Stunning chess blunder gives Anish Giri victory in 2023 Tata Steel Chess Tournament
Dutch grandmaster Anish Giri has won the Tata Steel Chess Tournament with a stunning victory in the final round against Richárd Rapport.
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Dutch grandmaster Anish Giri won a spectacular game in Wijk aan Zee to clinch victory in the 2023 Tata Steel Chess Tournament.
Teenage grandmaster Nodirbek Abdusattorov was leading on the final day of the tournament but stumbled with the white pieces in a Sicilian against Dutchman Jorden van Foreest.
Abdusattorov blundered on move 38 with Be2 and van Foreest soon gobbled up most of the Uzbek’s remaining pawns. Abdusattorov’s loss left the tournament wide open, especially for the challenger Giri.
Outgoing world chess champion Magnus Carlsen — who lost two games straight earlier in the tournament but staged a strong comeback, needed Giri to at least draw in order to have a chance of forcing a tie-break.
Carlsen did win his game against rising Indian star Arjun Erigaisi with the black pieces in an offbeat line — the King’s Indian Attack variation of the Réti Opening.
A flashy knight sac on move 34 helped give Carlsen the advantage.
Erigaisi was then slowly ground down in classic Magnesian style.
All eyes turned to Giri’s game in the Open Siciliant against the Hungarian Richárd Rapport.
The game was tense but even until move 34 when Giri checked the black king with his knight.
Any king move would have been fine, except for the disastrous Kg6 — and commentators were left aghast when that was played on the board.
Giri looked stunned and quickly calculated that Rxd6 was winning, dragging the queen away from the crucial f5 square.
The blunder that shocked the commentators and @anishgiri!
— Chess.com (@chesscom) January 29, 2023
This could be a MASSIVE win depending on Nodirbek's result 👀 pic.twitter.com/piwTaJlbH5
Congrats @anishgiri , my mom is happier than the day I was born
— Dina Belenkaya (@DinaBelenkaya) January 29, 2023
Rapport tried to move his king away from the danger but Giri again found an accurate move Rd5. A spite check was thrown in but Rapport soon had to throw in the towel.
The win handed Giri - who was once mocked for making too many draws - victory in his home tournament.
Giri, known for being outspoken on social media, simply tweeted the trophy and thanks emojis.
Final results
Anish Giri: 8.5/13
Nodirbek Abdusattorov: 8/13
Magnus Carlsen: 8/13
Wesley So: 7.5/13
Fabiano Caruana: 7/13
Parham Maghsoodloo: 7/13
Levon Aronian: 6.5/13
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