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Vidit dismantles Firouzja, enters World Top 20!

17/02/2020 -

The Prague Masters 2020 has reached the half-way mark, and it has been a one man show so far! Vidit Gujrathi has shown amazing composure and concentration, drawing with Black and winning with White. Today he dismantled Alireza Firouzja in the Exchange Slav after the latter mistakenly grabbed a poisoned pawn and found himself resigning on move 24. David Navara also showed some fighting spirit, to best Nils Grandelius in the symmetrical English to begin his comeback in the event. Sam Shankland missed too many opportunities, as Anton escaped. Nikita Vitiugov was close to winning against Harikrishna, but missed some nuances that could have killed the game off and had to split the point. Ragger confidently held Duda to a draw in the Exchange Ruy Lopez. A detailed report by Tanmay Srinath.

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Koneru Humpy wins the strongest Women's tournament ever in the history of chess

17/02/2020 -

Koneru Humpy has added one more feather to her cap by winning what has been reckoned as the strongest Women's tournament ever in the history of chess. The Cairns Cup 2020 concluded in St. Louis just a few hours ago with the Indian phenom finishing clear first with a score of 6.0/9 points. Alexandra Kosteniuk, who was Humpy's nearest rival going into the last round, failed to catch-up as she was effectively taken down by the reigning World Champion and top seed Ju Wenjun. Thus, in the final standings, Ju leapfrogged Alexandra and finished sole second, half a point behind Humpy. We bring you a brief express report highlighting the dramatic moment from the event's final day. The full report will follow soon.

Cairns Cup R08: Humpy takes sole lead and inches closer to the title

16/02/2020 -

The fight for the top spot escalated to an altogether different level in the penultimate round of Cairns Cup 2020. On one hand Koneru Humpy thoroughly out-prepared Valentina Gunina in the opening and demolished her in a mere 35 moves, while on the other the 16-year-old Carissa Yip stole the show by beating the reigning World Champion and top seed Ju Wenjun. Elsewhere, Alexandra Kosteniuk too continued to be a class act by taking down Nana Dzagnidze with some brilliant show of technique. The strongest women's tournament in the history of chess will thus enter its ninth and final round with four players in contention for the first place. Humpy is in sole lead with 5.5/9, Kosteniuk follow her just half a point behind, and Ju Wenjun and Mariya Muzychuk share the third place with 4.5/9 each.

Prague Masters 2020 R4: Firouzja's absurd gaffe, Vidit maintains sole lead

16/02/2020 -

When two sides play a perfect game of chess, the game more often than not ends up a draw. Today, while all the 5 games ended up as draws, 3 of them didn't follow the stated script. Alireza Firouzja exhibited passion and imagination, confusing Nikita Vitiugov with a speculative knight sacrifice to gain a decisive advantage, but made two inexplicable moves to gift the latter a draw. Duda was seriously worse after 9 moves, but his opponent David Anton failed to find the most incisive continuation, continuing his roller-coaster ride in the tournament. Harikrishna played the forgotten Sozin Attack, and had to soon defend for a while to see out the game to a draw. Markus Ragger was tortured by the exchange down David Navara for a while before concluding peace, and Nils Grandelius signed a rather tame draw with the tournament leader Vidit, who retains sole lead. A detailed report by Tanmay Srinath.

Swati Ghate speaks about the watch incident and suggests possible solutions

16/02/2020 -

WGM Swati Ghate was inconsolable and wept for hours after she lost her game due to wearing a wristwatch against Tania Sachdev in the final round of the National Team Championships 2020. A day after the incident, when Swati felt a bit better, she decided to write a post on Facebook about what had transpired. The thoughtful post with a tinge of humour began with the words, "What a coincidence that on a Valentine's day, I find myself in middle of controversy linked to a watch gifted by my husband." Swati not only explains what happened with her, but also gives possible solutions to the watch rule. Also in the article is IM Nisha Mohota's take on this entire episode.

Three valuable endgame lessons from the seventh round of Cairns Cup 2020

15/02/2020 -

Koneru Humpy and Ju Wenjun continue to lead the ongoing Cairns Cup 2020 after seven rounds with 4.5/7 points each. There are three players - Alexandra Kosteniuk, Mariya Muzychuk, and Nana Dzagnidze - following them closely just half a point behind. The seventh round of the event saw only one decisive game but was full of intense action and marathon battles. In this illustrated article we bring you three instructive endgame lessons from the three most important encounters of the day. Apart from that we also have full game analyses, photos, the latest pairings, and more.

Shaastra IIT Madras invites you to play in 4th Shaastra Rapid Rating Open

15/02/2020 -

Shaastra IIT Madras invites all chess players around the world in the fourth edition of Shaastra FIDE Rapid Rating Open scheduled to take place on 22nd and 23rd February 2020. This the only IIT which organizes Open Rapid Rating event every year. This year the total prize fund is ₹300000. So far four GMs and four IMs have already confirmed their participation. The total number of players increase every year by a lot. Last year total participants were 434. Last date of registration is 20th February 2020. The author of this article will be present at the venue to bring you extensive coverage. Photo: Tournament circular

Saptarshi Roy Chowdhury wins 1st ONGC Jorhat Open 2020

15/02/2020 -

GM Saptarshi Roy Chowdhury scored 8.5/10, remained unbeaten and finished a half point ahead of the competition to win 1st ONGC Jorhat Rating Open 2020. Top seed of the tournament IM Himal Gusain scored 8.0/10 and he secured the second position according to the tie-break score. Sumit Panta of Nepal also finished at 8.0/10, he was placed third. Total 142 players including a GM and two IMs participated in this six-day ten rounds Swiss league event held at Jorhat, Assam from 2nd to 7th February, organized by Jorhat District Chess Association. Total cash prize worth ₹378000 was distributed among the prize winners. Photo: Madhurjya Bharali

Prague Masters 2020 Round 3: Vidit's Gargantuan Grunfeld Genius!

15/02/2020 -

After three hard-fought rounds of chess in Prague we finally have a sole leader! Vidit Gujrathi, after surviving a mega-scare against David Anton yesterday, found his rhythm and squeezed Markus Ragger in a Grunfeld Endgame to go to World No.21 and 2.5/3. Alireza Firouzja has found the going tough in the first two rounds, but he seems to have benefited from the close shave yesterday, as he outplayed Harikrishna in a Closed Ruy Lopez structure to score his 1st win of the event. David Anton was seriously worse, but David Navara's struggles continued as he missed numerous chances for an advantage with White to gift the Spaniard the point. Grandelius continued to falter in decisive moments, as Vitiugov escaped by a hair's breadth to maintain a plus score, and Shankland missed out on what could have been a brilliant win over Duda as Black. A comprehensive report by Tanmay Srinath.

Gukesh's unbelievable fortune in Denmark

14/02/2020 -

Luck is a word we don't like to use when we speak about any result in chess. But if we have to make an exception then it has to be Gukesh's seventh round at the Hillerhoed Chess Festival in Denmark. Gukesh was playing on board no. 2 with a score of 5.5/6. His opponent was a 64-year-old player with rating of 2054. Gukesh had the white pieces. It seemed like he would score an easy win. However, the Danish player showed some great skills and very soon built up a winning position. Very soon he was not just a couple of pawns up, but also a piece up. It seemed like it was time for Gukesh to resign, when the unthinkable happened! You have to see it to believe it!

Dead draw? Not really! Humpy squeezes blood from stone in the sixth round of Cairns Cup 2020

14/02/2020 -

Sometimes Caissa, the goddess of chess, rewards you more for your grit than skill. This was clearly seen in the two decisive games of round six today at the Cairns cup 2020. On one hand Koneru Humpy managed to grind down her opponent Alexandra Kosteniuk from a seemingly dead position, and on the other Carissa Yip took down Valentina Gunina in a long and complex tactical melee. Humpy and Ju Wenjun have now emerged as the new leaders with 4.0/6 points each, while Kosteniuk and Nana Dzagnidze follow at their heels just half a point behind. We bring you a detailed pictorial report from St.Louis, Missouri.

Sriram Sarja wins 3rd Young Masters Rapid Chess Open 2020

14/02/2020 -

Sriram Sarja scored 7.5/8 and finished a full point ahead of the competition to become the champion in 3rd Young Masters Rapid Chess Open 2020. WIM Aakanksha Hagawane, Augustiya Negia and top seed Gaurav Bakliwal finished with the score of 6.5/8. They were placed second, third and fourth respectively. The tournament was organized by Ganga Pant and chess parents of Pune on 2nd February 2020 at Pune, Maharashtra. Their objective is to provide local spaces for the city chess players so that they can save on travel time and get to practice more within home turf. A pictorial report of the tournament. Photo: Ganga Pant

Avathanshu makes us believe that age is no barrier!

14/02/2020 -

14th of February 2020 is a special day for ChessBase India. No, not because of the Valentine's Day, but because it is the birthday of its Junior editor-in-chief Avathanshu Bhat. Avathanshu is the youngest ever serious chess journalist not just in India but all across the world. Today, as he turns 15, we wish to acquaint you with all the work that he has done in the last four years to power chess in India. From an 11-year-old newbie, Avathanshu has evolved into a 15-year-old sophisticated writer, but one thing that has always kept him in good stead is his ability to venture out into the unknown and try new things. Get to know more about this prodigious talent who believes that age is no barrier in whatever you want to achieve in life. 

Prague Masters 2020 R2: Technical issues bust imagination in Prague

14/02/2020 -

In Chess, results are one of the most important factors, but what is also interesting to the astute reader is how exactly the result came to be. On a day when all games ended in draws, some point splits can be more interesting than wins, especially if two players of equal strengths engage in a fist-fight to death! Today, that is precisely what happened at the Prague Masters 2020. Nils Grandelius fabulously outplayed Alireza Firouzja out of an Anti Berlin, but when the time came to finish off his opponent just after the time control he faltered. David Anton too endured disappointment, when Vidit Gujarathi suddenly blundered to gift him a winning advantage, which Anton didn't take advantage off. The remaining 3 games featured rather tame draws, with high class opening preparation. Round 2 report from the Prague Masters 2020 by Tanmay Srinath.

PSPB makes a hat-trick of National Team wins in Open and Women

13/02/2020 -

Petroleum Sports Promotion Board dominated 40th National Team Open and 18th National Team Women's championship 2020 as they won both event with a 100% score. Airports Authority of India secured second position in both Open and Women section with a score of 14.0/18 and 10.0/14 respectively. While RSPB B claimed the third position in Open with 13.0/18, Air India was placed third in the Women's section with a score of 10.0/14. Adhiban and Mary finished first on board #1, Sriram and Bala Kannamma on board #2, Karthikeyan and Sarayu on board #3, Lalith and Srija on board #4, Sai Agni and Arpita on board #5 in Open and Women's section respectively. Photo: IA Gopakumar Sudhakaran