[chessmind] Dennis Monokroussos: Bilbao, Round 4: White rolls; Carlsen (unofficially) takes over the #1 spot

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Posted by Dennis Monokroussos:
Bilbao, Round 4: White rolls; Carlsen (unofficially) takes over the #1 spot
http://chessmind.powerblogs.com/posts/1220728821.shtml


   The player with the white pieces managed to win each game in the
   fourth round of the [1]Grand Slam Final in Bilbao. The first game to
   finish was a short, painful defeat for Anand, who lost in just 25
   moves to Topalov. Topalov found a decent new move in a trendy Queen's
   Indian line, but Anand's painful fate resulted from subsequent,
   serious errors. Topalov thus maintains his lead in the tournament,
   while Anand endangered his #1 status.
   If Carlsen could win against Radjabov, he'd take over the #1 spot on
   the rating list, and win he did. It was a completely crazy Chinese
   Dragon that started off fine for Radjabov, but when Radjabov failed to
   switch over from offense to defense, Carlsen was able to break through
   with his own attack. Not a perfect game, but a thriller.
   The last game to finish took an opposite course from the other two.
   Aronian long enjoyed a slight edge against Ivanchuk, but for a long
   time it seemed unlikely to give him anything more than the better half
   of a draw. Aronian's crafty play was reminiscent of his legendary
   countryman, the late world champion Tigran Petrosian, in that he
   alternated cat-and-mouse play with slow attempts at progress.
   Eventually Ivanchuk made the requisite errors, and Aronian converted
   the point.
   Standings after Round 4:
   1. Topalov 8 (3 points on normal scoring)
   2. Carlsen 7 (2.5)
   3. Aronian 5 (2)
   4-6. Radjabov, Ivanchuk, Anand 3 (1.5)
   And let's not forget the [2]Live Ratings:
   1. Carlsen(!) 2791.3
   2. Anand 2790.9
   3. Morozevich 2787
   4. Topalov 2786.2
   5. Ivanchuk 2781.8
   Games, with my comments, [3]here.

References

   1. http://www.bilbaofinalmasters.com/
   2. http://chess.liverating.org/
   3. http://chessmind.powerblogs.com/files/bilbao2008_rd4.htm