GMs Levon Aronian and Ray Robson prevailed against their respective world top ten opponents, GM Fabiano Caruana and Wesley So, on day four of the 2024 American Cup. They advance to meet in the Finals.
In the Women’s section, GM Irina Krush and Alice Lee each won and are heading into their fifth consecutive American Cup Finals matchup.
Day five begins on Saturday, March 15, 2024, at 2:20 pm ET/7:20 pm CET/11:50 pm IST.
Champions:
Champions Open: Robson’s Clock Ambush, Aronian Comes Alive in Blitz
After another draw in classical, it all came down to the rapid game between Robson and So―with the latter in a must-win position. The players fought through the middlegame into the endgame as So kept trying to make progress.
Briefly, the winning opportunity that So had been striving for appeared on the board. Yet, in the heat of the moment with just minutes left on the clock, he overlooked his chance.
The match ended in a curious manner. Ahead an exchange in a drawn ending, So studied the board diligently, forgetting that he had only seconds left on the clock. Robson reflected on these final seconds:
As he got down to five seconds or so, I noticed from the way that he was looking at the board that he wasn’t paying attention to the clock at all. I was watching him and then I was thinking if he gets to four seconds and looks at the clock, then he’s going to make a move.
If not, I’m going to just keep looking at the board, and then hopefully he’ll keep looking at the board, and yeah, he just didn’t notice it at all.
I noticed from the way that he was looking at the board that he wasn’t paying attention to the clock at all.
―Ray Robson
After two more close draws in the classical and rapid games, Aronian came alive in the blitz playoff. In the first tiebreaker, he outplayed Caruana in the rook ending and finished with a clever tactical shot.
In the last game, he closed out the match with an inspired dynamic sequence. This is our Game of the Day. Enjoy the following analysis by GM Rafael Leitao coming soon.
Looking ahead to the final, Aronian shared his thoughts on his upcoming opponent, Robson:
He has great potential because he has a natural feel for the game.
Champions Women’s: Lee Wins Third Game in a Row, Krush Fights Off Paikidze’s Comeback
Lee won a third game in a row to win her match vs. WGM
Gulrukhbegim Tokhirjonova with a round to spare. Lee gained a vast advantage in the opening and didn’t let her opponent back into the game. She shared afterwards: — Saint Louis Chess Club (@STLChessClub) https://twitter.com/STLChessClub/status/1768790846894141734?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
The eight-time US Women’s Champion advances to the final for the third year in a row. Just like in the previous years, Lee is her opponent. In fact, Krush and Lee have faced each other four times over the last two American Cups―And Krush has won every match. Will the rapidly-improving prodigy be able to flip the script this time around?
Meanwhile, So, Caruana, Paikidze, and Tokhirjonova now join the elimination bracket for their second chance in the tournament.
The 2024 American Cup is an over-the-board tournament in St. Louis featuring some of the strongest players in the United States. Split into Open and Women’s sections, the players will compete in a double-elimination knockout bracket while contesting for their share of the $400,000 prize fund.
Previous Coverage:
