The 7 Best Games In 2024 So Far

With just over half the year behind us, 2024 has already treated us to several masterpieces on the 64 squares. In this article, we review the seven best games of the year so far.

The games are listed in sequential order, starting with the beginning of the year and working our way down. Enjoy!

1. Wei Yi Plays Brilliancy, Wins Tata Steel Chess
2. Ju Wenjun Scores Career-Best Win, Vs. Firouzja
3. Abdusattorov Sacs Queen, Wins Prague Masters, Enters Top 5
4. Carlsen Wins GRENKE Chess Classic With 'Marvelous Game'
5. Gukesh Beats Praggnanandhaa, Emerges As India's Frontrunner In Candidates Tournament
6. Tan Zhongyi Plays Attacking Gem, Wins Women's Candidates Tournament
7. Praggnanandhaa Defeats Carlsen For 1st Time In Classical

Honorable Mentions:

1.  Caruana & Nepomniachtchi Play Most Dramatic Game Of The Year (So Far)
2. Navara Sacs Queen, Wins Czech Championship
3. Abdusattorov & So Play Most Fighting Draw Of The Year (So Far)

1. Wei Yi Plays Brilliancy, Wins Tata Steel Chess

Traditionally, Tata Steel Chess in Wijk aan Zee, the Netherlands, is the first super-tournament of each year. Chinese GM Wei Yi won that event, and in round 11, he played a brilliancy against GM Max Warmerdam, a contest that Wei considered "one of the most interesting games in maybe five years." 

The Romantic-style game featured a full rook sacrifice for two central pawns, and it lasted just 27 moves. GM Rafael Leitao annotates the game, which he calls "An amazing game that will be remembered for generations."

2. Ju Wenjun Scores Career-Best Win, Vs. Firouzja

Women's World Champion Ju Wenjun played a historic game in the same event. While she finished in the bottom half of the scoreboard, she still gained 10 FIDE rating points as the lowest seed.

In round five, she upset GM Alireza Firouzja and was the first woman to beat a top-10 player in classical chess in seven years (GM Hou Yifan vs. GM Fabiano Caruana, Grenke Chess Classic 2017). You can review GM Leitao's notes below, where he unpacks the intricacies of a rook endgame where the French number-one found himself out of moves.

3. Abdusattorov Sacs Queen, Wins Prague Masters, Enters Top 5

In March, GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov won the Prague Masters with a round to spare and broke into the world top five before his 20th birthday, a rare feat in chess.

His game in round eight against GM Parham Maghsoodloo, just like their encounter in Tata Steel Chess that could have easily made it into this article (see here), was a meeting of immovable minds. Both players fought hard to win, but it was Abdusattorov who prevailed after sacrificing his queen. GM Leitao explains:

4. Carlsen Wins GRENKE Chess Classic With 'Marvelous Game'

At the beginning of April, Carlsen won his third GRENKE Chess Classic title with a sweet victory over GM Richard Rapport. While the former world champ has taken a large step away from classical events (as he said he would), he still enjoys online and over-the-board speed chess events, where he also dominates.

The following game was 45 minutes long, but that shouldn't take away from this positional masterclass. Dark-square domination culminated with a piece sacrifice, and GM Leitao breaks down the details below.

 

5.Gukesh Beats Praggnanandhaa, Emerges As India's Frontrunner In Candidates

Gukesh deservingly won the FIDE Candidates Tournament at the end of April and will face World Champion Ding Liren in the FIDE World Championship in Singapore this year. If he wins, he will be the youngest undisputed world champion in history at the age of 18.

In round two, he defeated his countryman GM Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu, who sacrificed three pawns but was met with cool-headed, unemotional, and brilliant defense. Notes are by GM Dejan Bojkov.

6.Tan Zhongyi Plays Attacking Gem En Route To Winning Candidates Tournament

GM Tan Zhongyi won the FIDE Women's Candidates Tournament a full point and a half ahead of the field, thus qualifying to play against Ju in the next women's world championship. 

In round 10, what started as an unassuming Colle Zukertort Opening quickly ignited into a savage attack, her best one in the tournament. GM Leitao lets us in on the action.

7. Praggnanandhaa Defeats Carlsen For 1st Time In Classical

At the end of May, Praggnanandhaa defeated world number-one GM Magnus Carlsen for the first time in a classical game. While the Norwegian star would go on to win the home-soil tournament, Norway Chess, for the fifth time in six years, this game was a rite of passage for the Indian prodigy who's now number seven in the world.

The victory came in round three and on Gukesh's 18th birthday! Carlsen was in trouble out of the opening, and Praggnanandhaa pivoted from one advantage (the classically weak d5-square) to another (Black's king safety) to win an impressive game. GM Leitao's thoughts on the game are below:

Honorable Mentions:

a. Caruana & Nepomniachtchi Play Most Dramatic Game Of The Year

It isn't often that a single game of chess can change the course of history, but the final round of this year's Candidates Tournament was consequential. Gukesh competently held GM Hikaru Nakamura to a draw and won the tournament, but he narrowly avoided playing tiebreaks thanks to what happened on another board.

Had GM Fabiano Caruana or GM Ian Nepomniachtchi won the game, they would have reached tiebreaks against Gukesh. It was a tremendous fight, one where Caruana was so close to winning, but as he said in his podcast, "The ball is practically in the net. I mean, there's no defender there. It's an open goal and that's where the disappointment comes in." GM Leitao annotates the infamous draw, "one of the most dramatic games I've ever witnessed."

b. Navara Sacs Queen, Wins Czech Championship

GM David Navara played a brilliancy against IM Vaclav Finek in round four of the Czech Chess Championship, which he ultimately won. While 18.Qxc8? is objectively a mistake, we would not be discussing this game if it weren't for this queen sacrifice, and the rook sacrifice that followed. I've annotated the game below.

c. Abdusattorov & So Play Most Insane Draw Of The Year

Most draws aren't that exciting, but the same cannot be said of the encounter between GM Wesley So and Abdusattorov from round seven of the Superbet Romania Chess Classic. In the game, both kings came out of hiding to run across the board, and while So nearly won, Abdusattorov managed to defend. GM Leitao shares the game below:

Can you think of a game that you would've included in this list? Share in the comments below!