Shamkir, Round 9: Magnus makes it five

by Antonio Pereira
4/9/2019 – A third consecutive win in Shamkir meant Magnus Carlsen finished on 7 out of 9, two points ahead of his closer pursuers, with an out-of-this-world rating performance of 2988. His last victim was Alexander Grischuk, who was duly overrun both on the board and on the clock. The rest of the games finished drawn. LAWRENCE TRENT took a closer look at the final encounters of the sixth Gashimov Memorial. | Photo: Official site

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The cherry on the cake

It had nothing to do with his opponents anymore — Magnus Carlsen was only pushing his own boundaries in Shamkir's last round. His superiority was only briefly challenged during the tournament, and his final three victories were crystal clear demonstrations of what he is capable of when in form. Already head and shoulders above his opponents in the ratings list, he managed to gain 15.8 points after nine rounds.

His win over Grischuk was also his 50th straight classical game without a loss — the last time he was defeated was on July 31st, when Shakhriyar Mamedyarov beat him prior to getting first place at the Biel grandmaster tournament. His rating performance at the 6th Gashimov Memorial was among his most spectacular ones, as pointed out by Tarjei J. Svensen:

3002: Nanjing '09 (8 out of 10)
2994: London '12 (6½/8)
2988: Shamkir '19 (7/9)
2981: Shamkir '15 (7/9)
2930: Wijk aan Zee '13 (10/13)
2918: Bazna '10 (7½/10)

The World Champion will be back in action shortly, as he will lead the field at the GRENKE Chess Classic starting April 20th. In an interview with the Norwegian portal VG.no, Carlsen stated that he is glad that 2845 (and not his unofficial 2860 live rating) will be used at the upcoming tournament, where a more widespread list of participants means he will need a better score to "defend" his stratospheric rating.

Magnus Carlsen

At work... | Photo: Official site

Against Grischuk, Magnus avoided going into a Berlin endgame by choosing a line with 4.d3, and the players reached a queenless middlegame after 13 moves. Time-pressure addict Grischuk knew he was facing a player on a roll and thought long and hard before giving up the pair of bishops:   

 
Carlsen vs. Grischuk
Position after 17.Nb3

Alexander could have gone 17...♝e7 keeping the two bishops, but this would have given White the chance to develop his initiative more quickly. Instead, after almost half an hour, Grischuk played 17...xb3 and put pressure on the f2-pawn with 18.xb3 g4

The previous sequence meant Magnus had a big edge on the clock, and he quickly put his pair of bishops to good use. With 29.e3, the Norwegian gave up a pawn in exchange for activity for a third day in a row:

 
Position after 29.Be3

Black is clearly under pressure, so he might as well take the material as compensation: 29...exf4 30.gxf4 xe4. But Magnus knew what he was doing and brought his light-squared bishop to a more active square with 31.b1. After 31...e7 32.fe1, Grischuk gave back the pawn:

 
Position after 32.Rfe1

According to the computer, keeping the material edge with 32...♞b8 was the way to go, but only silicon monsters are so willing to give their opponents so much play. Grischuk, instead, opened up the f6-square for his knight with 32...f5. The game continued 33.xf5 f6 34.f3 and then Black made the last mistake:

 
Position after 34.Kf3

Instead of 34...d5, Alexander could have put up more resistance with 34...♜d5 35.♗g6 ♜dd7, keeping the tension. In the game, after 35.d2 d8 36.e4, White is calling the shots more forcefully than in the alternative line. Three moves later, Grischuk called it a day.

Magnus Carlsen

A competitor at heart | Photo: Official site

Many strong players and chess enthusiasts congratulated Magnus on Twitter, but Levon Aronian was the most creative in doing so — he found Magnosaurus in a dinosaur database! Levon wittily remarked that the megalosaurid theropod is strictly carnivorous!


Closing ceremony


Solid draws

After losing three games and not being able to fight back, Anish Giri decided to finish his participation in Shamkir as quick as possible. Luckily for him, his round nine opponent Ding Liren obliged, and the peace treaty was signed after 26 moves and less than thirty minutes of play. The Chinese star shared second place on 5 out of 9 and kept his 2809 rating intact. Giri, on the other hand, lost two places on the ratings list and will be looking to bounce back in the upcoming Shenzhen Masters, a six-player double round robin where he will once again face Ding Liren.

Anish kept his sense of humour unscathed, however. He declared in the post-game press conference:

It's clear that we are both well enough prepared to know that you are able to make a draw like this. We have not agreed beforehand — I've never agreed in my life beforehand with anyone — but if I see my opponent playing this variation I know what he wants. [...] Like I told him after the game, he wanted to fix my last place (laughs). So today is not yet the day of my comeback. Let's put it that way.

Anish Giri

And on to the next one... | Photo: Official site

Shakhriyar Mamedyarov and Sergey Karjakin followed suit and signed a 27-move draw. Shak had a forgettable tournament, while it must have been discomforting for Karjakin to lose against Magnus from the white side in round eight, especially after getting hopeful about his chances thanks to his victory over Anand.

Vishy and Veselin Topalov played for over two hours before splitting the point, while David Navara and Teimour Radjabov reached the time control before signing the scoresheets. Radjabov was the only player other than Magnus to finish the tournament undefeated, albeit without wins. The Azeri GM has played in all but one Gashimov Memorials and has drawn 42 out of the 46 games he has played in Shamkir. Nonetheless, his performance allowed him to keep his 12th spot in the world ratings list.   

Shakhriyar Mamedyarov

Shak is the last one to have beaten Magnus in a classical game | Photo: Official site

David Navara

David Navara, as polite as ever | Photo: Official site

Final standings

Rk.NameRtg.Nt.Pts.n
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
TBPerf.
1
GM
GM
2845

1
GM
2756
½

2
GM
2779
1

3
GM
2739
1

4
GM
2740
½

5
GM
2790
½

6
GM
2812
½

7
GM
2797
1

8
GM
2753
1

9
GM
2771
1

Ø 2771
7/9
2845
7.0
9
29.50
2991
2
GM
GM
2812

1
GM
2753
½

2
GM
2771
1

3
GM
2756
½

4
GM
2779
½

5
GM
2739
0

6
GM
2845
½

7
GM
2790
½

8
GM
2740
1

9
GM
2797
½

Ø 2774
5/9
2812
5.0
9
22.25
2817
3
GM

1
GM
2812
½

2
GM
2797
1

3
GM
2740
½

4
GM
2771
½

5
GM
2756
½

6
GM
2779
1

7
GM
2739
½

8
GM
2845
0

9
GM
2790
½

Ø 2781
5/9
2753
5.0
9
20.25
2824
4
GM

1
GM
2845
½

2
GM
2790
½

3
GM
2812
½

4
GM
2797
½

5
GM
2753
½

6
GM
2771
½

7
GM
2740
½

8
GM
2779
½

9
GM
2739
½

Ø 2781
4.5/9
2756
4.5
9
20.25
2781
5
GM

1
GM
2790
½

2
GM
2812
0

3
GM
2797
½

4
GM
2753
½

5
GM
2740
1

6
GM
2756
½

7
GM
2779
½

8
GM
2739
1

9
GM
2845
0

Ø 2779
4.5/9
2771
4.5
9
18.25
2779
6
GM
GM
2779

1
GM
2739
½

2
GM
2845
0

3
GM
2790
1

4
GM
2812
½

5
GM
2797
1

6
GM
2753
0

7
GM
2771
½

8
GM
2756
½

9
GM
2740
½

Ø 2778
4.5/9
2779
4.5
9
17.50
2778
7
GM
GM
2740

1
GM
2797
½

2
GM
2739
½

3
GM
2753
½

4
GM
2845
½

5
GM
2771
0

6
GM
2790
1

7
GM
2756
½

8
GM
2812
0

9
GM
2779
½

Ø 2782
4/9
2740
4.0
9
17.50
2739
8
GM
GM
2739

1
GM
2779
½

2
GM
2740
½

3
GM
2845
0

4
GM
2790
½

5
GM
2812
1

6
GM
2797
½

7
GM
2753
½

8
GM
2771
0

9
GM
2756
½

Ø 2783
4/9
2739
4.0
9
17.25
2740
9
GM

1
GM
2771
½

2
GM
2756
½

3
GM
2779
0

4
GM
2739
½

5
GM
2845
½

6
GM
2740
0

7
GM
2812
½

8
GM
2797
½

9
GM
2753
½

Ø 2777
3.5/9
2790
3.5
9
16.50
2697
10
GM
GM
2797

1
GM
2740
½

2
GM
2753
0

3
GM
2771
½

4
GM
2756
½

5
GM
2779
0

6
GM
2739
½

7
GM
2845
0

8
GM
2790
½

9
GM
2812
½

Ø 2776
3/9
2797
3.0
9
12.75
2651
TBs: Sonneborn-Berger

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Round-up show with IM Lawrence Trent


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1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Bd3 g6 7.f3 Bg7 8.Be3 Nc6 B72: Sicilian Dragon: 6 Be3, lines with h3+Bc4 and sidelines 9.Qd2 Nxd4 9...0-0 10.0-0-0 Ne5 11.Be2 b5 12.Bh6 Qa5 13.Kb1 b4 14.Nd5 Nxd5 15.exd5 Bxh6 16.Qxh6 ½-½ (45) Paravyan,D (2630)-Sjugirov,S (2677) St Petersburg 2018 10.Bxd4 Be6 White is slightly better. 11.g4 b5 12.h4 Qa5 13.a3 h6 14.0-0-0N Predecessor: 14.b4 Qc7 15.Ne2 Rc8 16.a4 Bc4 17.axb5 axb5 0-1 (40) Dorst,K-Schassan,H Dresden 2006 14...Rb8 15.g5! Nh5 16.Bxg7 Nxg7 17.gxh6 Nh5 18.Qg5 f6 19.Qxg6+ Bf7 20.Qg1! b4 21.axb4 Qxb4 22.Kd2 Nf4 23.Qe3 Nxd3 24.Qxd3 White should try 24.Kxd3± Ra1 is the strong threat. Rc8 25.Rb1 24...Rxh6 25.Qxa6 Kf8 26.Ra1 d5 Hoping for ...Rg6. 27.Ra4 Qc5 28.exd5 Rxb2 29.Qa7 Qd6 30.Qe3 30.Kc1!± Rb4 31.Qe3 30...Rg6 Black should play 30...Rh5 31.Ra8+ 31.Kc1!± Rb8 32.Ra7 31...Kg7? 31...Rb8= and Black has nothing to worry. 32.Rxb8+ Qxb8 32.Kc1+- Qb4
33.Ra4? And not 33.h5 Rg2 33.Rh2!+- Qb6 34.Qxb6 34.Qxe7 leads to mate. Rg1+ 35.Nd1 Rb1+ 36.Kd2 Rbxd1+ 37.Kc3 Qd4+       Double Attack 38.Kb3 Rb1+ 39.Ka3 Qa1# 34...Rxb6 35.Ra7 33...Rb1+! 34.Nxb1 Qxa4 35.Qxe7 And now h5 would win. Rg2 36.Qe4 Qa7 next ...Bg6 is good for Black. 37.Re1 Rg1?
37...Qc5 38.Nc3!+- Qa1+ 39.Kd2 Rg2+ 40.Re2 Rg1 White must now prevent ...Qc1+. 41.Qe7? 41.Qc4+- 41...Rd1+! Accuracy: White = 58%, Black = 43%.
½–½
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Anand,V2779Navara,D2739½–½2019B906th Shamkir Chess 20191.1
Giri,A2797Topalov,V2740½–½2019C656th Shamkir Chess 20191.2
Radjabov,T2756Carlsen,M2845½–½2019C556th Shamkir Chess 20191.3
Karjakin,S2753Ding,L2812½–½2019C506th Shamkir Chess 20191.4
Grischuk,A2771Mamedyarov,S2790½–½2019C676th Shamkir Chess 20191.5
Mamedyarov,S2790Radjabov,T2756½–½2019D026th Shamkir Chess 20192.1
Ding,L2812Grischuk,A27711–02019A506th Shamkir Chess 20192.2
Carlsen,M2845Anand,V27791–02019D376th Shamkir Chess 20192.3
Giri,A2797Karjakin,S27530–12019C546th Shamkir Chess 20192.4
Topalov,V2740Navara,D2739½–½2019B126th Shamkir Chess 20192.5
Grischuk,A2771Giri,A2797½–½2019D386th Shamkir Chess 20193.1
Karjakin,S2753Topalov,V2740½–½2019C546th Shamkir Chess 20193.2
Navara,D2739Carlsen,M28450–12019B346th Shamkir Chess 20193.3
Radjabov,T2756Ding,L2812½–½2019C896th Shamkir Chess 20193.4
Anand,V2779Mamedyarov,S27901–02019C506th Shamkir Chess 20193.5
Mamedyarov,S2790Navara,D2739½–½2019E216th Shamkir Chess 20194.1
Ding,L2812Anand,V2779½–½2019D376th Shamkir Chess 20194.2
Topalov,V2740Carlsen,M2845½–½2019E216th Shamkir Chess 20194.3
Karjakin,S2753Grischuk,A2771½–½2019A066th Shamkir Chess 20194.4
Giri,A2797Radjabov,T2756½–½2019D376th Shamkir Chess 20194.5
Grischuk,A2771Topalov,V27401–02019D376th Shamkir Chess 20195.1
Radjabov,T2756Karjakin,S2753½–½2019A056th Shamkir Chess 20195.2
Carlsen,M2845Mamedyarov,S2790½–½2019D326th Shamkir Chess 20195.3
Anand,V2779Giri,A27971–02019C656th Shamkir Chess 20195.4
Navara,D2739Ding,L28121–02019D496th Shamkir Chess 20195.5
Giri,A2797Navara,D2739½–½2019D386th Shamkir Chess 20196.1
Grischuk,A2771Radjabov,T2756½–½2019D206th Shamkir Chess 20196.2
Ding,L2812Carlsen,M2845½–½2019D716th Shamkir Chess 20196.3
Karjakin,S2753Anand,V27791–02019D376th Shamkir Chess 20196.4
Topalov,V2740Mamedyarov,S27901–02019C926th Shamkir Chess 20196.5
Mamedyarov,S2790Ding,L2812½–½2019D306th Shamkir Chess 20197.1
Navara,D2739Karjakin,S2753½–½2019A136th Shamkir Chess 20197.2
Carlsen,M2845Giri,A27971–02019A296th Shamkir Chess 20197.3
Radjabov,T2756Topalov,V2740½–½2019C456th Shamkir Chess 20197.4
Anand,V2779Grischuk,A2771½–½2019C656th Shamkir Chess 20197.5
Grischuk,A2771Navara,D27391–02019B126th Shamkir Chess 20198.1
Radjabov,T2756Anand,V2779½–½2019D376th Shamkir Chess 20198.2
Karjakin,S2753Carlsen,M28450–12019B346th Shamkir Chess 20198.3
Topalov,V2740Ding,L28120–12019E216th Shamkir Chess 20198.4
Giri,A2797Mamedyarov,S2790½–½2019C546th Shamkir Chess 20198.5
Navara,D2739Radjabov,T2756½–½2019B126th Shamkir Chess 20199.1
Ding,L2812Giri,A2797½–½2019D386th Shamkir Chess 20199.2
Carlsen,M2845Grischuk,A27711–02019C656th Shamkir Chess 20199.3
Mamedyarov,S2790Karjakin,S2753½–½2019D376th Shamkir Chess 20199.4
Anand,V2779Topalov,V2740½–½2019C506th Shamkir Chess 20199.5

Round 9 commentary webcast

Commentary by Evgeny Miroshnichenko

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Antonio is a freelance writer and a philologist. He is mainly interested in the links between chess and culture, primarily literature. In chess games, he skews towards endgames and positional play.

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