Wijk aan Zee 2018, Round 1: Anand, Kramnik, and Giri Win
For Viswanathan Anand and Vladimir Kramnik, the stories were similar: they played very well against strong but somewhat lower-rated opponents (Maxim Matlakov and Wei Yi, respectively), had some hiccups once they achieved a serious advantage, but eventually managed to convert anyway. Anish Giri's win over Hou Yifan was a bit different: they kept trading pieces all the way down to a king and pawn ending, and although the position was (and had long been) equal, Hou needed to make one precise move to hold the draw. Somewhat short of time, she failed to do so, and Giri joined the winner's circle in the last game of the day.
The other games, including the marquee matchup between Magnus Carlsen and Fabiano Caruana, finished peacefully. Peter Svidler had some chances against Baskaran Adhiban but let them slip. Wesley So was surprised in the opening by Shakhriyar Mamedyarov and chose a safe reply that allowed his opponent to equalize without any difficulty. Finally, Gawain Jones played a chicken line in the opening against Sergey Karjakin, with White offering a draw by repetition on move 12. Was this nervousness, fear, or a psychological trick? Karjakin declined the repetition, and Jones later obtained an edge, though only briefly, and the game was drawn before the first time control.
In the Challengers event Korobov, Gordievsky, and Jorden Van Foreest all won, the latter defeating...Lucas Van Foreest. So much for brotherly love!
The Masters (top section) games, plus Gordievsky's game and the battle of the siblings, are all here with my generally brief comments.
Round 2 Pairings (Masters section only):
- Hou Yifan (0) - Mamedyarov (.5)
- Matlakov (0) - So (.5)
- Karjakin (.5) - Anand (1)
- Caruana (.5) - Jones (.5)
- Adhiban (.5) - Carlsen (.5)
- Wei Yi (0) - Svidler (.5)
- Giri (1) - Kramnik (1)