3/29/2017 – "Knight on the rim is dim!" Dr. Tarrasch knew right from wrong in chess. Indeed, knights on the edge of the board often lead a miserable life and can easily make life miserable for their colleagues. But no rule without exception. Which former U20 World Champion Ahmed Adly showed in round 3 of the Sharjah Masters by playing a little masterpiece with a knight on the rim.

3/29/2017 – There is a bit of a sense of 'finally' upon seeing only two players actually at the top of the hill now. Both Baskaran Adhiban and Martyn Kravtsiv scored important wins, taking them to 5.5/6. They are trailed very closely by a group of six at 5.0/6, and with three rounds to go, the final laps promise to be thrilling. Illustrated report with videos and GM analysis.

3/28/2017 – We reported yesterday: the official International Chess Federation web site announced the resignation of its President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, followed within hours by emphatic denials from Ilyumzhinov. Today there are new letters on the FIDE page, describing the circumstances of his alleged resignation: "During the Presidental Board Meeting in Athens, you several time threatened to resign, and at the end of the meeting three times you repeated 'I resign' before leaving the room." In a press conference of the Russian Chess Federation Ilyumzhinov explained his position.

3/28/2017 – Sam Collins is an International Master (with two grandmaster norms) and a prolific author. He was born in Dublin in 1982 where he now works as a barrister. In an interview he talks about his latest DVD about ...Bc5 in the Open Games, his career, how to study openings and his favorite games.

3/28/2017 – "All rook endings are drawn" is a popular saying. But it is only partly true. While rook endings indeed often have drawish tendencies you still have to find the right moves. Which even in seemingly simple rook endings is difficult enough. Today on the playchess server, 4 pm: Endgame Magic with Karsten Müller and Adrian Mikhalchishin.

3/28/2017 – Rounds four and five of the Sharjah Master open saw the final confrontations between hugely disparate ratings, with top boards still facing as much as 600 Elo differences. It wasn’t all fun and games for the favorites though, with Gawain Jones tweeting about ‘near perfect defense’ from his 10-year-old opponent. Illustrated report with videos and analysis.

3/27/2017 – It is on the official FIDE web site: at the end of the Board meeting on the 26th March 2017, "Kirsan Ilyumzhinov announced his resignation from the position of FIDE President. The Presidential Board has been formally advised of this announcement..." But within hours there was a denial from Ilyumzhinov: "They wanted to oust me, but they could not pull it off," he said in an interview with TASS. A failed putsch by the FIDE officials in Athens? Read about it in the news.

3/27/2017 – The following article is an example of how a lifelong student of the game amuses himself. GM Yermolinsky noticed that right after losing his title to Alekhine in 1927, Capablanca began to play the Nimzo-Indian, something he had never done before. A remarkable change after the 31 Queen’s Gambit Declined games out of 34 from the match. Enjoy this fascinating analysis.

3/27/2017 – It has been a very balanced tournament so far, and if Harikrishna was the first to score a win in round two, in round three, he lost to Anish Giri, who thoroughly outplayed him in a Sicilian. Ding Liren also kept the screws tight on Peter Svidler with his bishops against knights. All games were drawn in round four, leaving Ding Liren and Anish Giri in the lead.

3/26/2017 – After three rounds, The Sharjah Masters still sees a generous number of players enjoying perfect scores. The nature of the accelerate pairings the organizers are employing does bring about a few oddities, with players in the second half, having faced very low-rated players, also at the top. Once again, some gems were to be found, and do not miss Daniel King and winner analyzing the astonishing (and lovely) game Ahmed Adly v Stany G A!

3/26/2017 – The theme is old, reaching back to the beginnings of modern chess: checkmate delivered by a knight, with the mated king is unable to move because he is surrounded (smothered) by his own pieces. In a study tourney the theme was smothered checkmate with a promoted knight. The winner, Darko Hlebec, decided Black also should have a promoted knight helping out. Enjoy this extraordinary study of the month with its beautiful final aesthetics.

3/25/2017 – The second round of the Sharjah Masters continued that early mix typical of Swiss opens: unexpected underdog wins or saves, and the strong steamrolling the weak(er). Of course, it says a lot about the event that even in round one, the ‘weak’ were almost 2500. Here is the illustrated report with great videos and analysis by Daniel King and the players.