Kamsky Bounces Back In Moscow
Gata Kamsky (pictured) recovered from his drubbing at the hands of Vassily Ivanchuk in the opening round to overcome Alexei Shirov in round 2.
With the Grunfeld back in the repair shop, Kamsky opted for the Slav with 4...a6. An ill-advised Knight sortie by Shirov resulted in his losing the chance to castle, and after a complex struggle Kamsky won first one pawn, then another and soon it was all over. Poor Shirov will need all his famous skills to recover from a poor 0/2 start in this very strong tournament.
None of the other games produced a decisive result in a much quieter round in Moscow.
The results in round 2:
| Kramnik, Vladimir | - Leko, Peter | ½-½ | 28 | E15 | Queens Indian |
| Gelfand, Boris | - Ivanchuk, Vassily | ½-½ | 36 | A30 | English Symmetrical |
| Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar | - Morozevich, Alexander | ½-½ | 31 | D85 | Gruenfeld Defence |
| Alekseev, Evgeny | - Ponomariov, Ruslan | ½-½ | 20 | D38 | QGD Ragozin |
| Shirov, Alexei | - Kamsky, Gata | 0-1 | 45 | D15 | Slav Defence |
The standings after round 2:
| 1 | Ivanchuk, Vassily | UKR | 2781 | 1½ |
| 2 | Morozevich, Alexander | RUS | 2788 | 1½ |
| 3 | Kramnik, Vladimir | RUS | 2788 | 1½ |
| 4 | Gelfand, Boris | ISR | 2720 | 1 |
| 5 | Leko, Peter | HUN | 2741 | 1 |
| 6 | Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar | AZE | 2742 | 1 |
| 7 | Ponomariov, Ruslan | UKR | 2718 | 1 |
| 8 | Kamsky, Gata | USA | 2723 | 1 |
| 9 | Alekseev, Evgeny | RUS | 2708 | ½ |
| 10 | Shirov, Alexei | ESP | 2741 | 0 |
