Mauro Barletta @bracciolento

His sagacious pen to emphasize situations and backstory.

The articles are originally published on the website of the Turin Chess Society (Italy)

Società Scacchistica Torinese; Via Goito 13; Torino Italia

Maybe some mistake, sorry: it's google translate

@saurosol

FIDE Candidates Chess Tournament - Round 1

Created March 18, 2020
Written by Mauro Barletta

The column of the Master and journalist Mauro Barletta on the Tournament of Candidates that began yesterday in Yekaterinburg (Russia) starts. Mauro will comment for us on the development of the Tournament with its unmistakable sagacity.

"Finally an interesting match." I thought this when, this morning, I connected to one of the sites that broadcast the live coverage of the Candidates Tournament and saw 1. g4 (!) as the first move of Ding Liren – Wang Hao. Unfortunately, my enthusiasm was short-lived. I don't know if 1. g4 was a hoax or a technical transmission test. The fact is that Ding, in reality, played 1. c4 driving me back into the usual tran tran.

Well;, the Candidates Tournament deserves to be followed even if none of the eight protagonists of Yekaterinburg – I'm ready to bet – will resort to Grob's opening.

In three weeks, barring complications, we will know who will be the challenger of Magnus Carlsen, who, to deceive the wait, has started to be a commentator on live video (you can find it on chess24.com).

We take license to gloss over whether or not to contest the dispute over the Coronavirus case and let's move on to what the four chessboards have produced.

Until a few months ago one of my favorites was Ding, who today confirmed my poor attitude to predictions losing soundly to compatriot Wang Hao. A point in the standings also for Nepomniatchi, who defeated Giri in a game with an unusual but interesting trend at every stage, including the final of Woman vs. Tower.

The other of my favorites is of course the vice-champion of the world, Fabiano Caruana, who today easily drew black with Vachier-Lagrave mastering a variant of the fashionable Spanish. Grischuk faced Alekseenko, considered a bit of the Cinderella of the tournament because he was admitted thanks to the wild card (the controversy was not lacking), and the impression is that he squandered a little bit after falling into one of his usual zeitnot.

These are not normal times, and we all know that. The Coronavirus emergency has cost the two Chinese mishaps and program changes (will their preparation be affected? It's possible, but it's too early to tell.) Vachier-Lagrave was then fished out at the last moment after Radjabov's forfeit, which complained of very little attention on health protection. But organisers say they have taken every countermeasure possible in a crackling of check-points, bans, advice, directions, disinfectants and masks. The ability of chess players to concentrate and forget is legendary. We shall see.

FIDE Candidates Chess Tournament - Round 2

Created March 19, 2020
Written by Mauro Barletta

The column of the Master and journalist Mauro Barletta on the Tournament of Candidates continues. Here's the second part.

Despite those who accuse superGMMs of always making flaps, or playing with demeaning circumspection, the Candidates tournament (ongoing in Yekaterinburg) looms compelling and fought. The match to watch in the second round is Caruana-Alekseenko. The American-Italian-Italian American (do you) has agreed to enter a Nimzo-Indiana to propose to the opponent a battler variant, 4.f3. Alekseenko sacrificed a piece for the three pawns of the perch, which paradoxically backfired on a few moves later: Caruana, in fact, took advantage of the open lines for a crazy attack in a big way. My favorite, Ding Liren, lost again. That's all I'm going to add.
Vachier-Lagrave, despite having entered the Candidates at the last moment due to Radjabov's resignation, started well: yesterday he drew with Caruana (not easy) and today he passed Ding. Wang Hao, after yesterday's victory, played a long final with an extra pawn against Giri but failed to win. Waiting for more in-depth analysis we can say that it is a good example of how
the activity of the pieces can compensate for the inferiority of material.
Speaking of Giri. There is a joke circulating on the internet that seems to have given to an interviewer: "Chess is about to become as popular as toilet paper". What did he mean?

FIDE Candidates Chess Tournament - Round 3

Created March 20, 2020
Written by Mauro Barletta

Shot? yes, let's just say, twist. Ding Liren, the back-rower after two defeats in two games, returned to the race with a feat few at this point expected: a win against Caruana.
So at the candidates' tournament, taking place in Yekaterinburg, now among the leading players with 2 out of 3 there are characters not exactly considered among the favorites by the fortune tellers. One is the French Vachier-Lagrave, who until a few days ago was not even supposed to participate. The other is Wang Hao, admitted among the Candidates by virtue of winning only one open tournament, that of the Isle of Man last summer, with great disremalness of those who regret the old days when the selections were marked by very tough zonals and interzonals. How to say that at these levels you should not take anything for granted: the elo and the palmares matter little.

Caruana, with Black, proved to have done her homework by casually sacrificing pedestrians on pedestrians in a warlike variant of the Slava defense and flashing the first 17 moves. A preparation essay that, at one point, Magnus Carlsen called "post-apocalyptic". But something must have gone wrong because Ding, after eating the eatable, managed to build an unforgivable position. Caruana, dragged by the momentum, also gave up a piece, but did not make inroads into the fort; Then he pulled her for a long time with a lot less material, doing what he could to stoke the tension and probably hoping for a chicken that never arrived.

The other games ended in a draw but they weren't uninteresting. One position that definitely deserves at least a look, for example, is the one after White's 34th move in the Grischuk-Wang Hao. To get away from the pits the Chinese found the surprising 34. ... Ce4! (a horse in the grip of a pawn) forcing entry into a bethading final. Not bad.

The third player at the top of the leaderboard is Nepomniatchi, who tied a labyrinthine French that at one point, according to the informers, could even lose. His opponent? Alekseenko bolted it, the one that participates in the candidates tournament only thanks to a contested wild card. We have already said that nothing should be taken for granted.

FIDE Candidates Chess Tournament - Round 4

Created March 21, 2020
Written by Mauro Barletta

If you like King's Gambit and white-weapon assaults on the castle, the Great Masters games may seem uninteresting to you. Actually, there's always a lot to see. Even in the least eventful duels. Take the Candidates Tournament in Yekaterinburg.

All four games of the fourth round ended in draws, which left the rankings unchanged (at the top with 2.5 remain Vachier-Lagrave, Wang Hao and Nepomniatchi) and did not dampen the glory dreams of the participants. But the result should not discourage those waiting for superGM performances to have fun or even try to learn. The Caruana–Nepomniatchi, to name one, could turn into a little lectuer about how to conduct those finals that are on the verge of parity but that to ruin just a nothing (if then one already knows everything, good for him).

Very interesting, in the Wang Hao–Alekseenko, was the sequence inaugurated by 29.e4 and the subsequent sacrifice of the White Horse. It wasn't enough to win. But it's the second time Wang Hao has resorted to cunning tactics and, for those who don't follow games with the computer on, hard to see.

It is very likely that the last phase of the Vachier-Lagrave–Grischuk was not the quintessential precision. White seemed constantly on the verge of winning but the Russian, despite the usual frantic zeitnot (at 24/a he had only nine minutes left), somehow disregably disregae it. Analysts will explain who, where and how he could do better.

The Dutchman Giri, due to the defeat suffered in the first round, will not be able to repeat the heroic performance of the Tournament of candidates in 2016, when he played all the matches. But he's trying to do what he can: today he nailed Ding Liren on the "middle vehicle."

FIDE Candidates Chess Tournament - Round 5

Created March 22, 2020
Written by Mauro Barletta

After five rounds, the Candidates tournament found its protagonist: Ian Nepomniatchi. With a stunning victory over Wang Hao, the Russian took the lead solo at 3.5 on 5 and on the internet, where someone already touts him as the next challenger to the world title, they went to repeat his sumptuous precedents with Magnus Carlsen: in the classic challenges, in fact, "Nepo" is a clear advantage over the Norwegian.

One of the most reliable sites says 4-1 for him with six draws in the classic challenges. We take the data with inventory benefit (we'll do some research) and say it's still early to pull the plug, but it's undeniable that so far it's been the most convincing candidate.

Today Nepomniatchi came out of the opening with the typical advantage that White finds himself against the Russian defense those few times when he can get something: a very light but lasting advantage. Wang Hao remained constantly under pressure and at 32/a mistake at the edge of the perceptible (32. ... Dd7? instead of 32. ... De7) led him to disintegration.

If you love tactical complications, you should definitely be looking at the Alekseenko-Vachier Lagrave, a classic Sicilian who is a can of sacrifices and counter-sacrifices. That the French had prepared at home almost everything proves the little time of reflection that he used, but for the viewer who approaches a tenzone between gm to sooth and learn nothing changes. Unless it belongs to those who were better off when there were no computers and on the chessboard you could improvise mica as today that creativity is dying and players have become too technical and so on muttering.

Controversy over the Coronavirus issue continues to snake in Yekaterinburg but we prefer to talk to you about Anish Giri. Today he drew with Caruana a game that some observers believe did not play with sufficient determination (but where? how? when? Boh). Giri is often teased by the Internet users for his reputation as a player who carries along. But he also has a reputation as a big guy. Yesterday, at the end of the game, he posted one of his usual tweets: "I just met Dubov (a very strong Russian gm – ndr) in the elevator. He told me that today he was impressed by my theoretical preparation. If that's not why we play chess, then what do we play for?"" In fact, they are satisfactions. To me, for example, Dubov hasn't told me anything yet.

FIDE Candidates Chess Tournament - Round 6

Created March 24, 2020
Written by Mauro Barletta

The man of the moment is Nepomniachtchi.

At the candidates' tournament the Russian put the turbo and since last night, after a stunning victory with the Chinese Ding Liren, he is leading the candidate tournament standings with a point ahead of French Vachier-Lagrave.

The army of fans, meanwhile, is almanacing on which and how many chances he could have in a match with Magnus Carlsen considering that the precedents in the classic matches are clearly in his favor. Yesterday, however, I announced to you that I would do some research. I did. And it turns out that Nepo's first two victories over the Norwegian date back to the time when both were school-age: one in 2002 at the European Under 12 Championship, the other in 2003 at the Under 14 World Championship. You see. It is true, however, that the Scandinavian managed to beat Nepomniachtchi for the first time (we are always talking about classic matches) only in 2019. Well, we just have to wait.

There are still a lot of games to play and I invite you not to underestimate the resilience of Fabiano Caruana, who today, after a draw with Grischuk, is detached by one and a half points. And this, considering that a few weeks before the start - net of the Coronavirus problem - I had given as a favorite Ding Liren, could be one of my usual predictions.

About Ding. Today, in a difficult position, he was able to create a dangerous countergame on the enemy King and at some point – perhaps thanks to an inaccuracy of Nepo – according to analysts he could have saved himself with a thrilling tactical sequence: it seems that the key is the surreal sacrifice 33. ... Txb6. No doubt the Chinese had understood the concept, as evidenced by the moves he played in the game, but did not grasp the very difficult execution. Too bad. On the other hand, chess is round is well known.

Another match to watch, if you are armed with patience, is the Alekseenko-Giri, where Black stubbornly tortured his opponent for hours in a final of Horses with 3 pawns against 2 on the same wing and managed to win. A lesson in perseverance.

FIDE Candidates Chess Tournament - Round 7

Created March 26, 2020
Written by Mauro Barletta

What a thing. One does not have time to beatify Nepomniachtchi who immediately change the script. Vachier-Lagrave beat the Russian to the top of the List of Candidates in Yekaterinburg, making up a pair of fugitives paired at 4.5 out of 7 with a length away from the group.

Proclaiming that the games have reopened cannot be done because, in fact, they had never closed; to say that the tournament continues to be fought, compelling and even balanced perhaps yes. All the participants still have their good chances (well, apart from Ding and Alekseenko, who yesterday tied the derby between the tail fans) and the direct clashes of the next rounds will allow us to understand which side the wind is blowing on.

However, the man of the day is undoubtedly Vachier-Lagrave. A good player that I, for a change, had not put in my shortlist of favorites. Already his conduct is a lesson for all those who "I do not sign up to the open of the club because I do not feel sufficiently prepared": what should say a man who knew that he had to take part in a no-brainer like the Tournament of Candidates only about ten days before? His victory, moreover, is full of interesting ideas for all those who open 1. e4 and answer 1. ... e6 begin to feel head turns.

Against French Nepomniachtchi played a French, but the geographical juxtaposition did not bring him luck: the opponent, after calming down the Winawer variant (3. Cc3 Ab4) with fashion 7. h4, he won with a series of very instructive manoeuvres, combining the break-in on King's wing with an bypass on the opposite sector. The move to report is definitely 35. From1.

Caruana-Wang Hao is also worth mentioning among other matches. The Chinese have re-proposed its usual Russian defence to chamomile and this time it came out without damage. Remarkable the expedient with which he held together the position in the middle game (21. ... Rg8-f7 in a chessboard still populated by the pieces) as well as the tacticism (37. ... Txc2) with which he earned a pawn, changed the Towers and entered a Bishop vs. Horse finale that he immediately left by draw.