Tata Steel Chess: Carlsen scores his first win

Ding joins Nepomniachtchi at the top

Magnus Carlsen scored his first victory at this year's Tata Steel tournament against young Dutchman Jorden van Foreest. He also ended a series of 21 draws in classical games. Ding Liren scored his second win against Sam Shankland. Both Ding and Carlsen won with Black. All other games of the Masters ended drawn, and so Nepomniachtchi and Ding now share the lead with 3½ out of 5.

In the Challengers, the top two seeds Anton Korobov and Vladislav Kovalev have the joint lead, also with 3½ out of 5. Both won their games in Round 5, and yes, you guessed it, with the black pieces! Evgeny Bareev also won his game with Black.

That means all five decisive games in the fifth round were won by the black player. In the Masters, nine of the decisive games thus far have been won by Black, compared with only two by White. Quite unusual!

playing hall

The playing hall at the Theatre De Vest in Alkmaar | Photo: Alina l'Ami

Round 5 results

Masters

	Name	Rtg.	Pts.		Pts.		Name	Rtg
GM	Giri,A GM Giri,A 2783 1 GM Nepomniachtchi,I 2763 0 2 GM Kramnik,V 2777 1 3 GM Mamedyarov,S 2817 ½ 4 GM Rapport,R 2731 1 5 GM Anand,V 2773 ½ 6 GM Duda,J 2738 1 7 GM Ding,L 2813 ½ 8 GM Vidit,S 2695 ½ 9 GM Van Foreest,J 2612 ½ 10 GM Fedoseev,V 2724 1 11 GM Shankland,S 2725 1 12 GM Radjabov,T 2757 ½ 13 GM Carlsen,M 2835 ½ Ø 2751 8.5/13	2783	2½	½-½	2½	GM	Anand,V GM Anand,V 2773 1 GM Van Foreest,J 2612 1 2 GM Fedoseev,V 2724 ½ 3 GM Shankland,S 2725 ½ 4 GM Radjabov,T 2757 ½ 5 GM Giri,A 2783 ½ 6 GM Nepomniachtchi,I 2763 ½ 7 GM Kramnik,V 2777 1 8 GM Mamedyarov,S 2817 1 9 GM Rapport,R 2731 ½ 10 GM Carlsen,M 2835 0 11 GM Duda,J 2738 ½ 12 GM Ding,L 2813 ½ 13 GM Vidit,S 2695 ½ Ø 2752 7.5/13	2773
GM	Shankland,S GM Shankland,S 2725 1 GM Mamedyarov,S 2817 ½ 2 GM Rapport,R 2731 ½ 3 GM Anand,V 2773 ½ 4 GM Duda,J 2738 ½ 5 GM Ding,L 2813 0 6 GM Vidit,S 2695 ½ 7 GM Van Foreest,J 2612 1 8 GM Fedoseev,V 2724 0 9 GM Carlsen,M 2835 ½ 10 GM Radjabov,T 2757 ½ 11 GM Giri,A 2783 0 12 GM Nepomniachtchi,I 2763 1 13 GM Kramnik,V 2777 1 Ø 2755 6.5/13	2725	2	0-1	2½	GM	Ding,L GM Ding,L 2813 1 GM Carlsen,M 2835 ½ 2 GM Vidit,S 2695 ½ 3 GM Van Foreest,J 2612 1 4 GM Fedoseev,V 2724 ½ 5 GM Shankland,S 2725 1 6 GM Radjabov,T 2757 ½ 7 GM Giri,A 2783 ½ 8 GM Nepomniachtchi,I 2763 ½ 9 GM Kramnik,V 2777 ½ 10 GM Mamedyarov,S 2817 ½ 11 GM Rapport,R 2731 ½ 12 GM Anand,V 2773 ½ 13 GM Duda,J 2738 ½ Ø 2748 7.5/13	2813
GM	Nepomniachtchi,I GM Nepomniachtchi,I 2763 1 GM Giri,A 2783 1 2 GM Carlsen,M 2835 ½ 3 GM Kramnik,V 2777 1 4 GM Mamedyarov,S 2817 ½ 5 GM Rapport,R 2731 ½ 6 GM Anand,V 2773 ½ 7 GM Duda,J 2738 ½ 8 GM Ding,L 2813 ½ 9 GM Vidit,S 2695 1 10 GM Van Foreest,J 2612 0 11 GM Fedoseev,V 2724 1 12 GM Shankland,S 2725 0 13 GM Radjabov,T 2757 ½ Ø 2752 7.5/13	2763	3	½-½	1½	GM	Rapport,R GM Rapport,R 2731 1 GM Fedoseev,V 2724 ½ 2 GM Shankland,S 2725 ½ 3 GM Radjabov,T 2757 ½ 4 GM Giri,A 2783 0 5 GM Nepomniachtchi,I 2763 ½ 6 GM Kramnik,V 2777 ½ 7 GM Mamedyarov,S 2817 ½ 8 GM Carlsen,M 2835 0 9 GM Anand,V 2773 ½ 10 GM Duda,J 2738 1 11 GM Ding,L 2813 ½ 12 GM Vidit,S 2695 ½ 13 GM Van Foreest,J 2612 1 Ø 2755 6.5/13	2731
GM	Radjabov,T GM Radjabov,T 2757 1 GM Kramnik,V 2777 ½ 2 GM Mamedyarov,S 2817 ½ 3 GM Rapport,R 2731 ½ 4 GM Anand,V 2773 ½ 5 GM Duda,J 2738 ½ 6 GM Ding,L 2813 ½ 7 GM Vidit,S 2695 1 8 GM Van Foreest,J 2612 ½ 9 GM Fedoseev,V 2724 0 10 GM Shankland,S 2725 ½ 11 GM Carlsen,M 2835 ½ 12 GM Giri,A 2783 ½ 13 GM Nepomniachtchi,I 2763 ½ Ø 2753 6.5/13	2757	2	½-½	2	GM	Duda,J GM Duda,J 2738 1 GM Vidit,S 2695 ½ 2 GM Van Foreest,J 2612 0 3 GM Fedoseev,V 2724 1 4 GM Shankland,S 2725 ½ 5 GM Radjabov,T 2757 ½ 6 GM Giri,A 2783 0 7 GM Nepomniachtchi,I 2763 ½ 8 GM Kramnik,V 2777 1 9 GM Mamedyarov,S 2817 ½ 10 GM Rapport,R 2731 0 11 GM Anand,V 2773 ½ 12 GM Carlsen,M 2835 0 13 GM Ding,L 2813 ½ Ø 2754 5.5/13	2738
GM	Fedoseev,V GM Fedoseev,V 2724 1 GM Rapport,R 2731 ½ 2 GM Anand,V 2773 ½ 3 GM Duda,J 2738 0 4 GM Ding,L 2813 ½ 5 GM Vidit,S 2695 ½ 6 GM Van Foreest,J 2612 0 7 GM Carlsen,M 2835 ½ 8 GM Shankland,S 2725 1 9 GM Radjabov,T 2757 1 10 GM Giri,A 2783 0 11 GM Nepomniachtchi,I 2763 0 12 GM Kramnik,V 2777 0 13 GM Mamedyarov,S 2817 ½ Ø 2755 5/13	2724	1½	½-½	2½	GM	Vidit,S GM Vidit,S 2695 1 GM Duda,J 2738 ½ 2 GM Ding,L 2813 ½ 3 GM Carlsen,M 2835 ½ 4 GM Van Foreest,J 2612 1 5 GM Fedoseev,V 2724 ½ 6 GM Shankland,S 2725 ½ 7 GM Radjabov,T 2757 0 8 GM Giri,A 2783 ½ 9 GM Nepomniachtchi,I 2763 0 10 GM Kramnik,V 2777 1 11 GM Mamedyarov,S 2817 1 12 GM Rapport,R 2731 ½ 13 GM Anand,V 2773 ½ Ø 2758 7/13	2695
GM	Van Foreest,J GM Van Foreest,J 2612 1 GM Anand,V 2773 0 2 GM Duda,J 2738 1 3 GM Ding,L 2813 0 4 GM Vidit,S 2695 0 5 GM Carlsen,M 2835 0 6 GM Fedoseev,V 2724 1 7 GM Shankland,S 2725 0 8 GM Radjabov,T 2757 ½ 9 GM Giri,A 2783 ½ 10 GM Nepomniachtchi,I 2763 1 11 GM Kramnik,V 2777 0 12 GM Mamedyarov,S 2817 ½ 13 GM Rapport,R 2731 0 Ø 2764 4.5/13	2612	1	0-1	2	GM	Carlsen,M GM Carlsen,M 2835 1 GM Ding,L 2813 ½ 2 GM Nepomniachtchi,I 2763 ½ 3 GM Vidit,S 2695 ½ 4 GM Kramnik,V 2777 ½ 5 GM Van Foreest,J 2612 1 6 GM Mamedyarov,S 2817 1 7 GM Fedoseev,V 2724 ½ 8 GM Rapport,R 2731 1 9 GM Shankland,S 2725 ½ 10 GM Anand,V 2773 1 11 GM Radjabov,T 2757 ½ 12 GM Duda,J 2738 1 13 GM Giri,A 2783 ½ Ø 2747 9/13	2835
GM	Kramnik,V GM Kramnik,V 2777 1 GM Radjabov,T 2757 ½ 2 GM Giri,A 2783 0 3 GM Nepomniachtchi,I 2763 0 4 GM Carlsen,M 2835 ½ 5 GM Mamedyarov,S 2817 ½ 6 GM Rapport,R 2731 ½ 7 GM Anand,V 2773 0 8 GM Duda,J 2738 0 9 GM Ding,L 2813 ½ 10 GM Vidit,S 2695 0 11 GM Van Foreest,J 2612 1 12 GM Fedoseev,V 2724 1 13 GM Shankland,S 2725 0 Ø 2751 4.5/13	2777	1	½-½	2	GM	Mamedyarov,S GM Mamedyarov,S 2817 1 GM Shankland,S 2725 ½ 2 GM Radjabov,T 2757 ½ 3 GM Giri,A 2783 ½ 4 GM Nepomniachtchi,I 2763 ½ 5 GM Kramnik,V 2777 ½ 6 GM Carlsen,M 2835 0 7 GM Rapport,R 2731 ½ 8 GM Anand,V 2773 0 9 GM Duda,J 2738 ½ 10 GM Ding,L 2813 ½ 11 GM Vidit,S 2695 0 12 GM Van Foreest,J 2612 ½ 13 GM Fedoseev,V 2724 ½ Ø 2748 5/13	2817

Challengers

	Name	Rtg.	Pts.		Pts.		Name	Rtg
GM	Gledura,B GM Gledura,B 2615 1 GM Van Foreest,L 2502 ½ 2 GM Korobov,A 2699 ½ 3 WGM Saduakassova,D 2472 ½ 4 GM Bareev,E 2650 ½ 5 GM Kovalev,V 2687 0 6 GM L'Ami,E 2643 1 7 GM Keymer,V 2500 1 8 GM Maghsoodloo,P 2679 ½ 9 GM Paehtz,E 2477 1 10 IM Kuipers,S 2470 ½ 11 GM Esipenko,A 2584 ½ 12 GM Praggnanandhaa R 2539 1 13 GM Chigaev,M 2604 1 Ø 2577 8.5/13	2615	2	0-1	2½	GM	Kovalev,V GM Kovalev,V 2687 1 GM Esipenko,A 2584 ½ 2 GM Praggnanandhaa R 2539 ½ 3 GM Chigaev,M 2604 ½ 4 GM Van Foreest,L 2502 1 5 GM Gledura,B 2615 1 6 WGM Saduakassova,D 2472 1 7 GM Bareev,E 2650 ½ 8 GM Korobov,A 2699 ½ 9 GM L'Ami,E 2643 ½ 10 GM Keymer,V 2500 1 11 GM Maghsoodloo,P 2679 1 12 GM Paehtz,E 2477 1 13 IM Kuipers,S 2470 1 Ø 2572 10/13	2687
GM	Van Foreest,L GM Van Foreest,L 2502 1 GM Gledura,B 2615 ½ 2 WGM Saduakassova,D 2472 ½ 3 GM Bareev,E 2650 1 4 GM Kovalev,V 2687 0 5 GM L'Ami,E 2643 ½ 6 GM Keymer,V 2500 ½ 7 GM Maghsoodloo,P 2679 ½ 8 GM Paehtz,E 2477 1 9 IM Kuipers,S 2470 0 10 GM Esipenko,A 2584 0 11 GM Praggnanandhaa R 2539 ½ 12 GM Chigaev,M 2604 ½ 13 GM Korobov,A 2699 ½ Ø 2586 6/13	2502	2	½-½	2½	GM	L'Ami,E GM L'Ami,E 2643 1 IM Kuipers,S 2470 1 2 GM Esipenko,A 2584 ½ 3 GM Praggnanandhaa R 2539 ½ 4 GM Chigaev,M 2604 ½ 5 GM Van Foreest,L 2502 ½ 6 GM Gledura,B 2615 0 7 WGM Saduakassova,D 2472 ½ 8 GM Bareev,E 2650 1 9 GM Kovalev,V 2687 ½ 10 GM Korobov,A 2699 ½ 11 GM Keymer,V 2500 ½ 12 GM Maghsoodloo,P 2679 ½ 13 GM Paehtz,E 2477 1 Ø 2575 7.5/13	2643
GM	Chigaev,M GM Chigaev,M 2604 1 WGM Saduakassova,D 2472 1 2 GM Bareev,E 2650 ½ 3 GM Kovalev,V 2687 ½ 4 GM L'Ami,E 2643 ½ 5 GM Keymer,V 2500 ½ 6 GM Maghsoodloo,P 2679 1 7 GM Paehtz,E 2477 1 8 IM Kuipers,S 2470 1 9 GM Esipenko,A 2584 ½ 10 GM Praggnanandhaa R 2539 1 11 GM Korobov,A 2699 ½ 12 GM Van Foreest,L 2502 ½ 13 GM Gledura,B 2615 0 Ø 2578 8.5/13	2604	2½	½-½	2	GM	Keymer,V GM Keymer,V 2500 1 GM Paehtz,E 2477 ½ 2 IM Kuipers,S 2470 1 3 GM Esipenko,A 2584 0 4 GM Praggnanandhaa R 2539 ½ 5 GM Chigaev,M 2604 ½ 6 GM Van Foreest,L 2502 ½ 7 GM Gledura,B 2615 0 8 WGM Saduakassova,D 2472 1 9 GM Bareev,E 2650 ½ 10 GM Kovalev,V 2687 0 11 GM L'Ami,E 2643 ½ 12 GM Korobov,A 2699 0 13 GM Maghsoodloo,P 2679 ½ Ø 2586 5.5/13	2500
GM	Praggnanandhaa R GM Praggnanandhaa R 2539 1 GM Bareev,E 2650 0 2 GM Kovalev,V 2687 ½ 3 GM L'Ami,E 2643 ½ 4 GM Keymer,V 2500 ½ 5 GM Maghsoodloo,P 2679 ½ 6 GM Paehtz,E 2477 ½ 7 IM Kuipers,S 2470 1 8 GM Esipenko,A 2584 0 9 GM Korobov,A 2699 ½ 10 GM Chigaev,M 2604 0 11 GM Van Foreest,L 2502 ½ 12 GM Gledura,B 2615 0 13 WGM Saduakassova,D 2472 ½ Ø 2583 5/13	2539	1½	½-½	2½	GM	Maghsoodloo,P GM Maghsoodloo,P 2679 1 GM Korobov,A 2699 0 2 GM Paehtz,E 2477 1 3 IM Kuipers,S 2470 1 4 GM Esipenko,A 2584 ½ 5 GM Praggnanandhaa R 2539 ½ 6 GM Chigaev,M 2604 0 7 GM Van Foreest,L 2502 ½ 8 GM Gledura,B 2615 ½ 9 WGM Saduakassova,D 2472 1 10 GM Bareev,E 2650 1 11 GM Kovalev,V 2687 0 12 GM L'Ami,E 2643 ½ 13 GM Keymer,V 2500 ½ Ø 2572 7/13	2679
GM	Esipenko,A GM Esipenko,A 2584 1 GM Kovalev,V 2687 ½ 2 GM L'Ami,E 2643 ½ 3 GM Keymer,V 2500 1 4 GM Maghsoodloo,P 2679 ½ 5 GM Paehtz,E 2477 ½ 6 IM Kuipers,S 2470 ½ 7 GM Korobov,A 2699 1 8 GM Praggnanandhaa R 2539 1 9 GM Chigaev,M 2604 ½ 10 GM Van Foreest,L 2502 1 11 GM Gledura,B 2615 ½ 12 WGM Saduakassova,D 2472 1 13 GM Bareev,E 2650 0 Ø 2580 8.5/13	2584	2½	½-½	1½	GM	Paehtz,E GM Paehtz,E 2477 1 GM Keymer,V 2500 ½ 2 GM Maghsoodloo,P 2679 0 3 GM Korobov,A 2699 ½ 4 IM Kuipers,S 2470 ½ 5 GM Esipenko,A 2584 ½ 6 GM Praggnanandhaa R 2539 ½ 7 GM Chigaev,M 2604 0 8 GM Van Foreest,L 2502 0 9 GM Gledura,B 2615 0 10 WGM Saduakassova,D 2472 ½ 11 GM Bareev,E 2650 ½ 12 GM Kovalev,V 2687 0 13 GM L'Ami,E 2643 0 Ø 2588 3.5/13	2477
WGM	Saduakassova,D WGM Saduakassova,D 2472 1 GM Chigaev,M 2604 0 2 GM Van Foreest,L 2502 ½ 3 GM Gledura,B 2615 ½ 4 GM Korobov,A 2699 ½ 5 GM Bareev,E 2650 0 6 GM Kovalev,V 2687 0 7 GM L'Ami,E 2643 ½ 8 GM Keymer,V 2500 0 9 GM Maghsoodloo,P 2679 0 10 GM Paehtz,E 2477 ½ 11 IM Kuipers,S 2470 ½ 12 GM Esipenko,A 2584 0 13 GM Praggnanandhaa R 2539 ½ Ø 2588 3.5/13	2472	1½	0-1	2	GM	Bareev,E GM Bareev,E 2650 1 GM Praggnanandhaa R 2539 1 2 GM Chigaev,M 2604 ½ 3 GM Van Foreest,L 2502 0 4 GM Gledura,B 2615 ½ 5 WGM Saduakassova,D 2472 1 6 GM Korobov,A 2699 ½ 7 GM Kovalev,V 2687 ½ 8 GM L'Ami,E 2643 0 9 GM Keymer,V 2500 ½ 10 GM Maghsoodloo,P 2679 0 11 GM Paehtz,E 2477 ½ 12 IM Kuipers,S 2470 1 13 GM Esipenko,A 2584 1 Ø 2575 7/13	2650
IM	Kuipers,S IM Kuipers,S 2470 1 GM L'Ami,E 2643 0 2 GM Keymer,V 2500 0 3 GM Maghsoodloo,P 2679 0 4 GM Paehtz,E 2477 ½ 5 GM Korobov,A 2699 0 6 GM Esipenko,A 2584 ½ 7 GM Praggnanandhaa R 2539 0 8 GM Chigaev,M 2604 0 9 GM Van Foreest,L 2502 1 10 GM Gledura,B 2615 ½ 11 WGM Saduakassova,D 2472 ½ 12 GM Bareev,E 2650 0 13 GM Kovalev,V 2687 0 Ø 2589 3/13	2470	½	0-1	2½	GM	Korobov,A GM Korobov,A 2699 1 GM Maghsoodloo,P 2679 1 2 GM Gledura,B 2615 ½ 3 GM Paehtz,E 2477 ½ 4 WGM Saduakassova,D 2472 ½ 5 IM Kuipers,S 2470 1 6 GM Bareev,E 2650 ½ 7 GM Esipenko,A 2584 0 8 GM Kovalev,V 2687 ½ 9 GM Praggnanandhaa R 2539 ½ 10 GM L'Ami,E 2643 ½ 11 GM Chigaev,M 2604 ½ 12 GM Keymer,V 2500 1 13 GM Van Foreest,L 2502 ½ Ø 2571 7.5/13	2699

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Jorden van Foreest won't be accused of a lack of courage. He had White against the World Champion and went straight into the Sveshnikov snakepit with 7.Nd5, the variation in which Fabiano Caruana had tested Carlsen at the London World Championship match. Unsurprisingly, Carlsen knew what he was doing — although he downplayed the role of his World Championship preparation, calling the resulting position "objectively very very dangerous for Black". Even so, he convincingly scored his first victory after 21 consecutive draws.

"Forgot to go to the playing hall today and went to a chess lecture instead. On the positive side, it was a great lecture", van Foreest joked on Twitter after the game.

GM David Howell takes a closer look:

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Move	N	Result	Elo	Players

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1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 Carlsen sticks to his repertoire from the recent World Championship match. 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 e5 6.Ndb5 d6 7.Nd5 The first surprise of the game. Van Foreest is a very principled player who often favours direct openings, especially with White. However it seems excessively brave to take on Carlsen in this line. While Van Foreest might have spent several hours preparing this position, it is likely that Carlsen and his team (assisted by powerful engines) had spent many weeks analysing the following labyrinthine varitions for the World Championship. In hindsight it would have been wiser to choose something which would have been less fresh in Carlsen's memory. 7.Bg5 is the main line of the Sveshnikov Sicilian. Play could then continue: a6 8.Na3 b5 9.Nd5 9.Bxf6 gxf6 10.Nd5 leads to many long complex variations with chances for both sides. 9...Be7 10.Bxf6 Bxf6 11.c4 or 11.c3 11...b4 12.Nc2 with a strategic battle ahead. 7...Nxd5 8.exd5 Ne7 This was played twice by Carlsen in his recent match against Caruana. 8...Nb8 also featured in two games from the World Championship match. 9.c4 Ng6 10.Qa4 Bd7 11.Qb4 Qb8 Carlsen shows his ambitious intentions. 11...Bf5 featured in Game 12 of the World Championship, but it allows a repetition of moves: 12.Qa4 Bd7 13.Qb4 Bf5 14.Qa4 14.h4 was Caruana's choice in the aforementioned game and was also played by Kramnik at the 2018 Olympiad. 12.h4 h5 With the inclusion of the h-pawn moves it appears that neither king will find a safe haven on this side of the board. 13.Be3 a6 14.Nc3 f5!? Not quite a novelty, but Carlsen displays his opening expertise by unleashing a rare idea. 14...a5 was Carlsen's choice in one of the decisive tie-break games against Caruana: 15.Qb3 a4 16.Qd1 Be7 17.g3 Qc8 18.Be2 Bg4 19.Rc1 Bxe2 20.Qxe2 Qf5 and despite Carlsen's victory, White holds the upper hand. 21.c5 21.0-0 would have left White with a long-term edge due to his structural superiority on the queenside. 21...0-0! 22.c6 bxc6 23.dxc6 Rfc8 24.Qc4 Bd8 25.Nd5 e4? 26.c7 Bxc7! 27.Nxc7 Ne5 28.Nd5? Kh7! 0-1, Caruana-Carlsen, London 2018. 15.0-0-0N A natural choice, if somewhat risky. 15.g3 looks like a safe option while 15.Be2 is also playable. 15.Na4!? was mentioned by Van Foreest after the game, and indeed this move would have led to interesting positions which would have suited his style: f4! 16.Bd3 Nxh4! (apparently this was suggested by Carlsen in the post mortem. Further proof of the depth of his preparation) 17.Rxh4 fxe3 18.Bg6+ Kd8 with a very double-edged position. As usual, the engine eventually assesses this as 0.00 but neither king is safe and fireworks are likely to ensue. 15...Be7 16.g3 0-0!? An interesting pawn sacrifice, most likely still part of Carlsen's preparation. 16...e4 would have been my first thought. Black intends to land the knight on e5 as quickly as possible. Meanwhile the immediate 16...b5!? is also worthy of consideration. 17.Be2 Now the h5-pawn is indefensible. e4 18.Bd4?! A step in the wrong direction. Snatching the pawn with 18.Bxh5 was of course critical: Ne5 19.Be2 b5 20.cxb5 axb5 it is clear that Black has compensation here. There is a simple plan of ...Rf8-c8 and ...Be7-d8-a5 while the white king is a target. However, the b5-pawn will soon fall and if an attack fails then White should convert his extra pawn. 21.Bg5! looks like White's most accurate move to nullify the black initiative. If White was too afraid to capture on h5, then 18.f4 was another option: exf3 19.Bxf3 Ne5 20.Be2 b5 21.cxb5 axb5 22.Bd4 and, compared to the game, Black's e5-knight lacks stability. 18...Bf6 19.Bxf6 Rxf6 20.Qb6? Van Foreest's plan is understandable; he wishes to prevent Black from opening the queenside. Unfortunately queens are known to be poor blockaders, and this short-term measure soon fails. 20.Bxh5 was now essential. Play could continue: Ne5 21.Be2 b5 22.cxb5 Bxb5! (forcing the exchange of White's strong knight) 23.Nxb5 axb5 24.a3 24.Kb1?! Qa7 24...Rf8 25.Bxb5 Qc7+ 26.Kb1 Rfb8 with yet another position that is difficult to evaluate. Objectively chances are still equal, although in practical terms it feels easier to play Black. 20...Ne5 21.Kb1 Be8! Black re-routes the bishop and intends to kick the white queen away from b6. 22.Rd2 Nd7 23.Qd4 Qc7 24.Nd1 The start of a poor manoeuvre, but it is not easy to offer any constructive alternatives. White's position is strategically dubious - it lacks purpose, while Black can slowly prepare the b7-b5 or f5-f4 pawn breaks. Ne5 Black's knight is incredibly powerful here. It simply cannot be challenged. 25.Ne3 f4! Simple and strong. 26.gxf4 Rxf4 27.Rg1 27.Ng2 does not help: Rf8 28.Qe3 Qf7 29.Rf1 29.Qxe4 Qxf2-+ 29...Rc8 and Black holds an obvious advantage. 27...Bg6 28.Ka1 It is a sad situation when the engine suggests jettisoning material with moves such as 28.Rxg6 although Black's conversion task is not so easy: Nxg6 29.Ng2 Rf5 30.Qxe4 Qf7 31.Bd3 and the game continues. 28...Raf8 29.c5 Desperation, but otherwise f2 falls without compensation. Rxf2 Black simply gobbles the pawn. 29...dxc5 is also sufficient: 30.Qc3 Qd6 30.Qc3 30.c6!? would have been my final attempt at creating confusion. 30...Qxc5 31.Qxc5 dxc5 32.d6 Kh7 33.d7 Nf3 Winning material. A brutal victory from Carlsen, who pounced upon his opponent's indecisiveness to score his first win of the tournament. 0–1

White	EloW	Black	EloB	Res	Year	ECO	Event	Rnd

Van Foreest,J

2612

Carlsen,M

2835

0–1

2019

B33

Tata Steel Masters

After the game, both players gave their thoughts to press officer Tom Bottema.

Master Class Vol.8: Magnus Carlsen

Scarcely any world champion has managed to captivate chess lovers to the extent Carlsen has. The enormously talented Norwegian hasn't been systematically trained within the structures of a major chess-playing nation such as Russia, the Ukraine or China.

The Sveshnikov Variation of the Sicilian

The Sveshnikov Variation of the Sicilian is one of the most popular and fascinating replies to 1.e4. Right from the beginning, Black is striving for active and dynamic counterplay, and this results in a double-edge struggle for the initiative. Dutch top grandmaster and six-times national champion Loek van Wely himself has played the Sveshnikov since 1998. On this DVD he comments on his latest encounters with world-class players like Shirov, Anand, Topalov and Kramnik, games which abound with combinatorial ideas and sacrifices; a feast for all fans of tactics.

Sam Shankland was the second victim of a black attack in Round 5 against Ding Liren. In a Closed Ruy Lopez, he tried a rare move 15.b4 dating back to a 1964 game of Rashid Nezhmetdinov, but he suffered a series of inaccuracies and ended up in a difficult position, which Ding Liren won surprisingly quickly with straightforward play. As a result, Ding joined Nepomniachtchi atop the leader board. He also moved to world number three in the live ratings.

"A smooth game from Ding", writes GM David Howell:

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Move	N	Result	Elo	Players

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1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 0-0 8.h3 Bb7 9.d3 d6 10.c3 This plan is rarely seen at the top level nowadays. White's set-up is usually associated with keeping the bishop on the a2-g8 diagonal. Therefore 10.a3 is more frequently chosen. 10...Na5 11.Bc2 c5 12.Nbd2 Re8 13.Nf1 h6 14.Ne3 Another slightly unorthodox decision from Shankland. 14.Ng3 is almost exclusively played by Grandmasters in this position. Although White is unlikely to push d3-d4 in the near future, having already moved the d-pawn, the knight simply feels more flexible on g3. It also allows the c1-bishop to breathe more freely. 14...Bf8 15.b4?! A flawed plan. Shankland was already beginning to spend considerable time on his moves; this is rarely a good idea against a player with such vast experience of these middlegames as Ding. 15.Nh2 would at least be consistent with White's previous moves, aiming for a kingside attack or at least some control over the light-squares. Now: d5! 16.Nhg4 16.Qf3 has also been seen in practice. 16...dxe4 16...d4 17.Nf5 leads to tense play on the kingside. 17.dxe4 17.Nxf6+ Qxf6 18.dxe4 Rad8 19.Qe2= was seen in McShane-Hebden, Hull 2018. 17...Nxg4 18.Qxg4 Re6 and the game goes on. 15...cxb4 16.cxb4 Nc6 17.a3 d5! Ding is the first to strike in the centre, and now only Black can hope to claim an edge. 18.Ng4? Shankland seemingly cannot decide on a plan. This would have made more sense a few moves ago. It was time to accept that the opening had not gone according to plan, and to simplify: 18.Nxd5 Nxd5 19.exd5 Qxd5 20.Bb3 Qd7 21.Bb2= White's isolated d-pawn is balanced out by his strong bishops on b2 and b3. 18...Nxg4 19.hxg4 dxe4 20.dxe4 Qxd1 21.Rxd1 a5! With simple play, Ding creates a weakness to attack on the queenside. This is enough to cause headaches for White. 22.bxa5?! Too compliant. 22.Rd7!? would have been an attempt to confuse matters: Bc8 23.Rc7 22...Nxa5 23.Rb1 Bc6 24.Nd2 Red8 25.Kf1 Nb7 26.Rb3 Bd7 26...Rac8! would have been a slightly more accurate move order, avoiding White's option on the next turn. 27.f3?! 27.Nf3 was White's final attempt to untangle. Black still holds a big advantage, but it is not easy to convert: Rac8 27...Bxg4? 28.Rxd8 Rxd8 29.Nxe5= 28.Ne1 b4 29.Rb1! Bb5+ 30.Kg1 Rxd1 31.Bxd1 and White is still clinging on. 27...Rac8 28.Bb1 White's pieces are a mess. Black now profits from their lack of co-ordination: b4! 29.Rb2 What else? 29.axb4 Ba4-+ 29...Ba4 30.Re1 Rc7!-+ A classic example of Ding's calmness. He simply improves a piece while protecting the b7-knight and threatening to double his rooks. 31.Ba2 31.axb4 Rdc8 traps the c1-bishop. 31...bxa3 32.Rb6 Bc5 33.Rb1 Bc2! Nice geometry. Black threatens both ...Bxb1 and ...Bd3+. A smooth game from Ding, but he was given a helping hand from his opponent. 0–1

White	EloW	Black	EloB	Res	Year	ECO	Event	Rnd

Shankland,S

2725

Ding,L

2813

0–1

2019

C92

Tata Steel Masters

An interesting game was played between Ian Nepomniachtchi and Richard Rapport. The queens came off on move 11 and a battle between White's knight pair against Black's bishop pair emerged which continued through the endgame. If anything, the knights unusually had the upper hand due to the compromised black pawn structure, but Nepomniachtchi found no way to put any serious pressure on his opponent, so the game ended peacefully after 38 moves.

GM Howell: "Impressive composure from Rapport, who showed that his pet line is certainly playable."

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1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 d6 6.c3 Nxe4 This is a pet line of Rapport's. It has a reputation of being slightly dubious, but in this game Rapport shows that Black's position is full of resources. 6...Bd7 is the most common move, and one which I have successfully played myself. 7.d4 Bd7 8.Re1 Nf6 9.Bxc6 Bxc6 10.dxe5 dxe5 11.Qxd8+ Kxd8 12.Nxe5 Be8 The previous moves are all logical and quite forcing. Indeed, this has all been seen before in a game of Rapport's. 13.Bg5 h6 14.Bxf6+ White shatters Black's pawn structure at the cost of the bishop pair. gxf6 15.Ng4 Be7 16.Nd2N Blitzed out by Nepomniachtchi. 16.Na3 was seen in Friedel-Rapport, Reykjavik 2018. 16...Bd7 17.Ne3 Be6 18.Nb3 Kc8 19.Nd4 Bd7 20.Rad1 a5! Intending to gain space on the queenside while potentially activating the rook via a6. 21.Nd5 Bd8 Black's pieces are very passive, but this seems to be a purely temporary state of affairs. At this point Nepomniachtchi sank into thought but failed to come up with a productive plan. Indeed, engines initially prefer White by a large margin but after deep analysis they, too, realise that Black's position is simply too solid. 22.Nb3 22.Ne7+ Kb8 leads nowhere for White. For example: 23.Nb3 Be6 24.Ng6 Rg8 25.Nf4 Bg4 26.Rd4 a4 27.Nc5 Ra5!= and Black's pieces are springing into life. 22...b6 23.Nd4 a4 24.c4 Ra5 25.f4 c6 26.Nc3 Re8 27.Rxe8 Bxe8 28.Kf2 Bd7 29.Rd3 Bc7 30.Kf3 Rc5 A slightly odd decision. Black's rook is poorly placed here. 30...f5= 31.b3 axb3 32.axb3 f5 33.Re3 Kd8 34.Nd1 b5 35.Rd3 35.Nc3 would initiate a short tactical skirmish, but with accurate play Black should be fine: Ba5! 35...bxc4? 36.b4 traps the rook. 36.Nc2 Be6! 36...Bxc3 37.Rxc3 would give White hopes of exploiting a 'good knight vs bad bishop' scenario. 37.b4 Rxc4! 38.bxa5 b4 39.Nxb4 Rxb4= and the game should end in a draw. 35...bxc4 36.bxc4 Rxc4 37.Ne3 Ra4! keeping an eye on the f4-pawn. 38.Nxc6+ With pawns limited to one side of the board, there is not much left to play for. Impressive composure from Rapport, who showed that his pet line is certainly playable. ½–½

White	EloW	Black	EloB	Res	Year	ECO	Event	Rnd

Nepomniachtchi,I

2763

Rapport,R

2731

½–½

2019

C79

Tata Steel Masters

The longest game of the round was played by Vladimir Fedoseev and Vidit Gujrathi. Vidit had good chances to win in an endgame of queen and knight against queen and bishop. The key moment came after 61.Ba1:

Fedoseev vs Vidit

Black to move

You can play through the moves on the live diagram!

Black can win with 61...Qc5. In the game, Vidit first checked on d6 — 61...Qd6+ 62.Kg1 and only then 62...Qc5, and this turns out to make a world of difference! When the king is on h2, then stopping the checks after 62.Qh5+ (or Qg6+) Kg8 63.Qe8+ Qf8! White can't return the queen to a4 (64.Qa4) because of 64...Qb8+ and 65...Qb1+ which is winning — though not because of the hanging bishop! 66...Qxa1 would allow White a perpetual. Instead 66...Nd6 would guard the important e8 square and threaten the f5 pawn. Very tricky stuff!

Instead, after Fedoseev's 63.Qg6+ Kg8 64.Qe8+ Qf8 65.Qa4, Black doesn't have a check on b8 available, so the position is equal! The players shook hands ten moves later.

Here's a grandmaster look from GM David Howell:

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1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.Qc2 0-0 5.a3 Bxc3+ 6.Qxc3 d5 7.e3 This is a relatively rare move at this juncture. White modestly develops while hoping that his extra bishop will grant him chances for an advantage when the position later opens up. 7.Nf3 and 7.Bg5 are both far more common. I have tested both of these moves recently, but Black appears to have worked out some convincing replies. 7...b6 8.cxd5 exd5 9.Bd3 Ba6 10.Ne2 10.Bxa6 featured in the game Nakamura-Anand, Norway Chess 2015: Nxa6 11.Qd3 Qc8 12.Ne2 c5 13.b3 cxd4 14.exd4 Nc7 with an equal position. 10...c5 11.b3 Ne4 12.Qc2 Bxd3 13.Qxd3 Nc6 14.Bb2 cxd4 Black resolves the central tension but willingly saddles himself with the famous insolated d-pawn. As compensation, he is ahead in development and his major pieces will be quick to find good squares. 15.Nxd4 Nc5 16.Qd1 Nxd4 17.Bxd4 17.Qxd4? would be met strongly by: Qg5! 17...Ne6 18.0-0 Qh4 19.Bb2 Rad8 20.Rc1 Rd7 21.f4 Commital, and true to Fedoseev's style. White hints at a kingside attack though in truth this move is aimed at limiting the scope of Black's knight. 21.Qf3 might have been enough for a small (if somewhat symbolic) advantage: Rfd8 22.Rfd1 Qe4 22...d4?! 23.g3 Qe7 24.exd4 23.Kf1 moves such as 21.Rc3!? were also on the radar. 21...Qe7 This feels slightly too passive. There was no reason to refrain from 21...Nc5= with the simple idea of bringing the knight round to the newly-created outpost on e4. 22.b4! Further restricting the black knight. f6 22...d4 would have been an immediate attempt to liquidate the centre: 23.e4 d3 23.Qb3 Qf7 24.Rfd1 Rfd8 25.h3 25.Rc6! would keep an eye on the e6-knight and prevent Black's next. 25...Qg6! 26.a4 Qe4= Now play is balanced. 27.a5 bxa5 28.bxa5 Kf7 29.Kh2 h5 30.Bd4 Re7 31.Rc3 Rdd7 32.a6 h4 33.Qb2 Rc7 34.Qf2 Rxc3 35.Bxc3 Rc7 36.Be1 Rc2 37.Rd2 Rxd2 38.Bxd2 Qd3 39.Bb4 Qc4 40.Be1 Qxa6 41.Qxh4 Qe2 42.f5 Ng5 43.Qg3?! Knowing Fedoseev, he was still habouring hopes of a victory here. However Black's queen and knight are simply too active. It would have been pragmatic to try and force an immediate draw: 43.Qa4 Qxe1 43...Nf3+ 44.Kg3 changes nothing: Nxe1 45.Qd7+ 44.Qd7+ Kg8 45.Qe8+ Kh7 46.Qh5+ with perpetual check. 43...Kg8 44.Bc3 Qb5! Vidit prevents any checks and prepares to push his a-pawn. 45.Qc7 Ne4 46.Bd4?! 46.Ba5 was safer, blockading the a-pawn. 46...a5 47.Qe7 a4 48.Bb2 Qb8+ 49.Kg1 Qc8 50.Kh2 Qb8+ 51.Kg1 Qc8 52.Kh2 Kh7 53.Qa7 Qf8 54.Bd4 a3 55.Kg1 Qb4 56.Kh2 Qd6+ 57.Kg1 Qb4 58.Kh2 Qb3 59.Qa8 a2 60.Qe8 Qa3 It is hard to criticise this, as Vidit has played superbly over the past dozen moves. Black could now have converted his advantage although the winning concept is still difficult to comprehend, even with engine assistance: 60...Qb4! wins due to a strange type of zugzwang. White cannot give perpetual check, while it is impossible to keep both his king and bishop on the correct squares. One sample variation: 61.Qh5+ Kg8 62.Qe8+ Qf8 63.Qa4 Qb8+ 64.Kg1 Qb1+ 65.Kh2 Nd6! (preventing Qe8+ ideas and attacking f5) 66.Qd7 Nxf5 67.Qe8+ Kh7 68.Qh5+ Nh6-+ and with a safe king the path to victory should be straightforward. 61.Ba1? allowing Black another chance. 61.Bb2! draws, but once again this is difficult for the untrained human eye: Qd6+ 61...Qxb2 62.Qh5+ Kg8 63.Qe8+ 62.Kg1 Qb4 63.Qh5+ Kg8 64.Qe8+ Qf8 65.Qa4= and now, as opposed to the variation with 60...Qb4!, Black cannot gain time by checking the white king. 61...Qd6+? Letting the win slip for good. 61...Qc5 would win while 61...Qb4 is similar to the variations above: 62.Qh5+ Kg8 63.Qe8+ Qf8 64.Qa4 Qb8+ 65.Kg1 Qb1+ 66.Kh2 Nd6-+ 62.Kg1 Qc5 63.Qg6+ Kg8 64.Qe8+ Qf8 65.Qa4! Now Black has no checks so he must abandon the a-pawn. Fedoseev now defends accurately to ensure the draw. Qc8 66.Qxa2 Qc1+ 66...Qxf5 should also eventually lead to a draw, although Black can press forever. 67.Kh2 Qc7+ 68.Kg1 Qc1+ 69.Kh2 Nd2 70.Bb2 Qe1 71.Qxd5+ Kh7 72.Bc3 Nf1+ 73.Kg1 Nd2+ 74.Kh2 Nf1+ ½–½

White	EloW	Black	EloB	Res	Year	ECO	Event	Rnd

Fedoseev,V

2724

Vidit,S

2695

½–½

2019

E36

Tata Steel Masters

The shortest game of the round was that between Anish Giri and Vishy Anand. As Anand explained after the game, Giri played exactly the variation that Anand had previously prepared so he was easily able to neutralize all White's threats and after 22 moves the game ended in a draw.

GM Howell thinks it's a pity the game ended so quickly: "To be honest, I would have been very tempted to continue, as Black appears to be running no risk at all."

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Move	N	Result	Elo	Players

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1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.c3 Nf6 5.d3 d6 6.0-0 a6 7.a4 0-0 8.Re1 a5!? A very modern idea in an opening that is evolving day by day. Grischuk is credited with this plan, although it was played in a slightly different move order. Black, bizarrely, moves the a-pawn for a second time in three moves. He argues that White's 'extra' a2-a4 move is not as useful as it looks, and the tempo was a worthwhile investment as he now takes the b4-square under control. 8...Ba7 and 8...h6 are both regularly seen alternatives. 9.h3 h6 10.Nbd2 Be6 11.Bb5 Na7 12.d4 Nxb5 This has all been seen before, with most of the games featuring Maxime Vachier-Lagrave on the White side. There is now a crossroads: 13.axb5 The most natural choice. 13.dxc5 Initially seems innocent, but some strategic complexities lurk beneath the surface: Na7 14.b3! An idea of MVL's. Re8 14...dxc5 15.Nxe5 15.cxd6 Qxd6 16.Ba3 and White exerts a modicum of pressure. Vachier-Lagrave has scored against formidable opposition (Grischuk and Karjakin) from this position. 13...exd4 14.Nxd4 14.cxd4?! Bb4 finally shows the idea behind Black's idea of playing 8...a5. The b4-square is a strong outpost for the bishop. 14...Re8 15.Nf1 Giri follows a game in which Leko beat Kasimzhanov in the 2018 Olympiad. 15.N2f3 is also worth considering. 15...Bc4 Anand's prepared improvement. 15...Bd7 16.Ng3 c6 17.bxc6 Bxc6 18.Qf3 d5 19.e5 eventually led to a white win in Leko-Kasimzhanov, Batumi 2018. 16.Ng3 d5 Again this seems to be Anand's preparation, although I still find it hard to believe he had memorised the entire messy variation that we will see below (if White had played 20.Qg4). 16...a4 or 16...Qd7 would have been sensible alternatives. 17.e5 Ne4 18.Nxe4 dxe4 19.Rxe4 Qd5 Anand was still playing his moves at a brisk pace, which clearly unnerved Giri. Here he paused for a deep think before opting for a suboptimal move: 20.Qf3?! 20.Qg4! was critical, and would have demanded great energy (and accuracy!) from Anand to prove equality: h5! 21.Qf4 Bd3 (other moves exist, but this is clearly the most forcing - in the style of Anand himself) 22.Re3 Bxb5 23.Rg3 Rxe5 24.Qf6 Re1+ 25.Kh2 Bf8 26.Nf5 Qe5 and it appears that Black is fine, although further analysis shows that the position is still full of intrigue: 27.Nh6+ Kh7 28.Qxf7! Qe6 29.Qxh5 gxh6 30.Qxb5 30.Bxh6 leads to a beautiful variation: Re5 31.Bg5+ Qh6 32.Qf7+ Qg7 33.Qh5+ Qh6 with a draw 30...Bd6 31.f4 Rg8 32.Qd3+ Rg6 33.h4 Qf6 34.h5 Qh4+ 35.Rh3 Bxf4+ 36.Bxf4 Qxf4+ 37.Rg3 Qh4+ 38.Rh3 Qf4+ with a draw. Could Anand really have analysed this deeply? Many of the above moves are forced, so it is quite possible, although it would have been a great feat of memory to get this far. 20...Bxd4 21.cxd4 21.Rxd4 Qxf3 22.gxf3 Bxb5 Is very pleasant for Black due to his superior pawn structure. 21...Re6! 22.Rf4 And Giri offered a draw, which was quickly accepted. To be honest, I would have been very tempted to continue, as Black appears to be running no risk at all: 22.Rf4 Qxb5! 23.Qg3 23.Rxf7? Perhaps Anand missed that this was impossible, otherwise he might have played on: Rg6!-+ with ...Bxf7 or ...Bd5 to follow, Black is winning. 23...Rg6 24.Rg4 Raa6! ½–½

White	EloW	Black	EloB	Res	Year	ECO	Event	Rnd

Giri,A

2783

Anand,V

2773

½–½

2019

C54

Tata Steel Masters

My Black Secrets in the Modern Italian

The Italian Game is considered a sound but quiet opening without early trades, giving rise to rich positions where plans are more important than forced variations. So shows black's plans on this DVD.

Teimour Radjabov has played very few tournaments in recent years and perhaps he suffered from this lack of practice in his game against Duda. The Polish number one slipped up in the opening and soon found himself in a difficult position. But Radjabov eschewed an aggressive attacking option in the middlegame, and gave back most of his edge. They key moment was after 21...Bh5:

Radjabov vs Duda

White to move

22.g4 looks risky, but forces open the kingside favourably for White. E.g. 24...g5 25.Qh2 gxh4 26.gxh5. Black's h-pawn is an immediate target and his knight on b8 is too far from the action, while White's bishop can drop back to c2 in a fine attacking position, and his own h-pawn coming to h6 is an asset. Radjabov's 22.Re3 was too timid and he repeated moves when given the opportunity, rather than take any risks to play on.

GM David Howell breaks down the action further:

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1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Nf6 3.d3 c6 4.Nf3 d5 5.Bb3 Bb4+ 6.Bd2 Bxd2+ 7.Qxd2 This is the most tricky of White's two continuations. It also scores better than the alternative. 7.Nbxd2 is equally popular and was chosen by Carlsen in his game against Caruana from Norway in 2018: a5 8.c3 Nbd7 9.exd5 cxd5 10.0-0 0-0 11.Re1 Re8 12.Nf1 b5 13.a4 b4 14.cxb4 axb4 15.Ne3 Bb7 16.d4 e4 17.Ne5 Nxe5 18.dxe5 Rxe5 19.Qd4 Re7 20.Rac1 with good compensation for the pawn in Carlsen-Caruana, Norway Chess 2018 (1-0) 7...a5 A common idea, although it is unclear whether the insertion of the a-pawn moves is beneficial for Black. 7...Qd6 and 7...0-0 are both more popular than the text. 8.a4 0-0 It is worth pointing out that the natural 8...dxe4?! is a mistake due to very concrete reasons: 9.Nxe5 0-0 10.Nxf7! Rxf7 11.dxe4 Qe7 12.Bxf7+ Kxf7 13.f3 and the material imbalance should favour White. 9.exd5 Nxd5 After this, Black must play extremely accurately to maintain the balance. 9...cxd5! leads to some fascinating variations which would justify the inclusion of 7...a5: 10.Nxe5 Nc6! not 10...Re8?! which leads to a safe advantage for White with natural moves: 11.d4 Nc6 12.0-0 Nxe5 13.dxe5 Rxe5 14.Nc3 11.d4 11.Nxc6 Re8+ is awkward to meet. 11...Qb6 12.Nxc6 bxc6 13.0-0 Ne4 and Black's active pieces give him sufficient compensation for the pawn. For example: 14.Qd1 Rb8 15.Nc3 Nd6! 16.Qd2 Nf5 17.Rad1 Ba6 18.Rfe1 Rfe8 White's bishop on b3 is poor and the d4-pawn is weak. Black's compensation is undeniable. 10.0-0 f6 11.h3 Be6?! Allowing a dangerous initiative. 11...c5 looks slightly counterintuitive, but seems to be Black's best chance to equalise. The idea is simply to prevent any central pawns (as seen in the game). Surprisingly, White may continue as if nothing happened: 12.d4!? 12.Nc3 Be6= 12...cxd4 13.Nxd4! Nc6! 13...exd4 14.Qxd4 Be6 15.Rd1 Nc6 16.Qe4 Re8 17.Nc3! and White will regain his piece thanks to the many pins. 14.Nxc6 bxc6 15.Nc3 Be6 16.Rfd1 Rb8= and it appears that any simplifications should lead to a draw. 12.d4 Seizing the moment. e4 13.Re1! The point behind White's last. Bxh3 13...Bf5 would have been a tricky idea: 14.Nh4 14.Qf4! Bg6 15.Nh4 f5 16.Nxg6 hxg6 17.Na3 14...Bc8 with double-edged play, for example: 15.Rxe4? f5 13...f5?! 14.Ng5 is simply better for White. 14.Rxe4 Bf5 15.Re2 Kh8 16.Nc3 b6 This makes sense, but again Black's plan is very slow. 16...Bg4 would have been an interesting try while 16...Na6 17.Rae1 Nac7 would have kept White's advantage to a minimum. 17.Rae1 Ra7 18.Nxd5 cxd5 19.Qf4 Bg6 20.c3 Rd7 21.Nh4 Bh5 21...Be4? would have fallen into a well-known tactical motif: 22.Rxe4! dxe4? 22...g5 23.Qh2 dxe4 24.Ng6+ Kg7 25.Nxf8 Qxf8 26.Rxe4+- 23.Ng6+! hxg6 24.Qh4# 22.Re3?! The first blemish. Radjabov starts to err. 22.g4!? is difficult to play for a human. It feels that White's advantage can be nurtured without the need for such risks. However, this was the moment to strike. Bf7 22...g5 23.Qh2 gxh4 24.gxh5+- is hard to evaluate at first, but White's more active pieces ensure a decisive advantage. 23.Nf5± and White will soon drum up a big attack. 22.Qh2! is also strong, eyeing up the black king from afar: Bxe2 23.Ng6+ Kg8 24.Nxf8 Kxf8 25.Qxh7! Qe8 26.Qh8+ Kf7 27.Qxe8+ Kxe8 28.Rxe2+ Kf7 29.f4± with a healthy extra pawn. 22...g5! Duda doesn't miss his chance to activate his pieces. 23.Qf5 Nc6 24.Nf3 Ne7 25.Qb1 A sign that things have not gone according to plan. White is forced to retreat. Ng6 26.Bc2 Rg7 27.Bf5 Feeling the tide beginning to turn and lacking a productive plan, Radjabov decides to repeat moves. 27.Nh2! would preserve some advantage, aiming to bring the knight to fresher pastures. 27...Ne7 28.Bd3 Ng6 29.Bf5 29.Nh2 29...Ne7 30.Bd3 Ng6 ½–½

White	EloW	Black	EloB	Res	Year	ECO	Event	Rnd

Radjabov,T

2757

Duda,J

2738

½–½

2019

C24

Tata Steel Masters

There was also little excitement in the game between Kramnik and Mamedyarov. The players followed a familiar variation following a game of former Kramnik second Peter Leko through 17.axb5:

Kramnik vs Mamedyarov

Black to move

Mamedyarov's novelty 17...a5 is the first choice of the engine, and it led to a dead equal endgame which was agreed drawn on move 31.

"A well-played game from both sides", thinks GM Howell:

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Move	N	Result	Elo	Players

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1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 Nxe4 Mamedyarov reverts to one of his favourite lines, the Open Spanish. 6.d4 b5 7.Bb3 d5 8.dxe5 Be6 9.Nbd2 Nc5 10.c3 d4 The old main line. This was debated for decades amongst top players. However 10...Be7 has taken over in popularity in recent times and is the pet move of Mamedyarov himself. 11.Bxe6 Nxe6 12.cxd4 Ncxd4 13.a4 Bc5!? A strange idea, as Black will have to lose another tempo with this bishop. Black has many options in this position, and I guess that this move was chosen mainly in the hope of surprising Kramnik. It is possible that Mamedyarov based his preparation on the many correspondence games which have reached this position. I have tried out 13...Bb4 with mixed success while 13...Rb8 and 13...Be7 are also playable. 14.Ne4 Bb6 15.Nfg5 White attempts to remove the strong blockader on e6. Qd5! Mamedyarov was still blitzing out his moves. 16.Nxe6 The calm yet mysterious 16.Re1 is the engine's suggestion, although it is unclear why this is an improvement. 16...Qxe6 16...fxe6? would be a mistake as it exposes the black king: 17.Qh5+ g6 18.Nf6+ Kf7 19.Qh4+- with an ongoing initiative. 17.axb5 a5 It is likely that this was still preparation. 17...Nxb5 should be fine too, though 18.Ng5 would force Black to be accurate. 18.b4 a4 19.Be3 Both sides have several options on every move. Unfortunately it is impossible to cover all the variations. While analysing the position, I stumbled across one dramatic and fascinating line: 19.Nc5 Qc4!? 19...Bxc5 20.bxc5 Nb3 21.Ra3 0-0 22.Be3 20.Rxa4 Rd8 21.Bg5! (willingly allowing ...Ne2+) f6 21...Ne2+? 22.Kh1 Rxd1 23.Ra8+ Rd8 24.Rxd8# 22.exf6 Ne2+ 23.Qxe2+ Qxe2 24.fxg7 Rg8 25.Bxd8 and despite the material imbalance, play should end in a draw: Rxg7 26.Bf6 Rxg2+ 27.Kxg2 Qg4+ 28.Kh1 Qf3+ 29.Kg1 Qg4+ 19...Qxe5 20.Nc3 Ne6 21.Bxb6 The game now fizzles out. 21.Qd5 is tempting, but also leads to nothing: Qxd5 22.Nxd5 Bxe3 23.fxe3 0-0 24.Ne7+ Kh8 25.Nc6= it appears that this strong knight paralyses Black's rooks, but in reality White's broken pawn structure means that he cannot hope to win. a3 21...Qxc3 22.Bc5 Nxc5 23.bxc5 0-0 24.Rxa4 Qxc5 25.Rxa8 Rxa8 26.Qc1 Qxb5 27.Qxc7 Qb8 28.Qxb8+ Rxb8 29.h3 h6 30.f3 f6 31.Kh1 A well-played game by both sides. ½–½

White	EloW	Black	EloB	Res	Year	ECO	Event	Rnd

Kramnik,V

2777

Mamedyarov,S

2817

½–½

2019

C80

Tata Steel Masters

Current standings - Masters

Rk.		Name	Rtg.	Pts.	n	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	TB	Perf.
1	GM	Carlsen,M GM Carlsen,M 2835 1 GM Ding,L 2813 ½ 2 GM Nepomniachtchi,I 2763 ½ 3 GM Vidit,S 2695 ½ 4 GM Kramnik,V 2777 ½ 5 GM Van Foreest,J 2612 1 6 GM Mamedyarov,S 2817 1 7 GM Fedoseev,V 2724 ½ 8 GM Rapport,R 2731 1 9 GM Shankland,S 2725 ½ 10 GM Anand,V 2773 1 11 GM Radjabov,T 2757 ½ 12 GM Duda,J 2738 1 13 GM Giri,A 2783 ½ Ø 2747 9/13	2835	9.0	13		½	½	½	1	½	½	½	1	1	½	1	1	½	5.00	2888
2	GM	Giri,A GM Giri,A 2783 1 GM Nepomniachtchi,I 2763 0 2 GM Kramnik,V 2777 1 3 GM Mamedyarov,S 2817 ½ 4 GM Rapport,R 2731 1 5 GM Anand,V 2773 ½ 6 GM Duda,J 2738 1 7 GM Ding,L 2813 ½ 8 GM Vidit,S 2695 ½ 9 GM Van Foreest,J 2612 ½ 10 GM Fedoseev,V 2724 1 11 GM Shankland,S 2725 1 12 GM Radjabov,T 2757 ½ 13 GM Carlsen,M 2835 ½ Ø 2751 8.5/13	2783	8.5	13	½		0	½	½	½	½	1	1	1	1	½	½	1	4.50	2861
3	GM	Nepomniachtchi,I GM Nepomniachtchi,I 2763 1 GM Giri,A 2783 1 2 GM Carlsen,M 2835 ½ 3 GM Kramnik,V 2777 1 4 GM Mamedyarov,S 2817 ½ 5 GM Rapport,R 2731 ½ 6 GM Anand,V 2773 ½ 7 GM Duda,J 2738 ½ 8 GM Ding,L 2813 ½ 9 GM Vidit,S 2695 1 10 GM Van Foreest,J 2612 0 11 GM Fedoseev,V 2724 1 12 GM Shankland,S 2725 0 13 GM Radjabov,T 2757 ½ Ø 2752 7.5/13	2763	7.5	13	½	1		½	½	1	½	0	½	½	1	½	0	1	4.50	2809
4	GM	Ding,L GM Ding,L 2813 1 GM Carlsen,M 2835 ½ 2 GM Vidit,S 2695 ½ 3 GM Van Foreest,J 2612 1 4 GM Fedoseev,V 2724 ½ 5 GM Shankland,S 2725 1 6 GM Radjabov,T 2757 ½ 7 GM Giri,A 2783 ½ 8 GM Nepomniachtchi,I 2763 ½ 9 GM Kramnik,V 2777 ½ 10 GM Mamedyarov,S 2817 ½ 11 GM Rapport,R 2731 ½ 12 GM Anand,V 2773 ½ 13 GM Duda,J 2738 ½ Ø 2748 7.5/13	2813	7.5	13	½	½	½		½	½	½	1	½	½	½	½	1	½	4.50	2805
5	GM	Anand,V GM Anand,V 2773 1 GM Van Foreest,J 2612 1 2 GM Fedoseev,V 2724 ½ 3 GM Shankland,S 2725 ½ 4 GM Radjabov,T 2757 ½ 5 GM Giri,A 2783 ½ 6 GM Nepomniachtchi,I 2763 ½ 7 GM Kramnik,V 2777 1 8 GM Mamedyarov,S 2817 1 9 GM Rapport,R 2731 ½ 10 GM Carlsen,M 2835 0 11 GM Duda,J 2738 ½ 12 GM Ding,L 2813 ½ 13 GM Vidit,S 2695 ½ Ø 2752 7.5/13	2773	7.5	13	0	½	½	½		½	½	½	½	½	½	1	1	1	3.50	2809
6	GM	Vidit,S GM Vidit,S 2695 1 GM Duda,J 2738 ½ 2 GM Ding,L 2813 ½ 3 GM Carlsen,M 2835 ½ 4 GM Van Foreest,J 2612 1 5 GM Fedoseev,V 2724 ½ 6 GM Shankland,S 2725 ½ 7 GM Radjabov,T 2757 0 8 GM Giri,A 2783 ½ 9 GM Nepomniachtchi,I 2763 0 10 GM Kramnik,V 2777 1 11 GM Mamedyarov,S 2817 1 12 GM Rapport,R 2731 ½ 13 GM Anand,V 2773 ½ Ø 2758 7/13	2695	7.0	13	½	½	0	½	½		0	½	½	½	½	1	1	1	3.00	2787
7	GM	Radjabov,T GM Radjabov,T 2757 1 GM Kramnik,V 2777 ½ 2 GM Mamedyarov,S 2817 ½ 3 GM Rapport,R 2731 ½ 4 GM Anand,V 2773 ½ 5 GM Duda,J 2738 ½ 6 GM Ding,L 2813 ½ 7 GM Vidit,S 2695 1 8 GM Van Foreest,J 2612 ½ 9 GM Fedoseev,V 2724 0 10 GM Shankland,S 2725 ½ 11 GM Carlsen,M 2835 ½ 12 GM Giri,A 2783 ½ 13 GM Nepomniachtchi,I 2763 ½ Ø 2753 6.5/13	2757	6.5	13	½	½	½	½	½	1		½	½	½	0	½	½	½	4.50	2753
8	GM	Shankland,S GM Shankland,S 2725 1 GM Mamedyarov,S 2817 ½ 2 GM Rapport,R 2731 ½ 3 GM Anand,V 2773 ½ 4 GM Duda,J 2738 ½ 5 GM Ding,L 2813 0 6 GM Vidit,S 2695 ½ 7 GM Van Foreest,J 2612 1 8 GM Fedoseev,V 2724 0 9 GM Carlsen,M 2835 ½ 10 GM Radjabov,T 2757 ½ 11 GM Giri,A 2783 0 12 GM Nepomniachtchi,I 2763 1 13 GM Kramnik,V 2777 1 Ø 2755 6.5/13	2725	6.5	13	½	0	1	0	½	½	½		½	½	0	½	1	1	3.50	2755
9	GM	Rapport,R GM Rapport,R 2731 1 GM Fedoseev,V 2724 ½ 2 GM Shankland,S 2725 ½ 3 GM Radjabov,T 2757 ½ 4 GM Giri,A 2783 0 5 GM Nepomniachtchi,I 2763 ½ 6 GM Kramnik,V 2777 ½ 7 GM Mamedyarov,S 2817 ½ 8 GM Carlsen,M 2835 0 9 GM Anand,V 2773 ½ 10 GM Duda,J 2738 1 11 GM Ding,L 2813 ½ 12 GM Vidit,S 2695 ½ 13 GM Van Foreest,J 2612 1 Ø 2755 6.5/13	2731	6.5	13	0	0	½	½	½	½	½	½		1	½	½	1	½	3.00	2755
10	GM	Duda,J GM Duda,J 2738 1 GM Vidit,S 2695 ½ 2 GM Van Foreest,J 2612 0 3 GM Fedoseev,V 2724 1 4 GM Shankland,S 2725 ½ 5 GM Radjabov,T 2757 ½ 6 GM Giri,A 2783 0 7 GM Nepomniachtchi,I 2763 ½ 8 GM Kramnik,V 2777 1 9 GM Mamedyarov,S 2817 ½ 10 GM Rapport,R 2731 0 11 GM Anand,V 2773 ½ 12 GM Carlsen,M 2835 0 13 GM Ding,L 2813 ½ Ø 2754 5.5/13	2738	5.5	13	0	0	½	½	½	½	½	½	0		1	½	0	1	3.00	2697
11	GM	Fedoseev,V GM Fedoseev,V 2724 1 GM Rapport,R 2731 ½ 2 GM Anand,V 2773 ½ 3 GM Duda,J 2738 0 4 GM Ding,L 2813 ½ 5 GM Vidit,S 2695 ½ 6 GM Van Foreest,J 2612 0 7 GM Carlsen,M 2835 ½ 8 GM Shankland,S 2725 1 9 GM Radjabov,T 2757 1 10 GM Giri,A 2783 0 11 GM Nepomniachtchi,I 2763 0 12 GM Kramnik,V 2777 0 13 GM Mamedyarov,S 2817 ½ Ø 2755 5/13	2724	5.0	13	½	0	0	½	½	½	1	1	½	0		½	0	0	4.50	2668
12	GM	Mamedyarov,S GM Mamedyarov,S 2817 1 GM Shankland,S 2725 ½ 2 GM Radjabov,T 2757 ½ 3 GM Giri,A 2783 ½ 4 GM Nepomniachtchi,I 2763 ½ 5 GM Kramnik,V 2777 ½ 6 GM Carlsen,M 2835 0 7 GM Rapport,R 2731 ½ 8 GM Anand,V 2773 0 9 GM Duda,J 2738 ½ 10 GM Ding,L 2813 ½ 11 GM Vidit,S 2695 0 12 GM Van Foreest,J 2612 ½ 13 GM Fedoseev,V 2724 ½ Ø 2748 5/13	2817	5.0	13	0	½	½	½	0	0	½	½	½	½	½		½	½	3.00	2661
13	GM	Van Foreest,J GM Van Foreest,J 2612 1 GM Anand,V 2773 0 2 GM Duda,J 2738 1 3 GM Ding,L 2813 0 4 GM Vidit,S 2695 0 5 GM Carlsen,M 2835 0 6 GM Fedoseev,V 2724 1 7 GM Shankland,S 2725 0 8 GM Radjabov,T 2757 ½ 9 GM Giri,A 2783 ½ 10 GM Nepomniachtchi,I 2763 1 11 GM Kramnik,V 2777 0 12 GM Mamedyarov,S 2817 ½ 13 GM Rapport,R 2731 0 Ø 2764 4.5/13	2612	4.5	13	0	½	1	0	0	0	½	0	0	1	1	½		0	2.00	2654
14	GM	Kramnik,V GM Kramnik,V 2777 1 GM Radjabov,T 2757 ½ 2 GM Giri,A 2783 0 3 GM Nepomniachtchi,I 2763 0 4 GM Carlsen,M 2835 ½ 5 GM Mamedyarov,S 2817 ½ 6 GM Rapport,R 2731 ½ 7 GM Anand,V 2773 0 8 GM Duda,J 2738 0 9 GM Ding,L 2813 ½ 10 GM Vidit,S 2695 0 11 GM Van Foreest,J 2612 1 12 GM Fedoseev,V 2724 1 13 GM Shankland,S 2725 0 Ø 2751 4.5/13	2777	4.5	13	½	0	0	½	0	0	½	0	½	0	1	½	1		2.00	2641
TBs: Koya, Wins, Direct encounter

Round 5 round-up

GM Daniel King covers the Round 5 highlights

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Move	N	Result	Elo	Players

Replay and check the LiveBook here

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.c3 Nf6 5.d3 d6 6.0-0 a6 7.a4 0-0 8.Re1 C54: Giuoco Piano: 4 c3 Nf6, main lines with 5 d4 and 5 d3 a5 8...h6 9.h3 Be6 10.Bxe6 fxe6 11.Be3 Bxe3 12.Rxe3 Qd7 13.Nbd2 Qf7 14.g3 Nd7 15.Kg2 a5 0-1 (45) Giri,A (2798)-Anand,V (2784) Zuerich 2016 CBM 171 [Marin,M] 9.h3 h6 10.Nbd2 Be6 11.Bb5 Na7 12.d4 LiveBook: 6 Games Nxb5 13.axb5 exd4 14.Nxd4 Re8 15.Nf1

15...Bc4N Predecessor: 15...Bd7 16.Ng3 d5 17.e5 Ne4 18.Nxe4 dxe4 19.Rxe4 Qd5 20.Qf3 Bxd4 21.cxd4 Re6 22.Rf4 ½–½

White	EloW	Black	EloB	Res	Year	ECO	Event	Rnd

Giri,A	2783	Anand,V	2773	½–½	2019	C54	81st Tata Steel Masters 2019	5
Shankland,S	2725	Ding,L	2813	0–1	2019	C88	81st Tata Steel Masters 2019	5
Fedoseev,V	2724	Vidit,S	2695	½–½	2019	E32	81st Tata Steel Masters 2019	5

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Commentary by Anna Rudolf and Lawrence Trent

Current standings - Challengers

Rk.		Name	Rtg.	Pts.	n	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	TB	Perf.
1	GM	Kovalev,V GM Kovalev,V 2687 1 GM Esipenko,A 2584 ½ 2 GM Praggnanandhaa R 2539 ½ 3 GM Chigaev,M 2604 ½ 4 GM Van Foreest,L 2502 1 5 GM Gledura,B 2615 1 6 WGM Saduakassova,D 2472 1 7 GM Bareev,E 2650 ½ 8 GM Korobov,A 2699 ½ 9 GM L'Ami,E 2643 ½ 10 GM Keymer,V 2500 1 11 GM Maghsoodloo,P 2679 1 12 GM Paehtz,E 2477 1 13 IM Kuipers,S 2470 1 Ø 2572 10/13	2687	10.0	13		1	½	½	½	½	½	1	1	1	½	1	1	1	4.50	2783
2	GM	Gledura,B GM Gledura,B 2615 1 GM Van Foreest,L 2502 ½ 2 GM Korobov,A 2699 ½ 3 WGM Saduakassova,D 2472 ½ 4 GM Bareev,E 2650 ½ 5 GM Kovalev,V 2687 0 6 GM L'Ami,E 2643 1 7 GM Keymer,V 2500 1 8 GM Maghsoodloo,P 2679 ½ 9 GM Paehtz,E 2477 1 10 IM Kuipers,S 2470 ½ 11 GM Esipenko,A 2584 ½ 12 GM Praggnanandhaa R 2539 1 13 GM Chigaev,M 2604 1 Ø 2577 8.5/13	2615	8.5	13	0		½	1	½	1	½	½	½	1	1	1	½	½	4.00	2687
3	GM	Esipenko,A GM Esipenko,A 2584 1 GM Kovalev,V 2687 ½ 2 GM L'Ami,E 2643 ½ 3 GM Keymer,V 2500 1 4 GM Maghsoodloo,P 2679 ½ 5 GM Paehtz,E 2477 ½ 6 IM Kuipers,S 2470 ½ 7 GM Korobov,A 2699 1 8 GM Praggnanandhaa R 2539 1 9 GM Chigaev,M 2604 ½ 10 GM Van Foreest,L 2502 1 11 GM Gledura,B 2615 ½ 12 WGM Saduakassova,D 2472 1 13 GM Bareev,E 2650 0 Ø 2580 8.5/13	2584	8.5	13	½	½		½	1	½	0	½	1	1	1	½	1	½	3.50	2690
4	GM	Chigaev,M GM Chigaev,M 2604 1 WGM Saduakassova,D 2472 1 2 GM Bareev,E 2650 ½ 3 GM Kovalev,V 2687 ½ 4 GM L'Ami,E 2643 ½ 5 GM Keymer,V 2500 ½ 6 GM Maghsoodloo,P 2679 1 7 GM Paehtz,E 2477 1 8 IM Kuipers,S 2470 1 9 GM Esipenko,A 2584 ½ 10 GM Praggnanandhaa R 2539 1 11 GM Korobov,A 2699 ½ 12 GM Van Foreest,L 2502 ½ 13 GM Gledura,B 2615 0 Ø 2578 8.5/13	2604	8.5	13	½	0	½		½	½	½	1	½	½	1	1	1	1	3.50	2688
5	GM	Korobov,A GM Korobov,A 2699 1 GM Maghsoodloo,P 2679 1 2 GM Gledura,B 2615 ½ 3 GM Paehtz,E 2477 ½ 4 WGM Saduakassova,D 2472 ½ 5 IM Kuipers,S 2470 1 6 GM Bareev,E 2650 ½ 7 GM Esipenko,A 2584 0 8 GM Kovalev,V 2687 ½ 9 GM Praggnanandhaa R 2539 ½ 10 GM L'Ami,E 2643 ½ 11 GM Chigaev,M 2604 ½ 12 GM Keymer,V 2500 1 13 GM Van Foreest,L 2502 ½ Ø 2571 7.5/13	2699	7.5	13	½	½	0	½		½	½	1	½	1	½	½	½	1	3.50	2628
6	GM	L'Ami,E GM L'Ami,E 2643 1 IM Kuipers,S 2470 1 2 GM Esipenko,A 2584 ½ 3 GM Praggnanandhaa R 2539 ½ 4 GM Chigaev,M 2604 ½ 5 GM Van Foreest,L 2502 ½ 6 GM Gledura,B 2615 0 7 WGM Saduakassova,D 2472 ½ 8 GM Bareev,E 2650 1 9 GM Kovalev,V 2687 ½ 10 GM Korobov,A 2699 ½ 11 GM Keymer,V 2500 ½ 12 GM Maghsoodloo,P 2679 ½ 13 GM Paehtz,E 2477 1 Ø 2575 7.5/13	2643	7.5	13	½	0	½	½	½		1	½	½	½	½	1	½	1	3.50	2632
7	GM	Bareev,E GM Bareev,E 2650 1 GM Praggnanandhaa R 2539 1 2 GM Chigaev,M 2604 ½ 3 GM Van Foreest,L 2502 0 4 GM Gledura,B 2615 ½ 5 WGM Saduakassova,D 2472 1 6 GM Korobov,A 2699 ½ 7 GM Kovalev,V 2687 ½ 8 GM L'Ami,E 2643 0 9 GM Keymer,V 2500 ½ 10 GM Maghsoodloo,P 2679 0 11 GM Paehtz,E 2477 ½ 12 IM Kuipers,S 2470 1 13 GM Esipenko,A 2584 1 Ø 2575 7/13	2650	7.0	13	½	½	1	½	½	0		0	0	½	1	½	1	1	3.00	2604
8	GM	Maghsoodloo,P GM Maghsoodloo,P 2679 1 GM Korobov,A 2699 0 2 GM Paehtz,E 2477 1 3 IM Kuipers,S 2470 1 4 GM Esipenko,A 2584 ½ 5 GM Praggnanandhaa R 2539 ½ 6 GM Chigaev,M 2604 0 7 GM Van Foreest,L 2502 ½ 8 GM Gledura,B 2615 ½ 9 WGM Saduakassova,D 2472 1 10 GM Bareev,E 2650 1 11 GM Kovalev,V 2687 0 12 GM L'Ami,E 2643 ½ 13 GM Keymer,V 2500 ½ Ø 2572 7/13	2679	7.0	13	0	½	½	0	0	½	1		½	½	½	1	1	1	2.50	2601
9	GM	Van Foreest,L GM Van Foreest,L 2502 1 GM Gledura,B 2615 ½ 2 WGM Saduakassova,D 2472 ½ 3 GM Bareev,E 2650 1 4 GM Kovalev,V 2687 0 5 GM L'Ami,E 2643 ½ 6 GM Keymer,V 2500 ½ 7 GM Maghsoodloo,P 2679 ½ 8 GM Paehtz,E 2477 1 9 IM Kuipers,S 2470 0 10 GM Esipenko,A 2584 0 11 GM Praggnanandhaa R 2539 ½ 12 GM Chigaev,M 2604 ½ 13 GM Korobov,A 2699 ½ Ø 2586 6/13	2502	6.0	13	0	½	0	½	½	½	1	½		½	½	1	½	0	3.50	2557
10	GM	Keymer,V GM Keymer,V 2500 1 GM Paehtz,E 2477 ½ 2 IM Kuipers,S 2470 1 3 GM Esipenko,A 2584 0 4 GM Praggnanandhaa R 2539 ½ 5 GM Chigaev,M 2604 ½ 6 GM Van Foreest,L 2502 ½ 7 GM Gledura,B 2615 0 8 WGM Saduakassova,D 2472 1 9 GM Bareev,E 2650 ½ 10 GM Kovalev,V 2687 0 11 GM L'Ami,E 2643 ½ 12 GM Korobov,A 2699 0 13 GM Maghsoodloo,P 2679 ½ Ø 2586 5.5/13	2500	5.5	13	0	0	0	½	0	½	½	½	½		½	½	1	1	2.00	2529
11	GM	Praggnanandhaa R GM Praggnanandhaa R 2539 1 GM Bareev,E 2650 0 2 GM Kovalev,V 2687 ½ 3 GM L'Ami,E 2643 ½ 4 GM Keymer,V 2500 ½ 5 GM Maghsoodloo,P 2679 ½ 6 GM Paehtz,E 2477 ½ 7 IM Kuipers,S 2470 1 8 GM Esipenko,A 2584 0 9 GM Korobov,A 2699 ½ 10 GM Chigaev,M 2604 0 11 GM Van Foreest,L 2502 ½ 12 GM Gledura,B 2615 0 13 WGM Saduakassova,D 2472 ½ Ø 2583 5/13	2539	5.0	13	½	0	0	0	½	½	0	½	½	½		½	½	1	2.00	2496
12	GM	Paehtz,E GM Paehtz,E 2477 1 GM Keymer,V 2500 ½ 2 GM Maghsoodloo,P 2679 0 3 GM Korobov,A 2699 ½ 4 IM Kuipers,S 2470 ½ 5 GM Esipenko,A 2584 ½ 6 GM Praggnanandhaa R 2539 ½ 7 GM Chigaev,M 2604 0 8 GM Van Foreest,L 2502 0 9 GM Gledura,B 2615 0 10 WGM Saduakassova,D 2472 ½ 11 GM Bareev,E 2650 ½ 12 GM Kovalev,V 2687 0 13 GM L'Ami,E 2643 0 Ø 2588 3.5/13	2477	3.5	13	0	0	½	0	½	0	½	0	0	½	½		½	½	1.50	2413
13	WGM	Saduakassova,D WGM Saduakassova,D 2472 1 GM Chigaev,M 2604 0 2 GM Van Foreest,L 2502 ½ 3 GM Gledura,B 2615 ½ 4 GM Korobov,A 2699 ½ 5 GM Bareev,E 2650 0 6 GM Kovalev,V 2687 0 7 GM L'Ami,E 2643 ½ 8 GM Keymer,V 2500 0 9 GM Maghsoodloo,P 2679 0 10 GM Paehtz,E 2477 ½ 11 IM Kuipers,S 2470 ½ 12 GM Esipenko,A 2584 0 13 GM Praggnanandhaa R 2539 ½ Ø 2588 3.5/13	2472	3.5	13	0	½	0	0	½	½	0	0	½	0	½	½		½	1.50	2413
14	IM	Kuipers,S IM Kuipers,S 2470 1 GM L'Ami,E 2643 0 2 GM Keymer,V 2500 0 3 GM Maghsoodloo,P 2679 0 4 GM Paehtz,E 2477 ½ 5 GM Korobov,A 2699 0 6 GM Esipenko,A 2584 ½ 7 GM Praggnanandhaa R 2539 0 8 GM Chigaev,M 2604 0 9 GM Van Foreest,L 2502 1 10 GM Gledura,B 2615 ½ 11 WGM Saduakassova,D 2472 ½ 12 GM Bareev,E 2650 0 13 GM Kovalev,V 2687 0 Ø 2589 3/13	2470	3.0	13	0	½	½	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	½	½		1.00	2378
TBs: Koya, Wins, Direct encounter

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Move	N	Result	Elo	Players

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1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be3 e5 7.Nb3 Be6 8.f3 h5 9.Nd5 B90: Sicilian Najdorf: Unusual White 6th moves, 6 Be3 Ng4 and 6 Be3 e5 9.Qd2 Nbd7 10.Nd5 Bxd5 11.exd5 g6 12.Be2 Bg7 13.0-0-0 0-0 14.g4 a5 15.a4 Nb6 16.gxh5 Nxh5 17.Bb5 Nf6 0-1 (71) Leko,P (2690)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2780) Batumi 2018 9...Nxd5 10.exd5 Bf5 11.Bd3 Bxd3 12.Qxd3 Nd7 LiveBook: 20 Games 13.0-0 Be7 14.Qd2 0-0 15.Na5N Predecessor: 15.c4 Qc7 16.Na5 Bd8 ½-½ (33) Jacobsen,J (2151)-Kuhne,D (2273) ICCF email 2010 15...Qc8 16.c4 Bd8 17.Rac1 Re8 18.Kh1 e4 19.Nb3 exf3 20.gxf3 Ne5 21.c5 Qh3 Black has strong initiative. 22.Qd1

22.Bd4 22...Ng6!-+ 23.Qd2 Rc8 24.Bg1 Nh4 25.Qf2? 25.Rcd1 is a better defense. 25...Bg5 26.Rc4 Nf5 27.Qg2

27...Ng3+! Deflection 28.Qxg3 Qxf1 29.Rc2 Bf6 30.Rf2 Qb5 31.cxd6 Rcd8 32.Rd2 h4 33.Qf4 Re1 34.Rg2 Qxf6 is the strong threat. h3 35.Rg4 White threatens Qxf6 and mate. Be5 36.Qg5 Rxd6 ( -> ...Qe2) 37.Nd2 Qe2 38.Qf5 Qxh2# Accuracy: White = 18%, Black = 93%. 0–1

White	EloW	Black	EloB	Res	Year	ECO	Event	Rnd

Maghsoodloo,P	2679	Korobov,A	2699	0–1	2019	B90	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	1
Chigaev,M	2604	Saduakassova,D	2472	1–0	2019	C50	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	1
Esipenko,A	2584	Kovalev,V	2687	½–½	2019	A49	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	1
Praggnanandhaa R	2539	Bareev,E	2650	0–1	2019	C15	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	1
Van Foreest,L	2502	Gledura,B	2615	½–½	2019	B31	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	1
Paehtz,E	2477	Keymer,V	2500	½–½	2019	B90	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	1
Kuipers,S	2470	L'Ami,E	2643	0–1	2019	B62	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	1
Korobov,A	2699	Gledura,B	2615	½–½	2019	D85	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	2
Kovalev,V	2687	Praggnanandhaa R	2539	½–½	2019	B31	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	2
Maghsoodloo,P	2679	Paehtz,E	2477	1–0	2019	A07	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	2
Bareev,E	2650	Chigaev,M	2604	½–½	2019	A45	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	2
L'Ami,E	2643	Esipenko,A	2584	½–½	2019	C88	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	2
Keymer,V	2500	Kuipers,S	2470	1–0	2019	D12	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	2
Saduakassova,D	2472	Van Foreest,L	2502	½–½	2019	E32	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	2
Gledura,B	2615	Saduakassova,D	2472	½–½	2019	C42	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	3
Chigaev,M	2604	Kovalev,V	2687	½–½	2019	C54	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	3
Esipenko,A	2584	Keymer,V	2500	1–0	2019	B90	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	3
Praggnanandhaa R	2539	L'Ami,E	2643	½–½	2019	C11	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	3
Van Foreest,L	2502	Bareev,E	2650	1–0	2019	B13	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	3
Paehtz,E	2477	Korobov,A	2699	½–½	2019	A62	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	3
Kuipers,S	2470	Maghsoodloo,P	2679	0–1	2019	B62	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	3
Korobov,A	2699	Saduakassova,D	2472	½–½	2019	E56	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	4
Kovalev,V	2687	Van Foreest,L	2502	1–0	2019	C67	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	4
Maghsoodloo,P	2679	Esipenko,A	2584	½–½	2019	A34	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	4
Bareev,E	2650	Gledura,B	2615	½–½	2019	D03	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	4
L'Ami,E	2643	Chigaev,M	2604	½–½	2019	C77	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	4
Keymer,V	2500	Praggnanandhaa R	2539	½–½	2019	D24	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	4
Paehtz,E	2477	Kuipers,S	2470	½–½	2019	C13	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	4
Gledura,B	2615	Kovalev,V	2687	0–1	2019	C50	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	5
Chigaev,M	2604	Keymer,V	2500	½–½	2019	B90	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	5
Esipenko,A	2584	Paehtz,E	2477	½–½	2019	D11	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	5
Praggnanandhaa R	2539	Maghsoodloo,P	2679	½–½	2019	C54	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	5
Van Foreest,L	2502	L'Ami,E	2643	½–½	2019	B56	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	5
Saduakassova,D	2472	Bareev,E	2650	0–1	2019	A58	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	5
Kuipers,S	2470	Korobov,A	2699	0–1	2019	B32	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	5
Korobov,A	2699	Bareev,E	2650	½–½	2019	D19	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	6
Kovalev,V	2687	Saduakassova,D	2472	1–0	2019	C42	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	6
Maghsoodloo,P	2679	Chigaev,M	2604	0–1	2019	C54	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	6
L'Ami,E	2643	Gledura,B	2615	0–1	2019	C92	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	6
Keymer,V	2500	Van Foreest,L	2502	½–½	2019	A18	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	6
Paehtz,E	2477	Praggnanandhaa R	2539	½–½	2019	E01	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	6
Kuipers,S	2470	Esipenko,A	2584	½–½	2019	C54	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	6
L'Ami,E	2643	Gledura,B	2615		2019		81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	6.3
Keymer,V	2500	Van Foreest,L	2502		2019		81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	6.4
Maghsoodloo,P	2679	Chigaev,M	2604		2019		81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	6.5
Kuipers,S	2470	Esipenko,A	2584		2019		81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	6.7
Bareev,E	2650	Kovalev,V	2687	½–½	2019	E11	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	7
Gledura,B	2615	Keymer,V	2500	1–0	2019	A07	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	7
Chigaev,M	2604	Paehtz,E	2477	1–0	2019	B90	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	7
Esipenko,A	2584	Korobov,A	2699	1–0	2019	D43	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	7
Praggnanandhaa R	2539	Kuipers,S	2470	1–0	2019	C11	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	7
Van Foreest,L	2502	Maghsoodloo,P	2679	½–½	2019	B06	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	7
Saduakassova,D	2472	L'Ami,E	2643	½–½	2019	A85	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	7
Korobov,A	2699	Kovalev,V	2687	½–½	2019	E94	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	8
Maghsoodloo,P	2679	Gledura,B	2615	½–½	2019	A06	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	8
L'Ami,E	2643	Bareev,E	2650	1–0	2019	D19	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	8
Esipenko,A	2584	Praggnanandhaa R	2539	1–0	2019	B69	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	8
Keymer,V	2500	Saduakassova,D	2472	1–0	2019	A18	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	8
Paehtz,E	2477	Van Foreest,L	2502	0–1	2019	E06	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	8
Kuipers,S	2470	Chigaev,M	2604	0–1	2019	C54	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	8
Kovalev,V	2687	L'Ami,E	2643	½–½	2019	C01	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	9
Bareev,E	2650	Keymer,V	2500	½–½	2019	D02	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	9
Gledura,B	2615	Paehtz,E	2477	1–0	2019	A05	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	9
Chigaev,M	2604	Esipenko,A	2584	½–½	2019	C50	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	9
Praggnanandhaa R	2539	Korobov,A	2699	½–½	2019	C54	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	9
Van Foreest,L	2502	Kuipers,S	2470	0–1	2019	C11	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	9
Saduakassova,D	2472	Maghsoodloo,P	2679	0–1	2019	A34	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	9
Korobov,A	2699	L'Ami,E	2643	½–½	2019	D00	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	10
Maghsoodloo,P	2679	Bareev,E	2650	1–0	2019	B12	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	10
Esipenko,A	2584	Van Foreest,L	2502	1–0	2019	D37	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	10
Praggnanandhaa R	2539	Chigaev,M	2604	0–1	2019	B47	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	10
Keymer,V	2500	Kovalev,V	2687	0–1	2019	A10	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	10
Paehtz,E	2477	Saduakassova,D	2472	½–½	2019	B47	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	10
Kuipers,S	2470	Gledura,B	2615	½–½	2019	B48	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	10
Kovalev,V	2687	Maghsoodloo,P	2679	1–0	2019	B01	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	11
Bareev,E	2650	Paehtz,E	2477	½–½	2019	A00	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	11
L'Ami,E	2643	Keymer,V	2500	½–½	2019	B90	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	11
Gledura,B	2615	Esipenko,A	2584	½–½	2019	A05	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	11
Chigaev,M	2604	Korobov,A	2699	½–½	2019	B90	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	11
Van Foreest,L	2502	Praggnanandhaa R	2539	½–½	2019	B41	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	11
Saduakassova,D	2472	Kuipers,S	2470	½–½	2019	D43	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	11
Korobov,A	2699	Keymer,V	2500	1–0	2019	D35	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	12
Maghsoodloo,P	2679	L'Ami,E	2643	½–½	2019	C02	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	12
Chigaev,M	2604	Van Foreest,L	2502	½–½	2019	E32	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	12
Esipenko,A	2584	Saduakassova,D	2472	1–0	2019	C42	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	12
Praggnanandhaa R	2539	Gledura,B	2615	0–1	2019	A05	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	12
Paehtz,E	2477	Kovalev,V	2687	0–1	2019	A48	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	12
Kuipers,S	2470	Bareev,E	2650	0–1	2019	B13	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	12
Kovalev,V	2687	Kuipers,S	2470	1–0	2019	C07	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	13
Bareev,E	2650	Esipenko,A	2584	1–0	2019	A49	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	13
L'Ami,E	2643	Paehtz,E	2477	1–0	2019	E00	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	13
Gledura,B	2615	Chigaev,M	2604	1–0	2019	B08	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	13
Van Foreest,L	2502	Korobov,A	2699	½–½	2019	B30	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	13
Keymer,V	2500	Maghsoodloo,P	2679	½–½	2019	D71	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	13
Saduakassova,D	2472	Praggnanandhaa R	2539	½–½	2019	A05	81st Tata Steel Challengers 2019	13

Translation from German and additional reporting: Macauley Peterson

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