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The Tata Steel Chess Tournament has two main tournaments. They are played according to the 'round robin' system, whereby each competitor plays in turn against every other during the tournament. The Tata Steel Masters has 14 participants and the Tata Steel Challengers has 14 participants. Both groups start on January 10th 2015 and the last round is on January 25th. All rounds in Wijk aan Zee begin at 13.30 hours, except for the last round on January 25th, which begins at 12.00 hours. The time control is 100 minutes for 40 moves, followed by 50 minutes for 20 moves, then 15 minutes for the remaining moves with 30 seconds cumulative increment for each move starting from the first move.
Admission to the playing hall in Wijk aan Zee, Rotterdam and The Hague is free of charge
| Round 6 - Friday Jan. 16 | |
| Van Wely, L. - Aronian, L. |
½-½
|
| Caruana, F. - Carlsen, M. |
0-1
|
| Hou, Y. - Wojtaszek, R. |
½-½
|
| Jobava, B. - So, W. |
0-1
|
| Radjabov, T. - Giri, A. |
½-½
|
| Ivanchuk, V. - Saric, I. |
½-½
|
| Vachier-Lagrave - Ding, L. |
1-0
|
Daniel King shows the game Caruana vs Carlsen
Bling bling
Sometimes there are ways around not being so tall
Van Wely, Loek ½-½ Aronian, Levon
A pretty bizarre game. Both players seemed to have forgotten the rules of development (Van Wely didn't move his light-squared bishop until move 20, while Aronian played Nf6-g8-h6 and Bg7-h6-f8 in the first 19 moves). Both players were occupied advancing their own plans. This led to a position in which Van Wely captured Aronian's kingside, but his queen got stuck and was perpetualed by Black's rooks.
Aronian did not imagine he was strolling into
a very complicated game right from the start
Caruana, Fabiano 0-1 Carlsen, Magnus
The much anticipated duel between the number one and number two players in the World was not a disappointment, though the World Champion dominated completely:
Caruana drops down to the middle of the road with 50% (3.0/6)
[Event "77th Tata Steel GpA"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee NED"] [Date "2015.01.16"] [Round "6"] [White "Caruana, F."] [Black "Carlsen, M."] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "B31"] [WhiteElo "2820"] [BlackElo "2862"] [Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro"] [PlyCount "78"] [EventDate "2015.01.09"] {The duel between the number one and number two in the World. Both players have yet to prove that they are in top shape at this event, so the battle was on!} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 g6 4. Bxc6 dxc6 5. d3 Bg7 6. h3 Nf6 7. Nc3 b6 {Pretty unusual and actually this move hasn't been seen for a few years. The much more normal plan is} (7... e5 {with the follow up of Nd7-f8-d4.}) 8. Be3 e5 9. O-O O-O 10. a3 Qe7 11. Qb1 $5 {Not a very subtle move, as White obviously wants to break the queenside with b4, but one that is not so easily met.} Nh5 {Carlsen decides that the best way to fend off an attack on the queenside is a counterattack on the kingside.} 12. b4 f5 { Signalling the fight!} 13. bxc5 f4 14. Bd2 bxc5 15. Qb3+ Be6 16. Qa4 Rac8 17. Qa5 g5 18. Na4 g4 19. hxg4 Bxg4 20. Qxc5 {White has won a pawn, but Black has opened some dangerous lines on the kingside that he swiftly intends to use for the attack. Despite the fact that Caruana is up material it is probably much easier to play this with Black. The attack looks very menacing.} Qf6 21. Nh2 ( 21. Rfb1 Qg6 22. Kf1 {and making a run for it might have been the best option.} ) 21... f3 $1 {Very powerful. Suddenly White is in real trouble.} 22. Nxg4 Qg6 {The knight on g4 cannot be defended, as it is suicide to bring it back to e3.} 23. Qe7 (23. Ne3 Nf4 24. Rfe1 (24. g3 Ne2+ 25. Kh1 Qh5#) 24... Nxg2 $19) 23... fxg2 $1 24. Rfb1 Qxg4 25. Qg5 Qe2 26. Qe3 Qg4 27. Qg5 Qxg5 {Black must exchange queens, but his initiative is not dead.} 28. Bxg5 Nf4 $1 {This annoying knight is not so easily dealt with. If White captures it the bishop on g7 becomes a monster, if it is ignored the g2 pawn remains defended.} 29. Bxf4 (29. Kh2 $1 {was probably the only chance to keep the game going. Black still looks to be better after a move like 29...Kh8, but White has some chances.} Kh8 $1 $17) 29... exf4 30. Kxg2 f3+ 31. Kf1 Rf4 $1 {Black doesn't take the exchange! Instead he sets up some mating threats. } 32. c3 Rd8 33. d4 (33. Ke1 Rxd3 {is too horrible to be played.}) 33... Bh6 { Winning, but not as good or as pleasing as...} (33... Bxd4 $1 34. cxd4 Rh4 35. Kg1 (35. Ke1 Rxd4) 35... Kh8 $1 {Leads to a swift checkmate.}) 34. Ke1 Rxe4+ 35. Kd1 c5 36. Kc2 cxd4 37. Kd3 Re2 38. c4 Rxf2 39. Rd1 (39. Rb2 Rxb2 40. Nxb2 Rb8 {would have kept the game going, but as Black has two extra pawns I can't believe Caruana would have saved this.}) 39... Re2 0-1
The World Champion is now in hot pursuit of Ivanchuk; he only trails by 0.5 point
Hou Yifan ½-½ Wojtaszek, Radoslaw
In a rare Fianchetto Dragon the Pole was able to equalize without problems. After a series of trades the resulting double rook endgame was not dangerous for either side.
Peng Zhaoqin, the strongest player in the Netherlands, shares a joke with Hou Yifan
Jobava, Baadur 0-1 So, Wesley
A tough blow for Jobava, who loses his fourth game in a row.
Jobava is dropping a massive 24 rating points so far
So joins the pack of +2 with 4.0/6
[Event "77th Tata Steel GpA"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee NED"] [Date "2015.01.16"] [Round "6"] [White "Jobava, Ba"] [Black "So, W."] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C53"] [WhiteElo "2727"] [BlackElo "2762"] [Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro"] [PlyCount "78"] [EventDate "2015.01.09"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. c3 Nf6 5. d3 {The Italian Game has a lot of similarities with the Spanish, but due to the reduced pressure on the center it gives Black freer development.} a6 6. O-O Ba7 7. Bd5 {A strange move for sure. It's as if White is taking the long way to play the Spanish! The simple move 7...d6 looks acceptable, but So has other ideas.} Nxd5 8. exd5 Ne7 9. Nxe5 d6 10. Nf3 Nxd5 {Black does have the pair of bishops, but White has a very slight initiative. He has to use these few moves to create something.} 11. Bg5 f6 12. Re1+ Kf7 {Brave! The point is simply that once Black finishes development he will enjoy the pair of bishops.} 13. Qb3 Be6 14. c4 $6 (14. Rxe6 $5 Kxe6 15. Nbd2 c6 16. Bh4 {gives White some obvious compensation as the king is on e6 and there are threats against b7 and potentially d6. However it is unclear if this really justifies being down an exchange.}) (14. Bd2 $13) 14... fxg5 15. cxd5 Bd7 {After Jobava's decision Black's king looks exposed, but it is only a couple of moves away from safety. Once Black plays Rf8 and Kg8 he will have a strong initiative with his bishops and a weak f2 pawn.} 16. Nc3 ( 16. Qxb7 Bb6 {simply traps the queen with Ra7 next move.}) 16... g4 {precise.} (16... Rf8 $6 17. Ne4 g4 18. Nfg5+ Kg8 19. Ne6 $1 {is nowhere near as clear.}) 17. Nd2 Rf8 18. Nce4 Kg8 19. Rac1 b5 {Simply defending the b-pawn and restricting White's knights. Black is clearly better.} 20. Qc3 Bb6 21. a4 bxa4 22. Nc4 Ba7 23. Na5 Qh4 {The attack on the kingside rages on. The pressure is mounting slowly.} 24. Rc2 Rf7 25. Qxc7 Bb5 $2 {Actually a serious mistake. Wesley must have underestimated White's simple retreat.} (25... Bf5 $1 {it's strange that Black did not go for this line.} 26. Qxf7+ {looks forced.} (26. Qxd6 Bxe4 27. g3 Rxf2 $1 28. Rxf2 Bxf2+ 29. Kxf2 Qxh2+ {and White is not totally lost yet, but very close to that.}) 26... Kxf7 27. Nxd6+ Kf8 28. Nxf5 Qd8 {and even though technically White has enough material for the queen, his coordination just is not there and Black will take the pawns on d5 and on d3.}) 26. Qxd6 $2 (26. Qc3 $1 {asks a simple question: how is Black going to defend d6? Bringing the queen back looks too passive as it eases the pressure on f2, but what else to do?}) 26... Bxd3 {Now the attack crashes through.} 27. g3 Qh5 28. Rc7 Re8 $1 {The pin on the e4-knight is deadly.} 29. Rxa7 Rxa7 30. Nc6 Rf7 31. Qb4 Ref8 32. Ne7+ Kh8 33. f4 gxf3 {White is down too much material and has no real threats.} 34. Nf2 Be2 35. d6 Qb5 36. Qd4 Qd7 37. Rc1 Rf6 38. Rc6 Bb5 39. Rb6 Qe6 {Despite the one inaccuracy from So, it was a very nice game.} 0-1
Radjabov, Teimour ½-½ Giri, Anish
Fireworks on the board! Giri ignored his development, so Radjabov saw his chance to sacrifice a full rook! Black's exposed king gave White enough compensation, but Giri retaliated by setting up a mating attack of his own! White was just in time to give a perpetual.
A fearless Giri survived a big attack
[Event "77th Tata Steel GpA"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee NED"] [Date "2015.01.16"] [Round "6"] [White "Radjabov, T."] [Black "Giri, A."] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "B48"] [WhiteElo "2734"] [BlackElo "2784"] [Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro"] [PlyCount "51"] [EventDate "2015.01.09"] 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nc6 5. Nc3 Qc7 6. Be3 a6 7. Qf3 {These variations with the queen on f3 are gaining some popularity. The idea is to quickly play 0-0-0 and maybe g4-g5.} Ne5 8. Qg3 h5 {Black wants to cause discomfort for the White queen. The move also prepares Ng4 in case of a quick f4.} 9. O-O-O h4 10. Qh3 b5 11. f4 Nc4 12. Bxc4 Qxc4 {White has lost the pair of bishops but has a huge advantage in development. What exactly he can accomplish with that will determine who stands better.} 13. f5 Bb7 {Sacrifices on e6 are looming after this move, but nothing seems to work yet.} 14. Rhf1 Rc8 {Giri continues his development without paying attention to any of White's threats.} 15. fxe6 (15. Nf3 $5 {with the idea of Ne5 looks somewhat illogical, but it might not be so easy to meet.} f6 $1 {Is the computer suggestion, and computers are very good in these positions, so it might be worth a look.}) 15... dxe6 16. Rxf7 $5 {An interesting sacrifice. Clearly this rook must be taken. Black is punished for his lack of development, but his pieces are still very close to his king, providing good chances to set up a good defense.} (16. Rd3 $5) 16... Kxf7 17. b3 (17. Nf3 {threatens Ne5+. Black has only one good move, but that seems to be sufficient.} Rh5 18. Rd7+ Be7 19. Rxb7 Qf1+ $1 20. Nd1 Qd3 $1 {with a very murky position.}) 17... Ba3+ 18. Kb1 Qxc3 19. Qxe6+ Kf8 20. Rf1+ Nf6 21. Rxf6+ {This results in a forced draw. White is close be being mated and is running out of pieces to attack with, but his queen can force perpetual check.} gxf6 22. Qxf6+ Kg8 23. Qg6+ Kf8 24. Qf6+ Kg8 (24... Ke8 25. Qg6+ Kd7 26. Qe6+ Kd8 27. Bg5+ Kc7 28. Bf4+ $11) 25. Qg6+ Kf8 26. Qf6+ 1/2-1/2
Ivanchuk, Vassily ½-½ Saric, Ivan
Ivanchuk's central majority and pair of bishops was not enough for a clear advantage. Even though White's position was certainly more pleasant, making progress was never easy. Saric defended well and was able to neutralize the position and reach an endgame that he comfortably drew.
A solid try, but Saric held his own. Ivanchuk does, however, retain first place.
Vachier-Lagrave, Maxime 1-0 Ding Liren
MVL handled the Caro-Kann with an enormous amount of aggression. His powerful early attack punished Ding Liren's underdeveloped position. The pressure mounted until the Frenchman made a small mistake, allowing Ding Liren to somewhat consolidate his position. However, in time pressure, and with his king still under attack, Ding Liren made a crucial error allowing MVL to simplify into a clearly better endgame that he converted nicely.
Not a perfect game, but truly a fascinating one
Select games from the dropdown menu above the board
Photos by Alina l'Ami for the official website
| Round 6 - Friday Jan. 16 | |
| Wei, Y. - Sevian, S. |
1-0
|
| Klein, D. - Gunina, V. |
1-0
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| l' Ami, E. - Potkin, V. |
½-½
|
| Haast, A. - Saleh, S. |
½-½
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| Shankland, S. - Michiels, B. |
1-0
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| Dale, A. - Van Kampen, R. |
0-1
|
| Navara, D. - Timman, J. |
1-0
|
For some reason we have a lot of Erwin l'Ami pictures. Photo by Alina l'Ami.
The Challengers section increased its amount of draws by 100%... so we "only" had five decisive results! Some of the highlights include Wei Yi's victory over Sam Sevian, bringing the Chinese to 4.5/6, keeping pace with co-leader David Navara, who crushed Jan Timman.
Sam Shankland (above) beat Bart Michiels, and is currently tied for second. Also with 4.0/6 are Erwin l'Ami, who drew Vladimir Potkin, and Robin Van Kampen, who easily dispatched Ari Dale in a swift kingside attack.
Salem Saleh has been unable to find his groove.
Here he analyzes with his coach, Ivan Sokolov.
Sam Sevian was unable to stop the Chinese wonder
Select games from the dropdown menu above the board
Photos by Alina l'Ami for the official website
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The tournament has a slight change this year. Most of the rounds will be played in the traditional De Moriaan Community Centre in Wijk aan Zee, but two of the rounds will be played elsewhere. Last year the tournament traveled to the National Museum in Amsterdam and the High Tech Campus in Eindhoven.
This year the fifth round will be held in De Rotterdam. De Rotterdam is a building on the Wilhelminapier in Rotterdam, designed by Rem Koolhaas in 1998.
Rotterdam is ready to host Tata Steel!
The tenth round will be played in the International Press Cnetre Niewuspoort in the Hague. Councillor Karsten Klein of The Hague had this to say: "The Hague is honored to be able to host the Tata Steel Chess Tournament 2015 at the heart of the Dutch parliamentary democracy. Our city has a long history of international chess tournaments, a tradition which is continued in this manner. "
This being the first major event of the year, it is clear that we will be bringing you live commentary on our server www.playchess.com!
| Day | Date | Round | English |
| Wednesday | January 14 | Free | |
| Thursday | January 15 | Round 5 | GM Daniel King |
| Friday | January 16 | Round 6 | GM Simon Williams |
| Saturday | January 17 | Round 7 | GM Nicholas Pert |
| Sunday | January 18 | Round 8 | GM Simon Williams |
| Monday | January 19 | Free | |
| Tuesday | January 20 | Round 9 | GM Daniel King |
| Wednesday | January 21 | Round 10 | GM Simon Williams |
| Thursday | January 22 | Free | |
| Friday | January 23 | Round 11 | GM Daniel King |
| Saturday | January 24 | Round 12 | GM Simon Williams |
| Sunday | January 25 | Round 13 | GM Daniel King |
LinksThe games will be broadcast live on the official web site and on the chess server Playchess.com. If you are not a member you can download a free Playchess client there and get immediate access. You can also use ChessBase 12 or any of our Fritz compatible chess programs. |
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