chessbase india logo

Nepomniachtchi, Firouzja and MVL top Saint Louis Rapid 2024

by Shahid Ahmed - 15/08/2024

Ian Nepomniachtchi, Alireza Firouzja (FRA) and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (FRA) top the Rapid portion of Grand Chess Tour Saint Louis Rapid and Blitz 2024. They are at 11/18 each. Levon Aronian (USA) is following them at sole fourth place 10/18. Wesley So (USA) and Hikaru Nakamura (USA) are at 9/18 each. Fabiano Caruana (USA) and Nodirbek Abdusattorov (UZB) are having 8/18 each. Praggnanandhaa continues to struggle at the bottom of the points table 4/18. Apart from Praggnanandhaa the difference of score between the leaders and eighth place is only of three points. With 18 rounds of Blitz games left to be played, anything can happen. Nine rounds of Blitz will be played today starting from 1 p.m. local time, 11:30 p.m. IST. Photo: Lennart Ootes/Grand Chess Tour

Closely contested Rapid

This has to be one of the toughest Grand Chess Tour events. Players are evenly matched. Thus, there was no clear sole leader at the end of the Rapid event. Not only that, the difference between the leaders and almost at the end of the points table is very less. Besides, when was the last time, Fabiano Caruana (USA) has remained at the bottom half of the points table? It is difficult to recall, especially considering he has been in a fantastic form for over a year.

Ian Nepomniachtchi, Alireza Firouzja and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave maintain their three-way lead 11/18 | Photo: Lennart Ootes/Grand Chess Tour

Round 7: Abdusattorov - Aronian: 2-0

Nodirbek Abdusattorov (UZB, 2732) won a double rook and opposite color bishop endgame against Levon Aronian (USA, 2754).

Position after 30...exf5

The above position looks quite complex. White has a space advantage and slightly better control of the center. 31.Bb4 d4 32.exd4 Be4+ 33.Ka1 Bd5 34.a3 White is ready to sacrifice the pawn as Bxb3 allows d5. Soon one pair of rooks got exchanged and White showcased fine technique to win the game.

Nodirbek Abdusattorov scored a fine victory over Levon Aronian | Photo: Lennart Ootes/Grand Chess Tour

Aronian - Caruana, Round 8

Position after 40.Rxc7

Where should black move the knight - b6 or f6? Only one of them is correct. The other one is losing. 40...Nb6?? was played which ended up in a losing cause for Black 41.d6 Rd4 42.Rc6 and White went on to win the game.

Levon Aronian is all smiles after his win over Fabiano Caruana | Photo: Lennart Ootes/Grand Chess Tour

Abdusattorov - So, Round 9

Position after 21.fxe5??

21.fxe5?? turned out to be a big mistake. White never got the attack he desired for the sacrificed knight fxe4 22.Bc4 Nf5 23.Qb3 Qb6+ 24.Kh1 0-0-0 25.Be6+ Kb7 26.Bxf5 gxf5 27.Qf7+ Qc7 28.Qxf5 e3 29.Rac1 Rd2 30.Qf6 Bxg2+ 31.Kg1 Bc5 32.Rfe1 Bd5 33.Kf1 Qd7 and it's over as there are too many threats to thwart.

Wesley So defeated Nodirbek Abdusattorov in a one-sided battle | Photo: Lennart Ootes/Grand Chess Tour

Praggnanandhaa blundered an exchange against Hikaru Nakamura in a balanced double rook and knight endgame | Photo: Lennart Ootes/Grand Chess Tour

Vachier-Lagrave - Leinier

Position after 43.Kc4

Despite having an equal number of pawns, Black must play precisely to defend the position. The idea behind 43.Kc4 is simple and obvious. Kb4-a5-Kxa6-Kb7 and then roll the a-pawn down the board. The c5-pawn is a non-factor, as White would like to get the bishop when it is forced to give up to stop the passed pawn at a7. So what should Black do here? 43...Ke7 44.Bd4 Be1 or 44.Kb4 Kd7 45.Ka5 Kc8 46.Kxa6 Bxc5 Black does not need to hurry taking the c5-pawn. The game continued 43...Be3 44.Kb4+- Bf2 45.Ka5 Bxc5 46.Kxa6 Be3 47.a5 and White won the game.

Maxime Vachier-Lagrave defeated Leinier Dominguez Perez to stay in the lead | Photo: Lennart Ootes/Grand Chess Tour

Video Gallery

Nepo can’t rest after MVL victory | Video: Saint Louis Chess Club
Aronian: Fabi wanted to fight; I welcome the storm | Video: Saint Louis Chess Club
Nakamura: Just want to be solid, get to the blitz | Video: Saint Louis Chess Club
MVL: Maybe I'll do some training blitz tonight | Video: Saint Louis Chess Club
Wesley So Loves His Cats | Video: Saint Louis Chess Club

Replay live stream

Replay Grand Chess Tour Saint Louis Rapid 2024 Round 7-9 Live Commentary by GMs Yasser Seirawan, Peter Svidler, Cristian Chirila, and IM Nazi Paikidze | Video: Saint Louis Chess Club

Replay Round 7-9 games

Round 9 results

Rapid Round 9 results | Photo: Grand Chess Tour

Details

Standings after Round 9

Standings after Rapid Round 9 | Photo: Grand Chess Tour

Details

Blitz Round 1 pairings

TableWhiteScoreFed.RatingBlackScoreFed.RatingResult
1GM Nakamura, Hikaru0.0USA2874GM Vachier-Lagrave, Maxime0.0FRA2795
2GM Abdusattorov, Nodirbek0.0UZB2669GM Praggnanandhaa R0.0IND2693
3GM Nepomniachtchi, Ian0.0FID2777GM So, Wesley0.0USA2782
4GM Caruana, Fabiano0.0USA2795GM Aronian, Levon0.0USA2727
5GM Firouzja, Alireza0.0FRA2869GM Dominguez Perez, Leinier0.0USA2651

Details

Schedule and Format

Saint Louis Rapid and Blitz will have three rounds per day in the Rapid portion from 12th to 14th August. The Blitz event will take place on 15th and 16th August. It will be a double round-robin event for the Blitz which means nine rounds will be played on each day. Round 1 starts at 1 p.m. local time, 11:30 p.m. IST. It will be a 10-player Round Robin event. Time control for Rapid will be 25 minutes + 10 seconds increment. For Blitz, it will be 5 minutes + 2 seconds increment.

Schedule | Source: Official site

Prize

The total prize fund for each of the Rapid and Blitz event is US$ 175000.

Links

Official site


Related news:
Phenomenal Firouzja is the Sinquefield Cup champion for the second time in his career

@ 29/08/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Sinquefield Cup R8: Alireza Firouzja wins Grand Chess Tour 2024 with a round to spare

@ 28/08/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Sinquefield Cup R7: Caruana misses against Gukesh

@ 27/08/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Sinquefield Cup R6: Gukesh keeps playing exciting chess

@ 26/08/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Sinquefield Cup R5: Praggnanandhaa squanders a win against So

@ 24/08/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Sinquefield Cup R4: Gukesh draws a thriller against Firouzja

@ 23/08/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Sinquefield Cup R3: Gukesh makes a narrow escape against Praggnanandhaa

@ 22/08/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Sinquefield Cup R2: Ding Liren forces a draw again

@ 21/08/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Sinquefield Cup R1: Ding Liren forces a draw against Gukesh

@ 20/08/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Gukesh will face Ding Liren in the first round of Sinquefield Cup 2024

@ 19/08/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Saint Louis Rapid 2024 R4-6: Abdusattorov and Caruana play a Queen endgame for the ages

@ 14/08/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Saint Louis Rapid 2024 R1-3: A tough start for Praggnanandhaa

@ 13/08/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Praggnanandhaa set to battle World's best at Saint Louis Rapid and Blitz 2024

@ 12/08/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Fabulous Fabiano Caruana dominates SuperUnited Rapid and Blitz 2024

@ 15/07/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
SuperUnited Blitz 2024: Fabiano Caruana increases his sole lead by a staggering 4.5 points

@ 14/07/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Fabiano Caruana tops SuperUnited Rapid 2024, extends his sole lead by three points

@ 13/07/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
SuperUnited Rapid 2024 R4-6: Gukesh bounces back strong by winning against MVL and Nepomniachtchi

@ 12/07/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
SuperUnited Rapid 2024 R1-3: MVL is walking tall

@ 11/07/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Gukesh and Vidit set to face World's best at SuperUnited Rapid and Blitz 2024

@ 10/07/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Fabiano Caruana wins Superbet Classic for the second year in-a-row after a hat-trick in Playoffs

@ 06/07/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Will Fabiano Caruana win Superbet Classic for the second consecutive year?

@ 05/07/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Superbet Classic 2024 R7: Gritty Gukesh survives against Caruana

@ 04/07/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Superbet Classic 2024 R6: Firouzja outplays So, catches up with Praggnanandhaa and Gukesh

@ 03/07/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Superbet Classic 2024 R5: Praggnanandhaa misses against So

@ 01/07/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Superbet Classic 2024 R4: Praggnanandhaa scores his first Classical win over Giri

@ 30/06/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Superbet Classic 2024 R3: Praggnanandhaa misses a win against Gukesh

@ 29/06/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Superbet Classic 2024 R2: Firouzja bounces back, Gukesh shows his grit against Nepomniachtchi

@ 28/06/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Superbet Classic 2024 R1: D Gukesh defeats Bogdan-Daniel Deac

@ 27/06/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Gukesh and Praggnanandhaa set to square off World's best at Superbet Chess Classic 2024

@ 26/06/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Maximus Magnus Carlsen wins ten in-a-row to become a clear champion at Superbet Rapid and Blitz 2024

@ 13/05/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Superbet Blitz 2024 R1-9: Praggnanandhaa outplays Carlsen as the latter struggles to catch Wei Yi

@ 12/05/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Superbet Rapid 2024 R7-9: Praggnanandhaa draws with Carlsen, halts Wei Yi's winning streak

@ 11/05/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Superbet Rapid 2024 R4-6: Gukesh escapes against Magnus Carlsen

@ 10/05/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Superbet Rapid 2024 R1-3: Arjun Erigaisi defies Magnus Carlsen

@ 09/05/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Gukesh, Arjun and Praggnanandhaa set to face Magnus Carlsen and co. at Superbet Rapid and Blitz 2024

@ 08/05/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)
Grand Chess Tour 2024: Arjun Erigaisi and Vidit Gujrathi named among 13 Wildcards

@ 03/04/2024 by ChessBase India (en)
Grand Chess Tour 2024: Praggnanandhaa and Gukesh named full tour participants

@ 23/02/2024 by Shahid Ahmed (en)

Contact Us