Chess Under the Sun: Two Thunderclaps, Two Gems and One Shadow
„With summer, I fly through the tournament world,“ I wrote in my summer column last year. If I were to write a similar one after the holidays and give an honest summary of all the highlights, the work would last me several more months! So, from all the victories and failures, I have chosen above all two summer gems – but surely a thunderstorm for the white king! You surely know the saying „never say never“, but I'll risk it: this may well be the game and also the combination of the year.
Today, our theoretical window opens towards the fashionable Anti-Grünfeld system with 3.f3.
„Oh my God,“ Carlsen exclaimed in Stavanger after resigning to the world champion. Before that, he struck the table so hard that the clock jumped by ten seconds in fright. Reportedly, Gukesh himself said the same after one of the dramatic games at the Saint Louis tournament. Sadly, the world champion is gradually becoming just a shadow of „Gukesh 2024“…
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Endgames Carbon-Copied? Divya's Streak and Other Anomaly Tales
„I must study endgames!“ – those were the first words of Divya Deshmukh after her victory in the Women's World Cup final. She was speaking generally, but at least three rook endgames she played in Batumi were strikingly similar. No, in this case I certainly wouldn't speak of a „promised“ anomaly, though I will of course acquaint readers with it – this time, however, it reaches back into history.
In the second part of the article on the Women's World Cup, we will focus on a particular type of rook endgame: with the material advantage of a distant passed pawn. These are by no means rare in practice. More experienced readers also know that quite a few universal rules can be applied to the most common endgames…
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Between the Chessboard and the Mirror: The Divya Phenomenon
Over the years working with girls at the chessboard, I have noticed one quiet, albeit unwritten, rule: the more natural charm and charisma, the less chess obsession, systematic hard work – and often even pure talent. And then along comes Divya Deshmukh.
A 19-year-old girl who seems completely unaware of this rule. Beauty, indescribable charisma – and with it, an immense talent and hard work that I rarely see in girls. This teaser is an invitation to an article about the recently concluded Women's World Cup in Batumi, where the Indian star shone in a way that can perhaps only be compared to the „Gukesh 2024“ miracle. Naturally, I have devoted the most space to the winner, and this time I have organised the material thematically rather than chronologically…
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AI Has Revived Past Champions So Realistically, It's Chilling
Well yes, I know. The video series I present will not appeal to most chess players. Many young chess players, among other things, live under the illusion that chess is played much better today. Nevertheless, I am convinced that quite a few readers who know the history of our beautiful game in more detail will appreciate the videos below. They have not succumbed to this delusion, and it is precisely for them that these are intended. I am not the only one who got goosebumps watching the „animated photographs“ of world champions! I think everyone will find their favourite here. And dear readers „of my blood group“, do you know the history of the world championship matches in detail? From the very beginning, in 1886, right up to the present day? So, at the start of the post, I have included perhaps the clearest video on this very topic… Continue reading
Is All This Just Coincidence, or Are We Living in a Simulation?
How many times have you encountered the endgame of rook and bishop versus rook in practice? Personally, not even once, and if I recall correctly, not even in the thousands and thousands of blitz games! My small survey among acquaintances also showed that most are no different. But why do I mention this? From 13 to 27 June – that is, within a span of 14 days – the likeable super grandmaster Nodirbek Abdusattorov encountered this endgame 3 times in a stretch of 33 games!! Can this be a coincidence? And if you ‚still believe in them‘, then what do you think is the probability of such an occurrence?... Continue reading
Stocktaking for the 19th Birthday. Bucharest and Stavanger: Gukesh's Price for Fame or Maximalism?
The youngest world champion experienced his first serious setback after winning the title at the tournament in Bucharest! It's not just about the score below 50%, but at least two distinctly alarming signs in those two lost games – and there could have been more… about as many as missed opportunities. I will focus on Gukesh's games and say straight away that the whole tournament struck me as, as the saying goes, neither fish nor fowl. Only 14 decisive games, 5 draws within 30 moves – some moreover in well-known theoretical positions. Yet everything could have been different if, paradoxically, Gukesh had not seen so much at the board in the first round and the win against the eventual winner had not slipped through his fingers. At the time of writing this article, the traditional super-tournament is being played in Norway. And what did the draw bring? Right in the first round...
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An Unbeatable Queen?
With little interest from the "West", the women's world championship match took place in Shanghai and Chongqing in the first half of April. Well, no wonder. It was a contest between Chinese chess players; after all, the Chinese public probably followed the almost endless tournament in the so-called freestyle game, hosted in Paris at the same time, just as "closely". The match was supposed to consist of 12 games, but this time the world champion Ju Wenjun set such a pace that it ended after just 9 games. I certainly would not have paid so much attention to the women's chess crown match, were it not for the high technical standard of endgame play that Ju Wenjun (with only one exception) demonstrated. The world champion, who has reigned since 2018, is slowly becoming the Magnus in the women's game. By coincidence, the two most beautiful examples both concerned the theme of Bishop versus Knight, which we have analysed on our pages… Continue reading
The Fourth Musketeer
Everyone knows that Dumas's Three Musketeers were actually four, and so as an analogy for the Indian heroes Gukesh, Praggnanandhaa and Erigaisi, this analogy could not be used. Until recently! After the conclusion of this year's Prague Masters tournament, however, things are different. The fourth musketeer has apparently been found! The 25-year-old Chithambaram Aravindh, until recently not particularly well known to the wider circle of chess fans, won the tournament with such confidence and performance that there can be no doubt. But that's not all. One of his brilliant sacrifices is probably among the most beautiful we have seen at the chessboard so far this year. And since we are talking about sacrifices, why not take a closer look at this beloved adornment of chess. A chess player lives not only by sacrifices and beauty! Associations and analogies may be more hidden helpers behind the board, but they are no less important… Continue reading
Gukesh's Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde
In the second part of the analysis of this year's traditional tournament in Wijk aan Zee, we will instead focus on the most beautiful examples, valuable theoretical novelties and new recipes against the French Defence. In what form did the world champion present himself? Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. Gukesh's play at times reminiscent of a rollercoaster almost invites this allegory! Chess is changing before our eyes and youth is pushing forward! Praggnanandhaa formally won in Wijk, but even so, the real question is: will we see a Gukesh-Abdusattorov match?... Continue reading
Wijk aan Zee 2025: The World Champion Won, and Left with Silver
„What mysterious contradiction has the author introduced in the title of the article? Has he too stopped caring about truthful introductions and is lying through his teeth?“ a reader might ask. Not at all! I am merely referring to blitz tiebreaks, which have become part of tournaments for some time now. This year's, again very strong, was completely dominated by the youth, and despite the number of gross blunders and outright collapses, it was one of the most interesting tournaments of recent years! The tension at the board in some games was palpable, and the number of theoretical novelties could not be counted on the fingers of one hand! Of course, many were especially curious about the play of the new world champion. Well, and since in chess one can freely discuss without risk, the opinions of experts and laymen differed as night and day. In the first part we will mainly focus on gross blunders, the spice of chess, which crop up and multiply even in the strongest tournaments… Continue reading
The World Blitz Championship Saw 2 World Champions and 2 Runners-Up
And so the open tournament ended. Apparently, even the traditional podium is starting to bother some people; gold, silver and bronze, which have been the standard since 1904! Incidentally, in the women's competition, 2 bronze medals were also awarded. The World Blitz Championship system also allowed many… to perfectly repeat in the final rounds one of the already notoriously famous Berlin draws in the Spanish Game. And for „only“ 300 $, spectators could watch the best chess players on the planet from up close. But let's not be only negative. After all, we witnessed magnificent dramatic battles and extraordinary performances! We continue with the review and examples from the second part of the December World Championship… Continue reading
The World Rapid and Blitz Championship Held Up a Mirror to Today's World
Many beautiful moments at the chessboard, the enthusiasm of hundreds of thousands of spectators, plenty of happy moments, not a few sporting and human tragedies, but above all a faithful copy of today's world lacking empathy. A world that is out of joint. One case in point: The results of the 2024 World Rapid Chess Championship are being announced. The top three places are taken by chess players… from which country? The very largest! Instead of the anthem so familiar to us older ones, there is a cacophony of tones or a compilation of melodies meant to represent the FIDE anthem. But FIDE itself has nothing to celebrate after the World Championship! If anyone totally failed at the end of the year, it was its leadership, which moreover is not even able to present a consistent view to the outside world. But let us focus more on the events that interest most readers! The beautiful experiences at the board, the examples and other curiosities. The first part is devoted mainly to the World Rapid Chess Championship… Continue reading
Chess quote
Chess is the touchstone of intellect.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Chess quote
Chess, like music and love, has the power to make a person happy.
Siegbert Tarrasch
Siegbert Tarrasch