Topalov leads the rating list with 2796 — it would have been 13 points more but the Nanjing Pearl Classic ended after the December rating cut-off. Anand is no:2 (2791) Ivanchuk is no:3 (2779), pending review of the Dresden drug fiasco. Kramnik drops to no:8 and Dmitry Jakovenko (7) and Sergei Movsesian (10) debut into the Top 10. Sasikiran is above 2700 again, and Negi, exactly 2600.
The Elista Grand Prix had Radjabov, Jakovenko and Grischuk tie for 1-3 with 8 points each from 13 games. Vugar Gashimov was fourth with 7.5. The rest of the Category 19 field (Leko, Kasimdzhanov, Wang Yue, Mamedaryov, etc) logged 50 per cent or less. The GP doesn’t have Sofia Rules and the decision ratio was only 35 per cent. Radjabov leads the GP with 363 points from three events played.
Confusion continues in the title cycle. At the heart of the problem is money of course. Without committed funding, any systematic organisation of a title and candidates cycle is impossible. The lack of clarity and consistency in Fide’s decision-making makes it highly unlikely that said funding will be available and so, the cycle arrangements will continue to be arbitrary and inconsistent. Catch -22.
The year’s first super tournament, Corus at Wijk An Zee is missing Topalov, Anand and Kramnik but it’s still a big field. The line up for the Category 19 A Group is Ivanchuk, Carlsen, Morozevich, Aronian, Radjabov, Wang Yue, Michael Adams, Movsesian, Karjakin, Kamsky, Dominguez, Van Wely, Stellwagen and Smeets.
The B group is category 16 with Sasikiran top seeded ahead of Kasim and Short with the prodigious Hou Yifan and Fabiano Caruana as stellar attractions. The C Group features Filipino prodigy Wesley So and world junior champions Abhijeet Gupta and Dronavalli Harika in a category 11 field.
The Diagram, WHITE TO PLAY, (Mamedaryov Vs Eljanov , Elista GP 2008) is from a position where white has sacrificed a piece for ample compensation in an insanely complicated game where both sides missed several previous chances to seal the issue.
“Shak” continued with the hard-driving 32.d7+! Nxd7 33.Qe4+ Kf8 34.Qf5+ Bf6 35.Bc1 stopping the c-pawn. Now black must consolidate with a cool defence of the Kt-d7 with 35.—Rg7! 36. Qxh3 Re7.
In that case, white can seek a perpetual with 37. Qh6+. It’s probably there, according to the engines, which rate this equal.
Instead the “hot” attacking threat of 35. Qc3? turned out to be a blunder. White won with 36.Qxh3 Rg7 37.Kg2 Qd4 38.Ba3+ Kg8 39.Ra8+ Kf7 40.Qf5 g4 41.Rd8 (1-0). As it transpires, the “computer move” 36. Kf1 is even better than Qxh3. The Kt-d7 cannot be moved (36—Nb6 37. Ba3+) or defended (36.-- Rg7 37. Rxd7).
