GM Wei Yi posted a five-game successful streak as he scored 13 of a doable 18 factors to prime the desk after the speedy part of the 2024 Superbet Fast & Blitz Poland. World primary Magnus Carlsen is only a level behind earlier than the weekend’s 18 rounds of blitz after surviving a troublesome sport in opposition to GM Anish Giri. With solely three factors separating third and final place something is feasible if the leaders stumble.
Day 4 begins Saturday, Might 11, at 7 a.m. ET / 13:00 CEST / 4:30 p.m. IST.
Superbet Fast & Blitz Poland Standings After Fast
“Relaxed” Wei Yi Powers On
“I really feel actually relaxed after immediately’s video games!” mentioned Wei after topping the sector after the 9 rounds of speedy chess in Warsaw. It was comprehensible that he was feeling good, since a run of 5 wins in a row, adopted by a draw in opposition to GM Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu, had been sufficient to complete forward of the Fast World Champion. It maybe should not shock us, nonetheless, since 24-year-old Wei is the speedy world number-three.
His first sport set the tone, as he went for the daring 18.Nf5!? in opposition to GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov, explaining, “I believed if I don’t play Nf5 he’ll play f5 with sturdy counterplay, in order that’s why I performed Nf5.”
That is our Recreation of the Day, with evaluation by GM Rafael Leitao beneath:
The second Carlsen sees Wei clinch the win and take the lead was captured on video.
Magnus sees Wei Yi is successful and about to take the only lead! #GrandChessTour pic.twitter.com/URjjP9rZkY
— chess24 (@chess24com) Might 10, 2024
Wei wasn’t completed beating prime gamers, as he then took down world championship challenger GM Gukesh Dommaraju with the black items. Professional tip: Do not play the Alapin Sicilian in opposition to Wei! Gukesh did, and after one mistake on transfer 13 slumped to defeat regardless of making no evident errors.
Praggnanandhaa was the one participant who managed to cease Wei, taking part in very solidly with the white items within the last sport, nevertheless it wasn’t sufficient to cease the Chinese language star ending in a deserved first place.
The one destructive for Wei? There are not any prizes given out after the speedy part, with what issues the mixed rating after 18 rounds of blitz. And there is a harmful participant lurking a single level again.
Carlsen Favourite Heading Into The Blitz
Carlsen was the one participant to keep away from shedding in speedy chess in Warsaw, although he let issues get dicey within the last spherical with the careless 17.Be3? in opposition to his arch-rival Giri, who did some critical checking earlier than grabbing the pawn on e4.
Giri defined that he took his time since he knew that Carlsen knew this opening and feared some tough preparation. It appears it was only a mistake, however, because it turned out, the place nonetheless had first rate assets for White and Carlsen finally made holding a draw look straightforward.
That balanced out the primary sport of the day, the place it was Carlsen who had possibilities earlier than acquiescing to a draw in opposition to Praggnanandhaa, in order that the world primary had an uncommon report of drawing the primary and final sport every day in Warsaw however successful the one within the center.
The win got here in opposition to the struggling GM Vincent Keymer, who was already beneath stress when he made a shedding transfer.
Carlsen is an absolute beast in blitz—it is sufficient to recall his 9/9 day in Zagreb final yr—in order that his biggest impediment could also be that he is additionally taking part in the Champions Chess Tour Chess.com Basic within the night, although he is removed from the one participant combining each occasions.
A Secure Of Darkish Horses
Apart from the top-two, nobody has both really impressed or fully collapsed. Three attracts on the ultimate day of speedy stored Praggnanandhaa two factors behind Carlsen in third place, whereas GM Kirill Shevchenko might have struggled after his excellent first day however goes into the blitz in joint fourth. Given his blitz abilities, which means he is nonetheless in rivalry, as is the individual he shares fourth with: two-time World Blitz Championship silver medalist GM Jan-Krzysztof Duda. The native hero had a quiet speedy, however gained a chaotic last sport in opposition to Gukesh to maintain his hopes alive.
Gukesh, contemporary from his Candidates triumph, finds himself in joint final place with Giri and Keymer, a degree behind Abdusattorov and GM Arjun Erigaisi, however with simply 5 factors separating final and first there’s nonetheless time to bounce again and problem for the highest locations, although the time to do it’s doubtless on Saturday. With the time management shortening to only 5 minutes per participant and a two-second increment after every transfer we’re assured pleasure forward!
The 2024 Superbet Fast & Blitz Poland is the primary occasion on the 2024 Grand Chess Tour and runs Might 8-12 within the POLIN Museum of the Historical past of Polish Jews in Warsaw, Poland. The ten gamers first compete in a single speedy round-robin with a time management of 25 minutes plus a 10-second increment per transfer, adopted by a blitz double round-robin with a 5+2 time management.
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