The Kei-Shar’s FIDE qualifying chess tournament concludes today with Wendell Meusa in the lead with 4½ points from the five games which have been completed so far. Taffin Khan has been the lone player who has drawn with Meusa, taking a half point away from him. Taffin is in the second position in the tournament with four points having drawn with Meusa and Loris Nathoo.
Shiv Nandalall and Ronuel Greenidge are having a good tournament also. Both players have four points from five games and stand alongside Taffin in joint second. The tournament is a qualifying one to determine the six local players who will face four FIDE-rated players from the Caribbean in a FIDE tournament to be held in Guyana in July. At the conclusion of the said tournament, our six representatives will be given FIDE ratings according to their performances.
Vishy Anand has retained his World Chess Championship title with an impressive performance in the twelfth and final game of the match. The match was tied after the eleventh game which placed Anand in a must win situation in the twelfth. If this game had been drawn, the match would have gone to the playoff format where the players’ time would have been reduced. Anand came out with guns blazing and stopped his opponent with almost flawless play.
Viswanathan Anand shattered the aspirations of Veselin Topalov becoming world champion by winning the final game of the World Championship match and thereby retaining his title. Anand, playing Black, chose the solid Queen’s Gambit Declined. He took a shot at weakening his opponent’s King and Topalov panicked, according to press reports.
Anand had won the World Championship title in 2000 in the knockout format of the game. In 2007, he won again, but this time in the tournament format. The following year he played a match for the title with Russia’s Vladimir Kramnik and prevailed. He has now successfully defended his title.
Topalov,Veselin (2805) – Anand,Viswanathan (2787)
World Chess Championship Sofia/Bulgaria (12), 11.5.2010
1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 Be7 5.Bg5 h6 6.Bh4 0-0 7.e3 Ne4 8.Bxe7 Qxe7 9.Rc1 c6 10.Be2 Nxc3 11.Rxc3 dxc4 12.Bxc4 Nd7 13.0-0 b6 14.Bd3 c5 15.Be4 Rb8 16.Qc2 Nf6 17.dxc5 Nxe4 18.Qxe4 bxc5 19.Qc2N Bb7 20.Nd2 Rfd8 21.f3 Ba6 22.Rf2 Rd7 23.g3 Rbd8 24.Kg2 Bd3 25.Qc1 Ba6 26.Ra3 Bb7 27.Nb3 Rc7 28.Na5 Ba8 29.Nc4 e5 30. e4 f5 31.exf5 Qxe4+ 33.Kh3 Rd4 34. Ne3 Qe8! A lovely shot, and Anand plays the rest of the game nearly flawlessly. 35.g4 h5 36.Kh4 g5+ 37.fxg6 Qxg6 38.Qf1 Rxg4+ 39.Kh3 Re7 40.Rf8+ Kg7 41.Nf5+ Kh7 42.Rg3 Rxg3+ 43.hxg3 Qg4+ 44.Kh2 Re2+ 45.Kg1 Rg2+ 46.Qxg2 Bxg2 47.Kxg2 Qe2+ 48.Kh3 c4 49.a4 a5 50.Rf6 Kg8 51.Nh6+ Kg7 52.Rb6 Qe4 53.Kh2 Kh7 54.Rd6 Qe5 55.Nf7 Qxb2+ 56.Kh3 Qg7 White Resigns! 0-1.
Following Anand’s World Chess Championship victory over Bulgaria’s Veselin Topalov, the Prime Minister of India Manmohan Singh congratulated Anand on his victory. He said: “I am delighted to salute you at your fourth World Chess Championship triumph within a decade. I understand that your Championship game in Sofia was played under the most difficult circumstances, but you proved once again that you remain the grandest of grandmasters. You have made the country proud and I join millions of admirers of the game of chess in celebrating your magnificent triumph.”
Anand v Topalov
Anand and Topalov called a truce in this game on the 65th move, levelling the score in the 12-game match at 5.5 points to an equal 5.5 points. The 12th and final game would prove to be crucial for the outcome of the match.
Anand, V (2787) – Topalov, V (2805)
WCh Sofia BUL (11), 09.5.2010
1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.g3 d5 5.cxd5 Nxd5 6.Bg2 Nb6 7.0-0 Be7 8.a3 0-0 9.b4 Be6 10.d3 f6 11.Ne4 Qe8 12.Nc5 Bxc5 13.bxc5 Nd5 14.Bb2 Rd8 15.Qc2 Nde7 16.Rab1 Ba2 17.Rbc1 Qf7 18.Bc3 Rd7 19.Qb2 Rb8 20.Rfd1 Be6 21.Rd2 h6 22.Qb1 Nd5 23.Rb2 b6 24.cxb6 cxb6 25.Bd2 Rd6 26.Rbc2 Qd7 27.h4 Rd8 28.Qb5 Nde7 29.Qb2 Bd5 30.Bb4 Nxb4 31.axb4 Rc6 32.b5 Rxc2 33.Rxc2 Be6 34.d4 e4 35.Nd2 Qxd4 36.Nxe4 Qxb2 37.Rxb2 Kf7 38.e3 g5 39.hxg5 hxg5 40.f4 gxf4 41.exf4 Rd4 42.Kf2 Nf5 43.Bf3 Bd5 44.Nd2 Bxf3 45.Nxf3 Ra4 46.g4 Nd6 47.Kg3 Ne4+ 48.Kh4 Nd6 49.Rd2 Nxb5 50.f5 Re4 51.Kh5 Re3 52.Nh4 Nc3 53.Rd7+ Re7 54.Rd3 Ne4 55.Ng6 Nc5 56.Ra3 Rd7 57.Re3 Kg7 58.g5 b5 59.Nf4 b4 60.g6 b3 61.Rc3 Rd4 62.Rxc5 Rxf4 63.Rc7+ Kg8 64.Rb7 Rf3 65.Rb8+ Kg7 ½-½ DRAW.
