Topalov's form

Thus far, Topalov has won all of his white games.  That bodes well in terms of match play conditions regarding his upcoming battle with Anand.  How do you think Topalov's form at Linares compares to Anand's form at Corus (+2 undefeated)?  Forgetting results and looking at pure chess, is Topalov or Anand looking stronger?  By the way, Topalov has, for the moment, passed Carlsen in the live ratings.  There are four rounds remaining in Linares but I am already looking forward to the Title Match.  How about you?

You are absolutely right that Grischuk and Vallejo had chances against Topalov.  It is reminiscent of the Challenger Match versus Kamsky where Topalov was in danger but benefitted from his opponent's time pressure.  That is part of Topalov's style--to play on the edge and count on his ability to handle the danger better than his opponent.  Looking forward, Anand is known for playing fast, so I don't expect him to get into time trouble against Topalov.  That is one resource Topalov will not have.

In view of the points you made, fredhale, objectively, Anand's chess at Corus may have been just as strong, even though he racked up a string of draws.

I think Vallejo's approach was expected.  That is the sort of thing I analyze every time I look at the English from the white side.

Glad you initiated this topic. Topalov is playing pretty good chess. At first glance many will pick Topalov since his form appears stronger than Anand's performance at Corus. It has been my experience in predicting Matches not to go by that. Anand will be at his competitive best and I suspect has been preparing for Topalov since the Kramnik Match. So I am going out on a limb to pick Anand. I really did not think Topalov would win in Linares saving his "A" game for the Match. Topalov has a lot of weapons. The question is will Anand be able to regain his form that he has not had for quite a while now.

Ernie

I think it's difficult to think Anand would play with black with the same concept of Grinchuk or Vallejo so I think Topalov will need to be rather more acurrate and less speculative

You are correct.  In Game 1 of the 2006 Topalov--Kramnik match we saw what happens when Topalov speculates in an unjustified manner.

Was it that clear that Kamsky had no chance?  If I had known that I could have saved myself a lot of energy--energy I spent rooting for Kamsky.

Topalov loses today to Grischuk. Grischuk now leads at Linares.

Ernie

Do you know something about the tiebreaker system in place?  As far as I can tell, Grischuk and Topalov are tied on every level.  With Topalov playing white vs Gelfand and Grischuk playing black vs Vallejo I am tempted to say Grischuk has a better chance of winning in the final round.  A great final round is in store because of the battle for first and also because Aronian--Gashimov is a politically charged matchup.

I made a mistake when I said Grischuk was leading. If my memory is correct Linares has a unique system. I think there was some controversy not too long ago in regards to the tie breaking system.I agree that Grischuk may have  slightly better chances than Topalov but with the White pieces Topalov is dangerous against anyone.

Let the Round begin !!!

bravo Topalov, historic tower ending

Very nice effort on Topalov's part. Winning today and the tournament is a nice achievement. Less than 2 months from the Anand Match. I am sure Topalov feels confident going in.

Ernie

the match between topalov and anand will be surely exciting to follow

because they are both on top.

The thing about matchplay, though, is that form becomes less important than in tournaments, and preparation and style become more vital. If either player can find a novelty like Anand did against Kramnik in the Meren Slav, they will probably win, especially as it is only an eight game match.

nqi I agree with your point about preparation and style.  However I believe Anand v Topalov is a 12 game match.

In 2008, it was painful to see Kramnik unable to adjust in game 5 to what happened to him in game 3.  If Anand springs a novelty (found by Kasimdzhanov or not), Topalov must react better than Kramnik did.