.jpeg)
Winning starts with what you know
The new version 18 offers completely new possibilities for chess training and analysis: playing style analysis, search for strategic themes, access to 6 billion Lichess games, player preparation by matching Lichess games, download Chess.com games with built-in API, built-in cloud engine and much more.
With one round to go at the Tata Steel Masters, Indian prodigies Gukesh Dommaraju and Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu are tied for first place.
Gukesh, the reigning world champion, joined the leading pack in round 7 and became the sole leader in round 9. After securing a victory over Max Warmerdam in round 10, he signed two consecutive draws, allowing Pragg to catch up. Unlike Gukesh, Pragg is not undefeated, as he suffered a loss against Anish Giri in round 9 before bouncing back with three straight wins - curiously, this is Pragg's second hat-trick in the event, as he had also grabbed three wins in a row in rounds 2-4.
Pragg's latest victory saw him defeating Alexey Sarana with the white pieces in a game featuring opposite-side castling. The Serbian grandmaster made a crucial mistake on move 21, opting for 21...Nb5 and overlooking the good-looking 22.Nxa6, which left White in a completely winning position.
The key sequence continued with 22...bxa6 23.Rxc6, and Black had no good response to the looming capture on b5, with White's queen ready to decisively join the attack. Only six moves later, Pragg delivered the final blow with 29.Qb7+, forcing Sarana's resignation.
A Supergrandmaster's Guide to Openings Vol.1 & 2
This video course includes GM Anish Giri's deep insights and IM Sagar Shah's pertinent questions to the super GM. In Vol.1 all the openings after 1.e4 are covered.
Pragg's victory granted him 4.1 rating points, as he has already gained a whopping 22.3 rating points in the event, climbing to number 7 in the live ratings list.
Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu defeated Alexey Sarana | Photo: Tata Steel Chess / Jurriaan Hoefsmit
By the time Pragg had secured a full point, Gukesh was still dealing with a double-edged position against Jorden van Foreest. The game featured a couple of exchange sacrifices, and eventually saw the players entering a sharp, major-piece endgame. Both contenders missed chances to make the most of temporary advantages, but it was Gukesh who faltered last as his 47.Rxe3 allowed Van Foreest to escape with a draw.
The winning move for Gukesh here was 47.Qg6, threatening mate-in-one. Perhaps the line that the world champion miscalculated was 47...Qa8+ 48.d5 e2 49.Qh7+ Kf8, and now White wins with 50.Re3, not 50.Qh8+ (diagram), as Gukesh might have foreseen.
Attack like a Super Grandmaster
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.
In the game, Van Foreest had no trouble finding 47...Qa8+ 48.d5 Qxa2, and it was White who gave a perpetual check to end the game, as Black got his own pair of passers on the queenside.
The third game that was relevant for the fight atop the standings saw Arjun Erigaisi beating Nodirbek Abdusattorov with the white pieces. Remarkably, this was Arjun's first-ever win at the Tata Steel Masters - this is the second time he plays in the main event of the festival, which means that he went 24 games without a single victory.
For Abdusattorov, on the other hand, this loss is likely to bring back bad memories, as he also lost in the penultimate round last year - until round 11, the Uzbek ace was in the sole lead, but his round-12 loss against Vidit Gujrathi resulted in five players going into the final round tied for first place.
In the game, Abdusattorov erred decisively on move 24, when he still had more than one hour on the clock. His 24...Qg5 was a strange mistake for a player of his calibre, as it is certainly necessary to calculate the forcing 25.g4 - Arjun's reply - before placing the queen on g5.
White is simply threatening h3-h4, breaking the pin along the g-file while attacking the queen. In case of 25...Nf6, for example, Black loses the piece after 26.h4 Nxg4 27.fxg5 Nxf2 28.Kxf2 hxg5, with a winning position for White.
Abdusattorov tried 25...f5, but still found himself in a clearly inferior position after 26.h4 Qg6 27.Bxf5 Qf7 28.Rd6 Nf6 29.g5 Nh5 30.Bg4
White is a pawn up and has a strong initiative. Arjun did not convert his advantage flawlessly, but still managed to get a 46-move win.
These results left Abdusattorov a full point behind the co-leaders, which means he needs to win and hope for both frontrunners to lose in order to reach a playoff for tournament victory. In the deciding round, Gukesh will play white against Arjun, Pragg will play black against Vincent Keymer and Abdusattorov will play white against Pentala Harikrishna.
Arjun Erigaisi facing Nodirbek Abdusattorov | Photo: Tata Steel Chess / Jurriaan Hoefsmit
The Endgame Academy Vol.1: Checkmate & pawn endgames
From Mating with a queen; a rook; two bishops; a knight and a bishop; to the basics of pawn endgames – here you will gain the necessary know-how to turn your endgame advantages into victories!
Round 12 results
All but one game ended decisively in the penultimate round of the Challengers section, with sole leader Erwin l'Ami holding a draw from an inferior endgame against Kazybek Nogerbek. Meanwhile, his closest chasers, Thai Dai Van Nguyen and Aydin Suleymanli, both won to catch him in the lead. Nguyen defeated Irina Bulmaga, while Suleymanli beat Frederik Svane.
These results left three players tied for first place heading into the tournament’s final round. Benjamin Bok also remains in contention, as he stands a half point behind the leading trio after beating Divya Deshmukh with the black pieces. The Dutchman will now need a win in the last round while hoping for favourable results on the other boards to claim the title.
How to play the Ruy Lopez with Qe2
To avoid theory battles in well-known lines against Ruy Lopez (Berlin, Open Variation or the Marshall Attack), Sergey Tiviakov invites you into the world of an extraordinary early queen move for White: Qe2 – elegant, effective and easy to learn!
Unlike in the Masters, a tie for first place in the Challengers is decided by tiebreak criteria rather than a playoff. The final round will feature a key matchup between Bok and Nguyen, with the former having the advantage of the white pieces. L'Ami and Suleymanli, on the other hand, will both play with black, facing Bulmaga and Vaishali Rameshbabu, respectively.
Elsewhere in round 12, Nodirbek Yakubboev, Ediz Gürel, and Faustino Oro all scored victories, adding to the round's high number of decisive results.
Aydin Suleymanli beat Frederik Svane, who came from scoring back-to-back victories in the previous two rounds | Photo: Tata Steel Chess / Jurriaan Hoefsmit
Round 12 results
| Advertising |
.jpeg)