Friday, April 30, 2010

Selangor Open 2010, Round 5

1 May 2010 - Haslindah Ruslan playing against Fikri Saleh on board 25 in round 5, Selangor Open 2010. Fikri now has 1.5 points.

Selangor Open 2010, Round 5 In Progress

1 May 2010 - The two top seeds playing at first board in round 5 of the Selangor Open 2010. Nicholas Chan (right) concentrating to make his next move against Jimmy Liew. Both players have 3.5 points each.

The Star – Unfolding Drama In World Chess Championship 2010

30 April 2010 – Today in The Star - Living by SS Quah, he discusses the drama unfolding at the World Chess Championship between GM Anand and GM Topalov of Bulgaria in Sofia, Bulgaria. The opening ceremony was held on 21st April 2010 while the first game held on the 24th April 2010. SS Quah could only write about the first two games only where both players have won a game each. Each player with White appears to be winning. However the games have reached the fourth game on Wednesday, 28th April 2010. At this moment in time, Anand is leading with 2.5 points against 1.5 points for Topalov.

The fifth game will be played tonight, 30th April 2010 and can be followed at the usual websites on the internet.

You may read more at The Star’s website or click here.

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Pix 1. GM Anand (left) and GM Topalov (right)

Chess Overboard On The Golden Era Of Chess

30 April 2010 – Today in Chess Overboard by Lim Chong, he discusses and reminisces the time when chess was reported in every major newspaper in Malaysia. Be it The Star or The New Straits Times, or Utusan Malaysia or The Sun, or Berita Harian. The style of each chess columnist is different and is discussed in Chess Overboard – The Golden Era Of Chess.

You may read more at Datcchess’s blog or click here.

Thursday, April 29, 2010

KAM MAH, Think Big Co-Leads After 5th Round, DATCC 3rd KL Team Chess League 2010

Here are the full results of the fifth round of play for the 3rd DATCC KL Team Chess League 2010 played yesterday evening, 28th April 2010. KAM MAH leads in the chess league with a draw against Team AU in the fifth round last night. While Think Big played catch-up and won their match against Sea Horse.

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Three matches drew their games involving teams Team AU, KAM MAH, First Saturday Chess Team, Tan & Tan Chess Team, UKM and 17 Chess Club. All the three matches ended with 2-2 scoreline.

Think Big is chucking along just fine without the top guns with a decisive win over Sea Horse. IM Mas did not play last night for team Sea Horse. Think Big won 2.5-1.5.

Young turks Excel Chess Team scrapes through with a 2.5-1.5 win over experienced Nusa Mahkota Chess Club. Experienced players like Rizal Ahmad Kamal lost to the likes of Kaushal Khandar.

Surprisingly Price Waterhouse Coopers easily overcomed the ladies team, CS Solutions with an emphatic 4-0 scoreline. A similar scoreline was achieved by Gung Ho over Ad-Hoc chess team. While team Black Pearl simply outclassed DATCC Chess Team who were playing without the services of S Balendran, Andrew Ooi and Azman Hisham Che Doi. Black Pearl won 3-1. The solitary board win for DATCC coming from Najib Wahab.

Team AU vs KAM MAH, 5th Round, 3rd DATCC KL Chess Team League, 28th April 2010

Pix 1. Team AU drew against KAM MAH during the 5th round of the DATCC Chess League 2010.

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Fourth Game Ends Dramatically For Anand’s Win, World Chess Ch 2010, Anand-Topalov

29 April 2010 - Here is the table summary of games held so far between GM Anand, the current World Chess Champion with the contender, GM V Topalov of Bulgaria which is being held at Sofia, Bulgaria from 21st April – 13th May 2010.

Game No. Date Anand Topalov Comments

1

24 April 2010 0 1 Topalov wins first game as white,  1-0

2

25 April 2010

1

0

Anand playing white, equalises, 1-1.

3

27 April 2010

½

½

Topalov as white could not force a win, overall 1½ : 1½.

4

28 April 2010

1

0

Anand wins as white with 1.d4, in a Catalan Opening, Anand leads 2½ : 1½.

5

30 April 2010

6

01 May 2010

7

03 May 2010

8

04 May 2010

9

06 May 2010

10

07 May 2010

11

09 May 2010

12

13 May 2010

Yesterday, 28 April 2010 – Game 4 was held where Anand played as White and used 1.d4 against Topalov which broke open black king’s defences on the 24th move. White sacrificed a knight at Nxh6+ and followed with Qxh6.

Today, 29 April 2010 is a rest day.

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Pix 1. In the fourth game of the World Chess Championship last night, 28 April 2010. White played 32. Re7 and black resigned.

GM Anand vs GM Topalov, Game 4, World Chess Ch 2010, Sofia, Bulgaria

Pix 2. Anand (white, left) and Topalov(black) during Game 4, World Chess Ch 2010.

Latest News-5th Rd DATCC CHESS LEAGUE

Latest News: Gung Ho is leading 3-0 over Ad-Hoc, Excel leading 1-0 against Nusa Mahkota, 17 Chess Club leading 1-0, Black Pearl leading 3-0 over DATCC.

Round 5 of DATCC Chess League 2010

Team AU against KAM MAH, Round 5, Datcc Chess League 2010, 28th April 2010 in progress.

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Topalov Draws In Third Game, World Chess Ch 2010, Bulgaria

27 April 2010 – Last night the third game in the World Chess Championship between GM Anand and GM Topalov in Sofia, Bulgaria got underway with the Slav Defence where Topalov as white chose to move 1.d4 again.

The game ended with a three fold repetition at the 46th move with the pieces shown in the diagram below. Each have identical 4 pawns and one rook. Anand forced the three fold repetition onto white as Topalov guards the f3 pawn from falling.

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The overall score is now 1.5:1.5 between Anand and Topalov. Tomorrow the fourth game will be played at the same time, 8 pm local Malaysian time. Anand will play white.

Here is a copy of the third game of the World Chess Championship courtesy of Internet Chess Club which was played on the evening of the 27th April 2010.

[Event "ICC - World Chess Championship"]
[Site "Internet Chess Club"]
[Date "2010.04.27"]
[Round "3"]
[White "*GM_Topalov"]
[Black "*GM_Anand"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D17"]
[WhiteElo "2805"]
[BlackElo "2787"]
{D17: Slav Defence: 5 a4 Bf5: Lines with 6 Nh4 and 6 Ne5} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6  4. c3 dxc4 5. a4 Bf5 6. Ne5 e6 7. f3 c5 8. e4 Bg6 9. Be3 cxd4 10. Qxd4 Qxd4 11. Bxd4 Nfd7 12. Nxd7 Nxd7 13. Bxc4 a6 14. Rc1 {last book move} Rg8 15.h4 h6 16. Ke2 {White loses the right to castle} Bd6 17. h5 {White threatens to win material: h5xg6} Bh7 18. a5 Ke7 {Black loses the right to castle} 19. Na4 f6 {Covers e5} 20. b4 (20. Rhd1 Rac8 $14) 20... Rgc8 $11 21. Bc5 Bxc5 22. bxc5 {Black has a new backward pawn: b7} ({Instead of} 22. Nxc5 Nxc5 23. bxc5 Rxc5 $15) 22... Rc7 ({Inferior is} 22... Nxc5 23. Nb6 Rab8 24. Nxc8+ Rxc8 25. g4 $18) 23. Nb6 Rd8 24. Nxd7 Rdxd7 25. Bd3 Bg8 26. c6 {White threatens to win
material: c6xd7} Rd6 27. cxb7 Rxb7 28. Rc3 Bf7 29. Ke3 Be8 30. g4 e5 31. Rhc1 Bd7     32. Rc5 Bb5 33. Bxb5 axb5 {A double rook endgame occured} 34. Rb1 b4 35.Rb3 Ra6 36. Kd3 Rba7 37. Rxb4 Rxa5 38. Rxa5 Rxa5 39. Rb7+ Kf8 40. Ke2 Ra2+ 41.Ke3 Ra3+ 42. Ke2 Ra2+ 43. Ke3 Ra3+ {Twofold repetition} 44. Ke2 Ra2+ 1/2-1/2

World Chess Championship 2010 In Bulgaria, Anand-Topalov

27 April 2010 - Here is the table summary of games held so far between GM Anand of India, the current World Chess Champion with the contender, GM V Topalov of Bulgaria which is being held at Sofia, Bulgaria from 21st April – 13th May 2010.

Game No. Date Anand Topalov Comments

1

24 April 2010 0 1 Topalov wins first game as white,    1-0

2

25 April 2010

1

0

Anand playing white, equalises,   1-1.

3

27 April 2010      

4

28 April 2010      

5

30 April 2010      

6

01 May 2010      

7

03 May 2010      

8

04 May 2010      

9

06 May 2010      

10

07 May 2010      

11

09 May 2010      

12

13 May 2010      

Yesterday, 26 April 2010 was a rest day for the World Chess Championship players. Game 3 will be held tonight, 27 April 2010 beginning 8 pm local Malaysian Time.

The venue of the World Chess Championship is held at the Central Military Club in Sofia, Bulgaria (top picture below).

CentralMilitaryClubSofiaBulgaria Anand_Topa-G2b

(pictures courtesy of anand-topalov.com)

Monday, April 26, 2010

Round 5 Pairings, DATCC 3rd KL Team Chess League 2010

This coming Wednesday, 28th April 2010, the fifth round of the 3rd DATCC KL Team Chess League 2010 will take place at 7 pm and the fifth round team pairings are as follows:-

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(source: Najib Wahab)

Friday, April 23, 2010

Chess Tournaments In Neighbouring Asian Cities In May-July, 2010

Here are some chess tournaments meant for both adult and age-group players in our neighbouring Asian countries for the next 3-4 months for you to consider to participate.

1. Commonwealth Chess Championship 2010 in New Delhi, India, 9th-19th May 2010. Click here for details;

2. Asian Youth Invitational Chess Championship, Beijing, China, 8th-15th July 2010. Click here for details;

3. 11th ASEAN Age-Group Chess Championship 2010, Subic, Philippines, 4th-13th June 2010. Click here for details;

Happy hunting in overseas chess tournaments!

Thursday, April 22, 2010

DATCC Under Expansion!

During the fourth round of play at the DATCC on Wednesday, 21st April 2010, it was glaringly obvious that the DATCC is about to expand further in floor size.

image Here is one picture where the original office of DATCC showing the walls have been brought down while the old restaurant space has been expanded.

Behind Ian Udani and Eng Chiam is open space (dark space) where renovation work is being done.

Now with this additional space, DATCC can accommodate more players in a tournament. So tournaments like Stonemaster Amateur Sp Edition can be held here with, maybe, up to 100 players or slightly more.

How soon this renovation work will get done? This we will have to wait and see.

A Night Of Draws In The 4th Round, Chess League 2010

The fourth round of the chess league drew in a lot of matches that ended in a draw. In fact, four matches ended in draws. That constitutes fifty percent of the 8 matches played.

The organisers of the chess league has just released the official round 4 results held at DATCC, Wilayah Complex, Kuala Lumpur on the evening of the 21st April 2010 as follows:-

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Think Big without their two top guns, GM Ziaur Rahman and IM Mok lost the 4th round to KAM MAH who had a strong quartet comprising of IM Jimmy Liew, Amitpal Singh, Abdullah Che Hassan and Leong Mun Wan of Johor. KAM MAH won 3-1.

Nusa Mahkota suffered a setback as they lost to Team AU by 3.5-0.5. The fourth board order was mishandled by Nusa Mahkota and a forfeit on the 4th board gave a win to Team AU. Hard lesson for Nusa Mahkota. Even if Rizal won the fourth board, it would still not make a difference.

The elder young turks of the chess league, Excel Chess Team easily defeated their younger brethren, First Saturday Chess Team with a convincing 4-0 win.

Four matches for the evening ended in draws. Sea Horse drew with Pricewaterhouse Cooper and so did 17 Chess Club against CS Solutions Ladies Team. Another drawn game between Gung Ho and Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia and one more between Ad-Hoc and Black Pearl.

Tan&Tan Chess Team narrowly won against DATCC Chess Team, 2.5:1.5.

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Chess Overboard on Mohd Sapirin Sabri!

image In this week’s chess column “Chess Overboard” by Lim Chong talks about Mohd Sapirin Sabri a veteran chess player since the hey days of the 70s and 80s. He is a graduate of National University of Malaysia (Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, UKM) and now works in the ICT field.

To read more, please visit DATCChess.blogspot.com or click here.

Meanwhile in the earlier weekly column column, Lim Chong had focussed on another chess personality, Jax Tham Tick Hong. Read the chess exploits of Jax Tham, the owner of Excel Chess Academy and host-cum-organiser of various monthly chess tournaments at Excel Chess Academy.

To read more on Jax Tham, please visit DATCChess.blogspot.com or click here.

Weekend Chess Activities, 24-25th April 2010

Here are a few chess tournaments that are lined up for this coming weekend for chess enthusiasts to consider for participation:-

1. April Rapid Chess (10.20.30), 24-25 April 2010. Venue Excel Chess Academy, OUG, Kuala Lumpur.Click here for details.
2. Stonemaster Amateur Special Edition, 2nd Leg, 25 April 2010 (Sunday), Cochrane Sports School of Excellence, Jalan Cochrane, Kuala Lumpur. For details, please look at images below or visit stonemaster.info for further details or click here. It will be a seven round rapid chess tournament with 20-30 mins time control.

Beyond the weekend, there will be one major chess tournament that is FIDE and National-rated for you to consider as follow:-

3. Selangor Chess Open 2010, 29 April-2 May 2010. Venue DATCC, KL. Pls click here for details.

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image

Have a nice weekend playing or watching chess!

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Get Ready For 37th Selangor Open Chess Tournament 2010

The Chess Association of Selangor is organising the 37th Selangor Open Chess Tournament 2010 from 29th April to 2nd May 2010 at the DAT Chess Centre, 4th Floor, Wilayah Complex, Jalan Munshi Abdullah, Kuala Lumpur.

Please copy the image below to print the registration form and send to selangorchess@gmail.com before the 25th April 2010.

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Come join and be part of the longest running chess tournament in CAS’s history, the Selangor Open. Hope to see you all at the chess tournament!

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

Latest Results Of DATCC League, 3rd Round

Here are the latest simple chess team results of the DATCC Chess League, 3rd round held last night, 14th April 2010 as compiled by gilachess.com (Andrew Ooi).

image

(source: gilachess.com or datcchess.blogspot.com)

Think Big with GM Ziaur Rahman continued to power through past Team AU, a solid chess team with Mohd Fadli Zakaria, Yeap Eng Chiam and Jax Tham. Think Big won 2.5:1.5.

Kam Mah has also stepped up their drive for a win with IM Jimmy Liew spearheading on the team against Nusa Mahkota, captained by Hairulov. Kam Mah won 2.5:1.5.

Wow! Excel Chess Team run riot against experienced Pricewaterhouse Cooper. Excel Chess Team comprised of players like Lim Zhou Ren and Khausal Kaundar. Excel Chess Team won 3.5:0.5.

Another young chess team, First Saturday Chess Team over run another experienced 17 Chess Club with a 3:1 win.

Sea Horse with IM Mas playing on top board very quickly overwhelmed Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia chess team with a thumping 4:0 win.

The ladies team, CS Solutions Ladies Team spearheaded by Khairunnisa Wahiddudin on top board, easily overcomed team Gung Ho with a 3:1 win.

DATCC Chess Team finally get a win on the score sheet with a 3:1 win over Ad-Hoc chess team which comprised of one Fijian, Eng Chiam’s father, Tan Li Ting’s sister and En. Abdul Hamid Majid. Last night DATCC was spearheaded by S Balendran on top board.

Tan and Tan overcomed team Black Pearl with a solid 4:0 win! Tan and Tan comprised mostly of experienced veterans and very senior chess players made winning so easy for themselves last night. It really underscore the real strength of Tan and Tan is their experience.

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Ranking After Round 6, Insofar Shah Alam Ratings (FIDE) Tournament 2010

Here are the rankings after round 6 held last week, 9th April 2010, (Friday) and the upcoming last round (7th round) of this Insofar Shah Alam Ratings (FIDE) Tournament 2010 will be held on Saturday, 24th April 2010, 6 pm, PKNS Building, Shah Alam, Selangor.

 image

The round 7 pairings are as shown in the table above. The current leader is Kamaluddin Yusof with 6 points, followed by Nik Ahmad Farouqi, 4.5 points and in third is Sahir Sarifdin with 4 points. Hamzah Razali @ Ng6 is in fourth position with 3.5 points and Ismail Mohamed in fifth with 3.5 points too!

How did Malaysians Fare In Kuala Lumpur Open 2010?

There were twenty players that participated in the recent Kuala Lumpur Chess Open 2010. Of this twenty, three players finished in the top half of the list. The three players included FM Nicholas Chan (16th), Lim Chuing Hoong Ronnie (40th), IM Jimmy Liew (55th).

Yeoh Li Tian ended with four points and in 66th position. So did Nik Ahmad Farouqi (72nd), Ismail Ahmad (73rd), Mohd Nabil Azman Hisham (74th), Evan Timothy Capel (81st), Lee Kah Meng Elgin (83rd) with 4.0 points as well.

image

Table 1. Final Ranking Crosstable After 9 Rounds, Kuala Lumpur Open 2010. (chess-results.com)

While players with 3.5 points were Rosli Ahmad Afiq Afyfy (85th), Mohamed Abdul Haq(86th), Marcus Yeoh (89th), Najib Abdul Wahab (90th).

In the 3.0 pointer group, Nur Najiha Hisham(97th), Amier Hamzah b Mohd Zuhri (99th), and Nur Nabila Azman Hisham (101st).

While in the 2.5 points group were two, Razali Hamzah (104th), and Ting Shih Chieh (105th).

While in the 2.0 point group was Wee Kah Howe William (109th).

The majority of the twenty players finished in the lower half of the tournament. This is expected as most of the Malaysians had lower ratings and just five players had titles. However, none of the Malaysians achieved norms of either FM, IM, WIM, or WGM or even GM standards. It is actually an opportunity for all Malaysians to gain a norm or to improve their FIDE ratings and standings among the competing nationalities.

To be officially granted an official title like IM or GM, one must gain at least three similar norms in three different FIDE-rated tournaments. (I hope this is right.) No doubt, exposure to Malaysians to international standards of play is most valuable here. Experience.

Monday, April 12, 2010

Hou Yifan Wins The Kuala Lumpur Open Chess Tournament 2010

image

GM Hou Yifan of China won the Kuala Lumpur Open Chess Tournament 2010 with 7.5 points over 9 rounds.

She received RM 10,000 as 1st Prize and the DYTM Raja Nazrin Shah Trophy from Yang Amat Mulia Raja Dato' Seri Azureen binti Sultan Azlan Shah who was gracious enough to do the honours.

Well done to her and congratulations!

Sunday, April 11, 2010

Round 8 Results, KL Open 2010

Here are the confirmatory round 8 results of the Kuala Lumpur Open 2010 held at the Olympic Sports Hotel, Kuala Lumpur, this afternoon 11th April 2010.
image
Hou Yifan is the only player with the seven points entering the ninth round. The other players who have six points include Nguyen Anh Dung, Megaranto Susanto (picture above), Irwanto Saidikin, Iuldashev Saidali, Murshed Saidali, Mchedishvili Mikheil.
image
image 
Other takes of the tournament: FM Nicholas Chan lost his game, IM Jimmy Liew lost his afternoon game, Yeoh Li Tian also lost his, Ronnie Lim won his game against WFM Mitali Madhukar Patil, WGM Melnikova lost, GM Ziaur Rahman won, Ismail Ahmad won his, Mohd Nabil lost, Capel Evan Timothy drew, Najib Wahab lost, Nur Najiha lost, Abdul Haq drew his game, Nik Ahmad Farouqi drew with fellow Malaysian Rosli Ahmad Afiq Afyfy, Alfred Ting lost, Marcus Yeoh won, Nur Nabila lost, Razali Hamzah lost.

Hou Meets Marat

In round 8, GM Hou Yifan is playing against GM Dzhumaev Marat on top board during the 3rd Kuala Lumpur Chess Championship 2010, 11th April 2010.

Saturday, April 10, 2010

Simultaneous Chess Exhibition By GM Nigel Short

In conjunction with the Kuala Lumpur Chess Open 2010, a simultaneous chess exhibition was conducted by a well-known grandmaster on Saturday afternoon. Here are a few pictures of the simultaneous chess exhibition given by GM Nigel Short, England at the tournament hall of the Kuala Lumpur Chess Open 2010 on the afternoon of 10th April 2010.

There were ten chess boards on the L-shaped table. By the time, I arrived, two tables were done, leaving eight players playing against Nigel Short. The last table to finish was Table 10 where Abdul Haq Mohamed was a piece ahead of Nigel Short. In the end, a draw was agreed by both players and my guess is the overall score for Nigel was 9.5:0.5. Excellent score, I would say.

10042010607   

Pix 1. Nigel does his rounds.

10042010608

Pix 2. Amier Hamzah (nearest)

10042010609 

Pix 3. Abdul Haq at table 10.  

10042010612

Pix 4. Nigel attends to the tables.

Simul Chess Exhibition

Nigel Short contemplates his next move on board 10 against Abdul Haq, MAS during the 10 board simultaneous exhibition during the Kuala Lumpur Chess Open 2010, 10th April 2010.

Hou Yifan Continues To Lead Jointly With Four Others, KL Open 2010

In a top of the seeds clash, Hou Yifan defended well as black and got a draw from Mchedishvili on the first board of the round 6 play this morning, 10th April 2010 at the tournament hall, 2nd Floor, Olympic Sports Hotel, Jalan Hang Jebat, Kuala Lumpur.

While her opponent from Vietnam, GM Nguyen Anh Dung, maintains his pressure on the lead with a draw on board 2.

DSCF0010

Luther Thomas (picture above), GER, gets his win and joins Hou Yifan and Nguyen with 5.0 points. Another five pointer is IM Dimakiling Oliver who disposed of GM Cao Sang, CHN, on the fourth board this morning. GM Dzhumaev Marat also won his game against FM Yee Soon Wei on board 6. He too joins the elite group of five pointers.

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Other takes of the tournament: IM Jimmy Liew drew with Malaysian chess prodigy, Yeoh Li Tian, Nik Ahmad Farouqi lost against a WGM, Ronnie Lim won his game against Indonesia’s WFM Medina, Timothy Capel lost to GM Wong, Marcus lost his game, WGM Melnikova won her game against Heikal, Mohd Nabil beats Nirav, Abdul Haq won against fellow Malaysian Nur Nabila, Ismail Ahmad lost, Amier Hamzah lost his game, Afiq Afyfy drew against fellow Malaysian Nur Najiha, Najib Wahab won his second point of the tournament, Alfred Ting won his game against Arjun.

Hou Yifan Continues To Lead Jointly With Three Others, KL Open 2010

In a top of the seeds clash, Hou Yifan defended well as black and got a draw from Mchedishvili on the first board of the round 6 play this morning, 10th April 2010 at the tournament hall, 2nd Floor, Olympic Sports Hotel, Jalan Hang Jebat, Kuala Lumpur.

While her opponent from Vietnam, GM Nguyen Anh Dung, maintains his pressure on the lead with a draw on board 2.

DSCF0010

Luther Thomas (picture above), GER, gets his win and joins Hou Yifan and Nguyen with 5.0 points. Another five pointer is IM Dimakiling Oliver who disposed of GM Cao Sang, CHN, on the fourth board this morning.

image

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Other takes of the tournament: IM Jimmy Liew drew with Malaysian chess prodigy, Yeoh Li Tian, Nik Ahmad Farouqi lost against a WGM, Ronnie Lim won his game against Indonesia’s WFM Medina, Timothy Capel lost to GM Wong, Marcus lost his game, WGM Melnikova won her game against Heikal, Mohd Nabil beats Nirav, Abdul Haq won against fellow Malaysian Nur Nabila, Ismail Ahmad lost, Amier Hamzah lost his game, Afiq Afyfy drew against fellow Malaysian Nur Najiha, Najib Wahab won his second point of the tournament, Alfred Ting won his game against Arjun.

Friday, April 9, 2010

Picture Gallery, Kuala Lumpur Chess Open 2010

Here are a few selected pictures of players in the tournament hall of the fifth round of the Kuala Lumpur Chess Open 2010, Friday, 9th April 2010.

09042010601 

Pix 1. GM Megaranto Susanto(l), GM Z Rahman. 

 09042010600

Pix 2. IM Dzhurabek (left), IM Dhopade.

FMnicholasChanVsGMcaoSang

Pix 3. FM Nicholas Chan, MAS against GM Cao Sang, CHN on board 6.

top2bdsRd5  

   Pix 4. IM Ashwin, IND (L), GM Nguyen Anh Dung, VIE. 

GMziaurRahmanBd3

    Pix 5. GM Ziaur Rahman, BAN.

Bd3and4Rd5  

Pix 6. GM Megaranto Susanto, INA.

MuminovaNafisaWIM-UZB

Pix 7. WIM Muminova Nafisa, UZB.

GMNigelShort

Pix 8. GM Nigel Short scans playing boards.

Note: GM Nigel Short will conduct a simultaneous chess exhibition on the 10th April 2010, Saturday at 16:00 hours at the tournament hall of the Kuala Lumpur Chess Open 2010 located at the 2nd Floor, Olympic Sports Hall, Jalan Hang Jebat, Kuala Lumpur.

Thursday, April 8, 2010

Melnikova’s Sicilian Kan Against Dede Liu, KL Open 2010

Here is an interesting game between WGM Melnikova of Russia and IM Dede Liu of Indonesia in the second round of the Kuala Lumpur Chess Open 2010 held in the Olympic Sports Hotel, Kuala Lumpur from  6th-13th April 2010.

donostia-melnikova-yana14392

Pix 1. WGM Melnikova Yana, Russia.

Melnikova played a brilliant game against Dede. Both White and Black had their attacking chances during the game. Melnikova finished the game in 34 moves with a mate attack on black.

The Sicilian Kan opening transpired during the opening of this exciting chess game between two strong chess players. This has got to be one of Melnikova’s best game.

[Event "Kuala Lumpur Chess Open 2010, KL, Msia"]
[Site "Olympic Sports Hotel, Kuala Lumpur"]
[Date "2010.04.07"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Melnikova, Yana"]
[Black "Dede, Liu"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "B42"]

{B42: Sicilian: Kan Variation: 5 Bd3} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 a6
5. Bd3 g6 6. c4 Bg7 7. Nf3 Nc6
{last book move}

image

Pix 2. Black played 7….Nc6.

8. Nc3 d6 {Consolidates e5} 9.O-O Ne5 (9... Nf6 !? {must be considered}) 10. Nxe5 $16 dxe5 11. Be3 Ne7 12. Na4 Nc6 (12... O-O 13. Qd2 $16) 13. Bc5 (13. Bb6 Qf6 14. Bc5 ±)

13... Nd4 (13... Rb8 14. Qb3 ±) 14. f4 (14. Nb6 ± {White has the better game} Rb8
15. Qa4+ Bd7 16. Qa3 ±) 14... exf4 ± 15. Rxf4 b5 16. cxb5 axb5 17. Nb6 {White threatens to win material: Nb6xa8} Qc7 {Black threatens to win material:Qc7xf4} (17... Rb8 18. Nxc8 Rxc8 19. b4 =) 18. Qc1 ± {White has a king attack}

image

Pix 3. White’s 18.Qc1, begins white’s king attack.

18…Rb8 {Black threatens to win material: Rb8xb6} 19. Kh1 (19. e5 $142 $5 {is the best option White has} Nc6 20. Qe3 ±) 19... Ba6 (black has sl adv) 20. Na4 {White has a king attack} Qc6 21. e5 Bh6 {Black threatens to win material: Bh6xf4}

22.Be4 {White threatens to win material: Be4xc6} Qc7 (22... Qc8 !? {is interesting} 23. Nb6 Rxb6 (23... Bxf4 {is no comparison} 24. Nxc8 Bxc1 25. Nd6+ Kd7 26. Rxc1 ±) 24. Bxb6 Qxc1+ 25. Rxc1 Bxf4 black has slight advantage) 23. Rxf7 $14 (23. Bxd4 Qxc1+ 24. Rxc1 bxa4 -+)

23... Qxf7 24. Qxh6 bxa4 25. Bxd4 {Black wins the exchange} Rc8 26. Be3 Rf8 27. h3 (27. Qh3 Bc4 =) 27... Bb7 28. Bd3 Qd7 29. Rd1 Rf5 {Black threatens to win material: Rf5xe5} (29... Be4 ! {and Black could well hope to play on} 30. Be2 Bd5 =+)

30. Qh4 ± Qc6 {Black has a mate threat} (30... Rxe5 {allows the opponent a nice mating combination}

image

Pix 4. After 30…Qc6 black has a mate threat, 31…. Qxg2#.

31.Bxg6+ {Deflection: h7} Kf8 32. Rxd7 Rc1+ 33. Bxc1 Re1+ 34. Qxe1 Bxg2+ 35. Kxg2
hxg6 36. Qxe6 a3 37. Bh6#)
31. Qg4 (31. Rd2 $5 Rf7 32. Qb4 Qc1+ 33. Kh2 $16)
31... Rd8 $11 32. Rd2 Rf7 ?? (32... Rxd3 {is just about the only chance}
33. Rxd3 Qe4 34. Qxe4 Bxe4 =)
33. Bb5 !! +- {Mate attack} Qxb5 (33... Qxb5
34. Qxe6+ {Mate attack}) (33... -- 34. Qxe6+ {Mate threat})

image

Pix 5. White played 34.Qxe6+ and black resigned, as white has a mate threat.

34. Qxe6+ (34.Qxe6+ Kf8 35. Bh6+ Kg8 36. Rxd8+ Qe8 37. Rxe8#) 1-0

Fantastic play from Melnikova. Hope that she will continue to do well in this tournament in Kuala Lumpur.