Tata Steel 2016 - Video Recap - Round 8

Opening: E32: Nimzo-Indian: classical variation

Player(s): Navara, Caruana

GM Ronen Har-Zvi recaps Round 8. Another eventful round at the Tata Steel tournament. Karjakin was able to stop the Carlsen locomotive, holding the World Champion to a draw. The most important result of the day was Fabiano's loss against Navara. David is a fantastic player when he's in the right mood - in a way he makes one think of the great Ivanchuk - and today Caruana didn't defend well in the rook endgame. Fabiano loses contact with Carlsen at the top, and now he's in second position, half a point behind. Ding Liren and Wei Yi played an incredible game. It may be all theory, nonetheless it was amazing to watch. The final position seems to belong to a different dimension. Ding accepted the three-fold repetition, when he actually could have tried something to win the game. Probably he didn't feel comfortable in a highly risky position, with tactics looming everywhere. Everyone knows how strong Wei's tactical skills are. Hou Yifan lost her second game in a row, today against Van Wely. She started the event superbly, but after yesterday's loss, today she didn't appear to be at her best. The standings are still "short", which makes the tournament exciting to follow, with 5 rounds to go and the leader ahead half a point. After Caruana at 5/8, Ding, So and Giri with 4.5, then Navara, Wei, Karjakin, Mamedyarov and Eljanov with 4, at 50%. Tomorrow is a rest day. Play resumes Tuesday, January the 26th at 7:30AM EST - 13:30 CET.