GM Magnus Carlsen staved off a spirited problem from GM Alireza Firouzja to prevail with a rating of two.5-1.5 within the Winners Bracket Finals of the Julius Baer Technology Cup 2024. He’ll now face the Losers Bracket winner within the match’s Grand Last.
Within the Losers Bracket Quarterfinals, GM Levon Aronian convincingly defeated GM Vladimir Fedoseev by a 2-0 margin. With the black items, GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave defeated GM Alexander Grischuk in an armageddon tiebreak after each their common time management video games resulted in attracts.
Teenaged GMs Denis Lazavik and Vincent Keymer earned their tickets to the 2024 Champions Chess Tour Finals from Divisions II and III respectively, as the ultimate record of qualifiers was confirmed on the finish of the day’s play. GM Fabiano Caruana produced an amazingly imaginative victory over Keymer in a Division III encounter.
Division Play continues on Monday, September 30, beginning at 11 a.m. ET / 17:00 CEST / 8:30 p.m. IST.
2024 Champions Chess Tour Contributors
Division I Bracket
Division I: Losers Quarterfinals & Winners Finals
The Losers Quarterfinals turned out to be two thrilling matches with 4 prime gamers going through one another in one other essential elimination spherical. With 1.5-0.5 because the required minimal successful margin for the brief two-game matches within the common 10+2 time management, one anticipated comparatively secure video games, however the gamers did not appear to have any such notions.
Vachier-Lagrave 2-1 Grischuk
Any match involving Grischuk is an thrilling spectacle for spectators, with the Russian’s perpetual behavior of courting time stress. Vachier-Lagrave introduced his personal share of thrill by sacrificing a pawn for positional compensation and creating materials imbalances in all of the video games, each efficient methods so as to add psychological stress to their opponents.
Nevertheless, it was Grischuk who appeared to be dictating phrases in each the common time management video games, even coming near successful the sport and the match within the second encounter.
With scores tied at 1-1 on the finish of standard time management video games, the stage was set for an thrilling armageddon tiebreak with its personal particular guidelines:
- White must win the sport; Black wins the match in case the sport ends in a draw.Â
- The gamers would confidentially bid for the colours by quoting a time they’re prepared to have for the sport. With 10 minutes as the bottom time for all the sport with no further time increments, the decrease bid of time would win a participant the suitable to determine the colour.
When the confidential bids of each the gamers have been revealed, the spectators witnessed a jaw-dropping spectacle.
The unbelievable distinction of only one solitary second between the gamers’ bids prompted commentator GM Artur Neiksans to exclaim: “These are like meta-level thoughts video games! How will you predict your opponent will choose …only one second much less?”
These are like meta-level thoughts video games! How will you predict your opponent will choose …only one second much less?
—GM Artur Neiksans
Vachier-Lagrave put up a cussed present within the tiebreaker to take care of an equal place via to the endgame and gained when Grischuk overextended the place in his effort to win.
Aronian 2-0 Fedoseev
The match began energetically from the get-go when Fedoseev sacrificed two items for a rook and two pawns within the first sport in a queenless middlegame. Nevertheless, in a posh place involving a mutual kingside assault, he blundered his king into getting checkmated.
Aronian with White dominated the second sport, thus rising as probably the most dominant match winner of the day.Â
Carlsen 2.5-1.5 Firouzja
A conflict between Carlsen and Firouzja in fast time management is certain to provide appreciable pleasure, as Carlsen himself admitted after the sport that “in quicker codecs, it’s only Alireza who’s remotely shut” to his personal chess energy.
“It stays to be seen if Arjun is sort of 2800 energy but, however Gukesh is admittedly actually good. I believe he’s by far the most effective aside from Alireza.” – Magnus Carlsen#ChessChamps https://t.co/Z8XfpXDzuW pic.twitter.com/XvDxVsbgXH
— chess24 (@chess24com) September 29, 2024
However as Carlsen admitted, it was an error-prone match however a memorable conflict for the spectators with so many twists and turns in all 4 video games.
Within the first sport, fireworks began by the sixteenth transfer when Carlsen determined to sacrifice a bit.
The second encounter was probably the most dramatic of all, with fortunes fluctuating too many occasions for a single sport.
Firouzja had the prospect to repeat strikes to drive a draw after 24…Ne4 25.Qe2 Ng3 26.Qf2, however he deviated with 26…Na5, exhibiting his combating spirit.
Right here, it was Carlsen’s flip to repeat 29.Nh7 Rh8 30.Ng5 Rhf8, however he spurned a three-fold repetition with 31.Nf1, exhibiting his personal combating spirit in flip.
Firouzja appeared to have gained a transparent benefit right here, as White finds it troublesome to discover a plan of motion. Nevertheless, the place stays extraordinarily advanced, making Neiksans comment: “How do you even get this place bodily on the board? It appears like from a unique century.”
How do you even get this place bodily on the board? It appears like from a unique century.
—GM Artur NeiksansÂ
Alireza had a transparent path to benefit with 48…Qd6 and even 48…f4 right here, however he blundered with 48…Qf4??, permitting 49.Be3 and simplification of the place.
After many extra twists and turns, the sport noticed Carlsen lacking a compelled mate.
Carlsen missed a chance to drive checkmate right here with 66.Rab7 threatening checkmate with 67.R5b6#. He as an alternative performed 66.Rc5+ and the sport went on.
After extra twists, it was Carlsen’s flip to make the ultimate blunder of the sport, permitting Firouzja to win.
Carlsen might have gained with 77.Rxg3, stopping Black’s handed pawns and on the brink of promote his personal b-pawn. Nevertheless, he blundered with 77.b7?? that allowed Black to win the sport after 77…f2 78.Rxg3 Rh5+ 79.Ke4 f1=Q.
After some unbelievable twists and turns, GM Alireza Firouzja ranges the rating with a win! #ChessChamps pic.twitter.com/hr3yPHXsiu
— chess24 (@chess24com) September 29, 2024
After an uneventful third sport, the fourth sport was once more an entertainer with unimaginable drama on the board. The spotlight was Carlsen blundering his queen with out Firouzja noticing.
After the sport when requested about his potential to combat again from robust conditions, Carlsen revealed his technique, “The factor about Alireza is that he spends plenty of time. He is superb with little time, however you can’t be excellent on a regular basis if you end up stunned. That offers you just a little little bit of an opportunity to get again within the sport; a part of my technique … was to attempt to drive him to make use of that point, in order that we might get into these conditions the place … I’ve just a little bit extra time myself.
The factor about Alireza is that he spends plenty of time. He is superb with little time, however you can’t be excellent on a regular basis if you end up stunned.
—Magnus Carlsen
The match was reviewed by GM Hikaru Nakamura together with his insights.
Division II: Winners Semifinals & Losers Rounds 2 & 3
Division II Bracket
GM Wesley So managed to seal his place within the CCT 2024 finals with a 2.5-0.5 win over GM Shant Sargsyan. The ultimate place of the primary sport reveals an aesthetically stunning finale.
White threatens to seize the trapped black rook on d7, and 27…Rxe7 is met with 28.fxe7 and a fork that wins a bit. A picturesque end.
Division III: Winners Semifinals & Losers Rounds 4 & 5
Division III Bracket
One of many hardest matches within the decrease divisions was between GM Fabiano Caruana and GM Vincent Keymer which went in favor of the previous with a rating of two.5-0.5. Alongside the way in which, each of those unimaginable gamers produced a memorable conflict. Rightfully, it’s annotated because the Recreation Of The Day by GM Rafael Leitao.Â
The 2024 Julius Baer Technology Cup is the final of the Champions Chess Tour’s 4 occasions and determines one of many gamers who’ll make it to the in-person CCT Finals. The occasion begins on September 25 at 11 a.m. ET / 17:00 CEST / 8:30 p.m. IST and includes a $300,000 prize fund.
Earlier protection:
