The 2017 Chess World Cup has finished. Lev Aronian won it.
I thought we would take a look at some incidents and some games.
The sponsor had the board around the wrong way.
A good start, but everyone is doing it these days. This lad in
‘The Great British Bake Off’ had the board completely wrong.
(Yes 80% of the world is starving and B.B.C. have a let’s bake
food and throw it away competitions - you could not make it up.)
No doubt you have heard about the ‘Great Shorts Row.’
Oh My God, what has Nigel Short done now? Nothing.
The World Cup organiser , Zurab Azmaiparashvili was not too pleased with
how the Canadian (born in the Ukraine ) player Anton Kovalyov. was dressed.
During the course of this fashion debate Azmaiparashvili called Anton
a ‘gypsy’. Now where I come from that is a compliment but to Anton
apparently this is an insult and felt the only option was to walk away.
That hugged the headlines for a few days and even over-shadowed
Magnus Carlsen going out of the tournament beaten by Bu Xiangzhi.
The event was won, eventually, after a four classical game final
and two tie break rapid games by the Armenian, Levon Aronian.
The critical 2nd rapid (25 minutes) game finished thus:
Ding Liren - Lev Aronian. World Cup Final (Tie Break) 2017
FEN
r2qnrk1/1p2bpp1/2p3p1/p2nB1P1/3PN2P/8/PPQ1BP2/R4RK1 w - - 0 20
[FEN "r2qnrk1/1p2bpp1/2p3p1/p2nB1P1/3PN2P/8/PPQ1BP2/R4RK1 w - - 0 20"] 20. Bg4 Kh8 {Already anticipating his next move and seeing the g-file will be open. (hindsight from me).} 21. Rae1 Nef6 {A nasty shock in rapid play.} 22. gxf6 gxf6 {The idea is revealed, Black will win back the piece.} 23. Bh2 {Hindsight again by me. 4.Bg3 was better but Ding wants to use the open g file} 23... f5 24. Bxf5 gxf5 25. Qd1 {If now fxe4 then Qh5+ wins. Black likes this idea and uses it himself.} 25... Rg8+ 26. Kh1 Rg4 {To stop Qh5+} 27. Ng3 Rxh4 28. Nxf5 Rh7 29. Nxe7 Nxe7 30. Re5 Nf5 {Now if Rxf5 Qh4 wins. This is the idea Black liked a few moves back.} 31. Rfe1 Qh4 32. Re8+ {Ding Liren was no doubt expecting Black to play Rxe8 here.} 32... Kg7 33. Rg1+ Kf6 {White resigned. The mate on h2 needs defending and then Black take on e8 being a whole Rook up.}
OK let’s have a look at some other games from this event.
Here at Red Hot Pawn we have a saying, It’s the site’s motto.
“If you see a good move don’t play because it is probably a blunder..”
Viktor Erdos - Bassem Amin World Cup 2017 (Black to play)
Black spotted the Skewer on the 3rd rank and went for it.
67...a3 68. Rxa3 Rh3+ Gotcha!
69 Ke4 Rxa3
OOPS! Stalemate. Black should have played 67...Rb4
Another stalemate except this time it was meant.
Jan-Krzysztof Duda - Vassily Ivanchuk World Cup 2017
FEN
8/8/8/p2k2BP/P2bn1p1/4p1N1/4K3/8 w - - 0 69
[FEN "8/8/8/p2k2BP/P2bn1p1/4p1N1/4K3/8 w - - 0 69"] 69. Nxe4 Kxe4 70. h6 {A mini pawn race begins but Black is not looking for a Queen.} 70... g3 71. h7 g2 {If 4.h8=Q then 4....g1=N+ or 4....Bxh8 5. Bxe3 Bd4 win for Black.} 72. Bxe3 Bxe3 73. h8=Q g1=Q {White who must have seen this coming now forces a draw.} 74. Qh1+ {6....Qxh8 is stalemate.} 74... Kd4 75. Qe4+ {7...Kxe4 is stalemate and if not then White will play Qxe3 a draw.}
Next we see a failed attempt at a Stalemate.
Anish Giri - Sethuraman P Sethuraman World Cup 2017
FEN
6k1/p5P1/1p3K2/8/8/1P6/P7/8 w - - 0 61
[FEN "6k1/p5P1/1p3K2/8/8/1P6/P7/8 w - - 0 61"] 61. Kg6 b5 62. b4 a6 63. a3 a5 {Only move but you never know.....} 64. bxa5 b4 {....White might take on b4 and stalemate.} 65. a6 bxa3 66. a7 {Black resigned.}
RHP has over 100,000 stalemates. A lot of them feature captures like
the note on the last game: “...White might take on b4 and stalemate.”
theo13 - fred S RHP 2017
FEN
8/8/1p6/p1p5/P1P5/1P3kpp/8/6K1 w - - 0 61
[FEN "8/8/1p6/p1p5/P1P5/1P3kpp/8/6K1 w - - 0 61"] 61. Kh1 {1....Kf2 and mate in a few.} 61... h2 62. b4 {2....Kf2 and mate in a few.} 62... cxb4 63. c5 {3....Kf2 and mate in a few.} 63... bxc5 {Stalemate.}
We stay with Stalemates. This was in the semi-final
Levon Aronian - Maxime Vachier-Lagrave World Cup 2017 (White to play)
Of course White did not play 1. Qxb3 stalemate but 1.Qa6+ 1-0.
Have I mentioned 100,000+ stalemates on RHP?
truthisnow - Sir Laughalot RHP 2014
FEN
8/8/8/8/4k3/4q3/8/5KR1 w - - 0 50
[FEN "8/8/8/8/4k3/4q3/8/5KR1 w - - 0 50"] 50. Rg4+ {Black is not going to fall for that one. 1...Kf3 2.Rg3+ Kxg3 Stalemate.} 50... Kd3 {But he fell for that one 2. Rg3 Qxg3 stalemate.} 51. Kg2 {White missed it.} 51... Ke2 52. Rg3 Qe5 53. Kh3 Kf2 54. Rg2+ Kf3 55. Rg4 {Now it's an easy win, just pin the Rook to the King} 55... Qh5+ {OK this wins as well.} 56. Rh4 {Only move.} 56... Qg5 {With mate on g2 or g3.} 57. Rf4+ {Last try instead of resigns.} 57... Qxf4 {Stalemate. KxR wins.}
Checkmates under promoting to a Knight are not unknown but quite rare.
Martyn Kravtsiv - Ding Liren , World Cup 2017
White in check tries one last frantic trick with 1. Kb3 (if 1...a1=Q 2.Ra8+ and
Rxa1 is a book draw.) Instead Liren played an Under Promotion Mate. 1...a8=N mate.
Bu Xiangzhi - Peter Svidler World Cup 2017 (White to play)
The commentators were saying this one looked like it was going to be a draw
because now there are too few pawns for Black (being the exchange up) to win.
They put the ‘commentators curse’ on Xiangzhi who found a way to lose.
FEN
8/8/4pk1p/4R3/B4KP1/3rP3/P6P/1r6 w - - 0 40
[FEN "8/8/4pk1p/4R3/B4KP1/3rP3/P6P/1r6 w - - 0 40"] 40. Ra5 {This leads to great defending difficulties. 1.Re4 was better.} 40... Ra3 41. e4 {Blunders, even at the top level, come in twos. This move was played right after the 40th move time control.} 41... Rf1 {That's Checkmate.}
Next is a wee bitty unkind because Black is in a nasty looking a blunder is coming
soon position. But always instructive to show how blunders happen (or so I’m told)
Pentala Harikrishna - Yuri Gonzalez Vidal, World Cup 2017
FEN
2Q2bk1/5p1p/p5r1/3q1N2/6R1/6PP/5PK1/8 w - - 0 35
[FEN "2Q2bk1/5p1p/p5r1/3q1N2/6R1/6PP/5PK1/8 w - - 0 35"] 35. Kg1 Qe6 {Black wants the Queens off so he can create chances with the passed a-pawn.} 36. Nh6+ Kg7 37. Nf5+ Kg8 38. Nh6+ Kg7 {All to gain a wee bit of time on the clock and plant a seed of hope in Black's mind. A draw?} 39. Qc3+ {No!} 39... f6 40. Qc7+ Be7 41. Nf5+ Qxf5 42. Qxe7+ Kg8 43. Rb4 {Black's best here is Kh8 but Black tried....} 43... Qe5 {Stops Rb8 mate and offers again a Queen trade.} 44. Qd8+ {That is what Black missed. It's not the Rook check that wins but this masked threat. With the King h8 Black had Rg8 here.} 44... Kg7 45. Rb7+ Kh6 46. Qf8+ {Black resigned. We continue to show why....} 46... Kh5 {The Black King has to stay off g5.} 47. Rxh7+ Kg5 {Forced onto g5.} 48. f4+ {It's now over.}
Lets us end this with some nice Chess. A variation not played but the charming
idea behind is well worth showing. Watch the pawns out run a King and Knight.
Pavel Eljanov - Aleksandr Lenderman World Cup .2017
FEN
8/4n3/3rPk1p/6pP/1P1N1pP1/3R1P2/5K2/8 w - - 0 49
[FEN "8/4n3/3rPk1p/6pP/1P1N1pP1/3R1P2/5K2/8 w - - 0 49"] 49. b5 Ke5 {Now guess White's next move.} 50. Rd2 {Black here played Kf6 and actually went on to win. But what happens if Black takes the Knight.} 50... Rxd4 51. Rxd4 Kxd4 52. b6 {Surely the King and Knight are close enough to catch both pawns.} 52... Kd5 53. b7 Nc6 {That is the beauty of it all. The Knight which was holding the e-pawn prisoner now has to release the e-pawn to catch the b-pawn.} 54. e7 {One of the pawns promotes. Black's only consolation is he gets to decide which one.} 0-1
