A third loss for Gukesh
Reigning world champion Gukesh Dommaraju simply cannot get going in Prague. After two defeats and three draws, he faced his compatriot Aravindh Chithambaram in round six.
Following an even opening, Gukesh built up a slightly better and promising position. However, he squandered the advantage, slipped into a slight disadvantage and, after equalising once again, found himself in time trouble and eventually lost the game. As a result, he dropped to 20th place in the live world ranking with a rating of 2728.5:
This video course provides a comprehensive and practical White repertoire in the Ruy Lopez! Through instructive model games and in-depth theoretical explanations, you will learn how to confidently handle both main lines and sidelines.
This video course provides a comprehensive and practical White repertoire in the Ruy Lopez! Through instructive model games and in-depth theoretical explanations, you will learn how to confidently handle both main lines and sidelines.
Free video sample: Introduction
Free video sample: Overview
Free video sample: Chigorin: 9...Na5 10.Bc2 c5 11.d4 Nd7/cxd4
Aravindh Chithambaram (left) played a strong game and defeated world champion Gukesh Dommaraju (right); in the background: Vincent Keymer and Hans Niemann. | Photo: Petr Vrabec / Prague Chess Festival
Top of the standings
He not only plays well, but also beautifully: David Navara received the beauty prize for the second time in five rounds | Photo: Petr Vrabec / Prague Chess Festival
Further up the table, a crucial encounter took place. Local favourite David Navara had the black pieces against the sole leader. With a victory, the Czech player could have overtaken the Dutchman, who entered the round half a point ahead.
The game, however, was only briefly unbalanced:
The Dutch star had played 33.Rb5?!, and the game continued 33...Bc5 34.Bc3 Rb1+ 35.Kf2 Nc7 36.Nd2, when Navara had an advantage of a little more than a pawn according to the engine. However, he squandered it with the natural move 36.Nxb5?!, after which the position remained balanced until the draw on move 56.
Navara could have maintained the advantage with 36...Rd1 37.Rxc5 bxc5 38.bxc5 Ke6 39.Ke2 Rg1 40.Kf3 Kd5, reaching the time control while keeping his edge.
David Navara v. Jorden van Foreest | Photo: Petr Vrabec / Prague Chess Festival
The game between the two Uzbek representatives, Nodirbek Yakubboev and Nodirbek Abdusattorov proceeded largely without fluctuations. The two Nodirbeks entered a Petroff Defence and, after an even middlegame, reached a repetition of moves on move 47. While Yakubboev therefore remains just below the 50 percent mark, Abdusattorov continues to keep pace with the leading duo: he is still level on points with David Navara.
In this Fritztrainer: “Attack like a Super GM” with Gukesh we touch upon all aspects of his play, with special emphasis on how you can become a better attacking player.They are followed by Spain's David Anton Guijarro. Half a point behind, he stands alone in fourth place. Yet he will regret a missed opportunity. In his game against Parham Maghsoodloo he was winning for a long stretch (up to +5), but time trouble also cost him the victory: moves 34 to 36 were inaccurate, and he let his advantage slip. The game ended in a draw on move 50.
Parham Maghsoodloo breathes a sigh of relief: David Anton Guijarro failed to convert his chances and erred in time trouble | Photos: Petr Vrabec / Prague Chess Festival
An exciting endgame
Anyone watching the game between Hans Niemann and Vincent Keymer – both likely dissatisfied with their tournament so far – would hardly have expected it to become the longest game of the round.
At first, the two young players impressed with their deep theoretical knowledge. After 19 moves, Hans Niemann still had more than 1 hour and 22 minutes on his clock, while Vincent Keymer had 1 hour and 38 minutes – even more than at the start of the game. However, the pace gradually slowed once the players were "out of book". Niemann played inaccurately on move 19 but equalised again by move 25. What followed were 67 moves in which Niemann was only slightly better on two occasions. It was remarkable how both players, already short of time by then, managed to keep control of a chaotic middlegame position.
In this course, we will learn how to identify passively placed pieces in any given situation and how to improve their health by bringing them into active squares.Finally, it was highly instructive how Niemann first escaped Keymer's double-rook attack and how the German ultimately managed to simplify into a drawn endgame. The two players certainly provided excellent and extensive material for ChessBase endgame expert GM Karsten Müller. There were several only moves to be found, which both players managed to discover in a highly convincing manner...
Niemann v. Keymer was the final game to finish in round six - after an exciting struggle, the players eventually agreed a draw. | Photos: Nils Rohde / ChessBase
Round 6 results
Standings after round 6
All games
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