Stepan Avagyan Memorial International RR 17 Category Tournament ։ Round 7

Round 7: Erigaisi - early champion? Tabatabaei disagrees!

With two rounds remaining in the Stepan Avagyan Memorial, it seems almost certain who the future winner will be. Tournament Elo favorite Erigaisi secured an easy draw with Deac, maintaining a "+3" score and a lead over his competitors. Neither Sevian nor Tabatabaei managed to win their games. It appears that in Jermuk, Arjun is more concerned about his rating (currently the 4th player in the world) and his position in the FIDE Circuit, where he aims to return to the top spot.

It seems all tournament participants have understood that if Erigaisi wants a draw with black, his opponents have no chance of stopping him. Against the Romanian, he chose the Gruenfeld Defense and by move 16, the position was completely calm – the two extra pawns for white were a mere illusion, only highlighting the drawish potential for black. The draw was agreed upon by move 33.

Sevian was not overly active with black either. It was clear that his primary goal wasn't to defeat Murzin at all costs. Just in case the young Russian made a move, Sam was ready: the spring of his pieces could unwind at any moment. Unfortunately, it never came to that – white didn't even attempt to initiate active play, opting instead for exchanges and a draw.

Tabatabaei also played the combative French Defense with black. Initially, it seemed that his opponent, Petrosyan, was not opposed to a draw, choosing a rather cautious plan. But Amin found a way to throw him off balance: with a full board of pieces, he placed his rook deep into enemy territory on e4, where it appeared to be a juicy target. Unfortunately for Petrosyan, surrounding and capturing it proved to be different things – while Manuel was chasing shadows, his opponent mobilized all his resources. The white king's flank came under pressure, and passive knights were no match for long-range bishops.

However, Petrosyan's renowned defensive skills and Tabatabaei's inaccuracies ultimately led to black's attack losing steam.

Martirosyan suffered another setback. Following an unfortunate loss, he then had an unfortunate draw against Bluebaum: white never risked winning in this game, while black had some minimal chances. Hovhannisyan and Sargsyan tried to "squeeze water from a stone," but white's tiny spatial advantage stubbornly refused to turn into a full point.

Stepan Avagyan Memorial. Round 7. Deac – Erigaisi, Petrosyan – Tabatabaei, Murzin – Sevian, Hovhannisyan – Sargsyan, Bluebaum – Martirosyan – draws. Standings after Round 7. 1. Erigaisi – 5; 2-4. Tabatabaei, Deac, Sevian – 4; 5-6. Martirosyan, Hovhannisyan – 3,5; 7-8. Sargsyan, Petrosyan – 3; 9-10. Bluebaum, Murzin – 2,5.