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The Djerba Masters, a classical chess tournament held on the Tunisian island, saw a commanding performance from 17-year-old French Grandmaster Marc'Andria Maurizzi. Displaying remarkable consistency, Maurizzi secured six wins and three draws, clinching first place with a round to spare after defeating Bassem Amin with the white pieces on Saturday.
Despite already having an unassailable 1½-point lead over his closest rivals, Maurizzi ended the event in style, beating Volodar Murzin in the final round to conclude with a 7½/9 score. His outstanding performance earned him a 2898 Tournament Performance Rating (TPR) and a gain of 35.4 rating points.
Maurizzi, who obtained the GM title in 2021 at the age of 14, is the youngest French player ever to achieve the title. His successes include winning the 2023 World Junior Chess Championship in Mexico City and a strong showing at the 2024 Tata Steel Challengers tournament, where he finished in shared second place with 9/13 points. His triumph in Djerba further solidifies his status as a rising star in the chess world.
In round six, the eventual champion defeated his countryman Etienne Bacrot with the white pieces. The all-French duel saw Bacrot, fittingly, playing the French Defence. The game only lasted 22 moves, and featured a good-looking final move (full game analysis below).
Middlegame Secrets Vol.1 + Vol.2
Let us learn together how to find the best spot for the queen in the early middlegame, how to navigate this piece around the board, how to time the queen attack, how to decide whether to exchange it or not, and much more!
Volodar Murzin kibitzing the game between Parham Maghsoodloo and Vasyl Ivanchuk during the fifth round
Second place in the tournament went to Daniel Dardha, the 2024 champion. The 19-year-old Belgian GM was the only player apart from Maurizzi to remain undefeated. Entering the final round tied for second place with Murzin, Dardha secured clear second place by defeating Vasyl Ivanchuk with the white pieces. Murzin's loss against Maurizzi allowed top seed Parham Maghsoodloo to catch him in shared third place with 5/9 points after beating David Navara.
Meanwhile, the youngest participant, 11-year-old Argentine Faustino Oro, faced a challenging tournament. As the clear rating underdog, he managed three draws but suffered six defeats. Despite his struggles, the significant rating difference meant he only lost 7.6 rating points, while gaining valuable experience against high-level opposition.
Daniel Dardha finished the tournament undefeated
Top Choice Repertoire: Play the French Defence Vol.1 & 2
In this two-volume video course former world-champion and startrainer Rustam Kasimdzhanov shows you the ins and outs of this hugely complex opening.
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