The Prague Masters was a dream event for GM Nodirbek Abdusatlov. In a subject with three contenders, the 19-year-old Uzbek GM secured victory with a spherical to spare as we speak, shifting him into fourth place on the earth within the dwell scores, surpassing world champion Ding Liren.
Abdusatlov defeated GM Perham Magsudrou as we speak in a fantastic combating sport just like their earlier encounter in Wijk aan Zee earlier this 12 months. Another winner of this spherical was his GM Gukesh Donmaraju, who refuted questionable play early within the center by GM Vincent Kaymer.
GM Vidit Gujrati vs. GM Richard LaPorte, GM Mateusz Barthel vs. GM Pragnanandher Rameshbabu, and GM David Navarre vs. GM Thai Dai Van Nguyen all resulted in attracts.
The remaining spherical will start 4 hours sooner than traditional on Thursday at 5:00 AM ET / 11:00 CET / 3:30 PM IST.
What an incredible event for Abdusatrov, who’s at present ranked 4th on the earth. Image: 2700 Chess.
At 6/8, Abdusatrov is 1.5 factors forward of the trio of Nguyen, Magsudru and Praggnananda who will advance to the ultimate spherical. His digital ranking is 2766, which places him forward of the world champion by 4 Elo factors. Not a foul day for gamers who sadly will not have the ability to compete within the subsequent Candidates Tournament.
Prague Masters | Round 8 Results
Abdusatrov vs. Magsudrou was one other fascinating battle between two uncompromising gamers, and it was an actual rollercoaster, particularly within the remaining hour of the match. It additionally confirmed that the event is filled with chess battles and could be a tiring affair for gamers.
It was the Sicilian Nazidorf with Castle on the opposite aspect, however it was nonetheless a midfield sport that was extra positional than tactical. Things acquired very concrete proper earlier than time management when Abdusatrov sacrificed the queen for the bishop, rook, and advance path spawn.
By sacrificing pointless pawns, he allowed his opponent to counterplay, and in reality, Magsudru even gained by one transfer. After that, it was a draw for some time, however the Iranian GM had bother checking with the queen, and ultimately they misplaced. Street combat matches analyzed by GM Rafael Leitao:
Nodirbek Abdusatlov caps off his event win in Prague with a G8 (provisional) queen sack! pic.twitter.com/3SCvHdei1R
— Chess24 (@chess24com) March 6, 2024
Although Gukesh acquired off to an excellent begin in Prague, he suffered two consecutive losses within the fifth and sixth rounds, twice as many as White. He made a miraculous escape towards Prajnananda the opposite day and recovered effectively from there, adopted by a formidable win towards Keamer as we speak.
The 19-year-old from Mainz should have miscalculated one thing, as a result of he discovered himself in a severe predicament after barely that includes within the opening sport. Gukesh was relentless, delivering one highly effective assault after one other.
Gukesh performed 16.f4! vs. Keymar. Image: Prague Chess Festival.
After dropping three video games in a row, Vidit understandably did not attempt too laborious as we speak and within the match between Kings Indian and Rapport, he remained closed and tied after 30 strikes. The all-Czech match, Navarra vs. Nguyen, was quiet, however the third draw was very fascinating.
Via Rossolimo’s transfer order, Bartel opted for the outdated and theoretically innocent 4.Qxd4 sideline towards Sicily, however Prajnananda was in all probability caught off guard as he was unable to completely equalize from the beginning. You would have been stabbed. Bartel’s choice to make a sacrificial trade was excellent news for his opponent, because the match by no means acquired extra even than that.
Match venue for the eighth spherical. Image: Prague Chess Festival.
The remaining spherical pairings shall be Prajnananda-Navara, Kaymar-Barthel, Magsudlou-Gouqesh, Rapport-Abdusatrov, and Nguyen-Vidit. The principal focus shall be on who will take second place.
Prague Masters | Round 8 Standings
This particular person shall be 2900
— Rauf Mamedov (@muisback88) March 6, 2024
Thanks to his victory over GM Anton Korobov, GM Jaime Santos has moved IM Ediz Grell into first place with the Prague Challengers. But the large information was that Grell earned his third and remaining GM reference level due to a draw with GM Erwin Rami.
Prague Challengers | Round 8 Results
During the dwell broadcast, the 15-year-old Turkish participant, who works with GM Dragan Solak, stated that resulting from his demanding faculty schedule (9 a.m. to 7 p.m. most days), he’s unable to play chess. He revealed that he solely research for 2 hours a day. That makes it all of the extra spectacular that he earned a ranking of 2560 at that age.
When requested how he felt about being GM, he stated, “That’s positive, however I’d really feel higher if we gained this sport.” It’s the spirit.
Edith Grell will quickly formally change into GM. Photo: Aneska Krzykova/Prague Chess Festival.
Prague Challengers | Round 8 Standings
The 2024 Prague Chess Festival shall be held from February twenty seventh to March seventh on the Don Giovanni Hotel in Prague, Czech Republic. The format is single spherical robin. The time management is his 90 minutes for the primary 40 strikes, then half-hour for the remainder of the sport, and from transfer 1 he will increase by 30 seconds for every transfer.
How to look at?
The Prague Chess Festival is obtainable on YouTube. You can even comply with the sport from the occasion web page.
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