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Bagheri@

07-04-03, 03:42pm
(posts: 13)
subject: A stelar Performance at the Ruy Lopez Tournament

"The Armenian GM Gabriel Sargissian outclassed the field at the Ruy Lopez tournament held at Zafra the birthplace of the Spanish Priest who invented the opening that bears his name.

Sargissian took a 1.5 point lead with just a game to play and ironically achieved tournament victory after twice defending the Ruy Lopez and scoring successive wins with black. He also won twice against the Queen’s Gambit Accepted with white to finish on a remarkable 6.5/7 with second placed Julio Granda Zuniga and former Fide champion Ruslan Ponomariov 2.5 points adrift on 4/7.

This stellar performance gained Sargissian 38 rating points, one of the largest gains I have seen in one event in recent years and it may even propel him into the world’s top 20 players. His tournament rating performance was 3021, to put this into context, the world number one is usually rated around 2800.

Krisnan Sasikira world ranked 21 could only muster 2.5/7 while Ivan Sokolov ranked 51 scored 4/7.


"

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 Bagheri@

07-04-03, 03:43pm
(posts: 13)

comment on article
A stelar Performance at the Ruy Lopez Tournament from Bagheri@
subject: Re: A stelar Performance at the Ruy Lopez Tournament part2

"G Sargissian – R Ponomariov
Magistral Ruy Lopez Zafra (5)
Queen’s Gambit Accepted

1.d4 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.e4 Nf6 4.e5 Nd5 5.Bxc4 Nb6 6.Bd3 Nc6 7.Be3 Be6 8.Nc3 Bc4 9.Bxc4 Nxc4 (Black neglects development in order to exchange White"s potentially dangerous light squared bishop and establish a strong square on d5)
10.Qb3 N6a5 11.Qc2 e6 12.Nf3 Nc6 (12...Nxe3 13.fxe3 would strengthen White’s centre and leave Black exposed on the f file)
13.0–0 Nb4 14.Qe4 Nd5 15.Bg5 Nxc3 16.bxc3 Qd5 17.Qxd5 (Sargissian might have tried 17.Qg4 although 17...h6 18.Bh4 g5 19.Bg3 0–0–0 looks very unclear)
17...exd5 18.Nd2 Nxd2 (18...Nb6!? and if 19.f4 Na4 20.Rf3 Ba3)
19.Bxd2 f5 (19...c5 looks reasonable but first Black wants to stifle White"s kingside pawn advance)
20.h3 Be7 21.g4 Rf8 22.Kg2 Kd7 23.Rab1 b6 24.a4 h5!? 25.gxh5 Rh8 26.h6 g5 (Also risky, gxh6 was reasonable)
27.h4 g4?! (Overlooking a tactic, 27...Rag8 28.Rh1 Rxh6 29.hxg5 Bxg5 30.Bxg5 Rxg5+ 31.Kf3 Rgh5 =)
28.f3 Rag8 29.fxg4 Rxg4+ 30.Kf3 Rhg8 (30...Bf8 to remove the dangerous h6 pawn looks best)
31.Rg1! (Clearly overlooked by Ponomariov and suddenly he is struggling)
31...Bxh4 (31...Rxg1 32.Rxg1 Rxg1 33.h7)
32.Rxg4 fxg4+ 33.Kg2 (Black cannot blockade the h6 pawn and defend his g4 pawn at the same time, his rook is overworked)
33...Ke6 34.Rh1 Be7 35.Kg3 Kf5 36.h7 Rh8 37.Rh5+ Kg6 38.Kxg4 Bf8 39.e6 1-0
In view of 39.e6 Rxh7 40.Rxh7 Kxh7 41.Bg5 Kg6 42.e7 winning.

Ponomariov
[FEN]6r1/p1pkb3/1p5P/3pPp2/P2P2rP/2P2K2/3B4/1R4R1 [/FEN]
Sargissian

Position after 31.Rg1!





Final scores:

1 Sargissian (Armenia) 6.5/7
2-3 Granda Zuniga (Peru), Ponomariov (Ukraine) 4/7
4 I Sokolov (Netherlands) 4
5 Candelario (Spain) 3.5
6-7 Sasikiran (India), Stefanova (Bulgaria) 2.5
8 Hou Yifan (China)
"

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