Velimir Ivić’s 3½/8 and Jovana Srdanović’s 4½/8 continue our board-by-board review of Serbia in Samarkand. Both played eight games. For Velimir, we return to a long win against Turkmenistan; for Jovana, an attack against Iran and the final-round win that helped Serbia beat Austria.
After our article on the reserves, we turn to the players fourth in the final registered squad order. They did not always play on board four: when someone above them sat out, they moved up to board three. The tables below show the actual board for each match. Registered Open squad · Registered Women’s squad
The fourth-board players’ results
Final results from the tournament that ended on 27 September 2026, checked on 30 September. The percentage is points scored divided by games played.
| Player | Points/games | Wins | Draws | Losses | Percentage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Velimir Ivić | 3½/8 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 43.75% |
| Jovana Srdanović | 4½/8 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 56.25% |
Ivić’s official results · Jovana’s official results
Their points came in different ways: Ivić drew five times, while seven of Jovana’s eight games were decisive. Both started with the higher rating in seven games. The exceptions were Awonder Liang, rated 2693 against Ivić’s 2601, and Khanim Balajayeva, rated 2356 against Jovana’s 2298. Those figures give context to the results; to see what happened over the board, we return to the games themselves.
Velimir Ivić: a win that took 60 moves
Velimir Ivić began with a draw against South Sudan, then beat Amanmuhammet Hommadov in round two. Together with Sarana’s win and draws by Predke and Maksimović, that gave Serbia a 3:1 victory against Turkmenistan. It was his only win in Samarkand, and a game with an interesting transition from play on opposite wings to an endgame.
Draws against Canada and Cuba followed, then a loss against Sweden, a draw against Kazakhstan, a loss against the USA and a draw against Switzerland. Ivić sat out rounds four, ten and eleven. His final appearance contributed to Serbia’s 3:1 win against Switzerland.
Several games went the distance: he drew with Aldiyar Ansat on move 76 and Fabian Baenziger on move 73. A look back at his tournament deserves time for those endgames as well as his one victory.
All of Ivić’s games
Final record, 27 September 2026. Points are from Ivić’s perspective; opponents’ names use Latin-script spellings for comparison with the broadcast. Results and board-number source
| Round | Board | Opponent | Team | Colour | Points | Game |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | Thon Gong Gong | South Sudan | Black | ½ | Lichess |
| 2 | 3 | Amanmuhammet Hommadov | Turkmenistan | White | 1 | Lichess |
| 3 | 4 | Sai Krishna G V | Canada | White | ½ | Lichess |
| 5 | 3 | Lelys Stanley Martinez Duany | Cuba | Black | ½ | Lichess |
| 6 | 4 | Edvin Trost | Sweden | White | 0 | Lichess |
| 7 | 4 | Aldiyar Ansat | Kazakhstan | Black | ½ | Lichess |
| 8 | 4 | Awonder Liang | United States of America | White | 0 | Lichess |
| 9 | 4 | Fabian Baenziger | Switzerland | Black | ½ | Lichess |
Our pick: Ivić - Hommadov, round two. In the Ruy Lopez, Black castles kingside and Ivić chooses queenside castling on move 12. White then advances his g- and h-pawns, while Black seeks play in the centre. The queens are exchanged on moves 28 and 29, but much remains to be done. Open the game on Lichess
We particularly recommend the ending with rook and knight on each side. After 51.Rxc7 Rxa5+ 52.Kb3 Kxh4, Ivić advances his c-pawn: 53.c4, 54.c5 and 56.c6. His king moves forward alongside it, capturing the pawn on a6 on move 58. The game ends with 60.Rd8. The cooperation between king, rook and passed pawn is an appealing feature of this win, following a very different kind of opening battle.
Jovana Srdanović: from 3½/4 to an important final point
Jovana Srdanović opened with wins against Madagascar and Scotland, drew against Canada, then beat Parva Behzad Nazif with Black. After four rounds she had 3½/4, and Serbia had won all four matches. Against Iran, her full point, alongside wins by Injac and Mehmed and a draw by Bivol, brought a 3½:½ victory.
Defeats against Khanim Balajayeva, Ineymig Hernandez Gil and Tea Gueci followed, with rounds six, eight and nine off. On the final day Jovana won again: 1:0 against Chiara Polterauer. Together with Elif’s win and Sofia’s draw, her result secured 2½:1½ against Austria. It is an ending we are happy to revisit.
All of Jovana’s games
Final record, 27 September 2026. Points are from Jovana’s perspective; the board number is the one she occupied in that round. Results and board-number source
| Round | Board | Opponent | Team | Colour | Points | Game |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | Diary Vetsovetson Anjomara Ramorasata | Madagascar | Black | 1 | Lichess |
| 2 | 3 | Suzie G. Cooke | Scotland | White | 1 | Lichess |
| 3 | 4 | Oksana Golubeva | Canada | White | ½ | Lichess |
| 4 | 4 | Parva Behzad Nazif | Iran | Black | 1 | Lichess |
| 5 | 4 | Khanim Balajayeva | Azerbaijan | White | 0 | Lichess |
| 7 | 3 | Ineymig Hernandez Gil | Cuba | White | 0 | Lichess |
| 10 | 3 | Tea Gueci | Italy | Black | 0 | Lichess |
| 11 | 3 | Chiara Polterauer | Austria | White | 1 | Lichess |
Our first pick: Behzad Nazif - Srdanović, round four. In the Queen’s Gambit Declined, White castles queenside and Jovana kingside. White’s pawns advance through the centre, and Black responds with 14...c5 and 17...c4. Exchanges open lines towards the white king. Open the game on Lichess
Watch how Jovana later sets her queenside pawns in motion. After 36...b4 37.axb4 Qxb4, the a-pawn reaches a3 and the rook comes to b8. The final move is 40...a2+: the black pawn advances to one square from promotion, checking the king on b1. The bishop on f6 controls the promotion square a1. The advancing pawn and supporting pieces provide a striking finish to her win with Black.
Another to replay: Srdanović - Polterauer, round eleven. The Leningrad Dutch leads to a position where, after exchanges of queens and minor pieces, Jovana has two rooks and a bishop against two rooks and a knight. White’s a-pawn reaches a6 as early as move 32. Open the game on Lichess
That pawn restricts Black’s rooks while Jovana manoeuvres her own rooks and bishop. Look at the finish: 55.Bc4 Rf6 56.Rb8 Rc7 57.Rb7. Sustained pressure brought a full point, important both for her final score and for the team’s win against Austria.
Games to return to
The official tournament calculation gives Ivić a 2398 performance and a -20.1 rating change, and Jovana a 2130 performance and -29.4. Performance describes the result at this event; the rating changes come from the tournament calculation, not a new monthly FIDE list. Ivić’s calculation · Jovana’s calculation
As supporters, we will remember Ivić’s endgame against Hommadov, Jovana’s attack against Iran and her contribution to the final-day victory. Thank you both for the effort and the moments we enjoyed cheering. Next come the third-board players, Alexandr Predke and Elif Mehmed. For Serbia’s overall results, see our closing report from Samarkand.