London Chess Classic R 3

Just one decisive game today in London. Hikaru Nakamura proved once again to be extremely unpleasant opponent to Vishy Anand:

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:

Anand and the Exchange Sacrifice

In Stavanger there are no boring games. Even the draws are agreed after complete and thorough battle:

[Event "Norway Chess"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2015.06.17"]
[Round "2.2"]
[White "Giri, Anish"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[WhiteElo "2773"]
[BlackElo "2804"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "105"]
[EventDate "2015.??.??"]
[WhiteClock "0:46:51"]
[BlackClock "0:53:05"]

1. c4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 Be7 5. O-O O-O 6. b3 {Diagram [#] Despite
his convincing blitz win in the Italian game, Giri decided to choose the quiet
Reti.} c5 7. Bb2 Nc6 8. e3 b6 9. Nc3 Ba6 {The second main move in the position
but one that scores better than its "bigger brother". Black usually chooses} (
9... Bb7 10. cxd5 Nxd5 (10... exd5 {is also possible}) 11. Nxd5 Qxd5 12. d4)
10. Qe2 {This is also the second main line. White usually chooses} (10. d3 Rc8
11. Qe2 {For example} Qc7 12. Ne1 (12. Rac1 {Paunovic,D (2506)-Sanchez Juncal,
B (2206) Mondariz 2006}) 12... Qd7 13. Nc2 Nb4 14. e4 {with complex play,
Eljanov,P (2702)-Roiz,M (2617) Legnica 2013}) 10... Qd7 {Diagram [#] Anand
proceeds easily with his development and connects the rooks. We can see the
point behind the Ba6 move- White cannot trade on d5 easily and modify the pawn
structure in his favor by creating hanging pawns in the black camp later.} 11.
Rfd1 Rac8 12. Nb5 {Prepares the d2-d4 advance.} Rfd8 13. Rac1 {But here the
Dutch GM prolonged the preparation one move too many. In case of} (13. d4 {
Anand planned} cxd4 14. exd4 Qe8 {This was a better try for White's advantage
though, say after} 15. Ne5) 13... dxc4 {Anand seizes his chance to occupy the
outpost on d3.} 14. bxc4 Qd3 15. Qxd3 $146 {Diagram [#] The novelty.} ({The
only predecessor saw:} 15. Bf1 {which should hardly yield White any advantage-}
Qxe2 16. Bxe2 Ne8 (16... Bb7 $5 $11) 17. Ne5 Nxe5 18. Bxe5 Rd7 (18... Bb7 $5)
19. a4 Rcd8 20. d3 {McNab,C (2420)-Thomson,C (2260) Edinburgh 1985}) 15... Rxd3
16. Bf1 ({At first Giri intended} 16. Ne5 {but then he realized that there is
not enough time to kick the rook back from it's active position} Nxe5 17. Bxe5
Rcd8 18. Rc2 Bxb5 19. cxb5 Nd5 20. Bf1 Ra3 {and "this is not very good" (Giri).
}) ({Perhaps White can fight for an advantage with} 16. a4 {as now} Rcd8 $2 {
loses material to} ({Also bad is} 16... Nb4 $6 17. Ne5 $16) 17. Ne1 Rxd2 18.
Rxd2 Rxd2 19. Bc3 $18) 16... Rd7 17. d4 Rcd8 $11 {[%csl Yd4] Diagram [#] Black
comfortably levelled the chances.} 18. a4 Bb7 $5 {An interesting approach by
the Indian GM. Instead of waiting passively he sacrifices the exchange for a
pawn and queenside passers.} ({Both} 18... Ne4 19. d5 Bf6 20. Bxf6 gxf6 $1 21.
Nd2 Nxd2 22. Rxd2 Ne5 $11) ({And even simpler} 18... cxd4 19. exd4 Ne4 {with
the idea Be7-f6 seemed perfectly comfortable for Black.}) 19. d5 exd5 ({Of
course not} 19... Nb4 $2 20. Ne5) 20. Bh3 dxc4 21. Bxd7 Nxd7 22. Nd6 Ba6 23.
Nxc4 f6 $1 {[%csl Yb2,Rf6,Rg7] Diagram [#] The point behind Anand's sacrifice.
He kills the bishop on b2 and intends to slowly advance on the queenside.} 24.
Rd2 {Giri self-criticized himself upon that move and suggested instead} (24. e4
$5 Bxc4 25. Rxc4 a6 26. Rc2 b5 27. axb5 axb5 {when in comparison to the game
he has an extra move e3-e4 and possibility to maneuver with his knight via the
d2 square. Indeed, here} 28. Nh4 {looks good for White with the idea} g6 29.
Rcd2 Nb6 30. Rxd8+ Nxd8 31. Bxf6 $1 Bxf6 32. Rd6 $16) 24... Bxc4 25. Rxc4 a6
26. Rc1 b5 27. axb5 axb5 28. Ba3 {Giri did not like the look of} (28. Rcd1 Nb6
29. Rxd8+ Nxd8 30. Nd2 Nc6 {"I am jealous at Black's position," although White
can always trade a light piece for the black queenside pawns and force a draw.}
) (28. Ra1 $5) 28... Kf7 29. Rxd7 $6 {Diagram [#] White decided to force a
draw but confused the move order.} ({"The easiest was"} 29. Bxc5 Nxc5 30. Rxd8
Nxd8 31. Rb1 $11 {(Anand)}) 29... Rxd7 30. Bxc5 Ne5 $1 {Missed by Giri "now I
have to suffer".} 31. Nxe5+ fxe5 32. Bxe7 Kxe7 {The outside passer provides
Black serious winning chances. White's problem is that he can never trade the
rooks as the resulting endgames are lost for him.} 33. Kf1 Kd6 34. Ke2 e4 35.
Rc8 $1 {[%csl Gc8][%cal Gc8b8,Gc8e8,Ge8e4] Diagram [#] Active rook is the
mantra of the rook endgames.} ({After} 35. f3 exf3+ 36. Kxf3 b4 37. Ke4 Rb7 38.
Kd4 b3 {White should fall into zugzwang soon.}) 35... Ra7 {A more serious
chance would have been} (35... Rc7 $5 {Both players analyzed the position in
the press conference and came to the conclusion that it should have ended in a
draw, but in far more difficult way than in the game:} 36. Rd8+ ({Or} 36. Rb8
Kc5 37. Kd2 Kb4) 36... Kc5 37. Rd4 b4 38. Rxe4 Rd7 ({Anand saw the nice line}
38... b3 39. Kd3 b2 40. Rc4+ Kb5 41. Rxc7 b1=Q+ 42. Ke2 {followed by h2-h4 and
rook transfer to d4 which will be a fortress.}) 39. Re8 b3 40. Rb8 Kc4 41. e4
Kc3 42. Rc8+ $1 {To force the king in front of the pawn and win some tempos}
Kb2 43. e5 Kb1 {when Black can win the rook, but White will have sufficient
counterplay after say} 44. Rb8 b2 45. Ke3 Ra7 46. Ke4 Ka2 47. Kd5 b1=Q 48. Rxb1
Kxb1 49. e6 Kc2 50. Kd6 $11) 36. Kd2 Ra2+ 37. Kc3 Rxf2 38. Rb8 Rxh2 ({The pawn
cannot be saved} 38... Kc6 39. Rc8+ Kb6 40. Rb8+) 39. Rxb5 Ke6 40. Kd4 Rg2 41.
Kxe4 Rxg3 42. Kf4 {Diagram [#] The White pieces are maximally activated. He
needs to trade any of the black pawns to achieve theoretically draw position.}
Rg1 43. Rb6+ Kf7 44. e4 h5 45. Rb7+ Ke6 46. Rb6+ Kd7 47. Kf5 Kc7 48. Rb2 Kd7
49. e5 Rf1+ 50. Kg5 Ke6 51. Kxh5 Kxe5 52. Kg4 g5 53. Kxg5 1/2-1/2

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

Rewind and Repeat

The good things in life and in chess do not only happen once. Check the game by Viswanathan Anand against Shakh Mamedyarov from round eight of the Gashimov memorial in Shamkir.

[Event "Shamkir Chess"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2015.04.25"]
[Round "8.4"]
[White "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Black "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Result "1-0"]
[WhiteElo "2791"]
[BlackElo "2754"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "85"]
[EventDate "2015.??.??"]
[WhiteClock "0:43:44"]
[BlackClock "0:50:22"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 {Mamedyarov has been very successful in his lat six game
in the Petrov- 5.5/6! Who dares claiming that the opening can be borning after
that?} 3. Nc3 {Surprise! Anand has played the Four Knights back in 1992-96 via
a different move order though...} Nc6 4. Bb5 Bb4 ({Ruinstein's recipe is
sharper and more forceful. Ivanchuk has used it twice against the Indian} 4...
Nd4 5. Ba4 Bc5 6. Nxe5 O-O 7. Nd3 Bb6 8. e5 Ne8 9. Nd5 d6 {with compensation
for a pawn, Anand,V (2715)-Ivanchuk,V (2700) Monte Carlo 1995}) 5. O-O O-O 6.
d3 d6 7. Ne2 Ne7 8. c3 Ba5 9. Ng3 Ng6 {Diagram [#] Funnily enough, the
position now is similar to some lines of the Ruy Lopez. Yep, the Berlin ones.}
10. d4 Bb6 11. Re1 c6 12. Bd3 Re8 13. h3 h6 14. Be3 Be6 {Both sides developed
their pieces harmoniously and naturally.} 15. Qc2 ({Also possible is the
development of the queen on the c1-h6 diagonal.} 15. Qd2 Qc7 16. Nf5 Bxf5 17.
exf5 Nf8 {And now the typical Italian sacrifice with} 18. Bxh6 $2 {does not
work because of the cool} N8h7 $1 ({not because of} 18... gxh6 19. Qxh6 Qe7 20.
dxe5 dxe5 21. Nxe5 {and White should be winning}) 19. g4 e4 20. g5 Nh5 21. Bxe4
gxh6 {with advantage for Black, Adhiban,B (2481)-L'Ami,E (2593) Dieren 2009})
15... Qc7 16. a3 $146 {[%cal Gb2b4] Diagram [#] A novelty. White wants to
expans on the queenside.} ({A predecessor saw} 16. c4 exd4 17. Nxd4 Ne5 18. Be2
Ng6 19. Rad1 $14 {1-0 (43) Nguyen,A (2496)-Markus,R (2436) Budapest 2000})
16... a5 17. c4 a4 {It is not quite clear why the inserted moves a2-a3 and
a5-a4 should favour White. More likely they should favour Mamedyarov.} 18. Red1
{Anand moves the rook away from a possible tempo on a5.} ({However, the line
after} 18. Rad1 exd4 19. Bxd4 Ba5 $6 {leads to favourable complications for
White after} 20. Bxf6 $1 Bxe1 21. Nh5) 18... exd4 {Because of the annoying
threat of c4-c5 Black should do this sooner or later. Now the pawn structure
modifies to one which is similar to some lines of the Bogoljubov defense.} 19.
Bxd4 ({Black is OK after} 19. Nxd4 Bd7 20. Ndf5 Bxe3 21. Nxe3 Nf4 $11) 19...
Ne5 20. Be2 {Diagram [#] Mamedyarov more or less solved the opening problems.
If Anand has any advantage it is symbolic.} Bc5 ({Instead, one good away to
exploit the hole on b3 was} 20... Bxd4 $5 21. Nxd4 Ned7 {followed by Nd7-c5-b3
with equality.} ({But not} 21... Nfd7 $2 22. f4)) 21. Rd2 Nfd7 22. Rad1 Red8 $6
{Up to now Mamedyarov defended flawlessly, but this move is a mistake. In a
cramped position it is always good to trade some pieces.} (22... Nxf3+ {was
mandatory when Black is still good after} 23. Bxf3 Red8 ({Not} 23... Rad8 24.
Qxa4 Nb6 25. Qa5 $1 $16)) 23. Nh4 $1 {[%csl Ye5,Ye6,Rf5][%cal Gh4f5,Gg3f5,
Rf2f4,Rf4f5] Diagram [#] Now f2-f4-f5 is a constant threat and the knights are
eager to get closer to the enmy king with Nh4(g3)-f5.} Bxd4 24. Rxd4 c5 $5 {
The only chance of a counter play.} ({Or else Black loses a pawn after} 24...
Nc5 25. Nhf5 Bxf5 26. Nxf5) 25. Rxd6 Nc6 {The d4 square is usually good
compensation in these positions, but..} 26. Nhf5 $1 {Powerplay!} Nd4 27. Qd2 ({
Worse is} 27. R6xd4 cxd4 28. Nxd4 Nc5 $11) ({Or} 27. Nxd4 Qxd6 {and White does
not have any (good) discovered attack.}) 27... Ne5 {This was the position that
Mamedyarov was heading to. The black knight seem perfect on their outposts,
the active rook on d6 will be traded and the compensation is obvious. However,
Anand had foreseen something in advance...} ({Since otherwise Black is down a
pawn for nothing} 27... Nf6 28. Rxd8+ Rxd8 29. Nxd4 cxd4 (29... Rxd4 30. Qc2
$16) 30. Qb4) 28. Rd5 $1 {[%csl Gd5] Diagram [#] Deja vu! Like yesterday, the
former world champion sacrifices the exchange for a pawn and attack and wins!}
({Instead} 28. Rxd8+ $6 Rxd8 29. Nxd4 $6 cxd4 {would be dream come true for
Mamedyarov.}) 28... Bxd5 29. cxd5 Qb6 ({The trade of a knight pair multiplies
the attacking potential of the first player.} 29... Nxf5 30. Nxf5 Qa5 31. Qe3
Qb6 32. f4 Nd7 33. Qc3 {and Black should not survive.}) 30. f4 $1 {[%cal Ge4e5,
Gd5d6] Diagram [#] Anand has a clear plan. Advance the pawns in the center as
much as possible, disconnect the flanks, checkmate.} ({The endgame is also
great for White} 30. Nxd4 cxd4 31. Qxd4 Qxd4 32. Rxd4 {but why to get here
when there is mate instead?}) 30... Ng6 ({Or} 30... Nxe2+ 31. Qxe2 c4+ 32. Kh2
Nd3 33. Qg4 {which wins a second pawn for White.}) 31. Bc4 {Anotehr deja vu!
The Indian GM used the same diagonal to grind down Michael Adams yesterday..}
Qa5 32. Qf2 b5 {Black tries his inly chance to distract the opponent.} ({
Nothing can stop the pawns} 32... Nxf5 33. Nxf5 Re8 34. e5) 33. Nxd4 ({Also
good is} 33. Ba2 Nb3 34. Nh5) 33... cxd4 34. Ba2 b4 35. Nf5 bxa3 {Alas, after}
(35... b3 36. Bb1 {the bishop will work again on the other diagonal.}) 36. bxa3
Qc3 37. e5 {Perhaps the only slip in Anand's phenomenal play.} (37. d6 {was
more subtle, with transposition into the game after} Rab8 (37... Qxa3 $2 38.
Qxd4) 38. Rd2) 37... Rab8 ({Another transposition is} 37... Qxa3 38. d6 Rab8
39. Rd2) 38. Rd2 Qxa3 ({The computer suggests} 38... d3 {as a good defense,
but it is hard to believe that White is not mating after} 39. d6 Qxa3 {Diagram
[#]} 40. Bxf7+ $1 Kxf7 41. Qa7+ Ke6 42. Ne3 {For example} Rb1+ (42... Rd7 $2
43. Qxb8) 43. Kh2 Qb4 (43... Rd7 44. f5+ Kxe5 45. Qxd7 {and wins.}) 44. Rf2 $1
Qb7 45. Qd4 {and the analyzes can go for another twenty moves but I will leave
that to you. My feeling says that the attack should be sufficient.} ({Even
better than} 45. f5+ Kd7 46. Qxa4+ Qc6 47. Qa2 Qc5 (47... Rb7 48. Qe6#) 48. e6+
Kxd6 49. Qxb1 Qxe3 50. Rf3 Qe5+ 51. Kh1 {which Black some chances of survival
thanks to his passed pawn.} Kc6 52. fxg6 d2 53. Qc2+ Qc5 54. Qa4+ Qb5 55. Rc3+
Kb6 56. Qd1 {White is better, but not necessarily winning.})) 39. Nxd4 {Now
everything is under control.} Qc1+ 40. Kh2 Rbc8 41. d6 a3 42. Nf5 Rf8 43. d7 {
Diagram [#] One more jewel in Anand's rich collection of masterpieces!
Mamedyarov had had enough of it. After} (43. d7 Rcd8 44. Qd4 {the only way to
stop the checkmate (e5-e6) is to sacrifice a whole rook with} Qf1 45. e6 Qxf4+
46. Qxf4 Nxf4 47. e7) 1-0

The last round of the tournament on the next day was rather peaceful with only one game being decisive. The world champion Magnus Carlsen exploited a blunder by the birthday boy Rauf Mamedov to finish the tournament clear first a full point ahead of Vishy Anand.

The Exchange Sacrifice

Shamkir continues to please the chess lovers all over the world. Round seven saw an interesting battle between Vishy Anand and Mickey Adams. The Indian GM sacrificed the exchange and...

[Event "Shamkir Chess"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2015.04.24"]
[Round "7.2"]
[White "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Black "Adams, Michael"]
[Result "1-0"]
[WhiteElo "2791"]
[BlackElo "2746"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "101"]
[EventDate "2015.??.??"]
[WhiteClock "0:24:04"]
[BlackClock "0:30:18"]

1. c4 {These days the top players try to mainly surprise their opponents in
the opening and to avoid the heavy home preparation. To get some psychological
advantage too. This aproach is quite unpleasant against a player who is not
doing well in the opening. And Anand chooses the English opening which he
plays very rarely.} e5 2. g3 c6 {Adams also replies with a surprise in return.
He had used the reversed Alapin in 2008 and for Anand this is already new.} 3.
Nf3 ({That only game of the Englishman went} 3. d4 Bb4+ 4. Bd2 Bxd2+ 5. Qxd2 d6
6. Nc3 Nf6 7. Bg2 O-O 8. e3 Nbd7 $11 {Miezis,N (2540)-Adams,M (2735) Liverpool
2008}) 3... e4 4. Nd4 d5 5. cxd5 Qxd5 6. Nc2 Nf6 7. Nc3 Qh5 8. Ne3 {[%csl Ye4]
[%cal Gf1g2,Gg2e4,Gc3e4,Gd1c2,Gc2e4] Diagram [#] This position is already very
fresh and has been since only once in over-the-board game. White prepares to
pressurize the exposed e4 pawn and opens the road for the queen.} ({The
complications arising after} 8. d3 exd3 9. Qxd3 Na6 10. Bg2 Bh3 $5 11. Bf3 Qg6
12. Bxc6+ bxc6 13. Qxa6 Rd8 {are not everyone's cup of tea, Svidler,P (2753)
-Topalov,V (2772) Flor & Fjaere 2014}) (8. h3 {is another move.}) 8... Bc5 {A
solid reaction. In case of} (8... Bh3 9. Qb3 $1 b5 10. Qc2 Bxf1 11. Rxf1 Qe5
12. f3 exf3 13. Rxf3 $14 {Black's position has too many lose ends, Berkes,F
(2606)-Borisek,J (2508) Heraklio 2007}) (8... Na6 $5 {deserves attention in
order to torture the queen anytime it comes to c2.}) 9. Qc2 Bxe3 ({Or else
Black loses the pawn} 9... O-O 10. Nxe4) 10. fxe3 {[%csl Ye4,Rf6][%cal Gf1g2,
Gh1f1,Gf1f4,Gf4e4,Yf4f6] Diagram [#] Anand wants to use the half-open file to
possibly lift the rook on f4 and increase the pressure on e4. And for
something more...} Qe5 11. Bg2 Bf5 12. O-O O-O 13. b3 $146 {The novelty.} ({An
email game went} 13. b4 Nbd7 14. Bb2 Qe6 15. b5 Rac8 16. Qb3 Rfd8 17. Rac1 Nc5
18. Qxe6 Bxe6 19. Rc2 Bd7 20. bxc6 Bxc6 {and Black managed to solve the
problem of the e4 pawn, Littke,H (2254)-Kolek,P (2399) ICCF email 2011}) 13...
Nbd7 14. Bb2 Qe6 {One more move and Adams will cement his position for good
with Bf5-g6. But...} 15. Rxf5 $1 {Diagram [#] A nice positional sacrifice of
the exchange. White wins the cetral pawn for it and the bishop pair. It is
interesting that both players did not evaluate the position similarly. Adams
considered it perfectly OK, while Anand thought it is easier to play as White.}
Qxf5 16. Nxe4 Qg6 $1 {The best defense. Or else White will point his bishops
towards the kingside with} (16... Nxe4 17. Bxe4 Qh5 18. Rf1 {[%cal Gf1f4,Gf4h4,
Rc2h7,Rb2g7] followed by Rf4-h4 and attack (Anand).}) 17. Rf1 Rfe8 18. Bxf6 {
Tit for tat. White destroys the pawn structure in front of the enemy king.}
Nxf6 19. Nxf6+ gxf6 20. e4 Rad8 21. Rf4 {[%cal Gg2h3,Gh3f5,Rf4h4,Rh4h7,Yc2d2,
Yd2h6,Yd2d3] Diagram [#] Anand's plan is to bring the bishop on f5, play d2-d3,
bring teh rook to h4 and attack the kingside with Qd2-h6.} Qh5 $1 {Adams
hurries to escape from the danger zone.} 22. d3 Qe5 23. Bh3 Kg7 24. Kg2 h5 $5 {
An interesting pawn sacrifice. Black manages to temporary exclude the rook
from the game.} ({Something solid like} 24... Rh8 {was also possible.}) 25. Rf5
Qd4 26. Rxh5 {[%csl Yh5] Diagram [#]} Qe3 27. Rh4 ({One point behind the pawn
sacrifice is demonstrated by Anand. The rook cannot come back at once} 27. Rf5
$2 Rxe4 $1 {works well for Black with the idea} 28. dxe4 Rd2 29. Qc4 b5 30. Qc5
Rxe2+ 31. Kh1 Re1+ 32. Bf1 Rxf1+ 33. Kg2 Rf2+ 34. Kh3 Qh6+ {and Black wins.})
27... Re5 28. Rf4 {White's chances are connected with the kingside attack and
for this reason he should not allow any trades of the heavy pieces.} ({Another
problem is revealed by the line} 28. Bf5 Rh8 $1 29. Rf4 $2 ({Black would be
happy to trade the rooks and kill the attacking potential of his opponent} 29.
Rxh8 Kxh8 {when only Black can play for the win.}) 29... Rc5 30. Qb2 Rc1 {and
wins.}) 28... Rc5 29. Qb2 Rd6 30. Rf1 a5 {Adams placed his pieces in a very
good way and now improves the mobile pawns.} 31. Bf5 b5 32. h4 {Diagram [#]} ({
Anand also considered the pawn sacrifice} 32. b4 axb4 33. Rf3 Qd4 34. Qd2 {in
order to return to his original idea of kingside attack, but at the end
decided that it was too risky.}) 32... Rd8 $2 {"The decisive blunder" (Anand)
"Awful move" (Adams). The English GM missed a nice tactical regroupment.
Instead many moves lead to dinamic equality:} (32... b4 $5 $11) (32... a4 $5 {
In both case White cannot effectively use his queen in the attack due to the
weakness of the b3 and e2 pawns.}) ({They also considered} 32... Qd4 {good for
Black, but this is questionable as it allows the white queen a kingside sortie}
33. Qd2 Rd8 34. h5 {and White is definitely better.}) 33. a3 b4 34. axb4 axb4
35. Be6 $1 {[%csl Gc4,Rd8,Rf6,Yg7][%cal Ge6c4,Rb2f6,Rf6d8,Gb3c4,Gd3c4] Diagram
[#] The bishop is rerouted to the optimal c4 square from where it cements the
queenside while attacking the f7 pawn. Black's position immediately becomes
bad.} Rc3 ({The bishop is full of poison} 35... fxe6 36. Qxf6+ {is mate in
seven.}) ({Noweven the endgame is lost for Black as Anand explained} 35... Qd4
36. Qxd4 Rxd4 37. Bc4 {[%csl Ge3][%cal Gg3g4,Gg2f3,Gf3e3] followed by g3-g4,
Kg2-f3-e3, and later g4-g5 which will win the pawn on f7.}) 36. Bc4 {White
cemented the position and can get rid of the opponent's queen easily. After
that his queen comes into the game and the step-by-step attack is unstoppable.}
Ra8 37. Rf5 Ra7 38. Rf3 Qc5 (38... Qh6 $5 {was more stubborn.}) 39. Qd2 Qd6 40.
Qe3 {Diagram [#] The former world champion is not in a hurry.} (40. Rf5 {with
the threat Rf5-h5 was faster as if} Ra8 41. e5 $1 {destroys the barricades.})
40... Ra5 41. Rf2 Rc2 42. g4 Qd7 43. Qg3 Rc5 44. g5 $1 {The decisive break. It
is again the Bc4 to blame for Black's misery.} (44. e5 {would also do.}) 44...
fxg5 45. Rxf7+ Qxf7 46. Bxf7 Kxf7 47. Qf3+ Kg7 48. h5 {The rest is easy for
Anand.} Ra5 49. Kf2 Rb2 50. h6+ Kg6 51. h7 {Diagram [#] An inspired and
interesting battle!} ({Black resigned as he loses the rook} 51. h7 Kxh7 52.
Qf7+ Kh6 (52... Kh8) 53. Qf6+) 1-0

Report.

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.

The Clash of the Top Seed

Round three of the Gashimov Memorial saw the long-awaited clash of the world's top players. The Stonewall suited Carlsen well again after his memorable win against Vishy Anand in Baden-Baden earlier this year. Caruana's time trouble prevented him from splitting the point, which would not been that difficult otherwise.

[Event "Shamkir Chess"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2015.04.19"]
[Round "3.3"]
[White "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[WhiteElo "2802"]
[BlackElo "2863"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "104"]
[EventDate "2015.??.??"]
[WhiteClock "0:43:20"]
[BlackClock "1:02:50"]

{This was the third encounter between the former number two and the world
champion after the incredible Sinquefield tournament this summer. After the
memorable string of seven wins plenty of people hurried to claim that Fabiano
Caruana is the main threat for the world champion. Magnus Carlsen is obviously
well stimulated by these statements and wants to prove that there is no
rivalry at the moment.} 1. d4 {In the last two games Caruana chose 1.e4 but
did not get much out of the opening.} f5 {The Dutch is a recent addition to
Carlsen's repertoire which show his real intentions. No slow, boring positions
but real battle.} 2. g3 Nf6 3. Bg2 e6 4. c4 c6 {Carlsen also used the
Stonewall to defeat his great predecessor in February.} 5. Nf3 (5. Nh3 {
remains a viable option for White.} d6 6. O-O Be7 7. b3 e5 {Zhou,J (2625)-Wang,
Y (2702) Xinghua 2012}) 5... d5 6. O-O Bd6 7. b3 Qe7 {Diagram [#] To stop
Bc1-a3 with favourable trade of the dark-squared bishops.} 8. Bb2 {Caruana
decided to play solid.} (8. Ne5 {was Anand's choice and after} O-O 9. Nd2 a5 {
[%csl Yb4][%cal Ga5a4]} 10. Bb2 Nbd7 11. Qc2 a4 12. Ndf3 Ne4 {Anand came up
with a novelty} 13. e3 {which however did not yield White much, Anand,V (2797)
-Carlsen,M (2865) Baden-Baden 2015}) ({Another solid plan is the bishop trade
after} 8. a4 O-O 9. Ba3 Bxa3 10. Nxa3 b6 11. Qc1 Bb7 12. Nc2 a5 $11 {Vachier
Lagrave,M (2745)-Radjabov,T (2713) Beijing 2013}) 8... b6 9. Ne5 Bb7 10. Nd2
O-O 11. Rc1 a5 {The same move as in the game with Anand.} 12. e3 Na6 13. Nb1 ({
Also possible is} 13. Qe2 a4 14. bxa4 Bxe5 15. dxe5 Nd7 16. a5 Nac5 17. Bc3 {
when instead of} bxa5 {Possible improvements would be} (17... Ba6 $1) ({Or}
17... Na4 $5) 18. Nb3 Nxb3 19. axb3 $14 {So,W (2656)-Reinderman,D (2573) Wijk
aan Zee 2010}) 13... Bxe5 14. dxe5 Ne4 15. Qe2 {Diagram [#]} a4 $146 {
Carlsen's novelty. It is funny how similar his ideas are so far in comparison
to the game with Anand.} ({Previously only} 15... Nc7 {has been seen} 16. f3
Ng5 {but this does not look active enough and White is somewhat better after}
17. Nc3 ({Instead of} 17. h4 Nf7 18. e4 fxe4 19. fxe4 dxc4 20. Qxc4 c5 21. Rfd1
{with a draw, Komarov,D (2575)-Gleizerov,E (2540) Leeuwarden 1995})) 16. Nc3
axb3 17. axb3 Qb4 $132 {Black generated enough counter play on the queenside.}
18. Nxe4 {This more or less should have forced a draw. the next moves are very
logical and push the game towards the logical outcome.} dxe4 (18... fxe4 {
would weaken the c8-h3 diagonal and will be favourable for White after} 19. Bh3
Nc5 20. Bd4 $14) 19. Qc2 Nc5 20. Bc3 Qxb3 21. Qxb3 Nxb3 22. Rb1 Nc5 23. Rxb6
Na4 {[%csl Yb6,Yc3] Diagram [#] The bishop pair is taken off the board and
Black has a strong knight versus a relatively passive bishop. This however
should not be for very long and White has an active rook as compensation. One
problem for Caruana was that he was getting low on time.} 24. Rxb7 Nxc3 25. Re7
Rfe8 26. Rxe8+ {An easier draw would have been} (26. Rc7 Rec8 27. Re7 Re8 28.
Rc7 {as if the other rook attacks} Rac8 {it will no longer has an open file}
29. Ra7 $11) 26... Rxe8 27. Ra1 (27. f3 {"was an immediate draw. I was very
surprised the way that the things have happened". (Carlsen)}) 27... Rd8 28. Bf1
c5 {[%csl Gc3,Yf1] Diagram [#] "I thought that the position was a draw no
matter what I play and then I somehow drifted. The next idea was a disaster"
(Caruana)} 29. Ra3 (29. Ra5 {should draw indeed in the line that both the
players showed at the press conference} Rd1 ({Caruana was more concerned about
} 29... Rd2 {but Carlsen did not think he has anything after} 30. Rxc5 Nd1 31.
Rc8+ Kf7 32. Rc7+ Kf8 33. Rc8+ Ke7 34. Rc7+ Kd8 35. Rxg7 Nxf2 36. c5 Ng4 37.
Bb5 $11) 30. Rxc5 Nb1 31. Rc6 (31. Rc8+ Kf7 32. Kg2 Nd2 33. Rd8 {was also
equal.}) 31... Nd2 32. Rd6 Rxf1+ 33. Kg2 Rd1 34. c5 Rc1 35. Rxd2 Rxc5 $11 {"I
could not see anything better" (Carlsen)}) 29... Nb1 30. Ra1 Nd2 {Now White is
in trouble and the lack of time does not contribute to solving his problems.}
31. Be2 ({Or else White loses a pawn after} 31. Kg2 Nf3 32. Ra5 Rc8) 31... Nf3+
32. Bxf3 (32. Kg2 Nxe5) 32... exf3 {The endgame is difficult for White and the
world champion plays very neatly.} 33. h3 h5 $1 {[%csl Yg1][%cal Rh5g4,Rf5g4]
Diagram [#] It is important to keep the white king in a box.} 34. g4 (34. Ra5
Rd1+ 35. Kh2 Rf1 36. Rxc5 Rxf2+ 37. Kh1 (37. Kg1 Rg2+) 37... Rf1+ 38. Kh2 Rc1 {
and the f pawn promotes.}) 34... fxg4 35. hxg4 h4 $1 {Now the king is trapped
forever.} 36. Kh2 ({There is no way out} 36. g5 Kh7 37. Kh2 Kg6 38. Kh3 Kh5 $1)
36... Rd2 37. Kh3 g5 38. e4 Rd4 {Carlsen avoids the rampant rook idea possible
after} (38... Rxf2 $4 39. Ra8+ Kg7 40. Ra7+ Kg6 {Diagram [#]} 41. Rg7+ $1 Kh6
42. Rh7+ Kxh7 {and stalemate.}) 39. Ra8+ Kf7 40. Ra3 ({The players also
discussed the line after} 40. Ra7+ {but cme to the conclusion that Black is
winning anyway.}) 40... Rxc4 41. Rxf3+ Ke7 42. Re3 Rd4 {The rest is a matter
of technique for the world champion.} 43. f3 c4 44. Ra3 Rd3 45. Ra7+ Kd8 46.
Kg2 c3 47. Ra4 c2 48. Rc4 Rd2+ 49. Kh3 Kd7 50. Rc5 Rf2 51. f4 (51. Rc3 Rxf3+)
51... Rf3+ 52. Kh2 Rxf4 {Diagram [#] A somewhat misterious win by the world
champion.} 0-1

Report.

The Value of a Blunder

The fifth round of Grenke Classic was once again quite eventful. The most dramatic game turned to be this one:

[Event "3rd GRENKE Chess Classic"]
[Site "Baden Baden GER"]
[Date "2015.02.07"]
[Round "5.4"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D38"]
[WhiteElo "2777"]
[BlackElo "2797"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "67"]
[EventDate "2015.02.02"]

1. c4 e6 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. Nf3 d5 4. d4 Bb4 {The Ragozin line. We are skipping the
opening phase as all of the moves have been played three weeks ago by Levon
with the back pieces in his game with Magnus Carlsen from Wijk aan Zee.} 5.
cxd5 exd5 6. Qa4+ Nc6 7. Bg5 h6 8. Bxf6 Qxf6 9. e3 O-O 10. Be2 a6 11. O-O Be6
12. Rfc1 Bd6 13. a3 {Diagram [#] Levon came well prepared for the game. White
immediately starts the minority attack. This move is not as common as} (13. Qd1
{which was Carlsen's chose in Tata. Then after} Ne7 14. a3 Rfd8 15. b4 Nc8 {
was Levon's novelty from Wijk an Zee. It did not work with Magnus, but Anand
obviously thrusts this position and belives he can develop his pieces better
than in the abovementioned game. There are also early improvements for Black
in the position.} 16. Na4 {We will have to wait and see what Anand had in mind
when choosing this line. Was it an improvement earlier, or the one I suggested
in this position Now} b6 $6 {led to problems for Black in Carlsen,M (2862)
-Aronian,L (2797) Tata Steel Masters 2015} (16... b5 $5 17. Nc5 Nb6 18. a4 ({
In case of} 18. Nb7 Rdb8 19. Nxd6 cxd6 {the doubled pawn on d6 will cover the
vital e5 and c5 points.}) 18... Nxa4 19. Nxa4 bxa4 20. Rxa4 Rab8 21. Ne1 Bxb4
22. Nd3)) 13... Ne7 {The knight belongs to the kingside as Black will attack
there. Vishy also prepares his next move.} 14. b4 c6 {This somewhat slows the
attack, but White can regroup.} 15. Qb3 g5 ({A game by another Grenke Classic
participant saw White successfully conducting the Minority Attack after} 15...
h5 16. Na4 h4 17. Nc5 Rab8 18. Qd1 Bc7 19. a4 Bg4 20. Nd2 Bf5 21. b5 axb5 22.
axb5 Qd6 23. Nf1 $1 {White is solid on the kingside and is already creating
weaknesses on the other side in Bacrot,E (2723)-Grandadam,N (2286) Basel 2011})
16. Qb2 $1 $146 {[%csl Ye2,Yf2][%cal Gb2e2,Ge2f2] Diagram [#] A deep
profilactical novelty. White defends...the bishop on e2!} ({The only
predecessor saw} 16. g3 {but this weakens the kingside and after} g4 17. Ne1 h5
18. Qd1 Nf5 19. Ng2 Rae8 20. Na4 Kg7 21. Nc5 Bc8 22. Nd3 Rh8 23. Ndf4 Bxf4 24.
Nxf4 h4 {when Black had serious threats on the kingside, Mirzoev,A (2510)
-Peralta,F (2590) Navalmoral 2011}) ({White idea is revealed after careful
study of the most natural move} 16. Na4 {Then Black has this tricky idea in
his disposal} g4 $1 17. Nd2 (17. Ne1 Bxh2+ $1 18. Kxh2 Qxf2 19. Bd3 Nf5 {looks
scary for White, to say at least.}) 17... a5 $5 {with the idea} (17... Bxh2+ $6
{would be too early as the queen is trapped after} 18. Kxh2 Qxf2 19. Nf1 $1
Qxe2 $2 20. Ng3 Qb5 (20... Qf2 21. Rf1 $18) 21. Rc5 {and White wins.}) (17...
h5 {is also interesting for Black.}) 18. b5 Bxh2+ $1 19. Kxh2 Qxf2 20. Bd3 ({
Now} 20. Nf1 {does not work due to} Qxe2 21. Ng3 Qxb5) 20... cxb5 21. Bxb5 Nf5
{with strong attack for the piece.}) 16... Qg7 {Vishy regroups as} (16... g4
17. Nd2 Bxh2+ 18. Kxh2 Qxf2 19. Nf1 {is no longer appealing for Black.}) ({
Another possibility is} 16... h5 {but then} 17. Na4 Rae8 (17... Ng6 18. Nc5)
18. Nc5 Bc8 19. Ne5 {looks a bit better for White.}) ({Perhaps the immediate}
16... Rae8 $5 {is most accurate. First Black will secure the queenside} 17. Na4
Ng6 18. Nc5 Bc8 {and only then Black will decide which pawn he wants to
advance first.}) 17. Na4 Rae8 18. Nc5 Bc8 19. g3 ({In case of} 19. a4 {Black
gets counterplay with} f5 20. b5 axb5 21. axb5 f4 {but this was preferrable to
what happened in the game.}) 19... Nf5 {Not a bad move, but the
straightforward attack looks even better} (19... f5 20. Bf1 f4 21. exf4 gxf4
22. Bg2 h5 {and Black looks faster.}) 20. Bd3 Qf6 {With the threat Nf5xf3,
thus the next move for White.} 21. Rf1 h5 22. Rac1 h4 {Vishy played logically
and strong and his attack is growing fast. He now intends to open up the h
file and checkmate with his heavy pieces.} 23. Qd2 ({Perhaps White should have
defended with} 23. Ne1 {in order to recaptureon g3 with the f pawn} hxg3 24.
fxg3) 23... Nh6 $2 {[%csl Yg5] Diagram [#] So far Black had played logically
and strong and achieved extremely promising position. Now Anand chose a
tempting but tactically wrong idea. After the consistent} (23... hxg3 24. hxg3
Kg7 {Black has tremendous attack. For example} 25. Kg2 Rh8 26. Rh1 {[%csl Ye3,
Yf2,Rg2,Yg3] Diagram [#]} Nxe3+ $3 27. fxe3 Bh3+ $1 28. Rxh3 (28. Kf2 g4) 28...
Rxh3 29. Kxh3 Qxf3 {and mate along the h file.}) 24. e4 $1 {Very strong! Now
tables are turned into White's favor. Once that this pawn jumps to e5 Black
can no longer attack the kingside.} Bxc5 {One mistake often lead to another.
This makes things easier for White.} ({Anand probably missed} 24... Qxf3 25.
Qxg5+ Kh7 26. e5+ Bf5 (26... f5 27. exf6+ Bf5 28. Qg7#) 27. Bxf5+ Nxf5 {and
now the only but sufficient move for White} (27... Qxf5 28. Qxf5+ Nxf5 29. exd6
Nxd6 30. Nd7 $1) 28. Rc3 $1 {and if} Nxd4 29. Qxh4+ Kg7 30. Qxd4 Bxc5 31. bxc5
{with extra material for Aronian.}) ({The most resilent continuation is} 24...
Be7 {to defend the pawn although here too White should be better after} 25. Ne5
(25. e5 Qxf3) 25... dxe4 26. Nxe4 Qg7 27. Nc5) 25. e5 $1 Qg7 {Now it is over.}
({White is clearly better after} 25... Bxb4 26. axb4 Qg7 27. Nxg5 Bf5 {but
this was the most stubborn continuation.}) 26. bxc5 f6 27. exf6 Rxf6 28. Nxg5 {
Diagram [#] There is nothing left from Black's attack and he is a pawn down.
The rest is easy for Aronian.} Bf5 29. Rce1 Rff8 30. Rxe8 Rxe8 31. Nf3 Bxd3 32.
Qxd3 Re4 33. Re1 hxg3 34. hxg3 {A painful defeat for Vishy Anand who played
consistently and strong until he blundered badly in a very promising position.}
1-0

Report.

Keeping the Promise

Magnus Carlsen stroke back after the painful loss in the third round of the Grenke Chess Classics. In the fourth the Norwegian faced his old rival Vishy Anand. With risky and aggressive play Carlsen put serious pressure on his opponent with the black pieces until he finally blundered. Thus, the World Champion kept his hidden promise of further wins after the third round.

[Event "GRENKE Chess Classic 2015"]
[Site "Baden-Baden"]
[Date "2015.02.06"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A90"]
[WhiteElo "2797"]
[BlackElo "2865"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "72"]
[EventDate "2015.??.??"]

1. d4 {The game betweent the world champion of now and his predecessor is
always a great show.} f5 {This was not quite a shock as Magnus had played like
that previously. His former coach S. Agdestein is a great aficionado of the
Dutch as well.} 2. g3 Nf6 3. Bg2 e6 4. c4 c6 {But that is a surprise! The
Stonewall have never been seen in Magnus' games before.} 5. Nf3 {It was
generally considered that the best position for this knight is on h3. After} (
5. Nh3 {White intends to develop his knights in Petrosian's favourite way- the
one from h3 goes to f4 and d3, the one from b1- to d2 and f3. Then they both
have excellent view of the e5 spot. Petrosian claimed that this set up paid
his flat in Moscow... Leaving the nice sense of humour of the ninth world
champion aside I can only add that Black had found interesting ways to fight
against this set up, for example} d6 6. O-O Be7 7. b3 e5 {Zhou,J (2625)-Wang,Y
(2702) Xinghua 2012}) 5... d5 6. O-O Bd6 7. b3 Qe7 {To stop Bc1-a3 with
favourable trade of the dark-squared bishops.} 8. Ne5 {Vishy takes control of
the strong outpost at once.} ({Another move is} 8. Bb2 {Then a game of Salo
Flohr saw the idea that Vishy performed in the game} O-O 9. Qc2 Bd7 10. Ne5 Na6
11. Nxd7 $1 {It seems weird to trade the excellent knight for the bad bishop
but the latter is an important defender of the light squares. After} Qxd7 12.
Nd2 g5 13. Nf3 Qg7 14. Qc1 g4 15. Ne5 Nb8 16. Ba3 Bxa3 17. Qxa3 {White is
ready to break the barricades on the light squares, Flohr,S-Goldberg,G Moscow
1949}) ({White can insist on swapping the bishops off with} 8. a4 O-O 9. Ba3
Bxa3 10. Nxa3 {Although now his knight is somewhat displaced (too far away
from the e5 square that is!)} b6 11. Qc1 Bb7 12. Nc2 a5 $11 {1/2-1/2 (43)
Vachier Lagrave,M (2745)-Radjabov,T (2713) Beijing 2013}) 8... O-O 9. Nd2 a5 {
[%csl Yb4][%cal Ga5a4] Diagram [#] Black grabs space on both flanks. This move
is usually an active defense, although the little pawn might have deeper
thoughts.} 10. Bb2 Nbd7 11. Qc2 a4 12. Ndf3 Ne4 13. e3 $146 {Diagram [#] A
solid move, which is also a novelty.} ({Previously only} 13. bxa4 {had been
seen. Looks ugly, but White wants to exert pressure along the b file} Bxe5 14.
dxe5 (14. Nxe5 $5 Nxe5 15. dxe5 {might be better}) 14... Nb6 $1 15. cxd5 exd5
16. Rab1 Nc4 {Black had an excellent position in Goganov,A (2550)-Sandipan,C
(2590) Moscow 2013}) 13... a3 ({A solid reply for Black is mentioned by Magnus
} 13... Nxe5 14. Nxe5 Bd7 {with an OK position for the second player.}) 14. Bc3
Nxe5 15. Nxe5 Bd7 {Black finishes the development. Magnus disliked} (15... Bxe5
16. dxe5 b5 (16... b6 {might be better}) 17. cxb5 cxb5 {because of the strong}
18. Rfc1 Ba6 (18... Nxc3 19. Qxc3 Bd7 {is a risk-free edge for White.}) 19. Be1
Rfc8 20. Qd3 {and Black cannot play b5-b4} b4 21. Rxc8+ {(Carlsen)}) 16. Nxd7 {
Flohr's idea from above. The bishop could become dangerous after Bd7-e8-h5.}
Qxd7 17. c5 Bc7 {Magnus confidently levelled the game.} 18. b4 {White's plan
is clear. Ra1-b1, b4-b5, open the queenside, penetrate on the seventh...} ({Or
} 18. Be1 e5 19. f3 Ng5 {with approximate equality.}) 18... h5 {In terurn
Black shows activity on the other wing.} 19. Be1 {[%csl Ge1,Gg2][%cal Rf2f3,
Re3e4] Diagram [#] Vishy plays for the win but this allows the freeing central
advance! In case of} (19. f3 {Black will need to trade the kngiht for the
bishop} Nxc3 20. Qxc3 h4 21. f4 g5 {"This should be sufficient counterplay."
(Carlsen) The presence of the light-squared bishops should be an indicator of
a likely draw.}) 19... e5 $1 {The threat is e5xd4 followed by f5-f4.} 20. dxe5
Bxe5 21. Rd1 {Now the knight on e4 is hanging.} Qe6 (21... h4 22. Bxe4 fxe4 23.
Qxe4) 22. f3 {The knight is unbearable and White also wants to open up the
game for the bishops.} Nf6 23. Bh3 g6 24. e4 $1 dxe4 25. fxe4 {All of this was
pretty logical and forced. Magnus had to make a decision- to play calm and
solid moves or to go for a risky line. He chose the latter!} Bb2 $5 {[%csl Ya2,
Ga3,Rg8][%cal Ye6a2,Ga3a2,Ga2a1] Diagram [#]} ({Black is doing fine after}
25... Ng4 26. exf5 Rxf5 27. Rxf5 gxf5) ({Naturally,} 25... Nxe4 $4 {is not
great} 26. Qxe4) 26. exf5 Qxa2 {"I might have overestimated my position" said
Magnus at the press conference. Indeed, the position of his king is scary, but
if he manages to trade the queens, his pawn will get promoted. The analyzes
showed that with correct play by both sides the game should have ended in a
draw.} 27. Bf2 ({Carlsen saw that the lines with the pawn capture are always
good for him} 27. Kh1 Rad8 28. fxg6 $4 (28. Rxd8 Rxd8 29. fxg6 $2 Qd5+ 30. Bg2
Qd3) 28... Rxd1 29. Qxd1 Qd5+ {In both cases he trades the queens and promotes
a new one!}) 27... g5 28. Rfe1 $1 {Correctly centralizing his troops. Anand
needs to attack the enemy king to survive.} Qf7 29. Re6 {Now White threatens
to shift the bishop from h3 to c4. Magnus has to force matters.} (29. Bf1 $2 {
does not work yet due to} Nd5 {[%csl Yf5] and the f5 pawn falls.}) 29... Ng4 {
Opens further the king, but as Carlsen said at the press conference he could
not find anything decisive for White after thorough calculation.} (29... Rad8
$5 {was another interesting idea, but the world champion obviously does not
want to move the rook away from the a file. After} 30. Rxd8 Rxd8 31. Bf1 Nd5
32. Rg6+ Kf8 33. Bc4 Nxb4 $5 34. Qb3 Nd5 {the game remains unclear.}) 30. Bxg4
hxg4 31. Rg6+ Kh7 {[%csl Rh7][%cal Ga3a2] Diagram [#] The culmination of the
battle.} 32. Rd7 $4 {Anand blunders. Correct was} (32. Re6 {For example} Qxf5 {
leads to another perpetual} (32... Bf6 33. Rxf6 $1 {This leaves to perpetual} (
33. Qa2 $5 {(Carlsen)}) 33... Qxf6 34. Rd7+ Rf7 (34... Kg8 35. Bd4 a2 {is bad
due to} 36. Qc4+ Kh8 37. Bxf6+ Rxf6 38. Rd1 a1=Q 39. Rxa1 Rxa1+ 40. Kg2 {where
White should win.}) 35. Bd4 Qxd4+ 36. Rxd4 a2 37. Rd1 a1=Q 38. Rxa1 Rxa1+ 39.
Kg2 Re1 $11) (32... Rae8 $2 33. Rdd6) 33. Rd7+ Kg8 34. Rg6+ Kh8 35. Rh6+ ({The
spectacular} 35. Qxb2+ axb2 36. Bd4+ {fails to} Rf6 {as mentioned by Carlsen.})
) 32... Qxd7 33. f6 Qd1+ $1 {The neatest road to the win. The black king
easily escapes the checks and the little a pawn loudly presents itself to the
world!} 34. Qxd1 Kxg6 35. Qd3+ Kh6 36. h4 gxh3 {Carlsen is back into the
contest for the tournament win.} 0-1

Report.

Vishy Wins!

Photo © John Saunders

The former world champion Vishy Anand said it right at the after-game analyzes: "I knew that with the soccer system the tournament definitely cannot be won. But there is a very high probability to end on last place." Which already speaks a lot about his attitude towards the last game at the LCC. Still, a silent Berlin quickly appeared on the board:

[Event "6th London Chess Classic"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2014.12.14"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Adams, Michael"]
[Black "Anand , Viswanathan"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "C67"]
[WhiteElo "2745"]
[BlackElo "2793"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "72"]
[EventDate "2014.??.??"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 {I can almost hear the sigh of disbelief from
Anand's admirers when the Berlin appeared on the board. It has the reputation
of a very solid and drawish opening, but like I mentioned this many times
already it is also played for a win at the highest level.} 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4
Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. h3 Ke8 {Vishy had tried many
sublines in the Berlin and today he opted for the "modern" positioning of the
king.} 10. Nc3 h5 11. Rd1 {Diagram [#] I read somewhere that Mickey was the
secret Anti-Berlin weapon for Magnus Carlsen in the WCC in Sochi this year.} ({
Adams deviates from a game that was played less than a month ago} 11. Ne2 b6
12. Rd1 Ba6 13. Nf4 Bb7 {This was an excellent novelty which solved Black's
problems at once.} 14. e6 Bd6 15. exf7+ Kxf7 16. Ng5+ Kf6 17. Ne4+ Kf7 18. Ng5+
Kf6 19. Ne4+ Kf7 20. Ng5+ {1/2 (20) Carlsen,M (2863)-Anand,V (2792) Sochi 2014}
) 11... Be7 12. g3 b6 13. a4 Bb7 $146 {Curiously, it is once again Anand who
produces a novelty and once more it is the Bb7 move!} ({Previously} 13... a5 {
had been played by a great expert of the Berlin wall} 14. Bf4 Rg8 15. Ng5 Bb7
16. Rd3 Ba6 17. Rd2 Rd8 18. Rad1 Bc8 19. Kh2 Rxd2 20. Rxd2 Bd8 $11 {Efimenko,Z
(2689)-Bacrot,E (2705) Germany 2012}) 14. a5 ({The generally desirable trade
of the dark-squared bishops allows a fine square for the black king} 14. Bg5
Bxg5 15. Nxg5 Ke7 $11) 14... c5 {Vishy believes that the pawn thrust is not as
dangerous and that the long diagonal is of a greater importance,} 15. Nd5 Bd8 (
{The curious pawn sacrifice} 15... Rd8 16. Nxc7+ Kf8 17. Rxd8+ Bxd8 {where the
two white knights are hanging is not that appealing once that Black spots the
line} 18. axb6 axb6 19. Ne1 Bxc7 20. Ra7 $1) 16. Bg5 ({However Mickey could
have tried} 16. c4 $5 {at once with his knight controlling the d4 square.}) ({
Nothing gives} 16. axb6 axb6 17. Rxa8 Bxa8 $11) 16... Rf8 $1 {Diagram [#]
"This move was very important and I still have that counterplay along the
diagonal if he takes the pawn"- Vishy} ({he former world champion was also
considering} 16... Bxd5 17. Rxd5 Bxg5 18. Nxg5 Ke7 {but he was not sure that
the pawn sacrifice will be sound after} 19. Rad1 ({However, there was also the
typical central strike} 19. e6 $1 fxe6 20. Re1 $16 {with the tactical point}
Kf6 21. Rxe6+ Kxg5 22. f4#) 19... Rhd8 (19... Nd4 20. c3 $1 {wins for White})
20. Rxd8 Rxd8 21. Rxd8 Kxd8 22. Nxf7+ Ke7 {Sometimes this is enogh for an
equality stated Anand, but maybe not here, for instance} 23. Ng5 Nd4 24. c3
Ne2+ 25. Kf1 Nc1 26. a6 $1 (26. axb6 cxb6 $1) 26... Nd3 27. f4 Nxb2 ({Or} 27...
h4 28. Ke2 c4 29. gxh4 Nxf4+ 30. Ke3 Nd3 31. Nf3 Nxb2 32. Nd4 $16) 28. Ke2 $16)
17. c4 {Vishy did not like this move as it weakens the d4 square. This is an
excellent outpost for the black knight.} ({If White wants equality he could go
for} 17. Bxd8 {but Adams was still hoping for something more} Bxd5 18. Rxd5
Rxd8 19. Rxd8+ Kxd8 20. axb6 axb6 21. Ra8+ Ke7 $11) 17... Bxd5 18. Rxd5 ({
Nobody mentioned the other capture} 18. cxd5 $5 {but my feeling is that it was
good for White thanks to this little tactics} Bxg5 19. axb6 $1 {and if Black
keeps the bishop} Be7 (19... cxb6 {might be better but now Black will not be
able to undermine the white pawn center with c7-c6 like in the game.} 20. Nxg5
Nd4 21. Kg2 (21. f4 $5) 21... f6 22. exf6 gxf6 23. Re1+ Kd7 24. Ne6 $36) 20.
bxc7 {he is definitely in trouble. Just look at the white pawn mass in the
center!}) 18... Bxg5 19. Nxg5 Ke7 {[%cal Ga8d8] Diagram [#] Now Black
equalizes ad starts thinking of something more.} 20. Kg2 ({This time} 20. Rad1
{does not work to} Nd4 $1 {as there is no c2-c3 resource.}) 20... Nd4 21. Rd1 (
{One little nice trick was pointed by Vishy} 21. b4 Ne6 $1 {wins a pawn for
Black.}) 21... Rad8 {The knight on d4 holds black's position together until he
trades a pair of rooks. Once that the penetration on the seventh rank is out
of the question, Black can start attacking the overexposed pawn(s) on e5 and
possible d5.} ({Another idea was} 21... c6 22. Rd6 f6 23. Ne4 fxe5 24. Rg6 {"I
did not see Black getting anywhere" Anand.}) 22. Nf3 ({If} 22. Rxd8 Rxd8 23.
axb6 axb6 24. Ne4 {Black can go for the e5 pawn at once} Ke6 25. Ng5+ Kf5 26.
Nxf7 Rf8) 22... c6 ({Vishy was also considering the move} 22... Rxd5 {with the
idea to attack the white pawns later, but saw a nice idea for Mickey} 23. cxd5
Nxf3 (23... Nb3 24. axb6 axb6 25. d6+ (25. Nh4) 25... Kd7 26. Ng5 Nd4 27. dxc7
Kxc7 28. Ra1 $132) 24. Kxf3 f6 25. e6 Rd8 26. Ke4 {[%cal Gf2f4,Gf4f5] Diagram
[#] with the idea of a fast f2-f4-f5, when the undermining move} c6 $2 {fails
to} 27. dxc6 $1 Rxd1 28. c7 {and White wins.}) 23. Rxd8 Rxd8 24. Ng5 ({They
both agreed that White was holding after} 24. axb6 axb6 25. Rd3 Nxf3 26. Rxd8
Nh4+ 27. gxh4 Kxd8 28. f4 g6 29. Kf3 Ke7 30. b3 Ke6 31. Ke4 b5 32. Kd3 Kf5 33.
Ke3 $11) 24... b5 ({The play along the b file is not fast enough} 24... bxa5
25. Ne4 Rb8 26. Nxc5 Ne6 {(Anand) and here strong is} 27. Rd7+ $1 Ke8 28. Rb7)
25. cxb5 cxb5 {Black achieved a lot. He has a very strong knight in the center,
active king and pawn majority on the queenside. It is not pleasant for Adams
at all but it was hard to believe that his position will collapse that soon.}
26. Ne4 Nc6 $1 {A nice winning try.} 27. Rxd8 Kxd8 {[%csl Ya5,Rc5,Ye5] Diagram
[#]} 28. e6 $2 {A mistake. Mickey did not trust his kingside pawns and this
lost the game for him.} ({Also dubious is} 28. a6 $6 Nxe5 29. Nxc5 Kc7 $17) ({
However} 28. f4 $1 {was strong when White has enough counterplay after both}
Nxa5 ({Or} 28... c4 29. Nd6 a6 30. Nxf7+ Kd7 31. Kf3 Nxa5 32. Nd6) 29. Nxc5 Kc7
30. e6 $1 {The key move!} fxe6 (30... f6 $4 31. e7) 31. Nxe6+ Kd6 32. Nxg7 Nc4
33. Nf5+ Kd5 34. Kf3 Nxb2 35. Ne3+ Kd4 (35... Ke6 36. Ke4) 36. g4 hxg4+ 37.
hxg4 {and it should be a draw after say} Nc4 38. Nxc4 Kxc4 39. g5 Kd5 40. g6
Ke6 41. f5+ Kf6 42. Ke4 a5 43. Kd4 b4 $11) 28... fxe6 29. Nxc5 Ke7 $17 {[%csl
Ya5,Yb2][%cal Ge7d6,Gd6d5,Gd5c4,Gc4b3,Yc6a5] Diagram [#] Now that the game
gets one-sided it is the activity of the kings that decides.} 30. Nb3 Kd6 31.
Kf3 Kd5 32. Kf4 Kc4 33. Nc1 ({Anand had already seen the win after the more
resilent} 33. Nd2+ Kd3 34. Nf3 (34. Ne4 e5+ 35. Kf5 g6+ $19) 34... b4 $1 $19 ({
Rather than} 34... Nxa5 35. Ne5+ Kc2 36. b4 Nc4 37. Nc6)) 33... Nxa5 34. Kg5
Nb3 35. Ne2 b4 $1 36. Kxh5 a5 {The rook pawns are most unpleasant for the
knights and this one is unstoppable! This was the only win for the black
pieces at the LCC and it gave the best tie break to Vishy Anand who won the
tournament!} 0-1

Complete report.

A Tribute to Captain Evans

Round three of London Chess Classic saw only peaceful games at the end. And while two of the games were solid Berlin defenses the third one was a different affair:

[Event "6th London Chess Classic"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2014.12.12"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "C52"]
[WhiteElo "2775"]
[BlackElo "2793"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[EventDate "2014.??.??"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. b4 {Diagram [#] Wow! The Evans Gambit at the
highest possible level! Hikaru supoprts his reputation of a trouble-maker.
Some years back he tried the King's Gambit, now it is the turn of the Evans
one. "It is an English opening", Hikaru explained later, "and much better
than the King's gambit." Since the opening is named after the Welsh sea
Captain William Davies Evans the hosts felt quite enthusiastic about it and
Nijel Short even joked that Nakamura had already deserved his next year's
invitation with this choice.} Bxb4 5. c3 Ba5 {On the other hand, Hikaru's
opening choice should not be a complete surprive if we recall the player who
revived the gamebit. Garry Kasparov that is, yes! The following crushing game
was played roughly 25 years ago, and the victim is... Anand} (5... Be7 6. d4
Na5 7. Be2 $5 exd4 8. Qxd4 $1 $146 Nf6 $6 (8... d6 $5 9. Qxg7 Bf6 10. Qg3 Qe7)
9. e5 Nc6 10. Qh4 Nd5 11. Qg3 g6 (11... O-O $6 12. Bh6 g6 13. h4 $5 $40) 12.
O-O Nb6 (12... d6 13. Rd1 $44) 13. c4 d6 14. Rd1 Nd7 15. Bh6 $1 {and Garry
went on to win in mere 25 moves, Kasparov,G (2805)-Anand,V (2715) Riga 1995.
We should not forget that Nakamura worked with Kasparov some years back. Vishy
on his turn menntioned at the press conference that he had looked at the Evans
recently.}) 6. d4 d6 7. Qb3 Qd7 8. dxe5 Bb6 9. a4 {Diagram [#] "This got me
slightly off-line" Vishy. Indeed, this is quite a rare move and the majority
of the games continued instead} (9. Nbd2 {One recent example saw} dxe5 10. Ba3
Na5 11. Qb4 c5 12. Qb2 Nxc4 13. Nxc4 Qe6 14. Nfxe5 Nf6 15. Qb5+ Nd7 16. Rd1 a6
17. Qb3 Bc7 18. Nd6+ Bxd6 19. Qxe6+ fxe6 20. Nxd7 Bxd7 21. Rxd6 {with pressure
for White in Najer,E (2664)-Melkumyan,H (2649) Germany 2012 rue, Black has
plenty of scope for improvement upon this game.}) 9... Na5 {The ight-squared
bishop is a beast and should be traded at once!} 10. Qa2 Nxc4 11. Qxc4 Ne7 ({
Please note that the pawn is untouchable} 11... dxe5 12. a5 {and this is one
of the ideas behind the a2-a4 push.}) 12. exd6 ({If} 12. O-O {then} d5 {is
possible and the players agreed there is no problem at all for Black.}) 12...
cxd6 13. O-O $146 ({There is a predecessor:} 13. a5 Bc7 (13... Bc5 $5 {can
transpose to the game}) 14. O-O O-O 15. Rd1 Nc6 16. Be3 Re8 17. Qd5 {with some
pressure for White in Spiegel,W (2363)-Koegeler,A (2242) ICCF email 2010})
13... O-O {Vishy decided to make the sensible and solid moves first and not to
risk unnecessarily.} ({Black cannot easily clarify the situation in the center
as he risks to get stuck with the king in the middle} 13... d5 14. exd5 Qxd5
15. Qe2 Be6 16. Rd1 Qa5 17. Ba3 $1 $40) 14. Qd3 Ng6 ({There was a second route
for the knight} 14... Nc6 {and from here the knight will stop all the a4-a5
ideas. Black is comfortable after} 15. Na3 {(Nakamura)} Ne5 16. Nxe5 dxe5 17.
Qxd7 Bxd7 18. Nc4 Bc7 19. Ba3 Rfc8 {The players briefly discussed this
position and I tend to agree with Anand who was optimistic about the black
chances. He owes the bishop pair an dthe better pawn structure and it is
Nakamura who needs to prove equality.}) 15. a5 Bc5 16. Be3 {Diagram [#] White
wants to attack the d6 pawn and needs the bishops off the board.} Re8 {Vishy
plays in a very classical way and prepares the d6-d5 advance.} (16... Qe7 {
[%cal Gf7f5,Gc8d7]} 17. Nbd2 Ne5 {looks OK for Black as well.}) 17. Nbd2 Bxe3
18. Qxe3 d5 19. Rfe1 dxe4 20. Nxe4 {The weak isolated pawn disappeared but
White has the initiative. He threatens now Ne4-f6!} Qe7 ({There is a second
defensive way} 20... Re7 21. Qd4 Qxd4 22. Nxd4 Be6 {when Black solves the
problem of the bishop development.}) 21. Nd6 Qxe3 22. fxe3 Rd8 {The white
pawns are a mess but since Black did not finish the development there are
various problems along the open d and half-open b files.} ({Hikaru thought that
} 22... Re6 {is the easier eqaulizer} 23. Rad1 Ne5 24. Nb5 Nxf3+ 25. gxf3 Rg6+
26. Kf2 Bh3 $11) 23. Red1 Rb8 24. Rd4 ({In case of} 24. c4 {Anand intended} b6
25. a6 Ne7 $1 {with the idea Ne7-c6. The knight defends the a7 pawn and
further intends Nc6-a5 to win the a6 one.} 26. Ne5 f6) 24... Be6 {The bishop
is out and it is time for White to take care of the balance.} 25. c4 b6 26.
axb6 axb6 27. Ra7 h6 28. h3 Ra8 29. Rb7 Rdb8 30. Rc7 {Nakamura keeps the
active rook on the board.} Ra5 $1 31. Kh2 Rc5 32. Ra7 Kf8 33. g4 {Diagram [#]}
Ra5 {Vishy forces the draw.} ({He could have tried to play a bit further with}
33... Ne7 $5 {Indeed, he is not risking at all thanks to his better pawn
structure. At least until Hikaru starts shooting tactics} 34. Rf4 {"I would
have played for tricks" Nakamura} Nc8 35. Nd4 {Looks very scary for Black, but
he has at least two good replies} ({Instead} 35. Nxc8 {forces a draw} Rbxc8 36.
Rb7 Rxc4 37. Rxb6 $11) 35... Bxc4 $1 {(Anand)} (35... Nxd6 $2 36. Nxe6+ Kg8 37.
Nxc5) (35... Nxa7 36. Nxe6+ Ke7 37. Nxc5 Kxd6 $11) 36. Nxc4 Nxa7 37. Ne6+ Kg8
38. Nxc5 bxc5 {and Black wins a pawn.}) 34. Rc7 {Nakamura cannot avoid the
repetition.} (34. Rxa5 bxa5 $15) 34... Rc5 35. Ra7 (35. Rxc5 bxc5 36. Rd3 Rd8
$15) 35... Ra5 36. Rc7 1/2-1/2

Complete report.

Carlsen Retains the Title!

In what appeared to be a decisive game Magnus Carlsen of Norway defeated Viswanathan Anand of India to keep the crown of a World Champion.

[Event "World Chess Championship 2014"]
[Site "Sochi"]
[Date "2014.11.23"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C67"]
[WhiteElo "2863"]
[BlackElo "2792"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "89"]
[EventDate "2014.??.??"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5
8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. h3 Bd7 {Anand deviates first today. In the previous games of
the match he played} (9... Ke8) 10. Nc3 h6 11. b3 (11. Bf4 {is another way of
developing the B, when} b6 (11... Kc8 {is more common}) 12. a4 a5 13. Rad1 Kc8
14. b3 Bb4 15. Ne4 Be6 {was equal in Shirov,A-Almasi,Z/Polanica Zdroj 2000/CBM
79 (40)}) 11... Kc8 {This is Kramnik's choice, he used this development in the
match against Kasparov.} 12. Bb2 {Diagram [#]} c5 {[%csl Yd5] And this is
quite fresh. In most of the case Black does not like to allow the white N on
d5 that early.} (12... b6 {remains the main plan and this is definitely
influenced by the match Kasparov- Kramnik. One of the firts games in this line
was played in this direction. A more recent example saw} 13. Rad1 Ne7 {[%cal
Gc6c5,Ge7g6,Ge7c6]} (13... Be6 14. g4 Ne7 15. Nd4)) (12... Ne7 13. Nd4 (13.
Rad1 c5 14. Ne2 Ng6 {[%csl Rd4,Re5,Rf4]}) 13... c5 14. Nde2 Bf5 $1 {[%csl Rc2]
which forces the white R to defend the pawn passively as in Shirov,A (2745)
-Volokitin,A (2671) Dagomys 2009}) 13. Rad1 b6 14. Rfe1 {The knight could go
to d5 at once.} (14. Nd5 Bc6 15. c4 Kb7 16. g4 Ne7 17. Nh4 Bxd5 18. cxd5 Rd8
19. d6 cxd6 20. Rxd6 Nc6 21. Rxd8 Nxd8 22. f4 $16 {Mista,A (2467)-Deszczynski,
A (2341) Wysowa 2003}) (14. Nd5 a5 15. Nd2 Ne7 16. Ne3 Nf5 17. Nd5 Ne7 18. Ne3
Nf5 {1/2 (18) Kokarev,D (2621)-Leko,P (2730) Loo 2014}) 14... Be6 15. Nd5 g5
16. c4 $146 ({The logical novelty. Carlsen overprotects the knight in the
center. In the only predecessor White could not equalize after} 16. Nh2 Kb7 17.
f4 $2 Nd4 (17... c4 $1) 18. Bxd4 cxd4 19. Nf6 gxf4 $17 {Zhidkov,P (2278)
-Vitoshinskiy,Y Dubna 2001}) 16... Kb7 17. Kh2 a5 {[%cal Ga5a4] The threat is
to open up the a file for the rook. This should be prevented.} 18. a4 Ne7 $11 {
[%csl Ya4,Yb3,Yc4][%cal Ge6f5,Gf5c2,Yc2b3] But now the pawns on the queenside
are somewhat vulnerable. Black can attack them in the future with Be6-f5-c2.}
19. g4 Ng6 20. Kg3 Be7 (20... Bg7 {at once is less precise as White can go for}
21. h4 {However, Black has an interesting counter-blow} h5 $5 {with a possible
line} 22. Nxg5 hxg4 23. Rh1 Rh6 24. Nxe6 fxe6 25. Nf6 Rah8 26. h5 Nxe5 27. Bxe5
Bxf6 28. Rde1 $14 {and White retains pressure.}) 21. Nd2 {The opposite colored
bishop endgames favors Black.} (21. Nxe7 Nxe7 22. Nd2 Ng6 {as the white bishop
is blocked and if its counterpart comes out any time all the queenside pawns
will be in danger.}) 21... Rhd8 22. Ne4 Bf8 $1 {Now with h3-h4 out of the
question the bishop can return to the long diagonal.} 23. Nef6 {Both the white
knights occupied some nice squares, but what is coming next? It is hard to
say for White, but Vishy has a very nice blow in his disposal.} b5 $1 {[%csl
Ya4,Yb3,Yc4] Typical, but nice! The queenside is discovered.} 24. Bc3 $1 {The
correct decision that keeps control of the situation. The alternatives are
clearly inferior for Magnus:} (24. cxb5 $2 c6 25. bxc6+ Kxc6 26. Ne3 Bxb3 $17 {
sees the white pawns diasappear.}) ({While} 24. axb5 $6 {is also good for
Black only} a4 25. bxa4 Rxa4 26. Rc1 Nf4 27. Rc2 Bxd5 28. Nxd5 $15 (28. cxd5
Be7 29. Bc1 Nd3 30. Re3 Rd4 31. Bb2 Nxb2 32. Rxb2 Bxf6 33. exf6 Rd6 $15)) 24...
bxa4 25. bxa4 Kc6 {[%cal Gb8b1] Now Anand gets counterplay on the open b file
and his position seems preferrable.} 26. Kf3 Rdb8 {The first critical moment
of the game. This move is logical but two other moves deserved serious
attention.} (26... Bg7 {was suggested by Anand himself and he assesed it as
equal.}) (26... Be7 $5 {On the other hand might be already bettter for Black!
For example} 27. Ke4 (27. Nxe7+ $2 {is once again just bad} Nxe7 28. Rxd8 Rxd8
$17) 27... Bxf6 $1 {Once that the knights disappear the knight versus bishop
in a blocked position will be definitely favorable for the Indian GM!} 28. exf6
Bxd5+ 29. cxd5+ Kd6 $15) 27. Ke4 {Diagram [#] The second critical moment of
the game and the match. Anand went all in with his next move} Rb4 {I do not
know how to comment it and what marks to put here. Let me quote Vishy then-
"It was a bad bluff and I got punished"- Anand.} ({A good alternative would
have been} 27... Rb3 28. Rb1 Rab8 29. Rxb3 Rxb3 {when the game should most
likely end in a draw after something like} 30. Ra1 (30. Bxa5 {is worse as} Ra3
(30... Rxh3) 31. Bxc7 Rxa4 32. Rc1 Bg7 33. Bd6 Bxf6 34. Nxf6 Nf4 $15 {leaves
White's position rather lose.} (34... Bxc4 $15 {is also good.})) 30... Bg7 {
Now a forced line goes} 31. Bxa5 Rxh3 32. f3 Rh2 33. Bc3 (33. Bxc7 $4 {loses a
piece due to} Bxf6) 33... Re2+ 34. Kd3 Rh2 35. a5 (35. Ke4 $11) 35... Bxf6 36.
exf6 Bxd5 37. cxd5+ Kxd5 38. Bd2 (38. a6 $4 Nf4+ 39. Ke3 Re2#) 38... Ne5+ 39.
Kc3 Rh3 40. a6 Rxf3+ 41. Kc2 Nd7 42. a7 Nb6 43. a8=Q+ Nxa8 44. Rxa8 Rxf6 $11)
28. Bxb4 cxb4 29. Nh5 {Now Magnus converters the advantage with an iron grip!
The idea is to open up the game after f2-f4.} Kb7 {Or else the king might be
under a pin here} (29... Rb8 30. f4 gxf4 31. Ndxf4 Nxf4 32. Nxf4 b3 (32... Bxc4
$2 33. Rc1 {[%csl Rc4,Rc6][%cal Rc1c6]}) 33. Nxe6 fxe6 34. Rb1 Rb4 35. Kd3 $16)
30. f4 $1 {[%cal Rf1f8,Rd1d8] Diagram [#]} gxf4 31. Nhxf4 Nxf4 32. Nxf4 Bxc4
33. Rd7 Ra6 (33... Kc6 34. Rd2 Kb7 35. Rc1 Bb3 36. Rd7 $18) 34. Nd5 Rc6 35.
Rxf7 Bc5 {Diagram [#]} 36. Rxc7+ $1 {The most exact follow up- all the pieces
disappear.} Rxc7 37. Nxc7 Kc6 (37... Kxc7 38. Rc1 Bb3 39. Rxc5+ Kb6 40. Rb5+
Ka6 41. Kd4 Bxa4 42. Rb8 $18) 38. Nb5 Bxb5 39. axb5+ Kxb5 40. e6 b3 41. Kd3 Be7
42. h4 a4 43. g5 hxg5 44. hxg5 a3 (44... Bxg5 45. Re5+) 45. Kc3 {Diagram [#]
And this is where Vishy shook Magnus's hand resigning the match!
Congratulations to the new-old champion Magnus Carlsen of Norway and his
worthy opponent Vishy Anand of India! Many thanks to both the players for the
unforgettable match!} 1-0

Intense Fight

Round ten saw Magnus Carlsen returning to the Gruenfeld where he produced a novelty on move fourteen. It seems as Viswanathan Anand did not react at the most dangerous way and the Norwegian held the game to a draw rather convincingly.

[Event "World Chess Championship 2014"]
[Site "Sochi"]
[Date "2014.11.21"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D97"]
[WhiteElo "2792"]
[BlackElo "2863"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "63"]
[EventDate "2014.??.??"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 {Carlsen switches to the Gruenfeld. It should
have been difficult for Anand to prepare for each game. The thing is that
Carlsen does not choose the same opening despite its positive outcome. The QGD
served him well in the last game, while the Gruenfeld was not that good in
game one, but nevertheless he switches back to it. Thus Anand has to work
more, in different directions and to spend more energy in the pre-game
preparation.} 4. Nf3 Bg7 5. Qb3 {The Russian system was chosen by Anand. This
is not only respect to the orginers of the match but his main weapon against
the Gruenfeld.} dxc4 6. Qxc4 O-O 7. e4 Na6 {Curiously, Magnus had only two
games in this line, back in 2003 and 2005. In the latter he chose the same
move.} ({Also possible is} 7... a6 {which was played against Anand by a former
second of Carlsen} 8. Be2 b5 9. Qb3 Nc6 10. e5 Be6 11. Qd1 Nd5 {with solid
position for Black in Anand,V (2811)-Nepomniachtchi,I (2730) Moscow 2011}) 8.
Be2 {The main move.} ({The only previous game of Magnus in the line saw the
offbeat} 8. Bg5 c5 9. d5 e6 10. O-O-O Qa5 11. Qb5 Qxb5 12. Bxb5 Nc7 13. Be2
exd5 14. exd5 Rd8 15. d6 Nce8 16. Bb5 $13 {Azmaiparashvili,Z (2658)-Carlsen,M
(2570) Khanty-Mansiysk 2005}) 8... c5 9. d5 ({White is not ready for the open
game} 9. dxc5 {yields him nothing after} Be6 10. Qb5 Rc8 $36) 9... e6 10. O-O
exd5 11. exd5 Re8 {The second most common but quite natural move. Vishy had
faced the main move twice against Garry-Almighty} (11... Bf5 12. Rd1 Qb6 13.
Qh4 (13. d6 Rad8 14. Na4 Qc6 $5 {Anand,V (2781)-Kasparov,G (2812) Frankfurt
1999}) 13... Bc2 14. Rd2 Bf5 15. Rd1 Bc2 16. Rd2 {1/2 (16) Anand,V (2781)
-Kasparov,G (2812) Frankfurt 1999}) 12. Bg5 {It is useful to provoke a
weakness on the kingside.} h6 13. Be3 Bf5 14. Rad1 {All of this have already
been seen. Here Magnus came up with a logical novelty} Ne4 $146 {[%cal Rf5b1,
Rg7b2] Diagram [#] Which however is not surprisng at all for any Gruenfeld/KID
player. The road for thh two black bishops is opened and they can start
exerting pressure on the queenside.} ({Previously only} 14... Qb6 {was checked
and here beside the move} 15. b3 {White has plenty of interesting options to
work in his laboratory} (15. Nh4 $5) (15. Qb5 $5) (15. Rd2 $5) 15... Rad8 16.
Rd2 Ng4 17. Bf4 Qa5 18. Rc1 {All of this was played by one of Anand's seconds}
g5 ({Black missed a good shot} 18... b5 $1 19. Qxb5 (19. Nxb5 $2 Re4) 19...
Bxc3 20. Qxa5 Bxa5 21. Bxa6 Bxd2 $17) 19. Bg3 Bxc3 20. Qxc3 Qxc3 21. Rxc3 {
with doubled-edged endgame in Wojtaszek,R (2713)-Ponomariov,R (2729) Poikovsky
2012 Obviously the Polish GM provided Anand with some additional know-how.})
15. Nxe4 {The first moment where the challenger could have gone for the sharp}
(15. d6 $5 Nxc3 (15... Bxc3 $6 {looks too risky} 16. bxc3 Nxd6 $2 17. Qf4 $18 {
White has grand attack on the dark squares.}) 16. bxc3 Qb6 {Only the further
analyzes will prove if the d6 pawn is a weakness or an asset to the first
player.}) 15... Bxe4 ({Worse is} 15... Rxe4 {as the rook is vulnerable there}
16. Qc1 Kh7 17. Bd3 $16) 16. Qc1 {The second moment of the game where Vishy
could have played sharper. Why endgame?!} ({I strongly believe that the right
treatment of the position was to keep the queens on the board. A central
passer is good in the middlegame and not in the endgame. It separates the
flanks into two independent parts and can help the kingside attack. In the
endgame the cetral pawn is easily attacked by the king and is in most cases a
weakness.} 16. d6 $5 {with the obvious idea} Bxb2 $2 (16... Bc6 {should be
better although White has a lot to play for, for example} 17. Qc1 $5 {The
knight on a6 is misplaced and the kingside is under pressure.} Re6 18. Bxa6
bxa6 19. Qxc5 Bxf3 20. gxf3 {and White is better as} Bxb2 {fails to} 21. d7 {
Notice how difficult it is not for Black to block the pawn!}) 17. Bxh6) 16...
Qf6 17. Bxh6 Qxb2 {[%csl Yb2,Yc1] Diagram [#] "I was a little overoptimistic.
I thought that without the queens on the board I am immediately fine." Carlsen.
He indeed hs to solve some problems but as he demonstrated in the later, the
endgame is much easier to hold than the middlegame.} (17... Bxd5 {is also
possible although White is little better after} 18. Rxd5 Rxe2 19. Bxg7 Kxg7 20.
Rd7 Re7 21. Rxe7 Qxe7 22. Re1 Qf6 23. Re4 $14 {thanks to the misplaced Na6.})
18. Qxb2 ({Or} 18. Bxg7 Qxc1 19. Rxc1 Kxg7 20. Bxa6 bxa6 21. Rxc5 Red8 22. Rd1
Rab8 $11 {as Magnus intended to play.}) 18... Bxb2 19. Ng5 {"I underestimated
this move," Carlsen. And I suspect that this is the position that tempted
Anand to swap off the queeens. Now he wins the bishop pair.} (19. d6 {is also
interesting.}) ({However} 19. Bxa6 $2 {is simply wrong as the c pawn supported
by the bishop pair will be good only for Black} bxa6 20. d6 c4 $17) ({another
tempting continuation is suggested by Anand} 19. Bb5 {although this should not
be much after} Red8) 19... Bd4 $1 {[%csl Gd4,Yd5] Diagram [#] "This was very
precise"- Anand. The pawn on d6 had been excluded from the main forces and is
now doomed. Vishy tries everything he can to generate threats with his
bishops.} ({Black has no time to save the bishop} 19... Bf5 20. Bb5 Red8 21. d6
Bd4 22. Bc4 Rxd6 23. Nxf7 Rd7 24. Nd6+ Kh7 25. Nxf5 gxf5 26. Bf4 $16) ({Neither
} 19... Bc2 $2 {is good due to} 20. Rd2 Nb4 21. d6 $16) 20. Nxe4 Rxe4 21. Bf3
Re7 22. d6 ({While watching the game I anticipated the line} 22. Bf4 Rd7 23. d6
Nb4 24. Rd2 {which basically transposes into the game. Then after} Re8 {[%csl
Yd6][%cal Ge8e6,Gb4c6,Gd4e5,Ge5d6] Black intends to surround the pawn with
Re8-e6, Nb4-c6 and Bd4-e5. Somethimes the kingside pawns also help. Examplary
line goes like this} 25. Rc1 Nc6 (25... Re6 {also makes sense}) 26. Bxc6 bxc6
27. Kf1 f6 (27... Re6 28. Re2 Rxe2 29. Kxe2 f6) 28. h4 (28. Re2 Rxe2 29. Kxe2
g5 30. Bg3 f5 $11) 28... Kf7 29. g3 Rg8 30. Re2 g5 31. hxg5 fxg5 {and the d6
pawn will disappear.}) 22... Rd7 23. Bf4 Nb4 {Finally the knight enters the
game.} 24. Rd2 {The last critical moment of the game.} ({Anand mentioned at
the press conference the move} 24. Rfe1 $5 {[%csl Yb7,Rd6,Ge7][%cal Ge1e7,
Rf3b7] Diagram [#] although he did not provide any further lines. This is a
pawn sacrifice and very risky decision but looks tempting! After} Nxa2 25. Re7
$1 Rxe7 (25... Rad8 26. Bd5 $1 Nc3 27. Bxf7+ Kg7 28. Rde1 Bf6 29. Rxd7 Rxd7 30.
Be6 $16) 26. dxe7 Re8 27. Re1 Nb4 {The knights hold both teh critical c6 and
d5 square and seems fine after f7-f6 and Kg8-f7 finally neutralizing the pawn.
} 28. Bxb7 f6) 24... Re8 25. Rc1 Re6 {Getting into the d6 pawn busyness.} 26.
h4 Be5 27. Bxe5 Rxe5 28. Bxb7 {Diagram [#] Forces the draw. Obviously Anand
could not do anything more} (28. Bg4 {is met with} f5 29. Be2 Kf8 30. g3 b6 31.
Bf3 Re6 32. a3 Na6 33. Be2 Nb8 34. Rcd1 a6 {[%cal Gb6b5,Gc5c4] intending both
b6-b5 and c5-c4 as well as Nb8-c6-d4} (34... Nc6 $2 35. Bb5) 35. a4 Nc6 36.
Bxa6 Nd4 $11 37. Rxd4 (37. Bc8 Nf3+ 38. Kg2 Nxd2 39. Bxd7 Rxd6) 37... cxd4 38.
Bc8 Rexd6 39. Bxd7 Rxd7 $11) 28... Rxb7 29. d7 Nc6 30. d8=Q+ Nxd8 31. Rxd8+ Kg7
32. Rd2 {The resources are exausted, the peace treaty signed. Carlsen leads 5.
5-4.5 and need one more point to defend the title.} 1/2-1/2

Uneventful Draw

Game nine of the match ended peacefully quite quickly. Anand's super preparation allowed him a chance to equalize rather easily. Carlsen decided not to risk and forced a draw by perpetual.

[Event "World Chess Championship 2014"]
[Site "Sochi"]
[Date "2014.11.20"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "C67"]
[WhiteElo "2863"]
[BlackElo "2792"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "39"]
[EventDate "2014.??.??"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 {The Berlin rules.} 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6.
Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. h3 Ke8 10. Nc3 h5 11. Ne2 {Carlsen
decided to check what has Anand prepared here.} b6 12. Rd1 Ba6 13. Nf4 {[%cal
Ge5e6] Diagram [#]} Bb7 $146 {A novelty. Vishy came very well prepared for the
match. The bishop belongs to the long diagonal.} ({Previously only} 13... Rd8 {
had been seen} 14. Bd2 Nd4 15. Nxd4 Rxd4 16. a4 $1 {and Whitye proved that the
rook is needed on a8.} Bc8 17. a5 a6 18. Be3 Rxd1+ 19. Rxd1 b5 20. Nd3 $16 {
[%csl Gc5] Diagram [#] Dominguez Perez,L (2726)-Ponomariov,R (2741) Leon 2012})
14. e6 {The key theme in the Berlin and the most straightforward continuation.}
({Probably White could try} 14. c4 {with the idea to meet} c5 {with} ({However
here Black can play} 14... Rd8 {and in comparison to the game
Dominguez-Ponomariov he will enjoy some additional ideas} 15. Bd2 c5 {now d5
is under control} 16. Bc3 Bxf3 17. Rxd8+ Kxd8 18. gxf3 {and if anyone is
better here it is not White.}) 15. Nd5 {[%csl Rd5]}) 14... Bd6 $1 {Blocks the
d file, defends the c7 pawn, attacks the f4 knight and developes a piece. How
multifunctional a move could be?} 15. exf7+ Kxf7 16. Ng5+ Kf6 17. Ne4+ {
Diagram [#] Magnus has no advantage at all and decides to call it a day.} Kf7
18. Ng5+ Kf6 19. Ne4+ Kf7 20. Ng5+ {Melik was right so far. Yesterday at the
TV show he predicted two draws, while I expected big fight today. I wonder if
this short game is due to fatigue in Carlsen or due to the super-prep by Anand.
Whichever the case, Magnus is one game closer to defending the title and Vishy
gets an extra white color to spoil his plans.} 1/2-1/2

Ultra Solid Magnus

The eight game of the match saw a very good choice of an opening for the world champion. Instead of repairing the line that led to a disaster for him in the third game, the Norwegian switched to the main line but chose a rare move. This probably surprised Anand who did not achieve anything out of the opening and Carlsen comfortably held the draw.

[Event "World Chess Championship 2014"]
[Site "Sochi"]
[Date "2014.11.18"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D37"]
[WhiteElo "2792"]
[BlackElo "2863"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "2014.??.??"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 {The world champion tries again the QGD, which
means that he had probably repaired the line after the disastrous third game.}
4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bf4 {Anand stays true to the line that brought him a win in game
three of the match.} (5. Bg5 {is considered less dangerous for the second
player with the move 3.Ng1-f3 inserted as it deprives White of some additional
possibilities, namely the Botvinnik plan with Ng1-e2, f2-f3 and e3-e4, and the
plan with 0-0-0. Nevertheless, Anand was not shy using it in a couple of
blitz games this year, against Kasimdzhanov and Harikrishna, which he duly won.
}) 5... O-O 6. e3 c5 {Nope, we shall not see the repair today, but the main
line instead. The last time Magnus played this was back in 2009.} ({The topical
} 6... Nbd7 {is what the third game saw} 7. c5 c6 8. Bd3 b6 9. b4 a5 10. a3 Ba6
{[%csl Ya6,Yd3]} 11. Bxa6 Rxa6 12. b5 cxb5 13. c6 Qc8 14. c7 {[%csl Ya5,Yb5,
Yb6,Rc7] when the pawn on c7 proved very dangerous, Anand,V-Carlsen,M Wch
Sochi 2014}) 7. dxc5 Bxc5 8. a3 Nc6 9. Qc2 {Vishy chooses the most complex
line where plenty of pieces stay on the board. The other principled line is} (
9. cxd5 Nxd5 10. Nxd5 exd5 11. Bd3 Bb6 12. O-O Bg4 {as in Ivanchuk,V (2779)
-Carlsen,M (2776) Nice 2009.}) 9... Re8 {Diagram [#] This should have been a
big surprise for Vishy! Both the players have a game each in the main line
after} (9... Qa5 {and now} 10. Rd1 {which is calmer} ({Or} 10. O-O-O {which I
suspect is what Anand was heading to} Be7 11. g4 dxc4 12. Bxc4 e5 13. g5 {with
lively, double-edged game and plenty of possibilities for both sides, for
example} exf4 14. gxf6 Bxf6 15. Nd5 Ne7 16. Nxf6+ gxf6 17. Rhg1+ Kh8 18. e4 $44
{Anand,V (2752)-Kramnik,V (2809) Leon 2002}) 10... Be7 11. Be2 dxc4 {all of
this was tested in the game Kramnik-Carlsen, Dortmund 2009.}) 10. Bg5 {The
bishop moves away from the possible e6-e5 attack and puts pressure on the
central pawn. The following curious game demonstrates some of the tactical
possibilities behind the move Rf8-e8.} (10. Rd1 e5 11. Bg5 d4 12. Nd5 Be7 13.
Nxe7+ $2 (13. Bxf6 Bxf6 14. Bd3 $5) 13... Qxe7 14. Be2 $2 d3 $19 {Pinter,
J-Hurme,H Helsinki 35/(507) 1983 Inf 35 [RR]}) ({White can also try to play
against the IQP with} 10. cxd5 exd5 11. Be2 Be6 ({Although Black might try to
solve the problem immediately with the forced} 11... d4 12. Rd1 Bg4 13. O-O Qe7
14. Na4 Bxf3 15. Bxf3 dxe3 16. Nxc5 e2 17. Qxe2 Qxe2 18. Bxe2 Rxe2 {which
looks worth studying.}) 12. O-O Rc8 13. Rfd1 h6 $13 {Svane,R (2440)-Zvjaginsev,
V (2655) Legnica 2013}) 10... Be7 11. Rd1 Qa5 12. Bd3 $146 {The actual novelty.
One game saw} (12. Be2 Ne4 13. cxd5 Nxc3 14. Qxc3 Qxc3+ 15. bxc3 exd5 16. Bxe7
Nxe7 $11) 12... h6 13. Bh4 (13. Bxf6 {yields White no advantage after} Bxf6 14.
cxd5 exd5 15. O-O Bxc3 16. Qxc3 Qxc3 17. bxc3 Be6) 13... dxc4 14. Bxc4 a6 $11 {
Black's plan is very natural and straightforward. He needs to develop the
bishop, thus the b pawn advance is coming next.} 15. O-O b5 16. Ba2 {[%csl
Yg8,Rh7][%cal Ga2b1,Rb1h7] Diagram [#] White's best bet is to create a battery.
} ({Vishy also mentioned the move} 16. Bd3 {although there should not be any
advantage for White after} Bb7 17. Bg3 Rac8 $11 {the position is too
symmetrical.}) 16... Bb7 17. Bb1 {It looks very unpleasant for Magnus, but the
world champion defended in a cool manner} Rad8 18. Bxf6 ({There is another way
to get rid of the key kingside defender} 18. Ne4 {However, there too White
will miss one tempo to be successful in the attack} Nxe4 19. Qxe4 Bxh4 20. Qh7+
Kf8 21. Nxh4 Rxd1 22. Rxd1 Rd8 $11 {when the g7 pawn is untouchable due to the
bank rank weakness} 23. Rxd8+ (23. Rc1 $2 Qd2 {is good for Black only.}) 23...
Qxd8 24. Qh8+ Ke7 25. Qxg7 $4 Qd1#) 18... Bxf6 19. Ne4 ({Both the players
investigated} 19. Qh7+ Kf8 20. Ne4 Rxd1 21. Rxd1 Rd8 {and agreed that there is
nothing there for White} 22. Rxd8+ Qxd8 23. Qh8+ (23. Bc2 $2 Bxb2) 23... Ke7
24. Qxd8+ Nxd8 25. Nxf6 Kxf6 $11) 19... Be7 {Another cool move. If White could
only move away the knight from the board somehow...} 20. Nc5 {This is the
maximum White can get out of the position.} (20. Ng3 {is too slow and Black
can organize counter-play after} g6 21. h4 Rc8 {Anand} ({Or also} 21... Rxd1
22. Rxd1 Rc8 {in either case Black is doing fine.})) 20... Bxc5 21. Qxc5 b4 {
"Unfortunately he has this move," said Anand at the press conference, "when
White's advantage is only symbolic and there is nothing I can do."} 22. Rc1
bxa3 23. bxa3 Qxc5 24. Rxc5 Ne7 {[%csl Yc5,Yd8,Ye8,Yf1][%cal Gd8c8] Diagram [#]
The rooks will now disappear from the board. The game is heading towards the
logical outcome.} 25. Rfc1 Rc8 26. Bd3 ({The rook swap is unavoidable} 26. Rc7
Rxc7 27. Rxc7 Rc8 28. Rxb7 $4 Rc1+ 29. Ne1 Rxe1#) 26... Red8 27. Rxc8 Rxc8 28.
Rxc8+ Nxc8 29. Nd2 {Vishy tried a bit more but he could not make use of the
white color today.} Nb6 30. Nb3 Nd7 31. Na5 Bc8 32. Kf1 Kf8 33. Ke1 Ke7 34. Kd2
Kd6 35. Kc3 Ne5 36. Be2 Kc5 37. f4 Nc6 38. Nxc6 Kxc6 39. Kd4 f6 40. e4 Kd6 41.
e5+ {Diagram [#] Magnus' approach in the opening solved the problem of the
black color today. Vishy tried everything he could but there was not much play
for him as both the players agreed after the game. Carlsen leads 4.5-3.5
before the final four games of the match.} 1/2-1/2

Marathon Battle

The second half of the WCC match in Sochi started with a marathon battle. Viswanathan Anand returned to the Berlin and Magnus Carlsen decided to try the main lines today:

[Event "World Chess Championship 2014"]
[Site "Sochi"]
[Date "2014.11.17"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "C67"]
[WhiteElo "2863"]
[BlackElo "2792"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "243"]
[EventDate "2014.??.??"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 {As I predicted after the second game, the
Berlin is back. It would not be surprise if the opponents play it with
reversed colors.} 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8
9. h3 Ke8 10. Nc3 h5 11. Bf4 Be7 12. Rad1 Be6 {Some time ago a very strong GM
revealed to me that this is the easiest equalizer for Black.} 13. Ng5 Rh6 {
Black will trade on g5 but only once that he can kick away the annoying bishop.
} (13... Bxg5 14. Bxg5 h4 15. Rd2 Rh5 16. f4 {will leave the rook on h5
offside and the king in trouble along the d file.}) 14. g3 (14. Rfe1 Bb4 15. g4
hxg4 16. hxg4 Ne7 17. Nxe6 Rxe6 18. Kg2 Bxc3 19. bxc3 Rd8 20. Rxd8+ Kxd8 21.
Rh1 Nd5 22. Rh8+ Kd7 23. Bg3 g5 {was played the round before in Radjabov,T
(2726)-Andreikin,D (2722) Tashkent UZB 2014}) 14... Bxg5 {Now it is the right
time as otherwise White will stabilize the situation in the flank with the
move h3-h4. What follows next is pretty forced} 15. Bxg5 Rg6 16. h4 {Diagram
[#] The only chance to fight for the advantage is to sacrifice a pawn. Vishy
had already faced the alternative, which is known as a forced draw} (16. Bf4
Nh4 17. Kh1 Nf3 18. Kg2 Nh4+ 19. Kh1 Nf3 20. Kg2 {1/2 (20) Grischuk,A (2747)
-Anand,V (2817) Monte Carlo 2011}) 16... f6 17. exf6 gxf6 18. Bf4 Nxh4 19. f3 {
The pawn is gone, but Magnus wants to play Kg1-f2 and then attack on the open
central files. Vishy needs to reduce the pressure.} Rd8 {Which he does
promptly. All of this is not new yet.} 20. Kf2 Rxd1 21. Nxd1 Nf5 22. Rh1 {This
is the important pawn White wishes to win. Two versus one on the kingside will
give a chance for a dangerous passer.} Bxa2 {Black uses the moment when the
knight blocks the rook to snatch another pawn.} ({Passive defense is highly
inappropriate} 22... Ng7 23. Ne3 Kd7 24. Ng2 {as gthe rook on g6 will suffer.})
23. Rxh5 Be6 24. g4 ({Or else Black will trade the rooks and there will be
nothing to play for} 24. Bxc7 Rh6 25. Rxh6 Nxh6 26. g4 {½-½ Alekseev,E (2675)
-Grachev,B (2672) Kocaeli 2014}) 24... Nd6 25. Rh7 {Diagram [#]} Nf7 $146 {
[%csl Yh7][%cal Gf7h8,Gf7h6,Rg6h6] The novelty. Yes, on move 25! A couple of
weeks ago another Super-GM game went} (25... f5 $6 {The evaluations are due of
Anish Giri} 26. g5 $6 ({Giri underestimated how unpleasant} 26. Rxc7 $1 Nb5 27.
gxf5 Bxf5 28. Rxb7 Bxc2 29. Ne3 {is for Black, despite the limited number of
pawns.}) 26... Nf7 27. Rh5 {and even here White is somewhat better but Black
defended well to deserve the draw in Giri,A (2768)-Radjabov,T (2726) Tashkent
2014}) 26. Ne3 {This stops the positional threat f6-f5 which will
significantly reduce the material.} (26. Bxc7 {is again nothing} Rh6 (26... f5
$11 {is also good}) 27. Rxh6 Nxh6 $11) 26... Kd8 {If you do not want it, I
will keep it.} 27. Nf5 {The knight is transferred to a better position while
watching carefully the f5 spot.} c5 28. Ng3 $1 Ne5 $1 {I am not sure if this
was still prep but it looks like a very convincing defense. If Anand allows
the maneuver Ng3-h5 his position will become very, very suspicious. Have a
look at it} (28... b6 29. Nh5 a5 {These two moves are not necessary but it
makes good sense to advance the pawns where you are stronger. Now very strong
is} 30. Bg3 $1 {[%csl Ye6,Yg6][%cal Gh5f4] with the threat Nh5-f4.} ({Rather
than the forced line} 30. Bxc7+ Kxc7 31. Nf4 Rh6 32. Nxe6+ Kd6 33. Rxf7 Kxe6
34. Rb7 Rh2+ 35. Ke3 Rxc2 36. Rxb6+ $11) {and if} 30... Kd7 31. f4 $1 {is
large advantage for White in the complications} Rh6 (31... Bxg4 32. Rxf7+ Ke8
33. Rh7 {wins a piece for White}) (31... Rxg4 {loses the exchange} 32. Nxf6+
Ke7 33. Nxg4 Bxg4) 32. f5 Rxh7 33. Nxf6+ Ke7 34. Nxh7 {and the two kingside
pawns are far more dangerous than all the black queenside ones.}) 29. Rh8+ ({
I suspect that Anand would have also sacrificed a piece in case of} 29. Bxe5
fxe5 30. Rh5 Bxg4 31. fxg4 Rxg4) 29... Rg8 ({The pawns might get dangerous if
left on the board} 29... Kd7 30. Ne4 Kc6 31. Bxe5 fxe5 32. Rh5 Kd5 33. Nc3+ Kd6
34. Ke3 b6 35. Nb5+ $16) 30. Bxe5 fxe5 31. Rh5 {[%csl Ye5,Rf3,Rg4] Diagram [#]}
Bxg4 $1 {The point of Vishy's defense. The pawns on gthe kingside disappear
and the knight cannot do much on one flank only.} 32. fxg4 Rxg4 33. Rxe5 b6 34.
Ne4 Rh4 35. Ke2 Rh6 36. b3 Kd7 37. Kd2 Kc6 {Technically speaking Magnus is a
pawn up but the problem is that the knith cannot be separated into three pawns
:) The real problem is that anytime he tries to advance his pawns this will
lead to exchanges and will liquidate into a theoretically draw endgame R+N
versus R.} 38. Nc3 a6 39. Re4 Rh2+ 40. Kc1 Rh1+ 41. Kb2 Rh6 42. Nd1 Rg6 43. Ne3
Rh6 44. Re7 Rh2 45. Re6+ Kb7 46. Kc3 Rh4 47. Kb2 Rh2 48. Nd5 Rd2 49. Nf6 Rf2 {
Nothing much happened in the past few moves. At the moment that the white
knight approaches the black camp though Anand starts hitting it with the rook.
This is the best defensive technique as he does not want to allow too much
freedom to the white pieces.} 50. Kc3 Rf4 51. Ne4 Rh4 52. Nf2 Rh2 53. Rf6 Rh7
54. Nd3 Rh3 55. Kd2 Rh2+ 56. Rf2 Rh4 57. c4 {Finally a white pawn moved but it
can easily be attacked here by a black one.} Rh3 58. Kc2 Rh7 59. Nb2 Rh5 60.
Re2 Rg5 61. Nd1 b5 62. Nc3 c6 63. Ne4 Rh5 64. Nf6 Rg5 65. Re7+ Kb6 {Vishy is
not afraid of ghosts.} 66. Nd7+ Ka5 ({Naturally not} 66... Kc7 $4 67. Nxc5+ Kd6
68. Ne4+ $18) 67. Re4 Rg2+ 68. Kc1 Rg1+ 69. Kd2 Rg2+ 70. Ke1 ({Or else all the
pawns will disappear.} 70. Re2 Rxe2+ 71. Kxe2 Kb4) 70... bxc4 {Well calculated.
} 71. Rxc4 Rg3 72. Nxc5 Kb5 {with the threat Rg3xb3.} 73. Rc2 a5 74. Kf2 Rh3
75. Rc1 Kb4 76. Ke2 Rc3 {[%csl Yb3] Diagram [#] The last pawn disappears. Many
players would have call it a day now, but not Carlsen. For two reasons. First
of all, he is Magnus and this is something you cannot escape of. The second
one has more to do with the match strategy. In every single situation the
stronger side pushes as much as he likes for the pure joy of it. And- to
exhaust the opponent. The match history knows many game in which a player who
had defended long game with the black pieces is so exhausted in the next game
that does not even try to win but chooses to make a short draw instead and get
some rest. However, I doubt that this will be the case tomorrow as Anand
desperately needs a win to keep his chances alive.} ({Not} 76... Rh5 77. Rc4+)
77. Nd3+ Kxb3 78. Ra1 Kc4 79. Nf2 Kb5 80. Rb1+ Kc4 81. Ne4 Ra3 82. Nd2+ Kd5 83.
Rh1 a4 84. Rh5+ Kd4 85. Rh4+ Kc5 86. Kd1 Kb5 87. Kc2 Rg3 88. Ne4 Rg2+ 89. Kd3
a3 90. Nc3+ Kb6 91. Ra4 a2 {Black does not need the pawns to make the draw.}
92. Nxa2 Rg3+ 93. Kc2 Rg2+ 94. Kb3 Rg3+ 95. Nc3 Rh3 96. Rb4+ Kc7 97. Rg4 Rh7
98. Kc4 Rf7 99. Rg5 Kb6 100. Na4+ Kc7 101. Kc5 Kd7 102. Kb6 Rf1 103. Nc5+ Ke7
104. Kxc6 {Diagram [#] Kasparov once won this endgame to Judith Polgar (back
in 1996). Still, it is extremely unprobable that anything like that happens in
a WCC match.} Rd1 105. Rg6 Kf7 106. Rh6 Rg1 107. Kd5 Rg5+ 108. Kd4 Rg6 109. Rh1
Rg2 110. Ne4 Ra2 111. Rf1+ Ke7 112. Nc3 Rh2 113. Nd5+ Kd6 114. Rf6+ Kd7 115.
Nf4 Rh1 {The rook stands as far away of the white king as possible. Anytime it
approaches he will start checking it and if the knight covers the check Black
will just keep it pinned. This is the defensive method is brief.} 116. Rg6 Rd1+
117. Nd3 Ke7 118. Ra6 Kd7 119. Ke4 Ke7 120. Rc6 Kd7 121. Rc1 Rxc1 122. Nxc1 {
A marathon battle! Carlsen tried everything he could to crack the defense that
Anand skilfully had built but in vain.} 1/2-1/2

The world champion leads 4-3, but the challenger has 3-2 white colors till the end of the match.