Some of the higher-rated players that lost their first games in the World Cup managed to level the score by beating their opponents on demand. In the open section, that is what Russian GM Vadim Zvjaginsev did against English IM Ravi Haria, while in the women’s section, former French champion Pauline Guichard and former women’s world champion Anna Ushenina made it into the playoffs despite losing their first games.
Remarkably, more matches saw the higher-rated player failing to advance to the next round in the classical portion despite winning the first game. In the open:
Mwali Chitumbo from Zambia | Photo: Anastasiia Korolkova
In the women’s section:
South African WIM Jesse February almost scored a comeback against Russian GM Valentina Gunina | Photo: Eric Rosen
GM Karsten Müller sent two endgames with instructive annotations, one from each section. Croatian GM Ante Brkic defeated Colombian GM Sergio Barrientos in both their games. In the first one, he did it with the black pieces from an ending which required precise defensive technique by the white player.
Our in-house specialist shows why 47.Kf2 was the correct defence, and not Barrientos’ 47.Kf3, which might seem to be the most natural continuation.
In Bibisara Assaubayeva (KAZ) vs. Yerisbel Miranda (CUB), the Kazakhstani only needed a draw in the second game, but she could have won both encounters had she made the most of her rival’s mistakes in a rook endgame.
Select an entry from the list to switch between games
