The fact that the German Carnival’s festivities are taking place hasn’t stopped the players from demonstrating that they’re ready to battle. The three games of the round are leaving the opening territory and all the participants seem to be ready to fight it out until the end.
The most expected game of the day is the one that confronts World Champion Vishy Anand, who has made 4 straight draws, and Germany’s Nr.1 Arkadij Naiditsch, who has shown the biggest fighting spirit in this tournament – he played in 3 out of the 4 decisive games until now. It seems that this game will be a long maneuvering battle due to the closed nature of the pawn structure in the center.
On the second board, the lowest-rated GM Georg Meier faces GM Mickey Adams, who surprisingly played a rather dynamic opening compared to his usual style – 12…e5 is a move that invites a direct confrontation in the center.
The last match-up is being played between the leader GM Fabiano Caruana and GM Daniel Fridman. The German used his beloved Petroff Defense and Caruana chose the most dynamic and complicated setup with opposite-side castling. Fabiano already has a pawn on h4, while Daniel has already launched the pawns forward on the queenside. This might become a very interesting struggle!
GRENKE Chess Classic Baden-Baden 2013 preview / Pairings / Live games with analysis
