London Chess Classic R 7

Hikaru Nakamura felt that there were a lot of problems in the Najdorf. And decided to try the line from the opposite side of the board against Maxime Vachier-Lagrave.

This was the game of the day at the London Chess Classic's round seven:

Here is the report.

London Chess Classic Round 6

A lot of excitement after the free day in London! Once more three decisive games, and the draws were very interesting too.

Wesley So keeps the lead with a sharp win over Veselin Topalov with the black pieces.

Vachier-Lagrave got into fifty percent after winning against Levon Aronian.

Last, but not least we had a very important game for the lead, overall Grand Chess Tour standing and the (second) top rating position. That was a game:

London Chess Classic R 2

London is very friendly towards the chess fans around the globe. Yesterday we saw another excellent round. Once again three games proved decisive, but after a long and interesting fight.
Wesley So outsmarted Michael Adams to grab the tournament win, and Fabiano Caruana won a nice game as Black to Veselin Topalov.
Former world champion Vishy Anand was victorious in his game against French's best Maxime Vachier Lagrave:

Following Botvinnik

Every match in Reykjavik is a tough one as there are practically no underdogs. The value of a single win is enormous and one can see how solidly some teams play, looking for someone to win and the others to keep the balance.
The French teams had huge psychological pressure after the disastrous 13-th of November. But they showed that they are strong, powerful team. Take a look at one of the games of their leader:

[Event "Open European Team Championship"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2015.11.17"]
[Round "5.1"]
[White "Vallejo Pons, Francisco"]
[Black "Vachier-Lagrave, Maxime"]
[Result "0-1"]
[WhiteElo "2684"]
[BlackElo "2765"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "70"]
[EventDate "2015.??.??"]
[WhiteClock "0:03:07"]
[BlackClock "0:22:23"]

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Be3 Ng4 {Diagram [#]
Ever since Rashkovsky revived this line it remains a problem for the first
player in the English Attack.} 7. Bc1 Nf6 8. Be3 Ng4 9. Bg5 h6 10. Bh4 g5 11.
Bg3 Bg7 12. h4 {Diagram [#] Quite a rare line.} ({The main move remains} 12.
Be2 {One recent example went} h5 13. Bxg4 hxg4 14. Nd5 Nc6 15. Nf5 Bxf5 16.
exf5 Bxb2 17. Rb1 Qa5+ {and the impression is that the line is almost
exhausted, Jakovenko,D (2759)-Karjakin,S (2753) Chita 2015}) ({The French GM
has some bitter experience in the second most popular line after} 12. h3 Ne5
13. Be2 Nbc6 14. Nb3 b5 15. a4 $5 $146 {Ivanchuk,V (2715)-Vachier Lagrave,M
(2757), 2015}) 12... Nc6 13. Nxc6 bxc6 14. Bc4 Qa5 15. Qf3 Ne5 $3 $146 {
[%csl Rf7][%cal Rf3f7,Rc4f7] Diagram [#] A novelty in the spirit of Botvinnik!
True, he sacrificed a pawn for bishop pair in an endgame against Suetin,
Vachier Lagrave does it in the middlegame.} ({All the seven predecessors saw}
15... Be6 {which solved Black's problems as well. One example-} 16. Bxe6 fxe6
17. Qxg4 Bxc3+ 18. bxc3 Qxc3+ 19. Ke2 Qc4+ 20. Kd2 Qd4+ {and a draw was agreed
in Ivanchuk,V (2731)-Dominguez Perez,L (2754) Beijing 2013}) 16. Bxe5 Qxe5 17.
Bxf7+ ({The position of the white queen on f7 will only help Black build his
initiative-} 17. Qxf7+ Kd8 18. O-O-O Rf8) 17... Kd8 18. hxg5 {There is no time
to castle due to the pin} (18. O-O-O Rf8 {when White will lose the bishop
sooner or later.}) 18... Rb8 {For the pawn Black has total domination on the
dark squares, diagonals and files for all his pieces.} 19. Bb3 ({King's safety
comes first, but after} 19. O-O-O Qxg5+ 20. Rd2 Rf8 $1 {Diagram [#] Black has
various ways of developing the initiative-} 21. Qh5 Qxg2 ({Either the aggressive
} 21... Be5 22. g3 ({Or else White loses the exchange} 22. Qxg5 hxg5 23. Rh7
Bf4) 22... Bg4 {with similar endgame as in the game.})) ({Believe it or not,
the computer quickly put the 0.00 evaluation. Here is his main line} 19. gxh6
$1 Rxb2 20. hxg7 $3 {[%csl Ra1,Re1,Gg7,Rh1][%cal Gg7g8] Diagram [#]} Rxh1+ 21.
Kd2 Qd4+ 22. Qd3 Qxf2+ 23. Ne2 Qxf7 24. Qg3 $1 (24. Rxh1 $2 Qxg7 {is clearly
better for White.}) 24... Rxa1 25. g8=Q+ Qxg8 26. Qxg8+ Kc7 27. Qg7 Raxa2 28.
Qxe7+ Bd7 29. Nd4 c5 30. Ne6+ Kc6 31. Nd8+ {Yeah, go find this over the board..
.}) 19... Rf8 20. Qe3 Qxg5 $1 {[%csl Yb2,Yb3,Yc2,Yc3,Gc8,Gg7] Diagram [#] So,
it is Botvinnik after all who inspired the sacrifice.} ({The middlegame is
better for White} 20... hxg5 21. O-O-O {as his king is safer.}) 21. Qxg5 hxg5 {
Although White is a clear pawn ahead and has seemingly better pawn structure
it is only Black who can play for a win. The white bishop and knight are
occupied with the defense of the queenside and Black can start advancing his
own "a" and "c" pawns to break the defense there. This is not everything- he
can make use of the kingside too.} 22. f3 g4 $1 23. Ke2 a5 $1 {Diagram [#]} 24.
Na4 {Now Vallejo's pieces will remain passive till the end of the game.} ({
The best resource was} 24. Rad1 Ba6+ 25. Ke3 {intending to meet} Be5 {with} 26.
Ne2 $1 Bxb2 27. Nd4 $1 {when Black will have to trade the dark-squared bishop
for the knight with approximate equality.}) 24... Ba6+ 25. c4 ({Or} 25. Ke3 c5
26. c3 Bb5 {in either case the white king is quite uncomfortable.}) 25... Rb4
26. Rac1 gxf3+ 27. gxf3 Bd4 28. Rc2 c5 {All the black pieces occupied
commanding positions.} 29. Rh2 Rg8 30. Rc1 Bc8 $1 {[%cal Gc8e6] Diagram [#]
But some can get even better!} 31. Nc3 Be6 32. Kd3 $6 {Makes things easier for
Vachier.} ({An interesting defense was} 32. Nd5 {with the idea} Bxb2 ({However,
Black can improve with} 32... Bxd5 $1 33. cxd5 a4 34. Bd1 Rxb2+ 35. Rc2 a3 $19)
33. Nxb4 Bxc1 34. Nd5 {which should be holdable endgame for White.}) ({Perhaps
the best defense was} 32. Rd1 Bxc4+ 33. Bxc4 Rxc4 34. Kd3 Rb4 {although
Black's advantage is huge here as well.}) 32... Rg3 33. Ke2 {The pawn is
doomed anyway:} (33. Rf1 Bh3 34. Rd1 Bg2 $17) 33... Bxc4+ 34. Kd2 ({This time
White cannot deprive the opponent of the bishop pair} 34. Bxc4 Rxb2+ $1) 34...
Rxf3 35. Bxc4 Rxb2+ {Diagram [#] Hats off to Maxime Vachier Lagrave and the
whole French team!} ({Vallejo resigned due to the line} 35... Rxb2+ 36. Rc2
Rxc2+ 37. Kxc2 Rxc3+) 0-1

Report.

Blitz Jewel

The Norway Super tournament started with the traditional blitz tournament which defines the players who will have an extra white color during the main event. This year's edition was convincingly won by Maxime Vachier-Lagrave straight from the plane from Leon (Spain). As usual, there was a lot of drama suspens, and beautiful chess. Check this attack for example:

[Event "Norway Chess Blitz"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2015.06.15"]
[Round "3.1"]
[White "Giri, Anish"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[WhiteElo "2773"]
[BlackElo "2804"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "3rr2k/bppq1pp1/p1n2n1p/3bpN2/8/2PP2NP/PPB2PP1/R1BQR1K1 w - - 0 19"]
[PlyCount "15"]
[EventDate "2015.??.??"]
[WhiteClock "0:00:40"]
[BlackClock "0:00:29"]

{A typical Ruy Lopez position appeared (via the Italian game indeed, but the
Nf5 can proudly call himself a Spanish citizen). Now Giri opens the road for
his pieces:} 19. d4 $1 {[%csl Rf5][%cal Gc1h6,Gc2h7,Ge1e8] Diagram [#]} exd4
20. Nxg7 $1 {And launches powerful attack.} Rxe1+ {The only move as} (20...
Kxg7 {is mate after} 21. Bxh6+ Kxh6 22. Qd2+ Kg7 23. Nh5+ (23. Qg5+ {is also
good}) 23... Nxh5 24. Qg5+ Kf8 25. Qh6+ Kg8 26. Qh7+ Kf8 27. Qh8# {Diagram [#]}
) 21. Qxe1 Kxg7 22. Bxh6+ $1 {One more powerful blow!} Kh8 $1 {The best
defense.} ({The bishop is taboo due to} 22... Kxh6 23. Qd2+ Kg7 24. Nf5+ {
Diagram [#] and Black will have to part with his queen} Qxf5 ({Or get
checkmated after} 24... Kf8 25. Qh6+ Ke8 26. Qh8+ Ng8 27. Qxg8#) 25. Bxf5 {
with the black king wide open White is clearly on top.}) 23. Qd2 {Another
interesting way to attack is} (23. Bg5 $5) 23... Rg8 24. Qf4 {[%cal Gf4h4]
Diagram [#] Straightforward and good. There was also the flashy} (24. Bf8 $5 {
with the idea} Rxf8 {Instead both} (24... Rg6) (24... d3 {are possible defenses
}) 25. Qh6+ Kg8 (25... Nh7 26. Qxh7#) 26. Nh5 Nxh5 27. Qh7#) 24... Qd6 $2 (
24... Nh5 {was mandatory although it is questionable if Black can survive here
as well.}) 25. Qh4 {It's over. The discovered check(mate) threat is
unstoppable.} Qxg3 26. fxg3 {What an attack for Anish Giri, played with only
five minutes on the clock!} 1-0

Magnus Grabs the Lead

Round five of the Gashimov Memorial was crucial for the leaders. Wesley So suffered his first loss to the former world champion Vishy Anand who showed his best chess so far in Azerbaijan. In the meanwhile the reigning champion Magnus Carlsen of Norway produced a real masterpiece to take the sole lead. His opponent in this game Maxime Vachier-Lagrave of France also appreciated the greatness of the game and did not look too disappointed at the end of it. Instead the two players spend a lot of time analyzing the game at a press-conference full of benevolence and positivness.

[Event "Shamkir Chess"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2015.04.21"]
[Round "5.3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Vachier-Lagrave, Maxime"]
[Result "1-0"]
[WhiteElo "2863"]
[BlackElo "2762"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "107"]
[EventDate "2015.??.??"]
[WhiteClock "0:15:45"]
[BlackClock "0:41:19"]

1. Nf3 {Magnus Carlsen managed to get his opponent away from his beloved
Gruenfeld early in the opening.} Nf6 2. g3 b5 3. Bg2 ({The two players spent a
lot of time analyzing some interesting possibilities after} 3. c3 e6 4. Qb3 {
an idea typical for the Sokolsky opening with colors reversed} a6 5. a4 Bb7 6.
axb5 Bd5 {an old trick, said Carlsen} 7. Qc2 (7. c4 $2 Bxc4 $1 {this is the
point} 8. Qxc4 axb5 $17) 7... axb5 8. Rxa8 Bxa8 9. Qb3 Bxf3 10. exf3 c6 {with
about equal position.}) 3... Bb7 4. Na3 {Diagram [#] A fresh position arose on
move number four!} a6 ({The immediate} 4... b4 {was also possible when after}
5. Nc4 a5 6. d3 {[%cal Ge2e4] "I liked my knight on c4" (Carlsen)}) 5. c4 b4 {
"I decided to play b5-b4 as in the QID the knight is not very well placed on
c2"(Vachier-Lagrave), "Yeah, but then you have to waste a lot of moves"
(Carlsen)} (5... e5 {was teh othe rmove that the two players analyzed. They
had a lot of fun in the arising original lines with Carlsen appologizing at
the end that they are wasting the time of the journalists.} 6. O-O e4 7. Nd4 (
7. Nh4 d5 8. cxd5 Qxd5 9. d3 g5 {Diagram [#]} 10. Nf3 $5) 7... d5 8. d3 (8.
cxb5) 8... c5 9. Nf5 g6 10. Ne3 d4 11. Nd5 Nxd5 12. Bxe4 Bg7 {with equality.})
6. Nc2 e6 ({It is somewhat surpring but this has already been seen before in a
total of 26 games. Here is a recent one} 6... c5 7. O-O e6 8. d4 cxd4 9. Ncxd4
$14 {Efimenko,Z (2648)-Moiseenko,A (2707) Dubai 2014}) 7. d4 a5 {The players
agreed that White is somewhat better after} (7... Be7 8. a3 bxa3 9. b3 $14) 8.
O-O Be7 9. d5 Na6 10. Nfd4 Nc5 11. Re1 $146 {[%cal Ge2e4] Diagram [#] Only
this is a novelty. White prepares e2-e4.} ({Another recent game saw} 11. dxe6
fxe6 12. Bxb7 Nxb7 13. Bf4 O-O 14. Nb5 Ne8 15. e4 {with slight edge for White,
Neiksans,A (2559)-Kulaots,K (2563) Wroclaw 2014}) 11... O-O {Carlsen was
surprised that his opponent allowed the move e2-e4 that easily and suggested
instead} (11... Nfe4 12. f3 (12. Nb3 Nxb3 13. axb3 Nc5 14. e4 e5) 12... Nd6 13.
e4 O-O (13... Nxc4) 14. b3 e5 {with a better version to what had happened in
the game later.}) 12. e4 e5 ({Maybe} 12... d6 13. dxe6 Nfxe4 {but this is what
I was unhappy about (Vachier)} 14. Qg4 Nf6 15. Qe2 $16) 13. Nf5 d6 14. Bg5 $1 {
[%csl Yg5][%cal Rf6d5] Diagram [#] A wonderful positional sacrifice of a pawn.}
({The immediate} 14. f4 {is also possible but less appealing to the world
champion} Nfd7 15. Nxe7+ Qxe7 16. f5 c6 {"too many loose ends, should be OK
for Black" (Carlsen)}) 14... Nxd5 {Vachier decided to bite the bullet. "So
Magnus, you were considering this move?" asked the jounalist and WGM Elmira
Mirzoeva. "I am capable of missing it, but not today..."(Carlsen)} (14... Bc8
15. Nce3 h6 16. Bh4 {looks terrible for Black (Carlsen)}) 15. Bh6 $1 {The
point of White's sacrifice. In return for the pawn he will ruin the black
castle and cement the knight on the wonderful outpost on f5. He will also
dominate on the light squares.} gxh6 16. Qg4+ (16. cxd5 Kh8 17. Qh5 {also
looks fun for White.}) 16... Bg5 17. cxd5 Kh8 18. h4 $1 {[%csl Yg5][%cal Gg2h3,
Yg4f3,Gh3g4,Gg4h5,Gc2e3] Diagram [#] The beginning of a nice regroupment on
the light squares that clearifies the situation.} Bf6 19. Nce3 Bc8 20. Qf3 Bg7
21. Bh3 $1 Rg8 22. Bg4 Qf6 23. Bh5 {With the bishop coming out all the white
pieces stand nicely. Now he can think of including the rooks into the battle.}
Bxf5 24. Nxf5 c6 {"If you do not play this then you will lose at some moment
because of the rook coming on f3" (Carlsen). "Even rook on the g file and
g3-g4 I thought. And g4-g5 at some moment" (Vachier).} 25. dxc6 Rac8 26. Qd1
Rxc6 (26... Nxe4 {does not work due to} 27. Bg4 $1) 27. Qd5 Rgc8 28. Rad1 Bf8
29. Qxf7 (29. Bxf7 Na4 {did not appeal to the Norwegian although this also
looks close to winning for White.}) 29... Qxf7 30. Bxf7 {White won the pawn
back and kept the dominant position of his pieces. He owes everything- the
bread, the butter and the knife.} Na4 31. Re2 Rc1 32. Rxc1 Rxc1+ 33. Kg2 Nc5
34. b3 {[%csl Gb3] Diagram [#] "I was very happy to play this move and to stop
any counterplay" (Carlsen). "I am playing a bishop and a king down" (Vachier).}
Rc3 35. Kh3 Nd7 36. Be6 Nc5 37. Bd5 Nd7 38. Ne3 Nf6 39. Be6 Rc5 40. Nc4 Kg7 ({
Vachier was always looking for counter-play but it never worked. Here for
instance} 40... a4 {fails to} 41. bxa4 d5 42. Ne3 (42. Nxe5 {should do as well}
)) 41. f3 $1 {Even in such a great position the world champion does not lose
focus! He rejected his original plan} (41. Kg2 {after seeing the tactical
continuation} Nxe4 $1 42. Rxe4 Kf6 43. Bg8 d5 {Diagram [#] which would have
complicated matters.}) 41... Ne8 42. Rd2 Nc7 43. Bg4 {It is over, Black's
position falls appart.} a4 (43... Nb5 44. Nxa5 {drops a pawn.}) 44. Nxd6 Bxd6
45. Rxd6 a3 46. Bd7 ({Vachier Lagrave suggested an alternative win after} 46.
Rd7+ Kf8 47. Rxh7 Rc2 48. f4 exf4 49. gxf4 Nb5 50. e5 Rxa2 51. e6) 46... Rc2 {
The last chance for Black is connected with the sacrifice of the knight.} 47.
Bc6 Rxa2 48. Rd7+ Kf6 49. Rxc7 Rc2 50. Rxh7 Kg6 (50... Rxc6 51. Rxh6+) 51. Rc7
{Now White is waiting for the pawn to come on a2 to play Rc7-a7.} Kf6 52. h5 $1
{Finishes the game in style with checkmate.} Rc1 53. Rh7 a2 54. Bd5 {[%csl Rf6]
[%cal Gh7f7] Diagram [#] Vachier resigned due to the checkmate.} (54. Bd5 a1=Q
55. Rf7+ Kg5 56. Rf5# {What a game by the world champion!}) 1-0

Report.

Very Unusual Endgame

Round eight of the Tbilisi Grand Prix witnessed a highly unusual endgame. Three light pieces were fighting a rook. According to my Megabase, there are only eight predecessors of this endgame!The tournament leader Evgeny Tomashevsky extended his lead after a demonstration of an excellent technique.

[Event "FIDE Grand Prix - Tbilisi"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2015.02.23"]
[Round "8.4"]
[White "Vachier-Lagrave, Maxime"]
[Black "Tomashevsky, Evgeny"]
[Result "0-1"]
[WhiteElo "2775"]
[BlackElo "2716"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "182"]
[EventDate "2015.??.??"]
[WhiteClock "0:33:16"]
[BlackClock "0:03:19"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O {
Evgeny Tomashevsky is a very solid player who solves the opening problems in a
somewhat unusual way. His white color remains true to his styyle, while with
the black pieces he prefers to go for sharp opening lines where the situation
is clarified as soon as possible. The Marshall line in the Ruy Lopez have
served him well for many years.} 8. a4 {Vachier does not want to test his
opponent in the main lines.} Bb7 9. d3 d6 ({The immediate} 9... b4 {can be met
with} 10. Nbd2 {when the knight enjoys the c4 square.}) 10. Bd2 {A modern move.
White has a wide choice in the position.} (10. Nbd2 Na5 11. Ba2 c5 12. Nf1 bxa4
{is Caruana,F (2844)-Tomashevsky,E (2701) Baku 2014}) (10. Nc3 {used to be the
main line, but Black scored well. One example-} Na5 11. Ba2 b4 12. Ne2 c5 13.
Bd2 Rb8 14. Ng3 Bc8 $1 15. h3 Ne8 16. Nh2 Bg5 17. Nf3 Bf6 18. Nh2 g6 19. Ng4
Bg5 {with very nice play for Black in Caruana,F (2492)-Adams,M (2735)
Gibraltar 2007}) 10... b4 {Now that the bishop had occupied the d2 square for
the knight this is strong.} 11. c3 Rb8 {A common temporary pawn sacrifice.} ({
Another plan is} 11... a5 12. d4 exd4 13. cxd4 d5 14. e5 Ne4 {as in Ducarmon,Q
(2487)-Fedoseev,V (2661) Pune 2014}) 12. cxb4 Bc8 $146 {Evgeny comes well
prepared for the game. The bishop is moving to a better position.} ({
Previously only} 12... Ba8 {was seen, but the bishop is not as effective as on
the other diagonal} 13. b5 axb5 14. a5 (14. axb5 Rxb5 15. Nc3 Rb8) 14... Nd4
15. Nxd4 exd4 16. Bf4 {Rogulj,B (2427)-Rogic,D (2505) Austria 2000}) 13. b5
axb5 14. axb5 Rxb5 15. Ra8 ({White can hardly hope for an advantage after} 15.
Nc3 Rb8 16. h3) 15... Rb8 16. Rxb8 Nxb8 17. d4 $1 {[%csl Rd4,Rd5,Re4,Re5]
Diagram [#] Maxime occupies some central squares with his knights.} exd4 18.
Nxd4 c5 $1 {Tomashevsky replies in adequate way. Next he wants to carry out
the freeing d6-d5 advance which will level the game completely.} 19. Nf3 ({Or}
19. Nb5 Qb6 20. N1c3 Nc6 21. Bf4 Nd4 22. Nxd4 (22. Bc4 Bd7 23. Nxd6 Bxd6 24.
Bxd6 Qxd6 25. e5 Qb6 26. exf6 Qxf6 $11) 22... cxd4 23. Nd5 Nxd5 $11) 19... Nc6
20. Bc3 ({In case of} 20. Nc3 Bg4 $1 {creates the nasty Nc6-d4 threat.}) 20...
Be6 21. Nbd2 {This allows the central break, but the French GM obviously had
the intresting complications on his mind.} ({More precise is} 21. Na3 {at
least for a moment stopping} d5 $2 22. Bxf6 Bxf6 23. exd5) 21... d5 $1 22. Ng5
Bg4 $1 23. Qc2 {[%csl Yh7][%cal Re4e5] Consequent and...wrong. Vachier missed
some detail in his calculations.} ({Black has plenty of play for the pawn after
} 23. f3 d4 24. fxg4 dxc3 25. bxc3 Ne5 26. h3 {but this was preferrable to
what happened in the game.}) 23... c4 $1 {Very strong! The bishop is becoming
too vulnerable.} ({Most likely Maxime spent most of his time calculating the
consequences of the sharp continuation} 23... d4 24. e5) 24. Nxc4 ({The bishop
is vulnerable after} 24. Ba2 h6 25. exd5 Nb4 26. Bxb4 Bxb4 27. Ngf3 Bxf3 28.
gxf3 Qa5) ({Or} 24. Ba4 Nb4 25. Bxb4 Bxb4 26. e5 Ne4 $1 27. Ndxe4 dxe4 {when
both the rook and the knight are hanging} 28. Qxe4 Qxg5) ({Alas, there is no
time for} 24. e5 $2 cxb3) 24... dxc4 25. Bxc4 Nd7 26. Nxf7 $1 {The best
practical chance!} ({The retreat is absolutely hopeless} 26. Nf3 Bxf3 27. gxf3
Nde5) 26... Rxf7 27. Bxf7+ Kxf7 28. Bxg7 Kxg7 29. Qxc6 {[%csl Yb2,Gd7,Ye1,Ye4,
Ge7,Yf2,Yg2,Gg4] Diagram [#] After the forces moves the game reached a highly
unusual distribution of forces. White has a rook and four pawns versus three
light pieces. I have never seen anything like that before. How can we asses
the situation? Well, obviously the pawns can become dangerous in an endgame if
there is time to advance them. If not, they will be targets. The three light
pieces can easily unite their efforts attacking any of the pawns and it will
be lost as the rook cannot separate itself into pieces. The general rule is
that the smaller parts should be better than the major piece as long as they
are united. This is the case here, the pieces are clearly better. One more
thing that helps is that two of them are bishops!} Ne5 30. Qc3 Bf6 31. Qg3 h5
32. h3 ({Or} 32. f4 h4 33. Qe3 Nd3 {[%cal Rf6d4] with the threat Bf6-d4.})
32... h4 33. Qe3 Be6 {Black consolidated his forces and starts attacking the
pawns.} 34. b4 Qd3 {True to his solid style, Evgeny removes the queen from the
board as well as the possibility of a perpetual.} 35. Kh2 ({Or} 35. Qf4 Qd4) ({
Similar to the game is} 35. f4 Qxe3+ 36. Rxe3 Nc6 37. Kh2 (37. e5 Be7 38. g3
Bxb4 39. Rd3) 37... Nxb4 38. g3) 35... Be7 36. f4 Qxe3 37. Rxe3 Nc4 38. Re2 {
Diagram [#] At a glance it seems as White should be OK, but the reality is
that he is about to lose all his pawns one by one...} ({One of the pawns is
lost anyway} 38. Rb3 Nd2) ({But} 38. Rd3 Bxb4 39. g3 {seems more accurate.})
38... Bxb4 {One down, more to go.} 39. g3 ({The passive defense would not help.
After} 39. Rf2 Nd2 40. e5 Kg6 {Black will bring the king on f5, the bishop on
e3 and chop the pawns off.}) 39... Nd2 40. gxh4 {Trades the last black pawn,
but there are too many pieces!} ({Naturally, White wants to keep his pawns
together, but after} 40. g4 Bd6 41. e5 Bb4 42. f5 Bc4 43. Rf2 Bd5 {Black can
suddenly create mating threats with his pieces.}) 40... Bc4 41. Rg2+ Kh6 42.
Kg3 {The king leaves the danger zone} (42. e5 Nf1+ 43. Kg1 Bc5+ 44. Kh1 Bd5 $19
) 42... Bf1 ({Also good is} 42... Nxe4+ 43. Kf3 Bd5) 43. Rh2 Bd3 44. Kg4 (44.
e5 $2 Nf1+) 44... Nxe4 {Two down.} 45. Kf5 ({Nothing changes} 45. Kf3 Kh5)
45... Bd6 46. Rg2 Kh5 47. Rg8 Ng5+ 48. Kf6 Nh7+ 49. Kg7 Bxf4 {Three.} 50. Ra8 (
50. Rh8 Be5+ {loses on the spot.}) 50... Be5+ 51. Kf7 Kxh4 {Four.} 52. Ra4+ Kh5
(52... Kxh3 53. Ra3) 53. h4 Bb2 54. Rf4 Bc3 55. Ke6 Be1 56. Rf3 Bg6 57. Rf1 Bb4
(57... Bxh4 {was OK as well.}) 58. Rf4 Nf8+ 59. Kd5 Be7 60. Rf1 Bc2 61. Rg1
Bb3+ 62. Ke4 Ng6 63. Kf5 Bd8 (63... Nxh4+) 64. Ke4 Be6 65. Rd1 Be7 66. Ra1 Bc8
67. Ra5+ Kxh4 {Diagram [#] Five! Evgeny swiped all the pawns off. This is a
theoretically won position.} 68. Ra1 Kg5 69. Rg1+ Bg4 70. Rg2 Bc5 71. Rg3 Nf4
72. Ke5 Bf2 73. Ra3 Bh3 74. Ra5 Bg2 {[%cal Gf2a7,Gg2a8] The bishops are
cutting the king along the diagonals an dthe knight assists them to push it
towards the back rank.} 75. Ra3 Ne2 76. Ra5 ({Or} 76. Ra2 Bg3+ 77. Ke6 Nd4+ 78.
Ke7 Bh3) 76... Bg3+ 77. Ke6+ Kg6 78. Ra6 Nd4+ 79. Ke7+ Kg7 80. Ra1 Bh3 81. Rh1
({If} 81. Rg1 Nf5+ 82. Ke6 Ne3+ 83. Ke7 Ng2 84. Rh1 Nf4 85. Rg1 Ng6+ {the king
will be forced on the eight rank anyway.}) 81... Bg4 82. Rg1 Ne2 83. Rf1 Bf4
84. Rd1 Nc3 85. Rd3 Ne4 86. Kd8 Nc5 87. Rd5 Ne4 88. Rd3 Ng5 89. Ke7 Nf7 90. Rd4
Bg5+ 91. Ke8 Ne5 {Picturesque domination. The threat Bg4-h5 can be stopped
only at the expense of the rook. Black resigned and Tomashevsky is getting
very close to the overall tournament victory!} 0-1

Report.

Vachier Lagrave with Positional Masterpiece

Tata Steel ended as nicely as it started. Traditionally, more than half of the last round game proved decisive and one of them was an excellent effort by the second player, Maxime Vachier Lagrave of France:

[Event "Tata Steel Masters"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2015.01.25"]
[Round "13.2"]
[White "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Black "Vachier-Lagrave, Maxime"]
[Result "0-1"]
[WhiteElo "2820"]
[BlackElo "2757"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "70"]
[EventDate "2015.??.??"]
[WhiteClock "0:01:08"]
[BlackClock "0:34:33"]

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 {Maxime is one of the
greatest speacialist in the Najdorf.} 6. h3 {Fabiano deviates from the
discussion they both had a couple of months ago after} (6. f3 e5 7. Nb3 Be6 8.
Be3 Be7 9. Qd2 O-O 10. O-O-O Nbd7 11. g4 b5 12. Rg1 {Caruana,F (2844)-Vachier
Lagrave,M (2757) Tashkent 2014}) 6... e5 7. Nde2 h5 {Since White wants to
fianchettoe the bishop with g2-g4 this restricting move makes a lot of Black
actually wnats to lay on the kingside in most of the cases in this line and
the h5-h4 resourse is useful for both attacking and strategical aims (to
weaken the dark squares for example).} 8. g3 ({A very original idea was
introduced recently} 8. Ng1 $5 b5 9. Nf3 Bb7 10. Ng5 {[%csl Gg5] and White was
trying to prove that h7-h5 had somewhat weakened the kingside in
Nepomniachtchi,I (2714)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2758) Beijing 2014 Still, the loss
of so many tempos in the opening can hardly be great.}) 8... Be6 9. Bg2 Nbd7
10. a4 Be7 11. O-O Rc8 12. Be3 Nb6 $146 {A novelty! Maxime came well prepared
for the game and uncorked a nice positional sacrifice of a pawn.} ({All of
this have been seen already and Black was always reacting with} 12... O-O {for
example} 13. a5 Re8 14. Qd2 Rc7 15. f4 Bc4 16. Rfd1 Qc8 {with long maneuvering
game, Riccio,E (2477)-Kotlyanskiy,E (2565) FICGS email 2010}) 13. b3 {Blocks
the Nb6-c4 maneuver.} (13. a5 Nc4 {which would be very good for Black.}) {But
allows the main idea} 13... d5 $1 {Diagram [#] The d6-d5 break is the key
theme in all the Sicilians. In this case Maxime's sacrifice is justified for
two reasons: 1) He removes the strong e4 pawn which gives him pawn majority
on the kingside and great attacking chances. 2) Domination on the dark
squares.} 14. Bxb6 {Practically forced.} ({Both} 14. a5 d4 $1) ({and} 14. exd5
Nbxd5 15. Nxd5 Nxd5 16. Bd2 O-O {are excellent for Black.}) 14... Qxb6 15. Nxd5
{Perhaps the other capture} (15. exd5 {is a better version for White as Black
now have more difficulties when attacking on the kingside (too many pieces on
the f file). Still, Vachier will have rich compensation after} Bf5 16. a5 Qd6)
15... Nxd5 16. exd5 Bd7 $1 {The optimal square for the bishop.} (16... Bf5 {
looks more active but the bishop will stay on the road of his own f pawn.} 17.
c4) 17. c4 Qd6 ({Black does not show his intentions yet. Another perspective
option is} 17... h4 18. g4 f5 19. gxf5 Bxf5 20. Nc3 Bc5 21. Ne4) 18. a5 {The
fire cannot be stopped with fuel. After} (18. h4 {Black can start the attack
with} g5 $1 19. hxg5 Bxg5 20. Nc3 f5 21. Re1 Kf7) 18... f5 19. Qd3 ({Once again
} 19. h4 {is dangerous for White only} g5 20. hxg5 Bxg5 21. f4 Bf6 22. fxe5
Bxe5) 19... h4 $1 {[%csl Ga3,Yb3,Gb4,Yc4,Gc5,Yd5,Rf2,Rg3][%cal Rd6c5,Rc5g1,
Rh4g3,Rh8h1] Diagram [#] This softens the black squares. Black's play is very
easy and natural, he simply advances the pawns on the kingside and creates
weaknesses along the dark squares. Fabiano will be happy to play b3-b4
followed by c4-c5 but this is impossible due to the blockade.} 20. g4 {This
looks like the best defense. White can also stay still with} (20. Rab1 {but
then Black might consider even entering an endgame sometimes} e4 21. Qd2 hxg3
22. fxg3 O-O {Even} (22... Qb4 {is good for Black} 23. Qxb4 Bxb4 24. Ra1 Bc5+
25. Kh2 Ke7 {foolowed by g7-g5.}) 23. Rfc1 Qb4 24. Qxb4 Bxb4 25. Ra1 g5) 20...
O-O ({Maxime dismisses the pawn regain} 20... fxg4 21. Nc3 $1 gxh3 22. Bxh3 {
Indeed the blockade on the lihgt squares will be favourable for White.}) 21.
Nc3 $6 {But this is wrong. Allowing e5-e4 leads to further problems along the
b8-h2 diagonal. Corerct was} (21. gxf5 {to fight for the e4 square} Bxf5 22.
Qd2 Qg6 (22... e4 {can be now answered} 23. Nd4 $1 Bd8 24. Nxf5 Rxf5 25. Bxe4
Bc7 26. f4) 23. Kh1 {Black still has plenty of compensation but nothing
decisive yet} Be4 24. f3 ({But not} 24. Bxe4 $6 Qxe4+ 25. Kh2 Rf3)) 21... e4 $1
22. Qe3 {Diagram [#]} Bd8 $1 {[%csl Rh2][%cal Gd8c7,Rc7h2] Nice regrouping.
Black hits where it hurts.} 23. Bxe4 {Desperation Fabiano figured that the
alternatives are even worse} (23. Rfe1 Bc7 24. gxf5 Qh2+ 25. Kf1 Bf4 26. Qxe4
Bxf5 27. Qe7 Bxh3 {already wins the white queen.}) (23. f4 exf3 24. Rxf3 Bc7
25. g5 (25. gxf5 Qh2+ 26. Kf1 Bxf5 {is decisive attack on the open files and
diagonals.}) 25... Rfe8 26. Qf2 Qh2+ 27. Kf1 Bd6 {[%cal Gd6c5] followd by
Bd6-c5 is also grim for White.}) 23... fxe4 24. Nxe4 Qf4 25. Qxf4 Rxf4 26. f3
Be7 {In the endgame the value of the pawns increases and normally 3 pawns
should be good enough to fight the bishop. However, in this particular
situation the bishop pair and the many useful half open files speak of the
undisputable advantage for Black.} 27. Kf2 Rcf8 28. Ke3 $6 {Caruana's desire
to activate the king is understandable but the rooks and bishops can now
create tactical headache.} ({Correct was to stay still with} 28. Kg2) 28... Be8
{Another nice regroupment. The threat is Be8-g6.} 29. c5 {It is hard to
critice White for his decisions as the position is most likely lost anyway} (
29. Rad1 {does not help neither} Bb4 (29... Bg6 30. d6) 30. Ng5 Bd7 31. Ne6
Bxe6 32. dxe6 R4f6) ({After} 29. d6 Bd8 {the light-squared bishop will pop up
on c6.}) 29... Bb5 30. b4 $1 {The last chance. In the line} (30. Rf2 {Diagram
[#]} Rxe4+ $1 {Black wins by force} 31. Kxe4 Bxc5 32. Rd2 Re8+ 33. Kf5 (33. Kf4
Be3+ 34. Kf5 Bd7+ 35. Kg6 Re5 36. f4 Be8#) 33... Bd7+ 34. Kg5 Be3+ (34... Be7+)
) 30... Rxe4+ $1 {Maxime is alert!} ({Things are not clear in the line} 30...
Bxf1 31. Rxf1 Bd8 32. Rf2 {due to the blocked character of the position.}) 31.
Kxe4 Re8 $1 {A nice ambush which wraps up the game.} 32. Kf4 ({Or} 32. Rfe1
Bxc5+ 33. Kf4 Rf8+ 34. Kg5 Bxb4 35. Re4 Bc3 36. Ra3 Bf6+ 37. Kg6 Be8+) 32...
g5+ 33. Kf5 Kf7 $1 {Once again ignores the bishop and concentrates on the king.
Checkmate is near.} 34. Rfe1 {Now it is proper mate, or else it would be a
prosaic win} (34. Rad1 Bd7+ 35. Ke4 Bxc5+ 36. Kd3 Bb5+) 34... Bd3+ 35. Re4 Bf6
{Diagram [#] A beautiful finish of a nice positional game. Mate is inevitable.
This was not Fabiano's best tournament, but Maxime had fantastic performance
with shared second place, just half point away from the winner. This game in
particular was a potional masterpiece!} (35... Bf6 36. Rae1 Re5#) 0-1

It is not big news that Magnus Carlsen won the event outright but the fact that no less than four players finished just half a point away from him speaks about the intensive battles we witnessed. The presence of the Chinese prodigy Wei Yi in the next edition of the tournament will certainly add favour to the event. Full report.

Who is Stronger in the Center?

The second round of the Tashkent Grand Prix tournament saw only one decisive game.

[Event "Tashkent FIDE GP"]
[Site "Tashkent UZB"]
[Date "2014.10.22"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Vachier Lagrave, M."]
[Black "Kasimdzhanov, R."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C65"]
[WhiteElo "2757"]
[BlackElo "2706"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[EventDate "2014.10.20"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 {An invitation to a Berlin Defense.} 4. d3 {
Rejected. Black is doing too well here these days.} Bc5 5. Nbd2 {A rather
fresh line. According to my Megabase there are only 31 games played so far,
but the quality of the players who tried it as White is very high: Carlsen,
Aronian, Giri, Adams...} d6 6. O-O ({One of the ideas of the early knight
sortie is to maneuver in Steinitz style with} 6. Nf1 {However in that case the
simple} Ng4 {diverts the white knight from the g3 square and Black is very
solid.} 7. Ne3 O-O 8. O-O Nxe3 9. Bxe3 Bxe3 10. fxe3 Be6 {Inarkiev,E (2669)
-Ponomariov,R (2733) Astrakhan 2010}) 6... Bd7 {The most natural move turns
out to be a novelty. Kasimdzhanov does not want to allow the doubling of the
pawns on c6 and completes the development. This move cannot be bad.} 7. c3 O-O
8. Nc4 $5 {[%csl Rb6,Gc4,Yc5,Ye5][%cal Gb2b4,Ga2a4,Ga4a5,Rc4b6,Gc4e5,Gf3e5]
Diagram [#] A typical idea for the Italian game. These two are cousins though.
In the Italian positions the white light-squared bishop is placed on b3.} h6 {
Useful prophylaxys.} ({The position of the bishop on b5 gives an additional
idea to White:} 8... a6 9. Bxc6 Bxc6 10. Na5 {This will regain the bishop pair
and double the black pawns, as} Qd7 11. Bg5 {looks awkward for Black.}) 9. b4
Bb6 10. a4 {White wins the bishop pair but the second player is not quite
afraid of this. At least for the moment.} a5 $5 {This is a central attack
against the d4 square!} ({The other way to play the position is} 10... a6 11.
Nxb6 cxb6 12. Bc4 Ne7) 11. Nxb6 cxb6 12. bxa5 $1 {It seems quite
counter-intuitive for Vachier- Lagrave to undouble the black pawns and to
spoil his own structure.} ({However, the natural} 12. Bd2 {will be answered by}
axb4 13. cxb4 Bg4 $1 {with the idea Nc6-d4} 14. Bc3 d5 $1 {with active play in
the center.} (14... Rc8 $5) 15. Bxc6 bxc6 16. Bxe5 dxe4 17. Bxf6 Qxf6 18. dxe4
Rfd8 19. Qb3 (19. Qe2 $6 Rd4 $1) 19... c5) 12... Nxa5 ({Or else Black is not
going to conduct the freeing central advance.} 12... bxa5 13. Bc4) 13. h3 {
[%csl Yg4][%cal Gh3g4] Diagram [#]} d5 $1 {Sooner or later Rustam has to play
this. It seems as the moment was right.} ({He could have also tried it after}
13... Re8 14. Re1 ({but in this line White can stop d5 for good with} 14. c4 {
next he can play for the f2-f4 advance.}) 14... Bc6 15. Qc2 d5 16. exd5 Qxd5)
14. exd5 Bxb5 $6 {Only this move is inaccuracy. Black could have equalized with
} (14... Nxd5 {True, in some of the lines the pawn on e5 is taken with a tempo,
but it seems as Black is doing OK everywhere} 15. Bxd7 (15. Bd2 f6) 15... Qxd7
16. c4 (16. Nxe5 Qf5 17. d4 Nxc3) 16... Nf6 17. Qe2 ({Not} 17. Nxe5 $2 Qd4) ({
Nor} 17. Bb2 e4 18. Bxf6 $6 exf3) 17... e4 18. dxe4 Qe6 {with full
compensation for the sacrificed pawn.}) 15. axb5 Qxd5 16. c4 Qe6 {This forces
matters.} (16... Qd6 $2 {loses the exchange:} 17. Ba3) ({But probably} 16...
Qd8 {intending to meet} 17. Bb2 {with} e4 {made sense. From d8 the queen can
be also moved to c7 to defend the e5 pawn.}) 17. Bb2 e4 18. Re1 Rad8 ({Nothing
changes} 18... Rfd8 19. Bxf6 Qxf6 20. Rxe4 Rxd3 21. Qxd3 Qxa1+ 22. Kh2 Qf6 23.
Rd4 {- see the line below.}) 19. Bxf6 Qxf6 20. Rxe4 {[%csl Ra1,Rd3][%cal Rd8d3,
Rf6a1] Diagram [#] It is quite obvious that Kasimdzhanov calculated the whole
line with the intention to regain the pawn now with Rd8xd3. Then when the
position appeared on the board, he backed up.} Nb3 $2 {Now Black will be a
clear pawn down.} ({The other evil seems more bearable:} 20... Rxd3 21. Qxd3
Qxa1+ 22. Kh2 Qf6 {The knight on a5 is excluded from the game and temporarily
White has an extra piece on the kingside. He can then start improving slowly
his position there.} 23. Rd4 ({Or also} 23. g3 $5 {(this might be actually
better)} Rd8 24. Qe3 {next White can prepare kingside attack with Kh2-g2,
Re4-f4 and Nf3-e5. The pawns can get rolling too.}) 23... Re8 24. g3 {Next,
like the line from above, White prepares the kingside attack with his extra
knight. But is this lethal for Black? It's hard to say, I would bet a 50-50
chance for survival and loss. Especially if Black can trade the queens with}
Qg6 $1 25. Qxg6 fxg6 {Now the knight gets the b3 square and every chance to
escape.} 26. Kg2 Kf7 ({Not yet} 26... Nb3 27. Rd6) 27. Nd2 g5 {and since the
knight on d2 has to take care of the one on a5 things should be more or less
OK for Black. In any case this would have given more chances for the defender.}
) 21. Ra3 Nc5 22. Re3 Ne6 23. Qa1 Qe7 ({The blockade is useless:} 23... Qxa1+
24. Rxa1 Nd4 25. Nxd4 Rxd4 26. Kf1 {and then Kf1-e2 will set free the white
rooks.}) 24. d4 Qf6 25. Re4 $6 ({Better was} 25. d5 Qxa1+ 26. Rxa1 Nc5 27. Rae1
{as Black does not have any hint of counterplay.} Rd7 28. g4 Rc8 $2 29. Re8+
Rxe8 30. Rxe8+ Kh7 31. Ne5) 25... Rd6 26. d5 Qxa1+ 27. Rxa1 Nc5 28. Re3 (28.
Re7 $5 Rd7 29. Rae1) 28... Rc8 29. Nd2 Rd7 30. Kf1 Kf8 {The last curious
moment of the game. Rustam managed to build a strong blockade in the center.
Therefore Maxime offered a knight swap:} 31. Ne4 {[%csl Yc5,Ge4] Diagram [#]}
Rdc7 {which was rejected.} (31... Nxe4 32. Rxe4 f5 33. Rf4 Rf7 {with the idea
Kf8-e7-d6-c5 would have put stronger resistance instead.}) 32. Nd6 Rd8 33. Rae1
g6 34. Re8+ Rxe8 35. Rxe8+ Kg7 36. Ke2 {The center decided the outcome of the
game. Vachier-Lagrave was brave enough to spoil his pawn structure and
Kasimdzhanov needed a bit more energy to keep the balance. Maxime
Vachier-Lagrave rules the tournament after the initial rounds.} 1-0

The complete report of the round can be found here.

Maxime's Revenge

Starting from yesterday I will do regular analyzes on the most interesting event for chess.com
Currently the attention is focused on the Grand Prix tournament in Tashkent which gathers together some of the top players in the world.
The game that everyone expected was between Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and Fabiano Caruana. The French GM is showing constant progress in his play but was defeated twice recently by Caruana (in Saint Louis). Maxime also had a birthday that day and he obviously decided to take care of the present himself.

[Event "Tashkent FIDE GP"]
[Site "Tashkent UZB"]
[Date "2014.10.21"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Caruana, F."]
[Black "Vachier Lagrave, M."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "B90"]
[WhiteElo "2844"]
[BlackElo "2757"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "102"]
[EventDate "2014.10.20"]

1. e4 c5 {In Saint Louis Maxime tried to surprise Fabiano with the Caro-Kann.
This did not work very well and he quickly sank into the home analyzes of
Caruana. In this game the Frenchman returns to his beloved Najdorf.} 2. Nf3 d6
3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. f3 e5 7. Nb3 Be6 8. Be3 {The English
Attack is Fabiano's main weapon.} Be7 9. Qd2 O-O 10. O-O-O Nbd7 11. g4 b5 12.
Rg1 {Diagram [#] Caruana deviates from a game that he played the last year.
Against Gelfand he tried the main line:} (12. g5 b4 13. Ne2 Ne8 14. f4 a5 15.
f5 a4 16. fxe6 {Here instead of the most common 16.Nbd4, he chose the second
most popular move:} axb3 17. cxb3 fxe6 18. Bh3 Rxa2 19. Bxe6+ Kh8 20. Ng3 Nc7
21. Bc4 Qa8 22. Rhf1 Rxf1 23. Rxf1 Ra1+ 24. Kc2 Rxf1 25. Bxf1 d5 {and produced
a novelty-} 26. h4 {which was correctly met by Gelfand with} d4 $1 {and Black
went on to win this game, Caruana,F (2774) -Gelfand,B (2755) Moscow 2013})
12... Nb6 {A reasonable move with the idea Nb6-c4.} ({The point behind the
move 12.Rg1 becomes clear in the line} 12... b4 13. Nd5 {and Black has to part
with his light-squared bishop as} Nxd5 $2 (13... Bxd5 14. exd5 a5 15. g5 Nh5
16. Kb1 a4 17. Nc1) 14. exd5 {leaves no way out of the black piece-the pawn is
still on g4.}) 13. Na5 {The knight is heading for the c6 square.} Rc8 (13...
Qc7 {is the other interesting move when White can, for instance, sacrifice a
pawn with:} 14. g5 Nh5 15. Nd5 $5 Bxd5 16. exd5 Nxd5 17. Qxd5 Qxa5 18. Kb1 Qc7
19. Rg4 {Jakovenko,D (2723)-Givon,A (2449) Yerevan 2014 The total control of
the light squares and the misplaced knight compensate White for the sacrificed
pawn with interest.}) 14. g5 Nh5 15. Kb1 Qc7 {Not yet a novelty but a very
rare move.} (15... Nf4 {was tested in Anand, V (2783)-Topalov,V (2793)
Stavanger 2013}) ({As Kr. Szabo indicates-} 15... b4 {is too early, as after:}
16. Nd5 $1 Nxd5 17. exd5 Qxa5 18. dxe6 fxe6 19. Bh3 {Black cannot protect the
e6 P.} Kf7 $2 20. g6+ $1 hxg6 21. Qg2 {and White wins.}) ({And:} 15... g6 {was
a tried by Karjakin}) 16. Nd5 {Diagram [#] Technically speaking, this most
obvious move turns out to be a novelty according to my Megabase. However, we
have already seen the idea above in the game Jakovenko-Givon.} (16. h4 $2 {is
quite unfortunate at the moment as:} d5 $1 17. Nxd5 Nxd5 (17... Bxd5 $1 18.
exd5 Nxd5 {was basically winning for Black as the knight is untouchable-} 19.
Qxd5 $2 Rfd8) 18. exd5 Bxd5 19. Qf2 Bxa2+ 20. Kxa2 Qxa5+ 21. Kb1 {1/2 (21)
Damjanovic,V (2320)-Arsovic,G (2330) Belgrade 1993}) ({While the natural:} 16.
Qf2 $2 {is also a mistake-} Na4 17. Nxa4 Qxa5 18. Nc3 Qb4 ({as Black could
have won on the spot with:} 18... Rxc3 $1 19. bxc3 Bxa2+ 20. Kb2 b4 21. cxb4
Qxb4+ 22. Kxa2 Rb8 {with mating attack.}) 19. Bb6 {1/2 (19) Chesterkine,
V-Elistratov,S Vung Tau 2008}) 16... Nxd5 17. exd5 Bxd5 {Maxime has no choice
but to accept the challenge.} (17... Bd7 18. Bd3 g6 19. Be4 {leads to a very
pleasant position for White without any risk.}) 18. Qxd5 Qxa5 19. Bd3 g6 {
Diagram [#]} 20. c4 $6 {This looks dubious as it allows too many open files
for the black pieces. Jakovenko treated the position is a more tranquil way.
He placed the rook on g4, then slowly improved the bishop with c2-c3,
Bd3-c2-b3. I suspect that this was the correct plan.} (20. Rg4 Qc7 21. c3 {
White can always meet the move:} Nf4 {with-} 22. Bxf4 exf4 23. h4) 20... Nf4 $1
{[%csl Yd3,Ge7] Diagram [#] Very strong! Black returns the pawn but gets the
INITIATIVE. This is the key word whenever you play with opposite-colored
bishops. The opposite castlings would not hurt neither!} ({In case of:} 20...
Rb8 21. cxb5 axb5 22. Rc1 {Black will keep the extra pawn but his opponent
will have all the remaining joy-files, diagonals, light squares...}) 21. Bxf4
exf4 22. cxb5 {Consistent, or else Black can try something radical, like:} (22.
h4 Rc5 23. Qe4 Rb8 $5 24. Qxe7 bxc4 {with strong attack, for example:} 25. Be4
c3 26. Rg2 cxb2 27. Qxd6 Rc1+ 28. Rxc1 bxc1=Q+ 29. Kxc1 Qe1+ 30. Kc2 Rc8+ 31.
Bc6 Qe8 $17) 22... axb5 23. Qxb5 ({Naturally not} 23. Bxb5 $2 Rc5) 23... Qa7 $1
{[%csl Ra7][%cal Gb8b1,Gc8c1,Ga8a1] Diagram [#] Remember, activity! The
endgame is clearly better for White as he can bravely push the pawns:} (23...
Qxb5 24. Bxb5 Rc5 25. a4 Rxg5 26. Rxg5 Bxg5 27. a5) 24. Be4 {Fabiano decided
to get some control of the a and b files.} ({The line:} 24. h4 Rb8 25. Qa6 Qf2
26. b3 Ra8 {demostrates his point.}) 24... Rc7 25. Bd5 Qf2 {This wins a pawn.}
(25... Rb8 {was not bad neither. After:} 26. Qd3 Bf8 {the bishop will be very
happy on the long diagonal.}) 26. Qb3 ({Black's previous move created an
additional threat:} 26. h3 Bxg5 $1 {and the back rank is weak} 27. Rxg5 $4 Qc2+
28. Ka1 Qxd1#) 26... Qxh2 27. a4 Qf2 28. Rc1 {Caruana decided to take care of
the active rook.} ({Alas, with the queens on the board the pawns are not
moving easily-} 28. a5 $6 Qa7 29. Qb6 Rb8 $1 30. Qxa7 Rxa7) 28... Ra7 $1 {with
the idea Qf2-d4.} 29. Qb4 {White stops it, but Maxime regroups in a different
way.} ({I suspect that Fabiano did not like the fact that the black bishop is
getting active after-} 29. Qb5 Bd8 $5 (29... Qd4 30. a5 $1)) 29... Qe3 {with
the obvious threat Qe3-d3+} 30. Rcd1 ({Now:} 30. Qb5 $5 {was much more
tempting, for example:} Qe5 31. Rce1 Qf5+ 32. Be4 Qxb5 33. axb5 Rb8 34. Bc6 {
and this endgame should be OK for White.}) 30... Qe5 {and the not-so-obvious
attack against the g5 pawn. Black is mounting the pressure.} 31. Qb5 {A tricky
way to defend the pawn.} Kg7 ({The pawn is not yet tasty-} 31... Bxg5 $4 32.
Rxg5 Qxg5 33. Bxf7+) 32. Bc6 Rc8 33. Rg2 $2 {[%cal Yg1g2] Diagram [#] Caruana
blunders. Up to this moment he defended flawlessly and could have continued
doing this with:} (33. Rde1 Qd4 34. Rd1 Qf2 35. Rdf1 Qd2 36. Rd1 {Black is
still better, but most likely not winning.}) 33... d5 $1 {A nice tactical shot
that swaps off the excellent g5 pawn for the backward d6 one.} 34. Bxd5 (34.
Rxd5 {is no better-} Qe1+ 35. Ka2 (35. Kc2 $2 Rac7) 35... Qe6 36. Rc2 Bxg5) ({
However, I suspect that the best practical chance was to enter the endgame
with the rooks on the board. The active rooks!} 34. Qxd5 $5 Qxd5 35. Bxd5 Rxa4
36. Bb3 Ra5 {Now the pawn on g5 inevitably falls, but after:} 37. Rd7 Re5 38.
Rg1 Rf8 39. Rc1 Bxg5 40. Rcc7 Rf5 {White might have some practical chances
thanks to his active pieces.}) 34... Rc5 35. Qb3 Bxg5 (35... Rd7 $5 36. Be4
Rxd1+ 37. Qxd1 Bxg5) 36. Bc4 Bf6 37. Re2 Qf5+ ({Probably:} 37... Qg5 {is more
precise and then Black can push the h pawn.}) 38. Re4 {Black could have now
simply advanced the h pawn, but he chose a different way.} (38. Bd3 Qg5) 38...
Re5 39. Rde1 Rxe4 40. Rxe4 Re7 {MVL calculated that the endgame is won for him.
} 41. Bd3 Rxe4 42. Bxe4 Qd7 43. Qb5 Qxb5 44. axb5 Bd4 {[%csl Rb6][%cal Rd4b6,
Gd4g1,Gh7h5,Gg6g5,Gh5h4,Gh4h3,Gh3h2] Diagram [#] The best square for the
bishop. From here it both stops the b pawn and helps the king's side passers.}
45. Kc2 h5 46. b6 ({Nothing changes:} 46. Kd3 Be3 $1 ({Black should not be
greedy-} 46... Bxb2 $2 47. b6 Be5 48. Ke2 h4 49. Kf1 h3 50. b7 f5 51. Bd3 Kh6
52. Kg1 Kg5 53. Kh2 Kh4 54. Bc2) 47. Ke2 h4 48. Kf1 h3 49. Bc6 f5 50. Bd7 Kh6 {
with the idea Kh6-g5-h4-g3 and h3-h2.}) 46... Bxb6 47. Kd1 f5 48. Bc6 g5 ({The
plan from above is also possible-} 48... h4 49. Ke2 h3 50. Kf1 Kf6) 49. Bd7 Kf6
50. Ke2 g4 51. Kf1 Kg5 {The advance of the h pawn decides. A very convincing
win by the French GM against the world's number two! The main lesson from the
game: Whenever you have an opposite-colored bishops on the board, do always
prefer the initiative to the material!} 0-1

You can read the complete article by Peter Doggers here.