2012 U.S. Championships News
by GM Cristian Chirila
Let’s analyze this exciting round and see where we stand as we enter the last three rounds of this dramatic event.
2016 U.S. Championship
Caruana vs. Robson ½- ½
Fabiano was coming into round eight as the clear favorite, and his final rounds schedule suggests him as the main favorite to strip Naka off his title. One last big test that he had to pass was the Robson exam.
Unfortunately for him, Ray came off guns blazing and used an incredible preparation to equalize and ultimately force Fabiano to go for a sacrifice that led to a perpetual. Let’s give this game a closer look and get a clear idea of how you can outprepare a 2800!
So vs. Onischuk ½- ½
Wesley chose to test Onischuk in the same line Caruana defeated him just a couple of round ago. Onischuk boldly accepted the challenge and repeated the same move, he probably had some serious improvement over his previous loss, and So decided to deviate first by playing 8.d4. Onischuk knew the variation and did not stumble in his way to an inferior, but holdable endgame. Wesley never really had a chance for a serious advantage and misses his chance to surpass Caruana in the standings and become the sole leader of the tournament.
Shankland vs. Xiong ½- ½
I myself played this line a few times as Black and never had any problems to prove the dynamic prospect of my bishops. The exchange spinning wheel made a natural appearance and the pieces started falling off the board at the speed of light. By move 30 there were only one pair of light pieces left on the board, the players agreed to a draw soon after the time control.
Akobian vs. Kamsky ½ - ½
Akobian and Kamsky both have had subpar events but this was one game to prove that it was everything a fluke, and their class had to be respected under any circumstances. Akobian chose a rare line in the KID by playing 6.g4!? Black had quite an interesting idea of combating White’s peculiar set-up with a combined attack in the center and on the queenside. Var managed to contain Black’s initiative and obtained a strategically better position, unfortunately for his he left himself little time and had to complete the last 20 moves in less than 2 minutes. Var should have taken the sacrifice with 17.Bg4! after which extreme complications arise, but they all seem to end up favorably for him. Instead he chose a more dull approach that did not paid off. Kamsky showed his resilient nature and the game ended after the 50th move.
Chandra vs. Lenderman 0-1
Lenderman showed why he is one of the most theoretically feared guy in the field. He wisely chose a Sicilian offbeat line that transitioned into a Pirc type of structure with the one improvement for Black that the White square bishop gets out and the “c” pawns are off the board, which gives his the important c6 square for the knight. Black easily equalized and was even better, but suddenly he chose the wrong plan and in three moves he was already almost losing.
Luckily for Lenderman, Chandra is not in best shape and could not find the win starting after 33.Qe5! followed by Bxc5 sacrificing the piece and completely destroying Black’s king shelter. Instead, the National Junior champ allowed his opponent to get back into the game and event obtain a superior knights endgame. Lenderman had a dangerous passed pawn on the “b” file, and in Chandra’s second time trouble he managed to promote the pawn and get his first win of the tournament.
Nakamura vs. Shabalov 1-0
Nakamura obtained an important advantage out of the opening but failed to spot a few resources and allowed Black to get back into the game. In the ensuing materially unbalanced position, Nakamura managed to outsmart his opponent and place enough pressure that he would ultimately crack. Let’s give this game a closer look and see where both these players could have improved their performance.
Here are the standings after round 8:
2016 U.S. Women’s Championship
Abrahamyan vs. Krush ½ - ½
This battle was definitely the crucial one going into round 8 of the U.S. Women’s Championship as two of the three leaders were fighting against each other to maintain the edge over their competition. The game started quite badly for Tatev who quickly got into a worse position against the defending champ. Irina started her slow grind and looked as if she will be emerging victorious from this “championship” round.
The structural advantage and piece domination should have been decisive for Krush but ultimately she erred badly by playing a series of moves that diminished her advantage to the point where she actually felt endangered by Tatev’s initiative. If White would have played 40.Bf8! it is not clear whether Black would have been able to survive in the ensuing endgame. Draw and Tatev must be relieved to escape Krush’s torturous program.
Game annotation by GM Robert Hess.
Paikidze vs. Nemcova ½ - ½
Paikidze was looking to take the sole lead going into the final 3, Nemcova on the other hand was surely not complacent with a draw and would have liked to get the full point in order to start eyeing the top spots.
Nazi chose to follow the main lines this time around and picked the Catalan as her weapon of choice, but Nemcova appeared to be the better prepared player. Despite the opening failure, Nazi slowly started to outplay her opponent but failed to capitalize on her technique when she missed 26.Nxc6! Even after the game continuation, Nazi was still better and should have tortured her opponent for a longer time. Instead she chose a dubious plan and failed to spot Black’s cute 49…Rxc6! A move that sealed the draw and kept the standings up top unchanged.
Eswaran vs. Zatonskih 0-1
A French on the board. Zatonskih came very well prepared to this game and managed to fully equalize as soon as move 10. She had enough dynamics in the position to balanced her isolated pawn on the “d” file and soon her opponent decided to give a pawn in order to activate her forces. Unfortunately for White, this was not a very witty sacrifice and Zatonskih quickly increased her advantage through a series of well timed tactics. Anna accurately converted her gains and Eswaran will once again have to go back to the drawing board and try to salvage her mediocre event.
Zatonskih on the other hand maintains her high tempo and joint the leading pack with three more round to go.
Yip vs. Foisor 0-1
Sabina is slowly getting in her groove! After a slow start and a few disappointing performances she now seems like a new player and ready to climb the standings latter.
Carissa is coming off a couple of loses and seems to have slowed down after her furious start. If the Berlin is nowhere to be see these days, the French is making an appearance every round, generally in more than one game. The players followed one of the main lines of the 3.Nd2 French but Sabina seemed to have outprepared her younger opponent and equalized skillfully out of the opening. Sabina tried to complicate matter but her younger opponent managed to maintain the balance and even threaten to get an advantageous position. Unfortunately for her, it was Sabina who found a nice pawn sacrifice with 25…e3! which unleashed the dynamics of her pieces and placed Carissa under tremendous pressure. The youngster was not able to hold and blundered badly with 32.Rad1 which allowed Sabina to pin the knight decisively and win a full piece. Soon after, it was game over!
Bykovtsev vs. Gorti 0-1
The two juniors decided to play one of the sharpest line of the, you guessed it, French defense (self-proclaimed most popular opening of the U.S. Championships). It was Akshita who presumably forgot her preparation and played the dubious 17…Qf6 but in such a complex position is difficult to harshly condemn a natural looking move just because the engines don’t like it.
Agata’s 19.h4 was a difficult move to understand, as is closing the queen’s path back home, and so were her following moves. Akshita quickly finished her development and started a vicious pawn storm in the center, while keeping the opponent’s queen entrapped on the h file. Agata could not find an active plan and had to resign when her opponent’s second queen made an appearance on the board.
Yu vs. Melekhina 1-0
When you lose a game in an open tournament you usually go back to the drawing board and play an accessible opponent that will allow you to come back and restore your confidence. That is not the case in the U.S. Championships when every round you are playing the best players in the country. This has been the case for Alisa’s decline and has been quite heartbreaking to witness. Jennifer chose to start the game with 1.c4 and the players soon entered a topical line of the English opening in which White maneuvers their pieces in order to take advantage of the weakened d5 square. Alisa must have been inspired by Nemcova’s previous game in which she started an early attack with h4-h5, but this time around Jennifer knew what to expect and prepared her game plan thoroughly. Alisa took some bad decisions, in particular recapturing on e5 with the f pawn, which allowed her opponent to obtain a large advantage. Despite that, Jennifer did not handle the complications well and blundered with 23.Nd7?? This could have been a turning point for Alisa’s tournament but she failed to play the winning move 23…Rxf1! Instead she played a losing move and had to resign only a few moves later. Another disappointing result for Alisa who has played very decent games so far but failed to give her best during the critical moments.
We are entering the final three rounds of this exciting event and the battles are starting to heat up. Leaders will fight tooth and nail for this prestigious title, and the main benefiters of that will be the eagerly awaiting fans! Here are the matchups for Round 9:
As the 2016 U.S. Championship winds to an end, we are happy to share some details on the upcoming blitz event with Garry Kasparov. As was mentioned, the top three finishers will join Garry Kasparov in a special exhibition blitz tournament (not a rated event). We will draw pairing numbers at the Closing Ceremony of the 2016 U.S. Championship and U.S. Women’s Championship.
Format
- The four players will face each other in three round-robins per day, for a total of 18 games.
- There will be small breaks between rounds (1-2 minutes) and longer breaks between each round-robin (10-15 minutes)
- The time control will be game in five minutes with a three-second delay (not increment).
Prize Fund
The Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis is happy to provide a total prize fund of $50,000 for the blitz event. Garry Kasparov has generously offered to donate his prize winnings to support the U.S. Olympiad team—both very generous and helpful as America fields its strongest Olympiad team in decades. In the event of tied final scores, prizes will be divided evenly.
The prizes will be awarded as follows:
- 1st: $20,000
- 2nd: $15,000
- 3rd: $10,000
- 4th: $ 5,000
Schedule
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Day & Time |
Event |
Thursday, April 28 Beginning at 1:00 PM |
Blitz Round Robin #1 |
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Blitz Round Robin #2 |
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Blitz Round Robin #3 |
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Friday, April 29 Beginning at 1:00 PM |
Blitz Round Robin #4 |
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Blitz Round Robin #5 |
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Blitz Round Robin #6 |
By GM Cristian Chirila
In the Women’s Championship, the leaders—Paikidze, Krush and Abrahamyan—were all facing players that were having a critical tournament situation. Let’s analyze the games and understand how the players fared in this nerve-wracking round!
2016 U.S. Championship
Xiong vs. Caruana ½ - ½
This was undoubtedly one of the most important games of the round. Fabiano was coming in as the leader and knew that in order to preserve that status he would need to place as much pressure on his opponents from now till the end of the tournament. But today, he was facing a different player; a guy that he has never faced—a player that is arguably the biggest talent raised on American soil since Nakamura burst on the chess scene. That player is Jeffery Xiong and this was not going to be a cakewalk.
The game started off with a hybrid Ruy Lopez with 4…g6. Maybe Fabiano was inspired by the World Champion who used this same opening to win a nice game only two days ago in Norway. Jeffery looked surprised and allowed Black to get the upper hand after giving up his bishop pair without much fight with 8.Bxc6?! From there on, Fabiano exerted incredible pressure for the rest of the game. Unfortunately for him he did not manage to convert due to a marvelous resilience by his opponent.
Draw and the title race tightens up.
Shabalov vs. So 0-1
This was clearly one of those off days for Shabalov. He is known to be an extremely active player but failed to continue the game immediately after his preparation was over. Wesley surprised Shabalov (maybe himself too) with 17…Nf6?! Which has been played only once and it is quite an inaccuracy. His elite GM confidence confused White and he did not manage to play the most natural 18.Nf5! which would have given him a very pleasant advantage. Shabalov resigned at move 23 due to a terrible blunder in an already difficult position.
Robson vs. Chandra 1-0
Nakamura vs. Akobian 1-0
Nakamura had the last say in the matter and proved that even when surprised, 2800 caliber players have a secret bank of information that helps them to casually beat top GMs. Let’s take a closer look at this game and see how Nakamura managed to outplay his opponent.
Onischuk vs. Shankland 1-0
Shankland came into this tournament as a feared player, but he has not managed to find his rhythm and the results have been below the expectations. Onischuk was having a stable event at 50% and was looking to make use of his Whites in order to climb the rankings and threaten the leaders. White chose a tricky line with Qc2-Rd1 in the QGD, but it did not seem to work as Shankland fully equalized after the opening and maybe could have even pressed for an advantage at some point. Instead, he started playing too passively and took some suspicious decisions that damaged his position. Onischuk slowly increased the pressure and forced his opponent into submission after showing impressive endgame technique. In the end, it was a game that shows that even in the most equal and dry positions there are always ways to test your opponent. Today it was Onischuk’s hunger to win that prevailed as he now moves at +1 and starts eyeing the top places.
Lenderman vs. Kamsky ½ - ½
White came very well prepared and manage to amass a serious edge out of the opening. Kamsky felt in danger of being squashed down and tried to create counterplay by sacrificing a pawn after 19…b5?! This was a rushed decision and White could have obtained a big advantage if he would have found the cunning 24.N1a3! Instead, the game continuation failed to produce any results and Black fully equalized a couple of moves later.
2016 U.S. Women’s Championship
Paikidze vs. Bykovtsev 1-0
Once again, Nazi clearly stated with her opening choice that she believes she is the superior player, the g3-b3 development not being objectively a difficult line to refute. Agata did not have a clear plan and the uncertainty got her in real trouble quite quickly, but with some good moves and a bit of luck she could have flipped the tables and actually obtain an advantage after 39…Bh6! Instead she played Ra8 and after the game continuation the position was almost resignable.
Krush vs. Eswaran ½ - ½
Krush dodged another bullet. The seven-time U.S. Women’s Champion tried to play a slow game and take her opponent to the endgame, where she thought she would outplay her and win with ease. This was not the case as the young Ashrita held her own and actually managed to outplay her much more experienced opponent. She should have held the bishops on the board with 25…Re2, after which Irina would have a difficult defense. Instead, she chose to enter the rook’s endgame, one that Irina knew to perfection and held the draw exemplary.
Melekhina vs. Abrahamyan 0-1
Zatonskih vs. Gorti 1-0
This was a one-sided affair with the experienced Anna Zatonskih playing an almost perfect game and completely outplaying her younger opponent. Akshita did not understand the requirements of the position she was playing and incorrectly released the central pressure with 10.fxe5? This allowed White to obtain an incredible outpost on e5, as well as a game long target on e6. Anna knew she has a decisive strategic advantage and she never let go of it. Akshita did not have the necessary patience to defend such a passive position and cracked by playing 26…g5? Which simply gives a pawn and does not get any ounce of counterplay in return. The game quickly ended after that in a convincing victory for Zatonskih.
Nemcova vs. Yip 1-0
Foisor vs. Yu 1-0
Sabina has had a difficult tournament up to this point but one thing that she surely didn’t lose is her motivation to win games. Today’s game was proof of that as the players played a tame game and ended up in a completely equal endgame. Sabina channeled her inner Carlsen and decided to play on to see how well her opponent handles technical endgames. Yu played a good game but at some point forgot about her opponent’s threats and blundered with 70…Ra1?? Allowing her opponent’s king to invade via f5 and obtained a decisive advantage. Sabina took advantage of her chance and finished her opponent with immaculate technique.
by GM Cristian Chirila
There are good days and very good days at the U.S. Championship and U.S. Women’s Championship. Today was a day from the latter category with plenty of decisive results, important theoretical battle, nail-biting turns of events, and overall a fun packed set of games. Caruana respected his elite status and demolished Onischuk after playing a perfect game. So and Nakamura had a tense game and a few key moments could have shifted the balance of power in So’s favor. In the end, it finished in a draw and Nakamura can count out one of his nine lives. In the Women’s Championship it was a decisive round with only the leader—Nazi Paikidze—allowing Carissa Yip to pull a miraculous escape after a very odd opening from the young participant.
Let’s start the recap!
2016 U.S Championship
So vs. Nakamura ½ - ½
This was surely the most anticipated battle of the round. Wesley has showed that he, along with Caruana, is the top contender for the ultimate title. Nakamura was coming off a dominant performance against Shankland and surely was looking for a fight in order to regain some ground in the title fight. The game started off with a French and the players followed the game of Salem vs. Satyapragyan up until the 15th move when Nakamura made a strong novelty.
In a position with opposite side castles, it was White’s attack that seemed to have more steam and ultimately it was him who managed to open up the position. Let’s give this game a closer look and see if So could have pressured his opponent more.
Caruana vs. Onischuk 1-0
Saint Louis is clearly one of Fabiano’s favorite places to play chess. After his famous 7-0 run in the Sinquefield Cup, and it seems like another impressive performance is in the making. He knew that this is one of the most accessible rounds in terms of trying to become the sole leader, as his main rival was facing Nakamura. The rest day also played an important role and he came into the game extremely well prepared and ready to pulverize his opponent.
28 moves—that’s all he needed to outplay one of the strongest guy in the tournament, Alex Onischuk. Let’s try to understand how the world #2 prepares and executes an almost perfect game!
Kamsky vs. Robson ½ - ½
Despite the fact that so far in this event Kamsky did not shine, he is still one of the best players in the U.S. and a serious threat to anybody facing him. Robson, on the other hand, has had an amazing tournament, besides his game before the rest day against Lenderman. Both guys had something to prove and it was quite clear from the start on that they weren’t going to sign the result without a fight. The players entered a variation of the Semi-Slav, with Kamsky trying to prove that his bishop pair is better than his opponent’s queenside majority.
Chandra vs. Xiong ½- ½
The game between the Junior Champion and the runner-up was definitely a treat chess fans were eagerly expecting. White opened with 1.d4 and once again Xiong decided to change his opening approach and went for the Queen’s Indian instead of the Grunfeld—probably feeling that his rival might have prepared something serious during the rest day. Black did not have any serious problems equalizing and the game soon ended in an uneventful draw. A cautious game that did not spark any fire on the board.
Shankland vs. Shabalov 0-1
An entertaining battle between two motivated competitors. Shankland has recognized the fact that Shabalov is a very unpleasant opponent for him. Only recently did he manage to snap a series of losses by winning against him in the Millionaire Open.
Today it seemed like he is dwelling on that game and wanting to ride the victory wave. Unfortunately for him, Shabalov was not having any of that. White opened with 1.e4 and we were soon witnessing a Scheveningen, which seems to be the Sicilian of choice for this championship. Shankland seemed a bit impatient and erred early on with 11.Nce2. He himself pointed out in the press conference after the game, “he wanted to punish his opponent too much.” Shabalov quickly refuted White’s apparent attack and started his own initiative focused in the center. White was in deep trouble by move 20, and by move 40 he could have safely resigned. A clean game by Shabalov who gets back to 50% and will try to make a push for the primer spots in the rankings.
Akobian vs. Lenderman ½ - ½
Akobian once again tried a very rare continuation as early as move 5.b3 which caused Lenderman to make some early decisions in regard to his set-up. White got what he wanted out of the opening and could have claimed a serious advantage if he would have kept two pairs of rooks with 29.Rad1 instead of 28.Re5?! Lack of shape was once again a serious factor in Akobian’s play as he seemed to lack poise in the last stages of the middlegame. After the heavy pieces were exchanged, it was only a matter of time before the players would sign the scoresheets.
2016 U.S. Women’s Championship
Yip vs. Paikidze ½- ½
This was a crucial game in regards to the standings in the Women’s Championship. Paikidze knew she had to win in order to maintain her lead, and she came into the game with that outcome well established in her mind. Yip seemed to be on the same page as she played a strategically dubious opening and got herself into deep trouble when her opponent’s pieces started corralling her king. Fortunately for her, Paikidze did not spot the powerful 29…Bb5! and instead went for the less precise 29…e4? which allowed her opponent back into the game. None of the players blundered in time trouble and the game ended in a draw soon after the time control. A disappointing draw for Nazi and a cheerful result for the resilient Yip.
Abrahamyan vs. Foisor 1-0
In this game White got the better side of a Ruy Lopez, obtaining a very unpleasant initiative on the kingside. Foisor didn’t manage to create any counterplay and she soon found herself in a suffocating situation. Under the pressure, Foisor blundered with 28…Qc8? which allowed White to exchange the double pawn on the “g” file for the important Black “f” pawn.
White now had a clear advantage and Abrahamyan skillfully proved why she is one of the most ruthless players in the competition. Abrahamyan wins and catches the leader at 4.5/6p with five rounds to go.
Game annotation by GM Robert Hess.
Eswaran vs. Melekhina 1-0
Alisa chose a different opening than her usual Sicilian, and her lack of experience backfired badly. White got a stable advantage out of the opening and Alisa could not keep her patience for long, as it is often required in Ruy Lopez type of positions. After Black opened with the dubious 14…f5?!, White had the initiative for the rest of the game. Ashrita did not allow Alisa back into the game as she easily converted her pawn up in a rook’s endgame.
Gorti vs. Krush 0-1
A Ragozin that offered White no advantage out of the opening turned into a complete nightmare after Black started pushing her central pawns and opening his pieces towards her opponent’s king. Gorti did not have a clear plan as she maneuvered her knight to the completely dominated square “g3”. The defending champion slowly built up her advantage, positioning her pieces to their idea squares. In the end, the pawns started collapsing and Black cruised to victory with ease. After this win, Krush joins the leading pack and is back as the main favorite to defend her title.
Bykovtsev vs. Zatonskih 0-1
A difficult game to judge. Agata once again played a very precise game up to a point and then completely lost control in the final moves before the time control. This is one of those games that will leave a deep scar in Agata’s mind. She could have finished her opponent with 30.Rgf2! winning a piece but failed to spot it, and ultimately her advantage dissipated and was transferred to her opponent. A heartbreaking loss for the young Californian girl, and a breath of fresh air for Zatonskih.
Yu vs. Nemcova 0-1
A beautiful miniature by Nemcova who surely started to realize that if she continues with her missteps the fight for the top laurels will be lost. She furiously started the game with a quick vicious attack with 7…h5. Her opponent, confused by her aggressiveness, erred immediately with 9.f4?! This is a very dubious move as it weakens the king without claiming anything in return. Nemcova correctly understood that she needs to act fast and did not castle, instead she finished her piece development and aimed her forces at the White king. After only 28 moves the White king had to surrender under the painful attack lead by Nemcova.
Round five of the 2016 U.S. Championship and U.S. Women’s Championship has been the bloody war we have all been waiting for. The players were looking to go into the rest day with a win in their pocket, and the fans watching all over the world were the happy recipients of an entertaining chess day. We had enticing battles in both sections, with Wesley battling his nemesis from last year, Varuzhan Akobian. Also, the two favorites for the title in the Women’s section, Krush and Zatonskih, had to once again face each other! We were in for a treat and the players made sure we were not going to leave the stands without a satisfied smile on our faces.
2016 U.S. Championship
Shabalov vs. Caruana ½ - ½
The game between the leader—Caruana—and one of the most enthralling players of the tournament was certainly an important one to follow. White opened with 1.Nf3, and the game transition into a Fianchetto Grunfeld-Slav variation. It is well-known that White only gets a slight edge but not much more than that. Caruana was first to deviate with 11…Nb8?!, and it looked as if White might have gotten something to work with. Shabalov should have played 16.Rfd1 after which Black would have had problems proving equality. The game continuation was tame and the pieces started to come off the board quickly. In the ensuing endgame, none of the players really got close to obtaining an edge and a draw was agreed soon after.
So vs. Akobian 1-0
Akobian chose to face Wesley’s 1.e4 with the French but was soon in trouble after failing, once again, to make his homework. I am amazed at the lack of opening preparation the American “veteran” is showing. Let’s see what Grandmaster Hess thinks about this wild encounter!
Nakamura vs. Shankland 1-0
Xiong vs. Kamsky 1-0
Onischuk vs. Chandra 1-0
The young Chandra has had a subpar event so far—missing a lot of chances and revealing some important holes in his game along the way. The last few rounds he proved that his participation in the U.S. Championship is no fluke and managed to hold Nakamura to a draw and pressure Shabalov almost to the breaking point. Unfortunately for him, his play today was poor and Onischuk is not a player who misses given opportunities. The youngster was surprised after 9.Qd2! and started playing some very suspicious moves afterwards. By move 18 he was already in deep trouble and Onischuk transitioned into a completely winning endgame that he converted without difficulties. Chandra now heads back to the drawing board to make some serious adjustments during the rest day if he wants to improve his results going into the second part of the championship.
Robson vs. Lenderman ½ - ½
A wild game this was! The game had a slow start with Robson opting for the popular hybrid setup starting with Nf3-g3-Bg2—delaying his decision of pushing any of the central pawns. He followed with a d4-c4 setup and the game quickly ended in a position only found in one other game in history: Vachier vs. Sokolov, which ended in a draw. Lenderman was the first one to deviate with 11…Nf6 but Robson’s familiarity with the position allowed him to obtain a massive advantage.Black was feeling the pressure on the queenside and erred when he played 19…c5?, a move that Robson immediately punished with a very precise attack. White entered a completely winning endgame with a piece up but seemed hypnotized and spent almost all his time calculating ghost variations when he could have easily stopped any sort of counterplay with 44.Nc2! after which the Lenderman would have been forced to throw the towel. White had plenty of chances to finish the game even after his miss, but as if he was under a spell, he avoided all of the potentially winning moves and allowed Black to escape with a draw. This slip leaves Caruana and So as the co-leaders of the tournament and might prove extremely important in the title contention.
2016 U.S. Women’s Championship
Krush vs. Zatonskih ½ - ½
Paikidze vs. Yu 1-0
Paikidze was tied for the lead going into this round, and she certainly came to the game with a clear plan. She had to do everything in her power to get the victory and hopefully break the tie for first place going into the free day, and that’s exactly what she did! Let’s give this game a closer look as it is one of the most influential game of the round in terms of standings.
Nemcova vs. Abrahamyan ½ - ½
Both these players had something to prove. Nemcova was coming off a few difficult rounds, while Tatev surely knew that every single lost half point will count at the end. Nemcova, who is a student at Webster, the powerhouse in collegiate chess, came well-prepared into this game and chose the fairly out of fashion 4.Nge2. Tatev was well-prepared and chose the most critical line with 4…Nc6. This move has the best score in the database and is probably the best option when trying to prove White’s suspicious setup. Abrahamyan did not have any difficulties neutralizing White’s opening advantage and the players agreed to an uneventful draw at move 32.
Yip vs. Bykovtsev 0-1
Foisor vs. Eswaran ½ - ½
This game started awfully for the young Eswaran, and ended in terrible fashion for Foisor. The players entered the Classical variation of the Queen’s Indian, and immediately after the theory ended Eswaran blundered with 13…Nd7?. Sabina took advantage of her opponent’s clumsiness and enjoyed a massive advantage for the rest of the game. It was a heartbreaking finale when Foisor failed to convert a completely winning endgame and blundered her advantage with 61.Kh3?? instead of 61.Kf3! which would have certainly finished the game. The rest day can’t come at a better time for these women as they are looking to recuperate and come back stronger in the second half of the tournament.
Melekhina vs. Gorti 0-1
A very balanced game ended in another upsetting loss for Melekhina. Black had a good French but she did not play accurately and Melekhina managed to amass a slight middlegame advantage. Unfortunately for her, the lack of form once again creeped in and, after a series of inaccurate moves, it was her who was fighting for survival. Gorti knew that such chances don’t come often in these type of tournaments and carefully converted her advantageous endgame into a full point.