After 9 rounds of the
2014 Australian Championship IM Max Illingworth and IM Igor Bjelobrk share the lead with 6.5 points. Illingworth defeated top seed GM Vasilly Papin in an amazing game, where Papin sacrificed in the opening but to what end was not clear. Maybe Papin was just looking for a random position, which is certainly what he got. But while he had a couple of chances to justify his play, Illingworth eventually grabbed an big advantage and held on to the end. Bjelobrk beat IM Bobby Cheng in a much more 'normal' game, where tactics in the late middlegame, coupled with good endgame technique was enough for the win.
Tomorrows round sees Illingworth up against Vietnamese GM Tu Hoang Thong, while Bjelobrk plays FM Anton Smirnov. A win for either will put them in the box seat going into the final round, but given the combative nature of the tournament so far, a final round with a pile of players on 7 or 6.5 is not out of the question.
Papin,Vasily - Illingworth,Max [A09]
2014 Australian Championship Melbourne, 09.01.2014
2 comments:
Lane - Zelesco, Lane's 36th move was what you'd expect from a 1000 Elo player!
Maybe I'm too hopeful but I expected a contest between Lane and Schon in Round 11. I was disappointed. Yet another Lane collapse! Geez!
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