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National Challengers 2017 Round 2+3: Day of underdogs!

15/08/2017 -

They say Indian players are under-rated. Well, this was shown in ample measure at rounds two and three of the National Challengers 2017. Players rated 500 points below their grandmaster opponents were able to draw their games. Especially noteworthy is the performance of Chaitanya Sairam Mogili, rated 1781, and has drawn against a GM, IM and a WFM. We have pictures from Ahmedabad and game analysis. Seventeen players lead with a perfect score after three rounds.

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Anand vs Kasparov - Revival of a fascinating rivalry

14/08/2017 -

When Vishy played Kasparov for the World Championship Match in 1995, the Indian youngster was brilliant, but inexperienced. One of Anand's major drawback was lack of high class opening preparation. Fast forward 22 years and the same Anand is feared in elite chess circles as a master of opening preparation! Chess fans always wondered how would Kasparov have fared against this meticulously prepared Anand. Well it remained only a theoretical question as Kasparov had retired in 2005. But now from 14th-18th we will see Garry back on the board in Saint Louis, and the age-old rivalry will be renewed. V. Saravanan takes you down the memory lane.

National Challengers Round 1: 14-year-old holds GM Sriram Jha

14/08/2017 -

The Open National Challengers 2017 has got underway in Ahmedabad from 13th of August. All the grandmasters had a smooth outing in the first round except for one - GM Sriram Jha. The grandmaster from Delhi was held to a draw by 14-year-old Mounika Akshaya. Few more higher rated players faced the heat and were made to split the points. The battles are heating up and ChessBase India brings you the action from Karnavati club.

Komodo 11: A review

13/08/2017 -

When it comes to chess engines, Komodo 11 is bang up to date and is often referred to as the engine that can think like humans! Amazed by this, Davide Nastasio got his hands on this silicon giant to test it out for himself. After spending several hours exploring the various features of Komodo, he was not only convinced that the engine does analyse positions in a human-like manner but also felt it is an extremely useful tool for the modern chess player. Below is his insightful review.

A surprise from India at the scenic Sitges in Barcelona

13/08/2017 -

Our Spanish trip is coming to an end. Nearing its close, this 53-day-long journey of ours took us to Sitges, a coastal town south-west of Barcelona which is renowned for its beauty across the globe. Besides enjoying the town’s sandy beaches, our aim here was to make it big at the 43rd Sitges International Chess Open. As the tournament concluded, the young Peruvian GM Cori Jorge etched his name on the title prize. Unfortunately for the Indian contingent, none of the players was able to finish among the top 10. 50-year-old IM Anup Deshmukh’s scintillating performance outshined all young stars as he finished as the best Indian performer at the event. Anyway, seeing our motherland make its presence felt in a foreign land filled our hearts with respect and pride. In this article, Niklesh Jain takes you on a Spanish journey.

National Challengers 2017 kicks off with Parthiv Patel as the chief guest

13/08/2017 -

One of the most important tournaments in the Indian circuit National Challengers 2017 is about to begin from 13th of August 2017. On 12th August former Indian test cricketer Parthiv Patel attended the opening ceremony and made the inaugural moves against WIM Dhyani Dave. Round one begins at 3 p.m. on 13th. Top seed is GM Aravindh Chithambaram followed by  S.L. Narayanan, Lalith Babu and ten other grandmasters and seventeen International Masters. Pictures from the opening ceremony.

MVL wins Sinquefield Cup 2017, Anand finishes second

12/08/2017 -

Maxime Vachier Lagrave has won many super tournaments in his life. He is also called as Mr. Biel for his excellent performances over the years in the Swiss grandmaster event. However, this Sinquefield victory surely trumps everything else that he has conquered. In the final round he won a smooth game against Nepomniachtchi and won the title with a score of 6.0/9. Vishy Anand drew his game with Wesley and achieved an admirable second spot with 5.5/9. Third place went to Magnus Carlsen. Final report of the event from Saint Louis by V. Saravanan.

Sinquefield Cup 2017 Round 8: In for a tense finish!

12/08/2017 -

The penultimate round at the Sinquefield Cup 2017 kept all the possibilties open. Vishy Anand drew his game against MVL. The duo maintained their lead with 5.0/8 along with Levon Aronian. Magnus Carlsen was unable to win against Nepomniactchi. He is now joined on 4.5/8 by Sergey Karjakin who was able to outplay Wesley So. Five players have a theoretical chance to win the title! We are in for a tense finale! Complete round 8 report from Saint Louis.

On his 12th birthday Praggnanandhaa gifts himself 2500 Elo!

11/08/2017 -

On 10th of August Praggnanandhaa turned 12 years old. Sergey Karjakin achieved the title of grandmaster at the age of 12 years and seven months. Pragg has seven months left to become world's youngest GM. He made tangible progress in that direction by scoring 6.0/7 at the Hogeschool Zeeland tournament in Vlissingen, Netherlands. With that he has a rating performance of 2653. He is well and truly on his way to making his maiden GM norm. He has also gained 13.7 Elo points and has crossed 2500 mark in the live ratings.

Why did Parimarjan Negi quit chess?

11/08/2017 -

He was a child prodigy, a rising star, the future of chess. He grew up breaking one record after another and was the source of his nation’s pride. He loved the game. Yet, at a certain point he quietly stepped away from the spotlight. He stopped climbing the Mount Everest. With the same pair of hands that used to send pieces flying across 64 squares in one-minute bullet, he pushed open the heavy metallic gates of the Stanford University that stood before him. Why did Parimarjan Negi quit chess? Yuanling Yuan for Chess Life tells you why.

Sinquefield Cup 2017 Round 7: Vishy Anand beats Nepo in a complex rook endgame

10/08/2017 -

Vishy Anand's detractors will surely take some rest after the Indian ace's excellent play at the Sinquefield Cup. Anand, who had already stunned everyone with some mind boggling calculations against Caruana, showed fine endgame technique against Nepomniachtchi and beat him in a complex rook endgame. He now leads the tournament along with MVL and Aronian. With two rounds to go, this might be Anand's chance to win the Sinquefield Cup for the first time in his career. Saravanan reports from Saint Louis.

Is the rook endgame really drawn?

10/08/2017 -

In the fourth round of the Chaleroi Open 2017, Sagar Shah played a rook endgame against WIM Andreea-Cristiana Navrotescu. In a rook endgame where she was two pawns down, Andreea resigned. Later when Sagar went back home and analyzed the position, he realized that the position was not so simple. He discussed the position with Tigran Gharamian, who couldn't find a win, and later with GM Sandipan Chanda. The position is still very rich and open for discussion. What do you think? Is it still a draw?

Sinquefield Cup round 6: So lost between 'being' and 'doing'

09/08/2017 -

After a day's rest, action rekindled in St. Louis as players crossed swords in the sixth round of the Sinquefield Cup. Wesley So lost his third game of the event against Levon Aronian. Magnus Carlsen swamped Hikaru Nakamura with an exchange sacrifice and made the American sweat blood to wriggle out with a draw. Fabiano Caruana came out with a novelty which even the silicon machines had missed considering. Saravanan Venkatachalam sends us an insightful report bringing forth the reasons for So's downfall drawing from the concept of doing instead of being - a concept articulated by Jonathan Rowson in his book Chess for Zebras.

Abhijeet wins ChessMine Rapid, Vidit takes home the blitz

09/08/2017 -

The strongest Rapid and Blitz tournament ever in India was held from the 5th to the 7th of August 2017 in Bangalore. Vidit, Abhijeet, Sethuraman, Deep, Gopal, Aravindh, Karthikeyan. Barring Anand, Hari and Adhiban all the big names of Indian chess were present there! Abhijeet Gupta won the rapid section while Vidit Gujrathi dominated the blitz. It was a festival of chess that was sublimely organized. We have a beautiful pictorial report that will give you the feel of the entire event. 

I follow Ivanchuk's repertoire to find new ideas in the opening!

09/08/2017 -

The relationship of a student and coach is quite a delicate one in chess. Each student has a different style and the coach must ensure that he is able to identify the weaknesses and work on them. Developing a strong foundation between a trainer and a trainee is not easy. But once that happens, the journey towards chess improvement becomes smooth and fun. Such a powerful bond has developed between WGM Bhakti Kulkarni and Dronacharya award winner Raghunandan Gokhale. After Bhakti's win at the National Challengers, we caught up with Gokhale and tried to find out the secret of his success as a trainer.

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