Round 9 : Both Men and Women Lost

The Open Section : Andorra beat Malaysia : 2.5 - 1.5

Board 1 : GM Oscar De La Riva (2521) vs IM Mashafziul (2422)

* Mas lost to GM Oscar. Refer the game anotation here

Board 2 : IM Mok Tze Meng (2419) vs FM Marc Simonet (2277)

*Mok game has not yet pass the opening stage and the position looks equal.

* Mok manage to give his opponent a double pawn.

* Mok split the points.

Board 3 : FM Raul Garcia (2236) vs Tan Khai Boon (2160)

*Khai Boon has felt into an early trap. He is a pawn down without any compensation.

* Khai Boon try to build an attack on the queenside where his opponent king's reside.

* Khai Boon has lost more exchange and can already resign.

* Khai Boon has already resign.

Board 4 : Vicens Santamaria (2085) vs FM Peter Long (2302)

* Peter has already got a big advantage due to his opponent mistake on move 10th.

* Peter is totally winning. I think a point is already in hand.His position is still difficult but not totally lost

* Peter win! If i'm not mistaken this is the second time he be the first player to finish.

The Women Section : Malaysia vs Netherlands ( latest results :- 1 - 3 )

Board 1 : Alia Anin Azwa Bakri (1904) vs GM Peng Zhaoqin (2400)

As mention by IM Jimmy Liew in his blog, Alia has a great chance to get the WIM norm if he get a point from three games against 2200+ player. However she will have a tough task againstPeng Zhaoqin who is a full GM and 6 times Dutch Women Champion!

* Peng Zhaoqin seems to equalise already and her pieces looks more active but Alia's position is still solid

* Peng is a pawn up, and Alia has lost her attack and pressure on the kingside. Her queen is misplaced on the queenside.

* White's defense was tear apart. Alia will resign shortly i think.

* I think the end is near. Alia will have to give his queen to avoid mate. Although he will have a rook left, it's no match against black's queen.

Alia has resign.

Board 2 : IM Tea Lanchava (2342) vs WCM Nur Nabila Azman Hisham (1829)

Tea seems to have a slight advantage . Nabila is in time trouble. She has about 6 minutes to reach time control whereas her opponent has almost a hour.

* Nabila has reached the time control but unfortunately her opponent is still in command. Nabila need to defend passively and pray for the best.

IM Tea Lanchava (2342) vs WCM Nur Nabila Azman Hisham (1829)

39th Olympiad, Round 9, 30.9.2010

White to move

55.g3?? the correct move is 55.Rg7! and white maintain the big advantage. Nabila opponent actually blunder big time!The swindle move 55...Rf3+! 56.Kg2 Nc4! followed by 57...Ne3+ should win for Nabila! . 55...Nd7?? Nabila was in time trouble ( less then a minute left). She miss the winning move. Now white's is winning back. 56. Ra8 Rf3+ 57. Kg2 Nf8 58. Rc8 Rf6 59. a6 Rf7 60. a7 Rxa7 61. Rxf8 Rh7 62. Rc8 Rxh6 63. Rxc2 Rf6 64. Rc4 Rg6 65. Nc3 Rg8 66. Nd1 Black will lost soon. 66...Rg7 67.Ne3 1-0 Nabila resign.

Board 3 : Nurul Huda Wahiduddin (2020) vs WIM Lisa Schut (2288)

* the game is unclear

* Nurul draw.

Board 4 : WIM Arlette Van Weersel (2174) vs Roslina Marmono (1933)

* Roslina pieces is uncoordinated but she still far from losing

* Roslina is a pawn up but it's a double one. Her pieces is still uncoordinated compare to her opponent.

* Roslina piece is still passive. Her pawn advantage doesn't count much because it is a double pawn. Her opponent now have a potential passed pawn on h-file.

* Roslina has turn the table. She seems to have a winning position.

* Roslina stubbornly play a difficult posiition and almost get a full points for it. In the end, she draw.

GM Oscar - IM Mashafizul : 1-0

GM Oscar De La Riva (2521) vs IM Mashafziul (2422)

39th Olympiad, Round 9, 30.9.2010

Analysed by Centaur (Hairulov + Rybka 4)

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Oscar divert from his usual choice 2.c3 2...d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Be3 The English Attack. I think Mas will choose 6...e5 which is more positional and suit his style compare to 6...e6 which often lead to a wild game. 6...e5 as expected 7. Nf3 Be7 8. Bc4 O-O 9. O-O Qc7 10. Bb3 Be6

11. Qe2 Black doesn't mind a double pawn after 11.Bxe6 fxe6 12.Ng5 Qd7 and black will have strong center pawns. 11...Rc8 12.Bg5 Nbd7 13.Rfd1 b5 14.Ne1 Bc4 15.Bxc4 Qxc4 16. Qxc4 bxc4

Black open the b-file for his rook 17. Bxf6 Nxf6 18. Nd5 Nxd5 19. Rxd5 Rab8 20. b3 g6 21. g3 f5 22. exf5 gxf5 23. Ng2 cxb3 Mas position looks good. After 24.cxb3 black can start to maneuver his king for endgame with 24...Kf7 followed by Ke6 24.axb3 (24.cxb3 seems better) 24...Kf7?!

Mas should have just take the c2 pawn with 24...Rxc2 for e.g 25.Ne3 Rc6 26.Nxf5 Kf7 and black is ok 25.Ne3 now white can win a pawn after 25...Ke6 26.Rda5 Ra8 27.Rxa6 Rxa6 28.Rxa6 25...Ke6 26.Rda5 Rc3 probably better is 26...Ra8 27.Rxa6 Rxa6 28.Rxa6 Rc3 with active play 27.Rxa6 Rd8 28. Rd1 h5 29. Kf1 h4 30. Ke2 White's improve his king. It did not look good for Mas. I think the best he get is a draw.30...Bg5 31. Rd3 Rxd3 32.Kxd3 e4+ 33. Ke2 f4 34. gxf4 Bxf4 35. h3 White put his pawn on the light square so that it would not be attack by black's bishop. At the same time , he fix black h-pawn. 35...Be5 36. Ra7 Rc8 37.Rh7

37...Bf4? Now black will lose more pawn. 37...Bf6 protecting the h-pawn must be play. 38. Rxh4 Bxe3 39. Kxe3 39.Rxe4+! is stronger but the text move is also winning. I think Mas could have already resign here. 39...Rxc2 40.Kxe4 1-0 Mas resign. After 40...Rxf2 41.b4 white is totally winning.

Round 9 Pairing

Round 9 Pairing

Open Section

Mas will back in action and he will meet - GM Oscar on board 1. Mok, Khai Boon and Peter will play in the remaining boards. Greg who was the saviour of the Malaysian team yesterday will not play this time.

Bo.	89	Andorra (AND)	Rtg	-	86	Malaysia (MAS)	Rtg	0 : 0
47.1	GM	De La Riva Aguado Oscar	2521	-	IM	Mas Hafizulhelmi	2422
47.2	FM	Simonet Marc	2277	-	IM	Mok Tze-Meng	2416
47.3	FM	Garcia Raul	2236	-		Tan Khai Boon	2160
47.4		Santamaria Vicens	2085	-	FM	Long Peter	2302

Women Section

The women team will have a hard time against the Dutch team but it will be a valuable experience for them. A win or draw will be a bonus for them. The Dutch team is superior in all board. Even their 4th board player has higher rating compare to our highest rated player - Nurul Huda Wahiduddin. Their first board player - Peng Zhaoqin is a full GM player and they also have a full IM player - Tea Lanchava playing on board 2.

Bo.	74	Malaysia (MAS)	Rtg	-	19	Netherlands (NED)	Rtg	0 : 0
26.1		Bakri Alia Anin Azwa	1904	-	GM	Peng Zhaoqin	2400
26.2	WCM	Nur Nabila Azman Hisham	1829	-	IM	Lanchava Tea	2342
26.3		Wahiduddin Nurul Huda	2020	-	WIM	Schut Lisa	2288
26.4		Marmono Roslina	1933	-	WIM	Van Weersel Arlette	2174

Round 9 will start at 5PM (Malaysia time)

Kirsan Win FIDE Election

Kirsan Ilyumzhinov (photo above) win the 2010 FIDE election and will serve for another term ( 2010-2014). According to chessvibes.com, after winning the election, Kirsan immediately offer Karpov to be the Vice President which Karpov hasn't respond yet. Click here to read the full news.

Photo from onefide.com

Both Men and Women Win and....Greg the Saviour!

Round 8 Results

Open Section

Bo.	114	Sri Lanka (SRI)	Rtg	-	86	Malaysia (MAS)	Rtg	1½:2½
55.1		Perera W C C	2016	-	IM	Mok Tze-Meng	2416	0 - 1
55.2		Koggala W S V K	2026	-		Tan Khai Boon	2160	1 - 0
55.3		Weerawardane R	2165	-	FM	Long Peter	2302	½ - ½
55.4		Anuruddha G C	2144	-		Lau Gregory	2159	0 - 1

Yes. I would say that round 8 belongs to Mr.MCF's Secretary - Gregory Lau! After the lost to the ICSC's team in the previous round , the men team decide to rest Mashafizul who lost his game against GM Gruenfeld. I personally think that Mas ( same goes to Mok, Khai Boon and Peter) need the rest badly. Fortunately, Mok proved that he can handle the Sri Lankan 1st board.

The is the first game for Greg in Khanty Mansisk but it didn't stop him to deliver and become the saviour for the men team. Greg who play on board 4 was the last to finish and his victory give the Malaysian team (who was at that particular moment - tied 1.5 - 1.5 with the Sri Lank team ) the badly needed point to seal the match with the score 2.5-1.5.

Mr.Saviour - Gregory Lau

Greg's place in Khanty Mansisk has been question by many. He was also criticized by one of the local blogger for playing in round 8 instead of Mashafizul . With this victory he shows that he can still deliver and...kick some ass!

Talking about Greg's game, i was following and commenting his game live and it was a breathtaking experience. Click here for the annotated game.

Mashafizul who was chatting with me during the game via facebook, was very happy with Greg's victory and suggest that i print and frame the game so that Greg can give it to his students. He suggest to give it the title "The Game That Save one of Malaysian Day in the Olympiad!" :)

Women Section

Bo.	81	United Arab Emirates (UAE)	Rtg	-	74	Malaysia (MAS)	Rtg	1½:2½
40.1	WIM	Saleh Nora Mohd	1906	-		Bakri Alia Anin Azwa	1904	0 - 1
40.2	WFM	Al-Zarouni Kholoud Essa	1890	-	WCM	Nur Nabila Azman Hisham	1829	0 - 1
40.3	WIM	Al-Harmoudi Mona	1821	-		Marmono Roslina	1933	½ - ½
40.4	WFM	Al Ali Amna Nuaman	1752	-		Fong Mi Yen	1905	1 - 0

The women team did a good job by defeating the Emirate 2.5-1.5. They should also be happy when their men counterpart get revenge for them by beating The Sri Lanka's men team. :) For the record, the Sri Lankan's women team beat our girls in round 4.

Gregory Lau - Anuruddha : Don't pray-pray with me ah!

Mashafizul who lost his first game yesterday was rested so Gregory Lau - the reserve and captain for the men team will be playing for the first time in Khanty Mansisk. Although he is no longer active playing in serious tournament, he has played in the 2002 Bled, Olympiad before.

Gregory Lau (2159) vs Anuruddha (2144)

39th Olympiad, Round 8, 28.9.2010

Analysed by Centaur (Hairulov + Rybka 4)

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. g3 g6 3. Bg2 Bg7 4. O-O O-O 5. d4 d6 6. c4 Nc6 7. Nc3 Bg4

Black pressure d4 and also discourage white to play e4 because white will pin his own knight then. 8. Be3 Nd7 9. Qd2 e5 10. d5 Rybka opening book suggest a wild continuation with 10. dxe5 Bxf3 11.exf3 Ndxe5 12. b3 Qf6 13. f4 Nxc4 14. bxc4 Qxc3 15. Qxc3 Bxc3 16. Rab1 Rab8 17. c5 Bb4 18. Rfc1 10... Ne7 11.Nh4 Nb6

I didn't like this move but black's have to clear the way for his bishop on g4 to retreat or else white will play h3 and g4 next - trapping the poor bishop. 12.b3 Bd7 13. c5 Nbc8 14. b4 f5 15. Rac1 So far so good for white. Almost all his piece is active accept the knight on h4. White's rook on f1 will probably move to d1 in the near future to support white's d-pawn. 15...Kh8 16.Nf3 White correctly bring his knight into action 16...Ng8? This is serious mistake. 17.Ng5!

Black will have a headache. White is threatening Ne6 and if black take the knight with Bxe6 , white will play dxe6 and the h1-a8 diagonal is open for white's bishop. 17...Qe7?! better is 17...dxc5. Now white have strong move 18. c6! 18.c6! bxc6 19.dxc6 Be6

20.Nb5 White miss a clear winning move 20.Bd5! for e.g after 20...

Bxd5 21. Nxd5 Qe8 22.Nxc7 winning 20...Bf7 21.Bd5? This is not a good move because after 21...Bxd5 22.Qxd5 white will lost the initiative. The best move is 21.Nxf7! and after for e.g 21..Qxf7 22.Bd5 Qe7 23.Nc3 white will maintain the initiative. 21...Bxd5 22.Qxd5 a6? Black return the favour. Now white will have a nice tactical moves 23. Nxc7! Qxc7 24. Ne6 Qf7 25.c7 indirectly attack the rook on a8! 23.Nc3? This is a mistake. Now black will have strong move 23...f4! and now after 24. gxf4 exf4 25. Bd4 Rf5 26. Bxg7+ Qxg7 27. Qg2 black has return the table! 23...f4! I'm getting nervous now. Hope Greg will not crack under pressure after losing all his advantage.

24. gxf4 exf4 25. Bd4 Rf5 26. Bxg7+ Qxg7 27. Qg2 Qe7

28.Nf3 Rb8 29. Rfd1 Nb6 of course the b4 pawn cannot be capture for e.g after 29...Rxb4 30.Nd5 forking white's queen and rook 30. Rd4 Rbf8 31.a4 a5 32.Re4 Qd8 33. Kh1 Nf6 34. Rd4 Nh5 35. Re4

It looks like white didn't have a clear plan to proceed while black is improving his position gradually.

35... axb4 36. Rxb4 Rc5 37. Rbb1 Ra5 38. Rb4 Rc5 39.

Rbb1 Qf6 40. Nb5 Nxa4

The first time control has been reached. I'm chatting with Mashafizul via Facebook and he comment that Greg is fighting for a draw while Khai Boon is almost lost position.

41. Nxc7 Rc8 42. Rxc5 dxc5

43. Nd5 white miss

a strong winning move 43. Qg4 !! ( 43.Qh3!! is also the same) 43...Rxc7 44.

Rb8+ Kg7 45. Qd7+! This is the idea 45... Rxd7 46. cxd7 winning 43... Qxc6 44. Qg5 Qe6?

This could be a big time blunder for black because now white rook's can enter the 7th rank after 45. Rb7! Qxe2? another one... 46. Kg2! Qe6 and now come Greg's famous jab....

47.Re7!!

Black can resign now. He has to give the queen or else white will play 48. Qh6 threatening mate on h7! If black play 47...Qg8 then come 48.Nf6! winning. I imagine now Greg say - Hey! Don't pray-pray ah with MCF's secretary !! :) Black resign 1-0 . Greg the great!