Paris Final: Disappointing Finish

by ChessBase
10/4/2013 – The stage was set for epic duels: Caruana had to win with the black pieces to win the tournament solo and qualify for the Candidate's tournament in case that Gelfand drew Ponomariov, which he ended up doing. Instead Caruana repeated moves early in the opening, and he wasn't the only one. Bacrot-Grischuk and Gelfand-Ponomariov didn't make it past the opening. Report.

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Sixth FIDE Grand Prix - Paris 2013

The sixth and final Grand Prix of the system is taking place at the Chapelle de la Villedieu, founded in 1180 by soldier-monks of the Order of the Temple. The p laying site is considerably west of Paris. The tournament will determine the last qualifiers for the Candidates tournament for the next World Chess Championship cycle. This leg of the series is being played under classical time controls: Time control: 120 minutes for the first 40 moves, 60 minutes for the next 20 moves, and then each player gets 15 minutes and an increment of 30 seconds per move after the second time control). No draws offers: Sofia rules!

Round 11

Round 11 – October 04, 14:00h
Gelfand, Boris 2764
½-½
Ponomariov, Ruslan 2756
Giri, Anish 2737
½-½
Nakamura, Hikaru 2772
Tomashevsky, Evgeny 2703
½-½
Ivanchuk, Vassily 2731
Dominguez Perez, Leinier 2757
½-½
Caruana, Fabiano 2779
Bacrot, Etienne 2723
½-½
Grischuk, Alexander 2785
Wang Hao 2736
½-½
Fressinet, Laurent 2708

With these results the biggest winner from Paris is... Mamedyarov! Since neither Caruana nor Grischuk catch him it is the Azerbaijani that qualifies to the next Candidate's tournament by virtue of his Grand Prix standing:

Name
London
Tashkent
Zug/Swiz.
Thessaloniki
Beijing
Paris
Points
Topalov
140
170
45
100
410
Mamedyarov
140
80
20
170
390
Grischuk
90
85
140
65
295
Caruana
80
100
125
140
365

Caruna would have won 170 points if he had won clean first place in the tournament, but got only 140 since he tied for first. This was of course the difference in surpassing Mamedyarov or not, as it is the top two spots that qualify for the Candidate's (Topalov was already qualified before Paris as his excellent results meant he couldn't be surpassed).

Had Ponomariov lost, Caruana would've gotten second in the Grand Prix, but the Ukrainian had no problem holding Gelfand to a draw

Gelfand, Boris ½-½ Ponomariov, Ruslan
Ponomariov obtained a good position from the Dutch defense but Gelfand still held some positional pluses. The players agreed to do a three fold repetition as early as move 23 in a position where either side could have easily played on.

Bacrot, Etienne ½-½ Grischuk, Alexander
A totally unnecessary repetition starting on move 13 allowed these players to bypass Sophia rules and the game was drawn.

Tomashevsky, Evgeny ½-½ Ivanchuk, Vassily
Tomashevsky avoided the ...a6 Slav by playing without Nc3, a common way of dealing with this set-up as it has been proven that the knight doesn't necessarily want to be in that square too quickly in those kinds of systems. He was able to win a pawn with a long but well calculated combination but surprisingly his advantage was not so strong as his extra pawn was very difficult to convert in a queen endgame. To Tomashevsky's credit he tried very hard but it was simply impossible to win with his weak king position that ultimately allowed Ivanchuk to force a perpetual.

Wang Hao was the player that came closest to winning today, but he spoiled his chances before hitting move 40

Wang Hao ½-½ Fressinet, Laurent
The Chinese player obtained a certain amount of pressure against the queenside with his double rooks on the c-file but Black's strong bishop on b6 held the position easily. Fressinet tried to make the position more exciting by playing 26...e4!? which sacrificed a pawn but the compensation was somewhat questionable. Wang Hao's pair of bishops and extra pawn gave him good chances to win but in time pressure he threw his advantage away and Fressinet was able to salvage a drawn.

Fressinet had a close call as his strange pawn push left him in a nearly lost position

Grandmaster Romain Edouard brings us annotations of today's games:

Dominguez Perez, Leinier ½-½ Caruana, Fabiano

[Event "FIDE Grand Prix Paris 2013"] [Site "Paris"] [Date "2013.10.04"] [Round "11"] [White "Dominguez Perez, Leinier"] [Black "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "B48"] [WhiteElo "2757"] [BlackElo "2779"] [Annotator "Romain Edouard"] [PlyCount "38"] [EventDate "2013.??.??"] [EventCountry "FRA"] 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nc6 5. Nc3 Qc7 6. Be3 a6 7. Qd2 Nf6 8. O-O-O Be7 9. f3 b5 10. g4 Nxd4 11. Qxd4 Bb7 12. g5 Nh5 13. Rd2 (13. Kb1 {looks more natural, but since it's already been played successfully in Almasi-Inarkiev (2013), most probably Caruana had something in mind.}) 13... Rc8 14. Bxb5 $5 $146 (14. Rg1 {was unclear in Saric-Khairullin 2013.}) 14... axb5 15. Nxb5 Qc6 16. Na7 Qc7 (16... e5 $5 17. Qd3 (17. Qxe5 Qc7 $13) 17... Qe6 18. Nxc8 Bxc8 19. Kb1 O-O 20. Rhd1 Qh3 {seems unclear.}) 17. Nb5 (17. Nxc8 Bxc8 {is just unclear.}) 17... Qc6 ({After} 17... Qd8 {Caruana probably considered} 18. Qa7 {to be 'killing', but after} O-O 19. Qxb7 Bxg5 20. Bxg5 Qxg5 {Black has very decent compensations for the pawn, e.g.} 21. a4 Nf4 22. Kb1 Nd5 $1 $13 ) ({However} 17... Qb8 $6 18. Qxd7+ Kf8 19. Nd6 Rc7 20. Qa4 {is very dubious for Black.}) 18. Na7 Qc7 19. Nb5 Qc6 {What a weird decision! Caruana almost for sure had to win to qualify for Candidates. Of course both the ...e5 and ... Qd8 ideas were not putting White in any kind of trouble, but the position would remain playable.} 1/2-1/2

Giri, Anish ½-½ Nakamura, Hikaru

[Event "FIDE Grand Prix Paris 2013"] [Site "Paris"] [Date "2013.10.04"] [Round "11"] [White "Giri, Anish"] [Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2737"] [BlackElo "2772"] [Annotator "Romain Edouard"] [PlyCount "78"] [EventDate "2013.??.??"] [EventCountry "FRA"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. h3 Bd7 10. Rd1 Kc8 11. g4 Ne7 12. Ng5 Be8 13. f4 h5 (13... b6 $5 {has been played by Harikrishna.}) 14. Kf2 $5 $146 b6 15. f5 Kb7 16. c4 c5 17. Bf4 Nc6 18. Nc3 g6 19. e6 fxe6 20. Nxe6 hxg4 $1 {A very nice defensive move.} (20... Rc8 21. g5 gxf5 22. Nb5 Bf7 23. Nbxc7 Nd4 24. Nxf8 Rhxf8 25. Nb5 $16) 21. Nxc7 Bh6 $1 22. Bxh6 (22. Bg3 $6 gxf5 $1 {is dubious for White will after}) (22. Bh2 $6 Be3+ $1 23. Kxe3 Rxh3+ {Black is also alright, especially since} 24. Ke4 {is met by} gxf5+ 25. Kxf5 Nd4+ $1 $15) 22... Kxc7 23. Bf4+ Kb7 24. hxg4 gxf5 25. g5 Rh4 $1 {White seemed to be better, but actually this move just draws by force.} 26. Ne2 Bh5 27. Rh1 Rxh1 28. Rxh1 Bxe2 29. Kxe2 Nd4+ 30. Kd3 (30. Kf2 Ne6 31. Kf3 Rg8 {is a draw: White cannot breakthrough.}) (30. Ke3 {seemed to me like the only chance, but is also a draw:} Re8+ 31. Kf2 Re2+ ( 31... Ne6 $2 32. Re1 $16) 32. Kf1 (32. Kg3 Re4 $11) 32... Re4 (32... Rxb2 $2 33. Rh7+ $16) 33. Rh4 (33. Rh7+ Ka6 34. Bb8 Nc6 35. Bd6 Rg4 $11) 33... Nf3 34. Rh7+ Kc8 $1 (34... Ka6 $2 35. Bb8 $16) 35. g6 (35. Bc1 Rg4 $11) 35... Rxf4 36. g7 Ne5+ $1 37. Kg2 Rg4+ 38. Kh3 Nxc4 $11) 30... Ne6 31. Rf1 Rd8+ 32. Kc3 Rg8 33. Be3 f4 34. Bxf4 Nxf4 35. Rxf4 Rxg5 36. Rf7+ Kb8 37. Rf8+ Kb7 38. Rf7+ Kb8 39. Rf8+ Kb7 1/2-1/2

Nakamura had a very good event and is now tied for fourth in the world in the live rating list with Caruana, both at 2789 (after rounding)

Romain Edouard

Born in 1990 in Poitiers, France, Romain won the French and European U16 Championships in 2006, came second in the U18 section in European and World Championships in 2007, and was co-champion of France in 2012.

He has been a member of the French national team since 2009 (except in 2011). He won several international open tournaments: Bad Wiessee 2008, Zaragoza 2008, Echternach 2009, Andorra 2009, Hastings 2010, Echternach 2010, Clermont-Ferrand 2011, etc. as well as closed tournaments: Grand Prix de Bordeaux 2007, Antwerp 2011, Nancy 2012.

Standings

Statistics

The percentages really speak for themselves...

 

The FIDE press officer Alin l'Ami provided us with all the information and pictures necessary for the reports

Photos by Alina l'Ami

Replay last round games

Select games from the dropdown menu above the board

Schedule

Round 01 – September 22 2013, 15:00h
Fressinet, Laurent 2708
½-½
Ponomariov, Ruslan 2756
Grischuk, Alexander 2785
½-½
Wang Hao 2736
Caruana, Fabiano 2779
½-½
Bacrot, Etienne 2723
Ivanchuk, Vassily 2731
½-½
Dominguez Perez, Leinier 2757
Nakamura, Hikaru 2772
½-½
Tomashevsky, Evgeny 2703
Gelfand, Boris 2764
1-0
Giri, Anish 2737
Round 02 – September 23 2013, 15:00h
Ponomariov, Ruslan 2756
½-½
Giri, Anish 2737
Tomashevsky, Evgeny 2703
½-½
Gelfand, Boris 2764
Dominguez Perez, Leinier 2757
½-½
Nakamura, Hikaru 2772
Bacrot, Etienne 2723
½-½
Ivanchuk, Vassily 2731
Wang Hao 2736
½-½
Caruana, Fabiano 2779
Fressinet, Laurent 2708
1-0
Grischuk, Alexander 2785
Round 03 – September 24 2013, 15:00h
Grischuk, Alexander 2785
½-½
Ponomariov, Ruslan 2756
Caruana, Fabiano 2779
1-0
Fressinet, Laurent 2708
Ivanchuk, Vassily 2731
1-0
Wang Hao 2736
Nakamura, Hikaru 2772
1-0
Bacrot, Etienne 2723
Gelfand, Boris 2764
1-0
Dominguez Perez, Leinier 2757
Giri, Anish 2737
½-½
Tomashevsky, Evgeny 2703
Round 04 – September 25 2013, 15:00h
Ponomariov, Ruslan 2756
½-½
Tomashevsky, Evgeny 2703
Dominguez Perez, Leinier 2757
1-0
Giri, Anish 2737
Bacrot, Etienne 2723
½-½
Gelfand, Boris 2764
Wang Hao 2736
½-½
Nakamura, Hikaru 2772
Fressinet, Laurent 2708
0-1
Ivanchuk, Vassily 2731
Grischuk, Alexander 2785
½-½
Caruana, Fabiano 2779
Round 05 – September 27 2013, 15:00h
Caruana, Fabiano 2779
½-½
Ponomariov, Ruslan 2756
Ivanchuk, Vassily 2731
0-1
Grischuk, Alexander 2785
Nakamura, Hikaru 2772
½-½
Fressinet, Laurent 2708
Gelfand, Boris 2764
½-½
Wang Hao 2736
Giri, Anish 2737
0-1
Bacrot, Etienne 2723
Tomashevsky, Evgeny 2703
½-½
Dominguez Perez, Leinier 2757
Round 06 – September 28 2013, 15:00h
Ponomariov, Ruslan 2756
½-½
Dominguez Perez, Leinier 2757
Bacrot, Etienne 2723
½-½
Tomashevsky, Evgeny 2703
Wang Hao 2736
½-½
Giri, Anish 2737
Fressinet, Laurent 2708
½-½
Gelfand, Boris 2764
Grischuk, Alexander 2785
½-½
Nakamura, Hikaru 2772
Caruana, Fabiano 2779
1-0
Ivanchuk, Vassily 2731
Round 07 – September 29 2013, 15:00h
Ivanchuk, Vassily 2731
½-½
Ponomariov, Ruslan 2756
Nakamura, Hikaru 2772
1-0
Caruana, Fabiano 2779
Gelfand, Boris 2764
1-0
Grischuk, Alexander 2785
Giri, Anish 2737
½-½
Fressinet, Laurent 2708
Tomashevsky, Evgeny 2703
½-½
Wang Hao 2736
Dominguez Perez, Leinier 2757
½-½
Bacrot, Etienne 2723
Round 08 – September 30 2013, 15:00h
Ponomariov, Ruslan 2756
0-1
Bacrot, Etienne 2723
Wang Hao 2736
½-½
Dominguez Perez, Leinier 2757
Fressinet, Laurent 2708
½-½
Tomashevsky, Evgeny 2703
Grischuk, Alexander 2785
1-0
Giri, Anish 2737
Caruana, Fabiano 2779
1-0
Gelfand, Boris 2764
Ivanchuk, Vassily 2731
0-1
Nakamura, Hikaru 2772
Round 09 – October 02 2013, 15:00h
Nakamura, Hikaru 2772 ½-½ Ponomariov, Ruslan 2756
Gelfand, Boris 2764 ½-½ Ivanchuk, Vassily 2731
Giri, Anish 2737 ½-½ Caruana, Fabiano 2779
Tomashevsky, Evgeny 2703 ½-½ Grischuk, Alexander 2785
Dominguez Perez, Leinier 2757 ½-½ Fressinet, Laurent 2708
Bacrot, Etienne 2723 ½-½ Wang Hao 2736
Round 10 – October 03, 14:00h
Ponomariov, Ruslan 2756
½-½
Wang Hao 2736
Fressinet, Laurent 2708
0-1
Bacrot, Etienne 2723
Grischuk, Alexander 2785
½-½
Dominguez Perez, Leinier 2757
Caruana, Fabiano 2779
1-0
Tomashevsky, Evgeny 2703
Ivanchuk, Vassily 2731
½-½
Giri, Anish 2737
Nakamura, Hikaru 2772
0-1
Gelfand, Boris 2764
Round 11 – October 04, 14:00h
Gelfand, Boris 2764
½-½
Ponomariov, Ruslan 2756
Giri, Anish 2737
½-½
Nakamura, Hikaru 2772
Tomashevsky, Evgeny 2703
½-½
Ivanchuk, Vassily 2731
Dominguez Perez, Leinier 2757
½-½
Caruana, Fabiano 2779
Bacrot, Etienne 2723
½-½
Grischuk, Alexander 2785
Wang Hao 2736
½-½
Fressinet, Laurent 2708

The games start at 15:00h European time, 17:00h Moscow, 9 a.m. New York. You can find your regional starting time here.

Links

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