VietNamNet Bridge – Viet Nam's top chess player Le Quang Liem failed to reach the fourth round of the World Chess Cup 2011 after losing his third-round tie-break against Lazaro Bruzon Bastista of Cuba by 0.5-1.5 in Khanty-Mansiysk yesterday, Sep 5.

Liem, world No 25, and Batista, world No 62, drew both their games, forcing a two-game tie-break.

Upon exiting the Word Cup, Liem, a two-time Aeroflot champion, received a US$16,000 bonus.

In a press release Batista said, "Liem is a very strong rival. Defeating him was in no way a walk in the park."

Of the 23 Asian players attending the World Chess Cup, only Bu Xiangzhi of China made it through to the fourth round.

Earlier on, Viet Nam's Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son exited the tournament following a brave display against a much higher ranked Peter Svidler.

The US$1.6-million FIDE World Cup usually draws around 128 players and is set to conclude on September 20 this year.

Following the tournament, Liem, who has an Elo rating of 2715, will participate in the Spice Cup, held in the US from October 15-25, where he will meet rivals including Alex Onischuk of the US, Georg Meier of Germany and Leinier Dominguez of Cuba.

VietNamNet/Viet Nam News