Adams and Kramnik Lead Dortmund At The Rest Day
Five rounds into the nine-round annual event that is the Dortmund super-tournament, and two players are sprinting away from the rest of the field. Michael Adams and Vladimir Kramnik both have undefeated 4/5 scores and lead the rest of the field by a point and a half or more.
You might remember that Caruana achieved a 2800 rating with his first-round victory. Unfortunately for him, that was the end of the good news. He drew in round 2 and then lost in rounds 3 and 4 before drawing in round 5 - with difficulty with the White pieces. So much for 2800 - he's 2787, rounded up. Meanwhile, Kramnik is back to his "rightful" spot in the top three, where he has spent much, probably most of the last 17 years. For Adams too the event is a big ratings success, and at 2754 he's just a point short of his all-time (official) career high. Life may not begin at 40, but it doesn't end there, either. (Except for Gata Kamsky, with reference to his chess life. As far as I know, he still plans to quit the game next year.)
For your entertainment, here, with some very brief notes, are six games from the last three rounds. Enjoy!
Reader Comments (1)
I don't really understand why Kramnik allowed such a quick draw in the last round against Adams. I thought the game would be a big fight since he needed to win the game to win the tournament.