Friday, November 30, 2012

2012 FIDE WWCC: Stefanova Equalizes in G4

It's to the play-offs for the ladies after Stefanova's victory today with the white pieces.  Hmmm, I'm wondering if she dressed like the White Swan on purpose...



From The Week in Chess:

Antoaneta Stefanova beat Anna Ushenina in a terribly nervy struggle where Ushenina was completely busted shortly out of the opening. Stefanova then started to miss the best and Ushenina was right back in the game if she'd found 31...Ba8! instead she played 31...Bb1? and had to resign. Almost anything could happen in the playoffs.

NameFEDG1G2G3G5 R1 R2 r3 r4 B1 B2 SDTot
Round 6 Match 01
Ushenina, AnnaUKR½½10 2
Stefanova, AntoanetaBUL½½01 2

Official website.

The World Champion will be determined on tie-break tomorrow.

After losing the third game of the World Championship final match, Antoaneta Stefanova (Bulgaria) needed to win the last game with classical time control today.

The players continued their opening discussion in the Slav defense. The Bulgarian got a promising position after the opening, while her opponent Anna Ushenina (Ukraine) played inaccurately and lost a couple of important tempi. The critical moment occurred on the 19th move, when White offered a pawn sacrifice in order to begin actions on the kingside. After very long thought Black declined the offer and retreated her queen to a passive location. This allowed White to regroup her pieces and threaten the black king. In the ensuing struggle the Ukrainian did not find all the defensive resources, and White got an overwhelming advantage. When the goal was within reach, White made a mistake and allowed her opponent to complicate the game. However, Black returned the favor, committing a blunder on the next move. Stefanova delivered a tactical blow, making the checkmate inevitable, and Ushenina resigned on the 33rd move.

The match score is now tied – 2-2. The winner will be determined on tie-break tomorrow, December 1. The tie-break begins with two rapid games – 25 minutes plus 10 bonus seconds per move. If the score remains tied, the players continue with two more games with 10 minutes plus 10 bonus seconds per move. If the score is still tied, the players compete in two blitz games – 5 minutes plus 10 seconds per move. Finally, if the winner is still not determined, they proceed to an ultimate game, also known as the Armageddon – White has 5 minutes, Black has 4 minutes, each side receives 3 bonus second per move, starting with the move 61, and a draw counts as a victory for Black.

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