FIDE WWTC 2023: A big upset for India, a huge miracle for Germany
Kazakhstan, Georgia, the USA and Poland enter the knockout stage as the top seeds. In a dramatic turn of events, Bulgaria suffers a last-minute defeat at the hands of Germany and says goodbye to the competition, while India is eliminated after France and Ukraine unexpectedly tie a very tense match. The last round of the Pools stage was full of unexpected turns and twists, as no less than seven teams had yet to secure their qualification for the knockout stage. In Pool A, the clash between Kazakhstan and Georgia (2-2) seemed like a trivial affair, as both teams had already earned their spot. However, the match turned out to be quite the slaughter-fest, with all four games ending with a decisive result. In a slightly inferior position with Black against Bella Khotenashvili, Bibisara Assaubayeva opted for a bold exchange sacrifice that was objectively incorrect. However, it paid off, as Bella was in time trouble and panicked, giving away a whole piece unnecessarily and letting her position collapse. In the fourth board, 16-year-old Amina Kairbekova demonstrated once again that she is probably the most underrated player on the field, as today she outplayed the experienced Salome Melia. Meri Arabidze and Nino Batsiashvili scored the two victories for the Georgians, levelling the match: they both show to be in top shape, having scored so far 4/5 and 3½/4, respectively. India, the 4th seeded team in the competition, had lost its matches in rounds 2, 3 and 4, but today did their part, winning confidently against Egypt by 3½-½. Their qualification was to depend on the result of the match between Ukraine and France, in which a victory by either of the teams would have given the Indians a hail-Mary qualification, as they had better tie-break (board points). It was the moment when all the drama unfolded. Natalia Zhukova drew against Mitra Hejazipour. Natacha Benmesbah ruined a very advantageous position against Yelyzaveta Hrebenshchykova and lost. Anastasia Savina evened up the score, winning convincingly against Inna Gaponenko. The match and India’s fate were to be decided in the game between Nataliya Buksa (white) and Deimante Daulyte-Cornette (black). Buksa had a favourable position, but the game entered a stage where both players had very little time on the clock. Nataliya blundered a simple mate in two that her opponent overlooked – not once, but twice! In a wild time scramble, the advantage changed sides several times, and after 66 moves, despite having a winning position, Nataliya decided that she had had enough stress and offered a draw that secured her team a spot in the knockout stage. A satisfactory result for both France and Ukraine, but a heartbreaker for India. In Pool B, the situation resembled the one in Pool A, as the two teams who had already qualified, USA and Poland, were to cross swords in the 5th round. And again, the clash was anything but peaceful, with the home team getting the upper hand. Monika Socko struck first and paved the way for her team with an early win against a well-known rival for her, Anna Zatonskih. Socko was a pawn up from early into the game, while her opponent, being short of time, failed to find the best defence. Oliwia Kiolbasa put an end to Alice Lee’s winning run, defeating her in a very nice game. Aleksandra Maltsevskaya rejected a draw by threefold repetition but found herself in a lost endgame shortly after, giving the USA their only victory in the match and leaving the score at 2½-1½ for the home team. China recovered from the double defeat suffered yesterday in rounds 3 and 4, and with a good performance on the bottom boards beating FIDE Americas 3-1, and punched their ticket to the knockout stage. All eyes were on the match Germany-Bulgaria, which was one of the last to end. After a draw was reached in boards 2 and 3, the situation was clearly in favour of the Bulgarians: Elisabeth Paehtz was a pawn up against Antoaneta Stefanova but with no realistic chances to win, while in the fourth board, Viktoria Radeva had a completely winning position against Jana Schneider. Radeva reached an endgame with a rook vs. two pawns, with the engines announcing mate in 25 moves. But as it so often happens, one simple mistake was enough to turn a decisive victory into a draw. Probably distracted by what had just happened, it was Stefanova’s turn to make a mistake, and she lost her game, giving away the crucial point. Germany, after having lost their first three matches in succession and having won only two games in the entire competition (Schneider 1-0 Campos in round 4, and Paehtz 1-0 Stefanova in round 5), leapfrogged Bulgaria in the last turn, defeating them by the minimum score (2½-1½), tying on match points, and barely overtaking them on board points. Pool A results: Georgia (2-2) KazakhstanUkraine (2-2) FranceEgypt (½-3½) India Pool A Standings: Kazakhstan – 9Georgia – 7France – 5Ukraine – 5India – 4Egypt – 0 Pool B results: China (3-1) FIDE AmericasPoland (2½-1½) USAGermany (2½-1½) Bulgaria Pool B Standings: USA – 7Poland – 7China – 6Germany – 4Bulgaria – 4FIDE Americas – 2 Written by David Llada Photos: Michal Walusza Official website: worldwomenteams.fide.com. About the event The 2023 FIDE World Women’s Team Championship takes place from 5-12 September in Bydgoszcz (Poland). Twelve teams participate: Georgia, USA, China, India, Ukraine, Poland, Germany, FIDE Americas, France, Kazakhstan, Bulgaria, and Egypt, each with four players (plus two reserves). They are divided into two pools of approximate strength. Four teams will be eliminated at the pool stage, with the best eight teams advancing to a double-round knockout stage. The matches are decided by team points, with 2 points for the winning team and 1 each in case of a draw. Time control is 45 minutes for the whole game, with an increment of 10 seconds per move starting from move 1. Event website: worldwomenteams.fide.com About Bydgoszcz Located in northern Poland, less than 200km from the capital,
Cape Verde Women’s Championship 2023: Célia Rodriguez retains title
The 2nd Cape Verde Women’s National Championship, a 5-round Swiss tournament, took place from September 1-3 at Clube Juventude on the island of Sal. As many as 20 players registered before the start, but due to the flight cancellation from the island of S. Nicolau to the island of Sal, only 19 participants ended up competing in the event. Two rounds were scheduled every day, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. In one of the morning rounds, some participants, probably unaccustomed to the strict regulations, arrived shortly after the 30-minute grace period and forfeited for non-attendance. Among these players was the defending National Champion, Célia Rodriguez, who was due to play the 2022 runner-up. As a result, heading to the final round, Juliana Monteiro needed only a draw to clinch the title of 2023 champion. Facing the defending champion, Célia Rodriguez, Juliana Monteiro grabbed the initiative in the opening and was building up the pressure until the 24th move, when she made a mistake to drop her advantage. In subsequent play, the two traded inaccuracies, but on move 78, there was a 3-time repetition. Unfortunately for her, Juliana missed that and did not claim a draw that would have secured her the national title. Célia Rodriguez went on to win this dramatic game and became a two-time Cape Veridan Women’s Champion, thanks to superior tiebreaks. For the runner-up, Juliana Monteiro, it was a painful lesson, but she showed that her chess had improved considerably. Final standings: 1 Rodriguez Guevara, Celia 1729 4 2 Pio Monteiro, Juliana 1297 4 3 Almeida, Jacira Laura 1331 4 4 Martins, Katlene Jussara 1232 4 5 Moreno, Akiane 1310 3½ 6 Moreno, Viviane 1046 3 7 Martins, Amanda Maria 1384 3 8 Lopes, Jussara Patricia 3 9 Brito, Karima Monteiro 3 10 Spinola, Divania 1329 2½ Complete standings Official webpage: fcvx.org/cnf-2023/
FIDE WWTC: Kazakhstan, Georgia, USA and Poland advance to quarterfinals
Kazakhstan scored their fourth victory in a row and seems unstoppable, while the USA emerges as the strongest team from Pool B. Round 3 Pool A Kazakhstan (2½-1½) FranceGeorgia (3½-½) EgyptUkraine (2½-1½) India Pool B USA (2-2) FIDE AmericasChina (1-3) BulgariaPoland (2½-1½) Germany The leaders in Pool A, Kazakhstan, were off to a great start, as Bibisara Assaubayeva got a very promising position against Deimante Daulyte-Cornette. However, Bibisara didn’t play precisely enough and let her early advantage fade away. Kazakhstan’s victory came in their boards where they had the black pieces: Meruert Kamalidenova convincingly beat Sophie Millet, and Amina Kairbekova scored a full point against Natasha Benmesbah. The reigning French Champion, Mitra Hejazipour, clinched her first victory playing for the national team, but that was not enough to change the fate of the match. Georgia cruised over Egypt to recover from the defeat in the previous round. Shahenda Wafa was very close to winning against Nino Batsiashvili, as she was a pawn up for most of the game, but she prematurely traded the queens and liquidated to a rook endgame that was a theoretical draw. The match against Ukraine was a cold shower for India. Towards the end of the round, 3-1 looked as the most likely outcome, as Vantika Agrawal had an overwhelming position against Buksa, while Savitha Shri also reached a favourable endgame in her game with Yelyzaveta Hrebenshchykova. In the end, Savitha had to settle for a draw, but the worst was yet to come: on board two, Agrawal made a horrible blunder (29.d7??) and lost almost on the spot. A serious setback for India and a miraculous triumph for the Ukranians. In pool B, the most relevant result was probably the surprising defeat of China in the hands of Bulgaria by 3-1. At some point, Stefanova’s position against Yuxin Song looked slightly dubious, but she demonstrated her class with a slashing counter-attack on the kingside. Viktoria Radeva scored the second victory for the Bulgarians after Yiyi Xiao fell into a simple tactic. Poland also notched up a big win against their historical rival, Germany. On the fourth board, Klaudia Kulon, a very aggressive and dynamic player, got the kind of position that she enjoys playing, being one pawn down in exchange for the initiative. Her victory against Hanna Marie Klek forced Dinara Wagner to push for a win in a very delicate position, which resulted in Monika Socko’s getting a decisive advantage. However, in the time trouble, Socko fell for a simple perpetual check that, but thankfully for the Polish team, it was enough to seal the victory in the match. In “the Battle of the Americas”, the North and South split the points. Alice Lee continued her impressive performance beating Cuban IM Lisandra Ordaz, while the Argentinian Maria Jose Campos got a victory for FIDE Americas against Annie Wang. The final score 2-2 was a fair result. Round 4 Pool A France (3-1) EgyptKazakhstan (2½-1½) UkraineIndia (1-3) Georgia Pool B USA (2½-1½) ChinaFIDE Americas (1½-2½) GermanyBulgaria (2-2) Poland In Round 4, Kazakhstan extended their winning run with an important victory against Ukraine (2½-1½). Bibisara played a fine game against Anna Ushenina and smoothly converted her extra pawn in a bishop endgame. Alua Nurmanova scored the second full point for the Kazakhstani, while Natalia Zhukova got her second win in a row in the fourth board. The clash between two main contenders for the final victory, India and Georgia, was decided in favour of the Georgians by 3-1. The Indians were still a bit shaky after their dramatic defeat in the previous round, and Harika lost with White in an instructive game very well played by Bella Khotenashvili. The second victory for Georgia also came with the black pieces: Divya Deshmukh tried to defend a weak pawn with some tactics that didn’t really work, and Nino Batsiashvili got a very comfortable position with an extra pawn. The GM from Batumi got sweet revenge for the defeat she had suffered last week at the hands of Deshmukh in the Tata Steel Chess India. France – Egypt was a very one-sided match, won by the Europeans by an indisputable 3-1. The good news is that Egypt achieved its maiden board victory after Ayah Moaataz (1959) checkmated Sophie Millet (2335) on the third board. In Pool B, the main clash of the fourth round was the match between the USA and China, where the Americans came on top by 2½-1½. It was the second defeat of the day for the young Chinese team, a disappointing result after their good performance on the first day of competition. 13-year-old Alice Lee won again and is now on 3½/4, having conceded only one draw in the first round. The way she played an equal endgame against Yuxin Song speaks volumes about how confident the young American feels at the chess board, always trying to keep the game going, waiting for an opportunity. FIDE Americas vs. Germany was a very close match, but in the end, it was decided in favour of the Europeans thanks to a victory in the fourth board, where Jana Schneider outplayed Maria Jose Campos from Argentina. Poland had to settle for a draw against Bulgaria. Klaudia Kulon is on fire and won her third game in a row, this time against Beloslava Krasteva, but Gergana Peycheva levelled the score. This result, however, was good enough for the home team to advance to the knockout stage, regardless of their result tomorrow. With these results, Kazakhstan and Georgia qualified for the knockout stage from Pool A, while France, Ukraine and India will fight in Round 5 for the remaining two qualification spots. As for Pool B, USA and Poland have secured their place in the quarterfinals. No less than four teams – China, Bulgaria, FIDE Americas and Germany – will battle for two remaining places in the knockout stage. Written by David Llada Photos: Michal Walusza Official website: worldwomenteams.fide.com. About the event The 2023 FIDE World Women’s Team Championship takes place from