Vachier-Lagrave wins, will face Firouzja

Alireza Firouzja faced the experienced Yu Yangyi on top board in Saturday’s fourth round at the FIDE Chess.com Grand Swiss. The youngster had the black pieces and signed his first draw of the event after 30 moves. Going into the fourth round, six players stood a half point back in the standings table, but none of them managed to a score a win — Evgeniy Najer got closest, as he missed a big chance to catch the leader in his game against Ivan Saric.

Not long after Firouzja agreed to a draw, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave joined the chasing pack by beating current European champion Anton Demchenko. When the round had finished, the pairings for round 5 showed that MVL would get to face the tournament’s leader with the black pieces on Sunday — which means the fourth seed (MVL) will play the third seed (Firouzja) in what might end up being a crucial encounter in the fight for first place.

Navigating the Ruy Lopez Vol.1-3

The Ruy Lopez is one of the oldest openings which continues to enjoy high popularity from club level to the absolute world top. In this video series, American super GM Fabiano Caruana, talking to IM Oliver Reeh, presents a complete repertoire for White.

Besides MVL, four other players who had 2/3 points obtained full points on Saturday: Aryan Tari (who beat Parham Maghsoodloo), Alexei Shirov (Arturs Neiksans), Manuel Petrosyan (David Anton) and Samuel Sevian (Praggnanandhaa).

...54 boards

Aleksandra Goryachkina was inches away from taking down Hans Niemann with a daring attack | Photo: Anna Shtourman

Out of a Ruy Lopez with 3...g6, Vachier-Lagrave entered a tense positional struggle against Demnchenko. The players followed theory until move 12, and quickly reached a critical position — White’s central pawns will either become a trump or a vulnerability.

The game continued 18.e6 fxe6 19.dxe6, when Black needs to figure out whether capturing the pawn with the knight is a good idea or not.

Demchenko had spent a considerable amount of time on moves 14-17, and apparently had foreseen this line. The Russian had decided to go for 19...Qc6 here, lining up his queen and bishop on the long diagonal while avoiding 19...Nxe6 20.Ne5 — in this variation, White uses the pin along the d-file to force Black to exchange his dark-squared bishop for the knight.

Unfortunately for Demchenko, he chose the wrong path, as giving up the bishop perhaps was not the most principled decision but was the way to go in this particular situation. In the game, on the other hand, MVL quickly grabbed the initiative with 20.Re4 Ned5 21.Nxd5 Nxd5 22.Rg4

The flexible Open Spanish

In this opening Black opts for active piece play and is not afraid to fight for the initiative from an early stage. One of the many good features of this opening is that Black is often the side which controls the pace of the game.

After 22...Rxe6 23.Bb3 it is White who gets stronger threats along a light-squared diagonal, with Black’s monarch more vulnerable due to the weakened pawn structure. There was not much Demchenko could do to defend his position, as resignation came five moves later.

Arturs Neiksans was defeated by fan favourite Alexei Shirov | Photo: Anna Shtourman

On board 17, Shirov defeated Latvian grandmaster Neiksans with the white pieces. Shirov, who is playing in his hometown (he was born in Riga during Soviet times), thus joined the chasing pack, and set up an exciting clash against Saric for Sunday.

The author of the famous Fire on Board books gave up an exchange for positional compensation on move 27.

Instead of 27.Rxe6, the engines consider 27.Rb1 to be the best move in this favourable position for White. However, Shirov’s choice is certainly attractive for a human — especially for a player who reached the elite of the sport by masterfully handling the initiative even against top opposition. 

There followed 27...fxe6 28.Nxd5 Ra7 29.Nf4, targetting the weakness on e6.

The exchange sacrifice got rid of Black’s light-squared bishop, which decisively strengthened White’s counterpart on a2. Shirov had a clear edge, which he patiently converted into his second victory of the event.

Standings after round 4

...108 players

All games - Round 4

Replay all games at Live.ChessBase.com

Lei beats Gunina to grab the lead

At 24, Lei Tingjie is the fourth highest-rated woman player from China, behind the powerful trio of Hou Yifan, Ju Wenjun and Tan Zhongyi. Hailing from Chongqing, she recently became the only woman to reach the Finals of the Julius Baer Challengers Tour. In Riga, Lei grabbed the sole lead in the Grand Swiss by beating the ever-dangerous Valentina Gunina 

No fewer than 11 players stand a half point behind, including second seed Nana Dzagnidze, who will face Lei with the white pieces on Sunday. Alexandra Kosteniuk, Alina Kashlinskaya and Jolanta Zawadzka won in round 4 to join the chasing pack.

...25 boards

Harika Dronavalli and Zhu Jhiner drew on second board | Photo: Mark Livshitz

On board 7, Kashlinskaya beat Padmini Rout after the latter miscalculated in a winning, complicated position.

Grabbing the rook with 30.Kxf2 is the best move in this position, although it is understandable that Padmini rejected this alternative as she probably feared 30...Qf7+ — forking king and rook — when the only winning continuation is the fearless 31.Nf5 (White should not fear the potential discovered checks after 31...Nxf5 due to 32.Qxe5, getting ready to block with the rook on f6).

The aforementioned line is scary, but the more pragmatic 30.Rxe5, attacking the knight, was also winning for White.

Padmini went for 30.Nd5 instead, which not only gives up her edge but completely turns the tables in Black’s favour.

How to exchange pieces

Learn to master the right exchange! Let the German WGM Elisabeth Pähtz show you how to gain a strategic winning position by exchanging pieces of equal value or to safely convert material advantage into a win.

Kashlinskaya found the refutation — 30...Qxg3. After 31.Nxe7, Black had 31...Kf7, and 32.Rf6+ does not save White. 

In another twist, the Russian faltered here with 32...Rxf6 (32...Kxf6 wins, as 33.Bg5+ Qxg5 34.Kxf2 Kxe7 is good for Black). It was a tactical mayhem, and Padmini once again failed to find the right continuation, as she made the last mistake with 33.c4.

The game continued 33...Kxe7 34.cxb5 Rg6 35.Be3

Resignation came after 35...Qxg2+. The dust has settled, and Black still has a decisive material advantage.

Standings after round 4

...50 players

All games - Round 4

Replay all games at Live.ChessBase.com

Links

• Top GMs to fight for Candidates spots at Grand Swiss in Riga
• Pairings and results at Chess-Results: Open | Women’s