Chess (#1050)

The June ratings see Fabiano Caruana (2796) leapfrogging over Kramnik (2784) to climb to number 3. Carlsen (2862) and Aronyan (2813) stay at 1 and 2 respectively. Anand (2775) has dropped to number 8 after his disappointing Tal Memorial performance.

Shakhriyar Mamedaryov has won the Geneva Masters Rapid, beating Kramnik in the finals. Mathieu Cornette won the Geneva Open with 8 points from 9 games. Koneru Humpy won the Dilijan Grand Prix with 8 points from 11 games. Anna Muzychuk and Nana Dzagnidze tied for second-third with 7 each. Harika had a minus score, finishing sixth with 5.

The Beijing GP has started. Karjakin, Topalov and Grischuk registered wins in the first round versus Giri, Gelfand and Kamsky respectively. Other participants include Morozevich, Wang Yue, Wang Hao, Ivanchuk, Leko, Mamedaryov.

An interesting debate is hotting up about cheating, triggered by Bulgarian FM Borislav Ivanov's winning a sequence of computer-assisted games. He plays long, tactically perfect sequences mirroring exact engine analysis. His intrinsic strength is also low, given his prior record and age.

Ivanov, in his mid 20s, has seen his performances improve from 2065 (barely proficient) to over 2600 (strong GM). In-between astounding wins against strong GMs, he has lost to under-2000 opposition when he's been under strong surveillance.

Technical experts say (there are plenty in the chess community) he's using a tiny receiver embedded deep in his inner ear, or a vibrating receiver on his body, and perhaps, a contact-lens viewer. An associate plugs the positions into a computer and transmits analysis back.

Strip searching for such devices would require a search warrant and means the rigmarole of court applications, etc., which would forewarn Ivanov. The law on chess cheating is also unclear. It may not be a criminal offence in many jurisdictions, just as cricket match-fixing is a grey area.

The Diagram, WHITE TO PLAY (Karjakin Vs Mamedyarov, Zug GP 2013) is a good illustration of engine analysis. 15.Nf5!? Bb4 16.Nxh6+!! Karjakin pointed out that this would have been an intuitive sacrifice in an earlier era. Here it's home prep for a forced win.

Black must take 16...gxh6 17.c3 Ba3 18.Bc1 Rfe8?! Karjakin says 18.--Kg7 is the only hope. Now 19.g4! Nh7 20.c4 Bf8 21.g5 hxg5 22.Nxg5 Nxg5 23.Bxg5 Kh8 24.Rg1 Qc7. Or 24...Qa5 25.c5! Bg7 26.Qf3 f5 27.Qf4 Rg8 28.h6 Bf6 29.Bxf6+ Nxf6 30.Qe5

White wins with 25.Qf3 f6 26.Bf4 Bd6 27.Qg3 Nc5 28.Bxd6 Qh7+ 29.Ka1 Ne4 30.Qh4 Rg8 31.f3 Ng5 32.Qf4. Material plus position edge. The game ended 32...Qf5 33.Qxf5 exf5 34.Be7 Nxf3 35.Rgf1 Rg3 36.d5 cxd5 37.cxd5 Kg7 38.Rd3 Kf7 39.Bd6 Nh2 40.Bxg3 (1-0). After 40.Bxg3 Nxf1 41.Bf4, black's dead.

Devangshu Datta is an internationally rated chess and correspondence chess player