English Chess Forum

NickFaulks wrote: ↑

Tue Sep 10, 2019 11:42 am

Mickey's opening is an interesting thing, looks like a Snake Benoni with a few extra tempi.

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 O-O 6. e4 d6 7. Ne2 a6 8. Nf4 exd5 9. cxd5 Nbd7 10. Be2 Ne5 11. Nd3 Nxd3+ 12. Qxd3 Nd7 *

Shaun Press already worse according to the chessbomb stockfish

e4 c5 2. Nc3 d6 3. g3 Nc6 4. Bg2 g6 5. d3 Bg7 6. Be3 Rb8 7. Qd2 b5 8. Nge2 b4 9. Nd1 h5 10. h3 e6 11. O-O Nge7 12. f4 a5 13. Rb1 O-O 14. g4 hxg4 15. hxg4 f5 16. exf5 exf5 *

NickFaulks wrote: ↑

Tue Sep 10, 2019 9:18 am

Chris Rice wrote: ↑

Tue Sep 10, 2019 9:05 am

If you fancy a little flutter you can get 33/1 odds of Shaun advancing to the next round against Ding Liren

Or PM me if you would like better odds than that. Sorry, Shaun, I shall be watching your games and do expect to see a good fight.

Interesting game. Shaun played for a kingside attack with 14 g4 opening the h-file and then got himself mated on it 20 moves later.

NickFaulks wrote: ↑

Tue Sep 10, 2019 11:42 am

Mickey's opening is an interesting thing, looks like a Snake Benoni with a few extra tempi.

MIckey close to winning, but has bailed out due to back rank counterplay. Maybe short of time.

I remember a joke that if you want to know if someone is a classical music purist, play them the new world symphony and ask if they are thinking of bread or dvorak. Similarly if you see that line and think snake benoni rather than nimzo, you are a clearly a dodgy openings miscreant!

Paul Cooksey wrote: ↑

Tue Sep 10, 2019 3:04 pm

Similarly if you see that line and think snake benoni rather than nimzo, you are a clearly a dodgy openings miscreant!

So I checked and, as you clearly knew, this is a well known Nimzo line, although 8.Nf4 ( after which I made my comment ) is uniformly unsuccessful. If I knew I was going to get 4.f3 I might take up the opening myself.

On the rest of the game, I have felt so many times over the years that Mickey takes draws with Black in promising positions where, if you just repainted the pieces, he would bash on for the win. Let's hope this strategy turns out well here.

Isn't that gag a variation on the old joke about an intellectual being somebody who can hear the William Tell Overture and not think of The Lone Ranger?

Four shock results today:
Christiansen (113) beating Wojtaszek (16)
Sarin (90) beat Cori (39)
Huscheneth (84) beating Naiditsch (45)
Esipenko (83) beating Ponomariov (46)

The 45th seed has never got beyond the last 64, and the 46th seed has lost in the last 128 five times out of nine; only once getting to the last 32.

As for Wojtaszek, players in the top 16 seeds have only gone out in the 1st round on 6 occasions, and 3 of those were defaults. Of the three that weren't defaults, the number 16 seed was two of them.

So 16, 45 and 46 do seem to be banana-skin seeds, but there's still potentially two days to go...

I doubt many people shocked by Nihal or Huschenbeth winning with white, seedings notwithstanding. Wojtazsek a genuine shock. Aronian drawing against a veteran more than 300 points lower rated arguably a shock too, although not as much as it would have been if El GIndy had not let him get away.

Good win for Gawain with black after his opponent got a bit carried away with a non-existent attack. I imagine Luke will be disappointed he was not able to press more. He might need a few games to clear out the rust.

FIDE has released the regulations for 2021 today: https://www.fide.com/FIDE/handbook/Worl ... ations.pdf

They're a radical departure from the existing process for qualifying for the World Cup. And if I'm saying that, you know it's a radical change!

Alex Holowczak wrote: ↑

Tue Sep 10, 2019 10:30 pm

They're a radical departure from the existing process for qualifying for the World Cup. And if I'm saying that, you know it's a radical change!

It's nearly doubling the size of the event to 256 players, but with first round byes for higher rated players. There must be confidence that sponsors can be found to pay for it all. Is it still credible that the following Olympiad host should be expected to pay for the World Cup as well?

Paul Cooksey wrote: ↑

Tue Sep 10, 2019 10:21 pm

Good win for Gawain with black after his opponent got a bit carried away with a non-existent attack.

I wonder if he saw 32 ... Rg4 at the end (as recommended by Stockfish)? A move I suspect few people would spot.

Roger de Coverly wrote: ↑

Tue Sep 10, 2019 10:56 pm

It's nearly doubling the size of the event to 256 players, but with first round byes for higher rated players.

So an extra round but actually only 206 players. 156 will have to be put up for three extra days.

Roger de Coverly wrote: ↑

Tue Sep 10, 2019 10:56 pm

There must be confidence that sponsors can be found to pay for it all

4. 2. 1. All players pay their own cost of travel, accommodation and meals for the duration of their stay.

Alex McFarlane wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 11, 2019 5:51 am

4. 2. 1. All players pay their own cost of travel, accommodation and meals for the duration of their stay.

But see 4.11.1

Total prize fund USD 1,834,000 with first round losers USD 3,000.

I suppose if they use the frequent organiser trick of insisting on "official" hotels, then buying rooms at wholesale prices and selling them at retail, they might recoup some of that. Too much of that and likely first round losers may stay away if professional players. and the venue expensive both in accommodation and travel costs.

Roger de Coverly wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 11, 2019 7:44 am

I suppose if they use the frequent organiser trick of insisting on "official" hotels

I have a feeling that game is over.

Roger de Coverly wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 11, 2019 7:44 am

Too much of that and likely first round losers may stay away if professional players. and the venue expensive both in accommodation and travel costs.

Would that bother FIDE or the organisers?

If everyone entitled to play did then the lowest ranked player would be rated just over 2600. There are about another 250 players rated between 2550 and 2600. I'd guess there would be enough of them willing to take any vacant places. 50 points doesn't strike me as materially affecting the appeal of the event, particularly when most of them will be going home after 2 or 3 days.