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Dynamic Chess Ratings, June 09

mjagadishster@gmail.com (Chess Journalist) — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 13:02:00 +0000

1 Topalov 2813
2 Anand 2788
3 Carlsen 2772
4 Aronian 2768
5 Gelfand 2765
6 Jakovenko 2760
7 Kramnik 2759
8 Radjabov 2758
9 Leko 2756
10 Morozevich 2751

Shirov wins MTel Chess 2009

mjagadishster@gmail.com (Chess Journalist) — Sat, 23 May 2009 16:00:00 +0000

Alexei Shirov beat Magnus Carlsen to win the MTel 2009 Chess tournament. In a must win situation for a clear first, Shirov pushed Carlsen to the wall, winning pawn after pawn. Carlsen resigned in a hopeless position in just 30 moves.

Topalov drew his last game.

Topalov vs Ivanchuk

mjagadishster@gmail.com (Chess Journalist) — Sat, 23 May 2009 07:30:00 +0000

MTel 2009 Chess. Chucky made some elementary errors in a long game and erred in playing 43 ... fxg2. Topalov found the winning move but not the best sequence to finish off Ivanchuk. But, the ending was very interesting. Take a look.

Christiansen (2631) vs Hughes (2293), US Chess Champs 2009

mjagadishster@gmail.com (Chess Journalist) — Wed, 20 May 2009 11:22:00 +0000

After a long game and fighting well, black has just played 47 ... Rcf8. Is it a blunder?

White to play and win

Solution: 48. Rh1 Rh7 49. Rxh7 Kxh7 50. Bd6 Rf7 51. Re2 Nf5 52. Rxe6 Nxd6 53. Rxd6 and White wins with the material advantage.

GM Christiansen chose another route to the inevitable win from that position.

Junior vs Hiarcs

mjagadishster@gmail.com (Chess Journalist) — Tue, 19 May 2009 12:45:00 +0000

World Computer Chess Championships.

Junior vs Hiarcs

Black has just played ... 29 .. Rg8. Can you find a win for White?

Shabalov vs Krush

mjagadishster@gmail.com (Chess Journalist) — Mon, 18 May 2009 14:39:00 +0000

Black has just played 22 ... Rad8. Find the winning move.

White to play and win

Solution: 23. Rb3!

Naka Magic

mjagadishster@gmail.com (Chess Journalist) — Sun, 17 May 2009 12:34:00 +0000

Nakamura reached into joint lead with this win over Brooks.

Note: 27 ... Rxf6 is a draw by perpetual check.

Computer Chess and Creativity

mjagadishster@gmail.com (Chess Journalist) — Sun, 17 May 2009 09:12:00 +0000

Is the era of Chess Engine creativity upon us? Or, just because computers can't protest we just pretend that computer Chess is a beast and there is no beauty to it? Fischer and even much before him, Capablanca, had said that Chess was more or less solved. But from recent Super GM and GM comments, it appears that we are seeing a paradigm shift. Computers are now influencing a new approach that is being adopted by an increasing number of players. Even more glaring is the fact that the play at the grassroots level is sharper than ever. Of course, the leader of the move towards this new style of play is none other than who it should be - The World Chess Champion Viswanathan Anand, who crushed Vladimir Kramnik with an amazing display of a combination of Computer preparation and also over the board precise play that even computers would find hard to match.

Read the following quotes.

"Something sinister is lurking behind some magnificent chess victories these days. It is getting harder to tell what is actually created by humans and what is spit out by chess computers during preparation" declares Lubomir Kavalek in a Washington post article
"In a sharp Nimzo-Indian variation, which I prepared for Nigel Short to combat Garry Kasparov in the 1993 world championship, black navigates the stormy lines with unusual ease." says Lubomir

Karpov recently made a controversial statement that Anand was playing like a computer and he was not as strong as he was a decade ago!

Add to this, the forfeit by Mamedyarov, who accused Igor Kursonov that he suspected foul play.

So what do you think? Can accuracy ever be beautiful? Or we do we just strive for beauty and abandon the accurate? Remember the violent, blood thirsty age of the romanticists and attacking Chess a couple of hundred years back? Well, it was eventually taken over by the pragmatics. So are we ready to move to the next stage where precise play overrides adventure?

Live Chess Ranking May 01 2009

mjagadishster@gmail.com (Chess Journalist) — Fri, 01 May 2009 10:45:00 +0000

Live rating list

1 Topalov 2812
2 Anand 2788
3 Aronian 2768
4 Carlsen 2765
5 Kramnik 2759
6 Jakovenko 2757
7 Radjabov 2756
8 Leko 2756
9 Gelfand 2751
10 Morozevich 2751

Tactics anyone?

mjagadishster@gmail.com (Chess Journalist) — Fri, 01 May 2009 06:13:00 +0000

Black was ahead in the game but has just played ...Ba6. Can you find the winning sequence?

White to move and win.

Kamsky beats Grischuk with Black at Nalchik

mjagadishster@gmail.com (Chess Journalist) — Sat, 25 Apr 2009 16:24:00 +0000

Gritty Gata Kamsky beat Alexander Grischuk with the black pieces at the FIDE Grand Prix being held at Nalchick. Note how Kamsky grinds Grischuk down in an equal endgame.

Live Chess Rankings Week 3 - April 2009

mjagadishster@gmail.com (Chess Journalist) — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 18:34:00 +0000

The Live Chess Ratings as on the 3rd week of April 2009. Jakovenko still remains the surprise, or is he really now in the top league with his solid play? Nice to see some older generation names!

1 Topalov 2812
2 Anand 2788
3 Carlsen 2765
4 Kramnik 2759
5 Aronian 2757
5 Jakovenko 2757
7 Radjabov 2756
8 Leko 2754
9 Morozevich 2751
10 Gelfand 2748

Live Chess Ranking List, April 1st Week

mjagadishster@gmail.com (Chess Journalist) — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 15:14:00 +0000

For a long time, the live Chess rating list has been pretty wild. For the first time in many months, the list appears sane. Ivanchuk and Morozevich are in the trough of their "peak and trough" cycle, Grichuk is probably where he belongs. Kramnik probably deserves something better though.

01 Topalov 2812
02 Anand 2789
03 Carlsen 2765
04 Kramnik 2759
05 Radjabov 2756
06 Jakovenko 2756
07 Aronian 2754
08 Leko 2751
09 Morozevich 2751
10 Grischuk 2748

Anand's spectacular win over Stellwagen at Bundesliga

mjagadishster@gmail.com (Chess Journalist) — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 11:02:00 +0000

Anand won an amazing game against Stellwagen in the German league. Watch it to believe it!

Aronian, Tomashevsky, Humpy, Kosintseva Stars of the month

mjagadishster@gmail.com (Chess Journalist) — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 11:00:00 +0000

Aronian won the Melody Amber tournament(rapid and blindfold), Tomashevsky the European Individual, Humpy the Women's Grand Prix and Kosintseva the European Women's titles.

European Individual Chess

mjagadishster@gmail.com (Chess Journalist) — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 13:50:00 +0000

Leaderboard at the European Individual Chess Championships Budva, Montenegro

1 20 GM Inarkiev Ernesto 2656 RUS 5½
2 14 GM Volokitin Andrei 2671 UKR 5
3 53 GM Meier Georg 2608 GER 5
4 33 GM Navara David 2638 CZE 5
5 38 GM Fedorchuk Sergey A 2633 UKR 4½
6 98 GM Sjugirov Sanan 2562 RUS 4½
7 3 GM Naiditsch Arkadij 2693 GER 4½
8 75 GM Banikas Hristos 2582 GRE 4½
9 64 GM Bartel Mateusz 2594 POL 4½
10 91 GM Shomoev Anton 2567 RUS 4½

European Individual Women's Chess Championships

mjagadishster@gmail.com (Chess Journalist) — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 13:45:00 +0000

Standings at the end of the 4th round of the European Individual European Individual Women's Chess Championships at St Petersburg

1 GM Hoang Thanh Trang 4.0 HUN F 2483 3051 +1.13 1 1 1 1
2 GM Socko, Monika 4.0 POL F 2449 3067 +1.39 1 1 1 1
3 GM Dzagnidze, Nana 3.5 GEO F 2518 2682 +0.61 1 1 1 ½
4 GM Lahno, Kateryna 3.5 UKR F 2488 2669 +0.69 1 1 ½ 1
5 IM Mkrtchian, Lilit 3.5 ARM F 2460 2643 +0.70 1 ½ 1 1
6 IM Kovalevskaya, Ekaterina 3.5 RUS F 2442 2640 +0.77 1 1 ½ 1
7 IM Melia, Salome 3.5 GEO F 2422 2609 +0.71 1 1 ½ 1
8 IM Khurtsidze, Nino 3.5 GEO F 2421 2608 +0.72 ½ 1 1 1
9 WGM Shadrina, Tatiana 3.5 RUS F 2416 2633 +0.90 ½ 1 1 1
10 IM Foisor, Cristina-Adela 3.5 ROU F 2412 2611 +0.83 1 1 1 ½

Fifth round of the Women's Grand Prix at Istanbul

mjagadishster@gmail.com (Chess Journalist) — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 13:39:00 +0000

The fifth round of the Women's Grand Prix tournament is on at Istanbul. Here's Hou Yifan's mature win over the experienced legend Pia Cramling.

Yifan is now in the lead along with the other surprise leader, Martha Fierro Baquero.

Live Chess Ratings March Week 2

mjagadishster@gmail.com (Chess Journalist) — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 13:32:00 +0000

Live Chess Rankings after Linares.

Note that the following players are out of the top 20 - Karjakin, Mamedyarov, Kamsky, and Dominguez among others.

1 Topalov 2812
2 Anand 2783
3 Carlsen 2764,6
4 Kramnik 2759
5 Radjabov 2756
6 Aronian 2754
7 Jakovenko 2753
8 Leko 2751
9 Morozevich 2751
10 Grischuk 2748
11 Ivanchuk 2746
12 Shirov 2741
13 Gelfand 2739
14 Wang Yue 2738
15 Movsesian 2734
16 Svidler 2731
17 Gashimov 2730
18 Bacrot 2729
19 Ponomariov 2726
20 Ni 2724

Women's Grand Prix Round 3

mjagadishster@gmail.com (Chess Journalist) — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 20:30:00 +0000

Hou Yifan beat formidable Stefanova of Bulgaria to shoot into joint lead along with Humpy, Martha Fierro, and Zhao Xue. Humpy could only draw her game against Betül Cemre Yıldız. Martha Fierro upset legend Pia Cramling of Sweden while Zhao Xue beat Mamedyarova.

Grischuk wins Linares Chess 2009

mjagadishster@gmail.com (Chess Journalist) — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 07:20:00 +0000

Alexander Grischuk of Russia won the Linares Chess Tournament, 2009. All the final round games were drawn. Grischuk drew his game against Aronian and Ivanchuk tried hard but had to be satisfied with a draw against Dominguez Perez of Cuba. Grischuk finished ahead of Ivanchuk due to the tie break which rewards more wins. Grischuk had 3 wins against 2 by Ivanchuk.

Magnus Carlsen of Norway finished third while India's World Champion V Anand finished fourth.

Final Standings

1. Grischuk, Alexander 8
2. Ivanchuk, Vassily 8
3. Carlsen, Magnus 7.5
4. Anand, Viswanathan 7
5. Wang Yue 6.5
6. Radjabov, Teimour 6.5
7. Aronian, Levon 6.5
8. Dominguez Perez, Leinier 6

Ivanchuk surprises Aronian

mjagadishster@gmail.com (Chess Journalist) — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 13:47:00 +0000

The ever unpredictable Ivanchuk shocked Levon Aronian to move to the joint lead with one round to go at the Linares Chess tournament 2009. In a Semi Slav, Anti-Meran game, Ivanchuk showed that exprience matters and presented some problems to be solved from move 12 (with a novelty). A breathtaking sequence of moves by Ivanchuk and Aronian was already lost in a few moves. He tried some elementary tricks, which Ivanchuk avoided, simplified and won with a lot to spare.

With just one game to go, Ivanchuk has a good chance to win the prestigious tournament since he plays tail ender Dominguez, albeit with the black pieces. Ivanchuk is clearly riding on a strong second wind, wish him all the best for the last game!

In the other games, Carlsen missed a certain win against Radjabov in the late endgame and had to eventually agree to a draw.

Here's Carlsen's disappointing draw against Radjabov

Carlsen beats Linares leader Grischuk

mjagadishster@gmail.com (Chess Journalist) — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 06:01:00 +0000

Magnus Carlsen conquered overnight leader Grischuk to move to joint second place at Linares. Carlsen presented complicated challenges for Grischuk in the middle game and then sacrificed a bishop to gain an unstoppable connected pawn pair. Grischuk resigned when Carlsen threaten Queening of the pawn and also win heavy material.

All the other games ended in draws.

Interview with GM Norm holder IM S P Sethuraman

mjagadishster@gmail.com (Chess Journalist) — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 07:18:00 +0000

I first saw this shy but confident looking lad at Sangli, in a very small tournament. International Master Sethuraman was attending the tournament as a part of his family's journey to Shirdi, a favorite religious place for many. He was one of the two IMs participating at that tournament. Although he finished tied for the first position, it was obviously not his best performance, one reason being that he had played two consecutive tournaments before that tournament.

After a couple weeks of rest and preparation, he proceeded to play at Parsvnath and Gurgaon, two major tournaments held in India. The results were there for all to see and appreciate. Sethuraman managed to get his GM norm at Parsvnath and just missed another by half a point. In the bargain, he beat some very strong GMs like Gleizerov, Iuldachev, Safin and drew against Kuzubov, Ulibin, Kunte, Ismagambetov. The only blip being his loss against GM Das. What an amazing turnaround! Here was one of India's most promising prodigies playing like a seasoned professional even before he turned 16 (on Feb 25)

Sethuraman playing GM Ulibin

imchess.com: Hello! Congrats on your amazing performances in the last couple of months!
Sethuraman: Thanks.

imchess: Did you finish your exams?
Sethuraman: I finished my model exams and the final exams start on March 4th.

imchess: Oh! I'll try to wind this interview fast so that you can concentrate on your studies.
Sethuraman: No, its fine. It's good to have a break in between. I have finished most of the preparations. (Sethuraman is giving his 11th standard exams and is a good student having scored 83% marks in his 10th standard exams. His school Velammal boasts of other strong players such as Adhiban and Shyam Sundar. They encourage Chess a lot.)

imchess: How did you turnaround your form from normal to really outstanding in a matter of a couple of months? At Sangli, you just about performed at your expected rating and at Parsvnath and Gurgaon, you really played at GM levels.
Sethuraman: At Sangli I did not have enough rest before the event. I was playing 3 tournaments consecutively.

Sethuraman with Anand at the Delhi tournament, where Anand was making one of his first public appearances after his World Championship title win

Watch games where Sethuraman beat GMs

GM Safin vs IM Sethuraman 0-1

GM Iuldachev vs IM Sethuraman 0-1

imchess: Who is your coach?
Sethuraman: My father, Panaiappan (a National B player) taught me Chess at age 5 and has been my coach. I also had a 21 day coaching session with GM R B Ramesh. I was also trained by IM P Konguvel.

Sethuraman after coming back with a medal at the World Youth Chess Championships. GM R B Ramesh is sitting at the extreme right. Also in the center is elite GM K Sasikiran

imchess: How do you usually prepare for tournaments?
Sethuraman: I prepare using my laptop using Chess engines. I also prepare from relevant books.

imchess: Do you prepare with your Schoolmates like Adhiban? Many strong GMs play practice matches with strong players of their cities or countries. Even Anand worked with Sasikiran and Ganguly from India.
Sethuraman: I used to do that earlier and we even visited each other's homes to prepare but now it is difficult to find time.

imchess: How has this rating period been for you?
Sethuraman: This period has been good for me. I have gained points from the two major tournaments and also earned a GM norm. I missed another norm by just half a point. In addition to this, I finished 5th at Parsvnath in a strong field.

imchess: Did you have any specific strategies for these two tournaments? Any goals?
Sethuraman: I did not perform at my best at the last two tournaments before Parsvnath, so I was determined to correct that and also was aiming to gain ELO points and get the GM norm.

imchess: I noticed that you sometimes simplify to favorable endgames directly, for example against GM Safin. Is that deliberate or is it because the position demands that?
Sethuraman: With Black, I try to equalize and wait for the opponent to push hard and make an error. Against Safin, I had prepared the particular variation in detail and hence simplified to a favorable position. I am comfortable in all positions. For example, in the game against Gelizerov, I had a pleasant position right from the opening and he actually offered me a draw on move 13 but I refused since I had prepared upto move 16 for that particular game. I played on since I am comfortable in such positions and eventually won. It also happened to be my first breakthrough with the black pieces.

Sethuraman on his way to beating GM Gleizerov

imchess: What about the games with the strong GM Kuzubov and GM Iuldachev?
Sethuraman: I have played Kuzubov twice and drawn both games, which mostly turned to be major pieces endgames. Against Iuldachev, I played aggressively and beat him since I was very confident after earning my 10 game GM norm and also because I was more relaxed.

imchess: What about encounters with Indian GMs? You will probably start meeting them over the board more often now.
Sethuraman: I have played some strong Indian GMs like Ganguly, Kunte, Gopal and so on. My score was not favorable so far, but off late I have started played much better against them.

imchess: What about overseas exposure? Have you played good tournaments out of India?
Sethuraman: I have played the World Youth Championships, where I won medal. Under the Sai Scheme, I went to Spain, Biel (Switzerland), and France.

imchess: Do you have sponsors to travel and play?
Sethuraman: My father is scouting for sponsors so that I can play more regularly in important tournaments. He is a full time Chess coach.

imchess: What are your ambitions in Chess say 2-3 years from now and 10 years down the line?
Sethuraman: I first want to become a GM and then aim for a rating of 2600 over the next 2 years. In the longer term, I want to become an elite GM of say 2700 and above.

imchess: Who are your idols in Chess?
Sethuraman: Fischer and Kasparov inspire me. Among the current players, Anand and Topalov are my heroes. I like Fischer's playing style a lot.

imchess: Have you had a chance to meet your Idols? Any advice they gave you?
Sethuraman: Yes, I met Anand at his home and also after his Bonn win. He gave me advice for one of my tendencies to push too hard in clearly drawn positions and losing sometimes. He told me to assess the position objectively and compromise if it is a clear draw, especially with black pieces. For example, I lost many games that way in France 2005 at the World Youths.

imchess: Do you prepare with physical and mental training for your tournaments?
Sethuraman: Yes, I go for jogs and also do Yoga and Meditation.

imchess: What is your next tournament? Are you playing at the Mumbai Mayor's tournament?
Sethuraman: My next tournament is in Dubai after my exams. I will not be able to play at the Mumbai tournament since it clashes with Dubai.

imchess: Thank you for your time and good luck for your future! Prepare well for your exams.
Sethuraman: Thank you.

Interview by M Jagadish
Editor, imchess.com

Live Chess Ratings March 01

mjagadishster@gmail.com (Chess Journalist) — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 07:14:00 +0000

Live Chess Rankings to start the month of March

1 Topalov 2812
2 Anand 2786
3 Carlsen 2766
4 Aronian 2765
5 Kramnik 2759
6 Jakovenko 2753
7 Radjabov 2753
8 Leko 2751
9 Morozevich 2751
10 Grischuk 2750

Topalov sealed his position at the top. Note that the match against Kamsky did not get him too many points even though the final score was pretty one sided. Aronian is slowly creeping up to the top and regaining his earlier form of a couple years back. Jakovenko is No. 6! The most significant change in the past few days is definitely Grischuk's climb back into the top 10.