A first-round loss did not bode well for a rusty Alireza Firouzja in Bucharest. However, his three wins (and three draws) in the next six rounds have allowed him to go into the final two days of action sharing the lead with Fabiano Caruana. Furthermore, the 19-year-old has gained 7.6 rating points in the process, climbing to clear second place in the live ratings list, almost 13 points ahead of third-placed Ian Nepomniachtchi.
Firouzja’s widening the gap relative to Nepo and Ding Liren in the world ranking also has to do with the World Championship contenders’ subpar performance in the Romanian capital. The protagonists of the thrilling match in Astana have minus-two scores and are currently standing in shared last place, together with underdog Bogdan-Daniel Deac.
Not to mention the fact that Firouzja has beaten both Ding and Nepo. Fortunately for the French representative, he got white against the world champion in round 5 and also white against Nepo on Saturday. After beating the Russian, Firouzja explained:
[Nepo] has a very solid repertoire with black, so it was very difficult to get a game. So I’m really happy with this win, and it improves my score in the standings.
With two rounds to go, Firouzja and Caruana are sharing the lead with 4½ points each. Wesley So, Richard Rapport and Anish Giri make up the chasing pack a half point behind.
Giri joined the chasers by beating Ding with white, after the latter played somewhat carelessly in the opening. The position was quite complicated, though, as Giri needed to show persistence and a good tactical eye to convert his advantage into a full point.
As ever, the Dutchman was very eloquent while analysing the game afterwards:
Anish Giri has plenty of fans in Bucharest! | Photo: Lennart Ootes
