Preview: Five matches still going today and only two are tied at the start of the action. Carlsen-Aronian and Gelfand-Kasimjanov are equal at 2.5-.2.5, although the former has seen four decisive games and the latter none. Aronian and Kasim have white. Bareev-Polgar, Adams-Shirov, and Rublevsky-Ponomariov all need a win from the second player. Of those three, only Shirov has white today.
Bareev and Rublevsky through to meet Leko and Grischuk, respectively. Polgar and Ponomariov are out. Shirov beat Adams for force tiebreaks! Carlsen played some defense (about the first time in this match anyone has) to draw and go to tiebreaks against Aronian. Kasimjanov and Gelfand drew their sixth in a row and that's the third rapid match tomorrow. Kamsky awaits the Kasimjanov-Gelfand winner and the Aronian-Carlsen winner plays the Shirov-Adams winner. The second round of matches begins June 6, Wednesday. Same format.
Note that the tiebreaks start two hours earlier, 5am EDT (9am GMT, 1pm local Elista). The official site says they're the same time as the rest of the rounds but Misha on the scene in Elista confirms that it's the earlier time. It's the same tiebreak format as the Topalov-Kramnik WCh match. Four rapid games at 25'+10" (brutal), then two blitz at 5'+10" then armageddon at 6' vs 5' (no increment) and black has draw odds.
Happy Birthday to Gata Kamsky, who turns 33 today. Despite his long layoff he'll be six years younger than his opponent in the next round should Gelfand beat Kasimjanov (27).
Happy birthday Gata!!!!! Win in Elista!
Carlsen is a pawn down. This can't be good.
Oh Magnus - 14 ..e6 is wrong I think he is losing now as aronian has found the Bf4- e5 manoeuvre which practically forces f6 and then Bc7 followed by 0-0-0 and black is in dire straits. Need to play 14 ..Qd7 e6 locks the Queen out! 14 .. e6 has been playeed once before at GM level but its wrong.....
Mig, it will be hard to reach your prediction of 4 tie-break matches.
Question - If the matches are tied after the rapid games do they move to Armageddon games?
Actually 14 ..Qd7 15 d5 is pretty bad for black also ...
Actually 14 ..Qd7 15 d5 is pretty bad for black also ...
What time do the tiebreaks start tomorrow?
Good question The official Global website list 03:00 PM (same as game round days - no change). But, the official 'FIDE Official pairings (PDF format)' set in stone long before gives 13:00 (which is two hours earlier normal game round days starting at 15:00)... // http://www.fide.com/news/download/Arbiters_pairings.pdf
Perhaps Mig will be kind enough to clue us in! ;-)
Go Shirov!
Magnus drew! This kid is absolutely amazing.
A lucky draw, but still a draw. Tomorrow will be interesting
Carlsen drew with Aronian. So whatever happens in the tiebreaks, he's held his own against the world #5 in a match, two years before he can drive a car.
Yes, very very lucky. Perhaps there is something in the statement that Aronian is unstable. He was dominating for most of the game only to let it slip away by some simple tactics. Are the nerves starting to count as well? Great for me though. I'm a fan of Aronian as well, but this time I've been cheering for Carlsen!
A great win for Shirov, perhaps showing a return to form that bodes well for him in the tiebreaks (?!); I'd think that it must be pretty disappointing and disheartening for Adams, who seemed to play nervously in game 6. Somewhat similarly (well, sort of) I'd think Magnus would be optimistic and Aronian thinking what-do-I-have-to-do-to-beat-this-)*(%_)#%-kid...!?!
Nice win by Shirov today. Both players are good rapid players so the match will come down to nerves most likely.
Aronian is taken by surprise by Rg3x. A nice tactical shot that he could have produced himself. Lucky escape for Carlsen.
Exciting that we are being treated to play-offs between these two great players.
Anything can happen now, Magnus may benefit from his recent rapid match with Radjabov.
Both players deserve to play Mexico. It's a pity that not the 10 best players in the world will fight there for the championship.
What a lack of fighting spirit shown by Pono today. Shirov and Carlsen displayed great resolve.
Just got the word from Zek (ICC fame for those that don't know) moments ago... Mig just got the word from the Elista Press office - Tie-breaks start tomorrow at 5 AM EDT - two hours earlier as given in the 'Official Pairings' (the PDF link given above) signed by the Chief Arbiter Andrzej Filipowicz (Poland)... :-) - Mal
"A lucky draw, but still a draw."
When you show me where Aronian missed a clear win I'll agree that it was a lucky draw.
Just got the word from Zek (ICC fame for those that don't know) moments ago... Mig just got the word from the Elista Press office - Tie-breaks start tomorrow at 5 AM EDT - two hours earlier as given in the 'Official Pairings' (the PDF link given above) signed by the Chief Arbiter Andrzej Filipowicz (Poland)... :-) - Mal
Aronian had a pretty clear lead, but made some weak moves. 42. f4 couldn't have been good, and 45. Rg2 forced a draw. He should have good winning chances after 42. Bc5 instead. But the term "clear" lies in the eye of the beholder, and Carlsen might have saved it anyway. The point was that Aronian could have held onto his good position, and Carlsen would have had to fight hard to save the half point.
If Magnus benefits from his rapid match with Radjabov, certainly Aronian benefits from beating Kramnik (convincingly IMHO) in their rapid match less than a month ago.
Even though rapids are more random, don't think that Aronian is weak there. He and Anand are probably the best in the world.
Was Carlsen at the Rapid World Cup?
I don't understand this armmageddon stuff, its against the nature of chess that black has draw odds.
Why can't they just play normal blitz games until one of them wins a game and the other one doesn't win the next game ?
Or are the tie breaks broadcasted at TV and they have to keep their commercial breaks. Again, then the increments would suck.
Still I'm quite excited for the matches tommorrow.
One seldomly sees such high stakes at blitz.
"Carlsen might have saved it anyway. The point was.."
_This_ was kind of the point, IMO. Unless you can demonstrate clearly that Aronian had a win, you can't assume that Carlsen would not have saved it if not for Aronian's inexact moves and therefore was just "lucky" to draw. Only if he did miss a win you can say Carlsen was lucky (and then it would depend on how easy it would typically have been to find the win). Well, just my opinion.
Yeah, 42.Bc5 was interesting and maybe winning, but 45.Rc4 was drawish after Qd2+ 46.Ka3 Kc7 47.Qf8 Rxg3 48.Qxf7+ Qd7 whether White exchanges queens or not.
There is a difference between having to fight an uphill battle to (maybe) draw, and having it served on a platter. Aronian HAD a win, with correct play (re: 42.Bc5 Qe5 43.Rd2 Rf3 44. Qa7, or something like that. After a while that h pawn gets nasty), but Rg2 immediately forced draw when Aronian was looking for a win, and thus for Carlsen it could be called lucky. But I agree that after Aronian mysteriously retreated with 27. Qc2 instead of exchanging, Carlsen's draw chances steadily increased.
But of course, in the end we will never know... 'Tis the beauty of chess.
Well, how did Aronian get his advantage in the first place unless it was by Magnus handing it to him on a platter?
Point is, both fought as best they could, and the result ended up a draw. You can't just claim that Aronian's advantage was a result of his genius, and that Magnus's draw was a result of luck. They both played a really great, tough game.
They are a class act - every game has been a humdinger, and their behaviour is exemplary.
Here's your winning variation after Bc5
42. Bc5 Qe4 43. Rd2 Rf3 44. Qa7 Kc7
(44... Kc8 45. Be7! Qe5 46. Qa8+ Qb8 47. Qxb8+ Kxb8 48. Bd6+ Kc8 49. h5 Nf6 50. h6 Rf5 51. f3! Rxf3 52. Be7 Nh7 53. Rd8+ Kc7 54. Rh8 Nf6 55. h7 Nxh7 56. Rxh7 +-)
45. Be3 Qb4 46. Qd4 f6 47. Qxb4 Nxb4+
48. Ka3 Nd5 49. Rd3 Nxe3 50. Rxe3 Rxf2 51. Rxe6 Kd7 52. Re4 +-
Alright, alright. Of course no result in chess is a result of "luck". There is no element of chance in this. However, when one uses the word in a context such as this, it is to mean that a player of Aronian's caliber should have seen that this would lose him his win immediately, and Carlsen had no reason to expect it to happen either. Whereas each move made by Carlsen earlier in the game might not have directly led him into a lost position, only slightly worsen it until the situation could be exploited. But yes, pedants of the world, I regret using the word "lucky". The match has been terrific, with good chess played by both, and I look forward to tomorrow for the rapid games.
Alright, alright. Of course no result in chess is a result of "luck". There is no element of chance in this. However, when one uses the word in a context such as this, it is to mean that a player of Aronian's caliber should have seen that this would lose him his win immediately, and Carlsen had no reason to expect it to happen either. Whereas each move made by Carlsen earlier in the game might not have directly led him into a lost position, only slightly worsen it until the situation could be exploited. But yes, pedants of the world, I regret using the word "lucky". The match has been terrific, with good chess played by both, and I look forward to tomorrow for the rapid games.
Well Karl, imo you just gave the perfect definition of being lucky - Aronian missed Rg3x and Carlsen could bail out immediately.
No reason to regret anything.
And from the official site:
"On the move 45, White overlooked a rook sacrifice that secured a draw by perpetual check."
That's what we call lucky...
http://globalchess.eu/main.php
"There is a difference between having to fight an uphill battle to (maybe) draw, and having it served on a platter."
And there is a difference between being lucky to draw and being lucky to get an easy draw.
Ah. Just when I was unsure whether it was wise to use the word pedant, you sooth my worries.
I doubt Rublevsky played better chess than Pono in their match... The only game Pono lost was one where he was better and pushed too hard to win...
Maybe we saw something similar in the Topalov - Kramnik match ... Before the match Topalov clearly seemed too think he was stronger than Kramnik... but then Topalov always pushes hard so it is hard to say what role psychology played in his defeat...
I think Aronian-Carlsen was the most remarkable out of all pairings. Aronian has a big advantage in rapid now. So if Magnus loses, we can say that he had an equal match with one of the world's strongest players. If he wins :))...yay. But I really don't think so.
I think Pono's loss of the match is pretty much logical. Gelfand will lose the rapids for sure, so his loss will be logical too.
One would have to think Carlsen has the pyschological edge--he was not expected to last this long and now the burden is on Aronian to "prove it".
It seem that Aronian overlooked 45 ..Rxg2 but as has been pointed out the position was probably drawn anyway after the line 45 Rc4 Qd2+ 46 Ka3 Kc7 47 Qf8 Rxg3 48 Qxf7 Qd7 49 Qxd7 Kxd7 50 Rd4+ Kc7 for example so the comments about Magnus pulling off a draw through a neat trick are misleading. If this had occurred in a clearly lost position ok buts thats not the case. Yes 42 Bc5 would have won but 42 f4 was not exactly a blunder. Earlier Magnus could have played 35 ..Qxe2 with drawing chances. Something presumably went wrong with the preperation as the whole line starting with 11..Bh3 looks bad. Maybe he overlooked the Bf4 - e5 sequence and realised at the board that 15 ..f6 16 Bc7 Bb4 17 0-0-0 was grim. Its hard to believe the forced lines after 15...Bb4 was soemthing he had analysed before because it just ends up good for white. Anyway great stuff from the kid and more to come tomorrow.
One would have to think Carlsen has the pyschological edge--he was not expected to last this long and now the burden is on Aronian to "prove it".
On lucky draws: By the time Aronian played Rg2 he no longer had a winning position (somewhat better maybe) and looked totally exhausted. Magnus may have been slightly lucky earlier in the game (and so was Aronian when Magnus blundered a pawn) but not in the ending !
On lucky draws: By the time Aronian played Rg2 he no longer had a winning position (somewhat better maybe) and looked totally exhausted. Magnus may have been slightly lucky earlier in the game (and so was Aronian when Magnus blundered a pawn) but not in the ending!
Adams' game went downhill after allowing the
creation of a passed C pawn, thinking his bishop
can handle it alone. I didn't like his Kb3 move,
but obviously Adams thought he could get his
queenside pawn majority going. Fritz recommended
Kd5 instead, keeping the king in the center. Shirov's knight went on tempo-gaining moves
after that, mopped up Adams' kingside pawns. Anyway, it was a good game.
And well deserved by Shirov. Adams didn't show anything special in this match and won due to a terrible blunder by Shirov in game 4.
An exhausted Aronian? Perhaps it isn't so smart to get your young, beautiful fresh girlfriend to visit you during the candidate matches after all? Well, looks promising for Carlsen tomorrow. Nothing to prove and probably still going strong. And no female distractions! Anyway, GREAT that Shirov made it, and really a pity that Polgar is out. Hoping for a last round match between Shirov and Carlsen. That will be a real treat! Leko will probably murder Bareev. Rublevsky - Grischuk with an edge to Grischuk. And I've got a strong feeling that Kamsky is just warming up. I'll vote for him as well. But first the playoffs! Great turnament!
Well, we don't know really what the effect of his girlfriend has on Aronian. I think that girl was with him when he beat Kramnik in their match not too long ago.
Gelfand DID take out Nakamura in a match 2-0 so he can't be that bad as to have no chances against Kasim.
Obviously Aronian is a great rapid player, but Magnus made shared 2nd in the rapid section at Amber, so he's not exactly a gimme for Aronian, now is he?
Baard, basically it's a gimme. Aronian is maybe a slight underdog in a rapid match against Anand, against anyone else he's a favourite.
So far, Magnus has been remarkable though. Showing such a technique against Aronian-he will become a great player one day!
Playjunior: Magnus already IS a great player.
An excellent effort by Carlsen!
I thought his superb "Petrosian Knight" would always ensure him some chances. He had black against a potential world champion, a pawn down and struggling. The way Carlsen reorganized his K side and infiltrated the white position with his Q and R's was very nice. It is OK to find better moves for Aronian in a post-game stress-free environment but the situation OTB is very different! A high stakes game with the clock ticking against a determined and improving Carlsen saw Aronian wilt under the pressure.
Watching the moves live I got the impression that Carlsen was steadily improving his position and waiting for an opportunity to capitalize on his powerfully centralized Knight. Aronian's middle game play in this game on the other hand looked quite listless and pedestrian: though a pawn up in a comfortable position he lost the initiative and allowed a draw.
Great website for this event.
As far as Kasimjanov goes, this is reminiscent of his performance in previous WC cycles: draw the higher-rated player in standard time controls, and then beat him in the rapid playoffs.
Well, for those of you on EST, like myself, by the time you wake up tomorrow these matches will be decided!
Given Kasimdzhanov's stellar record with tie-breaks, Gelfand must be a bit pessimistic now. Gelfand has played well--slightly better, so far. Alas, he was unable to create enough difficulties for Kasimdzhanov.
I still think that Adams will win the match, even though his chess has failed to impress so far. Shirov's most dangerous opponent is Shirov....
Aronian has reasonable chances of winning, but I'll pick Magnus to win the tie-breaks. The kid is relentless.
Rublevsky turned out to match up well with Ponomariov, and I thought that he played the better chess. Grischuk is still the favorite, but it will be a tough grind.
Leko should just overwhelm Bareev--I doubt that the match will last the distance.
Aronian's position might have been won, but very difficult to play since his pieces were not working together at all. He didn't have a clear plan to organize them.
Magnus comes back from the brink! Go Magnus!
Unbelievable, Carlsen made it to bltz!
Magnus comes back from the brink to tie! Go Magnus!
What bottle. So many "must-win" games, and each time he has come through... too bad one of these two has to go out.
Incredible.
What about the obvious 45 ...Qf4+ for Aronian in the last speed game? Wasn't that good for draw and match?
Looks like Carlsen - Aronian are tied 2:2 after their rapids!
And Carlsen is down one in the blitz. That was a tough game.
Aronian won game 1 blitz. Was 45 ..g6 a blunder by Carlsen that lost the game for him when he had nearly equalized?
Will Carlsen come back again as he has done so many times this match?
Aronian seems better organized with an extra pawn in game 2. Looks difficult for him to come back.
And it's a R vs 2N endgame for Carlsen v Aronian, 3 pawns each.
Aronian wins 2nd blitz as Black. Aronian wins! Amazing match...
And Aronian's through with some nice knight work. Still, respect for Carlsen for pushing him far, far harder than rating would have shown. I think he gets +5.4 elo points for all his work? Damn that boy is still underrated.
Congrats to Levon! What a great match. Kudos to Magnus as well, he is a fighter and it's hard to believe he won't be the World Champion in the not so far future...
Taking stock, in 7 out of the 8 Candidates matches the winner was born in the former USSR (the only exception was Leko beating the 'veteran' Gurevich). In fact, some of the eliminated players come from there as well...
Nice formula, but hopefully next time Bessel Kok will manage to go one step further and replace rapid tiebreaks with overtime games until a clear winner emerges.
"Aronian wins 2nd blitz as Black. Aronian wins! Amazing match.."
Well, this result means that Carlsen won't become World Champion while he's still a kid (under 18 years), and Ponomariov will probably keep his record (of being the Youngest World Champion ever) intact.
Carlsen seems to be a juggarnaut, and we'll see how he does during the next round of Elite tournaments.
It's too bad that the current format may theoretically eliminate the world's best long match player at the candidates stage.
But anyone criticizing it should come up with a better one. "Keep playing classical games until someone loses or drops dead," has already been tried and found wanting.
I think the format is really good. Perhaps adding 2 more classical games and/or rapid games would be good. Most importantly, if they are going to play blitz, there definitely should be more games before Armageddon. Let's say 6.
But this format is fair and dramatic at the same time: a better classical player has enough games to prevail at classical time control, and everything is decided at the board (no roulette). Rapid games for all the marbles are a blast to watch. Not too fond of the blitz part, but you've got to go down that road at some point.
I find consolation in the fact that even in a long match the best long match player may not always win. If a margin of victory in a 24-game match is only one win there is still a rather high probability that the better player did not win.