Dubov knocks out Ding
The Lindores Abbey Chess Challenge started on May 18th. Twelve players are taking part. After a three-day preliminary, the best eight players will advance to the deciding knockout section. The time control is 15 minutes for the game, with a 10-second increment per move.
The intrigue continues at the Lindores Abbey Rapid Challenge as Hikaru Nakamura defeated Magnus Carlsen in the second rubber of the semis to take the match to day three, when another four-game mini-match will decide who will be the rival of Daniil Dubov in the final.
Nakamura won a topsy-turvy game one, in which Carlsen gave up a piece early in the game, got a superior position and ended up blundering and losing. This win gave the five-time US champion the confidence he needed after his 0:3 loss from the first mini-match, as he showed poise to draw the remaining three encounters. When Tania Sachdev asked him how he had managed to recover from the first-rubber loss, 'Naka' responded:
I basically didn't think about it. I decided to stream and clear my head and have a good time. [...] Obviously I reviewed some stuff, but mainly it was to keep my head clear and not let the negativity affect me.
One more four-game rapid confrontation will decide this semi-final, while Dubov will get two free days before the final kicks off on Monday. The Russian knocked out Ding Liren with a convincing second win in a row. His uncompromising style has worked wonders in this tournament, even against a player as principled as Ding. Although he will not be the favourite in the final no matter who wins the other match, his chances should not be underestimated!
Our experts show, using the games of Botvinnik, how to employ specific openings successfully, which model strategies are present in specific structures, how to find tactical solutions and rules for how to bring endings to a successful conclusion

Nakamura 2½:1½ Carlsen
Game one started with a bang, as reaching an imbalanced struggle was unavoidable after Carlsen decided to give up a piece for two pawns on move 8:
Nakamura vs. Carlsen - Game 1
The players followed a Peter Leko v David Navara game from 2018 with 8...Nxg4 9.hxg4 Bxg4 10.Be3, and the first one to deviate was Carlsen with 10...Be7. Leko, who was commentating for the official webcast, told a curious anecdote: after his game against Navara, the ever-friendly Czech star confessed to him that he had prepared the novelty 10...Be7 — as played by Carlsen — but that he ended up placing the bishop on d6 in a hurry, as he needed to go to the bathroom.
The world champion's approach was working well, as he was putting pressure with his bishop pair and his three connected passers on the f, g and h-files marching down the board against White's short-castled king. Some precision was needed nonetheless, and once he put a step wrong the tables quickly turned:
The purpose of this DVD is to teach players how to conduct the attack on the black king using different methods. Although the Italian Game and the Ruy Lopez are mostly positional openings, it is very often possible to make use of attacking methods of play
Carlsen had advanced his g-pawn to the second rank much too quickly, and after the mistaken 28...Qxf3 it is White who has a winning attack — 29.Qe5+ Kd8 30.Qf6+ Ke8 31.Bb4 c5 32.Bxc5 Kd7 33.Qf7+ and Black resigned.
There was no bouncing back for the world champion as Nakamura, for the most part, kept things under control in the remaining three games. Carlsen did miss some small chances in game two, but his opponent did not let his guard down, thus getting a chance to reach the final in Saturday's third rubber.
Replay and check the LiveBook here |
Please, wait...
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6 4.d3 Bc5 5.Bxc6 dxc6 6.0-0 Bg4 7.h3 Bh5 8.g4 Nxg4 9.hxg4 Bxg4 10.Be3 Be7 11.Kh1 f5 12.Rg1 h5 13.Nc3 13.exf5 e4 13...f4 14.Bd2 g5 15.Nb1 Bc5 16.Bc3 Bxf2 17.Nbd2 Qe7 18.Qf1 Bxg1 19.Qxg1 Bxf3+ 20.Nxf3 g4 21.Nxe5 Rg8 22.Rf1 Qg5 23.Qd4 Qh4+ 24.Kg1 Qg3+ 25.Kh1 Qh3+ 26.Kg1 26...g3? 26...Qg3+ 27.Kh1 Rd8 28.Qc4 Rd5‼ 29.exd5 Qh3+ 29...f3? 30.Nxf3 gxf3 31.Qe4+ Kd8 32.Bf6+ Kc8 33.Qf5+ Kb8 34.Qxf3 30.Kg1 f3 31.Rf2 31.Kf2 g3+ 32.Ke3 f2‼ 32...g2 33.Rg1! Qh2 33...f2+ 34.Kxf2 Rf8+ 35.Ke2 Qg3 36.Qc5 34.Nxf3 33.dxc6 g2+ 34.Kd2 gxf1N+ 35.Kc1 Qe3+ 36.Kd1 Qe1+ 37.Bxe1 Ne3+ 38.Ke2 f1Q+ 39.Kxe3 Qxe1+ 40.Kd4 Qh4+ 41.Ke3 Qxc4 42.dxc4 bxc6 31...g3 32.Nxf3 gxf2+ 33.Kxf2 Rg4 34.d4 34.dxc6 Qg3+ 35.Ke2 Rxc4 36.cxb7 c5 37.dxc4 37.Be5 Rxc2+ 38.Ke3 Qf2+ 39.Kf4 Rxb2 37.Ne5 Rb4 38.Bxb4 Qxe5+ 37...Qb8 34...Qg2+ 35.Ke3 Qxc2 36.Qd3 Qxd3+ 37.Kxd3 cxd5 27.Nf3 g2 28.Re1 Qxf3 29.Qe5+ Kd8 30.Qf6+ Ke8 31.Bb4! c5 32.Bxc5 Kd7 33.Qf7+ 1–0 - Start an analysis engine:
- Try maximizing the board:
- Use the four cursor keys to replay the game. Make moves to analyse yourself.
- Press Ctrl-B to rotate the board.
- Drag the split bars between window panes.
- Download&Clip PGN/GIF/FEN/QR Codes. Share the game.
- Games viewed here will automatically be stored in your cloud clipboard (if you are logged in). Use the cloud clipboard also in ChessBase.
- Create an account to access the games cloud.
Nakamura,H | 2829 | Carlsen,M | 2881 | 1–0 | 2020 | | Lindores Abbey Rapid Challenge-KO | 1 |
Carlsen,M | 2881 | Nakamura,H | 2829 | ½–½ | 2020 | | Lindores Abbey Rapid Challenge-KO | 2 |
Nakamura,H | 2829 | Carlsen,M | 2881 | ½–½ | 2020 | | Lindores Abbey Rapid Challenge-KO | 3 |
Carlsen,M | 2881 | Nakamura,H | 2829 | ½–½ | 2020 | | Lindores Abbey Rapid Challenge-KO | 4 |
Please, wait...
Select an entry from the list to switch between games
Dubov 2½:½ Ding
A couple of days ago, Lawrence Trent tweeted: "Next time I fill out a form and they ask me my religion they better have Dubovian as an option". The English International Master, as many of us following the event, was amazed by Dubov's resolute style of play. The Russian already secured a spot in the final, after beating none other than Ding Liren, China's top grandmaster.
Dubov kicked off the second rubber with a 21-move win with the black pieces. As he has done so many times in the past, he pushed his h-pawn down the board early in the game. Ding was not careful enough and saw his king getting trapped in a mating net:
Which wing should I be playing on? When do I need to watch for counterplay? Flank attacks are an important theme in every game. FM Lilov will teach you how to employ a range of techniques to perfection!
The forced line 19...Bxe5 20.Bxe5 Nxf3+ 21.exf3 Bg2 led to Black's resignation, as White's queen, rook and bishop are ready to give mate in all lines.
It took longer for Dubov to win the second game, as he had to escape a potential perpetual check by Black in a position with rook and queen against queen and three extra pawns:
White's rook cannot help in protecting his king from the checks, but there is a way to stop the constant attacks after 42...Qa3+ — the king now goes to the kingside with 43.Kd2 Qa5+ 44.Kd1 Qh5+ 45.Ke1 Qe5+ 46.Kf1 Qa1+ 47.Kg2 and there is no way to give check from the key squares e5 or a8 once the king goes to f3. Black resigned.
The third game was drawn after 51 moves.
Replay and check the LiveBook here |
Please, wait...
1.c4 Nf6 2.g3 c6 3.Bg2 d5 4.Nf3 dxc4 5.0-0 Nbd7 6.Na3 Nb6 7.Qc2 Be6 8.Ne5 h5 9.Naxc4 Nxc4 10.Nxc4 h4 11.Ne5 hxg3 12.hxg3 Qc8 13.Rd1 Bh3 14.Bf3 g6 15.b4 Bg7 16.Bb2 Kf8 17.a4 Nh7 18.b5 Ng5 19.bxc6 Bxe5 20.Bxe5 Nxf3+ 21.exf3 Bg2 0–1
- Start an analysis engine:
- Try maximizing the board:
- Use the four cursor keys to replay the game. Make moves to analyse yourself.
- Press Ctrl-B to rotate the board.
- Drag the split bars between window panes.
- Download&Clip PGN/GIF/FEN/QR Codes. Share the game.
- Games viewed here will automatically be stored in your cloud clipboard (if you are logged in). Use the cloud clipboard also in ChessBase.
- Create an account to access the games cloud.
Ding,L | 2836 | Dubov,D | 2770 | 0–1 | 2020 | | Lindores Abbey Rapid Challenge-KO | 1 |
Dubov,D | 2770 | Ding,L | 2836 | 1–0 | 2020 | | Lindores Abbey Rapid Challenge-KO | 2 |
Ding,L | 2836 | Dubov,D | 2770 | ½–½ | 2020 | | Lindores Abbey Rapid Challenge-KO | 3 |
Please, wait...
Select an entry from the list to switch between games
Links