GM Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa, India’s chess prodigy, emerged the clear and convincing victor in the Julius Baer Polgar Challenge which concluded April 11 at the chess24.com playing server. The victory was not only worth US$3,000 for the 15-year old Praggnanandhaa, it also earned him a wildcard slot in the next elite Meltwater Champions Chess Tour tournament slated April 24.
Besides Praggnanandhaa, the other youth combatants in the 19-player, single round robin, Category 11 (average Elo: 2514) rapid event were GMs Nodirbek Abdusattorov, Sarin Nihal, Awonder Liang, Vincent Keymer, Dommaraju Gukesh, Jonas Buhl Bjerre, Leon Luke Mendonca and Tingjie Lei, WGM Jiner Zhu, IMs Sarasadat Khademalsharieh, Volodar Murzin, Polina Shuvalova, Zhansaya Abdumalik, Christopher Woojin Yoo, Gunay Mammadzada, Olga Badelka, Carissa Yip, and Nurgyul Salimova. IM Dinara Saduakassova was initially listed to compete, but internet problems compelled her to withdraw.
The young masters were divided into Team Judit Polgar and Team Vladimir Kramnik of 10-players each. Adding the points earned by each team member showed Team Polar winning 96½-88 over Team Kramnik. The Julius Baer Challengers Chess Tour returns on June 10 for the Gelfand Challenge. Two teams of players will again compete for a $15,000 prize pot and another wildcard entry into the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour.
The final standings: 1. Praggnanandhaa, 14½; 2-5. Gukesh, Murzin, Abdusattorov, Nihal, 13; 6. Keymer, 12½; 7. Liang, 11½; 8-9. Yoo, Mendonca, 11; 10. Bjerre, 9½; 11-12. Lei, Zhu, 9; 13. Salimova, 6; 14-15. Abdumalik, Shuvalova, 5½; 16-17. Khademalsharieh, Mammadzada, 4½; 18. Yip, 3; 19. Badelka, 2.
Praggnanandhaa, R (2608)-Murzin, V (2478) [E70]
chess24.com (1.4) 2021
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 0-0 5.h3 d6 6.Be3 e5 7.d5 Na6 8.Nf3 Nc5 9.Nd2 a5 10.g4 c6 11.Be2 a4 12.g5 Ne8 13.h4 f6 14.Rg1 Qa5 15.Rb1 Bd7 16.h5 fxg5 17.hxg6 h6 18.Bg4 Bxg4 19.Qxg4 Nf6 20.Qg2 Nd3+ 21.Ke2 Nf4+ 22.Bxf4 exf4 23.Qh3 Rae8 24.Kd1 Qc5 25.Rf1 b5 26.Qd3 b4 27.Nxa4 Qa7 28.b3 cxd5 29.cxd5 Ng4 30.Ke1 Ne5 31.Qe2 Rc8 32.Nf3 Nxf3+ 33.Qxf3 Rc2 34.Qd3 Rfc8 35.Kd1 Rxf2 36.Re1 Be5 37.Rc1 Rxc1+ 38.Kxc1 Rxa2 39.Qb5 Ra1+ 40.Kd2 Qd4+ 41.Kc2 Ra2+ 0-1
Abdusattorov, N (2627)-Murzin, V (2478) [B14]
chess24.com (13.10) 2021
1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.exd5 cxd5 4.c4 Nf6 5.Nc3 g6 6.Qb3 Bg7 7.cxd5 0-0 8.g3 a5 9.Bg2 a4 10.Nxa4 Nxd5 11.Ne2 e6 12.0-0 Nc6 13.Nac3 Re8 14.Rd1 Bd7 15.Nxd5 exd5 16.Be3 Bg4 17.Nc3 Bxd1 18.Rxd1 Ne7 19.Nxd5 Nxd5 20.Bxd5 Qd7 21.Kg2 Red8 22.Bf3 Ra5 23.a3 Rb5 24.Qc2 Rc8 25.Qa4 Rd5 26.Qxd7 Rxd7 27.Rd2 Bf8 28.Bg4 f5 29.Bd1 Kg7 30.Bb3 Rdd8 31.Be6 Rc7 32.d5 Rc4 33.Bd4+ Kh6 34.Bf6 Rd6 35.Be5 Rd8 36.h4 Bd6 37.Bc3 Re8 38.Rd3 Ra8 39.Kh3 Re8 40.f3 f4 41.g4 g5 42.Bf6 gxh4 43.Bf7 Re5 44.Kxh4 Be7 45.g5+ Rxg5 46.Bxe7 Rg1 47.Bf8+ 1-0
Keymer, V (2591)-Praggnanandhaa, R (2608) [E62]
chess24.com (15.5) 2021
1.Nf3 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.g3 0-0 5.Bg2 d6 6.d4 Nc6 7.0-0 e5 8.dxe5 dxe5 9.Bg5 h6 10.Qxd8 Rxd8 11.Bxf6 Bxf6 12.Nd5 Kg7 13.Nxc7 Rb8 14.Nd5 e4 15.Nd2 e3 16.Nxf6 exd2 17.Nd5 Bg4 18.f3 Be6 19.e4 Na5 20.Rfd1 Nxc4 21.b3 Bxd5 22.exd5 Ne3 23.Rxd2 Rxd5 24.Rxd5 Nxd5 25.Rc1 Nf6 26.f4 Ne8 27.Kf2 b6 28.Bf3 Rd8 29.Ke3 Kf8 30.Rc4 Nd6 31.Rc7 Nf5+ 32.Ke4 a5 33.Bg4 Re8+ 34.Kd3 Rd8+ 35.Kc3 Ne3 36.Bf3 Rd6 37.a4 h5 38.b4 axb4+ 39.Kxb4 Rd2 40.Kb5 Rb2+ 41.Ka6 Rxh2 42.Kxb6 Rh3 43.Rc3 Nf5 44.a5 Rxg3 45.a6 Ne7 46.a7 Rxf3 47.a8Q+ 1-0
Praggnanandhaa, R (2608)-Mendonca, LL (2549) [D12]
chess24.com (16.6) 2021
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 d5 4.e3 Bf5 5.Nc3 e6 6.Nh4 Be4 7.f3 Bg6 8.Qb3 Qc7 9.cxd5 Nxd5 10.g3 Be7 11.Nxg6 hxg6 12.Kf2 Nd7 13.e4 N5f6 14.Kg2 0-0 15.Be2 c5 16.Bf4 Qa5 17.d5 e5 18.Bg5 Qc7 19.Rac1 a6 20.a4 Bd6 21.Nb1 Rab8 22.Na3 Rfc8 23.Rc2 Ne8 24.h4 Ndf6 25.Rhc1 Be7 26.a5 Qxa5 27.Nc4 Qc7 28.Nb6 Rd8 29.Be3 Nd7 30.Nxd7 Qxd7 31.Qb6 Rdc8 32.Bf1 Bd8 33.Qb3 Be7 34.Kh2 b5 35.Bh3 Qc7 36.Bxc8 Rxc8 37.Bxc5 Bxc5 38.Rxc5 Qxc5 39.Rxc5 Rxc5 40.Qa3 Rc2+ 41.Kh3 Nf6 42.d6 Rf2 43.Qxa6 Rxf3 44.Qc8+ Kh7 45.d7 Nxd7 46.Qxd7 b4 47.Qe7 b3 48.Qxe5 Rd3 49.Qb5 Re3 50.Qc4 f6 51.Kg2 1-0
Nihal, S (2620)-Murzin, V (2478) [D12]
chess24.com (16.2) 2021
1.Nf3 Nf6 2.c4 c6 3.d4 d5 4.e3 Bf5 5.Nc3 e6 6.Nh4 Be4 7.f3 Bg6 8.Qb3 Qc7 9.Bd2 Nbd7 10.cxd5 exd5 11.Rc1 Be7 12.g3 Qb6 13.Nxg6 hxg6 14.Kf2 Nf8 15.Qxb6 axb6 16.a3 Ne6 17.Bd3 g5 18.h3 g6 19.Ne2 Kf8 20.Kg2 Kg7 21.Bc3 Rhd8 22.Rhd1 Kg8 23.Rd2 Bf8 24.Rf1 Bg7 25.Rdd1 b5 26.Bb1 Ne8 27.f4 gxf4 28.exf4 Nd6 29.g4 Re8 30.Ng3 Nc4 31.Kf3 c5 32.dxc5 Bxc3 33.bxc3 Rxa3 34.Ne2 d4 35.Nxd4 Rxc3+ 36.Kf2 Ne3 37.Nxb5 Nxd1+ 38.Rxd1 Rxh3 39.Nd6 Rd8 40.Rc1 Nxc5 41.Nxf7 Rd2+ 42.Ke1 Rb2 43.Bc2 Kxf7 44.Kd2 Nb3+ 0-1
*******
PUZZLERS
WHITE TO MOVE,
MATE IN TWO.
The key to our last problem is 1.Ne2!, and Black’s futile options are: 1…Rd4 2.Qxd4#; 1…Rd5/d2/d1 2.Qf4#; 1…Ke4 2.Qf4/e7#; 1…Kxe2 2.Qe7#; 1…Nf3 2.Qxf3#./PN
