Round 9 of the Tata Steel Masters saw several quick draws and two decisive outcomes. Magnus Carlsen continues moving up in the standings after scoring his third victory in the last four rounds. The World Champion shares third position with Wesley So, trailing Anish Giri by a half-point and Nodirbek Abdusattorov by a point. Gukesh D is coming out of a slump as he prevailed over his compatriot Praggnanandhaa D. With three rounds to go, the tournament seems wide open.

Nodirbek Abdusattorov – Ding Liren ½–½ 

After surviving a scare in the previous round, the leader played it safe and had no objections to a draw. The game saw a solid line of Berlin in the Ruy Lopez in which White asked a couple of questions, but as soon Black found the right answers, a draw was agreed upon by repetition.

Parham Maghsoodloo – Magnus Carlsen 0-1

The World Champion surprised his opponent in the Queen’s Gambit Decline by introducing a new idea 7…Bg4, the move that has never been seen at the top level before. Parham reacted with 8.Qa4+ but then moved his queen to a standard square c2, while Magnus immediately struck in the center. Things got very complicated, but when the dust settled, the opponents found themselves in an endgame with an extra pawn for White but Black had sufficient compensation.

On move 22 Maghsoodloo had a chance to liquidate into a drawn rook ending, but despite a looming time trouble, he opted for a more ambitious continuation only to get into hot water just seven moves later. Magnus once again demonstrated his trademark endgame technique and scored a full point. 

Richard Rapport – Levon Aronian ½–½

The opponents made not a single original move in another version of Berlin, reproducing several drawn games (Anand – Grischuk and Carlsen – Ding Liren, to name a few). 

Wesley So – Anish Giri ½–½

The opponents followed the game Shankland – So in the Catalan up to move 15, when Giri deviated with 15…Bxc3, giving up his dark-squared bishop. It was a part of the right plan as on the next move, Anish played 16…Be4 and completely equalized. It triggered massive exchanges in the center, and the opponents soon shook hands in an even rook endgame. 

Gikesh D – Praggnanandhaa R 1-0

The opponents blitzed out their moves, following the footsteps of Anish Giri and Ian Nepomniachtchi (2020), but Black was first to deviate, striking in the center with 10…d5 (the first line of Stockfish). 

After a series of the best moves from both parts, Gukesh erred with 16.Rg2 but Praggnanandhaa did not find 16…fxe4! with a sizable advantage. Just a few moves down the road, Black offered his opponent a chance to grab the initiative, but White missed it. And then something very strange happened as Praggnanandhaa sacrificed a piece for just a pawn. White quickly consolidated, and his extra bishop became the decisive factor. 

Fabiano Caruana – Arjun Erigaisi ½–½

The opponents slowly maneuvered in one of the main lines of the Ruy Lopez, with Black confidently holding his ground. Moreover, after a couple of sluggish moves by Fabiano, Arjun emerged slightly better but reasoned that position did not offer much after all and sealed a draw by repetition. 

Jorden Van Foreest – Vincent Keymer  ½–½

White emerged slightly better in the Chigorin System of Ruy Lopez, put pressure on the d6-pawn and eventually captured it, but Black had good defensive resources. The game took an unexpected turn on move 33 when Jorden missed nice tactics by his opponent.

After 33…Bxh3! 34. Kxh3 (34. gxh3 Nf3+) Rd8! 35. g3 Qg6 Black regained a piece and equalized completely. 

Van Foreest’s trouble just started there as soon he found himself in a rook ending down a pawn. Although the position was equal, Black had some practical chances, and after White made a few inaccuracies, Keymer got the decisive advantage. However, just like a day before, Vincent failed to capitalize in a won rook endgame. This time around did not find the right setup with his king e5 and pawn on e5 and let Jorden salvage a draw. 

January 26 is the last rest day at the Tata Steel Masters. Grandmasters will return over the board on January 27 at 2 PM local time. 

Standings after Round 10: 1. Nodirbek Abdusattorov – 7; 2. Anish Giri – 6.5; 3-4. Magnus Carlsen and Wesley So – 6; 5-6. Levon Aronian and Fabiano Caruana 5.5; 7-8. Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa and Richard Rapport – 5; 9. Ding Liren – 4.5; 10-12. Gukesh D, Parham Maghsoodloo and Jorden Van Foreest – 4; 13-14. Arjun Erigaisi and Vincent Keymer 3.5.

Photos:  tatasteelchess.com, Jurriaan Hoefsmit and Lennart Ootes