2012 U.S. Championships News
The sixth and final day of the Champions Showdown was a formality for the players, since Magnus Carlsen's crushing performance on days four and five already sealed the deal in his favor. Despite speculation that the World Champion would push hard for a 3000 blitz rating, arbiter Tony Rich informed us early on that none of day six's games count towards ratings. Official FIDE rules indicate that once a match winner has been determined, the remaining games of the match cannot count for rating. Since Carlsen clinched yesterday with a round to spare, neither that last round nor today were officially counted for FIDE ratings.
With honor on the line, and as competitive as these players are, there was no lull in the action despite the lack of outside incentive. Indeed, the players' games today can be described as blazes of fury, one after another, though, unfortunately for Ding Liren, he was again in the receiving end of the great majority of these games.
In another funny series of results, it seemed like the white pieces were simply unable to perform! Ding Liren had real chances in his first game with black, but Carlsen managed to get out of trouble, and immediately after struck a win with a nicely timed queen sacrifice for a tremendous outside a-pawn. Ding Liren seemed to be in gear as he spurred a repetition to convert a winning endgame. And, more or less like yesterday, after Ding Liren's one win, the fun stopped.
Carlsen's resourcefulness in the hedgehog proved to be too much for his opponent and Ding Liren was out in 24 moves. The Chinese player was winning the next game, but he was simply too slow and was flagged in king and rook vs. king, resulting in a draw. Ding Liren had many more opportunities to win games, but his spirit wasn't there and he was playing against machine-like defense when things got tough. The World Champion was ruthless, even being somewhat dissatisfied with his play:
"I'm not 100% thrilled with the way things went today - he had so many chances!” remarked Carlsen, who also had an explanation of how he saved so many games today. "In blitz, a winning position is not enough. If there’s no clear way to win it, it doesn’t really matter that much!"
This was the most one-sided match of the event, even surpassing Nakamura-Topalov by quite a big margin.
The players will gear up for their following commitments: Ding Liren immediately departed for the Grand Prix in Palma de Mallorca, while Magnus Carlsen will be headlining the final leg of the Grand Chess Tour in London.
With the other matches decided and finished, it was a two-man show at the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis as Ding Liren and Magnus Carlsen entered their day three. Well, one could argue that it was really a one-man show, as Ding Liren was simply wiped off the board despite winning the first game.
Things started off with fireworks as the Chinese super star crushed the World Champion in the black side of a Paulsen Sicilian. His play was fast, accurate and remarkable – it was a good quality game if it was a correspondence time control, and almost unbelievable in a 10 minute game! Unfortunately for Ding Liren's fans, that's basically where the fun ended.
Carlsen came back with a vengeance, winning game after game after game. His style was fluid and solid, and his mistakes minimal. His precision was coupled with better time management than his opponent. It wasn't that Ding Liren played particularly slowly, but his opponent was just playing moves at rocket speed. Every mistake that Ding Liren played was almost immediately punished. To say that Ding Liren played badly today would be an exaggeration, he was certainly playing below his usual level, but he was also facing a machine.
Carlsen won a few games in his typical style: pressing positions from minimal advantages. This caused his opponent to crack on the fourth game and flag in the seventh, while game five was simply complete annihilation. Ding Liren managed a sole draw after the initial bout of the day, and the match was over after the seventh game of the day.
Tomorrow the players will play for honor, as the match has been completely decided. The score is currently an insurmountable 50-18 in favor of the World Champion.
It was the final day for three of the matches, while Ding Liren and Magnus Carlsen battled it out in the g/20 day. Two of the finishing bouts went basically down to the wire, while Nakamura against Topalov was a very one-sided affair. The action of the blitz was very tense, and blood was, literally, spilled over the board!
Caruana vs. Grischuk
Caruana entered the last day with a two game deficit, but had momentum going for him. He scored heavily toward the end of day three, and he came in with fire on the board. Caruana won his two first whites, tying the match very early. Grischuk was not about to be left behind, and retaliated immediately. The tension built up increasingly with every game, but it was Caruana that kept the better nerves and kept delivering blows. He was unstoppable with the black pieces and won three in a row with that color. Grischuk found himself needing to win the last two rounds to equalize the match, but was unable to do so. A fabulous day for Fabi, as he wins the 5-minute portion by a huge score of 8.5-3.5 (with points counting for two, that gave him 17 points against his opponent's 7) which was enough to catapult him to the win.
So vs. Dominguez
It seemed like the comeback story of Caruana would be the focus of attention of the day, but So had something to say about that. Trailing by 16 points with three games to go yesterday, So was simply a complete monster in the second half of the g/10 and all throughout today. Obtaining huge advantages on the clock and combining it with powerful and precise play, So turned the match around and even won the head-to-head with a full round to spare. Dominguez proved superiority in the rapid, but it was all So in the blitz.
On an interesting note So was so focused on banging the clock and putting that pressure on his opponent, that Carlsen requested that this match be played as far away from his board as possible, since it was distracting! So at some pointed even started bleeding from hitting the clock so hard, which forced the arbiters to pause the game and wipe the clock.
Nakamura vs. Topalov
One can very strongly argue that the result of the match did not reflect how close the games were, as we saw combative and active chess. That being said, Nakamura finished the day with double the amount of points of Topalov, clinched the match after only three of today's twelve rounds, and proved very clearly who was the better player. Nakamura's resourcefulness and speed in the fast time controls simply smashed his opponent all day.
Carlsen vs. Ding Liren
The lion roars! Carlsen was absolutely relentless, playing fast, confident, and precise chess. Ding Liren was unable to keep pace and lost several positions that perhaps shouldn't have been. In the second round, a relatively equal endgame finished in favor of Carlsen, and it seemed to be what opened the floodgates. The World Champion simply annihilated his opponent in the fourth and fifth games, and takes a huge advantage going into their third day of play.
The third day of the Champions Showdown brought much more action to the fray. The three matches already in progress played eight games of g/10, an incredibly fast time control that saw both great brilliancies and fantastic blunders. On top of these already exciting matches, two more players joined the event: Magnus Carlsen faced off in his g/30 rounds against Ding Liren. The inclusion of the World Champion is always welcome, and facing off against China's #1, and one of the players of the upcoming Candidates Tournament in March, only adds excitement to the Showdown.
Caruana vs. Grischuk
This was a very streaky one! Caruana was outplayed in game one, and after drawing game two, he also went down in games three and four, one of them included a big advantage blundered away by missing a simple mate in two sequence. It seemed that Grischuk was simply running away with the match, but the American wasn't done yet. The streak was broken in a surprising way: Caruana was completely against the wall, but in these fast time controls the clock plays a huge role! Caruana flagged Grischuk, and then won two nice games to remain in striking distance.
Topalov vs. Nakamura
In a strange series of results, the black pieces won the first four games of this match on the third day! Aggressive play prevailed throughout, with many exchange sacrifices being thrown around and Nakamura's pawns seeming to roll down the board when he wasn't getting mated! In a fabulous display of sportsmanship, Topalov, in a drawn position, offered to split the point in game five when Nakamura only had one second left, while Nakamura returned the favor soon after! The day was split, and Nakamura continues with a huge advantage going into the blitz.
Dominguez vs. So
The Cuban grandmaster entered the third day with a large advantage and, even though he keeps it after day three, it certainly has decreased a bit. After splitting the first three games of the day, Dominguez struck first and it, like the Grischuk-Caruana match, seemed to be a one-sided affair. But just like the other match, So scored three wins in a row to finish the day and So has a realistic chance of turning the match around in the final day.
Carlsen vs. Ding Liren
When you play the World Champion, chances are that if you get one striking opportunity in a match, it might be your only one. Ding Liren had a winning position in the first game with the black pieces, but it was very far from trivial and Carlsen found a very nice trick to retain the balance. After splitting the second game, Carlsen played a fantastic sequence in game three that gave him a winning advantage, playing a razor sharp variation. However, he missed the killing blow, and Ding Liren escaped with a draw. The fourth game was the one in which Carlsen finally struck a blow. Playing with the black pieces, he put on the squeeze against his opponent and finished off with gorgeous tactics to force his pawns through.
Day two of the Champions Showdown was as dramatic as the first! The players fought hard in the first day and it was impossible to claim that any of them were clearly overpowering their opponent. The trend continued with the game/20 day, as the matches went back and forth. Time trouble loomed in many games and some players learned the hard way the hardships of this time control without delay or increment. Let’s take a look at today’s action, match by match!
Nakamura vs Topalov
Nakamura mentioned during his interviews that he specifically chose Topalov to practice his more aggressive playing style against an opponent who never shies away from a fight. Today was certainly a vivid affair, with Nakamura essaying the Sicilian repeatedly. That being said, it truly was a day full of opportunities for Topalov, opportunities that he did not take advantage of. He had, throughout the day, winning attacks or chances to push in endgames, but he failed to convert them. Nakamura won the first game of the day and, strangely enough, was the only one that was decisive. Topalov’s biggest miss was certainly in the third game (a game that he would normally have won blindfolded) though losing when he was up a piece for basically nothing in the last game was also remarkable. Nakamura is up 13.
Caruana vs. Grischuk
These players keep fighting back and forth! The match is extremely tight and, after two days, Grischuk only has a minimal advantage. The first win came from a Berlin in which the American had nice pressure all over the board thanks to his preparation; Grischuk was unable to equalize and found himself in deeper and deeper trouble. The Russian struck back in game five, interestingly in the same line of the Berlin that gave Grischuk a win yesterday! Caruana has said it’s possibly time to retire this line.
The last game was absolutely chaotic, and Caruana simply overlooked that his queen was hanging! What an oversight for a player of this calibre. This gives Grischuk an advantage by 4.
So vs. Dominguez
The match that was by far the most solid yesterday turned on its head, as it became a frantic battle in the second day. Dominguez established early superiority, winning game two against the French and then striking again with the black pieces in the Berlin in game three. Wesley finally took matters in his own hands right after that, essaying the Petroff but playing it for a win! Nice technique allowed him to convert. The most controversial game of the day was certainly the fifth. So was up a pawn - but more importantly he had seven seconds against Dominguez’s five! In the time scramble, the American hesitated, pieces started to fly, rooks controlled what seemed to be four squares at a time, but So’s flag fell first and the game went to the Cuban. This heavily increases the lead for Dominguez, who is now up 13 points.
The Champions Showdown started today, November 9, 2017 at the Saint Louis Chess Club. An amazing four-match event was put together and the top players answered the call; they came ready to show their determination and grit to outplay their opponents. The most interesting aspect of the event is surely its time control. With no increment or delay, the players are forced to adapt and prosper in unconventional situations. The first day was filled with thrilling chess as well as a fair share of drama, as some of the games ended after severe time pressure situations. Let’s get into the recap, match by match!
Caruana vs Grischuk
In my opinion this was the match of the day. Both players came to the rounds extremely motivated, ready to explore new ideas in an attempt to throw off their opposition. Fabiano started off blazing hot, securing an early victory after accurately outplaying Grischuk in a Sicilian Najdorf. Game two was a complete mess, with the advantage switching sides until the last phase of the game, during which the players threw out any concern for safety and went all out in an attempt to simply play faster than their opponent. Grischuk managed to capture all of Fabiano’s pieces before he ran out of time and the game was called a draw due to lack of material. Game three saw Grischuk simply outclass Caruana, who carelessly attempted an unconventional pawn storm on the kingside, an attempt that seriously backfired. Game four was a tense battle but neither of the players were willing to take unnecessary risks and the game ended in a draw.
Nakamura vs Topalov
Nakamura was considered by many to be the big favorite of this match. The first round of the match was a fairly tame affair and the players reached a draw without much fuss. The last three games were all very explosive and combative encounters as the players revved their engines and exchanged blows for the remaining of the day. Game two and four went Nakamura’s way, while the third game was a beautiful attacking masterpiece by Topalov.
So vs Dominguez
This was arguably the least exciting match due to the extremely solid style of both of these players. The match saw four consecutive Berlin openings and the match seemed to be heading toward a 2-2 result until the very last moments of the day. In game four, Dominguez pressured his opponent and was heading toward a comfortable win. But then, the situation became complicated due to the time control. In a severe time scramble, So made the final error and allowed Dominguez to take the lead heading into day two of the event.
Tomorrow the time controls get shorter as the players will have only 20 minutes each to finish their games.