– Topalov – Adams
Mr. Excitement Topalov is on a roll. He is in excellent form and he just proved with the win last round against Morozevich that he can win in many ways. He is gutsy, he is fearless, he’s the vintage Mike Tyson in the Chess ring (no, not the one who bites people’s ears but the old lean, mean, crushing Tyson machine). Adams just came off a crushing defeat by Anand.
Advantage: The pride of Bulgaria.
– Kasimdzhanov – Anand
After doing well in the first two rounds, Kasim was thoroughly wiped off the board by hurricane Judit yesterday. He is still stunned that he lost and the memory of not finding 22…Be5 will be hard to forget. This is his chance for redemption. However, Anand is usually not an opponent that Kasim can take his anger out of. Anand the powerful is on a mission to prove that he is the worthy successor to Kasparov. He wants to make the world say Kramnik who?
Advantage: A tiny edge for the prince of India but don’t count Kasim out.
– Leko – J. Polgar
The battle of the two Hungarian superstars. Leko has been playing very unusual chess. I cannot fathom the idea that he did not properly prepare for this tournament. I cannot believe that he is nervous since he has played and won some major events in the past. Hangover from Brissago? Highly unlikely! That is why it is such a mystery that he almost started out 0-3. This is a crucial round for Leko. He has done well against Judit in the past. He is not afraid of Judit. A win here will boost his confidence and energy more than a case of Red Bull drink. But on the other hand, a loss will basically means the end of the tournament for him. Judit on the other hand just came off a gutsy win yesterday. She has regained her confidence. She does not want to be back behind the 8 ball again. That is why I think she needs to be extra cautious and just let the position comes to her.
Advantage: A edge to Leko because of the White pieces.
– Morozevich – Svidler
Morozevich is frustrated. He is angry. He is confused. How can I lose to Topalov with the White pieces? That is what he asks himself. Well, he better gets over it real quick and tries to get himself back to the .500 mark with back to back White pieces. Svidler came off from a surprising win against Leko that propelled him into clear third. I expect him to want to have a satisfying early dinner. But don’t expect his opponent to make it that easy for him.
Advantage: A slight edge to Morozevich the enigmatic machine.
Chess Daily News from Susan Polgar
You’re right on. I fully agree with your prediction.
Yolie
This round is going to be interesting. Vrey difficult to predict, I thinl. A lot riding for Leko though. I feel bad for him, since he is usually such a solid player.
Sorry Peter, I HAVE to root for Judit today. She is the one making History.
First woman to beat a reigning FIDE champ yesterday!!, tomorrow………..?
Great blogs, Susan. Right on the money.
Do you have any thoughts about the tournament arena? Are the fans behaving? Is there noise? From the pictures on the web-site, it looks like almost as good a place to play chess as Forest Hills.
Keep it up.
Shamelessly rooting for Judit,
Jim F
Jim, the crowd is quite small. The organizer has no idea how to promote this event. It is too bad.
Best wishes,
Susan Polgar
http://www.PolgarChess.com
http://www.SusanPolgar.com