2012 U.S. Championships News
by Denes Boros
Compared to the early rounds, players arrived with clear intentions, to challenge the leaders!
U.S Girls’ Junior Championship
The first decisive game was played by Rachel Ulrich. Coming into the game, she had already made a statement with a fighting draw against the highest seed, Maggie Feng. Today, she played one of the most aggressive lines possible against Apurva Virkud, the Botvinnik Variation! This could came as a big surprise for her opponent, as she lost her way early on in the complications. A fine win by Rachel Ulrich, who is closing in on the leaders!
Maggie Feng also played a good game against Carissa Yip and now she has 2 out of 3 points. Maggie Feng, just like Rachel Ulrich, is half a point behind the leaders, Gorti and Nguyen.
Both Akshita Gorti and Emily Nguyen played long fighting games to keep their leading positions.
Gorti won first, essaying a sideline most widely known as the Hebden-Attack. Her opponent reacted well, but started to drift into a difficult position after 12…Ng4. Gorti played the precise 13. Rdf1! chasing away the knight. Ashritha Eswaran had to withdraw her pieces, and after Gorti’s precise 17.g4!, Eswaran’s knight was out of the play for the rest of the game. Akshita Gorti never gave a second chance and won after move 41.
Emily Nguyen did not lose her pace as she took on Agata Bykovtsev. They played a dramatic game in a Fianchetto King’s Indian. Bykovtsev had her chances, but slowly Nguyen outplayed her with the use of her bishop-pair. That was not the end of the game, however, as Bykovtsev fought her way back into the game after Nguyen’s inaccurate 34-Bxd5 move. She could even take over the initative with 41…Re2!, but she chose Qxh3 instead. Later on, Nguyen won a pawn, and in mutual time-trouble, she managed to convert it to a win. An important win for Emily Nguyen as she is in tied first with Gorti after Round 3!
U.S. Junior Championship
The round started with a key matchup between Akshat Chandra and tournament leader, Kayden Troff. Chandra managed to put pressure on Troff in a Najdorf, even though Troff came up with a novel concept with the move 10…Bg4!?. Chandra then tried to push Troff off the board, but Kayden fought relentlessly. Chandra did have nice winning chances, but Troff defended well, and in a theoretically drawn Rook+Bishop against Rook Endgame, Troff forced the draw.
Ruifeng Li showed his talent in his game against Andrew Tang. Li played creative chess today, even playing a surprising 6. Be2!?, which totally baffled the commentators, and maybe even his opponent. Nevertheless, Tang was doing okay, until Li found the strong and paradoxical idea of 13.g3! bolstering the knight on h4! After that, Li took control and finished the game in style with a fantastic kingside attack.
Bovey won a one-sided game against Joshua Colas, while Checa had a fighting draw against Awonder. Michael Brown could not break the defenses of Mika Brattain and drew in a peaceful opposite-colored position.
Troff leads the Open Section by half a point, while Emily Nguyen and Akshita Gorti share first place in the Girls’ Section.
by Denes Boros
Round one seemed to have an impact on the players and the players dramatically changed their game in round two.
U.S Girl’s Junior Championship
Thalia Cervantes chose a more solid approach today against defending champion Emily Nguyen. Her strategy seemed to pay off as she occupied the center with the knight hoping to e5!. She soon achieved a comfortable bind against Nguyen. Cervantes managed to increase her advantage, but she started to play too fast in a winning position, and fell into a fortress. A narrow save by Emily Nguyen conserved her lead in the tournament!
The most exciting game played in the Girls’ section was between Eswaran, Asritha and Wang, Annie. The game started as a quiet Spanish, which was spiced up by Asritha’s inventive 16.d4!? move. Annie managed to avert Asritha’s dangerous attack and started to improve her position little by little. Eventually, she made the intuitive sacrifice 42…c5!, which gave her a long lasting initiative! Suddenly, Ashritha’s position became critical, and Annie won a piece and with it the game!
Gorti and Virkud won their games in the true spirit of counter-attacking chess! Gorti built a stable position against Yip, and when Carissa played 24 Rg4, she fell into Gorti’s counter idea based on 24…f5!. In the ensuing complications, Gorti came out on the top and, with this win, she joined the leaders!
Apurva Virkud had a complex Najdorf battle against Agata Bykovtsev. Bykovtsev played white and came up with an interesting idea, 13.Nce2!?, which was first seen in the famous game played by Kasparov-Gelfand in 1991! Bykovtsev did have a pleasant position from the opening, but she soon drifted into a worse position after the unfortunate 30.Nd5. She could have kept her advantage after 30.Bb1!. After this inaccuracy, Virkud took over and won after 72 moves!
U.S. Junior Championship
The round started with a key matchup between Kayden Troff and Ruifeng Li.
Coming into the round Ruifeng Li had a slight setback with his draw against Mika Brattain, while Troff played a great game against Andrew Tang. Troff decided to enter a heavily analyzed line, and this caught Li unaware. Li tried to come up with an original plan, but his move 14…h6 wasn’t good enough and by move 27 Troff was able to force resignation! A powerful display of home preparation by Troff, which catapulted him to the sole lead with 2/2!
The two players trying to keep pace with Troff are Akshat Chandra and Michael Brown.
Akshat Chandra had a difficult position against Brattain, but somehow managed to salvage a draw. Michael Brown, on the other hand, managed to win a topsy-turvy game against Joshua Colas.
The game of the day was definitely between Tang and Liang. Tang uncorked the strange looking 2.c3!?, which helped him built up a London System against Liang. Surprisingly, a similar idea was already played by Kamsky against Levon Aronian in the Sinquefield Cup!
Liang took his time, but Tang was more comfortable with the ensuing positions and, after setting up an attractive battery along the d-line with 28.Rd1!, it was clear that Tang has a superior position and soon he won his game! A great comeback from Andrew Tang after a difficult game against Troff.
Troff is in clear first place in the Open Section, while there is a four-way tie for first place in the Girls’ section between Nguyen, Gorti, Virkud and Annie Wang.
by Denes Boros
A day after the opening ceremony, where players were given presents and some good advice from Tony Rich, the tournament director, the players were ready for the first round of the 2017 Junior Championships!
U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship
What a first round it was; Akshita Eswaran essayed the Benoni against defending champion Emily Nguyen, and Thalia Cervantes went all-out against Agata Bykovtsev, with the ultra-sharp Four Pawn’s Attack!
Emily Nguyen reacted well against Akshita Eswaran’s Benoni and gained the upper hand. Nguyen played 14. Qb3! targeting the weak Black Queenside, and after the inaccurate move 15…g5, she uncorked the typical Benoni break with 16.e5! and 17.d6! The rest was simple, and Emily Nguyen won her first round game!
The game between Thalia Cervantes and Agata Bykovtsev was one of the most intriguing games of round one. Thalia Cervantes, who came to the Junior Championship straight from the Pan American Championships, went all out against Bykovtsev. Bykovtsev, as she told Cristian Chirila after the game, thought that 14…b5!? was part of her preparation. In any case, it turned out to be slightly dubious, as Thalia duly accepted the pawn offer and produced the fantastic rook lift 20. Ra3! and 21. Rg3! gaining a sizable advantage! She was well on her way to win, when she captured the wrong piece. 32. Bd4! would have won, but she played 32.Bc5+ allowing Bykovtsev back into the game, and after another mistake by Cervantes, Bykovtsev took over! It was a dramatic game, were Thalia Cervantes showed some powerful play in the middlegame, and Agata Bykovtsev, showed great fighting skills, which helped her bring the point home.
”I expect blood!” exclaimed Tatev Abrahamyan in the live commentary with fellow commentator Alejandro Ramirez, right before the start of the round. Right she was, as the player’s from both section came with the same intentions; to win at all costs!
U.S. Junior Championship
Ruifeng Li, the heavy rating favorite of the Open section, played his trademark move 1.b3!? against Mika Brattain. Brattain, however, wasn’t impressed by Larsen’s famous move and built up a solid position against Li. After few hours of play, Li managed to gain some space on the Queenside, but that was compensated by Bratain’s counterplay on the Kingside. Li had a slightly better position, but after Mika Brattain’s 24…Nh8! it was increasingly more difficult to make progress. Ruifeng Li, conscious of his advantage refused the repetition of moves, but ran into a fantastic sacrifice 27…Nf4! by Brattain, and the tables turned! Brattain was calling the shots afterwards, but after missing several wins, the ever-resourceful Ruifeng Li managed to escape; with a perpetual check!
The most contested matchups based on ratings were between Troff - Tang and Brown - Checa.
Brown played an interesting sideline in the Slav against Checa, but even though both players avoided repetition multiple times, it still petered out to be a draw.
Troff against Tang was a different affair. Troff came with a very aggressive line, which was known from the famous game played by Carlsen and Aronian. Tang tried to surprise Troff with the freeing move 9…g5!?, but Kayden Troff was irresistible, and won a model game.
The hometown favorite Akshat Chandra, and the freshly-minted grandmaster Awonder Liang won their games fairly comfortably.
In the Open Section, Liang, Chandra and Troff are in the lead, while in the Girls’ Section; Emily Nguyen and Agata Bykovtsev are sharing first place with one point each.
by Cristian Chirila
Another U.S. Championship has ended today, and we couldn’t have asked for a more exciting finish! Yesterday, Sabina Foisor wrote history with her emotional victory. Today, Wesley So added another chapter to his legacy when he defeated Alexander Onischuk in a highly disputed tiebreak match.
The first round started with Wesley choosing a rare variation of the English opening, a rational choice to try and surprise Alexander, who is a player that trains opening theory religiously. Alexander was well prepared and the game quickly entered virgin territory.
Alex decided to sacrifice a pawn, and then another one, and Wesley couldn’t fight the temptation. The second pawn grab was probably not a good idea, as Alex overtook the initiative and it looked as if Wesley might be in trouble. His inaccuracy was 18…Qd4 instead of 18…Nd4, which would have placed Wesley under serious pressure. It was all downhill for Alex after that and Wesley drew first blood!
The second game was a wild affair. Alex gathered all his strength and decided to try and outplay Wesley in a long, grind based game. The strategy worked as he managed to win the bishop pair and start pressuring Wesley with precise moves. Wesley’s clock was ticking as he was trying to survive, and it looked as if Alex would be the one to break his invincible aura.
But it was not meant to be, and all the cards fell right in place for Wesley. White could have garnered a sizable advantage if he would have went for 41.Bd5! instead of running for the second pawn with Qb8-b6. After that miss, Wesley found a powerful dark square blockade and never allowed Alex to power through, despite the latter’s attempts. Wesley killed the game and forced a draw with a nice pattern based on the strong collaboration between Queen and Knight.
Wesley So is the 2017 U.S. Champion and extends his impressive series of tournament victories! Kudos to you, Mr. So!
by Cristian Chirila
One tournament ended and the other one continues tomorrow! The U.S. Women’s Championship declared its winner, and it is none other than the sensation of the tournament, Sabina Foisor! Sabina played a brilliant game and finished Virkud in style, while Nazi started well but failed to keep the pace and got slowly outplayed by the legend slayer, Jennifer Yu (she beat Nazi, Irina, and Anna). In the open section, it was a fairly quiet day, with Wesley So making a pragmatic decision and repeating moves in the opening. Onischuk drew his game with Kamsky with ease, while Var Akobian failed to stop Nakamura’s wrath and fell out of the tiebreak spot after an otherwise brilliant tournament. Tomorrow we have a bonus day of chess excitement, but first let’s get into today’s recap!
U.S. Championship
Naroditsky vs So
There’s not much to say about this game besides both players seemed content with a draw. Naroditsky mentioned he was slightly surprised by So’s Berlin, and decided against trying to break it. Wesley’s decision was obviously a pragmatic one, and only time will tell whether it was the right one. He is now heading into a head-to-head tiebreaker with Onischuk in which he will be the clear favorite (Nakamura gives him a 90% chance to win it).
Kamsky vs Onischuk
The two veterans have been comrades in the American chess circuit for many decades and have played each other countless times. Kamsky mentioned that it was particularly difficult to come up with a surprise weapon, as Onischuk is a master of opening preparation.
The players followed a long line of the Archangelsk and it seemed like Onischuk had the better chance at producing the shocker. Despite that, Kamsky soon showed why he is one of the most solid players to ever play in the U.S. Championship and quickly tamed the game with a sequence of precise moves. The players agreed to a fairly uneventful draw as soon as the rules allowed it, at move 30. Onischuk will face So in what will surely be his biggest challenge yet!
Nakamura vs Akobian
Beating Nakamura as black is something quite extraordinary, drawing him as black is something extremely difficult. Those were the two results that would have helped Akobian; unfortunately for him, Nakamura came into the game with a warrior’s mindset, no draws!
Despite that, Akobian’s preparation was once again very sharp and he managed to slowly outplay Naka in the middlegame. His biggest problem was once again his time management, and when the critical moment came, he was unable to make the right decision. Exchanging the queens was a clear mistake; instead, he should have kept the pressure with 26…Qa7! which would have gave him the initiative.
The endgame after the queen exchange was a very difficult one, and Nakamura did not forgive. With swift precision, Nakamura delivered and stole Akobian’s tiebreak ticket.
[Site "?"]
[Date "2017.04.09"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Black "Akobian, Varuzhan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[WhiteElo "2796"]
[BlackElo "2645"]
[PlyCount "111"]
1. Nf3 Nf6 2. g3 d5 3. Bg2 c6 4. O-O Bg4 5. h3 Bxf3 6. Bxf3 Nbd7 7. d4 e6 8.
Nd2 Be7 9. e4 dxe4 10. Nxe4 Nxe4 11. Bxe4 Nf6 12. Bg2 Qb6 13. c3 O-O 14. Qe2
Rfe8 15. Kh2 Rad8 16. b4 a5 17. bxa5 Qxa5 18. Bd2 Qa4 19. Rfb1 Rd7 20. Rb3 Rc8
21. Be1 b5 22. Rc1 c5 23. d5 exd5 24. Rxb5 c4 25. Rcb1 Bd6 26. Qd1 Qxd1 27.
Rxd1 Be7 28. a4 Ra8 29. a5 Bd8 30. Ra1 Rda7 31. Bxd5 Nxd5 32. Rxd5 Bxa5 33. Bd2
h6 34. Be3 Ra6 35. Ra3 Bc7 36. Rxa6 Rxa6 37. Rc5 Bd6 38. Rc8+ Kh7 39. Rxc4 Be5
40. Rc8 Ra3 41. c4 Kg6 42. Kg2 h5 43. Re8 f6 44. Re7 Rc3 45. c5 Kh7 46. Kf1 Rc4
47. Ke2 Kg6 48. Kd3 Rc3+ 49. Ke4 h4 50. g4 Bh2 51. f4 Rc2 52. Kd3 Ra2 53. c6
Ra6 54. c7 Rc6 55. Kd4 f5 56. Kd5 1-0
U.S. Women’s Championship
Paikidze vs Yu
Nazi came to the playing hall with great confidence and a wide smile on her face. No matter the results, she knew that her tournament had been a success and another title would be a historic achievement!
Her opening went smoothly and she soon found herself in the driver’s seat, but her 16.Nc3?! was inexplicable. There was no reason to remove the perfectly centralized knight; instead, she should have built her set-up around that powerful piece. After that, it was all an uphill battle, as the game always seemed to be one exchange away from complete simplification, something Nazi was trying to avoid at all costs as Sabina was always in a better position. White tried to keep the tension, but in doing so, she allowed her opponent to grab the initiative. Jennifer’s sequence of moves between move 30 and 40 seemed to be played by an elite grandmaster. Her impressive precision is surely something that will scare many of her opponents moving forward. The girl has a bright future!
Nazi was forced to resign and pass her champion’s torch to Sabina at move 51. In her post-game interview, she gave a candid description of the game, as well as her sincere congratulations to her friend and rival. Her attitude will surely earn her even more fans. Congratulations, Nazi!
[Site "?"]
[Date "2017.04.09"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Paikidze, Nazi"]
[Black "Yu, Jennifer"]
[Result "0-1"]
[WhiteElo "236"]
[BlackElo "2196"]
[PlyCount "102"]
1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Qb3 dxc4 5. Qxc4 Bf5 6. g3 e6 7. Bg2 Be7 8. O-O
Nbd7 9. e3 O-O 10. Qe2 h6 11. Nc3 Ne4 12. Nd2 Nxd2 13. Bxd2 e5 14. d5 cxd5 15.
Nxd5 Bd6 16. Nc3 Nc5 17. e4 Be6 18. Rfd1 Qe7 19. Be3 Rfd8 20. Rac1 Rac8 21. Rc2
b6 22. Rdc1 Nb7 23. Nd5 Qd7 24. Rd1 Rxc2 25. Qxc2 Rc8 26. Qd2 Qc6 27. Bf1 Qa4
28. Nc3 Qa5 29. a3 Bb3 30. Rc1 Rd8 31. Qe2 Bc5 32. Bd2 Bc4 33. Qe1 Bxf1 34.
Kxf1 Qa6+ 35. Kg2 Qd3 36. Rd1 Qc2 37. b4 Bf8 38. Nd5 Nd6 39. Bc1 Rc8 40. Kg1
Qxe4 41. Qf1 Nf5 42. Be3 Rc6 43. Qd3 Qxd3 44. Rxd3 Rd6 45. b5 Nd4 46. Nb4 Nxb5
47. a4 Rxd3 48. Nxd3 Nc3 49. Nxe5 Nxa4 50. Nc6 a5 51. Ne5 Bc5 0-1
Virkud vs Foisor
Once again, the explosive U.S. Women’s Championship is decided by a brilliancy! Sabina has been playing stellar chess all throughout this event. Her preparation has simply been outstanding, and if it wouldn’t have been for the accident against Krush, perhaps her championship victory would have already been sealed.
But that’s not how top competitions are being won, nobody runs away with a title! The grind, the suffering, the over the edge nervousness, it’s all part of competition at the highest level, in any field. Sabina once again came into the game with incredible opening preparation, and took swift advantage of her opponent’s early mistake (9.Bd2?). Her middle game play was technical and precise. Her expansion on the kingside was calculated and every single detail was taken into consideration before conducting the checkmate pattern!
[Site "?"]
[Date "2017.04.09"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Virkud, Apurva"]
[Black "Foisor , Sabina"]
[Result "0-1"]
[WhiteElo "2262"]
[BlackElo "2272"]
[PlyCount "61"]
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. Nf3 c5 6. dxc5 Na6 7. c6 bxc6 8. g3
d5 9. Bd2 d4 10. Ne4 Rb8 11. Nxf6+ Qxf6 12. Bg2 e5 13. O-O Bf5 14. Qc1 Bxd2 15.
Qxd2 h6 16. Qa5 c5 17. b3 e4 18. Nd2 Rfe8 19. Rad1 Rb6 20. Nb1 Qe7 21. e3 Bg4
22. Rd2 Nb4 23. exd4 e3 24. fxe3 Qxe3+ 25. Kh1 Rf6 26. Rg1 Qxg1+ 27. Kxg1 Re1+
28. Bf1 Rfxf1+ 29. Kg2 Rg1+ 30. Kf2 Ref1+ 31. Ke3 0-1
But her impeccable game is not the story here. The story is that of an underdog that has been underestimated by many, which has been tried by the ruthlessness of life. An underdog that through pain, resiliency, and hard work overcame the odds and rewrote history on her terms. This is the story to be told, and Sabina is the admirable heroine of it! Kudos to you Sabina, the 2017 U.S. Women’s Chess Champion!
by Cristian Chirila
If the Open section gave us the biggest surprises in round nine, the show in round ten was stolen by the women, who produced two decisive results in the biggest clashes of the round. Nazi Paikidze dodged a huge bullet when she defeated Tatev Abrahamyan after being completely lost once the opening ended. In the other important clash, Sabina Foisor managed to climb her way back up in a worse middle game and outplay Zatonskih after the latter once again fell into a challenging time trouble situation. The open section’s leaderboard is crowding at the top; Akobian and So drew their games while Onischuk took advantage of the state of affairs and joined the leaders after a beautiful endgame grind against the struggling Xiong. We are set for a dream championship finale!
U.S. Championship
So vs Kamsky
Wesley’s last chance to score as white in this tournament was definitely something to look forward to. The game started peaceful with white choosing to enter the Exchange Slav, an opening that is widely considered to be drawish. Nevertheless, the opening has experienced a resurgence in the last couple of years and has been tried at the top with moderate success.
Kamsky chose to play a less theoretical line opting for an early e6, leaving the light squared bishop blocked on c8. The line is considered to give white the advantage, but he was quick to prove it wrong as he equalized with ease before move 20. To some, it even looked as Wesley might be in trouble, but that’s when the co-leader showed his champion metal and pulled the breaks without allowing his opponent to get any further pressure.
The game was a solid draw that placed Wesley in pole position to win the tournament. He is facing Naroditsky tomorrow in what will surely be an unforgettable thriller.
Onischuk vs Xiong
Onischuk is not the most active player in the American circuit, but when he plays, his technical skills are exceptionally sharp. Jeffery chose the Grunfeld, an opening that bears a piercing trademark. Onischuk’s experience allowed him to outwit his younger opponent and stir the game into a slightly better endgame, which is surely something that Jeffery was trying to avoid at all costs.
Lacking patience, Jeffery tried to over simplify with 16…e5 which was all Onischuk needed to force his opponent on the defense. Slowly but surely, white started maximizing his bishop pair, and it was only a matter of time before black had to concede material.
Onischuk’s textbook precision allowed him to convert with ease and join the leaders at the top of the standings.
[Site "?"]
[Date "2017.04.08"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Onischuk, Alexander"]
[Black "Xiong, Jeffery"]
[Result "1-0"]
[WhiteElo "2667"]
[BlackElo "2674"]
[PlyCount "103"]
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Nf3 c5 8.
Be3 Bg4 9. Rc1 O-O 10. Be2 Qa5 11. Qd2 cxd4 12. cxd4 Nc6 13. Qxa5 Nxa5 14. h3
Bxf3 15. Bxf3 Rfc8 16. Ke2 e5 17. dxe5 Bxe5 18. Bg4 Rc4 19. f4 Bb2 20. Rxc4
Nxc4 21. Bf2 Re8 22. Bf3 Na3 23. Rd1 Rc8 24. e5 Bc1 25. Bxb7 Rc2+ 26. Kf3 Bd2
27. Bd5 Nb5 28. Bb3 Rb2 29. g3 Nc3 30. Ra1 a5 31. e6 fxe6 32. Bxe6+ Kf8 33.
Bc5+ Kg7 34. Bd4+ Kf8 35. Bb3 Ke8 36. Rf1 a4 37. Bxc3 Bxc3 38. Bxa4+ Kf8 39.
Bb3 Bd2 40. Rf2 Bc3 41. Rxb2 Bxb2 42. Ke4 Ba3 43. Ke5 Ke7 44. g4 Bd6+ 45. Ke4
Ba3 46. Bg8 h6 47. h4 Kf6 48. Bb3 Ke7 49. g5 hxg5 50. hxg5 Kf8 51. Kf3 Kg7 52.
Kg4 1-0
U.S. Women’s Championship
Abrahamyan vs Paikidze
The most expected encounter in the ladies division was the one between the two heroines of last year. These ladies gave us a dramatic end to the 2016 U.S. Championship story, and despite their friendly relationship outside of the arena, once they shake hands at the start of the match all gloves are off.
Nazi’s opening choice once again surprised the pundits as she chose the Pirc, an opening that is quite rare at top level. Tatev played healthy chess and quickly obtained a winning position, but it was then when her nerves started becoming wobbly.
Tatev began making irrational decisions (27.Nxg5?!, 29.h4??) and allowed Nazi to take control of the game. With her clock ticking down, Tatev was unable to find her way and blundered the game under pressure.
[Site "?"]
[Date "2017.04.08"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Abrahamyan, Tatev"]
[Black "Paikidze, Nazi"]
[Result "0-1"]
[WhiteElo "2364"]
[BlackElo "2369"]
[PlyCount "74"]
1. e4 g6 2. d4 Bg7 3. Nc3 d6 4. f4 a6 5. Nf3 b5 6. Bd3 Nd7 7. d5 Nc5 8. O-O b4
9. Ne2 Nf6 10. Ned4 Bb7 11. Qe2 O-O 12. a3 bxa3 13. Rxa3 a5 14. c4 Nxd3 15.
Qxd3 Nd7 16. b3 Nc5 17. Qc2 e6 18. Bd2 exd5 19. exd5 Qf6 20. f5 h6 21. Rxa5
Rae8 22. Ra7 Bc8 23. Rxc7 Bxf5 24. Nxf5 gxf5 25. b4 Ne4 26. b5 Ng5 27. Nxg5
hxg5 28. Qd3 f4 29. h4 Qd4+ 30. Qxd4 Bxd4+ 31. Kh2 Re2 32. Bb4 Kg7 33. Rd1 Be5
34. Kg1 g4 35. Rc6 g3 36. b6 Ra8 37. Re1 Bd4+ 0-1
Foisor vs Zatonskih
The second big matchup of the day was between the revelation of the tournament, Sabina Foisor, and the four time champion, Anna Zatonskih.
Sabina has been showing top opening preparation throughout the event, but today she fell into a difficult position early. Anna seemed to be in control but once again her time trouble addiction kicked in and she fell behind on the clock. Anna could have gotten a decisive advantage with 22…Qf6! But instead, she ventured with 26…Nd3?! and quickly fell to Sabina’s dazzling tactics. It was an immense win for Sabina who is now sharing the lead with Nazi going into the championship round. Tomorrow we will surely have fire on the board!
