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

Jakovenko and the Stalemate

Dmitry Jakovenko shared the win at the last stage of the Grand Prix series in Khanty-Mansiysk. His result was great and he came very tiny bit short of qualifying for the Candidates matches.
The following mishap might have been the reason:

[Event "FIDE Grand Prix - Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2015.05.24"]
[Round "9.1"]
[White "Jakovenko, Dmitry"]
[Black "Gelfand, Boris"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[WhiteElo "2738"]
[BlackElo "2744"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "105"]
[EventDate "2015.??.??"]
[WhiteClock "0:01:46"]
[BlackClock "0:15:13"]

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 {Gelfand switches to his
beloved Najdorf.} 6. h3 e5 7. Nde2 h5 8. g3 b5 {Diagram [#]} ({Another
interesting line is} 8... Nbd7 9. Bg5 Be7 10. a4 Nc5 11. Bg2 Be6 12. a5 b5 13.
axb6 Qxb6 {Caruana,F (2811)-Nakamura,H (2776) Zuerich 2015}) 9. Nd5 Nbd7 10.
Bg5 Bb7 11. Nec3 Rc8 12. Bg2 Be7 13. Nxe7 Qxe7 14. O-O Qe6 15. Re1 b4 16. Nd5
$146 {[%csl Gd5][%cal Re4d5] Diagram [#] A novelty. In these positions people
usually try to keep the d5 square clear for the pieces and do not hurry to
trade the knight there as the nice outpost vanishes. This was the reason why
Leko played:} (16. Na4 {but this did not yield him much after} Rc4 (16... O-O
$5) (16... d5 $5) 17. f3 h4 18. g4 d5 19. b3 Rd4 {Leko,P (2737)-Mamedyarov,S
(2761) Beijing 2013}) 16... Bxd5 {Now forced play starts.} 17. exd5 Qf5 18. Bd2
({Of course not} 18. Bxf6 Nxf6 {which would be horrible for White from
positional point of view.}) 18... Rxc2 19. Rc1 (19. Bxb4 $4 Qxf2+ 20. Kh1 Qxg2#
) 19... Rxc1 20. Qxc1 {It seems as White can exploit his better development to
reach the black weaknesses on the queenside and/or the king in the middle, but
Gelfand is well prepared.} Nc5 21. Bxb4 Nd3 22. Qc6+ Qd7 23. Qa8+ Qd8 24. Qc6+
{Diagram [#] As the Israeli GM confessed at the press-conference all of this
was home preparation. But here he decided to play for more than a draw and went
} Nd7 $4 (24... Qd7 $11 {with a draw was mandatory.}) 25. Re4 {Gelfand missed
this simple move. "I had to resign"- said the Israeli GM.} f5 26. Rc4 e4 27.
Qxa6 {Jakovenko saw his chance and went for a decisive attack. Somewhere
around here both players were low on time.} (27. Bxd6 {was also good.}) 27...
Nxb4 28. Qxd6 $1 Nd3 29. Qe6+ Kf8 30. Qxf5+ Kg8 31. Qe6+ (31. Rxe4 N3c5 32. Re3
{is another way to play for a win.}) 31... Kf8 32. Qd6+ Kg8 33. Qe6+ Kf8 34.
Qxe4 {Diagram [#] For the knight white has four pawns and strong threats. On a
high level the game is practically over.} N3e5 35. Qf5+ Kg8 36. d6 Rh6 (36...
Nxc4 37. Bd5# {is a nice mate.}) 37. Re4 h4 ({Perhaps Black should have
defended the position after} 37... Rxd6 38. Rxe5 Nxe5 39. Qxe5) 38. Rxh4 Rxh4
39. gxh4 Qxh4 40. Bd5+ Kh8 41. Kh1 {The time trouble is over and Jakovenko has
time to find the winning plan. He prepares the f2-f4 advance which will spoil
the comfort of the black horses.} Qh6 42. f4 g6 43. Qe6 Qf8 44. Bb3 $1 {[%cal
Yf8c8,Yc8c1] Diagram [#] "Brilliant idea! Qf8-c8 was a threat and Bb3 is a
great prophylaxys." Gelfand.} ({For example} 44. b4 Qc8 45. fxe5 Qc1+ {with
perpetual check.}) ({Another profilactical move should also win-} 44. h4 {with
the idea} Qc8 45. fxe5 Qc1+ 46. Kh2 Qd2+ 47. Bg2 Qf4+ 48. Kg1 Qd4+ 49. Kh1 {
and White escapes from the checks.}) 44... g5 45. f5 (45. fxe5 $4 Qf1+ 46. Kh2
Qf2+ {is another perpetual.}) 45... Nd3 {In desperation, Gelfand sacrifices a
knight hoping for another escape. The stalemate idea this time.} 46. Qxd7 Qa8+
47. Kg1 ({The only move, as if} 47. Kh2 $4 Nf4 $1 {[%csl Rh2] Diagram [#] it
will be White to has to make the draw after} 48. Bd5 Qxd5 49. Qd8+ Kh7 50. Qe7+
Kh6 51. Qf6+ {and perpetual for a change.}) 47... Nf4 48. Kf2 g4 {The last
chance that...} 49. hxg4 $2 {Works! As GM Sergey Rublevsky mentioned at the
press-conference both} (49. Kg3 Qg2+ 50. Kh4 Qf2+ 51. Kg5 Nxh3+ 52. Kg6 Nf4+
53. Kf7 $18) ({and} 49. Ke3 Qf3+ 50. Kd4 Qf2+ 51. Kc4 {would ahve won for
White.}) 49... Qg2+ 50. Ke3 Nd5+ $1 {Diagram [#] Jakovenko saw the stalemate
idea, but being short in time again he could not figure out the correct move
order. He espected only queen checks and forgot that Black can get rid of the
knight first. With it's disappearance, the black queen fells desperately in
love with the white king and starts chasing it for one last hug.} 51. Kd4 ({Or
stalemate after} 51. Bxd5 Qd2+ 52. Kf3 Qf2+ 53. Kxf2) ({And} 51. Kd3 Qg3+ 52.
Kd4 Qf4+ 53. Kc5 Qb4+ 54. Kc6 Qb6+ 55. Kxd5 Qc5+ 56. Ke6 Qe5+ 57. Kf7 Qf6+ 58.
Ke8 Qf8+ 59. Kxf8) 51... Qf2+ 52. Kxd5 Qd4+ 53. Kxd4 {Diagram [#] Stalemate!
Very unusual for this level!} 1/2-1/2

Svidler and the Bluff

The last round of the Khanty-Mansiysk Grand Prix defined the winners of the event. But perhaps the most interesting game was the one between Peter Svidler and Baadur Jobava. Especially the comments of teh Russian GM:

[Event "FIDE Grand Prix - Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2015.05.26"]
[Round "11.5"]
[White "Svidler, Peter"]
[Black "Jobava, Baadur"]
[Result "1-0"]
[WhiteElo "2734"]
[BlackElo "2699"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "131"]
[EventDate "2015.??.??"]
[WhiteClock "0:21:34"]
[BlackClock "0:29:09"]

1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4 {Jobava switched back to the Rubinstein French.}
4. Nxe4 Bd7 5. Nf3 Bc6 6. Bd3 Nd7 7. Qe2 Be7 8. Neg5 {[%csl Ye6,Yf7,Yh7]
Diagram [#] This move is connected with a blunder as Svidler explained at the
press-conference. One of the key ideas for White in these set-ups to sacrifice
the knight on either e6 or f7. Svidler saw that in the line} (8. c4 {(to get
control of the d5 square)} Ngf6 9. Neg5 h6 10. Nxe6 fxe6 11. Bg6+ Kf8 12. Qxe6
{Black does not have the move Bc6-d5, but has anotehr way to save himself} Bb4+
{followed by Qd8-e7 and wins.}) 8... Bxg5 {But while thinking, the Russian GM
realized that in the line} (8... h6 $1 9. Nxe6 ({He also desperately considered
} 9. Qxe6 hxg5 10. Nxg5 Nh6 11. Bg6 {which however is refuted by the simple}
O-O) ({Therefore, he should have opted for the sad} 9. Ne4 {and as he mocked
himself after the game "I would sit here and explain to you how important is
to have the b1-h5 diagonal weakend and how deep my idea is to deliver
checkmate later". Svidler is an amazing annotator!}) (9. Nh3 {is horrible
after} g5) 9... fxe6 10. Bg6+ Kf8 11. Qxe6 {Black for some reason still has
the move} Bb4+ {:)}) 9. Nxg5 h6 $146 ({Previosly only} 9... Ngf6 10. c4 O-O 11.
O-O {has been played in Fluvia Poyatos,J (2450)-Lopez Martinez,J (2440) Spain
2004}) 10. Nf3 ({Bad is} 10. Qh5 Qe7 11. O-O Ngf6 12. Qh3 O-O-O 13. Nf3 g5 {
with pleasant attack for Black (Svidler).}) 10... Qf6 11. Ne5 $5 {[%csl Rg2]
Diagram [#] The only way to fight for the advantage. Black is very comfortable
after} (11. Be4 Bxe4 12. Qxe4 O-O-O $11) 11... Nxe5 ({White has ample
compensation for a pawn after} 11... Bxg2 12. Rg1 Bc6 13. Bd2) 12. Qxe5 ({
White did not like} 12. dxe5 Qh4 {[%cal Gg8e7,Ge7f5] with the idea Ng8-e7-f5
and very nice position for Black.}) 12... O-O-O {Jobava plays for more than
equality which he has after} (12... Qxe5+ 13. dxe5 Ne7 $11 {[%csl Gd5,Gf5]
Diagram [#]}) 13. Be3 Qe7 $6 {Again the trade of the queens is objectively best
} (13... Qxe5 14. dxe5 Ne7 $11) 14. O-O-O Nf6 15. f3 $14 {Now the bishop pair
provides some advantage to White.} g5 ({Black cannot equalize with} 15... Nd5
16. Bd2 Nb4 17. Bxb4 Qxb4 18. Qxg7 $16 {(Svidler)}) 16. c4 b6 17. Bd2 ({Some
more preparation was possible} 17. Rhe1 Nd7 18. Qg3 f5 19. Qf2 f4 20. Bd2 Nc5
21. Bc2 {with advantage for White (Svidler)}) 17... Nh5 {[%csl Yg5,Rh5,Yh6]
Diagram [#] The problem for Black is that he has to sit and wait while his
opponent is preparing the central break d4-d5.} 18. d5 f6 19. Qe2 {White's
advantage grew and Jobava tries to muddy the waters with} Ba4 20. b3 Bd7 ({The
piece sacrifice} 20... Qa3+ 21. Kb1 Bxb3 {fails to} 22. Bc1 $1 Bxd1 23. Qxe6+ {
(Svidler, Jobava).}) 21. g4 Ng7 {Now the knight is stranded. Svidler believed
that Black should have sacrificed a pawn instead} (21... Nf4 22. Bxf4 gxf4 23.
dxe6 Bxe6 24. Qe4 Kb8 25. Qxf4 a5 {with chancesto survive.}) 22. Kb1 ({Better
is} 22. Bc3 Kb8 23. h4 {with pressure on the dark squares. White will very
much like to conduct the play on the color of the bishop that the opponent
does not have.}) 22... h5 {Generates useful pressure along the h file.} 23. h3
Qf7 24. Bc3 Kb8 25. Be4 (25. Qb2 $5) 25... Bc8 26. Rhe1 {Diagram [#]} ({In
case of} 26. Qb2 {White did not like} Ne8 (26... e5 27. b4 Bb7 28. Qb3 {
followed by c4-c5 is excellent for White.}) 27. dxe6 Rxd1+ 28. Rxd1 Qxe6 29.
Rd8 $6 (29. Bd5 {keeps an edge for White instead.}) 29... hxg4 $1 30. hxg4 $2
Rh1+ {and wins.}) 26... hxg4 27. hxg4 Bb7 28. dxe6 Bxe4+ 29. Qxe4 Rxd1+ 30.
Rxd1 Nxe6 31. Qf5 {Black managed to trade one of the bishops, but his brother
still dominates the knight. Badly.} Rh6 ({Jobava saw the line} 31... Rf8 32.
Re1 Ng7 33. Qh7 $1 {[%cal Gf3f4,Gg4g5] followed by f3-f4 and g4-g5!}) 32. Rd2
Qg6 33. Qxg6 Rxg6 {[%csl Yf6][%cal Gd2d5,Gd5f5,Gf5f6] Diagram [#] In order to
relieve the pressure Black has to exchange the queens, but now he inevitably
loses the pawn on f6.} 34. Rd5 Rh6 35. Rf5 Rh1+ 36. Kb2 Rh2+ 37. Kb1 Rh1+ 38.
Kb2 Rh2+ 39. Ka3 a5 (39... Rf2 {would be similar to the game} 40. Bxf6 {This
is better than} (40. Rxf6 Nf4 41. Rf8+ Kb7 42. Bf6 Nd3 43. Bxg5 a5 44. Rd8 Rxf3
) 40... a5 $16) 40. Rxf6 Re2 41. Rf5 Rf2 42. Re5 Nf4 ({Worse is} 42... Rxf3 43.
Bxa5 $1 bxa5 44. Rxe6 Rf4 45. Re5 {where the three connected pawns easily
prevail.}) 43. Rxg5 Rxf3 44. Kb2 ({In case of} 44. Bd4 Nd3 45. Rg8+ Kb7 46. g5
{Jobava suggested} Rg3 (46... c5 $5 {Svidler}) 47. g6 Rg2 {when Black indeed
has a lot of counterplay after} 48. g7 Nb4 {Mate is threatened!} 49. Bb2 {and
here instead of the Georgian's sugegstion} Nc2+ ({Black can do} 49... c6 $1 {
[%csl Ya3][%cal Rb6b5,Rb4c2] Diagram [#]} 50. Rf8 b5 {when White has to find
the draw} 51. Rf7+ (51. cxb5 $2 {loses after} cxb5 52. Rf7+ Kc6 53. Rf6+ Kd7
54. Rf7+ Kd6 55. Rf6+ Ke7) (51. g8=Q $4 Nc2#) 51... Ka6 52. cxb5+ cxb5 53. Rc7
$11) 50. Ka4 Nd4) ({Svidler also considered the amusing} 44. Bxa5 bxa5 45. Rf5
{but quickly figured it a draw after} Kb7 46. g5 Rg3 47. Rxf4 Rxg5 $11) 44...
Nd3+ 45. Kc2 Nb4+ 46. Bxb4 axb4 47. Rf5 Rg3 48. g5 {The rook endgame is very
unplesant for Black. The passer on g5 is extremely good. But as we know "all
rook endgames are draw", are not they?} Kc8 $1 {Black cannot hold with the
rook only, he needs to bring on all the reserves.} (48... Rg2+ 49. Kd3 Rxa2 50.
Ke4 Re2+ 51. Kf4 $1 {followed by Re5-e3 wins for White.}) 49. Kd2 Kd7 50. Ke2
Ke6 51. Rb5 Rg2+ 52. Kf3 Rxa2 53. Rxb4 Ra1 $6 {Diagram [#] Up to now Black had
defended very well, but this is a serious step in the wrong direction.} ({
Jobava should have activated the rook as soon as possible} 53... Rd2 $1 54. Rb5
Rd4 {with reasonable drawing chances.}) 54. Rb5 Kf7 55. Ke4 Rd1 $6 {Another
inaccurucy. Better was} (55... Re1+ 56. Kd5 (56. Kd4 Rd1+ 57. Ke5 Re1+) 56...
Re6 $1 57. Kd4 c5+ 58. Kd5 Ke7 {and Black should hold.}) 56. b4 Re1+ 57. Kd5
Re6 58. Kd4 {Without the c7-c5 resourse Black is in trouble.} Re1 59. c5 Rd1+
60. Ke4 Re1+ 61. Kd5 $1 Re6 62. Kd4 $1 {Diagram [#] Zugzwang!} Rg6 (62... Ke7
63. cxb6 cxb6 64. Re5) (62... Kg6 63. cxb6 cxb6 64. Re5 Rd6+ 65. Kc4) 63. cxb6
cxb6 64. Re5 Rc6 65. Kd5 Rc1 66. Kd6 {The b6 pawn drops and tehnblack king can
do nothing to stop the b4 one.} ({The official recording says that White
played here} 66. Ke4 {but is not likely to be the truth. Probably the king was
placed on e4 at the moment of Black's resignation.}) 1-0

Report.

Humans Too

The last tournament from the Grand Prix series is in progress in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia.
Fabiano Caruana is leading before the free day with 3/4, but it could have been different if Evgeny Tomashevsky had won his game in round two. This game proved that the top GM are also human beings, tending to make mistakes.

[Event "FIDE Grand Prix - Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2015.05.15"]
[Round "2.5"]
[White "Tomashevsky, Evgeny"]
[Black "Grischuk, Alexander"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[WhiteElo "2749"]
[BlackElo "2780"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "147"]
[EventDate "2015.??.??"]
[WhiteClock "0:03:00"]
[BlackClock "0:11:03"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Nf3 O-O 6. h3 {The Bagirov's is
Tomashevsky's beloved weapon against the KID.} e5 7. d5 Nh5 8. g3 {Diagram [#]
Tomashevsky's pet move. He is the guiding force behind the whole line and the
creator of the theory here.} (8. Nh2 {is considered to be the main line.}) 8...
Qe7 {Quite an unusual move by Grischuk that forced his opponent into some
thought. However, I doubt that it will attract any followers.} ({If you have
missed the last issue of the Master bulletin, then you missed a lot! GM
Abhijeet Gupta annotated extensively the topical theory after} 8... f5 9. exf5
gxf5 10. Nh4 Nf4 (10... Nf6 {is the other option.}) 11. Bd2 Qe7 12. Qc2 Na6 13.
a3 Bd7 14. O-O-O {Tomashevsky,E (2716)-Kasimdzhanov,R (2705) Tbilisi GEO 2015})
({The other main move is also covered there} 8... a5 9. Be2 Na6 10. Nh2 Nf6 11.
Ng4 {Ipatov,A (2592)-Bacrot,E (2711) Jerusalem ISR 2015}) 9. Nh2 Na6 $146 {
This is a novelty.} ({The only predecessor saw the illogical} 9... Nf6 10. Bg5
h6 11. Be3 Kh7 $16 {Stromer,A (2272)-Bremond,E (2300) Etang Sale 2001}) 10. Be3
{Tomashevsky proceeds with development.} (10. Be2 Nf6 {looks less convincing.})
10... Nc5 11. h4 $1 {[%csl Yf7][%cal Gg3g4,Gh4h5] Diagram [#] White's idea is
to gain space on the kingside and to basically kill any counterplay there. A
very mean strategy!} (11. Be2 {leads White nowhere after} Nf6 12. f3 Nh5 $1)
11... a5 12. Be2 Nf6 13. Qc2 c6 14. g4 {This is the position that White is
heading for. He is now better on both flanks. In comparison to some lines of
the Averbakh sistem Black did not have time to push the b pawn, or at least
bring his queen on a5.} Na6 ({If} 14... cxd5 {White can simply recapture} 15.
cxd5 ({but there is an even more decent option} 15. Bxc5 $1 dxc5 16. g5 Ne8 17.
Nxd5 {followed by Be2-g4 and total domination.})) (14... Bd7 15. g5 Ne8 16. h5
{is also great for White.}) 15. g5 Ne8 (15... Nd7 16. h5 $16) 16. h5 Nb4 17.
Qd2 cxd5 18. cxd5 Bd7 19. O-O-O {[%csl Yd7][%cal Gc1b1,Yd1c1,Yc1c2,Yh1c1,Ya2a3,
Re2b5] Diagram [#] White finished his development and intends to strengthen
the position with Kc1-b1, doubling of the rooks along the c file and of
course- trade of the light squared bishop via b5 whenever possible.} f5 {
Grischuk tries to counter attack.} 20. Kb1 b5 (20... f4 21. Bb6 {would leave
Black completely paralized.}) 21. hxg6 {White completely ignores the
opponent's provocations on the other wing.} ({Instead} 21. Bxb5 $2 Bxb5 22.
Nxb5 f4 23. Bb6 Qb7 {would drop a piece for White.}) ({And} 21. Nxb5 $6 Rb8 22.
Nc3 f4 {would work well for Black as well.}) 21... hxg6 22. f3 Nc7 23. Rc1 {
The kingside is stable, it is time to take care of his "own" one.} Nba6 24. Bd3
b4 25. Ne2 Nb5 {Grischuk need one more more to play Rf8-c8 and things would
not be that clear but...} 26. Rc6 $1 {[%csl Gc6][%cal Rb3g8,Rh1h8] Diagram [#]
Splendid!} Rfb8 ({The rook is not delicious} 26... Bxc6 27. dxc6 Nbc7 28. Bc4+
Ne6 {would lead to a completely helpless position for Black, e.g.} 29. Rd1 {
(not the only winnning move)} Kh8 (29... Rfd8 30. Bb6) 30. Qxd6 Qxd6 31. Rxd6 {
and White wins.}) 27. Rhc1 f4 (27... Bxc6 28. dxc6 d5 29. exf5 {is again bad
for Black.}) 28. Bf2 Bf8 (28... Qxg5 29. Bxb5 Rxb5 30. Rxd6 $18) 29. Ng4 {The
game is practically over. However, at the stage appears his Majesty, the
Time-Trouble.} Qxg5 30. Rh1 Qe7 ({Please note that the rook always invincible
due to the weakness of the light squares} 30... Bxc6 31. dxc6 Be7 32. Bc4+ Kg7
33. Qd5 {and in order to save the checkmate Black will have to give up the
knight on b5.}) 31. Bxb5 Rxb5 {Diagram [#]} 32. Nxf4 $1 {So far so good,
Tomashevsky acurately calculated the win.} Bxg4 ({The choice is decisive
attack for White after} 32... exf4 33. Bd4 Bg7 34. Nh6+ Kf8 (34... Bxh6 35.
Rxh6) 35. Qxf4+ Ke8 36. Bxg7 Qxg7 37. Qxd6 $18) 33. Nxg6 Qf6 34. Nxf8 Rxf8 35.
Rg1 {With seconds on the clock White plays it safe.} ({A more spectacular win
would have been} 35. Rxd6 Qxd6 36. Qg5+ Kf7 37. Rh7+ Ke8 38. Qxg4 Rb8 39. Qh5+
Kd8 40. Bh4+ Kc8 41. Qg4+) 35... Qxf3 36. Qg5+ Kf7 37. Rxg4 Ke8 (37... Qxf2 38.
Qg7+ Ke8 39. Rc8#) 38. Qg6+ Qf7 {Two more moves and the time trouble will be
over. Almost everything wins for White. Tomashevsky fevereshly calculates the
capture on d6 but at the last moment looks at the clock and realizes that
there are only four seconds left. He grabs the first available piece instead...
} 39. Qxf7+ {Which also wins.} (39. Qxd6 {is forced mate instead} Rb8 (39...
Qxf2 40. Rc8+ Kf7 41. Rxf8#) 40. Qxe5+) 39... Rxf7 {Diagram [#]} 40. Be3 $4 {
If the previous move had thrown away the mate, this one throws away the win!} (
{One more check would have done the job} 40. Rg8+ Kd7 41. Rxa6 {as the knight
is invincible} Rxf2 42. Ra7+ Rb7 43. Rxb7#) 40... Nc5 $2 {And Grischuk returns
the favour! Needless to say, he was also in time trouble.} (40... Rf1+ $1 {
would be a draw instead} 41. Rc1 {Best or else Black might get better.} (41.
Bc1 $2 Rc5 {is very good for Black.}) (41. Kc2 {fails to} b3+ 42. axb3 $2 Nb4+)
41... Rxc1+ 42. Bxc1 b3 $11) 41. Rg8+ {The time trouble is over, both players
have time to take breath and reasses the situation. Tomashevsky is still
winning, but miracles are not yet over...} Kd7 42. Ra8 Rb7 43. Bxc5 (43. Bg5 $1
{would have been better! The only way to stop the checkmate is} Rf1+ 44. Kc2
Rf2+ 45. Kd1 Ne6 {when White wins a piece and the game after} 46. dxe6+ Kxc6
47. e7 Rxe7 48. Bxe7 Rxb2 49. Rxa5 b3 50. a3 $1) 43... dxc5 44. Rxc5 {Diagram
[#] The wrong pawn!} (44. Rxa5 $1 {was still good enough for the full point as}
Rf4 45. Rh6 $1 {leaves Black no time to capture the pawn} Rxe4 46. Rh7+ Kc8 47.
Ra8+ Rb8 48. Rh8+) 44... Rf1+ 45. Rc1 Rxc1+ 46. Kxc1 b3 $1 {Grischuk creates
counterplay! We all know that "the rooks endgame are always draw".} 47. a3 Rc7+
48. Kd2 Rc2+ 49. Kd3 Rxb2 50. Rxa5 Rh2 51. Rb5 Rh3+ 52. Kd2 Kd6 $1 {Black
activated all his pieces and managed to hold the draw later.} 53. a4 Rh2+ 54.
Kc3 Rh3+ 55. Kd2 (55. Kb2 Re3 56. Rb4 Kc5 $11) 55... Rh2+ 56. Kc3 Rh3+ 57. Kc4
Re3 58. Rb6+ Kc7 59. Rxb3 Rxe4+ 60. Kc5 Rxa4 61. d6+ Kd7 62. Rb7+ Ke6 63. Re7+
Kf5 64. d7 {Diagram [#]} Rd4 65. Kc6 e4 66. Re8 Kf4 67. d8=Q Rxd8 68. Rxd8 e3
69. Kd5 e2 70. Re8 Kf3 71. Kd4 Kf2 72. Kd3 e1=Q 73. Rxe1 Kxe1 74. Kd4 {A
delightful conclusion- the top Grandmasters are human beings too!} 1/2-1/2

Report.

"Retired Old Man"

"The Battle of the Legends" took part in St. Louis at the end of April. Garry Kaparov and Nigel Short met again 22 years after their WWC match. The match consisted of ten games- two rapid and eight blitz. The first day was good for Kasparov who proved that he is still capable of producing great games. He won 3.5-1.5 that day but was not satisfied with the result as he missed a clear win in the first rapid game and lost on time in one of the blitz games. It seems as he wanted to prove who is the boss in the second day and it started with the following encounter:

[Event "Battle of the Legends: Kasparov vs. Sho"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2015.04.26"]
[Round "6.1"]
[White "Short, Nigel D"]
[Black "Kasparov, Garry"]
[Result "0-1"]
[WhiteElo "2678"]
[BlackElo "2812"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "105"]
[EventDate "2015.??.??"]
[WhiteClock "0:00:18"]
[BlackClock "0:00:20"]

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 {The Najdorf served Garry
Kimovich well all those glory years!} 6. g3 {Diagram [#] Short on his turn
opts for a quiet, maneuvering game.} e5 7. Nb3 Nbd7 8. a4 b6 9. Bg2 Bb7 10. O-O
Be7 11. Re1 {Overprotects the e4 square and prepares the maneuver of the
knight from b3 to...d5. This knight is often the main problem for White in the
positional set-ups and if it was closer to the d5 square the the Najdorf would
not be an appealing opening at all. But while it moves around Black now can
finish the development and create threats of his own.} ({White can start with
the trademark knight maneuver at once} 11. Nd2 Nc5 12. b4 Ne6 13. Nd5 Rc8 14.
c4 O-O 15. a5 b5 16. cxb5 axb5 $14 {Popov,I (2582)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2718)
Puerto Madryn 2009}) 11... Rc8 12. Nd2 h5 $146 {Diagram [#] Kasparov would not
be himself if he is not thoroughly prepared. Even for a friendly blitz match!
Here comes an important novelty which will be definitely explored in the next
tournaments to come.} ({Most of the predecessors saw the regroupment} 12... Rc5
13. Nf1 Qa8 {which is aimed against the natural Nf1-e3-d5 maneuver. White can
nevertheless go for it} 14. Ne3 Nxe4 15. Nxe4 Bxe4 16. f3 (16. Bxe4 {deserves
attention as well} Qxe4 17. b3 {with the idea Bc1-a3}) 16... Bg6 17. b4 Rc8 18.
c4 {with compensation for a pawn, Sedlak,N (2576)-Brkic,A (2560) Zadar 2009}) (
12... O-O) 13. Nf1 {Short reacts in a cool way and pretends as if nothing had
happened.} h4 14. Ne3 g6 {Kasparov developed his troops perfectly and is now
waiting for his opponent's move.} ({The typical exchange sacrifice is already
in the air} 14... Rxc3 15. bxc3 Nxe4 {but it is hardly good at the moment due
to} 16. Nd5 $1 ({Better than} 16. Nf5 {which allows the crazy complications
after} Nxf2 $5 17. Kxf2 hxg3+ 18. hxg3 Bxg2 {with the idea} 19. Kxg2 $2 Qa8+
20. Qf3 Rh2+ {and wins.})) 15. Re2 {[%cal Ye2c2,Gc3d5] Diagram [#] White
defends the pawn on c2 and is ready to jump finally at d5 with his knight.} ({
The immediate} 15. Ned5 {is possible though as long as White is willing to
part with a pawn after} Nxd5 16. Nxd5 Bxd5 17. Qxd5 $5 ({The pawn capture on
d5 is excellent for the second player. The hole on d5 disappears and the black
kingside pawns become mobile} 17. exd5 hxg3 18. hxg3 f5 {and this is at least
more pleasant for Black.}) 17... Rxc2 18. b4 {with compensation for the pawn
thanks to the light-square domination.}) ({Maybe White's best choice is the
semi-waiting} 15. Qe2 $5 {regrouping afterwards with Re1-d1 and Ne(c)3-d5. The
Black can use the situation of the queen with} Nc5 $5 {followed by Nc5-e6-d4
with a tempo with complexed game.} (15... Rc5 $5) (15... Kf8 $5)) 15... hxg3
16. hxg3 {Kasparov sank in some thought here although I had no doubts what is
he going to play next.} Rxc3 $1 {Diagram [#] This is the case in which Black
used his hand rather than brain when performing the sac. Kasparov has done it
so many times in the past, and he even have accused once Movsesian of "lack of
chess culture" for allowing the sacrifice. True, the situation there was
different as White had castled long.} 17. bxc3 Nxe4 {For the exchange Black
has a pawn and strong center, but his next moves are not optimal.} 18. Bb2 Ndf6
(18... f5 $1 {to get firm grip in the center was preferrable.}) 19. c4 Qc8 {
Also not optimal. Both} (19... Qa8) (19... Kf8 {are more reasonable.}) 20. Nd5
$1 Nxd5 21. cxd5 {Now Short got rid of one of the strong knights, undoubled
his pawns and strengthened his center. He can breeth freelier and his position
is easier to play. Although it still remains very tense.} Ng5 {Kasparov wants
to keep his attacking knight.} (21... Nc3 {instead is leading to slight
advantage for White without counterplay for his opponent after} 22. Bxc3 Qxc3
23. Rb1) 22. c4 {A solid move. Other options were} (22. Ra3 $5) (22. Qd3 $5) ({
But not the overaggressive} 22. f4 $2 Qc5+ 23. Kf1 Nh3 24. Bxh3 Rxh3 25. Kg2
Rh5 {and Black wins.}) 22... a5 {As always Kasparov pays attention at the
whole board. He rules out the a4-a5 possibility and improves his bishop.} 23.
Rc1 (23. Qb3 Ba6 24. Rc1 {would transpose to the game.}) 23... Ba6 24. Qb3 Qg4
25. Rcc2 {Diagram [#] Somewhere around here the players went under the five
minute mark and started the blitz. This naturally affected their play.} (25.
Re3 $5 {might be more precise to defend the third rank.}) 25... Bc8 26. f4 $1 {
Short shows teeth as well!} Nh3+ $6 {A natural check which puts the knight on
the rim and Kasparov on the verge of defeat.} ({It would be very difficlut to
choose the piece sacrifice even with hours on the clock} 26... Bf5 $1 27. fxg5
Bxc2 28. Qxc2 ({Or} 28. Rxc2 Qd1+ 29. Kf2 Bxg5 {with possible perpetual check
somewhere along the lines.}) 28... Qxg3 29. Qc3 Qh2+ 30. Kf1 Bxg5 {Black has
three pawns for the piece and the position is anything but clear.}) 27. Kf1 f6
28. Qf3 Qf5 ({The endgame with a knight on h3 is not Black's dream} 28... g5
29. fxe5 fxe5 30. Qxg4 Bxg4 31. Red2) ({Or} 28... Qxf3+ 29. Bxf3 {with clear
advantage for White in both cases.}) 29. Re4 {Solid move in time trouble.} ({
However, if Short had found} 29. Ba3 $1 {things might have not ended that well
for Kasparov. The threat Rc2-b2 is hard to parry and as the bishop on e7 needs
to protect d6 as well Black would be in trouble.}) 29... Kf7 (29... g5 $5) 30.
Rce2 Qg4 31. fxe5 (31. Ba3 $1 {was still strong.}) 31... Qxf3+ 32. Bxf3 dxe5 {
[%csl Yh3] Diagram [#] Short had reached the endgame that he was hoping for
but his next move spoiled all his previous efforts.} (32... fxe5 33. Bg4 {is
better for White.}) 33. Rh4 $2 {Allows the knight to escape and ruins the pawn
structure. Such moves are made by top players only under tremendous
time-pressure.} (33. Rh2 {instead was much better for White.}) 33... Rxh4 34.
gxh4 Nf4 {Now Black is clearly better thanks to his better pawn structure and
above all the lack of open files for the white rook. His position is easier to
play too, which means a lot in blitz.} 35. Rd2 Bc5 36. d6 {Loses but one can
hardly criticize White for this move.} (36. Rh2 Bh3+ 37. Ke1 Bb4+ 38. Kf2 $17)
36... Bh3+ 37. Ke1 Bb4 38. Kd1 {[%csl Ya4,Rd2] Diagram [#] And instead of
taking the rook Kasparov did} Bd7 $1 {without any hesitation.} ({He understood
that there might be technical issues after} 38... Bxd2 39. Kxd2 Bd7 40. Bd1 Ng2
41. Ba3 Nxh4 42. c5) 39. Rh2 Bxa4+ 40. Kc1 Bxd6 {Black is winning.} 41. Kb1 f5
42. Bc1 e4 $2 {A click that could have costed Kasparov the ful point. Now
Short gets his last chance to survive.} ({Both} 42... Nd3) ({and} 42... Bb3 {
would have won instead.}) 43. Bh1 $2 ({The chance was} 43. Bxe4 $1 {Diagram [#]
} fxe4 44. Bxf4 Bxf4 45. Rf2 Ke6 46. Rxf4 Ke5 47. Rg4 Be8 48. Kc2 {with a draw.
}) 43... Nd3 {Now it is all over.} 44. Re2 Bd1 45. Rd2 Bb3 46. Rxd3 exd3 47.
Bd5+ Kf6 48. Kb2 a4 49. Kc3 b5 50. Kxd3 Bxc4+ 51. Bxc4 bxc4+ 52. Kxc4 f4 53.
Kd4 {Diagram [#] After this game enthusiastic Kasparov won all the reaming
four blitz games to win the match with the incredible 8.5-1.5 result. Not too
bad for a retired chessplayer...} 0-1

Short complained after the event of the jet lag. Report.

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.