Pairings round 6, may 8, 3 pm CET
| GM Alexei Shirov | – | GM David Navara |
| GM Arjun Erigaisi | – | GM Michael Adams |
| GM Saleh Salem | – | GM Jorden Van Foreest |
| GM Hans Niemann | – | GM Nils Grandelius |
Round 4 – comments by GM Stellan Brynell
Erigaisi-Grandelius
Erigaisi surprised with the unusual 7.Bb5 in the Scotch game. Grandelius was under pressure until he was allowed to play 15…dxe4, followed by Nf5 and could safely steer the game towards a draw.
Navara-Van Foreest
Navara chose a surprisingly timid line against Van Foreest’s accepted queen’s gambit. Both players tried to create chances, but the balance was never shifted.
Shirov-Adams
Shirov chose 6.d3 in the Ruy Lopez and the typical manoeuvring ensued. 26.Qd3 was somewhat careless and offered black the chance for advantageous complications with 26…Nc2. But Adams discarded the move and it soon ended in a draw by repetition of moves.
Photo: Lars OA Hedlund
Salem-Niemann
Salem played aggressively as white in the NImzo-indian. Niemann defended well and when Salem lost momentum, Niemann managed a beautiful exchange sacrifice with 29…Kf6! With his remaining rook, knight and a handful of pawns he went hunting for white’s king and there was no way out for Salem. Another impressive game by Niemann.
Round 3 – comments by GM Stellan Brynell
Grandelius-Navara
Navara used the Berlin variation of the Ruy Lopez and Grandelius managed to mount some pressure as white. Careful handling of the endgame on Navara’s part secured the draw.
Salem-Shirov
Salem got a promising position early on in a fianchetto Grünfeld and Shirov’s queen seemed to be in trouble on the queenside. While white launched an ambitious kingside attack with h2-h4-h5, black found counterplay with this own flank pawn advance. Exchanges en masse followed and the endgame was drawn.
Van Foreest-Adams
Van Foreest played the very unusual 11.a4 in the exchange variation of the QGD. At almost exactly the same time in Rumania world no 4 Caruana executed the exact same plan against Firouzia! Only a coincidence? White gained the upper hand in both games but couldn’t find a breakthrough.
photo: Lars O Hedlund
Niemann-Erigaisi
Erigaisi was on the verge of equalizing as black in the Slav, when he allowed his pawn structure to be weakened through an exchange of queens on c6. Niemann’s manoeuvring to exploit the weakness was impressive and Erigiasi’s defence crumbled in the end. A very well played game!
Pairings round 4
Pairings round 4, may 6, 3 pm CET:
| GM Alexei Shirov | – | GM Michael Adams |
| GM David Navara | – | GM Jorden Van Forest |
| GM Arjun Erigaisi | – | GM Nils Grandelius |
| GM Salem Saleh | – | GM Hans Niemann |