Clutch Chess: Good Start For Aronian, Caruana

GMs Fabiano Caruana and Levon Aronian are leading their Clutch Chess matches at halftime vs. GMs Leinier Dominguez and Alexander Grischuk respectively. Caruana and Aronian both won one clutch game for a $2,000 bonus prize.

A very spectacular second day of Clutch Chess provided plenty of entertainment, which included plain blunders. It's the combination of rapid chess and the fact that it's all played on a computer that makes the top-level chess we're seeing in these corona times not so top-level, but to complain about it would be absurd.

Let's start with an excellent game by Dominguez vs. Caruana as the Cuban-born GM, still fresh, outplayed his opponent beautifully with a long-term pawn sacrifice in the opening. Caruana later described it as a blunder from his side after he was lost from move 10.

After a draw in game two, Dominguez blundered terribly in an equal (Berlin) endgame. It was a turning point for the match that then Caruana dominated, winning the next two (including one clutch).

Huge blunder by Leinier Domínguez in game 3, which allows Fabiano Caruana to tie the match #ClutchChess pic.twitter.com/QmnfP187R9

— Saint Louis Chess Club (@STLChessClub) June 7, 2020

"It was a bit sad to lose that game but on the other hand, these things can easily happen in this format," said Dominguez. "I should have adjusted better, clearly. I was a bit upset about this game, and it was reflected in the next two or three games." 

"I sort of set up this trap, but I really didn't expect it to happen," Caruana said. "It was a major relief."

Aronian and Grischuk played a much more balanced match that was still tied before the last (clutch) game. 

Grischuk took the lead in a topsy-turvy game where he was OK out of the opening but then was outplayed by Aronian. The Armenian GM failed to decide the game in his favor and then went too far in his winning attempts:

After a draw in game two, Aronian leveled the score with a nice exchange sacrifice, which occurred after some earlier adventures. It's highly unclear what happened here after the opening, but from the moment Aronian took on h5, his play was flawless.

Two draws followed, and then came the sixth game, which was the second clutch. For chess fans, it was a great battle and definitely the game of the day. From the players' perspective, it was not a good game at all. The reason? Both players were playing well after midnight.

"The last game is just terrible all around," said Grischuk, who had seen that 80.Rc8 was a draw but somehow thought 80.g8Q was even easier. "It was completely unnecessary; it was just pure idiotism to play 80.g8."

Aronian: "I think both of us were playing way below our usual level. There were too many blunders for this type of time control.... The only explanation I have is that it's 2:40 a.m. I'm not used to playing chess at this hour because I normally go to sleep around 11-12."

What a rollercoaster of a game! #ClutchChess pic.twitter.com/ifRaE4zu9c

— Saint Louis Chess Club (@STLChessClub) June 7, 2020

All games of day 2

On Monday, the matches of GM Magnus Carlsen vs. GM Jeffery Xiong and GM Wesley So vs. GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave will resume. A day later, Aronian, Grischuk, Caruana, and Dominguez will play the second half of their matches.

The Clutch Chess International Champions Showdown is an eight-player knockout event that runs on lichess June 6-14 in association with the Saint Louis Chess Club. The prize fund is $265,000 with a first prize of $50,000.

The time control is 10 minutes for all moves with a five-second increment after each move. Each match consists of 12 games with six games played each day. The final two games of each day are "clutch" games that are worth double the points on day one and triple on day two, as well as a $2,000 bonus per game on day one and $3,000 on day two.

Previous report:

• Carlsen, So Lead Clutch Chess Matches