Former world champ Magnus Carlsen was this near going dwelling early, however held on and is certainly one of eight gamers nonetheless within the hunt because the FIDE World Cup reached the quarterfinal stage in Baku, Azerbaijan, this week.
The Norwegian prime seed was on the ropes in opposition to younger German star GM Vincent Keymer of their two-game knockout match within the spherical of 32, after Keymer received the primary classical sport and missed a crushing tactic within the second that may have put him by means of.
Still in search of the one main trophy within the sport that has eluded him, Carlsen went on to win the blitz playoff to maintain his hopes alive.
American GMs Fabiano Caruana and Leinier Dominguez Perez are additionally nonetheless within the combat, though they’re paired in opposition to one another within the quarterfinals. Caruana eradicated 2022 World Cup winner GM Jan-Krzysztof Duda with a mannequin positional win at classical time controls from the Black aspect of a Grunfeld Defense within the spherical of 16.
After 14. Qb3 Bxc3 15. Qxc3!? (bxc3 may need been the higher option to preserve the middle fluid), Duda has the benefit of the bishop pair, however the d-pawns clog the middle, the Black knights are energetic, and there are some worrying tender spots in White’s kingside. Caruana brilliantly proceeds to use each benefit.
Black grabs the initiative with 17. Kg2?! (Bf4 appears strong, whereas the pc provides this amusing pathway to a perpetual: 17. Re1!? Nxf2 18. Kxf2 Qh4+ 19. Ke2 Rfe8+ 20. Be3 Rxe3+ 21. Kxe3 Re8+ 22. Kd2 Qf2+ 23. Re2 Rxe2+ 24. Bxe2 Nc4+ 25. Kd1 Ne3+ 26. Kd2 Nc4+ 27. Kd1) Rc8 18. Be3 f5! 19. f3?! (creating extra holes; higher was 19. Rac1 Rxc1 20. Rxc1, easing the strain) Nc4!, and the threatened knight forks pressure extra concessions from White.
By 24. Bf4?! (White has to shake issues up with one thing like 24. b3 Nb6 24. Qa5, although Black stays higher after 24 … Qd7 26. Qg5 Nd5 27. Rf2 Rc3) Qd5!, dominating the board and setting the stage for the ways to come back.
The break will not be lengthy in coming: 26. Qb4 Rf7 27. Rc1 (see diagram; with Black’s items all on such nice squares, there must be some forcing play lurking, and Caruana finds it) g5! 28. Qxc4 (Bxg5? Qxg5 29. Qxc4 Qe3+ 30. Kh4 Qf2+ 31. Kg5 Qf6+ 32. Kh5 g6 mate) gxf4+ 29. Kg2 f3+ 30. Kf1 Qd7 — materials is equal, however the linked handed pawns are a bone in White’s throat.
Black by no means takes his foot off the fuel within the finale: 37. Kf2 (Rxe4 Qg6!, pinning and profitable) Qa6+ 38. Kg1 Qd6! 39. Kf1 Rd1 40. Qe3 (Rxd1 Qxd1+ 41. Qf1 Qxf1+ 42. Kxf1 e3 43. h4 Kg6, with an elementary endgame win) Qd3+ 41. Kf2 (Qxd3 Rxe1+ 42. Kxe1 exd3 43. h4 Kg6, once more profitable) Rd2+ 42. Kg3 f2!, and White had seen sufficient and resigns. After 43. Qxd3 fxe1=Q+ 44. Kf4 Rxd3, it is going to be mate in just some strikes.
Carlsen received off to an ideal begin within the quarterfinals, defeating Indian GM D Gukesh with Black in Tuesday’s first sport. Gukesh is certainly one of 4 Indian gamers nonetheless within the hunt for the highest prize within the knockout occasion.
For each the lads’s and girls’s knockout tournaments, there’s a invaluable prize for doing nicely in Baku: The prime three finishers in each sections earn automated slots within the 2024 Candidates tournaments.
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Serbian GM Aleksandar Matanovic held many distinctions over a protracted life — he was Yugoslavia’s junior champion in 1948, a three-time nationwide champion in one of many world’s strongest chess-playing nations, and was the world’s oldest dwelling grandmaster earlier than passing away Aug. 9 on the age of 93.
But chessplayers across the globe additionally owe Matanovic a deep debt of gratitude for his choice in 1966 within the depths of the Cold War to start out publishing the immediately indispensable Chess Informant, adopted by the manufacturing of the equally iconic Encyclopedia of Chess Openings, the fabled “ECO.”
In the darkish days earlier than the web made all the pieces obtainable in every single place day-after-day, the biannual launch of a brand new Informant, with prime gamers analyzing a whole bunch of video games within the chess Esperanto of exclamation factors, infinity indicators and squiggly traces, was a real occasion. To at the present time, opening up an Informant from the mid-Seventies can revive a complete period and result in a number of hours of blissful time-wasting.
No slouch on the board, Matanovic defeated a number of the finest gamers of the twentieth century over his lengthy profession. Mikhail Tal was on the peak of his powers on the 1958 Portoroz Interzonal in Slovenia and would declare the world title simply two years later. His solely loss within the 21-player area was to Matanovic, who turned the tables on the nice attacker with a shock piece sacrifice proper out of the opening.
On 12. Kb1 b4 13. Nd5!? (not completely a shock, as every other knight transfer simply leaves Black higher) exd5 14. Nf5 Bf8 15. exd5 0-0-0? (lacking a trick — higher was 15 … h6 16. Rhe1+ Kd8 17. Be3 Nc5 18. Bd4, with equality) 16. a3! — Tal would later name his loss right here “annoying,” and this little transfer exhibits why — the nice attacker might be pressured to defend for the subsequent 40 strikes.
Black, being Tal, manages to make issues messy, however by 26. Bxh8 Rxh8 27. Rxd6, Matanovic has two pawns and a rook for 2 minor items and solely White has profitable probabilities.
The commerce of a pair of rooks with 34. Ree7! solely will increase Black’s defensive burden.
White’s rook cleans out the Black queenside and Tal’s handed a-pawn will not be sufficient of a distraction within the remaining play: 45. h4 a3 (this pawn appears scary, however it seems Black can’t pressure it by means of) 46. b5 Bf7 47. Rg1 (Rg7? Na4+ 48. Kb4 a2 49. Rg1 Nb2 50. Kc3 Na4+ and White can’t make progress) a2 48. Kb2 Kb8 49. Rg7 Bb3 50. Rg1 Bf7 51. Ka1, and it seems Matanovic doesn’t want his king’s assist to advance the kingside passers.
The White rook does yeoman’s work within the remaining stage: 54. h5 Nf6 55. h6 Kc7 56. Rg7+ Kb6 57. Re7!, and Black resigns not needing to play out 57. Bxb5 (Kxb5 58. Rxe8 Nxe8 59. h7 wins) 58. Re6+ Kc6 59. Rxf6 Bd3 60. f5, and the pawn will queen.
(Click on the picture above for a bigger view of the chessboard.)
Duda-Caruana, FIDE World Cup, Baku, Azerbaijan, August 2023
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Bd3 c5 6. Nf3 d5 7. cxd5 cxd4 8. exd4 exd5 9. O-O Bg4 10. h3 Bh5 11. g4 Bg6 12. Ne5 Nbd7 13. Nxg6 hxg6 14. Qb3 Bxc3 15. Qxc3 Ne4 16. Qb3 Nb6 17. Kg2 Rc8 18. Be3 f5 19. f3 Nc4 20. Bxe4 fxe4 21. fxe4 Rxf1 22. Rxf1 dxe4 23. Qc3 Kh7 24. Bf4 Qd5 25. Kg3 Rf8 26. Qb4 Rf7 27. Rc1 g5 28. Qxc4 gxf4+ 29. Kg2 f3+ 30. Kf1 Qd7 31. d5 Re7 32. Qc5 Re5 33. Re1 Rxd5 34. Qc2 Qb5+ 35. Kf2 Qb6+ 36. Kf1 Rd4 37. Qf2 Qa6+ 38. Kg1 Qd6 39. Kf1 Rd1 40. Qe3 Qd3+ 41. Kf2 Rd2+ 42. Kg3 f2 White resigns.
Matanovic-Tal, FIDE Interzonal, Portoroz, Slovenia, August 1958
1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Bg5 Nbd7 7. Bc4 Qa5 8. Qd2 e6 9. O-O-O b5 10. Bb3 Bb7 11. f3 Be7 12. Kb1 b4 13. Nd5 exd5 14. Nf5 Bf8 15. exd5 O-O-O 16. a3 h6 17. axb4 Qc7 18. Bf4 g6 19. Nxh6 Ne5 20. Bg5 Bxh6 21. Bxh6 Nc4 22. Bxc4 Qxc4 23. Bg7 Nxd5 24. b3 Qxb4 25. Qxb4 Nxb4 26. Bxh8 Rxh8 27. Rxd6 Nd5 28. c4 Ne3 29. Rf6 Nxg2 30. Rxf7 Rd8 31. Kc2 Nh4 32. Re1 Rd7 33. Re8+ Kc7 34. Ree7 Rxe7 35. Rxe7+ Kb6 36. f4 Ng2 37. Re6+ Ka7 38. Rf6 Be4+ 39. Kc3 a5 40. Kb2 a4 41. b4 Ne3 42. Re6 Nxc4+ 43. Kc3 Bd5 44. Rxg6 Nb6 45. h4 a3 46. b5 Bf7 47. Rg1 a2 48. Kb2 Kb8 49. Rg7 Bb3 50. Rg1 Bf7 51. Ka1 Kc8 52. Rg7 Be8 53. Rg5 Nd7 54. h5 Nf6 55. h6 Kc7 56. Rg7+ Kb6 57. Re7 Black resigns.
• David R. Sands will be reached at 202/636-3178 or by e mail at dsands@washingtontimes.com.
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