Ding, Abdusattorov Score First Victories
World championship challenger GM Ding Liren and GM Nordirbek Abdusattorov scored the first victories of the 2023 Tata Steel Chess Tournament in round one. Defending champion GM Magnus Carlsen drew a combative game vs. GM Levon Aronian.
In the Challengers group, GM Max Warmerdam and prodigy GM Abhimanyu Mishra each won to tie for the early lead.
Live broadcast of the tournament, hosted by GM Robert Hess and IM Tania Sachdev.
Every year the elite chess calendar begins in Wijk aan Zee, a seaside village in the Netherlands, with Tata Steel Chess, known as the "Wimbledon of Chess." This year, this storied event celebrates its 85th anniversary with an exciting mix of elite players and rising prodigies.
Back at it in Wijk aan Zee. Can you guess the arm? pic.twitter.com/F5j5Lwqe4S
— Fabiano Caruana (@FabianoCaruana) January 12, 2023
Taking mittens to Wijk aan Zee for @tatasteelchess. pic.twitter.com/At7H7b1t4M
— Anish Giri (@anishgiri) January 12, 2023
Hanging out with the boys! Just revising the “ emoticon variations!”
— Viswanathan Anand (@vishy64theking) January 13, 2023
Happy to be at the 85 th edition of the @tatasteelchess . It is our greatest tradition and a January not in Wijk Aan zee is No January at all! pic.twitter.com/MIrOvg9Rkz
In addition to the exceptionally strong main event, Tata Steel also holds a Challengers tournament with up-and-coming GMs and IMs looking ahead for their seat at the Masters table next year. In addition, the amateur tournaments are back with this edition, and spectators are welcome again in the playing hall for the first time since the coronavirus period.
Beyond the competitive aspect, Tata Steel is a complete chess festival geared to the local community, taking place all over Wijk aan Zee with a wealth of side events. The chess is mostly taking place at Dorpshuis de Moriaan, a sporting hall that is seeing a brand-new setup this year with more space for the amateur players.
♟| For the 85th edition of the #TataSteelChess Tournament, it was time for a completely new look & feel. The brand new playing hall is ready and the first round of the tournament is about to start. Check out this years transformation of The Moriaan! https://t.co/3RuvaPGC0S
— Tata Steel Chess (@tatasteelchess) January 14, 2023
For this year's tournament, the anti-cheating measures are more severe than ever:
- moves are relayed to the internet after a 15-minute delay;
- participants are scanned before their games;
- an extra Fair Play arbiter is specially charged with preventing fraud in the playing hall;
- spectators are no longer allowed to take photos with their phones.
Tournament director Jeroen van den Berg told the Dutch newspaper de Volkskrant: “Cheating is a threat to the sport. We had to do something. The top players are happy that we are taking this seriously."
Round one kicked off with many thrilling matchups, including the eight-time champion, Carlsen, facing the four-time champion, Aronian. Utilizing a blend of tactical and strategic ideas with the white pieces, Carlsen had Aronian under pressure throughout the middlegame. Yet, the American grandmaster countered with one perceptive defensive idea after another. This exciting duel culminated with Carlsen's queen and rook hunting after his opponent's king, but Aronian sacrificed an exchange and created enough counterplay to hold the balance in the nick of time.
The next game to finish was between newcomers GM Parham Maghsoodloo and GM Vincent Keymer. A dynamic battle took place in the center with Keymer pressing an advantage with Black. At one point, Keymer crept onto his opponent's side of the board with his center pawns advancing to d4 and e4 and his rook on an outpost on c3. Commentator Hess described his play as characteristic: "It's crazy, and Vincent Keymer likes crazy."
However, after an inaccuracy by the German grandmaster, Maghsoodloo was able to equalize, and soon many of the pieces were traded off, leading to a balanced queen ending. The intricacies of their game have been analyzed below by IM Adrian Petrisor.
Glad to be back in Wijk an Zee, this time for the Masters! pic.twitter.com/BOU8BcB6Qh
— Vincent Keymer (@VincentKeymer04) January 13, 2023
Five-time runner-up GM Anish Giri gained an edge with the black pieces vs. the 2020 champion, GM Fabiano Caruana. Then the Dutch grandmaster up the ante by sacrificing a knight to break through on the queenside with connected passers.
Ultimately, Caruana sacrificed the knight back and tenaciously held a draw.
Two more of the young competitors, GMs Praggnanandhaa R and Arjun Erigaisi―winner of last year's Challengers tournament, were matched up this round. Their fairly balanced game led to a draw on move 40.
The first victory of the event was scored by Ding against the youngest player, GM Gukesh D. The Chinese grandmaster expanded boldly on the kingside by pushing his g- and f-pawns, unsettling his 16-year-old opponent and then crashing through tactically. This magnificent duel is our Game of the Day, analyzed by GM Rafael Leitao.
The first round of the Tata Steel tournament had great games and fulfilled the expectations of chess fans all over the world. Perhaps this impression is also accentuated because we've been many days without elite chess tournaments and, as they say, hunger is the best seasoning.
In GM Jorden van Foreest vs. GM Wesley So, the queens were traded early and van Foreest obtained a more comfortable position with the white pieces. However, he later stumbled, placing five out of his six pieces on the back row and blundering a pawn. Can you find the clever tactical idea that So employed?
Though So pressed in the minor piece ending, van Foreest was unfazed by his material loss, fighting back to eventually draw.
In the last game to finish, GM Richard Rapport unleashed the aggressive and rare Vienna Game on Abdusattorov. Despite his opponent's surprising opening choice, the 18-year-old seemed comfortable with the position, countering with active play in the center. Abdusattorov castled queenside while Rapport tried his king's luck in the closed center. After a slew of exchanges in the middlegame, Abdusattorov emerged with the better ending. As he pressed his edge, Rapport inaccurately checked his opponent's king, chasing it exactly where it wanted to go―across the board to support its passed b-pawn.
Following the footsteps of the Masters, there were also just two decisive games in the Challengers group. Thirteen-year-old Mishra defeated IM Eline Roebers in a positional duel, proving her hanging pawns to be targets instead of strengths. Conversely, Warmerdam discovered the chance to play a rare tactical motif vs. GM Jergus Pechac. Can you find it?
Results - Masters Round 1
Pairings - Masters Round 2
All Games - Masters Round 1
Correction: an earlier version of this report erroneously stated that tournament is taking place at a new venue. It is the setup inside the hall that is new.
Previous reports:
Vanessa West is a National Master, a chess teacher, and a writer for Chess.com. In 2017, they won the Chess Journalist of the Year award.
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