Grand Swiss: Maghsoodloo beats Rapport, Mishra stuns Gukesh

Open: Exciting round sees Mishra becoming youngest-ever player to beat a world champion in classical chess

The fifth round of the open section of the Grand Swiss turned into the most eventful day so far in Samarkand, as Monday saw seven of the top ten boards (including boards one to five) produce decisive results, and not all of them favoured the pre-tournament favourites.

Parham Maghsoodloo began the day as sole leader on 3½ points and was paired with black against Richard Rapport. The Iranian grandmaster once again demonstrated he is in great form, gradually steering a complex middlegame into an endgame where he had an extra pawn in a position with rooks and minor pieces still on the board. Rapport tried to resist, but ended up faltering, and Maghsoodloo collected his fourth win in five games to remain the clear leader on 4½/5 points.

The chasing pack of thirteen players included Germany’s two top grandmasters, Vincent Keymer and Matthias Bluebaum. Keymer was paired with black against Marc’Andria Maurizzi. The 18-year-old French champion responded to Keymer’s Sicilian with a rarely played sideline, forcing the German number one into a long struggle to equalise. Eventually, Keymer steered the game into a bishop endgame with one pawn down. The position was objectively drawn but required accurate play to hold, and Maurizzi’s persistence paid off as he claimed the full point. For Keymer, who had only recently entered the world’s top ten, the loss meant dropping back out of that elite group.

Bluebaum, on the other hand, rose to the occasion. Paired with top seed Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu, he played with white and kept matters level for most of the game. On the queenside, however, the two-time European champion embarked on a subtle pawn raid, which Pragg did not handle with complete accuracy. Bluebaum’s advantage grew, and eventually he converted it into a full point, inflicting a surprising defeat on the tournament’s top seed.

Matthias Bluebaum defeated top seed Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu | Photo: Michal Walusza

The day’s most remarkable game was the clash between Abhimanyu Mishra and world champion Gukesh Dommaraju. Mishra, the youngest player ever to become a grandmaster at 12 years and 5 months, sacrificed a piece in exchange for four pawns out of a Giuoco Piano. The imbalance produced a highly complicated middlegame, with both players missing chances in mutual time pressure.

Ultimately, Mishra prevailed, scoring the biggest win of his career and becoming the youngest player ever to defeat a reigning world champion in classical chess. His current run in Samarkand extended his unbeaten streak in classical games to 61, as it is becoming more likely that he may end up breaking into the very top tier of elite chess.

The victory also broke a 33-year-old record: Gata Kamsky was 17 years old when he beat Garry Kasparov in Dortmund in 1992.

Abhimanyu Mishra, the man of the hour | Photo: Michal Walusza

Not all of the top Indian trio suffered setbacks. Arjun Erigaisi managed to keep pace with the leader by defeating Nikita Vitiugov. Arjun is now the only favourite within half a point of Maghsoodloo.

The round also saw a marathon effort on board four, where local hero Nodirbek Abdusattorov and 14-year-old Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus contested a 190-move game lasting eight and a half hours. The encounter ended in a draw when Erdogmus finally invoked the 50-move rule after both players had continued a few moves beyond the limit. It was an extraordinary display of stamina from both competitors.

This video course includes GM Anish Giri’s deep insights and IM Sagar Shah’s pertinent questions to the super GM. In Vol.1 all the openings after 1.e4 are covered.

Thus, at the end of round five, Maghsoodloo leads alone on 4½, followed by a chasing pack consisting of Arjun, Bluebaum, Mishra and Maurizzi a half point back.

Arjun Erigaisi defeated Nikita Vitiugov | Photo: Michal Walusza

Rapport 0-1 Maghsoodloo

Richard Rapport | Photo: Michal Walusza

Mishra 1-0 Gukesh

Gukesh Dommaraju facing Abhimanyu Mishra | Photo: Michal Walusza

Maurizzi 1-0 Keymer

Analysis by GM Karsten Müller

From Mating with a queen; a rook; two bishops; a knight and a bishop; to the basics of pawn endgames – here you will gain the necessary know-how to turn your endgame advantages into victories!

Marc’Andria Maurizzi | Photo: Michal Walusza

Bluebaum 1-0 Praggnanandhaa

Matthias Bluebaum | Photo: Michal Walusza

Standings after round 5

…116 players

All games

Women’s: Wagner and Fataliyeva join the lead

The women’s tournament could not quite match the level of drama seen in the open, but the fifth round nevertheless produced important developments. Going into the day, Vaishali Rameshbabu and Kateryna Lagno shared the lead on 3½ points, and their direct encounter on the top board ended in a solid draw, leaving them tied at the top with 4/5.

Behind them, several players from the chasing pack sought to take advantage. Dinara Wagner, playing White against Irina Bulmaga’s Najdorf, faced a direct attacking attempt from the Romanian. By forcing a queen exchange, Wagner steered the game into a complex queenless middlegame. She gradually gained the upper hand, and after a long struggle converted her advantage into a full point.

In this course, we will learn how to identify passively placed pieces in any given situation and how to improve their health by bringing them into active squares.

Ulviyya Fataliyeva also reached the leading group by defeating Alexandra Kosteniuk with the black pieces. The Azerbaijani player has now scored consecutive wins over former women’s world champions (she beat Mariya Muzychuk on Sunday), and on this occasion benefited when Kosteniuk, with under four minutes on her clock, missed a critical defensive resource.

As a result, the top of the table now shows a four-way tie on 4/5 points: Vaishali, Lagno, Wagner and Fataliyeva are tied for first place.

Kateryna Lagno | Photo: Michal Walusza

A group of seven players follows on 3½, including Tan Zhongyi and Bibisara Assaubayeva, both of whom won their round-five games. Tan overcame Elina Danielian, while Assaubayeva defeated Nurgyul Salimova. Mariya Muzychuk also improved her score, beating Maili-Jade Ouellet to reach 3 points.

For Anna Muzychuk, the top seed, round five finally brought a long-awaited first win. She defeated Vantika Agrawal to level her score at 2½/5, though she still stands outside the leading group in 30^th place.

In round six, the co-leaders will face each other directly: Lagno will play white against Wagner, while Fataliyeva will play white against Vaishali.

Tan Zhongyi | Photo: Michal Walusza

Kosteniuk 0-1 Fataliyeva

Analysis by GM Karsten Müller

This DVD focuses on several types of material imbalances, such as Rook vs 2 Pieces, Queen vs 2 Rooks, and Queen vs Pieces.

Alexandra Kosteniuk facing Ulviyya Fataliyeva | Photo: Michal Walusza

Bulmaga 0-1 Wagner

Dinara Wagner | Photo: Michal Walusza

Standings after round 5

…56 players

All games

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