Reversal of Fortunes: Voided Victories, From 0-2 to 2nd, Last Seed Leads

In a shocking turn of events, defending champion GM Humpy Koneru withdrew from the Cairns Cup 2023 after round four, greatly affecting the standings for GMs Alexandra Kosteniuk and Nana Dzagnidze―two of the players who were previously chasing after first.

The lowest-rated player in the event, IM Anna Zatonskih, kept her clear lead in round five with a balanced battle vs. GM Harika Dronavalli. Additionally, GM Bella Khotenashvili survived Dzagnidze's hunt when the Georgian number one overlooked her opponent's best defense. With her third win in a row, Khotenashvili is now in clear second―despite beginning the tournament on 0-2.

The Cairns Cup continues after the rest day with round six on Friday, June 9, starting at 11:20 a.m. Pacific/20:20 CEST.

After round four, the defending champion, Humpy, withdrew due to medical reasons. Tony Rich, the Executive Director of the St. Louis Chess Club, shared more on the situation:

"It's always unfortunate when a player has to withdraw from a tournament. Humpy came to us yesterday and expressed her desire to withdraw from the event due to medical reasons. She's such a great person and a professional player. I know that was a hard decision for her to make at the time, but obviously health comes first."

"We support her completely in her decision. I hope she's got safe travels back. We're flying her back home today, and I hope she gets there relatively quickly, and she's able to rest and recuperate. We look forward to inviting her back to the next tournament."

Sabina “sat down” with Tony Rich, the Executive Director of the Saint Louis Chess Club, to discuss the unfortunate situation in the #CairnsCup and future events. @SabinaFoisor pic.twitter.com/CvrWx5Lmo4

— Saint Louis Chess Club (@STLChessClub) June 7, 2023

Before the start of round five, Humpy's withdrawal sent the standings into turbulence, creating an especially unfortunate situation for a couple of the competitors. Because the Indian grandmaster left the event before the halfway point, all of her previous results were nullified. This most affects Kosteniuk and Dzagnidze―the players who scored victories against Humpy in rounds one and four―who both dropped from sharing second to tied for sixth from this change alone. 

The 12th women's world champion shared her feelings on this new development:

"I didn't only lose one game. I lost two games yesterday, apparently, which is complete nonsense. Of course, I knew of such a rule. But I’ve been playing chess for more than 30 years and never has such a situation actually happened in my tournament."

"This rule is so ridiculous because when you win a game, it's like your property. You suffered through it. You fought. You prepared. It’s like 10 hours of your life you dedicated to your game. You won it. And then somebody says: You know, it’s not yours anymore."

When you win a game, it's like your property. You suffered through it. You fought. You prepared. 

And then somebody says: You know, it's not yours anymore.

-Alexandra Kosteniuk

"I know it’s a tricky situation. It’s very hard to find the ideal solution, but there should not be a situation where your point or half a point is taken away. I was very, very disappointed."

"It’s not only about points. The fact that we spent so much time preparing and playing, and the other players, they are just getting a free extra day. For me, playing a third tournament in a row, I’m running on energy so much, and then points are getting stolen from me. It just feels unfair.”

Dzagnidze vs. Khotenashvili

In the all-Georgian matchup, Dzagnidze set off a powerful hunt after Khotenashvili's king. Can you find how?

After a series of precise moves to progress her attack, Dzagnidze made an error, trying to set up one more preparatory move instead of capitalizing on her aggressively-placed pieces. Seizing the opportunity to save her king on the run, Khotenashvili shut down the white queen and safeguarded the squares around her centralized monarch, emerging a knight for a pawn ahead. 

As commentator IM Nazi Paikidze observed while Dzagnidze played on with a knight deficit, gradually accepting the fate of the game: "It's devastating when your brilliant game disappears in one move."

Zatonskih vs. Harika

Zatonskih opted for a solid approach and an early queen trade in the Queen's Gambit Declined. Though Harika refused a draw in the ending and searched for chances, Zatonskih found a way to simplify further, dispelling any of Black's remaining hopes for an edge. Test your endgame abilities. How did Zatonskih eliminate any risk of losing her lead?

Krush vs. Paehtz

Surprisingly, these experienced competitors have only faced each other once previously, and it ended in a draw. Paethz opted for a rare idea in the Queen’s Gambit with 3…h6, pausing development to prevent Bg5. 

After the game, GM Elisabeth Paehtz shared her opening strategy: “Our goal was to get Irina out of the opening very quickly and just to play ourselves. And actually with h6, I think I managed to.”

Paehtz's unusual choice of line did seem to set GM Irina Krush slightly off balance, as Paehtz was the one looking for chances at an advantage with the black pieces. Ultimately, the players traded a number of pieces and drew. Paethz admitted that she wanted to play on in the final position but didn’t see a good way to do so. 

Abdumalik vs. Kosteniuk

GM Zhansaya Abdumalik seemed intent on drawing today, perhaps still reeling from her 0-3 start, even after stopping the bleeding with a draw in round four. She headed into a drawish line that rapidly trades pieces in the Four Knights Game. In fact, she used the exact same variation that Harika and Humpy used to draw in round three, following the game up to move 20 and starting to repeat moves just seven moves later. 

Kosteniuk, still unsettled from the events of yesterday, was relieved: "You can never be disappointed by a fast draw with Black after you lose with White in the previous day."

Results - Round 5

After the rest day on Thursday, Kosteniuk and Krush―the two fallen leaders from before round four―will face off. Though tied for third, they can still make a run for first. Both players have five games ahead of them, while Zatonskih, Khotenashvili, and Paehtz, the players ahead of them, have only four more rounds to play. 

Pairings - Round 6

All Games - Round 5

The Cairns Cup 2023 takes place June 3-13, 2023, at the Saint Louis Chess Club. The format is a 10-player round-robin. Fans can look forward to a chess tournament similar in style to the prestigious Sinquefield Cup with the 10 best female players from around the world competing in the World Chess Hall of Fame for a $180,000 prize fund.

Previous Coverage:

• Overnight Leaders Beaten; Anna Zatonskih Sole Leader
• Gambits Galore: Krush Catches Kosteniuk
• Kosteniuk Doubles Down With Win Over Harika In Round-2 Bloodbath
• Decisive Start: Kosteniuk Defeats Defending Champion