IM Boroljub Zlatanovic
The popularity of chess is growing rapidly.
For some, it’s just a hobby, for others – a competition or a way to become a better version of themselves. And, of course, there are sportsmen in chess who desire to win trophies and titles. I’m sure all these 3 categories are passionate about chess and are looking for a way to get better.
Tactics is an important part of any chess player’s training.
They help keep the mind sharp, but also improve your tactical vision. Your brain will learn to recognize the most common tactical patterns, so you can easily spot them during your games. There’s nobody there to tell you there is a tactic while you’re playing, but if you have solved a lot of tactics your eye will immediately be drawn to them.
Bobby Fischer is considered to be one of the best players of all time.
He is an important personality of his time and many people, chess players or not, know who he was. Although he retired from chess rather soon, he left behind a great legacy in the chess world.
Chess pieces (chessmen) and a board is the essential part of each chess set.
If you have decided that you want to start learning how to play chess, then you need to get yourself a chess set. The board has 64 black and white squares and on it, you will need to set up 32 pieces.
Let’s now see how each piece moves and what you need to know in order to start playing your first game of chess!
Every grandmaster recommends studying the classics, but why? Isn’t it easier to improve by solving puzzles, studying openings, and practicing online? Over-the-board tournaments have had one big advantage over online chess. After the game, you could invite your opponent to analyze the game together. You would go to a special room, sit there and discuss everything that had happened or could have happened during your clash. Some players would enter this room alone and join other players’ analyses.
After ten games of the match, Magnus Carlsen was just one point away from winning the event. Ian Nepomniachtchi, the challenger, had to score 3.5 points in the remaining four games. This didn’t seem possible, but we could expect at least a big fight at the end of the match.
The eleventh game started with a new opening choice by White.
The start of the World Chess Championship match between Magnus Carlsen and Ian Nepomniachtchi was tense and entertaining. Many experts thought it was going to be the toughest challenge for the current world champion in his career. Some people even predicted he would lose the title this year.
Many people thought the match was over after Magnus’ win in the 8th game. But the Russian team came up with a few unexpected moves. First of all, Sergey Karjakin arrived in Dubai to help Ian. Sergey so far is the only person who was leading in a World Championship match against Carlsen. He is also a great fighter and his advice could make a positive impact on Nepomniachtchi.
It seemed that after a quick draw in the 7th game, both players would have time to recover and will come up with another long and interesting fight. Magnus Carlsen had the White pieces in Game 8, so the experts debated whether he will try to increase his lead or avoid any risk. In the first case, it would make sense for him to opt for the aggressive Catalan Opening again. Although taking into account that it gave Black winning chances in both of the games this opening was chosen, it was safe to assume we would see 1.e4 instead.
The sixth game of the match between Magnus Carlsen and Ian Nepomniachtchi was impressive, but the competition is still far from over. It actually got even more interesting since the challenger now is obliged to find a way to shatter the champion’s positions. No more worries about 14 draw in the match.
