Wins For Former World Champions Tan, Kosteniuk, Mariya Muzychuk
Former women's world chess champions GMs Tan Zhongyi, Mariya Muzychuk, and Alexandra Kosteniuk opened with victories in the first round of the Cairns Cup 2024 which began at the Saint Louis Chess Club on Thursday. Muzychuk's game featured a twin exchange sacrifice and proved to be an entertaining affair.
The $200,000 prize money tournament with a first prize of $50,000 saw big fights in all five games. The GM Harika Dronavalli vs. GM Nana Dzagnidze encounter went all the way for more than six hours and 126 moves of play before finally ending in a draw.
Round two starts Friday, June 14, at 2 p.m. ET / 20:00 CEST / 11:30 p.m. IST.
Cairns Cup Round 1 Results
Cairns Cup Standings After Round 1
- Kosteniuk 1-0 Paehtz
- Lee 0-1 Tan
- Krush ½-½ Anna Muzychuk
- Mariya Muzychuk 1-0 Zatonskih
- Harika ½-½ Dzagnidze
Saint Louis Chess Club has the legendary 83-year-old GM Nona Gaprindashvili, five-time women's world champion and first woman ever to be awarded the title of grandmaster, as a special invitee for the tournament. The fifth world champion earlier enjoyed her time at the Ultimate Moves, a traditional fun pre-event at the club, and created the picture of the day facing her 14-year-old opponent, IM Alice Lee.
Befittingly, Gaprindashvili also sounded the bell to start the event in the presence of Dr. Jeanne Cairns Sinquefield, the co-founder of the club after whose maiden name the event is named. In the video below, to Gaprindashvili's left is the chief arbiter of the tournament, WIM Anastasia Sorokina of Australia.
The Cairns Cup is officially underway! 🔔👀https://t.co/XXx6NlRrg9
— Women's Chess Coverage (@OnTheQueenside) June 13, 2024
📹: @STLChessClub#chess #womeninchess #CairnsCup pic.twitter.com/euJQ8aKyHl
Kosteniuk 1-0 Paehtz
Kosteniuk with the white pieces caught GM Elisabeth Paehtz in her opening preparation, enjoying a healthy advantage right from the beginning, both on the board and the clock. In a Sicilian Rossolimo game, Paehtz's weak kingside and the presence of opposite-colored bishops gave her cause for concern. Kosteniuk's advantage was never in doubt, especially after Paehtz seemed to miss her way between moves 27-31, moving her queen back and forth on the a-file. This enabled Kosteniuk to make the crucial 32.d4 break and ultimately convert her advantage.
Kosteniuk revealed afterward that she had had a difficult run just before this event: "I have been in this chess world and in this business for a very, very long time, and I have learned to appreciate every victory. I am coming here from the last three rounds of the Bundesliga, and I played terribly... I am coming here after two defeats, and it feels great to win a game."
I have been in this chess world and in this business for a very, very long time, and I have learned to appreciate every victory.
—Alexandra Kosteniuk
Lee 0-1 Tan
Tan seemed to be flirting with danger while employing an unorthodox opening setup (the Accelerated Queen's Indian?), which transposed to an English Defense and resulted in a slightly cramped middlegame position. However, in a crucial moment early in the middlegame, Lee's choice of avoiding a piece sacrifice subsequently led to her being outplayed by Tan.
Krush ½-½ Anna Muzychuk
Fresh from being pleasantly surprised at the opening ceremony with a $100,000 check, GM Irina Krush seemed to enjoy a considerable advantage in the middlegame resulting from an Exchange variation of the Queen's Gambit Declined. GM Anna Muzychuk's play right after simplifying the position with 14...d4 seemed tentative, and there was a moment in the game when Krush could have taken the initiative.
Mariya Muzychuk 1-0 Zatonskih
Commenting on the game, GM Yassar Seirawan exclaimed towards the end: "A drama turned tragedy turned drama turned tragedy again!"
A drama turned tragedy turned drama turned tragedy again!
—Yasser Seirawan
Indeed it proved to be a seesaw affair. Muzychuk seemed to be enjoying a typical space advantage against a French Defense vs. the winner of the Cairns Cup 2023, IM Anna Zatonskih. But in a tense middlegame with a cramped position, it was Zatonskih who missed tactical tricks that could have given her the advantage. The game proved to be a topsy-turvy affair with many ups and downs, and Zatonskih's time pressure finally proved to be the decisive factor.
It was a spectator's delight—for more than one reason.
Thus after sacrificing the exchange, Mariya Muzychuk chose to repeat it again after three moves.
Suitably, this is our Game of the Day, which GM Dejan Bojkov has analyzed.
Harika ½-½ Dzagnidze
This was the last game to end, after more than six hours of fighting for 126 moves. Dzagnidze had famously remarked in the past about Harika's opening breadth: "I think there are no openings lines with Black that she doesn't play. So, when I play against her, I always get tired even before the game because I need to prepare and repeat all the lines."
In this game between two friends, it was Dzagnidze's turn to surprise her opponent with the Sicilian Taimanov, and the game showed lots of promise for White in the middlegame.
How to review?
You can review the round's broadcast on the Saint Louis Chess Club YouTube or Twitch channels. The games can also be reviewed from our dedicated 2024 Cairns Cup events page.
The live broadcast was hosted by Seirawan with IMs Jovanka Houska and Nazi Paikidze.
The 2024 Cairns Cup is one of the strongest women's tournaments in the world. The event is a 10-player round-robin with classical time control (120 minutes for the entire game, plus a 30-second increment per move). The 2024 Cairns Cup runs from June 13 to June 23 and features a $200,000 prize fund.
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