Dortmund, Round 4: Nepomniachtchi joins the tie for first
Round 4 of the Sparkassen Chess-Meeting in Dortmund saw three more draws, but it had its moments.
The first game to finish was Kramnik-Leko (shock, horror), a 22 move draw by repetition. Despite the quick and uninspiring conclusion, there were places where the game could have livened up, and the game may have a little theoretical significance as well.
Another short draw, finishing just a few seconds later, was Gustafsson-Ivanchuk, but this game was almost everything Kramnik-Leko was not. The opening was very sharp and neither player backed down from the complications. Ivanchuk's opening choice was quite clever: he entered the Vienna Variation of the Queen's Gambit, but then went down a sideline resulting in what looks like a favorable version of the Botvinnik Variation of the Semi-Slav. I think he had a very nice edge, but on move 16, perhaps overly concerned with the possibility of 17.d5, he preferred solidity over aggression, and that allowed Gustafsson to level the game.
After another hour or so, the remaining games finished in a near dead-heat. First came the only non-draw of the round, Nepomniachtchi-van Wely. White sacrificed a pawn for control of d5 and kingside prospects. Black's position was okay, but he wasn't able to find a solution to those problems - even after sacrificing the exchange, the same difficulties remained. White won a further pawn, and despite a hiccup on move 27, Nepomniachtchi's technique was good enough to win with the extra exchange.
Finally, Naiditsch-Mamedyarov ended too, a Taimanov Sicilian where first White and then Black enjoyed a very small edge, but accurate play from both players kept the game balanced.
The games, with my comments, are here.
Standings after Round 4:
1-3. Gustafsson, Leko, Nepomniachtchi 2.5
4-6. Mamedyarov, Naiditsch, Kramnik 2
7. Ivanchuk 1.5
8. van Wely 1
Pairings for Round 5: (On Friday; Thursday is a rest day)
Mamedyarov - Kramnik
Ivanchuk - Naiditsch
van Wely - Gustafsson
Leko - Nepomniachtchi
The first game to finish was Kramnik-Leko (shock, horror), a 22 move draw by repetition. Despite the quick and uninspiring conclusion, there were places where the game could have livened up, and the game may have a little theoretical significance as well.
Another short draw, finishing just a few seconds later, was Gustafsson-Ivanchuk, but this game was almost everything Kramnik-Leko was not. The opening was very sharp and neither player backed down from the complications. Ivanchuk's opening choice was quite clever: he entered the Vienna Variation of the Queen's Gambit, but then went down a sideline resulting in what looks like a favorable version of the Botvinnik Variation of the Semi-Slav. I think he had a very nice edge, but on move 16, perhaps overly concerned with the possibility of 17.d5, he preferred solidity over aggression, and that allowed Gustafsson to level the game.
After another hour or so, the remaining games finished in a near dead-heat. First came the only non-draw of the round, Nepomniachtchi-van Wely. White sacrificed a pawn for control of d5 and kingside prospects. Black's position was okay, but he wasn't able to find a solution to those problems - even after sacrificing the exchange, the same difficulties remained. White won a further pawn, and despite a hiccup on move 27, Nepomniachtchi's technique was good enough to win with the extra exchange.
Finally, Naiditsch-Mamedyarov ended too, a Taimanov Sicilian where first White and then Black enjoyed a very small edge, but accurate play from both players kept the game balanced.
The games, with my comments, are here.
Standings after Round 4:
1-3. Gustafsson, Leko, Nepomniachtchi 2.5
4-6. Mamedyarov, Naiditsch, Kramnik 2
7. Ivanchuk 1.5
8. van Wely 1
Pairings for Round 5: (On Friday; Thursday is a rest day)
Mamedyarov - Kramnik
Ivanchuk - Naiditsch
van Wely - Gustafsson
Leko - Nepomniachtchi
Posted by Dennis Monokroussos on
Wednesday July 2, 2008 at 2:12pm