Aronian shines in rapid playoff, wins WR Chess Masters

by Carlos Alberto Colodro
2/26/2023 – Levon Aronian convincingly prevailed in a three-player rapid tiebreaker to win the first edition of the WR Chess Masters. After quickly drawing their round-9 game, Aronian and Dommaraju Gukesh saw Ian Nepomniachtchi beating Vincent Keymer to join them in the lead. A double round-robin playoff between the three players followed. Aronian won his first three 10-minute games to secure the title. | Photo: Lennart Ootes

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Gukesh and Nepo reach the playoff

It was a magnificent final day to what turned out to be an enjoyable first edition of the WR Chess Masters in Düsseldorf. The new super-tournament lived up to the expectations, with experienced grandmasters and strong juniors showing their skills throughout.

The day did not start as auspiciously, though, as co-leaders Levon Aronian and Dommaraju Gukesh signed a quick draw to both secure a spot in the playoff for tournament victory. All that was left to know was whether Ian Nepomniachtchi would join them or not. The Russian had the black pieces against an in-form Vincent Keymer and, true to his nature, displayed a fighting spirit since the start.

As hours went by — and all the remaining encounters finished drawn — Nepo and Keymer continued their strategic battle. In an endgame with queens and knights, it was Nepo who prevailed. Experience, this time, triumphed over youth, in a game that lasted over six hours.

 

This result meant that an exhausted Nepo would face Aronian and Gukesh in a rapid playoff (10-minute games with 2-second increments). A double round-robin format would be used to keep the colour balance.

One might think that sitting and waiting for the playoff was a big advantage for the players who entered the round as co-leaders, but according to commentator Yasser Seirawan, entering the deciding tiebreakers after winning your last game (as Nepo did) might turn out to be favourable. The positive emotions connected to the recent victory might be enough to get a victory over the likely anxious contenders.

Ian Nepomniachtchi, Vincent Keymer

Vincent Keymer resigns the game against Ian Nepomniachtchi | Photo: Lennart Ootes

The playoff

As it turned out, it was not a hard-fought tiebreaker mini-tournament. This did not take away from the enjoyment of following the rapid games, though, since Aronian’s display was certainly a treat for the spectators. The US grandmaster, who had been leading the event until round 7 — when he lost to Nepo — kicked off the playoff with back-to-back wins.

Aronian’s 2-0 start meant the next game between Nepo and Gukesh would decide who still had chances to realistically fight for the win. In an ending with rooks and knights, Gukesh’s resourcefulness while a pawn down allowed him to eventually get the win.

 
Gukesh vs. Nepomniachtchi

Nepo was so fixated on stopping White’s h-pawn that he underestimated his opponent’s active chances on the queenside. His 55...Nf6 was the losing mistake (55...Nc5+ or 55...b5 were better alternatives). Gukesh quickly replied 56.Nxc6, and went on to get the win despite losing his far-advanced passed pawn a couple of moves later.

Dommaraju Gukesh, Levon Aronian

Gukesh had a great showing in the classical portion of the tournament — he finished undefeated and climbed to the 20th spot in the world ranking! | Photo: Lennart Ootes

These results meant that Aronian was a win away from tournament victory. And in yet another showcase of creative, imaginative play, he defeated Gukesh to secure a memorable triumph and the €40,000 first prize.

Garry Kasparov’s words following Aronian’s victory at the 2015 Sinquefield Cup are once again fitting to the situation:

The chess world is a better place when Aronian is playing well!

Levon Aronian, Ian Nepomniachtchi

Good pals — Levon Aronian and Ian Nepomniachtchi | Photo: Lennart Ootes

All games - Tiebreaks

 
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1.c4 1 Nf6 3 2.Nc3 2 e5 2 3.Nf3 1 Nc6 1 4.a3 1 d5 5 5.cxd5 2 Nxd5 1 6.Qc2 1 Nxc3! 2       now scores much better than the old 6...Be7. 7.bxc3 2 A28: English Opening: Four Knights Variation. Bd6 12 8.e3 4 0-0 28 9.d4 1 The position is equal. Bg4 28
10.Bd3N 9 Predecessor: 10.Be2 Re8 11.dxe5 Bxe5 12.Nxe5 Nxe5 13.f3 Be6 14.0-0 Bc4 15.e4 Qf6 16.Be3 ½-½ Soltau,A (2541)-Voiculescu,C (2522) W-ch32 q03 email 2012 10...Bxf3 24 11.gxf3 12 11.Bxh7+ Kh8 12.gxf3 g6 13.Bxg6 fxg6 14.Qxg6 Qh4 11...Qh4 1 12.Bb2 11 g6 32 12...Rfe8 with more complications. 13.Ke2 g6 14.Be4 f5 13.d5 33 Na5 21 14.c4 1 b6 1 15.0-0-0 16 Nb7 2 16.Rdg1 49 Nc5 9 17.Bf1! 5 f5 22       Prevents Rg4. Black is pushing. 18.Rg3 14 Rae8 26 19.Rhg1 27 Rf7 21 20.Kb1 11 Kf8 27       Black is much more active. 20...Qxh2?! 21.Bh3= 21.Rh3 13 Qf6 33 22.Be2 52 Ke7 15 23.Bd1 14 Kd8 8 24.Qe2 8 Qe7 15 25.Bc2 9 Kc8 4 26.Ka2 14 Qd7 10 27.Rhg3 15 f4 49 28.Rg4 47 e4! 33 And now ...exf3 would win. 29.exf4 20 exf3 3 29...Rfe7!? 30.Qxf3 2 Kb7 33 31.f5 22 Be5 19 31...Bxh2 32.Rd1 Be5 32.d6+ 42 c6 5 33.Bxe5 14 Rxe5 1 34.Rd1 2 gxf5 11 35.Rg8 9
White should try 35.Rf4 35...Qe6!-+ 7 36.Qc3 1:13
36...Rd7! 1 ...Re2 would be deadly. 36...Re2 37.Kb1 37.Kb1 30 Ne4 23 37...Qxg8 38.Qxe5 Qxc4 39.Qxf5 37...Rxd6-+ 38.Rxd6 Qxd6 38.Bxe4 6 fxe4 22 39.Qd4 1:11 39.Qg3 39...Qxg8 20 40.Qxe5 1 Qxc4-+ 1       Endgame Hoping for ...Qb3+. KQR-KQR 41.Qg3 7 Dodges Qb3+ Qe6 20 42.Kb2 5 c5 11 43.Qf4 1 Rf7 18 Don't blunder 43...Qc4? 44.Rd2 43...b5-+ is more deadly. White must now prevent ...Kb6. 44.Re1 Rf7 45.Rxe4 Rxf4 46.Rxe6 Rxf2+ 47.Kc3 Kc6 44.Qe3? 5       44.d7 Rxd7 45.Rxd7+ Qxd7 46.Qxe4+ Kc7 47.Qf4+ Kb7 48.Qe4+ Kc7 49.Qf4+ Kc6 50.Qe4+ Kd6 51.Qf4+ Kc6 52.Qe4+ Kc7 44...Kc6 8 44...Rf3 45.Qe2 Qb3+       Deflection 46.Ka1 Qa4 45.Kb1? 2 45.Qe2 45...Rd7 8 And not 45...Rf3 46.d7 Rxe3 47.d8N+ Kb5 48.Nxe6= 48.a4+ Kxa4 49.Nxe6 Re2 45...Kd7 ...Rf3 is the strong threat. 46.Re1 Rf3 47.Qxf3 exf3 48.Rxe6 Kxe6 46.Qf4 1 46.f3 46...Qb3+ 3 Weighted Error Value: White=0.58/Black=0.30 Inferior is 46...Rxd6 47.Rxd6+ Qxd6 48.Qxe4+ Qd5 49.Qe8+ Kb7 50.Qe3
0–1
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Nepomniachtchi,I2793Aronian,L27360–12023A28WR Chess Masters-TB 20231
Aronian,L2736Gukesh D27181–02023D38WR Chess Masters-TB 20231
Gukesh D2718Nepomniachtchi,I27931–02023D35WR Chess Masters-TB 20231
Gukesh D2718Aronian,L27360–12023C65WR Chess Masters-TB 20232
 

Results - Round 9

 

Final standings

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Carlos Colodro is a Hispanic Philologist from Bolivia. He works as a freelance translator and writer since 2012. A lot of his work is done in chess-related texts, as the game is one of his biggest interests, along with literature and music.

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