WGP Munich: Who dares wins
By IM Michael Rahal (Munich, Germany) “Who dares wins” is a motto made popular in the English-speaking world by the British Special Air Service, although the expression appears in a medieval Arabic book of fairy tales. Even though her opening strategy today was somewhat dubious, Alexandra Kosteniuk notched up her fourth win in a row by defeating Tan Zhongyi in a roller-coaster game with massive risks. “I’m not satisfied with my play, but of course, it’s better to have 4/4 instead of 0/4. However, I still need to improve a lot,” were Kosteniuk’s first impressions after the game. The ceremonial first move was made by Jolly Kunjappu, a performance artist and philosopher. Born in Chennai, Jolly has been living in Munich for about 50 years and is a huge chess fan. He advanced 1.c4 on the Humpy Koneru vs Anna Muzychuk board, but the pawn was immediately returned to the original square, and Humpy decided on 1.d4 for the game. The live exposure of the Munich leg of the Gran Prix is exceeding expectations. Every afternoon more than 5000 concurrent viewers are signing in on the different Twitch and YouTube channels covering the event to follow the games and grandmaster commentary. GM Paehtz, Elisabeth vs GM Harika, Dronavalli – (0,5–0,5) Harika has traditionally been a tough opponent for Paehtz: in 29 games she has emerged victorious in 9 encounters. Paehtz went for the Four Knights Opening, choosing the side-line 8.Bd2 instead of the mainstream 8.exd5 in an attempt to surprise her opponent. However, Harika came to the game well-prepared and confidently blitzed out her opening moves, equalising comfortably coming out of the opening. Although there was still a lot to play for, a draw was agreed on move 25 after a three-fold move repetition, allowing both players to keep their scores at 50%. IM Kashlinskaya, Alina vs GM Abdumalik, Zhansaya (0.5-0.5) It was a very close match-up as Kashlinskaya and Abdumalik have played 9 games with each other before, with a tiny score advantage for the Kazakhstan player. Playing the opening fast, they went for a fashionable line of the Semi-Slav defence, in which Black gets the pair of bishops in exchange for some minor pawn weaknesses. With precise defensive play, Abdumalik kept the balance in the position, and, after some simplifications, a draw was agreed on move 32. Zhansaya Abdumalik was kind enough to come to the press centre after the game to give us her impressions on the first four rounds of the tournament. WGM Zhu, Jiner vs GM Muzychuk, Mariya (0-1) In high spirits after her excellent win against Abdumalik in the previous round, Zhu Jiner opened today’s game with 1.e4. Previously, Zhu Jiner and Mariya Muzychuk had only faced each other three times with three consecutive draws. Muzychuk went for the Sicilian Defence, and soon the Marozcy structure appeared on the board, not for the first time in the tournament. Zhu Jiner enjoyed a small space advantage going into the middlegame, and when Muzychuk lashed out 22…f5, Zhu Jiner was prepared to trade off the rooks and steer into a slightly better endgame. By means of a timely pawn sacrifice, Zhu Jiner increased the pressure on the dark squares, but Mariya defended tenaciously. Unfortunately, the top Chinese female player crossed the line at some point – the plan with a5 creating a passed pawn was just too ambitious – and ultimately had to concede defeat. After the game, Mariya Muzychuk analysed her victory with commentator WIM Veronika Exler for the online audience. GM Kosteniuk, Alexandra vs GM Tan, Zhongyi (1-0) The rivalry between these two players is unparalleled. According to my database, they have disputed 26 games in classical, rapid and blitz, with a total score of 9 wins a piece and 8 draws. Playing with the White pieces and a full point ahead in the standings, Kosteniuk went for the Alapin c3 variation against Tan Zhongyi’s favourite Hyper-Accelerated Dragon defence. Muddling the waters, she tried to off-balance her opponent, straying away from theory as early as move six. However, the plan backfired. Tan Zhongyi played for the initiative, winning a pawn going into the middlegame. But she didn’t follow up correctly and Kosteniuk got back into the game. The key moment came on move 23. In a difficult position, Tan Zhongyi used up 26 of the 36 minutes left on her clock and blundered with 23…a5 allowing Kosteniuk’s attack to crash through after 24.Na3 Ka6 24.Rxb5 Rxc3 25.dxc3 Bc1 26.Rxc4 | 1-0, 34 moves GM Koneru, Humpy vs GM Muzychuk, Anna (1-0) A very equal match-up. In 38 games, they stand 8 wins for Humpy against 9 wins for Muzychuk, having tied the rest. In a side-line of the Gruenfeld Defence, Humpy bravely sacrificed a pawn on b2, which was undoubtedly part of her opening preparation for the game. “I had prepared this pawn sacrifice for the game,” Humpy explained to Press Officer IM Michael Rahal. The idea took Muzychuk totally by surprise: she used up more than half an hour to calculate the consequences of the capture. Finally, she went ahead, grabbing the pawn, only to give it back a few moves later to reduce the positional pressure. However, Humpy found an interesting tactical resource to complicate the game and, already very low on time, Muzychuk lost her way and ended up with two pieces for a rook but many pawns down. Humpy wrapped up the game with ease, scoring her first win in the event. WGM Wagner, Dinara vs GM Dzagnidze, Nana (0.5-0.5) A very interesting game, given that it is the first time they have faced each other. Wagner hasn’t started the tournament in good form, although she has had some opportunities to score in the first rounds. In an open variation of the Catalan, Wagner decided to sacrifice her d4 pawn for the initiative. It’s hard to say if it was specific opening preparation or a spur-of-the-moment decision. There was certainly enough positional compensation, but probably nothing more. From then on, it was a
WGP Munich: Kosteniuk 3/3 at full steam
By IM Michael Rahal (Munich, Germany) Alexandra Kosteniuk, playing under the neutral FIDE flag, scored her third consecutive win against tailender Dinara Wagner this afternoon in the Women’s Grand Prix. Kosteniuk dominated her opponent and took advantage of the time-trouble phase to transition into a winning ending. “It was a very difficult game with a lot of calculation,” were the first words after the game. The round started as usual at 3 PM in the central Munich Kempinski Hotel. The ceremonial first move was performed by GM Stefan Kindermann, Founder of the Munich Chess Academy, who advanced the e-pawn two squares after Mariya Muzychuk whispered the move to him secretly in her game against Humpy Koneru. Kindermann was accompanied by Roman Krulich (CEO of Krulich Immobilien) and his wife, Natalie Kröcker. Krulich is the main sponsor of the event and one of the drivers behind the chess scene in Munich. Also present in today’s round was Helmut Pfleger, a well-known grandmaster, who not only played for Germany in seven Olympiads from 1964 to 1982 but also hosted a series of chess programs on German public TV, including “Chess of the Grandmasters”. GM Kosteniuk, Alexandra – WGM Wagner, Dinara (1-0) By means of a subtle move order, Kosteniuk was able to deviate from Wagner’s Sicilian Defence and achieve a nice space advantage with the Marozcy structure. On move 17, Wagner went for the thematic …d5 pawn break, albeit at an untimely moment. Kosteniuk used up most of her time calculating deep lines with multiple sacrifices but ultimately decided to play it safe, taking the full point after dominating her opponent in a very favourable rook ending. “I am quite tired. It was a very difficult game with a lot of calculations. In time trouble, I wasn’t able to finish the game by tactics, but the position was still better,” Kosteniuk explained to commentator WIM Veronika Exler on the live broadcast. GM Muzychuk, Mariya – GM Koneru, Humpy (0.5-0.5) Humpy Koneru has an excellent record against Mariya Muzychuk – she has won 12 of the 24 games they have played. However, Humpy was very satisfied with the draw today. Playing with Black, Humpy chose the solid Four Knights Opening, a line in which the queens are quickly exchanged in the opening. Although Muzychuk won a pawn, the nature of the opposite-coloured bishop ending proved to be equal, and a draw was agreed on move 31. “I have got six games with Black out of eleven in this tournament. I’m just trying to keep on playing. Yesterday was a good opportunity for me, but I missed out. And in the two Black games, I played quite solidly. So, I’ll try my best to come back,” she explained in an interesting interview, in which she also went into detail regarding yesterday’s rollercoaster game against Abdumalik. GM Tan, Zhongyi – GM Paehtz, Elisabeth (0.5-0.5) According to my database, Tan Zhongyi and Elisabeth Paehtz had played a total of 15 games in the past, with the Chinese female player leading by a significant margin, having won none less than 11 of those encounters. Paehtz was definitely eager to make an impression this afternoon and leave behind yesterday’s blunder against Kosteniuk. Her opening choice, the aggressive King’s Indian Defence, was ideal. Already on move eight she surprised her opponent with a new pawn sacrifice, which, although thematic, had never been played before. For the pawn, the Paehtz enjoyed great piece play and dark-square domination, which ultimately allowed her to recover the material and go into a slightly better endgame. The key moment came about on move 37. Paehtz had a difficult choice between two seemingly promising continuations: 37…a3 or 37…Bxc4. Paehtz went for the second option, allowing her opponent to exchange some pawns and narrowly escape defeat. The engine suggests that 37…a3 should lead to a win, but the calculation is far from human. A heart-breaking result for the German player, who was leading the way for most of the game. GM Harika, Dronavalli – IM Kashlinskaya, Alina (0.5-0.5) Having played together eight times in the past – four wins to one for Harika with three draws – and based on the tournament situation, both players were eager to go for a fight. Kashlinskaya selected the solid Rubinstein variation in the French defence in an attempt to force her opponent into unknown territory. Well-prepared, Harika followed the steps of Ponomariov and Korchnoi, exchanging queens and pushing a small edge in development in the late middlegame. Under certain pressure, Kashlinskaya opted to sacrifice a pawn to finish her development and go into an ending with two bishops against a bishop and knight – a pawn down but with good drawing chances. By exchanging one of the bishops for her opponent’s knight, Kashlinskaya forced an opposite-coloured bishop ending, legendarily known for their drawing tendency. GM Abdumalik, Zhansaya – WGM Zhu, Jiner (0-1) Recently, most Chinese players notoriously travel to tournaments by themselves. Due to the pandemic, it’s been increasingly hard to get permission to travel outside the country. Zhu Jiner is by herself in Munich, connecting only by Zoom with her coach in China for game preparation. Even so, today, she displayed all her skills, defeating Zhansaya Abdumalik with Black in a model Sicilian Sveshnikov game. Zhu Jiner turned down a draw offer on move twenty. “My position had a lot of playability,” she explained in her post-game interview. She went on to launch a fierce attack, culminating in an elegant rook sacrifice that forced resignation. Zhu Jiner doesn’t socialize much during the rest of the day: “I don’t have much free time here. For the most part, I am preparing the games with my coach”. GM Muzychuk, Anna – GM Dzagnidze, Nana (0.5-0.5) A very equal game from start to finish. Playing with White, Anna Muzychuk was able to construct a satisfactory Marozcy structure but inaccurate 21.Qb1 allowed Dzagnidze to equalize with the thematic pawn break 23…d5! However, the game continued, and a few moves later, Muzychuk was enjoying more time on the