Chaos Reigns As Tan, Kosteniuk, Muzychuk, Dzagnidze Win
Four decisive results shook up the standings at the Cairns Cup 2024 and, with two rounds to go, five players are still in the hunt for the $50,000 first prize. GM Tan Zhongyi leads the event on 5/7 after defeating GM Elisabeth Paehtz while chaos agent GM Alexandra Kosteniuk snatched another win from the jaws of defeat to move into clear second on 4.5/7.
GMs Mariya Muzychuk and Nana Dzagnidze also scored wins over IM Alice Lee and GM Irina Krush respectively, giving themselves a shot to chase down Tan and Kosteniuk.
Round eight will start on Friday, June 21, at 2 p.m. ET / 20:00 CEST / 11:30 p.m. IST.
Round 7 Results
Standings
- Tan 1-0 Paehtz
- Krush 0-1 Dzagnidze
- Zatonskih 0-1 Kosteniuk
- Mariya Muzychuk 1-0 Lee
- Anna Muzychuk 0.5-0.5 Harika
Tan 1-0 Paehtz
The Tarrasch Defense has seen a renaissance in the past few years, and it has often been used by Black to reach middlegames with symmetrical pawn structures. While it has been a solid option for players in the Cairns Cup so far, Paehtz's 10...Qb6? put her on the back foot, and the German GM had to spend over an hour navigating the resulting middlegame position.
Tan would later make this statement regarding Paehtz's style: "Whoever gets the initiative in this game will have a chance to win." Tan proved this point in the game by bringing her rooks to the open c- and d-files and optimizing her minor pieces, all the while preparing a deadly pawn break on b5. Paehtz soon found her pieces paralyzed, and all she could do was watch as Tan called the shots, eventually finding a way to capitalize on a d-file bishop pin.
Our Game of the Day was a one-sided affair, but the result has given Tan a great chance of winning the tournament. GM Rafael Leitao analyzes this game below.
Tan's win in round seven not only extended the top seed's lead but also saw chess history unfold: Tan is now the fourth-highest-rated women's player in the world, and the three players in front of her—GMs Hou Yifan, Ju Wenjun, and Lei Tingjie—are all Chinese. It is a shame that none were announced as part of China’s team for the 2024 Chess Olympiad as they would’ve formed one of the most formidable teams of all time.
The CCA just announced the players for the Budapest Olympiad.
— Liang Ziming (@liang_zimi34491) June 19, 2024
Men's Team: Ding Liren, Wei Yi, Yu Yangyi, Bu Xiangzhi, Wang Yue
Women's Team: Zhu Jiner, Lu Miaoyi, Song Yuxin, Ni Shiqun, Guo Qi.
Yes! without Hou Yifan, Ju Wenjun, Tan Zhongyi and Lei Tingjie pic.twitter.com/IZ4LXScZZD
Krush 0-1 Dzagnidze
By her own admission, Dzagnidze "didn't know what to do" by move 11 in a rare Nimzo-Indian Defense line and described her position as "much worse" after being forced to concede several positional weaknesses.
Running out of play, Dzagnidze conceived a plan to sacrifice an exchange in order to blast open the center and was happy to see Krush choose attack over prophylaxis. As the position opened up, it became more difficult for Krush to play precisely, and several moves later Dzagnidze's bishops dominated the middle of the board. The nail in the coffin for Krush was 28.Bg3?? and resignation came five moves later.
Zatonskih 0-1 Kosteniuk
Kosteniuk's games in the Cairns Cup have been a breath of fresh air, not for their clinical precision or solidity, but for their unpredictability and Romantic facets. In her post-match interview, she mentioned that she was "failing to play a decent, balanced game" despite having scored four wins. Like in her round-six game, Kosteniuk seemed to get outprepared in the opening, and after Zatonskih sacrificed a piece for two pawns, a kingside slugfest became imminent.
Sensing danger, Kosteniuk swapped the queens and began pushing her passed e-pawn. It was at this moment that Zatonskih missed an extraordinary exchange sacrifice that would have sealed the game and due to this, any advantage the 2023 winner had evaporated.
In her classic unbridled style, Kosteniuk rushed her king to the center of the board and bamboozled Zatonskih.
Lee's marathon-a-day came crumbling down in round seven as the 14-year-old was defeated by former women's world champion Muzychuk. Lee's defense in the Queen's Gambit Accepted seemed to be tracking well until move 16 where she missed a key intermezzo that allowed Muzychuk to win a pawn.
Interestingly, the line had been followed once before by Muzychuk's countryman GM Anton Korobov at the 2016 Baku Olympiad. Naturally, Muzychuk was present and likely saw the game playing out.
Anna Muzychuk 0.5-0.5 Harika
Round seven very nearly had five decisive results, and GM Harika Dronavalli was left thanking her lucky stars that this wasn't the case. A Ruy Lopez: Cozio Defense gone wrong left the Indian GM with pawn weaknesses strewn across the board, and Muzychuk looked to be on track to convert. As Muzychuk's passed h-pawn steamrolled up the board, Harika put all of her faith in a second-rank rook.
With a minute on the clock Muzychuk suddenly misplayed and stumbled into a threefold repetition, surprising commentators and viewers. A 3.5/7 score doesn't reflect the danger Muzychuk has posed to the rest of the field.
Round eight will see Harika take the white pieces against Tan in a bid to catch up to her score, while Kosteniuk will play White against Anna Muzychuk in preparation for her final-round showdown with the tournament leader.
How to watch?
You can watch the round's broadcast on the Saint Louis Chess Club's YouTube or Twitch channels. The games can also be checked out on our dedicated 2024 Cairns Cup events page.
The live broadcast was hosted by GM Yasser Seirawan, IM Jovanka Houska, and IM Nazi Paikidze.
The 2024 Cairns Cup is one of the strongest women's tournaments in the world. The event is a 10-player round-robin with a classical time control (120 minutes for the entire game, plus a 30-second increment per move). The 2024 Cairns Cup runs from June 13 to June 23 and features a $200,000 prize fund.
Previous Coverage
- Round 6: Kosteniuk Records Fifth Decisive Result, Moves Into Second
- Round 5: Lee Miraculously Saves Game After 5-Hour Marathon
- Round 4: Tan Zhongyi Sole Leader After Quick Victory
- Round 3: Kosteniuk Topples Dzagnidze, Joins Leaders
- Round 2: Harika Forgoes Castling In Victory Over 'Chess Queen' Kosteniuk
- Round 1: Wins For Former World Champions Tan, Kosteniuk, Mariya Muzychuk
