Talking about Nakamura, Nakamura is now pretty much officially the US number 2, as Wesley so has cemented his lead with some very good performances (he's leading Nakamura by 9 full points now).
Chess discussions
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In the latest episode of the United Hour Podcast, Nik and Imran hold a long overdue conversation about United's awful league form with 1 win in 7. They discuss a disappointing draw at Bournemouth, a not so disappointing draw against Liverpool and a crushing defeat at Chelsea - Is time nearly over for Erik Ten Hag?
Then in a special second half of the pod, Nik welcomes Natalie ( https://twitter.com/natalie_17) to discuss the fortunes of Manchester United Women as they booked a place in the FA Cup Final after a historic first ever win vs. Chelsea.
and he's only 22, plenty of time to get even better.Speaking of the beast Kaspy himself, a my friend's cousin witnessed him play and win 30 simultaneous games against students at Tel Aviv University not long ago. I really wish he'd come back, that'd put the cat amongst the pigeons.
You mean play with the top players now?
Speaking of the beast Kaspy himself, a my friend's cousin witnessed him play and win 30 simultaneous games against students at Tel Aviv University not long ago. I really wish he'd come back, that'd put the cat amongst the pigeons.
I'd like to think so - when I was growing up he was the absolute king but for the odd pretender, I was quite disillusioned after that blitz blunder against Anand. I'm not keen on Kasparov's personality though, I don't miss his sulks.
Kasparov is the greatest player in his generation, and one of the greatest of all time, but I don't think he'll fare well against the new guys.
First reason is obviously age.
Second, the way Kasparov play (sheer tactics and calculations) also doesn't help him face the new computer-like generation. Kasparov's main advantage at his time was the inclination of his opponents (humans) to blunder under the pressure he puts on them, which explains why many players had better records against computers than him, because he didn't play the most sound chess.
I think if he played against the new generation (any of the top 10 really), they'll be able to handle themselves better than Kasparov's older opponents, and will just wait for his attack to fizzle out, and then emerge with a superior endgame and beat him, because strategically they're better than him, and tactically they're less likely to blunder than his opponents in the 1980s and 1990s.
But it will be unfair for him to play against this generation, because he didn't enjoy the advantages they had when they learned chess, most importantly, computers.
Interesting. So you think the standard of played has improved over the last 20 years because of the input of computers in youngsters' development?
I agree to an extent but regardless of one's training, I think some players have more natural chess logic, I'd be really interested to see how Kasparov fared against Nakamura or Wesley - it's academic though, I don't think he'll ever return now. Perhaps this is best as it won't tarnish his legacy.
Regarding age, do you consider that a factor? Kasparov isn't that old, really - 52 this year. I've never really known if age affects one's ability or judgement in Chess. Karpov is still involved in occasional tournaments, although I've no idea at what level.
Yes. This is an interesting topic actually.
The thing is, the new players have far more experience and practice than the generations that didn't have computers at their disposal, simply because they can learn more, much quicker.
In Kasparov's days they would spend days analyzing a single position just trying to know if it's better for white or black, and then come up with a judgement about a single move. Now any player can just let the engine run for a couple of minutes and he'll immediately know if it's good or bad, and he can easily follow the computer lines to see why. So instead of spending 6 hours to study a single position, now any player can study over 20 positions in the same time with even more accurate final assessment. Big advantage for the new generation.
In fact, the openings theory have advanced (and changed) immensely after the emergence of computers. It made players look differently at many openings, and it helped expand the opening book a few folds.
Also, computers help the players find some crazy moves (and familiarize them with these type of moves) when in Kasparov's era those kind of moves will be completely overlooked by everybody, including Kasparov himself. New players are more likely to find those unusual moves that could potentially refute Kasparov's brilliant combinations, not because of their superior talent or creativity, but because they've seen these moves before.
Every generation in chess benefited from the previous generation because they learned a lot from them, and then added their touch. Players like Capablanca, Fischer, Kasparov, and even other players like Petrosian, Karpov, ...etc. all played an important role in the development of chess, because they made it easier for the next generation to learn from them. The new players didn't have to invent everything from scratch, but build on the previous generation and add to it, which is why chess kept developing, and the chess players became stronger and stronger with every new generation.
However, with the introduction of the "perfect chess player"/computers, the jump became much higher, because you're finally learning from a near perfect chess player, or more accurately, coach.
As for age, age is a big factor especially for players who rely on long calculations, which is one of Kasparov's main strengths, because you become more prone to mental lapses/blunders. Kasparov definitely started blundering more often in the 1990s, so at 52, it will be a big ask.
Also with age you start forgetting old preparations, openings, you just start forgetting a lot of stuff, and chess is even more about memory than creativity and calculations most of the time.
Unable to follow the games today. Was there some sort of plan behind Jobava's Kg8, or did he actually manage to simply miss Qe6? And have the theoreticians established if Carlsen was ever winning?
Jobava missed a lot of things in this tournament, he's having a nightmarish tourney. Probably wanted to move it to f8 and just had that mental block the moment he moved his king. Who knows, it's not often that you see grandmasters drop a piece to a simple check in a single move.
I'm not sure about Carlsen though, but I don't think he was winning at any point. In many scenarios he'll have to finish with an opposite colour bishops position with an extra pawn, which is pretty drawn. There is no theory at this moment that can prove that though as engines are too weak now to calculate endgames all the way to their conclusions, and the endgame tablebase is limited at this moment to a total of 7-8 pieces, and in the final position of the game there were still 9 pieces left (total).
Anyone following the Grenke chess classics? Carlsen lost to Naiditsch yesterday but bounced back today beating Vishy with black pieces.
Oh yes. I had the good fortune to fall asleep before things fell apart for Jobarlsen yesterday, but a terrific game today, although it would be nice if Anand could cut down on the imploding against him.
The WFT of the day, following yesterday's #Bxg4WTF, was Baramidze's 23. Ng6 in this position:
Aronian was finished with his game at this point and commented "This looks very good for White… wait, he’s a rook down?" (White is actually doing all right a rook down and would be totally winning with equal material because black's position is a huge uncoordinated mess of weaknesses). After 23. Ng6?? Nxg6 24. Qxf5 black has only one move, Ne7, even though he is a rook and a piece up, but it's an extremely natural and extremely winning move, so I have no idea how Baramidze could have missed it, and I have no idea what his plan was if that's not what he missed.
The WFT of the day, following yesterday's #Bxg4WTF, was Baramidze's 23. Ng6 in this position:
Aronian was finished with his game at this point and commented "This looks very good for White… wait, he’s a rook down?" (White is actually doing all right a rook down and would be totally winning with equal material because black's position is a huge uncoordinated mess of weaknesses). After 23. Ng6?? Nxg6 24. Qxf5 black has only one move, Ne7, even though he is a rook and a piece up, but it's an extremely natural and extremely winning move, so I have no idea how Baramidze could have missed it, and I have no idea what his plan was if that's not what he missed.
I've watched most of Carlsen's matches so far. Looks like he'll win today as well.
We should probably mention Nakamura's reaction to falling behind So, which was overtaking him as quickly as physically possible by winning his first six games at Gibraltar (six in a row is popular these days - Grischuk, Giri, Kramnik and Carlsen have also done it recently). You could tell he was on a mission when he went for the rare Angry Six-Year-Old Who Barely Knows the Rules variation of the Dutch in his first game.
So Carlsen wasted his advantage in the last game and now he's tied for first with Naiditsch.
Two exciting 10 minute (+ 2 seconds) games coming (unless Caruana wins then it's a three-way tie and I don't know what the rules would be in that case). Right now Caruana is playing a RN vs RN ending a pawn up with Black against the weakest player in the tounament.
Fully expect Carlsen to win it (he's the best blitz player in the world), but should be exciting to see.
Two exciting 10 minute (+ 2 seconds) games coming (unless Caruana wins then it's a three-way tie and I don't know what the rules would be in that case). Right now Caruana is playing a RN vs RN ending a pawn up with Black against the weakest player in the tounament.
Fully expect Carlsen to win it (he's the best blitz player in the world), but should be exciting to see.
This is fun! Carlsen's time wasting in the second game cost him, hopefully he can bounce back in the 5 2 blitz games.
That was crazy to watch
So who's going to be the next challenger? Anand again? He's still doing brilliantly whenever Carlsen's not around. Caruana and Aronian were both #2 and miles ahead of the pack at various points in 2014, but they're now performing below Carlsen's bottom level in tournament after tournament and have lost 100+ rating points combined. Grischuk is also on a bad run after being the #2 for a while. (Is Team Carlsen psyopsing anyone who dares become #2?) And then there's Nakamura and Giri, who both recorded their highest ever (2800+) live ratings a week ago. Topalov is #3, but he said "feck off, FIDE cnuts" to the Grand Prix series, which I believe means it could be difficult for him to qualify for the Candidates.
Ok, maybe a little early for this.
Ok, maybe a little early for this.
Well the whole Zurich tournament was a complete farce. Changing the rules in the middle of a tourney! 
Only in chess.
NExt challenger talk is always premature unless there's a standout. Right now there simply isn't another player in the pack. Carlsen hasn't been as impressive recently though.
For once I wish he stops the strangulation and just tries to play attacking chess in a weak tournament. It would be great.
Only in chess.NExt challenger talk is always premature unless there's a standout. Right now there simply isn't another player in the pack. Carlsen hasn't been as impressive recently though.
For once I wish he stops the strangulation and just tries to play attacking chess in a weak tournament. It would be great.
Hi again! Yes, it was. The organizers also publicly slammed Carlsen (for allegedly pulling out of an informal agreement to participate, which Team Carlsen disputes, and for some reason they were already unhappy with him for changing hotels during last year's edition) and Caruana and Aronian (for not being properly rested for the tournament). They seem like a somewhat unprofessional lot. I wonder how many of the top players will feel inclined to play there next year.Well the whole Zurich tournament was a complete farce. Changing the rules in the middle of a tourney!
Have you guys followed the news from the US Championship? It's a soap opera. Wesley So was forfeited in round 9 for writing motivational notes to himself at the board, which he had been warned about twice earlier, and which he felt the need to do because his estranged mother and aunt were ruining his concentration by pestering him during the tournament about his quitting Webster U. Afterwards he said that his round 9 opponent, Akobian (who called the arbiter over), is now a former friend of his, and then Nakamura called his comments shameful. Luckily for the US, there is plenty of time for team-building exercises before the next Olympiad.
Yeah I agree. Very unprofessional
With regards to the US open, I only heard about the forfeit and not the rest. That's crazy. Let me look it up
Here's So's take on it. @ 4:16:30
It looks like he was warned not write on the score sheet, and he thought that writing on another piece of paper is ok (apparently he has been doing this in other tournaments like the Tata Steel, for years). According to the strict rules it isn't ok though.
Players like Naka should stay out of it imo. It's a personal matter between two players, and considering both are US players, other US players really should stay out of it.
It looks like he was warned not write on the score sheet, and he thought that writing on another piece of paper is ok (apparently he has been doing this in other tournaments like the Tata Steel, for years). According to the strict rules it isn't ok though.
Players like Naka should stay out of it imo. It's a personal matter between two players, and considering both are US players, other US players really should stay out of it.
Shamkir Chess has started, lots of big names like Carlsen, Anand, Caruana, So, Giri et cetera are playing.
Carlsen has one draw and one win so far, but looks to be winning again today with black pieces against Caruana.
Carlsen has one draw and one win so far, but looks to be winning again today with black pieces against Caruana.
Carlsen looking very strong after his lucky escape in the first round. Today he smashed Kramnik, who's now lost three in a row. Anand has played early minor piece or exchange sacrifices in three of his four games with white, and with excellent results (2.5/3 if he converts his advantage against Adams).
Heh. R to d2.
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http://www.uschesschamps.com/information/international-chess-circuit-press-conference
Hmm, apparently MVL is the 9th player. I wanted and expected So. The January top 9 was invited, and So at #10 should have been next in line after Kramnik declined, and Mamedyarov and Karjakin were also above MVL. But Chess24 has this:
Tony Rich, the arbiter who forfeited Wesley in St. Louis, made a point of the fact that players outside the Top 9 could also be picked based on their ability to add something to the event, including from their character traits, such as "fighting spirit and camaraderie with the top players".
Tony Rich, the arbiter who forfeited Wesley in St. Louis, made a point of the fact that players outside the Top 9 could also be picked based on their ability to add something to the event, including from their character traits, such as "fighting spirit and camaraderie with the top players".
Get ready for Carlsen - Anand III. Speaking of rematches, Kasparov - Short starts in an hour.
Is that on stream anywhere?
You need to play chess again, but let's for now call "R to d2" the 'Zarlak notation'.
I wouldn't mind a rematch. The last match was close and exciting.
Thanks. Enjoying it so far. Clearly we would have enjoyed it much more if it was being played 20 years ago, but it's always great to see these legends facing each other with a chess set in between.
I was just laughing at R2D2. Star Wars geek.
May be I should watch Star Wars.
By the way, times haven't changed. Kasparov is destroying Short again, even in the two games that Kasparov didn't win.
Yup. IMO he's also easily the worthiest challenger (based on vague, recency-biased and possibly erroneous recollections of post-WC performances by the top players).
I didn't really follow Kasparov - Short, but it felt like every time I checked in, Kasparov was blasting Short's king with his heavy artillery.
Carlsen beats Mamedov quite easy and with that also the tournament.
I think Kasparov is ready for stronger opposition. What a massacre.
Tragic from Jakovenko
That's bad.