World Cup R4: Svidler, Mamedyarov and Karjakin through

The FIDE World Chess Cup is taking place in Khanty-Mansiysk from November 20th to December 15th 2009. It is a seven-round knockout event with six rounds of matches comprising two games per round, with the winners progressing to the next round. The final seventh round consists of four games. The time control is 90 minutes for the first 40 moves followed by 30 minutes for the rest of the game with an addition of 30 seconds per move from move one. Games start at 15:00h local time, which is GMT +5 hours = 11:00 a.m. European time = 5 a.m. New York. The World Chess Cup is an integral part of the World Championship Cycle 2009-2011.

Round four day two

Fabiano Caruana arrives, accompanied by his father Lou

Caruana,F (2652) - Gashimov,V (2758) [B90]
World Cup Khanty-Mansiysk RUS (4.2), 1.12.2009
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be3 Ng4 7.Bg5 h6 8.Bh4 g5 9.Bg3 Nc6 10.Be2 Nge5 11.Nxc6 Nxc6 12.Nd5 Bg7 13.c3 Ne5 14.Qb3 0-0 15.Qb6 Qxb6 16.Nxb6 Rb8 17.h4 gxh4 18.Rxh4 Ng6 19.Rh5 Be6 20.f4 f5 21.exf5 Rxf5 22.Rxf5 Bxf5 23.0-0-0 Rd8 24.Bf3 e6 25.Nc4 d5 26.Ne3 Rf8 27.Nxf5 Rxf5 28.Bg4 Rf6 29.Re1 Nf8 30.f5 exf5 31.Bf3 d4 32.cxd4 f4 33.Bf2 b6 34.d5 Rd6 35.Re8 Kf7 36.Bh5+ Kg8 37.Bf3 Kf7 38.Ra8 a5 39.Ra7+ Kg8 40.Ra8 Kf7 41.Ra7+ Kg8

With the time control met Fabiano Caruana has time to decide how he can go about trying to win this advantageous position. 42.Rb7 (42.Rc7 and 43.Rc6 was an alternative) 42...Nd7 43.Bg4 Nc5 44.Bxc5 bxc5 45.Be6+ Kh7 46.b3 Kg6 47.Ra7 Bc3 48.Kc2 Be1 49.Kd3 Rb6 50.Ke2 Bc3 51.Kf3 Kf6 52.Kxf4. Okay, he has got the extra pawn, but with the opposite bishops the position is very hard to win. Especially when you have Gashimov on the other side of the table. 52...Rb4+ 53.Kf3 Ke5 54.g3 c4 55.bxc4 Rxc4 56.Bf7 Bb4 57.Ra6 Rc3+ 58.Kg4 Bd6 59.Rxa5 Kf6 60.Be6 Rxg3+ 61.Kh5 Rg5+ 62.Kh4 draw. [Click to replay]

The following games can be written on the back of a postage stamp. Together with the Lord's Prayer. In capital letters.

Jakovenko,D (2736) - Grischuk,A (2736) [E21]
World Cup Khanty-Mansiysk RUS (4.2), 1.12.2009
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.Nf3 c5 5.g3 b6 6.Bg2 Bb7 7.0-0 cxd4 8.Qxd4 0-0 9.Nb5 Nc6 10.Qd3 d5 11.Bf4 a6 12.Nbd4 draw. [Click to replay]

Mamedyarov,S (2719) - Laznicka,V (2637) [D27]
World Cup Khanty-Mansiysk RUS (4.2), 1.12.2009
1.d4 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.e3 e6 5.Bxc4 a6 6.a4 c5 7.0-0 Nc6 8.Nc3 Be7 9.Qe2 cxd4 10.Rd1 e5 11.exd4 exd4 12.Nxd4 Nxd4 13.Qe5 draw. [Click to replay]

On to round five for one of the top three GMs in Azerbaijan: Skakhriyar Mamedyrov

Ponomariov,R (2739) - Bacrot,E (2700) [D12]
World Cup Khanty-Mansiysk RUS (4.2), 1.12.2009
1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.e3 Bf5 5.cxd5 cxd5 6.Qb3 Qc7 7.Bd2 e6 8.Bb5+ Nc6 9.0-0 Bd6 10.Bb4 0-0 11.Bxc6 bxc6 12.Nbd2 Nd7 13.Rfc1 Rfc8 14.Qa3 Bxb4 15.Qxb4 Bg4 16.Rc2 Rab8 17.Qa3 Qb6 18.b3 Bxf3 19.Nxf3 Qb4 20.Qxa7 Rb7 21.Qa6 c5 22.dxc5 Rxc5 23.Rac1 h6 24.h3 Rbc7 25.a3 Qxb3 26.Rxc5 Rxc5 27.Rxc5 Qb1+ 28.Qf1 Qxf1+ 29.Kxf1 Nxc5 30.Ke2 Kf8 31.Ne5 Ke7 32.Nd3 Ne4 33.Kd1 Kd6 34.f3 Nc3+ 35.Kc2 Na4 36.Kb3 Nb6 37.a4 f5 38.Kb4 Nc4 39.e4 fxe4 40.fxe4 g5 41.exd5 Kxd5 42.Kc3 e5 43.Nb4+ Kc5 44.Na6+ Kd5 45.Nc7+ Kc5 46.Kd3 Nb2+ 47.Ke4 Nxa4 48.Kxe5 Nb2 49.Ne6+ Kc4 50.Kf5 Kd5 51.Ng7 Nd3 52.Nh5 Ne1 53.g3 Kd4 54.Kg6 Nd3 55.Kxh6 Nf2 56.h4 gxh4 57.gxh4

After a tough struggle this is what the former FIDE World Champion has achieved: a theoretically drawn endgame. But Ruslan Ponomariov decides to try a Carlsen on his opponent. [For the uninitiated: to do a Carlsen = play on in a technically drawn position, put as much pressure as possible on the opponent and give him every opportunity to go astray]. 57...Ng4+ 58.Kg7 Ke5 59.Ng3 Nf6 60.Kg6 Nd5 61.Kg7 Nf6 62.Kf7 Ng4 63.Ne2 Nf6 64.Kg6

64...Nd5? Our tablebases suddenly spring to life, announcing mate in 34. Necessary was 64...Ke6 or 64...Ng4, the only two moves that hold the draw. 65.h5 Ne7+ 66.Kg7 Nf5+ 67.Kf7 Nh6+ 68.Kg6 Nf5 69.Ng3 Nh4+ 70.Kg7 Nf3 71.h6 Ng5 72.Ne2 Ne6+ 73.Kf7 Ng5+ 74.Kg6 Ne6. So far perfectly played by Ponomariov – Fritz is full of admiration for the human grandmaster. 75.Nc3. The counter goes up to #27 – 75.Ng1 would have made it #23. 75...Nf8+ 76.Kf7 Nh7 77.Kg7 Ng5 78.Ne2 Ne6+ 79.Kf7 Ng5+ 80.Kg6 Ne6 81.Ng1 Nf8+

82.Kf7? With the counter down to #23 Ponomariov errs. As any amateur (equipped with tablebases) will tell you: White needed to play 82.Kg7!, the only move that leads to a win. From now on the game is a theoretical draw again, and Etienne Bacrot does not deviate from the right path. 82...Kf5 83.Nf3 Nh7 84.Kg7 Nf6 85.Nd4+ Kg5 86.Ne6+ Kh5 87.Nc7 Kg5 88.Nd5 Ne8+ 89.Kh7 Nd6 90.Nc3 Nf7 91.Ne4+ Kf4 92.Kg7 Nxh6 93.Kxh6 Kxe4 draw. [Click to replay]

Ponomariov failed to do a full Carlsen – which entails actually winning the drawn endgame

Vitiugov,N (2694) - Karjakin,Sergey (2723) [E32]
World Cup Khanty-Mansiysk RUS (4.2), 1.12.2009
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.Qc2 0-0 5.a3 Bxc3+ 6.Qxc3 d5 7.e3 b6 8.Nf3 Bb7 9.b3 Nbd7 10.Be2 c5 11.0-0 Rc8 12.a4 dxc4 13.bxc4 Qc7 14.Bb2 Bxf3 15.gxf3 cxd4 16.Qxd4 e5 17.Qh4 Rfe8 18.Kh1 Nf8 19.Qh3 a5 20.Rfd1 Rcd8 21.Qf5 Rxd1+ 22.Rxd1 N8d7 23.c5 Nxc5 24.Bb5 Re6 25.Kg1 g6 26.Qc2 Rd6 27.Rc1 Qe7 28.Ba3 Nfd7 29.Bxd7 Qxd7 30.Bxc5 Rc6 31.Qe4 Qc7 32.f4 Rxc5 33.Rxc5 bxc5 34.fxe5 c4

Black's advanced passed pawn on the c-file is very dangerous, and young Sergey Karjakin shows us how to play this endgame. 35.e6 fxe6 36.Qxe6+ Kg7 37.Qe4 c3 38.Qd4+ Kg8 39.Qd5+ Kf8 40.Qd4 c2 41.Qh8+ Ke7 42.Qxh7+ Kd8 43.Qg8+ Kd7 44.Qg7+ Kc8 45.Qh8+ Kb7 46.Qb2+ Ka6 47.Qc1 Qc4

It's all over, Black wins (e.g. 48.h4 Qa2 49.Kg2 Qb1). 0-1.

Sergey Karjakin, 19, has been a grandmaster for seven years now (!)

Wesley So held Vladimir Malakhov to a draw to force tiebreaks on Wednesday

Filipino Wesley So, who just turned sixteen, is the youngest player left in the tournament

Boris Gelfand played an English Opening against French GM Maxime Vachier Lagrave
(is that PC? Probably okay) but did not get anything that pointed to victory.

Alexei Shirov did not find a way to beat Peter Svidler and equalise after yesterday's
defeat. The game was drawn in 42 moves, Alexei is out, Peter goes into round five.

Two happy GMs who qualified for round five: Sergey Karjakin, Peter Svidler

Photos by Galina Popova courtesy of FIDE

Results of round four

Schedule of the World Cup 2009

Links Official tournament site – All ChessBase reports All games in zipped PGN Games in PGN: Round 1 – Round 2 – Round 3 – Round 4 The games are being broadcast live on the official web site and on the chess server Playchess.com. If you are not a member you can download the free PGN reader ChessBase Light, which gives you immediate access. You can also use the program to read, replay and analyse PGN games. New and enhanced: CB Light 2009!