FIDE World Teams 2017 Round 8: Eesha's supercharged king beats Vietnam!

by Sagar Shah - 26/06/2017

Eesha Karavade was facing the woman in form, the reigning Asian Champion Vo Thi Kim Phung. The girl from Pune used her king masterfully to carve out a 2.5-1.5 win over Vietnam. This means that the Indian women team still has a chance for a podium finish provided some of the results work out in their favour. Indian men put up a great fight against the Russian team, but lost the match 2.5-1.5. This ends our medal hopes. In this article we have pictures, results, analysis of India's medal chances and last but not the least detailed and meticulous analysis of the game Vidit against Svidler by Aradhya Garg.

Photos by Anastasiya Balakhontseva

Indian women beat Vietnam 2.5-1.5; Men lose to Russia 1.5-2.5

Women's section:

We all know that the "king is a powerful piece in the endgame". But very few of us are able to implement this advice in our game. The main reason being, that the king moves just one square at a time while the rest of the pieces cover the board much faster. However, if used in the right manner, king has the ability to become a silent but sure killer. When India faced Vietnam in the women's section of the penultimate round of the World Team Championship 2017, a match victory was extremely important to keep the medal hopes alive.

Harika was in grave trouble today against Pham Le Thao Nguyen. In the endgame she was almost lost. But she somehow managed to save the half point.

Tania played the opening very well and was a piece up against Thi Bao Tram Hoang. However, in the next phase she messed it up badly and was worse. Finally she drew the game.

Padmini had a very pleasant advantage over Thi Mai Hung Nguyen. She was unable to convert it into anything substantial and the game ended in a draw.

Eesha Karavade had to ensure that she won the game, if India had any hopes left of winning a medal

Eesha played 1.d4 and the opponent replied with the King's Indian Defence. Soon we were in a closed position where Eesha's knight was much superior to Vo Thi Kim Phung's bishop. Mind you, Karavade's opponent was no pushover. She is the reigning Asian 2017 Women's Asian Champion.

In a position where it seemed quite difficult to breakthrough, the girl from Pune found an excellent plan. Can you try to do the same?

White has all the pieces in the game. Or does she? What would you do?

Yes of course, the king has to be activated! Once the king enters the game it's all over!

That's how you make use of your king!

[Event "11th World Teams Women"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk RUS"]
[Date "2017.06.25"]
[Round "8.3"]
[White "Karavade, Eesha"]
[Black "Vo, Thi Kim Phung"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E90"]
[WhiteElo "2388"]
[BlackElo "2378"]
[Annotator "Sagar Shah"]
[PlyCount "161"]
[EventDate "2017.06.17"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Nf3 O-O 6. h3 Nbd7 7. Be3 e5 8. d5 a5
9. g4 Nc5 10. Nd2 Ne8 11. h4 f5 12. g5 f4 13. Bxc5 dxc5 14. Qf3 Nd6 {Seven
games have been played until this point with all wins for White. 0-0-0 and Bh3
are the main moves. Eesha goes for something different. But essentially the
nature of the position doesn't change.} 15. Nb5 Rf7 16. Nxd6 cxd6 17. Bh3 $1 {
Exchanging the bishop so that black is left with a bad bishop.} Bf8 18. Nb1 Qb6
19. Qb3 Qb4+ 20. Nc3 Bxh3 21. Rxh3 Qxb3 $6 {Vo Thi Kim Phung would not have
imagined how this capture would drastically change the nature of the position.}
22. axb3 b6 $2 (22... h6 $1 {This would have given Black enough counterplay.}
23. O-O-O Rh7 $1 24. Rdh1 Be7 {And White is under pressure.} 25. gxh6 Rxh6 26.
h5 Rxh5 27. Rxh5 gxh5 28. Rxh5 Kg7 $11 {I am not 100% sure that White will be
able to claim any advantage here because after the rook exchange, the white
king cannot roam freely on the queenside as the black king will enter the
kingside.}) 23. O-O-O $1 Raa7 24. Rg1 Be7 25. Kb1 Bd8 26. Ka2 Kf8 27. Ka3 Rg7
28. Ka4 Ke8 29. Nb5 Rad7 30. h5 Kf8 31. Nc3 Ra7 32. Nb1 Kg8 33. Nd2 Be7 34. Nf3
{You must see how Eesha performs one task after another with admirable calm.
First she blocked the a-pawn with her king so that no breakthrough is possible.
Then she got her knight to f3 so that g5 is not weak. And now she will open
the h-file and enter the position.} Bf8 35. hxg6 hxg6 36. Rgh1 {The rooks
threaten to enter on the kingside, the king on the queenside. This is a
completely dominating position for White.} Kf7 37. Rh7 Ra8 38. Rxg7+ Bxg7 39.
Kb5 Kg8 40. Nd2 (40. Kxb6 Rb8+) 40... Bf8 41. Kxb6 Be7 42. Kc7 Bf8 (42... Bxg5
43. Kxd6 $18) 43. Kb7 Re8 44. Nb1 Be7 45. Kc7 Bxg5 46. Kxd6 Rb8 47. Nd2 f3 48.
Nxf3 Bf4 49. Ke6 Rxb3 50. Nxe5 Rxb2 51. Nxg6 Rb6+ 52. Kf5 Bc7 53. e5 a4 54. d6
Bxd6 55. exd6 Rxd6 56. Ra1 Ra6 57. Ra3 Kg7 58. Nf4 Kf7 59. Ke5 Ra8 60. Nd3 Ke7
61. Nxc5 Rc8 62. Kd4 Rd8+ 63. Kc3 Rf8 64. Nd3 Ra8 65. Kb4 Rb8+ 66. Kxa4 Kd6 67.
Rb3 Rf8 68. Kb4 Rf5 69. c5+ Kd5 70. Kc3 Kc6 71. Rb6+ Kc7 72. Kd4 Rf3 73. Ke4
Rh3 74. f4 Rh1 75. f5 Rh4+ 76. Nf4 Rh7 77. Nd5+ Kc8 78. f6 Rh4+ 79. Ke5 Kd7 80.
Rb7+ Kc8 81. c6 {Such fine and dominating play by the girl from Pune.} 1-0

What was coach Ramesh's secret advice?!

Results of round eight:

Round 8 on 2017/06/25 at 15:00
No.	SNo.	Team	Res.	Team	SNo.
1	10	UKRAINE	1.5-2.5	GEORGIA	9
2	1	UNITED STATES	2-2	AZERBAIJAN	8
3	2	INDIA	2.5-1.5	VIETNAM	7
4	3	POLAND	1-3	CHINA	6
5	4	EGYPT	0.5-3.5	RUSSIA	5

For a board wise break down, click here

Indian women's team now face Azerbaijan in the final round.

Rank	Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	MP	Pts.
1	RUSSIA	*		3	2½	3	3½	2	3	2	3½	14	22½
2	UKRAINE		*	2	1½	2½	2	2½	3	2½	2½	12	18½
3	CHINA	1	2	*	3½	2	3	3	2½	2		11	19
4	GEORGIA	1½	2½	½	*	2	2		3	3	4	10	18½
5	INDIA	1	1½	2	2	*	2½	2½	2½		3	10	17
6	POLAND	½	2	1	2	1½	*	2		3½	3½	7	16
7	UNITED STATES	2	1½	1		1½	2	*	2	2	3½	6	15½
8	VIETNAM	1	1	1½	1	1½		2	*	2½	4	5	14½
9	AZERBAIJAN	2	1½	2	1		½	2	1½	*	4	5	14½
10	EGYPT	½	1½		0	1	½	½	0	0	*	0	4

The million dollar question is whether team India can win a medal. And we think this is possible. First of all it would be futile to hope that China would lose to Egypt. So we can safely assume that China will move to 13 match points and beyond our grasp. Now the interesting pairing is Russia vs Ukraine. If Russia is able to beat Ukraine by a score of say 2.5-1.5 then Ukraine would be on 12 match points with 20 game points. India who is currently on 17 game points must beat Azerbaijan 3.5-0.5. In this way India will be able to surpass the Ukrainians. We also should hope that Georgia doesn't beat USA. Georgians are on the same match points as us, but in terms of game points they are 1.5 points ahead.

So this is what we need to win a medal:

Russia should beat Ukraine
USA should be able to hold or beat Georgia
India should beat Azerbaijan by a huge margin (3.5-0.5 or 4-0)

Open section:

What could have been a thumping win for India over Russia ended in a 1.5-2.5 defeat. Well, it all started really well for India. Vidit had a clear edge over Svidler, Matlakov just blundered a pawn against Sasikiran and Negi had a fine position against Fedoseev. 3.0-1.0 was a possibility in India's favour. Worst case scenario, we would at least make a draw. However, Vidit and Sasi both couldn't convert their advantage and Fedoseev managed to beat Negi. It was a heartbreaking loss for the Indian fans.

Indian team in good spirits before the game

Ramesh was happy with how things were progressing!

Coach of the Russian team Vladimir Potkin was naturally worried!

Vidit's game against Svidler shows how capable the young boy is. From an equal position in the opening he put his opponent under tremendous pressure. However, the art of finishing off his opponents still needs to be polished.

In an interview in 2013 Vidit spoke about the difference between normal GMs and 2700+ ones. The 19-year-old back then said,"I think in general 2700 players are very tenacious. It's very difficult to beat them. Even if you have an advantage against them they resist very strongly. Usually that's not the case with 2500-2600 players. So winning a game against 2700 players is extremely difficult."

What Vidit said back in 2013, was very true in his game against Peter Svidler!

Vidit's encounter against Svidler was extremely instructive and has been analyzed in great depth by Aradhya Garg. Aradhya is rated 2302 and lives in Delhi. He follows all the top live games closely. He sent us this brilliant bit of analysis which we now produce before you.

16-year-old Aradhya with Jacob Aagaard!

[Event "FIDE World Team Championship"]
[Site "chess24.com"]
[Date "2017.06.25"]
[Round "8.1"]
[White "Vidit, Santosh Gujrathi"]
[Black "Svidler, Peter"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D78"]
[WhiteElo "2692"]
[BlackElo "2756"]
[PlyCount "129"]
[EventDate "2017.??.??"]
[WhiteTeam "India"]
[BlackTeam "Russia"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "IND"]
[BlackTeamCountry "RUS"]
[WhiteClock "0:00:40"]
[BlackClock "0:04:34"]

{The game between India and Russia was an extremely crucial one with both the
teams fighting for a medal at this very prestigious tournament.Both the teams
were experienced and although the Russians did lead the Indian team on the
basis of rating on almost all the boards, the difference between the ratings
was not as much. Also the notion that Indians are under-rated made it a
MUST-WATCH and high entertaining match.Russia eventually won owing to
Fedoseev's gradual 'Karpovian Victory' over India's Parimarjan Negi, but the
game was well fought on all the boards!} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. g3 c6 4. Bg2 {
According to the Chess24 database,Vidit used 3 minutes 30 seconds for this
move which could well be utilised later in the crucial moments of the game!} d5
5. Nf3 (5. Qa4 Nfd7 6. cxd5 Nb6 7. Qd1 cxd5 8. Nc3 (8. Nf3 Bg7 9. O-O O-O 10.
b3 Nc6 11. Bb2 Bf5 12. h3 Qd7 13. Kh2 Be4 14. Nbd2 Rfd8 15. Ne5 Bxe5 16. Nxe4
Bxd4 17. Bxd4 dxe4 18. Bxb6 axb6 19. Qxd7 Rxd7 20. Bxe4 Rd2 21. Rac1 Nd4 22. e3
Ne6 23. Bb1 Rad8 24. Kg2 Kg7 25. Rc2 f5 26. b4 Kf6 27. a4 Rxc2 28. Bxc2 Nc7 29.
Rc1 Na6 30. Rb1 Rd2 31. Bd1 Ke5 32. Bf3 Ra2 33. a5 bxa5 34. bxa5 Nc5 35. Rb5
Kd6 36. Bxb7 Nxb7 37. Rxb7 Rxa5 {1/2-1/2 (37) Grachev,B (2667) -Khismatullin,D
(2657) Dagomys 2010}) 8... Nc6 9. e3 Bf5 10. Nge2 Nb4 11. O-O Nc2 12. Rb1 Nb4
13. Ra1 Nc2 {was already drawn in Vidit-Loek Van Wely in Baku Olympiad 2016.})
5... Bg7 6. b3 O-O 7. O-O Ne4 8. Bb2 Bf5 9. e3 Nd7 10. Qe2 a5 {[%csl Rb5][%cal
Ga5a4] It is quite curious to know that this line was played with the White
pieces by Giri as well(albeit in Blitz)and Svidler also had the same position
as Black! This is however the most common move but one move which was very
possibly analyzed by Vidit at home seeing the speed at which the next moves
were played!} 11. cxd5 $146 {The first choice of the Engines and with an aim
to challenge the authenticity of the move ...a5 which does weaken the
b5-square and also the Knight is now placed at d7 and now taking on d5 makes
more sense as the Knight does not have its ideal c6-square here!This same
theme was also played out by Vidit against Joorden Van Foreest in Reykjavik
Open 2017 which shows his strong acquaintance with our Classics also!However,
this move was played after 11 minutes and it can very possibly be an on-the
spot innovation as well.} (11. Nc3 Nxc3 12. Bxc3 Be4 (12... Nf6 13. Rfc1 Be4
14. Be1 e6 15. Bf1 c5 16. cxd5 cxd4 17. Nxd4 Bxd5 18. Rd1 Qb6 19. Rac1 Rfc8 20.
Nb5 Ne4 21. Bg2 Rc6 22. f3 Rac8 23. Rxc6 Bxc6 24. Nd4 Bxd4 25. Rxd4 Nf6 26. Bf2
e5 27. Rd6 Kg7 28. e4 Qb4 29. Qd2 Bb5 30. Qxb4 axb4 31. Be1 Rc2 32. Bxb4 Rxa2
33. Bc3 Rc2 34. Bxe5 Rc1+ 35. Kf2 Rc2+ 36. Kg1 Rc1+ 37. Kf2 Rc2+ 38. Ke3 Rxg2
39. Bxf6+ Kh6 40. Rd5 Bc6 41. Rd8 {1-0 (41) Nikolic,P (2645)-Svidler,P (2630)
Ter Apel 1996}) 13. cxd5 cxd5 14. Qb5 Qc7 15. Rfc1 Qc6 16. Qe2 Rfc8 17. Bh3
Bxf3 18. Qxf3 e6 19. a4 Qb6 20. Qd1 Bf8 21. Bf1 Bb4 22. Bb2 Nf6 23. Rxc8+ Rxc8
24. Rc1 Rc7 25. Bd3 Qd6 26. Rxc7 Qxc7 27. Qc2 Qxc2 28. Bxc2 g5 29. h3 h5 30. f3
g4 31. hxg4 hxg4 32. Kf2 Kf8 33. Bc1 Ke7 34. Bd3 b6 35. Bc2 Kd7 36. Bd3 Ke7 37.
Bc2 Kd7 38. Bd3 Ke7 {1/2-1/2 (38) Giri,A (2734)-Radjabov,T (2713) Beijing 2013}
) (11. Nh4 Be6 12. f3 Nd6 13. c5 Nb5 14. a4 Nc7 15. f4 Nf6 16. Nd2 Na6 17. Nhf3
b6 18. cxb6 Qxb6 19. Rfc1 Rfc8 20. Ba3 Nb4 21. Ne5 Nd7 22. Ndf3 f6 23. Bxb4
axb4 24. Nxd7 Bxd7 25. Ne1 e5 26. Nd3 exd4 27. Nc5 Bf5 28. exd4 Re8 29. Qf2 Bf8
30. Re1 Bd6 31. Bf1 Qa7 32. Rac1 Rac8 33. Qd2 Qb6 34. Bd3 Bxd3 35. Rxe8+ Rxe8
36. Qxd3 Qa7 37. Qd2 Qe7 38. Kf2 Kf7 39. Re1 Qxe1+ 40. Qxe1 Rxe1 41. Kxe1 Bxc5
42. dxc5 Ke7 43. g4 Kd7 44. Ke2 Kc7 45. h4 Kd7 46. Kf3 Kc7 47. h5 gxh5 48. gxh5
Kd7 49. h6 {1/2-1/2 (49) Nikolic,P (2625)-Smirin,I (2640) Elenite 1993}) 11...
cxd5 {[%csl Rd7]} 12. Nc3 Nxc3 13. Bxc3 Qb6 14. Rfc1 Rfc8 15. Ne1 {[%csl Rd5]
[%cal Ge1d3] Both the players played the last couple of moves reasonably fast
which shows that they were following theory and their home preparations.
Understandable and typical manuevre to regroup the Knight to d3 where it would
be eyeing on e5 as well as on c5 up here!12 Minutes were spent playing this
move and it is quite probable that this was not opening preparation by our
Indian Board No.1!} e5 {A wild reaction which was however also played after
only 1 minute of thought instead of the normal ...Nf6. So this may also be
opening preparation!It is great to see the DEPTH of the Opening Preparation of
these strong players!} (15... Nf6 16. Nd3 {[%cal Gd3c5,Gd3e5]} Qa6 17. Bf1 Ne4
18. Be1 {This position here is now quite important as White hopes for some
more pleasant positions after inserting Nf4 yet Black has STRONG
COUNTERCHANCES in the position up here!} Ng5 $1 {[%csl Rd3,Rf3,Rg1,Rh3][%cal
Gf5e4] is a very strong resource which Black would have had to find to
equalize completely here!} (18... Qb6 {[%csl Gc5]} 19. g4 Bd7 (19... Be6 20. f3
Rxc1 (20... Nf6 21. Nc5 $14 {[%cal Gh2h3,Gf1g2,Ge1f2] to clearly better
position for White up here!}) 21. Rxc1 Nd6 22. Nc5 $14 {[%csl Ra5][%cal Ge2d2]
to clearly better position for White up here!}) 20. a4 {[%cal Gf2f3,Gd3c5] The
critical reply and Black has to make RESPONSIBLE DECISIONS in this position
here!} (20. f3 Bb5 {[%cal Ge4d6] with STRONG COUNTERCHANCES when Black should
be doing absolutely fine up here!}) 20... e5 21. dxe5 Qxb3 22. f3 (22. Rcb1 Qc4
{[%cal Ge4c3] is absolutely fine for Black here also!}) 22... Nc3 23. Qd2 Nxa4
24. Rab1 Qa3 {with extremely complex play when Black should principally be
fine up here!}) 19. Nc5 Qxe2 20. Bxe2 e5 {[%csl Gf5,Gg5,Gg7] and Blacks
activity ensures STRONG PLAY when the position should be dynamically balanced
up here!}) 16. dxe5 Rxc3 17. Rxc3 {Now Vidit bhaiya probably tried to
recollect his analysis after thinking for 1 minute which looked a little
awkward to me as this was the only move in the position and the consequences
could have been found on the opponents move here.This thought may actually be
an indication that ....e5!? was not as thoroughly analyzed by Vidit bhaiya as
was ....Nf6.} Bxe5 18. Rac1 Bxc3 19. Rxc3 {[%csl Gd4,Rd5][%cal Ge2d2,Ge1c2]} d4
{The most principled reaction by Black simply aiming to trade his} (19... Nf6
20. Nf3 {[%cal Gf3d4,Ge2b2]} Ne4 21. Rc1 Re8 22. Nd4 Nxg3 (22... Bd7 23. Qd1
$14 {[%csl Rd5][%cal Gd4e2,Ge2f4,Gd1d4] to clearly better position for White
when the play is going on for 2 results only up here!}) 23. Qf3 Ne4 24. Nxf5
gxf5 25. Qxf5 $14 {[%csl Rd5]}) 20. exd4 Qxd4 21. Bxb7 {And almost 4 minutes
were used here while this looks to be the most logical move in the position
here!} Qxc3 22. Bxa8 {So Vidit managed to take one pawn here but Black has
VERY strong activity of pieces as compensation for the pawn deficit and Black
has REALISTIC HOLDING chances also due to the awkward position of the Knight
on e1 up here!} Ne5 $6 {Svidler sir understandably plays an active looking
move which however is objectively not the best in the position as near
equality could have been achieved by ...Nf6 up here!This move was probably
played a little too fast thinking for just over a minute as this was a
critical moment of the game!} (22... Nf6 {[%csl Gd5,Ge4]} 23. Kg2 (23. Nf3 $2 {
This natural looking move has a very neat refutation up here!} Qc8 {[%csl Ra8]}
24. Qe7 Qxa8 25. Ng5 Qd5 26. Qxf6 h6 {[%csl Rg1,Rg5]} 27. Nxf7 Qxf7 $17) 23...
Bb1 {[%csl Ra2][%cal Gc3a1]} (23... Qc8 24. Bf3 $14 {[%cal Ge2e3,Ge1d3] to
clearly better position for White when White can simply continue playing on
without any risk up here!}) 24. Nf3 Qc8 (24... Qa1 25. Qe7 $18 {[%csl Rf6,Rf7,
Rg8][%cal Gf3e5]}) 25. Qb2 Bf5 26. Qxf6 Bh3+ (26... Qxa8 27. Qc3 a4 {should
also easily be held with accurate play up here!}) 27. Kh1 {[%cal Gf3g1]} (27.
Kg1 Qc1+ 28. Ne1 Qxe1#) 27... Qxa8 28. Kg1 h5 {[%csl Rg1,Gh3][%cal Ga5a4,Ga8d5]
with STRONG COMPENSATION and Counterplay when Black is doing very well in this
position up here!}) 23. Kg2 {[%cal Ge1f3] Simply improving the position and
there is absolutely nothing wrong with this move!} (23. Nf3 $5 Nd3 (23... Qc1+
24. Qf1 (24. Kg2 Qc8 $1 {[%csl Ra8,Rg2][%cal Gf5h3]} 25. Qxe5 Qxa8 {with
strong counterplay and an eventual draw up here!}) 24... Qc8 25. Nxe5 Qxa8 26.
Qb5 $16 {[%cal Gg1g2,Gb5e2] and with an extra pawn and Preferable Endgame
Piece Combination(Queen+Knight VS Queen+Bishop)White has realistic practical
chances up here!}) (23... Nxf3+ 24. Bxf3 (24. Qxf3 Qa1+ 25. Kg2 Qxa2 $11 {
[%cal Ga2d2]}) 24... Bh3 25. Bg2 Be6 26. h4 $16 {and although the position is
holdable,it is practically not very easy to hold it in such a tough encounter.}
) 24. Qd2 (24. Nd2 Qxd2) 24... Qc1+ 25. Kg2 Qc8 26. Bd5 Bh3+ 27. Kg1 Nb4 28.
Bc4 $16) 23... h5 24. Nf3 $6 {Vidit probably underestimated Blacks following
reply after which Black simply equalizes the game on the spot up here!This
move was played after a 8 minute think but White probably still underestimated
opponents next move!} (24. Be4 $1 Be6 (24... Bg4 25. Qe3 Qxe3 26. fxe3 Be2 27.
Kf2 Bb5 28. h3 Kg7 29. Nf3 $16 {[%cal Gf3d4] with a torture in the endgame for
the Black pieces up here!}) (24... Bd7 25. Nf3 Bg4 26. h3 Bxf3+ 27. Bxf3 Qd4 {
[%csl Gd4,Ge5]} 28. Be4 $16 {and Black again has to suffer from the torture
although there are good practical drawing chances here aswell!})) 24... Qc8 $1
{[%csl Rg2][%cal Gf5h3]} 25. Kg1 (25. Qxe5 Qxa8 26. Qf6 Be4 {[%csl Rf3][%cal
Ga5a4]} 27. h4 a4 28. bxa4 Qxa4 $11 {[%csl Ra2]}) 25... Bh3 {[%csl Rg1]} (25...
Qxa8 26. Nxe5 a4 {[%csl Ra1]} 27. h4 (27. bxa4 Qxa4 28. Qc4 Qxc4 29. Nxc4 Be6
$1 30. Ne3 Bxa2 31. h4 Kg7 $11) 27... axb3 28. axb3 Qa3 29. Qd1 Be6 30. Nc4 Qb4
31. Qd3 Qb5 $14 {[%cal Ge6d5] but with very strong prospects for a draw as
White has no reasonable way to continue in this position up here!}) 26. Qxe5
Qxa8 27. Ne1 Qa6 (27... a4 $1 {Black should try to continue playing
ENERGETICALLY having Better Co-ordination of his pieces and Dynamic Advantage
and this move would have equalised the game yet again!} 28. bxa4 (28. b4 a3 {
[%csl Ra2][%cal Gh3e6]} 29. b5 Be6 30. Nc2 Bxa2 31. Qa1 (31. Qc3 Qa4 $1 $19 {
[%csl Ga3,Rb5][%cal Ga2b3]}) 31... Be6 32. Qxa3 Qe4 {[%csl Rb5][%cal Ge4b1]
with good counterplay and compensation when Black is already fine up here!})
28... Qxa4 29. Qb2 Qe4 30. Qd2 Kg7 $11) 28. Qe8+ $1 {[%csl Gc6] This move
again was probably underestimated by Svidler after the game is mainly going on
for 2 results only up here!} (28. Ng2 $5 {An interesting practical resource to
simply try and repeat the position before proceeding with the way White wants
to play up here!} Qc6 29. Ne1 Qa6 $11 30. Qe8+ Kg7 31. Ng2 $14) 28... Kg7 29.
Ng2 g5 $6 {[%csl Rg5,Rg7] Played after a 6 and a half minute meditation and
probably not the most accurate move up here!} (29... Qf6 $1 {[%csl Ra1,Ra2,Rg1]
[%cal Gf6d4] Black should again try to play as ENERGETICALLY as possible in
order to try and exploit his dynamic advantage up here and this is the
way!Having DYNAMIC ADVANTAGE,try to play as energetically as possible!} 30. Qe1
{[%csl Ga1,Gg1][%cal Gg2f4]} (30. Qe2 Qa1+ 31. Ne1 (31. Qe1 Qxa2 32. Nf4 Bf5
33. h4 Qb1 34. Qxb1 Bxb1 {[%csl Rb3]} 35. Ne2 Kf6 {[%cal Gf6e5]} 36. Nd4 {
[%cal Gd4c6]} Be4 37. f4 Ke7 $17 {[%csl Rb3][%cal Ge7d6,Gd6c5,Gc5b4]}) 31...
Qc3 $11) 30... Qd4 31. Nf4 Bg4 32. h4 {[%csl Gg5]} (32. Qxa5 Qd1+ 33. Qe1 (33.
Kg2 Bf3+ 34. Kh3 Qd7+ {[%csl Rh3]} 35. Kh4 (35. g4 Qxg4#) 35... Qg4#) 33...
Qxe1+ 34. Kg2 Qe4+ $19 {[%csl Rg2]}) 32... Bf3 {[%csl Gf3]} 33. Kh2 Bb7 {
with great compensation and again a probable draw up here!}) 30. Qe5+ {Again
played after a think of 4 minutes but after the game, this is one of the
moments when White could have won the game practically by simply playing this
natural move immediately!} f6 (30... Kh6 31. f4 $1 {[%csl Rh3,Rh6] The Black
King gets weak and here White simply plays this resource exploiting Blacks
weaknesses up here!} gxf4 (31... Kh7 {[%csl Gh7]} 32. Kf2 {[%cal Gg2e3]} Bxg2
33. Kxg2 $16) 32. Qh8+ (32. Qxf4+ Kg7 33. Qg5+ Kf8 34. Qd2 $16 {[%cal Gg2e3]})
32... Kg5 (32... Kg6 33. Nxf4+ Kf5 34. Nxh3 $18) 33. Qd8+ Kf5 34. Qc7 {[%csl
Rf5]} Kf6 35. gxf4 $16 {[%csl Rf6][%cal Gc7e5]}) 31. Qe7+ Kg6 32. Qe4+ Kg7 33.
Ne3 {Again played after thinking for around 2 minutes and Vidit was already
under time trouble although this move probably can be played automatically as
well!} Qc8 34. Qc2 Qb7 35. Qd1 Qe4 {Played after a two minute though by
Svidler and this initially looks like a mistake simply giving up the h5-pawn
but Svidler Sir probably wanted to pressurize Vidit in his time trouble!} 36.
Qxh5 $1 {He takes the gauntlet and it is probably Vidit's next move that
Svidler completely missed!} Qb1+ 37. Qd1 Qxa2 38. g4 $1 {[%csl Rh3] This move
was also played automatically after just 8 seconds of thought and now White
just has to make two more accurate moves to reach the time control undeterred!}
Qb2 39. Nf5+ $2 {A think of almost 7 minutes which spoils a major part of the
advantage here but f3!made the position extremely difficult for Black to
defend!} (39. f3 $1 {[%csl Gf3,Gg1] is what the Silicon Engines cry for simply
providing a safe Escape Square for the White King on f2 up here!This move
would just pass on the move to Svidler Sir and it is extremely difficult to
defend this objectively lost position up here!} Kf8 (39... Qc3 40. Qd7+ Kf8 (
40... Kg6 41. Qe8+ Kh6 (41... Kg7 42. Nf5+ Kh7 43. Qf7+ Kh8 44. Qg7#) 42. Nf5+
{[%csl Rh6]} Kh7 43. Qf7+ Kh8 44. Qg7#) 41. Qd6+ Kf7 42. Kf2 $18 {[%csl Rf6,
Rf7][%cal Gf2g3]}) (39... Qe5 40. Qd3 {[%csl Rg7]} Qb2 41. Qd7+ Kf8 42. Qe6 $18
{[%csl Rf6][%cal Gg1f2,Gf2g3]}) 40. Qd6+ Kf7 (40... Ke8 41. Qd3 Kf8 42. Qd8+
Kf7 43. Qd7+ Kf8 44. Qe6 $18 {[%csl Rf8][%cal Gg1f2]}) 41. Qd5+ Ke8 42. Qe4+ {
[%cal Ge4c4,Gc4c2]} Kf7 43. Qc4+ Kf8 44. Qc2 $16 {[%cal Gg1f2] to winning
position for White looks to be the simplest practical solution up here!}) 39...
Kg6 40. Nd6 {[%csl Rg6][%cal Gd1d3] The time control is up and both sides get
an additional time control of 30 minutes!} Kh6 41. Nf5+ Kg6 42. Ng3 $6 {
This move however was played in around 2 minutes only in a critical moment and
time management is probably where we slipped the win from our hands!} (42. Ne3
$1 {[%cal Gf2f3] in order to get the same position simply repeating the
position!A good move after which Black has to make a series of good moves in
order to get good prospects to get a worse yet holdable position up here!} Qc3
$1 {[%csl Rb3] simply preventing f2-f3 and White needs to find something
concrete as Blacks activity and Whites weak King are a major source of
counterplay for Black here!} (42... Kg7 43. f3 $1 $18 {[%csl Gf3,Rg7,Rh3][%cal
Gd1d7,Gd7d3] and this move again transposes to 39f3!up here!}) 43. Nd5 Qe5 (
43... Qc5 44. Nxf6 $1 {[%csl Rg6,Rh3][%cal Gd1d3]} Kh6 (44... Kxf6 45. Qf3+ Kg6
46. Qxh3 $18 {[%csl Rg6][%cal Gg1g2,Gh3f3]}) 45. Ne4 {[%csl Ge4]} Qe5 46. Ng3 {
[%csl Gd1,Gg3,Rh3,Rh6] and the Queen+Knight Piece Combination works
excellently to win the game for White up here!}) 44. Nxf6 $1 {[%csl Rh3][%cal
Gd1d3]} (44. Qd3+ Kg7 45. Qxh3 Qxd5 46. Qg3 (46. Qe3 Qd1+ 47. Kg2 Qxg4+ $11)
46... Qe4 47. h3 a4 48. bxa4 Qxa4 $14 {[%csl Gf6,Gg5] and White is slightly to
clearly better although the position shall be held with accurate play here
again!}) 44... Kh6 $1 {This however is practically extremely difficult to find
and most players would leave there calculations after seeing ...Kh6 itself!} (
44... Qxf6 45. Qd3+ Kg7 46. Qxh3 $18) (44... Kxf6 45. Qf3+ Qf4 46. Qxh3 $18 {
[%csl Rf6]}) 45. Nd5 {[%cal Gd5e3]} (45. Nd7 Qe6 46. f3 Qe3+ {[%csl Rg1]} 47.
Kh1 Kg7 $11 {[%csl Gg7,Rh1]}) 45... Bxg4 46. Qxg4 Qxd5 47. h4 gxh4 48. Qxh4+
Kg6 49. Qg3+ $16 {with again a riskless advantage when White can continue
pressing on in this endgame although draw is the most likely result up here!})
42... Kg7 43. Nf1 (43. Nf5+ $1 {[%csl Rg7]} Kg6 (43... Kg8 44. Qd8+ Kf7 45.
Qe7+ Kg8 (45... Kg6 46. Qg7#) 46. Qg7#) 44. Ne3 {[%csl Ge3] again can lead to
the same position and White can continue with f2-f3 simply winning the
game!White again has very realistic practical chances to win the game!}) 43...
Qe5 $1 {[%csl Ge5,Gh3] and Black now gains STRONG PLAY up here again!} 44. Ne3
Qc5 $2 (44... Qc3 $1 {[%csl Gc3,Re1,Re3,Rg1] Black has to FIGHT in order to
avoid opponent to get good co-ordination of pieces as Co-ordination is 80%
Endgame Skill!And this way it is again very difficult for White to make
progress up here!} 45. Nf5+ Kg6 46. f3 Qc5+ 47. Nd4 f5 $16 {but with STRONG
PROSPECTS for a draw up here!}) 45. Qd2 {[%csl Ra5,Gd2,Rh3][%cal Gf2f3,Gg1f2,
Ge3c4] and Vidit finally hits upon the right plan!Yeah!} Qa3 {[%csl Rg7]
Completely leaving the King extremely weak and we get a lifeline up here!} 46.
Qc3 $1 {[%csl Rg7,Rh3][%cal Ge3f5] and it looks like practically game over for
Svidler here!Practicaly winning aswell are both the moves but this looks much
simpler also!} (46. Qd7+ Kf8 (46... Kg8 47. Qe8+ Kh7 (47... Kg7 48. Nf5+ Kh7
49. Qf7+ Kh8 50. Qg7#) 48. Qf7+ Kh8 49. Qxf6+ Kg8 50. Qxg5+ $18 {[%csl Rh3]}) (
46... Kh8 47. Qe8+ Kh7 (47... Kg7 48. Nf5+ Kh7 49. Qf7+ Kh8 50. Qg7#) 48. Qf7+
Kh8 49. Qxf6+ Kh7 50. Qf7+ $18 {[%csl Rg5,Rh3]}) 47. Qc8+ Kf7 (47... Ke7 48.
Nf5+ Kf7 49. Qd7+ Kf8 50. Qd8+ Kf7 51. Nd6+ $18 {[%csl Rf7]}) 48. Qd7+ Kf8 49.
Qd8+ Kf7 50. Qc7+ Kf8 51. Qc3 $18 {[%csl Ra5,Rf6]} Kf7 52. Nc4 $18 {[%csl Ra5,
Rh3]}) 46... a4 {[%csl Rb3] but Svidler decides to fight on!} (46... Bxg4 47.
Nxg4 Qd6 48. Nxf6 Qxf6 49. Qxf6+ Kxf6 50. Kg2 $18) 47. Nf5+ Kf8 (47... Kg6 48.
Qxh3 {[%csl Rg6][%cal Gh3h5]} Qc1+ 49. Kg2 Qc6+ 50. Qf3 Qxf3+ 51. Kxf3 axb3 (
51... a3 52. Nd4 a2 53. Nc2 $18 {[%csl Ra2]}) 52. Ne7+ Kf7 53. Nd5 $18 {
[%csl Rb3][%cal Gd5c3,Gf3e4]}) (47... Kf7 48. Qc7+ Ke6 (48... Ke8 49. Nd6+ Qxd6
(49... Kf8 50. Qf7#) 50. Qxd6 $18) 49. Qc6+ Kf7 (49... Ke5 50. Qe8+ Kd5 51.
Ne3+ $18 {[%csl Ra3,Rd5]}) 50. Qd7+ Kf8 51. Qd8+ Kf7 52. Nd6+ $18 {[%csl Rf7]})
48. Qc8+ Kf7 49. Qd7+ Kf8 50. Qd8+ Kf7 51. Qd7+ (51. Nd6+ $1 {[%csl Rf7] was
the clearest chance winning the position for White up here!} Kg7 (51... Ke6 52.
Qg8+ $18 {[%csl Ra3,Re6]}) (51... Kg6 52. Qg8+ Kh6 53. Nf7# (53. Nf5#)) 52.
Qe7+ Kg8 53. Qf7+ Kh8 54. Qxf6+ $18) 51... Kf8 52. Qg7+ (52. Qd8+ {here
however would lead to a perpetual draw!}) 52... Ke8 53. Qh8+ Kd7 54. Qh7+ Kd8
55. Qh8+ Kd7 56. Qh7+ Kd8 57. Qg8+ Kc7 {[%csl Gc7,Rg1][%cal Gc7b6,Gb6b7] and
Black simply defends this position up here due to Whites weakened weak King!}
58. Qf7+ Kb8 59. Qg8+ Kc7 60. Qc4+ Kb8 61. Qb5+ Kc7 62. Qa5+ Kb7 63. Qd5+ Kc7
64. Qc4+ Kb8 65. Qg8+ 1/2-1/2

We thank Aradhya for his meticulous work and instructive analysis.

Adhiban played well to hold the in form Ian Nepomniachtchi to a draw

Maxim Matlakov blundered a pawn in the opening against Sasikiran, and then defended really well to hold the draw.

[Event "11th World Teams 2017"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk RUS"]
[Date "2017.06.25"]
[Round "8.3"]
[White "Sasikiran, Krishnan"]
[Black "Matlakov, Maxim"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "B35"]
[WhiteElo "2669"]
[BlackElo "2714"]
[Annotator "Sagar Shah"]
[PlyCount "94"]
[EventDate "2017.06.17"]

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Nc3 g6 4. d4 cxd4 5. Nxd4 Bg7 6. Be3 Nf6 7. Bc4 Qa5 8.
O-O O-O 9. Bb3 d6 10. h3 Bd7 11. Re1 Rac8 12. Qd2 Qa6 13. f4 Rfd8 14. Rad1 b5
$2 {This is just a pawn blunder.} 15. Ndxb5 $1 Nxe4 16. Qd5 $1 {A simple
tactical miss by Matlakov. e4 and f7 both are attacked.} Nf6 17. Qxf7+ {
Well after winning a pawn like this one would imagine that Sasi would win the
game.} Kh8 18. Qc4 Qb7 19. Qe2 (19. Nd4 $1 $16 {White is just better here,
without any problems.}) 19... Rf8 20. Rf1 Nh5 21. Rf3 a6 22. Nd4 Nxd4 23. Bxd4
Bc6 (23... Nxf4 24. Bxg7+ Kxg7 25. Qxe7+ $18) 24. Bxg7+ Kxg7 25. Nd5 Bxd5 26.
Bxd5 Qa7+ 27. Qe3 Qxe3+ 28. Rxe3 Rxc2 {Black has managed to gain activity in
return for his pawn and things are not so simple any more.} 29. Rxe7+ Kh6 30.
f5 Rxb2 31. Be4 Ng3 32. fxg6 hxg6 33. Rxd6 Nxe4 34. Rxe4 Rxa2 35. Ree6 Rg8 36.
Rxa6 Rxa6 37. Rxa6 {This is just a draw.} Rb8 38. Rf6 Rb3 39. Kh2 Kg5 40. Rf3
Rxf3 $1 {Matlakov knows his endgames.} 41. gxf3 Kf4 42. Kg2 g5 43. Kf2 Ke5 44.
Kg3 Kf5 45. h4 gxh4+ 46. Kxh4 Kf4 47. Kh5 Kxf3 1/2-1/2

Vladimir Fedoseev broke the dreams of an entire nation, when he defeated...

...Parimarjan Negi. This was Negi's first loss at the event, and with it India's hopes for a medal came to an end.

[Event "11th World Teams 2017"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk RUS"]
[Date "2017.06.25"]
[Round "8.4"]
[White "Fedoseev, Vladimir"]
[Black "Negi, Parimarjan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C50"]
[WhiteElo "2690"]
[BlackElo "2670"]
[PlyCount "161"]
[EventDate "2017.06.17"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. d3 Nf6 5. O-O d6 6. a4 h6 7. c3 a6 8. Re1 O-O
9. h3 Re8 10. Nbd2 Ba7 11. Qb3 Qe7 12. a5 Rb8 13. Nf1 Be6 14. Be3 Bxc4 15. Qxc4
Qd7 16. b4 Qe6 17. Qxe6 Rxe6 18. Bxa7 Nxa7 19. Ne3 Rd8 20. c4 c6 21. Nd2 d5 22.
exd5 cxd5 23. Nb3 g6 24. Reb1 Re7 25. Nc5 Rc7 26. Na4 d4 27. Nf1 e4 28. Nd2
exd3 29. Nb2 Nc8 30. Ra3 Nd6 31. Rxd3 Nde4 32. Nb3 Nc3 33. Re1 Na2 (33... Rcd7
$11) 34. b5 axb5 35. cxb5 Rd5 36. b6 Rc3 37. Re7 Nb4 38. Rf3 Rxf3 39. gxf3 Nd7
$15 {Black is clearly better.} 40. Re8+ Kg7 41. Rc8 Nc6 42. Rc7 Nxb6 $6 (42...
Nde5 43. Rxb7 Rb5 44. a6 Rxb3 45. a7 Nxa7 46. bxa7 Ra3 $15) 43. Rxb7 $1 (43.
axb6 Rb5 $11) 43... Nc8 44. Nc4 $16 d3 45. a6 Nd4 46. Nbd2 Nb5 47. f4 Rc5 48.
Kg2 g5 49. Kf3 gxf4 50. Kxf4 h5 51. h4 Kh6 52. Ke3 Nba7 53. Rxf7 Rc6 54. Ne5
Rxa6 55. Ne4 Re6 56. f4 Nc6 57. Nxc6 Rxc6 58. f5 Rc4 59. Kxd3 Ra4 60. Rc7 Na7
61. Rb7 Nc8 62. Rb8 Na7 63. Rg8 Ra6 64. f6 Nc6 65. Nd6 Ra7 66. Ke4 Kh7 67. Rc8
Ra4+ 68. Kd5 Kg6 69. f7 Ne7+ 70. Ke6 Nxc8 71. f8=Q Nxd6 72. Qg8+ Kh6 73. Qg5+
Kh7 74. Qxh5+ Kg7 75. Qg5+ Kh7 76. Qe7+ Kg6 77. Kxd6 Rg4 78. Ke5 Kh6 79. Qf8+
Kh5 80. Qh8+ Kg6 81. Qg8+ 1-0

Results of round eight:

Rank	Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	MP	Pts.
1	CHINA	*	2½		2	2½	2	2½	3½	3½	3½	14	22
2	RUSSIA	1½	*	3	2	2½		2½	3	3	3½	13	21
3	POLAND		1	*	1½	2½	2½	3	3	2½	3	12	19
4	TURKEY	2	2	2½	*	2	1	2		2½	3	10	17
5	INDIA	1½	1½	1½	2	*	3½	2½	2½		2½	9	17½
6	UNITED STATES	2		1½	3	½	*	1½	2	2½	3	8	16
7	UKRAINE	1½	1½	1	2	1½	2½	*	2	3		6	15
8	BELARUS	½	1	1		1½	2	2	*	3½	3½	6	15
9	NORWAY	½	1	1½	1½		1½	1	½	*	2½	2	10
10	EGYPT	½	½	1	1	1½	1		½	1½	*	0	7½

India now has no chance of fighting for a medal. In fact it seems as if China, Russia and Poland will pick up the medals in that order.

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