Hello again everyone! Originally, about two months ago after the SPICE Cup when I was fighting the flu, I said I was going to take some time off until the London Chess Classic. Now that it is here, I'm torn, since I am also working on finishing up the Official Chess.com/TV Group. Anyways, I decided to cover this event and hopefully I don't get too burnt out doing the reports for this and the recaps of the TV shows, plus my own chess studies. Better to be busy than bored.    (All games come from Fritz 12/Playchess.com)

   OK. Round one saw some awesome action and a notable upset, which is the one I will start with. Luke McShane(W) vs. Magnus Carlsen(B). For all of those who watched the live feed, you were able to see that Magnus was a little unhappy during the post-game interview. He was leaning back in his chair, slouching, notably unhappy...and here is why:

   Next up is Michael Adams(W) vs. David Howell(B). This game ended in a 28-move victory by checkmate for White as Black's King was pretty much barricaded and trapped like a mouse in the corner, although the King wasn't in a corner but almost in the middle of the board surrounded by his underlings. A neo-spin on the Smothered Mate.

   And now we shift attention to the Nigel Short(W) vs. Vladimir Kramnik(B) game which by the look of the clocks, went in to serious first stage time control pressure, an which Short finally resigned after 38...Rd1.

   Anand(W) vs. Nakamura(B) is finally over. How Naka held off the World Champion is amazing after what the commentators were talking about during the broadcast. Anand was up two pawns and the Hotness(tension) meter reads a solid 4 after 63...Be1, and each side still has their dark squared Bishop, but Naka was up 17 minutes, 20' to black's 37! at this point. Here is the final game position:

   This was the longest and best game of the day. Naka manages a draw after the commentators wrote him off during the later stages of the game. Credit has to be given to Naka for this outstanding performance.

   Here are the pairings for Round 2 with the starting EST time:

   11 AM-4 PM EST

   Round 2 Games;

    Kramnik(W) vs. Nakamura(B)

    David Howell(W) vs. Vishy Anand(B)

    Magnus Carlsen(W) vs. Michael Adams(B)

    Nigel Short(W) vs. Luke McShane(B)

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  I will not be posting standings until about halfway through or a little later in the event. Make sure to tune in to Chess.com/TV in about 69 minutes for further analysis on the first round's games. Till tomorrow everyone!!

  -Mark

   Finished games and tomorrow's schedule/pairings are up in the 1st post!!

   -Mark

Great thread, thanks for the effort.

Very nice. Thanks Mark. Good work. 

Going to be there myself on Saturday - can't wait. Thanks for posting the results.

  Thanks everyone! It was definitely fun doing this again. I had a blast watching the games and listening to the commentary. More fun tomorrow 

  -Mark

Thank you for that, very interesting.

Luke is a very talented player and now that he has finished his doctorate and is more active on the chess circuit, we will see the best of him.

Thanks for posting these games. Particularly enjoyed McShane's win over Carlsen - what a game!

  No problem guys! I should be able to finish off the event for everyone, and myself as well. I don't want to miss much of the action. Especially Round 3 where I believe Anand and Carlsen lock up 

   -Mark

Great report and please watch that burn out.