Chess

Four foreign grandmasters, Evgeny Najer of Russia, Parimarjan Negi of India, Lubomir Ftacnik of Slovakia and Alexander Moiseenko of Ukraine, shared first place at the traditional World Open, played in Philadelphia over the Independence Day weekend. They scored seven points in nine games. The title went to Najer, who beat Negi in the blitz playoff in the sharp Najdorf Sicilian.

Najer-Negi

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Bg5 e6 7.f4 Nbd7 8.Qe2 Qc7 9.O-O-O b5 10.f5 e5 11.Nd5 Nxd5 12.exd5 Nb6 13.g3 (A novelty, keeping the diagonal h3-c8 open. Both 13.g4 and 13.Qh5 were preferred previously.) 13...h6 14.Qh5 Be7 15.h4?! (After 15.Bxe7 Qxe7 16.Ne6 the chances are level.) 15...Bb7? (A turning point. White is winning now. After 15...exd4! black should prevail either after 16.Bxe7 Kxe7 17.Rxd4 Qc5; or after 16.Re1 Nxd5 17.Bg2 Bxf5.) 16.Ne6 Qd7 17.Nxg7+ Kd8 18.f6 Bf8 19.Bh3 Qc7 20.Be6! Bc8 21.Bxf7 hxg5 22.Qxh8 Qxf7 23.Ne6+ (23.hxg5 Bg4 24.g6! is stronger.) 23...Bxe6 24.dxe6 Qxe6 25.Qxf8+ Kd7 26.Qg7+ Kc6 27.Qe7 (27.hxg5 Qxa2 28.Rh7 wins more quickly.) 27...Qxe7 28.fxe7 gxh4 29.Rxh4 Re8 30.Rh6 Nc8 31.g4 Rxe7 32.g5 Rg7 33.g6 d5 34.Rg1 (34.Rf1 Nd6 35.Rf7! Rg8 36.g7! wins faster.) 34...Nd6 35.Rh7 Rg8 36.g7 Nf5 37.Rg5 Ne7 38.Rxe5 (38.Rh8! Kd6 39.Rxg8 Nxg8 40.Rf5 Ke6 41.Rf8 also wins.) 38...Kd6 39.Rg5 Ke6 40.Rh8 Kf7 41.Rxg8 Kxg8 42.Kd2 Kf7 43.g8Q+ Nxg8 44.Rxd5 Black resigned.

The game between the Czech grandmaster Jiri Stocek and Ftacnik featured a relatively new line in the Grunfeld Indian defense.

Stocek-Ftacnik

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.e4 Nxc3 6.bxc3 Bg7 7.Bg5 (This bombshell was dropped on the Grunfeld defenders by the Ukrainian grandmaster Yuri Kruppa only four years ago.) 7...c5 8.Rc1 (Indirectly protecting the d-pawn.) 8...Qa5 (The best reply. Strangely, nobody dared to test 8...cxd4 9.cxd4 Bxd4?! The tempting 10.Bb5+ Nc6 11.Rxc6 is refuted by 11...0-0!, for example 12.Rc4 Bxf2+ 13.Ke2 Bxg1 14.Qxd8 Bg4+ 15.Ke1 Rfxd8 16.Rxg1 a6 and black wins the piece back with dividends. But 10.Rxc8! Bxf2+ 11.Kxf2 Qxc8 12.Nf3 gives white the edge.)

9.Qd2 e6?! (Black did not have to waste time protecting his e-pawn. After 9...0-0! 10.Bxe7? Re8 11.Bxc5 Rxe4+ 12.Be2 Na6, black is fine either after 13.Bb4 Nxb4 14.cxb4 Qb6 15.Nf3 Bg4 16.0-0 Rae8; or after 13.Bd6 Bxd4!) 10.Nf3 h6 (Kicking the bishop on the previous move was more logical.) 11.Bf4 cxd4 12.cxd4 Qxd2+ 13.Kxd2 0-0 14.Rc7 (The rook should prevent black from developing smoothly, but 14.Bb5 seems better.) 14...Nc6 15.Ke3 Rd8 16.Ne5?! (This violent attempt to seize the initiative backfires. After 16.Be5 Rd7 17.Rxd7 Bxd7 the chances are equal.) 16...g5! 17.Bg3 f5! 18.exf5 Nxd4 19.f6 (After 19.fxe6 Nf5+ 20.Kf3 Bxe6 21.Bc4 Re8, the white pieces are hanging.) 19...Nf5+ 20.Kf3 Bxf6 21.Bc4?! (21.Ng4 Bg7 22.Be5 was necessary.) 21...b5! (After 21...Nxg3 22.Ng4 Nh5 23.h4! white survives.) 22.Be2? (Closes his own mating net, although 22.Ng4 Bh8 23.Bb3 h5 24.Ne3 Nd4+ 25.Ke4 Rb8, threatening 26...Bb7+, is unpleasant for white.) 22...h5 23.Nc6 Rd7 (After 24.Rxd7 Bxd7 25.Na5 Bc3 26.Nb3 Bc6 mates.) White resigned.

Solution to today's study by A. Herbstmann and L. Kubbel (White: Kd2,Rb5,Nb6,P:g5; Black: Kg8,Rg7,P:a7,f6,f7): 1.Nd5! fxg5 2.Ne7+ Kh8 (on 2...Kf8 3.Nf5! wins) 3.Rb8+ Kh7 4.Rb1! Kh8 5.Nf5 Rg6 6.Rh1+ Kg8 7.Ne7+ wins.