[Bobby Ang]
The FIDE World Chess Cup is being staged from 26 November to 18 December 2005, in Khanty-Mansyisk, Russia. This the 128-player event replaces what was known as the "FIDE Knockout World Championship" and serves as a qualifier for the Candidates stage of the world championship. The prize fund is US $1.5 million, with FIDE’s President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov providing $300,000 for organizational costs.
Last Sunday 128 players representing zones and continents from all over the world sat down to play 2-game knock-out matches to qualify 64 of them to the next round. The losing 64 get to go home right away with $6,000 (less 20% FIDE tax) in their pockets.
GM Vladimir Akopian, the Vice-Champion in the 1999 Las Vegas FIDE World Championship, fell ill and had to forfeit both his games to Englishman-turned-Australian IM Gary Lane.
Aside from Akopian the top 20 all won in the 1st round including Vassily Ivanchuk, Etienne Bacrot, Levon Aronian, Alexander Grischuk, Boris Gelfand, Alexei Shirov, Teimour Radjabov, Ruslan Ponomariov, Sergei Tiviakov, Ivan Sokolov, Alexey Dreev, Gata Kamsky, Viorel Bologan, and Joel Lautier.
In fact, we have to look all the way down to board 24 to see the first upset – the Vietnamese GM Cao Sang, now representing Hungary (geez, imagine that, for the first time someone from Southeast Asia is imported to represent an East European chess powerhouse), knocked out Ukraine’s superGM Andrei Volokitin.
At least Volokitin is in good company. His co-finalist in the Young Masters’ tournament held in Lausanne last September, US Champion GM Hikaru Nakamura, was also eliminated, the Indian GM Surya Shekhar Ganguly doing the honors. Nakamura had fought his way to the 4th round of the 2004 Tripoli World Championship and his supporters were hoping that he would advance farther this year, but he was outplayed by Ganguly in both games and went down to a 0-2 defeat.
On board 32 the 15-year old Norwegian sensation Magnus Carlsen upset superGM Zurab Azmaiparashvili. The youngster won the first game but Zurab came back in the second game to tie the match. The first tie-break game (25 minutes each with 10 second increment added after every move) saw another win by Magnus, and he stopped Azmaiparashvili’s attempt to come back again with a nice crush in the second tie-break:
Carlsen,M (2570) - Azmaiparashvili,Z (2658) [B06]
WCC Khanty Mansyisk RUS (1.4), 29.11.2005
1.d4 d6 2.e4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.f4 a6 5.Nf3 b5 6.Bd3 Nd7 7.Be3 c5 8.dxc5 Nxc5 9.Bxc5 dxc5 10.e5 Ra7 11.Qe2 Nh6 12.a4 Qa5 13.0–0 b4 14.Ne4 0–0 15.Qf2 Rc7 16.Nfd2 Be6 17.Nc4 Bxc4 18.Bxc4 Nf5 19.Rfd1 Qb6 20.c3 h5 21.a5 Qc6 22.Qe2 Rb8 23.Bd5 Qb5 24.Bc4 Qc6 25.Bd5 Qe8 26.Bc4 Bh6 27.g3 Rd8 28.Bxa6 Rxd1+ 29.Rxd1 Qa4 30.Bc4 Qxa5 31.e6 fxe6 32.Nf6+ Kh8 33.Rd8+ Kg7 34.Rg8+ 1–0
Of course for us Filipinos the most important match was between GM Mark Paragua (PHI 2596) vs Slovakian champion GM Sergei Movsesian (SVK 2635). As we had written last Friday Movsesian was an extremely tough adversary – he had reached the quarter-finals (last 8 players standing) in the 1999 Las Vegas World Championship and had won a few super-tournaments, including the 2002 Sarajevo category-16 event ahead of Shirov and Sokolov.
Movsesian obviously did not take Paragua seriously and was going for his usual tactic in knock-out tournaments of drawing the two standard games quickly to move over to the tie-breaks at faster time controls. Movsesian has an excellent reputation as a blitz player and did not think he would have much trouble in disposing of the Filipino once they reach the tie-breaks (although even here matters are not so clear – Paragua is also a terrific blitzer).
Their first game was a short draw:
Movsesian,S (2635) - Paragua,M (2596) [B90]
FIDE World Cup, Khanty Mansyisk RUS (1.1), 27.11.2005
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be3 e5 7.Nb3 Be6 8.f3 h5 9.f4 exf4 10.Bxf4 Nc6 11.Qd2 d5 12.exd5 Nxd5 13.Nxd5 Qxd5 14.0–0–0 0–0–0 15.Bd3 Bd6 16.Be3 Nb4 17.Kb1 Nxd3 18.cxd3 Kb8 19.Ka1 Rc8 20.h3 f6 21.Rhe1 Bf7 22.Bg1 ½–½
Mark saw his chance. In the second game, with White, he surprised Movsesian by starting off with 1.d4 instead of his usual kingside opening. Then he revealed his deep preparation by going into a line which Movsesian favors and springing a surprise. By this time the Slovakian smelled a fight to the death and tried to create counterplay for himself, but Paragua was in brilliant form and broke through with a sacrificial attack to force resignation.
Paragua,Mark (2596) - Movsesian,Sergei (2635) [D15]
FIDE World Cup, Khanty Mansyisk (1.2), 27.11.2005
1.d4
In his previous stint at the world championships Mark lost to Bologan because he didn't have sufficient knowledge of the queenside openings. It appears that he has been doing a lot of work in the two years since, because now we see Mark opening with 1.d4 and, with black, answering 1.d4 with a Queen's Gambit Accepted instead of his usual King's Indian.
1...Nf6 2.Nf3 d5 3.c4 c6 4.Nc3 a6 5.c5 Nbd7 6.Bf4 Nh5 7.Bd2 Nhf6 8.Bf4 Nh5
This system does not have a good reputation, but some people, including Movsesian, play it regularly with black.
9.e3
The alternative is to preserve the bishop with 7.Bd2.
9...g6 10.h4 Nxf4 11.exf4 Bg7 12.h5 b6 13.cxb6 Qxb6 14.Qd2 Rb8 15.b3 Nf6 16.hxg6 fxg6?!
The text leaves the square e5 open for white to create an outpost for his knight. However, capturing the other way does not equalize either. There could follow 16...hxg6 17.Na4 (17.Rxh8+ Bxh8 18.Rc1 Ne4 19.Nxe4 dxe4 20.Ne5 Bb7 21.Rc5 was agreed drawn in the game between Farago,I (2507)-Seres,L (2497) from Budapest 2004. Probably there were other considerations affecting the players' decision, because White had a plus in the final position and could well be justified in playing for a win) 17...Ne4 18.Nxb6 Nxd2 19.Rxh8+ Bxh8 20.Kxd2 Rxb6 with slightly the better prospects for White.
17.Ne5 Ng4 18.Na4 Qc7
[18...Qb4!? to exchange off the major pieces loses a pawn to 19.Nxc6 Qxd2+ 20.Kxd2 Nxf2 21.Nxb8 Nxh1 22.Bxa6 Bxa6 23.Rxh1 Bb5 24.Nc3]
19.Rc1
So now in addition to the white knight on e5 Black is also saddled with a weak pawn on c6. Movsesian realizes that he is in deep trouble and tries to complicate the position, but if you ask me he is already lost at this point.
19...Nxe5 20.fxe5 0–0 21.Bd3 Qd7 22.Rh4 e6 23.Ke2 Qf7 24.f3 Bd7 25.Rch1
The h-pawn cannot be defended - it has to move.
25...h5 26.R1h3 Be8 27.Qg5 c5 28.Nxc5 Bb5 29.Rg3 Bxd3+ 30.Kxd3 Kh7
See diagram
caption: position after 30...Kh7
31.Nd7!
Heading for f6. The knight is immune to capture because of 31...Qxd7 32.Qxg6+ Kg8 33.Qxh5.
31...Rg8 32.Rgh3
Threatening to take the h5 pawn.
32...Rgd8
Movsesian wanted very much to play 32...Qf5+ but after 33.Qxf5 exf5 34.Nxb8 Rxb8 35.g4 his game is likewise hopeless.
33.Nf6+ Bxf6 34.exf6 Rb7 35.g4 Qe8 36.gxh5
Black should now resign. Instead he goes on a spree of spite checks.
36...Rxb3+ 37.axb3 Qb5+ 38.Ke3 Qxb3+ 39.Kf2 Qc2+ 40.Kg3 Qg2+ 41.Kxg2 1–0
Well done Mark! By winning in the first round he has guaranteed himself a minimum of US $9,000 (well, $7,200 if you take out the 20% which FIDE deducts as some sort of tax).
Paragua will now proceed to the second round where he will face one of the top players of Russia – superGM Alexey Dreev, who sports an ELO rating of 2694, almost 100 pts above Mark. Dreev is one of the world’s greatest experts in the Semi-Slav with Black, the same opening that Movsesian used in his fatal second game above. I am already very excited to see what else Mark has in store against it.
Let us dream a bit – if Mark beats Dreev his guaranteed prize goes up to US $14,000, and if he wins in the third round he becomes a millionaire, because the minimum prize that he will be taking home is US $21,000.
C’mon Mark, you can do it!
Reader comments/suggestions are urgently solicited. Email address is bang@bworldonline.com
"This article first appeared in Bobby Ang's column in Business World (Philippines) on 02 December 2005"
No comments:
Post a Comment