Utut inches closer to Pavlovic

Utut inches closer to Pavlovic

JAKARTA (JP): For Indonesia's top chess player, Grand Master
Utut Adianto, attacking is one of the best defenses.

This approach claimed another casualty in the seventh round of
the Biel Masters tournament in Switzerland Monday as Utut beat
Alexander Cherniaev of Russia in a tense four-hour-and-two-minute
game that stretched to 40 moves.

The victory, Utut's fifth in the competition, leaves the
Indonesian trailing pacesetter Milos Pavlovic of Yugoslavia but
by a smaller margin than before. With four games remaining,
Pavlovic leads with 6 points after drawing with Gabor Kallai on
Monday. Utut is in second place, by himself, on 5.5.

A further half-point behind in joint third are Kallai, Vadim
Milov and Zurab Sturua. The last two players were also winners
Monday, beating Abhijit Kunte and Dejan Pikula respectively.

Cherniaev played the advantageous white pieces, but it was
Utut who took the initiative.

Opting for a Modern defense in response to Cherniaev's e4
opening, Utut began to dictate the match after the 13th move.

"I sacrificed a pawn to tempt him (Cherniaev) to attack," Utut
said of the decisive move in his faxed release made available to
The Jakarta Post. "Instead, he preferred a defensive play," he
added.

With Utut maintaining his persistent pressure, Cherniaev
blundered on the 25th move and after that there was no way back.

Other results Monday were GM Heedt-GM Lajos Portisch 0.5-0.5,
IM Dejan Antic-GM Barbero 0.5-0.5, IM Alexander Mikhailevsky-IM
Devaki Prasad 0.5-0.5, GM Vladimir Tukmakov-GM Barthel 1-0, GM
Florin Gheorghiu-GM Ciric 0.5-0.5. (lnt)