Tan Zhongyi deservedly wins the Cairns Cup
Former girls’s world champion Tan Zhongyi came upon simply how helpful it’s to enter the ultimate spherical with a considerable lead on the Cairns Cup. She suffered her first defeat in spherical 9, however due to her 5 wins and three attracts she nonetheless had sufficient of a cushion to be awarded the winner’s trophy outright after her closest rival Alice Lee drew her recreation.
Spherical 9 outcomes
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Tan Zhongyi would certainly have favored to complete the event unbeaten, however her defeat in opposition to Stavroula Tsolakidou does little to decrease her efficiency | Picture: Lennart Ootes / Saint Louis Chess Membership
It seemed as if Tan would face an opponent within the closing spherical whose vitality may be starting to fade. Stavroula Tsolakidou had remained unbeaten by spherical six. The Greek IM had even retained theoretical possibilities of successful the event and/or incomes a GM norm. However she then misplaced to Bibisara Assaubayeva in spherical seven and to Carissa Yip in spherical eight. The highlight of the ultimate spherical appeared to encourage the 26-year-old, nevertheless. She performed a wonderful positional recreation and obtained a convincing win.
With this victory, Tsolakidou completed fifth within the sturdy discipline and gained 8 Elo factors. She was the one participant to inflict a defeat on each Tan and Lee, handing every of them their solely lack of the event – a notable achievement. Match winner Tan, in the meantime, leaves with the trophy, $65,000 in prize cash and a acquire of 16 Elo factors.
These days, the record of necessities for a gap repertoire is lengthy: being sound and sustainable; not requiring a lot memorisation; providing nice attacking possibilities; making your opponent suppose early on and so forth… The time of discovering a minimal benefit from the opening has handed, and we’re higher off with a extra sensible strategy – merely understanding the place higher than our opponent does. The Repertoire for White 1.d4 … 2.Bg5! from IM Robert Ris solutions all these necessities!
Free video pattern: Introduction
Free video pattern: 1.d4 Nf6 2.Bg5 e6 3.e4 Be7/d5/c5
Stavroula Tsolakidou had each cause to smile after defeating the event winner and former girls’s world champion | Picture: Lennart Ootes / Saint Louis Chess Membership
The opposite winner: Alice Lee
Alice Lee was not capable of catch the chief, however she was nonetheless delighted within the interview after her recreation. Ending second in such a robust event continues to be a serious success. Moreover, along with her rating, the 16-year-old additionally earned her first GM norm. There was an added twist: within the closing spherical, she confronted her good friend and defending champion Carissa Yip, needing one other half-point to safe the norm.
Buddies Alice Lee and Carissa Yip have already performed many wild video games in opposition to one another – their encounter on Wednesday was not fairly as thrilling, nevertheless it ended with a wonderful achievement for the 16-year-old | Picture: Lennart Ootes / Saint Louis Chess Membership
Lee admitted: “I used to be nervous earlier than the sport and sad with the opening as a result of I used to be on the defensive”. Yip’s benefit, nevertheless, lasted solely from strikes 13 to 22 and, in response to the engine, peaked at round one and a half pawns. Lee as soon as once more confirmed composure, equalised and reached a balanced endgame. Even then, she was not solely reassured, as on this place…
…she had been fearful about 40…Bf2 and envisaged having to defend for a very long time with inactive items. In spite of everything, the bishop on f2 can’t be pushed away, and Black may attempt to break by on the kingside. The engine, nevertheless, evaluates the place as 0.00.
Finally, this place arose and, simply when everybody anticipated Yip to repeat strikes, she feinted a brand new transfer with a smile in Lee’s path – solely to play 46…Ke8 in spite of everything, permitting 47.Ng1 and a repetition:
“I am relieved and glad”, Lee stated afterwards, unsurprisingly, following what was in all probability the perfect event of her profession to this point, through which she defeated 4 grandmasters.
Two gamers who will need to overlook the event
What goes by the thoughts of a former world champion after beginning a serious event with 4 straight losses? Alexandra Kosteniuk confirmed resilience and recovered. She drew 4 video games in a row after which received her final-round recreation in opposition to Vaishali Rameshbabu. The consequence noticed the 2 swap locations: Kosteniuk completed second-last, whereas her opponent ended on the backside of the standings. Whether or not Vaishali’s consequence had something to do with not eager to reveal an excessive amount of earlier than her World Championship match is unattainable to know. What is obvious is that each will in all probability need to put this event behind them rapidly.
A optimistic end for Alexandra Kosteniuk (left): after opening with 4 defeats, she adopted with 4 attracts after which scored her first win within the closing spherical in opposition to Girls’s World Championship challenger Vaishali Rameshbabu | Picture: Lennart Ootes
Two extra gamers with out a win
Alongside Lee’s draw, spherical 9 produced two additional attracts. Bibisara Assaubayeva and Humpy Koneru agreed a draw that was a good reflection of the play. Assaubayeva thus completed fourth general, whereas the winless Koneru positioned eighth.
Anna Muzychuk additionally completed with out a win, however not like Koneru, she remained unbeaten. She recorded her ninth draw within the ninth and closing spherical. With black, she had little problem retaining the steadiness in her recreation in opposition to Divya Deshmukh.
