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5/26/2018 – Rounds five through seven of the Chinese League were held in Shenzhen this week. The team from Shanghai currently leads the league, but the performance of Ding Liren (who plays for Zheijang) has attracted attention. He has had a strong showing, winning all five of his games so far, and by beating Ivan Cheparinov in the seventh round he nudged up past Vladimir Kramnik to the fourth spot in the world rankings and is less than three Elo points shy of 2800. | Photo: qipai.org.cn

Ding perfect in the Chinese League

The Chinese League takes place as a double-round-robin with twelve teams. The matches are played on five boards, of which two boards must be occupied by women. The rounds take place several at a time in one location, similar to those in the Austrian League or in the British 4NCL.

For the most part, Chinese players take part, but there are also some guest players from other countries, though fewer than in the recently completed German League season. The China Mobile Shanghai Club includes the Indian stars Pentala Harikrishna and Harika Dronavalli. Ivan Cheparionov and Anna Ushenina play for Shenzhen. There is one Vietnamese player — Vo Thi Kim Phung — and several Russians: Dmitry Gordievsky is the only foreigner for Zhejiang, while Dmitry Andreikin (Chongqing), Dmitry Jakovenko, Olga Girya (Hangzhou), Vladimir Malakhov (Tianjin), Anastasia Bodanruk (Hebei) and Valentina Gunina (Chendu) are the other Russian grandmasters who play in the league.

Valentina Gunina and Francisco Vallejo-Pons both play for Chendu | Photo: www.qipai.org.cn

After the seven rounds played so far, the China Mobile Shanghai Club may be at the top of the table. Shanghai is led by GM Ni Hua and includes Ju Wenjun, the newly crowned Women's World Champion among their ranks. The team has been very consistent so far with Harikrishna scoring 6.0 / 7 and Ju Wenjun on one of the women's boards with 5½ / 7, the best female scorer. Shanghai has not lost a match yet, but lost one team point to Zhejiang and the weaker team from Tianjin at 2½ : 2½ each.

Ju Wenjun | Photo: www.qipai.org.cn

In second place is the team of Shenzhen with 11 team points. Other than Cheparinov (now playing under a FIDE flag due to the sanctions against Bulgaria) and Ushenina, the team consists of relatively Chinese unknown players. Cheparinov, together with 26-year-old GM Liu Qingnan, are the top scorers with 5½ points. Anna Ushenina came only in the most recent three rounds and scored 2½ points.

Next is Ding Liren's team from Zhejiang in third place. Behind Chinese number one, Lu Shanglei is the strongest and best-known player. Lu was the World Junior Champion in 2014 and the same year sensationally beat Magnus Carlsen in blitz. Also, Ding Yixin on the women's board has made a name for herself abroad, while the other players are internationally less well known.

Ding Liren has been used five times so far including in all three games this week. Cheparinov was his strongest victim.

My Path to the Top On this DVD Vladimir Kramnik retraces his career from talented schoolboy to World Champion in 2006. With humour and charm he describes his first successes, what it meant to be part of the Russian Gold Medal team at the Olympiad, and how he undertook the Herculean task of beating his former mentor and teacher Garry Kasparov.

The English Opening Vol. 1 Williams main teaching method behind this set of two DVDs is to teach you some simple yet effective set ups, without the need to rely on memorising numerous complicated variations.

For the first time in the history of chess, the best Chinese player in the world ranking ahead of the best Russian. Ding's three wins this week earned him 6½ Elo points, moving him to 2797.5 and past Vladimir Kramnik in the live rankings. He is now number four in the world ranking behind Carlsen, Caruana and Mamedyarov.

Ding rarely loses games nowadays. According to the live database he has lost just one of 34 games (all time controls) this year, and only in rapid chess — in the friendly match China versus Russia, against Dubov. His last loss in a classical game dates back last September's World Cup final, when he lost to Levon Aronian.

Ding is set to start the Altibox Norway Chess tournament in Stavanger, where he will participate for the first time. If he does not lose a game there, he could climb further.

Standings after seven rounds

All results so far

Round 1 on 2018/04/11 at 13:00 No. Team Team Res. : Res. 1 Hangzhou Turbine Team Guangdong Ding Xin High Tech Team 1½ : 3½ 2 Shenzhen Longgang Chess association Chongqing Team 2½ : 2½ 3 Beijing Beiao team China Mobil Shanghai Chess Club 2 : 3 4 Hebei sports lottery chess team Shandong Jingzhi Team ½ : 4½ 5 Tianjin Team Chendu Beilei Youth Chess Club 2½ : 2½ 6 Zhejiang Chess Team Hangzhou Bank Team 3½ : 1½ Round 2 on 2018/04/12 at 13:00 No. Team Team Res. : Res. 1 Guangdong Ding Xin High Tech Team Hangzhou Bank Team 1 : 4 2 Chendu Beilei Youth Chess Club Zhejiang Chess Team 2½ : 2½ 3 Shandong Jingzhi Team Tianjin Team 3½ : 1½ 4 China Mobil Shanghai Chess Club Hebei sports lottery chess team 4 : 1 5 Chongqing Team Beijing Beiao team 2½ : 2½ 6 Hangzhou Turbine Team Shenzhen Longgang Chess association 1 : 4 Round 3 on 2018/04/13 at 13:00 No. Team Team Res. : Res. 1 Shenzhen Longgang Chess association Guangdong Ding Xin High Tech Team 2½ : 2½ 2 Beijing Beiao team Hangzhou Turbine Team 3 : 2 3 Hebei sports lottery chess team Chongqing Team 1½ : 3½ 4 Tianjin Team China Mobil Shanghai Chess Club 2½ : 2½ 5 Zhejiang Chess Team Shandong Jingzhi Team 3½ : 1½ 6 Hangzhou Bank Team Chendu Beilei Youth Chess Club 3½ : 1½ Round 4 on 2018/04/14 at 13:00 No. Team Team Res. : Res. 1 Guangdong Ding Xin High Tech Team Chendu Beilei Youth Chess Club 2½ : 2½ 2 Shandong Jingzhi Team Hangzhou Bank Team 2½ : 2½ 3 China Mobil Shanghai Chess Club Zhejiang Chess Team 4½ : ½ 4 Chongqing Team Tianjin Team 3 : 2 5 Hangzhou Turbine Team Hebei sports lottery chess team 2½ : 2½ 6 Shenzhen Longgang Chess association Beijing Beiao team 3½ : 1½ Round 5 on 2018/05/22 at 13:00 No. Team Team Res. : Res. 1 Beijing Beiao team Guangdong Ding Xin High Tech Team 4½ : ½ 2 Hebei sports lottery chess team Shenzhen Longgang Chess association 2 : 3 3 Tianjin Team Hangzhou Turbine Team 2 : 3 4 Zhejiang Chess Team Chongqing Team 3 : 2 5 Hangzhou Bank Team China Mobil Shanghai Chess Club 1½ : 3½ 6 Chendu Beilei Youth Chess Club Shandong Jingzhi Team 2½ : 2½ Round 6 on 2018/05/23 at 13:00 No. Team Team Res. : Res. 1 Guangdong Ding Xin High Tech Team Shandong Jingzhi Team ½ : 4½ 2 China Mobil Shanghai Chess Club Chendu Beilei Youth Chess Club 3 : 2 3 Chongqing Team Hangzhou Bank Team 3½ : 1½ 4 Hangzhou Turbine Team Zhejiang Chess Team 1 : 4 5 Shenzhen Longgang Chess association Tianjin Team 4 : 1 6 Beijing Beiao team Hebei sports lottery chess team 4 : 1 Round 7 on 2018/05/24 at 13:00 No. Team Team Res. : Res. 1 Hebei sports lottery chess team Guangdong Ding Xin High Tech Team 4 : 1 2 Tianjin Team Beijing Beiao team 2½ : 2½ 3 Zhejiang Chess Team Shenzhen Longgang Chess association 2½ : 2½ 4 Hangzhou Bank Team Hangzhou Turbine Team 3 : 2 5 Chendu Beilei Youth Chess Club Chongqing Team 3 : 2 6 Shandong Jingzhi Team China Mobil Shanghai Chess Club 2½ : 2½

The next four rounds take place from July 10th to 13th.

Translation from German: Macauley Peterson

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