[ad_1]
Former Ladies’s World Champion Tan Zhongyi capped off an incredible assault in opposition to GM Anna Muzychuk to achieve her third victory within the 2024 FIDE Ladies’s Candidates and preserve the lead. All 4 video games have been decisive in spherical six, leaving GM Aleksandra Goryachkina in second by half a degree and GM Kateryna Lagno in third.
Within the FIDE Candidates Event, GMs Ian Nepomniachtchi and Gukesh Dommaraju proceed to share the lead after making stable attracts. GMs Vidit Gujrathi and Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu recovered from disappointments on the day before today with victories, respectively, over GM Alireza Firouzja and GM Nijat Abasov, who now share final place.
Spherical seven can be on Thursday, April 11, beginning at 2:30 p.m. ET / 20:30 CEST / 12:00 a.m. IST.
Standings – Candidates
Standings – Ladies’s Candidates
Candidates: Vidit, Praggnanandhaa Rating Comeback Victories
The leaders maintained their positions with attracts in GM Fabiano Caruana-Nepomniachtchi and Gukesh-GM Hikaru Nakamura. Each Vidit and Praggnanandhaa, who had did not win on the day before today, transformed benefits in stellar trend this time.
Caruana and Nepomniachtchi have every scored only one win in opposition to one another in classical chess, with 12 attracts. It was the primary sport to complete on Wednesday and the thirteenth draw of their careers.
“We are going to decrease the chance. That’s the message that I get from Ian’s opening selection,” stated Leko because the gamers performed rapidly in a 4 Knights Scotch. They adopted their 2020 Candidates encounter till 11…cxd5 however nonetheless vacuumed all of the items from the board with a handshake two hours after beginning their sport.
Nepomniachtchi defined that he was caught off guard within the opening—on the primary transfer: “At present, to be sincere, I anticipated [1]…c5 as a result of Fabiano performed …c5 right here twice.” It is early within the event, and neither he nor Caruana was upset with the half level.
At present, to be sincere, I anticipated [1]…c5 as a result of Fabiano performed …c5 right here twice.
—Ian Nepomniachtchi
Essentially the most thrilling a part of the Gukesh-Nakamura sport was the opening, the place Nakamura uncorked a novelty as early as transfer seven in a doubtlessly sharp Sicilian.
It is solely transfer 7 in Gukesh-Nakamura and already this place’s by no means been reached in historical past!https://t.co/b6RzxbT2sl#FIDECandidates pic.twitter.com/X5mzue8Sdn
— chess24 (@chess24com) April 10, 2024
With each enjoying at 98 % accuracy, based on Recreation Evaluate, neither participant actually bought an opportunity to play for extra. In his video recap (beneath), Nakamura says that he anticipated an fascinating sport after his 14…Nc8, however the sport petered out shortly after that.
Now, on to the 2 decisive video games.
Going into the sport in opposition to Firouzja, Vidit led the head-to-head rating with two wins and one draw. On Wednesday, he added a 3rd victory.
Firouzja experimented with a unusual queen sortie within the Sicilian Rauzer, as soon as performed earlier than by Gelfand, however bumped into early bother with 11…Bb7?. Then 13…Qxf2?, grabbing a pawn, was one mistake too many. Vidit commented: “It was very obvious that I am higher. The one query was if I can convert it cleanly as a result of I used to be low on time.”
14.e5! was the cleanest profitable transfer and he received convincingly from there, throwing within the Karpov-Unzicker-like 21.Ba7! alongside the best way, a pleasant throwback to a well-known sport from the Nineteen Seventies.
After lacking his probability to beat Caruana the day earlier than, Vidit 2.0 appears to have returned. What has modified? Vidit informed FM Mike Klein that he went to the fitness center to blow off some steam, but in addition:
The folks round me confirmed the constructive aspect. Like, I bought outprepared and I used to be alone, after which I managed to outplay him within the middlegame. I performed nearly all the highest selections, in order that was the brilliant aspect. That gave me confidence—that even the world-number-two [Caruana] I can outplay regardless of getting outprepared.
The folks round me confirmed the constructive aspect.
—Vidit Gujrathi
You possibly can hearken to Vidit’s evaluation within the video beneath.
It was the primary encounter ever between Praggnanandhaa and Abasov. With a victory,x` the Indian prodigy is simply half a degree behind the leaders.
The sport began by following the primary 10 strikes of GM Boris Gelfand vs. GM Vladimir Kramnik 1994, however the motion was at its top within the endgame. Again and again, Abasov discovered useful resource after useful resource to maintain combating—laughing within the face of the analysis bar, which prematurely claimed victory a number of occasions for Praggnanandhaa.
After lastly surviving what ought to have been a decisive assault after 31.f6!, Abasov reached the ultimate vital second on transfer 38. He performed probably the most pure transfer, capturing the pawn on f6—it was additionally the dropping transfer. Praggnanandhaa responded swiftly with 39.Rxa6 Rf5 and what the commentators referred to as the transfer of the day, 40.Nd7!!. Lights out.
Praggnanandhaa, who has had a number of the most enjoyable video games this event, stated: “I do not know what was taking place both. And I additionally do not perceive why I am enjoying fascinating video games each day as a result of I am form of making an attempt to play regular chess, however in some way issues are getting fascinating.”
I additionally do not perceive why I am enjoying fascinating video games each day as a result of I am form of making an attempt to play regular chess.
—Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa
Spherical seven is the midway level of the event. Then gamers will play the identical opponents for the second time on this round-robin format. Each event leaders could have the black items: Nepomniachtchi will defend in opposition to a decided Nakamura, whereas Gukesh will defend in opposition to a doubtlessly rattled Firouzja.
Caruana and Praggnanandhaa are each a half-point behind the leaders, whereas Vidit will look to proceed his exceptional comeback in opposition to the event’s lowest seed. This spherical can be adopted by a relaxation day.
Ladies’s Candidates: Tan Performs Attacking Gem
All video games have been decisive in favor of the higher-rated participant, and one reality stays the identical: Tan leads the event.
Tan loved her sixth spherical within the sole lead of the ladies’s occasion. Towards Muzychuk, she performed the modest Colle Zukertort System, however after 12…Nd7?, which Tan referred to as a mistake, she started a spirited assault that earned our choice for Recreation of the Day.
It does have one blooper on the finish, the place Muzychuk may have saved the half-point—but it surely was missed. GM Rafael Leitao analyzes the masterpiece beneath.
It’s also possible to hearken to her ideas immediately within the video:
With the black items, Goryachkina defeated IM Nurgyul Salimova to remain a half-point behind the chief. She stated it wasn’t a tough sport: “Generally, it was not troublesome for me to play. Solely it took too lengthy, however undoubtedly the sport did not go nicely for my opponent.”
Generally, it was not troublesome for me to play. Solely it took too lengthy.
—Aleksandra Goryachkina
Objectively, Salimova did have an equal sport after dropping a pawn on transfer 34. The important thing was inserting her rook behind the handed c-pawn. As a substitute, she drifted first with 42.Kg3?! and 43.Kh4?, and eventually 45.Rb1? was the nail within the coffin. Goryachkina pushed her handed pawn to victory.
GM Vaishali Rameshbabu allowed the Marshall Assault within the Ruy Lopez, however a model through which she did not seize the sacrificed pawn. GM Kateryna Lagno equalized comfortably with Black after which began urgent for extra with 20…Nf4!.
The Indian grandmaster needed to discover a sequence of solely strikes to defend in opposition to the assault, however she misplaced brutally rapidly when she failed to seek out the primary (troublesome) defensive transfer, 21.Re3!.
GM Humpy Koneru had received all 4 of her earlier classical encounters in opposition to GM Lei Tinjie, however they hadn’t performed since 2021. The Chinese language grandmaster ambitiously performed the King’s Indian Protection, but it surely wasn’t till the endgame that she discovered the possibility to play for a win.
Figuring out what occurs within the sport, maybe White was higher suggested to activate the king with 36.Kg1. Within the sport, Lei received the a-pawn and rapidly marched it down the board to victory.
Spherical seven has the potential to be a turning level on this occasion. Goryachkina could have the white items in opposition to event chief Tan, and that is her greatest probability to problem immediately for the lead. 
You possibly can watch video recaps of the Candidates in our playlist beneath (click on right here).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=videoseries
You possibly can watch the 2024 FIDE Candidates Event on Chess24’s YouTube and Twitch, and the 2024 Ladies’s FIDE Candidates on Chess.com’s YouTube and Twitch. The video games may also be adopted from our Occasions Web page.
The FIDE Candidates Tournaments are among the many most necessary FIDE occasions of the 12 months. Gamers compete for the appropriate to play within the subsequent FIDE World Championship match in opposition to present World Chess Champions GMs Ding Liren and Ju Wenjun.
Every day protection:
Previews:
[ad_2]