Topalov just reeled off another amazing streak to win Mtel again, beating Anand, Ponomariov, Kamsky and Bacrot in succession after being at -1 after 6 rounds!! Last year, he also had a similar streak to win Mtel.

This is not Ponomariov’s tournament. He has a superior against Anand, over pushed and almost lost again. With the win, Anand would have moved into a tie for 2nd with Kamsky, who drew against Svidler. However, Anand seemed to let the position go and it ended up in a draw.

It is amazing that Topalov can turn it on and off like no one else currently. When it looked like his rating will plummet below 2800, he picked up points with 4 straight wins to widen the rating lead from Anand (who fell below 2800 after Mtel).

What can we say about Kamsky? He belongs up there with the elite. Even with an average opening repertoire at best (what else is new?), he scored 1.5 / 2 against Anand, Svidler, Bacrot and Ponomariov. His only losses were to Topalov.

Congratulations to Topalov for another thrilling tournament victory and to Kamsky for thrilling his fans!

Final standings:

1 6.5 GM Topalov (Bulgaria, 2804)
2 6.0 GM Kamsky (USA, 2671)
3 5.5 GM Anand (India, 2803)
4 5.0 GM Svidler (Russia, 2743)

5-6 3.5 GM Bacrot (France, 2708), GM Ponomariov (Ukraine, 2738)
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Chess Daily News from Susan Polgar
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