The Super Chess Classic Romania tournament concluded in Bucharest. For Javokhir Sindarov, this was his first classical chess competition since his victory in the Candidates Tournament. Despite a difficult start, the Uzbek grandmaster managed to finish successfully.
The tournament featured Bogdan-Daniel Deac (Romania, 2650), Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (France, 2717), Rameshbabu Pragnanandhaa (India, 2733), Jorden van Foreest (Netherlands, 2735), Wesley So (USA, 2754), Alireza Firouzja (France, 2759), Vincent Keymer (Germany, 2759), Anish Giri (Netherlands, 2767), Javokhir Sindarov (Uzbekistan, 2776), and Fabiano Caruana (USA, 2788).
For Sindarov, this was his first classical event after winning the Candidates, an opportunity to prove that success was not a fluke and to restore his reputation after a relatively poor showing in a rapid chess tournament.
In the first round, Sindarov faced the lowest-rated participant, Romanian grandmaster Bogdan-Daniel Deac, invited to the Grand Chess Tour as a host nation representative. Javokhir naturally aimed for a win and chose a very aggressive opening, the Old Indian Defense. However, he did not account for the possibility that his opponent might simplify the position, making a draw almost inevitable.
In the second round, Sindarov played against Rameshbabu Pragnanandhaa, whom he had defeated twice in the Candidates with daring combinations. This time, he again chose a sharp game, a rare pawn sacrifice for an attack. Unfortunately, his opponent was very well prepared. "This line would work against any opponent except Pragg, because he knew this line very well. He was ready, and if the opponent knows this line, White faces serious problems," Sindarov explained. He was forced to sacrifice a piece and lost. This was his first loss in classical chess since September last year, ending a streak of 53 games without defeat.
Afterward, he admitted that he might have needed more time to recover after his Candidates victory. "Perhaps the problem is that I didn't approach this tournament seriously enough. I think this is my big mistake, because after the Candidates, I probably needed a bit more rest. But I jumped straight into tournaments with incredibly strong lineups," he said.
Thus, Sindarov's start was unfortunate: after two games, he had only half a point. In the third round, playing black against Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, he repeated the position after just ten moves, giving himself a breather and a chance to regroup.
In the fourth round against Anish Giri, the scenario from the Candidates partially repeated: Sindarov gained a material advantage, but the position was a well-known draw. Nevertheless, he unexpectedly decided to continue playing for all 50 moves allowed by the rules.
The fifth round against Alireza Firouzja took place under unique conditions. The French grandmaster, playing for France, had injured his ankle on the eve of the tournament and played lying on a bed in his hotel room, with a small table holding the chessboard placed in front of him. The last such occurrence in a major tournament was in 1985, when English grandmaster Anthony Miles, due to back problems, played lying on a massage table and won the Tilburg tournament. Firouzja was less fortunate: in his game against Sindarov, he fell into a bad position, but the Uzbek representative could not play accurately enough in the endgame.
In the sixth round, Sindarov, playing black, faced Fabiano Caruana, now the world number two. The game featured the Giuoco Piano opening. After the game, the US representative said he had chosen a "rather modest" line popular many years ago. The American had some advantage but could not obtain clear chances, and the position quickly became a draw on move 34.
After six rounds, Sindarov still had no wins, but the end of the tournament changed the impression of his performance. The first success came in the seventh round against Vincent Keymer. Sindarov's victory in his characteristic aggressive style earned praise from one of the strongest players in chess history, Garry Kasparov.
Sindarov continued his success in the next round against van Foreest. The players again reached the same material imbalance as in the game against Anish Giri — "rook and knight versus bishop." But this time, pawns remained on the board, creating difficulties for the defending Dutch player. Since the pawns shielded the black king from checks, Sindarov managed to build a checkmate net.
In the final game, Sindarov aimed for a third consecutive win: playing white, he obtained a more favorable position. However, his opponent Wesley So is known for his solid style. He defended accurately enough to secure a draw.
In the end, with 5 points out of 9, Javokhir shared 3rd-4th places with Wesley So. On tiebreaks — number of wins and games with black — Sindarov came out ahead. First place went to Vincent Keymer with 6 points, and second to Caruana with 5.5.
At the Super Chess Classic Romania opening ceremony, Javokhir Sindarov and Garry Kasparov. Photo: Lennart Ootes / GCT
"My first impressions of the Grand Chess Tour: it was absolutely amazing and unforgettable! Interesting and tense games, strong emotions, and of course, meeting chess legend Garry Kasparov. Many thanks to everyone who supported me in these tournaments, and to my sponsor @nbu.offcial. Even bigger achievements lie ahead!" Sindarov wrote on Instagram.
Third place and two wins, for which a special prize was awarded in the tournament, brought Sindarov $63,000 and 7.5 points for the Grand Chess Tour standings. Currently, he is fourth overall with 10.5 points after two tournaments. He still has one more event — a rapid chess tournament in St. Louis in August.
Source: www.gazeta.uz