Tata Steel Chess Tournament 2021

[Wayne Komer]

Tata Steel Chess Tournament 2021

January 24, 2021

Round Eight

Sensation! Esipenko beat Carlsen

Round 8, Jan. 24
Esipenko, Andrey – Carlsen, Magnus
B84 Sicilian, Scheveningen, Classical variation

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be2 e6 7.Be3 Be7 8.g4 b5 9.g5 Nfd7 10.a3 Bxg5 11.Qd2 Bxe3 12.Qxe3 Qh4 13.Rg1 g6 14.O-O-O Qe7 15.f4 Bb7 16.Kb1 Nc6 17.Ncxb5 axb5 18.Nxc6 Bxc6 19.Qc3 O-O 20.Qxc6 d5 21.exd5 Rfc8 22.d6 Qd8 23.Qxb5 Rcb8 24.Qc4 Rxa3 25.Qc7 Qe8 26.Rg5 Ra4 27.Ra5 Rab4 28.b3 R4b7 29.Qc3 Qd8 30.Bf3 Rb4 31.Qc7 Qf6 32.Ra8 Rxa8 33.Bxa8 Qf5 34.Kb2 Rb5 35.Qxd7 Rc5 36.Rc1 Qxf4 37.Qe8+ Kg7 38.d7 1-0


Position after White’s 25.Qc7



Magnus has been surprised in the opening and Sesse is already giving Esipenko a +2 advantage!

17.Ncxb5! axb5 18.Nxc6 Bxc6 19.Qc3! looks close to completely busted for Magnus!

This. Is. Unbelievable.

Tarjei J. Svensen - Magnus' worst loss in #TataSteelChess since Carlsen-Giri '2011?

Jan: "I'm shocked, I'm speechless! It just looks like this is so bad that even Magnus being Magnus & all the magic he can do here it's just not going to help. Esipenko has 1 hr 10 mins, he has a completely winning position, he should win"

Leave everything and watch this, Magnus on the verge of a defeat

When you're 18 and you're about to beat Magnus Carlsen, the reigning world champion, in your first classical game against him.

Magnus reaches across and shakes Andrey’s hand and the game is over. The arbiter gets the signed sheets and Andrey sits at the board for a moment smiling and then walks around the dais as if in disbelief, then leaves the hall.

(to be continued)

[Hans Jung]

More spice to the tournament. Magnus has lost and badly. To add to all the others fighting for first is Magnus getting mad and his competitive instincts rising to the fore. Could be a glorious final five rounds.

[Wayne Komer]

Tata Steel Chess Tournament 2021

January 24, 2021

Round Eight (continued)

Round Eight Question – In 1994 Wijk aan Zee hosted the FIDE Candidates Quarterfinal Matches. Which player won the most games?

How many times, if any, has the player won (or tied for first in) the top round-robin group?

Answer – Valery Salov (4 wins), 2 times (1992 and 1997)

Peter remembers the Salov games. He himself played at Wijk in 1992 (Group III) and he spent each evening watching the top players analyzing the games. It was his first meeting with Boris Gelfand. In 1996, at Belgrade, Salov faced Peter and beat him soundly. Peter says it gave him a lesson which he cannot forget. See:

https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1090520
_____________

Andrey has just given a short interview after beating Magnus. He said that it is the best day of his life and he will sleep well tonight.

Chess24- 18-year-old Andrey Esipenko crushes World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen in their first classical game in one of the most spectacular upsets in Wijk aan Zee since Anish Giri beat Magnus in 2011!

Magnus – tweet after the game: Had a very unpleasant experience at the playing hall today, felt like a swab was being shoved into my nostril and all the way inside my brain, causing a lot of pain. Covid test after the game was not that bad though

Round 8, Jan. 24
MVL – Van Foreest, Jorden
C78 Ruy Lopez, Moeller Defence

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Bc5 6.c3 O-O 7.d4 Ba7 8.Bg5 h6 9.Bh4 d6 10.Bxc6 bxc6 11.dxe5 dxe5 12.Nxe5 Qe7 13.Nxc6 Qxe4 14.Nxa7 Bh3 15.gxh3 Rfd8 16.Nd2 Qxh4 17.Qf3 Rxa7 18.Nb3 c5 19.Qg3 Qh5 20.Rae1 Rd5 21.f4 Rad7 22.Re5 Rxe5 23.fxe5 Ne4 24.Qg4 Qxg4+ 25.hxg4 Rd5 26.Re1 Nd2 27.Nxd2 Rxd2 28.e6 fxe6 29.Rxe6 Rxb2 30.Rxa6 Rc2 31.Rc6 Rxc3 32.Kg2 Ra3 1/2-1/2

Round 8, Jan. 24
Donchenko, Alexander – Tari, Aryan
E04 Catalan, open

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.Bg2 dxc4 5.Nf3 c5 6.O-O Nc6 7.Ne5 Bd7 8.Na3 cxd4 9.Naxc4 Be7 10.Bf4 Rc8 11.Nxd7 Qxd7 12.Ne5 Nxe5 13.Bxe5 d3 14.Qxd3 Qxd3 15.exd3 b6 16.Bb7 Rd8 17.Bc6+ Kf8 18.a4 Bd6 19.Bc3 Rc8 20.Bb7 Rc7 21.Bg2 Ke7 22.a5 g6 23.Rfe1 Rd8 24.Rad1 Rcd7 25.Bc6 Rc7 26.Bg2 Rcd7 27.Bc6 Rc7 28.Bf3 Rcd7 29.d4 Kf8 30.Bc6 Re7 31.d5 Nxd5 32.Bxd5 exd5 33.Rxd5 Rxe1+ 34.Bxe1 Ke7 35.axb6 axb6 36.Kf1 1/2-1/2

Round 8, Jan. 24
Duda, Jan-Krzysztof – Anton Guijarro, David
C50 Giuoco Piano

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.O-O Nf6 5.d3 d6 6.c3 a5 7.Re1 O-O 8.Bg5 h6 9.Bh4 g5 10.Bg3 Ba7 11.Na3 Bg4 12.Nc2 Bh5 13.h3 Kg7 14.Ne3 Ne7 15.Bb3 Qd7 16.Bc2 Bxe3 17.Rxe3 Ng6 18.d4 Qb5 19.a4 Qb6 20.Ra3 Rfe8 21.Rb3 Qa7 22.Qd2 Rad8 23.h4 Nh7 24.hxg5 hxg5 25.Nh2 c5 26.Nf1 Nf4 27.f3 Bg6 28.Bf2 Nf6 29.Re1 b6 30.Ne3 Qc7 31.Ra3 Rh8 32.Raa1 Rh6 33.Rad1 cxd4 34.cxd4 Rdh8 35.Bg3 N4h5 36.Bh2 Nf4 37.Bg3 d5 38.Qc3 Qxc3 39.bxc3 exd4 40.Rxd4 dxe4 41.Bxe4 Rh1+ 42.Kf2 Rxe1 43.Kxe1 Rh1+ 44.Kf2 Nxe4+ 45.fxe4 Ne6 46.Be5+ Kh7 47.Rd6 Ra1 48.Nd5 Bxe4 49.Nf6+ Kg6 50.g4 Bc2 1/2-1/2

Round 8, Jan. 24
Harikrishna, Pentala – Firouzja, Alireza
D10 QGD Slav Defence, Exchange variation

1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.cxd5 cxd5 4.Bf4 Nc6 5.e3 Bf5 6.Bb5 e6 7.Nc3 Ne7 8.Rc1 a6 9.Be2 f6 10.g4 Bg6 11.Nf3 Bf7 12.Bg3 h5 13.g5 Ng6 14.gxf6 h4 15.fxg7 Bxg7 16.Be5 Ngxe5 17.dxe5 Nxe5 18.Nd4 Rc8 19.O-O Nc6 20.Bg4 Nxd4 21.exd4 Rc6 22.Ne2 h3 23.Rc3 Rh4 24.Rg3 Qc7 25.Re1 Kf8 26.Qd3 e5 27.Qa3+ Qd6 28.Qxd6+ Rxd6 29.Bxh3 exd4 30.Nc1 Rdh6 31.Bg2 Rxh2 32.Nd3 R2h5 33.f4 Rc6 34.Bf3 Rhh6 35.Rg2 Rhg6 36.f5 Rh6 37.Nf4 d3 38.Nxd3 Bd4+ 39.Nf2 Rc2 40.Kf1 Rxb2 41.Re2 Rb1+ 42.Re1 Rhb6 43.Nd3 Bc3 44.Rxb1 Rxb1+ 45.Kf2 Ke7 46.Rh2 Kf6 47.Ke3 Kg5 48.Nc5 Rb5 49.Rh7 Bg8 50.Rc7 Kxf5 51.Nxb7 d4+ 52.Kf2 Rb2+ 53.Be2 Kf4 54.Nd6 Bd2 55.Kf1 Rb1+ 56.Bd1 d3 0-1

A changing of the generations in chess? 17-year-old Alireza Firouzja wins a 3rd game in a row to take the sole lead in Wijk aan Zee, a full 1.5 points ahead of Magnus

Round 8, Jan. 24
Caruana, Fabiano – Giri, Anish
A45 Queen’s Pawn game

1.d4 Nf6 2.Nc3 d5 3.Bf4 g6 4.e3 Bg7 5.Be2 c6 6.Qd2 a5 7.Nf3 Bg4 8.Ne5 Bxe2 9.Qxe2 a4 10.a3 Nh5 11.h4 Nxf4 12.exf4 h5 13.O-O-O Nd7 14.g4 hxg4 15.Qxg4 Nf6 16.Qf3 e6 17.Kb1 Nh5 18.Ne2 Bf6 19.Ng3 Qc7 20.Qe3 Qe7 21.Rde1 Ng7 22.Qd2 Rxh4 23.Rxh4 Bxh4 24.Rh1 Nf5 25.Nxf5 gxf5 26.Qc3 Bf6 27.Nxc6 Qc7 28.Qg3 Kd7 29.Ne5+ Bxe5 30.fxe5 Rd8 31.Qg7 Kc8 32.Rh8 Qe7 33.Rxd8+ Kxd8 34.Qg8+ Kc7 35.Ka2 f6 36.exf6 Qxf6 37.Qg3+ f4 38.Qc3+ Kb8 39.f3 Qg6 40.b3 axb3+ 41.Kxb3 Qg1 42.Kb2 Qf1 43.a4 Qa6 44.Qb4 Ka7 45.Kb3 Qf1 46.Qa5+ Kb8 47.Qd8+ Ka7 48.Qa5+ Kb8 1/2-1/2

Caruana 1/2-1/2 Giri means we currently have 4 co-leaders - Firouzja may join them, or take the sole lead with a win!

Round 8, Jan. 24
Grandelius, Nils – Wojtaszek, Radoslaw
B18 Caro-Kann, Classical

1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 dxe4 4.Nxe4 Bf5 5.Ng3 Bg6 6.h4 h6 7.Bd3 Bxd3 8.Qxd3 e6 9.N1e2 Nf6 10.Bd2 Nbd7 11.O-O-O Qc7 12.Kb1 c5 13.dxc5 Nxc5 14.Qc4 Be7 15.Bf4 Qb6 16.Nd4 O-O 17.Qb5 Qxb5 18.Nxb5 Ng4 19.Rdf1 Rfd8 20.Nc3 f5 21.f3 Nf6 22.Nge2 a6 23.Be3 Kf7 24.g4 Nd5 25.Nxd5 Rxd5 26.Nf4 Rd7 27.Rhg1 e5 28.Ne2 Rc8 29.gxf5 Bxh4 30.Nc3 b5 31.Bxc5 Rxc5 32.Ne4 Rc6 33.Rg4 Bd8 34.c3 h5 35.Rg2 h4 36.Rfg1 Kf8 37.Rg4 Rf7 38.Kc2 Be7 39.Kd2 Rh6 40.Ke2 h3 41.f6 Bxf6 42.Rh1 Bd8 43.Rg3 h2 44.Rg2 Rh3 45.Rf2 g5 46.Rhxh2 Rh4 47.Rhg2 Rg7 48.Rf1 Be7 49.Rfg1 Kf7 50.b3 Ke6 51.Ke3 Kd5 52.Rd1+ Ke6 53.Rdg1 Kd5 54.Rd1+ Ke6 55.Rdg1 1/2-1/2

Standings after Round Eight

1 Firouzja 5.5
2-5 Giri, Caruana, Esipenko, Van Foreest 5
6 Grandelius 4.5
7-8 Harikrishna, Carlsen 4
9 Wojtaszek 3.5
10-13 Anton, MVL, Tari, Duda 3
14 Donchenko 2.5

After losing to Carlsen in Round 1, Firouzja goes into the 2nd rest day as the sole leader, while Magnus is down in 8th place! Alireza plays a certain Esipenko on Tuesday...

Monday is a rest day, then, Tuesday we have Firouzja-Esipenko and Wednesday Grandelius-Firouzja and Caruana-Carlsen and Friday, Firouzja-Caruana and Carlsen-Giri.

[Hans Jung]

Firouzja played for checkmate at the end! WoW! (look at that king march) He has a one and a half point lead on Magnus for first with 5 rounds left. Can Magnus catch up or is he done? Very interesting!

[Hans Jung]

Fabulous Fabi has proven (against Wojtaszek) that triple pawns are worth more than two bishops (tongue in cheek) Just fabulous!
and now Fabiano Caruana is in first place! (maybe temporarily)

[Wayne Komer]

Tata Steel Chess Tournament 2021

January 26, 2021

Round Nine

Round 9 Question – How many players have won (or tied for 1^st in) the top group (all-time) while representing a country that no longer exists? Name the countries.

Answer – 20 players: USSR (13) and Yugoslavia (7)

Round 9, Jan. 26
Carlsen, Magnus – Grandelius, Nils
B90 Sicilian, Najdorf

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Qd3 e6 7.a4 Nc6 8.Nxc6 bxc6 9.Qg3 Bb7 10.Be2 Be7 11.Bf4 e5 12.Be3 O-O 13.O-O Kh8 14.a5 Nd7 15.Rfd1 f5 16.exf5 d5 17.Na4 d4 18.Bd2 c5 19.Qh3 Bg5 20.Bxg5 Qxg5 21.Re1 Be4 22.Bd3 Bxf5 23.Bxf5 Rxf5 24.Nb6 Nxb6 25.axb6 h6 26.Qd3 Rb8 27.Rxa6 Rf6 28.g3 Rfxb6 29.Rxb6 Rxb6 30.f4 Qd8 31.Rxe5 Rxb2 32.Rxc5 Qa8 33.Kf2 Rb8 34.Qf3 Qa7 35.Qd5 Qa1 36.Qe5 Qb2 37.Rc6 Kh7 38.Rc7 Rg8 39.Kg2 Qb4 40.Qe4+ Kh8 41.Rd7 Qd2+ 42.Kh3 Qd1 43.Re7 Qh5+ 44.Kg2 Rc8 45.f5 Qd1 46.Re8+ Rxe8 47.Qxe8+ Kh7 48.Qe4 Kh8 49.Qe8+ Kh7 50.Qg6+ Kh8 51.f6 Qe2+ 52.Kh3 Qe6+ 53.Kh4 gxf6 54.Qxh6+ Kg8 55.Qg6+ Kf8 56.g4 Qe5 57.h3 Ke7 58.Qf5 Qe3 59.Kh5 Qxh3+ 60.Kg6 Kd6 61.Kxf6 Qe3 62.g5 Qe7+ 63.Kg6 Qe8+ 64.Kg7 Qe7+ 65.Kg8 1-0

30...c4! could have saved Nils, but after 30...Qd8? 31.Rxe5 Magnus is on course to win a second game of #TataSteelChess and return to a plus score!

Magnus Carlsen bounces back to beat Grandelius and is 1 point off the leaders with 4 #TataSteelChess rounds to go! Tomorrow he plays Fabiano

Round 9, Jan. 26
Tari, Aryan – Duda, Jan-Krzysztof
B51 Sicilian, Canal-Sokolsky Attack

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.Bb5+ Nd7 4.d4 cxd4 5.Nxd4 Nf6 6.Bd3 Nc5 7.Nc3 a6 8.O-O g6 9.Nb3 Nxd3 10.cxd3 Bg7 11.a4 Bg4 12.f3 Qb6+ 13.d4 Be6 14.Ra3 O-O 15.Be3 Rab8 16.Re1 Bxb3 17.Rxb3 Qa5 18.Qd3 Rfc8 19.Bd2 Qc7 20.Rb4 e6 21.Rc1 d5 22.e5 Nd7 23.Ne2 Qd8 24.Rxc8 Qxc8 25.Rb3 Qc4 26.a5 b5 27.Nc1 Qxd3 28.Nxd3 Rc8 29.Nb4 Nb8 30.Rc3 Rc4 31.b3 Rxc3 32.Bxc3 Bf8 1/2-1/2

Round 9, Jan. 26
Van Foreest, Jorden – Donchenko, Alexander
C84 Ruy Lopez, Closed

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.d3 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.a4 Bd7 9.h3 O-O 10.Nc3 Na5 11.Ba2 b4 12.Ne2 c5 13.Ng3 Rb8 14.Nd2 Qc8 15.Nc4 Nxc4 16.Bxc4 Be6 17.a5 g6 18.Bg5 Bxc4 19.dxc4 Qe6 20.Qd3 Rfd8 21.b3 Nh5 22.Be3 Nxg3 23.fxg3 h5 24.Qe2 Kg7 25.Rf2 Rh8 26.Raf1 Rbf8 27.Qd3 f6 28.Bd2 Rf7 29.Be3 Rhf8 30.Qd2 Rh8 31.Qd3 Rhf8 32.Qd2 Rh8 1/2-1/2

John Hartmann - The @chess24com team of @GMJanGustafsson, Peter Leko, and @LawrenceTrentIM has just spent the last five minutes talking pro wrestling and it's like the two worlds of my childhood have collided in a cloud of steroids and queen endgames.

Who could have guessed that Peter Leko was as addicted to pro wrestling as to chess at the time he was about to become the world's youngest ever grandmaster!

Round 9, Jan. 26
Anton Guijarro, David – Harikrishna, Pentala
B56 Sicilian, Venice Attack

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 e5 6.Bb5+ Nbd7 7.Nf5 a6 8.Ba4 b5 9.Bb3 Nc5 10.Bg5 Bxf5 11.exf5 Be7 12.Bxf6 Bxf6 13.Qd5 O-O 14.Ne4 Qa5+ 15.Ke2 Qb4 16.Kf3 Be7 17.Rhd1 Rac8 18.c3 Qxe4+ 19.Qxe4 Nxe4 20.Kxe4 Rfd8 21.Rd3 Kf8 22.Rad1 a5 23.a3 Rc7 24.Rd5 Rb8 25.g3 Rb6 26.h4 Rcc6 27.R5d3 Bd8 28.Bd5 Rc8 29.Kf3 h6 30.Ra1 Rbb8 31.Rd2 Rc5 32.Ke4 Rc7 33.f3 Rc5 34.Rh2 Rbc8 35.Rd2 Rb8 36.Rg2 Rbc8 37.Rh2 Bb6 38.Rd2 Bd8 39.Rh2 Bb6 40.Rd2 Bd8 41.Bb3 R8c6 42.Rd5 Ke7 43.Rxc5 dxc5 44.Bd5 Rb6 45.b4 1/2-1/2

Round 9, Jan. 26
Wojtaszek, Radoslaw – Caruana, Fabiano
E94 King’s Indian, Orthodox variation

1.c4 Nf6 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 g6 4.Nc3 Bg7 5.e4 O-O 6.Be2 e5 7.O-O Bg4 8.Be3 Bxf3 9.Bxf3 exd4 10.Bxd4 Nc6 11.Be3 Re8 12.Qd2 Nd7 13.Rad1 Bxc3 14.Qxc3 Qf6 15.Qc1 Nc5 16.Qb1 Qe6 17.Rfe1 Qxc4 18.b3 Qc3 19.Bd2 Qf6 20.Bc1 h5 21.Bb2 Ne5 22.Be2 h4 23.Qc1 g5 24.Bb5 Re7 25.Re3 Qg6 26.Be2 Rae8 27.Qc2 Ne6 28.f3 Nf4 29.Bf1 c6 30.Qf2 Re6 31.Rc3 d5 32.g3 hxg3 33.hxg3 dxe4 34.gxf4 gxf4+ 35.Qg2 exf3 36.Qxg6+ Rxg6+ 37.Kh1 f2 38.Bh3 Nc4 39.Rxc4 Re1+ 0-1

Defending Champion Fabiano Caruana beats Wojtaszek and is likely to go into tomorrow's game against Magnus Carlsen as sole or joint leader!

Mixed feelings about Caruana's game. He started by doing what you're always told not to do when playing KID, and ended up getting everything you dream of

Round 9, Jan. 26
Firouzja, Alireza – Esipenko, Andrey
D02 Queen’s Bishop game

1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 d5 3.Bf4 e6 4.e3 c5 5.Nbd2 Nc6 6.c3 Nh5 7.Bg5 f6 8.Bh4 g6 9.h3 cxd4 10.cxd4 Bd6 11.Bd3 O-O 12.a3 Qc7 13.Qc2 Kh8 14.g4 Ng7 15.b4 a6 16.Rc1 Ne8 17.Qb2 Kg8 18.g5 f5 19.Nb3 Ng7 20.Na5 Bd7 21.O-O Rae8 22.Nxc6 Bxc6 23.a4 Nh5 24.b5 axb5 25.axb5 Qb6 26.Rc2 Bd7 27.Re1 Rc8 28.Kg2 Rxc2 29.Qxc2 Rc8 30.Qd2 Qa7 31.Qb2 Qb6 32.Re2 Qa5 33.Qb1 Rc3 34.Ra2 Ra3 35.Rxa3 Qxa3 36.Qc2 Qa5 37.Qe2 Qc3 38.Qd2 Qxd2 39.Nxd2 b6 40.Nf3 Kf7 41.Be2 1/2-1/2

A tense draw in Firouzja-Esipenko leaves Firouzja in the joint lead with Caruana with 4 rounds to go

Round 9, Jan. 26
Giri, Anish – MVL
B90 Sicilian, Najdorf, Adams Attack

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.h3 e5 7.Nf3 Be7 8.g4 O-O 9.g5 Nh5 10.Bc4 Be6 11.Bb3 g6 12.Be3 Nd7 13.Qd2 Rc8 14.O-O-O Nc5 15.Bxc5 Rxc5 16.h4 Nf4 17.Kb1 Qa5 18.Ne1 Rfc8 19.Nd3 Nxd3 20.Qxd3 Rxc3 21.bxc3 d5 22.exd5 Bf5 23.Qd2 Bd6 24.c4 Qb6 25.Ka1 a5 26.c3 a4 27.Bc2 e4 28.Bxa4 Rxc4 29.Bb3 Rc5 30.Rhe1 Be5 31.Re3 Qd6 32.Kb2 b5 33.a3 Rc8 34.Ra1 b4 35.axb4 Qxb4 36.d6 Rb8 37.Ra3 Qb7 38.Kc1 Qd7 39.Qd5 Bxd6 40.Ra6 Rd8 41.Rxd6 Qxd6 42.Qxf7+ Kh8 43.Qf6+ Qxf6 44.gxf6 Rd6 45.f3 Rxf6 46.fxe4 Be6 47.e5 Rf1+ 48.Kb2 Bxb3 49.Kxb3 Kg7 50.c4 Rb1+ 51.Ka4 Kf7 52.c5 Ke6 53.c6 Rc1 54.Kb5 Rc2 55.Re1 Rc3 56.Kb6 Rb3+ 57.Ka6 Ra3+ 58.Kb6 Rb3+ 59.Ka6 Ra3+ 60.Kb7 Rb3+ 61.Kc8 Rb4 62.c7 Rxh4 63.Rc1 Rf4 64.Kb7 Rf7 65.Re1 g5 66.Kb8 Rf8+ 67.c8=Q+ Rxc8+ 68.Kxc8 h5 69.Kc7 h4 70.Kc6 1-0

Position after White’s 65.Re1



Is MVL about to lose a 3rd game in a row with his beloved Najdorf?

Leko thinks today's likely Najdorf loss for MVL is going to hurt much more than the earlier ones, since today he got his dream position in the middlegame!

What a game by @anishgiri today!!

"What a win by Anish!" Anish Giri joins Caruana & Firouzja in the #TataSteelChess lead as Candidates leader MVL drops out of the Top 10 and is now world no. 13!

Giri & Caruana are now co-leaders with Firouzja with 4 rounds of #TataSteelChess to go!

Standings after Round Nine

1-3 Giri, Caruana, Firouzja 6
4-5 Esipenko, Van Foreest 5.5
6 Carlsen 5
7-8 Harikrishna, Grandelius 4.5
9-12 Duda, Wojtaszek, Tari, Anton 3.5
13-14 MVL, Donchenko 3

[Hans Jung]

Caruana, Firouzja, and Giri tied for first and Magnus one point back with 4 rounds to go. You cant ask for a better fighting finish.

[Wayne Komer]

Tata Steel Chess Tournament 2021

January 27, 2021

Round Ten

Round Ten Quiz Question – How many players have won (or tied for 1^st in) the top group (all-time) at least 2 years in a row? Name the players.

Answer – 7 (Larsen, Short, Nunn, Kasparov, Anand, Topalov, Carlsen).

Lawrence Trent gives the above answer but then says that Levon Aronian should be included to. When it was the Corus tournament, Levon tied for first in 2007 and 2008

The twitterverse is still buzzing with admiration at Fabiano’s 13^th move in yesterday’s round. Nigel Short had this to say about it:

I viewed @FabianoCaruana's 13...Bxc3!? with the same mixture of shock, horror and revulsion that a Victorian clergyman would have had upon reading Charles Darwin's "On the Origin of Species" for the first time. But maybe he has a point...

Wojtaszek-Caruana, Round 9
Position after Black’s 13…Bxc3



____________

Round 10, Jan. 27
Caruana, Fabiano – Carlsen, Magnus
E00 Catalan Opening

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.Nf3 Bb4+ 5.Bd2 Bd6 6.Bg2 c6 7.Nc3 O-O 8.Bg5 h6 9.Bxf6 Qxf6 10.Qb3 Nd7 11.O-O Qe7 12.c5 Bc7 13.e4 b6 14.exd5 exd5 15.Rfe1 Qf6 16.Nxd5 cxd5 17.Qxd5 Rb8 18.c6 Rd8 19.cxd7 Bxd7 20.Ne5 Be6 21.Qe4 Bxe5 22.dxe5 Qe7 23.Qe3 Rbc8 24.Be4 Qc5 25.Qxc5 Rxc5 26.f4 g6 27.Kf2 a5 28.Ke3 a4 29.Rec1 Rb5 30.Rc2 Rb4 31.Bd3 h5 32.Rd2 b5 33.a3 Rb3 34.Rc1 b4 35.axb4 a3 36.bxa3 Bf5 37.Rcd1 Rxa3 38.b5 Bg4 39.Rc1 Bf5 40.Rcd1 Bg4 41.Rc1 Bf5 42.Rcd1 1/2-1/2

16.Nxd5! is playable and best now for Fabiano! (though it's not a knockout blow)

Magnus Carlsen ultimately got a comfortable draw out of a very tricky position, but he remains a full point behind Fabiano Caruana with 3 rounds to go

Carlsen telling #2sjakk: "The result was okay today, but my form is bad." When I try to play fast, I blunder and when I try to spend time it doesn't work either. Today I slept a lot and felt rested, and after that only thing mattered and that was saving it."

Round 10, Jan. 27
Duda, Jan-Krzysztof – Van Foreest, Jorden
E61 King’s Indian

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nf3 Bg7 4.e3 O-O 5.Be2 d6 6.Nc3 e5 7.dxe5 dxe5 8.Nxe5 Qe7 9.Nf3 Rd8 10.Qb3 a5 11.O-O a4 12.Nxa4 Ne4 13.Nd4 Nc6 14.Nxc6 bxc6 15.Bf3 Bf5 16.c5 h5 17.Qb4 Qe6 18.Bd1 Be5 19.f3 Qe7 20.Qe1 Nxc5 21.Nxc5 Qxc5 22.a4 Rab8 23.Qf2 Qa5 24.Ra3 Qc5 25.Ra1 Qa5 26.Ra3 Qc5 1/2-1/2

"I believe that in this situation [down to 1 minute] a move like Ra3, going for the repetition, would be very, very human. The big question is how human is Duda?" (Leko)
The Duda-Van Foreest thriller did end in a draw

Round 10, Jan. 27
MVL – Donchenko, Alexander
B12 Caro-Kann, Tartakower variation

1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.f3 e6 4.Nc3 Bb4 5.Bd2 Ne7 6.Bd3 b6 7.a3 Bxc3 8.Bxc3 O-O 9.f4 c5 10.dxc5 bxc5 11.Qh5 Ba6 12.Nf3 d4 13.Bd2 c4 14.Ba5 Qc8 15.Be2 Nbc6 16.Qc5 d3 17.cxd3 cxd3 18.Bd1 Nxa5 19.Qxa5 Rb8 20.b3 Rd8 21.O-O d2 22.Rf2 Rb5 23.Qa4 Ng6 24.g3 Rc5 25.Rxd2 Rxd2 26.Nxd2 Rc1 27.Rxc1 Qxc1 28.Qxa6 Qxd1+ 29.Nf1 Qd4+ 30.Kg2 Qxe4+ 31.Kf2 Qd4+ 32.Ke2 h5 33.Qc8+ Kh7 34.Qc2 Qd5 35.Kf2 Kg8 36.Qc8+ Nf8 37.Qc4 Qd6 38.b4 Nd7 39.Ke2 Nf6 40.Ne3 Qd8 41.b5 Qf8 42.Qc3 Qd8 43.a4 Nd5 44.Qd4 Qe7 45.Nxd5 exd5+ 46.Kf2 Qa3 47.Qxd5 Qxa4 48.Qxh5 Qd4+ 49.Kf1 Qa1+ 50.Kg2 a6 51.bxa6 Qa2+ 52.Kh3 Qe6+ 53.Qg4 Qxa6 54.Qf3 Qe6+ 55.g4 f5 56.g5 Qe1 57.g6 Qe8 58.Qd5+ Kh8 59.Qxf5 Qe3+ 60.Kh4 Qe1+ 61.Kh5 Qe2+ 62.Qg4 Qe6 63.f5 Qe5 64.Qh3 Qf4 65.f6 1-0

Some light at the end of the tunnel for MVL, who beats Donchenko despite Alexander having been winning out of the opening!

Round 10, Jan. 27
Grandelius, Nils – Firouzja, Alireza
B67 Sicilian, Richter-Rauzer Defence

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Nc6 6.Bg5 e6 7.Qd2 a6 8.O-O-O Bd7 9.f4 b5 10.Bxf6 gxf6 11.f5 h5 12.Kb1 Qb6 13.fxe6 fxe6 14.Nxc6 Bxc6 15.Ne2 Kf7 16.Nf4 Qc5 17.Be2 Rc8 18.Rhf1 Bh6 19.Qxd6 Qxd6 20.Rxd6 Bxf4 21.Rxf4 Ke7 22.Rd2 Rcg8 23.Bd3 h4 24.Kc1 e5 25.Rff2 Rg4 26.Rde2 Rd8 27.Re3 Rdg8 28.Ree2 Rd8 29.Re3 Rdg8 30.Ree2 a5 31.Kd2 Rb8 32.Ke3 b4 33.Rf5 Be8 34.Rf1 Bf7 35.Ref2 Rb6 36.Ra1 Bg6 37.a3 b3 38.c3 Rd6 39.Re1 Bh7 40.Ree2 Bg6 41.Rd2 Rc6 42.Rd1 Rc8 43.Rfd2 Rg8 44.Rf1 Rd8 45.Rff2 Rc8 1/2-1/2

Firouzja is taking risks against Grandelius.

Peter: "I think also Nils should be happy..."
Jan: "Nils is always happy, that's the unpleasant thing about Nils!

Round 10, Jan. 27
Harikrishna, Pentala – Tari, Aryan
C78 Ruy Lopez, Moeller Defence

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Bc5 6.c3 b5 7.Bc2 d5 8.d3 O-O 9.Bg5 dxe4 10.dxe4 h6 11.Bh4 Qxd1 12.Rxd1 g5 13.Bg3 Bg4 14.Nbd2 Nh5 15.b4 Bb6 16.Bd3 Rad8 17.Be2 Nxg3 18.hxg3 Rd6 19.Nf1 Rxd1 20.Rxd1 Be6 21.Ra1 g4 22.N3d2 Ne7 23.c4 Bd4 24.Rc1 c6 25.Nb3 Rb8 26.Nfd2 bxc4 27.Bxc4 Rxb4 28.Bxe6 fxe6 29.Kf1 Kf7 30.Ke2 Ra4 31.Rc2 Kf6 32.Nc4 Rb4 33.f4 gxf3+ 34.gxf3 Ba7 35.Kd3 Rb8 36.Rh2 Rh8 37.Rh5 Bf2 38.g4 Ng6 39.Kc2 Bd4 40.Nba5 c5 41.a3 Kg7 42.Nc6 Rf8 43.Rh3 Rc8 44.N6a5 Rf8 45.Nb3 Nf4 46.Rh2 Kg6 47.Nbd2 Rb8 48.Nf1 Kg5 49.Nfd2 Kg6 50.Nb3 Rf8 51.Nba5 Kg7 52.Nb3 1/2-1/2

Round 10, Jan. 27
Esipenko, Andrey – Anton Guijarro, David
C84 Ruy Lopez, Closed

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.d3 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.Bd2 Bg4 9.c3 Bh5 10.Re1 Na5 11.Bc2 c5 12.h3 O-O 13.Bc1 Nc6 14.Nbd2 d5 15.Nf1 d4 16.Ng3 Bg6 17.Bd2 Rc8 18.Rc1 Re8 19.Qe2 Bf8 20.Qf1 Qd6 21.Rcd1 Qd7 22.Nh4 Qd8 23.Ngf5 Nd7 24.Qe2 Qf6 25.Rc1 Nb6 26.c4 bxc4 27.dxc4 Rb8 28.g3 Nb4 29.Bb1 Nc8 30.Nxg6 hxg6 31.Nh4 Qe6 32.Kg2 Nd6 33.Nf3 Be7 34.a3 Nc6 35.b4 cxb4 36.c5 Nb5 37.axb4 Bf6 38.Bd3 Nc3 39.Bxc3 dxc3 40.Bc4 Qe7 41.Rxc3 Rxb4 42.Bd5 Nd4 43.Qxa6 Qc7 44.Nxd4 exd4 45.Rc2 g5 46.Qd3 Be5 47.Ra1 Qe7 48.Ra6 Rf8 49.c6 Rbb8 50.Rca2 Rbc8 51.Ra7 Rc7 52.Rb7 g6 53.Qd2 Rfc8 54.Rxc7 Rxc7 55.h4 gxh4 56.Qh6 1-0

18-year-old Andrey Esipenko joins Caruana in the lead on an unbeaten +3 and enters the 2700 club!

Esipenko has Tari, Foreest and Donchenko next so he has real chances to even win this tournament!!

Round 10, Jan. 27
Giri, Anish – Wojtaszek, Radoslaw
A45 Queen’s Pawn game

1.d4 Nf6 2.Bf4 d5 3.e3 c5 4.Nf3 Nc6 5.Nbd2 Bg4 6.c3 e6 7.Qb3 Qc8 8.h3 Bh5 9.Be2 Be7 10.O-O O-O 11.Qd1 Nd7 12.Re1 Qd8 13.dxc5 Nxc5 14.b4 Nd7 15.a3 Nb6 16.Rc1 f6 17.e4 e5 18.Be3 Bf7 19.Bxb6 axb6 20.exd5 Bxd5 21.a4 f5 22.b5 e4 23.bxc6 exf3 24.Bxf3 bxc6 25.Bxd5+ cxd5 26.Nf3 Bf6 27.Re6 Kh8 28.Qb3 Qd7 29.Rxb6 Rxa4 30.Rd1 Raa8 31.Rxd5 Qc7 32.g3 Qxc3 33.Qxc3 Bxc3 34.h4 Kg8 35.Rb7 Rad8 36.Rc5 Rc8 37.Rd5 Rcd8 38.Rdb5 Rd6 39.Rc7 Ba1 40.Kg2 Ra6 41.h5 Ra2 42.Rd5 Ra6 43.Nh4 g6 44.h6 f4 45.g4 f3+ 46.Kg3 Rb6 47.Rcd7 Rb3 48.g5 Bb2 49.Rxh7 1-0

Final Position



49.Rxh7! and Anish Giri is set to take the sole lead with 3 rounds of #TataSteelChess to go!

Is this Anish Giri's year? He's the sole leader with 3 rounds to go this weekend - on Friday he has Black vs. Magnus, who he leads by 1.5 points!

Standings after Round Ten

1 Giri 7
2-4 Esipenko, Caruana, Firouzja 6.5
5 Van Foreest 6
6 Carlsen 5.5
7-8 Harikrishna, Grandelius 5
9-11 Tari, Duda, MVL 4
12-13 Wojtaszek, Anton 3.5
14 Donchenko 3

Tomorrow is a rest day. Play resumes on Friday with Carlsen playing Giri and Caruana playing Firouzja.

[Hans Jung]

Giri ends with a bang and a checkmating attack and takes the lead! However Esipenko wins to tie for second with Caruana and Giri and has excellent chances to win the tournament with the easiest pairings of the leading group!

[Hans Jung]

Today Thursday is a rest day. Big games tomorrow in the hunt for first. Carlsen - Giri and Firouzja-Caruana

[Amit R]

Looking at the current standings & remaining fixtures, my guess is Esipenko -1st and Caruana - 2nd.

Today Thursday is a rest day. Big games tomorrow in the hunt for first. Carlsen - Giri and Firouzja-Caruana

[Hans Jung]

Tari ends Esipenkos hopes for first. Nice game by Tari taking advantage of Esipenkos advanced pawns on the kingside.

[Hans Jung]

Magnus ends his chances for first with a draw against Giri.

[Wayne Komer]

Tata Steel Chess Tournament 2021

January 29, 2021

Round Eleven

Round Eleven Quiz Question – How many world junior champions have also won (or tied for 1^st in) the top group of the event? Name the players.

Answer – 8 (Ivkov, Spassky, Karpov, Beliavsky, Seirawan, Kasparov, Anand, Aronian)

Round 11, Jan. 29
Carlsen, Magnus – Giri, Anish
C53 Giuoco Piano

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.c3 Nf6 5.d3 O-O 6.b4 Be7 7.Nbd2 d5 8.Bb3 Bg4 9.Qc2 dxe4 10.dxe4 Bd6 11.h3 Bh5 12.Rb1 a5 13.a3 axb4 14.axb4 b5 15.O-O Ne7 16.Re1 Qc8 17.Qd3 Rb8 18.Nh4 Ng6 19.Nxg6 Bxg6 20.Nf1 Rd8 21.Qf3 c5 22.Bg5 Be7 23.Ng3 c4 24.Bc2 h6 25.Be3 Qc6 26.Nf5 Bxf5 27.Qxf5 g6 28.Qf3 Kg7 29.Ra1 Ra8 30.Qe2 Rxa1 31.Rxa1 Ra8 32.Rxa8 Qxa8 33.Qd2 h5 34.Kh2 Qc6 35.Qe2 Qe6 36.g3 Bd8 37.Kg2 Bb6 38.Bg5 Nh7 39.Bc1 Nf6 40.Bg5 Nh7 41.Bc1 Nf6 42.Bg5 1/2-1/2

After 21 moves against the world champion, Anish Giri, the tournament leader, seems unimpressed.

Peter thinks 23.Ng3!? by Magnus is a strategically risky gamble he might not have made if he wasn't in such a bad tournament situation!

Jonathan Rowson: After 41...Nf6 it seems obvious Giri will make a draw. The key to the position is that the bishop on c2 is restricted. Magnus’s problem is not just that he’s not better, but that he can’t even pretend to be better

Carlsen 1/2-1/2 Giri keeps Anish 1.5 points ahead of Magnus with just 2 rounds to go! Meanwhile Caruana-Firouzja is a crazy time scramble - according to the computer Fabiano already missed a clear win and now Alireza is better

Round 11, Jan. 29
Donchenko, Alexander – Duda, Jan-Krzysztof
D35 QGD, Exchange variation

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.e4 Nxc3 6.bxc3 c5 7.Rb1 cxd4 8.cxd4 Nc6 9.Bb5 a6 10.Bxc6+ bxc6 11.Nf3 c5 12.O-O Be7 13.Qc2 cxd4 14.Rd1 O-O 15.Rxd4 Qe8 16.e5 f5 17.Bg5 Rf7 18.Rb6 h6 19.Bxe7 Rxe7 20.Rdb4 Qf7 21.Qb1 Raa7 22.Nd4 Rac7 23.h3 Rc5 24.Qb3 Rec7 25.Rxe6 Kh7 26.Rb8 Rc3 27.Qb6 Bxe6 28.Nxe6 R3c6 29.Qxc6 Rxc6 30.Nf8+ Kh8 31.Ng6+ Kh7 32.Nf8+ Kh8 33.Ng6+ Kh7 34.Nf8+ 1/2-1/2

Round 11, Jan. 29
Anton Guijarro, David – Grandelius, Nils
D85 Grunfeld, Exchange variation

1.c4 g6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.Bd2 Bg7 6.e4 Nxc3 7.Bxc3 O-O 8.Bc4 Nd7 9.Qd2 Nb6 10.Bb3 c5 11.d5 e6 12.Bxg7 Kxg7 13.d6 c4 14.Bc2 e5 15.f4 exf4 16.Qxf4 Qf6 17.Qxf6+ Kxf6 18.Nf3 Bg4 19.e5+ Kg7 20.O-O f6 21.exf6+ Rxf6 22.Ne5 Be6 23.Rfd1 Rd8 24.Be4 Bf5 25.Bxb7 Rfxd6 26.Rxd6 Rxd6 27.Rc1 Rd2 28.Nxc4 Nxc4 29.Rxc4 Rxb2 30.Bd5 Rc2 1/2-1/2

Round 11, Jan. 29
Wojtaszek, Radoslaw – MVL
D82 Grunfeld

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.Bf4 Bg7 5.e3 c5 6.dxc5 Qa5 7.Rc1 dxc4 8.Bxc4 O-O 9.Ne2 Nc6 10.O-O Qxc5 11.Nb5 Be6 12.Bd3 Qb4 13.Nc7 Bxa2 14.Nxa8 Rxa8 15.Qc2 Rd8 16.Nd4 Nd5 17.Nxc6 bxc6 18.Bc4 Bxc4 19.Qxc4 Bxb2 20.Qxb4 Nxb4 21.Rc4 a5 22.Bc7 Rd5 23.g4 h5 24.Rb1 Be5 25.Bxe5 Rxe5 26.h3 f6 27.Rd1 hxg4 28.hxg4 Rd5 29.Rxd5 cxd5 30.Rc5 Nd3 31.Rxa5 Ne5 32.Ra4 d4 33.exd4 Nxg4 34.Kg2 Kf7 35.Kf3 f5 36.Ra5 Ke6 37.Kg3 Nf6 38.f3 Ne8 39.Ra8 Nc7 40.Rg8 Kf7 41.Rc8 Nd5 42.Rd8 e6 43.Kh4 Kf6 44.Rf8+ Kg7 45.Re8 Kf6 1/2-1/2

Round 11, Jan. 29
Tari, Aryan – Esipenko, Andrey
C79 Ruy Lopez, Steinitz Defence deferred

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 d6 5.O-O Nf6 6.Re1 Bd7 7.c3 g6 8.d4 Bg7 9.Nbd2 O-O 10.Bc2 Nh5 11.dxe5 dxe5 12.Nf1 Nf4 13.Ne3 Kh8 14.Nd5 Ne6 15.h4 h5 16.Be3 f6 17.b4 Ne7 18.Qe2 Nc8 19.c4 Qe8 20.c5 a5 21.a3 Na7 22.Bb3 Nb5 23.Bc4 axb4 24.axb4 Rxa1 25.Rxa1 f5 26.exf5 gxf5 27.Ng5 Nxg5 28.hxg5 f4 29.Ra8 Qg6 30.Rxf8+ Bxf8 31.Bd2 Na3 32.Bd3 Qxg5 33.Qe4 1-0

On paper unbeaten 18-year-old Esipenko has the perfect run-in to challenge for 1st place in #TataSteelChess, but after 25...f5?! it's Tari who seems close to winning!

Tari grabs a 1st win and hands Esipenko a 1st loss of this year's #TataSteelChess - dealing a huge blow to Andrey's chances of winning the tournament and also knocking him back out of the 2700 club

Jonathan Rowson: An impressive game by Tari today, in the spirit of the young Karpov. #tatasteelchess

Esipenko played a B-list opening and Tari kept his edge with classical play, gained some space, put his pieces on the right squares and pounced tactically (29Ra8!!) when the time was right.

Round 11, Jan. 29
Van Foreest, Jorden – Harikrishna, Pentala
C54 Giuoco Piano

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.c3 Nf6 5.d3 d6 6.O-O h6 7.Re1 O-O 8.Nbd2 a6 9.a4 Ng4 10.Re2 Kh8 11.h3 f5 12.d4 exd4 13.hxg4 d3 14.Bxd3 fxg4 15.Nd4 Nxd4 16.cxd4 Bxd4 17.Nf1 Qf6 18.Qc2 c5 19.Be3 Be5 20.Bc4 Bd7 21.Bd5 Rab8 22.Ng3 b5 23.axb5 Rxb5 24.Qd1 a5 25.Ra2 Rfb8 26.Rd2 Qh4 27.b3 R5b6 28.Rxa5 Bc6 29.Bxc6 Rxc6 30.Nf1 Rcb6 31.g3 Qh3 32.Bxc5 dxc5 33.Rd8+ Kh7 34.Rxb8 Rxb8 35.Rxc5 Re8 36.Qd7 Qh5 37.Ne3 Ra8 38.Qb5 Re8 39.Qa5 Qg5 40.Rd5 Qe7 41.Nxg4 Bb2 42.f3 Rc8 43.Qd2 Qa3 44.Rd7 Qxb3 45.Qxh6+ Kg8 46.Qh5 Qe6 47.Qd5 Qxd5 48.Rxd5 Rc2 49.Kf1 Bc1 50.Rd7 Kf8 51.e5 Bb2 52.f4 g5 53.Ne3 Rc5 54.e6 gxf4 55.gxf4 Rc1+ 56.Ke2 Ba3 57.Nf5 Rc8 58.Rf7+ Kg8 59.Kf3 Re8 60.Nh6+ 1-0

Position after White’s 58.Rf7+



Nigel Short: Hari is having an off-day. Dead lost before I have even had a glass of wine

Jonathan Rowson: White is objectively winning in
Van Foreest - Harikrishna but it’s the kind of position where it’s easy for White to drift and lose control. I would not be astonished if Black ends up winning

Round 11, Jan. 29
Firouzja, Alireza – Caruana, Fabiano
C54 Giuoco Piano

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.c3 Nf6 5.d3 d6 6.O-O h6 7.Re1 O-O 8.Nbd2 Bb6 9.a4 a5 10.Bb5 Ng4 11.Re2 Ne7 12.d4 Ng6 13.Nf1 d5 14.exd5 exd4 15.h3 Nf6 16.Nxd4 Nxd5 17.Re1 Ndf4 18.Be3 c6 19.Bc4 Bc7 20.Ng3 Nd5 21.Bd2 Qd6 22.Bb3 Bd7 23.Nf3 Rfe8 24.Qc2 Ngf4 25.Rad1 Rxe1+ 26.Rxe1 Qf6 27.Nd4 Rd8 28.Re4 Qg6 29.Bxd5 Nxd5 30.Ngf5 Qf6 31.Rg4 g6 32.Nxh6+ Kf8 33.Re4 Nf4 34.Ng4 Bxg4 35.hxg4 Kg7 36.Bxf4 Bxf4 37.Nf5+ gxf5 38.Rxf4 Qg5 39.Rxf5 Qxg4 40.Rf3 Qh5 41.c4 Rd4 42.Qc3 Qe5 43.Rd3 c5 44.Rg3+ Kf8 45.Qxa5 Rd1+ 46.Kh2 Qh5+ 47.Rh3 Qe5+ 48.g3 Qf5 49.Qa8+ Ke7 50.Qxb7+ Rd7 51.Qh1 Qxf2+ 52.Qg2 Rd2 53.Qxf2 Rxf2+ 54.Kg1 Rxb2 55.Rh5 Ra2 56.Rxc5 Rxa4 57.Kg2 Kd6 58.Rd5+ Ke6 59.Rd4 Ke5 60.Rf4 f5 61.Kh3 Ra3 1/2-1/2

Jan and Peter are shocked by Firouzja playing 10.Bb5?! unprovoked, allowing 10...Ng4! and maybe 11...f5! next for Caruana!

Caruana missed a couple of chances to sacrifice his knight on g2 and follow up with Qh4 and a direct attack against Firouzja!

Firouzja has a great chance to beat world no. 2 Caruana for the 1st time in classical chess and join Giri in the lead after bamboozling Fabiano in time trouble

Fabi let his fans sweat for 8 minutes, but he plays the only move 48...Qf5! and should now draw! It's all good news for Giri, who will remain the sole leader with 2 rounds to go

Rankings after Round Eleven

1 Giri 7.5
2-4 Caruana, Van Foreest, Firouzja 7
5 Esipenko 6.5
6 Carlsen 6
7 Grandelius 5.5
8-9 Harikrishna, Tari 5
10-11 Duda, MVL 4.5
12-13 Wojtaszek, Anton 4
14 Donchenko 3.5

Anish Giri remains the sole leader with 2 rounds of #TataSteelChess to go after a draw vs. Magnus Carlsen. Firouzja-Caruana was also drawn after both players missed wins, while Jorden van Foreest beat Harikrishna to move into joint 2^nd

After today’s action MVL stands 13^th on the world rankings with 2762.2 and Firouzja stands 14^th with 2759.6

[Hans Jung]

Also enjoyed Firouzja - Caruana, a real fighting game, despite the mistakes. Who would believe (initially) Anish Giri in first place and Jorden Van Foreest tied for second with two rounds to go?