1/24/2016 – Perhaps the first sign the round would not be ‘business as usual’ was when Carlsen chose the …g6 variation of the Ruy Lopez, eventually drawing Karjakin. Caruana seemed poised to take advantage, as he obtained a significant edge against Navara, only to get pushed off the board. Still, the biggest surprise was Eljanov failing to convert a dead won endgame against Adams. Report, pictures, analysis.
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The 78th Tata Steel Chess Tournament takes place from January 15 to 31, 2016, in the coastal village of Wijk aan Zee, North Holland. It is one of the most prestigious events in the international chess calendar. The "Wimbledon of Chess" attracts the very best chess grandmasters in the world, along with thousands of amateur players, live event visitors and online visitors from around the world. The tournament has two main player groups, each with 14 players. They are known as the Tata Steel Masters and the Tata Steel Challengers. You will find the schedule, starting times, pairings and results at the bottom of the page.
Round eight
Round 8 Masters - Sunday the 24th
Karjakin, S. - Carlsen, M.
½-½
Adams, M. - Eljanov, P.
½-½
Giri, A. - Tomashevsky, E.
½-½
Hou, Y. - Van Wely, L.
0-1
So, W. - Mamedyarov, S.
½-½
Ding, L. - Wei, Y.
½-½
Navara, D. - Caruana, F.
1-0
Round 8 Challengers - Sunday the 24th
van Foreest, J. - Admiraal, M.
½-½
Bok, B. - Abasov, N.
½-½
Ju, W. - Sevian, S.
0-1
Haast, A. - Batsiashvili, N.
1-0
Antipov, M. - Nisipeanu, L.
½-½
Dreev, A. - Safarli, E.
½-½
l'Ami, E. - Baskaran, A.
½-½
Masters
With Magnus Carlsen having caught up with Fabiano Caruana to share the lead, he became
even more the center of attention if such a thing is possible.
The dour face on Sergey Karjakin's face is the result of Carlsen's unusual ...g6 in
the Ruy Lopez, when he had clearly expected pretty much anything except this.
It was a good performance by both players, and Magnus was extremely focused. You might
doubt that in view of him strolling in the image above, but on the left is famous footballer
Joël Veltman from Ajax, and you will notice that Carlsen seems oblivious to him
The second game of the day was David Navara against Fabiano Caruana. Caruana never
really got anything, until a single window of opportunity opened up, which he missed. After
that, he seemed to lose some of his focus as imprecisions crept in to give David a big win.
David Navara - Fabiano Caruana (Analysis by IM Sagar Shah)
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. Nf3 c5 6. dxc5 Na6 7. g3 Nxc5 8.
Bg2 Nce4 9. O-O Nxc3 10. bxc3 Be7 11. e4 d6 12. e5 dxe5 13. Nxe5 Qc7 14. Qe2
Nd7 (14... Bd6 {was how Karpov liked to play this.} 15. Bf4 Ne8 $1 16. c5 Qxc5
17. c4 f6 18. Nd3 Qc7 19. c5 Bxf4 20. Nxf4 {With an interesting position.
White is a pawn down but has good compensation}) 15. Bf4 Nxe5 16. Bxe5 Bd6 17.
Rfe1 Rb8 18. Rad1 Bxe5 19. Qxe5 Qxe5 20. Rxe5 {Diagram [#] A very important
position to not only understand the situation arising on the board but also to
improve your chess understanding. It is White's dynamic edge of lead in
development against Black's static advantage of better pawn structure. White
has to play actively and be alert not to let Black finish his development. If
he is able to do that, Navara will have Caruana under pressure, but if Caruana
develops his bishop and connects his rooks, there are high chances that Black
will be better. After the game Navara mentioned that he had played a few
practice games on this position. Quite an invaluable experience while playing
this game.} b6 {Naturally trying to develop the bishop on b7.} 21. c5 $1 {
Getting rid of his doubled c-pawns.} f6 (21... Bb7 $2 22. c6 $16) (21... bxc5
22. Rxc5 Bb7 23. Rd7 $1 Bxg2 24. Kxg2 $14 {This is exactly what Black must
avoid. He is passive and will face not an easy defensive task.}) 22. cxb6 (22.
c6 $2 fxe5 23. c7 Rb7 $1 $19) 22... axb6 23. Re2 Kf7 $1 {Defending e6 and
getting ready to go for Ke7 and Rd8 or Re8 and Bb7 to block the check on d7
with Re7.} 24. f4 {Stopping Black from going e5.} e5 $1 {e5 anyway! The threat
of Bg4 allows this move.} (24... Re8 25. Rb2 $14) 25. fxe5 $2 {Navara takes
the risk.} (25. Bd5+ Kg6 26. Re3 {With somewhere around equal position.}) 25...
Bg4 26. e6+ Kg6 27. Be4+ f5 $2 (27... Kh6 {What were the ghosts that Caruana
saw here are unclear. Black is just better and has a tangible advantage. For
eg.} 28. Rdd2 Bxe2 29. Rxe2 Rfe8 30. Bc6 Re7 $17 {Only Black can be better.})
28. e7 $1 Bxe2 (28... Rfe8 29. Rd6+ $1 Kh5 (29... Kf7 30. Bd5#) (29... Kg5 30.
h4+ Kh5 31. Bd3 $18) 30. Bd3 $1 {Maybe the move Caruana missed.} Bxe2 31. Bxe2+
Kg5 32. h4#) 29. Rd6+ Kg5 (29... Rf6 {As Albert Silver points out, " This was
better, and though the text move is far from losing, it is the accumulation of
imprecisions now that will end up costing Black the game."} 30. Rd8 Bb5 31.
Rxb8 fxe4 32. e8=Q+ Bxe8 33. Rxe8 $11) (29... Kf7 $6 30. exf8=Q+ Kxf8 31. Bxf5
$16) 30. exf8=R $5 {Navara doesn't want a queen!} Rxf8 31. Bd5 {White now has
a slight positional edge because his bishops is centrally located and the b6
pawn is weak.} Rf6 32. Rd7 Kh6 33. Kf2 Bb5 34. Rc7 Rd6 35. c4 Be8 36. Rc8 Bd7
37. Rd8 Kg6 (37... b5 $5 38. a4 $5 bxa4 39. Bf7 a3 40. c5 Ra6 41. Rxd7 a2 42.
Bxa2 Rxa2+ 43. Ke3 Rc2 44. Rd5 Kg5 {Should also end in a draw.}) 38. Ke3 Kf6
39. Kd4 Ke7 40. Rg8 {White's advantage is beyond doubt. He has the more active
king, an active bishop and also the rook. It is amazing how David could create
such play from quite a docile position.} Rg6 41. Ke5 Rg5 42. Rb8 Rg6 43. Rh8
Rh6 44. h4 Be6 45. Ra8 Bd7 (45... Bxd5 46. cxd5 $16 {Is a highly unpleasant
rook ending. For eg.} Rg6 47. Ra3 Kd7 48. h5 Rg5 49. Ra7+ Kc8 50. Kd6 $18) 46.
Rh8 Be6 47. a4 Bd7 48. Ra8 Rg6 49. Ra7 Rxg3 $2 (49... Kd8 {was necessary but
Black's defensive task is not so easy anyway.}) 50. a5 $1 {A strong move which
creates a c-passer.} bxa5 51. c5 Kd8 52. h5 $1 {Taking away the g6 square and
preparing Kd6. Black is helpless.} f4 53. Kd6 Bc8 54. c6 Rg5 55. Bf7 {c7 is a
bitter pill to swallow! What a beautiful technical win by Navara! Simply
outstanding. Some people might say that Fabiano was not upto the mark in this
game, but to even put a 2787 opponent under pressure from the opening position
that arose requires great feel of the dynamics. Something which we know that
Navara amply possesses after seeing his king walk to h8 against Wojtaszek!} 1-0
David Navara comments on his win against Caruana
Win or lose, Hou Yifan is a star
Sadly for her fans, it was Van Wely's day to rebound and win, and he scored a nice attack
Hou Yifan - Loek Van Wely
[Event "78th Tata Steel GpA"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee NED"] [Date "2016.01.24"] [Round "8"] [White "Hou Yifan"] [Black "Van Wely, L."] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "B90"] [WhiteElo "2673"] [BlackElo "2640"] [SetUp "1"] [FEN "2r3r1/4kpb1/bq1pp3/p5pR/4P1B1/P2N1P2/1PPQ4/1K1R4 b - - 0 28"] [PlyCount "31"] [EventDate "2016.01.15"] 28... Bc3 29. Qc1 Bd4 30. Qd2 Bxd3 $1 ({The immediate} 30... Rc3 {would fail to } 31. Nc1 Bf6 32. f4 gxf4 33. e5 $1 {The point being to cut off the protection of the rook on c3.} Bxe5 34. Rxe5 $1) 31. cxd3 Rc3 32. Rh2 Rxa3 33. Qc1 Rb8 34. Rc2 Rb3 35. Rdd2 {White's pieces are tripping over each other, and create vulnerabilities Black is quick to exploit.} Be3 36. Qd1 Bxd2 37. Qxd2 Qg1+ 38. Qc1 Qxc1+ 39. Kxc1 R8b7 40. d4 a4 41. Bh5 R3b4 42. d5 exd5 43. exd5 Rd4 0-1
Perhaps one of the most shocking results was Pavel Eljanov's missed win over Adams, after
reaching a completely winning position. That said, one might say it is poetic justice considering
the even worse blunder by Mamedyarov earlier in the event.
It was a funny coincidence to see the day Carlsen plays ...g6 against the Ruy Lopez, Nino Batsiashvili
playing the same thing on her board against Anne Haast. There was one significant difference though:
Haast completely demolished her Georgian opponent in 20 moves flat! Her second straight win.
Baskaran Adhiban seemed in danger of giving back his lead, after his brilliant win against Dreev
in the previous round, but ultimately held on against Erwin L'Ami, and remains the sole leader.
Samuel Sevian also rallied with a win over Ju Wenjun
Replay round eight Challengers games (with times per moves)
The two main tournaments are round robins. Both groups start on the 16th of January 2016 in Wijk aan Zee. The Masters move to Amsterdam on January 21, and to Utrecht on January 27. All rounds in Wijk aan Zee begin at 1.30 p.m., except for the last round on 31 January 2016, which begins at 12.00 p.m. Round five will take place in the Science Center NEMO in Amsterdam, and round ten in the Spoorwegmuseum in Utrecht. Both these external rounds start at 2.00 p.m.
Round
Date
English commentary
German commentary
8
Sunday, 24 Jan
GM Yannick Pelletier
GM Klaus Bischoff
Free
Monday, 25 Jan
9
Tuesday, 26 Jan
GM Daniel King
GM Klaus Bischoff
10
Wednesday, 27 Jan
GM Yannick Pelletier
GM Sebastian Siebrecht
Free
Thursday, 28 Jan
11
Friday, 29 Jan
GM Adrian Mikhalchishin
GM Sebastian Siebrecht
12
Saturday, 30 Jan
GM Karsten Müller
GM Klaus Bischoff
13
Sunday, 31 Jan
GM Karsten Müller
GM Klaus Bischoff
Schedule and results of Tata Steel Masters 2016
Round 1 - Saturday the 16th
Hou, Y. - Karjakin, S.
½-½
So, W. - Giri, A.
1-0
Ding, L. - Adams, M.
1-0
Navara, D. - Carlsen, M.
½-½
Caruana, F. - Eljanov, P.
1-0
Wei, Y. - Tomashevsky, E.
½-½
Mamedyarov, S. - Van Wely, L.
½-½
Round 2 - Sunday the 17th
Karjakin, S. - Van Wely, L.
½-½
Tomashevsky, E. - Mamedyarov, S.
½-½
Eljanov, P. - Wei, Y.
½-½
Carlsen, M. - Caruana, F.
½-½
Adams, M. - Navara, D.
½-½
Giri, A. - Ding, L.
½-½
Hou, Y. - So, W.
½-½
Round 3 - Monday the 18th
So, W. - Karjakin, S.
½-½
Ding, L. - Hou, Y.
½-½
Navara, D. - Giri, A.
½-½
Caruana, F. - Adams, M.
1-0
Wei, Y. - Carlsen, M.
½-½
Mamedyarov, S. - Eljanov, P.
0-1
Van Wely, L. - Tomashevsky, E.
½-½
Round 4 - Tuesday the 19th
Karjakin, S. - Tomashevsky, E.
1-0
Eljanov, P. - Van Wely, L.
1-0
Carlsen, M. - Mamedyarov, S.
½-½
Adams, M. - Wei, Y.
½-½
Giri, A. - Caruana, F.
½-½
Hou, Y. - Navara, D.
1-0
So, W. - Ding, L.
½-½
Round 5 - Thursday the 21st
Ding, L. - Karjakin, S.
1-0
Navara, D. - So, W.
½-½
Caruana, F. - Hou, Y.
½-½
Wei, Y. - Giri, A.
½-½
Mamedyarov, S. - Adams, M.
1-0
Van Wely, L. - Carlsen, M.
0-1
Tomashevsky, E. - Eljanov, P.
½-½
Round 6 - Friday the 22nd
Karjakin, S. - Eljanov, P.
½-½
Carlsen, M. - Tomashevsky, E.
1-0
Adams, M. - Van Wely, L.
½-½
Giri, A. - Mamedyarov, S.
1-0
Hou, Y. - Wei, Y.
½-½
So, W. - Caruana, F.
½-½
Ding, L. - Navara, D.
½-½
Round 7 - Saturday the 23rd
Navara, D. - Karjakin, S.
½-½
Caruana, F. - Ding, L.
1-0
Wei, Y. - So, W.
½-½
Mamedyarov, S. - Hou, Y.
1-0
Van Wely, L. - Giri, A.
0-1
Tomashevsky, E. - Adams, M.
½-½
Eljanov, P. - Carlsen, M.
0-1
Round 8 - Sunday the 24th
Karjakin, S. - Carlsen, M.
½-½
Adams, M. - Eljanov, P.
½-½
Giri, A. - Tomashevsky, E.
½-½
Hou, Y. - Van Wely, L.
0-1
So, W. - Mamedyarov, S.
½-½
Ding, L. - Wei, Y.
½-½
Navara, D. - Caruana, F.
1-0
Round 9 - Tuesday the 26th
Caruana, F. - Karjakin, S.
Wei, Y. - Navara, D.
Mamedyarov, S. - Ding, L.
Van Wely, L. - So, W.
Tomashevsky, E. - Hou, Y.
Eljanov, P. - Giri, A.
Carlsen, M. - Adams, M.
Round 10 - Wednesday the 27th
Karjakin, S. - Adams, M.
Giri, A. - Carlsen, M.
Hou, Y. - Eljanov, P.
So, W. - Tomashevsky, E.
Ding, L. - Van Wely, L.
Navara, D. - Mamedyarov, S.
Caruana, F. - Wei, Y.
Round 11 - Friday the 29th
Wei, Y. - Karjakin, S.
Mamedyarov, S. - Caruana, F.
Van Wely, L. - Navara, D.
Tomashevsky, E. - Ding, L.
Eljanov, P. - So, W.
Carlsen, M. - Hou, Y.
Adams, M. - Giri, A.
Round 12 - Saturday the 30th
Karjakin, S. - Giri, A.
Hou, Y. - Adams, M.
So, W. - Carlsen, M.
Ding, L. - Eljanov, P.
Navara, D. - Tomashevsky, E.
Caruana, F. - Van Wely, L.
Wei, Y. - Mamedyarov, S.
Round 13 - Sunday the 31st
Mamedyarov, S. - Karjakin, S.
Van Wely, L. - Wei, Y.
Tomashevsky, E. - Caruana, F.
Eljanov, P. - Navara, D.
Carlsen, M. - Ding, L.
Adams, M. - So, W.
Giri, A. - Hou, Y.
Schedule and results of Tata Steel Challengers 2016
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Albert SilverBorn in the US, he grew up in Paris, France, where he completed his Baccalaureat, and after college moved to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He had a peak rating of 2240 FIDE, and was a key designer of Chess Assistant 6. In 2010 he joined the ChessBase family as an editor and writer at ChessBase News. He is also a passionate photographer with work appearing in numerous publications, and the content creator of the YouTube channel, Chess & Tech.
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