Chess: How does White win?

UNINSPIRING is the word which comes to mind when considering the candidates

matches in Kazan between Alexander Grischuk and Boris Gelfand to determine who will challenge Vishy Anand next year for the world title – especially with two games being "grandmaster draws" in just 14 and 18 moves.

Fide organisers may want to consider a new format, or perhaps more sensibly

adopt the "Sofia rules" that specifically prohibits draw offers before move 40. The trouble is the present format is wrong on so many different

levels.

Even Anatoly Karpov pointed out in his election manifesto for Fide president last year how flawed this system was. The former world champion warned that the current cycle could, in theory, see someone not only going

on to challenge for the world championship but also winning the title without ever winning a classical game –- and it's –a scenario that could come true, as this has been Grischuk's match-strategy to advance.

For excitement today we therefore have to go to the recent European Individual Women's Championship in Tbilisi, Georgia. Returning to her homeland, Scotland's GM Ketevan Arakhamia-Grant was in the hunt throughout

and finished in ninth place on 7.5/11. Her only losses came in enthralling encounters against the overall winner, GM Viktorija Cmilyte, of Lithuania,

and the Russian top-seed, IM Nadezhda Kosintseva.

N Kosintseva - K Arakhamia-Grant

European Individual Ch., (3)

Sicilian Scheveningen

1 e4 c5 2 Nf3 e6 3 d4 cxd4

4 Nxd4 Nf6 5 Nc3 d6 6 g4

e5 7 Bb5+ Bd7 8 Nb3 Bxb5

9 Nxb5 Qd7 10 Qe2 Nxe4 11

f3 a6 12 N5d4 Nf6 13 Bg5

Nc6 14 0–0–0 0–0–0 15 Nxc6

Qxc6 16 Rd3 Qa4 17 Kb1 Be7

18 Rhd1 Kb8 19 Nc5 Qc6

20 Nxb7 Kxb7 21 Rc3 Qa4

22 Ra3 Qc6 23 Rdd3 d5 24

Rdb3+ Ka7 25 Rc3 Qb7 26

Rc7! Bxa3 27 Qe3+ d4 28

Rxb7+ Kxb7 29 Qxa3 Rhe8

30 Qb3+ Ka7 31 Bxf6 gxf6

32 Qxf7+ Kb6 33 Qxf6+ Kb7

34 Qg7+ Kb6 35 Qxh7 Rf8

36 Qg6+ Kb5 37 a4+ Ka5 38

Qc6 1–0