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Leinier Dominguez clinches Champions Showdown 2021 Chess 9LX

11/09/2021 -

Leinier Dominguez started the final day with a loss against Shankland in Champions Showdown 2021 Chess 9LX. He drew with Vachier-Lagrave next and defeated Aronian in the final round to finish clear first 6.0/9. So, Vachier-Lagrave and Shankland tied for the second place at 5.5/9 each respectively. Kasparov, who was having another fantastic day after beating Svidler and making a draw with Nakamura, losing to MVL in the last round cost him a podium finish. He still managed to finish fifth with 5.0/9 and once again showed the world that if you take out the opening theory, he can still go against the best the world has to offer. Photo: Saint Louis Chess Club

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Norway Chess R4: Carlsen beats Nepomniachtchi in Armageddon

11/09/2021 -

The most anticipated match between Carlsen and Nepomniachtchi saw the world champion prevail the challenger in Armageddon in the fourth round of Norway Chess 2021. This definitely gives the world no.1 a psychological edge. They will face each other one more time in the final round of this tournament before their world championship match in November. Rapport scored his second Classical victory of the event to increase his sole lead 8.5/12. Today is a rest day. However, only Nepomniachtchi and Karjakin will play their Round 1 game today from 8:30 p.m. IST. Round 5 will take place tomorrow at the same time. Photo: Lennart Ootes/Norway Chess

FIDE Online Olympiad 2021 R7-9: India tops Pool B, advances to the Quarterfinals

10/09/2021 -

India topped the Pool B by scoring 16.0/18 to advance to the Quarterfinals. They finished a full point ahead of Hungary 15.0/18. Team India started the day with emphatic victories over Hungary and Moldova. It was Slovenia who managed to hold India to a second draw in the group stage. Vidit and Praggnanandhaa won both of their games. Anand, Humpy and Nihal won a game each. Harikrishna, Bhakti and Savitha suffered a loss each respectively. Quarterfinals will take place on Monday, which will be a duel of two matches. India will face Ukraine in the Quarterfinals. Photo: Amruta Mokal

Champions Showdown 2021 R4-6: Kasparov is back to dominate

10/09/2021 -

Champions Showdown 2021 Chess 9LX seems to be the event where Kasparov is going to have a great comeback. After scoring a modest 1.0/3 on the first day, Kasparov wrecked through competition and scored 2.5/3 on the second day. His victims were Shankland and Aronian. The former world champion's only draw of the day was against previous day leader, Caruana who finished the day at sole second place 4.0/6. Leinier scored a hat-trick of wins to gain sole lead 4.5/6. Kasparov is a full point behind him at 3.5/6 along with Vachier-Lagrave and Shankland. Round 7 starts tonight from 12:30 a.m. IST. Photo: Saint Louis Chess Club live stream

Norway Chess R3: Rapport misses his chance against Carlsen

10/09/2021 -

Richard Rapport's strategy almost worked against Carlsen in the third round of Norway Chess 2021. He wanted to play Armageddon with white pieces. After making a quick draw against King's Indian, the Hungarian opted for reverse King's Indian himself. However, he missed his opportunity and allowed the world champion to escape with a draw. Speaking of missed opportunities, Firouzja and Tari also missed their winning chances against Karjakin and Nepomniachtchi respectively in Armageddon. Round 4 will witness one of the most anticipated matches of the tournament between Carlsen and Nepomniachtchi. Who do you think will win it? It starts tonight from 8:30 p.m. IST. Photo: Lennart Ootes/Norway Chess

FIDE Online Olympiad 2021 R4-6: India ascends to the top

09/09/2021 -

Team India dominated the second day to ascend to the top of Pool B with 11.0/12. Hungary is also with the same points, but the Indian team has better tie-breaks as they scored more game points. Shenzhen China was annihilated by India as they suffered a 1-5 loss in the fourth round. India defeated Azerbaijan 4-2 in the fifth round. Belarus lost to India by a minimum margin 2.5-3.5 in the sixth round. Nihal and Bhakti won both of their games today. Anand and Vaishali scored a valuable 1.5/2 and 2.0/3. Praggnanandhaa suffered his second consecutive game of the event. India will face Hungary, Moldova and Slovenia tomorrow in Round 7-9 from 4:30 p.m. IST. Photo: Amruta Mokal

Champions Showdown 2021 R1-3: Caruana takes sole lead 2.5/3

09/09/2021 -

Champions Showdown 2021 Chess 9LX returns to over-the-board after last year it had to be conducted online due to the unprecedented Covid-19 pandemic. Fabiano Caruana scored an unbeaten 2.5/3 on the first day to take the sole lead. Vachier-Lagrave, Mamedyarov and Shankland are at shared second place 2.0/3. So started the day with a beautiful combination against MVL, then he survived a massive scare against Kasparov in the following round. Mamedyarov was the only player to score a win against Kasparov so far in the third round. Aronian, So and Leinier are at 1.5/3, Svidler and Kasparov at 1.0/3 each respectively. Nakamura is at the last place, yet to score a point. Round 4 resumes tonight from 12:30 a.m. IST. Photo: Bryan Adams/Saint Louis Chess Club

Norway Chess R2: Carlsen overcomes the Tari turmoil

09/09/2021 -

Magnus Carlsen was in quite a bit of a pickle against his compatriot Aryan Tari in their Classical encounter of the second round at Norway Chess 2021. The world champion somehow managed to steer his ship through troubled waters and salvage a draw. Tari lost the Armageddon. Karjakin also escaped with a draw in the Classical game against Rapport. They drew the Armageddon too, which allowed Rapport to win the match and stay in the lead 4.5/6. Nepomniachtchi surprised Firouzja with King's Gambit in Armageddon. The France no.2 was caught off-guard, which resulted in a loss. Round 3 starts tonight from 8:30 p.m. IST. Photo: Lennart Ootes/Norway Chess

FIDE Online Olympiad 2021 R1-3: Team India off to a flying start

08/09/2021 -

Team India made a strong start at the FIDE Online Olympiad 2021. The team remained unbeaten in the first three rounds. The only draw of the day was against France in the second round where top four games ended in draws and Praggnanandhaa lost. Vaishali's win became crucial for the team to make a draw. Both Vaishali and Adhiban won both of their games 2.0/2, Anand and Tania scored an important 1.5/2, Harikrishna and Bhakti won their sole game 1.0/1. Praggnanandhaa and Online Olympiad debutante Savitha Shri suffered a loss each. Indian team will face Shenzhen China, Azerbaijan and Belarus tomorrow in Round 4-6 from 4:30 p.m. IST. Photo: Lennart Ootes/Grand Chess Tour

Norway Chess R1: Carlsen survives a scare, beats Firouzja in Armageddon

08/09/2021 -

Magnus Carlsen started his Norway Chess 2021 campaign in the exact same way as last year, by making a draw in the Classical game and then winning the Armageddon. Although it was Firouzja who was completely winning the endgame in Armageddon, but he missed in a time scramble and allowed the world champion to escape with a draw. Rapport beat Tari in the Classical game to score 3.0 points and enter the World top 10. As announced earlier, Nepomniachtchi will play against Karjakin on the rest day, Saturday 11th September. Catch all the action of Round 2 tonight from 8:30 p.m. IST. Photo: Lennart Ootes/Norway Chess

Lull before the storm at the FIDE Online Olympiad 2021

08/09/2021 -

India's journey at the FIDE Online Olympiad 2021 begins from the 8th of September 2021 at 4.30 p.m. The players arrived at Taj Coromandel on 6th of September and the premise has turned into a mini-training camp. You can see coaches working with the players and the seriousness in the eyes of each of the participant. At the same time you can also see the camaraderie as jokes are cracked and hyper bullet is played! Staying at one place has definitely helped the team to create a strong bond - one of the key elements to progress in this event. IM Sagar Shah and Amruta Mokal bring you the entire happenings from Chennai and describes the atmosphere. It's the "Lull before the Storm!"

Mighty Blockading Knights

07/09/2021 -

The first introduction to the game of chess lay in the fascination of knights for me. They are the most unique pieces on the chess board and the ability to fork a king and queen and/or rook(s) were simply fascinating to understand as a child. World Champion Capablanca considers that the knight is a very dangerous piece for an amateur, but as one's strength develops, he starts appreciating the value of bishop. While, this is very true, the fascination with knights nevertheless does continue as one grows into a stronger player with a deeper study of chess strategy. Enjoy this beautifully explained concept of blockading knights by Sundararajan Kidambi. Photo: Shahid Ahmed

IM Raja Rithvik scores second GM-norm at Skalica Open, Leon finishes third in Masters

06/09/2021 -

IM Raja Rithvik R beat GM Valentina Gunina in a must-win final round to score his second GM-norm at Skalica Chess Festival 2021 in the Open section. Rithvik scored an impressive 7.0/9 to finish sole second with a performance of 2616. He gained 21.7 Elo rating points, a beautifully crafted trophy and €500 as his prize. India's 67th GM and Skalica Open 2020 winner Leon Luke Mendonca scored 5.5/9, finished a half point behind the winner Anton Korobov (UKR) and runner-up Vitaliy Bernadskiy (UKR) to secure third place. He also won a trophy and €800 for his efforts. Check out the article to find Rithvik's epic win over Gunina and also Leon's triumph over Bernadskiy and draw with Korobov. Photo: Skalický Šachový festival

Magnus Carlsen wins Aimchess US Rapid with a dominant show

06/09/2021 -

Magnus Carlsen completely decimated Vladislav Artemiev in the second set of the Finals at Meltwater Champions Chess Tour Aimchess US Rapid. For the eighth time in the tournament, Carlsen started the day with a victory. He never seemed to be in any kind of trouble. Artemiev's questionable choice of opening removed any remote chances of going for a win in the second game. The world champion won the third game emphatically after the Russian's frail attempts were thwarted. With this triumph, Carlsen ties with So for the maximum number of event wins in this tour - three. The finals will take place later this month in Oslo, Norway. Photo: Champions Chess Tour

Off the Board Tales #15 - Rohan Rao

05/09/2021 -

'Off the Board Tales' is a series by ChessBase India, where the premise revolves around people who are passionate about chess despite it not being their career. An emotional and short story is what you're up for, so read on for tales of joy, tales of aspirations, tales of sorrows, and tales of success. Rohan Rao is a Data Scientist & 17-time National Champion of India in Sudoku. He has represented India internationally every year since 2008, & still actively plays chess online.