A New Opening, A Familiar Result: Round 10 of WJC
Ray wins again! Ray had black against GM Sasa Martinovic and decided, for the first time, to try the Gruenfeld! The opening worked out well, as Ray more or less equalized, although the position was a bit staid. Then both players got a bit too fancy, and Ray erred first with 20…Bxf3? Ray thought that if white tried 22.Nd1 he could play 22..Bxb2, overlooking 23.Rc8+ Kg7 24.Kg1. White has some winning chances with the alternative 22.Ne4, but instead of those lines, Sasa chose the incomprehensible 22.Na4? Now Ray was in the driver’s seat with 22…Bh4! and he never let his foot off the gas. White resigned as the players made the time control. Now Ray was really in contention with an impressive (+5) score of 7.5-2.5.
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Stay tuned for the sprint to the finish in the last three rounds of the 2011 World Junior Championship and see if Ray can take home a medal.
An Amazing
Victory: Round 9 of WJC
Ray was quite fortunate to win his round 9 encounter with
Indian IM Sundar Shyam (2478). The game was very complex, and after missing a
strong continuation, 19.Rf3! things looked grim. Luckily, in mutual time trouble, Shyam played the losing
36…b2? Allowing Ray to reach the unusual ending of Queen versus Knight and
three pawns! Ray had excellent
technique, and was able to wrap up the point. Things are looking up, as Ray now
has 6.5-2.5 and will play on one of the top 4 boards in round 10.
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Stay tuned for more updates on Ray’s progress… only 4 rounds
to go.
Another Draw: Round 8 of WJC
Ray drew with Indian IM Gujrathi Vidit (2492 FIDE) in round 7, but not after a scary moment! Ray equalized quite easily, then when I felt things were looking a bit better for Ray, he played some inexact moves (in time trouble) and was soon in an uphill battle to draw. In mutual time trouble, Vidit missed the winning continuation 38.Ra1 Nb6 (38…Nc7 39.Ra7 Ke7 40.Bg4 wins) 39.Ra6 Nc4 40.Be2 Ne3+ 41.Kf2. After time control was safely reached, Ray was still a bit worse, but careful defense made the draw look easy.
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Ray has 5.5-2.5 and is tied for 9th place. He has white in round 9 against Indian IM Sundar Shyam (2478). If Ray can score 4.5 out of his next 5, he still has excellent chances for a medal. The leader throughout the event, IM Axel Rombaldoni had a setback in round 8 as he lost to Armenian IM Hovhannisyan. It looks like there will be several GM and IM norms scored this event (if you have a norm after round 9, you can’t lose it, even if you do badly in round 10-13).
Occasionally in Chennai, the power seems to go out for a few seconds or maybe even longer. Unfortunately, this happened at a most inopportune time during round 8, when both Ray and his opponent had less than one minute to make 6 moves! The tournament hall was completely black, and all games had their clocks stopped and play resumed after a two minute period of darkness. Later in the evening, when the power went out about 10:30PM, and Ray and I were preparing for his game, I yelled out “Stop your clock.”
Let’s all hope for a big finish for Ray, and a medal for our American Superstar.
A Peccable Draw: Round 7 of WJC
After winning two games on the trot with black, Ray was somewhat fortuitous (that means lucky… yeah, you know what it means) in drawing with white against Russian GM Vugar Rasulov. Ray was a bit better after his surprising opening choice of the 2.c3 Sicilian. Ray took a long time in the middlegame to find a good plan, but was not able to find the strong continuation 14.Nc4 hxg3 15.fxg3! with a small advantage. Ray was worse in the endgame, and with less than 3 minutes remaining to make the last 18 moves (and his opponent having an hour left!) things looked grim, but Ray hunkered down, defended well, and by the time the players made the time control (move 40) the draw was obvious.
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Ray is doing well with a score of 5-2, =6th place with six rounds still to be played! He plays the strong Indian IM Gujrathi Vidit (2492 FIDE) in round 7. Ray has black, and we prepared for quite some time, so I am anxious to see if Ray can win and get to the top 3 boards!
Thus far Italian IM Axel Rombaldoni is on a roll, scoring 6.5-0.5 thus far (he was held to a draw in round 7!) and seems to be the one in the driver’s seat. With so many rounds left, Ray has excellent chances for a sprint to the medals if he finishes well.
Ray wins, AGAIN!: Round 6 of WJC
Ray played another interesting game with black, but was on the brink of defeat, when his opponent could not figure things out in mutual time trouble. Ray started with a big time advantage due to good prep, then his opponent played quite well, and when mutual time trouble began, Ray was close to losing. The game was too complex for all but strong engines, and eventually Ray was fine, then his opponent blundered, allowing Ray a winning tactical shot! Now Ray has 4.5 out of 6, and is back on the top boards!
Ray will be white against new Russian GM Vugar Rasulov on board 4. There are seven rounds to go, and Ray is tied for 6th place. The big story of the event is Italian IM Axel Rombaldoni, who has started 6-0!
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The free day was a bit of fun, as Ray’s dad Gary and I went to a mall, and got some supplies. After lunch, Ray, Gary, and I went for a walk for 30 minutes or so near the hotel. Then it was back to prep (after a quick nap), dinner, and more prep!
I predict a victory for Ray tomorrow, and a long stint on the top three boards from here on out!
Back in Business!: Round 5 of WJC
Ray played inspired chess in round 5, winning a beautiful Dragon Sicilian, finishing in a flurry of tactics!
Ray’s opponent was the tough Indian player IM Priyadharshan (2376). Ray made things look easy, especially after the crowd-pleasing haymaker 26..Qxa4+!
Winning a nice tactical game with black is always nice, especially after a tough loss. Ray’s willingness to play the hyper-aggressive 13…Rb8, which we analyzed in our pre-game prep, shows his willingness to duke it out, and take chances with black, in order to fight for a medal.
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Ray now has 3.5-1.5 and will likely have black again tomorrow. I expect Ray’s next opponent to be 2450 FIDE or so, and a win would be a great way to finish the first half and have a pleasant rest day, before the fighting in the second half commences.
A Bad Day at The Office: Round 4 of WJC
Ray lost in round 4, as time trouble was the enemy. Ray was white against Russian IM Goganov, and things started out well, as the players played 19 moves of theory in a French Defense. Goganov played a new move starting with 19…h5!? This seems to me to be a bit worse than the normal 19…Bg5. Ray was slightly better, then started to drift with 27.Nb4?! and 28.b6?! In a worse position, and with little time, Ray fought back, and would have been equal if he had found 35.Rf1! Ray went on to lose a worse rook ending.
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Only one player is 4-0 in the Open section, Italian IM Axel Rombaldoni. Axel won his round 4 game with black against the higher rated Israeli GM, and World Team Championship participant, Tamir Nabaty.
Ray has black today against Indian IM Priyadharshan (2376 FIDE), who was able to draw against the top seed GM Matlakov with black in round 4!
Many of the top seeds have 2.5 or 3 out of 4, and are finding it difficult to beat the lower rated players. The Junior Championships are always difficult for the top seeds, as the younger, lower rated players are generally gunning for wins against better players.
Tomorrow (Sunday) is round 5, and then Monday is the free day. The tournament is 13 rounds, so Ray and I hope he can win the next two games before the free day, and get back to the top 5 boards.
Long International tournaments are difficult, and let’s see how Ray bounces back from his tough loss. I told Ray that with 9 rounds to go, the tournament has just begun, and it’s time to get on a hot streak!
[imagefield_assist|fid=11927|preset=fullsize|lightbox=true|title=GM Ben Finegold enjoyed some fresh-squeezed sugar cane juice on the beach of Chennai between rounds of the World Junior Championship. Yummy!|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=700|height=523]
World Junior Championships: Round 3
Round 3 is over and Ray was able to win a nice game in only 26 moves against 2375 rated Aditya Udeshi. Ray eschewed his usual Open Sicilian and played 2.Nc3, as we thought his opponent was well-prepared in the Najdorf, but not as familiar with other move orders. The game went it’s own way quickly, as black played 2…a6 (still hoping for a Najdorf?) and Ray was able to play a Closed Sicilian with the move a6 not so important. Ray did not get much from the opening, and both players took a lot of time in the middlegame, but went astray in time trouble with the bad move 19…Bxa2? Udeshi said he missed Ray’s strong reply 20.Ng4! and later Ray was able to play the crowd pleasing 26.d5! forcing resignation.[new_pgn|path=content/ray-india]
There are 3 players with a perfect 3-0, and Ray is currently tied for fourth place, and playing the strong Russian IM Aleksey Goganov on board 3 in the 4th round.
The tournament is quite long (13 rounds) and my main goal as a coach is to make sure Ray is relaxed and comfortable so as to be ready to play. We look at a lot of opening lines, but we joke a lot as well, and look at some chess stuff just for fun, and I make sure Ray laughs a lot and is loose for his game. Ray loves to look at chess, and making him relax and take it easy before the game is not an easy task!
Ray’s dad, Gary, is also here, and he likes to go out and see Chennai during the beginning of the round, and then sweat it out with me (and Ray!) as the round comes to a close.
I had lunch yesterday with World Champion Vishy Anand, and I met his lovely wife Aruna and their 4 month old Akil. It was nice visiting with Anand, since we have not seen each other in over 15 years! When I lived in Belgium, 1988-1992, I would see Vishy often, and he event stayed at my place for a week whilst he was getting Visas for various European countries.
My son Spencer, who is playing in the U.S. Open right now, (and has 4.5-1.5) said tongue and cheek, “You got to hang out with Anand, and all I got was to hang out with Gelfand.” ☺
[imagefield_assist|fid=11923|preset=fullsize|lightbox=true|title=GM Ray Robson took on GM Ben Finegold in May. Ben is now coaching Ray at the World Junior Championship.|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=700|height=464]
World Junior Championship: Round 2
Two rounds have finished, and it’s upsets galore at the 2011 World Junior Championships!
The top seed, Maxim Matlakov of Russia was held to a draw in round 1. There were various other top players who drew as well. In round 2, the second seed, also from Russia, Sanan Sjugirov (I think that he is Mike Kummer’s favorite player) lost. Another top player, 4th seed Aleksandr Shimanov (also of Russia) lost! So it looks like it is anyone’s event. Clearly, the lower-rated players in this event are quite tough and came here to prove that players rated 2200-2350 can compete with the 2500-2640 rated players.
My friend Ivan Salgado Lopez has done well thus far, winning both of his games. Ivan is the 3rd seed, and many of the readers may remember him back in Saint Louis two months ago, when he was Ruslan Ponomariov’s second for the match with Nakamura. It is like a reunion here, as Ray and I played a match at that time as well!
Speaking of Ray, he has done well thus far. Ray won his first game with white, and drew with black in round 2 (although Ray may have been losing that game). Avoiding losses and keeping close to the leaders is the plan in this marathon 13-round event! Ray is white against a 2375 FIDE rated player in round 3.
I am supposed to have lunch tomorrow with World Chess Champion “Vishy” Anand, so I will try to get a quote and picture for my blog readers!
More info on the event here can be found at the well-known chess results page at: http://chess-results.com/tnr54092.aspx?lan=1
World Junior Championship: Round 1
The 2011 World Junior Championship is underway in Chennai, India. The organization is a bit shoddy, the hotel is even shoddier, but, round 1 has begun, and may the chess begin!
There are over 125 players in the Open section and 69 in the girls section, assuming all players are able to make it (I heard one player in the girls, possibly the highest rated, had her flight canceled, and she may show up for round 2).
Ray Robson has the white pieces against an Indian player rated around 2250 FIDE, Sharma Hemant. The tournament is an exhausting 13 rounds, and there will be a rest day after round 6. I am quite confident Ray will win one of the medals, and score at least 9.5 points. Ray is in good form lately, and together, we will do great preparations for each game.
Each day the rounds start at 2 p.m. local time (3:30 a.m. the previous day in Saint Louis!), except the last round, August 15, which starts 11 a.m. local time.
Hopefully I will be able to report each day. For live games, pictures, pairings, standings, and the like, go to: http://www.wjcc2011.org/
