The World Stars Sharjah Online International Chess Tournament on ended June 13 on the Internet Chess Club’s chessclub.com playing server with a convincing victory for GM Shakhriyar Mamedyarov.
Aside from Mamedyarov, the other players in the double round robin event were Radoslaw Wojtaszek, Pentala Harikrishna, Bassem Amin, A.R. Saleh Salem, and Rustam Kasimdzhanov.
The tournament, organized by the United Arab Emirates’ Sharjah Cultural & Chess Club and the ICC, had a time format of 10 minutes plus three seconds increment.
Mamedyarov took home the $3,000 top prize, runner-up Harikrishna pocketed $2,250 and bronze finisher Wojtaszek took the $1,500 prize purse. In fact, nobody went home empty-handed as even the tournament whipping boy and tail-ender, Bassem, came out richer by $600.
The final standings: 1. Mamedyarov, 7½; 2. Harikrishna, 6½; 3. Wojtaszek, 6; 4. Kasimdzhanov, 5½; 5. Salem, 3; 6. Bassem, 1½.
Mamedyarov, S (2764)-Kasimdzhanov, R (2661) [D45]
chessclub.com (2.2) 2020
1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 c6 4.e3 Nf6 5.Nf3 Nbd7 6.Qc2 Bd6 7.Bd3 0-0 8.0-0 dxc4 9.Bxc4 b5 10.Bd3 Bb7 11.e4 e5 12.Rd1 Qc7 13.h3 b4 14.Ne2 c5 15.dxe5 Bxe5 16.Nxe5 Nxe5 17.Bf4 c4 18.Bxe5 Qxe5 19.Qxc4 a5 20.f4 Qxb2 21.Rab1 Qa3 22.e5 Ba6 23.Qc1 Qxc1 24.Rbxc1 Bxd3 25.Rxd3 Ne4 26.Rc4 f5 27.g4 g6 28.gxf5 gxf5 29.Rd5 Ra7 30.Kg2 Rb8 31.e6 a4 32.Rd7 Rab7 33.Nd4 b3 34.axb3 axb3 35.Nxf5 h5 36.Rc8+ Rxc8 37.Rxb7 Rc2+ 38.Kf3 1-0
Harikrishna, P (2719)-Mamedyarov, S (2764) [C77]
chessclub.com (3.3) 2020
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.d3 b5 6.Bb3 Bc5 7.Nc3 h6 8.a4 Rb8 9.axb5 axb5 10.Nd5 d6 11.h3 0-0 12.0-0 Nxd5 13.Bxd5 Ne7 14.Bb3 Ng6 15.Be3 Qf6 16.Nh2 Bxe3 17.fxe3 Qg5 18.Kf2 Nh4 19.Rg1 Kh8 20.Nf3 Nxf3 21.Qxf3 f5 22.Ke2 Bb7 23.Rgf1 Rf6 24.Ra7 Rbf8 25.h4 fxe4 26.hxg5 exf3+ 27.gxf3 Bxf3+ 28.Kd2 hxg5 29.Rxc7 g4 30.Rg1 Rh6 31.Kc3 Rh1 32.Rg3 Rf6 33.Re7 Rh3 34.Rg1 g3 35.Be6 b4+ 36.Kxb4 Rh4+ 37.e4 g2 38.Ra1 Rxe6 39.Rxe6 Rh1 40.Re8+ Kh7 41.Rea8 Bd1 0-1
Mamedyarov, S (2764)-Salem, A.R.S. (2682) [D73]
chessclub.com (5.1) 2020
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nf3 Bg7 4.g3 d5 5.Bg2 dxc4 6.Na3 c3 7.bxc3 0-0 8.0-0 c5 9.Re1 Nc6 10.Bb2 Nd5 11.e4 Nb6 12.h3 Na5 13.Bc1 Bd7 14.Bf4 Rc8 15.Rc1 Nbc4 16.Nxc4 Nxc4 17.Bf1 cxd4 18.cxd4 b5 19.a4 Nb2 20.Rxc8 Qxc8 21.Qb3 Nxa4 22.Bxb5 Nb6 23.Rc1 Qe8 24.Bxd7 Qxd7 25.Rc7 Qxh3 26.Ng5 Qh5 27.Rxe7 Qe2 28.Rxf7 Qc4 29.Qxc4 Nxc4 30.Rxg7+ Kxg7 31.Ne6+ Kf7 32.Nxf8 Kxf8 33.Kf1 a5 34.Ke2 a4 35.Bd2 h5 36.f4 Kf7 37.Kd3 Nb2+ 38.Kc2 Nc4 39.Kc3 Nd6 40.Kd3 a3 41.d5 g5 42.fxg5 Kg6 43.e5 Nf5 44.d6 Ng7 45.d7 Ne6 46.Kc2 Kf5 47.Ba5 1-0
Mamedyarov, S (2764)-Amin, B (2686) [C25]
chessclub.com (9.1) 2020
1.e4 e5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Qg4 g6 5.Qf3 Nf6 6.Nge2 d6 7.d3 Bg4 8.Qg3 Be6 9.Bg5 h6 10.Qh4 Ng4 11.Bxe6 Bxf2+ 12.Qxf2 Nxf2 13.Bxd8 Nxh1 14.Bf6 fxe6 15.Bxh8 Kf7 16.Kd2 Rxh8 17.Rxh1 a6 18.Rf1+ Kg7 19.Nd1 Rf8 20.Rxf8 Kxf8 21.c3 Kf7 22.Ke3 Kf6 23.h4 1-0
Salem, A.R.S. (2682)-Mamedyarov, S (2764) [D24]
chessclub.com (10.2) 2020
1.d4 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 e6 5.e4 Bb4 6.e5 Nd5 7.Bd2 Nb6 8.Be2 Nc6 9.a3 Be7 10.Be3 0-0 11.h4 Na5 12.Qc2 Nd5 13.Rd1 f5 14.exf6 Nxf6 15.Ng5 h6 16.d5 e5 17.d6 Bxd6 18.Rd5 Nc6 19.Bxc4 Kh8 20.Ne2 Ne7 21.Rd1 Bf5 22.Qc3 hxg5 23.hxg5+ Nh7 24.Nf4 exf4 25.Bd4 Rg8 26.Rd3 Nc6 27.Rdh3 Re8+ 28.Kf1 Nxd4 29.Rxh7+ Bxh7 30.Qh3 Re1+ 31.Kxe1 Qe7+ 32.Kf1 g6 0-1
*******
PUZZLERS
WHITE TO MOVE,
MATE IN TWO.
The key to our last problem is 1.Nd4!. Black’s futile options are: 1…Bxc7 2.Bxc7#; 1…cxd4 2.Bb4#; 1…exd4 2.Qf4#; 1…dxe2+ 2.Sxe2#; 1…dxc2+ 2.Sxc2#./PN
