Chess CommunityChess Blogs, News, Tournaments and Updates! |
|
||||||||||
|
|
Tactics Two-Fer: Solution TimePosted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 13, 2008 on 12:03 am | In Chess Mind | Comments Off On Tuesday I offered these positions to test your ability to calculate and/or analyze: Najer-Ftacnik, Bundesliga 2007/8  Botvinnik-Stoltz, Leningrad-Stockholm 1926 The first problem is a straightforward White-to-move-and-win position, while the second requires evaluating the following line, given by both Mikhail Botvinnik and Andy Soltis: 12.Bb1 f5 13.Nxe4 fxe4 14.Rxc7 exf3 15.Rxb7 Qg5 16.g3 Qg4 17.Kh1 Rf6 18.Rg1 Rh6 19.Qf1 Qh5 20.h4 Qxh4 and Black wins (12.Nxe4 was the move played in the game). It's always better if you can solve it yourself, but if you can't, won't, or have but want to confirm your answer, enlightenment is just a click away.
The Karpov Quote: A Follow-upPosted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 12, 2008 on 11:03 pm | In Chess Mind | Comments OffIn this post, I presented the following Karpov quote, from his 1978 work My Best Games:
There was an interesting discussion about this in the comments section, some of it focused on Karpov's last, somewhat harsh-sounding comment about being a "loser". That is part of what caught my eye in the first place, too, but yesterday I came across a second Karpov quotation, this time from a 1973 or 1974 article cited in Karpov's co-authored (with Aleksander Roshal) Chess is My Life (published in English in 1980; based on the content I'd say the original was written in 1978), page 122:
These two quotes, though not their surrounding contexts in the two books, are almost identical. So this seems almost like a creed for Karpov, something like a motto or a purpose statement. The one obvious difference is the final statement in each case: the first quote sounds harsher and more sweeping: if you don't win, you're a "loser". The second quote doesn't describe the person, but only the event and its psychological effects. Based on the strong similarities, I'm guessing that what we have here is a difference among translators, though any readers with access to Russian-language originals are welcomed, indeed invited, to say more. (For those who are curious, the translator of the "loser" passage was Hanon Russell of Chess Cafe fame, while "losing" was translated by Kenneth Neat.)
Who is A. Jocha? Here’s the answer…Posted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 12, 2008 on 11:03 pm | In Chess Mind | Comments Off Hungarian GM Andras Adorjan! I offered a very subtle hint in the original post, concluding with "OK?", an allusion to his famous "Black is OK" slogan. Adorjan doesn't play much nowadays, but he made it to the 1980 Candidates Matches and helped Peter Leko in his early development to the grandmaster level.Readers can find a long and very interesting interview with Adorjan here (probably not for young kids).
The Reykjavik Chess Festival and Fischer Memorial, and the USCFPosted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 12, 2008 on 1:03 am | In Chess Mind | Comments Off To commemorate what would have been Bobby Fischer's 65th birthday, his adopted country of Iceland dedicated the Reykjavik Chess Festival to his memory and arranged a side event starring four of his contemporaries (Pal Benko, Vlastimil Hort, Lajos Portisch and Fridrik Olafsson, with Boris Spassky as the referee and William Lombardy as commentator) to boot. (Portisch and Hort shared first with 4/6, according to Chess Today.) Kudos to Iceland!Not to be outdone, the United States Chess Federation dedicates 11 pages in the current issue of Chess Life to Fischer. Is that unbelievably awesome or what? Meanwhile, Europe Echecs, a French-language chess magazine, has dedicated all of their current issue to Fischer. This is understandable, given that he never lived nor won any events in France. Maybe the USCF thinks it's being patriotic or making a stand against Fischer's anti-Judaism; I don't know. I myself am completely repulsed by Fischer's anti-American and anti-Jewish remarks, and I'm not inclined, as many are, to blame this on some sort of mental illness. All the same, to practically disregard one of the greatest players of all time, clearly the greatest American player of all time, and possibly the main reason why the USCF has any financial assets whatsoever, does not speak well on its behalf. Spend a few pages excoriating his vile comments and noting his character flaws and eccentricities - that's appropriate. But give his legacy the attention it deserves, not just a short article by Larry Evans and a few pages of quotations presented in a space-wasting format. Present a special, perhaps extra issue of the magazine dedicated to him. Rename an event for him. Have an invitational event for American players he competed with, like Evans, Pal Benko, Robert Byrne, Arthur Bisguier, et al. In short, pretend Fischer (really) mattered, both to the chess world at large and to the United States in particular...because he did.
Trivia Time: What happened to A. Jocha?Posted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 12, 2008 on 1:03 am | In Chess Mind | Comments Off Who? Yes, exactly. But he's a player those of us with a sense of history would have expected to hear about. He recently came (back) to my attention when looking through some old books on Anatoly Karpov's early career. One of Karpov's big early successes came in the European Junior Championship in Groningen 1967-68. In the preliminary group he was satisfied merely to qualify for the final, which he did in a tie for second that included Jan Timman, Gert Ligterink and others, half a point behind our mystery man. Those scores did not carry over into the final, and when it counted it was Karpov who came in first. Timman was two points back and Ligterink three and a half point in arrears. Only half a point back, however, undefeated and in clear second, was Jocha.Yet this enigmatic figure soon disappears from the databases; quite surprising given his evident talent. Did he quit chess or, worse, meet an untimely end? The answer is googlable, unfortunately, but if any of you know the answer without looking it up, you're invited to post it in the comments, securing for yourself the admiration of your peers as a chess trivia expert par excellence. Should no one post the answer in the next day or two, I'll go ahead and spill the beans myself and say a bit more about this most interesting player. OK?
Accessing my ChessBase ShowsPosted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 12, 2008 on 12:03 am | In Chess Mind | Comments OffEvery Wednesday night, I present a live show on ChessBase's playchess.com server, and once the show is over it is uploaded into the server's archives. In this entry I'll explain how to access both live and archived shows. (show)
First Steps: Meeting your software needs
ChessBase Software Unfortunately, it' s not as simple as opening your web browser and entering a URL, but it isn't too difficult. The first step is to get the right software, and there are two main options to choose from. First, you can go to playchess.com and download the free client software. That will give you one month's free access to ChessBase's online server, which is where the show takes place. A second option is to go shopping on the ChessBase website and purchase one of their playing programs (Fritz, Junior, Shredder, Hiarcs, Chess Tiger, etc.) for approximately 50 USD. The programs are all of appproximate world championship-level strength and have lots of neat bells & whistles, but the relevant matter at hand is that you receive two free ("free" given the initial purchase of the software, of course) 1-year memberships to the playchess.com server. Windows Media Player 9 (or later) You'll also need Windows Media 9 or later (Microsoft is up to version 10 now). It probably came with your machine if it's a recent one, but if not, you can download it here. Part Two: I have the software; now what? If you have the standalone client (option 1, above), then life is simple: execute the program and log on. If you have Fritz or one of its counterparts, execute the program, choose the Playchess.com option and log on. From this point, the two options will work the same way. The next step is to navigate inside the server. Once inside, your interface will probably consist of four windows. One of them, probably on the bottom right, will have a header that says "Rooms." In that window you'll see a directory structure listing the server's rooms, obviously enough; the one you'll want to watch the lives shows is "Broadcasts." Click once and you'll be in. The next thing to do is to go to the window on the upper left. It should have four tabs on the top (Info, Players, Games and World) - select the players tab. That will list all the players in the room, including yourself. My account name is "Initiative", and the easiest way to watch me give the show is to double-click on my handle while the show is going on. (More generally, since there are other people who occasionally broadcast shows, click on the "Status" bar and then double-click on the account name of anyone listed as a "Chairman".) And that's all there is to it! A new window will automatically open displaying the analysis board and providing the show's audio. Great, but what about all those wonderful shows I've missed? Part 1: Buying Ducats Almost every past show is in the archives, but first you'll have to buy what ChessBase calls "ducats" (that's what they call their online currency). While you're logged on with a registered account, go to the Edit menu, select Payments and from there Fill Up Your Account. Follow the directions on purchasing ducats and you'll be good to go within 24 hours or so, possibly sooner. CB charges about $13 US for 100 ducats, so given their charge of 2 ducats (about 26 cents) to watch an archived show (sometimes 1 ducat, sometimes 4 ducats, if the show was broken into two parts), it's unlikely that anyone with an internet account and the ability to purchase chess software is going to feel much of a pinch here. Part 2: Accessing the Old Shows Now that you're the proud owner of a bucket of ducats, here's what you do. Log on to the playchess server, look in the Rooms window and click on Chess Media System, then from within there continue to telescope in as follows: Radio ChessBase-->English-->Great Games with Dennis Monokroussos. Once you've done that, click on the Games tab in the upper left (sub-) window and you'll see the list of available shows. When you find one you like, double-click and start watching! After a few seconds, you'll be asked if you'd like to watch the rest of the broadcast for the prescribed fee. If you accept, then that's it - all that's left is to watch and enjoy! (hide)
This Week’s ChessBase Show: M. Gurevich-Zelcic, the 4.Qc2 Nimzo-Indian and the Two BishopsPosted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 12, 2008 on 12:03 am | In Chess Mind | Comments Off One of the most important openings in all of chess is the Nimzo-Indian Defense, and within this opening one of the most important approaches for White starts with 4.Qc2. Its fundamental idea is to grab the bishop pair with a quick a3, and to do so without incurring the doubled pawns that result from an immediate 4.a3 Bxc3+ 5.bxc3.Sounds good, you say, but what's the downside? The answer is as simple as the advice we all received as beginners: one should develop as quickly as possible, though generally not the queen. The 4.Qc2 Nimzo violates both halves of that precept, and therein we find Black's compensation. If he can use his speedier development to gain and maintain activity, he'll be fine; if not, White's bishop pair will gradually make its presence felt. In this week's show (tonight from 9-10 p.m. ET), we'll see the triumph of the bishop pair. The artist handling the White pieces is Mikhail Gurevich, one of those great players long on the cusp of the world's super-elite, nearly making the Candidates in 1991 and succeeding in 2007. Gurevich is a great expert on the 4.Qc2 Nimzo-Indian, and this 2004 game with Croatian GM Robert Zelcic, we see the two bishops recipe carried out almost to perfection. First, White finishes his development while staying out of trouble. Second, he gradually reduces Black's activity, turning things so that the only key difference is the imbalance of minor pieces. Once that occurs, the long-range bishops come into their own, and Black's position becomes increasingly passive. Finally, it's time to win the game, and with a minor hiccup or two along the way, that's just what happens. The foregoing narrative oversimplifies matters, of course. Zelcic had his chances, off and on, until quite near the end of the game. And it would be an error to think that gaining the bishop pair served as a sort of magic wand enabling its possessor to achieve his every whim on the chessboard. All the same, many games have been won by the skillful use of the bishop pair, that skillful use does often follow the broad pattern limned above, and this pattern is often seen in the 4.Qc2 Nimzo-Indian. So I think and hope many of you will not only find this game entertaining but instructive as well, something you can use in your own play. Tune in and see for yourself! (Directions here.)
A New ChessVideo Show: A look at one of my Chicago gamesPosted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 11, 2008 on 7:03 pm | In Chess Mind | Comments Off On ChessVideos.tv, I've been presenting USCL Games of the Year, but not for the next couple of weeks; instead, we'll have a look at a couple of my own games. This week we'll look back to one of my games from the 8th North American FIDE Invitational, played last month in Chicago, IL. The game is my fourth round win over young Indian IM Arjun Vishnuvardhan, a Sveshnikov Sicilian where I was able to exploit my opponent's inaccuracies in the opening to win in thematic fashion.Have a look - the shows are free and can be accessed on-demand.
USCL Game of the Year #11: Molner-KaufmanPosted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 11, 2008 on 7:03 pm | In Chess Mind | Comments Off The US Chess League's countdown to the 2007 game of the year continues, with a new game eliminated each week on the way to #1. This week we're down to #11, and the game chosen was Molner-Kaufman. It was a lively French Defense with big momentum swings: first White was winning, then Black had the advantage, and then White won. It wasn't perfect, but it was very entertaining.You can replay the game and see the judges' comments about it here.
A Tactics Time Two-fer: Solve the puzzle, evaluate the analysisPosted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 11, 2008 on 6:03 pm | In Chess Mind | Comments Off Let's start with a nice combination, from the game Najer-Ftacnik, Bundesliga 2007/8:It's White to move and win. (HT: Chess Today) And now for something incompletely different. It's still a tactical problem of sorts, but this time instead of solving the position from scratch, your task is to evaluate a piece of analysis approved by Botvinnik and Soltis. Here's the position: It's White to move, and in the game White played 12.Nxe4, not fearing the pawn fork. Had he been concerned and chosen 12.Bb1, the claim is that Black would be in good shape - winning, actually - after 12...f5 13.Nxe4 fxe4 14.Rxc7 exf3 15.Rxb7 Qg5 16.g3 Qg4 17.Kh1 Rf6 18.Rg1 Rh6 19.Qf1 Qh5 20.h4 Qxh4. Can we take this analysis to the bank, or would we be toting around counterfeit goods? Answers to both puzzles in a couple of days (meanwhile, please be kind to fellow solvers and avoid giving the solution in the comments).
Forthcoming Events: The Amber Rapid and Blindfold Tournament, the FIDE Grand Prix, M-Tel and Anand-KramnikPosted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 10, 2008 on 4:03 pm | In Chess Mind | Comments Off In chronological order, the first of the big events is Joop van Oosterom's enjoyable rapid and blindfold event, occurring in Nice, France, with play starting March 15 (this Saturday) and continuing through the 27th. Here's the line-up (with January 2008 ratings):Vladimir Kramnik 2799 Viswanathan Anand 2799 Veselin Topalov 2780 Alexander Morozevich 2765 Shakhriyar Mamedyarov 2760 Peter Leko 2753 Vassily Ivanchuk 2751 Levon Aronian 2739 Boris Gelfand 2737 Magnus Carlsen 2733 Sergey Karjakin 2732 Loek van Wely 2681 Next, the first of the FIDE Grand Prix tournaments starts on April 20 in Baku, Azerbaijan; you can see the lineup for that event and all the other Grand Prix tournaments for 2008 here. Next up, the M-Tel Masters takes place from May 7-18 in Sofia, Bulgaria, and will find the following stars duking it out in this double round-robin event: Veselin Topalov 2780 Vassily Ivanchuk 2751 Levon Aronian 2739 Teimour Radjabov 2735 Ivan Cheparinov 2713 Bu Xiangzhi 2691 Finally, while the players (Viswanathan Anand and Vladimir Kramnik) and venue (Bonn, Germany) remain the same, the dates for the 2008 world championship match have been slightly changed to accommodate sponsors and politicians. It will now start on October 14, continuing at most to November 2nd if tiebreaks are needed. HT: The Week in Chess
An Analysis Exercise from a Club GamePosted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 9, 2008 on 10:03 pm | In Chess Mind | Comments Off A few days ago I presented this position, from a game played in a local club championship: It's Black to make his 12th move, and although it wasn't played in the game (I don't remember the actual move), 12...f4 leads to fascinating variations. In order not to "infect" my readers with my own ideas, I presented without offering any of my analytical impressions; now, three days along, some of my thinking can be found here. (The lines haven't been computer-checked, and represent something more like a first, very rough draft.) You're now welcome to pick them apart and comment your own lines; but I do request that those of you who are investigating with your chess engines not comment at this stage. Thanks!
Fischer’s 65th birthdayPosted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 9, 2008 on 12:03 am | In Chess Mind | Comments Off ...would have been today.With several tips of the hat to Chess Today, here are some more articles on Fischer you might want to check out: GM Jonathan Speelman (Guardian) GM Matanovic for the Chess Informant Also, there's a Fischer Memorial. Needless to say, it's not in the United States. Lest you think this has to do with (understandable) scruples about Fischer's vile anti-American and anti-Jewish rants, let me remind you that we haven't had any memorial events for Morphy or Fine, either, on the national level. (There have been a couple of fairly big events commemorating Reshevsky, though I don't know the degree to which the USCF was involved.) No, the event will take place in Villa Martelli, Argentina from March 11-19. I suspect that most of the players in the tournament were born after Fischer won the world championship in 1972, but there is one participant who not only lived in Fischer's era, he played in it, too. In fact, he played Fischer himself three times. That player is GM Oscar Panno, who was for a time in the 1950s (and during a nice run in 1978) one of the best players in the world. Born in 1935, he won the World Junior championship in 1953, became a GM in 1955 and a Candidate a year later. He played three games, as noted above, with Fischer, and each is noteworthy in its own way. The first, a draw in the 1958 Portoroz Interzonal, is noteworthy in part because of the event, and in part because he drew! The second game, from Buenos Aires 1970, is noteworthy - and famous - because of Fischer's beautiful concluding combination in a King's Indian Attack. Finally, the third game is noteworthy for its startling brevity. Played in the last round of the 1970 Interzonal in Palma de Mallorca, Panno became Fischer's 7th consecutive victim (Fischer went on to win thirteen more games in a row!) in a game that went 1.c4 Resigns. Black did not forfeit; he resigned. (Panno refused to play in protest for Fischer's various reschedulings, but rather than let his flag fall he actually resigned the game 52 minutes in.) You can replay all three games here.
Nakamura on playing computers, blitz records, and America’s new youngest masterPosted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 8, 2008 on 11:03 pm | In Chess Mind | Comments Off Right here. (HT: Brian Karen)I find his comments about playing long series with computers interesting - he does it to develop his mental toughness. As for Grischuk breaking his ICC blitz record, allegedly with Rauf Mamedov's help, I can't comment, but I do have something to say about his criticism of Nicholas Nip. Nip is the San Francisco youngster who broke Nakamura's record for the youngest-ever American master, and apparently he gained a lot of the needed points in rated matches (rather than tournaments). Not knowing the principals, I can't offer any judgments about whether the matches were on the up-and-up, but I can't see anything wrong with using matches to boost one's rating - as long as the games are real. Matches are the classic chess confrontation. While a handful of chess tournaments remain famous to this day (Hastings 1895, New York 1924, Zurich 1953 and a very few others), chess fans remember many of the epic matches in history (Fischer-Spassky, just about all of Karpov's world championship matches, ditto for Kasparov, Alekhine's great upset of Capablanca in 1927, Tal's win over Botvinnik in 1960, Fischer's 6-0 sweeps against Taimanov and Larsen, and so on). Many players consider it the truest test of strength, and so it's not surprising that amateurs want to try their hand at that discipline. Further, it's simply a practical expedient. When I was growing up, I lived in an area where there was approximately one tournament every other month, and I'd only get to play opponents near my rating in the last two rounds. I could - and often did - go 4.5/5 but only gain a handful of points. So in the early months of 1984, when I was close to master (my rating was 2184), I played a series of rated matches - both to get my rating over 2200 as soon as possible and for the training. It's far more interesting and useful to play a series of games with a tough opponent who has been preparing for you than the occasional odd game with said opponent. So if Nakamura's only concern is that Nip used matches, I say he should not only not complain about it, he should consider following suit. His current FIDE rating is 2686, 14 points from the "magic" 2700 barrier. Rather than playing in a handful of round-robin events during the year, having to hope he's in good form, not nicked for draws by "ordinary" GMs significantly lower-rated than he is, etc., he might look for a quality match opponent to expedite his path to the elite circuit.
An Interesting Correspondence Chess EndingPosted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 8, 2008 on 5:03 pm | In Chess Mind | Comments Off My friend Alex Herrera offers this endgame as his Correspondence Chess Position of the Month for March of 2008: Van Perlo-Sanakoev, Serbia-30 Jubilee 8185, Corr. 1981 It's Black to move; what should he do? Try to work out not just the next move, but a plan as well. You can find the instructive answer here.
The Readers Write: The Sped-Up Sozin and a Trip to the Way-Back MachinePosted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 8, 2008 on 5:03 pm | In Chess Mind | Comments OffHere is an email from "Khayyam" (lightly edited):
Your suggestion is an interesting one, and while I've never seen it in high-level play either (according to my database, it has appeared only once in games between 2400+ players), I do recall reading a very brief article on it a quarter of a century ago! IM Mark Ginsburg had a series on opening sidelines ("Chess Openings for Heroes") in a now-defunct publication called Players Chess News. Here's his analysis, which I was able to dig up this afternoon at the Notre Dame library, from Chess Annual I (1981/2), pages 62-3:
Now I'll throw in my two cents. First, as noted by both "Khayyam" and Ginsburg, Black can play 5...e6 and transpose to the Sozin (assuming White plays 6.Nc3). "Khayyam" seems to think this is a concession on Black's part, as the Scheveningen (1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 e6) is not the most popular line of the Sicilian anymore. The last part of that sentence is correct, but not part one: Black is under pressure in the Scheveningen against the English Attack (6.Be3 followed by f3, Qd2, g4, O-O-O etc.), and to some extent the Keres Variation (6.g4) and the 6.Be2 lines, but whether one plays the Najdorf (1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6) or the Classical Sicilian (same first four and a half moves, then 5...Nc6), playing ...e6 is almost automatic against Bc4 lines. So meeting 5.Bc4 with ...e6 isn't really a concession at all. In fact, while some Sozin specialists like GM Mikhail Golubev might disagree, the 6.Bc4 variations are generally considered quite pleasant for Black these days, theoretically speaking. Next, we should make an attempt to evaluate Ginsburg's suggestions. First, does White have a positional pull in the 5...Nxe4 6.Bxf7+ Kxf7 7.Qh5+ g6 8.Qd5+ e6 9.Qxe4 line? I have my doubts. The position is strategically complex with imbalances galore: Black has the bishop pair and a pair of unopposed central pawns; White has a lead in development, fewer pawn islands and the possibility of exerting pressure on Black's center pawns as they advance. I think Black has approximate equality after either 9...d5 or 9...e5, but if I were going to head for such a position on a regular basis, serious analysis would be required. After Ginsburg's preferred 6.Qh5, however, accurate play leaves Black without any problems. One example of interesting but probably inaccurate play is 6...d5. Neither 7.Bb5+ nor 7.Qxd5 offer much, but 7.Bxd5 g6 8.Qe5 Nf6 9.Nb5 is good enough for an edge. So we continue with his line - 6...e6 7.Bb5+ - and now there's not only his 7...Bd7 to consider, but also 7...Nd7 (best) and the greedy 7...Ke7 to boot. Both are playable, but 7...Nd7 is simplest. The point is that after 8.Nxe6 Nef6 9.Nxd8 Nxh5, the White knight is trapped. It escapes after 10.Bxd7+ Bxd7 11.Nxb7, but after 11...Bc6 12.Na5 Bxg2 13.Rg1 Be4 it's Black who enjoys the slightly more comfortable ending. Going back a ways, it's also worth mentioning the other 5th move possibility noted by "Khayyam", 5...Qa5+. After the natural 6.Nc3 Nxe4 7.Qf3 Nf6 8.O-O e6 (not 8...g6 9.Re1 Bg7 10.Bh6!) White has a lead in development, but I'm not sure it will yield tangible returns. For example: 9.Bf4 a6 10.Rad1 Be7 11.Rfe1 O-O and White's compensation is starting to fade. In sum, it seems that Black should be fine with either 5...e6 or by "falling for" the trappy lines, but as White isn't in bad shape either it's a reasonable sideline for the occasional game, provided White doesn't mind the main line Sozin. You can replay the analysis above, and a bit more besides, here.
Rybka-Dzindzichashvili: OT CancelledPosted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 8, 2008 on 3:03 pm | In Chess Mind | Comments Off The odds match between Rybka and Dzindzichashvili ended in a 4-4 tie, and the plans to have a 4-game playoff today were cancelled, as Dzindzi had a family emergency. Hopefully all's well there, and maybe we'll see a rematch in the near future.
Return of the Dzindzi: Overtime’s a-comin’Posted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 8, 2008 on 12:03 am | In Chess Mind | Comments Off On day 4 of the Rybka-Dzindzichashvili odds match (Dzindzi gets White in every game plus a different Black pawn in every game), Dzindzi caught back up, winning game 7 (with the extra g-pawn) and drawing game 8. It wasn't part of the original deal, but they're going to have a 4-game playoff today (Saturday). Rybka will play without the f-pawn in every game, which is probably the biggest handicap pawn, but the time control will be a relatively speedy 20' + 5", which is surely in its favor.Meanwhile, today's games can be replayed here.
Morelia/Linares, Round 14 (Last round) Recap (Anand wins, Carlsen second)Posted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 7, 2008 on 3:03 pm | In Chess Mind | Comments Off With four players having a chance to at least tie for first, the preconditions were in place for a thrilling last round. This might have seemed especially likely, given the very low percentage of draws (by super-tournament standards) so far, but as it turned out “safety first” was the rule of the day. With a win over Veselin Topalov, world champion Viswanathan Anand would have clinched clear first, but his choice to play to meet Topalov’s Najdorf with 6.Be2 e5 7.Nb3 Be7 8.Bg5 indicated his desire for a quiet life. The game followed yesterday’s tragic Radjabov-Shirov game through 11.O-O-O, but here Topalov varied with 11…Qb6 (instead of 11…Nd4), offering a pawn. Anand rightly returned it with 15.Qd2, resulting in an opposite-colored bishops middlegame where neither side had much to play for. The result was a quick draw, and at worst a tie for first place with Magnus CarlsenThis would happen only if Carlsen defeated Teimour Radjabov, who once again defended the Black pieces with the Schliemann Defense. Carlsen repeated the line Topalov employed in round 9, like Topalov achieving a position with no losing chances and some chances to press. Press he did, for 69 moves, but the pawn-up rook ending the players entered on move 42 offered White no real winning chances, and Carlsen had to settle for second place. Still, it was a terrific result for him, especially in conjunction with his performance in the Corus tournament a month ago (he tied for first), and rumor has it he will be #5 on the next FIDE rating list. Be afraid…be very afraid! Carlsen’s second place finish would have been shared if Levon Aronian had managed to defeat Peter Leko, but Leko was never in danger on the White side of an Anti-Marshall. The players clearly didn’t realize it, as they had been using responsible amounts of time, but they were exactly following a 2007 game between Laurent Fressinet and Arkadij Naiditsch all the way through White’s 29th move. The earlier game was drawn in 36 moves, but Aronian’s choice must have been a serious improvement, as it led to a peaceful handshake two moves earlier. Finally, Alexei Shirov and Vassily Ivanchuk put an end to what must have been a very disappointing tournament for both men. This game seemed headed for a draw almost from the start, as Shirov turned the MacCutcheon French into an Exchange Variation on move 5 Nevertheless, it was Shirov who did what pressing their was in the game, trying to avoid exchanges, playing the prophylactic b4 and the space-gaining 20.g4, 24.h4 and 25.h5, but the symmetrical pawn structure and the open e-file led them to share the point as well. This is a tournament I’m sure they’ll both want to forget: Shirov, because he came in last place (with Peter Leko), and Ivanchuk because he lost two games he was winning (and had he won them and everything else remained the same, he’d have tied for first). They’ll be back. Games (will be) here. Round 14 Results: Anand - Topalov 1/2-1/2 Leko - Aronian 1/2-1/2 Carlsen - Radjabov 1/2-1/2 Shirov - Ivanchuk 1/2-1/2 Final Standings: 1. Anand 8.5 2. Carlsen 8 3-4. Aronian, Topalov 7.5 5. Radjabov 7 6. Ivanchuk 6.5 7-8. Leko, Shirov 5.5 Finally, let's take a look at my predictions: 1. Carlsen 2-3. Anand, Aronian 4. Radjabov 5-6. Shirov, Topalov 7-8. Ivanchuk, Leko Pretty good! I wasn't off by more than a place for anyone, even if the ties gave me a little extra smudge room.
An Analysis Exercise from a Club GamePosted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 7, 2008 on 12:03 am | In Chess Mind | Comments Off At the local club tonight, one of the players handed me the scoresheet from a game he played on Tuesday. I didn't look too much at the game as a whole, but one position grabbed my attention in a sustained way, and I spent 20-30 minutes analyzing it. This was the position in the game after White's 12th move:I don't recall what Black actually did, but it wasn't 12...f4. I haven't checked any of my analysis with the computer - and I'm not going to, either, until I've really spent a lot of time on it - and I in turn won't "contaminate" your thinking by presenting it. So chew on the position for a while (but no analytical comments yet, please), and in a few days we'll discuss it.
Man (plus pawn) vs. Machine: Day 3Posted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 7, 2008 on 12:03 am | In Chess Mind | Comments Off Carbon made a small comeback today in the odds match between GM Roman Dzindzichashvili and Rybka, as both games were drawn against the silicon beast. The event finishes tomorrow, with Dzindzi first receiving Black's g-pawn in game 7 and the h-pawn in game 8. Meanwhile, you can replay today's draws here.
Prodigy AlertPosted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 6, 2008 on 3:03 pm | In Chess Mind | Comments Off Can you defeat this snowball? That's 11-year old FM Ilya Nyzhnyk of Ukraine, already rated 2405. If that's aiming a bit too high, here's a slightly more manageable opponent, 9-year old Nicholas Nip of the U.S. of A., the new record-holder for the youngest master in U.S. history.  Help.
Morelia/Linares, Round 13 RecapPosted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 6, 2008 on 3:03 pm | In Chess Mind | Comments Off The leaderboard stayed steady, but that’s not to say there wasn’t any action today. Let’s start with the leaders: Anand played the Najdorf against Ivanchuk and was possibly surprised by his opponent’s choice of 6.Bc4. Anand returned the favor with 6…Nc6, transposing to the Sozin Variation, and Ivanchuk didn’t seem to have anything special prepared against this. Anand equalized without much difficulty, and the game was drawn in just 23 moves.This gave Carlsen the chance to catch Anand with a win over Aronian, but that was never in the offing. White offered an interesting pawn sac in an old-fashioned line of the Queen’s Indian, but Carlsen’s 9…Bxd5 turned it into an exchange sacrifice for Black. The play from there through move 19 was more or less forced, and the question revolved around Black’s knight on c2. It’s stuck there, but it’s also restraining White’s rook on a2 – is the knight a strength or a weakness. The answer seems to be both, and in roughly equal measure. When the players agreed to a draw after 28.Bc1, White still hadn’t figured out what to do about the knight, but it hadn’t escaped, either. Play could have continued 28…Rc3 (this is forced, as White threatens 29.Bd2 followed by 30.Rc1, sending the steed to the glue factory) 29.Qxe4 (29.Qxb5?! d3!) dxe4 30.Bd2 Rc4 31.Rc1 d3 32.exd3 exd3 33.Rd1 (33.a4 Nd4) a6 (33…Re4? 34.Bc3!) 34.a4 Re4 35.axb5 axb5 36.Ra5 Re2 37.Kh1 Rxf2 38.Rxb5 Re2 39.Bxg5 Bxg5 40.Rg5+ Kf6 with equality, as Black’s d-pawn will let him regain the exchange. It was a tough day for our cellar-dwellars, Shirov and Leko, who both lost, falling to -3. With Black against Radjabov, Shirov had completely equalized, and had he played 20…g5 (for example), the players could have agreed to a draw at any moment. Instead, his 20…Bh4?? left his rook trapped after 21.b4, and the resulting exchange-up ending was easy for White to win. Topalov-Leko was a much harder fight, and Leko was outplayed a little at a time. One early improvement was 21…c5, when 22.bxc3 Nxc3 23.bxc5 Rfe8 24.Bb2 Ne2+ 25.Kf1 Bxb2 26.Rab1 Bxf3 27.gxf3 Bd4 28.Rxe2 Rxe2 29.Kxe2 Bxc5 leads to a drawn Sveshnikov Sicilian-like ending. In the game, White’s pieces were too active, especially once Topalov’s rooks made it to the 7th (31.Rc1! was a good move, much better than 31.Ra1, winning the a-pawn but leaving a very difficult technical task after 31…Bb3 32.Bxe7 R8xe7 33.Rxe7+ Rxe7 34.Rxa6 Bg8). Maybe with perfect play Leko could have held the ending, but as a practical matter it was nearly impossible. Games will be posted here. Round 13 Results: Ivanchuk - Anand 1/2-1/2 Radjabov - Shirov 1-0 Aronian - Carlsen 1/2-1/2 Topalov - Leko 1-0 Standings after Round 13: 1. Anand 8 2. Carlsen 7.5 3-4. Aronian, Topalov 7 5. Radjabov 6.5 6. Ivanchuk 6 7-8. Leko, Shirov 5 Last round pairings: Anand - Topalov Leko - Aronian Carlsen - Radjabov Shirov - Ivanchuk These are excellent pairings, because four players have a chance for some share of first place. Join me for the action tomorrow morning, 10 a.m. ET (4 p.m. Central European Time) on the Playchess.com server - see you then!
The Empire Strikes Back: Rybka 2.5-Dzindzi 1.5Posted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 5, 2008 on 8:03 pm | In Chess Mind | Comments Off Monday was a good day for Roman Dzindzichashvili in his pawn-odds match with the computer program Rybka, but Wednesday, the second day of their match, was not. Giving up the c- and d-pawns, respectively, Rybka won both games against the American GM to take the lead in the eight game match.Games here. (Note: the funny opening moves designed to set up the proper pawn-odds position are given on the site; they're not an expedient on my part to create the proper start position.)
This Week’s ChessBase Show: Krejcik-KrobotPosted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 4, 2008 on 9:03 pm | In Chess Mind | Comments Off Who??If you haven't heard of these players, that's okay: I hadn't heard of them either until a few days ago. A friend, who saw this discussion on the ChessBase news site, pointed me to the game, and now it's your turn. Our weekly shows often feature great games by the greatest players in chess history, but from time to time it's worthwhile to take a look at the masterpieces of lesser-known players, too, especially as their games are the likeliest to pass by unnoticed. Our principals are Josef Krejcik (1885-1957), a master known for his brilliant but inconsistent play, and Konrad Krobot...or Krobst - it's apparently unclear. The date isn't completely clear either: was the game played on February 14 or 24, and in 1908 or 1909? The location of this game is also unclear, with the Cafe Veronika and the Cafe Viktoria (in Austria) the competing options. What is clear is that White's play is brilliant. Although it's lightweight compared to (e.g.) the action in Linares, it's the kind of entertaining game that drew almost all of us into the game and made us the chess fans for life. I therefore hope you'll join me tomorrow at 9 p.m. ET for a very entertaining game on the Playchess server: the show is free, and you can find directions here.
Morelia/Linares, Round 12 RecapPosted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 4, 2008 on 6:03 pm | In Chess Mind | Comments Off World champion Viswanathan Anand continues to lead, but Magnus Carlsen has closed back to within half a point of first as we head for the last two rounds after tomorrow’s rest day. Anand drew comfortably with Peter Leko, enjoying a slight, safe edge throughout on the White side of an Anti-Marshall. After his 20.Qxg5N hxg5 21.c4!, it looked like that advantage might become serious, thanks to Black’s weak pawns on g5 and c5, but Leko’s ingenious defense enabled him to hold the position. He had no choice but to give up a pawn, but he did so in a way that allowed his pieces to coordinate while Anand’s lost their harmony; the result was a draw.Carlsen, meanwhile, was the recipient of some (partially earned) luck against Veselin Topalov. Carlsen achieved nothing from the opening, a reverse Sicilian, and his attacking plan with 19.Bg5, 20.Be3 and 21.f4 left him insufficient compensation for the sacrificed pawn. His further sacrifice, 23.Rd4, probably could have been accepted, but Topalov’s safe 23…Rad8 sufficed for an advantage as well. On move 28.e6 would have been interesting (28…Qe7 29.f5 gxf5 30.Rf3 is one possible continuation), but Carlsen’s 28.f5 led to complex play as well, again sacrificing material for activity and headhunting prospects. The critical moments came on moves 33 and 34: Topalov could have avoided perpetual check with 33…Qd7, though after 34.Bh6 Nc6 35.Bxc4+ Bxc4 36.Qxc4+ Qf7 37.Qc1 Black will have a hard time creating real winning possibilities. His 33…Kxg7 was safer – or should have been – but after 34.Bd8 Topalov blundered into mate with 34…Nc6?? Instead, 34…Qd5 more or less forces White to take a perpetual check: 35.Bxa5 Qxa5 36.Qe7+ etc. If Aronian had won his game, he too would have pulled within half a point of the leader, but he was rather fortunate to draw. Shirov found a tremendous improvement over his game with Leko from two rounds ago – not a new move (Aronian was the first to deviate from the earlier game, with 27…Rc8 instead of Leko’s 27…Bc4) but a new plan. Instead of meeting …Bc4 with b3, he put the pawn on a3, played 30.g4 to cement his knight on e4, and then prepared and executed the h4-h5-h6 advance. The result was that Black now had to worry about passed (or potentially passed) pawns on both sides of the board, and Shirov gradually achieved a winning position. (Note: I thought during the live commentary that Black could force a draw with 47…Bc6, taking for granted that 48.Nc5 Bxc5+ (or 48…Bd6+ 49.Ke3 Bxc5) would lead to a draw. Not so: as GM Mikhail Golubev pointed out, White puts his bishop on h4, the pawn on f6, and then brings the king to the queenside, winning.) By the time of 59.f8N+! Shirov was winning, but Aronian’s tenacious defense and White inaccuracies on moves 61, 67 and 73 led to a draw. Finally, Ivanchuk-Radjabov was a typical Sveshnikov Sicilian draw, where the opposite-colored bishops were more significant than Ivanchuk’s extra pawn. Games (will be) here. Round 12 Results: Anand - Leko 1/2-1/2 Shirov - Aronian 1/2-1/2 Carlsen - Topalov 1-0 Ivanchuk - Radjabov 1/2-1/2 Standings after Round 12: 1. Anand 7.5 2. Carlsen 7 3. Aronian 6.5 4. Topalov 6 5-6. Radjabov, Ivanchuk 5.5 7-8. Leko, Shirov 5 Pairings for Round 13: (On Thursday) Ivanchuk - Anand Radjabov - Shirov Aronian - Carlsen Topalov - Leko
Kasparov on “Election Season in Russia”Posted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 4, 2008 on 2:03 pm | In Chess Mind | Comments Off Right here.
Dzindzi-Rybka, day 1: Dzindzi leads 1.5-.5(!)Posted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 3, 2008 on 10:03 pm | In Chess Mind | Comments Off All those years of playing computers have paid off for GM Roman Dzindzichashvili so far, as the first day against Rybka with pawn and move has given him a draw and a win. It would be nicer if he was ahead without any odds, but I guess we'll take what we can get at this point.Games here.
Morelia/Linares, Round 11 RecapPosted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 3, 2008 on 7:03 pm | In Chess Mind | Comments Off World champion Viswanathan Anand is now the prohibitive favorite to win this year’s edition of the Morelia/Linares tournament, enjoying a full point lead with just three rounds to go. He took a short, easy draw against Teimour Radjabov; a fairly easy task against Radjabov’s anti-Caro-Kann sideline. White’s 6.Nh3 + 7.Nf4 garners the bishop pair, but the resulting position is so balanced that they offer no meaningful chances.Meanwhile, it looked like Magnus Carlsen, his closest pursuer, would stay within half a point of the lead. When the queens came off against Leko on move 26, it looked like a typical drawish Sveshnikov ending with opposite-colored bishops. It turned out that White enjoyed a nagging edge, however, thanks to his passed b-pawn, and Leko did a great job of nursing the position for all it was worth. Utilizing the principle of two weaknesses, he turned to the kingside, first trying to loosen up Black’s pawns with 45.h5, then trying to create a cage for Black’s king by 47.h6. The position was still probably objectively drawn through White’s 52nd move, but after Carlsen’s decision to bring his king to the center with 52…Kg8 (maybe Black can hold with 52…Be3), 53…Kf8 and 54…Ke7, it was clearly over. Topalov-Shirov saw the old exchange sac line against the Gruenfeld made famous by the late David Bronstein, and Topalov brought something new to the table. His 16.Qd4 was relatively rare, and 20.Bd3 was a novelty. Shirov reacted well, but it took him a lot of time on the clock, and this may have cost him. On move 26, 26…Qxd5 would have given him a playable position. Instead, Shirov played 26…Qb6+?, and after 27.Kh1 Qe3 28.Qh4 made an even more serious error, 28…Re5? Perhaps this was Shirov’s idea on move 26, thinking he would regain the d-pawn in a more active setting, but after 29.Qf6, threatening both d6-d7 and Bxg6, he was completely lost. Finally, Aronian-Ivanchuk saw almost surreal play from the opening, and the game was lively from the start until it’s sadly premature finish. It seemed that Black still had chances for the initiative in the final position (e.g. with 22…Qa8), and before that he may have missed the nice shot 18…b4 (19.Qxb4 Nc6 and all Black’s pieces are on their way to terrific squares). Games here. Round 11 Results: Radjabov - Anand 1/2-1/2 Aronian - Ivanchuk 1/2-1/2 Topalov - Shirov 1-0 Leko - Carlsen 1-0 Standings after Round 11: 1. Anand 7 2-4. Aronian, Carlsen, Topalov 6 5-6. Radjabov, Ivanchuk 5 7-8. Shirov, Leko 4.5 Pairings for Round 12: Anand - Leko Radjabov - Shirov Aronian - Carlsen Topalov - Leko Technical note: the ChessBase server had some problems with the audio system at the start of the round, but it was fixed in due course. Tomorrow's live commentary should go off without a hitch, so you're all invited to join me starting at: 10 a.m. ET, 4 p.m. Central European Time.
Quotation Time: Identify and DiscussPosted by Dennis Monokroussos - March 3, 2008 on 10:03 am | In Chess Mind | Comments OffHere's an initial offering in what might develop into a regular theme on this blog: I'll present a quotation without attribution, and you're invited/challenged to identify its source. (Thoughtful) Comments on the quotation are welcome as well.
|
Blogs & Categories:
Monthly Archives:
|
|
© 2007 ChessCommunity.com © For Content Belongs To The Respective Authors. Ohio Web Design |
