GM Shamsiddin Vokhidov, 19, of Uzbekistan ended the winning streak of erstwhile solo leader GM Temur Kuybokarov of Australia while Singaporean IM Tin Jingyao, 21, upset top seed GM Parham Maghsoodloo of Iran in the penultimate round of the Asian Continental Hybrid Chess Championship on Tornelo. Tin Jingyao and Shamsiddin are tied for the lead with 6.5 points after 8 rounds.
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In a Ruy Lopez Game, Shamsiddin forced Kuybokarov to give up a Rook for Knight on the 31st move. The Uzbek penetrated the 8th rank with his Rook and allowed a Knight fork (see diagram below) with 38.Rxf7! followed by 39.Qg3 and sacrificed his Queen on the 47th move to checkmate the Australian on the next move.
Tin Jingyao used the Nimzo Indian defense and gained a passed pawn on the 45th move. Escorting his pawn to the 2nd rank, the young Singaporean uncorked a brilliant defensive move (see diagram below) with 53…Qb7! protecting the f7 square and attacking the Bishop to make Maghsoodloo lose on time.
Kuybokarov is in second slot with 6 points together with Uzbek GMs Nodirbek Yakubboev and Javokhir Sindarov and IM Mohamad Ervan of Indonesia.
Sindarov used the Gruenfeld Defense to draw with Nodirbek Yakubboev in 20 moves. Yakubboev sacrificed a Bishop on the 9th move for three pawns and recovered a Rook. Sindarov countered with a Knight sacrifice on the 14th move and another Knight sacrifice on the 16th move.
Ervan used the semi Slav variation of the Queen’s Gambit Declined against IM Syed Khalil Mousavi of Iran and promoted his pawn to Queen on the 37th move. A king hunt ensued and Mousavi resigned on the 43rd move.
Five players follow with 5.5 points each, namely, GMs Xu Yinglun and Lu Shanglei of China, Amin Tabatabaei of Iran and IMs Gan Erdene Sugar of Monglia and Taher Yoseph Theolifus of Indonesia. At stake are seven qualification slots to the World Cup this July in Sochi, Russia and $16,000 in cash prizes. If a slot is taken by a player already qualified for the World Cup, the next in line shall qualify.
See previous articles about the Asian Continental Hybrid Chess Championship.
Rd 7: Kuybokarov Grabs Solo Lead in Homestretch of Asian Continental Hybrid Chess Championship
Rd 6: Yakubboev, Kuybokarov Share Lead after 6 Rounds of Asian Continental Hybrid Chess Championship
Rd 5: Parham and 7 Others Tied for Lead at Halfway Mark of Asian Continental Chess Championship
Rd 4: 5 GMs Share Lead in Asian Continental Hybrid Chess Championship
Rd 3: Yakubboev, Xu Share Lead in Asian Continental Hybrid Chess Championship
Rd 2: Nine Players Share Early Lead in Asian Continental Championship