Grosslobming GP R2: Vaishali wins two in-a-row
GM R Vaishali won her second consecutive game at FIDE Grosslobming GP in Austria. IM Lela Javakhishvili (GEO) made a miscalculation which allowed Vaishali to have a center passed pawn and a strong knight at e2. However, she let go of the pawn and the Georgian made another mistake a few moves later. It cost her an exchange and the game. GM Zhongyi Tan (CHN) defeated IM Olga Badelka (AUT) comfortably to win her second game in-a-row. GM Anna Muzychuk (UKR) grinded a relatively equal knight endgame to beat GM Jiner Zhu (CHN). Anna is the only one at 1.5/2. Round 3 starts today at 3 p.m local time, 6:30 p.m. IST. Photo: FIDE/Przemysław Nikiel
Anna Muzychuk grinds a knight endgame against Jiner Zhu
Lela - Vaishali: 0-1
GM R Vaishali (2475) faced IM Lela Javakhishvili (GEO, 2430) thrice, twice at the Olympiad where Vaishali won them. Only once at a GP last year which ended in a draw.
White made a mistake 17.Nd4? Nxd4 18.Bxb4 Ne2+ 19.Kh1 Re8 20.Qd2 Rc8 21.Bc3 b5 22.a3 Qc7? Black loosened her grip by giving up the d3-pawn 23.e4 Bxe4 24.Bxe4 Rxe4 25.Qxd3 However, after few more moves White made another mistake
Vaishali found the nice interference 31...Nc1! 32.Qf5 Qe2 and now White cannot avoid the loss of an exchange 33.Kg1 Re5 34.Qd7 Qc2 35.Bd2 Qxb1 and Black won the game in the next few moves.
Anna - Jiner: 1-0
GM Anna Muzychuk's (UKR, 2526) quite possibly the biggest rival in the tournament is - GM Jiner Zhu (CHN, 2541). The reason is the GP standings. Thus, Anna tried her level best to win the game and she did.
39...Ke6? allowed White to be in the driver's seat 40.Kd2+ Kd6 41.f5 Ng8 42.Re6+ Kc7 43.Kc3 Rb7 44.Nb4 Kd7 45.Na6? White needed to go 45.a4 here. Black got back in the game after White misplayed a little bit.
The above seems to be heading towards a draw after the rook trade which is inevitable.
The above knight endgame seems to be ending in a draw, provided Black does not make a mistake. 84...Na3?? 85.Kd6+- Nc2 86.Nd3 Black has reached far away from the king and it became difficult for Black to hold on to the c6-pawn. 86...Kb7 87.Kc5 Ka6 88.Ne5 and Anna converted her advantage into a win.
Replay live stream
Replay Round 2 games
GP Standings
GM Aleksandra Goryachkina is still at the top spot 308.34. She is guaranteed a spot at the next Candidates as only GM Jiner Zhu (CHN) can surpass her. She is at 235 points. After winning Pune GP, GM Koneru Humpy moved up to the second spot with 279.17 points. She needs to hope that Jiner does not surpass her in GP points at the Grosslobming GP.
Prizes
Total prize fund is €80000. The top three prizes are €18000, €13000 and €10500 each. The top three GP points are - 130, 105 and 85. For more details, check out the regulations below.
Schedule
Round 1 starts on 6th May at 3 p.m. local time, 6:30 p.m. IST. The tournament will go on till 15th May 2025. Sole rest day is on Monday 12th May.
Round 2 results
| Bo. | No. | Rtg | White | Result | Black | Rtg | No. | PGN | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 10 | 2509 | GM | Dzagnidze, Nana | ½ - ½ | GM | Kosteniuk, Alexandra | 2479 | 6 | PGN | ||
| 2 | 7 | 2536 | GM | Tan, Zhongyi | 1 - 0 | IM | Badelka, Olga | 2426 | 5 | PGN | ||
| 3 | 8 | 2526 | GM | Muzychuk, Anna | 1 - 0 | GM | Zhu, Jiner | 2541 | 4 | PGN | ||
| 4 | 9 | 2399 | IM | Salimova, Nurgyul | ½ - ½ | GM | Muzychuk, Mariya | 2494 | 3 | PGN | ||
| 5 | 1 | 2430 | IM | Javakhishvili, Lela | 0 - 1 | GM | Vaishali, Rameshbabu | 2475 | 2 | PGN |
Standings after Round 2
| Rk. | SNo | Name | FED | Rtg | Pts. | TB1 | TB2 | TB3 | TB4 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | GM | Vaishali, Rameshbabu | IND | 2475 | 2 | 1 | 1,00 | 2 | 0 | |
| 7 | GM | Tan, Zhongyi | CHN | 2536 | 2 | 1 | 1,00 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 3 | 8 | GM | Muzychuk, Anna | UKR | 2526 | 1,5 | 1 | 0,50 | 1 | 0 | |
| 4 | 3 | GM | Muzychuk, Mariya | UKR | 2494 | 1 | 1 | 1,00 | 0 | 0 | |
| 5 | 5 | IM | Badelka, Olga | AUT | 2426 | 1 | 1 | 0,50 | 1 | 0 | |
| 6 | 10 | GM | Dzagnidze, Nana | GEO | 2509 | 1 | 1 | 0,50 | 0 | 0 | |
| 7 | 6 | GM | Kosteniuk, Alexandra | SUI | 2479 | 0,5 | 2 | 0,50 | 0 | 0 | |
| 8 | 9 | IM | Salimova, Nurgyul | BUL | 2399 | 0,5 | 1 | 0,50 | 0 | 0 | |
| 9 | 1 | IM | Javakhishvili, Lela | GEO | 2430 | 0,5 | 0 | 0,50 | 0 | 0 | |
| 10 | 4 | GM | Zhu, Jiner | CHN | 2541 | 0 | 1 | 0,00 | 0 | 0 |
Round 3 pairings
| Bo. | No. | Rtg | White | Result | Black | Rtg | No. | PGN | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 2475 | GM | Vaishali, Rameshbabu | GM | Dzagnidze, Nana | 2509 | 10 | ||||
| 2 | 3 | 2494 | GM | Muzychuk, Mariya | IM | Javakhishvili, Lela | 2430 | 1 | ||||
| 3 | 4 | 2541 | GM | Zhu, Jiner | IM | Salimova, Nurgyul | 2399 | 9 | ||||
| 4 | 5 | 2426 | IM | Badelka, Olga | GM | Muzychuk, Anna | 2526 | 8 | ||||
| 5 | 6 | 2479 | GM | Kosteniuk, Alexandra | GM | Tan, Zhongyi | 2536 | 7 |
