The finalists then play a four-game match to determine the champion. In case of a tie, the players go into the rapid, blitz and the Armageddon rounds. The time control is 90 minutes for 40 moves, followed by 30 minutes for the rest of the game, and a 30-second increment per move as of the first move. The games began on Dec. 2nd and the final match will end on the 25th, which is the 26th here in the CNMI.
The favorites were the reigning champ Alexandra Kosteniuk of Russia, India’s Humpy Koneru, China’s Hou Yifan, Russia’s Tatiana Kosintseva, former world champ Antoaneta Stefanova, Sweden’s veteran GM Pia Cramling, China’s Ju Wenjun, Ukraine’s Kateryna Lahno, Lithuania’s Viktorija Cmilyte, and Georgia’s legendary former world champ Maia Chiburdanidze.
After four rounds, the final eight were China’s Ruan Lufei (who eliminated Kosteniuk),India’s Dronavalli Harika, France’s Almira Skripchenko, China’s Zhao Xue (who scalped Chiburdanidze), Koneru, Ju, Hou and Lahno. Ruan then beat Harika, Zhao edged Skripchenko, Koneru bested Ju, and Hou triumphed over Lahno. In the final four, Ruan, once again, claimed victory via the rapid tie-breaks, while Hou, as in the 2008 championship, gonged Honeru to reach the finals.
Hou, with a 2591 Elo, is only 16 years old and this is her second crack at the world title. If she beats, Ruan, Hou would be the youngest world champion ever, breaking the record held byChiburdanidze, who won the crown when she was 17, holding it for 13 years. ChessBase says she is also the only player in history to win nine Olympic gold medals, the last in 2008, each time on board one.
Ruan’s Elo is 2480 only and Chessbase says she was not even in the lineup for China’s Olympic team. “Furthermore, she singularly survived tiebreaks in every one of her matches, suggesting she was unable to overcome her opponents at classical time controls. However, there is a flip side to this perspective, and that is the unquenchable competitive fire that fuels her, allowing her to hold her nerve so consistently when she needed it the most. This woman has fighting spirit in spades.” She needs to show more of it though. After three games, Hou leads 2-1 and will clinch the title with a draw tomorrow.
Game of the week. Iranian GM Elshan Moradiabadi annotates game 2 of the final match.
White: Ruan Lufei (2480)
Black: Hou Yifan (2591)
Sicilian Scheveningen
2010 Women’s World Championship
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 d6 6.Be2 Be7 7.0-0 Nc6 8.Be3 0-0 9.f4 e5!? An odd choice. This move became fashionable thanks to the 9th world champion Boris Spassky. 10.Nxc6. 10.Nb3 a5 11.a4 Nb4 12.Bf3 Be6 13.Kh1 Qc7 14.Rf2 Rfd8 15.Rd2 Bc4 0-1 Karpov,A (2700)-Spassky,B (2650)/Leningrad 1974/Candidates (63) With a very rich game that requires class and understanding from both sides. 10…bxc6 11.Kh1 exf4 12.Bxf4 Be6 13.Bf3 Qb8. The safest choice. Qb6 is rather risky in face of Qe1 and Nd5 as shown by Kamsky. 13…Qb6 14.b3 Rfd8 15.Qe1 Nd7 16.Nd5 cxd5 17.exd5 Bg4 18.Qxe7 Bxf3 19.Rxf3 Nf6 20.Be3 Qa5 21.Rxf6 gxf6 22.Qxf6 Re8 23.Qg5+ Kf8 24.Bd2 1-0 Kamsky,G (2671)-Svidler,P (2743)/Sofia 2006/CBM 113 14.b3 Qb4 15.Qe1N 15.Qd2 Rfd8 16.Rad1 Rac8 17.Qe3 d5 18.Be5 Qa5 19.exd5 Nxd5 20.Nxd5 cxd5 21.Bh5 d4 22.Qe4 g6 23.Bf3 Bf5 24.Qf4 Bg5 25.Qxg5 Qxe5 26.Bg4 h6 27.Rxf5 Qg7 28.Qe7 gxf5 29.Bxf5 Re8 30.Qd6 Rcd8 31.Qa6 Qg5 32.Bd3 Re7 33.Rf1 Kg7 34.g3 Qd5+ 35.Kg1 Rd6 36.Qc8 Qe6 37.Qb8 Rb6 38.Qd8 Rd6 39.Qb8 Rd5 40.Rf4 Rg5 41.Rf3 Qe5 42.Qd8 h5 43.Rf2 Re6 44.Qd7 Rf6 45.Re2 Qf4 46.Re4 Qf2+ 47.Kh1 h4 0-1 Svidler,P (2727)-Movsesian,S (2732)/Nanjing 2008/CBM 128 15…a5 16.Rd1 Rfe8 17.e5 dxe5 18.Bxe5 Rac8 19.Qg3 g6 20.Na4?! What should one call this? Decentralization? Eccentricity? I can’t seem to find a suitable word to describe it. 20.Bd4 c5 (20…Rcd8? 21.a3! Qxa3 22.Bxc6 with advantage for White.) 21.Bxf6 (Or keeping the tension by 21.Be5!? Red8 22.Bxf6 Bxf6 23.Nd5 Bxd5 24.Bxd5The one who attacks with the opposite-colored bishop is a piece up. Botvinnik, I presume?!) 21…Bxf6 22.Nd5 Qh4 23.Nxf6+ Qxf6 24.Bd5 Qe7 could make things difficult for Hou. 20…Nd5 21.Bxd5 cxd5 22.Bc3 Qg4 23.Qxg4 Bxg4 24.Rxd5 Bb4 25.Bxb4 axb4 26.Rd2 [26.h3] 26…Bf5 27.Kg1?! The second inaccuracy which makes the day more difficult for the Chinese fighter! 27…Rxc2 28.Rxc2 Bxc2 29.Kf2 Bd3. White should be able to hold by winning the b-pawn in exchange for her queenside pawns, leaving a primitive 3-2 on the kingside, however…one step at a time! 30.Re1 Rc8 31.Ke3 Bb5 32.Rd1? A decisive error which Yifan does not forgive! 32.Rb1! Ra8 (32…Rc2 33.Rb2) 33.Rb2 Bxa4 34.bxa4 Rxa4 35.Kd3= 32…Re8+! This simple check makes it a gloomy day for Ruan Lufei! 33.Kf4 Re2 34.g4 Bxa4 35.bxa4 Rxa2 36.Rd4 Rxa4 37.h4 The rest is the matter of technique. 37…Kf8 38.Re4 f6 39.Rc4 Ke7 40.Rd4 Ke6 41.Ke4 Ke7 42.Kf4 h6 43.h5 gxh5 44.gxh5 Kf7 45.Re4 Kf8 46.Kg4 f5+! Finally! By returning a pawn Hou puts her rook behind her passed pawn. Dr. Mueller might like the idea! Though I believe she could also do it by getting her king to e6. 47.Kxf5 Ra5+ 48.Kg6 Ra6+ 49.Kh7 Rb6 50.Rf4+ Ke7 51.Rf1 b3 52.Kg7 b2 53.Rb1 Ke6 54.Kxh6 Kf5+ 55.Kg7 Kg5 56.Kf7. 56.h6 Rb7+ 57.Kf8 Kxh6 58.Ke8 Kg5 59.Kd8 Kf4 60.Kc8 Rb3 would not have changed the result. 56…Kxh5 57.Ke7 Kg4 58.Kd7 Kf3 0-1. A precious win for the Chinese prodigy!
Puzzler.Finally. “The Woodpusher” — that’s how he calls himself — has solved our three-mover. The main line is 1. Nb4 Kf5 2. Qg2 K moves 3.Qd5#. Congratulations!
For this week, try this:
White: Ka5, Nb5, Qc1, Bd3, pawn on d4
Black: Kd5, Ne5, pawns on a6 and f3
White to play and mate in three moves.
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