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Wang Hao takes the lead with 5.0/5
Report from Al Ain by IM Prathamesh Mokal
All photos by WGM Emkhtuul Altan Ulzii (unless otherwise stated)
After playing two queen pawn opening games in rounds one and three, Wang Hao suddenly switched to 1.e4 in the crucial fifth round. This probably caught Lalith Babu off guard who confessed to have tried too hard to be exact in the Caro Kann Advance. The result was more or less a cakewalk for White.
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Wang Hao to Lalith Babu – You were expecting 1.d4 weren’t you?
Wang Hao - Lalith Babu
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1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.e5 Bf5 4.Nf3 e6 5.Be2 Nd7 6.0-0 h6 7.Nbd2 Ne7 8.Nb3 Bg6 9.a4 Nf5 10.g4 10.a5 10...Nh4 11.Nxh4 Qxh4 12.f4 f5 12...h5!? 13.g5 13.Bd3 Be7 14.Bd2 h5 15.gxf5 Bxf5 16.Bxf5 exf5 17.Rf3 Qg4+ 18.Kh1 Qg6 18...h4 19.Rg3 Qf7? 19...Qh6 20.Qg1 Nf8 20...Rg8 21.e6 Qxe6 22.Re1 Qf6 23.Rge3+- 20...Rh7 21.e6 Qxe6 22.Re1+- 20...Kf8 21.Rg6± 21.Rxg7 Qe6 22.Qg2 0-0-0 23.Rg1 Re8 24.Qh3 Rh6 25.R1g5 25.R1g5 Bxg5 26.Nc5 1–0
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Wang,H | 2707 | Lalith,B | 2553 | 1–0 | 2015 | B12 | Al Ain Classic 2015 | 5.1 |
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Shirov played very precisely against Gupta. He kept putting pressure until the latter cracked.
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Shirov waits for Gupta to arrive as the top table encounter begins in the background
Abhijeet Gupta - Alexei Shirov
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1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 e6 5.g3 dxc4 6.Bg2 b5 7.Ne5 a6 8.0-0 Bb7 9.b3 b4 10.Na4 c3 11.Nc4 a5 12.a3 Ba6 13.axb4 axb4 14.Nc5 Bxc5 15.dxc5 Qxd1 16.Rxd1 0-0 17.Bf4 Nd5 17...Nbd7 18.Bxc6 Bxc4? 19.Rxa8 Rxa8 20.Bxa8 Bxb3 21.Rd4+- g5 22.Rxb4 Nxc5 23.Bxg5 Kg7 24.Kf1 Nfd7 25.Ke1 f5 26.Be3 c2 27.Kd2 Ba4 28.Bxc5 Nxc5 29.Rc4 18.Bxd5 18.Bd6 18...cxd5 18...exd5 19.Nb6 Nc6 19...Bxe2 20.Rxa8 20.Nxa8 Bxd1 21.Rxd1 Na6 22.Nb6 Nxc5 20...Bxd1 21.Rxb8 Rxb8 22.Bxb8 f6 23.c6 23.Nxd5 exd5 24.c6 Kf7 25.Bd6 Ke6 26.Bxb4 d4 23.Bf4 e5 24.Bc1 Bxb3 25.c6 d4 23...e5 23...c2 24.Bf4 24.f3 24.c7 Bg4-+ 24...c2 24...Bxf3 25.Kf2 c2 26.Kxf3 c1Q 27.c7∞ 25.c7 c1Q 26.c8Q+ Qxc8 27.Nxc8 Bxb3 28.Bd6 Bd1 29.Bxb4 Bxf3= 20.Nxa8 Rxa8 21.Ra2 Bb7 22.Rxa8+ Bxa8 23.Bc7 23.Ra1 Bb7 23...e5! 24.Kf1 24.Rxd5 c2-+ 24...f6 25.Ke1 d4 25...Nd4 26.Rxd4 exd4 27.Ba5= 26.Ra1 Bb7 27.Ba5 e4 28.Ra4 Nxa5 29.Rxa5 d3 30.c6 30.Ra7 d2+ 31.Kd1 Bd5-+ 30...Bxc6 31.Rc5 Bd7 32.Rc4 Bb5 33.Rc5 33.Rxb4 c2 34.Kd2 e3+! 35.fxe3 dxe2-+ 33.Rxe4 dxe2 34.Rxb4? c2 33...Ba6 34.Rc6 Bb7 35.Rc4? 35.Rd6 35.Rc5 35...Bd5! 36.Rxb4 Kf7 37.e3 37.Rd4? c2 38.Kd2 dxe2-+ 37.Rb8 Ke6 37...c2 38.Rc8 37...Ke6 38.h3 h5 39.Kd1 Kd6 40.Kc1 Kc5 41.Rb8 Be6 41...Be6 42.Rb7 Kc6 43.Rb4 g6 44.h4 44.Kd1 Kc5 45.Rb7 Bxh3-+ 44...Kc5 45.Rb7 d2+ 0–1
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Gupta,A | 2613 | Shirov,A | 2676 | 0–1 | 2015 | E04 | Al Ain Classic 2015 | 5.2 |
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Results of top four boards in round five
Highlights of rounds two to four
Round 2 - Bajarani beats Kryvoruchko
Azeri Grandmaster Ulvi Bajarani caused a flutter in round two by beating the top seed with Black pieces. In a complex position, Kryvoruchko underestimated Bajarani’s rook and knight combination and landed his own king into trouble. While Wang Hao and Alexei Shirov won their games comfortably, Indian IM Swayams Mishra (2477) scored an upset win over Mykhaylo Oleksiyenko (2616). Mishra playing white kept up the pressure from the opening to win an exchange but the win came after a few ups and downs.
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Yuriy Kryvoruchko vs Ulvi Bajarani in round two
Yuriy Kryvoruchko - Ulvi Bajarani
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1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.e5 c5 5.a3 Bxc3+ 6.bxc3 Ne7 7.Nf3 Qc7 8.a4 b6 9.Bb5+ Bd7 10.0-0 h6 11.c4 dxc4 12.dxc5 Bxb5 13.axb5 bxc5 14.Nd2 c3 15.Ne4 0-0 16.Qd6 Qxd6 17.exd6 Nd5 18.Nxc5 Rd8 19.Be3 Rxd6 20.Rfd1 Rd8 21.Ne4 Nd7 22.Bxa7 f5 23.Ng3 N7b6 24.Ne2 Nc4 25.g3 e5 26.Rdb1 Rd7 27.Bc5 Rxa1 28.Rxa1 Rc7 29.Ra8+ Kh7 30.Bf8 f4 31.gxf4 exf4 32.Rd8 f3 33.Nd4 Nf4 34.Nxf3 Rb7 35.Nd4 Ra7 36.f3?! 36.h4 Ra1+ 37.Kh2 Rd1 38.Bc5± 36...Ra1+ 37.Kf2 Rd1 38.Rd7 38.Bc5 Rd2+ 39.Kg1 Ne3-+ 38...Rd2+ 39.Kg3 39.Kg1 Nh3+ 40.Kh1 Ne3 41.Rxg7+ Kh8 39...Nh5+ 40.Kh3 Ne5 41.Re7 41.Rd8 Nf4+ 42.Kg3 Neg6-+ 41.Rc7 Rxd4 42.b6 41...Ng6 42.Ne6 42.Re4 Nhf4+ 43.Kg4 Rg2+ 44.Kf5 Rg5# 42...Nxe7 43.Bxe7 Re2 44.Nf8+ Kg8 45.Bd6 Rxc2 46.Nd7 Rb2 47.Be5 Rb3 0–1
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Kryvoruchko,Y | 2711 | Bajarani,U | 2551 | 0–1 | 2015 | C19 | Al Ain Classic 2015 | 2.1 |
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Dr.Saif Salem Lekhraibani Alnuaimi,the Secretary General of the Al Ain Chess and Culture Club
makes the customary opening move on Alexei Shirov’s board to inaugurate a round with chief
Arbiter Ashot Vardapetyan on his right and tournament director – International Organizer
Tarik Al Taher on his left.
Round three – Four share lead with 3.0/3
While Wang Hao beat Zaven Andriasian comfortably on board one, Arman Pashikian held Alexei Shirov to a draw. Lalith Babu scored over Yuriy Kuzubov on board five in an interesting tactical skirmish. Four players Wang Hao, Lalith Babu, Vladimir Onischuk and Robert Hovhannisyan shared lead with a score of 3.0/3.
Lalith Babu - Yuriy Kuzubov
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1.d4 d6 2.Nf3 g6 3.c4 Bg7 4.Nc3 c5 5.d5 e5 6.dxe6 Bxe6 7.e4 Ne7 8.Be2 0-0 9.Bf4 Qb6 10.Qd2 Nbc6 11.0-0 Ne5 12.Nxe5 dxe5 13.Be3 Rfd8 14.Qc2 Qa5 15.Nd5 Nc6 16.Bd2 Qa6 17.Be3 Qa5 18.Bd3 Rd7 19.a3 Nd4 20.Qc3 Qd8 21.b4 Rc8 22.bxc5 Rxc5 23.Qb4 b6 24.Qb2 Rc8 25.Rab1 Nc6 26.Rfc1 Bf8 27.Bc2 Na5 28.Ba4 Nxc4 29.Bxd7 Bxd7 29...Bxd5 30.Qb5 30.exd5 Nxb2 31.Bxc8 Nd3 30...Rc7 31.Qxd5 Nxe3 32.fxe3 Rxd7 33.Qxe5 Bxa3 29...Nxb2 30.Rxc8 Qxd7 30...Qh4 31.Nf6+ Qxf6 32.Bh6+- 31.Nf6+ 30.Qb3 b5 31.Qd3 Bc6 32.Bxa7 Ra8 33.Bb6 Qd6 34.Bc7 Qe6 35.Rc3 f5 36.Rxc4 bxc4 37.Qxc4 Rxa3 38.Ne7+! Kf7 39.Nxc6 Qxc4 40.Nxe5+ Kg8 41.Nxc4 Rc3 42.Ne3 Rxc7 43.exf5+- Ra7 44.g3 Bc5 45.fxg6 hxg6 46.Rb3 Ra2 47.Kg2 Kf7 48.Rc3 Bd4 49.Rc2 Ra6 50.Ng4 Ra4 51.Re2 Ba7 52.Ne5+ Kf6 53.h3 Ra6 54.h4 Bd4 55.Nf3 Ba7 56.Ng5 Kg7 57.Re7+ Kh8 58.f3 Ra2+ 59.Kh3 Ra3 60.Kg4 Bf2 61.Rd7 Ra4+ 62.f4 Ra3 63.Ne4 Be1 64.Kg5 Bxg3 65.Kxg6 Bxh4 66.Rh7+ Kg8 67.Rxh4 1–0
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Lalith,B | 2553 | Kuzubov,Y | 2640 | 1–0 | 2015 | A40 | Al Ain Classic 2015 | 3.5 |
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Round 3 took place on 25th December. As the World celebrated Christmas, the Hotel Hili Raayhan by Rotana did not lag behind with its treats, decorations and celebrations.
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Numerous desserts on offer. Armenia’s Tigran Petrosyan gives a thumbs up to Marshmallows
dippend in the chocolate sauce fountain! (collage by author)
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Christmas tree in the lobby of the Hotel! (photo by author)
Round 4 – Wang Hao and Lalith Babu win in contrasting styles
While Wang Hao comfortably disposed off Onischuk’s rare sideline against the French Defense, Lalith Babu fought from a difficult position to turn the tables on Robert Hovhannisyan. Shirov beat Adly Ahmed of Egypt in an endgame that started as a rook and minor piece one but soon turned into a queen and minor piece ending as both sides managed to promote their pawns.
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Round four games have just started but interestingly the body language of the players flowed
into their positions soon. While Wang Hao’s position became as comfortable as his above pose,
Lalith Babu landed in a tense position only to wriggle out later.
Vaibhav Suri brought down higher rated Kravtsiv Martyn in an interesting game.
Suri Vaibhav - Martyn Kravtsiv
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1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 b6 4.g3 Ba6 5.b3 Bb4+ 6.Bd2 Be7 7.Nc3 d5 8.cxd5 exd5 9.Bg2 0-0 10.0-0 Re8 11.Ne5 Bb7 12.Rc1 Nbd7 13.Nb5 c5 14.Bf4 Nf8 15.Bh3 a6 16.Nc3 cxd4 17.Na4 b5?! 18.Nc6! 18.Nc5? Bxc5 19.Rxc5 Ne4 18.Nxf7!? Qa5 18...Kxf7 19.Bc7± 18...Bxc6 19.Rxc6 Bb4?! 19...bxa4 20.Bc7± 19...Ba3 20.Nb6 Ra7 20.Nb6 Bc3 20...Ra7 21.Qxd4± 21.Bc7 Qe7 22.Nxa8 Rxa8 23.Bb6± Qe5 24.Qd3 N8d7 25.f4 Qh5 26.Bxd7 Nxd7 27.Bxd4 Bxd4+ 28.Qxd4 Re8 29.e4 Nf6 30.exd5 h6 31.Rc2 Nxd5 32.Qc5 Kh7 33.Rd2 Nxf4 34.Qxh5 Nxh5 35.Rxf7 Nf6 36.Rc2 Ng4 37.Rcc7 Re1+ 38.Kg2 1–0
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Vaibhav,S | 2552 | Kravtsiv,M | 2623 | 1–0 | 2015 | E15 | Al Ain Classic 2015 | 4.9 |
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Players and personalities
The Al Ain Chess Classic has attracted many different personalities.
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The mature…(Vasanta Wettasinha of Sri Lanka)
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The young…(Ashid Tsetsegulzii of Mongolia)
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And the youngest! (The ultra-talented 10-year-old Uzbek CM Javokhir Sindarov)
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Trendy hairstyle!
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That’s the spirit!
As Shirov and Wang Hao face off in round six, we keep our fingers crossed for the top stars of the tournament to make it as exciting as expected. Stay tuned for further updates.
Standings after five rounds
Rk
|
SNo
|
Name
|
FED
|
Rtg
|
Pts
|
TB |
rtg+/-
|
1 |
2 |
Wang Hao |
CHN |
2707 |
5,0 |
15,5 |
14,0 |
2 |
5 |
Shirov Alexei |
LAT |
2676 |
4,5 |
16,5 |
11,8 |
3 |
32 |
Lalith Babu M.R. |
IND |
2553 |
4,0 |
17,5 |
15,8 |
4 |
21 |
Pashikian Arman |
ARM |
2606 |
4,0 |
15,5 |
10,3 |
5 |
24 |
Pantsulaia Levan |
GEO |
2598 |
4,0 |
15,0 |
7,9 |
6 |
1 |
Kryvoruchko Yuriy |
UKR |
2711 |
4,0 |
14,5 |
-1,6 |
7 |
13 |
Mchedlishvili Mikheil |
GEO |
2635 |
4,0 |
14,5 |
5,4 |
8 |
40 |
Libiszewski Fabien |
FRA |
2515 |
4,0 |
12,0 |
9,6 |
9 |
4 |
Areshchenko Alexander |
UKR |
2677 |
3,5 |
16,5 |
-2,6 |
10 |
9 |
Efimenko Zahar |
UKR |
2647 |
3,5 |
16,5 |
0,3 |