Tradewise

The Tradewise Masters in Gibraltar has been won by the American grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura, with the British co-champion David Howell in clear second place. This is possibly a career best for Howell, whose forte turned out to be remarkable resilience in difficult endgames. Last week the puzzle showed Nakamura defeating the pre-tournament favourite and highest ranked competitor, Veselin Topalov. This week’s game from Gibraltar is a fine win by a grandmaster who was trained in the classical Soviet tradition.
 
Sutovsky-Spraggett: Tradewise Gibraltar Masters 2015; Centre Counter
 
1 e4 d5 Although the Centre Counter has notched some notable scalps, including that of Anatoly Karpov against Bent Larsen at Montreal 1979, I cannot help feeling that the entry of Black’s queen at such an early stage, where it can be attacked, is open to suspicion. 2 exd5 Qxd5 3 Nc3 Qd6 This has recently become fashionable. The traditional way to rescue the black queen is 3 … Qa5.