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.
A game that I liked (ChessBase 13)
[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.
[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.
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