The JR Chess Report (November 6): Magnus Drops Out of Championship Cycle

[Jack Rabbit]

Magnus Carlsen Drops Out of World Championship Cycle



Magnus Carlsen
Photo by Stefan64 from Wikipedia (Creative Commons License, Attribution/Share Alike)

Magnus Carlsen, officially the number two player in the world but unofficially again number one, announced yesterday (Friday, November 5) that he is dropping out of the world championship cycle which is scheduled to culminate in a title match in 2012.

In an open letter to World Chess Federation (FIDE) President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, Magnus said "After careful consideration I�ve reached the conclusion that the ongoing 2008�2012 cycle does not represent a system, sufficiently modern and fair, to provide the motivation I need to go through a lengthy process of preparations and matches and to perform at my best." Magnus also stated he thought five years was too long for a championship cycle and that the reigning champion is given too many privileges.

Although Magnus emphasizes that the his objections are aimed at the format of the present cycle, many observers believe his decission is a slap in the face of Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, who was recently re-elected FIDE president at a congress of FIDE members with each affiliated national federation having one vote.

Magnus, who will turn 20 on November 30, also said he will consider participating in future championship cycles, that he is only dropping out of this one.

The full text of the letter may be read here.


Tal Memorial Begins in Moscow



Mikhail Tal
Photo by Unlikelylads in Wikipedia (Public Domain)

The annual Mikhail Tal Memorial Tournament began yesterday in Moscow with ten players schedule to play a single round robin.

This year's competitors are: Armenia GM Levon Aronian, the sixth and newest member of the 2800 club; Ukrainian GM Pavel Eljanov; Boris Gelfand of Israel, the raining World Cup champion; reigning Russian national champion Alexander Grischuk; grandmaster Sergey Karjakin, formerly from Ukraine and who plays for Russia; former world champion Vladimir Kramnik of Russia; grandmaster Shakhriyar Mamedyarov of Azerbaijan; American GM Hikaru Nakamura; Spanish grandmaster Alexei Shirov, who was a pupil of Tal's in his native Latvia; and reigning Chinese national champion Wang Hao.

After two rounds, five players are tied for first with a point and a half each.

The games are played daily until Sunday, November 14 except for Tuesday, November 9, which is Tal's birthday. The games begin at 3 pm Moscow time (5 am PDT) and are broadcast live on the website of the Russian Chess Federation.

The main tournament will be followed by the World Blitz Championship among 22 players, including defending blitz champion Magnus Carlsen, in a double round robin over three days.


Other Headlines



Vishy Anand
Photo by Ygrek from Wikipedia (Creative Commons License, Attribution/Share Alike)

Vishy again the official Number One World champion Vishy Anand of India is officially the top ranked player in the world according to the FIDE ratings list released Novedmber 1. Vishy, with a rating of 2804, beat out Magnus Carlsen, who has been Numero Uno for one year, by two points. However, the ratings do not include the Pearl Spring Tournament in late October, which was won by Magnus with Vishy finishing second. In the unofficial Live Ratings list, Magnus has again overtaken Vishy. Levon Aronian of Armenia, on the strength of his medal-winning performance at the Khanty-Mansiysk Olympiad, is number three at 2801.

Eltaj Safarli wins Chigorin Memorial Azerbaijani grandmaster Eltaj Safarli won the seventeenth Chigorin Memorial Open in St. Petersburg with 7� points in nine rounds. Eltaj took over first place with a victory over Bosnian GM Ivan Sokolov in Round 7. Sokolov had defeated Russioan GM Boris Savchenko in Round 5 in what was then a battle of the undefeated contestants.

Chucky wins Cap d'Agde Rapid Tournament Vassily Ivanchuk of Ukraine won the ninth annual Rapid Tournament in Cap d'Agde in southern France by defeating American GM Hikaru Nakamura in the final set of the knock out stage of the tournament. The knockout stage was determined by a prelimanry event in which the top four contestants qualified from a round robin tournament in two groups of eight players. Both Ivanchuk and Nakamura finished first in their respective preliminary groups.

Hou Yifan plays ex-champ Karpov in mini-match Sixteen-year-old Hou Yifan, the third ranking woman in the world, is playing former world champion Anatoly Karpov, 59, in a mini-match of four standard games and two rapid games in Sanya, China. Karpov won today's first game in 66 moves.

[Jack Rabbit]

1. This week's games

Your humble hare acknowledges the assistance of Rybka 4 and Fritz 6.0 on analysis.

Diagrams on the Jack Rabbit Chess Report are made with Aquarium, a commercially available interface for Rybka.

BLACK



WHITE
White to move
(This position is a theoretical draw)


I would like to thank my impressive and loyal staff: Buccaneer, Spitfire, Swashbuckler, Pancho and Robin Hood.

[Jack Rabbit]

2. 17th Chigorin Memorial Open, St. Petersburg

St. Petersburg
Photo by yasmapaz & ace_heart in flickr (Creative Commons License, Attribution/Share Alike)

[Jack Rabbit]

8. Safarli - Sokolov, Round 7

Eltaj Safarli, 18, is a Azerbaijan's top rated junior. He is this year's winner of the Chigorin Memorial in St. Petersburg.



Eltaj Safarli
Photo by karpidis in flickr modified for Wikimedia (Creative Commons License, Attribution/Share Alike)


Eltaj Safarli - Ivan Sokolov
17th Chigorin Memorial Open, Round 7
St. Petersburg, 3 November 2010

Spanish Grand Royal Game: Gothic Defense (Open Defense)

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Nxe4 6.d4 b5 7.Bb3 d5 8.dxe5 Be6 9.Nbd2

• For a more thorough look at this opening, see Grandelius-I.Sokolov, IT, Malm�, 2009.

9...Nc5 10.c3 Nxb3

• This is a relatively unusual move. Sokolov frequently plays the Black side of the Spanish and has a predilection for less traveled paths.
• The most common continuations are 10...Bg4, 10...Be7 and 10...d4, all covered in the link to the previous note.

11.Nxb3 Be7 12.Nfd4

• 12.h3 O-O 13.Be3 f6 14.Nfd4 Nxd4 15.Qxd4 c5 16.Qd2 Rc8 17.exf6 Rxf6 18.Bg5 Rg6 gives Black the advantage in space (Efimenko-Milos, World Cup, Khanty-Mansiysk, 2009).

12...Nxd4

• If 12...Qd7 then:
• If 13.f4 Nxd4 14.Nxd4 Bc5 15.Be3 Bxd4 16.Bxd4 O-O 17.h3 Bf5 18.Qh5 gives White a small advantage in space (Salov-Luchinkin, 1979).
• 13.Nxc6 Qxc6 14.f4 Qd7 15.Be3 a5 16.a4 Bg4 17.Qd4 O-O 18.h3 Bf5 is equal (So-Torre, Match, Manila, 2008)

13.cxd4 a5

• 13...O-O 14.Bf4 a5 15.Rc1 Ra6 16.Qd3 Qd7 17.Qc3 gives White a small advantage in space (K. Szabo-Sachdev, Masters Op, Gibraltar, 2009).

14.Qc2 Qd7 15.Bd2 (N)

• 15.Be3 Bf5 16.Qc1 h6 17.Nc5 Qc6 18.Qd1 Qg6 19.Rc1 O-O 20.Bf4 h5 is equal (Short-Efimenko, Match, Mukachevo, 2009).

15...Bf5

• The game is equal.

16.Qc1 a4 17.Nc5 Qc6 18.Bb4

• More flexible is 18.Qc3! Qg6 19.Rac1 when:
• If 19...O-O 20.Qg3 Rfb8 then:
• 21.Qxg6 Bxg6 22.h3 h5 23.Nd7gives White a small advantage.
• 21.h3 Qxg3 22.fxg3 Bg6 23.Nd7 is equal.
• 19...Rc8 20.Qg3 c6 21.Bb4 Qxg3 22.fxg3 gives White a small advantage in space.

18...Qg6 19.Qc3

• This does promise as much now as it did a move earlier.
• 19.Qd2 h5 20.Rac1 h4 21.f3 Qh6 22.Qf2 gives White a small advantage in space.

19...O-O 20.Rfe1 h5!?

• 20...Rfe8 21.Re3 h5 22.Nd3 Bg5 23.f4 is equal.
• 20...Rfc8!? 21.Re3 Bh4 22.Rf1 Ra7 23.Rfe1 gives White a small advantage in space; black must protect his c-pawn.

BLACK: Ivan Sokolov



WHITE: Eltaj Safarli
Position after 20...h7h5

21.Nd3!

• White now has a small advantage in space and a slight initiative against Black's backward c-pawn.

21...Bxd3

• 21...Be4 22.g3 Bxd3 23.Bxe7 Rfc8 24.Rad1 Bf5 25.Rc1 gives White a small advantage in space.
• 21...Bxb4?! 22.Nxb4! 22...Rad8 23.f3 Qb6 24.Red1 h4 25.Rac1 leaves White firing on a backward pawn with inaddequate protection.

22.Bxe7 Rfe8!?

• 22...Rfc8 does more to protect the backward pawn, but after 23.Re3 Be4 24.Rg3 Qe6 25.Qc5 White still has a small advantage in space.

23.Re3!

• White brings his Rook to a navigable rank and gains time on the Bishop.

23...Be4 24.Rg3 Qe6 25.Bh4!?

• White's target is the c-pawn and therefore he should play to the queenside.

BLACK: Ivan Sokolov



WHITE: Eltaj Safarli
Position after 25.Be7h4

• Better is 25.Bb4! 25...Bf5 26.Qc5 c6 27.h4 Rac8 28.Rc1 when White further fleses his muscles on the queenside.

25...Rac8 26.Qc5 Qd7 27.f3 Bg6 28.Rg5 Kh7?!

• This is the kind of move one makes while one's position is deterriorating and there is little one can do about it.
• If 28...Qe6 29.Rc1 then:
• 29...Kh7 30.Rf1 Kg8 31.f4 Be4 32.Qc3 Qb6 33.Rxh5 wins a pawn for White.
• If 29...Rb8 then Black's position further deterriorates after 30.Be1 Rb7 31.Bd2 Rc8 32.a3.

29.Rf1!

• White shifts the attack to the King's wing.

29...c6 30.f4 f6 31.Rg3 Qf5 32.h3 Re6?

• Blocking the Queen's escape route is no way to improve one's position.
• If 32...fxe5 33.fxe5 then:
• If 33...Qd7 34.Bg5 Qe6 then:
• 35.Bd2 Red8 36.Rg5 Rd7 37.Rf3 Qe8 38.Bb4 keeps Black fighting for a draw.
• 35.Rgf3!? Be4 36.Rf7 Qg6 37.h4 Kg8 38.Qa7 gives Black a fighting chance to hold on to a half-point.
• If 33...Qe6? loses to 34.Rff3 Rc7 35.Rg5 Bf7 36.Rfg3.

BLACK: Ivan Sokolov



WHITE: Eltaj Safarli
Position after 32...Re8e6

33.exf6!

• This move opens the kingside for White's pieces.
• If 33.Qa7 then:
• 33...fxe5 34.fxe5 Qe4 35.Qd7 Ree8 36.Bf6 is strong for White, but it will take a little more to win.
• 33...Rce8?! 34.exf6! 34...Rxf6 35.Bxf6 wins the exchange.

33...gxf6 34.Qa7+ Kh6 35.Bg5+

• If 35.b3 then:
• If 35...axb3 36.axb3 then:
• 36...Rg8 drops the Queen to 36...Rf8 37.Bg5+!! fxg5 38.fxg5+ Qxg5 39.Rxg5 gives White a Queen for a Rook and a minor piece.
• 36...b4 37.Rxg6+ Qxg6 38.f5 gives White an extra piece.
• 35...Rf8 36.Rg5 Qd3 37.Rxg6+!! Qxg6 38.f5 Qe8 39.fxe6 leaves White a piece to the good.

35...fxg5 36.fxg5+ Qxg5 37.Rxg5 Kxg5 38.Qg7 Rce8

• 38...h4 39.Kh2 Rce8 40.Rf3 b4 41.Qc7 wins for White.

39.Rf3 h4 40.Qc7 Kh5 41.Rc3?!

• White tries to take the long way home.
• 41.Rf4! 41...Re1+ 42.Kh2 R1e4 43.Rf6 wins quicker.

41...Re1+

• White fails to take full advantage of the inaccuracy.
• If 41...Rf6 42.Qd7 Re1+ 43.Kh2 then:
• 43...Ree6 44.Rf3 Rxf3 45.gxf3 Bf5 46.Qf7+ will give White more difficulty winning, but White should still win.
• 43...Rff1 threatens mate on h1, but after 44.Qg4+ Kh6 45.Qxh4+ the threat is gone and White has an easy win.

BLACK: Ivan Sokolov



WHITE: Eltaj Safarli
Position after 41...Re6e1+

42.Kh2!

• This move is prophylactic so that White's King will not be in check should a Black Rook land in the back rank.

42...Rf8 43.Qd7 Kh6 44.Qg4

• Better is 44.Rxc6 Rff1 45.Rxg6+ Kxg6 46.Qg4+ Kf7 47.Qxh4 when White has two connected passers and nothing is protecting Black's pawns.

44...Re4 45.Qd1 Rf2

• Better, but still losing, is 45...Be8 (first protecting the backward pawn) 46.Qc1+ Kg6 47.Rxc6+ Bxc6 48.Qxc6+ Rf6 49.Qxd5.

46.Rf3 Rxf3 47.gxf3

• Also playable is 47.Qxf3 Kg7 when:
• 48.g4 Re1 49.Qf2 Rb1 50.a3 b4 51.axb4 leads to victory for White.
• Also winning is 48.b4 axb3 49.axb3 Be8 50.Qf5 Bf7 51.b4.

47...Re6 48.Qd2+ Kg7 49.Qf2 Rf6

• 49...b4 loses to 50.f4 Be4 51.f5 Rf6 52.Qxh4 Bxf5 53.Qg3+.

50.f4 Be4 51.Qxh4 Rg6

• If 51...b4 then White wins after 52.Kg1 Rg6+ 53.Kf1 Kf7 54.Qd8.

52.Qe7+ Kh6 53.h4 Rg2+ 54.Kh3 Rxb2 55.Qe6+ Kh7 56.f5 1-0

• If 56...Bg2+ 57.Kg4 Be4 58.Qf7+ then:
• If 58...Kh8 then after 59.Kg5 Rh2 60.h5 Bf3 61.f6 Rg2+ 62.Kh6 White soon delivers mate.
• 58...Kh6 59.Qg6#.
• Grandmaster Sokolov resigns.

[Jack Rabbit]

10. Savchenko - Sokolov, Round 5

Ivan Sokolov
Photo by Falcongj in Wikipedia (Public Domain)


Boris Savchenko - Ivan Sokolov
17th Chigorin Memorial Open, Round 5
St. Petersburg, 1 November 2010

Spanish Grand Royal Game: Rat Defense (Neo-Steinitz Defense)

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 d6 5.d4 Bd7 6.Bb3

• Dr. Lasker and Steinitz reached this twice in their world title rematch held in Moscow, 1896.

6...g6?!

• This move isn't as good as Steinitz' reply in either of the two games mentioned.
• 6...exd4 7.Nxd4 Nf6 8.Nc3 Be7 9.Nde2 Na5 10.O-O O-O 11.f3 Re8 12.Be3 Bf8 13.Qd2 Nxb3 14.axb3 gives White a slight advantage in space (Dr.Lasker-Steinitz, World Ch Match 2, Rd 16, Moscow, 1896).
• 6...Be7 7.dxe5 dxe5 8.Qd5 Be6 9.Qxd8+ Rxd8 10.Bxe6 fxe6 11.c3 Nf6 12.Nbd2 Bc5 13.b4 Ba7 14.a4 b5 15.Ke2 Bb6 16.axb5 axb5 17.Ne1 gives White a slight advantage in space (Dr.Lasker-Steinitz, World Ch Match 2, Rd 12, Moscow, 1896).

7.dxe5 dxe5 8.Bg5!?

• The question concerning a move like this one is whether the time expended (the Bishop can just move directly to e3) is worth the slight weakness created by Black's reply.
• If 8.Be3 then:
• 8...Bg7 9.O-O Nge7 10.Nc3 O-O 11.h3 Bc8 12.Nd5 gives White the advantage in space.
• 8...Bd6 9.O-O Nf6 10.Nc3 Be6 11.Qe2 Qe7 12.Rfd1 gives White the advantage in space.
• If 8.O-O Bg4 9.Bd5 Qd7 then:
• 10.Nbd2 f6 11.h3 Be6 12.c4 O-O-O gives White a small advantage in space.
• 10.Be3 Bg7 11.Nbd2 Nge7 12.h3 Bxf3 13.Nxf3 Nxd5 14.exd5 is equal.

8...f6!?

• Black needn't weaken his pawns.
• If 8...Be7! then the game is equal after 9.Be3 Nf6 10.c3 Ng4 11.Bc1 Be6 12.Nbd2.

9.Be3 Bg4!?

• Black misses the opportunity to equalize. He is playing for a win.
• If 9...Qe7! 10.Nc3 O-O-O 11.Qe2 Qg7 then:
• 12.O-O-O .f5 13.Rxd7 Rxd7 14.Be6 Kb8 15.Bxd7 Qxd7 is equal.
• 12.Nd5 Nge7 13.O-O g5 14.Rad1 Ng6 15.c3 Nf4 is equal.

10.Nbd2

• White has a lead in development and the advantage in space.
• Also good is 10.Qe2! 10...Qd6 11.Nbd2 O-O-O 12.h3 Be6 13.O-O-O gives White a tactical edge with the threat of a discovered attack on the Black Queen.

10...Bh6 11.Qe2

• White continues to enjoy the advantage in space after 11.h3 Bxf3 12.Qxf3 Bxe3 13.fxe3 Qe7 14.Ba4.

11...Qe7 12.h3

• The pin at f3 is only a minor annoyance and White should complete his development by castling before undertaking middle game maneuvers.
• White continue to enjoy the advantage in space after 12.O-O-O O-O-O 13.Kb1 f5 14.Bxh6 Nxh6 15.c3.

12...Bd7 13.Nc4!?

• Once again, White should first complete his development.
• Ifont color="red"]13.O-O-O O-O-O 14.Kb1 Bxe3 15.Qxe3 gives White the advantage in space and a lead in development; Black has no good square to develop his King's Knight.

13...Be6!?

• Black misses the chance to start the middle game balanced.
• 13...Bxe3 14.Qxe3 h5 15.Qe2 O-O-O 16.O-O-O Kb8 17.Kb1 is equal.

14.O-O-O a5 15.Ba4

• The most permanent and economical way to blockade the advance of a pawn is with another pawn.
• If 15.a4 Bxe3+ 16.Qxe3 Kf8 then:
• 17.g4!Kg7 18.g5 Re8 19.h4 Qb4 20.Na3 gives White the advantage in space.
• 17.Na3 Kg7 then:
• 18.g4 Nh6 19.Bxe6 Qxe6 20.Nb5 gives White the advantage in space and more activity.
• 18.Bxe6 Qxe6 19.Nb5 Rc8 20.Rd2 Nh6 21.Rhd1 gives White the advantage in space.

BLACK: Ivan Sokolov



WHITE: Boris Savchenko
Position after 15.Bb3a4

15...Qb4

• Black begins making some inaccurate moves that give him some tough sailing.
• 15...Qc5!! 16.Nfd2 Bxe3 17.Qxe3 Qxe3 18.fxe3 Nge7 gives Black fewer pawn weaknesses and more freedom.

16.Bb5 Ke7!?

• The King blocks the retreat of the Queen if it needs to fall back.
• Better is 16...Kf8 17.a4 Na7 18.c3 Qc5! 19.Bxh6+ Nxh6 with equality.

17.a4 Bxc4?!

• Black fails to take advantage of the immobility of the White Bishop.
• 17...Na7! 18.c3 Qc5 19.Kb1 Bxe3 20.Nxe3 Nxb5 is equal.

18.Bxc4 Bxe3+ 19.fxe3 Qxa4 20.Kb1 Nh6?!

• Disastrous is 20...Rd8?! when:
• 21.Rxd8!! Nxd8 22.Rd1 Qb4 23.Qd3 Qd6 24.Qf1 gives White a clear advantage.
• 21.g4! Qb4 22.c3 Qb6 23.Ba2 Rd6 24.g5! puts weaknesses in Black's kingside which White is ready to exploit immediately.

21.Rd5?!

• This is a serious inaccuracy. The game is now equal.
• If 21.g4! 21...Nf7 22.Bxf7 Kxf7 23.Rd7+ Ke8 24.Rxc7 gives White serious winning chances.

BLACK: Ivan Sokolov



WHITE: Boris Savchenko
Position after 21.Rd1d5

21...Rhd8!?

• Black does not respond with the best move, although it initiates a tricky variation.
• If 21...Nf7! then:
• 22.Bb3 Qxe4 23.Nd2 Qh4 24.g3 then:
• 24...Qh6 25.Qb5 Qxe3 26.Qc4 Rad8 27.Rb5 is equal.
• If 24...Qxg3 25.Ne4 Qh4 26.Qc4 then:
• 26...Qxe4 27.Qxe4 Nd6 28.Rxd6 cxd6 29.Qd5 wins for White
• 26...Kf8 27.Rd7 Nfd8 28.Rf7+ Ke8 29.Nxf6+ wins for White.
• If 22.c3 Nd6 then:
• 23.Nd2 Nxc4 24.Nxc4 Rad8 25.g4 Kf7 gives Black and extra pawn and White a little more space.
• 23.Bd3? Nb4!! 24.cxb4 axb4 gives Black the advantage in space.

22.Rb5 Rab8?!

• This move is passive. Black should activate his Knight.
• If 22...Nf7! then:
• 23.Bb3 Qxe4 24.Nd2 Rxd2 25.Qxd2 Rd8 is equal.
• 23.Rxb7 Ra7 24.Rxa7 Nxa7 25.Bb3 Qb5 26.Bc4 Qb4 is equal.

23.g4 Nf7

• White holds the advantage in space.
• If 23...Rd6? 24.g5 Nf7 25.Rf1 b6 26.b3 Qa3 then:
• 27.Bxf7 Kxf7 28.gxf6 Rxf6 29.Ng5+ Ke7 30.Rxf6 gives White more freedom.
• If 27.gxf6+ Rxf6 28.Bxf7 Nb4 then:
• 29.Bc4 Qa2+ 30.Kc1 Rd8 31.Rxe5+ Kf8 32.Rd5 gives White two minor pieces for a Rook.
• If 29.Qc4 Qa2+ 30.Kc1 c5 31.Rxc5 Nd3+ then:
• 32.cxd3 Qa3+ 33.Kc2 Qxc5 34.d4 Qc8 35.Bd5 gives White more active pieces.
• If 32.Qxd3 Qa3+ 33.Kd1 Qxc5 34.Bd5 Rbf8 35.Ke2 gives White two minor pieces for a Rook and a better center.

24.Bxf7?!

• White inexplicably trades his effective Bishop for a much less important Knight.
• 24.Bb3 Qxe4 25.Rf1 Nd4 26.Nxd4 Rxd4 27.Rxf6 gives White more active pieces.

24...Kxf7!

• The game is equal.

25.Rf1

• 25.b3 Qa3 26.g5 Qe7 27.h4 Kg7 28.Qh2 h5 remains equal.

25...Kg7 26.g5 Rf8 27.Rd5?!

• 27.gxf6+ Rxf6 28.Ng5 Nb4 29.Rxf6 Qa2+ 30.Kc1 Kxf6 remains equal.

27...Rbd8 28.Rxd8?

• After this error, White slides into a lost position.
• 28.gxf6+ Rxf6 29.Ng5 Rxd5 30.exd5 Rxf1+ 31.Qxf1 Nd8 gives Black an extra pawn and stronger pawns.

BLACK: Ivan Sokolov



WHITE: Boris Savchenko
Position after 28.Rd5d8:R

28...Nxd8!

• Black is now in full command.
• If 28...Rxd8?? 29.gxf6+! then:
• 29...Kh8 30.Ng5 Rf8 31.Qf2 Nd8 32.Nxh7 Kxh7 33.Qh4+ wins for White.
• If 29...Kxf6 then White wins after 30.Qf2 Ke7 31.Nxe5 Rd1+ 32.Rxd1 Nxe5 33.Qh4+.

29.Rd1 Nf7 30.gxf6+ Kxf6 31.h4

• Black will not try to defend the pawn at e4.
• If 31.Qf2 Kg7 32.Qh4 Qc6 then:
• If 33.Qg4 then after 33...a4 34.Rd5 Nd6 35.Rxe5 Rf7 36.Qg2 Qb6 Black wins.
• 33.Rd5 a4 34.Qg3 a3 35.bxa3 Qb6+ 36.Kc1 Qxe3+ leaves Black a pawn to the good.

31...Qxe4 32.Rd7

• 32.h5 gxh5 33.Rg1 Ke7 34.Nd2 Qh4 gives Black three extra pawns.

32...Qc6 33.Qd1 Ke6 34.Nd4+

• 34.Rd2 a4 35.h5 a3 36.hxg6 hxg6 37.Rg2 Rg8 Black still has two extra pawns.

34...exd4 35.Qg4+

• This is just a spiffy way of getting the pawn back.

35...Kf6 36.Qxd4+ Ne5 37.Rd5 Qe6 38.Rc5

• If 38.Rxa5 then after 38...b6 39.Rd5 Qf5 40.Rd8 Rxd8 41.Qxd8+ Ke6 Black wins easily.

38...c6 39.Qf4+ Ke7 0-1

• 40.Rxe5 Rxf4 41.Rxe6+ Kxe6 42.exf4 Kf5 leaves Black with pawn majorities on both wings.
• Grandmaster Savchenko resigns.

[Jack Rabbit]

3. Ninth Rapid Tournament, Cap d'Agde

Beach at Cap d'Agde
Photo by Fagairolles_34 from Wikipedia (Creative Commons License, Attribution/Share Alike)

[Jack Rabbit]

6. Ivanchuk - Nakamura, Knock Out Stage, Round 3/Game 1

Vassily Ivanchuk
Photo by Stefan64 in Wikimedia (Creative Commons License Attribution/Share Alike)]


Vassily Ivanchuk - Hikaru Nakamura
Ninth International Rapid Tournament (Knock Out Stage), Round 3/Game 1
Cap d'Agde, 31 October 2010

King's Gambit: Miles Defense

1.e4 e5 2.f4 Nc6

• The most common move is to take the pawn. The most common way to decline the gambit is 2...Bc5.

3.Nf3 f5

• If 3...d6 4.Bc4 then:
• If 4...Bg4 5.0-0 Nf6 6.Nc3 then:
• If 6...Be7 7.d3 0-0 8.h3 Bxf3 then:
• If 9.Qxf3 Nd4 10.Qf2 c6 11.Be3 b5 12.Bb3 then:
• 12...a5 13.a3 Nxb3 14.cxb3 Nh5 is equal (Steinitz-Fraser, Match, Dundee, 1867).
• 12...Nxb3!? 13.axb3 a6 14.Ne2 Nd7 15.Qf3 gives White a slight edge in space (Heidenfeld-Lagha, Ol, Munich, 1958).
• 9.Rxf3 Nd4 10.Rg3 Nd7 11.Qg4 g6 is equal (Vann-McColm, Op, Eastbourne, 1990).
• 6...Nd4 7.fxe5 Bxf3 8.gxf3 dxe5 9.d3 g5 10.Be3 c6 is equal (Zahiruddin-Allen, Ol, Calvia, 2004).
• 4...exf4 5.d4 Bg4 6.Bxf4 Nf6 7.Nc3 Be7 8.Qd3 0-0 9.0-0-0 gives White the advantage in space (Westerinen-Kraidman, IT, Gausdal, 1996).
• If 4...Be7 5.0-0 Nf6 6.d3 0-0 7.Nc3 then:
• 7...Na5 8.f5 c6 9.Bb3 Nxb3 10.axb3 Qc7 11.Kh1 d5 gives White the advantage in space (Lim Yee Weng-Najjar, Ol, Calvia, 2004).
• 7...Bg4 8.h3 Bxf3 transposes into the main line of this variation.

4.d3

• 4.exf5 e4 5.Ne5 Nxe5 6.fxe5 Qe7 7.d4 exd3 8.Qh5+ Kd8 9.Bxd3 Qxe5+ 10.Kd1 Nf6 11.Qf3 d5 12.Nc3 c6 13.Bf4 Qd4 14.Kc1 Bc5 15.Rf1 gives White the advantage in space (Barth Sahl-Hammer, Norwegian Ch, Moss, 2006).

4...d6 5.Nc3

• 5.Be2 Nf6 6.Nc3 Be6 7.Ng5 Bd7 8.0-0 Qe7 9.fxe5 dxe5 10.exf5 0-0-0 (Berkay Ozdover-T. Anton, World Jr Ch, Gaziantep, 2008).

5...Nf6 6.g3 (N)

• 6.fxe5 dxe5 7.Bg5 Bb4 8.Be2 Be6 9.0-0 0-0 is equal (M. Anton Escudero-J. Anton Martinez, Op, St. Feliu, 1994).

6...g6

• The game is equal.

7.Bg2 Bg7

• 7...exf4 8.Bxf4 Bg7 9.e5 Ng4 10.exd6 cxd6 11.Qd2 gives Black more space but White has better development and should catch up quickly.

8.fxe5 dxe5 9.Bg5 h6 10.Be3

• 10.Bxf6 Qxf6 11.Nh4 0-0 12.exf5 gxf5 13.Rf1 Qg5 is equal.

10...0-0 11.0-0 fxe4

• 11...f4 12.gxf4 exf4 13.Bxf4 Nxe4 14.Nxe4 Rxf4 15.c3 remains equal.

12.dxe4 Be6 13.a3!?

• Black has a slight edge in space.
• 13.h3 Qc8 14.g4 Bc4 15.Rf2 Qe8 16.b3 gives White a slight advantage in space, especially on the kingside.
• 13.Bc5 Qxd1 14.Raxd1 Rf7 15.h3 b6 16.Be3 g5 gives Black a slight advantage in space, especially on the kingside.

13...Kh7!?

• As a part of a plan, this is a bit passive.
• More active is 13...Qxd1! 14.Rfxd1 Ng4 15.Bc1 Nd4 16.Nxd4 exd4, giving Black the advantage in space and a slight initiative.

14.Kh1 a6 15.Bg1

• If 15.h3?! 15...Nh5! 16.Kh2 Nd4 17.Rf2 Qd6 18.Qd2 Rad8 gives Black a solid advantage in space.

15...Rf7?!

• If 15...Bc4 16.Re1 Qe8 17.Qc1 Rd8 18.b3 Be6 keeps Black's spatial advantage in tact.

16.Qe2!

• Black's advantage is reduced to almost nothing.

16...Nd4 17.Qd3

• 17.Nxd4 exd4 18.Rad1 Bg4 19.Bf3 Bh3 20.Bg2 Bg4etc. draws.

17...Nxf3 18.Qxf3 Rd7

• If 18...Qd2! 19.Rf2 Qg5 20.h4 Qg4 21.Qxg4 Nxg4 is equal.

19.Rad1!

• The game is equal.

19...Bg4 20.Rxd7

BLACK: Hikaru Nakamura



WHITE: Vassily Ivanchuk
Position after 20.Rd1d7:R

20...Bxf3!?

• Black exchanges his good Bishop for White's bad one.
• Better for Black is to preserve the Bishops: 20...Qxd7 21.Qe3 Rf8 22.Qa7 c6 23.Be3 Ne8 24.Kg1 remains equal.

21.Rxd8 Bxg2+ 22.Kxg2 Rxd8 23.Be3

• Rybka says the position is flat-footed equal and Fritz gives it as equal shading to White. Your humble hare and his staff of chess playing cats believe the position gives White a slight edge because of his better Bishop.

23...g5 24.h3

• After 24.Kf3 Kg6 25.h3 h5 26.Ke2 b5 27.Rd1 the coming exchange of Rooks magnifies White's better Bishop.

24...Kg6 25.g4 c6 26.Rf2 b5 27.Rd2 Rxd2+ 28.Bxd2

• After the exchange of Rooks, White still has the better Bishop. To Black's credit, he has done a fine job of keeping White's Bishop out of the kingside.

28...Bf8 29.Kf3 h5 30.Ne2 hxg4+ 31.hxg4 Nd7 32.Nc1 c5?!

• Black willingly further diminishes the scop of his Bishop.
• Better is 32...Nc5 33.b4 Nb7 34.Nd3 Kf6 35.Nb2 still gfives White the better Bishop, but it is not as marked an advantage as it is in the text.

33.Na2 Nb8

BLACK: Hikaru Nakamura



WHITE: Vassily Ivanchuk
Position after 33...Nd7b8

34.c4!

• White fixes the Black c-pawn to a dark square.

34...bxc4!?

• Black further hampers the mobility of his Bishop.
• 34...Nc6 35.Nc3 Nd4+ 36.Ke3 Bd6 37.cxb5 axb5 38.a4 leaves Black with a solid avantage in space owing to the good Bishop.

35.Nc3 Nc6 36.Nd5!

• The Knight is en route to c4.

36...Nd4+ 37.Ke3 Kf7

• 37...Nb5 38.Nb6!! Nd4 39.Ba5 Be7 40.Nxc4 wins a pawn for White.

38.Nb6 Ke6 39.Nxc4

• White now has an extra pawn and still has the good Bishop.

39...Be7 40.Ba5 Nb5

• If 40...Nc6 41.Kd3 then:
• If 41...Nd4 42.Ne3 Bf8 43.Kc4 then:
• 43...Nf3 44.Nf1 Kd6 45.Bd2 Kc6 46.Bc3 White retains a firm advantage in space.
• If 43...Kd6 then after 44.Nf5+ Ke6 45.Bb6 Nc6 46.Ne3 Be7 47.Nd5 White wins.
• If 41...Bd8?! then White wins a pawn after 42.Bd2! 42...Nd4 43.Be3 Be7 44.Nb6 Nf3 45.Na4.

41.Kd3 Nd6??

• Black commits a terrible blunder.
• White is still in command after 41...Nd4 42.Ne3 Nf3 43.Bd2 Kd7 44.Bc3, but he doesn't have an immediate win.

BLACK: Hikaru Nakamura



WHITE: Vassily Ivanchuk
Position after 41...Nb5d6

42.Nxd6! 1-0

• White's good Bishop makes all the difference.
• If 42...Kxd6 43.Bd2 Kc6 44.Kc4 Bd8 45.Be3 Bb6 46.b3 wins a pawn.
• 42...Bxd6 43.Kc4 Kd7 44.Kd5 c4 45.Bd2 Be7 46.Kxe5 wins a pawn and it just get better for White from that.
• Mr. Nakamura resigns.

[Jack Rabbit]

7. Nakamura - Hammer, Knock Out Stage, Round 1/Game 2

Hikaru Nakamura
Photo by James F. Perry in Wikipedia (Creative Commons License, Attribution/Share Alike)

Hikaru Nakamura - Jon Ludwig Hammer
Ninth International Rapid Tournament (Knock Out Stage), Round 1/Game 2
Cap d'Agde, 28 October 2010

Spanish Grand Royal Game: Derl Opening

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.Bxc6 dxc6 6.d3 Nd7

• If 6...Bd6 7.Nbd2 Be6 8.Qe2 Nd7 9.Nc4 f6 10.d4 Bg4 11.dxe5 Nxe5 12.Ncxe5 Bxe5 13.h3 Bxf3 14.Qxf3 Qe7 15.c3 O-O 16.O-O Rae8 is equal (Keres-Flohr, IT, Hastings, 1938).

7.O-O Be7 8.Nbd2 O-O 9.Nc4 Bf6

• If 9...f6 10.Nh4 Nc5 11.Nf5 Bxf5 12.exf5 then:
• 12...Qd7 13.Qg4 b6 14.Ne3 Nb7 15.Qh5 Bc5 16.f3 Nd6 17.g4 Nb5 18.Kg2 a5 gives Black the advantage in space and more freedom; White must toil to reactivate the Queen (van Perlo-Timmerman, Corres, 1982).
• 12...Qd5 13.Qg4 Rfe8 14.Re1 Rad8 15.Nd2 then:
• 15...Bf8 16.h3 Qf7 17.b3 Rd4 18.Qe2 Red8 gives Black more space, but he can't do anything with it (Kurajica-Gligoric, IT, Sarajevo, 1983).
• 15...Qf7 16.Qf3 Rd4 17.Ne4 Nxe4 18.dxe4 Qc4 (Papa-Bacrot, Young Masters, Lausanne, 2003).

10.h3

• If 10.b3 Re8 11.Bb2 c5 12.a4 then:
• 12...g6 13.Kh1 Bg7 14.Qe1 Qe7 15.Ng1 f6 16.f4 Nb8 17.fxe5 fxe5 18.Nf3 gives White the3 advantage in space and a lead in development (Gligoric-Reshevskly, Match, New York, 1952).
• 12...b6 13.h3 Re6 14.Nh2 Qe8 15.Qd2 Rb8 16.f4 gives White more space and freedom (Kholmov-E.Vasiukov, Op, Moscow, 1987).
• If 10.Bd2 Re8 11.Bc3 c5 12.a4 then:
• If 12...b6 13.h3 g6 14.Nh2 Bg7 then:
• 15.f4 exf4 16.Bxg7 Kxg7 17.Rxf4 Ne5 18.Nxe5 Qd4+ 19.Kh1 gives White a small advantage in space (Jenni-De Vreugt, Young Masters, Zug, 2001).
• 15.Qd2 Nb8 16.f4 f6 17.fxe5 fxe5 18.Qf2 gives White the advantage in space (Kostro-Adorjan, Rubinstein Mem, Polanica Zdroj, 1970).
• 12...g6 13.Nfd2 Nb6 14.Nxb6 cxb6 15.Nc4 Rb8 16.Ne3 Bg7 (Shamkovich-Kholmov, Soviet Ch, Leningrad, 1967).

10...Re8 11.Nh2 Bg5 12.Bxg5 (N)

• 12.Kh1 Nf8 13.f4 exf4 14.Bxf4 Be6 15.Bxg5 Qxg5 16.Qd2 Qe7 is equal (DeFirmiabn-Bercys, US Ch, San Diego, 2004).

12...Qxg5

• The game is equal.

BLACK: Jan Ludwig Hammer



WHITE: Hikaru Nakamura
Position after 12...Qd8g5:B

13.Qg4 Qxg4 14.Nxg4 f6 15.f4

• 15.Nge3 Nc5 16.f4 exf4 17.Rxf4 gives White a slight advantage in space.

15...exf4 16.Rxf4 Nc5

• 16...b5 17.Nd2 a5 18.Ne3 a4 remains equal.

17.Nge3 a5 18.a4 Be6 19.b3 b6 20.Rf2 Rad8 21.Nb2 h6

• 21...Bxb3 22.cxb3 Nxd3 23.Rd2 Nxb2 24.Rxb2 Rxe4 remains equal as Black gets three pawns for a minor piece.

22.Rf3 Kh7 23.Nf5 Bc8 24.Raf1 Ba6 25.Ra1

• The players are locked in an equal position with no easy way out. If this were just another game, it would be given up as a draw about now. However, Jan Ludwig needs to win or the tournament is over for him.

25...Bb7 26.Rf2 Rd7 27.h4 Rdd8!?

• The balance at this moment is contingent on White's ability to grab space with a pawn advance across the center of the board. Black should try to prevent it. On the other hand, Black's slight inaccuracy may be deliberate in that if the game continues as it has the players will draw and Jan Ludwig is eliminated.
• 27...h5 28.Kh2 Bc8 29.Nc4 Ba6 30.Nfe3 remains equal.

BLACK: Jan Ludwig Hammer



WHITE: Hikaru Nakamura
Position after 27...Rd7d8

28.h5!

• White has a slight edge in space.

28...Bc8 29.Rf3 Be6 30.Raf1 Rd7 31.Rg3 Rg8 32.Ne3 Bf7 33.Rh3 Rd4 34.Nbc4 Ra8

• If 34...Rdd8 then after 35.Kf2 Rge8 36.Rh4 Rd7 37.Ke2 White continues to enjoy a small advantage in space.

35.Ra1 Ra6?!

• This is an awkward post for the Rook. Black will now have to take time to repair the effects of this move, even though it directly affects nothing.
• 35...Ne6 36.Kf2 Rd7 37.Nf5 Re8 38.Nd2 still leaves White with nothing more than a slight advantage in space.

36.Nf5 Rd7!

• Black prevents the Knight from coming to e7
• If 36...Rd8 then:
• 37.Kf2! Raa8 38.Ke3 Bxc4 39.bxc4 Ne6 40.Rg3 gives White a slight advantage in space.
• 37.e7?! is premature: 37...Bxc4! 38.bxc4 Rd6! 39.Nf5 Rd7 refutes the sortie.

37.g4 b5?!

• Black could now have moved the Rook back to a8 with minimum cost to his game. Instead, he sets himself up to run out of reserve pawn tempi early.
• 37...Ra8 38.Kg2 Bxc4 39.bxc4 Re8 40.Re3 gives White only a small advantage.
• 37.Ne7!? is premature: 37...Bxc4 38.bxc4 Rd6! 39.Nf5 Rd7! refutes the sortie.

BLACK: Jan Ludwig Hammer



WHITE: Hikaru Nakamura
Position after 37...b6b5

• The thing to watch over the next few dozen moves is Black's queenside pawns. Although it may not look like it now, they are in danger of becoming immobile. That would give White a great advantage.

38.Nb2!

• The Knight retreats to support a4, which is about to become the scene of a small skirmish.

38...Ra8 39.Rf3

• 39.Kf2 Ne6 40.Rhh1 b4 41.Raf1 c5 42.Kg3 gives White a firm advantage in space, deprives the Black Knight of good squares and gives Black only one reserve pawn tempi (...b6).

39...Rdd8 40.Kg2 Be6 41.Kg3 Bxf5?!

• This leaves the Black King alone with some pawns of dubious strenth on the kingside.
• Better is to preserve the Bishop by 41...Bd7 42.Rf2 Re8 43.Ra2 Kg8 44.Rf1.

42.Rxf5

• White finds a good move in reply, but even better is 42.gxf5! Rd4 43.Kf4 Rd7 44.Rff1 Nb7 45.Rg1, when Black's kingside is paralyzed.

42...Ne6 43.axb5?!

• White misses a line that brings him to the brink of victory.
• If 43.Kf2! Nd4 44.Rc5 then:
• If 44...Rd7 45.Ra2 Ra6 46.Ke3 then:
• 46...Rb6 47.axb5 cxb5 48.Rxa5 c6 49.b4 gives White an extra pawn. Black has no reserve pawn tempi.
• If 46...Kg8 47.axb5 cxb5 48.c3 then:
• 48...Nxb3 49.Rxb5 Rb6 50.Rxb6 cxb6 51.Ra3 Nc5 52.d4 freezes Black's pawn for the moment (52...b5 53.Rxa5 wins a pawn for White).
• 48...Nc6 49.Rxb5 Rb6 50.Rxb6 cxb6 51.d4 Rc7 52.Nc4 gives White an extra pawn and much more freedom.
• If 44...Ra7 45.Nd1 b4 46.Rc4 Ra6 47.Ke3 Ne6 48.d4 gives White a significant advantage in space while neither side has much pawn mobility.

BLACK: Jan Ludwig Hammer



WHITE: Hikaru Nakamura
Position after 43.ab5:p

43...Nd4!

• This is the only move that keeps Black in the game.
• If 43...cxb5? 44.Rxb5! then:
• 44...c6 45.Rbxa5 Rab8 46.Nd1 Nd4 47.Ne3 wins for White as he now has two extra pawns.
• If 44...Nd4 then after 45.Rc5 Ra7 46.Ra4 Rd6 47.b4 Rb7 48.Nc4 White wins a second pawn and should win the game with little effort.

44.bxc6!

• The upside for White is that he has accomplished his goal of depriving Black of his last reserve pawn tempo.

44...Nxf5+ 45.gxf5 Rd6 46.Nc4 Rxc6 47.Ra4 Rca6 48.Kf4 c5

• Worse for Black is 48...Rb8?! 49.Rxa5! 49...Rxa5 50.Nxa5 Ra8 51.b4 when White has the advantage with greater pawn mobility.

49.Nb2

• The Knight has now good squares at b2.
• Better is 49.Ne3 Rb6 50.Nd5 Rb7 51.Rc4 a4 52.bxa4 When White enjoys the advantage in space and has a better center.

49...Rc6 50.Rc4 Rac8 51.Ra4!

• If 51.Na4 then 51...Kg8 52.Nc3 Kf7 53.Nd5 is equal.

51...Ra8

• Black gains nothing by sacrificing a pawn.
• 51...g6? loses to 52.fxg6+! 52...Kg7 53.Rxa5.

52.Rc4 Kg8?

• Black buys himself a peck of trouble.
• Correct is 52...Rac8 then after 53.Na4 Kg8 54.Nc3 Kf7 55.Nd5 Ke8 White still has more space, but now he has trouble moving pawns (56.d4? cxd4! 57.Rxd4 (57.Rxc6?? Rxc6! wins for Black as White has no reserve pawn tempi and Black has a material advantage) 57...Rxc2! 58.Ra4 Rf2 57.Kg3 Re2leaves Black up by the exchange with a Rook marauding behind enemy lines).

BLACK: Jan Ludwig Hammer



WHITE: Hikaru Nakamura
Position after 52...Kh7g8

53.d4!

• This move, which leads to disaster in the previous note, is now the way to fly.

53...Rac8 54.d5!

• As White has deprived Black of his resereve pawn tempi, he makes his own pawns mobile.

54...Rb6

• If 54...R6c7 55.Ra4 Ra7 then White mobilizes by 56.d6! when:
• 56...Rca8 57.Nc4 Ra6 58.e5 fxe5+ 59.Kxe5 White's passed pawn is strong and his King is active.
• 56...Kf7 57.Nc4 Ra6 58.e5 fxe5+ 59.Kxe5 Ke8 60.Kd5 White threatens to eat Black's queenside pawns.

55.Ra4 Rb5 56.Nc4 Ra8 57.d6 Kf8 58.e5 fxe5+ 59.Kxe5

• If Jan Ludwig were not facing elimination from a knock out tournament, he might have resigned here.

BLACK: Jan Ludwig Hammer



WHITE: Hikaru Nakamura
Position after 59.Kf4e5:p

59...Kf7 60.Kd5 Kf6 61.Kc6 Rbb8 62.d7 Ke7 63.Nxa5 Ra7 64.Re4+ Kf7

• 64...Kf8 65.Nc4 Rd8 66.Ne5 Ke7 67.Nd3+ wins the c-pawn.

65.Nb7 Raxb7

BLACK: Jan Ludwig Hammer



WHITE: Hikaru Nakamura
Position after 65...Ra7b7:N

66.d8=N+!

• Nifty. White uses his d-pawn to win the exchange.
• The rest requires no comment.

66...Rxd8 67.Kxb7 Rd5 68.Rf4 Rd2 69.Rc4 Rh2 70.Rxc5 Rxh5 71.b4 Rh1 72.b5 Rb1 73.b6 h5 74.Kc7 h4 75.Rc3 Kf6 76.b7 Rxb7+ 77.Kxb7 Kxf5 78.Rh3 Kg4 79.Rh1 g5 80.c4 Kf3 81.c5 Kg2 82.Rc1 h3 83.c6 h2 84.c7 1-0

• Jan Ludwig resigns.

[Jack Rabbit]

4. Third Pearl Tournament, Nanjing

Pagoda, Nanjing
Photo by Farm from Wikipedia (Creative Commons License, Attribution/Share Alike)

[Jack Rabbit]

5. Topalov - Carlsen, Round 9

Magnus Carlsen
Photo by Stefan64 from Wikipedia (Creative Commons License, Attribution/Share Alike)


Veselin Topalov - Magnus Carlsen
Third Pearl Spring Tournament, Round 9
Nanjing, 29 October 2010

East India Game: Bogo-Indian Defense (Catalan Opening)

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 Bb4+

• This method of development is often called the Kangaroo Defense, but usually transposes into something less exotic than that name suggests.

4.Bd2

• If 4.Nd2 then:
• 4...d5 transposes into a not-unusual Open Catalan Queen's Gambit after 5.Bg2 0-0 6.Ngf3 dxc4 7.Qc2 Nc6 8.Qxc4.
• If 4...c5 5.a3 Bxd2+ 6.Qxd2 cxd4 7.Nf3 then:
• If 7...b6 8.Bg2 Bb7 9.Qxd4 Nc6 10.Qc3 Rc8 then:
• If 11.b4 Ne7 then:
• 12.Bg5 Nf5 13.Rc1 h6 14.Bxf6 Qxf6 15.0-0 Qxc3 16.Rxc3 is a hair better for White, who has a queenside majority and fewer pawn weaknesses (Hort-Ivkov, IT, Bogojno, 1978).
• 12.Bb2?! Bd5 13.c5 d6 14.0-0 dxc5 15.bxc5 Rxc5 16.Qb4 Nc6 17.Qa4 0-0 18.Rfd1 b5 gives Black a signioficant advantage iin space (Bhat-Kovalyov, IT, Montreal, 2009).
• 11.0-0 Na5 12.b3 0-0 13.Rd1 d5 14.Qb2 Ne4 15.Be3 Qe7 16.Nd2 Nf6 17.Bd4 is equal (Granda-Nikolic, IT, Buenos Aires, 1992).
• If 7...Nc6 8.Nxd4 Qb6 9.Nb5 then:
• If 9...0-0 10.Qe3 d5 11.Qxb6 axb6 12.cxd5 then:
• 12...Nb4 13.Rb1 Nc2+ 14.Kd1 exd5 15.Bg5 gives White fewer pawn weaknesses, but Black has more space and tactiocal opportunities (D. Gurevich-Christiansen, US Ch, Long Beach, 1993).
• If 12...Nxd5 then:
• 13.Bg2!? Ra5 14.Nc3 Nd4 15.Rb1 Nxc3 16.bxc3 Nc2+ 17.Kf1 Rd8 18.e3 Nxa3 19.Bxa3 draw (Minh-Lokander, Rilton Cup 0910, Stockholm, 2009).
�
• 13.Bd2! e5 14.e4 Nf6 15.f3 Rd8 16.Bg5 gives White more freedom.
• 9...d5 10.Nd6+ Ke7 11.cxd5 exd5 12.Nxc8+ Rhxc8 remains equal.

4...Bxd2+

• If 4...Qe7 5.Nf3 Nc6 6.Bg2 Bxd2+ 7.Nbxd2 d6 8.0-0 then:
• If 8...0-0 9.e4 e5 10.d5 Nb8 then:
• If 11.Ne1 a5 then:
• If 12.Nd3 Na6 then:
• 13.f4 Nd7 14.f5 Ndc5 15.Qe2 Bd7 16.Nxc5 Nxc5 is equal (Mecking-Seirawan, Match, S�o Paulo, 1992).
• If 13.a3 c6 14.dxc6 bxc6 15.b4 Bg4 16.Qe1 then:
• 16...Rab8 17.Rb1 Qa7 18.h3 Be6 is equal (Ilincic-Salov, IT, Belgrade, 1996).
• 16...Nd7 17.f4 f6 18.b5 cxb5 19.cxb5 gives White a slight advantage in space (Z. Almasi-Greet, Euro Club Cup, Antalya, 2007).
• 12.b3 Na6 13.Nd3 c6 14.a3 Bd7 15.dxc6 Bxc6 16.b4 axb4 17.axb4 b5 is equal (Harikrishna-Gupta, World Jr Ch, Nakhchivan, 2003).
• If 11.b4 a5 12.a3 Na6 13.Qb3 Bg4 14.Rfc1 c6 then:
• 15.Ne1 axb4 16.axb4 c5 17.b5 Nb4 is equal (Psakhis-Petrosian, Kislovodsk, 1982).
• 15.dxc6 bxc6 16.Rab1 axb4 17.axb4 Rfb8 gives Black a slight advantage with stronger pawns (Recoulat-Sola, Argentine Chess League, Villa Martilli, 2008).
• If 8...a5 9.e4 e5 10.d5 Nb8 then:
• If 11.c5 0-0 12.cxd6 cxd6 then:
• 13.Ne1 Na6 14.Nd3 Bd7 15.Nc4 Bb5 16.Rc1 Rac8 is equal (Lymar-Litinskaya, Alushta, 1999).
• 13.Rc1 Na6 14.Nc4 Qd8 15.Ne1 b5 16.Ne3 Nc5 17.f3 Qb6 18.Qd2 Ba6 19.Kh1 h6 20.Nf5 draw (Martirosov-Z. Rahman, IT, Stratton Mountain, 2000).
• 11.Ne1 0-0 transposes into the main variation.
• 4...Be7 transposes into a standard Closed Catalan Queen's Gambit after 5.Bg2 d5 6.Nf3 0-0 7.0-0 c6 .

5.Qxd2

• If 5.Nxd2 d5 6.Ngf3 0-0 7.Bg2 Nbd7 8.0-0 c6 9.Qc2 Qe7 10.e4 dxe4 11.Nxe4 then:
• If 11...e5 12.Rfe1 then:
• 12...Nxe4 13.Qxe4 f5 14.Qe3 e4 15.Nd2 Qf7 16.f3 (Yeager-Reichstein, World Op, Philadelphia, 2008).
• 12...exd4 13.Nxd4 g6 14.Qc3 Nxe4 15.Rxe4 gives White better developmetn and the initiative (Gyimesi-Th�mmler, IBM Tournament, Bad Wiesee, 2000).
• 11...Nxe4 12.Qxe4 Rd8 13.Rad1 Nb6 14.b3 a5 15.Rfe1 a4 16.d5 gives White the advantage in space (Campbell-Smith, Scottish Ch, Edinburgh, 2009).

5...d5 6.Bg2 c6 7.Nf3 Nbd7 8.0-0 b6

• 8...0-0 9.Qc2 b6 10.Nbd2 Bb7 11.b4 a5 12.a3 Qe7 13.c5 axb4 14.axb4 e5 15.dxe5 Ng4 16.Nb3 gives White the advantage in space (Kopylov-Kosic, Ol, Khanty-Mansiysk, 2010).

9.Rc1 0-0 10.b4 (N)

• 10.cxd5 cxd5 11.Nc3 Ba6 12.a4 Rc8 13.Nb5 Ne4 14.Qf4 Qe7 is equal (Wang Yue-Carlsen, Pearl Spring Trmt, Rd 8, Nanjing, 2010).

10...Bb7

• The game is equal.

11.Qb2 Rb8!?

• Black introduces a slight imbalance into the game. The text move doen't do a lot of harm, but the move is neither a part of Black's plan to move forward or to hamper any of White's ideas.
• font color="red"]11...dxc4 12.Rxc4 a5 13.bxa5 Rxa5 14.Nc3 Qe7 remains equal.

12.Nbd2!

• White has a small advantage in space concentrated on the queenside,
• Also good is 12.cxd5 exd5 13.Nc3 Qe7 14.Ne1 Rfc8 15.Rab1 giving White a small advantage in space.
• If 12.a4 dxc4 13.b5 c5 then:
• 14.Nbd2 cxd4 15.Nxc4 Bxf3 16.Bxf3 e5 gives Black an extra pawn and White more space.
• If 14.dxc5 Nxc5 15.Nbd2 c3 then:
• 16.Qxc3 Bd5 17.a5 Qd7 18.Qb4 Qb7 is equal.
• If 16.Rxc3!? 16...Rc8! 17.Rac1 Nxa4 18.Rxc8 Nxb2 19.Rxd8 Rxd8 gives Black a small edge in space.

12...Qe7 13.e3

• White now has a slight advantage in space.
• 13.a4 a5 14.bxa5 bxa5 15.e3 Ba6 16.Qc3 remains equal.

13...Rfc8 14.Rc2!?

• White apparently intends to double Rooks on the c-file.
• If 14.Rab1 h6 15.Bf1 then:
• 15...Ne4 16.c5 bxc5 17.bxc5 Ba6 18.Qa3 White continues to enjoy a slight adavnatage in space.
• If 15...Re8!? then after 16.c5! e5 17.Nxe5 Nxe5 18.dxe5 Nd7 19.Nb3 White has a firm advantage in space.

14...c5! 15.bxc5 bxc5 16.Qa3

• The Queen must move out of the line of fire from Black's Rook.
• 16.Qc1!? 16...dxc4! 17.Rxc4 Ba6 18.Rc2 Bd3! is equal.

16...Rc6!

• Black threatens to attack the Queen with 17...Ra6!.

17.Rac1 Ra6 18.Qd3 h6

• 18...Rc8!? 19.cxd5! Nxd5 20.a3 Rb6 21.Nc4 Ra6 22.Nce5! gives White a lasting advantage.

19.Qe2 dxc4

BLACK: Magnus Carlsen



WHITE: Veselin Topalov
Position after 19.dc4:p

• 19...cxd4!? could give Black better chances -- or worse.
• If 19...cxd4! then:
• 20.exd4! dxc4 21.Nxc4 Qe8 gives White a firm advantage in space.
• 20.Nxd4?! e5! 21.Nb5 e4 22.cxd5 Bxd5 is equal.

20.Qxc4?!

• This move is too aggressive. The Queen, a very ticklish sort, is exposed in front of its army.
• If 20.Nxc4 Rc8 then:
• If 21.Nfe5 Bxg2 22.Kxg2 cxd4 23.exd4 then:
• 23...Nf8 24.Rb2 Rb6 25.Rxb6 axb6 26.Rb1 N8d7 27.Nxb6 gives White an extra pawn.
• 23...Nd5? 24.Ne3! 24...Nxe3+ 25.fxe3 Rxc2 26.Rxc2 Rd6 27.Rc8+ gives WHite an overwhelming advantage.
• 21.dxc5!? Rxc5 22.Nd4 Bxg2 23.Kxg2 Ra4! 24.Nb3 gives White a small spatial advantage.

20...cxd4

• Black may ve seeking to isolate White's d-pawn.
• If 20...Rc8 21.Qd3 Nd5 22.dxc5 then:
• 22...Rxc5 23.Rxc5 Nxc5 24.Qd4 Nd7 is equal.
• 22...Nxc5 23.Qd4 Rac6 24.Ne5 R6c7 25.h4 gives White yet a slight edge in space.

21.Nxd4

• White will have none of that.

21...Rb6

• 21...Nd5 22.Bxd5 exd5 23.Qe2 Ne5 24.Rc7 Qd6 25.Qh5 gives White a considerable advantage with pressure on Black's f7 pawn.

22.Bxb7 R8xb7 23.Kg2?!

• French grandmaster Romain Edouard, writing for ChessBase.com, believes this is where White lost the advantage.
• If 23.Qd3 then:
• 23...Nf8 24.Nc6 Qd7 25.Qxd7 N8xd7 26.Nb3 Whit has a slight advantage in that his c6 Knight is free.
• If 23...Rb2?! then:
• 24.Rc8+ Nf8 25.R1c2 Nd5 26.Nc6 White is puttiong heavy prussure on Black's camp
• If 24.Rxb2 then after 24...Rxb2 25.Rc8+ Nf8 26.Nc4 Qb7 27.Nc6 White is systematically strangling his opponent.

23...Ne5 24.Qc5?!

• Rybka and Fritz agree that Black never regains the advantage after this.
• 24.Qe2 Rb2 25.f4 Ng6 26.N2b3 Rxc2 27.Qxc2 Rd7 gives White a small advantage in space (Rybka) or is equal (Fritz). It's equal (JR).

BLACK: Magnus Carlsen



WHITE: Veselin Topalov
Position after 24.Qc4c5


24...Qxc5 25.Rxc5 Rb2!

• Black has the initiative.

26.R1c2 Nd3 27.Rc8+ Kh7 28.N4f3

• Another inaccuracy that makes an already bad situation even more critical for White.
• If 28.Kf1 then after 28...Ng4 29.N2b3 Rxc2 30.Rxc2 e5 31.Nc6 Rc7 Black wins at least a pawn.

28...a5?

• The pawn advance is premature. The game is now equal.
• 28...Ng4! 29.Nb3 Rxc2 30.Rxc2 Rb4 gives Black a commanding lead.

29.h3 a4 30.a3 g5

• The game has stabilized into a dead draw.
• 30...Rxc2 31.Rxc2 Nd7 32.Kf1 Rb2 33.Rxb2 Nxb2 is also lifeless.

31.Rxb2 Rxb2 32.Rc3??

• Almost out of the3 blue, White blunders.
• 32.Rc4 e5 33.e4 g4 34.hxg4 Nxg4 35.Rxa4 Ra2 gives Black a small advantage in space.

BLACK: Magnus Carlsen



WHITE: Veselin Topalov
Position after 32.Rc8c3

32...Nxf2!!

• . . . and Black finds the winning move.

33.Rc7

• If 33.Kxf2 then 33...Ne4+! wins immediately.

33...N2e4 0-1

• 34.Rxf7+ Kg8 35.Rxf6 Nxf6 36.Kg1 Rc2 leaves Black up by the exchange with an active Rook on the seventh rank.
• 34.Kg1 Nxd2 35.Rxf7+ Kg8 36.Rxf6 Kg7 37.Nxd2 Kxf6 Black is up by the exchange and has the active King.
• Topalov resigns.

[Jack Rabbit]

9. Bonus Game: Tal - Fischer, Candidates' Tournament, Belgrade, 1959

Mikhail Tal
Photo by Unlikelylads in Wikipedia (Public Domain)


Mikhail Tal - Bobby Fischer
Candidates' Tournament, Round 20
Belgrade, 11 October 1959

West India Game: King's Indian Defense

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.Be2 O-O 6.Nf3 e5 7.d5

• For 7.O-O, see Ivanchuk-Grischuk, Grand Prix, Nalchik, 2009.

7...Nbd7 8.Bg5 h6 9.Bh4 a6

• If 9...g5 10.Bg3 Nh5 11.h4 g4 then:
• If 12.Nh2 then:
• If 12...Nxg3 13.fxg3 h5 14.O-O Bh6 15.Bd3 Nf6 16.Qe2 Kg7 17.Rad1 c6 gives Black a tiny edge in space (Harper-Spraggett, Op, London, 1972).
• If 12...f5 13.exf5 Nxg3 14.fxg3 then:
• If 14...Nc5 15.Nxg4 Bxf5 16.O-O then:
• 16...e4 17.Qd2 Bxg4 18.Bxg4 Qe7 19.Rxf8+ Rxf8 20.Re1 Qe5 21.Kh2 gives White an extra pawn (Bukic-Gligoric, TMatch, Budva, 1967).
• 16...Bxg4 17.Bxg4 e4 18.Qd2 gives White an extra pawn.
• If 14...h5 15.O-O Nc5 16.b4 e4 17.Rc1 Nd3 gives Black a slight edge in space (Kramnik-Kasparov, IT, Linares, 1994).
• If 12.Nd2 Nxg3 13.fxg3 h5 14.O-O Bh6 15.Bd3 Nf6 16.Qe2 Ne8 17.Rf2 Ng7 18.Raf1 f6 19.b4 Qe7 20.Nb3 b6 21.Kh2 gives White the advantage in space (Hort-J.Bednarski, IT, Kecskemet, 1964).
• 15...c6 16.Kh2 Nf6 17.Qe2 Ne8 18.Kh1 Bd7 19.c5 dxc5 20.Nc4 Qe7 gives White more space against Black's extra pawn (Krishilovsky-Kovalevskaya, Russian Cup, Samara, 2002).

10.O-O Qe8 11.Nd2 Nh7!?

• This move or one like it is often played in the King's Indian in preparation for the advance ...f5. In this case, the move is premature, since it allows White to expand on the queenside.
• If 11...c5 12.a3 12...Nh7 13.b4 b6 14.Rb1 Ng5 15.f3 f5 16.Qa4 gives White the advantage in space (Gligoric-Jim�nez, Capablanca Mem, Havana, 1967).
• 12.dxc6 bxc6 13.b4 Rb8 14.a3 Bb7 15.Nb3 Qe6 16.Na5 gives White the advantage in space (Petrosian-Stein, Soviet ChT, Moscow, 1961).

12.b4 Bf6 (N)

• If 12...Ng5 13.f3 f5 14.Kh1 then:
• If 14...Nf6 15.c5 Nf7 then:
• 16.exf5!? 16...gxf5 17.g4 e4 18.gxf5 Bxf5 19.Rc1 is equal (Vesely-Jansa, Czechoslovakian Ch, Ostrava, 1960).
• 16.Rc1 f4 17.Nc4 Rb8 18.Qb3 Nd7 19.Bf2 gives White a significant advantage in space.
• 14...f4 15.Rc1 Nh7 16.Bf2 g5 17.c5 Qg6 18.Nc4 give White the advantage with more space and better piece coordination (Hort-Krupka, Czechoslovakian Ch, Ostrava, 1960).

13.Bxf6 Nhxf6 14.Nb3

• White has the advantage in space.

14...Qe7 15.Qd2 Kh7 16.Qe3 Ng8

• White could ask for little better at this stage of the game. The space count is 18-5 in his favor and his pieces aren't in each other's way, while the Black Knight at d7 hampers the development of the Bishop. The only downside for White is his bad Bishop.
• 16...b6 17.Rfb1 Re8 18.a4 Kg7 19.a5 gives White a huge spatial advantage.

17.c5 f5 18.exf5 gxf5 19.f4!?

• This move effectively sacrifices a pawn.
• 19.Rae1 Qf7 20.cxd6 cxd6 21.Na5 gives White a better game than he gets with no risk.

BLACK: Bobby Fischer



WHITE: Mikhail Tal
Position after 19.f2f4

19...exf4 20.Qxf4

• White has the advantage in space.
• 20.Qxe7+ Nxe7 21.Rxf4 Nf6 22.Rc4 Bd7 23.Rd4 gives White the advantage in space.

20...dxc5 21.Bd3!

• White forces Black to defend one pawn or another.
• If 21.bxc5!? Nxc5! then:
• 22.Rf3 Re8 23.Rc1 Nxb3 24.axb3 Qd6 25.Bd3 is equal.
• 22.Nxc5?? 22...Qxc5+! 23.Kh1 Qxc3 leaves Black a piece to the good.

21...cxb4!?

• The best way out is to attack White's hanging Knight on c3.
• 21...Qg7 22.Bxf5+ Kh8 23.Qd2 cxb4 24.Ne2 leaves Black a pawn up, but White's pieces are still more active.

22.Rae1 Qf6?

• Black cover his f-pawn, but leaves his b-pawn hanging.
• 22...Qd6 23.Bxf5+ Kh8 24.Qxd6 cxd6 25.Ne4 keeps things from getting worse.

BLACK: Bobby Fischer



WHITE: Mikhail Tal
Position after 22...Qe7f6

23.Re6!!

• There are two kinds of sacrifices: sound ones and mine. -- Tal.

23...Qxc3

• Tal felt certain that Fischer would take the the Knight. Black does better to destain the proffered Knight.
• Nevertheless, White is still winning after 23...Qg7 24.Qxb4 a5 25.Bxf5+ Kh8 26.Qd4 Qxd4+ 27.Nxd4.

24.Bxf5+

• With the Queen diverted away from the battle, White proceeds to sweep away White's defenders.

24...Rxf5 25.Qxf5+ Kh8 26.Rf3 Qb2

• The text is hopeless, but so is 26...Ndf6 27.Rxc3 bxc3 28.Nd4 Bxe6 29.Nxe6.

27.Re8 Ndf6 28.Qxf6+ Qxf6 29.Rxf6 Kg7 30.Rff8 Ne7 31.Na5 h5

• If 31...Nxd5 32.Nc4 Kg6 then:
• 33.Ne5+ Kg5 34.h4+ Kh5 35.g3 Ne3 wins a piece for White: 36.Rxc8! Rxc8 37.Rxc8.
• 33.Rxc8 Rxc8 34.Rxc8 Kf5 35.Kf2 leaves White with a Rook for two pawns.

BLACK: Bobby Fischer



WHITE: Mikhail Tal
Position after 31...h6h5

32.h4

• Black is for all intents and purposes out of reserve pawn tempi. The only pawn he can move is hios b-pawn, and to move that weakens c6.

32...Rb8 33.Nc4 b5 34.Ne5

• Black is already behind in material and must lose even more with White's Rooks marauding the back rank.
• Mr. Fischer resigns.

[Jack Rabbit]

11. Update: Sunday

Standings after three rounds of the Tal Memorial:

Aronian. . . . . 2�
Karjakin . . . . 2
Wang Hao . . . . 2
Nakamura . . . . 2
Mamedyarov . . . 2
Grischuk . . . . 2
Kramnik. . . . . 1�
Gelfand. . . . . 1
Eljanov. . . . . 0
Shirov . . . . . 0

[Jack Rabbit]

12. Update (Tuesday): and on Tal's birthday, the players rest for it is a holy day

The chess players competing in the Fifth Tal Memorial Tournament rest today in honor of what would be the 74th the birthday of Mikhail Tal, the eighth world champion.

After four rounds, Armenian grandmaster Levon Aronian, ranked number three in the world with an Elo score of 2801, leads with three points (+2 -0 =2). Five players are tied for second with 2� points each: Alexander Grischuk (Russia), Sergey Karjakin (Russia), Shakhriyar Mamdemyarov (Azerbaijan), Hikaru Nakamura (United States) and Wang Hao (China).

Mikhail Tal (1936-1992), who reigned as world champion from May 1960 to May 1961, was one of the most popular chess players of all time. Personally, he was witty, affable, charming and considerate of others to a fault; over the board, he was a gambler and a swashbuckler, an intuitive player who took bold risks while engaging in a romantic, cut and thrust style of play. While some other, more conservative masters scorned him (Smyslov once said Tal's style was "all blue smoke and mirrors"), Tal himself celebrated the very dubiousness of his combinations (There are two kinds of sacrifices: sound ones and mine). Tal's combinations may have been dubious, but the way out was only discovered by other chess master after hours of anaysis or, more recently, by strong chess playing computer programs. Over the board with a clock ticking, it was far more often than not impractical for Tal or his opponent to work out all the nuances of his labyrinthine combinations once he committed to one. As far as Tal was concerned, a good move wasn't necessarily objectively correct, but one that would confound his opponent.

Tal suffered from kidney disease from his childhood. He knew he would not live to be and old man, so he lived his life to the fullest. When spending a week at a hotel for an international tournament, he personally drank the establishment dry of its cognac. He missed several games as a member of the Soviet team in the Havana Chess Olympics of 1966 after a bar patron broke a bottle over his head in a brawl. When once asked his views on correspondence chess, Tal replied : I drink, I smoke, I gamble and I chase girls; but postal chess is a vice I've never acquired.