Photo Gerald Morton

by Jennifer Shahade

The third round of the Candidates finals in Elista, Russia (June 6-14) was disappointing for American fans. Gata Kamsky lost with white to Boris Gelfand, making the six game match score 1-2 in Gelfand's favor. After getting very little with white in the Classicial Sicilian in round 1, Gata decided to try something different, the London system, a solid line that is more popular with amateur players. Gelfand was surely surprised, but he reacted excellently and showed why such lines are such rare birds in elite play. Contributing to Gata's loss this game was terrible time pressure. CLO hopes he can put the pieces together in the second half of the match!

Game 3

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On Sunday, Gata plays round 4 at 7 AM EST. Saturday, June 9 is a rest day. Check out the official website.