than the immediate capture on a5, as now with ...Kh7 the f5-pawn is left hanging with a crucial check. 51...Kh7 52.Qxa5 Kh8 There's no salvation whatsoever. If 52...Qxb3 53.Nd4! Qa2+ 54.Kg3 g6 55.Nxe6 Qxe6 56.Qc7+ Kg8 57.Qb8+ Kf7 58.a5 and, with careful play, the a-pawn runs home. 53.Qd8+ Kh7 54.Qa5 Kh8 55.b4! Caruana has it all worked out now, as his pawns start motoring. 55...Bc4 56.Qd8+ Kh7 57.Qd1 Bb3 58.Qd7 Be6 Capturing the a-pawn only leads to an easy endgame win for White after 58...Bxa4 59.Qxf5+ Kg8 60.Qa5! Qb3 61.Nd4 Qb2+ 62.Kg3 Qc3 63.Qd5+ Kf8 64.Qc5+ and the queens coming off. 59.Qb5 Kh8 60.Qc5 g6 61.Ke1 Kg8 The spite check solves nothing after 61...Qa1+ 62.Nc1 Kg8 63.a5. And also if 61...Bc4 62.Qd4+ Kg8 63.Nc1 Qc2 64.Qd2 Qxa4 65.Qd8+ Kf7 66.Qc7+ the bishop is picked-off. 62.Qd6 Kf7 63.Qd2 Qxa4 Nepo may have recaptured a pawn, but in doing so, Caruana now has all his ducks in a row with all the checks covered and the knight swinging back into the game by taking up the d4 outpost once again. 6 4.Nd4 Bc4 65.Kf2 h5 66.Kg3 Now allowing the queen to move into the c3 square to force home the win. 66...Qa3 The only way to stop Qc3, but alas.... 67.b5! Qd3 68.Qc1! Bxb5 It was either this or seeing b6-b7 etc. 69.Qc7+ Kf8 70.Qc5+1-0 Nepo resigns, the point being that 70...Kf7 71.Nxb5! and the queen defends e3.

Ding's Coronation

Mon, 08 May 2023 19:47:01 GMT

There was no time for the newly-crowned Ding Liren to bask in all the pomp and ceremony seen elsewhere for his ‘coronation’, as the 17th World Champion in a linage that stretches back to Wilhelm Steinitz in 1886, along with the player he vanquished in battle - Ian Nepomniachtchi - are once again back in action, little more than a week after their brutal Astana title contest.

Both world title combatants - respectively world #’s 2 & 3 - are the top seeds in the opening leg of the St Louis-organised $1.4m 2023 Grand Chess Tour , t he Superbet Chess Classic Romania , a 10-player elite round-robin that’s taking place all this week in Bucharest, Romania.

The full tour participants - Alireza Firouzja, Wesley So, Mazime Vachier-Lagrave, Ian Nepomniachtcho, Ding Liren, Anish Giri, Fabiano Caruana, Jan-Krzyztof and Richard Rapport - will play in both classical events as well as in two of the three rapid and blitz tournaments. The wildcard participants for the three rapid and blitz events scheduled to take place in Warsaw, Zagreb, and Saint Louis will be announced in due course.

The full 2023 Grand Chess Tour of five tournaments includes:

Superbet Chess Classic Romania : May 4-16, 2023, Bucharest, Romania

Superbet Rapid & Blitz Poland : May 19-26, 2023, Warsaw, Poland

SuperUnited Rapid & Blitz Croatia : July 3-10, 2023, Zagreb, Croatia

Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz : November 12 - 19, 2023, Saint Louis, Missouri, USA

Sinquefield Cup : November 19 - December 3, 2023, Saint Louis, Missouri, USA

While Ding and Nepo, with two draws, got off to a slightly restrained start, all eyes were also on the player once deemed to be the ‘young pretender’ to Magnus Carlsen’s crown, 19-year-old Alireza Firouzja, especially after his lengthy layoff following his 2022 Grand Chess Tour victory, as he pursues a possible career outside of the game in the fashion world.

And Firouzja did indeed look more than just a little rusty at the board when he faced Wesley So in round 1, who with some shrewd and wily play took full advantage of his opponent’s loose play from his lack of classical praxis.

Standings (after three rounds) :

1-4. I. Nepomniachtchi (FIDE), R. Rapport (Romania), F. Caruana (USA), W. So (USA) 2/3; 5-6. Ding Liren (China), A. Giri (Netherlands) 1½; 7-10. A. Firouzja (France), M. Vachier-Lagrave (France) BD Deac (Romania), JK Duda (Poland) 1.

GM Alireza Firouzja - GM Wesley So

Superbet Chess Classic Romania, (1)

 C50: Giuoco Piano

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 The name Giuoco Piano - one of the oldest recorded openings in chess, played in the 16th century - means 'quiet game' in Italian. And like its name, it is initially very quiet with a slow build-up as both sides position their pieces for the middlegame battle. 3...Bc5 4.d3 d6 5.c3 Bb6 6.O-O h6 7.Nbd2 Nf6 8.Bb3 Keeping White's options open for what to do with the Nbd2 - it can either head to f5 via Nbd2-f1-e3-f5, or alternatively head to c4 with added options of clamping down on Black's good dark-squared bishop. 8...a5 Clamping down on any White queenside expansion later with b4 but, crucially, providing a temporary bolthole on a7 for the bishop after Nc4. 9.Re1 O-O 10.h3 Be6 11.Bxe6 fxe6 The doubling of the e-pawns actually helps Black, as it covers the vital f5 square and can look at later pushing forward in the centre with ...d5. 12.Nc4 Ba7 13.Be3 Bxe3 14.Rxe3 a4 Further clamping down on the queenside. And with it, we have an equal game where Firouzja, a little rusty from his new-career and lacking top-flight chess, gets outplayed by So who makes much of a tiny initiative. 15.d4 exd4 16.cxd4 d5 17.exd5 exd5 18.Ncd2 The alternative of 18.Nce5 only offers Black an easier life after 18...Nxe5 19.Nxe5 Ne4 20.f3 Nd6 with the easy plan of ...c6 followed by ...Nf5 making a long-term target of the isolated d4-pawn. 18...Qd6 19.a3 Qf4 20.Nb1! The sort of strategic retreating move that an amateur club-player finds difficult to comprehend and make - but with the knight reemerging again on c3, Black has to move fast or he'll find the a4-pawn falling. 20...Ne4 21.Nc3 Nxc3 22.Rxc3 A sharper Firouzja would have no problems holding this position - but short of match-practice, he just lets his position drift a little, and So capitalises big-time on a minor weakness. 22...Qd6 23.Rac1 Rf7 24.R1c2 The immediate 24.Re3 would have been better, as it would have saved a tempi. 24...Rf4 25.Re3 Qf6 26.Rd3 The time was now to strike a balance in the game with 26.Rc5! 26...Re8! Because the Rc2 dropped the attack on the wayward a4-pawn, So pounces with a little bit of imaginative play to activate all his pieces for an unlikely attack on Firouzja's king. 27.Rc5 Qd6! 28.Rcc3 The a4-pawn is now taboo because of 28.Qxa4 Qxc5! winning.But more prudent was the full retreat with 28.Rc1! covering the back-rank and putting the question back about what to do about the a4-pawn, which now has to be defended with 28...Ra8 29.Re3 and White having slightly the better of an equal position because of the stranded a4-pawn. 28...Rfe4 29.g3 Re2 As if from nowhere, thanks to Firouzja's little miscue with R1c2, So has built-up a menacing attack. 30.Rd2 Rxd2 Also an option was 30...Qe6 but perhaps sensing that Firouzja was lacking "match-practice", he wanted to keep the pieces on the board, as after 31.Rxe2 Qxe2 White has 32.Qb1! (Releasing the pressure by exchanging queens with 32.Qxe2 is less accurate, as after 32...Rxe2 33.b3 axb3 34.Rxb3 b6 35.Rc3 Re6 and Black has a little edge in the endgame, where he'll march the king over to d6 and then look to target the two weak pawns on a3 and d4.) 32...Na5 33.Qf5 c6 34.Ne5! and Black has to seek the bailout with 34...Rf8 35.Qe6+ Kh7 36.Qg6+ Kg8 37.Qe6+ Kh7 38.Qg6+ and a repetition. 31.Qxd2 Qg6 32.Kg2 This proves to be just a bit too cautious. The accurate move to find was 32.Qd1! defending the back-rank and eyeing up the loose a4-pawn, where now 32...Qf5 and only now 33.Kg2 and Black is forced into defending the a4-pawn with 33...Ra8 and I dare say we would soon be seeing a quick handshake. 32...Qb1 33.Rc1 Qf5 34.Rc3 Black has improved his position a little, and now if 34.Qd1 Qe4! 35.Rc3 (Yet again, the a4-pawn is taboo. After 35.Qxa4?! Rf8! 36.Qd1 (Worse is 36.Rc3?! as Black strikes with 36...Rxf3! 37.Rxf3 Nxd4 38.Qd1 c5 39.Qd3 Nxf3 40.Qxf3 Qe6 that leaves White struggling to defend the Q+P endgame.) 36...Nxd4 37.Qxd4 Qxf3+ 38.Kg1 Re8! with better prospects with the more menacing Q+R combination.) 35...Qe2 36.Qb1 heading to f5 and looking to set up the same bailout option mentioned in the note above at move 30. 34...Qb1 35.h4 Re7 36.Rc1 Qf5 37.Qd1 Too little too late now from Firouzja, as So now has his pieces primed for the attack and he can simply ignore the a4-pawn. 37...g5! 38.hxg5 hxg5 39.Qd2 g4 40.Nh4?! Facing intense pressure, Firouzja begins to crack - the only try, according to the engine, was the sort of move only an engine would play, with 40.Ng5!? to stop ...Qe4; where, of course, the engine tells us that 40...Kf8! and White is in trouble of seeing his knight being stranded on g5. But in all honesty, these are only fantasy lines an engine would suggest, as the human gut reaction would sense the danger of the Ng5 being a problematic move. 4 0...Qe4+ (see diagram) 41.Kh2? The pressure is telling for Firouzja, as this proves to be the decisive blunder. He had to play 41.Kg1 Nxd4 (Not 41...Qxd4? 42.Qg5+ Rg7 43.Qh5 Qe4 44.Nf5 and White has more than excellent chances of finding a repetition here with no cover for the Black king.)

42.Rd1 Nf3+ 43.Nxf3 gxf3 44.Qg5+ Kf8 45.Qxd5 Qxd5 46.Rxd5 Re1+ 47.Kh2 Re2 48.Rb5! Rxf2+ 49.Kh3 b6 50.Kg4! and we are in the realms of a very drawish R+P ending where Black can't make any progress with his extra pawn down to his rook being awkwardly placed on f2 to defend the f3-pawn. 41...Qxd4 The subtle difference between Kg1 and Kh2 is the attack on f2 - and this is enough to give So a winning advantage now! 42.Qg5+ Rg7 43.Qf5 Rf7 44.Qg5+ Kf8 45.Kh1 This just demonstrates how bad White's position has become. 45...Qe4+ 46.Kg1 Ke8 Just stepping out of the way of any Ng6+ awkwardness. 47.Qd2 There is a check, but alas nothing more than a spite check, as after 47.Qg8+ Rf8 48.Qg5 Black moves in with 48...Nd4! forcing the humiliating defence of 49.Rf1 b5 rendering White helpless as Black forces home the win. 47...Re7 48.Rd1 d4 The isolated d-pawn is not so much a weakness as a strength now. 49.Qg5 Ne5 50.Qd2 Firouzja is basically sitting in Death's Waiting Room for the fatal blow to be delivered. 50...d3 51.Qf4 Qxf4 With Firouzja at his mercy, So, misses the 'clean kill' with 51...Qe2! - but in his defence, it is hard to be critical here, as you have to see through the smoke of a number of open checks and the fear in the back of your head of a repetition, as the engine offers up the last stand with 52.Rd2! Qe1+ 53.Kg2 Nf3! 54.Qxg4 Nxd2 55.Qc8+ There are a number of checks to negotiate - but the engine has no fear and sees it leads nowhere with accurate play with 55...Kf7 56.Qf5+ Kg8 57.Qg4+ Rg7! 58.Qc8+ Kf7 59.Qxc7+ (No better is 59.Qf5+ Ke7 60.Qxd3

If 60.Qc5+ Ke8 61.Qb5+ Rd7 62.Qh5+ Rf7 63.Qb5+ c6 and White has run out of checks.) 60...Qe4+ 61.Qxe4+ Nxe4 62.Nf5+ Kf6 63.Nxg7 Kxg7 and an easily winning endgame.) 59...Qe7! 60.Qf4+ Kg8 61.Qxd2 Qxh4 winning. All easily seen by the engine, but difficult to see for a human in the heat of battle, even one at elite-GM level! 52.gxf4 Nc4

Maybe I did So a disservice for missing the clean kill, as this endgame is less complicated to win with his queenside pawns quickly storming up the board. 53.Rxd3 Nxb2 54.Rc3 Rd7 55.Kg2 There was a bit more resistance offered with 55.Ng6! c6 56.Re3+ Kd8 57.Ne5 Rd4 58.f5 but after the simple solution of 58...Nc4! 59.Nxc4 Rxc4 60.f6 Rf4 61.Re6 Rf3 62.Kg2 Kc7 the R+P ending is going to be won by Black - but a R+P endgame is a R+P endgame, and this can often see hopelessly lost endings miraculously being saved. 55...Nd3 56.Kg3 c5! With his night on the rim and out of the game, Firouzja wastes too much time going for the g-pawn with his king - and this allows So to quickly roll his pawns up the board. 57.Kxg4 b5 58.Nf5 Kf7 59.Kg5 Rd5 60.Rc2 Ne1 Sure, it was much easier to continue with 60...b4! as there's no stopping the pawns - but So repeats a couple of quick moves to compose himself and gain some valuable increment seconds. 61.Rc3 Nd3 62.Rc2 b4 63.axb4 cxb4 64.Rc7+ Ke8 65.Kf6 Kd8 66.Ra7 b3 67.Ne3 Rd6+ 68.Kf5 b2 69.Rb7 Rd4 70.Nc2 Rxf4+ 71.Kg5 Rxf2 72.Na3 Rf1 0-1

King Ding!

Mon, 01 May 2023 18:59:36 GMT

Congratulations to China’s Ding Liren, who defied the overwhelming odds and his early self-proclaimed psychological meltdown in the €2m FIDE World Championship , as he staged a remarkable comeback for the ages in Astana, Kazakhstan, by going on to beat Ian Nepomniachtchi in a dramatic playoff to be crowned the 17th World Champion in a heritage line that dates back to Wilhelm Steinitz in 1886!

Nearly written off following his nervous start, Ding incredibly never once had the lead in the match until he won the only game that mattered the most of all in the match: Game 4 of the rapid playoff after three draws - and even then, he did so from what was generally perceived by everyone to be a game that was heading for a fourth straight draw!

And with Ding’s triumph, he now finally fulfils Malaysian business magnate Dato Tan Chin Nam’s “Big Dragon” project from the mid-70s, in partnership with Chinese officials, which brought China in from behind the Bamboo Curtin to become a global chess power, after Beijing banned international chess during the first eight years of the Cultural Revolution.

First China captured the women’s world title from the previously dominant Georgians; then they advanced in the biennial team Olympiad until winning gold in 2014; and finally, after many years, Ding now becomes the first player from China to capture the open/men’s world crown.

“I’m quite relieved,” said an exasperated King Ding moment after being proclaimed the 17th World Champion. “The moment Ian resigned the game it was a very emotional moment. I cannot control my moods, my feelings, and I know myself, I will cry, I will burst into tears, and it’s quite a tough tournament for me. I would like to thank my friends.”

“I guess I had every chance,” said a visibly gutted Nepo, who played under a neutral Fide flag throughout the contest due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. “I had so many promising positions and probably should have tried to finish everything in the classical portion. (...) Once it went to a tiebreak, of course it’s always some sort of lottery, especially after 14 games [of classical chess]. Probably my opponent made less mistakes, so that’s it.”

And in winning the world crown, given the strange circumstances of how he got there, Ding truly has to be the chosen one. Covid restrictions left him facing an epic mad-dash to play the requisite number of games to gain a rating spot in the Candidates, as Sergey Karjakin “couldn’t” play. And as runner-up behind Nepo in the Candidates, he only got to play in the World Championship Match because Magnus Carlsen “wouldn’t” by abdicating his crown!

It's also instant karma for Russia, with Nepo’s remarkable defeat from virtually being on the cusp of victory, as once again they do not have the world crown to crow about. The only reason Karjakin couldn’t play in the Candidates was down to his FIDE six-month playing ban following his insensitive and incendiary pro-war tweets. So let me take this moment on behalf of Ukraine to thank Sergey Karjakin for doing his own little bit to deny Russia the world crown!

Ian Nepomniachtchi 7 1½

½ 1 ½ 0 1 0 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 0

½ 0 ½ 1 0 1 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 1

Ding Liren 7 2½

GM Ian Nepomniachtchi - GM Ding Liren

Fide World Chess Championship playoff, (4)
C84: Ruy Lopez, Closed, Martinez variation

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 After a jittery start to Game 1, where he was a little flummoxed to face Nepo's surprise weapon of the DERLD (Delayed Exchange Ruy Lopez Deferred), a more confident Ding has faith once again in defending the Lopez. 6.d3 And once again the Martinez variation from Nepo to avoid Ding's favourite Marshall Attack. But this time it was nerves that seemed to hit Nepo, with some very strange opening choices that locked in his Lopez bishop on b1. 6...b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.a4 Bd7 9.h3 O-O 10.Be3 Na5 11.Ba2 bxa4 12.Nc3 Rb8 13.Bb1!? Qe8 Nepo's strategy is only good in the context that 13...Rxb2?! 14.Nxa4 Rb8 15.Nc5 Nc6 16.Nxd7 Qxd7 17.Rxa6 and White has the bishop-pair (and now a2 to bring it to life down the long a2-g8 diagonal) and better long-term prospects. 14.b3 c5 15.Nxa4 Nc6 16.Nc3?! The consensus among the talking heads was that 16.c3 was needed to allow the Lopez bishop to 'breathe', first with Bc2 to defend against ...Be6, and later, d4 as the game opens up. 16...a5 17.Nd2 Be6 18.Nc4 d5 Ding cuts straight to the chase by busting the game open early doors - but also a good and solid option was 18...Qd7 first and later aiming for the ...d5 break. 19.exd5 Nxd5 20.Bd2

Nepo obviously has designs on that loose a5-pawn - but I think slightly better was 20.Nxd5 Bxd5 21.c3 to get his 'ugly' Lopez bishop into the game - but for some unknown reason, Nepo neglects to do this and lives to regret it. 20...Nxc3

A good option was also 20...Nf4, but Ding clearly plays on Nepo's self-entombment of his Lopez bishop. 21.Bxc3 Bxc4 22.bxc4 Bd8 23.Bd2 There was a lot of online chatter from the fans - obviously flying without an 'engine' - doubting the rationale of this move from Nepo, as surely he had the "easy plan' of Bb1-b3-a4? Fantastic plan if only White is allowed three moves without a reply, but the little snafu is that 23.Ba2 a4! that not only denies the b3 square from the bishop but also gives Black a big advantage. 23...Bc7 24.c3 This time there's a solid plan of Bc2-a4. But as we reach a critical stage of the game, the frayed nerves from the players begin to show with some mutually jittery moves. 24...f5 Safer looked 24...Qe7 with the plan of ...Nd8-e6 stopping the d4-break. 25.Re1 Missing the better plan of 25.Qf3! and follow-up with Bb1-c2-a4. 25...Rd8 26.Ra2 Qg6 27.Qe2 Qd6 Ding's pawns look vulnerable, but conversely, Nepo's bishop-pair needs to find a way into the game. 28.g3 Rde8 29.Qf3 e4 A risky strategy from Ding, but he's clearly not hanging around to see Nepo bring his bishop-pair into the game. 30.dxe4 Ne5 The only move - and now Nepo needs to find the correct sequence of moves to take a grip of the game. 31.Qg2 The move to ask questions of Ding's position was 31.Qd1! Nd3 32.Re3! fxe4 33.Bxd3 exd3 34.Rxe8 Rxe8 35.Bf4 Qc6 36.Bxc7 Qxc7 37.Qxd3 with an extra pawn (albeit doubled c-pawns) and better long-term prospects of pressing for a win. 31...Nd3 32.Bxd3 Qxd3 Here the queen on g2 rather than d1 makes all the difference for Ding, as he manages to defend a difficult position. 33.exf5 Rxe1+ 34.Bxe1 Qxc4 35.Ra1 It is hard to be critical when the players are in the heat of battle with not much time left on the clocks, but better was 35.Rd2! - but it is not so easy to see as you need to find a series of engine-only moves after 35...Rxf5 36.Qc6! forcing Black into 36...Bxg3!? 37.Rd8+ Kf7 where the cold, unbeating heart of the engine just nonchalantly flicks in 38.f4! Bxf4 (Of course, the bishop is taboo due to the mating net created and 38...Bxe1 39.Qe8+ Kf6 40.Rd6+ Qe6 41.Qxe6#) 39.Qe8+ Kf6 40.Bh4+ Rg5+! The only move now. 41.Bxg5+ Bxg5 42.Rc8 h6 43.Qc6+ Kf5 44.Qxc5+ Qxc5+ 45.Rxc5+ Ke4 46.Rxa5 Kd3 47.Ra4! Kxc3 48.Kf2 with winning chances with the Black king cut-off - but even this isn't easy to win. And as I often say, all easy to see when you have the engine chugging away in the background; but not so easy when you are one of the players and have little or no time left on the clock! 35...Rxf5 36.Bd2 h6 37.Qc6 Rf7 Just when all the talking heads thought we were heading for a draw - and more playoff games - Ding, despite being behind on the clock, makes the very brave decision in this equal position to press Nepo...and his gamble pays off big-time. 38.Re1 Kh7 39.Be3 Be5 40.Qe8 Bxc3 41.Rc1 Rf6 42.Qd7 If Nepo wanted a safe bailout, then he had it here with 42.Bd2!? Qd4! 43.Bxc3 Qxf2+ 44.Kh1 Qf3+ 45.Kh2 Qf2+ 46.Kh1 Qf3+ 47.Kh2 and a threefold-repetition. 42...Qe2 43.Qd5 Bb4 This was the real turning point in the game, according to Ding in his post-game victory presser, as he suddenly realised he could play for a win, “because if you take on c5 (44.Bxc5) I can play 44…Be1! and not exchange the bishop.” 44.Qe4+ Kg8 45.Qd5+ Kh7 46.Qe4+ Rg6! ( see diagram ) A very ballsy call from Ding at a critical juncture in an increasingly tense game, and with just a minute left on his clock, he turns down the repetition with the self-pin just to create the possibility of winning chances - and this is what probably flummoxed Nepo. The talking heads weren't so sure about the risk - but Magnus Carlsen was, as he magnanimously tweeted "Self-pinning for immortality. Congrats Ding!!” as he took over the laurels of his World Championship title. 47.Qf5?? Not only flummoxed but also bamboozled, Nepo blunders big-time. He had to find 47.Rc2! Qa6 48.Bxc5 Qe6 49.Qd3 Qa6 50.Qf5 Qf6 and the game does now fizzle out to a draw. 47...c4!

Now 48.Rc2 is going to be strongly met by 42...Qd3! forcing the queens off and a winning endgame for Black with two advanced passed pawns. 48.h4 Qd3 49.Qf3 Rf6 Hard to see with the flag on your digital clock metaphorically rising rapidly, but the engine clean kill was 49...Bd2! 50.Rd1 c3 51.Kg2 Rf6 52.Qg4 Qd5+ 53.Kg1 c2 54.Bxd2 cxd1=Q+ 55.Qxd1 a4 and White can resign with the a-pawn now running wildly up the board. 50.Qg4 c3 Passed pawns must be pushed! 51.Rd1 Qg6 52.Qc8 Rc6! 53.Qa8 Rd6 Killing was 53...c2! but the text just takes a little longer - and added drama for everyone with Ding's flag now hanging! 54.Rxd6 Qxd6 55.Qe4+ Qg6 56.Qc4 Despite a time advantage, Nepo can't trade queens as Ding will simply push the a-pawn up the board winning the bishop. 56...Qb1+ 57.Kh2 a4 58.Bd4 a3? This time-induced minor error could have proved fatal for Ding, as it allows Nepo some saving chances - the move to find and play was 58...Qb3! 59.Qc7?? It has to be remembered that Nepo was also under the cosh of the clock - and he blows it in this intense struggle by not finding the resourceful move 59.h5! boxing the Black king in, and forcing the finish 59...Bf8 60.Qf7 Qd3 61.Bxc3! Qxc3 62.Qxf8 a2 63.Qf5+ Kh8

(Definitely not 63...Kg8? 64.Qd5+ Kh7 65.Qxa2 Qf3 66.Qc2+ Kg8 67.Qc5 and the pendulum moves to White.) 64.Qf8+ Kh7 65.Qf5+ and a repetition. 59...Qg6 60.Qc4 c2 61.Be3 Bd6 62.Kg2 h5! This time not so much stopping the king from being boxed in with g4 and h5, but to defend the c2-pawn. 63.Kf1 Be5 Well, of course, the engine shows no nerves and easily finds the -46.83 or something winning moves of 63...a2! 64.Qxa2 Qe4! 65.Kg1 Bc5 66.Bd2 Qf5 67.Bf4 Bxf2+!! where I am sure, like the players living on the fumes of seconds by now on their clocks, you spotted all those tactics! 64.g4 Pure desperation now - but there's method to the madness as Nepo wants to play Ke2 to race his king over to d2 without allowing ...Qg4+ trading queens and the a-pawn to run home. 64...hxg4 65.h5 Qf5 66.Qd5 g3!

Amazingly, with his flag metaphorically hanging, Ding finds all the good moves for a remarkable victory. 6 7.f4 a2! 68.Qxa2 Bxf4 0-1

Breaking Bad

Fri, 28 Apr 2023 15:31:38 GMT

The “ Kingda Ka ” rollercoaster ride that’s become a battle of nerves and attrition to decide who takes Magnus Carlsen’s vacated world crown took yet another big twist - this one even defying the most basic of principles of Newtonian mechanics, as Ian Nepomniachtchi suffered a dramatic and inexplicable meltdown to gift Ding Liren his way back into the €2m FIDE World Championship in Astana, Kazakhstan.

An error-strewn Game 12 is best summed up as being a series of record-breaking bad moves (21 in all, for those counting these sorts of things) that culminated in total farce with Nepo playing arguably one of the worst blunders ever seen in the long and storied history of the world championship - so incredulously that it saw the evaluation bar shooting from one extreme to the other within the space of a few moves.

After a slightly bizarre opening, Nepo looked set for another win that would have all but sealed his victory. But instead, to the utter disbelief of the online talking heads, he blew it all away with a monumental final error; the magnitude of which he only fully comprehended after a visibly relieved Ding played 35.Rxe6, that left the Russian slumped in his seat as he realised he’d just blown a won position.

For some inexplicable reason, at the critical moment of the game, Nepo was haphazardly blitzing out moves to such an extent that it left Fabiano Caruana, the 2018 title challenger, totally flabbergasted: “I don’t understand this decision to rush every move. It’s a world championship,” he said on his chess.com commentary. “You have one or two chances in your lifetime – how can you play every move like it’s a Titled Tuesday game? These are responsible decisions to make.”

The penultimate game 13 also saw a rejuvenated Ding, after drawing level in the best-of-14-game contest, taking the initiative with Black in a Ruy Lopez, as he forced Nepo onto the backfoot only to then let the Russian (playing under the neutral FIDE flag due to the Ukraine war) off the hook, as he misplayed his hand and had to seek a bailout with a threefold repetition; cryptically commenting in his postgame presser: “It was still some kind of dark ocean position, so I didn’t go further into it.”

The match now goes to the wire of Saturday’s 14th and final classical game. If the score is still tied at 7-7, they go to rapid and blitz tie-break games to decide who becomes world champion in a heritage line that stretches back to Wilhelm Steinitz in 1886. Will it be Nepo or will it be Ding? The final match of the contest can be followed live on the official FIDE World Chess Championship site and also on all the usual top platforms.

Ian Nepomniachtchi | 6½

½ 1 ½ 0 1 0 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ 0 ½

½ 0 ½ 1 0 1 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 ½

Ding Liren | 6½

GM Ding Liren - GM Ian Nepomniachtchi

FIDE World Chess Championship, (12)
D04: Queen's Pawn game (Caro-Kann by transposition)

1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 d5 3.e3 Anything goes when you get to the latter stages of a world championship match and you are looking for something to surprise your opponent. This Colle-type QP was also used by Magnus Carlsen to surprise Sergey Karjakin in their 2016 title match. 3...c5 4.Nbd2 Ding is still keeping all his options open here - he could be going for a Colle-Zukertort with b3, Bb2 and Bd3, or play c4 and something more mainstream - or even, as happens in the game, a transposition into the Caro-Kann Exchange Variation! 4...cxd4 5.exd4 Qc7 6.c3 Bd7?! I am really struggling to understand this move - in one sense it is preventing Bb5+, but the natural square for this bishop is either f5 or even g4. Or, as Fabi Caruana puts it better: "I think I can only come up with one explanation for this move, which is that he picked up the bishop & as he was moving it suddenly he felt the urge to sneeze & before it could go to f5 or g4, some useful square, his hand released it on d7, where it does absolutely nothing"! 7.Bd3 This is basically now a Caro-Kann Exchange variation, a line that became all the rage to play as White after being used by Bobby Fischer to beat Tigran Petrosian in the epic USSR v The Rest of the World Match in Belgrade. The only difference is that White usually plays a later Nbd2 to allow the dark-squared bishop to come out first. 7...Nc6 8.O-O Bg4 9.Re1 e6 10.Nf1 Bd6 11.Bg5 O-O 12.Bxf6 More usual you will see 12.Bh4 with the plan of dropping back to g3 to trade off the bishops, as White attempts to secure control of the vital e5-square. 12...gxf6 13.Ng3 f5 Also possible was 13...Kh8 to quickly double rooks on the open g-file - and also note that dangerous is 14.h3?! as Black has the tempting shot 14...Bxh3! 15.gxh3 Bxg3 16.fxg3 Qxg3+ 17.Kh1 Rg8 18.Qe2 Qxh3+ 19.Nh2 Rg3 20.Bc2 f5 where the engine will tell that this is just digital queenside castling with "0.00", but in reality it doesn't take much for White to find himself wandering into trouble here. 14.h3 Bxf3 Also, an interesting try was 14...f4!? where after 15.hxg4 fxg3 16.fxg3 Bxg3 White is forced into 17.Qd2 Bf4 (Definitely not 17...Bxe1?? 18.Qg5+ Kh8 19.Qf6+ Kg8 20.Ng5 Rfd8 21.Rxe1 and the Black king can't avoid being mated.) 18.Qf2 Bg3 19.Qd2 Bf4 and a repetition. But with Nepo in the lead and looking to be edging his way to victory, then surely this would have been the ideal scenario for him? 15.Qxf3 Ne7 16.Nh5! Kh8 17.g4!?

Given that Ding needs to win, this wildly lashing out approach is exactly what he needs to play - it's do-or-die stuff and hang any of the consequences for his own king's safety with the g-file opening up. 17...Rg8 18.Kh1 Ng6 19.Bc2 Nh4 The immediate 19...Qe7! heading to h4 was more problematic for White. 20.Qe3 Rg6 With Rag8 looming large, this position is starting to turn into a potentially dangerous minefield for Ding. Nepo is unquestionably in control and shouldn't loses this - but funny things can happen under pressure. In golf it is called the "yips", as witness poor Doug Sanders blowing the British Open at St. Andrews in 1970 by missing an easily two-foot putt on the final green. 21.Rg1 f4! Nepo must have felt that the title was surely heading his way at this stage. 22.Qd3 Qe7 Of course, the engine shows no nerves or sign of the yips, as it quickly finds the brave here of 22...f5! that all but forces White to play a move he really doesn't want to, namely 23.f3 Qe7 24.Raf1 Rag8 25.Qd2 Qg5! 26.Bd1 (Urgently needed, as 26.gxf5?? sees White getting quickly mated with 26...Qxg1+ 27.Rxg1 Rxg1+ 28.Kh2 Nxf3#) 26...fxg4 27.fxg4 Nf5! and it is difficult to see how White can ever survive the tsunami about to hit his king. 23.Rae1 Qg5 24.c4? This just compounds Ding's mounting problems. 24...dxc4 25.Qc3 Ding is reduced to some spurious swindle or other down the long a1-h8 diagonal, as 25.Qxc4? Nf3 26.Bxg6 hxg6! 27.Qb3 Nxe1 28.Rxe1 gxh5 is just losing. 25...b5 26.a4 b4 Not a blunder per se, but the solid 26...a6! would have left Ding clutching at straws with 27.d5+ e5 28.axb5 axb5 29.Ra1 Rag8 and left sitting in Death's Waiting Room. 27.Qxc4 Rag8 28.Qc6 Bb8?? J ust when Nepo has Ding at his mercy, the chess yips kick-in to turn a win into a stone-cold loss! The clinical kill was 28...Nf5! hitting d4 and forcing 29.Rd1 Qh4 30.Qf3 Ng3+!! 31.Rxg3 fxg3 32.Bxg6 Qxh3+ 33.Kg1 gxf2+! 34.Kxf2 (Unfortunately 34.Qxf2?? goes down in flames to 34...Qxg4+ and White can resign). 34...Qxf3+ 35.Kxf3 fxg6 36.Ng3 Rf8+ 37.Kg2 Rf4 and Black picks off more pawns for an easy win.

29.Qb7? The tension builds big-time, as Ding doesn't see that 29.Bxg6! Nxg6 30.f3! is winning, as 30...Qh4 is easily answered by 31.Re2! and Black can't play ...Qxh3+ because of Rh2. 29...Rh6 Once again, the brave and - likely - winning move to find was 29...Nf5! 30.Be4 Rf8? The right move was 30...f3 - but Nepo wants to play ...f3 without allowing Qxf7. Unfortunately, there's a little snafu. 31.Qxb4 Unbelievably, Nepo overlooked this move hitting his rook.

31...Qd8 It goes without saying that it's 's never a good sign when your best attacking pieces retreats all the way back to its starting square! 32.Qc3 Now, as the pendulum swings wildly once again, Ding does have hopes of something - anything - happening down the long a1-h8 diagonal! 32...Ng6 33.Bg2 Qh4 You just think that there has to be something there for Nepo - but Ding has all the bases covered now. 34.Re2 f5??? ( see diagram )The ultimate brain fart, as Nepo could visibly be seen cursing himself for overlooking that Ding can play 35.Rxe6 winning. And in the annals of bad moves ever played in all the world championship matches, this has to rate right up there as being one of the worst - and made all the more by the fact that only a few moves ago, Nepo was winning! Instead, after 34...Rg8, White was only marginally better. 35.Rxe6! Probably pinching himself here, Ding can't believe his luck as he makes no mistake by moving in for the kill - and you only had to look at Nepo's face to see it was almost as if all the blood was being drained from him from the head down. 35...Rxh5 This is the only way to stop the mate on g7 after d5+ - but it only delays the inevitable by a couple of moves. 36.gxh5 Qxh5 37.d5+ Kg8 38.d6 1-0 Nepo resigns faced with 38...f3 39.Bf1 Qh6 40.Re8!! Rxe8 41.Bc4+ mating.

Edging to the End

Tue, 25 Apr 2023 22:32:42 GMT

Ian Nepomniachtchi is edging ever-closer to the world title following a brace of dry and drama-free draws with Ding Liren in Games 10 & 11 this week in the €2m FIDE World Championship Match , as the players head into the homestretch of the final three games of the contest in Astana, Kazakhstan.

Game 10 saw Ding opting for a tricky English Opening in an attempt to unsettle the Russian (who is playing under the neutral FIDE flag due to his country’s invasion of Ukraine), but this was, in fact, a bad plan as Nepo himself has played the same line as White, and indeed he was more than up to the challenge of easily liquidating down into an easily drawing rook ending before the game concluded by going “to the kings”.

Game 11 proved to be the least eventful and dullest of all the games so far, as Ding equalised with ease against Nepo’s Ruy Lopez Martinez variation to comfortably draw - all a far cry from his fateful game 5 (see below), one of the key moments in the match, where he was brilliantly outplayed by the Russian.

After four successive draws, Nepo now leads 6-5 and is now close to claiming Magnus Carlsen’s vacated world championship title with games and time fast running out for Ding. Despite the pressure mounting again - and visibly looking more than just a little jaded - he simply must try to strike in Wednesday’s Game 12 if he’s to stand a chance of winning the crown.

Ding may be down, but he’s not out yet - and citing his 2022 Candidates comeback at the Game 12 presser, he at least sounded hopeful of taking the match to the wire: “There are still three games ahead. In the Candidates, I won in the last game, so anything can happen.”

Games 12 (of the scheduled 14) will be played on Wednesday with the penultimate on Thursday, as the drama and tension builds. The match can be followed live on the official FIDE World Chess Championship site and also on all the usual top platforms.

Ian Nepomniachtchi | 6

½ 1 ½ 0 1 0 1 ½ ½ ½ ½

½ 0 ½ 1 0 1 0 ½ ½ ½ ½

Ding Liren | 5

GM Ian Nepomniachtchi - GM Ding Liren

FIDE World Championship, (5)

C84: Ruy Lopez, Martinez Variation

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.d3 The solid 'Martinez Variation' has been seen numerous times at the highest level of play, having been regularly employed by the likes of Magnus Carlsen, Vishy Anand, Fabiano Caruana, Alexander Grischuk, Sergey Karjakin, Peter Svidler and many other super-grandmasters who regularly play the Ruy Lopez as White, and perhaps looking to sidestep all the big theory mainlines such as the Marshall Attack, Zaitsev, Chigorin and Breyer - and in Nepo's case here, it's simply to avoid Ding's Marshall Attack.

6...b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 O-O 9.h3 Bb7 10.a4 An almost unknown sidestep here that avoids any Ding deep-prep and throws him onto the back-foot. It only came to fruition last year after being played by Alireza Firouzja, and more common seen here is 10.Re1 followed by the standard Lopez knight hop of Nb1-d2-f1-h2(or possibly g3)-g4. 10...Na5 11.Ba2 c5 12.Bg5 The only other game in this rarity saw 12.Na3, as seen in Firouzja-Giri, FTX Crypto Cup 2022 . 12...h6 13.Bxf6 Bxf6 14.axb5 axb5 15.Nbd2 Nc6 16.Bd5 Rxa1 17.Qxa1 Qd7 18.Re1 Ra8 The worrying thing the commentators and talking heads saw for Ding here was how quickly Nepo was blitzing out his moves, and how much time Ding was eating up on his clock. That's a two-way street: if Nepo is blitzing out his moves and Ding is going into the tank, then - although he's eating time up on his clock - he's finding at the board all the best moves that Nepo and his team have conjured up here in this rare sideline. 19.Qd1 Bd8 20.Nf1 Ne7?! A decision Ding lives to regret, as suddenly everything gets awkward for him that allows Nepo to take masterful control of the board. Better was 20...Bc8 21.Ne3 Ra6 and if 22.Nf5 now good is 22...Ne7! with full equality for Black. 21.Bxb7 Qxb7 22.Ne3 Bb6 23.h4!

The standard protocol here, as pushing on with h5 and g4 secures the f5 outpost for the knight. 23...Qc6 24.h5 c4!

Despite the difficulties, Ding knows he has to fight back by generating his own counterplay on the queenside. 25.d4 exd4 It really all starts to slide for Ding from here. Better was 25...Rd8 because now if 26.Nh4 heading for the f5 outpost, there comes 26...d5 27.Nhf5 (Or even 27.Nxd5 Nxd5 28.exd5 Qf6!=) 27...Nxf5 28.Nxf5 Qf6! and in both cases with full equality. 26.Nxd4 Qc5?! Not a losing move per se from Ding, just a bad plan - but all these little inaccuracies now start to prove critical for Black. The correct call was 26...Qd7 intending 27.Nef5 Bxd4 28.Nxd4 d5 29.e5 b4! and Black has excellent holding prospects. 27.Qg4 Stronger and better was 27.Qf3! 2 7...Qe5 28.Nf3 Qe6 29.Nf5 Nxf5?! Now Ding's game is being hurt by his going into the tank early doors, as he continues to make a series of inaccurate moves influenced perhaps by his time pressure. This time correct was 29...Qf6! 30.Nxe7+ Qxe7 31.Nh4 Qe5 32.Nf5 Kh7 and with counterplay with ...Ra2 coming down the line, Black has nothing to fear. 30.exf5 Qf6

Again a little misstep from Ding - and now Nepo really takes control of the board and the outcome of the game. His best try to fight for equality was with 30...Qd7 as now if 31.Qe4 d5! 32.Qe7 Qxe7 33.Rxe7 b4! and Black is doing more than OK here. 31.Qe4! Nepo's execution of the remainder of this game is nothing short of a masterclass in domination that wouldn't be out of place in one of E.L. James' Fifty Shades trilogy! 31...Rb8 32.Re2 Bc5 33.g4!

And remarkably with it, even Ding rather sheepishly admitted he'd "totally overlooked" this possibility. 33...Qd8 34.Qd5 Nepo's grip gets ever tighter with each and every move now. 34...Kf8 35.Kf1! A subtle little move, just anticipating the possibility of a ...Qd7 and ...Qxg4+ disrupting the intended White attack with f5-f6. 35...Rc8? The last try to avoid the pain was 35...Qc8! because now if 36.f6 gxf6 37.Qe4 Kg8 38.Nh4 Qb7! the queens coming off could well see Black holding for a draw. 36.Re4!! ( see diagram ) A wonderful rook lift to victory! And for the next and final stage of the game, you could almost envision poor Ding strapped into a dentist's chair a la Marathon Man , with Nepo repeatedly asking in a menacing fashion "Is it safe?" 36...Rb8 There's nothing much more Ding can do now - it is all self-inflicted, so no sympathy! If 36...Qf6 the onslaught comes with 37.g5 hxg5 38.Rg4 Re8 39.Nxg5 Kg8 40.h6! and the engine only shoots up to something like +60! 37.g5! hxg5 38.Rg4 Ra8 There's simply no defence now. If 38...f6 39.Nh4! Ke8 (The knight is simply taboo. After 39...gxh4 40.h6! g5 41.fxg6 Qd7 42.g7+ Ke7 43.g8=Q Rxg8 44.Rxg8 Qh3+ 45.Kg1 and there's nothing left now other than desperation and the spite checks with 45...Bxf2+ 46.Kxf2 Qh2+ 47.Ke1 and no more left to give.) 40.Ng6 Kd7 41.Re4 is easily winning with the quarry being the running Black king. 39.Nxg5 The rest is now a very polished finish from Nepo. 39...Ra1+ 40.Ke2 Qe7+ 41.Ne4 Qe8 42.Kf3! Qa8 Again desperation, but how do you stop f6 snaring the Black king? 43.Qxa8+ Rxa8 44.f6! Even with the queens off the board, this is still crashing through for Nepo, as the ace in the hole after 44...gxf6 45.Nxf6 Ke7 46.Ng8+ is going to be his unstoppable h-pawn. 44...g6 45.hxg6 fxg6 46.Rxg6 Ra2 Even if 46...Kf7 47.Rg7+ Ke6 48.Kf4 Rf8 49.Re7+ Kd5 50.f7 followed by Kf5-f6-g7 is simple more than enough. 47.Kg4 Rxb2 48.Rh6 1-0 Ding resigns with the mating threat of Ng5 and Rh8 that will see the f-pawn effortlessly queen.

The Big Bluff

Fri, 21 Apr 2023 21:23:13 GMT

As Ding Liren and Ian Nepomniachtchi continue to battle it out in the €2m FIDE World Chess Championship for Magnus Carlsen’s abdicated classical crown, many are wondering what the Norwegian top dog has been making of the match. The truth is probably not very much, because he’s been otherwise preoccupied with a seat in the Main Event of the 2023 Norwegian Poker Championship !

And it’s not just Carlsen who has been dealing with the big bluffs. In one of the most audacious bluffs ever seen in recent years in a world championship match, in game eight Ian Nepomniachtchi managed to somehow survive with a draw as he managed to fend off a deadly attack from Ding that finally broke the series of decisive wins in the 14-game contest in Astana, Kazakhstan.

First off, he was aided by Ding’s miscalculation, where he opted for the all-too-human move of 26.d7, overlooking the - admittedly, hard-to-find - silicone sure-fire win with the rook lift 26.Rd3! and the threat of flicking over with deadly intent to the h-file. But secondly and more crucially, Ding, after building up a won position, later squandered another clear win by being completely taken in by the Russian’s pure bluff that 32.Qxd8 allowed a repetition, which proved to be not only false but costly.

Ding Liren was understandably disappointed with the outcome. At the post-game presser, he explained that he didn't want to repeat the situation from game seven where he lost due to the time pressure. "I wanted to play quickly in time trouble, but today it's another story,” he bemoaned, before adding “A pity. It could have been a good game, but it didn't happen.”

And as Friday’s game nine ended in an entertaining draw (with no discernible errors from either player) following a fierce battle, you increasingly get the feeling that Ding missing that win in game eight could ultimately prove to be the pivotal moment in this rollercoaster match, as the Russian (playing under the neutral FIDE flag) takes a one-point advantage heading into the final five games.

Games 10 and 11 (of the scheduled 14) will be played on Sunday and and Monday and can be followed live on the official FIDE World Chess Championship site and also on all the usual top platforms.

Ian Nepomniachtchi | 5

½ 1 ½ 0 1 0 1 ½ ½

½ 0 ½ 1 0 1 0 ½ ½

Ding Liren | 4

GM Ding Liren - GM Ian Nepomniachtchi

FIDE World Chess Championship, (8)

E28: Nimzo-Indian Defence,

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.e3 O-O 5.a3 A sort of hybrid Sämisch variation championed by Fabiano Caruana that is very aggressive - almost caveman-like - where White dares to compromise his own pawn structure early on, perhaps even sacrificing a pawn or two just to open up as many lines as possible to attack Black's king. 5...Bxc3+ 6.bxc3 d6 7.Ne2 c5 8.Ng3 Nc6 9.Ra2 b6 10.e4 Ba6 11.Bg5 h6 12.h4!? Very provocative, as early doors Ding is going for the jugular with the notorious Fishing Pole Attack theme more commonly seen at club-level against the Ruy Lopez Exchange variation. 12...hxg5 13.hxg5 g6 14.gxf6 Qxf6 15.e5 There's no holding back now in such scenarios - to coin another poker phrase, Ding simply has to go 'all-in' now. 15...dxe5 16.d5 Ne7 17.d6 Nf5 18.Ne4 The pawn sacrifice and speculative play was all for vacating the ideal e4 square for White's knight to jump in to. 18...Qd8 19.Qd3 With the not-too-subtle Caveman threat of Qh3 and a brutal mate down the h-file. 19...Kg7 20.g4 Bb7 21.Rh3 Just moving out of the awkward and annoying pin down the long a8-h1 diagonal. 21...Nh4 22.g5 Bxe4?

A bad blunder, as Nepo underestimates the danger he's in. The correct call was 22...Rh8! 23.Qg3 Bxe4 24.Qxe5+ f6 25.Qxe4 fxg5 26.Rd3 and the position remains double-edged. 23.Qxe4 Nf5 24.Rd2 Rh8 25.Rxh8 Qxh8 26.d7?

It's hard to be critical with this being the all-too-human move to make - but our Silicone Overlords can see further in, and it cuts straight to the chase of hunting down the Black king with the cunning rook lift 26.Rd3! with the deadly threat of Rh3 and Qxe5+. This leaves Black in a quandary, where even the engine thinks it's all but over with 26...Nxd6

(The alternative is 26...Qd8 were this time 27.d7! is indeed the stone-cold killer, with the no answer to the easy win with Qxa8 followed by d8Q (or even 27...Rb8 28.Qxe5+ Kf8 29.Qxb8!) 27.Qxe5+ Kg8 28.Qxh8+ Kxh8 29.Rxd6 easily winning. 26...Rd8 27.Qxe5+ Kh7 28.Qh2+ Kg7 29.Qe5+ Kh7 30.Qh2+ After his heart-breaking meltdown of the previous game, Ding - although nowhere near the levels of time-trouble as in Game 7 - professionally throws in a couple of moves to get nearer to the 40-move time-control. 30...Kg7 31.Qc7 Qh4!?! ( see diagram ) An amazing big bluff from Nepo, who was simply just losing otherwise. 32.Kd1? And after just three minutes of thinking time on his clock, Ding falls for the big bluff by not taking the rook - and I don't really blame him, as any player would have the fear they had just walked into an almighty game-saving swindle. But you need to see an amazing sequence of moves easily found by the engines to realise that you can capture the rook with 32.Qxd8! as 32...Qe4+ 33.Re2 Qb1+ 34.Kd2 Qa2+ 35.Kd3 Qb1+ 36.Rc2 Qd1+ (Alternatively, if 36...Qxf1+ 37.Kd2 Nd6 38.Qh8+!! Kxh8 39.d8=Q+ Ne8 40.Qxe8+ Kg7 41.Qb8 Qxf2+ 42.Kc1 Qg1+ 43.Kb2 and Black runs out of checks.) 37.Ke4!! Just so difficult to see and actually execute in your head, as you analyse this difficult and tricky position in the heat of battle. 37...Qxc2+ 38.Bd3 Nd6+ 39.Ke5 Qxd3 40.Qf6+ Kh7 41.d8=Q Nxc4+ 42.Kf4 and Black has run out of check. 32...Qxg5 33.Kc2 Qe7 34.Bg2 e5 35.Be4 Nh6 36.Qxa7 Ng4 37.Bf3? The win all but evaporates for Ding with this additional error - the only way to keep his hopes alive of winning was 37.Kb3! Qg5 38.Qxb6! Qxd2 39.Qxd8 Nf6 40.Qe7! Nxd7 41.a4 and it is not easy to stop the a-pawn running up the board with the Nd7 and both the e5 and c5 pawns under attack. 37...Nxf2! Once again, kudos to Nepo, as this time this game-saving piece sac isn't a bluff! 38.Rxf2 e4 39.Re2 f5 40.Qxb6 Rxd7 41.Qb8

Retreating the bishop with 41.Bg2 offers no winning chances, as Black has the instant draw by continually attacking the queen with 41...Rb7 42.Qc6 Rc7 43.Qa4 Ra7 44.Qb3 Rb7 45.Qa4 (It's dangerous to try 45.Qa2? Qd7! 46.Rd2 Qe8 and Black is in command with the big threat looming of ...f4 and the passed pawns causing an almighty headache for White's disjointed pieces.) 45...Ra7 46.Qb3 Rb7 etc. 41...Qd6 42.Qxd6 Rxd6 43.Bxe4 The only option now is to return the piece and a drawing R+P ending, as 43.Bg2 Ra6 44.Kb2 Kf6 forces 45.Bxe4 anyway, otherwise Black's three connected passed pawns will offer genuine winning chances. 43...fxe4 44.Rxe4 Kf6 45.Re8 ½-½

The French Connection

Wed, 19 Apr 2023 22:08:13 GMT

The battle to find Magnus Carlsen’s replacement took yet another dramatic twist on Tuesday, as Ding Liren - after sensationally winning Game 6 to tie the match at 3-3 - froze at the crucial moment during a tense time scramble to all but gift Ian Nepomniatchi what could well be a crucial win in this increasingly topsy-turvy 14-game contest, as he takes a 4-3 lead heading into the midpoint of the €2m World Championship Match in Astana, Kazakhstan.

Trying to surprise his opponent, Ding opted for unfamiliar territory by playing a French Defence - the first since 1978, and the epic struggle between Anatoly Karpov and Viktor Korchnoi - recommended by his second, Richard Rapport, rather than his standard 1…e5 - but he hesitated for what initially looked an unassuming 45-seconds at the start of the game before playing 1…e6 which ultimately proved to be a costly decision, as his once solid game tragically fell apart during a frantic mad-dash to reach the time control at move 40.

Looking a little inconsolable after suffering a heartbreaker of a loss right at the midpoint of the match, Ding simply stated in the post-game presser: “I played the game not so bad, but in the end, I messed up things.” Nepo now takes the lead for the third time in the match - but this lead could ultimately prove to be the most crucial of all, as he now has the extra midpoint rest day to be more refreshed and better prepared for Ding.

Remarkably, we’ve now had four consecutive decisive games and five in total, as the players match the win-ratio pace from the first seven games of the Botvinnik-Smyslov World Championship Return Match of 1958 - and need only another three consecutive wins to join in the annals the madness from the Botvinnik-Tal World Championship Rematch of 1961, which had seven straight wins through Games 7-13!

Games 8 and 9 (of the scheduled 14) will be played on Thursday and Friday and can be followed live on all the usual top platforms and on the official FIDE World Chess Championship site.

Ian Nepomniachtchi | 4

½ 1 ½ 0 1 0 1

½ 0 ½ 1 0 1 0

Ding Liren | 3

Ian Nepomniachtchi - Ding Liren

FIDE World Chess Championship, (7)

C07: French Defence, Tarrasch variation

1.e4 e6 A surprise as Ding opts for the French Defence, the first since the 1978 World Championship battle between Anatoly Karpov and Viktor Korchnoi. 2.d4 d5 3.Nd2 No surprise with the Tarrasch from Nepo, which was, of course, the big favourite of Karpov in that aforementioned match with Korchnoi. 3...c5 4.Ngf3 cxd4 5.Nxd4 Nf6 6.exd5 Nxd5 7.N2f3 Be7 8.Bc4 Nc6 Amusingly, there was some excitement here with the online masses claiming that this was a TN from Ding! Not really the case, as the game just transposes to 8...O-O 9.O-O Nc6 10.Nxc6 bxc6 11.Qe2 as seen in Kruppa-Dokhoian, USSR Young Masters Ch. 1987. 9.Nxc6 bxc6 10.O-O O-O 11.Qe2 Bb7 12.Bd3 Qc7 13.Qe4 Nf6 Visually, this just looks wrong with the knight having such a commanding outpost on d5 - but I suppose Ding wanted to avoid weakening the dark squares around his king with 13...g6 14.Bh6 Rfd8 15.Rae. On the whole, though, I think the natural French Defence player would have kept his knight on d5. 14.Qh4 c5 15.Bf4 Qb6 16.Ne5 Rad8 It goes without saying that we are reaching a critical moment of the game for both players. 17.Rae1 The dynamics were all there for White to play with care. After 17.Ng4 Rxd3! 18.cxd3 Nd5 19.Qg3 h5! 20.Ne3 h4 21.Qg4 Nxf4 22.Qxf4 h3! Black has full compensation with the bishop-pair and the long a8-h1 diagonal being prised open. 17...g6 18.Bg5 Rd4 19.Qh3 Qc7 Even the engines prefer admitting to the mistake by wanting to play 19...Nd5 - but Ding has a cunning plan. 20.b3 Nh5!? A little risky, but Ding is not without his own tricks here. But safer looked 20...Ne4 21.Bxe7 Qxe7 22.Bxe4 Rxe4 23.Rxe4 Bxe4 24.Qe3. 21.f4 Bd6 22.c3 Nxf4! Ding finds a tactical way to solve his problems! 23.Bxf4 Rxf4 24.Rxf4 Bxe5 25.Rh4 And Nepo decides to up the ante with the most aggressive move. The game is very finely balanced, but a little slip for either side could prove problematic. 25...Rd8 A scary position for sure, and one where you need to keep your wits about you - but the critical move to find (and quickly spotted by the engine) was 25...Bxc3!? that all but forces now 26.Bxg6! (There's no time for 26.Rxh7? Qf4! 27.Rf1 Qg5 and suddenly Black has a big advantage with a tactic on g2 seeing the rook stranded on the h-file being lost, as 28.Rh4 will lose to 28...Bxg2!) 26...Bxe1 27.Bxh7+ Kg7 28.Rg4+ Kf6 29.Qe3! Bd2 30.Qxd2 Qe5 31.h4 and equality with Qg5+ coming exchanging queens for an equal endgame. 26.Be4 Bxe4 27.Rhxe4 Rd5 28.Rh4 Qd6 29.Qe3 h5 30.g3 Bf6 31.Rc4 h4 Not a blunder nor a losing move by any stretch of the imagination, but, given the circumstances and the looming time-trouble, the more natural move was the consolidating 31...Kg7! rather than lashing out with your digital flag metaphorically hanging precariously (and there's no time increment until the second time-control kicks in at move 40). Instead, caught in two minds, he begins to fold under the time pressure - I bet he now wishes he had that 45 seconds back that he hesitated with at the start of the game by opting to play the French Defence! 32.gxh4 ( see diagram ) 32...Rd2?! But this is where it all goes pear-shaped for Ding, as he inexplicably has a meltdown brought on by his chronic time-trouble. The best move was 32...Be5! 33.Rg4 (It's all awkward for White here. If he attempts to defend h2 with 33.Re2? Bxh2+! comes anyway, leading to 34.Rxh2 Rd1+ 35.Kg2 Rd2+ winning. And if 33.h3? Bh2+ 34.Kh1 Rd3! forcing White into 35.Rd4 Rxe3 36.Rxd6 Rxe1+ 37.Kxh2 Re2+ 38.Kg3 Rxa2 and a difficult R+P ending to defend being sans a pawn and the doubled h-pawns.) 33...Bxh2+ 34.Kh1 Rf5 and Black is marginally better with White's fractured position and no protection for his king. 33.Re2 Rd3?? The only way to maintain the tension was returning to base with 33...Rd5! 34.Kg2 Rh5 35.Re4 Kg7 and Black have a solid position with h4 under attack (possibly also c3, if White tries Qg3). 34.Qxc5 Oopsie! Now Ding realises why he had to return to base with 33...Rd5 - and with it, his body language visibly slumped just as his position has. 34...Rd1+ This is nothing more than a spite check, as Black is busted, and Ding close to flagging. 35.Kg2 Qd3 36.Rf2 Remarkably, Nepo has his king covered and also now coming for Ding's king! 36...Kg7 37.Rcf4! It doesn't rain but it pours for poor Ding, who with just 3 seconds left on his clock to reach move 40, sees his position implode before his very eyes. 37...Qxc3 1-0 Ding resigns rather than face 38.Qxc3 Bxc3 39.Rxf7+ Kh6 40.Rxa7 Rd5 41.Re7 Be1 42.Re2 and a hopelessly lost endgame.

London Calling

Mon, 17 Apr 2023 18:00:31 GMT

After a jittery start from Ding Liren, the €2m World Championship Match is now exploding into a humdinger of a street brawl as he trades blows, blunders and wins with Ian Nepomniachtchi, as the third successive decisive game in the contest sees both combatants vying for Magnus Carlsen’s abdicated title now tied at 3-3 in Astana, Kazakhstan.

Game. 5 proved to be a nice squeeze win in the Ruy Lopez for the Russian playing under the FIDE neutral flag - but this was a game where Ding didn’t do much wrong in it, and there was no shame or psychological scarring from losing. And to show it, Ding hit back immediately with a truly stunning win to tie the match-up again at 3-3 in the 14-game contest.

While Nepo bemoaned at the post-game presser that it “was one of my worst games ever”, an increasingly more confidant Ding said that he was “in very good shape during the game” and “not so much influenced by [Game 5] yesterday’s loss” and totally satisfied with what he showed on the board.

And with four decisive games now between Ding and Nepo in the first six games, the match also equals the explosive start to Karpov vs Kortchnoi (Merano 1981) from over 40 years ago! (And the legendary 1972 match between Spassky and Fischer, if you include the American’s defaulted Game 2). All eyes are now on Tuesday’s Game 7, where a fifth win would see Ding and Nepo join Botvinnik vs Smyslov (Moscow 1957) in the annals with the most wins (5) to the start of a World Championship match.

Coincidently, there was also a little bit of Word Championship legacy from over a century ago in Ding’s choice of openings in Game 6. The first ever game recorded in a London System was between those two great Victorian-era masters, James Mason and Joseph Henry Blackburne, naturally enough in London in 1883. But the tournament that was thought to have put the London System in the public eye was, in fact, its popularity during the 1 922 London BCF Congress .

This elite tournament won by then World Champion José Raúl Capablanca - ahead of his potential challengers Alekhine, Rubinstein, Bogoljubow and Reti - was of great historical significance in the legacy of title matches during this pre-FIDE organised chess era, as it also affirmed the “ London Rules ” drawn up by the Cuban maestro for any future championship matches to challenge the World Champion.

Games 7 and 8 (of the scheduled 14) will be played on Tuesday and Thursday (with Wednesday being the midpoint stage of the match) and can be followed live on all the usual top platforms and on the official FIDE World Chess Championship site.

Ian Nepomniachtchi | 3

½ 1 ½ 0 1 0

½ 0 ½ 1 0 1

Ding Liren | 3

GM Ding Liren - GM Ian Nepomniachtchi

FIDE World Championship, (6)
London System

1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 d5 3.Bf4 The London System is the ideal opening for those who do not wish to get heavily involved in a sharp, theoretical duel, nor to explore reams of opening theory, but prefer to simply complete their development in a solid, non-confrontational way. But it wasn’t always known as the “London System”. It was often referred to as simply being a “Queens Pawn Opening”, and I believe it was only universally accepted in chess opening nomenclature as being the London System with the publication of Tim Harding's late 1970s Batsford book Colle, London and Blackmar-Diemar Systems . 3...c5 4.e3 Nc6 5.Nbd2 cxd4 6.exd4 Bf5 7.c3 e6 8.Bb5 Bd6 9.Bxd6 If only it were so simple that White could play 9.Ne5 - but Black more than quickly equalise after 9...Rc8 10.Qa4 O-O! 11.Bxc6 (Good for Black is 11.Nxc6 bxc6 12.Bxd6 Qxd6 13.Be2 Qf4! and White faces great difficulties.)11...bxc6 12.Bg3 Bxe5! 13.dxe5 (There's no time for 13.Bxe5? as Black quickly strikes with 13...Bd3! and White's king is caught in the middle of the board and unable to castle on either wing.) 13...Nd7 14.O-O Qc7 15.Nf3 c5 and Black has a free and easy game with no worries. 9...Qxd6 10.O-O O-O 11.Re1 h6 12.Ne5 Ne7 13.a4 a6 It looks innocuous, but all of Nepo's problems start to go wrong from here. From a lifetime of playing the London System set-up, allowing the big a4-a5 clamp with the backward b7-pawn can be very unpleasant for Black. But with careful play, despite the inaccuracy, it shouldn't give White very much to play with. 14.Bf1 Nd7? Nepo, using just two minutes on his clock, rushes into things and totally underestimates the idea of the a5 push from Ding. Worse is the fact that all the engines were showing this move to be a positional mistake and ranked #19 and bottom on their best-move list! 15.Nxd7 Qxd7 16.a5 Qc7 17.Qf3 Rfc8 18.Ra3 A useful little rook lift, as a future Rea1 may well be needed to protect the clamping a5-pawn. 18...Bg6 19.Nb3 Nc6 20.Qg3 Qe7 21.h4 Re8 22.Nc5 e5 23.Rb3 Nxa5 24.Rxe5 Qf6 25.Ra3 Nc4 26.Bxc4 dxc4 27.h5 Tricky, as allowing White to expand on the kingside can - and indeed is - dangerous. Black has to react in a dynamic way. 27...Bc2?! This isn't the losing move per se, but it just shows that Nepo has totally lost the plot with no understanding of the potential of Ding's position. Again he rushed into things, spending only three minutes on his clock - and it all starts to invariably slip through Nepo's fingers from here. Black has to be alert to all the tactical possibilities here, and Nepo, for some inexplicable reason, overlooked the more dynamic possibility of 27...Rxe5!? 28.Qxe5 If 28.dxe5 Qd8! 29.hxg6 and Black has a repetition with 29...Qd1+ 30.Kh2 Qh5+ 31.Kg1 There's no escaping the draw. If 31.Qh3? Qxe5+ 32.Kg1 Qxc5 33.gxf7+ Kf8 34.Qg4 Qc6 35.Ra1 Rd8 and Black will pick off the f7 pawn when he's ready with good endgame prospects. 31...Qd1+ 32.Kh2 Qh5+ etc.) 28...Qxe5 29.dxe5 Bxh5 30.Nxb7 Rb8 31.Nd6 Rxb2 32.Nxc4 Rb1+ 33.Kh2 Rb5! 34.f4 Rc5 35.Nd2 Rc6 and Black should comfortably be holding this position; the key being to quickly get in the liquidating ...f6 move to reduce the potential power of the e5-pawn. 28.Nxb7 Qb6? But this is where it all goes out of control for Nepo. This was the last call for 28...Rxe5! 29.dxe5 Qf5 30.Nd6 Qxh5 31.Ra1 Qe2 and Black does have genuine holding chances as it will not be easy for White to make constructive progress with Black's active queen sitting menacingly on e2. White is better but faces difficulties trying to build on his advantage. 29.Nd6 Rxe5 30.Qxe5 Qxb2 31.Ra5! A really nice find from Ding and the body language between the two players at this stage told the story of what now happens in this brilliantly executed game. 31...Kh7

Suddenly Nepo realises he's made a monumental error with his assessment of the position, as this is the only move to survive. The point is that 31...Qxc3?? 32.Ne8! f6 33.Qd5+ Kh7 34.Nxf6+ gxf6 35.Qb7+ Kh8 36.Qxa8+ quickly wins.

32.Rc5 Qc1+ If 32...Qxc3 not capturing on c4 but 33.Rc7! is all awkward for Black. 33.Kh2 f6 34.Qg3 a5 35.Nxc4 a4 The only plan Nepo has now is to try and distract Ding with his a-pawn running down the board - but Ding by now is not fazed at all by the a-pawn, as his eyes are firmly fixed on mating! 36.Ne3 Bb1 37.Rc7 Rg8 38.Nd5 Kh8 39.Ra7 a3 40.Ne7 Rf8 ( see diagram ) Instead 40...Re8 would have held out longer, but the end result is still Ding winning - the difference though is very subtle. 41.d5!! The engine wants 42.Rb7 that is also good and winning with the threat being 43.Rb8, but the genius of this move is that you have to spot a showstopper of a queen sacrifice - and once it suddenly dawned on the talking heads and the fans online the picture Ding was painting, the call went out for the Frank Marshall legend of gold coins (or perhaps Bitcoin in this case?) to be thrown on the board. 41...a2

Another possible scenario was 41...Qb2 42.Qc7 Kh7 43.Rb7 Qe2 44.Rxb1 a2 45.Ra1 Qb2 46.Qd7!! Qxa1 47.Qf5+ Kh8 48.Ng6+ Kg8 49.Qe6+ Kh7 50.Nxf8+ Kh8 51.Ng6+ Kh7 52.Qc8 and a forced mate. 42.Qc7 Kh7 43.Ng6 Rg8 44.Qf7!! 1-0 And Nepo resigned faced with the spectacular finish of 45.Qxg8+! Kxg8 46.Ra8+ Kf7 47.Rf8 mate. And note how the d5-pawn takes away the e6-square from the king!

Ding Dong!

Fri, 14 Apr 2023 17:57:21 GMT

What a difference two games can make! After being virtually written off by the pundits and the punters alike following his disastrous start to the €2m World Championship Match , it’s gone from game over to game on again for Ding Liren with a very impressive win over Ian Nepomniachtchi in Game 4 to level at 2-2 in the 14-game contest in Astana, Kazakhstan.

Any psychological advantage the Russian, playing under a FIDE neutral flag, had in the match following his opponent’s horrific - almost depressed and in-therapy - start quickly evaporated, as a more sure-footed and confident Ding ruthlessly pounced on a strategic blunder (28…Nd4? - “outrageous, crazy” - Anish Giri) from Nepo in Game 4 to tie the match.

The Chinese world #3 looked visibly relieved and a total different person during his upbeat post-game presser, noting that “it was a little bit hard to believe” when he realised that he was about to achieve his first-ever win at a World Championship match. It was also the perfect moment to stage a comeback, according to star commentator Vishy Anand, whom himself has a wealth of experience in such similar contests.

“A win before the rest day, that’s the best feeling ever,” declared the Indian legend and five-time ex-champion. “I remember many matches when I won a game, and then you get to stop and take a day off, and for me that’s bliss. Equally the opposite, I’ve lost before a rest day, and that’s not much fun.”

After the nerve-wracking start, we now have ourselves a match! Games 5 and 6 (of the scheduled 14) will be played on Saturday and Sunday and can be followed live on all the usual top platforms and on the official FIDE World Chess Championship site.

Ian Nepomniachtchi | 2

½ 1 ½ 0

½ 0 ½ 1

Ding Liren | 2

GM Ding Liren - GM Ian Nepomniachtchi

FIDE World Chess Championship, (4)
English, Four Knights, Romanishin variation

1.c4 Nf6 2.Nc3 e5 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.e3 An innocuous little system that was popularised in the late 1970s and through the early 1980s by Ukraine's Oleg Romanishin, who in his youth was one of the most original Soviet junior players of his era. 4...Bb4 5.Qc2 Bxc3 6.bxc3 d6 7.e4 O-O 8.Be2 Nh5 9.d4 Nf4?! A flawed plan that soon backfires on Nepo - and a move he may well live to regret if he goes on to lose this match. The talking heads on the live commentary much preferred 9...Qf6, and soon backed this up with an engine-likely scenario with 10.g3 exd4 11.cxd4 Nxd4 12.Nxd4 Qxd4 13.Bb2 Qc5 14.e5! Only the engines show no fear in such positions, as they calmly find tactical solutions for both sides that sees the game peter out to a draw with 14...g6 15.Qd2 dxe5 16.Bxh5 Qc6! 17.O-O-O Qxc4+ 18.Bc3 gxh5 19.Qg5+ Kh8 20.Qf6+ and a repetition is on the cards. 10.Bxf4 exf4 11.O-O And herein lies a tale of the differences between Ding and Richard Rapport, his creative sidekick second. This game was following for 10 moves a previous game where Rapport let loose with Harry the H-pawn with 11.h4!? Wild play ensued, but by nature Ding is a more conservative player who prefers to keep the game more orthodox with his positional move. 11...Qf6 12.Rfe1 Re8 13.Bd3 The commentators thought Ding's shuffling around of his bishop was a little bizarre, but there is method in his madness! 13...Bg4 14.Nd2 Na5 A little baffling, as the knight is misplaced for now on the rim. For this move to make any sense, Black has to play b6 and c5 - but this takes too much time and allows Ding to go on the offensive.

15.c5 dxc5 16.e5 Qh6 17.d5 Rad8 18.c4 b6 19.h3 Bh5 20.Be4! A classy move from Ding, just maybe making Nepo hesitate over ...c6, with the intention being to play Qc3, Bf3 and Rad1 with control of the position due to the powerful pawn centre. 20...Re7 I said in the previous note to make Nepo hesitate over ...c6, and perhaps while not a bad move per se in a difficult position, more resilient was 20...c6 aiming for an almost Grünfeld-like position, although after 21.Qc3 Bg6 22.Rad1 Qh5 23.Nf3 Bxe4 24.Rxe4 Qf5 25.Ree1 cxd5 26.cxd5 h6 White still has that powerful pawn centre, but now it is not so mobile and menacing, and Black has a solid position to hold the tension. 21.Qc3 Rde8 22.Bf3 Nb7 23.Re2 f6 24.e6 Nd6 25.Rae1 Nf5 26.Bxh5 Qxh5 27.Re4 Qh6 28.Qf3 Nd4? A strategic blunder that ultimately decides the outcome of the game. The tension is building in the position, and Nepo has to live or die with 28...g5 29.g4 Nd6 30.R4e2 and fight the battle from here. White looks to have the easier game thanks to the powerful c4-e6 pawn chain, but Black is very solid here and it is not so easy to find a way to make a concrete breakthrough - and this may well have provided us with a very intriguing struggle. 29.Rxd4! This positional exchange sacrifice was just screaming to be played, and Ding doesn't disappoint! The end result is that Ding's knight, combined with the strong c4-e6 pawn chain, dominates the rook. 29...cxd4 30.Nb3! The most impressive and aesthetically pleasing thing about this game is how Ding jumps his knight into b3 before very creatively traversing his knight across the board towards Nepo's king. 30...g5 31.Nxd4 Qg6 ( see diagram ) 32.g4! Another very pleasing and silky move from Ding, as he seizes control of the all-important f5 outpost for his peripatetic knight. 32...fxg3 33.fxg3 h5 34.Nf5

It's complete domination now from Ding - and what a transformation in his play after his disastrous start in those first two games! 34...Rh7 35.Qe4 Kh8 36.e7 And with it, Nepo is in dire straits - and not in any good way with Mark Knopfler licking the riffs on lead guitar! 36...Qf7 37.d6! All the tactics soon crash through for Ding, which must have been a relief and a confidence booster for him. 37...cxd6 38.Nxd6 Qg8 Unfortunately for Black, it is not so simple to grab the e7-pawn. After 38...Qxe7 39.Nxe8 Qxe4 40.Rxe4 f5 41.Re5 and White is a piece to the better and those black pawns across the fifth rank will surely fall. 39.Nxe8 Qxe8 40.Qe6! Pure power-play now from Ding, as he swiftly moves in for the kill. 40...Kg7 There's simply no defence now. If 40...Rf7? 41.Qxf7! wins on the spot. 41.Rf1! It's all awkward now for Nepo, as Ding stretches his defences to breaking point. 41...Rh6 42.Rd1 f5 If not this, then Rd8 wins quickly - but it is all downhill now anyway. 43.Qe5+ Kf7 44.Qxf5+ Rf6 45.Qh7+ Ke6 46.Qg7 With the e7-pawn taboo due to Re1+, Ding will just go about his business of picking off all of Black's loose pawns. 46...Rg6 47.Qf8 1-0

And Nepo resigns, faced with the hopeless defence of 47...Rg8 48.Qf3! and with the e7-pawn still not able to be captured, Black's king wandering around in no man's land is going to get mated.

Worst Worlds

Wed, 12 Apr 2023 20:16:45 GMT

The World Chess Championship with Magnus Carlsen - still ranked World No.1 by a big margin - abdicating his title was a strange affair indeed. And now, as Ian Nepomniachtchi and Ding Liren slug it out for the vacant throne in their €2m ($2.2m) best-of-14-game World Chess Championship match in Astana, Kazakhstan, could see the coveted contest enter the annals as the strangest ever in its 140-year history after two weird opening games.

Things took a strange twist straight from the off in the first game with Nepo catching out Ding in the opening by resurrecting the DERLD, the Delayed Exchange of the Ruy Lopez Deferred (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 Be7 6.Bxc6) that was popularised in the early 1970s by two top Lewisham (London) club players, Tony Swift and Len Pickett, who also collaborated on a series of critically-acclaimed opening research pamphlets (and many magazine articles).

But visibly nervous and struggling to hold his game together (and eventually battling through for a hard-earned draw), for some strange reason the live FIDE coverage took on an almost surreal air of a Big Brother-like reality show intrusion by turning his restroom visits and habits into a sideshow distraction.

Ding was clearly overawed by the experience of playing in a title match; and clearly not in the right frame of mind, as he readily admitted in his first post-game presser. “In the first part of the game, before the middlegame, I didn’t think about chess so much. My mind was very strange — memories, feelings, strange things happened. I feel maybe there’s something wrong with my mind, maybe it was due to the pressure of the match.”

But despite the mind games and narrowly avoiding an opening game defeat, there was a general feeling that Game 2 was going to end in some sort of epic disaster for Ding, which is now being dubbed in some quarters as being “the worst game in the history of the world championship”, as China’s No.1 did indeed suffer a car-crash loss with the White pieces.

His opening surprise of 4.h3 definitely comes from the playbook of his second, Richard Rapport. The main objective was to take Nepo out of his well-honed preparation. But the Russian’s reaction - after a wry smile and some 10 minutes of thought on his clock - proved to be lethal, as he easily found the most aggressive way to demolish his opponent’s foolhardy experiment to strike first-blood and what could prove to be a psychologically-scarring early loss for Ding.

At least after those two early blows, a more confidant and relaxed Ding looks to have shrugged off the setback with a solid and drama-free draw in Game 3 by adopting a more conventional opening, and even going as far as saying in his post-game presser that he was now “beginning to feel more comfortable on the stage” after receiving support from his friends and fans.

Ian Nepomniachtchi | 2

½ 1 ½

½ 0 ½

Ding Liren | 1

GM Ding Liren - GM Ian Nepomniachtchi

World Chess Ch. 2023, (2)
Queen's Pawn game

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.h3?!? Far from ambushing Nepo, the only thing this bizarre move at this level achieved was to gain Ding 10 minutes of surprise-value time on his clock. But for the rest, that invaluable 10 minutes in the tank from Nepo was more than enough for him to drive a coach and horses through this unwise novelty. 4...dxc4 5.e3 c5 6.Bxc4 a6 Effectively, with Ding's early h3 experiment, Nepo has here a Queen's Gambit Accepted with the addition of a vital tempo! 7.O-O Nc6 8.Nc3 b5 9.Bd3 Bb7 10.a4 b4 11.Ne4 Na5 12.Nxf6+ gxf6! The correct recapture, as the open g-file gives Nepo the initiative with the ready-made kingside attack - and how ruthlessly he exploits this. 13.e4 c4 14.Bc2 Qc7 15.Bd2 Rg8 16.Rc1 O-O-O It was clear to see to all that Ding was never going to survive the coming kingside onslaught. 17.Bd3 Kb8 Just nudging the king out of the danger zone of the c-file. 18.Re1 The pain was firmly etched on Ding's face for all to see - he was in a whole world of hurt where even the obvious pin down the c-file with 18.Bxc4 backfires to 18...Nxc4 19.b3 Bxe4 20.Rxc4 Qb7 21.Bf4+ Bd6 22.Bxd6+ Rxd6 23.Kh2 Rc6! 24.Rxc6 Qxc6 25.Re1 Bxf3 26.Qxf3 Qxf3 27.gxf3 Rc8 leaving White struggling to defend a total wreck of a R+P endgame. 18...f5! Let the carnage begin, as Ding is quickly put out of his misery. 19.Bc2 Nc6 20.Bg5 ( see diagram ) 20...Rxg5! This exchange sacrifice was just screaming to be played, and the screams could even be heard coming from inside Ding's head! 21.Nxg5 Nxd4 Ding's wretched position now collapses like a veritable House of Cards. 22.Qh5 f6 23.Nf3 Nxc2 24.Rxc2 Bxe4 25.Rd2 Bd6 26.Kh1 Black's bishops baring down on White's kingside is the least of Ding's problems, as Nepo deftly switches his attentions to the queenside for the easiest of wins he'll ever experience at this level with the black pieces. 26...c3! 27.bxc3 bxc3 28.Rd4 c2 29.Qh6 e5 0-1 And with it, Ding heads for an early bath as the only square left for the rook is Rd2 that allows ...c1Q etc.

Zombieland

Mon, 10 Apr 2023 18:23:39 GMT

Coming back from the dead (the Losers Bracket), Champions Chess Tour commentator GM Robert Hess described Hikaru Nakamura's performance in the Chessable Masters to be “half man, half zombie” as he resoundingly beat Fabiano Caruana over two sets to claim victory in the Grand Final on Friday.

Earlier in the competition, Caruana defied the odds by consigning Nakamura to the Losers Bracket. But the speed maven-turned-influencer staged a remarkable comeback by first beating Magnus Carlsen, and then the perfect revenge over Caruana, by beating him in two sets in what proved to be a pulsating final that contained seven decisive games, no draws(!), and remarkably six Black wins.

All four games of the first set proved to be decisive, with the match dramatical going Nakamura's way 3-1 as he took the psychological edge with the only White win of the contest - and by bravely deploying a popular street-fighting gambit - that proved to be an ideal springboard to go on to also win the second set 2-1 to take home the title and $30,00 first prize plus gain 150 tour points.

Caruana receives $20,000 and 100 tour points for finishing second. Both finalists, as well as Carlsen, earn spots in Division I of the next CCT event in May for finishing in the top three.

En route to taking the title, Nakamura delighted the online fans by also bringing back from the dead the club player’s favourite of the Smith-Morra Gambit for the only White win of the contest! In the mid-1960s and early 70s, leading amateur Ken Smith from Dallas, a noted poker player, championed the cause of 1 e4 c5 2 d4 cxd4 3 c3!?, so much so that it soon became rechristened as the “Smith-Morra Gambit” - formerly known just as the Morra Gambit before - in books and magazines.

But he got no respect whatsoever at the top level with it. Smith lost three miserable games with it in his only major international tournament, San Antonio 1972, and when one of his opponents met 1 e4 with 1…e6, annotator Bent Larsen in the official tournament book gave the move a question mark and called it out as being a mistake because everyone knows against Smith that 1…c5 “wins a pawn.”

Though seldom seen anymore in top grandmaster praxis, nevertheless, the gambit is still alive and kicking, especially at club level, and reinforced even more so after the publication of IM Marc Esserman’s best-selling blockbuster Mayhem in the Morra (Quality Chess, 2012), which was subsequently turned into a Chessable video opening course of the same name.

GM Hikaru Nakamura - GM Fabiano Caruana

Chessable Masters Grand Final, (4.4)

Sicilian, Smith-Morra Gambit

1.e4 c5 2.d4!? With Nakamura needing only a draw to advance to a rematch, the Smith-Morra Gambit must have come as a big psychological shock for Caruana. 2...cxd4 3.c3 dxc3 Paradoxically, more usual at grandmaster level you can expect to see a bit of reverse psychology at play by declining the Smith-Morra Gambit with 3...Nf6 4.e5 Nd5 and a straight transposition into the more common c3 Sicilian. 4.Nxc3 e6 5.Nf3 a6 6.Bf4 The Smith-Morra proper set-up, as beloved by club players, would be 6.Bc4 followed by Qe2, 0-0 and Rd1 etc. But with 6.Bf4, Nakamura is looking for a little twist by avoiding some of the more usual defences against the gambit with 6.Bc4. 6...Nc6 7.Be2 d6 8.O-O Be7 9.Qb3 e5 As typical in the Smith-Morra, it is just not easy for Black to complete his development. After 9...Nf6 10.Rfd1 Qc7 11.Qa3 all but forces now 11...e5 but with wild complications, such as 12.Bg5!? d5 13.Bxf6!? Bxa3 14.Nxd5 Qa5 15.Bxg7 Bxb2 16.Rab1 Qxa2 17.Nf6+ Ke7 18.Nd5+ Ke8 19.Nf6+ and a draw. So early doors, Caruana has to be alert to such moments. 10.Be3 Nf6 11.Bb6 It's always a good rule of thumb in the Smith-Morra to chase and harass the Black queen! 11...Qd7 12.Rfd1 O-O 13.Rac1 h6 Looking to avoid any later Ng5 awkwardness - but it creates another awkwardness. 14.Nh4! Not just eyeing up the juicy f5 outpost, but also a possible Ng6 moment. 14...Qe8 An awkward move to have to make, but somehow Caruana has to complete his development. And by now, it is clear that Nakamura has more than enough compensation for his pawn. 15.Ng6 Be6 16.Bc4 fxg6 17.Bxe6+ Kh7 18.Nd5?! At first sight, the most tempting move to make, but in reality, it just helps to ease Black's position. Better was 18.Be3! Rb8 19.f3 looking to prepare Nd5. 1 8...Bd8 19.Nxf6+ Rxf6 Caruana has at least managed to unravel his position. 20.Bd5 Rb8?! Caruana missed the key move. After 20...Bxb6! 21.Qxb6 Rb8 White is in trouble with ...Nd4 looming large, that all but forces 22.Bxc6 bxc6 23.Qxc6 Qf7! and, suddenly, Black is on top, as White has to lose a pawn either on f2, b2 or a2. 21.Be3 Be7 22.Qa4 Rc8 23.Rc3! With the powerful bishop-pair, more mobile rooks and active queen, Namamura begins to take control of the position that sees Caruana lash out in frustration. 23...g5 24.Rdc1 g4 25.b4 More to the (full!) point was 25.Bxc6! bxc6 26.Rxc6 a5 27.Qc2! where, long-term, the ending looks really grim for Black. 25...Qg6 26.Bxc6 More logical looked 26.b5!? axb5 27.Qxb5 and it is not easy to see how Black avoids losing the b-pawn and then have to worry about the a-pawn storming up the board. 26...bxc6 27.Rxc6 Rcf8?! Perhaps understandable, given the match situation, with Carauana needing to win, but for the purists out there, safer was 27...Rxc6 28.Qxc6 d5! 29.Qxd5 Bxb4 30.Rc8 Qf7! that looks to be petering out to a draw. 28.Qc2 h5 The only logical follow-up, given the match situation - Caruana has to go 'all-in'. 29.Rxa6 h4 30.Ra7 Better was 30.Rc6 g3 31.hxg3 hxg3 32.fxg3 Qxg3 33.Rc3! and Black is in trouble with Qe2 and Rc8 coming. 30...R6f7 The rather obvious move was 30...g3! 31.Rxe7 gxf2+ 32.Kf1 h3 33.g3 Rf3 34.Qe2! where 34...Qxe4 is well met by 35.Rxg7+! Kh8 36.Rg5 R3f7 37.Rh5+ Kg8 38.Rg5+ Kh8 39.Rh5+ and a draw. But with the rook retreat, Caruana is just trying to keep the game alive rather than see it petering out to a draw. 31.Qe2 g3 32.f3 gxh2+ 33.Kh1 It was also "safe" to take with 33.Kxh2 as Black looks to have nothing better other than the forced sequence 33...Rxf3 34.gxf3 Qg3+ 35.Kh1 Qh3+ 36.Qh2 Qxf3+ 37.Qg2 Qxe3 38.Rg1 Bg5! 39.Rxg7+! Kxg7 40.Qxg5+ Qxg5 41.Rxg5+ Kh6 42.Rg2 Rf1+ 43.Rg1 Rf2 44.a4 Ra2 and a draw. 33...h3 34.Rcc7 Qe6?? Blundering the game away. Carauna had to accept the inevitable and 34...hxg2+ 35.Qxg2 Rxf3 36.Qxg6+ Kxg6 37.Rxe7 Rxe3 38.Rxg7+ Kf6 39.Rgd7 Rxe4 40.Rxd6+ Kg5 41.Rg7+ Kf5 42.b5 Rb4 43.Rd2 Rb1+ 44.Kxh2 where, once again, the game is petering out to a draw. But ending with a sore loss just gifts Nakamura a big psychological edge heading into the two-game second-set play-off for the title. 35.g3 Kh8 36.Kxh2 d5 ( see diagram ) 37.Rxe7! Caruana's position now crumbles. 37...Rxe7 38.Rxe7 Qxe7 39.Bc5 The rest is now academic, as a wily Nakamura liquidates down to an easily winning Q+P endgame. 39...Qf7 40.Bxf8 Qxf8 41.exd5 Qxb4 42.Qxe5 Qd2+ 43.Kxh3 Qd3 44.Qe8+1-0

And Caruana resigns with 45.Qe4+ trading queens.

The Last Waltz

Fri, 07 Apr 2023 15:12:56 GMT

Magnus Carlsen’s last event as World Champion ended in abject agony with a dramatic match-losing slip of his mouse, as old foe Hikaru Nakamura unceremoniously dumped the defending Champions Chess Tour champion out of the Chessable Masters on Thursday evening.

It was a tense and nervy Losers Bracket Final filled with slightly erratic play and two cagey draws, only to be punctuated by an epic blunder in the match-deciding Armageddon showdown, where, with only seconds left on the clocks, Carlsen gifted Nakamura first his queen and then the match in rapid succession.

In the end, the agony was etched all over Carlsen’s face with the realisation that his last move seen in a major tournament as the classical World Champion will be best remembered in the annals by “the worst possible mouse-slip,” according to lead commentator David Howell, as he blundered away his queen to his lifetime rival and now fellow influencer.

Playing from his home in Sunrise, Fl, a clearly upbeat and confident Nakamura was jubilant in victory: “You’re trying to defend, defend, defend, and he can’t win every match,” said Nakamura. “I know he’s the greatest player of all time, but he can’t win every match! Somebody can’t just get lucky every single time. It was just nice for a change to have something go my way.”

Fittingly though, Carlsen’s last waltz as classical World Champion saw his dance card ending with Nakamura, who now advances to the Grand Final of the latest leg of Chess.com's Champions Chess Tour event on Friday, where he will now face fellow American Fabiano Caruana, who is very much the in-form player and remains unbeaten.

It’s an intriguing all-American clash in the final, with the fans perhaps favouring Nakamura, but Caruana taking comfort by going into the Stars and Stripes showdown by having the psychological edge after outplaying Nakamura in the Chessable Masters Winners Final.

The Chessable Masters Grand Final will be broadcast live on Chess.com here. Commentary and analysis will be provided from the Champions Chess Tour studio in Oslo, with a panel of expert talking heads led by GM David Howell, FM James Canty III, GM Robert Hess and IM Tania Sachdev.

Fans can also follow the Grand Final on Chess.com ’s website and social media channels.

GM Fabiano Caruana - GM Hikaru Nakamura

Chessable Masters Winners Final, (1)
English Opening, Bremen

1.c4 Nf6 2.Nc3 e5 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.g3 Nd4!? A gambit line in the English Four Knights that first caught on at club-level back in 2003 after being highlighted in Neil McDonald's excellent Everyman opening primer, Starting Out: The English . But it doesn't promise much for either side, based on the fact that 5.Nxd4 exd4 6.Nd5 Nxd5 7.cxd5 and both sides will be stymied due to the symetrical position and quadruple d-pawns. But there is a sting in the tail. 5.Bg2 Accepting the gambit with 5.Nxe5 is a little dangerous, based on the fact that after 5...Qe7 6.f4 d6 7.Nd3 Bf5 Black gets good attacking chances in all lines, but it is not a forced win, especially with White's best defence being the unnatural-looking 8.Kf2 that our Engine Overlords nonchalantly observes this to be "0.00" decimal equality, so nothing to worry about! 5...Nxf3+ 6.Bxf3 Bb4 7.Qb3 a5 We just have a simple position now that's not top-heavy in theory - and this is perhaps the reason for this line taking off at club-level after being highlighted in Neil McDonald's aforementioned tome. 8.O-O Bc5

It's even-stevens with Nakamura having the influential dark-squared bishop down the long a7-g1 diagonal, and Caruana the influential light-squared bishop dominating the long h1-a8 diagonal. 9.d3 O-O 10.Bg2 d6 11.Qc2 h6 12.Na4 Ba7 13.Bd2 c6 14.c5

And with it, we now have an intriguing struggle in this all-American battle for a place in the Grand Final. 14...d5 The engine will opt for moves like 14...Re8 but ...d5 is the all-too human and more logical move to play here. 15.e4 Be6 16.h3 Bb8 17.Nb6 Ra6 18.b4

A little impatient perhaps, Caruana cuts straight to the chase of bursting open the queenside - but equally he could have slow-played it with 18.b3 Bc7 19.Na4 and carefully build-up the a3-b4 break. 18...axb4 19.Bxb4 Qe7 20.Rfb1 Rd8 21.a4 d4 22.a5 Ne8!

The knight re-routes its way to a good outpost on b5 via c7 to hold the queenside together - but Caruana reacts correctly by switching his attention to a kingside breakthrough. 23.Rf1! Nc7 24.f4 exf4 25.gxf4 f6 26.Rae1 Nb5 27.e5 You can sense Caruana's reasons for wanting to block the sphere of influence of Nakamura's potentially dangerous dark-squared bishop. 27...f5 28.Kh1 Bc7 29.Rb1 Kh8 Both players are playing a waiting game with each other to see who will make the decisive move. 30.Rb2 g5! And it turns out to be Nakamura who strikes first - and a brave move at that, as it opens all the lines up in front of his own king! 31.fxg5 hxg5 32.Qd1 Qh7 33.Qe1 Rg8

I would imagine Nakamura would have been licking his lips at how his plan is shaping up for a kingside assault - but it is a double-edge position where the slightest slip sees his strategy backfire on him. 34.Nc4 g4 35.Nd6 g3? Whatever was Nakamura thinking here, as this game-changer of a blunder just releases all the tension on the problematic h-file to Caruana's big advantage. The correct plan was 35...Bd8! keeping the tension down the h-file and looking to bring the bishop into the attack with ...Bh4. 36.Rf4 Bd8 37.Bd2 Bg5 38.Rf1 Qh6 ( see diagram ) Perhaps realising by now that he's busted, Nakamura goes for broke rather than seeing on the board 38...Bxd2 39.Qxd2 Qh4 40.Rf4 Qh6 41.Nxb5 cxb5 42.Rxd4! Qxd2 43.Rxd2 Rxa5 44.Bxb7! and White's central pawn mass will ultimately prove decisive. 39.Nxf5! One very accurate and brave move, and Nakamura's fate is sealed. 39...Qh7?? Nakamura is playing on-tilt now. But then again, there wasn't exactly any "joy" either to be had with 39...Bxd2 40.Rxd2 Qg5 41.Be4 Nc3 42.Rg2! with the kingside blockaded and Black's g3-pawn set to fall, and the game soon after. 40.Nd6 For the silicon purists out there, the clinical kill was 40.Bxg5! Rxg5 41.Nxg3 Ra8 (The h3-pawn is taboo thanks to the rook on b2 swinging over to h2!) 42.Rf6! Rag8 43.Rxe6 Rxg3 44.Qf1! and there's no answer to Qf6+. But Caruana opts instead to take the "safe route" to victory by opting not to open up lines to his own king. 40...Bxh3? As bad as it was, the only move was 40...Be7 41.Qe4! that all but forces the trade of queens. But Nakamura's last-gasp speculative try only works if White panics in the time-scramble - but Caruana (remarkably!) has it all figured out now. 41.Nf7+ Kg7 42.Nxg5 Bxg2+ 43.Kxg2 Qh2+ 44.Kf3 Fearing not a jot, Caruana voluntarily marches his king up the board to safety and victory. 44...g2 45.Rg1 Rf8+ 46.Kg4 It may well have been a different story if Nakamura's other rook and knight were more in the game and a bigger threat to the wandering king. 46...Nc7 When your busted, your busted. Despite Caruana's wayward wandering king, there's just nothing for Nakamura to save the game though it would have been nice to see on the board the remarkable 46...Rh8 47.e6! Raa8 48.e7! Rag8 where there's the very flambouyant 49.Kf5!! and Black can't stop Qe5+ easily winning.

47.Rxb7 Kh6 48.Rxc7 Rxa5 1-0

The Last Dance?

Tue, 04 Apr 2023 18:09:48 GMT

Ahead of next week’s World Championship Match between Ian Nepomniactchi and Ding Liren, the Chessable Masters, the second-leg of the new and lucrative $2m Champions Chess Tour kicked off on Monday and is seen by many to be Magnus Carlsen’s “Last Dance” - the term used for basketball superstar Michael Jordan’s final season and subsequent hit Netflix documentary of the same name.

But Carlsen’s final appearance while still holding the classical crown saw the Norwegian top seed and defending Tour champion stumble badly on the dance floor, as he suffered a big surprise defeat at the hands of the tricky young Russian - playing under the neutral FIDE flag - Vladislav Artemiev.

It was an “awful day of chess” bemoaned Carlsen after his shock defeat by Artemiev, with the tone being set by an uncharacteristic blunder in the opening game that ran through the match. All the games proved to be decisive, though Carlsen looked to be set for a straight defeat before Artiemev blundered badly in the final game to allow him back into the match.

With Carlsen hitting back to tie the match at 2-2 to take it to a playoff, the chatter among the pundits and talking heads was their utter disbelief at watching Carlsen lose both his games with the White pieces. But despite clawing his way back into the match, Carlsen throw it all away again by returning the blunder in the Armageddon that allowed Artemiev to snatch a sensational 3-2 victory.

But Artiemev doesn’t enter the annals as Carlsen's final partner on his dance card. There’s a second chance for Carlsen to return to the fray via the Losers bracket on Tuesday, where he now needs to beat Liem Le or find himself being dumped out of the tournament.

“This was a really, really awful day of chess,” commented a self-critical Carlsen in defeat. “I did everything to lose - and then some. Obviously, it takes a strong opponent to exploit that, but that was really poor so we’ll see. I will do my best tomorrow [against Le], but this is unacceptable.”

Day 2 of the Chessable Masters 2023 will be broadcast live on Chess.com. Commentary and analysis will be provided from the Champions Chess Tour studio in Oslo, Carlsen's home country, with a panel of expert talking heads led by GM David Howell, FM James Canty III, GM Robert Hess and IM Tania Sachdev.

Fans can also follow the tournament on Chess.com ’s website and social media channels.

GM Magnus Carlsen - GM Vladislav Artemiev

Chessable Masters Div 1 Winners, (1.1)

QGD Slav, Soultanbeieff variation

1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 dxc4 5.a4 e6 The Soultabbeieff variation, named not after a misconceived culinary dish but rather the Ukraine-born master Victor Ivanovich Soultanbeieff, who left his homeland for Belgium after the Bolshevik Revolution of 1920. He became a multi-time Belgium champion and left his name to this simplyfying line of the Slav after he championed it during a 1931-32 correspondence game with Aleksandras Macht.

6.e3 c5 This was more modern variation that revived the Soultanbeieff variation. It looks to liquidate the pawn centre and seek a multiple exchange of pieces to ease Black's game. 7 .Bxc4 cxd4 8.Nxd4 Bc5 9.O-O O-O 10.Qe2 Nbd7 11.Rd1 Qe7 12.Nf3 b6 13.e4 The correct and best move, as White must take the initiative in the centre, otherwise Black has easy equality. 13...Bb7 14.e5?! Typically for Carlsen, in trying to prevent Artemiev from playing the thematic ...Ng4-e5 Slav manouver, he pushes the envelope just a bit too far, and the ensuing complications and pawn sacrifice just plays into Black's hands. 14...Ng4 15.Bg5 f6!? This pawn sacrifice offers Artemiev excellent compensation as his pieces become very active. 16.exf6 Ndxf6 17.Qxe6+ ( The alternative was 17.Bxe6+ Kh8 18.Rd7 Bxf3! (The best move - it is not recommended, but if you want to take a Lou Reed-like walk on the wild side, then there is 18...Qxd7!? 19.Bxd7 Bxf2+ 20.Kh1 Nxd7 21.Qe6! Ngf6 22.b4! and suddenly Black has major problems with his dark-squared bishop being somewhat embarrassed for escape squares.) 19.gxf3 Bxf2+ 20.Kh1 Qc5 21.Bxg4 Qxg5 22.Qxf2 Nxd7 (Not 22...Nxg4?? 23.Qg2! and Black will soon find himself sans a piece.) 23.Bxd7 Rad8 24.Rd1 and while White has the material advantage, it is not so easy to make anything of it, due to Black's well-placed 'heavy furniture' of queen and two rooks. 17...Qxe6 18.Bxe6+ Kh8 19.Rd2 For Carlsen to try to take anything from this game, he had to try 19.Bxf6! Nxf6 20.Ng5 but after 20...Bxf2+! 21.Kxf2 Ne4+ 22.Kg1 Nxg5 the game is heading for a draw. But in trying to avoid such easy equalising lines, Carlsen only compromises his position. 1 9...Bxf3 20.gxf3 Ne5 All the tactics are working in Black's favour; plus with White's crippled kingside pawns, the extra pawn means nothing here. 21.Kg2 Rae8 22.Bf5 It all starts to go horribly wrong here for Carlsen - he had to accept that the position was now equal, and allow 22.Bxf6 Rxf6 23.Bd5 Ref8 24.Rad1 Rg6+ 25.Kf1(Slightly worse is 25.Kh1 Nxf3 26.Bxf3 Rxf3 27.Rd8+ Bf8 28.Ne4 h6 and White's king cut-off on h1 is going to be a handicap heading into the endgame.) 25...Rh6 26.Kg2 Rg6+ 27.Kf1 Rh6 28.Kg2 and a repetition. 22...Nh5 The immediate solution was 22...Nxf3! 23.Kxf3 Re5 24.Bxf6 Rxf5+ 25.Kg2 R5xf6 26.Ne4 Rg6+ 27.Kh1 Be7 and Black has slightly the better of it with the active rooks, bishop, and the White king again cut-off on h1. 23.Bg4 Nf6 24.Bh3? ( see diagram ) Carlsen is not so much pushing the envelope anymore, it's more like he's pushing a whole postie's sack full of mail now! He has the bishop-pair and an extra pawn, so tries to see what he can do with it - but the position is a tactical minefield and he's just stepped on mine. He had to accept the realities here and play 24.Re1 Nxf3! 25.Rxe8 Nxd2 26.Rxf8+ Bxf8 27.Bf5 Nb3 28.Bf4 with a position he can relentlessly grind away at. 24...Nxf3! The correct technical name for this move, I believe, is "Splat"! 25.Kxf3 Ne4+ 26.Kg4 It may well be that after Artemiev played 24...Nxf3, Carlsen suddenly realised he couldn't play 26.Kg2?? as Nxd2! 27.Bxd2 Rxf2+ 28.Kh1 Rxd2 is easily winning. 26...Nxd2 27.Bxd2 Rxf2

The reality of the situation is that Artemiev's pieces are so active while Carlsen's pieces are so awkwardly-placed. 28.Rd1 h5+?! The accurate move was 28...Bd6! 29.Bc1 Bxh2 30.Rd7 h6 and Black clearly has the better of it. 29.Kxh5 Rd8 30.Be1 Rxd1 31.Bxf2 Rd2 32.Bxc5?! A little hard to see admittedly, but the best move the engine soon finds was 32.Bg3! Bg1(Not 32...Rxb2? 33.Kg6! and suddenly White is in charge, with the game continuing something like 33...Rb4 34.Bd7 Rd4 35.Bf5 Rc4 36.Nb5! Be7 otherwise Be5 is crushing 37.Kf7 Bf6 38.Nxa7 Rxa4 39.Nb5 Ra2 40.Ke6 and White's active pieces offers the best winning chances.) 33.Bb8 Rxb2 34.Bg4 Bxh2 35.Bxa7 Rb4 36.Be2 Be5 37.Nd5 Rxa4 38.Bxb6 and the game will soon peter out to a draw. 32...bxc5 The two pawns on h2 and b2 dropping in quick succession soon proves to be Carlsen's downfall. 33.Be6 Rxh2+ 34.Kg6 Rxb2 35.Ne4? Carlsen might well have retained "some" drawing chances with the more accurate 35.Kf5 and Black still needs to put a shift in to win. 35...c4!

The fast-running c-pawn decides the game, as Carlsen can't take it and he can't not take it! 3 6.Bxc4 Rb4 37.Nd6 Rb6 0-1

Red-Hot in Iceland

Fri, 31 Mar 2023 17:43:54 GMT

Iceland is a chess-loving country forever steeped in the game’s history for hosting the fabled Bobby Fischer-Boris Spassky world championship match in 1972, and also for granting Fischer asylum late in life and where the iconic and troubled American legend died and is now buried.

The capital city, Reykjavik - strategically placed between the USA and the USSR - was, of course, the scene of that infamous 1972 Cold War battle between Fischer and Spassky, and each spring it now also holds arguably one of the most popular open tournaments in the world.

Not only do many come just to play in a very popular international open but also to pay homage to and soak up the world championship association, plus probably a pilgrimage visit - thanks to Atlas Obscura - of Fischer’s simple grave next to the Lutheran Church in Laugardælir, about 40 miles southeast of Reykjavík near the village of Selfoss.

This year’s Kvika Reykjavik Open , which runs from March 29 to April 4 at the striking all-glass new capital landmark of the Harpa concert hall , is the 37th edition since another legendary world champion - and Fischer friend - Mikhail Tal won the inaugural title in 1964. Back then, this formerly was a biennial event, but with the growth of chess in the Magnus Carlsen era, the tournament has become so popular it has made the much-welcomed transition to an annual event.

Among the 400-player field competing, there’s a 34-strong contingent of Grandmasters led by Ukraine legend Vasyl Ivanchuk - but the one who was turning things red-hot in the early rounds was England’s Simon Williams, aka the Ginger GM, with his simply breathtaking second round brilliancy that’s yet another early candidate to add to our growing list for the game of the year.

Photo: © Hallfríður Sigurðardóttir

GM Simon Williams - WIM Anastasiya Rakhmangulova

Kvika Reykjavik Open, (2)
QGD Slav Defence, Exchange variation

1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.cxd5 The Exchange Slav is not exactly the stuff of exciting chess, but then again, the Ginger GM is no ordinary GM! 3...cxd5 4.Nc3 Nf6 5.f3!?! The first warning sign that Williams has something a bit different in mind for his opponent other than just the normal, boring Exchange Slav! 5...e6 The 'automatic pilot' move - but more testing of White's 5.f3 move is 5...Qb6! as now 6.e4? runs right into 6...dxe4 7.fxe4 e5! 8.dxe5 Ng4 9.Nh3 Be6 10.Be2 h5 and Black is doing more than fine here with the better development and all the holes in White's creaking position .

6.e4 dxe4 7.fxe4 Nc6 Not bad per se, but more testing was 7...Bb4!? 8.Qd3 (Here 8.Bd3? doesn't work, as now it backfires to 8...Nxe4! 9.Bxe4 Bxc3+ 10.bxc3 Qh4+ 11.Kf1 Qxe4 and Black has both a material and positional advantage.)8...O-O 9.Nf3 b6 10.e5 Ba6 11.Qc2 Bxf1 12.exf6 Bc4 13.fxg7 Kxg7 and Black is doing well with the bishop-pair. 8.Nf3 Bb4 9.Bd3 Ba5 The urge to have the bishop on the b6-g1 diagonal is very tempting - but it wastes a little time, and that time is all Williams needs to get his own, stunning attack rolling. 10.e5 Nd5 11.O-O! What else did you expect? Williams has decided, as they would say in poker, to go 'all-in' now with his attack. 11...Nxc3 12.bxc3 Bxc3 13.Rb1 h6? The die was cast anyway for Black, but this only tempts Williams to be more creative with his attack. As bad as it was, Black had to accept the multiple pawn sacrifices on offer now with 13...Bxd4+ 14.Kh1 Bxe5 15.Nxe5 Nxe5 16.Bb5+ Bd7 17.Qe2 Nc6 18.Ba3 but with the king stuck in the middle of the board and all of White's pieces poised to strike, three-pawns somehow don't seem worth it! 14.Ba3 a5 Looking to play ...Bb4 to at least try to take away the influential power of the bishop down the a3-f8 diagonal - but there's a big, sacrificial sting in the tail with a brilliancy that Williams soon finds! 15.Qa4! Bd7 16.Rxb7! Nxd4 Is Williams concerned that his queen is under attack? 17.Nxd4!! Nope! Williams gives not a jot about his queen! Who needs them anyway? 17...Bxa4 [ see diagram ] 18.Nxe6! Qh4 Williams had seen that his bishop was taboo, as 18...Qxd3 allows the picturesque mate with 19.Re7#. 19.Rfxf7 Bb4 There was no salvation in the obvious 19...Qe1+ 20.Bf1 Qe3+ 21.Kh1 and there's still no answers to either of the rooks mating on e7. But with ...Bb4, Rakhmanguova hopes she can double cover the e7 square, only that leaves an even prettier finish from Williams. 20.Rf8+!! 1-0 Black resigns in view of 20...Rxf8 21.Bg6+ Rf7 22.Bxf7#.

Back Again?

Tue, 28 Mar 2023 01:25:26 GMT

Guess who’s back? No, it’s not rapper Eminem with a reprise of his hit 2002 song Without Me - it’s none other than the remarkably resilient and ever-resourceful Hikaru Nakamura, who after an eight-month hiatus from classical chess made a victorious return to the more exacting long-game fray by winning the 2023 American Cup held at Saint Louis Chess Club .

Nakamura faced elimination victor Wesley So in the Champions Final over the weekend, and after the latter won the second leg on demand to tie the match and give himself yet another lifeline in the double-elimination KO contest.

With the match finely poised, a very tense third leg ensued that somewhat unfortunately witnessed Nakamura profiting from an uncharacteristically bad blunder in the opening from his opponent in game four that ended their run of three tight draws, as he won the match, Cup and a maximum $60,000 first prize. Wesley took $35,000 for 2nd place.

It’s now turning into something of a long Indian summer comeback for Nakamura, who may well have thought that, at the age of 35, his best playing days were firmly behind him as he pursued a successful new career as one of the game’s most popular streamers . His big fear going into the tournament, he readily admitted, was losing 10 or 15 points in classical chess - but far from it, as he finished unbeaten and picked up two classical wins, allowing him to leapfrog on the live list Anish Giri into the World #5 spot, on 2775, and firmly back, back again as the US #1!

Meanwhile, despite suffering her first loss to 13-year-old rising star Alice Lee, age and guile ultimately prevailed over youth and innocence as Irina Krush went on to successfully defended her American Women’s Cup title, as the veteran picked up en passant a combined $30,000 for her efforts.

GM Hikaru Nakamura - GM Wesley So

American Cup Champions Final, (2.1)

English Four Knights

1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.Nf3 Nc6

The same leg of the Women's American Cup Champions final, between veteran Irina Krush and 13-year-old rising star Alice Lee also featured the same line of the English Four Knights - but with a more adventurous pawn sacrifice and a new twist in the Bellón Gambit with 3...e4 4.Ng5 c6!?

(When the then swashbuckling young Spanish GM Juan Bellón unleashed his wild gambit in 1978 (against Wolfgang Uhlmann, in Bucharest, Romania ) the main line ran 4...b5!? looking to meet 5.cxb5 with 5...d5 6.d3 h6 7.Nh3 and a very messy and murky position where White can't hold onto the extra material.)

5.Ngxe4 Nxe4 6.Nxe4 d5 7.cxd5 cxd5 8.Ng3 h5! the plan being to chase the knight to aid a speedy development of Black's pieces. Typical compensation for a pawn in such scenarios.

4.e4

A little like the 'Iron English' of the Botvinnik System, the only difference being that instead of Nge2, we have Nf3 - a number of lines can transpose back to the Botvinnik System proper, but Nakamura doesn't have this in mind.

4...Bb4 5.d3 d6 6.a3 Bc5 7.b4 Bb6 8.Na4 Bg4 9.Be2 Bxf3

So happily ceedes the bishop-pair for control over the all-important d4 square.

10.Bxf3 Nd4 11.Nxb6 axb6 12.O-O Qd7 13.Bb2 Nxf3+ 14.Qxf3 O-O 15.Qe2 Rfe8 16.f4

The first proper pawn break of the game - and So strikes back in the right way by generating his own counterplay on the queenside.

16...b5 17.c5 Qe6 18.Rac1 c6 19.cxd6 Nd7 20.Qf2 f6 21.d4!?

Enterprising play from Nakamura, as he looks to open the game up for his bishop to influence the game. But So is generally very good in such scenarios by looking to liquidate the potential dangers.

21...exf4 22.e5 fxe5 23.dxe5 Nxe5 24.Rce1

There was the option of 24.Bxe5 but that soon fizzles out to a draw after 24...Qxe5 25.d7 Red8 26.Qa2+ Qd5 27.Qxd5+ cxd528.Rc7 Kf7 29.Rxf4+ Ke6 30.Rxb7 Rxd7 31.Rxd7 Kxd7 32.Rf7+ Kd6 33.Rxg7 Rxa3 34.Rxh7 Rb3 35.h4 Rxb4 36.h5 Rf4

(More accurate than getting behind the passed pawn with 36...Rh4 37.g3! Rg4 38.Kf2 Rg8 39.h6 Rb8 40.Ra7 b4 41.h7 b342.Rb7 Rh8 43.Ke3 Kc6 44.Rxb3 Rxh7=)

37.h6 b4 38.Rh8 Kc7 39.Rh7+ Kb6 40.Rh8 Kc7 41.Rh7+ etc.

24...Qd5 25.Qe2?!

This looks and feels wrong from Hikaru. More testing was supporting that potentially powerful d-pawn with 25.Rd1 Nd3 26.Qd4!Nxb2 27.Qxb2 Qe6 the position is equal, the engines ain't budging over "0.00", but after the forced sequence 28.d7 Red829.Qd4 Rxa3 30.Qxf4 Qe3+ 31.Qf2 Qxf2+ 32.Kxf2 Rc3 33.Rfe1 Kf7 it is still possible for it to all go wrong for Black where a simple mistake could turn the d7-pawn into a game-winner. Unlikely here, but mistakes can, and do, happen.

25...Nc4 26.Qxe8+!

Nakamura has never been one to back away from a challenge of changing the dynamics in a game - and this one at least keeps th eoptions open for any three results. Sort of dynamics and odds Nakamura likes.

26...Rxe8 27.Rxe8+ Kf7 28.Re7+ Kg6!

And to his credit, So finds the best continuation.

29.Rxg7+ Kh6 30.Ba1 Ne3?

( see diagram ) It looks the obvious strong move, but it is, in fact, almost a decisive mistake from So, as either he underestimated the strength of Nakamura's reply or, more likely than not, he simply didn't realise it was possible! The correct continuation was 30...Qxd6 that would have led to 31.Rf7 Kg5

(If 31...Ne3?? 32.Rf6+ easily wins material and the game.)

32.Rg7+ Kh6 33.Rf7 Kg5 34.Rg7+ and a draw.

31.h4!!

I'm absolutely convinced that Richard Curtis and Ben Elton, the scriptwriters for the historical sitcom Blackadder , had to have come up with the memorable finale quip of "As cunning as a fox who's just been appointed Professor of Cunning at Oxford University" for their titular anti-hero, only after playing through a number of Nakamura's games! Not for nothing is Nakamura rightly recognised as being one of the most cunning, resourceful and tricky players on the elite circuit, as this remarkable resource confirms.

31...Qd3

The point behind Nakamura's cunning plan was that 31...Nxf1?? 32.Rg5 Qf7 33.Bg7+ Qxg7 34.Rxg7 Kxg7 35.d7 wins with ease.

32.Rxf4 Qd1+ 33.Kf2 Qxa1 34.Rg5

More testing was 34.Re7! Qc1 35.Rxe3 Qd2+ 36.Kf3 Qd1+ 37.Re2 Qd3+ 38.Kf2 Qxd6 39.Rfe4 Kg7 Black at least has removed the problematic d-pawn, but in such positions with his king exposed, White will retain winning chances.

34...Nd5 35.d7 Qh8 36.Re4 Qf6+ 37.Kg1 Qd6 38.d8=Q Qxd8 39.Re6+ Nf6 40.Kh2?

Right idea, wrong execution from Hikaru, as the engine bar dramatically plummets! The containing king move was 40.Kf2! Qd4+41.Kg3 Qb2 42.Kf4 Qd4+ 43.Kg3 Qb2 44.Kf4

(White has run out of any possible winning plans. If 44.Rf5?? Qb3+! picks off the loose rook on e6.)

44...Qd4+ 45.Kg3 Qb2 and a draw by repetition will soon be agreed.

40...Qd4?

Perhaps surprised by the subtle differences in king moves, and probably working in his head that the draw was to be found with ...Qd4, So doesn't realise that he's been gifted a golden opportunity to win with 40...Qc7+! 41.g3

(There's no escape. If 41.Kh3 Qd7! 42.Re5 Qd3+ 43.Re3 Qf5+ 44.Kg3 Kg7 45.Re7+ Kg8 and Black wins)

41...Qf7! 42.Rge5 Kg7 43.Kg2

(Not 43.Re7? Ng4+ 44.Kh3 Nxe5 winning.)

43...Ng4! 44.Re2 Qf5 and the very active Black queen and knight will soon out-power the White rooks.

41.Kg3

We're now back in draw territory again.

41...b6

The game just fizzles out to a draw now - but to his credit, So finds an exciting way for the rarity (at this level anyway) of the game ending in stalemate.

42.Rxc6 Qe3+ 43.Kh2 Qf4+ 44.Kh3 Qf1 45.Re6 Qf2 46.Rc6 Qe3+ 47.Kh2 Qd4 48.Kg3 Qxh4+! 49.Kxh4 ½-½

Rook Dreams

Thu, 23 Mar 2023 16:07:09 GMT

The $300,000 American Cup , held at Saint Louis Chess Club , is the new US invitational knockout competition on the homefront that coincidently clashes with the March Madness of the NCAA basketball competition. And while one is famous for the Hoop Dreams -aspirations of college basketball players looking to turn professional, the other has turned into something of a dream comeback for a now veteran professional.

After an eight-month hiatus, Hikaru Nakamura’s return to the classical game has been nothing short of spectacular for the popular chess influencer and streamer more famous for being a speed maven, who says he’s in this “for a bit of fun”.

Without the need of having to endure any of the double eliminations, Nakamura has now cruised his way into the Champions Bracket final. And en route, not only did he have an epic tussle with Leinier Dominguez - that was capped by a brilliant rook sacrifice - he’s also jumped up the unofficial live world rankings to #5 as he once again re-establishes his standing as the top US player in the Top-10.

After beating Dominguez, Nakamura faced another epic battle, this time with Wesley So, which (after two draws in the classical and a win apiece in the rapid playoffs) went to the wire of the blitz playoffs before he prevailed 2-0 to secure his spot in Friday’s final. His opponent will be determined later today as Levon Aronian and So duke it out for redemption in the elimination final.

And Nakamura is not the only veteran turning on the style in the American Cup, as Irina Krush, after beating 13-year-old rising star Alice Lee, majestically made her way through to the $100,000 women’s Champions Bracket final. Like Nakamura, Krush also has the day off as Nazi Paikidze and Alice Lee return to the fray once again in the elimination bracket for a spot in the finals.

There's live coverage of all the cup action heading into the Champions Bracket Finals, and free to watch with commentary by GMs Yasser Seirawan, Cristian Chirila, IM Jovanka Huska, and others.

GM Leinier Dominguez - GM Hikaru Nakamura

American Cup, (2.2)

Sicilian Kalashnikov

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 e5 5.Nb5 d6 6.N1c3 The Maróczy Bind approach with 6.c4 is the more positional option here. 6...a6 7.Na3 Be6 Nakamura does what Nakamura does best of all by being a law only unto himself as he opts for a risky line to play for a win with Black. The more standard Evgeny Sveshnikov little wrinkle here is 7...Be7 to avoid all the heavy theory in his eponymous pet line that came from Bg5. Magnus Carlsen liked this move also, as it kept his opponents thinking whether they would get the Sicilian Sveshnikov or the Kalashnikov. 8.Nc4 Rb8

According to more knowledgeable pundits than this one, this strange little rook move is a speciality of the young Iranian GM Parham Maghsoodloo. 9.Nd5 Bxd5 10.exd5 Nce7 11.g3 The brave punt from Mr Engine here is 11.g4 - but this is not the sort of uncharted territory you would want to go exploring blind during a big matchplay scenario. So, a big psychological pull to Nakamura for playing this risky line. 11...b5 12.Ne3 g6 13.a4 Nf6 We're largely in uncharted territory here, but the general consensus was that the immediate 13...Bh6! was more accurate. 14.axb5

Many pundits were punting for 14.c4!? here - but this, to my eyes, looks the more natural continuation. 14...axb5 15.Bg2 Bh6 16.O-O O-O 17.Qd3 Nd7 With the plan of ...Nc5 and the kingside attack rolling with ...f5 - Nakamura had to be pleased with the way this game was now going. 18.Bd2 Nc5 19.Qe2 Qc7 There are pros and cons over the better option with 19...b4 that secures the c5 square for the knight, but also at the same time gifting White an equally good knight outpost on c4. 20.b4 Kicking the knight was indeed the natural move, but the more interesting option was 20.Bb4!? intending the follow-up of Ra5 hitting the b5-pawn and threatening to double rooks on the a-file.

20...Nd7 21.Ra5 Bxe3! A brave call from Nakamura - and not the sort of move most players would necessarily make - but he obviously sees great potential for his knights to jump into the game and cause maximum mayhem for Dominguez. 22.Bxe3 Nf5 The point of Nakamura's timely trade of his bishop for knight. 23.Ra7?! We now come to a crossroads in the game, as Nakamura said he fully expected here 23.Rxb5 Nxe3 24.fxe3 Nb6 with good compensation for the pawn - the compensation being that White's bishop is locked out of the game as he'll soon be getting in ...f7-f5 and then ...e4, then ...Nc4 where white is left with several weak pawns to defend. 23...Rb7 24.Rxb7 Qxb7 25.Bd2 Ra8 26.Qd3 Ra2 27.Rd1 Nf6 28.Bg5 Kg7 29.Bh3 We find ourselves in an interesting struggle with the knights vs bishops - but from my experience of watching Nakamura over the years since he was a kid, he's a very dangerous and tricky player when he has knights on the board. 29...Nd4! The start of a typically imaginative Nakamura knights dance! 30.c3 Nc2 31.Qf3?! Dominguez either loses the thread of the game at this point, or else he was somewhat too optimistic over his chances to win by having the bishop-pair. It was time for 31.Rd2! Ra1+ 32.Rd1 Ra2 (Either way, life is going out of the game, as demonstrated with the alternative of 32...Rxd1+ 33.Qxd1 Na3 34.Bxf6+ Kxf6 35.Bf1 h6 36.Qb3 Qa6 etc.) 33.Rd2 Ra1+ and a draw by repetition. 31...Ng8! And now Nakamura's other knight gets to take an imaginative dance - but just watch where it re-emerges! 32.Bf1 Ra3 Nakamura puts great faith in his ability to calculate complicated tactics. The safer option was 32...Na3 33.Bc1 Qa8 34.h4 Qa4 and Black clearly has better prospects. But then again, perhaps this was just too simple an option for Nakamura and his dancing knights. 33.Bc1 Dominguez begins to let his position drift again - the engine and commentators concurred that after 33.Qd3! Nxb4 34.Qb1 Na6 35.Qb2 Ra4 (Unfortunately for Black, he can't defend the b-pawn with 35...Ra5 due to 36.Bd8!) 36.Qxb5 Qxb5 37.Bxb5 Ra2 38.Be3 Nf6 39.f3 Nc7 40.Bc6 and I can't see any side wanting to push for more than a draw here. 33...Rb3 34.Qe4? Dominguez's position just aimlessly drifts now following a couple of bad moves. Instead, after 34.Qd3! Na3 35.Qd2 Qa7 36.Kg2 f5 Black has a slightly easier position to play, but nothing much to write home about with no breakthroughs possible. 34...Rxc3 35.Bb2 Nf6 36.Qh4? Dominguez continues to worship at the altar of the "drift gods". His last try to save the game was with 36.Qe2 Rc8 37.Rd2 Nxb4 38.f4! and Black has to tread carefully attempting to convert for a win. 36...Rb3 It is not so obvious, but the killer move for Nakamura was 36...Rf3! 37.Bc1(Perhaps in the heat of battle, in his calculations, Nakamura failed to spot that 37.Bg2? was losing on the spot to the stunning rook sacrifice 37...Rxf2!! 38.Kxf2 Qa7+ 39.Ke2 Qa2 and a crushing attack with the White king caught wandering aimlessly in no man's land.) 37...h5 38.Be2 Rf5 39.h3 Nd4 with a winning attack. 37.Bc1 Ng8! It's that ...Ng8 move again - but this time for Nakamura it offers safety for his king while White's position is on the edge of collapse. 38.Qd8 Qe7 Correctly working out that trading queens would lead to a won ending with White having weak pawns on b4 and d5. 39.Qa5?! Dominguez is drinking in the Last Hope saloon! The last try to avert a stunning collapse was 39.Bg5 Qxd8 40.Bxd8 Kf8 41.Bxb5 Nxb4 and see where the chips fall holding the endgame. 39...Nd4 40.Be3 Nf3+ 41.Kg2 Qf6 42.Be2 e4 43.Qxb5?? Dominguez doesn't sense the danger, but his position is primed for a spectacular collapse. 43...Qb2? The only bad move from Nakamura in this entertaining struggle. It is hard to be critical, though, as perhaps it wasn't so easy to see here for Nakamura, but the engine quickly finds 43...Rxe3!! 44.fxe3 Nh6! This is arguably what makes it not so easy to spot, being that after the rook sac, the killer blow comes from a knight on g8! 45.Qa4 (No better was 45.h3 Nf5 46.Qa6 Qg5 and the Black queen and knights combine with lethal effect to force mate.) 45...Ng4 46.Kh1 Qf5 (setting up a mate-in-four with ...Nf2+ and ...Qh3+.) 47.Qa1+ f6 48.Rf1 Ngxh2 crashes through to win. But Nakamura doesn't need to be asked twice to sacrifice his rook! 44.Qa6 Nf6 45.h3 h5 46.Kf1 Qe5 47.Kg2 [see diagram] 47...Rxe3!! This time, in fairness to Nakamura, the rook sacrifice is easier to see through to the mate. 48.fxe3 h4! The end to an intriguing struggle between these two players comes swiftly now. 49.gxh4 Qh2+ 0-1 And Dominguez resigns with 50...Qg1 mate to follow!

March Madness

Mon, 20 Mar 2023 18:28:48 GMT

Upsets have always been a defining element surrounding March Madness and this year has proved no different. The 2023 NCAA basketball tournament had barely tipped off when No 13 seed Furman, the smallest school in the field and making their first appearance in 43 years, sent fourth-seeded Virginia packing out of the competition.

By the end of opening weekend, half of the four No 1 seeds were already out - and the really big shock came with Fairleigh Dickinson stunning Purdue to set an all-time upset for the little guy.

Conversely, in the American Cup , the new $300,000 all-American invitational knockout chess tournament - that was timed to coincide with all the hoopla hype that surrounds the marquee NCAA contest - devised by the Saint Louis Chess Club - there were no similar shock feats of giant-killing heroics from the little guy, with all the top seeds winning their matches - the only minor element of upset seeing Levon Aronian losing out in his mid-bracket match-up with Leinier Dominguez, and the former now having to rely on the second chance ‘elimination bracket’ to stay in the contest.

All eyes, though, were on Hikaru Nakamura's return to classical chess after an eight-month hiatus, and he didn’t disappoint with fast-start to the American Cup and a decisive 1.5-0.5 win over Sam Sevian - more than enough to nudge the chess influencer and streamer up to world #5 on the unofficial live rating list , as he leapfrogs in the process Anish Giri, the Tata Steel Masters victor

Also marching through on tiebreaks to join Nakamura in the ‘championship bracket’ was Fabiano Caruana (over Ray Robson), Wesley So (over Sam Shankland) and Dominguez (over Aronian). All four American Women’s Cup matches were decided in classical chess, including 13-year-old Alice Lee beating Atousa Pourkashiyan 2-0.

And as Nakamura impressed the most, the smoothest win came from defending champion Caruana who, despite the intense pressures, turned in a classic Catalan as he emphatically beat Robson in the rapid tiebreaker.

There's live coverage of all the cup action, and free to watch with commentary by GMs Yasser Seirawan, Cristian Chirila, IM Jovanka Huska, and others.

GM Fabiano Caruana - GM Ray Robson

American Cup, (1.4)

Catalan Closed

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.Bg2 Bb4+ 5.Nd2 A bit more in the spirit of the Catalan than 5.Bd2 more usually seen here. 5...O-O 6.Nf3 dxc4 Robson is a player who likes to push the envelope whenever he can with aggressive play. 7.Qc2 In the first game of this match, Caruana got nothing out of the opening from 7.0-0 c5, but when it matters the most, he risks all by coming up with a well-prepared new continuation for this decisive encounter. 8.0-0 Rare, very rare - more usual here is 8.dxc5 that Robson has seen a few times previously, and dealt easily with. But Caruana’s bold gamble pays off handsomely for the defending champion, as it catches Robson off-guard. 8…cxd4 9.Nxc4

Black is only ever temporarily a pawn up in the Catalan, as he can never hold on to the d-pawn with the mounting pressure down the d-file after Rd1. 9…Nc6?! This is where Robson started to lose the plot - an interesting and clever try is 9…d3!?. 10.Rd1 Qe7? Robson opts to quickly return the pawn by 'getting on with' developing his pieces. A better try was 10...Bc5 11.a3 Bb6 12.Bf4 with a lot of central pressures with Rac1 and Qd3 coming to collect the d-pawn. 11.a3 Bd6 12.Nxd4 Nxd4 13.Rxd4 Bc7 14.Rd1 Rb8? This is just wrong and Caruana soon capitalises on Robson's series of miscues - better was sacrificing the b-pawn with 14...Bd7 15.Bxb7 Rab8 16.Bf3 Rfc8 which at least offers Black good compensation for the pawn. 15.Bd2! Suddenly Robson is in a whole world of hurt, as he realises that the threat of Bb4 now sees his uncomfortable position becoming, well, er, distinctly more uncomfortable! 15...Rd8 16.Bb4 Qe8 Worse was 16...Rxd1+ 17.Rxd1 Qe8 18.Nd6 Bxd6 19.Bxd6 Ra8 20.Bc7 Nd7 21.Ba5 and Black is quickly running out of sensible moves that don’t lose outright. 17.Nd6 Bxd6 18.Bxd6 Ra8 19.Bc7! Again, Robson has to go through uncomfortable contortions in an effort to try to stay in the game. 19...Rd7 20.Rxd7 Nxd7 21.Rd1 a5 22.Qb3 Something is going to have to give soon in Black's position, and Robson's hope is that it is only a pawn - but Caruana has other ideas! 22...h6 23.Qb5! Ruthlessly, Caruana ups the ante by heaping more pressure on Robson's pitiful position. 23...a4 24.Rd4 With Black's position all but paralysed, a much stronger option was to be found in 24.e4! b6 25.Qc6 Ra5 26.Bf4 Rc5 27.Qxa4 Ra5 28.Qb4 e5 29.Be3 with b6 also falling, and with it Black's position. 24...Qe7?? All tied up like a sadomasochist relishing the pleasure in all the pain, Robson either blunders big-time here or he realises that the jig is up anyway - but there was no fun at all to be had even by finding the 'right' move of 24...Ra7 25.Be4! g6 26.Bc2 e5 27.Rxa4 and once again, as the a-pawn falls, so does Black's position with it. 25.Bxb7 e5 [see diagram] 26.Bxe5! For some reason, the multi-Oscar-winning Everything Everywhere All at Once comes to mind here! 26...Ra7 27.Bxc8 Nxe5 28.Re4 f6 29.Rxa4 All roads lead to Rome here, but the quickest way to get there was with 29.f4! Qd8 30.fxe5 Qxc8 31.exf6 and Black's king can't survive the coming carnage. 29...Rc7 30.Bf5 g6 31.Ra8+ It is academic anyway being three pawns up, but nevertheless, Caruana finds a stylish way to win. 31...Kh7 32.Qb8! Qg7 33.Be6 h5 34.b4 f5 35.b5 h4 36.gxh4 Kh6 37.Qh8+ Qxh8 38.Rxh8+ Kg7 39.Rc8 Rb7 40.a4 Kf6 41.Bd5 Rd7 42.Rc5 Ke7 Robson is merely 'going through the motions' of making moves here, waiting for Caruana to come in for the kill. 43.b6 Kd6 44.Rb5 Rh7 45.a5 Nd7 46.Bf3 Nb8 47.Rd5+ Ke7 48.Rd4 Rh8 49.Kg2 Ke6 50.e3 Ke5 51.Bb7 f4 52.a6 fxe3 53.fxe3 Nxa6 54.Bxa6 1-0

Cup Fever

Fri, 17 Mar 2023 19:29:56 GMT

Back in the middle of the 19th century, international sporting events started to get organised. In 1851, the world’s first international chess tournament was held in London, and that year also heralded in the yachting world's America’s Cup, which is now recognised to be the oldest trophy in international sport.

The newest cup competition comes in chess and has a similar sounding name: the American Cup , one of the latest innovations from the always-creative Saint Louis Chess Club , which made an exciting debut on the chess scene last year and saw Fabiano Caruana re-finding his form to clinch the inaugural title.

And cup fever returns once again in St. Louis with the second edition of the American Cup, with the $200,000 double-elimination knockout competition set to kick off today and will run through 17-26 March. The novel format has two brackets composed of eight players each. The field competes against each other in knockout style. The double-elimination format ensures a second shot at the top for any player who loses a match.

Caruana is back to defend his title, though he’s likely to face some serious competition from elite rivals Hikaru Nakamura, Wesley So, and Levon Aronian. There is also a women’s American Cup with a $100,000 prize fund. The full bracket opening round draw:

The full bracket opening round draw:

Hikaru Nakamura v Sam Sevian

Wesley So v Sam Shankland

Fabiano Caruana v Ray Robson

Levon Aronian v Leinier Dominguez

The full women's bracket opening round draw:

Irina Krush v Tatev Abrahamyan

Alice Lee v Atousa Porkashiyan

Anna Zatonskih v Nazi Paikidze

Gulrukhbegim Tokhirjonova v Katerina Nemcova

There's live coverage of all the cup action and free to watch with commentary by GMs Yasser Seirawan, Cristian Chirila and IM Jovanka Houska and others.

The key game for Caruana going on to lift the cup last year proved to be a dramatic table-turner over Aronian in the final, as the latter rehabilitated one of his old favourites against the English Opening that was first played over half a century ago by its original creator, Viktor Korchnoi.

GM Fabiano Caruana - GM Levon Aronian

2022 American Cup Final, (4)

English Opening, Four Knights

1.c4 Nf6 2.Nc3 e5 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.g3 Nd4!? A relatively rare sideline that is an old favourite of Aronian based on an original 1972 idea from Korchno i . It doesn’t promise much for either side, based on 5.Nxd4 exd4 6.Nd5 Nxd5 7.cxd5 Bc5 and both sides will be stymied due to the symmetrical position and quadruple d-pawns. 5.Bg2 Nxf3+ 6.Bxf3 Bc5 7.d3 0-0 8.0-0 a5!?N A novelty from Aronian, and clearly better than 8…h6 that’s normally played here. 9.Bg2 c6 10.Bd2 d6 11.a3 Be6 12.Qc2 h6 13.Na4 The more natural, English Opening-type move was 13.Rab1 and looking to expand on the queenside with b4. What Caruana played, just offered Aronian a little added edge in the position with his better bishop-pair. 13...Ba7 14.c5 This was Caruana's plan, looking to remove the potential of Aronian's bishop-pair. 14...dxc5 15.Nxc5 Bxc5 16.Qxc5 Bd5 17.f3 A provocative call from Caruana, who is looking to complicate matters rather than the simple solution of 17.Bxd5 Qxd5 18.Qxd5 Nxd5 (It's bad to recapture with the pawn, as 18...cxd5?! 19.Rfc1! and with Rc7 looming, White's rooks and bishop become very active and can easily harass Black's pawns.) 19.Rfc1 Rfd8 20.Rc5 a4 21.Rac1 f6 and it is difficult for either side to make any progress with a lack of pawn breaks. 17...a4 18.e4 Nd7 Black just stands slightly better due to White's backward d-pawn. 19.Qe3 Bb3 20.f4 Caruana continues to push the envelope, as most here would probably have resolved the problem with the backward d-pawn with 20.d4 exd4 21.Qxd4 Ne5 22.Qxd8 Rfxd8 23.Bc3 Nc4 24.Rfe1 and following up with Rac1, Bf1 and Kf2 and equality. 20...Qb6 This looked like the key moment in the game where Aronian let his position drift a little to give Caruana hopes of winning. Better looked like the big clamp on the backward d-pawn with 20...c5!? 21.fxe5 (Worse was 21.Bc3?! Qe7 22.Bh3 Rfd8 23.Bxd7 Rxd7! 24.Bxe5 Rad8 25.Rac1 f6 26.Bc3 Rxd3 and Black is in command with the domination of the d-file and also ready to expand his queenside pawn majority with ...b5.) 21...Nxe5 22.Bc3 (Not 22.Qxc5? Nxd3 23.Qe3 Nxb2 and Black has a winning position.) 22...Qe7 23.d4 cxd4 24.Qxd4 Rfe8 and with ...Rad8 coming, Black has the better position with the centralised roo ks. 21.Qxb6 Nxb6 22.Rac1 Rfd8 23.Rf3 Suddenly with the bishop-pair, Caruana's gamble looks to be paying off for him as his position begins to spring to life. 23...Nd7 24.Bh3! Be6 That's quite a concession that Aronian has to make, as within a few moves his position starts to deteriorate. 25.Bxe6 fxe6 26.Kf2 c5 It's too late now to clamp down on the backward d-pawn, as White's pieces are all now active. 27.Ke2 b6 28.Bc3 Rac8 29.Rff1 Caruana could grab a pawn with 29.Bxe5 Nxe5 30.fxe5 but after 30...Rd4! the fear would have been he would have been tied down to defending the backward d-pawn and not enough to convert the win. 29...Rf8 30.Ke3 Rc7? Aronian seems to have lost the plot and ultimately the game! After 30...exf4+ 31.gxf4 Nf6 32.Rg1 Kf7! White stands better but there's not much to bite on for looking to convert for a win. 31.fxe5 Rxf1 32.Rxf1 Nb8 33.d4! Perhaps it was just as simple as Aronian missing this possibility that opens the endgame up to Caruana's advantage? 33...cxd4+ 34.Bxd4 Rc2 If 34...Nc6 35.Rc1! b5 36.Rc5 Kf7 37.Bc3 and the b-pawn falls, and with it the game. 35.Rd1 Nc6 [ see diagram ] 36.Bc3! The h-pawn is meaningless, as White's rook comes to d6 and is set to hoover up Black's weak pawns on e6, b6 and a4. 36...Rxh2 37.Rd6 Na5 38.Kf3 Stronger and more accurate was 38.Rd4! and the a- and b-pawns will quickly fall. 38...Kf7 No better was 38...Nc4 39.Rxe6 Rc2 40.Re7! Nxb2 41.Bd4 Kf8 42.Rb7 Nd3 43.e6 and Black has to worry about mating threats and the possibility of the e-pawn queening. 39.Rxb6 Nc4 40.Rb7+ Ke8 Either way, Aronian is a dead man walking now. If 40...Kf8 41.Rb4 Nd2+ 42.Ke3 Nf1+ 43.Kd3 Nxg3 44.Rxa4 Ne2 45.Bb4+ Ke8 46.Ra8+ Kd7 47.Ra7+ Kc6 48.Kc4! Rh4 49.Ra6+ Kd7 50.Rd6+ Kc7 51.Rxe6 and White will quickly clear up after 51...Rxe4+ 52.Kd5! Rd4+ 53.Kc5 Rd1 54.Re7+ etc. 41.Rxg7 Nxb2 42.Bb4 Kd8 43.Re7 When the e6-pawn falls, Aronian's resignation will not be far behind it. 43...Nc4 44.Rxe6 h5 45.Bd6 h4 46.Rg6 Rh3 There's no hope, as even the best continuation with 46...hxg3 47.Rg8+ Kd7 48.Rg7+ Ke8 49.Kxg3 Re2 50.Re7+ Kd8 51.Kf4! Rf2+ 52.Kg4 Rd2 53.Kf5! Nxd6+ 54.exd6 Rxd6 55.Ra7 and the ending of R+2 v R wins relatively comfortably. 47.Rg8+ Kd7 48.Rg7+ Ke8 49.Rc7 Rxg3+ 50.Kf4 Nxd6 51.exd6 Rxa3 52.Kf5! Aronian may have established material equality, but now there's no stopping White's mating threats with K, R with d- and e-pawns snaring the Black king. 52...Rg3 53.e5 1-0

Continental Drift

Wed, 15 Mar 2023 21:21:55 GMT

There’s an effective chess brain drain going on in Russia following the geopolitical fallout after the Ukraine invasion and the ongoing war in the country. Many top grandmasters have left Mother Russia by switching to new federations, the most high-profile being the former Women’s World Champion Alexandra Kosteniuk, who now officially represents Switzerland, having dual nationality from her first marriage.

And in a further embarrassing controversy that was instantly decried by the European Chess Union (ECU) to be a “shameful day” for the game, FIDE paved the way with the announcement of a series of pre-approved measures to enable the Chess Federation of Russia (CFR) to quickly change continents, thus able to evade sanctions with a historic switch to Asia.

The move comes following a year-long spat between the ECU and the CFR, with strong pressure from the Ukraine Chess Federation and many other European federations to sanction and suspend the Russian federation and its Belarusian equivalent after the tanks rolled into Ukraine.

The decision comes with far-reaching consequences for Russian players who will no longer be eligible to play in ECU events from 1 March. Russians who wish to compete in Europe after then will have to follow the exodus by having to take the difficult step of abandoning their home country and changing federation.

Before the switch came into force at the start of the month, it was confirmed that all Russian players, playing under a neutral Fide flag, would still be eligible to take part in their last European event, the 23rd European Individual Chess Championship , which was held in the old Serbian spa town of Vrnjacka Banja, and ran from 23 February through to 3 March.

Ironically, the key deciding game for the destination of the title proved to be the Round 9 clash between the young Russian, Alexey Sarana, and Ukraine veteran Anton Korobov.

That win was crucial for Sarana, 23, to not only go on to take the title on tiebreak - after he finished on 8½/11, alongside co-leaders Kirill Shevchenko and Daniel Dardha - but also he now enters the annals as the last Russian winner of the European continental title.

GM Alexey Sarana - GM Anton Korobov

23rd European Indie. Championship, (9

Bogo-Indian Defence

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 Bb4+ The Bogo-Indian, was named after the Russian-born German master Efim Bogoljubow , who was an early 20th-century title challenger. This solid option to 3.Nf3 became popular in the 1980s as the venerable Queen's Indian suffered a double reputational setback, first with the dangerous Polugaevsky Gambit in the Fianchetto Variation, and then the Kasparov-Petrosian Variation. 4.Bd2 c5 5.Bxb4 cxb4 6.e3 b6 7.Bd3 Bb7 8.Nbd2 O-O 9.O-O a5 10.Re1 d6 11.e4 White has a big space advantage due to his central paw n mass. 11...Nc6 12.Nf1 e5 13.Bc2 Rc8 14.Rc1 g6 15.Ba4 Qe7 16.Ne3 Nxd4 17.Nxd4 exd4 18.Qxd4 Nxe4 It was either this or seeing White consolidate with f3 and then relentlessly prey on the weak d6- pawn. 19.Ng4 Qg5 20.Bd7 Rc5 21.Rcd1 h5 22.Rxe4! hxg4 Losing quickly was 22...Bxe4?? 23.Nf6+ Kh8 24.Nxe4+ Qe5 25.Nxc5 and Black can resign being both a piece and the position down. 23.Rxg4 Qe5 24.Qxd6 Qxd6? The turning point in the game, and Korobov picks the wrong way to go about trying to save the ending, as all he achieves is to better activate Sarana's pieces - and it all goes quickly downhill from here for Korobov. His best try was to look to better activate his own pieces, and with that in mind, the engine soon finds 24...Bc8! that forces 25.Qxe5 Rxe5 26.Bxc8 Rxc8 27.Kf1 White has to stop ...Re2 at all costs. 27...b5! 28.Rd5 (Not 28.cxb5?! Rc2! 29.b6 Rb5 and Black's active rooks will save the game.)

28...Rxd5 29.cxd5 Kf8 30.Re4 Rc5 31.d6 Rd5 32.Ke2 Rxd6 33.Re5 Rc6 and a R+P ending that has excellent saving chances. 25.Rxd6 Rd8 26.Rgd4 Kf8 27.Bb5 Rxd6 28.Rxd6 Be4 29.Rxb6 Bd3 30.Rb8+ Ke7 31.b3 Bb1 32.Ba4 Re5

If only Black could capture on a2 he might have saving chances - but alas, the a2-pawn is strictly verboten. After 32...Bxa2? 33.Re8+ Kd6 34.Re1! Re5 35.Rd1+ Kc5 36.Kf1 and Black can't stop Rd1-a1 from picking up the trapped Black bishop. 33.f4 Re1+ 34.Kf2 Rc1 35.Re8+ A nice piece of technique now carries Sarana to vic tory. 35...Kd6 36.Re1 Rc2+ 37.Re2 Rc3 38.Rd2+ Kc5 39.Be8! f6 40.Rd5+ Kb6 41.Rd6+ Kc5 42.Rd5+ Kb6 43.Rd2 Kc5? Sans a couple of pawns, and with bishops of the same colour on the board, Black faces eventual defeat - but as hopeless as the situation is, a better fist of trying to hang on was to be found with 43...g5 44.fxg5 fxg5 45.g3 where, although White creates the outside passed h-pawn, a working shift still needs to be put in to convert for the full point. As it is, Korobov's move just makes White winning task a less onerous one. 44.h4! Putting the big kibosh on ...g5 - and with it, now Sarana easily converts for a crucial win en route to victory. 44...Be4 [ see diagram ] 45.f5! White was winning anyway, but this is a nice little endgame finesse. 45...gxf5 Worse was 45...Bxf5 46.h5! gxh5 47.Rd5+ winning the bishop and will pick off all of Black's kingside pawns for an easy win. 46.h5 The running h-pawn now wins the day. 46...a4 47.Bxa4 f4 48.Re2 Bxg2 A nice tactical try to save the game, but alas... 49.Bd7! Covering the crucial h3 square, preventing the Black rook from getting behind the dangerous h-pawn as it storms unhindered up the board.

49...Bf3 50.h6! "Finis", as they would say at the end of those sub-titled European mo vies! 50...Bxe2 51.h7 Rc2 52.h8=Q Bg4+ 53.Ke1 Rc1+ 54.Kd2 Rd1+ 55.Kc2 Rxd7 56.Qxf6 Material-wise, it might well look roughly equal - but Sarana's dominatrix queen will soon mop up more material. 56...Bd1+ 57.Kc11-0 Korobov resigns, facing the hopeless future of 57...f3 58.Qf8+ Kc6 59.Qc8+ Kd6 (or worse, 59...Rc7 60.Qe6+ Kb7 61.Kxd1 with a trivial win.)

60.Kxd1 etc.

The Caro Can

Mon, 13 Mar 2023 16:52:12 GMT

Much like the luxury motoring partnership formed during the Midland Hotel, Manchester meeting in 1904 between Charles Rolls and Sir Henry Royce , the Caro-Kann Defence derives its name from the collaboration of two nineteenth-century chess players, Horatio Caro and Marcus Kann, who joined forces for a meeting of minds in 1886 to study the embryonic new opening that now jointly bears their names.

Since then, many world champions and contenders have used this defence It also figured heavily in Soviet-era play as well—Anatoly Karpov, Garry Kasparov, Tigran Petrosian, Vasily Smyslov, and Boris Spassky having all deployed the Caro-Kann Defense - and was once perceived to be the bane in the early chess life of a young Bobby Fischer.

Nobody big nowadays is championing the Caro-Kann. We saw a lot more Caros when Karpov and Vishy Anand were in action and leading the way for defenders. If someone like Magnus Carlsen shifted to the Caro, it might well be back in vogue again with a popularity swing.

But it is also unfairly tagged as being not very exciting. Sure, the Caro-Kann offers good chances to equalise, but grandmasters want to have a defence that can offer them more winning chances. Also, club players often don’t think the Caro will be fun to play. But the Caro can both be fun to play and to play against!

One of my all-time favourite Caro encounters came in a highly entertaining swashbuckling battle between Fernando Braga and Jan Timman at Mar de Plata 1982 , where a mistake from both players was necessary for the mutual pyrotechnics and draw that led to it being somewhat cruelly dubbed as being "the 'Immortal Game' that ran out of gas".

In a recent column from only last week - Game of the Year? - we also witnessed the Caro involved in a game that’s already being hailed as an early candidate for the “Game of the Year” award. And that was soon followed by another phenomenal game, yet again involving the boring Caro(!), that’s also being hailed as a serious contender for one of the best games of 2023.

It was seen during last week’s final weekend of the Swedish first league “Elitserien”, as the two-time Swedish champion, Erik Blomqvidst, turned on the style against fellow GM Hans Tikkanen with a volley of spectacular sacrifices to win a crucial match-victory for his team.

Photo: Erik Blomqvist turns on the sacrificial style! | © Lars OA Hedlund

GM Erik Blomqvist - GM Hans Tikkanen

Swedish Elitserien, (7)

Caro-Kann Defence, Two Knights Variation

1.e4 c6 2.Nf3 d5 3.Nc3 The offbeat Two Knights variation was doggedly adopted by the young Bobby Fischer until the turn of 1960 - and this was how the Soviets targeted Fischer, with many of their stars playing the Caro-Kann, as they perceived this wasn't the sharpest option White had, and therefore instant opening equality against the troublesome young American. 3...Bg4 And this was the very line the Soviets used en masse against Fischer in the 1959 Candidates Tournament in Bled/Zagreb, as Petrosian, Keres and Smyslov scored an undefeated 3/5 with Black!

4.h3 Bxf3 5.Qxf3 Back in the day, Fischer's rationale for playing this line was that he felt it had to be good as he already has the "advantage" of the two bishops - but the Soviets showed the young American upstart that he still had much to learn, and there was more to chess than the bishop-p air. 5...e6 6.Be2 Bc5 7.O-O Nd7 8.exd5 exd5 9.Re1 Ne7 10.Na4 Bd6 Worse was 10...Bb6 11.Nxb6 axb6 12.d4 and White does have a big advantage with the bishop-pair. 11.d4 Qa5 12.Nc3 Nf8 13.Bh6! This thunderbolt had to have come like a psychological blow for Tikkanen. 13...Rg8?! Very risky - but your confidence can be shot after being hit early doors by a dramatic piece sacrifice. It's no comfort, but better, according to the engine, is 13...Ne6 14.Bxg7 Nxg7 15.Qf6 O-O-O 16.Qxg7 Ng6 and it is not all bad, where despite losing a pawn, Black does have mitigating compensation with the open g-file and the knight slipping effortlessly into the ideal f4 outpost. 14.Bd2 Qb6 15.Qd3 g6 It's a bit too early to run the king to safety with 15...O-O-O?! due to 16.b4! with a formidable attack brewing on the queenside .16.Na4 Qc7 17.Nc5 b6 18.Na6! This knight is far from being 'dim on the rim'! 18...Qd7 19.c4 Ne6 20.Bf3 O-O-O With Blomqvist set to blow the game open, Tikkanen probably felt he had no other option than this - but it falls right into the category of "castling into it". 21.Rac1 dxc4 22.Qxc4? The only miscue of the whole game from Blomqvist - the engine correctly calls the clean kill with 22.Rxc4! and Rec1 to follow, resulting in carnage down the c-file. 22...Nxd4! It's hard to know, but it could well be that Blomqvist had seen the spectacular queen sac, so dismissed the better 22.Rxc4 by allowing the tactic on d4 - but it does come with the risk of allowing Black saving chanc es. 23.Qxd4 Bh2+ 24.Kxh2 Qxd4 25.Rxe7 Qd6+ [ see diagram ] There are many who might well have thought they'd just blundered here, as Black picks off the loose rook on e7 - but there's a big shock coming! The alternative faired worse, with 25...Rd7? 26.Rxc6+ Kd8 27.Rxd7+ Kxd7 28.Rc7+ Ke6 29.Be3 Qxb2 30.Rxa7 Rd8 31.Rb7 Qe5+ (There is no defending b6. After 31...Rd6 32.Nc5+ Ke5 33.Ne4 Re6 34.Rxf7 leaves Black's king trapped in no man's land in the middle of the board, surrounded by White pieces.) 32.g3 Kf6 33.Bxb6 and a winning material and positional advantage. 26.Bf4!! Unbelievable stuff, as Blomqvidst not only ignores the hanging rook on e7, he now offers also his bishop with check AND his other rook on c1! 26...Qxe7 The momentary deflection of the queen from d6 is crucial for the win/mate - and hence 26...Qxf4+ 27.g3 Qd6 (If 27...Qxc1 28.Rc7#) 28.Rxa7 Rd7 What else is there? After 28...c5 there's no answer to 29.Rd1! Rge8 30.b4! f5 31.b5 h5 (If 31...f4 32.Bg4+ forces a mate-in-five!) 32.Bc6! leaves Black paralysed and waiting for the inevitable death-by-mate. 27.Rxc6+ Kd7 If 27...Kb7? 28.Nb8!! sets up the discovered-check mating threat with Rc1+ that forces 28...Rxb8 29.Re6+ Ka6 30.Be2+! Kb7 31.Rxe7+ easily winning. 28.Rc7+ Ke8?? Punch-drunk from the pummeling to his king, Tikkanen walks right into the haymaker rather than losing on points after 28...Ke6! 29.Rxe7+ Kxe7 30.Nb4 and the rooks are no match for White's very active three minor pieces - but converting that win involves actual work. 29.Bc6+ Rd7 If 29...Kf8 30.Bh6+ Rg7 and White will pick off first the rook and then come back for seconds with the queen to easily win. 30.Nb8! The knight on the rim swoops in to win! 30...Qb4 1-0 Tikkanen resigns before Blomqvist could play out the finale of his brilliancy with 31.Be5 Ke7 32.Rxd7+ Ke6 33.Bd5+! Kxe5 34.Nc6+

forking king and queen to go two pieces up.

All at Sea

Fri, 10 Mar 2023 21:59:09 GMT

The redoubtable Captain William Davies Evans (1790-1872) invented the internationally recognised system of tri-coloured lights that made sailing at night less dangerous. Over the chessboard, he also invented his eponymously-named gambit 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 that equally could have used a similar warning system for unsuspecting opponents!

Capt. Evans was born at Musland Farm, in the Parish of St. Dogwells, Wales, on January 27, 1790. He had an early fascination for both chess and the sea - and after serving in the Royal Navy, and rising to the rank of captain, he left the service in the 1820s to take command of a sailing packet that carried mail between Milford Haven and Waterford.

It was during one of his many regular crossings that Capt. Evans had his ‘eureka’ chess moment, with the brainwave at sea of a daring new move in the Giuoco Piano that led to the birth of his Evans Gambit that became his lasting legacy to the game he loved. The seafarer’s swashbuckling gambit soon took the romantic age of chess by storm also, being adopted by the game’s 19th-century elite stars, including McDonnell, Labourdonnais, Anderssen, Morphy, Chigorin and Steinitz, before it fell out of fashion.

It would all have been a nice story for the annals if this particular sea adventure ended at this point - but Capt. Evans and his gambit endured by making a sensational top-level comeback in the 20th century, plus he also went on to be historically memorialised in the 21st century for both his maritime and chess achievements.

Chess-wise, in 1995 Garry Kasparov relit the dying embers of the Evans Gambit by unleashing it against a very surprised Vishy Anand during the Tal Memorial in Riga. After being endorsed by Kasparov, the Evans Gambit momentarily came back into vogue once again - and still, just over 150 years after his death, his gambit still has not been refuted.

And in 2019, a blue plaque monument was unveiled by descendants of the Captain in recognition of his maritime and chess inventions and affixed to a stone located on Wolfscastle village green. The stone was provided by Paul Evans of Musland Farm, where Capt. Evans was born.

At the top level, with more and more tournaments, not to mention a plethora of additional online tournaments, and many younger players ‘databased & engined up’, it is not unsurprising that we occasionally see such ‘forgotten’ lines being unleashed like thunderbolts on unsuspecting and unprepared players. Such variations may not be completely sound but they can confine an unsure opponent to using up lots of clock time plus face prolonged and tedious defence.

Conversely, they can also demonstrate why computer engines can spot hitherto obscure hidden tactical points that can dramatically bust a game wide open — a case in point coming with this Evans Gambit rare outing during the recent Tata Steel Challengers at Wijk aan Zee.

Long live the memory of Capt. Evans and the spirit of the gambit that bears his name!

IM Thomas Beerdsen - GM Jergus Pechac

Tata Steel Challengers 2023, (3)
Evans Gambit, Tartakower Attack

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Capt. Evans' trademark calling card - and yet, 150 years after his death, his legacy lives on with his enterprising gambit that has never been refuted. 4...Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.d4 d6 7.Qb3 Qd7 8.O-O Bb6 9.Nbd2 Na5 10.Qc2 f6 All known to theory - and other solid options here are 10...Nxc4 11.Nxc4 Qc6

or even 10...Ne7 11.dxe5 O-O!?. 11.a4 Ne7 12.Ba2 Nec6 13.Ba3 exd4 14.cxd4 Nxd4? This is the wrong way to go about it, as Black's king is left stranded in the middle of the board - and that's never a good idea in the Evans Gambit! The best was 14...Bxd4! 15.Nxd4 Nxd4 16.Qd3 c5 with an unclear position. Mr Engine likes to think that Black is marginally better, but, as often occurs in the Evans, in practice, such positions prove incredibly difficult for Black to contain the scope of the bishop-pair raking across his position. 15.Nxd4 Bxd4 16.Rad1 Qe7 17.e5!? The young Dutch IM is very much keeping in the swashbuckling nature of the Evans - but he missed a better and more dangerous shot with 17.Nf3! forcing 17...Bc5 (You can't try to consolidate with 17...Be5? as 18.Nxe5 fxe5 19.f4! and the dream Evans scenario with White set to rip the game open; alternatively 17...Bb6 18.e5! fxe5 19.Nxe5! is a typical Evans theme.)18.Bxc5 dxc5 19.e5! f5 20.e6! O-O 21.Rfe1 with the deadly threat looming of Rd7!! with a crushing attack. 17...fxe5 18.Nf3 Nc6 19.Bd5 Kd8 20.Rfe1 Qf6 21.Bxc6 bxc6 22.Qxc6 Beersden misses his big 'Evans moment' with 22.Bxd6! cxd6 (If 22...Qxd6?? 23.Nxe5! quickly wins.) 23.Nxd4 exd4 24.Qxc6 Rb8 25.Rc1 and the Black king is well and truly snared by the 'heavy furniture' in the middle of the board, where not even offering up the queen with 25...Qe7 26.Rxe7 Kxe7 27.Qc7+ offers any hopes of a miracle save. 22...Rb8 23.Rc1 Bb6 24.Nxe5 Re8 [see diagram] 25.Bxd6? In his gut, Beerdsen would have felt that White 'had something' here - and he would be right to have this feeling, but he goes about it all the wrong way, meanwhile, our Silicon Overlords shows how to turn that gut feeling into reality with 25.a5!! Bxa5 and only now does 26.Bxd6! work, the game ending in spectacular fashion with a flurry of tactics of 26...cxd6 27.Nf7+! Qxf7 28.Qxd6+ Qd7 29.Rxe8+ Kxe8 30.Qxb8 Kd8 31.Qf4 Qf5 (If 31...Qe7 32.Rd1+ Ke8 33.Qa4+ also picks off the loose bishop.) 32.Qxf5 Bxf5 33.Rc5 which is the whole point of the 25.a5!! deflection in the first place, as both Black bishops are skewered. After this miss, the game ended more amicably. 25...cxd6 26.Nf7+ Qxf7 27.Qxd6+ Qd7 28.Rxe8+ Kxe8 29.Qxb8 Kd8 30.Qf4 Qf5 31.Qg3 g6 32.a5 In the words of the comedy classic Morecambe & Wise Greig Piano Concerto sketch with the fabled conductor, Andre Previn, Beersden is playing all the right moves, but not necessarily in the right order! 32...Bxa5 33.Qd6+ Bd7 34.Qb8+ Ke7 35.Qxa7 Qd5 36.Qc5+ ½-½

End of an Era?

Tue, 07 Mar 2023 23:27:16 GMT

It’s not exactly the last dance quite just yet - that comes with April’s Chessable Masters - but some did hype it up to be officially the end of an era, with the culmination of the Norwegian Team League - the "Eliteserien" - season over the weekend seeing the last classical outing for Magnus Carlsen as the reigning world champion, ahead of next month’s FIDE World Championship match in Astana, Kazakhstan, between Ian Nepomniachtchi and Ding Liren.

The game's undisputed top dog ended his classical reign on a high though, fittingly in Norway’s national football stadium Ullevål in Oslo, as Carlsen scored an undefeated 2.5/3 to lead his team, Offerspill Chess Club to its first national title on Sunday with a perfect match-point score of 18/18 in the ten-team, year-long contest.

Carlsen beat Norwegian’s FM Levi Andre Tallaksen in Round 7, and also his long-time friend and Norway’s #3, GM Jon Ludvig Hammer in the penultimate round, before ceding a draw in the final round to his one-time junior rival and foe, English GM David Howell, now better known in the chess world for being the Champions Chess Tour commentator.

After his game with Howell, Norwegian journalist and Tour host Kaja Snare asked Carlsen if this was a special day for him. Typical for Carlsen, his reply was: “Not really. Well, in terms of [the] league, yes, but in terms of [the] world championship, I've sort of mentally been finished with that a while ago.”

Further quizzed about how the Norwegian felt about the prospect of no longer holding the world title in classical chess, he replied, somewhat wryly: “I still have two titles,” referring to the fact that he still holds - and looks likely to continue to defend and fight for - the world championship blitz and rapid titles he won in Almaty, Kazakhstan late last year.

The victorious Offerspill lineup also includes: Carlsen's second from his previous World Championship match, Dutch star Jorden van Foreest, and Indian teenage star Praggnanandhaa, with Norway’s #2 Aryan Tari bringing up the rear on board 4.

Photo : Norwegian duo of Aryan Tari and Magnus Carlsen take Offerspill Chess Club to victory | Norwegian Chess Federation

GM Magnus Carlsen - GM Jon Ludvig Hammer

Norwegian Team League, (8)

Queen’s Gambit Accepted

1.Nf3 d5 2.e3 Nf6 3.c4 e6 4.Nc3 c5 5.d4 dxc4 6.Bxc4 Although we started off with a Reti, it has now transposed into a Queens' Gambit Accepted. 6...a6 7.e4 cxd4 8.Nxd4 Bd6 9.Qe2 Qc7 10.Bg5 Bd7 A natural developing move - but also possible was 10...Be5 11.Rd1 (The point is that, as in the game, 11.Nf3 loses to 11...Bxc3+ 12.bxc3 b5! and the hit on c3 proves to be a game-winner.) 11...b5 12.Bb3 O-O and Black is doing more than OK. Faced with that, White may instead have to opt for 11.Nb3 0-0 with total equality. 11.Nf3 With the not-too-subtle threat of e5 winning a piece. 11...Nc6 12.Bb3 Ng4 Hammer puts his faith in his control of e5. 13.Rd1 Nge5 14.Bh4 Nxf3+

The immediate 14...Na5 is no better, as after 15.Bg3 Nxf3+ 16.Qxf3 just goes back into the game. 15.Qxf3 Na5 16.Bg3 Bxg3 17.hxg3 Nxb3 18.axb3 Carlsen's pawn structure may well be shot on both wings - but he has more than enough compensation in the form of two very dominant rooks baring down on the h- and d-files, and Black can't castle queenside as f7 is under attack. 18...O-O Hammer could try to keep the queens on the board with 18...Bc6 19.Qf4 Qb6 but after 20.g4!? you start to worry about the power of White's major pieces. And you know it is all a bit “awkward” when the engine starts to favour the artificial-looking 20...f6 21.Qh2 Qc5 (Looking to answer any Qc7 incursion with ...Qe7) 22.Ke2!? Kf7!? 23.Qc7+ Qe7 24.Qxe7+ Kxe7 25.Ke3 and another endgame on a theme similar to the game - but this one looks easier for Black than happens in the game. 19.Qf4! Qxf4 Maybe Hammer feared that 19...Rac8 20.Qxc7 (White looks good after 20.Qh4 but looks can often be deceptive, as after 20...h6 21.Qe7 White's queen incursion does look a little problematic, but the simple 21...Bc6! 22.Qxc7 Rxc7 23.f3 f6 24.Kf2 Kf7 looks fine for Black.) 20...Rxc7 21.f3 Bc6 22.e5!? and Carlsen following up with Ke2 and Rh4! looking to swing over to d4 and d6; or even after Rh4 following up with Rh1, and after ...h6, g4!? Whatever the reasons, something certainly seems to have spooked Mr Hammer. 20.gxf4 Bc6 21.f3 f5 22.e5 Carlsen has a space advantage with his funny-looking kingside pawn set-up, and his knight dominates the bishop with an ideal outpost on d4 - but the reality is that the game is equal and somewhere Hammer lost the plot. 22...Rad8 23.Ke2 Rxd1 24.Rxd1 Kf7 25.Ke3 Ke7 26.Ne2 Bd5 Another try was 26...Rc8 looking to answer 27.Nd4 with 27...Bd7 but after 28.g4!? you kind of get the feeling that this is the sort of grind-a-rama that has been Carlsen's trademark over his career in the game, whether that be classical, rapid and blitz. 27.Nd4! Suddenly Carlsen has a little "something" to nibble on - and boy, does that man know how to nibble! 27...g6 28.Rh1 Rf7?! After this little inaccuracy, Hammer's rook is out of commission, and his position begins to go downhill with all the velocity of Franz Klammer. The best was 28...Rh8 with the idea of ...Kd7 and ...Rc8 if White plays Rc1; and if 29.Rh6 Kf7 and ...Kg7 to kick the rook. 29.b4 Kd8?! Another little inaccuracy, and they all now begin to add up. Better was 29...b6 looking to answer 30.b5 with 30...a5 31.Rc1 Kd7 and Black can regroup with ...Rf8 to either challenge the c-file with ...Rc8 or ...Rh8 if Rh1. 30.b5! Kc7 It may well be that Hammer simply missed that if he now plays 30...a5? 31.b6! and suddenly Black's a-pawn is very vulnerable and picked off, as 31...a4? 32.Nb5! Rg7 (looking to break free with ...g5) 33.Nd6 with a decisive advantage with major threats of Rh1-c1-c8+, where now 33...Bc6 34.Rd1 Rd7 35.Rc1! and Black is powerless against the manoeuvre Rc1-c5-a5-a8-h8 and carnage as Black's kingside pawns on h7 and g6 falls. And also not a pleasant defence is 30...axb5 31.Nxb5 Re7 32.b4 with White having a better version of the ending than in the game. 31.Rc1+ Kb6 32.bxa6 bxa6 33.Rc8 It is amazing just how quickly Hammer's position falls apart - he just has too many endgame weaknesses on both sides of the board.

33...a5 34.Kd3 Rg7 The move to hold was 34...Rd7 but after 35.Rb8+ Ka7 36.Re8, although the engine claims it to be "dicimal sterility" by showing "0.00", you still got to favour Carlsen relentlessly keeping up the pressure. 35.Rd8 Kc5??
[ see diagram ] Hammer finally succumbs to Carlsen's relentless pressure with a game-ending blunder. He could have tried to hang on with his last-gasp try of 35...Rb7! 36.b3 (Much better than 36.Re8 Rd7 37.Kc2 Rc7+ 38.Kd2 Rd7 39.Ke3 Rb7! and Black has mo re than excellent holding chances.) 36...Ka7 37.Kc3 but you got to fancy Carlsen squeezing yet more blood from a stone here. 36.Rb8! The major threat of Rb5 mate is, not to be too blunt here, just more than a tad awkward! 36...Rb7 37.Nxe6+! And with it, total capitulation now for Hammer. 37...Kb4 38.Rxb7+ Bxb7 39.Kd4! A nice endgame finesse from Carlsen, as he finds a tactical way to stop ...Kb3 due to the Nc5+ fork. The rest is a mere formality now for the soon-to-be ex-world champion. 39...Bc6 40.Nc5 h5 Alternatively, there's 40...a4 41.e6 Bb5 42.e7 Bc6 43.Ne6 Kb3 44.Nc7 Kxb2 45.Kc5! a3 46.Kxc6 a2 47.e8=Q a1=Q 48.Qh8+! and after the trade of queens, the king and knight will soon pick off all of Black's remaining pawns. 41.b3 h4 42.e6 Ba8 43.Nd3+! A nice final touch from Carlsen, as sacrificing the b-pawn sees Ne5 clearing the way for the e-pawn to queen unchalleng ed. 43...Kxb3 44.Ne5 1-0

Game of the Year

Fri, 03 Mar 2023 21:47:11 GMT

We’re just two months into 2023, give or take a day or two, I am still putting “2022” on my cheques/checks when paying bills, and already we are being treated to a wild-ride-of-a-game that’s being touted and tagged by pundits, streamers and fans alike as an early candidate for the traditional year-ending award of “Game of the Year”!

It’s not often we hear anything of the Romanian Championship, nor see it mildly trending on social media - but while newer generation stars GM Kirill Shevchenko, 20, and WIM Miruna-Daria Lehaci, 18, took all the plaudits and top honours by winning maiden national titles, their feats were largely overshadowed by a crazy sacrificial game that had some online fans jokingly asking - much like the fabled Levitsky-Marshall Gold Coin game of 1912 - how they could throw bitcoin onto the playing board.

The Romanian Championship ran February 19–26 in Sebes and was won by former Ukrainian rising star Shevchenko who confirmed his new status in his adopted country as top dog by dominating the open championship with an unbeaten score of 8/9; while in the women’s championship, Lehaci comfortably took the title ahead of top seed WGM Michaela Sandu to claim the women’s title.

But all the fun was to be found in the Round 6 mid-table clash in the open between GM Gergely-Andras-Gyula Szabo and FM Nicodim-Cosmin Stephanencu , where a veritable fireworks factory of pyrotechnics was going off!

Interviewed by Norwegian journalist Tarjei J. Svensen on Chess24 this week, Szabo, 39 - not exactly a household name, though an experienced chess coach - commented on his brilliancy: “I am very happy to have played such a game, especially as my mission as a player and as a coach is to make chess more popular.”

So sit back and buckle up!

GM Gergely Szabo - FM Nicodim Stephanencu

Romanian Championship, (6)

Caro-Kann Defence, Advance variation

1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.e5 The Advance variation is a byword for double-edged play on both sides of the Caro; a variation that - very fittingly - came to fame with the rise of Mikhail Tal and his adoption of it in his early 1960s World Championship Matches against Mikhail Botvinnik. 3...Bf5 4.h4 Typically a player who opts for the Caro is looking for some quiet positional struggle - however in this game, it is anything but! But along with 4.g4, the early 4.h4 falls into a category known as the "Caveman Caro-Kann" where Black has to be extremely careful. 4...h5 The principled and best reply. If you treat it like the Classical main-line in the Caro with 4...h6?! 5.g4! Bd7 (Alternatively, 5...Be4 6.f3 Bh7 7.e6! and Black is in trouble after 7...fxe6 8.Bd3 etc.) 6.h5 and White has a very unpleasant space advantage on the kingside. 5.Bd3 Bxd3 6.Qxd3 Qa5+ 7.Nd2 Also popular is the pawn sacrifice 7.b4!? 7...e6 8.Nf3 Nh6 9.O-O Nf5 In reality, if White doesn't do something now, then Black will consolidate his position to solve all his problems. Rather than that, Szabo opts to throw a big spanner in the works. 10.c4?! This certainly "spices" things up - but more preferable is the standard 10.Nb3 Qb5 11.Qd1 c5 12.dxc5 Bxc5 13.a4 Qc6 as seen in Praggnanandhaa-Carlsen, Meltwater Champions Chess Tour 2022. 10...Be7 11.g3 O-O 12.b3?! Szabo continues his devil-may-care plan to "mix" things up with another risky move - simpler was playing 12.a3 with the idea of b4 to stop Black breaking up the centre with the freeing ...c5. 12...Rd8 13.Rd1 c5! Honestly, this is a dream position for Black - his only downfall is that he gets bamboozled and taken in by his opponent continuing to push the envelope with a series of more and more dubious moves. 14.dxc5N?! Hard to tag this as being a "novelty", which it is, but more usually seen here is 14.Bb2 or even the better 14.cxd5. 14…Qxc5?! After the correct call of 14...Nc6! White's position is fast reaching a crisis point - but now the game is on such a high-wire that it only takes a couple of “dodgy” moves from Black, and the game enters the realms of joining the mysterious Mr Roarke & Tattoo as a lucky guest on Fantasy Island ! 15.Nf1?! It wasn't too late for 15.Bb2 and the prospects of only being "worse". But then again, where would all the fun be in that with the rollercoaster ride set to come? 15…dxc4? The last call for sanity was 15...Nc6! - my only assumption here was that Black just wrote off any possible threats to his king as being false. 16.Qxd8+! Of course, what else? 16...Bxd8 17.Rxd8+ Kh7 18.Ne3? I can see the point, looking to bring all his pieces into the attack, but better was 18.bxc4 with another fantasy outcome being 18...Qc7 19.Rf8 Qc5 20.Ng5+ Kg6 21.Rh8 Qxe5 22.Rb1 with a sharp game. 18…Qa5! Hitting the rook on d8 and threatening the awkward cxb3 - all leaving White with no option other than to go “all-in” now on his big bluff. 19.Ng5+ Kg6 20.Ng2! A resource that’s equally both desperate and brilliant at the same time. 20…Nxg3? Black thinks that he, too, can have resourceful moves here - but this move isn't half as clever as it looks. Safer was 20...Nh6! with another fantasy continuation running 21.Nf4+ Kf5 22.Ngxe6!? fxe6 23.Rf8+ Ke4 24.f3+ Kd4 25.Rc8 Nc6! 26.Rxa8 Kxe5 and Black has managed to avoid landing on any mating mines. 21.Nf4+ Kf5 22.Nxf7! Now all the fun really begins! 22...Qc3 I can only assume that, in his analysis of all the crazy moves from his opponent, Stephanencu felt such wild mating attacks would backfire because of 22…Qe1+, only to realise too late in the day that after 23.Kg2 Black has nothing to save him. 23.Kg2!! Amidst all the smoke from the pyrotechnics in this game, the silent killer of the simple king move - leaving the rook hanging in the corner - is the best move of this whole crazy game. 23…Ne4 The only move. If you get greedy with 23...Qxa1?? 24.Nd6+ Kxe5 (There’s no sanctuary for the king. After 24...Kg4 25.f3+ Kxh4 26.Ng6#) 25.Nxc4+ Kf5 26.Rf8+ Ke4 27.f3+ (hence the reason for the silent killer of 23.Kg2!!) 27...Kd4 28.Bb2+ Qxb2+ 29.Nxb2 Nf5 30.Nxe6+ and White now easily mopes up with no answer to Nc7. But all things considered here, there’s this golden rule in chess that if you find yourself in difficulties, yet far ahead in material, then you can always try throwing some of the extra material back again! For that reason, the only safe way to continue, as the engines concurred, was with 23...Nc6! 24.Rxa8 Nd4 25.fxg3 Qf3+ 26.Kg1 Qxg3+ 27.Kf1 Qc3 28.Nd6+ Kg4 29.Rc8! Qxa1 30.Rxc4 b5 31.Rc7 Kxh4 32.Ng2+ Kh3 33.Nf4+ Kh4 (It is a bit of risk to try 33...Kh2 as after 34.Ne4 b4 Not 34...Qxa2?? 35.Rc3 and Black gets mated.) 35.Rc4 h4 36.Nd3 with White still having all the fun and all the advantage. 34.Ng2+ Kh3 35.Nf4+ Kh4 and bailing out with a "boring" draw! 24.Rf8 Kg4?? Looking to walk away from the potentially nasty discovered check, only to discover that you’re now running right into a mating minefield! Again, the only try was to throw back some of the extra "wood" with 24...Nc6! 25.Nd6+ Kg4 26.Be3 Nxe5 27.Nxe4 Qc2 28.Nf6+ gxf6 29.Rxa8 Qe4+ 30.Kg1 Nf3+ 31.Kf1 e5 32.Rg8+ Kf5 33.Nxh5 Nh2+ 34.Kg1 Nf3+ 35.Kg2 Ng5+ 36.Kg1 Nf3+ 37.Kg2 Ng5+ and once again a draw. 25.Be3 A sensible, very human move, looking to bring his remaining pieces into the fray, and also stopping the potentially awkward ...Qf3+ - but the stunning sacrificial game-stopper, and quickly spotted by the engines, is 25.Nh6+!! gxh6 26.Nd3! Kxh4 27.Bxh6 and the only way to stop the major threat of Rf4 mate is by giving up the queen with 27...Qd2 28.Bxd2 Nxd2 but after 29.Rg8! there's no way to stop Rh1 mate. 25...Nxf2 Trying desperately to stave off the mate. If 25...Qxa1?? 26.f3+ Kf5 (Also no use is 26...Kxh4 27.Ng6#) 27.Nd6+ Kxe5 28.Nxc4#. 26.Nd5! Another wonderful sacrifice, this time vacating the f4 square for a potential Rf4 mate attack. 26...Qxa1 The mating theme to avoid this time was 26...exd5 27.Nh6+! Kxh4 28.Rf4+ Ng4 29.Rh1+ Kg5 30.Rxg4#! 27.Nh6+ Kxh4 Again, 27...gxh6 28.Rf4#. 28.Bxf2+ This time 28.Rf4+? lets Black off the hook with 28...Ng4 29.Bf2+ Kg5 30.Nf7+ Kg6 31.Ne7+ Kh7 32.Ng5+ Kh6 33.Nf7+ Kh7 34.Ng5+ and it is "only" a draw. 28...Kg5 29.Be3+ Kg6 30.Ne7+ Kh7 31.Nf7 Nc6 With 31...Qxa2+ 32.Kh3 then you only avoid the inevitable by a mov e. 32.Ng5+ Kh6 33.Nf7+ Kh7 34.Ng5+ Szabo only repeats a couple of times to help reach the time-control on move 40. 34...Kh6 35.Nxe6+ Kh7 36.Ng5+ Kh6 37.Nf5+ Kg6 38.Nh4+ Kh6 39.Nf7+ Kh7 40.Ng5+ Kh6 41.Rxa8! Now, having safely reached the time-control, Szabo has the extra time needed to double check that there’s no “perfect mate” by not having to capture the rook - but he has to take the rook and then come back for the mate with his opponent's hapless king trapped with no escape. 41...g6 42.Rg8 Nxe5 [see diagram] 43.Rxg6+!! 1-0 The final stunning sacrifice that forces Black into resignation - a pity really, as in the spirt of the game and the swashbuckling way Szabo played it, it would have been more sporting for Stephanencu to allow on the board the aesthetically-pleasing mate with 43...Nxg6 44.Nf5# .

Stars in their Eyes

Wed, 01 Mar 2023 21:41:12 GMT

Records are made to be broken, especially those of the very snappable Sydney Devine vinyl-variety, but the recent outstanding performance of a young rising star on the up almost witnessed a major record falling with the publication today of the 2023 FIDE March Rating List .

After Indian prodigy Gukesh D finished equal first at the WR Chess Masters - though losing out in the ensuing three-way tiebreak, sandwiched in-between eventual victor Levon Aronian and third-placed Ian Nepomniachtchi - his rating jumped 12-points to a career-high 2730 and now ranked #20 in the world, close to being the highest-ever achieved by a 16-year-old

The 16-year-old yardstick to be measured by is Wei Yi who was rated 2737 and ranked #24 in October 2015, and Magnus Carlsen reached 2714 and was ranked #16 in October 2007.

Another teen on the up is Nodirbek Abdusattorov, the 18-year-old Uzbek Olympiad top-board gold medalist who came very close to winning the Tata Steel Masters in January. After storming into the early lead, he was caught and overtaken by popular local Dutch winner Anish Giri in the final rounds. Abdusattorov also climbs to a career-best world #14, with a Top-10 spot well within his reach before the end of the year.

After a long period of inactivity, following his sensational Sinquefield Cup victory last summer, 18-year-old Alireza Firouzja is also now set for a return to the elite fray; and with Gukesh D and Abdusattorov now knocking heavily on the door of a big super-tournament victory, the Gen-Zers are now making their moves for a potential claim on Carlsen’s now thirteen-year top-dog billing as world #1.

FIDE Top-10:

1. Magnus Carlsen 2852 (=); 2. Ian Nepomniachtchi 2795 (+2); 3. Ding Liren 2788 (=); 4. Alireza Firouzja 2785 (=); 5. Anish Giri 2768 (-12); 6. Hikaru Nakmaura 2768 (=); 7. Fabiano Caruana 2766 (=); 8. Wesley So 2761 (-5); 9. Viswanathan Anand 2754 (=); 10. Teimour Radjabov 2747 (=).

Top Three Juniors/Women:

Juniors: 1 . Alireza Firouzja 2785 (=); 2. Nodirbek Abdusattorov 2731 (-3); 3. Gukesh D 2730 (+12). Women: 1. Hou Yifan 2628 (-10); 2. Humpy Koneru 2576 (+24); 3. Aleksandra Goryachkina 2576 (=)

GM Andrey Esipenko - GM Gukesh D

WR Chess Masters, (7)

Catalan/Bogo-Indian

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.g3 Bb4+ Meeting the Catalan with the Bogo-Indian treatment, named after the Russian-born German master Efim Bogoljubow , who was an early 20th-century title challenger. 5.Bd2 Be7 6.Bg2 O-O 7.O-O c6 8.Qc2 Nbd7 9.b3 b6 10.Nc3 Ba6 11.e4 dxc4 12.Rfe1 e5 A new and sharp response, as introduced in the game Panjwani-Lee, Charolette 2022. 13.Ne2! And the best and most principled Catalan reply. 13...Ng4N But this is new. - and worrying, as you always have to be wary when these ever-inventive and free-spirited Indian teenage rising stars hit you with a novelty. The aforementioned game went 13...cxb3 14.axb3 Bxe2 15.Rxe2 Qc7 16.Bc3 and White had an obvious big advantage. 14.bxc4 The engine option, but there was a lot of merit in keeping with the stem game plan of 14.Bc3 and it is not so obvious to see what Black has here - but no doubt Gukesh had something that he'd deep-crunched at home on his computer and looking to lure his opponent into. 14...exd4 15.Nexd4 Nde5 16.Nxe5 White now has nothing after this trade on e5. Better was possibly 16.Bc3 (again) or better the engine punt of 16.Bf4 as after16...Nxf3+ 17.Nxf3 Bc5 18.Re2 f6 White was a little "something", according to our Silicon Overlords - but still, with two active bishops on the board, Black isn't exactly out of the game! 16...Nxe5 17.Bc3 Bc5 18.Rad1 Qc7 The dust is beginning to settle, and as it does, Gukesh has clearly solved his problems and emerged with the slightly better pawn structure and better-placed pieces. 19.f4 This is where it all just starts to go a little off the tracks for Esipenko, with his tempting pawn sacrifice. The engine prefers instead19.Nb3 Ba3 20.c5!? and the game is finely balanced with equal chances. 19...Nxc4 20.Kh1 Rad8 21.Nf5 This is what Esipenko had to have envisioned with his pawn sac - but looks can often be deceptive! 21...f6 22.Rxd8 More to the point looked like the obvious pin with 22.Bf1! 22...Qxd8 23.Qe2? Now it has definatly all gone "Pete Tong" for Esipenko! Again the pin with 23.Bf1 would have kept the game in the "balanced" margin with some sharp play expected, one example being: 23...g6 (Also equally double-edged was 23...b5!? 24.g4!?) 24.Bxc4+ Bxc4 25.Bxf6! Rxf6 (If 25...Qxf6 26.Qxc4+ Kh8 27.Nh4 g5 28.Nf5 and White has more chances with the f5 knight outpost and no resource of a ...Qd2 as in the main variation.) 26.Qxc4+ Kh8 27.Nh4 g5 28.Nf5 gxf4 29.gxf4 Qd2! and Black is doing OK. 23...g6! With one very accurate move, suddenly Esipenko begins to realise just how flawed his plan was with 23.Qe2. 24.Nh6+ Worse was 24.Nh4 Bd4 25.Rd1 c5 26.Nf3 as now Black comes over the top with 26...Ne3! winning material. 24...Kg7 25.Ng4 White's pieces now lack unity and co-ordination. 25...Bd4 26.Rd1 c5 What's not to like here for Gukesh with his two bishops dominating the board? 27.Qf3 h5 28.Nf2 Ne3 The very human and principled knight invasion move. Mr Engine instead opts for 28...Ne5 29.fxe5 fxe5 30.Bxd4 exd4 31.Qa3 Be2 and no hopes for White as Black reclaims the material and then some with the passed d- and c-pawns running down the board. 29.Rd2 Qc7! [see diagram] The pawn sacrifice exposes the lack of coordination of White's pieces and also his vulnerable back-rank. 30.Bxd4 cxd4 31.Rxd4 Qc3! Forcing White's hand by exchanging off his only active piece - and a vital one that protected his back-rank. 32.Rd7+ Rf7 33.Rxf7+ Kxf7 The material may well be equal, but the activity of Gukesh's pieces soon proves decisive. 34.h4 More resilient was 34.h3 controlling the g4-square, but Black simplify down with 34...Qe1+ 35.Kh2 Qe2 to a winning endgame with the queens traded and White's a-pawn being quickly picked off. 34...Bc4 35.Bh3 f5! The final nail in Esipenko's coffin, as his pieces are now all blockaded in on the kingside. 36.Kh2 Qd2 0-1

The Hard Way

Mon, 27 Feb 2023 21:31:10 GMT

Sometimes you have to win a tournament the hard way, by doing it not once but twice - and this is exactly how Levon Aronian had to do it, as the elite-game’s now “elder statesman” rolled back not only the years but also his shirt sleeves to eventually win the inaugural WR Chess Masters in Dusseldorf, Germany.

Aronian, 40, left many of his old foes and younger generation rising stars trailing in his wake by storming into a one-point lead over the field. Victory was tantalisingly within his grasp going into the homestretch of the final three rounds - but Aronian suffered a dramatic reversal of fortunes in round 7 during a cruel psychological teasing from Ian Nepomniachtchi following a false three-fold repetition claim.

Loosing the plot amidst all the mindgames, Aronian went on to blunder big-time with the win finally waking the sleeping Russian (playing under the neutral FIDE flag) bear from his slumber. And in the final round, as co-leaders Aronian and Indian teen Gukesh D bailed out with a tame 18-move GM draw, with the oldest and the youngest participants in the tournament instead opting to take the fight to the tiebreak, leaving Nepo in need of a win to join them.

But after a near six-hour struggle, the German teenage local hero, Vincent Keymer, looked set to hold Nepo to a draw…right up until the fateful moment when he too blundered with the all-too-tempting human pawn push of 59.a5? leading to today’s diagram. The a-pawn is indeed Keymer’s ace in the hole, but this was the wrong time to be pushing it!

It didn’t take long for Nepo to pounce with 59…Qxh4+ 2.Kg1 Qe1+ 3.Kh2 g5! And White’s doomed, as it doesn’t just set-up the mating plan of …Nf7-h6-g4+, it also provides the ideal safe haven for the Black king to shield from the queen checks. Keymer continued with 62.Qc7 pinning the knight, but there followed 63…Qh4+ winning the d-pawn, and then, by pushing his g-pawn, Nepo somehow found himself to be the recipient of a miracle win to make it a three-way playoff for the title.

But revenge proved to be sweet for an upbeat and more confident Aronian in the ensuing three-way tiebreak, as he sprinted to a perfect 3/3 by beating Nepo and Gukesh D (twice) to capture the €40,000 first prize and the inaugural WR Chess Masters title at the second time of asking.

Final standings:

1-3. I. Nepomniachtchi (FIDE), Gukesh D (India), L. Aronian* (USA) 5½/9; 4. W. So (USA) 4½; 5-10. JK.Duda (Poland), V. Keymer (Germany), A. Giri (Netherlands), N. Abdusattorov (Uzbekistan), A. Esipenko (FIDE), R. Praggnanandhaa (India) 5.

GM Ian Nepomniachtchi - GM Levon Aronian

WR Chess Masters TB, (2.1)

English Opening

1.c4 Nf6 2.Nc3 e5 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.a3 A modest little move that's not the most testing in the English Four Knights, but it can often allow for a reversed Sicilian Taimanov/Kan of some description. 4...d5 5.cxd5 Nxd5 6.Qc2 Nxc3 7.bxc3 Bd6 8.e3 0-0 9.d4 Bg4 10.Bd3 Bxf3 11.gxf3 Qh4! Stopping Nepo from launching right into an all-out attack by throwing 'Harry the h-pawn' up the board . 12.Bb2 g6 13.d5 Na5 Superficially, Nepo looks to have the upper-hand with his attack and the bishop-pair - but such is Black's solid structure with no pawn weaknesses, that Aronian has the promise of the better prospects if he can successfully exchange a few pieces. 14.c4 b6 15.0-0-0 Nb7 Not so much a retreat but rather h eading for the ideal knight outpost on c5 - and with it, Nepo decides that he now has to go all-in with the attack rather than being pushed into a dreadful ending with his wrecked pawn structure. 16.Rdg1 Nc5 17.Bf1 f5 18.Rg3 Rae8 19.Rhg1 Rf7 20.Kb1 Kf8! With all of White's pieces committed to the kingside attack, Aronian, very calmly , comes up with a solution that another Armenian chess hero would have been proud of: a Tigran Petrosian-like king march over to safety on the queenside! 21.Rh3 Qf6 22.Be2 Ke7 23.Bd1 Kd8 You got to think that s omewhere celestially above, Petrosian had to have a knowing smile of admiration on his face. 24.Qe2 Qe7 25.Bc2 Kc8 With Aronian's king run to the queenside complete, he now sets about looking for the breakthrough to expose Nepo's wrecked pawn structure. 26.Ka2 Qd7 27.Rhg3 f4! 28.Rg4 e4! Now the breakthrough comes, totally wrecking White's position and pawn structure. 29.exf4 exf3 Slightly more accurate was 29...Rfe7 with the follow-up plan of ...exf3 and ...Ne4 that leaves all of White's vulnerable pawns easy pickings. 30.Qxf3 Kb7 31.f5 Best was 31.Bd4! h5 32.Rh4 Qe7! 33.Bxg6 Qxh4 34.Bxf7 Re4! 35.Bxc5 Rxf4 36.Qg3 Qf6 37.Qg7 Bxc5 38.Qxf6 Rxf6 39.Bxh5 Rxf2+ 40.Kb3 Rxh2 41.Rg5 Rh3+ 42.Kc2 Rxa3 where Black has an extra pawn and a passed a-pawn - but with all the pawns on the queenside and opposite-coloured-bishops on the board, this is not an easy endgame to convert for the win. 31...Be5 32.d6+ c6 33.Bxe5 Rxe5 34.Rd1 gxf5 35.Rg8? The decisive blunder. After 35.Rgd4 over-protecting the d6-pawn, White would be in a better place to hold. 35...Qe6 Now simply ...Rd7 will corral the d6-pawn with a won endgame. 36.Qc3 Rd7 37.Kb1 Ne4 38.Bxe4 fxe4 39.Qd4 Qxg8 40.Qxe5 Qxc4 Now Aronian has revenge over Nepo , as he picks off all of his opponent's hanging pawns. 41.Qg3 Qe6 42.Kb2 c5! The final touch of elan from Aronian, as his w andering king puts the boot in with ...Kc6 and the d6-pawn falls, and the game not long afterwards. 43.Qf4 Rf7 44.Qe3 Kc6 45.Kb1 Rd7 46.Qf4 Qb3+ 0-1 Nepo resigns, as after 47...Qxa3+ Aronian will come back to e6 (either via ...Qb3+ or ...Qa2+) for seconds to pick-off the d6-pawn.

Thrice Vice

Fri, 24 Feb 2023 21:51:54 GMT

Third time’s the charm, so the old saying goes. But not so for Levon Aronian when he faced Ian Nepomniachtchi in the WR Chess Masters in Dusseldorf, Germany, as a rare miscount witnessed the tournament leader’s claim for a three-fold repetition not only being rebuffed by the arbiter, but also serving to finally wake his opponent up from an uneventful draw slumber.

Going down the home-stretch, Aronian went into Round 7 with a full-point lead over the field and only needing three draws for probable victory - but as a draw with Nepo looked to be on the cards, Aronian’s claim proved to be incorrect, with the game continuing, and his opponent receiving a bonus two minutes added to his clock

Even with the false claim, everyone expected the correct three-fold repetition to follow when the game resumed again - but Nepo, after six successive draws, had decided that he now had the psychological edge in the clash and pressed for more, explaining in his post-game presser that “I felt like maybe if he wants a draw that badly, then I should push.”

The mind-games were definitely in play by now, as Aronian may have felt that the draw was just within his grasp with each series of repeated moves - but each time, Nepo avoided repeating to push just a little more and just a little more. And with it, Aronian eventually cracked as he lost the plot and the game as he stumbled into a bad blunder.

That cruel loss from Aronian unexpectedly blew the tournament wide-open once again, allowing Gukesh D to catch up with the tournament leader following some inventive play from the Indian teen as he beat Andrey Esipenko. Aronian and Gukesh D share the lead on 5/8 going into Saturday’s final round, but just half a point behind lurks a now reinvigorated Nepomniachtchi.

Standings:

1-2. Gukesh D (India), L. Aronian (USA) 5/8; 3. I. Nepomniachtchi (FIDE) 4½; 4-5. V. Keymer (Germany), W. So (USA) 4; 6-10. JK. Duda (Poland), A. Esipenko (FIDE), A. Giri (Netherlands), N. Abdusattorov (Uzbekistan), R. Praggnanandhaa (India) 3½.

GM Levon Aronian - GM Ian Nepomniachtchi

WR Chess Masters, (7)

Queen’s Gambit Declined

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.Nc3 Be7 5.Bf4 More common in the QGD is 5. Bg5, but this flexible move is not as innocent as it looks. It has an English pedigree, having been first played in 1887 by the leading English master Joseph Henry Blackburne (1841-1924). However, the player who did much to pioneer this line and bring it to prominence was, in fact, Hungary's Lajos Portisch, who in the late 1970s and 1980s won many wonderful endgames using this system. The cudgels were then taken up in the noughties by Vladimir Kramnik and Veselin Topalov - and then championed by Magnus Carlsen and Levon Aronian. 5...0-0 6.e3 c5 7.dxc5 Bxc5 8.cxd5 Nxd5 9.Nxd5 exd5 10.Bd3 Bb4+ 11.Nd2 Nc6 12.0-0 Be7 The bishop retreats with a view to taking up a more active outpost on f6. 13.Qb3 Bf6 14.a3 Qe7 15.Rac1 Be6 16.Qb5 Rac8 17.Rc2 a6 18.Qb6 Qd7 19.Nb3 There's nothing really in the position, and with Nc5 threatened, it was obvious Aronian would have been happy with a draw by repeating moves with ...Bd8, Qc5 and ...Be7 - but this is where the story tak es a bit of a twist. 19...Bd8 20.Qc5 Be7 21.Qb6 Bd8 22.Qc5 Be7 23.Qb6 Aronian now claims a three-fold repetition - but it turns out to be a false claim. Nepo now decides to push the envelope, and Aronian, clearly knocked out of rhythm by the false claim, precedes to blunder in a totally level position. But even behind on the clock, Nepomniachtchi said that his immediate thoughts, after the arbiter intervention, and the two minutes being added to his clock, that "...if he wants a draw that badly, then I should push." 23...g5 After 23...Bd8 Aronian could - correctly - claim the draw with 24.Qc5. 24.Bg3 Bd8 25.Qc5 Be7 26.Qb6 f5 Aronian is still angling for a draw - but Nepo presses on, clearly feeling he now has the psychological advantage. 27.f3?! Nepomniachtchi felt that 27.f4 was “surely the move” to draw. As it is, Aronian has inadvertently allowed his opponent a very tricky attack 27...Bd8 28.Qc5 Be7 29.Qb6 Bd8 30.Qc5 f4! Out of nowhere, suddenly Nepomniachtchi has managed to build-up a deadly attack. 31.exf4 gxf4 32.Bf2 Be7 33.Qb6 Bd8 34.Qc5 Bf6 35.Rfc1 Qg7 36.Qd6 Rce8 37.Re1 The tactical route with 37.Bxa6?! backfires after 37...Be5 38.Qc5 d4!? 39.Bc4 d3! 40.Bxe6+ Kh8! 41.Bd5 (If 41.Rd2? Rxe6 42.Rxd3 Rg8 with a big winning advantage.) 41...dxc2 42.Qxc2 Rf6 43.Nc5 Rd6 and Black is in command. 37...Ne5 38.Nd4? There is danger on the kingside for Aronian, and he inadvertently steps on a landmine. I have seen this happen many times in chess, where a false claim has ended with the claimant going astray. Not so easy to see, though, was the engine call of 38.Kf1! just side-stepping all the tricks seems to hold the balance of the game, though after 38...Nxd3 39.Rxe6 Rd8 (39...Nxf2 40.Rxf2 Bxb2 41.Qxd5 Kh8 42.Rxe8 Rxe8 43.Qd2 Bxa3 44.Qxf4 Qc3) 40.Qb6 Nxf2 41.Qxf2 d4 White has to be very careful about the d-pawn, but with accurate play it seems to be will covered with 42.Rd2 d3 43.Re4 Rd5 44.Rxf4 Bg5 45.Rxf8+ Qxf8 46.Rd1! with the plan of Nb3-d2-e4 and Black can't make any progress. 38...Bh3! The tactics are all now winning for Nepo. 39.Bf1 Nf7 40.Qxd5 Rxe1 41.Bxe1 Bxd4+ 42.Kh1 Bc8 With Aronian a piece down, his resignation can't be far off now. 43.Bc4 Re8 44.Bb4 Qf6 45.Bd3 Bc3! [ see diagram ] A piece up, there's nothing like a little bit of showboating in a totally won position! The 'deflection' theme exchanges off some more pieces, as it exposes Aronian's back rank to a deadly mate. 46.Bxc3 Qxc3 47.g4 Qf6 48.Rc7 Re1+ 49.Kg2 Be6 50.Qh5 Qxb2+ 51.Kh3 h6 52.Qg6+ Qg7 53.Kh4 Rh1 0-1

Aronianplatz

Tue, 21 Feb 2023 17:29:03 GMT

“The chess world is a better place when Aronian is playing well!” So mused Garry Kasparov in 2015 when Levon Aronian hit a purple patch of creativity at the board. And th at Kasparov quote reverberates once again in 2023, as the former Armenian, who now lives in, and represents, the USA stormed into the sole lead in the WR Chess Masters in Dusseldorf, Germany.

Rolling back the years with a brace of solid wins in rounds 1 and 3 over top teenage talents Rameshbabu “Pragg” Praggnanandhaa and Nodirbek Abdusattorov respectively - and draws against Vincent Keymer & Jan-Krzysztof Duda - was enough to see Aronian, now regarded as the elder statesmen of the elite circuit, to jump into the lead on 3/4 going into the rest day of the only German supertournament on the elite circuit.

Aronian is a colourful character who always gives entertaining reasons when he hits a purple patch. The latest, he revealed in the official live stream, is that he is currently watching the miniseries Berlin Alexanderplatz , Rainer Werner Fassbinder's 15-hour odyssey through the underbelly of interwar Berlin. “The plot in 1920s Berlin is so sad,” says Aronian, “that it makes me happy as soon as I can sit at the board again. Everything is quite wonderful then.”

It may be the ‘old man’ who is in the lead, but teenage talents have been taking the plaudits with all the first-half pyrotechnics at the board - the standout sacrificial win proving to be Uzbek rising star Abdusattorov’s ‘Greek gift’ mauling of Andrei Esipenko, one of the two Russians in the field playing under the neutral FIDE flag due to sanctions imposed over the Ukrainian war.

Standings:

1. L. Aronian (USA) 3/4; 2-3. W. So (USA), Gukesh D (India) 2½; 4-7. A. Giri (Netherlands), I. Nepomniachtchi (FIDE), N. Abdusattorov (Uzbekistan) A. Esipenko (FIDE) 2; 8-9. JK. Duda (Poland) 1½; 10. V. Keymer (Germany) 1.

GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov - GM Andrey Esipenko

WR Chess Masters, (2)

Nimzo-Indian, Rubinstein variation

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.e3 The Rubinstein Variation, named after the great Akiba Rubinstein - who first brought this line into praxis against Alexander Alekhine during the famous St. Petersburg International of 1914 - is one of the most critical of White responses against the solid Nimzo-Indian. 4…0-0 5.Bd2 b6 6.Bd3 d5 A standard Nimzo-Indian set-up that rose to fame in the 1950s during those epic multi-round Candidates Tournaments of the era. 7.cxd5 exd5 8.Nf3 Re8 9.Rc1 Bf8 The immediate 9...c5 is also playable, and in some ways more preferable, where after 10.dxc5 bxc5 11.0-0 White will look to have play aga inst Black's central hanging pawns. 10.0-0 Bb7 11.Ne5 c5 12.f4 Nc6 13.Ne2 Ne4 14.Ng3 Nxd2? [ see diagram ] Not so much walking into a minefield as running into one! Abdusattorov's attack is building up steam for sure, but more manageable was 14...Nxg3 15.hxg3 Qd6 16.g4 g6 17.g5!? Bg7 (It's too dangerous to take the pawn with 17...cxd4? 18.exd4 Nxd4 as 19.Bc3 Ne6 20.Ng4 and Black is in deep trouble on the kingside.) 18.Bb5 Red8 19.Qf3 Rac8 20.Qf2 where White is better due to the attack, but Black is not without resources here to keep the game competitive. 15.Bxh7+! The 'Greek gift' never fails to entertain in chess! 15...Kxh7 16.Qh5+ Abdusattorov's attack basically plays itself, but he doesn't miss a beat with his follow up(s). 16...Kg8 17.Qxf7+ Kh8 18.Ng6+ Kh7 19.Nh5! Bang goes the old adage again of the knight on the rim being dim! 19...Re6 The only move to defend against the mating threat of Nxf8+ and Qxg7#. 20.f5 Nxf1 21.Rxf1 Qg5? A losing blunder from Esipenko. The only way to try to survive is with 21...Qe8! 22.Nxf8+ Qxf8 23.fxe6 (If 23.Qxe6 Qe8! is enough to hold the draw with 24.Nxg7 Kxg7 25.f6+ Kh6! (The other king moves lose, such as 25...Kh7? 26.Qh3+ Kg6 27.f7 Qe4 28.f8Q Rxf8 29.Qg3+! Kh5 30.Rxf8 Qb1+ 31.Rf1 Qe4 32.h4 and the Black king is snared in a mating net.) 23...Qxf7 24.Rxf7 Rb8 25.Nxg7 cxd4 26.exd4 Kg6 27.h4! Nxd4 28.h5+ Kg5 29.e7 and Black can only defend with the accurate 29...Bc6! 30.Rf8 Rb7 31.e8Q Bxe8 32.Nxe8 leaving an ending that Black should easily hold. 22.Qxe6 Qxh5 If 22...Ne7 23.Qf7! forces Black down the losing line of: 23...Nxg6 24.fxg6+ Qxg6 25.Nf6+ Kh6 26.Qxb7 Rd8 27.Qc7 Rd6 28.Ng8+ winning the bishop and also the game. 23.Rf3 The rook lift decides the game - there's no defence now . 23...cxd4 24.Qf7! Bd6 It was either this or going down even quicker with 24...Ne5 25.Nxf8+ Kh6 26.Qe6+ g6 27.Rh3 Qxh3 28.gxh3 Rxf8 29.Qxe5 d3 30.Qf4+ Kg7 31.Qd4+ and the White queen will clear up all the loose pawns. The text is still losing, but at least Esipenko keeps some hope alive with his pieces at least coming together as a cohesive unit. 25.Nf8+ Rxf8 26.Qxh5+ Kg8 27.f6! The final nail in the coffin, as it blows away the defence around Esipenko’s king. 27...Ne5 28.Rf5 g6 After 28...gxf6 29.exd4 and to defend his king, Black will need to give up his knight with 29...Rf7 30.dxe5 Bxe5 31.Qg6+ Kf8 32.Rh5 d4 33.Qd3 where, eventually, White will hunt down the Black king. 29.Qg5 Abdusattorov now quickly and very efficiently finishes off the gam e. 29...dxe3 30.Rxe5! Kf7 31.Rxe3 Bc5 32.b4 Bxe3+ 33.Qxe3 Re8 34.Qc3! Defending the f6 - pawn, stopping ...Re1+, and threatening Qc7+. 34...Bc8 35.a4 Bf5 36.h3 Abdusattorov is no particular hurry to rush things, and he's looking to play g4-g5. 36...Rd8 37.Qd4 Blockading the d-pawn. 37...Be6 38.g4 Rc8 39.g5 Rc1+ 40.Kf2 Rc2+ 41.Kg3 1-0

Looks Familiar

Fri, 17 Feb 2023 16:30:31 GMT

The only supertournament on German soil this year is a newcomer to the elite-scene, the WR Chess Masters - named after the initials of its sponsor, Wadim Rosenstein - is now underway in downtown Dusseldorf, and runs 15 through 26 February.

There’s something of an air of familiarity to the second supertournament of 2023 with seven of the ten participants also taking part in the recent Tata Steel Masters in Wik aan Zee: Dutch winner Anish Giri, Levon Aronian, Wesley So, Nodirbek Abdusattorov, Dommaraju Gukesh, Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa and Vincent Keymer; with Ian Nepomniachtchi, Andrey Esipenko and Jan-Krzysztof Duda completing the field.

All eyes will be on top seed and world No 2, Ian Nepomniachtchi to see if he can avoid the unmitigated disaster that befell China’s Ding Liren last month at Wijk aan Zee, so that the Russian, who is playing under the neutral FIDE flag, will go into their upcoming world title match - left vacant with Magnus Carlsen “abdicating” his title - at Astana in April with added confidence.

There was also a look of familiarity to one of the opening round games of the WR Chess Masters , as three-time US Champion Wesley So probably couldn’t believe his eyes as his opponent, Poland’s Jan-Krzysztof Duda, inexplicably walked into a famous tactical trap that was first played during the 1978 Buenos Aires Olympiad. Even your scribe remembers seeing this when he was a precocious young teenage chess fanatic, as he eagerly devoured the-then latest Chess Informant , the fabled Belgrade periodical that ruled when print was still king before the digital era.

This was a really big novelty first seen in the game Portisch-Radulov , and then a few days later, it was also used to good effect in Ribli-Ljubojevic, played in a more laissez faire time before the automatic digital recording of games, as the daily bulletins were printed the next day, and information from recent games wasn’t so “free-flowing” as it is now - hence the reason for Ribli being able to recycle the big Catalan novelty uncorked by his fellow Hungarian top-board teammate in a near carbon-copy win.

Round 1:

So 1-0 Duda

Aronian 1-0 Praggnanandhaa

Esipenko 1-0 Keymer

Nepomniachtchi ½-½ Abdusattorov

Giri ½-½ Gukesh

GM Wesley So - GM Jan-Krzysztof Duda

WR Chess Masters, (1)

Open Catalan

1.Nf3 d5 2.g3 Nf6 3.Bg2 c5 4.0-0 Nc6 5.d4 e6 6.c4 dxc4 7.Qa4 Bd7 8.Qxc4 If you thought you'd probably seen it all before in the Catalan, then you are probably correct, you have! But alas, in this game at least, Duda's chess education seems to be somewhat lacking. 8...cxd4 9.Nxd4 Rc8 10.Nc3 Nxd4 11.Qxd4 Bc5 12.Qh4 Bc6 13.Rd1 Qb6? Tempted by the "hanging fruit" on f2, Duda remarkably falls into a known tactical trap of four decades standing. Black should play instead 13...Qa5! that prevents the coming tactic, as Black can counter with ...Bxf2+ then ...Kxg7, as now there's no check on g5 as in the game. 14.Bxc6+ Rxc6 [ see diagram ] So probably couldn't believe his luck here, as Duda falls into what I always thought was a well-known tactic. 15.Bh6! Bf8 The only defence - and this is all still known from the published analysis of the above mentioned brace of 1978 Olympiad games. If 15...0-0 16.Bxg7 Bxf2+ 17.Kh1 Kxg7 18.Qg5+ Kh8 19.Qxf6+ Kg8 20.Ne4! Be3 21.Qe5 f5 (If 21...f6 22.Nxf6+ Rxf6 23.Qxf6 doesn't even bare thinking about.) 22.Rd7 winning. And also no use is 15...Bxf2+ 16.Kg2 gxh6 17.Qxf6 0-0 18.Qxf2 Qxb2 19.Ne4 with a big winning advantage. 16.Rd3! Simply threatening to double rooks on the d-file, and then crash home the attack. Also, as we see in the game, there are possibilities of a very annoying - and winning - Rb3 (or even Re3+) looming large. 16...Nd5 The d-file has to be blocked, even if it is a futile gesture, as anything else loses very quickly. One example being 16...Qxb2 17.Rb1 Qc2 18.Rc1 Qb2 19.Qf4! Rc8 20.Qa4+! b5 21.Qa6! and Black's position is on the brink. 17.Nxd5 exd5 18.Be3! Qxb2 The only thing Duda can do now is take the pawn and pray for a miracle that So somehow manages to mis-play this wonderful winning position. Not today, thank you very much! 19.Bd4 Qb4 20.Rb3 According to our Silicon Overlord, the clinical kill was 20.Qh5! as Black can't defend the d-pawn with 20...Qd6 down to 21.Re3+ Kd8 22.Rd1 and there's carnage coming down the d-file anyway. 20...Qe7 21.Qxe7+ Kxe7 Duda's king has somehow managed to survive the mating threats - but he's left with a total wreck of an endgame to have to forlornly play on with for a number of moves to make the game look more c redible. 22.Rxb7+ Ke6 23.Rb8 h5 24.Rab1 h4 25.Kg2 Kf5 26.Kf3 hxg3 27.hxg3 Rc4 28.e3 Rc2 As Duda can't bring his rook or bishop into the game, I supposse he should have been resigning about here - but you play on regardless, hoping to scrape past the time control to make the loss look more respectable than it really is. We're all human, after all. 29.R1b5 Kg6 30.Rxd5 Rxa2 31.Rdd8 The rest is just "padding out" the game to the time control before the inevitable resignation. 31...Rh2 32.Rxf8 Raxf2+ 33.Ke4 f6 34.Rb7 a6 35.Ra8 Ra2 36.Raa7 Rh7 37.Kf3 Ra5 38.Rb6 Rg5 39.Kg2! Praying for 39.Rbxa6?! Rh3 40.Rc7 Rgxg3+ that would at least make White break a sweat to win - but So isn't going to play ball...nor break sweat! 39...a5 40.e4 Rg4 41.Kf3 Rg5 42.Be3 Re5 43.Bf4 Rc5 44.e5! Rh8 45.Rba6 Rd8 46.exf6 gxf6 47.Rxa5 Rc3+ 48.Kg4 1-0

To My Valentine...

Tue, 14 Feb 2023 17:52:44 GMT

A few years back, I was amused and both saddened, but not at all surprised, to read Matthew Sadler’s New in Chess review of Bob Jones and Owen Hindle’s wonderful little book on a long-forgotten Victorian master: “If any of you have heard before about Cecil de Vere," the reviewer poignantly pondered, “…then I guess you are the two people who wrote this book!”

For those who don’t know this old master from the past, Cecil Valentine de Vere (to give him his full monicker) was born - fittingly, given his name - on Valentine’s Day in 1846, but he died in destitute from tuberculosis at the tragically young age of 29 in 1875. And if you have never read Jones and Hindle’s entertaining and enlightening biography on him, “The English Morphy”? , then you really should.

His death was a sad and rather squalid end for someone who only a few years earlier had been dubbed with the sobriquet “A Young Morphy”, by no less a figure than Wilhelm Steinitz, the first world champion-to-be. And much like the American enigma Paul Morphy, de Vere was just as big an enigma and could have been best described as the ‘pride and sorrow’ of British Chess.

At his peak, in 1866, de Vere - with youth on his side - was seriously being talked about as a potential world champion. That year, he had won the first British Chess Associations Challenge Cup (the forerunner of the British Championship - and he was the youngest player to win the title until Nigel Short) with a 100 per cent score.

This was followed by another big win at Redcar and respectable showings in the top international arena at Paris and Dundee. But Dundee proved to be his Waterloo, so to speak, because in the northern industrial Scottish city, the rot set in with a diagnosis of TB that ultimately lead into a spiral of alcoholism, ill-health, and ultimately a premature death.

Try to picture the scene, if you will: One day you are seen as the new darling of the game and dazzling the cream of elite chess in Dundee, the next you go to a Scottish doctor with a bad cough, and it all ends in a tragic spiral of your promising career being curtailed, and ultimately ends in an early death. Such were the vagaries of life for a chess master during the Victorian era!

On a more cheerier note, in honour of Valentine’s Day 2023 for all you young chess lovers, legendary American GM and composer, Pal Benko, created the suitable heart-themed puzzle in today’s diagram. It’s White to play and mate-in-two, and you will find the solution at the bottom of today’s game.

Cecil Valentine De Vere - Wilhelm Steinitz

Dundee International Congress , 1867

Ruy Lopez, Berlin Defence

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6 The dreaded Berlin Defence - but this was in an era when the Berlin was all the rage, and not the more modern-day 'Wall' variety with the queen exchange and an early endgame scenario. Men were men back then: they played for the cut-and-thrust of a swashbuckling game ! 4.0-0 Nxe4 5.Re1 And this was basically how they took on the Berlin back then - playing for lots of tricks and activi ty. 5...Nd6 6.Nxe5 Nxe5 7.Rxe5+ Be7 8.d4 f6 9.Re1 Nxb5 10.Qh5+ g6 11.Qxb5 c6 12.Qb3 d5 13.c4 Kf7?! This is typical of Steinitzian style. The first World Champion would often use his king in the opening or in the middle-game as an active piece. But here, in way be the lesser of two evils, as he has to get his king out from the middle of the board, and he can't castle as 13...0-0 14.cxd5 cxd5 15.Nc3 picks up the d-pawn. What he's hoping for, is to get the same variation with the big difference being that he can play ...Be6 defending the pawn. But De Vere brilliantly refute's Steinitz's conce pt. 14.Nc3 dxc4 15.Qxc4+ Kg7 16.d5 cxd5? "A frightful error of judgment," commented Steinitz. "The isolated passed pawn could certainly never have been as dangerous as the openings given by this capture at once to all the hostile pieces. Black ought to have played 16...c5." 17.Nxd5 Bf8? Yet another big error from Steinitz, who didn't see De Vere's next move. Instead, he had to accept he was in a bad way and try to limp on with 17...Bd6 18.Bf4 where White has a big - almost winning - advantage. 18.Nxf6!! A stunning blow that rips the defences around Steinitz's king. 18...Qxf6 The only move as 18...Kxf6?? 19.Qh4+ loses not only the queen, but also shortly after it , the king. 19.Bd2 b5 20.Qd5 b4 21.Rac1 It's not so much love from Valentine, more like 50 Shades of Grey , as De Vere's pieces become the epitome of domination. 21...Qf7 22.Qxa8 A more fitting finale would have been 22.Bh6+! Kg8 23.Qxa8 Bxh6 24.Rxc8+ Bf8 (If 24...Kg7 25.Rxh8 Bg5 26.Rb8 and Blac k can quickly resign.) 25.Qc6! and Black is in zugzwang. 22...Be6 23.Qe4 Bxa2 24.Qe5+ Kg8 There's nothing le f t now but to make a quick exit, as even 24...Qf6 25.Bh6+ Kf7 26.Rc7+ is overwhelming. 25.Rc7 Qd5 26.Qxd5+ All roads lead to Rome here, but De Vere could have rubbed in his dominance with the clinical finish of 26.Qf6 Qxd2 27.Rg7+ Bxg7 28.Re8+ Bf8 29.Rxf8# . 26...Bxd5 27.Re8 1-0 Steinitz can't avoid the lose of the bishop on f8 with mate.

Pal Benko solution: 1. Qd6+ Bxd6 Nd8# or 1.Qd6+ Qxd6 2.f5#

You Only Live Twice

Sat, 11 Feb 2023 17:35:33 GMT

A s Magnus Carlsen correctly predicted, Hikaru Nakamura did indeed go on to ‘live again’ by beating Wesley So to set-up a redux meeting in the Airthings Masters Grand Final between these two long-time rivals and now leading chess influencers - but once again, Carlsen emerged victorious to capture the first event of the new $2m Champions Chess Tour season.

With double elimination in the revamped Tour that includes the complicated - and for the purists, somewhat controversial - innovation of three Divisions, the Winners Final, Losers Final and the Grand Final (not to mention the possibility of a Reset Final), there are chances to live again after losing - but after being beaten by Carlsen in the Winners Final , and knocked down to the Losers bracket, you only live twice, Mr Nakamura!

After winning the open game of the "rematch", the Norwegian top dog went on to somewhat comfortably win 2.5-1.5 to take his second Airthings Masters title, as he netted the $30,000 top prize and maximum 150 CGT points. And with the early victory, defending Tour champion Carlsen has also ominously already booked his spot into the end-of-season Tour Playoffs in December.

The American speed maven can take consolation from securing $20,000 and 100 CCT points with his eventual runners up spot. Carlsen and Nakamura are also already guaranteed a place in Division 1 for the next tournament that starts on April 2 alongside Fabiano Caruana and Wesley So, who were promoted from Division 2.

Carlsen was somewhat humble and subdued in victory about his performance overall, pointing out that he only had five decisive games and 12 draws in his five match wins. “It feels a little bit weird,” he said. “Overall, I am a little bit underwhelmed since I didn't feel like the tournament ever got going. But there will be more excitement to come.”

He also paid tribute to his long-time rival: “I know Hikaru’s been fighting through some difficult stuff with his family. I think he’ll agree that he didn't manage to show his best level, but the fact that he gets through the qualifier and all the way to the final is a real testament to his strength of character.”

GM Magnus Carlsen - GM Hikaru Nakamura

Airthings Masters Grand Final, (1)

Queen’s Gambit Accepted

1.c4 Nf6 2.Nf3 e6 3.Nc3 d5 4.d4 dxc4 5.e4 This is one of the sharpest ways to respond to the Queen's Gambit Accepted - and credit to both players for keeping the game sharp and interesting with their no-holds-barred dynamic play. 5...b5 6.e5 Nd5 7.Nxb5 Nb6 This isn't exactly uncharted territory for these two titans - they had a clash with this sharp line in the original Magnus Carlsen Tour Final back in 2020. 8.a3 In that previous encounter in this line, Carlsen opted for 8.a4 and found an ingenious rook lift with a later Ra3 that swung over to the kingside to decide the game. This time, Carlsen finds another ingenious rook lift on the opposite wing that swings over to the queenside that decides the game! 8...Nc6 9.Be3 Qd7 10.Nc3 Bb7 11.Qc2 Na5?! [Even Nakamura self-critical of this move after the game: "I think in the first game I just put my knight on the wrong square, and it?s kind of crazy that putting the knight on the wrong square basically led to me getting a horrible position. I put this knight on a5 instead of e7 in Game 1, and then after that it was difficult. Maybe a computer could have found a better way to play it, but I thought that Magnus played very principled, and it was just a very clean win for him after that." Correct and more common is 11...Ne7 where the knight can more effectively come to f5 (or perhaps d5). But alas, by opting for a5, its just another re-inforcement of the old chess adage that a knight on the rim is dim. 12.Rd1 Rb8 13.Be2 Be7 14.h4 Gaining some real estate on the kingside - but only a prelude to a more devastating switch of direction on the queenside. 14...Bc6 15.h5 Ba4 16.Nxa4 Qxa4 17.Rc1 Nb3 18.Rb1 Qa5+?N As Bobby Fischer once wryly observed, "Patzer sees check, patzer gives check." It might disrupt White from castling, but it is not so much a novelty as a big blunder, as the random check has just served to nudge the king to safety on f1 anyway. Previously seen here has been 18...Na5 19.Qc1 Nd5 20.Bd2 c5 21.dxc5 0-0 22.0-0 c3 23.bxc3 Nc4 24.Bxc4 Rxb1 25.Qxb1 Qxc4 26.h6 where White was clearly better, but Black still with good survival chances due to the crippled queenside, as seen in Martirosyan-Anton, Terme Catez 2021. 19.Kf1 c5 20.h6! Carlsen achieves the feat of seeing the "AlphaZero" pawn quickly racing up the board to h6! 20...g6 21.dxc5 Bxc5 22.Bxc5 Qxc5 23.Rh4! Who needs to castle anyway? The rook lift suddenly wrecks havoc on Black's queenside, as there's a tactical hit on the c4-pawn that can't be stopped. 23...0-0 The only possible option when it dawns on you that 23...Rc8 24.Bxc4! Nxc4 25.Qxb3 is simply winning for White anyway. 24.Bxc4 The game is effectively over at this stage - but Carlsen's technique in finishing off Nakamura from here in is nothing short of impressive. 24...Rfc8 25.Bxb3 Qb5+ 26.Qe2 Qxb3 27.Rb4! The rook swinging over to the queenside just adds to Nakamura's agony, as his queen is bundled out of the game. 27...Qa2 Objectively best is 27...Qd5 but after 28.Rd1 Qc5 29.Nh2! with the idea of Ng4-f6+ is easily winning, so rather than dying on that particular hill, Nakamura - as is his wont - tries to mix it up a little with an obscure queen move to try to salvage something from the wreckage. 28.Rd1 a5 29.Rb5 a4 30.Qe4! Carlsen's technique is very instructive here. He's clearly winning, but he finds a way to force Nakamura into a humbling trade of queens or fa ce a quick mate with Qe4-f4-f6 etc. And with the queens safely off and the back-rank mating threats still on the board, Carlsen very effectively clears up in the endgame. 30...Qc4+ 31.Qxc4 Nxc4 32.Rxb8 Rxb8 33.Rd4 Rc8 The b-pawn is taboo. After 33...Nxb2? the simple win is 34.Ke2! Rc8 35.Rb4 Nc4 36.Rxa4 Nb6 37.Ra7 and the a-pawn is now also an added threat as well as the back-rank mating threats. 34.Rd7 Nxb2 35.Ng5 Rf8 This had to be nothing but pure agony for Nakamura, as Carlsen makes him suffer by having to defend an extremely passive position with his rook tied down to fending off the mating attacks. 36.Rd4! [ see diagram ] Carlsen twists the knife now by dominating the knight, which is now very short of squares. 36...Rc8 37.Rf4 Rc1+ There's no hope whatsoever for Nakamura. If 37...Rf8 the simple win is just 38.Ke2! and there's no stopping Ke2-d2-c2 and picking off the doomed knight. 38.Ke2 Rc2+ 39.Ke3 Rc3+ 40.Kd2 Rc7 After the little flurry of activity, Nakamura is resigned to the fact he has to defend the pawn. Now Carlsen squeezes the life out of his opponent's wreck of a position by creating a passed a-pawn. 41.Rb4 Nc4+ 42.Ke2 Rc8 Again Nakamura has to defend his back-rank. 43.Rxa4 Nxe5 44.Ra7 Total domination now from Carlsen - f7 is under a ttack, the back-rank mating threats still loom large, and now added to that heady mix now there's the a-pawn running up the board. 44...Ng4 If 44...Rf8 then simply 45.f3 denying the knight the g4 square is good enough to win. 45.Nxf7 Rb8 46.f3 Rb2+ 47.Kd3 Nf2+ 48.Kd4 Rd2+ A final flurry of activity for Nakamura - but it is short-lived. 49.Ke3 Ra2 50.Ng5 Nd1+ 1-0 And Nakamura resigns before Carlsen could play 51.Kd4 mating after 51...Kf8 52.Nxh7+ Ke8 53.Nf6+ Kd8 54.h7 etc.

Every Loser Wins

Thu, 09 Feb 2023 02:23:38 GMT

New Tour, new format…many new confusions!

The revamped $2m Champions Chess Tour proved to be slightly perplexing for the masses, but it also directly led to an early “Winners Final” in the Airthings Masters between two of the biggest rivals and influencers in the game, as Magnus Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura once again went head-to-head.

After crushing Alexey Sarana, Carlsen then faced a somewhat tricky and tense encounter with Arjun Erigaisi, before he eventually overcame the spirited challenge of the rising 19-year-old Indian star in an Armageddon play-off to make it through to the Winners Final.

Similarly, in the all-American clash, Nakamura - after ending Gukesh D’s spectacular run after the Indian teenager won the 'Play-In’ contest - also needed Armageddon to beat Wesley So to set up the showdown with Carlsen. And this is where it started to confuse many used to more conventional chess formats.

The Tour has adopted a double elimination format with one of either Carlsen and Nakamura set to lose in the Winners Final held earlier today and both facing each other once again! That proved to be a lacklustre affair even by the high standards of these two online ‘big beasts’, where, after a series of four draws, Carlsen went on to scrap home in the Armageddon play-off.

Afterwards, Carlsen commented: “I think the chances are pretty high that I'll be facing him again and then I hope we both can play a bit better, because I think this was a match that was not representative of our levels.”

But every loser can win on the Tour. Nakamura now goes into the “losers bracket” to play a final in there, and if he were to win that and win again on Friday against Carlsen in the Grand Finale, he can still claim overall victory in the competition.

For now though, Carlsen is already in the Grand Final and will play for $30,000 and a spot in the Champions Chess Tour Playoff in December. His opponent is not yet known, but it could well be Nakamura again, if he beats the winner of So-Erigaisi on Thursday!

GM Magnus Carlsen - GM Alexey Sarana

Airthings Masters Div 1 (1)

Catalan Opening

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.g3 Bb4+ 5.Bd2 Be7 6.Bg2 c6 7.Qc2 Nbd7 8.Bf4 0-0 9.h4!? A novelty early doors from Carlsen that totally flummoxes his opponent; the critical point being not capturing a pawn later on d5 when the storm hit. 9...b6 10.Nc3 Bb7 11.e4 dxe4 12.Ng5 c5 13.d5!? A common motif in the Catalan is to sacrifice the d-pawn to dramatically burst the game open - and here, Sarana takes on the persona of a rabbit caught in the coming headlights by failing to react . 13...exd5 14.cxd5 Nh5?! The critical point in the game, and Sarana balks and quickly regret s not taking Carlsen head-on with 14...Nxd5 15.Nxd5 Bxd5 16.0-0-0!? Nf6!? 17.f3!? when the game starts to go a tad "random", but after 17...exf3! 18.Bxf3 Bxf3 19.Rxd8 Bxh1 20.Rd1 Bc6 21.Be5 g6 and Black can't really be unhappy here, being slightly the better in this unbalanced position with the pieces more than a match for the queen. 15.Be3 f5 16.Ne6 Qb8 17.g4!! A touch of Carlsen magic - and much, much stronger than simply taking the rook. And on the whole, this uber-aggressive move was likely just missed by Sarana. The collapse now comes very quickly. 17...fxg4 18.Bxe4 Ndf6 19.Nxf8 Qxf8 20.0-0-0! What's not to like here for the World Champion? Magnus is both material up AND he has a huge attack. 20...Bd6? The engine at least wants to try to hang in th ere with 20...Nxe4 21.Qxe4 Nf6 but after 22.Qf5 Bc8 23.Qd3 White clearly stands better with Rhe1 coming and eventually the d-pawn pushing down the board. 21.Bf5 Re8 22.Rhe1 Kh8 23.Kb1 Just p reventing any check tricks and clearing the path for the d-pawn push. 23...a6 24.Bg5 b5?! The last try to grimly hang on was with 24...Re5 25.Be6 Rxe1 26.Rxe1 and now 26...b5 27.Ne4 Nxe4 28.Qxe4 Qxf2 29.Bxg4 but White stil l has a crushing position. 25.Re6! In poker parlance, this would be termed as "coming over the top". 25...Rd8 26.Ne4! [ see diagram ] You don't need a computer engine to tell you who is better here - the visuals on the board is more than enough, as Carlsen invites all his pieces to the party. 26...Bf4 27.Bxf6 Nxf6 28.Nxf6 gxf6 29.Qe4 Be5 30.Qxg4 c4 31.Qh5 Qg8 32.Re7 1-0 Sarana throws the towel in as there's no way to stop the mate-in-5.

The Play-In

Mon, 06 Feb 2023 18:47:40 GMT

One of the major - and much welcomed - changes to the format of the revamped $2m Champions Chess Tour is that, for the first time, it is genuinely open to all grandmasters to compete for a berth to play against the likes of Magnus & Co. It’s called a ‘Play-In’, and the first, for a place to alongside the big guns in the Airthings Masters Knockout - that gets underway today - was sensationally won by Indian rising star Gukesh D.

Unlike the monetary ‘Buy-In’ seen in poker, this one does what it says on the side of the tin, with everyone having to do battle in a gruelling 8-hour Play-In day that began with a 146-player, 9-round Swiss where all grandmasters could play.

At the end of the day, the 16-year-old from Chennai went undefeated scoring six wins, that remarkably included three against former World Champion Vladmir Kramnik, and three draws as he dominated the super-strong field. Along with Gukesh D, five other top GMs - Rauf Mamedov, Alireza Firouzja, Arjun Erigaisi, Alexey Sarana, and Hikaru Nakamura - also qualified for Division I after the Match Play segment.

The sextet go forward now to face Magnus Carlsen, the 2022 Champions Chess Tour winner, and Wesley So, the 2022 Global Chess.com Champion, who were the only players invited into the $235,000 Airthings Masters — a double-elimination knockout split into three divisions that runs February 6-10.

The new format comes with Chess.com successful takeover of the Play Magnus Group and spans a full season of online chess comprising six events starting with the Airthings Masters followed by Playoffs and culminating with knock-out Final in December. Each event has a prize fund of $235,000.

GM Vladimir Kramnik - GM Gukesh D

Airthings Masters Play-In, (7)

English Opening

1.c4 c5 2.g3 g6 3.Bg2 Bg7 4.Nc3 Nc6 5.Nf3 e6 6.b3 Nge7 7.Ba3 b6 8.d4 There are lines of the English Opening with an early b4 - rather than d4 - with similar themes of looking to hit the hole on d6. 8...0-0 Bad was 8...cxd4?! 9.Nb5! 0-0 10.Rc1 and White has a clear advantage with the d4-pawn set to be recaptured. And there's also;

8...Nxd4 9.Nxd4 d5!? 10.Rc1 Bxd4 11.b4!? which is a little similar to what happens in the game . 9.0-0 d5 10.cxd5 exd5 11.Rc1 Nxd4 12.Nxd4 Bxd4 13.b4 Ba6 14.bxc5 Bxc5 15.Bb2?! Too ambitious from Kramnik, as he attempts to bamboozle his younger and less experienced opponent with pressure down the long a1-h8 diagonal - but it only backfires to bamboozle the former world champion himself! Instead, he had to go for simplifying with 15.Bxc5 bxc5 16.Nxd5 Nxd5 17.Bxd5 Bxe2 18.Bxf7+ Rxf7 19.Qxe2 Rf5 20.Qe6+ Kh8 21.Rfd1 Qe8! where White has a marginal advantage, but it is doubtful he has anything that looks like a winning in the ensuing double R+P endgam e. 15...Rc8 16.Nxd5 Nxd5 17.Bxd5 Qg5 ! Timing is everything, because with one excellent and accurate move, suddenly it is Gukesh who is taking control with the more active pieces, plus the added threat looms of rooks coming to d8 and e8. 18.Qb3? Kramnik had to bail-out now with 18.Bf3 (White would really like to be able to play 18.h4 here, but that would lose on-the-spot to 18...Qxg3+!) 18...Rfe8 19.Re1 Qf5! with Black having slightly the better of equality with a hidden double tactic on f2 and e2. 18...Bxe2! With White's bishops menacingly threatening, some might well have feared that Kramnik had 'something' - but Gukesh shows no fear by snatching the pawn to take comman d. 19.Rfe1 Qd2! As Kramnik collapses, you begin to believe that he might not have fully appreciated just how strong a move this was for his opponent; the big threat being ...Bxf2+ followed by a nasty discovered check. 20.Bc3 Qd3 21.Qc2 A sure admission from Kramnik that he is now in dire straits - and not in any good way either by standing in-between brothers Mark & David Knopfler! 21...Qxc2 22.Rxc2 Bd3! [ see diagram ] Gukesh has a solid pawn, but what is really impressive is how he belies his age by showing no respect whatsoever for the former world champion, as he very effectively polishes off his more illustrious opponent. 23.Rd2 Bf5 24.Bf6 There's just no way to avoid a tactic on f2 winning a second pawn, so Kramnik goes for broke now by sacrificing the exchange to try and make something - anything - with his bishop-pair. 24...Bb4 25.Ree2 Bxd2 26.Rxd2 Rc2 27.Rd1 Rfc8 Slightly more clinical was 27...Be6! 28.Bb3 (If 28.Bxe6 fxe6 29.Be5 Rfxf2 easily wins.) 28...Bxb3 29.axb3 Rfc8 30.Kg2 R2c6 31.Bg5 Rc3 32.b4 R3c4 33.Be7 a5! 34.bxa5 bxa5 and the passed a-pawn will be unstoppable. 28.Kg2 b5 29.Rd4 Be6! Effectively the game is over at this point. 30.Bxe6 fxe6 31.Rd7 R2c7 32.Rd6 Kf7 33.Be5 Rb7 34.h4 There's no defence. If 34.Ra6 Rc4! with the threat of ...Ra4 coming. 34...b4 It's just a matter of time now for Gukesh to cash in on his massive advantage . 35.Ra6 Rc5 36.f4 h5 37.Kh3 Rd7 38.Bd6 Rc4 39.Be5 Rc2 40.Bd6 Kg8! 0-1 And with it being zugzwang, Kramnik resigns. The point is that the king just moves out of any check to set-up the quick mate after 41.Be5 Rdd2! 42.Rxa7 Rh2#

Ta-ta, Tata!

Fri, 03 Feb 2023 20:14:22 GMT

As we conclude our final report on the 85th Tata Steel Masters with a fond au revoir , we can at least console ourselves that this historic super-tournament is now one of the few remaining Chessic constants and the countdown has started with now "just" 342 days to the 86th edition that will once again take place in Wijk aan Zee, the Netherlands, running 12-28 January 2024.

So what is it that makes the first major of the year so special, not only for the players, but also the fans? On a technical level, it is always impeccably run by Jeroen van den Berg and his very experienced organising team, with excellent playing conditions inside the hallowed 'De Moriaan' playing venue.

That helps, but the truth more often than not can be found in the camaraderie of it not being just one single super-tournament, but rather a whole raft of subsidiary events, going right down to sections for club players and juniors - and this more than anything creates a genuine buzz all under the one roof.

After all, there’s very few venues where wannabe teenage world title aspirants, grandmasters, amateurs and chess enthusiasts from all around the world can play in the same playing hall as Magnus Carlsen & Co. And while all eyes are rightly firmly fixed on the Tata Steel Masters, there’s also a Challengers and ‘C’ tournament that have traditionally become a showcase for tomorrow’s stars.

That's because t his is an event built on a true egalitarian spirit, with each winner qualifying for promotion to the higher section the following year - the most famous to have risen through the ranks is unquestionably Carlsen, who shot to overnight back fame in 2004 by winning the ‘C’ tournament. The rest is history, as they say.

The Challengers has an added cache therefore, as it comes with the hottest ticket on the elite circuit, with a coveted seat for the winner into the next year’s Masters - and this is what makes it a formidable event in its own right, with the battle to take the title being very keenly-contested, leading to many interesting games, and invariably the race going down to the wire of a nervous final round.

As ever, play was extremely fierce throughout, but this year there was a runaway winner in Alexander Donchenko of Germany. Despite Donchenko trailing in the first half, he rallied with an astonishing winning streak - that also included a remarkable 5.5/6 with the black pieces! - going down the home stretch to secure total victory with a round to spare and a final tally of 10/13, a full point clear of nearest rival Mustafa Yilmaz.

IM Thomas Beerdsen - GM Alexander Donchenko

Tata Steel Challengers, (12)

Caro-Kann Defence, Advance variation

1.e4 c6 Every time I see a Caro-Kann on the board, I am reminded of the great Bent Larsen’s words of wisdom to a promising pre-teen who played it religiously: “If you play the Caro-Kann when you’re young, what are you going to play when you’re older?” 2.d4 d5 3.e5 The Advance variation is a byword for double-edged play on both sides; a variation that - very fittingly - came to fame with the ris e of Mikhail Tal. 3...Bf5 4.h4 h5 5.c4 e6 6.Nc3 dxc4 7.Bxc4 Nd7 8.Nge2 Be7 9.g3 A long-time devotee of the Advance is leading English GM Michael Adams, who usually prefers here 9.Ng3 though after 9...Bg6 10.Nge4 Nh6 11.Bxh6 Rxh6 White has next to nothing but did go on to grind out a win in Adams - Keymer, Karlsruhe 2020. 9...Nh6 10.Bf4 The usual preference in the Advance is Bg5, but as the bishop can't go to g5, the options now are few and far between. 10...Qb6 And also a common Advance motif when the dark-squared bishop moves. 11.0-0 Rd8 12.Qc1 Rightly getting off the problematic d-file before Black can hit in the centre with ...c5 - not that this stops Donchenko in the game! 12...a6 It is far too early now for 12...c5? with 13.d5! busting the game open to White's big advantage. 13.Be3? With the natural intentions of stopping ...c5 - but this is a blunder that only encourages it to be played! More sensible was 13.Bb3 Ng4 (If 13...c5 and again 14.d5 is good for White.) 14.Bg5 but Black has some enterprising play with 14...Bxg5 15.Qxg5 0-0!? 16.Qxh5 Nh6 17.Qf3 c5 and excellent counterplay. 13...c5! It was probably only about now that the young Dutch IM would have been seeing the error of his ways, by thinking he'd prevented the very move that has now been played! The remarkable thing, though, is just how quickly White's position now implodes. 14.Rd1 White is well and truly up the proverbial creek without the proverbial paddle. If 14.dxc5 Bxc5 15.Bxc5 (Alas 15.Na4? runs into 15...Bxe3!) 15...Qxc5 and Black will easily pick-off the e5 pawn. And also no use is 14.d5? Nxe5! with a material and big positional advantage. And you know it is bad when even the engine is beginning to suggest supine alternatives such as 14.b3. 14...Ng4! [ see diagram ] All the tactics are now winning for Black - if only all Caro-Kann's were as easy as this! 15.Bb3 Again the engine was waving the white flag with the suggestion of 15.b3. 15...0-0 16.dxc5 Bxc5 17.Na4 What else is there? If 17.Bxc5 Nxc5 18.Bc2 Nd3! hits like a th underbolt with a multi-piece mating attack on f2. 17...Bxe3 18.Nxb6 Bxc1 19.Nxd7 Bxb2! 20.Nxf8 Rxf8 21.Nd4 Bg6 Played with what I can only imagine was a serene sense of calmness, knowing that Black is going to win back the sacrificed material - and then some! 22.Rac1 White can't even salvage something from the wreckage, as he's about to be hit by a game-winning knight fork on f3. 22...Nxe5! 0-1

New Tour, New Beginnings

Wed, 01 Feb 2023 21:56:26 GMT

Amidst all the dramatic action at the Tata Steel Masters in Wijk aan Zee, the official announcement came from Chess.com, which recently acquired the Play Magnus Group of companies, of an expanded and streamlined 2023 Champions Tour , previously staged on Chess24, replete with a bumper $2m+ prize fund, making it the richest and most prestigious annual circuit in chess history, and now open to any internationally titled player.

The Tour kicks off with the Airthings Masters on 6 February, followed on 13 February by the first open qualifier. The format is more complex, with no invitations as such, and essentially giving many more players a chance to win serious money. The Tour season will culminate in December with 8-player Playoffs and a 4-player Finals to decide who takes the online crown and the $200,000 top prize.

Norway’s Magnus Carlsen, the two-time Tour winner, will be back again to defend his title as he heads a stellar cast of chess superstars that will also include his long-time rival and fellow chess influencer, Hikaru Nakamura, and the 2022 Chess.com Global Chess Champion Wesley So, for the rebranded Tour that looks to build on the best tournament formats hosted on both platforms.

Many have feared about the future Chess24 with the merger, but, for now, fans will be relieved that it is set to continue with its high-quality coverage and analysis, and spearheaded once again by top commentators Peter Leko and Peter Svidler for the Airthings Masters. One big change, however, is that the Oslo based-studio is believed to be switching over to Chess.com, though with the regular commentary team - Kaja Snare, GM David Howell, IM Jovanka Houska and IM Tanja Sachdev - that will also be expanded by new talent from Chess.com, such as GM Robert Hess.

Chess.com CEO Erik Allebest said: “This is a new beginning for the chess world online. What we are seeing here is the two great tournaments from last year coming together to form the biggest online chess event in history.”

Carlsen will be eager to win a hat-trick of Tour titles. At Wijk, despite a brace of back-to-back losses to eventual winner Anish Giri, and runner-up Nodirbek Abdussatorov, the world number-one will at least have some conciliation with his second-half rally and exciting final round win to notch up the most number of won games (5) and, conversely with it, the most number of decisive games (7) in the tournament.

GM Arjun Erigaisi - GM Magnus Carlsen

Tata Steel Masters, (13)

Double Fianchetto/King’s Indian Defence

1.Nf3 Nf6 2.g3 b6 3.Bg2 Bb7 4.0-0 g6 The Double Fianchetto Defence is a rare bird at the elite-level - but perfectly playable nevertheless. I would image that Carlsen didn't want to get into the sort of Queen's Indian agony that he suffered earlier in the tournament to eventual winner Anish G iri. 5.c4 Bg7 6.d4 0-0 7.d5 Na6 8.Nc3 Nc5 9.Nd4 e5 10.Nc2 a5 11.b3 d6 Although the game started off as a Double Fianchetto Defence, it quickly transposes - as can often happen in the DFD - into more familiar territory of the King's Indian Defence . 12.e4 Bc8 13.Na3 Ne8 14.Nab5 Bd7 15.Rb1 f5 16.f3 f4 17.a3 g5 18.b4 Nb7 19.g4 h5 20.h3 Rf7 21.Kf2 Bf8 We're seeing all the motifs now of the KID - and I imagine that Carlsen would have been the more happier here, as his lower-rated opponent seems to be in unfamiliar territory. 22.Rg1 Rh7 23.Bf1 Nf6 24.Ke1 Qc8 A bold move looking to ratchet up the pressure on white's kingside - but more crucially, the queen vacates her home square to allow the b7 knight to come into the game. 25.Rb2 Nd8 26.Qd3 Nf7 27.Kd1 Sensing the potential dangers on the kingside, Erigaisi looks to run his king to safety on the queenside. 27...Be7 28.Kc2 axb4 You can run, but you can't hide, as Carlsen releases the tension on both wings to bring his rooks into the game. 29.axb4 hxg4 30.hxg4 Ra1 31.Rb1 Rh2+ Forcing a wholesale trade of rooks - not that that stops Carlsen's intentions of finding a breakthrough. 32.Rg2 Rxg2+ 33.Bxg2 Rxb1 34.Kxb1 Nxg4!?! Of course, the engine doesn't believe in this sacrifice for a couple of pawns and the threat from the pawn phalanx - but for a human, seeing such a speculative sacrifice on the board can come as a psychological blow that you react wrongly to. 35.fxg4 Bxg4 36.Bf3 Bh3?! Carlsen opts to continue to roll the dice with his gamble. If you wanted to play it safer, then you could go for 36...Bxf3 37.Qxf3 g4 38.Qh1 g3 and good "chances" of the pawns weighing heavily in the opponent's mind. 37.Bh5 g4 This is a fantastic final round street-fight, as the engine is all over the shop with the assessment bar going up and down like a wild rollercoaster ride - but for a human, the visuals don't look good as there's a great fear that the pawns will simply prove to be unstoppable. 38.Ne2 Bf1 Also good and worthy of a punt was the immediate 38...Ng5!?. 39.Qd1 Bg2 40.Bg6 Ng5 41.Nbc3 Bf3 The engine still believes White is better here - but, if anything, all that has happened is that Carlsen has been given the time to better co-ordinate his pieces. 42.Qf1 Kg7 43.Bf5 Qh8! And with this move, Carlsen now takes control of this double-edged position. 44.Nxf4 Under a lot of pressure, Erigaisi decides to return the sacrificed material, looking to get some activity for his pieces rather than being rolled over by the phalanx of pawns storming down the board. Understandable, when you consider that stopping the queen invasion on h2 with 44.Qg1 Qh4! with the plan of ...g3 and the inevitable invasion anyway on h2. 44...exf4 45.Bxf4 Bf6 46.Qc1 Nf7 Erigaisi at least has some activity now - but stronger and better for Carlsen, according to the engines, was 46...Qh4! but the human gut-instinct will worry that White might find some game-saving breakthrough on the queenside, hence his hesitation. 47.Nb5 Qa8! Carlsen's hesitation has paid-off, as the queen switch over to the queenside very suddenly puts the white king in grave danger now. 48.e5?! You worry about the queens being exchanged and the g-pawn running down the board, but the engine - rightly - points out that this was White last hope, and after 48.Qa3!? Qxa3 49.Nxa3 Be5 50.Be3 g3 51.Nb5! suddenly we are getting into a scenario where White can possibly sacrifice the bishop to liquidate all of the Black pawns that will leave nothing more than a technically drawing position, such as 51...g2 52.Nxc7 Kf6 53.Kc2 Nh6 54.Bxb6 Nxf5 55.exf5 Bh2 56.Nb5 Be2 57.Kb3 Ke5 58.Bf2 g1Q 59.Bxg1 Bxg1 60.f6! Bh5 (If 60...Kxf6 61.Nxd6 will easily draw.) 61.Ka4 Bf2 (If 61...Bb6 62.Nxd6! Kxd6 63.c5+ and a draw.) 62.Ka5 given the opportunity, the king is heading to c7. 62...Bg6 63.Ka6 Be1 64.c5! Bxb4 65.c6 Kxf6 66.c7 Bf5 67.Kb7 and a draw. 48...dxe5 49.Bd2 Nd6! 50.Bh6+ There's no time for 50.Nxc7 as 50...Qa4! 51.Bc2 Be4! 52.Bxe4 Nxe4 53.Ne6+ Kf7 54.Be1 Qb3+ 55.Qb2 Qxc4 and Black easily wins. 50...Kf7 51.Nxd6+ cxd6 52.Bg5 Looking for a possible game-saver with the queen coming to h6 - but Carlsen soon see through that. 52...Qh8! [ see diagram ] And now the sudden switch of the queen back to the kingside proves decisive, as Erigaisi, being pummelled by the relentless pressure, can't defend both his king and the looming threat from the g-pawn running down the board. 53.Be3 If 53.Bxf6 Kxf6! 54.Be6 g3 55.Qe3 Qh1+ 56.Kb2 Kg6! and g2-g1 is unstoppable. 53...e4 Now there's not only two passed pawns for Erigaisi to worry about, there also remains a threat to his king. 54.Bxb6 Qh2 55.Bg1 Qe2 56.b5 Qd3+ 0-1 And Erigaisi resigns in view of the mating net with 57.Ka2 [Also mating was 57.Qc2 Qa3 58.Qa2 Qb4+ 59.Kc2 Qc3+ 60.Kb1 Qe1+ 61.Kc2 Qd1#] 57...Bd1! 58.Be6+ Kg6 59.Qb1 Qxc4+ 60.Ka3 Qa4#.

Finally!

Mon, 30 Jan 2023 22:19:08 GMT

Dutch courage and double Dutch proved to be the buzzwords in a dramatic and thrilling finale to the 85th Tata Steel Masters in Wijk aan Zee, the Netherlands, as the nation’s No1, Anish Giri, scored a major upset victory to “finally” win the historic Dutch tournament following a remarkable reversal of fortunes to befall Nodirbek Abusattorov, the Uzbek teenage front-runner.

Abusattorov, 18, led every single round until the last - and with his half-point lead, he looked to be on the verge of becoming the second-youngest winner of the first major of the year since Magnus Carlsen. But the sound in Tashkent turned out not to be champagne corks popping but rather wails of disbelief, as Jorden Van Foreest, the Dutch No2, took down Abdusattorov to gift the title to his countryman

Giri, 28, also had his own good luck going for him in the final round, as his opponent, Richard Rapport, oblivious to the dangers, walked into a cheapo that at long last saw the Dutch No1 win his nation’s most prestigious and coveted super-tournament victory without the need for a playoff, having previously been runner-up five-times, and memorably losing playoffs to Magnus Carlsen and Van Foreest, in 2018 and 2021 respectively.

The “home advantage” inspired Giri to the biggest result of his career, with an unbeaten +4 winning score of 8½/13 (4 wins and nine draws) proving enough to take the fabled trophy forged at the nearby Tata Steel foundry that originally gave birth to the tournament back in 1938.

In victory, Giri praised the “Team Netherlands” camaraderie he’d enjoyed with his fellow countryman: “I felt during the games at some point it was a team match. It reminded me of the Olympiad, when me and Jorden, you have to beat the other team, some strange team that decided to buy Richard and Nodirbek — could be USA in a couple of years, who knows!”

Final standings:

1. A. Giri (Netherlands) 8½/13; 2-3. N . Abdusattorov (Uzbekistan), M. Carlsen (Norway) 8; 4. W. So (USA) 7½; 5-6. F. Caruana (USA), P. Maghsoodloo (Iran) 7; 7-8. L. Aronian (USA), R. Rapport (Romania) 6½; 9-10. R. Praggnanandhaa (India), J. Van Foreest (Netherlands) 6; 11-12. Ding Liren (China), D. Gukesh (India) 5½; 13. V. Keymer (Germany) 5; 14. A. Erigaisi (India) 4.

GM Anish Giri - GM Richard Rapport

Tata Steel Masters, (13)

Sicilian Richter-Rauzer

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Nc6 6.Bg5 The Richter-Rauzer was named in honour of two leading masters from the early part of the 20th century: Vsevolod Rauzer, a recognised Soviet opening theory expert, and the German master Kurt Richter. 6...g6 More usual is the main-line with 6...e6 7.Qd2 Bd7 8.0-0-0 - but with this game likely to play an important role for the outcome of the tournament, and Rapport having a tendency to surprise with risky openings, he ups the ante for his opponent with an off-beat sideline rather than walking into a well-prepared line from the Dutchman. 7.Bxf6 Usually in the Richter-Rauzer proper, we would see ...e6 and ...Be7, Bxf6 gxf6, and, despite the crippled pawn structure, Black has the bishop-pair and a solid mini-centre that is difficult for White to bludgeon a way through to the opponent's king. 7...exf6 8.Bb5 Bd7 9.Bc4 Also interesting was the strategical retreat now with 9.Nf3!? making it difficult for Black to fianchetto the dark-squared bishop - but I guess after 9...Be6 White may well have nothing better than 10.Nd4 Bd7 anyway. 9...Bg7 10.Nxc6 Bxc6 Rapport may well have the bishop-pair, but here Black's pawn structure is nothing short of a wreck - a wreck where White has an easy target of the vulnerable and weak backward d6-pawn. 11.0-0 0-0 12.Qd3 Giri is looking to consolidate his p osition by defending c4 and e4 while bringing a rook to the d-file to heap more pressure on the d6-pawn - but Black does have moves in this scenario! 12...Rc8 13.Nd5 Re8 The immediate 13...f5!? looked a strong option here as 14.exf5 Bxb2 15.Rab1 Bg7 16.fxg6 hxg6 17.f4 b5! 18.Bxb5 Bxd5 19.Qxd5 Rxc2 20.a4 Rc5 21.Qd3 Qh4 and Black does at least have active play for his weak d-pawn. 14.c3 Bd7 15.Bb5 Looking to trade the light-squared bishops under favourable circumstances with the strong Nd5 dominating - for now, at least - the bad bishop on g7. 15...Bc6 16.Bc4 Bd7 Putting the question to Giri: Do you want to repeat again with Bb5 Bc6, or find a different plan to keep the game going. With no dangers in his position, Giri rightly opts to fight on with the latter. 17.Rfe1 f5 18.Bb3 fxe4 19.Rxe4 Bf5 20.Rxe8+ Qxe8 Rapport has at least opened the board for his bishop-pair and traded a set of rooks, but there still remains the big question over the backward d-pawn. 21.Qd2 Be6 Rapport has weathered the storm, and all expectations now was that he had more than enough compensation for the weak d-pawn to steer the game towards a draw. 22.Rd1 Qd7 23.h3 b5 24.Qf4 Rc5 25.Ne3 Be5 26.Qe4 Kg7 27.f4 Also an option wanted by the engines was 27.Bxe6 fxe6 28.Ng4 Qc7 29.Nxe5 Rxe5 30.Qd4 g5 31.f3 Kf6 32.Qxd6 Qxd6 33.Rxd6 Re2 but I guess, even sans a pawn, the human instinct can see that the R+P endgame after 34.Ra6 Rxb2 35.Rxa7 h5 looks not to be enough to win with the Black rook ideally placed on the seventh rank. 27...Bf6 28.g4 The only sensible move after playing f4 - the only little snafu is that it does leave some big holes in White's kingside. 28...h6 29.Bd5 Bxd5 30.Nxd5 Rc4 31.Qf3 Qe6 32.f5 Again, the only try now is to continue to 'mix it' up a little and hope for a miracle. 32...gxf5 33.Nf4 Qe5 34.Nh5+ Kg6?? Miracles can, and do, happen! Heaven knows what exactly was going through Rapport's mind here, as this is just a brain freeze on an epic level as, somehow or other, he's missed a major cheapo/swindle by voluntarily walking his king into a mating net. There was two relatively easy-to-find moves for the king, either 34...Kg8 (or even 34...Kh7) 35.Rf1 Bd8! 36.Qxf5 Qxf5 37.Rxf5 b4 and the game is just heading for an easy draw. 35.Rxd6! [ see diagram ] And with it, Giri probably couldn't believe his luck here, as all his birthdays and Christmases have come at once with a very unexpected and crucial win for the biggest tournament victory of his career - and at home in front of the enthusiastic and very patriotic Dutch fans. 35...Kg5 Of course, Rapport missed the rook sac swindle, the unexpected (full!) point being that 35...Qxd6 36.Qxf5#. 36.Rd5 It never rains but it pours for poor Rapport, as his king goes on a suicide walk. 36...Qe1+ 37.Kg2 Be7 38.Rxf5+ Kh4 39.Qg3+ 1-0 After the sudden game-changer with Rapport's epic blunder, Understandably, Giri - probably still pinching himself in total disbelief - opts to take the safe route to victory that comes with Rapport's instant resignation, but the crowd-pleasing forced mate was 39.Ng3 Rc5 (There's no defence. If 39...Bg5 40.Rd5! Rf4 41.Nf5+ Rxf5 42.gxf5 and there's no stopping the dual mate with Qg4+ or Rd4+.) 40.Qf4! Bg5 41.Rxc5!! Qg1+ 42.Kxg1 Bxf4 43.Kg2! Bg5 At least stopping Rh5#, but leaving the door open for 44.Nf5#. At the end, Rapport resigned as 39...Qxg3+ 40.Nxg3 Rc5 [If 40...Bg5 41.Rxb5 and we're back to the theme of Nf5#.] 41.b4 easily wins.

Rook Endings 101

Thu, 26 Jan 2023 16:24:21 GMT

The great Viktor Korchnoi - as is Viktor’s wont - used to say words to the effect “the youngsters need to understand Rook and pawn endings.” And with those sage words from the maestro in mind, in today’s diagram we reached what could well be the critical moment of the 85th Tata Steel Masters , coming from the round nine clash between teenagers Vincent Keymer and Norbriek Abdusattorov, the tournament leader.

White (Keymer) is easily winning (+5, according to the engines); but to win requires a little technique that sadly the German teenager lacked by bizarrely playing 80.Rb6?? - a shocking move that would have had Korchnoi turning in his grave as if on the spin cycle. In an instance, it allowed a somewhat relieved Abdusattorov to dodg e a bullet with 80…Rh1+ 81.Kg4 Rg1+ 82.Kh5 Rg3 and a draw, allowing the Uzbek teen to retain his lead at the top.

Lacking such basic endgame knowledge is, as some would argue, the price we pay for the acceleration of time-controls over the past decade or so, as the younger generation grandmasters are not so well versed in endgames technique as they once were. The correct way to win was with 80.Rf8! keeping the king cut off and targeting the f-pawn, and where the rook can nudge the enemy king even further aw ay from the action after 80…Rf1 81.Kg4 Rg1+ 82.Kh5 Rf1 83.Kg6! Rxf3 84.Re8+! Kd4 (If 84...Kd6 85.Re4! Rf1 86.Kf6 Kd5 87.Kf5 f3 88.Rf4 winning. ) 85.Kf5 Kd5 86.Re4 Kd6 87.g6 Rg3 88.Kf6 f3 89.g7 f2 90.Rf4 and the rook provides the perfect shield from any checks while still keeping tabs on the f-pawn, leaving the White king to safely usher home the g-pawn.

Remarkably for Keymer, just 24 hours later against Jordan Van Foreest (the surprise 2021 Tata Masters local Dutch winner) there was more than just a touch of déjà vu as he found himself in a similarly winning R+P ending...only to once again lack in the endgame technique department to convert for the full point. You live and learn. Well, in Keymer’s case, you live anyway!

But Magnus Carlsen needs no lessons when it comes to R+P endings, as invariable he would get a gold star from Korchnoi for his technique. And he showed this against Parham Maghsoodloo , who let slip an equal/drawing position into a winning R+P endgame win for Carlsen, to allow “Mr Wijk” to rack up a hat-trick of wins in four rounds - Richard Rapport, Fabiano Caruana, and now Maghsoodloo - and remarkably back in contention for a ninth Tata Steel title.

And after earlier in the competition beating World No1 Carlsen, Anish Giri showed his brilliance once again to also beat the World No2, Ding Liren, with the Dutchman also on a roll - all of which is making for what could be one of the most exciting finishes in recent years to the first major of the year.

The third and final rest day is on Thursday, and play resumes with Abdusattorov still leading by a half point over Giri, but the chasing pack grows with Carlsen now ominously tied for 3rd place with Wesley So. And things couldn't be better set up for Friday’s Round 11, as it sees a double big clash of the leaders, with Carlsen-So and Giri-Abdusattorov!

Standings:

1. N. Abdusattorov (Uzbekistan) 7/10; 2. A. Giri (Netherlands) 6½; 3-4. M. Carlsen (Norway), W. So (USA) 6; 5-6. L. Aronian (USA), F. Caruana (USA) 5½; 7-8. R. Rapport (Romania), R. Praggnanandhaa (India) 5; 9. Ding Liren (China) 4½; 10-12. D. Gukesh (India), P. Maghsoodloo (Iran), J. Van Foreest (Netherlands) 4; 13-14. A. Erigaisi (India), V. Keymer (Germany) 3½

GM Fabiano Caruana - GM Magnus Carlsen

Tata Steel Masters, (8)

Ruy Lopez, Anti-Marshall

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 0-0 8.a4 The Anti-Marshall, aimed at taking all the fun out of Frank J. Marshall's eponymous attack after 8.c3 d5!? - and the antidote recommended by Soviet opening guru Efim Geller, to Garry Kasparov, ahead of his 1993 World Championship Match with Marshall Attack-loving Nigel Short. 8...b4 9.a5 d6 10.c3 Rb8 11.h3 h6 12.d4 bxc3 13.bxc3 exd4 14.Nxd4 Bd7 15.Bf4 Ne5 16.Na3 Re8 17.Bg3 Bf8 18.f4 Nc6 19.e5 dxe5 20.fxe5 Nxd4 21.cxd4 Bc6! With one very accurate move from Carlsen, suddenly all the tactics are working in his favour with Caruana's position now being on a knife-edge. 22.Bc2? Caruana cheerfully ignores a semaphore alphabet's worth of red flags here as the whole game swings on this blunder - a blunder that Carlsen wastes no time in disposing of his former title challenger. The dangers were all evident when you see that 22.exf6? Rxe1+ 23.Bxe1 Rxb3! 24.Rc1 (If 24.Qxb3? Qxd4+ 25.Kh2 Qxa1 26.Nc2 Qxf6 with two extra pawns and a big mating threat on g2.) 24...Ba4 and White's position is on the verge of collapse. The only sensible move Caruana could play was 22.Rc1 but after 22...Bd5 23.Bxd5 Nxd5 Black has slightly the better of an equal position. 22...Qd5 23.Re2 Rb4! And with that, Caruana's position is set to implode with the hanging pawns being a hindrance and the double attack of the mate on g2 allowing the unstoppable threat of ...Rxd4. It's just one of those moments in chess for Caruana where you simply regret having got out of bed! 24.Kh2 Rxd4 25.Qb1 Caruana is just grudgingly playing out a few extra moves for a more respectable 30 moves or so on the scoresheet and in the future databases. 25...Ne4 Carlsen now very effectively turns the screw with a series of forced exchanges. 26.Bxe4 Rxe4 27.Rxe4 Qxe4 28.Qxe4 Bxe4 29.Nc4 Rb8 All roads lead to Rome here anyway, but the clinical route was 29...Bd3! 30.Ne3 c5 31.Ra4 f6 32.Nc4 Bxc4 33.Rxc4 fxe5 etc. 30.Rc1 Rb5 31.e6 fxe6 32.Bxc7 Rc5 33.Bf4 Bd5 0-1 And Caruana throws the towel in early, not wanting to play out 34.Nb6 Rxc1 35.Bxc1 Bb4 and the a-pawn also falls.

Young Guns (Go For It)

Tue, 24 Jan 2023 00:54:19 GMT

There’s all the hallmarks of the changing of the old guard taking place in Magnus Carlsen’s fiefdom of the 85th Tata Steel Masters in Wijk aan Zee, with runaway train Nodirbek Abdusattorov setting a simply breathtaking pace with his +4 unbeaten score of 6/8 to lead the field by a full point going into the decisive second half of the first major of the year.

After beating Richard Rapport, Parham Maghsoodloo and Carlsen, Abdusattorov’s latest victim was a round seven defeat of India’s Arjun Erigaisi - a series of standout wins that not only sees the 18-year-old Uzbek national hero solidifying his lead at the top, but also crash into the Top 20 for the first time, storming up 13 places to World #17 , and now knocking hard on the door of an early entry into the Top 10.

The young gun is fast becoming the new Gen Z superstar of chess. In 2021, he first burst onto the elite-scene by beating Carlsen en route to capturing the World Rapid Championship title, and last summer he sensationally led a youthful Uzbekistan team to podium gold at the Chennai Olympiad.

Now, if he can keep his momentum going, a further breakthrough performance is on the cards for the steely-eyed teenager with what would be an astonishing first super-tournament victory ahead of the World Champion, to further add to his haul of World Rapid title and Olympiad gold - a hat-trick of feats that even surpasses the achievements of Garry Kasparov and Carlsen at the same age.

But Carlsen hasn’t given up the fight just yet. After the disappointment of back-to-back losses to Anish Giri and Abdusattorov, the comeback is on as the Norwegian ace hit back with his own back-to-back wins over Richard Rapport and former title challenger Fabiano Caruana, to suddenly find himself right back in the fight for a possible ninth Wijk title.

Standings:

1. N. Abdusattorov (Uzbekistan) 6; 2-3. A. Giri (Netherlands), W. So. (USA) 5; 4-7. L. Aronian (USA), R. Praggnandhaa (India), F. Caruana (USA), M. Carlsen (Norway) 4½; 8. Ding Liren (China) 4; 9-10. R. Rapport (Romania), P. Maghsoodloo (Iran) 3½; 11-12. A. Erigaisi (India), J Van Foreest (Netherlands) 3; 13-14. V. Keymer (Germany), D. Gukesh (India) 2½

GM Magnus Carlsen - GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov

Tata Steel Masters, (5)

English Four Knights

1.c4 c5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nc3 Nc6 4.e3 Not the most testing line of the English Four Knights - the only thing it has going for it is that it can easily transpose into several other mainline opening now. 4...e5 5.Be2 d5 6.cxd5 Nxd5 7.0-0 Be7 8.Bb5 Nxc3 9.bxc3 Qc7 10.d4 cxd4 11.cxd4 exd4 12.Nxd4 Bd7 13.Nf3 Bf6 14.Ba3 Bxa1 15.Qxa1 The exchange sacrifice would have been worth it for Carlsen if Abdusattorov's king was left high and dry by being marooned in the center of the board - but here, it easily gets to safety by castling on the queenside. 15...0-0-0 16.Rc1 Kb8 17.Qxg7 Rhg8 18.Qb2 Unfortunately 18.Qxf7?? loses on-the-spot to 18...Rxg2+ 19.Kxg2 Bh3+ etc; while 18.Qxh7?! gets hit by the tactical shot 18...Bg4 19.Bxc6 Qxc6! 20.Ne1 (Equally as bad is 20.Qxg8 Qxc1+ 21.Bxc1 Rxg8 22.Nd4 Bh3 23.g3 Rg6! 24.f3 Rb6 and Black should win.) 20...Qd5 and Black is in command. 18...Bg4! This is more accurate and edges the alternative of 18...Bh3. 19.Ne1 Rd1 This is the reason why 18...Bg4 was more accurate, as Abdusattorov trading pieces means he makes his material advantage count more. The more pieces traded off, the harder it gets for Carlsen to generate some much-needed counter-play. 20.Rxd1 Bxd1 21.Bf1 Ne5 22.h3 Bf3! With one very good and accurate move, suddenly Abdusattorov's pieces are all actively placed and Carlsen faces a near impossible task of defending his king. 23.Qd4 Rd8 24.Qh4 Bd5 25.Qxh7 Bc4 There was a good case for 25...Ng6 first - the reason we will soon see. 26.Bb2?! A tricky position that the engine sees right through, and the reason why it wanted to play ...Ng6 is that it prevented the resourceful and tactical engine hold with 26.Qh4! Bxa2 and now (26...Bxf1 27.Kxf1 Qc4+ 28.Qxc4 Nxc4 29.Bb4 and White should hold this endgame.) 27.Bb2! Nc6 28.Nd3 Be6 29.Be2 Qa5 30.Qf6 and White's pieces are more co-ordinated to hold for the draw. 26...Bxf1 27.Kxf1 Qc4+ 28.Kg1 Nc6 29.Nf3 Qxa2 30.Bf6 Rd1+ 31.Kh2 a5 Not only pushing the passed a-pawn up the board, but also providing an escape hole for the king from the checks. 32.Nd4 Qd5 33.Qc2 Qd6+ 34.f4 Rxd4!? Carlsen has done well to dig himself out of a hole to reach this salvageable position, as Abdusattorov begins to realise that the only hope he had of winning now was to liquidate down to the Q+P ending, which at the best of times isn't an easy endgame to convert. 35.Bxd4 Nxd4 36.exd4 Qxf4+ 37.g3 Qxd4 38.h4 a4 39.Qa2 f5 40.h5 Qh8 Forcing a further liquidation of the pawns, as we soon get into the realms of endgame database territory. 41.Qxa4 Qxh5+ 42.Kg1 Qf3 43.Kh2? It all goes pear-shaped for Carlsen at this point. A better try to hold would have been 43.Qe8+! Kc7 first and then 44.Kh2 Qf2+ 45.Kh3 as this seems to be the most testing line for Black to win, as can be seen with 45...Qf1+ 46.Kh2 b5 (Not 46...f4 47.Qe5+ Kc6 48.Qe4+ Kd6 49.Qd4+ Ke6 50.gxf4 and a draw.) 47.Qe7+ etc. 43...Qe2+ 44.Kg1 Qe5! [ see diagram ] Centralising the queen, and by now I think Carlsen must have been ruing his missed game-saving chance with 43.Qe8+. 45.Kf2 b5 46.Qb4 Kb7 47.g4 fxg4 48.Qxg4 How times change, with the Nalimov Endgame Tablebase having kicked in and telling us that this Q+P endgame is a technical win for Black in a mere 53 moves at this point! As a teenager myself back in 1976, I remember following very scarce and sketchy newspaper reports from snowy Dubna, a scientific centre near Moscow, as Tony Miles achieved that most difficult of feats at the time of gaining his final norm in Russia to become Britain's first Grandmaster; and a key win coming in an almost identical queen and pawn ending against Anatoly Donchenko that demanded great patience and technical ability to convert. Now, thanks to our Silicon Overlords, it is easier to learn how to win such fiendishly technical endings. 48...Kb6 49.Qg8 b4 50.Kf3 The one nugget I do remember from Miles' annotation to that key game from 1976, was that for any chance to draw, you really need the White king to be in the opposite far corner to the pawn - but here, due to Abdusattorov's well-placed central queen, there's no chance of Carlsen's king ever running to h8. Ideally, what White needs is his king and queen to swap places. 50...Kb5 51.Kg2 Qe2+ 52.Kg3 Qe3+ 53.Kg2 b3 54.Qb8+ The engines tell you that 54.Qd5+ would have held out for 35 moves rather than 34 moves with Carlsen's choice - but just who the hell is counting by this stage? 54...Kc4 55.Qg8+ Holding on for an extra four moves was 55.Kh1 - but such random long checks are a normal human reaction in a Q+P endgame, but all it is achieving is to push the king further up the board to where it wants to be. 55...Kc3 56.Qc8+ Kd2 57.Qh8 If 57.Qd8+ Qd3 58.Qa5+ Qc3 59.Qg5+ Kd1! 60.Qg4+ (If 60.Qd5+ Qd2+ and White can resign with the queens coming off.) 60...Kc1 and now either 61.Qg5+ (or Qf4+) sees 61...Qd2+ again trading queens. 57...Kc2 58.Qc8+ Kd1 59.Qh8 Qd2+ 60.Kg3 b2 0-1 Carlsen resigns with no more checks left, and faced with 61.Qh7 Qd6+ 62.Kg4 Kc1 63.Qh1+ Qd1+ etc.

Rivals Old & New

Fri, 20 Jan 2023 12:56:42 GMT

This week, rivals old and new inflicted on Magnus Carlsen the rarity - in classical chess at least - of a brace of successive defeats for the World Champion at the first major of the year, the Tata Steel Masters in Wijk aan Zee. In round 4, the eight-time defending Wijk champion was outwitted by old foe Anish Giri, and then in the next round he was outplayed by Nodirbek Abdusattorov, the 18-year-old rapidly rising new star of the game.

Remarkably for Giri, who has a long rivalry with Carlsen - both on the board and sparring on social media - his only other win over the 32-year-old world No1 came not only came in the same tournament, but also on the same fateful day as the anniversary of Bobby Fischer’s death, separated by a period of 12 years, dating back to Wijk Ann Zee, January 17 2011!

In reality, Carlsen looked as if he was a little caught by surprise with the Dutch No1’s opening choice, and opted with black to steer the game into more familiar territory of a game the Norwegian himself had won with white in the past. But Giri mproved over Carlsen’s own play, and in a complex position, the Norwegian made a fatal error from which there was simply no recovery from.

A somewhat wry Carlsen commented in defeat: “All in all, Giri played well. The worst thing is that I didn’t feel unwell today, so I have no excuses. It was just a risky choice and something I overlooked that he exploited. It’s not too much of a crisis. I just have to pull myself together, play well and there’s still a long way to go. But obviously, today was not good.”

And if “today” wasn’t good enough for Carlsen, then two days later - following the rest day - it only got worse for as he faced newer Gen Z rival Abdusattorov. In 2021, the Uzbek young gun first made a name for himself by beating Carlsen en route to claiming victory in the World Rapid Championship, and last year he also led his young national team to a famous Olympiad gold.

This year could see Abdusattorov making a big statement performance with his first super-tournament victory and, with it, a seismic leap into the World Top-10 to rival Alireza Firouzja as the young pretender to Carlsen’s crown. And with a touch of panache not to mention a steely nerve, a confidant Abdusattorov outplayed Carlsen in their first classical encounter to dramatically break into the top 20 and take the sole lead in the 85th Tata Steel Masters .

Carlsen back-to-back classical loses are few and far between, with his last being at Stavanger 2015. This double defeat - especially the loss to Abdusattorov - though could well be a true reflection on Carlsen own decision to abdicate his world classical crown in 2023, recognising that many younger talents are on the cusp of an epic breakthrough to challenge his dominance.

Standings:

1. N. Abdusattorov (Uzbekistan) 4½/6; 2-3. F. Caruana (USA), A. Giri (Netherlands) 4; 4-6. R. Praggnanandhaa (India), L. Aronian (USA), W. So (USA) 3½; 7-9. A. Erigaisi (India), Ding Liren (China) P. Maghsoodloo (Iran) 3; 10-11. R. Rapport (Romania), M. Carlsen (Norway) 2½; 12. J. Van Foreest (Netherlands) 2; 13-14. V. Keymer (Germany), D. Gukesh (India) 1½.

GM Anish Giri - GM Magnus Carlsen

Tata Steel Masters, (4)

Queen’s Indian Defence

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 b6 4.g3 Ba6 First played in the 1920s by Aron Nimzowitsch, there is an almost strange "Hot Tub Time Machine" moment at this years Tata Steel Masters with this throwback to 1980s being played by Ding Liren in the opening round and now Magnus! 5.Qc2 The whole point of 4...Ba6 in the first place is to disrupt White's natural development by having to defend the c4-pawn. This is regarded as the best move for White, and once made, Black has retreat to the more natural b7 square. 5...Bb7 6.Bg2 c5 7.d5! With the queen having been diverted momentarily to c2, we have a dangerous pawn sacrifice packed with venom that is akin to the Polugavesky Gambit that was all the rage in the late 1970s and through the 80s. 7...exd5 8.cxd5 Nxd5 The only way to take on the gambit. If 8...Bxd5 9.Nc3 Bb7 10.e4 White has excellent compensation for the pawn with a firm grip of the center and e5 advances in the air. 9.0-0 Be7 10.Rd1 Nc6 A nice trick to get on with the job of developing pieces. Not recommend is 10...Nb4?! 11.Qf5! and suddenly it becomes difficult for Black to complete his development and get his king to safety. If 11...d5 (No better is 11...0-0 12.Nc3 and Black will have to careful about any potential Ng5! tricks.) 12.Nc3 Qd7 13.Qh5 0-0 14.a3 Nc2 15.Rb1 Nc6 16.Bf4 and the d5-pawn is set to fall. 11.Qf5 Nf6 12.e4 As has also been the case in the Polugaevsky Gambit, White has strong pressure and easy piece-play for the pawn. 12...d6 Apparently the more critical move here is 12...g6 - but as will soon explain, this is more familiar territory for Carlsen, albeit with a twist. 13.e5 Qd7! The only logical follow-up to Black's previous move. 14.Qxd7+ Nxd7 15.exd6 Bf6 16.Re1+ Kf8 17.Nc3 Nb4 All of this isn't exactly new territory for Carlsen, after all he had this position agains t Yannick Pelletier at Biel in 2008 and he managed to win - only trouble is, in that game, Magnus was White and had much the easier of it! 18.Ne5 Giri diverges from the aforementioned Carlsen-Pelletier game from 2008, where Magnus opted for 18.Bg5 Nc2! 19.Re7!? Bxf3?! (The critical move was 19...Bxe7 ) 20.Bxf3 Bxg5 21.Rxd7 Rd8 22.Rxd8+ Bxd8 23.Rd1 and he managed to somehow - as only Magnus can - squeeze a win out of what should have been a draw. But with the better 18.Ne5, Giri has the more controlled "chaos theory" working for him. 18...Nxe5 19.Bxb7 Rd8 20.Rd1 Nc4 21.d7 Amazingly this is all theory, but the bishop-pair and the d-pawn makes for a potential minefield if Black is not careful...and, alas, Magnus contrives to step on one! 21...Nc2?! Correct was 21...Ke7! 22.Bc8 and now 22...Nc2 23.Rb1 Nd6 24.Nd5+ Ke6 25.Nxf6 gxf6 26.Ba6 Rxd7 27.Bf4 Ke7 28.Rbc1 Nd4 29.b4 Rhd8 30.bxc5 bxc5 31.Bd3 Ne6 which ended in a draw in Verhaeren,G-Jørgensen,P ICCF email 2016. But what we see now is something more complex, with White retaining the bishop-pair and a dangerous initiative for the sacrificed d7-pawn. 22.Rb1 Nd4? One mistake follows another, and soon Carlsen is on the morphine drip. The last try to stay competitive in this complex position was 22...Ne5! 23.Bf4 (Also possible was 23.Nb5 Ke7 24.Bf4 Rxd7 and Black has liquidated the danger.) 23...Rxd7 24.Bxe5 Rxb7 25.Ne4 Ke7 26.Nxf6 gxf6 27.Bc3 Re8 where White still has the edge, though with the extra pawn Black should easily equalise here. 23.b4! [ see diagram ] Giri ripping the game open means big trouble now for Carlsen. 23...Rxd7? This is a blunder from Carlsen, though the sort of blunder you can understand with that big d-pawn being so far up the board. But it is a blunder nevertheless, and one that Giri capitalises on with a series of nice probing moves that further opens the game up for his bishops to wreck havoc. Instead, after 23...Be7 24.Bc8 Ne5 25.bxc5 bxc5 26.Nb5 Nxd7 27.Bxd7 Rxd7 28.Nxd4 cxd4 29.Be3! f6 30.Rxd4 Rxd4 31.Bxd4 Kf7 the game is still "salvageable" for Black; but not the sort of position anyone - including Carlsen - would like to defend. 24.Bd5 Nicely complicating things further for Carlsen, and with it, suddenly Giri found himself with a position where it was practically impossible for him not to win against the World Champion! 24...Nd6 25.bxc5 bxc5 26.Ba3 Ke7 All of Carlsen's moves are forced - he has no say in the matter. But equally, Giri has to show he's determined to strike with force and conviction, which the Dutchman does. 27.Bxc5 Ne6 28.Bb4 Giri is winning, no two ways about it - but the engine finds the more clinical route with the tactical 28.Bc6! Bxc3 29.Bxd6+! Rxd6 30.Rb7+ Nc7 31.Rxc7+ Kd8 32.Rd7+! Rxd7 33.Rxd7+ Kc8 34.Rxa7 Rd8 35.Rxf7 Rd2 36.a4 and , in the long-run, Black will be powerless sans two pawns and the a-pawn now running up the board. 28...a5 29.Bxa5 Rc8 30.Na4! With one timely move, Giri lays ruin to the age-old adage of a knight on the rim being dim! 30...Nc4 31.Rbc1 Be5?? Under extreme pressure and hanging on by his fingertips, Carlsen cracks with a blunder that loses on-the-spot. As bad as his position is, his only hope of any sort of survival chances lay with 31...Kf8 32.Nc5! Nxc5 (32...Rxc5 33.Bb4 Nb2 34.Bxe6 Rxd1+ 35.Rxd1 Nxd1 36.Bxc5+ Be7 37.Bxe7+ Kxe7 38.Bb3 and White easily wins the endgame.) 33.Rxc4 Bd8 34.Bc3 Be7 35.Bf3 Rxd1+ 36.Bxd1 Rd8 37.Bc2 Nd7 and you pray for a miracle of epic biblical proportions. 32.Bb4+ Kf6 33.Nc5! The end is nigh, as the dystopian street-waving placard holder s would say. 33...Nxc5 34.Rxc4 Rdc7 35.Ba5 1-0

Vox Populi Magnus!

Fri, 25 Nov 2022 09:37:56 GMT

Magnus Carlsen turned on the style with a dominating performance in the $210,000 Meltwater Champions Chess Tour final , with a clean sweep of all of his online/hybrid seven matches in San Francisco, dropping just a single point, and picking up the $50,000 first prize. The Norwegian also took two of the three Majors in the 2022 season. And as if that is wasn’t enough of a haul, the online fans also voted Carlsen the winner of the Tour’s best game prize for his blitz win over leading teenage rival Alireza Firouzja in Miami!

“People are suckers for queen sacrifices, yeah?” said Carlsen. “That was one of my better games of the tour. I was very happy that I managed to calculate precisely with only seconds left, but for instance Duda played a very nice game here [in the San Francisco final], sacrificing practically all his pieces to mate Anish [Giri], so there have been a lot of good games played, but I’m happy to have the fans’ support!”

During his post-victory presser, Carlsen added that he was now looking forward to next year. “I hope to continue to play a lot of events both in the Tour and others, so nobody knows at this point what’s going to happen, but I think whatever will happen it will be good content… I hope that next season also because there will be no conflict of interest with Chess.com, most probably, there will be an even steadier diet of the very top players participating in every event.”

Before that, we could see Carlsen going for gold once again, with a late entry at the traditional end-of-year speed world championships. The FIDE World Rapid & Blitz Championship will take place in Almaty, Kazakhstan, running from December 25-31 at the Baluan Sholak Sports Palace.

We will need to wait to see whether Carlsen confirms his participation in Almaty – but Carlsen will certainly be heading the field in the first traditional classical Major of the year, the Tata Steel Masters 2023 in Wijk Ann Zee, the Netherlands, where he’ll be in the hunt for a ninth title.

The event, dubbed the “chess Wimbledon”, and running 13 to 29 January in the enchanting tiny Dutch chess hamlet by the North Sea, has a spectacular line-up that will see Carlsen facing rating rivals in China’s world No 2, Ding Liren, and the reigning US champion, Fabiano Caruana. But more intriguing, with the Wijk tradition of finding the “perfect mix” between the world’s best players and new talents/rising stars, Carlsen will also face a newer generational challenge – but sadly sans Firouzja, who is still involved in an open dispute with the Wijk organisers.

Five of the world’s top teenagers are in the field: Arjun Erigaisi, 19, who qualified by winning the 2022 Wijk Challengers; his fellow Indians Dommaraju Gukesh, 16, and Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa, 17; Uzbekistan’s world rapid champion, Nodirbek Abdusattorov, 18; and Germany’s Vincent Keymer, 18.

GM Magnus Carlsen – GM Alireza Firouzja
FTX Crypto Cup, (6.5)
English Opening
1.c4 e5 2.g3 Nf6 3.Bg2 Bc5 4.d3 0-0 5.Nf3 d6 6.Nc3 c6 7.0-0 a5 It’s an easy English Opening, with Carlsen just opting for something simple rather than a heavy-theory line – and Firouzja responding with a very logical set-up. 8.d4 If Carlsen doesn’t do “something” now, then he risked seeing Firouzja taking control of the game. 8…exd4 9.Nxd4 a4 Not so much preventing Nb3 for now, but more going for the thematic …a3 push to take a grip of the queenside. 10.e3 a3 11.Qc2 Re8 12.Nb3 axb2 13.Bxb2 Be6 Slightly better was the alternatives of 13…Nbd7 or even 13…Ba3 – but regardless, Carlsen has come out of the opening with no advantage. 14.Nxc5 dxc5 15.Ne2 Nbd7 Intending …Nd7-b6 hitting the easy target of the undefended c4-pawn – and this forces Carlsen’s hand. 16.Nf4 Qe7 17.a4 Ra6 Firouzja clearly has his eyes on Carlsen’s two vulnerable queenside pawns, as …Ra6 opens the door for doubling rooks on the a-file, and/or the imaginative leap with …Ra6-b6-b4. Faced with this, Carlsen has to react now with some urgency. 18.Rfb1 Rea8 19.Bc3 R6a7 20.a5 Ne8 It’s an intriguing battle being fought out in a blitz game: Firouzja looking to fix Carlsen’s pawns to that he will be tied down defending them, while Carlsen is looking to break out of the bind to activate his bishop-pair. 21.Qd3 Intent on defending c4, Carlsen misses a shot with 21.a6! bxa6 22.Bxc6 and suddenly White is in the driving seat. 21…Ndf6 22.Nxe6 Qxe6 23.Rd1 Nc7 24.e4! Now Carlsen takes control of the game, as he systematically begins to push Firouzja off the board. 24…Na6 25.e5 Ne8 26.f4 With his bishop-pair, Carlsen’s space advantage should give him a big winning advantage. 26…Nb4 27.f5! Qe7 Forced, as 27…Nxd3? 28.fxe6 Nb4 29.exf7+ Kxf7 30.Rd7+ Kg8 31.Rf1! b5 32.Bxb4!! and all the tactics are winning quickly for White: 32…Rxd7 33.Bxc6 cxb4 34.Bxd7 Nf6 35.Bc6 Rxa5 36.cxb5 and Black can resign, as moving the attacked knights leads to mate after Bd5+ etc. 28.Qd7! Qg5 You are in a precarious position, but remember it is blitz, so your best bet is to gamble everything on finding a trick or two by keeping the queens on the board, rather than the tame though better alternative of 28…Qxd7 29.Rxd7 Rxa5 30.Rxa5 Rxa5 31.Rxb7 Ra4 32.e6! fxe6 33.fxe6 etc. 29.e6 fxe6 30.fxe6 Carlsen missed that he cut to the chase right away with the better 30.Qxe6+! Kh8 31.Rd7! Nc2 32.Re7! Nf6 33.Bxf6 gxf6 (Not 33…Qxf6?? 34.Re8+! winning on the spot.) 34.Rb1 and Firouzja would have been in dire straits – and not in a good way with Mark Knopfler hitting the riffs on lead guitar! 30…Qe3+ 31.Kh1 b6 32.axb6! Offering up the first queen sacrifice – but even more of a killer blow was 32.Bxb4!! cxb4 33.Bxc6 Rxd7 34.exd7 Rd8 35.Re1! and Black can resign. 32…Nd3? Firouzja is in a bad way, and what he plays only compounds his problems. As bad as it is, his only try was 32…Rxd7! 33.exd7 Nd3 but after 34.Rf1! Rb8 (Worse was 34…Rxa1 35.Bxa1 Qe7 36.b7 and one of the pawns queen.) 35.dxe8Q+ Rxe8 36.Bxc6 Qe2 37.b7 Nf2+ 38.Rxf2! Qxf2 39.Rb1 Rb8 40.Be5 and Black’s set to lose the rook, and soon with it, the game. 33.Qxd3 Qxd3 34.bxa7! [see diagram] It’s a second queen sacrifice from Carlsen – and all the more remarkable, as he’s having to calculate this with great accuracy with just seconds left on his clock! 34…Qxc3 35.Bxc6 Rxa7 36.Rxa7 Qxc4 37.Ra8 Carlsen pieces unite to come in for the kill – but he still has to play with great care with seconds on his clock. Not easy, as Firouzja is a very tricky opponent. 37…g6 38.Rxe8+ Kg7 39.e7 With the pawn close to queening, when it does, Firouzja can resign. 39…Qe2 40.Rg8+ Much easier for the nerves was 40.Red8! – but all easy to say from the comfort of my own seat and the engine going into a virtual meltdown with its hefty +20ish assessment. But here, most players, in the heat of battle, with seconds on their clocks, will have a fixed way they are looking to win. 40…Kh6 41.e8Q Qxd1+ Carlsen is winning – but in blitz, with flags metaphorically hanging on digital clocks, offering your opponent a flurry of checks can sometimes prove to be a game-saver! 42.Kg2 Qc2+ 43.Kf3 Qf5+ 44.Ke3 Qg5+ 45.Ke2 Qg4+ 46.Bf3! Carlsen doesn’t panic, and now retreats his bishop to provide the perfect shield from the checks. 46…Qc4+ 47.Kf2 Qa2+ 48.Be2 1-0 With no checks left, Firouzja resigns, as they only way he can delay being mated for a few moves is by playing 48…Qxg8.

Major Major Magnus!

Mon, 21 Nov 2022 10:05:31 GMT

Magnus Carlsen saved his best for last with a near-perfect performance to easily win the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour Final held at the SHACK15 building in downtown San Francisco. And so big was Carlsen’s margin of victory, that he won the final tournament of the 2022 season with a round to spare to complete a unique Tour double.

Not only did Carlsen win the marquee final event of the season by a round to spare, but he also captured the 2022 Tour title with a tournament to spare! And along the way, he now also has the bragging rights to capturing two of the three Majors, as his nearest Tour rival, Jan-Krzysztof Duda, couldn’t match the Norwegian’s relentless pace.

Going into the midway point in the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour Final , Carlsen and Duda – who finished second behind Carlsen in the 2022 season standings; and who also won the only other Major of the season – couldn’t be separated with their joint perfect start.

But Carlsen went into overdrive in the second half of the tournament to produce his best performance of the year and a richly deserved victory, as he left Duda in his wake. And even winning with a round to spare, Carlsen didn’t rest on his laurels with an anti-climactic finish, as he easily beat Duda to end on a high by winning all of his matches; winning six outright, with only Liem Le extending their match to a tiebreaker before finally succumbing.

That dominating victory earned Carlsen $50,000 and took the Norwegian’s Tour earnings for the season to $242,500, $80,000 more than second-placed Duda – and with it, a hat-trick of successive Tour-titles for Carlsen.

After winning all seven matches in the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour Final , a pleased Carlsen commented in his post-victory presser: “I didn’t win the last tournament that I played, also the Fischer Random World Championship didn’t go so well, so it was huge to set the record straight here!”

And reflecting on the season, Carlsen further added: “There have been a lot of good events this year on the tour, some a little bit worse as well, but super-happy to finish on a high note, and today it was just a pleasure to play knowing that I had it in the bag and I could just relax.”

Final standings:

1. M. Carlsen (Norway) 20/21; 2. W. So (USA) 13; 3. Liem Le (Vietnam) 11; 4. JK. Duda (Poland) 10; 5-6. R, Praggnanandhaa (India), A. Erigaisi (India) 9; 7-8. S. Mamedyarov (Azerbaijan), A. Giri (Netherlands) 6.

GM Jan-Krzysztof Duda – GM Magnus Carlsen
Meltwater Tour Final, (7.2)
Modern Defence, Averbakh System
1.c4 g6 2.d4 Bg7 3.e4 d6 The Modern Defence, Averbakh system against White’s d4/c4/e4 set-up is rare at elite-level these days, but was hugely popular during the late 1960s and through the 1970s. 4.Nc3 c5 5.d5 If 5.dxc5 Bxc3+ 6.bxc3 dxc5 7.Qxd8+ Kxd8 8.Be3 b6 9.Nf3 Ke8 and Black has a solid endgame with no pawn weaknesses. 5…Bxc3+ 6.bxc3 e5 7.Bd3 Nd7 8.f4!? If White keeps it solid, then Black will eventually get the ‘Beefeater-like’ set-up of …Qa5 and …Nb6 and prey on the weak White queenside pawns. Rather than that, Duda looks to open the game up for his bishop-pair. 8…exf4 9.Bxf4 Qh4+ 10.Bg3 Qe7 11.Nf3 Nh6 12.e5!?! If not this, then Black will play …Nh6-g4-e5 with a rock-solid outpost on e5 that will stymie White’s game. And if 12.h3, with the idea of Qd2 winning the knight, Black simply plays 12…f6 followed by …Nh6-f7-e5 and again the strong e5-outpost. 12…Nxe5 13.Nxe5 dxe5 14.0-0 0-0 15.Qd2 Nf5 16.Bxf5 Bxf5 There’s nothing much in the game now, but Carlsen makes more of his position as he has no pawn weaknesses to worry about. 17.Rf2 f6 18.Raf1 Rad8 19.Qe3 b6 20.Bh4 Rd6 If anything, Carlsen has a little advantage – and now he’s in his element as he squeezes Duda’s position. 21.h3 Bd7 22.Rf3 Rf7 Also a good option was 22…h5!? looking to prevent g4, and if 23.Qh6 Qg7 24.Qd2 Kh7 and, if anything, Black is the one on top. 23.g4 Be8 24.g5?! [It’s a hasty move and a bad plan from Duda in a difficult position – but understandably, he’s looking to bust the game open rather than allowing 24.Bg3 b5! 25.g5 bxc4 26.gxf6 Qd7 27.Qxc5 Rxd5 28.Qxc4 Qd6 29.Re3 Qe6 and Black will play …Bc6 to exploit the vulnerable a8-h1 long diagonal. 24…f5 25.Re1 e4! Carlsen has emerged with a big advantage – and he soon finds the breakthrough with a timely exchange sacrific. 26.Bg3 Rd8 27.Rf2 Bd7 28.Bc7 Re8 29.Qf4 Bc8 30.Bd6 Qd8 31.Be5 Rxe5! The extra couple of pawns, solid position and the imposing kingside pawn chain is more than enough compensation for the exchange! 32.Qxe5 Qxg5+ 33.Rg2 Qf6 34.Qb8 Rf8 35.Qf4 Ba6 Carlsen could probably play 35…Qxc3 – but he sees no need to rush things. 36.h4 Bxc4 37.d6 Duda is simply bust – but watch and learn as Carlsen skilfully avoids any complications/tricks on the kingside. 37…Qxc3 38.Re3 There was also 38.Rd1 Bd3 39.h5 but Black has 39…Kf7! and White has no game-saving breakthrough. 38…Qd4 39.h5 Bf7 Even stronger was 39…Rf6! 40.hxg6 hxg6 41.d7 Be6 and Black will pick-off the d-pawn. 40.Kh2 Rd8 When the d-pawn falls, White’s position will not be far behind. 41.Reg3 Qxd6 42.Qxf5 Re8 43.hxg6 hxg6 There’s just no time for Duda to find a saving trick. 44.Kh1 Kg7! 45.Rh3 Qe6 46.Qh5 Qxh3+! [see diagram] Carlsen finds a tactical shot to transpose down to a winning endgame. 47.Qxh3 Rh8 48.Qxh8+ Kxh8 There’s just too many pawns for Duda to save the game. 49.Rd2 Bc4 50.Rd7 It was either this or a slow death by defending the a-pawn with 50.a3 Bd3 51.Kg1 c4 52.Kf2 c3 53.Rd1 b5 etc. 50…Bxa2 51.Rxa7 Bc4 52.Kg1 Bd3 53.Rc7 c4 54.Rb7 Technically better was 54.Rc6 but it doesn’t do anything about the final outcome after 54…e3! 55.Rxb6 e2 56.Kf2 Kg7 57.Rc6 Kh6 58.Rc5 g5 and White can’t stop all the pawns. After all, four pawns are four pawns! 54…c3 55.Rxb6 c2 56.Rc6 e3 57.Rc8+ Kg7 58.Kg2 g5 59.Kf3 e2 60.Kf2 g4 61.Ke1 g3 62.Rxc2 The last, desperate throw of the dice – but Carlsen has an easy yet still very instructive way to win. 62…Bxc2 63.Kxe2 Bd1+! 0-1 Duda resigns as he can’t take the bishop, and if 64.Kf1 Bf3 forms the perfect fortress around the g-pawn where Black will follow-up with …Kg7-g6-g5-g4-h3-h2 to pass the g-pawn.

The Streets of San Francisco

Thu, 17 Nov 2022 10:25:41 GMT

Despite already having won the $1.6m Meltwater Champions Chess Tour title last month, Magnus Carlsen isn’t exactly resting on his laurels when it comes to the final event of the 2022 season. It may well be a sealed deal for the World Champion, but he has a point to prove and honour to uphold as there’s still a street-fight going on for who takes the most Majors on offer on the Tour this season.

In the third and final Major of the 2022 season, the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour Final that’s currently ongoing at the SHACK15 building, with its impressive glass frontage that overlooks the streets of downtown San Francisco, the newly-minted Tour Champion seems to be saving his best for last in a determined effort to win a second Major.

After beating Wesley So, 2.5-1.5, in a close opening day match, Carlsen went on to thrash Indian teenager Arjun Erigaisi, and, best of all, a silky-smooth performance to demolish Azeri big beast Shakhiryar Mamedyarov. It was just the perfect start that a determined Carlsen was looking for – but he’s not having it all his own way, nor does have the outright lead!

That’s because also matching Carlsen with a perfect start is Poland’s World Cup victor Jan-Krzysztof-Duda, who, with a trifecta of wins – over Erigaisi, Mamedyarov, and Anish Giri respectively – joins the Norwegian in the joint-lead as the tournament reaches its mid-point. And with a big 3-point lead over the chasing pack, Carlsen and Duda, the two runaway leaders, and coincidentally also the two frontrunners in the 2022 Meltwater Champions Chess Tour , and with one Major apiece, are now matching each in a battle royal going into the second half of the tournament.

Now, with a Major apiece to their names, the big question remaining is who is going to end the season with the bragging rights to a second Major: will it be Carlsen or will it be Duda? All will be revealed in the coming rounds, and more so with the eagerly-anticipated final round clash between the leading two 2022 Tour rivals on Sunday.

Going into the decisive weekend, play begins each day at 12pm in San Francisco (3pm ET, 21:00 CEST, 01:30 IST). As ever, there’s live coverage at the official Meltwater Champions Chess Tour site , with commentary from the regular Tour Oslo studio team of Kaja Snare, GMs David Howell, Simon Williams, and IM Jovanka Houska. Over at Chess24 , GM Peter Leko will be joined by GM Rustam Kasimdzhanov.

Standings:
1-2. M. Carlsen (Norway), JK, Duda (Poland) 9/9; 3-5. A. Giri (Netherlands), R. Praggnanadhaa (India), Liem Lie (Vietnam) 4; 6-7. S. Mamedyatov (Azerbaijan), W. So (USA) 3; 8. A. Erigaisi (India) 0.

GM Magnus Carlsen – GM Wesley So
Meltwater Tour Final, (1.3)
Ruy Lopez, Berlin Defence
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6 4.d3 If you are looking for dynamic play, then this is now the way to play, as it avoids the so-called “Berlin Wall endgame” and the early exchange of queens after 4.0-0 Nxe4 5.d4 Nd6 6.Bxc6 dxc6 7.dxe5 Nf5 8.Qxd8+ Kxd8 that’s notoriously tough for White to breakdown. Instead, Carlsen wants to keep the queens on with this tepid looking little move that’s grown in popularity over the last few years. 4…Bc5 5.Bxc6 dxc6 6.0-0 Nd7 Avoiding any awkwardness with a Bg5 pin, whilst at the same time looking to bolster e5 with f6. 7.c3 a5 8.Bg5 f6 9.Bh4 Bd6 10.d4 Qe7 11.Nbd2 g5 12.Bg3 h5 13.h4 g4 14.dxe5 fxe5 This recapture does open up a lot of possibilities on the kingside. I kind of think that, with the benefit of hindsight, better was 14…Nxe5 15.Nxe5 fxe5 and taking the battle from here.15.Ng5 Nb6 16.a4 Bd7 17.b4 c5 Alternatively, 17…axb4 18.a5 Nc8 19.Nc4 at least a set of knights have been removed from the fray and no opportunity for a Ng5 incursion. 18.bxa5 Rxa5 19.Qb3 There’s really not much in the game; it’s even-steven, according to the engine – but there is the feeling that there’s a lot of open wilderness on Black’s kingside that just one slip could potentially lead to a disaster. 19…Bxa4 20.Qa2 Ra6 Here the engine does come up with the ingenious plan of 20…Kd7! to connect his rooks, as the king is actually safer in the middle of the board. 21.Rfb1 Bc6 22.Qb3 Ba4 23.Qb2 0-0?! It’s not losing per se, but the engine still thinks that the better call was 23…Kd7! 24.Nc4! [see diagram] The tactical point is that 24…Nxc4? 25.Qxb7 Rfa8 26.Qd5+ Kg7 27.Qxc4 sees the return of the piece and the sacrificed pawn – and also leaving Black’s remaining pawns all weak and vulnerable. 24…Kh8?! Is this a sign of buyers remorse from Wesley? It could well be, as from here, his position just gets more and more compromised. Better was 24…Rfa8 although after 25.Nxd6 cxd6 26.Qa2+! Kh8 27.Qf7 Qxf7 28.Nxf7+ Kg8 29.Nxd6 Bc2 30.Rxa6 Rxa6 31.Re1 Black has problems in the endgame with so many pawns looking weak and vulnerable – but certainly this is defendable, unlike in the game. 25.Ne3 Rfa8 26.c4 Opening up the possibility of a tactical hit on e5 – but most players would have just cut to the chase with 26.Nf5 with White’s knights looking very menacing on their outposts. 26…Bc6 27.Rxa6 Rxa6 28.Nd5 Qe8 And definitely not 28…Nxc4?? 29.Nxe7 Nxb2 30.Nxc6 and Black has lost a piece. 29.Qc3 Nd7 30.f3 Qa8? Ultimately this is the fatal mistake, with So blind to a little tactic that allows Magnus to exploit all the holes around his insecure king. But the position isn’t easy from black, as the better alternative of 30…gxf3 sees 31.Rf1! Bxd5 32.exd5 Kg8 33.Qxf3 Qg6 and Black has to play very careful to navigate safe passage through the difficulties of his insecure king. 31.Nf7+! Kg8 32.Nxd6 cxd6 33.Nc7 Ra3 34.Qc1! If So missed this strategic retreat, then he will soon pay the price for the oversight. 34…Qa5 35.Qg5+ With no defence for So’s king, Magnus easily finds the win, as his queen and knight combine to set up the mating net. 35…Kf8 36.Ne6+ Kf7 37.Nd8+ Kf8 No better was 37…Ke8 38.Nxb7! Bxb7 39.Rxb7 and soon – as in the game – it will be the queen and rook combining for the mate. 38.Nxc6 bxc6 39.Rb7 1-0 And So resigns with mate being unavoidable.

If You Are Going To San Francisco

Mon, 14 Nov 2022 10:38:41 GMT

It’s all over bar the shouting, as the old aphorism goes. But although Magnus Carlsen has already been crowned the 2022 Tour Winner, there’s still the little matter of the final event of the $1.6m Meltwater Champions Chess Tour left to conclude this week, running 14-20 November, with the 3rd and final Major of the season taking place in San Francisco, California.

It’s an 8-player all-play-all tournament, with the players competing in a 4-game rapid match each day; and the final event of the season also takes on a hybrid affair, with four players playing in-person from SHACK15 in the San Francisco Ferry Building, and the remaining four playing remotely online.

The eight-players vying for the share of the $250,000 prize fund includes:

Magnus Carlsen – #1 Tour Standings (Qualified via JB Generation Cup / Standings)
Jan-Krzysztof Duda – #2 Tour Standing (Qualified via Aimchess Rapid / Standings)
Praggnanandhaa R – #3 Tour Standings (Qualified via Standings)
Liem Le – #4 Tour Standings (Qualified via Standings)
Anish Giri – #5 Tour Standings (Qualified via Standings)
Shakhriyar Mamedyarov – #6 Tour Standings (Qualified via Aimchess Rapid)
Arjun Erigaisi – #21 Tour Standings (Qualified via JB Generation Cup)
Wesley So – 2022 Tour Debut

The stand-out opening day match-up sees Magnus Carlsen playing old rival Wesley So, the recent winner of the Chess.com Global Chess Championship. The other pairings sees Duda vs. Erigaisi, Praggnanandhaa vs. Mamedyarov and Le vs. Giri.

Play begins at 12pm in San Francisco (3pm ET, 21:00 CEST, 01:30 IST). As ever, there’s live coverage at the official Meltwater Champions Chess Tour site throughout, with commentary from the regular Tour Oslo studio team of Kaja Snare, GMs David Howell, Simon Williams, and IM Jovanka Houska. Over at Chess24 , GM Peter Leko will be joined by GM Rustam Kasimdzhanov.

Photo : With the iconic backdrop of the Golden Gate Bridge, though sans any flowers in their hair, Wesley So, Anish Giri, Praggnanandhaa and Magnus Carlsen get a little practice is before the marquee event kicks-off | © Meltwater Champions Chess Tour

To whet your appetite before play gets underway today, we head down memory lane for one of my favourite Carlsen-So encounters from the Tata Steel Masters back in 2018.

GM Magnus Carlsen – GM Wesley So
80th Tata Steel Masters, 2018
Queen’s Pawn
1.Nf3 d5 2.d4 Nf6 3.Bf4 Bf5 4.e3 e6 5.c4 Bxb1 6.Qxb1 Bb4+ Curiously, when Magnus allowed this discomforting check in his Chess.com Speed Chess Championship match with Wesley just a few weeks before this encounter, everyone just assumed, as it was a blitz match, that it was just a mouse-slip – but now with this game we see that he’d carefully assed all the ramifications of his king being stuck in the middle of the board. 7.Kd1 Bd6 8.Bg5 h6 9.Bxf6 Qxf6 10.cxd5 exd5 11.e4 Usually in such scenarios, with the White king stranded in the middle of the board, the first reaction is to keep your pawn formation solid and not allow Black to make a breakthrough – but here it is Magnus himself who allows the position to be busted open! 11…Be7 12.Bb5+ c6 13.e5 Qf4 14.Bd3 c5 15.dxc5 Nc6 16.Qc1 Qb4 17.a3 Qxc5 18.Ke2!? The easy solution was 18.Qxc5 Bxc5 19.Ke2 Nd4+ 20.Nxd4 Bxd4 with an even game – but Magnus wants more with his little tempo-winning king move. If Wesley exchanges queens, then White has a nice advantage heading into the endgame; so rather than that, he keeps the queens on the board and tries to open the game up to try to take advantage of Magnus’ wonder-lusting king. 18…Nd4+ 19.Nxd4 Qxd4 20.f4 0-0 21.Qd2 Qb6 Avoiding the cheap trick of Bh7+ winning Black’s queen. 22.Rhe1 f6 This looks the right way ahead, as after 23.exf6 Bxf6, Black stands well with his active pieces and the precarious state of White’s king wandering around in no-man’s land – but Magnus has a very dramatic solution to his problems. 23.e6! The pawn sacrifice now guarantees that White is the one with the active pieces – what a turnaround! 23…Qxe6+ 24.Kf3 Magnus’ king is perfectly safe here; and if he can force the exchange of queens, then all the better as White’s active pieces will dominate. 24…Qd7 25.Rad1 What’s not to like here for a mere pawn? White has tremendous central pressure down the e- and d-files, and Black will have to also be careful of his king coming under attack with a queen and bishop battery down the long b1-h7 diagonal. 25…Rad8 26.Qe3 Wesley can’t defend with …Rfe8 as Bg6! wins a piece – and with Magnus now set to regain his pawn, he has to be carefull not to allow the world champion a trademark grinding advantage. 26…Bd6 27.Bg6 Magnus stops Wesley challenging his dominance of the e-file by preventing …Rfe8. He also could have played 27.Bb1 Qf7 28.Qe6! with one possible continuation being 28…Bc7 29.Ba2 Rfe8 30.Bxd5! Qxe6 31.Bxe6+ Kf8 32.Rxd8 Rxd8 33.Rc1 Bb6 34.f5 and Black has problems with his big light-square weaknesses. 27…f5 28.Qe6+ Qxe6 29.Rxe6 Bc5 30.Re5 Magnus is not only recapturing his pawn, he’s set to win another, as both f5 and d5 can’t be defended – but will it be enough for him to win? 30…Rf6 31.Bxf5 Bd6 32.Rdxd5 Kf7 33.Re4 g6 34.Bg4 h5 “Magnus has blundered!”, some of the punters watching online excitedly proclaimed as they watched the online live coverage. There, the resident engine shows three lines for Black, none of which was what some of the masses where screaming out for, namely 34…Bxf4, the point being that, if 35.Rxd8 Bc7+ picks up the rook. But there was a good reason why the engine didn’t even mention 34…Bxf4 – there’s a very clever intermezzo from White that wins, namely 35.Be6+! and now White is protecting the d5 rook and Black will suffer a heavy material loss. 35.Bh3 Re8 Allowing Magnus to keep his pieces on the board looks like a flawed plan to my mind from Wesley. His objective here should be always looking to trade the rooks with the aim of achieving the notoriously drawn bishops of opposite-colour ending, and for that reason, more promising looked 35…Bc7 to guarantee the exchange of at least one set of rooks. But Wesley believes he has a better plan…only Magnus takes him down a rabbit hole to his liking. 36.Red4 Be5 This and the follow-up 37…g5 was what Wesley was banking on – but Magnus has seen a little further. 37.Rb4 g5 38.g3 b6 39.Rd7+ Kf8 40.Rh7!? [see diagram] Magnus is well aware that any ending with the bishops of opposite colour will likely end in a draw – and rather than all this, he now picks his moment to imbalance the game with a timely piece sacrifice. Objectively, it’s a smart move as Wesley faces huge difficulties stopping the pawns storming down the board – and bravely, Magnus goes for it! 40…g4+ 41.Bxg4 hxg4+ 42.Kxg4 The three connected passed pawns isn’t Wesley’s only problem here, as he could be reduced to long-time passivity trying to defend his queenside pawns from Magnus’ marauding rooks. 42…Bd6 The alternative was 42…Bb8 but after 43.Rd4 and Rdd7 to come, White’s rooks doubled on the seventh will be difficult to defend against. 43.Rc4 a5 44.Rc6 Now Magnus is set to win a fourth pawn – and with it, the pendulum swings heavily in his favour to win. 44…Kg8 45.Rb7 Be5 46.Rcxb6 Rxb6 47.Rxb6 Bd4 48.Rb5 Re2 49.b3 Rxh2 A critical moment in the game – and probably offering a little more resistance was 49…a4!? but after 50.h4! the pawns are rolling and it is difficult to stop them, one obvious line showing this being 50…Re3 51.bxa4 Rxa3 52.Kh5! Rxa4 (There’s no other option, as after 52…Rxg3 53.Rg5+ Rxg5+ 54.hxg5 and passed pawns of both wings will win against the lone bishop.) 53.g4 Bf2 54.f5 and the pawns rapidly running up the board supported by the king and rook will win. 50.Rxa5 Re2 51.Rd5 Bb2 52.a4 Bc3 53.Kf5 Re8 54.g4 Rf8+ 55.Ke4 Rb8 56.Rb5 Magnus takes full advantage of the fact that Wesley’s only hope of saving the game is by keeping his rook on the board. 56…Re8+ 57.Kd3 Be1 58.a5 Bf2 59.b4 Step by step, Magnus makes progress by pushing his pawns further and further up the board. 59…Re3+ 60.Kc4 Re4+ 61.Kb3 Kf7 No, not a mistake – Wesley can’t take the pawn with 61…Rxf4 as Magnus returns to the theme of 62.Rf5! forcing the exchange of rooks and the passed pawns on opposite wings trumps the lone bishop. 62.Re5 Rd4 63.b5 It’s simply a technical win now, as the pawns are too far up the board for anything to be done about it – and all that Magnus need do now is be careful about how he pushes them. 63…Rd3+ 64.Kc2 Rg3 65.g5 Bd4 66.Rd5 Be3 67.Rd3 Rg2+ 68.Kb3 Bc1 69.b6 Ke6 70.Rd4 Rb2+ 71.Ka4 Kf5 72.Rb4 Ra2+ 73.Kb5 Bxf4 74.Rxf4+ There’ many ways to win here, but this is the simplest way to go about it. 74…Kxf4 75.b7 1-0 And Wesley resigns, as there’s no way to stop a6 and Kb6 and one of the queenside pawns queening. A wonderful scrap from both players!

Going for Broke

Thu, 10 Nov 2022 12:25:01 GMT

The mercurial Bobby Fischer, although admitting that he did like to break a player’s ego, once said that he did not believe in psychology, instead preferring good moves. But chess is above all a battle, and often a player’s spirit can be crushed by a timely psychological blow; even more so when the psychological blow comes in a matchplay scenario.

The most famous recent example came in December 2021, with Magnus Carlsen winning the longest game ever in World Championship history , and a sore loss that his challenger, Ian Nepomniachtchi, just never recovered from. Nepo was portrayed by the global media as being a broken man after the psychological blow of losing that fateful game six that lasted 136 move game and over nearly eight hours of intense play.

And that, in a nutshell – though on a lesser scale and timeframe – is basically what happened with Wesley So’s victory in the first-ever Chess.com Global Chess Championship , as he easily dominated his opponent, Nihal Sarin, to take the inaugural title and $200,000 first prize. So won the opening game of the scheduled two-day, eight-game match, and that win set the tone for the rest of the final.

And perhaps sensing his opponent’s insecurity by losing the opening game, things got just that little bit more ‘interesting’ in game 3, as So went for a speculative early exchange sacrifice that led to lots of complications for the 18-year-old Indian prodigy. Sarin weathered the early storm and looked for a fleeting moment to be on the cusp of winning to tie the match — but after allowing his big material and positional advantage to slip through his fingers, Sarin just couldn’t accept that he was no longer winning the game, and suffered a further psychological blow of, somehow managing to alchemising over the space of just a few moves first the win, a draw, and then a loss.

Yet despite the organiser’s putting a brave spin on the fact that it was a two-day match that consisted of eight games, and that he Indian teenager was known for making comebacks, Sarin just looked forlornly like a broken man after he failed to convert that fateful game 3.

And come the second day, it took So just two almost effortless games to wrap up the biggest financial win of his career, as Sarin was unable to land a blow.

GM Wesley So – GM Nihal Sarin
CGC KO Final (1.3)
Pirc Defence, 150 Attack
1.e4 g6 2.d4 Bg7 3.Nc3 d6 4.Be3 This is the standard position of the so-called “150 Attack”. In the 1980s, a new generation of English players – notably GM Michael Adams – began to experiment with this sharp line against the Pirc. The main idea being Be3, Qd2, Bh6, advance the h-pawn and then deliver mate. Naturally, this seemed too good to be true, and it was quickly dubbed the 150 Attack (a quirk of the English grading system, with 150 equating to an 1800 Elo), since it seemed that only a club player would use such a blatant caveman attacking system and expect the game to finish in checkmate. Over the years, there have been various refinements to the 150 Attack, mainly whether to play an early f2-f3 or h2-h3 and Nf3. 4…a6 5.Qd2 Nd7 6.h4 Here comes Harry! 6…h6 7.0-0-0 b5 8.f3 Bb7 9.a3 Rc8 10.Kb1 c5 11.dxc5 Nxc5 12.Nge2 Nd7 13.Nd5 Ngf6 14.Nxf6+ Nxf6 15.h5! Ripping open the h-file early-doors is often seen in the 150 Attack – but the big key to winning is the follow-up. 15…Nxh5 16.Rxh5!?! This is a very puzzling sacrifice in many ways from So, though a thematic one in such positions that does enough to bamboozle Sarin into eating up valuable time on his clock. The engine doesn’t rate it, but when it comes down to the psychology of the game, the exchange sacrifice does the job as it is just not that easy for Sarin to co-ordinate things. The safer option was 16.g4 forcing 16…Nf6 17.Bxh6 Nd7 18.Nd4 Be5 with a complex struggle ahead for both sides – but where’s the fun in that? 16… gxh5 17.Ng3 Rg8 A more spirited way to continue was with 17…h4! 18.Nh5 Rg8 19.Nxg7+ Rxg7 20.Bxh6 Rg8 21.Qf2 h3 22.gxh3 Rc5! 23.h4 Qc8 and Black’s rooks here are very active. 18.Nxh5 Bh8 19.g4 Qc7 20.c3 Rd8 Admittedly it is easier to play White here than the Black side – and when h6 does fall, Sarin needs to quickly organise a way to break his pieces out from the bind, otherwise he’ll just get overwhelmed. 21.Bd4 e5 Not an easy move to have to play, as it looks like it is locking the dark-squared bishop in on h8 – but the alternative 21…Bxd4 22.cxd4 Qb6 23.d5! is just going to lock the light-squared bishop out of the action and White will soon pick-off that h6-pawn for a likely winning-advantage. 22.Bf2 d5! Sarin has to strive to open the game up, otherwise So will just pick off the weak h6-pawn and take control. 23.Bh4 Rd7 24.Qxh6 It looks scary for Black, but Sarin seems to have it all under control… but it takes just one slip for disaster to lurk. 24…dxe4 25.Rxd7 Qxd7 26.Nf6+ Bxf6 27.Qxf6 exf3 And with that, everyone and their dog just accepted that Sarin was easily winning…but what chess can be a cruel game! 28.Kc1 Qc7 Nothing wrong with Sarin’s move per se, but killing was 28…e4! as there’s no answer to pushing on with …e3 and …e2 etc. 29.a4 Bc6 Sarin is now being uber-cautious here, and this just gives So hope of finding some tricks. 30.Bg3 Rg6 Best now was the little messy option of 30…bxa4 31.Bxe5 Qd7 32.Bc4 Bd5 33.Bxa6 Rg6 34.Qh8+ Ke7 35.Qh4+ f6 36.Qh7+ Bf7! and Black has everything covered and his pieces working together as a unit ,and should go on to easily win. 31.Qh8+ Ke7 32.Bd3 f2? The one slip that So was looking for, and suddenly he’s back in the game again. The only winning try for Black was 32…Rf6 33.Bh4 Qd6! 34.g5 Rf4! 35.g6+ Rxh4 36.Qxh4+ Qf6 37.Qb4+ Ke8 38.Kd2 fxg6 and the three connected passed kingside pawns should lead Black to victory. 33.Bh4+ Kd6 34.Bxf2 What a reversal of fortunes for Sarin! He’s lost his game-winning f-pawn and now his king is left wandering dazed and confused in no-man’s land. 34…Re6 The rook has to stay on the third rank, as grabbing the g4-pawn with 34…Rxg4?? leads to instant disaster after 35.Qf6+ Kd5 36.Qf3+ e4 37.c4+!! bxc4 38.Qf5+ Qe5 (If 38…Kd6 39.Bc5#) 39.Bxc4+ Kd6 40.Qxg4 with an extra piece and a winning advantage. And note also that 34…e4?? loses on the spot to 35.Bg3+ etc. 35.Qf8+ Qe7 36.Qb8+ Qc7 37.Qf8+ Re7? Admitting that you no longer have a win is one of the toughest things to do in chess – and here, Sarin really had to bite the bullet and accept the draw by repetition with 37…Qe7 38.Qb8+ Qc7 39.Qf8+ etc. 38.Bf5 It’s hard to be critical of the players in view of the mutual time-scramble – and not to mention whilst sitting in a comfortable armchair in front of an engine kibitzing all the winning lines to your scribe! – as it calmly points out the star move of 38.b4! is a clever computer fantasy looking to snare the Black king into a mating net, with the only escape being 38…Kd5 39.Qh6 Bb7 40.Bc5 Qd7 41.axb5 axb5 42.Qf6 Re6 43.Qf1! and the noose tightens, forcing 43…Ba6 (If 43…Bc6 44.c4+ bxc4 45.Bxc4+ Ke4 46.Qf5#) 44.Qg2+ e4 45.Qa2+! Ke5 46.Bd4+ Kd6 47.Qxa6+ Ke7 48.Bc5+ Kf6 49.Bxb5! winning. 38…bxa4 39.Qh6+ Kd5?? Sarin walks right into the minefield! The only way to survive was with 39…Re6! 40.Bxe6 fxe6 41.Qf8+ Kd7 42.Qf7+ Kc8 43.Qxe6+ Kb7 44.g5 Qg7 and the opposite-coloured bishops should see a draw. 40.Qd2+ Kc4 41.Qd3+ Kb3 42.c4+ Kb4 43.Qc3# 1-0

Cups & Candidates

Mon, 25 Sep 2017 08:15:42 GMT

The 128-player starting field for the FIDE World Cup in Tbilisi, Georgia, has now been whittled down to the last two standing, as favourite Levon Aronian, of Armenia, takes on Chinese underdog Ding Liren in the best-of-four-game final for the title and $120,000 first prize. Not unsurprisingly, tough customer Ding Liren is proving to be a very resilient opponent, as he holds Aronian to three draws – saving at least one loss – as the tense match now goes into the fourth and final game of the contest.

If the fourth game is also a draw and the match tied, then the players will go into a series of potentially nerve-wracking speed tiebreak games to decide the title and the lion’s share of the prize fund. But regardless of the result, both finalists have now clinched their tickets for next year’s Candidates’ tournament in Berlin , Germany.

Surprisingly, more than half of the elite field was knocked out early in the World Cup, including World champion Magnus Carlsen and former champions Vladimir Kramnik and Vishy Anand. Most of the players left in the final stages in Tbilisi – including Wesley So and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave – opted to concentrate all their efforts going further in the World Cup for one of the two coveted Candidates’ spots on offer, so opted to withdraw early from the very strong Chess.com Isle of Man Masters that also got underway on Saturday.

But what the Isle of Man International lost in playing-strength with the absence of So and MVL, they quickly gained and then some with the dramatic announcement from Carlsen that he would play as a late entry. And after his sore exit in Tbilisi, the world champion was obviously looking to get back into the winning groove, after now suffering the longest barren spell of his career in classical tournaments.

The Isle of Man does things differently than what most elite players usually expect in their cocooned environment of largely all-play-all tournaments — and this time it was ‘random pairings’ in the opening round, that threw up an intriguing big first-round clash between Kramnik and Fabiano Caruana. Things tend to even out in the end, but there was a lot riding on this early pairing, as both are involved – alongside US champion So – in a very close, three-horse race for the two Candidates’ rating spots, with events running out fast now before the 1 December cut-off date.

Caruana won in a tough tussle, and that pushed Kramnik firmly into the third spot behind So. But worse was to come for Kramnik, because in today’s round 3, blast-from-the-past 65-year-old James Tarjan was on hand to do his “patriotic duty”, as the veteran US Olympiad gold medalist sensationally beat the Russian ex-champion, who in the process now falls so far behind Caruana and So, that the top two Americans look to have an unassailable lead and set to join Sergey Karjakin, Aronian and Ding Liren in the Berlin Candidates’.

Another intriguing pairing today also witnessed two reigning world champions clashing, as Carlsen took on American prodigy and current World Junior champion, Jeffrey Xiong. It was too much to ask for the Texan teenager to beat Carlsen, but there were moments – marred by bad clock-handling – he could have thwarted the ambitions of the “real” world champion.

But with the win, Carlsen now moves to 3/3 and a four-way tie at the top alongside Rustam Kasimdzhanov (Uzbekistan), Aleksandr Lenderman (USA) and Pavel Eljanov (Ukraine), as the Norwegian world #1 looks to end his drought of five classical tournaments this year without a victory.

GM Magnus Carlsen – GM Jeffrey Xiong
Chess.com Isle of Man Masters, (3)
Torre Attack
1.Nf3 c5 2.c3 Nf6 3.d4 e6 4.Bg5 No, not Carlsen’s usual London System but the Torre Attack, named after the Mexican enigma that was Carlos Torre – who, in the mid-1920s, burst onto the chess scene like a shooting star, only for his career to end tragically a couple of years later following a nervous breakdown – is extremely popular at club level. 4…d5 5.e3 h6 6.Bh4 Nc6 7.Nbd2 a6 8.Bd3 But the London System and the Torre Attack are very similar, with White’s set-up being almost identical, the only difference being that the bishop goes to g5 rather than f4. 8…Be7 9.0-0 Nd7 10.Bxe7 Nxe7 11.Ne5 cxd4 12.exd4 Nxe5 Xiong tries to simplify the position with exchanges – the big drawback is that White emerges with a lot of space on the kingside, making it difficult for Black to quickly castle for fear of an easy White kingside assault. 13.dxe5 Bd7 14.Re1 The rook not only supports e5 but, in certain circumstances, the manoeuvre Re1-e3-g3 (or h3) and a vicious kingside assault can come rapidly. 14…Rc8 15.Nf3 b5 16.h4! Xiong is caught in a fix, as he struggles to find a way to safely castle and connect his rook. Realising this, Carlsen gives him something further to worry about by grabbing more space on the kingside to support his attack. 16…a5 17.a3 Stopping the queenside breakthrough with …b5. The trouble for Xiong here is that he will eventually run out of useful moves to make and will have to castle into the ready-made storm on the kingside. 17…Qb6 18.Qd2 b4 19.cxb4 axb4 20.a4 The fear of castling has forced Xiong into sacrificing his b-pawn in the hopes that he can exchange queens with 20.Qxb4 Qxb4 21.axb4 Nc6 22.Rec1 Ke7 and perhaps try to hold this ending – but wise or unwise, Carlsen simply avoids this and keeps the queens on the board to make his young opponent waste time on his clock by having to think more. 20…Ra8 21.b3 0-0 Xiong has been gripped with fear over the move he’s forced into now – but Black’s position is not as bad as he thinks, but he seems to be caught in awe of playing the world champion. 22.Rac1 Rfc8 23.h5 Kf8? Already Xiong is fearful of Carlsen crashing through on the kingside (or perhaps a fatal Bh7+, if he has a piece on d4), and just as soon as he’d castled, he’s marching his king back to where it came from! But in his fear, Xiong missed his best chance to stay competitive with his more illustrious opponent by playing 23…Rc3! 24.Nd4 (Best, as 24.Rxc3? bxc3 25.Qxc3 Rc8 and White is going to lose the b-pawn.) 24…Rac8 and Black is over the worst of it now with rooks set to come off down the c-file – although it is far from safe, as White holds the edge with the more space, better pieces and a potentially awkward passed a-pawn. 24.g4 Carlsen is still playing on his inexperienced opponent’s fear of being crushed by the world champion and intends the simple plan of g4-g5 to break open the kingside. A reasonable plan in the circumstances, but much stronger was the very clinical 24.Bb5! Bxb5 25.Qxb4! tactically taking full advantage of the double pin on the king and queen. 24…Rc3 25.g5 hxg5 Now was the time to be brave and play 25…Nf5!? 26.Rxc3 (Not 26.Bxf5? Rxf3! winning.) 26…bxc3 27.Qd1 (Again, if 27.Qxc3 Rc8 White can’t defend the b-pawn.) 27…Nd4! and with no Bh7+ hanging in the air to win the queen, Black stands well here, as White’s king is now exposed with the kingside pawns being hastily thrown up the board. 26.Rxc3 bxc3 27.Qxg5 Nf5 The alternative 27…Ng8 only delays the inevitable, as after the nice “time-out” defending move with 28.Bc2!, it’s hard to see how Black stops the looming attack with Re3, Nh4 and Rg3 etc. 28.Bxf5 exf5 29.e6! (see diagram) The complications come at the wrong moment, just as Xiong’s was struggling to make the time-control, with just a few minutes now left on his clock, having used up much of his time in the opening and then trying to fathom out how he was going to safely castle. 29…Bxe6 The only option, as 29…fxe6? 30.h6! gxh6 31.Qf6+ either wins the rook on a8 or mates. 30.h6 gxh6 31.Qf6 Kg8?? Brutal…when the clock is down and the heart-rate is up, common sense simply goes right out the window. In the panic to make the time-control, Xiong has most likely been spoked by seeing a “phantom attack”. He faced an awkward defence but simply had to play 31…Ra6! 32.Qxc3 where, despite being a pawn down, White is much better here, as all of Black’s pawns are weak and vulnerable – his bishop is going to be stuck on e6 (forever defending d5, f5 & f7), and long-term, those two passed pawns on the queenside will win the day. 32.Qxh6 Qb4 33.Kh1! 1-0 Xiong resigns, as there’s no answer to 34.Rg1+ either mating or winning the queen.

Ding’ed

Thu, 21 Sep 2017 08:10:15 GMT

A little bit of chess history was made earlier on Thursday afternoon at the FIDE World Cup in Tbilisi, Georgia, as the underdog, Ding Liren, of China, rose to the challenge by dramatically beating US champion Wesley So, 3.5-2.5, after their semifinal match-up went to a tiebreak-decider. And in doing so, China’s #1 now not only made it into the four-game final of the brutal, 128-player knockout event but in the process, he’s now become the first Chinese player ever to play in the Candidates tournament.

Ding, 24, had a roller-coaster with So, as both players equally squandered golden chances to win in the classical two-game mini-match. In game 1, So overlooked a critical exchange sacrifice that looked to be winning, and ended up seeing his ever-resourceful opponent escaping by cleverly forcing a perpetual check. And in game 2, it was So’s turn to do all the escaping, as he was under extreme pressure throughout and looked likely to lose, only for his opponent to fail to find the winning continuation only to have to cede the inevitable draw in the end.

And with the match tied at 1-1 and having to go into overtime of a tiebreak decider, both players weren’t giving anything away as they drew their first two rapid tiebreak games – but the deadlock was dramatically broken in the third rapid game, as Ding outplayed So to win, thus leaving the US champion facing a must-win scenario in the next game or else head to the exit, which his opponent easily held the draw to win the match.

Meanwhile all the action and sportsmanship was taking place in a truly gripping contest in the second semifinal tiebreak match-up between Lev Aronian, of Armenia, and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, of France, who right now are the two big in-form players in the game today, who have shared the spoils of elite tournament victories this year that has clearly frustrated World champion Magnus Carlsen.

Nothing could separate these two in a match that went to the wire and proved to be one of the classic World Cup match-ups of all time. After drawing both their classical games, MVL was the first to strike by winning the opening tiebreak game, and looked certain to win the match – but just as dramatically, facing a must-win scenario, Aronian turned in a swashbuckling gem-of-a-game to once again tie the topsy-turvy match.

And after two more tense draws in the rapid, the match then moved into the blitz stage where both players again proved equally resourceful in the art of saving lost positions, as the match was tied at 4-4. This left the final Armageddon game that would ultimately decide everything, which saw Aronian emerge as the winner – and fittingly for these two combatants who are friends off the board, there came a warm handshake and congratulations from MVL as he wished Aronian good luck in the final.

The two losers, So and MVL, now depart Tbilisi winning $50,000 each. And that now leaves Aronian and Ding – who have now clinched their tickets for the Berlin Candidates’ next March – to do battle in the four-game World Cup final for the $120,000 first prize that will start on Saturday.

GM Levon Aronian – GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave
FIDE World Cup, semifinal, (4)

King’s Indian/Benoni Defenc
e1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.f Aronian got nowhere in the two-game classical mini-match against MVL’s legendary preparation in the Grünfeld. So instead, in a must-win scenario in the tiebreaks, the Armenian plays a very popular Anti-Grünfeld system that tends to transpose into a King’s Indian/Benoni set-up. 3…c5 4.d5 d6 5.Nc3 e6 6.e4 Bg7 7.Nge2 0-0 8.Ng3 a6 9.a4 h5 The idea is to push …h4 and harass the White knight on g3 before the Bf1 has moved – but Aronian has a cunning plan awaiting MVL from the Armenian’s legendary home preparation. 10.Bg5 Qc7 11.Qd2 exd5 12.cxd5 Nh7 13.Bh6 h4 14.Bxg7 Kxg7 15.Bc4!? This had to have come as a bolt from the blue for MVL, as he had hoped he was going to harass the knight to e2 and disrupt the development of the Bf1 – but now with the shock piece sacrifice, Aronian is taking him down the deep rabbit-hole of his home prep. 15…hxg3 16.hxg3 Rh8 17.e5! Qe7 Taking the pawn loses quickly, as it allows the Bc4 to play a vital role in the attack: 17…dxe5 18.d6 Qd7 19.Qh6+ Kg8 20.Qxg6+! Kf8 21.Qh6+ Ke8 (No better is 21…Kg8 22.Nd5! and the double threat of Ne7+ or Nf6+ can’t be met without a heavy loss of material.) 22.Qf6 and Black can resign here. 18.0-0-0 Nd7? With Black so far behind in development here, it comes as no surprise that MVL was wary of this so attempts to develop some of his pieces – but perhaps the more crucial line is 18…b5!? 19.exd6 Qxd6 20.Ne4 Qd8 21.Qc3+ f6 22.Qe3 g5! (The only move, as taking the bishop is just too dangerous: 22…bxc4? 23.Qh6+ Kf7 24.Qxh7+!! Rxh7 25.Rxh7+ Ke8 26.Re1 and White has a big winning attack.) 23.Bd3 and this still remains a very difficult and double-edged position for Black to have to defend. The cold, unbeating heart of the silicon playing engine will tell you that Black is holding this and has a slight advantage – but a human will see nothing but huge problems and great difficulty defending this. And also taboo is 18…Qxe5? as it quickly loses to 19.Rde1 Qg5 20.Rxh7+! 19.exd6! The knight coming into the attack with tempo makes more problems for MVL defending this position. 19…Qxd6 20.Ne4 Qe5 It looks a very awkward move to make, but perhaps Black needs to retreat with 20…Qf8 to try to survive this? 21.d6! Bringing the Bc4 into the fray; and with it, leaving hanging in the air the major threat of Qh6+ and Qxg6+. 21…g5? A critical error at a critical stage of the game that ultimately proves decisive. Black had to hunker down to try to defend this with 21…Ndf8!? which at least double-protects the knight on h7, protects g6 (thus stopping the threat of Qh6+ and Qxg6+), and intending to unravel with …Be6. And unless White wants to press the ‘gamble button’ here by trying to press further in this difficult position for Black to have to defend, then now is the moment to bail out for a draw with 22.d7! Bxd7 23.Qh6+ Kg8 24.Rxd7! Nxd7 25.Qxg6+ Qg7 26.Bxf7+ Kf8 27.Qd6+ Kxf7 28.Qxd7+ Kg8 29.Qe6+ Qf7 30.Qg4+ Qg7 (It’s just too darn dangerous to run from the repetition with 30…Kf8?! as White has 31.Nxc5! and a very dangerous attack with Black’s king left stranded in no man’s land.) 31.Qe6+ Qf7 32.Qg4+ Qg7 33.Qe6+ etc. 22.Rhe1! (see diagram) The sudden shift of focus to hitting the Black queen comes as a blow to MVL, as he begins to perhaps realize he could well be losing now. 22…b5 23.Bd5 Rb8 24.f4 Qd4? This loses outright. MVL’s only hope of trying to stay in the game was with 24…Qf5! 25.Qc3+ Ndf6 26.d7! b4 (If 26…Bxd7? Black just goes further down the rabbit-hole after 27.Nd6 Qg4 28.Re7 winning.) 27.dxc8Q Rbxc8 28.Qc4 Nxe4 29.Rxe4 but Black is left still defending a very difficult position – certainly White will be the one having all the fun here. 25.Qe2 Qb4 26.Qh5 1-0 MVL resigns, as the hit on f7 cannot be met without either the loss of material, as …Rf8 allows a mating attack after Rh31.

And Then There Were Four…

Mon, 18 Sep 2017 08:07:13 GMT

Much like the plot out of Agatha Christie’s acclaimed 1939 tense thriller that sees just about everyone being systematically killed off, the “murderous” schedule of the $1.6m FIDE World Cup in Tbilisi, Georgia, has seen the original starting field of 128-players now whittled down to the final four – and with it, now the big semifinal clashes that will see Levon Aronian (Armenia) vs Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (France) and Wesley So (USA) vs Ding Liren (China).

But there’s a calm before the storm because, for the first time in 16 days of intense, often brutal battle, there’s no play today in the competition, as the final four contestants have a little respite before readying themselves for Tuesday’s semifinals, as the tournament heads towards its climax of the four-game final that starts 23 Sept., where up for grabs is two spots for next year’s Berlin Candidates tournament , as well as the lion’s share of the prize money on offer.

For Aronian, who easily dispatched veteran Vassily Ivanchuk in the previous round, this could be his last chance to make it to the Candidates next March. The back-in-form Armenian is too far behind in both the year-long Grand Prix series of tournaments and ratings-race to make it to the Candidates – so getting to the World Cup final could well be his only route to Berlin.

Standing in his way is MVL, who edged Peter Svidler out in the quarterfinals. The Frenchman is another player that’s very much in-form this year, and that makes the match-up between these two the standout pairing of the semis. Like Aronian, MVL has won a lot of tournaments this year ahead of World champion Magnus Carlsen – but the Frenchman could also have another path to Berlin, by virtue of winning the final Las Palmas Grand Prix in mid-November.

In the other semifinal pairing, neither So nor Ding Liren – who respectively easily beat Vladimir Fedoseev and Richard Rapport in the previous round – have lost a game yet in the competition. The favorite is reigning US champion So – who holds a slim lead over Vladimir Kramnik in the ratings’ race second spot behind Fabiano Caruana – who now looks to be back in-form with some very smooth performances in Tbilisi.

GM Wesley So – GM Vladimir Fedoseev
FIDE World Cup, (5.2)
Petroff’s Defence
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nxe5 d6 4.Nf3 Nxe4 5.d4 d5 6.Bd3 Be7 7.0-0 Nc6 8.Nbd2 Bf5 9.Re1 Nxd2 10.Qxd2 Bxd3 11.Qxd3 Wesley So adopts a simple line against the Petroff; the idea being to bring pressure down the e-file by doubling rooks. 11…0-0 12.c3 Qd7 13.Bf4 a6 14.Re2 Rae8 15.Rae1 Bd8 16.Nd2 Rxe2 17.Qxe2 White’s advantage is in his domination of the e-file – but can Wesley extract enough of an advantage from it to squeeze a win? 17…a5 18.Nb3 b6 Prophylaxis, plain and simple – Fedoseev wants to prevent Nb3-c1-c5. There’s not much in the position here, but Wesley extracts as much as he can out of the position was some nice touches. 19.Nc1 f6 20.a4 Wesley rightly assesses that it is too dangerous for Fedoseev to try to capture the a4-pawn, as Black will have trouble defending the many many weaknesses left in its wake. 20…Ne7 21.Nd3 g5 Black would like to take the a4-pawn without having to loosen his position with …g5 – but if 21…Qxa4 22.Bxc7 Bxc7 23.Qxe7 Rf7 24.Qe2! Qd7 25.Qh5! White is going to end up with a rather annoying edge with the target on d5 – and in the long-term, his plan will be f4-f5 followed by Re6 and Qe2 dominating the e-file. 22.Bc1 Ng6 Again, snatching the pawn is fraught with dangers: 22…Qxa4 23.h4! and White begins the process of exploiting Black’s loose position. Now, if 23…Ng6 (Not 23…gxh4 24.Bh6! Rf7 25.Qe6 and there’s no way to stop the winning plan of Nf4-h5.) 24.Qe6+ Rf7 25.hxg5 fxg5 26.Qxd5 leaves White with a big advantage that’s going to be difficult to defend against. 23.b3 Be7 24.h4 gxh4 25.Nf4 Rf7 The young Russian is in a fix, as ultimately his position has too many weaknesses – and although marginally a little better, the alternative was no better: 25…Nxf4 26.Qxe7 Qg4 27.Bxf4 Qxf4 28.Re3! and it’s hard to see a good continuation for Black here, other than 28…Qd6 29.Qxd6 cxd6 30.Re6 leaves Black – lumbered with all his pawn weaknesses – having to defend a really bad rook and pawn ending. 26.Qe6 Qxe6 27.Rxe6 Nxf4 28.Bxf4 Bd8 Fedoseev may well be a pawn up here, but Black has so many pawn weaknesses that So will easily recoup his deficit and then some – but what the young Russian is trying to do, is hunker down to find a way to defend the ensuing difficult endgame. 29.b4! Kg7 Black can’t capture as 29…axb4 30.cxb4 will gift White with a powerful outside passed pawn. 30.bxa5 bxa5 31.Ra6 c6 Again, the outside passed pawn will be a winner, leaving Fedoseev with the only alternative left to him. 32.Rxc6 Kg6 The pawns are equal, and Fedoseev has at least activated his king – but what will ultimately decide the game now is Black’s chronic weaknesses with five isolated pawns and five pawn islands. 33.Rc5 Rd7 34.f3 So just wants to stop his opponent’s king infiltrating into his position with …Ke4-d3 etc. 34…Kf5 35.Bd2 Ke6 36.Rc6+ Kf5 37.Be1 Kg5 38.Rc5 Something has to give, as So is now threatening 39.c4 hitting d5, a5 and also h4. 38…f5 39.Kh2! The pawn weakness on h4 affords So the time to better relocate his bishop. 39…Kh5 40.Bf2 Rd6 41.Be3 Bb6 42.Rb5 Bd8 43.Bf4 Rd7 44.Be5 Kg5 45.Rc5 f4 Instead, 45…Kh5 would have held out a little longer – but defending this sort of position is a nightmare for Black. 46.Rc6 Kf5 47.Ra6 Kg5 48.Kh3 Kf5 49.Rc6 Kg5 50.Re6 Be7 If 50…Kf5 51.Re8 threatens the simple win of the f-pawn with Rf8+, forcing Black into 51…Bg5 52.Rf8+ Ke6 53.Kg4 and White’s king, rook and bishop will mop-up Black’s weak pawns on f4 and h4. 51.Rc6 Bd8 52.Bd6 Kf5 53.Kh2 Black has no play here whatsoever and has to wait for his fate to be decided for him, as So very carefully builds his ideal position for the inevitable endgame win. 53…Rg7 54.Be5 Rd7 55.Rd6! The engines may well prefer keeping the rooks on the board, but So is quick to see the human frailty in the bishop ending, as there’s no way for Black to defend his multiple pawn weaknesses on a5, f4 and h4. 55…Rxd6 56.Bxd6 Kg5 57.Kg1 The king is heading for d3 to help support a c4 break. 57…Kf5 58.Kf2 Kg5 59.Kf1 Kf5 60.Ba3 Ke6 61.Ke2 Kf5 62.Bc1 Kg5 It’s a hopeless position for Black to defend. If 62…Bg5 63.Kd3! threatens Bd2 and c4 that will easily win. At least with 62…Kg5, Black has the mini-threat hanging in the air of a later …h3 that could well save the day. 63.Kf1 Preventing any …h3 chances. 63…Bc7 64.Bd2 Bd8 65.Be1 Kf5 66.Ke2 With the Be1 now stopping …h4 followed by Kg5-h4, So now gets his king back to the queenside. 66…Ke6 67.Kd3 Kd7 68.c4! (see diagram) In the end, Fedoseev is going to find himself in Zugzwang, as So can triangulate his bishop into a position where Black can’t defend his pawn weaknesses on a5, f4 & h4. 68…Kc6 69.Bc3 Bb6 70.Bb2 Bd8 71.Bc1 Bc7 72.Bd2 Now …Bd8 is prevented, as it will lose the pawn on f4 – and Black is soon going to run out of useful moves to make that doesn’t lose. 72…h5 73.Bc3 Bb6 74.Bb2 Bc7 75.Ba3! Now the threat hanging in the air is Be7 winning the h4 pawn. 75…Bd8 76.Bf8 Bg5 77.Bg7 Kd6 78.Be5+ Kc6 79.Kc3 Bh6 80.Bf6 Bf8 81.Kd3 h3 82.gxh3 Bd6 83.Be5 1-0 A wonderfully smooth performance from US champion Wesley So!

Last Man Standing

Fri, 15 Sep 2017 08:03:30 GMT

The $1.6m FIDE World Cup has now reached the quarterfinal stage in Tbilisi, Georgia, but along the way has seen plenty of drama with many of the top favorites falling by the wayside and the ignominy of having to head home early, most notably Magnus Carlsen – who has touted this format to decide his world championship title each year – who learned the hard way why this format is regarded to be the biggest crapshoot in chess, after he unexpectedly lost to China’s Bu Xianngzhi.

Knock-out World Cups, at one time, used to decide the FIDE world title, have proven extraordinarily difficult for favorites, with only Viswanathan Anand able to win multiple knockout events – but he could soon be joined by another. Two previous winners, Levon Aronian of Armenia and Russia’s Peter Svidler, are still left in the competition – and the Armenian took a big step towards his quest of being the last man left standing in the 128-player field after trouncing Vassily Ivanchuk today.

After back-to-back victories over Vladimir Kramnik and Anish Giri, Ivanchuk’s good fortune finally ran out, as the veteran Ukrainian – perhaps a little exhausted following his previous feats – found himself being outclassed and outplayed over the board by Aronian in the opening game of their two-game mini-match.

In the other quarterfinal match-ups, Svidler drew with Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and Richard Rapport drew with Ding Liren. Wesley So is the the last American left standing, and he also drew his first game as Black against Vladimir Fedoseev, who knocked out Hikaru Nakamura earlier in the tournament.

You can follow the latest progress of the matches over the weekend with live coverage available at the official site (and, if needed, tiebreaks on Sunday). And the brackets showing the full results (and final tiebreak scores) is available by clicking here .

GM Levon Aronian – GM Vassily Ivanchuk
FIDE World Cup, (5.1)

English/Reti Openin
g1.c4 e6 2.g3 d5 3.Bg2 dxc4 4.Qa4+ c6 5.Qxc4 b5 6.Qc2 Bb7 7.Nf It may not look like much, but these sort of positions can be deadly for Black, especially if White can safely establish the pawn centre with d4 and e4 – and Black’s job here is to prevent this by countering with …c5. 7…Nd7 8.Nc3 Rc8 9.0-0 a6 10.d4 c5 11.d5! Ivanchuk had probably thought this was not possible – but Aronian has a far deeper understanding of all of these sort of English/Catalan/Reti types of positions. And in these set-ups, if White can get d5 in safely, Black is in deep trouble. 11…exd5 12.Nh4 The pin on the Bb7 is problematic for Ivanchuk to deal with, as it means he can’t push with …d4 nor adequately support his d5 pawn. 12…Ndf6 Ivanchuk faces an early dilemma here: The natural move that he’d really like to play is 12…Ngf6 – but after 13.Rd1 Nb6 14.a4! Nxa4 (Things get even more complicated for Black after 14…b4? 15.a5! bxc3 16.axb6 as the position rapidly opens up with White fully developed, lots of opening lines and ready to strike, while Black’s king is still stuck in the centre of the board.) 15.Nxa4 bxa4 16.Qxa4+ Bc6 (Not 16…Qd7? 17.Qxd7+! Nxd7 (If 17…Kxd7 18.Bg5! Rc6 19.Bxf6 Rxf6 20.Bxd5 Bxd5 21.Rxd5+ Ke8 22.Rad1 Be7 23.Rd7 and White is winning, as Black is in too much of a muddle to develop his rook on h8.) 18.Bxd5 Bxd5 19.Rxd5 Rc6 20.Be3 and White has a big endgame advantage with the more active pieces and easy targets on a6 and c5. Faced with that scenario, Ivanchuk tries to “finesse” his options – but it dramatically backfires on him after some very accurate play from Aronian. 13.Rd1 g6?! The best option Ivanchuk had was to perhaps accept he was in a difficult position and play 13…Qd7 (with the idea of supporting the …Bb7 and preparing Rd8 to bolster the defence of d5) but after 14.Bxd5! Nxd5 15.Nxd5 Bxd5 16.e4 Bxe4 17.Qxe4+ Qe6 18.Qc2! Black’s position, while still defendable, is difficult as he lags badly behind in development and his king looks vulnerable. And regrettably, for Ivanchuk, he tries to avoid this fate but now walks into something much worse. 14.Nxd5 Nxd5 15.e4 Bg7 16.exd5 Nf6 It’s a mad rush to find a safe haven for Ivanchuk’s king. But what else is there? By playing 13…g6, I suppose Ivanchuk thought he might have gotten away with the blocking with 16…Bd4 here – but probably realised by now that it falls into the clever tactical trap of 17.Be3! Bxe3 18.d6!! Bd4 (If 18…Bxg2 19.d7+ wins material.) 19.Bxb7 Rb8 20.Bxa6 Kf8 (You still can’t capture on d6, as 20…Qxd6? falls to 21.Bxb5+! Rxb5 22.Qe2+ picking up the loose rook on b5.) 21.d7! is winning, as 21…Qxd7 22.Qxc5+! Bxc5 23.Rxd7 Nf6 24.Rb7 Rxb7 25.Bxb7 Ng4 26.Kg2! Nxf2 27.Rc1! (stronger than Rf1) 27…Ba7 28.Ba6 Nd3 29.Rb1 and the b5-pawn will soon fall; and with it, an easy endgame win with the queenside pawns marching unchallenged up the board. 17.Qe2+ Kf8 18.a4! Aronian has Ivanchuk in a bind, forcing the concession of further weakness from his opponent while he continues to find easy developing squares for his pieces. 18…b4 19.Be3 Qd6 Ivanchuk still can’t take the troublesome pawn on d5. If 19…Nxd5 20.Qc4 wins. 20.Rac1 (see diagram) The problem for Ivanchuk is that he still needs to find a way to unravel his entombed rook on h8 – but to do so takes time, and this allows Aronian to strike with his wonderful array of harmoniously placed pieces. 20…Nd7 21.Nf3 h6 Looking to stop the knight hop Ng5-e4 with pressure on c5 – But with one less attacker on d5 now after 20…Nd7, there’s more than one route to e4 for Aronian’s knight! 22.Nd2 Kg8 23.Ne4 Qf8 24.d6 1-0 Ivanchuk gives up the struggle early, realising that with the major threat of Nf6 and Bxb7 hanging over him, he’s going to face an agonising death after the forced 24…Bxe4 25.Bxe4 a5 26.b3 etc. So rather than trying to struggle on with this hopeless position, he opts instead to resign a little prematurely – and you really can’t blame him with Aronian in his pomp here.3

It’s A Knockout

Wed, 13 Sep 2017 07:55:59 GMT

While knockout tournaments are the norm for many of the world’s sporting events, there’s many in the chess world who believe that the knockout format used in the ongoing FIDE World Cup in Tbilisi, Georgia, to be a relatively new experiment in the chess world – but, in fact, this system is a venerable one with a lot of history attached to it, as it was used for the first-ever international chess tournament that was held in London in 1851 and organised by Howard Staunton.

But knockout tournaments were not long after that almost totally abandoned in chess for more than a century from the late 19th to the late 20th centuries. And I remember well the shock when they were reintroduced: first, a couple of times in the early 1990s in Tilburg, the Netherlands, and then when Garry Kasparov and Nigel Short split from FIDE in 1993, the game’s governing body followed Tilburg’s lead with six knockout world championships up to 2005, which morphed into their current World Cup events.

In one of those knockout world championships, in 2002, Vassily Ivanchuk was the heavy favourite to win by the pundits and fans alike – but the temperamental Ukrainian dramatically lost to his young countryman, Ruslan Ponomariov (ably assisted by his even younger official second for the match, Sergey Karjakin, who at the time had just turned 12!). Since then, he’s been plagued by erratic performances in major competitions, garnering the reputation of being a “choker”.

The über-talented Ivanchuk was a leading player during the Kasparov era, and everyone thought one day he would become world champion, but didn’t. Last year he did win the World Rapid title in Qatar – but now, at 48, and the oldest player in the 128-player starting field for the FIDE World Cup, who wouldn’t wish to see the people’s champion winning a major classical title late in life?

After turning on the style to outplay and beat ex-world champion Vladimir Kramnik in the previous round of 32, Ivanchuk has now become the first player to make it into the quarterfinals of the $1.6m World Cup after beating the young Dutch star, Anish Giri. And he’ll be joined there by Levon Aronian of Armenia and China’s Ding Liren, with the rest of the matches remaining tied and now going down to the nerve-wracking decider of tomorrow’s speed tiebreaks.

World Cup Final-16
Svidler 1-1 Bu*; MVL 1-1 Grischuk*; Ivanchuk 1½-½ Giri; Aronian 1½-½ Dubov; So 1-1 Jobava*; Fedoseev 1-1 Rodshtein*; Rapport 1-1 Najer*; Ding Liren 1½-½ Wang Hao.

The brackets showing the full results (and final tiebreak scores when completed) is available at the official site by clicking here .

GM Vassily Ivanchuk – GM Anish Giri
FIDE World Cup, (4.1)
Petroff’s Defence
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 Before the revival of the Berlin ‘Wall’ Defence during the Kramnik-Kasparov World Championship match in London in 2000, the Petroff’s Defence was the dreaded drawing system Black player’s would adopt to thwart aggressive opponents. Nowadays, the Petroff is more akin to a Sicilian Najdorf compared to the Berlin! 3.d4 Nxe4 4.Bd3 d5 5.Nxe5 Nd7 6.Nxd7 Bxd7 7.0-0 Bd6 8.Qh5 Qf6 The early queen sortie from Ivanchuk is a bit awkward to deal with, especially as 8…c6 is easily answered with 9.Bxe4 dxe4 10.Nc3 g6 11.Qh6 f5 12.f3! and suddenly the game is opening up with Black’s king still stuck in the middle of the board. 9.Be3 Also possible was the more “adventurous” 9.Nc3!? Qxd4 10.Be3 but after 10…Qe5 11.Qxe5+ Bxe5 12.Nxd5 Nf6 13.Bf4 Bxf4 14.Rfe1+ Kf8 15.Nxf4 in typical Petroff fashion, the pieces are quickly coming off the board to leave a somewhat sterile position. 9…0-0-0 10.Nc3 Ivanchuk turns down the opportunity to snatch the pawn with 10.Qxd5!? and claim an advantage – but it could get a little murky after 10…Rde8 11.Nc3 (Not 11.Bxe4 c6! and Black has good prospects of emerging with compensation for the pawn.) 11…Nxc3 12.bxc3 Qh4 13.g3 Qf6 14.Bg5 (if not this, then …Bc6 and …Qf3 is winning.) 14…Qe6 15.Qxe6 Bxe6 with White a pawn up, but not so easy to convert the advantage due to the state of the queenside pawn structure. So rather than trying to win with this, Ivanchuk instead opts for a different sort of middlegame where the queens stay on the board and his rooks dominate the e-file. 10…Nxc3 11.bxc3 Qe6 Black has to stop …Bg5 and think of defending the d-pawn – but in doing so, it allows Ivanchuk to seize the e-file for his rooks. 12.Rfe1 f6 13.Bd2 Qg8 14.Rab1 Kb8?! I don’t know what “ghosts” Giri was perhaps seeing here, but this looks like a wasted move. He had to contest the e-file and defend what should be a holdable ending from there; so he should have played 14…Re8! 15.Rxe8+ Bxe8 16.Qf3 Bc6 where White has the advantage, as Black’s position is still rather awkward. 15.h3? A missed opportunity that offers Giri a little respite after his wasted king move. Ivanchuk should have followed through now with the attack and the dangerous looking 15.Qf3! with the major threat of 16.c4! crashing through to Black’s king. 15…b6 16.Ba6 g5 17.Qf3 g4! If Giri didn’t have this, he was soon going to be overwhelmed on the queenside with forcing moves like c4 and a4 that will bludgeon a way through to Black’s king. 18.hxg4 Bxg4 19.Qxf6 Rf8 20.Qh4 Ivanchuk’s hesitation has now gifted Giri the momentum – and despite being a pawn down here, Black is very much on top with his active pieces aimed at White’s kingside, but he misses an open goal. 20…h5? In what proves to be the most decisive moment of the match, Giri misses the very strong plan of 20…Rf5! threatening to play …Rh5 and a crushing kingside attack. Just how was Ivanchuk going to stop this simple and straightforward plan? One way with 21.Be2 is soon foiled by 21…Bxe2 22.Rxe2 Qg6! and again White is caught down the h-file, as offering the queen exchange with 23.Qh6 is strongly met by 23…Rh5! either mating or winning a lot of material. This was indeed a major moment in the game for Giri – and later the young Dutch star will be kicking himself for squandering this opportunity. 21.Bg5 Rh7 22.Re3! Black’s back-rank is now vulnerable – and Ivanchuk pounces to exploit this by doubling rooks on the e-file. 22…Bc8 23.Bxc8 Kxc8 24.Rbe1 Qg6 25.Be7 Bxe7 26.Rxe7 The rook on the seventh is going to be a major headache for Giri to deal with – especially if he doesn’t find a way very quickly to exchange queens to lessen the threats to his king. 26…Qxc2 27.Qg3 Rxe7 28.Rxe7 Qc1+ 29.Kh2 Qf4 30.f3 a5 31.Re5 The ending is lost for Black, and not just because he is going to lose a pawn. The real problem for Black here is that, when the queens do come off, the ensuing rook ending will see White’s rook returning to the e-file cutting the Black king from crossing the board to try to stop White’s kingside pawns marching home. 31…Qf7 32.Qh3+ Kb7 33.Rxh5 a4 34.Rh7 Qf4+ 35.Qg3 a3 36.Qxf4 Rxf4 37.Re7! (see diagram) The endgame technique from Ivanchuk is spot on! He’s going to play Re3 and then pushing his kingside pawns – and there’s no defence. 37…Rf6 38.Re3 Rh6+ 39.Kg1 Ivanchuk gives Giri nothing – by retreating, he stops Black’s rook getting behind the pawns that would at least offer up some sort of spirited resistance. 39…Ka6 40.f4 c5 41.f5 1-0 Giri resigns, as there’s no way to stop g4-g5 and the pawns running unchallenged up the board.

Short Circuit

Mon, 11 Sep 2017 07:51:44 GMT

Once again, the game of chess manages to make into the mainstream media for all the very wrong reasons, as the game’s governing body, FIDE, somehow managed to contrive a minor dress code violation in the World Cup in Tbilisi, Georgia, into a full-scale major crisis. And with it, previous round hero Anton Kovalyov , of Canada, sensationally stormed out of the $1.6 million knockout event at the weekend.

Indian five-time former world champion Vishy Anand, but also in the opening round. But 10 minutes before the start of his game, he was accused of breaking the dress code imposed by FIDE. Kovalyov said in his defense that he didn’t have any long trousers, claiming a recent weight gain meant they were all too tight to fit.

It was then that FIDE vice president and head of the European Chess Union Zurab Azmaiparashvili – who admittedly has a very short fuse and no stranger to controversy , and that’s putting it mildly – intervened and a blazing row ensued, and it’s further claimed he threatened that FIDE would be heavily fining the Ukrainian-born Canadian. Following this, Kovalyov walked out and forfeited his match with Maxim Rodshtein of Israel, claiming that he had been “racially abused” and “bullied”. And posting a statement on Facebook, Kovalyov claimed he walked out on the biggest payday of his career, not because of his shorts, but because “[Zurab] was very aggressive, yelling at me and using the racial slur ‘gypsy’ to insult me.”

And later posting a statement on Facebook on why he walked out on the biggest payday of his career, Kovalyov claimed it was not because of the sartorial choice of his shorts, but because “[Zurab] was very aggressive, yelling at me and using the racial slur ‘gypsy’ to insult me.”

In defence of the FIDE dress code, if the tournament organisers wish to enforce this to present a better image of the game for the sponsors and the media, then they have every right to do so – but there are diplomatic ways of doing this, and they certainly shouldn’t be picking an argument with a player just 10 minutes before a crucial game is due to start.

There was also a dress code violation last month at the new Saint Louis Rapid and Blitz at the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis – but the handling between the two incidents couldn’t have been more different. There, GCT Chief Arbiter Chris Bird very diplomatically waited till the game had finished before taking the player aside in private to point out what was expected regarding the dress code. There were no further problems with the player involved.

Amazingly, the blazing row and walk-out overshadowed what should have been the news of the day, with World Champion Magnus Carlsen suffering his own “short circuit” on the board, as he miscalculated a key variation and unexpectedly lost to China’s Bu Xianngzhi. And after losing with White, Carlsen could make no headway with Black in the next game, as the Norwegian top seed and favourite lost his first match in 10 years to sensationally crash out of the World Cup.

And Carlsen wasn’t just the only high-profile casualty of the round, as out also now go Vladimir Kramnik and Hikaru Nakamura without making it to the tiebreaks. And in today’s tiebreaks, also out is American hopeful Fabiano Caruana and his fellow countrymen, Alexander Onischuk and Aleks Lenderman, leaving only Wesley So now as the sole player left flying the stars and stripes.

The brackets showing the full results for round three and those now left contesting the final-16 is available at the official site by clicking here .

GM Magnus Carlsen – GM Bu Xiangzhi
FIDE World Cup, (3.1)
Bishop’s Opening
1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 The Bishop’s Opening is one of the oldest opening lines in chess. After laying dormant at the top level for the best part of a century, Bent Larsen revived it again in the 1960s and 70s. Although it can have a separate agenda, more often than not it is used as a conduit into the Giuoco Piano, as happens in this game, transposing into a Two Knight’s Defence. 2…Nf6 3.d3 Nc6 4.Nf3 Be7 5.0-0 0-0 6.Bb3 d6 7.c3 Be6 8.Re1 Qd7 9.Nbd2 Rab8!?N Not only a novelty but also a subtle little move that prepares Black to push in the center with …d5 – the idea is that, once the d5 push comes, Black wants to prevent the very awkward pin with Bb3-a4 (threatening Nxe5) with the timely …b5. 10.Bc2 d5!? This steers the game into a sort of Marshall Attack set-up – but just how dangerous is it going to be if White takes the e5 pawn? 11.h3 Carlsen is wary of the attacking possibilities coming from Black if 11.exd5 Bxd5 12.Nxe5 Nxe5 13.Rxe5 Bd6 14.Re1 Ng4 – so with h3, he’s preventing the possibility of …Ng4, and at the same time perhaps threatening Nf3-g5 himself, so… 11…h6 12.exd5 The proof is in the pudding. 12…Nxd5 13.Nxe5 Nxe5 14.Rxe5 Bd6 15.Re1 Now if you really want to stop the coming sacrifice on h3, then there’s the trickier – and perhaps better – option of 15.Re4!? Nf6 (The Re4 cuts out the sacrifice, as now if 15…Bxh3 16.gxh3 Qxh3 17.Nf3 Rbe8 18.Rh4! Qe6 19.d4 and White is well on top.) 16.Re3 and Black has a big nothing for his pawn, as White will easily continue with Ne4 or Nc4 and unravel his pieces. 15…Bxh3?!? I simply can’t believe Black has enough compensation here for the piece – but if not this, then what, as Bu is surely lost if Carlsen has simply won the e5 pawn. 16.gxh3 Qxh3 17.Nf1 Black has a forced draw after 17.Qf3 with 17…Bh2+ 18.Kh1 Bg3+ 19.Kg1 Bh2+ etc – but Carlsen wants more. 17…Rbe8 18.d4 Left to his own devices, White will play Be4-g2 and safeguard his king – but Black has a say in the matter! 18…f5! The only viable move that keeps Black in the game. If Bu gets …f4 in, then Carlsen really will have problems with his king – so his next moves are forced. 19.Bb3 c6 20.f4 White simply has to stop Black playing …f4 – and with that completed, all he needs do now is carefully unravel his pieces to emerge with a big material plus. Can it really be all that simple? 20…Kh7 Getting the king out of the pin and leaving Carlsen wondering what to do about defending the f-pawn – if the f-pawn falls, then Black could well be winning. 21.Bxd5? It’s a difficult position, what with White’s king being exposed to the elements, and your gut instinct here is telling you to exchange pieces to lessen the attacking possibilities. But this was a big mistake from Carlsen, who has seriously miscalculated the position. Instead, after the correct 21.Re2! threatening Rh2 (and covering from unwanted checks with Rg2) that is immediately thrown up by the omnipresent engine, Black has trouble showing he has full compensation for the sacrificed piece. Now, Black is more or less forced into 21…Qg4+ (There’s nothing for Black in 21…Nxf4? 22.Rh2 Qg4+ 23.Qxg4 fxg4 24.Bxf4 Rxf4 25.Rd1 and White’s extra piece will eventually win the day.) 22.Rg2 Qxd1 23.Bxd1 Bxf4 24.c4! Re1 25.Bd2 Be3+ 26.Rf2! Bxd2 27.Rxd2 Nf6 28.Re2 Rxe2 29.Bxe2 and White has a big winning advantage. 21…cxd5 22.Re3 Rxe3 23.Bxe3 g5! A powerful move, and one that was likely missed by Carlsen in his assessment of the position when he took the knight on d5. The point is that White can’t play 24.fxg5 as 24…f4! and Black has a storming attack on the White king that can’t be stopped. And if he doesn’t take on g5, Black will be playing …gxf4 opening a path for Black’s rook to enter the king hunt via the open g-file. 24.Kf2 Carlsen is caught between a rock and a hard place. If 24.fxg5 f4! 25.Qc2+ Rf5! 26.Bf2 Kh8 and the White king is going to get caught in the crossfire of Black’s active pieces. 24…gxf4 25.Qf3 It’s desperation time now for Carlsen – but Bu has too much material in the ending to stop the inevitability of a loss. 25…fxe3+ 26.Nxe3 Qh2+ 27.Kf1 Rg8 The clinical kill was the simple 27…Qxb2 28.Re1 Qxc3 29.Qxd5 Bg3 30.Re2 Qc1+ 31.Kg2 Bb8 and the White king is left dangerously exposed. 28.Qxf5+ Rg6 29.Ke1 h5?! It’s not so much that Bu’s threatening to push his h-pawn up the board, it’s more he wants to create a little escape route for his king from the checks – but in doing so, he gives Carlsen a chance of salvation. Instead, he could have created a safe haven for his king with 29…Kg7! 30.Qd7+ Kh8 31.Qd8+ Kh7 32.Qd7+ Rg7 33.Qf5+ Kh8 34.Qc8+ Rg8 and White has run out of checks while Black has maintained the strong pressure on the White king wandering dazed and confused in no man’s land. 30.Kd1? Carlsen is worried over the double threat of …Bg3+ and …Rg1+ and walks himself right into an even worse scenario. Remarkably, with the inaccuracy from Bu of 29…h5, the world champion has been gifted a lifeline with 30.Rd1! and fails to spot it. It looks dangerous, but it’s all smoke and mirrors from Black, as White has everything covered with lots of repetition chances. Now, if 30…Kh6 31.Qf2! Rg1+ (If 31…Bg3 32.Nf5+ is a draw.) 32.Ke2 and White has all the threats covered and will easily hold the draw. 30…Kh6! Freeing up the rook decides the game. 31.Nc2 Now, if 31.Rc1 Rg1+ 32.Nf1 Qf4! 33.Qe6+ Rg6 34.Qe2 h4 and with White’s pieces all in a muddle, Black’s h-pawn can’t be stopped. 31…h4 32.Ne1 h3 33.Nf3 Qg2 34.Ne1 Qg4+ 35.Qxg4 Rxg4 36.Nf3 Rg1+!! (see diagram) 0-1 And Carlsen resigns. I suppose if you are going to beat the world champion, then you may as well do it with more than just a touch of élan! The point being that 37.Nxg1 h2 38.Kc2 h1Q quickly wins.

Go Big Or Go Home

Fri, 08 Sep 2017 07:48:53 GMT

The FIDE World Cup in Tbilisi, Georgia, has a huge prize-fund of $1.6m and two Candidates qualifying spots up for grabs, but its format of two-game mini-matches and nail-biting speed tiebreaks gives it the reputation of being something of a lottery. But with so many elite players in the mix of the massive 128-player starting field, there’s never a dull moment with lots of thrills ’n’ spills and the possibility of some shock early exits.

Yet while the format might not do much for the nerves of the players involved, many fans love the excitement and unpredictability of the knockout format. And this attitude was best summed up perhaps by the top Dutch top chess photographer, Lennart Ootes , who declared that the players simply have to “Go big or go home”!

As Magnus Carlsen went big with yet another brace of comfortable wins in round two, heading home without making it to the tiebreaks was the shock exit of the world champion’s last two title challengers: Out went India’s Vishy Anand, the five-time former world champion, and out also went Russia’s Sergey Karjakin, the 2015 World Cup winner, as their relatively unknown young opponents, the Ukrainian-born Canadian Anton Kovalyov, and Russian future prospect Daniil Dubov, respectively chose their moment to go big!

And also heading home now after a series of nerve-jangling tiebreaks earlier today is another cadre of top seeds: Out went Shakhriyar Mamedyarov, Wei Yi, Pentala Harikrishna, Teimour Radjabov and Radoslaw Wojtaszek. But while the seeds topple, there are still five players left flying the stars and stripes in the next round of 32: Fabiano Caruana, Hikaru Nakamura, Wesley So, Alexander Onischuk and Aleks Lenderman.

The pairing tree for Saturday’s round 3 can be viewed by clicking here .

GM Vishy Anand – GM Anton Kovalyov
FIDE World Cup, (2.1)
Sicilian Najdorf, Adams Attack
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.h3 The Adams Attack is named after the early 20th century US master Weaver Adams (1901-63), and was a big favourite of the young Bobby Fischer. Nowadays, it’s become a big favourite of Anand’s, and also in Magnus Carlsen’s arsenal. 6…e5 7.Nb3 Also an option here is 7.Nde2 that worked well recently for Anand when he used it to good effect to beat Ian Nepomniachtchi in last month’s Sinquefield Cup. But perhaps fearing an improvement, Anand switches back to the more standard knight retreat to b3. 7…Be6 8.Be3 Something of a surprise, as more usual here is 8.f4 with the idea of pushing to f5. But with Anand playing 8.Be3, we can only assume he has a trick up his sleeve – and we didn’t need to wait long to see what it was. 8…h5 Kovalyov wants to stop Anand expanding on the kingside with g4 and possibly also following up with Bg2 and a big bind on the d5 square. 9.Be2 Nbd7 10.0-0 Rc8 11.Qd2N And here’s Anand’s novelty – what he has in mind is the new idea of Rfd1, Bf3 and then the knight tour of Nc1-d3-b4 and total domination of the d5 square. And if Kovalyov doesn’t react energetically to this, he’s going to forever on the back-foot and defending a very difficult position. 11…b5 12.Rfd1 Nb6 Black goes for standard Sicilian counterplay – if the knight gets to c4, then Black will have dynamic equalising chances. 13.Bxb6 Everything is going to revolve around control of the d5 square – even if that means Anand has to surrender the bishop-pair. 13…Qxb6 14.a4 b4 15.Nd5 Nxd5 16.exd5 Bd7 This retreat is perhaps best, as after 16…Bf5 17.a5 Qb7 18.Qe3! the Black position is beginning to feel the strain. If 18…Be7 (Not 18…Bxc2?! – Also 18…Rxc2?? loses on the spot to 19.Nd4! – 19.Rdc1 Bxb3 20.Rxc8+ Qxc8 21.Qxb3 and Black’s queenside is on the verge of collapse, and White’s a-pawn will be a game-winner.) 19.Qb6! leaves Black defending a very difficult endgame with the queens coming off and his queenside pawns weak and vulnerable. 17.a5 Qb7 18.Qe3! Anand is ready to strike on the queenside before Kovalyov is ready for it, still having to develop his kingside bishop and connect his rooks. 18…Be7 19.Qb6 Qxb6 20.axb6 Rb8 21.Rxa6 Black looks to be holding OK after 21.Bxa6 Rxb6 22.Bd3 0-0 23.Ra7 Rd8 24.Na5 Bf8. 21…Bd8 22.b7 Ke7 23.Nc5? Anand seems to get a rush of blood to his head trying to turn his b7-pawn into a big game-winner. And it came as a bolt from the blue for everyone watching, and also Kovalyov, who after the game commented: “If this would work it would be the game of the year”. Fortunately for Kovalyov, it doesn’t work – but I have to ask myself what Anand was thinking here, as he rejected the plain and simple 23.Rda1! Rxb7 24.Ra8 Rf8 25.R1a7 Rc7 26.Na5 which looked very promising for long-term endgame pressure. 23…dxc5 There’s no choice really under such circumstances, because if you don’t go big, then you go home! 24.d6+ Kf6 The king has to come forwards and not backwards, as he has to connect his rooks. 25.Bf3 Kf5! (see diagram) Arguably, this could well be what Anand had missed with his back-firing knight sacrifice. With the king voluntarily moving further forward, he threatens …e4 blocking out the crucial bishop supporting the b7 pawn, and at the same time, he frees his dark-squared bishop to unravel his position and connect his rooks. And with this very accurate and brave move, Anand is now doomed. 26.Bd5 e4 27.Re1 Another point behind …e4 is that it prevented White from playing 27.Ra8 as after 27…Bf6 28.Rda1 Be5! and when d6 falls shortly, then White’s position will soon collapse in the wake. I would imagine that, in playing the knight sacrifice, Anand had imagined such a scenario in his head, but had overlooked the possibility that Kovalyov had the simple plan to unravel his position with 25…Kf5! 27…Bf6 Also good and strong was the main alternative of 27…Re8!? 28.Ra8 Bf6 29.Rxe4 Be5! and again, White’s position will soon collapse with the fall of the d6 pawn. 28.Bxe4+ Kg5 29.Ra5 Bxb2 30.Rxc5+ Kf6 31.Re3 Anand is trying to ‘big-up’ his threats by activating his rooks – but it comes to nothing with a little accurate play from Kovalyov. 31…g6! Anand’s fate is now sealed, as Kovalyov very calmly and correctly deprives the White bishop of the f5 square that will safeguard his king. 32.Rf3+ Ke6 33.Rd3 Rhd8 34.Ra5 f5 Black now has everything under control, and the extra piece comes into its own. 35.Bf3 Bc3 36.h4 Kf6 37.g3 f4! It’s all falling apart rapidly for Anand, with Kovalyov’s threat of …Bf5 now forcing the exchange of bishops – and with it, Black mops-up the loose pawns for an easy win. 38.Be4 Bf5 39.Bxf5 gxf5 40.Rb5 Ke6 41.Kf1 Rd7 42.gxf4 Rbxb7 43.Re3+ Kf6 0-1

Cup Conundrum

Wed, 06 Sep 2017 07:46:38 GMT

The participation of World Champion Magnus Carlsen, not only enhances the status and standing of the currently ongoing $1.6m FIDE World Cup in Tbilisi, Georgia, but his inclusion can come as no surprise to anyone, as not only is this the only major title in chess that the Norwegian hasn’t won – and would dearly like to win for a ‘full set’ – but also in the past he’s seriously touted this knockout event as an ideal format for an annual world championship-decider.

But welcome as it is, with Carlsen in the mix of the 128-player knockout tournament there comes an added conundrum for FIDE. If he reaches the final, then the relevance of the World Cup and arguably that of the subsequent Candidates tournament comes into focus as, technically, while it acts as a world championship qualifier, the Norwegian has exploited a loophole of there being no rule that bars the reigning champion from playing in a world championship-cycle qualifier.

The World Cup guidelines stipulate that the two finalists get direct entry into the Candidates. If Carlsen gets to the final, then there is a provision for a third place play-off. Rule 4.1 in the World Cup guidelines state, “If there is a 3rd place qualification, a match will be organized together, and with the same terms, with the final match of the World Cup to decide the 3rd place.”

So while FIDE might have covered the potential of Carlsen getting to the final, it throws up another conundrum in that of the world champion’s last title-challenger, Sergey Karjakin. FIDE has technically not made any provision for the strong possibility of a Carlsen-Karjakin final. The Russian has directly qualified for the Candidates being the loser in the 2016 world championship match – but he could potentially make it to the final alongside Carlsen, as both are on opposite sides of the draw.

If both get to the final, what will FIDE do? Will they simply give the two losing semi-finalists some sort of Willie Wonka golden ticket into the Candidates? If not that, then this leaves open the possibility of a messy multi-player tournament playoff for the two qualifying spots. Either way, a Carlsen-Karjakin final will leave FIDE with a massive cup conundrum.

And now the field in the World Cup has been cut to 64, with the only seeded casualty of the first round proving to be that of Ukraine’s Pavel Eljanov, the hero of the 2015 World Cup. And as round two got underway earlier today, the first player to win was Carlsen, as the world champion almost effortlessly beat the Russian former elite star and now looks a virtual certainty to easily reach the next round.

The only mishap of the round proved to be Indian ace Vishy Anand, whose speculative sacrifice backfired as he sensationally lost with the White pieces to Canada’s Anton Kovalyov, and now the five-time former world champion faces a must-win scenario with the Black pieces tomorrow to stay in the contest.

GM Aleksey Dreev – GM Magnus Carlsen
FIDE World Cup, (2.1)
Queen’s Gambit Declined, Ragozin variation
1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 The Ragozin variation – named after the leading Soviet player and opening theorists of his day, Vlacheslav Ragozin (1908-1962) – is a very flexible, solid and a reliable system against the QGD, that found a new lease of life following the release of the 2016 New in Chess publication, The Ragozin Complex , by IM Vladimir Barsky. Lately, it has become a popular addition to Magnus’ arsenal, and arguably the world champion choice has been influenced by its adoption over the past year by his close friend and Norwegian No.2, Jon Ludvig Hammer. 4.Nf3 Nf6 5.Bg5 h6 6.Bxf6 Also an option is 6.Bh4 c5 7.dxc5 Nbd7 8.Qd4 Qa5!? with equal play, seen in Grandelius-Hammer, 2016 Norway Chess Qualifier. 6…Qxf6 7.Qb3 c5 8.cxd5 exd5 9.a3 Bxc3+ 10.Qxc3 c4 11.b3 Be6!? Dreev’s body language at this point was beginning to look just a tad uncomfortable, as Carlsen confidently whipped this move out – and the Russian had every right to feel uncomfortable, as it was also used to good effect by Hammer to win a nice game against Inge Skrondal earlier this year in the Norwegian Rapid Championship. 12.Ne5 The aforementioned Skrondal-Hammer game continued 12.e3 0-0 13.Be2 Rc8 14.0-0 Nc6 with Black having lots of active play and White daren’t taking the pawn. 12…0-0 13.e3 Nc6 14.Be2 Dreev perhaps had to be wondering what he was walking into here. The crux of the problems comes with accepting the pawn sacrifice after 14.Nxc6 bxc6 15.bxc4 Rab8! where suddenly White has problems getting his king to safety, and Black ideally poised to strike with his big lead in development. And if 16.c5 (Also no good is 16.Bd3 dxc4 17.Bxc4 Qg6! hitting g2 and threatening …Rb1+, and if 18.0-0 Bh3! wins) 16…Qg6 and White will be in deep trouble trying to get his king quickly to safety with the double threat of …Rb1+ and the hit on g2. 14…Nxe5 15.dxe5 Qg6 16.0-0 d4!? Magnus was looking very confidant as he played this – and all bad news for the Russian, as the world champion could well have still been in his opening preparation! 17.exd4 cxb3 White may well have the center, but Black has a big protected passed pawn close to queening. 18.Bf3 It’s not only the passed pawn that’s worrying Dreev, he also has to be concerned with Magnus getting in …Bd5 followed by …Rac8-c2 and a big attack. And if 18.Bd3 Qg4 19.f3 Rac8! 20.Qb2 Qf4 21.Be4 f5! Black is on top. 18…Rac8 19.Qe3 Qg5 The queens coming off has the potential to make Black’s passed b-pawn more of a dangerous threat. 20.Rab1 Qxe3 21.fxe3 Rfd8 Preventing Dreev from playing d5, which was a bit of a nuisance, as White’s passed d-pawn would also become problematic to deal with. 22.Bxb7 Rc3 23.d5 Dreev may have fared better going for the safer option with 23.Rfe1!? Rb8 24.Be4 that triple-protects the b1 square and leaves White threatening to push his d-pawn also. And this could well have forced Magnus to seek a repetition with 24…b2 25.d5 Bd7 26.Re2 Rc4 27.Bd3 Rc3 28.Be4 Rc4 29.Bd3 Rc3 etc. 23…Bd7 24.Rf4?! Perhaps understandably, Dreev is trying to get in Rf4-b4 putting pressure on the b-pawn – but there’s a little snafu with his plan. Instead, the only safe continuation was 24.d6!? Rxe3 25.Bd5! Be6 26.Bxe6 fxe6 27.Rfe1 Rd3 28.Red1 Re3 29.Re1 Rd3 30.Red1 etc and another repetition, because if a set of rooks get exchanged here, then White can claim the bragging rights to a little advantage in the ensuing rook and pawn ending. 24…a5! Not only stopping Rb4 but also, if needed, threatening …a4 protecting the b-pawn. 25.Kf2? Calamity! The last hope now was 25.d6 Be6 26.Rd4! with the plan of Bd5 and exchanging bishops and going into an equal double rook and pawn ending. But now Magnus has the momentum to drive home the win. 25…Rb8! (see diagram) 26.Bc6 Bxc6 27.dxc6 Rxc6 28.Rd4 Rc2+ 29.Kf3 Dreev is quite simply lost here. If 29.Ke1 Rxg2 and Magnus’ rook will be playing Space Invaders with all the weak and isolated White pawns left on the board. 29…b2 30.Rdd1 The only way to stop …Rc1 – but it comes at a heavy cost of White’s pawns being weak and vulnerable. 30…Rb5 31.a4 Rxe5 32.Rd8+ Kh7 0-1 Dreev resigns, as after 33.Rb8 Rf5+ 34.Ke4 Rff2 the b-pawn is defended and Black will pick off either the g2 or h2 pawn with an easy win.

World Cup Madness

Mon, 04 Sep 2017 07:44:02 GMT

Every two years FIDE, the game’s governing body, holds a World Chess Championship. One of the qualifying events in the cycle that earns not one, but two seats to the Candidates’ that ultimately decides Magnus Carlsen’s official challenger is the World Cup – and this is different than most tournaments because it is a mega 128-player knockout event. In many respects, the World Cup is similar to the NCAA’s March Madness as it involves the science of ‘bracketology’ with half the players eliminated every round.

And with mini-matches and a knockout, anything can happen as the top players can go out by just making a simple slip – but generally, this does not happen in the opening round of the event, as the rating disparity is so great. But the fear of being sensationally eliminated is always there in the back of the mind of the elite players.

So when the 2017 World Cup got underway on Sunday in the Georgian capital of Tbilisi, all eyes were on who would struggle to go forward to the next round of the $1.6m tournament. There were no concerns for Carlsen, as the world champion made it all look so easy, not even breaking a sweat as he easily beat the 2255-rated Nigerian FM, Oluwafemi Balogun, and now a virtual a shoo-in to go forward to the next round.

But some elite stars were not so lucky. ‘Man-of-the-Moment’ Maxime Vachier-Lagrave was held to a draw in his opening round game by IM Muhammad Khusenkhojaev of Tajikistan; and not only MVL struggling but also Sergey Karjakin, the previous World Cup winner and last year’s defeated title-challenger, who was held to a draw by the young Australian IM Anton Smirnov.

And among the 37 players rated 2700+, there were even bigger shocks with Wei Yi, Pentala Harikrishna, Pavel Eljanov and Vladimir Fedoseev all losing and now find themselves in the World Cup madness of a must-win scenario in game two. The most sensational downfall proved to be that of Wei Yi, who was felled in truly spectacular fashion by the unknown 36-year-old Russian/Canadian GM Bator Sambuev, who is rated almost 250-points lower than the Chinese teenage champion.

GM Bator Sambuev – GM Wei Yi
FIDE World Cup, (1.1)
Catalan
1.Nf3 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 d5 4.d4 Bb4 5.g3 An interesting divergence from Sambuev, who is trying to bamboozle his higher-rated opponent by steering the game from a Ragozin into Catalan territory. Also, it is very similar to the g3 systems deployed against the Nimzo-Indian that was popularised back in the late 1980s by the likes of Garry Kasparov and Oleg Romanishin 5…0-0 6.Bg2 dxc4 Sambuev doesn’t care a jot about the c-pawn – he’s just going to continue developing his pieces on active squares and building a strong centre. And this strategy works big-time for the Russian-Canadian, as the teenage Chinese star simply falls into a really bad position as he attempts to hang on to the material. 7.0-0 Nc6 8.a3 Be7 The alternative 8…Bxc3 9.bxc3 Na5 10.a4!? gives White lots of promising piece-play with Ne5 and Ba3. However, with the retreat of the bishop, White takes full control of the centre – and Wei Yi never finds a way to counter this. 9.e4! Na5 10.Be3 Rb8 The art of chess commentary is always 20/20, but in view of what now follows, Wei Yi would have been better going for 10…Nb3 11.Rb1 c5!? 12.dxc5 Nxc5 13.Ne5! Qc7 14.Nxc4 Ncxe4 15.Nxe4 Qxc4 16.Rc1 Qb5 17.a4 Qf5 18.Nd6 where Black is still a pawn up, but in all likelihood, it will fizzle out to a draw with pieces being exchanged rapidly and Black’s queenside pawns under attack. Wei Yi likely declined this safer option as the end result does look drawish, and instead, he wanted to make the game more complex for his inexperienced opponent – but it all backfires spectacularly on him. 11.Qe2 b5 12.Rad1 Sambuev just continues his game-plan of building in the centre. 12…Bb7 13.Ne5 This is always a key move in the Catalan, as the knight finds a dominant outpost, and exchanging it off opens the d-file for the rook. 13…a6 14.g4! A brave choice from Sambuev. With full control of the centre and Black’s knight on a5 so offside that a blind linesman would even be furiously waving his flag here, he decides the time is right to launch a kingside attack that will give his illustrious opponent something to worry about. 14…Ne8?! This looks wrong. A pawn up and facing an opponent about to unleash an all-out attack, Wei Yi attempts to huddle all his pieces together to hunker down for the defence. However, better looked 14…Nd7 which would have at the very least prevented White next breakthrough move – but with the knight on e8, Sambuev just bludgeons his way through the middle of the board and ensuing chaos for Black defending. 15.d5 It’s always a good sign in a Catalan set-up when White can get this move in. 15…exd5 16.Nxd5 Nd6 17.g5!? Rightly, Sambuev gives Wei Yi no respite whatsoever in this position – he’s going ‘all-in’ here, as Wei Yi’s pieces are totally disorganised. 17…Bxd5? Wei Yi’s last hope here was to try 17…Bxg5!? 18.Bxg5 Qxg5 19.Nd7 Rbe8 Where it is not so clear what’s happening, as after 20.f4! Qf5 21.Nxf8 Bxd5! 22.exf5 Rxe2 23.Rxd5 Kxf8 leads to an unclear position – Black is the exchange down, but he has a couple of pawns for it, and White’s pawns are not exactly in good shape. In fact, if anything, this position could still produce any of three results! 18.Rxd5 c6 19.Rdd1 Qc7 20.Qh5 g6? Ultimately the losing move as it creates a weaker defence around Wei Yi’s king. However, under pressure, this is a gut-instinct reaction in such positions – but a calm look at the position will tell you that not moving the pawn and playing instead 20…Rbd8 offered up a better defence, as White has to figure a way to crash through with the mating attack. But with the rook on d8, Black is ready to offer an early exchange of rooks down the d-file that will lessen the dangers….as we will soon see in the game. 21.Qh6 Nxe4? Black can try and hold on still with 21…Rfd8 and …Bf8 kicking the queen back. But even here, White will soon be playing Ng4 and Nf6+ exploiting the weakness created by …g6. 22.Nd7 Nd6 23.Bh3! (see diagram) Watching all this unfold live online, it suddenly began to dawn on me that perhaps Wei Yi had missed this very clever move that not only defends the knight on d7, but more crucially stops Black defending with …Nf5 – and this, in turn, leads to a spectacular giant-killing feat. 23…Rfd8 24.Rd4! 1-0 Wei Yi resigns, as there’s simply no defence to Rh4 mating down the h-file.

Cup Fever

Fri, 01 Sep 2017 07:13:45 GMT

It’s the calm before the storm of arguably the strongest knockout tournament of all-time, as almost all of the world’s elite players get ready to rumble in the FIDE World Cup that gets underway in the Georgian capital of Tbilisi this coming Sunday. The behemoth 128-player event not only has a $1.6 million prize fund (and $120,000 first prize), but it will also directly qualify two players into next year’s Candidates tournament that will ultimately determine World Champion Magnus Carlsen’s next title challenger.

And the cast-list is indeed mightily impressive, with Carlsen heading a field that also includes the rest of the new FIDE September top 10 of Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, Vladimir Kramnik, Levon Aronian, Fabiano Caruana, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov, Viswanathan Anand, Wesley So, Alexander Grischuk and Hikaru Nakamura. The only top grandmasters missing will be Veselin Topalov, Leinier Dominguez, and Dmitry Jakovenko.

Also included is Carlsen’s last title-challenger and the 2015 World Cup winner, Russia’s Sergey Krajakin; Anish Giri, the young Dutch former top 10 star; Wei Yi, the teenage Chinese champion; Peter Svidler, the seven-time Russian champion and 2011 World Cup winner; Boris Gelfand, the 2012 title challenger and 2009 World Cup winner; and not forgetting Hou Yifan, the world’s strongest female player.

Carlsen heads the FIDE rating list now for the 75th time – but this time, the Norwegian has a new rival for the #1 spot, with the dramatic rise of the in-form French star, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, who on the back of his Sinquefield Cup victory climbs from 8th place to 2nd, swapping places with the plummeting Wesley So.

FIDE September Top 10
1. Magnus Carlsen 2827 (+5); 2. Maxime Vachier-Lagrave 2804 (+15); 3. Vladimir Kramnik 2803 (=); 4. Levon Aronian 2802 (+3); 5. Fabiano Caruana 2799 (-8); 6. Shakhriyar Mamedyarov 2797 (=); 7. Viswanathan Anand 2794 (+11); 8. Wesley So 2792 (-18); 9. Alexander Grischuk 2788 (+5); 10. Hikaru Nakamura 2781 (-11)

And earlier this week, MVL overwhelmed another American, Jeffrey Xiong, the current world junior champion, in his first round match-up of the 2017 Chess.com Speed Chess Championship . MVL beat Xiong, 19-12, and he now joins Karjakin, Nakamura, Grischuk, Caruana, So and Ian Nepomniachtchi in the next round. The final first round match-up will see defending champion Carlsen playing Gadir Guseinov on 5 October.

GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave – GM Jeffrey Xiong
Chess.com Speed Ch., (5m+2spm), (1)
Sicilian Najdorf
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 Nf6 4.Nc3 cxd4 5.Nxd4 a6 6.Be2 e5 7.Nf3 Be7 8.Bg5 Nbd7 9.a4 Qb6 10.a5!? Being a speed game, MVL rightly opts to “go for it”, reckoning that his active piece play might well be worth the sacrificed material. And defending b2 with 10.Rb1 wasn’t really an option anyway, as after 10…h6 11.Be3 Qc6! Black has heavy pressure on e4 and will be following up with …Nc5 and …Be6 and an excellent Sicilian set-up. 10…Qxb2 11.Bd2 Qb4 12.Nd5 Qc5 13.Bb4 Qc6 14.Nxe7 Kxe7 15.Nxe5!? It may well not be completely sound, but in blitz, this kind of bolt out of the blue can be a winner because, for the sacrificed piece, MVL has lots of pressure while Xiong has to accurately figure out how he gets his king to safety before White can bludgeon a route through to his indisposed king. 15…Nxe5 16.Qd4 Ke8 17.Bxd6 All the engines will tell you here that Black is much better – but in reality, in human terms and in this speed-play scenario, this is a tough position to play as the Black king is stranded in the middle of the board, and this makes it difficult to develop the kingside rook. 17…Ng6 18.f3 Be6 19.c4 Rd8 20.c5 Nd7 The g7 pawn is insignificant here. If Black can somehow break the stranglehold of the dominant bishop on d6, then his game will ease. 21.Rd1 f6 22.0-0 For now, being a piece down is not a problem for MVL, as Black’s position needs to unravel first to make it count – but if Black does unravel successfully, then he’s winning. 22…Kf7? Calamity! With his digital clock metaphorically ticking down, and Xiong so preoccupied with the job of getting his kingside rook into the game, he overlooks a simple winning shot from MVL. He had to play 22…Ne7! followed by …h5, with the idea of playing …Bg4 if White throws in f4. 23.f4! (see diagram) The simple threat of f5 regaining the piece with interest, gives MVL a vital extra tempo to bust the position wide open. 23…Nxc5 What else is there now? If 23…Ngf8 24.f5 Ba2 there are many ways to win, but the most obvious to my eye is 25.Bc4+ Bxc4 26.Qxc4+ Ke8 27.Rd5! and Black is left paralyzed, waiting for White to move in for the kill with Rfd1 followed by e5. 24.f5 Ne5 25.fxe6+ Nxe6 I suppose it was too much to ask for the spectacular finish of 25… Kxe6 26. Qxe5+!! fxe5 27. Bg4#. 26.Qxe5 1-0

Mastering the Masters

Wed, 30 Aug 2017 07:08:47 GMT

The US Masters is becoming a must-play event and building a tradition for itself in North Carolina, with the dynamic duo of organizers Dr. Walter High and Gary Newsom taking over the franchise in 2012 and then very quickly going about their business of establishing a burgeoning, big-time chess tournament experience and atmosphere in the Tar Heel state.

Now, the US Masters is the marquee event of The Greensboro International Chess Festival – a festival that also includes the North Carolina Open and many Scholastic events. Last year, over 400 players competed – but with each year under the stewardship of High & Newsom, it has got bigger and better, and the latest edition that ran 23-29 August at the Embassy Suites Hotel in Greensboro, NC, proved to be no exception.

Twenty-two top grandmasters from 18 countries battled it out for the $17,000 total prize fund and the prestige of winning the US Masters title. But with such a line-up, the competition was bound to be fierce. In the end, only one player emerged to win outright, and that proved to be Russian GM Vladimir Belous, who took back home to Moscow the $5,000 first prize and the US Masters title with his undefeated score of 7/9 .

But it wasn’t all that clear going into the final round, especially as many GMs were tied in a logjam for first place. But Belous proved to be the one to emerge triumphant as, uncharacteristically, his final round opponent, four-time US Champion Alexander Shabalov, made a very costly opening error to gift the Muscovite an overwhelming attack.

The US GM duo of Sam Shankland and Yaroslav Zherebukh bested Russian GM Dmitry Gordievsky in a speed playoff to advance to an Armageddon showdown to determine the title of best US player and a $500 bonus, which was won by Zherebukh.

Final standings
1. GM Vladimir Belous (Russia) 7/9; 2-4. GM Sam Shankland (USA), GM Yaroslav Zherebukh (USA), GM Dmitry Gordievsky (Russia) 6.5; 5-14. GM Ray Robson (USA), GM Kamil Dragun (Poland), GM Yuniesky Quesada (Cuba), GM Benjamin Glendura (Hungary), GM Niclas Huschenbeth (Germany), GM Alexander Shabalov (USA), GM Ioan-Christian Chirila (Romania), GM Awonder Liang (USA), IM Andrey Gorovets (Belarus), GM Bartlomej Macieja (Poland) 6.

GM Vladimir Belous – GM Alexander Shabalov
US Masters, (9)
Queens’ Gambit Accepted
1.Nf3 d5 2.d4 Nf6 3.c4 dxc4 At the most straightforward level, in the Queen’s Gambit Accepted, Black concedes an extra central pawn to White – but in doing so, Black will rely on rapid queenside expansion as a means of counterplay. 4.e3 e6 5.Bxc4 a6 6.0-0 c5 7.Bb3 A more common theme here is to play 7.a4 to hold up Black’s queenside expansion – but with White delaying the development of his Nb1-c3 for now, he has less to fear about this, and can concentrate on control of the center. 7…b6 8.Qe2 Bb7 9.Nc3 Note how White plays Nc3 only when Black doesn’t play the standard QGA …b5 expansion. Both players are playing a waiting game, delaying the moment when the tension is released. 9…Nbd7 10.Rd1 Qb8 Getting the queen off the d-file with this or 10…Qc7 is a common theme in the QGA. 11.d5 White has to play dynamically because, if Black completes his development and then castles safely, he will have consolidated his position with excellent prospects of challenging any later White push in the center. 11…exd5?! Shabalov is known to create a bit of “chaos” at the board from time to time, taking risks to destabilize the position, hoping to induce chaos and lots of complications to confuse his opponents – but this is one risk too far for the 4-time US Champion. He had to seek exchanges of pieces to lessen White’s attacking potential, and should have played 11…Nxd5! 12.Nxd5 Bxd5 13.Bxd5 exd5 14.Rxd5 Nf6 15.Rd3 Ne4! and with …Bd6 and …0-0 coming quickly, Black is near to equality and will easily hold this position. 12.e4! The sacrificial route is a no-brainer here with White’s pieces ideally poised to strike before Black can even get his trousers on – and this makes me wonder if Shabalov had perhaps simply overlooked this possibility? Maybe he believed his opponent was going to automatically recapture with 12.Nxd5 and going into the variation above – if so, he’s made a grave error. 12…d4 13.Qc4! It’s not very often we see one of the country’s top grandmasters having to grovel for his very survival so early in the game. 13…Kd8 14.Qxf7 Ra7 As ugly as it all looks, Shabalov is trying his best to stay in the game. 15.Bg5 Qd6 16.Nd5 Also deadly was 16.e5! Nxe5 17.Nxe5 Qxe5 18.Nd5 Bxd5 19.Bxf6+ gxf6 20.Qxa7 and Black is close to resignation point here. 16…Kc8 17.Rac1 Belous’ game practically plays itself here, as he piles on the agony for his opponent by simply putting his pieces on the most obvious squares with literally no thinking involved in the process. 17…Bxd5 18.exd5 Rc7 19.Re1 Kb7 Others may well have simply collapsed here, but Shabalov continues to hang on by his finger tips. The body count is equal, and if his opponent hesitates with his attack, Shabalov could well sneak an escape here – but Belous now has the bit between his teeth and doesn’t let up with the relentless pressure. 20.Qe6! (see diagram) It was easy here to get carried away with the attack by looking to crash through with 20.Re6 – but amazingly, Black has the saving resource of 20…Ne5! 21.Nxe5 Qxe5 22.Rxe5 Rxf7 and is over the worst of it with excellent chances of saving the game now. But with the clinical 20.Qe6!, Belous keeps Shabalov all tied up as he can’t develop his bishop without further compromising his position. 20…h6 21.Bh4 Nh5 22.Qg4 Stronger and quicker was the immediate 22.Qf5! that would have saved a tempo. 22…Ndf6 23.Qf5 Qf4 24.Qd3 Bd6 The bishop finally gets out – but it is all too little too late for Shabalov, as White’s pieces now unite to crash through for the winning attack. 25.Bg3! Nxg3 The exchange doesn’t offer any relief at all, as it forces the queen offside and a big disconnect in helping to defend. 26.hxg3 Qg4 27.Re6 Rd8 28.Bc4 Kb8 What else is there? If 28…b5 White quickly crashes through with 29.Bxb5 axb5 30.Qxb5+ Ka8 31.Qa6+ Ra7 32.Qc6+ Rb7 33.Rxd6 and an easy win. 29.Qb3 b5 30.a4 b4 31.Bxa6 Qh5 The problem for Shabalov is that his pieces do not connect with each other to offer any hope of holding back the attack, or even muster some counterplay. I can imagine defending this position had to be agony for Shabalov. 32.Bc4 Ng4 33.a5 The passed pawn is the least of Shabalov’s problems, as Belous pushed it not to run, but to open up a route for his queen to get to a4 and b5 to hit the Black king. 33…Rf7 34.Qa4 Nxf2 Shabalov at least opts to go down with all games blazing. 35.Kxf2 Qg5 36.Qb5+ Ka8 37.Qa6+ Kb8 38.Qb6+ Ka8 39.Ke2! 1-0 All it takes is a simple sidestep from the king to get out of the pin for Shabalov to now resign – the reason being that Shabalov’s queen is overworked and has been holding his position together, particularly the protection of his Rd8.

The Swiss Miss

Mon, 28 Aug 2017 07:04:42 GMT

With our extensive coverage of the 5th Sinquefield Cup and the Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz tournament over the past few weeks, it’s now time to play ‘catch up’ with all the other chess news from around the world – and none more so than the standout performance from Chinese star Hou Yifan, who in early August claimed an historic outright victory at the 50th Biel International Chess Festival in Switzerland.

Seeded only seventh, Hou turned in a true Judit Polgar-like performance to take outright first place in a field that included nine top male players – and among the field of prominent grandmasters was also Ruslan Ponomariov, a former Fide knockout world champion, and Peter Leko, who came within one game of being crowned world champion against Vladimir Kramnik in 2004.

Two years ago, Hou – quite disillusioned by Fide’s running of the Women’s World Championship cycle – opted not to defend her world title, turning her back on the women’s game, and focusing all her energies instead on playing the strongest available opposition. The 23-year-old Chinese GM has had up-and-down results but she’s stuck to it, despite opposition from the Chinese Federation.

Hou’s victory at Biel must now come as a terrific validation. She top-scored on 6.5/9, and in the process turned in a performance rating of 2810. Her only loss was to India’s #2, Pentala Harikrishna, and her ‘victims’ included David Navara and two former candidates in Alexander Morozevich and Rafael Vaganian.

And on the back of her glass ceiling cracking performance in Biel, Hou now ranks 72nd in the world. And with it, she now joins a very select club, with only two other women in the annals having previously ranked higher: the redoubtable Judit Polgar and Maia Chiburdanidze, the 1980s Soviet-era Women’s World champion.

Final standings
1. Hou Yifan (China) 6.5/9; 2. Etienne Bacrot (France) 6; 3. Pentala Harikrishna (India) 5.5; 4-7. Ruslan Ponomariov (Ukraine), Peter Leko (Hungary), Nico Georgiadis (Switzerland), Alexander Morozevich (Russia) 5; 8. David Navara (Czech Rep.) 4; 9. Rafael Vaganian (Armenia); 10. Noël Studer (Switzerland) 1.

GM Rafael Vaganian – GM Hou Yifan
50th Biel International Festival GM, (8)

Yusupov-Rubinstein Syste
m1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 e6 3.e3 b6 4.Bd3 Bb7 5.0-0 d5 6.b3 Bd6 7.Bb2 0-0 8.Ne5 c5 9.Qe2 Nc6 10.a3 Rc8 11.Nd2 Ne7 12.Rad1 Qc7 13.c4 Ne4 14.cxd5 Nxd2 15.Rxd2 Bxd Rather than recapturing with the pawn, Hou wants to open lines for her pieces. 16.Qh5 f5! Much stronger than …g6, as it locks Vaganian’s white-squared bishop out of the attack and stops e4 from being played. 17.Nc4 cxd4 18.Bxd4 Ng6 19.Nxd6 Qxd6 20.b4 Vaganian thinks his bishop-pair offers him a slight edge – but he’s overlooked a big tactic that turns the position firmly in Hou’s direction. 20…Bxg2!! (see diagram) This is the sort of bolt out of the blue that can physically rock you back in your chair! Truth told, Vaganian simply must have missed this shot – but the ever-alert Hou was quick off the mark to spot it. 21.Kxg2 Qxd4! The second tactical blow is the decider, as Vaganian discovers that he’s doomed to defend a bad ending. 22.Qxg6?! The alternatives, though marginally better, fared no better. If 22.Qxf5 Rxf5 23.exd4 Nf4+ 24.Kh1 Rff8! 25.Be4 Rc3 26.Ra1 Rfc8 and although the material is equal, Black’s active pieces (not to mention the wonderful knight on f4, with threats of a back-rank mate) will pick off a pawn and then the game. And, of course, if 22.exd4 Nf4+ 23.Kf3 Nxh5 the fork has simply won a pawn, with the Black knight heading to f6 to blockade the d5 square before targeting the isolated d4 pawn. 22…Qd5+ 23.e4 fxe4 24.Qxe4 Wishful thinking perhaps, but Vaganian hopes his queen and bishop hitting h7 might hold some slim hopes of saving the game – but Hou Yifan has it all worked out, as she clinically forces the exchange of queens for an easy win. 24…Qg5+ 25.Kh1 Qxd2 26.Qxh7+ Kf7 27.Qg6+ Unfortunately for Vaganian, if 27.Rg1 Qh6! 28.Qe4 Rc1 easily liquidates the position and eliminates any slim hopes of possibly saving the game. 27…Ke7 28.Qxg7+ Rf7 29.Qd4 Qf4 30.Qxf4 Rxf4 31.f3 Rd4! The final classy touch from Hou – the rook activates itself before Vaganian can attempt to cut it off with Be4. Now he’s at the mercy of Hou’s marauding rooks that will either pick off the queenside pawns or mate the White king. 32.Be4 Rd2 33.Rg1 Rc3 0-15

The Summer of Saint Louis

Fri, 25 Aug 2017 06:57:52 GMT

For many Americans, Labor Day weekend is looming large now on the horizon, and with it comes the symbolic end of summer. But chess-wise, we can’t let go of summer without ever remembering that Saint Louis staged not one, not two, but three impressive back-to-back tournaments that featured a galaxy of former, future and current chess stars that only served to reinforce its unabashed credentials as the world’s leading chess hub.

All three events were unique in their own way, and all three were staged – where else, I hear you all ask? – at Rex Sinquefield’s Chess Club and Scholastic Centre of Saint Louis (CCSCSL), which has now become the very beating heart of the thriving Central West End neighborhood of the Midwest city.

First up was the ‘ Match of the Millennials ’ that ran 26-29 July – a new initiative between the CCSCSL, in cooperation with the Kasparov Chess Foundation, U.S. Chess Federation, World Chess Federation (FIDE) and FIDE Trainers’ Commission – that pitted the first-of-its-kind match-up between the young talents of the USA and the Rest of the World.

On paper, the US were the big favorites to win, especially having the big guns of GMs Sam Sevian, Jeffrey Xiong and Awonder Liang on the top boards. But in a shock result, the RoW, largely a team of unknowns, save for pre-teen sensations IM Praggnanandhaa Babu of India and Uzbekistan wunderkind IM Nodirbek Abdusattorov, proved to be the runaway winners, thrashing the USA 30½-17½ in a lopsided match.

But this was merely a curtain-raiser for the main event at the CCSCSL, as they also staged the latest two legs of the Grand Chess Tour: the 5th Sinquefield Cup headed by World Champion and tour leader Magnus Carlsen, then followed by the inaugural Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz that witnessed the return to competitive play of the legendary ex-world champion, Garry Kasparov.

In the Sinquefield Cup, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave dramatically pipped Carlsen to the title after the Norwegian squandered a solid winning chance against the rising French star. And in the new Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz event, Levon Aronian overshadowed Kasparov’s return, as the affable Armenian turned on the style to take the title and maximum tour points.

And while that was the ‘Summer of Saint Louis’, Labour Day weekend will see Carlsen, MVL & Aronian et al back in action again, as the top trio join a full supporting cast for what will surely be a fiercely-contested 128-player FIDE World Cup that starts next week in Tbilisi, Georgia, particularly as it will qualify two players into next year’s Candidates’ tournament.

GM Magnus Carlsen – GM Levon Aronian
5th Sinquefield Cup, (9)
Ruy Lopez, Anti-Marshall
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 0-0 8.a4 The Anti-Marshall; and a wise call from Magnus, as Aronian is – along with Peter Svidler – one of the world’s leading authorities on Frank J. Marshall’s eponymous Marshall Attack with 8.c3 d5. 8…b4 9.a5 d6 10.d3 Be6 11.Bxe6 fxe6 12.Nbd2 Rb8 13.c3 Qe8 Alternatively, 13…bxc3 14.bxc3 Rb5 15.Nf1 Qd7 16.Bg5 Rxa5 17.Rxa5 Nxa5 18.d4 exd4 19.cxd4 h6 20.Bh4 Nc6 easily equalised for Black in MVL-Wojtaszek,R at this year’s Dortmund Chess-Meeting. 14.Nc4N Apparently this – admittedly, somewhat natural move – is a novelty, and seen previously has been 14.d4 bxc3 15.bxc3 exd4 16.cxd4 Rb5! with equality. Rather than that, Carlsen opts to keep the tension in the position a little longer. 14…Qg6 15.h3 Nd7?! I’m somewhat puzzled by this knight retreat, as the most obvious and natural move is 15…Nh5! followed by …Nf4 – otherwise why did Black play his queen to g6? I just can’t fathom Aronian’s thinking here at all, as he has conflicting plans. The only rationale I can come up with is that Aronian didn’t want to play the standard knight hop …Nh5-f4 because he thought Carlsen would immediately play Bxf4 – but after the logical …Rxf4, Black is doing OK with prospects of a promising kingside attack. 16.Be3 d5 17.Ncd2 According to Carlsen’s post mortem interview, the world champion thought Aronian had overestimated his chances here as he looked to open the game up, believing his active pieces will give him the edge. 17…bxc3 18.bxc3 Nc5 It looks as if Aronian is going to get a lot of active play – but Carlsen has it all in hand, and hits back with his counter-attack. 19.Bxc5! Bxc5 20.Qa4 Carlsen’s queen cuts in right behind Aronian’s lines; and the only thing the Armenian can do now, is to go ‘all-in’ with his attack and hope it works. 20…Rb2 21.Rf1! Carlsen just calmly defends his weak point on f2, avoiding the pitfalls of 21.Qxc6? Bxf2+! and now leaves Aronian wondering just how is he going to hold his position together with the Nc6 under attack? 21…Na7 It’s just not in Aronian’s style to retreat with 21…Qe8 and having to defend against 22.Rab1! Rxb1 23.Rxb1 Qd7 24.d4! with an easy advantage for White. 22.Nxe5 Qh6 23.Ndf3 Nb5 24.Rae1! Carlsen simply gets on with the job of centralising his pieces, knowing that everything is protected, and when the game does open, his pieces are more of a cohesive unit than Aronian’s. 24…Nxc3 25.Qc6! (See diagram) The White queen moves right in behind Black’s lines, and in its wake, it uncovers serious pawn weaknesses that ultimately proves decisive. 25…Bb4 26.Kh1 Carlsen is being somewhat over-cautious here, as good and strong was 26.Nd7! Rc8 27.Nd4 and Black’s position is beginning to show signs of collapsing. 26…dxe4 27.dxe4 Ne2 28.Rb1 Rxb1 29.Rxb1 Bd6 30.Qxa6 Watching the game unfold in St. Louis, I was somewhat surprised Carlsen rejected the very tempting 30.Ng4!? Qg6 31.Nfe5 with a clear advantage. As it is, Carlsen’s option is winning, though not so clinical. 30…Nf4 31.Qb5 c5? Aronian had to do something quickly, otherwise Carlsen’s a-pawn just rushes up the board unhindered. His best chance of trying to stay in the game was with 31…c6!? 32.Qc4! (Not 32.Qxc6 Bxe5 33.Nxe5 Qg5! 34.Ng4 h5 35.Ne3 Nd3 with complications.) 32…Bxe5 33.Nxe5 Qg5 34.Ng4 h5 35.Ne3 and White has everything under control, and Black can’t take the dangerous a-pawn, as after 35…Qxa5 36.g3 Ng6 37.Qxe6+ Kh7 38.Nf5! Qa7 39.Kg2 Black’s position is teetering on the brink of collapse. 32.a6 There’s no way to stop the a-pawn without a loss of material. 32…Bxe5 33.Nxe5 Qg5 34.Ng4 h5 35.Ne3 Nxg2!?! Aronian is plain and simply lost here, but kudos to him for doing his creative best to give himself an outside chance of possibly saving the game. 36.Nxg2 Rxf2 37.Rg1 Kh7 Aronian must first avoid Qe8+ followed by Qxh5+ if he’s going to go for the ‘Hail Mary’ save. 38.Qd3 Putting the kibosh on Aronian getting in the awkward …Qg3, which if he succeeds in doing so, could well save the game. 38…Qe5 39.Qe3 Ra2 40.Qf4 Qc3 41.Ne3 Carlsen has all the bases covered, and Aronian now has to find a way to stop the world champion playing Qf7 winning with ease. 41…Qf6 42.Qxf6 gxf6 If Aronian can somehow find a way to liquidate White’s pawns, then the position is a likely draw – but the big thing in Carlsen’s favour here is that it not so easy for Black to liquidate White’s h-pawn. 43.Rc1 Rxa6 44.Kg2 Ra2+ If 44…Rc6 45.Kf3! Kg6 46.Ng2 (stopping …h4) 46…Kf7 47.Rc4! and there’s no way to stop White from playing Nf4-d3 winning either the h- or the c-pawn, as …e5 will leave holes on f5 and d5. 45.Rc2 Ra5 46.Kf3 Kg6 47.h4 Rb5 48.Ra2 Rb1 49.Rc2 Rb5 50.Rc3 f5 What a bind for Aronian to be in! For any slim hope of saving the game, his best chance is to exchange off the pawns – but in doing so with this move, in its wake, it creates a loosening of Black’s position that Carlsen quickly moves in to exploit. 51.exf5+ exf5 52.Rd3 1-0 Aronian resigns, faced with the choice of 52…Rb6 (or 52…Kf6 53.Rd6+) 53.Rd5 both winning easily.

The Bells Are Ringing

Sat, 19 Aug 2017 14:27:58 GMT

It was double joy for Levon Aronian at the new Grand Chess Tour event, the Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz , held at the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis (CCSCSL), as the Armenian ace not only won the top prize but also on the same day, he announced he had captured arguably the ‘ultimate prize’, as he would be marrying his long-time Australian fiancé, WIM Arianne Caoili, on 30 September 2017.

The ever-creative Aronian was in majestic form as he took a one-point lead from the rapid into the deciding blitz tournament at the CCSCL – and that lead proved crucial for the affable Armenian, as Sergey Karjakin bested him into second place to win the blitz, though Aronian’s combined score gave him overall victory, three-points clear of the field, as he captured the first prize of $37,500 and picking up in the process a maximum 13 GCT points.

Aronian’s victory means we are now in for an exciting finish to the GCT with the final event of the season, the London Chess Classic , in early December, with leaders Magnus Carlsen (winner of Paris and the Your Next Move Rapid & Blitz), Maxime Vachier-Lagrave ( Sinquefield Cup ) and Aronian ( Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz ) all now involved in a tight three-horse race to capture the 2017 tour title, and with it the tour bonus prize of $100,000 on top of their winnings.

Despite Aronian winning the inaugural Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz, the main attraction that had the media and fans buzzing with excitement was the wildcard return to competitive play of 54-year-old chess legend Garry Kasparov. And although the ex-world champion initially struggled in the rapid following his 12-year layoff, he rallied for a strong finish in the final day of the blitz tournament.

But asked afterwards on social media what he would do next, the emphatic answer from Kasparov was “Retire!”, confirming that playing in St. Louis was very much a one-off affair, and he had absolutely no intentions of making a permanent comeback to competitive chess.

Blitz final standings
1. Karjakin 13.5/18; 2. Aronian 12.5; 3. Nakamura 10.5; 4. Nepomniachtchi 10; 5. Kasparov 9; 6. Le Quang Liem 8.5; 7. Dominguez 7.5; 8. Anand 7; 9. Navara 6; 10. Caruana 5.5.

Rapid & Blitz final standings
1. Levon Aronian 24.5; 2-3. Sergey Karjakin, Hikaru Nakamura 21.5; 4. Ian Nepomniachtchi 20; 5-7. Leinier Dominguez, Fabiano Caruana, Le Quang Liem 16.5; 8. Garry Kasparov 16; 9. Viswanathan Anand 14; 10. David Navara 13.

GCT standings
1. Magnus Carlsen ($113,750) 34-points; 2. Maxime Vachier-Lagrave ($126,250) 31; 3. Levon Aronian ($76,250) 25; 4. Sergey Karjakin ($60,000) 20.5; 5. Hikaru Nakamura ($35,000) 20; 6. Wesley So ($47,500) 15.5; 7. Viswanathan Anand ($60,000) 14; 8. Ian Nepomniachtchi ($37,500) 12.5; 9. Fabiano Caruana ($32,500) 12.

GM Garry Kasparov – GM Levon Aronian
Saint Louis Blitz, (7)

Nimzo-Indian Defence, Classical

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.Qc2 The Classical or Capablanca variation was popular in the early days of the Nimzo-Indian, made famous by being adopted by Jose Raul Capablanca. The idea is for White to try and gain the bishop pair without compromising the pawn structure after …Bxc3, and at the same time possibly planning on domineering the center with e4. 4…O-O 5.a3 Bxc3+ 6.Qxc3 d5 7.Nf3 dxc4 8.Qxc4 b6 9.h4 In retirement, Kasparov has been ‘liberated’, and in many games in St. Louis during his one-off comeback, he called on the early services of Harry the h-pawn. 9…Bb7 10.Bg5 Qd5! Aronian isn’t unduly worried by the advancing Harry from Garry, and consolidates his position around the d5 square, looking for quick and easy development. 11.Rc1 Nbd7 12.Qxd5 It’s too dangerous for Kasparov to take on c7 – and it is also dangerous for him to stand by and watch Black get in …c5 opening up the game, so he opts instead to exchange queens in an effort to safely complete his development. 12…Bxd5 13.Ne5 There still no time for 13.Rxc7?! as after 13…Rfc8! 14.Rxc8+ Rxc8 Black’s rook is going to easily jump into c2 to recapture the pawn, with added interest to come. 13…c5 Despite it being a blitz game, Aronian keeps up the relentless pressure on Kasparov, whose position is beginning to get just a little difficult. 14.Bxf6 Nxf6 15.dxc5 bxc5 16.f3 The very expressive facial contortions from Kasparov demonstrated he didn’t feel happy here, as he had to think long and hard. And again, there’s no time to capture the c-pawn, as after 16.Rxc5 Ne4 17.Rc2 Rfc8! 18.Rxc8+ Rxc8 19.Nd3 Bc4! and Black again will achieve his goal of getting a rook to c2, winning back the pawn with a better position. 16…Rab8 17.e4 It’s hard to be judgmental in a blitz game, but in fathoming out all the complications involved with hanging on to the pawn, Kasparov falls behind on the clock – and this soon forces a costly error. 17…Ba2 18.Rc2 Bb1 19.Rd2 Rfd8 20.Rxd8+ Better, according to the engines, was 20.Rf2 – but exchanging rooks was simply the more human, instinctive move here, as it helps to ease the pressure a little. 20…Rxd8 21.Bb5 Nh5 22.g4 Kasparov was starting to feel the time pressure by now, and missed the better 22.O-O which gains a vital tempo, as the rook hits the bishop on b1. 22…Nf4 23.Kf2?! Tick-tock! In a little time-trouble, Kasparov missed the better option of 23.Rh2! stopping Aronian’s rook getting to the seventh – and with the idea later of playing Rd2 himself. But it is so difficult having to navigate through all of this with so little time available in blitz chess. 23…f6 24.Nc6?! The easy route was with 24.Rxb1 fxe5 25.b4 and White can claim to be a little better – but such are the vagaries of blitz chess when you’ve convinced yourself that you still stand more than just being a little better here. 24…Rd2+ 25.Ke3 Rxb2 We can assume in the time-trouble, Kasparov had missed that after this simply move, Aronian was not only defending his bishop but also attacking his own bishop! 26.Kxf4 Rxb5 27.Rd1 h6 28.h5? Kasparov’s last chance to stay in the game was with the immediate 28.e5! g5+ 29.Kg3 fxe5 ( If 29…f5 30.Rd8+ Kf7 31.Rd7+ Ke8 32.Rd8+ Kf7 33.Rd7+ is a draw by repetition. ) 30.Nxe5 and White should easily hold this, with the strong knight on e5 and Black’s weak pawns on e6, c5 and a7 all vulnerable to attack. 28…Rb3! (See diagram) The winning plan is simply now to play …Bd3 and …c4 and White’s rook is going to be blocked out of the game – and if 29. Rd8+ Kh7 30. Ne7 (heading for g6 and a Rh8 mate) Black gets in first with 30…e5+ 31.Kg3 Bxe4 winning. 29.e5 Bd3 30.a4 c4 31.Nxa7 Ra3 32.Nb5 Rxa4 33.Ke3 fxe5 34.Nd6 Ra3 35.Kf2 Kf8 36.Nb5 Rb3 0-1

Into the Storm

Thu, 17 Aug 2017 14:19:09 GMT

Just when we thought we’d survived the media and fan storm generated with the buzz of the return to active play of Garry Kasparov in the new Grand Chess Tour event, the Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz , held at the Chess Club and Scholastic Centre of Saint Louis (CCSCSL), we got hit by a more typical meteorological storm, as the darkened clouds dramatically rolled over the city for one all-mighty, unseasonal thunderstorm.

The chess gods didn’t approve that Garry Kasparov was losing games – because after going down to Ian Nepomniachtchi, at the end of day two, come the start of day 3, Kasparov crashed again to a dramatic loss from a near-winning position against David Navarra, as the young Czech Rep. hopeful hit the former world champion with an unexpected thunderbolt.

But amidst all the stormy weather and torrential rain that flooded down Maryland Plaza, outside the once sunny and balmy CCSCSL, Levon Aronian was weathering the storm inside, as the ever-imaginative Armenian ace managed to narrowly win the rapid event with some ingenious endgame play against Cuban Leinier Dominguez, as he successfully fended off the fighting challenge from the US duo of Fabiano Caruana and Hikaru Nakamura.

Aronian now carries over a narrow – and what could be vital – one-point lead over Caruana and Nakamura going into the final two days of the blitz competition, with a close and exciting finish now expected on Friday.

Rapid final standings
1. Levon Aronian 12/18; 2-3. Fabiano Caruana, Hikaru Nakamura 11; 4. Ian Nepomniachtchi 10; 5. Leinier Dominguez 9; 6-7. Le Quang Liem, Sergey Karjakin 8; 8-10. Vishy Anand, Garry Kasparov, David Navara 7.

(In the rapid, a win is 2 points, a draw 1 point)

GM Leinier Dominguez – GM Levon Aronian
Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz, (9)
Ruy Lopez, Anti-Marshall

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 O-O 8.a4 The Anti-Marshall. A wise move, as Aronian – along with Peter Svidler – is one of the world’s leading authorities on the Marshall Attack with 8.c3 d5. I’m also reminded of the sage advice Garry Kasparov was given for his 1993 World Championship match with Nigel Short. He asked Efim Geller, the leading Soviet opening theorists of his time, what he should do against the Marshall? Geller said avoid it, play instead the Anti-Marshall 8…b4 9.d4 d6 10.dxe5 dxe5 11.Nbd2 In two previous Sinquefield Cup encounters against Nakamura and Carslen, in 2015 and 2013 respectively, Aronian faced the early queen exchange with 11.Qxd8 Rxd8 12.Nbd2 – he lost to Carlsen from a winning position in a dramatical, final round encounter that decided the competition, though outplayed and beat Nakamura. 11…Bc5 12.a5 The idea is to ‘fix’ Black’s pawn on a6 – but it is double-edged, as White’s pawn on a5 is equally vulnerable. 12…Ng4 13.Rf1 Nf6 14.Qe2 Qe7 15.Bc4 Bg4! If Black worries about protecting the a6-pawn, then White will get in Nb3 followed by Be3 with the advantage. Black has to react energetically in such position. 16.Nb3 Nd4 The logical follow-up. 17.Nbxd4 Bxd4 18.Bxa6 Qc5 A nice, active central outpost for the queen – and also at the same time squeezing White’s a5-pawn. 19.Qc4 Nxe4!? I would imagine Dominguez was still in Aronian’s home prep here – not the thing you want in a rapid game! 20.Nxd4 exd4 21.Qxc5?! The critical line has to be 21.Bf4 Qf5!? 22.Qxc7 Rxa6 23.f3 Bxf3 24.Rxf3 Qb5! Black has the a5-pawn tied down, threatening to double rooks on the a-file, or perhaps even play …Rc6. Certainly Black has resources here – but this would have been much better for Dominguez than now happens in the game. 21…Nxc5 22.Bc4 Be6! It was becoming very clear with the speed and confidence Aronian was playing these moves, he was perhaps still in his comfort zone. 23.Bxe6 fxe6 24.Bd2 b3 25.Bb4 Rf5! Not only defending the knight but in the long-term, White’s a-pawn is vulnerable – and if Black can easily recoup his pawn, he’ll have the better side of the ending, as he has the more active rook. 26.g4 Rg5 27.Bxc5 Rxc5 28.cxb3 Raxa5 29.Rxa5 There’s no other option than the bad rook ending. If 29.b4 Rxa1 30.bxc5 ( Not 30.Rxa1 Rc4 31.b5 e5 and Black is winning – White’s b-pawns are weak and vulnerable, while Black’s king easily moves over to defend e5. 30…Rxf1+ 31.Kxf1 The king and pawn ending is lost after 31…e5 32.Ke2 g5! 33.Kd3 Kf7 34.Ke4 Ke6 35.f3 Kd7! and White can’t advance his king, as the d-pawn will pass. Eventually, White will run out of moves and Black will win. 29…Rxa5 30.Rd1 e5 With a couple of nuanced moves from Aronian, and Black is winning as his king is closer to the action, leaving his rook to pick-off all the vulnerable White pawns. 31.f4 Kf7! (See diagram) The ingenious pawn sacrifice wins the ending – Black’s active rook, king and powerful d-pawn is a winning team. 32.fxe5 Rd5 33.Kf2 Ke6 34.Ke2 This is not a move White wants to play, but it is the only way to get the king across to try to cover the dangerous passed d-pawn, where perhaps he can free up his rook with some slim chances of fighting for a draw. And no better was 34.Rc1 d3! 35.Ke3 d2 36.Rd1 Rxe5+ 37.Kxd2 Rd5+ 38.Kc1 Rxd1+ 39.Kxd1 Ke5 and Black’s king comes sweeping swiftly into f4 to capture on g4 for a winning advantage. 34…Rxe5+ 35.Kd2 If 35.Kd3 Kd5 and …Re3+ is coming. 35…c5 36.Ra1 Re3 37.Ra7 Rxb3 38.Kc2 Rh3 39.Rxg7 Kd5 The combined forces of the king, rook and powerful pawns on c5 and d4 easily win the day. 40.b3 Rxh2+ 41.Kd3 Rb2 42.Rd7+ Kc6 43.Rxh7 Rxb3+ 44.Ke4 Re3+ Cutting the king off from Black’s passed pawns – this is always a good winning plan in any rook and pawn scenario. 45.Kf4 Re8 46.g5 d3 47.g6 d2 48.Rh1 Re1 49.g7 d1=Q 50.g8=Q Qd4+ 51.Kf5 Qf2+ 52.Kg6 Qg2+ 0-1

Guess Who’s Back, Back Again

Tue, 15 Aug 2017 14:14:15 GMT

Let’s forget all about Magnus Carlsen, MVL and the top-notch action of an exciting Sinquefield Cup, and just readily admit that the real reason for packing my bags and jumping on a plane to Saint Louis was to witness at firsthand the return to top-flight chess again of Garry Kasparov, the ‘Beast of Baku’ himself, who made a dramatic comeback following his even more dramatic retirement announcement at the end of the 2005 Linares super-tournament.

Kasparov, now 54, has been 12-years out of professional chess, and when he accepted his wildcard spot to play in the new Grand Chess Tour event of the Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz , he did so by sardonically commenting “Looks like I’m going to raise the average age of the field and lower the average rating!”

It’s quite a coup, though, to see Kasparov making a comeback, albeit even if the 13th World Champion admitted it was just going to be a one-off affair. Kasparov has been truly captivated with the many tournaments and exhibitions staged at Rex Sinquefield’s impressive Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis (CCSCL) – and this was his way of paying tribute to all the handwork and vision at the CCSCSL, by agreeing to take a wildcard spot.

And sure enough, the crowds and the media also turned out in force for Kasparov’s return. And while he may be a bit more grey on top – not to mention the hairline receding rapidly – and a more than just a little match-rusty, there were several flashes of his former past on display on the opening day, as he was held to draws by Sergey Karjakin, Hikaru Nakamura and Leinier Dominguez.

Standings Day 1
1-4. Liem Quang Le (Vietnam), Levon Aronian (Armenia), Fabiano Caruana (USA), Ian Nepomniachtchi (Russia) 4/6; 5-8. Hikaru Nakamura (USA), Sergey Karjakin (Russia), Garry Kasparov (Russia), Leinier Dominguez (Cuba) 3; 9-10. Vishy Anand (India), David Navara (Czech Rep.) 1.
(Rapid scores 2 points for a win, 1 point for a draw)

GM Hikaru Nakamura – GM Garry Kasparov
St. Louis Rapid & Blitz, (2)
Grünfeld Defence

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 Garry may have been gone for 12-years – but some things never change, and he’s stayed faithful to his favourite Grünfeld Defence. 4.Bg5 Bg7 A popular pawn sacrifice line, which seems to be holding firm for Black. 5.Bxf6 Bxf6 6.cxd5 If 6.Nxd5 Bg7 and White’s d4 is going to be hit with …c5 and …Nc6 regaining the pawn. 6…c6 7.e4 Accepting the pawn sacrifice with 7.dxc6 Bxd4 8.cxb7 Bxb7 9.Qb3 Qb6 leaves Black with the active bishop-pair and lots of opening lines, and the database results are holding up more than well for Black. 7…O-O 8.Nf3 cxd5 9.e5 Again, 9.Nxd5 runs into 9…Bg7 followed by …Nc6 and …Bg4 and capturing on d4. 9…Bg7 10.Qd2 Nc6 11.Bb5 Bg4 12.Ng1 f6 If anything, Garry has ‘won’ the battle of the opening – he has the bishop-pair and now starting to break down White’s centre. 13.h3 Be6 14.exf6 Rxf6 15.Bxc6 bxc6 16.Nge2 Qd6 17.O-O Raf8 18.Rae1 Bc8! Garry is showing some vintage touches here – the bishop retreat not only paves the way for …e5 but, if Nakamura is not careful, Black’s bishop will re-emerge again on a6 with a big advantage. 19.Na4 e5 20.dxe5 Qxe5 21.b4 Re6 Another possibility was 21…Qd6!? 22.Nc5 a5 23.a3 g5! threatening to follow-up with …Rg6 and …g4 and breaking through on the kingside. 22.Nc5 Ree8 23.Nb3 Qb2 24.Qxb2 Bxb2 With the bishops vs. knights and the more active rook pair, Garry had to fancy his chances of converting this – but it is not so easy, as Nakamura’s knights have good central outposts on c5 and d4 to hit the weak c6-pawn. 25.Ned4 Rxe1 26.Rxe1 Bd7 27.Re2 Bc3 28.Rc2 Bxb4 29.Nxc6 Bd6 Garry rightly wants to maintain his bishop-pair – and from d6, it also retains mating threats that have to be dealt with. 30.Nxa7 Re8 31.g4 h5 32.f3 Re1+ Garry starts to fall behind on the clock now and begins to lose his initiative. Better was 32…Ra8!? with the big idea being 33.Nc6 Ra4! and suddenly …Rc4 becomes a major problem for White to deal with. 33.Kg2 Kf7 34.Nc6 h4 35.Ncd4 Nakamura has consolidated his position, and now the extra pawn is a major headache for Kasparov. 35…Rd1 36.Rd2 Rxd2+ 37.Nxd2 Kf6 38.Kf2 Ke5 39.Ke3 g5 40.f4+! Well timed by Nakamura – and this really should have been the precursor to a won game. 40…gxf4+ 41.Kd3 Be7 42.N2f3+ Kd6 43.Nf5+ Bxf5+ 44.gxf5 Nakamura has passed pawns on both sides of the board – and you can’t stop both. 44…Kc5 45.Nd4 Kd6 46.a4 Bd8 47.Ne6 It’s amazing now how Nakamura’s knight dominates Kasparov’s bishop. 47…Bb6 48.Nxf4 Ke5 49.f6! Again, a nice touch from Nakamura, as Kasparov can’t take the pawn because of Nxd5+ forking the king and bishop, and he also can’t play …Kxf4 as the f-pawn queens. 49…Bc5 50.f7 Kf6 51.Nxd5+ Kxf7 (See diagram) 52.Ke4? The wrong move that swings the game from a win to a draw. Tempos are vital in minimal endings, and perhaps Nakamura simply overlooked that he had a very obvious one at his disposal with 52.Kc4! Bf2 53.Kb5 Ke6 54.Kc6! Cutting off the king and threatening a5 and Nb6 shielding the a-pawn home, which now forces 54…Be1 55.Nf4+ Kf5 56.Ng2 Bd2 57.Kb5 with a won endgame. The point being is that if 57…Ke4 58.Nxh4 Kf4 59.Ng2+ Kg3 60.h4 Kxg2 61.a5! and the bishop can’t stop both pawns running for home. 52…Ke6 53.Nf4+ Kd6 54.Ng2 All the playing engines may well say that White is easily winning here, but in practical terms, this is simply a draw, as now Black’s king has crossed over to deal with the a-pawn, the bishop can sacrifice itself for the h-pawn. 54…Bf2 55.Kf3 Bg3 56.Kg4 Kc5 57.Nxh4 Bf2 58.Nf5 Kb4 Garry has successfully achieved his objective – but in doing so, he was running critically low on time now, having to move almost instantly. 59.Ng3 Kxa4 60.h4 Kb5 61.h5 Be3 62.Ne4 Kc6 63.Ng5 Kd7 64.h6 Ke7 65.h7 Bd4 66.Kf5 Ba1 67.Kg6 Bb2 68.Nf7 Ba1 69.Nh6 Bh8 70.Ng4 Ba1 71.Ne3 Bh8 72.Nd5+ Ke6 73.Nf4+ Ke7 74.Nh3 Ke6 75.Ng5+ Ke7 76.Nf7 Ba1 Nakamura made Kasparov ‘sweat’ a little, being down to his last 15 seconds or so before queening the pawn and the easy draw. 77.h8=Q Bxh8 1/2-1/2

Maxime Magnifique!

Sat, 12 Aug 2017 14:06:47 GMT

There was much ‘joie de vivre’ at the end of a dramatic final round of the 5th Sinquefield Cup held at the Chess Club and Scholastic Centre of Saint Louis (CCSCSL), as Maxime Vachier-Lagrave scored the biggest victory of his career, with the Frenchman – better known to all by his initials of ‘MVL’ – going on to take the title and clear first ahead of the current World Champion, Magnus Carlsen, and the five-time ex-world champion, Vishy Anand.

MVL was simply ‘Magnifique’, as the French would say, turning in a positional masterclass to squeeze the very life out Russia’s Ian Nepomniachtchi, as he top-scored with an unbeaten 6/9 (and a 2913 rating performance) to take the title and first prize of $75,000. Not only that, but MVL also took a maximum 13 Grand Chess Tour points, and is now just 3 points behind tour leader Carlsen – and in the process, MVL has seen a seismic hike in his rating as he rises six places in the unofficial live ratings to become the new world #2.

Carlsen also turned in an equally impressive final round performance, as he rallied to beat Levon Aronian in a classy game, in the hopes of possibly forcing a playoff for the title. But it all proved too little too late for the world #1, who had to be kicking himself for losing to MVL from a won position earlier in the cup competition at the CCSCSL, as that dramatic table-turner proved to be the difference between the two in the end.

Although MVL has been World Junior Champion, won Biel four-times, won Dortmund and shared a three-way tie at the London Chess Classic, winning the Sinquefield Cup is by far his greatest-ever achievement and, in a stroke, it gives France once again a genuine world-class player for the first time in nearly two centuries.

Back in the 18th and 19th centuries, France was the major chess superpower of the era. Two of the greatest players back then, Francois-Andre Danican Philidor and Louis-Charles Mahé de La Bourdonnais, were French, and the Café de la Régence in Paris – regarded by historians as being the world’s first chess club – was a gathering place for anyone who liked to play the game, including luminaries of the ilk of Benjamin Franklin and Napoleon.

But bizarrely French chess then went into a long decline and failed to produce a native-born grandmaster for nearly 150 years. They’ve had many grandmasters since, but the word on the rue now is that MVL – spurred on by his Sinquefield Cup victory ahead of Carlsen et al – could well become the first Frenchman of the new age to emerge from the shadows and become a genuine world championship challenger.

Round 9
Vachier-Lagrave 1-0 Nepomniachtchi
Carlsen 1-0 Aronian
Svidler 1-0 Caruana
Nakamura ½-½ Karjakin
So ½-½ Anand

Final standings
1. M. Vachier-Lagrave (France) 6/9; 2-3. M. Carlsen (Norway), V. Anand (India) 5½; 4-5. S. Karjakin (Russia), L. Aronian (Armenia) 5; 6. P. Svidler (Russia) 4½; 7. F. Caruana (USA) 4; 8. H. Nakamura (USA) 3½; 9-10. I. Nepomniachtchi (Russia), W. So (USA) 3.

Grand Chess Tour Standings & Prizemoney
1. Magnus Carlsen ($113,750) 34-points; 2. Maxime Vachier-Lagrave ($126,250) 31; 3. Wesley So ($47,500) 15½; 4-5. Levon Aronian ($38,750), Vishy Anand ($52,500) 12; 6. Sergey Karjakin ($37,500) 11½; 7. Hikaru Nakamura ($35,000) 11; 8. Fabiano Caruana ($22,500); 9. Ian Nepomniatchi ($22,500) 5½.

GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave – GM Ian Nepomniachtchi
5th Sinquefield Cup, (9)
Sicilian Najdorf, Opocensky variation

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be2 This quiet, positional way of taking on the Najdorf was all the rage through the 1970’s and early 1980’s due to the influence of then World Champion Anatoly Karpov – but in Karpov’s day, the follow up would be Nb3 followed by a4, 0-0, Be3 and f4. Nowadays, there’s a different strategy. 6…e5 7.Nf3 Be7 8.Bg5 Nbd7 9.a4 O-O 10.Nd2! The whole key to MVL’s strategy is for his knights to take control of d5 and b6 – if he can take a stranglehold on those squares, then he has a positionally won game. 10…Nc5 11.Bxf6 Bxf6 12.Nc4 Be7 13.a5 MVL has total control of b6 and d5 – and from here, Nepo faces a tough challenge trying to generate any kind of counter-play that would activate his pieces. 13…Rb8 14.Nb6 Nd7 15.Ncd5 Nxb6 16.Nxb6 Be6 17.Bc4! Exchanging off the white-squared bishops under the right circumstances is MVL game-plan here – and if he can successfully do that, then his knight will become the lynchpin of his attack from its outpost on d5 where it will dominate the bishop. 17…Qc7 18.Qd3 Bd8 Not so good is 18…Bxc4 19.Nxc4 Rbc8 20.b3 and White will simply torture Black down the half-open d-file – and long-term, d6 will fall with a won endgame. 19.c3 Qc6 20.Bd5 MVL is goading Nepo into exchanging the white-squared bishops. 20…Qe8 21.Bxe6 Qxe6 If d6 were protected, Black would have opted for …fxe6 as it would have taken back control of the d5 square. But as d6 is not defended, Nepo has to go into an ending he’s tried his best to avoid, as MVL’s knight on d5 simply dominates the Black bishop. 22.Nd5 f5 23.O-O Rc8 24.Rfd1 fxe4 25.Qxe4 Qf5 26.Qe2 Also an option was the safety-first line with 26.Qxf5 Rxf5 27.Ne3 Rf6 28.Rd2 where White has by far the better of it – but with the queens off the board, it’s not clear if White has enough to win, as Black can huddle his forces together to defend d6. 26…Kh8 27.c4 Bh4 28.g3 Bg5 29.Ra3 The rook lift is heading to d3 to put pressure on d6 – and to defend a5, MVL will simply further expand his queenside forces with b4 and a total grip on the game. 29…Rce8 30.h4 Bd8 31.b4 Qg6 32.h5 Qf5 33.Ne3 Qe6 34.Rad3 MVL has given Nepo nothing in this game – and the Frenchman’s stranglehold on the position is getting tighter and tighter now. 34…Be7 35.Nd5 Bd8 36.Rf3 Rxf3 37.Qxf3 Kg8 38.Kg2 Although MVL goes on to comfortably win from here, I’m not completely convinced with 38.Kg2, as it gave Nepo ‘chances’ in the game that he never had. Instead, 38.Qe4!? looked good and strong as it keeps Black in a bind by preventing ‘possibilities’ with …e4 and threats of pushing on with …e3. But then again, who am I to question MVL’s judgement as he goes on to win comfortably? 38…e4 It’s the first little sign of life Nepo has seen in the whole game – but can he generate anything from it? 39.Qe2 Qe5 40.Ne3 Bg5 To make ‘something’ happen, Nepo has to find a way to get …e3 in – but MVL makes sure his opponent doesn’t even get close to achieving that. 41.Rd5 Qf6 42.Nf5! Re6 There’s nothing in 42…e3 as White has 43.Nxd6 Re7 44.fxe3! Rxe3 45.Qg4 h6 46.Ne4 winning. 43.c5! (See diagram) Black’s vulnerable back-rank and the pin on the rook and king are tempting targets. 43…dxc5 44.Qc4 Qf7 45.Rxc5 h6 46.Rc8+ Kh7 47.g4 The knight is such a commanding and controlling piece on f5. 47…Re7 48.Qd4 Re6 49.Qd5! MVL is closing in now for the kill, with every move further tightening his stranglehold on Nepo’s hapless position. 49…g6 50.hxg6+ Kxg6 51.Rf8! Qxf8 52.Qxe6+ 1-0 Nepo resigns, as after 52…Bf6 53.Qxe4 the discovered check will allow MVL to capture on b7 and then a6 will soon fall with a trivial endgame win.

Advantage Anand

Fri, 11 Aug 2017 15:53:17 GMT

There’s just no substitute for experience. If you don’t believe me, then just ask the record-breaking newly-crowned Wimbledon champion, Roger Federer. And if 35-year-old Federer doesn’t convince you, then how about five-time ex-world champion Viswanathan “Vishy” Anand, as the 47-year-old veteran responds to those critics constantly asking about his ‘imminent retirement’ by rolling back the year in the 5th Sinquefield Cup at the Chess Club and Scholastic Centre of Saint Louis .

Going into the final round, Anand defies his critics and the age-gap by being one of the three co-leaders alongside Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and Levon Aronian, and the Indian ace stands a good chance of snatching the title outright, especially as his last round opponent is the free-falling Wesley So, who is bleeding games at such an alarming rate he’s in jeopardy of missing out on one of the two rating qualifying spots into next year’s Candidates’ Tournament, that once looked a shoo-in for the defending champion.

And on the eve of Federer’s record-breaking 19th Slam victory at Wimbledon, Anand, in a major interview with ESPN India, also noted the comparisons between himself and the timeless tennis veteran. Both have the same foes – age and younger opponents. Both hold the promise of one more big winning in them. “You have these people you’re worried about, your main rivals whom you think heavily of and then they suddenly drop out,” said Anand.” Now that Nadal, Djokovic and Murray are gone it could either help him or he could relax.

“You can roughly compare a 35-year-old tennis player and a 47-year-old chess player. I try to learn from him. People like Federer tell you that you can still hang in there.”

Is there one more title for Anand?

Round 7
Anand 1-0 Nepomaniatchtchi
Vachier-Lagrave ½-½ Karjakin
Svidler ½-½ Carlsen
Nakamura 0-1 Aronian
So ½-½ Caruana

Round 8
Anand ½-½ Vachier-Lagrave
Aronian ½-½ Svidler
Karjakin 1-0 So
Caruana ½-½ Nakamura
Nepomniachtchi ½-½ Carlsen

Standings
1-3. V. Anand (India), M. Vachier-Lagrave (France), L. Aronian (Armenia) 5/8; 4-5. S. Karjakin (Russia), M. Carlsen (Norway) 4½; 6. F. Caruana (USA) 4; 7. P. Svidler (Russia) 3½; 8-9. H. Nakamura (USA), I. Nepomniachtchi (Russia) 3; 10. W. So (USA) 2½.

GM Vishy Anand – GM Ian Nepomniachtchi
5th Sinquefield Cup, (7)
Sicilian Najdorf, Adams Attack
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.h3 The Adams Attack – named not after the top English grandmaster Michael Adams, but after the early 20th-century American master Weaver Adams (1901-63), and was a big favourite of Bobby Fischer back in his early playing days. It’s also sprung back into life by being added to the Sicilian arsenal of both Magnus Carlsen and Vishy Anand. 6…e5 7.Nde2 h5 8.Bg5 Be6 9.Bxf6 Qxf6 10.Nd5 The key to just about all Sicilian systems where Black has played …e5 is control over the d5 square. If White can safely secure control of this square, then Black faces a tough time of it. If Black can get a hold of the d5 square and push for his own …d5, then he frees his game. 10…Qd8 11.Qd3 Nd7 12.O-O-O g6 13.Kb1 Nc5 14.Qf3 Bg7 15.Nec3 b5 16.Ne3 As we can see, Anand has total control over d5 – and Nepo faces a tough time of it trying to stay in the game. 16…O-O 17.Rg1 Bh6 18.Ncd5 Bxe3 19.Qxe3 Nepo may have lessened Anand’s control over d5 – but it comes at the cost of weakening the dark-squares around his king. 19…Rc8 20.Be2 Kg7 21.f4 Bxd5 There’s no time for the immediate 21…exf4 as White has the awkward 22.Qd4+! Kh6 23.Nxf4 Qg5 24.Qe3 leaving Black in deep trouble here, with d6 being the least of his worries, as White is threatening h4 and a winning discovered check on the Black king. 22.Rxd5 exf4 23.Qxf4 Re8 24.Rxd6 Anand spots an ending that’s in his comfort zone with the queens exchanged – and he probably didn’t like the tactical shot with 24.Bxh5, as after 24…Nxe4 25.Bf3 Rc4 26.Bxe4 Rcxe4 27.Qd2 Re2 28.Qc3+ R8e5 29.Rgd1 Qb6! Black’s rooks and queen become very active. 24…Qe7? A sad error from Nepo, who up to here had battled hard to stay in the game. He should have played the tricky 24…Qc7!? with pressure down the c-file that also comes with a tactical twist. If 25.Bd3 Nxe4! 26.Bxe4 Re6! more or less forces now 27.Bxg6 (White can’t play 27.Rgd1? as 27…Rd8! and Black is winning due to the pin on queen.) 27…fxg6 28.Rd4 Qxc2+ 29.Ka1 Rc7 30.Rf1 Kh7 with equality and a symmetrical ending. 25.e5 Qxe5 26.Qxe5+ Rxe5 27.Bf3 Ne4? The knight was well-placed on c5 defending a6 and stopping White’s rook getting to d7. Nepo would have been better first looking to exchange off a set of rooks with 27…Rce8! and equality. 28.Bxe4 Rxe4 29.Rxa6 Re2 30.c3 h4 31.Ra5! (See diagram) 31…b4 Nepo has gambled everything on his doubled rooks on the seventh – but he’s miscalculated that Anand has a simple winning plan. But he has no other better option here, as after 31…Rb8 32.a3 Re3 (Trying to stop White playing g3 activating his Rg1) 33.Rc1! White has Rc2 defending g2 and will then begin to push for c4 or a4 and the two passed queenside pawns will win the day. 32.cxb4 Rcc2 33.b3! Now Anand’s king simply goes to a1, forcing Nepo into a hopelessly lost rook and pawn ending. 33…Rb2+ 34.Ka1 Rxg2 35.Rxg2 Rxg2 36.b5 The queenside pawns rushing up the board will decide the game. 36…Re2 37.b6 Re8 38.b7 Rb8 39.Rb5 f5 40.Kb2 1-0 Nepo resigns, as Anand’s king quickly shuffles over to stop the Black f-pawn, meanwhile the unstoppable a4-a5 etc. quickly wins.

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﻿ GM Hikaru Nakamura - GM Wesley So

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GM Hikaru Nakamura - GM Wesley So