Mamedyarov’s aggressive style yields impressive returns
KOLKATA: “If I play three draws in three games that is not normal; if I win two and lose one, that’s normal for me,” Shakhriyar Mamedyarov declared after the opening day of the Tata Steel Chess India 2018, after ending with two points from three games. On Friday, the Azerbaijan Grandmaster won two games and lost one.
It is this uncompromising go-for-win style of play that has seen Mamedyarov’s surge in the rankings chart in the last couple of years, climbing to third in the classical format, winning a few titles in the process.
To get an idea of his rise, one has to look at his rating and ranking at the start of 2017 -- a rating of 2766 and a ranking of 13 in the world. By the year end, he had jumped 10 spots as the rating rose from 2766 to 2799. In April, Mamedyarov was ranked second, challenging for the top spot. Mamedyarov has lost a couple of points and in the latest November list, Shakh, as he is known in the circuit, was third in the list, behind Magnus Carlsen and Fabiano Caruana, with a rating of 2817.
“I normally like to play aggressive chess. I like to play for a win and always like to play good chess,” said Mameyadrov, 33, explaining his recent success.
However, at times his refusal to adopt a pragmatic approach and settle for draw has proved negative also. “Shakh does not like to make draw, and even in equal position he would try to go for win. I have played him many times on the Grand Chess Tour this year and did just that, trying to create something in equal positions,” said American GM Hikaru Nakamura, who capitalised on Mamedyarov’s go for broke style in the fourth round here on Saturday. However, Mamedyarov is unmindful of the setbacks caused by his approach.
Having encountered success early, Mamedyarov seemed destined for greatness from the start. He became a grandmaster in 2002 at the age of 17, and the next year claimed the World Junior title. He repeated the feat in 2005, becoming the only player to be crowned the junior champion twice. For the next few years, he carved a place for himself in the senior circuit, rising to the top 20 in the world. In 2017, he won the Grand Chess Tour, the Gashimov Memorial, the European and Russian Team championships.
However, things have not been easy for Mameyadrov. Nurtured by his boxer father to take up chess along with his two sisters, life is still a struggle because he does not have a sponsor despite being Azerbaijan’s greatest player. He has to depend on his earnings from chess for sustenance and take care of his family.
He did raise a lament on this situation in a Facebook post a few months back but deleted the message soon after, instead deciding to struggle on.