Chess

[Federberg]

I have to say, I wish Vlad was playing instead of Toppy. His performance has been appalling. Happy for Hikaru though

 

[Federberg]

This is the problem I have with Hikaru sometimes. He clearly intended to touch the king, but pretends like he didn't, then claims his issue is with Levon's reaction, which frankly was perfectly justified. And Aronian is one of the nicest guys on the circuit. Not classy at all!

 

[Federberg]

Wow! Svidler's ability to steal a draw from the jaws of victory continues to impress!

 

[DarthFed]

It's insane at this point isn't? Svidler should be at worst tied for the lead at this point. He got hammered by Vishy but aside from that he has had winning chances in nearly every game.

 

[DarthFed]

Nakamura was badly beaten by Caruana today. I think that pretty much ends his chances with just 6 games left.

 

[Federberg]

Yup. Hikaru really got smashed. Karjakin has been impressing with his ability to get out of trouble, but to be honest, the more I watch this, the more I think the winner will come out of Aronian and Vishy. Sergey is getting outplayed in middle games and getting away with it right now, I don't know how much longer his luck will last. Vishy and Levon look the most stable. I know Anish and Fabiano still have chances, but I'll write Giri off here and now, the guy doesn't want to take risks at all. Can't understand why he is continually invited to the big tournaments, it's Leko all over again! As for Fabi, I'm just not convinced he has the killer instinct, or at least not enough of one. And this is big boy match play now. You need either experience or the balls to succeed

 

[DarthFed]

Agreed, Karjakin has looked shaky for much of the past few games. Aronian has been surprisingly solid so far. The only game he was in real trouble was as white vs Caruana

 

[DarthFed]

All active games today. The big one is Anand-Aronian and black's position is UGLY. Still it will be hard to break through here. This is the type of game where white will end up with an extra pawn in a Rook vs. Rook endgame but may not be able to win it. Giri is up 3 pawns on Caruana but the latter has 2 bishops vs. 2 knights and a somewhat decent attack. Still this is almost certainly a win with best play for white but a game that could get away quickly with a couple errors.

 

[Federberg]

Yes agreed. Let's see if Giri has a killer instinct. I don't see Fabi as a particularly tenacious defender so this will speak volumes about Giri if he doesn't convert. It'll be interesting to see if Levon can use one of his tricks to equalise in this game. It's going to be a long one

 

[DarthFed]

Bxd5 was a sad but necessary concession. The difference in space is obvious but I still think black draws this (Anand-Aronian)

 

[Federberg]

yup, black should draw, but he has to be careful with his weak kingside pawns.

 

[DarthFed]

Svidler just blundered with Bc6.

 

[DarthFed]

Anand allowed the e4 pawn to be taken and now it's a pretty open position. Moreso for white but I think Aronian will gladly take it.

 

[DarthFed]

Naka-Karjakin is a dead draw. Nice result for Karjakin with black. Barring an unlikely win for Aronian he will still be tied atop the standings with 5 games left.

 

[DarthFed]

Topalov didn't see Ba4 after Svidler messed up with Bc6. Aggressive play and tactic are Topa's strength and he is struggling with that and everything else this tournament.

 

[Federberg]

somehow Caruana's position seems more holdable without the rooks! At least from a human perspective

 

[Federberg]

yes Topalov really doesn't want to be there at all. When he's on form he's 2800, but when he's off he barely passes muster as a 2600

 

[DarthFed]

Looks like I'm already being proved wrong in Anand-Aronian game in regards to the strategy of letting e4 fall. The g7 pawn falling opened up white's chances just as much. Rd4 here for black needs to be played

 

[DarthFed]

This is about as exciting as a rook ending could possibly be lol.

 

[Federberg]

Nakamura and Karjakin shake hands. Sergey will at least share the lead, barring a major blunder by Vishy