[Event "Olympiad-41"] [Site "Tromsoe"] [Date "2014.08.12"] [Round "10.1"] [White "Saric, Ivan"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C61"] [WhiteElo "2671"] [BlackElo "2877"] [Annotator "Roiz,Michael"] [PlyCount "73"] [EventDate "2014.08.02"] [EventType "team-swiss"] [EventRounds "11"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [SourceTitle "CBM 162"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2014.09.17"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2014.09.17"] [SourceQuality "1"] [WhiteTeam "Croatia"] [BlackTeam "Norway"] [WhiteTeamCountry "CRO"] [BlackTeamCountry "NOR"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nd4 {As often happens, Magnus goes for a side line in order to surprise his opponent.} 4. Nxd4 exd4 5. Bc4 $5 {This time Ivan also deviates from the main stuff in the Bird.} (5. O-O {is much more popular.}) 5... Nf6 6. O-O {This position is important for the theoretical value of White's setup.} d5 (6... Nxe4 $5 {was a principled response. White's chances are preferable in the following complications:} 7. Bxf7+ (7. Re1 d5 8. Bb5+ c6 9. d3 cxb5 10. dxe4 dxe4 11. Rxe4+ Be6 12. Rxd4 Qb6 13. Be3 Bc5 14. Rd3 Bxe3 15. Rxe3 b4 $15 {½-½ Vavulin,M (2377)-Khairullin,I (2651)/St Petersburg RUS 2013 (34)}) 7... Kxf7 8. Qh5+ g6 9. Qd5+ Kg7 10. Qxe4 Qf6 (10... c5 11. d3 d6 12. Re1 Rb8 13. Qf4 Bf5 14. Nd2 $14) 11. d3 c6 12. Bf4 d6 13. Nd2 $14 {1-0 Stevic,H (2588)-Hirneise,T (2440)/Austria 2008/EXT 2009 (39)}) 7. exd5 Be7 {Perhaps, Magnus was out of his preparation at this point. He comes up with a dubious pawn sacrifice, but it looks like there was no way to equalise anyway.} (7... Nxd5 8. Qh5 c6 9. d3 $1 (9. Qe5+ Be6 10. Qxd4 Bd6 11. Bxd5 O-O 12. Nc3 cxd5 13. d3 Rc8 $44 {0-1 Givon,A (2329)-Jirka,J (2415)/Tel Aviv 2012/CBM 147 Extra (59)}) 9... Be7 10. Nd2 O-O 11. Nf3 Nf6 12. Qh4 Ng4 13. Qg3 $14) 8. Qf3 $1 $146 {An important novelty in a rare position. Black gets some development advantage, but White has a solid extra pawn.} (8. Re1 Nxd5 9. Qh5 c6 10. Bxd5 Qxd5 11. Qxd5 cxd5 12. d3 Be6 13. Nd2 Rc8 14. Nf3 Bf6 $11) 8... Bg4 $6 {Black choosed a wrong order of moves and loses one more central pawn.} (8... O-O {was much better:} 9. d3 Bg4 10. Qf4 b5 $1 {and White has to play precisely in order to keep his edge:} 11. Bxb5 (11. Bb3 Bd6 12. Qxd4 c5 13. Qc3 Re8 $44) 11... Qxd5 12. Bc4 Qd7 13. f3 Bd6 14. Qg5 Be6 15. Nd2 $14) 9. Qf4 O-O (9... Qd7 10. h3 Bf5 11. d3 Nxd5 12. Qxd4 $16) 10. h3 $1 {Now White will grab a pawn in a better version.} ({The text is better than} 10. Qxd4 c6 11. d3 (11. Nc3 b5 12. Bd3 b4 13. Ne4 Nxd5 14. Bc4 $14) 11... cxd5 12. Bb3 Rc8 13. Bg5 $14) 10... Bd6 ({Black also fails to prove any compensation for a pawn after} 10... Bd7 11. Qxd4 b5 12. Be2 $1 (12. Bb3 Bxh3 13. gxh3 c5 14. Qe5 c4 {is less clear}) 12... Bc6 13. Re1 Nxd5 14. Nc3 Nb4 15. Qxd8 Raxd8 16. Bd1 Rfe8 17. d3 $16) 11. Qxd4 c5 (11... Be6 12. Nc3 c6 13. d3 Nxd5 14. Nxd5 cxd5 15. Bb3 $16) 12. Qd3 Bh5 (12... Bd7 13. Nc3 a6 14. a4 Re8 15. Qf3 $16) 13. Nc3 {White is 2 pawns up, but the q-side pieces are still undeveloped, so Black still has some practical chances to complicate matters.} (13. f4 $5 Bg6 14. f5 Bh5 15. Nc3 Re8 16. b3 a6 17. a4 Qe7 18. Ba3 $16 Qe5 $140 19. g3) 13... Re8 (13... Bg6 14. Qf3 Nd7 15. d3 Ne5 16. Qd1 $16) 14. f4 $1 {Ivan is on top again! Now there some problems with the ?h5 too.} ({The quiet alternative} 14. b3 $6 {wasn't convincing:} a6 15. a4 Qa5 $1 16. Ra2 (16. Bb2 Bg6 17. Qf3 Bxc2 $132) 16... Qc7 17. Bb2 Rad8 $44) 14... a6 15. a4 {Restricting any activity on the q-side.} ({Correctly avoiding} 15. g4 $2 Bg6 16. f5 Nxg4 $1 17. fxg6 fxg6 18. Ne4 (18. hxg4 Qh4 $19) 18... Qh4 19. Nxd6 Re3 20. Qxe3 Nxe3 21. dxe3 Qg3+ 22. Kh1 Qxh3+ $11) 15... Qd7 (15... Bg6 16. Qf3 Bxc2 17. d3 Bxa4 18. Rxa4 b5 19. Nxb5 axb5 20. Bxb5 Rxa4 21. Bxa4 Re7 22. Bb5 Rb7 23. Bc4 $18) (15... Qa5 16. Ra3 h6 17. g4 Bg6 18. f5 Bh7 19. Qf3 Nd7 20. d3 Ne5 21. Qg2 $18) 16. Qg3 {Now White needs just 2 tempi to complete the development by d2-d3 and ?c1-d2.} Ne4 (16... Re7 17. d3 Rae8 18. Bd2 Qc7 19. a5 $18) 17. Nxe4 Rxe4 18. b3 (18. d3 $5 {is worthy of attention:} Re2 19. d4 (19. Qh4 Bg6 20. Qg4 Qxg4 21. hxg4 f5 $16) 19... Re4 20. Bd3 Rxd4 21. Be3 Rxd5 22. Be4 Be7 23. Bxd5 Qxd5 24. f5 $16) 18... Qc7 $6 {A decisive mistake.} (18... Bg6 {was called for:} 19. Bb2 Qc7 20. Rae1 (20. Qc3 f6 21. Rae1 Rae8 22. Rxe4 Rxe4 23. f5 Bf7 $16) 20... Bxf4 21. Qf3 Rae8 22. Rxe4 Rxe4 23. Bd3 Bh2+ 24. Kh1 Re7 $16) 19. d3 Re2 (19... Ree8 20. Qf2 f6 21. Be3 Bf7 22. a5 $18) 20. Qg5 $18 {Provoking Black's next move.} g6 ({After} 20... Bg6 21. f5 Re5 22. Bb2 f6 23. Qg4 $18 {White's material advantage is too big.}) 21. Bb2 {Now the ?g8 is in trouble.} (21. g4 {was also good enough:} Rxc2 22. gxh5 Re8 23. hxg6 hxg6 24. Qg3 Ree2 25. Be3 $18) 21... Be7 {A sad necessity.} (21... Rxc2 {is just as hopeless:} 22. Qf6 Rxb2 23. Qxb2 Bxf4 24. d6 Qxd6 25. Bxf7+ Kxf7 26. Rxf4+ Qxf4 27. Rf1 $18) 22. Bf6 ({Another nice way was} 22. d6 Qxd6 23. Qe5 $1 Rxe5 24. Bxf7+ Kf8 25. fxe5 Qc7 26. Bxg6+ Kg8 27. Bxh5 $18) 22... h6 23. Be5 $1 {The final touch. Black cannot avoid simplifications.} Qd8 (23... hxg5 24. Bxc7 gxf4 25. Rxf4 Rxc2 26. g4 g5 27. Rf3 Bg6 28. d6 $18) 24. Qxh6 Rxe5 25. d6 ({Of course, not} 25. fxe5 $2 Bg5 {and the queen is trapped.}) 25... Re2 26. dxe7 Qxe7 (26... Qd4+ 27. Kh1 Rxe7 28. f5 $18) 27. f5 Qh4 {At this moment White has a lot of winning continuations.} 28. Qf4 {Liquidating into a completely winning endgame.} (28. fxg6 Rxg2+ 29. Kxg2 Bf3+ 30. Rxf3 Qxh6 31. gxf7+ Kh7 32. Raf1 $18) (28. Bxf7+ Kxf7 29. fxg6+ Ke6 30. g7+ Kd7 31. Rf7+ Re7 32. Rxe7+ Kxe7 33. Rf1 $18) 28... g5 29. Qxh4 gxh4 30. Rf4 Rxc2 31. Rxh4 Be2 32. Re4 {The rest is just an agony.} Rd2 (32... Kf8 33. Re1 b5 34. axb5 axb5 35. Bxb5 (35. R4xe2 Rxe2 36. Rxe2 bxc4 37. dxc4 $18) 35... Raa2 36. f6 $18) 33. Re7 Bxd3 34. Bxf7+ Kf8 35. f6 Rd8 (35... Re2 36. Bg6 $1 Rxe7 37. fxe7+ Kxe7 38. Bxd3 $18) 36. Bh5 Kg8 37. Re8+ 1-0 [Event "Grand Slam Final 1st"] [Site "Bilbao"] [Date "2008.09.06"] [Round "5"] [White "Anand, Viswanathan"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C63"] [WhiteElo "2798"] [BlackElo "2775"] [Annotator "Postny,Evgeny"] [PlyCount "71"] [EventDate "2008.09.02"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "ESP"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 126"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2008.10.01"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2008.10.01"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 f5 {I guess, this came as a total surprise for Vishy Anand as Magnus had never played the Jaenisch as Black.} 4. d3 fxe4 5. dxe4 Nf6 6. O-O Bc5 7. Bxc6 bxc6 8. Nxe5 O-O 9. Nc3 {Anand deviates from his game versus Radjabov, probably suspecting deep preparation by Magnus. The move in the text was played by Carlsen as White, once more versus Radjabov. All this adds even more interest to this encounter.} (9. Bg5 Qe8 $1 10. Bxf6 Rxf6 11. Nd3 Bd4 12. Nd2 (12. c3 Bb6 13. e5 $5 {This is my suggestion from a previous CBM, worth being tested in future games.} Rh6 14. Nd2 Ba6 15. c4 d5 16. Rc1 Rd8 17. Qe2 $14 {[%CAl Gd3b4]}) 12... Ba6 13. Rb1 $6 (13. c4 c5 14. Rc1 $1 Bb7 15. Qe2 Qg6 16. Kh1 Re8 17. Rce1 d6 18. f3 {and Black still has to justify the pawn sacrifice.}) 13... d6 14. c4 c5 15. b4 Qf7 16. Kh1 Rf8 17. f4 Bxc4 18. Nxc4 Qxc4 $11 {½-½ Anand,V (2799)-Radjabov,T (2735)/Morelia/Linares MEX/ESP 2008/The Week in Chess 694 (22)}) 9... d6 10. Nd3 Bd4 {Black is hoping to compensate for the lack of a pawn by his pair of bishops and the opened f-file.} 11. Ne2 (11. Nb4 Bxc3 12. bxc3 c5 13. Nd5 Nxe4 14. f3 Nf6 15. Bg5 Be6 16. Bxf6 gxf6 $11) 11... Bb6 12. Bg5 ({Black keeps reasonable compensation also after} 12. Ng3 Ba6) 12... Qe8 13. Bxf6 Rxf6 14. Ng3 Qf7 {This novelty is the first choice of "Rybka". Even though, I am not sure that this is a real improvement over Radjabov's choice.} (14... Ba6 15. Kh1 Bxd3 16. cxd3 Rxf2 17. Rxf2 Bxf2 18. Nf5 Bb6 19. Qg4 (19. Qb3+ Kh8 20. Qc3 Qd7 $11) 19... Qf8 20. Rf1 g6 $11 {½-½ Carlsen,M (2690)-Radjabov,T (2729)/Monte Carlo 2007/CBM 117 ext (36)}) 15. b3 {Preparing to meet ?c8-a6 with c2-c4.} Be6 16. Qd2 Rf8 17. Rae1 Rh6 18. Qc3 {Covering the f6-square is important against the transfer of Black's queen to the h-file.} (18. c4 $2 Qf6 {[%CAl Gf6h4]} 19. h3 Bxh3 $1 20. gxh3 Qh4 21. Re3 Qxh3 22. Rfe1 Bd4 $1 $19 {[%CAl Rh6g6,Rg6g3] White is simply helpless against the threat ?h6-g6-xg3.}) 18... Rf6 $6 (18... Qe7 $6 {[%CAl Ge7h4]} 19. Nf5 Bxf5 20. exf5 Qh4 21. h3 $16) ({Worth consideration is:} 18... Qd7 $5 {with the idea 19...?h3!}) 19. Re2 $2 {The reason for not capturing the ?c6 remains unclear for me.} (19. Qxc6 Bd7 (19... Bxf2+ 20. Nxf2 Rxf2 21. Nf5 Rxf1+ 22. Rxf1 $16) (19... h5 20. h3 h4 21. Nf5 Bd7 22. Qc3 Bxf5 23. exf5 Rxf5 24. Re2 $14) 20. Qc3 Rxf2 (20... h5 21. Nf5 Bxf5 22. exf5 Rxf5 23. Re2 $14) 21. Nxf2 Bxf2+ 22. Kh1 Bxe1 23. Qxe1 $16) 19... Bg4 20. Rd2 $2 {[%mdl 8192] And this is just a tactical oversight.} (20. Ree1 Rxf2 21. Nxf2 Bxf2+ 22. Kh1 Bxe1 23. Qxe1 Qe7 24. Rxf8+ Qxf8 25. h3 Bd7 26. Kh2 $11) {[%tqu "En","How can Black win material?","","","b6e3","The rook is trapped.",5]} 20... Be3 $1 {The rook is trapped.} 21. h3 Bxd2 22. Qxd2 Bc8 23. f4 h5 $1 {This pawn will kick away the white knight from g3 and the ?e4 will become a target.} 24. f5 h4 25. Ne2 Re8 $2 (25... d5 $2 26. Ne5 Qh5 27. Ng4 R6f7 28. Ne5 {and the rook can't escape.}) ({But, after the correct} 25... Qe7 $1 26. Nf2 (26. Qf4 Bxf5 $19) 26... d5 27. Ng4 R6f7 {Black's rook is getting the f7 square. Meanwhile, White's position in the centre is collapsing.}) 26. Nf2 d5 27. Ng4 Rxe4 28. Nxf6+ Qxf6 29. Nc1 Bxf5 $2 {Allows White to escape with a draw.} ({After} 29... Re5 $1 30. Nd3 Rxf5 {Black could still be a pawn up. It is difficult to say whether Black can win this or not but, his advantage is indisputable.}) 30. Qf2 {[%csl Ra7,Rf5] Double threat.} Bg6 31. Qxa7 Rf4 {Black does not have more than a draw now.} 32. Rxf4 Qxf4 33. Nd3 Bxd3 34. cxd3 Qc1+ 35. Kh2 Qf4+ 36. Kg1 {Not the best game from both brilliant players.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "Bazna Kings 4th"] [Site "Medias"] [Date "2010.06.24"] [Round "9"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Nisipeanu, Liviu Dieter"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C63"] [WhiteElo "2813"] [BlackElo "2672"] [Annotator "Nisipeanu,Liviu Dieter"] [PlyCount "64"] [EventDate "2010.06.14"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "ROU"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 137"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2010.07.15"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2010.07.15"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 {I was rather expecting the Scotch, or even more so the move 1.d4!} f5 {The first time that I have used the Schliemann Defence in a tournament game. I was hoping that Magnus would be a little surprised by it.} 4. Nc3 {Quickly played, so obviously he had something prepared, probably because Radjabov plays this from time to time.} fxe4 5. Nxe4 d5 {Radjabov aways plays 5...?f6, so around here I was pretty sure, that Magnus was playing according to 'general knowledge'.} 6. Nxe5 dxe4 7. Nxc6 Qg5 8. Qe2 Nf6 9. f4 {Here, or on the next move, White can take on a7, but without heavy analysis it is hardly possible, even for the worlds number one, to find his way in the wild complications there.} Qxf4 10. Ne5+ (10. d4 {allows Black the extra option of 10...?d6.}) 10... c6 11. d4 Qh4+ 12. g3 Qh3 13. Bc4 Be6 {This is considered to be the main line, at least in games between human opponents. As explained in various sources, the evaluation of this line depends of the strenght or weakness of Black's e4-pawn.} 14. Bg5 (14. Bf4 O-O-O 15. O-O-O Bd6 {is another possibilty, leading to complex play.}) 14... O-O-O 15. O-O-O Bd6 16. Rhf1 {The most natural continuation} (16. Qf1 {is considered to be the main line, but in his excellent book 'The Ruy Lopez Revisited' Ivan Sokolov showed a quite convincing way for Black to deal with it:} Rhf8 17. Nf7 Rd7 18. Qxh3 Bxh3 19. Bxf6 gxf6 20. Nxd6+ Rxd6 {followed by f5 and then h5-h4.}) 16... Rhe8 {For this move I spent a lot of time, but since I had blitzed out the previous once, I could afford it. The moment is indeed critical, since the subsequent endgame is not easy to evaluate.} ({After} 16... Rhf8 {I was afraid of} 17. g4 $5 Bxc4 18. Qxc4 {with initiative to White.}) 17. Bxf6 {The critical continuation.} (17. Bxe6+ Qxe6 18. Bxf6 gxf6 19. Nc4 Bc7 20. Kb1 f5 21. Ne3 Rf8 {seems fine for Black.}) 17... gxf6 18. Rxf6 Bxe5 19. Rxe6 ({The alternative} 19. Bxe6+ Rxe6 20. dxe5 Rxd1+ 21. Kxd1 Rxe5 22. Rf8+ Kc7 23. Rf7+ {was scary to meet over the board, but after} Kc8 24. Qf2 Rd5+ 25. Ke1 Qg4 26. Rf8+ Kc7 27. Qf4+ Qxf4 28. Rxf4 e3 {Black had just enough play for a draw in Popelka-Voetter correspondence 2007.}) 19... Rxe6 20. Bxe6+ Qxe6 21. dxe5 Qh6+ $1 {Only after seeing this move could I really decide on 16...?he8.} (21... Rxd1+ 22. Kxd1 Qd5+ 23. Ke1 Qxe5 24. Qg4+ {is probably bad for Black, since the pawn ending after} Kc7 25. Qf4 Qxf4 26. gxf4 Kd6 27. Ke2 Ke6 28. Ke3 Kf5 29. b4 {is winning for White.}) 22. Rd2 {Again the best try. Magnus was taking a lot of time with his moves, probably in order to put as many problems as possible for Black.} (22. Kb1 Rxd1+ 23. Qxd1 e3 $1 {passed pawns must be pushed!} (23... Qxh2 $2 24. e6 {is embarrassing.}) 24. b3 Qxh2 25. e6 Qd2 {leeds to a draw.}) 22... Rxd2 23. Qxd2 e3 24. Qe2 (24. Qd6 $4 e2+ {is something you hope for in a bullet game.}) 24... Qg5 25. Kd1 (25. e6 Qe5 $11) 25... Kc7 $1 {I am proud to say that I calculated this move before I played 21...?h6.} (25... Qxe5 26. Qg4+ Kd8 (26... Kc7 $2 27. Qf4 Kd6 28. Ke2 $18) 27. Qg8+ Kc7 28. Qxh7+ Kb6 29. Ke2 {is clearly better for White.}) 26. Qd3 Qh5+ 27. Kc1 Qh6 $5 {Seeing that Carlsen was in a slight time trouble, I tried to tempt him into a complicated pawn ending, where precision is required from both sides. Since going for this ending was the only winning try in the position for White, I was silently hoping that Magnus would go for it.} (27... Qxe5 28. Qxh7+ Kb6 29. Qf7 Qe4 {is most likely enough for a draw.}) 28. Kd1 (28. Qd6+ Qxd6 29. exd6+ Kxd6 30. Kd1 Ke5 31. Ke2 Ke4 {was the critical line and it seems to be a draw with correct play from both sides. Here are some sample lines:} 32. b4 (32. c3 c5 33. c4 a6 34. b3 (34. a4 $2 a5 35. b3 b6 36. g4 Kf4 37. h3 h6 $19) 34... b5 35. cxb5 $1 axb5 36. a4 c4 37. a5 cxb3 38. a6 b2 39. a7 b1=Q 40. a8=Q+ $11) 32... b6 33. a4 (33. c3 b5 34. g4 Kf4 35. g5 Kxg5 36. Kxe3 Kg4 37. Kd4 Kh3 38. Kc5 Kxh2 39. Kxc6 a6 40. Kd5 h5 41. c4 bxc4 42. Kxc4 h4 43. a4 $11) 33... c5 34. bxc5 bxc5 35. c3 c4 36. g4 Kf4 37. g5 a5 38. h4 Kg4 39. Kxe3 Kxh4 40. Kf4 Kh3 41. Kf3 $1 $11 {After seeing all this lines, it seems that it is rather White who has to be careful and Magnus was absolutely right to avoid this pawn ending.}) 28... Qh5+ 29. Ke1 Qxh2 $1 30. Qd6+ (30. Qxe3 Qxc2 $11) 30... Kc8 (30... Kb6 $2 {was the last possibility to go wrong:} 31. Qd8+ Ka6 32. Qd3+ b5 33. Qxe3 Qxc2 34. Qe2 {and Black is suffering for a draw.}) 31. Qf8+ Kc7 32. Qe7+ Kc8 1/2-1/2 [Event "Porto Vecchio m of the Hopes"] [Site "Porto Vecchio"] [Date "2007.05.18"] [Round "3"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Radjabov, Teimour"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C63"] [WhiteElo "2693"] [BlackElo "2747"] [PlyCount "154"] [EventDate "2007.05.18"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "5"] [EventCountry "FRA"] [SourceTitle "CBM 118 Extra"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2007.07.04"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2007.07.04"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 f5 4. d3 fxe4 5. dxe4 Nf6 6. O-O Bc5 7. Qe2 d6 8. Qc4 Qe7 9. Nc3 Bd7 ({RR} 9... a6 10. Ba4 b5 11. Nxb5 axb5 12. Bxb5 Bd7 13. Bxc6 Bxc6 14. b4 Ra4 15. Rb1 Qd7 16. Ng5 Bb5 17. Qc3 Bd4 {0-1 (17) Chor,K (1966)-Erdogmus,Y (2618) chess.com INT 2025}) 10. Bg5 a6 11. Bxc6 bxc6 12. Be3 $146 ({RR} 12. Rad1 Be6 13. Qa4 Bd7 14. Qc4 Be6 15. Qa4 Bd7 16. Qc4 {½-½ (16) Kryakvin,D (2459)-Tay,J (2230) Playchess.com INT 2005}) 12... Bxe3 13. fxe3 Qf7 14. Nd2 O-O 15. Qxf7+ Kxf7 16. Nc4 Ke7 17. Na5 Rab8 18. Rab1 c5 19. a3 Bb5 20. Rf3 Bd7 21. Rff1 Rb6 22. Nc4 Rb7 23. Na5 Rbb8 24. b4 cxb4 25. axb4 Rb6 26. Nd5+ Nxd5 27. exd5 Rxf1+ 28. Kxf1 c6 29. dxc6 Bxc6 30. c4 Be4 31. Rb2 Ke6 32. Ke1 Rb8 33. b5 axb5 34. cxb5 Ra8 35. Nc4 Ra4 36. Nd2 Bb7 37. b6 Kd7 38. Rc2 Bc6 39. Rb2 Bb7 40. Rc2 Ra1+ 41. Kf2 Bc6 42. Rb2 Ra8 43. Nc4 Rb8 44. Rd2 Ke7 45. Nxd6 Bd7 46. Nc4 Be6 47. Nxe5 Rxb6 48. Nf3 Rb8 49. h4 h6 50. Rd4 Rb2+ 51. Nd2 Rb5 52. g4 Rb8 53. Nf3 Rb3 54. g5 hxg5 55. Nxg5 Bf5 56. Rf4 Bg6 57. Nf3 Rb2+ 58. Kg3 Re2 59. Rg4 Kf6 60. Kf4 Rf2 61. Rg5 Bc2 62. e4 Bd1 63. Rf5+ Ke7 64. Kg3 Re2 65. Re5+ Kf6 66. Rd5 Bc2 67. e5+ Ke7 68. Nd4 Re3+ 69. Kf2 Rd3 70. e6 g6 71. Rd7+ Kf6 72. e7 Kf7 73. Rd8 Kxe7 74. Nc6+ Kf6 75. Rxd3 Bxd3 76. Ke3 g5 77. hxg5+ Kxg5 1/2-1/2 [Event "Morelia/Linares 25th"] [Site "Morelia/Linares"] [Date "2008.03.07"] [Round "14"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Radjabov, Teimour"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C63"] [WhiteElo "2733"] [BlackElo "2735"] [PlyCount "138"] [EventDate "2008.02.15"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "14"] [EventCountry "ESP"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 123"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2008.04.02"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2008.04.02"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {Marin,Mihail} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 f5 4. d3 ({RR} 4. Nc3 fxe4 5. Nxe4 Nf6) 4... fxe4 5. dxe4 Nf6 6. O-O Bc5 7. Qd3 ({RR} 7. Bxc6 bxc6 8. Nxe5 O-O 9. Bg5 Qe8 10. Bxf6 Rxf6) 7... d6 8. Qc4 Qe7 9. Nc3 Bd7 10. Nd5 ({RR} 10. Bg5) 10... Nxd5 11. exd5 Nd4 12. Nxd4 Bxd4 13. Bxd7+ Qxd7 14. a4 ({RR} 14. c3 Bb6 15. a4 ({RR} 15. Be3 O-O) 15... a6 16. a5 ({RR} 16. Be3 Bxe3 17. fxe3 O-O-O 18. Rf2 Rdf8 19. Raf1 Rxf2 20. Rxf2 Kb8 21. b3 Qe7 22. Qe4 g6 23. Qf3 Rc8) 16... Ba7 17. Be3 Bxe3 18. fxe3 O-O-O) 14... a6 15. Be3 Bxe3 16. fxe3 O-O-O 17. Rf2 Rdf8 18. Raf1 Qe7 ({RR} 18... Rxf2 19. Rxf2 Kb8 20. b3 Qe7 21. Qe4 g6 ({RR} 21... h6 22. Qf5) 22. Qf3 Rc8 23. c4 c6 24. dxc6 Rxc6 25. e4 Qg5 26. h3 Qc1+ 27. Kh2 Qe1 28. Rf1 Qd2 ({RR} 28... Qb4 29. Qd3 Qc5) 29. Qf8+ Rc8 ({RR} 29... Ka7 30. Qd8) 30. Qe7 Qd3 31. Rf3 Qxe4 32. Qxd6+ Ka7 33. Rf7 {Topalov,V (2780)-Radjabov,T (2735) Morelia/Linares 2008 CBM 123 [Marin,Mihail] ½-½ (54)} ({RR} 33. Qd7 Qc6 ({RR} 33... Rh8 34. Rf7) 34. Qxh7)) 19. Qe4 g6 20. Rf3 $146 ({RR} 20. c4 Rxf2 21. Rxf2 Rf8 22. Qg4+ Kd8 23. Rc2 Qf6 24. Qe2 Qh4 25. b4 b5 26. h3 Qe4 27. cxb5 axb5 28. a5 Qxd5 29. a6 c6 30. Rd2 Qe6 31. e4 Kd7 32. Qe3 Qc4 33. Rf2 Rxf2 34. Qxf2 Kc7 {McPhillips,J (2199)-Staniforth,M (1899) Hastings 2013 1-0 (48)}) ({RR} 20. a5 Rxf2 21. Rxf2 Rf8 22. Rxf8+ Qxf8 23. Qh4 Qf7 24. Qe4 Qf5 25. Qxf5+ gxf5 26. Kf2 Kd7 27. Kg3 Ke7 28. Kh4 Kf6 29. b4 b5 30. Kh5 e4 31. g3 Ke5 32. Kh6 Kxd5 33. Kxh7 c5 34. Kg6 Ke6 {Ruether,M (1814)-Ziese,G (1988) Berlin 2014 0-1 (42)}) 20... Kb8 21. b3 Rxf3 22. Qxf3 Qg5 23. h3 Rc8 24. Kh2 Qh4 25. c4 a5 26. e4 Qh6 27. Qf2 b6 28. g3 Kb7 29. Kg2 Ra8 30. h4 g5 31. Qe3 Rg8 32. Rf5 Qh5 33. hxg5 Qd1 34. Rf7 Qh5 35. Qf3 Qxg5 36. Rxh7 Qf4 37. Rh5 Rg7 38. Qd3 Qc1 39. Qf3 Qf4 40. Qxf4 exf4 41. Rh3 fxg3 42. Rxg3 Rh7 43. Kf3 Rf7+ 44. Ke3 Rf1 45. Kd4 Rd1+ 46. Rd3 Re1 47. Re3 Rd1+ 48. Kc3 Rc1+ 49. Kd2 Rb1 50. e5 dxe5 51. Kc2 Rh1 52. Rxe5 Rh3 53. Re2 Kc8 54. Rd2 Kd7 55. Rd3 Rh2+ 56. Kc3 Rh1 57. Rg3 Rd1 58. Rg7+ Kd6 59. Rg6+ Kd7 60. Rc6 Rc1+ 61. Kb2 Rd1 62. Kc2 Rd4 63. b4 axb4 64. Kb3 Rd1 65. Kxb4 Rb1+ 66. Kc3 Ra1 67. Kb3 Rb1+ 68. Ka2 Rb4 69. Ka3 Rb1 1/2-1/2 [Event "Norway Chess 2024"] [Site "Stavanger, Norway"] [Date "2024.05.28"] [Round "3.1"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C64"] [WhiteElo "2830"] [BlackElo "2794"] [Annotator "Stockfish 16.1 - Chessbase"] [PlyCount "70"] [EventDate "2024.??.??"] 1. e4 {[%eval 15,0] Stockfish 16.1} e5 {[%eval 21,0]} 2. Nf3 {[%eval 19,0]} Nc6 {[%eval 19,0]} 3. Bb5 {[%eval 22,0]} a6 {[%eval 38,0]} 4. Ba4 {[%eval 21,0]} Bc5 {[%eval 42,0]} 5. c3 {[%eval 41,0]} Nge7 {[%eval 42,0]} 6. O-O {[%eval 35,0]} Ng6 {[%eval 34,0]} 7. d4 {[%eval 39,0]} Ba7 {[%eval 38,0]} 8. Re1 {[%eval 5,0]} ({RR} 8. Bg5 f6 9. Be3 O-O 10. Nbd2 Kh8 11. Re1 exd4 ({RR} 11... d6 12. h3 exd4 ({RR} 12... Bd7 13. Nf1 Nce7 14. Bc2 exd4 15. Bxd4 Bxd4 16. cxd4 d5 17. Ng3 dxe4 18. Bxe4 Bc6 19. Qb3 Bd5 20. Qc2 Qd7 21. Rac1 c6 22. Bxd5 Nxd5 23. Ne4 Rae8 24. Nc5 Qf7 25. Qf5) 13. cxd4 Nce7 14. Nf1 c6 15. Bb3 d5 16. Ng3 Bb8 17. Bd2 a5 18. Qc2 ({RR} 18. Rc1) 18... Bxg3 19. fxg3 a4 20. Bxa4 dxe4 21. Rxe4 Bf5 22. Bb3 Nd5 23. Rae1 Qd7 24. g4 ({RR} 24. Rf1) 24... Bxe4 25. Rxe4 Rae8 26. Rxe8) 12. Nxd4 Nxd4 13. Bxd4 ({RR} 13. cxd4 d5 14. exd5 Ne7 15. Bc2 Bf5 16. Bxf5 Nxf5 17. Qb3 Rb8 18. Ne4 Nxd4 19. Bxd4 Bxd4 20. Rad1 Ba7 21. d6 Qd7 22. Qg3 ({RR} 22. Qc3 Bb6 23. a4 cxd6 24. Rxd6) 22... Rbe8 23. h3 cxd6 24. Qxd6 Qf7 25. Nc3 h6 26. g3 Bb8 27. Qd5 Rxe1+) 13... Bxd4 14. cxd4 d5 15. exd5 Qxd5 16. Ne4 Qd8 17. Bc2 ({RR} 17. d5 b6) 17... f5 18. Nc5 b6 19. Nd3 Bb7 20. Ne5 Qg5 21. d5 Rad8 22. Bb3 c5 {½-½ Nepomniachtchi,I (2758)-Nakamura,H (2789) FIDE Candidates 2024 Toronto CAN (13.1)} ({RR} 22... Nh4 23. g3 f4)) ({RR} 8. Bg5 f6 9. Be3 O-O 10. Nbd2 Kh8 11. Re1 exd4 12. Nxd4 Nxd4 13. Bxd4 Bxd4 14. cxd4 d5 15. exd5 Qxd5 16. Ne4 Qd8 17. Bc2 f5 18. Nc5 b6 19. Nd3 Bb7 20. Ne5 Qg5 21. d5 Rad8 22. Bb3 c5 {½-½ Nepomniachtchi,I (2758)-Nakamura,H (2789) FIDE Candidates 2024 Toronto, Canada (13.1)}) 8... O-O {[%eval 52,0]} 9. Be3 {[%eval 36,0]} Qf6 {[%eval 44,0]} 10. Bxc6 {[%eval 29,0]} exd4 $146 {[%eval 39,0]} ({RR} 10... dxc6 11. Nxe5 Nxe5 12. dxe5 Qxe5 13. Bxa7 Rxa7 14. Nd2 Rd8 15. Qe2 Ra8 16. Nb3 Be6 17. Rad1 h6 18. Nd4 Bd7 19. Rd2 c5 20. Nf3 Qe7 21. Red1 Be6 22. Rxd8+ Rxd8 23. Rxd8+ Qxd8 24. a3 a5 25. h3 {0-1 Huschenbeth,N (2605)-Mamedyarov,S (2734) Bundesliga 2023-24 Deizisau GER (8.4)}) 11. Bxd4 {[%eval 11,0]} Bxd4 {[%eval 21,0]} 12. Qxd4 {[%eval 7,0]} Qxd4 {[%eval 16,0]} 13. Nxd4 {[%eval 8,0]} dxc6 {[%eval 2,0]} 14. Nd2 {[%eval 4,0]} c5 {[%eval 5,0]} 15. Nf5 {[%eval 4,0]} Be6 {[%eval 1,0]} 16. Nf3 {[%eval 28,0]} Rad8 {[%eval 29,0]} 17. g3 {[%eval 43,0]} Rfe8 {[%eval 37,0]} 18. Kg2 {[%eval 63,0]} f6 {[%eval 44,0]} 19. Re3 {[%eval 89,0]} Nh8 {[%eval 54,0]} 20. h3 {[%eval 56,0]} g6 {[%eval 66,0]} 21. N5h4 {[%eval 67,0]} Nf7 {[%eval 61,0]} 22. g4 {[%eval 55,0]} Bd7 {[%eval 32,0]} 23. Rae1 {[%eval 28,0]} Bc6 {[%eval 27,0]} 24. Kg3 {[%eval 23,0]} Re6 {[%eval 12,0]} 25. b3 {[%eval 1,0]} Kf8 {[%eval 8,0]} 26. c4 {[%eval 3,0]} a5 {[%eval 9,0]} 27. a4 {[%eval 22,0]} b6 {[%eval 1,0]} 28. Ng2 {[%eval 1,0]} g5 {[%eval 0,0]} 29. R1e2 {[%eval 0,0]} Rd1 {[%eval 0,0]} 30. Nfe1 {[%eval 15,0]} Red6 {[%eval 1,0]} 31. Rc3 {[%eval 3,0]} Nd8 {[%eval 8,0]} 32. Ne3 {[%eval 21,0]} R1d2 {[%eval 0,0]} 33. Rxd2 {[%eval 0,0]} Rxd2 {[%eval 0,0]} 34. Nf3 {[%eval 0,0]} Rb2 {[%eval 0,0]} 35. Nd5 {[%eval 0,0]} Bxd5 {[%eval 0,0]} 1/2-1/2 [Event "World-ch Carlsen-Anand +3-0=7"] [Site "Chennai"] [Date "2013.11.16"] [Round "6"] [White "Anand, Viswanathan"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2775"] [BlackElo "2870"] [Annotator "Stohl,Igor"] [PlyCount "134"] [EventDate "2013.11.09"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "12"] [EventCountry "IND"] [SourceTitle "CBM 158"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2014.01.16"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2014.01.16"] [SourceQuality "1"] {[%mdl 32]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 (3... a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Bc5 6. c3 O-O 7. d3 b5 8. Bb3 d6 9. Bg5 $5 {The reason why we are quoting the following 2 games will soon become clear...} h6 10. Bh4 Be6 (10... g5 11. Bg3 Bg4 12. Nbd2 Nh5 13. Re1 (13. Bd5 Qd7 14. Bxc6 Qxc6 15. Nxe5 $5 Bxd1 16. Nxc6 Be2 17. d4 Bxf1 18. Nxf1 $44) 13... Nxg3 14. hxg3 Ne7 $6 (14... Qf6 15. Nf1 Ne7 $13) 15. Nf1 Ng6 16. d4 Bb6 17. Ne3 Bxf3 $2 (17... Bd7 $142 $1) 18. gxf3 (18. Qxf3 $1 exd4 19. Qh5 $40) 18... exd4 19. cxd4 Qf6 20. Ng4 Qg7 (20... Qxd4 $142 21. Qxd4 Bxd4 22. Nxh6+ Kh7 23. Nxf7 Bf6 $14) 21. e5 $36 {Carlsen,M (2714)-Shirov,A (2739)/WCh blitz Moscow/2007/}) 11. Nbd2 g5 (11... Bxb3 12. axb3 Nb8 $6 (12... Re8 $142 {leads to Spraggett-Fedorchuk, all this after} 13. Re1 {tranposes to the position from our game.}) 13. d4 $16) 12. Bg3 Bb6 13. Re1 Nd7 14. Nf1 Qf6 15. Ne3 Bxe3 16. Rxe3 Ne7 17. Bc2 Ng6 18. d4 Nb6 19. b3 h5 20. h3 h4 21. Bh2 g4 22. hxg4 Bxg4 23. Qd2 Kg7 24. Rf1 Rh8 25. Ne1 c5 26. f3 Be6 27. f4 exf4 28. Ref3 $1 $40 {Carlsen,M (2813)-Ponomariov,R (2737)/Nice blindfold rpd/2010/}) 4. d3 {A popular and legitimate attempt to retain the tension and avoid quick simplification. Although this line had already appeared in a few of their previous encounters, Anand spurns the surprise factor and after Game 4 is unwilling to enter the complex Berlin endgame (or queenless middlegame?) with} (4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 (5. Re1 Nd6 6. Nxe5 Be7 7. Bf1 Nxe5 8. Rxe5 O-O 9. d4 Bf6 10. Re1 Re8 11. c3 Rxe1 12. Qxe1 Ne8 13. Bf4 d5 14. Bd3 g6 15. Nd2 Ng7 16. Qe2 c6 17. Re1 Bf5 18. Bxf5 Nxf5 19. Nf3 Ng7 20. Be5 Ne6 $11 {Carlsen,M (2870)-Anand,V (2775)/WCh Chennai/2013/ is insipid and rather boring - but who can blame Carlsen, who already had a 2-point lead at that moment...}) 5... Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. h3 Bd7 10. Rd1 Be7 11. Nc3 Kc8 12. Bg5 h6 13. Bxe7 Nxe7 14. Rd2 c5 15. Rad1 Be6 16. Ne1 (16. Ne2 $5 Ng6 17. Ng3 b6 18. Nh5 Rg8 19. a3 a5 20. Re1 Kb7 21. Nh2 Ne7 22. f4 $14 {Gorbatov,A (2360)-Pranizin,G (2187)/Khanty-Mansiysk/2013/ This is a subsequent example, played only after Chennai.}) 16... Ng6 17. Nd3 b6 18. Ne2 $6 Bxa2 19. b3 c4 20. Ndc1 cxb3 21. cxb3 Bb1 22. f4 Kb7 23. Nc3 Bf5 24. g4 Bc8 $15 {/?,Anand,V (2775)-Carlsen,M (2870)/WCh Chennai/2013/}) 4... Bc5 {This active move is very topical right now, as I already mentioned in the notes to Navara-Caruana (CBM 157).} ({The more restrained} 4... d6 {has also featured in the opponent's previous encounters:} 5. O-O Be7 (5... Bd7 6. c3 g6 7. Re1 a6 8. Ba4 Bg7 9. Nbd2 O-O 10. Nf1 Re8 11. Bb3 Be6 12. h3 Bxb3 13. Qxb3 Qd7 14. Bg5 Nh5 15. Rad1 h6 16. Bc1 Nf6 17. Ng3 Na5 18. Qc2 c5 19. d4 cxd4 20. cxd4 Rac8 21. Qd3 exd4 22. Nxd4 Nc4 23. b3 Ne5 24. Qb1 h5 25. Bb2 h4 26. Nf1 d5 {Anand,V (2783)-Carlsen,M (2868)/Stavanger blitz/2013/}) 6. c3 O-O 7. Nbd2 Bd7 8. Re1 Re8 9. Nf1 Bf8 10. Ba4 h6 11. Ng3 Ne7 12. Bb3 Ng6 13. d4 c5 14. h3 Qc7 15. a4 a6 16. a5 cxd4 17. cxd4 exd4 18. Nxd4 d5 19. exd5 Rxe1+ 20. Qxe1 Re8 21. Qc3 Qxc3 22. bxc3 Re1+ 23. Kh2 Bd6 24. Nc2 Rf1 25. Be3 Rxa1 26. Nxa1 Be5 $11 {Carlsen,M (2826)-Anand,V (2800)/Bilbao /2010/ Carlsen later overpressed and lost - see the notes to this game by Ftacnik in CBM 139.}) 5. c3 ({In Game 7 Anand tried} 5. Bxc6 dxc6 6. Nbd2 {and ran into the rare, but clever} Bg4 $5 ({Usually good enough for equality, there is also the more standard} 6... O-O 7. O-O Re8 (7... Bg4 8. h3 Bh5 9. Nc4 Re8 10. Be3 Bd6 11. Bg5 h6 12. Bh4 g5 13. g4 Bg6 14. Bg3 Nd7 15. h4 f6 16. Ne3 Bf8 17. Kg2 Nc5 18. hxg5 hxg5 19. Nf5 Ne6 20. Rh1 Qd7 21. Rh3 Bxf5 22. exf5 Nf4+ 23. Bxf4 exf4 24. Nd2 Rad8 25. Qf3 Bg7 26. Ne4 $16 {[%csl Ge4,Rg7][%CAl Gh1h8] Carlsen,M (2837)-Karjakin,S (2779)/Astana blitz/2012/}) 8. Nc4 Nd7 9. a4 (9. Kh1 a5 10. a4 b6 11. Be3 Bb4 12. Nfd2 b5 13. axb5 cxb5 14. c3 bxc4 15. cxb4 cxd3 16. bxa5 Ba6 17. Qb3 Nf6 {Anand,V (2780)-Kramnik,V (2810)/Zuerich 2013/} 18. f3 $5 $13 {Gormally}) 9... Bf8 (9... a5 10. b3 Bf8 11. Kh1 b6 12. g3 Ba6 13. Bb2 Bxc4 14. bxc4 g6 15. Nh4 Bh6 16. Ng2 Nc5 17. f4 exf4 18. gxf4 Bg7 19. Bxg7 Kxg7 20. f5 Qg5 21. Rf3 Rad8 22. Qf1 $14 {Anand,V (2783)-Aronian,L (2813)/Stavanger blitz/2013/}) 10. Kh1 f6 11. b3 Nc5 12. Ng1 Ne6 13. Ne2 b6 14. f4 exf4 15. Nxf4 Nxf4 16. Bxf4 Be6 17. Qf3 Bxc4 18. bxc4 Bd6 19. Qg3 Bxf4 20. Rxf4 Qd6 21. Qf3 Re5 22. h3 Rae8 $11 {Anand,V (2783)-Hammer,J (2608)/Stavanger blitz/2013/}) ({Carlsen himself had to face the more risky} 6... Be6 {- something he was unwilling to repeat with Black:} 7. b3 $5 (7. O-O Bd6 8. b3 Nd7 9. Nc4 Bxc4 10. bxc4 O-O 11. Rb1 b6 12. g3 f5 13. exf5 Rxf5 14. Qe2 Nc5 15. Be3 Ne6 16. Nd2 Qf6 17. Qg4 Rf8 18. Ne4 Qf7 19. a4 h5 20. Qe2 Be7 21. a5 Qg6 22. axb6 axb6 23. Kh1 Rf3 $132 {Carlsen,M (2843)-Aronian,L (2816)/Sao Paulo/Bilbao/2012/}) (7. Qe2 Nd7 8. Nb3 Bd6 9. Bd2 b6 10. Ng5 Qe7 11. O-O a5 12. Nxe6 Qxe6 13. a4 Nc5 14. Nxc5 Bxc5 15. Be3 Bd6 16. b3 O-O 17. Kh1 Bb4 18. f4 exf4 19. Bxf4 Bd6 20. Qf2 Rae8 21. Bxd6 Qxd6 22. Rae1 Re6 $11 {Caruana,F (2782)-Navara,D (2705)/EU-chT Warsaw/2013/}) 7... Ng4 8. O-O f6 9. Qe2 Qd7 10. Nc4 g5 11. Rb1 b5 12. Ne3 h5 13. c3 Qh7 14. d4 Bb6 15. Nc2 O-O-O 16. a4 exd4 17. Nfxd4 (17. cxd4 $5 $36) 17... Bd7 18. b4 $6 (18. f3 Ne5 19. Kh1 $14) 18... Rhe8 19. Re1 a6 20. Ra1 Kb7 21. axb5 axb5 22. c4 bxc4 23. Qxc4 Ra8 24. Rxa8 Rxa8 $132 {Carlsen,M (2837)-Bacrot,E (2713)/Biel/2012/}) 7. h3 Bh5 ({Black is in no hurry to play} 7... Bxf3 $143 8. Qxf3 Nd7 9. Qg3 Qf6 10. Nc4 O-O 11. O-O Rfe8 12. a4 Nf8 13. Bg5 Qe6 14. Bd2 Ng6 15. b4 Bf8 16. Qg4 b6 17. g3 f6 18. Bc3 Bd6 19. Ne3 Kh8 20. Kg2 a6 21. Qf3 Ne7 22. h4 b5 23. Rfb1 Qd7 24. h5 h6 25. Qg4 Qxg4 26. Nxg4 $14 {Adams,M (2733)-Fressinet,L (2696)/Bundesliga/2012/}) 8. Nf1 (8. Nc4 Nd7 9. Be3 f6 10. Qd2 Qe7 11. Nh4 O-O-O $5 12. Nf5 Qf8 13. O-O Bf7 14. b3 g6 15. Ng3 h5 16. Bxc5 Nxc5 17. Qe3 Kb8 18. f4 Bxc4 19. bxc4 Qd6 20. Ne2 Rhf8 $132 {Sjugirov,S (2641)-Maletin,P (2598)/Khanty-Mansiysk/2013/ This is another game, played only after the match.}) 8... Nd7 9. Ng3 Bxf3 $5 ({Only now, although also} 9... Bg6 10. Bg5 f6 11. Bd2 Nf8 $1 $13 {seems playable.}) 10. Qxf3 g6 11. Be3 Qe7 12. O-O-O O-O-O 13. Ne2 Rhe8 14. Kb1 b6 15. h4 Kb7 16. h5 Bxe3 17. Qxe3 Nc5 18. hxg6 hxg6 19. g3 a5 20. Rh7 Rh8 21. Rdh1 Rxh7 22. Rxh7 Qf6 23. f4 Rh8 $11 {Anand,V (2775)-Carlsen,M (2870)/WCh Chennai/2013/}) ({White's move order avoids} 5. O-O Nd4 $5 (5... d6 6. c3 {- 6...d6}) 6. Ba4 Nxf3+ 7. Qxf3 O-O 8. Qg3 d6 9. Bg5 c6 10. Bb3 Nh5 11. Qh4 Nf6 12. Nc3 h6 13. Bd2 a5 14. Kh1 Bd4 15. f4 Ng4 16. Qxd8 Rxd8 17. fxe5 Nxe5 18. a4 Be6 19. Bxe6 fxe6 20. Ne2 Bb6 21. Nf4 Re8 22. h3 Nd7 23. Rf3 Ne5 24. Rff1 Nd7 25. g4 d5 $11 {Carlsen,M (2823)-Anand,V (2817)/Moscow rpd/2011/ See the notes to this game by Postny in CBM 144.}) (5. Nc3 d6 6. Na4 Bb6 7. Nxb6 axb6 8. c3 Bd7 9. Ba4 Ne7 10. Bc2 Ng6 11. h3 O-O 12. O-O h6 13. Re1 Re8 14. d4 Bc6 15. dxe5 dxe5 16. Qxd8 Rexd8 17. g3 Nd7 18. Be3 Nc5 19. Nd2 Nf8 20. f3 Nfe6 21. h4 Bb5 22. a3 Rd7 (22... Bd3 $1) 23. b4 Nd3 $6 (23... Ba4 $1 24. bxc5 Bxc2 $11) 24. Reb1 Ba4 25. Bxa4 Rxa4 26. Kf1 $13 {[%csl Rd3] Carlsen,M (2848)-Anand,V (2775)/London /2012/ See the notes to this game by Postny in CBM 152.}) 5... O-O 6. O-O (6. Bxc6 bxc6 7. Nxe5 d5 8. Bg5 Re8 9. f4 dxe4 10. d4 Bb6 11. Nd2 c5 12. dxc5 Bxc5 13. Qe2 h6 14. Bh4 g5 15. fxg5 hxg5 16. Bg3 e3 (16... Qd5 $142 $1 $13 {/?}) 17. Nb3 Bb6 (17... Bd6 $5 18. O-O-O Qe7 19. Qxe3 Bxe5 20. Qxg5+ Kf8 21. Qh6+ Kg8 $11) 18. Qf3 Be6 19. Rd1 g4 20. Qe2 Qe7 21. Nc6 (21. O-O Ne4 22. Nd4 $14) 21... Qf8 22. Nbd4 Qc5 (22... Bc8 $1 23. O-O Ba6 $13) 23. Ne5 $36 {Ivanchuk,V (2717)-Kramnik,V (2772)/Wijk aan Zee/2001/}) 6... Re8 {An interesting move; given the chance, Black can later play d5 in one move.} ({Earlier Magnus played the standard continuation} 6... d6 7. Nbd2 Bb6 ({Perhaps better than the more usual, but somewhat provocative} 7... a6 8. Bxc6 bxc6 {, mentioned shortly in the notes to Navara-Caruana, CBM 157.}) 8. Nc4 Ne7 9. Nxb6 axb6 10. Ba4 Ng6 11. h3 Nh5 12. Bg5 f6 13. Be3 Nhf4 14. Bb3+ Kh8 15. Bxf4 Nxf4 16. Nh4 f5 17. Nxf5 Qg5 18. Qg4 Qf6 19. Qh4 Qxh4 20. Nxh4 Nxd3 21. Nf3 Rf6 22. Rad1 Nxb2 23. Rd2 Na4 24. Nxe5 Be6 25. Ng4 Bxg4 26. hxg4 Nxc3 27. Re1 h6 {½,Anand,V (2817)-Carlsen,M (2823)/Moscow rpd/2011/} 28. e5 $44) (6... d5 7. Nbd2 $5 (7. exd5 Qxd5 8. Bc4 Qd8 9. b4 Bd6 10. Re1 h6 11. Nbd2 Re8 12. a4 Bf5 13. Ne4 Be6 14. Bxe6 Rxe6 15. b5 Nb8 16. Nxd6 cxd6 17. c4 Nbd7 18. Ba3 Qc7 19. Rc1 Nc5 20. d4 exd4 21. Rxe6 fxe6 22. Nxd4 Re8 23. Qc2 Qf7 24. Rd1 Rc8 $132 {Sjugirov,S (2610)-Bacrot,E (2706)/EU-ch Plovdiv/2012/}) (7. Bxc6 bxc6 8. Nxe5 dxe4 9. d4 Bd6 10. Bg5 (10. Nxc6 $6 Qe8 11. Na5 $2 Qb5 12. Nb3 Bg4 13. Qd2 Bxh2+ 14. Kxh2 Qxf1 15. Qf4 Bf3 16. gxf3 Qxf2+ 17. Kh1 exf3 18. Qh2 Qe1+ {0-1,Neumann,G-Anderssen,A/Berlin/1864/}) 10... Qe8 (10... h6 $13) (10... Ba6 11. Re1 Bxe5 12. dxe5 Qxd1 13. Rxd1 Ng4 14. Bf4 $6 (14. Nd2 $142 $14) 14... Rfe8 15. Rd7 Rad8 16. Rxd8 Rxd8 17. Na3 e3 18. fxe3 Rd2 $44 {Riemann,F-Anderssen,A/Breslau/1877/}) 11. Bxf6 gxf6 12. Nc4 Qe6 13. Nbd2 f5 14. Re1 Ba6 15. b3 Rae8 16. Re3 Bf4 17. Rh3 h6 18. Qh5 Kg7 19. Re1 Qg6 20. Qd1 Kh7 21. g3 {Gu,X (2369)-Zhao,X (2495)/Jiangsu Wuxi/2011/} Bg5 $13) 7... dxe4 8. Nxe4 Nxe4 9. dxe4 Qf6 10. Qe2 Bg4 11. h3 Bxf3 12. Qxf3 Qxf3 13. gxf3 Ne7 14. f4 c6 15. Bc4 exf4 16. Bxf4 Ng6 17. Bg3 Rfe8 18. Rfe1 Rad8 19. Rad1 Rxd1 20. Rxd1 Rxe4 21. Rd8+ Nf8 22. Bd3 Re1+ 23. Kg2 a5 24. Ra8 Rd1 25. Bc4 $44 {/?,Radjabov,T (2735)-Carlsen,M (2733)/Morelia/Linares/2008/ See the notes to this game by Radjabov in CBM 123.}) 7. Re1 (7. Bg5 h6 8. Bh4 Bf8 9. Nbd2 d6 10. d4 exd4 11. Nxd4 Bd7 12. Nxc6 bxc6 13. Bd3 Be7 14. f4 Qb8 {[%CAl Rf6e4,Rb8b2]} 15. Bxf6 Bxf6 16. e5 dxe5 17. Ne4 Qxb2 18. f5 Red8 19. Bc4 Be8 20. Qh5 {Carlsen,M (2826)-Howell,D (2633)/London/2011/} Qb6+ {?c5?/?}) 7... a6 8. Ba4 b5 9. Bb3 (9. Bc2 d5 $1 {illustrates what we said in the note to Black's 6th move:} 10. exd5 Nxd5 11. a4 (11. Bb3 $142) 11... b4 12. Ng5 $6 h6 13. Ne4 Bb6 14. Qh5 Nf6 15. Qf3 Nxe4 16. Qxe4 {Zhao Dindin-Kosteniuk,A/WChJ Szeged/1994/} Qf6 17. d4 g6 $36 {[%CAl Rc8f5]}) 9... d6 (9... d5 $2 10. exd5 Nxd5 11. d4 $16) 10. Bg5 $5 $146 {[%mdl 8] Formally this is a novelty. However, as we have seen in the notes above, Carlsen himself has used the bishop sortie in very similar positions on at least 3 occasions. He must have been familiar with the nuances, as the diffrence between his games with Shirov and Ponomariov is only the insertion of ?e1 and ?e8; Magnus finds a way to profit from this.} (10. a4 b4 (10... Bb7 11. Nbd2 h6 12. Nf1 Ne7 13. Ng3 Ng6 14. axb5 axb5 15. Rxa8 Bxa8 16. Ba2 Qd7 17. h3 Bb6 18. Nh2 d5 19. Nh5 Nxh5 20. Qxh5 Nf4 $6 (20... c5 $13 {[%CAl Yc5c4]}) 21. Bxf4 exf4 22. Nf3 c6 23. d4 $1 $36 {[%CAl Yf3e5] Bauer,C (2645)-Marciano,D (2514)/SUI-chT/2011/}) (10... Bg4 11. h3 Bxf3 12. Qxf3 Na5 13. Bc2 b4 14. Nd2 Rb8 15. Rb1 Qd7 16. Nb3 Nxb3 17. Bxb3 bxc3 $6 (17... Rb7 $142 $132 {[%CAl Yb4c3,Ye8b8]}) 18. bxc3 Rf8 19. Bg5 Ne8 {Garbisu de Goni,U (2463)-Glavina Rossi,P (2440)/Barcelona/2005/} 20. Red1 $36 {[%CAl Yd3d4]}) 11. a5 (11. d4 $5 exd4 12. cxd4 Bb6 $132) 11... bxc3 12. bxc3 h6 13. h3 Ba7 14. Nbd2 Ne7 15. Nf1 Ng6 16. Ng3 d5 17. exd5 Nxd5 18. d4 Be6 19. Bd2 exd4 20. Nxd4 Bxd4 21. cxd4 Nf6 (21... Rb8 $11) 22. Bxe6 Rxe6 23. Rxe6 fxe6 24. Qc2 $14 {Pedersen,C (2443)-Antonsen,M (2446)/Helsingor/2013/}) ({Anand has already played the typical} 10. Nbd2 Bb6 (10... Be6 11. Nf1 Bxb3 12. axb3 d5 (12... h6 13. b4 Bb6 14. Be3 Bxe3 15. Nxe3 Qd7 16. h3 a5 17. bxa5 Nxa5 18. b4 Nc6 19. Qb3 Ne7 20. Kh2 Qc6 21. g3 Rxa1 22. Rxa1 Ra8 $11 {Dominguez Perez,L (2754)-Leko,P (2730)/Beijing/2013/}) 13. Qc2 h6 (13... Qd7 14. Ng3 h6 15. h3 dxe4 16. dxe4 Qe6 17. Nh4 a5 18. Nhf5 Bf8 19. Nf1 Red8 20. Be3 Ne7 21. N5g3 Ng6 22. Red1 Rxd1 23. Rxd1 Qc6 $11 {Fedorchuk,S (2660)-Buhmann,R (2578)/FRA-chT Haguenau/2013/}) 14. Ng3 a5 15. h3 Qd7 16. Be3 Bf8 17. Rad1 Rad8 18. Nf5 Qe6 19. g4 dxe4 20. dxe4 Ne7 21. Rxd8 Rxd8 22. Ra1 Ra8 23. c4 b4 24. g5 hxg5 25. Nxg5 Qc8 26. Nxe7+ Bxe7 27. Kh2 Ra6 $15 {Radjabov,T (2793)-Aronian,L (2809)/London Candidates/2013/ See the notes to this game by Krisztian Szabo in CBM 154.}) 11. Nf1 Ne7 12. Ng3 Ng6 13. h3 h6 14. d4 (14. a4 Bd7 15. d4 Rb8 16. axb5 axb5 17. Be3 c5 18. dxe5 dxe5 19. c4 Qc8 20. cxb5 c4 21. Rc1 Bxb5 22. Bxb6 Rxb6 23. Qc2 Rc6 24. Ba4 Bxa4 25. Qxa4 Nf4 26. Re3 $11 {Zhigalko,A (2615)-Navara,D (2703)/ECC Rhodes/2013/}) 14... c5 15. dxe5 dxe5 16. Qxd8 Bxd8 17. a4 c4 18. Bc2 Ba5 19. axb5 axb5 20. Be3 Bb7 21. Ra2 Bc7 22. Rea1 Rxa2 23. Rxa2 Ra8 24. Rxa8+ Bxa8 25. Kf1 Ne7 26. Nd2 Kf8 27. Bc5 Nd7 28. Ba3 g6 29. f3 Ke8 $11 {Anand,V (2783)-Aronian,L (2809)/Paris/St Petersburg/2013/}) 10... Be6 (10... h6 11. Bh4 (11. Bxf6 $6 Qxf6 12. Bd5 Bd7 {[%csl Gc5,Gd7] leads nowhere}) 11... Bb6 $5 (11... g5 {might be playable, but this move is risky and would certainly follow Anand's preparation. Black has to reckon not only with} 12. Bg3 ({, but also with the piece sacrifice} 12. Nxg5 $5 hxg5 13. Bxg5 $44)) 12. Nbd2 (12. a4 $5) 12... Be6 13. Nf1 ({The idea is to play} 13. Bxe6 Rxe6 $11) 13... Bxb3 (13... Nb8 14. Bxe6 Rxe6 15. Bxf6 Qxf6 (15... Rxf6 16. d4 $14) 16. a4 $14) 14. axb3 Qe7 15. Ne3 Qe6 {?} 16. Bxf6 Bxe3 17. Rxe3 Qxf6 $11) 11. Nbd2 {White's immediate reaction is rather soft.} (11. Bd5 Bxd5 12. exd5 Ne7 13. Bxf6 gxf6 $13 {[%csl Gc5][%CAl Yf6f5,Ye7g6] is unclear at the least - Black has a strong bishop and can show some potential kingside ambitions of his own.}) ({Instead of the slow developing move Giri points out the more ambitious and principled} 11. Bxe6 fxe6 (11... Rxe6 $143 12. d4 exd4 $8 13. cxd4 Bb4 14. Nc3 $14 {[%csl Gd4,Ge4]}) 12. b4 (12. d4 exd4 (12... Bb6 13. dxe5 Nxe5 14. Nxe5 dxe5 15. Nd2 $14) 13. cxd4 Bb6 14. Nc3 h6 15. Be3 Na5 $14 {[%CAl Ya5c4,Yc7c5] /?}) (12. a4 $5 {?} b4 13. d4 $14) 12... Bb6 13. a4 $14 {Here White has chances to get a pull.}) (11. d4 Bxb3 12. axb3 exd4 13. cxd4 Bb6 14. Nc3 Nb4 15. Qd2 c5 $132) 11... h6 12. Bh4 (12. Bxe6 Rxe6 13. Bxf6 Rxf6 14. b4 Bb6 15. a4 Ne7 $11 {[%csl Gb6]}) 12... Bxb3 13. axb3 Nb8 $5 {A Breyer-style manoeuvre to combat the annoying pin.} (13... Bb6 14. Nf1 g5 15. Bg3 d5 16. exd5 $6 (16. Qe2 $142 $13) 16... Qxd5 17. Ne3 Qd7 18. h3 (18. Qc2 Rad8 19. Rad1 Nh5 $11 {/?}) 18... Rad8 19. Rxa6 Qxd3 20. Qc1 Re6 (20... b4 $5 $36) 21. Kh2 Ne4 $6 (21... Nh5 $36) 22. Rxb6 cxb6 23. Rd1 Qe2 24. Re1 {½,Spraggett,K (2631)-Fedorchuk,S (2603)/Metz/2007/}) (13... a5 $5 $13 {is also possible, then Black can consider either g5, or unpinning as in the game.}) (13... Qe7 {[%CAl Ye7e6]} 14. Nf1 Bb6 $11 {transposes to the 10...h6 line.}) 14. h3 {Just as on move 11, White plays it slowly - and doesn't achieve anything.} ({Gleizerov suggested} 14. b4 Bb6 15. Bxf6 Qxf6 16. Ra3 {, but after} Nc6 17. Qe2 Ra7 18. Rea1 Rea8 $11 {[%CAl Ya6a5] Black gradually prepares the liberating a5.}) (14. d4 Bb6 15. Qc2 Nbd7 16. b4 c6 $11 {[%CAl Yd8c7,Ya6a5] is a similar story.}) 14... Nbd7 15. Nh2 (15. b4 Bb6 16. Nb3 Nf8 $11 (16... c5 $5 $132)) 15... Qe7 16. Ndf1 {Abandons the b4 and ?b3 idea.} {Puts the bishop on a less exposed square.} Bb6 ({Black doesn't need complications as} 16... a5 17. d4 $5 exd4 (17... Bb6 18. Ng4 $14 {[%CAl Rf1e3,Re3d5,Re3f5]}) 18. cxd4 Bb4 19. Re3 Qe6 20. Rc1 $13) 17. Ne3 Qe6 18. b4 (18. Nf5 Kh7 {[%CAl Yg7g6] is just a loss of time.}) 18... a5 $1 $11 {[%mdl 32] Gets rid of his only weakness. Purposeful strategic play by Black has solved his opening problems without any concessions.} 19. bxa5 Bxa5 20. Nhg4 (20. Nf5 Bb6 21. Qd2 d5 $5 $11 {?} 22. Rxa8 Rxa8 23. Ng4 Nxg4 24. Ne7+ (24. hxg4 d4 25. cxd4 exd4 $132 {[%CAl Yc7c4] /?}) 24... Kh7 25. exd5 Bxf2+ 26. Qxf2 Qxe7 27. Bxe7 (27. hxg4 f6 28. d4 Qd6 $11) 27... Nxf2 28. Kxf2 f6 29. d6 c5 $5 {[%csl Re7]}) 20... Bb6 21. Bxf6 $5 {Anand realises he has nothing at all and decides to simplify the position - in other words to bail out. The engine also praises his judgement, further "attacking" attempts such as} (21. Qf3 $143 Nxg4 22. Nxg4 Ra4 $5 {might leave the bishop misplaced} (22... Nf8 $15 {[%csl Rh4][%CAl Ye6b3,Ya8a2] Giri})) 21... Nxf6 22. Nxf6+ (22. Nf5 Rxa1 $5 23. Nxf6+ (23. Qxa1 Nxg4 24. hxg4 Qf6 $15 {[%csl Rf2,Rg4]}) 23... Qxf6 24. Qxa1 d5 $11) 22... Qxf6 23. Qg4 (23. Qe2 $142 $1 {[%CAl Re3d5] is more accurate, White avoids the doubling of the pawns after} Bxe3 (23... c6 24. g3 Qe6 25. Kg2 $11 {Formally Black has the better minor piece, but in practice it's difficult to suggest, how he can make inroads.}) 24. Qxe3 $11) 23... Bxe3 24. fxe3 Qe7 $1 (24... Qe6 25. Qxe6 fxe6 $11 {more or less forces a draw, but Magnus rightly feels he runs no real risk by playing on.}) 25. Rf1 c5 $11 {/? The position is almost equal, but the only one who can try something is Black.} 26. Kh2 c4 (26... Qb7 $5) 27. d4 $1 Rxa1 ({This doesn't win a pawn, so perhaps} 27... g6 28. d5 Kg7 {was slightly preferable.}) 28. Rxa1 Qb7 (28... exd4 29. exd4 Qxe4 30. Qxe4 Rxe4 31. Ra8+ Kh7 32. Rb8 $11) 29. Rd1 ({A more prudent move is} 29. d5 $5 {and Black has no obvious way to make progress.} g6 (29... b4 30. Ra4 bxc3 31. bxc3 Qb3 32. Qd7 Rf8 33. Ra6 Qxc3 34. Qxd6 Qxe3 35. Qxe5 {and it's Black who has to tread with care.}) (29... Ra8 30. Rxa8+ Qxa8 31. Qd7 Qb8 $8 $11) 30. Qh4 Kg7 31. Rf1 $11 {Giri}) 29... Qc6 (29... exd4 30. Rxd4 Re6 31. Rd5 $132 {[%csl Rb5,Rd6]}) 30. Qf5 (30. d5 $11 {was again an option}) 30... exd4 {Black has no other way to proceed.} 31. Rxd4 Re5 32. Qf3 Qc7 33. Kh1 (33. Rd5 Qe7 34. Rxe5 Qxe5+ 35. Qf4 {?} Qxf4+ 36. exf4 f5 37. exf5 d5 38. Kg3 d4 39. Kf3 $1 $11 {Gleizerov}) 33... Qe7 34. Qg4 Kh7 35. Qf4 g6 36. Kh2 Kg7 37. Qf3 Re6 38. Qg3 $6 {Forcing matters, but this is a concession, which improves Black's prospects. After} (38. Qf4 Rf6 39. Qg3 $11 {/? he has a comfortable endgame, but still nothing tangible.}) 38... Rxe4 39. Qxd6 Rxe3 (39... Qxd6+ 40. Rxd6 Rxe3 41. Rd5 b4 42. cxb4 Rb3 43. b5 Rxb2 44. Rc5 Rb4 45. b6 Rxb6 46. Rxc4 {is a theoretical draw}) 40. Qxe7 Rxe7 41. Rd5 Rb7 42. Rd6 {[%mdl 4096] In the rook endgame White's active rook almost compensates for the extra pawn. His drawing chances are higher than Black's winning chances, but the fight is still on.} (42. Kg3 Kf6 43. Kf4 Ke6 44. Ke4 $44 {?} f5+ 45. Kd4 Rd7 46. Rxd7 Kxd7 47. Kc5 Ke6 48. Kxb5 Kd5 49. Ka4 $1 {holds, but the last move is not easy to see in advance:} (49. Kb4 g5 50. b3 g4 $1 51. bxc4+ Kc6 $19) 49... g5 50. b4 cxb3 (50... g4 51. hxg4 fxg4 52. Ka5 Kc6 53. Ka6 Kc7 54. Ka7 Kc6 55. Ka6 $11) 51. Kxb3 f4 52. c4+ Kc5 53. Kc3 h5 54. Kd3 $11) 42... f6 (42... h5 43. Kg3 f6 $15) 43. h4 Kf7 $6 {Magnus admitted he missed White's idea.} (43... h5 $142 $1 44. Kg3 Re7 45. Rb6 Re5 46. Rb7+ (46. Kf3 Rf5+ 47. Ke3 Kf7 48. Rb7+ Ke6 {[%CAl Ye6c6]} 49. Rg7 g5 $15) 46... Kh6 47. Rb6 Rf5 48. Rd6 g5 49. hxg5+ Rxg5+ 50. Kf3 Rf5+ 51. Kg3 Kg5 $15) 44. h5 $1 gxh5 (44... g5 45. Kg3 Ke7 (45... Kg7 46. Kf3 f5 47. Rg6+ Kh7 48. Rf6 f4 49. g3 fxg3 50. Kxg3 Re7 51. Kf3 $1 (51. Rb6 $143 Re3+ 52. Kg4 Re4+ 53. Kf5 Rf4+ 54. Ke5 Rf7 $5) 51... Re1 52. Rb6 $11 {[%csl Rb5,Rh6]}) 46. Rc6 Rd7 47. Rb6 Rd3+ (47... Rd5 48. Kf3 $132 {[%csl Rb5,Rf6]}) 48. Kh2 Rd5 49. Kg3 Kf7 50. Kf3 $11) 45. Rd5 Kg6 46. Kg3 {With the split kingside pawns it should be a draw again.} Rb6 47. Rc5 f5 48. Kh4 (48. Kf4 h4 49. Rxf5 $4 Rf6 50. Rxf6+ Kxf6 51. Kg4 Ke5 52. Kxh4 Ke4 53. Kh5 Kd3 54. Kxh6 Kc2 55. g4 Kxb2 56. g5 b4 57. g6 bxc3 58. g7 c2 59. g8=Q c1=Q+ $19) 48... Re6 (48... Kf6 $5 49. Kxh5 Re6 50. Rxb5 Re2 51. Rb4 Rxg2 52. Rxc4 Rxb2 53. Kh4 {is a TB draw without White's pawn. However, achieving a rook endgame with extra f+h pawns is Black's dream and gives him more practical chances, than the text move should have done...}) 49. Rxb5 Re4+ 50. Kh3 Kg5 51. Rb8 (51. b3 {was suggested by Nakamura. White holds after} Re3+ 52. Kh2 Rxc3 53. bxc4 Rxc4 54. Rb8 {, even achieving the aforementioned endgame with f+h pawns is almost impossible.}) 51... h4 52. Rg8+ (52. b3 $5 $11 {was still possible}) 52... Kh5 53. Rf8 Rf4 54. Rc8 Rg4 55. Rf8 Rg3+ 56. Kh2 Kg5 57. Rg8+ $6 {Complicates the issue.} ({Just sitting tight with} 57. Rc8 $1 Rg4 58. Rc7 (58. Kh3 h5 59. Rc7 Rg3+ 60. Kh2 f4 61. Rxc4 Kg4 62. Rc8 h3 $15 {?} 63. Rg8+ $4 Kh4 64. Rxg3 fxg3+ 65. Kg1 hxg2 66. b4 Kg4 67. b5 Kf3 68. b6 h4 69. b7 h3 70. b8=Q h2#) (58. Rg8+ Kf4 59. Re8 $5 $11 {also seems good enough} (59. Rh8 $2 Ke3 60. Rxh6 Kf2 61. Kh3 Rg3+ 62. Kxh4 f4 $17)) {holds the balance:} 58... h5 59. Rc8 Re4 60. Rg8+ Kf4 61. Rh8 Re2 62. Rxh5 Ke4 63. Rh8 $5 Rxb2 64. Rd8 $11) 57... Kf4 $1 58. Rc8 (58. Rh8 h3 $1 59. gxh3 Rg6 $36) 58... Ke3 59. Rxc4 f4 60. Ra4 $2 {Loses a tempo and the game, as White's queenside pawns enable Black's king to hide from side checks.} ({Engines and numerous previous annotators pointed out the right way:} 60. b4 $1 {?} h3 61. gxh3 Rg6 62. Rc8 f3 63. Re8+ Kf2 (63... Kd3 64. Rf8 (64. b5 $5 $11) 64... Rg2+ 65. Kh1 Ke3 66. b5 Rb2 (66... Rg6 67. Re8+ Kf2 68. c4 $11)) 64. b5 Rg2+ 65. Kh1 Rg1+ 66. Kh2 Rb1 (66... Re1 67. Rxe1 Kxe1 68. b6 $11) 67. c4 Rb2 68. Kh1 {?} Kg3 69. Rg8+ Kxh3 70. Kg1 $11) (60. Rc7 $2 Kf2 $19) 60... h3 $1 61. gxh3 Rg6 $19 62. c4 (62. Ra8 f3 63. Re8+ Kf2 64. b4 Rg2+ 65. Kh1 Rg1+ 66. Kh2 Re1 {and Black has a crucial extra tempo in comparison with the above note:} 67. Ra8 Ke3 68. Re8+ Kd2 69. Rf8 Ke2 70. Re8+ Kf1 71. Rf8 f2 72. Kg3 Re3+ 73. Kh2 Ke1 74. Kg2 Re2 $19) 62... f3 63. Ra3+ Ke2 {No side checks, the game is decided.} 64. b4 f2 65. Ra2+ Kf3 66. Ra3+ Kf4 67. Ra8 (67. Ra1 Re6 $19 {[%CAl Re6e1] and again no side checks!}) 67... Rg1 0-1 [Event "Zuerich Chess Challenge"] [Site "Zuerich"] [Date "2014.02.02"] [Round "4"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2872"] [BlackElo "2782"] [Annotator "Stohl,Igor"] [PlyCount "93"] [EventDate "2014.01.30"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "5"] [EventCountry "SUI"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 159"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2014.03.17"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2014.03.17"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 ({The last round featured finally featured a Marshall, after} 3... a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. c3 d5 9. exd5 Nxd5 10. Nxe5 Nxe5 11. Rxe5 c6 12. d3 Bd6 13. Re1 Bf5 14. Qf3 Qh4 15. g3 Qh3 16. Be3 Bxd3 17. Nd2 Qf5 {White came up with a novelty} 18. Bd4 $5 $146 {, which retained some pressure:} (18. Qxf5 Bxf5 19. Bd4 Rfd8 20. a4 Bf8 21. Ne4 h6 22. h4 Bg6 23. Rad1 Bh5 24. Rc1 Nb4 25. Re3 Nd5 26. Ree1 Nb4 $11 {Ivanchuk,V (2751)-Aronian,L (2739)/Nice rpd blindfold/2008/}) (18. Rad1 {did not offer superiority either.} Rfe8 19. Qxf5 Bxf5 20. Bxd5 cxd5 21. Nb3 Be6 22. Bc5 Bc7 23. Nd4 Rac8 24. b4 Bd7 25. Nc2 Rxe1+ 26. Rxe1 Re8 27. Rxe8+ Bxe8 28. Ne3 Bd8 29. Nxd5 Bc6 $11 {Polgar,J (2707)-Leko,P (2753)/Wijk aan Zee/2008/}) 18... Rfe8 19. a4 h6 20. Kg2 Kf8 (20... Bf8 $5) 21. Rxe8+ Rxe8 22. axb5 axb5 23. Qxf5 Bxf5 24. Bxd5 cxd5 25. Ra6 Be7 $6 (25... Be5 $1 $14 {/?}) 26. Nf1 b4 27. Ne3 Bd3 28. Ra5 bxc3 29. bxc3 $14 {/?,Caruana,F (2782)-Aronian,L (2812)/Zürich/2014/ Black loses a pawn, in the end he didn't make the most of his drawing chances and went down in the endgame. See the winner's notes in CBM 159.}) 4. d3 {In Zürich nobody ventured into the Berlin endgame; we'll check out some recent examples mainly from Wijk 2014:} (4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 (6. dxe5 Nxb5 7. a4 Nbd4 ({The fighting option is} 7... d6 8. e6 fxe6 9. axb5 Nb4 {is not without risk after} 10. Ng5 Be7 11. Qh5+ g6 12. Qh6 Bf8 13. Qh3 Qf6 14. Ra4 Nd5 15. Re4 e5 16. Qb3 h6 17. Qxd5 hxg5 18. Rc4 g4 19. Nc3 Rh7 20. f3 Rf7 21. Qe4 Qf5 22. Nd5 c6 23. bxc6 b5 24. Rc3 Be6 {Larin,I (2293)-Grigoryev,V (2498)/corr/2012/} 25. Qe2 $5 $36) 8. Nxd4 d6 9. exd6 Bxd6 $5 10. Re1+ Be7 11. Nxc6 Qxd1 12. Rxd1 bxc6 13. Be3 Bf5 14. Re1 O-O-O 15. Na3 Rhe8 16. Bxa7 Bxa3 17. Rxe8 Rxe8 18. bxa3 Re4 19. c3 Rxa4 20. Bd4 g6 21. f3 Kd7 $11 {Naiditsch,A (2718)-Aronian,L (2812)/Wijk aan Zee/2014/}) 6... dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. h3 ({The tension quickly dissipated after} 9. Rd1+ Ke8 10. Bf4 Ne7 11. h3 Ng6 12. Bh2 Be7 13. Nc3 Bd7 14. Nd4 Nf8 15. Rd2 h5 16. Rad1 Rd8 17. a3 h4 18. Nce2 c5 19. e6 Nxe6 20. Nxe6 Bxe6 21. Bxc7 Rxd2 22. Rxd2 f6 23. Nf4 Kf7 24. Nxe6 Kxe6 $11 {Dominguez Perez,L (2754)-Giri,A (2734)/Wijk aan Zee/2014/}) 9... Bd7 ({Another topical and playable alternative is} 9... Ke8 10. Nc3 h5 11. Rd1 (11. Ne2 Be7 12. Re1 Be6 13. Ned4 Nxd4 14. Nxd4 Bc8 15. Bf4 c5 16. Nb5 Bd8 17. e6 Bxe6 18. Rad1 Ke7 19. Nxc7 Bxc7 20. Bxc7 Rac8 21. Bd6+ {½,Fressinet,L (2710)-Giri,A (2749)/Bundesliga/2014/} Kf6 22. Rd3 h4 $11) (11. Bf4 Be7 12. Rad1 Be6 13. Ng5 Rh6 14. g3 Bxg5 15. Bxg5 Rg6 16. h4 f6 17. exf6 gxf6 18. Bf4 Nxh4 19. f3 Rd8 20. Rxd8+ Kxd8 21. Kf2 Nf5 22. Rh1 Ng7 23. Nd1 $44 {/=, Naiditsch,A (2718)-So,W (2719)/Wijk aan Zee/2014/}) 11... Be7 12. Ne2 Nh4 13. Nxh4 Bxh4 14. Bf4 Be7 15. Nd4 g5 16. Bh2 Rh6 17. e6 Bxe6 18. Bxc7 Rc8 19. Nxe6 Rxe6 20. Ba5 Bf6 21. Rab1 b6 22. Be1 Rd8 $11 {Harikrishna,P (2706)-So,W (2719)/Wijk aan Zee/2014/}) 10. Rd1 Kc8 11. g4 Ne7 12. Ng5 Be8 13. f4 b6 (13... h5 14. Kf2 b6 15. f5 Kb7 16. c4 $146 (16. Nc3 hxg4 17. hxg4 Rh2+ 18. Kg3 Rxc2 19. Nh7 c5 $1 20. Nxf8 Bc6 $44 {Caruana,F (2796)-Adams,M (2740)/Dortmund/2013/} 21. Bg5 $1 Rg2+ 22. Kf4 Rf2+ 23. Kg3 $11 {See the notes to this game by Adams in CBM 156.}) 16... c5 17. Bf4 Nc6 18. Nc3 g6 $1 19. e6 fxe6 20. Nxe6 hxg4 21. Nxc7 Bh6 $1 22. Bxh6 Kxc7 23. Bf4+ Kb7 24. hxg4 gxf5 25. g5 Rh4 26. Ne2 Bh5 27. Rh1 Rxh1 28. Rxh1 Bxe2 29. Kxe2 Nd4+ 30. Kd3 Ne6 31. Rf1 Rd8+ 32. Kc3 Rg8 $11 {Giri,A (2737)-Nakamura,H (2772)/Elancourt/2013/}) 14. f5 $5 (14. Nc3 c5 (14... h5 15. Kg2 c5 $13) 15. Kf2 h6 16. Nf3 g6 17. Be3 Bc6 18. a4 Kb7 19. a5 Re8 20. Nd2 Nd5 21. Nxd5 Bxd5 22. Nf3 Be6 23. Rd3 Be7 24. Rad1 h5 25. Kg3 hxg4 26. hxg4 Rh7 27. R3d2 Kc6 28. axb6 cxb6 29. Rh2 Rxh2 30. Nxh2 a5 $36 {[%csl Ga5,Gb6,Gc5,Ge6,Ge7] Sutovsky,E (2700)-Harikrishna,P (2669)/WChT Ningbo/2011/}) 14... c5 (14... h5 15. Kg2 c5 16. Nc3 g6 17. f6 Nc6 18. Nf3 Nb4 19. Bf4 $1 Nxc2 20. Rac1 Nb4 21. a3 Nc6 22. Ne4 $44 Bd7 23. Neg5 hxg4 $2 (23... Nd8 $142 24. Rxd7 $1 Kxd7 25. e6+ fxe6 26. Ne5+ $36) 24. hxg4 Bxg4 25. Nxf7 Rh5 26. Kg3 Bf5 27. N7g5 Bh6 28. e6 {Dominguez - Nakamura, Wijk aan Zee 2014.} Bxg5 29. Nxg5 Rxg5+ 30. Bxg5 Bxe6 {Dominguez Perez,L (2754)-Nakamura,H (2789)/Wijk aan Zee/2014/} 31. b4 $16) 15. Nd2 (15. e6 $5) 15... h6 16. Ngf3 Bc6 17. Kf2 Kb7 18. b3 g6 19. f6 Nd5 20. Bb2 Nb4 21. Rdc1 a5 22. a3 Nd5 23. Kg3 g5 24. a4 Nb4 25. Nc4 Be4 26. Ne3 c4 $5 27. bxc4 Rd8 $44 {/?,Caruana,F (2779)-Nakamura,H (2783)/ECC Rhodes/2013/ Nakamura was probably worried about some improvement right from the start, as against Dominguez he was the first to deviate.}) 4... Bc5 {I have already mentioned in the notes to Navara-Caruana,ECC 2013 (CBM 157) and Anand-Carlsen,WCh 2013 (CBM 158), that this active developing move is all the rage nowadays.} ({However, even the modest} 4... d6 {is playable and retains some top level fans:} 5. O-O Be7 6. h3 O-O 7. c4 a6 8. Ba4 Nd7 9. Nc3 Nc5 10. Bxc6 bxc6 11. d4 exd4 12. Nxd4 Bd7 13. Be3 Bf6 14. Re1 Re8 15. Qc2 Qe7 ({The traditional way to deploy the queen in these positions is} 15... Qb8 $5 $132 {[%CAl Yb8b4,Ya6a4]}) 16. Rad1 g6 17. Bc1 Ne6 $6 (17... a5 $142 $11) 18. Nf3 $1 {[%csl Re7][%CAl Ye4e5]} Bg7 19. b3 Qf8 20. Ba3 $1 Rad8 21. e5 c5 22. Nd5 dxe5 23. Nxe5 Nd4 24. Rxd4 Rxe5 25. Rxe5 Bxe5 26. Rd1 Bc6 {Sjugirov,S (2641)-Jakovenko,D (2721)/Khanty-Mansiysk/2013/} 27. Qe4 Bg7 28. Qe3 $1 $16 {[%csl Rc5]}) 5. Bxc6 {This swap changes the character of the position and is also very topical.} (5. Nc3 {is too weak:} O-O (5... d6 6. Na4 Bb6 7. Nxb6 axb6 8. c3 Bd7 9. Ba4 Ne7 10. Bc2 Ng6 $11 {was Anand's choice in his game against Carlsen, London 2012. For more details see the notes by Postny in CBM 152.}) 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. Bg5 Qd6 8. Qd2 a5 9. h3 Re8 10. Nh4 a4 11. a3 b5 12. O-O Nh5 13. Ne2 Bb6 14. g4 h6 15. Be3 Nf4 16. Nxf4 exf4 17. Bxf4 Qf6 18. Nf5 Qxb2 19. Kh2 h5 $13 {/?,Motylev,A (2676)-Kramnik,V (2796)/RUS-ch Nizhny Novgorod/2013/}) (5. c3 {was featured in the recent title match:} O-O 6. O-O Re8 $5 ({A welcome change to the standard} 6... d6 {, where the struggle strongly resmebles the Giuoco Piano:} 7. h3 (7. Nbd2 Bb6 8. h3 (8. Nc4 Ne7 9. Nxb6 axb6 $132) 8... Ne7 {is similar and often only transposes.}) 7... Ne7 8. d4 Bb6 9. Re1 (9. Nbd2 exd4 $5 (9... c6 10. Bd3 Ng6 11. Re1 h6 12. a4 Re8 13. Bf1 d5 $5 14. dxe5 Nxe5 15. exd5 Nxf3+ 16. Nxf3 Rxe1 17. Nxe1 Nxd5 18. Qf3 Be6 19. Nd3 a5 20. Bd2 Qh4 21. b3 Rd8 $11 {Movsesian,S (2699)-Alekseev,E (2683)/St Petersburg rpd/2012/}) 10. cxd4 d5 11. e5 Ne4 12. Bd3 Bf5 13. Qe2 Nc6 14. Nxe4 dxe4 15. Bxe4 Nxd4 16. Nxd4 Bxe4 17. Qxe4 Qxd4 $11 {/?,Areshchenko,A (2709)-Kramnik,V (2784)/WCup/2013/}) 9... Ng6 (9... d5 $5 10. Nxe5 Nxe4 11. Nd2 Nd6 12. Bf1 c6 13. b3 Re8 14. a4 Ng6 15. Nxg6 Rxe1 16. Qxe1 hxg6 17. Ba3 a5 18. Qe3 Be6 19. Re1 Bc7 20. Bd3 Bf5 21. Nf3 Bxd3 22. Qxd3 Ne4 23. Nd2 Nxd2 24. Qxd2 Bd6 25. Bxd6 Qxd6 26. g3 Qd7 27. Kg2 Re8 $11 {Karjakin,S (2756)-Le Quang,L (2703)/Beijing rpd/2013/}) 10. Bd3 (10. Nbd2 d5 $5 $11) 10... Re8 11. Qc2 c6 12. Be3 h6 13. Nbd2 Nh7 14. Bf1 Ng5 15. Rad1 Qf6 16. Nxg5 hxg5 17. dxe5 dxe5 18. Bxb6 axb6 19. Nc4 b5 20. Nd6 Rd8 21. Nxc8 Raxc8 22. Be2 Ra8 $11 {Areshchenko,A (2720)-L'Ami,E (2648)/WChT Antalya/2013/}) 7. Re1 a6 8. Ba4 b5 9. Bb3 (9. Bc2 d5 $1 $11 {is one of the main ponts behind 6...?e8!?}) 9... d6 10. Bg5 $5 ({I have already quoted almost all the relevant examples with} 10. Nbd2 Bb6 ({or} 10... Be6 {in the notes to Anand-Carlsen.})) 10... Be6 11. Nbd2 (11. Bxe6 $142 $1 fxe6 12. b4 (12. d4 $5) 12... Bb6 13. a4 $14) 11... h6 12. Bh4 Bxb3 13. axb3 Nb8 $5 14. h3 Nbd7 15. Nh2 Qe7 16. Ndf1 Bb6 17. Ne3 Qe6 18. b4 a5 $1 19. bxa5 Bxa5 20. Nhg4 Bb6 21. Bxf6 Nxf6 22. Nxf6+ Qxf6 $11 {Anand,V (2775)-Carlsen,M (2870)/WCh Chennai/2013/ - see the notes in CBM 158 for more details.}) ({After} 5. O-O {White must reckon with} Nd4 $5 (5... d6 6. c3 O-O {transposes to 5.c3 and was already mentioned above.}) 6. Nxd4 Bxd4 7. c3 Bb6 8. Nd2 c6 9. Ba4 O-O 10. Nf3 d5 $5 ({Black has no serious problems even after the more restrained} 10... d6 11. h3 h6 12. Bc2 Re8 13. Kh1 d5 14. Qe2 dxe4 15. dxe4 Nh5 16. Nh2 Qh4 17. Qf3 {Kamsky,G (2723)-Kramnik,V (2788)/Moscow blitz/2008/} Be6 $11) 11. Nxe5 dxe4 12. d4 c5 13. dxc5 Bxc5 14. Qxd8 Rxd8 15. Bb3 Be6 16. Bxe6 fxe6 17. Nc4 b5 18. Be3 bxc4 19. Bxc5 Rd5 20. Bd4 e5 21. Be3 Rd3 22. Rfe1 h6 $11 {Perunovic,M (2613)-Andreikin,D (2710)/EU-chT Warsaw/2013/ Black's active pieces balance the split pawns.}) 5... dxc6 6. h3 {This has become White's main try after Chennai.} (6. Nbd2 Bg4 $5 ({A reliable antidote, but Black may possibly go for the more complex} 6... O-O 7. O-O Re8 8. Nc4 Nd7 9. a4 f6 $5 {as well:} 10. Bd2 Nf8 11. Nh4 (11. b4 $142) 11... Ne6 12. Nf5 Bf8 13. Kh1 c5 14. f4 exf4 15. Bxf4 Nxf4 16. Rxf4 Be6 17. b3 a6 18. a5 b5 19. axb6 cxb6 20. Nce3 g6 21. Ng3 Bh6 22. Rf3 b5 $132 {/?,Michalik,P (2529)-Lysyj,I (2656)/EU-ch Plovdiv/2012/}) 7. h3 Bh5 8. Nc4 $5 (8. Nf1 Nd7 9. Ng3 Bxf3 $1 10. Qxf3 g6 11. Be3 Qe7 12. O-O-O O-O-O 13. Ne2 Rhe8 14. Kb1 b6 15. h4 Kb7 16. h5 Bxe3 17. Qxe3 Nc5 18. hxg6 hxg6 19. g3 a5 20. Rh7 Rh8 21. Rdh1 Rxh7 22. Rxh7 Qf6 23. f4 Rh8 24. Rxh8 Qxh8 25. fxe5 Qxe5 26. Qf3 f5 $11 {Anand,V (2775)-Carlsen,M (2870)/WCh Chennai/2013/}) 8... Nd7 9. Be3 f6 10. Qd2 Qe7 ({A simpler and more consistent way is} 10... Bxf3 11. gxf3 Qe7 $11) 11. Nh4 $5 O-O-O 12. Nf5 Qf8 13. O-O Bf7 14. b3 g6 15. Ng3 h5 16. Bxc5 Nxc5 17. Qe3 Kb8 18. f4 Bxc4 19. bxc4 Qd6 20. Ne2 Rhf8 $132 {Sjugirov,S (2641)-Maletin,P (2598)/Khanty-Mansiysk/2013/}) (6. b3 Bg4 7. Nbd2 Nd7 8. Bb2 f6 9. Nf1 (9. h3 Bxf3 10. Nxf3 Qe7 11. a3 O-O-O 12. b4 Bd6 13. c3 Nf8 14. Qa4 Kb8 15. O-O-O Ne6 16. Qc2 c5 17. Nd2 c6 18. Nc4 {½,Trent,L (2433)-Parker,J (2531)/England/2012/} Bc7 $15) 9... Nf8 10. h3 Bxf3 11. Qxf3 Ne6 12. Ne3 Qd7 13. h4 a5 14. a4 O-O 15. h5 Bxe3 16. Qxe3 c5 17. Qh3 Qc6 $11 18. O-O Nf4 19. Qh2 Qe8 20. h6 g5 21. g3 Ne6 22. f4 $5 gxf4 23. gxf4 Nxf4 24. Rxf4 exf4 25. Kf2 $44 {/=,McShane,L (2671)-Kramnik,V (2800)/London/2011/}) (6. O-O {may be somewhat premature. White has committed his king and in some cases opposite-side castling can be advantageous for Black. An illustrative example is} Bd6 7. Nbd2 Bg4 8. Nc4 Nd7 9. h3 Bh5 10. g4 $6 (10. Ne3 $11 {?} Qf6 11. Nf5) 10... Bg6 11. Kg2 Qe7 12. Ne3 O-O-O 13. Nd2 h5 14. Nf5 Qf6 15. Nf3 hxg4 16. hxg4 Rdg8 17. Rh1 Bxf5 18. Bg5 Qe6 19. exf5 Qe8 20. Rxh8 Rxh8 21. Qe2 f6 22. Bd2 Qg8 $1 23. Qe1 g6 24. fxg6 Nc5 $1 $40 {[%CAl Rg8g6] Karjakin,S (2756)-Leko,P (2730)/Beijing rpd/2013/} (24... Qxg6 25. Qe4 $11)) 6... Nd7 {Black also doesn't show his hand with his king.} (6... Be6 7. Qe2 ({A novel idea is} 7. Nc3 $5 $146 Qd6 8. O-O O-O-O (8... a5 $5 $132) 9. a3 Nh5 $6 {Black's ultra-sharp reaction is maybe not ideal, after} 10. Na4 $1 Bb6 11. Nxb6+ axb6 12. a4 $5 f6 13. Be3 Nf4 14. a5 b5 15. Bxf4 (15. d4 $6 Nxh3+ $1 16. gxh3 Bxh3 17. dxe5 Qe6 18. Nd2 Bxf1 19. Qxf1 Qxe5 20. c3 Kb8 21. a6 b6 22. Qg2 Rd6 23. Nf1 f5 $1 $36 {Anand,V (2773)-Nakamura,H (2789)/Zuerich/2014/}) 15... exf4 16. Re1 $14 {[%CAl Ye4e5] Here Black's king is more exposed, than White's.}) 7... Nd7 8. Be3 f6 ({Black doesn't want to part with his bishop immediately after} 8... Bd6 9. Ng5 $14) (8... Qe7 9. Bxc5 Qxc5 10. Nc3 Qd6 11. O-O-O c5 12. Nh4 O-O-O 13. Nf5 Bxf5 14. exf5 Nf6 15. Rhe1 Rhe8 16. Qf3 Qd4 17. g4 h6 18. a3 a6 $6 (18... Qf4+ 19. Qxf4 exf4 20. Ne2 h5 $132 {Postny}) 19. Re3 Re7 20. Kb1 Nd5 21. Nxd5 Qxd5 22. Qxd5 Rxd5 23. Rde1 f6 24. f4 Kd7 25. c3 b5 26. Kc2 $36 {Morozevich,A (2748)-Caruana,F (2786)/Tashkent 2012/ See the notes by Postny in CBM 152 for more details.}) 9. Bxc5 Nxc5 10. Qe3 Qe7 11. Nc3 O-O-O 12. O-O-O Kb8 13. d4 exd4 14. Nxd4 Nd7 15. f4 Nb6 16. Nxe6 Qxe6 17. Qc5 Rd6 18. b3 Rhd8 19. Qh5 h6 20. Qg4 Qe7 {White has the better pawn structure, but he has no obvious way to make progress. The simplifying} 21. Rxd6 cxd6 22. Rd1 {allowed Black to force a draw with} d5 $1 23. exd5 Qa3+ 24. Kb1 Nc4 25. bxc4 Qb4+ $11 {Nakamura,H (2772)-Fressinet,L (2708)/Elancourt/2013/}) ({However, Black can also refrain from any speculations and play the simple} 6... O-O 7. O-O Re8 8. Nbd2 Nd7 9. Nc4 f6 10. Nh4 $5 (10. Be3 Bf8 11. Qd2 Nc5 12. Qc3 Ne6 13. b4 b6 14. a4 c5 15. bxc5 Bxc5 16. Bxc5 Nxc5 17. a5 Be6 18. Ne3 Qd7 19. Qa3 Rad8 20. axb6 axb6 $11 {Antoniewski,R (2559)-Balogh,C (2665)/AUT-chT/2012/}) 10... Nf8 11. Be3 Bb6 12. a4 Be6 13. a5 Bd4 14. Bxd4 Qxd4 15. b3 (15. Ne3 $1 $13 {retains more tension in the position}) 15... Ng6 16. Nxg6 hxg6 17. Qe2 Bxc4 18. bxc4 g5 19. Rfb1 b5 $1 20. cxb5 cxb5 $11 {/?,Caruana,F (2774)-Anand,V (2786)/Moscow blitz/2013/}) 7. Be3 (7. Nbd2 {is too weak:} O-O 8. Nf1 (8. O-O Re8 {transposes to the line from the previous note}) 8... Re8 9. Be3 Bd6 10. Ng3 Nf8 11. Qd2 c5 12. O-O Ne6 13. Nf5 Nd4 14. Bxd4 cxd4 15. Nxd6 cxd6 16. c3 dxc3 17. Qxc3 Qf6 18. d4 exd4 19. Qd3 b6 20. Rfe1 Bb7 21. Nxd4 d5 22. exd5 Bxd5 $11 {/?,Solak,D (2583)-Sargissian,G (2678)/EU-chT Novi Sad/ 2009/}) 7... Bd6 (7... Bxe3 8. fxe3 $13 {/? is not a direct mistake, but given a choice, Black would nevertheless prefer to retain both his bishops.}) 8. Nc3 $146 {A novelty, but hardly an impressive one - this game certainly wasn't decided by opening preparation.} (8. Nbd2 O-O 9. O-O Re8 10. c3 $5 (10. Nc4 Nf8 11. d4 exd4 12. Qxd4 c5 13. Qd3 b6 14. Nxd6 Qxd6 15. Qxd6 cxd6 16. Rfd1 Bb7 17. Rxd6 Bxe4 18. Ne1 Rad8 19. Rad1 Ne6 20. Rxd8 Rxd8 21. Rxd8+ Nxd8 $11 {Anand,V (2773)-Carlsen,M (2872)/Zuerich/2014/ This colourless draw was played on the following day, it seems the players had an unwritten non-aggression pact.}) 10... Nf8 (10... c5 $5 $11) 11. d4 Ng6 12. Qc2 exd4 13. cxd4 Bf4 14. Rfe1 Qf6 15. Nf1 Be6 16. Ng3 Bxe3 17. Rxe3 Nf4 18. a3 a5 19. Qd2 Qh6 20. Rc1 $14 {[%csl Gd4,Ge4] /?,Inarkiev,E (2671)-Aronian,L (2783)/Mainz rpd/2010/ White is somewhat better due to his pawn centre, but Black's defences are still solid.}) 8... c5 9. O-O ({White could have played} 9. Nd2 {immediately, but Carlsen doesn't speculate with his king placement anymore. If necessary, Black can follow suit and prepare 0-0, or 0-0-0 in accordance with White's choice.}) 9... Nf8 10. Nd2 Ng6 (10... Ne6 11. Nc4 O-O 12. a4 $11 {/? is perhaps a tad better for White. Caruana sensibly keeps e6 free for his bishop.}) 11. Nc4 Be6 12. Ne2 Qd7 (12... Bxc4 13. dxc4 $14 {[%csl Rd6,Ge3]}) ({However, Black had no serious reason to hesitate with} 12... O-O $1 {?} 13. Nxd6 cxd6 14. f4 f5 $5 $11) 13. Nxd6+ {Radically counters any ideas as ?xh3 (Anand-Nakamura!), or ?h4xg2.} cxd6 14. f4 exf4 ({With the king still on e8} 14... f5 $6 15. fxe5 Nxe5 16. d4 $1 {is definitely risky:} Nc4 17. Bc1 fxe4 18. b3 Nb6 19. Ng3 $36) 15. Nxf4 Nxf4 16. Rxf4 b6 $6 {[%CAl Yd6d5] This is really toying with fire.} ({There was still nothing really wrong with} 16... O-O {, the direct attack} 17. Qh5 f6 {[%CAl Yd7f7]} (17... f5 $5 {is also a plausible alternative}) 18. Rh4 $2 g5 {leads nowhere and otherwise White has only a very slight and almost surely temporary pull.}) 17. Qh5 d5 {A natural follow-up to the previous move.} (17... O-O 18. Rh4 h6 19. Rf1 $1 {[%CAl Re3h6]} (19. Bxh6 $2 gxh6 20. Qxh6 f6 {doesn't give White anything concrete and his compensation for the piece is somewhat vague.}) 19... f6 $8 20. Qg6 Qf7 21. Rxh6 Qxg6 22. Rxg6 $14 {/?}) ({Black's king is more exposed after} 17... O-O-O 18. a4 $14 {[%csl Rc8]}) 18. d4 $1 {[%csl Re8]} c4 19. b3 {Black now can't afford to open the position, while Magnus wants to blast apart the centre. However, White had also other moves:} (19. Raf1 $14 {or}) (19. e5 $5 {[%csl Rf7] both give White an edge.}) 19... Qc6 {Again risky. Caruana insists on castling queenside, but this is risky.} ({Houdini insists on} 19... Rc8 $1 {and this indeed seems better. After} 20. e5 cxb3 21. cxb3 O-O 22. Raf1 (22. Rh4 Bf5) 22... Qb5 $11 {[%CAl Yb5d3] Black can defend his kingside from d3.}) 20. Raf1 O-O-O 21. bxc4 $5 (21. e5 {[%CAl Ye3c1,Yc1a3,Ya3d6,Gf1f7] also gives White nagging pressure, but Carlsen is already more ambitious and envisages a positional exchange sacrifice to further his attack.}) 21... Qxc4 22. Rxf7 $1 {[%mdl 640]} Bxf7 ({Black could have considered} 22... g6 $5 {, but after} 23. Qh6 $1 (23. Qe5 Bxf7 24. Rxf7 Rhe8 25. Qg7 Qc6 26. e5 Rd7 $11) 23... Bxf7 24. Rxf7 dxe4 (24... Qc6 25. c4 $1 {?} dxc4 26. d5 $16 {?}) 25. Qg7 (25. Rxa7 Rhf8 26. Qxh7 $36 {leads to the same position}) 25... Rhg8 26. Qxh7 Rgf8 27. Rxa7 $36 {he still faces a difficult defence.}) 23. Rxf7 Rd7 $8 {[%CAl Gd7f7] Black must fight back on the 7th rank.} (23... dxe4 $2 24. Qf5+ Kb8 25. Qe5+ Ka8 26. Qxe4+ Qd5 27. Qe7 $18) (23... g6 24. Qg4+ (24. Qh6 {-22...g6!?}) 24... Kb8 25. Qg5 {[%CAl Rg5e7]} Ka8 26. Qe7 Qa6 27. Bg5 {?} Rhe8 28. Qc7 Rc8 29. Qd7 $18) 24. Rxd7 Kxd7 25. exd5 g6 ({The engine prefers} 25... Rd8 26. Qxh7 Kc8 27. Qxg7 Rd7 {for a while, but gradually the evaluation of Black's chances decreases - the kingside passed pawns are dangerous after} 28. Qg8+ Kb7 29. Qe6 Rxd5 30. h4 $14 {/?}) 26. Qg4+ Kc7 27. Qe6 Kb7 28. Qe7+ $6 {Gives Black some respite.} (28. Qf6 $142 $1 {?d6 I don't see any perpetual after} Qe2 29. Qxh8 Qxe3+ 30. Kf1 (30. Kh2 Qf4+) 30... Qc1+ 31. Kf2 Qf4+ (31... Qxc2+ 32. Kg3 Qc3+ 33. Kf4 $16) 32. Ke2 Qe4+ 33. Kd1 $16) 28... Qc7 29. Qe4 {[%csl Gc2,Gd4,Gd5] The material is equal, but White with his strong central pawns holds the initiative. However, now Black's rook joins the fray and he can fight back.} Qd7 (29... Rd8 $142 $1 30. Bg5 (30. d6+ $2 Qc6) 30... Rd7 31. Bf4 Qc4 32. d6+ Ka6 $14 {with drawing chances.}) 30. d6+ (30. c4 $143 $6 Re8 31. Qf3 Qf5 $132 {/?}) 30... Ka6 (30... Qc6 $2 31. Qe7+ Kc8 32. Bf4 $40 {?} Qd7 33. Qe4 Kb8 34. c4 Rc8 35. c5 $1 bxc5 36. dxc5 Rxc5 37. Qe8+ $1 $18) 31. Bf4 Rc8 32. Kh2 $6 ({Useful prophylaxis, but White had the more direct} 32. Qe2+ $142 $1 Kb7 (32... Qb5 $2 33. Qe7 Qb1+ 34. Kh2 Qf1 35. Bg5 Rxc2 36. Qe4 Re2 37. Qc6 $18 {[%CAl Rd6d8] , ako aj}) (32... b5 $2 33. a4 $40) 33. c4) 32... Rc4 $2 {Blockade was necessary, but the rook is misplaced here, as ?e7 becomes an issue.} (32... g5 33. Bg3 b5 $14 {or the immediate}) (32... b5 $5 {makes it more difficult for White to convert his advantage.}) 33. Bg3 {Carlsen is in no hurry and spurns such tempting alternatives as} (33. Qe2 $5 b5 34. Qe7 $16) ({or} 33. Qe7 Qxe7 34. dxe7 Rc8 35. Bc7 $36) 33... Rc8 $6 {Losing tempi is more than Black's position can stand.} ({A more resilient try was} 33... b5 {, although} 34. a4 $5 (34. Qe7 Qxe7 35. dxe7 Rc8 36. Bc7 Rg8 $5 $14 {might not be enough}) 34... bxa4 35. Qe2 Kb5 36. d5 {[%CAl Re2e6]} a3 37. Qd3 a2 38. Qb3+ Kc5 39. Qxa2 Kxd5 40. Qb3 $16 {/+- is probably winning anyway. Black's king is permanently exposed and his pieces are not coordinated well enough to prevent either a decisive attack, or an advance of the c-pawn.}) 34. Qd3+ Kb7 (34... Qb5 $2 35. Bh4 $1 $18 {[%CAl Rd6d8]}) 35. c4 $18 {? Once all the pawns join in, Black is facing an uphill fight.} Qc6 36. Qb3 {Now he has got in c4, White doesn't force the issue before the time control.} (36. c5 $5 {?} bxc5 37. dxc5 Qxc5 38. Qe2 $1 $40) 36... Ka8 (36... Qxc4 $2 37. d7 $18) (36... Qe4 37. a4 $5 {[%CAl Ra4a5,Rc4c5] ?} Qxd4 38. Qf3+ Ka6 (38... Rc6 39. a5 $1 {[%CAl Ra5a6]} bxa5 40. Qf7+ Ka6 41. Qe8 $18) 39. Qe2 Ka5 40. Qe7 $18) 37. a4 $1 Re8 38. a5 Kb7 (38... bxa5 39. d5 (39. c5 $18 {[%CAl Yb3c4,Yd4d5]}) 39... Qb7 (39... Qc5 40. Qa4 Rd8 41. Qc6+ $18) (39... Qb6 40. Qxb6 axb6 41. Bh4 $18) 40. Qxb7+ Kxb7 41. d7 Rd8 42. c5 $18 {[%csl Gc5,Gd5,Gd7]}) 39. c5 {White already had more than one way to win.} (39. d5 $5 Qc5 40. a6+ $1 Kc8 41. Qf3 Qxc4 42. Qf7 Re2 43. Qg8+ Kd7 44. Qxh7+ Ke8 45. d7+ Kd8 46. Bh4+ $18) 39... Kc8 40. axb6 axb6 41. d5 $1 {Move 40 has passed and Carlsen calmly finds and calculates the most convincing win.} Qxc5 42. Qa4 Re3 43. Qa8+ Kd7 44. Qb7+ Ke8 45. d7+ Kd8 46. Bh4+ Re7 47. Qc8+ $1 {Now White wins a whole rook.} (47. Bxe7+ $2 Kxe7 48. Qc8 Qd6+ $11 {was still a way to spoil the game.}) 1-0 [Event "Morelia/Linares 25th"] [Site "Morelia/Linares"] [Date "2008.02.22"] [Round "6"] [White "Radjabov, Teimour"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2735"] [BlackElo "2733"] [Annotator "Radjabov,Teimour"] [PlyCount "85"] [EventDate "2008.02.15"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "14"] [EventCountry "ESP"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 123"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2008.04.02"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2008.04.02"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {I started with -1 and was still on this score before my game vs Carlsen. I had ambitions to fight in all games, but I didn't manage to capitalise on my chances before this win finally came. Ich hatte mit -1 begonnen, und auf diesem Stand befand ich mich vor meiner Partie gegen Carlsen noch immer. Ich hatte den Ehrgeiz, in allen Partien zu kämpfen, konnte meine Chancen aber nicht nutzen, bis endlich dieser Sieg kam.} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 {With this move I scored an important win with this move in a match Azerbaijan-France in the European Team Championship for the bronze medals! Mit diesem Zug erzielte ich einen wichtigen Sieg in dem Kampf Aserbaidschan-Frankreich bei der Europäischen Mannschaftsmeisterschaft um die Bronzemedaillen!} (4. O-O {Of course it's more natural to go 0-0 here, but I was in a mood to try the d3-system. Selbstverständlich ist die Rochade natürlicher, aber ich hatte Lust, das d3-System zu versuchen.}) 4... Bc5 5. c3 O-O 6. O-O d5 7. Nbd2 {White plays for a very small plus! Black may choose now between many options, like ...?g4 or ...?e8 etc... Carlsen decided to clarify things in the center by taking on e4. Weiß spielt auf ein ganz kleines Plus! Schwarz hat nun die Wahl zwischen vielen Möglichkeiten wie ...?g4 oder ...?e8 usw... Carlsen beschloss, durch das Schlagen auf e4 die Dinge im Zentrum zu klären.} dxe4 8. Nxe4 (8. dxe4 {also deserves serious attention, but I guess that my intention was to get my c1 bishop to a more active position. kommt ebenfalls ernsthaft in Betracht, aber ich schätze, meine Abwicht war, meinen c1-Läuer auf einen aktiveren Posten zu bringen.}) 8... Nxe4 9. dxe4 Qf6 {Now Black wants to go for ...?e7-g6 or ...?g4. White has to take measures, also ...?d8 is threatening and ...?g6 to follow etc... Nun will Schwarz ...?e7-g6 spielen oder ...?g4. Weiß muss Maßnahmen ergreifen, denn es droht auch ...?d8 nebst ...?g6 usw...} (9... Qxd1 10. Rxd1 $14) 10. Qe2 (10. Qd5 {I didn't like this so much as I felt Black has a lot of play for the pawn! Two bishops and White's uncoordinated queenside are worth that investment. Dies gefiel mir nicht sonderlich, da ich das Gefühl hatte, dass Schwarz eine Menge Spiel für den Bauern hat! Das Läuferpaar und der unkoordinierte weiße Damenflügel sind diese Investition wert.} Bd6 11. Bxc6 bxc6 12. Qxc6 Bg4 $44) 10... Bg4 {Very natural and played almost instantly! Sehr natürlich, und beinahe a tempo gespielt!} (10... h6 $5 11. Bxc6 (11. Rd1 $6 {Solid but not more! Black is in time to regroup now! Solide, mehr aber auch nicht! Nun kann Schwarz sich rechtzeitig umgruppieren!} Ne7 12. b4 (12. Be3 Bxe3 13. Qxe3 Bg4 14. Be2 Ng6 15. g3 b6 16. Ne1 $13) 12... Bb6 $13) (11. Be3 Bxe3 12. Qxe3 Ne7 $11) 11... bxc6 12. Be3 $14) 11. h3 {What else? If I allow this pin to last, Black will start to play ?e7-g6-h6 c6, clearly improving his position, meanwhile White has no targets to attack! Was sonst? Wenn ich nichts gegen diese Fesselung unternehme, wird Schwarz mit ?e7-g6 und h6, c6 seine Stellung eindeutig verbessern, wohingegen Weiß keine Ziele hat, die er angreifen kann!} Bxf3 (11... Bh5 12. g4 Bg6 13. Bg5 Qe6 14. Rfd1 $16) 12. Qxf3 Qxf3 13. gxf3 Ne7 {Well , very natural Nun, sehr natürlich.} (13... f5 {I thought Black could play like this after gxf3, to open the f-line and start ?f6-?af8 and so on. Ich dachte, dass Schwarz nach gxf3 so spielen könnte, um die f-Linie zu öffnen und ?f6-?af8 usw. folgen zu lassen.} 14. b4 {But I think that White is still better after b4 or ?c4+. Aber ich denke, dass Weiß nach b4 oder ?c4+ trotzdem besser steht.} (14. Be3 Bxe3 15. fxe3) (14. Bc4+ Kh8 15. Bd5 $14) 14... Bb6 15. Bc4+ Kh8 16. a4 $14) 14. f4 $5 (14. b4 $5 {Well, it was also possible to start with this move! I didn't want somehow to allow ?d6 preventing f4 and probably I was right! Nun, es war auch möglch, mit diesem Zug zu beginnen. Irgendwie wollte ich ?d6 nicht zulassen, was f4 verhindert, und womöglich hatte ich Recht!} Bd6 $1 {[%csl Rf4] But after this move I am not sure at all that White has something real. Aber nach diesem Zug bin ich keinesfalls sicher, dass Weiß irgendwas Reales hat.} (14... Bb6 15. a4 a5 (15... c6 {Black has to go like this otherwise White is much better! Schwarz muss so spielen, ansonsten steht Weiß deutlich besser!} 16. Bc4 (16. Be2 $5 {Looks very strong too! Now a5 is threatening and ?e3 with typical advantage! Sieht ebenfalls sehr stark aus! Nun droht a5 und ?e3 mit typischem Vorteil!} a5 17. Rb1 $1 $14 axb4 18. Rxb4 Nc8 19. Rd1 c5 20. Rb5 $16) 16... a5 17. Rd1 (17. Rb1 $6 {The bishop on c4 is hanging! Der Läufer auf c4 hängt!} axb4 18. Rxb4 Nc8 19. Rd1 Bc5 {[%csl Rc4][%CAl Ga8a4] Here is the difference to the ?e2 retreat, the bishop on c4 is hanging! Hier zeigt sich der Unterschied zu dem Rückzug ?e2, der Läufer auf c4 hängt!}) 17... Rfd8 18. Be3 $14 (18. Bg5 Kf8 19. Rdb1 $14 (19. Rxd8+ Rxd8 20. Rb1 $5 f6 21. bxa5 Bxa5 22. Be3 b6 23. Rb3 c5 {and Black is in time to block somehow. und Schwarz kann rechtzeitig irgendwie blockieren.}))) 16. bxa5 Rxa5 (16... Bc5 17. Rd1 $16 {[%CAl Gd1d7]}) 17. Ba3 c5 18. Rfd1 $16) 15. Be3 a5 16. a3 Ng6 $13) (14. Bc4 $5 {looks very interesting. It is better than b4, because now White has no weaknesses on the queenside and he can try to make use of the bishop pair without fearing any kind of fast counterplay. sieht sehr interessant aus. Dies ist besser als b4, denn nun hat Weiß keine Schwächen am Damenflügel, und er kann versuchen, Kapital aus dem Läuferpaar zu schlagen, ohne irgendein schnelles Gegenspiel befürchten zu müssen.}) 14... c6 (14... Ng6 15. f5 (15. fxe5 c6 16. Ba4 Rad8 {Black is well developed and very active! Schwarz ist gut entwickelt und sehr aktiv!}) (15. Be3 Bxe3 16. fxe3 $11) 15... Nf4 (15... Nh4 16. Be2 $16) 16. Bxf4 exf4 17. e5 $5 $14 {Here this move looks better for White. The idea is that now White is going to play ?ad1 and then ?g2-f3 xf4 and so on. Hier sieht dieser Zug besser für Weiß aus. Die Idee ist, dass er nun ?ad1 spielen wird und dann ?g2-f3 xf4 usw.} (17. Rad1 Rfd8 (17... c6 18. Ba4 $14) 18. e5 c6 19. Bc4 f3 20. Bb3 Kf8 $13) (17. Kg2 Rfd8 18. Rad1 (18. e5 c6 19. Bc4 Rd2) 18... g5 $6 (18... f6 19. Kf3 (19. Bd3 $5) 19... Rxd1 20. Rxd1 Bd6 21. Bc4+ Kf8 22. h4 $14 {Better for White, but also hard to progress. Besser für Weiß, aber ebenfalls schwer, Fortschritte zu machen.}) 19. e5 $1 (19. Kf3 f6 $1 {The best move! Der beste Zug!} (19... Kf8 20. f6 $16 {This looks quite strong! Now White is much better! Dies sieht ziemlich stark aus! Jetzt steht Weiß viel besser!} c6 21. Bc4 Bb6 22. Kg4 h6 23. Kh5 Rxd1 24. Rxd1 Rd8 25. Rxd8+ Bxd8 26. e5 Bb6 27. f3 $16) (19... c6 20. Ba4 h6 21. f6 $14) 20. h4 h6 21. Bd7 (21. e5 fxe5 22. Rde1 Be7 $11) 21... Kg7 22. Rg1 Bd6 23. Be6 a5 24. a4 {But still, it's hard to make any progress! Aber dennoch, es ist schwer, irgendwelche Fortschritte zu machen!}) 19... c6 20. Bc4 b5 21. Be2 $16) 17... Rfd8 18. Rad1 $14) 15. Bc4 exf4 16. Bxf4 Ng6 17. Bg3 Rfe8 {All the moves from both sides are logical. Both are developing their forces. Alle Züge von beiden Seiten sind logisch. Beide versuchen, ihre Kräfte zu entwickeln.} 18. Rfe1 (18. Bd3 {deserved attention! Well, now White wants to go for ?ad1 and ?g2 with f4-e5, with slight and unpleasant pressure. verdiente Aufmerksamkeit! Nun, jetzt beabsichtigt Weiß ?ad1 und ?g2 nebst f4-e5, mit leichtem, aber unangenehmem Druck.} Rad8 (18... h5 19. Rad1 h4 20. Bh2 Ne5 21. Be2 $14) 19. Rad1 $14 Ne5 (19... Bd6 20. f4 {and White is pressing! und Weiß drückt!}) 20. Be2 $14) 18... Rad8 19. Rad1 $1 {Even if objectively White is not better according to the computer's analysis, practically speaking it was the best. Now White's play is quite easy and Black has to find defences which are not all that easy. Selbst wenn Weiß laut Computeranalyse nicht besser steht, war dies in praktischer Hinsicht das Stärkste. Es spielt sich ziemlich leicht für ihn, und Schwarz muss Verteidigungen finden, die keinesfalls so einfach sind.} Rxd1 20. Rxd1 Rxe4 {Carlsen thought for a long time here, but finally took the pawn. I think it was the right decision if Black could manage to find all the best moves afterwards. Hier dachte Carlsen lange nach, schließlich aber nahm er den Bauern. Ich denke, es war die richtige Entscheidung, vorausgesetzt, es gelänge Schwarz, im Anschluss all die besten Züge zu finden.} 21. Rd8+ Nf8 (21... Bf8 $6 {is a mistake I think. The bishop and knight are too passive now, White gets a strong attack and all Black's pawns are very very weak without the bishop's protection! ist ein Fehler, denke ich. Läufer und Spirnger stehen jetzt zu passiv, Weiß erhält starken Angriff, und sämtliche schwarzen Bauern sind ohne den Schutz des Läufers sehr, sehr schwach!} 22. Bd3 Re6 (22... Re1+ 23. Kg2 Rd1 $4 24. Kf3 $18) 23. Ra8 $16) 22. Bd3 Re1+ 23. Kg2 a5 (23... g6 $6 24. b4 Bb6 25. Rb8 Re7 (25... Rd1 26. Be4 Rd7 27. a4 f5 28. Bf3) 26. a4 Rd7 27. Be4 $14 (27. Be2 Bd8 28. b5 Ba5 29. c4 cxb5 30. axb5 Bb4 31. Bf3 b6 32. Ra8 $14 {White keeps up unpleasant pressure on Black's position, combining attacks on the pawns with bishop manoeuvres all over the board. Weiß behält unangenehmen Druck auf die schwarze Stellung, wobei er Angriffe auf die Bauern mit Läufermanövern auf dem ganzen Brett kombiniert.})) 24. Ra8 Rd1 25. Bc4 (25. Be4 {was an interesting alternative! Probably even stronger than the text. My intention was to put the bishop on c4 attacking f7, but maybe the bishop is better placed on e4 as the c6-b7 pawns are vulnerable and the b-pawn can't move to protect a5! Also ?f3 at some tpoint to combine ideas like pushing the a- and b-pawns and putting pressure on c6; the bishop is well placed on f3 to support White's play on the queenside. war eine interessante Alternative! Vermutlich sogar noch stärker als der Text. Meine Absicht war, den Läufer nach c4 zu stellen und f7 anzugreifen, aber vielleicht steht der Läufer besser auf e4, da die Bauern c6-b7 anfällig sind und der b-Bauern nicht vorrücken kann, um a5 zu decken! Eventuell auch ?f3 an irgendeiner Stelle, um Ideen wie das Vorstoßen von a- und b-Bauern mit Druck auf c6 zu kombinieren; auf f3 ist der Läufer gut platziert, um das weiße Spiel am Damenflügel zu unterstützen.} g6 $8 {Black has to get rid of the pin! Otherwise it's hard to play vs two bishops and an active rook on a8. Schwarz muss die Fesselung abschütteln! Ansonsten ist es schwer, gegen das Läuferpaar und einen aktiven Turm auf a8 zu spielen.} 26. Rxa5 Ne6 (26... Bd6 $6 27. Ra7 $5 (27. Bf3 Rd2 28. Bxd6 Rxd6 29. Ra7 $1 {Now Black is in trouble! a4-b4 is coming and the bishop provides support from f3. Jetzt ist Schwarz in Schwierigkeiten! a4-b4 kommt, und der Läufer bietet Schützenhilfe von f3 aus.}) 27... Bxg3 28. Kxg3 Rd7 29. a4 $16) 27. a4 Kg7 28. b4 Bd6 29. Bxd6 Rxd6 30. Ra7 $14) 25... Bb6 $2 {Now Carlsen misses White's strong reply. I was not sure if the position is winning after it, but it was clear that White is simply much better. Nun übersieht Carlsen die starke weiße Antwort. Ich war nicht sicher, ob die Stellung danach gewonnen ist, klar war aber, dass Weiß einfach viel besser steht.} (25... b6 $1 26. a3 {To play b4 and try to attack the b6- and c6-pawns! Zur Vorbereitung von b4 im Versuch, die Bauern b6 and c6 anzugreifen!} Ra1 $3 27. Ra7 (27. Rc8 a4 $1 28. Rxc6 Rb1 29. Rc7 Ne6 {and it's draw finally. und es endet schließlich remis.} 30. Rc8+ Nf8 $11) 27... Ne6 28. Ra8+ Nf8 29. h4 g6 30. Bf4 h5 $14 {It's unpleasant to play this position as Black, but it's also hard to make any progress with White. Still practically speaking White's position looks preferable to me. Es ist unangenehm, diese Stellung mit Schwarz zu spielen, aber ebenfalls schwer, mit Weiß irgendwelche Fortschritte zu erzielen. Dennoch, in praktischer Hinsicht scheint mir die Stellung von Weiß vorzuziehen zu sein.}) 26. Rb8 $1 Rd7 27. Ba6 $1 {Now the b7-pawn is going be taken, Black can't allow this. Carlsen goes for the best defensive chance. Jetzt droht der Bauer b7 genommen zu werden. Schwarz darf dies nicht zulassen. Carlsen wählt die beste Verteidigungschance.} bxa6 (27... Bc7 {In this case Black ends in a hopeless endgame. After this move Black is totally lost, but I can't put in 20-25 moves variations to prove that assesment, so I will just put it down as a big advantage for White. I will explain how White wins in this way. He is going for ?xc7 and then ?xb7, he will bring the king to the queenside, exchanging all pawns leaving only the a-pawn vs the knight. Then his opponent should normally resign at some point. But ok, if it didn't happen, so don't blame me :) In diesem Fall landet Schwarz in einem hoffnungslosen Endspiel. Nach diesem Zug ist Schwarz total verloren, aber ich kann nicht 20- bis 25-zügige Varianten anführen, um diese Einschätzung zu belegen, daher werde ich es einfach als großen Vorteil für Weiß abhaken. Ich werde erklären, wie Weiß dann gewinnt. Er wird ?xc7 und dann ?xb7 spielen, den König zum Damenflügel bringen und alle Bauern tauschen, wonach nur der a-Bauer gegen den Springer übrig bleibt. Dann sollte sein Gegner normalerweise irgendwann aufgeben. Aber okay, wenn dies nicht passiert, schieben Sie es nicht auf mich:)} 28. Bxc7 (28. Rxb7 Bxg3 29. Kxg3 $16) 28... Rxc7 29. Rxb7 Rxb7 30. Bxb7 c5 31. Kf3 Nd7 32. Ke4 Nb6 33. Bc6 $16) 28. Rxb6 f6 (28... f5 $6 {looks interesting, with a possible ?g6-f4 later. But there is a trick that White can try. sieht interessant aus, mit einem möglichen ?g6-f4 später. Weiß kann aber einen Trick versuchen.} 29. Rxc6 $5 (29. Rxa6 $5 Ng6 {f4 is coming on the next move, but... f4 kommt im nächsten Zug, aber...} 30. h4 f4 31. h5 fxg3 32. hxg6 hxg6 33. Kxg3 Rd2 34. b4 (34. Rxa5) 34... Rd3+ 35. f3 Rxc3 36. Rxa5 $16) 29... Rd2 (29... Ng6 30. Bd6 $18) 30. Rxa6 Ng6 31. h4 f4 32. h5 fxg3 33. hxg6 hxg6 34. Kxg3 $16) 29. Rxa6 (29. Rxc6 $5 {was very strong I think. war sehr stark, meine ich.} Rd2 30. Rxa6 Rxb2 31. Rxa5 g5 32. a4 $16 {and in this position it's very hard for Black to keep up his defence. White's a-pawn is too strong. , und in dieser Stellung ist es für Schwarz sehr schwer, seine Verteidigung aufrechtzuerhalten. Der weiße a-Bauer ist zu stark.}) 29... Rd2 {Now Black is not even a pawn down. So he has good chances to hold the game, it seems. But in practice his task was very hard, I think. Jetzt hat Schwarz nicht einmal einen Bauern weniger. Also hat er gute Chancen, die Partie zu halten, scheint es. In der Praxis aber war seine Aufgabe sehr schwer, glaube ich.} 30. b4 axb4 (30... Rxa2 31. Rxa5 Re2 32. Ra6 Re6 33. c4 {and White is much better here. He has a lot of pressure and it is hard to defend with Black. und hier steht Weiß deutlich besser. Er hat starken Druck, und es ist schwer, mit Schwarz zu verteidigen.} Kf7 34. b5 cxb5 35. cxb5 Re1 36. Ra7+ Ke6 (36... Kg6 37. Bd6 Ne6 38. b6 $18) 37. Rxg7 Rb1 38. Rb7 $16) 31. cxb4 Rb2 $6 (31... Ng6 $1 {with the idea f5-f4 somewhere. mit der Idee f5-f4 irgendwo.} 32. a4 (32. Rxc6 Rxa2 33. b5 Rb2 $14) 32... Ne7 (32... f5 {is not useful here as White may go for ?c7 or ?b8 and weakening of the e5 -square is not in Black's plans. ist hier nicht nützlich, da Weiß ?c7 oder ?b8 spielten könnte, und eine Schwächung des e5-Feldes passt nicht in die schwarzen Pläne.} 33. Bb8 $16) 33. a5 $5 (33. Ra7 Nf5 34. a5 Ra2 35. Ra6 Ra4 36. Rxc6 (36. Rb6 Nxg3 37. fxg3 c5 38. bxc5 Rxa5 39. c6 Rc5 40. Kf3 Rc4 $11) 36... Rxb4 37. a6 Ra4 38. Bb8 $14) 33... Kf7 34. Bf4 Rc2 (34... Rd4 35. Be3 Rxb4 36. Ra7 $1 $18) 35. Bd6 Nd5 36. Ra8 Ke6 37. Bc5 $16 {und White has good chances to win the game as the position is quite similiar to the game and hardly savable for Black. und Weiß hat gute Gewinnchancen, denn die Stellung ist ganz ähnlich der Partie und für Schwarz kaum zu retten.}) (31... f5 32. a4 $16) 32. Bd6 Ne6 $6 (32... Ng6 33. a4 $16 Rc2 34. a5 Kf7 35. Bc5 Nf4+ 36. Kf3 Nd5 37. Rxc6 $18) 33. a4 $18 Rc2 34. a5 (34. Ra8+ Kf7 35. Rc8 {was even cleaner! war sogar noch sauberer!}) 34... Kf7 35. Bc5 $5 (35. Rb6 $18) 35... Nf4+ 36. Kf3 Nd5 (36... Nd3 37. Ke3 $1 Nxc5 38. Rxc6 $18) 37. Rb6 $1 {? After this move White is totally winning. Nach diesem Zug steht Weiß total auf Gewinn.} (37. Rxc6 $18) 37... Rc4 (37... Kg6 38. a6 Rc3+ 39. Ke2 $18) 38. Rb7+ $18 Kg6 39. a6 Rc3+ 40. Kg2 $5 (40. Ke2 Nf4+ (40... Ra3 41. a7 Nc3+ 42. Kd3 Nb5+ 43. Kc2 h5 44. Kb2 Ra4 45. Rb8 $18) 41. Kd2 Ra3 42. a7 $18) 40... Nf4+ 41. Kg1 {And the last important move. Und der letzte wichtige Zug.} ({It was still possible to spoil everything by Es war noch immer möglich, alles zu verderben mit} 41. Kh2 Rxh3+ 42. Kg1 Ne2+ 43. Kf1 Nf4 $11) 41... Nxh3+ 42. Kh2 Nf4 43. Be3 {After this move Carlsen resigned. Nach diesem Zug gab Carlsen auf.} (43. a7 Rh3+ 44. Kg1 Ne2+ 45. Kf1 Nf4 46. Ke1 Nd3+ (46... Ra3 47. Kd2 $18) 47. Kd2 Nxc5 48. a8=Q Nxb7 49. Qxb7 Rh4 50. Kc3 {and White wins the c6-pawn and the game. und Weiß gewinnt den Bauern c6 und die Partie.}) 1-0 [Event "World-ch Carlsen-Karjakin +1-1=10"] [Site "New York"] [Date "2016.11.24"] [Round "10"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2853"] [BlackElo "2769"] [Annotator "So,Wesley"] [PlyCount "149"] [EventDate "2016.11.11"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "12"] [EventCountry "USA"] [SourceTitle "CBM 176"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2017.01.17"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2017.01.17"] [SourceQuality "1"] {Going into the World Championship matches, many people logically considered Magnus to be the clear favorite against Sergey Karjakin. First of all the difference in their rating was a bit wide, as was their most recent overall performance.This year alone Magnus had won four big tournaments (Tata Steel, Norway, Leuven and Bilbao), while Sergey had only won the (admittedly long and tough) Candidates tournament which qualified him as the Challenger. Those things carry weight in people's minds but rounds 1-9 showed a different and very surprising story. The challenger's strong balanced attack, his ability to find good moves and make plans, his outstanding defense, and resistance to cracking under pressure, proved him to be an impregnable fortress. Magnus could not find a way to break Sergey down until eventually, overextending himself in Round 8, the Champion even had to accept defeat. At this point in Game 10 with only 3 games to the finish he absolutely has to find a way to even the score. He HAS to do it today.} 1. e4 {In Rounds 1 and 8 Magnus got nowhere with 1.d4, after giving the Trompovsky and the Colle system a try. Sergey Karjakin knew his stuff there. In fact he got nothing but trouble in game 8. So today Magnus decides to go back to the "best by test move" recommended by Fischer and Caruana. To be honest I'm kind of surprised that Magnus does not try 1.c4 or 1.?f3/1.g3 but maybe we will see that in Round 12.} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 (3. Bc4 Bc5 {Carlsen-Karjakin Round 5, but Magnus got nothing there either and in the end he must have been happy to save that game.}) 3... Nf6 {Sergey sticks to his guns and goes for the Berlin Opening. I noticed that during the entire match so far, one of Sergey's strategies has been simply to go for the main lines in the opening and play a normal game. He does not overpush but maintains composure by playing objective, strong moves.} 4. d3 {Magnus' strategy seemed mostly aimed at surprises in the opening and later on, hopes to exploit his opponent's mistakes over the board. It reminded me of a quote by a famous chess player: "I will play 40 good moves. If my opponent plays 40 good moves too, we will draw." The problem in this match is Sergey is the opponent who finds all the good moves too.} (4. O-O Nxe4 5. Re1 {Carlsen-Karjakin Round 3, where White got very close to first blood, but later on couldn't convert.}) 4... Bc5 {Putting the bishop on an active post while also preparing to exchange the knights with ...?d4.} 5. c3 ({Magnus has won many games in the past with} 5. Bxc6 dxc6 {And here White has many moves, but the latest innovation is} 6. Qe2 {threatening to take ?xe5.} Qe7 (6... Bg4 7. h3 Bxf3 8. Qxf3 $14) 7. Nbd2 Bg4 8. h3 Bh5 9. a3 Nd7 10. b4 Bd6 11. Nc4 f6 12. Ne3 a5 13. Nf5 {The knight on f5 is very powerful and not easy to dislodge.} Qf8 14. bxa5 Rxa5 15. O-O Qf7 16. a4 Nc5 (16... O-O $2 17. Bh6 $1 {is a really nice combination.}) 17. Qe1 b6 18. Nd2 Rxa4 19. Nc4 Bf8 $2 20. Be3 {and White won easily - Carlsen against a strong GM.}) 5... O-O 6. Bg5 {This is unexpected, both for the spectators and I assume for Sergey too. Usually White castles his king first with 6.O-O and then after 6...d6 7.?g5, when Black no longer has the option of ...?e7.} (6. Bxc6 {does not win a clean pawn, since after} bxc6 7. Nxe5 d5 {Black will get fast development in return.}) 6... h6 7. Bh4 Be7 {This is the safe and natural approach. I like this move.} (7... g5 8. Bg3 d6 9. Nbd2 {is not desirable for Black as with the rook still on h1, White gets extra attacking options.}) 8. O-O (8. Bxc6 bxc6 9. Nxe5 {You think White has won a pawn? Well...} Nxe4 $1 {No. Black is better.}) 8... d6 9. Nbd2 {It's a little perplexing in general is Magnus' opening approach, as it's not very clear here where White's advantage is.} ({Perhaps} 9. Bg3 {with a complex position for example,} Nh5 ({If} 9... Bd7 {then} 10. h3 {which is a typical Ruy Lopez subtlety, vacating the h2-square for the bishop to retreat into!} Nh5 11. Bh2 f5 $13) 10. Bxc6 bxc6 (10... Nxg3 11. Bxb7 $1 {Aha! The suicidal bishop gives up its life so White wins a pawn.} Bxb7 12. hxg3 $16) 11. Nxe5 dxe5 12. Qxh5 Qxd3 13. Qxe5 Re8 {and Black has the bishop pair and some compensation for the pawn.}) (9. Re1 Nh5 10. Bxe7 Qxe7 11. d4 Nf4 $11) 9... Nh5 10. Bxe7 ({If} 10. Bg3 {Black just grabs the bishop pair:} Nxg3 11. hxg3 Bf6 {with a happy position.} (11... Nb8 12. d4 c6 13. Bd3 Nd7 14. Nc4 Qc7 {should also bring a smile to Sergey's face.})) 10... Qxe7 11. Nc4 (11. Bxc6 {to give Black doubled pawns looks like a good option.} bxc6 12. d4 (12. g3 f5) 12... Nf4 {But in fact White cannot really exploit it. In fact if anything, the strong knight on f4 gives Black good chances. For example} 13. Qa4 Rb8 14. b3 Rb6 $17 {when Black seizes a strong initiative. I can already foresee a rook swing (?b6-g6) to the kingside later on.}) 11... Nf4 {Simple and strong.} (11... f5 {is a more complicated way to equality.} 12. Ne3 fxe4 13. dxe4 Kh7 $11) 12. Ne3 Qf6 (12... f5 {is always an option here, though after} 13. g3 fxe4 14. dxe4 Nh3+ 15. Kg2 {the knight on h3 still has to find a way to escape.}) 13. g3 Nh3+ 14. Kh1 {A little too passive.} ({The king would be better placed on g2.} 14. Kg2 Ne7 15. d4 {gives White a small advantage as he has more space and seizes control over the center.} Ng6 16. Bd3 {the knight on h3 can be kicked away later with ?g1.}) 14... Ne7 {Now comes the manoeuvring phase. Both sides will now try to improve their position. The knight on h3 is very active, and Black can always exchange it with ...?g5. I think Black has no problems here.} 15. Bc4 {Putting the bishop on the right diagonal.} (15. d4 {seems natural but leads nowhere.} exd4 16. cxd4 c5 $11) 15... c6 (15... b5 {was being cried out by the spectators online:} 16. Bb3 {But I am not sure where it leads. Advancing pawns too far can lead to unnecessary weaknesses and as everyone knows pawns cannot move backwards. In fact White is threatening a2-a4 so perhaps} (16. Bxb5 Rb8) 16... Rb8 {with an around equal position.}) 16. Bb3 Ng6 {Perhaps a small inaccuracy.} ({The knight was just fine on e7, to guard the d5 and f5-squares. In fact Black has on his agenda an active option here to try to seize the initiative:} 16... d5 $5 17. exd5 cxd5 18. Nxd5 Nxd5 19. Bxd5 Rd8 20. Be4 {and now comes The Pin:} Bg4 $1 {and White has to sacrifice material to get rid of this dangerous pin.}) 17. Qe2 {I always think Magnus excels in this kind of close to equal positions. So in fact his opening choice has been quite successful despite its modest appearance. Now even if the advantage is not much, White has chances to outplay his opponent.} a5 18. a4 {Fighting for space on the queenside and fixing the pawn on a5. With the black knights so far away on the kingside, later this a5 pawn will lack protection.} ({Watching the game live, I thought a stronger move was} 18. d4 {based on the chess principle 'Attack on the flank is best met by a counter-attack in the center'.} a4 19. Bc2 Ng5 20. Nxg5 hxg5 21. Rad1 {and White is a little better. But now I like Magnus' choice too, as he wants to dominate the whole board, and not just the center.}) 18... Be6 19. Bxe6 $5 {When I first saw this move I thought Magnus had just made a small blunder. I thought that's it, he just wasted one of his last White games, congrats to Sergey for making an easy draw and getting one step closer to being a World Champion. However deeper inspection shows that he is setting a trap!} (19. Nd2 $1 {is definitely the best move. Black's knights on g6 and h3 look nice, but in fact they're stepping on each other's toes as neither of them can really put a foot on f4, while White is ready to consolidate his center with f3.} Bxb3 20. Nxb3 {and in fact White is already threatening to win a pawn with ?c4, amongst other threats.} Ng5 21. f3 {White has a much better coordination of pieces than his opponent's.}) (19. Bc2 Ng5 20. Nxg5 hxg5 21. Rad1 {is possible too, though not as forceful as 19.?d2.}) 19... fxe6 20. Nd2 {Now White is threatening to block the kingside with f3.} d5 ({I thought 19.?xe6 was a blunder because at first sight} 20... Nxf2+ {seems to finish the game with a clean draw. But Magnus still has a final trick up his sleeve which I am sure he will go for.} 21. Kg1 $1 {is the prepared trick. Now White gets two knights for a rook and a couple of pawns.} (21. Kg2 $2 Nh4+ 22. Kg1 (22. gxh4 $2 Qg6+ {would end the match right here and right now.}) 22... Nh3+ 23. Kh1 Nf2+ {and a perpetual check is undesirable for White, as he is trailing in the match.}) 21... Nh3+ 22. Kg2 Nhf4+ 23. gxf4 Nxf4+ 24. Rxf4 exf4 (24... Qxf4 25. Qf3 $1 {gives Black an unpleasant choice. To trade queens or not to trade? Either way White will be happy.} Qh4 26. Qg3) 25. Nc2 {In terms of material Black is fine, but with the position being closed, the White knights get a lot of jumping potential. Leading the match by one game, Sergey decides to avoid unbalanced positions like this.} e5 ({Perhaps} 25... b5 {to open some files but then} 26. e5 $1 dxe5 27. Ne1 $5 {with the idea to blockade with the knights on e4 and f3. The position is totally chaotic.}) 26. Qg4 {and White is preparing to improve his kingside with h4 or ?e1-f3. At the very least he is not worse and could even be better.}) 21. Qh5 $5 {Again a very daring try by Magnus. He goes for the most risky but most rewarding continuation.} (21. f3 $1 {would be my preference. White is well on his way to consolidation. Knight sacrifices on f4 do not work, while the doubled e-pawns give Black eternal problems.} Rad8 22. Rae1 {I like White.}) 21... Ng5 {Sergey misses the draw! Just when he is close to it, he chooses another way.} (21... Nxf2+ 22. Kg2 (22. Kg1 Qg5 {wins a pawn with an easy tactic.} 23. Qxg5 Nh3+ {Check!} 24. Kg2 Nxg5 $17) 22... Qf7 $1 {Threatening ...?f4 check.} 23. Kg1 {White prevents the check, and now Black has to find:} ({If White retreats with} 23. Qe2 {then} Nh4+ {and it's clear to see that it leads to a perpetual.} 24. Kg1 (24. gxh4 $2 Qg6+) 24... Nh3+ 25. Kh1 Nf2+) 23... Qf6 $1 {It's easy to miss this move. Black prepares ...?g5 followed by ...?h3 check, so White has nothing better than} 24. Kg2 (24. Ng4 Qg5) 24... Qf7 $11) 22. h4 {Magnus is so happy to be able to torture his opponent in a long endgame that he just went for it. According to online sources he spent less than half a minute on this move.} ({I don't blame him at all for wanting to squeeze the life out of Sergey in the endgame but} 22. Rae1 $1 {preparing ?g4, is even stronger. For example} Nf3 23. Ng4 Qg5 24. Qxg5 hxg5 25. Nxf3 Rxf3 26. Rd1 $16 {You may ask, what is worse than doubled pawns? Well... two sets of doubled pawns.}) 22... Nf3 23. Nxf3 Qxf3+ 24. Qxf3 Rxf3 25. Kg2 {Magnus' daring play starting from 19.?xe6 has paid off. White has a very pleasant endgame advantage. The doubled e-pawns are a constant source of problems. I don't like Black's position.} Rf7 26. Rfe1 {This leaves the f2-pawn slightly vulnerable. Not that it matters though. White has an abundance of plans here.} ({I like} 26. Ng4 {forcing h5.} h5 27. Nh2 Nf8 28. Nf3 {Now White seizes the g5-square too.} Nd7 29. Rae1 {White is well on the way to converting his advantage.}) 26... h5 (26... Raf8 {can be simply met by} 27. Nd1 (27. Re2 {gives birth to} Nf4+ {ideas.} 28. gxf4 exf4) 27... h5 28. Re2 $14) 27. Nf1 {Finding ideal squares for his pieces is a piece of cake for Magnus.} Kf8 (27... Raf8 28. Re2 Rf3 29. Rd1 {with the queens off the board any tries by Black to attack will not be successful. So instead he tries to improve his king.}) 28. Nd2 Ke7 29. Re2 {Protecting f2. This is a very happy position. I had no doubt that White would be able to convert this position barring big blunders. It's got nothing to do with Sergey, Black's structure is simply bad.} Kd6 30. Nf3 Raf8 31. Ng5 Re7 32. Rae1 Rfe8 33. Nf3 {Besides all Black's problems, his knight is also a little misplaced on g6.} Nh8 $1 {Improving the position of the knight. Despite being at a disadvantage, Sergey hangs tough. The question for White now, is how to convert his advantage?} 34. d4 {A conversion of advantages. Magnus decides the time is ripe to blast open the center and endanger the position of the black king.} ({Personally I would prefer to leave Black with his doubled pawns and choose} 34. b4 axb4 35. cxb4 Nf7 36. a5 {with a clear advantage too, but sooner or later White has to find a way to break through.}) 34... exd4 35. Nxd4 g6 {Protecting the f5-square.} ({A lesser wood pusher might go} 35... Nf7 {but then} 36. exd5 cxd5 37. c4 dxc4 {and the black king is caught in the middle of the crossfire.}) 36. Re3 {Threatening ?f3. Again White has an abundance of plans here. b2-b4 ideas are always in the air.} ({I like the subtle} 36. Nb3 $5 b6 37. Nd4 {with the idea of weakening c6 but perhaps it is too subtle for the most part.}) 36... Nf7 37. e5+ (37. Rf3 Ne5 38. Rf6 Rf7 {allows Black to defend, no problemo. After the exchange of his most active rook, White's chances to convert become much harder.} 39. Rxf7 Nxf7) 37... Kd7 38. Rf3 {Perhaps not the best but it is a normal move, especially when both players are relatively low in time.} (38. b4 {is more accurate, to prevent ...c5 ideas.}) 38... Nh6 $6 {Sergey also makes a natural consolidating move. If he can block the f-file with ...?f5, then all well and good. However Black has better options here on move 38 though.} (38... c5 {looks good, to set the queenside pawns into motion. After} 39. Nb3 b6 40. Nd2 {Black still does not fully solve his problems however.} Nh8 $1 (40... Rg8 41. Rf6 {and the g6-h5 pawn chain will be quite vulnerable.}) 41. c4 (41. Rf6 Rf7 $1 {eliminates White's most active piece!}) 41... Rf7 {the programs show that Black is fine but it's hard for me to believe with the knight on h8. Also, it's almost impossible for a human to play ...?h8 over the board.}) (38... g5 39. hxg5 Nxg5 40. Rf6) ({Or} 38... Rg8 39. Rf6 {but White still looks better here.}) 39. Rf6 Rg7 40. b4 {Now White is back on track.} (40. c4 $5 {is the complicated way to try to knock out Black. His king will be vulnerable in the center even in the endgame.}) 40... axb4 41. cxb4 $16 {Both players have finished the time trouble stage and now have an extra hour of thinking time. Compared to a few moves back, White has now managed to increase his advantage and gain firm control over the position. Black's dark-squares are very vulnerable and at the same time he has to think of ways to regain control over the f-file.} Ng8 ({If} 41... Nf5 {White simply retreats his knight to b3 or f3, and the pressure becomes untenable in conjunction with a power rook on f6.}) 42. Rf3 Nh6 43. a5 {Improving his position slowly but surely. Of course White avoids the repetition of moves!} Nf5 {.} 44. Nb3 Kc7 45. Nc5 $6 {Magnus starts to drift, probably because he has such a nice position.} ({White could have sealed the win with} 45. Rc1 {threatening b5. And if} Kb8 46. a6 {if the b7-c6 pawn chain falls then the last of Black's bastions are fallen.} Rc7 47. Rfc3 {A sample line of how the game can end:} bxa6 48. Rxc6 Rxc6 49. Rxc6 Kb7 50. Na5+ Ka7 51. Rc7+ Kb8 52. Rf7 $18 {Seventh rank, active pieces, later on active king, White has all the trumps that he needs. Black's position is crumbling.}) 45... Kb8 46. Rb1 Ka7 {Now there is no clean finish. However White is still clearly ahead.} 47. Rd3 Rc7 ({Trying to counter with a punch is too slow} 47... g5 48. hxg5 Rxg5 {After} 49. b5 $18 {Black cannot defend all his weaknesses (b7 and e6).}) (47... b6 {can be met simply by} 48. Na4 ({Or even better:} 48. axb6+ Kxb6 49. Ra3 Ra7 50. Rxa7 Kxa7 51. Kf3 $16 {when the White king is really fast.})) 48. Ra3 Nd4 49. Rd1 Nf5 50. Kh3 Nh6 51. f3 {White has improved the position of his king in the past few moves and is now introducing the possibility of opening up the kingside with g4. Black can do nothing but sit and wait.} Rf7 52. Rd4 Nf5 53. Rd2 ({I like} 53. Rf4 {but then} Rh7 $1 {preventing g4, leaves the White rook immobile on f4.}) 53... Rh7 54. Rb3 Ree7 55. Rdd3 {This is one of Magnus' favorite strategies. He likes to wait patiently for his opponent to crack while slowly improving his own position. This worked well for him today.} ({But objectively now is the time to strike.} 55. b5 $1 cxb5 56. Rxb5 {Black cannot hold on to his b7 and e6-pawn for long. Perhaps Black can try} Ne3 {but then} 57. Rd3 Nc4 58. f4 {gives White all the time he needs to improve his position. Black's rooks are stuck defending pawns, which is never a good sign. Rooks are made for offense, not defense!}) 55... Rh8 56. Rb1 {Again waiting for the right moment. Just wait, just wait... Patience is a virtue.} Rhh7 57. b5 $1 {NOW!} cxb5 {.} 58. Rxb5 {Compared to move 55, the only change is that White's rook is on d3. Notice the difference? Black does not have ?e3-c4 now and his position crumbles quickly.} d4 59. Rb6 Rc7 60. Nxe6 Rc3 61. Nf4 Rhc7 62. Nd5 $1 {Simplification makes White's job easier. The rule of thumb is that when you are ahead in material you aim for trades and exchanges. Like in soccer, 11 players vs 10 players is harder than 5 players vs 4 players, and a 3 vs 2 game is a piece of cake. Chess is no different. When you are ahead in material, exchanges usually mean less complications = cleaner win.} (62. Rxg6 Rxd3 (62... Rc1 {gives White a choice between five different moves that win.}) 63. Nxd3 Rc3 64. Rf6 Ne3 65. Nf4 {and White's win should be easy. Contrary to appearances there is never any mate on h1, as White can always free his king with g3-g4. Meanwhile White is two pawns up.}) 62... Rxd3 63. Nxc7 {Some people didn't understand it at first, however if you put this position in a super computer it just gives +- 5.36, meaning White is more than five pawns up in a mathematical scale.} Kb8 64. Nb5 Kc8 (64... Rxf3 65. a6 {promotes the passed a-pawn.}) 65. Rxg6 Rxf3 66. Kg2 $1 {Activating the king. From here Magnus does not give Sergey any chance to escape.} Rb3 67. Nd6+ {Another exchange. Now it is 6 vs 5.} Nxd6 68. Rxd6 Re3 69. e6 ({Not} 69. Rxd4 $2 Rxe5 70. Ra4 Kd7 {when the Black king goes over to the kingside and secures the draw. The rook on a4 has become a mere spectator protecting the a-pawn.}) 69... Kc7 (69... d3 70. Kf2 $18) 70. Rxd4 Rxe6 (70... Re5 $5 71. e7 $5 Rxe7 72. Rd5 {does not change anything.}) 71. Rd5 $1 {The White rook attacks h5 while at the same time protecting his a-pawn.} Rh6 72. Kf3 {Sergey could safely have resigned here, but it does not hurt to make a few more moves. After all its not over until the king is mated.} Kb8 (72... b6 73. axb6+ Kxb6 74. Kf4 Kc6 75. Rd8 {White need not even calculate rook and single pawn endings because he can win the enemy pawn by force.} Kc7 76. Rg8 Kd6 77. Kg5 Rh7 78. Kg6 $18) (72... Kc6 73. Rf5 Kd6 74. g4 hxg4+ 75. Kxg4 $18 {also wins easily.}) 73. Kf4 (73. g4 hxg4+ 74. Kxg4 $18 {easy win.}) 73... Ka7 74. Kg5 Rh8 75. Kf6 {Magnus finally levels the match! This has been a great game and a great fight by both players. After choosing a modest line against the Berlin Opening, Magnus slowly improved his position and kept the game going. Black's knight looked a little shaky on h3 (perhaps 11...f5!?) and White managed to take advantage of this. The sequence from move 19-21 seems to me a little strange as Black allowed doubled-pawns and White gladly went for it and both sides developed interesting options. Perhaps 21...?g5 was a crucial mistake as Sergey could maybe have made a draw with 21...?xf2. But of course sitting at home, it is much easier to calculate than it was for the two fighters in New York. Having played nine long games in two weeks with all the attendant pressure, tension and drama, most certainly took a toll on both players. A World Championship match definitely requires levels of extraordinary endurance for anyone. Looking ahead with the score 5-5 I feel Magnus has good chances now in the match. He absolutely had to win today and he did. Tomorrow is a rest day, so both players can relax and prepare new ideas. I'm sure Sergey will try to put on the pressure in Round 11 and fight for a win with the white pieces (in Round 9 he got close!) If the match ends with two draws and a tie of 6-6 ensues, both players go to the tiebreaks with a shorter time control. Magnus may have the edge there although Sergey never fails to impress and surprise his fans.} 1-0 [Event "Gashimov Memorial 6th"] [Site "Shamkir"] [Date "2019.04.09"] [Round "9"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Grischuk, Alexander"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2845"] [BlackElo "2771"] [Annotator "Nielsen,Peter Heine"] [PlyCount "77"] [EventDate "2019.03.31"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "AZE"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 190"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2019.06.30"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2019.06.30"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 {Trailing Magnus by 1½ point meant Grischuk had instead to care about the fight for 2nd place which he before the round was sharing with Ding and Karjakin. And thus he chooses the Berlin's solidity over the Najdorf's aggressiveness.} 4. d3 Bc5 5. c3 O-O {Earlier in the tournament Grischuk had played the popular 5...d5 vs. Vishy, but now reverts to the main line.} 6. O-O d6 7. Ba4 $5 {A move that by itself should explain the popularity of the Berlin. If White anyway voluntarily will play Ba4, then 3...a6 must be really a bad move! More seriously this is the kind of position where White anyway would make "half-moves" like 7.h3 or 7.Re1 meaning Ba4 can't be that much more worse as a waiting move. Still, it does look odd indeed!} Ne7 8. Bc2 Ng6 9. d4 Bb6 10. a4 $5 {Apart from the obvous threat of 11.a5 winning a piece, White's general concept is that he will push his pawn as forward as possible, then create confusion on the other side of the board, and use that to then queen his a-pawn. If that sounds like a fairytale, have a look at the remainder of the game!} c6 11. dxe5 $5 {Very simplistic. White has just gotten the advantage in the centre, but now immediately creates a symmetrical structure only for the sake of being able to push the a-pawn.} Nxe5 {Going by logic, Black does very little wrong in this game, but should something be mentioned, it's this. Black now exchanges a knight he has spent several tempi relocating to g6, against its white counterpart that only had moved once so far.} 12. Nxe5 dxe5 13. Qxd8 Rxd8 14. a5 {For what it's worth, Magnus achieved his aim.} Bc5 {The active choice. 14...Bc7 is obviously more passive, but does have an important idea in mind: After 15 Be3 Be6 16 f3 b6!? Black forces White into a decision on the queenside. 17 a6!? obviously being the critical move, but as Black has not played ...b5 it means that a7 is now not a target and that its very unclear if White's pawn on a6 is a weakness or an asset. Of course 17 axb6 is possible, but then Black's operation has been a sucess in the sense that White's queenside pressure has evaporised.} (14... Bc7 15. Be3 Be6 16. f3 b6 $5 17. a6 $5) 15. Nd2 Be6 16. Re1 {As 16.Nb3 Nxe4! is possible, White first has to consolidate before continuing with his plan. Now 16...Nd7 17.Nb3 Be7 is possible, but after 18.Be3, at least by sight, White does have a small edge due to the vulnerability of Black's queenside structure. And with Black obviously having playing solidly and logically till now, why should Grischuk start making concession?} b5 $5 {Grabbing space and potentially threatening ...a6, when Black might even start claiming that White's pawn is a weakness. White on the other hand is not that thrilled about pushing a6 himself too early, as it would give Black access to the b6 square for his bishop.} 17. Nb3 Bxb3 {Obviously a debatable move, but also typical of Grischuks "high-level" style. Not limiting himself to just general considerations like " White now has the pair of bishops", Grischuk goes beyond that and claims that yes, White of course gets the pair of bishops, but in return I get control of the d-line and avoid the else moderately akward pressure against my queenside. As well my minor piece are immediately active, while White's pair of bishops indeed struggle to find squares to develop to naturally. 17...Nd7!? however might have been the better way. 18.Nxc5 Nxc5 19.Be3 Bb3! forces an interesting opposite colored bishop postion after 20.Bxc5 Bxc2 21.a6. The human perspective is that Black's pawn on a7 will be an eternal weakness, and rook exchanges will not magnify that problematic. However, Black can argue that as he controls the d-file White has no way to make progress, while Black will just double his rooks on d7 and d8, solidly covering the a7-pawn, basically with an impregnable fortress, at least if the engines are to be believed.} (17... Nd7 $5 18. Nxc5 Nxc5 19. Be3 Bb3 $1 20. Bxc5 Bxc2 21. a6) 18. Bxb3 Ng4 {Active, but not really creating more than an easily parried threat. 18...Rab8!? 19..Kf1 b4 means both black rooks will be in control of the open files, but after 20.Ba4!? White does limit Black's immediate actitivy and at the same time starts attacking Black's weaknesses.} (18... Rab8 $5 19. Kf1 b4 20. Ba4 $5) 19. Re2 Rd6 {Creating the threat of 20...Nxf2 21.Rxf2 Rf6!} 20. Bg5 Kf8 21. Rf1 $1 {Putting pressure on f2, Grischuk might have forced this "passive" move, but actually only the first part of the sentence is true. White indeed had no choice, but to put his rook on f1, but happily does so, as it fits very well with the next part of his expansion plans:} Nf6 22. g3 $1 {Another beautiful move combining the neccesary with the useful. With f4 potentially being White's way to progress, removing his king from the pin in the g1-a7 diagonal is mandatory and this also adds the option of recapturing with the g-pawn on f4, as well as opening a route towards the centre for White's king via g2 and later f3.} a6 23. Kg2 Nd7 24. Bc1 $1 {Answering the question to which square White should develop his bishop. The key part was getting his a1 rook into play, and with that accomplished White's dark-squared bishop happily returns to its original square where its safely "out of the way", while still being ready to join the battle immediately at any given opportunity.} Ba7 25. f4 f6 26. h4 $1 {My first acquaintance with Magnus was a guest lecture at a youth camp for the youngest group of Norwegian talents. I spoke of Larsen, and obviously had a set of exercices where the correct answer always was to push the h-pawn! Natasha Regan and Matthew Sadler's fascinating "Gamechanger" devotes a full chapter to Alphazero's preference compared to normal engines in pushing its flank pawns much more agressively. It would have warmed the Danish giant's heart to know that a theme he consistently wrote of being underestimated in chess, now is being uphold and refined by the cutting-edge technology. If a5 and h5 looks odd to you in this game, just think of the importance of having the black weak pawn at a6, and the access to g6 for White's bishop. It's those details that make Black's position collapse, and they are created exactly by advancing White's flank pawns.} Re8 27. h5 h6 28. Ba2 c5 {With hindsight a very easy move to criticise, but as Grischuk pointed out at the press conference, this exactly should be the one. To him it looked like now was the perfect timing, as White due to the weakness of the e4-pawn still seemingly needs a move to consolidate before taking agressive measures. That premise being wrong, Black's best would have been to seek counterplay with 28...exf4 29.gxf4 Nc5, the idea being 30.e5 Nd3! with Black still being in the game.} (28... exf4 29. gxf4 Nc5 30. e5 Nd3 $1) 29. Be3 $1 {An easy move to miss, as it indeed sacrifices a full central pawn. 29.c4 is the alternative given by the computers which funnily at the same time blocks both Black's bishop on a7, but also White's at a2! White is better, but in a much less spectacular way than in the game.} exf4 30. gxf4 Rxe4 31. Bb1 Re7 32. Rfe1 {White has given away a full pawn, but has the killing threat of 33.Bg6 when 34.Bxc5 becomes deadly due to mating motifs on the e8 square.} f5 $2 {The surprising 32...Nb8! was the way to fight on, with the hope of ...Nc6, Rdd7 and c4. Obviously white will prevent this liberation attempt, most forcefully with 33 Kf3 Nc6 34 Bf5!? stopping the rook entering d7, and replying to 34...c4? with 35.Bxa7 Rxe2 36.Rxe2 Nxa7 37.Bg6! Rd8 38. Re6! picking up the pawn on a6 and winning easily.} (32... Nb8 $5 33. Kf3 Nc6 34. Bf5 $5 c4 $2 35. Bxa7 Rxe2 36. Rxe2 Nxa7 37. Bg6 Rd8 38. Re6 $1 $18 {[%CAl Ge6a6]}) 33. Bxf5 Nf6 34. Kf3 Nd5 {Grischuk said that at sight this move looked like counterplay to him, but Magnus' next move was a cold shower:} 35. Rd2 $1 {White was better anyway, but as often in favourable positions the tactics also works in your favour. 35...Nxe3 36 Rxd6 Nxf5 37.Rxe7 is just winning for White, as the rook and passed pawn easily outmanoeuvre Black's 2 minor pieces, 37...Nxe7 38 Rxa6 Bb8 39 Ra8! Nc6 40.a6 followed by 41.Rxb8 Nxb8 42.a7 being a sample line. 35...Bb8 was a line the players both looked at, but discareded due to 36.Bxc5! Rxe1 37.Rxd5 when 37...Ke7 is met with the pretty 38.Re5+! as after 38...Rxe5 39.fxe5 White ends up with an extra piece.} Rd8 (35... Nxe3 36. Rxd6 Nxf5 37. Rxe7 Nxe7 38. Rxa6 Bb8 39. Ra8 $1 Nc6 40. a6 Z0 41. Rxb8+ Nxb8 42. a7) (35... Bb8 36. Bxc5 $1 Rxe1 37. Rxd5 Ke7 38. Re5+ $1 Rxe5 39. fxe5 $18) 36. Be4 Red7 37. Red1 {No tactical magic is needed anymore. Despite being nominally a pawn down, White aims for general exchanges!} Nf6 38. Rxd7 Nxd7 {38...Rxd7 maybe was more illustrative as after 39.Rxd7 Nxd7 40.Bb7 Nb8 41.Ke4 black is completely tied up with the bishop unable as the knight needs to block its only aviable square in order to defend the pawn at a6.} (38... Rxd7 39. Rxd7 Nxd7 40. Bb7 Nb8 41. Ke4) 39. Rd6 $1 {[%CAl Gd6a6] And here Grischuk resigned. White will win the a-pawn and then basically mechanically queen it after Rxa6 Bb8 Ra8 followed by a6+a7. In many ways an amazing game. White got nothing out of the opening, and Black's moves from there all looked healthy and with logic. To use the words of Grischuk himself: "Magnus played incredibly well."} (39. Rd6 $1 {[%CAl Gd6a6]} Z0 40. Rxa6 Bb8 41. Ra8 {[%CAl Ga5a8]}) 1-0 [Event "Candidates Tournament"] [Site "London"] [Date "2013.03.19"] [Round "4"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Grischuk, Alexander"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2872"] [BlackElo "2764"] [Annotator "Postny,Evgeny"] [PlyCount "73"] [EventDate "2013.03.15"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "14"] [EventCountry "ENG"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 154"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2013.05.15"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2013.05.15"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 {Avoiding the "Berlin endgame".} Bc5 5. c3 {A few months ago Carlsen tried 5.?c3, but achieved nothing against the world champion.} (5. Nc3 d6 6. Na4 Bb6 7. Nxb6 axb6 8. c3 Bd7 9. Ba4 Ne7 10. Bc2 Ng6 11. h3 O-O 12. O-O h6 13. Re1 Re8 14. d4 Bc6 15. dxe5 dxe5 16. Qxd8 Rexd8 $11 {½-½ (61) Carlsen,M (2848)-Anand,V (2775) London 2012}) 5... O-O 6. O-O d6 7. h3 a6 {This is more a challenging continuation, inviting White to spoil the pawn structure, but to give up a good bishop. The solid alternative is to transfer the knight to g6.} (7... Ne7 8. d4 Bb6 9. Re1 Ng6 10. Bd3 Re8 11. Qc2 c6 12. Be3 d5 (12... Nh5 $5 $11 {[%CAl Gh5f4]}) 13. dxe5 Nxe5 14. Nxe5 Rxe5 15. Bxb6 axb6 16. f4 Rh5 17. e5 Nd7 18. Qe2 Rh4 19. e6 Nc5 20. exf7+ Kxf7 21. Nd2 Nxd3 22. Qxd3 Rxf4 23. Qxh7 Bf5 24. Qh5+ Bg6 25. Qe5 Rf6 26. Nf3 Kg8 $11 {½-½ (43) Adams,M (2725)-Anand,V (2780) Baden-Baden 2013}) 8. Bxc6 bxc6 9. Re1 {Magnus decided not to hurry up with d3-d4 advance, but to complete the development at first.} (9. d4 Bb6 10. Re1 h6 11. Qc2 (11. dxe5 dxe5 12. Qa4 $5 {[%CAl Gb1d2,Gd2c4] is worth being checked in practice.}) 11... Re8 12. Nbd2 exd4 13. cxd4 c5 $11 {1-0 (55) Karjakin,S (2786)-Grischuk,A (2764) Moscow 2013}) 9... Re8 10. Nbd2 d5 $6 $146 {This is strategically risky, as Black's pawn structure will be permanently damaged.} (10... Bb6 11. Nf1 h6 12. Ng3 Be6 13. Be3 Bxe3 (13... c5 14. d4 cxd4 15. cxd4 exd4 16. Bxd4 Rb8 {is playable for Black.}) 14. Rxe3 c5 15. Qc2 Nd7 16. d4 cxd4 17. cxd4 exd4 18. Nxd4 $14 {1-0 (55) Svidler,P (2741)-Navara,D (2706) Prague 2012}) 11. exd5 ({An immediate counterstrike in the centre was also an option to consider:} 11. d4 dxe4 12. Nxe5 Qd5 13. Ndc4 (13. Qc2 Bd6 14. Ndc4 (14. Nxe4 $4 Nxe4 15. Qxe4 Qxe4 16. Rxe4 f6 $19) 14... c5 $132) 13... Bf8 14. Bg5 Nd7 {Black has sufficient counterplay which compensates for his structural defects. His pair of bishops is also a factor.}) 11... Qxd5 12. Nb3 Bf8 (12... Ba7 13. Be3 c5 {is the engine suggestion, but it looks pretty ugly to close in the ?a7.}) 13. c4 Qd6 14. Be3 Nd7 15. d4 e4 16. Nfd2 a5 17. a4 {Preventing any further advance of Black's a-pawn and fixing it as a target.} f5 {From the strategic point of view Black's position is very bad, but he has counterchances on the kingside.} 18. c5 Qg6 $2 {This logical move is a serious mistake. It was necessary to retreat to e6, covering the c4-square against the knight move.} (18... Qe6 $1 19. Bf4 (19. Qc1 Nf6 20. Nc4 Nd5 $132) 19... Nf6 $1 {Black shouldn't spend time on protecting the weak pawn.} 20. Bxc7 Nd5 (20... Qf7 21. Be5 Be7 $44 {[%CAl Gc8e6]}) 21. Be5 Qg6 (21... Nb4 22. f3 Nd3 23. fxe4 $1 Nxe1 24. Qxe1 fxe4 25. Qxe4 $14) 22. Nc4 f4 23. Kh2 f3 (23... Nb4 24. Nbd2 Nd3 25. Nxe4 Nxe1 26. Qxe1 f3 27. gxf3 Bxh3 28. Kxh3 Qe6+ 29. Kg2 Qxc4 30. Qc3 $14) 24. Rg1 Qh6 25. Qd2 Qh4 26. g4 Nf6 27. Ne3 g6 $44 {[%CAl Gf8h6] An engine is not really bothered by Black's kingside initiative, but a human player would easily get frightened here as White.}) 19. Nc4 {[%csl Ra5]} (19. Bf4 Nf6 20. Nc4 {leads to the same position as in our game.}) 19... Nf6 20. Bf4 (20. Ne5 $2 {would fall into a nasty exchange sacrifice:} Rxe5 $1 21. dxe5 Nd5 22. Qd2 Rb8 23. Nd4 f4 24. Bxf4 Bxc5 {All Black's pieces are very active, he gets the material back.} 25. Rad1 Bb4 26. Qc1 Bxe1 27. Rxe1 Bxh3 28. Bg3 Bd7 $11) 20... Nd5 21. Qd2 Be6 (21... Qf6 22. Nbxa5 Nxf4 23. Qxf4 Qxd4 24. b4 Be6 25. Rac1 $16) 22. Nbxa5 Reb8 23. Ne5 Qf6 24. Bh2 ({It was possible to grab another pawn, but probably after} 24. Naxc6 Nxf4 25. Qxf4 Rxb2 {Magnus was concerned about the idea ?e6-d5 trapping the ?c6.} {The engine finds the way to keep the position winning by a subtle piece of tactics:} 26. Qc1 $1 Rb7 27. a5 Bd5 28. Rb1 Rxb1 29. Qxb1 {and the knight is taboo in view of ?b3+.}) 24... Rxa5 {A desperate tactical effort, but insufficient.} 25. Qxa5 Rxb2 26. Rab1 Ra2 27. Qa6 {This way the queen can help in the defence. White just needs to consolidate, his material advantage is enough for a win.} e3 (27... Nc3 28. Rbc1 $18) 28. fxe3 Qg5 29. Re2 Nxe3 (29... Rxe2 30. Qxe2 Nc3 31. Qd3 Nxb1 32. Nf3 Qh6 33. Bf4 Qh5 34. Qxb1 $18) 30. Nf3 Qg6 31. Rxa2 Bxa2 32. Rb2 Bc4 33. Qa5 Bd5 34. Qe1 $1 {Magnus is precise and merciless as usual, when it comes to the technical part of the game.} f4 35. Bxf4 Nc2 36. Qf2 Bxf3 37. Rxc2 1-0 [Event "Biel Accentus"] [Site "Biel"] [Date "2011.07.26"] [Round "7"] [White "Shirov, Alexei"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2714"] [BlackElo "2821"] [Annotator "Carlsen,Magnus"] [PlyCount "119"] [EventDate "2011.07.18"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "SUI"] [EventCategory "19"] [SourceTitle "CBM 144"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2011.09.16"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2011.09.16"] [SourceQuality "1"] {I decided to annotate this game as it was quite typical for the Biel tournament: Interesting, fighting, and far from faultless.} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 {After thinking for a few minutes Shirov decided that he didn't feel like playing the Berlin endgame that day.} Bc5 {I played d6 against Ivanchuk in Bazna and got a decent position, but a little change never hurts.} 5. c3 O-O 6. Bg5 {As far as I could remember not much had happened in this line since Anand-Topalov, San Luis 2005, where Topalov played h6 and g5 and got a good position. However, I was not particularily interested in finding out what Shirov had prepared there.} h6 7. Bh4 Be7 {Once the white bishop is on h4 this loss of tempo is considered to be justified.} 8. Nbd2 (8. Bxc6 {It is important to note that this doesn't win a pawn due to the standard trick} bxc6 (8... dxc6 9. Bg3 {is trickier, but probably also quite playable:} Bg4 $1 10. Bxe5 Nd7 11. Bg3 Nc5) 9. Nxe5 Nxe4 $1) 8... d6 9. Nf1 Nb8 {Another loss of tempo, but since White has spent a few tempi with the knight, and because of the closed nature of the position, I felt that I could afford to take such liberties. For those interested in alternatives, I refer you to my engine and it's top choices of: 9...?b8 and 9...a5.} 10. Ne3 Ng4 (10... Nbd7 {was my first intention, not in connection with the usual plan of ...?e8, ...?f8 and so on, but rather "trapping" the white bishop with ...?b6. However, I was not sure about what to do after} 11. Ba4 $1 (11. O-O Nb6 $1 12. Bxf6 Bxf6 13. d4 c6 {with a perfectly satisfactory position.}) (11. Nf5 {might look tempting, but after} Nb6 12. g4 (12. Nxe7+ Qxe7 13. O-O Bg4 14. h3 Bh5 {with comfortable equality}) 12... Bxf5 13. gxf5 d5 {Black takes over the initiative. e.g.} 14. Nxe5 c6 15. Ba4 Nxe4 $17)) 11. Bg3 {I was sort of expecting this. Exchanging on e7 would have led to dull equality, which was not Shirov's plan} Nxe3 12. fxe3 Nd7 13. d4 {Somewhat suprisingly, this was the last chance for White to castle kingside comfortably in this game. However, his desire to play this move before I can play ...?f6 is perfectly understandable, since Black would have fairly easy play after that:} (13. O-O Nf6 14. Qc2 $6 (14. Bc4 Be6 $11 {Is better}) 14... a6 15. Ba4 b5 16. Bb3 Bb7 {Black is intending c5, and White already has to be a little careful, as ?h4 is met by ...?xe4.}) 13... Nf6 $5 {This move, starting some concrete play, is maybe not completely sound, but looked too interesting not to go for.} (13... Bf6 14. O-O Qe7 {with a solid position was quite reasonable as well.}) 14. Bd3 Ng4 {The logical follow-up.} 15. Qe2 Bg5 16. dxe5 {I was a little surprised to see this, as in the resulting positions only Black can be better.} (16. h3 {This move, which forces Black to take on e3 and leave his knight stranded was the critical option. In view of that, one might argue that Black is not really threatening anything. However, as castling either way runs into a bishop check on e3, and White doesn't have too many other useful moves, it makes sense to force the issue.} Nxe3 17. dxe5 (17. h4 Bf4 18. Bf2 exd4 19. cxd4 Nf5 $1) 17... dxe5 18. h4 Bf4 (18... Nxg2+ 19. Qxg2 Qxd3 20. hxg5 Bg4 21. Nxe5 Qe3+ 22. Kf1 f5 23. gxh6 fxe4+ 24. Bf2 {leaves Black powerless}) 19. Bf2 Nxg2+ (19... Ng4 20. g3 {wins a piece under much better circumstances for White}) 20. Kf1 Qf6 21. Kxg2 Qg6+ 22. Kf1 Bg4 23. Rg1 Qh5 24. Rxg4 (24. Nd4 f5 $1 {with a dangerous attack} (24... Bxe2+ 25. Bxe2)) 24... Qxg4 25. Ke1 $1 {and with the king running to safety, White should have the better long-term prospects.}) 16... dxe5 17. Bxe5 (17. h3 Nxe3 18. h4 {would have transposed to the variations after 16.h3.}) 17... Bh4+ {It's useful to weaken White's light squares on the kingside and possibly give my light-squared bishop a nice foothold on g4 or h3.} (17... Bxe3 18. Bd4 {did not look too appealing.}) 18. g3 Nxe5 19. Nxe5 Bf6 20. Nf3 Qe7 21. O-O-O (21. O-O Bg4 {is very comfortable for Black. With the weakening g3 the white king might not feel particularily comfortable in the future.}) 21... c6 $6 (21... Bg4 {is not that appealing as White can immediately challenge my bishop with} 22. h3 {This is the key difference between long and short castling} Bxf3 23. Qxf3 {and with the bishop coming to c4, White can look to the future with confidence.}) (21... a6 {however, was very interesting. Unfortunately I didn't notice this idea until the next move, when I had already wasted a move on c6} 22. Bc2 {The best} (22. Nd4 c5 23. Nf5 Bxf5 24. exf5 b5 {is the key idea. White cannot activate his bishop, and Black has an easy attack on the queenside}) 22... Rb8 $1 {and Black has the initiative.} (22... b5 $2 23. e5 Bxe5 24. Qd3 g6 25. Qe4 $18)) 22. Nd4 a6 {Even with the loss of a tempo, this is best.} (22... g6 {was my intention, but then I noticed} 23. Rhf1 Bg7 24. Bc4 {and due to a little trick White manages to activate his bishop, which is what I should avoid at any cost} Qxe4 25. Rf4 Qe7 26. Rdf1 {and it's clear that Black has wasted too much time.}) 23. Rhf1 c5 24. Nf5 Bxf5 25. Rxf5 b5 26. Bc2 c4 {I've managed to execute my plan, and his bishop will now remain passive for a long time. On the other hand, White has activated his rooks, and is after all a pawn up, so the position is probably balanced.} 27. Rfd5 Be5 {In combination with my next move the move makes a slightly akward impression. However, I felt that it was very important to cover the d6-square, to keep my queen from being constantly harassed by ?d7, ?d6 and so on.} 28. Qh5 Rae8 29. a3 Qa7 {Utilising a simple tactical trick to put my queen on the excellent b8-square, where it supports the a5-b4 break. I was very optimistic at this point, but his next move dispelled my illusions. It is worth while to mention that if my pawn were still on h7 my prospects would be drastically improved, as I would be able to kick his queen away with g6.} (29... Bxc3 30. bxc3 Qxa3+ 31. Kd2 b4 32. cxb4 Qxb4+ 33. Ke2 Qb2 34. Kd2 Qb4+ {with a draw did not really tempt me, especially as I only saw it after I had played ...?a7.}) 30. Kd2 {I had simply missed this idea. By transferring the king to e2 White takes the sting out of the a5-b4 idea.} (30. Rxe5 $2 Qxe3+ 31. Kb1 g6 32. Rxe8 gxh5 33. Re5 Qe2 {and White has a difficult defensive task ahead was obviously not what my opponent was aiming for.}) 30... Qb8 31. Ke2 Re6 32. Qh4 Qb6 33. Rd8 Ree8 34. Rxe8 Rxe8 35. Rd5 Qc7 36. a4 {A committal move, but far from a bad one. White could just have stayed put of course, when it's hard for either side to undertake any active operations.} Qb6 37. axb5 axb5 38. Qh5 (38. Rd7 {immediately was the best move as far I could see. It's hard to find a convenient way for Black to avoid the exchange of rooks, when there will not be much left to fight for} Qe6 39. Rd8 Kh7 40. Rxe8 Qxe8 $11) 38... Qb8 39. Rd7 $6 {This was not necessary at all. Shirov was probably induced into it by the fact that we were both short on time here, but my next move is pretty obvious as with the white queen misplaced on the kingside the b4-break will grow considerably in strength.} g6 40. Qf3 (40. Qxh6 b4 {looks pretty dangerous for White, and not really worth the risk, since the text keeps White well within the drawing zone.}) 40... Rf8 {Now there is no way to stop b4.} 41. Kf2 (41. Rd5 b4 42. cxb4 Qxb4 $1 43. Rxe5 Qxb2 {[%CAl Rb2e5,Rb2c2]}) 41... b4 42. Qe2 bxc3 43. bxc3 Qc8 (43... Qb2 {was an interesting attempt} 44. Bd3 Qa1 {unfortunately I missed this cunning idea} (44... Qb5 45. Rd5 cxd3 46. Rxb5 dxe2 47. Rxe5 Rc8 $11) 45. Bxc4 Qh1 46. Qg4 $1 Qxh2+ 47. Kf3 {and there is no win for Black:} Qh1+ (47... Kg7 48. Rxf7+ Rxf7+ 49. Bxf7 Kxf7 50. Qd7+) 48. Kf2 Rb8 49. Bxf7+ Kf8 50. Bb3 Qh2+ 51. Kf1 $11) 44. Qd2 Bxc3 45. Qd5 Qa6 {I saw that this would lead to a draw more or less by force, but there was nothing better anyway.} (45... Bg7 46. e5 c3 47. Kg2 {and White is too active for Black to hope for anything real.}) 46. e5 $2 (46. Bd1 $1 {was the last chance to maintain equality} Qf6+ 47. Kg2 Rb8 (47... Rc8 48. Be2 Qe6 49. Rd8+ Rxd8 50. Qxd8+ Kg7 51. Qd5 $11) 48. Qxc4 Rb2+ 49. Be2 Be1 50. Kh3 {and Black has nothing as} Qf2 $2 {even loses:} 51. Rd8+ Kh7 52. Qd4 $18) 46... Qa2 47. Qe4 Bxe5 {Now it's very difficult for White.} 48. h4 Re8 49. Kg2 h5 $1 {I came to this move by elimination after a long period of thought.} (49... Re6 $2 {is what I mainly calculated, and rejected for the wrong reasons.} 50. Rd8+ Kg7 51. Ra8 $1 (51. Rd7 h5 52. g4 hxg4 53. h5 Kh6 (53... Bd6 54. Qxe6 Qxc2+ {actually wins by force, but since there was a serious flaw in my calculations even earlier in this line, let's focus on what I actually saw...}) 54. Rxf7 Kxh5 55. Rh7+ (55. Rf5+ Kh4 {and the king march might actually end victoriously}) 55... Kg5 56. Rg7 $1 Bxg7 57. Qf4+ Kh5 58. Qh2+ $11) 51... Qb2 52. Qxc4 $15) (49... Qa8 {is another option I considered, but I didn't like} 50. Rb7 {when my queen is clearly misplaced.}) 50. Kh3 {Now the rest is fairly easy.} ({The key move I had to calculate was} 50. g4 hxg4 51. h5 Qa8 52. hxg6 fxg6 $1 53. Rb7 (53. Rd5 Bg7 54. Qxc4 Rc8 {and the pins work out in Black's favour} 55. Qb3 Rxc2+ 56. Kg1 Qa2 $19) 53... Kf8 $1 {with ...?e7 to come, and Black is winning.}) 50... c3 51. Rd5 Qa6 {The cleanest way.} 52. Bd3 (52. Rxe5 Qf1+ 53. Kh2 Rxe5 54. Qxe5 Qf2+ 55. Kh3 Qxc2 {is easily winning for Black, of course.}) 52... Qc8+ 53. Kg2 Bg7 (53... Bxg3 {was eminently playable of course, but in the interest of king safety I did not want to remove the bishop from the long diagonal. Besides, I had not seen his next move, and thought he would resign after the text.}) 54. Rc5 Qd7 55. Qc4 (55. Qd5 Qxd5+ 56. Rxd5 Rxe3 {would have prolonged the fight, but not by any means changed the result.}) 55... Rxe3 56. Rc7 (56. Bxg6 Be5 57. Rd5 Qe6 {is also quite simple} (57... Rxg3+ 58. Kf2 Qa7+ {wins immediately, but such "long" moves are hard to spot.})) 56... Rxg3+ 57. Kxg3 (57. Kf2 Bd4+ {would not have any other impact than preventing White from transposing to the game as ?xg3 ?g4+ etc mates.}) 57... Be5+ 58. Kf2 Qxc7 59. Qxc7 Bxc7 60. Kf3 {Shirov made the time-control with 1 second left, but understandably decided not to continue the fight.} 0-1 [Event "World-ch Carlsen-Anand +3-1=7"] [Site "Sochi"] [Date "2014.11.09"] [Round "2"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Anand, Viswanathan"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2863"] [BlackElo "2792"] [Annotator "Negi,Parimarjan"] [PlyCount "69"] [EventDate "2014.11.08"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "12"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [SourceTitle "CBM 164"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2015.01.15"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2015.01.15"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 {I am curious why Magnus avoided these long middlegames in the next games, considering the way this game went.} Bc5 {The first theoretical crossroads. 0-0, and c3, both seem to lead to similar positions, but there are many subtle differences. I'll briefly write about a line in the c3-variation which I feel is an influence on the way Magnus played here.} 5. O-O (5. c3 O-O 6. O-O d6 7. Nbd2 (7. Bxc6 {not as good as the Magnus version because of c3 being already committed.}) 7... a6 {plays into White's plans. Now we get a setup similar to Carlsen's in the game. It might appear that in the game Black did not lose a move with ...a6 - but that was possibly offset by the fact that White tried to play a setup with c3. As you will see, c3-d4 is not neccesarily the only plan here, so it could be beneficial not to hurry with it.} (7... Ne7 $1 {is the main line these days, and it has been very hard for White to prove any advantage. The key idea is that Black avoids ?xc6 setups, and is willing to concede the centre after} 8. d4 {if not d4, then Black gets the ideal ?e7-?g6, followed by ...a6 etc.} exd4 9. cxd4 Bb6 {this is the critical position for the assessment of this line. It appears to me that Black has been able to get enough counterplay so far, but there's certainly more room to explore.}) 8. Bxc6 {A couple of excellent demonstrations of White's play were the following. In both the games, White avoided an early d4, and instead just focussed on developing his pieces, and eventually exploiting Black's structural weaknesses. Right now, the weaknesses appear miniscule, but it makes it incredibly difficult for Black to create counterplay since ideas like ...d5 just weaken his position further. And White can eventually try to get in d4 at the right point.} bxc6 9. Re1 Re8 10. h3 Bb6 11. Nf1 h6 12. Ng3 Be6 (12... d5 13. Qc2 $1 {again the queen is wonderful here. Black is just spoiling his own structure:} dxe4 14. dxe4 Nd7 15. Be3 Nc5 16. c4 a5 17. b3 $14 {1-0 (26) Dominguez Perez,L (2753)-Cox,J (2387) Rhodes 2013}) 13. Be3 Bxe3 14. Rxe3 c5 15. Qc2 {The queen is always excellent here.} Nd7 16. d4 $1 {since everything is perfectly placed.} cxd4 17. cxd4 exd4 18. Nxd4 a5 19. b3 Nc5 20. Rd1 $14 {1-0 (55) Svidler,P (2741)-Navara,D (2706) Prague 2012}) 5... d6 (5... O-O {isn't possible due to} 6. Bxc6 bxc6 7. Nxe5) ({The main drawback for 0-0 is} 5... Nd4 {as an extra option, which has often allowed Black to equalise easily in the past. But as the following recent game shows, there is a lot more to explore here, and clearly Magnus had some interesting setup in mind against this.} 6. Nxd4 Bxd4 7. c3 Bb6 8. Na3 $5 c6 9. Ba4 O-O 10. Bg5 h6 11. Bh4 d5 12. exd5 cxd5 13. Bb3 g5 14. Bg3 Re8 15. Re1 Bc7 16. Nc2 $14 {½-½ (69) Topalov,V (2785)-Andreikin,D (2709) Khanty-Mansiysk 2014}) 6. Re1 $5 {Already a novelty among decent players! That's pretty impressive in one of the most widely analysed opening of our times...although I have to admit, it's not really a new concept. The same thing was tried by Adams after 6.?bd2 - actually 9...h6 by Anand would have converted to the Adams - Kramnik game mentioned below. I am not sure if there is any subtlety behind delaying ?d2 - perhaps it could be more flexible in some cases, but I don't think it really matters. White's main idea is just to play the closed structure after ?xc6, similar to the Svidler - Navara game mentioned after 5. c3. In the long term he hopes to exploit the 'queenside' weakening of the strucuture, and hope that active moves like d5 will only create weaknesses for Black. It's an interesting concept, and certainly an excellent try against people not comfortable with long strategic manoevres.} ({The same structure can be got by} 6. Nbd2 O-O 7. Bxc6 bxc6 8. h3 h6 9. Re1 Re8 10. Nf1 d5 $5 {I prefer} 11. Qe2 {or perhaps he could have included c3 earlier, so ?c2 would have made even more sense.} (11. exd5 Qxd5 $1 {gave Black a lot of counterplay despite the broken structure.} 12. Be3 Bf8 13. Bd2 e4 14. dxe4 Nxe4 15. Ng3 Bb7 16. Bf4 Nd6 17. b3 c5 $11 {0-1 (75) Adams,M (2727)-Kramnik,V (2801) Paris/St Petersburg 2013 CBM 154 [Szabo,Kr].}) {Nothing drastic has occured and the slow game continues. Here, Black went wrong trying to seek activity with} 11... dxe4 12. dxe4 a5 13. Rd1 Ba6 14. Qe1 Qb8 15. Ng3 Qb4 16. b3 Qxe1+ 17. Rxe1 Bb4 18. Rd1 Bc3 19. Rb1 c5 20. Bd2 Bxd2 21. Nxd2 g6 22. f3 Red8 23. Ndf1 $14 {with a pleasant endgame in Bartel,M (2651)-Arslanov,S (2396) Moscow 2014.}) 6... O-O 7. Bxc6 bxc6 8. h3 (8. Nbd2 {would run into ?g4...f5 ideas.}) 8... Re8 9. Nbd2 Nd7 (9... h6 {would convert to Adams - Kramnik as mentioned above. There White continued ?f1, but perhaps it makes sense to play more in Carlsen's style as well.} 10. a4 {or doing the same thing without a4 - but including a4 never seems bad to me. Also it's a useful waiting move.} a5 (10... Be6 11. Nf1 {now d5 isn't possible as in Adams - Kramnik.}) 11. Nc4 Be6 (11... d5 {leads to strange complications, but White seems to be preferrable in the end:} 12. exd5 e4 13. dxe4 Rxe4 14. Rxe4 Nxe4 15. Be3 cxd5 16. Bxc5 Nxc5 17. Ne3 $14) 12. Be3 $5 Bxc4 13. Bxc5 Be6 (13... dxc5 14. dxc4 $14 {the tripled pawns are uglier.}) 14. Be3 {and again we have opposite coloured bishops, and perhaps some pretensions of an edge for white? certainly his play is easier.}) (9... Nh5 {seems more natural, but I am not sure if White needs to worry much about ?h5-?f4 as a plan. He can just continue ?c4...?e3, or try c3-d4.}) 10. Nc4 Bb6 {This avoids ?a5 ideas, and also ?xb6 doesn't really seem worrying since it improves the structure.} (10... a6 11. Na5 $1 $14) (10... a5 11. Bd2 a4 12. Na5 $14) 11. a4 {A really useful move - as you will see soon.} a5 12. Nxb6 {Somewhat counter intuitive decision...at first the opposite colours seem to make Black's life easier. But Carlsen had a more long term idea in mind...I still feel that Black's position should be fairly solid here, but it's not as obvious as it looks at first sight.} cxb6 $6 ({With hindsight, I'd prefer} 12... Nxb6 $1 {although I must admit that it's hard to imagine, particularly in a game, that ...cxb6 could be anything but solid for Black. But another advantage of this move is that Black can actually play actively with ...f5! next - and the a5-weakness is less scary since it would only be a problem in the endgame.} 13. b3 (13. d4 exd4 $1 14. Nxd4 c5 $11 {Black's pieces are perfectly set to deal with the d4 break.}) 13... f5 $1 $13 ({Actually Black doesn't even need to hurry with f5.} 13... c5 14. Bd2 Nd7 $5 {? ?b8-?c6 seems just fine as well.})) 13. d4 Qc7 $6 {Another almost imperceptible inaccuracy, but suddenly things start to get tougher for Black after this. The queen seems natural on c7, but it allows White the strong option of ?h4 in the future!} (13... Qe7 {keeps an eye on h4, but this seems a really awkward square for the queen. Also b6 might be weak after ?f8-?g6.} 14. Ra3 Nf8 15. Rb3 Rb8 16. Be3) (13... f6 $1 {also allows ?h4 at some point, but it's not as easy to implement for White because after} 14. Ra3 Nf8 {dxe5-dxe5 would give Black an additional move due to the threat to exchange queens.} 15. dxe5 (15. Nh4 exd4 $1 {would create a mess}) 15... dxe5 16. Rd3 Qc7 17. Nh4 Ne6 {and White's initiative looks much less dangerous.}) 14. Ra3 $1 {The idea behind 11.a4! Suddenly the position seems slightly less innocuous, and you realise that it is indeed easier to play for White. Most importantly, practically, it's not easy to make decisions.} Nf8 (14... c5 15. d5 $14 {the kingside attack will be more dangerous now.}) (14... Bb7 15. dxe5 dxe5 16. Nh4 $14) (14... exd4 15. Nxd4 {is too slow for Black. ? ?g3.}) 15. dxe5 dxe5 16. Nh4 {White's play flows very smoothly now.} Rd8 (16... Ng6 17. Nf5 {doesn't change much.}) 17. Qh5 f6 (17... Ng6 18. Nf5 $14) 18. Nf5 Be6 (18... Ne6 $1 19. Rg3 Kh8 {is a much more cool defence, keeping things more under control but it does look like a worrying position for Black. I don't see many ways Black can improve, so white can slowly try to continue building an initiative...particularly ?g4-?h4 ideas seem tempting in the future.}) 19. Rg3 Ng6 20. h4 (20. Bh6 {would lead to some nice fireworks, but that's not really in Carlsen's style, and very much not required.} gxh6 21. Rxg6+ hxg6 22. Qxg6+ Kf8 23. Qxf6+ Qf7 24. Qxh6+ Ke8 {and a rook ought to be worth something. It seems pretty unclear.}) 20... Bxf5 (20... Rd7 21. Bh6 $1 {is much stronger now.} gxh6 22. Qxh6 {? h5.}) 21. exf5 Nf4 22. Bxf4 exf4 23. Rc3 $1 {Despite the equal material, the major piece endgame is surprisingly hard to play. It's possible to suggest better defensive moves with the engine, but I believe practically it's already very tough. Understandably, Vishy begins to make slight inaccuracies, and Magnus wraps it up smoothly with his trademark precision:} c5 24. Re6 Rab8 $2 (24... h6 {(? 25.?c4 ?d4!)} 25. Qf3 Rab8 {with much better chances to survive compared to the game.}) 25. Rc4 Qd7 26. Kh2 Rf8 (26... Qd1 {isn't possible due to} 27. Re8+ $1 $18) (26... Re8 27. Rce4 Rxe6 28. fxe6 $16 {will be pretty unpleasant.}) 27. Rce4 Rb7 28. Qe2 b5 29. b3 $5 {This doesn't seem required, but it's in Carlsen's style to not force things. Instead he just restricts any counterplay for Black, and makes Black go wrong by himself.} bxa4 30. bxa4 Rb4 {Exchanging a pair of rooks might reduce the pressure, but here it also creates additional weaknesses - particularly in Black's 7th rank. White continues with a strong attack despite the almost endgame nature of the position!} 31. Re7 Qd6 32. Qf3 Rxe4 33. Qxe4 f3+ 34. g3 h5 $2 {The final blunder - but the position was actually much trickier than it looks.} (34... Qd2 35. Qxf3 Qxc2 {at first Black seems to be safe, but after} 36. Kg2 Kh8 37. Qc6 {White continues to exert pressure without taking any risk. Black's rook is completely tied down to g7, and it will be hard for him to keep the c-pawn alive. Still, it's not a straightforward win, and White still needs to show technique.}) 35. Qb7 $1 1-0 [Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"] [Site "Stavanger NOR"] [Date "2025.06.01"] [Round "6.3"] [White "Gukesh, D.."] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2787"] [BlackElo "2837"] [Annotator "Mark Crowther"] [PlyCount "123"] [EventDate "2025.05.26"] {[%evp 0,123,19,27,26,34,20,19,19,10,12,0,-38,-23,-26,-28,-1,-40,-5,-51,-41,-27,8,-34,16,4,22,27,33,10,15,5,24,17,24,2,18,0,8,0,5,9,9,1,0,16,30,9,0,-55,-42,-49,-80,-25,-52,-43,-91,-93,-93,-120,-120,-136,-102,-133,-142,-130,-216,-206,-181,-182,-182,-236,-236,-221,-195,-170,-187,-192,-190,-193,-184,-124,-105,-150,-150,-157,-157,-157,-163,-166,-96,-147,-129,-129,-131,-131,-125,-114,-150,-136,-148,-144,-50,-86,-78,-86,249,287,345,345,370,367,374,362,431,474,613,657,657,962,962,962,1269,1279,1279,1527]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 Bc5 5. c3 O-O 6. O-O d6 7. h3 {Nowadays more popular than 7.Nbd2.} a6 {C65: Ruy Lopez: Berlin Defence (3...Nf6), unusual lines and 4 0-0 Bc5.} 8. Ba4 h6 9. Re1 b5 {The position is equal.} 10. Bc2 Bb6 ({RR} 10... Re8 11. b4 Bb6 12. a4 Bd7 13. Nbd2 Ne7 14. Nf1 a5 15. bxa5 Rxa5 16. Be3 Bxe3 17. Nxe3 Ng6 18. axb5 Rxb5 19. Ba4 Rb8 20. Bxd7 Qxd7 21. Qc2 Nf4 22. Kh2 Qb5 23. Red1 Qb2 24. Ra2 Qxc2 25. Rxc2 {Nakamura,H (2736)-Carlsen,M (2872) Moscow 2019 ½-½ (62)}) ({RR} 10... Re8 11. d4 Ba7 12. Be3 exd4 13. cxd4 Nb4 14. Nbd2 Nxc2 15. Qxc2 Bb7 16. d5 Bxe3 17. Rxe3 Rc8 18. Rd1 c5 19. dxc6 Bxc6 20. Qd3 d5 21. e5 Ne4 22. Nd4 Rxe5 23. Nxc6 Rxc6 24. Nxe4 Qa5 25. Nc3 {Sydykov,B (2268)-Gutkin,I (2285) chess.com INT 2024 1-0 (42)}) 11. Nbd2 {[%CAl Bb1d2,Bd2f1,Bf1g3][%mdl 32]} Ne7 12. a4 Rb8 $146 ({Predecessor:} 12... Bb7 13. d4 Ng6 14. Nf1 Re8 15. Ng3 d5 16. exd5 Qxd5 17. axb5 axb5 18. Rxa8 Bxa8 {1-0 Schon,E (2002)-Yuen,J AUS-ch U18 Sydney 2008 (3)}) ({RR} 12... Bb7 13. d4 Ng6 14. Nf1 Re8 15. Ng3 d5 16. exd5 Qxd5 17. axb5 axb5 18. Rxa8 Bxa8 19. Ne4 Nd7 20. Bb3 Qb7 21. Qd3 exd4 22. Nf6+ Nxf6 23. Rxe8+ Nxe8 24. Qxg6 c5 25. Bxf7+ Qxf7 26. Qxb6 Bxf3 27. gxf3 {Schon,E (2002)-Yuen,J Sydney 2008 1-0 (47)}) 13. d4 Ng6 14. Nf1 (14. a5 $5 Ba7 $8 15. Nf1 $11) 14... c5 15. Ng3 cxd4 16. cxd4 bxa4 17. Bxa4 Bb7 {Carlsen has equalised.} 18. d5 a5 19. Be3 (19. Bc2) 19... Bc8 20. b3 $6 {White probably hasn't played the best and black is a tiny bit better.} Bxe3 21. Rxe3 Nf4 22. Bc6 $6 {[%eval -77,27] [%wdl 0,742,258]} (22. Rc1 $15 {[%eval -36,26] [%wdl 2,945,53] is better.}) 22... Rb4 {[%eval -39,21] [%wdl 2,938,60]} (22... h5 $17 {[%eval -77,27] [%wdl 0,742,258]}) 23. Qc2 $6 {[%eval -75,23] [%wdl 0,753,247]} (23. Nd2 $15 {[%eval -39,21] [%wdl 2,938,60]}) 23... g6 $17 {[%CAl Oc8h3]} 24. Kh1 $6 {[%eval -127,22] [%wdl 0,228,772]} ({Better is} 24. Ne2 {[%eval -82,22] [%wdl 0,693,307]}) 24... Ba6 25. Qa2 $2 {[%eval -188,20] [%wdl 0,18,982] Maybe this is the point that Gukesh is now lost.} (25. Kh2 $17 {[%eval -114,21] [%wdl 0,347,653]}) 25... Bd3 $19 {[%CAl Rd3e4]} 26. Nd2 {[%eval -241,21] [%wdl 0,2,998]} (26. Kh2 $142 {[%eval -181,22] [%wdl 0,25,975]}) 26... h5 $1 27. Qxa5 Qxa5 28. Rxa5 h4 {[%CAl Of8b8]} 29. Ra4 (29. Ngf1 Bxe4 30. f3 Bxd5 31. Bxd5 N6xd5 {is horrible for white.}) 29... Rfb8 (29... Rxa4 30. Bxa4 Rd8 (30... hxg3 31. fxg3 Bxe4 32. gxf4 $11) 31. Kh2 $11 (31. Ngf1 Nxe4 32. Rxe4 Bxe4 $15)) 30. Ra2 Kg7 (30... hxg3 $2 31. fxg3 Ne2 32. Rxd3 $19) 31. Ra7 Rd4 (31... hxg3 $2 32. fxg3 Nxe4 33. Nxe4 (33. gxf4 $2 exf4 34. Rf3 Bc2 $19) 33... Rxe4 (33... Bxe4 34. gxf4 exf4 35. Re1 $17) 34. Rxe4 Bxe4 35. gxf4 $19) 32. Nf3 hxg3 {Finally taking the piece.} 33. fxg3 {[#]} Nxh3 {[%mdl 512]} (33... Bxe4 34. gxf4 Rd1+ 35. Re1 Bxf3 36. Rxd1 Bxd1 {clearly winning.}) 34. gxh3 Bxe4 (34... Rxe4 $2 35. Rxd3 Nh7 36. h4 $18 (36. Rd7 Re2 $18)) 35. Kh2 Rd1 36. g4 Bxd5 (36... Bxf3 37. Rxf3 e4 38. Rf2 e3 39. Re2 Rd2 {winning.}) (36... Rh8) 37. Bxd5 Nxd5 (37... Rxd5 38. Ng5 Kg8 (38... Rd2+ 39. Kg3 $11) 39. Rf3 $11) 38. Re2 Nf4 (38... Rxb3 39. Ng5 Rf1 40. Rd7 $19) 39. Rc2 Kf6 (39... Rxb3 40. Ng5 Rb8 41. Rxf7+ Kg8 42. Re7 $17) (39... Ne6 {might have been much easier to play.}) 40. h4 Ke6 {[%CAl Of7f6] Hoping for ...f6!.} (40... Rxb3 41. Ng5 e4 42. Rxf7+ (42. Nxf7 $2 Rh3#) (42. Rf2 Ke5 $15) 42... Ke5 43. Re7+ Kd5 44. Rxe4 $11) (40... Rh8 $5) 41. Ng5+ Kd5 42. Ra5+ Kd4 43. Ra4+ Kd3 44. Rf2 f6 $2 {[%eval -71,24] [%wdl 0,845,155] Gukesh is even objectively back in the game now. The players both have a couple of minutes left and only 10 seconds a move.} (44... Rh8 $19 {[%eval -312,22] [%wdl 0,0,1000] and Black stays clearly on top.} 45. Rf3+ Kc2 46. Ra2+ Kb1) 45. Rf3+ $17 Ke2 46. Ra2+ Rd2 47. Rxd2+ Kxd2 {[%mdl 4096]} 48. Ne4+ Ke2 49. Kg3 d5 {[%CAl Bd6d5,Bd5d4,Bd4d3][%mdl 32]} 50. Nxf6 Rf8 51. Rf2+ Ke1 52. Nd7 {[%csl Be5,Bf8]} Ne2+ $2 {[%eval 32700,77] [%wdl 1000,0,0][%mdl 8192] Turning a slight advantage into a loss. It's not clear to me what Carlsen missed but likely it was something very, very simple.} (52... Re8 $11 {[%eval -16,27] [%wdl 1,991,8]} 53. Nf6 Re6) 53. Rxe2+ $1 {[%mdl 512]} Kxe2 54. Nxf8 d4 55. Ne6 (55. Nxg6 $2 d3 56. h5 (56. Nxe5 $2 d2 $19) 56... d2 57. Nxe5 d1=Q $19 (57... d1=B 58. h6)) 55... d3 56. Nc5 {Threatening mate with h5.} Ke3 {[#]} 57. Na4 $1 {White mates.} e4 {[%CAl Be5e4,Be4e3][%mdl 32]} 58. h5 gxh5 59. gxh5 Kd2 60. Nb2 ({Inferior is} 60. h6 e3 61. h7 e2 $11) 60... e3 {[#]} 61. Nc4+ $1 Ke2 {Quite a comeback for White. Weighted Error Value: White=0.31/Black=0.38} 62. Kf4 {White stops both pawns. PRECISÃO LICHESS: BRANCAS 96% PRETAS 88% PRECISÃO CHESS.COM: BRANCAS 92.8% PRETAS 86.1%} 1-0 [Event "Gashimov Memorial 2nd"] [Site "Shamkir"] [Date "2015.04.24"] [Round "7"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Kramnik, Vladimir"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2863"] [BlackElo "2783"] [Annotator "Pavlovic,Milos"] [PlyCount "97"] [EventDate "2015.04.17"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "AZE"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 166"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2015.05.11"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2015.05.11"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 {Yet another big clash in the Berlin.} 4. d3 Bc5 5. c3 O-O 6. O-O d6 7. h3 Ne7 8. d4 Bb6 9. Bd3 d5 {Trying to use the momentum to free the game by further exchanges is logical, and we all know this trademark of Kramnik.} ({Usual is also} 9... Ng6 {with a normal type of game.}) 10. Nbd2 dxe4 ({A bit of computer type of chess might be} 10... exd4 11. e5 Nh5 $5 12. Ng5 g6 13. cxd4 Ng7 14. Nb3 f6 15. Nf3 {with interesting play for both sides.}) 11. Nxe4 Nxe4 12. Bxe4 exd4 13. Qc2 $5 {An interesting new attempt, the point is that it is not one move but a whole concept that Carlsen found.} h6 (13... f5 14. Bd3 Nc6 15. Re1 Kh8 16. Bf4 dxc3 17. bxc3 Qf6 18. Bc4 Bd7 19. Rad1 {with major compensation, Black is facing difficulties in developing his pieces.}) 14. a4 $1 {Unusual and very deep as we will see. Carlsen came fully prepared for this game.} c6 {A solid approach, Black could have tried to defend the pawn or simply take another one.} (14... dxc3 15. Rd1 Qe8 16. Qxc3 a5 17. b3 f6 18. Ba3 Qf7 19. Nh4 {with the initiative, an unpleasant one I may add.}) (14... c5 15. Rd1 a5 16. Bf4 $5 (16. cxd4 cxd4 17. Nxd4 Bxd4 18. Be3 Nf5 19. Bxf5 Bxf5 20. Qxf5 Qf6 21. Qxf6 Bxf6 22. Rd7 Bxb2 23. Rb1 Bc3 24. Rbxb7 {looks defendable for Black}) 16... Re8 17. cxd4 cxd4 18. Be5 Nd5 19. Bxd4 Nb4 20. Qe2 Bxd4 21. Rxd4 Qb6 22. Bh7+ Kf8 23. Qd2 {with initiative.}) 15. Rd1 Nd5 16. Nxd4 Re8 17. a5 $3 {Probably this had been worked out by Carlsen, it is really a nice play.} Bxa5 {Kramnik decides to take the pawn, going back to c7 is also possible.} (17... Bc7 18. Nf3 ({The direct} 18. a6 Qd6 19. Nf3 bxa6 20. c4 Nb4 21. Qa4 Qe7 {is ok for Black}) 18... Qf6 19. Bd2 Nf4 20. a6 bxa6 21. Bxf4 Bxf4 22. Qa4 {again Black is confronted with slight but lasting pressure.}) 18. Nf3 b5 19. Nd4 Bc7 (19... Bb7 20. Bxd5 cxd5 21. Nxb5 Bb6 22. Bf4 Re6 23. Nd4 Re4 24. Be3 Qf6 25. Qd3 Rae8 26. Nc2 $1 {I guess something like this must have been the idea, if Black can't play ...d4 to open lines for the bishop then he is facing problems.}) (19... Bd7 20. Nxb5 $14 {is simply better for White.}) 20. Nxc6 Qd6 21. g3 Bb7 22. Bf4 $1 {White is better.} Qxc6 ({The alternative was better:} 22... Qd7 23. c4 $1 (23. Nb4 Bxf4 24. Nxd5 Bd6 25. Nf6+ gxf6 26. Bxb7 Qxb7 27. Rxd6 Qf3 28. Qd1 Qxd1+ 29. Raxd1 {White is slightly better}) 23... Bxf4 24. cxb5 Qxh3 25. Bxd5 Bg5 26. Qc4 Rf8 27. Ra3 $16) 23. Bxd5 {By giving the queen it is just winning now for White.} Re1+ 24. Kh2 Qxd5 25. Rxd5 Rxa1 26. Rd1 Rxd1 27. Qxd1 Rd8 28. Qe2 Bb6 29. Be3 Bxe3 30. Qxe3 Rd1 31. g4 Bc6 32. Qc5 Bd7 33. Qxa7 {This is simply technical now.} Rd2 34. Kg3 Rd3+ 35. Kf4 Kh7 36. Qb7 Rd2 37. Ke3 Rd6 38. f4 g6 39. Qb8 Rd5 40. Ke4 Be6 41. Qb7 Rc5 42. Kd4 Rc4+ 43. Ke5 b4 44. cxb4 Rc2 45. Kf6 Rxb2 46. Qb8 Rf2 47. f5 gxf5 48. Qg3 Rf1 49. g5 1-0 [Event "EU-chT (Men) 20th"] [Site "Reykjavik"] [Date "2015.11.15"] [Round "3.1"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Aronian, Levon"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2850"] [BlackElo "2781"] [Annotator "Adhiban,Baskaran"] [PlyCount "88"] [EventDate "2015.11.13"] [EventType "team-swiss"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "ISL"] [SourceTitle "CBM 170"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2016.01.15"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2016.01.15"] [SourceQuality "1"] [WhiteTeam "Norway"] [BlackTeam "Armenia"] [WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"] [BlackTeamCountry "ARM"] {An epic clash between a slightly weakened "slow poison" Carlsen and the improved "I am a different player now" Aronian.} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 Bc5 5. O-O (5. Bxc6 dxc6) 5... Nd4 $5 {A wise decision not allowing Carlsen to take on c6 and get his favourite pawn structure after which you are in for a positional grind.} (5... d6 {One more positional lesson by Carlsen was} 6. Nbd2 $5 (6. Re1 O-O 7. Bxc6 bxc6 8. h3 Re8 ({I wonder what is wrong with} 8... Nd7 $5 9. Nbd2 f5 10. exf5 Rxf5 11. Ne4 Bb6 {Though I fully agree such an overly aggressive attempt weakening the a2-g8 diagonal (even without the presence of the white light-squared bishop) is strictly against the principles of the Berlin :).}) 9. Nbd2 Nd7 10. Nc4 Bb6 11. a4 a5 12. Nxb6 cxb6 13. d4 Qc7 ({Possibly Anand didn't like} 13... Qe7 {because of} 14. b3 {with annoying pressure on the a3-f8 diagonal.}) 14. Ra3 $1 {was an instructive game (Carlsen-Anand 2014), though Black can equalise with accurate play.}) 6... O-O 7. Bxc6 bxc6 8. h3 h6 9. Re1 Re8 10. Nf1 a5 11. Ng3 Rb8 12. b3 {Seriously?? Didn't Mr. Carlsen show us that fixing the black pawn structure (against Anand) with a4 is good? Well yet again he shows us that he understands the positional concepts at a much higher level.} Bb4 ({An interesting move was} 12... a4 $5 {but we will have to wait for another Carlsen game for a conclusion in this.}) 13. Bd2 Ra8 14. c3 Bc5 15. d4 Bb6 16. dxe5 dxe5 17. c4 $14 {Carlsen-Radjabov 2015, with clear positional superiority.}) 6. Nxd4 Bxd4 7. c3 Bb6 8. Na3 c6 9. Ba4 d6 10. Bb3 a5 11. Nc4 Ba7 $5 {Aronian is the first to deviate and to be honest this seems like the way after a5.} ({Karjakin-Caruana continued} 11... Bc7 {but then why did he play ...a5?}) 12. a4 O-O 13. Bg5 h6 14. Bxf6 Qxf6 15. Nxa5 {I am not at all sure that such a approach is a good idea against Aronian who doesn't mind giving up a pawn if he can take over the intiative for it!} d5 $1 16. Bc2 (16. exd5 cxd5 17. Bxd5 Qd8 $1 18. Bxb7 Bxb7 19. Nxb7 Qc7 {and finally the greedy knight meets its end.}) 16... dxe4 17. dxe4 Rd8 18. Qe1 (18. Qe2 Qg5 19. Qf3 (19. Nc4 Bg4 $19 {wins on the spot.}) 19... Rd2 $17 {with a dangerous intiative.}) 18... Qg5 19. Kh1 Rd2 20. Bd1 Be6 {Now the brave knight can't return.} 21. b4 Rad8 22. Nxb7 $6 {It was not the time to be greedy.} (22. Be2 $1 {was more tenacious, preparing to exchange a pair of rooks to reduce the intensity.} R8d7 23. Rd1 Rxd1 24. Bxd1 Qc1 25. Bb3 Qxe1 26. Rxe1 Bxb3 27. Nxb3 Bxf2 28. Rb1 $1 {Although Black is still clearly better, the fight is just beginning.}) 22... Bc4 $1 {Now follows a forced sequence after which Black comes out on top.} 23. Nxd8 Bxf1 24. Qxf1 Rxf2 25. Qg1 Ra2 $1 26. Rxa2 Bxg1 27. Kxg1 Qc1 {The dust has settled and it does seem like White can hope to save the position, but unfortunately for him his pieces are uncoordinated.} 28. Kf2 Qxd1 29. Nxc6 Qb3 30. Rd2 (30. Re2 $5 Qxc3 31. b5 {White anyway can't hope to protect his pawns hence Black goes for a quiet king move preventing ?e7-d5.} Kf8 $5 {with a winning advantage.} (31... Qc4 {allows} 32. Rb2 $1) ({Or} 31... Kh7)) 30... Qxc3 31. Rd6 Qb2+ 32. Ke3 Qa3+ 33. Kf2 Qxa4 34. Nxe5 Qc2+ $5 {A strong practical decision!} ({After} 34... Qxb4 35. Rd8+ Kh7 36. Nf3 {Black would face an uphill struggle to win this position.}) 35. Kf3 f5 $1 {Getting of the rid of the small shelter which White was hoping to have.} 36. Rd3 fxe4+ 37. Kxe4 Qxg2+ 38. Nf3 Qg4+ 39. Ke3 g5 $5 (39... Qxb4 40. h4 $1 {and White's chances of saving this endgame are quite high!}) 40. Kf2 (40. b5 Qf4+ {[%CAl Gg5g4]}) 40... Qf5 $1 {Not allowing White to get coordinated.} 41. Rd8+ Kg7 42. Kg2 g4 43. Nd2 Qe6 $1 {Capitalising on the loosely placed pieces.} 44. Nf1 Qc6+ {A nice effort by Aronian who has definitely made his epic comeback after quite a while! It will be interesting to see how Carlsen will come back to his top form and this is something I will be waiting for!} 0-1 [Event "Norway Chess 2025"] [Site "Chess.com"] [Date "2025.06.01"] [Round "6"] [White "Gukesh D"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2787"] [BlackElo "2837"] [Annotator "Rafael Leitao"] [PlyCount "123"] [EventDate "2025.??.??"] [TimeControl "40/7200:0"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 {After having trouble with the classical Ruy Lopez and 4...a6 in his previous game against Caruana, Carlsen decides to play the Berlin. He often alternates between these two options as his main weapon with Black against the king's pawn.} 4. d3 Bc5 5. c3 O-O 6. O-O (6. Bxc6 $6 {White shouldn't attempt to capture the e5-pawn. After} bxc6 7. Nxe5 d5 {Black has the initiative.}) 6... d6 7. h3 a6 8. Ba4 (8. Bxc6 {changes the character of the game and is an important alternative.} bxc6 9. d4 {Slower play with 9.Nbd2 or 9.Re1 is also possible.} Bb6 (9... exd4 $6 {The early exchange gives the white knight a comfortable square on c3.} 10. cxd4 Bb6 11. Nc3) 10. Re1 (10. dxe5 {is worse, since Black is better after} Nxe4) 10... Re8 {with chances for both sides.}) 8... h6 {The always useful prophylactic move, preventing the pin with Bg5.} (8... Ba7 {is another classical always useful move in the Spanish and Italian openings and is usually played here.}) 9. Re1 b5 10. Bc2 Bb6 11. Nbd2 {A typical Ruy Lopez position with the bishop on b6 instead of e7, resembling the Arkhangelsk Variation.} Ne7 {The well-known knight maneuver to g6.} (11... Be6) (11... Re8) 12. a4 Rb8 (12... Bb7 {is the alternative.}) 13. d4 Ng6 14. Nf1 (14. a5 $1 {White should consider playing this move, since it won't be possible to play it after c7-c5.} Ba7 15. Nf1 c5 16. Ng3 {White will continue with Be3 and is fighting for the initiative.}) 14... c5 15. Ng3 cxd4 {The first new move of the game.} (15... Qc7 {was played in Friedrich-Schmider, Munich Laimer op 2023.}) 16. cxd4 bxa4 17. Bxa4 {White has a few options:} (17. Nf5 $6 {is premature, since Black can reply} d5 $1) (17. Be3 {is possible. At first I thought this was bad due to} Ba5 {and the b2-pawn can be captured, but this isn't clear. After} 18. Rf1 Rxb2 19. Qc1 $1 {White has the tactical idea of sacrificing the bishop on h6.}) (17. Rxa4 {is a solid move, keeping the game more or less equal.}) 17... Bb7 18. d5 a5 19. Be3 Bc8 $1 {Even without White making a clear mistake, the position is already preferable for Black. From here on, things will quickly get worse for Gukesh. The idea of the move played is to improve the bishop and also the rook on b8.} 20. b3 (20. Nd2 {seems to be better.}) 20... Bxe3 21. Rxe3 Nf4 {Black has firm control of the dark squares and attacking chances on the kingside, with the bishop sac on h3 hanging in the air.} 22. Bc6 Rb4 {There are already many tempting moves.} (22... Bxh3 {is possible, but it's unnecessary to go for such complications when you have a clear positional advantage.} 23. gxh3 Nxh3+ 24. Kg2 Ng4 $1 25. Rc3 {with good chances for Black, but the position has become sharp.}) (22... h5 $5 {is suggested by the machine as a good alternative. This is a thematic move to improve the pawn structure on the kingside with h5-h4.}) 23. Qc2 $6 (23. Nd2 {is better. Let's follow a variation that, though not forced, is quite interesting and logical:} Ba6 24. Qc2 h5 $1 25. Qa2 {White goes after the a5-pawn.} h4 26. Qxa5 hxg3 27. Qxd8 (27. fxg3 {is bad:} Ne2+ 28. Kf2 Rb6 $1 {defending the bishop.}) 27... gxf2+ 28. Kxf2 Rxd8 29. Rxa6 Rd4 30. Ra2 Nd3+ 31. Kf3 Nb4 32. Rb2 {Black has excellent compensation for the pawn, but it's unclear whether this will be enough to push for a win.}) 23... g6 $1 {This seemingly harmless move is actually very deep. Apart from giving air to the king and extra support for h6-h5, Carlsen takes the f5-square from White's knight. This is useful in preparation for the bishop sac on h3, followed by Qc8.} 24. Kh1 {This mysterious move is intended to guard against the sac on h3, giving the knight a square to return to g1 if necessary.} (24. Ne2 {can be met by} Bxh3 (24... g5 {is also very good.}) 25. gxh3 $6 Nxh3+ 26. Kg2 Nxf2 {with a strong initiative for Black.}) (24. Qa2 {White is not in time to attack the pawn on a5, since now Black can play the standard} Bxh3 $1 25. gxh3 Qc8 {with a winning attack.}) 24... Ba6 {The bishop goes to another very useful diagonal.} 25. Qa2 Bd3 $1 26. Nd2 {Protecting e4 and b3.} h5 $1 {Preparing to drive the knight from g3 and destroy White's position. Black has achieved a winning advantage.} 27. Qxa5 Qxa5 28. Rxa5 h4 29. Ra4 $5 {An interesting attempt to offer resistance, using the idea that the capture on g3 isn't yet winning since the bishop on d3 will be hanging.} (29. Ngf1 {Here Black can win in many ways. One of them is} Bxf1 30. Nxf1 Nxe4) 29... Rfb8 $1 {White is nearly in zugzwang: his pieces can't go anywhere.} 30. Ra2 (30. Rxb4 Rxb4 {and White has nothing to do.}) (30. Ngf1 Bxf1 31. Nxf1 Rxb3 32. Rxb3 Rxb3 {despite the few pieces left, White is dead lost.}) 30... Kg7 {A remarkably calm move.} (30... hxg3 {is winning on the spot.} 31. fxg3 Ne2 $1 32. Rxd3 Nc1 33. Rf3 {Maybe Carlsen played the king to g7 in order to protect the knight on this line.} Nxa2 34. Rxf6 Nc3 35. Rxd6 Rd4 36. Nf3 Nxe4 {with an easy win.}) 31. Ra7 Rd4 {The bishop on d3 is protected, and Black is definitely threatening to capture the knight now.} 32. Nf3 (32. Ngf1 Bxf1 33. Nxf1 Nxe4 {offers little hope for White. The pawns on b3 and d5 will likely fall in the next moves.}) 32... hxg3 33. fxg3 Nxh3 (33... Bxe4 $1 {is a cleaner win with a beautiful idea.} 34. gxf4 (34. Nxd4 exd4 35. Rxe4 Nxe4 36. gxf4 d3 {The d-pawn decides the game.}) 34... Rd1+ 35. Kh2 (35. Re1 Bxf3 {loses a piece.}) (35. Ne1 exf4 36. Re2 f3 $1) 35... exf4 36. Rc3 Ng4+ $1 {This hurts.} 37. hxg4 Rh8+ 38. Nh4 Rxh4+ 39. Rh3 Rxh3+ 40. gxh3 Rh1#) 34. gxh3 (34. Nxd4 exd4 35. Rxd3 Nf2+ {Knights are tricky pieces.}) 34... Bxe4 35. Kh2 {In the next few moves, Carlsen will continue to have many opportunities to win the game directly: the computer here gives him a five-point advantage. Although this game will be remembered for the dramatic blunder at the end, it's important to point out that for me a miscalculation that loses the game isn't the strangest thing, but rather the fact that a player who never gives his opponent a chance has, for some reason, let his opponent survive in this position.} Rd1 (35... Bxf3 36. Rxf3 e4 {wins right away:} 37. Re3 Rd3 38. Rxd3 exd3 39. Ra2 Ne4 {The d-pawn rushes for glory.}) 36. g4 Bxd5 (36... Bxf3 37. Rxf3 {is winning again, similar to the move before.} e4) (36... Rh8 {is also very convincing:} 37. Kg3 Bxd5 ({or} 37... Bxf3 38. Rxf3 Ne4+ 39. Kg2 Rd2+ 40. Kf1 Ng5 {with an easy win.}) 38. Bxd5 Nxd5 {White is a pawn down and under attack.}) 37. Bxd5 Nxd5 38. Re2 Nf4 (38... Nc3 39. Rc2 Nb5 {This is winning for Black without much trouble, for instance:} 40. Rd7 Kf6 $1 {followed by Ke6.}) (38... Rxb3 {is also possible:} 39. Ng5 Rf1 {and Black should also win.}) 39. Rc2 Kf6 {Again there are good alternatives:} (39... Rxb3 40. Ng5 Rdd3 $1 41. Rxf7+ Kh6 42. h4 Rh3+ 43. Nxh3 Rxh3+ 44. Kg1 Rxh4 {Black has three pawns for the exchange.}) (39... Ne6 {is also winning.}) 40. h4 Ke6 {The king marches to the middle of the board.} 41. Ng5+ Kd5 42. Ra5+ Kd4 43. Ra4+ (43. Nxf7 {Black is able to start an attack:} Rxb3 44. Ng5 Rbb1) 43... Kd3 44. Rf2 f6 $2 {This move makes the win problematic.} (44... Rh8 $1 {is the simpler way to win.}) 45. Rf3+ Ke2 46. Ra2+ (46. Re4+ {is also possible, with an idea so pretty it resembles a composition:} Kd2 47. Ra4 $3 {The point is that if Black captures the knight, then White finds a surprising draw after} fxg5 $2 48. Ra2+ Kc1 49. Rff2 $1 Rxb3 50. Ra1+ Rb1 51. Raa2 {Black is unable to escape perpetual check. An amazing variation.}) 46... Rd2 47. Rxd2+ Kxd2 48. Ne4+ Ke2 49. Kg3 {Maybe Black can still win this position, but it's not clear at all. I couldn't find anything convincing.} d5 50. Nxf6 Rf8 51. Rf2+ Ke1 52. Nd7 (52. g5 {is also possible, and it seems to lead to a draw as well.}) 52... Ne2+ $4 {The blunder everybody will be talking about for a long time. I just want to make it clear that Black wasn't winning anymore.} (52... Re8 {White can make a draw in more than one way.} 53. Nxe5 (53. Rxf4 {is also good:} exf4+ 54. Kxf4 d4 55. Nc5 $1 Ke2 56. h5 gxh5 57. gxh5 d3 58. Nxd3 Kxd3 59. h6 {and so on.}) 53... Ne2+ 54. Rxe2+ Kxe2 55. Kf4 d4 (55... g5+ 56. hxg5 Rf8+ 57. Kg3 {This looks clever for Black, but it's a draw anyway.}) 56. Nc4 $1 {The only move.} (56. h5 $2 gxh5 57. gxh5 Rxe5 58. Kxe5 d3 59. h6 d2 60. h7 d1=Q 61. h8=Q Qa1+ {winning the queen.}) 56... d3 57. h5 gxh5 58. gxh5 d2 59. Nxd2 Kxd2 60. h6 {and a draw.}) 53. Rxe2+ Kxe2 54. Nxf8 d4 55. Ne6 d3 56. Nc5 {As I wrote before in this game and many more times before, knights are tricky pieces. It can confuse even the best of the best.} (56. Ng5 {also wins.}) 56... Ke3 (56... d2 57. Ne4 d1=Q 58. Nc3+ {This is an old method for a knight dealing with a passed pawn.}) 57. Na4 $1 e4 58. h5 gxh5 59. gxh5 Kd2 60. Nb2 e3 (60... Kc2 {also loses:} 61. Nc4 d2 62. Ne3+) 61. Nc4+ Ke2 62. Kf4 {The e3-pawn falls. Gukesh's first-ever win against Carlsen in a classical game probably wasn't as he expected, but I guess he will take it anyway.} 1-0 [Event "Norway Chess 2025"] [Site "Chess.com"] [Date "2025.06.01"] [Round "6.3"] [White "Gukesh D"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2787"] [BlackElo "2837"] [Annotator "Rafael Leitao"] [PlyCount "123"] [EventDate "2025.??.??"] [TimeControl "40/7200:0"] {[%evp 0,123,19,19,19,19,19,6,21,15,20,-23,-1,-15,-6,-29,-3,-28,-7,-68,-41,-70,-50,-47,4,4,22,13,30,10,21,-18,5,5,15,-5,5,6,13,-17,0,1,13,4,5,30,17,17,36,-25,-25,-25,-52,-52,-22,-43,-99,-108,-84,-120,-120,-136,-159,-167,-167,-181,-181,-181,-216,-204,-204,-221,-211,-215,-190,-193,-193,-193,-193,-193,-150,-150,-157,-157,-157,-163,-163,-171,-189,-184,-147,-129,-129,-125,-148,-134,-139,-123,-120,-120,-141,-133,-65,-75,-65,-75,374,445,464,465,465,480,446,449,496,496,726,726,962,684,684,937,752,1279,1522,1696]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 {Depois de ter dificuldades com a Ruy Lopez clássica e o lance 4...a6 em sua partida anterior contra Caruana, Carlsen decide jogar a Berlinesa. Ele costuma alternar entre essas duas opções como sua principal arma de Negras contra o peão rei.} 4. d3 Bc5 5. c3 O-O 6. O-O (6. Bxc6 $6 {Brancas não devem tentar capturar o peão de e5. Após} bxc6 7. Nxe5 d5 {as Negras têm a iniciativa.}) 6... d6 7. h3 a6 8. Ba4 (8. Bxc6 {muda a característica da partida e é uma alternativa importante.} bxc6 9. d4 {Jogo mais lento com 9.Cbd2 ou 9.Te1 também é possível.} Bb6 (9... exd4 $6 {A troca precoce dá ao cavalo branco uma casa confortável em c3.} 10. cxd4 Bb6 11. Nc3) 10. Re1 (10. dxe5 {é pior, já que as Negras ficam melhor depois de} Nxe4) 10... Re8 {com chances para ambos os lados.}) 8... h6 {O sempre útil lance profilático, prevenindo a cravada com Bg5.} (8... Ba7 {é outro lance clássico sempre útil nas aberturas Espanhola e Italiana e geralmente é jogado aqui.}) 9. Re1 b5 10. Bc2 Bb6 11. Nbd2 {Uma posição típica da Ruy Lopez com o bispo em b6 ao invés de e7, parecida com a Variante Arkhangelsk.} Ne7 {A conhecida manobra do cavalo para g6.} (11... Be6) (11... Re8) 12. a4 Rb8 (12... Bb7 {é a alternativa.}) 13. d4 Ng6 14. Nf1 (14. a5 $1 {As Brancas devem considerar jogar esse lance, pois depois de c7-c5 ele não será mais possível.} Ba7 15. Nf1 c5 16. Ng3 {As Brancas continuarão com Be3 e estão lutando pela iniciativa.}) 14... c5 15. Ng3 cxd4 {O primeiro lance novo da partida.} (15... Qc7 {foi jogado na partida Friedrich-Schmider, Munich Laimer Open 2023.}) 16. cxd4 bxa4 17. Bxa4 {As Brancas têm algumas opções:} (17. Nf5 $6 {é prematuro, já que as Negras podem responder com} d5 $1) (17. Be3 {é possível. A princípio, pensei que isso fosse ruim devido a} Ba5 {e o peão de b2 pode ser capturado, mas isso não está claro. Depois de} 18. Rf1 Rxb2 19. Qc1 $1 {As Brancas têm a ideia tática de sacrificar o bispo em h6.}) (17. Rxa4 {é um lance sólido, mantendo a partida mais ou menos igual.}) 17... Bb7 18. d5 a5 19. Be3 Bc8 $1 {Mesmo sem as Brancas cometerem um erro claro, a posição já é preferível para as Negras. A partir daqui, as coisas vão piorar rapidamente para Gukesh. A ideia do lance jogado é melhorar o bispo e também a torre em b8.} 20. b3 (20. Nd2 {parece ser melhor.}) 20... Bxe3 21. Rxe3 Nf4 {As Negras têm controle firme das casas escuras e chances de ataque na ala do rei, com o sacrifício do bispo em h3 pairando no ar.} 22. Bc6 Rb4 {Já há muitos lances tentadores.} (22... Bxh3 {é possível, mas não é necessário buscar tais complicações quando se tem uma clara vantagem posicional.} 23. gxh3 Nxh3+ 24. Kg2 Ng4 $1 25. Rc3 {com boas chances para as Negras, mas a posição se tornou tensa.}) (22... h5 $5 {é sugerido pela máquina como uma boa alternativa. Este é um lance temático para melhorar a estrutura de peões na ala do rei com h5-h4.}) 23. Qc2 $6 (23. Nd2 {é melhor. Vamos seguir uma varianet que, embora não seja forçada, é bastante interessante e lógica:} Ba6 24. Qc2 h5 $1 25. Qa2 {As Brancas vão atrás do peão de a5.} h4 26. Qxa5 hxg3 27. Qxd8 (27. fxg3 {é ruim:} Ne2+ 28. Kf2 Rb6 $1 {defendendo o bispo.}) 27... gxf2+ 28. Kxf2 Rxd8 29. Rxa6 Rd4 30. Ra2 Nd3+ 31. Kf3 Nb4 32. Rb2 {As Negras têm excelente compensação pelo peão, mas não está claro se isso será suficiente para pressionar pela vitória.}) 23... g6 $1 {Esse lance aparentemente inofensivo é, na verdade, muito profundo. Além de dar “ar” ao rei e oferecer suporte extra para h6-h5, Carlsen tira a casa f5 do cavalo das Brancas. Isso é útil como preparação para o sacrifício do bispo em h3, seguido de Dc8.} 24. Kh1 {Esse lance misterioso tem a intenção de proteger contra o sacrifício em h3, dando ao cavalo uma casa para retornar a g1, se necessário.} (24. Ne2 {pode ser respondido por} Bxh3 (24... g5 {também é muito bom.}) 25. gxh3 $6 Nxh3+ 26. Kg2 Nxf2 {com uma forte iniciativa para as Negras.}) (24. Qa2 {As Brancas não têm tempo para atacar o peão em a5, pois agora as Negras podem jogar o lance padrão} Bxh3 $1 25. gxh3 Qc8 {com um ataque vencedor.}) 24... Ba6 {O bispo vai para outra diagonal muito útil.} 25. Qa2 Bd3 $1 26. Nd2 {Protegendo e4 e b3.} h5 $1 {Preparando-se para expulsar o cavalo de g3 e destruir a posição das Brancas. As Negras alcançaram uma vantagem decisiva.} 27. Qxa5 Qxa5 28. Rxa5 h4 29. Ra4 $5 {Uma tentativa interessante de oferecer resistência, usando a ideia de que a captura em g3 ainda não é decisiva, já que o bispo em d3 ficará pendurado.} (29. Ngf1 {Aqui, as Negras podem vencer de várias maneiras. Uma delas é} Bxf1 30. Nxf1 Nxe4) 29... Rfb8 $1 {As Brancas estão quase em zugzwang: suas peças não têm para onde se mover.} 30. Ra2 (30. Rxb4 Rxb4 {e as Brancas não têm nada a fazer.}) (30. Ngf1 Bxf1 31. Nxf1 Rxb3 32. Rxb3 Rxb3 {apesar das poucas peças restantes, as Brancas estão completamente perdidas.}) 30... Kg7 {Um lance surpreendentemente tranquilo.} (30... hxg3 {ganha imediatamente.} 31. fxg3 Ne2 $1 32. Rxd3 Nc1 33. Rf3 {Talvez Carlsen tenha jogado o rei para g7 para proteger o cavalo nessa linha.} Nxa2 34. Rxf6 Nc3 35. Rxd6 Rd4 36. Nf3 Nxe4 {com uma vitória fácil.}) 31. Ra7 Rd4 {O bispo em d4 está protegido, e as Negras definitivamente estão ameaçando capturar o cavalo agora.} 32. Nf3 (32. Ngf1 Bxf1 33. Nxf1 Nxe4 {oferece pouca esperança para as Brancas. Os peões em b3 e d5 provavelmente cairão nos próximos lances.}) 32... hxg3 33. fxg3 Nxh3 (33... Bxe4 $1 {é uma vitória mais limpa, com uma ideia bonita.} 34. gxf4 (34. Nxd4 exd4 35. Rxe4 Nxe4 36. gxf4 d3 {O peão de d decide a partida.}) 34... Rd1+ 35. Kh2 (35. Re1 Bxf3 {perde uma peça.}) (35. Ne1 exf4 36. Re2 f3 $1) 35... exf4 36. Rc3 Ng4+ $1 {Isso dói.} 37. hxg4 Rh8+ 38. Nh4 Rxh4+ 39. Rh3 Rxh3+ 40. gxh3 Rh1#) 34. gxh3 (34. Nxd4 exd4 35. Rxd3 Nf2+ {Cavalos são peças traiçoeiras.}) 34... Bxe4 35. Kh2 {Nos próximos lances, Carlsen continuará tendo muitas oportunidades de vencer a partida diretamente: o computador aqui lhe dá uma vantagem de cinco pontos. Embora essa partida vá ser lembrada pelo erro dramático no final, é importante destacar que, para mim, o mais estranho não é a imprecisão que perde o jogo, mas o fato de que um jogador que nunca dá chances ao adversário tenha, por algum motivo, permitido que seu oponente sobrevivesse nessa posição.} Rd1 (35... Bxf3 36. Rxf3 e4 {ganha imediatamente:} 37. Re3 Rd3 38. Rxd3 exd3 39. Ra2 Ne4 {O peão de d corre rumo à glória.}) 36. g4 Bxd5 (36... Bxf3 37. Rxf3 {está ganho novamente, semelhante ao lance anterior.} e4) (36... Rh8 {também é muito convincente:} 37. Kg3 Bxd5 ({or} 37... Bxf3 38. Rxf3 Ne4+ 39. Kg2 Rd2+ 40. Kf1 Ng5 {com uma vitória fácil.}) 38. Bxd5 Nxd5 {As Brancas estão com um peão a menos e sob ataque.}) 37. Bxd5 Nxd5 38. Re2 Nf4 (38... Nc3 39. Rc2 Nb5 {Isso está ganho para as Negras sem muita dificuldade, por exemplo:} 40. Rd7 Kf6 $1 {seguido por Re6.}) (38... Rxb3 {também é possível:} 39. Ng5 Rf1 {e as Negras também devem ganhar.}) 39. Rc2 Kf6 {Novamente, existem boas alternativas:} (39... Rxb3 40. Ng5 Rdd3 $1 41. Rxf7+ Kh6 42. h4 Rh3+ 43. Nxh3 Rxh3+ 44. Kg1 Rxh4 {As Negras têm três peões pela qualidade.}) (39... Ne6 {também está ganho.}) 40. h4 Ke6 {O rei marcha para o centro do tabuleiro.} 41. Ng5+ Kd5 42. Ra5+ Kd4 43. Ra4+ (43. Nxf7 {As Negras conseguem iniciar um ataque:} Rxb3 44. Ng5 Rbb1) 43... Kd3 44. Rf2 f6 $2 {Esse lance torna a vitória problemática.} (44... Rh8 $1 {é a maneira mais simples de vencer.}) 45. Rf3+ Ke2 46. Ra2+ (46. Re4+ {também é possível, com uma ideia tão bonita que parece até uma composição:} Kd2 47. Ra4 $3 {O ponto é que, se as Negras capturarem o cavalo, então as Brancas conseguem um empate surpreendente após} fxg5 $2 48. Ra2+ Kc1 49. Rff2 $1 Rxb3 50. Ra1+ Rb1 51. Raa2 {As Negras são incapazes de escapar do xeque perpétuo. Uma variante incrível.}) 46... Rd2 47. Rxd2+ Kxd2 48. Ne4+ Ke2 49. Kg3 {Talvez as Negras ainda possam vencer essa posição, mas não está nada claro. $146ão consegui encontrar nada convincente.} d5 50. Nxf6 Rf8 51. Rf2+ Ke1 52. Nd7 (52. g5 {também é possível, e parece levar a um empate também.}) 52... Ne2+ $4 {A tal \"capivarada\" sobre a qual todos vão falar por muito tempo. Quero deixar claro que as Negras já não estavam mais ganhas.} (52... Re8 {As Brancas podem empatar de mais de uma maneira.} 53. Nxe5 (53. Rxf4 {também é bom:} exf4+ 54. Kxf4 d4 55. Nc5 $1 Ke2 56. h5 gxh5 57. gxh5 d3 58. Nxd3 Kxd3 59. h6 {e assim por diante.}) 53... Ne2+ 54. Rxe2+ Kxe2 55. Kf4 d4 (55... g5+ 56. hxg5 Rf8+ 57. Kg3 {Isso parece inteligente para as Negras, mas de qualquer forma é um empate.}) 56. Nc4 $1 {O único lance.} (56. h5 $2 gxh5 57. gxh5 Rxe5 58. Kxe5 d3 59. h6 d2 60. h7 d1=Q 61. h8=Q Qa1+ {ganhando a dama.}) 56... d3 57. h5 gxh5 58. gxh5 d2 59. Nxd2 Kxd2 60. h6 {e um empate.}) 53. Rxe2+ Kxe2 54. Nxf8 d4 55. Ne6 d3 56. Nc5 {Como escrevi antes nesta partida e muitas outras vezes, os cavalos são peças traiçoeiras. Eles podem confundir até os melhores dos melhores.} (56. Ng5 {também ganha.}) 56... Ke3 (56... d2 57. Ne4 d1=Q 58. Nc3+ {Este é um método antigo para um cavalo lidar com um peão passado.}) 57. Na4 $1 e4 58. h5 gxh5 59. gxh5 Kd2 60. Nb2 e3 (60... Kc2 {também perde:} 61. Nc4 d2 62. Ne3+) 61. Nc4+ Ke2 62. Kf4 {O peão de e3 cai. A primeira vitória de Gukesh contra Carlsen em uma partida clássica provavelmente não foi como ele esperava, mas acho que ele vai aceitar do mesmo jeito.} 1-0 [Event "World-ch Carlsen-Anand +3-0=7"] [Site "Chennai"] [Date "2013.11.18"] [Round "7"] [White "Anand, Viswanathan"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2775"] [BlackElo "2870"] [Annotator "Szabo,Krisztian"] [PlyCount "64"] [EventDate "2013.11.09"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "12"] [EventCountry "IND"] [SourceTitle "CBM 158"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2014.01.16"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2014.01.16"] [SourceQuality "1"] {We have just reached the half-way point of the match. Carlsen was leading by 4-2.} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 {Carlsen repeats his main weapon, the Berlin Defence, which he employed successfully in the 4th and 6th games of the match.} 4. d3 {Anand avoids the 4.0-0 ?xe4 "endgame line", like in the 6th game.} Bc5 5. Bxc6 {Anand's favourite move.} (5. c3 {and}) (5. O-O {are other lines.}) 5... dxc6 6. Nbd2 {The position has some similarities to the RL Delayed Exchange Variation with 3...a6 4.?a4 ?f6 5.?xc6 dxc6 6.d3.} Bg4 $5 {A rare, but interesting move.} ({The most recent games continued with} 6... Be6 {followed by ?d7.}) ({Anand had two successful games with} 6... O-O 7. O-O Re8 8. Nc4 Nd7 9. Kh1 (9. a4 a5 10. b3 Bf8 11. Kh1 {A possible plan is ?g1-e2 and f2-f4.} b6 12. g3 {? ?h4} Ba6 13. Bb2 Bxc4 14. bxc4 g6 15. Nh4 Bh6 16. Ng2 {? f4} Nc5 17. f4 exf4 18. gxf4 Bg7 19. Bxg7 Kxg7 20. f5 $36 {with some initiative, later White managed to win, Anand-Aronian, Stavanger blitz 2013.}) 9... a5 10. a4 b6 11. Be3 (11. b3 $5) 11... Bb4 12. Nfd2 b5 13. axb5 cxb5 14. c3 bxc4 15. cxb4 cxd3 16. bxa5 Ba6 17. Qb3 Nf6 18. h3 Nh5 19. Rfc1 Nf4 20. Rc6 Ne2 21. Qd5 Qb8 $4 {Until this point the game was balanced, but here suddenly Kramnik blundered, allowing White's strong reply.} ({The correct choice would have been} 21... Qxd5 22. exd5 Rec8 {Black is under pressure, but with tough defence it should be an equal endgame.}) 22. Rxa6 $1 Rxa6 23. Qxd3 {and after a few moves Black resigned, Anand-Kramnik, Zuerich 2013.}) 7. h3 Bh5 {Of course Carlsen saves his bishop pair.} (7... Bxf3 8. Qxf3 Nd7 9. Qg3 Qf6 10. Nc4 O-O 11. O-O Rfe8 12. a4 Nf8 13. Bg5 Qe6 14. Bd2 Ng6 15. b4 Bf8 16. Qg4 b6 17. g3 f6 18. Bc3 $14 {with a comfortable position for White, Adams-Fressinet, Germany 2012.}) 8. Nf1 {White employs the typical Ruy Lopez regrouping of the knight to g3 before castling, especially since the bishop is on h5.} ({In case of} 8. g4 Bg6 9. Nxe5 $2 {is not working because of} Qd4 $1) 8... Nd7 {Black is also following his typical plan. He prepares for f6, ?f7 and sometimes ?f8-e6.} 9. Ng3 Bxf3 {An interesting decision to give up the ? now.} (9... Bg6 $5 {was an interesting alternative. Black plans f6 then transfers his ? to f7. For example} 10. O-O O-O {and Black has a comfortable position.} ({Still} 10... f6 {is too early, as} 11. Nh4 Bf7 12. Nhf5 O-O 13. Qg4 $36 {and White has some initiative.})) 10. Qxf3 g6 $1 {A very important positional move. In normal cases when the white ? is on g3 the ...g6 move is very good, as the ? can't move to f5 or h5. If Black had castled, g6 isn't so good, because White has an attack with ?h6 and h4-h5, but now Carlsen wants to castle to the queenside.} 11. Be3 Qe7 12. O-O-O O-O-O {Finally both sides have finished their development. White has a slight advantage thanks to his slightly better pawn structure, but this can hardly be exploited. A slow, positional manoeuvring fight begins, where both players try to improve their pieces. The game is balanced.} 13. Ne2 {The ? is not so useful on g3, while from e2 it can be support a d4 or an f4.} Rhe8 14. Kb1 {Another useful move. Sometimes Black's idea is ?e6 followed by f5 and without ?b1 the a2 ? is unprotected.} b6 {Carlsen also makes a useful move, he prepares for ?b7.} 15. h4 Kb7 ({I think} 15... h5 $5 {was easier, but Carlsen doesn't worry about White's threats on the h-file.}) 16. h5 Bxe3 17. Qxe3 ({In case of} 17. fxe3 $5 {Black can regroup to the kingside with} Rg8 $5 18. g4 (18. Rdf1 {could have been met by} f5 (18... Rdf8 $5) 19. hxg6 (19. exf5 gxf5 20. Qxf5 Rxg2 {and Black hasn't got any problem.}) 19... fxe4 20. Qxe4 Rxg6 {with an equal position.}) 18... gxh5 $1 {This is the point of the ?g8!} (18... Rdf8 19. Rdf1 Nc5 20. Qf6 $14 {maybe a little bit unpleasant for Black.}) 19. gxh5 (19. Rxh5 Nf6 $11) 19... Rg5 20. Ng3 Rdg8 21. Nf5 Qf6 {White has a strong ? on f5, but Black controls the g-file with his rooks, so the position is balanced.}) 17... Nc5 {The ? is ready to go to e6, or sometimes even ?a4 and ?b4 could be a threat.} 18. hxg6 hxg6 19. g3 ({If} 19. Rh7 {Black uses the same motif as in the game with} Rh8 20. Rdh1 Rxh7 21. Rxh7 Qf6 $11 {followed by ?h8 with a completely drawish endgame.}) 19... a5 (19... Rh8 $11) ({or} 19... Qf6 $11 {was also fine, with an equal position.}) 20. Rh7 (20. f4 {could have been met by} f5 $1 21. exf5 gxf5 22. fxe5 Qxe5 23. Qxe5 Rxe5 {with a fully drawish ending.}) 20... Rh8 21. Rdh1 Rxh7 22. Rxh7 Qf6 $1 {Black prepares to exchange the rooks with ?h8.} 23. f4 Rh8 $1 {The most precise move.} ({The natural} 23... exf4 $6 {was dubious, as} 24. Qxf4 $1 Qxf4 25. gxf4 {and suddenly the endgame is better for White. His rook is very active and his pawn structure is also better.} Rd7 26. Kc1 $14 {Followed by ?g3, ?d2-e3 then f5 later on. But of course Carlsen doesn't allow such chances.}) 24. Rxh8 Qxh8 25. fxe5 Qxe5 26. Qf3 ({The fork with} 26. d4 $2 {does not work in view of} Qxe4 $17) 26... f5 $1 {After this the draw is inevitable.} 27. exf5 gxf5 28. c3 Ne6 29. Kc2 Ng5 30. Qf2 Ne6 31. Qf3 Ng5 32. Qf2 Ne6 {A tidy draw, Carlsen preserved his 2 point lead!} 1/2-1/2 [Event "Biel GM 51st"] [Site "Biel"] [Date "2018.07.30"] [Round "8"] [White "Svidler, Peter"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2753"] [BlackElo "2842"] [Annotator "Golubev,Mikhail"] [PlyCount "72"] [EventDate "2018.07.22"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "SUI"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 186"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2018.09.14"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2018.09.14"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 Bc5 5. Bxc6 dxc6 $8 6. Nbd2 {This is the most common move, but no less than five other options also have been tried in the practice of these players.} Be6 ({Instead,} 6... Bg4 7. h3 Bh5 {had been played by Carlsen in his 2013 world championship match against Anand.}) 7. Qe2 $5 Nd7 8. Nb3 {Introduced by Caruana in a game against Navara in 2013.} Bb6 $5 9. Ng5 Nf8 $5 10. Be3 $146 ({In Caruana-Nakamura, Internet blitz 2017 there was} 10. O-O Bxb3 11. axb3 f6 12. Nf3 Ne6 {, transposing also to Caruana-Kramnik, Leuven blitz 2016.}) ({There is also} 10. Nxe6 Nxe6 $11) 10... Qe7 ({Engines suggest} 10... Bd7 $5 {planning ...?g6.}) 11. g3 ({Probably more accurate is} 11. Nxe6 Nxe6 12. Qh5) 11... Bxb3 $5 12. axb3 f6 13. Nf3 Ne6 14. Bxb6 cxb6 15. O-O a6 $1 {Instead of the banal 15...0-0, Carlsen prepares to castle long.} 16. c3 ({Maybe} 16. Qe3 $5 {was worth trying.}) 16... O-O-O {If White had not prepared d4 now, Black could get some attacking prospects on the kingside.} 17. Rad1 Kb8 18. Qe3 Ka7 {True magic. The black king is completely safe on the queenside. Black gradually gained some chances from what seemed to be a completely equal position.} 19. d4 exd4 20. Nxd4 ({After} 20. cxd4 $6 Rhe8 {White's pawns are vulnerable.}) 20... Nxd4 21. Rxd4 h5 $5 22. Rfd1 $5 Rxd4 23. cxd4 ({After} 23. Rxd4 {Black plays} h4 ({or} 23... Qe6 24. b4 h4)) 23... h4 24. d5 ({A serious alternative was} 24. g4 {but there too some initiative is with Black.}) 24... hxg3 25. hxg3 Qe5 (25... cxd5 $5 {is curious:} 26. exd5 (26. Rxd5 g5 $1) 26... Qxe3 27. fxe3 Kb8 $1 {though I am not sure that Black has any significant winning chances after} 28. d6 $5) 26. Qf3 ({Not} 26. dxc6 $4 Qh5 $1 $19) 26... cxd5 27. exd5 Qxb2 $6 ({Here} 27... Rd8 $1 28. Qd3 Qxb2 29. d6 Qe5 ({if} 29... Rd7 {, White plays} 30. Qf5 $1 Qxb3 31. Qxd7 Qxd1+ 32. Kg2 $11 {with the inevitable draw, because the d6-pawn is too dangerous}) 30. d7 Qe6 {was a better practical chance: Black plans to play, approximately, ...?c6, b5, b6, ?b7 at some point threatening with ...?h8, or .. .a5-a4. At least, White would have had to work for a draw.}) 28. d6 $1 Rd8 29. d7 Qc2 {Now White uses the opportunity to place his rook actively, equalising.} 30. Rd6 $1 Qc5 31. Qd1 $1 $11 Qf5 32. Rd5 Qe4 33. Rd4 Qc6 34. Rd6 Qe4 35. Rd4 Qc6 36. Rd6 Qe4 1/2-1/2 [Event "Norway Chess 9th"] [Site "Stavanger"] [Date "2021.09.16"] [Round "9"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2855"] [BlackElo "2758"] [Annotator "Nielsen,Peter Heine"] [PlyCount "105"] [EventDate "2021.09.07"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 204"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2021.10.31"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2021.10.31"] [SourceQuality "1"] {[%evp 0,105,16,26,53,50,42,-17,38,-20,31,-29,-15,-44,35,13,40,25,59,43,52,51,49,29,60,32,34,-5,8,8,-1,-5,-5,17,29,-9,11,-44,-3,-23,-28,-31,-1,-12,-17,-38,-26,-34,-19,-21,9,-93,-21,-106,-28,-39,-26,-24,-2,-30,19,9,40,82,135,176,214,208,147,188,221,105,140,126,207,105,110,125,178,175,186,65,114,97,81,81,81,81,86,74,145,134,138,151,156,144,202,204,204,226,226,226,226,160,244,237,303,310]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 Bc5 5. Bxc6 dxc6 6. O-O Nd7 7. c3 h6 8. Nbd2 O-O 9. Nc4 Re8 10. b4 Bd6 11. Be3 Nf8 12. Nfd2 Ng6 13. Nxd6 cxd6 14. a4 d5 15. Nb3 b6 16. a5 Rb8 17. Qc2 Be6 18. Rfb1 Re7 19. c4 d4 20. Bd2 f5 21. axb6 axb6 22. f3 Rf7 23. Rf1 Kh7 24. exf5 Bxf5 25. Be1 Qg5 26. Rd1 h5 27. Bd2 Qh4 28. Rde1 Ra8 29. Ra1 Raf8 30. Ra6 {It is a commonly used trick by seconds for upcoming World Championship matches to refuse to say anything about the opening moves claiming the need for secrecy and not revealing any secrets. Using that privilege to skip the first 30 moves is indeed taking it too far, but the only thing to report til now is that Karjakin has a strategically winning position and that after e.g the retreat 30...Qd8!? the Norwegian computer "Sesse" always following Magnus games, gave as much as +3(!) for Black. But simply ...h4-h3 next would undermine White's defences and win trivially. But having already beaten Magnus once during this event, Karjakin thought why not make it 2-0 and in style?} e4 $6 {Magnus won 4 games in a row at Stavanger, and while in other sports or even in earlier stages of chess history that would not be seen as something special, in modern top-level tournaments it certainly is. Streaks requires a mixture of luck and skill, and as Larsen once pointed out, it is easier to win a bad position than a completely equal one.} (30... Qd8 $5) 31. Nxd4 $1 {Taking his chance ( and a pawn!) immediately, but Karjakin obviously was expecting that and has a cunning plan up his sleeve:} exf3 32. Nxf3 Bh3 $5 {One can understand Karjakins attraction to this move. Not only is it beautiful, but also logical. White has a stranded rook on the queenside, while all black pieces join the attack on the white king. It would not be unreasonable if Black was just winning, but Magnus has a resource:} 33. Rf2 $1 {Absolutely neccesary amd modest-looking, but excactly enough fence off the black attack! 33...Bxg2 perhaps was what Karjakin intended, hoping for 34 Nxh4 Rxf2 but 35 Ng5+! turns the tables, as in this version of Black sacrificing his queen, after 35...Qxg5 36 Bxg5 Rxf2 suddenly 37 Qxf2 has become available. The computer suggests the calm 33...Kg8!? with an ultimately balanced position, but Karjakins ove also is not bad:} Rxf3 (33... Bxg2 34. Ng5+ $1 (34. Nxh4 Rxf2) 34... Qxg5 35. Bxg5 Rxf2 36. Qxf2 $1) (33... Kg8 $5) 34. gxf3 Rf5 $2 {But here however he falters.} (34... Bg4 $5 {was the logical way continuing to attack with maximum energy, when after} 35. f4 Ne5 $1 {Black once again exploits that White can not take the offered piece. Surprisingly White would still be able to defend, as both} 36. Bc3 {and 36.Be3 keeps him in the game most likely to end in a draw by perpetual check}) 35. d4 $1 {Materially White is ahead plenty, so more importantly this opens the diagonal of the white queen towards the king on h7, as well as the 3-rank where the rook via a3 can join the defence.} Qxd4 36. Ra3 {36.f4! would have been more precise, as now 36...Re5!? becomes an extra option.} (36. f4 $1) 36... Rf7 (36... Re5 $5) 37. Re3 Bf5 38. Qc3 Qd8 39. Re1 $6 {"Sesse" gave 39 f4! as the winning move, but from a human perspective once can understand the logic behind leaving the the pawn on f3 giving the king somewhat more protection, as well as preparing the following manouver. And wile tactically flawed, it does win the game!} (39. f4 $1) 39... Rd7 40. Qe3 Rd4 $2 {When Karjakin played his 30th move, he had considerably more time left on is clock than Magnus, but in the ensuing complications he caught up and being short on time blunders the game with his last move before the time-control. 40...Re7! was possible as 41 Qg5?? then loses to 41... Rxe1+ as 42 Bxe1 leaves the queen unprotected on g5. Thus 41 Qc3 would be neccesary but after 41...Rd7 white would according to the computers not have better than a repetition draw after 42 Qe3.} (40... Re7 41. Qc3 (41. Qg5 $4 Rxe1+ 42. Bxe1 Qxg5+) 41... Rd7 42. Qe3) 41. Qg5 {Now, however, White just wins trivially. There thraet of exchanging queens as well as h5 and f5 hanging, is more than the black position can handle.} Qxg5+ 42. Bxg5 Rxc4 43. Rb2 $1 {Perhaps looking passive, but defending the b-pawn was neccesary. And as Larsen said: while opposite colored bishop endings often are drawn, when they are winning, the often win easily! And this is the case here indeed: White will rearrange to attack g7, and Black's bishop being of the opposite colour, means there just is no way to defend.} b5 44. Kf2 c5 45. bxc5 Rxc5 46. Rc1 Rd5 47. Rd2 Rxd2+ 48. Bxd2 Ne5 49. Rc7 b4 $5 {Trying to confuse the issue as else Bc3 next wins trivially.} 50. Rb7 Be6 51. Re7 $1 Nd3+ 52. Ke3 Bc4 53. Kd4 {But as 53... Bb5 54 Rb7 Ba6 55 Rb6 wins a piece and 53....Nb2 54 Bxb4 is hopeless, Karjakin resigned.} (53. Kd4 Bb5 (53... Nb2 54. Bxb4) 54. Rb7 Ba6 55. Rb6) 1-0 [Event "Norway Chess 9th"] [Site "Stavanger"] [Date "2021.09.16"] [Round "9"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2855"] [BlackElo "2758"] [Annotator "Nielsen,Peter Heine"] [PlyCount "105"] [EventDate "2021.09.07"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 204"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2021.10.31"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2021.10.31"] [SourceQuality "1"] {[%evp 0,105,16,26,53,50,42,-17,38,-20,31,-29,-15,-44,35,13,40,25,59,43,52,51,49,29,60,32,34,-5,8,8,-1,-5,-5,17,29,-9,11,-44,-3,-23,-28,-31,-1,-12,-17,-38,-26,-34,-19,-21,9,-93,-21,-106,-28,-39,-26,-24,-2,-30,19,9,40,82,135,176,214,208,147,188,221,105,140,126,207,105,110,125,178,175,186,65,114,97,81,81,81,81,86,74,145,134,138,151,156,144,202,204,204,226,226,226,226,160,244,237,303,310]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 Bc5 5. Bxc6 dxc6 6. O-O Nd7 7. c3 h6 8. Nbd2 O-O 9. Nc4 Re8 10. b4 Bd6 11. Be3 Nf8 12. Nfd2 Ng6 13. Nxd6 cxd6 14. a4 d5 15. Nb3 b6 16. a5 Rb8 17. Qc2 Be6 18. Rfb1 Re7 19. c4 d4 20. Bd2 f5 21. axb6 axb6 22. f3 Rf7 23. Rf1 Kh7 24. exf5 Bxf5 25. Be1 Qg5 26. Rd1 h5 27. Bd2 Qh4 28. Rde1 Ra8 29. Ra1 Raf8 30. Ra6 {It is a commonly used trick by seconds for upcoming World Championship matches to refuse to say anything about the opening moves claiming the need for secrecy and not revealing any secrets. Using that privilege to skip the first 30 moves is indeed taking it too far, but the only thing to report til now is that Karjakin has a strategically winning position and that after e.g the retreat 30...Qd8!? the Norwegian computer "Sesse" always following Magnus games, gave as much as +3(!) for Black. But simply ...h4-h3 next would undermine White's defences and win trivially. But having already beaten Magnus once during this event, Karjakin thought why not make it 2-0 and in style?} e4 $6 {Magnus won 4 games in a row at Stavanger, and while in other sports or even in earlier stages of chess history that would not be seen as something special, in modern top-level tournaments it certainly is. Streaks requires a mixture of luck and skill, and as Larsen once pointed out, it is easier to win a bad position than a completely equal one.} (30... Qd8 $5) 31. Nxd4 $1 {Taking his chance ( and a pawn!) immediately, but Karjakin obviously was expecting that and has a cunning plan up his sleeve:} exf3 32. Nxf3 Bh3 $5 {One can understand Karjakins attraction to this move. Not only is it beautiful, but also logical. White has a stranded rook on the queenside, while all black pieces join the attack on the white king. It would not be unreasonable if Black was just winning, but Magnus has a resource:} 33. Rf2 $1 {Absolutely neccesary amd modest-looking, but excactly enough fence off the black attack! 33...Bxg2 perhaps was what Karjakin intended, hoping for 34 Nxh4 Rxf2 but 35 Ng5+! turns the tables, as in this version of Black sacrificing his queen, after 35...Qxg5 36 Bxg5 Rxf2 suddenly 37 Qxf2 has become available. The computer suggests the calm 33...Kg8!? with an ultimately balanced position, but Karjakins ove also is not bad:} Rxf3 (33... Bxg2 34. Ng5+ $1 (34. Nxh4 Rxf2) 34... Qxg5 35. Bxg5 Rxf2 36. Qxf2 $1) (33... Kg8 $5) 34. gxf3 Rf5 $2 {But here however he falters.} (34... Bg4 $5 {was the logical way continuing to attack with maximum energy, when after} 35. f4 Ne5 $1 {Black once again exploits that White can not take the offered piece. Surprisingly White would still be able to defend, as both} 36. Bc3 {and 36.Be3 keeps him in the game most likely to end in a draw by perpetual check}) 35. d4 $1 {Materially White is ahead plenty, so more importantly this opens the diagonal of the white queen towards the king on h7, as well as the 3-rank where the rook via a3 can join the defence.} Qxd4 36. Ra3 {36.f4! would have been more precise, as now 36...Re5!? becomes an extra option.} (36. f4 $1) 36... Rf7 (36... Re5 $5) 37. Re3 Bf5 38. Qc3 Qd8 39. Re1 $6 {"Sesse" gave 39 f4! as the winning move, but from a human perspective once can understand the logic behind leaving the the pawn on f3 giving the king somewhat more protection, as well as preparing the following manouver. And wile tactically flawed, it does win the game!} (39. f4 $1) 39... Rd7 40. Qe3 Rd4 $2 {When Karjakin played his 30th move, he had considerably more time left on is clock than Magnus, but in the ensuing complications he caught up and being short on time blunders the game with his last move before the time-control. 40...Re7! was possible as 41 Qg5?? then loses to 41... Rxe1+ as 42 Bxe1 leaves the queen unprotected on g5. Thus 41 Qc3 would be neccesary but after 41...Rd7 white would according to the computers not have better than a repetition draw after 42 Qe3.} (40... Re7 41. Qc3 (41. Qg5 $4 Rxe1+ 42. Bxe1 Qxg5+) 41... Rd7 42. Qe3) 41. Qg5 {Now, however, White just wins trivially. There thraet of exchanging queens as well as h5 and f5 hanging, is more than the black position can handle.} Qxg5+ 42. Bxg5 Rxc4 43. Rb2 $1 {Perhaps looking passive, but defending the b-pawn was neccesary. And as Larsen said: while opposite colored bishop endings often are drawn, when they are winning, the often win easily! And this is the case here indeed: White will rearrange to attack g7, and Black's bishop being of the opposite colour, means there just is no way to defend.} b5 44. Kf2 c5 45. bxc5 Rxc5 46. Rc1 Rd5 47. Rd2 Rxd2+ 48. Bxd2 Ne5 49. Rc7 b4 $5 {Trying to confuse the issue as else Bc3 next wins trivially.} 50. Rb7 Be6 51. Re7 $1 Nd3+ 52. Ke3 Bc4 53. Kd4 {But as 53... Bb5 54 Rb7 Ba6 55 Rb6 wins a piece and 53....Nb2 54 Bxb4 is hopeless, Karjakin resigned.} (53. Kd4 Bb5 (53... Nb2 54. Bxb4) 54. Rb7 Ba6 55. Rb6) 1-0 [Event "Bilbao Masters 9th"] [Site "Bilbao"] [Date "2016.07.16"] [Round "4"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "So, Wesley"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2855"] [BlackElo "2770"] [Annotator "Carlsen,Magnus"] [PlyCount "51"] [EventDate "2016.07.13"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "ESP"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 174"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2016.09.13"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2016.09.13"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 {In round 4 this was already my third white game. In the first two games against predominantly 1...e5 players I was suprised by 1...c5 and wheeled out a couple of obscure Anti-Sicilians. I got an excellent position against Nakamura and then nothing against Karjakin and won, so naturally I was expecting to be surprised again.} 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 {Wesley also plays other systems, but an invitation to the Berlin is never a surprise from a top player.} 4. d3 {In my early years as an ambitious player the Berlin was not considered a particulary good opening, and I used to grab the invitation with both hands, with excellent results. More recently however, more solid systems for Black have been found, and I'm finding myself rejecting the invitation on a regular basis.} Bc5 5. Bxc6 dxc6 6. Qe2 ({Back in 2012 I started playing} 6. Nbd2 {here, and to my surprise it became very popular. The text has similar ideas, but is much less well-known.}) 6... Qe7 7. Nbd2 Bg4 {Naturally, there are plenty of other options on this and the previous move, but this plan is always decent. The bishop will temporarily be misplaced on h5/g6, but it will usually come in to play via f7 after ...?d7 and ...f6.} 8. h3 Bh5 9. a3 {This move took me more than 20 minutes, but I felt that it was already time to delve more deeply into the position. In the 2013 world championship Vishy chose the plan with ?f1-g3 without g4, but that was without ?e2 and ...?e7 included. Now I would just be a tempo down compared that game. Other ways to play were ?c4 or g4 followed by ?f1-g3, but neither of them seemed to give too much of a basis for an interesting battle. Bothering his bishop immediately though, seemed much more interesting. Besides, I won't hide the fact that playing h3 and a3 on consecutive moves in the opening gave me pleasure.} (9. Nf1 Nd7 10. Ng3 Bxf3 11. Qxf3 g6 {and White has wasted a tempo.}) 9... Nd7 (9... a5 {Generally this move is desirable strategically, gaining space while preventing b4. However, with the bishop on h5 kingside castling is not attractive with g4 coming and a knight landing on f5, while with the pawn on a5 queenside castling will not be on the cards. Having said that, it was certainly a playable, and probably the most challenging option}) 10. b4 Bd6 {Wesley spent almost 20 minutes on this move, which is very much understandable as all three bishop moves were serious options.} (10... Bd4 {A very solid option, getting rid the dark squared bishop, which otherwise either risks being harassed on b6, or passive on d6} 11. Rb1 Bc3 12. O-O Bxd2 {Otherwise the knight escapes} 13. Bxd2 {But I was not too unhappy about this, as the extra space on the queenside feels useful.}) (10... Bb6 {The engines like this move, and I don't have any convincing arguments against it. The worry for Black is that the bishop is likely to be caged in on b6 after a subsequent c4 c5, which an engine probably won't mind. Recent examples from a couple of blitz and rapid games by Nakamura (against MVL and Caruana respectively) in another line of the Berlin, suggest that even top level practice the computer's opinion may prevail.}) 11. Nc4 f6 (11... Nf8 {was possible, but I suspect he was worried about} 12. Na5 {and there is no convenient way to protect b7.}) 12. Ne3 {A key point of the a3-b4 operation is that the e3-square is freed up for the knight (otherwise the bishop would happily have chopped it off). The knight can later jump to f5 without having to play g4 first.} a5 $2 {As on move 9, this is the most challenging, but ceraintly not the most practical option. That's why I'm assigning it a question mark, rather than it's objective value.} (12... Nf8 13. Nf5 Qd7 {was very solid; with the knight coming to e6, Black is alright.}) 13. Nf5 Qf8 {The consistent follow-up, as he forces me to make a consession on the queenside. However, now his king will be stuck in the center for a while, which is especially unpleasant considering the shorter time-control that was used in Bilbao} (13... Qf7 14. Rb1 {Now I don't have to take} axb4 15. axb4 O-O 16. O-O {and while he has been able to seize the a-file for the moment, the rest of his pieces are rather more clumsily placed than in the note to 12...?f8} (16. Bh6 Qa2 $1)) 14. bxa5 Rxa5 15. O-O Qf7 {This loss of tempo certainly doesn't look impressive, but at least he frees up the f8-square for the knight or even bishop. Castling however, won't be possible for a long time because of the little trick ?h6, which really is the key to the position.} (15... Kd8 {Perhaps he should have tried to evacuate the king to the queenside:} 16. a4 (16. Bd2 Ra4) 16... Bb4 {And in both cases it's not so easy to generate a serious initative on the queenside}) 16. a4 Nc5 17. Qe1 (17. Bd2 {was also good, but this move, freeing up the knight and attacking the rook, just felt too natural not to be played.}) 17... b6 {It's becoming harder and harder to defend.} (17... Ra8 18. N3h4 {Since the rook will not be attacked after ?c4, the knight goes in the other direction} Ne6 (18... Bf8 19. a5 {fixing b7 as a target} g5 20. Nf3 Bxf3 21. gxf3 {and White is firmly in the driver's seat}) 19. Rb1 {and it's hard for Black to avoid losing a pawn, as ?xd6 followed by ?f5 is looming as well.}) 18. Nd2 Rxa4 19. Nc4 {The idea. Every move comes with a threat.} Bf8 $6 (19... Be7 {I suspected that this might better than the text, as it does not block the h8-rook. I was not too worried though, as I saw that I had at least a forced draw} 20. Be3 Kd7 {The only move, as} (20... O-O 21. Nxe7+ Qxe7 22. Bxc5 {loses a piece}) 21. Nxb6+ (21. Rxa4 Nxa4 22. f4 {This is probably what I would have done. White has a nice initative and is not risking anything, but Black is hanging on for the moment}) 21... cxb6 22. Bxc5 Rxa1 23. Qxa1 Bxc5 24. Qa7+ Ke6 25. Nxg7+ Kd6 26. Nf5+ Ke6 $11) 20. Be3 Kd7 (20... Rg8 {This was the only move, which I had seen.} 21. f4 {But still it's impossible to defend, at least in practical play.}) 21. Qc3 {All natural moves, and by now I felt that I was winning. There is very little to be done about the threat of ?xb6 followed by ?xc5, when a white rook will land on a7, winning the queen and the game.} Nxe4 (21... Rxc4 {I thought this was the last chance, but after} 22. dxc4 Nxe4 23. Qd3+ Nd6 24. g4 Bg6 25. Rfd1 {Black is tied up, while ?xb6 and ?a7 is threatened.}) 22. Nxb6+ {Again opening up the seventh rank and leaving the black king completely naked.} cxb6 23. dxe4 Qc4 24. Qd2+ Kc7 25. g4 {Finally g4! Much later than expected, but much more powerful.} Bg6 26. Rfd1 {I had no wish to calculate ?xb6 here or on the previous move, as this forces immediate resignation. A fun game, which put me in a great mood (which was immediately ruined by failing to win the next game against Anish, but that's another story).} 1-0 [Event "Zuerich Chess Challenge"] [Site "Zuerich"] [Date "2014.02.03"] [Round "5"] [White "Anand, Viswanathan"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2773"] [BlackElo "2872"] [Annotator "Vidit,Santosh Gujrathi"] [PlyCount "80"] [EventDate "2014.01.30"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "5"] [EventCountry "SUI"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 159"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2014.03.17"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2014.03.17"] [SourceQuality "1"] {This was the first classical game after the World Championship match and I was anticipating a tough fight. But unfortunately the Berlin wall is just too solid :)} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 Bc5 5. Bxc6 dxc6 6. h3 Nd7 7. Be3 $5 {A surprising choice as Carlsen on the previous day used this line with the white pieces to defeat Caruana in a brilliant way!} Bd6 8. Nbd2 (8. Nc3 c5 9. O-O Nf8 10. Nd2 Ng6 11. Nc4 Be6 12. Ne2 Qd7 13. Nxd6+ cxd6 14. f4 exf4 15. Nxf4 Nxf4 16. Rxf4 b6 17. Qh5 d5 18. d4 c4 19. b3 Qc6 20. Raf1 O-O-O 21. bxc4 Qxc4 22. Rxf7 Bxf7 23. Rxf7 Rd7 24. Rxd7 Kxd7 25. exd5 g6 26. Qg4+ Kc7 27. Qe6 Kb7 28. Qe7+ Qc7 29. Qe4 Qd7 30. d6+ Ka6 31. Bf4 Rc8 32. Kh2 Rc4 33. Bg3 Rc8 34. Qd3+ Kb7 35. c4 Qc6 36. Qb3 Ka8 37. a4 Re8 38. a5 Kb7 39. c5 Kc8 40. axb6 axb6 41. d5 Qxc5 42. Qa4 Re3 43. Qa8+ Kd7 44. Qb7+ Ke8 45. d7+ Kd8 46. Bh4+ Re7 47. Qc8+ {1-0 (47) Carlsen,M (2872)-Caruana,F (2782) Zurich SUI 2014}) 8... O-O 9. O-O Re8 10. Nc4 Nf8 11. d4 {A questionable decision. The game now immediately peters out to a draw.} (11. a4 $5) 11... exd4 12. Qxd4 c5 13. Qd3 b6 14. Nxd6 Qxd6 15. Qxd6 cxd6 16. Rfd1 Bb7 17. Rxd6 Bxe4 18. Ne1 Rad8 $11 {The game is completely drawish now.} 19. Rad1 Ne6 20. Rxd8 Rxd8 21. Rxd8+ Nxd8 22. f3 Bd5 23. a3 Nc6 24. Kf2 f6 25. Nd3 Kf8 26. Ke2 Ke7 27. Kd2 Kd7 28. Nf4 Bf7 29. b3 Ne7 30. h4 Nd5 31. Nxd5 Bxd5 32. Bf4 Kc6 33. Bg3 Bf7 34. Bf4 Bg6 35. Bg3 Bf7 36. Bb8 a6 37. Bf4 Bg6 38. Bg3 Bh5 39. Bf2 Bf7 40. Bg3 Bg6 {Not much happened in the game. White didn't get anything out of the opening and the game was soon equal.A typical berlin affair.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "GCT Warsaw 2024"] [Site "Warsaw, Poland"] [Date "2024.05.11"] [Round "17.5"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Giri, Anish"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2828"] [BlackElo "2687"] [PlyCount "89"] [EventDate "2024.??.??"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 Bc5 5. c3 O-O 6. O-O d5 7. Nbd2 dxe4 8. dxe4 a5 9. Qc2 ({RR} 9. h3 Qe7 10. Qe2 Nh5 11. Nb3 Ng3 12. Qc4 Bb6 13. Bg5 Qe6 14. Qxe6 Bxe6 15. Rfe1 a4 16. Nbd2 f6 17. Be3 Bxe3 18. fxe3 g6 19. Kf2 Nh5 20. Bc4 Ng7 21. b3 Bxc4 22. Nxc4 Ne6 23. b4 Na7 {Korobov,A (2689)-Vidit,S (2629) http://www.chessbomb.com 2021 0-1 (47)}) 9... Qe7 10. a4 Nb8 11. h3 $146 ({RR} 11. Be2 Nbd7 12. Nc4 Nb6 13. Ncxe5 Bd6 14. Nc4 Nxc4 15. Bxc4 Qxe4 16. Qxe4 Nxe4 17. Be3 Bd7 18. Rfd1 Rfd8 19. Bd5 Nf6 20. Bc4 Ne4 21. Bd5 Nf6 22. Bc4 Ne4 {½-½ (22) David,A (2563)-Balogh,C (2628) Brest FRA 2018}) 11... h6 12. Re1 Rd8 13. Bf1 Nbd7 14. Nc4 b6 15. Rb1 Bb7 16. Bd2 Qe6 17. b4 axb4 18. cxb4 Bd4 19. a5 Rdc8 20. Nxd4 exd4 21. f3 Nh5 22. Qd3 Ng3 23. Qxd4 Nxf1 24. Rxf1 c5 25. bxc5 bxc5 26. Qc3 Ba6 27. Rfc1 Bxc4 28. Qxc4 Qxc4 29. Rxc4 Ne5 30. Ra4 Ra6 31. Bc3 Nd3 32. Rc4 Nf4 33. Kf2 Ne6 34. Ke3 g5 35. g3 Rca8 36. f4 Rc6 37. f5 Nc7 38. Rb6 Ra6 39. Rxa6 Nxa6 40. e5 Rc8 41. Ra4 Rd8 42. Ra2 Nb4 43. Rd2 Ra8 44. Rd6 Rxa5 45. Rd8+ 1-0 [Event "GCT Warsaw 2024"] [Site "Warsaw, Poland"] [Date "2024.05.11"] [Round "17.5"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Giri, Anish"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2828"] [BlackElo "2687"] [PlyCount "89"] [EventDate "2024.??.??"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 Bc5 5. c3 O-O 6. O-O d5 7. Nbd2 dxe4 8. dxe4 a5 9. Qc2 ({RR} 9. h3 Qe7 10. Qe2 Nh5 11. Nb3 Ng3 12. Qc4 Bb6 13. Bg5 Qe6 14. Qxe6 Bxe6 15. Rfe1 a4 16. Nbd2 f6 17. Be3 Bxe3 18. fxe3 g6 19. Kf2 Nh5 20. Bc4 Ng7 21. b3 Bxc4 22. Nxc4 Ne6 23. b4 Na7 {Korobov,A (2689)-Vidit,S (2629) http://www.chessbomb.com 2021 0-1 (47)}) 9... Qe7 10. a4 Nb8 11. h3 $146 ({RR} 11. Be2 Nbd7 12. Nc4 Nb6 13. Ncxe5 Bd6 14. Nc4 Nxc4 15. Bxc4 Qxe4 16. Qxe4 Nxe4 17. Be3 Bd7 18. Rfd1 Rfd8 19. Bd5 Nf6 20. Bc4 Ne4 21. Bd5 Nf6 22. Bc4 Ne4 {½-½ (22) David,A (2563)-Balogh,C (2628) Brest FRA 2018}) 11... h6 12. Re1 Rd8 13. Bf1 Nbd7 14. Nc4 b6 15. Rb1 Bb7 16. Bd2 Qe6 17. b4 axb4 18. cxb4 Bd4 19. a5 Rdc8 20. Nxd4 exd4 21. f3 Nh5 22. Qd3 Ng3 23. Qxd4 Nxf1 24. Rxf1 c5 25. bxc5 bxc5 26. Qc3 Ba6 27. Rfc1 Bxc4 28. Qxc4 Qxc4 29. Rxc4 Ne5 30. Ra4 Ra6 31. Bc3 Nd3 32. Rc4 Nf4 33. Kf2 Ne6 34. Ke3 g5 35. g3 Rca8 36. f4 Rc6 37. f5 Nc7 38. Rb6 Ra6 39. Rxa6 Nxa6 40. e5 Rc8 41. Ra4 Rd8 42. Ra2 Nb4 43. Rd2 Ra8 44. Rd6 Rxa5 45. Rd8+ 1-0 [Event "Tata Steel-A 77th"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2015.01.20"] [Round "9"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Radjabov, Teimour"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2862"] [BlackElo "2734"] [Annotator "ChessBase"] [PlyCount "79"] [EventDate "2015.01.10"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 165"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2015.03.11"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2015.03.11"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 {An Anti-Berlin that has done well this tournament. MVL beat Giri with it.} Bc5 5. O-O d6 6. Nbd2 O-O 7. Bxc6 bxc6 8. h3 h6 {The game will be quite strategical. White has the structural advantage but Black can remain solid and in the long run he has the pair of bishops.} 9. Re1 Re8 10. Nf1 a5 11. Ng3 Rb8 12. b3 Bb4 13. Bd2 Ra8 $6 {Black's last few moves are difficult to understand. Now White gets a slight edge by building up his center.} 14. c3 Bc5 15. d4 Bb6 (15... exd4 16. cxd4 Bb6 {changes the character of the position to something more agreeable with the pair of bishops, but it still looks more pleasant to be White.}) 16. dxe5 dxe5 17. c4 Nh7 18. Qe2 Nf8 19. Be3 c5 {Even though this is (some) engines recommendation and the move that Radjabov chose... it is so painful to see this bishop on b6 trapped as it is.} (19... Bxe3 20. Qxe3 Qe7 {at least there is no entombed bishop on b6 here.}) 20. Rad1 Qf6 21. Nh5 Qe7 22. Nh2 {White starts a slow but standard attack on the kingside. And why not? It's not like Radjabov's pieces on the queenside are doing much at the moment.} Kh7 23. Qf3 f6 (23... a4 24. Ng4 Ng6 {was a better choice, probably.}) 24. Ng4 {Already White threatens nasty sacrifices} Bxg4 (24... a4 25. Ngxf6+ gxf6 26. Nxf6+ Kg6 27. Nxe8 Qxe8 28. Rd5 {with a strong attack.}) 25. Qxg4 Red8 $2 (25... g6 $1 {Black absolutely needed to take control over some lightsquares!}) 26. Qf5+ Kh8 27. f4 Rxd1 28. Rxd1 exf4 29. Bxf4 Qe6 30. Rd3 Re8 {Missing White's blow, but Radjabov's position was already delicate.} 31. Nxg7 $1 Kxg7 32. Qh5 {Black cannot hope to hold his kingside together, much less with that bishop stuck on b6.} Nh7 33. Bxh6+ Kh8 34. Qg6 Qg8 35. Bg7+ Qxg7 36. Qxe8+ {The rest is easy. For all practical purposes White is up the echange.} Qf8 37. Qe6 Qh6 38. e5 Qc1+ 39. Kh2 Qf4+ 40. Rg3 1-0 [Event "London Classic 3rd"] [Site "London"] [Date "2011.12.03"] [Round "1"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Howell, David"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2826"] [BlackElo "2633"] [Annotator "RR"] [PlyCount "79"] [EventDate "2011.12.03"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "ENG"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 146"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2012.01.18"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2012.01.18"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 Bc5 5. c3 O-O 6. O-O Re8 7. Bg5 h6 8. Bh4 Bf8 9. Nbd2 d6 10. d4 exd4 11. Nxd4 Bd7 12. Nxc6 bxc6 13. Bd3 Be7 14. f4 Qb8 15. Bxf6 Bxf6 16. e5 dxe5 17. Ne4 Qxb2 18. f5 Red8 19. Bc4 Be8 20. Qh5 Rd6 21. Rab1 Qc2 22. Qg4 Kf8 23. h3 Rad8 24. Kh2 Qa4 25. Rb4 Qa3 26. Rb7 R6d7 27. Qf3 Qa4 28. Qe2 Re7 $2 (28... Qa5 29. Qh5 Rd6 $11) 29. Nxf6 $18 gxf6 30. Qe3 Red7 31. Qc5+ Rd6 32. Rxc7 Qc2 {[%tqu "En","","","","c7c8","",10]} 33. Rc8 $3 R8d7 34. Be6 $1 Ke7 35. Bxd7 Bxd7 36. Rh8 Qd3 37. Rf3 Qd5 38. Qxa7 e4 39. Qb8 $6 (39. Rf1 Qe5+ 40. Kh1 $18) 39... Qe5+ $16 40. Rg3 1-0 [Event "London Classic 9th"] [Site "London"] [Date "2017.12.06"] [Round "5"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "So, Wesley"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2837"] [BlackElo "2788"] [PlyCount "136"] [EventDate "2017.12.01"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "ENG"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 182"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2018.01.17"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2018.01.17"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 Bc5 5. Bg5 Nd4 6. Nxd4 Bxd4 7. c3 Bb6 8. Nd2 c6 9. Ba4 h6 10. Bh4 d6 ({RR} 10... O-O 11. O-O d5 12. exd5 cxd5 13. Qe2 e4 14. dxe4 Bg4 15. Qe1 dxe4 16. Nxe4 g5 17. Bg3 Qe7 18. Nd6 Qe6 19. Bb3 Qd7 20. h3 Bxh3 21. Rd1 Bg4 22. Nxf7 Bxd1 23. Ne5+ Bxb3 24. Nxd7 Bc4 25. Nxf8 {So,W (2773)-Rasulov,V (2480) Chess.com INT 2022 1-0 (40)}) 11. Nc4 Bc7 ({RR} 11... Be6 12. Nxb6 axb6 13. Bc2 d5 14. f3 b5 15. O-O b4 16. d4 dxe4 17. fxe4 bxc3 18. bxc3 Qa5 19. Qf3 exd4 20. cxd4 Qd2 21. Bd3 Qb2 22. Bxf6 gxf6 23. d5 cxd5 24. exd5 Qd4+ 25. Kh1 Bxd5 26. Qg3 {Pranesh,M (2611)-Tarhan,A (2439) Bajina Basta SRB 2025 ½-½}) 12. Ne3 Bb6 13. Bb3 $146 ({RR} 13. Qf3 g5 14. Bg3 Bxe3 15. fxe3 Bg4 16. Qf2 Nh5 17. Bb3 Qe7 18. O-O Be6 19. Qf3 Nxg3 20. Qxg3 O-O-O 21. Rf3 Rh7 22. Raf1 Rg8 23. Bxe6+ fxe6 24. Rf6 h5 25. d4 exd4 26. exd4 g4 27. e5 d5 {Mihok,O (2522)-Parligras,M (2550) Hungary HUN 2024 1-0 (39)}) 13... g5 14. Bg3 Bxe3 15. fxe3 Bg4 16. Qd2 Nh5 17. O-O O-O 18. Be1 Qe7 19. h3 Be6 20. Qe2 Bxb3 21. Qxh5 Bc2 22. Qe2 Ba4 23. b3 Bb5 24. a4 Ba6 25. b4 b6 26. c4 Bb7 27. a5 f6 28. d4 Qh7 29. c5 bxc5 30. bxc5 Qxe4 31. cxd6 exd4 32. Qc4+ Kg7 33. a6 Bc8 34. Qxd4 Qxd4 35. exd4 Rb8 36. Bf2 Rf7 37. d5 cxd5 38. Rfc1 d4 39. Bxd4 Bf5 40. Rc7 Rd8 41. Bc5 Rdd7 42. Rxd7 Rxd7 43. Kf2 Be4 44. g4 f5 45. Ke3 Kf6 46. Ra5 Bc2 47. Rb5 Ke6 48. Rb2 f4+ 49. Kd4 Bd1 50. Rb8 f3 51. Ke3 Kd5 52. Ba3 Be2 53. Rh8 Kc4 54. Rxh6 Kb3 55. Bc5 Kc4 56. Bd4 Kd5 57. Rg6 Rxd6 58. Rxg5+ Ke6 59. Bxa7 Rxa6 60. Bc5 Ra2 61. Kf4 f2 62. Re5+ Kf7 63. Rf5+ Kg8 64. Bxf2 Bf1 65. Kg3 Ra3+ 66. Rf3 Rxf3+ 67. Kxf3 Bxh3 68. Kf4 Bxg4 1/2-1/2 [Event "EU-Cup 19th"] [Site "Rethymno"] [Date "2003.10.02"] [Round "5.1"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Arduman, Can"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2385"] [BlackElo "2336"] [PlyCount "93"] [EventDate "2003.09.28"] [EventType "team-swiss"] [EventRounds "7"] [EventCountry "GRE"] [SourceTitle "CBM 098"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2004.02.03"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2004.02.03"] [SourceQuality "1"] [WhiteTeam "Asker"] [BlackTeam "Ankara Kolejiler"] [WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"] [BlackTeamCountry "TUR"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. Qe2 Be7 5. O-O d6 ({RR} 5... O-O 6. c3 Bc5 7. Rd1 Qe7 8. d4 exd4 9. cxd4 Bb6 10. Nc3 a6 11. Ba4 d6 12. h3 h6 13. Bf4 Ba7 14. Rac1 b5 15. Bc2 Bb7 16. a3 Rfe8 17. Qd3 Qf8 18. Nd5 Nxe4 19. Nxc7 f5 20. Bb3+ {Ocampos,I (2195)-Padmini,R (2354) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (41)}) 6. d4 Bd7 ({RR} 6... exd4 7. Nxd4 Bd7 8. Bxc6 bxc6 9. Rd1 O-O 10. e5 Nd5 11. c4 dxe5 12. Nf3 Nf4 13. Qxe5 Ng6 14. Qa5 Qc8 15. Bg5 Bd6 16. Nbd2 Re8 17. Re1 Qb7 18. c5 Bf8 19. Qc3 Be6 20. Nd4 Bd5 21. b3 {Tiviakov,S (2639)-L'Ami,E (2628) Amsterdam 2015 ½-½ (45)}) ({RR} 6... exd4 7. Nxd4 Bd7 8. Bxc6 bxc6 9. Rd1 O-O 10. e5 dxe5 11. Nxc6 Qe8 12. Nxe7+ Qxe7 13. Bg5 Bc6 14. Qc4 Qe6 15. Qxe6 fxe6 16. Nd2 Rab8 17. b3 Nd5 18. Nc4 Rf5 19. Be3 Nf4 20. Bxf4 exf4 21. Re1 {Carlsen,M (2450)-Isonzo,D (2349) Taormina 2003 1-0 (63)}) 7. Bxc6 $146 ({RR} 7. dxe5 Nxe5 8. Nxe5 dxe5 9. Bxd7+ Qxd7 10. Rd1 Qc6 11. Bg5 O-O 12. Nc3 Rfe8 13. Bxf6 Bxf6 14. Nd5 Bd8 15. Rd3 Qe6 16. Rb3 c6 17. Ne3 Rb8 18. a4 Bg5 19. Rd1 g6 20. g3 h5 21. h4 Bd8 {Larino Nieto,D (2463)-Martinez Duany,L (2450) Oeiras 2015 1-0 (65)}) ({RR} 7. d5 Nb8 8. Bd3 Bg4 9. Be3 O-O 10. Rd1 Re8 11. Nbd2 Nbd7 12. Nf1 Nf8 13. Ng3 Ng6 14. Rdc1 Nf4 15. Qd1 N6h5 16. h3 Bxf3 17. Qxf3 Nxd3 18. cxd3 Nxg3 19. Qxg3 Rc8 20. a4 a5 21. Bd2 c5 {Kong,V-Abbou,M Skopje 1972 1-0 (44)}) 7... Bxc6 8. Nc3 exd4 9. Nxd4 Bd7 10. f4 O-O 11. Kh1 Re8 12. e5 dxe5 13. fxe5 Bd6 14. Bf4 Bg4 15. Qb5 Bd7 16. Qxb7 Bxe5 17. Bxe5 Rxe5 18. Rad1 Qc8 19. Qf3 c5 20. Nb3 Bc6 21. Qg3 Qg4 22. Qxg4 Nxg4 23. Na5 Be8 24. Nc4 Re6 25. h3 Nf6 26. Rf5 Rc8 27. Nd6 Rc6 28. Nb7 g6 29. Rxc5 Rb6 30. Nd8 Red6 31. Rxd6 Rxd6 32. Rc8 Rd2 33. Nc6 Rxc2 34. Nxa7 Rxb2 35. Ne4 Kg7 36. Nxf6 Ba4 37. Ne8+ Kh6 38. Nd6 f5 39. a3 Rb3 40. Nf7+ Kh5 41. Rh8 g5 42. Ne5 g4 43. Rxh7+ Kg5 44. hxg4 fxg4 45. Rg7+ Kf6 46. Rxg4 Rxa3 47. Nac6 1-0 [Event "EU-chT (Men) 16th"] [Site "Heraklion"] [Date "2007.11.04"] [Round "7.1"] [White "Sutovsky, Emil"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2655"] [BlackElo "2714"] [PlyCount "171"] [EventDate "2007.10.28"] [EventType "team-swiss"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "GRE"] [SourceTitle "CBM 121"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2007.11.14"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2007.11.14"] [SourceQuality "1"] [WhiteTeam "Israel"] [BlackTeam "Norway"] [WhiteTeamCountry "ISR"] [BlackTeamCountry "NOR"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 Bc5 5. Bxc6 dxc6 6. Be3 ({RR} 6. h3 Nd7 7. Be3 Bd6 8. Nc3 c5 9. O-O Nf8 10. Nd2 Ng6 11. Nc4 Be6 12. Ne2 Qd7 13. Nxd6+ cxd6 14. f4 exf4 15. Nxf4 Nxf4 16. Rxf4 b6 17. Qh5 d5 18. d4 c4 19. b3 Qc6 20. Raf1 O-O-O) 6... Bxe3 ({RR} 6... Bd6 7. h3 c5 8. Nc3 Nd7 9. O-O Nf8 10. Nd2 Ng6 11. Nc4 O-O 12. Ne2 Be6 13. b3 Be7 14. f4 exf4 15. Nxf4 Nxf4 16. Bxf4 b5 17. Ne3 Bf6 18. Rb1 Qd4 19. Kh1 Be5 20. c3 Qd6 21. Nf5 {Anand,V (2768)-Karjakin,S (2773) Saint Louis 2018 ½-½}) 7. fxe3 Qe7 ({RR} 7... Nd7 8. Nc3 b6 9. O-O O-O 10. Qe1 Qe7 11. Qg3 f6 12. Nh4 Nc5 13. h3 Nb7 14. Rf2 Be6 15. Raf1 Nd6 16. Rf3 c5 17. Qf2 Rad8 18. b3 a6 19. Ne2 b5 20. Ng3 Qd7 21. Nh5 Qe7 22. g4 {Dragnev,V (2547)-Kummer,H (2195) Innsbruck AUT 2025 1-0}) ({RR} 7... Bg4 8. h3 Bxf3 9. Qxf3 Nd7 10. Nc3 Qh4+ 11. Kd2 Qe7 12. Raf1 f6 13. g4 O-O-O 14. h4 h6 15. Qf5 Rdf8 16. Qg6 Nc5 17. g5 hxg5 18. hxg5 Rxh1 19. Rxh1 fxg5 20. Ke2 Ne6 21. Rf1 Rf6 22. Rxf6 {Sutovsky,E (2655)-Ivanchuk,V (2787) Heraklion 2007 ½-½}) 8. O-O Ng4 $146 ({RR} 8... O-O 9. Qe1 ({RR} 9. Nbd2 c5 10. Qe1 Ne8 11. Qg3 f6 12. Nh4 Nd6 13. Rf3 Be6 14. Nf5 Bxf5 15. exf5 e4 16. Nxe4 Nxe4 17. dxe4 Qxe4 18. Qxc7 Rac8 19. Qd7 Rcd8 20. Qb5 c4 21. Qb4 Rf7 22. Qc3 Rfd7 23. Rf4 Qe7) 9... Ne8 10. Nc3 ({RR} 10. Qc3 f6 11. b4 Nd6 12. a4 Bd7 13. Nbd2 b6 14. a5 Kh8 15. Ra2 Rab8 16. axb6 axb6 17. Qa1 Nb7 18. Qc3 c5 19. bxc5 Nxc5 20. Ra7 Rfc8 21. Rfa1 b5 22. d4 exd4 23. exd4 Nxe4 24. Nxe4 Qxe4) 10... Nd6 11. b3 f6 12. h3 Be6 13. Rd1 c5 14. Nh4 g6 15. Qg3 Qg7 16. Nf3 b5 17. a3 Rac8 18. d4 exd4 19. exd4 cxd4 20. Nxd4 Bd7 21. Qd3 a6 22. Nd5 Kh8 23. c4 {Praggnanandhaa,R (2747)-Giri,A (2745) Warsaw POL 2024 1-0 (59)}) ({RR} 8... O-O 9. Qe1 Ne8 10. Nc3 Nd6 11. b3 f6 12. h3 Be6 13. Rd1 c5 14. Nh4 g6 15. Qg3 Qg7 16. Nf3 b5 17. a3 Rac8 18. d4 exd4 19. exd4 cxd4 20. Nxd4 Bd7 21. Qd3 a6 22. Nd5 Kh8 23. c4 {Praggnanandhaa R (2704)-Giri,A (2687) Warsaw, Poland 2024 1-0 (59)}) 9. Qd2 f6 10. Nh4 g6 11. Nc3 Bd7 12. Rf3 f5 13. g3 Nf6 14. exf5 g5 15. Ng2 e4 16. Nxe4 Nxe4 17. dxe4 O-O-O 18. Qa5 Qxe4 19. Qxa7 Bxf5 20. Raf1 Bh3 21. Qa8+ Kd7 22. Qa3 Kc8 23. Qa8+ Kd7 24. Rf7+ Ke8 25. Rf8+ Rxf8 26. Rxf8+ Kxf8 27. Qxd8+ Kf7 28. Qd2 Ke8 29. Ne1 Qc4 30. Qd3 Qb4 31. Nf3 Qxb2 32. Nxg5 Qa1+ 33. Kf2 Qf6+ 34. Nf3 Bf5 35. Qd4 Qf7 36. Qh8+ Ke7 37. Qe5+ Kd7 38. Qd4+ Ke8 39. Qh8+ Ke7 40. Qe5+ Kd7 41. Qf4 Qd5 42. c4 Qa5 43. a3 Bg6 44. Qd4+ Ke6 45. Qg7 Qa4 46. g4 Qc2+ 47. Kg3 Qc1 48. Ng5+ Kd6 49. Qd4+ Ke7 50. Qe5+ Kd7 51. Qd4+ Ke7 52. Qc5+ Kd7 53. Nf3 b6 54. Qd4+ Kc8 55. a4 c5 56. Qf4 Bc2 57. h4 Bxa4 58. h5 Bc6 59. g5 Qh1 60. Qg4+ Bd7 61. Qh4 Qb1 62. g6 hxg6 63. h6 g5 64. Qxg5 Bf5 65. Qg8+ Kb7 66. Qd5+ Kb8 67. Kf4 Bh7 68. Qd8+ Kb7 69. Qd5+ Kb8 70. e4 Qh1 71. Qd8+ Kb7 72. Qd5+ Kb8 73. Qd8+ Kb7 74. Qd5+ Kb8 75. Qe6 Qc1+ 76. Kg4 Qc2 77. Kf4 Qc1+ 78. Kg4 Qc2 79. Ng5 Qe2+ 80. Kh4 Qf2+ 81. Kh5 Qe2+ 82. Kh4 Qe1+ 83. Kh5 Qe2+ 84. Kh4 Qe1+ 85. Kg4 Qe2+ 86. Kh4 1/2-1/2 [Event "Claude Pecaut Memorial"] [Site "Taormina"] [Date "2003.11.17"] [Round "3"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Isonzo, Davide"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2450"] [BlackElo "2349"] [PlyCount "125"] [EventDate "2003.11.15"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "ITA"] [EventCategory "7"] [SourceTitle "CBM 097 Extra"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2004.01.13"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2004.01.13"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. Qe2 Be7 5. O-O d6 6. d4 exd4 7. Nxd4 Bd7 8. Bxc6 bxc6 9. Rd1 O-O 10. e5 dxe5 $146 ({RR} 10... Nd5 11. c4 Nb6 12. Nc3 Qc8 13. exd6 Bxd6 14. Be3 Re8 15. Qd3 c5 16. Ndb5 Bf5 17. Nxd6 cxd6 18. Qxd6 Nxc4 19. Qxc5 Nxb2 20. Rd5 Be6 21. Qxc8 Rexc8 22. Rc5 Nd3 {½-½ (22) Iordachescu,V (2609)-Varga,Z (2515) Baile Tusnad 2005}) ({RR} 10... Nd5 11. c4 dxe5 12. Nf3 Nf4 13. Qxe5 Ng6 14. Qa5 Qc8 15. Bg5 Bd6 16. Nbd2 Re8 17. Re1 Qb7 18. c5 Bf8 19. Qc3 Be6 20. Nd4 Bd5 21. b3 Reb8 22. a3 Re8 23. Be3 Qc8 24. f3 Be7 25. Nc2 {Tiviakov,S (2639)-L'Ami,E (2628) Amsterdam 2015 ½-½ (45)}) 11. Nxc6 Qe8 12. Nxe7+ Qxe7 13. Bg5 Bc6 14. Qc4 Qe6 15. Qxe6 fxe6 16. Nd2 Rab8 17. b3 Nd5 18. Nc4 Rf5 19. Be3 Nf4 20. Bxf4 exf4 21. Re1 Rg5 22. g3 Bd5 23. Ne5 Rf8 24. c4 Bb7 25. Nd7 Rf7 26. Re5 Rgf5 27. g4 Rxe5 28. Nxe5 Rf8 29. Rd1 h5 30. Ng6 Re8 31. Nxf4 hxg4 32. Rd7 Bf3 33. Nh5 Rf8 34. Rxg7+ Kh8 35. Rd7 Rf5 36. Ng3 Re5 37. Kf1 Ra5 38. a4 Ra6 39. Ke1 Rb6 40. Rd3 e5 41. Kd2 a5 42. h4 Kh7 43. Re3 Re6 44. Ne4 Kg6 45. Ng5 Rd6+ 46. Kc3 e4 47. Nxe4 Rd1 48. Ng3 Rc1+ 49. Kd2 Ra1 50. h5+ Kf6 51. Re8 Ra2+ 52. Ke3 Rb2 53. h6 Kg6 54. Re6+ Kh7 55. Kf4 Rxb3 56. Nf5 Rb6 57. Re7+ Kh8 58. Kg5 Rc6 59. Nd4 Rxc4 60. Re8+ Kh7 61. Ne6 Re4 62. Re7+ Kh8 63. Kg6 1-0 [Event "Grand Slam Final 5th"] [Site "Sao Paulo/Bilbao"] [Date "2012.09.28"] [Round "4"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Aronian, Levon"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2843"] [BlackElo "2816"] [PlyCount "95"] [EventDate "2012.09.24"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "BRA"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 151"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2012.11.13"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2012.11.13"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 Bc5 5. Bxc6 dxc6 6. Nbd2 Be6 7. O-O Bd6 8. b3 Nd7 9. Nc4 Bxc4 10. bxc4 O-O 11. Rb1 b6 12. g3 f5 13. exf5 Rxf5 14. Qe2 $146 ({RR} 14. Be3 Qe8 15. Nd2 Qg6 16. Ne4 Raf8 17. Kg2 Nf6 18. Qe2 Nxe4 19. dxe4 Rf3 20. Kg1 Qxe4 21. Rfe1 c5 22. Qd3 Qg4 23. Re2 h5 24. Qd5+ Kh8 25. Rbe1 a5 26. Bd2 Ra3 27. Bc1 Rxa2 28. Rxe5 Bxe5 {Anand,V (2785)-Aronian,L (2815) Dubai 2014 ½-½ (61)}) 14... Nc5 15. Be3 Ne6 16. Nd2 Qf6 17. Qg4 Rf8 18. Ne4 Qf7 19. a4 h5 20. Qe2 Be7 21. a5 Qg6 22. axb6 axb6 23. Kh1 Rf3 24. Rbe1 Bb4 25. Ra1 Qg4 26. Qd1 Qh3 27. Bf4 Bc3 28. Qxf3 Bxa1 29. Qg2 Qf5 30. Bd2 Bd4 31. h3 Bc5 32. Bc3 Be7 33. Re1 b5 34. Kg1 b4 35. Bb2 Bd6 36. h4 Be7 37. Kh2 Ra8 38. Ra1 Rxa1 39. Bxa1 Nc5 40. Nd2 Bf6 41. Bb2 b3 42. Nxb3 Nxb3 43. cxb3 Qxd3 44. Qxc6 Qc2 45. Qe8+ Kh7 46. Qxh5+ Kg8 47. Qe8+ Kh7 48. Qh5+ 1/2-1/2 [Event "Biel GM 45th"] [Site "Biel"] [Date "2012.08.02"] [Round "10"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Bacrot, Etienne"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2837"] [BlackElo "2713"] [PlyCount "124"] [EventDate "2012.07.23"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "SUI"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 150"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2012.09.14"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2012.09.14"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 Bc5 5. Bxc6 dxc6 6. Nbd2 Be6 7. b3 ({RR} 7. Nb3 Bd6 8. O-O c5 9. Na5 Qc8 10. b3 O-O 11. Nc4 Nd7 12. Ng5 Bxc4 13. bxc4 f6 14. Nf3 f5 15. exf5 Rxf5 16. Qe2 b6 17. Bb2 Qf8 18. Rae1 Re8 19. Nd2 Re7 20. Ne4 Qf7 21. Bc1 Qg6 {Nepomniachtchi,I (2793)-Carlsen,M (2859) Almaty KAZ 2022 1-0 (40)}) ({RR} 7. O-O Bd6 8. d4 Nd7 9. b3 Qe7 10. Bb2 f6 11. Qe2 Bg4 12. h3 Bh5 13. Qe3 exd4 14. Nxd4 Bg6 15. Nc4 Bc5 16. Rfe1 O-O-O 17. Qf4 Nb6 18. Nf5 Qd7 19. Nxb6+ Bxb6 20. Bc3 Rhe8 21. a4 a6 {Lutz,C (2526)-Seel,C (2477) Germany GER 2024 ½-½ (36)}) 7... Ng4 8. O-O f6 9. Qe2 $146 ({RR} 9. Nc4 Qd7 10. h3 h5 11. Ne3 g5 12. Re1 O-O-O 13. hxg4 hxg4 14. Nh2 Bxe3 15. fxe3 Rxh2 16. Kxh2 Qh7+ 17. Kg1 Rh8 18. Kf2 g3+ 19. Ke2 Bg4+ 20. Kd2 Bxd1 21. Kxd1 f5 22. exf5 Qxf5 23. Bb2 Rh2 {Pirogov,V (2396)-Galiev,A (2261) Uljanovsk 2010 0-1 (35)}) ({RR} 9. Nc4 Qe7 10. a3 a6 11. b4 Ba7 12. Qe2 g5 13. Rb1 h5 14. a4 Qd7 15. Nfd2 h4 16. Nb3 h3 17. g3 Nh6 18. Be3 Bxe3 19. Nxe3 b6 20. a5 Qe7 21. axb6 cxb6 22. Nd2 Kf7 23. Ndc4 b5 {Bologan,V (2672)-Grischuk,A (2779) Khanty-Mansiysk 2013 0-1 (54)}) 9... Qd7 10. Nc4 g5 11. Rb1 b5 12. Ne3 h5 13. c3 Qh7 14. d4 Bb6 15. Nc2 O-O-O 16. a4 exd4 17. Nfxd4 Bd7 18. b4 Rhe8 19. Re1 a6 20. Ra1 Kb7 21. axb5 axb5 22. c4 bxc4 23. Qxc4 Ra8 24. Rxa8 Rxa8 25. Bd2 h4 26. Qc3 h3 27. Qxh3 Qxh3 28. gxh3 Ne5 29. Kg2 Rh8 30. Nf5 Ng6 31. Ncd4 Bxd4 32. Nxd4 Rxh3 33. Re3 Nf4+ 34. Kg1 Rh8 35. Nb3 Kb6 36. Nc5 Bc8 37. Ra3 Bh3 38. f3 Rd8 39. Bxf4 gxf4 40. Nd3 Rg8+ 41. Kf2 Rg2+ 42. Ke1 Rxh2 43. Nxf4 Bc8 44. Ra8 Kb7 45. Ra5 Kb6 46. Nd3 Rc2 47. Rh5 Ra2 48. Rh8 Ba6 49. Nc5 Re2+ 50. Kd1 Rf2 51. Ra8 Bb5 52. Rb8+ Ka7 53. Rb7+ Ka8 54. Rxc7 Rxf3 55. Kd2 Kb8 56. Rf7 Kc8 57. Kc2 Rf1 58. Nb7 Rf3 59. Nd6+ Kd8 60. Kb2 Ba4 61. Nb7+ Ke8 62. Nd6+ Kd8 1/2-1/2 [Event "Norway Chess 9th"] [Site "Stavanger"] [Date "2021.09.15"] [Round "8"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Rapport, Richard"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2855"] [BlackElo "2760"] [PlyCount "153"] [EventDate "2021.09.07"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 204"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2021.10.31"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2021.10.31"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 Ne7 5. O-O c6 6. Ba4 Ng6 7. Re1 Be7 8. d4 d6 9. c3 ({RR} 9. c4 O-O 10. d5 cxd5 11. cxd5 Nh5 12. Nc3 Ngf4 13. Be3 f5 14. Bc2 fxe4 15. Bxe4 Bg4 16. h3 Bxh3 17. gxh3 Qd7 18. Nh2 Nxh3+ 19. Kh1 g6 20. Qg4 Rxf2 21. Rg1 Qxg4 22. Nxg4 Rxb2 23. Rab1 Rxb1 {Groenewoud,J (2257)-Darie,A (2035) Amsterdam NED 2025 0-1 (49)}) 9... O-O 10. Nbd2 h6 11. Nf1 $146 ({RR} 11. Bc2 Nh7 12. Nc4 Be6 13. Ne3 Ng5 14. d5 Nxf3+ 15. Qxf3 cxd5 16. exd5 Bd7 17. Nf5 Bxf5 18. Qxf5 Bg5 19. Bxg5 Qxg5 20. Qxg5 hxg5 21. Bxg6 fxg6 22. g3 Rac8 23. Re4 Rc5 24. Rd1 b5 25. Rg4 Rc4 {Predojevic,B (2616)-Nestorovic,N (2405) Sarajevo 2013 ½-½ (66)}) 11... Re8 12. Ng3 a5 13. Bc2 Qc7 14. a4 Bd7 15. h3 b5 16. Be3 Rab8 17. Qd2 b4 18. Bd3 bxc3 19. bxc3 Be6 20. Qc2 Rb7 21. Nf1 Nh5 22. N1d2 Nhf4 23. Ba6 Rbb8 24. dxe5 dxe5 25. Rab1 Bd7 26. Bc4 Ne6 27. Qa2 Nh4 28. Nxh4 Bxh4 29. Nf3 Be7 30. Rbd1 Bc8 31. Qc2 Nf8 32. Rd2 Be6 33. Qa2 Red8 34. Rxd8 Bxd8 35. Rd1 Be7 36. h4 Rd8 37. Rb1 Rb8 38. Rxb8 Qxb8 39. g3 Bd8 40. Kg2 Bc7 41. Bxe6 Nxe6 42. Qc4 Qe8 43. h5 Kh7 44. Qd3 Qe7 45. Nd2 Bd6 46. Nc4 Bc7 47. Qd1 Nf8 48. Qg4 Nd7 49. Kf1 Qe8 50. Kg2 Qe7 51. Qf5+ Kg8 52. g4 Nf8 53. g5 hxg5 54. Bxg5 Qc5 55. Ne3 Qd6 56. Qg4 g6 57. Bh6 Nd7 58. Nc4 Nf6 59. Qc8+ Qd8 60. Qxd8+ Bxd8 61. Bg5 gxh5 62. Bxf6 Bxf6 63. Nxa5 Kf8 64. Nxc6 Ke8 65. Nb4 Bd8 66. Nd3 f6 67. Kg3 Kd7 68. f3 Ba5 69. c4 Ke6 70. Kh4 f5 71. Kxh5 fxe4 72. fxe4 Kd6 73. Kg6 Bc7 74. Kf5 Kc6 75. Ke6 Kb6 76. Kd7 Bb8 77. c5+ 1-0 [Event "Norway Chess 9th"] [Site "Stavanger"] [Date "2021.09.15"] [Round "8"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Rapport, Richard"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2855"] [BlackElo "2760"] [PlyCount "153"] [EventDate "2021.09.07"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 204"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2021.10.31"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2021.10.31"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 Ne7 5. O-O c6 6. Ba4 Ng6 7. Re1 Be7 8. d4 d6 9. c3 ({RR} 9. c4 O-O 10. d5 cxd5 11. cxd5 Nh5 12. Nc3 Ngf4 13. Be3 f5 14. Bc2 fxe4 15. Bxe4 Bg4 16. h3 Bxh3 17. gxh3 Qd7 18. Nh2 Nxh3+ 19. Kh1 g6 20. Qg4 Rxf2 21. Rg1 Qxg4 22. Nxg4 Rxb2 23. Rab1 Rxb1 {Groenewoud,J (2257)-Darie,A (2035) Amsterdam NED 2025 0-1 (49)}) 9... O-O 10. Nbd2 h6 11. Nf1 $146 ({RR} 11. Bc2 Nh7 12. Nc4 Be6 13. Ne3 Ng5 14. d5 Nxf3+ 15. Qxf3 cxd5 16. exd5 Bd7 17. Nf5 Bxf5 18. Qxf5 Bg5 19. Bxg5 Qxg5 20. Qxg5 hxg5 21. Bxg6 fxg6 22. g3 Rac8 23. Re4 Rc5 24. Rd1 b5 25. Rg4 Rc4 {Predojevic,B (2616)-Nestorovic,N (2405) Sarajevo 2013 ½-½ (66)}) 11... Re8 12. Ng3 a5 13. Bc2 Qc7 14. a4 Bd7 15. h3 b5 16. Be3 Rab8 17. Qd2 b4 18. Bd3 bxc3 19. bxc3 Be6 20. Qc2 Rb7 21. Nf1 Nh5 22. N1d2 Nhf4 23. Ba6 Rbb8 24. dxe5 dxe5 25. Rab1 Bd7 26. Bc4 Ne6 27. Qa2 Nh4 28. Nxh4 Bxh4 29. Nf3 Be7 30. Rbd1 Bc8 31. Qc2 Nf8 32. Rd2 Be6 33. Qa2 Red8 34. Rxd8 Bxd8 35. Rd1 Be7 36. h4 Rd8 37. Rb1 Rb8 38. Rxb8 Qxb8 39. g3 Bd8 40. Kg2 Bc7 41. Bxe6 Nxe6 42. Qc4 Qe8 43. h5 Kh7 44. Qd3 Qe7 45. Nd2 Bd6 46. Nc4 Bc7 47. Qd1 Nf8 48. Qg4 Nd7 49. Kf1 Qe8 50. Kg2 Qe7 51. Qf5+ Kg8 52. g4 Nf8 53. g5 hxg5 54. Bxg5 Qc5 55. Ne3 Qd6 56. Qg4 g6 57. Bh6 Nd7 58. Nc4 Nf6 59. Qc8+ Qd8 60. Qxd8+ Bxd8 61. Bg5 gxh5 62. Bxf6 Bxf6 63. Nxa5 Kf8 64. Nxc6 Ke8 65. Nb4 Bd8 66. Nd3 f6 67. Kg3 Kd7 68. f3 Ba5 69. c4 Ke6 70. Kh4 f5 71. Kxh5 fxe4 72. fxe4 Kd6 73. Kg6 Bc7 74. Kf5 Kc6 75. Ke6 Kb6 76. Kd7 Bb8 77. c5+ 1-0 [Event "Grand Slam Final 3rd"] [Site "Bilbao"] [Date "2010.10.10"] [Round "2"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Anand, Viswanathan"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C66"] [WhiteElo "2826"] [BlackElo "2800"] [Annotator "Ftacnik,Lubomir"] [PlyCount "90"] [EventDate "2010.10.09"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "6"] [EventCountry "ESP"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 139"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2010.11.18"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2010.11.18"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 {Carlsen is ready to play a rich position without claiming an opening advantage. The modest move 4.d3 is helping to avoid the unbeatable Berlin Defence.} d6 5. O-O Be7 6. c3 O-O 7. Nbd2 Bd7 8. Re1 Re8 9. Nf1 Bf8 10. Ba4 h6 11. Ng3 Ne7 {The theory in this new territory is just being created. It is worth noticing that both GMs are helping themselves with analogous motifs from the Ruy Lopez.} (11... Rb8 12. d4 b5 13. Bb3 Na5 14. Bc2 c5 15. b3 Nc6 16. d5 Ne7 17. h3 g6 18. Be3 Bg7 19. Qd2 Kh7 20. Nh2 b4 21. c4 Nfg8 22. f4 $11 {1-0 Vachier Lagrave,M (2684)-Marcelin,C (2495)/Challons 2009 (33)}) (11... g6 12. h3 (12. d4 Bg7 13. d5 Ne7 14. c4 c6 15. Bd2 Rb8 16. dxc6 Nxc6 17. Bc3 Qc7 18. Nd2 a6 19. Bxc6 Bxc6 20. a4 b5 21. axb5 axb5 22. cxb5 Rxb5 $17 {0-1 Mullon,J (2458)-Postny,E (2648)/Nancy 2010 (55)}) 12... Na5 (12... Bg7 13. d4 Rb8 (13... a6 14. a3 b5 15. Bc2 a5 16. Be3 a4 17. Qd2 Kh7 18. Rad1 Qe7 19. Qe2 Na5 20. Nd2 c5 21. f4 cxd4 22. cxd4 exd4 23. Bxd4 Nh5 24. Bxg7 Nxg3 25. Qf2 Kxg7 26. Qxg3 Rac8 $11 {1-0 De la Villa Garcia,J (2470)-De Souza Haro,P/San Sebastian 1994 (57)}) 14. Bc2 a6 15. Be3 Kh7 16. Qd2 b5 17. Nh2 d5 18. f3 Be6 19. Qf2 exd4 20. cxd4 Nb4 21. e5 $14 {0-1 Shanava,K (2522)-Beinoras,M (2426)/Pardubice 2008 (39)}) 13. Bc2 c5 14. d4 cxd4 15. cxd4 Nc6 16. b3 Rc8 17. Bb2 Nb4 18. Bb1 Nc6 19. Qd2 Qb6 20. d5 Nb4 21. Bc3 a5 22. Re3 Rc5 23. a3 Na6 24. b4 $14 {½-½ Popovic,P (2474)-Nyback,T (2565)/Germany 2008 (49)}) (11... a6 12. d4 b5 13. Bc2 g6 14. h3 Bg7 {½-½ Rubinetti,J (2415)-Van Riemsdijk,H (2390)/San Pedro de Jujuy 1981}) 12. Bb3 Ng6 13. d4 c5 {It seems, that this active advance in the centre is a new move, so far Black has tried only the more modest 13...c6.} (13... c6 14. dxe5 dxe5 15. Nf5 Nxe4 16. Nxh6+ gxh6 17. Rxe4 Be6 18. Qxd8 Raxd8 19. Bxe6 Rxe6 20. Re1 c5 21. a4 Red6 22. Kf1 Bg7 23. g4 Rd3 24. Kg2 $11 {½-½ Khairullin,I (2544)-Aleksandrov,A (2618)/Moscow 2008 (40)}) 14. h3 Qc7 15. a4 a6 (15... exd4 16. cxd4 c4 17. Bc2 Qb6 18. a5 Qa6 19. Bd2 $14) 16. a5 cxd4 17. cxd4 exd4 18. Nxd4 d5 $1 {Anand has decided to open up the centre in a situation in which all his pieces are already developed.} 19. exd5 (19. Nh5 Nxh5 20. Qxh5 Bc5 $1 (20... Re5 21. Qf3 $14) 21. Qxd5 Bxh3 22. gxh3 Rad8 23. Qxf7+ (23. Qh5 Rxd4 24. Qxg6 Rd3 25. Bxf7+ Qxf7 26. Qxf7+ Kxf7 $11) 23... Qxf7 24. Bxf7+ Kxf7 25. Nf5 Bb4 26. Re3 Rd1+ 27. Kg2 Nf4+ 28. Kh2 Re5 $11) 19... Rxe1+ 20. Qxe1 Re8 {Nearly all very strong players simply love piece activity. Black did not have any problem with eliminating the dangers after the modest 20...?e7. The move in the game is somewhat more ambitious.} (20... Ne7 21. Bd2 Nexd5 22. Rc1 Re8 23. Qxe8 Qxc1+ 24. Bxc1 Bxe8 $11) 21. Qc3 Qxc3 22. bxc3 Re1+ 23. Kh2 Bd6 {The current World Champion would love to beat his young rival, but with the help of the interesting move 23...?e5!? he could have only forced the repetition of moves.} (23... Ne5 $5 24. Nf3 (24. f3 Nd3 25. Bb2 Re3 26. Ba3 Nc5 $15) (24. Bb2 Neg4+ 25. hxg4 Nxg4+ 26. Kh3 Nxf2+ 27. Kh2 (27. Kh4 Be7+ 28. Kh5 Bg4#) 27... Ng4+ 28. Kh3 Rxa1 29. Bxa1 Ne3+ 30. Ne6 (30. Kh2 Bd6 $17) 30... Bd6 31. Ne4 Ba3 $15) 24... Nfg4+ 25. hxg4 Nxg4+ 26. Kh3 Nxf2+ 27. Kh2 Ng4+ $11) 24. Nc2 (24. Bb2 Rxa1 25. Bxa1 Ne4 26. Bc2 Nxf2 27. c4 Be5 28. Nb3 Bxa1 29. Nxa1 Ne5 $11) 24... Rf1 25. Be3 Rxa1 26. Nxa1 Be5 {More play could have been kept in the position after the logical move 26...?e7.} (26... Ne7 27. c4 Nf5 28. Bb6 Nxg3 29. fxg3 Be5 30. Nc2 Ne4 31. Kg1 Bxg3 $11) 27. Bd4 (27. Nc2 Bxc3 28. Bb6 Nf4 29. Ne3 $11) 27... Bxd4 28. cxd4 Ne7 29. Nc2 (29. d6 Nc8 30. Nc2 Nxd6 31. Ne3 $11) 29... Nfxd5 30. Ne4 b6 {It is quite easy to guess why Anand was not eager to fix the pawns of the queenside on the light squares. Seemingly the logical exchange on b6 is unfortunately marred by a serious problem.} (30... b5 31. Nc5 Bc8 32. g3 Kf8 $11) 31. Ne3 $1 (31. axb6 Nxb6 32. Nc5 Bb5 $11) 31... Nxe3 (31... Bc6 32. Nxd5 Nxd5 33. Bxd5 Bxd5 34. Nc3 Bc6 35. axb6 $18) 32. axb6 $1 N3f5 {A sufficient defence was also tied in with the knight check on f1, but the defender would have suffered in a slightly worse position.} (32... Nf1+ $5 33. Kg1 Bc6 34. Nd6 Nd2 35. Bxf7+ Kf8 36. Be6 a5 37. b7 Bxb7 38. Nxb7 a4 $11) 33. Nc5 $2 {[%mdl 64] Carlsen is also only human and thus fallible. His natural right to err is used at a very unfortunate moment, since with the witty 33.d5! serious problems were rather awaiting Black. Bad form is often manifested by erroneous decisions in critical moments.} (33. d5 $1 Bc8 (33... Nc6 34. dxc6 Bxc6 35. Nc5 Nd6 36. Nxa6 $16) 34. g4 Nd4 35. Nd6 Bb7 36. Nxb7 Nc8 37. Ba2 (37. Bc4 Nxb6 38. Bxa6 Nxd5 $11) 37... Nxb6 38. d6 Kf8 39. Kg3 Ke8 $11) 33... Nxd4 (33... Bc6 34. b7 Bxb7 35. Nxb7 Nxd4 36. Bc4 Nb5 37. Nc5 $11) 34. b7 (34. Nxd7 Nxb3 35. b7 Nc6 36. b8=Q+ Nxb8 37. Nxb8 a5 $19) 34... Nec6 35. Ba4 Be8 $1 {White must have missed the fact that the plan of recovering the piece thanks to the mighty b7-pawn will fail due to the trapped knight on the b8-square!} (35... Bf5 36. Nxa6 Bd7 37. Nc5 Be6 38. Na6 $11) 36. Nxa6 (36. b8=Q Nxb8 37. Bxe8 Kf8 38. Ba4 Ke7 $17) 36... Kf8 37. Kg3 (37. Bxc6 Nxc6 38. b8=Q Nxb8 39. Nxb8 Bb5 40. Kg3 Ke7 41. Kf4 Kd6 42. g4 Kc7 $19) 37... Ke7 38. Kf4 Ne6+ {Black could already enjoy the choice of punishment for his unfortunate enemy. It his difficult to find fault with the conservative and careful approach from the game.} (38... Nb8 39. Nxb8 Bxa4 40. Ke3 Bc6 41. Kxd4 Bxb7 $19) 39. Ke3 Ned8 40. Bxc6 Nxc6 41. h4 (41. b8=Q Nxb8 42. Nxb8 Bb5 43. Kd4 Kd6 44. g3 Bf1 45. h4 Kc7 $19) 41... Kd6 42. g4 Bd7 43. g5 hxg5 44. hxg5 g6 45. f4 Be6 {After fixing the pawns on the kingside Black is ready to force the win with the spare bishop.} (45... Be6 46. Kd3 Bd5 47. Ke3 Nb8 48. Nxb8 Bxb7 49. Kd4 Kc7 50. Ke5 Kxb8 51. Kf6 Bd5 52. f5 Be4 53. fxg6 fxg6 $19) 0-1 [Event "Tiger Grand Prix"] [Site "Oslo"] [Date "2006.04.13"] [Round "3"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Bae, Torstein"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C66"] [WhiteElo "2646"] [BlackElo "2284"] [PlyCount "47"] [EventDate "2006.04.13"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [SourceTitle "EXT 2023"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2022.10.05"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 d6 5. O-O g6 6. d4 exd4 7. e5 dxe5 8. Nxe5 Qd5 ({RR} 8... Bd7 9. Re1 Nxe5 10. Rxe5+ Be7 11. Bg5 Ng8 12. Qxd4 f6 13. Nc3 c5 14. Bxd7+ Qxd7 15. Qxd7+ Kxd7 16. Rd1+ Kc7 17. Nd5+ Kc6 18. Nxe7+ Nxe7 19. Re6+ Kb5 20. Bxf6 Rhd8 21. Rxd8 Rxd8 22. Re1 {1-0 (22) Carlsen,M (2552)-Dannevig,O (2372) Molde 2004}) 9. Re1 ({RR} 9. Qe2 Be7 10. Re1 d3 11. Bxc6+ Qxc6 12. Qxd3 Qd6 13. Qe2 O-O 14. Nc3 Be6 15. Qf3 Nd5 16. Bh6 {½-½ (16) So,W (2760)-Nakamura,H (2816) Las Vegas 2015}) 9... Be6 10. Nxc6 $146 ({RR} 10. Bc4 Qc5 11. b4 Nxb4 12. Ba3 Be7 13. c3 dxc3 14. Qa4+ Kf8 15. Bxe6 fxe6 16. Nd3 Qc6 17. Qb3 Nxd3 18. Rxe6 Nc5 19. Bxc5 Qxc5 20. Nxc3 Kg7 21. Rae1 Rae8 22. R1e5 Qa3 23. Rxe7+ Rxe7 24. Qxa3 Rxe5 {Duras,O-Burn,A San Sebastian 1911 1-0 (36)}) ({RR} 10. Bc4 Qc5 11. Bxe6 fxe6 12. Nxc6 bxc6 13. Rxe6+ Kf7 14. Re2 Bg7 15. Nd2 Rhe8 16. Nf3 Rxe2 17. Qxe2 Re8 18. Qd3 Qd5 19. Bf4 Ne4 20. Bxc7 Nc5 21. Qa3 d3 22. cxd3 Nxd3 23. Rd1 Qd7 24. Qxa7 Re7 {Pribelszky,B (2400)-Karttunen,M (2489) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (31)}) ({RR} 10. Bc4 Qc5 11. Bxe6 fxe6 12. Nxc6 Qxc6 13. Qxd4 Bg7 14. Bh6 O-O 15. Bxg7 Kxg7 16. Nc3 Rad8 17. Qe5 Kg8 18. Qxe6+ Qxe6 19. Rxe6 Nd5 20. Nxd5 Rxd5 21. Rc1 Rd2 22. f3 Rfd8 23. Ree1 R8d6 24. Kf1 Kf7 {Ramirez Martinez,H (2195)-Bisguier,A (2385) Los Angeles 1996 ½-½ (62)}) 10... bxc6 11. Nc3 Qc5 12. Qf3 Kd7 13. Qxf6 Be7 14. Ne4 Qxb5 15. Qxd4+ Qd5 16. Qc3 Rhb8 17. Bg5 Bxg5 18. Rad1 Be7 19. Nf6+ Bxf6 20. Qxf6 Rb4 21. b3 Kc8 22. Rxd5 cxd5 23. Rxe6 fxe6 24. Qf8+ 1-0 [Event "NOR-ch"] [Site "Molde"] [Date "2004.07.03"] [Round "1"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Dannevig, Oystein"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C66"] [WhiteElo "2552"] [BlackElo "2372"] [PlyCount "43"] [EventDate "2004.07.03"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [SourceTitle "CBM 101 Extra"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2004.09.01"] [SourceVersion "2"] [SourceVersionDate "2004.09.01"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {ChessBase II} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 ({RR} 4. Nc3) ({RR} 4. O-O) 4... d6 5. O-O g6 6. d4 exd4 7. e5 dxe5 8. Nxe5 Bd7 ({RR} 8... Qd5 9. Qe2 Be7 10. Re1 d3 11. Bxc6+ Qxc6 12. Qxd3 Qd6 13. Qe2 O-O 14. Nc3 Be6 15. Qf3 Nd5 16. Bh6 {½-½ (16) So,W (2760)-Nakamura,H (2816) Las Vegas 2015}) ({RR} 8... Qd6 9. Re1 Be7 10. Qf3 Bd7 11. Bf4 Qb4 12. Na3 O-O 13. Nd3 Qa5 14. Bh6 Ng4 15. Rxe7 Nxh6 16. Rxd7 Rad8 17. Bxc6 bxc6 18. Qxc6 Rxd7 19. Qxd7 {1-0 (19) Ertan,C (2369)-Unver,C (2012) Ankara TUR 2025}) ({RR} 8... Qd5 9. Re1 Be6 10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. Nc3 Qc5 12. Qf3 Kd7 13. Qxf6 Be7 14. Ne4 Qxb5 15. Qxd4+ Qd5 16. Qc3 Rhb8 17. Bg5 Bxg5 18. Rad1 Be7 19. Nf6+ Bxf6 20. Qxf6 Rb4 21. b3 Kc8 22. Rxd5 cxd5 23. Rxe6 {Carlsen,M (2646)-Bae,T (2284) Oslo 2006 1-0}) 9. Re1 Nxe5 10. Rxe5+ Be7 11. Bg5 $146 ({RR} 11. Qe2 Bxb5 12. Qxb5+ Qd7 13. Qxb7 O-O 14. Qf3 Rfe8 15. Bg5 Bd6 16. Rxe8+ Rxe8 17. Nd2 Ng4 18. h3 Ne5 19. Qd5 Bf8 20. Qxd7 Nxd7 21. Bf4 c5 22. Kf1 Nb6 23. Re1 Rc8 24. Be5 Nd5 25. a3 f6 {Libiszewski,F (2467)-Marcelin,C (2441) France 2006 CBM 111 Extra [ChessBase II] 0-1 (37)}) 11... Ng8 12. Qxd4 f6 13. Nc3 c5 ({RR} 13... Bxb5 14. Rd5) 14. Bxd7+ Qxd7 15. Qxd7+ Kxd7 16. Rd1+ Kc7 17. Nd5+ Kc6 18. Nxe7+ Nxe7 19. Re6+ Kb5 20. Bxf6 Rhd8 21. Rxd8 Rxd8 22. Re1 1-0 [Event "Nanjing Pearl Spring 3rd"] [Site "Nanjing"] [Date "2010.10.27"] [Round "7"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Anand, Viswanathan"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2826"] [BlackElo "2800"] [Annotator "Stohl,Igor"] [PlyCount "136"] [EventDate "2010.10.20"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "CHN"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 139"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2010.11.18"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2010.11.18"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O ({Anand has started playing the Berlin more regularly only recently. In Bilbao Carlsen (after losing to Kramnik in round 1) didn't feel confronting the famous endgame and opted for the quiet} 4. d3 d6 5. O-O Be7 6. c3 O-O 7. Nbd2 Bd7 8. Re1 Re8 9. Nf1 Bf8 10. Ba4 h6 11. Ng3 Ne7 12. Bb3 Ng6 13. d4 c5 14. h3 Qc7 15. a4 a6 16. a5 cxd4 17. cxd4 exd4 18. Nxd4 d5 $1 19. exd5 Rxe1+ 20. Qxe1 Re8 (20... Ne7 21. Bd2 Nexd5 22. Rc1 Re8 $1 $11) 21. Qc3 Qxc3 22. bxc3 Re1+ 23. Kh2 Bd6 (23... Ne5 24. Nc2 Neg4+ $11) 24. Nc2 Rf1 25. Be3 Rxa1 26. Nxa1 Be5 27. Bd4 Bxd4 28. cxd4 Ne7 $11 {Carlsen,M (2826)-Anand,V (2800)/Bilbao/2010/ Is he now going to face the challenge?}) 4... Nxe4 5. Re1 {Having a comfortable lead in the tournament at this point, White doesn't want to bang his head against the (Berlin) Wall.} ({Getting an edge after} 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. Nc3 Ke8 {is no mean task:} {The most usual continuation is} 10. h3 (10. Ne2 Ne7 (10... Be7 11. Rd1 Nh4 12. Nxh4 Bxh4 13. Be3 a5 14. a4 Bd7 15. h3 h5 16. f3 Rd8 17. g4 hxg4 18. hxg4 Bc8 19. Kg2 Rxd1 20. Rxd1 Be7 21. Bd2 b6 22. Bf4 Bd8 23. b3 Be6 24. Nd4 Bd7 25. c4 Rh7 26. Rd3 c5 27. Nb5 Be6 $14 {/=,Inarkiev,E (2669)-Jakovenko,D (2725)/Astrakhan/2010/ and Black is still pretty solid.}) 11. h3 Ng6 12. b3 h6 13. Bb2 c5 14. Rad1 Be6 15. Nc3 Be7 16. Nd5 Bd8 17. c4 a5 18. a4 c6 19. Nc3 Be7 20. Ne4 Rd8 21. Rfe1 Rxd1 22. Rxd1 Nf4 23. Ba3 b6 24. Nd6+ Kf8 25. Kf1 g5 26. Bc1 Kg7 27. Bxf4 gxf4 28. Nd2 (28. Ke2 $5) 28... Bxd6 $1 29. exd6 Rd8 30. Ne4 {Efimenko,Z (2683)-Malakhov,V (2725)/Khanty-Mansiysk olm/2010/ Here} Bf5 $1 31. f3 f6 32. Kf2 Kf7 33. Rd2 Ke6 34. Re2 Kf7 $11 {would have drawn the game and won the critical match between the best teams of the olympiad.}) {and} 10... Be7 {to mention just the main ones, played by the elite GM's.} ({Carlsen himself with Black prefers the rather rare} 10... b6 11. Rd1 (11. a3 Bb7 12. Bf4 c5 13. Rad1 Bxf3 14. gxf3 c6 15. Be3 Rd8 16. Ne4 Be7 17. f4 f6 18. Rxd8+ Kxd8 19. Ng3 Nh4 20. Rd1+ Kc8 21. Kf1 c4 22. Ke2 Rd8 23. Rd4 Rxd4 24. Bxd4 c5 25. Bc3 fxe5 26. fxe5 Kd7 27. Ke3 Ke6 28. Ke4 g6 29. a4 a6 30. f4 Nf5 $11 {Radjabov,T (2751)-Carlsen,M (2786)/ECC Kallithea/2008/}) 11... Bb7 12. Bf4 Rc8 13. a4 Ne7 (13... c5 14. a5 Bxf3 15. gxf3 Nd4 16. axb6 axb6 17. Nd5 c6 18. Nxb6 Rb8 {Saric,I (2567)-Efimenko,Z (2683)/Khanty-Mansiysk olm/2010/} 19. Nd7 $1 $36) 14. a5 c5 15. Nb5 (15. axb6 axb6 16. Nb5 $36) 15... a6 16. Nd6+ cxd6 17. exd6 Nd5 18. c4 Nxf4 19. d7+ Kd8 20. Ne5 Be7 21. axb6 Ne2+ 22. Kf1 Nd4 23. dxc8=Q+ Kxc8 {Polgar,J (2682)-Carlsen,M (2826)/Kristiansund rpd/2010/} 24. Re1 Rf8 $1 25. Ng6 $13) ({However, Anand recently played} 10... h5 11. b3 Be7 12. Bb2 Be6 13. Rad1 a5 14. a4 b6 15. Ne4 c5 16. c4 Rd8 17. Rxd8+ Kxd8 18. Rd1+ Kc8 19. Kf1 Rd8 20. Rxd8+ Kxd8 21. Ke2 Ke8 22. Kd3 Bd8 23. Bc1 f6 $5 24. g4 hxg4 25. hxg4 Nd4 $11 {Shirov,A (2749)-Anand,V (2800)/Bilbao/2010/}) ({Here Black has quite a number of moves, which have been tested extensively in the past decade:} 10... Ne7) (10... a5)) 5... Nd6 ({Definitely the main move this time. Two months earlier, Anand was probably surprised by Carlsen's 5-th move and went for the slightly dubious} 5... Nf6 $6 6. Nxe5 Be7 (6... Nxe5 7. d4 $1 $36) 7. d4 O-O 8. Nc3 a6 9. Be2 (9. Ba4 $5) 9... d6 10. Nf3 (10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. h3 $14) 10... Re8 11. Bf4 Bf8 12. Qd2 h6 13. h3 Bf5 14. d5 Ne7 15. a4 Qd7 16. Bf1 Ng6 17. Be3 Ne4 18. Nxe4 Bxe4 19. Nh2 Nh4 20. f3 Bh7 21. Bf2 Ng6 22. a5 Rxe1 23. Rxe1 Re8 24. Rxe8 Qxe8 25. Qb4 Qc8 {Carlsen,M (2826)-Anand,V (2800)/Kristiansund rpd/2010/}) 6. Nxe5 Be7 7. Bf1 {The more contemporary approach, leaving the ?d2 free to join the fray.} (7. Bd3 {was tested already in the first World Championship match in 1886! After} O-O 8. Nc3 Nxe5 9. Rxe5 c6 10. b3 {already Zuketort found the best defence} Ne8 $1 11. Qf3 (11. Bb2 d5 12. Qh5 Nf6 13. Qh4 h6 14. Rae1 Bd6 15. R5e2 Be6 16. Nd1 Nd7 17. Qh5 Nf6 18. Qh4 Nd7 19. Qh5 Nf6 {1/2,Torre,E (2535)-Gelfand,B (2680)/Moscow olm/1994/}) 11... d5 12. Bb2 Bf6 13. Re2 Nc7 ({Less harmonious is} 13... Nd6 14. Ba3 Be7 15. Qf4 Be6 16. Rae1 Qd7 17. Re5 b6 $6 18. R1e3 Rfe8 {Ni Hua (2629)-Karjakin,S (2645)/Tiayuan/2005/} 19. Rh5 f5 20. Rg3 Nf7 21. Bxe7 Qxe7 22. h3 Qf6 23. Bxf5 g6 24. Qf3 $1 $16) 14. Na4 (14. Ba3 Re8 15. Rae1 Ne6 16. Na4 Bd7 17. Nc5 Nxc5 18. Rxe8+ Bxe8 19. Bxc5 b6 20. Ba3 Bd7 21. Qg3 c5 22. c3 Be6 23. Bb2 Qd7 24. Bc2 Re8 25. h3 b5 26. d4 cxd4 27. cxd4 Rc8 28. Bd3 Bf5 {Steinitz,W-Zukertort,J/WCh USA/1886/}) 14... Bxb2 15. Nxb2 Ne6 16. c3 Qd6 17. Rae1 Bd7 18. Bb1 Rae8 19. d4 Nf4 20. Re3 g6 $11 {Shirov,A (2710)-Ivanchuk,V (2700)/Monte Carlo blindfold rpd/1995/}) ({Harmless is} 7. Ba4 Nxe5 8. Rxe5 O-O 9. d4 Nc4 $1 10. Re1 d5 11. Nd2 Nb6 12. Bb3 Bd6 13. Qh5 Re8 14. Nf3 Rxe1+ 15. Nxe1 c6 16. c3 g6 17. Qf3 Bf5 18. Bf4 Nc8 19. Qg3 Bxf4 20. Qxf4 Qd6 21. Qxd6 Nxd6 22. f3 h5 23. Kf2 a5 24. Rc1 {1/2,Ye Jiangchuan (2670)-Ivanchuk,V (2719)/Shenyang/2000/}) 7... Nf5 {From the 3 plausible options Anand chooses the least usual one.} (7... Nxe5 8. Rxe5 O-O 9. Nc3 {Two rounds later the World Champion went for} Ne8 (9... c6 10. d4 Ne8 11. d5 d6 12. Re1 Nf6 13. Bf4 Bg4 14. Qd2 Qd7 15. Bc4 Rfe8 16. h3 Bh5 17. a4 Bf8 18. a5 Bg6 {Meier,G (2659)-Onischuk,A (2688)/Lubbock/2010/} 19. a6 $5 $36) (9... Bf6 10. Re1 c6 (10... Re8 11. Rxe8+ Nxe8 12. Nd5 Bh4 13. g3 {1/2 Vallejo Pons,F (2697)-Ponomariov,R (2734)/Sestao 2010/The Week in Chess 825} c6 14. gxh4 cxd5 15. Qg4 $13 {/?}) 11. d4 Nf5 12. d5 d6 13. Ne4 (13. Bf4 Bxc3 14. bxc3 Qf6 15. c4 c5 16. Bd3 Nd4 17. Be3 h6 18. Qh5 Bd7 19. c3 Nf5 20. Bd2 Nh4 21. Re3 Rfe8 22. Rae1 {Fedorov,A (2611)-Sturua,Z (2514)/Dubai/2009/} Ng6 $11) 13... Be5 14. c3 Qb6 15. Bc4 Bd7 16. a4 cxd5 17. a5 Qc7 18. Bxd5 Bc6 19. Bxc6 Qxc6 20. a6 Rfe8 21. axb7 Qxb7 22. g3 $14 {Jansa,V (2521)-Bindrich,F (2401)/CZE-chT/2006/}) 10. Nd5 (10. d4 Bf6 11. Re1 d5 $11) 10... Bd6 11. Re1 c6 12. Ne3 Bc7 13. c4 $146 ({This novelty leads nowhere, but also} 13. Nf5 d5 14. Ne7+ Kh8 15. Nxc8 Rxc8 {isn't much - in a symmetrical and relatively closed position with only one open ? the ? doesn't promise White a tangible pull.} 16. d3 Nf6 17. Qf3 Qd6 18. g3 Rce8 19. Bd2 Kg8 20. Bh3 Qc5 $11 {Vallejo Pons,F (2696)-Hansen,S (2552)/EU-chT Novi Sad/2009/}) 13... Nf6 14. b3 d5 15. cxd5 cxd5 (15... Nxd5 16. Ba3 Bd6 $11) 16. Qf3 Be6 17. Ba3 Re8 18. Bb5 Bd7 19. Bxd7 Qxd7 20. Bb2 Be5 21. Bxe5 Rxe5 22. Nc2 Rae8 23. Rxe5 Rxe5 24. Qc3 Re8 25. Qd4 b6 26. f3 Rd8 27. Ne3 Ne8 28. f4 Nc7 29. f5 Ne8 $1 30. Re1 Nf6 $11 {Gashimov,V (2719)-Anand,V (2800)/Nanjing/2010/}) ({Another safe line is} 7... O-O 8. d4 (8. Nc3 Nxe5 9. Rxe5 {-7...?e5}) 8... Nf5 9. c3 (9. Nf3 d5 {transposes into our game.}) 9... Nxe5 10. Rxe5 (10. dxe5 d6 $11) 10... d6 (10... g6 11. Nd2 d5 12. Nf3 c6 13. Re1 Bd6 14. Bg5 f6 15. Bd2 Ng7 16. Bd3 Be6 17. Bh6 Qd7 18. Nh4 Rae8 19. Qc2 Bf7 20. g3 b6 $11 {Al Modiahki,M (2556)-Aronian,L (2737)/Sochi/2008/}) 11. Re1 d5 $1 (11... c6 12. Nd2 (12. d5 $5 Bf6 13. Na3 $13 {is the only attempt to bring some imbalance into the position.}) 12... d5 13. Nf3 Nh4 14. Nxh4 Bxh4 15. Bd3 Bf6 16. Bf4 Be6 17. Qf3 Qd7 18. Be5 Bxe5 19. Rxe5 f6 20. Re3 Rae8 21. Rae1 Bf7 {Ragger,M (2528)-Aronian,L (2741)/Heraklio EU-chT/2007/}) 12. Bf4 (12. Nd2 Nh4 13. Nf3 Bg4 14. Be2 Re8 15. Nxh4 Bxe2 16. Qxe2 Bxh4 $11 {Neubauer,M (2453)-Sargissian,G (2673)/EU-chT Heraklio/2007/}) 12... Bd6 $11 (12... Nh4 $11)) 8. Nf3 $5 {[%mdl 2080] Carlsen indicates he wants to keep more pieces on the board and attempts to develop a pull without any risk. Glancing ahead, he will be surprisingly successful in the positional manoeuvring struggle.} (8. c3 Nxe5 9. Rxe5 d6 10. Re1 O-O 11. d4 d5 $11 {once again transposes into the 7...0-0 line from the previous note.}) 8... O-O (8... Ncd4 9. c3 Nxf3+ 10. Qxf3 Nh4 11. Qe4 Ng6 12. c4 O-O 13. d4 d6 14. Nc3 c6 15. f4 $6 (15. Qc2 $11 {/?}) 15... Bf6 16. Be3 Re8 17. Qd3 d5 18. cxd5 cxd5 19. Kh1 Ne7 20. Bg1 Be6 21. Rac1 g6 $15 {Llaneza Vega,M (2514)-Pashikian,A (2652)/EU-ch Rijeka/2010/}) 9. d4 d5 10. c3 (10. g3 {It seems worth forcing c3 after all and after} Bf6 $5 (10... Re8 11. Nc3 Be6 12. Ne2 g5 13. c3 Ng7 14. Bg2 f6 (14... h6 $142) 15. Nd2 Qd7 16. Nf1 Bf8 17. h4 $1 gxh4 18. Nf4 Bf7 19. Rxe8 Rxe8 20. Ne3 hxg3 21. fxg3 $16 {[%csl Rd5] ×d5,Baklan,V (2654)-Buhmann,R (2591)/AUT-chT/2010/}) (10... Bd6 11. Nc3 Nfe7 12. Nb5 Bf5 13. Nxd6 Qxd6 14. Nh4 Be6 15. c3 Qd7 16. Bg2 Ng6 17. Nxg6 hxg6 18. Bf4 Rfe8 19. h4 Re7 20. Qa4 Rae8 21. Qb5 $36 {Baklan,V (2654)-Grandelius,N (2515)/Reykjavik/2010/}) 11. c3 Re8 $11 {the tension should gradually dissipate.}) (10. Bf4 Bd6 11. Qd2 (11. Bxd6 Nxd6 12. c3 Ne7 {1/2,Jovanovic,Z (2535)-Brkic,A (2544)/CRO-chT Sibenik/2009/}) 11... Bxf4 12. Qxf4 Qd6 13. Qd2 Qf6 14. c3 Nd6 15. Ne5 Ne4 16. Qe3 Nxe5 17. dxe5 Qb6 18. Qxb6 axb6 19. c4 {Sprenger,J (2511)-Pliester,L (2383)/NED-chT/2009/} Nc5 20. Nc3 dxc4 21. Bxc4 Be6 $11) 10... Bd6 {The most natural, but not the only and perhaps not even the best move.} (10... g6 11. Bf4 Bd6 12. Bxd6 Qxd6 13. Nbd2 Be6 14. Qb3 Rab8 15. Qa4 Bd7 16. Qc2 a5 17. Nb3 b6 18. Qd2 Rbe8 19. Rxe8 Rxe8 20. Re1 Re7 21. Nc1 f6 22. Bd3 g5 23. Re2 h5 24. Qc2 Rxe2 25. Nxe2 Nce7 $11 {Kovacevic,A (2582)-Hammer,J (2633)/Khanty-Mansiysk olm/2010/}) (10... Nh4 11. Nxh4 Bxh4 12. Nd2 Bf6 13. Bd3 Ne7 14. Nf3 Bf5 15. Bg5 Bxg5 16. Nxg5 Bxd3 17. Qxd3 {1/2,Luther,T (2545)-Buhmann,R (2563)/Khanty-Mansiysk olm/2010/} Ng6 18. Qf5 c6 {??c8=}) 11. Bd3 (11. Nbd2 Qf6 $1 12. Bd3 h6 13. Nf1 Be6 14. Bd2 Rae8 15. Qc2 Nfe7 16. b4 Ng6 17. Ng3 Bg4 18. Rxe8 Rxe8 19. Re1 Rf8 $5 20. Be2 Nf4 $11 {Nijboer,F (2562)-Meier,G (2663)/EU-ch Rijeka/2010/ was already very comfortable for Black.}) 11... Nce7 (11... Re8 12. Rxe8+ Qxe8 13. Qc2 g6 14. Nbd2 Qd8 15. Nf1 Nh4 16. Nxh4 Qxh4 17. Bd2 Be6 $11 {Kreisl,R (2380)-Jovanic,O (2552)/Zadar/2009/} 18. Re1 $11 {/?}) 12. Nbd2 (12. g4 $6 Nh6 {is too wild, but apart from the text-move}) (12. Qc2 g6 13. Nbd2 {is interesting as well.}) 12... c6 $146 (12... Ng6 13. Nf1 Nfh4 14. g3 $1 (14. Ne5 f6 15. Nxg6 Nxg6 16. Ng3 f5 $1 17. Qh5 Qf6 18. Qf3 Qf7 19. Ne2 Nh4 20. Qh3 Ng6 21. Qf3 f4 22. Bxg6 hxg6 23. g3 g5 24. g4 c6 $17 {McEwan,K (2142)-Cox,J (2378)/BCF-chT/2010/}) 14... Nxf3+ 15. Qxf3 c6 16. Ne3 Re8 (16... f5 17. Ng2 $14) 17. Bd2 $14 {[%CAl Yb2b3,Yc3c4,Yh2h5,Ye3f5] /?,??f5,h4-h5,b3,c4 is a better version of the game position and White still has a nagging pull.}) 13. Nf1 {Structurally the position is symmetrical like an exchange French, or Petroff. Therefore getting anything tangible requires extra effort, on the other hand Anand perhaps enjoyed a false sense of security of the "nothing cah happen here" type. In fact it's still Black who has to tread with some care.} Ng6 14. Qc2 (14. g3 $5 h6 15. h4 {deserves attention - this, just as the alternative on move 12, prevents the simplifying ?h4.}) 14... Nfh4 15. Nxh4 Qxh4 16. g3 Qd8 {Seems unnecessarily passive.} (16... Qf6 $142 $5 17. Ne3 Re8 {is solid, for example} 18. Qe2 Bd7 19. Qh5 Nf8 20. Bd2 g6 21. Ng4 Bxg4 22. Qxg4 h5 $11 {and as in Vallejo-Hansen above, the ? have no direct targets and Black should hold the balance.}) 17. Ne3 Re8 18. Bd2 Nf8 19. Nf5 {[%csl Gf5]} Bc7 (19... Bxf5 20. Rxe8 Qxe8 21. Bxf5 g6 22. Re1 Qd8 23. Bh3 $14 {is already more unpleasant than the line above, so Black decides to suffer the intruder on f5. Objectively both moves are roughly equivalent and White already has some pressure.}) 20. Rxe8 Qxe8 21. Re1 Be6 22. Qc1 (22. f4 {[%CAl Rf5g7,Rf4f5] ??g7,f5} Qd8 23. Ne3 $14) (22. Qd1 $14) 22... f6 (22... Qd7 $2 23. Nxg7 $1 {?} Kxg7 24. Bh6+ Kh8 25. Qg5 f5 26. Qf6+ Kg8 27. Rxe6 $1 Nxe6 28. Bxf5 Re8 29. Bxe6+ $18) (22... Qd8 $5 $14 {postpones weakening the ?, now} 23. Bg5 f6 {wins a tempo.}) 23. Qd1 (23. Nxg7 $2 Kxg7 24. Bh6+ Kf7 25. Qd1 Kg8 $17 {is too inconcrete.}) 23... Qd7 24. Qf3 Re8 25. h4 Bf7 {With hindsight one can recommend the immediate swap} (25... Bxf5 $142 26. Bxf5 Rxe1+ 27. Bxe1 Qe8 {, although even here White can definitely continue probing after} 28. Bd2 $14 (28. Qe3 $5)) 26. Rf1 $1 {An excellent move, avoiding simplification is more important than the ?e, on which Black has no points of entry anyway.} Bg6 ({After some thought Anand discarded} 26... h5 27. g4 $1 hxg4 28. Qxg4 $36 {and decides to eliminate the ?f5 after all.}) 27. h5 Bxf5 28. Bxf5 Qf7 29. Kg2 (29. Bd3 g6 {tranposes, as} 30. g4 $6 Ne6 31. Re1 Re7 {allows Black ? in connection with ?g5.}) 29... g6 30. Bd3 f5 31. Rh1 {Now Black will have a tactical defence, so this was the right time for} (31. g4 $142 $1 $36) 31... Ne6 32. hxg6 (32. g4 Bf4 (32... fxg4 $5 33. Qxg4 Rf8 34. f3 g5 35. Re1 Nf4+ 36. Bxf4 Qxf4 37. Re7 Qxg4+ 38. fxg4 Rf7 39. Rxf7 Kxf7 40. Bxh7 Bf4 $11) 33. hxg6 {-32.hg6}) 32... hxg6 33. g4 (33. Be3 Qf6 {??g5}) 33... Bf4 $1 (33... f4 34. Qh3 $36) 34. Be3 (34. gxf5 Bxd2 35. fxe6 Qxf3+ 36. Kxf3 Rxe6 $11) (34. Bxf4 $6 fxg4 35. Rh8+ $8 Kxh8 36. Be5+ Kg8 37. Qxg4 Nf8 38. f4 Qh7 $15) 34... fxg4 $6 {After this slip White retains a pull.} (34... Bxe3 $142 {?} 35. fxe3 (35. Qxe3 $2 fxg4 36. Qh6 Qf3+ 37. Kg1 Ng7 $1 $19) 35... Ng5 36. Qf4 fxg4 $1 37. Rh6 (37. Qxg5 $4 Qf3+ 38. Kg1 Qg3+ 39. Kf1 Rf8+ 40. Ke2 Qg2+ $19) (37. Qxg4 Rxe3 38. Rh6 Qf3+ 39. Qxf3 Nxf3 $11) 37... Qxf4 38. exf4 Re3 39. Bf1 Ne6 40. Rxg6+ Kf7 41. Rxg4 Re1 $11) 35. Qxg4 Kg7 36. Rh5 $1 {[%CAl Rh5f5] Due to the threat ?f5 Black can't maintain his blockade on f4} Bxe3 (36... Kf6 37. Qh4+ g5 38. Qg4 $16 (38. Qh3 $16)) 37. fxe3 Nf8 ({More active was} 37... Rf8 $5 38. Rf5 Qe7 39. Re5 Qf6 40. Qg3 $14 (40. Qxg6+ Qxg6+ 41. Bxg6 Nxd4 $11)) 38. Rh3 (38. Qg5 Qf6 39. Qh6+ Kg8 40. Rh3 Re7 41. Rf3 Qg7 $14) 38... Kg8 $6 $138 {Now Black's coordination gets disrupted even more.} (38... Qf6 $142 39. Rf3 Qd6 40. Qh4 Re6 $5 41. Rh3 Rf6 42. e4 Qf4 (42... dxe4 $2 43. Bc4 $18) 43. Qxf4 Rxf4 $14) 39. Rf3 Qe6 40. Qf4 (40. Qg3 $16 {[%CAl Yd3c2,Ye3e4,Rd3f5] ??f5,?c2,e4?}) 40... Kg7 ({Not ideal, somewhat better and more resilient was} 40... Qe7 $16) 41. b3 $6 {[%CAl Yc3c4] ?c4} ({Strategically sound, but} 41. Rh3 $142 Qf6 42. Qh6+ Kg8 43. Bxg6 $1 $16 {/+- wins a healthy ?.}) 41... Qe7 (41... b5 $6 42. Rh3) 42. c4 Rd8 43. Rh3 (43. c5 $1 {?}) 43... Rd6 44. Qh6+ Kg8 (44... Kf7 $142 45. cxd5 cxd5 46. Rf3+ Kg8 (46... Rf6 $2 47. Qg5 Rxf3 48. Qxd5+ $18) 47. e4 g5 $1 48. Qh5 Kg7 49. exd5 (49. e5 $2 Rh6 50. Qg4 Ne6 $36) 49... Ng6 (49... Rh6 50. d6 $1 Rxd6 51. Rg3 Rd5 52. Rh3 $16) 50. Kf2 $14 {/?}) 45. cxd5 cxd5 46. e4 $1 $16 {This break wins more space and gives White a permanent strategic advantage due to his superior ?-structure.} Qg7 47. Qe3 Qe7 (47... dxe4 $2 48. Bc4+ Ne6 49. Qxe4 $18) 48. e5 {[%csl Rd5,Ge5,Rg6]} Rc6 49. Qh6 Qg7 50. Qh4 a6 (50... Ne6 51. Qg4 {[%CAl Yg2f2,Yf2e3] ??f2-e3 forces the ? back sooner or later anyway.}) 51. Rf3 Qd7 {Black must temporize.} (51... g5 52. Qh5 Ng6 53. Bxg6 Qxg6 54. Qxg6+ Rxg6 55. Kg3 $18) 52. b4 $5 b5 53. a3 Qc7 54. Kg3 Kg7 55. Bb1 $1 {Getting ready to target ×d5.} Nh7 56. Ba2 $6 (56. Kg2 $142 $1) 56... Qd7 $6 ({The only chance was} 56... Rc1 $1 57. Bxd5 Ng5 $14 {/? , but after about 5 hours of play it's very difficult to find such computer-like ideas.}) 57. Bb3 Rc1 58. Kh2 Rb1 59. Bc2 Rb2 60. Rc3 $18 {[%csl Rb2] Now the ?b2 is cut off and White is virtually winning...} Qf7 61. Kg3 (61. e6 $1 Qxe6 62. Rc7+ Kf8 63. Qh6+ (63. Qxh7 Qe2+ 64. Kg3 Rb3+ $1 65. Bxb3 Qe3+ 66. Kg4 Qe4+ 67. Kg5 Qf5+ $11 68. Kh6 $4 Qh5#) 63... Ke8 64. Qxh7 $18 {and now there is no perpetual, as Black's ? doesn't control g7 anymore.}) 61... Nf8 62. Rf3 Qe6 63. Qd8 $2 (63. Rf6 Qe8 (63... Qg8 64. Rf2 Nh7 (64... Qe6 65. Rh2 Kf7 66. Qh8 Ke7 67. Qg7+ $18 {?} Qf7 68. Qxf7+ Kxf7 69. Bxg6+) 65. Qe7+ Kh8 66. Qd6 $18) 64. Rf2 Ra2 (64... Qe6 65. Rh2 $18 {-63...?g8}) 65. Qf6+ Kg8 66. Qd6 $5 (66. Bb3 Rxa3 67. Rf3 Rxb3 68. Rxb3 Ne6 69. Kf2 $1 $18) 66... Rxa3+ 67. Kh2 Ne6 (67... Rc3 68. Bb3 $1 $18) 68. Rf6 Ra2 69. Rxe6 Rxc2+ 70. Kg3 Rc3+ 71. Kh4 g5+ 72. Kxg5 Rg3+ 73. Kf4 Rf3+ 74. Kg4 $1 (74. Kg5 $2 Rf5+ 75. Kxf5 Qh5+ $11) (74. Kxf3 $2 Qh5+) 74... Qf8 (74... Qf7 75. Qd8+ Kh7 76. Qh4+ Kg8 77. Qg5+ Kf8 78. Qh6+) 75. Qxf8+ Rxf8 76. Rxa6 $18) 63... Nd7 64. Rf2 $2 (64. Bd3 $5 Rb3 65. Be2 $16 {still keeps White's winning chances alive.}) 64... Ra2 {Now Black has enough ?, as White's ? is vulnerable as well.} 65. Kh2 (65. Rh2 $2 Rxa3+ 66. Kf2 Qf7+ 67. Ke1 Ra1+ 68. Bd1 Nf8 $17) 65... Qg4 $11 (65... Nxe5 66. dxe5 (66. Qf8+ Kh7 67. dxe5 Qxe5+ 68. Kh3 Rxa3+ 69. Rf3 Qh5+ 70. Kg2 Qg5+ $11) 66... Qxe5+ 67. Kh1 (67. Kg2 Rxc2 68. Qf8+ Kh7 69. Rxc2 Qe4+ 70. Kf1 Qxc2 71. Qe7+ $11 {and already White has to give a perpetual.}) 67... Qh5+ 68. Kg2 Qg4+ $11) 66. Qe7+ Kh6 67. Qd8 (67. Qe8 Qh4+ $11 {is the same.}) (67. e6 $4 Rxa3 $19) 67... Qh5+ 68. Kg2 Qg4+ 1/2-1/2 [Event "World-ch Carlsen-Anand +3-0=7"] [Site "Chennai"] [Date "2013.11.13"] [Round "4"] [White "Anand, Viswanathan"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2775"] [BlackElo "2870"] [Annotator "Postny,Evgeny"] [PlyCount "127"] [EventDate "2013.11.09"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "12"] [EventCountry "IND"] [SourceTitle "CBM 158"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2014.01.16"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2014.01.16"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 {Carlsen decided not to repeat the Caro-Kann as in game 2. This time he goes for the Berlin Defence - the opening that will serve him well until the end of the match as his main weapon against 1.e4.} 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. h3 {Not the main line, but quite fashionable. In previous years 9.?c3 or 9.?d1 was played nearly automatically.} Bd7 10. Rd1 Be7 {This move was employed several times by grandmaster Hammer, one of Carlsen's seconds.} ({A really complicated and double-edged position arises after} 10... Kc8 11. g4 Ne7 12. Ng5 Be8 13. f4 h5 14. Kf2 b6 15. f5 Kb7 16. c4 c5 17. Bf4 Nc6 18. Nc3 $13 {½-½ (39) Giri,A (2737)-Nakamura,H (2772) Paris 2013}) 11. Nc3 ({The following game from the European team championship was played just one day prior to the World championship encounter:} 11. g4 Nh4 12. Nxh4 Bxh4 13. Nd2 Kc8 14. Nf3 Be7 15. Rd3 h6 16. Nd4 Re8 17. Bf4 c5 18. Nf5 Bf8 19. c4 a6 20. Ne3 b5 21. b3 g5 22. Bg3 Be6 23. Rad1 Kb7 $11 {½-½ (42) Caruana,F (2782)-Grischuk,A (2785) Warsaw 2013}) (11. Bg5 Kc8 12. g4 $6 {Too early.} (12. Nc3 {would transpose to our game Anand-Carlsen.}) 12... h6 13. Bxe7 (13. Bd2 Nh4 14. Nxh4 Bxh4 15. Bc3 h5 $15 {1-0 (67) Ganguly,S (2651)-Hammer,J (2647) Wijk aan Zee 2011}) 13... Nxe7 14. Kh2 Re8 15. Nbd2 b6 16. Re1 c5 17. Ne4 Bc6 18. h4 Kb7 $15 {0-1 (44) Sutovsky,E (2692)-Hammer,J (2606) Aix-les-Bains 2011}) 11... Kc8 12. Bg5 {After witnessing many games in this line, it seems that both sides are satisfied with the exchange of dark-squared bishops.} h6 13. Bxe7 Nxe7 14. Rd2 (14. a4 a5 15. Rd2 c5 16. Rad1 Bc6 17. e6 $1 fxe6 18. Ne5 Re8 19. Nb5 Bxb5 20. axb5 Nd5 21. c4 Nb6 22. h4 $14 {[%CAl Gd2d3,Gd3g3,Gd3f3] ½-½ (33) Berg,E (2587)-Hammer,J (2630) Achaea 2012}) 14... c5 15. Rad1 $146 (15. Ne4 b6 16. Ng3 Bc6 17. Nh2 Ng6 18. Re1 Nf4 19. f3 Kb7 20. Kf2 Rad8 21. Rxd8 Rxd8 22. Nhf1 g6 $11 {1-0 (102) Jakovenko,D (2710)-Almasi,Z (2691) Khanty-Mansiysk 2007}) 15... Be6 16. Ne1 $6 {Clearly, a step in the wrong direction.} ({In a very recent game an attempt to improve White's play was made:} 16. Ne2 Ng6 (16... Bxa2 $2 17. b3 c4 18. Nfd4 c5 19. Nb5 cxb3 20. cxb3 Bxb3 21. Rb1 c4 22. Ned4 {with a strong initiative.}) 17. Ng3 b6 18. Nh5 Rg8 19. a3 a5 20. Re1 Kb7 21. Nh2 Ne7 22. f4 g6 23. Nf6 Rgd8 24. Red1 Rxd2 25. Rxd2 Kc6 $11 {1-0 (49) Gorbatov,A (2360)-Pranizin,G (2187) Khanty-Mansiysk 2013}) 16... Ng6 17. Nd3 (17. Re2 {was possible, but then the whole idea of doubling the rooks along the d-file makes little sense.}) 17... b6 18. Ne2 $6 {Inviting the opponent to take the risky decision. Objectively, it was bettter not to allow Carlsen to grab the pawn. Perhaps, Anand just didn't believe that the move that now follows would work so well for Black.} (18. b3 {was, objectively, the safest.} c4 19. bxc4 Bxc4 20. f4 Kb7 (20... Bxd3 $6 21. Rxd3 Nxf4 22. Rf3 g5 23. g3 Nxh3+ 24. Kg2 g4 25. Rxf7 Ng5 26. Re7 $44) 21. a4 {White is slightly worse, but the material balance is not broken.}) ({The aggressive attempt} 18. f4 $6 {will leave White a pawn down, fighting for a draw.} c4 19. Rf1 (19. Nb4 Nxf4 20. Nc6 Re8 $15) 19... cxd3 20. f5 Nxe5 21. fxe6 fxe6 22. Re1 (22. cxd3 Rd8 23. Re2 Nxd3 24. Rf7 e5 25. Rxg7 Kb7 $15) 22... Nc6 23. Rxd3 Re8 24. Rg3 Re7 $15) 18... Bxa2 $1 {Accepting the challenge.} (18... c4 $6 19. Ndf4 Nxf4 20. Nxf4 c3 21. Nxe6 $1 (21. bxc3 Bxa2 $15) 21... cxd2 22. Nxg7 Rd8 23. f4 Kb7 24. Kf2 {with good compensation for the exchange. The ?d2 will, most likely, fall.}) 19. b3 c4 20. Ndc1 cxb3 21. cxb3 Bb1 {The bishop is coming out, so White should desperately look for some compensation.} 22. f4 (22. Rd7 Rg8 $3 {A great prophylactic move, shown immediately by the engine.} ({After} 22... Nxe5 $6 23. Re7 {White will get back one of the pawns, and keep the activity.}) 23. Nc3 Nxe5 $1 {This also requires precise calculation.} 24. R7d5 Bc2 25. R1d2 Nc6 26. Rxc2 Nb4 27. Re2 Nxd5 28. Nxd5 Rd8 $17 {Rook + two pawns should overcome White's knights.}) (22. e6 fxe6 23. Nc3 Bf5 24. Rd7 (24. g4 Ne5 25. gxf5 Nf3+ 26. Kg2 Nxd2 27. fxe6 $1 Rd8 28. e7 Re8 29. Rxd2 Rxe7 $17) 24... Nf4 25. Rxg7 Rh7 26. Rdd7 Rxg7 27. Rxg7 Kb7 $17) 22... Kb7 23. Nc3 ({After} 23. Nd3 Bxd3 24. Rxd3 Rhe8 25. Rg3 Re7 {White's compensation is not sufficient.}) 23... Bf5 24. g4 Bc8 $17 25. Nd3 h5 {Opening the h-file is one of the basic ideas for Black in the Berlin endgame.} 26. f5 Ne7 ({An attempt to break White's kingside pawn chain straight away is not recommended:} 26... Nh4 $6 27. Kf2 g6 28. Rc1 $1 hxg4 29. hxg4 gxf5 30. Nb5 c5 31. Nd6+ Kb8 32. b4 fxg4 33. bxc5 {In such a mess anything can happen, White is really active.}) 27. Nb5 hxg4 $6 {This is an important moment. At first sight it looks that Black can open the h-file first and then figure out the right move. In fact, Magnus should have played 27...a6 without delay, it's important to kick away White's active knight.} (27... a6 28. Nd4 hxg4 29. hxg4 a5 $1 30. Rc1 (30. e6 fxe6 31. fxe6 Re8 $1 $17 {[%csl Re6]}) 30... a4 31. Nb5 (31. bxa4 Rxa4 32. Nf2 Ra5 $17) 31... Nc6 32. Nb4 Nxb4 33. Rxc7+ Kb8 34. Rd6 Nd5 $1 35. Rxd5 a3 36. Rd6 (36. Rc1 a2 37. Rdd1 Bb7 38. Kf2 Ra5 39. Nd6 Rxe5 $19) 36... Bb7 37. Rxb6 Ra7 38. Rbxb7+ Rxb7 39. Rxb7+ Kxb7 40. Nxa3 Kc6 $19) 28. hxg4 $6 {Anand automatically recaptures, missing an interesting tactical opportunity.} (28. Rc1 $1 Nd5 $1 {is the best reply. Now White has two options. In both cases he is objectively fighting for a draw, but, with correct play should eventually make it.} (28... Nc6 $2 29. Rdc2 Bxf5 (29... Bd7 30. Nb4 $1 Nxb4 $140 $2 31. Rxc7+ Ka6 32. Nd6 $18 {[%csl Ra6][%CAl Gc1a1]}) 30. Rxc6 Bxd3 31. Rxc7+ Ka6 32. Nd6 Ka5 33. hxg4 $36 {[%csl Ra5]}) 29. Nc5+ (29. e6 fxe6 30. Ne5 a5 $1 (30... a6 $4 {runs into a spectacular mate:} {[%tqu "En","Can you spot the combination?","","","c1c7","",3]} 31. Rxc7+ $1 Nxc7 32. Nd6+ Ka7 33. Nc6#) 31. hxg4 c5 32. Nf7 Rf8 33. Re1 $1 exf5 34. Nbd6+ Kc6 35. gxf5 Ra7 $1 36. Nxc8 Raxf7 37. Re6+ Kc7 38. Nd6 Rxf5 39. Nxf5 Rxf5 40. Rg6 $15) 29... bxc5 30. Rxd5 gxh3 (30... Bxf5 $6 31. Rdxc5 Rac8 32. Nxc7 $132) 31. Rdxc5 h2+ 32. Kh1 Kb8 $1 {[%CAl Gc8b7]} 33. Nd4 Bb7+ 34. Nc6+ Kc8 35. Rd5 Bxc6 36. Rxc6 Rb8 37. Rdc5 Rb7 38. e6 fxe6 39. fxe6 $15) 28... Rh4 $6 {Again Black should have kicked away the knight.} (28... a6 29. Nd4 a5 30. Rc1 a4 31. bxa4 Rxa4 $17 {is the position Black should strive for. Both of his rooks are in the action.}) 29. Nf2 Nc6 (29... a6 $2 {is now runs into} 30. Nd6+ $1 cxd6 31. exd6 Nc6 32. d7 {winning back the piece and White is not worse anymore.}) 30. Rc2 a5 $1 {[%CAl Ga5a4]} (30... g6 31. Kf1 $3 {is extremely difficult to figure out for a human player.} (31. Rdc1 $2 Bd7 32. Nd4 Nxd4 33. Rxc7+ Kb8 34. Rxd7 Ne2+ {is the problem for White.}) 31... gxf5 32. Rdc1 Bd7 (32... Rh6 33. g5 Rg6 34. Nd6+ $1 cxd6 35. Rxc6 Be6 36. Rc7+ Ka6 37. exd6 $44) 33. Nd4 Nxd4 34. Rxc7+ Ka6 ({No more fork on e2 after} 34... Kb8 $2 35. Rxd7 $16) 35. Ra1+ Kb5 36. Rxd7 $132) (30... a6 31. Rdc1 Bd7 32. e6 fxe6 33. fxe6 axb5 (33... Be8 $2 34. Nd4 {would lose a piece as White's knight is taboo.}) 34. exd7 Rh6 35. Nd3 Rah8 (35... Rd8 $2 36. Ne5 $1 Nxe5 $2 37. Rxc7+ Ka6 38. Ra1#) 36. Rxc6 $1 Rxc6 37. Rxc6 Kxc6 38. Ne5+ Kc5 39. Nf7 Rf8 40. d8=Q Rxd8 41. Nxd8 Kb4 42. Ne6 Kxb3 43. Nxg7 b4 44. Nf5 Kc3 45. g5 b3 46. Ne3 Kd3 47. Nd1 Kc2 48. Ne3+ $11) 31. Rc4 $1 {An immediate doubling of the rooks would give White no benefit, so Anand finds a useful move, preventing the advance a5-a4.} (31. e6 $6 fxe6 32. fxe6 Bxe6 33. Rxc6 Kxc6 34. Nd4+ Kd7 $1 35. Nf3+ Kc8 36. Nxh4 Bxb3 {It's difficult to give a clear estimation of this position, but three connected passers are really dangerous.}) (31. Rdc1 $6 Bd7 32. e6 fxe6 33. fxe6 Be8 $17) 31... g6 (31... Bxf5 $6 32. Rxc6 $1 Kxc6 33. Nd4+ Kb7 34. Nxf5 $132) 32. Rdc1 {Now White must pay great attention to specifics as his kingside chain of pawns is about to collapse.} Bd7 33. e6 (33. Nd4 $2 Nxd4 34. Rxc7+ Ka6 35. Rxd7 Ne2+ $19) 33... fxe6 34. fxe6 Be8 35. Ne4 $1 {[%mdl 2048] An excellent resource, not obvious at all, as White allows his opponent to capture a pawn with check!} Rxg4+ 36. Kf2 Rf4+ $6 (36... Rd8 $1 {would make White's task more difficult.} 37. Ke3 Rd5 (37... Rg2 38. Rh1 $1 Rd5 39. Rh7 $1 Rxb5 40. Nd6+ Ka6 41. Nxb5 Kxb5 42. Rh8 {The bishop is trapped.} Rg3+ 43. Kd2 Rxb3 44. Rg4 {With the next move White will capture the bishop and the ?e6 will not allow Black to advance his queenside pawns comfortably. With correct play this mess should end in a draw.}) 38. Nbc3 Re5 39. Kf3 Rgxe4 40. Rxe4 Rxe6 $1 41. Rxe6 Nd4+ 42. Ke3 Nxe6 {In this endgame White's chances for a draw are higher than Black's for a win, but against Magnus this won't be easy to prove.}) 37. Ke3 Rf8 (37... g5 38. Nd4 Nb4 39. Ne2 $1 (39. Rxc7+ $6 Ka6 {[%CAl Gb4d5]} 40. Rg7 Nd5+ 41. Kd3 Rd8 42. Rxg5 Rh4 {[%csl Rd3,Rd4,Re4] and all White's centralised pieces, including the king, are under serious pressure.}) 39... Bc6 40. Nxf4 gxf4+ 41. Kxf4 Nd3+ 42. Kf5 Nxc1 43. Rxc1 {[%csl Ge6] The strong passed pawn guarantees White sufficient counterplay.}) 38. Nd4 Nxd4 39. Rxc7+ Ka6 40. Kxd4 Rd8+ {The time trouble has passed and White can be definitely happy with the latest developments. He is still a pawn down, but not worse anymore thanks to his active pieces and the strong e6-passer.} 41. Kc3 $5 {Anand goes for the safest move, protecting the ?b3 and already having in mind the forthcoming exchange of the minor pieces. The alternative 41.?e3 was more ambitious, from a human point of view more risky for both sides! Objectively, the position would remain equal as well.} (41. Ke5 $4 Rf5#) (41. Ke3 {Here Black's general idea is to sacrifice the bishop for the e-pawn, to grab the ?b3 and roll forward two connected passed pawns. Here is a sample line:} Rd5 42. Rh7 (42. e7 $2 Rf7 $17) 42... Bb5 43. Rf7 Rh8 44. Rcc7 Rd3+ 45. Kf2 (45. Kf4 Be8 46. Rfe7 Rh4+ 47. Ke5 Re3 48. Rxe8 Rhxe4+ 49. Kf6 Rxb3 50. e7 Rf3+ 51. Kxg6 Rfe3 52. Ra8+ Kb5 53. Kf7 Rf3+ 54. Kg6 Rfe3 $11) 45... Be8 46. Rf3 Rh2+ 47. Kg3 Rh3+ 48. Kxh3 Rxf3+ 49. Kg4 Rxb3 50. Rc8 Ba4 51. Kf4 Rb1 52. Nd6 Ka7 53. Rc7+ Ka6 54. Rc8 $11) 41... Rf3+ 42. Kb2 Re3 43. Rc8 {This is the way minor pieces will be exchanged. The forthcoming double rook endgame is drawish, since Black's extra pawn has no significance.} Rdd3 $1 {Magnus is trying the last practical chance. Keeping all the rooks on the board, Black is hoping to target the ?b3.} (43... Rxc8 44. Rxc8 Rxe4 45. Rxe8 {The e- and g-pawns will be swapped and the position is completely drawish.}) 44. Ra8+ Kb7 45. Rxe8 Rxe4 46. e7 Rg3 47. Rc3 Re2+ 48. Rc2 Ree3 {[%csl Rb3]} 49. Ka2 $1 {Now Black can't capture the ?b3, as he always has to keep an eye on the e-pawn.} g5 50. Rd2 Re5 51. Rd7+ Kc6 52. Red8 Rge3 53. Rd6+ Kb7 54. R8d7+ Ka6 55. Rd5 Re2+ (55... g4 56. Rxe5 Rxe5 57. Rd4 g3 58. Rg4 $11) 56. Ka3 Re6 57. Rd8 g4 58. Rg5 Rxe7 59. Ra8+ $1 ({It's never too late to go astray:} 59. Rxg4 $2 Rf2 60. Ra8+ Kb7 61. Rag8 Re1 {could give Black winning chances.}) 59... Kb7 60. Rag8 {Now the rook is trapped for an exchange, the draw is inevitable.} a4 (60... Rf2 61. R8g7 $11) 61. Rxg4 axb3 62. R8g7 Ka6 63. Rxe7 Rxe7 64. Kxb3 {A very rich in content, hard-fought battle.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "London Classic 7th"] [Site "London"] [Date "2015.12.06"] [Round "3"] [White "Anand, Viswanathan"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2803"] [BlackElo "2850"] [Annotator "Roiz,Michael"] [PlyCount "111"] [EventDate "2015.12.04"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "ENG"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 170"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2016.01.15"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2016.01.15"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. Nc3 Ke8 10. h3 Be6 11. Rd1 Bc5 {Magnus chooses a somewhat dubious, but unexplored theoretical continuation. This position had been seen in only 1 game before.} ({The most common alternatives are} 11... Bb4 12. Ne2 Bd5 13. Ned4 Nxd4 14. Nxd4 Rd8 15. Bd2 (15. Be3 $5) 15... Bc5 16. Nf5 Bf8 17. Be3 b6 18. f3 Be6 19. g4 Rd5 $11 {1/2 Vachier Lagrave,M (2722)-Fressinet,L (2698)/Caen 2011}) ({and} 11... h6 12. b3 Rd8 13. Bb2 Bb4 14. Ne2 Bd5 15. Nfd4 Be4 16. c4 Nxd4 17. Nxd4 Ke7 18. f3 Bg6 $11 {1/2 Hou Yifan (2671)-Mamedyarov,S (2736)/Baku AZE 2015}) 12. g4 $1 $146 {This natural advance is a novelty. It definitely makes sense to make progress on the kingside as soon as possible.} ({In the preceding game Black didn't experience any problems after} 12. Bf4 h6 13. a3 Rd8 $11 {Parma,B-Bisguier,A/Caracas 1970}) 12... Ne7 13. Ng5 Bd5 ({It looks like} 13... Ng6 {doesn't fully solve the problems either:} 14. Kg2 $1 ({After} 14. Nce4 Be7 15. Nxe6 fxe6 16. f4 Rf8 17. Rf1 Rd8 18. Be3 b6 19. Kg2 {White's position is more pleasant, but it would bew very difficult to make any progress}) 14... Be7 (14... h5 15. Nxe6 fxe6 16. f4 Rf8 17. Ne4 Be7 18. Rf1 Rd8 19. Be3 $14) 15. Nxe6 fxe6 16. f4 Rf8 17. Ne2 Rd8 18. Be3 $14) 14. Nge4 ({The following line} 14. Nxd5 $5 cxd5 15. e6 f6 16. Nf7 Rf8 17. Bf4 Rc8 18. Rd3 $14 {looks somewhat scary for White - the ?f7 has no vacant squares. However, Black's position is very passive here, so it was an option worth considering.}) 14... Bb6 {Black experiences some problems with connecting the rooks.} 15. Kg2 {Vishy doesn't hurry with any ''drastic'' decisions.} ({A more energetic way of handling the position was} 15. a4 $5 a5 16. Nxd5 cxd5 17. Ng3 $14) 15... Rd8 16. Bf4 ({For some reason, Anand rejected the most natural} 16. Kg3 Ng6 17. f4 {, though White's position looks quite attractive here. For instance,} h5 18. Nxd5 Rxd5 19. Bd2 $14) 16... Ng6 17. Bg3 h5 ({The immediate attempt to connect the rooks is dubious:} 17... Ke7 $6 18. f4 $1 Rhe8 19. Nxd5+ cxd5 20. Nc3 d4 21. Ne4 $16) 18. f4 hxg4 19. hxg4 {One of Black's rooks has a job to do along the h-file, but their position is still rather passive.} Ke7 {One more risky decision. The king is getting vulnerable now.} (19... Nh4+ 20. Bxh4 Rxh4 21. Kg3 Rh8 22. Rh1 Ke7 23. Rxh8 Rxh8 24. Rd1 Rd8 25. Ng5 $14) 20. Rh1 ({Another possible move was} 20. Nxd5+ $5 cxd5 21. Nc3 c6 (21... d4 22. Na4 f6 23. Nxb6 axb6 24. exf6+ Kxf6 25. f5 $14) 22. Rh1 {White's pieces are somewhat more active, so Black is under pressure. For instance,} Bc7 23. Ne2 f6 24. e6 $14) 20... Bd4 21. Nxd5+ cxd5 22. Nc3 (22. Ng5 $5 Rxh1 (22... Bxb2 23. Rxh8 Nxh8 24. Rb1 Bd4 25. f5 $16) 23. Rxh1 Rh8 24. Rd1 Be3 25. Kf3 d4 26. Ne4 $14) 22... Bxc3 23. bxc3 {Black has been able to simplify matters and damage White's pawn structure, but the poor placement of the?g6 and vulnerablity of his king make the position very dangerous.} Kd7 24. f5 Ne7 25. Rae1 $6 {Spoiling the lion's share of his advantage.} ({A much more energetic and stronger move would be} 25. Rhf1 $1 Nc8 (25... Rde8 26. Rad1 Kc8 27. c4 $1 $16 dxc4 $140 28. e6 fxe6 29. fxe6 Nc6 30. Rf7 $18) 26. e6+ fxe6 27. fxe6+ Kc6 28. Rf7 Nd6 29. Rxg7 Rdg8 30. Rxg8 Rxg8 31. Kf3 $16) 25... Rde8 26. Kf3 $6 {Mistakes rarely come alone!} ({The precise} 26. Bf4 {would keep Black under pressure:} Rxh1 27. Rxh1 Nc6 28. Rh7 Rg8 29. Kf3 $14) 26... Rxh1 27. Rxh1 Nc6 {Now it is obvious, that the ? is misplaced on f3.} 28. Re1 {Alas, leaving the open file is the only way to fight for a win now.} ({Indeed, after} 28. Rh7 Nxe5+ {Black manages to solve all his problems:} 29. Bxe5 (29. Kf4 f6 30. Rxg7+ Re7 $11) 29... Rxe5 30. Rxg7 Ke7 $11) 28... g5 {An interesting move - now White has less space for the pieces.} ({Another possibility was} 28... Na5 29. g5 Nc4 30. Kg4 b6 31. g6 fxg6 32. e6+ Ke7 33. Bh4+ Kd6 $11) 29. a4 a6 30. Kg2 ({Another, more aggressive way of handling the position was} 30. c4 $5 dxc4 (30... Nd4+ 31. Kf2 Nxc2 32. Rd1 d4 33. Rd2 Nb4 34. Rxd4+ Kc8 35. Kf3 $14) 31. Rd1+ Ke7 32. Ke4 $44 {obtaining excellent compensation for a pawn.}) 30... Kc8 31. Kf2 b6 32. Kf3 Kd7 {It is very difficult for either side to make any progress now.} 33. Kf2 Kc8 34. Re3 $6 {For some reason, Vishy deviates from repeating the moves, but letting Black put the knight on c4 is a serious mistake.} (34. Kf3 $11) 34... Na5 $1 {Suddenly White finds himself in a difficult situation.} 35. Re1 (35. e6 fxe6 36. fxe6 Rf8+ 37. Kg2 Nc4 38. Re1 Re8 39. Bf2 Kd8 40. Be3 Rg8 $17) 35... Nc4 36. Kf3 Kd7 $6 {This natural move seems to be inaccurate, though the refutation isn't trivial...} (36... a5 {was stronger} {and if} 37. Rh1 {then} Nxe5+ 38. Bxe5 Rxe5 39. Rh7 Re7 40. Rh5 b5 {and the a-passer should decide the game:} 41. Rxg5 bxa4 42. f6 Re6 43. Rxd5 Rxf6+ 44. Ke3 Kb7 $19) 37. Kg2 $6 ({It was the right moment for liquidating into a rook ending at the cost of a pawn:} 37. Rh1 $1 Nxe5+ 38. Bxe5 Rxe5 39. Rh5 Re4 40. Rxg5 Rxa4 41. Rh5 {with sufficient counterplay.}) 37... a5 38. Kf2 $2 {The waiting strategy isn't a successful approach here.} ({The active way of defending was more to the point:} 38. Rh1 $1 Nxe5 39. Rh7 b5 $1 (39... Kd8 40. Bxe5 Rxe5 41. Rxf7 Re2+ 42. Kf3 Rxc2 43. Rg7 Rxc3+ 44. Kf2 $11) 40. axb5 a4 41. Bxe5 Rxe5 42. Rxf7+ Re7 43. Rf6 Re4 44. Kf3 {White's position seems difficult here, but the limited material balance offers definite drawing chances.}) 38... c6 39. Kg2 b5 40. Rb1 Rh8 $2 {Returning the favour.} ({There was no reason for rejecting} 40... Nxe5 41. axb5 Nxg4 {and Black should be able to convert the extra pawn into the full point. For instance,} 42. b6 Ne3+ 43. Kf3 g4+ 44. Kf4 f6 45. Bf2 Kc8 46. b7+ Kb8 47. Kg3 a4 48. Ra1 Re4 $19) 41. Bf2 $1 {Vishy doesn't miss the golden opportunity to activate his bishop.} Nxe5 ({White is doing OK also after} 41... Rb8 42. Bd4 Kc7 43. Kg3 $132 bxa4 $140 $2 44. Rxb8 Kxb8 45. e6 fxe6 46. f6 $18) 42. axb5 Nxg4 ({The b-passer offers White sufficient counterplay after} 42... Nc4 43. b6 Rb8 44. Bc5 Rb7 45. Ra1 $11) 43. bxc6+ Kxc6 44. Bd4 Re8 45. Kg3 {Now all White's pieces are perfectly placed.} Ne5 ({Nor was anything promised by} 45... Re4 46. Rb6+ Kc7 47. Ra6 Ne3 48. Bxe3 Rxe3+ 49. Kg4 Rxc3 50. Kxg5 Rxc2 51. Rxa5 Kd6 52. Ra7 d4 53. Kf4 $11) 46. Rb6+ Kc7 47. Rf6 Kd7 ({Or} 47... a4 48. Bxe5+ Rxe5 49. Rxf7+ Kb6 50. Rf6+ Kb5 51. Rf8 $11) 48. Bxe5 Rxe5 49. Kg4 ({There was nothing wrong with} 49. Rxf7+ Re7 50. Rf6 $11) 49... Ke7 50. Kxg5 {There is no way to avoid a draw now.} Re1 (50... Re3 51. Ra6 f6+ 52. Kg4 Rxc3 53. Rxa5 $11) 51. Ra6 f6+ 52. Kg4 Rg1+ 53. Kf4 Rf1+ 54. Kg4 Rg1+ 55. Kf4 Rf1+ 56. Kg4 1/2-1/2 [Event "EU-ch 6th"] [Site "Warsaw"] [Date "2005.06.30"] [Round "12"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Nielsen, Peter Heine"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2548"] [BlackElo "2653"] [Annotator "Postny,Evgeny"] [PlyCount "97"] [EventDate "2005.06.18"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "POL"] [SourceTitle "CBM 108"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2005.09.26"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2005.09.26"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. Nc3 h6 10. h3 Bd7 {The plan with evacuating the king to queenside is the most popular on the top level since the match Kasparov-Kramnik 2000.} 11. Bf4 Kc8 12. Rad1 b6 (12... Bb4 13. Ne4 Be6 14. c3 Be7 15. b3 b6 16. g4 Nh4 17. Nxh4 Bxh4 18. Bg3 Be7 19. f4 h5 20. f5 Bd5 21. Rd4 hxg4 22. hxg4 Ba3 23. Kf2 a5 24. c4 Bxe4 25. Rxe4 $16 {1-0 Short,N-Sokolov,I/Wijk aan Zee 2005 (48)}) 13. a3 (13. Rd3 Be6 14. Rfd1 Kb7 15. b3 g5 16. Bc1 c5 17. Nd5 Ne7 18. Nxe7 Bxe7 19. c4 Rag8 20. Nd2 g4 21. hxg4 Rxg4 22. Nf1 Rhg8 23. Rg3 h5 24. Re1 a6 25. Rxg4 hxg4 26. Rd1 Kc6 $15 {1-0 Anand,V-Topalov,V/Monte Carlo 2005 (46)}) (13. b3 Ne7 14. Bh2 a5 15. Rd2 Be6 16. Nd4 Nd5 17. Nce2 Bb4 18. Rd3 Bc5 19. a4 Nb4 20. Rg3 g5 21. c3 Nd5 22. Nxe6 fxe6 $15 {½-½ Polgar,J-Bruzon,L/Wijk aan Zee 2005 (55)}) 13... Be6 (13... Ne7 14. Rfe1 Ng6 15. Bg3 Be7 16. Nd4 Nf8 17. Bf4 Kb7 18. Be3 Re8 19. f4 h5 20. Ne4 c5 21. Nf3 Bf5 22. Bc1 Ne6 23. c3 h4 24. Neg5 Nxg5 25. Nxg5 Bxg5 26. fxg5 a5 $15 {½-½ Kasimdzhanov,R-Sasikiran,K/Jodhpur 2003 (53)}) 14. g4 $146 {Sooner or later, white has to follow his main plan of advancing his pawn majority on the kingside.} (14. Rfe1 Be7 15. Ne2 g5 16. Bc1 c5 17. g4 Ng7 18. Nc3 Kb7 19. Nd5 Bxd5 20. Rxd5 Ne6 21. Kg2 Kc6 22. Rdd1 b5 $11 {½-½ Horvath,T-Petran,P/Austria 2000 (32)}) 14... Ne7 15. Nd4 Bc4 16. Rfe1 c5 17. Nf5 Nc6 (17... Be6 18. Nxe7+ Bxe7 19. Nd5 $14) 18. Nd5 (18. Kg2 $5) 18... Bxd5 19. Rxd5 g6 20. e6 $1 {It's always curious to see a piece sacrifice in the endgame, but this one is actually forced.} (20. Ng3 $2 Nd4 $17 {[%csl Rc2,Rd5][%CAl Gd4f3,Gc7c6]}) 20... gxf5 21. exf7 Bd6 $1 (21... Ne7 22. Rde5 Kd7 23. Rd1+ Kc8 24. Rde1 Kd7 $11) 22. Bxh6 $6 {[%CAl Gd5d6] This is too optimistic.} (22. Re8+ Kd7 23. Rxa8 Rxa8 24. Bxh6 Ke6 (24... fxg4 25. f8=Q Rxf8 26. Bxf8 Ke6 27. Rxd6+ (27. Bxd6 Kxd5 28. Bxc7 gxh3 29. Kh2 Ke4 30. Kxh3 Kf3 $15) 27... cxd6 28. hxg4 Ne5 $11) 25. Rxd6+ cxd6 26. f8=Q Rxf8 27. Bxf8 fxg4 28. hxg4 Ne5 $11) 22... Kb7 $4 {The king goes wrong way.} (22... Rxh6 $2 23. Rxd6 $18) ({After the correct} 22... Kd7 $1 {black is on top. For example:} 23. g5 (23. Bg7 Nd4 24. Bxh8 Rxh8 25. Kg2 fxg4 26. hxg4 Nxc2 (26... Rh2+ $6 27. Kf1 Rh1+ 28. Kg2 Rh2+ $11) 27. Rh1 Rf8 28. Rh7 Ke6 29. Rf5 Nd4 $19) 23... Ne7 24. Rd2 Ng6 (24... Rxh6 $2 25. gxh6 Rf8 26. h7 Ng6 27. Re8 Rxe8 28. fxe8=Q+ Kxe8 {[%tqu "En","Find the winning move.","","","f2f4","",7]} 29. f4 $1 $18 {[%csl Rg6,Gh7][%CAl Gd2g2,Gg2g6]}) 25. Rde2 Nf4 26. Re3 Raf8 27. Bxf8 Rxf8 $17) 23. Bg7 $6 ({More convincing would have been} 23. g5 $1 Nd4 24. Rxd6 cxd6 25. Kf1 Nf3 26. Re7+ Kc6 27. g6 Rxh6 (27... Ne5 28. Rxe5 dxe5 29. g7 $18) 28. g7 Rhh8 29. gxh8=Q Rxh8 30. Re8 $18) 23... Rh7 24. Rxd6 $1 Rxg7 25. Rxc6 fxg4 (25... Kxc6 $2 26. Re8 Rxf7 27. Rxa8 $18) 26. Rxb6+ {?? I assume that this is a mistake in the scoresheet, because the refutation of this is pretty much obvious to miss it...} (26. Rxc7+ Kxc7 27. Re7+ Kc6 {should be the correct order of moves.}) 26... cxb6 {??} (26... axb6 $19) 27. Re7+ Kc6 28. f8=Q Rxf8 29. Rxg7 gxh3 30. Rh7 {After some wild complications, both sides landed in the endgame where white' passed "f" pawn should decide the outcome of the game in his favour.} Rd8 (30... Rf3 31. Kf1 $18 {[%CAl Gf1e2]}) 31. Rxh3 Rd1+ 32. Kg2 Rc1 33. Rc3 b5 34. Kf3 Kd5 35. Ke2 c4 36. Kd2 Rb1 37. Rh3 $1 Rf1 (37... Rxb2 $2 38. Kc1 Ra2 39. Kb1 $18 {[%csl Ra2]}) 38. Rh5+ Kd4 $2 ({Much better was} 38... Kc6 {, but I believe that after} 39. Rf5 {white has great winning chances.}) 39. Ke2 Rc1 40. Kd2 Rf1 41. Ke2 Rc1 42. c3+ Ke4 43. f3+ Kf4 44. Rxb5 $18 Rc2+ 45. Kd1 Rh2 46. Kc1 Kxf3 47. Rc5 Rh4 48. Kb1 Ke3 49. Rc7 {White is winning the second pawn.} 1-0 [Event "World-ch Carlsen-Anand +3-1=7"] [Site "Sochi"] [Date "2014.11.23"] [Round "11"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Anand, Viswanathan"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2863"] [BlackElo "2792"] [Annotator "Nielsen,Peter Heine"] [PlyCount "89"] [EventDate "2014.11.08"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "12"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [SourceTitle "CBM 164"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2015.01.15"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2015.01.15"] [SourceQuality "1"] {With the score being 5½-4½ to Carlsen with 2 games to go, the match has reached its crucial moment. Yet still there maybe was an expectation of silence before the storm? A draw in this game at first seemed like a good result for both, as Carlsen would guarantee himself a playoff, while Anand could gamble everything with the white pieces in game 12. In tournaments situations might often arise in which both player have mutual interests in a draw, but in matches it is important to remember that what is good for your oppenent, is bad for you! The discussions about the right strategy in these situations reflect that its probably a very close decision, with no obvious "correct" answer. In Brissago 2004, against Leko, Kramnik choose the Benoni as Black, in order to gamble, while here Anand choose the Berlin, seemingly happy to make a draw.} 1. e4 {[%emt 0:00:05]} e5 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 2. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:06]} Nc6 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 3. Bb5 {[%emt 0:00:07]} Nf6 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 4. O-O {[%emt 0:00:09]} Nxe4 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 5. d4 {[%emt 0:01:03] Carlsen hesitated here for a few minutes, possibly contemplating the safer 5.?e1, as employed in Chennai a year before, succesfully drawing and thus preserving his lead. There however he was on +2, making a draw even more valuable.} Nd6 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 6. Bxc6 {[%emt 0:00:13]} dxc6 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 7. dxe5 {[%emt 0:00:05]} Nf5 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 8. Qxd8+ {[%emt 0:00:05]} Kxd8 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 9. h3 {[%emt 0:00:08]} Bd7 $5 {[%emt 0:00:18] Anand is the first to deviate from games 7&9 where he went 9...?e8. It might seem a bit strange that after getting into trouble in game 7 he repeated ...?e8, while after securing an easy draw in game 9, he changed. However not doing the obvious, is an excellent way of surprising, and springing this "mini" surprise, might be an indication that despite the choice of the Berlin, he is not against a fight.} 10. Nc3 $5 {[%emt 0:00:08] A slightly surprising decision. In the previous match in Chennai, Anand as White choose:} (10. Rd1 {which is part of the point behind 9 h3, as now if Black wants to get his king to c8, he has to enter the complications after 10...?c8 11.g4 ?e7 12.?g5 ?e8 13.f4 h5. Recently however Black has done well here, as well as the general trend in this match is Anand welcoming, and Carlsen avoiding forced lines.} Be7 {was Carlsen's own choice in the previous match, when he came close to winning game 4 after} 11. Nc3 (11. g4 Nh4 12. Nxh4 Bxh4 13. Nd2 Kc8 14. Ne4 b6 15. Bg5 Bxg5 16. Nxg5 h6 17. Nxf7 Re8 18. f4 Be6 19. Nxh6 gxh6 20. f5 Bxf5 21. gxf5 Rxe5 {was drawn after a couple of exact defensive moves by Black in Karjakin-Carlsen, Shamkir 2014.}) 11... Kc8 12. Bg5 h6 13. Bxe7 Nxe7 14. Rd2 c5 15. Rad1 Be6 {with Black having solved his opening problems in the abovementioned game 4 of the 2013 WC-match.}) 10... h6 {[%emt 0:00:48]} 11. b3 {[%emt 0:00:32]} Kc8 {[%emt 0:01:11]} 12. Bb2 {[%emt 0:01:12]} c5 $5 {[%emt 0:01:30] Technically speaking a very rare move, but in harmony with the current trend in this line, that Black will play a quick ...c5.} (12... b6 {is the original concept, played by Kramnik in the 2000 WC-match against Kasparov, who got nowhere after} 13. Rad1 Ne7 (13... c5 {Leko's move order, and would transpose to the main game.}) 14. Ne2 Ng6 15. Ne1 h5 16. Nd3 c5 17. c4 a5 18. a4 h4 {and Kasparov both in this game, as in the match in general, did not manage to make any headway against the Berlin.}) 13. Rad1 {[%emt 0:04:07]} b6 {[%emt 0:01:01] Despite the slight improvement in the move order by Anand, it has now transposed into a recent game between Kokarev and Leko from the Russian league. With Leko being one of Anand's seconds for the previous match, one can guess at that it was preparation for Chennai. By controlling the d4-square, Black avoids the White tries now considered maybe most critical after 13...b6 starting with 14.?d4!?, however at the cost at giving white access to the d5-square. Optically it looks like an excellent post for a white knight, but as the game shows, things are not as simple as that.} 14. Rfe1 {[%emt 0:10:11]} (14. Nd5 a5 15. Nd2 Ne7 $1 {Contesting the strong knight on d5 is part of Black's plan. If 16 c4, then ...a4 gives excellent counterplay.} 16. Ne3 Nf5 17. Nd5 Ne7 18. Ne3 Nf5 {and the game was drawn by repetition.}) 14... Be6 $5 {[%emt 0:09:58] Bologan and Jakovenko have played ...?e7 here, Ponomariov ...a5. Both decent moves, but so is Anand's, getting ready to put his king on b7, and for the time being not retreating the knight voluntarily.} 15. Nd5 {[%emt 0:02:42]} g5 {[%emt 0:01:35] Not allowing a white ?f4, harassing the bishop on e6. It does create a "hole" on f6, but gains space, and makes it more difficult for White to immediately expand on the kingside.} 16. c4 {[%emt 0:10:30]} Kb7 {[%emt 0:09:49] A very principled position, where both players have their intended setup. White's argument will be that space does matter, that d5 is an outpost of value, and that he can roll forward eventually on the kingside, while Black will claim his position is solid, and that potentially White's queenside structure soon fixed on white squares is vulnerable.} 17. Kh2 {[%emt 0:13:27] Not hesitating, Carlsen's prepares for expanding on the kingside.} a5 {[%emt 0:14:59]} 18. a4 {[%emt 0:01:37] Of course weakening b3, but allowing ...a4, would give Black immediate, counterplay.} Ne7 {[%emt 0:00:32]} 19. g4 {[%emt 0:02:23]} Ng6 {[%emt 0:06:53] A good defensive move, taking precautions against White's plan of ?g3+h4. However already here instead of defense, being aggressive with: 19...b5!? would have been an interesting try, as after 20.axb5 a4 Black has serious counterplay.} 20. Kg3 {[%emt 0:02:59]} Be7 {[%emt 0:02:16] In line with the idea of stopping a white h4.} 21. Nd2 {[%emt 0:09:31]} ({If} 21. Nxe7 Nxe7 22. h4 $2 {then} gxh4+ $1 {followed by 23...?ag8 when it's Black who benefits from the immediate opening of fire on the kingside.}) 21... Rhd8 {[%emt 0:07:06]} 22. Ne4 {[%emt 0:01:51]} Bf8 {[%emt 0:00:35] An interesting position. At first sight it looks like Black is solid, but passive, and the defining factor will be if White is able to break through on the kingside. However as shown by the game, Black has a powerful resource in ...b5 creating counterplay on the queenside. Thus the task for White here is to find a prophylactic measure, preventing ...b5 but keeping the long-term prospects on the kingside. Easier said than done.} 23. Nef6 {[%emt 0:09:34]} ({During the game I thought} 23. Bc3 $5 {was the right move, but even there after} b5 {Black has counterplay after} 24. axb5 c6 25. bxc6+ Kxc6 {when it's not easy for White to keep Black's potential under control. In the game it's an even more difficult task, but Carlsen manages it extremely well!}) 23... b5 $1 {[%emt 0:09:48] A strong and thematic move. The idea is that after 24.axb5 a4 25.bxa4 ?xa4 Black has more than sufficient compensation for the pawn, due to the a-file and the weakness of the pawn on c4. An even worse move is 24.cxb5 c6! 25.bxc6+ ?xc6 undermining the knight on d5, and thus the pawn on b3 will fall. However Carlsen adapts very well to the situation, not panicking but instead very much adapting to the circumstance with a realistic defensive move. Despite the momentum having swung in Anand's favour, it is however worth noting that Carlsen's chances of winning the game have also improved. For a while Black now gets chances, the stakes have risen, and any mistake can turn the tables, while without ...b5 both players' margin of error was bigger.} 24. Bc3 $5 {[%emt 0:08:39] Getting out of the way of a black rook soon to be in the b-file, as well as eying the pawn on a5 too.} bxa4 {[%emt 0:03:59]} 25. bxa4 {[%emt 0:00:01]} Kc6 {[%emt 0:00:19]} 26. Kf3 $6 {[%emt 0:07:38] Much praised and combined with 23.?ef6 maybe match winning inaccuracies! Because while objectively Black now has the chance to get the upper hand, Carlsen does seek to put pressure on his opponent by marching forward with his king.} Rdb8 $6 {[%emt 0:21:53] Logical, but letting a big chance slip.} ({With} 26... Be7 $1 {Anand could have given the match a dramatic turn. The game would not at all be decided yet, but Black keeps a stabe edge. It might seem pardoxical that Anand would play ...?e7 earlier in this game, instead of the maybe more obvious looking ...?g7, but there it had the specific point of preventing a white h4. Here however looks just strange, but has the advantage that ?h5 is not with tempo, as indeed would be the case after ...?g7. The tactical problem is that after} 27. Ke4 Bxf6 $1 28. exf6 Bxd5+ $1 29. cxd5+ Kd6 {it's the black king which feels safe and comfortable in the centre, as the d5-pawn provides him excellent cover, while its white counterpart suddenly feels very awkwardly placed. Carlsen certainly has ways to fight on after 26...?e7, and objectively the position most likely is drawn, but he would be facing an uphill struggle, while now certainly all 3 results are in play.}) 27. Ke4 {[%emt 0:02:54]} Rb4 $6 {[%emt 0:03:22] As Anand admitted at the press conference his emotions got the better of him, and he erred first. The stakes do simply not get higher, and the pressure on the players obviously is immense. Anand tries maximising the pressure on Carlsen, but while it does put pressure, the move lacks just a bit in objective quality. The idea is right, the execution however flawed.} (27... Rb3 $1 {is the better move.} {Thus} 28. Rb1 {is logical, but then Black has the pleasant choice of either} ({If} 28. Rd2 {or 28.?d3 then} Bg7 {will start undermining the white centre.} (28... Kb7 $5)) {And} 28... Rb4 $5 {also certainly makes sense, as the white rook obviously is placed worse on b1 than on d1, after White accepts the offered exchange.} (28... Ra3 29. Ra1 Rb3 {with a repetition} ({or} 29... Rxc3 {as an interesting exchange sacrifice.}))) 28. Bxb4 {[%emt 0:00:42]} cxb4 $2 {[%emt 0:00:10] While the least move might be sub-optimal, this one however is a clear mistake. It might look tempting to get the c5-square for either the bishop or even the king, but now with very concrete action, Carlsen manages to prove that Black's plan is too slow.} ({With} 28... axb4 $1 {Black stays very much in the game. The positional compensation with the pair of bishops as well as the the better structure means that e.g. a passive approach like} 29. Ra1 ({It would be more challenging if White plays for a direct f4 with} 29. Nh5 {similar to the game, but after} Rxa4 30. Ra1 Rxa1 31. Rxa1 Bxd5+ $1 32. cxd5+ Kb5 {Black's passed pawns are ready to march forward with a very complicated struggle ahead.}) 29... Bg7 {is very playable for Black, who could even be better.}) 29. Nh5 $1 {[%emt 0:09:58] As always Carlsen is a master in adopting to the circumstances, and immediately jumps at his chance. Black's position does have potential, but by attacking it immediately and with great force it's game, set and match.} Kb7 {[%emt 0:01:49]} 30. f4 {[%emt 0:01:21]} gxf4 {[%emt 0:00:38]} (30... Bd7 $5 {looked a possible figthing chance, but after} 31. f5 Bxa4 32. fxg6 fxg6 33. Nhf6 Bxd1 34. Rxd1 c6 {White do not retreat his knight, when the black pawns indeed would become dangerous, but decides the game with} 35. Nd7 $1 {when the white knights will either block the pawns, or after} cxd5+ 36. cxd5 {the white pawns win the race, as} b3 37. Nxf8 a4 38. Nd7 {the white knight will return in time.}) 31. Nhxf4 {[%emt 0:00:10]} Nxf4 {[%emt 0:00:25]} 32. Nxf4 $1 {[%emt 0:00:58] Again very much to the point. Of course allowing Black to take on c4 gives him connected passed pawns, but keeping up the pace of the attack is of much higher relevance. Now the bishop on e6 is attacked, and after...} Bxc4 {[%emt 0:01:14]} 33. Rd7 $1 {[%emt 0:00:08] ...is the deciding point. The c7-pawn is the target, and when it falls, the whole black position crumbles.} {So Anand tries one last trick:} Ra6 $5 {[%emt 0:05:45] The rook aims for c6, where it protects the weak pawn on c7, as well as the bishop on c4, meaning that e.g. 34.?c1 is parried. It almost works, but White do have one concrete way of breaking through...} ({After} 33... Kc6 {White will simply retreat with} 34. Rd2 {when ?c1 next will decide.}) 34. Nd5 $1 {[%emt 0:01:23]} Rc6 {[%emt 0:01:17]} 35. Rxf7 $1 {[%emt 0:00:51]} Bc5 {[%emt 0:00:38]} 36. Rxc7+ $1 {[%emt 0:03:06] The final blow, netting an extra pawn as well as exchanging the c6-rook that kept the black position together.} Rxc7 {[%emt 0:00:22]} 37. Nxc7 {[%emt 0:00:01]} Kc6 {[%emt 0:03:48]} ({Anand's misfortune is that after} 37... Kxc7 38. Rc1 b3 39. Rxc4 b2 40. Rxc5+ {is check, gaining the decisive tempo allowing ?b5 next, stopping the passed pawn.}) 38. Nb5 $1 {[%emt 0:01:28] Allowing Black 2 connected passed pawns, but correctly judging that White's one passer will prevail.} Bxb5 {[%emt 0:00:22]} 39. axb5+ {[%emt 0:00:07]} Kxb5 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 40. e6 {[%emt 0:00:00]} b3 {[%emt 0:00:00]} 41. Kd3 {[%emt 0:02:22]} Be7 {[%emt 0:01:34]} 42. h4 $1 {[%emt 0:01:29]} a4 {[%emt 0:02:21]} 43. g5 {[%emt 0:00:38]} hxg5 {[%emt 0:00:31]} 44. hxg5 {[%emt 0:00:45]} a3 {[%emt 0:00:09]} 45. Kc3 {[%emt 0:00:55] Stopping the passed black pawns, and despite the fact that 45...?b4+ wins the white rook on e1, what matters is the pawns. 46.?xb3 ?xe1 47.e7 and the pawn queens. Anand had no choice, but to resign the game and thus the match. A very interesting last game. Like in game 9 in Chennai, Anand might have shown how to successfully attack Carlsen, but by doing that he also forced him to display excellent defensive resourcefulness once again netting him a full point!} 1-0 [Event "World-ch Carlsen-Anand +3-1=7"] [Site "Sochi"] [Date "2014.11.20"] [Round "9"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Anand, Viswanathan"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2863"] [BlackElo "2792"] [Annotator "Marin,Mihail"] [PlyCount "39"] [EventDate "2014.11.08"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "12"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [SourceTitle "CBM 164"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2015.01.15"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2015.01.15"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {[%emt 0:00:03]} e5 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 2. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:06]} Nc6 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 3. Bb5 {[%emt 0:00:09]} Nf6 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 4. O-O {[%emt 0:00:09]} Nxe4 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 5. d4 {[%emt 0:00:05]} Nd6 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 6. Bxc6 {[%emt 0:00:07]} dxc6 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 7. dxe5 {[%emt 0:00:20]} Nf5 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 8. Qxd8+ {[%emt 0:00:08]} Kxd8 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 9. h3 {[%emt 0:00:06] This has been Carlsen's constant choice in this match.} Ke8 {[%emt 0:00:10]} ({In the next Berlin game, Anand deviated with} 9... Bd7 $5 {Carlsen,M (2863)-Anand,V (2792) Sochi 2014 CBM 164 [Nielsen,PH] (1-0, 45). From the course of the game this proved an attempt to level the score and, to a certain point, quite a consistent one.}) 10. Nc3 {[%emt 0:00:07]} h5 {[%emt 0:00:09] A logical reaction to White's unmasked intentions to gain kingside space with g2-g4.} ({But the plan of developing the queen's bishop in the fianchetto is possible without paying attention to the kingside, as in the recent game} 10... b6 11. Rd1 Bb7 {Grischuk,A (2797)-Andreikin,D (2722) Baku 2014 CBM 163 [Marin,M] (½-½, 77)}) 11. Ne2 {[%emt 0:00:37]} ({Carlsen is the first to deviate from the previous Berlin game, in which, rather non-typically, his opening preparation was better than Anand's, and quite impressively so!} 11. Bf4 {Carlsen,M (2863)-Anand,V (2792) Sochi 2014 CBM 164 [Kasimdzhanov,R] (½-½, 122)}) 11... b6 {[%emt 0:00:59];1-0 Caruana,F (2801)-Negi,P (2645) Tromso ol (Men) 41st 2014 (3.1) This is a generally useful move in the Berlin Defence. Black prepares to place his queenside pawns on dark squares in order to restrict the enemy bishop and ensure the highest mobility of his light-squared bishop. A good example of what can happen if Black does not stick to this policy is offered by the game} ({The most popular move in this still not that heavily explored position is} 11... Be7 12. Re1 (12. Bg5 {Carlsen,M (2772)-Jakovenko,D (2760) Dortmund 2009 CBM 131 [Mueller,Karsten] (1-0, 49)}) 12... Nh4 13. Nxh4 Bxh4 14. Nd4 Be7 15. Bf4 g5 16. Bh2 Rh6 17. Rad1 a6 {[%csl Rb5][%CAl Gc6c5]} 18. e6 Bxe6 19. Bxc7 c5 20. Nxe6 Rxe6 21. Rxe6 fxe6 22. Be5 $14 {This is the kind of position which may not be too pleasant to play with Black, but does not guarantee White very clear winning chances, Sutovsky,E (2642)-Bacrot,E (2721) Poikovsky 2014 (½-½, 33). Still, it does not look like something one would like to get against Carlsen!}) 12. Rd1 {[%emt 0:04:43] White hurries to take the control over the open file, but this will lead tu unnatural development.} (12. Bf4 c5 13. Rad1 {looks more harmonious, since the king's rook basically belongs on e1, but after} Bb7 14. Ng5 Rh6 {Black managed to regroup in time in McShane,L (2645)-Kramnik,V (2791) London 2010 CBM 140 [Postny,E] (½-½, 139)}) ({The main threat created by the last move is occupying the d4-square with the knight(s). Its immediate occupation would be premature:} 12. Nfd4 Nxd4 13. Nxd4 c5 $1 14. Nb5 Kd7 $1 {[%CAl Gd7c6] This is why White needs controlling the d-file!}) 12... Ba6 $5 {[%emt 0:02:50]} ({If} 12... Bb7 13. Nfd4 Nxd4 14. Nxd4 {White has some chances of retaining the initiative.} Be7 (14... c5 $2 15. Nb5 $16) 15. Bf4 (15. Nf5 Bc8 16. Nxe7 Kxe7 17. Bg5+ Ke6 18. g4 hxg4 19. hxg4 Bb7 20. Kg2 c5+ 21. f3 Rh7 $132 {Volokitin,A (2722)-Hracek,Z (2615) Austria 2013 (½-½, 31)}) 15... Rd8 16. Nf5 Rxd1+ 17. Rxd1 Bc8 18. Nxe7 Kxe7 19. Bg5+ Ke6 20. Bd8 Kxe5 21. Bxc7+ Kf5 22. Bb8 a6 23. Ba7 b5 24. Rd6 Rh6 25. Rd8 Be6 26. b3 Bd5 27. f3 a5 28. Bd4 Re6 {Grischuk,A (2763)-Jakovenko,D (2722) Moscow 2012 (½-½, 87). White retains only a symbolic advantage based on his active pieces. This should not be enough to counter-balance the drawish tendency yielded by the opposite bishops.}) 13. Nf4 {[%emt 0:13:35]} ({With the b5-square over-protected,} 13. Ned4 Nxd4 14. Nxd4 {is not dangerous due to} c5 $1 {for instance:} 15. Nf5 Be2 16. Rd2 Bc4 17. Ne3 Be6 18. Nd5 Rc8 19. b3 c6 20. Ne3 Rd8 21. Rxd8+ Kxd8 22. Bb2 g6 23. Rd1+ Kc7 24. f3 Bh6 25. Kf2 a5 26. a4 b5 $132 {Kurnosov,I (2676)-Karjakin,S (2760) Moscow 2010 CBM 140 [Ftacnik,L] (0-1, 63)}) 13... Bb7 $5 $146 {[%emt 0:06:08] This aparent loss of time is not without logic. After accomplishing the mission of avoiding ?ed4, the bishop was not doing much on a6, being also exposed to a4-a5. The last move prepares its activating with a well-timed ...c6-c5.} (13... Rd8 14. Bd2 (14. Rxd8+ $1 Kxd8 15. e6 fxe6 16. Ne5 $44) 14... Nd4 (14... Bc8 $5) 15. Nxd4 Rxd4 16. a4 Bc8 (16... g5 $1 {[%csl Rf4][%CAl Ga6e2]} 17. a5 gxf4 18. axb6 axb6 19. Rxa6 Bg7 $11 {[%CAl Gd4d1]}) 17. a5 $36 {Dominguez Perez,L (2726)-Ponomariov,R (2741) Leon 2012 (1-0, 66)}) 14. e6 {[%emt 0:16:00] White cannot achieve much with such a radical move while his development is incomplete as yet. But this mainly means that Anand's novelty was a good antidote to 13.?d1.} ({If} 14. b3 {, hoping to catch up in development, Black can start fighting for kingside space:} Be7 15. Bb2 (15. e6 g5 {is similar.}) 15... g5 $1 16. e6 Rh6 $1 (16... f6 $6 17. Ng6 Rh6 18. Nxe7 Nxe7 19. h4 $36 {Black is weak on the dark squares.}) 17. exf7+ Kxf7 18. Ne2 (18. Ne5+ Kg8) 18... c5 $13) 14... Bd6 {[%emt 0:01:20] The simplest solution. The best way of maintaining the lead in development is... making a developing move!} ({Black is not prepared for the over-ambitious} 14... f6 $2 {, hoping to win the e6-pawn:} 15. Rd7 Bd6 16. Ng6 Rg8 17. Bf4 $1 {Suddenly, Black cannot hold his position anymore.} Bc8 18. g4 $1 hxg4 19. hxg4 Nh6 20. Bxd6 Bxd7 21. exd7+ Kf7 {The last hope for avoiding material losses:} 22. Bxc7 Kxg6 23. Nd4 $1 Rad8 24. Bxd8 Rxd8 25. Ne6 $18 {Ironically, it is the king's position that dooms Black. But the king HAD to capture the knight on d6...}) ({There is no clear refutation to} 14... fxe6 {White surely has a strong initiative for the pawn, but Black's ability to defend his centre with the help of the king should not be underestimated, for instance:} 15. Ng6 Rg8 16. Bf4 c5 17. Ng5 Bd6 18. Rd3 Kd7 19. Rad1 Bd5 (19... h4 $5) 20. b3 Rae8 {Black has completed his development and the dangers are not too obvious.} 21. c4 Ba8 22. Nf7 (22. g4 Nd4 $15) 22... Nd4 23. Rxd4 {Less effective than it may look at first sight.} cxd4 24. Rxd4 e5 $3 {A strong defence, clearing the e-file for the rook.} 25. Bxe5 Kc8 26. Bxd6 (26. Nxd6+ cxd6 27. Bxd6 Re4 {[%CAl Gg8d8]} 28. Rxe4 Bxe4 29. Nf4 Kd7 $15) 26... Re1+ $1 {This is the point! The rook escapes the fork with gain of time, using the open e-file.} 27. Kh2 cxd6 28. Nxd6+ Kb8 29. Nf4 h4 $13 {White may be able to prove his compensation for the exchange, but only Black could play for a win already. WHite will face problems defending both his wings against the attack of the enemy rook(s).}) 15. exf7+ {[%emt 0:10:08]} ({Keeping the tension with} 15. Re1 {could already be met with} f6 {(not the only move, but quite an ambitious one, endangering the far advanced pawn).}) 15... Kxf7 {[%emt 0:00:16][%CAl Ga8e8,Gh5h4,Gc6c5] Black is well developed and has a clear plan of strengthening his position. Little wonder that, behind in development but leading on the score table, Carlsen decides to force a draw.} 16. Ng5+ {[%emt 0:00:12]} Kf6 {[%emt 0:00:16]} 17. Ne4+ {[%emt 0:00:10]} Kf7 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 18. Ng5+ {[%emt 0:01:32] 92} Kf6 {[%emt 0:00:50]} 19. Ne4+ {[%emt 0:00:12]} Kf7 {[%emt 0:00:13]} 20. Ng5+ {[%emt 0:00:06]} 1/2-1/2 [Event "World-ch Carlsen-Anand +3-1=7"] [Site "Sochi"] [Date "2014.11.17"] [Round "7"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Anand, Viswanathan"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2863"] [BlackElo "2792"] [Annotator "Kasimdzhanov,Rustam"] [PlyCount "243"] [EventDate "2014.11.08"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "12"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [SourceTitle "CBM 164"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2015.01.15"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2015.01.15"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {[%emt 0:00:04]} e5 {[%emt 0:00:09]} 2. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:05]} Nc6 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 3. Bb5 {[%emt 0:00:09]} Nf6 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 4. O-O {[%emt 0:00:10]} Nxe4 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 5. d4 {[%emt 0:00:06] After a very sucessful Anti-Berlin in game 2, Magnus switches to the main line.} Nd6 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 6. Bxc6 {[%emt 0:00:15]} dxc6 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 7. dxe5 {[%emt 0:00:12]} Nf5 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 8. Qxd8+ {[%emt 0:00:09]} Kxd8 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 9. h3 {[%emt 0:00:09]} Ke8 {[%emt 0:00:19]} 10. Nc3 {[%emt 0:03:15]} h5 {[%emt 0:00:09]} 11. Bf4 {[%emt 0:01:20]} Be7 {[%emt 0:00:16]} 12. Rad1 {[%emt 0:02:15]} Be6 {[%emt 0:01:04] The very main line these days; Black is solid, but does not usually get many chances to win the game, and has to know his defences quite exactly.} 13. Ng5 {[%emt 0:00:57]} Rh6 {[%emt 0:00:52]} 14. g3 {[%emt 0:01:30]} (14. Rfe1 {is the main alternative, played by Vishy himself. Black had to suffer to get a draw after} Bb4 15. g4 hxg4 16. hxg4 Ne7 17. Nxe6 Rxe6 18. Kg2 Bxc3 19. bxc3 Rd8 20. Rxd8+ Kxd8 21. Rh1 Nd5 22. Bg3 g5 23. c4 Nc3 24. Kf3 Rg6 25. a3 Na4 26. Ke4 Nc5+ 27. Kf5 Ne6 28. Rh8+ Kd7 29. c3 Ng7+ 30. Ke4 Ne6 31. f3 c5 32. Bf2 a6 33. Be3 b6 {in the game Anand,V (2770)-Karjakin,S (2766) Khanty-Mansiysk 2014.}) 14... Bxg5 {[%emt 0:04:25] An introduction to the very forced sequence.} 15. Bxg5 {[%emt 0:00:08]} Rg6 {[%emt 0:00:11]} 16. h4 {[%emt 0:00:57]} f6 {[%emt 0:00:29]} 17. exf6 {[%emt 0:00:21]} gxf6 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 18. Bf4 {[%emt 0:00:10]} Nxh4 {[%emt 0:00:41]} 19. f3 {[%emt 0:02:20]} Rd8 {[%emt 0:00:45]} 20. Kf2 {[%emt 0:01:08]} Rxd1 {[%emt 0:00:41]} 21. Nxd1 {[%emt 0:00:19]} Nf5 {[%emt 0:00:09]} 22. Rh1 {[%emt 0:00:48]} Bxa2 $1 {[%emt 0:01:15] The point.} ({After} 22... Ng7 23. Ne3 {[%CAl Ge3g2,Gg2h4] the rook on g6 is in serious trouble.}) 23. Rxh5 {[%emt 0:00:13]} (23. b3 $2 Bb1) 23... Be6 {[%emt 0:00:12]} 24. g4 {[%emt 0:00:38]} (24. Bxc7 Rh6 {is just a draw.}) 24... Nd6 {[%emt 0:05:03]} 25. Rh7 {[%emt 0:01:18]} Nf7 {[%emt 0:10:27] Only this move is new, but in fact White's initiative is still quite nasty.} ({The previous game saw} 25... f5 26. g5 (26. Rxc7 $1 {might be what Magnus had in mind} Nb5 27. gxf5 Bxf5 28. Rxb7 Bxc2 29. Ne3 {there is not much material left, but Black is in trouble because of his weak king and White's marching f-pawn}) 26... Nf7 27. Rh5 Rg8 28. Kg3 Rh8 {led to an eventual draw in Giri,A (2768)-Radjabov,T (2726) Tashkent 2014.}) 26. Ne3 {[%emt 0:01:45] Black is a pawn up, but his position suffers from a serious lack of coordination; especially the rook on g6 is out of play.} Kd8 {[%emt 0:08:54]} 27. Nf5 {[%emt 0:01:47]} c5 {[%emt 0:05:33]} 28. Ng3 {[%emt 0:01:52] Around here Vishy sank into deep thought; his position is quite precarious.} Ne5 $1 {[%emt 0:27:31] When played, this looked like a major concession, but now I realise that, at least practically speaking, this must be the correct choice. Alternatives look scary over the board:} (28... Kd7 29. Nh5 Kc6 30. Be3 (30. Bxc7 Kxc7 31. Nf4 Rh6 32. Nxe6+ Kd6 33. Rxf7 Kxe6 34. Rxb7 Rh2+ 35. Ke3 Rxc2 $11) 30... Ba2 $3 {but clearly, nobody can see such lines over the board :)}) 29. Rh8+ {[%emt 0:24:53]} Rg8 {[%emt 0:09:25]} 30. Bxe5 {[%emt 0:04:26]} fxe5 {[%emt 0:00:16]} 31. Rh5 {[%emt 0:00:08]} Bxg4 $1 {[%emt 0:05:05]} (31... Rf8 32. Ke3 Bd5 33. Ne4 Bxe4 34. Kxe4 {might be just lost} Rf4+ 35. Ke3 Rb4 36. Rxe5 Rxb2 37. Rxc5) 32. fxg4 {[%emt 0:00:31]} Rxg4 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 33. Rxe5 {[%emt 0:00:30]} b6 {[%emt 0:02:06] I spent some time looking at this ending; most probably it's drawn; White's only chance is to go for c4, ?d5 and ?e7, but before that Magnus decides to shuffle around for a while.} 34. Ne4 {[%emt 0:00:26]} Rh4 {[%emt 0:01:28]} 35. Ke2 {[%emt 0:00:25]} Rh6 {[%emt 0:04:13]} 36. b3 {[%emt 0:01:48]} Kd7 {[%emt 0:00:31]} 37. Kd2 {[%emt 0:01:42]} Kc6 {[%emt 0:01:53]} 38. Nc3 {[%emt 0:02:15]} a6 {[%emt 0:03:01]} 39. Re4 {[%emt 0:00:49]} Rh2+ {[%emt 0:00:48]} 40. Kc1 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Rh1+ {[%emt 0:00:00]} 41. Kb2 {[%emt 0:00:34]} Rh6 {[%emt 0:04:49]} 42. Nd1 {[%emt 0:01:06]} Rg6 {[%emt 0:05:55]} 43. Ne3 {[%emt 0:00:34]} Rh6 {[%emt 0:01:09]} 44. Re7 {[%emt 0:04:29]} Rh2 {[%emt 0:02:44]} 45. Re6+ {[%emt 0:00:58]} Kb7 {[%emt 0:01:36]} 46. Kc3 {[%emt 0:12:38]} Rh4 {[%emt 0:04:57]} 47. Kb2 {[%emt 0:04:24]} (47. Kd3 {was a more direct try} Rd4+ (47... a5 48. c4 c6 49. Re7+) 48. Ke2 a5 49. c4 {and now Black has a choice:} Rh4 (49... c6 50. Nf5 Rf4 51. Re7+ Kb8 $1 (51... Ka6 52. Nd6 a4 53. Nc8) 52. Ne3 Rh4 53. Kd3 Rh3 54. Ke4 Rg3 55. Kf4 Rh3 {and suprisingly, even this might not be enough for a win:} 56. Rg7 b5 57. Re7 Rh2 58. Ke5 Rd2 59. Rg7 Re2 60. Ke4 Rb2) 50. Kd3 Rh3 51. Ke4 Rh4+ 52. Ke5 Rh2 53. Re7 Rb2 54. Nd5 Rxb3 55. Rxc7+ Ka6 $1 (55... Kb8 56. Kd6) 56. Rg7 a4 57. Nc7+ Ka5 58. Nd5 Ka6 {with a draw.}) 47... Rh2 {[%emt 0:02:33]} 48. Nd5 {[%emt 0:02:15]} Rd2 {[%emt 0:03:02]} 49. Nf6 {[%emt 0:01:20]} Rf2 {[%emt 0:00:12]} 50. Kc3 {[%emt 0:01:28]} Rf4 {[%emt 0:06:27]} 51. Ne4 {[%emt 0:04:36]} Rh4 {[%emt 0:05:58]} 52. Nf2 {[%emt 0:00:59]} Rh2 {[%emt 0:01:05]} 53. Rf6 {[%emt 0:00:29]} Rh7 {[%emt 0:02:15]} 54. Nd3 {[%emt 0:00:55]} Rh3 {[%emt 0:05:12]} 55. Kd2 {[%emt 0:00:45]} Rh2+ {[%emt 0:00:07]} 56. Rf2 {[%emt 0:00:26]} Rh4 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 57. c4 {[%emt 0:00:50]} Rh3 {[%emt 0:02:02]} 58. Kc2 {[%emt 0:00:37]} Rh7 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 59. Nb2 {[%emt 0:00:59]} Rh5 {[%emt 0:02:58]} 60. Re2 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Rg5 {[%emt 0:00:00]} 61. Nd1 {[%emt 0:04:31]} b5 $5 {[%emt 0:04:54] Vishy changes his tactics and does not even let the knight on to d5 any more.} 62. Nc3 {[%emt 0:02:01]} (62. Nb2 Kb6 63. Nd3 c6 64. Kc3 Rg3 {does not change much.}) 62... c6 {[%emt 0:01:37]} 63. Ne4 {[%emt 0:03:16]} Rh5 {[%emt 0:00:46]} 64. Nf6 {[%emt 0:01:35]} Rg5 {[%emt 0:06:30]} 65. Re7+ {[%emt 0:15:33]} Kb6 {[%emt 0:00:16]} 66. Nd7+ {[%emt 0:12:36]} Ka5 {[%emt 0:00:12]} 67. Re4 {[%emt 0:01:29]} Rg2+ {[%emt 0:08:09]} 68. Kc1 {[%emt 0:02:59]} (68. Kc3 b4+ 69. Kd3 Rd2+ $1 70. Kxd2 {would have a picturesque finale.}) 68... Rg1+ {[%emt 0:01:10]} 69. Kd2 {[%emt 0:00:23]} Rg2+ {[%emt 0:00:34]} 70. Ke1 {[%emt 0:00:37]} bxc4 $1 {[%emt 0:08:48]} 71. Rxc4 {[%emt 0:01:24]} Rg3 {[%emt 0:02:22]} 72. Nxc5 {[%emt 0:00:45]} Kb5 {[%emt 0:00:06] A very nice idea. White's knight on c5 is not stable, so he can't hold on to his last pawn much longer.} 73. Rc2 {[%emt 0:00:20]} a5 {[%emt 0:02:54]} 74. Kf2 {[%emt 0:03:41]} Rh3 {[%emt 0:00:17]} 75. Rc1 {[%emt 0:00:12]} Kb4 {[%emt 0:00:31]} 76. Ke2 {[%emt 0:00:36]} Rc3 {[%emt 0:00:56]} 77. Nd3+ {[%emt 0:01:22]} Kxb3 {[%emt 0:00:07] And the remaining moves can be skipped with a clear conscience.} 78. Ra1 {[%emt 0:00:06]} Kc4 {[%emt 0:02:29]} 79. Nf2 {[%emt 0:02:24]} Kb5 {[%emt 0:00:30]} 80. Rb1+ {[%emt 0:00:22]} Kc4 {[%emt 0:00:59]} 81. Ne4 {[%emt 0:00:31]} Ra3 {[%emt 0:00:38]} 82. Nd2+ {[%emt 0:00:30]} Kd5 {[%emt 0:00:19]} 83. Rh1 {[%emt 0:00:13]} a4 {[%emt 0:00:34]} 84. Rh5+ {[%emt 0:00:06]} Kd4 {[%emt 0:00:51]} 85. Rh4+ {[%emt 0:00:13]} Kc5 {[%emt 0:00:00]} 86. Kd1 {[%emt 0:00:23]} Kb5 {[%emt 0:01:02]} 87. Kc2 {[%emt 0:00:27]} Rg3 {[%emt 0:01:37]} 88. Ne4 {[%emt 0:00:23]} Rg2+ {[%emt 0:00:06]} 89. Kd3 {[%emt 0:00:07]} a3 {[%emt 0:00:11]} 90. Nc3+ {[%emt 0:00:14]} Kb6 {[%emt 0:00:08]} 91. Ra4 {[%emt 0:00:24]} a2 {[%emt 0:00:13]} 92. Nxa2 {[%emt 0:00:10]} Rg3+ {[%emt 0:00:06]} 93. Kc2 {[%emt 0:00:06]} Rg2+ {[%emt 0:00:05]} 94. Kb3 {[%emt 0:00:05]} Rg3+ {[%emt 0:00:14]} 95. Nc3 {[%emt 0:00:05]} Rh3 {[%emt 0:00:14]} 96. Rb4+ {[%emt 0:00:12]} Kc7 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 97. Rg4 {[%emt 0:00:06]} Rh7 {[%emt 0:00:33]} 98. Kc4 {[%emt 0:00:06]} Rf7 {[%emt 0:00:15]} 99. Rg5 {[%emt 0:00:28]} Kb6 {[%emt 0:00:37]} 100. Na4+ {[%emt 0:00:09]} Kc7 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 101. Kc5 {[%emt 0:00:10]} Kd7 {[%emt 0:00:37]} 102. Kb6 {[%emt 0:00:59]} Rf1 {[%emt 0:00:19]} 103. Nc5+ {[%emt 0:00:08]} Ke7 {[%emt 0:00:11]} 104. Kxc6 {[%emt 0:00:08]} Rd1 {[%emt 0:00:08]} 105. Rg6 {[%emt 0:00:48]} Kf7 {[%emt 0:00:19]} 106. Rh6 {[%emt 0:00:16]} Rg1 {[%emt 0:00:13]} 107. Kd5 {[%emt 0:00:18]} Rg5+ {[%emt 0:00:08]} 108. Kd4 {[%emt 0:00:05]} Rg6 {[%emt 0:00:09]} 109. Rh1 {[%emt 0:00:20]} Rg2 {[%emt 0:00:23]} 110. Ne4 {[%emt 0:00:10]} Ra2 {[%emt 0:00:23]} 111. Rf1+ {[%emt 0:00:17]} Ke7 {[%emt 0:00:13]} 112. Nc3 {[%emt 0:00:10]} Rh2 {[%emt 0:00:33]} 113. Nd5+ {[%emt 0:00:06]} Kd6 {[%emt 0:00:10]} 114. Rf6+ {[%emt 0:00:06]} Kd7 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 115. Nf4 {[%emt 0:01:37]} Rh1 {[%emt 0:00:17]} 116. Rg6 {[%emt 0:00:25]} Rd1+ {[%emt 0:00:13]} 117. Nd3 {[%emt 0:00:08]} Ke7 {[%emt 0:00:23]} 118. Ra6 {[%emt 0:00:29]} Kd7 {[%emt 0:00:12]} 119. Ke4 {[%emt 0:00:14]} Ke7 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 120. Rc6 {[%emt 0:02:12]} Kd7 {[%emt 0:00:14]} 121. Rc1 {[%emt 0:00:07]} Rxc1 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 122. Nxc1 {[%emt 0:00:02]} 1/2-1/2 [Event "World-ch Carlsen-Karjakin +1-1=10"] [Site "New York"] [Date "2016.11.14"] [Round "3"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2857"] [BlackElo "2769"] [Annotator "Seirawan,Yasser"] [PlyCount "156"] [EventDate "2016.11.11"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "12"] [EventCountry "USA"] [SourceTitle "CBM 176"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2017.01.17"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2017.01.17"] [SourceQuality "1"] {Match play is all about the result. Would have, could have, should have, explanations all fall before the final score. To get a result a player has to first establish the real battleground: In which lines of opening play will the match be decided? Match play competition is also an exchange of information. The players start by making informed, educated guesses about their opponent's primary defense, their secondary defense and so on. A player will play their primary defense until a disaster before switching to a back-up defense. For Game One Magnus chose the Trompovsky Opening and in the process learned precisely nothing about Sergey's primary Queen Pawn defense. In a similar vein, Sergey learned something about Magnus's primary defense to the king pawn opening but by opting out with the safe: 6.d3, instead of 6.?e1, in a Ruy Lopez, he didn't learn enough. The first pair of games were soft, two draws where the balance was barely disturbed. The match was now reduced to a ten game match. Would Game Three finally produce the clash that chess fans were anxious for?} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 {Amongst the elite king pawn opening players the Berlin Defense has been a huge problem. How to get any advantage as well as how to get play?} 4. O-O {The other main try is:} (4. d3 {which can be well met by either the active:} Bc5 {as well as:} (4... d6 {transposing into a Classical Ruy where White has committed himself with the d2-d3, tempo.})) 4... Nxe4 5. Re1 {Disappointing. Okay the "Berlin Endgame" that appears after:} (5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 {may not be everybody's cup of tea but the imbalances can lead to rich strategic games.}) 5... Nd6 6. Nxe5 Be7 7. Bf1 Nxe5 8. Rxe5 O-O 9. d4 Bf6 10. Re2 {Stop the presses! Novelty of the year! Mmm, no. The text has been chosen a few times over the "standard" move:} (10. Re1 {Presumably the difference being that when Black readies a rook swap down the e-file, recapturing on the e2-square is to be preferred. Hmm, such a nuanced difference strikes me as insufficient for a pull.}) 10... b6 ({Instead, I'll surmise that against the standard move} 10... Nf5 {Magnus had planned to advance his d-pawn:} 11. d5 $5 b6 12. c4 $5 Ba6 13. Na3 c6 14. Rd2 {is a line of play where the rook might find a purpose along the second rank. Personally, I'm skeptical about White's play as it feels artificial.}) 11. Re1 {Having coaxed Black into playing: ... b7-b6, the e2-rook moves yet again, this time to avoid: ...?c8-a6, which would favor Black with a bishop trade.} Re8 12. Bf4 $1 Rxe1 13. Qxe1 Qe7 (13... Bxd4 $2 14. Bxd6 cxd6 15. Qe4 Bxb2 16. Qxa8 Qf8 17. Nc3 Bxa1 18. Nd5 Bf6 19. Nxf6+ gxf6 20. Qxa7 {would leave Black's structure in tatters.}) 14. Nc3 Bb7 15. Qxe7 Bxe7 16. a4 a6 {"Before the Endgame, the Gods have placed the Middle-game. And I thank those Gods." So said Tal. The position at hand queries this adorable quote. It feels as if the players have magically avoided a middle-game and embraced an Ending. Perhaps White has a smidgen of something but it sure feels balanced to me.} 17. g3 {Perhaps angling for an opportunity to play: ?f1-h3, hitting the d7-pawn at an inconvenient moment.} g5 {An active rejoinder to be sure that helps Black resolve the problem of his misplaced d6-knight. The downside to this pleasant move is that the f5-square is weakened. Magnus was quick to pounce.} 18. Bxd6 $1 Bxd6 19. Bg2 $1 Bxg2 20. Kxg2 {Imperceptibly after these trades White does have something in the position. If he can maneuver his knight to the f5-square, back it up with his g-pawn, he might yet find a serious pull.} f5 $1 {Nipping the idea in the bud before it could take shape. Not as convincing would be:} (20... Re8 21. Nd5 Re2 22. Ne3 $1 Rd2 23. Rd1 Rxd1 24. Nxd1 {when White has the more agreeable play.}) 21. Nd5 Kf7 22. Ne3 Kf6 {Sergey has "met" Magnus well and appears to be closing in on a boring draw.} 23. Nc4 Bf8 24. Re1 Rd8 $6 {A "mysterious rook move" an echo of Game Two where Magnus played: ?a8-c8, backing up a c7-pawn. I suppose the idea is to discourage: ?c4-e5, by preemptively defending the d7-pawn. Very sophisticated indeed. The brutes among us might not have been so caring:} (24... d5 25. Ne5 Bd6 $11 {strikes me as just fine for Black.}) 25. f4 gxf4 26. gxf4 b5 27. axb5 axb5 28. Ne3 c6 29. Kf3 {It is easy to get lulled to sleep and imagine that nothing is happening but the swap of four pawns has opened up the a-file and the g-file ensuring play for the rooks. On closer inspection a problem has crept into Black's position: The f5-pawn is a greater target than any White pawn. White is ready to seize one of the open files and prepare an invasion. White is now spoiled for choice.} Ra8 30. Rg1 Ra2 $5 {A highly optimistic move to be sure. My concern is that it could be badly timed. The threat of: ?g4-g5, picking off the f5-pawn needs to be taken seriously.} ({Therefore} 30... Bh6 $1 31. Rg3 d5 $1 32. Rh3 Bg7 $1 {is a nice way to keep White at bay. If White persists in his attempts to win the f5-pawn he could well miss the mark:} 33. Rh5 Ra2 34. b3 (34. Rxf5+ Kg6 35. Rg5+ Kf7 {Black will win back his pawn.}) 34... h6 35. Rxf5+ Kg6 {White has managed to tangle up his own pieces.}) 31. b3 c5 $2 {Sergey cracks. Up to now, nothing has gone seriously wrong but the text is born from excessive worry. The threat of: ?g1-g5xf5+, is stronger than its execution. Upon cold reflection the best was the simple:} (31... d5 $1 32. Rg5 Ke6 $1 33. Rxf5 Bg7 {with a variation similar to the previous note. Black's counter-attack against the d4-pawn gives sufficient counterplay for holding the draw:} 34. Rh5 Bxd4 35. Rh6+ Kd7 36. Rxh7+ Ke6 {seems to be finely balanced.}) 32. Rg8 $1 Kf7 33. Rg2 cxd4 34. Nxf5 d3 35. cxd3 Ra1 $5 {When I don't understand a move I tend to reward it with a (!?) mark as a sign of respect for the player's sophistication. In truth this one is a bit beyond my comprehension. Sergey has jettisoned a pawn for active play or what the real cognoscenti would call "dynamic factors." Cool! So why not play actively?} ({Direct, good and compelling was} 35... Ra3 $1 36. Rb2 Bb4 $1 37. Ne3 Bc3 38. Rb1 b4 {when thanks to Black's active pieces it would be a real technical challenge to win this one.}) 36. Nd4 b4 37. Rg5 Rb1 38. Rf5+ Ke8 39. Rb5 {From an arid desert Magnus has managed to find an oasis. He has consolidated his extra pawn, now, remarkably, he has created real winning chances. Unlike the previous note, the f8-bishop is now passive as well as a potential tactical target.} Rf1+ 40. Ke4 Re1+ 41. Kf5 Rd1 42. Re5+ {By no means a bad move. But around these parts Magnus missed a more incisive continuation:} (42. Rb8+ $1 Ke7 (42... Kf7 $6 43. Nf3 $1 $16) 43. Ke4 Re1+ 44. Kd5 Rd1 45. Nf5+ Kf7 46. d4 Rd3 {when appearances can be deceiving. At first blush it seems that there has been a lot of to-and-froing without much happening. In truth, things are going great for White. All his pieces are active and his once dormant d-pawn and f-pawns are playing fine supporting roles. This is laid bare after:} 47. Rd8 $1 Rxb3 48. Rxd7+ Kg6 49. Ng3 Re3 50. f5+ Kg5 (50... Kh6 51. Rf7 $1 {Did I mention the f8-bishop could become a target?} Re8 52. Ne4 {White is close to winning now.}) 51. Ne4+ Kf4 52. Rxh7 b3 53. Nc5 {with good winning chances for White.}) 42... Kf7 43. Rd5 Rxd3 44. Rxd7+ Ke8 45. Rd5 {Trading off the d-pawns has benefitted Black. With the reduced material Black need only make a few more pawn swaps and he will be home free to make a draw.} Rh3 46. Re5+ Kf7 {Natural. But likely wrong. Black's king is more of a target on the kingside than a stern blockader. For reasons as we will see in the game, there is less danger for Black's king on the d7-square. In addition covering the c6-square is important.} (46... Kd7 47. Re2 Bc5 48. Ne6 Be7 {when White has a hard task to convert ahead of him.}) 47. Re2 Bg7 48. Nc6 $1 {This is the rub. White defends the b3-pawn indirectly by creating a mating net against Black's king.} Rh5+ {Doubtlessly played with a heavy heart. Sergey had covertly eyeballed the b3-pawn dreaming that it would soon be his! Not so:} (48... Rxb3 $4 49. Nd8+ Kf8 50. Ne6+ Kf7 51. Ng5+ {with a forced checkmate to follow.}) 49. Kg4 Rc5 50. Nd8+ $1 {Obviously, White wants to keep the game alive.} ({Again, a trade of pawns} 50. Nxb4 $2 Rb5 51. Re4 h5+ 52. Kf3 Bf8 53. Nd3 Rxb3 {is helpful to Black's cause.}) 50... Kg6 51. Ne6 h5+ 52. Kf3 Rc3+ 53. Ke4 Bf6 54. Re3 h4 55. h3 $2 {A careless slip when once again Magnus was close to tightenng the noose.} ({An opportunity was present to include the king into the attack by forcibly vacating the f5-square:} 55. Nf8+ $1 Kf7 56. Nd7 {threatening a winning king and pawn ending.} Rc2 (56... Bd8 57. Ne5+ Ke6 58. Nd3 $1 Bb6 59. Rh3 $1) 57. Kf5 $1 Bg7 58. h3 {is a superior version of the game.}) 55... Rc1 56. Nf8+ Kf7 57. Nd7 Ke6 $1 {The difference between the two lines is now clear: White is prevented from playing: ?e4-f5.} 58. Nb6 Rd1 59. f5+ Kf7 60. Nc4 Rd4+ 61. Kf3 Bg5 $2 {After fighting so tenaciously Sergey makes an egregious slip which endangers all his hard work. With the draw nearly in sight the simple method was also a direct one, keep attacking the f5-pawn:} (61... Rd5 $1 62. Ke2 Kg7 $1 63. Rf3 {and only now} Bg5 $1 {Black's king is ready to sweep away the f5-pawn and secure the coveted draw.}) 62. Re4 Rd3+ 63. Kg4 {And just like that Magnus is back in business.} Rg3+ {In such positions, there is the "human element" of wanting to eliminate all of White's pawns at the cost of a bishop and to play ?&? versus a ?,?&? position. Where possible, you calculate where such an escape might lie. At first blush there appears to be an "easy" draw in view:} (63... Bf6 64. Re6 Rg3+ 65. Kf4 Bg5+ 66. Ke4 Rxh3 67. Ne5+ Kf8 68. f6 Rxb3 {Exactly at this moment, Black is a happy camper. Just one move away from the goal!} 69. Kf5 (69. f7 $1 Be7 70. Rg6 $1 $18) 69... Bxf6 $1 70. Kxf6 Kg8 {Mission accomplished. A draw is in the offing. How cruel is the scorpion's sting. Go back to move sixty-nine and play: 69.f7! ?e7 70.?g6!, instead. When Black is just lost. Yikes.}) 64. Kh5 Be7 65. Ne5+ Kf6 66. Ng4+ $1 {During the time that this phase of the game was being played I was having dinner at the Closing of the "Showdown" in Saint Louis tournament. In my nearest vicinity was Fabiano, Hikaru and Vishy. We all scrunched around Fabi's smart-phone to follow the cut and thrust. In rapid-fire succession, one defense after another was defeated. The verdict of the table was clear: Magnus was now winning. Our mirth attracted the attention of Veselin Topalov as well. I was beginning to feel out-rated but followed their analysis closely.} Kf7 {The plausible alternative:} (66... Kxf5 {was defeated by the important zwischenzug:} 67. Re5+ $1 Kf4 68. Rxe7 Rxh3 69. Rf7+ $1 {when Black's king is forced to go into the path of his rook.} Kg3 70. Nf2 $1 ({while} 70. Rb7 {is also good, the text is much stronger}) 70... Rh2 71. Ne4+ Kh3 72. Rf3+ Kg2 73. Rf2+ {forcing the trade of rooks is the easiest win.}) 67. Re6 Rxh3 68. Ne5+ {Black is now forced to part with his bishop.} Kg7 69. Rxe7+ Kf6 70. Nc6 Kxf5 $2 {A move the dinner table had rejected. The conversation had centered on a study-like position that arises after:} (70... Rc3 $3 71. Re6+ Kxf5 72. Nd4+ Kf4 73. Kxh4 Rd3 $1 {The "collective wisdom" of the table was having a devil of a time here. The analysis continued:} 74. Ne2+ Kf3 $1 (74... Kf5 $4 75. Rb6 $18) 75. Nc1 Rd1 $3 (75... Rc3 76. Re1 Kf2 77. Rd1 {Black's king is cut-off from the queenside and White's king will march to victory.}) 76. Rc6 Ke3 77. Rc2 {At this moment, the table was reasonably sure that the game was won, as again, Black's king appears to be cut-off and another victorious white king march was in the offing. Vishy forced us away from our dinners with another offering:} Rd2 $1 78. Rc6 Rd1 {and no matter how we tried, the win, if it exists proved elusive.}) 71. Na5 $6 {Missing a golden opportunity to clinch the game:} (71. Re1 $3 {comes with splendid timing. The text renders any tricks based on: ...?h3-h1, and pushing the h4-pawn harmless. Secondly, White is ready to play: ?a1-b1, and then collect the b4-pawn. Finally, the king on the h5-square is poised to keep an eye on the h4-pawn. Play might continue:} Kf4 ({This time, the move} 71... Rc3 $2 {has a cruel failing:} 72. Ne7+ $1 {and Black's king is forced to move into a fatal fork.}) 72. Rf1+ $1 Ke4 73. Na5 $1 {winning. The key difference is that in this line of play White has managed to bring his rook to the first rank with gain of tempo. Black is unable to prevent future pawn pluckings.}) 71... Rh1 72. Rb7 $4 {Tragedy after a supreme effort. With this, the win definitely slipped away. Last chances were still to be had:} (72. Rf7+ $1 Ke6 73. Rf2 $1 h3 74. Kh4 Ra1 {The plausible alternative:} (74... h2 $2 75. Ra2 $1 {is a rather pretty picture}) 75. Nb7 Ra3 76. Rd2 $1 Ke5 77. Nc5 h2 78. Rxh2 Kd5 79. Rc2 $1 {At long last, White is winning.}) 72... Ra1 $1 {Sergey seizes his chance to save the game with a study-like finish:} 73. Rb5+ Kf4 $1 {Otherwise the h4-pawn is removed from the board.} 74. Rxb4+ {What else? White cannot capture the h4-pawn:} (74. Kxh4 $4 Rh1# {is spine chilling.}) 74... Kg3 $1 75. Rg4+ Kf2 76. Nc4 h3 77. Rh4 Kg3 78. Rg4+ Kf2 {Oh my what a game! The collective wisdom of the table was that if Magnus had won this game 'out of nothing' Sergey would have lost a lot of confidence, conversely thanks to this incredible save we now have a great match in store.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "Dortmund SuperGM 37th"] [Site "Dortmund"] [Date "2009.07.02"] [Round "1"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Jakovenko, Dmitrij"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2772"] [BlackElo "2760"] [Annotator "Mueller,Karsten"] [PlyCount "97"] [EventDate "2009.07.02"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "GER"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 131"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2009.07.15"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2009.07.15"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. Nc3 Ke8 10. h3 h5 {A lot has been tried at this point: An dieser Stelle wurde schon sehr viel probiert.} (10... a5 {has been the most frequently played move, followed by wird am häufigsten gespielt, gefolgt von}) (10... Be7 {and und}) (10... Ne7) 11. Ne2 Be7 12. Bg5 Be6 13. Nf4 Bd5 14. Bxe7 Kxe7 15. Ng5 Nd4 16. Rad1 Ne6 17. Ngxe6 Bxe6 {Objectively speaking, the position should still be drawish, but in practice White has certainly the better chances because of his slight strategic initiative. Objektiv sollte die Stellung innerhalb der Remisbreite sein, aber in der Praxis hat Weiß sicher auf grund seiner leichten strategischen Initiative die besseren Chancen.} 18. h4 a5 19. a3 a4 20. Rfe1 g6 21. f3 Ra5 22. c3 Rb5 23. Re2 Ra8 24. Rd4 Raa5 25. Kf2 Rxe5 26. Rxe5 Rxe5 27. Rxa4 Rb5 28. b4 c5 29. Ra7 cxb4 30. cxb4 Kd7 $2 {Jakovenko wastes valuable time, because his king ends up going to d6 any way. Jakovenko verliert wertvolle Zeit, weil sein König letztlich doch nach d6 zieht.} (30... Bc4 {intending mit der Idee} 31. Ke3 Kd6 {(Lilov auf chessbase.com) nebst c7 ist aktiver und remisiert leicht, z.B. (Lilov auf chessbase.com) and then c7 is more active and draws easily, e.g.} 32. Kd4 (32. Ra8 c5 33. Rc8 b6 34. Kd2 Kd7 $11) 32... Rf5 33. g3 Bf1 $11 {because denn} 34. Rxb7 $2 {runs into läuft in} g5 35. hxg5 h4) 31. Ne2 Rb6 32. Ke3 Bc4 33. Nd4 Kd6 34. Ra5 Ra6 $2 {Without the rook Black does not have the counterplay.the side with the knight is always aiming for complete control, so that the slower manoeuvres of the knight can be executed. In addition rook endings have a very high drawing tendencey and the defensive possibility of liquidating to a rook ending is now lost. Ohne den Turm fehlt Schwarz das Gegenspiel. Die Springerpartei strebt ja stets nach voller Kontrolle, damit das langsamere Manövrieren des Speingers durchgeführt werden kann. Außerdem haben Turmendspiele eine recht hohe Remisbreite und die Verteidigungsmöglichkeit einer Abwicklung ins Turmendspiel fällt nun weg.} (34... Be6 {offered better drawing chances, e.g. bot bessere Remischancen, z.B.} 35. Kf4 Kd7 36. Rb5 (36. Kg5 Rd6) (36. g4 hxg4 37. fxg4 Rd6 38. Nxe6 Kxe6) 36... Rd6 37. Nxe6 Rxe6 38. a4 (38. Rxb7 Ra6) 38... b6) 35. Rxa6+ bxa6 36. g4 hxg4 $2 {The passed white h-pawn which comes about now will decide the day, because, for example, it can be used bring about the advantageous exchange of all the kingside pawns. Der nun entstehende weiße h-Freibauer wird den Tag entscheiden, weil er unter anderem dazu genutzt werden kann, die gesamten Königsflügelbauern vorteilhaft abzutauschen.} (36... Ke5 {was the final chance. In any case, White ought now to have good winning chances. war die letzte Chance. Allerdings sollte Weiß nun ohnhin gute Gewinnaussichten haben.}) 37. fxg4 Ke5 (37... c5 38. bxc5+ Kxc5 39. h5 gxh5 40. gxh5 f6 41. h6 Bg8 42. Ne6+ Kc4 43. Nf8 Kb3 44. Kf4 Kxa3 45. Nd7 Bh7 46. Nxf6 Bg6 47. Kg5 Bb1 48. Nd7 a5 49. Nf8 a4 50. Ng6 $18) 38. Nc6+ Kf6 (38... Kd6 39. h5 $18) 39. Kf4 Ke6 40. h5 gxh5 41. gxh5 Bd3 $6 ({The attempt to set up a barrier with Der Versuch mittels} 41... f6 {was more stubborn, but in the long run it diod not help either, because White can exchange the kingside pawns as in the game: eine Barriere zu errichten war zäher, hilft aber letzlich ebenfalls nicht, weil Weiß wie in der Partie die Königsflügelbauern abtauschen kann:} 42. Nd8+ Ke7 43. h6 Bd3 (43... Kf8 44. Kf5 Ke7 45. Ke4 Kf8 46. Kd4 $18) 44. Nb7 $1 {White must transfer the knight to the kingside at once. An over-hasty penetration by the king Weiß muss den Springer unverzüglich zum Königsflügel bringen. Das voreilige Eindringen mit dem König} (44. Ke3 $6 Bf5 45. Nb7 $2 {loses control: verliert die Kontrolle:} Kf7 46. Nc5 Bc8 47. Kd4 f5 $1 (47... Kg6 $2 48. Kd5 Kxh6 (48... f5 49. Kc6 f4 50. Nd3 f3 51. Ne5+ Kxh6 52. Nxf3 $18) 49. Kc6 Bh3 50. Nxa6 f5 51. b5 f4 52. Nc5 Bf5 53. Kxc7 Bc2 54. Nd7 Kg5 55. Ne5 Kf5 56. b6 Kxe5 57. b7 f3 58. b8=Q $18) (47... c6 $2 48. Ne4 Kg6 49. h7 Kxh7 50. Nxf6+ Kg7 51. Ne8+ Kf8 52. Nc7 Ke7 53. Kc5 Kd7 54. Kb6 $18) 48. Kd5 Kg8 49. Kc6 f4 {and Black's counterplay should be enough for a draw. und das schwarze Gegenspiel sollte zum Remis reichen.}) 44... Kf7 45. Nc5 Bf1 (45... Bc4 46. h7 Kg7 47. Kf5 $18) 46. h7 Kg7 47. Ne6+ Kxh7 48. Kf5 $18) 42. Ke3 Bf1 (42... Bc4 43. Kd4 Bb3 44. Nb8 $18) 43. h6 Kf6 44. Ne5 Bb5 45. Kd4 Ba4 ({After Nach} 45... Be8 46. Kc5 {Black is in zugzwang, because ist Schwarz in Zugzwang, weil} Kxe5 {fails to an} 47. h7 {scheitert.}) 46. h7 Kg7 47. Nxf7 Kxh7 48. Ng5+ Kg6 49. Ne6 {...and Jakovenko resigned because sooner or later he will lose both pawns. ...und Jakovenko gab auf, weil er früher oder später beide Bauern verliert.} 1-0 [Event "Dortmund SuperGM 37th"] [Site "Dortmund"] [Date "2009.07.06"] [Round "5"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Naiditsch, Arkadij"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2772"] [BlackElo "2697"] [Annotator "Mueller,Karsten"] [PlyCount "119"] [EventDate "2009.07.02"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "GER"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 131"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2009.07.15"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2009.07.15"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. Nc3 h6 10. h3 Ne7 11. Bf4 Ng6 12. Bg3 Ke8 13. Rad1 Bb4 14. Ne2 h5 15. Ned4 h4 16. Bh2 Nf8 17. Bf4 Bd7 18. Bg5 Be7 19. Rfe1 c5 20. e6 $1 {[%mdl 32] A strong opening up of the position by Magnus Carlsen in a way typical for the position. On account of his lead in development and the poor coordination of the black pieces, he gets dangerous compensation. Eine starke Stellungsöffnung von Magnus Carlsen in stellungstypischer Manier. Er erhält aufgrund seines Entwicklungsvorsprungs und der schlechten schwarzen Koordination gefährliche Kompensation.} (20. Bxe7 $6 Kxe7 21. Nb3 Ne6 {achieves nothing for White. bringt Weiß nichts ein.}) 20... fxe6 (20... Nxe6 $2 21. Nf5 $16) (20... Bxe6 $2 21. Nb5 $16) 21. Bxe7 Kxe7 22. Nf5+ Kf6 23. Ne3 Be8 24. Ng4+ Ke7 25. Nge5 Bg6 26. Rd5 {A spectacular move. Ein spektakulärer Zug.} ({However, I prefer the alternative Mir gefällt allerdings die Alternative} 26. Re3 $36 {. noch etwas besser.}) 26... b6 27. Rd2 Bf5 28. Ng5 Kf6 29. f4 Ng6 $2 ({The prophylactic Das prophylaktische} 29... Re8 {was safer. war sicherer.}) 30. Nd7+ Ke7 31. Nxe6 $2 {After this, White cannot count on any hope of winning against good defence. Danach kann Weiß gegen gute Verteidigung keine Gewinnhoffnungen mehr hegen.} (31. Rd5 $1 Rhe8 32. b3 $36 {would have left Black in a very uncomfortable situation. hätte Schwarz in eine sehr unbequeme Lage gebracht.}) 31... Bxe6 32. f5 Nf4 33. fxe6 Rhd8 $1 ({It is not necessary to go in for Es gibt keine Notwendigkeit, sich auf} 33... Nxe6 $6 34. Ne5 Rh6 35. Ng4 Rg6 36. Ne3 Kf7 37. Nf5 {. einzulassen.}) 34. Rf2 g5 35. Kh2 a5 (35... Nxe6 $2 36. Ne5 $16) 36. a4 Rg8 37. Ne5 Rae8 $1 {[%mdl 256] A strong defensive move which makes it clear that the e-pawn will fall without one of the white rooks being able to penetrate. Ein starker Verteidigungszug, der klarstellt, dass der e-Bauer fallen wird, ohne dass einer der weißen Türme eindringen kann.} (37... Nxe6 $2 38. Rf7+ Ke8 39. Rh7 $18) (37... Kxe6 $2 38. Ng6+ Kf5 39. Ne7+ $18) 38. Nf3 Nxe6 39. Re5 Kd6 40. Rd2+ Kc6 41. Rde2 Kd6 $2 {Just after the time control. Naiditsch makes the decisive mistake. Kurz nach der Zeitkontrolle begeht Naiditsch den entscheidenden Fehler.} ({He should content himself with the draw after Er sollte sich mit} 41... Kd7 $1 42. Rd2+ Kc6 43. Rde2 {. und remis zufrieden geben.}) 42. Nxg5 $1 $16 Ng7 43. Rxe8 Rxe8 44. Rxe8 Nxe8 45. Nf3 c4 46. Nxh4 c3 $2 {This deprives Black of many chances for counterplay and bnreakthrough. In addition, all White has to worry about now is the weak c2-pawn. Dies nimmt Schwarz viele Gegenspiel und Durchbruchsmöglichkeiten. Außerdem muss sich Weiß nun nur noch um den schwachen Bauern c2 kümmern.} (46... Ke5 {offered better practical chances, but should also lose in the long run, e.g.: bot bessere praktische Chancen, sollte aber langfristig ebenfalls verlieren, z.B.} 47. Nf3+ (47. Kg3 $6 Ke4 48. Kf2 b5) 47... Kf4 48. c3 Nd6 49. Nd2 Ke3 (49... c6 50. h4 Kg4 51. g3 b5 52. Kg2 $16) 50. Nb1 Kf4 51. Na3 c6 52. g3+ Ke4 53. h4 b5 54. h5 Kf5 55. g4+ Kg5 56. Kg2 $16) 47. b3 Kc5 48. Nf5 Kb4 49. g4 Ka3 50. Kg3 Kb2 51. Ne3 {... and it is obvious that the white passed pawns will decide the day.: ... und es ist klar, dass die weißen Freibauern den Tag entscheiden werden:} Kc1 52. Kf3 Kd2 53. h4 Ng7 54. h5 Ne6 55. h6 c6 56. Ke4 b5 57. Ke5 Ng5 58. Kf5 Nf7 59. h7 Kxe3 60. g5 1-0 [Event "Norway Chess 3rd"] [Site "Stavanger"] [Date "2015.06.17"] [Round "2"] [White "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2805"] [BlackElo "2876"] [Annotator "Wagner,Dennis"] [PlyCount "89"] [EventDate "2015.06.16"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 167"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2015.07.13"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2015.07.13"] [SourceQuality "1"] {This game was played in the 2nd round of the Norway Chess tournament in Stavanger. It has to be mentioned that Carlsen entered this game with a certain psychological handicap, as he had lost his game in round one against Veselin Topalov on time in a winning position, because he didn't know the time control.} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 {Definitely not for the first time the two experts have chosen the Berlin as their battleground.} 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 {Caruana is principled enough to enter the ending.} Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. h3 h6 $5 {That's the third time Carlsen has chosen this setup against Caruana. The move h6 controls the important g5-square, but has the drawback that White can seize space with g4 at the appropriate moment.} (9... Ke8 10. Nc3 h5 {is the mainline.}) 10. Rd1+ Ke8 11. Nc3 Ne7 (11... Bd7 {led to another disaster for Carlsen against the same opponent.} 12. Bf4 Rd8 13. Ne4 Be7 14. g4 Nh4 15. Nxh4 Bxh4 16. Kg2 Be6 17. f3 b6 18. b3 c5 19. c4 Rd7 20. Bg3 Be7 21. Rxd7 Bxd7 22. Nc3 Kd8 23. Nd5 Re8 24. Rd1 Kc8 25. Nxc7 $16 {1-0 (53) Caruana,F (2783)-Carlsen,M (2881) Shamkir 2014}) 12. b3 $1 {I think that the b3-setup is the most promising against the line with h6 and ?e7.} (12. Bf4 {Apparently Caruana wasn't content with the result of their last game in this line.} Ng6 13. Bh2 Bb4 14. Ne2 Be7 15. Nfd4 Nf8 16. g4 h5 17. Nf5 Ne6 18. Kg2 b6 19. f3 c5 20. Bg3 Bg5 21. h4 hxg4 22. hxg5 gxf3+ 23. Kxf3 Nxg5+ 24. Kf4 Nh3+ 25. Ke4 Ng5+ 26. Kf4 Nh3+ {1/2-1/2 (26) Caruana,F (2811) -Carlsen,M (2865) Baden-Baden 2015}) 12... Bf5 {Carlsen immediately activates his light-squared bishop.} (12... Ng6 $5 {is an alternative.} 13. Bb2 Be7 14. Ne2 (14. Ne4 Nf4 15. Nd4 Bd7 16. Ng3 c5 17. Nde2 Nxe2+ 18. Nxe2 Rd8 $11 {1/2-1/2 (37) Svetushkin,D (2597)-Kryvoruchko,Y (2676) Achaea 2012}) 14... h5 15. a4 a5 16. c4 $14 {1-0 (83) Kamsky,G (2705)-Bruzon Batista,L (2679) Khanty-Mansiysk 2010}) 13. Nd4 Bh7 14. Bb2 Rd8 15. Nce2 $1 (15. e6 {is rather harmless, if Black reacts precisely.} Nd5 $1 $11 (15... Nc8 16. Nce2 Bd6 17. c4 Ne7 (17... f6 18. g4 h5 $11) 18. Rac1 b6 19. g4 f6 20. f4 {1/2 (65)-1/2 (65) Polgar, J (2689)-Howell,D (2644) Warsaw 2013; with a complicated position, where White has the initiative.}) 16. Nxd5 (16. Nce2 Bd6 17. c4 Nb4 18. Bc3 Rg8 $132) 16... cxd5 17. exf7+ Kxf7 18. Nf3 Bd6 19. Ne5+ Bxe5 20. Bxe5 c6 $11) 15... Nd5 (15... g5 {is another idea, but creates some further weaknesses.} 16. c4 (16. e6 Rg8 $1 $11) 16... Bg7 17. Ng3 Bg6 18. Re1 a6 (18... Kd7 19. e6+ fxe6 20. Rad1 Kc8 21. Nxc6 Nxc6 22. Rxd8+ Kxd8 23. Bxg7 Rh7 24. Bc3 $14) 19. Nf3 Rg8 20. Ne4 Bxe4 21. Rxe4 c5 22. h4 $1 gxh4 23. Rxh4 Ng6 24. Re4 $14 {White is slightly better, because of his mobile kingside majority, but Black can hope to compensate for this with his control of the d-file.}) 16. c4 Nb4 17. Nf4 Rg8 18. g4 {I already like White's position. The knight on b4 is out of the game, while Black is still far away from active counterplay. Anyway, Black should still be ok here.} Na6 $2 {But that´s the start of major problems.} (18... g5 $6 19. Nh5 Be7 20. Nf5 $14) (18... Nc2 $1 {Black can hope to survive by exchanging his bad knight.} 19. Nxc2 Rxd1+ 20. Rxd1 Bxc2 21. Rd2 Bb1 22. Bc3 Be7 23. Ne2 {might be the best try, since Black can't attack ths knight on this square.} (23. Kg2 Bg5 $1 {with a good exchange for Black} 24. Kg3 Bxf4+ 25. Kxf4 Ke7 $11) (23. Nh5 Bg6 24. Kg2 Bxh5 25. gxh5 Bg5 26. Rd4 c5 27. Rd5 g6 28. Rxc5 gxh5 29. Kf3 c6 $11) 23... Ba3 24. Kg2 Ke7 25. Nd4 Rd8 26. Nf5+ Bxf5 27. gxf5 Rxd2 28. Bxd2 $14) (18... Be7 $5 {is also possible.} 19. Nf5 (19. Bc3 Nc2 20. Nxc2 Rxd1+ 21. Rxd1 Bxc2 22. Rd2 Bg5 $11) 19... Bg5 20. Ne2 c5 21. Rxd8+ (21. f4 Bxf5 22. gxf5 Bh4 23. Rxd8+ Kxd8 24. Rd1+ Kc8 $11) 21... Kxd8 22. Rd1+ Kc8 23. a3 Nc6 24. Kg2 {with a double-edged position where Black should be able to defend successfully.}) 19. Nf5 Nc5 20. Rxd8+ (20. Kg2 $5 {is also good, e.g.} Ne6 21. Nxe6 fxe6 22. Rxd8+ Kxd8 23. Rd1+ Kc8 24. Nd4 Kd7 25. Ne2+ Ke7 26. Kf3 $14) 20... Kxd8 21. Rd1+ Kc8 22. Ba3 $5 {Setting a cunning trap...} Ne6 $2 {...which Carlsen runs into!} (22... Bxf5 $6 23. gxf5 g6 24. fxg6 (24. f6 g5 (24... Ne6 25. Nxe6 Bxa3 26. Ng7 Bb2 27. f4 g5) 25. Nh5 Ne6 26. Bxf8 Rxf8 27. Kg2 Re8 28. Kg3 $14) 24... Ne6 25. Bxf8 Nxf4 (25... Nxf8 26. Kg2 Nxg6 27. Nxg6 Rxg6+ 28. Kf3 $14) 26. g7 Ne6 27. Kh2 Nxf8 28. gxf8=Q+ Rxf8 29. Kg3 $14 {with a dangerous edge in the rook ending.}) (22... b6 $5 {is more pleasant for White, but nothing decisive of course.}) 23. Nxe6 Bxa3 {A sad necessity.} ({Probably Carlsen had planned} 23... fxe6 {but overlooked the strong reply} 24. Be7 $3 $18) 24. Nexg7 Bf8 25. e6 $1 Bxf5 26. Nxf5 fxe6 27. Ng3 $16 {This is a nightmare for every Berlin-player. The black structure has even worsened and White can exploit the kingside majority without the slightest risk.} Be7 28. Kg2 Rf8 29. Rd3 $1 {[%CAl Gd3f3] A great square for the rook.} Rf7 30. Nh5 Bd6 31. Rf3 Rh7 (31... Rxf3 32. Kxf3 Kd7 33. Ke4 {is also just bad.}) 32. Re3 Re7 33. f4 {The rest is a matter of technique.} Ba3 34. Kf3 Bb2 35. Re2 Bc3 36. g5 Kd7 37. Kg4 Re8 38. Ng3 Rh8 39. h4 b6 40. h5 c5 41. g6 Re8 42. f5 exf5+ 43. Kf4 Rh8 44. Nxf5 Bf6 45. Rg2 {A convincing technical game by Caruana and a tough start for the World Champion.} 1-0 [Event "Gashimov Memorial-A 1st"] [Site "Shamkir"] [Date "2014.04.23"] [Round "4"] [White "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2783"] [BlackElo "2881"] [Annotator "Caruana,Fabiano"] [PlyCount "105"] [EventDate "2014.04.20"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "AZE"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 160"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2014.05.15"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2014.05.15"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. h3 h6 {In the match, Magnus played 9...?d7. Perhaps he feared preparation and was hoping to surprise me, but he made an unfortunate choice, going for a line I knew well, as I had faced it last year against Ponomariov.} (9... Bd7 10. Rd1 Be7 11. Nc3 {It's interesting that exactly 1 day before Anand and Carlsen's game, Grischuk played the same variation against me during the European Team Championship. I played 11.g4 and the game was eventually drawn.} Kc8 12. Bg5 h6 13. Bxe7 Nxe7 14. Rd2 c5 15. Rad1 Be6 16. Ne1 Ng6 17. Nd3 b6 18. Ne2 {, and now Magnus grabbed a pawn with} Bxa2 $1 {Anand-Carlsen, Chennai 2013; , held onto it and nearly won the game.}) 10. Rd1+ {Now Black's king is forced to e8, which generally speaking is an awkward square.} Ke8 11. Nc3 Bd7 12. Bf4 Rd8 13. Ne4 {This is the new move. In the aforementioned game against Ponomariov, I played 13.e6 and didn't pose serious problems to my opponent.} (13. e6 Bxe6 14. Bxc7 Rxd1+ 15. Rxd1 Be7 16. g4 Nh4 17. Nd4 Bd7 18. Re1 Kf8 19. Bg3 g5 20. Bxh4 gxh4 21. Ne4 Kg7 {, although perhaps if I had played more accurately here I could have counted on a minuscule advantage.}) 13... Be7 {I was happy to see this move. After the trade of knights White's position is very comfortable.} (13... c5 $5 {seems like the most critical move. I was planning} 14. e6 Bxe6 15. Bxc7 Rc8 16. Bh2 {, with a small advantage, but Black should be able to defend with accuracy.}) 14. g4 Nh4 15. Nxh4 Bxh4 16. Kg2 Be6 17. f3 b6 18. b3 c5 $6 {A strategic mistake. After the game, Magnus said he wanted to use the d4-square but underestimated the importance of the d5-square.} ({I was expecting} 18... Rd7 19. c4 Kd8 {If Black is given time to play ...?c8 and ...?d8 he will have a fine position. White has to act fast:} 20. Bg3 Be7 21. f4 g6 22. Rf1 $1 {, and the threat of f5 is very unpleasant.}) 19. c4 ({Perhaps} 19. Bg3 Be7 20. c4 {was more accurate.}) 19... Rd7 (19... Rd4 20. Be3 Rxd1 21. Rxd1 {doesn't solve Black's problems.}) 20. Bg3 Be7 21. Rxd7 Bxd7 {Understandably, Magnus wanted his bishop out of the way of f4-f5.} ({However,} 21... Kxd7 {was a stronger alternative.} 22. f4 g6 23. Rf1 Kc8 24. f5 gxf5 25. gxf5 Bd7 {and it isn't easy to prove a clear advantage for White.}) 22. Nc3 Kd8 $6 ({It made sense to set up a passive but solid defensive formation.} 22... Bd8 23. Nd5 Bc8 {, and just sit and wait, unpleasant though it may be.}) 23. Nd5 Re8 {Magnus played this and the next move surprisingly quickly. He was probably already disgusted with his position.} ({After} 23... c6 {, White should simplify into an opposite colored bishop ending:} 24. Nxe7 Kxe7 25. f4 {, with good winning chances.}) 24. Rd1 Kc8 $4 {Just losing a pawn for nothing. It's hard to say what Magnus overlooked.} (24... c6 25. Nxe7 (25. Nc7 Rg8 26. e6 fxe6 27. Nxe6+ Kc8) 25... Rxe7 26. Bh4 g5 27. Bg3 {is awful for Black, but there was already no choice.}) 25. Nxc7 Rd8 26. Nd5 {Besides being up a pawn, White also has a commanding position.} Re8 27. Be1 Bd8 28. Bc3 g6 29. Kg3 ({I would prefer} 29. a4 $1 {, snuffing out any hopes of counterplay.}) 29... b5 30. cxb5 Bxb5 31. Ne3 Re6 32. f4 Ra6 {Black is trying to create counterplay any way he can, but White is too solid.} 33. Rd2 h5 34. gxh5 gxh5 35. Nf5 Rg6+ 36. Kh2 Bc6 37. Nd6+ Kb8 38. f5 Rg8 39. f6 $1 {An important move, blocking the bishop's access to h4.} Bb6 40. Nc4 $2 {With 2 minutes on my clock for the last move, I got spooked by Black's counterplay with ...c4 and committed a serious inaccuracy.} (40. Nxf7 $1 c4 41. h4 $1 {is the game.}) 40... Re8 $2 {Giving me a second chance! I calculated a bit and decided to take the pawn.} (40... Bc7 41. Ba5 {is probably winning for White, but he could have put up serious resistance.}) 41. Nd6 Rg8 42. Nxf7 $1 {A pawn is a pawn, after all.} c4 43. h4 Rg4 44. e6 {This is what I hadn't seen before the time control. The bishop will protect everything from e5.} Be3 45. Be5+ Ka8 46. Rd8+ Kb7 47. Bg3 c3 48. Rb8+ Ka6 49. Rc8 Bd5 ({During the game I spent some time figuring out what happens after} 49... Rc4 50. bxc4 c2 51. Rxc6+ Ka5 52. Bc7+ Ka4 53. Ra6+ Kb4 54. Bd6+ Kc3 55. Ba3 {Good calculation, but unfortunately I missed a mate in two with 52.?e1!}) 50. Rxc3 Bd4 51. Rd3 Re4 52. Rd2 Rxe6 53. Ng5 1-0 [Event "World-ch Carlsen-Anand +3-0=7"] [Site "Chennai"] [Date "2013.11.19"] [Round "8"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Anand, Viswanathan"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2870"] [BlackElo "2775"] [Annotator "Szabo,Krisztian"] [PlyCount "66"] [EventDate "2013.11.09"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "12"] [EventCountry "IND"] [SourceTitle "CBM 158"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2014.01.16"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2014.01.16"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {This is the first time 1.e4 was played by Carlsen during the match. He had already tried 1.?f3 and 1.c4.} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 {Another Berlin Defence! This is the 4th time in the match already, but it is the first time from Anand with Black.} 4. O-O Nxe4 5. Re1 {A very solid decision by Carlsen. He has 2 points advantage, the draw is good for him, so it was a logical opening choice.} Nd6 6. Nxe5 Be7 7. Bf1 Nxe5 8. Rxe5 O-O 9. d4 Bf6 ({Recently Carlsen himself played the another line with} 9... Ne8 10. d5 Bc5 (10... d6 11. Re1 Bg5 {White has some space advantage due to his d5 ?, but that's all. Exchanging the dark-squared ? is favourable for Black.} 12. Nc3 Bxc1 13. Rxc1 Nf6 14. Qd4 Bd7 15. Ne4 Re8 16. Nxf6+ Qxf6 17. Qxf6 gxf6 18. Red1 a5 19. f3 Kg7 20. Kf2 a4 21. Rd4 Ra5 22. Rcd1 Rc5 23. R1d2 Ra8 {the computer considers the position to be slighty better for White, but in the game Black could hold his position, Leko-Carlsen, Wijk aan Zee 2013.}) 11. Re1 d6 12. Nc3 Bf5 13. Bd3 Bxd3 14. Qxd3 Nf6 15. Na4 Re8 16. Bd2 Rxe1+ 17. Rxe1 Qd7 18. Nxc5 dxc5 19. c4 Re8 $11 {with an equal endgame, Karjakin-Carlsen, Moscow 2013.}) 10. Re1 Re8 (10... Nf5 {is another main move.}) 11. c3 {This move shows that Carlsen is happy with the draw.} (11. Bf4 {was the only critical move} Rxe1 12. Qxe1 Ne8 ({The greedy} 12... Bxd4 $5 {could have been met by} 13. c3 (13. Bxd6 $5 cxd6 14. Nc3 $44 {was also interesting.}) 13... Bf6 14. Bxd6 cxd6 15. Qe4 $1 d5 $1 {Otherwise ?d5.} 16. Qxd5 d6 17. Na3 Rb8 {and Black's two bishops give some counterplay for his weaknesses.}) 13. Nc3 $1 {Otherwise Black can play d5 and equalise more easily.} Bxd4 ({Now} 13... d5 $2 {is not working, as} 14. Nxd5 $1 $16) 14. Nd5 c6 (14... d6) 15. Ne7+ Kf8 16. Nxc8 Qf6 $1 17. Qb4+ c5 18. Qd2 Rxc8 19. c3 (19. Re1 g5 $1 20. Bxg5 Bxf2+ $1 21. Qxf2 Qxg5 22. Bb5 Nd6 23. Bxd7 Rd8 $11 {Guseinov-Sargissian, Warsaw 2013}) 19... Be5 20. Bxe5 Qxe5 21. Qxd7 Qc7 (21... Rc7 $11) 22. Rd1 Qxd7 23. Rxd7 Rc7 24. Rxc7 Nxc7 $11 {with a completely drawish endgame, Kasimdzhanov-Leko, London 2012.}) 11... Rxe1 12. Qxe1 Ne8 $1 {A typical idea. Black wants to equalise with d5.} 13. Bf4 d5 14. Bd3 {Of course... White doesn't want to allow ?f5.} ({For example} 14. Nd2 {could have been met by} Bf5 $1 $11) 14... g6 {Anand prepares for ?g7 then ?f5.} 15. Nd2 Ng7 16. Qe2 {White improves his pieces and he has a positional trick too.} c6 $1 {A great deep move!} ({The immediate} 16... Bf5 {could have been met by} 17. Bxf5 Nxf5 18. Qb5 $1 $14 {and White created some unpleasant threats on the queenside.}) 17. Re1 $146 {Basically this is the first novelty in the game, but in this positional line it does not determine the result.} ({Before} 17. Be5 {was tried} Bxe5 18. Qxe5 Bf5 19. Bxf5 Nxf5 20. Re1 Qd6 21. Nb3 Qxe5 22. Rxe5 f6 23. Re2 Kf7 $11 {with a symmetrical drawish endgame, Rozentalis-Bruzon, Montreal 2013.}) 17... Bf5 18. Bxf5 Nxf5 19. Nf3 Ng7 $1 {Another good positional move. Anand prepares for ?e6 or sometimes in the ?d7 then ?e8 plan is also useful.} 20. Be5 {Carlsen doesn't mind the exchange of pieces.} Ne6 21. Bxf6 Qxf6 22. Ne5 Re8 23. Ng4 {Carlsen creates some threats on the dark squares. Now Anand needs to play some exact moves.} Qd8 $1 ({In the event of} 23... Qg7 {White has a nice initiative after} 24. Qf3 $1) 24. Qe5 ({Now} 24. Qf3 {White can answer with} Ng5 $1 25. Nf6+ Kf8 26. Rxe8+ Qxe8 $11 {and Black is OK.}) 24... Ng7 25. Qxe8+ $1 {The only move, but it wasn't so difficult for Carlsen. Now all the pieces will be exchanged.} ({Of course} 25. Nf6+ $4 Qxf6 $1 $19) (25. Nh6+ $4 Kf8 $19) 25... Nxe8 26. Rxe8+ $1 Qxe8 27. Nf6+ Kf8 28. Nxe8 Kxe8 29. f4 f5 30. Kf2 b5 31. b4 Kf7 32. h3 h6 33. h4 h5 {A high level positional game!} 1/2-1/2 [Event "Tata Steel-A 73rd"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2011.01.21"] [Round "6"] [White "Smeets, Jan"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2662"] [BlackElo "2814"] [Annotator "Kritz,Leonid"] [PlyCount "66"] [EventDate "2011.01.14"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 141"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2011.03.17"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2011.03.17"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. Nc3 Bd7 10. h3 b6 {Das sieht schon wirklich gefährlich aus. Das Feld g5 sollte man unter Kontrolle nehmen oder man hat wirklich alles bis ins kleinste Details analysiert, was nach ?d1-?g5 passiert.} 11. b3 (11. Rd1 $5 {Der direkteste Versuch, die Abwesenheit des Bauern auf h6 auszunutzen.} Kc8 12. g4 Ne7 13. Ng5 $1 f5 $1 14. e6 Be8 15. Nf7 Bxf7 16. exf7 Ng6 $1 17. gxf5 Nh4 18. Ne4 Be7 19. Rd3 Rf8 $13 {Navara - Hammer (Wijk aan Zee, 2011)}) 11... Kc8 12. Bb2 h5 $5 {Wenn das geht, dann hat Schwarz einfach Zeit an h6 gespart und steht sehr gut.} (12... Be7 13. g4 Nh4 14. Nxh4 Bxh4 15. f4 f5 16. exf6 gxf6 17. f5 $14 {Womacka - Harikrishna (Catalan Bay, 2004)}) 13. g3 {Das ist natürlich kein Versuch, den schwarzen Aufbau zu widerlegen.} (13. Ng5 Be7 $1 {Es entstehen einige hübsche Varianten.} 14. Nxf7 (14. Nce4 Be8 15. Rad1 Kb7) 14... Rf8 15. Rfe1 Be6 16. Nd6+ cxd6 17. exd6 Bh4 $1 18. Rxe6 (18. g3 Kd7 19. gxh4 Nxh4 $11) 18... Bxf2+ 19. Kh2 $1 (19. Kh1 Kd7 20. Re5 Bd4 21. Ree1 Rae8 $15) 19... Bg3+ 20. Kg1 Bf2+ $11) 13... Be7 {Schwarz hat das Maximum erreicht, was er in der Berliner Mauer erreichen kann.} 14. Rad1 a5 15. a4 {Es ist gut für Schwarz, die Züge a5 und a4 einzuschließen, denn die weißen Bauern c2-b3-a4 können später Angriffsziele des schwarzen weißfeldrigen Läeufers werden. Doch Weiß muss a4 spielen, weil er nicht damit leben kann, dass Schwarz jeder Zeit selbst a4 spielt.} Re8 16. Rd3 $2 {Es stellt sich heraus, dass der Turm auf d3 sehr unglücklich steht. Ein prophylaktischer Zug wie ?h2 wäre besser gewesen.} (16. Kh2 $5 c5 17. Nd5 c4 18. Nxe7+ (18. g4 hxg4 19. hxg4 Nh6 20. g5 Nf5 21. Nxe7+ Rxe7 $15) 18... Rxe7 19. Rd2 Kb7 $11) 16... c5 {Das ist ein Standardzug - man gibt das Feld d5 auf, bringt aber den Läufer nach c6. Der Springer auf d5 steht schön, macht aber wenig.} 17. Nd5 c4 $1 {Wenn ein solcher Zug in der Berliner Mauer gespielt wird, dann muss Weiß sofort gewinnen oder er wird schlechter stehen. Sofort gewinnen kann er hier nicht, also...} 18. Rc3 (18. Nxe7+ Nxe7 {Nun hängt der Bauer auf h3 auch noch.} 19. Rd2 (19. bxc4 Bxa4 $17) 19... cxb3 20. cxb3 Bxh3 $19) 18... Bc5 $1 {Das war die Idee! Der Bauer c7 ist indirekt verteidigt, der andere auf g3 hängt! Schwarz hat großen Vorteil.} 19. Kh2 (19. Rxc4 Bc6 $1 {Man muss sehr genau spielen!} (19... Nxg3 $2 20. Rd1 $1 {Es droht ?xc5 oder ?a3} Nf5 21. Ba3 Bxa3 22. Nxc7 $3 $18 {Nicht mit dem Turm - das ist die Idee.}) 20. Rd1 Rd8 21. Rf4 Nxg3 $17) 19... Bc6 {Auch 19...cxb3 führt zum Vorteil.} (19... cxb3 20. cxb3 Bc6 $15) 20. bxc4 Bxa4 $17 {Diese Stellung ist fast verloren für Weiß. Schwarz hat das Läuferpaar, die bessere Bauernstruktur, einen entfernten Freibauern und aktiv stehende Figuren. Und das nach nur 20 Zügen!} 21. Ra1 Bc6 22. Rf1 $2 {Man sieht, dass der Weißspieler die Partie schon psychologisch aufgegeben hat.} a4 {Schwarz hat keine Schwiriegkeiten mit der Verwertung seines Vorteils.} 23. Ba3 Ra5 24. g4 hxg4 25. hxg4 Ne7 (25... Nd4 $1 {würde noch einfacher gewinnen.} 26. Bxc5 Rh8+ 27. Kg2 (27. Kg3 Ne2+ 28. Kg2 Rxc5 29. Re3 Rxc4 30. Ne7+ Kb7 31. Nxc6 Rxg4#) 27... Rxc5 $3 28. Nxd4 (28. Ne7+ Kb7 29. Nxc6 Nxc6 30. Re1 Ra8 31. Ree3 Raa5 $19) 28... Bxd5+ 29. Kg3 Rxc4 $19) 26. Nb4 {Das Nehmen auf e7 sieht auch nicht gut aus.} (26. Nxe7+ Bxe7 27. Ra1 Bxa3 28. Raxa3 Rc5 $17) 26... Bb7 27. Kg3 Ng6 $19 {Alle schwarzen Figuren greifen an, alle weißen sind am Verteidigen.} 28. Re1 Bxf3 {Einfachste Entscheidung.} 29. Rxf3 Rxe5 30. Rd1 Re4 31. Rxf7 Rxg4+ 32. Kxg4 Ne5+ 33. Kg3 Nxf7 0-1 [Event "Morelia/Linares 25th"] [Site "Morelia/Linares"] [Date "2008.02.28"] [Round "8"] [White "Ivanchuk, Vassily"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2751"] [BlackElo "2733"] [Annotator "Marin,Mihail"] [PlyCount "79"] [EventDate "2008.02.15"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "14"] [EventCountry "ESP"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 123"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2008.04.02"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2008.04.02"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 {As we shall soon see, this is not a prelude to the Berlin variation, but an invitation to transpose to the Open variation. Usually, Carlsen employs the "normal" move order (3...a6, etc.) but in Corus Ivanchuk had surprised him with the exchange variation, which he plays only occasionally. Although the game ended in a draw, Carlsen seems to have had his reasons to avoid this course of events. Did he feel uncomfortable about the exchange variation, or did he just want to avoid early simplifications with an increased probability of a draw?...} 5. d4 a6 6. Bxc6 {So, whatever Carlsen's thoughts had been, he guessed correctly that Ivanchuk was not going to allow the Open variation.} dxc6 {Theory is not too well-settled in this variation. Black's position certainly looks dangerous and his move order at least provocative, but in practice things have been rather unclear.} 7. Qe2 Bf5 8. Re1 {A very rare move. Among other things, White threatens to win material with ?d3. After the present game, people may start asking themselves why this line was not tried more frequently... Black certainly needs to find a strong improvement somewhere.} (8. Rd1 Be7 9. dxe5 Qc8 {Black's position looks a bit cramped and his e4-knight unstable. However, White is not too well developed and Black's good control of the light squares offers him adequate play. Just compare this with the Berlin variation where he needs several tempi to get castled artificially...} 10. Nd4 (10. b3 O-O 11. Bb2 Re8 12. Nbd2 Ng5 {In fact, the capture on d2 would be more restrictive, although it could eventually transpose to the game.} 13. Nxg5 Bxg5 14. Nf3 Be7 15. h3 Bg6 16. c4 a5 17. Bc3 c5 18. Nh2 $13 {½-½ Savon,V (2420)-Buturin,V (2415)/Alushta 1992/EXT 97} Qe6 {With all his pieces well placed, Black has no problems. The direct attack} 19. f4 a4 20. g4 {is not dangerous because of} f5 $1) (10. Rd4 {Apparently, White is just helping the knight improve its position with gain of time, but he has some tactical play in mind.} Nc5 11. Bg5 $5 Ne6 12. Bxe7 Nxd4 13. Nxd4 Kxe7 14. Qh5 Rd8 15. Qh4+ Kf8 16. Nd2 c5 17. N4f3 Qe6 $17 {Rausis,I (2551)-Wedberg,T (2473)/Upplands Vasby 2000/CBM 081 (0-1, 47). Black has completed his development, maintaining his material advantage.}) (10. Be3 O-O 11. Nbd2 Nxd2 12. Rxd2 h6 13. Rad1 c5 14. Qc4 b6 15. a3 Qb7 $11 {In the Berlin variation, this square is usually occupied by the king, not without some efforts.} 16. Qf4 Be6 17. Nh4 $6 g5 $1 18. Qf3 Qxf3 19. Nxf3 Kg7 20. h3 Kg6 21. Nh2 h5 $15 {Aroshidze,L (2401)-Mastrovasilis,D (2568)/Korinthos 2004/CBM 101 ext (½-½, 58). With all his pieces well placed, Black has a favourable form of the Berlin variation. In the absence of queens, the plan of a kingside expansion is strategically sound.}) 10... Bg6 11. Be3 {Opening expert Geller tries to improve upon an older game of his opponent.} (11. f3 Nc5 12. b3 O-O 13. Bb2 Ne6 14. Nxe6 Qxe6 {Kupper,J-Kaplan,J (2470)/Lugano 1968/MCD (0-1, 42). with comfortable play for Black.}) 11... O-O 12. Nd2 Nxd2 13. Rxd2 c5 14. Nb3 b6 {White's manoeuvre has only left the knight passive on b3, requiring further loss of time. Black was going to play ...b6 and ...c5 anyway!} 15. Rad1 Qf5 16. Qc4 Qe4 17. Qxe4 Bxe4 18. f3 Bf5 19. Nc1 {The sign that something had gone wrong. As we know from previous examples, the control of the d-file has a sterile character, because there are no squares available for infiltration, while Black can exchange rooks with ...?d8, whenever he wants.} Rfd8 20. c3 Be6 21. Kf2 a5 22. Rxd8+ Bxd8 23. g3 Be7 {½-½ Geller,E (2610)-Kaplan,J (2460)/Amsterdam 1974/MCL. Black's pressure against the queenside prevents White from starting active operations on the other wing.}) ({The more forcing line} 8. g4 Bg6 9. Nxe5 Qxd4 10. Nxg6 hxg6 11. Nc3 f5 12. Bf4 O-O-O 13. Rad1 Qf6 14. Nxe4 fxe4 15. Rxd8+ Kxd8 16. Qxe4 {was at one time supposed to offer White the slightly better chances. Indeed, certain endings would favour him, but the following recent game saw Black drawing without problems.} Bd6 17. Rd1 Re8 18. g5 Rxe4 19. gxf6 gxf6 20. Bxd6 cxd6 21. Rxd6+ Ke7 22. Rd3 Ke6 {½-½ Womacka,M (2423)-Matamoros Franco,C (2544)/Olomouc 2006/CBM 113 ext. Only Black can be microscopically better here, because of his more compact kingside structure.}) 8... Bb4 $5 $146 (8... Be7 9. g4 Bg6 10. Nxe5 f5 11. Nc3 (11. gxf5 Bxf5 12. Qf3 $16 {wins two pieces for a rook, because after} Nd6 $2 13. Bg5 $18 {Black is in even bigger trouble, not being able to fre himself from the pin. For instance} O-O 14. Qb3+ $1 Kh8 15. Bxe7 Qxe7 16. Ng6+ $1 $18) 11... O-O 12. Nxg6 hxg6 13. Qc4+ Kh7 14. Nxe4 fxe4 15. Rxe4 Bh4 16. Be3 $16 {Georgiev,K (2480)-Piket,J (2550)/Corfu 1991/EXT 97 (0-1, 31). White has won a pawn, but later went terribly wrong and lost.}) (8... Bd6 9. Qd3 O-O 10. Rxe4 Bxe4 11. Qxe4 exd4 12. Qxd4 Be5 $5 13. Qc4 Qd1+ 14. Qf1 Qxf1+ 15. Kxf1 Rad8 16. Nbd2 Rfe8 17. Nxe5 Rxe5 $16 {Simmelink,J-Van Wieringen,C/NED-ch28 corr9899 1998/Corr 2000 (1-0, 45). White certainly faces some problems completing his development, but when this has been accomplished, he will retain good chances for a win.}) 9. c3 Bd6 {I am not entirely sure whether weakening the d3-square has improved Black's position that much, but according to Carlsen he was just improvising, not being able to remember "theory".} 10. Qc2 {It looks logical to make use of this square that has just become available.} ({However,} 10. Qd3 {does not look bad either.}) 10... Qd7 11. dxe5 Bc5 12. Rxe4 O-O-O $16 {White has won material, "according to the plan", but he still faces some problems completing his development and getting out of the pin. Besides, Ivanchuk had spent a lot of time already.} 13. Nbd2 Qd5 14. Kf1 Rhe8 15. b3 {According to Carlsen, this might be too slow.} (15. c4 $5 Qd7 16. Nb3 $16 {[%CAl Gc1f4]}) 15... g5 16. Bb2 g4 17. Nd4 Bxd4 $5 {Striving for counterplay.} ({Simplifying with} 17... Bxe4 {would have meant struggling for a draw after} 18. Qxe4 Qxe4 19. Nxe4 Rxe5 20. Nxc5 Rxc5 21. f3 $14) 18. cxd4 c5 19. Rae1 cxd4 20. Qc4 $6 {Offering Black undeserved counter-chances.} (20. Qd1 $16 Bxe4 21. Rxe4 d3 22. Qxg4+ $16) 20... Bxe4 21. Rxe4 Rxe5 22. Rxg4 Rde8 23. Nf3 Qxc4+ 24. bxc4 Re2 $132 {Things have become completely irrational now.} 25. Bxd4 Rxa2 26. Rg7 a5 27. Rxf7 Rc2 28. g4 a4 29. g5 a3 30. Rxh7 a2 31. Rh8 Rxh8 32. Bxh8 Rxc4 33. h3 c5 34. Ne1 Rc1 35. g6 Kd7 36. Bb2 Ke6 37. h4 c4 38. h5 c3 39. Bxc1 a1=Q 40. Nd3 0-1 [Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 7th"] [Site "Moscow"] [Date "2012.06.14"] [Round "6"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Aronian, Levon"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2835"] [BlackElo "2825"] [Annotator "Kritz,Leonid"] [PlyCount "120"] [EventDate "2012.06.08"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 149"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2012.07.17"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2012.07.17"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. Nc3 Ke8 10. b3 Be6 {In dieser Stellung ist auch der von Kramnik gespielte Zug ?b4 gut:} (10... Bb4 $1 11. Bb2 Bxc3 12. Bxc3 c5 13. Rad1 h6 14. h3 Be6 $132 {und Schwarz stand zumindest nicht schlechter in Howell - Kramnik (London, 2002)}) (10... a5 {Das ist ebenfalls eine spielbare Initiative.} 11. Bb2 Bb4 12. Rad1 Bxc3 13. Bxc3 c5 14. h3 h5 15. Rfe1 b6 16. Ng5 Rh6 17. f4 h4 $132 {Solomon - Pashikian (Khanty-Mansiysk, 2010)}) 11. Bb2 Bb4 12. Ne2 (12. Rfd1 Bxc3 13. Bxc3 c5 14. Rd2 h6 $132 {mit gleichem Spiel wie nach 10...?b4, Fogarasi - Almasi (Hungary, 1995)}) 12... Bd5 13. Ne1 (13. Ned4 Nxd4 14. Nxd4 Rd8 15. Rad1 Bc5 16. Nf5 Be4 17. Rxd8+ Kxd8 18. Nxg7 Ke7 19. Re1 $132 {Guseinov - Pashikian (Ohrid, 2009)}) 13... h5 {Es sieht so aus, als ob Schwarz hier mit 13....?d8 ausgleichen konnte:} (13... Rd8 14. Nd3 Be7 15. Rad1 Be4 16. Rfe1 Bxd3 17. cxd3 c5 $11) 14. Nd3 Be7 15. Nef4 Rh6 (15... g5 $5 16. c4 $1 (16. Nxd5 cxd5 17. e6 Rh6 18. exf7+ Kxf7 19. f4 g4 20. Rfe1 Bd6 $11) 16... Be6 17. Nxe6 fxe6 18. Rad1 Rd8 $11) 16. c4 Be4 (16... Be6 17. g3 $1 (17. h3 h4 $11) 17... g5 18. Nxe6 Rxe6 19. h3 $14 {Weiß will ?g2-g4 spielen.}) 17. Rad1 (17. Rfe1 Bxd3 18. Nxd3 Rd8 19. Rad1 c5 20. Nf4 Ra6 21. Rxd8+ Bxd8 22. Ra1 (22. a4 Rb6 $15) 22... h4 $11) 17... g5 18. Rfe1 Bxd3 19. Nxd3 {Die Partie verlief bisher nicht ganz typisch für die Berliner Mauer, jetzt wird es sogar noch interessanter.} b5 $6 {Ich denke nicht, dass dieser Zug gut sein kann. Die einzige Idee von b5 ist auf c4 zu nehmen, dann ...c5 zu spielen, und danach ...?a6. Weiß hat jedoch viele Wege, um dies zu verhindern.} 20. c5 (20. Re4 $5 {Das sieht sehr logisch aus.} Rd8 21. Kf1 $14) 20... Ng7 {Der Springer geht nach g7, um den Bauern c5 von e6 aus anzugreifen.} 21. b4 (21. Bc3 $5 a5 22. a3 Ne6 23. b4 axb4 24. axb4 Ra3 25. Bb2 Ra2 26. Ra1 Rxa1 27. Rxa1 $14) 21... a5 22. a3 Ne6 23. g3 (23. f3 $5 {Mit der Idee ?f2-g3-?e3-f4.} Rd8 24. Kf2 $14) 23... g4 {Nun ist es nicht mehr so einfach für Weiß f2-f4 durchzuführen.} 24. Kg2 Rg6 25. Nf4 Rg5 (25... Nxf4+ 26. gxf4 axb4 27. axb4 Ra2 28. Re2 $14 {Die Idee f5 und danach f3 ist sehr unangenehm für Schwarz.}) 26. Bc1 (26. Nxe6 fxe6 $11 {Dieses Endspiel ist remis, weil Schwarz gutes Gegenspiel am Damenflügel hat.}) 26... Rf5 27. h3 gxh3+ (27... axb4 $5 28. hxg4 hxg4 29. axb4 Ra2 $6 30. Rh1 $1 {Das ist sehr stark.} Rxe5 31. Nxe6 Rxe6 (31... fxe6 32. Rh8+ Kf7 33. Rd7 $18) 32. Rh8+ Bf8 33. Bf4 $16) 28. Nxh3 axb4 29. axb4 Ra4 {Schwarz hat gewisses Gegenspiel, doch die Stellung von Weiß sieht besser aus.} 30. Bd2 Ra3 (30... Nd4 31. f4 Nc2 32. Re4 $14) 31. f4 $1 {Schwarz bekommt eine starke Initiative nach 31.?f4.} (31. Nf4 h4 $1 32. Nxe6 fxe6 33. g4 h3+ 34. Kg1 Rff3 35. Re3 Bh4 $36) 31... h4 32. Re3 Rxe3 $5 {Es sieht so aus, als ob Weiß in Vorteil kommt, doch Schwarz spielt sehr dynamisch und gleicht die Stellung aus. Auch 32...?a2 war interessant.} (32... Ra2 $1 33. g4 (33. Kf3 hxg3 34. Kg4 Ng7 35. Rxg3 Rh5 36. Nf2 Rh4+ 37. Kf3 Nf5 38. Rg8+ Kd7 $1 $11) 33... Rxf4 34. Nxf4 Bg5 $1 35. Kf3 Bxf4 36. Rd3 Bxd2 37. R1xd2 Ra1 38. Rd1 Ra2 39. Rh1 Rb2 40. Rxh4 Rxb4 $44 {Schwarz hat ausgezeichnete Kompensation.}) 33. Bxe3 hxg3 34. Kxg3 {Das Problem für Schwarz ist, dass er nicht genug Gegenspiel besitzt und nur passiv warten kann.} Rh5 35. Bf2 (35. Kg4 $2 Rh4+ 36. Kg3 Ng7 $11 {Wenn die weißen Bauern mit dem Springer blockiert sind, kann Weiß kaum durchbrechen.}) 35... f5 (35... Ng7 36. Kg4 $14 {und Schwarz schafft es nicht, den Springer nach f5 zu stellen.}) 36. exf6 (36. Be3 Rh7 37. Ng1 Rg7+ 38. Kf3 Rh7 39. Ne2 Rh3+ 40. Ng3 Bh4 $11) 36... Bxf6 37. Kg4 Rxh3 {Das sieht verdächtig aus, obwohl, es kann sein, dass das Endspiel remis ist.} (37... Rd5 $5 38. Re1 (38. Rxd5 cxd5 39. Kf5 Kf7 40. Ng5+ Nxg5 41. fxg5 Bc3 $11) 38... Kd7 $11 {Es sieht so aus, dass Schwarz die Stellung halten kann.}) 38. Kxh3 Nxf4+ 39. Kg4 Nd5 {Das Problem für Weiß ist, dass er die Läufer tauschen muss, weil der Bauer b4 schwach ist. Sonst, mit den Läufern, wäre das Endspiel sicherlich gewonnen.} 40. Bd4 (40. Rb1 Bc3 41. Be1 {Das ist der einzige Zug, um den Bauern zu halten.} Bxe1 42. Rxe1+ Kd7 43. Re4 (43. Rb1 Ke6 44. Kf3 Ke5 $15 {Der König kommt nach c4 und Weiß verliert beide Bauern.}) 43... Nf6+ 44. Kf5 Nxe4 45. Kxe4 Ke6 $11) 40... Kf7 (40... Bxd4 41. Rxd4 Kd7 {führt zum selben Endspiel wie in der Partie.}) 41. Kf5 Ne7+ 42. Ke4 Bxd4 43. Kxd4 Ke6 44. Re1+ Kd7 45. Ke5 Nd5 46. Re4 (46. Rd1 Kc8 47. Rxd5 $5 {Es sieht so aus, als ob Weiß eine Chance hätte, doch auch das Bauernendspiel ist remis.} cxd5 48. Kxd5 Kd7 49. c6+ Ke7 50. Ke5 Kf7 51. Kd5 Ke7 52. Kc5 Ke6 53. Kxb5 Kd5 54. Ka6 Kxc6 55. b5+ Kc5 56. Kb7 Kxb5 57. Kxc7 $11) 46... Kc8 47. Ke6 Nc3 48. Rh4 Nd5 49. Rd4 Kd8 $1 ({Nach} 49... Kb7 $2 {ist das Bauernendspiel gewonnen!} 50. Rxd5 $1 cxd5 51. Kxd5 Kc8 (51... c6+ 52. Kd6 $18) 52. Kc6 Kd8 53. Kb7 Kd7 54. Kb8 Kc6 (54... Kd8 55. c6 $18) 55. Kc8 Kd5 56. Kxc7 Kc4 57. c6 Kxb4 58. Kd6 Ka3 59. c7 b4 60. c8=Q $18) 50. Rg4 Kc8 51. Rh4 Kb7 52. Kd7 (52. Rd4 Kc8 $1 53. Rxd5 cxd5 54. Kxd5 Kd7 $11) 52... Nf6+ 53. Kd8 Nd5 54. Rg4 (54. Rh7 Kb8 55. Rg7 Kb7 56. Rg4 {? siehe die Partie.}) 54... Kb8 55. Rd4 Kb7 {Weiß kann keine Fortschritte machen.} 56. Kd7 Nc3 57. Ke6 Kc8 58. Rd3 Nd5 59. Rd4 Nc3 60. Rd3 Nd5 1/2-1/2 [Event "Norway Chess 6th"] [Site "Stavanger"] [Date "2018.05.30"] [Round "3"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Aronian, Levon"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2843"] [BlackElo "2764"] [Annotator "Nielsen,Peter Heine"] [PlyCount "61"] [EventDate "2018.05.28"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 185"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2018.07.13"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2018.07.13"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 {In round one Magnus won a good game against Fabiano Caruana with 2.?c4, but that move at top level is almost exclusively seen as an anti-Petroff move order.} Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 $5 4. O-O ({In round one Anand continued} 4. d3 Bc5 5. c3 d5 6. Bd2 O-O 7. O-O Re8 8. exd5 a6 $1 {when while not only springing an excellent novelty, Aronian also managed to amuse in the confession booth saying he forgot to play it at move 3, and now seemed at good moment to correct the mistake! Even so, his switch from Marshall to Berlin seemed more than just a fling.}) 4... Nxe4 5. Re1 {The most solid of lines, suiting well that Magnus actually was the sole leader at this point.} Nd6 6. Nxe5 Be7 7. Bf1 Nxe5 8. Rxe5 O-O 9. d4 Bf6 10. Re1 {By far the main move, but in the New York match vs. Karjakin, Magnus did put the rook on e2, an idea of Caruana's second Kasimdzhanov, and had some pressure before the game was eventually drawn.} Nf5 $5 {Also the latest trend.} ({People used to go} 10... Re8 {and while that still makes a solid apperance, the preference by the experts has been for this slightly more aggressive move.}) 11. d5 {Grabbing space, or from Black's perspective, slightly weakening White's pawn chain. Less ambitious but more solid is 11.c3 d5, with numerous games being drawn shortly thereafter.} Re8 {Here everybody routinely played the standard move, till Caruana in Baden tried 12.?d3 against Aronian. Magnus' next move was intended to be a novelty:} 12. Rxe8+ $5 {But to my surprise this had already been played by Palac in 2005, against me! The unimpressive continuation being 12...?xe8 13.?d2 d6 draw agreed.} Qxe8 13. Qd3 $5 {Putting the bishop on d3 similar to Caruana looks like a normal move, while this somewhat goes against chess principles. First developing your queen, and only then figuring out how to proceed next is not excactly what is recommended in the beginners' books. But apart from the primitive threats of taking the knight on f5, more relevantly it supports the e4-square planning to transfer the knight there eventually as well and in general having much more scope. Aronian seemed surprised but after some thought played the obvious reply.} d6 14. Nd2 {Intending ?e4, followed by c3 ?d2 ?e1. The good thing about White's position is that it has a lot of room for improvement! For Black it's more difficult, and probably, especially in light of White not being fully developed, 14...c6!? switching the position to an isolani-style type after a white dxc6 or a black ...cxd5 would assure counterplay. But Black has an almost perfect pawn structure so voluntarily ruining it is not an easy over the board decision.} Bg5 $6 {A very logical move, assuring the exchange of the dark-squared bishops and at the same time eliminating the ?e4 threat.} 15. Nf3 {A case (the engines!) could be made for including g3+h4 to gain a bit of time, but Magnus Magnus either wanted to assure himself of the following favourable exchanges, or perhaps as the games later shows the relevance of, rather would not lose the flexibilty on how to put his pawns on the kingside.} Bxc1 16. Rxc1 Bd7 17. Re1 {At first sight it looks like a typical quick ?e1 Berlin draw is in progress. Rooks will be exchanged in the e-line and White has absolutely nothing constructive to do with his moderate space advantage. But details do matter! After 17...?f8 White will immediately attack Black's queenside with moves like 18.?b3 or 18.?c4, when Black face a passive defence using his rook to defend the weakness on especially c7. Perhaps a small difference, but with a huge effect. Black has no way of getting the neccesary echanges and is doomed to passive defence. His position is so solid that the chances of sucess obviously is there, but White's edge, as indicated by the engines, is certainly larger than it looks at first sight.} Qd8 18. Qc4 g6 19. h3 Ng7 20. Re3 {A nice setup, the rook might be used to attack the vulnerable spots on the queenside, or more directely, the black kingside as in the game. It does however give Aronian a chance to change the structure play with an isolani.} a5 ({After} 20... c5 $1 21. dxc6 Bxc6 {Black obviously is slightly worse, but in a less suffocating way than the game.}) 21. a4 {Now ...c5 would leave the b5-square weak, thus 21...c6!} Ne8 22. Qd4 {An ideal square for White's queen. Normally ...?f6 would chase it away, but with the pawn already on g6, White always has the small tactic ?xe8+! meaning Black will never achieve a ?f6+?g7 setup.} Ng7 23. g4 $5 {Logical and strong. Magnus cntrols the f5-square, not allowing ...?f5 attacking his queen. Weakening his own king is not a concern due to Black's passivity, but even so the engine does seem to think White would optimize his edge with the less compromising 23.?d3.} c6 {At last, and with the logical justification that White's last move has changed the battle from a positional one to a tactical, Aronian stops caring about his pawn structure but tries creating counterplay.} (23... Qf8 {intending 24...?e8 looks solid and logical, but} 24. Ng5 $1 {becomes alarming as if} Re8 ({Suffice it to say that the engines suggests} 24... Qd8 $1) {then} 25. Ne4 $1 {gets access to the f6-square with immediate disaster for Black.}) 24. c4 Ne8 {With all this suffering , why not at least have a pawn for it?} (24... c5 25. Qf4 Bxa4 {is possible, when White has excellent compensation in numerous ways, the engines preferring} 26. Ra3 $5 Bd7 27. Rb3 {eyeing the b6-square!}) 25. Qf4 Kg7 {Adding to his misery, Levon was also now desperately short of time, and Magnus now pulls off an almost basketball like trick, first looking to one side, but the attacking fiercly on the other:} 26. Rb3 {Just a decoy.} Rb8 27. Ng5 $1 Nf6 $2 (27... Qf6 {still defends, as while} 28. Qd2 {does attack the a5-pawn Black can defend with} h6 29. Ne4 Qd8 {without facing disaster. Now however swift tactics decide.}) 28. Rf3 $1 h6 {Not even a blunder, as Black has no meaningful defence anyway.} ({The d6-pawn is attacked, and} 28... Qe7 29. Re3 Qf8 {leaves White so many options that the engine does not even mention that 30.?xf6+?! followed by ?xh7+ wins a pawn. Easiest is} 30. Qd4 $1 {with a crushing pin.}) 29. Ne4 $1 Nxe4 30. Qxf7+ Kh8 31. Qxg6 {And with the combined threats to the knight in e4 and the h6-pawn as well as ?f7 mating, Aronian resigned.} 1-0 [Event "Norway Chess 2024"] [Site "Stavanger, Norway"] [Date "2024.06.01"] [Round "9.1"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Firouzja, Alireza"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2830"] [BlackElo "2737"] [Annotator "Stockfish 16.1 - Chessbase"] [PlyCount "163"] [EventDate "2024.??.??"] 1. e4 {[%eval 15,0]} e5 {[%eval 17,0]} 2. Nf3 {[%eval 19,0]} Nc6 {[%eval 19,0]} 3. Bb5 {[%eval 16,0]} Nf6 {[%eval 19,0]} 4. O-O {[%eval 16,0]} Nxe4 {[%eval 21,0]} 5. Re1 {[%eval 27,0]} Nd6 {[%eval 15,0]} 6. Nxe5 {[%eval 27,0]} Be7 {[%eval 21,0]} 7. Bf1 {[%eval 23,0]} Nxe5 {[%eval 15,0]} 8. Rxe5 {[%eval 21,0]} O-O {[%eval 22,0]} 9. d4 {[%eval 19,0]} Bf6 {[%eval 19,0]} 10. Re1 {[%eval 15,0]} Re8 {[%eval 18,0]} 11. c3 {[%eval 21,0]} ({RR} 11. Rxe8+ Nxe8 12. c3 d5 13. Bd3 c6 14. Bf4 g6 15. Nd2 Ng7 16. Nf3 Bf5 17. Bh6 Bxd3 18. Qxd3 Nf5 19. Bf4 Qb6 20. Qd2 Re8 21. Be5 Qd8 22. Re1 Nh4 23. Nxh4 Bxh4 24. g3 Bg5 25. Bf4 Rxe1+ {½-½ Caruana,F (2805)-So,W (2757) Chess.com Classic Play-In chess.com INT 2024 (8.2)}) 11... Rxe1 {[%eval 19,0]} 12. Qxe1 {[%eval 24,0]} Ne8 {[%eval 23,0]} 13. d5 {[%eval 16,0]} ({RR} 13. Bf4 d5 14. a4 a5 15. Nd2 Bf5 16. Qe3 Nd6 17. Bd3 Bxd3 18. Qxd3 Bg5 19. Bxd6 Qxd6 20. Nf3 Bf6 21. Qb5 b6 22. Re1 g6 23. g3 Rd8 24. Ne5 Bxe5 25. Rxe5 Qd7 26. Qe2 Qxa4 27. Re7 c5 {½-½ Martinez Alcantara,J (2610)-Firouzja,A (2760) Chessable Masters Div 1 L chess.com INT 2024 (2.1)}) 13... Qe7 $146 {[%eval 15,0]} ({RR} 13... d6 14. Bd3 g6 15. Nd2 Bg7 16. Ne4 Bf5 17. Bg5 Qd7 18. Qd2 Bxe4 19. Bxe4 Nf6 20. Bf3 Qf5 21. Re1 Qd7 22. Qf4 Re8 23. Rd1 Qf5 24. Qxf5 gxf5 25. Be3 Ng4 26. Bc1 Ne5 27. Be2 a6 28. Kf1 {1-0 Jackson,E (2156)-Liu,A (2285) Titled Tue 20th Feb Early chess.com INT 2024 (7)}) 14. Qd1 {[%eval 2,0]} b6 {[%eval 14,0]} 15. a4 {[%eval 13,0]} a5 {[%eval 5,0]} 16. Na3 {[%eval 4,0]} Bb7 {[%eval 5,0]} 17. Nc4 {[%eval 6,0]} Bg5 {[%eval 5,0]} 18. d6 {[%eval 7,0]} Nxd6 {[%eval 1,0]} 19. Bxg5 {[%eval 8,0]} Qxg5 {[%eval 18,0]} 20. Nxd6 {[%eval 8,0]} cxd6 {[%eval 9,0]} 21. Qxd6 {[%eval 1,0]} Bc6 {[%eval 12,0]} 22. Re1 {[%eval 9,0]} Qf6 {[%eval 34,0]} 23. Qxf6 {[%eval 35,0]} gxf6 {[%eval 41,0]} 24. b3 {[%eval 39,0]} Rb8 {[%eval 29,0]} 25. c4 {[%eval 5,0]} d5 {[%eval 5,0]} 26. Re7 {[%eval 0,0]} Rc8 {[%eval 17,0]} 27. f3 {[%eval 0,0]} dxc4 {[%eval 2,0]} 28. Bxc4 {[%eval 6,0]} Bxa4 {[%eval 4,0]} 29. Bxf7+ {[%eval 2,0]} Kf8 {[%eval 5,0]} 30. Ra7 {[%eval 4,0]} Bb5 {[%eval 5,0]} 31. h4 {[%eval 0,0]} Rc5 {[%eval 4,0]} 32. Kf2 {[%eval 5,0]} Rc2+ {[%eval 11,0]} 33. Kg3 {[%eval 7,0]} Re2 {[%eval 2,0]} 34. Rb7 {[%eval 6,0]} Bd3 {[%eval 15,0]} 35. Bc4 {[%eval 1,0]} Bxc4 {[%eval 1,0]} 36. bxc4 {[%eval 13,0]} Rc2 {[%eval 16,0]} 37. Rxb6 {[%eval 7,0]} Kg7 {[%eval 8,0]} 38. Ra6 {[%eval 6,0]} Rxc4 {[%eval 6,0]} 39. Rxa5 {[%eval 6,0]} Rc7 {[%eval 22,0]} 40. Kg4 {[%eval 4,0]} Kg6 {[%eval 7,0]} 41. h5+ {[%eval 4,0]} Kf7 {[%eval 4,0]} 42. Kf5 {[%eval 5,0]} h6 {[%eval 1,0]} 43. Kg4 {[%eval 1,0]} Rc4+ {[%eval 12,0]} 44. Kh3 {[%eval 11,0]} Rc7 {[%eval 8,0]} 45. Ra4 {[%eval 7,0]} Rb7 {[%eval 1,0]} 46. Rg4 {[%eval 9,0]} Rb5 {[%eval 1,0]} 47. Kh4 {[%eval 14,0]} Rb1 {[%eval 9,0]} 48. Ra4 {[%eval 9,0]} Rb7 {[%eval 1,0]} 49. Kg4 {[%eval 9,0]} Rc7 {[%eval 1,0]} 50. Ra5 {[%eval 9,0]} Rb7 {[%eval 4,0]} 51. Kf5 {[%eval 6,0]} Re7 {[%eval 12,0]} 52. f4 {[%eval 3,0]} Rb7 {[%eval 12,0]} 53. g3 {[%eval 13,0]} Rc7 {[%eval 14,0]} 54. Ke4 {[%eval 14,0]} Re7+ {[%eval 14,0]} 55. Kf3 {[%eval 7,0]} Kg7 {[%eval 7,0]} 56. Ra1 {[%eval 8,0]} Kf7 {[%eval 9,0]} 57. Rh1 {[%eval 5,0]} Ra7 {[%eval 3,0]} 58. Rd1 {[%eval 4,0]} Rb7 {[%eval 9,0]} 59. Ke4 {[%eval 9,0]} Re7+ {[%eval 9,0]} 60. Kf5 {[%eval 3,0]} Ra7 {[%eval 3,0]} 61. Rd5 {[%eval 3,0]} Rb7 {[%eval 3,0]} 62. Ra5 {[%eval 3,0]} Rc7 {[%eval 1,0]} 63. Ke4 {[%eval 1,0]} Re7+ {[%eval 1,0]} 64. Kf3 {[%eval 13,0]} Rb7 {[%eval 16,0]} 65. f5 {[%eval 0,0]} Rc7 {[%eval 0,0]} 66. Ke4 {[%eval 0,0]} Re7+ {[%eval 0,0]} 67. Kd4 {[%eval 0,0]} Rd7+ {[%eval 1,0]} 68. Kc5 {[%eval 1,0]} Rb7 {[%eval 2,0]} 69. g4 {[%eval 2,0]} Re7 {[%eval 2,0]} 70. Kd6 {[%eval 0,0]} Re4 {[%eval 0,0]} 71. Ra7+ {[%eval 0,0]} Kf8 {[%eval 19,0]} 72. Rb7 {[%eval 3,0]} Rxg4 {[%eval 12,0]} 73. Ke6 {[%eval 12,0]} Ra4 {[%eval 12,0]} 74. Rd7 {[%eval 12,0]} Ra1 {[%eval 12,0]} 75. Kxf6 {[%eval 12,0]} Ra6+ {[%eval 12,0]} 76. Ke5 {[%eval 13,0]} Rb6 {[%eval 13,0]} 77. Rd6 {[%eval 14,0]} Rxd6 $4 {[%eval 32730,0] Checkmate is now unavoidable. Rb2 was best.} (77... Rb2) 78. Kxd6 {[%eval 32732,0]} Kf7 {[%eval 32732,0]} 79. Ke5 {[%eval 32734,0]} Ke7 {[%eval 32734,0]} 80. f6+ {[%eval 32736,0]} Kf8 {[%eval 32736,0]} 81. Kf4 {[%eval 32738,0]} Ke8 {[%eval 32738,0]} 82. Ke4 {[%eval 32740,0]} 1-0 [Event "Tata Steel-A 73rd"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2011.01.25"] [Round "9"] [White "Vachier Lagrave, Maxime"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2715"] [BlackElo "2814"] [Annotator "Moradiabadi,Elshan"] [PlyCount "84"] [EventDate "2011.01.14"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 141"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2011.03.17"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2011.03.17"] [SourceQuality "1"] {A nice game by both parties in which once again the world number one proved the "Berlin Wall" continues to stand strong!} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. Nc3 Bd7 {#This move has become popular over the last year.} 10. h3 b6 11. Bf4 Kc8 12. Rad1 h6 {#By a curious transposition, we have reached a famous typical position, which has been examined several times before, even by Carlsen!} 13. Bh2 {White's bishop clears the way for the pawn's majority march!} (13. Rd3 Be6 14. Rfd1 Kb7 15. b3 g5 16. Bc1 c5 17. Nd5 Ne7 18. Nxe7 Bxe7 19. c4 Rag8 20. Nd2 g4 21. hxg4 Rxg4 22. Nf1 Rhg8 23. Rg3 h5 24. Re1 a6 25. Rxg4 hxg4 26. Rd1 Kc6 27. Bf4 Rd8 28. Rxd8 Bxd8 29. Ne3 b5 30. Kf1 bxc4 31. bxc4 Kb6 32. Ke2 Ka5 33. Kd3 c6 34. f3 gxf3 35. gxf3 Ka4 36. Bh6 Ka3 37. f4 Kxa2 38. Kc2 f5 39. Bf8 Bb6 40. Be7 a5 41. Bh4 a4 42. Be1 Bd8 43. Nd1 Ka3 44. Nb2 Be7 45. Bc3 Bf8 46. Nd3 {1-0 Anand, V (2786)-Topalov,V (2757)/Monte Carlo 2005/CBM 105 ext}) (13. a3 Be6 14. g4 Ne7 15. Nd4 Bc4 16. Rfe1 c5 17. Nf5 Nc6 18. Nd5 Bxd5 19. Rxd5 g6 20. e6 gxf5 21. exf7 Bd6 22. Bxh6 Kb7 23. Bg7 Rh7 24. Rxd6 Rxg7 25. Rxc6 fxg4 26. Rxb6+ cxb6 27. Re7+ Kc6 28. f8=Q Rxf8 29. Rxg7 gxh3 30. Rh7 Rd8 31. Rxh3 Rd1+ 32. Kg2 Rc1 33. Rc3 {1-0 Carlsen,M (2548)-Nielsen,P (2653)/Warsaw 2005/CBM 108 (49)}) 13... a5 14. g4 Ne7 15. Nd4 h5 16. e6 $5 {A typical temporary pawn sacrifice which seems just sufficient for "compensation" in this particular position, however one should not forget about the practical difficulties Black has to face.} fxe6 17. Rfe1 hxg4 18. hxg4 Rh6 19. g5 Rh5 20. Nxe6 Bxe6 21. Rxe6 Rxg5+ {Black is totally safe now.} 22. Kf1 Rf5 23. a4 Rb8 24. Rd3 Rf7 25. Kg2 b5 26. axb5 cxb5 27. Ra6 b4 28. Nd5 Nxd5 29. Rxd5 b3 30. c3 Ba3 31. Re6 Re7 32. Rxe7 Bxe7 33. Rxa5 Kd7 34. Be5 Bd6 35. Bd4 Bf4 36. Kf3 Bc1 37. c4 g5 38. Ke4 Rf8 39. Rd5+ Kc6 40. Rc5+ Kd7 41. Rd5+ Kc6 42. Rc5+ Kd7 {A neat draw!} 1/2-1/2 [Event "Norway Chess 4th"] [Site "Stavanger"] [Date "2016.04.25"] [Round "6"] [White "Vachier Lagrave, Maxime"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2788"] [BlackElo "2851"] [Annotator "ChessBase"] [PlyCount "129"] [EventDate "2016.04.19"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 172"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2016.05.12"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. h3 Ke8 10. Nc3 h5 11. Bf4 Be7 12. Rad1 Be6 13. Ng5 Rh6 14. Rfe1 Bb4 15. g4 hxg4 16. hxg4 Ne7 17. f3 ({The most popular move here is} 17. Nxe6) 17... Bxc3 18. bxc3 Bxa2 19. Ne4 Rh8 20. e6 Bxe6 21. Bxc7 Nd5 ({One wonders how Vachier-Lagrave wanted to improve a game between Anish Giri and Sergey Karjakin which continued with} 21... b5 22. Be5 Rg8 23. Nc5 Nd5 24. f4 Bxg4 25. c4 f6 26. Rb1 Nb6 27. Bxf6+ Kf7 28. Bg5 Nxc4 29. Re7+ Kg6 30. Rbe1 Bf5 31. Kf2 Rad8 32. Nd3 a5 33. Rg1 Rd7 34. Bh4+ Kh7 35. Rxd7 Bxd7 36. Ne5 Nxe5 37. fxe5 Re8 38. Re1 a4 39. Kf3 a3 40. Bf2 Rf8+ 41. Kg3 Be6 42. Bc5 Ra8 {0-1 (42) Giri,A (2734)-Karjakin,S (2776) Beijing 2013}) 22. Be5 Kf8 23. Nc5 b5 24. c4 bxc4 25. Rd4 Re8 26. Rxc4 Rh6 27. Ra4 Kg8 (27... Ra8 28. Rea1 $14) 28. Rxa7 Bc8 29. Bg3 Rxe1+ 30. Bxe1 Rd6 {Black has to take measures against the threat of Ra8.} 31. Ba5 {[#]} Bxg4 $5 {Carlsen liquidates into an endgame which he knows from his World Championship match against Vishy Anand.} (31... Be6 32. Ne4 Rd7 33. Ra8+ Kh7 {apparently was not to his liking.}) 32. fxg4 Rg6 33. Kf2 Rxg4 34. Bd2 ({Another attempt was} 34. Nd3 Rc4 35. Ne1 Ra4 36. Ke2 g5) 34... Rc4 35. Ra8+ Kh7 36. Nd7 Rxc2 {The last remaining white pawn vanished from the board.} 37. Ke2 f6 38. Kd3 Rb2 39. Nf8+ Kg8 40. Ne6+ Kh7 41. Ra7 Rb3+ 42. Kd4 Rg3 43. Kc5 Rg2 44. Ba5 Ne3 45. Kxc6 Nf5 46. Bb4 Re2 47. Kd7 Re4 48. Bc5 Kg6 49. Ra1 Re5 50. Bd6 Nxd6 51. Kxd6 Rb5 52. Rg1+ Kh6 53. Nf4 Kh7 54. Nd5 g5 55. Ke6 Kg7 56. Rf1 Ra5 57. Nxf6 Kg6 58. Nd5 Ra6+ 59. Ke5 Ra8 60. Ne7+ Kh5 61. Rh1+ Kg4 62. Rg1+ Kh5 63. Rh1+ Kg4 64. Rg1+ Kh5 65. Rh1+ 1/2-1/2 [Event "EU-ch 6th"] [Site "Warsaw"] [Date "2005.06.25"] [Round "7"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Kharlov, Andrei"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2548"] [BlackElo "2628"] [Annotator "Mueller,Karsten"] [PlyCount "131"] [EventDate "2005.06.18"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "POL"] [SourceTitle "CBM 108"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2005.09.26"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2005.09.26"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. Nc3 Be6 10. Ng5 Ke7 11. f4 h5 12. Rd1 Rd8 13. Rxd8 Kxd8 14. Nxe6+ fxe6 15. Ne4 Be7 16. Kf2 c5 17. Be3 b6 18. Rd1+ Kc8 19. Ke2 Kb7 20. Bf2 c4 21. Kf3 Kc6 22. g3 a6 23. h3 g6 24. g4 hxg4+ 25. hxg4 Rh3+ 26. Ke2 Nh6 27. Rg1 b5 28. Be3 b4 29. Nf2 Rh2 30. Kf3 Bh4 31. Rh1 Rxh1 32. Nxh1 Kd5 33. Bf2 Bxf2 34. Nxf2 a5 35. c3 b3 36. a3 Ng8 37. Nd1 Ne7 38. Ne3+ Kc5 39. Ke4 a4 40. Nf1 Kb5 41. Nd2 Kc5 42. Nf3 Kc6 43. Nd4+ Kd7 44. Ne2 Kc6 45. Nd4+ Kd7 46. f5 exf5+ 47. gxf5 c5 48. e6+ Ke8 49. Ne2 Nxf5 50. Nf4 Ne7 51. Ke5 g5 52. Nh5 Kd8 53. Kd6 Nf5+ 54. Ke5 Ne7 55. Kf6 Nc6 $2 {Nach diesem passiven Zug bekommt Schwarz kein Bein mehr auf den Boden.} (55... Nd5+ {war vonnöten:} 56. Kf7 (56. Kxg5 $2 Nxc3 $19) 56... g4 57. Ng3 Ne7 $11) 56. Kxg5 Ke7 57. Nf4 Kd6 (57... Na7 58. Kf5 Nb5 59. Nd5+ Kd6 60. Ne3 Ke7 61. Nxc4 Nc7 62. Ke5 Nxe6 63. Nb6 $18) 58. Kf6 Ne7 59. Kf7 Nc6 60. Kf6 Ne7 (60... Ne5 61. Nd5 Ng4+ 62. Kg5 Ne5 63. e7 Kd7 64. Kf6 Ng4+ 65. Kf7 Ne5+ 66. Kg7 Nc6 67. Kf8 $18) 61. Ng2 Ng8+ 62. Kg7 Ne7 (62... Kxe6 63. Kxg8 Ke5 64. Ne3 Ke4 65. Nxc4 Kd3 66. Nb6 Kc2 67. Nxa4 $18) 63. Kf7 Nc6 64. Kf6 Nd4 (64... Ne7 65. Ne3 Ng8+ 66. Kg7 Ne7 67. Kf7 Nc8 68. Kf6 $18) 65. e7 Kd7 66. Kf7 1-0 [Event "Sinquefield Cup 1st"] [Site "Saint Louis"] [Date "2013.09.14"] [Round "5"] [White "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2772"] [BlackElo "2862"] [Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro"] [PlyCount "64"] [EventDate "2013.09.09"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "6"] [EventCountry "USA"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 157"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2013.11.12"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2013.11.12"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. Re1 Nd6 6. Nxe5 Be7 7. Bf1 Nxe5 8. Rxe5 {Nakamura uses a line that has given Carlsen some problems in the past, both sides seemed to have been very well prepared.} O-O 9. Nc3 Ne8 10. Nd5 Bd6 11. Re1 c6 12. Ne3 Bc7 13. Nf5 d5 14. Ne7+ Kh8 15. Nxc8 Rxc8 16. g3 {Only this move is actually new. Moving the bishop to the h3-f5 diagonal can cause Black some problems, or at least that was the American's original plan. Carlsen ignores this and obtains an acceptable position.} Nd6 (16... Qd7 17. d3 Nf6 18. Qf3 {is slightly more pleasant for White due to the pair of bishops, without it being anything special.}) 17. Bh3 f5 18. d3 (18. d4 $6 {takes control of e5, but is not as important as the fact that it loses control of e4.}) 18... Qf6 19. c3 (19. Bf4 Qxb2 20. Be5 Qa3 21. Qh5 Kg8 22. Qg5 {gives White some compensation, but of course Black doesn't have to take on b2.}) 19... Rce8 20. Bd2 Nf7 21. Rxe8 Rxe8 22. Qf1 f4 23. Re1 Rf8 24. Qe2 h6 25. Kh1 Ng5 26. Bg4 Bd6 {Black has solved most of his problems because White has to consistently pay attention to his kingside. The only way of kicking the knight out of g5 is with h4, which will weaken g3 and increase the power of the d6-bishop.} 27. h4 Nh7 28. Kg2 Qg6 29. Bh5 Qf5 30. Bg4 Qg6 31. Bh5 Qf5 32. Bg4 Qg6 {Neither side is really playing for anything, and with White's kingside weaknesses it's fully understandable that he immediately agreed to a draw. With this important results Carlsen goes into the last round with an extra half a point.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "London Classic 7th"] [Site "London"] [Date "2015.12.05"] [Round "2"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2850"] [BlackElo "2787"] [Annotator "Sagar,Shah/CB Website"] [PlyCount "84"] [EventDate "2015.12.04"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "ENG"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 170"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2016.01.15"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2016.01.15"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. Re1 {Magnus goes for a pretty sedate line, trying to get a small edge.} Nd6 6. Nxe5 Be7 7. Bf1 Nxe5 8. Rxe5 O-O 9. Nc3 Ne8 10. Nd5 Bd6 11. Re1 c6 12. Ne3 Be7 13. c4 Nc7 14. d4 d5 15. cxd5 Nxd5 16. Nxd5 cxd5 17. Bf4 {All of this has been seen before in the game Areshechenko-Bacrot in June 2015. White won that game. The position is very symmetrical. However, White seems to have a small edge due to the better placement of his pieces, like the rook being on e1 and the bishop on f4. However, this is nothing much.} Bf6 {.} 18. Be5 Bxe5 19. Rxe5 {One of the reasons why White should have a small edge here is because the d5-pawn is on a light square, which means that the bishop on c8 is slightly a bad piece.} Re8 20. Rxe8+ Qxe8 21. Qb3 {Magnus was playing his moves pretty quickly and confidently.} Qc6 22. Bb5 Qb6 {Black is ready to sacrifice his d5 pawn in order to get some counterplay.} (22... Qd6 23. Rc1 (23. Re1 Be6 $11) 23... Be6 {also looks fine. But Caruana wanted to be more precise and hence chose ...?b6 over ...?d6.}) 23. Qxd5 a6 $1 {Very accurate.} (23... Be6 24. Qc5 $1 Qxc5 25. dxc5 $16 {is just an extra pawn.}) 24. Bd3 {Magnus retreats to a square where he can create some mating threats with ?d3.} Be6 25. Qe4 g6 26. d5 {It seems as if White has things going his way but Caruana has everything under control.} Bf5 27. Qe2 Bxd3 28. Qxd3 Qxb2 {Black recovers the pawn. However, the d5-pawn is not at all a unit that should be underestimated.} 29. Re1 Rd8 30. d6 Rd7 {Stopping the pawn in its tracks. This is not all easy to defend but Caruana does a fine job.} (30... Qxa2 31. Qd4 $1 {looks pretty dangerous with ?f6 coming up next.}) 31. g3 $5 {Magnus takes out time to secure his back rank.} Qf6 32. Rd1 Qe5 33. Qa3 a5 34. f4 {This move might well be strong practically, however in the end it was this move that led to the perpetual check.} Qe2 35. Qc1 Qe6 36. Qc5 b5 37. Qxb5 (37. Qe5 $11 {Anand and Aronian analysed this move in their press conference and it is also equal.}) 37... Rxd6 $1 {Caruana is tactically alert and sacrifices his rook in order to get a perpetual check.} 38. Qb8+ Kg7 39. Qxd6 Qe3+ 40. Kg2 Qe2+ 41. Kg1 Qe3+ 42. Kg2 Qe2+ 1/2-1/2 [Event "World-ch Carlsen-Karjakin +1-1=10"] [Site "New York"] [Date "2016.11.28"] [Round "12"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2857"] [BlackElo "2769"] [Annotator "Seirawan,Yasser"] [PlyCount "60"] [EventDate "2016.11.11"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "12"] [EventCountry "USA"] [SourceTitle "CBM 176"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2017.01.17"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2017.01.17"] [SourceQuality "1"] {While both players have much to lament, each receiving a sympathetic ear, let's face it: The arbiters have been brilliant. They have been out of sight and nary a word about them has been spoken. Out of the spotlight they have treble checked that bane of all chess players - the clock. The battery is functioning (good), the time control has been set to the right one (very good), the board and pieces have been set up correctly (most excellent). And so it all comes down to this: After eleven hard fought games the twelfth and final game would be played for all the marbles. I wanted to describe the situation as high drama. But my 'Spidey sense' began to tingle as I considered the word. Blessed with a heightened sense of caution I decided to look up the current definition of the word. You see the English language changes. Nearly every day in fact. Just like the FIDE rules committee that loves to change the rules of chess, so to do the committees that define words in the English language. It can get pretty confusing. To assuage my internal warnings I double-checked and learned something new while bringing myself up-to-date: drama: Top definition: "Something women and especially teenage girls thrive on. Consisting of any number of situations that have an easy solution, which would bring a fairly good outcome, but these girls choose another, shitty, bad way to deal with it, again consisting of backstabbing, blackmailing/gossiping/betraying their friends, or the all-too-common, "I want to break up with him but I still love him!" It drives men and what I like to call "normal" girls nuts." Urban Dictionary. Hmm. Right. Just as expected a surprising change. Oh boy, I'm already in trouble and this is before annotating move one. Somehow, I can't quite put my finger on it but the (for me) new definition just feels a tiny bit to be politically incorrect. I confess I'm not the most astute in such matters. Therefore, let us put high drama aside for a moment and instead set up the situation from a different point of view... Many fans and even non-fans have asked me the question, "What makes one grandmaster stronger than another?" A fair question. Once when describing himself against his colleagues World Champion Mikhail Botvinnik saw himself, "As first amongst equals." It seems the top grandmasters know all the various chess skills and instead to find an answer to such a question we should consider the intangibles: Confidence; ambition; determination; good health; a supportive team; good food; a strong stomach; a working internet connection; staying regular and other key factors. The twelfth game would require a supreme effort by both players featuring nerves of steel coupled with boundless energy. They would before the gong imagine a long, hard fought game where conquering their nerves and remaining calm at those crucial moments is vital. They would review their preparation to the best of their abilities while hoping to out-calculate their opponent in the heat of battle. Doing all the things that grandmasters do so well. But there is another intangible to consider as well: At such a moment are you capable of getting a good night's sleep? Don't laugh. It is an important question. Imagine yourself in the role of Challenger Sergey Karjakin. You are to have a career defining moment. An opportunity to become World Chess Champion. A dream come true. With so many thoughts and emotions racing through your mind, will you be able to recharge your battery for the biggest contest of your life? But which player is carrying the bigger pressure? Same questions for Magnus Carlsen, the World Champion. Experts, pollsters and fans had all been unanimous predicting an easy match win. They were stone-cold wrong. Lucky to be at a level score, what risks should Magnus take to try to clinch the match? To go all in as White in the final game? As did Veselin Topalov with White against Viswanathan Anand in 2010? A decision which cost him the match... So many questions. So many worries and all you really want is to rest and recharge your battery. To sleep peacefully with pleasant dreams of victory. Perhaps such an ability, that one, to cast aside your concerns and get a good night sleep, is what makes one grandmaster stronger than another? Before the battle commenced, I wondered, would we see a real drama? Wait, now I'm certain that's not the word I want to use. In this preamble I've got it all wrong entangling myself in knots. I think National Basketball Association legend Michael Jordan said it best at such moments, "Go out and just enjoy the game. Don't think about the consequences. If you do, you'll freeze."} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O {A first indication that perhaps the "decisive" final Classical game in the match might not be all that decisive after all.} ({For Game 10, Magnus played} 4. d3 {keeping all the pieces on the board.}) 4... Nxe4 5. Re1 {Uh oh. The second indication the game is about to fizzle out.} Nd6 6. Nxe5 Be7 7. Bf1 Nxe5 8. Rxe5 O-O 9. d4 Bf6 10. Re1 {Not repeating Game 3, where Magnus tried:} (10. Re2 $5 {A move that didn't promise much but almost brought him great success.}) 10... Re8 {All according to modern theory as well as strategic principles. The e-file is open and therefore the chopping block for the major pieces.} 11. Bf4 Rxe1 12. Qxe1 Ne8 {The first moment of "excitement" quickly passes. I'm a notorious pawn-grabber but the d4-bait is poisonous:} (12... Bxd4 $6 13. Bxd6 cxd6 (13... Bxb2 $4 14. Bxc7 {simply wins for White}) 14. Nc3 {When I much prefer White's position. Black has difficulties developing while White's moves play themselves:} Rb8 15. Rd1 Be5 16. Nd5 {White's initiative is getting serious.}) 13. c3 d5 14. Bd3 g6 {Practice has proven that the symmetry in the position is hard to crack. With a draw being the most likely result.} 15. Na3 $6 {A confounding move. After all, where is the knight heading? I will certainly not claim that after the standard:} (15. Nd2 Ng7 16. Qe2 c6 17. Re1 Bf5 18. Bxf5 Nxf5 19. Nb3 {It is all "blue sky" for White. Truly, there is not much in the position but the chances for a pull lay in this direction.}) 15... c6 16. Nc2 Ng7 17. Qd2 {This one also had me perplexed. Trying my best to channel my "inner Magnus" I wrongly thought his knight maneuver was designed to cover the f5-square:} (17. Ne3 {seemed to be his intended follow-up. True, it does stop Black's ...?c8-f5 plan but allows another in its stead:} Nh5 $1 18. Bh6 Bg5 19. Bxg5 Qxg5 {with a knight coming to the f4-square Black has solved all his opening problems.}) 17... Bf5 18. Bxf5 Nxf5 19. Ne3 Nxe3 20. Qxe3 Qe7 21. Qxe7 Bxe7 {The mutual hacking continues. The board is nearly empty. Just one last trade along the chopping block remains.} 22. Re1 Bf8 {I'm sorely tempted to give this move an exclamation mark. After all I'm a paid commentator and I have to earn my keep. That would make one for the whole game. In truth Black had a perfectly decent alternative as well.} (22... Re8 {Grandmasters do not make such moves: Walking into a "self-pin." However, there is no way for White to exploit the moment:} 23. Bg5 Kf8 24. Bh6+ Kg8 {Black is ready to play: ...f7-f6, and ...?g8-f7, releasing the pin, with the time honored ritual of signing the scoresheets to follow.}) 23. Kf1 f6 24. g4 {This bold thrust does not hold the promise of a vicious attack, so hold the trumpets. Actually it is actually quite safe.} Kf7 25. h3 $1 {At last, I'm in a generous mood, "Give the man an exclam!" The text shows "understanding." In a bishop ending, pawns should be on the opposite colored squares from the bishop. The text also insures against adversity: The possibility of blundering a pawn is greatly reduced.} Re8 26. Rxe8 Kxe8 {The tasks along the chopping block have all been completed. The play must continue until move thirty. At least.} 27. Ke2 Kd7 28. Kd3 Ke6 29. a4 a6 30. f3 Be7 {Draw agreed. Oh boy. My preamble was longer than my notes to the game. Likely for good reasons. I'll leave it to other more gifted writers to share their thoughts on this downer. Instead, I'll just boldly state the obvious: A very disappointing conclusion to an intense World Championship match. Such games do not kindle interest in our glorious sport. Maybe I pegged it right after all? Perhaps Magnus did not get enough sleep? Now another rest day follows and on Wednesday the tension will be at its zenith as the title of who will be World Chess Champion will be decided by tiebreaks.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "Norway Chess 2nd"] [Site "Stavanger"] [Date "2014.06.09"] [Round "6"] [White "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2771"] [BlackElo "2881"] [Annotator "Marin,Mihail"] [PlyCount "76"] [EventDate "2014.06.03"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 161"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2014.07.16"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2014.07.16"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. h3 Bd7 10. Rd1 Be7 11. g4 Nh4 12. Nxh4 Bxh4 13. Nd2 Kc8 14. Ne4 $146 {aiming to force events.} (14. Nf3 {leads to more consistent play.} Be7 15. Rd3 h6 16. Nd4 Re8 17. Bf4 c5 18. Nf5 Bf8 19. c4 a6 20. Ne3 b5 21. b3 g5 22. Bg3 Be6 23. Rad1 Kb7 24. h4 Kc6 25. h5 Reb8 26. f3 a5 $132 {Caruana,F (2782)-Grischuk,A (2785) Warsaw 2013 (½-½ , 42). Both sides are well regrouped and have their achievements on opposite wings.}) 14... b6 15. Bg5 Bxg5 16. Nxg5 h6 17. Nxf7 {The start of a spectacular sequence resulting in almost complete simplifying.} Re8 18. f4 Be6 19. Nxh6 gxh6 20. f5 Bxf5 (20... Bd5 21. e6 {looks slightly dangerous for Black. He probably should give away the bishop with ...?xe6 anyway, now or in the near future.}) 21. gxf5 Rxe5 22. Rf1 Kd7 $1 {The king's activity will keep trouble away despite the "half-a-pawn" disadvantage.} 23. Rad1+ Ke7 24. Rfe1 Kf6 25. Rxe5 Kxe5 26. Rd7 c5 27. Kf2 Rf8 28. Rxc7 Rxf5+ 29. Kg3 Rg5+ 30. Kf2 Rf5+ 31. Ke2 Rh5 32. Rxa7 Rxh3 33. Rb7 Rh2+ 34. Kd3 Kd5 35. Rxb6 Rh3+ 36. Kd2 Rh2+ 37. Kd3 Rh3+ 38. Kd2 Rh2+ 1/2-1/2 [Event "Grenke Chess Classic 3rd"] [Site "Baden-Baden"] [Date "2015.02.08"] [Round "6"] [White "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2811"] [BlackElo "2865"] [Annotator "ChessBase"] [PlyCount "52"] [EventDate "2015.02.02"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "7"] [EventCountry "GER"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 165"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2015.03.11"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2015.03.11"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. h3 h6 10. Rd1+ Ke8 11. Nc3 Ne7 12. Bf4 Ng6 13. Bh2 Bb4 14. Ne2 Be7 15. Nfd4 Nf8 16. g4 h5 17. Nf5 Ne6 18. Kg2 b6 19. f3 c5 20. Bg3 Bg5 (20... Bb7 {was also perfectly possible.}) 21. h4 hxg4 {and now the draw is forced} 22. hxg5 gxf3+ 23. Kxf3 Nxg5+ 24. Kf4 (24. Kg4 Nh3 {is risky for White:} 25. e6 Bxe6 26. Nf4 g6 27. Nxe6 gxf5+ 28. Kxf5 fxe6+ 29. Kg4 e5 $1 {with this key move the knight from h3 is rescued and Black remains out a pawn, though probably one that is very hard to convert.} 30. Bxe5 (30. Rd5 Ke7 $15) (30. Re1 Kd7 $1 $17) 30... Nf2+ $17) 24... Nh3+ 25. Ke4 Ng5+ 26. Kf4 Nh3+ 1/2-1/2 [Event "Division I"] [Site "Chess.com"] [Date "2024.05.11"] [Round "2.3"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Lazavik, Denis"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2900"] [BlackElo "2785"] [Annotator "Stockfish 16.1"] [PlyCount "85"] [EventDate "2024.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "NOR"] [BlackTeam "BLR"] [WhiteClock "0:03:58"] [BlackClock "0:02:37"] {[%evp 23,85,12,21,14,7,10,12,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,-1,-4,-6,-2,-3,-2,-9,3,0,4,3,4,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,17,3,2,0,7,3,6,0,2,2,2,3,4,3,3,5,5,-4,0,0,0,0,0,0,6,4,5,0]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. dxe5 Nxb5 7. a4 Nbd4 8. Nxd4 d5 9. exd6 Nxd4 10. Qxd4 Qxd6 11. Qe4+ Qe6 12. Qd4 Qd6 {The position is equal.} 13. Qe3+ Be6 14. Nc3 a6 15. Rd1 Qc6 16. Qg3 Bd6 17. Bf4 Bxf4 18. Qxf4 O-O 19. Rd4 Rad8 20. Rad1 Rxd4 21. Rxd4 h6 22. h3 Qb6 23. b3 Qc5 24. Qd2 Re8 25. Nd1 Qg5 26. Qxg5 hxg5 $11 {[%mdl 4096] Endgame KRB-KRN} 27. Ne3 f6 28. a5 Kf7 29. Kf1 f5 30. Rb4 f4 31. Ng4 Bc8 32. Rc4 c6 33. Rc5 (33. Rd4 {looks sharper.} Bf5 34. c3 Ke6 35. Ke2 c5 36. Rd2) 33... Bxg4 34. hxg4 {KR-KR} Kf6 35. Rf5+ Kg6 36. Rc5 Kf6 37. Rf5+ Kg6 38. c4 Re7 39. Rf8 Re5 40. Rb8 Re7 41. Rf8 Re5 42. Rb8 Re7 43. Rf8 {Accuracy: White = 100%, Black = 96%.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "Sinquefield Cup 3rd"] [Site "Saint Louis"] [Date "2015.09.01"] [Round "9"] [White "Anand, Viswanathan"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2816"] [BlackElo "2853"] [Annotator "ChessBase II"] [PlyCount "71"] [EventDate "2015.08.23"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "USA"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 168"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2015.09.14"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2015.09.14"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. h3 h5 10. Nc3 Be7 11. Rd1+ Ke8 12. Ne2 Nh4 13. Nxh4 Bxh4 {Both players took a long time to get to this position, but it had all been played before.} 14. f3 Bf5 15. Nd4 (15. c3 Bc2 16. Rd2 Bf5 17. g4 Be6 {was fine for Black in Leko-Radjabov, 2014. The Azeri won that game in the long run.}) 15... Bg6 16. Bf4 Be7 17. g4 {Anand mentioned that he had looked at this idea with f3 and g4, but must have botched it up at some point.} Rd8 18. Kg2 hxg4 19. hxg4 Bc5 20. c3 Bxd4 21. Rxd4 Rxd4 22. cxd4 Ke7 {Whtie retains some chances of creating an advantage if he can push f4-f5, but it looks difficult to achieve... and when it does, still the advantage is not that clear.} 23. Rc1 Ke6 24. Be3 f6 {Now the draw is obvious. The structural advantage is meaningless with the opposite colored bishops on the board.} 25. exf6 gxf6 26. Bd2 Rd8 27. Bc3 Kf7 28. Kg3 Re8 29. Rh1 Bd3 30. Re1 Rxe1 31. Bxe1 Bc4 32. a3 b6 33. Kf4 a5 34. Ke3 a4 35. Bg3 b5 36. Bxc7 1/2-1/2 [Event "San Fermin Masters Final"] [Site "chess24.com INT"] [Date "2021.07.11"] [Round "3.6"] [White "Aronian, Levon"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2782"] [BlackElo "2847"] [PlyCount "103"] [EventDate "2021.07.10"] [EventType "k.o."] [EventRounds "3"] [EventCountry "ESP"] [SourceTitle "CBM 203 Extra"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2021.09.30"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2021.09.30"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. Rd1+ Ke8 10. Nc3 h5 11. Bg5 ({RR} 11. Bf4 Be6 12. Ng5 Rh6 13. b3 Be7 14. Nxe6 Rxe6 15. h3 Rd8 16. Rxd8+ Kxd8 17. Rd1+ Kc8 18. Kf1 b6 19. Ne2 Bc5 20. Rd3 g6 21. g4 hxg4 22. hxg4 Ne7 23. c4 f6 24. exf6 Rxf6 25. Bg3 Bd6 {Kamsky,G (2610)-Bravo De La Vega,A (2128) chess.com INT 2024 1-0 (44)}) 11... Be6 ({RR} 11... Be7 12. Ne2 Bd7 13. Nf4 Rd8 14. Bxe7 Kxe7 15. Ng5 Rh6 16. g3 Rf8 17. Rd3 Bc8 18. Re1 Re8 19. f3 Kf8 20. Kf2 a6 21. h3 Ne7 22. g4 hxg4 23. hxg4 Ng6 24. Nxg6+ Rxg6 25. Nh3 Rh6 26. Nf4 {Karjakin,S (2762)-Radjabov,T (2738) Berlin 2015 0-1 (68)}) 12. Ne2 $146 ({RR} 12. Rd2 Be7 13. Re1 Rd8 14. Rxd8+ Kxd8 15. Rd1+ Kc8 16. Bxe7 Nxe7 17. Ng5 Nd5 18. Nxe6 Nxc3 19. bxc3 fxe6 20. f4 Rg8 21. h4 Rd8 22. Rxd8+ Kxd8 23. Kf2 Ke7 24. g4 g6 25. Kf3 b5 26. gxh5 gxh5 {Kobalia,M (2594)-Visakh,N (2516) Chess.com INT 2021 1-0 (68)}) 12... Bd5 13. Nfd4 Nxd4 14. Rxd4 Bc5 15. Rd2 Be7 16. Bxe7 Kxe7 17. Nf4 Rad8 18. h4 Be4 19. Rad1 Rxd2 20. Rxd2 g6 21. f3 Bf5 22. Kf2 a5 23. Ke3 f6 24. exf6+ Kxf6 25. Ne2 g5 26. hxg5+ Kxg5 27. Ng3 Re8+ 28. Kf2 Bg6 29. c3 h4 30. Nf1 Bf5 31. a3 a4 32. Ne3 Be6 33. Rd4 b5 34. Re4 Bf7 35. f4+ Kf6 36. Rxe8 Bxe8 37. Kf3 Bh5+ 38. Ke4 Bf7 39. f5 Kg5 40. Ke5 c5 41. f6 c6 42. Nf5 Bd5 43. Ne7 Bc4 44. Nxc6 Kg4 45. Kd6 Kg3 46. Ne5 Bg8 47. Ng6 Bf7 48. Ne5 Bg8 49. Ng6 Bf7 50. Nxh4 Kxh4 51. Ke7 Bc4 52. f7 1-0 [Event "EU-Cup 24th"] [Site "Kallithea"] [Date "2008.10.20"] [Round "4"] [White "Radjabov, Teimour"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2751"] [BlackElo "2786"] [PlyCount "62"] [EventDate "2008.10.17"] [EventType "team-swiss"] [EventRounds "7"] [EventCountry "GRE"] [SourceTitle "CBM 127"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2008.11.13"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2008.11.13"] [SourceQuality "1"] [WhiteTeam "Ural Sverdlovskaya"] [BlackTeam "Erevan MIKA"] [WhiteTeamCountry "RUS"] [BlackTeamCountry "ARM"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. Nc3 Ke8 10. h3 b6 11. a3 ({RR} 11. Bf4 Bb4 12. Ne4 Ba6 13. Rfc1 Be2 14. Nfd2 Bxd2 15. Nxd2 Nd4 16. Be3 Nf5 17. Bf4 Nd4 18. Be3 Nf5 19. Bf4 Nd4 {½-½ (19) Topalov,V (2772)-Carlsen,M (2877) Saint Louis 2014}) 11... Bb7 12. Bf4 ({RR} 12. Rd1 h5 13. Bf4 Ne7 14. e6 fxe6 15. Bxc7 Nd5 16. Be5 Rd8 17. Ne4 Rg8 18. c4 Be7 19. cxd5 exd5 20. Ng3 g6 21. Re1 Kf7 22. Bf4 Bf6 23. Ng5+ Bxg5 24. Bxg5 Rde8 25. f3 c5 26. Kf2 d4 {Hodgson,J (2072)-Combie,A (1950) Lichess.org INT 2021 1-0 (45)}) 12... c5 $146 ({RR} 12... Rc8 13. Rfe1 c5 14. Nd2 Nd4 15. Rac1 Be7 16. Nce4 Rd8 17. Bh2 Kd7 18. c3 Ne6 19. f4 g6 20. g4 Kc8 21. Nf3 c4 22. f5 gxf5 23. gxf5 Rhg8+ 24. Kf1 Nc5 25. Nxc5 Bxc5 26. Nd4 Bg2+ 27. Kf2 {Berg,E (2594)-Carlsen,M (2801) Oslo 2009 0-1 (45)}) 13. Rad1 Bxf3 14. gxf3 c6 15. Be3 Rd8 16. Ne4 Be7 17. f4 f6 18. Rxd8+ Kxd8 19. Ng3 Nh4 20. Rd1+ Kc8 21. Kf1 c4 22. Ke2 Rd8 23. Rd4 Rxd4 24. Bxd4 c5 25. Bc3 fxe5 26. fxe5 Kd7 27. Ke3 Ke6 28. Ke4 g6 29. a4 a6 30. f4 Nf5 31. Nxf5 gxf5+ 1/2-1/2 [Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 8th"] [Site "Moscow"] [Date "2013.06.14"] [Round "2"] [White "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2782"] [BlackElo "2864"] [PlyCount "75"] [EventDate "2013.06.13"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 155"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2013.07.16"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2013.07.16"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. Re1 Nd6 6. Nxe5 Be7 7. Bf1 Nxe5 8. Rxe5 O-O 9. d4 Ne8 10. d5 Bc5 11. Re1 d6 12. Nc3 Bf5 13. Bd3 Bxd3 ({RR} 13... Qf6 14. Ne4 Bxe4 15. Rxe4 Qxf2+ 16. Kh1 Qf6 17. Rf4 Qe7 18. b4 Bb6 19. Bb2 g6 20. g4 Ng7 21. Bf6 Qe3 22. Rf3 Qh6 23. Qf1 Rae8 {½-½ (23) Ferreira,J (2518)-Korneev,O (2468) Soure POR 2025}) 14. Qxd3 Nf6 15. Na4 Re8 $146 ({RR} 15... Qd7 16. Nxc5 dxc5 17. c4 Rfe8 18. Bf4 Rxe1+ 19. Rxe1 Re8 20. Re3 Rxe3 21. Qxe3 Qa4 22. b3 Qxa2 23. h3 b5 24. Qxc5 Qb1+ 25. Kh2 Qf5 26. Qxc7 h5 27. Bg3 Kh7 28. Qe5 Qd3 29. Bh4 Nd7 30. Qxh5+ {Jovanovic,Z (2540)-Csonka,B (2451) Hungary 2018 1-0 (36)}) 16. Bd2 Rxe1+ 17. Rxe1 Qd7 18. Nxc5 dxc5 19. c4 Re8 20. f3 Rxe1+ 21. Bxe1 b6 22. g4 Ne8 23. Bg3 Nd6 24. b3 a5 25. Kf2 a4 26. Qe3 Kf8 27. h4 axb3 28. axb3 Qe7 29. Qc3 f6 30. h5 Kf7 31. Bf4 g6 32. Qa1 Ke8 33. h6 Kf7 34. Bg3 Ke8 35. Bh4 Kf7 36. Bg3 Ke8 37. Bh4 Kf7 38. Bg3 1/2-1/2 [Event "Tata Steel-A 84th"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2022.01.26"] [Round "10"] [White "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2743"] [BlackElo "2865"] [PlyCount "32"] [EventDate "2022.01.15"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 206"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2022.02.28"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2022.02.28"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. Re1 Nd6 6. Nxe5 Be7 7. Bf1 Nf5 8. c3 Nxe5 9. Rxe5 d6 10. Re1 O-O 11. d4 d5 12. Bf4 Bd6 13. Qf3 Nh4 14. Qg3 Nf5 15. Qf3 Nh4 16. Qg3 Nf5 1/2-1/2 [Event "Tata Steel-A 75th"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2013.01.19"] [Round "7"] [White "Leko, Peter"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2735"] [BlackElo "2861"] [PlyCount "166"] [EventDate "2013.01.12"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 153"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2013.03.14"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2013.03.14"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. Re1 Nd6 6. Nxe5 Be7 7. Bf1 Nxe5 8. Rxe5 O-O 9. d4 Ne8 10. d5 d6 11. Re1 Bg5 12. Nc3 Bxc1 13. Rxc1 Nf6 14. Qd4 Bd7 15. Ne4 $146 ({RR} 15. h3 Re8 16. g4 h6 17. Bg2 Re7 18. f4 Qe8 19. Kf2 Nh7 20. Bf3 f5 21. Rg1 fxg4 22. hxg4 Qf7 23. Rce1 Rf8 24. Rxe7 Qxe7 25. Ne2 Qh4+ 26. Ke3 Nf6 27. Kd2 Nxg4 28. Qxa7 Nh2 29. Qe3 Bb5 {Guliyev,N (2565)-Hirneise,T (2459) Germany 2017 ½-½ (42)}) 15... Re8 16. Nxf6+ Qxf6 17. Qxf6 gxf6 18. Red1 a5 19. f3 Kg7 20. Kf2 a4 21. Rd4 Ra5 22. Rcd1 Rc5 23. R1d2 Ra8 24. Rc4 b6 25. b4 axb3 26. cxb3 Ra3 27. b4 Rxc4 28. Bxc4 f5 29. f4 h6 30. Rd3 Rxd3 31. Bxd3 b5 32. Be2 Kg6 33. Ke3 Kf6 34. Kd4 Ke7 35. Bh5 Bc8 36. Be2 Bd7 37. Kc3 Kd8 38. Bh5 Ke7 39. a3 Ke8 40. Be2 Ke7 41. Kd4 Ke8 42. Ke3 Ke7 43. Kf2 Kf6 44. Kg3 Kg7 45. Kh4 Kg8 46. Kh5 Kh7 47. Bf1 Kg7 48. Bd3 f6 49. Kh4 Kf8 50. Kg3 Ke7 51. Kf2 Kd8 52. Ke3 Ke7 53. Be2 Be8 54. Kd4 Kd8 55. Bd3 Bd7 56. Bc2 Ke7 57. Bd1 Be8 58. Be2 Kd8 59. Ke3 Ke7 60. Bd3 Bd7 61. Kf3 Kf8 62. Kg3 Kg7 63. Kh4 Kg8 64. h3 Kg7 65. Be2 Be8 66. Bf3 Bf7 67. Kg3 Kf8 68. Kf2 Ke7 69. Ke3 Be8 70. Kd4 Kd8 71. Be2 Ke7 72. Kc3 Kd8 73. Bd1 Ke7 74. Bf3 Kd8 75. Be2 Ke7 76. Bd3 Bd7 77. Kd2 Kd8 78. Ke3 Ke7 79. Kf2 Kf8 80. Kg3 Kg7 81. Kh4 Kg8 82. Be2 Be8 83. Kg3 Kf8 1/2-1/2 [Event "San Fermin Masters Final"] [Site "chess24.com INT"] [Date "2021.07.11"] [Round "2.5"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "So, Wesley"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2847"] [BlackElo "2772"] [PlyCount "33"] [EventDate "2021.07.10"] [EventType "k.o."] [EventRounds "3"] [EventCountry "ESP"] [SourceTitle "CBM 203 Extra"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2021.09.30"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2021.09.30"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. Re1 Nd6 6. Nxe5 Be7 7. Bf1 Nf5 8. c3 Nxe5 9. Rxe5 d6 10. Re1 d5 11. d4 O-O 12. Bf4 Bd6 13. Qf3 Nh4 14. Qg3 Nf5 15. Qf3 Nh4 16. Qg3 Nf5 17. Qf3 1/2-1/2 [Event "Norway Chess 9th"] [Site "Stavanger"] [Date "2021.09.10"] [Round "4"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2855"] [BlackElo "2792"] [PlyCount "77"] [EventDate "2021.09.07"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 204"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2021.10.31"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2021.10.31"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. Rd1+ Ke8 10. Nc3 Be6 11. Ng5 Bc8 12. h3 ({RR} 12. Ne2 a5 13. Nf4 h6 14. Nf3 a4 15. g4 Ne7 16. h3 c5 17. c4 b6 18. Kg2 Ba6 19. b3 Bb7 20. Bb2 a3 21. Bc3 Ng6 22. Nxg6 fxg6 23. Kg3 Be7 24. e6 Bd6+ 25. Rxd6 cxd6 26. Nh4 Be4 {Aronian,L (2782)-Carlsen,M (2847) Chess24.com INT 2021 ½-½ (41)}) 12... Be7 13. Nf3 h5 14. Ne2 Nh4 $146 ({RR} 14... Be6 15. Nf4 {½-½ (17) Grischuk,A (2763)-Karjakin,S (2779) Astana 2012}) 15. Nxh4 Bxh4 16. g3 Be7 17. Kg2 Bf5 18. c3 c5 19. Be3 g5 20. f3 g4 21. Nf4 gxf3+ 22. Kxf3 b6 23. Rd2 Rd8 24. Rad1 Rxd2 25. Rxd2 Bd8 26. h4 c6 27. Ng2 Bg4+ 28. Kf2 Rg8 29. a3 Be7 30. Bf4 Rg6 31. Ne1 Be6 32. Nf3 Bd5 33. Bg5 Bxf3 34. Bxe7 Kxe7 35. Kxf3 Ke6 36. Kf4 Rg4+ 37. Kf3 Rg6 38. Kf4 Rg4+ 39. Kf3 1/2-1/2 [Event "Politiken Cup 26th"] [Site "Copenhagen"] [Date "2004.07.26"] [Round "4"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Dannevig, Oystein"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2567"] [BlackElo "2363"] [PlyCount "69"] [EventDate "2004.07.24"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "DEN"] [SourceTitle "CBM 101 Extra"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2004.09.01"] [SourceVersion "2"] [SourceVersionDate "2004.09.01"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. Nc3 Ke8 10. h3 Ne7 11. b3 ({RR} 11. Rd1 Ng6 12. b3 Be7 13. Bb2 h5 14. Re1 h4 15. Ne4 Kf8 16. Rad1 Rb8 17. Nf6 Nf4 18. Nd7+ Bxd7 19. Rxd7 Ke8 20. Rdd1 c5 21. Nd2 Kd7 22. Nc4+ Ke6 23. Rd6+ cxd6 24. exd6+ Kd5 25. Re5+ Kc6 {Gukesh,D (2766)-Firouzja,A (2751) Saint Louis USA 2024 ½-½ (73)}) 11... Ng6 12. Bb2 a5 13. Rad1 Bb4 $146 ({RR} 13... Be7 14. Rfe1 Be6 15. Nd4 Rd8 {½-½ (15) Hernandez Guerrero,G (2551)-Fernandez,D (2451) Merida 2006}) 14. Nd4 Bxc3 15. Bxc3 Nf4 16. Rfe1 h5 17. e6 fxe6 18. Bd2 Ng6 19. Nxe6 Bxe6 20. Rxe6+ Kf7 21. Rde1 Rhd8 22. Bc3 Rd5 23. R6e3 a4 24. Rf3+ Kg8 25. Rg3 Rd6 26. f4 axb3 27. axb3 Rf8 28. Bb4 Nxf4 29. Bxd6 cxd6 30. Re7 g6 31. Rf3 b5 32. Re4 g5 33. h4 Ng6 34. Rxf8+ Kxf8 35. Re6 1-0 [Event "London Classic 4th"] [Site "London"] [Date "2012.12.01"] [Round "1"] [White "McShane, Luke J"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2713"] [BlackElo "2848"] [PlyCount "124"] [EventDate "2012.12.01"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "ENG"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 152"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2013.01.15"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2013.01.15"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. Re1 Nd6 6. Nxe5 Be7 7. Bf1 Nf5 8. Nf3 O-O 9. d4 d5 10. g3 Bf6 11. c3 Re8 12. Rxe8+ Qxe8 13. Bf4 Qd8 14. Bd3 Nfe7 15. Na3 $146 ({RR} 15. Nbd2 Bf5 16. Bxf5 Nxf5 17. Qe2 g6 18. Nb3 b6 19. Re1 Ng7 20. Nc1 Qd7 21. Qa6 Ne6 22. Nd3 Qc8 23. Qb5 Qd7 24. Nb4 Nxf4 25. Qxc6 Qxc6 26. Nxc6 Ne6 27. Nfe5 Kg7 28. Ng4 a5 29. Nxf6 Kxf6 {Bacrot,E (2692)-Balogh,C (2659) Germany 2015 1-0 (51)}) 15... a6 16. Nc2 Bf5 17. Bxf5 Nxf5 18. g4 Nfe7 19. Ne3 g6 20. Qf1 Qd7 21. Qh3 Bg7 22. Qg3 Rc8 23. g5 Nd8 24. Be5 Ne6 25. Bf6 Re8 26. Ne5 Qd6 27. Kh1 Nxg5 28. Bxg5 f6 29. Bxf6 Qxf6 30. Re1 c6 31. Kg2 Nc8 32. N3g4 Qd8 33. Nd3 Rxe1 34. Nxe1 Nd6 35. Nd3 Nf5 36. Qh3 Bf8 37. Ne3 Qg5+ 38. Kf1 Nxe3+ 39. fxe3 Kg7 40. Nf4 Qf6 41. Ke2 Bd6 42. Qg4 Kf7 43. h3 h5 44. Qc8 Qe7 45. Nd3 Kf6 46. b3 Kg5 47. c4 Kh4 48. c5 Bg3 49. b4 Qf7 50. a4 g5 51. Kd2 Bh2 52. Ne1 Kg3 53. Nc2 Bg1 54. Qd8 Kh4 55. Qc8 Bf2 56. Ke2 Kg3 57. Qd8 Qf5 58. Kd2 Kxh3 59. b5 g4 60. bxc6 bxc6 61. Nb4 g3 62. Nd3 g2 0-1 [Event "Qatar Masters op"] [Site "Doha"] [Date "2015.12.29"] [Round "9"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Kramnik, Vladimir"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2834"] [BlackElo "2796"] [PlyCount "60"] [EventDate "2015.12.20"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "QAT"] [SourceTitle "CBM 170"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2016.01.15"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2016.01.15"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. Re1 Nd6 6. Nxe5 Be7 7. Bf1 Nxe5 8. Rxe5 O-O 9. d4 Bf6 10. Re1 Re8 11. c3 Rxe1 12. Qxe1 Ne8 13. Bf4 d5 14. Bd3 g6 15. Nd2 Ng7 16. Nf3 Bf5 17. Bxf5 Nxf5 18. Qe2 c6 19. Re1 Ng7 20. Be5 Bxe5 21. Nxe5 Qd6 22. Qf3 f6 23. Nd3 Re8 24. Rxe8+ Nxe8 25. Qe3 Ng7 26. h3 Kf7 27. Qh6 Kg8 28. Qe3 Kf7 29. Qh6 Kg8 30. Qe3 Kf7 $146 ({RR} 30... g5) 1/2-1/2 [Event "EU-chT (Men) 16th"] [Site "Heraklion"] [Date "2007.11.01"] [Round "5.1"] [White "Kulaots, Kaido"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2547"] [BlackElo "2714"] [PlyCount "74"] [EventDate "2007.10.28"] [EventType "team-swiss"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "GRE"] [SourceTitle "CBM 121"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2007.11.14"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2007.11.14"] [SourceQuality "1"] [WhiteTeam "Estonia"] [BlackTeam "Norway"] [WhiteTeamCountry "EST"] [BlackTeamCountry "NOR"] 1. e4 {Wedberg,Tom} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. Nc3 Bd7 10. b3 Kc8 11. Bb2 h6 12. Rad1 a5 ({RR} 12... b6 13. Ne2 c5 14. c4 ({RR} 14. Nf4 Bc6 ({RR} 14... c4 15. bxc4) 15. Nd5 ({RR} 15. Rfe1 Bxf3 16. gxf3 Be7 17. e6 Bd6) 15... Ne7 ({RR} 15... Nd4 16. Nxd4 Bxd5 17. Ne2 Bc6 18. f4) ({RR} 15... Kb7 16. Rfe1 Ne7 ({RR} 16... Re8 17. c4 Ne7 18. e6) 17. Nxe7 Bxe7 18. e6) 16. Nxe7+ ({RR} 16. c4) 16... Bxe7 17. e6 Bxf3 ({RR} 17... fxe6 18. Rfe1) 18. gxf3 fxe6 19. Rfe1 Bf6 20. Bxf6 gxf6 21. Rxe6) 14... Bc6 15. Nf4 Kb7 ({RR} 15... Bxf3 16. gxf3 Be7 ({RR} 16... c6 17. Rfe1) 17. e6 ({RR} 17. Nd5 Re8 18. Ne3 Nh4 19. f4 g6 20. Rd3 Kb7 21. Rfd1 Rad8) 17... Bd6 18. Rd5 Nd4 ({RR} 18... fxe6 19. Nxe6 Re8 20. Nxc7 Kxc7 21. Rxf5) 19. Bxd4 Bxf4 ({RR} 19... cxd4 20. Rxd4 g5 21. Nh5) 20. Rf5 cxd4 21. Rxf4 fxe6 22. Rxd4 Rf8 23. Re1 Rxf3 24. Rxe6 Rf7) 16. Nd5 ({RR} 16. Rfe1 Bxf3 17. gxf3 Be7 18. Rd7 ({RR} 18. e6 Bd6 19. Nh5 ({RR} 19. Rd5 Nh4) 19... fxe6 20. Rxe6 Rhe8) 18... Rad8 19. e6 fxe6 20. Rxd8 Bxd8 21. Nxe6 Bf6) 16... Ne7 17. Rfe1 Rg8 ({RR} 17... Bxd5 18. cxd5 Rd8 19. d6 cxd6 20. exd6 Nc6 21. d7 Kc7 22. Be5+) ({RR} 17... Rd8 18. Ne3 Re8 ({RR} 18... Rxd1 19. Rxd1) 19. e6 fxe6 20. Ne5) 18. Nf4 ({RR} 18. e6 fxe6 19. Nxe7 ({RR} 19. Rxe6 Rd8) 19... Bxe7 20. Rxe6 ({RR} 20. Ne5 Bf6 21. Nxc6 Bxb2 22. Rxe6 Rae8 23. Rde1 Rxe6 24. Rxe6 Rf8) 20... Bxf3 21. gxf3 Bd6) 18... g5 19. Nh5 Rg6 20. Nf6 Bg7 21. Rd3 Bxf3 22. Rxf3 Bxf6 23. exf6 Nc6 24. Rd3 Rf8 25. Re4 Kc8 26. f4 ({RR} 26. h4 Nd4 27. Bxd4 cxd4 28. Rdxd4 Rxf6 29. hxg5 hxg5) 26... gxf4 27. Rxf4 {Kasparov,G (2849)-Kramnik,V (2770) London 2000 CBM 080 [Wedberg,Tom] ½-½ (53)}) ({RR} 12... Ne7) 13. Rd3 ({RR} 13. h3 b6 14. a4 Bb4 15. Ne2 Re8 16. Nf4 g6 17. g4 Ng7 18. Rd3 Ne6 19. Nxe6 Bxe6 20. Nd4) ({RR} 13. a4 b6 14. Ne2 Ne7 15. Nf4 Bg4 16. e6 fxe6 17. Rfe1 Nd5 18. Ng6 Rg8 19. Nge5 Bf5 20. Nd4 Bb4 21. Rf1 Bc3 22. Nxf5 Bxe5 23. Nxh6 Bxh2+ 24. Kxh2 gxh6 25. Rfe1 Rg6 26. Re4 Kb7 27. c4 Nb4 {Kramnik,V (2753)-Nakamura,H (2802) chess.com INT 2024 ½-½ (40)}) 13... Be7 14. h3 $146 ({RR} 14. Rfd1 Be6 15. h3 h5 16. Bc1 b6 17. Ne2 Kb7 18. Nf4 Bc8 19. a4 g5 20. Ne2 Rg8 21. Nd2 Nh4 22. Ng3 g4 23. Kh2 gxh3 24. gxh3 Be6 25. c4 Rad8 26. Rxd8 Rxd8 27. Nxh5 Nf3+ 28. Kg2 Nxe5 {Perez Marimon,J (2250)-Parra Cabrera,E (2237) Las Tunas 2019 0-1 (70)}) 14... Nh4 15. Nd4 c5 16. Ndb5 Ra6 17. Nd5 Bd8 18. a4 Bf5 19. Rg3 Rg6 20. Ne3 Be6 21. Rxg6 fxg6 22. Nc3 Nf5 23. Ncd5 Bg5 24. f4 Bh4 25. g4 Ng3 26. Rf2 Ne4 27. Re2 Rf8 28. Kg2 c6 29. Nb6+ Kc7 30. Nbc4 Rxf4 31. Nxa5 Ng5 32. Nac4 Rf3 33. Ba3 b5 34. Nd2 Rg3+ 35. Kf1 Nxh3 36. Ng2 b4 37. Bb2 Rxg4 0-1 [Event "Corus-B"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2006.01.28"] [Round "12"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Cheparinov, Ivan"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2625"] [BlackElo "2625"] [PlyCount "117"] [EventDate "2006.01.14"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "15"] [SourceTitle "CBM 111"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2006.04.04"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2006.04.04"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. Re1 Nd6 6. Nxe5 Be7 7. Bf1 Nxe5 8. Rxe5 O-O 9. d4 Bf6 10. Re1 Nf5 11. d5 d6 12. Nd2 Bg5 ({RR} 12... Re8 13. Ne4 Bd7 14. c3 h6 15. Bd3 Nh4 16. g3 Ng6 17. f4 c6 18. Be3 Be7 19. Bc4 Bf8 20. Bf2 b5 21. dxc6 bxc4 22. cxd7 Qxd7 23. Qd5 Rab8 24. b4 Qg4 25. Qd1 Qf5 26. Qd4 a5 27. a3 {Anand,V (2786)-Kramnik,V (2808) Leuven 2017 ½-½ (70)}) 13. c3 ({RR} 13. Bd3 Nh6 14. Ne4 Bxc1 15. Qxc1 Bf5 16. Qf4 Bg6 17. Ng3 Qd7 18. Re2 Rae8 19. Rae1 Rxe2 20. Rxe2 Re8 21. Ne4 Bxe4 22. Rxe4 Rxe4 23. Qxe4 g6 24. Qe3 Ng4 25. Qxa7 Qe7 26. h3 Qe1+ 27. Bf1 Nf6 {Van Foreest,J (2687)-Reimanis,R (2355) London ENG 2025 1-0 (129)}) 13... Bd7 14. g3 $146 ({RR} 14. Qb3 b6 15. Nf3 Bxc1 16. Raxc1 Nh4 17. Nxh4 Qxh4 18. Bb5 Qd8 19. Qa4 Bxb5 20. Qxb5 Re8 21. Qc6 Rc8 22. g3 Kf8 23. h4 Re5 24. Rxe5 dxe5 25. Re1 Qd6 26. Qb7 Re8 27. Qxa7 e4 28. Qb7 e3 {Womacka,M (2371)-Guerra Mendez,J (2500) chess.com INT 2023 0-1 (55)}) ({RR} 14. Qb3 b6 15. Nf3 Bxc1 16. Raxc1 Qf6 17. Bb5 Rad8 18. Bxd7 Rxd7 19. Qa4 Re7 20. Qxa7 Rfe8 21. Rxe7 Qxe7 22. h3 Qd7 23. Qa6 h6 24. Qd3 g6 25. g3 Qa4 26. a3 Qb3 27. Qd2 Kh7 28. Kg2 Ng7 {Womacka,M (2371)-Dubnevych,M (2391) chess.com INT 2023 0-1 (78)}) 14... Re8 15. Ne4 Bxc1 16. Rxc1 Nh6 17. f3 Nf5 18. Qd2 c6 19. dxc6 bxc6 20. Qf2 Be6 21. Rcd1 d5 22. Nc5 Qf6 23. Rd2 Re7 24. Rde2 Rae8 25. Nb3 h5 26. Qc5 Qg5 27. Re5 h4 28. g4 Bc8 29. Rxe7 Rxe7 30. Rxe7 Nxe7 31. Kf2 Qe5 32. Kg1 f5 33. Qxa7 fxg4 34. Qd4 Qg5 35. f4 Qg6 36. Qe5 Kf7 37. Nd4 g3 38. Qg5 gxh2+ 39. Kxh2 Qxg5 40. fxg5 c5 41. Nb3 c4 42. Nd4 Kg6 43. Nf3 Bg4 44. Nxh4+ Kxg5 45. Kg3 Bd7 46. Nf3+ Kf6 47. Nd4 Nf5+ 48. Nxf5 Bxf5 49. Kf4 Bd7 50. b3 cxb3 51. axb3 g5+ 52. Ke3 Ke5 53. b4 g4 54. b5 Kd6 55. Kf4 Kc5 56. Bg2 Bxb5 57. Bxd5 Kxd5 58. c4+ Bxc4 59. Kxg4 1/2-1/2 [Event "San Fermin Masters Final"] [Site "chess24.com INT"] [Date "2021.07.11"] [Round "3.6"] [White "Aronian, Levon"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2782"] [BlackElo "2847"] [PlyCount "103"] [EventDate "2021.07.10"] [EventType "k.o."] [EventRounds "3"] [EventCountry "ESP"] [SourceTitle "CBM 203 Extra"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2021.09.30"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2021.09.30"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. Rd1+ Ke8 10. Nc3 h5 11. Bg5 ({RR} 11. Bf4 Be6 12. Ng5 Rh6 13. b3 Be7 14. Nxe6 Rxe6 15. h3 Rd8 16. Rxd8+ Kxd8 17. Rd1+ Kc8 18. Kf1 b6 19. Ne2 Bc5 20. Rd3 g6 21. g4 hxg4 22. hxg4 Ne7 23. c4 f6 24. exf6 Rxf6 25. Bg3 Bd6 {Kamsky,G (2610)-Bravo De La Vega,A (2128) chess.com INT 2024 1-0 (44)}) 11... Be6 ({RR} 11... Be7 12. Ne2 Bd7 13. Nf4 Rd8 14. Bxe7 Kxe7 15. Ng5 Rh6 16. g3 Rf8 17. Rd3 Bc8 18. Re1 Re8 19. f3 Kf8 20. Kf2 a6 21. h3 Ne7 22. g4 hxg4 23. hxg4 Ng6 24. Nxg6+ Rxg6 25. Nh3 Rh6 26. Nf4 {Karjakin,S (2762)-Radjabov,T (2738) Berlin 2015 0-1 (68)}) 12. Ne2 $146 ({RR} 12. Rd2 Be7 13. Re1 Rd8 14. Rxd8+ Kxd8 15. Rd1+ Kc8 16. Bxe7 Nxe7 17. Ng5 Nd5 18. Nxe6 Nxc3 19. bxc3 fxe6 20. f4 Rg8 21. h4 Rd8 22. Rxd8+ Kxd8 23. Kf2 Ke7 24. g4 g6 25. Kf3 b5 26. gxh5 gxh5 {Kobalia,M (2594)-Visakh,N (2516) Chess.com INT 2021 1-0 (68)}) 12... Bd5 13. Nfd4 Nxd4 14. Rxd4 Bc5 15. Rd2 Be7 16. Bxe7 Kxe7 17. Nf4 Rad8 18. h4 Be4 19. Rad1 Rxd2 20. Rxd2 g6 21. f3 Bf5 22. Kf2 a5 23. Ke3 f6 24. exf6+ Kxf6 25. Ne2 g5 26. hxg5+ Kxg5 27. Ng3 Re8+ 28. Kf2 Bg6 29. c3 h4 30. Nf1 Bf5 31. a3 a4 32. Ne3 Be6 33. Rd4 b5 34. Re4 Bf7 35. f4+ Kf6 36. Rxe8 Bxe8 37. Kf3 Bh5+ 38. Ke4 Bf7 39. f5 Kg5 40. Ke5 c5 41. f6 c6 42. Nf5 Bd5 43. Ne7 Bc4 44. Nxc6 Kg4 45. Kd6 Kg3 46. Ne5 Bg8 47. Ng6 Bf7 48. Ne5 Bg8 49. Ng6 Bf7 50. Nxh4 Kxh4 51. Ke7 Bc4 52. f7 1-0 [Event "Sinquefield Cup 2nd"] [Site "Saint Louis"] [Date "2014.09.06"] [Round "10"] [White "Topalov, Veselin"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2772"] [BlackElo "2877"] [PlyCount "38"] [EventDate "2014.08.27"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "USA"] [EventCategory "23"] [SourceTitle "CBM 162"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2014.09.17"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2014.09.17"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. h3 Ke8 10. Nc3 b6 11. Bf4 Bb4 ({RR} 11... Ba6 12. Rfc1 Bb4 {½-½ (18) Benedeczky,L (2105)-Grimm,G (2122) Balatonlelle 2015}) 12. Ne4 Ba6 13. Rfc1 Be2 14. Nfd2 Bxd2 15. Nxd2 Nd4 16. Be3 Nf5 17. Bf4 Nd4 18. Be3 Nf5 19. Bf4 $146 Nd4 1/2-1/2 [Event "Norway Chess 9th"] [Site "Stavanger"] [Date "2021.09.10"] [Round "4"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2855"] [BlackElo "2792"] [PlyCount "77"] [EventDate "2021.09.07"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 204"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2021.10.31"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2021.10.31"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. Rd1+ Ke8 10. Nc3 Be6 11. Ng5 Bc8 12. h3 ({RR} 12. Ne2 a5 13. Nf4 h6 14. Nf3 a4 15. g4 Ne7 16. h3 c5 17. c4 b6 18. Kg2 Ba6 19. b3 Bb7 20. Bb2 a3 21. Bc3 Ng6 22. Nxg6 fxg6 23. Kg3 Be7 24. e6 Bd6+ 25. Rxd6 cxd6 26. Nh4 Be4 {Aronian,L (2782)-Carlsen,M (2847) Chess24.com INT 2021 ½-½ (41)}) 12... Be7 13. Nf3 h5 14. Ne2 Nh4 $146 ({RR} 14... Be6 15. Nf4 {½-½ (17) Grischuk,A (2763)-Karjakin,S (2779) Astana 2012}) 15. Nxh4 Bxh4 16. g3 Be7 17. Kg2 Bf5 18. c3 c5 19. Be3 g5 20. f3 g4 21. Nf4 gxf3+ 22. Kxf3 b6 23. Rd2 Rd8 24. Rad1 Rxd2 25. Rxd2 Bd8 26. h4 c6 27. Ng2 Bg4+ 28. Kf2 Rg8 29. a3 Be7 30. Bf4 Rg6 31. Ne1 Be6 32. Nf3 Bd5 33. Bg5 Bxf3 34. Bxe7 Kxe7 35. Kxf3 Ke6 36. Kf4 Rg4+ 37. Kf3 Rg6 38. Kf4 Rg4+ 39. Kf3 1/2-1/2 [Event "Grand Slam Final 4th"] [Site "Sao Paulo/Bilbao"] [Date "2011.09.26"] [Round "1"] [White "Anand, Viswanathan"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2817"] [BlackElo "2823"] [PlyCount "56"] [EventDate "2011.09.26"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "BRA"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 145"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2011.11.11"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2011.11.11"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. Nc3 h6 10. h3 Ne7 11. Be3 Ke8 12. Rad1 Bd7 13. a3 Rd8 14. Rfe1 a6 15. Ne4 Bf5 16. Nc5 $146 ({RR} 16. Rxd8+ Kxd8 17. Bd2 Kc8 18. Nd4 Bh7 19. e6 f6 20. f4 f5 21. Nc3 g6 22. Nf3 Bg7 23. Be3 Bxc3 24. bxc3 Re8 25. c4 b6 26. Bd4 c5 27. Bg7 h5 28. Ng5 Bg8 29. Kf2 Nc6 30. g4 hxg4 {Hou,Y (2584)-Naiditsch,A (2697) Villarrobledo 2009 0-1 (69)}) 16... Rxd1 17. Rxd1 Bc8 18. Nd3 Ng6 19. Nf4 Nxf4 20. Bxf4 Be7 21. Nd4 Bc5 22. Be3 Bxd4 23. Rxd4 Ke7 24. f3 Rd8 25. Rxd8 Kxd8 26. g4 h5 27. Kf2 g6 28. Bg5+ Ke8 1/2-1/2 [Event "Tata Steel-A 74th"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2012.01.17"] [Round "4"] [White "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2736"] [BlackElo "2835"] [PlyCount "67"] [EventDate "2012.01.14"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 147"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2012.03.16"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2012.03.16"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. Nc3 Ke8 10. h3 Bb4 11. Ne2 Be6 12. Nf4 Bd5 13. Nxd5 cxd5 14. g4 Ne7 15. Nd4 Bc5 $146 ({RR} 15... h5 16. Kg2 hxg4 17. hxg4 Kd7 18. Bg5 Ng6 19. f4 Raf8 20. Nf5 f6 21. exf6 gxf6 22. Bh6 Nh4+ 23. Nxh4 Rxh6 24. Nf5 Rg6 25. Kf3 Rfg8 26. Rg1 Bc5 27. Rg2 Rh8 28. Rd2 Kc6 29. Re1 Rh3+ 30. Ng3 {Pijpers,A (2462)-Feller,S (2569) Belgium 2018 1-0}) 16. Rd1 h5 17. Kg2 Bxd4 18. Rxd4 c5 19. Rd3 d4 20. b4 cxb4 21. Rxd4 Nc6 22. Rd5 hxg4 23. hxg4 Rd8 24. Rxd8+ Kxd8 25. Bg5+ Kc7 26. f4 b5 27. Rd1 a6 28. Rd5 Re8 29. Kf3 Rh8 30. Kg2 Re8 31. Bh4 Na5 32. Bf2 Nc4 33. Kf3 g6 34. Bd4 1/2-1/2 [Event "Tata Steel-A 84th"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2022.01.26"] [Round "10"] [White "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2743"] [BlackElo "2865"] [PlyCount "32"] [EventDate "2022.01.15"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 206"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2022.02.28"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2022.02.28"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. Re1 Nd6 6. Nxe5 Be7 7. Bf1 Nf5 8. c3 Nxe5 9. Rxe5 d6 10. Re1 O-O 11. d4 d5 12. Bf4 Bd6 13. Qf3 Nh4 14. Qg3 Nf5 15. Qf3 Nh4 16. Qg3 Nf5 1/2-1/2 [Event "San Fermin Masters Final"] [Site "chess24.com INT"] [Date "2021.07.11"] [Round "2.5"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "So, Wesley"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2847"] [BlackElo "2772"] [PlyCount "33"] [EventDate "2021.07.10"] [EventType "k.o."] [EventRounds "3"] [EventCountry "ESP"] [SourceTitle "CBM 203 Extra"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2021.09.30"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2021.09.30"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. Re1 Nd6 6. Nxe5 Be7 7. Bf1 Nf5 8. c3 Nxe5 9. Rxe5 d6 10. Re1 d5 11. d4 O-O 12. Bf4 Bd6 13. Qf3 Nh4 14. Qg3 Nf5 15. Qf3 Nh4 16. Qg3 Nf5 17. Qf3 1/2-1/2 [Event "Corus"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2009.01.18"] [Round "2"] [White "Stellwagen, Daniel"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2612"] [BlackElo "2776"] [PlyCount "71"] [EventDate "2009.01.17"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "19"] [SourceTitle "CBM 129"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2009.03.25"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2009.03.25"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. Nc3 Ke8 10. h3 b6 11. Rd1 ({RR} 11. Bf4 Bb4 12. Ne4 Ba6 13. Rfc1 Be2 14. Nfd2 Bxd2 15. Nxd2 Nd4 16. Be3 Nf5 17. Bf4 Nd4 18. Be3 Nf5 19. Bf4 Nd4 {½-½ (19) Topalov,V (2772)-Carlsen,M (2877) Saint Louis 2014}) 11... Bb7 ({RR} 11... Bb4 12. Ne2 Bb7 13. Ned4 Nxd4 14. Nxd4 Bc5 15. Nf5 Rg8 16. g4 Bf8 17. f3 c5 18. Kf2 h6 19. h4 Bc8 20. h5 Be6 21. Ne3 Be7 22. f4 Rd8 23. Rxd8+ Bxd8 24. Bd2 Bc8 25. Bc3 Bb7 26. Kg3 {Samant,A (2495)-Wang,T (2355) Richardson USA 2025 1-0 (41)}) 12. Bf4 Rc8 13. g4 $146 ({RR} 13. Nd4 Nxd4 14. Rxd4 Rd8 15. Rad1 Be7 16. e6 fxe6 17. Bxc7 Rxd4 18. Rxd4 Bf6 19. Rd2 Ke7 20. Ne4 Rc8 21. Bd6+ Ke8 22. Bg3 Rd8 23. Nxf6+ gxf6 24. Rxd8+ {½-½ (24) Almasi,Z (2700)-Kasimdzhanov,R (2704) Germany 2016}) ({RR} 13. Ne4 Be7 14. Re1 h5 15. Nd6+ cxd6 16. exd6 Rd8 17. dxe7 Nxe7 18. Re2 Kf8 19. Rae1 Nf5 20. Re5 Bc8 21. g4 hxg4 22. hxg4 Nh6 23. Re8+ Rxe8 24. Bd6+ Re7 25. Rxe7 Bxg4 26. Rxa7+ {1-0 (26) Negi,P (2603)-Deepan Chakkravarthy,J (2480) New Delhi 2010}) 13... Ne7 14. e6 fxe6 15. Ng5 Nd5 16. Nxe6 Nxf4 17. Nxf4 Bd6 18. Ne6 Kf7 19. Ng5+ Kg6 20. Nce4 Be5 21. Nf3 Bxb2 22. Rd7 Bf6 23. Nxf6 Kxf6 24. g5+ Kg6 25. Re1 Rhe8 26. Ne5+ Kxg5 27. Rxg7+ Kf6 28. Rf7+ Ke6 29. Rxh7 Rg8+ 30. Ng4+ Kd5 31. Ree7 c5 32. Rxc7 Rxc7 33. Rxc7 Bc8 34. Rxa7 Bxg4 35. hxg4 Rxg4+ 36. Kf1 1/2-1/2 [Event "Gausdal GM-A"] [Site "Gausdal"] [Date "2005.04.18"] [Round "6"] [White "Bogner, Sebastian"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C68"] [WhiteElo "2409"] [BlackElo "2548"] [Annotator "Finkel,Alexander"] [PlyCount "62"] [EventDate "2005.04.13"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [EventCategory "10"] [SourceTitle "CBM 107"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2005.08.01"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2005.08.01"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Bxc6 dxc6 5. O-O Bg4 6. h3 Bh5 7. g4 $5 {This very interesting line leads to a complicated struggle with mutual chances. It seems White should be able to get an advantage either by returning his extra pawn at the right moment or by keeping it!} Bg6 8. Nxe5 Bd6 (8... Qh4 9. Qf3 f6 10. Nxg6 hxg6 11. Kg2 O-O-O 12. d3 Bd6 13. Rh1 Ne7 14. Nc3 g5 15. Ne2 {? Gipslis,A/ECO/Fuchs-Trifunovic/Berlin/1962}) 9. Nxg6 (9. d4 Bxe5 10. dxe5 Qxd1 11. Rxd1 Bxe4 $13) 9... hxg6 10. Qf3 (10. Kg2 Qe7 11. d3 g5 12. Nd2 O-O-O 13. Nc4 f6 14. Qf3 Nh6 15. Be3 Nf7 16. Rad1 $14 {Petersen,S-Agergaard,L/Lyngby 1991}) 10... Qh4 (10... Be5 11. c3 (11. d3 Qh4 12. Kg2 O-O-O 13. g5 Rf8 14. Qg4+ Qxg4+ 15. hxg4 Ne7 16. f4 Bd6 17. Nc3 $16 {Garcia del Rey,S-Gutierrez Canseco,P/Spain 1993}) (11. Nc3 Ne7 12. Ne2 c5 13. d3 Nc6 14. Kg2 Qd6 15. Bf4 O-O-O 16. Qg3 g5 17. Bxe5 Nxe5 18. f4 gxf4 19. Nxf4 f6 20. b3 $16 {Wittmann,W-Pilz,D/Austria 1998}) 11... c5 12. Na3 b5 13. Nc2 c4 14. d4 cxd3 15. Rd1 c5 16. Rxd3 Qc7 17. Ne3 $16 {Guseinov,G-Davidov,S/Baku 2000}) (10... Qd7 11. d3 O-O-O 12. Kg2 Ne7 13. Bf4 f5 14. Bxd6 cxd6 15. Nd2 d5 16. e5 Rh4 $13 {Schelle,A-Appel,H/Freising 2001}) 11. Kg2 Nf6 $146 {This move was most likely analysed by Norwegian youngster at his home-lab.} (11... Bf4 $5 12. Nc3 (12. d3 $5 g5 (12... Bxc1 13. Rxc1 g5 14. Nc3 Ne7 15. Ne2 Ng6 16. Rh1 Qh6 17. Qe3 $14) 13. Bxf4 gxf4 14. Nd2 Ne7 15. Rh1 Ng6 16. Qe2 $16) 12... Ne7 13. d4 g5 14. Ne2 (14. Bxf4 gxf4 15. Ne2 Ng6 16. Rh1 Qg5 17. Qb3 Nh4+ 18. Kf1 O-O-O 19. f3 $13) 14... Ng6 15. Rh1 Qh6 {??h4+} 16. Kf1 Nh4 17. Qd3 (17. Qb3 $5 O-O-O 18. Bxf4 (18. Qxf7 $2 Rhf8 $40) 18... gxf4 19. f3 $13) 17... Bxc1 18. Rxc1 O-O-O 19. Qe3 Rhe8 $17 {Djurhuus,R-Hector,J/Malmo 1995; Wedberg}) (11... O-O-O 12. d4 f6 13. Nd2 Nh6 14. Nc4 Nf7 15. Rh1 Be7 16. c3 Nd6 17. Nxd6+ Bxd6 18. Be3 $16 {Hautala,R-Juntunen,J/Oulu 1998}) 12. e5 (12. Nc3 O-O-O 13. d4 c5 14. dxc5 Bxc5 15. Qg3 Qh7 16. Bg5 Bd4 $44) 12... Nd5 13. d4 ({After} 13. exd6 {black has to force a draw by} Nf4+ 14. Kh2 Qxh3+ (14... Nxh3 15. Qg3 Qh7 16. Re1+ Kd7 17. Kg2 Nf4+ 18. Kf3 $18) 15. Qxh3 Rxh3+ 16. Kg1 Ne2+ 17. Kg2 Nf4+ $11) 13... Be7 14. Qg3 $6 {I see no point in this move, but it shouldn't be too bad.} (14. c4 Nb4 (14... Nb6 15. b3 O-O-O 16. Bb2 (16. Be3 $6 c5 17. d5 Nd7 18. Bf4 Bg5 19. Bh2 Rde8 20. Re1 Bf6 $15) 16... f6 17. Qg3 Qh6 18. e6 $14) 15. Na3 O-O-O 16. Rd1 f6 17. Bf4 $13) 14... Qh7 15. c4 Nb4 16. Na3 (16. Nc3 Nc2 17. Rb1 Nxd4 18. Rd1 O-O-O 19. Be3 Nc2 $15) 16... O-O-O 17. Be3 $2 (17. Rd1 {[%csl Gd3]} g5 18. Qf3 Kb8 $13) 17... Nd3 18. Rab1 (18. Bg5 $2 Bxg5 19. Qxd3 Rxd4 $19 {[%csl Rh3]}) 18... g5 $1 $17 {[%CAl Gh7e4] Threatening to come to e4.} 19. Qf3 (19. Rfd1 f6 20. e6 Qe4+ 21. Kg1 Nf4 $17) 19... c5 $1 20. dxc5 Bxc5 21. Bxg5 (21. Qf5+ Qxf5 22. gxf5 Bxa3 23. bxa3 Nxe5 24. Bxg5 f6 25. Bf4 Nxc4 $17) (21. Bxc5 Nxc5 22. Rfd1 Rxd1 23. Rxd1 Ne6 $40 {[%CAl Ge6f4]}) 21... Nxe5 22. Qf5+ Qxf5 23. gxf5 Rd3 24. Nc2 $6 (24. Bf4) 24... Rdxh3 $19 {Black's attack is very dangerous even with the queens off the board.} 25. Be3 (25. Rh1 Rxh1 26. Rxh1 Rxh1 27. Kxh1 Nxc4 28. b3 Nd6 $19) 25... Rh2+ 26. Kg3 Bd6 27. c5 R8h3+ 28. Kf4 Rf3+ 29. Ke4 Rh4+ 30. Kd5 Nc6 31. Nd4 (31. cxd6 Rxf5#) 31... Rxf5+ $1 0-1 [Event "EU-chT (Men) 20th"] [Site "Reykjavik"] [Date "2015.11.21"] [Round "8.1"] [White "Nisipeanu, Liviu Dieter"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C68"] [WhiteElo "2683"] [BlackElo "2850"] [PlyCount "87"] [EventDate "2015.11.13"] [EventType "team-swiss"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "ISL"] [SourceTitle "CBM 170"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2016.01.15"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2016.01.15"] [SourceQuality "1"] [WhiteTeam "Germany"] [BlackTeam "Norway"] [WhiteTeamCountry "GER"] [BlackTeamCountry "NOR"] [WhiteClock "0:36:02"] [BlackClock "0:48:29"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Bxc6 dxc6 5. O-O Bd6 6. d4 exd4 7. Qxd4 f6 8. Nbd2 Be6 9. b3 Qe7 10. Nc4 Bc5 11. Qd3 Qd7 12. Qxd7+ Bxd7 13. Be3 Be7 $146 ({RR} 13... Bxe3 14. Nxe3 Ne7 15. Rad1 c5 16. e5 Be6 17. exf6 gxf6 18. Nd2 Kf7 19. Ne4 b6 20. f3 h5 21. Rd2 Rhd8 22. Rfd1 Rxd2 23. Rxd2 a5 24. Nc3 Nf5 25. Nxf5 Bxf5 26. Nb5 c6 27. Nd6+ Ke6 28. Nxf5 {Socko,B (2599)-Bartel,M (2649) Warsaw 2016 ½-½ (88)}) 14. Nd4 O-O-O 15. Rad1 Re8 16. f3 Bf8 17. Bf2 Nh6 18. Ne3 Nf7 19. Ne2 g6 20. Nf4 Bg7 21. a4 Re7 22. Nd3 Kb8 23. Nc4 Bc8 24. a5 Rhe8 25. Nc5 f5 26. Bd4 Bxd4+ 27. Rxd4 Ka7 28. exf5 Bxf5 29. Ne4 c5 30. Rd2 Bxe4 31. fxe4 Nd8 32. e5 Nc6 33. Rd5 Nxe5 34. Rxc5 Nc6 35. Rd5 b5 36. axb6+ cxb6 37. Rd6 Kb7 38. Rff6 Rc8 39. Rd2 Rcc7 40. Nd6+ Ka7 41. Rf8 Red7 42. Nc8+ Kb7 43. Nd6+ Ka7 44. Nc8+ 1/2-1/2 [Event "Corus"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2008.01.17"] [Round "5"] [White "Ivanchuk, Vassily"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C68"] [WhiteElo "2751"] [BlackElo "2733"] [PlyCount "39"] [EventDate "2008.01.12"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 122"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2008.01.30"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2008.01.30"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Bxc6 dxc6 5. O-O Bd6 6. d4 exd4 7. Qxd4 f6 8. b3 Ne7 9. Ba3 ({RR} 9. Nbd2 Be6 10. Nc4 Bb4 11. Nb6 Qxd4 12. Nxd4 cxb6 13. Nxe6 Kf7 14. Nf4 Rad8 15. Nd3 Bc3 16. Rb1 Rhe8 17. Bf4 Rd7 18. f3 c5 19. Rfd1 Nc6 20. Bd2 Bxd2 21. Rxd2 Red8 22. Rf2 g5 23. Re1 Ne5 {Shevchenko,K (2651)-Dubov,D (2710) Samarkand UZB 2023 ½-½ (34)}) 9... Bg4 ({RR} 9... Bxa3 10. Qxd8+ Kxd8 11. Nxa3 Ng6 12. Nc4 Be6 13. Rad1+ Kc8 14. Ne3 c5 15. Nf5 Bxf5 16. exf5 Ne7 17. g4 Rd8 18. Rfe1 Rxd1 19. Rxd1 c6 20. Nd2 Kc7 21. Ne4 b6 22. c4 Re8 23. f3 h5 24. h3 {Teterev,V (2248)-Kosakowski,J (2549) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (70)}) 10. Bxd6 Bxf3 $146 ({RR} 10... Qxd6 11. Qxd6 cxd6 12. Nbd2 {½-½ (12) Segal,A-Westerinen,H (2470) Dortmund 1980}) 11. Bc5 Qxd4 12. Bxd4 Rd8 13. Bc5 Bxe4 14. Re1 Rd7 15. Nc3 Bd5 16. Rad1 Kd8 17. Bxe7+ Rxe7 18. Rxe7 Kxe7 19. Nxd5+ cxd5 20. Rxd5 1/2-1/2 [Event "Tromsoe Midnight Sun"] [Site "Tromsoe"] [Date "2006.06.29"] [Round "6"] [White "Rozentalis, Eduardas"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C68"] [WhiteElo "2596"] [BlackElo "2646"] [PlyCount "43"] [EventDate "2006.06.24"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [SourceTitle "CBM 112 Extra"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2006.07.14"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2006.07.14"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Bxc6 dxc6 5. O-O Qf6 6. d3 Ne7 7. Be3 Ng6 ({RR} 7... Bd7 8. Nbd2 Qe6 9. a4 a5 10. Nc4 f6 11. Qe2 b6 12. d4 exd4 13. Bf4 c5 14. Bxc7 Nc8 15. Rfe1 Ra7 16. Bg3 Be7 17. b3 O-O 18. Nfd2 Bc6 19. Na3 Kh8 20. Nb5 Rb7 21. Rad1 Na7 22. Nxa7 {Tezcan,A (2170)-Veinberg,N (2425) Kavala GRE 2025 ½-½ (52)}) 8. Nbd2 Bd6 ({RR} 8... c5 9. Re1 b6 10. c3 Bb7 11. d4 exd4 12. cxd4 cxd4 13. Bxd4 Qe6 14. Rc1 c5 15. Be3 Be7 16. e5 O-O 17. Nc4 Rad8 18. Qe2 Rfe8 19. b3 h6 20. Rcd1 Rxd1 21. Rxd1 Bxf3 22. Qxf3 b5 23. Na5 {Firouzja,A (2767)-Carlsen,M (2832) Paris FRA 2024 0-1 (37)}) 9. h3 O-O 10. Nc4 $146 ({RR} 10. a4 a5 11. Nh2 Re8 12. Nc4 Bf8 13. Qh5 Qe7 14. Nf3 f6 15. Nh4 Nxh4 16. Qxh4 g5 17. Qg3 Bg7 18. Bd2 b6 19. Ne3 Qf7 20. Qf3 c5 21. b3 Be6 22. Nf5 Rad8 23. Be3 Qg6 24. g4 h5 {Postny,E (2549)-Nogerbek,K (2493) chess.com INT 2023 0-1 (49)}) ({RR} 10. a4 a5 11. Nh2 Re8 12. Nc4 Bf8 13. Qh5 Qe7 14. Nf3 f6 15. Nh4 Nxh4 16. Qxh4 g5 17. Qg3 Bg7 18. Bd2 b6 19. Ne3 Qf7 20. Qf3 c5 21. b3 Be6 22. Nf5 Rad8 23. Be3 Qg6 24. g4 h5 {Postny,E (2549)-Nogerbek,K (2493) chess.com INT 2023 0-1 (49)}) 10... b5 11. Nxd6 cxd6 12. d4 Qe7 13. Re1 Bb7 14. dxe5 dxe5 15. c4 Rfd8 16. Qc2 Bc8 17. a4 Be6 18. axb5 axb5 19. Rxa8 Rxa8 20. cxb5 cxb5 21. Qc6 Qe8 22. Qxe8+ 1/2-1/2 [Event "Arctic Chess Challenge"] [Site "Tromsoe"] [Date "2007.08.06"] [Round "3"] [White "Larsen, Karsten"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C68"] [WhiteElo "2307"] [BlackElo "2710"] [PlyCount "89"] [EventDate "2007.08.04"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [SourceTitle "CBM 119 Extra"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2007.09.04"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2007.09.04"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Bxc6 dxc6 5. O-O Bd6 6. d4 exd4 7. Qxd4 f6 8. Be3 Ne7 9. Nbd2 Be6 10. Rad1 Ng6 11. Nc4 Bxc4 12. Qxc4 Qe7 13. Rfe1 ({RR} 13. Rd3 O-O-O 14. Re1 Rhe8 15. Bc1 c5 {½-½ (15) Vachier Lagrave,M (2686)-Roiz,M (2615) Biel 2012}) 13... O-O-O 14. Bd4 ({RR} 14. Bc1 Rhe8 15. g3 h5 16. Nd4 Ne5 17. Qe2 Qf7 18. Nf5 Bc5 19. Be3 Bf8 20. a3 Rxd1 21. Rxd1 Qc4 22. Qxc4 Nxc4 23. Bc1 Rxe4 24. Kf1 g6 25. Nh4 g5 26. Ng2 Ne5 27. h4 Nf3 28. hxg5 fxg5 {Rozentalis,E (2481)-Aradhya,G (2387) Fagernes NOR 2025 ½-½ (62)}) 14... Rhe8 15. Bc3 Kb8 $146 ({RR} 15... Ne5 16. Nxe5 Bxe5 17. f3 Bxc3 18. Qxc3 Rd6 19. Rxd6 Qxd6 20. Re3 Qd1+ 21. Re1 Qd6 22. g3 c5 23. Qe3 Rd8 24. c3 Qd2 25. Qe2 c4 26. f4 b5 27. Kf2 c5 28. Qxd2 Rxd2+ 29. Re2 Rd3 30. e5 {Kafka,G (2104)-Hulme,W (2020) Edinburgh 2009 1-0 (73)}) ({RR} 15... c5 16. a4 Qe6 17. b3 Qxc4 18. bxc4 Re6 19. g3 Rde8 20. Nd2 Be5 21. Bxe5 Nxe5 22. f4 Nf7 23. Kf2 Rd8 24. Re3 Nd6 25. Rd3 b6 26. Kf3 Rde8 27. Re1 Nf5 28. Nb3 Nd6 29. Nd2 Kb7 30. Ree3 {Wittwer,M (1986)-Prakken,G (2218) Triesen 2008 0-1 (62)}) 16. a4 Rd7 17. b3 Red8 18. g3 h5 19. h4 Qe8 20. Kg2 Re7 21. a5 Rdd7 22. Rd4 Nf8 23. Rd3 Ng6 24. Rde3 Ne5 25. Bxe5 Bxe5 26. Rd3 Bd6 27. Rde3 Re6 28. c3 Rde7 29. Nd4 Re5 30. b4 Ka8 31. Nf5 Rd7 32. f4 Re6 33. Nd4 Ree7 34. Nf3 g5 35. hxg5 fxg5 36. Nxg5 Rg7 37. e5 Be7 38. Qe6 Qd8 39. Ne4 h4 40. g4 h3+ 41. Kh2 Bh4 42. R1e2 Rde7 43. Qf5 Rgf7 44. Qh5 Rh7 45. Qf5 1/2-1/2 [Event "Sarajevo Bosnia-A 36th"] [Site "Sarajevo"] [Date "2006.05.15"] [Round "9"] [White "Naiditsch, Arkadij"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C68"] [WhiteElo "2664"] [BlackElo "2646"] [PlyCount "115"] [EventDate "2006.05.07"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "BIH"] [EventCategory "17"] [SourceTitle "CBM 113"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2006.07.31"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2006.07.31"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Bxc6 dxc6 5. O-O Be6 6. Nxe5 Qd4 7. Nf3 Qxe4 8. Ng5 Qg6 9. Nxe6 fxe6 10. d3 O-O-O 11. Qe2 Bd6 12. Nd2 Nf6 13. Ne4 Nxe4 14. Qxe4 Qxe4 15. dxe4 Bc5 $146 ({RR} 15... Be5 16. c3 Rd3 17. Be3 Rhd8 18. Rfe1 a5 19. a4 b6 20. Kf1 c5 21. f4 Bf6 22. e5 Bh4 23. g3 Be7 24. Ke2 c4 25. Red1 Rxd1 26. Rxd1 Rxd1 27. Kxd1 Kb7 28. Ke2 Kc6 29. Kf3 Kd5 30. g4 {Battey,A (2336)-Borosova,Z (2284) Kecskemet 2011 0-1 (45)}) 16. Bg5 Rd7 17. Rad1 Rxd1 18. Rxd1 Rf8 19. Bh4 b5 20. Bg3 h5 21. h4 Rd8 22. Rxd8+ Kxd8 23. Be5 g6 24. b3 Be7 25. g3 c5 26. c4 c6 27. Kg2 Ke8 28. Kf3 Bf8 29. a4 Ke7 30. Bb8 Kf6 31. Bc7 e5 32. Bd8+ Ke6 33. Bg5 Bd6 34. Ke3 Bf8 35. Kd3 Bd6 36. Bh6 Be7 37. Ke2 Bd6 38. Ke3 Be7 39. Bg5 Bd6 40. f4 Bc7 41. Kf3 Bd6 42. Bh6 Be7 43. Bg7 exf4 44. Kxf4 Kf7 45. Be5 Ke6 46. Bc7 Kd7 47. Bb8 Ke6 48. e5 Bd8 49. Bd6 Ba5 50. Kg5 Kf7 51. Kh6 Bd2+ 52. Kh7 g5 53. Bxc5 gxh4 54. gxh4 Be1 55. Kh6 Bxh4 56. Kxh5 Bg3 57. Kg4 Bxe5 58. Kf5 1/2-1/2 [Event "Dortmund SuperGM 35th"] [Site "Dortmund"] [Date "2007.06.24"] [Round "2"] [White "Naiditsch, Arkadij"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C68"] [WhiteElo "2654"] [BlackElo "2693"] [PlyCount "70"] [EventDate "2007.06.23"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "7"] [EventCountry "GER"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 119"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2007.08.01"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2007.08.01"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Bxc6 dxc6 5. O-O Qf6 6. d4 exd4 7. Bg5 Qd6 8. Nxd4 Be7 9. Bxe7 Nxe7 10. Nb3 ({RR} 10. Nc3 Bd7 11. Nb3 O-O-O 12. Qf3 Ng6 13. Qe3 Kb8 14. Nc5 Bc8 15. Rad1 Qf4 16. Qxf4 Nxf4 17. f3 b6 18. Nd3 Nxd3 19. Rxd3 Rxd3 20. cxd3 Rd8 21. Rd1 c5 22. Kf2 Be6 23. Ke3 Kb7 24. g4 b5 {Solak,D (2626)-Eljanov,P (2720) Heraklion 2017 ½-½ (34)}) ({RR} 10. Nc3 Bd7 11. Nb3 Qxd1 12. Raxd1 b6 13. f4 c5 14. Nd2 O-O-O 15. Nc4 Be6 16. Ne3 f6 17. Rxd8+ Rxd8 18. Rd1 Rd4 19. f5 Bf7 20. Kf2 Nc6 21. g4 Ne5 22. h3 c6 23. b3 Kc7 24. Ng2 h5 {Muzychuk,A (2505)-Vaishali,R (2489) Stavanger NOR 2024 ½-½ (70)}) 10... Be6 $146 ({RR} 10... Qxd1 11. Rxd1 b6 12. Nc3 Bd7 13. a4 a5 14. Nd4 O-O-O 15. f3 f6 16. Kf2 h5 17. Nce2 c5 18. Nb5 Be6 19. Ke1 Rde8 20. Kf2 g5 21. Rd2 Kb8 22. Rad1 Ng6 23. b3 g4 24. Ng3 gxf3 25. gxf3 {Suyarov,M (2340)-Pranesh,M (2515) Doha QAT 2023 0-1 (84)}) ({RR} 10... Qxd1 11. Rxd1 b6 12. Nc3 Bd7 13. a4 a5 14. Nd4 O-O-O 15. f3 f6 16. Kf2 h5 17. Nce2 c5 18. Nb5 Be6 19. Ke1 Rde8 20. Kf2 g5 21. Rd2 Kb8 22. Rad1 Ng6 23. b3 g4 24. Ng3 gxf3 25. gxf3 {Suyarov,M (2340)-Pranesh,M (2515) Doha QAT 2023 0-1 (84)}) 11. Nc3 O-O-O 12. Qe2 Kb8 13. Rad1 Qf4 14. g3 Qf6 15. Rxd8+ Rxd8 16. Rd1 Rd6 17. f4 Bc8 18. Rd3 Qe6 19. Qd2 Rxd3 20. Qxd3 b6 21. Nd4 Qd6 22. e5 Qd7 23. b4 h6 24. a3 Nf5 25. Nce2 Ne7 26. Nc1 Bb7 27. Ndb3 Qh3 28. Qd8+ Nc8 29. Qd2 h5 30. Nd3 h4 31. Nf2 Qe6 32. Nd4 Qd5 33. Nb3 Qe6 34. Nd4 Qd5 35. Nb3 Qe6 1/2-1/2 [Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 2nd"] [Site "Moscow"] [Date "2007.11.18"] [Round "8"] [White "Leko, Peter"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C68"] [WhiteElo "2755"] [BlackElo "2714"] [PlyCount "59"] [EventDate "2007.11.10"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 122"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2008.01.30"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2008.01.30"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Bxc6 dxc6 5. O-O Qf6 6. d4 exd4 7. Bg5 Qd6 8. Nxd4 Be7 9. Bxe7 Nxe7 10. Nc3 Bd7 11. Nb3 Qxd1 12. Raxd1 b6 13. Rd2 O-O-O 14. Rfd1 c5 15. Nd5 Nxd5 16. Rxd5 f5 17. exf5 Bxf5 18. Rxd8+ Rxd8 19. Rxd8+ Kxd8 20. c3 Be6 21. Kf1 $146 ({RR} 21. f4 a5 22. Kf2 Ke7 23. Nc1 a4 24. a3 Kd6 25. Ke3 Kd5 26. h3 g6 27. g4 h5 28. gxh5 gxh5 29. h4 b5 30. Kd3 Bg4 31. Ke3 c4 32. Na2 c5 33. Nc1 Bd1 34. Kd2 Bg4 35. Ke3 Bd1 {Starley,R (2067)-Ahluwalia,A (2045) England 2018 ½-½ (37)}) ({RR} 21. f3 Kd7 22. Kf2 Kd6 23. Ke3 Ke5 24. h4 h5 25. Nc1 a5 26. Nd3+ Kf5 27. a3 Bc4 28. g4+ hxg4 29. fxg4+ Kf6 30. Nf4 Bf7 31. Nh3 Ke5 32. Ng5 Be8 33. Nf3+ Kd5 34. h5 b5 35. Nd2 c4 {Hugentobler,P (2203)-Krebs,S (2050) Graechen 2017 1-0 (45)}) 21... a5 22. Nc1 Kd7 23. Ke2 Kc6 24. Kd2 a4 25. a3 Kd5 26. Nd3 Kc4 27. Ne5+ Kd5 28. Nd3 Kc4 29. Ne5+ Kd5 30. Nd3 1/2-1/2 [Event "Sinquefield Cup 1st"] [Site "Saint Louis"] [Date "2013.09.13"] [Round "4"] [White "Kamsky, Gata"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C69"] [WhiteElo "2741"] [BlackElo "2862"] [Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro"] [PlyCount "118"] [EventDate "2013.09.09"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "6"] [EventCountry "USA"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 157"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2013.11.12"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2013.11.12"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 {Kamsky seemed to have not expected Carlsen to go for this variation specifically. He thought for a few minutes before deciding that the best course of action was to go into the quiet waters of the exchange Spanish.} 4. Bxc6 dxc6 5. O-O f6 6. d4 Bg4 7. dxe5 (7. c3 {was Fischer's favorite, but neither this move nor the move in the game are considered dangerous for Black nowadays.}) 7... Qxd1 8. Rxd1 fxe5 9. Rd3 {A common rook lift, the idea being that if White had played instead} (9. Nbd2 O-O-O {it becomes difficult to develop his pieces.}) 9... Bd6 10. Nbd2 Nf6 11. Nc4 {White's play revolves around the weakened e5-pawn - taking it and playing with the remaining passed pawn while Black has no chance at creating one himself on the queenside. However Black's piece activity has been considered for some time to give him a perfetly good game.} O-O 12. Nfxe5 Be2 13. Re3 Bxc4 14. Nxc4 Ng4 $1 {More accurate than the other move. At least here White has some chances of going wrong.} (14... Bc5 {is a known draw:} 15. Re1 Rae8 16. Be3 Bxe3 17. Rxe3 Rxe4 18. Rxe4 Nxe4 19. f3 Nd6 {and although White should be minimally better becaues of the structure, no one has been able to win this position.}) 15. Re2 Bxh2+ 16. Kf1 $6 {And he starts doing so almost immediately. The king is safer and better placed on h1.} Rae8 17. Nd2 $6 {It's going to become incredibly hard to develop because of the self-pin.} (17. c3 {just passing and allowing some breathing room on the second rank was much better.}) 17... Rd8 $1 {The World number one shows that he is in a class of his own. With the rook going back and forth, he has now secured a pin on the d-file that causes White's development to stall almost completely.} 18. f3 Bg3 19. Kg1 Ne5 20. b3 Ng6 $1 {Magnus moves are all precise, with the goal of not allowing White easily development.} 21. Nf1 Be5 22. c3 $2 {Panic.} (22. Rb1 Rd1 23. Rd2 Bd4+ 24. Kh2 Rxf1 25. Rxd4 Nf4 26. Rd7 Rf6 27. Bxf4 $1 Rxb1 28. Be5 {is unpleasant, but White's activity gives him excellent chances to draw.}) 22... Bxc3 23. Bb2 Nf4 24. Rc2 Ba5 {The Norwegian wants to keep as many pieces on the board as possible, especially with the somewhat exposed king, but there was nothing wrong with simplifying the position and exploiting the material advantage.} 25. Ng3 g6 26. Rf1 Rd3 27. Kh2 Bb4 28. Ne2 Ne6 29. Nc1 Rd7 30. g3 Rfd8 31. Kg2 Kf7 32. f4 h5 33. Kh3 a5 34. Kg2 Nc5 35. Kf3 Nd3 36. Re2 Be7 $2 {Allowing White some hope.} (36... Nxb2 37. Rxb2 Ba3 38. Rc2 Rd2 {and it will be very hard for White to hold this position as a2 will soon fall as well.}) 37. Nxd3 Rxd3+ 38. Kg2 Bc5 $6 {The extra pawn still gives Black excellent chances to win, but the advantage is slipping move by move. The bishop is not well placed on c5 as it might be forced back to b6 in a defensive position.} 39. Rc1 $6 (39. Be5 $1 {would have at least forced Black to find an active idea to defend c7.} Bd6 40. Bb2 {and now any move by the bishop will be met with ?e5 again.}) 39... Rd2 40. Rc2 Rxe2+ 41. Rxe2 {Time control has been reached. Black is still up a pawn, but will have a tough technical job ahead of him after missing many ways of finishing his opponent off.} Rd3 42. Rc2 Bd6 43. Bc1 Be7 44. Kf2 a4 45. Rd2 Rxd2+ $2 {A strange decision. The bishop endgame looks less promising than the rook endgame.} (45... Bc5+ $1 46. Kg2 Rc3 47. Bb2 Re3 48. Bd4 Bxd4 49. Rxd4 a3 $1 {gives black great winning chances.}) 46. Bxd2 axb3 47. axb3 c5 48. g4 $6 {Not necessarily losing, but why create a free passed pawn for Black? Much more tenacious was to simply wait and keep the king on e2-d3, forcing Black to figure out a plan of action.} b5 49. gxh5 gxh5 50. Bc3 $2 {The final blunder.} (50. Kf3 b4 51. Be3 {should still be somehow winning for Black, but it's much more difficult to figure out.}) 50... b4 51. Bb2 Bh4+ {Not the most precise but also winning.} 52. Ke2 Bg3 {The combined action between the passed pawn on h4 and the threats of breaking on c4 and exchanging bishops gives Carlsen the win. Here he is pushing the f-pawn forward so he will be able to easily trade bishops later.} 53. f5 h4 54. e5 h3 55. e6+ (55. Kf3 Bh4 56. Ba1 Be1 $19) 55... Ke7 56. Kf3 Bf4 57. Bg7 Bg5 58. Be5 c4 59. bxc4 Bf6 {White has two passed pawns, but they are worth nothing compared to the outside passed pawns of Black, which will soon promote.} 0-1 [Event "Norway Chess 2024"] [Site "Stavanger, Norway"] [Date "2024.05.28"] [Round "4.1"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C70"] [WhiteElo "2830"] [BlackElo "2794"] [Annotator "Stockfish 16.1 - Chessbase"] [PlyCount "99"] [EventDate "2024.??.??"] 1. e4 {[%eval 15,0] https://lichess.org/broadcast/-/-/wEMDjw2I} e5 {[%eval 21,0]} 2. Nf3 {[%eval 19,0]} Nc6 {[%eval 19,0]} 3. Bb5 {[%eval 22,0]} a6 {[%eval 38,0]} 4. Ba4 {[%eval 21,0]} Bc5 {[%eval 42,0]} 5. O-O {[%eval 37,0]} Nge7 {[%eval 4,0]} 6. Nxe5 {[%eval 23,0]} Nxe5 {[%eval 28,0]} 7. d4 {[%eval 28,0]} b5 {[%eval 39,0]} 8. Bb3 {[%eval 37,0]} Bxd4 {[%eval 44,0]} 9. Qxd4 {[%eval 45,0]} d6 {[%eval 5,0]} 10. c3 {[%eval 12,0]} O-O {[%eval 22,0]} ({RR} 10... c5 11. Qe3 O-O 12. Qg3 Bb7 13. Nd2 N7g6 14. f4 Nc6 15. Nf3 Na5 16. Bc2 f6 17. h4 Ne7 18. h5 f5 19. h6 g6 20. e5 Bxf3 21. Qxf3 dxe5 22. fxe5 Qd5 23. Qxd5+ Nxd5 24. Rd1 Rad8 25. Bg5 {1-0 Sharapov,E (2375)-Marchesich,G (2226) Titled Tue 5th Mar Early chess.com INT 2024 (6)}) 11. Bf4 $146 {[%eval 23,0]} ({RR} 11. f4 N5c6 12. Qe3 Be6 13. f5 Bxb3 14. axb3 f6 15. Qg3 Qe8 16. Bf4 Kh8 17. Nd2 Rg8 18. Qd3 Qf7 19. c4 Rab8 20. Qc3 a5 21. Rf3 Rb7 22. Rf2 Rgb8 23. Nf3 bxc4 24. bxc4 Rb3 25. Qc1 R8b4 {0-1 Bengt Hammar (2136)-Jose Luis Fernandez Garcia (2379) 65+ World Senior Championship - 2023 (3.12)}) 11... c5 {[%eval 22,0]} 12. Qd1 {[%eval 13,0]} Bb7 {[%eval 19,0]} 13. Re1 {[%eval 6,0]} Qc7 {[%eval 36,0]} 14. Bc2 {[%eval 35,0]} Rad8 {[%eval 43,0]} 15. Nd2 {[%eval 42,0]} Qc8 {[%eval 73,0]} 16. Qh5 {[%eval 33,0]} Rfe8 {[%eval 45,0]} 17. Rad1 {[%eval 35,0]} N7g6 {[%eval 23,0]} 18. Bg3 {[%eval 21,0]} c4 {[%eval 23,0]} 19. Nf1 {[%eval 12,0]} Nd3 {[%eval 3,0]} 20. Bxd3 {[%eval 39,0]} cxd3 {[%eval 33,0]} 21. Rxd3 {[%eval 29,0]} Rxe4 {[%eval 27,0]} 22. Rxe4 {[%eval 19,0]} Bxe4 {[%eval 2,0]} 23. Rd4 {[%eval 2,0]} Bb7 {[%eval 47,0]} 24. Qd1 {[%eval 32,0]} h6 $6 {[%eval 105,0] Inaccuracy. d5 was best.} (24... d5) 25. Rxd6 {[%eval 91,0]} Rxd6 {[%eval 89,0]} 26. Qxd6 {[%eval 101,0]} Kh7 {[%eval 94,0]} 27. Ne3 {[%eval 79,0]} Qe8 {[%eval 76,0]} 28. Qd4 {[%eval 81,0]} Qc6 {[%eval 101,0]} 29. f3 {[%eval 108,0]} Qe6 {[%eval 102,0]} 30. b3 {[%eval 107,0]} Ne7 {[%eval 98,0]} 31. Qd3+ {[%eval 103,0]} Qg6 $6 {[%eval 185,0] Inaccuracy. Kg8 was best.} (31... Kg8 32. c4 h5 33. c5 Nc6 34. h3 Nb4 35. Qd2 f6 36. Kf2 Nd5 37. Nc2) 32. Qxg6+ {[%eval 136,0]} Kxg6 {[%eval 125,0]} 33. Kf2 {[%eval 124,0]} Nd5 {[%eval 123,0]} 34. Nd1 {[%eval 128,0]} f6 {[%eval 134,0]} 35. Ke2 {[%eval 146,0]} Kf7 {[%eval 186,0]} 36. Kd3 {[%eval 183,0]} Ke6 {[%eval 175,0]} 37. Kd4 {[%eval 185,0]} Ne7 $6 {[%eval 258,0] Inaccuracy. f5 was best.} (37... f5 38. Kc5 f4 39. Bf2 g5 40. c4 bxc4 41. bxc4 Ne7 42. Kb6 Ba8 43. Nc3) 38. Kc5 {[%eval 258,0]} Kd7 {[%eval 315,0]} 39. Ne3 {[%eval 314,0]} h5 {[%eval 304,0]} 40. c4 {[%eval 285,0]} bxc4 {[%eval 298,0]} 41. bxc4 {[%eval 287,0]} g5 {[%eval 314,0]} 42. Kb6 {[%eval 297,0]} Bc6 {[%eval 303,0]} 43. Be1 {[%eval 321,0]} h4 {[%eval 323,0]} 44. h3 {[%eval 331,0]} Ng6 $6 {[%eval 444,0] Inaccuracy. f5 was best.} (44... f5 45. Bb4 Nc8+ 46. Kxa6 Ke6 47. Ka5 Ke5 48. Bd2 Bd7 49. Nd5 Nd6 50. Bc3+) 45. Bc3 {[%eval 444,0]} f5 {[%eval 455,0]} 46. Nxf5 {[%eval 449,0]} Nf4 {[%eval 487,0]} 47. Ne3 {[%eval 472,0]} Ba4 {[%eval 500,0]} 48. Bf6 {[%eval 501,0]} Ne6 {[%eval 523,0]} 49. Kxa6 {[%eval 506,0]} Kd6 {[%eval 502,0]} 50. Kb6 {[%eval 501,0]} 1-0 [Event "Dos Hermanas Qualifier S18A"] [Site "ICC INT"] [Date "2006.03.18"] [Round "2"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Greiff, Hakan"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C72"] [WhiteElo "2625"] [BlackElo "2266"] [PlyCount "51"] [EventDate "2006.03.18"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventCountry "NET"] [SourceTitle "EXT 2023"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2022.10.05"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 d6 5. O-O Bg4 6. c3 Qf6 7. d3 Nge7 8. Nbd2 Ng6 9. d4 ({RR} 9. h3 Bd7 10. Re1 Nf4 11. Nf1 g5 12. Ne3 O-O-O 13. d4 h5 14. d5 Ne7 15. Bxd7+ Rxd7 16. Nh2 Qg6 17. f3 f5 18. exf5 Nxf5 19. Qc2 Ne7 20. Qxg6 Nexg6 21. Nhf1 c6 22. Rd1 cxd5 23. Nxd5 Nxd5 {Barlov,D (2460)-Piket,J (2615) Oviedo 1992 ½-½ (41)}) ({RR} 9. Re1 Nf4 10. Re3 Be7 11. Nf1 h5 12. d4 b5 13. Bc2 g5 14. a4 Rb8 15. axb5 axb5 16. Ra6 Bd7 17. dxe5 dxe5 18. Ng3 g4 19. Ne1 Bc5 20. Nf5 Bxe3 21. fxe3 Ne6 22. Bb3 Nc5 23. Rxc6 Bxc6 {Fandi,M (2302)-Gerbelli Neto,E (2114) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (57)}) ({RR} 9. b4 Nf4 10. Bxc6+ bxc6 11. Nc4 Be7 12. Bxf4 Qxf4 13. Ne3 Bxf3 14. Qxf3 Qxf3 15. gxf3 Bg5 16. Kh1 {½-½ (16) Orndahl,M (2298)-Greiff,H (2282) Sweden 2008}) 9... Nf4 10. Bxc6+ bxc6 11. Qa4 $146 ({RR} 11. dxe5 dxe5 12. Nc4 Rd8 13. Bd2 Bh3 14. Ne1 Be6 15. Ne3 Bc5 16. Qc2 O-O 17. Rd1 Bxe3 18. Bxe3 Bc4 19. Bxf4 exf4 20. Nd3 f3 21. g3 Qe6 22. Rfe1 g5 23. Kh1 Qh3 24. Rg1 Rd6 25. Ne5 Qxh2+ {Chylewski,P (2281)-Harshavardhan,G (2449) chess.com INT 2023 0-1}) ({RR} 11. dxe5 dxe5 12. Nc4 Rd8 13. Bd2 Bh3 14. Ne1 Be6 15. Ne3 Bc5 16. Qc2 O-O 17. Rd1 Bxe3 18. Bxe3 Bc4 19. Bxf4 exf4 20. Nd3 f3 21. g3 Qe6 22. Rfe1 g5 23. Kh1 Qh3 24. Rg1 Rd6 25. Ne5 Qxh2+ {Chylewski,P (2281)-Harshavardhan,G (2449) chess.com INT 2023 0-1}) 11... Bd7 12. dxe5 dxe5 13. Nc4 Bd6 14. Bxf4 Qxf4 15. Rad1 Ke7 16. Rd3 Rhd8 17. Rfd1 c5 18. Qc2 Bb5 19. Nfd2 Bxc4 20. Rf3 Qh6 21. Nxc4 Qe6 22. Qa4 Qd7 23. Rxf7+ Kxf7 24. Nxe5+ Ke6 25. Nxd7 Rxd7 26. e5 1-0 [Event "Sinquefield Cup 2nd"] [Site "Saint Louis"] [Date "2014.08.28"] [Round "2"] [White "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C76"] [WhiteElo "2787"] [BlackElo "2877"] [Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro"] [PlyCount "64"] [EventDate "2014.08.27"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "USA"] [EventCategory "23"] [SourceTitle "CBM 162"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2014.09.17"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2014.09.17"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 g6 {Not the usual choice for Carlsen. The 3...g6 variations are much sharper than the normal Breyer or Berlin type of Spanish positions. Interestingly, Nakamura used this recently against Anand with black.} 4. O-O Bg7 5. c3 a6 6. Ba4 (6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. d4 exd4 8. cxd4 Ne7 9. h3 O-O 10. Nc3 h6 $11 {Anand-Nakamura, 2013}) 6... d6 7. d4 Bd7 8. d5 {Closing the position is one of two approaches the situation; by closing the position White gains space, but Black will be able to push f5 quickly.} (8. Re1 {is a completely different approach to the position.}) 8... Nce7 9. Bxd7+ (9. c4 {is, in my humble opinion, a more accurate move order. It also scores better.}) 9... Qxd7 10. c4 h6 (10... f5 $6 11. Ng5 {emphasizes the weakness of e6.}) 11. Nc3 f5 12. Nd2 Nf6 13. f3 O-O 14. b4 c6 (14... g5 $5 {Was an old game between Sax-Smyslov... such legends!}) 15. dxc6 {It's hard to understand the desire to simplify the tension so quickly. Black obtains quick activity and access to the d4 square. However maybe there was no satisfactory alternative.} (15. Bb2 b5 {starts becoming dangerous for White.}) 15... Nxc6 16. a3 Nd4 17. Bb2 Rac8 {Black has good pressure, but White is banking on his superior pawn structure to win in the long run.} 18. Ne2 Nh5 $5 {This involves a pawn sacrifice!} (18... Ne6 {is more sedate, and about equal:} 19. exf5 gxf5 20. Qb3 $13) 19. Nxd4 exd4 20. exf5 {Tha pawn cannot be taken, but that is still ok.} Nf4 $1 {Diagram [#]} (20... gxf5 $6 21. Nb3 Rxc4 22. Qd2 $1 {White will regain the d4 pawn and his structure is much superior.}) (20... Qxf5 21. g4 Qg5 22. Ne4 Qe3+ 23. Kh1 d3 24. Bxg7 Nxg7 25. Nxd6 $16) 21. f6 $1 {A good practical decision.} (21. fxg6 Rf6 $1 {Gives black more than enough compensation. Practically it is difficult to defend this position.}) 21... Bxf6 22. g3 Nh3+ 23. Kg2 $6 (23. Kh1 {was safer, there is no reason to tempt Qh3+.} Ng5 24. Nb3 Rxc4 25. Qd3 Qf7 26. Bxd4 {was maybe a little better for White.}) 23... Ng5 24. Qb1 Kh7 25. Qd3 {White retains the better pawn structure; Black has to act quickly before his initiative evaporates.} Be5 $1 {Putting pressure on the kingside is mandatory.} 26. Rae1 {Accepting the draw.} (26. f4 Qh3+ 27. Kh1 Rxf4 28. Rxf4 Bxf4 29. Re1 {gives Black some problems.}) 26... Bxg3 27. hxg3 Qh3+ {There is nothing better than perpetual for both sides.} 28. Kg1 Qxg3+ 29. Kh1 Qh4+ 30. Kg2 Qh3+ 31. Kg1 Qg3+ 32. Kh1 Qh3+ (32... Rf4 $2 33. Re7+ Nf7 34. Rxf7+ Rxf7 35. Ne4 {allows White to consolidate and have the better position.}) 1/2-1/2 [Event "NOR-ch playoff"] [Site "Oslo"] [Date "2006.09.21"] [Round "4"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Agdestein, Simen"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C76"] [WhiteElo "2675"] [BlackElo "2575"] [PlyCount "57"] [EventDate "2006.09.19"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "4"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [SourceTitle "CBM 115"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2006.11.15"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2006.11.15"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 g6 4. c3 a6 5. Ba4 d6 6. d4 Bd7 7. dxe5 b5 ({RR} 7... Nxe5 8. Nxe5 dxe5 9. Be3 Nf6 10. Nd2 b5 11. Bb3 Bd6 12. Qf3 h6 13. a4 Rb8 14. axb5 axb5 15. O-O Qe7 16. h3 Kf8 17. Bc2 Kg7 18. b4 Nh7 19. Qe2 c5 20. Nb3 cxb4 21. Rfd1 Rhd8 22. Ra7 {Sutovsky,E (2650)-Rodshtein,M (2701) Poikovsky 2017 1-0 (36)}) ({RR} 7... Nxe5 8. Nxe5 dxe5 9. Bxd7+ Qxd7 10. Qxd7+ Kxd7 11. Ke2 Bh6 12. Rd1+ Ke6 13. Na3 f6 14. Nc4 Bxc1 15. Raxc1 Ne7 16. Rd3 Rad8 17. Rcd1 Nc6 18. Rxd8 Rxd8 19. Rxd8 Nxd8 20. Ke3 Nf7 21. f3 h5 22. h4 {Goltsev,D (2226)-Sheehan,E (2363) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (67)}) 8. Bb3 dxe5 $146 ({RR} 8... Bg7 9. exd6 Ne5 10. Nxe5 Bxe5 11. Qd5 Be6 12. Qxe5 Nf6 13. Bg5 Kd7 14. O-O Qe8 15. Bxf6 Rg8 16. Rd1 c6 17. Nd2 h5 18. Be7 Kc8 19. a4 Rb8 20. Bxe6+ {1-0 (20) Burrows,G-Lin,Z Auckland 2010}) 9. Qd5 Qf6 10. Nxe5 Nxe5 11. Qxa8+ Ke7 12. Be3 Bc6 13. Bc5+ Kd7 14. Qxf8 Nh6 15. Qxh6 Nd3+ 16. Ke2 Nxc5 17. f3 Re8 18. Nd2 Kc8 19. Qe3 Qe7 20. Rhd1 f5 21. Kf1 g5 22. Kg1 f4 23. Qe2 h5 24. Bc2 Nd7 25. a4 Ne5 26. axb5 axb5 27. Nb3 g4 28. Nd4 Qc5 29. Kh1 1-0 [Event "Gashimov Memorial 2nd"] [Site "Shamkir"] [Date "2015.04.20"] [Round "4"] [White "Adams, Michael"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C76"] [WhiteElo "2745"] [BlackElo "2863"] [PlyCount "76"] [EventDate "2015.04.17"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "AZE"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 166"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2015.05.11"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2015.05.11"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 g6 4. c3 a6 5. Ba4 d6 6. d4 Bd7 7. O-O Bg7 8. d5 Nce7 9. Bxd7+ Qxd7 10. c4 h6 11. Nc3 f5 12. exf5 gxf5 13. Nh4 Nf6 14. f4 e4 15. Be3 O-O 16. Ne2 c6 17. dxc6 bxc6 18. Bd4 c5 19. Bc3 Qe6 $146 ({RR} 19... d5 20. cxd5 Nexd5 21. Ng3 Nxc3 22. bxc3 Qxd1 23. Raxd1 Ng4 24. Nhxf5 Bxc3 25. h3 Nf6 26. Nxh6+ Kh7 27. Nhf5 Rad8 28. Nd6 Bd4+ 29. Rxd4 cxd4 30. Ngxe4 Nxe4 31. Nxe4 Kg6 32. g4 d3 33. f5+ Kg7 34. Ng5 {Pourkashiyan,A (2322)-Gombocz,F (2205) Chess.com INT 2022 ½-½ (90)}) ({RR} 19... d5 20. cxd5 Nexd5 21. Ng3 Nxc3 22. bxc3 Qxd1 23. Raxd1 Ng4 24. Nhxf5 Bxc3 25. h3 Nf6 26. Nxh6+ Kh7 27. Nhf5 Rad8 28. Nd6 Bd4+ 29. Rxd4 cxd4 30. Ngxe4 Nxe4 31. Nxe4 Kg6 32. g4 d3 33. f5+ Kg7 34. Ng5 {Pourkashiyan,A (2322)-Gombocz,F (2205) Chess.com INT 2022 ½-½ (90)}) 20. Rc1 Rf7 21. Ng3 Kh7 22. Qe2 Rg8 23. Rfd1 Ne8 24. Nh5 Bxc3 25. bxc3 Rg4 26. g3 Rxh4 27. gxh4 Ng6 28. Kh1 Nxh4 29. Rg1 Nf3 30. Rg3 Re7 31. Rd1 Qf7 32. Rh3 Re6 33. Rb1 Rg6 34. Rg3 Re6 35. Rh3 Re7 36. Rd1 Re6 37. Rb1 Re7 38. Rd1 Re6 1/2-1/2 [Event "London Classic 4th"] [Site "London"] [Date "2012.12.02"] [Round "2"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Aronian, Levon"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C77"] [WhiteElo "2848"] [BlackElo "2815"] [Annotator "Stohl,Igor"] [PlyCount "117"] [EventDate "2012.12.01"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "ENG"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 152"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2013.01.15"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2013.01.15"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 {Carlsen is definitely a fan of d3 lines against the Ruy Lopez. They allow him to avoid a heated theoretical struggle in forcing lines, while retaining enough strategic tension to fight for an advantage in the ensuing middlegame.} ({Even after} 3... Nf6 {he has lately avoided the Berlin Wall with} 4. d3 Bc5 5. Bxc6 (5. Nc3 d6 6. Na4 Bb6 7. Nxb6 axb6 8. c3 Bd7 9. Ba4 Ne7 10. Bc2 Ng6 11. h3 O-O 12. O-O h6 13. Re1 Re8 14. d4 Bc6 15. dxe5 dxe5 16. Qxd8 Rexd8 17. g3 Nd7 18. Be3 Nc5 19. Nd2 Nf8 20. f3 Nfe6 21. h4 Bb5 22. a3 Rd7 23. b4 {Carlsen,M-Anand,V/London/2012/} Bd3 $5 24. bxc5 Bxc2 $11) 5... dxc6 6. Nbd2 Be6 7. O-O Bd6 8. b3 Nd7 9. Nc4 Bxc4 10. bxc4 O-O 11. Rb1 b6 12. g3 f5 13. exf5 Rxf5 14. Qe2 Nc5 15. Be3 Ne6 16. Nd2 Qf6 17. Qg4 Rf8 18. Ne4 Qf7 19. a4 h5 20. Qe2 Be7 21. a5 Qg6 22. axb6 axb6 23. Kh1 Rf3 24. Rbe1 Bb4 25. Ra1 Qg4 26. Qd1 Qh3 $132 27. Bf4 $4 (27. Qe2 Be7 $11) 27... Bc3 $4 (27... R8xf4 $1 28. gxf4 Nxf4 29. Ra8+ Bf8 30. Rg1 Qxh2+ 31. Kxh2 Rh3#) 28. Qxf3 Bxa1 29. Qg2 Qf5 $11 {Carlsen,M (2843)-Aronian,L (2816)/Sao Paulo/Bilbao/2012/}) 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. d3 ({While Aronian definitely must have anticipated White's general strategy, Magnus far more often played} 5. O-O Be7 {and only now} 6. Re1 (6. d3 {, when Black has committed his ?f8. After} b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. a4 {Black faces a wider choice:} {Lately Aronian has started to favour the less committal} Bd7 {, Black retains the tension and doesn't give away the a-file:} (8... b4 9. Nbd2 (9. a5 O-O 10. Nbd2 Rb8 11. Nc4 h6 12. h3 Be6 13. Be3 Qc8 14. Nfd2 Rd8 15. Qe2 Qb7 16. Ba4 Nd7 17. c3 {Nepomniachtchi,I (2656)-Melkumyan,H (2582)/EU-ch Rijeka 2010/} Na7 $5 $13) 9... Na5 10. Ba2 O-O 11. c3 c5 12. cxb4 (12. d4 cxd4 13. cxd4 Qc7 $132) 12... cxb4 13. h3 $5 (13. Nc4 Rb8 14. Re1 Nc6 15. Ne3 Be6 16. Bxe6 fxe6 17. Nc4 Nd7 18. Ncd2 Nc5 19. Nb3 Nxb3 20. Qxb3 Rxf3 21. gxf3 Nd4 22. Qd1 Qf8 23. Kg2 Qf6 $44 {Carlsen,M (2733)-Aronian,L (2739)/Wijk aan Zee/2008/}) 13... Be6 14. Bxe6 fxe6 15. Nb3 Nc6 16. Be3 Qd7 17. Rc1 Rfc8 18. Qd2 Bd8 19. Rc4 $14 {Efimenko,Z (2654)-Stern,R (2501)/Bundesliga/2009/}) (8... Rb8 9. axb5 axb5 10. Nbd2 O-O 11. Re1 (11. c3 Nd7 (11... Bd7 $5 {will probably only transpose after the natural} 12. Re1) 12. Re1 Bf6 13. Nf1 Nc5 14. Ba2 (14. Bc2 $5) 14... Bg4 $2 (14... b4 $142 $132) 15. b4 Ne6 16. Ne3 Bxf3 17. Qxf3 Bg5 18. Bd5 $1 $16 Qd7 (18... Ne7 19. Bxe6 fxe6 20. Qg4 {[%csl Re6,Rg5]}) 19. Nf5 Ne7 20. Nxg7 $1 $40 {Carlsen,M (2714)-Fressinet,L (2654)/ECC Kemer/2007/}) 11... Bd7 12. c3 Ra8 13. Rxa8 Qxa8 14. d4 h6 (14... Qb7 $5 15. Nf1 b4 $132) 15. Nf1 Re8 16. Ng3 Qc8 17. Nh4 Bf8 $6 (17... Na5 $142 18. Ba2 Nc4 $13) 18. Ng6 $1 Na5 19. Nxf8 Rxf8 20. Bc2 Re8 21. f4 Bg4 $2 {[%csl Rg4]} (21... Qa6 $14) 22. Qd3 exf4 23. Bxf4 $16 {[%csl Gd4,Ge4,Rg8] ??, Carlsen,M (2826)-Topalov,V (2803)/Nanjing/2010/ White scored an impressive win in this game, for more details see the notes by Moradiabadi in CBM 139.}) 9. c3 O-O 10. Nbd2 Na5 11. Bc2 c5 12. Re1 Re8 13. Nf1 (13. d4 exd4 (13... cxd4 $5 14. cxd4 Nc6 15. Bb3 h6 $132 16. dxe5 dxe5 17. Nf1 Bg4 18. h3 Qxd1 19. Bxd1 Bxf3 20. Bxf3 Nd4 21. Bd1 Bb4 22. Bd2 Bxd2 23. Nxd2 Rac8 24. axb5 axb5 $15 {Werner,C (2315)-Tseshkovsky,V (2519)/Davos/2008/}) (13... Qc7 $1 {is indicated by Caruana as the simplest equaliser - Black has a good version of the Chigorin.}) 14. cxd4 Bg4 15. h3 Bh5 16. d5 Qc8 17. Nf1 Bd8 18. g4 Bg6 19. Ng3 b4 20. Nh4 b3 21. Bb1 {Caruana,F (2773)-Aronian,L (2816)/Sao Paulo/Bilbao/2012/} c4 $5 $13 {[%CAl Yc4c3]}) 13... Nc6 14. Ne3 b4 15. Bb3 (15. h3 Rb8 16. Nc4 Be6 17. Bb3 h6 18. Be3 bxc3 19. bxc3 d5 $1 20. exd5 Nxd5 $15 {McShane,L (2713)-Aronian,L (2815)/London/2012/}) 15... Na5 16. Ba2 Rb8 17. d4 $6 (17. Nd2 $11) 17... exd4 18. cxd4 Nxe4 19. Nd5 {Kamsky,G (2729)-Leko,P (2747)/Dresden olm/2008/} Bf8 $13 {/?}) 6... b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. d3 d6 9. a4 {was actually the move-order from Caruana-Aronian above.}) 5... b5 {In 2010 I wrote a 2 part article about the C77 5.d3 Ruy Lopez, which was published in CBM 136-137. Part 1 featured mainly the text move.} ({Part 2 in CBM 137 concentrated on the more restrained, but quite reliable} 5... d6 6. c3 g6 {Carlsen hasn't been able to get anything tangible here after} 7. O-O (7. Nbd2 Bg7 8. Nf1 O-O 9. Bg5 d5 10. Qe2 Qd6 11. Bxf6 Bxf6 12. Ne3 Ne7 13. Bb3 c6 14. h4 Be6 15. Ng5 Bd7 16. Rd1 Rad8 17. Qf3 h6 18. Nc4 dxc4 19. dxc4 Nd5 20. Nh3 h5 21. Qg3 Bg4 22. Rd2 Bxh4 23. Qxh4 Qf6 24. Qxf6 Nxf6 25. Ng5 c5 $15 {Carlsen,M (2810)-Caruana,F (2675)/Wijk aan Zee/2010/ See the notes to this game by Postny in CBM 135.}) 7... Bg7 8. Re1 (8. h3 Bd7 9. Re1 O-O 10. Nbd2 Qe8 11. Nf1 Nh5 12. Bb3 Kh8 13. d4 f5 14. exf5 gxf5 15. dxe5 dxe5 16. Be3 e4 17. Ng5 h6 18. Nf7+ Rxf7 19. Qxh5 Rf6 20. Qxe8+ Rxe8 21. Bf4 Ne5 22. Bxe5 Rxe5 23. Rad1 {1-0 Alekseev,E (2683)-Efimenko,Z (2689)/Germany 2012/CB42_2012 (61)} Bc6 $132) 8... O-O 9. Nbd2 Kh8 (9... b5 $5 {is the more usual choice - Black was doing fine after} 10. Bb3 Na5 11. Bc2 c5 12. Nf1 h6 13. Bd2 Nc6 14. a4 Be6 15. Ne3 Qd7 16. Bb3 Rfb8 17. Bxe6 Qxe6 18. h3 c4 19. Qe2 Na5 20. axb5 axb5 21. Rad1 Rc8 $132 {Areshchenko,A (2694)-Efimenko,Z (2701)/UKR-ch Kiev/2011/}) 10. Nf1 Ng8 11. Bg5 f6 12. Bh4 Qe8 13. d4 Bd7 14. d5 Nd8 15. Bxd7 Qxd7 16. N3d2 Nf7 17. f3 f5 18. c4 a5 19. Bf2 Nf6 20. c5 fxe4 21. Nxe4 dxc5 22. Nxc5 Qxd5 23. Qxd5 Nxd5 24. Rad1 c6 25. Ne3 Rfd8 $11 {Carlsen,M (2814)-L'Ami,E (2628)/Wijk aan Zee/2011/}) 6. Bb3 Bc5 {Aronian opts for the more active developing move.} ({Earlier he preferred} 6... Be7 7. a4 b4 8. Nbd2 O-O 9. Nc4 ({More flexible is} 9. O-O {The resulting positions are similar to those, mentioned above in the note to White's 5th move.}) 9... d6 10. h3 Be6 11. O-O Nd7 12. Be3 Bf6 13. c3 bxc3 14. bxc3 Rb8 15. Rb1 d5 16. Ncd2 Nb6 17. Re1 Re8 18. Qc2 Qd7 19. Bc5 Na5 20. Ba2 Qxa4 21. Qxa4 Nxa4 22. exd5 Rxb1 23. Rxb1 Bxd5 24. Bxd5 Nxc5 25. Ne4 Nxe4 26. Bxe4 $44 {Ivanchuk,V (2786)-Aronian,L (2757)/Dresden olm/2008/}) ({After} 6... Bb7 7. O-O Bc5 {Carlsen already used} 8. Nc3 $5 {with great effect:} d6 9. a4 Na5 10. Ba2 b4 11. Ne2 Bc8 12. c3 bxc3 13. bxc3 Bb6 14. Ng3 Be6 15. d4 Bxa2 16. Rxa2 O-O 17. Bg5 exd4 18. Nh5 dxc3 19. Nh4 Kh8 20. Nf5 {1-0, Carlsen,M (2625)-Beliavsky,A (2626)/Wijk aan Zee-B/2006/ For more details see the notes to this game by Mikhalevski in CBM 111.}) 7. Nc3 $5 {One of the less usual reactions, but actually I recommended it in CBM 136.} ({More regular is} 7. c3 d6 {, now} 8. Bg5 {led to complex play after} ({The article in CBM 136 concentrated mainly on} 8. O-O h6 $5) 8... h6 9. Bh4 Bb6 ({Black postpones castling, after} 9... O-O 10. O-O g5 {he has to reckon even with the sacrificial} 11. Nxg5 $5 $44 {Note how later on Aronian postpones g5 only after White has castled, but his ? is still on e8.}) 10. Nbd2 Rb8 11. Qe2 a5 12. a4 b4 13. O-O g5 14. Bg3 (14. Nxg5 hxg5 15. Bxg5 Rg8 $17) 14... O-O 15. Nc4 Ba7 16. Nfd2 h5 17. h3 h4 18. Bh2 Kg7 19. Kh1 Rh8 20. d4 $6 (20. Ne3 $1 Nh5 $13) 20... bxc3 21. bxc3 exd4 22. e5 dxc3 23. exf6+ Qxf6 {Kramnik,V (2801)-Aronian,L (2820)/Zuerich m rpd/2012/} 24. Ne4 Qe7 25. Ba2 d5 (25... Re8 26. Qh5 Qxe4 27. Nxd6 cxd6 28. Qxf7+ Kh8 29. Qh5+ $11) 26. Nxa5 Nd4 (26... Nxa5 27. Bxd5 $13) 27. Qd3 dxe4 28. Qxc3 $132) (7. O-O d6 {[%CAl Yc6a5] is only a transposition after} 8. c3) 7... O-O {A young Magnus had to face this position with Black.} ({He opted for} 7... d6 8. Nd5 h6 9. c3 O-O 10. O-O Rb8 (10... Bb7 11. a4 (11. Bd2 Nxd5 12. Bxd5 Rb8 13. Qc2 Bb6 14. a4 Ne7 15. Bxb7 Rxb7 16. d4 Ng6 17. Rfd1 Qf6 18. Qd3 Rbb8 19. Be3 Rfd8 20. Qe2 Qe7 21. a5 Ba7 22. dxe5 Bxe3 23. Qxe3 Nxe5 24. Nd4 Re8 $132 {Vallejo Pons,F (2678)-Naumann,A (2538)/Bundesliga/2004/}) 11... Nxd5 12. Bxd5 Rb8 13. axb5 axb5 14. Qb3 b4 15. Be3 Bxe3 16. fxe3 bxc3 17. bxc3 Qe7 18. Qc2 Nd8 19. Rfb1 c6 20. Bc4 Ra8 21. Rxa8 Bxa8 22. Qa2 Ne6 23. Bxe6 fxe6 24. h3 c5 25. Rb6 $14 {Asrian,K (2602)-Fontaine,R (2537)/Moscow/2005/}) 11. Ne3 $6 (11. Re1 $5 {[%CAl Yd3d4] promises White better chances to fight for an opening advantage.}) 11... Bb6 $1 12. Qe2 Ne7 13. Rd1 Ng6 14. Nf5 d5 15. h3 Re8 16. g4 $2 c5 17. c4 bxc4 18. dxc4 d4 19. Ba4 Re6 20. Ne1 Nf4 21. Bxf4 exf4 22. f3 g6 23. Nxh6+ Kg7 24. g5 Nh7 25. h4 Nxg5 $19 {Lahno,K (2500)-Carlsen,M (2625)/Wijk aan Zee-B/2006/ For more details about this game see the notes by Mikhalevski in CBM 111.}) (7... h6 8. Nd5 (8. a4 b4 9. Nd5 Na5 $5 10. Ba2 d6 $11) 8... O-O 9. O-O {and Black hardly has anything better than} d6 {, transposing to 7...d6.}) 8. Nd5 Nxd5 {A rare alternative.} (8... h6 9. O-O d6 {still transposes to 7...d6}) 9. Bxd5 Rb8 $146 {[%mdl 520] This novelty, connected with a pawn-sacrifice, is the best reaction.} (9... Qf6 10. O-O h6 11. Be3 Be7 12. d4 $16 {Michelle,C (2052)-Janani,J (1808)/Chennai/2011/}) (9... Bb7 10. O-O (10. Nxe5 $5 Qh4 11. g3 Qh3 12. Qg4 (12. Bxc6 dxc6 13. Qe2 Bd6 14. Nf3 c5 $44 {?}) 12... Qg2 13. Qf3 Bxf2+ 14. Kd1 Qxf3+ 15. Nxf3 $14) 10... d6 11. Be3 Bxe3 12. fxe3 Na5 13. Bxb7 Nxb7 14. b4 a5 15. c3 d5 $11 {Koski,C (1252)-Yehuda,B (1100)/corr/2009/}) 10. O-O Ne7 $5 (10... Qf6 11. c3 $14 {[%csl Rf6]} (11. Be3 Nd4 $5)) (10... Nb4 11. Bb3 $14 (11. Nxe5 {- 11...?e7!?})) 11. Nxe5 {White accepts the challenge.} (11. Bb3 d6 12. Be3 Ng6 $5 $11 {seems too soft.}) 11... Nxd5 12. exd5 Re8 ({Carlsen didn't like this move and preferred} 12... Bb7 $1 13. c4 Bd6 $5 (13... Re8 14. d4 Ba7 (14... bxc4 15. Nxf7 Kxf7 16. dxc5 $14) (14... Bf8 15. b3 {transposes back to the game.}) 15. b3 bxc4 16. bxc4 d6 17. Nf3 (17. Nc6 Bxc6 18. dxc6 Qh4 19. Be3 Qe4 $11) 17... Bc8 18. Bg5 f6 19. Be3 Bg4 20. Rb1 $5 $14) (13... d6 14. Nf3 c6 15. d4 Ba7 16. c5 $5 dxc5 17. Bf4 Rc8 (17... c4 $5 18. Bxb8 Bxb8 $14 {/?}) 18. dxc5 Bxc5 19. d6 $36 {[%csl Gd6]}) 14. Re1 Re8 15. Nf3 c6 $44) (12... Qf6 $5 13. d4 Bb6 $132 {[%CAl Yf6d6,Yc8b7]}) 13. d4 Bf8 14. b3 Bb7 (14... b4 15. a3 a5 16. axb4 axb4 17. Qf3 f6 18. Nd3 $36 {[%csl Rb4][%CAl Ya1a8]}) 15. c4 (15. Qf3 Qe7 16. Be3 (16. c4 d6 17. Nc6 (17. Nd3 $5) 17... Bxc6 18. dxc6 bxc4 19. bxc4 Qe6 20. d5 Qe4 $11) 16... f6 17. Nd3 Qf7 18. c4 bxc4 19. bxc4 a5 $14 {/?}) 15... d6 16. Nf3 (16. Nc6 Bxc6 17. dxc6 bxc4 18. bxc4 d5 19. c5 Qf6 $11 20. Qa4 $6 Bxc5) (16. Nd3 g6 $44 (16... bxc4 17. bxc4 c6 $5 18. dxc6 Bxc6 $44 {[%csl Gc6,Gf8][%CAl Gb8b1,Ge8e1]})) 16... Qf6 17. Be3 Bc8 18. Qd2 (18. Rc1 bxc4 19. bxc4 Bg4 $11) 18... Qg6 {White has consolidated his position, but it's difficult for him to make any progress.} 19. Kh1 h6 20. Rac1 Be7 21. Ng1 {This seems rather artificial.} (21. cxb5 axb5 22. Rxc7 Bb7 $44 {[%csl Rd5]}) ({White's doubled extra pawn doesn't count for much, but perhaps he is slightly better after} 21. Qa5 $14) ({A useful move, suggested by Carlsen, is} 21. Rfe1 $5 $14) 21... Bg5 (21... Bf6 {seems more natural, but Aronian has an interesting idea - exchanging the defensive ?e3 activates Black's forces.}) 22. Bxg5 (22. Rfe1 Bf5 $5 $14 {/?} (22... Bxe3 $6 23. Rxe3 $36 {is a better version of the ? swap.})) (22. cxb5 $5 Bd8 23. bxa6 Bxa6 24. Rfe1 Qf5 25. Ne2 Qxd5 26. Nc3 Qf5 27. d5 $14) 22... Qxg5 23. Rfd1 (23. Qxg5 hxg5 24. f3 (24. cxb5 Rxb5 25. Rxc7 Rxd5 26. Rd1 g4 $5 $44) 24... Bf5 (24... bxc4 25. Rxc4 $14) 25. Rf2 $14 {/= is maybe a better way to retain a small plus.}) 23... bxc4 (23... Qxd2 24. Rxd2 bxc4) 24. bxc4 $6 {Only this natural recapture is inaccurate.} (24. Qxg5 $142 hxg5 25. Rxc4 $14 {/= and once again White risks little by playing on.}) 24... Qxd2 25. Rxd2 a5 {[%csl Ra2,Rc4,Gc8,Rd4,Rg1][%CAl Ge8e1,Gb8b1][%mdl 4096] In this endgame Black is definitely OK - he controls the open files and has the better minor piece. White's pawns are vulnerable and Carlsen also thought he wass the one who should be playing with care to maintain equality.} 26. h3 Rb4 27. Nf3 Bf5 28. c5 Kf8 ({Aronian is unwilling to play the weakening} 28... Be4 29. Re2 f5 30. Kh2 $11) 29. Nh2 Reb8 ({However, here} 29... Be4 $1 {was definitely simpler:} 30. Nf1 Bxd5 31. Ne3 Be4 32. cxd6 cxd6 33. d5 Reb8 $11 {/? White is in no position to win here, although he shouldn't lose either.}) 30. Ng4 Rb1 31. Rxb1 Rxb1+ 32. Kh2 a4 (32... Bxg4 33. hxg4 Rb5 34. Rc2 Rb4 35. cxd6 cxd6 36. Rd2 Rb5 37. Kg3 Rxd5 38. a4 f5 $11 {is enough for a draw. However, as Aronian admitted after the game, he erroneously thought he had a sizeable plus.}) 33. Ne3 Bg6 34. Kg3 Rb4 (34... a3 35. Kf3 (35. f3 $5) 35... Rb2 36. Nc4 Bc2 37. Nxa3 Be4+ 38. Ke3 Rxd2 39. Kxd2 Bxd5 $11) 35. Kf3 Ke7 36. Ke2 Kd7 37. f3 Rb5 38. Nd1 Rb4 (38... dxc5 39. Nc3 Rb4 (39... Ra5 40. dxc5 Rxc5 41. Nxa4 Rc4 42. Nb2 Rc3 $11) 40. dxc5 c6 41. Ke3 Rc4 $11 {should hold the endgame rather easily. Aronian optimistically continues to overestimate his position and gradually gets into trouble.}) 39. c6+ Kc8 (39... Ke7 40. Nc3 (40. Rb2 $5 Rxd4 41. Ne3 Bd3+ 42. Ke1 f5 43. Rb7 f4 44. Rxc7+ Kd8 45. Rd7+ Kc8 46. Nd1 Rxd5 47. Nc3 Rc5 48. Kd2 $14) 40... a3 41. Ke3 $14 {is similar to the game.}) 40. Nc3 f6 41. Ke3 Rc4 (41... a3 $142) (41... h5 $5) 42. Ne2 a3 43. h4 Rb4 $6 (43... Bf7 44. Nf4 (44. Ke4 Bg6+ 45. Ke3 Bf7) 44... g5 45. Kd3 Rc1 46. hxg5 fxg5 47. Ne2 (47. Ne6 $2 Bg6+ 48. Ke3 Rc3+ 49. Ke2 Rc2 $1 $36 {[%csl Ra2]}) 47... Bg6+ 48. Ke3 Rb1 49. Nc3 Rc1 (49... Rb2 {should be tenable as well}) 50. Nb5 Bf7 51. Re2 Kd8 (51... Bxd5 $2 52. Kd2 {[%csl Rc1,Re8]} Rxc6 53. Na7+ $18) 52. Nxc7 $5 (52. Ke4 Bg6+ 53. Ke3 Bf7 $11) 52... Kxc7 53. Kd2 Ra1 54. Re7+ Kc8 55. Rxf7 Rxa2+ 56. Kd3 Rxg2 $11) 44. g4 $1 {Black has shuffled around rather aimlessly, so White improves his position by expanding on the kingside.} Rb1 $2 (44... Rb2 45. h5 Bc2 46. Nc3 {is already better for White, but Carlsen was unsure how he should make progress if Black passes with} Kd8 $14) 45. h5 Bh7 46. f4 $1 {[%csl Rh7][%CAl Yf4f5,Ye2f4,Yf4e6]} f5 (46... Bg8 47. f5 $1 (47. Nc3 Rg1 48. Kf3 Rf1+ 49. Kg3 Rg1+ $11) 47... Re1 (47... Bxd5 $2 48. Nc3) 48. Kf2 Rb1 49. Nf4 Rb5 50. Ne6 Rxd5 51. Nxg7 Rb5 52. Ne6 Rb2 53. Ke3 $16 {/+-}) 47. g5 $36 {With the ? cut off, Black is on the brink of defeat.} Rh1 (47... Rb2 48. Kd3 Bg8 49. Nc3 $16 {/+-}) (47... Kd8 $5 48. Nc3 (48. Rd3 Rh1 49. Kd2 Bg8 50. Rxa3 Bxd5 51. Ra8+ Ke7 52. Ng3 Rh2+ 53. Ke1 Bxc6 54. Nxf5+ $16) 48... Rg1 49. g6 Bg8 $16 {and White must still find a way to break through.}) 48. Ng3 Rh3 49. Kf3 hxg5 ({More resilient, but still insufficient was} 49... Kd8 50. g6 Bg8 51. Kg2 Rh4 52. Nxf5 Rxf4 (52... Bxd5+ 53. Kg3 Rxh5 54. Nxg7 Rh1 55. f5 Ra1 (55... Ke7 56. Re2+ Kf6 57. Ne8+ Kxf5 58. Nxc7 Bxc6 59. d5 $18 {[%CAl Rg6g7]}) 56. Ne6+ Ke7 57. Nf4 {?} Bxa2 58. Re2+ Kf6 59. Rxa2 Rxa2 60. Nh5+ Kxf5 61. g7 Ra1 62. Kf2 Rg1 63. Kxg1 a2 64. Ng3+ $1 Kf4 65. Kf2 a1=Q 66. Ne2+ Ke4 67. g8=Q $18) 53. Ne3 $1 (53. Nxg7 Bxd5+ 54. Kg3 Rf3+ 55. Kg4 Rf1 $132) 53... Rh4 54. Rf2 Ke8 55. Nf5 Bxd5+ 56. Kg3 Rh1 57. Nxg7+ Ke7 (57... Kd8 58. Rf8+ Ke7 59. Rc8 Rg1+ 60. Kf2 Rg2+ 61. Ke3 Bxc6 62. Rxc7+ Bd7 63. Ra7 $18) 58. Nf5+ Kd8 59. Ne3 Rg1+ (59... Bxc6 60. d5 $18) 60. Kf4 Bxc6 61. Ng4 $18) (49... Bg8 $2 50. Kg2 $18 {?} Rh4 51. Nxf5 Rxf4 52. Ne7+) 50. fxg5 g6 (50... Kd8 51. Rf2 $5 (51. Re2 Bg8 52. Kf4 Bxd5 53. Nxf5 Rxh5 54. Nxg7 Rh4+ 55. Kf5 Bxc6 56. Ne6+ $16) (51. g6 Bg8 52. Kf4 Bxd5 53. Nxf5 Rxh5 54. Nxg7 $16) 51... Rh4 (51... Bg8 52. Kg2 Rh4 53. Rxf5 $18) 52. Ne2 $1 Rh3+ 53. Kg2 Rxh5 54. Nf4 Rxg5+ 55. Kf3 Rg1 (55... Ke7 56. Re2+ Kf7 57. Ne6 $18) 56. Rh2 Bg6 57. Nxg6 Rxg6 58. Rh8+ Ke7 59. Rc8 $18) 51. Re2 Kd8 $8 52. hxg6 Bxg6 53. Re6 Bf7 (53... Bh5+ 54. Kf4 $5 Rh4+ 55. Kxf5 Bg4+ 56. Kf6 Bxe6 57. dxe6 $18) 54. g6 $1 $18 Bg8 (54... Bxe6 55. dxe6 {[%CAl Rg6g7]} Rh6 56. g7 Rg6 57. Nxf5 Ke8 58. d5 Kd8 59. Kf4 Ke8 (59... Rg2 60. Ng3) 60. Nxd6+ $18) 55. g7 {[%CAl Re6f6,Rf6f8]} f4 (55... Bf7 56. Kg2 Rh4 57. Nxf5 Rh5 58. Rf6 $18) 56. Kxf4 Rh2 57. Nf5 Rxa2 58. Rf6 Re2 59. Rf8+ (59. Rf8+ {After} Re8 60. Nxd6 $1 cxd6 61. c7+ Kxc7 62. Rxe8 a2 63. Re1 Bxd5 (63... Kb6 64. Ke3 Kb5 65. Kd3 Kb4 66. Kc2 Ka3 67. Re3+ $18) 64. Ke3 $18 {[%CAl Ye3b2] White frees his ? and converts his passed pawn.}) 1-0 [Event "World-ch Carlsen-Karjakin +1-1=10"] [Site "New York"] [Date "2016.11.26"] [Round "11"] [White "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C77"] [WhiteElo "2769"] [BlackElo "2853"] [Annotator "So,Wesley"] [PlyCount "67"] [EventDate "2016.11.11"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "12"] [EventCountry "USA"] [SourceTitle "CBM 176"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2017.01.17"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2017.01.17"] [SourceQuality "1"] {After wining Round 10 both players are tied now 5-5 but I have a sneaking suspicion that Magnus is gaining in control. If he achieves two more draws and they end tied, it's clear he won't be unhappy with rapid playoffs. Sergey just hasn't played as much Rapid and Blitz recently ... but then again ... this is the powerful Sergey Karjakin ... so we could be very surprised. Okay two games left to go and this is Number 11.} 1. e4 {This first move is expected, as Sergey sticks to the type of positions that he knows the best - 1.e4 gives him the best results based on his previous games. At least here he achieves playable and fighting positions, which are not easy to get against a well-prepared Magnus. A good idea I'm sure, as Sergey tried serving with 1.d4 back in Round 7, but was worse as early as move 11.} e5 {Did you expect something else? Magnus replies with this almost 90% of the time lately, so obviously he feels at home with it. Garry Kasparov once advised that in important games it's best to stick to the opening in which you have the most experience.} 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 {The Ruy Lopez may be the most classical opening in chess history, with references to it going all the way back to the year 1490.} a6 {Magnus' preference.} (3... Nf6 {was Sergey's choice in Rounds 3 and 10.}) 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 {The main line. Black wants to keep the tension. Magnus has already played like this in Rounds 2, 4, and 6 of the match, so I guess this is what I expected him to play today. Naturally he is hoping to outplay White again like he did in Round 4 and in general his results with Black here are very good. (Which is why I was surprised he went for 5...b5 in Round 9.)} (5... Nxe4 {leads to very forcing variations, where prepration and memory play a huge part. However, the problem is that Black has to play very exact moves, and chances to win are almost non existent.}) (5... b5 6. Bb3 Bc5 {was played in Round 9. But why is there a need for this when 5...?e7 is serving him well?}) 6. d3 {Aiming for a closed setup, White hopes for a long game and plenty of maneuvering and the reason White aims for the Closed Ruy Lopez these days, is because it has become increasingly difficult to gain anything in the Marshall Attack.} (6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. c3 d5 9. exd5 Nxd5 10. Nxe5 Nxe5 11. Rxe5 c6 {is the starting position of the Marshall Attack. Black goes ...?d6 and ...?h4 next, gaining compensation for the sacrificed pawn based on the fact that White's queenside pieces are still undeveloped.}) 6... b5 7. Bb3 d6 ({I always thought that} 7... O-O {is slightly more accurate to keep open options of playing d7-d5 in one move, but still after} 8. Nc3 d6 9. a3 {it just transposes to the game anyway.}) 8. a3 {Reserving the a2-square for the bishop and controlling the b4-square.} (8. a4 {is an active alternative here and it leads to a slightly unusual position. I think the main difference is b4 is not controlled and Black may consider gaining space with} b4) 8... O-O 9. Nc3 Be6 {Clever Magnus! He never plays the exact same line twice in a row. Just when Sergey is ready to face 9...?a5 again, as in Round 2, Black chooses a different move.} 10. Nd5 (10. Bxe6 fxe6 {is an interesting possibility. Black has firm control of the center, but at the same time he has permanent doubled-pawns. Now I like the regrouping} 11. Ne2 {with the idea of preventing any kingside attacks by posting a knight on g3. Not sure if going for quiet positions like this is enough to beat the World Champion though.}) 10... Nd4 {This move is well-known as Black's best here. It was first played by Peter Svidler of Russia back in 2013. I myself remember spending many, many hours of analysis work on this move back in 2014 (how fast time flies) however, not ever really being able to use it. After that, I decided not to waste so much time on lines that have a low chance of appearing in my games. I sometimes think perhaps that's what Magnus does as well. He knows how to be time-efficient. In this regard Anatoly Karpov is a good example, as he is well-known for being the most practical of the World Champions. He didn't really spend hundreds of hours researching the openings, but instead focused on the skill of selecting and absorbing new ideas. Anyway let's go back to the game.} (10... Bxd5 {is not recommended as in general you shouldn't give up your bishop pair at an early stage of the game. After} 11. exd5 Nd4 12. Nxd4 exd4 13. Bd2 {White is slightly better.}) ({If} 10... Na5 {White does not retreat his bishop, but instead goes} 11. Nxf6+ Bxf6 12. Bxe6 fxe6 {when the doubled e-pawns give him a head start.} 13. b4 Nc6 14. c3 $14 {White is much better.}) 11. Nxd4 exd4 12. Nxf6+ {I was a little surprised to see this move, which is thought to be harmless, appear in this game.} ({In my notes I had} 12. Nxe7+ Qxe7 13. Bg5 {as the most critical and the only way to trouble Black. For example:} Bxb3 (13... c5 14. f4) 14. cxb3 h6 (14... Rac8 15. b4 c5 16. f4) 15. Bh4 {The pin is highly unpleasant and after} Qe6 16. f4 {White has chances for an attack on the kingside.} c5 (16... Nd7 17. f5 Qe5 18. b4 $14) 17. b4 Rfe8 (17... Rac8 18. Rc1) 18. f5 $5 (18. Rc1 Rac8 19. Re1 c4 $13) 18... Qe5 19. Bg3 Qe7 20. bxc5 dxc5 21. e5 Nd5 22. f6 Qe6 23. fxg7 Ne3 24. Qd2 Nxf1 25. Rxf1 $13 {with a really complicated position. It's very possible though that my notes are outdated. However it seems to me that Black still has to play extremely accurately to equalize.}) 12... Bxf6 13. Bxe6 fxe6 14. f4 {Sergey makes a natural move, while keeping all of his options open. Options such as ?g4, g4-g5, or ?f3-h3. White is basically up a pawn on the kingside right now (3 vs 2), so it is clear he should focus his attention there. But I thought that Black showed the way to equalize after two top level games played in 2013, when everyone was still using the chess engine 'Houdini' and computers and the Internet were significantly slower. In those two games, Black made easy draws.} (14. a4 c5 15. Qg4 Qd7 16. axb5 axb5 17. Bd2 c4 18. Bb4 Ra4 $1 {The best way to force exchanges.} 19. Rxa4 bxa4 20. dxc4 Rc8 21. Qg3 (21. Qe2 Qc6 $11) 21... Rxc4 22. Bxd6 Rxc2 $11 {Anand-Svidler, Alekhine Memorial 2013, and the game soon ended in a draw.}) (14. Qg4 Qc8 15. f4 e5 16. f5 c5 {Black has a 'pawn diamond' in the center and quick counterplay along the c-file. His king's position is quite shaky but White does not have enough time to exploit this.} 17. Bg5 (17. Rf3 c4 18. Rh3 Qe8 $13 {prevents ?h5, and prepares ?c8-c2.}) 17... Kh8 (17... c4 18. Bxf6 Rxf6 $11 {might be easier.}) 18. Rf3 c4 19. Rh3 (19. Raf1 {might be a possible improvement to allow defence of the 2nd rank later in some cases with ?1f2.}) 19... Bxg5 20. Qxg5 Rf6 21. g4 cxd3 22. cxd3 Qc2 23. Rc1 Qe2 $1 24. Rc7 Qe1+ 25. Kg2 Qe2+ 26. Kg1 Qe1+ 27. Kg2 Qe2+ 28. Kg1 {½-½ Leko -Caruana, Dortmund 2013.}) 14... c5 {Preparing queenside counterplay later with c5-c4.} (14... e5 {is an alternative, but perhaps Magnus didn't want to close the center right away. After} 15. f5 c5 16. Rf3 c4 17. Rh3 {looks quite scary for Black, and if} Qe8 18. g4 $5 {with some attacking chances.}) (14... Qd7 15. Qg4 c5 {just transposes to the game.}) 15. Qg4 (15. Rf3 c4 16. Rh3 {can simply be met by} Rf7 {to meet} ({Or} 16... Qd7) 17. Qh5 {with} g6) 15... Qd7 (15... Qc8 $5 {- Leko-Caruana, was a good option. Later after the opening of the c-file, a quick ...?c2 is in the agenda. After} 16. Bd2 (16. f5 exf5 17. exf5 Be5 18. Qf3 Ra7 $13) 16... e5 17. f5 c4 {Black has sufficient counterplay.}) 16. f5 {Releasing the tension and allowing trades. I feel that Sergey no longer believes that White has much going on and decides to loosen up the position. After all, in the event of an endgame Black still has his doubled d-pawns to worry about (though it's hard for White to make use of his better pawn structure).} ({If White wants to keep fighting chances then perhaps he should go for 16.?d2 or 16.?f3. So here I can recommend for White} 16. Bd2 c4 {And now} 17. b3 (17. Rf3 c3 $1 18. bxc3 dxc3 19. Be3 d5 20. e5 Be7 21. Rh3 Rf7) 17... Rac8 18. h3 cxb3 19. cxb3 Rc2 20. Bb4 Be7 21. a4 {with a small advantage.}) (16. Rf3 c4) ({Or} 16. b3 c4 {and the overall position of the picture does not change.}) 16... Rae8 {Already, Black has more than one way to equality.} (16... exf5 {is just fine, to clarify the situation right away.} 17. exf5 (17. Rxf5 Rf7 18. Bd2 g6 $11) 17... Rae8 (17... Rf7 18. Bd2 Re8 (18... c4) 19. Rae1 Be5 20. Rf2 c4 $11) 18. Bd2 {and now} g6 {to eliminate White's spearhead.} 19. h3 (19. Bh6 Bg7 20. Bxg7 Rxf5 21. Rxf5 gxf5 22. Qg3 Qxg7 $11) 19... Be5 20. fxg6 Qxg4 21. gxh7+ Kxh7 22. hxg4 Bg3 $1 {and with control over the open file, Black should be able to play ...?e2 in the near future. Control of the 2nd rank should give him enough compensation for the pawn.}) ({Even} 16... e5 {although it's no longer necessary to go for a complicated middlegame.}) 17. Bd2 c4 18. h3 {Protecting the queen on g4 so he can take on f5 later with the rook. It also puts a pawn on a light-square to ensure that should they go into some deep endgame, Black cannot capture this h-pawn with his bishop.} (18. fxe6 Qxe6 19. Qxe6+ Rxe6 20. Bb4 Rd8 {followed by posting a bishop on e5, hence guarding his doubled-pawns. The endgame is level.}) (18. b3 exf5 19. exf5 Be5 (19... cxb3 20. cxb3 Re5 $11) 20. Rf2 cxb3 21. cxb3 Rc8 $11 {in general, Black's play is quite easy and he has many options to choose from in each move.}) 18... c3 $5 {The most unbalanced continuation. Black disrupts the coordination of White's queenside before he has the time to consolidate with b3 and a4.} ({Many paths lead to equality. A normal continuation would be} 18... Be5 19. fxe6 Rxf1+ 20. Rxf1 Qxe6 $11) (18... exf5 19. Rxf5 {and now Black just has to avoid} g6 $2 20. Rxf6 {when the white queen is protected.}) (18... e5 $13 {also gives an unclear position, but as I said, there is no more point to keeping the center closed, when Black has easier alternatives.}) 19. bxc3 d5 $5 {Perhaps trying to confuse White, but as usual, Sergey keeps his nerve.} (19... dxc3 20. Be3 d5 21. Bc5 Rf7 $11) 20. Bg5 {What follows now is another series of exchanges, where each side takes away material from the board consecutively.} ({The most obvious continuation is} 20. fxe6 {but after} Qxe6 21. Qxe6+ Rxe6 22. exd5 Re2 {White has some tricky problems to solve.} 23. Rf2 Rxf2 24. Kxf2 Bg5+ (24... dxc3 25. Be1 Rd8 $11 {is perhaps just equal too.}) 25. Ke2 Bxd2 26. Kxd2 Rf2+ 27. Ke1 Rxc2 {White's position looks scary, but according to the computer, White holds the balance with:} 28. c4 $1 (28. cxd4 $2 Rxg2 29. Kf1 Rh2 30. d6 Kf7 $19 {looks like a typical Carlsen grind.}) (28. d6 Kf7 {and the difference in the activity of the kings will be crucial.})) (20. c4 $5 {is fine, since the pawn on c3 was lost anyway. White now gets some stability in the center and after} dxc4 (20... dxe4 21. Bb4) 21. Bb4 Rf7 22. fxe6 Qxe6 23. Qxe6 Rxe6 24. Rf5 $11 {the ending is just equal.}) ({Though not} 20. exd5 exf5 21. Qf3 dxc3 22. Be3 {when White is slightly worse, as now it is he who has the doubled-pawns.} Re5 $15) 20... Bxg5 (20... dxc3 21. Bxf6 Rxf6 22. exd5 exd5 23. a4 $11) 21. Qxg5 dxe4 22. fxe6 Rxf1+ 23. Rxf1 Qxe6 24. cxd4 e3 $5 {Perhaps trying to put psychological stress on the opponent. There is always pressure when you have to make a draw from a defensive point of view. Now instead of making natural moves, White has to remain alert so that the passed e-pawn does not become unstoppable.} ({Instead of 24...e3, Black has at least three ways to make a relatively easy draw.} 24... exd3 25. cxd3 Qe3+ (25... h6 26. Qc5 Qe3+ 27. Kh2 Qxd3 $11 {is another way.}) 26. Qxe3 Rxe3 27. Rd1 Re2 $1 {And because of the control of the 2nd rank and counterplay on the a3-pawn, Black makes a draw by straightforward moves.} 28. Rc1 (28. d5 Kf7 29. Rc1 Ra2 $11) 28... Ra2 29. Rc3 Kf7 $11) ({Or} 24... Qd6 25. Qc5 (25. Qe3 Qxa3) 25... Rd8 26. Qxd6 Rxd6 27. dxe4 Rxd4 28. e5 Re4 29. Rf5 Re3 $11 {as they say, all rook endings are drawn.}) 25. Re1 (25. Qg4 Qe7 26. Qf3 $11) (25. d5 $6 {is an example of how things can go wrong for White.} Qb6 26. Re1 e2+ 27. Kh1 Qf2 28. Qd2 Re3 29. d6 Kf7 {and there are some problems with the white king immobile in the corner.}) 25... h6 (25... e2 26. Qd2 g6 27. Qf4 (27. d5 $11) 27... Qe7 28. Qd2 $11) 26. Qh5 e2 27. Qf3 a5 $5 {Pushing the a-pawn one step closer to promotion, just in case a pawn race happens down the line. Is Magnus still trying to win? Surely he's hoping for Sergey to make a small mistake or better, a major blunder, but really that doesn't happen often. Also, Black's problem is that his king lacks a fortress, meaning it is going to be hard to escape from queen checks later on.} ({Almost all moves lead to a draw now.} 27... Qd6 28. Rxe2 Qxd4+ 29. Kh1 Rxe2 30. Qxe2 Qa1+ 31. Kh2 Qxa3 $11) 28. c3 (28. d5 Qe5 (28... Qe7 29. d6 Qxd6 30. Rxe2 $11) 29. d6 $11) 28... Qa2 {Protecting the e2-pawn while at the same time threatening to take the guy on a3, or play ...?d2, attacking the rook on e1.} 29. Qc6 $1 {But Black's queen escapade has left his rook and king a little vulnerable too.} Re6 (29... Re7 30. Qc8+ Kh7 31. Qf5+ {Hoping for perpetual check.} g6 32. Qf8 $11 {There is no way for Black to make progress, as he cannot attack and defend at the same time.}) 30. Qc8+ ({Now is not the time to grab pawns:} 30. Qxb5 $2 Qd2 31. Qb1 Qxc3 $17 32. d5 Qd4+ 33. Kh2 Qxd5 $17 {and White's greed has got him nothing but trouble.}) 30... Kh7 31. c4 Qd2 32. Qxe6 Qxe1+ 33. Kh2 Qf2 34. Qe4+ {Draw. A quiet but well-played game by two experienced players. Today they decided to go for the Closed Ruy Lopez with 6. d3. Sergey played the same moves as in Round 2, but Magnus decided to deviate with 9...?e6 just in case his opponent had prepared something vicious against his pet line with 9...?a5. What followed after 9...?e6 was a series of liquidations, with each player trading three minor pieces each, though Black had to accept doubled d-pawns. Moves 14-16 were critical to see if White could prove an advantage, but in the end Sergey decided to release the tension with 16.f5. What followed was a series of exchanges and with Magnus even trying to spice up the game a bit with 18...c3!? and 19...d5!? Sergey held fast, exchanged a few more pieces, and in the end the game never really left the boundaries of equality. Tomorrow is the last round and let's see if Magnus' sister's prediction that he will win his last two White games comes true. Maybe this game is just the deep breath before the explosion.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "Tata Steel-A 81st"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2019.01.23"] [Round "10"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Anand, Viswanathan"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C77"] [WhiteElo "2835"] [BlackElo "2773"] [Annotator "Hillarp Persson,Tiger"] [PlyCount "151"] [EventDate "2019.01.12"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 188"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2018.12.21"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2018.12.21"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. Nc3 $5 {This move takes an immediate step off the Ruy Lopez main road. The conventional wisdom is that the knight should go to d2, and then after 0-0, Re1 and Nd2-f1, it is within reach of the kingside meadows. If such a move was played by a beginner in the 90s, a stronger opponent would probably have pointed out that it is a mistake (although it clearly is not). Still, Spassky used to play this way and in the last decade, Dominguez Perez has kept it among his big guns.} Bc5 {Black faces an important choice already here. Should b5 be played or not? Should the bishop go to c5 or not? 5.Nc3 is obviously not a slower move than the usual 5.0-0, so Black doesn't have time for extravagant alternatives. When you start playing chess you clearly prefer c5 to e7, if you are to plonk down the bishop somewhere, but then later you become aware that the bishop could be vulnerable to c3/d4 and Nxe5/d4-tricks, so you turn a bit more philosophical about which "the right square" is for the bishop, and might even swing over to the e7-side. I sometimes get the feeling that really strong GMs have had the pendulum swing back to where c5 is the "right square".} ({The other main line goes} 5... b5 6. Bb3 Be7 (6... Bc5 {Ah, anyway! Clearly the better move order if you prefer to avoid the exchange on c6.} 7. d3 h6 8. Nd5 Rb8 (8... O-O) 9. c3 d6 10. O-O O-O {and we come to a position where White has a wide choice. When Carlsen and Anand played each other in Sinquefield Cup 2017, with opposite colours, their game reached this position and continued:} 11. Re1 Ba7 12. Be3 Bxe3 13. Nxe3 Re8 14. a4 b4 15. a5 bxc3 16. bxc3 Be6 17. Bxe6 Rxe6 18. Nd5 Ne7 19. Nxf6+ Rxf6 20. d4 Ng6 21. g3 Qc8 22. Re3 Rb5 23. Nd2 h5 $1 24. h4 Qh3 25. Qf1 Qg4 26. Qe2 Qxe2 27. Rxe2 Re6 {with a balanced game.}) 7. d3 d6 {Black is threatening to pick up the bishop pair with Na5 next, so White must do something about it. The usual way is...} 8. a3 O-O (8... Na5 9. Ba2 c5 10. b4 Nc6 11. Nd5 O-O 12. Be3 cxb4 13. axb4 Bb7 14. O-O Nxd5 15. Bxd5 Qd7 16. Qb1 {and although White is not significantly better, this seems like the kind of position White is striving for, Rapport,R (2715)-Kollars,D (2530) GRENKE Chess Open 2018.}) 9. Nd5 Na5 10. Ba2 Nxd5 11. Bxd5 c6 12. Ba2 {This position is hard to avoid for White in the 5.Nc3-line, so if you intend to play it you should have a look at it. I'm not entirely clear about what went on in the following game:} Bf6 13. O-O Re8 14. b4 Nb7 15. c4 Be6 16. Bb2 c5 17. Bc3 Qd7 18. cxb5 axb5 19. Bxe6 Qxe6 20. a4 Qd7 21. axb5 Rxa1 22. Qxa1 Qxb5 23. Qb1 Rb8 {1/2-1/2 (23) Rapport,R (2690)-Aronian,L (2785) Sharjah Grand Prix 2017}) ({A third option is to play} 5... Bb4 {, in analogy to the four knights opening.} 6. O-O (6. Nd5 $5) 6... O-O 7. d3 {...a6 is not, generally speaking, a move that Black would play in the four knights, since White would take on c6, but it is not clear to me that Black has anything to be unhappy about here.} Bxc3 8. bxc3 d6 9. Nd2 (9. Bg5 {is standard in this position, but then it is usual for Black to play Bd7 in order to prepare for a6, so one might argue that a6 actually is a slight gain for Black here.} Qe7 10. Re1 (10. Nd2 $5) 10... Nd8 {and suddenly we are in two-knights-land, by a long detour:} 11. Bb3 Ne6 12. Bh4 Nf4 13. Nd2 b5 14. Nf1 Ng6 15. Bg3 c5 16. Ne3 Qc7 17. h4 Be6 18. h5 Nf4 19. Bxf4 exf4 20. Nd5 Bxd5 21. Bxd5 Rae8 22. h6 Re5 $5 23. hxg7 Kxg7 24. Qd2 Rfe8 {and Black eventually won this rather unclear position, in Artemiev,V (2705)-Andreikin,D (2715) World Rapid 2018.}) 9... Re8 10. c4 Bd7 11. f4 Nd4 12. Bxd7 Qxd7 13. c3 Ne6 14. f5 Nc5 15. Nb3 b5 {and Black had managed to land himself in a situation where a6 actually makes sense, in Adhiban,B (2680) -Stevic,H (2585) Tournament of Peace 2018.}) 6. Bxc6 {How very Magnus.} ({After} 6. O-O b5 (6... O-O 7. Nxe5 Nxe5 8. d4 Bd6 9. f4 Neg4 10. h3 Bb4 11. e5 d6 12. exf6 Nxf6 13. Qf3 Bxc3 14. Qxc3 b5 15. Bb3 Bb7 16. f5 Re8 17. Bg5 Re2 18. d5 {and instead of taking the pawn, as in Vishnu,P (2535)-Grandelius,N (2640) CellaVision Cup 2017, Black could have played} c5 $1 19. Qd3 Qe7 20. Bxf6 gxf6 21. Rae1 Re5 {with a balanced game. I'm prone to put some thought into this move order as (my compatriot) Nils usually knows what he is doing.}) 7. Bb3 O-O 8. Nd5 $5 {is a spectacular way to try to make more sense of the 0-0 move order...} ({After} 8. d3 {we soon end up in a position that we looked at after 5...b5 6.Bb3 Bc5.}) 8... Nxe4 (8... h6 9. c3 $1 {and White's d-pawn doesn't have to 'refuel' on d3.}) 9. d3 Nf6 10. Bg5 Be7 11. Nxe7+ Qxe7 12. Re1 $44 {Anand,V (2785)-Kramnik,V (2805) Norway 2017}) 6... dxc6 7. d3 {This position is very similar to one of the main lines of the Berlin Defence (of the Ruy Lopez); the only difference is that the pawn is on a6. Usually strong GMs have prefered to play h3, Qe2, or Nbd2, rather than Nc3, in this position, but Magnus has played a blitz game earlier where he had exactly the same position (minus a6):} Qd6 {I presume Vishy was aiming to apply a similar set-up to the one Jakovenko used to win against Motylev (see comment after 9.0-0).} (7... O-O 8. Be3 (8. Qe2 Re8 9. h3 Nd7 10. Nd1 {can hardly be the hidden meaning behind Nc3...} Nf8 11. Ne3 {Rapport,R (2675)-Ding Liren (2770) FIDE World Cup 2017}) 8... Bd6 9. Bg5 Re8 (9... h6 10. Bd2) 10. h3 c5 11. Nd5 Be7 12. Nxe7+ Qxe7 13. O-O h6 14. Be3 Nd7 15. Nd2 Nb8 16. f4 exf4 17. Rxf4 Nc6 18. Qh5 b6 19. Raf1 Rf8 20. Nf3 Be6 21. Rh4 f6 22. Qg6 Qf7 23. Qg3 Nb4 24. Bxh6 Nxc2 25. Ne5 fxe5 26. Rxf7 Rxf7 27. Qg6 Bxa2 28. Bg5 Rff8 29. Rh7 Rf7 30. Bf6 {1-0 Carlsen,M (2835)-Karjakin,S (2760) World Blitz 2017 (with pawn on a7 instead of a6).}) 8. h3 Be6 9. Be3 $1 {Like I mentioned before; Black's bishop is on the "best square" and White's bishop has nowhere to go. It's simple maths that White wants them exchanged. (Magnus thought about the move for more than 10 minutes, so I guess my logic is somewhat over simplified...)} (9. O-O O-O-O 10. Ng5 Nd7 11. Kh1 f6 12. Nxe6 Qxe6 13. Ne2 Rhf8 (13... g6 $5) 14. Qe1 g6 15. b4 Bd6 16. Be3 f5 17. f3 f4 18. Bg1 g5 19. Qf2 b6 20. Rfb1 h5 21. a4 g4 {and Black went on to win, in Motylev,A (2686)-Jakovenko,D (2747) Yaroslavl 2014 (again with a pawn on a7, rather than on a6).}) 9... Nd7 10. Bxc5 Nxc5 11. Qd2 {This position seems like nothing special for White and if Black gets to play Nd7 and c5, then White has nothing. So the next two moves seem like the only ambitious alternative.} ({After} 11. O-O O-O-O {White regrets having played h3 when Black launches the g-pawn.}) 11... Nd7 12. d4 $5 ({I don't see a good way for White to change the pawn structure after} 12. O-O-O c5 {One can try a plan with Nf3-somewhere, followed by f4, but it will only give Black a good square for the knight on e5.}) 12... exd4 13. Nxd4 c5 {Slightly surprising and the kind of move one regrets after losing. It could be taken as a statement, that: "I will take the d5-square from your knight and then you have nothing." (Although Anand most certainly would not put it like that.)} 14. Nxe6 fxe6 {Ergo, no d5-square for White's knight.} 15. O-O-O Qxd2+ 16. Kxd2 $1 {The king belongs on e3 where it is centrally placed and can support White's extra kingside pawn.} (16. Rxd2 {is not completely bonkers either, since} Ke7 (16... O-O-O $1 {looks sensible, intending} 17. Rhd1 g5 18. b3 Rhg8 19. Ne2 Rg7 {, followed by Rd8-f8. With both pairs of rooks still on the board, White's extra kingside pawn doesn't mean as much.}) 17. Rhd1 Rhd8 18. f4 {, forces Black to play a less than comfortable endgame.}) 16... Ne5 17. f4 $1 {Only by unsettling this knight, before it becomes a permanent feature on e5, can Black be challenged.} (17. b3 g5 $1 18. f3 Ke7 19. h4 h6 {is comfortable for Black. White cannot get a passed pawn without giving Black a ton of activity.}) 17... Nc4+ 18. Kc1 {King is back where it came from, but the knight is floating without a strong point.} Ke7 19. b3 Nd6 $1 20. e5 Nf5 21. Ne4 ({There is something to be said for} 21. g4 $1 {, since it forces Black's hand:} Nd4 (21... Nh4 $2 {fails to tactics:} 22. f5 $1 exf5 23. Nd5+ Kf7 24. e6+ $1 $18 Kg6 25. Nxc7) 22. Rhf1 (22. Ne4 Ne2+ 23. Kb2 Nxf4 24. Nxc5 b6 25. Rd7+ Ke8 26. Rd4 Rf8 27. Nd7 Rf7 28. Nf6+ gxf6 29. Rxf4 Ke7 {is a position that Black can hold, if I haven't missed something.}) 22... Rhf8 23. Rf2 b6 24. Rdf1 $36 {This looks promising for White, but I feel that it could be one of those positions that habitual Berlin-defenders could have all figured out (no, no, that's the position when the knight is on h4!). Still, Anand avoided something very similar on the second next move...}) 21... b6 22. g4 Nh4 $1 {The advantage of hanging out on h4, is that there are no pieces that can push it away. The downside is, you know, knight on the rim...} (22... Nd4 23. Rhf1 {is similar to the line above, which means that 21.g4 probably was stronger than 21.Ne4, at least from Anand's point of view. Perhaps Magnus didn't bother to stop the knight from going to h4.}) 23. Rhf1 {From now on, life will be hard for Black.} Rad8 $6 ({Instead,} 23... Rhf8 {holds the balance without too much difficulty:} 24. Rf2 (24. Rd2 h6 25. Kd1 Rad8) 24... h6 {and I wonder how White will continue?} 25. Rfd2 (25. Ng3 Rad8 26. Nh5 Rxd1+ 27. Kxd1 g5) 25... Rad8 $1 26. Rxd8 Rxd8 27. Rxd8 Kxd8 28. Kd2 Ng2 29. f5 exf5 30. gxf5 Nh4 31. Ng3 Nf3+ 32. Ke3 Nxe5 33. Kf4 Nc6 34. Nh5 Ke7 35. Nxg7 Nb4 {and White should force a draw before things get out of hand.}) 24. Rxd8 Rxd8 25. f5 $1 {It seems that White got to play e5, f4, g4 and f5 a bit too easily. Considering what happens later, I wonder if Black felt the same thing here?} exf5 26. gxf5 Rf8 (26... Rd5 $5 27. Rf4 Ng2 28. f6+ gxf6 29. exf6+ Kf8 $1 (29... Kf7 30. Rg4 Re5 31. Rg7+ Ke8 32. Ng5 $18) 30. Rg4 Rd4 31. Rxg2 Rxe4 32. Rg7 c4 33. Rxc7 cxb3 34. axb3 Rh4 35. Rc6 b5 36. Rxa6 Rxh3 {and although Black is struggling, it seems that he has good chances to hold.}) 27. f6+ gxf6 28. exf6+ Kf7 $6 {This looks natural and Ng5+ can be met with Kg6. There is only one (well, actually two) problem(s) .} (28... Kd7 29. Rg1 h6 30. Rg7+ Kc6 31. Rh7 Kd5 32. Nc3+ Kd4 33. Na4 Rxf6 34. Rxc7) 29. Rf4 $5 {Forcing Black to block the king's road to the kingside.} (29. Rg1 $5 {looks even better. The point is that} Rg8 (29... Nf5 30. Ng5+ Ke8 31. Re1+ Kd7 32. Nxh7 Rf7 33. Rf1 Ng3 34. Rf2 Ne4 35. Rf4 Ng3 36. Kd1 Nh5 37. Rf5 Ng3 38. Rg5 $18) (29... Ng6 30. Ng5+ Ke8 31. Nxh7 Rf7 32. Rxg6 Rxh7 33. Rg8+ Kf7 34. Rg7+ Rxg7 35. fxg7 Kxg7 36. Kd2 $18) 30. Ng5+ Kxf6 31. Nxh7+ Kf7 32. Rxg8 Kxg8 33. Nf6+ Kf7 34. Nd5 {should win for White.}) 29... Ng6 30. Ng5+ Ke8 31. Rf1 h6 32. Ne6 Rf7 33. Rd1 $1 Rxf6 34. Nxc7+ Kf8 35. Nxa6 Nf4 36. h4 Ng6 37. Rh1 Rf7 38. h5 $2 {I cannot see how this helps White. The knight becomes more active on f4, so why force it to go there?} (38. a4 $1 {One way to make sense of h5 is that Magnus was worried about} Ra7 (38... h5 39. Kb2 Kg7 40. Rd1 Nxh4 41. Rh1 Nf5 42. Rxh5 {and White has a hard defence ahead.}) 39. Nb8 Rb7 40. Nc6 Rc7 {, but after} 41. Rf1+ Rf7 42. Re1 Nxh4 43. Rh1 {there is no good way to hold on to the pawn:} Nf5 (43... Rf4 44. Ne5 Kg7 45. Nc4 $18) 44. Ne5 Rg7 45. Nc4 $1 Rg6 $2 46. Rf1 $18) 38... Nf4 39. a4 Ke7 40. Nc7 Kf6 41. Nb5 Kg5 {Black has almost managed to equalize, or, wait, is it only a mirage? Has the king been deviously lured away from the queenside, so that White can continue with his insidious ways? No, not really, but it is still more difficult to play Black. White's knight is a bit more jumpy for the time being.} 42. Nd6 Re7 43. Kb2 Re6 (43... Nxh5 $1 44. Rg1+ Kf6 45. Rh1 Kg6 46. Rg1+ Kf6 {is very equal indeed.}) 44. Nf7+ Kf5 45. Rd1 $1 {To help the knights return to the queenside.} Kg4 46. Kc3 Kxh5 47. Rh1+ Kg6 48. Nxh6 {So, White is a pawn up again, but the knight is misplaced. Black needs to find a way to make a net that will keep it from getting out.} Re4 $1 {This stops the king from advancing further and keeps an eye on g4, from where Nh6 will try to stage its reentry into the game.} 49. Kb2 (49. Rh2 Nd5+ 50. Kb2 c4 $11) 49... Re2 $1 50. Ng4 Nd3+ $6 {Another slight mistake puts Black under pressure again.} (50... Kf5 $1 {was the way to keep the knight in the cage:} 51. Nh6+ Kg6 52. Kb1 Nd5 53. Ng4 Kg5 54. Rg1 Kf4 {and there is not way for White to gain coordination.}) 51. Kc3 Nb4 $6 {And with this the pressure becomes quite hard to bear, again.} (51... Ne1 $1 52. Rh2 Re4 53. Nf2 Re2 54. Kc4 Rxc2+ 55. Kb5 c4 56. bxc4 Rb2+ 57. Kc6 Nf3 58. Rg2+ Kf7 59. Kb7 Ne5 $11) 52. Rh2 $1 Rxh2 53. Nxh2 Kf5 54. Nf3 Ke4 55. Ne1 Kd5 56. Nd3 Nc6 (56... Na2+ 57. Kb2 Nb4 58. c4+ $1 (58. Nxb4+ $2 cxb4 59. c3 bxc3+ 60. Kxc3 Kc5 $11) 58... Ke4 59. Nxb4 cxb4 60. Kc2 Kd4 61. Kd2 Ke4 62. Ke2 Kd4 63. Kf3 Kc3 64. a5 $1 bxa5 65. c5 Kxb3 66. c6 {and White wins.}) 57. Nf4+ $1 Kd6 (57... Ke5 $2 {loses to} 58. Kc4 $1 Kxf4 (58... Na7 59. Nd5) 59. Kb5 Nb4 60. Kxb6 Nxc2 61. a5 Nb4 62. Kxc5 {and the knight is unable to stop both pawns.}) 58. Kc4 Na7 59. Nd5 Kc6 60. Ne7+ Kd6 61. Nf5+ Kc6 62. Kd3 Kc7 (62... b5 $1 {is a good start, exchanging one of the pawns.}) 63. Ke4 Nc6 64. Ne3 Kd6 65. Nc4+ Kc7 66. c3 Ne7 67. Ke5 Ng6+ 68. Kf5 Ne7+ 69. Ke6 Ng6 {On one hand, Black's position is awful, but on the other; there is no way for White to go forward.} 70. a5 b5 $4 {A terrible blunder in a drawn position.} (70... bxa5 $1 71. Kd5 (71. Nxa5 Nf4+ 72. Ke5 Ne2 73. c4 Kb6 $11 74. b4) 71... Nf4+ 72. Kxc5 Ne2 73. Na3 Nc1 74. Kc4 Kb6 75. Nc2 Ne2 76. Nd4 (76. Ne3 Nc1) 76... Nf4 77. Nf5 Ne6 {and there is no way for White to make progress.}) 71. Ne3 Nf4+ 72. Ke5 Ne2 73. Nd5+ Kc6 74. b4 Nxc3 75. Nxc3 cxb4 76. Ne2 {a rather tragic end to an exciting game.} 1-0 [Event "Corus"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2010.01.31"] [Round "13"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C77"] [WhiteElo "2810"] [BlackElo "2675"] [Annotator "Postny,Evgeny"] [PlyCount "112"] [EventDate "2010.01.16"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "19"] [SourceTitle "CBM 135"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2010.03.17"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2010.03.17"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. d3 d6 6. c3 g6 7. Nbd2 Bg7 8. Nf1 O-O 9. Bg5 d5 $1 {It's strange that this move hasn't appeaed at the top level so far. Objectively speaking, Black doesn't have have problems in this line anyway, but the move in the text seems to give Black some chances for evne more than equality.} (9... h6 10. Bh4 Ne7 (10... b5 11. Bb3 Na5 12. Bc2 c5 13. Ne3 Be6 14. O-O Qd7 15. a3 Ng4 16. Nxg4 Bxg4 17. h3 Be6 $11 {1-0 Tiviakov,S (2648)-Eljanov,P (2701)/Montreal 2007/CBM 119 (39)}) 11. Ne3 c6 12. O-O Qc7 13. Bb3 b5 14. a4 Bb7 15. Qd2 Kh7 16. axb5 axb5 17. Rxa8 Bxa8 18. Ra1 Bb7 $11 {0-1 Papp,G (2509)-Almasi,Z (2668)/Nyiregyhaza 2008/CBM 126 (40)}) 10. Qe2 Qd6 11. Bxf6 {I don't see any reason to give up the bishop.} (11. Ng3 $11 {Objectively, the knight is out of place on g3. Still, this is the way to complete the development without any concession.}) 11... Bxf6 12. Ne3 ({White can't win a pawn like this:} 12. exd5 Qxd5 13. Ne3 Qd6 14. Nc4 Qe6 15. Bxc6 Qxc6 16. Ncxe5 Bxe5 17. Nxe5 Qxg2 $15) 12... Ne7 {Black is already slightly better.} 13. Bb3 c6 14. h4 $6 {White doesn't have any grounds for this kind of attack.} (14. O-O {is clearly safer.}) 14... Be6 15. Ng5 (15. h5 {is just a punch in the air. Black can start the queenside offensive by} a5 $15) 15... Bd7 16. Rd1 Rad8 17. Qf3 $5 {Magnus is consequent. Objectively, this idea leads to a worse position for White, but at least Black has to find some precise moves here.} (17. Nf3 $15 {would clearly indicate that all White's previous play was false.}) 17... h6 18. Nc4 $1 {This is the point.} dxc4 19. dxc4 Nd5 $8 20. Nh3 h5 $1 {[%CAl Gd7g4] Caruana finds the best way to parry white's attacking attempts.} (20... Bxh4 $6 21. cxd5 Kg7 22. Nf4 $5 exf4 23. Rxh4 g5 24. Rh1 f5 25. exf5 Bxf5 26. dxc6 Rfe8+ 27. Kf1 Qxc6 28. Qxc6 Rxd1+ 29. Bxd1 bxc6 {is also slightly better for Black, but is quite messy on the way.}) 21. Qg3 Bg4 22. Rd2 (22. f3 $4 Qe7 $1 $19 {[%CAl Gf6h4]}) {[%tqu "En","How should Black continue?","","","f6h4","Nice counterblow, simplifying to a better ending.",10,"d6e7","",0]} 22... Bxh4 $1 {Nice counterblow, simplifying to a better ending.} (22... Qe7 $2 23. cxd5 cxd5 24. Bxd5 Bxh4 25. Qe3 $13) 23. Qxh4 Qf6 24. Qxf6 Nxf6 25. Ng5 c5 {[%csl Yb3] Black is clearly better, as he is practically a pawn up.} 26. f3 Bc8 27. Ba4 Kg7 28. Rxd8 Rxd8 29. b4 $2 {Looks like a nervous slip of the finger.} ({For example:} 29. g3 $17 {was the normal way to continue.}) 29... Rd3 $19 {Now White just loses a pawn without any compensation.} 30. bxc5 {Funny tripled pawns, which are going to be eaten one by one.} Rxc3 31. Kd2 Rxc4 32. Bb3 Rxc5 33. Nxf7 a5 34. Rc1 (34. Nd6 {is an suggestion by the chess engine, but with precise play Black should win this.}) 34... Rxc1 35. Kxc1 a4 36. Bc4 b5 37. Nd6 bxc4 38. Nxc8 h4 39. Nb6 Nh5 40. Nxc4 Kf6 $2 {It wasn't an easy choice for Caruana, especially in time trouble. The difference between the two lines is rather subtle, but important!} (40... Nf4 $1 41. Nxe5 Nxg2 42. Ng4 (42. Kd2 Kf6 43. Ng4+ {would be just a transposition.}) 42... Ne1 43. Nh2 Kf6 44. Kd2 Ng2 45. Ng4+ Kg5 {Here the white knight must guard the h-pawn, and doesn't have time to go for the a-pawn.} 46. Ke2 h3 47. Kf2 Kh4 $1 48. Nh2 (48. e5 Nf4 $19) 48... Nf4 49. Ke3 g5 50. Nf1 Ng6 $1 51. Kf2 Ne5 52. Ke3 Nc6 53. a3 Ne5 $19 {[%csl Ra3][%CAl Ge5c4]}) 41. Kd2 Nf4 42. Ke3 (42. Ne3 $2 {falls to a typical tactical trick:} Kg5 43. Ke1 Nxg2+ $1 44. Nxg2 h3 45. Kf2 h2 $19) 42... Nxg2+ 43. Kf2 Nf4 44. Nb2 {The exchange of a-pawns is in favour of the defending side.} a3 45. Nc4 Nd3+ 46. Kg2 Kg5 (46... Nb4 47. Nxa3 Nxa2 48. Nb5 Nb4 49. Kh3 g5 50. Nd6 Nd3 51. Nc4 {Black can torture his opponent for a long time, but I don't really see a constructive winning plan.}) 47. Nxa3 Kf4 48. Nc2 {Now it's a clear draw, since the a-pawn gives White counterplay.} Nb2 49. Nb4 h3+ 50. Kxh3 Kxf3 51. Kh4 Kf4 52. Nd5+ Kxe4 53. Ne7 Kf3 54. Nxg6 e4 55. Ne5+ Kf4 56. Ng4 Na4 {A somewhat lucky escape for the World number one, which yielded him another victory in an elite tournament!} 1/2-1/2 [Event "Corus-B"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2006.01.29"] [Round "13"] [White "Lagno, Kateryna"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C77"] [WhiteElo "2500"] [BlackElo "2625"] [Annotator "Mikhalevski,Victor"] [PlyCount "62"] [EventDate "2006.01.14"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "15"] [SourceTitle "CBM 111"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2006.04.04"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2006.04.04"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. d3 Bc5 6. Nc3 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. Nd5 h6 9. c3 O-O 10. O-O Rb8 11. Ne3 $6 {[%CAl Gd3d4] A not very fortunate novelty. White has to connect his hopes to obtain an advantage with the advance d4.} ({So the previous games saw} 11. Re1 $5 {preparing d4.} Re8 (11... Bg4 12. h3 Bxf3 13. Qxf3 Nxd5 14. Bxd5 Ne7 15. Bb3 $14 {and White is slightly better thanks to a pair of bishops.1-0 Vallejo Pons,F-Georgiev,V/Mallorca 2004/CBM 104 no vc (70)}) 12. d4 $1 (12. h3 a5 13. a4 (13. d4 $5 Ba7 14. Be3 $1) 13... b4 14. Bc4 Nxd5 15. Bxd5 Ne7 16. Bc4 bxc3 17. bxc3 Ng6 18. d4 Bb6 19. Bb5 Bd7 20. Bxd7 Qxd7 $11 {½-½ Radjabov,T-Ganguly,S/Moscow RUS 2005/The Week in Chess 537 (22)}) 12... Ba7 13. Be3 $1 {I believe this is the way to fight for advantage in this line.} Ng4 $1 14. Qd3 Nxe3 15. fxe3 (15. Nxe3 $5 $14) 15... Na5 16. Bc2 Bb7 {[%CAl Gc7c6] 1-0 Akopian,V-Ganguly,S/Gibraltar ENG 2006 (32) and with a pir of bishops and a misplaced knight on d5 Black looks ok.}) ({and the immediate} 11. d4 Ba7 12. Be3 $1 exd4 ({In case of} 12... Nxe4 {White plays} 13. Re1 $1 {[%csl Re4][%CAl Gd4e5] and suddenly black pieces start to hang. F.e.} Bg4 14. dxe5 Nc5 15. exd6 Qxd6 16. h3 Bh5 (16... Bxf3 17. Qxf3 Nxb3 18. axb3 Bxe3 19. Nxe3 $14 {[%CAl Ge3f5,Ga1d1]}) 17. g4 Bg6 18. Bf4 Qd7 19. Ne7+ Nxe7 20. Qxd7 Nxd7 21. Rxe7 $16) (12... Ng4 $5) 13. Nxd4 Nxd4 14. Bxd4 Bxd4 15. Qxd4 $14 {1-0 Asrian,K-Yegiazarian,A/Yerevan ARM 2005/The Week in Chess 548 (51)}) 11... Bb6 $1 {Black moves the bishop away from a possible attack by means of d4.} 12. Qe2 {[%CAl Gf1d1] White prepares ?d1.} ({Now} 12. d4 {would be met by} exd4 13. cxd4 Re8 $15 {[%csl Re4] and White can't protect his central pawn.} (13... Nxe4 $4 14. Bd5 $18 {[%csl Rc6,Re4]})) 12... Ne7 {[%CAl Ge7g6,Gg6f4] Noticing that f4 would be a nice square for the knight Black transfers it there via e7 and g6.} 13. Rd1 Ng6 14. Nf5 ({It was better to move the queen away from e2.} 14. Qc2 {with the idea to meet} Nf4 {with} 15. Nf5 Bxf5 16. exf5 {[%CAl Gd3d4]} Qd7 17. Bxf4 (17. d4 e4 $1 18. Bxf4 exf3 19. gxf3 Rfe8 $44) 17... exf4 18. d4 $11 {with almost a symmetric position.}) 14... d5 $1 {Exploiting a hanging position of the knight on f5.} 15. h3 Re8 $1 {[%csl Re4][%CAl Gc7c5] A useful prophylactic move. Black prepares advance of the c-pawn to c5 taking space on the queenside and in the centre.} 16. g4 $2 {This move can't be good. White weakens the dark squares getting nothing in exchange.} (16. Ng3 {agreeing with a slightly worse position would be a more realistic approach.}) 16... c5 $1 17. c4 bxc4 18. dxc4 d4 $15 {First achievement-Black obtained a defended passed pawn in the centre.} 19. Ba4 Re6 $1 {Magnus doesn't want to allow a manoeuvre of the light-squared bishop via c6 to d5. Moreover the rook will be useful o the e-file after exchange on f4.} (19... Rf8 20. Bc6) 20. Ne1 {[%CAl Ge1d3] It would be nice to block the d-pawn by means of Nd3, but...} Nf4 $1 21. Bxf4 ({In case of} 21. Qf3 {Black can play similar to the game.} g6 $1 (21... Ba5 $5) 22. Nxh6+ Kg7 23. Bxf4 exf4 24. e5 $1 (24. Nd3 Nxe4 25. Nxf4 Ng5 $1 26. Nxe6+ Bxe6 $17 {[%csl Rh6]}) 24... Nh7 $1 25. Qxf4 Ng5 $1 {[%csl Rf4,Rg1][%CAl Gg5h3]} 26. Kf1 Bc7 $1 {[%csl Re5]} 27. Nd3 f6 $1 28. h4 Rxe5 $1 29. Nxe5 Bxe5 $17 {[%csl Rf1,Rh6] with an obvious advantage for Black.}) 21... exf4 {[%csl Re4]} 22. f3 g6 $1 $17 {[%csl Rf5] Suddenly the knight on f5 gets in a trouble.} 23. Nxh6+ Kg7 {[%csl Rh6] Where is a way out?} 24. g5 ({Probably} 24. Nd3 {would be a better practical chance, but after} Kxh6 25. Nxf4 Nh7 $1 {[%CAl Gd8h4]} 26. Nxe6 Bxe6 $17 {[%csl Rf4,Rg3][%CAl Gb6c7,Gd8h4] and with two pieces for a rook plus weak dark squares around White's king Black can look forward with a smile.}) (24. Qh2 Bc7 25. h4 Nxe4 $1 ({or} 25... Nh7 $5 {and White's position collapses.})) 24... Nh7 {The simplest. Black prepares a sacrifice of the knight on g5, which will provide him with a number of extra pawns and a vulnerable white king.} ({Also the computer's} 24... Nxe4 $5 {was strong.} 25. Nxf7 (25. fxe4 Qxg5+ 26. Ng4 f5 27. Nf3 Qh5 28. Qg2 fxe4 $1) 25... Kxf7 26. fxe4 Qxg5+ 27. Ng2 Bc7 $1 $19 {[%CAl Ge6f6,Gg5g3]}) 25. h4 (25. Nxf7 $1 Kxf7 26. h4 {[%CAl Ge1d3] trying to build a fortress was the very last practical chance.}) 25... Nxg5 26. hxg5 ({Doesn't help} 26. Qg2 Nxe4 $1 27. Nxf7 Qxh4 $1 28. fxe4 Kxf7 29. Nf3 Qh5 30. Ng5+ Kg7 31. Nxe6+ Bxe6 $19 {with a decisive attack.}) 26... Qxg5+ 27. Qg2 Qxh6 {[%CAl Ge6e5,Ge5g5] Black is already a pawn up while his attack is only getting stronger.} 28. Nd3 g5 $1 $19 {[%CAl Ge6g6,Gg5g4] Sacrifices never stoped the young Norwegian. The idea to open up the g-file with g4 leaves White no choice.} 29. Nxf4 Bc7 $1 {Now White starts to feel his weak dark squares- a consequence of her careless play in the opening.} 30. Nd3 (30. Nxe6+ {would only prolong the game, but after} Bxe6 $19 {[%CAl Gc7f4,Gf4e3] Black fully dominates.}) 30... g4 $1 {[%csl Rg1,Rg2] Black shouldn't be asked twice before making this move. Opening of the g-file concludes the game.} 31. fxg4 Rg6 {[%csl Rg4]} (31... Rg6 32. Nf2 Rxb2 $19 {[%CAl Gg6g4] is completely hopeless and so White resigned. Another brilliant win of Carlsen in Wijk aan Zee.}) 0-1 [Event "EU-chT (Men) 20th"] [Site "Reykjavik"] [Date "2015.11.19"] [Round "6.1"] [White "Leko, Peter"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C77"] [WhiteElo "2708"] [BlackElo "2850"] [Annotator "Havasi,Gergo"] [PlyCount "82"] [EventDate "2015.11.13"] [EventType "team-swiss"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "ISL"] [SourceTitle "CBM 170"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2016.01.15"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2016.01.15"] [SourceQuality "1"] [WhiteTeam "Hungary"] [BlackTeam "Norway"] [WhiteTeamCountry "HUN"] [BlackTeamCountry "NOR"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. d3 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. Nc3 d6 9. a3 Rb8 $5 10. Be3 (10. h3 {was played in Leko's earlier game against Tomashevsky} h6 11. Ba2 Re8 12. Nh2 Nd4 13. f4 exf4 14. Bxf4 Be6 15. Nf3 Nxf3+ 16. Qxf3 Bxa2 17. Rxa2 Qd7 18. Raa1 Qe6 19. Kh1 Rbc8 20. Bg3 Nd7 21. a4 c6 22. Ne2 Ne5 23. Qf2 Bf8 24. axb5 axb5 25. Ra7 $16 {1-0 (67) Leko,P (2737)-Tomashevsky,E (2709) Kiev UKR 2013. I annotated that game in my article about the a3-line.}) 10... Na5 11. Ba2 c5 12. Nd5 (12. b4 Nc6 13. Nd5 {is also possible.}) 12... c4 (12... Nc6 13. b4 {would transpose to 12.b4.}) (12... Nxd5 13. Bxd5 {is slightly better for White.}) 13. Nxe7+ (13. b4 cxb3 14. cxb3 Nxd5 15. exd5 Nb7 16. b4 {is the suggestiom of the computer, but I can agree with Leko, because Black might be dangerous after f5-f4.}) 13... Qxe7 14. Qd2 Nc6 15. h3 Be6 16. b4 Rfc8 17. c3 cxd3 18. Qxd3 Bxa2 19. Rxa2 d5 $11 {Black has equalised.} 20. Nd2 Qe6 21. Raa1 Ne7 $1 {Preparing ?d8, ?c6 and ?g6.} (21... Rd8 22. Bg5 {was a problem} dxe4 23. Qe2 Ne7 24. Bxf6 Qxf6 25. Nxe4 $11) 22. Bc5 Ng6 23. Rad1 Rd8 (23... Nf4 {is also good} 24. Qf3 Rd8 $15) 24. Qf3 h6 25. Rfe1 Rd7 26. Qf5 Qc6 27. exd5 Rxd5 28. Nf3 $6 (28. Qf3 $1 Rbd8 29. Ne4 Rxd1 30. Nxf6+ Qxf6 31. Rxd1 {is a chance for White to equalise.}) 28... Rbd8 29. Qc2 $6 {Overlooking the ...?e4-move.} (29. Rxd5 Rxd5 30. Qc2 $15 {is very good for Black, but not winning.}) 29... Rxd1 30. Rxd1 Rxd1+ 31. Qxd1 Ne4 $17 {Black is practically winning.} 32. Qd8+ Kh7 33. Qb6 Qxb6 34. Bxb6 Nxc3 35. Nd2 Nf4 36. h4 Kg6 37. f3 Kf5 38. Kf2 Nd3+ 39. Kf1 h5 40. Be3 Ke6 41. g3 Kd5 {A very nice game for Carlsen, but White also had some chances to maintain equality.} 0-1 [Event "Grand Slam Final 4th"] [Site "Sao Paulo/Bilbao"] [Date "2011.09.27"] [Round "2"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Aronian, Levon"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C77"] [WhiteElo "2823"] [BlackElo "2807"] [Annotator "Moradiabadi,Elshan"] [PlyCount "111"] [EventDate "2011.09.26"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "BRA"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 145"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2011.11.11"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2011.11.11"] [SourceQuality "1"] {In this technical battle in one of the few 2800+ encounters... one can see many rich positional ideas. It is one of those few draws which I do not feel unhappy about commenting on!} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 {A Marshall?} 6. d3 {No! Carlsen has never been a fond of theoretical battles in the Ruy Lopez.} d6 7. c3 O-O 8. Nbd2 b5 9. Bc2 d5 10. Re1 dxe4 11. dxe4 {This position is familiar to Carlsen, as he faced it against Ivanchuk not long ago!} Be6 12. h3 {A very rare choice, which is not so surprising from Carlsen's point of view.} (12. Bb3 Bxb3 13. axb3 Qd3 14. b4 Rfd8 15. Qb3 Qd7 16. Qc2 Qe6 17. Qb3 Qd7 18. Qc2 Qe6 19. h3 a5 20. bxa5 Rxa5 21. Rxa5 Nxa5 22. b4 Nb7 23. Qb3 Qxb3 24. Nxb3 Nd7 25. Be3 Nd6 26. Nfd2 Ra8 27. Kf1 f6 28. Ke2 Kf7 29. Kd3 Ke6 30. f3 Ra2 31. Ra1 Rxa1 32. Nxa1 Nb7 33. Nab3 {1/2-1/2 (33) Ivanchuk,V (2776)-Carlsen,M (2815) Medias 2011}) 12... Nd7 (12... h6 {Well Mr.Aronian, a very old game has been followed so far... Botvinnik played it!} 13. Nh2 Nh7 14. Ng4 Bg5 15. Qe2 Qd6 16. Ne3 Rfd8 17. Nf3 Bxe3 18. Qxe3 Qe7 {0-1 (60) Smyslov,V-Botvinnik,M Leningrad/Moscow 1941. White has a slight edge even though Smyslov threw the game away.}) 13. Nf1 Nc5 (13... Nb6 {covering the d5-square is an alternative.} 14. Qe2 Qc8 15. Ne3 Rd8 16. Nh2 Bf8 17. Nf5 {is what I would personally not like to face in a practical game. Aronian's choice is ok, though it does have an obvious drawback: Black loses control over the d5-square.}) 14. Ne3 Qxd1 15. Rxd1 f6 16. Nd5 {There we are. As always, Carlsen has managed to get a slight but riskless edge.} Bd6 17. Be3 Nb7 18. b4 $5 {Fixing the target on b5 and creating a target!} Ne7 (18... a5 $6 {is premature as a result of} 19. a4 axb4 20. axb5 Bxd5 21. exd5 Rxa1 22. Rxa1 Ne7 23. cxb4 Bxb4 24. Bb3 Bd6 25. g4 $1 {after which White has a slight but long-lasting advantage is out of the question.}) 19. a4 c6 $6 {This is a serious inaccuracy which hands the initiative to White.} (19... Nxd5 20. exd5 Bf7 $1 {keeping the pawn on d5 under attack, gives Black adequate play.} 21. axb5 axb5 22. Bd3 Bxd5 23. Bxb5 Rxa1 24. Rxa1 c5 {is very close to a draw.}) 20. Nb6 {Carlsen grabs the initiative.} Rab8 21. Nd2 (21. Nh4 $5 g6 (21... Rfd8 22. Nf5 Nxf5 23. exf5 Bf7 24. axb5 axb5 25. Ra7 {is clearly better for White.}) 22. axb5 axb5 23. Ra7 Rfd8 24. Nf3 Kf8 {and White keeps the pressure.}) (21. axb5 axb5 22. Ra7 Rfd8 23. Ne1 {is another alternative, though I cannot say how either side would improve its position.}) 21... c5 22. axb5 axb5 23. c4 $5 {Carlsen tries to complicate things.} cxb4 $6 (23... Nc8 24. Nd5 cxb4 25. cxb5 Bxd5 26. exd5 {does not solve Black's problem.}) 24. cxb5 Bc5 25. Bb3 Bxb3 26. Nxb3 Bxe3 27. fxe3 Na5 28. Rxa5 Rxb6 29. Rd7 Nc8 30. Nc5 h5 {This move will become valuable in the more or less forced resulting rook ending.} 31. Rd3 Re8 32. Na4 Rb8 33. Rb3 {Carlsen wins a pawn but Dr. Tarrasch believes that all rook endings are drawn!} Nb6 34. Rxb4 Rec8 35. Nxb6 Rxb6 36. Ra6 Rc1+ 37. Kf2 Rc2+ 38. Kg3 Rxa6 39. bxa6 Ra2 $1 {The rooks have to be behind the pawns, whether ours or our enemy's!} 40. Rb6 Kf7 41. Rb7+ Kg6 42. a7 {Now we are in Dr. Müller's territory. White needs to bring his king to the queenside. Black's rook is well placed and thanks to White's weakened pawn chain he can create some counterplay on the kingside which may enable his king to become active.} Kh6 43. Kh2 g6 $1 (43... h4 $2 44. Kg1 g6 45. Kf1 f5 46. Ke1 Kg5 47. Rf7 (47. Kd1 f4 $11 {gives Black enough play to make a draw.}) 47... fxe4 48. Kd1 Kh5 49. Kc1 g5 50. Kb1 {is winning for White. Therefore Black has to be on time with his king and to activate it in the least amount of time.}) 44. Kg1 Kg5 $1 {Aronian uses the h4-square for his king.} 45. Rh7 (45. Rf7 f5 46. Kf1 fxe4 47. g3 h4 48. g4 Kh6 49. Ke1 g5 50. Kd1 Kg6 {just in time!} 51. Rb7 Kf6 52. Kc1 Ke6 53. Kb1 Ra5 54. Kb2 Kd6 55. Kb3 (55. Kc3 Kc6 56. Re7 Ra1 57. Rxe5 Rxa7 58. Rxg5 Rd7 {Is a draw}) 55... Kc6 56. Re7 (56. Kb4 Ra2 57. Rg7 Ra1 (57... Ra6 {is also possible!} 58. Rg6+ Kd5 59. Rxa6) 58. Rxg5 Rxa7 59. Rxe5 Ra2 60. Rh5 Re2 61. Kc4 Rxe3 62. Rh6+ Kd7 63. Rxh4 Ra3 {and Black manages to make a draw thanks to White's badly placed rook on h4.}) 56... Kb6 57. Kc3 Kc6 58. Rxe5 Rxa7 59. Rxg5 Rd7 {transposes. Obviously there are still a lot moves to analyse in this position but I hardly believe that White has many ways to improve his position.}) 45... f5 46. g3 {Equivalent to a draw offer.} (46. Rf7 fxe4 47. Kh2 h4 48. Kg1 Kh6 49. Kf1 g5 50. Ke1 Kg6 51. Rc7 Kf6 52. Kd1 Ke6 53. Kc1 Kd6 54. Rg7 Kc6 55. Kb1 Ra5 56. Kb2 Kb6 57. Kb3 Rb5+ 58. Kc2 Rc5+ 59. Kd2 Ra5 60. Ke2 Ra2+ 61. Kf1 Ra1+ 62. Kf2 Ra2+ 63. Kg1 Ra1+ 64. Kh2 Kc5 65. Rxg5 Kc4 $1 {Thanks to his active king Black is in the safe zone.}) 46... Kf6 47. Kf1 fxe4 48. Ke1 Ke6 49. Rg7 Kd5 50. g4 hxg4 51. hxg4 Kc4 52. Rd7 g5 53. Kd1 Kc3 54. Ke1 Kc4 55. Kd1 Kc3 56. Ke1 1/2-1/2 [Event "Corus"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2010.01.21"] [Round "5"] [White "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C77"] [WhiteElo "2708"] [BlackElo "2810"] [Annotator "Postny,Evgeny"] [PlyCount "117"] [EventDate "2010.01.16"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "19"] [SourceTitle "CBM 135"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2010.03.17"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2010.03.17"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. Bxc6 {This line is considered as pretty harmless for Black and appears very rarely at the top level.} dxc6 6. d3 Bd6 7. Nbd2 Be6 8. O-O O-O 9. b3 Nd7 10. Bb2 b5 ({To my mind the plan with} 10... c5 11. Nc4 f6 {is more sound for Black. Later on he can perform the manoeuvre ?d7-b8-c6. The position is approximately equal.}) 11. d4 f6 12. h3 c5 $6 {This decision is also hard to approve. White is eager to push his pawn to d5 to seize space, and Black is assisting this.} (12... Qe8 {is a logical move, setting free the d8-square for the rook. Black gets sufficient compensation for the structural defects. For instance:} 13. dxe5 Nxe5 14. Nxe5 fxe5 15. Qe2 Qg6 $132) 13. d5 {Now White has a small, but stable advantage.} Bf7 14. a4 (14. c4 {is also good.}) 14... Nb6 15. c4 c6 $1 {Black must play this, the only real chance for any counterplay.} 16. Nh4 {Going for a kingside attack.} ({White could adopt a more positional plan as well:} 16. Qc2 cxd5 (16... Qc7 17. Rfc1 $14 {[%CAl Gd2f1,Gf1e3]}) 17. cxd5 Qc7 18. Rfc1 $14 {[%CAl Gf3e1,Ge1d3]}) 16... Re8 {I don't think Black should let the knight be established on f5 so easily.} (16... g6 17. Qg4 cxd5 $1 18. cxd5 Qd7 19. Nf5 Bxd5 (19... h5 20. Nh6+ Kg7 21. Qxd7 Nxd7 22. Nxf7 Kxf7 23. Rfc1 $14) 20. a5 Be6 21. axb6 Kh8 22. Qf3 gxf5 23. exf5 Bxf5 24. Rfd1 Qe6 {and Black survives.}) 17. Nf5 Bf8 18. Qg4 (18. Ne3 $14 {with the idea to forward the knight to d5.}) 18... Kh8 19. f4 ({An attempt to use the a-file doesn't yield White much:} 19. axb5 axb5 20. Rxa8 Qxa8 21. Ra1 Qb7 22. dxc6 Qxc6 23. Ra7 Bg6 24. Nh4 bxc4 25. bxc4 Nc8 26. Nxg6+ hxg6 {Black is just in time to save the ?g6 and he will be only slightly worse.}) 19... exf4 20. Qxf4 $6 {This gives Carlsen a chance to come back into the game.} (20. Rxf4 $1 {White's initiative is very dangerous. Here one sample spectacular line:} bxc4 21. bxc4 cxd5 22. cxd5 (22. exd5 Bg6 {followed by the manoeuvre ?b6-d7-e5 with mutual chances.}) 22... Rb8 23. Bc3 (23. Nh6 $2 Bg6 24. Qxg6 hxg6 25. Nf7+ Kg8 26. Nxd8 Rexd8 $11) 23... Qd7 $1 {The only chance for counterplay.} 24. a5 Na4 25. Bxf6 $1 gxf6 26. Qh4 Bg6 27. Qxf6+ Kg8 28. Rg4 c4 $1 29. Nxc4 Rxe4 $1 30. Rxg6+ $1 hxg6 31. Qxg6+ Kh8 32. Ncd6 Bxd6 33. Nxd6 Re7 34. Rf1 Rg7 35. Qh5+ Kg8 36. Nf5 Rxg2+ $1 37. Kxg2 Qxd5+ 38. Rf3 Rb2+ 39. Kg3 Qe5+ 40. Kh4 Rb4+ 41. Kg5 Nc5 42. Qg6+ Kf8 43. Qd6+ Qxd6 44. Nxd6+ Ke7 45. Nf5+ Kf7 {and Black should survive the endgame with a pawn down, thanks to the very reduced amount of material. Long variations like this normally have improvements along the way, but, undoubtedly, White should have recaptured with the rook.}) 20... bxc4 21. bxc4 cxd5 22. cxd5 Qb8 $1 {[%csl Rb2,Rf4] This is the main drawback of 20.?xf4.} 23. Qh4 $5 (23. Bc3 Qxf4 24. Rxf4 {is already very little for White, so Nakamura is looking for more.}) 23... Nxd5 24. Rab1 Qb4 $1 (24... Nb4 25. Nh6 (25. Bxf6 gxf6 26. Qxf6+ Kg8 27. Rb3 Bg6 28. Rg3 Ra7 29. Rxg6+ hxg6 30. Qxg6+ Kh8 31. Nc4 Nd3 32. Ncd6 Bxd6 33. Nxd6 Rf8 34. Qh6+ Kg8 35. Qg5+ Kh8 36. Qh6+ Kg8 {White has no more than a perpetual check.}) 25... Ba2 26. Rxf6 Ra7 (26... Qd8 27. Qg5 gxf6 28. Bxf6+ Qxf6 29. Qxf6+ Bg7 30. Qh4 Bxb1 31. Nxb1 {with mutual chances, but a queen + knight is well-known as a dangerous duo, so Black has to be very careful.}) 27. Nf5 Kg8 28. Qg5 Bxb1 29. Nh6+ Kh8 30. Rf7 Rxf7 31. Nxf7+ Kg8 32. Nh6+ {with perpetual check.}) 25. Bc1 (25. Bxf6 $2 Qxd2 26. Rbd1 Qe2 27. Nxg7 Nxf6 28. Nxe8 Nxe8 29. Rd7 Nd6 30. Rxd6 Qe3+ 31. Kh1 Bg8 $17) 25... Qxa4 26. exd5 Qxh4 27. Nxh4 Bxd5 {The resulting position is approximately balanced. In an endgame like position normally three pawns overcome a knight, but here Black's pawns are not connected and he has to be careful not to lose all of them. On the other hand, White's knights don't have good outposts. With correct play this position should end in a draw.} 28. Ba3 Re3 29. Ra1 Rd3 30. Rfd1 {A somewhat strange move, the immediate 30.?hf3 was called for.} a5 31. Nhf3 a4 32. Rdc1 Kg8 $6 (32... g6 $1 {[%CAl Gf8h6] was a nice idea. Black is at least not worse.}) 33. Kf2 (33. Bxc5 Bxc5+ 34. Rxc5 a3 35. Kf2 Bf7 {with sufficient compensation for the piece. A similar position arose in the game later.}) 33... c4 (33... Rc8 $2 34. Ke2 $1 $16 {[%csl Rd3]}) 34. Bxf8 Kxf8 35. Nxc4 Rb3 {Black has lost a pawn, but the position remains playable for him with strong tendencies for a peaceful result. White really can't get rid of the annoying a-pawn.} 36. Nfd2 Rb4 37. Ra3 Rc8 38. Rac3 Be6 39. Na3 Rd8 40. Nf3 Rb3 $1 {This exchange will take the passed pawn closer to the promotion square.} 41. Rxb3 axb3 $11 42. Rc6 Bd5 43. Rb6 Rc8 {White's pieces lack harmony, he can't win this.} 44. Nb5 Rc2+ 45. Kg3 h5 $1 46. Nbd4 Ra2 47. Ne6+ Kf7 48. Nf4 Be4 49. Rb4 (49. Rxb3 g5 50. Nxh5 (50. Nd3 h4+ 51. Nxh4 gxh4+ 52. Kxh4 $11) 50... Kg6 {trapping the knight with an inevitable draw.}) 49... h4+ 50. Kg4 b2 51. Nd2 Ba8 52. Nc4 (52. Nd3 $4 b1=Q 53. Nxb1 Rxg2+ 54. Kf4 (54. Kxh4 $2 Bf3 $1 $19 {[%csl Rh4][%CAl Rg7g5]}) 54... Rg3 55. Rd4 g5+ 56. Kf5 Rf3+ 57. Kg4 Kg6 58. Nf4+ gxf4 {and suddenly Black is winning.}) 52... g5 53. Rxb2 {White has to give up the extra piece; the draw is inevitable.} (53. Nd3 $4 Ra4 $1 $19) 53... Rxb2 54. Nxb2 gxf4 55. Kxf4 Bxg2 56. Kg4 f5+ 57. Kxf5 Bxh3+ 58. Kg5 Be6 59. Kxh4 {A great fighting game!} 1/2-1/2 [Event "World-ch Carlsen-Karjakin +1-1=10"] [Site "New York"] [Date "2016.11.12"] [Round "2"] [White "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C77"] [WhiteElo "2769"] [BlackElo "2857"] [Annotator "Ponomariov,Ruslan"] [PlyCount "65"] [EventDate "2016.11.11"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "12"] [EventCountry "USA"] [SourceTitle "CBM 176"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2017.01.17"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2017.01.17"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {The last time Sergey played with White against Magnus was at the tournament in Bilbao this year. I was in Bilbao and commented on the game live. Sergey played 1.d4 and Magnus chose a Ragozin, which led to a very short draw. I also expected 1.d4 by Sergey in this game - after all, he has Shakriyar Mamedyarov and Vladimir Potkin as seconds and both are 1.d4 players. So, I thought they might have found one or two or even more improvements on the line Sergey and Magnus tried in Bilbao. But no, Sergey decided to play 1.e4 - in his childhood this was his main weapon. We might see Sergey switching to closed openings in the next games - which would indicate how much they worked before the match to be ready for 1. e4 and 1.d4.} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 $5 {No Berlin this time. The mind games have started....} 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. d3 {The main idea of this line is to avoid lots of theory in the Classical Ruy Lopez. After 6.d3 you don't need to study the Marshall, the Breyer, Zaitzev, Chigorin etc. However, most people thought that Carlsen and not Karjakin would try to avoid the main lines.} ({Normally Sergey plays} 6. Re1 {in this position. After e.g.} b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. h3 Bb7 (8... d6 9. c3 Be6 10. d4 Bxb3 11. Qxb3 {also leads to an exchange of bishops but in contrast to the game White has a pawn and not a knight on c3.}) 9. d3 d6 10. a3 Na5 11. Ba2 c5 12. Nbd2 Bc8 {we reach a position that is similar to the position we had in the game though there are differences: if you compare this line with the game continuation you will see that Black here spent more time to exchange the white-squared bishops.}) 6... b5 7. Bb3 d6 {Black has a number of options. If you want to study this variation more deeply I would recommend you to use the Reference button of your ChessBase program to see how the strongest players have handled this position.} 8. a3 O-O 9. Nc3 Na5 10. Ba2 Be6 11. d4 Bxa2 12. Rxa2 Re8 {If one compares this position with the lines I mentioned in the comment to the 6th move, Black here is several tempi up and his position has no weaknesses. With pawns on d4 and e4 White has a strong pawn centre which gives him some space advantage but with each piece exchanged this factor is less and less significant.} ({Earlier this year Magnus played} 12... Nc6 13. d5 Nb8 {However, 12...?e8 is also the move many engines want to play. So, I don't know whether Carlsen's small refinement was really a surprise for Karjakin.}) 13. Ra1 Nc4 14. Re1 Rc8 {The idea behind this move which puts the rook behind the pawn on c7 remains a little bit of a mystery to me. Probably Carlsen wanted to be ready meet d5 by White with ...c6.} ({Probably Black didn't want to play} 14... Bf8 {immediately, because after} 15. b3 Nb6 {White can pin the knight on f6 with} 16. Bg5) ({But there is nothing wrong with playing} 14... h6 {first, e.g.} 15. b3 Nb6 16. Bb2 Bf8 17. d5 Qc8 18. a4 c6 19. dxc6 Qxc6 {with counterplay.}) 15. h3 h6 16. b3 Nb6 17. Bb2 Bf8 18. dxe5 {To me, this looks like a silent draw offer. Modern chess is becoming more and more pragmatic.} ({I think if White wanted to retain chances for a fight he had to keep the tension in the centre.} 18. Qd3 c6 19. Rad1 Qc7 20. Ne2 d5 21. Ng3 exd4 (21... dxe4 22. Nxe4 Nxe4 23. Qxe4 exd4 24. Qxe8 Rxe8 25. Rxe8 $13) 22. e5 Ne4 23. Nxe4 dxe4 24. Qxe4 c5 {I think this position is still equal but the pawn structure is asymmetrical and both players have chances for active play - White on the kingside, Black on the queenside.}) 18... dxe5 19. a4 c6 20. Qxd8 Rcxd8 {As in game one we do see an early exchange of queens.} 21. axb5 axb5 22. Ne2 Bb4 23. Bc3 Bxc3 24. Nxc3 Nbd7 25. Ra6 Rc8 26. b4 Re6 ({With} 26... c5 {Carlsen could have posed more practical problems, e.g.} 27. Nxb5 cxb4 28. Nd6 {and now the tactical trick} (28. Ra4 Rxc2 29. Rxb4 Rb8) 28... Re6 29. Nxc8 Rxa6 {gives White something to think about. But after White's 18th move Carlsen was probably also happy with a draw.}) 27. Rb1 c5 28. Rxe6 fxe6 29. Nxb5 cxb4 30. Rxb4 Rxc2 31. Nd6 Rc1+ 32. Kh2 Rc2 33. Kg1 {Well, as it turned out game two was even less exciting than game one. But Carlsen's choice of opening was smart.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "Norway Chess 2024"] [Site "Stavanger, Norway"] [Date "2024.06.07"] [Round "19.1"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C77"] [WhiteElo "2830"] [BlackElo "2805"] [Annotator "Stockfish 16.1 - Chessbase"] [PlyCount "49"] [EventDate "2024.??.??"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. Nc3 Bc5 6. O-O b5 7. Bb3 O-O ({RR} 7... d6 8. a4 b4 9. Nd5 Bg4 10. c3 Rb8 11. Bc4 O-O 12. h3 Bh5 13. Nxf6+ Qxf6 14. g4 Qg6 15. Nh4 Qf6 16. Nf3 Na5 17. Ba2 Bg6 18. d4 b3 19. Bb1 Ba7 20. Bg5 Qe6 21. d5 Qd7 22. Qe2 {1-0 Grigoriants,S (2544)-Nepomniachtchi,I (2771) World Rapid 2023 Samarkand UZB (3.35)}) 8. a4 $146 ({RR} 8. Nd5 d6 9. Nxf6+ Qxf6 10. Bd5 Bd7 11. d3 h6 12. h3 Rab8 13. Be3 Ne7 14. Bb3 Ng6 15. d4 exd4 16. Nxd4 Nh4 17. Kh1 Qg6 18. Rg1 Bxd4 19. Bxd4 c5 20. Bc3 c4 21. f3 cxb3 22. axb3 f5 {1-0 Szpar,M (2491)-Bochnicka,V (2398) Titled Tue 2nd Jan Late chess.com INT 2024 (1)}) 8... Rb8 9. axb5 axb5 10. d3 h6 11. h3 d6 12. Ne2 Ne7 13. Ng3 Ng6 14. c3 Bb6 15. d4 Bb7 16. Bc2 c5 17. Re1 Re8 18. dxe5 dxe5 19. Qxd8 Rexd8 20. Be3 Bc8 21. Nf5 Be6 22. Ra6 Bc8 23. Raa1 Be6 24. Ra6 Bc8 25. Raa1 1/2-1/2 [Event "Division I"] [Site "Chess.com"] [Date "2024.05.15"] [Round "4.1"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Firouzja, Alireza"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C77"] [WhiteElo "2895"] [BlackElo "2861"] [Annotator "Stockfish 16.1"] [PlyCount "71"] [EventDate "2024.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "NOR"] [BlackTeam "FRA"] [WhiteClock "0:01:46"] [BlackClock "0:00:50"] {[%evp 16,71,25,24,32,-8,29,25,27,18,27,15,32,17,21,9,8,12,54,49,41,0,-4,0,-3,-2,-3,-33,-49,-27,-12,-17,-34,-55,-53,-89,-81,-94,-82,-92,-22,-19,-26,-29,-27,-25,-19,-25,0,0,-9,-6,-7,-9,0,-1,0,-12]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. d3 d6 6. c3 g6 7. O-O Bg7 8. Re1 O-O 9. h3 h6 10. Be3 Re8 11. Nbd2 d5 {White has an edge.} 12. Bxc6 bxc6 13. d4 dxe4 14. Nxe5 c5 15. Nb3 cxd4 16. cxd4 Bb7 17. Qd2 Bd5 18. Bxh6 (18. Rac1 {is interesting.} g5 19. h4 Nh7 20. hxg5 hxg5 21. Qa5) 18... Bxh6 19. Qxh6 Bxb3 $1 20. axb3 {Threatens to win with Rac1.} Qxd4 21. Nxg6 fxg6 22. Qxg6+ Kh8 23. Red1 Qb6 $1 24. Ra5 Nh7 ({Inferior is} 24... Qxa5 25. Qxf6+ Kg8 26. Rd7 Qa1+ 27. Kh2 Re7 28. Rxe7 Qg1+ 29. Kxg1 Rf8 30. Qg7#) 25. Qh5 {[#] Threatening mate with Rd7.} e3 26. fxe3 Qxe3+ 27. Kh1 Rad8 28. Rxd8 Rxd8 29. Rxa6 Qc1+ {[%mdl 64] [#] Double Attack} 30. Kh2 Qf4+ 31. Kg1 Rg8 {aiming for ...Qe3+.} 32. Qe2 {The position is equal.} Qc1+ 33. Kh2 {White threatens Qe5+ and mate.} Qf4+ 34. Kg1 Qc1+ 35. Kh2 {White wants to mate with Qe5+.} Qf4+ 36. Kg1 {Accuracy: White = 76%, Black = 75%.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "Candidates Tournament"] [Site "London"] [Date "2013.04.01"] [Round "14"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Svidler, Peter"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C77"] [WhiteElo "2872"] [BlackElo "2747"] [Annotator "Marin,Mihail"] [PlyCount "96"] [EventDate "2013.03.15"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "14"] [EventCountry "ENG"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 154"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2013.05.15"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2013.05.15"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. d3 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. a3 O-O 9. Nc3 Bb7 10. Bd2 Qd7 11. a4 $146 (11. Ne2 Nd8 12. Ng3 Ne6 13. Nf5 c5 14. N3h4 Bd8 15. Qf3 d5 {Mickiewicz,P (2271)-Malaniuk,V (2522)/Koszalin 2007/CBM 119 ext (0-1, 43)}) 11... Nd8 12. axb5 axb5 13. Rxa8 Bxa8 14. Ne2 Ne6 15. Ng3 c5 16. Nf5 Bd8 17. c4 $5 {This way of fighting for the light squares justifies (at least partly) the loss of a tempo with a3-a4.} bxc4 18. Bxc4 Bc7 19. Re1 Re8 20. Qc1 Nh5 21. g3 g6 22. Nh6+ Kg7 23. Ng5 Nxg5 24. Bxg5 d5 25. exd5 Bxd5 26. Ng4 Bf3 27. Bf6+ Kg8 28. Nh6+ Kf8 29. Qe3 Bb7 30. Bh4 Qh3 31. f3 $2 (31. Bd5 $1 {This is not that difficult to spot, but evaluating the consequences requires some effort.} Bxd5 32. Qxc5+ Kg7 33. Qxd5 Kxh6 34. Qxf7 Ba5 35. Qxe8 Bxe1 36. Qxe5 {Threatening mate with ?g5#} Bxf2+ $1 (36... Bd2 37. Qe2 Bc1 38. Be7 {allows White to maintain the initiative in conditions of material equality.}) 37. Kxf2 Qxh2+ {with a probable draw. If White interposes his queen to one of the checks, Black can exchange and win the bishop with ...g5.}) 31... Nf4 $36 32. gxf4 Qxh4 33. Nxf7 Bxf3 34. Qf2 Qg4+ 35. Qg3 exf4 36. Rxe8+ Kxe8 37. Qxg4 Bxg4 38. Ng5 h6 39. Nf7 h5 40. Nh6 Bd1 41. Kf2 f3 42. h3 Bf4 43. Nf7 g5 44. Ke1 g4 45. hxg4 hxg4 46. Kxd1 g3 47. Ke1 g2 48. Kf2 Bh2 0-1 [Event "Norway Chess 6th"] [Site "Stavanger"] [Date "2018.06.07"] [Round "9"] [White "Vachier Lagrave, Maxime"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C77"] [WhiteElo "2789"] [BlackElo "2843"] [PlyCount "33"] [EventDate "2018.05.28"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 185"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2018.07.13"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2018.07.13"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {Sagar,Shah} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. d3 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. a3 O-O 9. Nc3 Na5 10. Ba2 Be6 11. b4 Bxa2 12. Rxa2 Nc6 13. Bg5 Ng4 14. Bd2 Nf6 15. Bg5 ({RR} 15. Qb1 d5 16. Bg5 dxe4 17. dxe4 Qd6 18. Qb3 ({RR} 18. Rd1 Nd4) 18... Nd4 19. Nxd4 exd4 20. Bxf6 Bxf6 21. Ne2 ({RR} 21. Nd5 Bd8) 21... Rfe8 22. Ng3 c5 23. bxc5 Qxc5 24. a4 h5 25. axb5 axb5 26. Rxa8 Rxa8 27. Rb1 Rc8 ({RR} 27... h4) 28. Qxb5 Qxb5 29. Rxb5 h4 {Vachier Lagrave,M (2804)-Aronian,L (2802) Tbilisi 2017 CBM 181 [Sagar,Shah] ½-½ (41)}) ({RR} 15. Nd5 Nxd5 16. exd5 Na7 17. a4 bxa4 18. Rxa4 Nc8 19. c4 Nb6 20. Ra5 Qd7 21. Qb3 c6 22. dxc6 Qxc6 23. Rfa1 Qb7 24. c5 Nd7 25. cxd6 Bxd6 26. Qd5 Qb6 27. b5 Nf6 28. Qa2 Bc5 29. Be1 Bd4 {Amar,E (2584)-Kvaloy,A (2490) Sestao ESP 2025 1-0 (47)}) ({RR} 15. Re1 Qd7 16. Nd5 Nxd5 17. exd5 Na7 18. a4 c6 19. dxc6 Nxc6 20. c4 d5 21. axb5 axb5 22. Rxa8 Rxa8 23. cxb5 Nxb4 24. Nxe5 Qxb5 25. Qg4 Nc2 26. Rf1 Bf6 27. Bf4 Nd4 28. Bg3 Ne6 29. Qf5 Nd4 {Vachier Lagrave,M (2784)-Nihal,S (2620) Chess.com INT 2020 ½-½ (32)}) 15... Ng4 16. Bd2 Nf6 17. Bg5 $146 ({RR} 17. Re1 Qd7 18. Nd5 Nxd5 19. exd5 Na7 20. a4 c6 21. dxc6 Nxc6 22. c4 Bf6 23. axb5 axb5 24. Rxa8 Rxa8 25. cxb5 Ne7 26. d4 Qxb5 27. dxe5 dxe5 28. Qe2 Qxe2 29. Rxe2 Ra1+ 30. Re1 Ra2 31. Bc3 Nd5 {Shevchenko,K (2642)-Esipenko,A (2692) Ankara 2022 ½-½ (35)}) 1/2-1/2 [Event "Amsterdam NH Hotels 1st"] [Site "Amsterdam"] [Date "2006.08.28"] [Round "9"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Beliavsky, Alexander G"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C77"] [WhiteElo "2675"] [BlackElo "2625"] [PlyCount "112"] [EventDate "2006.08.19"] [EventType "schev"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "NED"] [SourceTitle "CBM 114"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2006.10.02"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2006.10.02"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. d3 d6 7. c3 O-O 8. Nbd2 Nd7 9. Bc2 Bf6 ({RR} 9... Nb6 10. d4 exd4 11. Nxd4 Nxd4 12. cxd4 f5 13. Bb3+ Kh8 14. e5 f4 15. exd6 Qxd6 16. Re1 f3 17. Nxf3 Bg4 18. Re3 Bh4 19. Qd3 Bxf3 20. Rxf3 Rxf3 21. gxf3 Re8 22. Be3 Nd5 23. Kh1 Nxe3 24. fxe3 {Karjakin,S (2725)-Carlsen,M (2813) Nice 2010 0-1 (64)}) ({RR} 9... Nb6 10. b4 f5 11. a4 fxe4 12. dxe4 Bg4 13. h3 Bh5 14. Re1 Bg5 15. g4 Be8 16. Nxg5 Qxg5 17. Nf3 Qf6 18. Kg2 Bd7 19. a5 Nc8 20. Bb3+ Kh8 21. g5 Qd8 22. Nh4 N8e7 23. Kg3 Qe8 24. Qe2 {Vachier Lagrave,M (2736)-Ivanchuk,V (2673) Jerusalem ISR 2022 ½-½ (71)}) 10. Nc4 ({RR} 10. Re1 g6 11. Nf1 Bg7 12. Ng3 Nb6 13. h3 d5 14. Qe2 h6 15. Be3 Be6 16. Bxb6 cxb6 17. Bb3 b5 18. Nf1 Na5 19. Bxd5 Bxd5 20. exd5 Qxd5 21. Qe4 Qxe4 22. dxe4 Nc4 23. b3 Nd6 24. Rad1 Rfd8 {Kotsur,P (2548)-Carlsen,M (2837) Astana 2012 0-1 (46)}) 10... Ne7 $146 ({RR} 10... b5 11. Ne3 Nb6 12. d4 Ne7 13. dxe5 dxe5 14. b3 Be6 15. Ba3 Re8 16. Qxd8 Raxd8 17. Rfd1 Ng6 18. Rxd8 Rxd8 19. Rd1 Rxd1+ 20. Bxd1 Bd8 21. g3 f6 22. Ne1 Nf8 23. Nd3 Nfd7 24. f4 a5 25. Kf2 {Zivkovic,V (2363)-Krstic,U (2436) Bol 2014 ½-½ (40)}) ({RR} 10... g6 11. Bh6 Bg7 12. Qd2 Nf6 13. h3 Nh5 14. d4 exd4 15. Bxg7 Kxg7 16. Nxd4 Nxd4 17. cxd4 d5 18. exd5 Qxd5 19. Ne3 Qd6 20. d5 Nf6 21. Qc3 b5 22. Rfd1 Bb7 23. Be4 Kg8 24. Bf3 Rfd8 25. a4 {Demianjuk,A (2340)-Severina,M (2232) Taganrog 2013 1-0}) 11. Ne3 g6 12. d4 Bg7 13. dxe5 Nxe5 14. Nxe5 dxe5 15. Bb3 Bd7 16. Ng4 Kh8 17. Nh6 Be8 18. Qf3 Nc8 19. Qg3 Nd6 20. Re1 Bc6 21. f3 Qe7 22. Ng4 Rae8 23. Ne3 f5 24. Nd5 Qd7 25. Qh4 fxe4 26. fxe4 Bxd5 27. Bxd5 Bf6 28. Qg3 c6 29. Bb3 Bd8 30. Qd3 Bb6+ 31. Kh1 Qg4 32. Be3 Bxe3 33. Qxe3 Rf4 34. Bd1 Qg5 35. Qd3 Rf2 36. Bf3 Rd2 37. Qf1 Rxb2 38. Rad1 Rd8 39. c4 Kg7 40. Qd3 Nf7 41. Qa3 Rdd2 42. Rxd2 Qxd2 43. Rd1 Rxa2 44. Qe7 Qc3 45. h4 Ra1 46. Rxa1 Qxa1+ 47. Kh2 b5 48. c5 Qc1 49. h5 b4 50. Bg4 Qf4+ 51. Kh3 Kh6 52. Qf8+ Kg5 53. Qe7+ Qf6 54. Qd7 Kh6 55. hxg6 hxg6 56. Qd2+ Qf4 0-1 [Event "Tata Steel-A 73rd"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2011.01.20"] [Round "5"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "L'Ami, Erwin"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C77"] [WhiteElo "2814"] [BlackElo "2628"] [PlyCount "187"] [EventDate "2011.01.14"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 141"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2011.03.17"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2011.03.17"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. d3 d6 6. c3 g6 7. O-O Bg7 8. Re1 O-O 9. Nbd2 Kh8 ({RR} 9... Re8 10. h3 b5 11. Bc2 Bb7 12. d4 Nb8 13. Rb1 Nbd7 14. d5 c6 15. c4 Qc7 16. b3 Bh6 17. Nf1 Bxc1 18. Rxc1 bxc4 19. bxc4 Nc5 20. N3h2 Bc8 21. Qf3 Qe7 22. dxc6 Be6 23. Ne3 Nh5 24. Nd5 {Morozevich,A (2765)-Ivanchuk,V (2751) Nice 2008 1-0 (50)}) 10. Nf1 Ng8 ({RR} 10... Nd7 11. d4 f5 12. exf5 gxf5 13. dxe5 dxe5 14. Ng3 Qe8 15. Bc2 Ne7 16. Bg5 e4 17. Bxe7 Qxe7 18. Nxf5 Rxf5 19. Bxe4 Re5 20. Nxe5 Bxe5 21. Kh1 Qc5 22. Bd5 Qxf2 23. Qh5 Qf6 24. Qe8+ Kg7 25. Rf1 {Herrmann,A (2149)-Ensslinger,C (2095) Oer-Erkenschwick GER 2025 1-0}) 11. Bg5 $146 ({RR} 11. Ng3 Qe8 12. Nd2 Bd7 13. Ndf1 Nd8 14. Bc2 Ne6 15. Ne3 b5 16. a4 Qb8 17. Nd5 c6 18. Ne3 Qb7 19. h4 Nh6 20. d4 Nf4 21. axb5 axb5 22. Rxa8 Rxa8 23. dxe5 dxe5 24. Qd6 f6 25. Bb3 Be8 {Shytaj,L (2475)-Vocaturo,D (2564) Spoleto 2011 1-0 (46)}) ({RR} 11. d4 Qe7 12. Bxc6 bxc6 13. dxe5 dxe5 14. Qa4 Bd7 15. Qc4 f5 16. Be3 Rfe8 17. exf5 gxf5 18. Bc5 Qf6 19. Ng3 Be6 20. Qa4 Bf7 21. Qh4 Qg6 22. Qg5 Nh6 23. Qxg6 hxg6 24. Ng5 Bg8 25. b3 Ng4 {Urbina Perez,J (2274)-Gomez Ledo,R (2458) Chess.com INT 2022 0-1 (75)}) 11... f6 12. Bh4 Qe8 13. d4 Bd7 14. d5 Nd8 15. Bxd7 Qxd7 16. N3d2 Nf7 17. f3 f5 18. c4 a5 19. Bf2 Nf6 20. c5 fxe4 21. Nxe4 dxc5 22. Nxc5 Qxd5 23. Qxd5 Nxd5 24. Rad1 c6 25. Ne3 Rfd8 26. a4 Nxe3 27. Bxe3 b5 28. b3 bxa4 29. bxa4 Rd5 30. Ne6 Bf8 31. Nc7 Rxd1 32. Rxd1 Rd8 33. Rc1 Rd3 34. Bb6 Bb4 35. Rxc6 Ra3 36. Ne6 h5 37. f4 Rxa4 38. fxe5 Ra1+ 39. Kf2 Re1 40. Bd4 Kg8 41. Rc8+ Kh7 42. Nf8+ Kh6 43. Nd7 Rd1 44. Be3+ Kg7 45. Rc7 a4 46. e6 Nd6 47. h4 a3 48. Ra7 g5 49. hxg5 Kg6 50. e7 a2 51. Nf8+ Kf5 52. Rxa2 Ne4+ 53. Kf3 Rf1+ 54. Ke2 Ng3+ 55. Kd3 Bxe7 56. Ra5+ Kg4 57. Ra4+ Kf5 58. Ra5+ Kg4 59. Ne6 Rd1+ 60. Kc2 Rd7 61. g6 Nf1 62. Bc1 Bf6 63. g7 Bxg7 64. Rg5+ Kh4 65. Nxg7 Ne3+ 66. Bxe3 Rd2+ 67. Kc1 Rd1+ 68. Kb2 Rd2+ 69. Kc3 Rd3+ 70. Kc4 Rxe3 71. Rxh5+ Kg4 72. Rh2 Re7 73. Nh5 Re5 74. Nf6+ Kg3 75. Rh7 Kxg2 76. Kd4 Re1 77. Ng4 Kg3 78. Ne3 Ra1 79. Rg7+ Kf4 80. Rf7+ Kg3 81. Nc2 Ra4+ 82. Ke3 Kg4 83. Nd4 Kg5 84. Ke4 Kg6 85. Rf1 Ra5 86. Nc6 Ra4+ 87. Ke5 Kg5 88. Rg1+ Rg4 89. Ra1 Rg3 90. Re1 Rg2 91. Ne7 Kg4 92. Nf5 Ra2 93. Rg1+ Kf3 94. Nh4+ 1-0 [Event "Grenke Chess Classic 5th"] [Site "Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden"] [Date "2018.04.08"] [Round "8"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Vitiugov, Nikita"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C77"] [WhiteElo "2843"] [BlackElo "2735"] [PlyCount "129"] [EventDate "2018.03.31"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "GER"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 184"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2018.05.16"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2018.05.16"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. d3 b5 6. Bb3 Bc5 7. c3 O-O 8. O-O Re8 9. Re1 h6 10. Nbd2 Bb6 11. Nf1 d6 12. Ng3 $146 ({RR} 12. Be3 Bxe3 13. Nxe3 Ne7 14. Bc2 Ng6 15. d4 exd4 16. Nxd4 Bb7 17. f3 d5 18. exd5 Nf4 19. Nc6 Qd6 20. Nf5 Qc5+ 21. Qd4 Qxd4+ 22. Nfxd4 N4xd5 23. Na5 Rxe1+ 24. Rxe1 Bc8 25. c4 Nb4 26. Bb1 bxc4 {Samoun,F (2228)-Basso,P (2443) Skalica 2020 0-1 (48)}) ({RR} 12. Be3 Bxe3 13. Nxe3 Ne7 14. Bc2 Ng6 15. d4 exd4 16. Nxd4 Bb7 17. f3 d5 18. exd5 Nf4 19. Nc6 Qd6 20. Nf5 Qc5+ 21. Qd4 Qxd4+ 22. Nfxd4 N4xd5 23. Na5 Rxe1+ 24. Rxe1 Bc8 25. c4 Nb4 26. Bb1 bxc4 {Samoun,F (2228)-Basso,P (2443) Skalica 2020 0-1 (48)}) 12... Be6 13. h3 Bxb3 14. axb3 d5 15. Qe2 Bc5 16. b4 Bf8 17. Nd2 a5 18. bxa5 Rxa5 19. Rxa5 Nxa5 20. exd5 Qxd5 21. Nde4 Nxe4 22. dxe4 Qc4 23. Qf3 Qe6 24. Nf5 Nc4 25. h4 Kh7 26. h5 g6 27. Ne3 Nxe3 28. hxg6+ fxg6 29. Bxe3 Bd6 30. Qe2 Qc4 31. Qxc4 bxc4 32. Ra1 Rb8 33. Bc1 Rb6 34. Ra4 Rc6 35. Be3 h5 36. Kf1 Kg7 37. Ke2 Kf6 38. Kd1 Ke6 39. Kc2 Be7 40. f3 Bh4 41. Ra5 Bg3 42. Bc5 g5 43. Bb4 g4 44. fxg4 hxg4 45. Ra8 Kf7 46. Rc8 Bf4 47. Kd1 Kg7 48. Ke2 Kf7 49. Rf8+ Kg7 50. Rd8 Kf7 51. Kf2 Kg7 52. Rd7+ Kf6 53. g3 Bc1 54. Rd1 Bg5 55. Ke2 Ke6 56. Rh1 Ra6 57. Ba3 Rb6 58. Rh7 Rb7 59. Kd1 Rb8 60. Kc2 Rd8 61. Rg7 Rd2+ 62. Kc1 Bf6 63. Kxd2 Bxg7 64. Bc5 Kd7 65. Be3 1/2-1/2 [Event "Biel GM 51st"] [Site "Biel"] [Date "2018.07.26"] [Round "5"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C77"] [WhiteElo "2842"] [BlackElo "2801"] [PlyCount "133"] [EventDate "2018.07.22"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "SUI"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 186"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2018.09.14"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2018.09.14"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. d3 b5 6. Bb3 Bc5 7. c3 d6 8. Bg5 h6 9. Bh4 O-O 10. Nbd2 Be6 11. O-O Bb6 12. Re1 Bxb3 $146 ({RR} 12... Kh8 13. a4 Rb8 14. Nf1 Rg8 15. axb5 axb5 16. Ne3 g5 17. Bg3 Qd7 18. Bc2 Ng4 19. Nd5 Bxd5 20. exd5 Ne7 21. d4 exd4 22. Nxd4 Ng6 23. Bf5 {1-0 (23) Carlsen,M (2830)-Grigoriants,S (2544) Samarkand UZB 2023}) ({RR} 12... Kh7 13. Bc2 Ne7 14. d4 Ng6 15. Bg3 Re8 16. Nf1 Nh5 17. Ne3 Nxg3 18. hxg3 c5 19. Nf5 cxd4 20. cxd4 exd4 21. Bb3 d5 22. N3xd4 Qf6 23. Nxe6 fxe6 24. Ne3 Rf8 25. Qe2 d4 26. Ng4 Qg5 27. Rad1 {Grischuk,A (2761)-Mamedyarov,S (2800) Paris 2017 0-1 (33)}) 13. Nxb3 Nb8 14. d4 Nbd7 15. a4 Re8 16. Qc2 Qe7 17. h3 Rab8 18. axb5 axb5 19. Na5 Bxa5 20. Rxa5 c6 21. Ra7 Qe6 22. Rd1 Nf8 23. Rc7 Rec8 24. Rxc6 Rxc6 25. d5 Qc8 26. dxc6 Ne8 27. Be7 Qxc6 28. Nh4 Ng6 29. Nf5 Rb7 30. Bxd6 Rd7 31. Ba3 Rxd1+ 32. Qxd1 Qxe4 33. Ne3 Nf6 34. g3 h5 35. h4 Qc6 36. Bb4 Kh7 37. b3 Qa8 38. c4 bxc4 39. bxc4 Qc6 40. Bd6 Kg8 41. c5 Qe4 42. Qf1 Nd5 43. Nxd5 Qxd5 44. Qc1 f6 45. Qc2 e4 46. Kf1 Kf7 47. Qa4 Qd3+ 48. Kg1 Kg8 49. Qa2+ Kh7 50. Kh2 Qd1 51. Qa3 Qd2 52. Qe3 Qd5 53. Qc1 Kg8 54. Kg1 Kf7 55. Qa1 Kg8 56. Qc1 Kf7 57. Qb1 Ne7 58. Bxe7 Kxe7 59. Qb6 Qd1+ 60. Kh2 Qd4 61. Qb7+ Ke6 62. Qc6+ Ke7 63. Kg2 e3 64. Qb7+ Ke6 65. Qc8+ Kd5 66. fxe3 Qg4 67. Qd8+ 1/2-1/2 [Event "FIDE World Cup"] [Site "Krasnaya Polyana"] [Date "2021.08.03"] [Round "7.3"] [White "Duda, Jan Krzysztof"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C77"] [WhiteElo "2738"] [BlackElo "2847"] [PlyCount "66"] [EventDate "2021.07.12"] [EventType "k.o."] [EventRounds "8"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [SourceTitle "CBM 203"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2021.08.31"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2021.08.31"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 d6 5. c3 a6 6. Ba4 g6 7. O-O Bg7 8. Re1 O-O 9. h3 Nb8 10. Nbd2 Nbd7 11. Bc2 b5 12. a4 Bb7 13. b4 c5 14. bxc5 $146 ({RR} 14. Bb2 Re8 15. bxc5 Nxc5 16. axb5 axb5 17. Rxa8 Qxa8 18. Qa1 d5 19. exd5 Nxd5 20. Ne4 Nxe4 21. dxe4 Nb6 22. Ba3 Nc4 {½-½ (22) Brkic,A (2602)-Sedlak,N (2472) Deggendorf GER 2023}) 14... Nxc5 15. axb5 axb5 16. Ba3 Re8 17. Qb1 Bc6 18. d4 exd4 19. cxd4 b4 20. Bb2 b3 21. dxc5 bxc2 22. Qxc2 dxc5 23. Ne5 Ba4 24. Rxa4 Rxa4 25. Qxa4 Qxd2 26. Qa1 Nh5 27. Bc3 Qc2 28. Qa7 Qb3 29. Qxc5 Nf4 30. Re3 Qd1+ 31. Re1 Qb3 32. Re3 Qd1+ 33. Re1 Qb3 1/2-1/2 [Event "Norway Chess 4th"] [Site "Stavanger"] [Date "2016.04.24"] [Round "5"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Giri, Anish"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C77"] [WhiteElo "2851"] [BlackElo "2790"] [PlyCount "95"] [EventDate "2016.04.19"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 172"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2016.05.12"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. d3 b5 6. Bb3 Bc5 7. Nc3 d6 8. Nd5 h6 9. c3 O-O 10. O-O Rb8 11. Re1 ({RR} 11. Nxf6+ Qxf6 12. h3 Ne7 13. d4 Bb6 14. Be3 Ng6 15. a4 Nf4 16. a5 exd4 17. Bxf4 Qxf4 18. axb6 Rxb6 19. Qxd4 Bxh3 20. e5 Qxd4 21. cxd4 Bg4 22. Rfc1 Rc8 23. exd6 Bxf3 24. gxf3 Rxd6 25. d5 c5 {Caruana,F (2808)-Mamedyarov,S (2800) Paris 2017 1-0 (45)}) 11... Ba7 ({RR} 11... Re8 12. h3 Ba7 13. a4 b4 14. Bd2 bxc3 15. Bxc3 Nxd5 16. Bxd5 Ne7 17. Bc4 Ng6 18. Rb1 Qf6 19. Bd2 Nf4 20. Bxf4 Qxf4 21. Qd2 Qf6 22. Nh2 a5 23. Bb5 Rd8 24. Rf1 Bb6 25. Qe2 Bc5 26. Kh1 {Obgolts,E (2377)-Parpiev,I (2380) Sochi RUS 2025 0-1 (47)}) 12. Be3 Bxe3 13. Rxe3 $146 ({RR} 13. Nxe3 Na5 14. Bc2 c5 15. d4 Nc6 16. d5 Ne7 17. a4 Ng4 18. Nxg4 Bxg4 19. axb5 axb5 20. Qd3 c4 21. Qd1 f5 22. h3 fxe4 23. Bxe4 Bf5 24. Nd2 Qb6 25. Re3 Rf6 26. Rf3 Rbf8 27. Bxf5 Rxf5 {Aronian,L (2775)-Mamedyarov,S (2758) Saint Louis 2022 1-0 (43)}) ({RR} 13. Nxe3 Re8 14. Nh4 Na5 15. Bc2 Nxe4 16. Nhf5 Nf6 17. b4 Nc6 18. Qf3 d5 19. Qg3 g6 20. Nxh6+ Kg7 21. Nef5+ Kf8 22. Nh4 Nh5 23. Nxf7 Qf6 24. Ng5 Kg7 25. Qe3 Bd7 26. Nhf3 Re7 27. a4 Rbe8 {Calzetta Ruiz,M (2251)-Cuenca Jimenez,J (2523) Marbella 2019 0-1 (44)}) 13... Na5 14. Bc2 c5 15. b4 cxb4 16. Nxb4 Qc7 17. Qd2 Nc6 18. Nxc6 Qxc6 19. h3 Be6 20. d4 Qc7 21. Bb3 Rfe8 22. Bxe6 Rxe6 23. a4 exd4 24. Qxd4 bxa4 25. Qxa4 Rbe8 26. Qxa6 Rxe4 27. Rxe4 Rxe4 28. Qd3 Re8 29. Nd4 d5 30. Nf5 Qf4 31. g3 Qe4 32. Rd1 Qxd3 33. Rxd3 Kf8 34. f3 Ra8 35. g4 Ra3 36. Kf2 h5 37. Ke3 g6 38. Nd4 hxg4 39. hxg4 Nd7 40. Nb5 Rb3 41. Rxd5 Nb6 42. Rc5 Na4 43. Rc8+ Kg7 44. Rc4 Nb6 45. Rc5 Na4 46. Rc4 Nb6 47. Rc5 Na4 48. Rc4 1/2-1/2 [Event "FIDE World Cup"] [Site "Krasnaya Polyana"] [Date "2021.08.03"] [Round "7.3"] [White "Duda, Jan Krzysztof"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C77"] [WhiteElo "2738"] [BlackElo "2847"] [PlyCount "66"] [EventDate "2021.07.12"] [EventType "k.o."] [EventRounds "8"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [SourceTitle "CBM 203"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2021.08.31"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2021.08.31"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 d6 5. c3 a6 6. Ba4 g6 7. O-O Bg7 8. Re1 O-O 9. h3 Nb8 10. Nbd2 Nbd7 11. Bc2 b5 12. a4 Bb7 13. b4 c5 14. bxc5 $146 ({RR} 14. Bb2 Re8 15. bxc5 Nxc5 16. axb5 axb5 17. Rxa8 Qxa8 18. Qa1 d5 19. exd5 Nxd5 20. Ne4 Nxe4 21. dxe4 Nb6 22. Ba3 Nc4 {½-½ (22) Brkic,A (2602)-Sedlak,N (2472) Deggendorf GER 2023}) 14... Nxc5 15. axb5 axb5 16. Ba3 Re8 17. Qb1 Bc6 18. d4 exd4 19. cxd4 b4 20. Bb2 b3 21. dxc5 bxc2 22. Qxc2 dxc5 23. Ne5 Ba4 24. Rxa4 Rxa4 25. Qxa4 Qxd2 26. Qa1 Nh5 27. Bc3 Qc2 28. Qa7 Qb3 29. Qxc5 Nf4 30. Re3 Qd1+ 31. Re1 Qb3 32. Re3 Qd1+ 33. Re1 Qb3 1/2-1/2 [Event "July 23 Late 2024"] [Site "Chess.com"] [Date "2024.07.23"] [Round "6.1"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Erigaisi Arjun"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C77"] [WhiteElo "3247"] [BlackElo "3069"] [PlyCount "57"] [EventDate "2024.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "NOR"] [BlackTeam "IND"] [TimeControl "180+1"] [WhiteClock "0:02:00"] [BlackClock "0:00:50"] 1. e4 {[%emt 0:00:02]} e5 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 2. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:01]} Nc6 {[%emt 0:00:00]} 3. Bb5 {[%emt 0:00:01]} a6 {[%emt 0:00:03]} 4. Ba4 {[%emt 0:00:02]} Nf6 {[%emt 0:00:01]} 5. d3 {[%emt 0:00:01]} d6 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 6. c3 {[%emt 0:00:03]} g6 {[%emt 0:00:02]} 7. O-O {[%emt 0:00:00]} Bg7 {[%emt 0:00:01]} 8. Re1 {[%emt 0:00:02]} O-O {[%emt 0:00:01]} 9. Nbd2 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Re8 {[%emt 0:00:03]} 10. h3 {[%emt 0:00:05]} h6 {[%emt 0:00:03]} ({RR} 10... b5 11. Bc2 Bb7 12. d4 Nb8 13. Rb1 Nbd7 14. d5 c6 15. c4 Qc7 16. b3 Bh6 17. Nf1 Bxc1 18. Rxc1 bxc4 19. bxc4 Nc5 20. N3h2 Bc8 21. Qf3 Qe7 22. dxc6 Be6 23. Ne3 Nh5 24. Nd5 Qg5 25. Rb1 {Morozevich,A (2765)-Ivanchuk,V (2751) Nice 2008 1-0 (50)}) 11. Nf1 {[%emt 0:00:06]} b5 {[%emt 0:00:11]} 12. Bc2 {[%emt 0:00:01]} Rb8 $146 {[%emt 0:00:01]} ({RR} 12... Bb7 13. Ng3 Nb8 14. d4 Nbd7 15. a4 c5 16. d5 c4 17. Be3 Qc7 18. Qd2 Kh7 19. Reb1 Nc5 20. Qe2 Nfd7 21. Nd2 Nb6 22. axb5 axb5 23. b3 cxb3 24. Bxb3 Ba6 25. Qd1 Rec8 26. Ra3 Bb7 27. Rba1 {Abrahamyan,T (2324)-Andersen,M (2479) Reykjavik 2016 ½-½ (44)}) ({RR} 12... d5 13. exd5 Nxd5 14. Bd2 Bb7 15. Qc1 Kh7 16. Ng3 b4 17. Ne4 Bf8 18. Bb3 Na5 19. Ba4 Bc6 20. cxb4 Bxa4 21. bxa5 Bb5 22. Nc5 Qd6 23. b4 Bg7 24. a4 Bc6 25. Qc4 Nf6 26. Rac1 Bd5 27. Qh4 {Zheng,H (2248)-Smietanska,W (2157) Krakow POL 2025 1-0 (96)}) ({RR} 12... d5 13. a4 Be6 14. Ng3 b4 15. a5 dxe4 16. Nxe4 Nxe4 17. dxe4 Qxd1 18. Bxd1 bxc3 19. bxc3 Red8 20. Be2 Ne7 21. Be3 Nc8 22. Nd2 Nd6 23. f3 Nb5 24. Rec1 Bf8 25. Kf2 f5 26. Ke1 f4 27. Bf2 {Carlsen,M (2847)-Muzychuk,A (2535) chess24.com INT 2021 1-0 (38)}) 13. d4 {[%emt 0:00:08]} exd4 {[%emt 0:00:14]} 14. cxd4 {[%emt 0:00:02]} Nb4 {[%emt 0:00:01]} 15. Bb1 {[%emt 0:00:01]} c5 {[%emt 0:00:00]} 16. d5 {[%emt 0:00:01]} a5 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 17. a3 {[%emt 0:00:06]} Na6 {[%emt 0:00:01]} 18. a4 {[%emt 0:00:01]} bxa4 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 19. Qxa4 {[%emt 0:00:06]} Rb4 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 20. Qxa5 {[%emt 0:00:14]} Qxa5 {[%emt 0:00:00]} 21. Rxa5 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Nxe4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} 22. Bd2 {[%emt 0:00:01]} f5 {[%emt 0:01:09]} 23. Bxb4 {[%emt 0:00:02]} Nxb4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} 24. N1d2 {[%emt 0:00:02]} Bxb2 {[%emt 0:00:02]} 25. Bxe4 {[%emt 0:00:06]} fxe4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} 26. Rxe4 {[%emt 0:00:01]} Rf8 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 27. Nc4 {[%emt 0:00:10]} Bg7 {[%emt 0:00:12]} 28. Nxd6 {[%emt 0:00:04]} Bf5 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 29. Nxf5 {[%emt 0:00:01]} 1-0 [Event "Biel GM"] [Site "Biel"] [Date "2006.08.03"] [Round "10"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Bruzon Batista, Lazaro"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C77"] [WhiteElo "2675"] [BlackElo "2667"] [PlyCount "97"] [EventDate "2006.07.24"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "SUI"] [EventCategory "17"] [SourceTitle "CBM 114"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2006.10.02"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2006.10.02"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. d3 d6 7. c3 O-O 8. Nbd2 b5 9. Bc2 Bb7 10. Re1 Re8 11. Nf1 Bf8 12. Bg5 h6 13. Bh4 Nb8 14. Ne3 Nbd7 15. a4 $146 ({RR} 15. Nf5 g6 16. Ne3 Nc5 17. Bb3 Ncd7 18. Bc2 c5 19. Bb3 Qc7 20. Nd2 Bg7 21. Qf3 Rf8 22. h3 Rae8 23. Ng4 Nh5 24. Qe3 g5 25. Bg3 Nf4 26. h4 Nf6 27. Nxf6+ Bxf6 28. Nf3 Qe7 29. hxg5 hxg5 {Jibuti,N (1634)-Mican,K (1726) Batumi 2014 ½-½ (49)}) 15... g6 16. b4 Bg7 17. Bb3 c6 18. g4 Qc8 19. g5 Nh7 20. gxh6 Bxh6 21. Kh1 Ndf6 22. Rg1 Kf8 23. Ng5 Nxg5 24. Bxg5 Bxg5 25. Rxg5 Qh3 26. Rg3 Qh5 27. Qf1 Ke7 28. f4 Rh8 29. Ra2 Rh7 30. f5 g5 31. Qg2 c5 32. axb5 axb5 33. Rxa8 Bxa8 34. Qa2 c4 35. Bd1 Qh4 36. Qa7+ Kf8 37. Qxa8+ Kg7 38. Nf1 cxd3 39. Bf3 d2 40. Kg1 Nxe4 41. Qd5 Nxg3 42. f6+ Kxf6 43. Qxd6+ Kg7 44. Qxe5+ f6 45. Qe7+ Kg6 46. Qe8+ Kg7 47. hxg3 Qc4 48. Qe7+ Kg8 49. Qd8+ 1-0 [Event "Corus"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2010.01.16"] [Round "1"] [White "Tiviakov, Sergei"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C77"] [WhiteElo "2662"] [BlackElo "2810"] [PlyCount "54"] [EventDate "2010.01.16"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "19"] [SourceTitle "CBM 135"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2010.03.17"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2010.03.17"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. Qe2 Bd6 6. c3 O-O 7. d3 ({RR} 7. O-O Re8 8. Bb3 h6 9. d3 Bf8 10. Rd1 d5 11. Nbd2 Be6 12. Nf1 Qd7 13. Ng3 Rad8 14. d4 exd4 15. e5 d3 16. Qxd3 Ne4 17. Bc2 f5 18. exf6 Nxf6 19. Bf4 Bd6 20. Bxd6 Qxd6 21. Re1 Re7 {Sudarshan,B (2103)-Omelja,A (2397) Sant Ferran de ses Roques ESP 2025 ½-½ (31)}) 7... Re8 8. Bg5 ({RR} 8. h3 Bf8 9. Nbd2 d5 10. Nf1 b5 11. Bc2 d4 12. a3 a5 13. g4 Rb8 14. Ng3 dxc3 15. bxc3 b4 16. axb4 axb4 17. Ba4 Ra8 18. Bb2 Bb7 19. O-O Nd7 20. cxb4 Bxb4 21. Rfc1 Ra6 22. Nf5 Bd6 {Tiviakov,S (2608)-Godena,M (2485) Mondariz 2000 0-1 (35)}) 8... b5 9. Bb3 $146 ({RR} 9. Bc2 Be7 10. Nbd2 Nh5 11. Be3 g6 12. d4 exd4 13. Nxd4 Nxd4 14. cxd4 d5 15. e5 c5 16. O-O cxd4 17. Bh6 Ra7 18. f4 d3 19. Bxd3 Bc5+ 20. Kh1 Qh4 21. Qe1 Qxe1 22. Raxe1 Bd4 23. b3 Bc3 {Weaving,R (2314)-Stefanova,A (2506) England 2018 ½-½ (56)}) 9... Na5 10. Bc2 c5 11. Nbd2 Nc6 12. Nf1 Be7 13. Ne3 d6 14. O-O Be6 15. Bxf6 Bxf6 16. Bb3 Rb8 17. Rfd1 Qd7 18. Bd5 Bd8 19. a4 bxa4 20. Qc2 Na5 21. Qxa4 Qxa4 22. Rxa4 Rxb2 23. Nd2 Bc7 24. Ndc4 Rb5 25. Bxe6 fxe6 26. Nxd6 Bxd6 27. c4 Rb6 1/2-1/2 [Event "FIDE World Cup"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Date "2007.11.29"] [Round "2.4"] [White "Naiditsch, Arkadij"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C77"] [WhiteElo "2639"] [BlackElo "2714"] [PlyCount "92"] [EventDate "2007.11.24"] [EventType "k.o."] [EventRounds "7"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [SourceTitle "CBM 122"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2008.01.30"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2008.01.30"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. d3 b5 6. Bb3 Be7 7. a4 Rb8 8. axb5 axb5 9. Nc3 O-O 10. Nd5 Nxd5 11. exd5 Nd4 12. Nxd4 exd4 13. O-O d6 14. Bd2 Bd7 15. Ra5 Rb7 $146 ({RR} 15... Re8 16. Re1 Ra8 17. Qa1 Kf8 18. Re4 Bf5 19. Re1 Qb8 20. Qa3 Rxa5 21. Qxa5 Bd8 22. Rxe8+ Kxe8 23. Qa3 Qb7 24. f3 h5 25. Be1 Bf6 26. Bf2 Kf8 27. Ba2 Bc8 28. Qa5 Bd7 29. b4 Bc8 30. Kf1 {Naiditsch,A (2676)-Delchev,A (2628) Fuegen 2006 ½-½ (68)}) ({RR} 15... Ra8 16. Qa1 Qc8 17. Qa2 Qb7 18. Ra1 Rxa5 19. Qxa5 Rc8 20. Qa7 Qxa7 21. Rxa7 Kf8 22. Ba5 Bd8 23. Kf1 f5 24. Ke2 Ke8 25. f4 h6 26. Kd2 g5 27. g3 Ke7 28. c4 dxc3+ 29. bxc3 Ke8 30. d4 {Bacrot,E (2705)-Gustafsson,J (2606) Germany 2007 ½-½ (58)}) 16. Re1 Bg5 17. Re4 Bf6 18. Qa1 Bf5 19. Re1 Be5 20. h3 Qh4 21. Qd1 Bd7 22. Qf3 Re8 23. Re4 Qd8 24. Qd1 h6 25. f4 Bf6 26. Rxe8+ Qxe8 27. Qe1 Qb8 28. Qa1 Qe8 29. Ra8 Rb8 30. Ra7 Rc8 31. Qe1 Qd8 32. Ba5 h5 33. Kh2 h4 34. Qb4 Be8 35. c4 dxc3 36. bxc3 g6 37. Bd1 Kg7 38. Rb7 Bd7 39. Rxc7 Rxc7 40. Qxd6 Qe8 41. Bxc7 Qe1 42. f5 Bxf5 43. Bg4 Bxc3 44. Qf4 Bxd3 45. Bf3 b4 46. Bb8 b3 0-1 [Event "Biel GM 41st"] [Site "Biel"] [Date "2008.07.31"] [Round "10"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Onischuk, Alexander"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C77"] [WhiteElo "2775"] [BlackElo "2670"] [PlyCount "71"] [EventDate "2008.07.20"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "SUI"] [EventCategory "18"] [SourceTitle "CBM 126"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2008.10.01"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2008.10.01"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. d3 d6 7. c3 O-O 8. Nbd2 Re8 9. Re1 Bf8 10. Nf1 h6 11. Ng3 b5 12. Bc2 d5 13. d4 dxe4 14. Nxe4 Bf5 15. Nxf6+ Qxf6 16. Nxe5 Nxe5 17. dxe5 Rxe5 18. Rxe5 Qxe5 19. Be3 Bxc2 20. Qxc2 Rd8 21. Rd1 Rxd1+ $146 ({RR} 21... Qe4 22. Qc1 Rxd1+ 23. Qxd1 Bd6 24. g3 Kh7 25. Bd4 f6 26. b3 Kg8 27. c4 bxc4 28. bxc4 Kf7 29. f3 Qc6 30. Qd3 Bc5 31. Bxc5 Qxc5+ 32. Kg2 Ke7 33. h4 Qd6 34. Qe3+ Qe5 35. Qd2 h5 36. a3 {Harikrishna,P (2752)-Dominguez Perez,L (2720) Baku 2016 ½-½ (44)}) 22. Qxd1 Bd6 23. g3 Qe4 24. Bd4 f5 25. a3 Be5 26. Bc5 Qc4 27. Ba7 Bf6 28. Kg2 c6 29. Be3 Qe4+ 30. Kg1 a5 31. Bf4 a4 32. h3 Qd5 33. Qe2 Qe4 34. Qd1 Qd5 35. Qe2 Qe4 36. Qd1 1/2-1/2 [Event "Grand Slam Final 3rd"] [Site "Bilbao"] [Date "2010.10.14"] [Round "5"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Shirov, Alexei"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C78"] [WhiteElo "2826"] [BlackElo "2749"] [Annotator "Ftacnik,Lubomir"] [PlyCount "129"] [EventDate "2010.10.09"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "6"] [EventCountry "ESP"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 139"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2010.11.18"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2010.11.18"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O b5 6. Bb3 Bc5 7. a4 Rb8 8. axb5 axb5 9. c3 d6 10. d4 Bb6 11. h3 O-O 12. Re1 h6 13. Na3 exd4 {The development of the knight to the a3-square is rather unpleasant for Black, since the defence of the b5-pawn requires some compromises.} (13... Re8 14. Nxb5 (14. d5 Ne7 15. Bc2 Ng6 16. b4 Bd7 17. Bd3 Nh5 18. Be3 Bxe3 19. fxe3 c6 20. Qc2 Nf6 21. dxc6 Bxc6 22. Nb1 Qb6 $17 {½-½ Wieczorek,O (2316)-Debashish,D (2411)/Chotowa 2010 (39)}) (14. dxe5 Nxe5 15. Nd4 c6 16. Bf4 Bd7 17. Nac2 Qc7 18. Ra6 Ng6 19. Qf3 Nxf4 20. Qxf4 Ra8 21. Rxa8 Rxa8 22. Nf5 Bxf5 23. exf5 $11 {0-1 Garcia Correa,J (2194)-Fenollar Jorda,M (2251)/Dos Hermanas 2004 (75)}) 14... exd4 15. cxd4 Ba5 16. Nc3 Bxc3 17. bxc3 Nxe4 18. Bd5 Nxc3 19. Bxc6 Nxd1 20. Rxe8+ Qxe8 21. Bxe8 Bb7 22. Bd7 {1-0 Houard,Y (2123)-Goldsztejn,G (2374)/Saint Affrique 2008 (34)}) (13... Ba7 14. Nxb5 Rxb5 15. Ba4 Ra5 16. b4 Nxb4 17. cxb4 Ra6 18. b5 Rb6 19. dxe5 dxe5 20. Ba3 Re8 21. Bc5 Rb7 22. b6 Bxb6 23. Bxb6 Rxb6 24. Bxe8 Qxe8 25. Ra5 $16 {1-0 Wieczorek,O (2125)-Golinski,D (1828)/Wroclaw 2007 (64)}) 14. cxd4 Na5 (14... Ba5 15. Re3 d5 16. Ne5 (16. e5 $1 Ne4 17. Qe2 $16) 16... Nxe5 17. dxe5 Nxe4 18. Bxd5 Be6 19. Rd3 Bxd5 20. Rxd5 Qh4 21. Qf3 Bb6 22. Be3 c6 23. Rd7 Ng5 24. Bxg5 Qxg5 25. Re1 Rbe8 26. Qxc6 Qf5 $11 {0-1 Dimitrijevic,A (2369)-Fontaine,R (2529)/Novi Sad 2003 (32)}) (14... d5 15. exd5 (15. e5 Ne4 16. Be3 Na5 17. Bc2 b4 18. Nb1 f5 19. Bd2 Qe7 20. Ra4 Nc6 21. Bb3 Be6 22. Be3 g5 23. Qc1 Qd7 24. Nbd2 f4 25. Nxe4 dxe4 26. d5 fxe3 27. dxe6 {½-½ Luque,W (2077)-Salas Arros,C (2412)/Callao 2007 (32)} exf2+ 28. Kh2 Qe7 29. Rxe4 Nd4 $19) 15... Nxd5 16. Nxb5 Bf5 (16... Ba5 17. Na7 $16) 17. Ra4 $16) 15. Bc2 b4 16. Nb5 $5 $146 {The knights of both players are currently the main heroes of the opening. The location of the knight on b5 seems to be rather shaky.} (16. Nb1 c5 17. dxc5 dxc5 18. Bf4 Qxd1 19. Rxd1 {½-½ Istratescu,A (2602)-Sofronie,I (2436)/Niort 2004}) 16... Ba6 (16... c6 $2 17. Nxd6 Qxd6 18. e5 $16) 17. Na7 (17. Bd3 Ra8 18. Bf4 Qd7 (18... d5 19. e5 Nh5 20. Bc1 $14) 19. Qe2 Rfe8 $11) 17... Bb7 (17... Bxa7 18. Rxa5 Qc8 19. e5 $16) 18. d5 Ra8 19. Nb5 {The biggest crisis is over, since the knight has got the retreat route via the d4-square.} Nc4 (19... Re8 20. Nbd4 Nc4 21. Rxa8 Qxa8 22. b3 Ne5 $11) 20. Rxa8 Qxa8 21. Nbd4 {[%mdl 128] Carlsen will now concentrate on the clear and very dangerous plan of transferring the pieces to the kingside for the direct attack.} (21. Qe2 Qa2 22. Bd3 Ne5 23. Nxe5 dxe5 24. Bc4 Qa5 25. b3 $14) 21... Qa7 22. b3 Ne5 23. Bb2 Nxf3+ (23... Qa2 24. Qc1 Nxf3+ 25. Nxf3 (25. gxf3 $5) 25... Nd7 26. Nd4 $14) 24. gxf3 Qa2 25. Qc1 Bxd4 {Shirov has clearly realised, that the position has become very dangerous for him. The half open g-file will be an ideal ramp for maximizing White's pressure.} (25... Nd7 26. Kh1 Ne5 27. Rg1 $16) 26. Bxd4 Nd7 27. Kh1 $1 f6 28. Rg1 Rf7 (28... Ne5 29. Qxh6 Rf7 30. Bd1 Ba6 31. Qe3 $16) 29. Qd2 $1 {White is now threatening to trap the queen and after its retreat the liquidation of the h6-pawn.} (29. Bd1 Qa5 30. Qxh6 c5 31. dxc6 Bxc6 32. Qf4 $16) 29... Qa8 (29... Ne5 30. Ra1 Nxf3 31. Qd1 $18) 30. Qxh6 Ne5 31. Bd1 Qe8 32. Qe3 {The immediate advance of the pawn centre was a bit more radical, but Carlsen is taking into account his form and plays more cautiously.} (32. f4 Nd7 33. Qg6 c5 34. Bb2 Re7 35. Qf5 $16) 32... c5 33. Bb2 (33. dxc6 Qe6 $1 34. Kh2 Nxc6 35. Bb6 $1 d5 36. exd5 Qxd5 37. f4 Ne7 38. Bg4 $16) 33... Re7 $2 {Shirov has been clearly aware of the fact, that his position is in basically lost. Much better was to try for the counterplay with the advance of the c-pawn.} (33... c4 $5 34. Bd4 cxb3 35. Qxb3 Qb5 36. Kh2 $16) 34. f4 $1 Nd7 35. Qg3 Qf7 36. Bf3 (36. Bg4 Nf8 37. f3 $16) 36... Ba6 37. Bg4 Nf8 38. Bf5 c4 39. bxc4 Bxc4 40. Qh4 {An objectively stronger solution was not to part with the d5-pawn, but the direct attack does not spoil the game.} (40. Kh2 $5 Rc7 41. Qh4 Be2 42. Bxf6 Qh5 43. Qxh5 Bxh5 44. e5 $18) 40... Bxd5 41. f3 $1 (41. exd5 Qxd5+ 42. Kh2 Qxf5 $15) 41... Be6 42. Bxf6 Bxf5 (42... Rd7 43. Rxg7+ Qxg7 44. Bxg7 $18) 43. exf5 $1 {Several forceful and logical moves have decided the game even though White had to accept a somewhat curious pawn structure.} (43. Bxe7 $6 Ng6 44. Qh5 Nxe7 45. Qxf7+ Kxf7 46. exf5 $16) (43. Rxg7+ Qxg7 44. Bxg7 Rxg7 45. exf5 b3 46. Qd8 $18) 43... Rc7 44. Rxg7+ Qxg7 45. Bxg7 Rxg7 46. f6 {The most exact solution lay in the immediate attack on the black pawns with the white queen.} (46. Qe1 $1 Rf7 (46... Rb7 47. Qe4 $18) 47. Qxb4 Rxf5 48. Qxd6 $18) (46. Qf6 Rf7 47. Qxd6 Rxf5 48. Kh2 $18) 46... Rd7 47. Qe1 d5 (47... b3 48. Qc3 $18) 48. Qxb4 d4 49. Qc4+ Kh7 50. Qd3+ Kg8 51. f5 {After blockading the advance of the d-pawn Carlsen will enlist his own king for the active service.} Kf7 52. Kg2 Kxf6 53. Kg3 Kg7 54. h4 Nh7 55. Kf2 (55. h5 Nf6 56. Qd2 Ng8 57. Qe2 d3 58. Qe6 $18) 55... Nf6 56. Qd2 $1 Nh7 {The knight is forced to remain extremely passive, otherwise White wins in a direct attack.} (56... d3 57. Qg5+ Kf7 58. Qg6+ Ke7 59. Qg7+ Ke8 60. Qxf6 d2 61. Qe6+ Kd8 62. Qxd7+ Kxd7 63. Ke2 $18) 57. Ke1 d3 58. Qg2+ Kh8 59. Kd2 Nf8 60. Qg5 Kh7 (60... Nh7 61. Qe3 Nf8 62. h5 $18) 61. h5 Kh8 62. f6 Kh7 63. f4 Kh8 64. h6 Kh7 65. f5 {A charming and original zugzwang position. Black has no moves, thus he admitted his defeat.} (65. f5 Kh8 66. Qg7+ Rxg7 67. fxg7+ Kg8 68. gxf8=Q+ Kxf8 69. Kxd3 $18) 1-0 [Event "Douglas IoM op"] [Site "Douglas"] [Date "2017.09.30"] [Round "8"] [White "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C78"] [WhiteElo "2799"] [BlackElo "2827"] [Annotator "Nielsen,Peter Heine"] [PlyCount "70"] [EventDate "2017.09.23"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "IOM"] [SourceTitle "CBM 181"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2017.11.10"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2017.11.10"] [SourceQuality "1"] {While many players had planned their "exit-strategy" from the World Cup with the Isle of Man's organisers in advance, Magnus after the unexpected loss in round 3 to Bu, wanted to quickly wash a way the defeat, and an open tournament with most of the worlds elite present seemed like an excellent opportunity. The early rounds had the expected scares with risktaking and unusual openings in the end Magnus was rewarded with a half point lead before this game in the penultimate round:} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O b5 6. Bb3 Bc5 {Magnus played the Moeller in the crucial game 9 of the match in New York, and had to pull of a spectacular save after getting into troubles out of the opening, and thus had parked the line until this game:} 7. c3 d6 8. a4 Rb8 9. d4 Bb6 10. a5 Ba7 11. h3 O-O 12. Be3 Ra8 13. Re1 h6 14. Nbd2 {Caruana had this exact position the day before also with the white pieces against Gawain Jones, who preferred 14...exd4.} Re8 {Curiously Magnus prefers the move Caruana himself played against Karjakin in 2013! That game continued with the pawn sacrifice 15.?f1, but the American had prepared an even more cunning idea:} (14... exd4 15. cxd4 Nb4 {From a positional point of view Black is doing well, but Fabiano launched a well prepared attack with} 16. e5 $1 Nfd5 17. Ne4 Nxe3 18. Rxe3 Bb7 19. e6 Nd5 20. exf7+ Kh8 21. Re1 Rxf7 22. Rc1 Rc8 23. Nfg5 $1 {winning excellently. The depth of White's play is shown after} Re7 $1 (23... Rf5 $2 {was the game}) 24. Qg4 Qe8 25. Kh2 $1 Rd8 26. Qf5 $1 g6 27. Qg4 $1 {when the computer shows White has a very promising attack.}) 15. g4 $5 {The idea of attacking a pawn on h6 with g4 is not exactly new but, ideally White would prefer a rook and not his king on g1! Here however White's control of the centre means that it is difficult for Black to launch an attack against White's now somewhat weakened king, and more pressingly it's not easy to see how White develops next. There is no point in hiding that the move took the World Champion by surprise, as he now thought for more than half an hour coming up with a common sense reply:} Qe7 $6 {The computer indicates two ways for Black:} (15... exd4 16. cxd4 Nb4 {in the style of Jones is logical, now however with the rook on e8,} 17. Bxf7+ (17. g5 $5 {also deserves attention with wild tactics emerging after} c5 $1 18. e5 $5 Nfd5 19. Ne4 {with a complete mess, where Caruana certainly would be prepared.}) 17... Kxf7 18. Qb3+ {is possible, allthough} Nbd5 19. exd5 Bb7 20. Qd3 Qd7 $1 {as indicated by the computers seems to hold.}) (15... Qd7 $5 {is very interesting, combining defending the knight on c6 (and thus threatening 16...exd4 17.cxd4 ?xe4 18.?xe4 ?xe4 as 19.?d5 does not threaten on c6.) with ...?xg4 motives cropping up.} {White can play it slow with} 16. Qc2 {but then} ({White can try and force events with} 16. g5 $5 {but Black can still play} exd4 17. cxd4 Nxe4 18. Nxe4 Rxe4 19. Bd5 {and while now} Re8 {loses to both 20.gxh6 or 20.g6,} (19... Qxh3 $1 {forces a draw, as} 20. Bxe4 Qg4+ {both 21.?f1 and 21.?h1 leave White's king exposed after 21...?xe4 and} 21. Kh2 Qh5+ {is a perpetual.})) 16... Nd8 {is a good way to regroup.}) 16. Nf1 $1 {A very strong move, leaving Black in a strategically very difficult position.} Nd8 ({Tactically the problem is that} 16... exd4 17. cxd4 Nxe4 {loses a piece to} 18. d5 $1 Bxe3 19. Rxe3 Ne5 20. Nxe5 Qxe5 21. f3 {which means that Black has to play it slow.}) 17. Ng3 c5 18. Qd2 c4 19. Bc2 Nh7 20. b4 {An interesting moment. The computers at first indicate that 20.b3! is the move, and 20.b4 somewhat lets Black off the hook, but obviously both players seemed to think that sealing off the queenside is to White's advantage, and after a while the machine somewhat agrees with that after 20...?f6!? 21.?g2 ?e6 22.h4! still means White has a considerable advantage as Black's intended 22...?hg5 is prevented.} cxb3 (20... Qf6 $5 21. Kg2 Ne6 22. h4 $1) 21. Bxb3 Be6 {Till here Caruana has turned in a powerful performance, but things are about to take a dramatic shift.} 22. Bc2 $2 ({After} 22. Nf5 $1 Qc7 {maybe at first it looks like White has made no progress, but} 23. Bd5 $1 {leaves White close to strategically winning:} Bxd5 (23... Rc8 24. Rac1 {also leaves Black stuck for moves, and biting the bullet and taking on f5, e.g. already in move 22 means White has a basically unstoppable attack down the g-file.}) 24. exd5 f6 {loses tactically to} 25. Bxh6 {as White's attack is unstoppable after} gxh6 26. Qxh6 Kh8 27. g5 fxg5 28. Nxd6 $18) 22... Rc8 23. Bd3 Nb7 24. Rec1 {Not managing to follow through on his aggressive intentions, Caruana has shifted to a defensive setup keeping a5 and c3 protected, and planning d5 and c4 should Black place his queen on the obvious square c7, but Black does have another way of pressurising the a-pawn:} Qd8 $1 {Short of time, White now collapses.} 25. Qb2 (25. d5 $1 {still was the best move, as after} Bxe3 26. Qxe3 Bd7 27. c4 $1 Nxa5 28. cxb5 Rxc1+ 29. Rxc1 axb5 30. Qa7 $1 {it seems like Black's best is} Nb3 {when White gets the pawn back with} 31. Rb1 Nc5 32. Bxb5 {and should be able to save the draw. In time pressure, however, Caruana goes astray.}) 25... Nxa5 26. Nd2 d5 $1 {Not only is Black a pawn up, but also the white centre is collapsing.} 27. Re1 Bb8 28. exd5 Bxd5 29. Bf5 Rc6 30. Qa3 Nb7 31. Rad1 exd4 32. Bxd4 Ng5 33. c4 Rxe1+ 34. Rxe1 Be6 35. Qe3 Bf4 $1 {The bishop, who White went to great length excluding from the game has returned efficiently and fittingly delivers the final blow. And as 36.?xf4 loses to 36...?xh3+ and 36.?e2 ?xd2 37.?xd2 to 37...?f3+ Caruana resigned. Another American however kept the pase, meaning Magnus had a half point lead over Nakamura and a full point over the remaining field. Playing Hikaru as White the World Champion found inspiration from the French Championship, copying a recent game and effectively forcing a draw to clinch tournament victory.} 0-1 [Event "Morelia/Linares 25th"] [Site "Morelia/Linares"] [Date "2008.02.29"] [Round "9"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Shirov, Alexei"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C78"] [WhiteElo "2733"] [BlackElo "2755"] [Annotator "Marin,Mihail"] [PlyCount "159"] [EventDate "2008.02.15"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "14"] [EventCountry "ESP"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 123"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2008.04.02"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2008.04.02"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O b5 6. Bb3 Bc5 7. a4 Rb8 8. c3 d6 9. d4 Bb6 10. Na3 O-O 11. axb5 axb5 12. Nxb5 Bg4 13. Bc2 Bxf3 14. gxf3 Nh5 15. f4 Nxf4 16. Bxf4 exf4 17. Qg4 Qf6 {Shirov bravely repeats the variation that had led him to defeat against Leko, with the occasion of the recently played Tal Memorial. Obviously, he had prepared an improvement, but Carlsen (who, according to himself, did not expect such a consequent attitude from his opponent) came up with an over-the-board novelty first.} 18. Ra6 $5 {With so many unstable black pieces along the 6th rank, this move is quite logical. In concrete terms, the threat ?xc7 looks (or could become later) annoying. Black's position in this whole line looks pretty difficult to play. His pieces are strongly restricted by the enemy centre and there is no obvious pawn break to be carried out. This explains why, like in the previous game, Shirov did not manage to come out of the opening with a reasonable position, despite being familiarized with its subtleties already.} (18. b4 {Leko,P (2755)-Shirov,A (2739)/Moscow 2007/CBM 122/[Marin] (1-0, 31)}) 18... Ne7 $6 {The same move he had played against Leko and I believe that the same evaluation applies here: Black defines his knight's intentions too quickly, releasing the pressure against the central e5- and d4-squares. Black could look for ways to slightly improve his position.} ({For the sake of complete similarity, let us take the same move that I recommended in my notes to the previous game.} 18... g6 $5 {[%csl Gc2,Gg4][%CAl Gh7h5] Restricting the enemy bishop and intending to do the same with the queen, by means of a further ...h5.} 19. Nxc7 {This is the critical line, which probably determined Shirov to retreat with his knight..} (19. b4 h5 20. Qg2 $8 {[%csl Rb5,Rg1][%CAl Gf6g5]} Nd8 {[%CAl Gd8e6]} 21. d5 $6 c6 $15) (19. Kh1 Nd8 20. d5 Nb7 21. b4 Ra8 $132 {Here, the weakness of the c3-pawn and Black's excellent control over the dark squares compensate for the temporary passivity of his knight.}) (19. Na3 h5 20. Qf3 Nd8) 19... Bxc7 20. Rxc6 Rxb2 21. Bd1 {[%csl Gc7] Theoretically, White has the better bishop, but it is not easy to activate it. Besides, his rook is somewhat isolated on c6, while the pressure exerted by the b2-rook could become unpleasant. Besides, his king is a bit exposed. All these aspects leave the position uncertain.} (21. Rxc7 Rxc2 $11 {The safer position of Black's king compensates for White's more flexible structure. Besides, Black has no bad pieces here.}) 21... Bb8 (21... Bb6 $2 22. e5 $16) 22. Bf3 (22. Kh1 Re8) (22. Be2 $2 {[%CAl Ge2c4,Gc4d5]} Rxe2 $1 23. Qxe2 Qg5+ 24. Kh1 f3 $3 25. Qxf3 Qb5 $19 {[%csl Rc6,Rf1] White's far from obvious problems of coordination are revealed in this elegant line.}) (22. e5 Qe7 23. exd6 Bxd6 $13 {[%CAl Gf8a8] White's pawns are not easy to advance, but his king could get into danger.} 24. c4 Rd2 {[%csl Gd4]} 25. d5 Ra8 $15) 22... Re8 23. Ra1 h5 24. Qg2 Qh4 $132 {[%CAl Ge8e7,Ge7b7]}) 19. Na3 {[%csl Rb6][%CAl Ga3c4]} c6 (19... Ra8 20. Rxa8 Rxa8 21. Nc4 $14) 20. Nc4 Bc7 21. Ra7 {Now, Black's pieces are hanging along the 7th rank already...} Rbc8 22. e5 $1 $16 {Forcing the enemy queen to occupy a passive position and opening lines for the activation of his own pieces.} dxe5 23. dxe5 Qh6 (23... Bxe5 $2 {is impossible because... Black had not found the time to play...g6:} 24. Qh5 $18 {[%csl Ge5,Gh7]}) 24. Rd1 Nd5 25. Be4 Rfd8 26. Rd3 {[%CAl Gd3h3]} g6 {More or less forced already, but look at Black's queen!} 27. Bxd5 ({He could also have tried to increase his pressure slowly with} 27. Ra6 $5 $16) 27... cxd5 28. Rxd5 Rxd5 29. Qxc8+ Kg7 30. Qg4 $6 {Not really a bad move, since White maintains excellent practical chances.} ({However, as the following analysis provided by Frederic Friedel proves, White could have captured the bishop and avoided perpetual check: "} 30. Rxc7 Qg5+ 31. Kf1 Rd1+ 32. Ke2 Qg1 33. Rxf7+ $1 Kxf7 34. Nd6+ Kg7 35. Qd7+ Kh6 36. Nf7+ Kg7 37. Qxd1 f3+ 38. Kd2 Qxf2+ 39. Kc1 Qe3+ 40. Qd2 Qa7 {threatening ...f2, ...f1? and after ?xf1 ?a1+ with ?xf1+-} (40... Qg1+ 41. Kc2 f2 (41... Kxf7 42. Qd7+ Kg8 43. e6 Qxh2+ 44. Kb1 {and with his king finding safety White can use his e-pawn to win.}) 42. Ng5 Qxg5 43. Qxg5 f1=Q 44. Qf6+ {wins for White}) (40... f2 41. Qxe3 f1=Q+ 42. Kc2 Kxf7 {doesn't look at all appealing}) 41. Qg5 (41. Qh6+ Kg8) 41... Qxf7 42. Kd2 Qa2 43. Qf6+ Kg8 44. Qd8+ Kg7 45. Qe7+ Kg8 46. Qb4 f2 47. Ke2 Qf7 48. Kf1 Qf3 {White has good chances to win."}) 30... Bxe5 31. h4 Bb8 32. Rb7 Rd8 33. Kg2 Kg8 34. Qg5 Qf8 35. Qf6 Re8 36. b4 Re6 37. Qd4 Qc8 38. Rd7 Qc6+ 39. Qd5 Qxd5+ 40. Rxd5 Rc6 41. Nd2 f3+ 42. Nxf3 Kg7 43. Rd8 Bc7 44. Rd7 Rxc3 45. Ng5 Kg8 46. Ne4 Rc4 47. Nf6+ Kf8 48. Nxh7+ Ke8 49. Nf6+ Kf8 50. Nd5 Be5 51. b5 Rxh4 52. b6 Rd4 53. Kf3 Kg7 54. Ke3 Ra4 55. b7 Ra3+ 56. Ke4 Bh2 57. Nc7 Rb3 58. Ne6+ Kf6 59. Nd8 g5 60. Rxf7+ Kg6 61. Rd7 g4 62. Ne6 g3 63. fxg3 Bxg3 64. Kd5 Rb1 65. Kc6 Rc1+ 66. Nc5 Bb8 67. Rd5 Ba7 68. Kd7 Bb8 69. Ne6 Kf6 70. Rc5 Rb1 71. Nd8 Bh2 72. Rc6+ Ke5 73. Rc1 Rb3 74. Rc2 Bf4 75. Kc6 Kf5 76. Rc5+ Kf6 77. Kd7 Rb1 78. Kc8 Bh2 79. Rc6+ Ke5 $4 {A terrible blunder in a probably defensible position. The king had crossed this diagonal before, but the b8-square was not controlled by the enemy king at that moment.} (79... Kf5 80. Ne6 $5 {[%CAl Ge6c7]} Rg1 $1 {(Only this rook transfer keeps the game going.)} 81. Nc7 Rg8+ 82. Kd7 Rg7+ 83. Kd8 Rg8+ 84. Ne8 Rh8) 80. b8=Q+ 1-0 [Event "Corus-B"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2006.01.19"] [Round "5"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Beliavsky, Alexander G"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C78"] [WhiteElo "2625"] [BlackElo "2626"] [Annotator "Mikhalevski,Victor"] [PlyCount "39"] [EventDate "2006.01.14"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "15"] [SourceTitle "CBM 111"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2006.04.04"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2006.04.04"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O b5 6. Bb3 Bb7 7. d3 Bc5 8. Nc3 (8. a4 d6 9. Nc3 {leads to the same position.}) 8... d6 9. a4 Na5 {Already this move is very uncommon, although it may transpose to 9...b4 10.?e2.} (9... b4 {is the main line.} 10. Ne2 {[%CAl Ge2g3]} (10. Nd5 {is a more popular continuation. Here is a relatively recent example.} Na5 11. Nxf6+ Qxf6 12. Ba2 Bc8 (12... h6 13. c3 bxc3 14. bxc3 O-O 15. Be3 Rad8 16. Rb1 Bc8 17. Qe2 Be6 $6 18. h3 $14 {Kasparov,G-Anand,V, PCA World Championship/CBM 49[Benjamin,J].}) 13. h3 Rb8 14. c3 b3 15. Bb1 O-O 16. d4 Bb6 17. d5 Qg6 18. Nh4 Qf6 19. Nf5 c6 {½-½ Khairullin,I-Riazantsev,A/Kazan RUS 2005/The Week in Chess 566}) 10... O-O ({Now} 10... Na5 11. Ba2 {transposes to the text.}) 11. a5 $5 {Preventing Na5.} (11. Ng3 Na5 12. Ba2 Bc8 13. c3 bxc3 14. bxc3 Bb6 15. Bg5 $1 h6 16. Bh4 $1 Bg4 17. h3 Bxf3 18. Qxf3 g5 19. Nf5 (19. Nh5 $1 Nxh5 20. Qxh5 gxh4 21. Qg6+ Kh8 22. Qxh6+ Kg8 23. Kh1 $1 $40) 19... gxh4 20. Nxh6+ $13 {1-0 De Firmian,N-Lugo,B/San Diego USA 2004/The Week in Chess 525 (44)}) 11... Ne7 (11... d5 $5) 12. Be3 Ng6 13. Bxc5 dxc5 14. Ng3 Bc8 15. Qe1 Be6 16. Bxe6 fxe6 17. Nd2 $14 {[%CAl Gd2c4] 1-0 Anand,V-Hector,J/Middelfart DEN 2003/The Week in Chess 439 (65)}) 10. Ba2 b4 (10... c6 $6 {is dubious. In the following game White brilliantly exploited a misplaced knight on a5.} 11. Bd2 O-O 12. Ne2 bxa4 $2 13. Qe1 $1 Bb6 14. b4 $1 axb3 15. Bb1 $1 Nc4 16. dxc4 b2 17. Ra2 Nxe4 18. Rxb2 $16 {1-0 Savon,V-Bronstein,D/Odessa 1974/EXT 99 (40)}) 11. Ne2 Bc8 {[%CAl Gc8e6] Although a typical idea by itself it had never been tested yet in the current position. From c8 Black brings the bishop to e6, covering on the way the f5-square.} ({Earlier Black played} 11... Rb8 {with the idea to meet 12.c3 with b3.} 12. Ng3 (12. c3 b3 $5) 12... O-O (12... Bc8 13. d4 exd4 14. Nxd4 O-O 15. Bg5 h6 16. Bf4 Bxd4 17. Qxd4 b3 18. Bxb3 Nxb3 19. cxb3 Rxb3 20. Rac1 $14 {½-½ Rodriguez Cespedes,A-Diaz,J/Mexico 1991/TD}) 13. Bg5 {[%CAl Gg3h5]} h6 14. Bh4 $5 (14. Be3 Bxe3 15. fxe3 Bc8 16. Qe1 c6 17. Nd2 Be6 18. Bxe6 fxe6 19. Qe2 Qb6 20. Rf3 Qc5 $15 {½-½ Perez Perez,A-Ilczuk,J/ICCF Email 2003/ICCF Telechess CBM 102 (26)}) 14... g6 $6 15. Qd2 Kh7 $1 (15... Kg7 16. d4 exd4 17. Nxd4 Bxd4 18. Qxd4 Nc6 19. Qe3 $16 {½-½ Rayner,F-Ledger,D/Telford ENG 2003/The Week in Chess 429 (35)}) 16. d4 Bxd4 17. Nxd4 exd4 {[%csl Rh4][%CAl Gf6e4]} 18. Rfe1 Nc6 19. f3 g5 20. Nf5 $1 Bc8 21. Bf2 Bxf5 22. exf5 $14 {[%csl Rd4] 1-0 Dijon,J-Johansson,S/ICCF Email 2002/ICCF Telechess CBM 98 (40)}) (11... b3 $6 12. Bxb3 (12. Qe1 $5 {[%csl Ra5]}) 12... Nxb3 13. cxb3 h6 14. Ng3 (14. Be3 $5) 14... O-O 15. Be3 Bxe3 16. fxe3 $16 {1-0 Hagarova,Z-Skripchenko,A/Halle 1995/EXT 97 (47)}) 12. c3 {[%CAl Gd3d4]} bxc3 13. bxc3 Bb6 {Otherwise 14. d4 with a tempo.} 14. Ng3 Be6 $6 {Black shouldn't have left his king in the centre.} (14... O-O {, which was necessary would transpose to De Firmian,N-Lugo,B/San Diego 2004. See above.}) 15. d4 $1 $16 {White is much better prepared for opening of the position.} Bxa2 $6 {ANother unfortunate decision. I believe Black had to leave the bishop on e6 at least to cover the f5-square.} (15... O-O) 16. Rxa2 O-O 17. Bg5 $1 {[%CAl Gg3h5] This pin turns out to be very annoying. White has two extra pieces in attack.} exd4 $2 {This careless move leads to a disaster. Beliavsky has definitely underestimated the threats.} (17... h6 {was necessary, but after} 18. Bh4 $1 {Black's position is already dangerous anyway. F.e.} exd4 (18... Nc6 {is not better.} 19. Nh5 $1 {[%csl Rf6]} (19. Nf5 $5) 19... g5 20. Nxg5 $1 Nxh5 21. Qxh5 hxg5 22. Bxg5 f6 23. Bh6 $16 {and again White has a huge advantage thanks to a vulnerable position of Black's king.}) 19. Nh5 (19. cxd4 $5 {[%CAl Gg3h5]} Re8 (19... g5 20. Nxg5 hxg5 21. Bxg5 $18 {[%CAl Gg3h5]}) (19... c5 20. Nh5 g5 21. Nxg5 Nxh5 22. Qxh5 hxg5 23. Bxg5 f6 24. Qg6+ Kh8 25. Ra3 $1 $18 {[%csl Rh8][%CAl Ga3h3]}) 20. Qc1 {[%CAl Gg3h5]} (20. Nh5 $5 Rxe4 21. Bxf6 gxf6 22. Nd2 {[%CAl Gd1f3]} Rxd4 23. Qf3 f5 24. Ng3 $40 {[%CAl Gg3f5]}) 20... Nb3 21. Qe3 Nxd4 22. Nxd4 Bxd4 23. Qxd4 g5 24. f3 $1 gxh4 25. Nf5 $18 {and despite material equality White has a decisive advantage.}) 19... g5 20. Nxg5 Nxh5 21. Qxh5 hxg5 22. Bxg5 f6 (22... Qd7 $4 23. Bf6 {[%CAl Gh5h8]}) 23. Bh6 Qe8 24. Qg4+ Kf7 25. Bxf8 Kxf8 26. cxd4 $16 {[%csl Rf8] and White has a clear advantage since Black king has no refuge.}) 18. Nh5 $1 $18 {This strong, but rather obvious move decides the game. Black's position is already defenseless.} dxc3 19. Nh4 $1 {[%csl Rg7][%CAl Gh4f5] Magnus knows to attack. The knight comes to f5 with devastating consequences for Black.} Kh8 20. Nf5 {[%csl Rf6,Rg7] Black resigned as he can't protect neither the g7-pawn nor the knight on f6. I don't remember that such an experienced GM as Beliavsky loses so quickly. Bravo, Magnus!} (20. Nf5 Nc6 21. Nfxg7 Bd4 22. Nf5 Rg8 23. Bh4 $1 Be5 (23... Rg4 24. Bxf6+ Bxf6 25. Qxg4 $18) 24. f4 $18 {and Black loses all his pieces.}) 1-0 [Event "Grenke Chess Classic 6th"] [Site "Karlsruhe/Baden Baden"] [Date "2019.04.21"] [Round "2"] [White "Vallejo Pons, Francisco"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C78"] [WhiteElo "2693"] [BlackElo "2845"] [Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"] [PlyCount "146"] [EventDate "2019.04.20"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "GER"] [EventCategory "19"] [SourceTitle "CBM 190"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2019.06.30"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2019.06.30"] [SourceQuality "1"] {[%evp 0,146,38,42,40,11,25,8,16,3,-12,10,11,12,74,44,24,24,17,23,5,12,21,-3,18,16,9,4,2,22,27,19,19,25,16,26,14,16,16,34,43,-8,27,-4,7,9,10,15,17,-4,0,-6,-16,-20,5,-1,25,19,11,31,25,34,66,48,52,67,48,-17,-26,-26,-16,-31,-29,-50,-20,-200,-72,-89,-109,-174,-194,-198,-171,-110,-103,-101,-85,-96,-103,-93,-93,-162,-173,-208,-193,-187,-171,-208,-193,-196,-196,-204,-200,-195,-192,-208,-211,-207,-197,-206,-207,-209,-207,-207,-216,-222,-208,-233,-229,-229,-222,-222,-222,-222,-204,-222,-206,-193,-194,-204,-188,-249,-251,-203,-246,-517,-517,-517,-517,-517,-517,-517,-517,-517,-517,-29992,-29978,-29979,-797]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Bc5 6. c3 O-O 7. d4 Ba7 8. dxe5 Nxe4 9. Bc2 (9. Qd5 {is the main move in this position. A recent example from the World Champion's practice:} Nc5 10. Bc2 Ne7 11. Qd1 d5 12. exd6 Qxd6 13. Qxd6 cxd6 14. Rd1 (14. Re1 Re8 15. Be3 Bf5 16. Na3 Bxc2 17. Bxc5 dxc5 18. Nxc2 Nc6 $11 {1/2 (84) Vachier Lagrave,M (2780)-Fressinet,L (2640) Brest 2019}) 14... Bg4 $5 15. Rxd6 Bf5 $1 16. Na3 Ne4 17. Bxe4 Bxe4 18. Rd1 Nf5 19. Nc4 Rfe8 20. Be3 Bxe3 21. Nxe3 Nxe3 22. fxe3 Bxf3 23. gxf3 Rxe3 24. Rd7 Rb8 $11 {1/2 (41) Karjakin,S (2782)-Carlsen,M (2843) Stavanger 2018}) 9... d5 10. exd6 Nxd6 11. Bg5 f6 12. Bf4 g5 $5 $146 {A curious concept. Magnus Carlsen complicates (disbalances) the position. There have been two old games which continued:} (12... Bg4 13. Qd3 Bf5 14. Qd5+ Kh8 15. Bxf5 Ne7 16. Qb3 Nexf5 17. Nbd2 Qd7 18. Rad1 Qc6 $11 {1-0 (62) Gurnhill,C-Blake,J Edinburgh 1926}) (12... Kh8 13. Bxd6 cxd6 14. Qd5 Ne5 15. Nbd2 Bd7 $6 (15... Qc7) 16. Qxd6 $6 (16. Nxe5 fxe5 (16... dxe5 17. Qxb7 Bb5 18. Rfd1 Be2 $2 19. Qe4) 17. Qxb7 $16 Bb5 $140 $2 18. c4) 16... Bb5 17. Qxd8 Raxd8 18. Rfe1 Ng4 19. Nd4 Rxd4 $1 20. cxd4 Bxd4 $44 {0-1 (35) Horn,C-Gabinara,A San Marino 1950}) 13. Bxd6 (13. Bg3 f5 $5 14. Qd5+ Nf7 $1 15. Qxd8 Rxd8 16. Bxc7 $140 $2 Rd7 17. Bg3 f4) 13... Qxd6 14. Qxd6 cxd6 15. Nbd2 (15. Bb3+ $5 Kg7 16. Na3 {preventing ...d6-d5} Bg4 $1 17. Bd5 Rae8 $13) 15... g4 (15... d5 $142 $13) 16. Nh4 d5 17. Nf5 (17. Rfe1 $142 d4 (17... Bd7 18. Bb3) 18. Rad1 {creating a kind of domination in the centre but that was not easy to evaluate!}) 17... d4 18. Nc4 Bxf5 19. Bxf5 h5 $11 {The position is roughly equal but complicated enough for the World Champion to outplay his opponent.} 20. Rad1 Rfd8 21. a4 Ne7 22. Be6+ Kg7 23. Rfe1 f5 24. Na5 Rab8 25. Kf1 Kf6 26. Bb3 Ng6 27. Re6+ Kg5 28. g3 dxc3 29. bxc3 Rxd1+ 30. Bxd1 {[%mdl 4096]} Rd8 31. f4+ $5 gxf3 32. Bxf3 h4 33. Nc4 (33. Bxb7 Rd2 34. gxh4+ Nxh4 35. Rxa6 $13 {looked too risky to White but after the text move the initiative firmly belongs to Black.}) 33... hxg3 34. hxg3 Bb8 35. Kg2 b5 36. axb5 axb5 37. Ne3 $2 (37. Na3 $1 f4 38. Be4 Nf8 39. Rb6 fxg3 40. Rxb5+ Kf4 41. Rd5 Re8 42. Bf3 Ng6 43. Rd4+ Kf5 44. Nc4 $11) 37... Rd2+ (37... f4 $1 38. Be4 Nf8 39. gxf4+ Bxf4 40. Rb6 Bxe3 41. Rxb5+ Kf4 $17) 38. Kh3 Rd3 39. Be2 Rxc3 40. Bxb5 f4 41. Be8 Nf8 42. Rb6 Be5 (42... fxe3 43. Rxb8 e2 44. Rb1 Re3 45. Re1 Rxe8 46. Kg2 $11 {[%CAl Yg2f2,Ye1e2]}) 43. Nf1 fxg3 44. Rc6 Ra3 45. Rb6 Ra2 46. Rb4 Ne6 47. Rg4+ Kf6 48. Bc6 $2 (48. Rxg3 $1 Bxg3 (48... Ng5+ 49. Kg4) 49. Kxg3 {is a theoretical draw while "R+B vs B+N" is theoretically won in case of opposite-coloured bishops. True, that position is very difficult. I failed to score a victory against GM Kivanc Haznedaroglu in a similar situation but Magnus Carlsen manages it much better.}) 48... g2 $1 49. Bxg2 Nf4+ 50. Rxf4+ Bxf4 51. Bf3 Bb8 52. Ng3 Kg5 53. Ne2 Bc7 54. Kg2 Kh4 55. Kf2 Bb6+ 56. Ke1 Be3 57. Kd1 Kg5 58. Be4 Kf6 59. Bf3 Ke5 60. Bg2 Kd6 61. Be4 Kc5 62. Bf5 Rd2+ 63. Ke1 Rd8 64. Be4 Kc4 65. Kf1 $6 ({This endgame is almost impossible to explain. For some reason,} 65. Ng3 {was better. If} Re8 {then} 66. Bg6) 65... Rf8+ 66. Ke1 $2 ({And here the stalemate trick} 66. Kg2 $3 Rf2+ 67. Kh1 $3 {was White's last chance to continue resistance.} Rxe2 $4 68. Bd3+ $1 Kxd3 $11) 66... Bf2+ $1 {Black forces White's king to the a1 corner and mates it there.} 67. Kd2 (67. Kf1 Bc5+ 68. Ke1 Bb4+ 69. Kd1 Rd8+ 70. Kc1 Bd2+ 71. Kc2 Be3 {leads to the same outcome.}) 67... Rd8+ 68. Kc2 Be3 69. Bf3 Rd2+ 70. Kb1 Kb3 71. Nc1+ Ka3 72. Ne2 Rb2+ 73. Ka1 Rb8 {[%CAl Re3g5,Rg5f6]} 0-1 [Event "World-ch Carlsen-Karjakin +1-1=10"] [Site "New York"] [Date "2016.11.23"] [Round "9"] [White "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C78"] [WhiteElo "2769"] [BlackElo "2853"] [Annotator "Caruana,Fabiano"] [PlyCount "148"] [EventDate "2016.11.11"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "12"] [EventCountry "USA"] [SourceTitle "CBM 176"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2017.01.17"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2017.01.17"] [SourceQuality "1"] {The game after Carlsen's loss wasn't guaranteed to be exciting, but viewers were in for a surprise. I had expected a fairly tame draw, but instead we were treated to an extremely complex fighting game with an opening not usually seen at the top level.} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O b5 6. Bb3 Bc5 {The Archangel variation was certainly not expected by most people, and probably not by the Karjakin camp either. Playing it requires a tremendous amount of knowledge, so it's likely that Carlsen prepared it before the match as a backup to his main defenses. I have some experience playing this as Black against Karjakin, as it was my mainstay opening for a time, and we played several interesting games. As an attempt to win, it can work if the opponent is poorly prepared or surprised, but Karjakin proved up to the task.} 7. a4 Rb8 8. c3 d6 9. d4 Bb6 10. axb5 axb5 11. Na3 {Karjakin decided to go for the main and most principled line, immediately grabbing the b-pawn. It is what he recently played against Svidler and the most forcing variation, so he probably felt playing this way avoided the most amount of risk.} O-O 12. Nxb5 Bg4 13. Bc2 exd4 14. Nbxd4 Nxd4 15. cxd4 Bxf3 16. gxf3 Nh5 17. Kh1 {I always felt that this line was one of the most unpleasant for Black to face. White avoids any risk and hopes to prove the advantage of the bishop pair after the center opens up, usually when White sacrifices a pawn with e5 or f4. Meanwhile, Black has to constantly be on the lookout for tactics.} Qf6 18. Be3 c5 $5 {Years ago, as Rustam Kasimdzhanov was frying some plantains, he explained to me that this move was the best chance for Black to equalize. After we analyzed it, he tried it against Nakamura in the 2014 Tromso olympiad. Carlsen and his team also must have felt this was the best way for Black to approach the position.} 19. e5 Qe6 20. exd6 c4 $1 {This unusual move is the point behind 18...c5. Black keeps the center closed, and plans on capturing d6 next and creating mating threats after with ...?c7.} 21. b3 cxb3 (21... c3 {was how Rustam approached the position, and although it may be playable, he lost the game. Carlsen's choice is perhaps a better way to equalize.} 22. d5 Qxd6 23. Ra6 Nf4 24. Ra4 Ng6 25. Qd3 Bc7 26. f4 {Nakamura-Kasimdzhanov, Tromso ol 2014, and Black was outplayed.}) 22. Bxb3 Qxd6 23. Ra6 {After 23 moves, we have reached a critical position, and one which was certainly analyzed by both players and their teams. Magnus sank into thought here, which perhaps means that he forgot what he had prepared, or that he was deciding between two roughly equivalent options.} Rfd8 ({Another option was to play} 23... Qd7 {immediately, and considering the ?xf7 tactics which happened later in the game, keeping the rook on f8 for now was worthy of consideration.} 24. Rg1 g6 {I have a feeling that this would have offered Black better chances for equality.}) 24. Rg1 Qd7 25. Rg4 {I thought that placing the rook on h4 was very strange, but there was no other convenient way of defending the d4-pawn. The next dozen or so moves are very difficult to explain. The position is highly concrete and it's likely both players were creating and reacting to immediate threats; the end result being very computeresque play.} ({The tempting sacrifice} 25. Rg5 g6 26. Rxh5 gxh5 {seems to lead nowhere.}) ({The computer suggestion of} 25. Bc4 Bxd4 26. Bg5 {would lead to a very drawish ending:} Rdc8 27. Ra4 Rc7 28. Bxf7+ Qxf7 29. Rxd4 Rf8 30. Rd8 Rc8 31. Rxc8 Rxc8 {, and White's winning chances are minimal}) 25... Nf6 26. Rh4 Qb5 27. Ra1 g6 {This move is generally useful, providing luft for Black's king.} 28. Rb1 Qd7 29. Qd3 Nd5 30. Rg1 {Now White's plans are clear. Rooks on the open files and a bishop on b3 pave the way for an eventual rook sacrifice on g6, h7 or a bishop sacrifice on f7. The immediate threat is ?g5.} Bc7 31. Bg5 Re8 32. Qc4 Rb5 $1 {An excellent move, but I'm not sure it was one which was accurately calculated by either player.} (32... Nb6 $4 33. Qxf7+ Qxf7 34. Bxf7+ Kxf7 35. Rxh7+ {shows the tactics available at White's disposal.}) 33. Qc2 (33. Ba4 {is of course critical. White seems to win a rook, but Black has a sneaky response:} Qf5 $1 34. Qf1 $1 {Interposing with the queen on g2 is the only way to save White. Now Black has only one move to stay in the game:} Rb1 $3 (34... Qxf3+ 35. Qg2 Qxg2+ 36. Kxg2 {wins for White.}) 35. Qxb1 Qxf3+ 36. Rg2 Nc3 37. Qf1 Nxa4 {, and Black has very decent compensation for the exchange in the form of White's uncoordinated forces and a mighty queen on f3. However, White could still try to regroup and play this for a win, even though a draw is the most likely result.}) 33... Ra8 $6 {After this, Black again experiences difficulties.} (33... Rb4 {is the machine recommendation, the point being to keep the rook on the e-file for} 34. Bd2 Re2 $1) 34. Bc4 Rba5 35. Bd2 Ra4 36. Qd3 Ra1 37. Rxa1 Rxa1+ 38. Kg2 Ne7 $2 {Almost the decisive mistake, but practically this move was difficult to punish.} ({After something like} 38... Bd8 39. Re4 Nf6 {, Black is still clearly worse, but he has decent chances to hold on due to counterplay against White's king.}) 39. Bxf7+ {Very tempting, but not correct. After this sacrifice everyone in the spectators' lounge got very excited and started predicting a win for Karjakin. However, the whole line becomes very forcing and leads to a drawish position.} (39. Qb3 $1 {was more critical:} Nf5 (39... Qf5 40. Re4 Bd6 41. Qb7 {just wins material - the knight is trapped.}) 40. Bxf7+ Kg7 (40... Qxf7 41. Qxf7+ Kxf7 42. Rxh7+ Ke6 43. Rxc7 {, and this ending is most likely lost or at least very difficult to hold.}) 41. Rh3 {It feels like Black should have counterplay here, but there is no path to create threats to White's king. It turns out Black's king is the terminally weak one.} Qe7 42. Bg8 h5 43. d5 {, and ?c3 is coming. Of course, this would not guarantee a win, as the position remains very complicated, especially in time trouble, but objectively Karjakin would have good winning chances like this.}) 39... Kxf7 40. Qc4+ Kg7 41. d5 ({My first thought during the game was} 41. Rxh7+ Kxh7 42. Qf7+ Kh8 43. Bh6 {, with mate I thought, but then I saw} Qxd4 {and the tables are turned. Black wins.}) (41. Bh6+ Kf6 $1 {is surprisingly also bad for White, as the attack leads nowhere.}) 41... Nf5 {Now everything is forced.} (41... Be5 $2 42. Bc3 Qd6 43. Qf4 $1 {is a very study-like win, with a double pin on Black's king and queen.}) 42. Bc3+ Kf8 43. Bxa1 Nxh4+ 44. Qxh4 Qxd5 {And here it became clear that Carlsen would not lose the game. White is not winning h7 and his pawn advantage is not enough to cause Black significant problems. Karjakin tried hard to create progress here, but to no avail.} 45. Qf6+ Qf7 46. Qd4 Ke8 47. Qe4+ Qe7 48. Qd5 Bd8 49. Kf1 Qf7 50. Qe4+ Qe7 51. Be5 Qe6 52. Kg2 Be7 53. Qa8+ Kf7 54. Qh8 h5 55. Qg7+ Ke8 56. Bf4 Qf7 57. Qh8+ Qf8 58. Qd4 Qf5 59. Qc4 Kd7 60. Bd2 Qe6 61. Qa4+ Qc6 62. Qa7+ Qc7 63. Qa2 Qd6 64. Be3 Qe6 65. Qa7+ Ke8 66. Bc5 Bd8 67. h3 Qd5 68. Be3 Be7 69. Qb8+ Kf7 70. Qh8 Qe6 71. Bf4 Qf6 72. Qb8 Qe6 73. Qb7 Kg8 74. Qb5 Bf6 {Finally Karjakin gave up trying to win. Magnus survived a difficult position! If he had lost, the match would have been practically decided, but now it is still a wide open contest. Tomorrow Carlsen has a critical game with White to try and win; he hasn't managed to convert his advantages so far in the match, so we'll see if he can pull through in the crucial last games.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "Norway Chess 2025"] [Site "Stavanger, Norway"] [Date "2025.05.27"] [Round "2.2"] [White "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C78"] [WhiteElo "2804"] [BlackElo "2837"] [Annotator "Chess.com"] [PlyCount "67"] [EventDate "2025.??.??"] [TimeControl "40/7200:0"] {[%evp 0,67,19,19,19,19,19,7,6,-13,7,7,17,15,19,-36,-6,-38,2,-16,-3,-14,0,-3,16,21,34,2,2,11,15,11,11,-5,17,-6,-2,-19,-12,-33,-24,-24,-4,-41,-12,-12,-28,-30,-9,-87,-68,-73,-26,-24,-24,-46,-3,-32,-1,-1,15,-1,0,7,25,25,25,25,25,25]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. d3 Bc5 6. O-O d6 7. c3 O-O 8. Nbd2 Ba7 9. h3 Ne7 10. Re1 Ng6 11. Nf1 d5 12. exd5 Nxd5 13. d4 $6 {This leads to trouble—when played in the earlier Nakamura-Caruana game, Black still had a bishop on c5.} (13. Ng3 {was suggested by Carlsen first, and it does seem to keep the position rock-solid.}) (13. Bc2 {is an alternative.}) 13... exd4 14. Nxd4 c5 $1 {Carlsen seizes the chance to expand on the queenside.} 15. Nf3 b5 $1 16. Bc2 Bb7 17. a4 c4 $1 18. Bd2 $6 {Both a shaky move, and one that cost Nakamura 31 minutes, leaving him over 40 minutes down on the clock.} Qc7 19. Nd4 $6 b4 $1 {This is the high-water mark of Carlsen's advantage. He's 24 minutes up on the clock and close to winning, according to the computer, but from here Nakamura begins to play fast and equalize the game.} 20. Qg4 Rae8 21. Rad1 bxc3 $6 {The first misstep of the whole game by the world number-one.} (21... b3 $1 {or}) (21... Nf6 $1 {keep a bigger edge.}) 22. bxc3 Nf6 23. Qg3 Qa5 $5 24. Qg5 {Offering an exchange of queens.} Qxg5 $6 {Carlsen accepts, thinking he can do his thing of pushing in the endgame, but it turns out he's soon no better. It's also notable that in playing this move, he dropped lower on the clock than Nakamura.} (24... Qc7 {is the computer suggestion, but it's always tough to reverse your previous move.}) 25. Bxg5 Ne4 26. Bxe4 Bxe4 {Black has the bishop pair, but the position is too unstable.} 27. Nd2 Bd5 28. Nc2 Rxe1+ 29. Rxe1 Rc8 30. Nb4 Bb7 31. Ne4 (31. Nxc4 {was also possible, illustrating how tricky things have become e.g.} Rxc4 32. Re8+ Nf8 33. Re7) 31... a5 $1 {Here it's Carlsen who needs to be precise $1} (31... f6 $5 32. Nd6 $1 {again highlights issues in Black's camp.}) 32. Nd6 Rb8 33. Nc2 Bc6 $1 {One last precise move.} 34. Be3 $1 {Mass exchanges would likely now follow, but neither player had an urge to play on in this position with six minutes on their clock, and a draw was agreed.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"] [Site "Stavanger NOR"] [Date "2025.05.27"] [Round "2.2"] [White "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C78"] [WhiteElo "2804"] [BlackElo "2837"] [Annotator "Chessbase"] [PlyCount "67"] [EventDate "2025.05.26"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. d3 Bc5 6. O-O d6 7. c3 O-O 8. Nbd2 Ba7 9. h3 Ne7 10. Re1 Ng6 11. Nf1 d5 $146 ({RR} 11... Nh5 12. Bg5 f6 13. Be3 Nhf4 14. Bb3+ Kh8 15. d4 f5 16. exf5 Bxf5 17. Ng3 e4 18. Nd2 d5 19. Nxf5 Rxf5 20. Nf1 Rg5 21. Ng3 h5 22. h4 Rg4 23. Qxg4 hxg4 24. h5 Nd3 25. hxg6 Nxe1 26. Rxe1 {Getz,N (2367)-Mikalsen,E (2177) Oslo 2015 0-1 (55)}) ({RR} 11... c6 12. d4 exd4 13. cxd4 d5 14. e5 Ne4 15. Bc2 f5 16. Ng3 Nh4 17. Nh2 c5 18. Ne2 cxd4 19. Bd3 Nxg2 20. Kxg2 Qh4 21. Rf1 f4 22. Ng1 Bxh3+ 23. Nxh3 f3+ 24. Nxf3 Qg4+ 25. Kh2 Rxf3 26. Qxf3 {Pranav,V (2597)-Wei Yi (2722) chess.com INT 2023 0-1}) ({RR} 11... c6 12. Ng3 d5 13. exd5 Nxd5 14. d4 exd4 15. Nxd4 Re8 16. Rxe8+ Qxe8 17. Bb3 Qe5 18. Qd3 Qe1+ 19. Qf1 Qxf1+ 20. Kxf1 Bxd4 21. cxd4 Be6 22. Ne4 b6 23. Ng5 Bd7 24. Bd2 h6 25. Bxd5 cxd5 26. Nf3 {Kevlishvili,R (2536)-Bruzon Batista,L (2559) Saint Louis USA 2025 ½-½ (42)}) ({RR} 11... c6 12. Ng3 d5 13. exd5 Nxd5 14. d4 exd4 15. Nxd4 Qc7 16. Bc2 Bd7 17. c4 Ndf4 18. Be3 c5 19. Ndf5 Rad8 20. Qg4 Bc6 21. Bxf4 Qxf4 22. Ne7+ Kh8 23. Qxf4 Nxf4 24. Nxc6 bxc6 25. Rad1 Ne6 26. Be4 {Gheng,D (2068)-Lehmann,S (1989) Deizisau 2019 ½-½ (41)}) ({RR} 11... Nh5 12. d4 Nhf4 13. Ng3 Qf6 14. Nh5 Qe7 15. Bxf4 Nxf4 16. Nxf4 exf4 17. Qd2 Qf6 18. e5 dxe5 19. Nxe5 f3 20. Nxf3 Bxh3 21. Qg5 Be6 22. Qxf6 gxf6 23. b4 c6 24. Nd2 a5 25. a3 axb4 26. axb4 {Stoleriu,G (2392)-Cosma,I (2367) Geoagiu Bai ROU 2022 1-0 (67)}) 12. exd5 Nxd5 13. d4 exd4 14. Nxd4 c5 15. Nf3 b5 16. Bc2 Bb7 17. a4 c4 18. Bd2 Qc7 19. Nd4 b4 20. Qg4 Rae8 21. Rad1 bxc3 22. bxc3 Nf6 23. Qg3 Qa5 24. Qg5 Qxg5 25. Bxg5 Ne4 26. Bxe4 Bxe4 27. Nd2 Bd5 28. Nc2 Rxe1+ 29. Rxe1 Rc8 30. Nb4 Bb7 31. Ne4 a5 32. Nd6 Rb8 33. Nc2 Bc6 34. Be3 1/2-1/2 [Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"] [Site "Stavanger NOR"] [Date "2025.05.27"] [Round "2.2"] [White "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C78"] [WhiteElo "2804"] [BlackElo "2837"] [PlyCount "67"] [EventDate "2025.05.26"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. d3 Bc5 6. O-O d6 7. c3 O-O 8. Nbd2 Ba7 9. h3 Ne7 10. Re1 Ng6 11. Nf1 d5 $146 ({RR} 11... Nh5 12. Bg5 f6 13. Be3 Nhf4 14. Bb3+ Kh8 15. d4 f5 16. exf5 Bxf5 17. Ng3 e4 18. Nd2 d5 19. Nxf5 Rxf5 20. Nf1 Rg5 21. Ng3 h5 22. h4 Rg4 23. Qxg4 hxg4 24. h5 Nd3 25. hxg6 Nxe1 26. Rxe1 {Getz,N (2367)-Mikalsen,E (2177) Oslo 2015 0-1 (55)}) ({RR} 11... c6 12. d4 exd4 13. cxd4 d5 14. e5 Ne4 15. Bc2 f5 16. Ng3 Nh4 17. Nh2 c5 18. Ne2 cxd4 19. Bd3 Nxg2 20. Kxg2 Qh4 21. Rf1 f4 22. Ng1 Bxh3+ 23. Nxh3 f3+ 24. Nxf3 Qg4+ 25. Kh2 Rxf3 26. Qxf3 {Pranav,V (2597)-Wei Yi (2722) chess.com INT 2023 0-1}) ({RR} 11... c6 12. Ng3 d5 13. exd5 Nxd5 14. d4 exd4 15. Nxd4 Re8 16. Rxe8+ Qxe8 17. Bb3 Qe5 18. Qd3 Qe1+ 19. Qf1 Qxf1+ 20. Kxf1 Bxd4 21. cxd4 Be6 22. Ne4 b6 23. Ng5 Bd7 24. Bd2 h6 25. Bxd5 cxd5 26. Nf3 {Kevlishvili,R (2536)-Bruzon Batista,L (2559) Saint Louis USA 2025 ½-½ (42)}) ({RR} 11... c6 12. Ng3 d5 13. exd5 Nxd5 14. d4 exd4 15. Nxd4 Qc7 16. Bc2 Bd7 17. c4 Ndf4 18. Be3 c5 19. Ndf5 Rad8 20. Qg4 Bc6 21. Bxf4 Qxf4 22. Ne7+ Kh8 23. Qxf4 Nxf4 24. Nxc6 bxc6 25. Rad1 Ne6 26. Be4 {Gheng,D (2068)-Lehmann,S (1989) Deizisau 2019 ½-½ (41)}) ({RR} 11... Nh5 12. d4 Nhf4 13. Ng3 Qf6 14. Nh5 Qe7 15. Bxf4 Nxf4 16. Nxf4 exf4 17. Qd2 Qf6 18. e5 dxe5 19. Nxe5 f3 20. Nxf3 Bxh3 21. Qg5 Be6 22. Qxf6 gxf6 23. b4 c6 24. Nd2 a5 25. a3 axb4 26. axb4 {Stoleriu,G (2392)-Cosma,I (2367) Geoagiu Bai ROU 2022 1-0 (67)}) 12. exd5 Nxd5 13. d4 exd4 14. Nxd4 c5 15. Nf3 b5 16. Bc2 Bb7 17. a4 c4 18. Bd2 Qc7 19. Nd4 b4 20. Qg4 Rae8 21. Rad1 bxc3 22. bxc3 Nf6 23. Qg3 Qa5 24. Qg5 Qxg5 25. Bxg5 Ne4 26. Bxe4 Bxe4 27. Nd2 Bd5 28. Nc2 Rxe1+ 29. Rxe1 Rc8 30. Nb4 Bb7 31. Ne4 a5 32. Nd6 Rb8 33. Nc2 Bc6 34. Be3 1/2-1/2 [Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"] [Site "Stavanger NOR"] [Date "2025.05.27"] [Round "2.2"] [White "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C78"] [WhiteElo "2804"] [BlackElo "2837"] [PlyCount "67"] [EventDate "2025.05.26"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. d3 Bc5 6. O-O d6 7. c3 O-O 8. Nbd2 Ba7 9. h3 Ne7 10. Re1 Ng6 11. Nf1 d5 $146 ({RR} 11... Nh5 12. Bg5 f6 13. Be3 Nhf4 14. Bb3+ Kh8 15. d4 f5 16. exf5 Bxf5 17. Ng3 e4 18. Nd2 d5 19. Nxf5 Rxf5 20. Nf1 Rg5 21. Ng3 h5 22. h4 Rg4 23. Qxg4 hxg4 24. h5 Nd3 25. hxg6 Nxe1 26. Rxe1 {Getz,N (2367)-Mikalsen,E (2177) Oslo 2015 0-1 (55)}) ({RR} 11... c6 12. d4 exd4 13. cxd4 d5 14. e5 Ne4 15. Bc2 f5 16. Ng3 Nh4 17. Nh2 c5 18. Ne2 cxd4 19. Bd3 Nxg2 20. Kxg2 Qh4 21. Rf1 f4 22. Ng1 Bxh3+ 23. Nxh3 f3+ 24. Nxf3 Qg4+ 25. Kh2 Rxf3 26. Qxf3 {Pranav,V (2597)-Wei Yi (2722) chess.com INT 2023 0-1}) ({RR} 11... c6 12. Ng3 d5 13. exd5 Nxd5 14. d4 exd4 15. Nxd4 Re8 16. Rxe8+ Qxe8 17. Bb3 Qe5 18. Qd3 Qe1+ 19. Qf1 Qxf1+ 20. Kxf1 Bxd4 21. cxd4 Be6 22. Ne4 b6 23. Ng5 Bd7 24. Bd2 h6 25. Bxd5 cxd5 26. Nf3 {Kevlishvili,R (2536)-Bruzon Batista,L (2559) Saint Louis USA 2025 ½-½ (42)}) ({RR} 11... c6 12. Ng3 d5 13. exd5 Nxd5 14. d4 exd4 15. Nxd4 Qc7 16. Bc2 Bd7 17. c4 Ndf4 18. Be3 c5 19. Ndf5 Rad8 20. Qg4 Bc6 21. Bxf4 Qxf4 22. Ne7+ Kh8 23. Qxf4 Nxf4 24. Nxc6 bxc6 25. Rad1 Ne6 26. Be4 {Gheng,D (2068)-Lehmann,S (1989) Deizisau 2019 ½-½ (41)}) ({RR} 11... Nh5 12. d4 Nhf4 13. Ng3 Qf6 14. Nh5 Qe7 15. Bxf4 Nxf4 16. Nxf4 exf4 17. Qd2 Qf6 18. e5 dxe5 19. Nxe5 f3 20. Nxf3 Bxh3 21. Qg5 Be6 22. Qxf6 gxf6 23. b4 c6 24. Nd2 a5 25. a3 axb4 26. axb4 {Stoleriu,G (2392)-Cosma,I (2367) Geoagiu Bai ROU 2022 1-0 (67)}) 12. exd5 Nxd5 13. d4 exd4 14. Nxd4 c5 15. Nf3 b5 16. Bc2 Bb7 17. a4 c4 18. Bd2 Qc7 19. Nd4 b4 20. Qg4 Rae8 21. Rad1 bxc3 22. bxc3 Nf6 23. Qg3 Qa5 24. Qg5 Qxg5 25. Bxg5 Ne4 26. Bxe4 Bxe4 27. Nd2 Bd5 28. Nc2 Rxe1+ 29. Rxe1 Rc8 30. Nb4 Bb7 31. Ne4 a5 32. Nd6 Rb8 33. Nc2 Bc6 34. Be3 1/2-1/2 [Event "London Classic 3rd"] [Site "London"] [Date "2011.12.04"] [Round "2"] [White "McShane, Luke J"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C78"] [WhiteElo "2671"] [BlackElo "2826"] [Annotator "Saunders,John C"] [PlyCount "166"] [EventDate "2011.12.03"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "ENG"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 146"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2012.01.18"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2012.01.18"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O b5 6. Bb3 Bc5 7. c3 d6 8. a4 Rb8 9. d4 Bb6 10. axb5 axb5 11. Qd3 {This line for Black is unappealing for the materialists amongst us as in involves giving up the b-pawn.} O-O 12. Bg5 h6 13. Bxf6 Qxf6 14. Qxb5 Na7 {And it involves putting the knight on what looks like a revolting square. It reminds me of Muhammed Ali and his 'rope-a-dope' tactics. We know the guy is good at what he does but the tactic doesn't look too smart for all that.} 15. Qa4 Qg6 16. Re1 Bh3 17. g3 Qf6 18. Nbd2 {Black has succeeded in weakening some squares around the kingside and he has the two bishops. But give me Luke's extra pawn any day.} Rbd8 19. Qc4 g5 20. Qd3 Bg4 21. Nc4 Nc6 {[diag]} 22. Nxb6 ({If you downloaded the game within 12 hours of the game being played, you might find your copy of the game score says} 22. Re3 {here. It's wrong, so please amend to what you see here. Some gremlin crept into our broadcasting system yesterday and garbled the score. It was only when I looked at the score critically today, with my favourite engine, switched on that the error made itself apparent. I checked with the arbiters and they told me the score was as given in the text.}) 22... cxb6 23. Re3 {Magnus is doing his best to probe various weaknesses in Luke's position but he's not really getting anywhere. A pawn is still a pawn and Luke is better.} Kg7 24. Kg2 h5 25. h3 Bd7 26. Ba4 Ra8 27. Bxc6 Bxc6 28. Rxa8 Rxa8 29. Qc4 Rc8 30. Qa6 Rb8 31. d5 Bd7 32. h4 {Luke can't stop the black pawn coming to g4 but he doesn't want to have to exchange the h-pawn when it arrives and risk opening the h-file.} g4 33. Nd2 Qd8 34. Qa3 Qc7 35. Re1 b5 36. Ra1 b4 {Magnus is getting desperate and trying to bluff his opponent.} 37. cxb4 Bb5 38. Qe3 f6 39. Qc3 (39. Ra7 Rb7 40. Rxb7 Qxb7 41. Qc3 {is possible but there are vague chances of Black coming round the back of the white position with his queen and perhaps establishing the bishop on f3.}) 39... Qb7 40. b3 Kg6 41. Rc1 Qb6 42. Kg1 Be2 43. Qc6 Qd8 ({Not falling for the devilish trap:} 43... Qxb4 $4 44. Qd7 $1 {when} Qxd2 {loses to} 45. Qf5+ Kh6 46. Qxf6+ Kh7 {and now the white rook enters the game with check:} 47. Rc7+ {and it's all over.}) 44. Nc4 Rxb4 45. Nxd6 Rb6 46. Qc2 Qxd6 47. Qxe2 Rxb3 48. Rd1 {The black queen cannot move or the d-pawn would advance.} Rb4 49. Qc2 Rb8 50. Qc3 Ra8 51. Qc6 Rd8 (51... Qxc6 52. dxc6 Rc8 53. Rc1 Kf7 54. f3 {and White can soon engineer a passed pawn on the other flank.}) 52. Rb1 Qd7 53. Kg2 Qd6 54. Rb3 Qd7 55. Rb1 {White gains time with repetitions.} Qd6 56. Rb3 Qd7 57. Qa6 ({Luke hesitates but in truth it is very, very hard to come up with anything concrete here and actually very easy for White to mess it up, e.g.} 57. Rb6 $6 Qxc6 58. dxc6 (58. Rxc6 Ra8 {and the rook can menace the e-pawn and police the advance of the d-pawn from d4}) 58... Rd1 {and Black can mount an ideal defence, cutting off the king and preparing to play Rc1 and keep tabs on the c-pawn.}) 57... Qc8 58. Qd3 Qc5 59. Rc3 Qb4 60. Rc4 {[diag] Time control reached but this is probably an error.} Qe1 $1 {With seconds left on his clock, Magnus follows his instincts. He cuts off his opponent's king and prepares to invade with his rook via the a- or b-files.} 61. Qc3 Qxc3 62. Rxc3 Ra8 {Again, Magnus is contemplating active defence behind the d-pawn, and also threatening the e-pawn from the flank.} 63. Rd3 Kf7 64. f3 ({What to do? If} 64. Kf1 {Magnus replies} Ra2 {to keep the king cut off}) ({if} 64. Rd2 {, Magnus can play} Ra3 {to stop f2-f3 and also keep the king at bay. Meanwhile the black king is near enough to stop the advance of the d-pawn.}) 64... Ra2+ 65. Kf1 Ra1+ 66. Kf2 Ra2+ 67. Kf1 (67. Ke3 Rg2 {also leads nowhere.}) 67... Ra1+ 68. Ke2 Ra2+ 69. Rd2 gxf3+ 70. Ke1 Ra4 71. d6 Rxe4+ 72. Kf2 {[diag]} Ke8 ({Is Luke in danger of losing? No. Magnus doesn't fall for} 72... Re2+ $4 73. Rxe2 fxe2 {which looks like a Black win until White bangs down} 74. g4 $3 {and White wins after all with two passed pawns. The black king cannot intercept them both.}) 73. Kxf3 Ra4 74. d7+ Kd8 75. Rd6 {"Oh no!" IM Lawrence Trent in the commentary room couldn't disguise his partisan sympathies and kept chanting this like the chorus of a Greek tragedy. In truth it's a dead draw and the players could stop now.} f5 76. Re6 Ra3+ 77. Kf2 e4 78. Rd6 Rf3+ 79. Kg2 f4 80. gxf4 Rxf4 81. Kg3 Rf3+ 82. Kg2 Rf4 83. Kg3 Rf3+ 1/2-1/2 [Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"] [Site "Stavanger NOR"] [Date "2025.05.26"] [Round "3.2"] [White "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C78"] [WhiteElo "2804"] [BlackElo "2837"] [Annotator "Stockfish 17.1"] [PlyCount "67"] [EventDate "2025.05.26"] {[%evp 0,67,19,26,26,26,20,19,24,-2,-4,9,4,17,15,-13,-6,-38,2,-18,7,-7,1,-1,20,12,12,17,2,11,15,15,11,-5,-5,-6,-20,-27,-18,-33,-45,-62,-18,-37,-12,-12,-28,-30,5,-87,-78,-76,-29,-26,-18,-20,-3,-29,-1,-1,15,-1,0,7,39,39,25,42,25,25]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. d3 Bc5 6. O-O d6 7. c3 O-O 8. Nbd2 Ba7 9. h3 Ne7 10. Re1 Ng6 11. Nf1 d5 12. exd5 Nxd5 13. d4 exd4 14. Nxd4 c5 15. Nf3 b5 16. Bc2 Bb7 17. a4 c4 18. Bd2 $6 {Inaccuracy. Be4 was best.} (18. Be4) 18... Qc7 19. Nd4 b4 20. Qg4 Rae8 21. Rad1 bxc3 22. bxc3 Nf6 23. Qg3 Qa5 24. Qg5 Qxg5 $6 {Inaccuracy. Qc7 was best.} (24... Qc7) 25. Bxg5 Ne4 26. Bxe4 Bxe4 27. Nd2 Bd5 28. Nc2 Rxe1+ 29. Rxe1 Rc8 30. Nb4 Bb7 31. Ne4 a5 32. Nd6 Rb8 33. Nc2 Bc6 34. Be3 {PRECISÃO LICHESS: BRANCAS 97% PRETAS 97% PRECISÃO CHESS.COM: BRANCAS 96.6% PRETAS 97.2%} 1/2-1/2 [Event "Tata Steel-A 75th"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2013.01.18"] [Round "6"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Sokolov, Ivan"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C78"] [WhiteElo "2861"] [BlackElo "2663"] [Annotator "Carlsen,Magnus"] [PlyCount "95"] [EventDate "2013.01.12"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 153"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2013.03.14"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2013.03.14"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O b5 6. Bb3 Bb7 7. d3 Bc5 8. a4 O-O 9. Bg5 ({The complications that arise after Die Komplikation, die nach} 9. Nc3 Na5 {have been working well for Black, as far as I know. The text is a more positional approach, aiming for a slight advantage. entstehen, haben für Schwarz gut funktoniert, soweit ich weiß. Der Text ist eine positionellere Herangehensweise, die auf einen kleinen Vorteil abzielt.}) 9... h6 10. Bh4 d6 11. c3 Qe7 {Ivan went for this after a bit of thought. I assumed the plan was to go ?d8-e6 at some point, while staying flexible and keeping the option of going g5 at the appropriate juncture. Dies wählte Ivan nach ein wenig Nachdenken. Ich vermute, der Plan war, ?d8-e6 an irgendeiner Stelle zu spielen und dabei flexibel zu bleiben und sich die Möglichkeit zu g5 im passenden Moment vorzubehalten.} 12. Na3 {This is just awful, especially in combination with my next move. Das ist einfach schrecklich, vor allem in Kombination mit meinem nächsten Zug.} (12. Nbd2 {would have been the sane choice. wäre die gesunde Wahl gewesen.}) (12. Kh1 {was played in one of the three games that reached this position. It probably makes more sense than what I did. wurde in einer der drei Partien gespielt, die diese Stellung erreichten. Es ist vermutlich sinnvoller als das, was ich tat.}) 12... Na5 {Of course. Natürlich.} 13. Bc2 ({I had assumed that Ich hatte angenommen, dass} 13. axb5 Nxb3 14. Qxb3 {would work out for me, but Black actually has several good options here, including the simple für mich funktionieren würde, tatsächlich aber hat Schwarz hier sogar mehrere gute Möglichkeiten, darunter das einfache} Rfb8 15. Qc2 (15. bxa6 Bxe4 16. Qd1 Bxf3 17. Qxf3 g5 18. b4 Bb6 {and ...?xa6 und ...?xa6}) 15... Bxa3 16. Rxa3 axb5 {and Black is absolutely fine. und Schwarz steht absolut ordentlich.}) (13. Ba2 {was another option, but after the simple war eine andere Option, aber nach dem einfachen} Bxa3 14. bxa3 c5 {it appeared to me that Black would have too easy a game, with c4 coming up, so I decided to keep the tension at the cost of two tempi. schien mir, dass Schwarz, mit bevorstehendem c4, zu leichtes Spiel haben würde, daher beschloss ich, auf Kosten zweier Tempi die Spannung aufrechtzuerhalten.}) 13... b4 14. Nb1 g5 15. Bg3 Nh5 {Obviously, Black is doing well now. However, the white position still has some long-term potential, especially based on the potentially offside knight on a5 (spoiler alert: it did not make another move in the game). Offenkundig steht Schwarz jetzt gut. Allerdings hat die weiße Stellung dennoch langfristiges Potential, vor allem basierend auf dem potentiell abseits stehenden Springer auf a5 (Spielverderberalarm: Er machte in der Partie keinen Zug mehr).} 16. Nbd2 Ba7 17. Re1 bxc3 18. bxc3 Nxg3 19. hxg3 Qf6 20. Qe2 Rfb8 21. Rab1 Bc8 22. Nf1 {It seems that White is not really worse here, but it was only after the next move that I really started to hope for something more. Es scheint, dass Weiß hier nicht wirklich schlechter steht, aber erst nach dem nächsten Zug begann ich tatsächlich, auf etwas mehr zu hoffen.} Rxb1 {In slight time pressure Ivan decided to simplify. However, the double rook exchange loses crucial time, allowing me to get in ?e3 and d4. In slight time pressure Ivan decided to simplify. However, the double rook exchange loses crucial time, allowing me to get in ?e3 and d4.} (22... Be6 {or most other sensible moves would have been absolutely fine. oder die meisten anderen vernünftigen Züge wären absolut in Ordnung gewesen.}) 23. Rxb1 Rb8 24. Rxb8 Bxb8 25. Ne3 Ba7 (25... Nc6 26. Nh2 {with ?g4 to come would also have been unpleasant. mit ?g4 im Fahrwasser wäre ebenfalls unangenehm gewesen.}) 26. d4 {This is the point. I have time to develop an initiative before he can bring the knight and bishop back into play. Das ist der Punkt. Ich habe Zeit, eine Initiative zu entwickeln, bevor er Springer und Läufer wieder ins Spiel bringen kann.} g4 {This just allows the second knight to jump in. Dies erlaubt nur dem zweiten Springer, ins Spiel einzugreifen.} (26... exd4 27. cxd4 Bxd4 28. Nd5 {is no good either, but taugt ebenfalls nichts, aber}) (26... c6 {would still have been reasonably solid. wäre noch immer halbwegs solide gewesen.}) 27. Nd5 Qd8 28. Nh4 c6 (28... exd4 29. Nf5 {spells disaster for Black. bedeutet Unheil für Schwarz.}) 29. Ne3 h5 (29... exd4 30. Nhf5 {is similar to the previous note. ist ähnlich der vorigen Anmerkung.}) 30. Nhf5 Qf6 31. Qd3 Bb6 32. Bb1 Kf8 33. Ba2 Bc7 {I've achieved everything I wanted , but it's still not easy to break through, as attempts to play on the kingside with f3 or f4 did not appear convincing at all. I decided that I probably needed to attack a6 somehow, possibly after including d5 ...c5. Ich habe alles erreicht, was ich wollte, aber es ist immer noch nicht leicht durchzubrigen, denn Versuche, mit f3 oder f4 am Königsflügel zu spielen, schienen keineswegs überzeugend. Ich entschied, dass ich wahrscheinlich irgendwie a6 angreifen müssen, womöglich nach dem Einschub von d5 ...c5.} 34. Qb1 Ke8 35. Qb4 {Now the bishop is going to d3, and the queen to e2 or f1. Jetzt geht der Läufer nach d3, und die Dame nach e2 oder f1.} d5 {A tempting move, especially in time-trouble, but now the centralised white pieces will rule. Ein verlockendere Zug, vor allem in Zeitnot, aber jetzt werden die zentralisierten weißen Figuren herrschen.} ({However, passive defence was also unpromising, for instance Passive Verteidigung war allerdings auch nicht verlockend, zum Beispiel} 35... Kf8 36. Bb1 Ke8 37. Bd3 Kf8 38. Qb1 Kg8 39. d5 c5 40. Qf1 Bd7 41. Bxa6 Bxa4 42. Bb5 Bb3 43. f3 gxf3 44. gxf3 {and the black kingside is helpless, with all the minor pieces stranded on the queenside. und mit allen Leichtfiguren am Damenflügel gestrandet, ist der schwarze Königsflügel ist hilflos.}) 36. Bb1 exd4 37. cxd4 dxe4 38. Bxe4 Be6 {This loses, but it is hard to suggest anything better. Das verliert, aber es fällt schwer, etwas Besseres vorzuschlagen.} 39. Qc5 Kd7 40. d5 cxd5 41. Nxd5 Bxd5 42. Qxd5+ Kc8 43. Ne3 {Material is still equal, but the difference in activity and king safety is simply too huge. Das Material ist noch ausgeglichen, aber der Unterschied in punkto Aktivität und Königssicherheit ist einfach zu riesig.} Qa1+ 44. Kh2 Qxa4 (44... h4 {was the one move I needed to calculate, but it is not too hard to see that after war der einzige Zug, den ich berechnen musste, aber es fällt nicht allzu schwer zu sehen, dass nach} 45. Qa8+ Kd7 46. Bf5+ Ke7 47. Nd5+ Kd6 48. Nxc7 hxg3+ 49. fxg3 Kxc7 50. Qc8+ Kb6 51. Qd8+ Ka7 52. Qxa5 Qh8+ 53. Kg1 Qd4+ 54. Kf1 {White easily escapes the checks and wins. Weiß mühelos den Schachs entkommt und gewinnt.}) 45. Qa8+ Kd7 46. Nd5 {This one is just lazy. I played it fairly quickly, assuming that ...?d8, which he did in fact play, was the only move. Der ist einfach faul. Ich spielte ihn recht schnell in der Annahme, dass ...?d8, was er in der Tat auch spielte, der einzige Zug war.} (46. Bf5+ Ke7 47. Qa7 Qc6 48. Qd4 {Centralisation! And the threat of ?d5 is lethal. Zentralisation! Und die Drohung ?d5 ist tödlich.}) 46... Bd8 (46... Qc6 {would have allowed Black to fight on for a while, as there is no clear-cut win. hätte Schwarz erlaubt, eine Weile weiterzukämpfen, denn einen klaren Gewinn gibt es nicht..} 47. Qh8 Qe6 48. Qxh5 Kd6) (46... Qd4 47. Qf8 Qe5 48. Qxf7+ Kc6 49. Nf6+ Kb5 50. Bd3+ Kc6 51. Nxh5 {would also have prolonged the resistance. hätte den Widerstand ebenfalls verlängert.}) 47. Bf5+ Ke8 48. Qc8 {This one he evidently missed. There is no defence to ?d7+ followed by ?f6+, so he resigned. Das hatte er offenbar übersehen. Es gibt keine Verteidigung gegen ?d7+ nebst ?f6+, daher gab er auf.} 1-0 [Event "Norway Chess 6th"] [Site "Stavanger"] [Date "2018.05.29"] [Round "2"] [White "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C78"] [WhiteElo "2782"] [BlackElo "2843"] [PlyCount "82"] [EventDate "2018.05.28"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 185"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2018.07.13"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2018.07.13"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Bc5 6. c3 O-O 7. d4 Ba7 8. dxe5 Nxe4 9. Qd5 Nc5 10. Bc2 Ne7 11. Qd1 d5 12. exd6 Qxd6 13. Qxd6 cxd6 14. Rd1 Bg4 15. Rxd6 Bf5 16. Na3 Ne4 17. Bxe4 Bxe4 18. Rd1 Nf5 19. Nc4 $146 ({RR} 19. Bf4 Rfe8 20. Nc4 Bxf3 21. gxf3 Re2 22. Rd2 Bxf2+ 23. Kf1 Rxd2 24. Nxd2 Ba7 25. Ne4 Rd8 26. Ke2 f6 27. Rd1 Rxd1 28. Kxd1 Kf7 29. a4 Ke6 30. Ke2 h5 31. h3 Ne7 32. Bd2 Ke5 33. Ng3 g6 {Bacrot,E (2678)-Piorun,K (2608) Krasnaya Polyana 2021 ½-½ (46)}) ({RR} 19. Bf4 Rfe8 20. Nc4 Bxf3 21. gxf3 Re2 22. Rd2 Bxf2+ 23. Kf1 Rxd2 24. Nxd2 Ba7 25. Ne4 Rd8 26. Ke2 f6 27. Rd1 Rxd1 28. Kxd1 Kf7 29. a4 Ke6 30. Ke2 h5 31. h3 Ne7 32. Bd2 Ke5 33. Ng3 g6 {Bacrot,E (2678)-Piorun,K (2608) Krasnaya Polyana 2021 ½-½ (46)}) 19... Rfe8 20. Be3 Bxe3 21. Nxe3 Nxe3 22. fxe3 Bxf3 23. gxf3 Rxe3 24. Rd7 Rb8 25. Rad1 Kf8 26. Kf2 Re7 27. Rd8+ Re8 28. Rxb8 Rxb8 29. Rd7 Ke8 30. Rc7 b5 31. Rc6 Ra8 32. c4 Kd7 33. cxb5 axb5 34. Rb6 Rxa2 35. Rxb5 Ra4 36. Kg3 Rd4 37. Rb7+ Ke6 38. Rb6+ Kf5 39. Rb5+ Ke6 40. Rb6+ Kf5 41. Rb5+ Ke6 1/2-1/2 [Event "London Classic 11th"] [Site "London"] [Date "2019.12.04"] [Round "1.3"] [White "Vachier Lagrave, Maxime"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C78"] [WhiteElo "2780"] [BlackElo "2872"] [PlyCount "92"] [EventDate "2019.12.02"] [EventType "k.o."] [EventRounds "2"] [EventCountry "ENG"] [SourceTitle "CBM 194"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2020.01.27"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2020.01.27"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {ChessBase II} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Bc5 6. c3 O-O 7. d4 Ba7 8. dxe5 Nxe4 9. Qd5 Nc5 10. Bc2 Ne7 11. Qd1 d5 12. exd6 Qxd6 13. Qxd6 cxd6 14. Re1 ({RR} 14. Rd1 Bf5 15. Na3 Rfd8 16. Nd4 Bxc2 17. Naxc2 Ne6 18. Ne2 Bc5 19. Rd3 Nc6 20. Be3 Ne5 21. Rd5 Nc4 22. Bc1 a5 23. a4 Rac8 24. Kf1 Nc7 25. Rd1 d5 26. b3 Ne5 27. Be3 Ne6 28. f3 Nc6) ({RR} 14. Rd1 Bg4 15. Be3 Bxf3 16. gxf3 d5 17. Nd2 Ne6 18. Nb3 Rfd8 19. Rd2 d4 20. Nxd4 Bxd4 21. Bxd4 Nxd4 22. Rxd4 Rxd4 23. cxd4 Rd8 24. Be4 Rd7 25. Rd1 f5 26. Bb1 Kf7 27. a3 Kf6 28. Ba2 Nc6 {So,W (2770)-Carlsen,M (2863) Lichess.org INT 2020 ½-½}) ({RR} 14. Rd1 Bg4 15. Be3 Bxf3 16. gxf3 d5 17. Nd2 Ne6 18. Nb3 g6 19. Rd2 Kg7 20. Re1 Rfd8 21. Kf1 Kf6 22. Red1 Rdc8 23. Nc1 a5 24. Ne2 Bxe3 25. fxe3 Ra6 26. Bd3 Rb6 27. a4 Nc6 28. Bb5 Nc7 {Vachier Lagrave,M (2736)-Caruana,F (2784) Saint Louis USA 2025 ½-½ (35)}) 14... Re8 15. Na3 $146 ({RR} 15. Be3 Bf5 16. Na3 Bxc2 17. Bxc5 dxc5 18. Nxc2 Nc6 19. a4 Rxe1+ 20. Rxe1 Rd8 21. g3 f6 22. Na3 Kf7 23. Kg2 Bb8 24. Nc4 Bc7 25. Ra1 b6 26. h4 Ne7 27. h5 Rd5 28. Rh1 Rd7 ({RR} 28... Nf5) 29. Ne3 Nd5 {Vachier Lagrave,M (2780)-Fressinet,L (2640) Brest 2019 CBM 190 Extra [ChessBase II] ½-½ (84)}) 15... Bg4 16. Bf4 Bxf3 17. gxf3 d5 18. Rad1 Ne6 19. Be3 g6 20. Bb3 d4 21. cxd4 Nf5 22. d5 Ned4 23. Bxd4 Rxe1+ 24. Rxe1 Bxd4 25. Nc4 b5 26. Ne3 Nd6 27. Rc1 Bxb2 28. Rc6 Be5 29. Ng4 Bf4 30. Nf6+ Kg7 31. Ne4 Nf5 32. d6 Ra7 33. Bd1 Nd4 34. Rb6 Rd7 35. Rxa6 f5 36. Nc5 Rxd6 37. Rxd6 Bxd6 38. Nb3 Ne6 39. Be2 b4 40. Bc4 Nf4 41. Nc1 Kf6 42. Nd3 Nxd3 43. Bxd3 Bf4 44. Bc4 Bd6 45. Bd3 Bf4 46. Bc4 Bd6 1/2-1/2 [Event "Norway Chess 9th"] [Site "Stavanger"] [Date "2021.09.13"] [Round "6"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Firouzja, Alireza"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C78"] [WhiteElo "2855"] [BlackElo "2754"] [PlyCount "103"] [EventDate "2021.09.07"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 204"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2021.10.31"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2021.10.31"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O b5 6. Bb3 Bc5 7. a4 Rb8 8. c3 d6 9. d4 Bb6 10. a5 Ba7 11. h3 Bb7 12. Be3 Nxe4 13. Nbd2 Nxd2 14. Qxd2 O-O 15. dxe5 dxe5 16. Qxd8 Rbxd8 17. Bxa7 Nxa7 18. Nxe5 Bd5 19. Bc2 Nc6 20. Nxc6 Bxc6 21. Rad1 Rfe8 22. Rxd8 $146 ({RR} 22. f3 Kf8 23. Kf2 h6 24. h4 Bd5 25. b4 Rd6 26. Rd2 Be6 27. Rxd6 cxd6 28. Rc1 Rc8 29. Bd3 g5 30. hxg5 hxg5 31. Ke3 Ke7 32. Kd4 Rh8 33. g3 Rh2 34. Rg1 Rd2 35. Ke3 Rh2 36. Be4 d5 {Sindarov,J (2629)-Arjun,K (2513) Abu Dhabi 2022 ½-½ (72)}) 22... Rxd8 23. Rd1 Rxd1+ 24. Bxd1 Kf8 25. f4 Ke7 26. Kf2 Kd6 27. b4 Bd5 28. g4 h6 29. g5 hxg5 30. fxg5 c5 31. Ke3 cxb4 32. cxb4 Ke5 33. h4 g6 34. Bg4 Be6 35. h5 gxh5 36. Bxh5 Kf5 37. Bf3 Bc8 38. Kd4 Kxg5 39. Ke5 f5 40. Kd6 f4 41. Ke5 Kg6 42. Kxf4 Kf6 43. Bd5 Bd7 44. Bb7 Ke6 45. Ke4 Kd6 46. Bxa6 Bc6+ 47. Kd4 Be8 48. Bb7 Bd7 49. Bf3 Bc8 50. Be2 Bd7 51. Bd3 Bc6 52. Be4 1-0 [Event "Sinquefield Cup 5th"] [Site "Saint Louis"] [Date "2017.08.04"] [Round "3"] [White "Anand, Viswanathan"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C78"] [WhiteElo "2783"] [BlackElo "2822"] [PlyCount "131"] [EventDate "2017.08.02"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "USA"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 180"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2017.09.13"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2017.09.13"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O b5 6. Bb3 Bc5 7. Nc3 O-O 8. d3 d6 9. Nd5 h6 10. c3 ({RR} 10. a4 Rb8 11. axb5 axb5 12. Be3 Nxd5 13. exd5 Bxe3 14. fxe3 Ne7 15. e4 Ng6 16. Qd2 f5 17. Ra7 fxe4 18. dxe4 Bg4 19. Qe3 Bxf3 20. Rxf3 Rxf3 21. Qxf3 Qg5 22. Ra1 Rf8 23. Qg3 Qd2 24. Qe1 Qd4+ {Dominguez Perez,L (2732)-Ding,L (2766) Huaian 2016 0-1 (38)}) ({RR} 10. a4 b4 11. a5 Bg4 12. c3 bxc3 13. bxc3 Rb8 14. Bc4 Nxd5 15. exd5 Ne7 16. h3 Bc8 17. d4 exd4 18. Nxd4 Bb7 19. Qg4 Ng6 20. Nc6 Bxc6 21. dxc6 Ne5 22. Qe2 Nxc4 23. Qxc4 Rb5 24. Qg4 Qf6) 10... Rb8 ({RR} 10... Re8 11. a4 ({RR} 11. Nxf6+ Qxf6 12. Bd5 Bb7 13. a4 Bb6 14. axb5 axb5 15. Rxa8 Bxa8 16. Qb3 Na7 17. Be3 Bxd5 18. Qxd5 c6 19. Qa2 Qd8 20. Qa6 Nc8 21. Qb7 Qc7 22. Qxc7 Bxc7 23. Ra1 Bb6 24. Bxb6 Nxb6 25. Ra6 Rb8) ({RR} 11. d4 Ba7 12. Re1 Rb8 13. a4 b4 14. a5 exd4 15. cxd4 Nxd5 16. Bxd5 Ne7 17. Bc4 Bg4 18. Bxa6 Nc6 19. Be3 Qf6 20. Rc1 Nxa5 21. Be2 Bb6 22. h3 Bxf3 23. Bxf3 Rbd8 24. Qa4 c6 25. Qxb4 Rb8) 11... Bb7 12. Be3 Na5 13. Nxf6+ Qxf6 14. Ba2 Bb6 15. b4 Nc6 16. Bd5 Rab8 17. a5 Bxe3 18. fxe3 Nd8 19. Bb3 Bc8 20. Qe1 Be6 21. Bd5 c6 22. Bxe6 fxe6 23. d4 Qg6 24. dxe5 dxe5 25. Nxe5 {Das,S (2435)-Orfila,K (2194) Annemasse FRA 2025 1-0}) 11. Re1 $146 ({RR} 11. a4 Nxd5 12. exd5 Ne7 13. axb5 axb5 14. d4 exd4 15. Nxd4 Bd7 16. Be3 Nf5 17. Nxf5 Bxf5 18. Re1 Re8 19. Qd2 Qf6 20. h3 Qg6 21. Kh2 h5 22. Bxc5 dxc5 23. Qf4 c4 24. Rxe8+ Rxe8 25. Bd1 Be4 {Zarubitski,V (2442)-Aleksandrov,A (2593) Minsk 2020 1-0 (69)}) ({RR} 11. d4 Ba7 12. Be3 Ng4 13. dxe5 Nxe3 14. Nxe3 dxe5 15. Qxd8 Rxd8 16. Nd5 Rb7 17. Nb4 Nxb4 18. Nxe5 c5 19. cxb4 c4 20. Nc6 Rd2 21. Rad1 Rxb2 22. Rd8+ Kh7 23. Rxc8 cxb3 24. axb3 Bb6 25. Rb8 Rxb8 {Sargsyan,S (2472)-Harutyunian,T (2504) Yerevan 2018 ½-½ (35)}) 11... Ba7 12. Be3 Bxe3 13. Nxe3 Re8 14. a4 b4 15. a5 bxc3 16. bxc3 Be6 17. Bxe6 Rxe6 18. Nd5 Ne7 19. Nxf6+ Rxf6 20. d4 Ng6 21. g3 Qc8 22. Re3 Rb5 23. Nd2 h5 24. h4 Qh3 25. Qf1 Qg4 26. Qe2 Qxe2 27. Rxe2 Re6 28. Nf1 Nf8 29. Rc2 exd4 30. cxd4 c5 31. dxc5 dxc5 32. Nd2 Rd6 33. Nc4 Rd4 34. Kg2 Ne6 35. Ra3 g6 36. Nd2 Kg7 37. Rac3 Rdb4 38. Ra2 Rd4 39. Rac2 Ra4 40. Nb3 Rxb3 41. Rxb3 Nd4 42. Rcb2 Nxb3 43. Rxb3 Rxe4 44. Rb6 Re6 45. Rb7 c4 46. Rc7 Re5 47. Rxc4 Rxa5 48. Rc6 Ra2 49. Kf3 a5 50. Ra6 a4 51. Ke3 a3 52. Kf3 f6 53. Ra7+ Kf8 54. Kg2 Ra1 55. Kf3 Ke8 56. Ra6 Ke7 57. Kg2 Kf7 58. Kf3 Ra2 59. Kg2 g5 60. g4 gxh4 61. gxh5 Ra1 62. Ra7+ Kg8 63. h6 Kh8 64. Kh2 f5 65. f4 a2 66. Kg2 1/2-1/2 [Event "Norway Chess 9th"] [Site "Stavanger"] [Date "2021.09.13"] [Round "6"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Firouzja, Alireza"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C78"] [WhiteElo "2855"] [BlackElo "2754"] [PlyCount "103"] [EventDate "2021.09.07"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 204"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2021.10.31"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2021.10.31"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O b5 6. Bb3 Bc5 7. a4 Rb8 8. c3 d6 9. d4 Bb6 10. a5 Ba7 11. h3 Bb7 12. Be3 Nxe4 13. Nbd2 Nxd2 14. Qxd2 O-O 15. dxe5 dxe5 16. Qxd8 Rbxd8 17. Bxa7 Nxa7 18. Nxe5 Bd5 19. Bc2 Nc6 20. Nxc6 Bxc6 21. Rad1 Rfe8 22. Rxd8 $146 ({RR} 22. f3 Kf8 23. Kf2 h6 24. h4 Bd5 25. b4 Rd6 26. Rd2 Be6 27. Rxd6 cxd6 28. Rc1 Rc8 29. Bd3 g5 30. hxg5 hxg5 31. Ke3 Ke7 32. Kd4 Rh8 33. g3 Rh2 34. Rg1 Rd2 35. Ke3 Rh2 36. Be4 d5 {Sindarov,J (2629)-Arjun,K (2513) Abu Dhabi 2022 ½-½ (72)}) 22... Rxd8 23. Rd1 Rxd1+ 24. Bxd1 Kf8 25. f4 Ke7 26. Kf2 Kd6 27. b4 Bd5 28. g4 h6 29. g5 hxg5 30. fxg5 c5 31. Ke3 cxb4 32. cxb4 Ke5 33. h4 g6 34. Bg4 Be6 35. h5 gxh5 36. Bxh5 Kf5 37. Bf3 Bc8 38. Kd4 Kxg5 39. Ke5 f5 40. Kd6 f4 41. Ke5 Kg6 42. Kxf4 Kf6 43. Bd5 Bd7 44. Bb7 Ke6 45. Ke4 Kd6 46. Bxa6 Bc6+ 47. Kd4 Be8 48. Bb7 Bd7 49. Bf3 Bc8 50. Be2 Bd7 51. Bd3 Bc6 52. Be4 1-0 [Event "Reykjavik op 22nd"] [Site "Reykjavik"] [Date "2006.03.11"] [Round "6"] [White "Pavlovic, Milos"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C78"] [WhiteElo "2494"] [BlackElo "2625"] [PlyCount "66"] [EventDate "2006.03.06"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "ISL"] [SourceTitle "CBM 111 Extra"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2006.05.09"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2006.05.09"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O b5 6. Bb3 Bc5 7. c3 d6 8. d4 Bb6 9. a4 Bg4 10. axb5 axb5 11. Rxa8 Qxa8 12. h3 Bh5 13. Qd3 ({RR} 13. Re1 h6 14. g4 Bg6 15. Be3 exd4 16. cxd4 O-O 17. d5 Bxe3 18. Rxe3 Na5 19. Bc2 Nc4 20. Re1 Nxb2 21. Qd4 Nc4 22. Bd3 Qa4 23. Bxc4 bxc4 24. Nc3 Qc2 25. Qd2 Qb3 26. Nd4 Qa3 27. Ndb5 Qa5 {Grischuk,A (2776)-Caruana,F (2820) Bucharest 2021 ½-½ (66)}) ({RR} 13. g4 Bg6 14. g5 Ng8 15. dxe5 Nxe5 16. Nxe5 dxe5 17. Qd3 c6 18. Rd1 Qc8 19. Na3 Ne7 20. Nxb5 O-O 21. Na3 Bh5 22. Re1 Ng6 23. Qg3 Rd8 24. Nc4 Qe6 25. Nd2 Qc8 26. Bc4 Nf4 27. Bf1 Qe6 {Ma Qun (2645)-Kourkoulos Arditis,S (2580) Prague CZE 2025 ½-½ (71)}) 13... exd4 14. Bg5 Bxf3 15. Bxf6 $146 ({RR} 15. Qxf3 Ne5 16. Qf5 O-O 17. Bxf6 gxf6 18. Rd1 Qa1 19. cxd4 Bxd4 20. Nc3 Qxb2 21. Nd5 Ng6 22. Nxc7 Bb6 23. Nd5 Qxb3 24. Nxf6+ Kh8 25. Rxd6 Bd8 26. Nd5 Qb2 27. Ne3 Be7 28. Rd7 b4 29. Ng4 Kg7 {Kosteniuk,A (2523)-Saravanan,V (2356) Caleta 2010 ½-½ (58)}) 15... Bxg2 16. Kxg2 gxf6 17. Qxb5 Ke7 18. Kh2 Ne5 19. f4 Qxe4 20. fxe5 Rg8 21. exf6+ Kf8 22. Rf2 d3 23. Qh5 Rg6 24. Qf3 Qe5+ 25. Kh1 Qe1+ 26. Rf1 Rg1+ 27. Kh2 Qe5+ 28. Qf4 Rxf1 29. Qxe5 dxe5 30. Nd2 Rf2+ 31. Kg3 Rxd2 32. Bxf7 Kxf7 33. b4 Rf2 0-1 [Event "NOR-chT qual"] [Site "Oslo"] [Date "2014.03.22"] [Round "1.1"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Georgiev, Vladimir"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C78"] [WhiteElo "2881"] [BlackElo "2553"] [PlyCount "79"] [EventDate "2014.03.22"] [EventType "team-match"] [EventRounds "1"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [SourceTitle "CBM 159 Extra"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2014.04.24"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2014.04.24"] [SourceQuality "1"] [WhiteTeam "Stavanger"] [BlackTeam "Nordstrand"] [WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"] [BlackTeamCountry "NOR"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O b5 6. Bb3 Bb7 7. d3 Bc5 8. c3 O-O 9. a4 d5 10. axb5 axb5 11. Rxa8 Bxa8 12. exd5 Nxd5 13. Re1 b4 14. Qc2 f6 15. Nbd2 Kh8 16. Ne4 Be7 17. h3 $146 ({RR} 17. Bd2 Na5 18. Ba2 c5 19. d4 cxd4 20. cxd4 b3 21. Bxb3 Nb4 22. Qc3 exd4 23. Nxd4 Nxb3 24. Nxb3 Qd5 25. f3 Nd3 26. Ra1 f5 27. Ra5 Qd8 28. Nec5 Nxc5 29. Nxc5 Bf6 30. Qd3 Qe7 31. Qe3 Qd6 {Zierk,S (2483)-Georgiev,V (2554) Saint Louis 2015 1-0 (48)}) 17... Na5 18. Ba2 b3 19. Bxb3 Nxb3 20. Qxb3 Nb6 21. d4 f5 22. Nc5 e4 23. Ne5 Bd5 24. Qd1 Bd6 25. Bf4 Nc4 26. b4 g5 27. Bh2 f4 28. Nxc4 Bxc5 29. Nd2 Bd6 30. Nxe4 Qe7 31. Nxd6 Qxd6 32. Re5 h6 33. h4 gxh4 34. Qh5 c6 35. f3 Qf6 36. b5 Ra8 37. Re8+ Rxe8 38. Qxe8+ Kh7 39. Qd7+ Kh8 40. b6 1-0 [Event "Reykjavik op 22nd"] [Site "Reykjavik"] [Date "2006.03.13"] [Round "8"] [White "Hamdouchi, Hicham"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C78"] [WhiteElo "2575"] [BlackElo "2625"] [PlyCount "78"] [EventDate "2006.03.06"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "ISL"] [SourceTitle "CBM 111 Extra"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2006.05.09"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2006.05.09"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {Marin,Mihail} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O b5 6. Bb3 Bc5 7. c3 d6 8. d4 Bb6 9. a4 ({RR} 9. Bg5) 9... Bg4 ({RR} 9... Rb8 10. Na3 ({RR} 10. axb5 axb5 11. Qd3)) 10. d5 ({RR} 10. h3 Bh5 11. axb5 axb5 12. Rxa8 Qxa8 13. d5 Na5 ({RR} 13... Ne7 14. Bc2 Bg6 15. Qe2 c6 16. dxc6 Qxc6 17. Re1 O-O 18. Na3 Rb8 19. Bd3 h6 20. Nd2 b4 21. cxb4 d5 22. Bb5 Qb7 23. exd5 Nexd5 24. Ndc4 Ne4) 14. Bc2 c6 15. dxc6 Qxc6 16. Re1 ({RR} 16. Bg5 Bd8 17. Na3 ({RR} 17. Bxf6 Bxf6 18. Nxe5 Bxd1 19. Nxc6 Bxc2 20. Nxa5 Kd7) 17... O-O 18. Bxf6 Bxf3 ({RR} 18... Bxf6 19. Nxe5 Bxe5 ({RR} 19... Bxd1 20. Nxc6 Bxc2 21. Nxa5 Bxe4 22. Re1) 20. Qxh5 Qc5 21. Qe2 b4) 19. Qxf3 Bxf6 20. Qe2 ({RR} 20. Bd3 Rb8 21. Nc2) 20... Rb8 21. Bd3 b4 22. cxb4 Rxb4 23. Qd2 Qb6) 16... h6 ({RR} 16... O-O 17. Bg5 Bd8 18. Bxf6 Bxf6 ({RR} 18... Bxf3 19. Qxf3 Bxf6) 19. Nxe5 Bxe5 20. Qxh5 Nc4) 17. Qe2 O-O 18. Na3 Nc4 19. Nxc4 bxc4 20. g4 Bg6 21. Nh4 d5 ({RR} 21... Nh7 22. Nf5 Bd8) 22. exd5 Nxd5 23. Be4 Qc5 ({RR} 23... Bxe4 24. Qxe4 Qc5 25. Re2 Re8 26. Nf5) 24. Bxd5 Qxd5 {Anand,V (2786)-Naiditsch,A (2654) Dortmund 2007 CBM 119 [Marin,Mihail] 1-0 (57)}) ({RR} 10. Bg5) ({RR} 10. axb5 axb5 11. Rxa8 Qxa8 12. h3 Bh5 13. Qd3 exd4 14. Bg5 Bxf3 15. Bxf6 Bxg2 16. Kxg2 gxf6 17. Qxb5 Ke7 18. Kh2 Ne5 19. f4 Qxe4 20. fxe5 Rg8 21. exf6+ Kf8 22. Rf2 d3 23. Qh5 Rg6 24. Qf3 Qe5+ {Pavlovic,M (2494)-Carlsen,M (2625) Reykjavik 2006 0-1 (33)}) 10... Ne7 11. h3 ({RR} 11. Nbd2 O-O 12. h3 Bd7 13. Re1 Ng6 14. Nf1 Nh5 15. axb5 axb5 16. Rxa8 Qxa8 17. Ne3 Nhf4 18. Nf5 Qd8 19. Be3 Bxe3 20. fxe3 Nh5 21. Rf1 Nf6 22. Bc2 Ne7 23. Ng3 c6 24. dxc6 Bxc6 25. Nh4 Ng6 {Khripachenko,A (2376)-Rostovtsev,D (2446) Sochi RUS 2025 1-0 (48)}) 11... Bh5 12. Re1 $146 ({RR} 12. Bc2 Rb8 13. axb5 axb5 14. Na3 Qc8 15. Nxb5 g5 16. Bxg5 Rg8 17. Ba4 Nd7 18. g4 Bg6 19. Re1 h5 20. Qd2 hxg4 21. hxg4 Kd8 22. Nh2 f6 23. Bh4 Nc5 24. Qc2 Bh5 25. Kh1 Rxg4 26. Bg3 Bg6 {Isha,S (2236)-Makkar,R (2336) Budapest 2022 0-1 (40)}) ({RR} 12. Nbd2 Bg6 13. Qe2 O-O 14. Bc2 Nh5 15. Nb3 Ng3 16. Qd1 Nxf1 17. Kxf1 f5 18. Qe2 h6 19. Bd2 Qd7 20. a5 Ba7 21. Re1 fxe4 22. Bxe4 Bxe4 23. Qxe4 Rxf3 24. gxf3 Qxh3+ 25. Ke2 Qg2 26. Rf1 Rf8 {Khamdamova,A (2327)-Lei,T (2550) Samarkand UZB 2023 0-1 (62)}) 12... Ng6 13. Qd3 O-O 14. Bd1 Bxf3 15. Bxf3 Nf4 16. Qf1 Rb8 17. axb5 axb5 18. Na3 Nd7 19. Nxb5 Qf6 20. Bxf4 Qxf4 21. Na3 f5 22. Nc4 Nf6 23. exf5 e4 24. Bd1 Qxf5 25. Bc2 Qxd5 26. Nxb6 Rxb6 27. b4 Qe5 28. Re3 d5 29. Ra5 Rd6 30. Qe2 Qf4 31. Qd2 Kh8 32. Re2 Qh4 33. Qd4 Nh5 34. Rxd5 Nf4 35. Rxe4 Rxd5 36. Qxd5 Nxh3+ 37. Kh2 Nf4+ 38. Kg1 Qg4 39. Rc4 Re8 0-1 [Event "FIDE World Cup"] [Site "Krasnaya Polyana"] [Date "2021.07.27"] [Round "5.7"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Esipenko, Andrey"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C79"] [WhiteElo "2847"] [BlackElo "2716"] [PlyCount "123"] [EventDate "2021.07.12"] [EventType "k.o."] [EventRounds "8"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [SourceTitle "CBM 203"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2021.08.31"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2021.08.31"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 d6 5. O-O a6 6. Bxc6+ bxc6 7. d4 exd4 8. Nxd4 c5 9. Nc6 Qd7 10. Na5 Qa4 11. Bd2 Bg4 ({RR} 11... Nxe4 12. Nc3 Nxc3 13. Bxc3 Be6 14. Qf3 d5 15. Rfe1 O-O-O 16. b3 Qb5 17. Bd2 Qb6 18. c4 Kb8 19. a3 g5 20. b4 g4 21. Qf6 Bd6 22. bxc5 Qxc5 23. Rab1+ Kc8 24. Nb7 Be7 25. Qb2 Qxa3 26. Qc2 {Grischuk,A (2766)-Kramnik,V (2792) Paris 2018 ½-½ (75)}) 12. f3 Be6 13. Bc3 $146 ({RR} 13. c4 Qxd1 14. Rxd1 Nd7 15. Nc3 Be7 16. Nd5 Bxd5 17. cxd5 O-O 18. g4 Bf6 19. Rab1 Rab8 20. b4 Ne5 21. Kg2 g5 22. Be1 cxb4 23. Bxb4 Rb5 24. Rb3 Rfb8 25. Bd2 Nd7 26. Rdb1 Kg7 27. Nc6 Ra8 {Adams,M (2696)-Dardha,D (2575) Chennai 2022 ½-½ (68)}) ({RR} 13. c4 Qxd1 14. Rxd1 Be7 15. Bc3 O-O 16. Nc6 Rfe8 17. Na3 Nd7 18. Nxe7+ Rxe7 19. Re1 f6 20. Rad1 Rb8 21. b3 Ne5 22. Kf2 Nc6 23. Rd2 Bf7 24. Nc2 a5 25. Na3 Nb4 26. Nb5 Be8 27. a3 Na6 {Cordoba Roa,A (2358)-Setumadhav,Y (2334) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (50)}) 13... Be7 14. b3 Qd7 15. Nd2 d5 16. Qe1 O-O 17. Rd1 Rad8 18. Ndc4 Qe8 19. exd5 Nxd5 20. Bb2 Kh8 21. Qg3 f6 22. Rfe1 Qf7 23. Nc6 Rde8 24. Nxe7 Rxe7 25. Qf2 Rfe8 26. Qxc5 h5 27. Ba3 Rd7 28. Re4 Bf5 29. Rxe8+ Qxe8 30. Qf2 Nc3 31. Re1 Qg6 32. Ne3 Be6 33. Bb2 Nd5 34. Nxd5 Bxd5 35. Qe2 Kh7 36. Bc1 Bc6 37. Bf4 h4 38. h3 Qf5 39. Be3 Re7 40. Qd2 Qg6 41. Qf2 Kg8 42. Bd2 Rxe1+ 43. Bxe1 Bd7 44. Kh2 Bf5 45. c4 Bb1 46. Qa7 Bd3 47. Qxc7 Bf1 48. Qd8+ Kh7 49. Qd2 Qh5 50. Qc2+ Kg8 51. Qe4 Qg5 52. Qd5+ Qxd5 53. cxd5 g5 54. a4 Kf7 55. Bc3 Bd3 56. b4 Bc2 57. b5 axb5 58. axb5 Bb3 59. d6 Ke6 60. b6 Bd5 61. d7 Kxd7 62. Bxf6 1-0 [Event "FIDE World Cup"] [Site "Krasnaya Polyana"] [Date "2021.07.27"] [Round "5.7"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Esipenko, Andrey"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C79"] [WhiteElo "2847"] [BlackElo "2716"] [PlyCount "123"] [EventDate "2021.07.12"] [EventType "k.o."] [EventRounds "8"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [SourceTitle "CBM 203"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2021.08.31"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2021.08.31"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 d6 5. O-O a6 6. Bxc6+ bxc6 7. d4 exd4 8. Nxd4 c5 9. Nc6 Qd7 10. Na5 Qa4 11. Bd2 Bg4 ({RR} 11... Nxe4 12. Nc3 Nxc3 13. Bxc3 Be6 14. Qf3 d5 15. Rfe1 O-O-O 16. b3 Qb5 17. Bd2 Qb6 18. c4 Kb8 19. a3 g5 20. b4 g4 21. Qf6 Bd6 22. bxc5 Qxc5 23. Rab1+ Kc8 24. Nb7 Be7 25. Qb2 Qxa3 26. Qc2 {Grischuk,A (2766)-Kramnik,V (2792) Paris 2018 ½-½ (75)}) 12. f3 Be6 13. Bc3 $146 ({RR} 13. c4 Qxd1 14. Rxd1 Nd7 15. Nc3 Be7 16. Nd5 Bxd5 17. cxd5 O-O 18. g4 Bf6 19. Rab1 Rab8 20. b4 Ne5 21. Kg2 g5 22. Be1 cxb4 23. Bxb4 Rb5 24. Rb3 Rfb8 25. Bd2 Nd7 26. Rdb1 Kg7 27. Nc6 Ra8 {Adams,M (2696)-Dardha,D (2575) Chennai 2022 ½-½ (68)}) ({RR} 13. c4 Qxd1 14. Rxd1 Be7 15. Bc3 O-O 16. Nc6 Rfe8 17. Na3 Nd7 18. Nxe7+ Rxe7 19. Re1 f6 20. Rad1 Rb8 21. b3 Ne5 22. Kf2 Nc6 23. Rd2 Bf7 24. Nc2 a5 25. Na3 Nb4 26. Nb5 Be8 27. a3 Na6 {Cordoba Roa,A (2358)-Setumadhav,Y (2334) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (50)}) 13... Be7 14. b3 Qd7 15. Nd2 d5 16. Qe1 O-O 17. Rd1 Rad8 18. Ndc4 Qe8 19. exd5 Nxd5 20. Bb2 Kh8 21. Qg3 f6 22. Rfe1 Qf7 23. Nc6 Rde8 24. Nxe7 Rxe7 25. Qf2 Rfe8 26. Qxc5 h5 27. Ba3 Rd7 28. Re4 Bf5 29. Rxe8+ Qxe8 30. Qf2 Nc3 31. Re1 Qg6 32. Ne3 Be6 33. Bb2 Nd5 34. Nxd5 Bxd5 35. Qe2 Kh7 36. Bc1 Bc6 37. Bf4 h4 38. h3 Qf5 39. Be3 Re7 40. Qd2 Qg6 41. Qf2 Kg8 42. Bd2 Rxe1+ 43. Bxe1 Bd7 44. Kh2 Bf5 45. c4 Bb1 46. Qa7 Bd3 47. Qxc7 Bf1 48. Qd8+ Kh7 49. Qd2 Qh5 50. Qc2+ Kg8 51. Qe4 Qg5 52. Qd5+ Qxd5 53. cxd5 g5 54. a4 Kf7 55. Bc3 Bd3 56. b4 Bc2 57. b5 axb5 58. axb5 Bb3 59. d6 Ke6 60. b6 Bd5 61. d7 Kxd7 62. Bxf6 1-0 [Event "Tata Steel-A 78th"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2016.01.24"] [Round "8"] [White "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C79"] [WhiteElo "2769"] [BlackElo "2844"] [PlyCount "62"] [EventDate "2016.01.16"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 171"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2016.03.14"] [SourceVersion "2"] [SourceVersionDate "2016.03.14"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {Pavlovic,Milos} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 g6 4. O-O Bg7 5. c3 a6 6. Ba4 d6 7. d4 Bd7 8. Re1 Nf6 ({RR} 8... Nge7 9. Be3 O-O 10. Nbd2 Qe8 11. Bb3 Kh8 12. h3 h6 13. Nf1 Na5 14. Bc2 Nc4 15. Bc1 Qd8 16. Ng3 Nb6 17. b3 a5 18. Be3 a4 19. Qd2 Kh7 20. Rad1) ({RR} 8... b5 9. Bb3 Nf6 10. Bg5 h6 11. Bh4 O-O 12. Nbd2 ({RR} 12. dxe5 Nxe5 13. Nxe5 dxe5 14. Nd2 Qe7 15. Nf1 Rfd8 ({RR} 15... Rad8 16. Qe2 c5 17. Bxf6 Qxf6 18. Bd5 h5 19. c4 Bh6 20. Rad1 b4 21. Rd3 Bg4 22. f3 Bc8 23. Nd2 Rd7 24. Qf2 Rc7 25. Rd1 a5 26. a4 Bd7 27. b3 h4 ({RR} 27... g5 28. Nf1)) 16. Ne3 Be6 17. Qc2 c6 18. a4 h5 19. Bg5 Kh7 20. Red1 Bxb3 21. Qxb3 Bh6 22. Bxf6 Qxf6 23. axb5 axb5 24. Rxa8 Rxa8 25. Nc2 Bf8 26. Ne1 Bc5) 12... exd4 13. Nxd4 Re8 ({RR} 13... Qb8 14. N2f3 Qb7 15. Nxc6 Bxc6 16. e5 dxe5 17. Nxe5 g5 18. Nxc6 Qxc6 19. Bg3) 14. Bd5 ({RR} 14. Bc2 Qb8 15. Nf1 Qb7 16. f3 Rac8 17. Nxc6 Bxc6 18. Qd2 Nd7 19. Ne3) 14... Nxd4 15. Bxa8 Qxa8 16. Bxf6 Bxf6 17. cxd4 Bxd4 18. Qc2) 9. d5 Ne7 ({RR} 9... Nb8 10. c4 O-O 11. Nc3 Bg4 12. h3 Bxf3 13. Qxf3 Nbd7 14. Be3 Kh8 15. b4) 10. Bxd7+ Nxd7 11. Be3 Ng8 ({RR} 11... h6 12. Nfd2 f5 13. f3 Bf6 ({RR} 13... f4 14. Bf2 g5 15. c4 h5 16. Nc3 Ng6 ({RR} 16... Bh6 17. b4 Rg8 18. c5 g4 19. Kh1 g3 20. Bg1 gxh2 21. Bf2 Nc8 22. Re2 Qg5 23. Qf1 h4 24. Nc4 Nf6) 17. Rc1 Bf8 18. b4 Be7 19. c5 dxc5 20. d6 cxd6 21. Nc4 Nf6 22. Nd5) 14. Bf2 O-O 15. c4 Bg5 16. Nc3 b6 ({RR} 16... h5 17. b4 Nf6 18. c5 Kh7 19. Nc4) 17. b4 Nf6 18. c5 h5 19. Nc4 ({RR} 19. exf5 gxf5 20. Nc4 Rb8 21. cxd6 cxd6 22. b5 a5 23. Na4 Nc8) ({RR} 19. cxd6 cxd6 20. b5 a5 21. Na4 Rb8 22. Rc1 fxe4 23. fxe4 Ng4) 19... Rb8 20. cxd6 cxd6 21. Qb3 ({RR} 21. b5 a5 22. Na4 Nc8) 21... Kh7 22. b5 a5 23. Na4 fxe4 24. fxe4 Nc8 25. h3 h4 26. Qd1 {Karjakin,S (2772)-Sasikiran,K (2660) Tromsoe 2013 CBM 156 [Pavlovic,Milos] 1-0 (42)} {RR} Nh5 27. Nd2 Rb7 28. Nf3 Rbf7) ({RR} 11... O-O 12. c4 h6 13. Nfd2 f5 14. f3 a5 15. Nc3 f4 16. Bf2 h5 17. a3 g5 18. b4 Nf6 19. c5 Ng6 20. Nc4 axb4 21. axb4 Rxa1 22. Qxa1 g4 23. Kh1 g3 24. Bg1 gxh2 25. Bf2 Ne8 26. Qa7 {Alonso Garcia,A (2458)-Fiorito,F (2274) Granada ESP 2025 0-1 (45)}) 12. c4 $146 ({RR} 12. h3 Bh6 13. Bxh6 Nxh6 14. Qc1 Ng8 15. b4 Ngf6 16. Qh6 Ng8 17. Qe3 Ngf6 18. Qh6 Ng8 19. Qe3 Ngf6 {½-½ (19) Pijpers,A (2473)-Sandipan,C (2568) Leiden 2016}) 12... Bh6 13. Nc3 ({RR} 13. Qd2 Bxe3 14. Qxe3 Ngf6 15. Nc3 O-O 16. Rac1 Qe7 17. b4 a5 18. a3 axb4 19. axb4 Ra3) 13... Bxe3 14. Rxe3 Ngf6 15. b4 O-O 16. Rc1 Qe7 17. Nd2 a5 18. a3 axb4 19. axb4 Nb6 20. h3 Rfc8 21. Ra1 Rxa1 22. Qxa1 Ra8 23. Qb2 Qe8 24. Qc2 c6 25. Kh2 Qc8 26. dxc6 Qxc6 27. Qb3 Kg7 28. Rd3 Ra1 29. Qb2 Ra8 30. Qb3 Ra1 31. Qb2 Ra8 1/2-1/2 [Event "Baku FIDE GP"] [Site "Baku"] [Date "2008.04.22"] [Round "2"] [White "Svidler, Peter"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C80"] [WhiteElo "2746"] [BlackElo "2765"] [PlyCount "85"] [EventDate "2008.04.21"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "AZE"] [EventCategory "19"] [SourceTitle "CBM 124"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2008.05.28"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2008.05.28"] [SourceQuality "1"] 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. Be3 Bc5 10. Qd3 O-O 11. Nc3 Nb4 12. Qe2 Nxc3 13. bxc3 Bxe3 14. Qxe3 Nc6 15. a4 Qe7 16. Rfd1 Rfd8 17. h3 h6 18. Nd4 Nxd4 19. cxd4 c5 20. dxc5 Rac8 21. axb5 axb5 22. Rd4 $146 ({RR} 22. Ra6 Qxc5 23. Qxc5 Rxc5 24. Rd4 Kf8 25. Ra7 g5 26. Rb7 Bf5 27. Rd1 Re8 28. Rxd5 Rxd5 29. Bxd5 Rxe5 30. c4 bxc4 31. Rxf7+ Ke8 32. Bxc4 Bd3 33. Bb3 Bc2 34. Rf3 Bxb3 35. Rxb3 Kf7 36. Rb6 Kg7 {Lagarde,M (2613)-Grandelius,N (2651) Bydgoszcz 2022 ½-½ (49)}) ({RR} 22. Ra6 Qxc5 23. Qxc5 Rxc5 24. Rd4 Kf8 25. Ra7 g5 26. Rb7 Bf5 27. Rd1 Re8 28. Rxd5 Rxd5 29. Bxd5 Rxe5 30. c4 bxc4 31. Rxf7+ Ke8 32. Bxc4 Bd3 33. Bb3 Bc2 34. Rf3 Bxb3 35. Rxb3 Kf7 36. Rb6 Kg7 {Lagarde,M (2613)-Grandelius,N (2651) Bydgoszcz 2022 ½-½ (49)}) 22... Rxc5 23. Rad1 Rdc8 24. Bxd5 Rxc2 25. Bxe6 Qxe6 26. Rd8+ Kh7 27. Rxc8 Qxc8 28. Qd3+ g6 29. Qxb5 Qc5 30. Qxc5 Rxc5 31. Re1 g5 32. e6 fxe6 33. Rxe6 Rc2 34. f3 Ra2 35. Kh2 Kg7 36. Re4 Kg6 37. h4 Ra6 38. Kh3 Kh5 39. Rc4 Rb6 40. Rc5 Kg6 41. Rc4 Kh5 42. Rc8 Kg6 43. Rc4 1/2-1/2 [Event "NOR-ch playoff"] [Site "Oslo"] [Date "2005.11.08"] [Round "2"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Agdestein, Simen"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C80"] [WhiteElo "2570"] [BlackElo "2582"] [PlyCount "63"] [EventDate "2005.11.07"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "2"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [SourceTitle "EXT 2006"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2005.11.24"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2005.11.24"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {Bologan,Viktor} 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 Nc5 10. c3 d4 11. Bxe6 Nxe6 12. cxd4 Ncxd4 13. a4 Be7 14. Nxd4 Qxd4 ({RR} 14... Nxd4 15. axb5 ({RR} 15. Ne4 O-O ({RR} 15... Ne6 16. Be3 O-O 17. f4 Qxd1 18. Rfxd1 Rfb8 19. Rd7 Bf8 20. f5) 16. axb5 Nxb5 17. Be3 Qc8 18. Qc2 ({RR} 18. Qd5 Rd8 19. Qc6 Qf5 20. f4 h5 21. h3 Rab8 22. Rfd1) 18... Qe6 19. f4 f6 ({RR} 19... Rad8 20. Ra4 Rd7 21. Rfa1 Qd5 22. h3) 20. exf6 Bxf6 21. f5 Qe5 22. Bc5) 15... Nxb5 16. Qg4 ({RR} 16. Qc2 O-O 17. Nf3 Nd4 18. Nxd4 Qxd4 19. Qxc7 Bb4 20. e6 fxe6 21. Qc6 Qd6 22. Qe4 Bc5 23. Be3 Bxe3) 16... O-O 17. Nf3 Qc8 18. Qg3 Qe6 19. Ra4 f5 20. Bg5 Rfe8 21. Bxe7 Rxe7 22. Ng5 Qd5 23. Nxh7 Qxe5 24. Qf3 Rd8 25. Ng5) 15. axb5 Qxe5 16. bxa6 O-O 17. Nf3 ({RR} 17. Qa4 Nc5 ({RR} 17... Rfb8 18. a7 ({RR} 18. Nf3 Qb5 19. a7 Rb7 20. Qxb5 Rxb5 21. Be3 Bf6 22. Ra2 Kf8 23. Nd2 Bd4 24. Nc4 Rb7 25. Rfa1 Bxe3 26. fxe3) 18... Rb7 19. Nf3 Qd5 20. Be3 Bc5 21. Rad1 Qb3 22. Qxb3 Rxb3 23. Bxc5 Nxc5 24. Nd4 Rb7 25. Nc6) 18. Qc4 Rfb8 19. Ra5 Qd6 20. Ne4 Nxe4 21. Qxe4 Qb4 22. Qxb4 Bxb4 23. Ra4 Rb6 24. a7 Bc5 25. Rd1 h6 ({RR} 25... Rb7 26. Be3 Bxe3 27. fxe3 Kf8 28. Rda1 Rxb2) 26. b4 Rxb4 ({RR} 26... Bxb4 27. Be3 c5 28. Rd7 ({RR} 28. Bf4 Rb7 29. Bb8) 28... Bd2 29. Kf1 Bxe3 30. fxe3) 27. Rxb4 Bxb4 28. Be3 Kf8 ({RR} 28... c5 29. Rd7 c4 30. Bb6) ({RR} 28... Ba5 29. Rd7) 29. Rb1 {1-0 (29) Topalov,V (2700)-Kortschnoj,V (2645) Madrid 1996 CBM 053 [Bologan,Viktor]}) ({RR} 17. Qg4 Qb5 18. Qc4 Rfb8 19. Ra2 Ra7 20. Rd1 Qxc4 21. Nxc4 Rba8 22. Be3 Rxa6 23. Rxa6) ({RR} 17. Re1 Qb5 18. Qa4 Qxa4 19. Rxa4 Nc5 20. Ra3 Ne6 21. Ra1 Ra7 22. Nf3) 17... Qb5 18. a7 $146 ({RR} 18. Qa4 Qxa4 19. Rxa4 Nc5 20. Ra5 ({RR} 20. Rc4 Rxa6 21. Nd4 Ra4 22. Rxa4 Nxa4 23. b3 Nb6 24. Nb5 Nd5 25. Rd1 Rd8 26. Ba3 Nf4 27. Rxd8+ Bxd8 28. Kf1 Ne6) 20... Rxa6 21. Rxa6 Nxa6 22. Bd2 Bf6 23. Bc3 Bxc3 24. bxc3 {½-½ (24) Psakhis,L (2500)-Dolmatov,S (2545) Frunze 1981}) ({RR} 18. Qa4 Qxa4 19. Rxa4 Nc5 20. Ra5 Rxa6) ({RR} 18. Qa4 Qxa4 19. Rxa4 Nc5 20. Ra5 Rxa6 21. Rxa6 Nxa6 22. Be3 Bf6 23. Bd4 Bxd4 24. Nxd4 Rb8 25. Rb1 g6 26. Kf1 Nc5 27. Rc1 Nd3 28. Rxc7 Rxb2 29. Rc2 Rb4 30. Nc6 Rb1+ 31. Ke2 Ne1 32. Rc4 Nxg2 {De Melo,J-De Siqueira,L (2011) Florianopolis BRA 2023 0-1 (83)}) ({RR} 18. Qa4 Qxa4 19. Rxa4 Nc5 20. Rc4 Rxa6 21. Nd4 Ra4 22. Rxa4 Nxa4 23. b3 Nb6 24. Nb5 Nd5 25. Rd1 Rd8 26. Ba3 Nf4 27. Rxd8+ Bxd8 28. Kf1 Ne6 {½-½ (28) Adams,M (2655)-Sokolov,I (2645) Leon 1995}) 18... Bc5 19. Be3 Bxe3 20. fxe3 Qb6 21. Qa4 Qxe3+ 22. Kh1 Rfd8 23. Rfe1 Qb6 24. Ne5 c5 25. Rf1 Rd4 26. Qa2 Qc7 27. Nxf7 c4 28. Qa6 Nc5 29. Qa5 Rd7 30. Qb5 Nb3 31. Ne5 Re7 32. Qd5+ 1-0 [Event "Norway Chess 2024"] [Site "Stavanger, Norway"] [Date "2024.06.04"] [Round "15.1"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Praggnanandhaa R"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C81"] [WhiteElo "2830"] [BlackElo "2747"] [Annotator "Stockfish 16.1 - Chessbase"] [PlyCount "150"] [EventDate "2024.??.??"] 1. e4 {[%eval 15,0]} e5 {[%eval 17,0]} 2. Nf3 {[%eval 11,0]} Nc6 {[%eval 19,0]} 3. Bb5 {[%eval 16,0]} a6 {[%eval 38,0]} 4. Ba4 {[%eval 14,0]} Nf6 {[%eval 25,0]} 5. O-O {[%eval 23,0]} Nxe4 {[%eval 27,0]} 6. d4 {[%eval 31,0]} b5 {[%eval 19,0]} 7. Bb3 {[%eval 33,0]} d5 {[%eval 25,0]} 8. dxe5 {[%eval 44,0]} Be6 {[%eval 28,0]} 9. Qe2 {[%eval 16,0]} Be7 {[%eval 18,0]} 10. Rd1 {[%eval 7,0]} O-O {[%eval 7,0]} 11. c3 {[%eval 11,0]} f5 $146 {[%eval 13,0]} ({RR} 11... Qd7 12. Nbd2 Nc5 13. Bc2 f6 14. exf6 Bxf6 15. Nf1 Rae8 16. Ne3 Bf7 17. Qf1 Ne5 18. Nxe5 Bxe5 19. h3 c6 20. Ng4 Bc7 21. Be3 Qd6 22. b4 Nd7 23. g3 Nf6 24. Bf4 Qd7 25. Nxf6+ gxf6 26. Bxc7 {½-½ Garifullina,L (2423)-Lei,T (2550) World Blitz Women 2023 Samarkand UZB (1.1)}) ({RR} 11... Qd7 12. Bc2 f5 13. Nbd2 Qe8 ({RR} 13... Rad8 14. Nb3 Bf7 15. Nbd4 Bh5 16. Nxc6 Qxc6 17. Nd4 Bxe2 18. Nxc6 Bxd1 19. Nxe7+ Kf7 20. Bxd1 Kxe7 21. f3 Nc5 22. Bg5+ Ke6 23. Bxd8 Rxd8 24. b4 Nd3 25. a4 Nxe5 26. axb5 axb5 27. Bc2 Rd6 28. f4) 14. Nf1 Qf7 15. Nd4 Nxd4 16. cxd4 Qe8 17. a4 c6 18. f3 Ng5 19. Qf2 Bd7 20. Bxg5 Bxg5 21. f4 Be7 22. Nd2 Be6 23. Bd3 Qb8 24. a5 Qe8 25. Rdc1 h6 26. Nb3 {0-1 Wang,C (2288)-Tarhan,A (2457) Dubai Police Global Chess Challenge 202 Dubai Police Officers Club, A 2024 (1.57)}) ({RR} 11... Nc5 12. Bc2 Qc8 13. Nbd2 Bf5 14. Nb3 Bxc2 15. Qxc2 Qe6 16. Nfd4 Nxd4 17. cxd4 Nxb3 18. axb3 Rac8 19. Be3 h6 20. f4 Bb4 21. f5 Qb6 22. f6 g5 23. Qf5 Qe6 24. Qxe6 fxe6 25. Rxa6 Kf7 26. Rc1) ({RR} 11... Re8 12. Bc2 f5 13. exf6 Bxf6 14. Bxe4 Bf7 15. Bxh7+ Kxh7 16. Be3 Bg6 17. Nbd2 d4 18. cxd4 Nxd4 19. Qf1 Nc2 20. Ne4 Qe7 21. Nxf6+ Qxf6 22. Bd4 Nxd4 23. Rxd4 c5 24. Rh4+ Kg8 25. Qc1 Rad8 26. a4 {½-½ Li Chao2 (2651)-Xu,Y (2515) CHN Team Men 2024 Qingdao CHN (9.1)}) 12. exf6 {[%eval 9,0]} Bxf6 {[%eval 15,0]} 13. Nbd2 {[%eval 11,0]} Nc5 {[%eval 16,0]} 14. Bc2 {[%eval 14,0]} Re8 {[%eval 12,0]} 15. Nf1 {[%eval 0,0]} Bf7 {[%eval 16,0]} 16. Be3 {[%eval 15,0]} Ne4 {[%eval 18,0]} 17. Ng3 {[%eval 22,0]} Nxg3 {[%eval 25,0]} 18. hxg3 {[%eval 29,0]} Ne5 {[%eval 36,0]} 19. Nxe5 {[%eval 33,0]} Bxe5 {[%eval 31,0]} 20. a4 {[%eval 25,0]} c6 {[%eval 22,0]} 21. Qd2 {[%eval 23,0]} Qd6 {[%eval 39,0]} 22. Re1 {[%eval 39,0]} Bg6 {[%eval 4,0]} 23. Bxg6 {[%eval 4,0]} Qxg6 {[%eval 12,0]} 24. Bd4 {[%eval 12,0]} Bxd4 {[%eval 14,0]} 25. Qxd4 {[%eval 7,0]} bxa4 {[%eval 9,0]} 26. Qxa4 {[%eval 1,0]} c5 {[%eval 28,0]} 27. Qd7 {[%eval 1,0]} Rad8 {[%eval 7,0]} 28. Qc7 {[%eval 7,0]} d4 {[%eval 8,0]} 29. cxd4 {[%eval 1,0]} cxd4 {[%eval 8,0]} 30. Qc4+ {[%eval 7,0]} Kh8 {[%eval 5,0]} 31. Rxe8+ {[%eval 5,0]} Qxe8 {[%eval 4,0]} 32. Rd1 {[%eval 4,0]} Qd7 {[%eval 7,0]} 33. Qxa6 {[%eval 7,0]} d3 {[%eval 7,0]} 34. b4 {[%eval 0,0]} h6 {[%eval 5,0]} 35. Qc4 {[%eval 0,0]} d2 {[%eval 3,0]} 36. Qe2 {[%eval 7,0]} Qd3 {[%eval 3,0]} 37. Qxd3 {[%eval 6,0]} Rxd3 {[%eval 8,0]} 38. f3 {[%eval 0,0]} Kh7 {[%eval 3,0]} 39. Kf2 {[%eval 0,0]} Rb3 {[%eval 6,0]} 40. Rxd2 {[%eval 6,0]} Rxb4 {[%eval 8,0]} 41. Rd5 {[%eval 0,0]} Rb2+ {[%eval 0,0]} 42. Kg1 {[%eval 3,0]} Rb7 {[%eval 3,0]} 43. Kh2 {[%eval 4,0]} g6 {[%eval 6,0]} 44. Kh3 {[%eval 0,0]} h5 {[%eval 4,0]} 45. g4 {[%eval 4,0]} hxg4+ {[%eval 4,0]} 46. Kxg4 {[%eval 2,0]} Kh6 {[%eval 2,0]} 47. Ra5 {[%eval 4,0]} (47. Rb5) 47... Rb4+ {[%eval 8,0]} 48. f4 {[%eval 11,0]} Rb2 {[%eval 0,0]} 49. Kh3 {[%eval 0,0]} Rb4 {[%eval 0,0]} 50. g3 {[%eval 2,0]} Kg7 {[%eval 0,0]} 51. Kh4 {[%eval 2,0]} Rc4 {[%eval 3,0]} 52. Ra7+ {[%eval 3,0]} Kf6 {[%eval 3,0]} 53. Kg4 {[%eval 3,0]} Rc3 {[%eval 2,0]} 54. Ra5 {[%eval 2,0]} Rb3 {[%eval 2,0]} 55. Kh3 {[%eval 2,0]} Rc3 {[%eval 3,0]} 56. Re5 {[%eval 11,0]} Rc2 {[%eval 3,0]} 57. g4 {[%eval 3,0]} Rc3+ {[%eval 3,0]} 58. Kg2 {[%eval 7,0]} Ra3 {[%eval 0,0]} 59. Kf2 {[%eval 2,0]} Kf7 {[%eval 0,0]} 60. Re3 {[%eval 0,0]} Ra1 {[%eval 2,0]} 61. Rb3 {[%eval 0,0]} Kg7 {[%eval 0,0]} 62. Kg3 {[%eval 0,0]} Rf1 {[%eval 0,0]} 63. Rb7+ {[%eval 0,0]} Kg8 {[%eval 0,0]} 64. Ra7 {[%eval 0,0]} Kf8 {[%eval 3,0]} 65. Ra4 {[%eval 2,0]} Rh1 {[%eval 0,0]} 66. Kf3 {[%eval 2,0]} Rg1 {[%eval 0,0]} 67. g5 {[%eval 0,0]} Rf1+ {[%eval 0,0]} 68. Ke4 {[%eval 0,0]} Kg7 {[%eval 0,0]} 69. Ra7+ {[%eval 0,0]} Kg8 {[%eval 0,0]} 70. Ke5 {[%eval 0,0]} Rf2 {[%eval 0,0]} 71. Kf6 {[%eval 0,0]} Rxf4+ {[%eval 0,0]} 72. Kxg6 {[%eval 0,0]} Rf8 {[%eval 0,0]} 73. Rg7+ {[%eval 0,0]} Kh8 {[%eval 0,0]} 74. Rh7+ {[%eval 0,0]} Kg8 {[%eval 0,0]} 75. Rg7+ {[%eval 0,0]} Kh8 {[%eval 0,0]} 1/2-1/2 [Event "Corus"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2007.01.27"] [Round "12"] [White "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C83"] [WhiteElo "2678"] [BlackElo "2690"] [Annotator "Ftacnik,Lubomir"] [PlyCount "70"] [EventDate "2007.01.13"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "19"] [SourceTitle "CBM 117"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2007.03.30"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2007.03.30"] [SourceQuality "1"] 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 Be7 10. c3 O-O 11. Bc2 f5 12. Nb3 Qd7 13. Nbd4 Nxd4 14. Nxd4 c5 15. Nxe6 Qxe6 16. f3 Ng5 17. a4 Rad8 18. axb5 axb5 19. Bxg5 Bxg5 20. f4 Be7 21. Kh1 {The two youngest participants have courageously entered the discussion of the position, that became very topical lately.} Kh8 (21... c4 22. Qd4 Qc6 23. b4 $1 cxb3 24. Bxb3 Kh8 25. Ra5 Rc8 26. Bxd5 Qxc3 27. Qxc3 Rxc3 28. Rxb5 {1/2 Volokitin,A (2660)-Harikrishna,P (2680)/Foros 2006/ (90)}) (21... Qb6 22. b3 (22. Qf3 d4 23. cxd4 {1/2 Fedorov,A (2614)-Atalik,S (2632)/Malmo 2006/}) 22... d4 23. c4 bxc4 24. bxc4 Qb7 25. Bd3 {1/2 Karjakin,S (2672)-Fressinet,L (2640)/Cap d'Agde 2006/ (44)}) 22. Qd3 (22. Ra7 d4 23. cxd4 Rxd4 24. Qf3 Rd2 25. Rf2 Rd7 26. Rxd7 Qxd7 27. h3 c4 28. g4 g6 29. gxf5 {1/2 Polgar,S (2480)-Unzicker,W (2460)/Bad Homburg 1996/}) 22... Qb6 {Carlsen had a direct experience from the game against Krasenkow. Leading white pieces he had developed really dangerous attack.} (22... Qc6 23. Rfd1 c4 (23... d4 24. c4) 24. Qf3 g6 (24... b4 25. cxb4 Bxb4 26. Rd4 Bc5 $2 27. Rxc4) 25. b4 Rd7 26. Qe3 Ra8 27. Qd4 Rdd8 28. g4 Rxa1 29. Rxa1 Ra8 30. Rg1 Bd8 31. e6+ Kg8 32. gxf5 Bb6 33. Qe5 Bxg1 34. fxg6 hxg6 35. Bxg6 Bb6 {1/2 Carlsen,M (2646)-Krasenkow,M (2650)/Tromsoe 2006/ (44)}) 23. g4 c4 (23... d4 24. gxf5 c4 25. Qe4 d3 26. Bd1 Qh6 27. Ra7 Bc5 {1/2 Fedorov,A (2617)-Delchev,A (2628)/Predeal 2006/ (38)}) 24. Qh3 Qc6 (24... d4 25. Bxf5 g6 (25... Qc6+ 26. Qg2) 26. Be4 Qe6 27. Qg3 $16) 25. Qg2 (25. Bxf5 g6 26. Bc2 (26. Bb1 d4+ 27. Qg2 Qxg2+ 28. Kxg2 d3 $44) 26... d4+ 27. Qg2 (27. Kg1 $4 d3) 27... Qxg2+ 28. Kxg2 dxc3 29. bxc3 Rd2+ 30. Rf2 Rxf2+ 31. Kxf2 Rxf4+ $11) (25. gxf5 d4+ 26. Qg2 Qxg2+ 27. Kxg2 d3 28. Bd1 Rxf5 $11) 25... fxg4 26. f5 Bc5 $6 {The critical position of the whole game was asking for the defender's full attention. It seems a bit absurd, that the best solution layed in the advance of the pawn to the g3 squre.} (26... Qc7 27. f6 $1 (27. Rae1 d4) 27... gxf6 28. Qxg4 fxe5 (28... Qxe5 29. Rfe1) (28... Bc5 29. exf6 d4 30. Be4 $14) 29. Bxh7 $1 Bg5 (29... Kxh7 30. Qh5+ Kg7 31. Rg1+) 30. Bg6 Bh6 31. Qh5 Qg7 32. Rg1 $18) (26... g3 $1 27. Rf3 (27. hxg3 Qh6+ 28. Qh2 Qxh2+ 29. Kxh2 d4) (27. Rae1 Qh6 28. Qxg3 Bh4 $17) (27. f6 gxf6 28. Bxh7 fxe5 $1) (27. Qxg3 $2 d4+ 28. Qg2 Qxg2+ 29. Kxg2 d3 30. Bd1 Rd5) 27... d4 28. cxd4 Rxd4 29. Rxg3 Qxg2+ 30. Rxg2 Rfd8 $11) 27. Qxg4 Rde8 (27... d4+ 28. Be4 Qc7 29. f6 gxf6 30. exf6 $14) 28. f6 $1 (28. Rae1 d4+ 29. Be4 Qc7 30. f6 Rxe5 31. cxd4 Bxd4 32. Rd1 Rxe4 33. fxg7+ Qxg7 34. Rxf8+ Qxf8 35. Qxe4 Bxb2 $11) 28... gxf6 29. Bxh7 $1 Rxe5 (29... Kxh7 30. Qh5+ Kg7 31. Rg1+ Bxg1 32. Rxg1#) 30. Bf5 $2 {Karjakin pays back to his opponent with the unexact solution. Most likely the fine idea 30.?g6! would have won.} (30. Bg6 $1 Qb7 (30... d4+ 31. Rf3 Qb7 32. Rg1 $18) 31. Bf5 $1 Rf7 (31... d4+ 32. Rf3 Rxf5 33. Qxf5 $18) 32. Rf3 Rg7 33. Qh3+ $1 Kg8 34. Be6+ $18) 30... Rf7 (30... Rg8 31. Qh5+ Kg7 32. Qh7+ Kf8 33. Bd7 $1 $18) (30... d4+ 31. Rf3 Rg8 32. Qh5+ (32. Qh4+ Kg7 33. Be4 $1 Rxe4 34. Rg1+ Kf7 $1 35. Qh7+ Ke6 36. Rxf6+ $1 Kxf6 37. Qh6+ Ke7 38. Qxc6 Rxg1+ 39. Kxg1 Re5 $11) 32... Kg7 33. Qg6+ Kf8 34. Ra8+ $1 Qxa8 (34... Ke7 $6 35. Qh7+ Kd6 36. Be4 $1 Rxe4 37. Qxg8 Re8 $1 38. Qg3+ Kd7 39. Rxe8 Kxe8 40. Qg6+ $16) 35. Qxf6+ Ke8 36. Qxe5+ Kd8 37. Bg4 $1 (37. Be4 $4 Qa1+ $19) 37... Rf8 $1 (37... Qa1+ $2 38. Kg2 Rxg4+ 39. Kh3 Qg1 40. Qb8+ $18) (37... Rxg4 38. Qh8+ $18) 38. Qxc5 Qa1+ (38... Rxf3 39. Qxd4+ Ke7 40. Bxf3 Qxf3+ 41. Kg1 $16) 39. Kg2 Qxb2+ 40. Kg3 Rxf3+ 41. Bxf3 Qxc3 42. Qd6+ $16) 31. Rae1 {More troublesome for the defender was the move with the other rook as the one on a1 was ready in a good firing location.} (31. Rf3 Rg7 32. Rh3+ Kg8 33. Ra8+ $1 (33. Qh5 $2 d4+ 34. Qf3 Qxf3+ 35. Rxf3 d3 $19) (33. Qf3 Re3 $19) 33... Qxa8 34. Be6+ Rxe6 (34... Kf8 35. Rh8+ Ke7 36. Qxg7+ Kxe6 37. Qg4+ $1 (37. Rxa8 $2 Re1+ 38. Kg2 Rg1+ $19) 37... Kd6 38. Rxa8 Re1+ 39. Kg2 Rg1+ 40. Kf3 Rxg4 41. Kxg4 $18) 35. Qxe6+ Rf7 36. Qg4+ Rg7 37. Qe6+ Rf7) (31. Rfe1 $1 d4+ (31... Bb6 32. Qh5+ Kg8 33. Qg6+ Rg7 (33... Kf8 34. Rxe5) 34. Be6+ $1 Rxe6 (34... Qxe6 35. Ra8+) 35. Rxe6 Rxg6 36. Rxc6 $18) (31... Rg7 32. Qh3+ Kg8 33. Rxe5 fxe5 34. Be6+ $18) 32. Be4 Rxe4 (32... Qe6 $2 33. Ra8+ $18) 33. Rxe4 d3 34. Qg2 Rh7 35. Rae1 Bf8 36. Rg1 Qd5 $14) 31... d4+ 32. Be4 Qe6 33. Bf5 (33. Qh4+ Kg7 $1 (33... Kg8 $2 34. Qh6 $1 Bf8 35. Rg1+ Bg7 36. Ra1 $16) 34. Rg1+ Kf8 35. Qh8+ Ke7 36. Rg8 Qd7 $13) 33... Qc6+ 34. Be4 {Karjakin decided to accept the draw with move repetition as the continuation of the attack was not promissing concrete results.} Qe6 35. Bf5 Qc6+ 1/2-1/2 [Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 2nd"] [Site "Moscow"] [Date "2007.11.16"] [Round "6"] [White "Shirov, Alexei"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C83"] [WhiteElo "2739"] [BlackElo "2714"] [Annotator "Postny,Evgeny"] [PlyCount "67"] [EventDate "2007.11.10"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 122"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2008.01.30"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2008.01.30"] [SourceQuality "1"] 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 Be7 10. c3 O-O 11. Re1 {Recently, this half-forgotten move has come back to top level tournaments.} ({In the last few years, the discussion has been mainly around the following line:} 11. Bc2 f5 12. Nb3 Qd7 13. Nbd4 Nxd4 14. Nxd4 c5 15. Nxe6 Qxe6 16. f3 Ng5 {Black has achieved reasonable practical results.}) 11... Nc5 12. Nd4 (12. Bc2 {is a normal alternative, but then Black can push} d4 {with good chances to equalise.}) 12... Nxd4 {In my opinion, this exchange is a strategical concession, because it helps White to strenghten his centre and get an open c-file at his disposal. Black, for his part, is counting on a pair of bishops in the long run. Still, the alternative 12...?d7 seems to me a more flexible continuation.} (12... Qd7 13. Bc2 Bg4 14. f3 Bh5 15. Nf5 $6 {White should keep up the blockade on d4.} (15. N2b3 {looks much more solid.}) 15... Bg6 16. g4 $6 {Consequently continuing the dubious idea.} d4 $1 {A typical strike in the centre.} 17. cxd4 Bxf5 18. Bxf5 Qxd4+ 19. Kg2 Nxe5 20. Nb3 Qxd1 21. Rxd1 Na4 $17 {½-½ Shirov,A (2739)-Ivanchuk,V (2787)/Moscow 2007/EXT 2008 (53)}) 13. cxd4 Nd3 (13... Nxb3 14. Nxb3 {Now, Black is not able to make the c7-c5 thrust. The ?c7 will be weak forever.} a5 15. Qc2 Qd7 16. Bd2 Bf5 17. Nc5 Bxc2 18. Nxd7 Rfd8 19. Rac1 Bf5 20. Nc5 {with a stable advantage for White. 1-0 Svidler,P (2732)-Sutovsky,E (2655)/Crete 2007/CBM 121 (62)}) 14. Re3 Nxc1 15. Rxc1 c5 $1 {Without this strike Black won't get out of the pressure. On the other hand, the whole line seems to be in White's favour.} (15... Rc8 $6 16. Rc6 Qd7 17. Rec3 {with strong pressure along the c-file.}) 16. dxc5 Rc8 17. Rec3 $6 $146 {In the previous games White achieved a pleasant advantage by the prosaic 17.?d3.} (17. Rd3 Qc7 (17... Rxc5 18. Rxc5 Bxc5 19. Ne4 Ba7 20. Bxd5 Qh4 21. g3 Qh3 22. Bxe6 Qxe6 23. Rd5 $16 {½-½ Luther,T (2575)-De Vreugt,D (2504)/Santo Domingo 2003/CBM 097 ext (61)}) 18. Bxd5 Bxc5 19. Nb3 Qb6 20. Nxc5 Rxc5 21. Rxc5 Qxc5 22. h3 $16 {0-1 Geller,E-Suetin,A/Moscow 1950/URS-ch (35)}) 17... b4 (17... d4 18. Rd3 Rxc5 19. Bxe6 fxe6 20. Nf3 $14) 18. R3c2 $1 {Shirov is ready to sacrifice an exchange.} Bf5 19. c6 Bxc2 20. Rxc2 {In this position White has more than enough compensation for the exchange. His passed ?c6 is very strong. Soon, the knight will be transfered to an ideal blockading square d4.} Qa5 (20... Qb6 21. Ba4 $14 {and White keeps his strong passed pawn.} (21. Bxd5 $6 Qd4 22. Bf3 Qxe5 {helps Black to achieve central and open lines for his major pieces.})) ({But, Black could still be pretty much in the game after} 20... d4 $1 21. e6 d3 22. exf7+ Kh8) 21. Nf3 Rfd8 22. Nd4 g6 23. e6 $1 {Everything is ready for an attack on the light squares.} Bf6 24. exf7+ Kxf7 25. h4 $6 {Making 'luft' for the king secures White from getting mated along the back rank, but actually this is a waste of time.} (25. Qg4 Re8 26. Qd7+ Kg8 27. Re2 $1 (27. Bxd5+ $2 Kh8 {[%csl Rd4,Re1]}) 27... Red8 28. Qe6+ Kg7 29. Qg4 Kf7 30. Ne6 Rxc6 31. Nxd8+ Qxd8 32. Qxb4 Rc1+ 33. Re1 Qb6 34. Qd2 Rxe1+ 35. Qxe1 Bxb2 36. Bxd5+ Kf8 {Black might hold this endgame with accurate defence, counting on the opposite coloured bishops.}) 25... Qb6 26. Rd2 Rd6 $2 {Carlsen definitely missed Shirov's reply. It was necessary to eliminate the knight.} (26... Bxd4 27. Rxd4 Rxc6 28. Rxd5 Ke7 $1 {An important defensive resourse. The Steinitz principle is working! The king is able to defend himself in the centre. Black keeps the balance.} 29. Qe1+ Re6 30. Re5 Rxe5 31. Qxe5+ Kd7 32. Qg7+ Kc8 33. Qxh7 Rf8 34. Qe7 Qxf2+ 35. Kh2 Qf4+ 36. Kh3 Qf5+ $11) {[%tqu "En","Black's last move was a mistake. How can White exploit it?","","","d4f5","Such tactical punches are meat and drink to Shirov!",10]} 27. Nf5 $1 {[%mdl 64] Such tactical punches are meat and drink to Shirov!} Rdxc6 (27... gxf5 28. Rxd5 Rxd5 29. Qxd5+ Kg7 30. Qf7+ Kh6 31. Qxf6+ Kh5 32. Bd1# {The point of 27.?f5.}) 28. Bxd5+ (28. Rxd5 $2 Kf8 $1) 28... Kf8 29. Bxc6 Rxc6 (29... Qxc6 30. Rd6 $18 {[%csl Rc6,Rf6]}) 30. Ne3 Bxh4 31. Qf3+ Rf6 $2 {This move leaves the bishop totally misplaced on h4 and loses outright.} ({It was still possible to put up very stubborn resistance after} 31... Bf6 32. Ng4 Re6 33. Rd7 Qc6 34. Rf7+ Kxf7 35. Ne5+ Rxe5 36. Qxc6 Re6) 32. Qa8+ Kg7 33. Qe4 {[%csl Rh4][%CAl Ge4e7]} b3 {Desperation, but there is nothing else he can do.} 34. axb3 (34. axb3 Bg5 35. Qe7+ Kh6 36. Ng4+ $18) 1-0 [Event "Tata Steel-A 78th"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2016.01.31"] [Round "13"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Ding, Liren"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C83"] [WhiteElo "2844"] [BlackElo "2766"] [Annotator "Marin,Mihail"] [PlyCount "197"] [EventDate "2016.01.16"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 171"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2016.03.14"] [SourceVersion "2"] [SourceVersionDate "2016.03.14"] [SourceQuality "1"] 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 Nc5 10. c3 Be7 11. Bc2 d4 12. Nb3 d3 13. Nxc5 dxc2 14. Qxd8+ Rxd8 15. Nxe6 fxe6 16. Be3 Rd5 17. Rfc1 Nxe5 18. Nxe5 Rxe5 19. Bd4 Rg5 20. Rxc2 Kf7 21. Be3 {For earlier deviations and So's novelty 21...?h5 see Adams,M (2744)-So,W (2773) Wijk aan Zee 2016 CBM 171 [Marin] played in the same round.} Re5 {There is a good question about the best path for the rook to get back into play. Abstractly, the game move may look like a slight concession as the same position can be achieved if Black meets the immediate capture 19.?xc2 with 19...?f7. In the notes to the aforementioned game I have examined 19...0-0 which seems best. But for White it is not easy to take advantage of this small achievement.} (21... Rd5 {exposes the rook to} 22. c4 bxc4 (22... Rd7 23. cxb5 axb5 24. Rac1 Ra8 25. Rxc7 Rxc7 26. Rxc7 Rxa2 27. g3 Ke8 28. Bd4 g5 29. Rb7 b4 30. Kg2 $14) 23. Rxc4 Bd6 24. b3 Rb8 25. Rac1 Ke7 26. Kf1 Kd7 27. Ke2 $14 {Nisipeanu,L (2668)-Svetushkin,D (2604) Predeal 2007 (1-0, 50), and Black eventually went down due to his numerous weaknesses.}) (21... Rg4 {misplaces the rook slightly.} 22. b3 $1 (22. Rd1 Rc4 23. Rcd2 Bd6 24. g3 a5 $132 {[%csl Gc4]}) 22... Rd8 23. g3 e5 {Black needs to weaken his e-pawn even more in order to clear the rook's path.} (23... Re4 $6 24. Bf4 $1 {[%CAl Gf2f3] more or less wins the exchange}) 24. Kg2 Rg6 25. c4 Rc6 26. Rac1 b4 27. c5 Rf6 28. Rc4 a5 29. Re4 Rd5 30. a3 bxa3 31. Ra4 Rd3 32. Rxa3 a4 33. Rxa4 Rxb3 34. h4 Rd3 35. Ra7 Rc6 36. Kf3 Ke6 37. Ke4 $14 {Adams,M (2724)-Smeets,J (2538) London 2007 (1-0, 47)}) 22. c4 b4 {There is no other way to keep the integrity of the queenside structure, but placing a pawn on a dark square implies certain strategic risk.} 23. Rd1 Rd8 24. Rxd8 Bxd8 25. Kf1 (25. Rd2 Ke8 26. Kf1 Bg5 $11 {Kosintseva,N (2528)-Koneru,H (2589) Kazan 2012 (½-½, 40)}) 25... Bg5 26. Bd4 ({Sutovsky's favourite is} 26. Ba7 Be7 (26... h5 27. Bb8 Rc5 28. Ke2 Bf4 29. g3 Bd6 30. f4 g5 31. Ba7 Rf5 32. fxg5 Rxg5 33. Be3 {Sutovsky,E (2642)-Haba,P (2488) Austria 2015 (1-0, 56)} Rf5 34. Kd3 Bc5 $11) (26... Rf5 {Xie,J (2530)-Polgar,Z (2550) Jaen 1996 CBM 052 [Ftacnik,L] (½-½, 46)}) 27. Re2 Rf5 {Sutovsky,E (2665)-Sorokin,M (2599) Sochi 2005 CBM 107 [Postny,E] (1-0, 45)}) 26... Ra5 27. b3 Bf6 28. Be3 Bg5 $5 $146 {As known from the comments to the aforementioned Adams-So, Black is interested in exchanging bishops.} (28... Rh5 29. h3 a5 30. Ke2 a4 $6 31. Kd3 Ke8 (31... axb3 32. axb3 Ke8 33. Bd2 Be7 34. Ra2) 32. bxa4 $5 Ra5 33. c5 Rxa4 34. Kc4 Bc3 35. Bd2 Kd7 36. Bxc3 bxc3+ 37. Kb3 Rf4 38. f3 Kc6 39. Rxc3 $14 {Potkin,V (2556)-Amin,B (2453) Abu Dhabi 2006 (1-0, 56)}) 29. f4 Be7 30. g4 {White has gained kingside space, but his pawns are vulnerable to exchanges, helping Black to get rid of some of his weaknesses.} h5 31. h3 g6 {Of course it would not make sense to open the h-file in a moment when the white rook could be transferred to it along the second rank.} 32. Ke2 hxg4 33. hxg4 e5 34. Kf3 exf4 35. Bxf4 {Black has rid himself of several weaknesses and his position looks safe enough. But White has some initiative now and the b4-pawn still is a problem.} Bd6 $1 (35... c6 $6 {exposes the rook too much.} 36. Ke4 Ke6 37. Bc7 Rg5 $2 ({Relatively better is} 37... Ra3 {without a clear white win yet, but it certainly is risky playing with the caged rook.}) 38. Kf4 Rc5 (38... Bf6 39. Re2+ Kd7 40. Be5 {[%csl Gg5] General exchanges obviously lose while otherwise the rook remains in a miserable position.}) 39. Re2+ Kf6 40. Rxe7 Kxe7 41. Bb6 {A fantastic trapping of the rook!}) 36. c5 $5 {An interesting resource for keeping the fight alive.} (36. Bxd6 cxd6 37. Kf4 Re5 38. Rh2 g5+ 39. Kf3 Ke6 40. Rh6+ Kd7 41. Rh7+ Ke6 42. Ra7 Ra5 43. Rb7 Rxa2 44. Rxb4 Ke5 $11) 36... Bxc5 $1 {The best practical decision.} ({It certainly makes no sense depriving himself of the dynamic resource yielded by the pressure on a2. After} 36... Rxc5 37. Rxc5 Bxc5 38. Bxc7 {the bishop ending looks suspicious for Black, even though it seems that White only has practical chances:} Kf6 39. Bf4 Ke6 40. Ke4 Bb6 41. Bd2 Bc5 (41... a5 42. Bf4 $22 {In order to avoid ?c7xa5, Black needs to clear the king's path to b5 with a bishop retreat.}) 42. Bh6 Be7 (42... Bf2 43. Bf8 Be1 44. Kd4 {is similar}) 43. Kd4 Kd6 44. Bd2 Ke6 45. Kc4 Ke5 46. Bxb4 Bxb4 47. Kxb4 Kf4 48. Ka5 Kxg4 49. Kxa6 g5 50. b4 Kf3 51. b5 g4 52. b6 g3 53. b7 g2 54. b8=Q g1=Q {The endgame is drawn, but why suffer for 200 moves or so to prove it, with the obvious risk of stumbling along the way?}) 37. Bxc7 Rb5 38. Ke4 Ke6 39. Bf4 Ra5 40. Bd2 Be7 {Offering White some chances.} (40... Rb5 $5) 41. Rc6+ Kd7 42. Rxg6 Rxa2 43. Bf4 Ra3 44. g5 Rxb3 45. Rb6 Bxg5 {Another practical decision. Ding Liren knew how to defend with a rook versus a rook and a bishop so he does not risk getting into some study like ending.} ({But objectively} 45... a5 {should also draw:} 46. g6 Rb1 47. Kf5 Rg1 48. Rb7+ Ke8 49. Be3 (49. Bh6 Rf1+) 49... Rg2 50. Bh6 a4 51. Rb8+ Kd7 52. g7 b3 53. g8=Q Rxg8 54. Rxg8 b2 55. Rb8 a3 56. Bg7 Bf8 $5 57. Bc3 (57. Bxf8 $6 a2) 57... Bh6 58. Ke4 (58. Bxb2 $11) 58... Bc1 59. Kd3 a2 $1 {Right in time!} 60. Rxb2 a1=Q 61. Rb7+ {Unfortunately, the black king is too close to the rook.} Kc6 62. Bxa1 Kxb7 $11) 46. Bxg5 a5 47. Ra6 a4 48. Rxa4 Kc6 49. Ra5 Ra3 50. Rf5 b3 51. Bf6 Ra2 52. Bd4 b2 53. Rc5+ Kb6 54. Rc3+ Kb5 55. Rb3+ Kc4 56. Rb8 b1=Q+ 57. Rxb1 Re2+ {Ding Liren chooses one of the two possible defensive systems, the second rank setup.} ({I find the other plan simpler:} 57... Rh2 58. Rc1+ Kb5 59. Kd5 Rh5+ 60. Be5 Ka5 61. Rb1 Rg5) 58. Be3 Rc2 59. Rb8 Kc3 60. Rc8+ Kb3 61. Bc5 Kc4 62. Rc7 Kc3 63. Kd5 Kd3 64. Rh7 Re2 65. Rh3+ Kc2 66. Kc4 Re4+ 67. Bd4 Kd2 68. Rh2+ Re2 69. Rh4 Rg2 70. Re4 Re2 71. Bc3+ Kd1 72. Rf4 Kc2 73. Rd4 Rf2 74. Rd3 Re2 75. Bd4 Re4 76. Ra3 Re2 77. Be3 Kd1 78. Rd3+ (78. Kd3 Rd2+ $1) 78... Ke1 79. Rc3 Kf1 80. Kd3 Ra2 81. Rc1+ Kg2 82. Ke4 Kg3 83. Rc8 Rg2 84. Rf8 Kg4 85. Bf2 Kh3 86. Kf3 Rg3+ 87. Kf4 Rg4+ 88. Kf5 Rg7 89. Bd4 Rg3 90. Be5 Rf3+ 91. Bf4 Kg2 92. Kg4 Rf2 93. Rh8 Re2 94. Rh3 Kf2 95. Rf3+ Kg2 96. Be3 Rc2 97. Rg3+ Kf1 98. Kf3 Rf2+ 99. Bxf2 1/2-1/2 [Event "ESP-chT"] [Site "Sanxenxo"] [Date "2004.11.24"] [Round "7"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Krasenkow, Michal"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C83"] [WhiteElo "2581"] [BlackElo "2676"] [Annotator "Finkel,Alexander"] [PlyCount "73"] [EventDate "2004.11.18"] [EventType "team"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "ESP"] [SourceTitle "CBM 105"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2005.04.11"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2005.04.11"] [SourceQuality "1"] 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. Be3 {A solid continuation which usually yields white only a minimal advantage.} Be7 (9... Nc5 $6 10. Nc3 Nxb3 11. cxb3 $1 $14 {Ponomariov,R-Kortschnoj,V/Donetsk 2001/CBM 81}) (9... Bc5 {--> 1-0 Akopian,V-Adianto,U/Tripoli 2004/CBM 102 [Postny,E] (43)}) 10. c3 O-O 11. Nbd2 (11. Re1 Na5 {--> 0-1 Efimenko,Z-Kaidanov,G/Moscow 2003/CBM 94 [Postny,E] (39)}) 11... Qd7 (11... Bg4 {--> ½-½ Sadvakasov,D-Kortschnoj,V/Astana 2003/CBM 93 [Postny,E] (44)}) 12. Re1 ({Immediate} 12. Nxe4 {leads to a slightly better ending after} dxe4 13. Qxd7 Bxd7 14. e6 $5 (14. Rfd1 $5 Rad8 15. Rxd7 $5 Rxd7 16. e6 exf3 17. exd7 Ne5 18. Rd1 Rd8 19. Bf4 Bd6 20. Bxe5 Bxe5 21. Re1 $18 {Hansen,M-Nielsen,J/DEN 1989}) 14... Bxe6 15. Bxe6 fxe6 16. Nd2 Ne5 17. Nxe4 Nd3 (17... Nc4 $5 18. Bc1 Rf5 19. b3 Nd6 20. Ng3 Rd5 21. Be3 Bf6 $11 {0-1 Thipsay,P-Sasikiran,K/Guntur, AP IND 2000}) 18. b3 $14 {Ravi,T-Dridi,A/Moscow 1994}) ({Does not create any problems for black:} 12. Bc2 {--> 0-1 Ganguly,S-Nielsen,P/Tripoli 2004/CBM 102 [Postny,E] (29)}) 12... f5 (12... Kh8 13. Nxe4 dxe4 14. Qxd7 Bxd7 15. e6 Bxe6 16. Bxe6 fxe6 17. Nd2 Ne5 18. Nxe4 Nd3 19. Re2 $14 {Ivanchuk,V-Krasenkov,M/Lviv 2000}) ({Much more popular is} 12... Rad8 13. Bc2 Bf5 (13... Nxd2 14. Qxd2 Bf5 15. Rad1 Bxc2 16. Qxc2 $14 {Golod,V-Mikhalevski,V/Beersheba 1997}) (13... f5 14. exf6 Nxf6 15. a4 Bf5 $5 16. axb5 axb5 17. Bxf5 Qxf5 18. Ra6 Nb8 19. Ra5 b4 20. Bc5 Bxc5 21. Rxc5 bxc3 22. bxc3 {½-½ Brodsky,M-Ernst,S/Dieren 2001/CBM 83 ext (22)}) 14. Nxe4 Bxe4 15. Bxe4 dxe4 16. Qxd7 Rxd7 17. e6 fxe6 18. Nd2 Ne5 19. Nxe4 Nd3 (19... Rfd8 20. f3 Bh4 21. Bf2 Bxf2+ 22. Nxf2 Rd5 23. a4 $14 {Bruzon Bautista,L-Ponomariov,R/Mallorca 2004}) 20. Re2 Rf5 21. g3 Kf7 22. a4 h6 23. axb5 axb5 24. Ra6 Re5 $11 {Shirov,A-Mamedyarov,S/Izmir 2004}) 13. exf6 Nxf6 14. Bc2 {This natural move seems to be harmless for black, so white should look for an advantage in the other directions.} (14. Qe2 $5 Bd6 15. a4 Na5 16. Bc2 Nc4 17. axb5 axb5 18. Rxa8 Rxa8 19. Nxc4 bxc4 20. Bd4 $16 {Korneev,O-Cruz Lopez Claret,C}) 14... Bf5 (14... Bg4 15. Qe2 Rae8 16. Qf1 Bd6 17. h3 Bh5 18. Nd4 Nxd4 19. cxd4 Ne4 $132 {Van Elst,A-Ackermann,D/Porz 1990}) 15. Bxf5 (15. Nd4 $6 Nxd4 16. cxd4 Bd6 17. f3 Rae8 18. Nf1 Nh5 19. Bb3 Be6 20. Bf2 Kh8 $15 {Golubovic,G-Popov,S/Cetinje 1991}) (15. Nb3 Rae8 16. Nbd4 Nxd4 17. Bxd4 Bxc2 18. Qxc2 Ne4 $132) 15... Qxf5 16. Nf1 Ne4 ({Very serious attention deserved} 16... Bd6 $5 {since the knight on f6 could be very important attacking piece.} 17. Ng3 $140 $6 Bxg3 18. hxg3 Rae8 $15 {[%csl Rg1][%CAl Gf6g4,Gf5h5]}) 17. Ng3 Nxg3 18. hxg3 Rad8 $5 {[%csl Gd5] Prophilaxis in case of g4 by white.} (18... Rae8 {[%CAl Gc6d8,Gc7c6,Gd8e6]} 19. a4 Nd8 (19... b4 $6 20. g4 {[%csl Rd5]} Qf7 21. Qd3 $1 $14 {[%csl Ra6]}) 20. axb5 axb5 21. g4 Qd7 22. b4 c6 $13) 19. a4 b4 20. Qe2 (20. Rc1 Rd7 $5 {[%csl Gc7,Ge7]} (20... Qd7 21. c4 d4 22. Nxd4 Nxd4 23. Qxd4 Qxa4 $13) 21. Nd4 Nxd4 22. cxd4 {[%csl Ra6][%CAl Gc1c6]} Rf6 (22... a5 $6 23. Rc6 Bd6 24. Ra6 Re7 25. Qb3 Rfe8 26. Rxa5 $14) 23. Qc2 Qxc2 24. Rxc2 b3 $11) 20... bxc3 21. bxc3 Qc8 22. Rad1 (22. Nd4 $6) 22... Bf6 23. Bg5 $5 h6 $6 {Krasenkov either underestimated white's chanses in he endgame or just missed white's reply.} (23... Bxc3 24. Bxd8 (24. Qe6+ $6 Qxe6 25. Rxe6 Rd6 26. Rxd6 cxd6 27. Rxd5 Bb4 $11) 24... Bxe1 25. Bh4 Bb4 (25... Ba5 $6 26. Rxd5 Bb6 27. Qc4 $1 $18 {[%csl Rc6,Rg8]}) 26. Rxd5 Kh8 27. Qd3 h6 $132 {[%CAl Gc8e6]}) 24. Qe6+ $1 $14 {Very strong move after which black has to play very carefully to keep the balance.} (24. Bxf6 Rxf6 25. Nd4 Nxd4 26. cxd4 Rdf8 27. f3 Qd7 $11) 24... Qxe6 25. Rxe6 hxg5 (25... Nb8 26. Bxf6 Rxf6 27. Rxf6 gxf6 28. Nd4 c6 29. Rb1 $1 $14 {[%CAl Gb1b7,Gb7c7]}) 26. Rxc6 Rde8 27. Rxc7 $6 (27. g4 $5 Re4 28. Rxa6 Rxg4 29. Rxd5 Rc4 (29... Bxc3 30. Rxg5 Rxg5 31. Nxg5 c5 32. Ne4 Bd4 33. Kf1 $16) 30. Ne5 Bxe5 31. Rxe5 Rxc3 32. Re2 $14) 27... Re4 $1 $11 28. a5 (28. Rxd5 g4 $1 (28... Rxa4 $2 29. Nxg5 $16) 29. Nd4 Re1+ 30. Kh2 Rb8 $1 $15 {[%csl Rh2][%CAl Gb8b1]} 31. Nc2 $140 Rc1 32. Nb4 Rxb4 33. Rxg7+ Kxg7 34. cxb4 Rc4 $15) 28... g4 29. Nd4 Bxd4 30. Rxd4 Re1+ 31. Kh2 Rxf2 32. Rxg4 (32. Rxd5 $4 Rff1 $19) 32... Rf7 33. Rc8+ Rf8 34. Rxf8+ Kxf8 35. Rg6 Rc1 36. Rxa6 Rxc3 37. Rd6 1/2-1/2 [Event "Corus"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2008.01.14"] [Round "3"] [White "Adams, Michael"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C83"] [WhiteElo "2726"] [BlackElo "2733"] [Annotator "Marin,Mihail"] [PlyCount "75"] [EventDate "2008.01.12"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 122"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2008.01.30"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2008.01.30"] [SourceQuality "1"] 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 Be7 10. c3 O-O 11. Bc2 f5 {This variation has been known since the times of Dr. Tarrasch and has become fashionable in several different periods of chess history. Some years ago, Korchnoi brought it into the limelight again by employing it twice against Shirov.} 12. Nd4 ({Now, just as 100 years ago, the critical line is considered to be} 12. Nb3 Qd7 13. Nbd4 Nxd4 14. Nxd4 c5 15. Nxe6 Qxe6 16. f3 Ng5 17. a4 {More about it, in my opening database from the CD corresponding to CBM 115.}) 12... Nxd4 {Actually, I do not understand why this move is almost unanimously played here.} ({I would answer with} 12... Qd7 {when I do not see anything better for White than} 13. Nxc6 (13. f3 Nxd4 14. cxd4 Nxd2 15. Bxd2 c5 16. dxc5 Bxc5+ 17. Kh1 Bd4 $15) (13. Nxe6 Qxe6 $15 {[%csl Ge5]}) 13... Qxc6 {, with a transposition to the main line with, say,} 14. Nb3 Qd7 15. Nd4 c5 16. Nxe6 Qxe6) 13. cxd4 c5 (13... Qd7 $5 {Bologan,V (2682)-Sokolov,I (2696)/Stepanakert 2005/CBM 110/[Erenburg] (½-½, 35)}) 14. dxc5 Bxc5 (14... Nxd2 {Spraggett,K-Mikhalevski,V/Kapuskasing 2004/CBM 101 ext/[Mikhalevski,V] (1-0, 30)}) 15. Nb3 Bb6 (15... Ba7 {should not have independent value.} 16. Be3 $6 ({Better is} 16. Nd4 {, when Black cannot take advantage of the availability of the b6-square with} Qb6 $6 {because of} 17. Be3 f4 18. Nxe6 Qxe6 19. Bxa7 Rxa7 20. Bb3 Rd7 21. Qd4 $16 {when Black is hanging. Instead, 16...?xd4 would transpose to our main game.}) 16... Bxe3 17. fxe3 Qc7 18. Bxe4 dxe4 19. Qd6 Qxd6 20. exd6 Rfd8 {½-½ Lein,A-Lutikov,A/Kiev 1964/URS-ch}) 16. Nd4 {There are not too many relevant games available from this position.} Bxd4 $5 $146 {Black gives up the pair of bishops for the sake of rapid development. However, after this exchange, the weakness of the dark squares will tend to have a permanent character, which makes Carlsen's novelty quite risky from the strategic point of view.} ({Almost two decades ago, Adams faced the incorrect sacrifice} 16... Nxf2 $2 17. Rxf2 Qh4 18. Rf4 Qe7 19. Kh1 g5 20. Rf1 Rac8 21. Bxf5 {1-0 Adams,M (2495)-Demarre,J (2190)/Paris 1989/TD}) (16... Qd7 17. Be3 $14) 17. Qxd4 Rc8 18. Bb3 (18. Bd1 Rc4 $132) 18... Nc5 19. Bd2 $6 {Black should have preserved his bishop from exchange at any cost.} (19. Bd1 $1 Bf7 (19... Ne4 20. Be2 $14 {[%csl Gc4]}) 20. b3 Re8 21. Ba3 Ne6 22. Qd2 $14 {The knight is well placed on e6, but the bishop has problems becoming active. If a wizard could transfer it to b7, Black's position would be absolutely fine, but here he is struggling still.}) 19... Nxb3 20. axb3 Rc6 {With opposite-coloured bishops on the board, White's superiority is of a symbolic nature.} 21. Bb4 Re8 22. Bc5 f4 23. f3 Qg5 24. Rf2 Bf7 25. Bd6 Rec8 26. Re1 Be6 27. Bb4 Rc1 28. Rxc1 Rxc1+ 29. Rf1 Rxf1+ 30. Kxf1 Qf5 31. h4 Qb1+ 32. Be1 h5 33. b4 Qc1 34. Kf2 Qc4 35. Bc3 Qxd4+ 36. Bxd4 Kf7 37. Ke2 Bf5 38. Kf2 1/2-1/2 [Event "Morelia/Linares 24th"] [Site "Morelia/Linares"] [Date "2007.03.02"] [Round "8"] [White "Morozevich, Alexander"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C83"] [WhiteElo "2741"] [BlackElo "2690"] [Annotator "Marin,Mihail"] [PlyCount "83"] [EventDate "2007.02.17"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "14"] [EventCountry "ESP"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 117"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2007.03.30"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2007.03.30"] [SourceQuality "1"] 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. c3 Be7 10. Nbd2 Nc5 11. a4 {Morozevich is faithful to himself by playing a very rare move in a well known position. In the Ruy Lopez, White usually does not part with his light-squared bishop so easily.} Nxb3 12. Qxb3 O-O ({Actually, it would be interesting to know what he had in mind against the natural} 12... d4 {. As an adherent of the Open Variation of the Ruy Lopez, I would say that Black is more than OK here.}) 13. axb5 axb5 14. Rxa8 Qxa8 15. Qxb5 Rd8 16. Qd3 Qb7 {Black has certain compensation for the sacrificed pawn, due to his pair of bishops and the lead in development.} 17. Nd4 {Just as in the previous game against Carlsen, Morozevich decides to immediately return the material. The difference is that now he gets very little in exchange.} Nxe5 18. Qe2 Bf6 19. Nxe6 fxe6 20. f4 Qb6+ 21. Kh1 Nf7 22. Nf3 c5 {Black has the more active position and the better pawn structure. His chances are preferable.} 23. g4 Re8 24. g5 Bd8 25. f5 e5 26. c4 Qa6 27. Re1 e4 28. cxd5 Qxe2 29. Rxe2 Nd6 30. Nh4 h6 31. Bf4 Nb5 32. d6 Nd4 33. Rg2 Bxg5 34. Bxg5 hxg5 35. Rxg5 Kf7 36. Rg3 Nb5 37. Rg6 Rd8 38. Re6 Nxd6 39. Re5 c4 40. Rd5 Kf6 41. Ng2 Ke7 42. Ne3 1/2-1/2 [Event "Norway Chess 6th"] [Site "Stavanger"] [Date "2018.06.06"] [Round "8"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C83"] [WhiteElo "2843"] [BlackElo "2808"] [PlyCount "100"] [EventDate "2018.05.28"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 185"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2018.07.13"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2018.07.13"] [SourceQuality "1"] 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. c3 Be7 10. Re1 O-O 11. Nbd2 Nxd2 12. Qxd2 Qd7 13. Qd3 Rad8 14. Bc2 g6 15. Bh6 Rfe8 16. Rad1 d4 $146 ({RR} 16... f6 17. exf6 Bxf6 18. h3 Bf7 19. Bf4 Rxe1+ 20. Rxe1 Re8 21. Rxe8+ Bxe8 22. Qe3 Bf7 23. Ng5 d4 24. Ne4 Bg7 25. Qg3 dxc3 26. bxc3 Bxa2 27. Bxc7 Qe7 28. Bd6 Qe6 29. Nc5 Qe1+ 30. Kh2 Qxc3 31. Qxc3 {Fox,A-Schroeder,A New York 1916 0-1 (48)}) 17. Nxd4 Nxd4 18. Qxd4 Qxd4 19. Rxd4 Rxd4 20. cxd4 c5 21. dxc5 Bxc5 22. b3 a5 23. h3 b4 24. Rd1 Rc8 25. Rd2 Be7 26. Bd1 Rc5 27. Bf4 g5 28. Bg3 Kg7 29. f4 Rc1 30. Kh2 Bc5 31. fxg5 Be3 32. Rd3 Bxg5 33. h4 Bf5 34. Rf3 Bg4 35. hxg5 Rxd1 36. Rf2 Be6 37. Bf4 Rd3 38. Rf3 Rxf3 39. gxf3 Bf5 40. e6 fxe6 41. Bc7 Bb1 42. Bxa5 Bxa2 43. Bxb4 Bxb3 44. Bc3+ Kg6 45. f4 Kf7 46. Kg3 Kg6 47. Be5 Kf7 48. Bc3 Kg6 49. Be5 Kf7 50. Bc3 Kg6 1/2-1/2 [Event "Sarajevo Bosnia-A 36th"] [Site "Sarajevo"] [Date "2006.05.16"] [Round "10"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Predojevic, Borki"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C83"] [WhiteElo "2646"] [BlackElo "2566"] [PlyCount "175"] [EventDate "2006.05.07"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "BIH"] [EventCategory "17"] [SourceTitle "CBM 113"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2006.07.31"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2006.07.31"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {Marin,Mihail ChessBase} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Nxe4 6. d4 b5 7. Bb3 d5 8. dxe5 ({RR} 8. Nxe5) 8... Be6 9. Nbd2 ({RR} 9. Qe2) 9... Be7 10. c3 O-O 11. Qe2 ({RR} 11. Bc2 f5 12. Nb3 Qd7 13. Nfd4 Nxd4 14. Nxd4 c5 15. Nxe6 Qxe6 16. f3 Ng5 17. a4 Rad8 18. axb5 axb5 19. Ra7 Rd7 20. Rxd7 Qxd7 21. Be3 ({RR} 21. Kh1) 21... f4 22. Bf2 g6 23. Qd2 Ne6 24. Rd1 Rd8 25. Be4 Qc7) 11... Nxd2 ({RR} 11... Nc5 12. Nd4 Nxb3 13. N2xb3 Qd7 14. Nxc6 Qxc6 15. Be3 Bf5 16. Rfd1 Qg6 17. Nd4 Bd7 18. b4 Qe4) 12. Bxd2 Na5 13. Bc2 c5 ({RR} 13... Nc4 14. Nd4 ({RR} 14. b3 Nxd2 15. Qxd2 Rc8 ({RR} 15... c5) 16. a4 Qd7 17. axb5 axb5 18. Ra5 g6 19. Bd3 c6 20. Rfa1 Rc7 21. Nd4 f6) ({RR} 14. Bc1 Qd7 ({RR} 14... Bg4) 15. b3 Nb6 16. Qd3) 14... Nxd2 ({RR} 14... Qd7 15. f4 c5 16. Nxe6 Qxe6 17. Rae1 f5 18. Bc1 Qg6 19. b3 Nb6 20. Be3 Rad8 21. Qf2 Qc6 22. Rd1 ({RR} 22. Qf3 Na8) 22... d4 23. cxd4 Nd5 24. Kh1 ({RR} 24. dxc5 Nxe3 25. Qxe3 Bxc5) ({RR} 24. b4 c4 25. a3 a5) 24... cxd4 25. Bxd4 Nxf4 26. Qxf4 ({RR} 26. Bb1 Ne6 27. Bxf5 Nxd4 28. Rxd4 Rxd4 29. Qxd4 g6 30. Bd3 Rxf1+ 31. Bxf1 Qc1 32. Qd3 Qf4 33. e6 Bc5 34. Be2 Qe3) 26... Qxc2 27. Rd2 Qe4) ({RR} 14... Bg4 15. Qxg4 ({RR} 15. Qe1 f6) 15... Nxd2 16. Rfd1 Nc4 17. Nf5 g6 18. Rxd5) 15. Qxd2 Qd7 16. f4 c5 17. Nxe6 fxe6 ({RR} 17... Qxe6 18. Rae1) 18. Rad1 ({RR} 18. f5 Rad8 ({RR} 18... exf5 19. Bxf5 Rxf5 20. Rxf5 Qxf5 21. Qxd5+)) 18... Rad8 19. Qd3 g6 20. Qg3 Rf7 21. h4 Rg7 22. Qh3 c4 23. Kh1 a5 24. h5 Bc5 25. Rf3 Qe8 26. Rg3 gxh5 27. f5 Rxg3 28. Qxg3+ {Polgar,J (2708)-Karpov,A (2670) Vitoria Gasteiz 2007 CBM 121 [Marin,Mihail] ½-½ (48)}) ({RR} 13... Nc4 14. Bc1 g6 15. Nd4 Qd7 16. Bh6 Rfe8 17. f4 c5 18. f5 cxd4 19. fxe6 Qxe6 20. cxd4 Nxb2 21. Rab1 Nc4 22. Rb3 Bf8 23. Bxf8 Rxf8 24. Rf6 Qd7 25. Rh3 Ra7 26. Qf3 Nd2 27. Qf4 Ne4 28. Qh6 {Koffeman,T (2119)-De Zwart,J (1970) Vlissingen 2022 1-0}) 14. b3 $146 ({RR} 14. Rad1 Nc6 15. Bc1 g6 16. Bh6 Re8 17. Rd2 Qc7 18. Rfd1 f6 19. Bf4 fxe5 20. Bxe5 Nxe5 21. Nxe5 Bg5 22. Re1 Bxd2 23. Qxd2 Bf5 24. f4 Bxc2 25. Qxc2 Rad8 26. Rd1 Qd6 27. h4 d4 28. cxd4 cxd4 {Igel,F-Michel,P Vienna 1936 EXT 1999 [ChessBase] 0-1 (75)}) ({RR} 14. Qd3 g6 15. Bh6 Re8 16. Rfe1 ({RR} 16. Qd2 Nc4 17. Qf4 Nxb2 18. Bg5 d4) 16... f6 ({RR} 16... Bf5 17. Qe2 Bxc2 18. Qxc2 f6 19. Rad1) 17. Nh4 f5 ({RR} 17... Bf8 18. Bxf8 Kxf8 19. Nxg6+ hxg6 20. Qxg6) 18. Nf3 Nc6 19. Rad1) ({RR} 14. Rad1 Qd7 15. h3 Nc6 16. Bg5 Rfe8 17. Rfe1 Rad8 18. Qe3 Bxg5 19. Nxg5 Bf5 20. e6 fxe6 21. Bxf5 exf5 22. Qxc5) ({RR} 14. Rad1 Qd7 15. h3 Nc6 16. Bg5 Rfe8 17. Rfe1 Rad8 18. Qe3 Bxg5 19. Nxg5 Bf5 20. e6 fxe6 21. Bxf5 exf5 22. Qxc5 Rxe1+ 23. Rxe1 d4 24. cxd4 Nxd4 25. Re7 Qc6 26. Qxc6 Nxc6 27. Re6 h6 {½-½ (27) Sokolov,A (2628)-Predojevic,B (2566) Turin 2006}) 14... Nc6 15. Qd3 g6 16. Bh6 Re8 17. Qd2 b4 18. cxb4 Nxb4 19. Bd1 Nc6 20. Qf4 Rb8 21. a3 Qd7 22. Rc1 Na5 23. Nd2 Rec8 24. h4 Nc6 25. Nf3 Na5 26. Nd2 Nc6 27. Nf3 Na5 28. Rb1 c4 29. b4 c3 30. Be2 Nc4 31. Ra1 a5 32. Rfc1 Nxa3 33. Rxa3 Rxb4 34. Qe3 d4 35. Qd3 Bf5 36. Qa6 d3 37. Raxc3 Rxc3 38. Rxc3 dxe2 39. Qxe2 Rb8 40. Ng5 Qd4 41. Rc4 Qd5 42. Rc7 Bd8 43. Rc1 a4 44. Rd1 Qxd1+ 45. Qxd1 Rb1 46. Qxb1 Bxb1 47. Nf3 Be4 48. Nd4 a3 49. Bc1 a2 50. Bb2 Bxh4 51. g3 Be7 52. f4 h5 53. Kf2 Bd5 54. Ke3 h4 55. gxh4 Ba3 56. Ba1 Bc1+ 57. Kf2 Bxf4 58. Ne2 Bd2 59. Nc3 Be6 60. Ne4 Bc1 61. Nf6+ Kg7 62. Ne4 Kh6 63. Nf6 Ba3 64. Kg3 Bb4 65. Kf2 Ba5 66. Bb2 g5 67. hxg5+ Kxg5 68. Ke3 Kf5 69. Ne8 Bb6+ 70. Kd2 Ke4 71. Nd6+ Kd5 72. Kc2 Bc5 73. Bc3 Bb4 74. Ba1 f5 75. Nxf5 Bxf5+ 76. Kb3 Bc5 77. Kxa2 Be6 78. Kb3 Ke4+ 79. Kc2 Ke3 80. Bc3 Bf5+ 81. Kb2 Be6 82. Kc2 Bb6 83. Bd2+ Ke2 84. Bc3 Bf5+ 85. Kb2 Kd3 86. e6 Bxe6 87. Bh8 Bd4+ 88. Bxd4 1/2-1/2 [Event "Olympiad-37"] [Site "Turin"] [Date "2006.06.04"] [Round "13"] [White "Kamsky, Gata"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C83"] [WhiteElo "2671"] [BlackElo "2646"] [PlyCount "61"] [EventDate "2006.05.21"] [EventType "team-swiss"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "ITA"] [SourceTitle "CBM 113"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2006.07.31"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2006.07.31"] [SourceQuality "1"] [WhiteTeam "US of America"] [BlackTeam "Norway"] [WhiteTeamCountry "USA"] [BlackTeamCountry "NOR"] 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. Be3 Be7 10. c3 O-O 11. Nbd2 Qd7 12. Re1 Nxd2 13. Qxd2 Na5 14. Bg5 c5 15. Bc2 Nc4 16. Qf4 Rfe8 17. Bf6 Qd8 18. b3 Na3 19. Bxe7 Qxe7 20. Bf5 $146 ({RR} 20. Bd3 a5 21. Ng5 h6 22. Nxe6 fxe6 23. c4 bxc4 24. bxc4 Qg5 25. Qf3 Nxc4 26. Bxc4 dxc4 27. Qe4 Rad8 {½-½ (27) Balogh,C (2575)-Mikhalevski,V (2632) Heviz 2008}) 20... Bxf5 21. Qxf5 Qe6 22. Qd3 a5 23. Rad1 Rad8 24. Re2 h6 25. Qe3 Rc8 26. Red2 Red8 27. h4 Rd7 28. Qf4 b4 29. c4 Rcd8 30. cxd5 Rxd5 31. Qe4 1/2-1/2 [Event "Biel GM"] [Site "Biel"] [Date "2007.07.24"] [Round "2"] [White "Polgar, Judit"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C83"] [WhiteElo "2707"] [BlackElo "2710"] [PlyCount "85"] [EventDate "2007.07.23"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "SUI"] [EventCategory "18"] [SourceTitle "CBM 120"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2007.10.02"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2007.10.02"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {Fernandez,Daniel Howard Stohl,Igor} 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 ({RR} 9. c3 Bc5 10. Nbd2 O-O 11. Bc2 Nxf2 12. Rxf2 f6) 9... Be7 ({RR} 9... Nc5 10. c3 d4 ({RR} 10... Be7 11. Bc2 d4 ({RR} 11... Bg4 12. Re1 O-O 13. Nb3 Ne4 14. Bf4 Re8 15. h3 Bh5 16. a4 bxa4 17. Rxa4 Bf8 18. Nbd4 Nxe5 19. Bxe5 Rxe5 20. g4 Qf6 21. gxh5 c5 22. Nb3 Rg5+ 23. Kf1 Rf5 24. Rexe4 dxe4 25. Bxe4 Rd8 26. Qe2) 12. Nb3 ({RR} 12. cxd4 Nxd4 13. Nxd4 Qxd4 14. Nf3 Qxd1 15. Rxd1 O-O) 12... d3 13. Nxc5 ({RR} 13. Bb1 Nxb3 14. axb3 Bf5 15. Be3 O-O 16. Re1 Qd5 17. b4 Rfd8 ({RR} 17... a5 18. bxa5 Rxa5 19. Rxa5 Nxa5 20. Nd4 Bg6 21. Bxd3 Rd8 22. Bxg6 hxg6 23. Qe2 b4 24. e6 fxe6 25. Bf4 Bf6 26. Bxc7) 18. Ba2 ({RR} 18. Bd4 Bxb4 19. Bxd3 Bxd3 20. Qxd3 Nxd4 21. Nxd4 c5 22. Re4 Rac8) 18... Qd7 19. Bg5 h6 20. Bxe7 Qxe7 21. Nd2 Be6 22. f4 Bxa2 23. Rxa2 Qe6 24. Ra1 Qd5 ({RR} 24... a5) 25. Qb3) 13... dxc2 14. Qxd8+ Rxd8 15. Nxe6 fxe6 16. Be3 Rd5 17. Rfc1 ({RR} 17. c4 bxc4 18. Rac1 Nb4 19. a3 Nd3 20. Rxc2 Kd7 21. Bd4 Rb8) 17... Nxe5 18. Nxe5 Rxe5 19. Bd4 Rg5 ({RR} 19... Re2 20. Kf1 Rd2 21. Be3) 20. Rxc2 Kf7 21. Be3 Rg4 22. b3 Rd8 23. g3 e5 24. Kg2 Rg6 25. c4) ({RR} 10... Be7 11. Bc2) 11. Bxe6 ({RR} 11. Ng5 Qxg5 12. Qf3 O-O-O 13. Bxe6+ fxe6 14. Qxc6 Qxe5 15. b4 Qd5 16. Qxd5 exd5 17. bxc5 dxc3 18. Nb3 d4 19. Ba3 g6 20. Bb4 Bg7 21. a4 d3 22. axb5 d2 23. c6 Kb8 24. Rxa6 d1=Q 25. Bc5 Qxb3) 11... Nxe6 12. cxd4 Ncxd4 13. a4 ({RR} 13. Ne4 Be7 14. Be3 Nf5 15. Qc2 O-O 16. Neg5 ({RR} 16. Rfd1 Nxe3 17. fxe3 Qc8 18. Rac1 c5 19. Nd6 Qc6 20. Rd2 Ra7 21. Rcd1 c4 22. h4 Rc7 23. Rd5 g6 24. h5 Nc5 25. R1d4 Ne6 26. Rd1 Nc5 27. e6 fxe6 28. Ne5 exd5 29. Nxc6 Rxc6) 16... Bxg5 17. Nxg5 Nxg5 ({RR} 17... g6 18. Nxe6 ({RR} 18. Ne4) 18... fxe6 19. Rfe1) 18. Qxf5 Ne6 19. f4 ({RR} 19. Rad1 Qe7 20. Qe4 Rad8 21. f4 Rxd1 22. Rxd1 Qh4 23. Qf3 Rd8 24. g3 Qe7 25. a3 g6 26. b4 Rxd1+ 27. Qxd1 c5) 19... g6 20. Qe4 f5 21. exf6 Qxf6 22. Qc6 Rae8 23. Rf2 Ng7 24. Qxf6 Rxf6 25. Bd4 Rc6 26. Be5 Rd8 27. Re1) 13... Rb8 ({RR} 13... Bb4 14. axb5 Nxb5 15. Qa4 Be7 16. Ne4 O-O 17. Rd1 Qc8 18. Be3 Re8 ({RR} 18... Rd8) 19. h4 h6 20. Rac1 Qb7 21. Ng3 Red8 22. Qg4 Kh8 23. Qh5 Kg8 24. Rxd8+ Rxd8 25. Bxh6 gxh6 26. Nf5 Bf8 27. Rc4 Rd7 28. Nxh6+) 14. axb5 axb5 15. Ne4 Be7 16. Be3 Nf5 17. Ba7 ({RR} 17. Qc2 Nxe3 18. fxe3 Qd5 19. Rac1 Qc4 20. Qxc4 bxc4 21. Rxc4 Rxb2 22. Nd4 Rb6 23. Nc3 Bg5 24. Nd5) 17... Qxd1 18. Rfxd1 Rd8 19. g4 Nh4 20. Nxh4 Bxh4 21. Rxd8+ Bxd8 22. Be3 h5 23. h3 hxg4 24. hxg4) ({RR} 9... Bc5 10. Nxe4 dxe4 11. Bxe6 Qxd1 12. Rxd1 fxe6 13. Ng5 O-O 14. Nxe4 Bb6 15. Kf1 Nxe5 16. Ke2) ({RR} 9... Nc5 10. c3 d4 11. Ng5 dxc3 ({RR} 11... Qxg5 12. Qf3 O-O-O 13. Bxe6+ fxe6 14. Qxc6 Qxe5 15. b4 Qd5) 12. Nxe6 fxe6 13. bxc3 Qd3 14. Nf3 ({RR} 14. Bc2 Qxc3 15. Nb3) 14... O-O-O 15. Qe1 Nxb3 16. axb3 Kb7 17. Be3 Be7 18. Bg5 ({RR} 18. Qc1) 18... h6 ({RR} 18... Rhe8) 19. Bxe7 Nxe7 20. Nd4 Rxd4 21. cxd4 Qxb3 22. Qe3 Qxe3 23. fxe3 Nd5 24. Kf2) 10. c3 ({RR} 10. Nxe4 dxe4 11. Bxe6 fxe6 12. Ng5 Qxd1 ({RR} 12... Bxg5 13. Qh5+ g6 14. Qxg5 O-O) 13. Rxd1 Bxg5 14. Bxg5 h6) 10... O-O 11. Bc2 ({RR} 11. Re1 Nc5 ({RR} 11... Nxd2 12. Qxd2 Qd7) 12. Nd4 ({RR} 12. Bc2 d4 13. Nb3 ({RR} 13. cxd4 Nxd4 14. Nxd4 Qxd4 15. Nf3 Qxd1 16. Rxd1) 13... dxc3 14. bxc3 Qxd1 15. Rxd1 Na4 16. Bd2 Rfd8 17. Nbd4 Nxd4 18. Nxd4 Nb2 19. Re1 c5 20. Nxe6 Rxd2 21. Be4 Ra7 22. Nf4 c4 23. Kf1 Bc5 24. Re2 Rad7) 12... Nxd4 ({RR} 12... Qd7 13. Bc2 Bg4 14. f3 Bh5 15. Bf5 Ne6 ({RR} 15... Qe8 16. N2b3 Bg6 17. Bxg6 hxg6 18. e6) 16. N2b3 Ncxd4 17. cxd4 a5 18. Be3 a4 19. Nc1 Bg6 20. Bh3 a3 21. b3 Bb4 22. Bd2 Qe7 ({RR} 22... Be7) 23. Bxe6 fxe6 24. Ne2 c5 25. Bxb4 cxb4 26. Qd2 Rac8 27. Rac1) 13. cxd4 Nd3 14. Re3 Nxc1 ({RR} 14... Nf4 15. Bc2 c5 16. Rg3 Bh4 17. Nf3 Bxg3 18. hxg3 Ng6 19. dxc5 Bg4 20. Qd4 Qd7 21. Bxg6 hxg6 22. c6 Qf5 23. Ng5 Rfe8 24. Bf4) 15. Rxc1 c5 16. dxc5 Rc8 17. Rec3 ({RR} 17. Rd3 Bxc5 18. Ne4 dxe4 19. Rxd8 Rfxd8 20. Qe1 Bxb3 21. axb3 Bd4 22. Rxc8 Rxc8 23. g3 Bxe5 24. Qxe4 Bxb2 25. Qb7 Rc1+ 26. Kg2 g6 27. Qxa6 b4) 17... b4 18. R3c2 Bf5 19. c6 Bxc2 20. Rxc2 Qa5 21. Nf3 Rfd8 22. Nd4 g6 23. e6) ({RR} 11. Qe2 Nc5 ({RR} 11... Nxd2 12. Bxd2 Na5 13. Bc2 Nc4 14. Nd4 Nxd2 15. Qxd2 Qd7 16. f4 c5 17. Nxe6 fxe6 18. Rad1 Rad8 19. Qd3 g6 20. Qg3 Rf7 21. h4 Rg7 22. Qh3 c4 23. Kh1 a5 24. h5 Bc5 25. Rf3) 12. Nd4 Nxb3 13. N2xb3 Qd7 14. Nxc6 Qxc6 15. Be3 Bf5 ({RR} 15... Qc4 16. Qd2 Qg4 17. Bc5 Rae8 18. Rfe1 Qg6 19. f3 c6 20. Re2 Bc8 21. Rae1 h6 22. Qd4) 16. Rfd1 Qg6 ({RR} 16... Rfd8 17. f3 Bf8 18. Qf2 a5 19. Rd2 b4 20. Rc1 Qa4 21. Nd4 Bg6 22. b3 Qe8) 17. Nd4 Bd7 18. b4 Qe4 19. Bd2 Qxe2 20. Nxe2 Rfe8 21. Bf4 c6 22. Nd4 a5 23. a3 axb4 24. axb4 Ra4) 11... f5 ({RR} 11... Bf5) 12. Nb3 ({RR} 12. exf6 Nxf6 13. Nb3 Bg4 14. Qd3 Qd7 ({RR} 14... Ne4 15. Nbd2 Nf6 16. Ng5 ({RR} 16. a4) 16... g6 17. Ndf3 Qd6 18. h3 ({RR} 18. Re1 Rfe8) 18... Bf5 19. Qe2 Bxc2 20. Qxc2 Rae8) 15. a4 b4 ({RR} 15... Bd6)) ({RR} 12. exf6 Nxf6 13. Nb3 Bg4 14. Qd3) 12... Qd7 13. Nfd4 ({RR} 13. Nbd4 Nxd4 {RR} 14. cxd4 Rac8 15. Ne1 c5 16. f3 cxd4 17. fxe4 dxe4 18. Bb3 Bc5) 13... Nxd4 14. Nxd4 ({RR} 14. cxd4 a5 15. f3 a4 16. fxe4 axb3 17. Bxb3 fxe4 18. Be3 Rxf1+ 19. Qxf1 c6) 14... c5 15. Nxe6 Qxe6 16. f3 Ng5 17. a4 ({RR} 17. Bxg5 Bxg5 18. f4) 17... Rad8 ({RR} 17... g6 18. Kh1 Qc6 ({RR} 18... c4 19. b4 ({RR} 19. b3 Qc6 20. Bxg5 Bxg5 21. f4 Be7 22. Qf3) 19... a5 20. bxa5 Rxa5 21. Bxg5 Bxg5 22. f4 Be7 23. axb5 Rxb5 24. Ba4 Rb2 ({RR} 24... Rbb8 25. Qd4 Rbc8 26. Rfd1 Rfd8) 25. Qd4 Rc8 26. Rfd1 Rc5 27. Rab1 Rxb1 28. Rxb1 Ra5 29. Bd1 Qa6 30. h3 Kg7 31. Bf3) 19. Bxg5 Bxg5 20. f4 Be7 21. Qf3 c4 22. Rfd1 Rfd8 23. b4 a5 24. axb5 Qxb5 25. Ba4 Qb6 26. b5 Qe6 27. Rd2 Ra7 28. Rad1 Rad7 29. g3 Kg7 30. b6 Rb7 31. Rxd5 Rxd5 32. Qxd5) ({RR} 17... b4) 18. axb5 axb5 19. Ra7 ({RR} 19. Bxg5 Bxg5 20. f4 Be7 21. Kh1 ({RR} 21. b4 cxb4 22. cxb4 Bxb4 23. Qd3) 21... Kh8 ({RR} 21... Qb6 22. b3 d4 23. c4 bxc4 24. bxc4 Qb7 25. Bd3 Ra8 26. Rb1 Qc6 27. Be2 Rab8 28. Bf3 Rxb1 29. Qxb1 Qc7 30. Bd5+) ({RR} 21... c4 22. Qd4 Qc6 23. b4 cxb3 24. Bxb3 Kh8 25. Ra5 Rc8 26. Bxd5 Qxc3 27. Qxc3 Rxc3 28. Rxb5) 22. Qd3 ({RR} 22. Ra7 d4 23. Qf3 dxc3 24. bxc3 Rd2 25. Bb1 Rd7 26. Rxd7 Qxd7 27. Rd1 Qc7 28. c4 bxc4 29. Qc3 Rd8) 22... Qb6 ({RR} 22... Qc6 23. Rfd1 c4 24. Qf3 g6 25. b4 ({RR} 25. h3) 25... Rd7 ({RR} 25... Qb6 26. Rxd5 Rxd5 27. Qxd5 Qe3 28. Qxb5 Qxc3 29. Qa4 Bxb4) 26. Qe3 Ra8 27. Qd4) 23. g4 d4 ({RR} 23... g6 24. gxf5 Rxf5 25. Qe2 Rf7) ({RR} 23... c4 24. Qh3 Qc6 25. Qg2 fxg4 26. f5 Bc5 ({RR} 26... g3 27. f6 gxf6 28. Bxh7 fxe5) 27. Qxg4 Rde8 28. f6 gxf6 29. Bxh7 Rxe5 30. Bg6 Qb7 31. Bf5 Rf7 32. Rf3) 24. gxf5 c4 25. Qe4 d3 26. Bd1 Qh6 27. Ra7 Bc5 28. Rc7 Rc8 29. Rxc8 Rxc8 30. Bf3 Rd8 31. Kg2 Qh4 32. Ra1 d2 33. Qc6 Qf2+) ({RR} 19. Kh1 f4 20. Bd2 c4 21. Ra5 ({RR} 21. h4 Qh6) 21... Qc6 22. Qa1 Bc5 23. Ra6 Qb7 24. Qa5 Rde8 25. Re1 Bf2 26. Rf1 Be3) ({RR} 19. Qe2 c4 20. Be3 Qc6 21. Rfd1 Ne6 22. Rd2 g6 23. f4 Rd7 24. Qf2 Rfd8 25. Kf1 Bc5 26. Bxc5 Nxc5 27. Rad1 h5 28. h3 Ne4 29. Bxe4 dxe4) ({RR} 19. Bxg5 Bxg5 20. f4 Be7 21. Kh1 d4 22. cxd4 c4 23. b3 ({RR} 23. Qd2 Qd5 ({RR} 23... Bc5 24. Qa5) 24. Ra5) 23... Bc5 24. bxc4 Rxd4 25. Qf3 bxc4 26. Rfd1 g6 27. Rxd4 Bxd4 28. Rd1 ({RR} 28. Ra8 Rxa8 29. Qxa8+ Kg7 30. Qb7+ Qf7 31. Qxf7+) 28... Rd8 29. Qb7 Bb6 30. Rxd8+ Bxd8 31. Ba4 Qb6 32. Qxb6 Bxb6 {½-½ (32) Anand,V (2767)-So,W (2792) Wijk aan Zee 2018 CBM 183 [Fernandez,Daniel Howard]}) ({RR} 19. Bxg5 Bxg5 20. f4 Be7 21. b4 d4 22. bxc5 Kh8 23. cxd4 Bxc5 24. Kh1 Bxd4 25. Rb1 b4 26. Qf3 Bc3 27. Bb3 Qe7 28. Rbd1 Rxd1 29. Rxd1 Rd8 30. Rxd8+ Qxd8 31. Qb7 g6 32. Qf7 Bd4 33. g3 Qa8+ {Yagupov,I (2230)-Raczek,K (2443) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (42)}) 19... Rd7 ({RR} 19... c4 20. Be3 Qxe5 ({RR} 20... b4 21. Qd2 f4 22. Bf2 b3 23. Bb1 Qf7 24. Qd4 Ne6 25. Qb6) 21. Re1 ({RR} 21. Qd2 d4 22. cxd4 f4) 21... Qd6 22. Rb7 Ne6 23. Kh1 ({RR} 23. Rxb5) 23... g6 24. Bd4 Nxd4 25. Rexe7 Ne6 26. g4 ({RR} 26. Rxh7) 26... Rfe8 27. Rxh7 Qe5 28. gxf5 Nf4 29. Qg1 Qe3) 20. Rxd7 Qxd7 21. Be3 ({RR} 21. Kh1 f4 22. b4 ({RR} 22. Qd2) 22... c4 23. Qd2 Ne6 24. Rd1 Nc7 25. Qf2 Qe6 26. Qd4 Qc6 27. Kg1 g6) ({RR} 21. Qe2 g6 ({RR} 21... Ne6 22. Be3 f4) 22. Be3 Ne6 23. Rd1 Qc6 24. f4 Rc8 ({RR} 24... c4) 25. g4 d4 26. Bc1 Kh8 27. h3 Rf8 28. gxf5 gxf5 29. Kh2 dxc3 30. bxc3) ({RR} 21. b4 cxb4 22. Bxg5 ({RR} 22. cxb4 Ne6) 22... Bxg5 23. f4 Be7 24. cxb4 Bxb4 25. Qd4 Be7 26. Bb3 Rc8 27. Bxd5+ Kf8) ({RR} 21. Bxg5 Bxg5 22. f4 Bd8 23. b3) ({RR} 21. f4 Ne4 22. Bxe4 fxe4 23. f5 d4 24. f6 gxf6 25. Bh6 Rf7 26. cxd4 fxe5 27. Rxf7 Kxf7 28. Qh5+ Kg8 29. dxe5 c4 30. e6 Qa7+ 31. Kf1 Qa1+ 32. Kf2 Qxb2+ 33. Kg3 Qf6 34. Qe8+ Bf8 35. Bxf8 Qg5+ {Karjakin,S (2788)-Polgar,J (2699) Khanty-Mansiysk 2011 ½-½ (44)}) 21... f4 $146 ({RR} 21... Qc6 22. Bxg5 Bxg5 23. f4 Be7 24. g4 fxg4 25. Qxg4 c4 26. f5 Kh8 27. Kh1 d4+ ({RR} 27... Bc5 28. f6 ({RR} 28. Rd1 b4 29. Qf3 Rd8 30. f6) 28... gxf6 29. Bxh7 f5 ({RR} 29... Kxh7 30. Rf3 Be3 31. Rxe3 d4+ 32. Rf3) 30. Qh5 Kg7 31. Bxf5 Qh6 32. Qd1) 28. Be4 Qd7 29. cxd4 Qxd4 30. f6 g6 ({RR} 30... gxf6 31. Rg1) 31. Qf4 ({RR} 31. Rd1 Qxe5 32. fxe7 Qxe7 33. Bc6) 31... Bd8 32. Bg2 ({RR} 32. Bc6 Qxb2 ({RR} 32... Qxf4 33. Rxf4 Bc7 34. Re4 Bxe5 35. Rxe5 b4 36. Re6 c3 37. bxc3 bxc3 38. Be4) 33. Qe3 ({RR} 33. Qh6 Rf7 34. Qe3 Qb3 35. Qxb3 cxb3 36. Bd5 Rf8 37. Bxb3 Bc7 38. e6 Bd8) 33... Be7 34. Rf2 Qa1+ ({RR} 34... Bc5 35. Rxb2 Bxe3 36. e6 Rxf6 37. e7 Re6 38. e8=Q+ Rxe8 39. Bxe8 c3 40. Rc2) 35. Kg2 Bb4 36. Qh6 Rf7 37. Qf4) 32... Qxf4 ({RR} 32... Qxb2 33. Qe3) 33. Rxf4 Bc7 34. Re4 Bd8 35. Kg1 ({RR} 35. Rd4 Bxf6 36. exf6 Rxf6 37. Rd8+ Kg7 38. Rb8) 35... Bxf6 ({RR} 35... Kg8 36. Bh3 Bxf6 ({RR} 36... Kf7 37. Bd7) 37. exf6 Rxf6 38. Bd7 Rb6 39. Re5) 36. exf6 {Naiditsch,A (2693)-Mikhalevski,V (2608) Budva 2009 CBM 130 [Stohl,Igor] 1-0 (89)}) ({RR} 21... Ne6 22. f4) ({RR} 21... Ne6 22. f4 g6 23. g3 Rd8 24. Bf2 d4 25. cxd4 Nxd4 26. Bxd4 Qxd4+ 27. Qxd4 Rxd4 28. Rd1 c4 29. Rxd4 Bc5 30. b3 Bxd4+ 31. Kg2 cxb3 32. Bxb3+ {½-½ (32) Gashimov,V (2730)-Sutovsky,E (2660) Poikovsky 2009}) 22. Bf2 g6 23. Qd2 Ne6 24. Rd1 Rd8 25. Be4 ({RR} 25. h4 d4 26. h5) 25... Qc7 26. Bxd5 Qxe5 27. b3 Kg7 28. c4 bxc4 29. bxc4 Nc7 30. Qa2 Nxd5 31. cxd5 Kf8 32. h3 Qd6 33. Qc4 Kf7 34. Kh1 Kf8 35. Re1 Kf7 36. Rd1 Kf8 37. Bg1 Kf7 38. Qe4 Bf6 39. Qc4 Bd4 40. Qc1 Qxd5 41. Qxf4+ Kg8 42. Bxd4 cxd4 43. Rd3 1/2-1/2 [Event "Tromsoe Midnight Sun"] [Site "Tromsoe"] [Date "2006.06.28"] [Round "5"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Krasenkow, Michal"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C83"] [WhiteElo "2646"] [BlackElo "2650"] [PlyCount "88"] [EventDate "2006.06.24"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [SourceTitle "CBM 112 Extra"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2006.07.14"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2006.07.14"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {Ftacnik,Lubomir Fernandez,Daniel Howard} 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 Be7 ({RR} 9... Nc5 10. c3 d4 ({RR} 10... Be7 11. Bc2) 11. Ng5 dxc3 ({RR} 11... Qxg5 12. Qf3 O-O-O 13. Bxe6+ fxe6 14. Qxc6 Qxe5 15. b4 Qd5) 12. Nxe6 fxe6 13. bxc3 Qd3 14. Nf3 ({RR} 14. Bc2 Qxc3 15. Nb3) 14... O-O-O 15. Qe1 Nxb3 16. axb3 Kb7 17. Be3 Be7 18. Bg5 ({RR} 18. Qc1) 18... h6 ({RR} 18... Rhe8) 19. Bxe7 Nxe7 20. Nd4 Rxd4 21. cxd4 Qxb3 22. Qe3 Qxe3 23. fxe3 Nd5 24. Kf2) 10. c3 O-O 11. Bc2 f5 ({RR} 11... Bf5) 12. Nb3 ({RR} 12. exf6 Nxf6 13. Nb3 Bg4 14. Qd3) 12... Qd7 13. Nbd4 Nxd4 14. Nxd4 c5 15. Nxe6 Qxe6 16. f3 Ng5 17. a4 ({RR} 17. Bxg5 Bxg5 18. f4) 17... Rad8 ({RR} 17... b4) 18. axb5 axb5 19. Bxg5 ({RR} 19. Ra7 Rd7 20. Rxd7 Qxd7 21. Bxg5 Bxg5 22. f4 Bd8 23. b3) 19... Bxg5 20. f4 Be7 21. Kh1 ({RR} 21. b4 cxb4 22. cxb4 Bxb4 23. Qd3) ({RR} 21. b4 d4 22. bxc5 Kh8 23. cxd4 Bxc5 24. Kh1 Bxd4 25. Rb1 b4 26. Qf3 Bc3 27. Bb3 Qe7 28. Rbd1 Rxd1 29. Rxd1 Rd8 30. Rxd8+ Qxd8 31. Qb7 g6 32. Qf7 Bd4 33. g3 Qa8+ 34. Bd5 Qd8 35. Kg2 Bc3 {Yagupov,I (2230)-Raczek,K (2443) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (42)}) 21... Kh8 ({RR} 21... d4 22. cxd4 c4 23. b3 ({RR} 23. Qd2 Qd5 ({RR} 23... Bc5 24. Qa5) 24. Ra5) 23... Bc5 24. bxc4 Rxd4 25. Qf3 bxc4 26. Rfd1 g6 27. Rxd4 Bxd4 28. Rd1 ({RR} 28. Ra8 Rxa8 29. Qxa8+ Kg7 30. Qb7+ Qf7 31. Qxf7+) 28... Rd8 29. Qb7 Bb6 30. Rxd8+ Bxd8 31. Ba4 Qb6 32. Qxb6 Bxb6 {½-½ (32) Anand,V (2767)-So,W (2792) Wijk aan Zee 2018 CBM 183 [Fernandez,Daniel Howard]}) ({RR} 21... c4 22. Qd4 Qc6 23. b4 cxb3 24. Bxb3 Kh8 25. Ra5 Rc8 26. Bxd5 Qxc3 27. Qxc3 Rxc3 28. Rxb5) ({RR} 21... Qb6 22. b3 ({RR} 22. Qf3 d4 23. cxd4) 22... d4 23. c4 bxc4 24. bxc4 Qb7 25. Bd3) 22. Qd3 ({RR} 22. Ra7 d4 23. cxd4 Rxd4 24. Qf3 Rd2 25. Rf2 Rd7 26. Rxd7 Qxd7 27. h3 c4 28. g4 g6 29. gxf5) 22... Qc6 $146 ({RR} 22... Qb6 23. g4 d4 ({RR} 23... d4 24. gxf5 c4 25. Qe4 d3 26. Bd1 Qh6 27. Ra7 Bc5) 24. gxf5 c4 25. Qe4 d3 26. Bd1 Qh6 27. Ra7 Bc5 28. Rc7 Rc8 29. Rxc8 Rxc8 30. Bf3 Rd8 31. Kg2 Qh4 32. Ra1 d2 33. Qc6 Qf2+ 34. Kh3 Bf8 35. f6 Rd3 36. fxg7+ Kxg7 37. Qf6+ {Fedorov,A (2617)-Delchev,A (2628) Predeal 2006 ½-½ (38)}) ({RR} 22... Qb6 23. g4 c4 24. Qh3 Qc6 ({RR} 24... d4 25. Bxf5 g6 ({RR} 25... Qc6+ 26. Qg2) 26. Be4 Qe6 27. Qg3) 25. Qg2 ({RR} 25. Bxf5 g6 26. Bc2 ({RR} 26. Bb1 d4+ 27. Qg2 Qxg2+ 28. Kxg2 d3) 26... d4+ 27. Qg2 ({RR} 27. Kg1 d3) 27... Qxg2+ 28. Kxg2 dxc3 29. bxc3 Rd2+ 30. Rf2 Rxf2+ 31. Kxf2 Rxf4+) ({RR} 25. gxf5 d4+ 26. Qg2 Qxg2+ 27. Kxg2 d3 28. Bd1 Rxf5) 25... fxg4 26. f5 Bc5 ({RR} 26... Qc7 27. f6 ({RR} 27. Rae1 d4) 27... gxf6 28. Qxg4 fxe5 ({RR} 28... Qxe5 29. Rfe1) ({RR} 28... Bc5 29. exf6 d4) 29. Bxh7 Bg5 ({RR} 29... Kxh7 30. Qh5+ Kg7 31. Rg1+) 30. Bg6 Bh6 31. Qh5 Qg7 32. Rg1) ({RR} 26... g3 27. Rf3 ({RR} 27. hxg3 Qh6+ 28. Qh2 Qxh2+ 29. Kxh2 d4) ({RR} 27. Rae1 Qh6 28. Qxg3 Bh4) ({RR} 27. f6 gxf6 28. Bxh7 fxe5) ({RR} 27. Qxg3 d4+ 28. Qg2 Qxg2+ 29. Kxg2 d3 30. Bd1 Rd5) 27... d4 28. cxd4 Rxd4 29. Rxg3 Qxg2+ 30. Rxg2 Rfd8) 27. Qxg4 Rde8 ({RR} 27... d4+ 28. Be4 Qc7 29. f6 gxf6 30. exf6) 28. f6 ({RR} 28. Rae1 d4+ 29. Be4 Qc7 30. f6 Rxe5 31. cxd4 Bxd4 32. Rd1 Rxe4 33. fxg7+ Qxg7 34. Rxf8+ Qxf8 35. Qxe4 Bxb2) 28... gxf6 29. Bxh7 Rxe5 ({RR} 29... Kxh7 30. Qh5+ Kg7 31. Rg1+ Bxg1 32. Rxg1#) 30. Bf5 ({RR} 30. Bg6 Qb7 ({RR} 30... d4+ 31. Rf3 Qb7 32. Rg1) 31. Bf5 Rf7 ({RR} 31... d4+ 32. Rf3 Rxf5 33. Qxf5) 32. Rf3 Rg7 33. Qh3+ Kg8 34. Be6+) 30... Rf7 ({RR} 30... Rg8 31. Qh5+ Kg7 32. Qh7+ Kf8 33. Bd7) ({RR} 30... d4+ 31. Rf3 Rg8 32. Qh5+ ({RR} 32. Qh4+ Kg7 33. Be4 Rxe4 34. Rg1+ Kf7 35. Qh7+ Ke6 36. Rxf6+ Kxf6 37. Qh6+ Ke7 38. Qxc6 Rxg1+ 39. Kxg1 Re5) 32... Kg7 33. Qg6+ Kf8 34. Ra8+ Qxa8 ({RR} 34... Ke7 35. Qh7+ Kd6 36. Be4 Rxe4 37. Qxg8 Re8 38. Qg3+ Kd7 39. Rxe8 Kxe8 40. Qg6+) 35. Qxf6+ Ke8 36. Qxe5+ Kd8 37. Bg4 ({RR} 37. Be4 Qa1+) 37... Rf8 ({RR} 37... Qa1+ 38. Kg2 Rxg4+ 39. Kh3 Qg1 40. Qb8+) ({RR} 37... Rxg4 38. Qh8+) 38. Qxc5 Qa1+ ({RR} 38... Rxf3 39. Qxd4+ Ke7 40. Bxf3 Qxf3+ 41. Kg1) 39. Kg2 Qxb2+ 40. Kg3 Rxf3+ 41. Bxf3 Qxc3 42. Qd6+) 31. Rae1 ({RR} 31. Rf3 Rg7 32. Rh3+ Kg8 33. Ra8+ ({RR} 33. Qh5 d4+ 34. Qf3 Qxf3+ 35. Rxf3 d3) ({RR} 33. Qf3 Re3) 33... Qxa8 34. Be6+ Rxe6 ({RR} 34... Kf8 35. Rh8+ Ke7 36. Qxg7+ Kxe6 37. Qg4+ ({RR} 37. Rxa8 Re1+ 38. Kg2 Rg1+) 37... Kd6 38. Rxa8 Re1+ 39. Kg2 Rg1+ 40. Kf3 Rxg4 41. Kxg4) 35. Qxe6+ Rf7 36. Qg4+ Rg7 37. Qe6+ Rf7) ({RR} 31. Rfe1 d4+ ({RR} 31... Bb6 32. Qh5+ Kg8 33. Qg6+ Rg7 ({RR} 33... Kf8 34. Rxe5) 34. Be6+ Rxe6 ({RR} 34... Qxe6 35. Ra8+) 35. Rxe6 Rxg6 36. Rxc6) ({RR} 31... Rg7 32. Qh3+ Kg8 33. Rxe5 fxe5 34. Be6+) 32. Be4 Rxe4 ({RR} 32... Qe6 33. Ra8+) 33. Rxe4 d3 34. Qg2 Rh7 35. Rae1 Bf8 36. Rg1 Qd5) 31... d4+ 32. Be4 Qe6 33. Bf5 ({RR} 33. Qh4+ Kg7 ({RR} 33... Kg8 34. Qh6 Bf8 35. Rg1+ Bg7 36. Ra1) 34. Rg1+ Kf8 35. Qh8+ Ke7 36. Rg8 Qd7) 33... Qc6+ 34. Be4 Qe6 35. Bf5 Qc6+ {½-½ (35) Karjakin,S (2678)-Carlsen,M (2690) Wijk aan Zee 2007 CBM 117 [Ftacnik,Lubomir]}) 23. Rfd1 c4 ({RR} 23... d4 24. c4) 24. Qf3 g6 ({RR} 24... b4 25. cxb4 Bxb4 26. Rd4 Bc5 27. Rxc4) 25. b4 Rd7 26. Qe3 Ra8 27. Qd4 Rdd8 28. g4 Rxa1 29. Rxa1 Ra8 30. Rg1 Bd8 31. e6+ Kg8 32. gxf5 Bb6 33. Qe5 Bxg1 34. fxg6 hxg6 35. Bxg6 Bb6 36. Qg5 Qxe6 37. Bf5+ Kf8 38. Bxe6 Ra1+ 39. Kg2 Rg1+ 40. Kf3 Rxg5 41. fxg5 d4 42. cxd4 Bxd4 43. h4 Bc3 44. Bd7 Bxb4 1/2-1/2 [Event "London Classic 11th"] [Site "London"] [Date "2019.12.03"] [Round "1.2"] [White "Vachier Lagrave, Maxime"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C84"] [WhiteElo "2780"] [BlackElo "2872"] [Annotator "Edouard,Romain"] [PlyCount "86"] [EventDate "2019.12.02"] [EventType "k.o."] [EventRounds "2"] [EventCountry "ENG"] [SourceTitle "CBM 194"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2020.01.27"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2020.01.27"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Nxe4 6. d4 Be7 $5 {Recent fashion!} (6... b5 7. Bb3 d5 8. dxe5 Be6 {is the main line.}) 7. Re1 ({Practice has shown that} 7. Qe2 {doesn't bring much:} b5 8. Bb3 (8. Nxe5 Nd6 $5 9. Nxc6 dxc6 10. Bb3 O-O 11. Bf4 Nf5 12. c3 c5 13. dxc5 Bxc5 14. Nd2 Bd6 15. Bxd6 Nxd6 16. Ne4 Bb7 17. Nxd6 Qxd6 18. Rad1 Qg6 $11 {1-0 (59) Shirov,A (2673)-Dubov,D (2660) Moscow 2016}) 8... d5 9. dxe5 Be6 10. Rd1 O-O (10... Nc5 $5 11. c4 Nxb3 12. axb3 b4 13. cxd5 Bxd5 14. Rxa6 Rxa6 15. Qxa6 O-O 16. Qb5 Bc4 17. Rxd8 Bxb5 18. Rxf8+ Kxf8 $44 {0-1 (40) Vokhidov,S (2526)-Khanin,S (2500) Moscow 2019}) 11. c4 bxc4 12. Bxc4 Bc5 13. Be3 Bxe3 14. Qxe3 Qb8 $1 15. Bb3 Na5 (15... Qb6 $5) 16. Nbd2 Qa7 17. Qxa7 Rxa7 18. Rac1 Rb8 19. Nd4 (19. Nxe4 $5 Nxb3 20. axb3 dxe4 21. Nd4 Bd5 22. Rc5 c6 23. Rxc6 h6 $5 $11) 19... c5 20. Nxe6 fxe6 21. Nxe4 Nxb3 22. axb3 dxe4 $11 {½-½ (73) Smeets,J (2596)-Ernst,S (2553) Amstelveen 2019}) 7... b5 8. Rxe4 $1 {Definitely the best try.} (8. Bb3 d5 9. dxe5 Be6 {transposes into a regular Open Spanish with 9.Re1 Be7, which theory claims is fine for Black.}) (8. d5 Nc5 9. dxc6 (9. Bb3 $5 Na5 10. Nxe5 d6 11. Nc6 Nxc6 12. dxc6 O-O 13. Nc3 Bf6 14. Nd5 Nxb3 15. axb3 Be6 16. c3 Re8 $11) 9... Nxa4 10. cxd7+ Qxd7 $15 {½-½ (13) Negi,P (2642)-Radjabov,T (2744) Khanty-Mansiysk 2011}) 8... d5 9. Nxe5 Nxe5 10. Rxe5 bxa4 11. b3 {A natural move, as White wants to play Ba3, but not the most ambitious one.} (11. Qe2 $1 {could be the best move - see the analysis of the fifth game of that same match: Vachier Lagrave,M (2780)-Carlsen,M (2872) London 2019, ½-½ (46).}) ({Practice has shown Black to be fine after other moves so far:} 11. Nc3 O-O (11... Be6 $2 12. Qh5 $1 g6 $2 13. Qf3 $1 Bf6 14. Rxd5 $1 Bxd5 15. Nxd5 Bg7 16. Bg5 Qxg5 17. Nxc7+ Kd8 18. Nxa8 {1-0 Lasker,E-Tarrasch,S Berlin 1916}) 12. Re1 (12. Nxa4 Bd6 13. Re1 Bf5 14. c3 Qh4 15. g3 Qh3 {would give Black typical compensation, similar to what we see in the Marshall Gambit.}) (12. Nxd5 Bd6 {is also quite unclear, since if Black retracts his rook on the e-file Black has got ...Bxh2+ regaining the pawn.}) (12. Rxd5 Bd6 13. Bf4 Be6 $1 14. Bxd6 cxd6 15. Rh5 g6 16. Rh6 a3 $1 17. bxa3 Rc8 $44 {0-1 (29) Sidorenko,I (2395)-Mikhalevski,V (2581) Israel 2019}) 12... Bd6 13. Qh5 a3 $5 (13... c6 14. Nxa4 Qa5 15. Nc3 Rb8 $44 {1-0 (39) Preotu,R (2524)-Mikhalevski,V (2581) chess.com 2019}) 14. Nxd5 axb2 15. Bxb2 Rb8 16. Rab1 Re8 (16... Be6 $5 17. c4 g6 18. Qe2 Bxd5 19. cxd5 Qg5 $11) 17. Ne3 Bf4 18. d5 (18. c4 g6 19. Qe2 Bf5 20. Rbd1 Qd6 $44) (18. Qf3 Bxe3 19. fxe3 Be6 $44) 18... Rb4 (18... Re4 $5 19. Qf3 Qe8 {also makes sense, according to the engine.}) 19. c4 Bxe3 20. Rxe3 Rxe3 21. fxe3 Rxc4 22. Bd4 c5 23. Ba1 f6 24. h3 Qe7 25. Qf3 h6 26. Re1 Re4 $15 {½-½ (68) Caruana,F (2819)-Carlsen,M (2875) Zagreb 2019}) (11. Qe1 f6 $1 (11... Be6 12. f4 $40) 12. Re2 (12. Re3 c5 $5 (12... Kf7 $5) 13. Qd1 (13. dxc5 d4 14. Re2 Kf7 $44) 13... O-O 14. Nc3 Rb8 15. b3 cxd4 16. Qxd4 Bd6 $6 {Very inspired - but probably not correct.} (16... axb3 17. axb3 Bb7 {shouldn't be much for White.}) 17. Qxd5+ Kh8 18. Rd3 Qe8 19. Bb2 Be5 20. Nxa4 Rb5 21. Qf3 (21. Qc4 $5) 21... Bb7 22. Qe3 Be4 $1 23. Rd2 Bxg2 $1 24. Kxg2 (24. f4 $5) 24... Qg6+ 25. Kf1 Bxh2 26. Re1 Rg5 27. Ke2 $2 Re8 28. Kd1 Rg1 $1 $19 {Not a fully correct game from Black, but an incredibly inspired one! 0-1 (48) Aronian,L (2780)-Mamedyarov,S (2820) Batumi 2018}) 12... Kf7 {This leads to drawish positions.} 13. Nc3 Bb4 (13... Re8 $5 14. Nxa4 Bd7 15. Nc3 Bb4 16. Rxe8 Qxe8 17. Bf4 Qxe1+ 18. Rxe1 Bxc3 19. bxc3 Re8 20. Rxe8 Bxe8 21. Bxc7 Bb5 22. f3 {½-½ Van Kampen,R (2637)-L'Ami,E (2630) Netherlands 2014}) 14. a3 Ba5 15. Bd2 Bxc3 16. Bxc3 Bf5 17. Bb4 (17. Qd2 Qd7 18. Rae1 Rhe8 19. f3 Rxe2 20. Qxe2 Re8 21. Qxa6 Rxe1+ 22. Bxe1 Bxc2 $11 {½-½ (31) Tari,A (2614)-Ernst,S (2535) Kiel 2018}) 17... Re8 18. Rxe8 Qxe8 19. Qxe8+ Rxe8 20. Re1 Rxe1+ 21. Bxe1 Bxc2 $11 {½-½ (32) Santos Ruiz,M (2583)-Vallejo Pons,F (2694) Marbella 2019}) 11... O-O ({So far} 11... Be6 {didn't prove to be bad either, but the game move looks more natural.} 12. Ba3 Bxa3 13. Nxa3 O-O 14. Nb1 Qd6 15. Nc3 axb3 16. axb3 c5 17. Ne2 (17. Re3 Rfc8 18. Rg3 Rab8 19. dxc5 Qxc5 20. h3 g6 21. Rxa6 d4 22. Ne4 Qe5 23. Ng5 d3 24. Qxd3 Bf5 25. Qf3 $6 f6 $1 26. Nxh7 Kxh7 27. Ra7+ Rc7 $15 {½-½ (43) Saric,I (2689)-Kapnisis,S (2456) Greece 2018}) 17... f6 18. Re3 c4 19. Ng3 cxb3 20. cxb3 g6 21. Qf3 Bf7 $11 {½-½ (43) Nakamura,H (2743)-Caruana,F (2818) Saint Louis 2019}) 12. Ba3 (12. Rxe7 Qxe7 13. Ba3 Qg5 14. Bxf8 Bh3 $1 15. Qf1 Kxf8 16. Nc3 Re8 17. Kh1 Qd2 $5 18. Nxd5 Bxg2+ $1 19. Qxg2 Re1+ 20. Rxe1 Qxe1+ 21. Qg1 Qe4+ {½-½ Relange,E (2490)-Benjamin,J (2595) Mermaid Beach 1998}) 12... Bxa3 13. Nxa3 {The only way White can be better in these positions is to bring the a3-knight to c5 (Nb1, Nc3, Na4, Nc5) but he never succeeds.} Re8 $1 {The "clearest" way to equalize.} (13... Qd6 14. Nb1 f6 15. Re3 Bd7 16. Nc3 Rfe8 {was played by Radjabov, and is also very solid.}) 14. Rxe8+ Qxe8 15. Qd2 (15. Nb1 axb3 16. axb3 Bf5 (16... Qc6 $5) 17. Nc3 Qc6 (17... Qe6 $5) 18. Qd2 Re8 19. Rc1 Qe6 20. f3 h5 $11 {½-½ (36) Balogh,C (2630)-Radjabov,T (2715) Poland 2013}) 15... Bf5 16. Re1 (16. Nb1 $2 Bxc2 $15) 16... Qc6 {This setup paralyzes the white knight on a3. With his next move, White just tries to exchange everything and forces a draw.} 17. c4 axb3 18. axb3 h6 19. cxd5 Qxd5 20. Nc4 Be6 21. Re5 Qd7 22. d5 Rd8 $1 23. dxe6 (23. Ne3 $2 c6 $17) 23... Qxd2 24. Nxd2 Rxd2 25. g3 fxe6 26. Rxe6 Ra2 27. Rc6 Ra3 28. Rxc7 Rxb3 29. Ra7 Ra3 30. g4 h5 $5 {Not necessary, but anyway a good move to disturb White's pawn chain.} 31. gxh5 (31. g5 $6 Kh7 $15) 31... Kh7 32. Kg2 Ra5 33. f4 Ra3 34. Ra8 a5 35. Ra6 a4 36. f5 Rb3 $1 {Simplest.} 37. Rxa4 Rb5 38. Rf4 Kh6 39. f6 gxf6 40. Rxf6+ Kxh5 41. h4 Rb2+ 42. Rf2 Rxf2+ 43. Kxf2 Kxh4 1/2-1/2 [Event "Sinquefield Cup 3rd"] [Site "Saint Louis"] [Date "2015.08.24"] [Round "2"] [White "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C84"] [WhiteElo "2808"] [BlackElo "2853"] [Annotator "Marin,Mihail"] [PlyCount "80"] [EventDate "2015.08.23"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "USA"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 168"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2015.09.14"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2015.09.14"] [SourceQuality "1"] [TimeControl "40/7200:3600+30"] 1. e4 {[%emt 0:00:04]} e5 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 2. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:05]} Nc6 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 3. Bb5 {[%emt 0:00:03]} a6 {[%emt 0:00:06];1-0 Caruana,F (2805)-Carlsen,M (2876) Norway Chess 3rd 2015 (2) There is little wonder that Carlsen avoids the Berlin after the recent defeat by Caruana's hands in} 4. Ba4 {[%emt 0:00:04]} Nf6 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 5. O-O {[%emt 0:00:06] By this moment I guess Caruana was asking himself whether it would be a Marshall or a Breyer.} b5 {[%emt 0:00:18]} 6. Bb3 {[%emt 0:00:06]} Bb7 {[%emt 0:00:06] None of them in fact! Carlsen chooses the classical Arkhangelsk move order, which has fallen into oblivion long time ago.} ({Fashion has the neo-Arkhangelsk based on} 6... Bc5 {more reliable.}) 7. d3 {[%emt 0:01:15] Caruana does not show himself keen of checking Carlsen's preparation in the main lines and chooses a setup which is mainly played to avoid the Marshall.} (7. Re1 Bc5 8. c3 d6 9. d4 Bb6 {leads to positional play with reasonable black counterplay.}) (7. c3 {is more challenging. The most fascinating line goes} Nxe4 8. d4 Na5 9. Bc2 exd4 10. Bxe4 Bxe4 11. Re1 d5 12. b4 Nc4 13. Nxd4 c5 14. bxc5 Bxc5 15. f3 O-O 16. fxe4 dxe4 17. Rxe4 Qd5 {with certain compensation for Black in view of his better development and the hanging d4-knight. The last games at high level went} 18. Qf3 Ne5 19. Qf5 Rae8 20. Nd2 g6 ({Deviating from his slightly earlier game} 20... b4 21. N2b3 g6 22. Qf1 Qxe4 23. Nxc5 $14 {Ivanov,A (2539)-Tomashevsky,E (2708) Khanty-Mansiysk 2009 (½-½, 36)}) 21. Qf4 b4 22. Bb2 bxc3 23. Bxc3 Nc6 24. Kh1 Bxd4 25. Rxd4 Nxd4 26. Bxd4 Re2 27. Nf3 f6 28. h3 $14 {0-1 Hellers,F (2520)-Shirov,A (2580) Stockholm 1990 Shirov,A (2719)-Tomashevsky,E (2708) Khanty-Mansiysk 2009 (1-0, 41). Maybe Shirov was not the best suited opponent to try this opening against, since two decades ago he used to be a specialist of it with... Black. See for instance}) 7... Be7 {[%emt 0:00:09] A bit disappointing - the game now enters the Anti-Marshall paths, (I find Alejandro Ramirez' description "An Archangel with ?e7" inaccurate, but this is relative, of course.)} ({Long before the neo-Arkhangelsk story started to take shape, Malaniuk caused some sensation winning three games with the slightly weird} 7... Bd6 {The idea is to over-defend the e5-pawn in order to allow an early ...?a5 if needed. The most famous of his games (of course, I am speaking from the perspective of somebody who was playing chess at that time) went} 8. a4 ({Neutral play such as} 8. c3 O-O 9. Nbd2 {could eventually transpose to ...?c5 lines (I do not know how to baptize them already) when the bishop retreats to f8 a few moves later:} Re8 10. Re1 Bf8 {and so on.}) 8... h6 9. Nc3 b4 10. Ne2 Na5 {Now is when the bishop proves useful on d6.} 11. Ba2 O-O 12. Ng3 Re8 13. h3 ({The modern interpretation is} 13. c3 c5 {as for instance in Hovhannisyan,R (2560)-Bartel,M (2638) Aix-les-Bains 2011 (0-1, 51)}) 13... Bf8 14. Nh2 d5 15. Qf3 c5 $15 {Adams,M (2505)-Malaniuk,V (2560) Palma de Mallorca 1989 (0-1, 51)}) 8. Nc3 {[%emt 0:02:22]} O-O {[%emt 0:01:01]} 9. a3 {[%emt 0:01:01] The third most popular continuation after 9.?d2 and 9.a4.} d6 {[%emt 0:16:21]} 10. Re1 {[%emt 0:09:39]} Qd7 {[%emt 0:00:35];0-1 Jansa,V (2535)-Smyslov,V (2600) Sochi Chigorin Memorial 1974 (9) The regrouping initiated with this move reminds me of one of Smyslow's ultra-solid systems in the classical Ruy Lopez} 11. Ne2 {[%emt 0:05:12]} Nd8 {[%emt 0:06:15] Unlike in Smyslow's game, Black can already regroup with his knight, since there is no pressure on e5.} 12. Ng3 {[%emt 0:01:06]} Ne6 {[%emt 0:00:32] This position was seen in five earlier games, which makes Caruana's 30 minute thought a bit surprizing.} 13. Ba2 $146 {[%emt 0:29:44]} ({During my live comments I did not have access at the "reference" button, nor to the engines, so I wondered what would be wrong with} 13. c3 c5 14. d4 {After all, this is what the Spanish Opening is all about - White needs occupying the centre. I must confess that I under-estimated Black's dynamic potential, based on his better development. White has wasted quite some time with a2-a3 and d2-d3-d4.} exd4 15. cxd4 {Black has two playable ways of breaking the centre with ...d6-d5.} c4 (15... d5 16. exd5 Bxd5 17. Bxd5 Nxd5 18. dxc5 Bxc5 19. b4 Bb6 20. Ne5 Qb7 21. Nf5 {White's position looks threatening but he still is underdeveloped.} Rad8 $1 (21... Ne7 22. Qf3 $1 Qa7 {Horvath,A (2531)-Banusz,T (2598) Gyula 2013 (0-1, 38)} 23. Nxe7+ Qxe7 24. Bb2 $14 {[%csl Rc6,Rg7][%CAl Ge5c6,Ga1c1]}) 22. Qg4 Nf6 23. Qh4 Bd4 {Black's position becomes dominant so White is best adviced to force a draw by perpetual:} 24. Bg5 Bxa1 25. Rxa1 Nxg5 26. Qxg5 g6 27. Qxf6 {or 27.?h6+.}) 16. Bc2 d5 {This is Tomashevsky's specialty.} 17. e5 Ne4 18. Nxe4 ({White does not get much by rejecting the sacrifice:} 18. Nf5 f6 19. Be3 Bd8 20. exf6 Bxf6 {with active black play in Jakovenko,D (2711)-Tomashevsky,E (2658) Dagomys 2008 (½-½, 26)}) 18... dxe4 19. Bxe4 Bxe4 20. Rxe4 Qd5 21. Qc2 Rfd8 {This looks unnatural.} ({But if} 21... Rad8 {Black must have feared} 22. Bd2 {[%CAl Gd2b4] when ...a5 is impossible.}) ({Given this problems, I am actually asking myself whether there is such a hurry to define the rooks' intentions. Since Black plans playing ...f7-f5 anyway, I consider} 21... f5 {a serious candidate, for instance} 22. exf6 Bxf6 23. Be3 Rad8 {with a couple of extra tempi compared to the game.}) 22. h4 f5 23. exf6 Bxf6 24. Be3 Qf5 25. Re1 Rf8 {The rook returns to the right square but I am not sure h2-h4 is such a weakening as to allow wasting two tempi.} 26. Re2 Rad8 {Anyway, Black's blockade is relatively safe and the game ended in a draw, Shirov,A (2740)-Tomashevsky,E (2658) Dagomys 2008 (½-½, 34) Even if the consequences of 13.c3 are far from clear, I do not see the point behind Caruana's novelty. White wastes just another tempo while big part of his army is placed on the initial squares.}) 13... Rfe8 {[%emt 0:08:03] Black is one step away from completing his development with ...?ad8, while White is far behind in the process. Besides, he does not have too much space to deal with that. Little wonder that Caruana decided to exchange some pieces.} 14. Ng5 {[%emt 0:06:30] Trying to make use of White's best piece - his Spanish bishop.} ({If} 14. Nf5 Bf8 15. c3 c5 {Black threatens undermining the white centre with ...c5-c4.}) ({The only reasonable alternative to the game move is} 14. Bd2 {, without offering a clue to what White should do with his queen, though.}) 14... d5 $5 {[%emt 0:16:04] Played after 16 minutes, this is the most principled decision. Allowing an exchange on e6 looks unappealing, while} (14... Nxg5 15. Bxg5 {would only speed up White's development, for instance} h6 16. Bxf6 Bxf6 17. Nf5 Kh7 18. Qh5 Rf8 19. h4 $36 {[%CAl Gg2g4,Ge1e3] with a much better version of the game continuation.}) 15. Nxe6 {[%emt 0:08:59] White needs releasing the tension in order to clear the g5-square for the bishop. Delaying this exchange would give Black time to increase his space advantage.} ({The pawn grabbing} 15. exd5 Nxg5 16. Bxg5 Bxd5 17. Rxe5 Bxa2 18. Rxa2 {should not scare a Marshall Attack player. The a2-rook is less than undeveloped.} h6 $5 19. Bxf6 (19. Bd2 Bd6) 19... Bxf6 20. Re4 Rxe4 21. Nxe4 Be5 {offers Black plenty of play.}) 15... Qxe6 {[%emt 0:00:15]} 16. Bg5 {[%emt 0:07:46]} ({For instance} 16. Nf5 Bf8 17. Bg5 c5 18. Qf3 ({Or if} 18. Bxf6 Qxf6 19. Ne3 d4 20. Nd5 Qd6 $11 {[%CAl Gb7c8,Gc8e6,Ya8c8,Yc5c4] the beautiful central knight would actually block the own bishop.}) 18... c4 19. Nh6+ (19. Bxf6 Qxf6 20. exd5 Rad8 21. dxc4 $2 e4 {[%CAl Gf6b2]}) 19... Kh8 20. Bxf6 Qxf6 21. Qxf6 gxf6 22. Nf5 Rac8 $11 {Black's activity and space advantage compensates for the structural deffect.}) 16... h6 $1 {[%emt 0:04:17] It would be dangerous to delay this thematic move.} (16... c5 17. Bxf6 Bxf6 18. Nh5 Be7 (18... Rad8 19. exd5 Bxd5 20. Nf4) (18... Qd6 19. Nxf6+ gxf6 20. Qh5 $16) (18... Bg5 19. Bxd5 Bxd5 20. exd5 Qxd5 21. Qg4 Qd8 22. f4 $36) 19. exd5 Bxd5 $2 20. Nf4 $18) 17. Bxf6 {[%emt 0:01:23]} Bxf6 {[%emt 0:01:22]} 18. Qf3 {[%emt 0:05:51]} (18. Nh5 Bg5 {is safe for Black due to the fact that his bishop is defended, making the queen incursion after} 19. Bxd5 Bxd5 20. exd5 Qxd5 21. Qg4 {inoffensive, for instance} Qe6 $11) 18... c6 {[%emt 0:03:08] This ultra ambitious move fails to keep the a2-bishop out of play after Caruana's active answer.} (18... Rad8 {is more natural, even though the evaluation remains the same: both sides' chances are even.}) 19. c4 $1 {[%emt 0:06:36]} Rad8 {[%emt 0:03:30]} 20. cxd5 {[%emt 0:01:05]} ({One important problem is that the a1-rook needs defending the bishop. For instance completing the development with} 20. Rac1 {allows} dxc4 $1 (20... bxc4 {is less clear:} 21. exd5 $1 ({Only not} 21. dxc4 $2 d4 22. b4 c5 $15 {[%csl Ra2]}) 21... cxd5 22. dxc4 e4 23. cxd5 Bxd5 24. Bxd5 exf3 25. Bxe6 Rxe6 26. Rxe6 fxe6 $13) 21. dxc4 Bg5 22. Rc2 g6 {[%csl Ra2,Rg3][%CAl Ge6a2]}) 20... cxd5 {[%emt 0:00:02]} 21. Nf5 {[%emt 0:00:30] White tris compensating his space defficit with active piece play.} ({It would be nice to fight for the c-file, but} 21. Rac1 $2 {loses material to} dxe4 {[%csl Ga2]} 22. Bxe6 exf3) ({Or if} 21. Rec1 {(not very natural - the rook belongs to e1.)} Rd7 22. Rc5 Qb6 23. Rac1 Be7 24. R5c2 Bg5 25. Re1 Red8 26. Qg4 Rc7 $11) 21... Bg5 {[%emt 0:22:27]} 22. h4 {[%emt 0:01:00]} Bd2 $5 {[%emt 0:03:54] When I saw this move, I thought the bishop will finally reach b6, truly in the spirit of the Arkhangelsk. But my expectations proved wrong...} ({As pointed out by Ramirez,} 22... Bf4 {"is also possible."} 23. g3 dxe4 24. Qg4 (24. dxe4 $2 Qxf5 $17) 24... Qf6 25. gxf4 exd3 {"gets crazy, but computers like Black a bit."} 26. fxe5 $2 d2 $19 {"was something Carlsen missed."}) 23. Re2 {[%emt 0:04:26]} dxe4 {[%emt 0:14:28]} 24. dxe4 {[%emt 0:05:18]} Qf6 {[%emt 0:00:11]} 25. g3 {[%emt 0:09:41]} Kf8 $3 {[%emt 0:01:45];1-0 Carlsen,M (2863)-Anand,V (2792) World Championship 2014 (11) The evaluation is not only for the objective merits of the move, but also for the whole king's moving around initiated now and the depth behind it. The king manoeuvre reminds me a bit of the somewhat similar issue in the last game of the return Carlsen-Anand match} ({Carlsen intended to drive the enemy knight away with ...g6, which would not work with the king on h8 due to ?xh6+. And if} 25... Kh8 {the f7-square would be vulnerable. White could play a consolidating move such as} 26. Kg2 (26. h5 Bg5) 26... g6 $6 27. Nd4 Qg7 (27... Qxf3+ $2 28. Nxf3 Ba5 29. Bxf7 $18) 28. Nb3 f5 29. Nc5 $14) ({The ARkhangelsk plan should be carried out with care, for if} 25... Ba5 $6 26. Nxh6+ $1 Qxh6 27. Qxf7+ Kh7 28. Qxb7 $16) ({I would probably choose} 25... Kh7 26. Kg2 Ba5 27. Rc1 g6 28. Ne3 (28. Nd4 {does not work so well now, since after} Qxf3+ 29. Nxf3 {the bishop is not hanging anymore, allowing} f5 $36) 28... Qxf3+ 29. Kxf3 Rd3 {[%CAl Ga5b6]}) 26. h5 {[%emt 0:05:10]} ({With the f7-pawn defended,} 26. Kg2 g6 27. Nd4 Qxf3+ 28. Nxf3 Ba5 {is safe for Black.}) 26... Bg5 {[%emt 0:04:20] There were no reasons to refrain from occupying the concealed square. The bishop defends the queen, making ...g6 an issue already, without fearing ?d4 at all.} 27. a4 {[%emt 0:01:14] By now, both players were approaching severe time trouble. With jis last move Caruana opens a new front, clearing the a3-square for the queen in order to harass the centralized king.} ({A neutral move such as} 27. Rf1 {would allow} g6 ({If Black wants more than an immediate draw he can try} 27... Bc8) 28. hxg6 fxg6 29. Qb3 (29. Nh4 Bxh4) 29... gxf5 30. Qg8+ Ke7 31. Qh7+ Kf8 {White should take the draw by perpetual since} 32. Qxb7 $2 Re7 {[%csl Gb7] suddenly traps the queen!}) 27... b4 $6 {[%emt 0:01:13] Carlsen renews the threat, without realizing that White's queenside play is far from over.} (27... g6 $2 28. hxg6 fxg6 29. Qa3+) (27... bxa4 $1 {would have absolved Black from any problems:} 28. Qa3+ Kg8 29. Qxa4 Bc8) 28. a5 $3 {[%emt 0:02:02] Caruana spent most of his remaining time on this fantastic move, going down to seconds on his clock. White prevents Black's consolidating with ...a6-a5, endangering the b4-pawn and adding a small tactical detail to the plot.} Kg8 $5 {[%emt 0:04:23] Typical for Carlsen's lack of pre-concepts. He does not mind returning with his king now that there was some danger for it.} ({When playing his precious move Carlsen might have thought that he could finally carry out his plan, failing to notice that after} 28... g6 29. hxg6 fxg6 30. Qb3 gxf5 31. Qg8+ Ke7 32. Qh7+ Kf8 33. Qxb7 $1 Re7 {the queen has a choice between} 34. Qxb4 {and the less strong 34.?b6.}) ({But in principle} 28... Bc8 {[%CAl Gg7g6] would have been safer} 29. Qb3 Bxf5 30. Qxb4+ Kg8 31. exf5 Qxf5 {[%CAl Gf5f3] with some symbolic white advantage only, due to his more active bishop. For instance:} 32. Qe4 Qxe4 33. Rxe4 Kf8 34. b4 Rd6 {[%CAl Ge8b8,Gg5d2]}) 29. Bc4 $6 {[%emt 0:00:09] Too slow. Besides, White dismantles his potential battery along the a2-g8 diagonal.} (29. Rc2 $5 Rd7 (29... Rc8 30. Rc4 Rxc4 31. Bxc4 $14 {[%CAl Ga1d1]} Kh8 $6 32. Rd1) 30. Rc4 Kh8 31. Rd1 (31. Rxb4 g6 32. hxg6 fxg6 33. Rd1) 31... Rxd1+ 32. Qxd1 Rd8 33. Qf3 g6 34. Rc7) (29. Qb3 {would mainly transpose to the line above since} Bxe4 {would be met with} 30. Qxf7+ Qxf7 31. Bxf7+ Kxf7 32. Rxe4 $14) 29... Rd7 $6 {[%emt 0:00:51] Carlsen still had a few minutes left, but failed to remain consequent to his curious king manoeuvre.} (29... Kh8 $1 30. Kg2 g6 31. Ne3 (31. hxg6 $2 fxg6 32. Ne3 Qxf3+ 33. Kxf3 Rf8+ 34. Kg2 Bxe4+ $17) 31... Qxf3+ 32. Kxf3 Rd4 33. Bd5 Bxd5 34. Nxd5 gxh5 35. Ra4 b3 $13) 30. Ra4 $1 {[%emt 0:00:28] Suddenly, White's queenside play strongly interfers with Black's planned ...g6.} Kh8 {[%emt 0:02:15] Carlsen spent most of his remaining time on this move, joining his opponent for the blitz mode.} 31. Rxb4 {[%emt 0:00:08]} g6 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 32. hxg6 {[%emt 0:00:01]} fxg6 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 33. Qb3 $1 {[%emt 0:00:41] The clue.} Bc6 {[%emt 0:00:06]} (33... Bxe4 34. Rxe4 (34. Nxh6 Rd1+ $5 35. Qxd1 Qf3 36. Nf7+ Kg7 37. Rxe4 $8 Qxd1+ 38. Kg2 $14) 34... gxf5 (34... Qxf5 35. Bd3 $16) 35. Rb6 Rd6 36. Re2 $16 {[%CAl Gc4a6]}) 34. Ne3 {[%emt 0:00:03]} Bxe4 {[%emt 0:00:11]} 35. Bd5 {[%emt 0:00:01]} (35. Bb5 $5 Rb8 36. Rxe4 Rxb5 37. Qc3 {[%CAl Ge3c4,Ge3g4]} Qf3 38. Rxe5 $36) 35... Bxd5 {[%emt 0:01:03]} ({Ramirez:} 35... Qf3 36. Rxe4 $1 (36. Bxe4 Qxe2 37. Rb8 {Carlsen thought this was "at least a draw" but actually Black is winning after} Rxb8 38. Qxb8+ Kh7 $1 39. Bd5 Rg7 $1 $18) 36... Qxe2 37. Nc4 Qh5 38. g4 $1 Qh4 39. Nxe5 $1 {with a strong initiative.}) 36. Nxd5 {[%emt 0:00:01]} Qc6 {[%emt 0:00:01]} 37. Nc3 $14 {[%emt 0:00:02] White has achieved stability on light squares, but needs to be careful with his major piece regrouping, something Caruana failed to do under the time pressure.} Qf3 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 38. Qc2 {[%emt 0:00:03]} ({Even with seconds on the clock, it is strange that Caruana refrained from the natural} 38. Rb8 $16 {reducing Black's attacking potential.}) 38... Red8 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 39. Rbe4 {[%emt 0:00:01]} (39. Qe4 $1 $16 Rd1+ $2 40. Nxd1 Rxd1+ 41. Re1 {Ramirez}) 39... Rd2 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 40. Rxd2 $4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} (40. Qb3 Rd1+ $1 41. Qxd1 Rxd1+ 42. Nxd1 h5 $44) ({It is hard to predict what would have happened after} 40. Qa4 {White would retain his strategic advantage against any black move with one exception:} Bf4 $3 {leading to perpetual check (either Black, after 41.gxf4 or White after} 41. Rxd2 Rxd2 42. Qe8+ {But would Carlsen have found it just before the control?}) 40... Rxd2 {[%emt 0:00:00]} 0-1 [Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 7th"] [Site "Moscow"] [Date "2012.06.12"] [Round "4"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Grischuk, Alexander"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C84"] [WhiteElo "2835"] [BlackElo "2761"] [Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro"] [PlyCount "80"] [EventDate "2012.06.08"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 149"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2012.07.17"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2012.07.17"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. d3 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. a4 b4 9. Nbd2 Bc5 {An interesting idea that was used by Adams against Hunt last year, and was picked up by Aronian who used it to beat Karjakin earlier this year in Wijk Aan Zee. The idea is that the bishop is out of the pawn chain, doing something productive.} 10. Nc4 d6 11. Bg5 {New. White immediately pins the knight which has no comfortable way of being defended.} h6 12. Bh4 Bg4 13. Ne3 Bxf3 14. gxf3 $5 {This strange move hopes to capitalize on the light square weaknesses left by Black's next move.} (14. Qxf3 Nd4 15. Qd1 Nxb3 16. cxb3 g5 17. Bg3 {looks acceptable for Black.}) 14... g5 (14... Nd4 15. Ng4 Qc8 $5 {with a complex position.}) 15. Bg3 Nd4 16. Bc4 Nh5 17. c3 bxc3 18. bxc3 Ne6 19. Rb1 Nhg7 20. Bd5 Rc8 21. Kh1 Kh8 22. Rg1 Qf6 23. Bc4 a5 {White has some obvious drawbacks in his position. His bishop on g3 is slightly worse than useless and his pawn on f3 is permanently weak. However Black has his issues - a5 is weak, the g7 knight is not doing much and he lacks a clear plan.} 24. Rb5 h5 $5 {Trying to trap that bishop. This comes with a great amount of risk.} 25. Rxa5 (25. Bxe6 $1 {A surprising exchange that works due to very concrete reasons.} fxe6 (25... Nxe6 26. f4 $18 {h5 is hanging and with it the game.}) (25... Qxe6 26. Bxe5 {is a similar version of the trick but better for White since the f-file is still closed.}) 26. Bxe5 Qxe5 27. d4 Qf6 28. dxc5 {seems better for White.}) 25... h4 26. Ng4 Qe7 27. Qf1 {Black can't take the g3 bishop just yet, but he doesn't have to. It won't be saved any time soon.} Ra8 (27... Bb6 28. Rb5 Ra8 29. Qh3 Rxa4 30. Bxe6 Nxe6 31. f4 {is, as many lines, super messy. But Black is the one who has to be careful now.} exf4 $2 32. Bxh4 {and the rook swings to the attack and wins the game.}) 28. Rxc5 $1 {Another surprising move! Carlsen sacrifices the exchange for the following tactical reasons:} dxc5 (28... Nxc5 29. Bxh4 {is 'the point'} Nh5 $13 (29... gxh4 $2 30. Qc1 {and since the e6-knight was distracted to c5 by the rook sacrifice, the penetration on h6 is unavoidable and decisive.})) 29. Nxe5 (29. Bxe5 f6 {and the bishop is still trapped, though White has some resources ... like going back to g3!} 30. Bg3 (30. Bxe6 $1 Nxe6 31. Nxf6 Rxf6 32. f4 Nxf4 33. Rxg5 Kh7 34. Qd1 $1 {A superb resource.} Rg6 35. Rh5+ Nxh5 36. Qxh5+ $11 {and an unusual perepetual.}) 30... Nh5 31. Nh6 hxg3 32. fxg3 {White only has a few pawns for that rook, so It wouldn't be surprising that Black is winning, but Black has coordination and light square problems to fix first.}) 29... Qf6 30. Qh3 (30. f4 $5 {The idea is to block the f-file, allowing ?d7.} gxf4 31. Nd7 Qh6 32. Bxh4 Qxh4 33. Nxf8 Rxf8 34. Qg2 {White has obvious compensation for the missing piece, and probably a little bit more.}) 30... Rxa4 31. Bd5 (31. f4 Nxf4 32. Bxf4 Qxf4 33. Nf3 Rxc4 $1 34. dxc4 f6 {finally leads to material equality, and the position is quite complicated. Both structures are bad and it seems that the weak nature of both kings will result in a perpetual.}) 31... Ra6 32. Bc4 Rd6 33. f4 $1 {A well timed strike. Black must take with the knight, which means that the bishop on g3 is finally not hanging, and Black's pieces leave something to be desired.} Nxf4 34. Bxf4 Qxf4 35. Nf3 {Now Black can't really defend the g5-pawn.} Rg6 36. Rg4 Qc1+ 37. Rg1 Qf4 38. Rg4 Qc1+ 39. Rg1 Qf4 40. Rg4 Qc1+ {Neither side can improve their position beyond this repetition. Black must always be defending the g5 pawn and White can't give Black time to consolidate. A wild game, where every move is difficult to justify. Overall the players did a fantastic job of navigating through the treacherous waters and staying afloat. At no point was either side winning.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "Candidates Tournament"] [Site "London"] [Date "2013.03.21"] [Round "6"] [White "Svidler, Peter"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C84"] [WhiteElo "2747"] [BlackElo "2872"] [Annotator "Szabo,Krisztian"] [PlyCount "72"] [EventDate "2013.03.15"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "14"] [EventCountry "ENG"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 154"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2013.05.15"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2013.05.15"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. d3 {A very popular move nowadays. White would like to avoid some critical lines.} b5 (6... d6 {is another main move.}) 7. Bb3 d6 8. a4 b4 ({The other possibilities are} 8... Rb8) ({and} 8... Bd7) 9. Nbd2 O-O 10. a5 Be6 11. Nc4 Rb8 {Both players are following theory. The upcoming positions are considered to be nicely playable for both sides. All the pieces are on the board, which ensures a complicated game where the stronger player might try to outplay his opponent with either colour.} 12. c3 {Svidler had already two games for this. White wants to play d4 at a good moment, but of course, this requires long preparation.} (12. h3 {and}) (12. Re1 {was also tried.}) 12... bxc3 13. bxc3 h6 {Typical prophylaxis against ? or ?g5.} (13... Na7 {looks a little weird and could have been met effectively by} 14. Ng5 $1 Bg4 15. f3 Bh5 (15... Bd7 {would have been met with} 16. f4 $1 $36 {which gives a strong initiative for White.}) 16. Qc2 Nd7 17. Nh3 $1 {Black has managed to avoid the f4 idea, but his bishop on h5 is out of play, while the knight on h3 is just temporarily misplaced, as it will soon be improved through f2.} Kh8 18. Ne3 $14 {Svidler-Sargissian, Ningbo 2011}) 14. Re1 {From the 12th move, White prepares for d4. This time he protects the e4 ?.} Qc8 {Also a usual move, preparing for ?d8.} 15. Bc2 $146 {The first novelty of the game, White would like to go back with his knight to e3 and then, d4 finally becomes possible.} (15. Ba3 {is the most common move.}) (15. Ba4 {was played recently in a top game:} Bxc4 16. Bxc6 (16. dxc4 Nxa5 {This is the difference. That is why Svidler went to c2 with his bishop.}) 16... Bb5 17. Bxb5 Rxb5 {and Black's position is completely solid. Leko-Adams, London 2012}) 15... Rd8 {This is the standard setup and the idea of the previous ?c8 move. Black would like to play ?f8 and be ready to push d5 at a good moment.} (15... Bxc4 {was also interesting. Black gives up his strong ? to destroy White's ? structure. It is difficult to judge which factor has bigger importance.} 16. dxc4 Qe6 17. c5 $5 {probably Svidler wanted to play this ? sacrifice and play on the light squares. Black is really missing his bishop here, but on the other hand, he is a pawn up.} (17. Qe2 Nd7 $1 {and Black drives his ? to c5 and it looks nicely placed.}) 17... dxc5 18. Qe2 Rb5 19. Ba4 (19. Bd3 Rxa5 20. Rxa5 $6 Nxa5 21. Bxa6 $2 c4 22. Bb5 c6 23. Ba4 Nb3 {is forces the take on b3 and Black gains a very unpleasant advanced ?.}) 19... Rxa5 20. Nd2 {now the ? can be trapped.} c4 21. Nxc4 Rc5 22. Bb3 Rb8 {and Black has no problem.}) 16. Qe2 ({In the event of} 16. Ne3 {Black can play immeditely} d5 $1 {with a promising position.}) 16... Bf8 (16... Bxc4 17. dxc4 Nd7 {was an option again, but Carlsen preferred to keep his ? pair.}) 17. Ne3 $6 {This seems like an inaccuracy. The last preparation for d4, but this allows Black's strong reply.} ({Immediately} 17. d4 {would have still been too early. Black can play} exd4 18. cxd4 d5 $1 $15 {with a slight advantage.}) ({Probably} 17. h3 {was the best waiting move, because Black also has difficulties finding a useful move.} Bxc4 18. dxc4 Nd7 {similar to the previous line.} 19. Ba4 Ne7 20. Be3 Ng6 {with a double-edged fight.}) 17... d5 $1 {Excellent timing by Carlsen. White's last ? move left the pressure from the important e5 ?, so Black can immediately start the action.} 18. exd5 Nxd5 19. Nxd5 Rxd5 {Black keeps the e5 pawn protected and, at the same time, attacks the pawn on a5.} ({Maybe} 19... Bxd5 {was slightly better, as the e5 pawn is not really hanging.} 20. Nxe5 Nxe5 21. Qxe5 Re8 $5 ({Black can also force a draw by} 21... Bxg2 22. Kxg2 Re8 23. Qxe8 Qg4+ 24. Kf1 Qh3+ 25. Kg1 Qg4+ $11) 22. Qxe8 Qg4 $1 {White has to sacrifice his ? with} 23. Qe4 $1 (23. Re4 $2 Rxe8 $19) (23. f3 $2 Bxf3 $1 $19) 23... Bxe4 24. Rxe4 {Only Black can be better.}) 20. h3 $2 {This typical move is a mistake. White would like to open the back rank and avoid the pin after ?g4. The initiative passes to Black and Carlsen does not let it slip away anymore.} (20. d4 $6 {is not so good, because} exd4 21. Qe4 g6 {and Black has avoided everything, White cannot continue the attack. For example:} 22. cxd4 Qd8 23. Ra4 Bb4 $15) (20. Ba4 Rxa5 ({after} 20... Nxa5 21. Nxe5 Nb3 22. Bxb3 Rxb3 23. c4 Rd8 {Black is also OK here.}) 21. Bd2 (21. Bxh6 $6 {White would like to protect the a1 ? and threaten ?xc6, but after} Rxa4 $1 22. Rxa4 gxh6 23. Nxe5 Nxe5 24. Qxe5 Bg7 $17 {Black is much better.}) 21... Rc5 22. Bxc6 Rxc6 23. Nxe5 Rcb6 $15 {Thanks to the pair of ?s and passed ?, Black looks very nicely placed.}) (20. c4 Rxa5 21. Rxa5 Nxa5 22. Nxe5 Nb3 23. Bb2 c5 $132 {and the ? goes to d4.}) (20. Qe4 {is an interesting alternative. White would like to provoke a weakness on the kingside with the threat of d4.} g6 ({On} 20... f5 {White simply answers} 21. Qe2 {and the e5 ? become vulnerable.}) 21. Ba4 $1 Nxa5 22. Nxe5 Bg7 23. Bf4 $14 {Now the exchange of the a5 pawn for the e5 one favours White. White seems to have an edge here.}) 20... Bf5 $1 {A very strong move! Black prevents d4 and can exert pressure on the d3 weakness and soon, the a5 ? will be hanging as well.} 21. Rd1 Qe6 22. Bb1 {Svidler tries to activate his ? from a2.} Qd7 $1 {Keeping the pressure on the d3 ?.} (22... Rxa5 {allows some counterplay for White.} 23. Rxa5 Nxa5 24. Ba2 {getting back the e5 ?.}) 23. Be3 e4 $1 (23... Rxb1 {not the best, because} 24. Raxb1 Bxd3 {and White has} 25. Qa2 $1 {to attack the d5 ?.} Rxa5 26. Qxa5 $1 Nxa5 27. Nxe5 Qf5 28. Nxd3 {The two ? will give unpleasant counterchanches for White.}) 24. Nd4 Nxd4 25. Bxd4 $2 {This allowed a tactical blow, which actually Carlsen judged too risky.} (25. cxd4 {also led to Black's advantage after} exd3 26. Bxd3 Bxd3 27. Qxd3 Rbb5 $1 $15 {White has serious problems with the a5 ?. Black is clearly better.}) 25... exd3 ({The computer immeditely finds the strong} 25... Bxh3 $1 26. dxe4 (26. gxh3 {is not possible.} Qxh3 27. Be3 Bd6 $1 $19) 26... Rg5 27. g3 {This was the critical position where I think Carlsen missed a winning combination or just did not want to risk a miscalculation. Black wins after a fantastic tactical blow:} Bg4 $1 28. f3 Rb2 $3 29. Qxb2 Bxf3 {and Black has too many threats. ?xg3, ?h3 and the simple ?xd1.} 30. Qf2 (30. Rd3 Rxg3+ 31. Kf2 Rg2+ $19) 30... Bxd1 $19 {with an extra ? and a strong attack.}) 26. Bxd3 Bxd3 27. Rxd3 c5 28. Be5 $1 {This was Svidler's plan, when he took back with the ? on d4, but unfortunately for him, it does not solve the problems.} Rxd3 29. Bxb8 c4 $1 {A great positional move! Black protects the d3 ?, fixes c3 and frees the c5 square for his ?, where it puts very strong pressure on f2. The additional weaknesses on c3 and a5 are too much for White to hold the position.} 30. Be5 (30. Qe1 {was slightly better} Bc5 31. Kh2 {followed by ?g3.}) 30... Bc5 31. Rb1 Qd5 $1 {Carlsen activates his pieces.} (31... Rd2 {was too early} 32. Qxc4 {and ?xf2 is only a check. There is no reason for Black to hurry with this plan.}) 32. Rb8+ Kh7 33. Qh5 {Svidler tried the last trap with the threat of ?h8 ?xh8 ?xh6 and mate on g7, but of course, this doesn't work on this level.} (33. Re8 {was the best chance, although Black has various ways to remain better here as well.} Qd7 (33... f5 {is also good to prevent ?e4.}) 34. Ra8 Qe6 {The following line is forced:} 35. Qe4+ f5 36. Rh8+ $1 Kg6 $1 ({Of course not} 36... Kxh8 $2 37. Bxg7+ $1 $18) 37. Qf4 Rd1+ 38. Kh2 Bxf2 $1 $17 {and Black is better.}) 33... Qe4 $1 {A cool defence against the ?h8 and it also creates some threats of destroying White's position.} 34. Rb2 (34. Rh8+ Kxh8 35. Qxh6+ Qh7 $1 $19) 34... Rd5 $1 {White cannot avoid losing a piece.} 35. Re2 Qb1+ 36. Kh2 f6 0-1 [Event "Nanjing Pearl Spring 3rd"] [Site "Nanjing"] [Date "2010.10.24"] [Round "5"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Topalov, Veselin"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C84"] [WhiteElo "2826"] [BlackElo "2803"] [Annotator "Moradiabadi,Elshan"] [PlyCount "63"] [EventDate "2010.10.20"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "CHN"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 139"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2010.11.18"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2010.11.18"] [SourceQuality "1"] {A fine game in "Magnusian style!" The world number one is not seeking a deep theoretical surprise, rather he chooses to simply outplay his opponent in a position in which Topalov is even less experienced than he is!} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 {No more Scotch! After a fine and impressive game against Bacrot one could expect to see another Scotch, however, I believe that Carlsen is more interested in avoiding any special preparation and wants to bring the game as quickly as possible to the phase one might call "fight at the board"!} a6 {The Berlin is what one might have expected from Topalov.} 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. d3 $5 {The right decision in my opinion. Carlsen tries to pospone d4 in order to choose his setup according to black's. There aren't many theoretical surveys in this position, though statistics show us that black may be safe here.} b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. a4 Rb8 9. axb5 axb5 10. Nbd2 {An odd though successful choice first played by Daniel King.} O-O 11. Re1 Bd7 $146 (11... Be6 12. Bxe6 fxe6 13. c3 Qd7 14. d4 exd4 15. cxd4 Ra8 16. Rxa8 Rxa8 17. Nb3 Nd8 {1-0 King,D (2506) -Krasenkow,M (2643)/Germany 1999/GER-chT (71)}) 12. c3 Ra8 13. Rxa8 Qxa8 14. d4 h6 15. Nf1 Re8 16. Ng3 Qc8 17. Nh4 {Carlsen starts his fight for the initiative.} Bf8 $6 {An inaccuracy. The bishop on b3 is well-placed and black's last move offers white the bishop pair with no genuine counter play.} (17... Na5 18. Bc2 (18. Ba2 Nc4 $5 19. b3 (19. Bxc4 bxc4 20. dxe5 (20. Qe2 exd4 21. cxd4 $2 Nxe4 $1 {and Black would win}) 20... dxe5 21. Nhf5 Bf8 22. Qf3 Qa6) 19... Qa8 20. Qe2 Nb6 (20... Nd5 $2 21. Nhf5 Nxc3 22. Qg4 Bxf5 23. Nxf5 Bg5 24. Bxg5 hxg5 25. Qxg5 g6 26. Nh6+ Kg7 27. Ng4 {would give White a decisive winning attack.}) 21. Nhf5 Bf8 22. Bb1 {A rich position in which black is not at all worse.}) 18... g6 $5) 18. Ng6 $1 Na5 19. Nxf8 Rxf8 20. Bc2 Re8 21. f4 $1 {Of course Magnus does not hesitate and goes straight for the king. Having a strong pair of bishops and a rock solid center, who could resist the temptation?} Bg4 22. Qd3 exf4 $2 {Not at any cost! It is understandable that in a diffiicult position Topalov would seek activity but in my opinion it only worsens the situation.} (22... Qb8 {was preferable though the position remains worse.}) 23. Bxf4 Nc4 24. Bc1 $1 {A cool retreat.} c5 {The final mistake in my opinion, and Black is helpless now.} 25. Rf1 cxd4 26. cxd4 Qd8 27. h3 Be6 28. b3 Qa5 29. Kh2 {Magnus does not need to complicate things. With his last move he has prepared the final blow!} Nh7 30. e5 g6 31. d5 Nxe5 32. dxe6 $1 (32. dxe6 Nxd3 33. exf7+ Kf8 34. Bxh6+ Ke7 35. fxe8=Q+ Kxe8 36. Bxd3 {and not only does g6 fall, but the knight on h7 is lost as well. Ex:} Qc7 37. Bxg6+ Kd8 38. Rf7 $18) 1-0 [Event "Candidates sf"] [Site "Elista"] [Date "2007.05.27"] [Round "1.1"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Aronian, Levon"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C84"] [WhiteElo "2693"] [BlackElo "2759"] [Annotator "Aronian,Levon"] [PlyCount "72"] [EventDate "2007.05.27"] [EventType "k.o."] [EventRounds "12"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [SourceTitle "CBM 119"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2007.08.01"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2007.08.01"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {Marin,M} e5 {To give the reader a general picture of my matches (assuming of cours ethat he is interseted), I would say that my opponents surprised me in the opening, by playing lines they had not used before. I should add that I did not go in for such refinements myself.} 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 {When I began playing the Marshall, I would usually hold my breat in this position, and only after seeing the move 6.?e1 would I quickly play 6...b5 7.?b3 0-0, practically thinking that the matter was settled. It would be interesting to know if other devotees of this variation have experienced similar feelings of euphoria.} 6. d3 {Whereas this is the very move I used to be afraid of.} b5 7. Bb3 d6 {Here I thought for a long tim, as I wanted to surprise my opponent with something new.} 8. a4 Rb8 {When playing 7...d6, I had planned to continue 8...?d7 now, but then I changed my mind, in view of 9. c3 0-0 10.?c2. Probably without good reason, but that is another story. I played 8...?b8 because I remembered that some very strong player had played the same way in a similar position.} 9. axb5 axb5 10. Nc3 {The knight is needed on c3, to meet the freeing ?e6 with ?d5.} O-O 11. h3 {A useful move. Marin,M: 'Compared to the normal Anti-Marshall systems, White's early defining of the structure in the centre has allowed Black refrain from ...?b7, which places the bishop on a relatively unfavourable square. First of all, it hits into the well defended e4-pawn, secondly, it does not contribute to the annihilation of the white Spanish bishop.'} ({It is probably also possible to seek some advantage after} 11. Nd5 Nxd5 12. exd5 Nd4 13. Nxd4 exd4 {, although in view of the symmetriacl nature of the position, I believe Black should be able gradually to equalize.}) 11... Nb4 $5 $146 {I decided on this move after rejecting Marin,M: 'Aronian spent a considerable amount of time on this new move. Before playing the planned ...?e6, Black takes the d5-square under firm control.'} (11... Be6 {because of} 12. Nd5 $1 (12. Bxe6 {Marin,M} fxe6 13. d4 $6 exd4 14. Nxd4 Nxd4 15. Qxd4 c5 16. Qd3 d5 $11 {Tarrasch,S-Leonhardt,P/San Sebastian 1912/HCL (1-0, 59)}) 12... Bxd5 (12... Qd7 $6 {Marin,M} 13. c3) (12... Nd4 {Marin,M} 13. Nxd4 exd4 14. Bd2 $5 Nxd5 15. exd5 Bd7 16. Ra5 Ra8 17. Qa1 $14 {??a Romanishin. The position is almost symmetrical, but White's position is more active and Black still has to fight for complete equality.}) 13. exd5 Nb4 14. g4 {This is hardly all that terrifying, but I preferred not to go in for forcing variations, since Magnus had been moving fairly quickly.} (14. d4 {Marin,M} e4 15. Ng5 c5 {? 16.dc6 d5!} 16. c3 Nbxd5 17. dxc5 dxc5 18. Nxe4 c4 19. Bc2 b4 20. Qf3 Ra8 21. Rxa8 Qxa8 {Romanishin,O (2595)-Nunn,J (2615)/Debrecen 1992/EU-chT/[Bulletin] (1-0, 73)} 22. Nxf6+ Nxf6 23. Qe2 $16 {Romanishin})) (11... Nd4 {Marin,M} 12. Nxd4 exd4 13. Nd5 Nxd5 14. exd5 (14. Bxd5 Be6) 14... Bd7 {Ljubicic,F (2407)-Plenkovic,Z (2302)/Split 2005/CBM 106 ext (1-0, 72)} 15. Bd2 $14) 12. Ne2 {This typical Spanish knight manoeuvre is even more natural here, in view of the unwanted guest on b4. Marin,M: 'Obviously, White will not tolerate the knight on b4 for too long. It is also noteworthy that the transfer of the knight to g3 is carried out without the necessity of spending a tempo on ?e1 at an early stage.'} c5 13. Ng3 ({On} 13. c3 {I was considering} Nxd3 14. Qxd3 c4 15. Bxc4 bxc4 16. Qxc4 Be6 17. Qd3 Qc7 {with well-known compensation for Black, although 13... ?c6 is in no way worse.}) 13... Be6 14. Bxe6 {Marin,M: 'This exchange improves Black's control in the centre, but it was not easy to deal with the tension in the position anyway.'} (14. Bd2 $5 {Marin,M} Nc6 $1 (14... Bxb3 15. cxb3 Nc6 16. b4 {offers White some initiative, while 15...?xd3 is impossible because of 16.?a5!.}) 15. Bxe6 (15. c3 c4 16. Bc2 d5 $36) 15... fxe6 $11) 14... fxe6 15. c3 Nc6 {The position reached is very similar to various lines of the Anti-Marshall. I was happy to reach a middlegame in which I was familiar with the typical plans and ideas of both sides.} 16. Re1 {This move very much surprised me, since I had assumed that my opponent had decided to do without it. Marin,M: 'Finally, White plays this generally useful move anyway. The short term purpose of the development of this rook is to inhibit ...d5.'} Qd7 $11 {A normal consolidating move in this type of position. Marin,M: 'Black's novelty has been crowned with success. With his massive pawn centre he has little to fear. '} 17. d4 $6 {An ambitious decision. Magnus probably did not imagine that by giving up the centre, Black could get the better chances. I think he should have preferred some sort of developing move, such as 17.Bd2 Marin,M: 'But this over-optimistic opening of the centre will leave Black with a dangerous queenside majority.'} exd4 18. cxd4 c4 $1 {Since Black has active ideas connected with ?b4, giving up the centre is not dangerous for him.} 19. Bg5 h6 20. d5 {The attempt to ease the problems by exchanges does not bring the desired result. After the correct ?d2, White is only a tad worse.} exd5 21. Bxf6 ({After} 21. exd5 Nb4 {Black's initiative is too strong.}) 21... Bxf6 22. Qxd5+ Rf7 {Marin,M: 'White has managed to weaken some of the central light squares in Black's camp, but his knights are not well placed for taking advantage of this relative achievement. Besides, Black's pressure against the enemy queenside is quite strong. Apart from the obvious ...?xb2, ...?b4-d3 is a strong threat. '} 23. Qd2 ({Unfortunately for White} 23. Nf5 {is refuted by} Nb4 24. Qxd6 Qxd6 25. Nxd6 Rd7 26. e5 Nc2) 23... Ne5 ({Of course not} 23... b4 {on account of} 24. Rec1 c3 25. bxc3 bxc3 26. Rxc3 Bxc3 27. Qxc3 {and White is not worse.}) 24. Nxe5 Bxe5 25. Ne2 {After the game, of corse, it is easy to recommend other moves, but at the time, I also thought that this was the best move in the position.} Rbf8 26. Rf1 {White only requires a couple of moves in order to consolidate, but now Black turns out to have a strong resource available.} Rf3 $3 {It is always nice to be able to make such an impudent move with impunity. Marin,M: 'A very elegant rook sacrifice, taking advantage of Black's perfect coordination. Apart from the brutal threat of continuing the attack with ...?xh3, Black enables the transfer of the rook to d3 or b3. '} 27. Ra3 {After this, White is lost.} ({Naturally} 27. gxf3 {is bad because of} Rxf3 {and White is defenceless.}) ({The only way to attempt to cast doubt on Black's idea was by} 27. Qd5+ Kh7 28. Rad1 {, although after the strong} Qc8 {Black still has a very strong position. For example, after} 29. Qxb5 {there follows} Rxh3 30. f4 Rb3 31. Qd5 Bxb2 32. Qxd6 Ba3 {and Black is practically winning.}) 27... Rxa3 28. bxa3 Qc6 29. Nd4 {More stubborn is 29.?e3 although it also looks fairly dismal.} Bxd4 {Since I saw that it was very hard for White to defend the pawns on a3 and e4, I spared myself the effort of looking for other moves.} 30. Qxd4 Ra8 31. Ra1 {31.?b2 was the last chance to muddy the waters.} c3 32. Qb4 Qc5 33. Qb3+ Kh8 34. Ra2 Ra4 35. Re2 Rxa3 36. Qd1 Ra8 0-1 [Event "London Classic 11th"] [Site "London"] [Date "2019.12.04"] [Round "1.5"] [White "Vachier Lagrave, Maxime"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C84"] [WhiteElo "2780"] [BlackElo "2872"] [Annotator "Edouard,Romain"] [PlyCount "91"] [EventDate "2019.12.02"] [EventType "k.o."] [EventRounds "2"] [EventCountry "ENG"] [SourceTitle "CBM 194"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2020.01.27"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2020.01.27"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Nxe4 6. d4 Be7 7. Re1 b5 8. Rxe4 d5 9. Nxe5 Nxe5 10. Rxe5 bxa4 11. Qe2 c6 (11... Be6 12. f4 g6 {The inclusion of the moves ...f4 and g6 gives White a strong option of sacrificing an exchange on e5 (when Black plays ...Bd6) after what the black position will be disastrous on the dark squares.} 13. Nc3 a3 14. b3 Bb4 15. Na4 O-O 16. Bd2 (16. c3 $5 Bd6 17. Nc5 {may be stronger}) 16... Bd6 17. Nc5 Bf5 18. Bb4 $5 (18. Rxd5 Re8 $132) 18... Bxe5 19. fxe5 Qh4 20. c3 a5 21. Bxa3 $44 {1-0 (33) Alekseenko,K (2637)-Ernst,S (2540) Gibraltar 2019.}) 12. Bd2 (12. Nc3 Ra7 (12... Be6 13. f4 $1 g6 14. Nxa4 $16) 13. Bf4 $1 $146 {This could be a serious attempt at refuting the whole line.} (13. Nxa4 O-O 14. Bd2 $6 Bd6 $13 {½-½ (65) Saric,I (2695)-Ragger,M (2687) St Petersburg 2018}) 13... O-O (13... a3 14. b3 $16) 14. Re1 Be6 (14... Bd6 $2 15. Re8 $1 $18) 15. Re3 a3 16. bxa3 $1 Bxa3 (16... c5 17. Be5 $16) 17. Nxd5 Qxd5 18. Rxa3 Qxd4 19. Be5 $16 {?Rg3}) 12... Be6 (12... a5 $2 13. Nc3 $16) 13. f4 g6 (13... Qb6 $5 {is the other option:} 14. f5 (14. Bc3 g6 $13) 14... a3 $1 (14... Qxd4+ $2 15. Kh1 Qxb2 (15... a3 $2 16. Bc3 $18) 16. fxe6 O-O (16... Qxa1 $2 17. exf7+ Kf8 18. Rxe7 Qxb1+ 19. Be1 $18) 17. Bc3 Qc1+ 18. Qe1 $18) 15. Nxa3 (15. Nc3 axb2 16. Re1 Qxd4+ 17. Kh1 O-O 18. fxe6 fxe6 $44) (15. b3 $4 Qxd4+ $19) 15... Qxb2 16. Re1 Qxd4+ 17. Kh1 Bxa3 18. Rxe6+ fxe6 19. Qxe6+ Kf8 20. Bg5 h6 21. Be7+ Bxe7 22. Qxe7+ Kg8 23. Qe6+ $11) 14. Nc3 a3 15. b3 ({The move chosen by MVL is the most natural one, but actually} 15. bxa3 $5 {may be stronger. The idea is simple: play in similar fashion as in the game, while the queenside is already open. Black will have to castle kingside, and a pawn is pawn, after all.}) 15... Bd6 $1 (15... O-O 16. f5 gxf5 17. Bh6 $40) 16. f5 $1 gxf5 17. Rf1 Bxe5 $6 {A poisoned gift!} (17... O-O $1 {was the tough but right decision.} 18. Bf4 (18. Bh6 Qh4 $132) 18... Bxe5 19. Qxe5 Qe8 20. Bh6 f6 21. Qg3+ Qg6 22. Bxf8 Qxg3 23. hxg3 Kxf8 $11) 18. Qxe5 Rg8 19. Na4 Qb8 20. Qe3 Rg4 (20... Rg6 {followed with ...Kf8 and ...Kg8 might be playable, but Carlsen's continuation is more human.}) 21. Nc5 Re4 22. Nxe4 {That wasn't mandatory. White could also have played 22.Qh6 right away, for example.} fxe4 23. Qh6 Qa7 24. Qg7 (24. c3 {followed with Qxh7 would have guaranteed White a great advantage.}) (24. Qf6 $5 {to prevent ...0-0-0 also made a lot of sense.}) 24... O-O-O 25. Bb4 $6 (25. c3 {was a better move - the white bishop is more useful on the c1-h6 diagonal, as it may go to f4 while defending against ...e3.}) 25... Re8 26. Bxa3 h5 27. Bc5 Qd7 28. Qg5 e3 29. Qxe3 Bf5 30. Qf2 $6 {The white queen should aim at the other side.} (30. Qd2 $1 Bg6 (30... Be4 31. Qe2 $1 Kb7 32. Qxh5 $18) 31. Qa5 Qb7 32. Bd6 Re2 33. Re1 {and Black's position is just lost.}) 30... Bg6 31. c4 $2 {A huge blunder, surely missing Black's next move.} (31. h3 {would have kept a clear advantage.}) 31... Bd3 $1 32. Re1 (32. Rc1 Re2 $44) 32... Rxe1+ 33. Qxe1 dxc4 34. bxc4 Bxc4 35. h3 Qe6 36. Qxe6+ Bxe6 {And the rest was just played for the audience!} 37. a3 Bd5 38. Kf2 Kd7 39. g3 Be6 40. h4 Bg4 41. Ke3 Ke6 42. Kf4 Kd5 43. Ke3 Ke6 44. Kf4 Kd5 45. Ke3 Ke6 46. Kf4 1/2-1/2 [Event "Norway Chess 8th"] [Site "Stavanger"] [Date "2020.10.13"] [Round "8"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Tari, Aryan"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C84"] [WhiteElo "2863"] [BlackElo "2633"] [Annotator "Nielsen,Peter Heine"] [PlyCount "89"] [EventDate "2020.10.05"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 199"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2020.12.01"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2020.12.01"] [SourceQuality "1"] {[%evp 0,89,30,28,28,28,31,4,8,-13,3,8,22,4,22,27,17,2,31,-26,10,-63,-1,-64,17,-54,17,17,8,17,17,6,13,9,9,20,15,19,27,50,47,29,32,48,46,55,48,50,91,38,38,30,65,36,60,17,23,34,39,35,39,22,25,29,80,82,131,114,113,128,119,128,133,150,170,156,167,161,280,255,302,302,596,698,705,725,732,724,748,756,1188,1337]} {Winning this game was essential. Not only due to having the white pieces vs. the tournaments lowest rated player, but also in order to regain the lead in the tournament. Kasparov in his day would crush the lower-rated with his opening knowledge, not even allowing them to get a game, but these days the situation has reversed, and from the strongest player's perspective it is more a matter of actualy getting out of the opening with a position full of play that becomes the target. Many would try along the lines of 1.?f3/2.g3, keeping as many pieces on the board as possible, but the World Champion, as always, goes his own way:} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 {In the previous round Tari tried 4...f5?! against Duda, but as expected such a move is based on its surprise value, and not to be repeated.} 5. O-O Be7 6. d3 $5 {Aronian played 6.?e1 against Tari earlier in the tournament, but Magnus stays loyal to the line that even in some books carries his name, as he popularised it by succesfully employing it in his early youth.} b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. a4 Bd7 $1 {In the 2007 Elista Candidates, Aronian went for 8...?b8 against Magnus, and later 8...b4 would become the preferred move, until Black finally settling for the game move being the solution to his problems.} 9. c3 Na5 10. Ba2 c5 ({A much more radical solution is} 10... bxa4 $5 {Temporarily it wins a pawn, and after} 11. Nbd2 O-O 12. Bb1 Bb5 $5 {Ding had a reasonable position vs Magnus in the 2017 St. Louis showdown. The ideas is that to get the pawn on a4 back, White has to play c4, but that means that he no longer has the c3+d4 option, and Black's position therefore stablises.}) 11. Bg5 O-O 12. Nbd2 {Caruana played 12 axb5 axb5 13 ?a3 aiming for the e3-square via c2, but Magnus will not yet release the tension in the a-line.} Rb8 13. axb5 {Logical timing, as Black has just removed his rook form the a-file.} axb5 14. Re1 b4 15. Nc4 Nxc4 16. Bxc4 bxc3 17. bxc3 Qc7 18. Qc2 Bb5 19. Bxb5 Rxb5 20. Bxf6 $1 Bxf6 21. Nd2 {A very interesting position, at least from a technical point oi view. Black has managed to clear off 3 sets of minor pieces, as well as the a- and b-pawns. All this speaks in favour of a draw, but White does have a very visible plus in the sense that his knight wil settle on c4 or d5. That in itself is not enought to make Black's position collapse, so a lot is going to depend on how White can improve his position, intensifying the pressure. This position perhaps is not Black's last chance, but still a very crucial one.} Qc6 $6 ({Had Tari played} 21... h5 $1 {, he would have seriously improved his chances of making a draw. Getting the pawn to h4 holds a lot of benefits. His bishop will have a safe haven on g5, and White's king will feel some discomfort should he allow a black rook access to the first rank.}) 22. Qa4 Rfb8 23. Nc4 {Another instructive moment.} Be7 (23... Bg5 {suggests itself, stopping the knight from going on to e3 heading for d5, but} 24. Na3 R5b6 25. Qxc6 Rxc6 26. Nc4 {the computers indicate as basicaly winning for White! Despite the symmetry Black has been rendered completely passive. White's rook will enter a7, then perhaps d7 and ?a1-a7 coming next, Black is in a hopeless situation.}) (23... h5 {was a more active way of defending but apart from 24.?a3, White also has} 24. g3 h4 25. Rab1 $5 {as after} Rxb1 26. Qxc6 Rxe1+ 27. Kg2 {despite nominally being behind in material, White's queen and knight coordinate much better than the black pieces and should win easily.}) 24. g3 $1 {24.?a3 certainly also was good, but with e7 protected, Black will be in time for ...?c7 defending the 7th rank, and thus Magnus decides to reinforce his position even further.} Qc8 25. Qd1 g6 26. Kg2 Bf8 27. Qf3 Rb3 28. Rec1 Qe6 29. Ra7 {Black's problem is not so much that his position in any way is collapsing, but that he has absolutly no way of trying to equalise. Often slightly worse positions have a tendency to turn into equality with exact moves, as the initiative evaporates, but here Magnus' advantage is purely static, and in a way that Black cannot repair. He'll just have so sit and wait, and try to parry White's attempts at breaking through.} R8b7 30. Rxb7 $5 {A remarkable decision. In general one would think keeping material on the board favours the attacker, but as with the potential queen swap earlier, it is not neccessarily so. White also has to break through, and eliminating a defender thus has definite plusses.} Rxb7 31. Ra1 h5 32. Ra8 Kg7 33. Ne3 Rc7 $2 {An innocent looking move, but the decisive mistake.} ({The computer indicates that} 33... Qd7 $1 {is the only way to defend, answering} 34. Nd5 {with} Be7 {defending the f6 square, when Black stays in the game, with 35...?a7 coming next. Objectively perhaps the position is drawn, but from a practical point of view, Tari would still have to suffer for many moves as White would play for h3-g3, d4 or even taking his king to the queenside.}) (33... Be7 {looks similar, but then} 34. Nf5+ $1 {wins, illustrating the pressure Black is under.}) 34. Nd5 Rc8 {If 34...Rd7 White wins exactly like in the game, preparing g4-g5.} 35. Ra7 Rb8 36. h3 Rd8 37. g4 hxg4 38. hxg4 Rd7 39. Ra8 f6 40. g5 $1 {The final finesse, as Black can not take on g5, due to f8 hanging.} f5 41. Qh3 Rf7 42. Re8 $5 {Nice, and winning, yet the computers suggestion of 42 c4!? being even better is noteworthy! It illustrates the story of the game, the inability of the black position to improve itself, even given time for free.} Qxe8 43. Qh6+ Kg8 44. Qxg6+ Kh8 45. Nf6 {And having to choose between mate or substantial material losses, Tari resigned.} 1-0 [Event "Norway Chess 8th"] [Site "Stavanger"] [Date "2020.10.13"] [Round "8"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Tari, Aryan"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C84"] [WhiteElo "2863"] [BlackElo "2633"] [Annotator "Nielsen,Peter Heine"] [PlyCount "89"] [EventDate "2020.10.05"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 199"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2020.12.01"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2020.12.01"] [SourceQuality "1"] {[%evp 0,89,30,28,28,28,31,4,8,-13,3,8,22,4,22,27,17,2,31,-26,10,-63,-1,-64,17,-54,17,17,8,17,17,6,13,9,9,20,15,19,27,50,47,29,32,48,46,55,48,50,91,38,38,30,65,36,60,17,23,34,39,35,39,22,25,29,80,82,131,114,113,128,119,128,133,150,170,156,167,161,280,255,302,302,596,698,705,725,732,724,748,756,1188,1337]} {Winning this game was essential. Not only due to having the white pieces vs. the tournaments lowest rated player, but also in order to regain the lead in the tournament. Kasparov in his day would crush the lower-rated with his opening knowledge, not even allowing them to get a game, but these days the situation has reversed, and from the strongest player's perspective it is more a matter of actualy getting out of the opening with a position full of play that becomes the target. Many would try along the lines of 1.?f3/2.g3, keeping as many pieces on the board as possible, but the World Champion, as always, goes his own way:} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 {In the previous round Tari tried 4...f5?! against Duda, but as expected such a move is based on its surprise value, and not to be repeated.} 5. O-O Be7 6. d3 $5 {Aronian played 6.?e1 against Tari earlier in the tournament, but Magnus stays loyal to the line that even in some books carries his name, as he popularised it by succesfully employing it in his early youth.} b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. a4 Bd7 $1 {In the 2007 Elista Candidates, Aronian went for 8...?b8 against Magnus, and later 8...b4 would become the preferred move, until Black finally settling for the game move being the solution to his problems.} 9. c3 Na5 10. Ba2 c5 ({A much more radical solution is} 10... bxa4 $5 {Temporarily it wins a pawn, and after} 11. Nbd2 O-O 12. Bb1 Bb5 $5 {Ding had a reasonable position vs Magnus in the 2017 St. Louis showdown. The ideas is that to get the pawn on a4 back, White has to play c4, but that means that he no longer has the c3+d4 option, and Black's position therefore stablises.}) 11. Bg5 O-O 12. Nbd2 {Caruana played 12 axb5 axb5 13 ?a3 aiming for the e3-square via c2, but Magnus will not yet release the tension in the a-line.} Rb8 13. axb5 {Logical timing, as Black has just removed his rook form the a-file.} axb5 14. Re1 b4 15. Nc4 Nxc4 16. Bxc4 bxc3 17. bxc3 Qc7 18. Qc2 Bb5 19. Bxb5 Rxb5 20. Bxf6 $1 Bxf6 21. Nd2 {A very interesting position, at least from a technical point oi view. Black has managed to clear off 3 sets of minor pieces, as well as the a- and b-pawns. All this speaks in favour of a draw, but White does have a very visible plus in the sense that his knight wil settle on c4 or d5. That in itself is not enought to make Black's position collapse, so a lot is going to depend on how White can improve his position, intensifying the pressure. This position perhaps is not Black's last chance, but still a very crucial one.} Qc6 $6 ({Had Tari played} 21... h5 $1 {, he would have seriously improved his chances of making a draw. Getting the pawn to h4 holds a lot of benefits. His bishop will have a safe haven on g5, and White's king will feel some discomfort should he allow a black rook access to the first rank.}) 22. Qa4 Rfb8 23. Nc4 {Another instructive moment.} Be7 (23... Bg5 {suggests itself, stopping the knight from going on to e3 heading for d5, but} 24. Na3 R5b6 25. Qxc6 Rxc6 26. Nc4 {the computers indicate as basicaly winning for White! Despite the symmetry Black has been rendered completely passive. White's rook will enter a7, then perhaps d7 and ?a1-a7 coming next, Black is in a hopeless situation.}) (23... h5 {was a more active way of defending but apart from 24.?a3, White also has} 24. g3 h4 25. Rab1 $5 {as after} Rxb1 26. Qxc6 Rxe1+ 27. Kg2 {despite nominally being behind in material, White's queen and knight coordinate much better than the black pieces and should win easily.}) 24. g3 $1 {24.?a3 certainly also was good, but with e7 protected, Black will be in time for ...?c7 defending the 7th rank, and thus Magnus decides to reinforce his position even further.} Qc8 25. Qd1 g6 26. Kg2 Bf8 27. Qf3 Rb3 28. Rec1 Qe6 29. Ra7 {Black's problem is not so much that his position in any way is collapsing, but that he has absolutly no way of trying to equalise. Often slightly worse positions have a tendency to turn into equality with exact moves, as the initiative evaporates, but here Magnus' advantage is purely static, and in a way that Black cannot repair. He'll just have so sit and wait, and try to parry White's attempts at breaking through.} R8b7 30. Rxb7 $5 {A remarkable decision. In general one would think keeping material on the board favours the attacker, but as with the potential queen swap earlier, it is not neccessarily so. White also has to break through, and eliminating a defender thus has definite plusses.} Rxb7 31. Ra1 h5 32. Ra8 Kg7 33. Ne3 Rc7 $2 {An innocent looking move, but the decisive mistake.} ({The computer indicates that} 33... Qd7 $1 {is the only way to defend, answering} 34. Nd5 {with} Be7 {defending the f6 square, when Black stays in the game, with 35...?a7 coming next. Objectively perhaps the position is drawn, but from a practical point of view, Tari would still have to suffer for many moves as White would play for h3-g3, d4 or even taking his king to the queenside.}) (33... Be7 {looks similar, but then} 34. Nf5+ $1 {wins, illustrating the pressure Black is under.}) 34. Nd5 Rc8 {If 34...Rd7 White wins exactly like in the game, preparing g4-g5.} 35. Ra7 Rb8 36. h3 Rd8 37. g4 hxg4 38. hxg4 Rd7 39. Ra8 f6 40. g5 $1 {The final finesse, as Black can not take on g5, due to f8 hanging.} f5 41. Qh3 Rf7 42. Re8 $5 {Nice, and winning, yet the computers suggestion of 42 c4!? being even better is noteworthy! It illustrates the story of the game, the inability of the black position to improve itself, even given time for free.} Qxe8 43. Qh6+ Kg8 44. Qxg6+ Kh8 45. Nf6 {And having to choose between mate or substantial material losses, Tari resigned.} 1-0 [Event "Bazna Kings 5th"] [Site "Medias"] [Date "2011.06.12"] [Round "2"] [White "Ivanchuk, Vassily"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C84"] [WhiteElo "2776"] [BlackElo "2815"] [Annotator "Rogozenco,Dorian"] [PlyCount "65"] [EventDate "2011.06.11"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "ROU"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 143"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2011.07.15"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2011.07.15"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 (4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 {leads to the Berlin Defence, with a lot of games on the highest level. In spite of White's efforts, in recent years this opening variation has proved to be very solid for Black.}) 4... d6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 O-O 7. c3 a6 8. Ba4 b5 9. Bc2 d5 10. Nbd2 ({Black should worry neither about} 10. d4 Nxe4 11. Nxe5 Nxe5 12. dxe5 f5) ({nor} 10. exd5 Qxd5) 10... dxe4 11. dxe4 Be6 {The structure is almost similar and there are few fighting resources. Ivanchuk goes for an interesting plan to exchange the light-squared bishops.} 12. Bb3 {[%csl Gc1,Re7] White's long-term idea is to prove the superiority of his dark-squared bishop. But with accurate play Carlsen has no difficulties neutralising it.} Bxb3 ({Carlsen felt that} 12... Qd7 13. Bxe6 Qxe6 14. Qb3 Qxb3 15. Nxb3 {might be better for White.}) 13. axb3 Qd3 14. b4 {An important move in White's plan: to free the square b3 for the knight and blockade the weakness on a6. But Black has some pressure in the centre and a lead in development, which will allow him to play at some moment a6-a5.} Rfd8 15. Qb3 Qd7 ({As pointed out by Magnus, his original intention} 15... Nd7 {runs into the strong} 16. Qd5 {when the only move is the somewhat ugly-looking retreat.} Ndb8 {Then after} 17. Qxd3 Rxd3 18. Kf1 {White can claim an edge in the endgame.}) 16. Qc2 Qe6 17. Qb3 (17. Nb3 {is answered by} Qc4 {(threatening to take on b4 with the knight)} 18. Nfd2 (18. Re2 $2 {allows a lovely combination:} Nxb4 $1 19. cxb4 Qxc2 20. Rxc2 Rd1+ 21. Ne1 Rxe1#) 18... Qe6 19. Nf1 Qc4 {and White is getting nowhere.}) 17... Qd7 18. Qc2 Qe6 {By playing 19.?b3 Ivanchuk could repeat the position and make a quicker draw, but he keeps on playing. However, the position is just equal.} 19. h3 a5 20. bxa5 Rxa5 21. Rxa5 Nxa5 22. b4 Nb7 23. Qb3 Qxb3 24. Nxb3 Nd7 25. Be3 Nd6 (25... Ra8 $11) 26. Nfd2 (26. Na5 Nxe4 27. Nc6 Re8 28. Bd4 exd4 29. Rxe4 {doesn't work in view of} dxc3 $1 {(Ivanchuk) .}) 26... Ra8 27. Kf1 f6 28. Ke2 Kf7 29. Kd3 Ke6 30. f3 Ra2 31. Ra1 Rxa1 32. Nxa1 Nb7 33. Nab3 1/2-1/2 [Event "London Classic 4th"] [Site "London"] [Date "2012.12.06"] [Round "5"] [White "Adams, Michael"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C84"] [WhiteElo "2710"] [BlackElo "2848"] [PlyCount "126"] [EventDate "2012.12.01"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "ENG"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 152"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2013.01.15"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2013.01.15"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {Sutovsky,Emil} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. d3 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. a4 Bd7 9. h3 O-O 10. Be3 Be6 $146 ({RR} 10... Na5 11. Ba2 c5 12. axb5 axb5 13. Nc3 c4 14. Bg5 b4 15. Bxf6 bxc3 16. Bxe7 Qxe7 17. bxc3 Be6 18. Re1 h6 19. Nd2 Rac8 20. Nf1 Rc5 21. Ne3 Rb8 22. Bxc4 Nxc4 23. dxc4 Qc7 24. Ra6 Rb6 25. Rxb6 {Volokitin,A (2678)-Melkumyan,H (2630) Austria 2013 0-1 (48)}) ({RR} 10... Na5 11. Ba2 bxa4 12. Bd2 Nc6 13. Nc3 Rb8 14. Nxa4 Nd4 15. Bc4 c6 16. Nxd4 exd4 17. Bf4 Be6 18. Re1 a5 19. Qf3 Rb7 20. e5 Nd5 21. exd6 Bxd6 22. Bxd6 Qxd6 23. Qe4 Nf4 24. Qe5 Qxe5 25. Rxe5 {Nepomniachtchi,I (2795)-Ding Liren (2788) Astana KAZ 2023 ½-½ (47)}) ({RR} 10... Na5 11. Ba2 bxa4 12. Nc3 Rb8 13. Bc1 h6 14. Bb1 Qe8 15. b3 c5 16. Nxa4 Nc6 17. Nb2 Ra8 18. Nc4 Qb8 19. Re1 Be6 20. c3 Re8 21. Bc2 Bf8 22. Ba3 Qc7 23. Ne3 d5 24. exd5 Nxd5 25. Nxd5 {Vokhidov,S (2641)-Zemlyanskii,I (2563) Al Ain UAE 2025 ½-½ (37)}) ({RR} 10... Na5 11. Ba2 c5 12. axb5 axb5 13. Nc3 b4 14. Nd5 Nxd5 15. Bxd5 Bc6 16. Bxc6 Nxc6 17. Nd2 ({RR} 17. Rxa8 Qxa8 18. Nd2) 17... Rxa1 18. Qxa1 Qa8 ({RR} 18... Bg5) 19. Nc4 Qb7 ({RR} 19... Qxa1 20. Rxa1 Rd8 21. Ra6) 20. Qd1 Nd8 21. f4 ({RR} 21. Qg4 Ne6 22. Ra1 Ra8 23. Rxa8+ Qxa8 24. g3) 21... d5 ({RR} 21... exf4 22. Bxf4 d5 23. Nd6 Bxd6 24. Bxd6 Re8) 22. Nxe5 f6 23. Nf3 dxe4 24. dxe4 Qxe4 25. Re1 {Sutovsky,E (2696)-Adams,M (2734) Porto Carras 2011 CBM 146 [Sutovsky,Emil] ½-½ (36)}) ({RR} 10... Na5 11. Ba2 bxa4 12. Nc3 Rb8 13. Rb1 c5 14. Nd2 Rb4 15. Bg5 h6 16. Bxf6 Bxf6 17. Nc4 Be6 18. Ne3 Bg5 19. Ned5 Bxd5 20. Bxd5 Qd7 21. Ra1 c4 22. Ra2 Rc8 23. Qa1 cxd3 24. cxd3 Bd2 25. Nxa4 {Alsina Leal,D (2511)-Kjartansson,G (2404) Hastings 2013 ½-½ (32)}) 11. Bxe6 fxe6 12. Nbd2 b4 13. c3 d5 14. cxb4 Bd6 15. b5 axb5 16. axb5 Rxa1 17. Qxa1 Nb4 18. d4 exd4 19. Nxd4 Qe8 20. Qa4 Nxe4 21. Nxe4 dxe4 22. Nc6 Nd5 23. Qxe4 Nxe3 24. Qxe3 Rf5 25. Nd4 Re5 26. Qb3 Rd5 27. Qc4 Qf7 28. b3 Qd7 29. Nf3 Rxb5 30. Ra1 Rd5 31. g3 h6 32. Qe4 Qe8 33. Kg2 Kf7 34. Ra2 Qd8 35. Re2 Qf6 36. h4 Qf5 37. Qc4 Rd3 38. Re3 Rxe3 39. fxe3 Qb1 40. e4 Qb2+ 41. Kh3 Qf2 42. e5 Qxf3 43. exd6 Qh1+ 44. Kg4 Qd1+ 45. Kh3 Qxd6 46. h5 c5 47. g4 Qd4 48. Qf1+ Ke7 49. Qf3 Qd5 50. Qc3 e5 51. Kg3 Kd6 52. Qc4 Qxc4 53. bxc4 e4 54. Kf4 e3 55. Kf3 Ke6 56. Ke2 Kf6 57. Kf3 Kg5 58. Kxe3 Kxg4 59. Ke4 Kxh5 60. Kd5 g5 61. Kxc5 g4 62. Kd4 g3 63. Ke3 Kg4 0-1 [Event "Corus"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2008.01.15"] [Round "4"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Aronian, Levon"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C84"] [WhiteElo "2733"] [BlackElo "2739"] [PlyCount "71"] [EventDate "2008.01.12"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 122"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2008.01.30"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2008.01.30"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. d3 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. a4 b4 9. Nbd2 Na5 10. Ba2 O-O 11. c3 ({RR} 11. Nc4 Nxc4 12. Bxc4 a5 13. c3 Ba6 14. Bxa6 Rxa6 15. Re1 Qa8 16. Bg5 h6 17. Bh4 Rb8 18. c4 c5 19. Nd2 Ra7 20. Bxf6 Bxf6 21. Nf1 Bg5 22. g3 g6 23. h4 Bf6 24. Ne3 Bg7 25. h5 Rf8 {Rasulov,V (2525)-Rohith,K (2380) chess.com INT 2022 1-0 (32)}) 11... c5 12. cxb4 cxb4 13. Nc4 Rb8 $146 ({RR} 13... b3 14. Bxb3 Nxb3 15. Qxb3 Be6 16. Ng5 Bxc4 17. Qxc4 Nd7 18. Nf3 Qb8 19. b4 Rc8 20. Qb3 Nc5 21. Qa3 Ne6 22. Bd2 Qa7 23. Rfc1 g5 24. Rxc8+ Rxc8 25. Rc1 Rxc1+ 26. Qxc1 g4 27. Qc8+ Kg7 28. Be3 {Volokitin,A (2628)-Masrahi,A (1962) Riadh 2017 1-0 (41)}) 14. Re1 Nc6 15. Ne3 Be6 16. Bxe6 fxe6 17. Nc4 Nd7 18. Ncd2 Nc5 19. Nb3 Nxb3 20. Qxb3 Rxf3 21. gxf3 Nd4 22. Qd1 Qf8 23. Kg2 Qf6 24. Be3 Rf8 25. Bxd4 exd4 26. e5 Qg5+ 27. Kh1 d5 28. Rc1 Qf5 29. Rc7 Bg5 30. Rg1 g6 31. f4 Qxf4 32. Qg4 Qxe5 33. Ra7 Rf5 34. a5 Bh6 35. Qg3 Qe2 36. Qc7 1/2-1/2 [Event "Tata Steel 83rd"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2021.01.19"] [Round "4"] [White "Van Foreest, Jorden"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C84"] [WhiteElo "2671"] [BlackElo "2862"] [PlyCount "116"] [EventDate "2021.01.16"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "19"] [SourceTitle "CBM 200"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2021.02.01"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2021.02.01"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O b5 6. Bb3 Bb7 7. d3 Be7 8. Nc3 O-O 9. a3 Nd4 ({RR} 9... d6 10. Ne2 d5 11. exd5 Nxd5 12. Re1 Kh8 13. Ng3 f6 14. c3 Qd7 15. d4 exd4 16. cxd4 Rad8 17. Qd3 f5 18. Bc2 g6 19. Bh6 Rfe8 20. Bb3 Bf6 21. Qd2 Nb6 22. Bg5 Qg7 23. Rxe8+ Rxe8 24. Re1 {Nepomniachtchi,I (2789)-Carlsen,M (2862) chess24.com INT 2021 ½-½ (35)}) 10. Nxd4 ({RR} 10. Ba2 Nxf3+ 11. Qxf3 d6 12. Bg5 Qd7 13. Ne2 Nxe4 14. Bxe7 Nc5 15. Bd5 Bxd5 16. Qxd5 Qxe7 17. d4 exd4 18. Nxd4 Rfe8 19. c4 Qe4 20. Rfd1 Qxd5 21. cxd5 Re5 22. Nf3 Re4 23. Rac1 b4 24. Nd4 bxa3 {Caruana,F (2804)-Carlsen,M (2855) Paris 2016 0-1 (48)}) 10... exd4 11. Ne2 c5 12. Bg5 $146 ({RR} 12. Ng3 d5 13. f3 c4 14. Ba2 g6 15. Bh6 Re8 16. Qd2 Nd7 17. Rae1 Rc8 18. f4 Nf6 19. e5 Ng4 20. f5 Nxh6 21. Qxh6 Bg5 22. Qh3 Be3+ 23. Rxe3 dxe3 24. d4 Qg5 25. c3 Rc6 26. Bb1 Bc8 {Munguntuul,B (2342)-Zhukova,N (2302) Doha QAT 2024 ½-½ (47)}) 12... d5 13. Bxf6 Bxf6 14. Bxd5 Bxd5 15. exd5 Qxd5 16. Ng3 c4 17. Re1 Rae8 18. a4 Rxe1+ 19. Qxe1 cxd3 20. cxd3 bxa4 21. Qd1 Qb5 22. Ne4 Be7 23. Qc2 Rb8 24. Rxa4 Qxb2 25. Qxb2 Rxb2 26. g4 Rb6 27. Rxd4 Kf8 28. Rd7 Rg6 29. Kf1 Rxg4 30. Ra7 f5 31. Ng3 g6 32. Rxa6 Rh4 33. Kg2 Rd4 34. Ne2 Rxd3 35. Ng1 Rd7 36. Nf3 Kg7 37. h3 Bf6 38. Kg3 Rb7 39. Kg2 Re7 40. Ra5 Rc7 41. Rd5 Ra7 42. Rb5 Be7 43. Nd4 Rd7 44. Nf3 Rd6 45. Rb7 Kf6 46. Ra7 h6 47. Nh4 Bd8 48. Rh7 Rd2 49. Rxh6 Kg7 50. Rxg6+ Kh7 51. Nf3 Rxf2+ 52. Kxf2 Kxg6 53. Kg2 Kh5 54. Nd4 f4 55. Ne6 Bg5 56. Nxg5 Kxg5 57. Kf3 Kh4 58. Kxf4 Kxh3 1/2-1/2 [Event "Tata Steel-A 82nd"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2020.01.19"] [Round "8"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Vitiugov, Nikita"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C84"] [WhiteElo "2872"] [BlackElo "2747"] [PlyCount "59"] [EventDate "2020.01.11"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 194"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2020.01.27"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2020.01.27"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. d3 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. Bd2 O-O 9. h3 h6 10. Re1 Re8 11. a3 Bf8 12. Nc3 Rb8 13. Ba2 $146 ({RR} 13. Ne2 Be6 14. Ng3 d5 15. Qe2 dxe4 16. dxe4 Bxb3 17. cxb3 Nd4 18. Nxd4 exd4 19. b4 Nd7 20. Bf4 Rc8 21. Rad1 c5 22. bxc5 Nxc5 23. Qg4 Kh8 24. e5 Ne6 25. Nf5 Rc2 26. Nd6 Bxd6 27. exd6 Qf6 {Caruana,F (2828)-Tari,A (2633) Stavanger 2020 1-0 (38)}) ({RR} 13. a4 Na5 14. Ba2 b4 15. Nd5 c5 16. Nh2 Nxd5 17. Bxd5 Be6 18. Qf3 Rc8 19. Ng4 Nc6 20. c3 bxc3 21. bxc3 Bxd5 22. exd5 Ne7 23. Rab1 Rb8 24. Ne3 Qd7 25. Nc4 Ng6 26. a5 Rb5 27. Rbd1 Ne7 {Pranav,V (2594)-Esipenko,A (2679) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (44)}) 13... Ne7 14. Nh4 g5 15. Nf3 Ng6 16. Nh2 c6 17. Ne2 d5 18. Ng3 dxe4 19. dxe4 Rb7 20. Qf3 Nf4 21. Rad1 Rd7 22. Be3 Rxd1 23. Rxd1 Qe7 24. Ng4 Nxg4 25. hxg4 Rd8 26. Re1 c5 27. Nf5 Qc7 28. g3 Ne6 29. Qh1 f6 30. Bd5 1-0 [Event "NOR-ch"] [Site "Molde"] [Date "2004.07.06"] [Round "5"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Elsness, Frode"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C84"] [WhiteElo "2552"] [BlackElo "2408"] [PlyCount "107"] [EventDate "2004.07.03"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [SourceTitle "CBM 101 Extra"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2004.09.01"] [SourceVersion "2"] [SourceVersionDate "2004.09.01"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 d6 5. O-O Be7 6. c3 O-O 7. Re1 a6 8. Ba4 b5 9. Bc2 Re8 10. Nbd2 Bf8 11. Nf1 h6 ({RR} 11... Nb8 12. d4 Nbd7 13. Ng3 Bb7 14. b3 g6 15. a4 Bg7 16. Bd3 d5 17. Bg5 dxe4 18. Bxe4 Bxe4 19. Nxe4 exd4 20. Nxd4 c5 21. Nc6 Qc7 22. Qd6 Qxd6 23. Nxd6 Rxe1+ 24. Rxe1 bxa4 25. bxa4 Bf8 26. Ne7+ {Carlsen,M (2840)-Hansen,E (2603) Chess.com INT 2017 1-0 (44)}) 12. Ng3 ({RR} 12. d4 g6 13. h3 Bg7 14. Ng3 Bb7 15. Be3 exd4 16. cxd4 Nb4 17. Bb1 Nxe4 18. Nxe4 Bxe4 19. Bxe4 Rxe4 20. Qb3 c5 21. a3 cxd4 22. Bxd4 Rxe1+ 23. Rxe1 Nc6 24. Bxg7 Kxg7 25. Qc3+ Ne5 26. Nxe5 dxe5 {Morozevich,A (2741)-Anand,V (2786) Monte Carlo 2005 ½-½}) ({RR} 12. h3 d5 13. Ng3 dxe4 14. dxe4 Qxd1 15. Rxd1 Bb7 16. Be3 Na5 17. Nd2 c5 18. f3 Bc6 19. Kf2 Nd7 20. b3 g6 21. Bd3 c4 22. bxc4 Nc5 23. Be2 Na4 24. cxb5 axb5 25. Rac1 Nb2 26. Rf1 Rec8 {Llari,M (2291)-Moreno Tejera,E (2418) Maia POR 2025 0-1 (51)}) 12... g6 13. h3 d5 14. d4 $146 ({RR} 14. Bd2 Bg7 15. Nh2 dxe4 16. dxe4 Be6 17. Qc1 Kh7 18. f4 exf4 19. Bxf4 Bc8 20. Nf3 Nd7 21. Rd1 Qe7 22. Bb3 Nce5 23. Qe3 Bb7 {½-½ (23) Larduet Despaigne,C (2335)-Nunez Vallina,J (2370) Matanzas 1992}) ({RR} 14. a4 Bb7 15. a5 Bg7 16. Bb3 dxe4 17. dxe4 Qxd1 18. Rxd1 Rad8 19. Rxd8 Rxd8 20. Be3 Ne8 21. Bd5 Nd6 22. Nd2 Ne7 23. Ba2 Kh7 24. Nb3 f5 25. exf5 gxf5 26. f4 Nc4 27. Bc5 Ng6 28. fxe5 f4 {Calero,H (1845)-Oliveros,C (1990) Cali 2016 0-1 (49)}) 14... dxe4 15. Nxe4 Bf5 16. d5 Bxe4 17. Bxe4 Nxe4 18. Rxe4 Ne7 19. Rxe5 Bg7 20. Re2 Qxd5 21. Qe1 Kf8 22. Bf4 Qb7 23. Be5 Bxe5 24. Nxe5 c6 25. c4 bxc4 26. Qc3 Kg8 27. Rae1 Nd5 28. Qxc4 Re6 29. Qg4 Kh7 30. Nc4 Rxe2 31. Rxe2 Qc8 32. Qd4 Qc7 33. g3 Rd8 34. Qc5 Kg8 35. Kg2 Qb7 36. b3 Qb5 37. Qa7 Rf8 38. Re5 Rd8 39. Kh2 Rf8 40. Nd6 Qb8 41. Qd7 Qb6 42. Kg2 Nf6 43. Qe7 Nd5 44. Qh4 Qd8 45. Qxh6 Qf6 46. Nc4 a5 47. Re4 Ra8 48. Nxa5 Nc3 49. Rf4 Qe5 50. Nxc6 Qd5+ 51. Kh2 Qxc6 52. Rh4 f5 53. Qh8+ Kf7 54. Qe5 1-0 [Event "EU-Cup 23rd"] [Site "Kemer"] [Date "2007.10.09"] [Round "7.3"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Fressinet, Laurent"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C84"] [WhiteElo "2714"] [BlackElo "2654"] [PlyCount "63"] [EventDate "2007.10.03"] [EventType "team-swiss"] [EventRounds "7"] [EventCountry "TUR"] [SourceTitle "CBM 121"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2007.11.14"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2007.11.14"] [SourceQuality "1"] [WhiteTeam "Baden-Baden"] [BlackTeam "Clichy Echecs 92"] [WhiteTeamCountry "GER"] [BlackTeamCountry "FRA"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. d3 b5 6. Bb3 Be7 7. O-O O-O 8. a4 Rb8 9. Nbd2 ({RR} 9. h3 d6 10. Be3 h6 11. axb5 a5 12. Nc3 Nb4 13. Rxa5 c6 14. Ra4 c5 15. Bc4 Nd7 16. Ra1 Nb6 17. Na4 Nxc4 18. dxc4 f5 19. c3 fxe4 20. Ne1 Nd3 21. Nxd3 exd3 22. Qxd3 Qe8 23. b4 Bf5 {Nepomniachtchi,I (2771)-Carlsen,M (2839) chess.com INT 2023 1-0 (37)}) ({RR} 9. axb5 axb5 10. Nc3 d6 11. Nd5 Nxd5 12. exd5 Nd4 13. Nxd4 exd4 14. Bd2 Bd7 15. Re1 Bf6 16. Ra7 Ra8 17. Qa1 Qb8 18. Rxa8 Qxa8 19. Qa5 Qxa5 20. Bxa5 {½-½ (20) Fressinet,L (2654)-Grischuk,A (2715) Kemer 2007}) 9... d6 10. c3 Nd7 $146 ({RR} 10... Be6 11. Bc2 d5 12. Qe2 dxe4 13. dxe4 Nd7 14. axb5 axb5 15. Ra6 Nb6 16. Qxb5 Bd6 17. Qxc6 Bd7 18. Rxb6 Bxc6 19. Rxc6 Ra8 20. Bb3 Kh8 21. Bd5 f5 22. exf5 Rxf5 23. Ne4 Ra1 24. Nxd6 cxd6 25. Be3 {Rigo,Z (2389)-Berezjuk,S (2379) Slovakia 2011 1-0 (42)}) ({RR} 10... h6 11. Re1 Na5 12. Bc2 c5 13. axb5 axb5 14. d4 exd4 15. cxd4 Nc6 16. h3 Re8 17. Nf1 cxd4 18. Nxd4 Nxd4 19. Qxd4 Qc7 20. Bb3 Be6 21. Bxe6 fxe6 22. Ra6 Bf8 23. b3 Nd7 24. Ra7 Rb7 25. Rxb7 {Ostensen,N (2260)-Vestby-Ellingsen,M (2398) Fagernes NOR 2025 ½-½}) 11. axb5 axb5 12. Re1 Bf6 13. Nf1 Nc5 14. Ba2 Bg4 15. b4 Ne6 16. Ne3 Bxf3 17. Qxf3 Bg5 18. Bd5 Qd7 19. Nf5 Ne7 20. Nxg7 Nxd5 21. Nxe6 fxe6 22. Qg4 Nxc3 23. Bxg5 Kh8 24. Ra7 Qf7 25. Qh4 Rbc8 26. Be7 Qf4 27. Qxf4 Rxf4 28. Kf1 Na4 29. Rc1 Nb2 30. Ra3 Rg8 31. Rxc7 Nd1 32. Bxd6 1-0 [Event "Croatia GCT"] [Site "Zagreb"] [Date "2019.06.28"] [Round "3"] [White "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C84"] [WhiteElo "2819"] [BlackElo "2875"] [PlyCount "135"] [EventDate "2019.06.26"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "11"] [EventCountry "CRO"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 191"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2019.08.31"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2019.08.31"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Nxe4 6. d4 Be7 7. Re1 b5 8. Rxe4 d5 9. Nxe5 Nxe5 10. Rxe5 bxa4 11. Nc3 O-O 12. Re1 Bd6 13. Qh5 ({RR} 13. h3 a3 14. bxa3 c6 15. Qf3 Qh4 16. Ne2 Re8 17. Bf4 Bf8 18. Ng3 Bd7 19. Rxe8 Rxe8 20. Rb1 Qf6 21. Rb7 Bc8 22. Rc7 Qxd4 23. Bd6 Be6 24. Bxf8 Rxf8 25. Rxc6 Qa1+ 26. Kh2 Qxa2 27. Nh5 Qb2 {Caruana,F (2766)-Yu Yangyi (2729) chess.com INT 2023 1-0 (31)}) ({RR} 13. Qf3 Qh4 14. g3 Qxd4 15. Qxd5 Qxd5 16. Nxd5 Be6 17. Nc3 a3 18. bxa3 Rab8 19. Rb1 Rxb1 20. Nxb1 Bf5 21. Re2 f6 22. Nc3 Be5 23. Nd5 Bg4 24. Re1 Rd8 25. Ne7+ Kf8 26. Nc6 Bc3 27. Nxd8 Bxe1 {Leitgeb,J (2328)-Stefansson,V (2492) Ceske Budejovice CZE 2024 0-1 (51)}) 13... a3 14. Nxd5 axb2 $146 ({RR} 14... Bb7 15. Ne3 Re8 16. bxa3 Re6 17. h3 Qf6 18. Rb1 Be4 19. d5 Bg6 20. Qd1 Re4 21. Bb2 Qf4 22. Nf1 Rb8 23. Bc3 Rxb1 24. Qxb1 h5 25. Bb4 Be5 26. Bd2 Qh4 27. c4 Rxe1 28. Qxe1 f6 29. Ne3 {Rakotomaharo,F (2475)-Vlachos,A (2421) Paris 2021 ½-½ (36)}) ({RR} 14... Bb7 15. Ne3 Re8 16. bxa3 Re6 17. h3 Qf6 18. Rb1 Be4 19. d5 Bg6 20. Qd1 Re4 21. Bb2 Qf4 22. Nf1 Rb8 23. Bc3 Rxb1 24. Qxb1 h5 25. Bb4 Be5 26. Bd2 Qh4 27. c4 Rxe1 28. Qxe1 f6 29. Ne3 {Rakotomaharo,F (2475)-Vlachos,A (2421) Paris 2021 ½-½ (36)}) 15. Bxb2 Rb8 16. Rab1 Re8 17. Ne3 Bf4 18. d5 Rb4 19. c4 Bxe3 20. Rxe3 Rxe3 21. fxe3 Rxc4 22. Bd4 c5 23. Ba1 f6 24. h3 Qe7 25. Qf3 h6 26. Re1 Re4 27. Kf2 Bd7 28. Rd1 Kh7 29. Rd2 Qe8 30. Bb2 Ra4 31. a3 Rc4 32. Re2 Qg6 33. e4 Ba4 34. d6 Bc6 35. Qg3 Qxg3+ 36. Kxg3 Kg6 37. e5 fxe5 38. Bxe5 h5 39. Bb2 h4+ 40. Kh2 Kf5 41. Bxg7 Re4 42. Rxe4 Kxe4 43. Bf6 c4 44. Bxh4 c3 45. Bf6 c2 46. Bb2 Kd5 47. g4 Kxd6 48. Kg3 Bb5 49. Kf3 Ke7 50. h4 Kf8 51. h5 Be8 52. Kg3 Kg8 53. Kh4 Kh7 54. Kg5 Bd7 55. Kf4 a5 56. Kg5 a4 57. Kf4 Be6 58. g5 Bf7 59. g6+ Bxg6 60. hxg6+ Kxg6 61. Ke5 Kf7 62. Kd6 Ke8 63. Bc1 Kd8 64. Kc6 Kc8 65. Bf4 c1=Q+ 66. Bxc1 Kb8 67. Kb6 Ka8 68. Bf4 1/2-1/2 [Event "Tata Steel 83rd"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2021.01.19"] [Round "4"] [White "Van Foreest, Jorden"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C84"] [WhiteElo "2671"] [BlackElo "2862"] [PlyCount "116"] [EventDate "2021.01.16"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "19"] [SourceTitle "CBM 200"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2021.02.01"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2021.02.01"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O b5 6. Bb3 Bb7 7. d3 Be7 8. Nc3 O-O 9. a3 Nd4 ({RR} 9... d6 10. Ne2 d5 11. exd5 Nxd5 12. Re1 Kh8 13. Ng3 f6 14. c3 Qd7 15. d4 exd4 16. cxd4 Rad8 17. Qd3 f5 18. Bc2 g6 19. Bh6 Rfe8 20. Bb3 Bf6 21. Qd2 Nb6 22. Bg5 Qg7 23. Rxe8+ Rxe8 24. Re1 {Nepomniachtchi,I (2789)-Carlsen,M (2862) chess24.com INT 2021 ½-½ (35)}) 10. Nxd4 ({RR} 10. Ba2 Nxf3+ 11. Qxf3 d6 12. Bg5 Qd7 13. Ne2 Nxe4 14. Bxe7 Nc5 15. Bd5 Bxd5 16. Qxd5 Qxe7 17. d4 exd4 18. Nxd4 Rfe8 19. c4 Qe4 20. Rfd1 Qxd5 21. cxd5 Re5 22. Nf3 Re4 23. Rac1 b4 24. Nd4 bxa3 {Caruana,F (2804)-Carlsen,M (2855) Paris 2016 0-1 (48)}) 10... exd4 11. Ne2 c5 12. Bg5 $146 ({RR} 12. Ng3 d5 13. f3 c4 14. Ba2 g6 15. Bh6 Re8 16. Qd2 Nd7 17. Rae1 Rc8 18. f4 Nf6 19. e5 Ng4 20. f5 Nxh6 21. Qxh6 Bg5 22. Qh3 Be3+ 23. Rxe3 dxe3 24. d4 Qg5 25. c3 Rc6 26. Bb1 Bc8 {Munguntuul,B (2342)-Zhukova,N (2302) Doha QAT 2024 ½-½ (47)}) 12... d5 13. Bxf6 Bxf6 14. Bxd5 Bxd5 15. exd5 Qxd5 16. Ng3 c4 17. Re1 Rae8 18. a4 Rxe1+ 19. Qxe1 cxd3 20. cxd3 bxa4 21. Qd1 Qb5 22. Ne4 Be7 23. Qc2 Rb8 24. Rxa4 Qxb2 25. Qxb2 Rxb2 26. g4 Rb6 27. Rxd4 Kf8 28. Rd7 Rg6 29. Kf1 Rxg4 30. Ra7 f5 31. Ng3 g6 32. Rxa6 Rh4 33. Kg2 Rd4 34. Ne2 Rxd3 35. Ng1 Rd7 36. Nf3 Kg7 37. h3 Bf6 38. Kg3 Rb7 39. Kg2 Re7 40. Ra5 Rc7 41. Rd5 Ra7 42. Rb5 Be7 43. Nd4 Rd7 44. Nf3 Rd6 45. Rb7 Kf6 46. Ra7 h6 47. Nh4 Bd8 48. Rh7 Rd2 49. Rxh6 Kg7 50. Rxg6+ Kh7 51. Nf3 Rxf2+ 52. Kxf2 Kxg6 53. Kg2 Kh5 54. Nd4 f4 55. Ne6 Bg5 56. Nxg5 Kxg5 57. Kf3 Kh4 58. Kxf4 Kxh3 1/2-1/2 [Event "Tata Steel-A 82nd"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2020.01.19"] [Round "8"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Vitiugov, Nikita"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C84"] [WhiteElo "2872"] [BlackElo "2747"] [PlyCount "59"] [EventDate "2020.01.11"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 194"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2020.01.27"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2020.01.27"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. d3 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. Bd2 O-O 9. h3 h6 10. Re1 Re8 11. a3 Bf8 12. Nc3 Rb8 13. Ba2 $146 ({RR} 13. Ne2 Be6 14. Ng3 d5 15. Qe2 dxe4 16. dxe4 Bxb3 17. cxb3 Nd4 18. Nxd4 exd4 19. b4 Nd7 20. Bf4 Rc8 21. Rad1 c5 22. bxc5 Nxc5 23. Qg4 Kh8 24. e5 Ne6 25. Nf5 Rc2 26. Nd6 Bxd6 27. exd6 Qf6 {Caruana,F (2828)-Tari,A (2633) Stavanger 2020 1-0 (38)}) ({RR} 13. a4 Na5 14. Ba2 b4 15. Nd5 c5 16. Nh2 Nxd5 17. Bxd5 Be6 18. Qf3 Rc8 19. Ng4 Nc6 20. c3 bxc3 21. bxc3 Bxd5 22. exd5 Ne7 23. Rab1 Rb8 24. Ne3 Qd7 25. Nc4 Ng6 26. a5 Rb5 27. Rbd1 Ne7 {Pranav,V (2594)-Esipenko,A (2679) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (44)}) 13... Ne7 14. Nh4 g5 15. Nf3 Ng6 16. Nh2 c6 17. Ne2 d5 18. Ng3 dxe4 19. dxe4 Rb7 20. Qf3 Nf4 21. Rad1 Rd7 22. Be3 Rxd1 23. Rxd1 Qe7 24. Ng4 Nxg4 25. hxg4 Rd8 26. Re1 c5 27. Nf5 Qc7 28. g3 Ne6 29. Qh1 f6 30. Bd5 1-0 [Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"] [Site "Stavanger NOR"] [Date "2025.05.31"] [Round "5"] [White "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C85"] [WhiteElo "2776"] [BlackElo "2837"] [Annotator "Rafael Leitao"] [PlyCount "133"] [EventDate "2025.05.26"] [TimeControl "40/7200:0"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. Re1 {Este sistema de abertura foi jogado na primeira partida do match Nepomniachtchi-Ding em 2023. Embora tenha sido discutido apenas uma vez na disputa, este lance agora é testado de vez em quando por Grandes Mestres fortes.} Nd7 {O lance principal, mas 7...Bg4 e 7...Dd6 são alternativas importantes.} (7... Bg4) (7... Qd6) 8. d4 Bf6 {Um lance muito raro, jogado em apenas uma partida de GM na histórica Olimpíada de Buenos Aires em 1978.} (8... exd4 {foi o lance jogado por Ding e pela esmagadora maioria dos jogadores de xadrez.}) 9. Be3 {Simplesmente reforçando o centro. Isso é melhor do que trocar em e5 para jogar o final.} ({Após} 9. dxe5 Nxe5 10. Qxd8+ Kxd8 11. Nxe5 Bxe5 12. Nd2 Be6 13. Nf3 Bf6 14. Bg5 Ke7 {a estrutura de peões melhor não é suficiente para oferecer vantagem às Brancas.}) (9. c3 {é semelhante à partida.}) 9... O-O 10. c3 {Um lance novo e lógico. Caruana quer terminar o desenvolvimento com Dc2-Tad1 e lutar por uma vantagem com seu bom controle central.} (10. Nc3 {foi jogado em Ermenkov-Hernandez Onna, Olimpíada de Buenos Aires 1978.}) 10... Re8 11. Nbd2 {Acho que o experimento na abertura foi um sucesso para as Brancas, já que não é fácil jogar com as Negras.} exd4 {Abrir mão do centro não é o ideal, mas é necessário para mover o cavalo de f8.} ({O imediato} 11... Nf8 $2 {é ruim devido a} 12. dxe5 Bxe5 13. Nxe5 Rxe5 14. f4 Re8 15. f5 {com uma vantagem esmagadora para as Brancas, graças à sua estrutura de peões muito superior.}) (11... b6 $5 {é um plano alternativo, e eu posso imaginar muitos jogadores tentando-o. As Negras simplesmente querem desenvolver o bispo em b7. As Brancas mantêm uma pequena vantagem após} 12. Qc2 (12. Nc4 $6 {é pior:} exd4 13. Bxd4 c5 14. Bxf6 Nxf6 {e as Negras não têm problemas.}) 12... Bb7) (11... a5 {é um lance sutil, uma ideia parecida com a que Carlsen joga mais tarde na partida.}) 12. cxd4 Nf8 13. Qc2 Ng6 14. h3 {As Brancas melhoram a posição calmamente.} a5 $5 {Tentando ganhar espaço na ala da dama. Após a5-a4, há também uma pequena chance de a torre entrar em jogo usando a casa a5, falaremos mais sobre isso depois.} (14... Be6 15. Rad1 {com a iniciativa das Brancas.}) 15. Rad1 (15. a4 {para o avanço do peão, mas as Negras podem usar a casa b4 depois de} Be7) 15... a4 16. Nb1 $1 {Uma excelente manobra para melhorar o cavalo.} Be7 17. Nc3 Bb4 (17... a3 $5 {As Negras podem considerar jogar esse lance antes de colocar o bispo em b4.}) 18. d5 {Caruana joga o meio-jogo com muita energia.} (18. a3 {é uma abordagem mais simples e também possível. Após} Bxc3 19. bxc3 {As Brancas mantêm uma pequena vantagem. Se conseguirem avançar os peões no centro, a posição das Negras pode se tornar perigosa.} (19. Qxc3 $2 {perde um peão:} Rxe4)) 18... Qe7 $6 {Carlsen tinha que encontrar um lance muito difícil sugerido pela máquina para ter chances realistas de igualar.} (18... cxd5 $2 {é errado:} 19. Nxd5 Bxe1 $2 20. Nxc7 {com uma vantagem decisiva.}) (18... Nh4 $1 {é o lance recomendado pelo computador. Após} 19. Nxh4 Qxh4 {surpreendentemente, as Negras estão mais ou menos bem, com um possível sacrifício de bispo em h3 pairando no ar.}) 19. a3 Bd6 (19... Bxc3 20. Qxc3 cxd5 21. exd5 {É perigoso para as Negras abrir a posição devido ao desenvolvimento superior das Brancas.}) 20. Bd4 {As Negras estão sob forte pressão.} (20. dxc6 bxc6 {As Brancas têm uma vantagem estável e muitas ideias promissoras. Uma delas é} 21. Bg5 $5 (21. Nxa4 Qxe4 {não é tão convincente.}) 21... f6 22. Bc1 {seguido pela captura do peão de a4.}) 20... Qd7 $1 {O único lance. Carlsen, aliás, encontrará vários lances difíceis e forçados nesta partida, que é uma verdadeira aula de defesa.} (20... c5 $2 {perde forçado:} 21. e5 $1 cxd4 22. exd6 Qf8 23. Nb5 {com uma vantagem esmagadora.}) (20... f6 {impede e4-e5, mas perde um peão:} 21. dxc6 bxc6 22. Nxa4) 21. e5 $1 {Caruana ataca da maneira mais eficiente.} (21. dxc6 Qxc6 {é defensável.}) (21. Nxa4 Nf4 $1 {é uma excelente recomendação da máquina, com a ideia de sacrificar o cavalo em h3 ou g2. As Negras conseguem alcançar um contra-ataque repentino.} (21... cxd5 22. Nc3 Nf4 {também é possível.})) 21... Bf8 22. e6 $1 (22. d6 {é menos perigoso. As Negras estão bem depois de} cxd6 23. exd6 Rxe1+ 24. Nxe1 Qf5 $1) 22... fxe6 23. dxe6 (23. dxc6 {também é interessante. Depois de} Qxc6 24. Ne5 $1 Nxe5 25. Bxe5 {as Brancas sacrificam um peão, mas tem excelente compensação. O plano é mover a dama para g4 e o cavalo para e4 com um ataque.}) 23... Rxe6 24. Ne4 {A situação é crítica, mas Carlsen encontra um lance brilhante.} Ra5 $3 {O único lance. A torre entra no jogo no momento certo. Qualquer outra coisa simplesmente perde.} (24... Qe8 $2 25. Neg5) (24... Bd6 $2 25. Nfg5) (24... h6 $2 25. Nf6+) 25. Bc5 (25. Nfg5 $2 {não funciona mais com a torre em a5.} Rxg5 $1 26. Nxg5 Rxe1+ 27. Rxe1 Qxd4 {ganhando material.}) 25... Qe8 26. Qc3 (26. Qc4 $5 {também é muito perigoso. As Negras precisam encontrar vários lances difíceis para sobreviver.} b6 $1 27. Nfg5 Ne5 28. Qe2 {Vamos seguir a principal linha recomendada pelo computador:} bxc5 29. Nxe6 Bxe6 30. f4 {As Negras têm problemas na coluna 'e', mas há uma saída.} Bb3 $1 31. fxe5 c4 $3 {A torre está salvando o dia novamente.} (31... Bxd1 32. Rxd1 {deixa as Negras com problemas posicionais.}) 32. Rc1 Rxe5 {com contra-jogo.}) 26... b6 27. Bxf8 Nxf8 (27... Qxf8 $2 {perde para} 28. Nd4) 28. Neg5 Rxe1+ 29. Rxe1 Qd8 (29... Qg6 {é mais preciso quando as Negras estão próximas da igualdade.}) 30. Qxc6 h6 31. Ne4 Be6 $6 (31... Qd7 $1 {é melhor.}) 32. Nc3 Qd7 33. Qxd7 Bxd7 34. Re7 {As Negras ainda não estão fora de perigo.} Rc5 $6 (34... Rf5 $1 35. Ne5 Be6 {dá melhores chances de defesa.}) 35. Ne5 Bf5 36. g4 $6 (36. Nxa4 {não é muito preciso:} Rc1+ 37. Kh2 Rc2 {com chances de empate.}) (36. Re8 $1 {é muito desagradável para as Negras.} g5 (36... Kh7 37. Rxf8 Rxe5 38. Nxa4 {com um peão a mais no final.}) 37. g4 Be6 38. Ng6 Bf7 (38... Kf7 $2 39. Nxf8 Kxe8 40. Nxe6) 39. Rxf8+ Kg7 40. Ra8 Kxg6 41. Rxa4 {Talvez as Negras ainda consigam escapar com uma defesa perfeita, mas será uma longa tortura jogar o final com um peão a menos.}) 36... Ng6 $1 37. Re8+ Kh7 38. f4 (38. Nxg6 Bxg6 {seguido por b6-b5, defendendo o peão de a4.}) 38... Nxe5 39. Rxe5 Rxe5 40. fxe5 Bd7 (40... Bd3 {é uma boa alternativa:} 41. Nxa4 Kg6 {com um empate provável.}) 41. Nd5 Kg6 42. Nxc7 Kf7 43. Kf2 {As Negras precisam encontrar a ordem correta dos lances para alcançar o empate. Carlsen finalmente comete um erro claro.} g5 $2 (43... Bc6 $1 {é o único caminho.} 44. Ke3 (44. h4 g5 $1 45. hxg5 hxg5 46. Ke3 Bd7 {A pressão em g4 salva as Negras.}) 44... Bg2 $1 {chegou na hora certa $1} (44... g5 $2 45. Kd4 {as Brancas vencem, como veremos na análise da partida.}) 45. h4 g5 $1 46. hxg5 hxg5 {Novamente as Negras estão prontas para atacar o peão de g4.} 47. Nb5 Ke6 48. Kd4 (48. Nc3 Kxe5 49. Nxa4 b5 {e parece que as Brancas não conseguem vencer, mesmo estando com um peão a mais.}) 48... Bf3 49. Nc3 Bxg4 50. Nxa4 Bf3 51. Nxb6 g4 {O peão de g custará material às Brancas: ou o cavalo, ou o peão de e.}) 44. Nd5 $2 {Carlsen deixa passar um ganho.} (44. Ke3 $1 Bc6 45. Kd4 Bg2 46. Nd5 $1 Ke6 (46... Bxh3 {A questão é que as Brancas podem jogar} 47. Ne3 $1 {quando o bispo está preso.}) 47. Nxb6 Bxh3 48. Nxa4 Bxg4 49. Nc5+ Ke7 50. b4 $1 {Os peões das Brancas são mais rápidos, por exemplo:} h5 51. b5 h4 52. Ke3 $1 {quando o rei se aproxima do peão de h.}) 44... Ke6 45. Nf6 (45. Nxb6 Bb5 {seguido da captura do peão de e5.}) 45... Bc8 46. Ng8 Kxe5 47. Nxh6 Be6 48. Ke3 b5 49. Nf5 Bxf5 50. gxf5 Kxf5 {O empate fica claro.} 51. Kf3 Kf6 52. Kg4 Kg6 53. Kg3 Kh5 54. Kf3 Kh4 55. Kg2 g4 56. hxg4 Kxg4 57. Kf2 Kf4 58. Ke2 Ke4 59. Kd2 Kd4 60. Kc2 Kc4 61. b3+ axb3+ 62. Kb2 b4 63. a4 Kd5 64. Kxb3 Kc5 65. a5 Kb5 66. a6 Kxa6 67. Kxb4 {Uma luta maravilhosa entre dois gigantes do jogo.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "Norway Chess 2025"] [Site "Chess.com"] [Date "2025.05.31"] [Round "5.3"] [White "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C85"] [WhiteElo "2776"] [BlackElo "2837"] [Annotator "Rafael Leitao"] [PlyCount "133"] [EventDate "2025.??.??"] {[%evp 0,133,19,19,19,19,19,6,6,7,0,16,11,5,5,-54,20,-2,39,19,20,7,22,22,10,5,12,16,13,11,25,30,42,37,60,41,40,32,56,43,45,61,95,87,87,78,78,69,69,69,73,37,22,18,18,51,36,36,36,59,62,62,62,69,69,52,95,70,47,74,97,97,72,61,76,45,45,43,43,37,39,37,37,54,47,47,53,57,48,40,54,0,0,0,0,0,42,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. Re1 {Este sistema de abertura foi jogado na primeira partida do match Nepomniachtchi-Ding em 2023. Embora tenha sido discutido apenas uma vez na disputa, este lance agora é testado de vez em quando por Grandes Mestres fortes.} Nd7 {O lance principal, mas 7...Bg4 e 7...Dd6 são alternativas importantes.} (7... Bg4) (7... Qd6) 8. d4 Bf6 {Um lance muito raro, jogado em apenas uma partida de GM na histórica Olimpíada de Buenos Aires em 1978.} (8... exd4 {foi o lance jogado por Ding e pela esmagadora maioria dos jogadores de xadrez.}) 9. Be3 {Simplesmente reforçando o centro. Isso é melhor do que trocar em e5 para jogar o final.} ({Após} 9. dxe5 Nxe5 10. Qxd8+ Kxd8 11. Nxe5 Bxe5 12. Nd2 Be6 13. Nf3 Bf6 14. Bg5 Ke7 {a estrutura de peões melhor não é suficiente para oferecer vantagem às Brancas.}) (9. c3 {é semelhante à partida.}) 9... O-O 10. c3 {Um lance novo e lógico. Caruana quer terminar o desenvolvimento com Dc2-Tad1 e lutar por uma vantagem com seu bom controle central.} (10. Nc3 {foi jogado em Ermenkov-Hernandez Onna, Olimpíada de Buenos Aires 1978.}) 10... Re8 11. Nbd2 {Acho que o experimento na abertura foi um sucesso para as Brancas, já que não é fácil jogar com as Negras.} exd4 {Abrir mão do centro não é o ideal, mas é necessário para mover o cavalo de f8.} ({O imediato} 11... Nf8 $2 {é ruim devido a} 12. dxe5 Bxe5 13. Nxe5 Rxe5 14. f4 Re8 15. f5 {com uma vantagem esmagadora para as Brancas, graças à sua estrutura de peões muito superior.}) (11... b6 $5 {é um plano alternativo, e eu posso imaginar muitos jogadores tentando-o. As Negras simplesmente querem desenvolver o bispo em b7. As Brancas mantêm uma pequena vantagem após} 12. Qc2 (12. Nc4 $6 {é pior:} exd4 13. Bxd4 c5 14. Bxf6 Nxf6 {e as Negras não têm problemas.}) 12... Bb7) (11... a5 {é um lance sutil, uma ideia parecida com a que Carlsen joga mais tarde na partida.}) 12. cxd4 Nf8 13. Qc2 Ng6 14. h3 {As Brancas melhoram a posição calmamente.} a5 $5 {Tentando ganhar espaço na ala da dama. Após a5-a4, há também uma pequena chance de a torre entrar em jogo usando a casa a5, falaremos mais sobre isso depois.} (14... Be6 15. Rad1 {com a iniciativa das Brancas.}) 15. Rad1 (15. a4 {para o avanço do peão, mas as Negras podem usar a casa b4 depois de} Be7) 15... a4 16. Nb1 $1 {Uma excelente manobra para melhorar o cavalo.} Be7 17. Nc3 Bb4 (17... a3 $5 {As Negras podem considerar jogar esse lance antes de colocar o bispo em b4.}) 18. d5 {Caruana joga o meio-jogo com muita energia.} (18. a3 {é uma abordagem mais simples e também possível. Após} Bxc3 19. bxc3 {As Brancas mantêm uma pequena vantagem. Se conseguirem avançar os peões no centro, a posição das Negras pode se tornar perigosa.} (19. Qxc3 $2 {perde um peão:} Rxe4)) 18... Qe7 $6 {Carlsen tinha que encontrar um lance muito difícil sugerido pela máquina para ter chances realistas de igualar.} (18... cxd5 $2 {é errado:} 19. Nxd5 Bxe1 $2 20. Nxc7 {com uma vantagem decisiva.}) (18... Nh4 $1 {é o lance recomendado pelo computador. Após} 19. Nxh4 Qxh4 {surpreendentemente, as Negras estão mais ou menos bem, com um possível sacrifício de bispo em h3 pairando no ar.}) 19. a3 Bd6 (19... Bxc3 20. Qxc3 cxd5 21. exd5 {É perigoso para as Negras abrir a posição devido ao desenvolvimento superior das Brancas.}) 20. Bd4 {As Negras estão sob forte pressão.} (20. dxc6 bxc6 {As Brancas têm uma vantagem estável e muitas ideias promissoras. Uma delas é} 21. Bg5 $5 (21. Nxa4 Qxe4 {não é tão convincente.}) 21... f6 22. Bc1 {seguido pela captura do peão de a4.}) 20... Qd7 $1 {O único lance. Carlsen, aliás, encontrará vários lances difíceis e forçados nesta partida, que é uma verdadeira aula de defesa.} (20... c5 $2 {perde forçado:} 21. e5 $1 cxd4 22. exd6 Qf8 23. Nb5 {com uma vantagem esmagadora.}) (20... f6 {impede e4-e5, mas perde um peão:} 21. dxc6 bxc6 22. Nxa4) 21. e5 $1 {Caruana ataca da maneira mais eficiente.} (21. dxc6 Qxc6 {é defensável.}) (21. Nxa4 Nf4 $1 {é uma excelente recomendação da máquina, com a ideia de sacrificar o cavalo em h3 ou g2. As Negras conseguem alcançar um contra-ataque repentino.} (21... cxd5 22. Nc3 Nf4 {também é possível.})) 21... Bf8 22. e6 $1 (22. d6 {é menos perigoso. As Negras estão bem depois de} cxd6 23. exd6 Rxe1+ 24. Nxe1 Qf5 $1) 22... fxe6 23. dxe6 (23. dxc6 {também é interessante. Depois de} Qxc6 24. Ne5 $1 Nxe5 25. Bxe5 {as Brancas sacrificam um peão, mas tem excelente compensação. O plano é mover a dama para g4 e o cavalo para e4 com um ataque.}) 23... Rxe6 24. Ne4 {A situação é crítica, mas Carlsen encontra um lance brilhante.} Ra5 $3 {O único lance. A torre entra no jogo no momento certo. Qualquer outra coisa simplesmente perde.} (24... Qe8 $2 25. Neg5) (24... Bd6 $2 25. Nfg5) (24... h6 $2 25. Nf6+) 25. Bc5 (25. Nfg5 $2 {não funciona mais com a torre em a5.} Rxg5 $1 26. Nxg5 Rxe1+ 27. Rxe1 Qxd4 {ganhando material.}) 25... Qe8 26. Qc3 (26. Qc4 $5 {também é muito perigoso. As Negras precisam encontrar vários lances difíceis para sobreviver.} b6 $1 27. Nfg5 Ne5 28. Qe2 {Vamos seguir a principal linha recomendada pelo computador:} bxc5 29. Nxe6 Bxe6 30. f4 {As Negras têm problemas na coluna 'e', mas há uma saída.} Bb3 $1 31. fxe5 c4 $3 {A torre está salvando o dia novamente.} (31... Bxd1 32. Rxd1 {deixa as Negras com problemas posicionais.}) 32. Rc1 Rxe5 {com contra-jogo.}) 26... b6 27. Bxf8 Nxf8 (27... Qxf8 $2 {perde para} 28. Nd4) 28. Neg5 Rxe1+ 29. Rxe1 Qd8 (29... Qg6 {é mais preciso quando as Negras estão próximas da igualdade.}) 30. Qxc6 h6 31. Ne4 Be6 $6 (31... Qd7 $1 {é melhor.}) 32. Nc3 Qd7 33. Qxd7 Bxd7 34. Re7 {As Negras ainda não estão fora de perigo.} Rc5 $6 (34... Rf5 $1 35. Ne5 Be6 {dá melhores chances de defesa.}) 35. Ne5 Bf5 36. g4 $6 (36. Nxa4 {não é muito preciso:} Rc1+ 37. Kh2 Rc2 {com chances de empate.}) (36. Re8 $1 {é muito desagradável para as Negras.} g5 (36... Kh7 37. Rxf8 Rxe5 38. Nxa4 {com um peão a mais no final.}) 37. g4 Be6 38. Ng6 Bf7 (38... Kf7 $2 39. Nxf8 Kxe8 40. Nxe6) 39. Rxf8+ Kg7 40. Ra8 Kxg6 41. Rxa4 {Talvez as Negras ainda consigam escapar com uma defesa perfeita, mas será uma longa tortura jogar o final com um peão a menos.}) 36... Ng6 $1 37. Re8+ Kh7 38. f4 (38. Nxg6 Bxg6 {seguido por b6-b5, defendendo o peão de a4.}) 38... Nxe5 39. Rxe5 Rxe5 40. fxe5 Bd7 (40... Bd3 {é uma boa alternativa:} 41. Nxa4 Kg6 {com um empate provável.}) 41. Nd5 Kg6 42. Nxc7 Kf7 43. Kf2 {As Negras precisam encontrar a ordem correta dos lances para alcançar o empate. Carlsen finalmente comete um erro claro.} g5 $2 (43... Bc6 $1 {é o único caminho.} 44. Ke3 (44. h4 g5 $1 45. hxg5 hxg5 46. Ke3 Bd7 {A pressão em g4 salva as Negras.}) 44... Bg2 $1 {chegou na hora certa $1} (44... g5 $2 45. Kd4 {as Brancas vencem, como veremos na análise da partida.}) 45. h4 g5 $1 46. hxg5 hxg5 {Novamente as Negras estão prontas para atacar o peão de g4.} 47. Nb5 Ke6 48. Kd4 (48. Nc3 Kxe5 49. Nxa4 b5 {e parece que as Brancas não conseguem vencer, mesmo estando com um peão a mais.}) 48... Bf3 49. Nc3 Bxg4 50. Nxa4 Bf3 51. Nxb6 g4 {O peão de g custará material às Brancas: ou o cavalo, ou o peão de e.}) 44. Nd5 $2 {Carlsen deixa passar um ganho.} (44. Ke3 $1 Bc6 45. Kd4 Bg2 46. Nd5 $1 Ke6 (46... Bxh3 {A questão é que as Brancas podem jogar} 47. Ne3 $1 {quando o bispo está preso.}) 47. Nxb6 Bxh3 48. Nxa4 Bxg4 49. Nc5+ Ke7 50. b4 $1 {Os peões das Brancas são mais rápidos, por exemplo:} h5 51. b5 h4 52. Ke3 $1 {quando o rei se aproxima do peão de h.}) 44... Ke6 45. Nf6 (45. Nxb6 Bb5 {seguido da captura do peão de e5.}) 45... Bc8 46. Ng8 Kxe5 47. Nxh6 Be6 48. Ke3 b5 49. Nf5 Bxf5 50. gxf5 Kxf5 {O empate fica claro.} 51. Kf3 Kf6 52. Kg4 Kg6 53. Kg3 Kh5 54. Kf3 Kh4 55. Kg2 g4 56. hxg4 Kxg4 57. Kf2 Kf4 58. Ke2 Ke4 59. Kd2 Kd4 60. Kc2 Kc4 61. b3+ axb3+ 62. Kb2 b4 63. a4 Kd5 64. Kxb3 Kc5 65. a5 Kb5 66. a6 Kxa6 67. Kxb4 {Uma luta maravilhosa entre dois gigantes do jogo.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"] [Site "Stavanger NOR"] [Date "2025.05.31"] [Round "5.3"] [White "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C85"] [WhiteElo "2776"] [BlackElo "2837"] [Annotator "Tactical Analysis 7.0"] [PlyCount "133"] [EventDate "2025.05.26"] {[%evp 0,133,20,19,19,19,19,19,28,4,6,-2,16,0,-3,-3,17,-5,37,23,18,6,20,22,22,9,11,11,11,11,20,28,35,41,35,24,54,60,66,66,69,104,95,60,68,87,87,87,87,87,87,87,31,6,9,22,18,10,51,32,71,61,62,62,62,69,52,73,55,80,92,95,97,59,61,49,61,72,76,79,45,43,47,52,57,76,37,26,97,57,57,21,22,4,0,0,46,41,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. Re1 Nd7 {[%CAl Bf6d7,Bd7f8,Bf8g6][%mdl 32]} 8. d4 {C85: Closed Ruy Lopez: Deferred Exchange Variation.} Bf6 {[%eval 36,27] [%wdl 66,930,4]} (8... exd4 $11 {[%eval -13,33] [%wdl 9,965,26]} 9. Qxd4 O-O) ({RR} 8... exd4 9. Qxd4 O-O 10. Bf4 Nc5 11. Qe3 Bg4 12. Nd4 Qd7 13. Nc3 Rad8 14. Nf5 Ne6 15. Nxe7+ Qxe7 16. Bg3 Bh5 17. f3 f6 18. h3 h6 19. Kh2 Bf7 20. Rad1 b6 21. a3 a5 22. Ne2 Rxd1 23. Rxd1 {Nepomniachtchi,I (2795)-Ding Liren (2788) Astana KAZ 2023 ½-½ (49)}) ({RR} 8... exd4 9. Qxd4 O-O 10. Bf4 Bf6 11. e5 Be7 12. Nc3 Nb6 13. Qe4 Nd5 14. Rad1 Nxc3 15. bxc3 Qe8 16. Ng5 Bxg5 17. Bxg5 Qe6 18. Rd3 Qf5 19. Qe3 Be6 20. Qd2 Bd5 21. c4 Be4 22. Rg3 Kh8 23. Qd4 {Nepomniachtchi,I (2757)-Svidler,P (2698) Moscow RUS 2025 1-0 (38)}) 9. Be3 O-O 10. c3 $146 {White has an edge.} ({Predecessor:} 10. Nc3 Qe7 11. Qd3 Rd8 12. d5 c5 13. a4 Qd6 14. Nd2 Be7 15. Nc4 Qg6 16. f4 {½-½ Ermenkov,E (2520)-Hernandez Onna,R (2465) Olympiad-23 Buenos Aires 1978 (6)}) ({RR} 10. Nc3 Qe7 11. Qd3 Rd8 12. d5 c5 13. a4 Qd6 14. Nd2 Be7 15. Nc4 Qg6 16. f4 Bd6 17. f5 Qh5 18. Rf1 f6 19. Rf3 b6 20. Kh1 Nf8 21. Rg1 Qe8 22. g4 h6 23. b3 Bd7 24. Qd2 Nh7 {Ermenkov,E (2520)-Hernandez Onna,R (2465) Buenos Aires 1978 ½-½ (35)}) 10... Re8 11. Nbd2 exd4 12. cxd4 Nf8 13. Qc2 Ng6 14. h3 a5 15. Rad1 a4 16. Nb1 Be7 17. Nc3 Bb4 18. d5 {[#]} Qe7 {[%eval 84,26] [%wdl 331,669,0]} (18... Nh4 $1 $14 {[%eval 35,32] [%wdl 57,940,3]}) 19. a3 Bd6 20. Bd4 (20. Nxa4 Qxe4 21. Qxe4 Rxe4 $11) 20... Qd7 21. e5 Bf8 22. e6 {White is more active.} (22. Nxa4 cxd5 23. b3 Qf5 (23... Bxa3 24. Ra1 $17) 24. Qxf5 (24. Qxc7 Nf4 $17) 24... Bxf5 $17) 22... fxe6 23. dxe6 (23. Nxa4 exd5 (23... cxd5 24. Nc3 $17) 24. Nc5 Bxc5 25. Bxc5 b6 26. Rxe8+ Qxe8 $17) 23... Rxe6 24. Ne4 $1 Ra5 25. Bc5 $1 Qe8 26. Qc3 (26. Qc4 $5) 26... b6 27. Bxf8 Nxf8 28. Neg5 $40 {[%mdl 128]} Rxe1+ 29. Rxe1 Qd8 30. Qxc6 h6 $1 (30... Rxg5 $2 31. Nxg5 Qxg5 32. Qc4+ (32. Qxa4 Be6 $15) (32. Re8 Qf5 $16) 32... Ne6 33. Rxe6 Bxe6 34. Qxe6+ Kf8 35. Qc8+ Kf7 36. Qxc7+ Kg8 37. Qc8+ (37. Qxb6 Qc1+ 38. Kh2 Qc4 $18) 37... Kf7 38. Qc7+ Kg8 39. Qb8+ Kf7 40. Qa7+ (40. Qxb6 Qc1+ 41. Kh2 Qf4+ 42. g3 Qc4 $18) 40... Kf8 41. Qxb6 $18 (41. Qxa4 Qc1+ 42. Kh2 Qxb2 $16)) 31. Ne4 Be6 {[%eval 48,32] [%wdl 50,950,0]} (31... Qd7 $11 {[%eval 12,31] [%wdl 7,991,2]} 32. Qc4+ Kh7) 32. Nc3 $14 {[%csl Ba4,Be6]} Qd7 33. Qxd7 Bxd7 34. Re7 Rc5 {[%eval 103,27] [%wdl 547,453,0]} (34... Rf5 $14 {[%eval 59,32] [%wdl 84,916,0]}) 35. Ne5 $16 Bf5 36. g4 {[%eval 24,31] [%wdl 12,987,1] Not the most accurate.} ({White should try} 36. Re8 $1 $16 {[%eval 82,32] [%wdl 261,739,0]}) 36... Ng6 $1 $11 37. Re8+ (37. Nxg6 {simplifies} Bxg6 38. Nxa4 Rc1+ 39. Kg2) 37... Kh7 38. f4 Nxe5 39. Rxe5 Rxe5 40. fxe5 {[%mdl 4096] Endgame KB-KN} Bd7 41. Nd5 Kg6 42. Nxc7 {[%eval 51,29] [%wdl 51,949,0]} (42. Kf2 $11 {[%eval 6,39] [%wdl 4,994,2] deserves consideration.}) 42... Kf7 $14 43. Kf2 g5 $2 {[%eval 433,27] [%wdl 1000,0,0][%mdl 8192] This move should be losing.} (43... Bc6 $14 {[%eval 68,27] [%wdl 128,872,0]}) 44. Nd5 $2 {[%eval 20,30] [%wdl 8,991,1]} ({White must play} 44. Ke3 $18 {[%eval 433,27] [%wdl 1000,0,0] is winning according to the engine, I don't think it's easy to see that's the case.} Bc6 45. Kd4 Bg2 46. Nd5 Bxh3 47. Ne3 h5 48. gxh5 Be6 49. Nd5 Bc8 50. Nxb6 Bg4 51. h6 Bh3 52. Nxa4) 44... Ke6 {[%csl Bd5,Be5] The position is equal.} 45. Nf6 Bc8 46. Ng8 Kxe5 47. Nxh6 Be6 48. Ke3 b5 49. Nf5 Bxf5 50. gxf5 Kxf5 $11 {K3P-K3P} 51. Kf3 $1 Kf6 52. Kg4 Kg6 53. Kg3 Kh5 (53... Kf5 $5) 54. Kf3 Kh4 55. Kg2 g4 56. hxg4 Kxg4 57. Kf2 Kf4 58. Ke2 Ke4 59. Kd2 Kd4 60. Kc2 Kc4 61. b3+ axb3+ 62. Kb2 b4 {( ? ...bxa3+)} 63. a4 Kd5 64. Kxb3 Kc5 65. a5 Kb5 66. a6 {[%mdl 64] [#] Deflection} Kxa6 67. Kxb4 {PRECISÃO LICHESS: BRANCAS 95% PRETAS 96% PRECISÃO CHESS.COM: BRANCAS 97.7% PRETAS 97.5%} 1/2-1/2 [Event "Norway Chess 2025"] [Site "Chess.com"] [Date "2025.05.31"] [Round "5"] [White "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C85"] [WhiteElo "2776"] [BlackElo "2837"] [Annotator "Rafael Leitao"] [PlyCount "133"] [EventDate "2025.??.??"] [TimeControl "40/7200:0"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. Re1 {This opening system was played in the first game of the match Nepomniachtchi-Ding in 2023. Although it has only been discussed once in the match, this move is now tried from time to time by strong GMs.} Nd7 {The main move, but 7...Bg4 and 7...Qd6 are important alternatives.} (7... Bg4) (7... Qd6) 8. d4 Bf6 {A very rare move, played in just one GM game in the historic Buenos Aires Olympiad in 1978.} (8... exd4 {was the move played by Ding and by the overwhelming majority of chess players.}) 9. Be3 {Simply reinforcing the center. This is better than exchanging on e5 to play the endgame.} ({After} 9. dxe5 Nxe5 10. Qxd8+ Kxd8 11. Nxe5 Bxe5 12. Nd2 Be6 13. Nf3 Bf6 14. Bg5 Ke7 {The better pawn structure isn't enough to offer White an advantage.}) (9. c3 {is similar to the game.}) 9... O-O 10. c3 {A new and logical move. Caruana wants to finish the development with Qc2-Rad1 and fight for an advantage with his good central control.} (10. Nc3 {was played in Ermenkov-Hernandez Onna, Olympiad Buenos Aires 1978.}) 10... Re8 11. Nbd2 {I think the opening experiment was a success for White, since it's not easy to play as Black.} exd4 {Giving up the center is not ideal, but it's necessary to move the knight from f8.} ({The immediate} 11... Nf8 $2 {is bad due to} 12. dxe5 Bxe5 13. Nxe5 Rxe5 14. f4 Re8 15. f5 {with an overwhelming advantage for White, thanks to his much better pawn structure.}) (11... b6 $5 {is an alternative plan, and I can imagine many players trying it. Black simply wants to develop the bishop on b7. White keeps a small edge after} 12. Qc2 (12. Nc4 $6 {is worse:} exd4 13. Bxd4 c5 14. Bxf6 Nxf6 {and Black has no problems.}) 12... Bb7) (11... a5 {is a subtle move, an idea similar to the one Carlsen plays later in the game.}) 12. cxd4 Nf8 13. Qc2 Ng6 14. h3 {White calmly improves the position.} a5 $5 {Trying to gain some space on the queenside. After a5-a4, there's also a small chance that the rook will come into play using the a5-square, more on this later.} (14... Be6 15. Rad1 {with the initiative for White.}) 15. Rad1 (15. a4 {stops the pawn, but Black can use the b4-square after} Be7) 15... a4 16. Nb1 $1 {An excellent maneuver to improve the knight.} Be7 17. Nc3 Bb4 (17... a3 $5 {Black can consider playing this move before placing the bishop on b4.}) 18. d5 {Caruana plays the middlegame with a lot of energy.} (18. a3 {is a simpler approach and also possible. After} Bxc3 19. bxc3 {White keeps a small edge. If he manages to advance the pawns in the center, Black's position may become dangerous.} (19. Qxc3 $2 {loses a pawn:} Rxe4)) 18... Qe7 $6 {Carlsen had to find a very difficult move suggested by the machine in order to have realistic chances to equalize.} (18... cxd5 $2 {is wrong:} 19. Nxd5 Bxe1 $2 20. Nxc7 {with a decisive advantage.}) (18... Nh4 $1 {is the move recommended by the computer. After} 19. Nxh4 Qxh4 {surprisingly, Black is more or less ok, with a possible bishop sac on h3 looming in the air.}) 19. a3 Bd6 (19... Bxc3 20. Qxc3 cxd5 21. exd5 {It's dangerous for Black to open the position due to White's superior development.}) 20. Bd4 {Black is under serious pressure.} (20. dxc6 bxc6 {White has a stable advantage and many promising ideas. One of them is} 21. Bg5 $5 (21. Nxa4 Qxe4 {isn't so convincing.}) 21... f6 22. Bc1 {followed by capturing the a4-pawn.}) 20... Qd7 $1 {The only move. Carlsen, by the way, will find several difficult and forced moves in this game that is a masterclass on defense.} (20... c5 $2 {loses by force:} 21. e5 $1 cxd4 22. exd6 Qf8 23. Nb5 {with an overwhelming advantage.}) (20... f6 {prevents e4-e5, but loses a pawn:} 21. dxc6 bxc6 22. Nxa4) 21. e5 $1 {Caruana strikes in the most efficient way.} (21. dxc6 Qxc6 {is defendable.}) (21. Nxa4 Nf4 $1 {is an excellent recommendation by the machine, with the idea of sacrificing the knight on h3 or g2. Black manages to achieve a sudden counterplay.} (21... cxd5 22. Nc3 Nf4 {is also possible.})) 21... Bf8 22. e6 $1 (22. d6 {is less dangerous. Black is ok after} cxd6 23. exd6 Rxe1+ 24. Nxe1 Qf5 $1) 22... fxe6 23. dxe6 (23. dxc6 {is also interesting. After} Qxc6 24. Ne5 $1 Nxe5 25. Bxe5 {White sacrifices a pawn but has excellent compensation. The plan is to move the queen to g4 and the knight to e4 with an attack.}) 23... Rxe6 24. Ne4 {The situation is critical, but Carlsen finds a brilliant move.} Ra5 $3 {The only move. The rook joins the game at the right moment. Everything else just loses.} (24... Qe8 $2 25. Neg5) (24... Bd6 $2 25. Nfg5) (24... h6 $2 25. Nf6+) 25. Bc5 (25. Nfg5 $2 {no longer works with the rook on a5.} Rxg5 $1 26. Nxg5 Rxe1+ 27. Rxe1 Qxd4 {winning material.}) 25... Qe8 26. Qc3 (26. Qc4 $5 {is also very dangerous. Black has to find several difficult moves to survive.} b6 $1 27. Nfg5 Ne5 28. Qe2 {Let's follow the main computer line:} bxc5 29. Nxe6 Bxe6 30. f4 {Black has problems on the e-file, but there's a way out.} Bb3 $1 31. fxe5 c4 $3 {The rook is saving the day again.} (31... Bxd1 32. Rxd1 {leaves Black with positional problems.}) 32. Rc1 Rxe5 {with counterplay.}) 26... b6 27. Bxf8 Nxf8 (27... Qxf8 $2 {loses to} 28. Nd4) 28. Neg5 Rxe1+ 29. Rxe1 Qd8 (29... Qg6 {is more accurate when Black is close to equality.}) 30. Qxc6 h6 31. Ne4 Be6 $6 (31... Qd7 $1 {is better.}) 32. Nc3 Qd7 33. Qxd7 Bxd7 34. Re7 {Black is still not out of danger.} Rc5 $6 (34... Rf5 $1 35. Ne5 Be6 {gives better chances of defending.}) 35. Ne5 Bf5 36. g4 $6 (36. Nxa4 {is not very precise:} Rc1+ 37. Kh2 Rc2 {with drawing chances.}) (36. Re8 $1 {is very unpleasant for Black.} g5 (36... Kh7 37. Rxf8 Rxe5 38. Nxa4 {with a pawn up in the endgame.}) 37. g4 Be6 38. Ng6 Bf7 (38... Kf7 $2 39. Nxf8 Kxe8 40. Nxe6) 39. Rxf8+ Kg7 40. Ra8 Kxg6 41. Rxa4 {Maybe Black can still escape with a perfect defense, but it will be a long torture playing the endgame a pawn down.}) 36... Ng6 $1 37. Re8+ Kh7 38. f4 (38. Nxg6 Bxg6 {followed by b6-b5, defending the a4-pawn.}) 38... Nxe5 39. Rxe5 Rxe5 40. fxe5 Bd7 (40... Bd3 {is a good alternative:} 41. Nxa4 Kg6 {with a likely draw.}) 41. Nd5 Kg6 42. Nxc7 Kf7 43. Kf2 {Black has to find the right order of moves to achieve a draw. Carlsen finally makes a clear mistake.} g5 $2 (43... Bc6 $1 {is the only way.} 44. Ke3 (44. h4 g5 $1 45. hxg5 hxg5 46. Ke3 Bd7 {The pressure on g4 saves Black.}) 44... Bg2 $1 {right in time $1} (44... g5 $2 45. Kd4 {wins for White, as we will see in the game analysis.}) 45. h4 g5 $1 46. hxg5 hxg5 {Again Black is ready to target the g4-pawn.} 47. Nb5 Ke6 48. Kd4 (48. Nc3 Kxe5 49. Nxa4 b5 {and it appears that White is unable to win, even a pawn up.}) 48... Bf3 49. Nc3 Bxg4 50. Nxa4 Bf3 51. Nxb6 g4 {The g-pawn will cost White material: either the knight or the e-pawn.}) 44. Nd5 $2 {Caruana misses a win.} (44. Ke3 $1 Bc6 45. Kd4 Bg2 46. Nd5 $1 Ke6 (46... Bxh3 {The point is that White can play} 47. Ne3 $1 {when the bishop is trapped.}) 47. Nxb6 Bxh3 48. Nxa4 Bxg4 49. Nc5+ Ke7 50. b4 $1 {White's pawns are faster, for instance:} h5 51. b5 h4 52. Ke3 $1 {when the king approaches the h-pawn.}) 44... Ke6 45. Nf6 (45. Nxb6 Bb5 {followed by capturing the e5-pawn.}) 45... Bc8 46. Ng8 Kxe5 47. Nxh6 Be6 48. Ke3 b5 49. Nf5 Bxf5 50. gxf5 Kxf5 {The draw becomes clear.} 51. Kf3 Kf6 52. Kg4 Kg6 53. Kg3 Kh5 54. Kf3 Kh4 55. Kg2 g4 56. hxg4 Kxg4 57. Kf2 Kf4 58. Ke2 Ke4 59. Kd2 Kd4 60. Kc2 Kc4 61. b3+ axb3+ 62. Kb2 b4 63. a4 Kd5 64. Kxb3 Kc5 65. a5 Kb5 66. a6 Kxa6 67. Kxb4 {A wonderful fight by two giants of the game.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 7th"] [Site "Moscow"] [Date "2012.06.18"] [Round "9"] [White "McShane, Luke J"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C85"] [WhiteElo "2706"] [BlackElo "2835"] [Annotator "Knaak,Rainer"] [PlyCount "80"] [EventDate "2012.06.08"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 149"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2012.07.17"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2012.07.17"] [SourceQuality "1"] {[%mdl 2]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. d3 Nd7 8. b3 O-O 9. Bb2 f6 10. Nc3 {Meistens wird der Springer nach d2 entwickelt, vermutlich nicht ohne Grund.} (10. Nbd2 Nc5 11. d4 (11. Nc4 $5 Ne6 12. Ne3) 11... exd4 12. Nxd4 $13) 10... Re8 11. Kh1 Nf8 12. Ne2 c5 13. Nh4 Ne6 14. Nf5 Bf8 15. Ne3 Nd4 16. f4 Be6 17. fxe5 fxe5 18. Ng1 ({Man kann auch gleich} 18. c3 {spielen, denn den Springertausch muss Weiß nicht fürchten. Aber der ?e2 soll sowieso nach f3 gehen.}) 18... g6 $1 19. c3 Nc6 20. Nf3 {Weiß hat für diese Aufstellung insgesamt 8 Springerzüge gebraucht.} Bg7 21. Qe1 $2 {Wenn Weiß die Stellung weiterhin geschlossen hält, muss er nichts fürchten. Dazu muss er auf ...a5 zu a4 in der Lage sein.} ({Prinzipiell spricht auch nichts gegen} 21. c4 $5 {, aber aus irgendeinem Grund wollte McShane so nie spielen.}) (21. Qc2 a5 22. a4 $11) 21... a5 $1 $15 ({Natürlich nicht} 21... Qxd3 $2 22. Rd1 Qb5 (22... Qxe4 23. Ng5) 23. Ng5 {und Schwarz sieht sich einem Angriff ausgesetzt, bei dem seine Dame nichts zur Verteidigung beiträgt.}) 22. Rd1 (22. a4 $2 Bxb3 23. c4 {funktioniert nicht, es folgt} Qxd3 $1 24. Ra3 Red8 25. Rf2 Nd4 {und Weiß kann aus der Stellung der schwarzen Dame keinen Nutzen ziehen.}) 22... a4 23. bxa4 {Dies ist vermutlich notwendig.} Rxa4 24. a3 Rf8 25. Bc1 {Das führt zu nichts, besser ist} (25. Qe2 {und Weiß sollte sich zunächst passiv verhalten, Schwarz muss erst mal einen Gewinnplan finden.}) 25... Ra8 26. Qg3 $6 {Die weißen Ambitionen am Königsflügel erhalten sofort einen Dämpfer:} Bb3 $1 27. Rde1 $2 (27. Rd2 Bh6 $1 28. Qf2 {mag hässlich sein, hält aber die materielle Balance.}) 27... Qxd3 {Schwarz gewinnt nun mühelos.} 28. Ng4 Be6 29. Nh6+ Kh8 30. Qh4 Bf6 31. Bg5 Bxg5 32. Qxg5 Kg7 33. Qc1 Rf4 34. Rd1 Qc4 35. Rfe1 Raf8 36. Ng5 Bc8 37. g3 Rf2 38. Nf5+ gxf5 39. Nh3 Re2 40. Qg5+ Kh8 0-1 [Event "EU-ch U14"] [Site "Budva"] [Date "2003.09.15"] [Round "3"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Olszewski, Michal"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C86"] [WhiteElo "2385"] [BlackElo "2227"] [PlyCount "129"] [EventDate "2003.09.13"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "YUG"] [SourceTitle "CBM 096 Extra"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2003.10.22"] [SourceVersion "2"] [SourceVersionDate "2003.10.20"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Qe2 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. c3 d6 9. Rd1 Na5 10. Bc2 c5 11. d4 Qc7 12. d5 Ne8 13. b4 ({RR} 13. Nbd2 g6 14. Nf1 Ng7 15. Ng3 Nc4 16. a4 Bd7 17. Bd3 Na5 18. axb5 c4 19. Bc2 axb5 20. Bh6 Rfb8 21. Qd2 Nb7 22. Ng5 Nc5 23. Kh1 f6 24. Nf3 Ra5 25. Rdb1 Kf7 26. Ne1 Na6 27. Qc1 b4 {Jablonski,P (1793)-Marcinkowski,A (1918) Lazy POL 2025 0-1 (53)}) 13... cxb4 14. cxb4 Nc4 15. a4 bxa4 $146 ({RR} 15... Rb8 16. Bd3 f5 17. axb5 axb5 18. Nc3 fxe4 19. Nxe4 Bg4 20. Bg5 Bxg5 21. Nexg5 h6 22. h3 Bxf3 23. Nxf3 Nf6 24. Rdc1 e4 25. Bxc4 bxc4 26. Nd4 Nxd5 27. Ne6 Nf4 28. Nxf4 Rxf4 29. Qxc4+ Qxc4 30. Rxc4 {Hristodoulou,P (2119)-Pavlidis,A (2330) Peristeri 2010 ½-½ (34)}) 16. Bd3 Nb6 17. Be3 Qb7 18. b5 a5 19. Nc3 Bd7 20. Rdc1 Rc8 21. Bxb6 Qxb6 22. Nxa4 Rxc1+ 23. Rxc1 Qb7 24. Nd2 Bd8 25. Rc6 g6 26. Nc4 Bxc6 27. bxc6 Qb4 28. Bc2 Nc7 29. g3 Nb5 30. Ne3 Nd4 31. Qd1 f5 32. exf5 gxf5 33. Kg2 Kh8 34. Bb1 f4 35. Be4 Nb3 36. Bxh7 f3+ 37. Kg1 Kxh7 38. Qc2+ Kh6 39. c7 Bxc7 40. Qxc7 Nd4 41. Ng4+ Kg6 42. h3 Nf5 43. Nc3 a4 44. Qc6 Qd4 45. Kh2 Rh8 46. Kg1 a3 47. Qd7 Rf8 48. Qe6+ Kg7 49. Qd7+ Rf7 50. Qd8 Re7 51. Ne3 Kg6 52. Nxf5 Qxc3 53. Nxe7+ Kf7 54. Kh2 Qb2 55. h4 Qxf2+ 56. Kh3 Qg2+ 57. Kg4 f2 58. Qd7 Qe4+ 59. Kg5 Qe3+ 60. Kh5 Qf3+ 61. g4 Qf6 62. Ng6+ Kg8 63. Kh6 Qxh4+ 64. Nxh4 f1=Q 65. Qg7# 1-0 [Event "Budapest FS12 GM"] [Site "Budapest"] [Date "2003.12.06"] [Round "1"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Howell, David"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C86"] [WhiteElo "2450"] [BlackElo "2381"] [PlyCount "88"] [EventDate "2003.12.06"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "HUN"] [EventCategory "8"] [SourceTitle "CBM 097 Extra"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2004.01.13"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2004.01.13"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {Dolmatov,Sergey} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Qe2 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. c3 d6 9. Rd1 Bg4 ({RR} 9... Na5 10. Bc2 c5 11. d3 Re8 12. Nbd2 Bf8 13. Nf1 h6 14. Ng3 d5) 10. h3 Bh5 11. d3 d5 ({RR} 11... Na5 12. Bc2 c5 ({RR} 12... Nd7 13. g4 Bg6 14. Nbd2 Nb7 15. Nf1 c6 16. Ng3 Re8 17. Nf5 Qc7 18. Kh1 Nd8 19. Nxe7+ Rxe7 20. Nh4 Ne6 21. Nf5 Ree8 22. h4 f6 23. Qf3 Bf7 24. Rg1) 13. Nbd2 Nd7 ({RR} 13... Qc7 14. Nf1 Bg6 15. Ne3 Rae8 16. Nh4 Bd8 17. Nhf5 Qd7 18. g4 d5 19. g5 Nh5 20. Nxd5 Bxf5 21. Qxh5 Bxh3 22. f3 Be6 23. Nf6+ gxf6 24. gxf6) ({RR} 13... Nc6 14. Nf1 Qc7 15. Ne3 Rfe8 16. g4 Bg6 17. Nh4 Qb7 18. Nhf5 Rad8 19. Qf3 Bf8 20. Kh2 Ne7 21. Bb3 Kh8 22. g5 Nxf5 23. Nxf5 Bh5 24. Qg2) 14. g4 ({RR} 14. Nf1 Bxf3 ({RR} 14... f6 15. g4 Bf7 16. Ng3 g6 17. Kh2 b4 18. Nd2 Rc8 19. c4 Nc6 20. Nf3) 15. Qxf3 Bg5 16. Ne3) 14... Bg6 15. Nf1 Nb6 ({RR} 15... Nc6 16. Ng3 Re8 17. Nf5 Nf8) ({RR} 15... h6 16. Ng3 Bg5 17. Nxg5 hxg5) 16. Ng3 Nc6 17. Nf5 Re8 18. h4 Bxf5 19. gxf5 d5 ({RR} 19... Bxh4 20. Kh1 ({RR} 20. Nxh4 Qxh4 21. Kg2 Qe7 22. Rh1)) 20. Kh1 ({RR} 20. h5 h6 21. Kh2 Bg5 22. Rg1 f6) 20... Bxh4 21. Rg1 ({RR} 21. Nxh4 Qxh4+ 22. Kg2 d4) 21... Bf6 22. Nh2 g6 23. Qf3 dxe4 ({RR} 23... d4 24. Ng4) 24. dxe4 Nd7 25. Qh3 Qe7 26. Be3 {Anand,V (2715)-Timman,J (2635) Riga 1995 CBM 047 [Dolmatov,Sergey] 1-0 (45)}) ({RR} 11... Re8 12. Nbd2 Nb8 13. Nf1 Nbd7 14. Ng3 Bg6 15. Nh4 c5 16. Nhf5 Bf8 17. h4 Nb6 18. h5 Bxf5 19. Nxf5 d5 20. Bg5 c4 21. dxc4 bxc4 22. Bc2 g6 23. hxg6 hxg6 24. Ne3 Be7 25. Bxf6 Bxf6 26. Nxd5 {Tang,A (2019)-Kolmagorov,A (2145) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (42)}) 12. Bg5 $146 ({RR} 12. Nbd2 d4 13. Nf1 a5 14. g4 Bg6 15. a4 dxc3 16. bxc3 b4 17. Bb2 Re8 18. Bc4 bxc3 19. Bxc3 Nd4 20. Nxd4 exd4 21. Bd2 h5 22. g5 Nd7 23. f4 Bb4 24. Qg2 h4 25. Qg4 Rb8 26. Qxh4 Nb6 {Mamedov,R (2566)-Naiditsch,A (2663) Moscow 2007 1-0 (31)}) ({RR} 12. Nbd2 d4 13. g4 Bg6 14. Nf1 dxc3 15. bxc3 Rb8 16. Ng3 Nd7 17. d4 exd4 18. Bd5 Rb6 19. cxd4 Nb4 20. Bb3 a5 21. a4 bxa4 22. Bxa4 c6 23. Bf4 h6 24. Rac1 Bh4 25. d5 Bxg3 26. Bxg3 c5 {Chavez,R (2226)-Omorere,B Dresden 2008 1-0}) 12... d4 13. Bxf6 Bxf3 14. Qxf3 Bxf6 15. Bd5 Qd6 16. a4 Rab8 17. axb5 axb5 18. Ra6 Rb6 19. Rxb6 cxb6 20. Nd2 dxc3 21. bxc3 Ne7 22. c4 Qc5 23. Rb1 bxc4 24. dxc4 Nc6 25. Qb3 Rb8 26. Qa4 Bh4 27. Qxc6 Qxf2+ 28. Kh1 Qxd2 29. Rf1 Qe2 30. Rxf7 Kh8 31. Rf3 Qe1+ 32. Kh2 Bf2 33. Rxf2 Qxf2 34. Qd6 Qf4+ 35. Kh1 Qf1+ 36. Kh2 Qf4+ 37. Kh1 Rf8 38. Qxb6 Qc1+ 39. Kh2 Qf4+ 40. Kh1 Qg3 41. Kg1 h6 42. Qb2 Kh7 43. Qe2 Rb8 44. Qf1 Qe3+ 1/2-1/2 [Event "Olympiad-38"] [Site "Dresden"] [Date "2008.11.22"] [Round "9"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Beliavsky, Alexander G"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C87"] [WhiteElo "2786"] [BlackElo "2619"] [PlyCount "161"] [EventDate "2008.11.13"] [EventType "team-swiss"] [EventRounds "11"] [EventCountry "GER"] [SourceTitle "CBM 128"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2009.01.28"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2009.01.28"] [SourceQuality "1"] [WhiteTeam "Norway"] [BlackTeam "Slovenia"] [WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"] [BlackTeamCountry "SLO"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. d3 d6 7. c3 O-O 8. Re1 Bg4 9. h3 Bh5 10. Nbd2 Nd7 11. Nf1 Nc5 12. Bxc6 ({RR} 12. Bc2 Ne6 13. Ng3 Bxf3 14. Qxf3 Bg5 15. Be3 g6 16. b4 Kh8 17. Bb3 Ng7 18. Bd5 f5 19. exf5 gxf5 20. Bxg5 Qxg5 21. a4 e4 22. dxe4 Ne5 23. Qd1 f4 24. Nf1 f3 25. g3 Nh5 26. Qc1 Nf4 {Suleymanli,A (2632)-Aravindh,C (2698) Shusha AZE 2024 0-1}) 12... bxc6 13. g4 ({RR} 13. Ng3 Bg6 14. d4 exd4 15. cxd4 Ne6 16. Be3 d5 17. Ne5 dxe4 18. Nxc6 Qd7 19. d5 Bf6 20. dxe6 Qxc6 21. exf7+ Rxf7 22. Rc1 Qe6 23. b3 Be5 24. Qc2 Bd6 25. Qc6 Raf8 26. Qxa6 Qe5 27. Qc4 h5 {Tarigan,G (2416)-Priasmoro,N (2437) Bandung INA 2025 ½-½ (32)}) 13... Bg6 14. Ng3 Ne6 $146 ({RR} 14... f6 15. d4 Nd7 16. Be3 Kh8 17. c4 Rb8 18. b3 d5 19. exd5 cxd5 20. cxd5 Rb5 21. Qe2 Qa8 22. Rad1 Rxd5 23. dxe5 Rxd1 24. Rxd1 Nxe5 25. Nxe5 fxe5 26. Qc4 {½-½ (26) Jansa,V (2515)-Stocek,J (2586) Karlovy Vary 2005}) ({RR} 14... f6 15. Nf5 d5 16. Qe2 Re8 17. b3 Bf8 18. N3h4 Bf7 19. Ng3 a5 20. Nhf5 Ne6 21. Be3 a4 22. Qc2 axb3 23. axb3 Qb8 24. Rxa8 Qxa8 25. Qb2 Rb8 26. Ra1 Qb7 27. b4 c5 28. b5 d4 29. Bd2 {Jaracz,B (2282)-Hladik,J (2200) Pardubice 2006 ½-½ (42)}) 15. Kg2 c5 16. Rh1 f6 17. h4 d5 18. c4 dxe4 19. dxe4 Qxd1 20. Rxd1 Rfd8 21. Be3 Nd4 22. Rd2 Bf7 23. Rc1 Rab8 24. Ne1 a5 25. Nd3 Be6 26. f3 a4 27. Nf5 Bf8 28. Bf2 Nc6 29. Rcc2 Bf7 30. Ne3 Nd4 31. Rc1 Ne6 32. Rcd1 Rd4 33. Kh2 Rbd8 34. Nd5 Rxc4 35. b3 axb3 36. axb3 Rd4 37. Bxd4 Nxd4 38. Kg2 Nxb3 39. Rb2 c6 40. Ne3 c4 41. Nf2 Nd4 42. Rb7 c3 43. Rd3 c2 44. Nxc2 c5 45. Rd2 Ra8 46. Ne3 c4 47. Nfd1 Ne6 48. Rdb2 h5 49. Rb8 Ra3 50. Rc8 hxg4 51. fxg4 Kh7 52. Rb7 Bg6 53. Rxc4 Nc5 54. Rbb4 Ra2+ 55. Kg3 Rd2 56. h5 Bf7 57. Rc2 Rd4 58. Rxd4 exd4 59. Nf5 d3 60. Rb2 Nxe4+ 61. Kf4 Nc5 62. Nf2 g6 63. hxg6+ Kxg6 64. Ke3 Be6 65. Nh4+ Kg5 66. Nf3+ Kg6 67. Rb6 Kf7 68. Rc6 Bd7 69. Rc7 Ke8 70. Nd4 Bh6+ 71. Kf3 Ne6 72. Nxe6 Bxe6 73. Nxd3 f5 74. gxf5 Bxf5 75. Ne5 Bf8 76. Ra7 Bd6 77. Nc4 Bh2 78. Ne3 Bd7 79. Ke4 Bg1 80. Ra8+ Kf7 81. Ra7 1/2-1/2 [Event "Sinquefield Cup 1st"] [Site "Saint Louis"] [Date "2013.09.15"] [Round "6"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Aronian, Levon"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2862"] [BlackElo "2813"] [Annotator "Stohl,Igor"] [PlyCount "139"] [EventDate "2013.09.09"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "6"] [EventCountry "USA"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 157"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2013.11.12"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2013.11.12"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 ({Aronian has always played exclusively the text move, spurning the Open Ruy Lopez with} 5... Nxe4) ({as well as the Arkhangelsk or Neo-Arkhangelsk with} 5... b5) ({and} 5... Bc5 {respectively.}) 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. a4 {Just like Kasparov, also Carlsen avoids the Marshall. However, contrary to his ex-trainer, he did allow it a few times:} (8. c3 d5 9. exd5 (9. d4 dxe4 10. Nxe5 Bb7 11. Nxc6 Bxc6 12. Bg5 Nd5 13. Bxe7 Qxe7 14. Nd2 f5 15. f3 e3 16. c4 $2 (16. f4 $1 {?} Kh8 17. Qf3 $14) 16... Nf4 $1 17. cxb5+ Kh8 {[%CAl Re3e2,Re7e3,Re3f2]} 18. Nc4 e2 19. Qd2 Qg5 20. Rxe2 Nxe2+ 21. Qxe2 Bxb5 22. Qe3 $15 {/?,Carlsen,M (2835)-Kamsky,G (2732)/Wijk aan Zee/2012/}) 9... Nxd5 10. Nxe5 Nxe5 11. Rxe5 c6 12. d3 Bd6 13. Re1 Bf5 14. Qf3 Qh4 15. g3 Qh3 16. Bxd5 cxd5 17. Be3 Bxd3 18. Qxd5 Rad8 19. Qf3 Rfe8 20. Nd2 Qf5 21. Qxf5 Bxf5 22. Bd4 f6 23. f3 b4 24. Ne4 Bc7 25. Kf2 bxc3 26. bxc3 Rb8 $44 {Carlsen,M (2548)-Anand,V (2785)/Leon rpd/2005/ A typical Marshall endgame, the bishop-pair makes converting the extra pawn almost impossible.}) ({The immediate} 8. d4 {gives Black a wider choice:} Nxd4 (8... d6 9. c3 Bg4 {-C91 This line is not considered too dangerous for Black.}) 9. Nxd4 (9. Bxf7+ Rxf7 10. Nxe5 Rf8 11. Qxd4 Bb7 $5 $44 12. c4 c5 13. Qd3 Qc7 14. Nf3 bxc4 15. Qxc4+ d5 16. exd5 Bxd5 17. Qe2 Bd6 18. Nc3 Bxf3 19. Qxf3 Bxh2+ 20. Kf1 Rad8 (20... Be5 $5) 21. g3 Nh5 22. Qxh5 Rxf2+ 23. Kxf2 Qxg3+ 24. Ke2 Qg2+ 25. Ke3 Qg3+ 26. Ke2 Qg2+ {½, Kamsky,G (2717)-Leko,P (2756)/Jermuk/2009/}) 9... exd4 10. e5 Ne8 11. c3 (11. Qxd4 Bb7 12. c4 c5 13. Qg4 d6 14. Nc3 (14. Bf4 {Short,N (2707)-Fressinet,L (2702)/Bastia rpd/2012/} bxc4 15. Bxc4 d5 $11 {/?}) 14... dxe5 15. cxb5 axb5 16. Nxb5 {Gilabert Mallol,E (2440)-Kyhos,A (2352)/corr/2010/} Nf6 17. Qf5 Qb6 $132) 11... dxc3 12. Nxc3 d6 13. Qf3 Be6 14. Nd5 Rc8 15. Bf4 Bxd5 $5 (15... dxe5 16. Nxe7+ (16. Bxe5 Bd6 17. Rad1 Bxe5 18. Rxe5 Bxd5 19. Rexd5 Nd6 20. Qf4 Qe7 21. Re5 Qf6 22. Qxf6 gxf6 23. Rc5 Rfd8 24. Rdc1 Re8 25. g3 Re2 26. Rxc7 Rxc7 27. Rxc7 Rxb2 28. Rc6 Ne4 29. Rxa6 Nc5 $11 {Henrichs,T (2483)-Gustafsson,J (2584)/GER-ch Bad Koenigshofen/2007/}) 16... Qxe7 17. Bxe5 Nd6 18. Qc3 Qg5 19. Bxe6 fxe6 20. Rac1 $5 (20. b3 Qg6 21. Qc6 Nf7 22. Bg3 e5 23. Rac1 Qf6 24. h3 Rfd8 {Leko,P (2756)-Aronian,L (2768)/Jermuk/2009/}) 20... Nc4 21. Bg3 Rfe8 22. b3 Nb6 23. Qa5 Nd5 24. Rc6 e5 25. Rxa6 c6 26. h4 Qf6 27. a4 $14 {Sievilainen,T (2179)-Laine,E (2234)/corr/2010/}) 16. Bxd5 dxe5 17. Rxe5 Bf6 18. Re2 Nd6 19. Rd1 Bg5 20. Be5 Bf6 21. Bf4 {½,Becerra Rivero,J (2598)-Onischuk,A (2670)/Lubbock/2008/}) 8... b4 {Nowadays Black's main reaction.} ({For} 8... Rb8 9. axb5 axb5 10. d3 d6 11. Nbd2 {- see Carlsen-Topalov}) 9. d4 {This alternative has recently been getting more attention.} ({Earlier White used to prefer} 9. d3 d6 10. Nbd2 (10. a5 {was Kasparov's choice and White used it well up to 2006. Nowadays it seems rather tame:} Be6 11. Nbd2 Qc8 12. Qe2 h6 13. h3 Bxb3 14. Nxb3 Re8 15. Nh2 Nh7 16. Ng4 Bg5 17. Ne3 Rb8 18. Kh2 Nf8 19. Nf5 Bxc1 20. Raxc1 Ne7 21. Nxe7+ Rxe7 22. d4 Rb5 23. Rcd1 Ne6 24. Qg4 Qf8 25. d5 Nc5 26. Re3 g6 27. Qe2 Re8 28. Rf3 Nxb3 $11 {½,Adams,M (2698)-Bacrot,E (2700)/ESP-chT Linares/2009/}) 10... Na5 (10... Be6 11. Bxe6 fxe6 12. Nf1 ({A typical manoeuvre, but in recent games White has tried other moves:} 12. Nb3 Qe8 13. d4 Nd7 14. d5 Nd8 15. dxe6 Nxe6 16. Qd5 Qf7 17. Na5 c5 18. Be3 Nf6 (18... Nb6 $5 19. Qd3 Nd4 $132) 19. Qc4 Nd4 20. Qxf7+ Kxf7 21. Ng5+ Kg6 22. Rac1 Nd7 23. Nh3 Nb6 24. c3 bxc3 25. bxc3 Ne6 $13 {/=,Caruana,F (2772)-Ivanchuk,V (2757)/RUS-chT Loo/2013/}) (12. c3 Rb8 ({For} 12... d5 $5 {see Bacrot-Tomashevsky, Paris 2013.}) 13. Qe2 Qd7 14. Nc4 bxc3 15. bxc3 Rb3 16. Bd2 Re8 17. h3 Bf8 18. Rec1 Qc8 19. Bg5 Nd7 20. Qa2 Rb8 21. Be3 Nf6 22. Rab1 Qd7 $14 {/=,Dominguez Perez,L (2723)-Almasi,Z (2689)/Havana/2013/ The resulting position is more pleasant for White, but with circumspect defence Black maanged to hold the game.}) 12... Qe8 $5 (12... Qd7 13. Ng3 Nd8 (13... Na5 14. d4 exd4 15. Qxd4 c5 16. Qd3 Nc6 17. c3 bxc3 18. bxc3 Kh8 19. h3 Qc7 20. Ng5 Ne5 21. Qe2 Qc8 22. f4 Nf7 23. Nf3 Rb8 24. c4 $36 {[%csl Gc4,Ge4,Gf4] ?,Leko,P (2751)-Grischuk,A (2726)/WCh Mexico City/2007/}) (13... h6 14. h3 Nh7 15. c3 bxc3 16. bxc3 Rab8 17. d4 exd4 18. cxd4 d5 19. Ba3 Bxa3 20. Rxa3 Rb4 21. Rae3 a5 22. exd5 Qxd5 23. Ne2 Ng5 24. Nxg5 hxg5 25. Nc3 Qxd4 26. Qh5 {Sedlak,N (2568)-Brkic,A (2558)/Zupanja/2008/} Rb3 $132) 14. c3 bxc3 15. bxc3 c5 16. d4 exd4 17. cxd4 Nc6 (17... cxd4 18. Nxd4 Rc8 $14 {/=}) 18. Ba3 Rac8 19. dxc5 dxc5 20. Qe2 Nb4 $2 (20... Nd4 $5 $13) 21. Qc4 $16 {Carlsen,M (2776)-Svidler,P (2723)/Gjovik rpd/2009/}) 13. Ng3 Kh8 14. c3 (14. b3 h6 15. h3 Rd8 16. Bb2 Nd7 17. Qe2 Bf6 18. Rad1 Qf7 19. d4 Nxd4 20. Nxd4 exd4 21. Bxd4 Bxd4 22. Rxd4 a5 23. Red1 Qf6 24. Rc4 Rc8 25. Rc6 Kh7 26. Ra6 Ra8 27. Nh5 Qc3 28. Rd3 Qa1+ 29. Rd1 Qc3 $11 {Goze,T (2456)-Jansen,J (2467)/corr/2009/}) 14... bxc3 15. bxc3 Na5 (15... Rb8 $5 16. d4 Nd7 $132) 16. d4 Nd7 17. Qd3 c5 18. Rb1 c4 19. Qe2 exd4 20. cxd4 Rc8 21. Be3 (21. Ba3 $5) 21... Nb3 22. Nd2 Nxd2 23. Qxd2 Nf6 24. Rb7 Bd8 25. d5 c3 $132 {Chuprov,D (2577)-Najer,E (2670)/Novokuznetsk/2008/}) 11. Ba2 c5 12. c3 Rb8 (12... Nc6 {- see Anand-Grischuk}) 13. d4 $5 ({Rather slow is} 13. Nc4 Nc6 14. h3 h6 (14... Be6 15. Ng5 Bd7 16. f4 {gives White a slight pull. An important line is} h6 (16... Rb7 17. a5 Qb8 18. Nb6 Be8 19. fxe5 dxe5 20. Be3 Qd8 21. Nf3 Bd6 22. Nd5 Nxd5 23. Bxd5 $14 {Karjakin,S (2782)-Caruana,F (2774)/Moscow/2013/}) 17. Nf3 exf4 18. Bxf4 Be6 19. d4 $5 cxd4 20. cxd4 $36 b3 21. Bxb3 $1 Rxb3 22. Qxb3 Na5 23. Qc2 Bxc4 (23... Nxc4 24. d5 $16) 24. b4 $14) 15. Ne3 (15. d4 cxd4 16. cxd4 exd4 17. Bf4 b3 18. Bxb3 Be6 19. Ba2 d3 $1 20. Qxd3 Nb4 21. Qe2 Nxa2 22. Rxa2 Rc8 23. b3 Nxe4 $1 $15 {Karjakin,S (2780)-Aronian,L (2802)/Wijk aan Zee/2013/ Opening the centre favoured Black.}) (15. Nh2 Be6 16. f4 exf4 17. Bxf4 Rb7 18. Ne3 {Prathamesh,S (2358)-Sethuraman,S (2332)/Dindigul/2007/} d5 $1 $15) 15... Be6 16. Bc4 Bxc4 17. Nxc4 Re8 18. Be3 (18. Bd2 $142 $11 {prevents the following central push}) 18... Bf8 19. Nfd2 d5 $1 20. exd5 Qxd5 21. Qf3 Qxf3 22. Nxf3 Nd5 23. Bd2 f6 24. a5 Kf7 $15 {[%csl Rd3] Caruana,F (2786)-Kasimdzhanov,R (2696)/Tashkent/2012/}) 13... bxc3 (13... Qc7 14. dxe5 dxe5 15. Nc4 b3 $5 ({For} 15... Rd8 {see Caruana-Tomashevsky}) 16. Nxa5 bxa2 17. Nc4 Be6 18. Qe2 Nd7 19. Rxa2 Nb6 20. Nfd2 (20. Nfxe5 Bd6 21. a5 Nxc4 22. Nxc4 Bxh2+ 23. Kh1 Rfe8 24. Ra1 Bxc4 25. Qxc4 Re6 26. Qe2 Rbe8 27. Ra4 Bd6 $44 {Muri,H (2374)-Kayser,P (2055)/corr/2011/}) 20... Rfd8 21. Ra1 Nxc4 $6 (21... Bg5 $142) (21... a5 $5 $44) 22. Nxc4 Bxc4 23. Qxc4 Qd6 24. Ra2 $6 (24. Rb1 $14) (24. Kf1 $14) 24... a5 25. Be3 h6 26. h3 Qb6 27. Kh2 Qd6 28. Rb1 Qd3 29. Qxd3 Rxd3 30. Kg1 c4 $11 {Karjakin,S (2775)-Grischuk,A (2764)/Moscow rpd/2012/}) 14. bxc3 cxd4 15. cxd4 Nc6 16. Ba3 exd4 ({Solid is} 16... Nxd4 17. Nxd4 exd4 18. Nf3 Bb7 19. Qd3 d5 20. Bxe7 Qxe7 21. exd5 (21. e5 Ne4 22. Nxd4 $5 {seems more enterprising}) 21... Qd8 22. Rab1 Bxd5 23. Rxb8 Qxb8 24. Bxd5 Nxd5 25. Qxd4 Nf6 26. h3 Qc7 $11 {Dominguez Perez,L (2708)-Pelletier,Y (2569)/Biel/2008/}) 17. Nb3 Bg4 $5 (17... Bb7 {could lead to Pelletier's game.}) 18. Nbxd4 Nxd4 19. Qxd4 Bxf3 20. gxf3 Nh5 21. Rad1 (21. e5 $5 d5 22. Bc1 $14) 21... Qc8 22. Qe3 (22. Bc1 $5 Bf6 (22... Qh3 $6 23. e5 dxe5 24. Qg4 $1 $16 {[%csl Ga2,Gc1]}) 23. Qxd6 Rd8 24. Qa3 Qh3 $44) 22... Qc2 23. Rd2 Qxa4 24. e5 {Cheparinov,I (2681)-Dzhumaev,M (2499)/Istanbul olm/2012/} Nf4 $1 $132 {?} 25. Rd4 Qa5 26. Rxf4 Bg5 27. Ra1 Bxf4 28. Qxf4 Qxa3 29. Bxf7+ Rxf7 $11) 9... d6 {After the insertion of 8.a4 b4 this modest reaction is Black's best choice.} (9... Nxd4 10. Nxd4 ({In this version also} 10. Bxf7+ $5 Rxf7 11. Nxe5 Rf8 12. Qxd4 Bb7 13. Nd2 $14 {deserves more attention.}) 10... exd4 11. e5 Ne8 12. Qxd4 Bb7 13. Bf4 c5 14. Qe3 d5 15. exd6 Bxd6 16. Nd2 Qc7 17. Be5 Bxe5 18. Qxe5 Qc6 19. f3 Nd6 20. Nc4 Nxc4 21. Bxc4 Rae8 22. Qf4 a5 23. Bb5 Rxe1+ 24. Rxe1 Qd5 25. h3 Bc8 26. Bc4 Qf5 27. Qc7 $16 {Grischuk,A (2719)-Beliavsky,A (2667)/FIDE WCh Tripoli/2004/}) 10. dxe5 {White can't advantageously retain the central tension.} (10. d5 Na5 11. Ba2 Rb8 12. Nbd2 c6 13. dxc6 Qc7 $5 $11 (13... Be6 14. Bxe6 fxe6 15. Qe2 Qb6 16. Nc4 Nxc4 17. Qxc4 d5 18. exd5 exd5 19. Qb3 e4 20. Ne5 Bc5 21. Be3 Bxe3 {Aronian,L (2562)-Minasian,A (2480)/Yerevan/2001/} 22. Qxe3 $16)) (10. c3 bxc3 11. bxc3 exd4 12. Nxd4 Nxd4 13. cxd4 d5 14. exd5 Bb7 15. Bg5 Bxd5 16. Nd2 h6 17. Bxd5 Nxd5 18. Bxe7 Nxe7 19. Nf3 Qd6 20. h3 Rab8 21. Rc1 Rb4 22. Qc2 Nd5 23. Re4 Nf6 24. Re2 Nd5 {½,Stein,L-Tal,M/Moscow/1967/}) 10... dxe5 (10... Nxe5 11. Nxe5 (11. Nbd2 Nfd7 $146 (11... Nxf3+ $5 12. Nxf3 Bb7 13. e5 Nd7 14. e6 fxe6 15. Bxe6+ Kh8 16. Bd5 c6 17. Ba2 c5 18. Bd5 Bxd5 19. Qxd5 Nb6 20. Qe6 Bf6 21. a5 Nd7 22. Qd5 Ne5 23. Nd2 Ng4 24. Nf3 Ne5 25. Nd2 Ng4 {½,Anand,V (2782)-Naiditsch,A (2574)/Dortmund/2004/}) 12. Nd4 c5 13. Nf5 Nf6 14. Ne3 (14. Nxe7+ Qxe7 15. Nc4 $14 {/=}) 14... Bb7 15. f3 Ng6 16. Ndc4 d5 17. exd5 Nxd5 18. Nf5 Qc7 19. Nxe7+ Ngxe7 20. Bg5 Nf5 21. c3 (21. Na5 $5) 21... bxc3 22. bxc3 h6 23. Qd3 g6 24. Bd2 Rad8 25. Qe2 Nf4 26. Bxf4 Qxf4 27. Rad1 Bd5 28. Nd2 Bxb3 29. Nxb3 Qxa4 30. Nxc5 {Nakamura,H (2772)-Aronian,L (2813)/Saint Louis/2013/} Qc6 $11) 11... dxe5 12. Qe2 Bc5 ({The most usual move, but maybe Black should consider} 12... Bb7 {, or}) (12... a5 $5) 13. Be3 Qe7 $146 (13... Bd4 $5 14. c3 ({Engines have tested both} 14. Bxd4 Qxd4 15. Rd1 {and}) (14. Qd3 c5 15. c3 {- see the notes to Caruana-Fressinet}) 14... bxc3 15. bxc3 Bxe3 16. Qxe3 Qe7 17. Nd2 Be6 18. h3 Rfd8 19. Bxe6 Qxe6 20. Nf3 Ne8 21. c4 Nd6 22. c5 Nc8 23. Ng5 Qe7 24. Red1 Na7 25. Rd5 Nc6 $11 {Baklan,V (2578)-Pinter,J (2535)/AUT-chT/2005/}) 14. Nd2 Bg4 $6 15. Bxc5 Qxc5 16. Qe3 Qxe3 17. Rxe3 Rad8 18. Nc4 Rfe8 19. Na5 $1 Be6 20. f3 Rd2 21. Rc1 Nd7 22. Bxe6 Rxe6 23. Nb3 Rdd6 24. c3 $1 bxc3 25. Rexc3 $16 {Caruana,F (2779)-Fressinet,L (2708)/Paris/2013/ The lost tempo cost Black dearly, as his queenside crumbles.}) 11. Qxd8 {White wants to profit from the queenside holes in a simplified position.} (11. Nbd2 Bc5 12. Qe2 ({Jansa's} 12. h3 Bb7 $11 {is rather slow.}) 12... Qe7 $5 (12... Bg4 13. h3 Bh5 14. c3 (14. Qf1 $5 Qd7 15. a5 Qe7 16. Bc4 Ra7 17. Nh4 g6 18. c3 bxc3 19. bxc3 Rb8 20. Nb3 Bd6 21. g4 $16 {Zinchenko,E-Manyakhin,A/corr/2006/}) 14... Na5 15. g4 Bg6 16. Bc2 bxc3 17. bxc3 Nd5 $1 18. Nb1 {Grischuk,A (2779)-Caruana,F (2774)/Thessaloniki GP/2013/} Qf6 $5 19. g5 Qe6 20. exd5 Qxh3 21. Nh2 Bh5 22. Qe4 Bg6 23. Qe2 Bh5 $11) (12... Bb7 13. Nc4 {Black must be careful.} Qe7 14. Bg5 h6 15. Bh4 g5 16. Bg3 Nh5 (16... Nd4 $5 17. Nxd4 Bxd4 18. Qf3 Rad8 $132 {Zajontz,R (2492)-Feco,J (2331)/corr/2009/}) 17. Ne3 Nxg3 18. hxg3 Bxe3 19. Qxe3 Na5 20. Bd5 Rad8 21. Bxb7 Nxb7 22. Rad1 Rxd1 23. Rxd1 Rd8 24. Rd5 Rxd5 25. exd5 Qc5 $11 {/?,Guilloux,J (2046)-De los Reyes,A (1141)/corr/2003/}) 13. Nc4 Bg4 14. c3 bxc3 (14... Nh5 15. g3 Qf6 16. Kg2 Rad8 17. Be3 Bxe3 18. Nxe3 Bxf3+ 19. Qxf3 Qxf3+ 20. Kxf3 Na5 21. Bd5 bxc3 22. b4 c6 23. Ba2 Nb7 24. Rec1 $36 {Inarkiev,E (2693)-Onischuk,A (2667)/Poikovsky/2013/}) 15. bxc3 h6 16. Bc2 Qe6 17. Ne3 Bxe3 18. Qxe3 Na5 19. Nd2 Qc6 20. h3 Be6 21. Qg3 Nd7 22. Rb1 Rfb8 $11 {Grischuk,A (2764)-Svidler,P (2747)/London Candidates/2013/}) 11... Rxd8 12. Nbd2 ({After} 12. Bg5 {Black can play} Rb8 $11 ({, as well as Caruana's provocative} 12... h6 $6 13. Bxf6 gxf6 14. Bd5 Rd6 {- see Negi-Caruana})) 12... h6 {Black makes a useful move without committing his bishops.} (12... Bc5 13. h3 $5 (13. Bc4 Ng4 14. Re2 Na5 15. Bd5 Rb8 16. Nb3 Nxb3 17. cxb3 h6 18. h3 Nf6 19. Nxe5 Nxd5 20. exd5 $6 (20. Nc6 Nc3 21. bxc3 Rd1+ 22. Kh2 Rb6 23. cxb4 Bd6+ 24. e5 Rxc6 25. exd6 Be6 $1 $11) 20... Rxd5 21. Bf4 Be6 22. Rc1 Bd6 23. Bg3 Re8 24. Re3 c5 $15 {[%csl Rb3,Gd6,Ge6] Anand,V (2783)-Adams,M (2727)/Paris/St Petersburg/2013/}) 13... Bb7 (13... Re8 14. a5 Be6 15. Ba4 Bd7 16. Nb3 Bd6 17. Bg5 $14) (13... h6 14. Nc4 Re8 15. a5 Bb7 16. Ba4 Re6 17. c3 Rd8 (17... Rb8 $5) 18. Bc2 Re7 19. Nfd2 Ba7 20. Nb3 Ne8 21. Ne3 Red7 22. Ra4 bxc3 23. bxc3 Nd6 24. Ba3 Ne7 {Inarkiev,E (2669)-Akopian,V (2679)/Elista/2008/} 25. Bc5 $14) 14. a5 (14. Bc4 h6 15. Nb3 Bd6 16. Bd3 $5 (16. a5 Ne7 17. Nfd2 Ng6 18. Bf1 Nf4 19. f3 Nd7 20. Nc4 Be7 21. Be3 Ne6 22. Bf2 Bc6 23. Ne3 Ndc5 24. Bc4 Nxb3 25. cxb3 Bb5 {Bologan,V (2682)-Sargissian,G (2642)/Kallithea/2008/} 26. Nd5 $14 {Bologan}) 16... Bc8 17. Be3 Be6 18. Nfd2 Be7 19. Rad1 Nd7 20. Bc4 $14 {Bologan: Compared with the positions where the pawn is on a5, White controls the very important square b5.}) 14... h6 15. Ba4 Nd7 (15... Nxa5 $5 16. Nxe5 Bd4 17. Nd3 c5 $132) 16. Nb3 Bd6 17. Be3 Ncb8 18. Nfd2 Bc6 19. Nc4 Bxa4 20. Rxa4 Nc6 21. Rd1 Be7 22. Raa1 Kf8 23. f3 Ke8 24. Kf2 Nf8 25. Rd5 f6 26. g3 Ne6 27. f4 $36 {Harikrishna,P (2685)-Kamsky,G (2746)/Istanbul olm/2012/}) ({Black has had more success with the prophylactic} 12... Bd6 13. a5 h6 14. Bc4 Re8 $1 (14... Kf8 15. b3 (15. Nb3 Ke7 16. Nfd2 ({Bologan recommends} 16. Be3 Be6 17. Bxe6 Kxe6 18. Nfd2 {, but} Rab8 {[%CAl Yb8b5] seems about equal.}) 16... Be6 17. Bf1 Nd7 18. Nc4 Nc5 19. Nxc5 Bxc5 20. c3 f6 21. Be3 {½,Nisipeanu,L (2684)-Inarkiev,E (2684)/Evry/2008/} Bxe3 22. Nxe3 Rd2 $11) 15... Ke7 $6 (15... Bc5 {is the engine move, but why then go to d6 at all?}) 16. Bd5 $1 Nxd5 17. exd5 Na7 18. Nxe5 Kf8 19. Ndc4 Bxe5 20. Rxe5 Nc6 21. Bg5 $1 $14 {Karjakin,S (2721)-Aronian,L (2754)/Nalchik/2009/}) (14... Bb7 15. b3 (15. Nb3 Re8 16. c3 bxc3 17. bxc3 Nd8 18. Nfd2 Ne6 19. f3 Bc6 20. Bf1 Reb8 21. Ba3 Kf8 22. Nc1 Bb5 23. Nc4 Bxa3 24. Rxa3 Nd7 25. Rd1 f6 $11 {/?,Felgaer,R (2570)-Tomashevsky,E (2730)/Istanbul olm/2012/}) 15... Bc5 16. Bb2 Rd7 17. h3 Re8 18. Ra4 {Kritz,L (2618)-Kaplan,S (2422)/Biel/2010/} Nh5 $132 {[%CAl Yh5f4]}) 15. Nb3 (15. b3 Be6 16. Bb2 Nd7 17. h3 f6 18. Nh4 Nc5 19. Nf5 Bf8 20. Ne3 Bxc4 21. Ndxc4 Ne6 22. Rad1 Red8 23. Rd5 Nf4 $11 {Negi,P (2642)-Sargissian,G (2663)/WChT Ningbo/2011/}) (15. Bd3 Nd7 16. Nb3 Nc5 17. Be3 Nxd3 18. cxd3 Be6 19. Nfd2 Nb8 20. Rec1 Nd7 $11 {Sargissian}) 15... Be6 16. Bd3 Red8 17. Bf1 (17. Nfd2 Nd7 18. Bc4 Nc5 19. Nxc5 Bxc5 20. Bxe6 fxe6 21. Nb3 Ba7 22. Be3 Nd4 23. Rac1 Nxb3 24. cxb3 Bxe3 25. Rxe3 c5 $11 {Antipov,M (2462)-Heimann,A (2493)/Athens/2012/}) 17... Kf8 18. Nfd2 Nd7 19. Nc4 Nc5 20. Nxc5 Bxc5 21. c3 f6 22. Be3 Bxe3 {½,Carlsen,M (2772)-Leko,P (2756)/Dortmund/2009/}) 13. a5 ({Carlsen and Aronian already had this position once.} 13. Bc4 Bd6 (13... Bc5 $5) 14. Nb3 Bb7 (14... Re8 $142 $5 {[%CAl Yc8e6]}) 15. h3 Kf8 16. Bd3 Bc8 17. Be3 Be6 18. Nfd2 Ke8 19. f3 Be7 20. Bc4 Bc8 21. Red1 Bb7 22. Bf2 Nd7 23. Bd3 Nf8 24. Nc4 Ne6 25. Nba5 $16 {Carlsen,M (2776)-Aronian,L (2750)/Nice rpd/2009/ gave White a substantial advantage, but Aronian undoubtedly prepared an improvement here.}) (13. Nc4 Bd6 14. a5 Be6 15. Be3 Rab8 16. Nfd2 Ng4 17. h3 Nxe3 18. Nxe3 Bc5 19. Bxe6 Rxd2 20. Bd5 Bxe3 (20... Nd8 $5) 21. fxe3 Ne7 22. Bc4 Rxc2 23. b3 Rxc4 24. bxc4 Kf8 $44 {Wan,Y (2477)-Tkachiev,V (2662)/Jakarta/2012/}) 13... Bc5 $146 {Until now Black played mostly} (13... Bd6 {which transposes into the aforementioned 12...?d6 lines.}) 14. Bc4 {[%CAl Yb2b3,Yc1b2,Yc4d3,Yd2c4] White's long-term plan is to target e5, but the text move is not ideal.} (14. Ba4 Nxa5 15. Nxe5 Ng4 16. Nxg4 Bxg4 $132 {and Black's active pieces give him reasonable counterchances.}) (14. h3 $142 $5 {gives better chances for an edge. Now} Bb7 {leads to Harikrishna - Kamsky above,} ({while} 14... Re8 15. Nc4 {transposes to Inarkiev-Akopian})) 14... Ng4 15. Re2 Be6 $1 {Swapping the important bishop complicates White's development and gives Aronian the initiative.} 16. Bxe6 ({White has no time for} 16. Bd3 b3 $36) 16... fxe6 17. h3 Nf6 18. Re1 Rab8 19. Nc4 Rb5 {[%csl Ra5][%CAl Gb5e5] An excellent outpost for the rook, attacking and defending at the same time.} 20. b3 (20. Ncxe5 $6 Nxe5 21. Nxe5 Bxf2+ 22. Kxf2 Rxe5 $15 {[%csl Re4] /?}) (20. Be3 Ne8 $36 {[%CAl Ye8d6]}) 20... Bd4 21. Bb2 (21. Nxd4 exd4 $15 {[%csl Ra5]}) 21... Rc5 $1 {[%CAl Rc5c4]} 22. Ra2 Bxb2 ({After} 22... Ne8 {White can already consider} 23. Bxd4 $5 exd4 24. e5 $132) 23. Rxb2 Ne8 24. Ra2 Nd6 25. Nfd2 Nb7 (25... Nd4 $15) ({, or} 25... Nb5 $15 {was probably better, but even here it's not simple to increase Black's pressure.}) 26. Nf3 Kf7 (26... Nbxa5 27. Nfxe5 Nxe5 28. Rxa5 Rxa5 29. Nxa5 Rd2 30. Rc1 $11 {[%CAl Yg1e1]}) ({Aronian is playing for a win and spurns} 26... Nd6 $11) 27. Kf1 Kf6 28. Ra4 Nbxa5 29. Ne3 $5 (29. Nxa5 Nxa5 30. Re2 Rd1+ 31. Re1 Rd6 $5 32. Rxb4 Rxc2 33. Nxe5 c5 $15 {Carslen is not intent on winning the pawn back immediately, this cool retreat leaves Black's kinights sidetracked.}) 29... h5 30. Rea1 Rd4 31. Ne1 Ke7 (31... Rxe4 $6 32. Nd3 {?} Rb5 33. c4 $1 Nxb3 34. cxb5 axb5 35. Ra6 $14) 32. f3 Rd2 33. Rd1 (33. Nd3 $2 Rxd3 34. cxd3 Nxb3 35. Rd1 a5 $17 {[%csl Ga5,Gb4][%CAl Rc5b5,Rb3c5] /-+}) 33... Rd6 ({Keeps the tension, after} 33... Rxd1 34. Nxd1 $11 {[%CAl Yd1e3,Ye1d3] Black has no obvious way to untangle.}) 34. Rda1 Kd7 ({Still aiming for more than} 34... Rd2 35. Rd1 $11) 35. Nd1 Rd2 36. Nf2 $5 Kc8 37. Nfd3 Rb5 38. h4 (38. Nxb4 Nxb4 39. Rxa5 Kb7 {is still slightly unpleasant for White. Carlsen was short of time, so he doesn't change the character of the position.}) 38... Kb7 39. R1a2 Ka7 40. Kg1 Kb6 41. Kf1 g6 42. Kg1 Kb7 43. Kf1 Kc8 44. Nf2 Rd8 $6 ({This is already pushing it too far, Black should have resigned himself to} 44... Rc5 45. Nfd3 Rb5 $11) 45. Ned3 $44 {The retreat of the active rook allows White to further improve his piece coordination and put serious pressure on Black's weaknesses. Carlsen realised this was the turning point of the game and somewhere around here he already declined a draw offer. Aronian was late to realise he has to defend accurately and without much resistance.} Kb7 46. Ke2 Kb6 47. Ke3 Kb7 {Awkward.} (47... Ra8 48. Nb2 $1 {doesn't allow the knight to leave a5, but after} Rc5 49. Kd2 Rf8 $14 {Black can still fight on.}) 48. Nd1 (48. Nh3 $5 $14 {is interesting, but White has a different plan.}) 48... Kc8 49. N1b2 Rd6 50. Ra1 $1 {An important finesse, which clearly indicates aggressive intentions.} ({Carslen avoids the immediate} 50. Nc4 Nxc4+ 51. bxc4 Rb8 52. c5 Rd7 53. Rxa6 b3 $1 $11) 50... Kd8 $2 {The decisive mistake, the rook should have left the exposed d6-square as soon as possible.} (50... Rd7 51. Nc4 Nxc4+ 52. bxc4 Rb8 53. Rxa6 Nd4 54. Rc1 $16 {[%csl Re5,Re6] ?} b3 55. c3 Nc2+ 56. Ke2 {[%csl Rb3]}) (50... Rd4 $142 $5 {and the forcing} 51. Nxe5 (51. g3 $5 $36 {[%CAl Yf3f4] is perhaps stronger}) 51... Rxe5 52. Rxa5 Rdxe4+ 53. fxe4 Nxa5 (53... Rxa5 $2 54. Rxa5 Nxa5 55. Kf4 $18 {[%CAl Rf4g5]}) 54. Nd3 Rb5 55. Nf4 Kd7 $14 {gives Black chances for a successful defence.}) 51. Nc4 Nxc4+ 52. bxc4 Rb8 53. c5 Rd7 ({Even after the more resilient} 53... Rxd3+ 54. Kxd3 a5 55. Kc4 $16 {/+- White should graually win.}) 54. Rxa6 $18 b3 {Hopeless, but} (54... Nd4 {was no better:} 55. Ra8 $1 Rxa8 (55... Nxc2+ 56. Kd2 Nxa1 57. Rxb8+ Ke7 58. Rxb4 $18 {[%csl Ra1,Re5]}) 56. Rxa8+ Ke7 57. Nxe5 $5 (57. Nxb4 $18) 57... Nxc2+ 58. Ke2 $18 {[%csl Rd7] and Black's rook is trapped!}) 55. Rxc6 bxc2 56. Ne1 {[%csl Rc2]} (56. Rxe6 $142 $1 $18) 56... Ke7 (56... Rb2 57. Rxe6 {[%CAl Ra1a8]} Rd1 58. Nxc2 $18) (56... Rd1 57. Nxc2 Rxa1 58. Nxa1 Ra8 59. Rxe6 (59. Nc2 $2 Kd7) 59... Rxa1 60. Rxg6 $18) 57. Nxc2 Rb3+ 58. Ke2 Rb2 59. Rc1 Ra2 {Now the ?c6 is temporarily trapped, but Black has no way to attack it and he is already a piece down. The rest doesn't require any comment.} 60. Ke3 Kf7 61. f4 Kf6 62. fxe5+ Kxe5 63. Ne1 Ra3+ 64. Kf2 Rd2+ 65. Kf1 Rd7 66. Nf3+ Kf4 67. Rxe6 g5 68. hxg5 Kg3 69. Rf6 Ra2 70. Ne5 1-0 [Event "World-ch Carlsen-Nepomniachtchi"] [Site "Dubai"] [Date "2021.11.26"] [Round "1"] [White "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2782"] [BlackElo "2855"] [Annotator "Adams,Michael"] [PlyCount "89"] [EventDate "2021.11.26"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "14"] [EventCountry "UAE"] [SourceTitle "CBM 206"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2022.02.28"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2022.02.28"] [SourceQuality "1"] {[%evp 0,89,69,19,71,-8,53,-27,45,-92,-71,-147,-44,-90,-58,-51,-30,-46,-7,-44,34,30,30,30,30,17,37,17,28,-18,3,-27,-40,-8,4,-9,26,35,46,-3,53,-3,24,-13,4,29,31,4,46,25,73,0,0,-11,33,28,50,31,22,6,61,-16,2,-14,10,-7,32,13,23,0,3,-27,-28,-28,-51,-72,-63,-85,-64,-71,38,37,18,18,59,59,60,59,40,29,29,7] After a lot of build up everyone was eager for the match to start, and this fighting game bodes well for the spectators. Nach langem Vorlauf warteten alle gespannt auf den Beginn des Matches, und diese Kampfpartie lässt die Zuschauer Gutes erhoffen.} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. h3 Na5 ({I was glad to see an opening that I have some experience with, but I was not at all aware of this rather rare move. Like many valuable new concepts, it doesn't seem so surprising in retrospect. Another important move discussed in the world championship game Karjakin-Carlsen continues Ich war froh, eine Eröffnung zu sehen, mit der ich einige Erfahrung habe, aber diesen ziemlich seltenen Zug hatte ich überhaupt nicht auf dem Schirm. Wie viele wertvolle neue Konzepte scheint er im Nachhinein nicht so überraschend zu sein. Ein weitere wichtige Fortsetzung, die in der WM-Partie Karjakin-Carlsen diskutiert wurde, verläuft} 8... Bb7 9. d3 d5 10. exd5 Nxd5 11. Nxe5 Nd4 {when Black will acquire the bishop pair and a lead in development to compensate for the pawn. In the game events develop in similar fashion. , wonach Schwarz als Kompensation für den Bauern das Läuferpaar und einen Entwicklungsvorsprung erhält. In der Partie entwickeln sich die Ereignisse auf ähnliche Weise.}) 9. Nxe5 Nxb3 (9... d6 $2 10. Nf3 c5 11. d3 {doesn't give enough. gibt nicht genug.}) 10. axb3 Bb7 11. d3 d5 {The forcing play continues. Das forcierte Spiel geht weiter.} 12. exd5 Qxd5 ({It's tempting to try Es ist verlockend,} 12... Nxd5 {but zu versuchen, aber} 13. d4 $1 {is a good response, the knight might drop back to d3 whilst his colleague goes to f3 to consolidate matters. ist eine gute Antwort, der Springer könnte sich nach d3 zurückziehen, während sein Kollege nach f3 geht, um die Lage zu konsolidieren.}) 13. Qf3 (13. Nf3 Rae8 {gives Black plenty of compensation, swapping queens is clearly preferable. gibt Schwarz viel Kompensation, ein Damentausch ist eindeutig vorzuziehen.}) 13... Bd6 14. Kf1 ({A subtle finesse. Not Eine subtile Finesse. Nicht} 14. Nc3 $2 Qxe5 15. Rxe5 Bxf3 $19) (14. Qxd5 Nxd5 15. Bd2 {gives Black a better version of the game. gibt Schwarz eine bessere Version der Partie.}) 14... Rfb8 {The players were rather substantially better informed than me, as Nepo confirmed at the press conference that this position was also in his preparation, whilst Carlsen was still playing quickly. Die Spieler waren wesentlich besser informiert als ich, denn Nepo bestätigte auf der Pressekonferenz, dass diese Stellung auch in seiner Vorbereitung war, während Carlsen immer noch schnell spielte.} (14... Rfe8 $2 15. Nc3 $1 Qxe5 16. Rxe5 Bxf3 17. Rxe8+ $16 {is exactly what White wants. ist genau das, was Weiß will.}) ({For those of you who that were hoping the queens would have stayed on the board a bit longer I can recommend investigating the very interesting, Denjenigen, die gehofft haben, dass die Damen noch etwas länger auf dem Brett bleiben, kann ich empfehlen, das sehr interessante} 14... Qxe5 $5 {here are some preliminary lines: zu untersuchen. Hier sind einige vorläufige Varianten:} 15. Qxb7 Qh2 {the black queen can't be evicted, and although there aren't immediate threats matters are quite complicated Die schwarze Dame kann nicht vertrieben werden, und obwohl es keine unmittelbaren Drohungen gibt, ist die Lage ziemlich kompliziert} 16. Nc3 {A real computer move Ein echter Computerzug} (16. Be3 c6 $1 17. Qxc6 Rac8 18. Qf3 Rxc2 {is ok for Black. ist für Schwarz in Ordnung.}) (16. Qf3 Rae8 17. Be3 Nh5 $1 {a great move clearing a path for the f-pawn ein großartiger Zug, der den Weg für den f-Bauern freimacht} 18. Qxh5 f5 19. f4 $1 Bxf4 20. Qf3 Bxe3 (20... Qh1+ 21. Kf2 Qxe1+ 22. Kxe1 Rxe3+ 23. Qxe3 Bxe3 24. Rxa6) 21. Rxe3 Qh1+ (21... f4 {looks rather scary sieht ziemlich gruselig aus} 22. Re4 $1 Rxe4 23. Qxe4 (23. dxe4 Rd8 $1) 23... f3 24. gxf3 Qxc2 25. Qe6+ Kh8 26. Qe2 Qc1+ 27. Kg2 {Black is worse here. Hier steht Schwarz schlechter.}) 22. Kf2 f4 23. Re4 Qc1 24. Ke2 Qxb2 25. Rxa6 Qxb1 26. Kd2 $14 {The material is regained but White's king has now found a safe home in the middle. Das Material wird zurückgewonnen, aber der weiße König hat nun ein sicheres Zuhause in der Mitte gefunden.}) 16... Rfe8 (16... Rae8 17. Be3 b4 18. Ne2 Qh1+ 19. Ng1 Bh2 (19... Nh5 20. Qf3 Bh2 21. Ke2 Nf4+ 22. Kd2) 20. Ke2) 17. Be3 c6 18. Qxc6 Rac8 19. Qf3 b4 20. Ne2 Rxc2 21. g4 Rxb2 22. Bd4 {with a wild position where White is apparently doing well. mit einer wilden Stellung, in der Weiß offenbar gut steht.}) 15. Qxd5 Nxd5 16. Bd2 ({White wants to keep the square c3 for his pieces, and Weiß will das Feld c3 für seine Figuren behalten, und} 16. c3 c5 {also makes the pawn on d3 vulnerable. macht auch den Bauern auf d3 verwundbar.}) (16. Nc3 $2 Nb4) 16... c5 {Black will rely on the greater space, activity and the long term potential of the bishops to maintain the balance. Schwarz wird sich auf den größeren Raum, die Aktivität und das langfristige Potenzial der Läufer verlassen, um das Gleichgewicht zu halten.} 17. Nf3 ({More subtle than Subtiler als} 17. Nc3 Nb4 18. Rac1 Rd8 {I thought stacking the knights on e3 and e2 could be good here Ich dachte, die Springer auf e3 und e2 zu stapeln, könnte hier gut sein.} 19. Ng4 h5 20. Ne3 Bf8 $1 21. Ne2 g6 $1 {is a sound response, the bishop can profitably emerge on g7 or h6. ist eine gute Antwort, der Läufer kann profitabel auf g7 oder h6 auftauchen.}) 17... Rd8 (17... Nb4 $5 18. Bxb4 (18. Rc1 {is similar to the game ist ähnlich wie die Partie}) 18... cxb4 {I once had a game with David Howell with this structure, although queens remained on the board in that game. One oddity of this pawn formation is that despite the preponderance of White pawns on the queenside, the fact that Black's pawns are all towards the edge of the board means that creating a passed a-pawn is a real possibility in the long term. Ich hatte einmal eine Partie mit David Howell mit dieser Struktur, obwohl in dieser Partie die Damen auf dem Brett blieben. Eine Besonderheit dieser Bauernformation ist, dass trotz der numerischen Überlegenheit der weißen Bauern am Damenflügel die schwarzen Bauern alle am Brettrand stehen, was bedeutet, dass die Schaffung eines a-Freibauern auf lange Sicht eine echte Möglichkeit ist.} 19. c4 (19. Nbd2 Rc8 $1) 19... Bxf3 20. gxf3 Bf4 $13) 18. Nc3 Nb4 19. Rec1 {An interesting decision the other rook can be useful on the a-file sometimes, and as all the entry squares on the e-file are well protected, it isn't so influential there. The position is quite tense and not that easy to play, often releasing the tension is a mistake. The next few moves see both players move the same minor piece on consecutive moves as White tries to untangle. Eine interessante Entscheidung, der andere Turm kann manchmal auf der a-Linie nützlich sein, und da alle Einbruchsfelder auf der e-Linie gut geschützt sind, ist er dort nicht so einflussreich. Die Stellung ist ziemlich spannungsvoll und nicht ganz einfach zu spielen, oft ist es ein Fehler, die Spannung zu lösen. In den nächsten Zügen ziehen beide Spieler mehrmals nacheinander dieselbe Leichtfigur, während Weiß versucht, sich zu entwirren.} Rac8 ({I hope that one day I can impose c4, Ich hoffe, dass ich eines Tages c4 durchsetzen kann,} 19... f6 20. Ne2 Kf7 {looked like a good alternative sah wie eine gute Alternative aus}) 20. Ne2 ({The constraint Das forcierende} 20. Ne4 Bf8 {is less impressive ist weniger beeindruckend} 21. Bxb4 (21. Ng3 Bxf3 22. gxf3 g6 $1) 21... cxb4 22. Ne1 g6 {and Black will fianchetto another bishop to great effect. und Schwarz wird einen weiteren Läufer mit großer Wirkung fianchettieren.}) 20... Nc6 ({A surprising retreat when Ein überraschender Rückzug, zumal} 20... Bf8 21. Bxb4 ({The cautious Das vorsichtige} 21. Ne1 $5 {or oder}) (21. Bc3 $5 {are more challenging. sind eine größere Herausforderung.}) 21... cxb4 22. d4 g6 23. c3 Bh6 24. Rd1 Bd5 {is ok for Black ok für Schwarz ist.}) (20... f6 $5 {still seems sensible scheint immer noch sinnvoll}) 21. Be3 ({White would like to push d4 here, all his pieces are set for this advance, and this further reinforces that idea. However, I think Weiß möchte hier d4 durchdrücken, alle seine Figuren sind für diesen Vorstoß bereit, und dies verstärkt diese Idee noch. Ich denke jedoch} 21. Bf4 $1 {made sense here, Black's pieces are a bit disorganised for the moment. ergab hier Sinn, denn die Figuren von Schwarz sind im Moment etwas unorganisiert.} Bf8 (21... Be7 22. Bg5 $1 f6 23. Be3 Nb4 24. d4 $14) 22. Rd1 Ne7 23. d4 $14) 21... Ne7 $1 ({Another knight move, but a good decision, since he will find another good position on f5. Ein weiterer Springerzug, aber eine gute Entscheidung, da er eine weitere gute Stellung auf f5 finden wird.} 21... Nb4 $6 22. d4 $1) 22. Bf4 $6 ({At a critical moment Ian forces an bishop exchange, which is not good, more patient play was more practical and precise. In einem kritischen Moment erzwingt Ian einen Läufertausch, was nicht gut ist, geduldigeres Spiel war praktischer und präziser.} 22. Rd1 Nf5 23. Bd2 f6 {isn't that impressive. ist nicht besonders beeindruckend.}) ({I like Mir gefällt} 22. Ng3 $1 {the most after am meisten, nach} Nd5 {Black's play doesn't make a convincing impression, having taken three moves to transfer the knight to d5 from b4. All those jumps had their points, and interfered with White's plans, but macht das Spiel von Schwarz keinen überzeugenden Eindruck, da er drei Züge brauchte, um den Springer von b4 nach d5 zu bringen. Alle diese Sprünge hatten ihre Berechtigung und durchkreuzten die Pläne von Weiß, aber} (22... f5 23. Re1 $1) 23. Bd2 {is the kind of position White should aim for. ist die Art von Stellung, die Weiß anstreben sollte.}) (22. Nc3 $5 Nf5 23. Ne4 {White's knight has taken the scenic route to e4. Der weiße Springer hat die Aussichtsroute nach e4 genommen.} Be7 24. Bd2 (24. Bf4 c4 $1) 24... f6 (24... c4 25. bxc4 bxc4 26. Ba5)) ({The direct Die direkte} 22. d4 Nf5 23. c3 {or oder} (23. Rd1 {also have some merit. haben auch einige Vorzüge.})) 22... Bxf3 23. gxf3 Bxf4 24. Nxf4 Rc6 $1 {The position has clarified, and this move is very strong - the pawn on a6 is secured, and now the White rook on a1 becomes peripheral to the action. Black's rook can also be active along the third rank, in particular probing White's shattered kingside pawns. Die Stellung hat sich geklärt, und dieser Zug ist sehr stark - der Bauer auf a6 ist gesichert, und nun wird der weiße Turm auf a1 zum Zuschauer des Geschehens. Der schwarze Turm kann auch auf der dritten Reihe aktiv werden und dabei insbesondere die zerschlagenen weißen Bauern am Königsflügel angehen.} 25. Re1 (25. Ra5 g6 26. Rca1 Rdd6 {leaves White's rooks up a blind alley. lässt die Türme von Weiß in einer Sackgasse stehen.}) 25... Nf5 26. c3 {The knight is kept away from d4, but now there are lots of weaklings. Der Springer wird von d4 ferngehalten, aber jetzt gibt es eine Menge Schwächlinge.} Nh4 27. Re3 Kf8 ({A strange decision Eine seltsame Entscheidung} 27... g6 {gets rid of back rank issues, and Black might well regain the pawn with a much more compact position. beseitigt die Probleme der Grundreihe, und Schwarz könnte durchaus den Bauern in einer viel kompakteren Stellung zurückgewinnen.} 28. Ke2 (28. Ng2 $2 Nf5) 28... h6 $5 {would be a little unpleasant to meet the knight on f4 is not secure, and has no flight squares. wäre ein wenig unangenehm zu spielen, der Springer auf f4 ist nicht sicher und hat keine Fluchtfelder.} (28... Kf8 {is a better version of the game ist eine bessere Version der Partie}) (28... Rf6 29. Re4)) 28. Ng2 ({Now after Jetzt ist nach} 28. Ke2 g5 {or oder} (28... Rf6 {are good for Black. gut für Schwarz.})) 28... Nf5 29. Re5 g6 30. Ne1 ({A passive place for the knight although it does protect two of the weak pawns. Ein passiver Platz für den Springer, obwohl er zwei der schwachen Bauern schützt.} 30. Ke2 $1 {leaves White's rook without many squares but it isn't easy to exploit this. lässt den weißen Turm ohne viele Felder, aber es ist nicht einfach, dies auszunutzen.} Ng7 $1 {looks best, but it is a much better version of the game for White. sieht am besten aus, aber es ist eine viel bessere Version der Partie für Weiß.} (30... f6 31. Re4 Nd6 32. Rh4 $1 {and White's rook is not as short of room as it looks und der weiße Turm hat nicht so wenig Platz, wie es aussieht} (32. Re3 Kf7 $1 {leaves White without an obvious move. lässt Weiß ohne einen offensichtlichen Zug zurück.} (32... Nf5 33. Re4 {repeats mit Zugwiederholung})) 32... h5 (32... Rd7 33. Ne3 $14) 33. b4 (33. Ne3 g5 $2 34. Rxh5 Kg7 35. Rg1 $1 Kg6 36. Rh4 $18) 33... g5 34. Rxh5 Kg7 35. bxc5 Kg6 36. Rh4 $16)) 30... Ng7 31. Re4 (31. f4 $5 Ne6 32. f5 Nf4 33. fxg6 hxg6 34. Re3 {at least swaps one of the weak pawns. tauscht zumindest einen der schwachen Bauern.}) 31... f5 $1 ({The rook should be driven to the rear Der Turm sollte nach hinten getrieben werden} 31... Ne6 $6 32. b4 $1 {is much more what White is looking for ist viel mehr das, wonach Weiß sucht} f5 ({After Nach} 32... Ng5 {the amusing ist das Amüsante} 33. bxc5 (33. Rh4 {is a simpler option. ist eine einfachere Option.}) 33... Nxe4 34. fxe4 Rxc5 35. Rxa6 {is fun lustig.}) (32... cxb4 $142 33. Rxb4 g5) 33. Rxe6 Rxe6 34. bxc5 {is dangerous only for Black ist nur für Schwarz gefährlich} Rde8 35. d4 Re2 36. Nd3 Rd2 37. Ne5) 32. Re3 Ne6 33. Ng2 {It is clear Black's knight is dominating it's adversary. Es ist klar, dass der schwarze Springer seinen Gegenüber dominiert.} b4 $1 ({Black could have improved the king first with Schwarz hätte den König zuerst mit} 33... Kf7 {but this would give White's own king more time to reinforce the queenside - playing this directly maximises the pressure. verbessern können, aber dies würde dem weißen König mehr Zeit geben, den Damenflügel zu verstärken - dies direkt zu spielen, maximiert den Druck.}) 34. Ke2 {A sad move to make, but as the c3 pawn must stay in place to keep d4 covered there are no other promising options. Ein trauriger Zug, aber da der c3-Bauer stehen bleiben muss, um d4 zu decken, gibt es keine anderen vielversprechenden Möglichkeiten.} Rb8 35. Kd2 $1 ({Return of the pledge on its terms Rückgabe des Bauern zu seinen Bedingungen.} 35. Rb1 $2 a5 $1 36. Kd2 bxc3+ 37. bxc3 a4 {is already very serious ist bereits sehr ernst} 38. Kc2 $2 axb3+ 39. Rxb3 Nd4+ $19) 35... bxc3+ 36. bxc3 Rxb3 37. Kc2 (37. Ra2 Rb1 38. Re1 Rxe1 39. Nxe1 Nf4 {is also not desirable. ist ebenfalls nicht wünschenswert}) 37... Rb7 (37... Rcb6 $2 38. Rxe6 $1 $18) 38. h4 Kf7 (38... Nd4+ 39. Kd1 {doesn't lead anywhere. führt nirgendwo hin.}) ({However Magnus could use this tactical idea to play Magnus konnte diese taktische Idee jedoch dazu nutzen,} 38... a5 $1 {as zu spielen, da} 39. Rxa5 $2 (39. Ree1 $1 Rcb6 40. Ra2 a4 41. Ne3 Ra6 42. Rea1 Rba7 $15 {is no fun for White, the a-pawn is now much more useful. The direct 33...b4! was well timed, but here Carlsen was not quite urgent enough. ist kein Spaß für Weiß, der a-Bauer ist jetzt viel nützlicher. Das direkte 33...b4! war gut getimt, aber hier war Carlsen nicht zwingend genug.}) 39... Nd4+ {isn't possible. ist nicht möglich.}) (38... Rcb6 $5 {was also better than the move played. war auch besser als der gespielte Zug.}) 39. Ree1 $1 {Suddenly White's co-ordination has returned, and now the knight that has had a hard life recently has a route to freedom via e3 and c4.The b5 pawn's disappearance created this new potential. Plötzlich ist die weiße Koordination zurückgekehrt, und der Springer, der in letzter Zeit ein schweres Leben hatte, hat nun einen Weg in die Freiheit über e3 und c4. Das Verschwinden des b5-Bauern hat dieses neue Potenzial geschaffen.} Kf6 40. Ne3 ({After} 40. Ra2 f4 {leaves the knight on g2 looking silly again. This may not be so bad, but it is not easy to allow. lässt den Springer auf g2 wieder dumm aussehen. Das mag nicht so schlimm sein, aber man lässt es nicht gerne zu.}) 40... Rd7 (40... Nf4 $1 {looked rather obvious and sets a small trap sah ziemlich offensichtlich aus und stellt eine kleine Falle} 41. Nc4 (41. Ra4 $2 Rb2+ $1 42. Kxb2 Nxd3+ $19) 41... Re7 {is still not completely dead ist noch nicht ganz tot} 42. Rxe7 (42. Re3 $5) 42... Kxe7 43. Ra4 Ng2 $1 {and White must be more careful. und Weiß muss mehr aufpassen.}) 41. Nc4 ({White could even play Weiß könnte sogar} 41. Ra4 $5 {as proposed by Judit Polgar. spielen, wie von Judit Polgar vorgeschlagen.} Rd8 (41... h5 $6 42. Nc4 $14) 42. Rea1 Rcd6 43. Rd1 {is likely to lead to the same result. The players head for a repetition instead. wird wahrscheinlich zum gleichen Ergebnis führen. Die Spieler steuern stattdessen auf eine Wiederholung zu.}) 41... Re7 42. Ne5 ({Even the 'oversight' Selbst das 'Verrsehen'} 42. Ra4 Nd4+ 43. cxd4 Rxe1 44. d5 Rc8 45. Rxa6+ Kg7 46. Ra7+ {leads to a draw. führt zu einem Unentschieden.}) 42... Rd6 43. Nc4 Rc6 44. Ne5 Rd6 45. Nc4 {An interesting opening encounter. Magnus edged the preparation battle, although clearly both particpants are well armed there. Carlsen got the type of position he would probably be happy to see in this match, but Ian got back on track after drifting earlier in the endgame. The Marshall also proved a tough nut to crack for Nepomniachtchi's compatriot Sergey Karjakin in their match. With no free day before game three, it will be intriguing to see if Magnus repeats his opening choice then. Eine interessante Auftaktbegegnung. Magnus gewann die Vorbereitungsschlacht, obwohl beide Teilnehmer dort eindeutig gut gerüstet sind. Carlsen bekam die Art von Stellung, die er in diesem Match wahrscheinlich gerne sehen würde, aber Ian kam, nachdem er anfangs im Endspiel abdriftete, wieder in die Spur. Marshall erwies sich auch für Nepomniachtchis Landsmann Sergey Karjakin als harte Nuss in ihrem Match . Da es vor der dritten Partie keinen freien Tag mehr gibt, wird es spannend sein zu sehen, ob Magnus seine Eröffnungswahl dann wiederholt.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "Grenke Chess Classic 4th"] [Site "Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden"] [Date "2017.04.16"] [Round "2"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Aronian, Levon"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2838"] [BlackElo "2774"] [Annotator "Lenderman,Aleksandr"] [PlyCount "140"] [EventDate "2017.04.15"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "7"] [EventCountry "GER"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 178"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2017.05.14"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2017.05.14"] [SourceQuality "1"] {Welcome everyone! This is GM Aleksandr Lenderman presenting you round 2 game of the day. I decided to choose the game between Magnus Carlsen and Levon Aronian since not only was it arguably the top matchup of the day, but also the game was quite an interesting fight.} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 ({Aronian has always played exclusively the text move, spurning the Open Ruy Lopez with} 5... Nxe4) ({as well as the Arkhangelsk or Neo-Arkhangelsk with} 5... b5) ({and} 5... Bc5 {respectively.}) 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. a4 {8)a4 is a very common high level Anti-Marshall move, which leads to quieter games and very much to Magnus Carlsen's liking. Magnus decides not to test Levon Aronian in the Marshall Attack this game.} (8. c3 d5 {is of course the Marshall Attack, in which Aronian is considered arguably one of the biggest experts.} 9. exd5 (9. d4 dxe4 10. Nxe5 Bb7 11. Nxc6 Bxc6 12. Bg5 Nd5 13. Bxe7 Qxe7 14. Nd2 f5 15. f3 e3 16. c4 $2 (16. f4 $1 {/\} Kh8 17. Qf3 $14) 16... Nf4 $1 17. cxb5+ Kh8 {[%CAl Re3e2,Re7e3,Re3f2]} 18. Nc4 e2 19. Qd2 Qg5 20. Rxe2 Nxe2+ 21. Qxe2 Bxb5 22. Qe3 $15 {/-/+,Carlsen,M (2835)-Kamsky,G (2732)/Wijk aan Zee/2012/}) 9... Nxd5 10. Nxe5 Nxe5 11. Rxe5 c6 12. d3 Bd6 13. Re1 Bf5 14. Qf3 Qh4 15. g3 Qh3 16. Bxd5 cxd5 17. Be3 Bxd3 18. Qxd5 Rad8 19. Qf3 Rfe8 20. Nd2 Qf5 21. Qxf5 Bxf5 22. Bd4 f6 23. f3 b4 24. Ne4 Bc7 25. Kf2 bxc3 26. bxc3 Rb8 $44 {Carlsen,M (2548)-Anand,V (2785)/Leon rpd/2005/ A typical Marshall endgame, the bishop pair makes converting the extra pawn almost impossible.}) ({The immediate} 8. d4 {gives Black a wider choice:} Nxd4 (8... d6 9. c3 Bg4 {-C91 This line is not considered too dangerous for Black.}) 9. Nxd4 (9. Bxf7+ Rxf7 10. Nxe5 Rf8 11. Qxd4 Bb7 $5 $44 12. c4 c5 13. Qd3 Qc7 14. Nf3 bxc4 15. Qxc4+ d5 16. exd5 Bxd5 17. Qe2 Bd6 18. Nc3 Bxf3 19. Qxf3 Bxh2+ 20. Kf1 Rad8 (20... Be5 $5) 21. g3 Nh5 22. Qxh5 Rxf2+ 23. Kxf2 Qxg3+ 24. Ke2 Qg2+ 25. Ke3 Qg3+ 26. Ke2 Qg2+ {1/2, Kamsky,G (2717)-Leko,P (2756)/Jermuk/2009/}) 9... exd4 10. e5 Ne8 11. c3 (11. Qxd4 Bb7 12. c4 c5 13. Qg4 d6 14. Nc3 (14. Bf4 {Short,N (2707)-Fressinet,L (2702)/Bastia rpd/2012/} bxc4 15. Bxc4 d5 $11) 14... dxe5 15. cxb5 axb5 16. Nxb5 {Gilabert Mallol,E (2440)-Kyhos,A (2352)/corr/2010/} Nf6 17. Qf5 Qb6 $132) 11... dxc3 12. Nxc3 d6 13. Qf3 Be6 14. Nd5 Rc8 15. Bf4 Bxd5 $5 (15... dxe5 16. Nxe7+ (16. Bxe5 Bd6 17. Rad1 Bxe5 18. Rxe5 Bxd5 19. Rexd5 Nd6 20. Qf4 Qe7 21. Re5 Qf6 22. Qxf6 gxf6 23. Rc5 Rfd8 24. Rdc1 Re8 25. g3 Re2 26. Rxc7 Rxc7 27. Rxc7 Rxb2 28. Rc6 Ne4 29. Rxa6 Nc5 $11 {Henrichs,T (2483)-Gustafsson, J (2584)/GER-ch Bad Koenigshofen/2007/}) 16... Qxe7 17. Bxe5 Nd6 18. Qc3 Qg5 19. Bxe6 fxe6 20. Rac1 $5 (20. b3 Qg6 21. Qc6 Nf7 22. Bg3 e5 23. Rac1 Qf6 24. h3 Rfd8 {Leko,P (2756)-Aronian,L (2768)/Jermuk/2009/}) 20... Nc4 21. Bg3 Rfe8 22. b3 Nb6 23. Qa5 Nd5 24. Rc6 e5 25. Rxa6 c6 26. h4 Qf6 27. a4 $14 {Sievilainen,T (2179)-Laine,E (2234)/corr/2010/}) 16. Bxd5 dxe5 17. Rxe5 Bf6 18. Re2 Nd6 19. Rd1 Bg5 20. Be5 Bf6 21. Bf4 {1/2,Becerra Rivero,J (2598)-Onischuk, A (2670)/Lubbock/2008/}) 8... b4 ({For} 8... Rb8 9. axb5 axb5 10. d3 d6 11. Nbd2 {- see Carlsen-Topalov}) 9. d3 {A slight surprise.} (9. d4 {is a much more popular move, and Magnus himself has also played this move in the 2013 Sinquefield Cup against Aronian in that famous game where Magnus would have taken clear first with a draw, but when he had a somewhat better position without much risk, he declined a draw despite the fact that it would clinch him clear first.}) 9... Bc5 (9... d6 {is also quite a common move, and also has been played by Aronian quite frequently. However, in his last game in the World Rapid against Yu Yangyi, he did play ...?c5, so most likely Magnus did expect ...?c5 more.}) 10. c3 $146 {Amazingly this move according to my database is already a novelty.} (10. Be3 {This was played by Yu Yangyi.} Bxe3 11. Rxe3 d6 12. Nbd2 Na5 13. Ba2 c5 14. Nc4 Nxc4 15. Bxc4 Be6 $11 {Black has no problems here, and the game was drawn in a few moves in 1/2 (29) Yu Yangyi (2729)-Aronian,L (2785) Doha QAT 2016}) (10. Nbd2 {has also been tried a few times, including once by GM Wei Yi.}) 10... bxc3 {First small think here by Aronian for about 5 minutes.} (10... d6 {is also possible, but then Black has to count with the move d4.} 11. d4 Ba7 12. h3 {and maybe White can hope for something with some central control.}) 11. bxc3 {And about a 10-minute think by Magnus here. So, he probably didn't expect bxc3 so much. Or maybe more likely it's just a delayed transposition. Since bxc3 seems like the only logical move.} (11. Nxc3 $2 {seems anti-positional, leaving Black with a strong d4-square and leaving White with backward pawns b2 and d3, for no real compensation.} d6 $15) 11... Rb8 12. Bg5 $5 {This is an ambitious move, which allows Black to hunt the bishop down in return for weakening his king somewhat.} (12. Nbd2 $11 {was of course an alternative.}) 12... h6 13. Bh4 g5 $1 {Aronian is not the type to back down from principled continuations.} 14. Bg3 (14. Nxg5 $2 {just did not work tactically for White:} hxg5 15. Bxg5 Rxb3 $1 {This is the point, otherwise White can hope for some compensation.} 16. Qxb3 Bxf2+ 17. Kxf2 Ng4+ 18. Kg1 Qxg5 $19 {and Black is completely winning here. Material is roughly equal, but Black's pieces are much better and he has a strong attack.}) 14... Nh5 $1 {Usually the rule is: in for a penny, in for a pound. Very energetic play by Aronian here, and he had to foresee some other interesting possibilites from White as well here. What's also impressive is that Aronian executed the sequence of ...g5 and ...?h5 quite quickly, in less than 10 minutes.} (14... d6 $6 {was probably not the best idea. Seems a bit slow.} 15. Nbd2 g4 (15... Nh5 $2 16. Nxe5 $18) 16. Nh4 Nh5 17. Nf5 Bxf5 18. exf5 Qg5 19. Ne4 Qxf5 20. Nxc5 dxc5 21. Bd5 Nxg3 22. hxg3 Ne7 23. Bc4 $16 {would be very strong for White.}) 15. Nbd2 {Played after about 20 minutes of thought and rightfully so. White certainly had interesting alternatives here as well.} (15. Nxe5 $5 Nxg3 16. Nxc6 dxc6 17. hxg3 {Seems like it's just winning for White, but ...} (17. d4 Nxe4 18. Rxe4 Bd6 19. Nd2 c5 $11 {is probably roughly equal.}) 17... Rxb3 $1 18. Qxb3 Qxd3 {This strong exchange sacrifice shatters White's centre, and suddenly here, Black has very strong threats with his very active pieces, and White has to think about defending now.} 19. Qd1 Qxg3 20. Qf3 Qxf3 21. gxf3 Rd8 $44 {and I'd probably prefer Black here, since he has a 2 bishop advantage and a pawn as well as very active pieces for the exchange.}) (15. Bd5 Nxg3 16. hxg3 Qf6 {might be something similar to the game.}) 15... Nxg3 16. hxg3 Qf6 {A very sensible option, activating the queen.} (16... g4 {was also a possible alternative with complex play.} 17. Nh2 h5 18. Nxg4 hxg4 19. Qxg4+ Kh7 20. Qh5+ Kg7 21. Qg4+ $11 {was a possible line.}) 17. Nc4 (17. Bd5 $5 g4 18. d4 Ba7 19. Nxe5 Nxe5 20. dxe5 Qg5 (20... Qxf2+ $2 21. Kh2 Rb2 22. Qxg4+ Kh7 23. Re2 $16) (20... Bxf2+ $4 21. Kf1 $18) 21. Qe2 {would lead to complex play.}) 17... d6 18. Ne3 Be6 {Aronian continues to play the most ambitious way.} (18... Bxe3 $11) 19. Bxe6 {Played after about 25 minutes of thinking and I'm not sure if it's the best move since now Magnus helps Levon activate his rook on f8.} (19. Nd5 {was probably more sensible.} Bxd5 20. Bxd5 (20. exd5 $5) 20... Ne7 21. Bc4 g4 {wasn't so scary because of...} 22. d4 Ba7 23. Nh4 exd4 24. cxd4 Bxd4 25. Qxg4+ Qg5 26. Qxg5+ hxg5 27. Rad1 Bc3 28. Re3 {with a roughly equal game.}) (19. Nd2 Na5 {might be slightly unpleasant for white.}) 19... fxe6 20. Qc2 (20. g4 $5 Qf4 21. Qc2 Bxe3 22. Rxe3 Qxg4 23. Qa2 $44 {is surprising compensation for White since he activates his queen and can soon control the centre, whilst Black's king is slightly weakened.}) 20... h5 21. Rab1 Rxb1 (21... Rbe8 {perhaps keeping the rooks also deserved attention.}) 22. Rxb1 h4 {The computer doesn't like this move, but it's not clear if Black would be able to make sufficient progress if he played the line recommended by the computer.} (22... g4 23. Nh4 Bb6 24. Rb2 {and even though it seems like Black is slightly better, it does not seem so clear how Black should make progress.}) 23. gxh4 gxh4 24. Rb7 (24. Nh2 $11) 24... h3 $6 {But this already seems to be a little bit over ambitious. Now White will have the upper hand. Black had decent alternatives here to maintain the balance.} (24... Qg7 25. Qe2 h3 26. g3 Bb6 27. Nh4 $1 Na5 28. Rxb6 cxb6 29. Qh5 $132 {Here White has enough counterplay for a draw.}) (24... Rf7 25. Nh2 $11) (24... Bb6 25. Nc4 Qg7 26. Nxb6 Rxf3 27. Qe2 Rf7 28. Nc4 $11) 25. Rxc7 hxg2 26. Qe2 Ne7 27. Ne1 $1 {Could it be that Aronian missed this defensive move when he played ...h3? Hard to say what exactly Aronian missed or underestimated.} Rb8 $6 (27... Qh6 28. N1xg2 Rf7 {might've been a little bit more solid but still, White is up a pawn and is probably better.}) 28. Qg4+ $2 {Magnus has used up a lot of time and energy to try to solve the difficult problems that Aronian has posed him this game, and now it's taking its toll. At this point both players are going to make a few mistakes in this complex position.} (28. Qf3 $1 Qxf3 29. Nxf3 Ng6 {Perhaps Magnus thought this would be annoying counterplay for Black but in fact White is actually doing quite well here.} 30. Ng4 $1 {Not the most natural move, maybe the key move that Magnus missed, since without this move things are not so clear. Black might indeed have sufficient counterplay.} (30. Nxg2 $2 Rb1+ $11) (30. Kxg2 $2 Nf4+) 30... Nf4 $2 (30... Kf8 31. Kxg2 Nf4+ 32. Kh2 Rb3 33. Ng5 $1 Ke8 34. Nf7 $1 {and White thanks to combination of threats against Black's king, as well as his weak pawns is winning despite the fact that Black's counterplay looks real.}) 31. Nf6+ {this is the point.} Kf8 (31... Kh8 32. Rh7#) 32. Nd7+ $18) 28... Ng6 $2 {Black errs in return.} (28... Kf8 {Seems fine for Black.} 29. Nf3 {Maybe this was Magnus's plan, but here Black has also very strong counterplay with...} (29. Qf3 Qxf3 30. Nxf3 Ke8 {Now Black is in time with his king to kick out the annoying rook and White has to be careful not to be worse.} 31. Ng5 (31. d4 Bb6 32. Rc4 exd4 33. cxd4 Kd7 $11) 31... Bb6 32. Rc4 Kd7 33. Nh7 Ng6 34. Nxg2 Bd8 35. Rb4 $11) 29... Qh6 $1 30. Kxg2 (30. Ng5 $4 Qh1#) 30... Bxe3 31. fxe3 Rb2+ 32. Kg3 Qxe3 33. Qh4 Qf2+ 34. Kg4 Qg2+ (34... Qxh4+ $11) 35. Qg3 Qf1 $15) 29. Nf3 $1 Rb2 {Maybe Aronian thought he is fine here, since it seems like he has sufficient counterplay, but now Magnus finds a very nice forced sequence to get what should've been a decisive advantage.} 30. d4 $1 exd4 31. e5 $1 dxe5 32. Nc4 $1 $18 Rb1+ 33. Kxg2 e4 $5 {The best chance to muddy the waters. And it worked!} (33... dxc3 34. Rxc5 c2 35. Ncxe5 c1=Q 36. Rxc1 Rxc1 37. Nxg6 $18 {is completely hopeless for Black.}) 34. Qxe4 $2 {And now unexpectedly just a few moves before reaching the time control and converting his winning position comfortably, Magnus makes a big slip.} (34. Nfe5 $1 {was winning. I'm sure Magnus saw this move, but maybe he saw some ghosts in some line.} e3 (34... dxc3 35. Rxc5 c2 {The critical testing line.} (35... Qf5 36. Nd6 Qxg4+ 37. Nxg4 $18 {is a simple technical position.}) 36. Rc8+ $1 Kg7 37. Nd6 $1 {Without the sequence of ?c8+! followed by ?d6! White is actually not winning, so perhaps Magnus missed this very nice idea.} Qxe5 (37... c1=Q 38. Rxc1 Rxc1 39. Ne8+) 38. Rc7+ {and White will mate in a few moves here.}) (34... Qf5 35. Qxg6+ Qxg6+ 36. Nxg6 dxc3 37. Nf4 c2 38. Ne2 $18 {is an easy win for White.}) 35. Rf7 $1 $18 {Or perhaps Magnus missed this?}) 34... Nf4+ $1 35. Kg3 Ne2+ $1 {Or maybe Magnus just missed ...?e2+ here? Because without this move, White is winning.} (35... Nh5+ $2 36. Kg4 $18 {Here Black runs out of counterplay.}) 36. Kg4 (36. Qxe2 Qg6+ {This line will lead to a perpetual check.} 37. Kf4 Qf5+ 38. Kg3 Qg6+ 39. Kh2 Qh5+ 40. Kg2 Qg4+ $11) 36... Qf5+ 37. Qxf5 exf5+ 38. Kxf5 dxc3 $1 {It's also possible Magnus missed this key move from far away. Without this move Black is still losing. But now Black has just enough counterplay.} 39. Rxc5 c2 40. Rc8+ Kg7 41. Rc7+ Kg8 42. Kf6 Rg1 (42... Rb8 {was also drawing, but Levon understandably saw the other drawing line and perhaps didn't see the need to calculate the consequences of ...?b8, since after ...?b8, White has potentially a dangerous initiative and if you miss something subtle, it can be deadly. Here are some variations.} 43. Rg7+ {This is much more critical.} (43. Nce5 {isn't dangerous because} c1=Q 44. Rg7+ Kf8 45. Rf7+ Kg8 $11 {and White has no more than a perpetual.} (45... Ke8 46. Re7+ Kd8 47. Nf7+ Kc8 48. Nd6+ $11)) 43... Kf8 $1 (43... Kh8 $2 44. Nd6 Rb6 45. Rd7 c1=Q 46. Rd8+ Kh7 47. Ng5+ Qxg5+ 48. Kxg5 Rb4 49. Rd7+ Kg8 50. Re7 Nc3 51. a5 $16 {with good winning chances for White.}) 44. Ng5 $5 {Again the most critical.} (44. Nfe5 Nf4 45. Rf7+ (45. Nd6 $4 Nh5+ $19) 45... Kg8 46. Rg7+ Kf8 $11) (44. Nh4 Nf4 45. Ng6+ Nxg6 46. Nd6 c1=Q 47. Rf7+ Kg8 48. Rg7+ $11) 44... Nf4 (44... c1=Q $4 45. Ne6+ Ke8 46. Re7#) 45. Nh7+ Ke8 46. Rg8+ (46. Kf5 c1=Q 47. Nf6+ Kf8 48. Rg8+ Ke7 49. Rg7+ $11) 46... Kd7 47. Rxb8 Nd5+ $1 {And this is the key move. 47.?h5+ also works with a similar idea to distract the white king.} (47... c1=Q 48. Nb6+ Kd6 49. Rd8+ Kc7 50. Rc8+ $18) (47... Nh5+ {is also good.} 48. Ke5 (48. Kf7 c1=Q 49. Nb6+ Kd6 50. Rd8+ Ke5 $1) 48... c1=Q 49. Nb6+ Ke7 $11) 48. Ke5 (48. Kf7 c1=Q) 48... c1=Q 49. Kxd5 Qh1+ 50. Kc5 Kc7 51. Rb6 Qh5+ 52. Kd4 Qxh7 53. Rxa6 Qh4+ $11 {However, this variation is a little bit complicated and it's very easy to miscalculate a minor detail in a line like this and that can end up being very costly.}) 43. Nxg1 (43. Ng5 $5 {is the computer's choice, but after further investigation I came to the conclusion that it's probably just a positional draw, and most likely both players saw that as well.} Rxg5 44. Ne3 (44. Nd6 c1=Q 45. Rxc1 Nxc1 46. Kxg5 Nd3 {Is more or less the same thing.}) 44... c1=Q 45. Rxc1 Nxc1 46. Kxg5 Nd3 47. Nd1 Kf7 48. f4 Nc5 49. Nc3 a5 50. f5 Kg7 51. f6+ Kf7 52. Kf5 Kg8 $1 (52... Kf8 $2 53. Kg6 Kg8 54. Nd5 Nxa4 55. f7+ Kf8 56. Nf6 $18) 53. Kg6 Kf8 54. f7 Nd7 55. Ne4 Ne5+ 56. Kf6 Nxf7 $11) 43... c1=Q 44. Nxe2 Qh6+ $1 {Probably foreseen by Aronian in advance when he played 42...?g1. Now Black will win the knight on e2 by force, which practically makes the game a dead draw.} 45. Ke7 Qh7+ 46. Kd6 Qd3+ 47. Kc5 Qxe2 48. Kb6 Qxf2+ 49. Kxa6 Kf8 50. a5 Ke8 51. Nb6 Qf5 52. Rd7 Qc5 {Of course not...} (52... Qxd7 $4 53. Nxd7 Kxd7 54. Kb7 $18) 53. Rh7 Qe5 54. Rd7 Qc5 55. Rd5 Qc6 56. Rh5 Qc3 57. Kb7 Qg7+ 58. Ka6 Kd8 59. Rd5+ Kc7 {A neat move taking advantage of a stalemate idea.} (59... Ke8 {Of course this also draws.}) 60. Rd7+ Kb8 61. Rd8+ Kc7 62. Rc8+ {Magnus is still playing for a win, but at this point the chance of Black making a mistake is quite small.} Kd6 63. Nc4+ Kd7 64. Rc5 Qg1 65. Kb6 Qb1+ 66. Ka7 Qb4 67. Nb6+ Kd6 68. Rh5 Kc6 69. Rh6+ Kb5 {Still not too late to go wrong with...} (69... Kc7 $4 70. Nd5+ $18) 70. Rh5+ Kc6 {A very nice fight between two top players and both excellent warriors in a fighting mood. Sure, it wasn't perfect from a mathematical standpoint of view, but it was a true battle, and really reflects on the idea that chess is after all a sport!} 1/2-1/2 [Event "World-ch Carlsen-Nepomniachtchi"] [Site "Dubai"] [Date "2021.11.26"] [Round "1"] [White "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2782"] [BlackElo "2855"] [Annotator "Adams,Michael"] [PlyCount "89"] [EventDate "2021.11.26"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "14"] [EventCountry "UAE"] [SourceTitle "CBM 206"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2022.02.28"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2022.02.28"] [SourceQuality "1"] {[%evp 0,89,69,19,71,-8,53,-27,45,-92,-71,-147,-44,-90,-58,-51,-30,-46,-7,-44,34,30,30,30,30,17,37,17,28,-18,3,-27,-40,-8,4,-9,26,35,46,-3,53,-3,24,-13,4,29,31,4,46,25,73,0,0,-11,33,28,50,31,22,6,61,-16,2,-14,10,-7,32,13,23,0,3,-27,-28,-28,-51,-72,-63,-85,-64,-71,38,37,18,18,59,59,60,59,40,29,29,7] After a lot of build up everyone was eager for the match to start, and this fighting game bodes well for the spectators. Nach langem Vorlauf warteten alle gespannt auf den Beginn des Matches, und diese Kampfpartie lässt die Zuschauer Gutes erhoffen.} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. h3 Na5 ({I was glad to see an opening that I have some experience with, but I was not at all aware of this rather rare move. Like many valuable new concepts, it doesn't seem so surprising in retrospect. Another important move discussed in the world championship game Karjakin-Carlsen continues Ich war froh, eine Eröffnung zu sehen, mit der ich einige Erfahrung habe, aber diesen ziemlich seltenen Zug hatte ich überhaupt nicht auf dem Schirm. Wie viele wertvolle neue Konzepte scheint er im Nachhinein nicht so überraschend zu sein. Ein weitere wichtige Fortsetzung, die in der WM-Partie Karjakin-Carlsen diskutiert wurde, verläuft} 8... Bb7 9. d3 d5 10. exd5 Nxd5 11. Nxe5 Nd4 {when Black will acquire the bishop pair and a lead in development to compensate for the pawn. In the game events develop in similar fashion. , wonach Schwarz als Kompensation für den Bauern das Läuferpaar und einen Entwicklungsvorsprung erhält. In der Partie entwickeln sich die Ereignisse auf ähnliche Weise.}) 9. Nxe5 Nxb3 (9... d6 $2 10. Nf3 c5 11. d3 {doesn't give enough. gibt nicht genug.}) 10. axb3 Bb7 11. d3 d5 {The forcing play continues. Das forcierte Spiel geht weiter.} 12. exd5 Qxd5 ({It's tempting to try Es ist verlockend,} 12... Nxd5 {but zu versuchen, aber} 13. d4 $1 {is a good response, the knight might drop back to d3 whilst his colleague goes to f3 to consolidate matters. ist eine gute Antwort, der Springer könnte sich nach d3 zurückziehen, während sein Kollege nach f3 geht, um die Lage zu konsolidieren.}) 13. Qf3 (13. Nf3 Rae8 {gives Black plenty of compensation, swapping queens is clearly preferable. gibt Schwarz viel Kompensation, ein Damentausch ist eindeutig vorzuziehen.}) 13... Bd6 14. Kf1 ({A subtle finesse. Not Eine subtile Finesse. Nicht} 14. Nc3 $2 Qxe5 15. Rxe5 Bxf3 $19) (14. Qxd5 Nxd5 15. Bd2 {gives Black a better version of the game. gibt Schwarz eine bessere Version der Partie.}) 14... Rfb8 {The players were rather substantially better informed than me, as Nepo confirmed at the press conference that this position was also in his preparation, whilst Carlsen was still playing quickly. Die Spieler waren wesentlich besser informiert als ich, denn Nepo bestätigte auf der Pressekonferenz, dass diese Stellung auch in seiner Vorbereitung war, während Carlsen immer noch schnell spielte.} (14... Rfe8 $2 15. Nc3 $1 Qxe5 16. Rxe5 Bxf3 17. Rxe8+ $16 {is exactly what White wants. ist genau das, was Weiß will.}) ({For those of you who that were hoping the queens would have stayed on the board a bit longer I can recommend investigating the very interesting, Denjenigen, die gehofft haben, dass die Damen noch etwas länger auf dem Brett bleiben, kann ich empfehlen, das sehr interessante} 14... Qxe5 $5 {here are some preliminary lines: zu untersuchen. Hier sind einige vorläufige Varianten:} 15. Qxb7 Qh2 {the black queen can't be evicted, and although there aren't immediate threats matters are quite complicated Die schwarze Dame kann nicht vertrieben werden, und obwohl es keine unmittelbaren Drohungen gibt, ist die Lage ziemlich kompliziert} 16. Nc3 {A real computer move Ein echter Computerzug} (16. Be3 c6 $1 17. Qxc6 Rac8 18. Qf3 Rxc2 {is ok for Black. ist für Schwarz in Ordnung.}) (16. Qf3 Rae8 17. Be3 Nh5 $1 {a great move clearing a path for the f-pawn ein großartiger Zug, der den Weg für den f-Bauern freimacht} 18. Qxh5 f5 19. f4 $1 Bxf4 20. Qf3 Bxe3 (20... Qh1+ 21. Kf2 Qxe1+ 22. Kxe1 Rxe3+ 23. Qxe3 Bxe3 24. Rxa6) 21. Rxe3 Qh1+ (21... f4 {looks rather scary sieht ziemlich gruselig aus} 22. Re4 $1 Rxe4 23. Qxe4 (23. dxe4 Rd8 $1) 23... f3 24. gxf3 Qxc2 25. Qe6+ Kh8 26. Qe2 Qc1+ 27. Kg2 {Black is worse here. Hier steht Schwarz schlechter.}) 22. Kf2 f4 23. Re4 Qc1 24. Ke2 Qxb2 25. Rxa6 Qxb1 26. Kd2 $14 {The material is regained but White's king has now found a safe home in the middle. Das Material wird zurückgewonnen, aber der weiße König hat nun ein sicheres Zuhause in der Mitte gefunden.}) 16... Rfe8 (16... Rae8 17. Be3 b4 18. Ne2 Qh1+ 19. Ng1 Bh2 (19... Nh5 20. Qf3 Bh2 21. Ke2 Nf4+ 22. Kd2) 20. Ke2) 17. Be3 c6 18. Qxc6 Rac8 19. Qf3 b4 20. Ne2 Rxc2 21. g4 Rxb2 22. Bd4 {with a wild position where White is apparently doing well. mit einer wilden Stellung, in der Weiß offenbar gut steht.}) 15. Qxd5 Nxd5 16. Bd2 ({White wants to keep the square c3 for his pieces, and Weiß will das Feld c3 für seine Figuren behalten, und} 16. c3 c5 {also makes the pawn on d3 vulnerable. macht auch den Bauern auf d3 verwundbar.}) (16. Nc3 $2 Nb4) 16... c5 {Black will rely on the greater space, activity and the long term potential of the bishops to maintain the balance. Schwarz wird sich auf den größeren Raum, die Aktivität und das langfristige Potenzial der Läufer verlassen, um das Gleichgewicht zu halten.} 17. Nf3 ({More subtle than Subtiler als} 17. Nc3 Nb4 18. Rac1 Rd8 {I thought stacking the knights on e3 and e2 could be good here Ich dachte, die Springer auf e3 und e2 zu stapeln, könnte hier gut sein.} 19. Ng4 h5 20. Ne3 Bf8 $1 21. Ne2 g6 $1 {is a sound response, the bishop can profitably emerge on g7 or h6. ist eine gute Antwort, der Läufer kann profitabel auf g7 oder h6 auftauchen.}) 17... Rd8 (17... Nb4 $5 18. Bxb4 (18. Rc1 {is similar to the game ist ähnlich wie die Partie}) 18... cxb4 {I once had a game with David Howell with this structure, although queens remained on the board in that game. One oddity of this pawn formation is that despite the preponderance of White pawns on the queenside, the fact that Black's pawns are all towards the edge of the board means that creating a passed a-pawn is a real possibility in the long term. Ich hatte einmal eine Partie mit David Howell mit dieser Struktur, obwohl in dieser Partie die Damen auf dem Brett blieben. Eine Besonderheit dieser Bauernformation ist, dass trotz der numerischen Überlegenheit der weißen Bauern am Damenflügel die schwarzen Bauern alle am Brettrand stehen, was bedeutet, dass die Schaffung eines a-Freibauern auf lange Sicht eine echte Möglichkeit ist.} 19. c4 (19. Nbd2 Rc8 $1) 19... Bxf3 20. gxf3 Bf4 $13) 18. Nc3 Nb4 19. Rec1 {An interesting decision the other rook can be useful on the a-file sometimes, and as all the entry squares on the e-file are well protected, it isn't so influential there. The position is quite tense and not that easy to play, often releasing the tension is a mistake. The next few moves see both players move the same minor piece on consecutive moves as White tries to untangle. Eine interessante Entscheidung, der andere Turm kann manchmal auf der a-Linie nützlich sein, und da alle Einbruchsfelder auf der e-Linie gut geschützt sind, ist er dort nicht so einflussreich. Die Stellung ist ziemlich spannungsvoll und nicht ganz einfach zu spielen, oft ist es ein Fehler, die Spannung zu lösen. In den nächsten Zügen ziehen beide Spieler mehrmals nacheinander dieselbe Leichtfigur, während Weiß versucht, sich zu entwirren.} Rac8 ({I hope that one day I can impose c4, Ich hoffe, dass ich eines Tages c4 durchsetzen kann,} 19... f6 20. Ne2 Kf7 {looked like a good alternative sah wie eine gute Alternative aus}) 20. Ne2 ({The constraint Das forcierende} 20. Ne4 Bf8 {is less impressive ist weniger beeindruckend} 21. Bxb4 (21. Ng3 Bxf3 22. gxf3 g6 $1) 21... cxb4 22. Ne1 g6 {and Black will fianchetto another bishop to great effect. und Schwarz wird einen weiteren Läufer mit großer Wirkung fianchettieren.}) 20... Nc6 ({A surprising retreat when Ein überraschender Rückzug, zumal} 20... Bf8 21. Bxb4 ({The cautious Das vorsichtige} 21. Ne1 $5 {or oder}) (21. Bc3 $5 {are more challenging. sind eine größere Herausforderung.}) 21... cxb4 22. d4 g6 23. c3 Bh6 24. Rd1 Bd5 {is ok for Black ok für Schwarz ist.}) (20... f6 $5 {still seems sensible scheint immer noch sinnvoll}) 21. Be3 ({White would like to push d4 here, all his pieces are set for this advance, and this further reinforces that idea. However, I think Weiß möchte hier d4 durchdrücken, alle seine Figuren sind für diesen Vorstoß bereit, und dies verstärkt diese Idee noch. Ich denke jedoch} 21. Bf4 $1 {made sense here, Black's pieces are a bit disorganised for the moment. ergab hier Sinn, denn die Figuren von Schwarz sind im Moment etwas unorganisiert.} Bf8 (21... Be7 22. Bg5 $1 f6 23. Be3 Nb4 24. d4 $14) 22. Rd1 Ne7 23. d4 $14) 21... Ne7 $1 ({Another knight move, but a good decision, since he will find another good position on f5. Ein weiterer Springerzug, aber eine gute Entscheidung, da er eine weitere gute Stellung auf f5 finden wird.} 21... Nb4 $6 22. d4 $1) 22. Bf4 $6 ({At a critical moment Ian forces an bishop exchange, which is not good, more patient play was more practical and precise. In einem kritischen Moment erzwingt Ian einen Läufertausch, was nicht gut ist, geduldigeres Spiel war praktischer und präziser.} 22. Rd1 Nf5 23. Bd2 f6 {isn't that impressive. ist nicht besonders beeindruckend.}) ({I like Mir gefällt} 22. Ng3 $1 {the most after am meisten, nach} Nd5 {Black's play doesn't make a convincing impression, having taken three moves to transfer the knight to d5 from b4. All those jumps had their points, and interfered with White's plans, but macht das Spiel von Schwarz keinen überzeugenden Eindruck, da er drei Züge brauchte, um den Springer von b4 nach d5 zu bringen. Alle diese Sprünge hatten ihre Berechtigung und durchkreuzten die Pläne von Weiß, aber} (22... f5 23. Re1 $1) 23. Bd2 {is the kind of position White should aim for. ist die Art von Stellung, die Weiß anstreben sollte.}) (22. Nc3 $5 Nf5 23. Ne4 {White's knight has taken the scenic route to e4. Der weiße Springer hat die Aussichtsroute nach e4 genommen.} Be7 24. Bd2 (24. Bf4 c4 $1) 24... f6 (24... c4 25. bxc4 bxc4 26. Ba5)) ({The direct Die direkte} 22. d4 Nf5 23. c3 {or oder} (23. Rd1 {also have some merit. haben auch einige Vorzüge.})) 22... Bxf3 23. gxf3 Bxf4 24. Nxf4 Rc6 $1 {The position has clarified, and this move is very strong - the pawn on a6 is secured, and now the White rook on a1 becomes peripheral to the action. Black's rook can also be active along the third rank, in particular probing White's shattered kingside pawns. Die Stellung hat sich geklärt, und dieser Zug ist sehr stark - der Bauer auf a6 ist gesichert, und nun wird der weiße Turm auf a1 zum Zuschauer des Geschehens. Der schwarze Turm kann auch auf der dritten Reihe aktiv werden und dabei insbesondere die zerschlagenen weißen Bauern am Königsflügel angehen.} 25. Re1 (25. Ra5 g6 26. Rca1 Rdd6 {leaves White's rooks up a blind alley. lässt die Türme von Weiß in einer Sackgasse stehen.}) 25... Nf5 26. c3 {The knight is kept away from d4, but now there are lots of weaklings. Der Springer wird von d4 ferngehalten, aber jetzt gibt es eine Menge Schwächlinge.} Nh4 27. Re3 Kf8 ({A strange decision Eine seltsame Entscheidung} 27... g6 {gets rid of back rank issues, and Black might well regain the pawn with a much more compact position. beseitigt die Probleme der Grundreihe, und Schwarz könnte durchaus den Bauern in einer viel kompakteren Stellung zurückgewinnen.} 28. Ke2 (28. Ng2 $2 Nf5) 28... h6 $5 {would be a little unpleasant to meet the knight on f4 is not secure, and has no flight squares. wäre ein wenig unangenehm zu spielen, der Springer auf f4 ist nicht sicher und hat keine Fluchtfelder.} (28... Kf8 {is a better version of the game ist eine bessere Version der Partie}) (28... Rf6 29. Re4)) 28. Ng2 ({Now after Jetzt ist nach} 28. Ke2 g5 {or oder} (28... Rf6 {are good for Black. gut für Schwarz.})) 28... Nf5 29. Re5 g6 30. Ne1 ({A passive place for the knight although it does protect two of the weak pawns. Ein passiver Platz für den Springer, obwohl er zwei der schwachen Bauern schützt.} 30. Ke2 $1 {leaves White's rook without many squares but it isn't easy to exploit this. lässt den weißen Turm ohne viele Felder, aber es ist nicht einfach, dies auszunutzen.} Ng7 $1 {looks best, but it is a much better version of the game for White. sieht am besten aus, aber es ist eine viel bessere Version der Partie für Weiß.} (30... f6 31. Re4 Nd6 32. Rh4 $1 {and White's rook is not as short of room as it looks und der weiße Turm hat nicht so wenig Platz, wie es aussieht} (32. Re3 Kf7 $1 {leaves White without an obvious move. lässt Weiß ohne einen offensichtlichen Zug zurück.} (32... Nf5 33. Re4 {repeats mit Zugwiederholung})) 32... h5 (32... Rd7 33. Ne3 $14) 33. b4 (33. Ne3 g5 $2 34. Rxh5 Kg7 35. Rg1 $1 Kg6 36. Rh4 $18) 33... g5 34. Rxh5 Kg7 35. bxc5 Kg6 36. Rh4 $16)) 30... Ng7 31. Re4 (31. f4 $5 Ne6 32. f5 Nf4 33. fxg6 hxg6 34. Re3 {at least swaps one of the weak pawns. tauscht zumindest einen der schwachen Bauern.}) 31... f5 $1 ({The rook should be driven to the rear Der Turm sollte nach hinten getrieben werden} 31... Ne6 $6 32. b4 $1 {is much more what White is looking for ist viel mehr das, wonach Weiß sucht} f5 ({After Nach} 32... Ng5 {the amusing ist das Amüsante} 33. bxc5 (33. Rh4 {is a simpler option. ist eine einfachere Option.}) 33... Nxe4 34. fxe4 Rxc5 35. Rxa6 {is fun lustig.}) (32... cxb4 $142 33. Rxb4 g5) 33. Rxe6 Rxe6 34. bxc5 {is dangerous only for Black ist nur für Schwarz gefährlich} Rde8 35. d4 Re2 36. Nd3 Rd2 37. Ne5) 32. Re3 Ne6 33. Ng2 {It is clear Black's knight is dominating it's adversary. Es ist klar, dass der schwarze Springer seinen Gegenüber dominiert.} b4 $1 ({Black could have improved the king first with Schwarz hätte den König zuerst mit} 33... Kf7 {but this would give White's own king more time to reinforce the queenside - playing this directly maximises the pressure. verbessern können, aber dies würde dem weißen König mehr Zeit geben, den Damenflügel zu verstärken - dies direkt zu spielen, maximiert den Druck.}) 34. Ke2 {A sad move to make, but as the c3 pawn must stay in place to keep d4 covered there are no other promising options. Ein trauriger Zug, aber da der c3-Bauer stehen bleiben muss, um d4 zu decken, gibt es keine anderen vielversprechenden Möglichkeiten.} Rb8 35. Kd2 $1 ({Return of the pledge on its terms Rückgabe des Bauern zu seinen Bedingungen.} 35. Rb1 $2 a5 $1 36. Kd2 bxc3+ 37. bxc3 a4 {is already very serious ist bereits sehr ernst} 38. Kc2 $2 axb3+ 39. Rxb3 Nd4+ $19) 35... bxc3+ 36. bxc3 Rxb3 37. Kc2 (37. Ra2 Rb1 38. Re1 Rxe1 39. Nxe1 Nf4 {is also not desirable. ist ebenfalls nicht wünschenswert}) 37... Rb7 (37... Rcb6 $2 38. Rxe6 $1 $18) 38. h4 Kf7 (38... Nd4+ 39. Kd1 {doesn't lead anywhere. führt nirgendwo hin.}) ({However Magnus could use this tactical idea to play Magnus konnte diese taktische Idee jedoch dazu nutzen,} 38... a5 $1 {as zu spielen, da} 39. Rxa5 $2 (39. Ree1 $1 Rcb6 40. Ra2 a4 41. Ne3 Ra6 42. Rea1 Rba7 $15 {is no fun for White, the a-pawn is now much more useful. The direct 33...b4! was well timed, but here Carlsen was not quite urgent enough. ist kein Spaß für Weiß, der a-Bauer ist jetzt viel nützlicher. Das direkte 33...b4! war gut getimt, aber hier war Carlsen nicht zwingend genug.}) 39... Nd4+ {isn't possible. ist nicht möglich.}) (38... Rcb6 $5 {was also better than the move played. war auch besser als der gespielte Zug.}) 39. Ree1 $1 {Suddenly White's co-ordination has returned, and now the knight that has had a hard life recently has a route to freedom via e3 and c4.The b5 pawn's disappearance created this new potential. Plötzlich ist die weiße Koordination zurückgekehrt, und der Springer, der in letzter Zeit ein schweres Leben hatte, hat nun einen Weg in die Freiheit über e3 und c4. Das Verschwinden des b5-Bauern hat dieses neue Potenzial geschaffen.} Kf6 40. Ne3 ({After} 40. Ra2 f4 {leaves the knight on g2 looking silly again. This may not be so bad, but it is not easy to allow. lässt den Springer auf g2 wieder dumm aussehen. Das mag nicht so schlimm sein, aber man lässt es nicht gerne zu.}) 40... Rd7 (40... Nf4 $1 {looked rather obvious and sets a small trap sah ziemlich offensichtlich aus und stellt eine kleine Falle} 41. Nc4 (41. Ra4 $2 Rb2+ $1 42. Kxb2 Nxd3+ $19) 41... Re7 {is still not completely dead ist noch nicht ganz tot} 42. Rxe7 (42. Re3 $5) 42... Kxe7 43. Ra4 Ng2 $1 {and White must be more careful. und Weiß muss mehr aufpassen.}) 41. Nc4 ({White could even play Weiß könnte sogar} 41. Ra4 $5 {as proposed by Judit Polgar. spielen, wie von Judit Polgar vorgeschlagen.} Rd8 (41... h5 $6 42. Nc4 $14) 42. Rea1 Rcd6 43. Rd1 {is likely to lead to the same result. The players head for a repetition instead. wird wahrscheinlich zum gleichen Ergebnis führen. Die Spieler steuern stattdessen auf eine Wiederholung zu.}) 41... Re7 42. Ne5 ({Even the 'oversight' Selbst das 'Verrsehen'} 42. Ra4 Nd4+ 43. cxd4 Rxe1 44. d5 Rc8 45. Rxa6+ Kg7 46. Ra7+ {leads to a draw. führt zu einem Unentschieden.}) 42... Rd6 43. Nc4 Rc6 44. Ne5 Rd6 45. Nc4 {An interesting opening encounter. Magnus edged the preparation battle, although clearly both particpants are well armed there. Carlsen got the type of position he would probably be happy to see in this match, but Ian got back on track after drifting earlier in the endgame. The Marshall also proved a tough nut to crack for Nepomniachtchi's compatriot Sergey Karjakin in their match. With no free day before game three, it will be intriguing to see if Magnus repeats his opening choice then. Eine interessante Auftaktbegegnung. Magnus gewann die Vorbereitungsschlacht, obwohl beide Teilnehmer dort eindeutig gut gerüstet sind. Carlsen bekam die Art von Stellung, die er in diesem Match wahrscheinlich gerne sehen würde, aber Ian kam, nachdem er anfangs im Endspiel abdriftete, wieder in die Spur. Marshall erwies sich auch für Nepomniachtchis Landsmann Sergey Karjakin als harte Nuss in ihrem Match . Da es vor der dritten Partie keinen freien Tag mehr gibt, wird es spannend sein zu sehen, ob Magnus seine Eröffnungswahl dann wiederholt.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "World-ch Carlsen-Karjakin +1-1=10"] [Site "New York"] [Date "2016.11.18"] [Round "6"] [White "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2769"] [BlackElo "2853"] [Annotator "Hillarp Persson,Tiger"] [PlyCount "64"] [EventDate "2016.11.11"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "12"] [EventCountry "USA"] [SourceTitle "CBM 176"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2017.01.17"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2017.01.17"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 {I have spent my entire life as a chess player, trying to find assymetry where I can find it. Magnus and Sergey operate from a more elevated view-point than mine, and although they both occasionaly flirt with assymmetry, I do not get the feeling that they believe it merits a proper relationship.} 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 ({In a sense the Ruy Lopez is a little more ambitious than the G-whatever Piano (In Swedish we call it "the Italian", so I'm excused for not acing the spelling bee). If we continue down the rabbit hole with} 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. O-O Nf6 5. d3 O-O {, there is a big difference between... this position, compared to the more easily spelled sibling; that Black has still not moved the pawns on the queenside. This difference means that Black has fewer weaknesses to take care of and it could turn out to be the whole difference between a win and a big advantage (for White) later in the game.}) 3... a6 ({I believe it was Julian Hodgson who said that the only problem with 1.e4, compared to 1.d4, is that the e4-pawn is hanging. After} 3... Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 {we reach one such position, the Berlin Defence. (The Petroff is another)} 5. Re1 Nd6 6. Nxe5 Be7 7. Bf1 Nxe5 8. Rxe5 O-O {was seen in game three of the match. Black argues that a reasonably symmetrical position makes White's extra tempo less important. Time has told it is a decent argument.}) 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 (6. d3 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. a3 {was played in the second game of the match. The main difference here is that Black can play d6 before 0-0 without having to fear a rapid c3/d4, which would lead to the one of the old main lines.} (8. a4 {is also played frequently, but after} Bd7 {has been doing quite well lately.})) 6... b5 7. Bb3 O-O {It sounds ridiculous to call such a move "critical", but in a sense it is.} ({The reason is that} 7... d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 {leads to a one of the biggest theoretical tablelands in chess, whereas the game move avoids that altogether by meeting 8.c3 with 8...d5. In days of old, this line, the "Marshall Attack", led to slugfest bonanzas, but in the age of engine-guided preparations it has a tendency to end in draws. This explains why a defensively minded wielder of the dark forces is naturally drawn to the Marshall Attack.}) 8. h3 {The consequence of Karjakin's last move is that White is forced to play this move, unless he is happy to enter the "old" lines after 8...d6 9.c3.} (8. a4 {After} Bb7 9. d3 Re8 (9... d6 {is more popular.}) 10. Nc3 Nd4 11. axb5 Nxb3 12. cxb3 axb5 13. Rxa8 Bxa8 14. Nxb5 d5 {Dominguez Perez,L (2730)-Carlsen,M (2850) World Rapid 2015, Black equalised with ease.}) (8. c3 d5 9. exd5 Nxd5 10. Nxe5 Nxe5 11. Rxe5 c6 {is the starting position of the above mentioned Marshall Attack. I'm too old to try to get familiar with it. Perhaps I would, if jailed by nazis and left with only a monograph (written by Peter Svidler) to fend for my sanity, eventually be able to say something sensible about this position. And although the likelihood of this scenario has increased lately, I'm afraid that you'll have to wait until some time next year, at least. (Seeing the draw looming twenty moves ahead, you'll have to excuse me for trying to pump up the drama a bit.)}) 8... Bb7 {The most natural move if Black wants to avoid} 9. d3 (9. c3 $6 d5 $1 {is nice for Black. It is not recommended to play} 10. exd5 Nxd5 11. Nxe5 $2 (11. d4) 11... Nxe5 12. Rxe5 Nf4 {, when catastrophe strikes the white camp. Reading the unfulfilled expectations of some kibitzers, I get the feeling that they expect something like this, and nothing less. Sorry guys. You should stick with risk.}) 9... d5 $5 {This Marshall Attack-inspired gambit can hardly have come as a surprise for Karjakin, partly because it is a main line and partly because it is played to draw. Especially the latter reason should have appealed to Magnus after yesterday's rather wobbly performance.} ({In a rapid game against Zhigalko last year, Magnus played} 9... d6 10. a3 Nb8 11. Nbd2 Nbd7 12. Nf1 Re8 13. Ng3 Bf8 14. Ng5 d5 15. exd5 Nc5 16. c4 {and had to fight to equalise.}) 10. exd5 Nxd5 11. Nxe5 ({Neither of the players has room to deviate. Here} 11. a4 Nd4 $1 {equalises immediately.}) 11... Nd4 $1 {Compared to the Marshall Attack, Black doesn't have as much of an attack here. The compensation is of a more positional character. While the bishop on b7 roams freely, Black's queenside pawns don't have to worry about a2-a4 (since ?xb3 would completely ruin White's pawn structure) and c7-c5 will take a lot of space. From a White perspective, the c2-pawn has to be taken care of and the knight on e5 turns out to be in a rather awkward position...} 12. Nc3 Nb4 ({An instructive illustration of my last comment about the knight on e5:} 12... Nxb3 13. axb3 Nb4 14. Bd2 f6 $1 15. Ng4 f5 $1 {The pawn is accelerated forward as it attacks the knight.} 16. Ne5 Bd6 17. Na2 Bxe5 18. Rxe5 Nc6 19. Re1 f4 20. Bc3 $6 ({Black also has a strong attack after} 20. f3 Nd4 21. Rf1 Rf6) 20... f3 21. Re4 a5 $5 22. b4 {and now, instead of} axb4 {which was unclear, in Timofeev,A (2658)-Sokolov,I (2655) Sarajevo 2007, Black should have played} (22... Ne7 $1 {, with a very strong attack.})) 13. Bf4 {Perhaps there is nothing better here, but this move doesn't feel right to me. Why? There is something about putting the bishop in the line of fire (g5/?d5) and striving to tuck it in on h2 that rings false. I'd prefer to put it on c3. On the other hand the bishop is not obstructing the queen and could come to e5. After weighing the pros and cons, I must disagree with my first instinct. It does indeed make sense.} ({I'd probably spend some time on} 13. Bd2 {according to the principle "less is more" (and "don't put the bishop on a square where it is likely to be attacked").}) (13. Ne4 {has been played a number of times and the lines after} Nxb3 14. axb3 Qd5 15. Nf3 f5 {seem to hold no danger to Black.}) 13... Nxb3 14. axb3 c5 15. Ne4 {Karjakin is trying to prove that the inclusion of ?f4 and ...c5 somehow favours White.} f6 $1 {According to the reports I read, Carlsen continued to blitz out the moves even now, so it's pretty clear that this was all part of his preparations.} 16. Nf3 f5 $1 {A recurring idea leaving White with little choice.} 17. Neg5 $1 (17. Ng3 Bxf3 $1 {and it becomes obvious why the attack on the c2-pawn is a problem for White:} 18. gxf3 (18. Qxf3 Nxc2 $19) 18... Bf6 $36) (17. Ned2 {is the most ambitious move, since it keeps some pieces on the board. After} Bf6 18. Be5 Re8 19. Rc1 h6 20. Re2 {What else?} Bxe5 21. Nxe5 Nd5 {White cannot let the knight land on f4 and} 22. g3 f4 {gives Black a nasty initiative. So, it seems that the most ambitious move was less than good.}) 17... Bxg5 18. Nxg5 h6 $1 19. Ne6 Qd5 20. f3 Rfe8 {The last five moves have basically been forced, but now White has two alternatives; one human and one non human.} 21. Re5 (21. Nc7 Qd4+ 22. Kh1 Rxe1+ 23. Qxe1 Qxf4 24. Nxa8 Nxc2 {looks like absolute disaster for White from afar, but in fact White can get a draw in more than one way. One pretty line is} 25. Qe8+ Kh7 26. Nb6 $3 Nxa1 27. Nd7 {and Black has no defence against the ?f8/ ?d7-pendulum.}) 21... Qd6 22. c3 {The challenger goes for the draw in the most solid manner.} ({The more complicated} 22. Re2 {also ends up in equality after} Qd7 23. Nc7 (23. Nxc5 $2 Qd4+) 23... Rxe2 24. Qxe2 Rc8 25. Re1 Qd4+ 26. Qe3 Nxc2 27. Qxd4 Nxd4 28. Re7 {Alas, how forced!} Nc6 29. Rd7 Rd8 30. Rxd8+ Nxd8 31. Bd6 Kf7 32. Bxc5 Ne6 33. Nxe6 Kxe6 {is a most drawish draw.}) 22... Rxe6 23. Rxe6 Qxe6 24. cxb4 cxb4 {If White was allowed to play d4, ?e5 and then put the queen or rook in such a place from where it would keep an eye on g7; then White would be better.} 25. Rc1 Rc8 {But Carlsen will not let White have three moves for free.} 26. Rxc8+ Qxc8 27. Qe1 Qd7 28. Kh2 a5 29. Qe3 Bd5 30. Qb6 Bxb3 31. Qxa5 Qxd3 32. Qxb4 Be6 {Next Black will put the queen on d7 and the position will reach a state of zero entropy. So, draw agreed.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "Sinquefield Cup 5th"] [Site "Saint Louis"] [Date "2017.08.11"] [Round "9"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Aronian, Levon"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2822"] [BlackElo "2809"] [Annotator "Szabo,Krisztian"] [PlyCount "103"] [EventDate "2017.08.02"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "USA"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 180"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2017.09.13"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2017.09.13"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. a4 b4 9. a5 d6 10. d3 Be6 11. Bxe6 {A relatively new idea. White exchanges the bishops, opens the f-file for Black, but he hopes that the double-pawns on the e-file will be a weakness for Black.} (11. Nbd2 {is the another main move.}) 11... fxe6 12. Nbd2 Rb8 13. c3 ({In the first round Carlsen had this line with Black too,} 13. Nb3 Qc8 14. Qe2 Nd8 15. d4 exd4 16. Nbxd4 c5 17. Nb3 e5 18. Nbd2 Ne6 19. Nc4 Nd4 20. Nxd4 cxd4 21. Nb6 Qc6 22. Bg5 Bd8 23. Bxf6 Bxb6 24. axb6 Rxf6 25. Rxa6 h6 26. Qd3 Rxb6 $11 {Caruana-Carlsen, Saint Louis 2017, with an equal position.}) 13... Qe8 14. Nc4 $146 {A novelty by Carlsen.} ({Recently} 14. d4 {was played by Topalov,} bxc3 15. bxc3 exd4 16. cxd4 Rb5 17. Nc4 Qg6 18. Qe2 Nd7 $13 {Topalov-Adams, Shamkir 2017, with an unclear middlegame.}) 14... Qg6 15. h3 Nd7 {A typical continuation, Black prepares for ...d5.} ({Nevertheless I prefer} 15... Nh5 $5 {like an active move to play for ...?f4.}) 16. Be3 d5 17. Ncd2 {Of course White doesn't exchange. The e5- and e6-pawns became weaker.} bxc3 18. bxc3 Nc5 19. Bxc5 $1 {At first this seems a strange move. Why does White give up his nice bishop? The knight was exerting pressure on d3; moreover after removing the knight White has an extra possibility on the next move.} Bxc5 20. Qa4 $1 {This was the point of White's previous move.} Rb2 $5 {Ambitious reply!} 21. Rf1 $1 {Very deep move! Carlsen protects his f2-pawn in advance, now the c6-knight is hanging already.} ({The careless} 21. Qxc6 $2 {loses immediately, because of} Bxf2+ $1 22. Kxf2 Rxd2+ $19 {and Black is winning.}) 21... Na7 $6 {Too passive a move!} (21... Qe8 {should have been played, however} 22. Rab1 Rxb1 23. Rxb1 $14 {and White is more comfortable.}) 22. Nxe5 Qh6 23. Ndf3 Nb5 24. Rae1 $1 {White doesn't protect the c3-pawn and he solves the problem with a nice idea.} ({Moreover} 24. Rac1 $2 {could have been met by} Rxf2 $1 25. Rxf2 Qxc1+ $19 {and Black wins.}) 24... Nxc3 ({In the event of} 24... Bd6 25. exd5 exd5 (25... Nxc3 26. Qa1 $1 $16 {important tempo!}) 26. Qa1 $1 Rc2 27. c4 $1 $16 {White is better too.}) 25. Qc6 $1 {Suddenly Black has a lot of weaknesses on the queenside. White is safe, his pieces are active, the white queen is threatening to take the pawns.} Bb4 26. Kh1 {Probably this is not the strongest move, but a good practical prophylactic reply. The king moves away from a possible ...?e2+.} dxe4 (26... Ne2 27. Rb1 $16 {is similar to the text move.}) 27. dxe4 Ne2 28. Rb1 {White simplifies the position, so Black's pressure is decreasing.} Rxb1 29. Rxb1 Bd6 30. Qxa6 {Carlsen starts to eat the pawns.} Nf4 31. Qb5 c5 32. a6 {It's time to advance the passed pawn.} Bxe5 33. Nxe5 Qg5 34. Ng4 h5 35. Ne3 {White is safe.} Nxg2 {Still the best practical chance, otherwise White promotes his a-pawn without any counterplay.} 36. Nxg2 Rxf2 37. Rg1 Kh7 38. Qd3 {It is important to come back with the queen especially in time pressure.} Qe5 39. Qe3 Ra2 40. Qf4 {The best practical move. White doesn't protect his a-pawn, he wants to exchange the queens and then he can win without any difficulties.} Qc3 41. Ne3 Qf6 ({Or} 41... Rxa6 42. Qg5 $18 {and Black has no hope.}) 42. Qxf6 gxf6 43. Rc1 Rxa6 44. Kg2 $1 {Correct reply!} ({The greedy} 44. Rxc5 {could have been met by} Ra3 {and Black wins the h3-pawn and he survives.}) 44... Ra2+ 45. Rc2 Ra5 46. Kf3 Kg6 47. h4 Rb5 48. Ra2 Rb1 49. Rc2 Rb5 50. Rc3 f5 (50... Ra5 51. Ng2 $18 {is also hopeless for Black.}) 51. exf5+ exf5 52. Rd3 {A very nice victory by Carlsen!} 1-0 [Event "Dortmund SuperGM 35th"] [Site "Dortmund"] [Date "2007.06.23"] [Round "1"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Leko, Peter"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2693"] [BlackElo "2738"] [Annotator "Marin,Mihail"] [PlyCount "57"] [EventDate "2007.06.23"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "7"] [EventCountry "GER"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 119"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2007.08.01"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2007.08.01"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. d4 Nxd4 9. Nxd4 exd4 10. e5 Ne8 11. Qxd4 {Safe, but ...unambitious. See my notes to Carlsen,M (2693)-Leko,P (2738)/Dortmund 2007/CBM 119 (½-½, 29) from this same issue of CBM.} ({For the more consistent} 11. c3 {see Jakovenko,D (2708)-Karjakin,S (2686)/Foros 2007/CBM 119/[Marin] (½-½, 29)}) 11... Bb7 (11... c5 $2 {does not win a piece as in some other lines of the Ruy Lopez because of} 12. Qe4 $1 $16) 12. c4 (12. Qg4 {was examined in the notes to Svidler,P (2738)-Naiditsch,A (2612)/Dortmund 2005/CBM 108/[Erenburg] (½-½, 21)}) (12. c3 {is too unpretentious and allows Black to obtain easy equality.} d6 13. Bf4 dxe5 14. Qxe5 Bd6 15. Qg5 h6 16. Qg3 Qf6 17. Bxd6 Nxd6 18. Nd2 Rad8 $11 {Navarro,R (2400)-Peng Xiaomin (2480)/Moscow 1994/CBM 044 ext (0-1, 37)}) 12... bxc4 13. Qxc4 d5 14. exd6 Nxd6 15. Qg4 {White's active queen gives him some hopes for a minimal advantage, but this should be not too real, because in fact he is slightly behind in development.} Nb5 {Anticipating the development of the enemy knight to c3.} (15... Bf6 16. Nc3 Nb5 {Black should provoke simplifications before White completes his development.} (16... Rb8 17. Bf4 Bc6 18. Rad1 Rb4 19. Qg3 {offers White the kind of domination he hopes for, although Black is very much in the game still.} Rd4 20. Be5 Rxd1 21. Rxd1 Re8 22. f4 Qe7 23. Nd5 Bxd5 24. Rxd5 $14 {Nijboer,F (2475)-Sokolov,I (2665)/Netherlands 1996/CBM 054 (½-½, 31)}) (16... Re8 17. Bf4 Rb8 18. h3 Bc6 19. Qh5 Qd7 20. Qa5 Bb5 21. Nxb5 axb5 22. Qd2 $14 {After creating a curious triangle with her queen, White managed to obtain a stable advantage in the shape of the pair of bishops, Arakhamia Grant,K (2446)-Hebden,M (2559)/Scarborough 2004/CBM 101 ext (1-0, 50)}) 17. Ne4 $146 {Maybe this is the move on which Carlsen pinned his hopes, but he will not get that chance.} (17. Nxb5 $6 axb5 18. Bf4 c5 19. Rad1 Qc8 {was just equal in Polgar,J (2575)-Nunn,J (2595)/Hastings 1992/CBM 033 (½-½, 33)}) 17... Bxe4 18. Qxe4 Bd4 19. Qf4 c5 20. Be3 Bxe3 21. fxe3 $5 {×d4} Qe7 22. Rac1 Rad8 23. Red1 Rfe8 24. Rd5 Rxd5 25. Bxd5 $14 {with an active position for White, whose bishop is marvellous, Balogh,C (2617)-Jenni,F (2518)/Dresden 2007 (½-½, 56)}) 16. Nc3 Nxc3 $146 {Simple chess.} (16... Bf6 {would transpose above, and in fact this was the move order actually played in some of the games.}) 17. bxc3 Bd6 $11 {in the absence of knights, Black has little to worry about.} 18. Bf4 Qf6 19. Bxd6 cxd6 20. Rad1 Rad8 21. Re3 Rfe8 22. Rde1 Rxe3 23. Rxe3 g6 24. h4 h5 25. Qb4 Rd7 26. Rd3 Re7 27. Qd4 Re1+ 28. Kh2 Qe7 29. Re3 1/2-1/2 [Event "Morelia/Linares 25th"] [Site "Morelia/Linares"] [Date "2008.02.23"] [Round "7"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Aronian, Levon"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2733"] [BlackElo "2739"] [Annotator "Rogozenco,Dorian"] [PlyCount "79"] [EventDate "2008.02.15"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "14"] [EventCountry "ESP"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 123"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2008.04.02"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2008.04.02"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. a3 Bc5 9. c3 {The combination of a2-a3 and c2-c3 does not impress much.} d6 10. d4 Bb6 11. h3 Re8 $1 $146 {This new move shows that Black can save time and manage without ...h7-h6.} (11... h6 12. Be3 Bb7 13. Nbd2 Re8 14. Bc2 Nb8 15. dxe5 dxe5 16. Bxb6 cxb6 17. a4 bxa4 18. Bxa4 b5 19. Bb3 Nbd7 $11 {½-½ Svidler,P-Leko,P/Monte Carlo (rapid) 2006 (46)}) 12. Bg5 {Accepting the challenge. Other moves can't even pretend to fight for an advantage. On the other hand this is a highly risky decision and objectively Black is doing more than fine after it.} h6 13. Bh4 exd4 {Black also must go for complications, otherwise it is not clear why he allowed the pin of his f6-knight.} (13... Bb7 14. Bc2 $14) 14. cxd4 g5 (14... Bb7 15. Nc3 $14) 15. Bg3 g4 ({Taking on e4 loses:} 15... Rxe4 $2 16. Rxe4 Nxe4 17. Bd5 Qe8 18. Qc2 Nxg3 19. Qg6+ $18) (15... Nxe4 $2 16. Bd5 $18) 16. hxg4 Bxg4 17. Bh4 (17. d5 Nd4 $36) 17... Nxd4 18. Nc3 {The battle has reached its culminant point: Carlsen sacrificed a central pawn, considering that the pin of the knight f6 is highly unpleasant for Black. White's main threat is ?c3-d5. Besides, Black must also reckon with the advance e4-e5 followed by ?e4.} Bxf3 $5 {In this wild position Levon found an interesting queen sacrifice. Unfortunately for him he will soon miss an important detail.} ({After the natural and good} 18... c6 {White still must prove that he has compensation for the pawn, since} 19. e5 dxe5 20. Ne4 {doesn't work well in view of} Nxe4 21. Bxd8 Raxd8 22. Rxe4 Nxf3+ 23. gxf3 Rxd1+ 24. Bxd1 Bf5 {with advantage for Black}) 19. gxf3 Kh8 $2 ({Now} 19... c6 20. e5 dxe5 21. Ne4 {is already not good for Black, but instead of taking on e5 Black can play 20...?c8! and bring the queen to h3 with sufficient activity to hold the balance.}) ({However, the strongest move is} 19... Kh7 {with a similar idea from the game. The point is that after} 20. Nd5 Rg8+ 21. Kf1 Ng4 $1 {the move} 22. Qxd4 {is without check and therefore Black can take the bishop} Qxh4 {Then after} 23. Nxb6 cxb6 24. fxg4 Qh3+ 25. Ke2 Qxb3 26. f3 Rac8 {White is fighting for a draw.}) 20. Nd5 Rg8+ 21. Kf1 ({Aronian's idea would have worked well after} 21. Kh1 $2 Ng4 $1 22. Qxd4+ Bxd4 23. Bxd8 Nxf2+ 24. Kh2 Raxd8 {and it is Black who wins}) 21... Ng4 {The bishop on h4 is hanging, while taking the queen 22.?xd8 leads to a nice mate with the knight on h2. But in fact White has a counter queen sacrifice.} 22. Qxd4+ $1 Bxd4 23. Bxd8 Nh2+ {Before taking the bishop the knight must run away. Nevertheless he won't have a long life on h2 either.} 24. Ke2 Raxd8 25. Rad1 $1 $18 {The knight is trapped on h2 and it turns out that White is simply winning.} Bxb2 26. Rh1 {Black can't save the knight. Several pawns won't be enough for being a piece down.} c6 ({Other moves don't help either:} 26... Be5 27. f4 c6 28. fxe5 cxd5 29. Rxh2) ({or} 26... Rg2 27. Ne3 Rdg8 28. Bxf7 R8g7 29. Nxg2 Rxg2 30. Rdg1) 27. Nf4 Be5 28. Nd3 Nxf3 29. Kxf3 Bg7 30. Rh5 {In spite of having three pawns for the knight, Black is lost. His position contains a lot of weaknesses and White's pieces are active. The rest is an easy task for Carlsen, who played very precisely until the end.} d5 (30... c5 31. Bxf7 Rgf8 32. Rf5 {is also hopeless}) 31. exd5 Rd6 32. Rf5 cxd5 33. Rc1 $1 Rf6 34. Rxf6 Bxf6 35. Rc6 Kg7 36. Nf4 Bg5 37. Nh5+ Kh8 38. Rxa6 d4 39. Ke4 Rg6 40. Ra7 1-0 [Event "World-ch Carlsen-Nepomniachtchi"] [Site "Dubai"] [Date "2021.11.28"] [Round "3"] [White "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2782"] [BlackElo "2855"] [Annotator "Navara,David"] [PlyCount "81"] [EventDate "2021.11.26"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "14"] [EventCountry "UAE"] [SourceTitle "CBM 206"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2022.02.28"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2022.02.28"] [SourceQuality "1"] [TimeControl "60"] {[%evp 0,81,80,23,56,31,27,-6,-13,-26,-27,-63,-38,-51,-37,-37,-16,-28,-38,-38,18,-31,-3,-2,24,35,75,51,80,58,59,52,52,44,29,38,67,80,66,51,51,51,75,43,79,81,80,81,71,37,54,54,45,31,31,25,27,6,19,6,6,1,-4,-8,-20,-16,-12,-13,-3,-19,-7,-18,-7,-7,-7,-21,-21,-6,0,0,0,0,0,0] In the initial game Magnus Carlsen applied a rare pawn sacrifice against the anti-Marshall. The game ended peacefully. Does Black have a sufficient compensation for the pawn? The further practice will definitely show more. Before this game the experts and club players alike were curious, who would deviate from the first game. In der ersten Partie brachte Magnus Carlsen ein seltenes Bauernopfer gegen den Anti-Marshall. Die Partie endete friedlich. Hat Schwarz eine ausreichende Kompensation für den Bauern? Die weitere Praxis wird sicherlich mehr zeigen. Vor dieser Partie waren die Experten und Vereinsspieler gleichermaßen gespannt, wer von der ersten Partie abweichen würde.} 1. e4 {[%emt 0:00:07]} e5 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 2. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:06]} Nc6 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 3. Bb5 {[%emt 0:00:22]} a6 {[%emt 0:00:08]} ({Perhaps we might see Vielleicht werden wir} 3... Nf6 {later in the match, but there is little doubt that White has been ready for it. später im Match sehen, aber es besteht kaum ein Zweifel, dass Weiß darauf vorbereitet war.}) 4. Ba4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Nf6 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 5. O-O {[%emt 0:00:07]} Be7 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 6. Re1 {[%emt 0:00:07]} b5 {[%emt 0:00:08]} 7. Bb3 {[%emt 0:00:07]} O-O {[%emt 0:00:07] So far we have been following the first game. Bislang sind wir der ersten Partie gefolgt.} ({The classic lines starting with Die klassischen Abspiele beginnend mit} 7... d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 {have been less popular recently. True, there is nothing wrong with it and Black even has a wide choice here, but White's position generally remains easier to play. sind in letzter Zeit weniger populär gewesen. Daran ist zwar nichts auszusetzen, und Schwarz hat hier sogar eine große Auswahl, aber die weiße Stellung bleibt im Allgemeinen einfacher zu spielen.}) 8. a4 {[%emt 0:00:13] The Marshall Attack has transformed throughout a century from a daring innovation to a topical continuation a lot of theory and strong drawing tendencies. Alas, many sharp lines have been analysed till a draw. In is then not surprising that grandmasters are often opting for seemingly less ambitious lines rather than for the most forcing ones. Both 8.h3 and 8.a4 are good moves which avoid the Marshall Attack. Black can still sacrifice a pawn in a similar way, but it is slightly less attractive. Der Marshall-Angriff hat sich im Laufe eines Jahrhunderts von einer gewagten Neuerung zu einer aktuellen Fortsetzung mit viel Theorie und starken Remistendenzen entwickelt. Leider sind viele scharfe Varianten bis zum Remis ausanalysiert worden. So ist es nicht verwunderlich, dass sich Großmeister oft für scheinbar weniger ambitionierte Abspiele entscheiden statt für die zwingendsten. Sowohl 8.h3 als auch 8.a4 sind gute Züge, die den Marshall-Angriff vermeiden. Schwarz kann immer noch einen Bauern auf ähnliche Weise opfern, aber es ist etwas weniger attraktiv.} ({The first game saw Das erste Partie sah} 8. h3 Na5 $5 {A rare move. Ein seltener Zug.} ({Both Sowohl} 8... Bb7 9. d3) ({und als auch} 8... d6 9. c3 {are standard continuations. sind Standardfortsetzungen.}) 9. Nxe5 Nxb3 10. axb3 Bb7 11. d3 d5 {. .}) 8... Bb7 {[%emt 0:00:50]} ({There is nothing wrong with Es ist nichts falsch an} 8... b4 {, but White gets control of the c4-square in such a case. It should not bring him much, but it is at least something to play for. , aber Weiß erhält in einem solchen Fall die Kontrolle über das Feld c4. Es sollte ihm nicht viel bringen, aber es ist zumindest etwas, worauf man spielen kann.}) 9. d3 {[%emt 0:01:07] As GM Vlastimil Jansa has taught me, the bishop is mostly not placed well on b7 in Ruy Lopez when White keeps a pawn on d5 or on d3. (And its neighbour on e4, of course.) In both cases the bishop remains passive. This rule of thumb mostly works. With the pawn still on d3 White's light-squared bishop is really strong, as it controls the d5-square and eyes f7. Similarly to some big dogs, the bishop is powerful even without moving and without attracting too much attention. Wie mich GM Vlastimil Jansa gelehrt hat, ist der Läufer im Spanier meist nicht gut auf b7 platziert, wenn Weiß einen Bauern auf d5 oder d3 hält. (Und seinen Nachbarn auf e4, natürlich.) In beiden Fällen bleibt der Läufer passiv. Diese Faustregel funktioniert meistens. Wenn der Bauer noch auf d3 steht, ist der weißfeldrige Läufer des Anziehenden sehr stark, da er das Feld d5 kontrolliert und f7 im Blick hat. Ähnlich wie bei einigen großen Hunden ist der Läufer auch stark, ohne sich zu bewegen und ohne zu viel Aufmerksamkeit zu erregen.} d6 {[%emt 0:00:10]} ({While black can play Schwarz kann} 9... d5 10. exd5 Nxd5 {even here, it is not the most attractive version of the pawn sacrifice. White has several promising options there. After zwar spielen, aber auch hier ist es nicht die attraktivste Variante des Bauernopfers. Weiß hat hier mehrere vielversprechende Möglichkeiten. Nach} 11. axb5 (11. Nxe5 Nd4 12. c3 $5 Nxb3 13. Qxb3) (11. Nc3 $5) 11... axb5 12. Rxa8 Bxa8 13. Nxe5 Nd4 14. Nd2 ({or oder} 14. c3 Nxb3 15. Qxb3 {Black has almost sufficient compensation. hat Schwarz fast ausreichende Kompensation.})) 10. Nbd2 {[%emt 0:00:38] The steed heads for fresh pastures, the f5-square would be the optimal one. Das Roß strebt auf frische Weiden, das f5-Feld wäre optimal.} ({The knight would also stand well on d5, but Der Springer würde auch gut auf d5 stehen, aber} 10. Nc3 {allows ermöglicht} Na5 $1 11. Ba2 ({After Nach} 11. axb5 Nxb3 12. cxb3 axb5 13. Rxa8 Qxa8 14. Nxb5 Rb8 $5 {Black's better bishop pair and better pawn structure fully compensate the pawn deficit. White had better avoid kompensieren das bessere Läuferpaar und die bessere Bauernstruktur von Schwarz das Bauerndefizit vollständig. Lieber vermeiden sollte Weiß} 15. Nxc7 $2 Qa5 $17 {. .}) 11... b4 {, when White has nothing better than , wonach Weiß nichts Besseres hat als} 12. Ne2 {. .}) 10... Re8 {[%emt 0:05:11] Black had many reasonable options here, which makes concrete preparation very difficult. Both players were obviously well acquainted with the theory, but I would still like to remark that understanding plays a big role in such positions, as one cannot remember everything by heart. It is important to know where the pieces belong, which structure transformations are desirable and what are the typical motifs in such positions. Schwarz hatte hier viele vernünftige Optionen, was die konkrete Vorbereitung sehr schwierig macht. Beide Spieler waren offensichtlich gut mit der Theorie vertraut, aber ich möchte dennoch anmerken, dass das Verständnis in solchen Stellungen eine große Rolle spielt, da man nicht alles auswendig lernen kann. Es ist wichtig zu wissen, wo die Figuren hingehören, welche Strukturtransformationen erwünscht sind und was die typischen Motive in solchen Stellungen sind.} ({The other options do not promise easy equality either: Auch die anderen Optionen versprechen keinen einfachen Ausgleich:} 10... Na5 11. Ba2 c5 12. Nf1 $36) (10... Nd7 $5 11. c3 Nc5 12. axb5 axb5 13. Rxa8 Qxa8 14. Bc2 $36) (10... Qd7 11. c3 $5 $14) 11. Nf1 {[%emt 0:04:26]} h6 {[%emt 0:01:34] A useful prophylactic move. Eine nützliche prophylaktische Maßnahme.} ({Immediate Unmittelbar} 11... Bf8 $6 {allows ermöglicht} 12. Bg5 $1 h6 13. Bh4 $14 {, when Black has to make some concession to release the pin. After , wonach Schwarz ein Zugeständnis machen muss, um die Fesselung zu lösen. Nach} Nb8 {Stockfish suggests schlägt Stockfish} 14. g4 $5 {, g4-g5 with a dangerous attack, but even less radical continuations promise White an edge. g4-g5 mit einem gefährlichen Angriff vor, aber auch weniger radikale Fortsetzungen versprechen Weiß einen Vorteil.}) 12. Bd2 {[%emt 0:02:58] White develops a bishop, preventing ?c6-a5. It was not a threat, but ruling out Black's options is a reasonable decision. Weiß entwickelt einen Läufer und verhindert Sc6-a5. Das war keine Drohung, aber es ist eine vernünftige Entscheidung, die Optionen von Schwarz auszuschließen.} Bf8 {[%emt 0:00:00]} 13. Ne3 {[%emt 0:00:20]} Ne7 {[%emt 0:01:49] ? Black has prevented White's knight from entering f5. Schwarz hat verhindert, dass der weiße Springer auf f5 eindringen kann.} 14. c4 $1 {[%emt 0:00:20] This advance looks unusual but makes a lot of sense. White is better prepared for queenside play. Dieser Vorstoß sieht ungewöhnlich aus, macht aber sehr viel Sinn. Weiß ist besser auf das Spiel am Damenflügel vorbereitet.} ({Anish Giri opined that Magnus might have been ready for Anish Giri war der Meinung, dass Magnus womöglich für} 14. g4 $5 {. While that move is not standard in these positions, it requires an accurate reaction, as the threat of g4-g5 spells danger for Black's king. While gewappnet war. Dieser Zug ist in diesen Stellungen zwar nicht üblich, aber er erfordert eine genaue Reaktion, da die Drohung g4-g5 Gefahr für den schwarzen König verheißt. Während} Nh7 {does not look impressive, Wilhelm Steinitz famously remarked that pawns cannot go backwards and it still holds. A sample line sieht nicht beeindruckend aus, aber Wilhelm Steinitz merkte bekannterweise an, dass Bauern nicht rückwärts gehen können, und das gilt immer noch. Eine Beispielvairante} 15. h4 c5 $5 16. g5 c4 $5 17. dxc4 Bxe4 18. gxh6 Qd7 {leads to a complex position where both kings are rather unsafe. I would not like to play such a position against a prepared opponent with any colour. führt zu einer komplexen Stellung, in der beide Könige ziemlich unsicher sind. Ich würde eine solche Stellung nicht gegen einen vorbereiteten Gegner mit irgendeiner Farbe spielen wollen.}) 14... bxc4 {[%emt 0:00:29]} 15. Nxc4 {[%emt 0:02:45]} Nc6 {[%emt 0:01:33] The pieces often need some time to reach good squares. White's knight reached c4 through f1 and e3, but this detour has been compensated by Black's knight oscillating between c6 and e7. White has slightly better chances due to more active minor pieces. Die Figuren brauchen oft einige Zeit, um gute Felder zu erreichen. Der weiße Springer erreichte c4 über f1 und e3, aber dieser Umweg wurde durch den schwarzen Springer kompensiert, der zwischen c6 und e7 pendelte. Weiß hat aufgrund der aktiveren Leichtfiguren etwas bessere Chancen.} 16. Rc1 $14 {[%emt 0:05:28]} ({Wei could also play Weiß könnte auch} 16. Na5 Nxa5 17. Bxa5 {, but it seems that the exchanges favour the defender in this case. Black should gradually equalize after spielen, aber es scheint, dass die Abtausche in diesem Fall den Verteidiger begünstigen. Schwarz sollte allmählich ausgleichen nach} Qd7 {. White improves the rook. Now 17.Na5 would be more unpleasant for Black. . Weiß verbessert den Turm. Jetzt wäre 17.Na5 für Schwarz unangenehmer.}) 16... a5 $1 {[%emt 0:13:07] A strong move, preventing ?c4-a5. That said, Black had to weigh its pros and cons carefully, as the ?a5 might become a target. Ein starker Zug, der ?c4-a5 verhindert. Allerdings muss Schwarz die Vor- und Nachteile sorgfältig abwägen, da ?a5 zur Zielscheibe werden könnte.} 17. Bc3 {[%emt 0:07:31] ? The main threat is 18. ?d2 with subsequent 19.?xa5, but as we will soon see, White's move pursues more goals. Die Hauptdrohung ist 18. ?d2 mit anschließendem 19.?xa5, aber wie wir bald sehen werden, verfolgt Weiß mit seinem Zug mehr Ziele.} Bc8 $1 {[%emt 0:00:00] The bishop was not doing much on b7, contrary to White's light-squared bishop which was controlling the d5- and f7-squares. The bishop transfer to e6 or even d7 takes the f5-square under control and neutralizes the strength of white's bishop. Der Läufer hatte auf b7 nicht viel zu tun, im Gegensatz zu dem weißfeldrigen Läufer von Weiß, der die Felder d5 und f7 kontrollierte. Die Verlegung des Läufers nach e6 oder auch d7 bringt das f5-Feld unter Kontrolle und neutralisiert die Stärke des weißen Läufers.} (17... Qb8 {would parry the main threat without allowing d3-d4, but White could then switch his attention to the kingside, trying to install a knight on f5 after würde die Hauptdrohung abwehren, ohne d3-d4 zuzulassen, aber Weiß könnte dann seine Aufmerksamkeit auf den Königsflügel lenken und versuchen, einen Springer auf f5 zu installieren, und zwar nach} 18. Ne3 {. Black's king could hardly feel safe then. . Der schwarze König konnte sich dann kaum noch sicher fühlen.}) ({Black could also play Schwarz könnte auch} 17... Nd7 {, but then spielen, aber dann überlässt} 18. d4 $1 exd4 19. Nxd4 Nxd4 20. Qxd4 Qg5 $1 21. Bd2 Qc5 22. Qd3 $1 {again leaves White with initiative, as the pawns a5, c7 and f7 can be vulnerable. Weiß wieder die Initiative, da die Bauern a5, c7 und f7 verwundbar sein können.}) 18. d4 $1 {[%emt 0:07:14] This move underlines the only drawback of Black's previous move. Dieser Zug unterstreicht den einzigen Nachteil des vorherigen Zuges von Schwarz.} exd4 {[%emt 0:01:32]} 19. Nxd4 {[%emt 0:01:19]} Nxd4 {[%emt 0:00:09]} 20. Qxd4 {[%emt 0:00:15] For the present White's queen cannot be expelled from the centre without serious concessions. But Black can live with it and pursue his own plans. Im Moment kann die weiße Dame nicht ohne große Zugeständnisse aus dem Zentrum vertrieben werden. Aber Schwarz kann damit leben und seine eigenen Pläne verfolgen.} Be6 {[%emt 0:01:29] Black prepares the d6-d5 advance, neutralizing White's spatial advantage and perhaps also exchanging his centralized queen. Schwarz bereitet den Vorstoß d6-d5 vor, neutralisiert den Raumvorteil von Weiß und tauscht vielleicht auch seine zentralisierte Dame ab.} 21. h3 {[%emt 0:29:49]} ({White could try Weiß könnte} 21. Qd3 $1 {, when versuchen, wonach} d5 $1 {seems to be Black's best reaction anyway. Otherwise White could play 22.?c2 with some threats agains Black's king or at least target his queenside pawns with 22.?d2. The pawns advance costs Black a pawn, but a bishop pair should provide reasonable compensation after ohnehin die beste Reaktion von Schwarz zu sein scheint. Andernfalls könnte Weiß 22?c2 mit einigen Drohungen gegen den schwarzen König spielen oder zumindest mit 22.?d2 auf seine Bauern am Damenflügel zielen. Der Bauernvorstoß kostet Schwarz einen Bauern, aber ein Läuferpaar sollte eine angemessene Kompensation nach} 22. Bxf6 Qxf6 23. exd5 Bd7 $5 {. I would still prefer to be a pawn up, but it is irrelevant as I cannot choose. Nor could the players, by the way. . Ich würde es immer noch vorziehen, einen Bauern mehr zu haben, aber das ist irrelevant, da ich nicht wählen kann. Das können die Spieler übrigens auch nicht.} ({Less accurate is Weniger genau ist} 23... Bf5 24. Qf3 $14 {. .})) ({The ?a5 was poisoned: Der ?a5 war vergiftet:} 21. Nxa5 $2 c5 22. Qd2 Bxb3 23. Nxb3 $2 ({White can still limit the damage through Weiß kann immer noch den Schaden begrenzen durch} 23. e5 $1 $15 {. .}) 23... Nxe4 $17 {loses a pawn, verliert einen Bauern,}) ({während während} 21. Bxa5 $2 Bxc4 22. Qxc4 Rxa5 23. Qxf7+ Kh8 $19 {loses the game. die Partie verliert.}) 21... c6 {[%emt 0:17:00] Black prepares the d6-d5 advance. White cannot prevent it anyway. Schwarz bereitet den Vorstoß d6-d5 vor. Weiß kann ihn ohnehin nicht verhindern.} ({Immediate Unmittelbar} 21... d5 {was also possible. White should probably react with war auch möglich. Weiß sollte wahrscheinlich reagieren mit} 22. exd5 Qxd5 23. Qf4 $5 {with an ephemerous initiative, mit einer flüchtigen Initiative,} ({as denn} 23. Qxd5 $6 Nxd5 24. Bxa5 Nf4 $44 {is dangerous for White in practical terms, with 25... ?d3 being the main threat. ist in der Praxis gefährlich für Weiß, wobei 25... ?d3 ist die Hauptdrohung.})) 22. Bc2 {[%emt 0:03:38]} d5 $1 {[%emt 0:08:15]} 23. e5 {[%emt 0:03:48]} (23. exd5 Nxd5 $5 (23... Qxd5 $11) 24. Qe4 g6 $11 ({or even oder sogar} 24... f5 $5 {is good for Black. His king is exposed, but White's pieces are not active enough to start an attack. ist gut für Schwarz. Sein König ist exponiert, aber die weißen Figuren sind nicht aktiv genug, um einen Angriff zu starten.})) 23... dxc4 {[%emt 0:02:02]} 24. Qxd8 {[%emt 0:00:24]} Rexd8 {[%emt 0:01:35]} 25. exf6 {[%emt 0:00:06] ? At the first sight White's position looks preferable owing to his better pawn structure, but his pieces are not active enough. With his next move Black exchanges White's best placed piece. ? Auf den ersten Blick ist die Stellung von Weiß wegen seiner besseren Bauernstruktur offenbar vorzuziehen, aber seine Figuren sind nicht aktiv genug. Mit seinem nächsten Zug tauscht Schwarz die am besten platzierte Figur von Weiß ab.} Bb4 $1 {[%emt 0:00:19]} 26. fxg7 {[%emt 0:00:19]} Bxc3 {[%emt 0:02:01]} 27. bxc3 {[%emt 0:00:05]} Kxg7 {[%emt 0:00:00] White has a nominally better pawn structure, but his bishop is passive. The ?a4 needs care in bishop endgames, while the ?c4 is less vulnerable and even restricts White's bishop a bit. Weiß hat eine nominell bessere Bauernstruktur, aber sein Läufer ist passiv. ?a4 erfordert in Läuferendspielen Vorsicht, während ?c4 weniger verwundbar ist und sogar den weißen Läufer ein wenig einschränkt.} 28. Kf1 {[%emt 0:02:09]} ({All rook games are drawn after Alle Turmendspiele sind remis nach} 28. Be4 Bd5 $11 {, unless Black exchanges on e4 at a wrong moment. He can play Rab8 and improve his rook instead. Es sei denn, Schwarz tauscht im falschen Moment auf e4. Er kann stattdessen Rab8 spielen und seinen Turm verbessern.}) 28... Rab8 {[%emt 0:05:05]} 29. Rb1 {[%emt 0:00:27]} Kf6 $11 {[%emt 0:00:24]} 30. Rxb8 {[%emt 0:01:56]} ({After Nach} 30. Ke2 {Black could play könnte Schwarz} h5 $1 {, hoping to fix White's kingside pawns on light squares and attack them at a convenient moment. spielen in der Hoffnung, die weißen Bauern am Königsflügel auf leichten Feldern zu fixieren und sie in einem günstigen Moment anzugreifen.}) 30... Rxb8 {[%emt 0:00:11]} 31. Rb1 {[%emt 0:00:02]} Rxb1+ {[%emt 0:00:35]} 32. Bxb1 {[%emt 0:00:04]} Ke5 {[%emt 0:00:00]} 33. Ke2 {[%emt 0:01:24] White would like to push Black's king back through the f2-f4 advance and then play g2-g4, but it is not going to happen. Weiß würde gerne den schwarzen König durch den Vorstoß f2-f4 zurückdrängen und dann g2-g4 spielen, aber das wird nicht passieren.} f5 $1 {[%emt 0:00:06] The pawn advance hinders White's activity. Der Bauernvorstoß behindert die Aktivität von Weiß.} 34. Bc2 {[%emt 0:01:06]} ({The white majority at the kingsside would not get anywhere after Die weiße Mehrheit am Königsflügel würde nichts bringen nach} 34. g3 f4 35. g4 c5 36. Bc2 Bd7 $11 {. .}) 34... f4 {[%emt 0:00:15]} 35. Bb1 {[%emt 0:01:08]} c5 {[%emt 0:00:32] Neither side can make progress. Keine der beiden Seiten kann Fortschritte erzielen.} 36. Bc2 {[%emt 0:00:21]} Bd7 {[%emt 0:00:26]} 37. f3 {[%emt 0:00:33]} Kf6 {[%emt 0:00:00]} 38. h4 {[%emt 0:00:43]} Ke5 {[%emt 0:00:12]} 39. Kf2 {[%emt 0:00:12]} Kf6 {[%emt 0:00:19]} 40. Ke2 {[%emt 0:00:00]} ({After Nach} 40. g3 {Black can play almost anything, including kann Schwarz fast alles spielen, einschließlich} Ke5 ({und und} 40... fxg3+ 41. Kxg3 Ke5 42. f4+ Kf6 $11 {. White's king is unable to attack Black's pawns. . Der weiße König ist nicht in der Lage, die schwarzen Bauern anzugreifen.}) 41. g4 Kf6 $11) 40... Ke5 {[%emt 0:00:00]} 41. Kf2 {[%emt 0:00:37] The game was quiet, but not dull, it contained many strong moves and many inconspicuous subtleties. A draw is a logical result, as both grandmasters played it very well and none of them made a mistake. It is very hard to beat an elite grandmaster in a classical game, especially when he is excellently prepared. It is good that both players are looking for fight, I expect that someone will take the lead in this week. We have many interesting games ahead! Die Partie war ruhig, aber nicht langweilig, sie enthielt viele starke Züge und viele unauffällige Feinheiten. Ein Remis ist ein logisches Ergebnis, da beide Großmeister sehr gut spielten und keiner von ihnen einen Fehler machte. Es ist sehr schwer, einen Elite-Großmeister in einer klassischen Partie zu schlagen, besonders wenn er hervorragend vorbereitet ist. Es ist gut, dass beide Spieler den Kampf suchen, ich erwarte, dass jemand in dieser Woche die Führung übernehmen wird. Wir haben viele interessante Partien vor uns!} 1/2-1/2 [Event "World-ch Carlsen-Nepomniachtchi"] [Site "Dubai"] [Date "2021.11.28"] [Round "3"] [White "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2782"] [BlackElo "2855"] [Annotator "Navara,David"] [PlyCount "81"] [EventDate "2021.11.26"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "14"] [EventCountry "UAE"] [SourceTitle "CBM 206"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2022.02.28"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2022.02.28"] [SourceQuality "1"] [TimeControl "60"] {[%evp 0,81,80,23,56,31,27,-6,-13,-26,-27,-63,-38,-51,-37,-37,-16,-28,-38,-38,18,-31,-3,-2,24,35,75,51,80,58,59,52,52,44,29,38,67,80,66,51,51,51,75,43,79,81,80,81,71,37,54,54,45,31,31,25,27,6,19,6,6,1,-4,-8,-20,-16,-12,-13,-3,-19,-7,-18,-7,-7,-7,-21,-21,-6,0,0,0,0,0,0] In the initial game Magnus Carlsen applied a rare pawn sacrifice against the anti-Marshall. The game ended peacefully. Does Black have a sufficient compensation for the pawn? The further practice will definitely show more. Before this game the experts and club players alike were curious, who would deviate from the first game. In der ersten Partie brachte Magnus Carlsen ein seltenes Bauernopfer gegen den Anti-Marshall. Die Partie endete friedlich. Hat Schwarz eine ausreichende Kompensation für den Bauern? Die weitere Praxis wird sicherlich mehr zeigen. Vor dieser Partie waren die Experten und Vereinsspieler gleichermaßen gespannt, wer von der ersten Partie abweichen würde.} 1. e4 {[%emt 0:00:07]} e5 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 2. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:06]} Nc6 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 3. Bb5 {[%emt 0:00:22]} a6 {[%emt 0:00:08]} ({Perhaps we might see Vielleicht werden wir} 3... Nf6 {later in the match, but there is little doubt that White has been ready for it. später im Match sehen, aber es besteht kaum ein Zweifel, dass Weiß darauf vorbereitet war.}) 4. Ba4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Nf6 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 5. O-O {[%emt 0:00:07]} Be7 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 6. Re1 {[%emt 0:00:07]} b5 {[%emt 0:00:08]} 7. Bb3 {[%emt 0:00:07]} O-O {[%emt 0:00:07] So far we have been following the first game. Bislang sind wir der ersten Partie gefolgt.} ({The classic lines starting with Die klassischen Abspiele beginnend mit} 7... d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 {have been less popular recently. True, there is nothing wrong with it and Black even has a wide choice here, but White's position generally remains easier to play. sind in letzter Zeit weniger populär gewesen. Daran ist zwar nichts auszusetzen, und Schwarz hat hier sogar eine große Auswahl, aber die weiße Stellung bleibt im Allgemeinen einfacher zu spielen.}) 8. a4 {[%emt 0:00:13] The Marshall Attack has transformed throughout a century from a daring innovation to a topical continuation a lot of theory and strong drawing tendencies. Alas, many sharp lines have been analysed till a draw. In is then not surprising that grandmasters are often opting for seemingly less ambitious lines rather than for the most forcing ones. Both 8.h3 and 8.a4 are good moves which avoid the Marshall Attack. Black can still sacrifice a pawn in a similar way, but it is slightly less attractive. Der Marshall-Angriff hat sich im Laufe eines Jahrhunderts von einer gewagten Neuerung zu einer aktuellen Fortsetzung mit viel Theorie und starken Remistendenzen entwickelt. Leider sind viele scharfe Varianten bis zum Remis ausanalysiert worden. So ist es nicht verwunderlich, dass sich Großmeister oft für scheinbar weniger ambitionierte Abspiele entscheiden statt für die zwingendsten. Sowohl 8.h3 als auch 8.a4 sind gute Züge, die den Marshall-Angriff vermeiden. Schwarz kann immer noch einen Bauern auf ähnliche Weise opfern, aber es ist etwas weniger attraktiv.} ({The first game saw Das erste Partie sah} 8. h3 Na5 $5 {A rare move. Ein seltener Zug.} ({Both Sowohl} 8... Bb7 9. d3) ({und als auch} 8... d6 9. c3 {are standard continuations. sind Standardfortsetzungen.}) 9. Nxe5 Nxb3 10. axb3 Bb7 11. d3 d5 {. .}) 8... Bb7 {[%emt 0:00:50]} ({There is nothing wrong with Es ist nichts falsch an} 8... b4 {, but White gets control of the c4-square in such a case. It should not bring him much, but it is at least something to play for. , aber Weiß erhält in einem solchen Fall die Kontrolle über das Feld c4. Es sollte ihm nicht viel bringen, aber es ist zumindest etwas, worauf man spielen kann.}) 9. d3 {[%emt 0:01:07] As GM Vlastimil Jansa has taught me, the bishop is mostly not placed well on b7 in Ruy Lopez when White keeps a pawn on d5 or on d3. (And its neighbour on e4, of course.) In both cases the bishop remains passive. This rule of thumb mostly works. With the pawn still on d3 White's light-squared bishop is really strong, as it controls the d5-square and eyes f7. Similarly to some big dogs, the bishop is powerful even without moving and without attracting too much attention. Wie mich GM Vlastimil Jansa gelehrt hat, ist der Läufer im Spanier meist nicht gut auf b7 platziert, wenn Weiß einen Bauern auf d5 oder d3 hält. (Und seinen Nachbarn auf e4, natürlich.) In beiden Fällen bleibt der Läufer passiv. Diese Faustregel funktioniert meistens. Wenn der Bauer noch auf d3 steht, ist der weißfeldrige Läufer des Anziehenden sehr stark, da er das Feld d5 kontrolliert und f7 im Blick hat. Ähnlich wie bei einigen großen Hunden ist der Läufer auch stark, ohne sich zu bewegen und ohne zu viel Aufmerksamkeit zu erregen.} d6 {[%emt 0:00:10]} ({While black can play Schwarz kann} 9... d5 10. exd5 Nxd5 {even here, it is not the most attractive version of the pawn sacrifice. White has several promising options there. After zwar spielen, aber auch hier ist es nicht die attraktivste Variante des Bauernopfers. Weiß hat hier mehrere vielversprechende Möglichkeiten. Nach} 11. axb5 (11. Nxe5 Nd4 12. c3 $5 Nxb3 13. Qxb3) (11. Nc3 $5) 11... axb5 12. Rxa8 Bxa8 13. Nxe5 Nd4 14. Nd2 ({or oder} 14. c3 Nxb3 15. Qxb3 {Black has almost sufficient compensation. hat Schwarz fast ausreichende Kompensation.})) 10. Nbd2 {[%emt 0:00:38] The steed heads for fresh pastures, the f5-square would be the optimal one. Das Roß strebt auf frische Weiden, das f5-Feld wäre optimal.} ({The knight would also stand well on d5, but Der Springer würde auch gut auf d5 stehen, aber} 10. Nc3 {allows ermöglicht} Na5 $1 11. Ba2 ({After Nach} 11. axb5 Nxb3 12. cxb3 axb5 13. Rxa8 Qxa8 14. Nxb5 Rb8 $5 {Black's better bishop pair and better pawn structure fully compensate the pawn deficit. White had better avoid kompensieren das bessere Läuferpaar und die bessere Bauernstruktur von Schwarz das Bauerndefizit vollständig. Lieber vermeiden sollte Weiß} 15. Nxc7 $2 Qa5 $17 {. .}) 11... b4 {, when White has nothing better than , wonach Weiß nichts Besseres hat als} 12. Ne2 {. .}) 10... Re8 {[%emt 0:05:11] Black had many reasonable options here, which makes concrete preparation very difficult. Both players were obviously well acquainted with the theory, but I would still like to remark that understanding plays a big role in such positions, as one cannot remember everything by heart. It is important to know where the pieces belong, which structure transformations are desirable and what are the typical motifs in such positions. Schwarz hatte hier viele vernünftige Optionen, was die konkrete Vorbereitung sehr schwierig macht. Beide Spieler waren offensichtlich gut mit der Theorie vertraut, aber ich möchte dennoch anmerken, dass das Verständnis in solchen Stellungen eine große Rolle spielt, da man nicht alles auswendig lernen kann. Es ist wichtig zu wissen, wo die Figuren hingehören, welche Strukturtransformationen erwünscht sind und was die typischen Motive in solchen Stellungen sind.} ({The other options do not promise easy equality either: Auch die anderen Optionen versprechen keinen einfachen Ausgleich:} 10... Na5 11. Ba2 c5 12. Nf1 $36) (10... Nd7 $5 11. c3 Nc5 12. axb5 axb5 13. Rxa8 Qxa8 14. Bc2 $36) (10... Qd7 11. c3 $5 $14) 11. Nf1 {[%emt 0:04:26]} h6 {[%emt 0:01:34] A useful prophylactic move. Eine nützliche prophylaktische Maßnahme.} ({Immediate Unmittelbar} 11... Bf8 $6 {allows ermöglicht} 12. Bg5 $1 h6 13. Bh4 $14 {, when Black has to make some concession to release the pin. After , wonach Schwarz ein Zugeständnis machen muss, um die Fesselung zu lösen. Nach} Nb8 {Stockfish suggests schlägt Stockfish} 14. g4 $5 {, g4-g5 with a dangerous attack, but even less radical continuations promise White an edge. g4-g5 mit einem gefährlichen Angriff vor, aber auch weniger radikale Fortsetzungen versprechen Weiß einen Vorteil.}) 12. Bd2 {[%emt 0:02:58] White develops a bishop, preventing ?c6-a5. It was not a threat, but ruling out Black's options is a reasonable decision. Weiß entwickelt einen Läufer und verhindert Sc6-a5. Das war keine Drohung, aber es ist eine vernünftige Entscheidung, die Optionen von Schwarz auszuschließen.} Bf8 {[%emt 0:00:00]} 13. Ne3 {[%emt 0:00:20]} Ne7 {[%emt 0:01:49] ? Black has prevented White's knight from entering f5. Schwarz hat verhindert, dass der weiße Springer auf f5 eindringen kann.} 14. c4 $1 {[%emt 0:00:20] This advance looks unusual but makes a lot of sense. White is better prepared for queenside play. Dieser Vorstoß sieht ungewöhnlich aus, macht aber sehr viel Sinn. Weiß ist besser auf das Spiel am Damenflügel vorbereitet.} ({Anish Giri opined that Magnus might have been ready for Anish Giri war der Meinung, dass Magnus womöglich für} 14. g4 $5 {. While that move is not standard in these positions, it requires an accurate reaction, as the threat of g4-g5 spells danger for Black's king. While gewappnet war. Dieser Zug ist in diesen Stellungen zwar nicht üblich, aber er erfordert eine genaue Reaktion, da die Drohung g4-g5 Gefahr für den schwarzen König verheißt. Während} Nh7 {does not look impressive, Wilhelm Steinitz famously remarked that pawns cannot go backwards and it still holds. A sample line sieht nicht beeindruckend aus, aber Wilhelm Steinitz merkte bekannterweise an, dass Bauern nicht rückwärts gehen können, und das gilt immer noch. Eine Beispielvairante} 15. h4 c5 $5 16. g5 c4 $5 17. dxc4 Bxe4 18. gxh6 Qd7 {leads to a complex position where both kings are rather unsafe. I would not like to play such a position against a prepared opponent with any colour. führt zu einer komplexen Stellung, in der beide Könige ziemlich unsicher sind. Ich würde eine solche Stellung nicht gegen einen vorbereiteten Gegner mit irgendeiner Farbe spielen wollen.}) 14... bxc4 {[%emt 0:00:29]} 15. Nxc4 {[%emt 0:02:45]} Nc6 {[%emt 0:01:33] The pieces often need some time to reach good squares. White's knight reached c4 through f1 and e3, but this detour has been compensated by Black's knight oscillating between c6 and e7. White has slightly better chances due to more active minor pieces. Die Figuren brauchen oft einige Zeit, um gute Felder zu erreichen. Der weiße Springer erreichte c4 über f1 und e3, aber dieser Umweg wurde durch den schwarzen Springer kompensiert, der zwischen c6 und e7 pendelte. Weiß hat aufgrund der aktiveren Leichtfiguren etwas bessere Chancen.} 16. Rc1 $14 {[%emt 0:05:28]} ({Wei could also play Weiß könnte auch} 16. Na5 Nxa5 17. Bxa5 {, but it seems that the exchanges favour the defender in this case. Black should gradually equalize after spielen, aber es scheint, dass die Abtausche in diesem Fall den Verteidiger begünstigen. Schwarz sollte allmählich ausgleichen nach} Qd7 {. White improves the rook. Now 17.Na5 would be more unpleasant for Black. . Weiß verbessert den Turm. Jetzt wäre 17.Na5 für Schwarz unangenehmer.}) 16... a5 $1 {[%emt 0:13:07] A strong move, preventing ?c4-a5. That said, Black had to weigh its pros and cons carefully, as the ?a5 might become a target. Ein starker Zug, der ?c4-a5 verhindert. Allerdings muss Schwarz die Vor- und Nachteile sorgfältig abwägen, da ?a5 zur Zielscheibe werden könnte.} 17. Bc3 {[%emt 0:07:31] ? The main threat is 18. ?d2 with subsequent 19.?xa5, but as we will soon see, White's move pursues more goals. Die Hauptdrohung ist 18. ?d2 mit anschließendem 19.?xa5, aber wie wir bald sehen werden, verfolgt Weiß mit seinem Zug mehr Ziele.} Bc8 $1 {[%emt 0:00:00] The bishop was not doing much on b7, contrary to White's light-squared bishop which was controlling the d5- and f7-squares. The bishop transfer to e6 or even d7 takes the f5-square under control and neutralizes the strength of white's bishop. Der Läufer hatte auf b7 nicht viel zu tun, im Gegensatz zu dem weißfeldrigen Läufer von Weiß, der die Felder d5 und f7 kontrollierte. Die Verlegung des Läufers nach e6 oder auch d7 bringt das f5-Feld unter Kontrolle und neutralisiert die Stärke des weißen Läufers.} (17... Qb8 {would parry the main threat without allowing d3-d4, but White could then switch his attention to the kingside, trying to install a knight on f5 after würde die Hauptdrohung abwehren, ohne d3-d4 zuzulassen, aber Weiß könnte dann seine Aufmerksamkeit auf den Königsflügel lenken und versuchen, einen Springer auf f5 zu installieren, und zwar nach} 18. Ne3 {. Black's king could hardly feel safe then. . Der schwarze König konnte sich dann kaum noch sicher fühlen.}) ({Black could also play Schwarz könnte auch} 17... Nd7 {, but then spielen, aber dann überlässt} 18. d4 $1 exd4 19. Nxd4 Nxd4 20. Qxd4 Qg5 $1 21. Bd2 Qc5 22. Qd3 $1 {again leaves White with initiative, as the pawns a5, c7 and f7 can be vulnerable. Weiß wieder die Initiative, da die Bauern a5, c7 und f7 verwundbar sein können.}) 18. d4 $1 {[%emt 0:07:14] This move underlines the only drawback of Black's previous move. Dieser Zug unterstreicht den einzigen Nachteil des vorherigen Zuges von Schwarz.} exd4 {[%emt 0:01:32]} 19. Nxd4 {[%emt 0:01:19]} Nxd4 {[%emt 0:00:09]} 20. Qxd4 {[%emt 0:00:15] For the present White's queen cannot be expelled from the centre without serious concessions. But Black can live with it and pursue his own plans. Im Moment kann die weiße Dame nicht ohne große Zugeständnisse aus dem Zentrum vertrieben werden. Aber Schwarz kann damit leben und seine eigenen Pläne verfolgen.} Be6 {[%emt 0:01:29] Black prepares the d6-d5 advance, neutralizing White's spatial advantage and perhaps also exchanging his centralized queen. Schwarz bereitet den Vorstoß d6-d5 vor, neutralisiert den Raumvorteil von Weiß und tauscht vielleicht auch seine zentralisierte Dame ab.} 21. h3 {[%emt 0:29:49]} ({White could try Weiß könnte} 21. Qd3 $1 {, when versuchen, wonach} d5 $1 {seems to be Black's best reaction anyway. Otherwise White could play 22.?c2 with some threats agains Black's king or at least target his queenside pawns with 22.?d2. The pawns advance costs Black a pawn, but a bishop pair should provide reasonable compensation after ohnehin die beste Reaktion von Schwarz zu sein scheint. Andernfalls könnte Weiß 22?c2 mit einigen Drohungen gegen den schwarzen König spielen oder zumindest mit 22.?d2 auf seine Bauern am Damenflügel zielen. Der Bauernvorstoß kostet Schwarz einen Bauern, aber ein Läuferpaar sollte eine angemessene Kompensation nach} 22. Bxf6 Qxf6 23. exd5 Bd7 $5 {. I would still prefer to be a pawn up, but it is irrelevant as I cannot choose. Nor could the players, by the way. . Ich würde es immer noch vorziehen, einen Bauern mehr zu haben, aber das ist irrelevant, da ich nicht wählen kann. Das können die Spieler übrigens auch nicht.} ({Less accurate is Weniger genau ist} 23... Bf5 24. Qf3 $14 {. .})) ({The ?a5 was poisoned: Der ?a5 war vergiftet:} 21. Nxa5 $2 c5 22. Qd2 Bxb3 23. Nxb3 $2 ({White can still limit the damage through Weiß kann immer noch den Schaden begrenzen durch} 23. e5 $1 $15 {. .}) 23... Nxe4 $17 {loses a pawn, verliert einen Bauern,}) ({während während} 21. Bxa5 $2 Bxc4 22. Qxc4 Rxa5 23. Qxf7+ Kh8 $19 {loses the game. die Partie verliert.}) 21... c6 {[%emt 0:17:00] Black prepares the d6-d5 advance. White cannot prevent it anyway. Schwarz bereitet den Vorstoß d6-d5 vor. Weiß kann ihn ohnehin nicht verhindern.} ({Immediate Unmittelbar} 21... d5 {was also possible. White should probably react with war auch möglich. Weiß sollte wahrscheinlich reagieren mit} 22. exd5 Qxd5 23. Qf4 $5 {with an ephemerous initiative, mit einer flüchtigen Initiative,} ({as denn} 23. Qxd5 $6 Nxd5 24. Bxa5 Nf4 $44 {is dangerous for White in practical terms, with 25... ?d3 being the main threat. ist in der Praxis gefährlich für Weiß, wobei 25... ?d3 ist die Hauptdrohung.})) 22. Bc2 {[%emt 0:03:38]} d5 $1 {[%emt 0:08:15]} 23. e5 {[%emt 0:03:48]} (23. exd5 Nxd5 $5 (23... Qxd5 $11) 24. Qe4 g6 $11 ({or even oder sogar} 24... f5 $5 {is good for Black. His king is exposed, but White's pieces are not active enough to start an attack. ist gut für Schwarz. Sein König ist exponiert, aber die weißen Figuren sind nicht aktiv genug, um einen Angriff zu starten.})) 23... dxc4 {[%emt 0:02:02]} 24. Qxd8 {[%emt 0:00:24]} Rexd8 {[%emt 0:01:35]} 25. exf6 {[%emt 0:00:06] ? At the first sight White's position looks preferable owing to his better pawn structure, but his pieces are not active enough. With his next move Black exchanges White's best placed piece. ? Auf den ersten Blick ist die Stellung von Weiß wegen seiner besseren Bauernstruktur offenbar vorzuziehen, aber seine Figuren sind nicht aktiv genug. Mit seinem nächsten Zug tauscht Schwarz die am besten platzierte Figur von Weiß ab.} Bb4 $1 {[%emt 0:00:19]} 26. fxg7 {[%emt 0:00:19]} Bxc3 {[%emt 0:02:01]} 27. bxc3 {[%emt 0:00:05]} Kxg7 {[%emt 0:00:00] White has a nominally better pawn structure, but his bishop is passive. The ?a4 needs care in bishop endgames, while the ?c4 is less vulnerable and even restricts White's bishop a bit. Weiß hat eine nominell bessere Bauernstruktur, aber sein Läufer ist passiv. ?a4 erfordert in Läuferendspielen Vorsicht, während ?c4 weniger verwundbar ist und sogar den weißen Läufer ein wenig einschränkt.} 28. Kf1 {[%emt 0:02:09]} ({All rook games are drawn after Alle Turmendspiele sind remis nach} 28. Be4 Bd5 $11 {, unless Black exchanges on e4 at a wrong moment. He can play Rab8 and improve his rook instead. Es sei denn, Schwarz tauscht im falschen Moment auf e4. Er kann stattdessen Rab8 spielen und seinen Turm verbessern.}) 28... Rab8 {[%emt 0:05:05]} 29. Rb1 {[%emt 0:00:27]} Kf6 $11 {[%emt 0:00:24]} 30. Rxb8 {[%emt 0:01:56]} ({After Nach} 30. Ke2 {Black could play könnte Schwarz} h5 $1 {, hoping to fix White's kingside pawns on light squares and attack them at a convenient moment. spielen in der Hoffnung, die weißen Bauern am Königsflügel auf leichten Feldern zu fixieren und sie in einem günstigen Moment anzugreifen.}) 30... Rxb8 {[%emt 0:00:11]} 31. Rb1 {[%emt 0:00:02]} Rxb1+ {[%emt 0:00:35]} 32. Bxb1 {[%emt 0:00:04]} Ke5 {[%emt 0:00:00]} 33. Ke2 {[%emt 0:01:24] White would like to push Black's king back through the f2-f4 advance and then play g2-g4, but it is not going to happen. Weiß würde gerne den schwarzen König durch den Vorstoß f2-f4 zurückdrängen und dann g2-g4 spielen, aber das wird nicht passieren.} f5 $1 {[%emt 0:00:06] The pawn advance hinders White's activity. Der Bauernvorstoß behindert die Aktivität von Weiß.} 34. Bc2 {[%emt 0:01:06]} ({The white majority at the kingsside would not get anywhere after Die weiße Mehrheit am Königsflügel würde nichts bringen nach} 34. g3 f4 35. g4 c5 36. Bc2 Bd7 $11 {. .}) 34... f4 {[%emt 0:00:15]} 35. Bb1 {[%emt 0:01:08]} c5 {[%emt 0:00:32] Neither side can make progress. Keine der beiden Seiten kann Fortschritte erzielen.} 36. Bc2 {[%emt 0:00:21]} Bd7 {[%emt 0:00:26]} 37. f3 {[%emt 0:00:33]} Kf6 {[%emt 0:00:00]} 38. h4 {[%emt 0:00:43]} Ke5 {[%emt 0:00:12]} 39. Kf2 {[%emt 0:00:12]} Kf6 {[%emt 0:00:19]} 40. Ke2 {[%emt 0:00:00]} ({After Nach} 40. g3 {Black can play almost anything, including kann Schwarz fast alles spielen, einschließlich} Ke5 ({und und} 40... fxg3+ 41. Kxg3 Ke5 42. f4+ Kf6 $11 {. White's king is unable to attack Black's pawns. . Der weiße König ist nicht in der Lage, die schwarzen Bauern anzugreifen.}) 41. g4 Kf6 $11) 40... Ke5 {[%emt 0:00:00]} 41. Kf2 {[%emt 0:00:37] The game was quiet, but not dull, it contained many strong moves and many inconspicuous subtleties. A draw is a logical result, as both grandmasters played it very well and none of them made a mistake. It is very hard to beat an elite grandmaster in a classical game, especially when he is excellently prepared. It is good that both players are looking for fight, I expect that someone will take the lead in this week. We have many interesting games ahead! Die Partie war ruhig, aber nicht langweilig, sie enthielt viele starke Züge und viele unauffällige Feinheiten. Ein Remis ist ein logisches Ergebnis, da beide Großmeister sehr gut spielten und keiner von ihnen einen Fehler machte. Es ist sehr schwer, einen Elite-Großmeister in einer klassischen Partie zu schlagen, besonders wenn er hervorragend vorbereitet ist. Es ist gut, dass beide Spieler den Kampf suchen, ich erwarte, dass jemand in dieser Woche die Führung übernehmen wird. Wir haben viele interessante Partien vor uns!} 1/2-1/2 [Event "Corus"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2007.01.20"] [Round "7"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Svidler, Peter"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2690"] [BlackElo "2728"] [Annotator "Marin,Mihail"] [PlyCount "94"] [EventDate "2007.01.13"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "19"] [SourceTitle "CBM 117"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2007.03.30"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2007.03.30"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. a3 Bc5 $5 {This move certainly looks like a loss of tempo. However, since this tempo was used by White to play the modest move a3, Black's position should be entirely viable.} 9. c3 d6 10. d4 Bb6 11. Be3 h6 12. h3 {After this prophylactic move, Black will have to develop his bishop to b7 sooner or later. This will transpose to the Arhangelsk variation, where the presence of the pawn on a3 instead of a2 makes little or no difference.} Re8 ({In the Arhangelsk, after} 12... Bb7 13. Nbd2 {one of the main line goes} exd4 14. cxd4 {and now 14...?b4, which is impossible in the given circumstances of our present game. This is the only moment when the move a3 seems to be useful, but Black has other viable continuations at his disposal.}) 13. Nbd2 Bb7 14. dxe5 $146 {Technically speaking, a novelty in the position with the pawn on a3 and a very rare move in the Arhangelsk.} ({Svidler must have got his inspiration from the following game, where he had White:} 14. Bc2 {This move is possible because the typical counterplay based on exd4 followed by ...?b4 is impossible. In the Arhangelsk, only few games with this move are available.} Nb8 15. dxe5 dxe5 16. Bxb6 cxb6 17. a4 bxa4 18. Bxa4 b5 19. Bb3 Nbd7 20. Qe2 Nc5 21. Bc2 Qc7 22. Qe3 a5 23. Nh4 Rad8 24. Nf5 Bc8 25. Nf3 Bxf5 26. exf5 b4 $132 {Svidler,P (2765)-Leko,P (2740)/Monte Carlo 2006/CBM 111 ext (½-½, 46)}) ({The main moves in the Arhangelsk are} 14. d5 {followed by ?xb6}) ({and} 14. Qb1) 14... dxe5 15. Bxb6 cxb6 16. Nh2 Qe7 17. Ng4 Rad8 $11 {Black has succesfully solved his opening problems.} 18. Nxf6+ Qxf6 19. Qe2 Na5 20. Ba2 Bc8 21. Nf1 Qg6 22. Kh2 Be6 23. Bxe6 Rxe6 {By maintaining the e4-pawn under pressure, Black prevents the transfer of the enemy knight to d5.} (23... Qxe6 24. Ne3 $14) 24. a4 $2 {A curious mistake.} (24. Rad1 $11) 24... Nb3 25. Rad1 $6 (25. Ra3 bxa4 26. Rxa4 Nc5 27. Ra2 Red6 $15) 25... Rxd1 26. Rxd1 bxa4 $17 {Black is just a pawn up.} 27. Qxa6 Qxe4 28. Qc8+ Kh7 29. Rd8 Qf4+ 30. Ng3 Nd2 31. h4 Qxh4+ 32. Kg1 e4 33. Rxd2 e3 34. Rd3 Qf4 35. Rxe3 Rxe3 36. fxe3 Qxg3 37. Qf5+ Qg6 38. Qd5 Qe6 39. Qd4 g6 40. Qxa4 Qxe3+ 41. Kh2 h5 42. Qd1 Kg7 43. Qd6 f6 44. Qc7+ Kh6 45. b4 Kg5 46. Qc6 Qe5+ 47. Kg1 b5 0-1 [Event "World-ch Carlsen-Nepomniachtchi"] [Site "Dubai"] [Date "2021.12.01"] [Round "5"] [White "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2782"] [BlackElo "2855"] [Annotator "Giri,Anish"] [PlyCount "85"] [EventDate "2021.11.26"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "14"] [EventCountry "UAE"] [SourceTitle "CBM 206"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2022.02.28"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2022.02.28"] [SourceQuality "1"] {[%evp 0,85,61,26,56,50,61,-17,8,-20,-38,-95,-19,-58,-58,-37,5,-28,29,28,28,-14,24,-17,22,-17,-1,3,97,21,25,18,51,31,53,11,28,35,58,18,49,44,56,50,50,17,23,19,42,37,22,29,32,24,34,17,50,34,40,43,90,62,106,93,103,78,74,41,41,54,51,58,48,53,53,29,53,42,41,4,37,37,37,11,37,37,29,37]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O {No surprises thus far, as both the players continue the discussion in the Anti-Marshall. Keine Überraschungen bis jetzt, da beide Spieler die Diskussion im Anti-Marshall fortsetzen.} 8. a4 {Repeating the previous White game, from round 3, Ian is ready to challenge Magnus in this topical sideline once again. Die vorangegangene Weißpartie aus Runde 3 wiederholend, ist Ian bereit, Magnus in dieser aktuellen Nebenvariante erneut herauszufordern.} Rb8 {A deviation from the third game, but hardly a surprise, as Magnus used this move against Duda in the relatively recently finished World Cup in Sochi. Eine Abweichung von der dritten Partie, aber kaum eine Überraschung, da Magnus diesen Zug gegen Duda beim erst kürzlich beendeten World Cup in Sotschi anwandte.} (8... Bb7 9. d3 d6 10. Nbd2 Re8 $5 {happened in game 3. geschah in Partie 3.}) 9. axb5 axb5 10. h3 {Ian shows some move order finesse here, avoiding 10.c3 d5, which happened in Duda-Carlsen, though without the inclusion of 9.axb5 axb5 yet -9.c3 d5. Ian zeigt hier eine gewisse Finesse in der Zugfolge, indem er 10.c3 d5 vermeidet, was in Duda-Carlsen geschah, allerdings noch ohne die Einschaltung von 9.axb5 axb5 - 9.c3 d5.} d6 {Marshall style pawn sacrifice is less tempting here, as White has the c3 square for the knight, down the line. Ein Bauernopfer im Marshall-Stil ist hier weniger verlockend, da Weiß im Lauf der Variante das Feld c3 für den Springer.} 11. c3 {An interesting idea. When watching this game live, I felt it is more principled not to allow the trade of b-pawns with b4-bxc3 and play 11.d3, but going deeper into the position, I also noticed the downsides of trading the b5 pawn away. The c4 and a4 squares become available to White pieces. Eine interessante Idee. Als ich diese Partie live sah, hielt ich es für prinzipieller, den b-Bauern mit b4-bxc3 nicht zu tauschen und 11.d3 zu spielen, aber als ich mich näher mit der Stellung befasste, bemerkte ich auch die Nachteile des Abtauschs des b5-Bauern. Die Felder c4 und a4 werden für die weißen Figuren verfügbar.} b4 {If Black goes for the plan with Re8, h6, Bf8, White will strike with the immediate d4!. This reply is very sensible, preparing counterplay against the d4 push. Wenn Schwarz den Plan mit Te8, h6, Lf8 verfolgt, wird Weiß sofort mit d4! zuschlagen. Diese Antwort ist sehr vernünftig und bereitet ein Gegenspiel gegen den d4-Vorstoß vor.} 12. d3 {Now the the c4 and a4 squares are under White's control, this timid setup has some venom. Jetzt, da die Felder c4 und a4 unter weißer Kontrolle sind, hat dieser zaghafte Aufbau etwas Gift.} (12. d4 bxc3 13. bxc3 exd4 {a thematic sequence gives Black enough counterplay. eine thematische Sequenz gibt Schwarz genug Gegenspiel.} 14. cxd4 d5 $1 15. e5 Ne4 {With a complicated position, but with the active knight on e4 and the play, as well as squares, along the b-file Black appears to have a decent position. Mit einer komplizierten Stellung, aber mit dem aktiven Springer auf e4 und dem Spiel sowie den Feldern entlang der b-Linie scheint Schwarz eine anständige Position zu haben.}) 12... bxc3 {Not neccessary, but Black likely has to release the tension sooner or later. Das ist nicht notwendig, aber Schwarz muss wahrscheinlich früher oder später die Spannung aufheben.} 13. bxc3 d5 {This is not a must, but Black played it quickly, suggesting that the team of the World Champion thought this was the best way to try and neutralize White's small initiative. I would also consider the slower plan with h6 Re8 Bf8, intending Be6 or Ne7-Ng6 regroup. Basically, Black's main issue is his c6 knight, that is restrained by the c3 pawn. Dies ist kein Muss, aber Schwarz spielte es schnell, was darauf hindeutet, dass das Team des Weltmeisters dachte, dies sei der beste Weg, um zu versuchen, die kleine Initiative von Weiß zu neutralisieren. Ich würde auch den langsameren Plan mit h6/Te8/Lf8 in Betracht ziehen, mit der Absicht, Le6 oder Se7-Sg6 umzugruppieren. Im Grunde genommen ist das Hauptproblem von Schwarz sein Springer auf c6, der durch den c3-Bauern zurückgehalten wird.} 14. Nbd2 {A quiet reply. White intends to finish development and banks his hopes on the fact that the c6 knight is an awful piece. Eine ruhige Antwort. Weiß will die Entwicklung beenden und setzt seine Hoffnungen auf die Tatsache, dass der Springer auf c6 eine schreckliche Figur ist.} dxe4 {Black needs to release the tension, as Ba4 is a threat potentially. Schwarz muss die Spannung auflösen, da La4 eine potenzielle Drohung ist.} 15. dxe4 Bd6 {This seems slightly less accurate than the immediate h6, Magnus has mixed up the move order here, but Ian returns the favor, transposing back into the position he was aiming for anyway. Das scheint etwas weniger genau zu sein als das unmittelbare h6, Magnus hat hier die Zugfolge durcheinandergebracht, aber Ian revanchiert sich, indem er wieder in die Stellung überleitet, die er ohnehin anstrebte.} (15... h6 {This was a better order, when after 16.Qc2 Bd6 we are back in the game. Das war eine bessere Reihenfolge, da wir nach 16.Dc2 Ld6 wieder in der Partie sind.} 16. Ba4 {is not dangerous for Black. ist für Schwarz nicht gefährlich.} Ra8 17. Ba3 (17. Bb2 Bd7 18. Bxc6 Bxc6 19. Nxe5 Rxa1 20. Bxa1 Bxe4 {regaining the pawn, with further trades. mit Rückgewinn des Bauern und weiteren Tauschaktionen.} 21. Nxe4 Qxd1 22. Nxf6+ Bxf6 23. Rxd1 Bxe5) 17... Nb8 $1 {everything holds, as 18.Nxe5 is met by 18...Rxa4! when the d2 knight is hanging in the end. hält alles, denn 18.Sxe5 wird mit 18...Txa4! beantwortet, wonach der Springer auf d2 am Ende hängt.}) 16. Qc2 {16.Nc4, as well as starting with 16.Ba4 first and then Nc4 was very challenging. Mit 16.Sc4 zu beginnen wie auch erst 16.La4 und dann Sc4, war sehr herausfordernd.} h6 17. Nf1 {A modest but a very harmonious plan. White just wants to finish his development with Ng3 and Be3. Ein bescheidener, aber sehr harmonischer Plan. Weiß will einfach seine Entwicklung mit Sg3 und Le3 beenden.} Ne7 $6 {A somewhat inaccurate move order once again, as the knight moving away from the center this early gives White the opportunity to eventually grab space with c4-c5. Wieder einmal eine etwas ungenaue Zugfolge, da der sich so früh aus dem Zentrum entfernde Springer gibt, Weiß die Möglichkeit, mit c4-c5 Raum zu gewinnen.} (17... Bd7 {Would have likely led to a similar position as in the game eventually, but sidestepping the 20.c4! option. hätte wahrscheinlich zu einer ähnlichen Stellung wie in der Partie geführt, aber unter Umgehung der Option 20.c4!} 18. Ng3 Qc8 19. Be3 Be6 20. Bxe6 Qxe6 {Black is on the defensive, but it is nothing much for White. Schwarz ist in der Defensive, aber das ist nicht viel für Weiß.}) 18. Ng3 Ng6 19. Be3 Qe8 {Clever, as Black intends Be6 and doesn't want to get hit by Nf5 after 19...Qe7. Clever, da Schwarz Le6 beabsichtigt und nicht nach 19...De7 von Sf5 getroffen werden will.} 20. Red1 {Too soft. Ian likely gets back into a position similar to the one he had in his notes after 17...Bd7, but it isn't much. Instead he had an opportunity to get a real plus. Zu weich. Ian kommt wahrscheinlich in eine ähnliche Stellung zurück, wie er sie in seinen Notizen nach 17...Ld7 hatte, aber das ist nicht viel. Stattdessen hatte er die Gelegenheit, ein echtes Plus zu erzielen.} (20. c4 $1 {This would gain some space and put more pressure on the Black's position. Dies würde Raum gewinnen und mehr Druck auf die schwarze Stellung ausüben.} Be6 {Probably this is what Magnus would have done. Black gets to trade the bishops, but gets cramped with c5. Wahrscheinlich hätte Magnus genau das getan. Schwarz kann die Läufer tauschen, wird aber mit c5 eingeklemmt.} (20... Bb4 {Ambitious, trying to give the bishop more air, but it doesn't work well. Ehrgeizig, um dem Läufer mehr Luft zu verschaffen, aber es funktioniert nicht gut.} 21. Reb1 $1 {Clever. Raffiniert.} c5 22. Ba4 $1 {Now Qe6 is not possible because of 23.Bxc5! and White bishop gets to reroute itself. Jetzt ist De6 wegen 23.Lxc5! nicht möglich, und der weiße Läufer kann sich selbst umleiten.} Qe7 23. Bc6 $1 {Heading for d5, a major upgrade from b3. White is better here, as the bishop on b4 is out of play and Black has got all these light square weaknesses. Er geht nach d5, eine große Verbesserung gegenüber b3. Weiß steht hier besser, da der Läufer auf b4 aus dem Spiel ist und Schwarz all diese weißen Feldschwächen hat.}) 21. Ba4 Bd7 {Slightly more accurate is 21...Qc8!, but I am not sure how easy it is for a human to understand that. Etwas genauer ist 21...Dc8!, aber ich bin mir nicht sicher, wie einfach das für einen Menschen zu verstehen ist.} 22. c5 Bxa4 23. Rxa4 {The pressure is on here, as the d6 bishop gets destabilized and the e5 as well as c7 pawns are now more vulnerable. Early to celebrate, but this would have given Ian better chances to achieve his first World Championship match victory. Der Druck ist hier groß, da der Läufer auf d6 destabilisiert wird und die Bauern auf e5 und c7 nun verwundbarer sind. Es ist noch zu früh zum Feiern, aber das hätte Ian bessere Chancen auf seinen ersten Sieg in einem Weltmeisterschaftsmatch gegeben.}) 20... Be6 21. Ba4 Bd7 22. Nd2 {Ian allows a lot of trades. Ian erlaubt eine Vielzahl von Abtäuschen.} Bxa4 23. Qxa4 Qxa4 24. Rxa4 {White still has a slightly better bishop, but there is very little Black should be worried about here. Easiest was 24... Rfd8! ready to meet 25.Nc4 with 25...Rb3. Weiß hat immer noch einen etwas besseren Läufer, aber es gibt sehr wenig, worüber sich Schwarz Sorgen machen müsste. Am einfachsten war 24... Tfd8!, bereit, 25.Sc4 mit 25...Tb3 zu begegnen.} Ra8 {Natural, to trade one more pair of pieces. Natürlich, um ein weiteres Figurenpaar zu tauschen.} 25. Rda1 Rxa4 26. Rxa4 Rb8 27. Ra6 Ne8 {Quite passive, but very solid. Ziemlich passiv, aber sehr solide.} (27... Nd7 {Seems to be cleaner. Scheint sauberer zu sein.} 28. Nc4 Bf8) (27... Nf4 {Is the engine way, but for a human it's hard to somehow make one active move in a row in a slightly lightly worse endgame. Das ist der Weg der Engine, aber für einen Menschen ist es schwer, in einem leicht schlechteren Endspiel irgendwie auf einmal einen aktiven Zug zu machen.}) 28. Kf1 Nf8 {Sticking to the passive approach again. Bleibt wieder beim passiven Ansatz.} 29. Nf5 {I was getting excited about 29.h4 but after 29...Ne6, it doesn't seem that h5 bind is that big a deal. Ich hatte mich schon auf 29.h4 gefreut, aber nach 29...Se6 scheint die h5-Klammer keine große Sache zu sein.} Ne6 30. Nc4 Rd8 31. f3 f6 {I thought 31...h5 was the more traditional way of solving the slightly issues that Black still has, but as Magnus correctly pointed out, after 32. Ncxd6! cxd6 33.Ra7 White keeps some pressure, while 32.g4 followed by h4-h5 bind is not such a big deal after all. Ich dachte, 31...h5 wäre der traditionellere Weg, um die leichten Probleme zu lösen, die Schwarz noch hat, aber wie Magnus richtig bemerkte, behält Weiß nach 32. Scxd6! cxd6 33.Ta7 etwas Druck, während 32.g4 gefolgt von der Klammer h4-h5 doch keine so große Sache ist.} 32. g4 Kf7 33. h4 Bf8 34. Ke2 Nd6 $1 {Trading a pair of knights makes Black's life easier. Der Abtausch eines Springerpaares macht Schwarz das Leben leichter.} 35. Ncxd6+ Bxd6 36. h5 Bf8 {Black now has the bad bishop, but there is nothing to be done here for White, as he has to keep the f4 square in check and also has no pawn breaks. Ian didn't see what he could try either and the game ended in a move repetition quickly. Schwarz hat nun den schlechten Läufer, aber für Weiß gibt es hier nichts zu tun, da er das Feld f4 in Schach halten muss und auch keine Bauerndurchbrüche hat. Ian sah auch nicht, was er versuchen könnte, und die Partie endete schnell in einer Zugwiederholung.} 37. Ra5 Ke8 38. Rd5 Ra8 39. Rd1 Ra2+ 40. Rd2 Ra1 41. Rd1 Ra2+ 42. Rd2 Ra1 43. Rd1 1/2-1/2 [Event "Tata Steel-A 80th"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2018.01.28"] [Round "13"] [White "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2753"] [BlackElo "2834"] [Annotator "Fernandez,Daniel Howard"] [PlyCount "67"] [EventDate "2018.01.13"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 183"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2018.03.14"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2018.03.14"] [SourceQuality "1"] [TimeControl "40/6000+30:20/3000+30:900+30"] 1. e4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} e5 {[%emt 0:00:10]} 2. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Nc6 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 3. Bb5 {[%emt 0:00:00]} a6 {[%emt 0:00:19]} 4. Ba4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Nf6 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 5. O-O {[%emt 0:00:00]} Be7 {[%emt 0:00:08]} 6. Re1 {[%emt 0:00:00]} b5 {[%emt 0:00:10]} 7. Bb3 {[%emt 0:00:02]} O-O {[%emt 0:00:06]} 8. a4 {[%emt 0:00:07] No Breyer today.} b4 {[%emt 0:00:05]} (8... Bb7 {is more popular, but I have never understood the appeal of developing the bishop to a diagonal that will remain closed, in the case when the Breyeresque ...c5-c4 is still some moves off.} 9. d3 d6 10. Nc3 {is White's point; Black's queenside pawns will not be permitted to advance abreast. The best he might be able to do is} Na5 11. Ba2 b4 12. Ne2 c5 13. Ng3 g6 (13... Bc8 14. c3 Rb8 15. d4 $36 {Duda,J-Najer,E Czech Republic 2017}) 14. h3 {when White appears to have extra tempi in his kingside attack, compared to most systems with an early d3.}) (8... Rb8 {is slightly compliant: after} 9. axb5 axb5 10. c3 d6 11. d4 {Black lacks the usual recourse of ...?a5 in the line} exd4 12. cxd4 Bg4 13. Be3 {so might have to make do with} d5 14. e5 Ne4 15. h3 Bh5 16. Nc3 $36 {; furthermore, 13.?c3!? might be unexpectedly strong in spite of the doubled f-pawns.}) 9. d4 {[%emt 0:01:17]} (9. a5 d6 10. d3 Be6 11. Bxe6 fxe6 12. Nbd2 {led to a nice win for Magnus himself in Carlsen,M-Aronian,L Saint Louis 2017; one wonders where the improvement was?}) (9. d3 d6 10. Nbd2 Na5 11. Ba2 c5 12. c3 Rb8 {is now fine for Black, who has not wasted time on ...?b7 unlike in the 8...?b7 line.}) 9... d6 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 10. dxe5 {[%emt 0:00:05]} Nxe5 {[%emt 0:00:08]} 11. Nxe5 {[%emt 0:05:48]} (11. Nbd2 Ned7 $5 {was an unusual method of pressuring e4, but a successful one:} 12. Nd4 Bb7 13. c3 bxc3 14. bxc3 Nc5 15. Bc2 Re8 16. f3 Nfd7 17. a5 d5 $11 {Nakamura, H-Svidler,P Saint Louis 2017}) 11... dxe5 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 12. Qe2 {[%emt 0:00:04]} a5 {[%emt 0:00:49] Possibly still affected by his own experience on the White side, Carlsen decides to avoid White's a5-ideas.} (12... Bc5 {is of course fine immediately.}) 13. Nd2 {[%emt 0:10:03]} Bc5 {[%emt 0:01:05]} 14. Nf3 {[%emt 0:06:46]} Qe7 {[%emt 0:02:23]} 15. Be3 {[%emt 0:12:57]} Ba6 {[%emt 0:19:41]} 16. Bxc5 {[%emt 0:02:31]} Qxc5 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 17. Qe3 {[%emt 0:00:04]} Qxe3 {[%emt 0:00:52]} 18. Rxe3 {[%emt 0:00:01]} Rfe8 $11 {[%emt 0:02:35] Initially this position looked to me to be slightly nicer for White, but this isn't really the case. In fact, Black may have more ideas in the position, and in the long term has the better bishop, so it would not surprise me if he was vaguely thinking about winning here.} 19. c3 {[%emt 0:02:40]} (19. h3 c5 20. Rd1 c4 21. Ba2 Kf8 $132 {is hard to get enthused about from the White side, especially if we remember Adhiban-Carlsen from round 2.}) 19... Ng4 {[%emt 0:01:23]} 20. Ng5 {[%emt 0:06:14] Simplifying quickly lest he end up worse.} Nxe3 {[%emt 0:02:28]} 21. Bxf7+ {[%emt 0:00:14]} Kf8 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 22. Bxe8 {[%emt 0:00:43]} Rxe8 {[%emt 0:01:06]} 23. fxe3 {[%emt 0:00:07]} bxc3 {[%emt 0:01:57]} 24. bxc3 {[%emt 0:00:09]} h6 {[%emt 0:00:20]} 25. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:55]} Bd3 {[%emt 0:01:30]} 26. Rd1 {[%emt 0:01:54]} Bxe4 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 27. Rd7 {[%emt 0:00:11] Continuing to force pieces off, because if White plays slowly the bishop will be superior.} Re7 {[%emt 0:03:06]} 28. Rd8+ {[%emt 0:00:23]} (28. Rxe7 Kxe7 29. Nxe5 Ke6 30. Nc4 Kd5 31. Nxa5 Bc2 {leads to an odd position where White is a pawn up but only he is taking risks.}) 28... Kf7 {[%emt 0:00:43]} 29. Nd2 {[%emt 0:00:41]} Bc6 {[%emt 0:00:19]} 30. Nc4 {[%emt 0:00:38]} Ke6 {[%emt 0:01:41]} 31. Nxa5 {[%emt 0:02:20]} Bxa4 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 32. Nb7 {[%emt 0:00:59]} Re8 {[%emt 0:03:30]} (32... Bd7 {might be a try if Black is desperate to play on.} 33. e4 (33. Nc5+ Kd6 34. Ne4+ Kc6 35. Kf2 Be8 $132) 33... Rf7 34. Nc5+ Kd6 35. Nd3 c5 $132 {Objectively this might be nothing for Black, and so there is no reason to go for it, especially if one has looked at Anish Giri's game and concluded he is unlikely to win.}) 33. Nc5+ {[%emt 0:00:14]} Kf6 {[%emt 0:00:28]} 34. Rxe8 $11 {[%emt 0:01:04] Unlike the previous note, here White gets to play ?a6 immediately, and thus seal up the whole position.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "World-ch Carlsen-Karjakin +1-1=10"] [Site "New York"] [Date "2016.11.15"] [Round "4"] [White "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2769"] [BlackElo "2857"] [Annotator "Rogozenco,Dorian"] [PlyCount "187"] [EventDate "2016.11.11"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "12"] [EventCountry "USA"] [SourceTitle "CBM 176"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2017.01.17"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2017.01.17"] [SourceQuality "1"] {Another marathon game in the match, another triumph of defence and another draw... At the beginning of game four it seemed as if Karjakin had not yet recovered from the previous tiring encounter, as some of his decisions right after the opening were doubtful, to say the least. But then, in a very critical situation, where most of the specialists predicted a sure win for Carlsen, the Russian grandmaster again displayed his fantastic skills in defending inferior positions and succeeded in getting the desired draw after almost 7 hours of play.} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 {In the second game of the match Karjakin went for 6.d3.} 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. h3 {A popular Anti-Marshall system, which tends to lead to a complicated strategical battle, with many theoretical subleties.} Bb7 9. d3 d6 ({Here Black can still play in Marshall-style with} 9... d5 {but Karjakin has a lot of experience with such positions which he plays with both colours. So Carlsen decides to go for a positional game.} 10. exd5 Nxd5 11. Nxe5 (11. Nbd2 f6 12. a3 Kh8 13. Ba2 Nf4 14. Ne4 Ng6 15. Be3 Nd4 16. Bxd4 exd4 17. h4 f5 18. Neg5 Nxh4 19. Ne6 Nxf3+ 20. gxf3 Qd6 21. Nxf8 Rxf8 22. Kf1 Bg5 23. Re6 Qf4 24. Qe2 Bxf3 25. Qe5 Qh4 26. Qg3 Qh1+ 27. Qg1 Qh5 {0-1 (27) Topalov,V (2752)-Karjakin,S (2779) Astana 2012}) 11... Nd4 12. Bd2 c5 13. Nc3 Nxb3 14. axb3 Nb4 15. Ne4 f5 16. Ng3 Qd5 17. Nf3 Qd7 18. Ne5 Qd5 19. Nf3 Qd7 20. Bxb4 cxb4 21. d4 Rac8 22. Qd3 Bd6 23. Ne5 Qc7 24. Nxf5 Bxe5 25. Rxe5 {Karjakin,S (2747)-Onischuk,A (2688) Khanty-Mansiysk 2010, and White went on to win.}) 10. a3 Qd7 ({Both} 10... Na5 11. Ba2 c5) ({and} 10... Nb8 11. Nbd2 Nbd7 {had been played by Carlsen before. However, Karjakin's answer came instantly.}) 11. Nbd2 Rfe8 {This move might have been a surprise for the contender. He thought for 12 minutes before coming up with a reply and also spent a lot of time on his next moves. In previous games Karjakin had faced 11...?ae8 and 11...?d8.} 12. c3 {Why did it take Karjakin so long to play this natural move? First of all, despite his huge experience in these types of position, Karjakin never had this particular one in his practice before. Secondly, the position is quite complicated strategically and it is not easy to figure out whether White needs to play c2-c3 at all. For instance it looks logical to postpone it and start with 12.?f1. Generally speaking, modern theory considers this type of position as slightly better for White. But again, with a lot of strategic subtleties. As grandmaster Nigel Short put it: "In such positions, with White I always feel I have no advantage, but with Black that I can't equalise".} Bf8 13. Nf1 h6 14. N3h2 {Preparing the typical action on the kingside, which is met by the standard counterplay in the centre.} d5 15. Qf3 {White now threatens to take on h6 and actually has a simple plan: he wants to play ?g3, ?g4 and so on. Black must react very precisely and Carlsen is up to this task.} Na5 16. Ba2 dxe4 {Played after ten minutes.} ({Possibly the World Champion wondered whether he had compensation in variations like} 16... c5 17. Bxh6 c4 18. Rad1 (18. Bg5 {allows} dxe4 19. dxe4 Nxe4 20. Rxe4 f5 {which is very unlear}) 18... dxe4 19. dxe4 Qc6 {but then decided to go for the more solid game continuation.}) 17. dxe4 Nc4 18. Bxh6 {A curious moment. After a long think Karjakin makes the most principled move, but soon ends up in a very unpleasant position. Taking on h6 is not a mistake yet, but White must have missed something, as his next move is clearly not the best way to continue.} (18. Ng4 {maintains equality.}) 18... Qc6 $1 {Very precise play by Carlsen. Black had several sharp alternatives, but the World Champion rightly rejected them.} (18... Nxb2 19. Bg5 Nh7 20. Bh4 c5 21. Re2 Nc4 22. Bxc4 bxc4 23. Rd2 {and White has an advantage.}) (18... Nxe4 19. Rxe4 Bxe4 (19... f5 $2 {loses due to} 20. Rxc4 Bxf3 21. Rxc7+) 20. Qxe4 gxh6 21. Ng4 Bg7 22. Nfe3 {with good positional compensation for White.}) 19. Bxc4 $6 {This doubtful move was played after 16 minutes of thinking! Maybe Karjakin already disliked his position so much, that he decided to go for a clearly worse endgame, hoping to hold it. Amazingly, this worked out in the end...} ({There was still nothing wrong with White's position after} 19. Bc1 {For example:} Nxe4 20. Ne3 Ned6 21. Qxc6 Bxc6 22. Nhg4 {which is about equal.}) 19... bxc4 (19... Qxc4 20. Nd2 $1 {and White keeps his extra pawn}) 20. Be3 Nxe4 21. Ng3 Nd6 ({Both} 21... Nxg3) ({and} 21... Qg6 {were good alternatives as well. In all cases Black has the advantage.}) 22. Rad1 Rab8 23. Bc1 f6 24. Qxc6 Bxc6 25. Ng4 Rb5 26. f3 {Thanks to his bishop pair and the pressure on b2 Black has a clear advantage. Basically there are two ways to treat the position: to play slowly with a move like 26...?f7, improving the pieces step by step, or take immediate action - which is what Carlsen did in the game.} f5 {Black takes advantage of the fact that the knight cannot go to e3, but slow play might have been more unpleasant for Karjakin, who was already feeling some time pressure.} 27. Nf2 (27. Ne3 $2 f4) 27... Be7 ({Perhaps} 27... Kf7 {was more accurate, as now} 28. f4 {would be a mistake due to} exf4 29. Ne2 Rbe5) 28. f4 $1 {As usual, in a difficult situation Karjakin starts to defend extremely well. White needs to simplify the position, as otherwise he will soon run out of air.} Bh4 ({Another attractive option was} 28... exf4 29. Ne2 Ne4 (29... g5 30. Nd4 Rb6 31. Nxc6 Rxc6 32. Rd5 {followed by h4 gives White sufficient counterplay.}) 30. Nxe4 Bxe4 31. Nxf4 Rbb8 {In both cases Black is better and it is not easy to decide which position leaves Black with more winning chances.}) 29. fxe5 Bxg3 (29... Rbxe5 {is not convincing:} 30. Rxe5 Rxe5 31. Bf4 Rb5 32. Rd2 {and White has good chances to escape.}) 30. exd6 Rxe1+ 31. Rxe1 cxd6 32. Rd1 Kf7 ({After the principled} 32... Re5 33. Nh1 $1 (33. Kf1 Re6 {with ideas like ...?g6}) 33... f4 (33... Bh4 {leads nowhere:} 34. Rxd6 Re1+ 35. Kh2) ({but maybe} 33... Ba4 34. Rf1 Bh4 35. Bf4 Rd5 {is the best}) 34. Nxg3 fxg3 35. Kf1 Be4 {Black has a clear advantage. However, the question remains the same: is it enough for a win?}) 33. Rd4 Re5 34. Kf1 Rd5 35. Rxd5 Bxd5 36. Bg5 Kg6 37. h4 {A very committal decision in time trouble, as the pawn on h4 will fall soon. In return White gets the possibility to activate the knight via h3.} Kh5 38. Nh3 Bf7 39. Be7 Bxh4 40. Bxd6 Bd8 {The time trouble is over and we can reach some conclusions: White has succeeded in avoiding the worst and simplified the position. However, even if Black fails to increase his advantage, he still has reasonable winning chances, as the bishop pair together with the chance to create a passed pawn on the kingside are strong arguments in Black's favour.} 41. Ke2 g5 42. Nf2 Kg6 43. g4 {Another committal decision by Karjakin, which again worked out well.} Bb6 44. Be5 a5 45. Nd1 f4 $2 {The decisive mistake, as it considerably limits Black's winning ideas. Carlsen gets a nice passed pawn, but closes the kingside and it will turn out that White can defend his queenside weakness successfully.} ({After} 45... Be6 {Black must be winning. The World Champion tries hard to win for another 50 moves, but his efforts are in vain and Karjakin again achieves a very important draw.}) 46. Bd4 Bc7 47. Nf2 Be6 48. Kf3 Bd5+ 49. Ke2 Bg2 50. Kd2 Kf7 51. Kc2 Bd5 52. Kd2 Bd8 53. Kc2 Ke6 54. Kd2 Kd7 55. Kc2 Kc6 56. Kd2 Kb5 57. Kc1 Ka4 58. Kc2 Bf7 59. Kc1 Bg6 60. Kd2 Kb3 61. Kc1 Bd3 62. Nh3 Ka2 63. Bc5 Be2 64. Nf2 Bf3 65. Kc2 Bc6 66. Bd4 Bd7 67. Bc5 Bc7 68. Bd4 Be6 69. Bc5 f3 70. Be3 Bd7 71. Kc1 Bc8 72. Kc2 Bd7 73. Kc1 Bf4 74. Bxf4 gxf4 75. Kc2 Be6 76. Kc1 Bc8 77. Kc2 Be6 78. Kc1 Kb3 79. Kb1 Ka4 80. Kc2 Kb5 81. Kd2 Kc6 82. Ke1 Kd5 83. Kf1 Ke5 84. Kg1 Kf6 85. Ne4+ Kg6 86. Kf2 Bxg4 87. Nd2 Be6 88. Kxf3 Kf5 89. a4 Bd5+ 90. Kf2 Kg4 91. Nf1 Kg5 92. Nd2 Kf5 93. Ke2 Kg4 94. Kf2 1/2-1/2 [Event "World-ch Carlsen-Nepomniachtchi"] [Site "Dubai"] [Date "2021.12.01"] [Round "5"] [White "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2782"] [BlackElo "2855"] [Annotator "Giri,Anish"] [PlyCount "85"] [EventDate "2021.11.26"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "14"] [EventCountry "UAE"] [SourceTitle "CBM 206"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2022.02.28"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2022.02.28"] [SourceQuality "1"] {[%evp 0,85,61,26,56,50,61,-17,8,-20,-38,-95,-19,-58,-58,-37,5,-28,29,28,28,-14,24,-17,22,-17,-1,3,97,21,25,18,51,31,53,11,28,35,58,18,49,44,56,50,50,17,23,19,42,37,22,29,32,24,34,17,50,34,40,43,90,62,106,93,103,78,74,41,41,54,51,58,48,53,53,29,53,42,41,4,37,37,37,11,37,37,29,37]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O {No surprises thus far, as both the players continue the discussion in the Anti-Marshall. Keine Überraschungen bis jetzt, da beide Spieler die Diskussion im Anti-Marshall fortsetzen.} 8. a4 {Repeating the previous White game, from round 3, Ian is ready to challenge Magnus in this topical sideline once again. Die vorangegangene Weißpartie aus Runde 3 wiederholend, ist Ian bereit, Magnus in dieser aktuellen Nebenvariante erneut herauszufordern.} Rb8 {A deviation from the third game, but hardly a surprise, as Magnus used this move against Duda in the relatively recently finished World Cup in Sochi. Eine Abweichung von der dritten Partie, aber kaum eine Überraschung, da Magnus diesen Zug gegen Duda beim erst kürzlich beendeten World Cup in Sotschi anwandte.} (8... Bb7 9. d3 d6 10. Nbd2 Re8 $5 {happened in game 3. geschah in Partie 3.}) 9. axb5 axb5 10. h3 {Ian shows some move order finesse here, avoiding 10.c3 d5, which happened in Duda-Carlsen, though without the inclusion of 9.axb5 axb5 yet -9.c3 d5. Ian zeigt hier eine gewisse Finesse in der Zugfolge, indem er 10.c3 d5 vermeidet, was in Duda-Carlsen geschah, allerdings noch ohne die Einschaltung von 9.axb5 axb5 - 9.c3 d5.} d6 {Marshall style pawn sacrifice is less tempting here, as White has the c3 square for the knight, down the line. Ein Bauernopfer im Marshall-Stil ist hier weniger verlockend, da Weiß im Lauf der Variante das Feld c3 für den Springer.} 11. c3 {An interesting idea. When watching this game live, I felt it is more principled not to allow the trade of b-pawns with b4-bxc3 and play 11.d3, but going deeper into the position, I also noticed the downsides of trading the b5 pawn away. The c4 and a4 squares become available to White pieces. Eine interessante Idee. Als ich diese Partie live sah, hielt ich es für prinzipieller, den b-Bauern mit b4-bxc3 nicht zu tauschen und 11.d3 zu spielen, aber als ich mich näher mit der Stellung befasste, bemerkte ich auch die Nachteile des Abtauschs des b5-Bauern. Die Felder c4 und a4 werden für die weißen Figuren verfügbar.} b4 {If Black goes for the plan with Re8, h6, Bf8, White will strike with the immediate d4!. This reply is very sensible, preparing counterplay against the d4 push. Wenn Schwarz den Plan mit Te8, h6, Lf8 verfolgt, wird Weiß sofort mit d4! zuschlagen. Diese Antwort ist sehr vernünftig und bereitet ein Gegenspiel gegen den d4-Vorstoß vor.} 12. d3 {Now the the c4 and a4 squares are under White's control, this timid setup has some venom. Jetzt, da die Felder c4 und a4 unter weißer Kontrolle sind, hat dieser zaghafte Aufbau etwas Gift.} (12. d4 bxc3 13. bxc3 exd4 {a thematic sequence gives Black enough counterplay. eine thematische Sequenz gibt Schwarz genug Gegenspiel.} 14. cxd4 d5 $1 15. e5 Ne4 {With a complicated position, but with the active knight on e4 and the play, as well as squares, along the b-file Black appears to have a decent position. Mit einer komplizierten Stellung, aber mit dem aktiven Springer auf e4 und dem Spiel sowie den Feldern entlang der b-Linie scheint Schwarz eine anständige Position zu haben.}) 12... bxc3 {Not neccessary, but Black likely has to release the tension sooner or later. Das ist nicht notwendig, aber Schwarz muss wahrscheinlich früher oder später die Spannung aufheben.} 13. bxc3 d5 {This is not a must, but Black played it quickly, suggesting that the team of the World Champion thought this was the best way to try and neutralize White's small initiative. I would also consider the slower plan with h6 Re8 Bf8, intending Be6 or Ne7-Ng6 regroup. Basically, Black's main issue is his c6 knight, that is restrained by the c3 pawn. Dies ist kein Muss, aber Schwarz spielte es schnell, was darauf hindeutet, dass das Team des Weltmeisters dachte, dies sei der beste Weg, um zu versuchen, die kleine Initiative von Weiß zu neutralisieren. Ich würde auch den langsameren Plan mit h6/Te8/Lf8 in Betracht ziehen, mit der Absicht, Le6 oder Se7-Sg6 umzugruppieren. Im Grunde genommen ist das Hauptproblem von Schwarz sein Springer auf c6, der durch den c3-Bauern zurückgehalten wird.} 14. Nbd2 {A quiet reply. White intends to finish development and banks his hopes on the fact that the c6 knight is an awful piece. Eine ruhige Antwort. Weiß will die Entwicklung beenden und setzt seine Hoffnungen auf die Tatsache, dass der Springer auf c6 eine schreckliche Figur ist.} dxe4 {Black needs to release the tension, as Ba4 is a threat potentially. Schwarz muss die Spannung auflösen, da La4 eine potenzielle Drohung ist.} 15. dxe4 Bd6 {This seems slightly less accurate than the immediate h6, Magnus has mixed up the move order here, but Ian returns the favor, transposing back into the position he was aiming for anyway. Das scheint etwas weniger genau zu sein als das unmittelbare h6, Magnus hat hier die Zugfolge durcheinandergebracht, aber Ian revanchiert sich, indem er wieder in die Stellung überleitet, die er ohnehin anstrebte.} (15... h6 {This was a better order, when after 16.Qc2 Bd6 we are back in the game. Das war eine bessere Reihenfolge, da wir nach 16.Dc2 Ld6 wieder in der Partie sind.} 16. Ba4 {is not dangerous for Black. ist für Schwarz nicht gefährlich.} Ra8 17. Ba3 (17. Bb2 Bd7 18. Bxc6 Bxc6 19. Nxe5 Rxa1 20. Bxa1 Bxe4 {regaining the pawn, with further trades. mit Rückgewinn des Bauern und weiteren Tauschaktionen.} 21. Nxe4 Qxd1 22. Nxf6+ Bxf6 23. Rxd1 Bxe5) 17... Nb8 $1 {everything holds, as 18.Nxe5 is met by 18...Rxa4! when the d2 knight is hanging in the end. hält alles, denn 18.Sxe5 wird mit 18...Txa4! beantwortet, wonach der Springer auf d2 am Ende hängt.}) 16. Qc2 {16.Nc4, as well as starting with 16.Ba4 first and then Nc4 was very challenging. Mit 16.Sc4 zu beginnen wie auch erst 16.La4 und dann Sc4, war sehr herausfordernd.} h6 17. Nf1 {A modest but a very harmonious plan. White just wants to finish his development with Ng3 and Be3. Ein bescheidener, aber sehr harmonischer Plan. Weiß will einfach seine Entwicklung mit Sg3 und Le3 beenden.} Ne7 $6 {A somewhat inaccurate move order once again, as the knight moving away from the center this early gives White the opportunity to eventually grab space with c4-c5. Wieder einmal eine etwas ungenaue Zugfolge, da der sich so früh aus dem Zentrum entfernde Springer gibt, Weiß die Möglichkeit, mit c4-c5 Raum zu gewinnen.} (17... Bd7 {Would have likely led to a similar position as in the game eventually, but sidestepping the 20.c4! option. hätte wahrscheinlich zu einer ähnlichen Stellung wie in der Partie geführt, aber unter Umgehung der Option 20.c4!} 18. Ng3 Qc8 19. Be3 Be6 20. Bxe6 Qxe6 {Black is on the defensive, but it is nothing much for White. Schwarz ist in der Defensive, aber das ist nicht viel für Weiß.}) 18. Ng3 Ng6 19. Be3 Qe8 {Clever, as Black intends Be6 and doesn't want to get hit by Nf5 after 19...Qe7. Clever, da Schwarz Le6 beabsichtigt und nicht nach 19...De7 von Sf5 getroffen werden will.} 20. Red1 {Too soft. Ian likely gets back into a position similar to the one he had in his notes after 17...Bd7, but it isn't much. Instead he had an opportunity to get a real plus. Zu weich. Ian kommt wahrscheinlich in eine ähnliche Stellung zurück, wie er sie in seinen Notizen nach 17...Ld7 hatte, aber das ist nicht viel. Stattdessen hatte er die Gelegenheit, ein echtes Plus zu erzielen.} (20. c4 $1 {This would gain some space and put more pressure on the Black's position. Dies würde Raum gewinnen und mehr Druck auf die schwarze Stellung ausüben.} Be6 {Probably this is what Magnus would have done. Black gets to trade the bishops, but gets cramped with c5. Wahrscheinlich hätte Magnus genau das getan. Schwarz kann die Läufer tauschen, wird aber mit c5 eingeklemmt.} (20... Bb4 {Ambitious, trying to give the bishop more air, but it doesn't work well. Ehrgeizig, um dem Läufer mehr Luft zu verschaffen, aber es funktioniert nicht gut.} 21. Reb1 $1 {Clever. Raffiniert.} c5 22. Ba4 $1 {Now Qe6 is not possible because of 23.Bxc5! and White bishop gets to reroute itself. Jetzt ist De6 wegen 23.Lxc5! nicht möglich, und der weiße Läufer kann sich selbst umleiten.} Qe7 23. Bc6 $1 {Heading for d5, a major upgrade from b3. White is better here, as the bishop on b4 is out of play and Black has got all these light square weaknesses. Er geht nach d5, eine große Verbesserung gegenüber b3. Weiß steht hier besser, da der Läufer auf b4 aus dem Spiel ist und Schwarz all diese weißen Feldschwächen hat.}) 21. Ba4 Bd7 {Slightly more accurate is 21...Qc8!, but I am not sure how easy it is for a human to understand that. Etwas genauer ist 21...Dc8!, aber ich bin mir nicht sicher, wie einfach das für einen Menschen zu verstehen ist.} 22. c5 Bxa4 23. Rxa4 {The pressure is on here, as the d6 bishop gets destabilized and the e5 as well as c7 pawns are now more vulnerable. Early to celebrate, but this would have given Ian better chances to achieve his first World Championship match victory. Der Druck ist hier groß, da der Läufer auf d6 destabilisiert wird und die Bauern auf e5 und c7 nun verwundbarer sind. Es ist noch zu früh zum Feiern, aber das hätte Ian bessere Chancen auf seinen ersten Sieg in einem Weltmeisterschaftsmatch gegeben.}) 20... Be6 21. Ba4 Bd7 22. Nd2 {Ian allows a lot of trades. Ian erlaubt eine Vielzahl von Abtäuschen.} Bxa4 23. Qxa4 Qxa4 24. Rxa4 {White still has a slightly better bishop, but there is very little Black should be worried about here. Easiest was 24... Rfd8! ready to meet 25.Nc4 with 25...Rb3. Weiß hat immer noch einen etwas besseren Läufer, aber es gibt sehr wenig, worüber sich Schwarz Sorgen machen müsste. Am einfachsten war 24... Tfd8!, bereit, 25.Sc4 mit 25...Tb3 zu begegnen.} Ra8 {Natural, to trade one more pair of pieces. Natürlich, um ein weiteres Figurenpaar zu tauschen.} 25. Rda1 Rxa4 26. Rxa4 Rb8 27. Ra6 Ne8 {Quite passive, but very solid. Ziemlich passiv, aber sehr solide.} (27... Nd7 {Seems to be cleaner. Scheint sauberer zu sein.} 28. Nc4 Bf8) (27... Nf4 {Is the engine way, but for a human it's hard to somehow make one active move in a row in a slightly lightly worse endgame. Das ist der Weg der Engine, aber für einen Menschen ist es schwer, in einem leicht schlechteren Endspiel irgendwie auf einmal einen aktiven Zug zu machen.}) 28. Kf1 Nf8 {Sticking to the passive approach again. Bleibt wieder beim passiven Ansatz.} 29. Nf5 {I was getting excited about 29.h4 but after 29...Ne6, it doesn't seem that h5 bind is that big a deal. Ich hatte mich schon auf 29.h4 gefreut, aber nach 29...Se6 scheint die h5-Klammer keine große Sache zu sein.} Ne6 30. Nc4 Rd8 31. f3 f6 {I thought 31...h5 was the more traditional way of solving the slightly issues that Black still has, but as Magnus correctly pointed out, after 32. Ncxd6! cxd6 33.Ra7 White keeps some pressure, while 32.g4 followed by h4-h5 bind is not such a big deal after all. Ich dachte, 31...h5 wäre der traditionellere Weg, um die leichten Probleme zu lösen, die Schwarz noch hat, aber wie Magnus richtig bemerkte, behält Weiß nach 32. Scxd6! cxd6 33.Ta7 etwas Druck, während 32.g4 gefolgt von der Klammer h4-h5 doch keine so große Sache ist.} 32. g4 Kf7 33. h4 Bf8 34. Ke2 Nd6 $1 {Trading a pair of knights makes Black's life easier. Der Abtausch eines Springerpaares macht Schwarz das Leben leichter.} 35. Ncxd6+ Bxd6 36. h5 Bf8 {Black now has the bad bishop, but there is nothing to be done here for White, as he has to keep the f4 square in check and also has no pawn breaks. Ian didn't see what he could try either and the game ended in a move repetition quickly. Schwarz hat nun den schlechten Läufer, aber für Weiß gibt es hier nichts zu tun, da er das Feld f4 in Schach halten muss und auch keine Bauerndurchbrüche hat. Ian sah auch nicht, was er versuchen könnte, und die Partie endete schnell in einer Zugwiederholung.} 37. Ra5 Ke8 38. Rd5 Ra8 39. Rd1 Ra2+ 40. Rd2 Ra1 41. Rd1 Ra2+ 42. Rd2 Ra1 43. Rd1 1/2-1/2 [Event "World-ch Carlsen-Nepomniachtchi"] [Site "Dubai"] [Date "2021.12.04"] [Round "7"] [White "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2782"] [BlackElo "2855"] [Annotator "Giri,Anish"] [PlyCount "81"] [EventDate "2021.11.26"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "14"] [EventCountry "UAE"] [SourceTitle "CBM 206"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2022.02.28"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2022.02.28"] [SourceQuality "1"] {[%evp 0,81,58,32,26,61,50,20,8,-25,-5,-63,-19,-58,-58,-51,-20,-50,-16,28,34,-18,24,-3,22,19,54,61,85,36,36,33,75,64,76,79,82,50,83,83,83,72,81,67,107,86,14,14,8,8,8,4,-1,-5,-5,-5,-7,-4,-9,-3,-3,5,1,0,6,0,3,0,0,0,0,-4,0,-18,0,0,0,-18,0,0,0,0,0,0]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. a4 {The repeat of the same opening as in game 3 and 5 is not too surprising, given that Ian didn't have much time after the previous long game that ended in a loss for him. Also Ian was getting some small plus there, after all Die Wiederholung der gleichen Eröffnung wie in den Partien 3 und 5 ist nicht allzu überraschend, wenn man bedenkt, dass Ian nach der letzten langen Partie, die für ihn mit einer Niederlage endete, nicht viel Zeit hatte. Außerdem bekam Ian dort ein kleines Plus, immerhin} Rb8 9. axb5 axb5 10. h3 d6 11. d3 {Another twist, keeping the b-pawns on the board for now. In the previous game in this position Ian included 11.c3 b4, got a small plus, but for this game, Magnus (his team) would likely come up with an improvement neutralizing that attempt. Eine weitere Wendung, bei der die b-Bauern vorerst auf dem Brett bleiben. In der vorherigen Partie hatte Ian in dieser Stellung 11.c3 b4 eingeschaltet und ein kleines Plus erzielt, aber für diese Partie würde Magnus (sein Team) wahrscheinlich eine Verbesserung finden, die diesen Versuch neutralisiert.} h6 {Magnus is going for the very simple plan of h6, Re8, Bf8, Be6, trading the bishops without doubling the pawns. It is slow, but quite efficient. Magnus wählt den sehr einfachen Plan h6, Te8, Lf8, Le6 mit Läufertausch, ohne die Bauern zu verdoppeln. Es ist langsam, aber ziemlich effizient.} 12. Nc3 {Ian chooses for the Nc3-Nd5 plan. Ian entscheidet sich für den Plan Sc3-Sd5.} Re8 13. Nd5 Bf8 {Black continues with his plan, not minding the trade of knights much. Schwarz fährt mit seinem Plan fort und kümmert sich nicht sonderlich um den Tausch von Springern.} 14. Nxf6+ Qxf6 15. c3 {Black is left with the "bad" c6 knight, but as so often in these structures, he can reroute it to g6 at will. Schwarz bleibt der "schlechte" Springer auf c6, aber wie so oft in diesen Strukturen kann er ihn nach Belieben nach g6 umlenken.} Ne7 16. Be3 Be6 {Magnus took some time to go for this move order. It was also possible to start with 15....Be6, or play another move here, for example 16... b4 or 16...c5. Magnus brauchte einige Zeit, um sich für diese Zugfolge zu entscheiden. Es war auch möglich, mit 15....Le6 zu beginnen oder hier einen anderen Zug zu spielen, zum Beispiel 16...b4 oder 16...c5.} 17. d4 {White gains space in the center, but with the second pair of light pieces getting traded, the center alone is not worth too much. The side with the less space is always happy to trade stuff away. Weiß gewinnt Raum in der Mitte, aber mit dem zweiten Paar Leichtfiguren, die getauscht werden, ist die Mitte allein nicht allzu viel wert. Die Seite mit dem weniger Platz ist immer froh, wenn sie etwas abtauschen kann.} exd4 $1 {Likely an operation prepared by the team of the World Champion. Giving up the center may seem surprising at first, but it equalizes quite smoothly. Wahrscheinlich eine Operation, die vom Team des Weltmeisters vorbereitet wurde. Die Aufgabe des Zentrums mag zunächst überraschen, aber sie gleicht ganz problemlos aus.} 18. cxd4 Bxb3 19. Qxb3 Ng6 {It transpires that the e4 pawn is hanging and more importantly, c5 push is coming next. Es stellt sich heraus, dass der e4-Bauer hängt und, was noch wichtiger ist, dass der c5-Vorstoß als nächstes kommt.} 20. Rec1 (20. Rac1 $1 {The only way to put some pressure, preventing c5, but Black is fine here as well. Die einzige Möglichkeit, Druck auszuüben und c5 zu verhindern, aber auch hier steht Schwarz gut.} Rxe4 (20... Rbc8 {or 20...Qd8 is also possible, trying to be even more pedantic. oder 20...Dd8 ist auch möglich, um noch pedantischer zu sein.}) 21. Rxc7 Re7 {White is maybe somewhat more pleasant here, with b5 pawn being slightly lightly weak, but it is not a big deal. Weiß steht hier vielleicht etwas angenehmer, da der b5-Bauer leicht schwach ist, aber das ist keine große Sache.}) (20. Qc2 c5 21. e5 Qd8 {should lead to mass exchanges as well, just like in the game. sollte ebenfalls zu einem Massenaustausch führen, genau wie im Spiel.}) 20... c5 {Now the stuff just gets traded and the game ends in a draw quickly. Jetzt werden die Sachen einfach abgetauscht und das Spiel endet schnell unentschieden.} 21. e5 Qf5 22. dxc5 dxc5 23. Bxc5 Bxc5 24. Rxc5 Nxe5 25. Nxe5 Rxe5 26. Rxe5 Qxe5 27. Qc3 {Vacuum cleaner is on. Der Staubsauger ist eingeschaltet.} Qxc3 28. bxc3 Rc8 29. Ra5 Rxc3 30. Rxb5 Rc1+ 31. Kh2 Rc3 32. h4 g6 33. g3 h5 34. Kg2 Kg7 35. Ra5 Kf6 36. Rb5 Kg7 37. Ra5 Kf6 38. Rb5 Kg7 39. Ra5 Kf6 40. Ra6+ Kg7 41. Ra7 {Not the most exciting of the games, but after a 7+ hour long game the day before, the players have nothing to prove to anyone. Nicht die aufregendste Partie, aber nach einer 7-stündigen Partie am Vortag haben die Spieler niemandem etwas zu beweisen.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "World-ch Carlsen-Nepomniachtchi"] [Site "Dubai"] [Date "2021.12.04"] [Round "7"] [White "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2782"] [BlackElo "2855"] [Annotator "Giri,Anish"] [PlyCount "81"] [EventDate "2021.11.26"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "14"] [EventCountry "UAE"] [SourceTitle "CBM 206"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2022.02.28"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2022.02.28"] [SourceQuality "1"] {[%evp 0,81,58,32,26,61,50,20,8,-25,-5,-63,-19,-58,-58,-51,-20,-50,-16,28,34,-18,24,-3,22,19,54,61,85,36,36,33,75,64,76,79,82,50,83,83,83,72,81,67,107,86,14,14,8,8,8,4,-1,-5,-5,-5,-7,-4,-9,-3,-3,5,1,0,6,0,3,0,0,0,0,-4,0,-18,0,0,0,-18,0,0,0,0,0,0]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. a4 {The repeat of the same opening as in game 3 and 5 is not too surprising, given that Ian didn't have much time after the previous long game that ended in a loss for him. Also Ian was getting some small plus there, after all Die Wiederholung der gleichen Eröffnung wie in den Partien 3 und 5 ist nicht allzu überraschend, wenn man bedenkt, dass Ian nach der letzten langen Partie, die für ihn mit einer Niederlage endete, nicht viel Zeit hatte. Außerdem bekam Ian dort ein kleines Plus, immerhin} Rb8 9. axb5 axb5 10. h3 d6 11. d3 {Another twist, keeping the b-pawns on the board for now. In the previous game in this position Ian included 11.c3 b4, got a small plus, but for this game, Magnus (his team) would likely come up with an improvement neutralizing that attempt. Eine weitere Wendung, bei der die b-Bauern vorerst auf dem Brett bleiben. In der vorherigen Partie hatte Ian in dieser Stellung 11.c3 b4 eingeschaltet und ein kleines Plus erzielt, aber für diese Partie würde Magnus (sein Team) wahrscheinlich eine Verbesserung finden, die diesen Versuch neutralisiert.} h6 {Magnus is going for the very simple plan of h6, Re8, Bf8, Be6, trading the bishops without doubling the pawns. It is slow, but quite efficient. Magnus wählt den sehr einfachen Plan h6, Te8, Lf8, Le6 mit Läufertausch, ohne die Bauern zu verdoppeln. Es ist langsam, aber ziemlich effizient.} 12. Nc3 {Ian chooses for the Nc3-Nd5 plan. Ian entscheidet sich für den Plan Sc3-Sd5.} Re8 13. Nd5 Bf8 {Black continues with his plan, not minding the trade of knights much. Schwarz fährt mit seinem Plan fort und kümmert sich nicht sonderlich um den Tausch von Springern.} 14. Nxf6+ Qxf6 15. c3 {Black is left with the "bad" c6 knight, but as so often in these structures, he can reroute it to g6 at will. Schwarz bleibt der "schlechte" Springer auf c6, aber wie so oft in diesen Strukturen kann er ihn nach Belieben nach g6 umlenken.} Ne7 16. Be3 Be6 {Magnus took some time to go for this move order. It was also possible to start with 15....Be6, or play another move here, for example 16... b4 or 16...c5. Magnus brauchte einige Zeit, um sich für diese Zugfolge zu entscheiden. Es war auch möglich, mit 15....Le6 zu beginnen oder hier einen anderen Zug zu spielen, zum Beispiel 16...b4 oder 16...c5.} 17. d4 {White gains space in the center, but with the second pair of light pieces getting traded, the center alone is not worth too much. The side with the less space is always happy to trade stuff away. Weiß gewinnt Raum in der Mitte, aber mit dem zweiten Paar Leichtfiguren, die getauscht werden, ist die Mitte allein nicht allzu viel wert. Die Seite mit dem weniger Platz ist immer froh, wenn sie etwas abtauschen kann.} exd4 $1 {Likely an operation prepared by the team of the World Champion. Giving up the center may seem surprising at first, but it equalizes quite smoothly. Wahrscheinlich eine Operation, die vom Team des Weltmeisters vorbereitet wurde. Die Aufgabe des Zentrums mag zunächst überraschen, aber sie gleicht ganz problemlos aus.} 18. cxd4 Bxb3 19. Qxb3 Ng6 {It transpires that the e4 pawn is hanging and more importantly, c5 push is coming next. Es stellt sich heraus, dass der e4-Bauer hängt und, was noch wichtiger ist, dass der c5-Vorstoß als nächstes kommt.} 20. Rec1 (20. Rac1 $1 {The only way to put some pressure, preventing c5, but Black is fine here as well. Die einzige Möglichkeit, Druck auszuüben und c5 zu verhindern, aber auch hier steht Schwarz gut.} Rxe4 (20... Rbc8 {or 20...Qd8 is also possible, trying to be even more pedantic. oder 20...Dd8 ist auch möglich, um noch pedantischer zu sein.}) 21. Rxc7 Re7 {White is maybe somewhat more pleasant here, with b5 pawn being slightly lightly weak, but it is not a big deal. Weiß steht hier vielleicht etwas angenehmer, da der b5-Bauer leicht schwach ist, aber das ist keine große Sache.}) (20. Qc2 c5 21. e5 Qd8 {should lead to mass exchanges as well, just like in the game. sollte ebenfalls zu einem Massenaustausch führen, genau wie im Spiel.}) 20... c5 {Now the stuff just gets traded and the game ends in a draw quickly. Jetzt werden die Sachen einfach abgetauscht und das Spiel endet schnell unentschieden.} 21. e5 Qf5 22. dxc5 dxc5 23. Bxc5 Bxc5 24. Rxc5 Nxe5 25. Nxe5 Rxe5 26. Rxe5 Qxe5 27. Qc3 {Vacuum cleaner is on. Der Staubsauger ist eingeschaltet.} Qxc3 28. bxc3 Rc8 29. Ra5 Rxc3 30. Rxb5 Rc1+ 31. Kh2 Rc3 32. h4 g6 33. g3 h5 34. Kg2 Kg7 35. Ra5 Kf6 36. Rb5 Kg7 37. Ra5 Kf6 38. Rb5 Kg7 39. Ra5 Kf6 40. Ra6+ Kg7 41. Ra7 {Not the most exciting of the games, but after a 7+ hour long game the day before, the players have nothing to prove to anyone. Nicht die aufregendste Partie, aber nach einer 7-stündigen Partie am Vortag haben die Spieler niemandem etwas zu beweisen.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "Division I"] [Site "Chess.com"] [Date "2024.05.12"] [Round "3.3"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Keymer, Vincent"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2891"] [BlackElo "2818"] [Annotator "Stockfish 16.1"] [PlyCount "140"] [EventDate "2024.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "NOR"] [BlackTeam "GER"] [WhiteClock "0:01:31"] [BlackClock "0:00:16"] {[%evp 16,140,29,4,29,17,26,7,10,3,10,13,14,14,14,20,27,23,41,43,70,27,50,42,41,13,20,17,19,2,0,0,7,1,1,-30,-21,-72,-25,-32,-32,-25,-25,-44,-50,-73,-75,-87,-83,-94,-95,-80,-84,-101,-80,-98,-58,-58,-54,-110,-126,-94,-19,-37,-8,-7,-7,-11,0,-44,0,-9,-11,-20,-24,-26,-22,-33,0,-1,-1,-8,0,-8,-12,-16,-11,-13,-13,-13,-19,-19,-19,-19,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. a4 b4 9. d3 Rb8 10. Nbd2 Bc5 11. Nc4 d6 12. Be3 (12. h3 {with more complications.} Be6 13. c3 bxc3 14. bxc3 h6 15. Ba2) 12... Bxe3 13. fxe3 Ne7 14. Rf1 Ng6 15. Qe1 h6 16. Na5 {[#] Hoping for Nc6.} Qe8 17. Nh4 {Black must now prevent Nxg6.} Kh7 18. Qg3 (18. Nf5 {is more complex.} Be6 19. Rf3 d5 20. exd5 Bxd5 21. e4) 18... Be6 19. Bxe6 fxe6 20. Qxg6+ (20. Nf3 {keeps more tension.} Rd8 21. Qh3 Kg8 22. Nc4 Nd7 23. Ncd2) 20... Qxg6 21. Nxg6 Kxg6 22. Nc6 Rb6 23. Na5 $1 d5 24. exd5 exd5 25. Rf3 Re8 26. Raf1 c5 27. Rg3+ Kh7 28. e4 dxe4 29. dxe4 Nxe4 30. Re3 Nd6 31. Rd1 Nf5 $36 {[%mdl 2048] Black is really pushing.} 32. Re4 Rd6 33. Rxd6 Nxd6 $17 {[%mdl 4096] Endgame KRN-KRN} 34. Re1 e4 35. Kf2 Re6 36. Rd1 Nf5 37. c3 bxc3 38. bxc3 Rf6 39. Ke2 Rb6 (39... Rg6 $5 {[%CAl Rg6g2]} 40. g3 Rg5 $15) 40. Nc4 Rb3 41. Kd2 Rb7 42. Re1 Re7 43. g3 h5 44. Rb1 Rd7+ 45. Kc2 Re7 46. Kd2 g6 47. Ke2 {The position is equal.} e3 48. Rd1 Kh6 49. Rd5 Re4 50. Rxc5 h4 51. gxh4 Rxh4 52. Kd3 Rxh2 53. Re5 Kg5 54. Re6 Rh1 55. Rxa6 Rd1+ 56. Ke2 Rc1 57. Nxe3 {aiming for Nd5.} Nxe3 58. Kxe3 Rxc3+ $11 {KR-KR} 59. Kd4 Ra3 60. Kc4 Kf5 61. Kb4 Ra1 62. Ra8 g5 63. a5 g4 64. a6 g3 65. a7 Kf4 66. Rf8+ Ke3 67. a8=Q Rxa8 68. Rxa8 g2 69. Rg8 Kf2 70. Rxg2+ Kxg2 {Accuracy: White = 82%, Black = 81%.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "Corus"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2008.01.19"] [Round "7"] [White "Topalov, Veselin"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2780"] [BlackElo "2733"] [PlyCount "111"] [EventDate "2008.01.12"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 122"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2008.01.30"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2008.01.30"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {Marchand,A/Primel,D} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. h3 ({RR} 8. c3 d5 9. exd5 Nxd5 10. Nxe5 Nxe5 11. Rxe5 c6 12. d4 ({RR} 12. g3 Bd6 ({RR} 12... Nf6 13. d4 Bd6 14. Re1 Bg4 15. Qd3 ({RR} 15. f3)))) 8... Bb7 9. d3 d6 ({RR} 9... d5 10. exd5 Nxd5 11. Nxe5 Nd4 12. Nc3 ({RR} 12. Bd2) 12... Nxb3 13. axb3 Nb4 14. Bf4 Qd4 15. Bg3 Bd6 16. Ne2 Qc5 ({RR} 16... Qxb2)) 10. a3 Na5 11. Ba2 c5 12. Nc3 Nc6 13. Bd2 Nd4 14. Nxd4 cxd4 15. Ne2 d5 16. Ng3 dxe4 17. dxe4 Bc8 $146 ({RR} 17... g6 18. c3 Bc5 19. Qf3 Ne8 ({RR} 19... dxc3 20. Bxc3 Qe7 21. Rad1) 20. Rad1 ({RR} 20. Bh6 Ng7) 20... Qf6 ({RR} 20... Rc8) 21. cxd4 Qxf3 22. gxf3 exd4 ({RR} 22... Bxd4 23. Bb4) 23. Bb4 Bxb4 24. axb4 Rd8 25. Ne2 Ng7 26. Nxd4 Nh5 27. h4 Nf4 28. Nb3 Bc8 ({RR} 28... Nd3 29. Rxd3 Rxd3 30. Nc5) 29. Nc5 Kg7 30. Bd5 Rfe8 31. Bc6 Rg8 32. Kh2 {Cheparinov,I (2664)-Beliavsky,A (2619) Aix les Bains 2011 CBM 142 Extra [Marchand,A/Primel,D] ½-½ (64)} {RR} h6) ({RR} 17... Re8 18. Qf3 Bc8 19. c3 Be6 20. Bxe6 fxe6 21. cxd4 Qxd4 22. Bc3 Qc5 23. Nf1 Rac8 24. Qg3 Bd6 25. Rad1 Qc7 26. Nh2 Rcd8 27. Nf3 Nd7 28. Ba5 Qxa5 29. Rxd6 Nf8 30. Rxd8 Rxd8 31. Qxe5 Qb6 32. Rc1 {Mamedov,N (2575)-Kaplan,S (2436) Kavala 2011 1-0 (56)}) 18. c3 Bc5 19. Qf3 Be6 20. Nf5 Rc8 21. Red1 Re8 22. cxd4 Bxd4 23. Be3 Bxf5 24. Qxf5 g6 25. Qf3 Qb6 26. Rd2 Kg7 27. Bxd4 exd4 28. Re1 Qd6 29. g3 Re7 30. Qd3 Rce8 31. Qxd4 Qxd4 32. Rxd4 Nxe4 33. Kg2 f5 34. Rc1 Nf6 35. Rd6 Re2 36. Rc7+ R8e7 37. Rxe7+ Rxe7 38. Be6 Ne4 39. Rc6 a5 40. h4 Nd2 41. b3 a4 42. bxa4 bxa4 43. Rb6 Ne4 44. f3 Nc5 45. Bc4 Re3 46. Rc6 Nd3 47. Rc7+ Kh8 48. f4 Nb2 49. Bf7 Rxa3 50. h5 gxh5 51. Kh3 Nd3 52. Kh4 Nf2 53. Be6 Ne4 54. Bxf5 Nxg3 55. Bxh7 Re3 56. Kg5 1/2-1/2 [Event "EU-ch 6th"] [Site "Warsaw"] [Date "2005.06.26"] [Round "8"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Sargissian, Gabriel"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2548"] [BlackElo "2630"] [PlyCount "110"] [EventDate "2005.06.18"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "POL"] [SourceTitle "CBM 108"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2005.09.26"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2005.09.26"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. h3 Bb7 9. d3 d6 10. a4 Na5 11. Ba2 c5 ({RR} 11... b4 12. c3 c5 13. Nbd2 h6 14. cxb4 cxb4 15. Nc4 Nxc4 16. Bxc4 a5 17. b3 Rc8 18. Bb2 Re8 19. Rc1 Bf8 20. Nd2 Rc7 21. d4 Nxe4 22. Nxe4 Bxe4 23. Rxe4 d5 24. Bxd5 Qxd5 25. Rxc7 Qxe4 26. dxe5 {Xue,H (2553)-Esipenko,A (2693) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (58)}) 12. Bg5 ({RR} 12. Nbd2 Qc7 13. Nf1 b4 14. Bd2 Bc8 15. Ne3 Be6 16. Nf5 Nc6 17. c3 Bxa2 18. Rxa2 bxc3 19. bxc3 Rfb8 20. d4 Bf8 21. dxc5 dxc5 22. Bg5 Ne8 23. Ne3 Nd6 24. Nd5 Qb7 25. Nd2 Na5 26. Qg4 Qc8 {Vachier Lagrave,M (2718)-Carlsen,M (2832) chess.com INT 2024 1-0 (52)}) ({RR} 12. Nbd2 bxa4 13. Nf1 c4 14. Ng3 g6 15. Bh6 Re8 16. dxc4 Nd7 17. c5 Nxc5 18. Qd2 Ne6 19. Bxe6 fxe6 20. Rxa4 Nc6 21. c3 {½-½ (21) Fedorchuk,S (2576)-Sargissian,G (2612) Dubai 2006}) 12... b4 13. Nbd2 Nd7 $146 ({RR} 13... Rb8 14. c3 Nc6 15. Nc4 h6 16. Bd2 Na5 17. Nxa5 Qxa5 18. Nh4 Bc8 19. f4 Kh7 20. Nf5 Qc7 21. cxb4 cxb4 22. Rc1 Qd8 23. Nxe7 Qxe7 24. f5 Bd7 25. Bb3 a5 26. Be3 Rfc8 27. Rxc8 Bxc8 28. g4 {Berzina,I (2278)-Piarnpuu,L (2172) Turin 2006 ½-½ (42)}) ({RR} 13... h6 14. Bxf6 Bxf6 15. c3 d5 16. exd5 Bxd5 17. Bxd5 Qxd5 18. Ne4 Be7 19. Ng3 Nc6 20. Nf5 Rfe8 21. Ne3 Qd8 22. Nc4 Bf6 23. Re4 Ra7 24. Qe2 Rae7 25. Qe3 Re6 26. Rd1 Qd5 27. Qd2 Bd8 28. Ne3 {Gallo Garcia,K (2356)-Dudin,G (2537) Mexico City MEX 2023 0-1 (46)}) 14. Bxe7 Qxe7 15. Nf1 Nb6 16. c3 bxc3 17. bxc3 Qc7 18. Ne3 c4 19. dxc4 Bc8 20. Nf5 Nbxc4 21. Nd2 d5 22. Ne3 Nxe3 23. Rxe3 dxe4 24. Nxe4 Bf5 25. Qd6 Rac8 26. Qxc7 Rxc7 27. Nd6 Be6 28. Bxe6 fxe6 29. Rxe5 Nb3 30. Rb1 Nc5 31. a5 Rd8 32. Ne4 Nxe4 33. Rxe4 Rd5 34. Ra4 Rcc5 35. c4 Re5 36. Rb6 Rxa5 37. Rxa6 Rxa6 38. Rxa6 Re2 39. Ra4 Rc2 40. c5 Kf7 41. Ra8 e5 42. Rc8 Ke6 43. c6 g6 44. Rc7 Kf6 45. f3 h5 46. Kh2 h4 47. Rc8 Kg7 48. Kg1 Rc4 49. Kf1 e4 50. Ke2 exf3+ 51. Ke3 Kf6 52. gxf3 Kg7 53. c7 Rc1 54. f4 Kh7 55. Ke4 Kg7 1/2-1/2 [Event "Sinquefield Cup 5th"] [Site "Saint Louis"] [Date "2017.08.02"] [Round "1"] [White "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2807"] [BlackElo "2822"] [PlyCount "85"] [EventDate "2017.08.02"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "USA"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 180"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2017.09.13"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2017.09.13"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. d3 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. a4 b4 9. a5 O-O 10. Nbd2 Rb8 11. Re1 Be6 12. Bxe6 fxe6 13. Nb3 Qc8 14. Qe2 Nd8 15. d4 exd4 16. Nbxd4 c5 17. Nb3 e5 $146 ({RR} 17... Nd7 18. Bg5 Bxg5 19. Nxg5 Ne5 20. Red1 h6 21. Nh3 c4 22. Nd4 Qc5 23. b3 Rc8 24. Kh1 Nec6 25. Nxc6 Rxc6 26. Qxc4 Qxc4 27. bxc4 Nb7 28. Ra4 Rxc4 29. c3 Rxe4 30. Rxb4 Rxb4 31. cxb4 Rf5 32. Rc1 {Salomon,J (2115)-Urkedal,F (2470) Fagernes 2013 ½-½ (60)}) 18. Nbd2 Ne6 19. Nc4 Nd4 20. Nxd4 cxd4 21. Nb6 Qc6 22. Bg5 Bd8 23. Bxf6 Bxb6 24. axb6 Rxf6 25. Rxa6 h6 26. Qd3 Rxb6 27. Rea1 Rxa6 28. Rxa6 Qc5 29. Ra8+ Kh7 30. h3 b3 31. Qxb3 d3 32. cxd3 Qxf2+ 33. Kh2 Qf4+ 34. Kh1 Qc1+ 35. Kh2 Qf4+ 36. Kh1 Qg3 37. Qg8+ Kg6 38. Rf8 Qxd3 39. Rxf6+ Kxf6 40. Qf8+ Ke6 41. Qe8+ Kf6 42. Qf8+ Ke6 43. Qe8+ 1/2-1/2 [Event "Norway Chess 5th"] [Site "Stavanger"] [Date "2017.06.07"] [Round "2"] [White "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2808"] [BlackElo "2832"] [PlyCount "84"] [EventDate "2017.06.06"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 179"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2017.07.12"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2017.07.12"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. a4 Bb7 9. d3 d5 10. exd5 Nxd5 11. Nbd2 f6 12. c3 Kh8 13. axb5 axb5 14. Rxa8 Bxa8 15. Ne4 b4 $146 ({RR} 15... g5 16. h3 Nf4 17. d4 f5 18. Nc5 Bxc5 19. Bxf4 gxf4 20. dxc5 Qf6 21. Qd7 e4 22. Nd4 Nxd4 23. cxd4 e3 24. fxe3 Qg5 25. Re2 f3 26. Rf2 Qxe3 27. Qxc7 Qxb3 28. Qe5+ Kg8 29. gxf3 Qd1+ 30. Kh2 {Kushagra,M (2412)-Savchenko,B (2524) Nagpur IND 2023 ½-½ (40)}) ({RR} 15... g5 16. h3 Nf4 17. d4 f5 18. Nc5 Bxc5 19. Bxf4 gxf4 20. dxc5 Qf6 21. Qd7 e4 22. Nd4 Nxd4 23. cxd4 e3 24. fxe3 Qg5 25. Re2 f3 26. Rf2 Qxe3 27. Qxc7 Qxb3 28. Qe5+ Kg8 29. gxf3 Qd1+ 30. Kh2 {Kushagra,M (2412)-Savchenko,B (2524) Nagpur IND 2023 ½-½ (40)}) 16. d4 bxc3 17. bxc3 exd4 18. Nxd4 Nxd4 19. cxd4 Bb4 20. Bd2 Bxd2 21. Qxd2 Re8 22. h3 Nb6 23. Nc5 Bd5 24. Bxd5 Nxd5 25. Ne6 Qd7 26. Nc5 Qf7 27. Re2 Rb8 28. Re1 Re8 29. Re4 Rxe4 30. Nxe4 h6 31. Nc3 Qe6 32. Nxd5 Qxd5 33. Qe3 Kg8 34. Qe8+ Kh7 35. Qe3 c6 36. h4 Kg6 37. Qe8+ Kh7 38. h5 Qxd4 39. Qg6+ Kg8 40. Qe8+ Kh7 41. Qg6+ Kg8 42. Qe8+ Kh7 1/2-1/2 [Event "FIDE World Cup"] [Site "Krasnaya Polyana"] [Date "2021.07.28"] [Round "6.1"] [White "Bacrot, Etienne"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2678"] [BlackElo "2847"] [PlyCount "88"] [EventDate "2021.07.12"] [EventType "k.o."] [EventRounds "8"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [SourceTitle "CBM 203"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2021.08.31"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2021.08.31"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. a4 Bb7 9. d3 d6 10. Bd2 Qd7 11. Nc3 Na5 12. Ba2 c5 ({RR} 12... b4 13. Ne2 c5 14. Ng3 Rab8 15. Nh4 g6 16. Bh6 Rfe8 17. Nhf5 Bd8 18. Ng7 Rf8 19. h3 b3 20. Bxb3 Nxb3 21. cxb3 Bc6 22. Rc1 Kh8 23. Ne6 Qxe6 24. Bxf8 Ba5 25. Bh6 Bxe1 26. Qxe1 Rxb3 27. Qa5 {Caruana,F (2783)-Ding,L (2806) Madrid 2022 0-1 (78)}) 13. Ne2 Nc6 14. Ng3 d5 $146 ({RR} 14... g6 15. Bh6 Rfc8 16. h3 Nd8 17. c3 Ne6 18. d4 cxd4 19. cxd4 exd4 20. Nxd4 Nc5 21. Qf3 Ne6 22. Rad1 Nxd4 23. Rxd4 Rc7 24. Qf4 Qc6 25. Bg5 Kg7 26. Bxf6+ {1-0 (26) Matulovic,M-Mariotti,S Reggio Emilia 1967}) ({RR} 14... g6 15. h3 Nd8 16. Bh6 Re8 17. c3 Ne6 18. Qd2 bxa4 19. Bxe6 fxe6 20. d4 cxd4 21. cxd4 Qb5 22. Bg5 Rad8 23. h4 exd4 24. Nxd4 Qd7 25. h5 e5 26. Nf3 Qg4 27. hxg6 hxg6 28. Rxa4 Nh7 29. Bxe7 {Markidis,K (2288)-Knaak,R (2472) Paphos CYP 2025 1-0 (36)}) 15. exd5 Nxd5 16. c3 Rad8 17. axb5 axb5 18. Nxe5 Nxe5 19. Rxe5 Bd6 20. Re1 Nf4 21. Bxf4 Bxf4 22. Ne4 Qc7 23. g3 Be5 24. f4 Bd6 25. Qh5 Qc6 26. Qh3 c4 27. d4 Rde8 28. d5 Qxd5 29. Rad1 Rxe4 30. Rxd5 Rxe1+ 31. Kf2 Rfe8 32. Re5 Bxe5 33. Kxe1 Bxc3+ 34. Kf1 Bc8 35. Qg2 Bf5 36. Qd5 Be6 37. Qc5 Bxb2 38. Kg2 Bd7 39. Qd5 Rd8 40. Qc5 Bf6 41. Bb1 g6 42. g4 Bxg4 43. Qxb5 c3 44. f5 g5 0-1 [Event "FIDE World Cup"] [Site "Krasnaya Polyana"] [Date "2021.08.02"] [Round "7.2"] [White "Duda, Jan Krzysztof"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2738"] [BlackElo "2847"] [PlyCount "129"] [EventDate "2021.07.12"] [EventType "k.o."] [EventRounds "8"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [SourceTitle "CBM 203"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2021.08.31"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2021.08.31"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. a4 Rb8 9. c3 d5 10. exd5 Nxd5 11. axb5 axb5 12. Nxe5 Nxe5 13. Rxe5 c6 14. d4 Bd6 15. Re1 Qh4 16. g3 Qh3 17. Re4 g5 18. Qf1 $146 ({RR} 18. Bc2 f5 19. Re1 f4 20. Ra7 fxg3 21. fxg3 Bd7 22. Rxd7 Qxd7 23. Qh5 Rf7 24. Bxg5 Kh8 25. Nd2 Re8 26. Ne4 Qf5 27. Bd3 Qg6 28. Qxg6 hxg6 29. Kg2 Bc7 30. Ra1 Kg7 31. Ra6 Nb6 32. Ra7 Nd5 {Krutti,V (2415)-Felegyhazi,L (2350) Hajduszoboszlo 1995 1-0 (42)}) 18... Qxf1+ 19. Kxf1 Bf5 20. Nd2 Bxe4 21. Nxe4 Be7 22. Bxg5 Bxg5 23. Nxg5 Ra8 24. Rd1 Nb6 25. Re1 Nc4 26. Bxc4 bxc4 27. Nf3 Rfb8 28. Ne5 Rxb2 29. Nxc4 Rc2 30. Re3 Ra1+ 31. Kg2 Rac1 32. Re8+ Kg7 33. Ne5 Rxc3 34. Re7 R3c2 35. Rxf7+ Kg8 36. Rc7 h5 37. Nd7 Rd1 38. Nf6+ Kf8 39. Nxh5 Rdd2 40. h4 Rxf2+ 41. Kh3 Rf7 42. Rc8+ Ke7 43. Nf4 Kd6 44. h5 Rd2 45. Kg4 Rg7+ 46. Kf3 Rxd4 47. h6 Rh7 48. Rd8+ Ke5 49. Re8+ Kd6 50. Rd8+ Ke5 51. Re8+ Kd6 52. Re6+ Kd7 53. Rg6 Ke7 54. Rxc6 Rd6 55. Ng6+ Kd7 56. Ne5+ Ke6 57. Rxd6+ Kxd6 58. Kf4 Ke6 59. Ng4 Ra7 60. Kg5 Kf7 61. Ne3 Kg8 62. g4 Kh7 63. Kh5 Ra3 64. Nf5 Ra5 65. Kg5 1/2-1/2 [Event "San Fermin Masters Final"] [Site "chess24.com INT"] [Date "2021.07.11"] [Round "2.3"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "So, Wesley"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2847"] [BlackElo "2772"] [PlyCount "57"] [EventDate "2021.07.10"] [EventType "k.o."] [EventRounds "3"] [EventCountry "ESP"] [SourceTitle "CBM 203 Extra"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2021.09.30"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2021.09.30"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {Marin,Mihail} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. a4 b4 9. d3 d6 10. Nbd2 Be6 ({RR} 10... Na5) 11. Nc4 ({RR} 11. Bxe6 fxe6 12. Nf1 ({RR} 12. Nc4 Nd7 13. Bd2 Rb8 14. h3 Qe8) 12... Qd7 13. Ng3 Na5 ({RR} 13... Rab8 14. c3 bxc3 15. bxc3 Na5) 14. d4 exd4 15. Qxd4 c5 16. Qd3 Nc6 17. c3 bxc3 18. bxc3 Kh8 ({RR} 18... Ng4 19. e5 d5 20. h3 Nxf2 21. Kxf2 Bh4) 19. h3 Qc7 ({RR} 19... d5) 20. Ng5 Ne5 21. Qe2 Qc8 22. f4 Nf7 23. Nf3 Rb8 24. c4 Qb7 25. Bd2 Qb2 {Leko,P (2751)-Grischuk,A (2726) Mexico City 2007 CBM 120 [Marin,Mihail] 1-0 (60)}) ({RR} 11. Bc4 Nd7 12. a5 Bf6 13. Nb3 Ne7 14. Bxe6 fxe6 15. d4 Ng6 16. Qe2 Kh8 17. Qc4 exd4 18. Nbxd4 Bxd4 19. Nxd4 Qh4 20. g3 Qf6 21. f4 c5 22. Nf3 Nde5) ({RR} 11. c3 Rb8 ({RR} 11... Qd7) 12. Bxe6 fxe6 13. d4 bxc3 14. bxc3 Nd7 15. Qe2 exd4 ({RR} 15... Qc8 16. Qc4) 16. Nxd4 ({RR} 16. cxd4 Nb4 17. Rb1 c5) 16... Nxd4 17. cxd4) 11... Rb8 ({RR} 11... Nd7 12. Be3 Bf6 ({RR} 12... a5 13. c3 bxc3 14. bxc3 d5 15. exd5 Bxd5 16. Rb1 Re8 17. Ba2 f6 18. Rb5 Bf7 19. Qc2 Nf8 20. d4) 13. c3 ({RR} 13. d4 exd4 14. Nxd4 Nxd4 15. Bxd4 Re8) 13... Rb8 ({RR} 13... bxc3 14. bxc3 Rb8 15. Rb1 Qe7) 14. d4 exd4 ({RR} 14... bxc3 15. d5) 15. cxd4 d5 16. Ncd2 dxe4 17. Nxe4) ({RR} 11... Qd7 12. a5 Ne8 13. Ba4 f5 14. Nfxe5 dxe5 15. Nxe5 Qd6 16. Nxc6 Bh4 17. e5 Qd5 18. d4 f4 19. Nxb4 Qxa5 20. Bd2 f3 21. Bxe8 Qb6 22. Bc6 Bg3 23. hxg3 {1-0 (23) Estrada Nieto,J (2184)-Calvo Gonzalez,J (2198) chess.com INT 2025}) 12. a5 ({RR} 12. h3 Nd7 13. Be3 Bf6 14. d4 exd4 15. Nxd4 Bxd4 16. Bxd4 Nxd4 17. Qxd4 Nc5 18. Re3 f6) ({RR} 12. Be3 Ng4 13. Bd2 Bh4 14. Rf1 Be7 15. Rc1 Nf6) ({RR} 12. c3 Nd7 13. d4) 12... Na7 $146 ({RR} 12... Qc8 13. h3 h6 14. Be3 Nh7 15. Qd2 Kh8 16. d4 exd4 17. Nxd4 Nxd4 18. Bxd4 Bf6 19. Ne3 Bxd4 20. Qxd4 Bxh3 21. Ra4 Rb5 22. Bc4 Ng5 23. Qd1 Bxg2 24. Nxg2 Nh3+ 25. Kf1 f5 26. e5 Rxe5 27. Rxe5 {Roganovic,M (2517)-Marjanusic,V (2276) Palic 2014 1-0 (36)}) 13. d4 Nxe4 14. Rxe4 d5 15. Rxe5 dxc4 16. Rxe6 cxb3 17. Rxa6 Nb5 18. cxb3 Qd5 19. Qc2 c5 20. dxc5 Bxc5 21. Be3 Bxe3 22. fxe3 Rfc8 23. Rb6 Ra8 24. Rd1 Rxc2 25. Rxd5 Nc7 26. Rd7 h6 27. Nd4 Rc1+ 28. Kf2 Rxa5 29. Rc6 1-0 [Event "FIDE World Cup"] [Site "Krasnaya Polyana"] [Date "2021.07.28"] [Round "6.1"] [White "Bacrot, Etienne"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2678"] [BlackElo "2847"] [PlyCount "88"] [EventDate "2021.07.12"] [EventType "k.o."] [EventRounds "8"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [SourceTitle "CBM 203"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2021.08.31"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2021.08.31"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. a4 Bb7 9. d3 d6 10. Bd2 Qd7 11. Nc3 Na5 12. Ba2 c5 ({RR} 12... b4 13. Ne2 c5 14. Ng3 Rab8 15. Nh4 g6 16. Bh6 Rfe8 17. Nhf5 Bd8 18. Ng7 Rf8 19. h3 b3 20. Bxb3 Nxb3 21. cxb3 Bc6 22. Rc1 Kh8 23. Ne6 Qxe6 24. Bxf8 Ba5 25. Bh6 Bxe1 26. Qxe1 Rxb3 27. Qa5 {Caruana,F (2783)-Ding,L (2806) Madrid 2022 0-1 (78)}) 13. Ne2 Nc6 14. Ng3 d5 $146 ({RR} 14... g6 15. Bh6 Rfc8 16. h3 Nd8 17. c3 Ne6 18. d4 cxd4 19. cxd4 exd4 20. Nxd4 Nc5 21. Qf3 Ne6 22. Rad1 Nxd4 23. Rxd4 Rc7 24. Qf4 Qc6 25. Bg5 Kg7 26. Bxf6+ {1-0 (26) Matulovic,M-Mariotti,S Reggio Emilia 1967}) ({RR} 14... g6 15. h3 Nd8 16. Bh6 Re8 17. c3 Ne6 18. Qd2 bxa4 19. Bxe6 fxe6 20. d4 cxd4 21. cxd4 Qb5 22. Bg5 Rad8 23. h4 exd4 24. Nxd4 Qd7 25. h5 e5 26. Nf3 Qg4 27. hxg6 hxg6 28. Rxa4 Nh7 29. Bxe7 {Markidis,K (2288)-Knaak,R (2472) Paphos CYP 2025 1-0 (36)}) 15. exd5 Nxd5 16. c3 Rad8 17. axb5 axb5 18. Nxe5 Nxe5 19. Rxe5 Bd6 20. Re1 Nf4 21. Bxf4 Bxf4 22. Ne4 Qc7 23. g3 Be5 24. f4 Bd6 25. Qh5 Qc6 26. Qh3 c4 27. d4 Rde8 28. d5 Qxd5 29. Rad1 Rxe4 30. Rxd5 Rxe1+ 31. Kf2 Rfe8 32. Re5 Bxe5 33. Kxe1 Bxc3+ 34. Kf1 Bc8 35. Qg2 Bf5 36. Qd5 Be6 37. Qc5 Bxb2 38. Kg2 Bd7 39. Qd5 Rd8 40. Qc5 Bf6 41. Bb1 g6 42. g4 Bxg4 43. Qxb5 c3 44. f5 g5 0-1 [Event "FIDE World Cup"] [Site "Krasnaya Polyana"] [Date "2021.08.02"] [Round "7.2"] [White "Duda, Jan Krzysztof"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2738"] [BlackElo "2847"] [PlyCount "129"] [EventDate "2021.07.12"] [EventType "k.o."] [EventRounds "8"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [SourceTitle "CBM 203"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2021.08.31"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2021.08.31"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. a4 Rb8 9. c3 d5 10. exd5 Nxd5 11. axb5 axb5 12. Nxe5 Nxe5 13. Rxe5 c6 14. d4 Bd6 15. Re1 Qh4 16. g3 Qh3 17. Re4 g5 18. Qf1 $146 ({RR} 18. Bc2 f5 19. Re1 f4 20. Ra7 fxg3 21. fxg3 Bd7 22. Rxd7 Qxd7 23. Qh5 Rf7 24. Bxg5 Kh8 25. Nd2 Re8 26. Ne4 Qf5 27. Bd3 Qg6 28. Qxg6 hxg6 29. Kg2 Bc7 30. Ra1 Kg7 31. Ra6 Nb6 32. Ra7 Nd5 {Krutti,V (2415)-Felegyhazi,L (2350) Hajduszoboszlo 1995 1-0 (42)}) 18... Qxf1+ 19. Kxf1 Bf5 20. Nd2 Bxe4 21. Nxe4 Be7 22. Bxg5 Bxg5 23. Nxg5 Ra8 24. Rd1 Nb6 25. Re1 Nc4 26. Bxc4 bxc4 27. Nf3 Rfb8 28. Ne5 Rxb2 29. Nxc4 Rc2 30. Re3 Ra1+ 31. Kg2 Rac1 32. Re8+ Kg7 33. Ne5 Rxc3 34. Re7 R3c2 35. Rxf7+ Kg8 36. Rc7 h5 37. Nd7 Rd1 38. Nf6+ Kf8 39. Nxh5 Rdd2 40. h4 Rxf2+ 41. Kh3 Rf7 42. Rc8+ Ke7 43. Nf4 Kd6 44. h5 Rd2 45. Kg4 Rg7+ 46. Kf3 Rxd4 47. h6 Rh7 48. Rd8+ Ke5 49. Re8+ Kd6 50. Rd8+ Ke5 51. Re8+ Kd6 52. Re6+ Kd7 53. Rg6 Ke7 54. Rxc6 Rd6 55. Ng6+ Kd7 56. Ne5+ Ke6 57. Rxd6+ Kxd6 58. Kf4 Ke6 59. Ng4 Ra7 60. Kg5 Kf7 61. Ne3 Kg8 62. g4 Kh7 63. Kh5 Ra3 64. Nf5 Ra5 65. Kg5 1/2-1/2 [Event "Tata Steel-A 84th"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2022.01.17"] [Round "3"] [White "Duda, Jan Krzysztof"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2760"] [BlackElo "2865"] [PlyCount "75"] [EventDate "2022.01.15"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 206"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2022.02.28"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2022.02.28"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {Giri,Anish} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. a4 Rb8 ({RR} 8... Bb7 9. d3 d6 10. Nbd2 Re8) 9. axb5 axb5 10. h3 d6 11. c3 b4 12. d3 ({RR} 12. d4 bxc3 13. bxc3 exd4 14. cxd4 d5 15. e5 Ne4) 12... bxc3 13. bxc3 h6 ({RR} 13... d5 14. Nbd2 dxe4 15. dxe4 Bd6 ({RR} 15... h6 16. Ba4 Ra8 17. Ba3 ({RR} 17. Bb2 Bd7 18. Bxc6 Bxc6 19. Nxe5 Rxa1 20. Bxa1 Bxe4 21. Nxe4 Qxd1 22. Nxf6+ Bxf6 23. Rxd1 Bxe5) 17... Nb8) 16. Qc2 h6 17. Nf1 Ne7 ({RR} 17... Bd7 18. Ng3 Qc8 19. Be3 Be6 20. Bxe6 Qxe6) 18. Ng3 Ng6 19. Be3 Qe8 20. Red1 ({RR} 20. c4 Be6 ({RR} 20... Bb4 21. Reb1 c5 22. Ba4 Qe7 23. Bc6) 21. Ba4 Bd7 22. c5 Bxa4 23. Rxa4) 20... Be6 21. Ba4 Bd7 22. Nd2 Bxa4 23. Qxa4 Qxa4 24. Rxa4 Ra8 25. Rda1 Rxa4 26. Rxa4 Rb8 27. Ra6 Ne8 ({RR} 27... Nd7 28. Nc4 Bf8) ({RR} 27... Nf4) 28. Kf1 {Nepomniachtchi,I (2782)-Carlsen,M (2855) Dubai 2021 CBM 206 [Giri,Anish] ½-½ (43)}) 14. Be3 Re8 15. Nbd2 Bf8 16. Qc2 $146 ({RR} 16. g4 Nh7 17. d4 h5 18. Ba4 Bd7 19. gxh5 exd4 20. cxd4 Nb4 21. Bxd7 Qxd7 22. Kh2 d5 23. e5 c5 24. dxc5 Nd3 25. Rg1 Nxc5 26. Rg4 Qf5 27. h6 g6 28. Ra7 Nd3 29. Kg2 Rb4 30. Nd4 Rxd4 {Yakubboev,N (2617)-Esipenko,A (2683) chess.com INT 2023 1-0 (44)}) 16... Be6 17. Bxe6 Rxe6 18. d4 exd4 19. Nxd4 Nxd4 20. cxd4 Qe8 21. d5 Re7 22. Ra4 Rb2 23. Qxb2 Qxa4 24. Bd4 Nh5 25. Ra1 Qd7 26. Qc3 Nf4 27. Qf3 Ng6 28. Rc1 Qa4 29. Qd3 f5 30. g3 fxe4 31. Nxe4 Qe8 32. Nc3 Re1+ 33. Rxe1 Qxe1+ 34. Kg2 Qe8 35. Qb5 Qc8 36. Qd3 Ne7 37. Qe4 c6 38. dxc6 1/2-1/2 [Event "Tata Steel-A 84th"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2022.01.17"] [Round "3"] [White "Duda, Jan Krzysztof"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2760"] [BlackElo "2865"] [PlyCount "75"] [EventDate "2022.01.15"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 206"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2022.02.28"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2022.02.28"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {Giri,Anish} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. a4 Rb8 ({RR} 8... Bb7 9. d3 d6 10. Nbd2 Re8) 9. axb5 axb5 10. h3 d6 11. c3 b4 12. d3 ({RR} 12. d4 bxc3 13. bxc3 exd4 14. cxd4 d5 15. e5 Ne4) 12... bxc3 13. bxc3 h6 ({RR} 13... d5 14. Nbd2 dxe4 15. dxe4 Bd6 ({RR} 15... h6 16. Ba4 Ra8 17. Ba3 ({RR} 17. Bb2 Bd7 18. Bxc6 Bxc6 19. Nxe5 Rxa1 20. Bxa1 Bxe4 21. Nxe4 Qxd1 22. Nxf6+ Bxf6 23. Rxd1 Bxe5) 17... Nb8) 16. Qc2 h6 17. Nf1 Ne7 ({RR} 17... Bd7 18. Ng3 Qc8 19. Be3 Be6 20. Bxe6 Qxe6) 18. Ng3 Ng6 19. Be3 Qe8 20. Red1 ({RR} 20. c4 Be6 ({RR} 20... Bb4 21. Reb1 c5 22. Ba4 Qe7 23. Bc6) 21. Ba4 Bd7 22. c5 Bxa4 23. Rxa4) 20... Be6 21. Ba4 Bd7 22. Nd2 Bxa4 23. Qxa4 Qxa4 24. Rxa4 Ra8 25. Rda1 Rxa4 26. Rxa4 Rb8 27. Ra6 Ne8 ({RR} 27... Nd7 28. Nc4 Bf8) ({RR} 27... Nf4) 28. Kf1 {Nepomniachtchi,I (2782)-Carlsen,M (2855) Dubai 2021 CBM 206 [Giri,Anish] ½-½ (43)}) 14. Be3 Re8 15. Nbd2 Bf8 16. Qc2 $146 ({RR} 16. g4 Nh7 17. d4 h5 18. Ba4 Bd7 19. gxh5 exd4 20. cxd4 Nb4 21. Bxd7 Qxd7 22. Kh2 d5 23. e5 c5 24. dxc5 Nd3 25. Rg1 Nxc5 26. Rg4 Qf5 27. h6 g6 28. Ra7 Nd3 29. Kg2 Rb4 30. Nd4 Rxd4 {Yakubboev,N (2617)-Esipenko,A (2683) chess.com INT 2023 1-0 (44)}) 16... Be6 17. Bxe6 Rxe6 18. d4 exd4 19. Nxd4 Nxd4 20. cxd4 Qe8 21. d5 Re7 22. Ra4 Rb2 23. Qxb2 Qxa4 24. Bd4 Nh5 25. Ra1 Qd7 26. Qc3 Nf4 27. Qf3 Ng6 28. Rc1 Qa4 29. Qd3 f5 30. g3 fxe4 31. Nxe4 Qe8 32. Nc3 Re1+ 33. Rxe1 Qxe1+ 34. Kg2 Qe8 35. Qb5 Qc8 36. Qd3 Ne7 37. Qe4 c6 38. dxc6 1/2-1/2 [Event "Sigeman & Co 12th"] [Site "Malmo/Copenhagen"] [Date "2004.05.08"] [Round "8"] [White "De Firmian, Nick E"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2542"] [BlackElo "2552"] [PlyCount "126"] [EventDate "2004.04.30"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "SWE"] [EventCategory "13"] [SourceTitle "CBM 101"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2004.07.27"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2004.07.27"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. a4 b4 9. d3 d6 10. a5 Be6 11. Nbd2 Rb8 12. Nc4 Nd7 ({RR} 12... Bg4 13. Be3 Nd7 14. h3 Bxf3 15. Qxf3 Bg5 16. Ba4 Bxe3 17. Qxe3 Nd4 18. c3 bxc3 19. bxc3 Nb5 20. d4 Qe7 21. Rad1 Rfd8 22. Qg3 Qe6 23. Ne3 g6 24. Nd5 c6 25. Bxb5 axb5 26. Nb4 Qc4 27. Qd3 {Kasparov,G (2838)-Grischuk,A (2702) Moscow 2002 ½-½ (39)}) ({RR} 12... Qc8 13. c3 bxc3 14. bxc3 h6 15. h3 Rd8 16. Bc2 Bf8 17. Qe2 Nd7 18. d4 exd4 19. Nxd4 Nxd4 20. cxd4 d5 21. Ne3 Nf6 22. e5 Ne4 23. f3 Ng3 24. Qd3 g6 25. Ng4 c5 26. Nxh6+ Bxh6 27. Bxh6 {Vokhidov,S (2641)-Goganov,A (2511) Al Ain UAE 2025 1-0 (37)}) 13. Be3 d5 $146 ({RR} 13... Nf6 14. h3 h6 15. c3 Qc8 16. Nfd2 Nh7 17. d4 exd4 18. cxd4 d5 19. exd5 Bxd5 20. Nf3 Nf6 21. Nfe5 Bd6 22. Nxc6 Bxc6 23. Rc1 Qd7 24. Ne5 Bxe5 25. dxe5 Ne4 26. Qxd7 Bxd7 27. Rxc7 Be6 28. Bxe6 {Bodnaruk,A (2428)-Cyfka,K (2419) Riadh 2017 1-0 (43)}) ({RR} 13... Bf6 14. c3 bxc3 15. bxc3 Rb7 16. Qc2 Na7 17. d4 Qb8 18. d5 Bg4 19. Nfd2 h6 20. h3 Bh5 21. Ba4 Nb5 22. Na3 Nc5 23. Bxc5 dxc5 24. Reb1 Nxa3 25. Rxa3 Rxb1+ 26. Nxb1 c4 27. g4 Bg6 28. Nd2 {De Firmian,N (2537)-Beliavsky,A (2679) Copenhagen 2004 1-0 (41)}) ({RR} 13... Bf6 14. Nfd2 Nd4 15. Ba2 Nc5 16. Bb1 Bg5 17. c3 bxc3 18. bxc3 Bxe3 19. Rxe3 Nb5 20. Qc2 f5 21. Ba2 Kh8 22. Ree1 Qf6 23. f3 f4 24. Rad1 Rbd8 25. Nb1 Bg8 26. Qf2 Nb7 27. d4 Bxc4 28. Bxc4 {Hodgson,J (2211)-Cobb,J (2425) Sunningdale 2008 0-1 (49)}) 14. exd5 Bxd5 15. Ncd2 Bxb3 16. Nxb3 Rb5 17. Qe2 Kh8 18. d4 e4 19. Qc4 Qa8 20. Nfd2 f5 21. Bf4 Nf6 22. Bxc7 Nd5 23. Bb6 Nf4 24. Nf1 Rf6 25. Ne3 Rg6 26. Kf1 Rh6 27. h3 Qe8 28. Bc7 Bd6 29. Bxd6 Rxd6 30. Rad1 h6 31. Rd2 Qd8 32. d5 Ne5 33. Qd4 Qf6 34. Nxf5 Qxf5 35. Qxe4 Qxe4 36. Rxe4 Neg6 37. g3 Rbxd5 38. gxf4 Rxd2 39. Nxd2 Rxd2 40. f5 Nf8 41. Rxb4 Rxc2 42. Rb8 Kg8 43. b4 Rc6 44. Ke2 Kf7 45. Ke3 Nd7 46. Rb7 Rd6 47. b5 Ke7 48. Ke4 Kd8 49. bxa6 Rxa6 50. Rb5 Kc7 51. Kd5 Rd6+ 52. Ke4 Rd2 53. f3 Kc6 54. Rb1 Ra2 55. Rg1 Re2+ 56. Kd4 Re7 57. Rc1+ Kd6 58. Rc8 Ne5 59. a6 Ra7 60. Rg8 Nxf3+ 61. Kc4 Rxa6 62. Rxg7 Ke5 63. Kd3 Ra3+ 0-1 [Event "EU-chT (Men) 16th"] [Site "Heraklion"] [Date "2007.10.31"] [Round "4.1"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Bacrot, Etienne"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2714"] [BlackElo "2695"] [PlyCount "60"] [EventDate "2007.10.28"] [EventType "team-swiss"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "GRE"] [SourceTitle "CBM 121"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2007.11.14"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2007.11.14"] [SourceQuality "1"] [WhiteTeam "Norway"] [BlackTeam "France"] [WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"] [BlackTeamCountry "FRA"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. a4 b4 9. d3 d6 10. Nbd2 Be6 11. Bxe6 fxe6 12. c3 Rb8 13. Nf1 bxc3 14. bxc3 Na5 15. Ra2 c5 16. d4 exd4 17. cxd4 Nb3 18. dxc5 $146 ({RR} 18. Ba3 Nd7 19. dxc5 Ndxc5 20. N1d2 Na5 21. Nd4 Qd7 22. Qg4 Rf6 23. e5 dxe5 24. Bxc5 Rg6 25. Qe4 Bxc5 26. Qxe5 Ba7 27. N2f3 Nc6 28. Nxc6 Qxc6 29. Qe4 Qxe4 30. Rxe4 Rb1+ 31. Ne1 Bd4 32. g3 Bc3 {Yagupov,I (2491)-Domogaev,S (2367) Tula 2008 ½-½ (44)}) 18... Nxc5 19. Ng3 Rb1 20. Qc2 Qb8 21. Rb2 Rxb2 22. Bxb2 Qb4 23. Bd4 Nfd7 24. Ra1 Rxf3 25. Bxc5 Rc3 26. Bxb4 Rxc2 27. Kf1 Kf7 28. f3 Ne5 29. Ne2 Nc4 30. Rc1 Rxc1+ 1/2-1/2 [Event "San Fermin Masters Final"] [Site "chess24.com INT"] [Date "2021.07.11"] [Round "2.3"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "So, Wesley"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2847"] [BlackElo "2772"] [PlyCount "57"] [EventDate "2021.07.10"] [EventType "k.o."] [EventRounds "3"] [EventCountry "ESP"] [SourceTitle "CBM 203 Extra"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2021.09.30"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2021.09.30"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {Marin,Mihail} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. a4 b4 9. d3 d6 10. Nbd2 Be6 ({RR} 10... Na5) 11. Nc4 ({RR} 11. Bxe6 fxe6 12. Nf1 ({RR} 12. Nc4 Nd7 13. Bd2 Rb8 14. h3 Qe8) 12... Qd7 13. Ng3 Na5 ({RR} 13... Rab8 14. c3 bxc3 15. bxc3 Na5) 14. d4 exd4 15. Qxd4 c5 16. Qd3 Nc6 17. c3 bxc3 18. bxc3 Kh8 ({RR} 18... Ng4 19. e5 d5 20. h3 Nxf2 21. Kxf2 Bh4) 19. h3 Qc7 ({RR} 19... d5) 20. Ng5 Ne5 21. Qe2 Qc8 22. f4 Nf7 23. Nf3 Rb8 24. c4 Qb7 25. Bd2 Qb2 {Leko,P (2751)-Grischuk,A (2726) Mexico City 2007 CBM 120 [Marin,Mihail] 1-0 (60)}) ({RR} 11. Bc4 Nd7 12. a5 Bf6 13. Nb3 Ne7 14. Bxe6 fxe6 15. d4 Ng6 16. Qe2 Kh8 17. Qc4 exd4 18. Nbxd4 Bxd4 19. Nxd4 Qh4 20. g3 Qf6 21. f4 c5 22. Nf3 Nde5) ({RR} 11. c3 Rb8 ({RR} 11... Qd7) 12. Bxe6 fxe6 13. d4 bxc3 14. bxc3 Nd7 15. Qe2 exd4 ({RR} 15... Qc8 16. Qc4) 16. Nxd4 ({RR} 16. cxd4 Nb4 17. Rb1 c5) 16... Nxd4 17. cxd4) 11... Rb8 ({RR} 11... Nd7 12. Be3 Bf6 ({RR} 12... a5 13. c3 bxc3 14. bxc3 d5 15. exd5 Bxd5 16. Rb1 Re8 17. Ba2 f6 18. Rb5 Bf7 19. Qc2 Nf8 20. d4) 13. c3 ({RR} 13. d4 exd4 14. Nxd4 Nxd4 15. Bxd4 Re8) 13... Rb8 ({RR} 13... bxc3 14. bxc3 Rb8 15. Rb1 Qe7) 14. d4 exd4 ({RR} 14... bxc3 15. d5) 15. cxd4 d5 16. Ncd2 dxe4 17. Nxe4) ({RR} 11... Qd7 12. a5 Ne8 13. Ba4 f5 14. Nfxe5 dxe5 15. Nxe5 Qd6 16. Nxc6 Bh4 17. e5 Qd5 18. d4 f4 19. Nxb4 Qxa5 20. Bd2 f3 21. Bxe8 Qb6 22. Bc6 Bg3 23. hxg3 {1-0 (23) Estrada Nieto,J (2184)-Calvo Gonzalez,J (2198) chess.com INT 2025}) 12. a5 ({RR} 12. h3 Nd7 13. Be3 Bf6 14. d4 exd4 15. Nxd4 Bxd4 16. Bxd4 Nxd4 17. Qxd4 Nc5 18. Re3 f6) ({RR} 12. Be3 Ng4 13. Bd2 Bh4 14. Rf1 Be7 15. Rc1 Nf6) ({RR} 12. c3 Nd7 13. d4) 12... Na7 $146 ({RR} 12... Qc8 13. h3 h6 14. Be3 Nh7 15. Qd2 Kh8 16. d4 exd4 17. Nxd4 Nxd4 18. Bxd4 Bf6 19. Ne3 Bxd4 20. Qxd4 Bxh3 21. Ra4 Rb5 22. Bc4 Ng5 23. Qd1 Bxg2 24. Nxg2 Nh3+ 25. Kf1 f5 26. e5 Rxe5 27. Rxe5 {Roganovic,M (2517)-Marjanusic,V (2276) Palic 2014 1-0 (36)}) 13. d4 Nxe4 14. Rxe4 d5 15. Rxe5 dxc4 16. Rxe6 cxb3 17. Rxa6 Nb5 18. cxb3 Qd5 19. Qc2 c5 20. dxc5 Bxc5 21. Be3 Bxe3 22. fxe3 Rfc8 23. Rb6 Ra8 24. Rd1 Rxc2 25. Rxd5 Nc7 26. Rd7 h6 27. Nd4 Rc1+ 28. Kf2 Rxa5 29. Rc6 1-0 [Event "Dortmund SuperGM 37th"] [Site "Dortmund"] [Date "2009.07.09"] [Round "7"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Leko, Peter"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2772"] [BlackElo "2756"] [PlyCount "44"] [EventDate "2009.07.02"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "GER"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 131"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2009.07.15"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2009.07.15"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. a4 b4 9. d4 d6 10. dxe5 dxe5 11. Qxd8 Rxd8 12. Nbd2 Bd6 13. a5 h6 14. Bc4 Re8 15. Nb3 Be6 16. Bd3 Red8 17. Bf1 $146 ({RR} 17. Nfd2 Nd7 18. Bc4 Nc5 19. Nxc5 Bxc5 20. Bxe6 fxe6 21. Nb3 Ba7 22. Be3 Nd4 23. Rac1 Nxb3 24. cxb3 Bxe3 25. Rxe3 c5 26. Re2 Rd3 27. g3 Rc8 28. Rec2 Rxb3 29. Kg2 Kf7 30. Rxc5 Rxc5 31. Rxc5 Rxb2 {Antipov,M (2462)-Heimann,A (2493) Athens 2012 ½-½ (31)}) ({RR} 17. Nfd2 Nd7 18. Nc4 Nc5 19. Nxc5 Bxc5 20. Be3 Bxe3 21. Nxe3 b3 22. Bf1 Nd4 23. cxb3 Nxb3 24. Ra3 Rd2 25. Re2 Rxe2 26. Bxe2 Nd4 27. Bf1 Kf8 28. Rc3 Rb8 29. Rxc7 Rxb2 30. h4 Ra2 31. Bxa6 Rxa5 {Adams,M (2744)-Aronian,L (2781) London 2015 ½-½ (34)}) 17... Kf8 18. Nfd2 Nd7 19. Nc4 Nc5 20. Nxc5 Bxc5 21. c3 f6 22. Be3 Bxe3 1/2-1/2 [Event "Tata Steel-A 78th"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2016.01.18"] [Round "3"] [White "Wei, Yi"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C89"] [WhiteElo "2706"] [BlackElo "2844"] [Annotator "Marin,Mihail"] [PlyCount "119"] [EventDate "2016.01.16"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 171"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2016.03.14"] [SourceVersion "2"] [SourceVersionDate "2016.03.14"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. c3 {I might be subjective, but my feeling is that Carlsen is allowed more frequently to play the genuine Marshall than any other of his colleagues. If this is true, the natural question is whether his opponents trust that despite his phenomenal positional feeling Carlsen may be less strong in concrete opening variations or on the contrary they want to play safe, keeping a draw in their pocket. Be it as it may, the present game contradicts both points of view as White got a slightly worse position out of the opening.} d5 9. exd5 Nxd5 10. Nxe5 Nxe5 11. Rxe5 c6 12. d3 Bd6 13. Re1 Bf5 (13... Qh4 {is slightly more popular. Here is just a recent example:} 14. g3 Qh3 15. Re4 Nf6 16. Rh4 Qf5 17. Bc2 Re8 18. d4 Qe6 19. Nd2 Qe1+ 20. Qxe1 Rxe1+ 21. Kg2 Bb7 22. f3 Rae8 23. Bd3 c5 24. Kf2 c4 $6 (24... cxd4 25. Ne4 R1xe4 26. fxe4 dxc3 27. bxc3 Bxe4 $44) 25. Be4 Nxe4+ 26. Nxe4 Bxe4 27. Kxe1 Bd3+ 28. Re4 Bxe4 29. fxe4 Rxe4+ 30. Kf2 $14 {1-0 (62) Ivanov,O (2513)-Balashov,Y (2418) Moscow 2015}) 14. Qf3 Qh4 ({Deviating from a game of his own:} 14... Bg6 15. Bxd5 cxd5 16. Bf4 {Anand,V (2791)-Carlsen,M (2863) Shamkir 2015 CBM 166 [Pavlovic,M] (½-½, 53), in which he had to struggle hard to reach a draw.}) 15. g3 Qh3 16. Be3 ({It is the Chinese player's turn to deviate from an earlier game between the same players as above, but with reversed colours:} 16. Bxd5 cxd5 17. Be3 Bxd3 18. Qxd5 Rad8 19. Qf3 Rfe8 20. Nd2 Qf5 21. Qxf5 Bxf5 {Carlsen,M (2548)-Anand,V (2785) Leon 2005 (½-½, 30)}) 16... Bxd3 17. Nd2 {White has returned the extra pawn for the sake of completing the development. Even though the structure is more or less symmetrical, the position is not dull at all. Black's minor pieces seem more active, but they can easily be exposed depending how things turn out. The same applies to Black's queenside space advantage: due to the permanent threats c3-c4 and a2-a4 Black's pawns may become weak.} Qf5 {Since Black has no attacking chances anymore, the queen returns to the centre.} 18. Bd4 {For the time being both players maintain the tension.} (18. Qxf5 Bxf5 19. Bd4 Rfd8 20. a4 Bf8 {½-½ (27) Ivanchuk,V (2751)-Aronian,L (2739) Nice 2008}) (18. Rad1 Rfe8 19. Qxf5 Bxf5 20. Bxd5 cxd5 21. Nb3 {Polgar,J (2707)-Leko,P (2753) Wijk aan Zee 2008 (½-½, 35)}) 18... Rae8 {In view of the next rook lift to e6, it looks logical to keep the other rook on f8,} ({but} 18... Rfe8 {is also played as in Leko,P (2708)-Svidler,P (2745) Reykjavik 2015 (½-½, 41)}) 19. Kg2 Qxf3+ $146 {Preparing the rook lift without losing more time.} (19... h6 20. a4 Qxf3+ 21. Kxf3 Re6 22. axb5 axb5 23. Kg2 {Vachier Lagrave,M (2731)-Adams,M (2740) Biel 2015 CBM 168 [Sagar Shah] (1-0, 42)}) 20. Kxf3 Re6 21. Rac1 {With the obvious idea of finding a good moment to play c3-c4.} ({One of the points behind Carlsen's novelty is that} 21. a4 {can be answered with} bxa4 $5 {The e1-rook is hanging and the intermediate exchange on e6 loses a piece after ...fxe6 check!} 22. Bxa4 c5 23. Be3 Nxe3 24. Rxe3 c4 {[%csl Gd3,Gd6]}) (21. Rxe6 fxe6+ 22. Kg2 {can lead to interesting play:} c5 23. Re1 Bf4 $3 (23... cxd4 24. Rxe6 $16) (23... Kf7 24. Be5 {with a pleasant blockade.}) 24. Bxc5 (24. gxf4 cxd4 $13) (24. Rxe6 c4 $17) 24... Bxd2 25. Rxe6 Rd8 26. Rxa6 {[%CAl Ga6a8]} Bc4 $8 {White's three pawns compensate for the missing knight, but possibly not more.}) 21... h6 $5 {This move and White's reply show that both sides have problems making progress. The position is in some sort of dynamic balance, or, exaggerating a bit, mutual zugzwang. Still, I am not sure about the merits of Black's last move.} ({True,} 21... Rfe8 $2 22. Rxe6 Rxe6 23. c4 $16 {causes Black problems.}) ({But I would consider} 21... a5 {Black's main candidate, aiming to put Black's queenside space advantage to work.} 22. c4 ({White could renew the pseudo-zugzwang with the neutral} 22. a3 $5 a4 23. Ba2) (22. a4 bxa4 23. Bxa4 c5 $132) 22... bxc4 23. Bxc4 (23. Nxc4 $4 a4 {wins a piece.}) 23... Bb4 24. Red1 Bxd2 25. Rxd2 Be4+ 26. Ke2 Bg2+ 27. Kd1 a4 $5 {[%CAl Gf8d8] Black's superior activity and the slight exposure of the white king compensate for the bishop pair.}) 22. Kg2 {White avoids the check in case of a later exchange on e6, but taking the king away from the centre looks a bit like a counter-developing move.} (22. c4 $5 c5 {White has to permanently count with this counter-blow.} (22... Nb4 $6 23. Rxe6 fxe6+ 24. Ke3 $16) (22... Rxe1 23. Rxe1 Nb4 24. c5 Bb8 25. Bc3 a5 26. Kg2 $1 $14 {[%csl Rc6,Rf7][%CAl Gd2f3,Gf3e5] Now is a good moment for this retreat!}) 23. cxd5 Rxe1 24. Rxe1 cxd4 25. Ne4 Bxe4+ 26. Rxe4 Bc5 27. Ke2 Rc8 28. Kd3 Kf8 29. Re2 {In principle the position should be drawn, but while there are rooks on the board White can try exerting some pressure.. His king is perfectly placed and the black queenside is weakened.}) (22. a3 a5 ({What else? If} 22... g5 23. Kg2 $5 {Black does not have the plan based on ...?g6 followed by ...?f4 anymore.}) 23. c4 {leads to a similar ending as above:} c5 (23... Rxe1 24. Rxe1 Nf6 25. c5 Bb8 26. Re7 $14) 24. cxd5 Rxe1 25. Rxe1 cxd4 26. Ne4 Bxe4+ 27. Rxe4 Bc5 28. Ke2 a4 29. Ba2 Rc8 30. Kd3 {with the same evaluation.}) ({By the way, with his king on f3 White cannot try playing against the Isolani with} 22. Bxd5 $6 cxd5 23. Nb3 $2 {due to} Be4+ 24. Ke2 Bb1+ 25. Kd2 Bxa2) 22... Rg6 {Finally exiting the tension along the e-file.} 23. Ne4 {This leads to lively play with entirely adequate counterplay for Black.} ({Now was a good moment to settle for a slightly better ending against the Isolani with} 23. Bxd5 $5 cxd5 24. Be5 Bc5 25. Nb3 Bb6 26. Bd4 $14) 23... Nf4+ 24. Kf3 {As we see the king didn't find peace on g2. After returning to f3, it will soon allow Black to gain another tempo with a knight move.} Bxe4+ 25. Rxe4 (25. Kxe4 c5 $1 26. Bxc5 (26. gxf4 cxd4 27. cxd4 Rg4 $15) 26... Bxc5 27. Kxf4 Rf6+ 28. Kg4 Rxf2 $11) 25... Nd3 (25... c5 26. gxf4 cxd4 27. cxd4 $16 {[%csl Gf4]}) 26. Rd1 {The principled move, fighting for the initiative at the cost of a temporary pawn sacrifice.} (26. Rb1 c5 27. Be3 Rd8 {[%CAl Gd6f8]} 28. Bc2 f5 $1 29. Rh4 Bf8 {with better coordination for Black, compensating for White's bishop pair.}) 26... Nxb2 27. Rd2 Ba3 28. Bb6 Rd6 29. Rxd6 Bxd6 30. Re2 Nd3 $5 {The knight is heading for c4 to neutralise the bishop's pressure against f7, but on the way it will drive the enemy king away from the centre for the second time in this game.} (30... Nc4 $11) 31. Rd2 Ne5+ 32. Kg2 Be7 33. f4 Nc4 34. Bxc4 bxc4 35. Rd7 Bf6 36. Rc7 Bxc3 37. Rxc6 Rb8 {More or less forced play has resulted in an ending where White needs some caution to make a draw. In principle, due to his activity many roads lead to Rome, but the problem is finding just one of them (and not a false path) and sticking to it.} 38. a4 ({There is no need to simplify to an ending with a pawn down, even though it should be drawn.} 38. Rxc4 Rxb6 39. Rxc3 Rb2+ 40. Kf3 Rxa2 41. Rc8+ Kh7 42. Ra8 h5 {This type of ending is heavily analysed with the standard pawn positioning on f2, g3, h4, but the present structure is less usual. In principle it looks less favourable for White, as his king is exposed and the pawns more vulnerable, but it should not suffice for a win. I have found a game to which we will transpose after just a few (some of them dumb) moves:} 43. Ke4 (43. h3 $6 Ra3+ 44. Kf2 {forces the king to stay passive.}) 43... g6 44. Kf3 Kg7 45. Ra7 a5 ({This is necessary only for... transposing. But Black does not get much if he keeps the sixth rank defended for a while:} 45... Kf6 46. Ke4 Ke6 47. Kf3) 46. Ra6 a4 47. h3 $6 {This puts White on the edge.} (47. Ke3) 47... a3 48. Ra5 Ra1 49. Kg2 Kf6 50. Ra6+ Ke7 51. g4 h4 52. g5 a2 53. Kh2 {In order to win, Black needs to create a passed pawn on the f-file, but this is not achievable. A g-pawn or a h-pawn would not suffice.} Kd7 54. Kg2 Kc7 55. Ra8 Kb7 56. Ra3 Kc6 57. Ra6+ Kd5 58. Ra7 Ke6 59. Ra6+ Ke7 60. Ra7+ Ke6 61. Ra6+ Kd5 62. Ra7 Ke4 63. Re7+ ({Actually even} 63. Kh2 Kf3 64. Ra3+ Kxf4 65. Ra5 {is drawn.} Ke4 66. Kg2 Ke3 {[%CAl Ga1d1,Gd1d2]} 67. Ra3+ $1) 63... Kxf4 64. Rxf7+ Kxg5 65. Ra7 Kh6 66. Ra4 g5 67. Ra6+ Kg7 68. Ra7+ Kg6 {½-½ Fominyh,A (2518)-Deepan Chakkravarthy,J (2428) Hyderabad 2006}) 38... Bb2 ({During the game I thought} 38... a5 {was more consistent, but it is just an illusion.} 39. Kf3 ({I had in view} 39. Rxc4 $6 Rxb6 40. Rxc3 Rb4 41. Ra3 {when Black has more space than in the game, with increased chances to outplay his opponent.}) 39... Bb4 40. Bd4 c3 41. Ke4) 39. Ba5 c3 40. Bxc3 Bxc3 41. Rxc3 Rb4 42. a5 Rb5 43. Ra3 {The white rook is passive, but White does not have weaknesses on the kingside, making the draw quite obvious. In the worst case he can transpose to the previous ending, of course, but he can choose the circumstances under which to do it.} Rb2+ 44. Kh3 f5 45. Rc3 Rb5 46. Ra3 g5 (46... Kf7 47. Kh4 $11) 47. fxg5 hxg5 48. Kg2 Kg7 49. h4 g4 50. Rc3 $1 Rxa5 51. Rc6 Ra2+ 52. Kg1 a5 53. Ra6 a4 54. Kh1 Kf7 55. Kg1 Ra1+ 56. Kg2 Ra3 57. Kh2 Ra2+ 58. Kg1 Ke7 59. Kh1 a3 60. Kg1 (60. Kg1 Kd7 61. Kh1 (61. Rf6 $4 Rb2 $19) 61... Kc7 62. Kg1 Kb7 63. Ra4 Kb6 64. h5 $11) 1/2-1/2 [Event "Gashimov Memorial 2nd"] [Site "Shamkir"] [Date "2015.04.17"] [Round "1"] [White "Anand, Viswanathan"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C89"] [WhiteElo "2791"] [BlackElo "2863"] [Annotator "Pavlovic,Milos"] [PlyCount "106"] [EventDate "2015.04.17"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "AZE"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 166"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2015.05.11"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2015.05.11"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 {No Berlin this time.} 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. c3 d5 {The Marshall Attack is definitely one of the most popular choices on the top level.} 9. exd5 Nxd5 10. Nxe5 Nxe5 11. Rxe5 c6 12. d3 Bd6 13. Re1 Bf5 14. Qf3 Bg6 {A completely new idea. I will add here a recent game from the USA Ch..} (14... Qh4 15. g3 Qh3 16. Be3 Bxd3 17. Nd2 Bf5 {rare choice , usually they go 17..?f5} 18. Bd4 Rfe8 19. c4 (19. Bxd5 cxd5 20. Qxd5 Bf8 {this must be critical for the evaluation of Black's idea. White is a pawn up but the bishop pair and weak light squares help Black immensely in getting his usual compensation}) 19... Bg4 20. Qg2 Qxg2+ 21. Kxg2 Nb4 22. Ne4 Bf8 23. cxb5 {Now Black has a few ideas:} cxb5 (23... Be6 $5 24. b6 (24. Bxe6 Rxe6 25. Nc3 Rxe1 26. Rxe1 axb5 {again Black is ok}) 24... Bxb3 25. b7 Bd5 26. bxa8=Q Rxa8 27. f3 Nc2 {is fine for Black}) (23... axb5 24. Ng5 Bh5 25. g4 Rxe1 26. Rxe1 Bg6 27. f4 h6 28. f5 Bh5 29. gxh5 hxg5 30. a3 c5 {Black has enough counterplay}) 24. Ng5 Bh5 25. g4 Bg6 26. f4 Nc2 27. Rxe8 Rxe8 28. Rd1 Nxd4 {not best; after this White takes over the initiative} (28... h6 $5 29. f5 Bh5 30. gxh5 hxg5 31. Bf2 Ne3+ 32. Bxe3 Rxe3 33. Rd7 Be7 34. Ra7 Re2+ 35. Kf3 Re3+ $1 $11) 29. Rxd4 Be7 30. Nf3 Bb1 31. Nd2 $18 {1-0 (36) So,W (2788)-Onischuk,A (2665) Saint Louis 2015, White is wining}) 15. Bxd5 cxd5 16. Bf4 d4 17. cxd4 Bb4 18. Nc3 Qxd4 19. Be5 Qd7 $6 {Black had to take on d3 and although it looks a bit unpleasant it seems that Black can hold:} (19... Qxd3 20. Re3 {now two reasonable moves for Black:} Qc4 (20... Qf5 21. Qxf5 Bxf5 22. Nd5 Bc5 23. Rc3 Rac8 24. Rac1 Rfe8 25. Rxc5 Rxc5 26. Rxc5 Rxe5 27. f4 $14) 21. Nd5 Rad8 22. Nf6+ (22. Rd1 f6 $1 {with good play}) 22... Kh8 $1 {is fine for Black.}) 20. Nd5 $1 f6 (20... Bxe1 21. Nf6+ $1 gxf6 22. Qxf6 $18) 21. Nxb4 fxe5 22. Qd5+ Qxd5 23. Nxd5 Bxd3 24. Rxe5 {He is a clear pawn up} Rfe8 25. Rxe8+ Rxe8 26. Ne3 Rc8 27. a3 a5 28. h4 Bg6 29. Rd1 b4 30. axb4 axb4 31. g4 b3 {Carlsen is putting up the best defence.} 32. h5 Bf7 33. Kg2 Kf8 34. Kg3 Ra8 35. Rd2 {This is probably winning for Anand; everyone noticed that during the live comentaries, but to win it it is not easy, otherwise we wouldn't be talking now about a draw in this game, but about 1-0. Somehow it is not easy to find a clear winning path for Anand, and computers defend Carlsen's position with utmost accuracy.} h6 36. Nf5 Be6 37. Nd4 Bf7 38. f3 Rc8 39. Kf4 Rc1 40. Nf5 Kg8 41. Rd8+ Kh7 42. Rd7 Kg8 43. Rd8+ Kh7 44. Rd7 Kg8 45. Nd6 {White has many ideas here; let's try some.} (45. Rb7 Rc2 46. Nd6 Be6 47. Ke5 Re2+ 48. Ne4 Bf7 49. f4 ({another try might be} 49. g5 Bxh5 50. Rxb3 hxg5 51. Kf5 Kf8 52. Nxg5 {with a big advantage but still no clear winning path}) 49... Rxb2 ({But Black doesn't need to be cooperative as pointed out by Rainer Knaak so} 49... Kf8 $5 50. Rb8+ Ke7 51. f5 Be8 $1 52. Rb7+ Kf8 53. Rxb3 Bc6 54. Rb4 Bxe4 55. Rxe4 Rxb2 {and Black should make a draw here, surely not an easy defence, but it is possible that Carlsen might have seen it.}) 50. g5 Bxh5 51. gxh6 Rg2 52. hxg7 {White wins, that was one possible line for instance.}) (45. Nh4 Be6 46. Rb7 Bd5 $1 {very precise!} (46... Rc2 $2 47. Ng6 Bc4 48. Rb8+ Kf7 49. Ke5 $1 {White wins}) 47. Rb8+ Kh7 $1 (47... Kf7 48. Ke5 $1 {with the mating idea ?g6}) 48. Ng6 Bg8 49. Ne7 Bf7 50. Rb7 Rc2 51. Nf5 Kg8 {and we have reached the same position as after 45.?b7 ?c2.}) 45... Be6 46. Re7 Bd5 47. Kf5 $2 {A mistake that spoils all his advantage and all chances to play for win.} Rc6 $1 {Now it is just a draw.} 48. Ke5 Bxf3 49. Nf5 g5 50. Rg7+ Kh8 51. Rg6 Kh7 52. Rg7+ Kh8 53. Rg6 Kh7 1/2-1/2 [Event "Norway Chess 9th"] [Site "Stavanger"] [Date "2021.09.14"] [Round "7"] [White "Tari, Aryan"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C89"] [WhiteElo "2642"] [BlackElo "2855"] [PlyCount "102"] [EventDate "2021.09.07"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 204"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2021.10.31"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2021.10.31"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. c3 Na5 9. Bc2 d5 10. d4 dxe4 11. Nxe5 c5 12. Be3 Bb7 13. Nd2 Rc8 14. h3 ({RR} 14. Nf1 Qc7 15. Ng3 Rfd8 16. Rc1 cxd4 17. Bxd4 Bc5 18. Ng4 Bxd4 19. cxd4 Qf4 20. Nxf6+ Qxf6 21. Bxe4 Qxd4 22. Qxd4 Rxd4 23. Bxb7 Rxc1 24. Rxc1 Nxb7 25. Kf1 g6 26. Ke2 Kg7 27. Ke3 Ra4 28. a3 Nd6 {Mazur,S (2398)-Sosa,T (2519) Santa Cruz de La Palma ESP 2025 ½-½ (35)}) 14... Re8 $146 ({RR} 14... b4 15. Rc1 Bd5 16. c4 cxd4 17. Bxd4 Nxc4 18. Ndxc4 Bxc4 19. Bxe4 Nxe4 20. Nxc4 Bg5 21. Rxe4 Bxc1 22. Qxc1 f5 23. Rf4 g5 24. Qe3 gxf4 25. Qe6+ Rf7 26. Nd6 Rc1+ 27. Kh2 Qe7 28. Qd5 Re1 29. Nxf5 {Kong,X (2457)-Li Chao2 (2635) Shaoxing CHN 2024 ½-½ (31)}) 15. Ng4 Nd5 16. Bxe4 Nxe3 17. Nxe3 cxd4 18. cxd4 Bxe4 19. Nxe4 Bb4 20. Nc3 Rxc3 21. bxc3 Bxc3 22. Re2 Bxa1 23. Qxa1 Nc4 24. Qe1 Nd6 25. Nd5 Rxe2 26. Qxe2 Kf8 27. Ne3 g6 28. Qf3 Kg7 29. Qd5 Qf6 30. a3 Qe6 31. Qc5 Ne4 32. Qc2 h5 33. Qd3 Nd6 34. Qd2 Qf6 35. Nd5 Nc4 36. Qc3 Qd6 37. Nb4 a5 38. Nc2 a4 39. Qd3 h4 40. d5 Qe5 41. Ne3 Qa1+ 42. Kh2 Qe5+ 43. Kg1 Nxe3 44. fxe3 b4 45. d6 Qa1+ 46. Kf2 bxa3 47. d7 Qf6+ 48. Ke2 a2 49. d8=Q Qxd8 50. Qxd8 a1=Q 51. Qxh4 a3 0-1 [Event "Tata Steel-A 74th"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2012.01.28"] [Round "12"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Kamsky, Gata"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C89"] [WhiteElo "2835"] [BlackElo "2732"] [PlyCount "117"] [EventDate "2012.01.14"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 147"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2012.03.16"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2012.03.16"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. c3 d5 9. d4 dxe4 10. Nxe5 Bb7 11. Nxc6 Bxc6 12. Bg5 Nd5 ({RR} 12... h6 13. Bxf6 Bxf6 14. Nd2 Re8 15. Qg4 Bd7 16. Qh5 Be6 17. Nxe4 Bxb3 18. axb3 Be7 19. b4 c6 20. Re3 a5 21. bxa5 Rxa5 22. Rae1 Kh8 23. Qxf7 {1-0 (23) Kamsky,G (2657)-Lavrov,M (2398) Chess.com INT 2021}) 13. Bxe7 Qxe7 14. Nd2 f5 15. f3 $146 ({RR} 15. c4 bxc4 16. Nxc4 Kh8 17. Ne3 Rad8 18. Rc1 Bb7 19. Rc5 c6 20. Nc4 Nf4 21. Ne5 Rd6 22. g3 Ne6 23. Rc4 c5 24. Qh5 Nxd4 25. Rxd4 cxd4 26. Nf7+ Rxf7 27. Qxf7 Qxf7 28. Bxf7 Bd5 29. Bxd5 Rxd5 {Dubreuil,R (1502)-Le Bas,N (1655) Montreal 2012 0-1 (47)}) 15... e3 16. c4 Nf4 17. cxb5+ Kh8 18. Nc4 e2 19. Qd2 Qg5 20. Rxe2 Nxe2+ 21. Qxe2 Bxb5 22. Qe3 f4 23. Qe5 Qh4 24. Qe1 Qxe1+ 25. Rxe1 Bxc4 26. Bxc4 c6 27. Re6 Rf6 28. Re4 a5 29. h4 Rd8 30. Re5 a4 31. Ra5 Rfd6 32. Rxa4 Rxd4 33. b3 g6 34. Kh2 Kg7 35. Ra6 Rd2 36. a4 Rf2 37. Ra7+ Kh8 38. Kh3 h5 39. Rf7 Rdd2 40. Rxf4 Rxg2 41. Rf7 Rh2+ 42. Kg3 Rdg2+ 43. Kf4 Rxh4+ 44. Ke5 Rg5+ 45. Kf6 Rf5+ 46. Kxg6 Rxf7 47. Bxf7 Rf4 48. Be6 Rxf3 49. Kxh5 Re3 50. Bc4 Kg7 51. Kg5 Re5+ 52. Kf4 Kf6 53. Bd3 Rh5 54. Be4 c5 55. Bd3 Rh4+ 56. Ke3 Ke5 57. a5 Rh3+ 58. Ke2 Kd4 59. Bc4 1/2-1/2 [Event "Gashimov Memorial 5th"] [Site "Shamkir"] [Date "2018.04.25"] [Round "6"] [White "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C89"] [WhiteElo "2778"] [BlackElo "2843"] [PlyCount "59"] [EventDate "2018.04.19"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "AZE"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 184"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2018.05.16"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2018.05.16"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. c3 d5 9. exd5 Nxd5 10. Nxe5 Nxe5 11. Rxe5 c6 12. d3 Bd6 13. Re1 Bf5 14. Qf3 Qh4 15. g3 Qh3 16. Be3 Bxd3 17. Nd2 Qf5 18. Bd4 Rfe8 19. a4 Kf8 20. h4 h6 $146 ({RR} 20... Rxe1+ 21. Rxe1 f6 22. Qxf5 Bxf5 23. c4 Nb4 24. axb5 axb5 25. cxb5 cxb5 26. Rc1 Nd3 27. Rc6 Be5 28. Be3 Ra1+ 29. Kh2 Bd7 30. Rc2 Ne1 31. Rc5 Nd3 32. Rc2 Ne1 33. Rc5 Nd3 {½-½ (33) Vachier Lagrave,M (2796)-Carlsen,M (2832) Paris 2017}) 21. Qxf5 Bxf5 22. Rxe8+ Rxe8 23. axb5 axb5 24. Ra6 Ne7 25. Be3 Kg8 26. Ba2 Rd8 27. Bb6 Re8 28. Be3 Rd8 29. Bb6 Re8 30. Be3 1/2-1/2 [Event "Norway Chess 9th"] [Site "Stavanger"] [Date "2021.09.14"] [Round "7"] [White "Tari, Aryan"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C89"] [WhiteElo "2642"] [BlackElo "2855"] [PlyCount "102"] [EventDate "2021.09.07"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 204"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2021.10.31"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2021.10.31"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. c3 Na5 9. Bc2 d5 10. d4 dxe4 11. Nxe5 c5 12. Be3 Bb7 13. Nd2 Rc8 14. h3 ({RR} 14. Nf1 Qc7 15. Ng3 Rfd8 16. Rc1 cxd4 17. Bxd4 Bc5 18. Ng4 Bxd4 19. cxd4 Qf4 20. Nxf6+ Qxf6 21. Bxe4 Qxd4 22. Qxd4 Rxd4 23. Bxb7 Rxc1 24. Rxc1 Nxb7 25. Kf1 g6 26. Ke2 Kg7 27. Ke3 Ra4 28. a3 Nd6 {Mazur,S (2398)-Sosa,T (2519) Santa Cruz de La Palma ESP 2025 ½-½ (35)}) 14... Re8 $146 ({RR} 14... b4 15. Rc1 Bd5 16. c4 cxd4 17. Bxd4 Nxc4 18. Ndxc4 Bxc4 19. Bxe4 Nxe4 20. Nxc4 Bg5 21. Rxe4 Bxc1 22. Qxc1 f5 23. Rf4 g5 24. Qe3 gxf4 25. Qe6+ Rf7 26. Nd6 Rc1+ 27. Kh2 Qe7 28. Qd5 Re1 29. Nxf5 {Kong,X (2457)-Li Chao2 (2635) Shaoxing CHN 2024 ½-½ (31)}) 15. Ng4 Nd5 16. Bxe4 Nxe3 17. Nxe3 cxd4 18. cxd4 Bxe4 19. Nxe4 Bb4 20. Nc3 Rxc3 21. bxc3 Bxc3 22. Re2 Bxa1 23. Qxa1 Nc4 24. Qe1 Nd6 25. Nd5 Rxe2 26. Qxe2 Kf8 27. Ne3 g6 28. Qf3 Kg7 29. Qd5 Qf6 30. a3 Qe6 31. Qc5 Ne4 32. Qc2 h5 33. Qd3 Nd6 34. Qd2 Qf6 35. Nd5 Nc4 36. Qc3 Qd6 37. Nb4 a5 38. Nc2 a4 39. Qd3 h4 40. d5 Qe5 41. Ne3 Qa1+ 42. Kh2 Qe5+ 43. Kg1 Nxe3 44. fxe3 b4 45. d6 Qa1+ 46. Kf2 bxa3 47. d7 Qf6+ 48. Ke2 a2 49. d8=Q Qxd8 50. Qxd8 a1=Q 51. Qxh4 a3 0-1 [Event "Corus"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2007.01.29"] [Round "13"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Shirov, Alexei"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C90"] [WhiteElo "2690"] [BlackElo "2715"] [Annotator "Carlsen,Magnus"] [PlyCount "115"] [EventDate "2007.01.13"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "19"] [SourceTitle "CBM 117"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2007.03.30"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2007.03.30"] [SourceQuality "1"] {Before the Corus Tournament I agreed to annotate a game from the tournament for CBM, obviously thinking that I might be able to win at least one game or achieve something memorable. However, things did not go according to plan at all as I made blunders or huge mistakes in calculation in almost every game I played. The following game is not a very good game, but I came very close to winning and the game was quite interesting. Vor dem Corus-Turnier erklärte ich mich bereit, eine Partie daraus für das CBM zu kommentieren, offensichtlich annehmend, in der Lage sein, zumindest eine Partie zu gewinnen oder etwas Denkwürdiges zu leisten. Doch die Dinge liefen ganz und gar nicht nach Plan, denn in fast jeder Partie, die ich spielte, übersah ich etwas oder machte riesige Rechenfehler. Die folgende Partie ist nicht besonders gut, aber ich kam dem Sieg sehr nahe und es war recht interessant.} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. a3 {Hardly anyone dares allow the Marshall nowadays, so I guess I'm excused for playing a somewhat unusual line. Kaum jemand wagt es heutzutage, Marshall zuzulassen, also kann man mir das Anwenden eines etwas ungewöhnlichen Abspiels wohl verzeihen.} d6 (8... Bc5 {ist auch recht verlässlich, wie Svidler in einer früheren Runde des Turniers gegen mich zeigte.}) 9. c3 Na5 (9... Be6 {is the main line. ist das Hauptabspiel.}) 10. Bc2 (10. Ba2 {would appear more natural now that I have played a3, but the bishop might get closed in here after a future c4 by Black. Anyway, it was an interesting alternative. würde natürlicher wirken, da ich ja a3 gespielt habe, doch dort könnte der Läufer nach einem zukünftigen c4 von Schwarz eingemauert werden. Jedenfalls war es eine interessante Alternative.}) 10... c5 11. d4 Nd7 12. b4 {Trying to make use of having played a3 instead of h3 as in the normal line. Versucht, die Tatsache zu nutzen, dass a3 geschehen ist statt h3 wie im normalen Abspiel.} cxb4 13. cxb4 (13. axb4 {would seem more natural, and might have been better, though White does not have much to write home about here either. sieht natürlicher aus und könnte auch besser gewesen sein, obwohl Weiß auch hier nichts Besonderes erreicht hätte.} Nc4 14. Nbd2 Nxd2 (14... Ndb6 15. Nxc4 Nxc4 16. Bd3 {might be a little bit better for White. ist vielleicht einen Tick besser für Weiß.}) 15. Nxd2 (15. Bxd2 Qc7 {Black looks very comfortable here. Hier sieht die schwarze Stellung sehr bequem aus.}) 15... exd4 (15... Nb6 16. Nb3 {is the point behind ?xd2, but Black should be fine here also. ist die Pointe hinter ?xd2, doch auch hier sollte Schwarz ordentlich stehen.}) 16. cxd4 d5 {is an interesting option, and why I didn't go for axb4. ist eine interessante Option und der Grund, weshalb ich axb4 unterließ.} 17. Rb1 (17. e5 Bxb4 18. Ba3 $44 {was interesting as well. war ebenfalls interessant.}) 17... dxe4 18. Nxe4 {with a complicated position, but one where Black should be fine. mit einer komplizierten Stellung, aber einer, in der Schwarz ordentlich stehen sollte.}) 13... Nc4 14. Nc3 {Leaving the knight alone on c4 looks strange, but I wanted to exploit the fact that the c3 square was free, and Den Springer auf c4 in Ruhe zu lassen, wirkt seltsam, doch ich wollte die Tatsache nutzen, dass das Feld c3 frei war} (14. Nbd2 {doesn't seem to promise much anyway . scheint sowieso nicht viel zu versprechen.}) 14... Ndb6 15. h3 exd4 16. Nxd4 Bf6 17. Rb1 {Shirov apparently found my play in this part of the game very strange, which made me wonder if I was playing like a total idiot (which might be true). This move however is quite natural, as there wasn't any other ovbious way of bringing the rook into play, and the somewhat loose pieces on the c-file might need some protection. Black looks very much fine here, which he should be, but it isn't so easy for him to find a plan to improve his position further after he has developed his bishop and put his rooks on the e- and c-files. Shirov fand mein Spieler in dieser Phase der Partie offenbar sehr seltsam, worauf ich mich fragte, ob ich wie ein Vollidiot gespielt hätte (was der Fall sein könnte). Dieser Zug allerdings ist ganz natürlich, da es keine anderen offensichtlichen Weg gab, den Turm ins Spiel zu bringen und die etwas unsicheren Figuren in der c-Linie etwas Schutz vertragen könnten. Schwarz scheint hier sehr ordentlich zu stehen, was auch der Fall sein sollte, aber es ist nicht so leicht für ihn, einen Plan zu finden, wie er seine Stellung weiter verbessern könnte, nachdem er seinen Läufer entwickelt und seine Türme in die e- und c-Linien gestellt hat.} Bd7 {This bishop could also be put on b7.} 18. Rb3 Re8 19. f4 Rc8 20. Kh1 g6 21. Rf1 {Around here I started to like my position, but it is nothing special. Etwa hier begann meine Stellung mir zu gefallen, aber es ist nichts Besonderes.} Bg7 22. Nce2 Na4 $2 {I think this move deserves a question mark, the knight doesn't do a lot over here, and he loses the chance to play d5 as an answer to f5. Ich denke, dieser Zug verdient ein Fragezeichen; der Springer leistet hier drüben nichts, und er nimmt sich die Chance, d5 zu spielen als Antwort auf f5.} (22... Rc7 $1 {As suggested by Simen Agdestein looks like a nice, flexible move, with the idea of bringing the bishop to b7 and protecting the seventh rank. After ?c7 I think Black must be fine, which is quite fair, as he has not "committed any crimes" so far. , wie von Simen Agdestein vorgeschlagen, sieht aus wie ein schöner, flexibler Zug, mit der Idee, den Läufer nach b7 zu bringen und die siebte Reihe zu schützen. Nach ?c7 denke ich, Schwarz muss ordentlich stehen, was auch recht fair ist, da er bislang "keine Verbrechen begangen hat".}) 23. f5 Nab6 24. Nf4 Qf6 {This move took me by surprise, but it was not a very unpleasant one, and I started to look for a refutation. Dieser Zug überraschte mich, aber nicht gerade unangenehm, und ich begann, eine Widerlegung zu suchen.} 25. fxg6 fxg6 (25... Qxd4 26. gxf7+ Kxf7 27. Ne2+ {obviously loses at once. verliert offenbar sofort.}) (25... hxg6 26. Nf5 gxf5 27. Rg3 Kh8 28. exf5 $1 Qh4 29. Rg4 $18) 26. Nf5 (26. Nfe6 Rxe6 27. Rxf6 Rxf6 {This obvious computer continuation did not impress me much. Diese offensitchtliche Computerfortsetzung beeindruckte mich nicht sonderlich.}) 26... Kh8 (26... gxf5 {was worse: war schlechter:} 27. Rg3 $1 (27. Nh5 Qd4 28. Rg3 (28. Rd3 Nb2 $1) 28... Qxd1 29. Rxg7+ Kh8 30. Bxd1 Rxe4 31. Bg5 $13) 27... Kh8 28. Nh5 Qd4 29. Nxg7 {This is the point, the capture with the knight is far more effective than with the rook. Das ist die Pointe, das Schlagen mit dem Springer ist weitaus effektiver als mit dem Turm.} Qxd1 30. Rxd1 Rxe4 (30... Rg8 31. Nxf5 Rxg3 32. Nxg3 $16) 31. Bxe4 fxe4 32. Nh5 {When Black obviously has innsufficient compensation for the exchange. wonach Schwarz offensichtlich unzureichende Kompensation für die Quailität hat.}) 27. Nxg7 Qxg7 28. Rg3 (28. Rbf3 {was probably better. White keeps a pleasant advantage, and his position is easier to play, because Black will always have to worry about his king, while having no real counterplay. war wahrscheinlich besser. Weiß behält einen angenehmen Vorteil, und seine Stellung ist leichter zu spielen, da Schwarz sich immer um seinen König sorgen muss, während er kein echtes Gegenspiel hat.}) 28... Rf8 {Here I felt that there had to be a forced win somehow, but even after spending a lot of time I could not find one. Hier hatte ich das Gefühl, es müsste irgendwie einen forcierten Gewinn geben, aber selbst, nachdem ich viel Zeit investiert hatte, konnte ich keinen finden.} 29. e5 {The most direct, but probably not the best continuation. Die direkteste, aber vielleicht nicht die beste Fortsetzung.} (29. Rgf3 {could be considered here too. war auch hier zu erwägen.}) 29... Nxe5 30. Bb2 Nbc4 31. Nxg6+ {The only consistent choice. However, it only leads to a draw, and I had not calculated precisely at all, as it turned out. Die einzig konsequente Wahl. Doch sie führt nur zum Remis, und ich hatte keinesfalls genau gerechnet, wie sich herausstellte.} hxg6 32. Rxf8+ Rxf8 33. Bxg6 (33. Rxg6 Nxb2 34. Qh5+ Kg8 35. Rxg7+ Kxg7 {did not look too great to me. schien mir nichs allzu Tolles zu sein.}) 33... Bg4 $2 {We both considered this the only defence during the game, but in fact it is a mistake. Diesen Zug hielten wir beide während der Partie für die einzige Verteidigung, aber tatsächlich ist er ein Fehler.} (33... Rf1+ 34. Qxf1 Nxb2 35. Be4 $1 Qh6 36. Bd5 {creates the lethal threat of ?g8 and forces Black to give up material. stellt die tödliche Drohung ?g8 auf und zwingt Schwarz, Material zu geben.}) (33... Qh6 34. Bc1 Rf4 {During the game, I did not see this move, suggested by Fritz,.. It seems that Black is OK after it. Diesen Zug hatte ich während der Partie nicht gesehen, ein Vorschlag von Fritz... Danach scheint die Stellung von Schwarz in Ordnung zu sein.} (34... Qh4 35. Bg5 $18) 35. Be4 Ng4 36. Kg1 Qf6 37. Bxf4 Qxf4 38. Rxg4 Bxg4 39. Qxg4 Qxg4 40. hxg4 Nxa3 41. Bb7 {is a strange computer variation leading to draw. ist eine seltsame Computervariante, die zum Remis führt.}) (33... Be8 {is another move I did not spot, and it seems to give a draw as well. ist ein anderer Zug, den ich nicht gesehen hatte, und auch er scheint Remis zu ergeben.} 34. Qh5+ Kg8 35. Bh7+ Kh8 36. Bg6+ $11) 34. Rxg4 Qf6 35. Bd4 Qf1+ 36. Qxf1 Rxf1+ 37. Kh2 Nxa3 38. Bd3 {I had spend so much time searching for a win that my only concern at this point was to not blunder anything before the time control. Ich hatte auf der Suche nach einem Gewinn so viel Zeit verbraucht, dass meine einzige Sorge an dieser Stelle war, bis zur Zeitkontrolle nichts mehr einzustellen.} Rd1 39. Rg3 Nac4 40. h4 Nd2 41. Bc3 Ndc4 (41... Nf1+ {was probably his plan, but after thinking for a long time he correctly changed his mind. war wahrscheinlich sein Plan, aber nach langem Nachdenken überlegte er es sich zurecht anders.} 42. Bxf1 Rxf1 43. Rg6 Rc1 44. Bd4 Kh7 45. Rxd6 {and White wins easily. und Weiß gewinnt leicht.}) 42. h5 Nb6 43. h6 Nd5 44. Rf3 {Here I thought that the game would be over in a few moves, but he kept finding resources. Hier dachte ich, die Partie würde in wenigen Zügen vorbei sein, aber er fand immer wieder Ressourcen.} Nf6 $8 45. Bf5 Ng8 (45... Nxf3+ $2 46. gxf3 {leaves the knight indefensible, and illustrates the power of a bishop pair in an open position. macht den Springer undeckbar und veranschaulicht die Kraft eines Läuferpaars in offener Stellung.}) 46. h7 Nf6 47. Rh3 $2 (47. Rg3 Rf1 48. Rg5 {as pointed out by numerous commentators, is the way forward , wie von zahlreichen Kommentatoren angemerkt, ist der Weg vorwärts.} Rf4 49. Kg1 Rc4 $8 50. Bxe5 dxe5 51. Rg6 Rc1+ 52. Kh2 Nxh7 53. Be6 $18) 47... Rf1 48. g4 Rf4 {Here I realized that something had gone wrong. In retrospect, I cannot even see what I might have overlooked. Hier begriff ich, dass irgendwas schiefgelaufen war. Im Nachhinein kann ich nicht einmal sagen, was ich übersehen haben könnte.} 49. Rg3 (49. Kg3 {does not lead anywhere: führt zu nichts:} Rf3+ 50. Kh4 Rxh3+ 51. Kxh3 Nxh7 52. Bc8 (52. Bxe5+ dxe5 53. Bxh7 Kxh7 54. g5 Kg6 55. Kg4 e4 56. Kf4 e3 57. Kxe3 Kxg5 58. Kd4 Kf5 59. Kc5 Ke6 60. Kb6 Kd7 61. Kxa6 Kc6 62. Ka5 Kc7 $11) 52... Nf6 53. Bxa6 Nd5 54. Bd2 Nd3 $11) (49. Bxe5 dxe5 50. Kg3 {was the last chance: war die letzte Chance:} Nd5 $1 {The best way to save the game. Die beste Möglichkeit, die Partie zu retten.} (50... Rxb4 51. Rh6) 51. Rh6 Ne3 52. Be6 Rxb4 53. g5 Rf4 54. g6 Rf8 {and Black should be able to hold. und Schwarz sollte sich halten können.}) 49... Kg7 $1 (49... Nfxg4+ 50. Bxg4 Kxh7 51. Bc8 $18) 50. Rh3 Kh8 51. Rg3 Kg7 52. Kg2 (52. Kh1 {was better, but far too deep for the time available, especially as I had already got into time trouble. war besser, aber viel zu tief bei der verfügbaren Zeit, vor allem, da ich bereits in Zeitnot gekommen war.}) 52... Nxh7 53. Rd3 Nf6 54. Rxd6 Nexg4 55. Bxg4 Rxg4+ 56. Kf3 Rg6 57. Rxa6 (57. Kf4 Kf7 58. Kf5 Rg5+ {or oder} (58... Ng8 {also doesn't lead anywhere. führt ebenfalls zu nichts.})) 57... Kf7 58. Rxf6+ {Black will lose the b5-pawn, as White gains the oppostion, but obviously not the game. Schwarz wird den b5-Bauern verlieren, da Weiß die Opposition erobert, aber offensichtlich nicht die Partie.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "Norway Chess 3rd"] [Site "Stavanger"] [Date "2015.06.24"] [Round "8"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Aronian, Levon"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C90"] [WhiteElo "2876"] [BlackElo "2780"] [Annotator "Szabo,Krisztian"] [PlyCount "79"] [EventDate "2015.06.16"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 167"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2015.07.13"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2015.07.13"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. d3 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 (8. a4) ({and} 8. a3 {are the other main variations.}) 8... O-O 9. Re1 Na5 10. Bc2 c5 11. Nbd2 Nc6 (11... Re8 {is also common.}) 12. Nf1 h6 13. Ne3 {A logical plan by Carlsen. He would like to control the important d5-square.} (13. Ng3 {is the other setup.}) 13... Re8 14. a4 Be6 15. d4 ({Last year Adams played} 15. h3 Bf8 16. Nh2 b4 17. Bb3 Rb8 18. Bc4 bxc3 19. bxc3 d5 20. Bxa6 Qa5 21. Bb5 (21. c4 $6 {A very smart move, but it is too much.} Qxa6 22. exd5 Bxd5 23. cxd5 Nb4 24. Ra3 Nfxd5 $17 {Adams-Caruana, London 2014, and Black has a wonderful middlegame.}) 21... Rxb5 22. exd5 Nxd5 23. Nc4 Qa8 24. axb5 Qxa1 25. bxc6 f6 $15 {and Black looks nicely placed too.}) 15... exd4 16. cxd4 Nb4 $146 {Aronian improves on the game which he played 12 years ago.} (16... Nxd4 17. Nxd4 cxd4 18. Qxd4 Nd7 19. axb5 axb5 20. Bd2 Bf6 (20... Qb6 $5) 21. Qxd6 Rxa1 22. Rxa1 Bxb2 23. Rb1 Be5 24. Qd3 Qc7 25. Nd5 Bxd5 26. exd5 Nf6 27. g3 $14 {J.Polgar-Aronian, Hoogeveen 2003, with a comfortable position for White.}) 17. Bb1 bxa4 18. Rxa4 Bf8 19. Ra1 d5 $1 {A typical break-through in this type of position.} 20. e5 Ne4 21. h3 Qb6 $6 {This is a slight inaccuracy, after which White can win a ?. Nevertheless Black will have some compensation for it, but he will be fighting for equaliity.} ({After the natural} 21... Rc8 {Black looks completely fine.}) 22. Nxd5 $1 Bxd5 23. Bxe4 Rad8 24. Bxd5 Rxd5 25. Be3 Red8 26. dxc5 Bxc5 27. Qb3 Bxe3 28. Rxe3 a5 {The previous moves were forced; Carlsen is a ? up, but Black's pieces are powerful.} 29. e6 $5 {Carlsen gives back the ?, and in doing so he creates a weakness in Black's position.} fxe6 30. Rae1 R8d6 31. Rc1 Nd3 $2 {A mistake, which allows a strong attack for White!} (31... Rd3 $1 $11 {was the easiest reply to simplify the position and Black doesn't have any problem.}) 32. Rc8+ Kh7 33. Qa4 $1 {A nice repositioning of the ?. From here the ? can threaten the ? with ?e8 and it also has access to e4 with lethal checks.} Qxb2 $2 {This was an attractive move, because of the ? attack on f2, and moreover he takes a ?. Nevertheless this is a decisive mistake.} (33... Nb4 {was correct to avoid the ?e4,} 34. Qe8 Rd1+ 35. Kh2 Rd8 36. Rxd8 Rxd8 37. Qh5 Qc7+ {and still Black can hold his position.}) 34. Qe4+ Rf5 35. Kh2 $3 {What an excellent cool-headed move! White avoids ...?xf2+ and is threatening ?h4.} ({The immediate} 35. Nh4 $4 {was bad, as} Qxf2+ 36. Kh2 Qf4+ $19 {and suddenly Black wins.}) 35... Nf4 {The best practical chance.} (35... Qxf2 $2 {did not work because of} 36. Rxd3 $18) ({and} 35... Nxf2 {is also losing, after} 36. Qa8 $1 $18 {with a decisive attack.}) 36. Rc2 $4 {A big mistake probably in time trouble.} ({He should simply continue the original threat with} 36. Nh4 Qxf2 37. Rg3 $1 (37. Nxf5 exf5 38. Qxf5+ $2 Rg6 $1 {and suddenly Black has an attack on the g-file.}) 37... Rdd5 38. Nxf5 Rxf5 39. Rc7 $18 {and White is winning.}) 36... Qa1 $4 {A huge error in reply! This move is completely based on an oversight.} (36... Qb4 37. Rc4 Qb8 {is very similar to 36...?b8!}) (36... Qb8 $1 {was the strongest continuation,} 37. g3 (37. g4 $2 Ng6 $1 38. gxf5 exf5 $1 $19 {and there isn't a safe square for the white ?, because the ? will win it with a discovered check.}) (37. Nh4 Rd4 $1 {A very strong intermediate move!} 38. Rc8 $1 (38. Qxd4 $2 Ne2+ $19 {and Black wins.}) 38... Qxc8 39. Qxd4 Rf6 $15) 37... Nd5 38. Ree2 Nf6 $15 {and Black is a clear ? up.}) 37. g4 $18 {Now White is clearly winning.} Qf1 38. Ne1 {Perhaps this move was what Aronian missed when he played 36...?a1. Now everything is defended and Black is helpless against gxf5.} ({The careless} 38. Nh4 $4 {loses, because of} Rd1 $19 {and suddenly it is White who gets mated!}) 38... Nh5 39. gxf5 exf5 40. Qc4 {and Black can't avoid the exchange of ?s, so he resigned.} 1-0 [Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 2nd"] [Site "Moscow"] [Date "2007.11.19"] [Round "9"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Kamsky, Gata"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C90"] [WhiteElo "2714"] [BlackElo "2714"] [PlyCount "74"] [EventDate "2007.11.10"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 122"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2008.01.30"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2008.01.30"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. a4 b4 9. d3 d6 10. Nbd2 Rb8 11. c3 ({RR} 11. h3 Na5 12. Ba2 Be6 13. Bxe6 fxe6 14. Nf1 c5 15. Ng3 Qd7 16. b3 Nc6 17. Rf1 Bd8 18. Be3 Bc7 19. Nh2 Nd4 20. Ne2 d5 21. Ng3 Qc6 22. Ng4 dxe4 23. Nxf6+ gxf6 24. dxe4 Kh8 25. Re1 Rbd8 {Swiercz,D (2616)-Korobov,A (2693) Wroclaw 2014 0-1 (61)}) 11... Bg4 $146 ({RR} 11... Na5 12. Ba2 c5 13. d4 cxd4 14. cxd4 Qc7 15. b3 Nd7 16. Bb2 Bf6 17. Rc1 Qb6 18. Nc4 Nxc4 19. Rxc4 Bb7 20. Bb1 Rbc8 21. Rxc8 {½-½ (21) Palac,M (2587)-Banusz,T (2481) Trieste 2008}) ({RR} 11... Na5 12. Ba2 Be6 13. d4 Bxa2 14. Rxa2 Nd7 15. Qe2 Qc8 16. Nc4 Nxc4 17. Qxc4 a5 18. Bd2 c5 19. dxe5 Nxe5 20. Nxe5 dxe5 21. b3 Qe6 22. Qxe6 fxe6 23. cxb4 cxb4 24. Rc2 Rfd8 25. Kf1 Rd3 26. Re3 {Roquero Redondo,M (2028)-Bernabeu Lopez,C (2416) Roquetas de Mar ESP 2025 ½-½ (43)}) ({RR} 11... Na5 12. Ba2 c5 13. d4 Qc7 14. Nf1 exd4 15. cxd4 c4 16. Bg5 d5 17. exd5 Nxd5 18. Bxe7 Nxe7 19. Rc1 b3 20. Bb1 Ng6 21. Ne3 Rd8 22. h4 Nf8 23. d5 Rb4 24. Qd4 Rxa4 25. h5 Qd6 26. Ng5 {Megaranto,S (2439)-Almasi,Z (2650) Mallorca 2004 1-0 (55)}) 12. h3 Bh5 13. g4 Bg6 14. Nh4 Kh8 15. Bc4 d5 16. Nxg6+ fxg6 17. exd5 Nxd5 18. Ne4 bxc3 19. bxc3 Na5 20. Ba2 c6 21. Be3 Nb7 22. Rb1 Nxe3 23. Rxe3 Nc5 24. Rxb8 Qxb8 25. Nxc5 Bxc5 26. Rf3 a5 27. Kg2 Rf6 28. Qe2 Qf8 29. Qe4 Rxf3 30. Qxf3 Qf6 31. Bf7 Ba3 32. Be8 Bb2 33. c4 c5 34. Bf7 e4 35. dxe4 Be5 36. Bd5 Qxf3+ 37. Kxf3 g5 1/2-1/2 [Event "Lausanne YM 5th"] [Site "Lausanne"] [Date "2004.09.20"] [Round "3.6"] [White "Lagno, Kateryna"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C90"] [WhiteElo "2472"] [BlackElo "2567"] [PlyCount "57"] [EventDate "2004.09.15"] [EventType "k.o."] [EventRounds "3"] [EventCountry "SUI"] [SourceTitle "CBM 104"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2005.01.27"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2005.01.27"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. a4 b4 9. d4 d6 10. c3 Bg4 11. d5 Na5 12. cxb4 Nxb3 13. Qxb3 Rb8 14. Bd2 Nh5 15. h3 Bd7 16. Qc4 $146 ({RR} 16. Na3 f5 17. exf5 Bxf5 18. g4 Qd7 19. Nh2 Bh4 20. Re2 Bg6 21. gxh5 Bxh5 22. Re4 Bxf2+ 23. Kh1 Bf3+ 24. Qxf3 Rxf3 25. Nxf3 Qxh3+ 26. Nh2 Bg3 27. Re2 Rf8 28. Nc4 Bxh2 29. Rxh2 Qf3+ 30. Rg2 Qd3 {Royal,S (2456)-Forgacs,A (2219) chess.com INT 2022 1-0 (46)}) ({RR} 16. Na3 f5 17. exf5 Bxf5 18. g4 Qd7 19. Nh2 Bh4 20. Re2 Bg6 21. gxh5 Bxh5 22. Re4 Bxf2+ 23. Kh1 Bf3+ 24. Qxf3 Rxf3 25. Nxf3 Qxh3+ 26. Nh2 Bg3 27. Re2 Rf8 28. Nc4 Bxh2 29. Rxh2 Qf3+ 30. Rg2 Qd3 {Royal,S (2456)-Forgacs,A (2219) chess.com INT 2022 1-0 (46)}) 16... Kh8 17. Nc3 f5 18. exf5 Bxf5 19. Be3 Qe8 20. Kh2 Qg6 21. Nh4 Bxh4 22. Qxh4 Bd3 23. Rad1 Nf4 24. Qg3 Bc2 25. Rd2 Nd3 26. Qxg6 hxg6 27. Ree2 Nxb4 28. Rxc2 c6 29. Bc1 0-1 [Event "Samba Cup 2nd"] [Site "Skanderborg"] [Date "2005.10.14"] [Round "1"] [White "Timofeev, Artyom"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C91"] [WhiteElo "2658"] [BlackElo "2570"] [Annotator "Erenburg,Sergey"] [PlyCount "59"] [EventDate "2005.10.14"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "DEN"] [EventCategory "16"] [SourceTitle "CBM 110"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2006.01.31"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2006.01.31"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. d4 d6 9. c3 Bg4 10. Be3 exd4 {Other theoretical possbilities are:} (10... Bh5 11. h3 exd4 12. cxd4 d5 $5 13. g4 (13. e5 Ne4 14. Nc3 Nxc3 15. bxc3 Na5 16. Bc2 Nc4 17. g4 Bg6 18. Bf5 Bxf5 (18... a5 19. Qd3 b4 20. Re2 Ra6 21. Kg2 Rb6 22. cxb4 axb4 23. Rae1 $14 {1-0 Svidler,P-Delchev,A/Plovdiv 2003/CBM 098 (49)}) 19. gxf5 f6 $13 {½-½ Grischuk,A-Sokolov,I/Mainz 2003/CBM 095 ext (31)}) 13... Bg6 14. Ne5 Na5 (14... Nxe5 15. dxe5 Nxe4 16. Bxd5 $14) 15. Nxg6 hxg6 16. e5 Ne4 17. Nc3 Bb4 18. Rc1 Nxb3 19. axb3 Bxc3 20. bxc3 Qh4 21. Rc2 f5 $1 {After a long and rather forced sequence of exchanges Black initiates an offensive against the weakened white ?-side.} 22. f3 Nxc3 $1 (22... Ng5 23. Bxg5 Qxg5 24. c4 $11) 23. Rxc3 Qg3+ 24. Kf1 fxg4 25. Ke2 (25. f4 gxh3 26. Qe2 g5 $40) 25... b4 26. Rxc7 gxf3+ 27. Kd2 Qg2+ 28. Kc1 f2 29. Rf1 Rf3 30. Bd2 Rxh3 31. Qe2 $2 {Immediately losing.} (31. e6 a5 32. e7 Re8 33. Kb2 a4 34. bxa4 Qg3 $19) 31... Rh1 {0-1 Tischbierek,R-Gustafsson,J/Altenkirchen 2005/CBM 106/[Wedberg]}) (10... Bd7 11. Nbd2 Ng4 12. Nf1 Nxe3 13. Nxe3 Bf6 14. Nd5 Rb8 15. h3 g6 16. Nxf6+ Qxf6 17. dxe5 Nxe5 18. Nxe5 Qxe5 19. Qd2 a5 $11 {½-½ Belov,V-Khalifman,A/Moscow 2005/CBM 106/[Mueller,Karsten] (66)}) 11. cxd4 Na5 {attacking White's light-squared bishop, as well as preparing to attack White's centre with c7-c5.} (11... d5 12. e5 Ne4 13. Nc3 Nxc3 14. bxc3 Qd7 15. h3 Bf5 16. Bg5 $146 {With this ?-formation its clear that White's chances are on the ?-side. The question is just how to get started. Exchanging the ? on e7 seems like a reasonable alternative to playing an immediate g4. A few exchanges won't diminish White's dominating ?-structure.} (16. g4 Bg6 17. Nh2 (17. Nd2 Na5 18. f4 Nxb3 19. Nxb3 f5 20. Kh2 a5 21. Rg1 a4 22. Nc1 Ra6 23. Ne2 Rc6 24. Bd2 Ba3 25. Qf1 b4 $36 {0-1 Formanek,E-Kovacs,L/Reggio Emilia 1977/MCD (51)}) 17... Na5 18. Bc2 Bxc2 19. Qxc2 Nc4 20. Bf4 a5 21. Bg3 b4 22. Re2 Ra6 23. f4 Na3 24. Qd2 Rc6 $132 {0-1 Yurkov,V-Sokolov,A/Moscow 1978/EXT 2002 (59)}) 16... Bxg5 17. Nxg5 Na5 (17... h6 18. Nf3 Na5 19. Nh4 Bh7 20. Qh5 $5 $36 {[%CAl Yf2f4,Yf4f5]}) 18. g4 Nxb3 $6 {This looks premature. Now White gets to improve his ?-side ?-structure.} 19. axb3 Bg6 20. f4 Qe7 21. b4 $1 {[%csl Ra6] Black is scrambling for counterplay after this blockading move.} f6 22. exf6 Qxf6 23. Ne6 Be4 24. f5 (24. Nxf8 Qxf4 {Is no fun for White.}) 24... Rfe8 25. Qd2 h5 $2 {A mistake. Black had to defend c7. Probably Black over-estimated his chances against the white ?.} 26. Nxc7 $1 hxg4 27. Nxa8 Qh4 {[%CAl Rh4g3]} 28. Re3 $1 Rxa8 29. Qe1 Qh5 30. Rxe4 $1 dxe4 31. Qxe4 Re8 32. hxg4 Qf7 33. Qf3 $18 {1-0 Naiditsch,A-Karjakin,S/Dortmund 2004/CBM 103/[Wedberg] (52) Two ?:s up.}) 12. Bc2 c5 {Black has chosen an option of immediately attacking White's centre. The alternative is to attack white's dark-squared bishop at first with} (12... Nc4 13. Bc1 {and afterwards to attack white's centre with} c5 14. b3 {driving away the knight from the active position, as well as preparing to fianchetto the dark-squared bishop.} Nb6 15. Nbd2 (15. Bb2 cxd4 16. Nbd2 Nfd7 17. h3 Bh5 18. g4 d3 19. Bxd3 Nc5 20. Bc2 Bg6 21. Nd4 Qd7 22. f4 f6 23. N2f3 Rfe8 24. Nf5 Bf8 25. Qd4 Qa7 26. Kh1 Rac8 27. Rac1 $14 {1-0 Polgar,S-Slobodjan,R/Bad Homburg 1996/CBM 055/[Wedberg] (48)}) 15... Nfd7 {intending to place the dark-sqaured bishop on a long diagonal, and sometimes, Black's knight can occupy the c5 square.} (15... Rc8 16. h3 Bh5 17. g4 Bg6 18. d5 Nfd7 19. Nf1 Re8 20. Ng3 Bf6 21. Rb1 $13 {1-0 Grischuk,A-Sokolov,I/Bled 2002/EXT 2003 (46)}) 16. h3 Bh5 17. Bb2 ({Another option is} 17. g4 Bg6 18. d5 Bf6 19. Rb1 Re8 20. Nf1 h6 21. Kg2 Rc8 22. Ng3 c4 23. Re2 $13 {0-1 Dominguez,L-Bologan,V/Poikovsky RUS 2005/The Week in Chess 539 (52)}) 17... Re8 (17... Rc8 {is also possible:} 18. Rc1 Re8 19. Bb1 cxd4 20. Bxd4 Bf6 21. Rxc8 Qxc8 22. Qc1 Qb7 23. Qa3 Bxf3 24. Nxf3 $14 {1-0 Tseshkovsky,V-Vogt,L/Leipzig 1975/MCL/[Bulletin] (41)}) 18. a4 {White is creating some pressure on the queenside, as well as he adds an option of driving away the knight from b6.} ({White didn't get anything special after} 18. Qb1 Bg6 19. a4 d5 20. axb5 axb5 21. Rxa8 Qxa8 22. dxc5 Nxc5 23. e5 Ne6 $11 {[%CAl Ye7b4] ½-½ Adams,M-Sokolov,I/Wijk aan Zee NED 2005/The Week in Chess 533 (31)}) 18... bxa4 19. bxa4 Rb8 $1 $146 {An improvement in comparison to:} (19... cxd4 20. a5 d3 21. Bb1 $1 (21. Bxd3 $2 Nc5 {[%CAl Gb6d7]}) 21... Nc8 22. Bxd3 Nc5 23. Bc4 $14 {1-0 Sax,G-Mazi,L/Bled 1994/TD (42)}) 20. a5 ({Another logical continuation is} 20. Rb1 cxd4 (20... d5 21. a5 Nc4 22. Nxc4 dxc4 23. Ba4 $14) 21. a5 (21. Bxd4 Bf6 22. Be3 d5) 21... Bxf3 22. Qxf3 Ne5 23. Qe2 Nbd7 24. Bxd4 Rxb1 25. Rxb1 Qxa5 $11) (20. Ra2 $5 {[%CAl Gd1a1] looks very interesting...}) 20... Nc8 {Now Black's knight is willing to occupy the b5 square via a7.} ({Black doesn't equalize after} 20... Nd5 21. Nc4 Nc7 (21... Nf4 22. Bc1 (22. dxc5 Nxc5) 22... Ne6 23. g4 Bg6 24. d5 Nc7 25. Bf4 $14) 22. Rb1 $14) 21. Nc4 Na7 $11 {½-½ Kramnik,V-Adams,M/Dortmund 2005/CBM 108/[Erenburg] (57)}) 13. h3 {forcing black to define the status of light-squared bishop.} ({Another ambitious continuation is} 13. dxc5 dxc5 14. Nc3 Nc4 15. e5 {A tricky position. The final verdict is not yet given.} Ne8 (15... Qxd1 16. Raxd1 Bxf3 17. exf6 Bxd1 18. fxe7 Bxc2 19. exf8=Q+ Rxf8 20. Bxc5 Rc8 21. Nd5 Kh8 22. Nb6 {½-½ Zaitsev,I-Beliavsky,A/Minsk 1983/MCD}) (15... Nd7 16. Bf4 Ndb6 17. Qe2 Qc8 18. Be4 Ra7 19. b3 Na3 20. Bc1 b4 21. Bxa3 bxa3 22. Nd5 $14 {½-½ Zaitsev,I-Balashov,Y/Moscow 2002/EXT 2003 (27)}) (15... Bxf3 16. Qxd8 Bxd8 17. Bxc5 Re8 18. exf6 Bc6 19. Rxe8+ Bxe8 20. Nd5 $16 {1-0 Lupulescu,C-Timoscenko,G/Mallorca 2004/CBM 104 no vc (29)}) 16. Qe2 Nc7 (16... Nxe5 17. Rad1 $1 {is not easy for Black.}) 17. Rad1 Qc8 18. Bc1 {All white pieces are well placed in the centre and they point towards the black ?. It is soon time to harvest.} Re8 19. Qe4 g6 20. Qf4 h5 21. h3 Ne6 22. Qg3 Bxf3 23. Qxf3 Nd4 {Some counterplay?} 24. Rxd4 $1 {No, instead the white attack crushes through.} cxd4 25. e6 $1 f5 (25... Rf8 26. Nd5 Ra7 27. Qg3 $18) 26. Bxf5 $1 {1-0 Nisipeanu,L-Ivanov,A/Moscow 2005/CBM 106/[Wedberg] The main line goes: 26. - gxf5 27.?xf5 ?f8 28.?d5! and the attack is unstoppable.}) 13... Bxf3 {It has a reputation as the most solid continuation, which became more popular nowadays.} ({Black faces some problems to equalize after} 13... cxd4 14. Bxd4 Bh5 15. g4 Bg6 16. Nc3 Rc8 17. Rc1 Nc6 18. Be3 Nb4 {Black has an uneasy task of solving the problem of the center. White is exposed on the kingside, but the square d5 is ideal for the knight.} (18... Re8 19. Nh4 (19. Nd5 Nxd5 20. exd5 Nb8 21. Bf4 Bf8 22. Rxe8 Qxe8 23. Nd4 Bxc2 24. Rxc2 Rxc2 25. Qxc2 Qe1+ 26. Kg2 Nd7 {0-1 Timofeev,A-Bacrot,E/Istanbul 2003/ (84)}) 19... Nd7 20. Nxg6 hxg6 21. Bb3 (21. Nd5 Bh4 22. Re2 Nf6 23. Bb3 Nxe4 24. Nb6 Nxf2 25. Bxf2 Bxf2+ 26. Rxf2 Qxb6 27. Bxf7+ Kh7 28. Qxd6 {1-0 Dominguez,L-Inarkiev,E/Tripoli 2004/ (32)}) 21... Nc5 22. Nd5 Ne5 23. f4 Ned3 24. Bxc5 Nxc5 25. g5 Bf8 26. Qf3 {1-0 Dominguez,L-Inarkiev,E/Tripoli 2004/ (41)}) 19. Bb1 d5 20. e5 (20. exd5 $6 Bxb1 21. Rxb1 Nfxd5 $15) 20... Ne4 21. Ne2 $5 Nc5 (21... Rxc1 22. Qxc1 Qa8 23. a3 Nc6 24. Nf4 $14) 22. Bxc5 Rxc5 23. Rxc5 Bxc5 24. Nf4 $14 {½-½ Kasimdzhanov,R-Adams,M/Tripoli 2004/CBM 102/[Ftacnik] (43)}) 14. Qxf3 cxd4 {opening the c-file for the rook.} ({Black faces some problems after} 14... Nc4 15. dxc5 dxc5 16. Nc3 Nd7 17. Rad1 $146 (17. Bf4 Nde5 (17... Nxb2 $5 18. e5 $40) 18. Bxe5 Nxe5 19. Qg3 Nc6 20. Rad1 Nd4 21. e5 $14 {White has the slightly better chances due to his domination in the centre and the possibility to attack the black ?.} Ra7 22. Ne2 Rd7 (22... Nxe2+ 23. Rxe2 Rd7 24. Ree1 $14) 23. Nxd4 Rxd4 24. Qe3 Kh8 (24... Rxd1 25. Rxd1 Qc7 26. e6 $40) 25. f4 Qd7 26. Rxd4 Qxd4 27. Qxd4 cxd4 28. Kf2 Rc8 29. Bd3 {It´s opposite coloured ?:s, but White has all the play. As long as there are ?:s on a draw is not easy to achive for Black.} f6 30. exf6 Bxf6 31. Re6 Ra8 32. g4 $16 {1-0 Grischuk,A-Socko,B/Istanbul 2003/CBM 096/[Wedberg] (49)}) (17. Nd5 Bg5 18. Bxg5 Qxg5 19. b3 Na3 20. Bd3 c4 21. bxc4 bxc4 22. Bb1 Qe5 {0-1 Grischuk,A-Golod,V/Dos Hermanas 2003 (84)}) 17... Nxb2 18. Rd5 Qe8 $2 (18... Nc4 19. e5 {[%CAl Cc4e5,Gf3f5]} (19. Red1 Qa5 20. Rxd7 Qxc3 21. Rxe7 Qxc2 $19) 19... Ncxe5 20. Qd1 Qa5 21. Bd2 b4 22. Na4 Rfd8 23. Bf5 $44) (18... Qa5 $5 19. Rxd7 (19. Bc1 Nc4 20. e5 (20. Rxd7 Ne5 $19) 20... Ndb6 21. Rdd1 Rad8 $15) 19... Qxc3 20. Rc1 {[%CAl Gd7e7,Yc2b3]} Qe5 21. Rd5 Qe6 22. Bxc5 Bxc5 23. Rxc5 Rac8 24. Bb3 Nc4 25. Rxc8 Rxc8 $11) 19. e5 $1 {[%CAl Gf3f5,Yd5d7,Yf5d7,Yf5h7]} Nb6 (19... Rd8 20. Qg4 {[%CAl Cb5b4,Cb4c3,Ge3h6]} Kh8 21. Bh6 g6 (21... gxh6 22. Qf5 $18) (21... Rg8 22. Bc1 Nc4 23. Bxh7 $18) 22. Bxf8 $18) (19... Ra7 20. Qg4 Kh8 21. Bh6 Rg8 22. Bc1 $18) 20. Rxc5 $1 Bxc5 (20... N2c4 21. Rc7 Nxe3 22. Qxe3 Rc8 23. Qxb6 Qd8 24. Nd5 $1 Qxd5 25. Bb3 Qd8 26. Rec1 $16) 21. Bxc5 N2c4 22. Bxf8 Qxf8 23. Qd3 g6 24. Ne4 $16 {1-0 Jakovenko,D-Grischuk,A/Saint Vincent 2005/CBM 110_01/[Erenburg] (35)}) 15. Bxd4 Rc8 16. Qd1 {centralizing the queen, protecting the light-squared bishop. Other options are:} (16. Qd3 Nc6 17. Bc3 g6 $6 (17... Ne5 18. Qe2 Qb6 $13) 18. Bb3 Nd7 19. a3 Nc5 20. Qd5 Nxb3 21. Qxb3 Bf6 22. Qd5 Bxc3 23. Nxc3 Qf6 24. Rad1 $14 {1-0 Lanc,A-Mrva,V/SVK 1997/EXT 98 (52)}) (16. Bb3 {White is ready to change one of his bishops in order to stabilize the position and to keep a superior pawn structure. White has the following alternatives:} Nc6 17. Qd1 {White cannot move away the bishop from the central position. Otherwise, Black's c6 knight will get some important spots:} (17. Be3 Ne5 $15) (17. Bc3 b4 18. Bd2 Nd4 19. Qd3 Nxb3 20. Qxb3 d5 $11) 17... d5 $1 $146 {Black is sacrificing a pawn, but he will get a control of the dark squares. It looks like a serious improvement in comparison to the previous games, where Black hasn't equalized:} (17... a5 18. Nc3 a4 19. Bd5 Nxd4 20. Qxd4 Qa5 21. a3 $1 Nd7 22. Qb4 $16 {1-0 Grischuk,A-Tkachiev,V/France 2003/CBM 95/[Wedberg] (59)}) (17... Nxd4 18. Qxd4 Nh5 19. Nc3 Bf6 20. Qd2 Bg5 21. Qe2 Nf4 22. Qf3 Ng6 23. Red1 Bf6 24. Rac1 $14 {½-½ Ivanchuk,V-Romanishin,O/73rd ch-UKR, Kharkiv UKR (2.2) 2004 (93)}) {Other continuations are not better:} 18. exd5 (18. Bxf6 Bxf6 19. exd5 Bxb2 20. dxc6 Bxa1 $19) (18. Bxd5 Nxd5 19. exd5 Qxd5 20. Nc3 Qf5 $15 (20... Qxd4 21. Qxd4 Nxd4 22. Rxe7 $11)) 18... Nxd4 19. Qxd4 Bc5 {If we compare the locations of white's light-squared bishop, that is limitted by his d5 pawn, and Black's dark-squared bishop, that is extremely active on a7-g1 diagonal, it is easy to understand, that black has sufficient compensation.} 20. Qd3 ({Doesn't promise too much:} 20. Qd2 b4 {preventing from White to complete the development.} 21. Qd3 (21. a3 Qb6 $44) 21... Qb6 22. Qf3 (22. Qf5 Bd4 23. Nd2 Bxb2 24. Nc4 Rxc4 25. Bxc4 Bxa1 26. Rxa1 Qd4 $11) 22... Bd4 23. Nd2 Bxb2 24. Nc4 Rxc4 25. Bxc4 Bxa1 26. Rxa1 Rc8 $11 (26... Qd4 27. Rc1 Rc8 28. d6 $13)) 20... Qb6 21. Qf3 a5 $44 {Black has got full compensation for a sacrificed pawn. White faces some problems to complete the development, and his pieces are passive in comparison to Black's.} 22. Nc3 {½-½ Svidler,P-Bacrot,E/Gothenburg 2005/CBM 109_01/[Erenburg]} (22. Nd2 $6 a4 23. Bd1 Rfd8 $15)) 16... Nd7 {preparing to transfer the dark-squared bishop to long diagonal.} 17. Nc3 Bf6 18. Rc1 $146 {adding the queenside rook to the battle, covering the c-file.} ({In a previous game White prefered to protect the light-squared bishop from the second rank by} 18. Re2 {preparing to connect the heavy pieces along the d-file.} Be5 {[%CAl Ga5c4,Yd8f6] The following moves are worse, than the continuation in the game:} (18... Nc6 19. Bxf6 Qxf6 20. Rd2 {winning the pawn.}) (18... Nc4 19. Nd5 $1 Nxb2 20. Nxf6+ Qxf6 21. Bxf6 Nxd1 22. Rxd1 Nxf6 23. Rxd6 $14) 19. Nd5 {covering the f6 square.} ({Of course not} 19. Rd2 $2 {, due to} Nc4) ({After} 19. Rc1 {Black equalizes:} Nc4 20. b3 Qg5 $1 21. Bxe5 (21. bxc4 Bxd4 $17) 21... Ncxe5 $11) 19... Nc6 20. Bc3 (20. Bxe5 $2 dxe5 {and Black gets the central d4 square.}) 20... Nb6 $1 {Black is willing to change White's centralized knight.} (20... Bxc3 {doesn't equalize:} 21. Nxc3 Nb6 22. Bb3 Na5 23. Qd4 $14) 21. Rc1 {Probably, after this move Black equalizes the position...} ({Maybe,} 21. Bb3 $5 {, would give White more chances for an advantage. For example:} Bxc3 (21... Nxd5 22. Bxe5 $1 {This is the point!} dxe5 (22... Nxe5 23. Bxd5 $14) 23. exd5 Na5 24. Rxe5 $14) 22. Nxc3 Na5 (22... Qf6 23. Rd2 Rfd8 24. Rc1 $14) (22... Ne5 23. Qd4 Nc6 {-leads to 22...?a5.}) 23. Qd4 Nc6 {'-leads to 22...?a5.' '-leads to 22...?a5.'} 24. Qd3 Ne5 25. Qg3 $14) (21. a4 {leads to an equal position:} Nxd5 22. exd5 Bxc3 23. dxc6 Bxb2 24. Bxh7+ Kxh7 25. Rxb2 Rxc6 $11) 21... Nxd5 22. exd5 b4 $1 ({Less convincing is} 22... Bxc3 23. dxc6 Be5 (23... Bxb2 24. Bxh7+ $16) 24. Be4 $14) 23. dxc6 (23. Qd3 g6 24. Bxe5 Nxe5 $11 25. Qxa6 $2 b3 $1 26. axb3 Nf3+ $1 27. Kh1 (27. gxf3 Qg5+ $19) 27... Nd4 $17) 23... bxc3 24. bxc3 Rxc6 $11 {½-½ Gelfand,B-Bacrot,E/Gothenburg 2005/CBM 109_01/[Erenburg] (29) The position is absolutely equal, the opponents could agree a draw right now...}) 18... Nc6 {forcing White either to exchange the dark-squared bishops or to give up the long diagonal.} ({In my opinion, Black doesn't equalize after} 18... Nc4 19. Nd5 Be5 20. Bb3 Qh4 21. g3 Bxg3 22. Qg4 Qxg4 (22... Nce5 23. Qxg3 (23. Bxe5 Bxf2+ $17) 23... Rxc1 24. Rxc1 Qxg3+ 25. fxg3 Nf3+ 26. Kf2 Nxd4 27. Ne7+ Kh8 28. Bd5 $14) 23. Ne7+ Kh8 24. hxg4 Bf4 25. Nxc8 Bxc1 26. Nb6 Ndxb6 27. Rxc1 $14) 19. Be3 $6 {Probably, after this move Black's chances are not worse.} ({More principled was} 19. Bxf6 $5 {, and there is not a clear way to equalize the game:} Nxf6 (19... Qxf6 20. Qh5 g6 21. Qh6 Nb6 22. Bb3 Na5 (22... Nd4 23. Nd5 Nxd5 24. Bxd5 Rxc1 25. Qxc1 $14) 23. Nd5 Nxd5 24. Bxd5 Qxb2 25. Rxc8 Rxc8 26. Qf4 $16) 20. Bb3 Re8 21. Qd3 Na5 22. Bd5 b4 23. Na4 $14) 19... Nc5 20. Re2 {protecting the pawn b2, and, intending to build a battery from heavy pieces along the d-file.} ({In case of} 20. f4 {[%CAl Ye4e5] Black can eliminate White's knight and to occupy the c4 outhold with the knight:} Bxc3 21. bxc3 Na5 $11) 20... Re8 {attacking White's central pawn.} ({It was more precise to eliminate white's knight immediately:} 20... Bxc3 $5 21. bxc3 Re8 $11) 21. Rd2 {allowing Black to simplify the position.} ({Probably, the last chance to fight for an advantage was} 21. Bb1 Bxc3 (21... Na5 22. Nd5 Nc4 23. Nxf6+ Qxf6 24. Bd4 $14) 22. Rxc3 Nxe4 $1 23. Bxe4 Rxe4 24. Bb6 $1 Qe8 25. Rxe4 Qxe4 26. Qxd6 h6 $14 {[%CAl Ye4e6]}) 21... Bxc3 22. Rxd6 ({Worse is} 22. bxc3 Nxe4 23. Bxe4 Rxe4 24. Rxd6 Qe7 $15) {This key move should have been seen when black was playing 20...?e8. Black is ready to change his queen for two white's rooks.} 22... Bxb2 $1 (22... Qh4 {doesn't lead to an equal position:} 23. Bxc5 Bxb2 24. Rb1 Be5 25. Rd5 Red8 26. Qd3 $14) 23. Rb1 (23. Rxd8 {doesn't promise anything special:} Rexd8 24. Bxc5 (24. Qh5 Bxc1 25. Bxc5 Na5 26. Bb6 Rd2 $15) 24... Rxd1+ 25. Rxd1 h6 $11) 23... Qc7 24. Bxc5 {It is more important to eliminate the knight, as White saves his central pawn e4 on the board.} ({Worse is} 24. Rxb2 $2 Nxe4 25. Bxe4 (25. Rd7 Qe5 $17) 25... Rxe4 $17) 24... Bd4 $1 {Black forces White to change the dark-squared bishops, that leads to an equal position.} 25. Rd5 ({White cannot keep the dark-squared bishop on the board:} 25. Ba3 $2 b4 $1 26. Bxb4 Nxb4 27. Rxb4 Qxd6 28. Rxd4 Qa3 $17) (25. Rxd4 $2 Nxd4 26. Bxd4 Qxc2 $19) 25... Bxc5 26. Rxc5 Red8 (26... Qe7 {leads to equality as well:} 27. Rd5 Qa3 28. Bb3 Na5 29. Qf3 Nxb3 30. axb3 $11) 27. Qe1 (27. Qg4 {doesn't change the evaluation of the position:} Qe7 28. Rg5 Ne5 29. Rxg7+ Kh8 30. Qg5 Qf8 31. Rxh7+ Kxh7 32. Qxe5 Qc5 33. Qf6 Qxc2 34. Qxf7+ $11) 27... Qe7 28. Qe3 Na5 {transfering the knight to c4.} (28... Ne5 29. Rxc8 Rxc8 30. Bb3 $11) 29. Rxc8 Rxc8 30. Bb3 {covering the spot c4. The opponent agreed for a draw in absolutely equal position.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "London Classic 7th"] [Site "London"] [Date "2015.12.10"] [Round "6"] [White "Giri, Anish"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C91"] [WhiteElo "2778"] [BlackElo "2850"] [PlyCount "105"] [EventDate "2015.12.04"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "ENG"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 170"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2016.01.15"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2016.01.15"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. d4 d6 9. c3 Bg4 10. Be3 exd4 11. cxd4 Na5 12. Bc2 Nc4 13. Bc1 c5 14. b3 Nb6 15. Nbd2 Rc8 16. Bb2 Nfd7 17. Qb1 g6 18. h3 Bxf3 19. Nxf3 cxd4 20. Nxd4 Bf6 21. Qd1 $146 ({RR} 21. Re2 Ne5 22. Qe1 Nbd7 23. Rd1 Qb6 24. f4 Nc6 25. Qf2 Rfe8 26. e5 dxe5 27. Nxc6 Qxc6 28. Be4 Qc7 29. Rc2 Qd8 30. Rcd2 Rc7 31. f5 g5 32. Ba3 Be7 33. Bd6 Nf6 34. Bxc7 Qxc7 35. Rc2 Qb8 {Schroeder,J (2568)-Neiksans,A (2568) Germany 2021 0-1 (59)}) ({RR} 21. Re2 Ne5 22. Qe1 Nbd7 23. Rd1 Qb6 24. f4 Nc6 25. Qf2 Rfe8 26. e5 dxe5 27. Nxc6 Qxc6 28. Be4 Qc7 29. Rc2 Qd8 30. Rcd2 Rc7 31. f5 g5 32. Ba3 Be7 33. Bd6 Nf6 34. Bxc7 Qxc7 35. Rc2 Qb8 {Schroeder,J (2568)-Neiksans,A (2568) Germany 2021 0-1 (59)}) 21... Ne5 22. Rc1 Bg5 23. Rb1 Nbd7 24. Rf1 Bf6 25. Rc1 Qb6 26. Bb1 Rxc1 27. Bxc1 Nd3 28. Qxd3 Bxd4 29. Bh6 Rc8 30. Qe2 Nf8 31. g3 Ne6 32. Kg2 Bg7 33. Be3 Bd4 34. Bd2 Qd8 35. Rc1 Rxc1 36. Bxc1 Qf6 37. a4 bxa4 38. bxa4 Nc5 39. a5 Bc3 40. Ba3 Bxa5 41. Bxc5 dxc5 42. Bd3 Bc3 43. Bxa6 Bd4 44. Bc4 Kg7 45. h4 Qb6 46. h5 Qf6 47. Ba2 gxh5 48. f4 Qg6 49. Kh3 f5 50. exf5 Qxf5+ 51. Kg2 Kh6 52. Qe6+ Qxe6 53. Bxe6 1/2-1/2 [Event "EU-ch 6th"] [Site "Warsaw"] [Date "2005.06.27"] [Round "9"] [White "Naiditsch, Arkadij"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C91"] [WhiteElo "2626"] [BlackElo "2548"] [PlyCount "59"] [EventDate "2005.06.18"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "POL"] [SourceTitle "CBM 108"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2005.09.26"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2005.09.26"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. d4 d6 9. c3 Bg4 10. d5 Na5 11. Bc2 c6 12. h3 Bh5 13. dxc6 Qc7 14. Nbd2 Qxc6 15. Nf1 Bg6 ({RR} 15... Rfd8 16. a4 Nc4 17. Qe2 Rab8 18. axb5 axb5 19. Bd3 Qc7 20. Ng3 Bg6 21. Bg5 d5 22. exd5 Bxd3 23. Qxd3 Rxd5 24. Qe2 h6 25. Bxf6 Bxf6 26. Ra6 Be7 27. b3 Nd6 28. Nxe5 Bf6 29. Ng4 Bxc3 30. Qf3 {LCZero 0.31-dag-5350a2e-BT4-6 (3631)-Stockfish dev-20240728-2343f7 (3662) tcec-chess.com INT 2024 ½-½ (50)}) 16. Ng3 Rfe8 17. a4 Nc4 18. Qe2 $146 ({RR} 18. Nh4 d5 19. Nxg6 hxg6 20. exd5 Nxd5 21. Be4 Rad8 22. axb5 axb5 23. Qf3 f5 24. Bxd5+ Qxd5 25. Qxd5+ Rxd5 26. b3 Nd6 27. Ba3 Bh4 28. Rad1 Rxd1 29. Rxd1 Nf7 30. Ne2 Ra8 31. Bb4 Ra2 32. Kf1 Rb2 {Quillan,G (2300)-Baker,C (2260) England 1994 ½-½ (38)}) ({RR} 18. Nh4 d5 19. Nxg6 hxg6 20. exd5 Nxd5 21. axb5 axb5 22. Rxa8 Rxa8 23. Qf3 Ra1 24. Rd1 Qe6 25. Ne2 Nf6 26. Qb7 Nd6 27. Qb6 Qc4 28. Qe3 e4 29. b3 Qc7 30. Qg3 Qc5 31. Qe3 Qc7 32. g4 Qc6 {Ghinda,M (2475)-Zieher,H Hamburg 1980 ½-½ (41)}) 18... d5 19. exd5 Nxd5 20. Bxg6 hxg6 21. axb5 axb5 22. Nxe5 Nxe5 23. Rxa8 Rxa8 24. Qxe5 b4 25. Qe4 bxc3 26. bxc3 Qxc3 27. Rd1 Rd8 28. Ne2 Qb4 29. Qc2 Nf6 30. Rxd8+ 1/2-1/2 [Event "Corus-B"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2006.01.14"] [Round "1"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "L'Ami, Erwin"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C91"] [WhiteElo "2625"] [BlackElo "2550"] [PlyCount "73"] [EventDate "2006.01.14"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "15"] [SourceTitle "CBM 111"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2006.04.04"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2006.04.04"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {Erenburg,Sergey Erenburg,Sergey ChessBase II} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. d4 ({RR} 9. h3 Na5 10. Bc2 c5 11. d4 Nd7) 9... Bg4 10. Be3 ({RR} 10. d5 Na5 11. Bc2) 10... exd4 ({RR} 10... Bh5 11. h3 exd4 12. cxd4 d5 13. g4 ({RR} 13. e5 Ne4 14. Nc3 Nxc3 15. bxc3 Na5 16. Bc2 Nc4 17. g4 Bg6 18. Bf5 Bxf5 ({RR} 18... a5 19. Qd3 b4 20. Re2 Ra6 21. Kg2 Rb6 22. cxb4 axb4 23. Rae1) 19. gxf5 f6) 13... Bg6 14. Ne5 Na5 ({RR} 14... Nxe5 15. dxe5 Nxe4 16. Bxd5) 15. Nxg6 hxg6 16. e5 Ne4 17. Nc3 Bb4 18. Rc1 Nxb3 19. axb3 Bxc3 20. bxc3 Qh4 21. Rc2 f5 22. f3 Nxc3 ({RR} 22... Ng5 23. Bxg5 Qxg5 24. c4) 23. Rxc3 Qg3+ 24. Kf1 fxg4 25. Ke2 ({RR} 25. f4 gxh3 26. Qe2 g5)) ({RR} 10... Bd7 11. Nbd2 Ng4 12. Nf1 Nxe3 13. Nxe3 Bf6 14. Nd5 Rb8 15. h3 g6 16. Nxf6+ Qxf6 17. dxe5 Nxe5 18. Nxe5 Qxe5 19. Qd2 a5) 11. cxd4 Na5 ({RR} 11... d5 12. e5 Ne4 13. Nc3 Nxc3 14. bxc3 Qd7 15. h3 Bf5 16. Bg5 ({RR} 16. g4 Bg6 17. Nh2 ({RR} 17. Nd2 Na5 18. f4 Nxb3 19. Nxb3 f5 20. Kh2 a5 21. Rg1 a4 22. Nc1 Ra6 23. Ne2 Rc6 24. Bd2 Ba3 25. Qf1 b4) 17... Na5 18. Bc2 Bxc2 19. Qxc2 Nc4 20. Bf4 a5 21. Bg3 b4 22. Re2 Ra6 23. f4 Na3 24. Qd2 Rc6) 16... Bxg5 17. Nxg5 Na5 ({RR} 17... h6 18. Nf3 Na5 19. Nh4 Bh7 20. Qh5) 18. g4 Nxb3 19. axb3 Bg6 20. f4 Qe7 21. b4 f6 22. exf6 Qxf6 23. Ne6 Be4 24. f5 ({RR} 24. Nxf8 Qxf4) 24... Rfe8 25. Qd2 h5 26. Nxc7) 12. Bc2 c5 ({RR} 12... Nc4 13. Bc1 c5) ({RR} 12... Nc4 13. Bc1 c5 14. b3 Nb6 15. Nbd2 ({RR} 15. Bb2 cxd4 16. Nbd2 Nfd7 17. h3 Bh5 18. g4 d3 19. Bxd3 Nc5 20. Bc2 Bg6 21. Nd4 Qd7 22. f4 f6 23. N2f3 Rfe8 24. Nf5 Bf8 25. Qd4 Qa7 26. Kh1 Rac8 27. Rac1) 15... Nfd7 ({RR} 15... Rc8 16. h3 Bh5 17. g4 Bg6 18. d5 Nfd7 19. Nf1 Re8 20. Ng3 Bf6 21. Rb1) 16. h3 Bh5 17. Bb2 ({RR} 17. g4 Bg6 18. d5 Bf6 19. Rb1 Re8 20. Nf1 h6 21. Kg2 Rc8 22. Ng3 c4 23. Re2) 17... Re8 ({RR} 17... Rc8 18. Rc1 Re8 19. Bb1 cxd4 20. Bxd4 Bf6 21. Rxc8 Qxc8 22. Qc1 Qb7 23. Qa3 Bxf3 24. Nxf3) 18. a4 ({RR} 18. Qb1 Bg6 19. a4 d5 20. axb5 axb5 21. Rxa8 Qxa8 22. dxc5 Nxc5 23. e5 Ne6) 18... bxa4 19. bxa4 Rb8 ({RR} 19... cxd4 20. a5 d3 21. Bb1 ({RR} 21. Bxd3 Nc5) 21... Nc8 22. Bxd3 Nc5 23. Bc4) 20. a5 ({RR} 20. Rb1 cxd4 ({RR} 20... d5 21. a5 Nc4 22. Nxc4 dxc4 23. Ba4) 21. a5 ({RR} 21. Bxd4 Bf6 22. Be3 d5) 21... Bxf3 22. Qxf3 Ne5 23. Qe2 Nbd7 24. Bxd4 Rxb1 25. Rxb1 Qxa5) ({RR} 20. Ra2) 20... Nc8 ({RR} 20... Nd5 21. Nc4 Nc7 ({RR} 21... Nf4 22. Bc1 ({RR} 22. dxc5 Nxc5) 22... Ne6 23. g4 Bg6 24. d5 Nc7 25. Bf4) 22. Rb1) 21. Nc4 Na7) 13. h3 ({RR} 13. dxc5 dxc5 14. Nc3 Nc4 15. e5 {RR} Qxd1 ({RR} 15... Nd7 16. Bf4 Ndb6 17. Qe2 Qc8 18. Be4 Ra7 19. b3 Na3 20. Bc1 b4 21. Bxa3 bxa3 22. Nd5) ({RR} 15... Bxf3 16. Qxd8 Bxd8 17. Bxc5 Re8 18. exf6 Bc6 19. Rxe8+ Bxe8 20. Nd5) 16. Raxd1 Bxf3 17. exf6 Bxd1 18. fxe7 Bxc2 19. exf8=Q+ Rxf8 20. Bxc5 Rc8 21. Nd5 Kh8 22. Nb6) ({RR} 13. Nbd2 cxd4 14. Bxd4 Nc6 15. Be3 d5) ({RR} 13. dxc5 dxc5 14. Nc3 Nc4 15. e5 Ne8 16. Qe2 Nc7 ({RR} 16... Nxe5 17. Rad1) 17. Rad1 Qc8 18. Bc1 Re8 19. Qe4 g6 20. Qf4 h5 21. h3 Ne6 22. Qg3 Bxf3 23. Qxf3 Nd4 24. Rxd4 cxd4 25. e6 f5 ({RR} 25... Rf8 26. Nd5 Ra7 27. Qg3) 26. Bxf5) 13... Bxf3 ({RR} 13... cxd4 14. Bxd4 Bh5 15. g4 Bg6 16. Nc3 Rc8 17. Rc1 Nc6 18. Be3 {RR} Re8 19. Nh4 ({RR} 19. Nd5 Nxd5 20. exd5 Nb8 21. Bf4 Bf8 22. Rxe8 Qxe8 23. Nd4 Bxc2 24. Rxc2 Rxc2 25. Qxc2 Qe1+ 26. Kg2 Nd7) 19... Nd7 20. Nxg6 hxg6 21. Bb3 ({RR} 21. Nd5 Bh4 22. Re2 Nf6 23. Bb3 Nxe4 24. Nb6 Nxf2 25. Bxf2 Bxf2+ 26. Rxf2 Qxb6 27. Bxf7+ Kh7 28. Qxd6) 21... Nc5 22. Nd5 Ne5 23. f4 Ned3 24. Bxc5 Nxc5 25. g5 Bf8 26. Qf3) ({RR} 13... cxd4 14. Bxd4 Bh5 15. g4 Bg6 16. Nc3 Rc8 17. Rc1 Nc6 18. Be3 Nb4 19. Bb1 d5 20. e5 ({RR} 20. exd5 Bxb1 21. Rxb1 Nfxd5) 20... Ne4 21. Ne2 Nc5 ({RR} 21... Rxc1 22. Qxc1 Qa8 23. a3 Nc6 24. Nf4) 22. Bxc5 Rxc5 23. Rxc5 Bxc5 24. Nf4) 14. Qxf3 cxd4 ({RR} 14... Nc4 15. dxc5 dxc5 16. Nc3 Nd7 {RR} 17. Bf4 ({RR} 17. Nd5 Bg5 18. Bxg5 Qxg5 19. b3 Na3 20. Bd3 c4 21. bxc4 bxc4 22. Bb1 Qe5) 17... Nde5 ({RR} 17... Nxb2 18. e5) 18. Bxe5 Nxe5 19. Qg3 Nc6 20. Rad1 Nd4 21. e5 Ra7 22. Ne2 Rd7 ({RR} 22... Nxe2+ 23. Rxe2 Rd7 24. Ree1) 23. Nxd4 Rxd4 24. Qe3 Kh8 ({RR} 24... Rxd1 25. Rxd1 Qc7 26. e6) 25. f4 Qd7 26. Rxd4 Qxd4 27. Qxd4 cxd4 28. Kf2 Rc8 29. Bd3 f6 30. exf6 Bxf6 31. Re6 Ra8) ({RR} 14... Nc4 15. dxc5 dxc5 16. Nc3 Nd7 17. Rad1 Nxb2 18. Rd5 Qe8 ({RR} 18... Nc4 19. e5 ({RR} 19. Red1 Qa5 20. Rxd7 Qxc3 21. Rxe7 Qxc2) 19... Ncxe5 20. Qd1 Qa5 21. Bd2 b4 22. Na4 Rfd8 23. Bf5) ({RR} 18... Qa5 19. Rxd7 ({RR} 19. Bc1 Nc4 20. e5 ({RR} 20. Rxd7 Ne5) 20... Ndb6 21. Rdd1 Rad8) 19... Qxc3 20. Rc1 Qe5 21. Rd5 Qe6 22. Bxc5 Bxc5 23. Rxc5 Rac8 24. Bb3 Nc4 25. Rxc8 Rxc8) 19. e5 Nb6 ({RR} 19... Rd8 20. Qg4 Kh8 21. Bh6 g6 ({RR} 21... gxh6 22. Qf5) ({RR} 21... Rg8 22. Bc1 Nc4 23. Bxh7) 22. Bxf8) ({RR} 19... Ra7 20. Qg4 Kh8 21. Bh6 Rg8 22. Bc1) 20. Rxc5 Bxc5 ({RR} 20... N2c4 21. Rc7 Nxe3 22. Qxe3 Rc8 23. Qxb6 Qd8 24. Nd5 Qxd5 25. Bb3 Qd8 26. Rec1) 21. Bxc5 N2c4 22. Bxf8 Qxf8 23. Qd3 g6 24. Ne4) 15. Bxd4 Rc8 ({RR} 15... Nc6) 16. Qd1 ({RR} 16. Bb3 Nc6 17. Qd1 ({RR} 17. Be3 Ne5) ({RR} 17. Bc3 b4 18. Bd2 Nd4 19. Qd3 Nxb3 20. Qxb3 d5) ({RR} 17. Be3 Ne5) ({RR} 17. Bc3 b4 18. Bd2 Nd4 19. Qd3 Nxb3 20. Qxb3 d5) 17... d5 ({RR} 17... a5 18. Nc3 a4 19. Bd5 Nxd4 20. Qxd4 Qa5 21. a3 Nd7 22. Qb4) ({RR} 17... Nxd4 18. Qxd4 Nh5 19. Nc3 Bf6 20. Qd2 Bg5 21. Qe2 Nf4 22. Qf3 Ng6 23. Red1 Bf6 24. Rac1) ({RR} 17... a5 18. Nc3 a4 19. Bd5 Nxd4 20. Qxd4 Qa5 21. a3 Nd7 22. Qb4) ({RR} 17... Nxd4 18. Qxd4 Nh5 19. Nc3 Bf6 20. Qd2 Bg5 21. Qe2 Nf4 22. Qf3 Ng6 23. Red1 Bf6 24. Rac1) 18. exd5 ({RR} 18. Bxf6 Bxf6 19. exd5 Bxb2 20. dxc6 Bxa1) ({RR} 18. Bxd5 Nxd5 19. exd5 Qxd5 20. Nc3 Qf5 ({RR} 20... Qxd4 21. Qxd4 Nxd4 22. Rxe7) ({RR} 20... Qxd4 21. Qxd4 Nxd4 22. Rxe7)) ({RR} 18. Bxf6 Bxf6 19. exd5 Bxb2 20. dxc6 Bxa1) ({RR} 18. Bxd5 Nxd5 19. exd5 Qxd5 20. Nc3 Qf5) 18... Nxd4 19. Qxd4 Bc5 20. Qd3 ({RR} 20. Qd2 b4 21. Qd3 ({RR} 21. a3 Qb6) ({RR} 21. a3 Qb6) 21... Qb6 22. Qf3 ({RR} 22. Qf5 Bd4 23. Nd2 Bxb2 24. Nc4 Rxc4 25. Bxc4 Bxa1 26. Rxa1 Qd4) ({RR} 22. Qf5 Bd4 23. Nd2 Bxb2 24. Nc4 Rxc4 25. Bxc4 Bxa1 26. Rxa1 Qd4) 22... Bd4 23. Nd2 Bxb2 24. Nc4 Rxc4 25. Bxc4 Bxa1 26. Rxa1 Rc8 ({RR} 26... Qd4 27. Rc1 Rc8 28. d6) ({RR} 26... Qd4 27. Rc1 Rc8 28. d6)) ({RR} 20. Qd2 b4 21. Qd3 Qb6 22. Qf3 Bd4 23. Nd2 Bxb2 24. Nc4 Rxc4 25. Bxc4 Bxa1 26. Rxa1 Rc8) 20... Qb6 21. Qf3 a5 22. Nc3 {½-½ (22) Svidler,P (2738)-Bacrot,E (2729) Gothenburg 2005 CBM 109 [Erenburg,Sergey]} ({RR} 22. Nd2 a4 23. Bd1 Rfd8) ({RR} 22. Nd2 a4 23. Bd1 Rfd8) {RR} 22... Bd4 ({RR} 22... a4 23. Bc2 a3 24. Bf5 axb2 25. Rab1 Bxf2+ 26. Qxf2 Qxf2+ 27. Kxf2 Rxc3 28. Rxb2 Rc5 29. Bd3 Nxd5 30. Bxb5 Nc3 31. Bd3) 23. Rad1 Bxc3 24. bxc3 a4 25. Bc2 Qd6) ({RR} 16. Qd3 Nc6 17. Bc3 g6 ({RR} 17... Ne5 18. Qe2 Qb6) 18. Bb3 Nd7 19. a3 Nc5 20. Qd5 Nxb3 21. Qxb3 Bf6 22. Qd5 Bxc3 23. Nxc3 Qf6 24. Rad1) ({RR} 16. Qd3 Nc6 17. Bc3 g6 18. Bb3 Nd7 19. a3 Nc5 20. Qd5 Nxb3 21. Qxb3 Bf6 22. Qd5 Bxc3 23. Nxc3 Qf6 24. Rad1) ({RR} 16. Bb3 Nc6 17. Qd1 d5 18. exd5 Nxd4 19. Qxd4 Bc5 20. Qd3 Qb6 21. Qf3 a5 22. Nc3) 16... Nc6 ({RR} 16... Nd7 17. Nc3 Bf6 18. Re2 ({RR} 18. Re2 Be5 ({RR} 18... Nc6 19. Bxf6 Qxf6 20. Rd2) ({RR} 18... Nc4 19. Nd5 Nxb2 20. Nxf6+ Qxf6 21. Bxf6 Nxd1 22. Rxd1 Nxf6 23. Rxd6) 19. Nd5 ({RR} 19. Rd2 Nc4) ({RR} 19. Rc1 Nc4 20. b3 Qg5 21. Bxe5 ({RR} 21. bxc4 Bxd4) 21... Ncxe5) 19... Nc6 20. Bc3 ({RR} 20. Bxe5 dxe5) 20... Nb6 ({RR} 20... Bxc3 21. Nxc3 Nb6) 21. Rc1 ({RR} 21. Bb3 Bxc3 ({RR} 21... Nxd5 22. Bxe5 dxe5 ({RR} 22... Nxe5 23. Bxd5) 23. exd5 Na5 24. Rxe5) 22. Nxc3 Na5 ({RR} 22... Qf6 23. Rd2 Rfd8 24. Rc1) ({RR} 22... Ne5 23. Qd4) 23. Qd4 Nc6 24. Qd3 Ne5 25. Qg3) ({RR} 21. a4 Nxd5 22. exd5 Bxc3 23. dxc6 Bxb2 24. Bxh7+ Kxh7 25. Rxb2 Rxc6) 21... Nxd5 22. exd5 b4 ({RR} 22... Bxc3 23. dxc6 Be5 ({RR} 23... Bxb2 24. Bxh7+) 24. Be4) 23. dxc6 ({RR} 23. Qd3 g6 24. Bxe5 Nxe5 25. Qxa6 b3 26. axb3 Nf3+ 27. Kh1 ({RR} 27. gxf3 Qg5+) 27... Nd4) 23... bxc3 24. bxc3 Rxc6)) ({RR} 16... Nd7 17. Nc3 Bf6 18. Rc1 Nc6 ({RR} 18... Nc4 19. Nd5 Be5 20. Bb3 Qh4 21. g3 Bxg3 22. Qg4 Qxg4 ({RR} 22... Nce5 23. Qxg3 ({RR} 23. Bxe5 Bxf2+) 23... Rxc1 24. Rxc1 Qxg3+ 25. fxg3 Nf3+ 26. Kf2 Nxd4 27. Ne7+ Kh8 28. Bd5) 23. Ne7+ Kh8 24. hxg4 Bf4 25. Nxc8 Bxc1 26. Nb6 Ndxb6 27. Rxc1) 19. Be3 ({RR} 19. Bxf6 Nxf6 ({RR} 19... Qxf6 20. Qh5 g6 21. Qh6 Nb6 22. Bb3 Na5 ({RR} 22... Nd4 23. Nd5 Nxd5 24. Bxd5 Rxc1 25. Qxc1) 23. Nd5 Nxd5 24. Bxd5 Qxb2 25. Rxc8 Rxc8 26. Qf4) 20. Bb3 Re8 21. Qd3 Na5 22. Bd5 b4 23. Na4) 19... Nc5 20. Re2 ({RR} 20. f4 Bxc3 21. bxc3 Na5) 20... Re8 ({RR} 20... Bxc3 21. bxc3 Re8) 21. Rd2 ({RR} 21. Bb1 Bxc3 ({RR} 21... Na5 22. Nd5 Nc4 23. Nxf6+ Qxf6 24. Bd4) 22. Rxc3 Nxe4 23. Bxe4 Rxe4 24. Bb6 Qe8 25. Rxe4 Qxe4 26. Qxd6 h6) 21... Bxc3 22. Rxd6 ({RR} 22. bxc3 Nxe4 23. Bxe4 Rxe4 24. Rxd6 Qe7) 22... Bxb2 ({RR} 22... Qh4 23. Bxc5 Bxb2 24. Rb1 Be5 25. Rd5 Red8 26. Qd3) 23. Rb1 ({RR} 23. Rxd8 Rexd8 24. Bxc5 ({RR} 24. Qh5 Bxc1 25. Bxc5 Na5 26. Bb6 Rd2) 24... Rxd1+ 25. Rxd1 h6) 23... Qc7 24. Bxc5 ({RR} 24. Rxb2 Nxe4 25. Bxe4 ({RR} 25. Rd7 Qe5) 25... Rxe4) 24... Bd4 25. Rd5 ({RR} 25. Ba3 b4 26. Bxb4 Nxb4 27. Rxb4 Qxd6 28. Rxd4 Qa3) ({RR} 25. Rxd4 Nxd4 26. Bxd4 Qxc2) 25... Bxc5 26. Rxc5 Red8 ({RR} 26... Qe7 27. Rd5 Qa3 28. Bb3 Na5 29. Qf3 Nxb3 30. axb3) 27. Qe1 ({RR} 27. Qg4 Qe7 28. Rg5 Ne5 29. Rxg7+ Kh8 30. Qg5 Qf8 31. Rxh7+ Kxh7 32. Qxe5 Qc5 33. Qf6 Qxc2 34. Qxf7+) 27... Qe7 28. Qe3 Na5 ({RR} 28... Ne5 29. Rxc8 Rxc8 30. Bb3) 29. Rxc8 Rxc8 30. Bb3 {½-½ (30) Timofeev,A (2658)-Carlsen,M (2570) Skanderborg 2005 CBM 110 [Erenburg,Sergey]}) 17. Nc3 b4 ({RR} 17... Nxd4 18. Qxd4 Nh5 19. Bb3 Bf6 20. Qd2 Bxc3 21. bxc3 Qf6 22. Re3 Qe5 23. Rd1 Rfd8 24. Rd3 Nf6 25. Rxd6 Rxd6 26. Qxd6 Qxd6 27. Rxd6 Nxe4 28. Rxa6 Nc5 29. Ra3 Nxb3 30. Rxb3 Kf8 31. Rxb5 Rxc3 32. a4 {Deac,B (2639)-Ivanchuk,V (2678) Europe Echecs INT 2021 ½-½ (60)}) 18. Ne2 Nxd4 $146 ({RR} 18... Nd7 19. Bb3 Bf6 20. Bxf6 Qxf6 21. Qd2 Nc5 22. Bd5 Ne5 23. Rf1 a5 24. b3 Nc6 25. Rad1 Rfe8 26. Ng3 Ne7 27. Rfe1 Red8 28. Bc4 g6 29. Re3 Qe5 30. Rf3 Ne6 31. Rd3 Rc6 32. Bd5 Rc3 33. Bxe6 {Levitina,I (2320)-Donaldson Akhmilovskaya,E (2280) Ordzhonikidze 1978 EXT 2017 [ChessBase II] 1-0 (62)}) 19. Nxd4 g6 20. Qd2 Qb6 21. Rad1 Nd7 22. Bb3 Nc5 23. Bd5 Bf6 24. Nf3 Kg7 25. Nh2 h5 26. g4 Rh8 27. Kg2 hxg4 28. Nxg4 Nd7 29. Bxf7 Kxf7 30. Qf4 Ke6 31. Nxf6 Nxf6 32. e5 Qb7+ 33. Kg1 dxe5 34. Rxe5+ Kf7 35. Rd6 Rxh3 36. Qxf6+ Kg8 37. Rd8+ 1-0 [Event "ESP-chT"] [Site "Sanxenxo"] [Date "2004.11.18"] [Round "1"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Marin, Mihail"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C91"] [WhiteElo "2581"] [BlackElo "2511"] [PlyCount "82"] [EventDate "2004.11.18"] [EventType "team"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "ESP"] [SourceTitle "CBM 105"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2005.04.11"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2005.04.11"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. d4 Bg4 10. d5 Na5 11. Bc2 c6 12. dxc6 Qc7 13. Bg5 h6 ({RR} 13... Nc4 14. b3 Nb6 15. a4 bxa4 16. bxa4 Qxc6 17. Qe2 Qc7 18. Bd3 Nh5 19. Be3 Nf4 20. Bxf4 exf4 21. Bxa6 Bxf3 22. gxf3 Nd7 23. Bc4 Ra5 24. Bb5 Ne5 25. Rd1 Kh8 26. Nd2 Qxc3 27. Rac1 Qb2 28. Kf1 {Kuzmin,G (2525)-Bezgodov,A (2475) Oerebro 1995 ½-½}) ({RR} 13... Qxc6 14. Bxf6 Bxf6 15. Nxe5 Bxd1 16. Nxc6 Bxc2 17. Nxa5 Rac8 18. Re2 Bd3 19. Re3 Bc4 20. Nd2 Be6 21. f4 b4 22. e5 dxe5 23. fxe5 bxc3 24. bxc3 Bd8 25. Nab3 Bb6 26. Nd4 Rxc3 27. Re4 Rd3 28. N2f3 {Gao,Q-Zhang,J (1481) Hohhot CHN 2023 0-1}) 14. Bxf6 Bxf6 15. Nbd2 Be6 16. a4 $146 ({RR} 16. Nf1 Qxc6 17. Ne3 g6 18. Nd5 Bxd5 19. exd5 Qc7 20. Re4 Bg7 21. Rg4 Nc4 22. b3 Nb6 23. Rc1 Rac8 24. c4 bxc4 25. bxc4 h5 26. Rh4 Bh6 27. Rxh5 gxh5 28. Nh4 Qe7 29. Nf5 Qg5 30. f4 Qxf4 {Djakovac,E (2205)-Radojcic,S (2263) Serbia 2008 0-1 (47)}) 16... Qxc6 17. b4 Nc4 18. Nxc4 Bxc4 19. Bb3 Rfd8 20. Nd2 Bxb3 21. Qxb3 Bg5 22. Nf3 Rac8 23. axb5 axb5 24. h4 Bf6 25. Re3 d5 26. exd5 Qxd5 27. Qxd5 Rxd5 28. g3 e4 29. Rxe4 Rxc3 30. Kg2 Rf5 31. Nd4 Bxd4 32. Rxd4 Rc2 33. Rf1 h5 34. Kg1 Rb2 35. f3 Re5 36. Rf2 Rb1+ 37. Kg2 Ree1 38. Rc2 Rg1+ 39. Kf2 Rbf1+ 40. Ke2 Re1+ 41. Kf2 Ref1+ 1/2-1/2 [Event "Lausanne YM 6th"] [Site "Lausanne"] [Date "2005.09.15"] [Round "1.2"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Harikrishna, Pentala"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C91"] [WhiteElo "2528"] [BlackElo "2645"] [PlyCount "131"] [EventDate "2005.09.14"] [EventType "k.o."] [EventRounds "3"] [EventCountry "SUI"] [SourceTitle "CBM 108 Extra"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2005.11.04"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2005.11.04"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {Erenburg,Sergey} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. d4 Bg4 10. Be3 ({RR} 10. d5) 10... exd4 11. cxd4 Na5 12. Bc2 Nc4 13. Bc1 c5 14. b3 Nb6 15. Nbd2 ({RR} 15. Bb2 cxd4 16. Nbd2 Nfd7 17. h3 Bh5 18. g4 d3 19. Bxd3 Nc5 20. Bc2 Bg6 21. Nd4 Qd7 22. f4 f6 23. N2f3 Rfe8 24. Nf5 Bf8 25. Qd4 Qa7 26. Kh1 Rac8 27. Rac1) 15... Nfd7 ({RR} 15... Rc8 16. h3 Bh5 17. g4 Bg6 18. d5 Nfd7 19. Nf1 Re8 20. Ng3 Bf6 21. Rb1) 16. h3 Bh5 17. Bb2 ({RR} 17. g4 Bg6 18. d5 Bf6 19. Rb1 Re8 20. Nf1 h6 21. Kg2 Rc8 22. Ng3 c4 23. Re2) 17... Rc8 ({RR} 17... Re8 18. a4 ({RR} 18. Qb1 Bg6 19. a4 d5 20. axb5 axb5 21. Rxa8 Qxa8 22. dxc5 Nxc5 23. e5 Ne6) 18... bxa4 19. bxa4 Rb8 ({RR} 19... cxd4 20. a5 d3 21. Bb1 ({RR} 21. Bxd3 Nc5) 21... Nc8 22. Bxd3 Nc5 23. Bc4) 20. a5 ({RR} 20. Rb1 cxd4 ({RR} 20... d5 21. a5 Nc4 22. Nxc4 dxc4 23. Ba4) 21. a5 ({RR} 21. Bxd4 Bf6 22. Be3 d5) 21... Bxf3 22. Qxf3 Ne5 23. Qe2 Nbd7 24. Bxd4 Rxb1 25. Rxb1 Qxa5) ({RR} 20. Ra2) 20... Nc8 ({RR} 20... Nd5 21. Nc4 Nc7 ({RR} 21... Nf4 22. Bc1 ({RR} 22. dxc5 Nxc5) 22... Ne6 23. g4 Bg6 24. d5 Nc7 25. Bf4) 22. Rb1) 21. Nc4 Na7 22. dxc5 ({RR} 22. Rb1 Nb5 23. dxc5 ({RR} 23. d5 Bf6) 23... Nxc5 24. Qd5 Bxf3 25. gxf3 Ne6) ({RR} 22. d5 Bf6) 22... Nxc5 23. Qd2 ({RR} 23. Qd4 Bf8 ({RR} 23... Bf6 24. e5 Nc6 ({RR} 24... Nb5 25. Qd5 Bxf3 26. Qxf3 dxe5 27. Bxe5) 25. Qxd6 Qxd6 26. Nxd6) 24. Nfd2 Bg6 25. Nb6 Nc6 26. Qc3 Nxa5) 23... Bxf3 24. gxf3 Nc6 ({RR} 24... Qc8 25. Kh2 Qe6 26. Nb6 Nc8 27. Rg1 Bf8 ({RR} 27... Bf6 28. Bxf6 Qxf6 29. Nd5) 28. Qb4) 25. Rad1 ({RR} 25. Rab1 Qd7 ({RR} 25... Rb5 26. Bc3 Bf6 27. Bxf6 Qxf6 28. Qxd6 Re6 29. Qc7 g6) 26. Kh2 Qe6 27. Rg1 Ne5 28. Bxe5 ({RR} 28. Nxe5 Rxb2) 28... dxe5 29. Qd5 Rxb1 30. Rxb1 Qf6 31. Qxe5 Qxf3 32. Kg1 ({RR} 32. Qxe7 Qf4+) 32... g6) ({RR} 25. Kh2 Bg5) 25... Nxa5 26. Nxa5 Rxb2 27. Nc4 Rb8 28. e5 ({RR} 28. Nxd6 Bxd6 29. Qxd6 Qc8) 28... d5 ({RR} 28... dxe5 29. Bxh7+ Kh8 30. Qc2 Qc7 ({RR} 30... Qc8 31. Nxe5) 31. Rxe5 ({RR} 31. Nxe5 Bf6) 31... Bf6 32. Rh5) 29. Qxd5 Qxd5 30. Rxd5 Rb4 31. Ne3 g6 ({RR} 31... Ne6 32. Ra5) 32. Ra1 {Kramnik,V (2744)-Adams,M (2719) Dortmund 2005 CBM 108 [Erenburg,Sergey] ½-½ (58)}) ({RR} 17... Re8 18. Nf1 Bf6 19. g4 Bg6 20. Ng3 Rc8 21. Rc1 h6 22. Bb1 Nf8 23. Qd2 Ne6 24. Nf5 Bxf5 25. exf5 Ng5 26. Nxg5 Bxg5 27. Rxe8+ Qxe8 28. f4 Bh4 29. f6 Bxf6 30. Re1 Qc6 31. g5 hxg5 32. fxg5 {Burrows,M (2101)-Starley,R (2064) Leicester ENG 2023 0-1 (80)}) 18. Rc1 d5 $146 ({RR} 18... Re8 19. g4 Bg6 20. Nf1 cxd4 21. Bxd4 Bf6 22. Ng3 Ne5 23. Nxe5 Bxe5 24. Bxe5 dxe5 25. Qe2 Qg5 26. Rcd1 Red8 27. a4 Qf6 28. axb5 axb5 29. Rxd8+ Qxd8 30. Rd1 Qc7 31. Bd3 b4 32. Ba6 Ra8 33. Bb5 {Ahmadinia,E (2400)-Boettcher,P (2099) Berlin 2017 ½-½ (38)}) ({RR} 18... Re8 19. Bb1 cxd4 20. Bxd4 Bf6 21. Rxc8 Qxc8 22. Qc1 Qb7 23. Qa3 Bxf3 24. Nxf3) ({RR} 18... cxd4 19. Bb1 Bf6 20. Rxc8 Qxc8 21. g4 Bg6 22. Nxd4 Qc5 23. N2f3 Re8 24. Qd2 d5 25. g5 Bxd4 26. Bxd4 Qc8 27. Bb2 dxe4 28. Qd4 f6 29. Nh4 Re5 30. Nxg6 Rxg5+ 31. Kh2 hxg6 32. Qxe4 Nf8 33. f4 {Carlsen,M (2625)-Almasi,Z (2646) Wijk aan Zee 2006 ½-½ (46)}) 19. dxc5 Nxc5 20. exd5 Nxd5 21. Bf5 Ne6 22. Rxc8 Qxc8 23. Qa1 Bf6 24. Nd4 Ndf4 25. Ne4 Bxd4 26. Bxd4 Bg6 27. Bxg7 Bxf5 28. Bh6 f6 29. Nxf6+ Kf7 30. Qe5 Kg6 31. Bxf8 Qxf8 32. Nd7 Qd8 33. Re3 Bxh3 34. Qe4+ Kh6 35. Ne5 Qd1+ 36. Re1 Qd2 37. gxh3 Nxh3+ 38. Kh2 Qxf2+ 39. Kh1 Neg5 40. Qe3 Qf5 41. Kh2 Nf4 42. Kg3 Nge6 43. Ng4+ Kg5 44. Qe5 Nd3 45. Qxf5+ Kxf5 46. Re3 Nec5 47. Kf3 h5 48. Nh6+ Kg6 49. Ng8 Kf7 50. Ne7 Nb4 51. Re2 Ne6 52. Ke4 Kxe7 53. Kf5 Kd7 54. Rd2+ Ke7 55. Re2 Kd7 56. Rxe6 Nxa2 57. Ke5 Nc1 58. Rd6+ Kc7 59. b4 Na2 60. Rd4 Kb6 61. Rf4 Kc6 62. Ke6 Nc1 63. Rd4 Na2 64. Rd6+ Kc7 65. Rd7+ Kb6 66. Rd6+ 1/2-1/2 [Event "Biel GM"] [Site "Biel"] [Date "2005.07.17"] [Round "1"] [White "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C91"] [WhiteElo "2660"] [BlackElo "2528"] [PlyCount "49"] [EventDate "2005.07.17"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "SUI"] [EventCategory "16"] [SourceTitle "CBM 108"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2005.09.26"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2005.09.26"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. d4 d6 9. c3 Bg4 10. Be3 exd4 11. cxd4 Na5 12. Bc2 c5 13. dxc5 dxc5 14. h3 ({RR} 14. Nc3 Nc4 15. e5 Qxd1 16. Raxd1 Bxf3 17. exf6 Bxd1 18. fxe7 Bxc2 19. exf8=Q+ Rxf8 20. Bxc5 Rc8 21. Nd5 Kh8 22. Bd4 Nd6 23. Nb4 a5 24. Nxc2 Rxc2 25. h3 h6 26. Re5 a4 27. Rc5 Rd2 28. Be5 a3 {Bruzon Batista,L (2652)-Adams,M (2741) Wijk aan Zee 2005 ½-½}) 14... Qxd1 $146 ({RR} 14... Bh5 15. Nc3 Nc4 16. e5 Nxe5 17. g4 Nxf3+ 18. Qxf3 Bg6 19. Rad1 Qc8 20. Bxg6 fxg6 21. Nd5 Nxd5 22. Qxd5+ Rf7 23. Rc1 c4 24. Bb6 Bb4 25. Re6 Qb7 26. Rd1 Qxd5 27. Rxd5 Re7 28. Rc6 Re2 29. Bd4 {Studer,N (2404)-Naiditsch,A (2698) Zuerich 2015 0-1 (39)}) 15. Bxd1 Be6 16. Nbd2 Nc6 17. Ng5 c4 18. a3 Rad8 19. Bc2 Bc8 20. f4 Nd7 21. Ngf3 Nc5 22. e5 Nd3 23. Bxd3 Rxd3 24. Ne4 Bf5 25. Nd6 1/2-1/2 [Event "Corus-B"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2006.01.25"] [Round "10"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Almasi, Zoltan"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C91"] [WhiteElo "2625"] [BlackElo "2646"] [PlyCount "92"] [EventDate "2006.01.14"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "15"] [SourceTitle "CBM 111"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2006.04.04"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2006.04.04"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {Erenburg,Sergey} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. c3 d6 9. d4 Bg4 10. Be3 ({RR} 10. d5) 10... exd4 11. cxd4 Na5 12. Bc2 Nc4 13. Bc1 c5 14. b3 Nb6 15. Nbd2 ({RR} 15. Bb2 cxd4 16. Nbd2 Nfd7 17. h3 Bh5 18. g4 d3 19. Bxd3 Nc5 20. Bc2 Bg6 21. Nd4 Qd7 22. f4 f6 23. N2f3 Rfe8 24. Nf5 Bf8 25. Qd4 Qa7 26. Kh1 Rac8 27. Rac1) 15... Nfd7 ({RR} 15... Rc8 16. h3 Bh5 17. g4 Bg6 18. d5 Nfd7 19. Nf1 Re8 20. Ng3 Bf6 21. Rb1) 16. h3 Bh5 17. Bb2 ({RR} 17. g4 Bg6 18. d5 Bf6 19. Rb1 Re8 20. Nf1 h6 21. Kg2 Rc8 22. Ng3 c4 23. Re2) 17... Rc8 ({RR} 17... Re8 18. a4 ({RR} 18. Qb1 Bg6 19. a4 d5 20. axb5 axb5 21. Rxa8 Qxa8 22. dxc5 Nxc5 23. e5 Ne6) 18... bxa4 19. bxa4 Rb8 ({RR} 19... cxd4 20. a5 d3 21. Bb1 ({RR} 21. Bxd3 Nc5) 21... Nc8 22. Bxd3 Nc5 23. Bc4) 20. a5 ({RR} 20. Rb1 cxd4 ({RR} 20... d5 21. a5 Nc4 22. Nxc4 dxc4 23. Ba4) 21. a5 ({RR} 21. Bxd4 Bf6 22. Be3 d5) 21... Bxf3 22. Qxf3 Ne5 23. Qe2 Nbd7 24. Bxd4 Rxb1 25. Rxb1 Qxa5) ({RR} 20. Ra2) 20... Nc8 ({RR} 20... Nd5 21. Nc4 Nc7 ({RR} 21... Nf4 22. Bc1 ({RR} 22. dxc5 Nxc5) 22... Ne6 23. g4 Bg6 24. d5 Nc7 25. Bf4) 22. Rb1) 21. Nc4 Na7 22. dxc5 ({RR} 22. Rb1 Nb5 23. dxc5 ({RR} 23. d5 Bf6) 23... Nxc5 24. Qd5 Bxf3 25. gxf3 Ne6) ({RR} 22. d5 Bf6) 22... Nxc5 23. Qd2 ({RR} 23. Qd4 Bf8 ({RR} 23... Bf6 24. e5 Nc6 ({RR} 24... Nb5 25. Qd5 Bxf3 26. Qxf3 dxe5 27. Bxe5) 25. Qxd6 Qxd6 26. Nxd6) 24. Nfd2 Bg6 25. Nb6 Nc6 26. Qc3 Nxa5) 23... Bxf3 24. gxf3 Nc6 ({RR} 24... Qc8 25. Kh2 Qe6 26. Nb6 Nc8 27. Rg1 Bf8 ({RR} 27... Bf6 28. Bxf6 Qxf6 29. Nd5) 28. Qb4) 25. Rad1 ({RR} 25. Rab1 Qd7 ({RR} 25... Rb5 26. Bc3 Bf6 27. Bxf6 Qxf6 28. Qxd6 Re6 29. Qc7 g6) 26. Kh2 Qe6 27. Rg1 Ne5 28. Bxe5 ({RR} 28. Nxe5 Rxb2) 28... dxe5 29. Qd5 Rxb1 30. Rxb1 Qf6 31. Qxe5 Qxf3 32. Kg1 ({RR} 32. Qxe7 Qf4+) 32... g6) ({RR} 25. Kh2 Bg5) 25... Nxa5 26. Nxa5 Rxb2 27. Nc4 Rb8 28. e5 ({RR} 28. Nxd6 Bxd6 29. Qxd6 Qc8) 28... d5 ({RR} 28... dxe5 29. Bxh7+ Kh8 30. Qc2 Qc7 ({RR} 30... Qc8 31. Nxe5) 31. Rxe5 ({RR} 31. Nxe5 Bf6) 31... Bf6 32. Rh5) 29. Qxd5 Qxd5 30. Rxd5 Rb4 31. Ne3 g6 ({RR} 31... Ne6 32. Ra5) 32. Ra1 {Kramnik,V (2744)-Adams,M (2719) Dortmund 2005 CBM 108 [Erenburg,Sergey] ½-½ (58)}) ({RR} 17... Re8 18. Nf1 Bf6 19. g4 Bg6 20. Ng3 Rc8 21. Rc1 h6 22. Bb1 Nf8 23. Qd2 Ne6 24. Nf5 Bxf5 25. exf5 Ng5 26. Nxg5 Bxg5 27. Rxe8+ Qxe8 28. f4 Bh4 29. f6 Bxf6 30. Re1 Qc6 31. g5 hxg5 32. fxg5 {Burrows,M (2101)-Starley,R (2064) Leicester ENG 2023 0-1 (80)}) 18. Rc1 ({RR} 18. a4 bxa4 19. bxa4 cxd4 20. a5 Nc4 21. Nxc4 Rxc4 22. g4 Bg6 23. Bd3 Rc5 24. Nxd4 Bf6 25. f4 Rxa5 26. f5 Qb6 27. Rxa5 Qxb2 28. Nb3 Rb8 29. Qc2 Rxb3 30. Qxb2 Bxb2 31. Rd1 Kf8 32. Rxa6 Bd4+ {Ganguly,S (2634)-Almasi,Z (2685) Paks 2009 0-1 (67)}) 18... cxd4 ({RR} 18... Re8 19. Bb1 cxd4 20. Bxd4 Bf6 21. Rxc8 Qxc8 22. Qc1 Qb7 23. Qa3 Bxf3 24. Nxf3) 19. Bb1 $146 ({RR} 19. Bxd4 Bf6 20. g4 Bg6 21. Nf1 Ne5 22. Nxe5 Bxe5 23. Qd2 Bxd4 24. Qxd4 d5 25. Ng3 dxe4 26. Qxd8 Rcxd8 27. Bxe4 Nd5 28. Red1 Nf4 29. Kh2 h6 30. Bf5 Kh7 31. a4 b4 32. Rxd8 Rxd8 33. Rc4 Nd5 {Kovalev,V (2554)-Efimenko,Z (2648) Dubai 2014 ½-½ (54)}) ({RR} 19. g4 Bg6 20. Nxd4 Bg5 21. Bb1 Qf6 22. Rxc8 Rxc8 23. N2f3 Bf4 24. Qe2 Ne5 25. Kg2 Nxf3 26. Nxf3 Qe7 27. Ba1 {½-½ (27) Rogulj,B (2460)-Lukacs,P (2405) Lodz 1980}) 19... Bf6 20. Rxc8 Qxc8 21. g4 Bg6 22. Nxd4 Qc5 23. N2f3 Re8 24. Qd2 d5 25. g5 Bxd4 26. Bxd4 Qc8 27. Bb2 dxe4 28. Qd4 f6 29. Nh4 Re5 30. Nxg6 Rxg5+ 31. Kh2 hxg6 32. Qxe4 Nf8 33. f4 Rh5 34. Qf3 Nd5 35. f5 Qc7+ 36. Be5 fxe5 37. Qxd5+ Qf7 38. Rxe5 gxf5 39. Bxf5 g6 40. Be4 Rxe5 41. Qxe5 Qf2+ 42. Bg2 Qxa2 43. Qd5+ Kg7 44. Qe5+ Kg8 45. Qd5+ Kg7 46. Qe5+ Kg8 1/2-1/2 [Event "Baku FIDE GP"] [Site "Baku"] [Date "2008.05.02"] [Round "10"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Navara, David"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C92"] [WhiteElo "2765"] [BlackElo "2672"] [Annotator "Marin,Mihail"] [PlyCount "90"] [EventDate "2008.04.21"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "AZE"] [EventCategory "19"] [SourceTitle "CBM 124"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2008.05.28"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2008.05.28"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. c3 d6 9. h3 Bb7 10. d4 Re8 11. Nbd2 Bf8 12. d5 Nb8 13. Nf1 Nbd7 14. N3h2 Nc5 15. Bc2 c6 16. b4 Ncd7 17. dxc6 Bxc6 18. Bg5 Qc7 {This seems to be Navarra's favourite move in this position.} ({I have examined the availanble material after} 18... h6 {in the notes to Leko,P (2753)-Adams,M (2726)/Wijk aan Zee NED 2008/CBM 122 (½-½, 98)}) 19. Bxf6 Nxf6 20. Ng4 Nxg4 ({Deviating from} 20... Be7 {Almasi,Z (2691)-Navara,D (2656)/Reggio Emilia 2008/CBM 122 (1-0, 58), which was analyzed in the notes to the aforementioned game.}) 21. hxg4 Bb7 $5 $146 {A new move. Black attacks the c3-pawn, while keeping the e4-pawn under pressure. These elements are aimed to prevent the transfer of the knight to d5.} ({Previously, Black has directed his bishop towards e6, in order to neutralize the white bishop, but did not achieve equality.} 21... Rac8 22. Bb3 Bd7 23. Rc1 Be7 24. Ne3 Bg5 25. Nd5 Qb8 26. Rc2 Rc6 27. g3 Qc8 28. f3 Be6 29. Qd3 Bd8 30. Kg2 $16 {[%CAl Ge1h1] Jansa,V (2482)-Klovans,J (2433)/Arvier 2006/CBM 114 ext (1-0, 41)}) 22. Re3 {Both pawns are safely defended now, but the knight's access to e3 is (at least temporarily) blocked.} (22. Qd3 Rac8 23. Re3 Be7 {is similar.}) (22. Qf3 Rac8 23. Bb3 {is aimed to be slightly more tricky, but Black can react with} d5 $1 (23... Qxc3 $4 24. Qxf7+) (23... Re7 24. Rac1 $16 {[%CAl Gf1e3]}) 24. Bxd5 Bxd5 25. exd5 Qxc3 $132 {[%csl Rb4,Gd6]}) 22... Be7 23. Bb3 Bg5 {After having activated his darl-squared bishop with a manoeuvre typical for the Sveshnikov Sicilian, Black can live without fearing the manoeuvre ?e3-d5.} 24. Rf3 Rf8 25. Qe2 Bc8 {Once the main strategic problem has been solved, Black switches back to the approved plan, the transfer of his light-squared bishop to e6.} ({Delaying this manoeuvre for too long would leave him struggling, for instance} 25... a5 26. Rd1 g6 (26... Bc8 $1) 27. Qd3 {[%csl Ge4][%CAl Gf1e3]} Kg7 28. Ne3 Bxe3 29. Rxe3 $14) 26. Rd1 Be6 27. Ne3 Bxe3 $1 28. Rxe3 a5 29. Bxe6 fxe6 30. a3 axb4 31. cxb4 Qd7 {Black has slightly more space and the more compact pawn structure. The weakness of the backward a3- and d6-pawns is not equivalent, because after the eventiual elimination of the d6-pawn, Black's entire kingside would become weak. However, the complete absence of minor pieces makes Black's position entirely viable.} 32. g5 Rac8 33. Red3 Rc6 34. R3d2 Ra6 $5 {Navara does not wish to defend his b-pawn passively and allows a small tactical trick, leading to an exchange of pawns that, from strategic point of view, favours White (as mentioned above).} (34... Rb6) (34... Rb8) 35. a4 $1 Rxa4 36. Rxd6 Qf7 {This is Black's point. Once his queen has been freed from the defence of the d6-pawn, she can put up pressure against f2.} 37. Rd8 $6 {After this hurried exchange, White will lose a pawn without getting to create dangerous threats against the enemy king.} ({More consistent would have been} 37. Rb1 {, maintaining the pressure. In this case, Black would have been remained under some pressure because of his weak e-pawns.}) 37... Rxb4 38. R1d7 Qf4 (38... Rb1+ 39. Kh2 Qf4+ 40. g3 Qxg5 {would have won a second pawn, but after} 41. Rxf8+ Kxf8 {[%CAl Gg5h6,Gh6h1]} 42. Kg2 $1 {White avoids any immediate threats against his own king and is ready to start his own attack.}) 39. Qa2 Rb1+ $1 $11 {Forcing a draw by perpetual.} 40. Qxb1 Qxf2+ 41. Kh2 Qh4+ 42. Kg1 Qf2+ 43. Kh2 Qh4+ 44. Kg1 Qf2+ 45. Kh2 Qh4+ 1/2-1/2 [Event "Tata Steel-A 82nd"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2020.01.21"] [Round "9"] [White "Firouzja, Alireza"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C92"] [WhiteElo "2723"] [BlackElo "2872"] [Annotator "Nielsen,Peter Heine"] [PlyCount "78"] [EventDate "2020.01.11"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 194"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2020.01.27"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2020.01.27"] [SourceQuality "1"] {[%evp 0,8,34,37,37,10,25,12,12,12,22] Firouzja had made a marked impression, at this point leading the tournament with 5 rounds to go. It could be said that someone experienced should have told Alireza to take it easy and aim for a draw, but that would ruin the chance to gain experience and the young Iranian ( FIDE?) stays true to his aggressive instincts and goes for it!} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 {Aiming for a battle.} (4. O-O Nxe4 5. Re1 {would be going in the other direction.}) 4... d6 $5 {4...Bc5 by far being the main-line these days, Magnus chooses a solid line known to give White a moderate edge, but keeping all the pieces on the board.} 5. c3 {In the World blitz he had played 5.c4, but here he chooses the main line.} a6 6. Ba4 Be7 7. O-O O-O 8. Re1 Re8 9. Nbd2 Bf8 10. h3 b5 11. Bc2 {After a lot of typical "Spanish" moves, its worth noting the bishop going to c2 instead of b3, as that would allow ...Na5 followed by ...c5.} Bb7 12. d4 {Would Magnus now play 12...h6, then after 13.a4 a famous position from the Kasparov-Karpov matches would arise by transposition, with white having played d4 in 2 moves, but Bc2 instead of Bb3-c2. The line has gone out of fashion, except for the detail that Firouzja brought it back to people's attention by beating Kovalev with it in the first round! Magnus, however, knows his classics, and that Karpov had exploited that White now has no threat of Ng5 meaning ...h6 is unneccesary, and thus makes a more useful move:} g6 $5 {Quite interestingly Karpov in 2019 in the legends rapid tournament deviated agianst Ljubojevic, and played 12...Nb8. Or maybe he exactly remembered that he had lost against the same player with 12...g6 28 years earlier!} 13. a3 $6 {The move in itself is good enough, but the plan is wrong.} (13. d5 Nb8 14. b3 c6 15. c4 Nbd7 16. a4 Qc7 {has been played numerous times, and transposes into the game, with the exception that here it is White to move!}) 13... Nb8 14. d5 {[%emt 0:00:14]} (14. Nb3 $5 {[%CAl Gb3a5] would be an interesting move, threatening Na5.} exd4 {is the typical reply, as now e4 is hanging, but} 15. Bg5 $5 {renews the threat of Na5, and} dxc3 $2 (15... h6 $1 {, however, is fine for Black.}) 16. e5 $1 {wins a piece.}) (14. b4 {would be more in line with 13.a3, when after} Nbd7 15. Bb2 {we have a typical Breyer position.}) 14... c6 15. c4 Nbd7 16. a4 Qc7 $1 17. b3 {The above-mentioned position, but with Black to move. Magnus uses the given extra tempo to regroup.} Rec8 $1 18. Ra2 bxc4 19. bxc4 a5 $1 20. Nf1 $2 {A logical and typical move, but a mistake.The problem for White is that optically we would tend to asses it as White being slightly better. After all, he has the centre, and can regroup behind it. The game exemplifies why that is very far from the truth, and thus} (20. Nb1 $1 {, strange as it looks, would be a much better move, trying to land the knight on b5, and at least put up some resistance to Black's plans.}) 20... Ba6 $1 21. Ne3 Nc5 22. Nd2 cxd5 23. cxd5 Rab8 24. Ba3 Qd8 $5 {A good move, also for illustrative purposes, as Magnus retreats his queen to the back rank but clears the c-line for his rook.} 25. Qf3 h5 $1 26. Raa1 Bh6 $1 {A beautiful geometrical motif, with Black's bishops literally playing around White's centre. The a5 and h5 pawns provide excellent cover, meaning the bishops becomes untouchable, and dominate till the end.} 27. Rab1 Rxb1 28. Rxb1 Kg7 $1 29. Nef1 h4 $1 {Black just keeps improving his postion, as White can literally not do anything active without immediately losing material.} 30. Ne3 Bf4 31. Nef1 Qc7 32. g3 $6 {Alireza loses patience, an in order " to do something", just weakens his position.} (32. Ne3 {, staying loyal to the back and forth concept, could have led to this beautiful line:} Ncd7 33. Rc1 Qc3 34. Nb1 Qa1 $1 {when White is completely dominated and loses material!}) 32... hxg3 33. fxg3 Bh6 34. h4 Qd7 {Simplicity at its best, eyeing the a4 pawn, which white really can do nothing about.} 35. Kg2 Nxa4 36. Bxa4 Qxa4 37. Bxd6 Qd4 $1 {The knight on d2 is hanging, there is a threat of 38...Ne8 as bxa3 Rc3 then wins a piece, etc. White position is collapsing.} 38. Qf2 (38. Z0 Ne8 39. Ba3 Rc3) 38... Qxf2+ 39. Kxf2 Bxf1 {And here Alireza, being very short of time resigned, as 40.Nxf1 Nxe4+ loses the bishop on d6. However, with 40.Kxf1 Bxd2 41 Bxe5 he could have prolonged the game somewhat. Magnus was planning 41...Bc3 42.Rc1! Bxe5 43.Rxc8 Nxe4, and while the win will take some moves, the result is not in doubt. A great strategical game by Magnus, outplaying his young opponent by positional means. One could even make the statement that absolutely no tactical remedies were used by Black at all in tis game, he only further and further strengthened his own position until his opponent's camp collapsed!} (39... Bxf1 40. Kxf1 (40. Nxf1 Nxe4+) 40... Bxd2 41. Bxe5 Bc3 42. Rc1 $1 Bxe5 43. Rxc8 Nxe4 $19) 0-1 [Event "Tata Steel-A 82nd"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2020.01.21"] [Round "9"] [White "Firouzja, Alireza"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C92"] [WhiteElo "2723"] [BlackElo "2872"] [Annotator "Nielsen,Peter Heine"] [PlyCount "78"] [EventDate "2020.01.11"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 194"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2020.01.27"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2020.01.27"] [SourceQuality "1"] {[%evp 0,8,34,37,37,10,25,12,12,12,22] Firouzja had made a marked impression, at this point leading the tournament with 5 rounds to go. It could be said that someone experienced should have told Alireza to take it easy and aim for a draw, but that would ruin the chance to gain experience and the young Iranian ( FIDE?) stays true to his aggressive instincts and goes for it!} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 {Aiming for a battle.} (4. O-O Nxe4 5. Re1 {would be going in the other direction.}) 4... d6 $5 {4...Bc5 by far being the main-line these days, Magnus chooses a solid line known to give White a moderate edge, but keeping all the pieces on the board.} 5. c3 {In the World blitz he had played 5.c4, but here he chooses the main line.} a6 6. Ba4 Be7 7. O-O O-O 8. Re1 Re8 9. Nbd2 Bf8 10. h3 b5 11. Bc2 {After a lot of typical "Spanish" moves, its worth noting the bishop going to c2 instead of b3, as that would allow ...Na5 followed by ...c5.} Bb7 12. d4 {Would Magnus now play 12...h6, then after 13.a4 a famous position from the Kasparov-Karpov matches would arise by transposition, with white having played d4 in 2 moves, but Bc2 instead of Bb3-c2. The line has gone out of fashion, except for the detail that Firouzja brought it back to people's attention by beating Kovalev with it in the first round! Magnus, however, knows his classics, and that Karpov had exploited that White now has no threat of Ng5 meaning ...h6 is unneccesary, and thus makes a more useful move:} g6 $5 {Quite interestingly Karpov in 2019 in the legends rapid tournament deviated agianst Ljubojevic, and played 12...Nb8. Or maybe he exactly remembered that he had lost against the same player with 12...g6 28 years earlier!} 13. a3 $6 {The move in itself is good enough, but the plan is wrong.} (13. d5 Nb8 14. b3 c6 15. c4 Nbd7 16. a4 Qc7 {has been played numerous times, and transposes into the game, with the exception that here it is White to move!}) 13... Nb8 14. d5 {[%emt 0:00:14]} (14. Nb3 $5 {[%CAl Gb3a5] would be an interesting move, threatening Na5.} exd4 {is the typical reply, as now e4 is hanging, but} 15. Bg5 $5 {renews the threat of Na5, and} dxc3 $2 (15... h6 $1 {, however, is fine for Black.}) 16. e5 $1 {wins a piece.}) (14. b4 {would be more in line with 13.a3, when after} Nbd7 15. Bb2 {we have a typical Breyer position.}) 14... c6 15. c4 Nbd7 16. a4 Qc7 $1 17. b3 {The above-mentioned position, but with Black to move. Magnus uses the given extra tempo to regroup.} Rec8 $1 18. Ra2 bxc4 19. bxc4 a5 $1 20. Nf1 $2 {A logical and typical move, but a mistake.The problem for White is that optically we would tend to asses it as White being slightly better. After all, he has the centre, and can regroup behind it. The game exemplifies why that is very far from the truth, and thus} (20. Nb1 $1 {, strange as it looks, would be a much better move, trying to land the knight on b5, and at least put up some resistance to Black's plans.}) 20... Ba6 $1 21. Ne3 Nc5 22. Nd2 cxd5 23. cxd5 Rab8 24. Ba3 Qd8 $5 {A good move, also for illustrative purposes, as Magnus retreats his queen to the back rank but clears the c-line for his rook.} 25. Qf3 h5 $1 26. Raa1 Bh6 $1 {A beautiful geometrical motif, with Black's bishops literally playing around White's centre. The a5 and h5 pawns provide excellent cover, meaning the bishops becomes untouchable, and dominate till the end.} 27. Rab1 Rxb1 28. Rxb1 Kg7 $1 29. Nef1 h4 $1 {Black just keeps improving his postion, as White can literally not do anything active without immediately losing material.} 30. Ne3 Bf4 31. Nef1 Qc7 32. g3 $6 {Alireza loses patience, an in order " to do something", just weakens his position.} (32. Ne3 {, staying loyal to the back and forth concept, could have led to this beautiful line:} Ncd7 33. Rc1 Qc3 34. Nb1 Qa1 $1 {when White is completely dominated and loses material!}) 32... hxg3 33. fxg3 Bh6 34. h4 Qd7 {Simplicity at its best, eyeing the a4 pawn, which white really can do nothing about.} 35. Kg2 Nxa4 36. Bxa4 Qxa4 37. Bxd6 Qd4 $1 {The knight on d2 is hanging, there is a threat of 38...Ne8 as bxa3 Rc3 then wins a piece, etc. White position is collapsing.} 38. Qf2 (38. Z0 Ne8 39. Ba3 Rc3) 38... Qxf2+ 39. Kxf2 Bxf1 {And here Alireza, being very short of time resigned, as 40.Nxf1 Nxe4+ loses the bishop on d6. However, with 40.Kxf1 Bxd2 41 Bxe5 he could have prolonged the game somewhat. Magnus was planning 41...Bc3 42.Rc1! Bxe5 43.Rxc8 Nxe4, and while the win will take some moves, the result is not in doubt. A great strategical game by Magnus, outplaying his young opponent by positional means. One could even make the statement that absolutely no tactical remedies were used by Black at all in tis game, he only further and further strengthened his own position until his opponent's camp collapsed!} (39... Bxf1 40. Kxf1 (40. Nxf1 Nxe4+) 40... Bxd2 41. Bxe5 Bc3 42. Rc1 $1 Bxe5 43. Rxc8 Nxe4 $19) 0-1 [Event "Corus"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2009.01.22"] [Round "5"] [White "Ivanchuk, Vassily"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C92"] [WhiteElo "2779"] [BlackElo "2776"] [Annotator "ChessBase"] [PlyCount "48"] [EventDate "2009.01.17"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "19"] [SourceTitle "CBM 129"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2009.03.25"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2009.03.25"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 {The Spanish, regarded over the past 5-10 yaesr as one of the most solid ways to play for Black. Several elite players (eg. Aronian) confidently hide behind its bastions, without any fear at all.} a6 4. Ba4 ({It ahs been known since time immemorial that the win of the pawn by} 4. Bxc6 dxc6 5. Nxe5 {is only temporary:} Qd4) 4... Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 {But now this is necessary, since Bxc6 and Nxe5 was a threat.} 7. Bb3 O-O {Most modern-day players castle with the pawn still on d7. It is always nice to threaten a Marshall, even if one actually intends to play another, quieter line.} 8. c3 {Vassily is not afraid of anything...} d6 {Nor is Magnus, but even so, he decides not to risk a theoretical duel. Mind you, one cannot escape from a serious theoretical examination, whatever move one plays here - the Spanish has been analysed deeply in all its variations..} 9. h3 ({The classical recipe. From time to time, White chooses the more direct} 9. d4 {allowing the bishop out to g4.}) 9... a5 {So that's his idea...Excuse my excessive emotion, but when you are expecting to see the main line, on which you have commentated innumerable times before, and then you get a fresh move - well, your eyes light up, the sun shines, and your brain starts to work again. Actually, the move has been known for a long time. It was first played in 1935 by the Swedish master G Stoltz. At the end of the 1940s it was taken up by the likes of Bondarevsky, Bolbochan, Rossolimo, etc. But then its popularity waned, and theory was evidently not convinced of its merits. But lately, it has become popular again. Black prepares to drive the dangerous Spanish bishop off the diagonal by means of a5-a4.} 10. d4 {Ivanchuk decides not to prevent his opponent's plan, but to get on with his own.} ({In a clash between two of the line's pioneers, the continuation} 10. a4 {was tested. After} b4 11. d4 bxc3 12. Nxc3 Nxd4 13. Nxd4 exd4 14. Qxd4 Rb8 15. Bc4 c6 16. b3 Nd7 17. Bf4 Bf6 18. Qe3 Ne5 19. Bxe5 Bxe5 20. Rad1 Be6 {Black had excellent play (Konstantinopolsky-Bondarevsky, USSR Ch 1948).}) 10... a4 ({The father of the variation played it differently:} 10... exd4 11. cxd4 a4 12. Bc2 Nb4 13. Nc3 Nxc2 14. Qxc2 c6 15. d5 cxd5 16. exd5 b4 17. Nxa4 Bd7 18. b3 Nxd5 19. Qc4 Bf6 20. Bb2 Bxa4 21. Bxf6 Nxf6 22. bxa4 Rxa4 {and Black had the advantage (Sir G Thomas-Stoltz, Warsaw 1935).}) 11. Bc2 Bd7 {Introduced into practice by Smyslov. The bishop develops very modestly. It's main object is not to obstruct the other pieces, and, of course, also to support the pawn on b5.} 12. Na3 {It seems that Ivanchuk is well acquainted with the theory, although he can hardly have prepared for this variation. He spent some time trying to recall his old knowledge, and then quickly utilises it.} ({The move} 12. Be3 {allows Black to exchange the strong Spanish bishop, in the style of Stoltz:} exd4 13. cxd4 Nb4 $1) ({Another move which has been played here is} 12. Nbd2 {One recent example is} Re8 13. Bd3 Rb8 14. Qe2 Bf8 15. dxe5 Nxe5 16. Nxe5 dxe5 17. Nf3 h6 18. b3 Bc5 19. Be3 Qe7 20. bxa4 bxa4 21. Rab1 Rb6 {and Black obtained equal chances (G Garcia-Becerra Rivero, USA 2008).}) 12... Rb8 {Black is prepared for further action on the queenside.} ({Formerly the main line was considered to be} 12... Qb8 {This queen manoeuvre becmes possible, thanks to the modest move Bc8-d7. The game Renet-Agdestein, Lyon 1988 continued} 13. Bd3 exd4 14. cxd4 Nb4 15. Bb1 Qb7 16. Bg5 Rad8 17. Nc2 Na6 18. Ne3 Rfe8 19. Qd3 g6 20. a3 c5 21. e5 dxe5 22. dxe5 Bc6 23. Qc3 Nd5 {and Black won after a sharp struggle.}) 13. d5 {Apparently a novelty.} ({The last word of theory here is} 13. Bd3 b4 14. Nc4 bxc3 15. dxe5 Nxe5 16. Nfxe5 dxe5 17. bxc3 Bd6 18. Bc2 Bc6 19. Bg5 a3 20. Qf3 h6 21. Bc1 Qe7 22. Ne3 Bd7 23. Bb3 Kh8 {1/2-1/2 Yagupov,I (2482)-Zaitsev,I (2417)/Moscow 2000/EXT 2001}) 13... Na7 ({After some thought, Carlsen retreats the knight deep within its own camp. Of course, a7 is only a temporary post - Black needs to regroup as quickly as possible and advance c7-c6. Thus far, White has not yet definitely seized the initiative. A concrete battle is starting...The clocks times are not surprising: 1.12 - 1.44. On} 13... Na5 {the reply} 14. b4 $1 {is unpleasant, eg.} axb3 15. axb3 {and the threat of b3-b4 gives Black some problems.}) ({The counter-blow} 13... b4 {does not promise equality:} 14. Nc4 $1 Na7 15. cxb4 Rxb4 16. b3 {and White can even attack the queenside successfully.} axb3 17. axb3 Nc8 18. Ra8) 14. c4 {The whole times Vassily was thinking, I was studying precisely this move, the sharpest and most aggressive.} Ra8 {An amazingly quick response, like a table tennis. response. Magnus frees the square b8 for his queen. But this leads us to ask the question: was 12...Rb8 really a good move? Wasn't the more usual 12. ..Qb8 better? Amazingly quick...Black had a number of interesting moves, the consequences of which were not easy to assess.} ({In the variation} 14... b4 15. Nb1 Qe8 {White obtains the advantage by} 16. c5 $1) ({Black is simply worse after} 14... bxc4 15. Nxc4 Qe8 16. Be3 Nc8 17. Rc1 {etc.}) ({It seems to me that the young Norwegian's fighting temperament is suited by the pawn sacrifice} 14... c6 15. dxc6 Bxc6 16. cxb5 Nxb5 17. Bxa4 Qd7 18. Nxb5 Bxb5 19. Bxb5 Rxb5 20. b3 Qb7 21. Qe2 Rc8 {and a quick central break with d6-d5 will follow. On the other hand, of course, it is always easier to sacrifice somebody else's pawns...}) 15. Be3 ({Now Black would answer} 15. c5 {with} c6 $1 {After} 16. cxd6 Bxd6 17. dxc6 Bxc6 {he has everything defended, whereas with the queen on e8 (as in the variation above beginning 14...b4), the bishop on d6 would be hanging.}) ({whilst after} 15. cxb5 Nxb5 16. Bxa4 Nc3 $1 17. bxc3 Rxa4 {Black would obtain a definite initiative for the pawn.}) ({The modest} 15. Bd2 {deserves attention.}) 15... b4 {This is the drawback of 15. Be3. Black now keeps the c-file closed, on which he has a backward pawn on c7.} 16. Nb1 c5 {Slamming the door!} 17. a3 ({Note that exchanging a central pawn for a flank pawn by means of} 17. Bxa4 Nxe4 {would not be good for White.}) ({However, it was possible to exchange central pawns:} 17. Nxe5 dxe5 18. d6 {although without great effect:} Re8 19. dxe7 Qxe7 {with complicated play.}) 17... b3 {The key goes into the lock. Now the queenside is sealed up for good.} 18. Bd3 {Now all hopes rest on the other side of the board. Possibly the two sides will prepare the corresponding breaks f2-f4 and f7-f5.The position looks about equal.} Nxe4 {Lightning from a clear sky! Carlsen decisively abandons the slow manoeuvering. However, with a knight on a7, such complications are rarely favourable. Black will regain his piece, of course, but in the subsequently play, the white army should be better coordinated.} ({At first, the official site showed Black's move as} 18... Nxd5 {producing shock the whole chess world over. Admittedly, though, even the move 18...Nxe4 can hardly be described as the most normal.}) ({I think that 99 players out of 100 would have played} 18... Nc8 {aiming to put the knight on b6 and then slowly prepare something on the kingside. The 100th player is carlsen. True, as far as the rating list is concerned, he is closer to first. And the rest of us, we ordinary players, follow at a respectful distance...}) 19. Bxe4 ({vassily does not need much time to take himself in hand. Weaker is} 19. Nxe5 dxe5 20. Bxe4 Bd6 {and after f7-f5, Black has a good structure and attacking chances.}) 19... f5 20. Nfd2 ({A surprise in return. Evidently, Vassily wants to put his queen's knight on d2. I was looking at} 20. Bd3 e4 21. Nc3 $1 {and in my view, whichever way Black recaptures the piece, he does not obtain equality. White stands much better in the centre.}) ({One mystery remains: why did White not play} 20. Nc3 fxe4 21. Nxe4 {By comparison with the game, his knightis on f3, instead of b1, which is obviously a significant gain.}) 20... fxe4 21. Qh5 {I would ask you to bear in mind that I am writing my comments as the game is being played, and before seeing the next move. I have to make a lot of guesses, based on my own understanding of the logic of the position.} ({Now it turns out that Ivanchuk is not planning} 21. Nxe4 {on which one can recommend} Qe8 {and the queen comes to g6.}) 21... Be8 ({One can well ask what the queen is doing on h5. I prefer the reply} 21... Qe8 {In the ending, Black puts his bishop on g6 and his knight on b6, although this can hardly lead to any serious disturbance of the equality..}) 22. Qe2 Bd7 23. Qh5 Be8 24. Qe2 Bd7 {The players are evidently worn out by the stress of the game. After the opening, the battle was very hard and non-standard, and the move 18...Nxe4 was the icing on the cake.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "Olympiad-38"] [Site "Dresden"] [Date "2008.11.21"] [Round "8"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Navara, David"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C92"] [WhiteElo "2786"] [BlackElo "2633"] [PlyCount "99"] [EventDate "2008.11.13"] [EventType "team-swiss"] [EventRounds "11"] [EventCountry "GER"] [SourceTitle "CBM 128"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2009.01.28"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2009.01.28"] [SourceQuality "1"] [WhiteTeam "Norway"] [BlackTeam "Czech Republic"] [WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"] [BlackTeamCountry "CZE"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. d3 d6 7. c3 O-O 8. Re1 Re8 9. Nbd2 Bf8 10. h3 b5 11. Bc2 Bb7 12. d4 g6 13. d5 Ne7 14. Nf1 Bg7 15. b3 Nxe4 16. Bxe4 f5 17. Bc2 Nxd5 $146 ({RR} 17... e4 18. Nd4 Nxd5 19. Ne2 Nxc3 20. Nxc3 Bxc3 21. Rb1 c5 22. Bb2 Bxb2 23. Rxb2 d5 24. Qc1 d4 25. Bd1 Qd6 26. Rc2 Rac8 27. Qg5 Qe5 28. h4 f4 29. Bg4 Qxg5 30. hxg5 Rc7 31. Rd1 d3 32. Rc3 {Geller,E (2540)-Eingorn,V (2525) Riga 1985 0-1 (46)}) 18. b4 Nxc3 19. Bb3+ d5 20. Qc2 Ne4 21. Rxe4 fxe4 22. Ng5 a5 23. bxa5 Rxa5 24. Nxe4 Kh8 25. Bg5 Qc8 26. Nf6 Rd8 27. Ne3 e4 28. Rc1 h6 29. Nxe4 dxe4 30. Bxd8 Qxd8 31. Qxc7 Qxc7 32. Rxc7 Ba6 33. Nd5 b4 34. Ra7 Bd4 35. Ra8+ Kh7 36. Nxb4 Rf5 37. Rxa6 Rxf2 38. Rd6 Rd2+ 39. Kf1 e3 40. Rxd4 Rxd4 41. Nd5 Rd3 42. Ke1 h5 43. Bc4 Rd4 44. Nxe3 Kh6 45. a4 Kg5 46. a5 Kf4 47. Kf2 Rd2+ 48. Be2 Ke4 49. a6 Ra2 50. h4 1-0 [Event "Gausdal GM-A"] [Site "Gausdal"] [Date "2005.04.20"] [Round "8"] [White "Pedersen, Christian Kyndel"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C92"] [WhiteElo "2396"] [BlackElo "2548"] [PlyCount "189"] [EventDate "2005.04.13"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [EventCategory "10"] [SourceTitle "CBM 107"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2005.08.01"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2005.08.01"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {Wedberg,Tom} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 Bb7 10. d4 Re8 11. Ng5 Rf8 12. Nf3 h6 13. Nbd2 Re8 14. Bc2 Bf8 15. a4 Qd7 16. Bd3 $146 ({RR} 16. b3 exd4 ({RR} 16... exd4 17. cxd4 Nb4 18. Bb1 g6 19. axb5 Qxb5 20. d5 c6 21. Bb2 Nh5 22. dxc6 Nxc6 23. Nc4 Rad8) 17. cxd4 Nb4 18. Bb1 g6 19. axb5 Qxb5 20. d5 c6 21. Bb2 Nh5 22. dxc6 Nxc6 23. Nc4 Rad8 24. Ne3 Ne5 25. Nd4 Qb6 26. Bc3 Rc8 27. Ne2 Qd8 28. Qd2 Qg5 29. Ng4 Qxd2 30. Bxd2 Nxg4 {Van der Wiel,J (2530)-Karpov,A (2725) Amsterdam 1991 ½-½ (50)}) ({RR} 16. b3 b4 17. d5 ({RR} 17. Bb2 bxc3 18. Bxc3 exd4 19. Nxd4 d5) 17... Ne7 18. c4 ({RR} 18. cxb4 c6) 18... c5 19. Nf1 Kh8 20. N3h2 Ng6 21. Ne3 Rad8 22. Nf5 Bc8 23. Qf3 Nh7 24. Bd2 Ne7 25. h4 Ng8 26. g4 g6 27. Ne3 Bg7 28. Kh1 Ne7 29. Rg1 Rg8 30. Rg2 Rdf8 {Shirov,A (2723)-Sokolov,I (2688) Reykjavik 2003 CBM 094 [Wedberg,Tom] 1-0 (70)}) ({RR} 16. d5 Ne7 17. Nb3 c6 18. dxc6 Nxc6 19. Qe2 b4 20. c4 Qc7 21. Be3 Nd7 22. Nbd2 Nc5 23. b3 g6 24. Nf1 Bg7 25. Rad1 Re6 26. Qd2 h5 27. Bh6 Qd8 28. Bxg7 Kxg7 29. Ng3 a5 30. Qe3 Re8 {Timman,J (2655)-Psakhis,L (2545) Las Palmas 1982 ½-½ (41)}) 16... Na5 17. b3 exd4 18. cxd4 d5 19. e5 Ne4 20. Nxe4 dxe4 21. Bxe4 Bxe4 22. Rxe4 Qd5 23. Re3 c5 24. axb5 axb5 25. Ba3 b4 26. Bb2 c4 27. bxc4 Nxc4 28. Re2 Rxa1 29. Bxa1 Ra8 30. Nd2 Nxd2 31. Rxd2 b3 32. Bb2 Ra2 33. Qc1 Be7 34. Qc3 Bg5 35. f4 Bd8 36. Qd3 Ba5 37. Rf2 Bb6 38. Kh2 h5 39. Qe3 h4 40. Rd2 Ba5 41. Rf2 Bb6 42. Kh1 Qc4 43. Kh2 g6 44. g3 Ra4 45. Rd2 Ba5 46. Rg2 hxg3+ 47. Qxg3 Qe6 48. Qd3 Qc4 49. Qf3 Ra2 50. f5 Rxb2 51. Rxb2 Qxd4 52. Rxb3 Qxe5+ 53. Kg2 Kg7 54. fxg6 Qg5+ 55. Qg3 Qd2+ 56. Qf2 fxg6 57. Qxd2 Bxd2 58. Rd3 Bg5 59. Kf3 Bf6 60. Ke4 Kf7 61. Kd5 Bb2 62. Rb3 Ba1 63. Ra3 Bb2 64. Ra2 Bc3 65. Rf2+ Kg7 66. Ke6 Bd4 67. Rf7+ Kg8 68. Rd7 Bc3 69. Rc7 Bb2 70. Rb7 Bc3 71. Ke7 Kg7 72. Ke8+ Kg8 73. Ke7 Kg7 74. Ke6+ Kg8 75. Rb3 Bd4 76. Rg3 Kg7 77. Rg4 Bc3 78. h4 Kh6 79. Kf7 Kh5 80. Rxg6 Kxh4 81. Ke6 Be1 82. Kf5 Kh3 83. Kf4 Bd2+ 84. Kf3 Kh4 85. Rd6 Bc1 86. Rg6 Bd2 87. Rg1 Kh5 88. Ke4 Kh4 89. Rg8 Bc1 90. Rc8 Bd2 91. Rc2 Bb4 92. Rc4 Be7 93. Kf4 Kh5 94. Kf5 Bd8 95. Rc8 1-0 [Event "Bundesliga 0405"] [Site "Germany"] [Date "2005.03.13"] [Round "13.1"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Nikolic, Predrag"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C92"] [WhiteElo "2581"] [BlackElo "2676"] [PlyCount "58"] [EventDate "2004.11.12"] [EventType "team-tourn"] [EventRounds "15"] [EventCountry "GER"] [SourceTitle "CBM 106"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2005.06.06"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2005.06.06"] [SourceQuality "1"] [WhiteTeam "Neukoelln"] [BlackTeam "Solingen"] [WhiteTeamCountry "GER"] [BlackTeamCountry "GER"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 Re8 10. d4 Bb7 11. Nbd2 Bf8 12. d5 Ne7 13. Nf1 g6 ({RR} 13... Ng6 14. a4 Nd7 15. Ba2 h6 16. N3h2 Nf4 17. Qf3 Nc5 18. Bxf4 exf4 19. axb5 axb5 20. b4 Na4 21. Qd3 g6 22. Bb3 Nb6 23. Nf3 Rxa1 24. Rxa1 Bc8 25. Nd4 Bd7 26. Ra5 Bg7 27. Nxb5 Bxb5 28. Rxb5 {Gashimov,V (2664)-Beliavsky,A (2646) Barcelona 2007 ½-½ (41)}) ({RR} 13... h6 14. Ng3 c6 15. dxc6 Bxc6 16. a4 Qc7 17. axb5 axb5 18. Rxa8 Bxa8 19. Nh4 d5 20. exd5 Bxd5 21. Nhf5 Nxf5 22. Nxf5 Bxb3 23. Qxb3 Qb7 24. c4 b4 25. Rd1 Ne4 26. Ne3 Nc5 27. Qc2 b3 28. Qc3 {Zilleruelo Irizarry,D (2058)-Leyva Proenza,R (2333) chess.com INT 2024 0-1 (38)}) 14. N3h2 Bg7 15. Qf3 $146 ({RR} 15. Ng4 Rf8 16. Nxf6+ Bxf6 17. f4 exf4 18. Bxf4 Nc8 19. Nh2 Nb6 20. Qd2 Nd7 21. Ng4 Bg7 22. e5 dxe5 23. Nxe5 Nxe5 24. Bxe5 Bxe5 25. Rxe5 Re8 26. Rxe8+ Qxe8 27. Rf1 Rd8 28. Rxf7 Kxf7 {½-½ (28) Vachier Lagrave,M (2681)-Beliavsky,A (2606) Paks 2008}) ({RR} 15. Ng4 Rf8 16. Qf3 Nxg4 17. hxg4 f5 18. exf5 gxf5 19. Bg5 Qd7 20. Bxe7 fxg4 21. Qe2 Qxe7 22. Qxg4 Bc8 23. Qe2 Qh4 24. Bc2 Rf6 25. Be4 Bg4 26. f3 Bd7 27. g3 Qg5 28. Qd2 Qh5 29. Qh2 Qf7 {Friedel,J (2529)-De la Paz Perdomo,F (2473) Toluca 2011 ½-½ (48)}) 15... Kh8 16. h4 Rf8 17. Ng3 h5 18. Bc2 Nh7 19. Qe2 Ng8 20. Nf3 Bf6 21. c4 Bxh4 22. Nxh4 Qxh4 23. cxb5 axb5 24. Qxb5 Ba6 25. Qb3 Ne7 26. Qf3 Kg7 27. Qe3 Kh8 28. Qf3 Kg7 29. Qe3 Kh8 1/2-1/2 [Event "Gashimov Memorial-A 1st"] [Site "Shamkir"] [Date "2014.04.29"] [Round "9"] [White "Radjabov, Teimour"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C93"] [WhiteElo "2713"] [BlackElo "2881"] [PlyCount "201"] [EventDate "2014.04.20"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "AZE"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 160"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2014.05.15"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2014.05.15"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 Bb7 10. d4 Re8 11. Nbd2 Bf8 12. a3 h6 13. Bc2 Nb8 14. b3 Nbd7 15. Bb2 Rb8 16. a4 c5 17. d5 Bc8 18. axb5 axb5 19. Bd3 Nh5 20. Bf1 Ndf6 $146 ({RR} 20... g6 21. Nh2 Ng7 22. Bd3 Nf6 23. Qe2 Bd7 24. Qe3 Ngh5 25. Bf1 Nh7 26. c4 b4 27. Ng4 Ng5 28. Be2 Bg7 29. Ra7 Nf4 30. h4 Nh7 31. g3 Nxe2+ 32. Qxe2 f5 33. Ne3 Ra8 34. Rea1 Rxa7 35. Rxa7 {Harikrishna,P (2744)-Ivanchuk,V (2726) Riadh 2017 1-0 (49)}) ({RR} 20... Nf4 21. g3 Ng6 22. Qc2 Nf6 23. Ra7 Bd7 24. Rea1 Re7 25. Qb1 Be8 26. R7a6 Reb7 27. R1a5 Bd7 28. Qa2 Be7 29. Ra8 Qc8 30. Kh2 Bd8 31. Rxb8 Rxb8 32. Ra6 Rb6 33. Ra7 Rb7 34. Ra8 Rb8 35. Ra7 {Quesada Perez,Y (2598)-Chigaev,M (2588) Lichess.org INT 2020 0-1 (68)}) 21. Ra7 Nf4 22. Qa1 Ng6 23. Qa5 Qxa5 24. Rxa5 Bd7 25. Rea1 Rb7 26. Ne1 Reb8 27. Nc2 Ne8 28. Ra8 Rxa8 29. Rxa8 Nc7 30. Ra5 Be7 31. c4 Bg5 32. Ne3 Bxe3 33. fxe3 b4 34. Bd3 Kf8 35. Kh2 Ke7 36. Nf3 Rb8 37. Ra7 Kd8 38. Bc1 Ra8 39. Rxa8+ Nxa8 40. Bd2 Nc7 41. Be1 Ne8 42. Nd2 Nf6 43. Bc2 Nf8 44. Bd3 Ke7 45. Bc2 N8h7 46. Nf1 Kf8 47. Bf2 g6 48. Be1 Kg7 49. Bf2 h5 50. Be1 Ng8 51. Bf2 Nh6 52. Nd2 g5 53. g3 Nf6 54. Kg2 Nhg8 55. Bd3 Ne7 56. Be2 Ng6 57. Bd1 Kh6 58. Be2 Ne7 59. Bd1 Kg6 60. Be2 Neg8 61. Bd1 Nh6 62. Be2 Nhg8 63. Bd1 Ne7 64. Be2 Nc8 65. Bd1 Nb6 66. Be1 Ng8 67. Bf2 Nh6 68. Be1 f6 69. Bf2 Nf7 70. g4 hxg4 71. hxg4 Nd8 72. Nf1 Nb7 73. Ng3 Na5 74. Nf5 Nb7 75. Kf1 Kf7 76. Ke2 Bc8 77. Kd3 Ke8 78. Ng3 Na5 79. Nf1 Kd8 80. Nd2 Kc7 81. Kc2 Bd7 82. Be2 Nc8 83. Nf1 Ne7 84. Ng3 Ng8 85. Nf5 Bxf5 86. exf5 e4 87. Bg3 Nh6 88. Bd1 Kd7 89. Be2 Ke7 90. Bd1 Nb7 91. Kd2 Nd8 92. Ke1 Ndf7 93. Kf2 Ne5 94. Bxe5 fxe5 95. Be2 Ng8 96. Ke1 Nf6 97. Kd2 Kf8 98. Ke1 Ke7 99. Kd2 Kf8 100. Ke1 Ke7 101. Kd2 1/2-1/2 [Event "Norway Chess 1st"] [Site "Stavanger"] [Date "2013.05.13"] [Round "5"] [White "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C95"] [WhiteElo "2767"] [BlackElo "2868"] [Annotator "Marin,Mihail"] [PlyCount "92"] [EventDate "2013.05.08"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 155"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2013.07.16"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2013.07.16"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 Nb8 10. d4 Nbd7 {For a player like Carlsen, who rarely banks on the opening, the Breyer variation must be an optimal choice. Black retains a flexible position and things cannot go really wrong for him. In the worst case, he would find himself in a slightly inferior position after 15-20 moves or so, but Carlsen is quite good at converting such worse positions into... wins! The important thing is to leave the opening behind with the minimum of damage and then get to the complicated middlegame business, clearly Carlsen's piece of cake.} 11. Nbd2 Bb7 12. Bc2 Re8 13. a4 Bf8 14. Bd3 c6 {A typical position for this line. Black surely is flexible and has no weaknesses at all. He still has useful moves at his disposal, mainly ...g6 and ...?g7, but then will have to come up with some counterplay in the centre. White has better control in the centre, but in order to prove at least a slight advantage, he has to prepare against Black's ...d6-d5, ...c6-c5 and ...exd4 in optimal way. Easier said than done, especially in over the board conditions.} 15. Qc2 {A relatively rare move.} ({Carlsen has had some experience against the more popular continuations:} 15. b4 Nb6 16. axb5 cxb5 $5 (16... axb5 {1/2 Anand,V (2800)-Carlsen,M (2826)/Nanjing 2010/CBM 139/[Giri] (44)}) 17. d5 Rc8 18. Ra3 (18. Bb2 Nh5 {1/2 Shirov,A (2749)-Carlsen,M (2826)/Bilbao 2010/CBM 139/[Edouard,R] (175)}) 18... Nh5 19. Nf1 g6 20. N1h2 Bg7 {Anand,V (2800)-Carlsen,M (2826)/Bilbao 2010/CBM 139/[Edouard,R] (1/2, 50)}) ({A previous Breyer duel between the same two players went:} 15. b3 Qc7 ({Carlsen also tried the standard} 15... g6 16. Bb2 exd4 17. cxd4 d5 {Nisipeanu,L (2659)-Carlsen,M (2815)/Medias 2011/CBM 143/[Rogozenco] (1/2, 32)}) 16. Qc2 Rac8 17. Bb2 Nh5 {Karjakin,S (2760)-Carlsen,M (2802)/Moscow (blitz) 2010/EXT 2011 (0-1, 31)}) 15... Rc8 16. axb5 axb5 17. b4 ({Slightly more ambitious, but also more committal, than} 17. b3 g6 18. Bb2 Qc7 19. c4 bxc4 20. Nxc4 exd4 21. Bxd4 {1/2 Vallejo Pons,F (2697)-Grischuk,A (2760)/Khanty Mansiysk 2010/CBM 139} d5 $11) 17... Qc7 $5 $146 ({Carlsen might have disliked the standard} 17... g6 {for concrete reasons.} 18. dxe5 $5 ({After the neutral} 18. Bb2 {Black managed to get enough play in an older top level game:} Nh5 19. g3 exd4 $5 20. cxd4 d5 21. Bc3 Nb6 22. e5 Rc7 23. Nb3 Bc8 24. Kg2 Ng7 25. Nh2 h5 $13 {(1/2, 56) Short,N (2635)-Portisch,L (2605)/Wijk aan Zee 1990/CBM 017}) 18... dxe5 19. Nb3 Qc7 (19... c5 $6 {loses a pawn without compensation:} 20. bxc5 Nxc5 21. Nxc5 Rxc5 22. Ba3 $16) 20. Bg5 $1 h6 21. Be3 $14 {White retains some pressure, since after} c5 22. bxc5 {the pawn is not that easy to retrieve because ?h6 is hanging.}) 18. Bb2 (18. dxe5 dxe5 19. Nb3 {is completely inoffensive:} c5 20. bxc5 Nxc5 21. Nxc5 Qxc5 $11) 18... Ra8 $6 {But this counter-developing move does not seem right.} (18... g6 {would leave White with the problem of how to strengthen his position.} 19. Bf1 {Possibly the most constructive move. Once the b1-h7 diagonal has been safely defended by Black's last move, the bishop is more useful on f1, defending g2 among others.} (19. c4 exd4 20. Bxd4 bxc4 21. Qxc4 d5 $11) (19. Nb3 c5 $1 20. bxc5 dxc5 21. dxe5 Nxe5 $132 22. Nxe5 $6 c4 $15) (19. Rad1 d5 $5 20. exd5 exd4 21. Rxe8 Rxe8 22. dxc6 Qxc6 $11) 19... exd4 ({Some of the metits of the bishop retreat can be seen after} 19... d5 $6 20. exd5 exd4 $6 21. Rxe8 Rxe8 22. dxc6 Qxc6 23. Nxd4 $18 {and the g2-pawn is defended.}) 20. cxd4 d5 21. e5 Nh5 22. Bc3 Ng7 23. Nb3 Nb6 {This is similar to the Short-Portisch game above, but the move ...?d8-c7 is at least a waste of time. For instance, Black does not have the nice regrouping ...?c7, ...?c8 anymore. So, maybe White has better chances to retain some advantage.}) 19. Rad1 Nb6 $6 {Paradoxically, this does not reduce the impact of c3-c4 at all. In fact, weakening the defence of the e5-pawn will have serious effects.} ({Given White's centralisation,} 19... g6 {looks dangerous, too:} 20. c4 bxc4 21. Bxc4 (21. Qxc4 Ba6 $11) 21... exd4 22. Bxd4 $14 d5 23. Bxd5 Nxd5 24. exd5 Rxe1+ 25. Nxe1 Bxb4 26. Ne4 $36 {Black is under pressure on bth wings. With the pawn on g7, things would be different, but it is late to think about that now.}) ({Black should probably have admitted that something had gone slightly wrong and played some very safe move like} 19... h6 $5 {According to White's answer, Black could next play ...g6 or ...d5. Or if} 20. c4 bxc4 21. Bxc4 exd4 22. Bxd4 {, the safest might be} Qc8 $5 {[%CAl Gd6d5,Gb7a6] unpinning the c6-pawn and preparing both ...d6-d5 and ...?a6.} (22... Ba6 23. Bxa6 Rxa6 24. b5 $16) (22... d5 23. e5 dxc4 24. exf6 {If he does not wish to see his kingside structure ruined, Black has to spend a tempo on} g6 $14)) 20. c4 $1 bxc4 21. Nxc4 Nxc4 22. Bxc4 $16 {White has wonderful development, with the bishops deserving a special mention. This time, the Breyer has yielded Carlsen slightly less than a worse but playable position.} h6 {Even now, this seems to be the only move allowing him to put up some resistance.} (22... g6 $2 23. dxe5 dxe5 24. Ng5 Re7 25. f4 $18) (22... Ba6 $6 23. dxe5 (23. Bb3 $5 $16) 23... dxe5 24. Ra1 Bxc4 25. Rxa8 Rxa8 26. Bxe5 Qb6 27. Qxc4 Bxb4 28. Rb1 c5 29. Ng5 Qb7 (29... Ra7 30. Bc3) 30. Qxc5) (22... exd4 23. Bxd4 d5 (23... Nxe4 $2 24. Bd5 Nf6 25. Ng5 $18 {Golubev}) 24. Bxd5 Nxd5 25. exd5 Rxe1+ 26. Rxe1 $16 Bxb4 $2 27. Ng5 g6 28. Ne4 $18) 23. dxe5 (23. Bb3 {also looks playable, but may lead to some undesired complications. White is entitled to hope to win the game by technical means.} exd4 24. Nxd4 c5 25. Nf5 Nxe4 (25... Bxe4 $2 26. Rxe4 Nxe4 27. Bd5 $18) 26. f3 Qb6 $1 (26... Nf6 27. Nxh6+ $1 $18) 27. Re3 c4 28. Qxc4 Ng5 29. Bd4 Qc6 {and Black's position is worse, but probably holdable.}) 23... dxe5 24. Bc3 Ba6 {Aiming to get counterplay in a position that does not allow that.} (24... Nd7 $2 25. Rxd7 Qxd7 26. Nxe5 Rxe5 27. Bxe5 Bxb4 28. Rd1 Qe7 29. Qb3 $18) (24... g6 $6 25. Qb2 Nd7 (25... Bd6 26. Rxd6 Qxd6 27. Bxe5 Rxe5 28. Nxe5 $18) 26. Rxd7 Qxd7 27. Nxe5 Rxe5 28. Bxe5 $18) ({Maybe Black should have thought of consolidating the e5-pawn with} 24... Re7 $5 25. Qb2 Rae8 {, although his position would be rather cramped.}) 25. Bb3 c5 26. Qb2 c4 27. Ba4 Re6 28. Nxe5 Bb7 {Black has lost a pawn, but his light-squared bishop has become active and for an instant White is slightly hanging.} 29. Bc2 $2 {This has a double drawback: it cuts the queen off from the kingside and allows Black's optimal regrouping with the next move.} (29. Bb5 $1 $16 {[%csl Gc4,Ge8]} Ba6 (29... Nxe4 30. Rd7 $18 {Golubev}) (29... Bxe4 30. Bxc4 Rxe5 31. Bxe5 Qxc4 32. Rd4 Qc2 33. Qxc2 Bxc2 34. b5 $18 {Golubev}) 30. Bd7 Rb6 (30... Re7 31. Bc6 $16) 31. b5 Bxb5 32. Bxb5 Rab8 33. Ba5 $18) 29... Rae8 $1 30. f4 Bd6 $44 {Suddenly, Black has entirely adequate compensation. He is threatening ...?h5 followed by either ...f6 or ...g5, undermining White's stability in the centre.} 31. Kh2 $6 {This is hard to explain, the king does not stand well on the same diagonal as the black queen and bishop.} (31. g3 Nh5 32. Re3 g5 33. Ba4 R8e7 34. Qe2 (34. Qf2 gxf4 35. gxf4 f6) (34. Qg2 f5) 34... gxf4 35. Qg4+ (35. Nxf7 fxe3 36. Qxh5 Rxf7 37. Qg4+ Kh7 38. Qxe6 $13) 35... Kf8 36. gxf4 Nf6 37. Qf5 Bxe4 38. Rxe4 Nxe4 39. Qxe4 Bxe5 40. Bxe5 Qa7+ 41. Qd4 Qxa4 42. Bd6 $11) (31. Re3 Nh5 {is likely to transpose.}) 31... Nh5 32. g3 f6 33. Ng6 Nxf4 $1 {White is in trouble already. This seemed virtually impossible 10 moves earlier. What kind of magic does Magnus use?} 34. Rxd6 (34. gxf4 Bxf4+ 35. Kg2 (35. Nxf4 Qxf4+ 36. Kg2 f5 $19) (35. Kh1 Rxe4 36. Bxe4 Rxe4 37. Kg1 Bd2 $1 $18 {[%CAl Gc7g3]}) 35... f5) 34... Nxg6 35. Rxe6 Rxe6 $15 36. Bd4 $6 (36. Qc1 $5 $15) 36... f5 $17 {Winning a pawn.} 37. e5 Nxe5 38. Bxe5 Qc6 39. Rg1 (39. Bxf5 Rxe5) (39. Be4 fxe4 40. Re3 $17) 39... Qd5 40. Bxf5 Rxe5 41. Bg4 h5 42. Bd1 c3 43. Qf2 (43. Qxc3 Qa2+ 44. Qc2 Qxc2+ 45. Bxc2 Re2+) 43... Rf5 44. Qe3 Qf7 45. g4 Re5 {An elegant solution.} ({The simple} 45... Qc7+ {was good enough, of course.} 46. Rg3 (46. Qg3 Rf2+) 46... Qc6 (46... h4 $2 47. gxf5) 47. Rg1 c2 48. Qb3+ Kh8 49. Qxc2 Qd6+ 50. Rg3 h4) 46. Qd4 Qc7 $1 {[%csl Rh2][%CAl Gc3c2,Ge5e3,Ge5d5]} 0-1 [Event "Norway Chess 3rd"] [Site "Stavanger"] [Date "2015.06.19"] [Round "4"] [White "Anand, Viswanathan"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C95"] [WhiteElo "2804"] [BlackElo "2876"] [Annotator "Roiz,Michael"] [PlyCount "93"] [EventDate "2015.06.16"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 167"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2015.07.13"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2015.07.13"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. d3 {Both players have a huge experience of playing the Ruy Lopez with both colours. This time Vishy goes for a quiet, but very fashionable line.} d6 (6... b5 7. Bb3 d6 {is the most common choice here.}) 7. c3 O-O 8. Nbd2 Re8 9. Re1 b5 10. Bc2 (10. Bb3 Na5 11. Bc2 c5 {leads to another well-known theoretical line.}) 10... Bf8 11. Nf1 (11. d4 $5 {deserves some attention in order to meet} Bg4 {with} 12. h3 Bh5 13. d5 $14) 11... g6 12. h3 ({Sometimes White prefers to start with} 12. Ng3 {, but most probably White shouldn't do without h2-h3 anyway.}) 12... Bb7 13. Ng3 ({It was also possible to keep the knight on f1 for a while, like in the following example:} 13. Be3 Bg7 14. Qc1 Qd7 (14... d5 $5) 15. Bh6 Nd8 16. Ng3 c5 17. Bxg7 Kxg7 18. d4 $14 {½-½ (82) Rozentalis,E (2607)-Jovanic,O (2519)/Trieste ITA 2013}) 13... Nb8 14. d4 Nbd7 {The players have entered into the main line of Breyer system.} 15. a4 (15. b3 {is another major line here.}) 15... c5 16. d5 c4 17. Bg5 Bg7 ({Recently White has managed to put Black under positional pressure after} 17... h6 18. Be3 Nc5 19. Qd2 Kh7 20. Bxc5 dxc5) ({In the following recent game Black was able to solve the problems after} 17... Rb8 $5 18. Qd2 Nc5 19. axb5 axb5 20. Nh2 Bc8 21. Rf1 Bg7 22. f4 h6 23. fxe5 Nfxe4 24. Bxe4 Qxg5 25. Qxg5 hxg5 26. e6 fxe6 27. Bxg6 Re7 $11 {1/2-1/2 Vachier Lagrave,M (2775)-Dominguez Perez,L (2726)/Tbilisi FIDE GP 2015}) 18. Qd2 Rb8 {Magnus deviates from the known paths at this early stage. This move is aimed at making the c8-spot vacant for the bishop.} ({In the following classical game between two former World Champions White couldn't pose Black any special problems:} 18... Nc5 19. Ra3 (19. Nh4 Qd7 20. axb5 axb5 21. Rxa8 Rxa8 22. Qe3 Ne8 $132 {1-0 (68) Zherebukh,Y (2473)-Kovalev,V (2318)/Kirishi 2008/CBM 127 Extra}) 19... Qc7 20. Rea1 Rab8 21. Qe3 Nfd7 22. Bh6 Bh8 23. Nh2 Bc8 24. axb5 axb5 25. Ng4 Nf6 {½-½ Tal,M (2645)-Petrosian,T (2645)/Milan 1975/MCL}) 19. Nh2 $146 {This logical innovation is a standard preparation of White's k-side activity, which is based on the f2-f4 advance.} ({Taking control over the a-file doesn't offer much:} 19. Ra3 Nc5 20. axb5 axb5 $11 {½-½ (21) Dueball,J (2450)-Matanovic,A (2490)/Bath 1973/EU-chT}) 19... Bc8 $6 {The World Champion is playing with fire! Leaving the pin yields White too many attacking possibilities.} ({A much safer move was} 19... Qc7 20. f4 (20. Ng4 Nxg4 21. hxg4 Bc8 22. Be3 (22. f3 Nc5 23. Be3 Bd7 24. axb5 Rxb5 25. Ra2 Reb8 26. Rb1 a5 $132) 22... Nc5 23. g5 Bd7 $132) 20... exf4 21. Qxf4 b4 22. Rf1 Qa5 $132 {with a complex battle.}) 20. Ng4 Nc5 $6 {One more inaccuracy.} ({After} 20... Qe7 21. Nh6+ Kh8 22. Rf1 Qf8 23. axb5 axb5 24. Ra5 (24. h4 $5) 24... Nc5 25. Rfa1 $14 {Black's position would be worse, but playable.}) 21. Nh6+ $1 Bxh6 {Exchanging the main defender of king is definitely a bad sign for Black!} (21... Kf8 22. axb5 axb5 23. f4 $16 {[%csl Rf8]}) 22. Bxh6 bxa4 {Breaking the q-side pawn chain is necessary, since Black desperately needs any counterplay.} 23. Ra2 {Definitely not the best, since Black is getting some play along the b-file, while the ?a2 is passive now.} ({A stronger move was} 23. Reb1 $1 Bd7 24. Bg5 Kg7 25. Qe3 Qe7 26. Ra2 $16) 23... a3 $1 24. bxa3 $6 {Recapturing the pawn definitely suits Black here.} ({There was a nice way to extend the initiative at the cost of pawn:} 24. Rxa3 $1 Rxb2 25. Bg5 Kg7 26. Qc1 Qb6 (26... Rb7 27. Rf1 $36) 27. Be3 Nfd7 28. Ba4 $36) 24... Nfd7 $1 25. f4 ({Possibly,} 25. Qe3 $5 {was more promising here:} Kh8 (25... a5 26. Nf5 Nf6 27. Ng7 Rf8 28. f4 $36) 26. Raa1 Rb2 27. Qc1 $14) 25... a5 $1 {Magnus finds the best way to connect the rooks - the bishop is heading to a6.} (25... Qh4 $2 {doesn't work in view of} 26. Bg5 Qxg3 27. Re3 Nb3 28. Bxb3 Qxe3+ 29. Qxe3 cxb3 30. Rb2 $18) 26. Rf1 (26. f5 Qh4 $1 27. Nf1 f6 28. Be3 gxf5 29. Bf2 Qg5 {looks good for Black.}) 26... f6 $2 {This passive continuation leads to a very difficult position from the strategic point of view.} ({It was necessary to release the pressure in the centre:} 26... Qb6 $1 27. Kh1 Nb3 28. Qe2 exf4 $1 29. Bxf4 Ne5 30. Be3 Qd8 $132 {leads to a complex position, where the strong centralised knight compensates for the vulnerablity of Black's monarch.}) 27. f5 $1 {Now Black's position desperately lacks space.} Nd3 {Black is trying to complicate matters, since White's potential k-side attack is unstoppable.} ({After} 27... Qe7 28. h4 Qf7 29. Be3 $16 {White may develop a crushing attack step by step.}) 28. Bxd3 cxd3 29. Qd1 $1 {White has reached a harmonious setup, so all the pieces may take part in attacking the opponent's king.} ({Vishy correctly rejects} 29. Qxd3 $6 Qb6+ 30. Be3 (30. Kh2 Ba6 31. c4 Qb3 $11) 30... Ba6 31. Qd2 Qb3 $44) 29... Re7 (29... Kh8 30. Be3 Rg8 31. Qxd3 Qc7 32. fxg6 hxg6 33. Qe2 $16) 30. Raf2 Rf7 31. Qxd3 {Now there is nothing wrong with taking a pawn.} (31. h4 $5 {was another promising option here:} Kh8 32. fxg6 hxg6 33. h5 Qg8 34. Bg5 $40) 31... Nc5 32. Qf3 Ba6 {A natural move, but the bishop was quite useful on c8.} (32... g5 {was bad:} 33. h4 gxh4 34. Nh5 Kh8 35. Qg4 Qe7 36. Rf3 Ba6 37. Re1 Nd3 38. Ree3 Rb1+ 39. Kh2 $18) ({The most tenacious continuation seems to be} 32... Kh8 33. fxg6 hxg6 34. Bg5 Nd7 35. h4 Ba6 36. c4 Qg8 {[%CAl Gb8f8] and Black manages to parry the immediate threats, though White is still almost winning here.}) 33. Qg4 ({It looks like the direct attack would decide the game here:} 33. fxg6 hxg6 34. Qg4 Kh7 35. Qh4 Bxf1 36. Bg5+ Kg8 (36... Kg7 37. Qh6+ Kg8 38. Bxf6 $1 Rxf6 39. Nh5 gxh5 40. Rxf6 $18) 37. Bxf6 Rh7 38. Qg5 Qe8 39. Rxf1 Rbb7 40. h4 $18) 33... g5 ({Black's position is hopeless after} 33... Bc8 34. Qh4 g5 35. Qg4 Kh8 36. h4 Ba6 37. hxg5 Bxf1 38. g6 $18) 34. h4 $1 {There is no need to spend a tempo on removing the rook.} Bxf1 35. Rxf1 Qd7 ({After} 35... Kh8 36. hxg5 fxg5 {the most convincing is} 37. f6 Rxf6 38. Bg7+ Kxg7 39. Nh5+ Kh8 40. Rxf6 Qe7 41. Qf5 $18 {with full domination.}) 36. hxg5 fxg5 37. Qh5 {This unexpected move doesn't spoil anything - the king is too weak.} ({There was nothing wrong with the most natural} 37. Bxg5 Kh8 38. Qh4 Rg8 39. Rb1 $1 $18 (39. Bf6+ $6 {is less clear:} Rxf6 40. Qxf6+ Qg7 41. Qxg7+ Kxg7 $16)) 37... Kh8 38. f6 Rg8 39. Bg7+ Rfxg7 40. fxg7+ Qxg7 {It looks like Black has consolidated, but Anand's calculations were deep!} 41. Nf5 Qg6 42. Qxg6 Rxg6 43. Ne7 $1 $18 Kg7 ({The poor coordination of Black's pieces enables White to liquadate into a winning rook ending:} 43... Rh6 44. Rf8+ Kg7 45. Rc8 Kf7 46. Nf5 Rg6 47. Nxd6+ Rxd6 48. Rxc5 $18) 44. Nxg6 Kxg6 45. Rf8 a4 ({Or} 45... Nxe4 46. c4 a4 47. Ra8 Nc5 48. Kf2 h5 49. Ke3 Kf5 50. Rf8+ Kg4 51. Rd8 $18) 46. c4 h5 47. Kf2 {Quite a disappointing loss for Magnus, but Anand's achievement shouldn't be underestimated.} ({Black resigns in view of} 47. Kf2 Nxe4+ 48. Ke3 Nc5 49. Rd8 $18) 1-0 [Event "Nanjing Pearl Spring 3rd"] [Site "Nanjing"] [Date "2010.10.23"] [Round "4"] [White "Gashimov, Vugar"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C95"] [WhiteElo "2719"] [BlackElo "2826"] [Annotator "Giri,Anish"] [PlyCount "150"] [EventDate "2010.10.20"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "CHN"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 139"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2010.11.18"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2010.11.18"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 Nb8 {Breyer - no surprises. Magnus sticks to his main weapon.} 10. d4 Nbd7 11. Nbd2 Bb7 12. Bc2 Re8 13. Nf1 Bf8 14. Bg5 $5 {Interesting try, that was already employed by Gashimov earlier a few times. So not a surprise for Magnus. To be honest I always found this move to look a bit artificial, but ok, it's hard to find any advantage in the main lines. So why not.} h6 15. Bh4 Be7 {Black wants to neutralise the psychological pressure (bishop h4-queen d8) and to one day exchange the bishop on h4 for the passive one on e7 (f8).} 16. Ng3 $5 {A new try by Gashimov. At the Olympiad in Khanty, Kasimdzhanov tried 16. a4 and Vachier Lagrave 16.?g3.} g6 {A solid and logical move. Black is covering f6 and preparing ...?g7 followed by ...?h7.} (16... g5 {is obviously too risky without preparation - and probably also with it. White has compensation after all three possibilities and it wasn't a surprise that Magnus decided to play it safe.} 17. Nf5 $5 (17. Nxg5 $5) (17. Bxg5 $5)) 17. Qd2 Kg7 18. Rad1 {Simply centralizing - why not?} Nh7 {as promissed black exchanges the bishop.} 19. Bxe7 Qxe7 20. dxe5 {It is logical to take now, since Black can't recapture with the pawn due to the hanging knight on d7.} ({The favourite Kasparov method:} 20. h4 $5 {deserves some attention, though I don't think the pawn alone can trouble black king so much. For example} Nhf6 (20... h5 {is weakening the g5 square for later.}) 21. h5 {and White is sort of having some pressure on g6, but I think without the dark squared bishop it is really hard to create any attack.}) 20... Nxe5 21. Nd4 Qg5 $5 {Carlsen chooses the most logical way to defend against ?f5+. But it allows a tactical blow, which should have not lead to any advantage, had Magnus reacted correctly.} (21... Nc4 $5 {Was a recipe for those who don't want to calculate any lines.} 22. Qe2 Qg5 {and Black is fine.}) 22. Ngf5+ $1 gxf5 23. f4 Nc4 $2 {It's a bit surprising to me that Magnus didn't play the best continuation, since this one leads to a distasteful position for Black in many ways. True it wasn't easy to calculate all the lines after ...?f3+!, but I can tell you that a player like Magnus could have easily done it.} (23... Nf3+ $1 24. Nxf3 Qh5 {Now White has several ways to continue, and even though it looks promising, objectively Black is not even any worse.} 25. Qd4+ (25. Nd4 $5 Bxe4 (25... fxe4 26. Re3) 26. c4 $5 Nf6 27. cxb5 Kh7) 25... Nf6 $1 26. e5 Bxf3 27. exf6+ Kh8 28. Rxe8+ Rxe8) 24. fxg5 Nxd2 25. Nxf5+ (25. gxh6+ $5 Kg8 26. Rxd2 fxe4 27. Rf2 {was also quite promising, but the way Gashimov played is the most human, and it is also pretty good.}) 25... Kf8 26. Rxd2 hxg5 27. e5 $5 (27. Rf2 $5 {was also possible, keeping e5 for later.}) 27... Nf6 $1 {Magnus is doing his best in this difficult position, but Gashimov keeps on playing forcefully.} 28. Rf1 $1 Rxe5 29. Nxd6 $1 Rd8 30. Rxf6 cxd6 {Now we get a static endgame that is extremely unpleasant for Black. The problem is that basically whatever White does he always keeps up the pressure and has the better position.} 31. Bb3 Rd7 32. Kf2 d5 33. Rf3 Kg7 34. Rfd3 Rd6 35. Bd1 Bc8 36. Bf3 Be6 {Both players are manoeuvring...} 37. Rd4 Kf6 38. a4 $1 {Now it's time for White to touch the b-pawn.} bxa4 $1 {better a then b.} 39. Rxa4 Rb6 40. Be2 Bc8 41. Ra2 Bb7 42. Ra4 Re4 43. Ra3 Re5 44. b4 Rc6 45. Rd4 Kg7 46. Bf3 Rf6 47. Rd3 Rf4 48. Ra5 Rc4 {Magnus seems to be active, but Gashimov again finds a good reply:} 49. Rc5 $1 {Not reacting to any provocations. Taking the pawn would probably lead to a drawn rook endgame.} (49. Bxd5 $2 Bxd5 50. Raxd5 Rxd5 51. Rxd5 Rxc3 52. Rxg5+ Kf8 53. Ra5 Rc4 $1 54. Ra4 a5 $1 {Liquidating to a drawn rook ending (White can press here of course).}) 49... Rxc5 50. bxc5 Re6 (50... Re7 {immediately seems more precise to me.}) 51. Rd2 $1 {Transfering the rook and again wisely not taking the pawn.} (51. Bxd5 $2 Bxd5 52. Rxd5 Kf6 {and Black seems to be doing fine.}) 51... Re7 52. Rb2 (52. Bxd5 {Now was maybe the best chance.} Bxd5 53. Rxd5 Kf6 54. c6 Rc7 55. Rc5 {with good winning chances, which also means good drawing ons. Black's problem here is that he can't just come over with king and take on c6, since after that White will go g3 and h4, creating a second passed pawn. However all of these things depend on tempos... Ah, those rook endgames!}) 52... Bc8 53. Bxd5 {White has finally won a pawn, but now under favourable conditions. Gashimov's patience was rewarded!} Re5 54. c4 Be6 $1 {Magnus is doing all he can and I am still not sure about the final evaluation of this position!} 55. c6 $5 (55. Rd2 Kf6 56. c6 Ke7 {is also not easy for White.}) 55... Bxd5 56. cxd5 Rxd5 57. Rc2 Rd8 58. c7 (58. Ra2 Rd3 $1 59. Rxa6 Rc3 {and it seems that Black is holding.}) 58... Rc8 59. Ke3 Kf6 60. g3 a5 61. Kd4 Ke6 $1 {Now Black is just in time in all the lines. These guys with 2800 are very often lucky. So in the end it's hard to come to a conclusion about the endgame. Both players played quite well. Black always seemed to be on the edge, but it was never easy and clear.} 62. h4 gxh4 63. gxh4 a4 64. h5 a3 65. h6 a2 66. Rxa2 Rxc7 67. Ra6+ Kf5 68. h7 Rc8 69. Rh6 Rh8 70. Rh1 Kg6 71. Ke5 {Setting a trap, though at top GM level it is not really setting a trap, but more like making a joke.} Re8+ (71... Rxh7 $4 72. Rg1+ {and this unique position is won!}) 72. Kf4 Kg7 73. Kf5 Rh8 74. Rg1+ Kf8 75. Rh1 Kg7 1/2-1/2 [Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 1st"] [Site "Moscow"] [Date "2006.11.10"] [Round "4"] [White "Svidler, Peter"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C95"] [WhiteElo "2750"] [BlackElo "2698"] [Annotator "Marin,Mihail"] [PlyCount "57"] [EventDate "2006.11.06"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 116"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2007.02.01"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2007.02.01"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 Nb8 10. d4 Nbd7 11. Nbd2 Bb7 12. Bc2 Re8 13. a4 Bf8 14. Bd3 {If White does not wish to embark any long theoretical discussion, this variation looks like the best way to move the accent of the fight to the middlegame.} c6 15. b3 (15. Rb1 $5 $146 {1-0 Topalov,V (2813)-Mamedyarov,S (2728)/Hoogeveen 2006/CBM 115 [Marin, Mihail] (50)}) 15... Qc7 {Usually, Black transfers his king's bishop to g7 in this line. He can start doing that with or without developing the queen, although this can just lead to a transposition. In this game, Black has completely different plan, for which ...g6 is not useful at all.} (15... g6 16. Bb2 {1-0 Morozevich,A (2743)-Sasikiran,K (2666)/Biel 2004/CBM 102/[Wedberg] (35)} (16. Bf1 {1-0 Ponomariov,R (2722)-Sasikiran,K (2666)/Biel 2004/CBM 102/[Wedberg] (62)})) 16. Bb2 d5 $5 $146 {Quite curiously, this thematic break has never been played so far.} (16... g6 17. Qc2 Bg7 18. c4 (18. b4 Nb6 19. a5 Na4 20. Rac1 (20. Bc1 {[%CAl Yg7a1]} exd4 21. cxd4 c5 $132) 20... Nxb2 21. Qxb2 Nd7 22. c4 bxc4 23. Bxc4 exd4 24. Qa2 Re7 25. Nb3 Ne5 $11 {Haag,E-Forintos,G/Budapest 1965/MCD (½-½, 33)}) (18. Bf1 Rac8 19. Rad1 Nb6 {Since the a4-pawn is safely defended, this move makes less sense now and just weakens Black's control over the centre.} (19... d5 $5) 20. c4 exd4 21. Bxd4 bxa4 22. e5 dxe5 23. Bxe5 Qe7 24. c5 Nbd7 25. Bd6 Qd8 26. bxa4 $16 {Vitomskis,J (2575)-Girod,F (2415)/LAT-SUI corr 1994/Corr 2000 (1-0, 29)}) 18... bxc4 (18... bxa4 19. c5 $5 axb3 20. Nxb3 exd4 21. cxd6 Qxd6 22. Na5 $36 {[%csl Gb7] Grigoriants,S (2313)-Platonov,E (2296)/Orel 1999/EXT 2001 (1-0, 42)}) 19. Bxc4 exd4 20. Bxd4 Re7 ({Black can also choose another move order of concentrating his forces against the e4-pawn.} 20... c5 {[%CAl Yb7e4]} 21. Bc3 Re7 22. Qb2 Rae8 {[%csl Ye4]} 23. Rad1 h6 {The strong pressure against the e4-pawn restricts White's active possibilities.} 24. Bd3 Re6 25. Bc4 R6e7 {½-½ Hendriks,R-Girod,F/ICCF corr 1994/Corr 2000}) 21. b4 Rae8 22. Bd3 c5 23. Rac1 Qd8 (23... Nd5 $5 {[%csl Gd4,Ge1]}) 24. bxc5 Nxc5 25. Bxc5 dxc5 $13 {Aseev,K (2540)-Yemelin,V (2520)/Elista 1994/CBM 044 (½-½, 87)}) 17. dxe5 {Confronted with a relatively early opening surprise, White chooses the safe way.} ({The main alternative was} 17. exd5 Nxd5 18. Qc2 $5 {[%csl Gh7] not only connects rooks, but underlines the relative vulnerability of the black kingside too.} ({Now,} 18. dxe5 {involves a nice trap, but is not too dangerous otherwise.} Nf4 (18... Nxe5 $2 19. Rxe5 Rxe5 20. c4 $16) 19. Be4 Nxe5 $11) 18... exd4 $5 {Since Black has no adequate way of avoiding kingside weaknesses, he bravely plays for material grabbing.} (18... h6 19. dxe5 Nf4 20. Bh7+ Kh8 21. Qe4 $16) (18... g6 19. Nxe5 Nxe5 20. dxe5 Nf4 21. Ne4 $16 {[%csl Gf6]}) (18... N5f6 19. dxe5 Nxe5 20. Nxe5 Rxe5 21. c4 Rxe1+ 22. Rxe1 $36 {[%csl Yb5,Yf6,Yh7]}) 19. Bxh7+ Kh8 20. Nxd4 g6 21. Bxg6 fxg6 22. c4 N5f6 23. Qxg6 $36 {[%csl Yb7,Gh8]}) 17... Nxe5 18. Nxe5 Qxe5 19. Nf3 Qf4 {A brave decision. The queen is rather exposed here.} (19... Qh5 $5 20. e5 $140 Nd7 $11) 20. exd5 {Again, White refrains from complicating the game.} (20. e5 $5 {[%csl Gf4][%CAl Yb2c1]} Ne4 21. Qc2 {would have led to a complex position, where Black's activity might be just apparent, while the exposed placement of his queen would offer White some tactical ideas.}) 20... Nxd5 21. c4 Nb4 22. Be5 Qh6 23. Be4 Rad8 24. Qb1 bxc4 25. bxc4 $11 {We can state that Black's strategy has been crowned with success. The usefullness of the dark-squared bishop on the a3-f8 diagonal is obvious. At the same time, the fact that he refrained from ...g6 ensures the return of the queen to the centre in the near future.} Ba8 26. Bc3 c5 27. Bxa8 Rxa8 28. Ne5 Qe6 29. Qb3 1/2-1/2 [Event "Grand Slam Final 3rd"] [Site "Bilbao"] [Date "2010.10.15"] [Round "6"] [White "Anand, Viswanathan"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C95"] [WhiteElo "2800"] [BlackElo "2826"] [Annotator "Edouard,Romain"] [PlyCount "100"] [EventDate "2010.10.09"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "6"] [EventCountry "ESP"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 139"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2010.11.18"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2010.11.18"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 Nb8 10. d4 Nbd7 11. Nbd2 Bb7 12. Bc2 Re8 13. a4 Bf8 14. Bd3 c6 15. b4 Nb6 16. axb5 cxb5 {Nice to see Magnus playing the same line again!} 17. d5 Rc8 18. Ra3 $146 (18. Bb2 {was Shirov move in round 3.}) 18... Nh5 19. Nf1 g6 $1 20. N1h2 {Probably the first unprecise move.} Bg7 21. Bg5 $6 Qd7 22. Be3 $6 {Somehow, White's 2-3 last moves were just bad.} Nc4 $6 ({Both} 22... Nxd5 23. exd5 e4 {and}) (22... Na4 {followed by ...f5 are given near by winning for Black by the engine!}) 23. Bxc4 Rxc4 24. Nd2 Rc7 25. Nhf1 Nf4 {Also here, Black is doing very fine.} 26. Bb6 Rcc8 27. Ne3 f5 28. f3 Rf8 29. Kh2 Rf7 $2 (29... Nd3 30. Rf1 Bh6 {would make White's task much harder, for instance:} 31. Qb1 Nf4 32. c4 $5 Ne2 $1 (32... bxc4 $6 33. Nexc4 Ne2 34. Be3 {is OK for White.}) 33. c5 Bf4+ 34. Kh1 Ng3+ 35. Kg1 Nxf1 36. Ndxf1 {and White keep some chances.}) 30. c4 $1 {Now White espaces. I think that Carlsen underestimated his position and didn't believe he should try something too rough, or he overestimated and thought he has enough time for preparing his attack with moves like 29...?f7.} bxc4 31. Nexc4 fxe4 32. fxe4 Rcf8 33. Be3 Bh6 34. Rf1 Bg7 35. Qa4 Qe7 36. b5 axb5 37. Qxb5 Bc8 38. Qb6 Qg5 39. Rf2 Qh4 40. Bxf4 ({The defensive} 40. Nf3 $5 Qh5 41. Ng1 {could be a much better try, as Black has huge problems with the d6-pawn, but just leads to a weird draw by force:} Qh4 $8 42. Nxd6 Bxh3 $8 43. gxh3 Nxd5 $8 44. Qb3 Rxf2+ 45. Bxf2 Rxf2+ 46. Kh1 Qf4 47. Qxd5+ Kh8 48. Ra8+ Bf8 49. Rxf8+ Qxf8 50. Qxe5+ Qg7 $8 51. Qe8+ Qg8 52. Qa4 Qa2 $8 {and draw.}) 40... Rxf4 (40... exf4 $5 {holds thanks to the trick} 41. Nxd6 Qg3+ $3 42. Rxg3 fxg3+ 43. Kxg3 Be5+ 44. Kh4 Rxf2 45. Nxc8 Bf6+ 46. Kg3 Be5+ {and draw!}) 41. Rxf4 Qxf4+ 42. Kg1 Bh6 43. Rf3 Qg5 44. Qc6 Rxf3 45. Nxf3 Qc1+ 46. Kf2 Bd7 47. Qxd7 Qxc4 48. Qe6+ Kg7 49. Qe7+ Kg8 50. Qe6+ Kg7 1/2-1/2 [Event "Tata Steel-A 80th"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2018.01.23"] [Round "9"] [White "Anand, Viswanathan"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C95"] [WhiteElo "2767"] [BlackElo "2834"] [Annotator "Fernandez,Daniel Howard"] [PlyCount "63"] [EventDate "2018.01.13"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 183"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2018.03.14"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2018.03.14"] [SourceQuality "1"] [TimeControl "40/6000+30:20/3000+30:900+30"] 1. e4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} e5 {[%emt 0:00:58]} 2. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Nc6 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 3. Bb5 {[%emt 0:00:00]} a6 {[%emt 0:00:15]} 4. Ba4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Nf6 {[%emt 0:00:44]} 5. O-O {[%emt 0:00:15]} Be7 {[%emt 0:00:09]} 6. Re1 {[%emt 0:00:07]} b5 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 7. Bb3 {[%emt 0:00:07]} d6 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 8. c3 {[%emt 0:00:31]} O-O {[%emt 0:00:07]} 9. h3 {[%emt 0:00:07]} Nb8 {[%emt 0:00:08] The famously solid Breyer variation! Similar in character to some games of mine that began with the move 1.d4 b5, Black's play in this line is extremely formulaic and rarely deviates from well-established and easily understood plans. A good sign of mastery is to be able to combine elements from different plans as the game dictates.} 10. d4 {[%emt 0:00:23]} (10. d3 $5 {is another move, recently used against Mamedyarov by the young Spanish GM David Anton. The logic is that Black has spent time on ...?b8 that he probably wouldn't have done against an earlier d3-system. For instance:} Nbd7 11. Nbd2 Bb7 12. Nf1 Re8 13. Ng3 $132 {and White can contemplate playing with ?h2-g4 in place of the standard d4, ?c2 stuff.}) 10... Nbd7 {[%emt 0:00:03]} 11. Nbd2 {[%emt 0:00:09]} Bb7 {[%emt 0:00:11]} (11... c5 {The reason this move order is not played, is that Black would like White to have to play a4 before Black goes c4.} 12. Nf1 Re8 13. Ng3 Bf8 14. Ng5 {The point. Now there is no real choice other than c4, and then Black has to go for tricks.} c4 15. Bc2 exd4 $5 (15... h6 16. Nf3 Bb7 17. d5 g6 18. Be3 {is exactly what Black doesn't want: counterplay is slow to arrive because White doesn't have a4 yet, and White may continue with ?h2-g4 or ?d2, etc.}) 16. cxd4 Bb7 17. Bd2 g6 $132 {Black's play now is aimed at making the knight on g5 feel silly. Nevertheless, he doesn't have quite enough pressure on e4 and the feeling is that White must be better somehow, perhaps with a4 under the now-different circumstances.}) 12. Bc2 {[%emt 0:07:27]} Re8 {[%emt 0:00:11]} 13. Nf1 {[%emt 0:01:09]} Bf8 {[%emt 0:00:09]} 14. Ng3 {[%emt 0:00:06]} g6 {[%emt 0:00:08]} 15. a4 {[%emt 0:00:05]} (15. Nh2 {is an interesting creative move:} exd4 16. cxd4 c5 17. d5 $11 {In this kind of position it's hard to know how much weight to give to the opinion of the machine, but Black should not be worse if he follows normal plans (...?g7, ...c4, ...?c5, possibly ...h5.) See Motycakova,M-Nemcova,K Frydek Mistek 2009.}) (15. b3 $5 {A conceptually challenging line. White wants to get d5 without a4, and not have it punished by ...c6 and detonation of the centre. Black must react carefully, and I am not sure quite how to equalise here, though there is a very interesting piece sacrifice which gives excellent compensation.} Bg7 (15... c5 16. d5 $14) (15... d5 16. Bg5 h6 17. Bh4 $14 {seems to have been pioneered by Mamedyarov and analysed down to a draw, but cloud engines disagree! The consensus will probably change soon...}) 16. d5 Rc8 17. c4 {This was White's point.} c6 18. Be3 (18. dxc6 Rxc6 19. cxb5 axb5 20. Bd3 b4 $11 {Berg,E-Butnorius,A Gibraltar 2008}) 18... Nb6 $1 {Now for concrete reasons this is best.} (18... Qa5 {is suggested by the engine, but following} 19. a3 bxc4 20. bxc4 Nc5 21. Qd2 Qxd2 22. Nxd2 Nfd7 23. Rab1 $14 {the queens have come off and Black is quite passive}) 19. Qe2 $1 {Other moves have been tried, but this is the most convincing for White.} cxd5 20. cxd5 Nbxd5 {If not for this move White would be trivially better.} 21. exd5 Nxd5 22. Rac1 $1 {The only way to take back on e3 with a piece.} (22. Qd2 Nxe3 23. fxe3 e4 24. Nd4 Bxd4 25. exd4 e3 26. Qe2 Qh4 27. Kh2 Qxd4 {is not what White was looking for from the opening}) 22... Nxe3 (22... Nc3 23. Qd2 $14) 23. Qxe3 d5 $44 {Black has good compensation based on the big centre.}) 15... Nb6 $5 {[%emt 0:00:51] Not a move I had seen before, but perhaps it will be seen more in light of the present game.} (15... c5 {This is the main line. White is only given liberty to close the centre after he has played a4. Here I have some quite detailed analysis but suffice it to say in summary that Black faces some slight problems according to the present theory, largely depending on how fast he allows tripling on the a-file.} 16. d5 c4 17. Bg5 $1 {White is trying to cross or delay Black's usual knight redeployment of ?c5, ?fd7.} Bg7 $1 (17... h6 $6 {is less strong, and a simple plan for White can be formulated, involving... tripling on the a-file. Far from gaining a tempo, ...h6 in fact loses one. I will give some sample lines.} 18. Be3 Nc5 19. Qd2 h5 20. Ra3 Qc7 (20... Nfd7 21. Rea1 Nb6 {Else just ?1a2, ?c1-a1, etc.} 22. a5 Nba4 {Interesting idea, but probably bad.} 23. Rb1 $1 Bg7 24. Nf1 $14 {The idea is just ?d1, ?1d2, ?xc4 and there is not a lot Black can do about it.}) 21. Rea1 Rab8 22. Qd1 Bc8 23. axb5 axb5 24. Ra5 Rb7 25. R1a2 Bd7 26. Bg5 Nh7 27. Bd2 Nf6 28. Ng5 Reb8 29. Nf1 {White has gained a marginally more pleasant position and will be able to triple on the a-file if desired, however if Black plays completely precisely the advantage will grow, and as we all know, with almost nothing on the board 0.3 is a draw!}) 18. Qd2 Nc5 19. Ra3 (19. Nh2 Qc7 20. Ng4 Nxg4 21. hxg4 Bc8 22. f3 Bd7 $11) 19... Qc7 20. Rea1 Reb8 21. Qc1 Nfd7 {Black is just about in time, for instance:} 22. R1a2 Nd3 $132) (15... Bg7 $5 {is an interesting attempt to dodge the main line - Black is fine to play with ...c6 in place of ...c5, and keep the position compact and solid in a Philidor-like way.} 16. Bd3 {Otherwise Black gets ...c5, free of the problems outlined above.} c6 17. Be3 (17. Bg5 {encourages Black's concept:} Nf8 18. Qd2 Ne6 19. Be3 Nd7 $11 {Black is fine as in Hou,Y-Sasikiran,K New Delhi 2011.}) 17... Qc7 $132 {Black is playing for ...d5 and whether White has an edge depends heavily on whether he can sufficiently discourage this move in the coming phase. One motif to pay attention to is the dark-square complex. Anand has been on the White side of this: Anand,V-Baramidze,D Baden-Baden 2015}) 16. axb5 {[%emt 0:06:22]} (16. a5 Nbd7 17. b4 $5 {Caruana,F-Roiz,M Bilbao 2014 , An audacious concept . White is trying to play d5, lock down the centre as well as the queenside and only subsequently (and extremely slowly) make progress with the kingside attack. The idea could, however, have come slightly unstuck against the principled} exd4 18. cxd4 c5 19. bxc5 dxc5 20. d5 c4 $132) (16. b3 $5 {is possibly more ambitious than the text - White wants ?d3, c4, d5.} bxa4 {may be the best way to counter this:} 17. bxa4 a5 18. Bd3 Qc8 $132 {Adams,M-Tan,J Bournemouth 2016, Black has reasonable play according to current knowledge, but Black's position looks slightly looser than usual, so there may be an incisive way for White to get an edge.}) 16... axb5 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 17. Bg5 {[%emt 0:00:13]} Bg7 {[%emt 0:06:43]} 18. Bd3 {[%emt 0:05:49]} Rxa1 {[%emt 0:06:36]} 19. Qxa1 {[%emt 0:00:16]} c6 {[%emt 0:00:49]} 20. Be3 {[%emt 0:02:51]} (20. Qc1 {followed by ?h6 is the engine idea, but Black is solid in any case.}) 20... Qc7 {[%emt 0:07:19]} 21. dxe5 {[%emt 0:01:00]} dxe5 {[%emt 0:00:03]} 22. Qc1 {[%emt 0:00:52]} Bc8 {[%emt 0:05:35]} 23. Qc2 {[%emt 0:01:39] The last two moves do not create a great impression, but White has a very wide margin of error in such positions.} Nfd7 {[%emt 0:05:08]} 24. c4 {[%emt 0:05:31] This move looks like White has reconciled himself to offering a draw soon.} Nxc4 {[%emt 0:01:03]} 25. Bxc4 {[%emt 0:00:13]} bxc4 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 26. Qxc4 {[%emt 0:00:10]} Nf8 {[%emt 0:01:19]} 27. Rc1 {[%emt 0:00:30]} Bb7 {[%emt 0:04:33]} (27... Rd8 $5 {is a nice wrinkle: after} 28. Qxc6 Rd1+ 29. Kh2 Rxc1 30. Qxc1 Qxc1 31. Bxc1 Ne6 $36 {Black has full compensation for the pawn despite the reduced material and his bishop pair means his game is more pleasant.}) 28. Nf1 {[%emt 0:04:57]} Ne6 {[%emt 0:00:17]} 29. N1d2 {[%emt 0:00:12]} Qa5 {[%emt 0:10:37]} 30. Ng5 {[%emt 0:16:57]} Nxg5 {[%emt 0:01:18]} 31. Bxg5 {[%emt 0:00:11]} Bf8 {[%emt 0:08:28]} 32. Be3 {[%emt 0:05:44] With a draw offer which was accepted.} (32. Nb3 Qb5 33. Qc3 {was maybe worth considering, as on strategic purity White is still marginally ahead. Definitely below super-GM level there is a strong chance that White will consolidate a dark-square bind, e.g. ?e3-c5, ?d2, b4, f3, ?h2.}) 1/2-1/2 [Event "Grenke Chess Classic 3rd"] [Site "Baden-Baden"] [Date "2015.02.07"] [Round "5"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Baramidze, David"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C95"] [WhiteElo "2865"] [BlackElo "2594"] [Annotator "Szabo,Krisztian"] [PlyCount "97"] [EventDate "2015.02.02"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "7"] [EventCountry "GER"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 165"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2015.03.11"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2015.03.11"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 Nb8 10. d4 Nbd7 11. Nbd2 Bb7 12. Bc2 Re8 13. Nf1 Bf8 14. Ng3 g6 15. a4 Bg7 ({The} 15... c5 16. d5 c4 {line is more popular.}) 16. Bd3 c6 17. Bg5 ({On the next day Anand played} 17. Be3 {against Baramidze} Qc7 18. Qd2 exd4 19. cxd4 c5 20. d5 c4 21. Bc2 Rec8 22. axb5 c3 23. bxc3 Nxd5 24. exd5 Bxc3 25. Qd1 Bxa1 26. Qxa1 axb5 27. Qd4 $1 {with a promising position for White, later he managed to win, Anand-Baramidze, Baden Baden 2015.}) 17... Nf8 18. Qd2 Ne6 19. Bh6 Nd7 20. Bc2 Bxh6 21. Qxh6 Qf6 22. Rad1 Rad8 23. d5 $146 {The first new move in the game.} (23. Rd2 exd4 24. Nxd4 Qf4 25. Qxf4 Nxf4 26. Nde2 Nxe2+ 27. Rdxe2 Nb6 28. a5 Nc8 29. Rd1 {with a nearly equal endgame, but White is more comfortable, N.Djukic-Nikcevic, Tivat 2011.}) 23... cxd5 24. exd5 Qf4 {A logical decision, Black exchanges the ?s and he tries to level the endgame.} 25. Qxf4 Nxf4 26. Ne4 Bxd5 27. axb5 axb5 28. Nxd6 {So far Baramidze has done a nice job defending and creating counterplay. His pieces are active and give counterplay even if he loses the b5 ? too.} Re6 $2 {This looks logical move is a mistake. The ? will be attackable on e6.} (28... Bxf3 29. gxf3 Re7 30. Nxb5 Rb8 31. c4 Nxh3+ 32. Kh2 Nf4 $13) ({or} 28... Rf8 $1 29. Ne4 (29. Nxb5 Rb8 $11 {and the ? is regained on b2.}) 29... f5 30. Neg5 Rfe8 $132 {and Black looks nicely placed.}) 29. Ne4 $1 {The right reply!} (29. Nxb5 {could have been met by} Rb6 $11 {and the b2 ? is lost.}) 29... f5 ({In the event of} 29... Nb6 30. Nfg5 Re7 31. g3 Nh5 32. Bd3 $14 {and White is slightly better.}) 30. Nfg5 $1 {A very strong intermediate move. He attacks the e6 ?, moreover he protects the h3 ?, so he prepares for g3 too.} Re7 (30... fxe4 $6 {is dubious, because of} 31. Rxd5 $1 Nxd5 32. Nxe6 $16 {and White is better.}) 31. g3 $1 {Another great answer! The ? on f4 cannot move, because the ? on d5 is hanging, and in the awkward positions of Black's ?s and the pinned ? on d7 his structure will be compromised.} Bxe4 32. Bxe4 fxe4 ({In the event of} 32... Nxh3+ 33. Nxh3 fxe4 34. Ng5 $16 {and White has a wonderful position.}) 33. gxf4 Rf8 (33... exf4 34. Rxe4 Rde8 (34... Rxe4 35. Nxe4 $16 {the pin is very unpleasant for Black.}) 35. Rxf4 {and White is a healthy ? up.}) 34. Nxe4 Rxf4 35. b4 $1 {A good move. White fixes the b5 ?. Material is still even, but White's ? on e4 is monstrous and he will win the b5 ? soon.} Nf6 (35... Nb6 36. Nd6 Rf3 37. Nxb5 Rxh3 38. Rd6 Nc4 39. Rd8+ Kf7 40. Re4 {and White's two ?s on the queenside are really strong.}) 36. Nd6 Rf3 37. Nxb5 Rxh3 38. c4 {White's ?s are very fast, the position is very unpleasant for Black.} Rh4 (38... Rb3 {could have been met by the tricky} 39. Nd4 $1 {and in the event of the ? being captured with} Rxb4 40. Nc6 {and White should win the endgame.}) 39. Nd6 Nh5 40. b5 Nf4 {Black tries to create some counterplay against White's ?, but it is not dangerous.} 41. b6 Rg4+ 42. Kf1 Rh4 43. f3 {This is the point! White simply avoids the mate, Black has no hope.} Rh1+ 44. Kf2 Rh2+ 45. Kg1 Rc2 (45... Rb2 46. Rb1 $18) 46. Kh1 ({The careless} 46. b7 $2 {is bad, because of} Nh3+ 47. Kh1 Nf2+ 48. Kg1 Nh3+ $11 {and Black survives with perpetual checks.}) 46... Nh3 47. Ne4 {The ? comes back to defend against ?f2+. There were other winning moves too, but this is the easiest practical reply.} Rxc4 48. Rd8+ $1 Kg7 49. Rb1 {and Black resigned, because he can't defend against b7. Very nice technique by Carlsen!} 1-0 [Event "Grand Slam Final 3rd"] [Site "Bilbao"] [Date "2010.10.11"] [Round "3"] [White "Shirov, Alexei"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C95"] [WhiteElo "2749"] [BlackElo "2826"] [Annotator "Edouard,Romain"] [PlyCount "349"] [EventDate "2010.10.09"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "6"] [EventCountry "ESP"] [EventCategory "22"] [SourceTitle "CBM 139"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2010.11.18"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2010.11.18"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 Nb8 10. d4 Nbd7 {The well-known Breyer defense. Carlsen already played it twice this year, but in rapid games only (against Smeets and Anand).} 11. Nbd2 Bb7 12. Bc2 Re8 ({Magnus tried the rarer} 12... c5 $5 {against Smeets.}) 13. a4 Bf8 14. Bd3 c6 15. b4 $5 {The most fashionable move over the last months.} (15. b3 {and 15.?f1 are the two other common options.}) 15... Nb6 16. axb5 cxb5 $5 {Played only once, but convincingly, by German player Baramidze! And not against anybody: against Shirov himself! This leads to a totally different kind of position in comparison to the other capture. Instead of trying to hold a rather "passive" draw, Black tries to put up pressure on the king-side. Typical Magnus!} (16... axb5 17. Rxa8 Bxa8 (17... Qxa8 18. Nb3 {is also possible.}) 18. Nb3 Bb7 19. dxe5 dxe5 20. Be3 Bc8 21. Qc2 Qc7 22. Na5 Bd7 23. Rc1 h6 24. Nd2 Na4 25. Ndb3 Rb8 26. Ra1 c5 27. bxc5 Nxc5 28. Nxc5 {½-½ Anand-Carlsen, Kristiansund (NOR) 2010}) 17. d5 Rc8 18. Bb2 $146 {Shirov's improvement.} (18. Qb3 Qc7 19. Bb2 Nh5 20. Rac1 f5 (20... Nf4 $5 21. Bf1 f5 {is also to check.}) 21. c4 fxe4 22. cxb5 Qd7 23. Nxe4 Bxd5 24. Qd1 Rxc1 25. Bxc1 axb5 26. Nfg5 Bxe4 27. Nxe4 Nf4 28. Bxf4 exf4 29. Ng5 Rxe1+ 30. Qxe1 Qe7 31. Ne6 Kf7 $4 (31... g6 {should hold a draw.}) 32. Bxh7 Qf6 33. h4 Qe5 34. Ng5+ Ke8 35. Qc1 Nc4 36. Nf3 Qf6 37. Bg8 d5 38. Bxd5 Qb2 39. Bc6+ Kd8 40. Qd1+ Nd6 41. Nd4 Qxb4 42. Bxb5 Qc3 {1-0 Shirov,A (2730)-Baramidze,D (2532)/GER 2010}) 18... Nh5 19. Bf1 f5 20. Nxe5 {The point of leaving White's queen on d1!} (20. exf5 Nf4 {should be OK for Black without huge problems.}) 20... Rxe5 21. c4 $1 (21. Qxh5 fxe4 {would be fine for Black.}) 21... Nf6 $1 22. Bxe5 (22. c5 fxe4 (22... Rxd5 23. exd5 dxc5 24. bxc5 Bxc5 {looks risky for Black, somehow!}) 23. Bxe5 dxe5 24. d6 {comes back into the game.}) 22... dxe5 23. c5 fxe4 24. d6 $1 {A totally messy position. But what else to expect in a game between Shirov and Carlsen?!} (24. cxb6 Bxb4 {is definitely fine for Black.}) 24... Na4 $5 {Interesting, brave, and clever option, while everybody was expecting a capture on d6! Instead, Black wants to sac a piece on c5!} (24... Bxd6 25. cxd6 Qxd6 26. Qb3+ Kh8 27. Rad1 {should be better for White, with an easy play.}) 25. Nc4 $6 {A funny move, which seems like a mistake.} (25. Rxa4 bxa4 26. Nc4 (26. Qxa4 Bxd6 27. cxd6 Qxd6 {should hold a draw easily.}) 26... Qe8 $8 {followed by ...Rd8, and sooner or later, Black will sac a piece and equalize (yes, yes, I'm for sure right: the engine agrees with me, not to say that I agree with the engine!).}) (25. Bc4+ {should be best:} Kh8 26. Be6 Rxc5 $1 27. bxc5 Nxc5 {and again, I will not push more the analysis of this crazy position too much, as it would become unreadable! But for instance, it could go on with} 28. Bf5 Bxd6 (28... Qxd6 29. Qc2 Qc6 30. Nb3 e3 31. f3 Nxb3 32. Qxb3 Bc5 33. Rac1 e4 34. fxe4 Nxe4 35. Bxe4 Qxe4 36. Re2 {here White is for sure better, but I would be surprised if there were no draw!}) 29. Qc2 Qa8 30. Nb3 Nd3 31. Red1 {after what White should have better chances. I must admit that this position is too complicated for my small mind!}) (25. Rc1 Bxd6 26. cxd6 Rxc1 27. Qxc1 Qxd6 {should be an improvement (for Black) to 24...Bxd6.}) 25... Nxc5 $1 26. bxc5 Rxc5 27. Qb3 Bd5 28. Qb4 Rxc4 (28... Rc6 $5 {should be stronger, but after} 29. Nxe5 (29. Ne3 Qxd6 30. Qxd6 Bxd6 31. Rec1 Rb6 32. Rc8+ Kf7 33. Nxd5 Nxd5 {and only Black can try to go for a win.}) 29... Rxd6 30. Red1 {the position should be likely a draw, thought Black should keep better chances.}) 29. Bxc4 bxc4 30. Rxa6 {Now White should be able to keep the balance.} Qc8 31. Qa5 c3 32. d7 Qxd7 33. Qxc3 Qb7 34. Rea1 Qb8 35. Ra7 h6 36. Rc7 Qb6 37. Qxe5 Bd6 38. Rc8+ Kf7 39. Qc3 Qb7 40. Rca8 Qxa8 $5 41. Rxa8 Bxa8 {Ok, from here, there might be few moves too much according to my poor endgame level. Still, it is very impressive to see Magnus's determination in winning games, even though it is pretty understandable after his difficult start.} 42. Qd4 Bd5 43. Qa7+ Be7 44. Qc7 h5 45. Qe5 g6 46. Kh2 Be6 47. Kg1 Bf5 48. Kf1 Ne8 49. Kg1 Ng7 50. Qd5+ Ne6 51. Qb7 h4 52. Kh2 Nf4 53. Kg1 Nd3 54. Kf1 Nc5 55. Qd5+ Be6 56. Qe5 Bf5 57. Qd5+ Ne6 58. Qb7 Kf8 59. Qa8+ Bd8 60. Qa7 Bf6 61. Qb7 Kg8 62. Qa7 Bg5 63. Ke2 Nf4+ 64. Kf1 Nh5 65. Ke2 Kf8 66. Kf1 Bf6 67. Qc7 Ng7 68. Qa7 Ne6 69. Qb7 Nd8 70. Qa7 Nf7 71. Kg1 Kg7 72. Kf1 Be5 73. Qe7 g5 74. Kg1 Bf6 75. Qb7 Kg6 76. Qd5 Ne5 77. Qg8+ Bg7 78. Qe8+ Kh6 79. Qe7 Nd3 80. Kf1 Nf4 81. Qd6+ Bg6 82. Qe7 Nd5 83. Qe6 Nf6 84. Kg1 Be8 85. Qf5 Bd7 86. Qe5 Kg6 87. Kf1 Bf8 88. Kg1 Ba3 89. Qc7 Bb4 90. Qe5 Bd2 91. Qd4 Bf4 92. Qb6 Be8 93. Kf1 Bf7 94. Kg1 Kf5 95. Qa7 Be6 96. Kf1 Kg6 97. Qb6 Bd7 98. Kg1 Ba4 99. Qe6 Bb5 100. Qb6 Bc4 101. Qd4 Be6 102. Kf1 Bf5 103. Kg1 g4 104. hxg4 Bxg4 105. Qc3 Bf5 106. Qb3 Bg5 107. Kf1 Kh6 108. Kg1 Kg6 109. Kf1 Bd7 110. Kg1 Be8 111. Qc3 Bf7 112. Qe5 Bd5 113. Qc3 Be6 114. Qe5 Bd7 115. Qc3 Bf5 116. Qb3 Nh5 117. Qg8+ Ng7 118. Qb3 Ne6 119. Kh2 Bf6 120. Kg1 Bg7 121. Kf1 Ng5 122. Qb6+ Bf6 123. Kg1 h3 124. gxh3 Bxh3 125. Qd6 Bf5 126. Kg2 Nf3 127. Qd5 Kg5 128. Qg8+ Bg6 129. Qd5+ Be5 130. Qd8+ Kh5 131. Qd5 Bf5 132. Qf7+ Kg4 133. Qg8+ Ng5 134. Qc4 Bf4 135. Qg8 Be6 136. Qg7 Bf7 137. Qd4 Kf5 138. Qc5+ Be5 139. Qf8 Kg6 140. Qc5 Bf6 141. Qd6 Bc4 142. Qc6 Be6 143. Qd6 Bg4 144. Qd5 Bf3+ 145. Kf1 Nf7 146. Kg1 Ne5 147. Qg8+ Kf5 148. Qc8+ Kg5 149. Qg8+ Ng6 150. Qd5+ Kh6 151. Qe6 Be5 152. Qf5 Bf4 153. Qf6 Bg5 154. Qe6 Kg7 155. Qd7+ Ne7 156. Qe6 Bf6 157. Kf1 Kg6 158. Kg1 Nf5 159. Qg8+ Kh5 160. Qf7+ Kg5 161. Qg8+ Kf4 162. Qb8+ Kg4 163. Qg8+ Bg5 164. Qc8 Bf6 165. Qg8+ Kf4 166. Qb8+ Be5 167. Qb4 Nd4 168. Qf8+ Kg5 169. Qg8+ Kh6 170. Qf8+ Bg7 171. Qd6+ Kh5 172. Qh2+ Kg5 173. Qg3+ Bg4 174. Qe3+ Kf5 {Now the game is drawn according to the 50-moves rule. The transmission shows 175.Qd2 as a last move. Either a mistake, or some fun from Shirov, aiming to claim a draw in the event of 175...Nf3+.} 175. Qd2 1/2-1/2 [Event "Drammen Smartfish Masters"] [Site "Drammen"] [Date "2005.01.03"] [Round "7"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Shirov, Alexei"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C95"] [WhiteElo "2581"] [BlackElo "2726"] [Annotator "Wedberg,Tom"] [PlyCount "75"] [EventDate "2004.12.27"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [EventCategory "14"] [SourceTitle "CBM 105"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2005.04.11"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2005.04.11"] [SourceQuality "1"] {This game is no masterpiece, but it's a fighting game. The fact that young Magnus Carlsen manages to beat the great Alexei Shirov with his own methods is quite impressive.} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. c3 d6 9. h3 Nb8 10. d4 Nbd7 11. Nbd2 Bb7 12. Bc2 Re8 13. Nf1 Bf8 14. Ng3 g6 15. b3 c6 16. Bg5 Bg7 17. Qd2 Qc7 (17... Qe7 18. Rad1 Qf8 19. Nf1 h6 20. Bh4 Rac8 21. N1h2 exd4 22. cxd4 c5 $132 {1-0 Karjakin,S-Sasikiran,K/playchess.com 2004/EXT 2005 (60)}) 18. a4 d5 $146 {[%mdl 8]} (18... Rad8 19. Bd3 Nf8 20. Qc2 Ne6 21. Be3 Nd7 22. Rec1 Qb8 23. axb5 axb5 24. b4 $14 {1-0 Acs,P-Gabriel,C/Germany 2004/EXT 2005 (43)}) 19. dxe5 Nxe5 20. Nxe5 Qxe5 21. Bf4 (21. f4 Qc7 22. e5 Nd7 $13) 21... Qe6 22. e5 Nd7 23. Bh6 Bh8 24. f4 Qe7 25. Re3 Nf8 26. Rf1 {White is looking for a knock out on the ?-side but the black forces are well placed to withstand any attempts to storm.} c5 27. f5 d4 $5 (27... Bxe5 $5) 28. cxd4 cxd4 29. fxg6 $6 {[%mdl 512] A brave but incorrect sacrifice. From a psychological point of view this move is close to a winner.} (29. Qxd4 Bxe5 $13) 29... hxg6 $6 {Shirov accepts the calculations made by his young adversary. But he should have taken the ?.} (29... dxe3 $1 30. gxf7+ Qxf7 31. Qxe3 Qc7 $1 32. Qg5+ Ng6 33. Bxg6 Qb6+ 34. Kh1 Qxg6 $19) 30. Nf5 $5 {Once you have your opponent on the defensive - throw everything at him. Shirov himself has made a nice career from that strategy.} gxf5 31. Rg3+ Ng6 32. Bxf5 Qxe5 33. Rg4 Bg7 (33... Qd6 34. Qd3 Re6 35. h4 $1 $40) 34. Bxg6 fxg6 35. Rxg6 Re7 36. Rf4 Be4 $4 {The deciding mistake.} (36... Rc8 $1 37. Rfg4 Rcc7 $17) 37. Rg5 $1 Qe6 38. Bxg7 $18 1-0 [Event "Nanjing Pearl Spring 3rd"] [Site "Nanjing"] [Date "2010.10.21"] [Round "2"] [White "Anand, Viswanathan"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C95"] [WhiteElo "2800"] [BlackElo "2826"] [Annotator "Giri,Anish"] [PlyCount "87"] [EventDate "2010.10.20"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "CHN"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 139"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2010.11.18"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2010.11.18"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {After the World Championship, Anand seems to be listening to Fischer, who a long time ago anounced that the best move was 1.e4!} e5 {No Dragons, no Najdorfs, Carlsen is still faithful to the Breyer Defense, that remained uncracked since his last tournament in Bilbao.} 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 Nb8 {As promised: Breyer. Since my early childhood I always liked this knight maneuvre. Nowadays this variation is pretty popular and with Carlsen fighting for the black side, I am afraid the popularity of the line will only increase.} 10. d4 Nbd7 11. Nbd2 Bb7 12. Bc2 Re8 ({the rare} 12... c5 {was tried by Carlsen once in a rapid game against Jan Smeets. He managed to win the game, but I doubt that the opening had something to do with the result.}) 13. a4 ({Earlier the main move was} 13. Nf1 {having in mind the typical Spanish maneuvre. However, nowadays not everybody is convinced that this is the way to play.} Bf8 14. Ng3 g6) 13... Bf8 14. Bd3 c6 15. b4 ({Statistically the main move is} 15. b3 {and it was successfully played by Anand a few times last year. However objectively it's hard for White to prove his advantage.}) 15... Nb6 {Forcing White to take on b5 (or play a5, which is considered to be an achievement for Black), underlining the disadvantage of White's last move.} 16. axb5 {#So far Magnus has already had the position three times, two of them against Vishy.} axb5 {The main move, but sort of a surprise!} (16... cxb5 17. d5 Rc8 {was discussed in Shirov-Carlsen and Anand-Carlsen in Bilbao. In fact it seemed that both times Carlsen had no opening problems. I think this time he decided to fight his curiousity and go for the solid axb5.}) 17. Rxa8 Qxa8 $5 {finally a real surprise} (17... Bxa8 {was played in yet another Anand-Carlsen in Arctic rapid 2010.}) 18. Nb3 Nc4 $146 {A new move, with the idea to take back on e5 with a piece and thus keeping the options of d5 and c5.} 19. dxe5 {Good move - it's hard to see what else White could do.} Nxe5 20. Nxe5 Rxe5 {Black did take on e5 with piece, and he did keep option of d5 and c5, but still I have the feeling he may be slightly under pressure.} 21. f3 Re8 22. Be3 Bc8 {both sides are simply trying to improve their pieces.} 23. Bf2 Be6 24. Nd4 Bd7 25. Qd2 Qb8 26. Bf1 h6 27. Ra1 Qb7 28. Ra5 {Here it seemed as if White was about to get something real with ?a2 in the air, but Black is just in time with the counterstrike.} ({White could have tried} 28. Nb3 $5 {Now Black has to prevent ?a7} Ra8 {and the key move} (28... Qb8 $5 {with the idea} 29. Ra7 c5) 29. Ra5 $5 {White intends ?a2, and then to take on a5 with the pawn, which leads to a strategically very complicated position, but I believe Black should be able to hold the a-pawn, e.g.} Rxa5 30. bxa5 $5 Qa6 31. Bb6 Be8 $1 {or any other bishop move, intending ?d7, should be fine for Black. So all in all I believe Black should always have enough counterplay in this line.}) 28... d5 $1 (28... Ra8 29. Qa2 Rxa5 30. bxa5 Qa6 31. c4) 29. exd5 Nxd5 30. Nb3 Be6 31. Nc5 Bxc5 32. Bxc5 {Here, too, it seemed to me that White has the advantage, but in fact Black is very solid and with strong play Carlsen easily managed to equalize.} Rd8 33. Ra1 Qb8 34. Rd1 Qg3 $1 {It's always nice to annoy the king of World Champion, at least a little bit.} 35. Bf2 Qe5 36. c4 bxc4 37. Bxc4 Rd7 38. Bxd5 {Black equalized, so it's time to fix the result.} Rxd5 39. Qe1 Qxe1+ 40. Rxe1 Rd2 41. Bc5 Kh7 42. Rf1 $1 {A strong "Sofia rule" plan.} Bc4 43. Rf2 Rxf2 44. Kxf2 1/2-1/2 [Event "Bazna Kings 5th"] [Site "Medias"] [Date "2011.06.20"] [Round "9"] [White "Nisipeanu, Liviu Dieter"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C95"] [WhiteElo "2659"] [BlackElo "2815"] [Annotator "Rogozenco,Dorian"] [PlyCount "63"] [EventDate "2011.06.11"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "ROU"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 143"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2011.07.15"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2011.07.15"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 Nb8 10. d4 Nbd7 11. Nbd2 {In the 6th round Nakamura played 11.c4 here against Carlsen. Nisipeanu chooses the main move.} Bb7 12. Bc2 Re8 13. a4 Bf8 14. Bd3 c6 15. b3 g6 16. Bb2 (16. Ba3 $5) 16... exd4 {A rare continuation, which was quite unexpected for Nisipeanu.} ({Instead, one of the main moves is} 16... Nh5 {Here is a game played by Viorel Iordachescu, who was Nisipeanu's second at the Kings' Tournament:} 17. Qc2 Nf4 18. Bf1 Bg7 19. Rad1 Qb6 20. b4 d5 {with complications that led later to a draw in Iordachescu, V (2640)-Avrukh,B (2601)/Mulhouse 2011.}) 17. cxd4 d5 18. Ne5 {This new move is the result of 20 minutes of thought.} ({In the previous games White always advanced the e-pawn:} 18. e5 Nh5 {"with a normal position for Black" (Carlsen)}) 18... Bb4 {Still played a tempo by Carlsen.} (18... Nxe5 19. dxe5 {looks risky for Black, even if the consequences of} dxe4 {are not entirely clear.}) 19. Nxd7 Qxd7 20. e5 Nh5 {[%csl Rc5,Rf4] White has several attractive ideas. He would be happy to exchange the dark-squared bishops in order to exploit the weak square c5, but that is not easy to achieve.} 21. Bf1 ({The main alternatives were} 21. Ba3 Bc3 (21... Nf4 $5) 22. Rc1 ({The exchange sacrifice is probably not enough:} 22. Bc5 Bxa1 23. Qxa1 Nf4 24. Bf1 Ne6 25. Bd6 a5 {with the idea ?a6}) 22... Bxd4 23. Nf3 Bb6 24. Qd2 {with positional compensation for the sacrificed pawn.}) (21. Qc2 Nf4 22. Bc3 c5 $5) 21... Nf4 22. Re3 c5 {Magnus Carlsen felt that Black should quickly start counterplay in the centre in order to prevent White's plan with ?f3-h2-g4.} ({In the event of} 22... Ne6 23. Nf3 c5 {White can ignore Black's intentions and continue} 24. Nh2 {and if} h5 {then} ({Better is probably} 24... c4 25. Ng4 Be7) 25. Rg3 {with good attacking prospects.}) 23. dxc5 (23. Nf3 {is already too slow:} c4 24. Nh2 h5 25. Rg3 Rac8 {with sufficient counterplay for Black.}) 23... d4 (23... Bxc5 $2 24. Ne4 Be7 25. Nd6 Bxd6 26. exd6 {looks terrible for Black due to the "monster-bishop" on b2.}) 24. Ne4 {The most natural move.} (24. Nf3 Bxc5) (24. Re4 {doesn't work:} Bxd2 $1 25. Rxd4 Nxh3+ 26. gxh3 Qc6 {and Black wins.}) 24... Bxe4 25. Rxe4 Ne6 26. Rxd4 {A good practical decision from Nisipeanu, since he saw no way to set any real problems for Black. After the exchange sac White is out of risk and the draw becomes the most likely result.} ({After} 26. Bxd4 Rad8 27. Be3 Qxd1 28. Rxd1 Rxd1 29. Rxb4 Nc7 {only White can be worse.}) (26. axb5 {brings White nothing either:} axb5 27. Rxa8 (27. Qd3 Rxa1 28. Bxa1 Rd8 29. Qxb5 Qxb5 30. Bxb5 d3 31. Bxd3 Rxd3 32. Rxb4 Rd1+ 33. Kh2 Rxa1 34. Rb8+ Kg7 35. b4 Re1 {is again risky rather for White}) 27... Rxa8 28. Qd3 Bxc5 29. Qxb5 Qxb5 30. Bxb5 Ra2 {with counterplay}) 26... Nxd4 27. Qxd4 Qxd4 28. Bxd4 Rad8 29. Be3 Rxe5 30. axb5 axb5 31. Rc1 {[%csl Gc5]} Rxe3 {Forcing the draw.} (31... Rc8 32. c6 Kf8 33. g3 {is also about equal: the strong extra pawn on c6 together with the bishop pair secure White good compensation for the exchange.}) 32. fxe3 ({After} 32. fxe3 Bd2 33. Rc2 Bxe3+ 34. Kh2 Rd5 {the draw becomes obvious.}) 1/2-1/2 [Event "Bazna Kings 5th"] [Site "Medias"] [Date "2011.06.17"] [Round "6"] [White "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C95"] [WhiteElo "2774"] [BlackElo "2815"] [Annotator "Rogozenco,Dorian"] [PlyCount "67"] [EventDate "2011.06.11"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "10"] [EventCountry "ROU"] [EventCategory "21"] [SourceTitle "CBM 143"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2011.07.15"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2011.07.15"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. c3 d6 9. h3 Nb8 {The knight goes to d7 freeing the path for the c-pawn.} 10. d4 Nbd7 {With plenty of strategical ideas for both sides the Breyer Variation of the Ruy Lopez is a classical opening line, which Magnus Carlsen had played many times before.} 11. c4 {Nakamura certainly relied on the surprise factor of this move.} ({In the vast majority of games White plays here} 11. Nbd2) 11... c6 12. Nc3 {"I was very happy when I saw this move, as now I can conveniently close the position", said Carlsen after the game.} (12. a3 {would have kept somewhat more tension in the position.}) 12... b4 13. Na4 c5 14. d5 {In this close position the main battlefield is going to be the kingside.} Re8 $5 {[%csl Ra4,Rf4][%CAl Gd7f8,Gf8g6] A somewhat unexpected move in such positions. Usually in this structure Black is trying to prepare ...f7-f5 and therefore he needs the rook on f8 for that. However, Carlsen had another plan in mind - he wanted to transfer the knight to g6.} 15. Bc2 Nf8 16. a3 a5 17. b3 {The knight from a4 is coming to d3.} Ng6 18. Nb2 Bd7 {[%CAl Gb2d3,Gf3h2,Yh2g4,Yh2f1]} 19. Nh2 {Now Nakamura improves the position of the other knight.} h6 {And Carlsen is doing the same - the knight from f6 needs a square in order to prepare the favourable (for Black) exchange of the dark-squared bishops via g5.} 20. Nf1 Nh7 21. Ne3 Bg5 22. axb4 axb4 23. Rxa8 Qxa8 24. Nf5 Bxc1 25. Qxc1 Bxf5 {Continuing to exchanges pieces. Black wasn't obliged to hurry and could keep a comfortable position with 25...?a6 - a move which Magnus, as he admitted, would have normally played, had he not been feeling tired.} 26. exf5 Ngf8 {Already around here Carlsen saw the possible repetition of moves and he just went for it without second thought.} 27. Nd1 Nf6 28. f3 Qa2 29. g4 Ra8 30. Nf2 Qa3 {White cannot really avoid the repetition. At this moment both sides must have been happy with the outcome.} 31. Qb1 (31. Qd2 {allows Black to improve with} Qb2) ({while the only reasonable attempt} 31. h4 {can bring White nothing but troubles in the resulting endgame mentioned by Carlsen:} Qxc1 32. Rxc1 g5 33. fxg6 Nxg6 34. Bxg6 fxg6 35. g5 hxg5 36. hxg5 Nh5 37. Ne4 Ra6 {and with his rook on the open file only Black can play for a win.}) 31... Qa2 32. Qc1 Qa3 33. Qb1 Qa2 34. Qc1 1/2-1/2 [Event "Biel GM"] [Site "Biel"] [Date "2007.07.27"] [Round "4"] [White "Motylev, Alexander"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C95"] [WhiteElo "2648"] [BlackElo "2710"] [Annotator "ChessBase"] [PlyCount "70"] [EventDate "2007.07.23"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "SUI"] [EventCategory "18"] [SourceTitle "CBM 120"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2007.10.02"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2007.10.02"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. c3 d6 9. h3 Nb8 10. d4 Nbd7 11. Nbd2 Bb7 12. Bc2 Re8 13. Nf1 Bf8 14. Ng3 g6 15. b3 c6 16. a4 Bg7 17. Ba3 d5 18. dxe5 Nxe5 19. Nxe5 Rxe5 20. f4 Re8 21. e5 Nd7 22. Bd6 c5 23. axb5 axb5 24. Rxa8 Bxa8 25. b4 cxb4 26. Bxb4 f6 27. Bb3 fxe5 28. Bxd5+ Bxd5 29. Qxd5+ Kh8 30. f5 Qb6+ 31. Kh2 Nf6 32. Qf7 e4 33. fxg6 Qb8 34. gxh7 Qe5 {Carlsen had played the game extremely quickly, but not without some inaccuracies. Here Motylev had a winning position, but he was already in extreme time trouble and carlsen's rapid play did not allow him much thinking time on his opponent's moves.. Carlsen hatte die Partie extrem schnell gespielt, aber auch nicht fehlerlos. Motylev hatte hier eine Gewinnstellung, aber er befand sich auch schon starker Zeitnot und wegen Carlsens schnellen Spiel erhielt er wenig Gelegenheit bei gegnerischem Zugrecht nachzudenken.} 35. Bd6 $4 ({The strongest move, and almost the only winning one was Am stärksten (und fast auch der einzige Gewinn) war} 35. Qg6 Z0 {and the unpinning of the g3-knight with und die Entfesselung des Springers g3 mit} 36. Kg1) 35... Qxd6 {The plan now was 36.?xg7+ ?xg7 37.?f5+, but the knight on g3 was still pinned. Geplant war nun 36.?xg7+ ?xg7 37.?f5+, aber der Springer auf g3 ist immer noch gefesselt.} 0-1 [Event "London Classic 2nd"] [Site "London"] [Date "2010.12.10"] [Round "3"] [White "Anand, Viswanathan"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C95"] [WhiteElo "2804"] [BlackElo "2802"] [PlyCount "153"] [EventDate "2010.12.06"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "7"] [EventCountry "ENG"] [EventCategory "19"] [SourceTitle "CBM 140"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2011.01.18"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2011.01.18"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {Giri,Anish} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 Nb8 10. d4 Nbd7 11. Nbd2 Bb7 12. Bc2 Re8 ({RR} 12... c5) 13. a4 ({RR} 13. Nf1 Bf8 14. Ng3 g6) 13... Bf8 14. Bd3 c6 15. b4 ({RR} 15. b3) 15... Rc8 ({RR} 15... Nb6 16. axb5 axb5 ({RR} 16... cxb5 17. d5 Rc8) 17. Rxa8 Qxa8 ({RR} 17... Bxa8) 18. Nb3 Nc4 19. dxe5 Nxe5 20. Nxe5 Rxe5 21. f3 Re8 22. Be3 Bc8 23. Bf2 Be6 24. Nd4 Bd7 25. Qd2 Qb8 26. Bf1 h6 27. Ra1 Qb7 28. Ra5 ({RR} 28. Nb3 Ra8 ({RR} 28... Qb8 29. Ra7 c5) 29. Ra5 Rxa5 30. bxa5 Qa6 31. Bb6 Be8) 28... d5 ({RR} 28... Ra8 29. Qa2 Rxa5 30. bxa5 Qa6 31. c4) 29. exd5 Nxd5 30. Nb3 {Anand,V (2800)-Carlsen,M (2826) Nanjing 2010 CBM 139 [Giri,Anish] ½-½ (44)}) ({RR} 15... g6 16. Bb2 Bg7 17. Qb3 Rc8 18. axb5 axb5 19. Ra7 Qb6 20. Rea1 d5 21. dxe5 Nxe4 22. Bxe4 dxe4 23. Nxe4 c5 24. bxc5 Nxc5 25. Nxc5 Rxc5 26. Ng5 Bd5 27. Qb4 Rc4 28. Qd6 Qxd6 29. exd6 Rd8 30. d7 {Liuviann,C (1920)-Khamdamova,A (2291) FIDE Online Arena INT 2024 0-1 (47)}) 16. axb5 cxb5 17. Bb2 $146 ({RR} 17. Ra3 d5 18. dxe5 dxe4 19. Nxe4 Nxe5 20. Nxf6+ Qxf6 21. Nxe5 Rxe5 22. Be3 Qe6 23. Bf1 f5 24. Bd2 Rd8 25. Rxe5 Qxe5 26. Qb3+ Kh8 27. Qc2 f4 28. c4 bxc4 29. Bxc4 Rc8 30. Qd3 Qg5 31. g3 Rd8 {Knoll,H (2309)-Diermair,A (2485) Pinkafeld 2015 0-1 (34)}) 17... d5 18. exd5 exd4 19. Rxe8 Qxe8 20. c4 bxc4 21. Nxc4 Nxd5 22. Nxd4 Nxb4 23. Nf5 Nxd3 24. Qxd3 Be4 25. Qd4 Bxf5 26. Nd6 Qd8 27. Nxf5 f6 28. Rd1 Rc2 29. Nh6+ gxh6 30. Qg4+ Bg7 31. Qe6+ Kh8 32. Rxd7 Qf8 33. Ba3 Qg8 34. Qxa6 Qe8 35. Qa7 Qg8 36. Be7 Rc8 37. Qa6 Qe8 38. Ra7 Kg8 39. Qe6+ Kh8 40. Qa6 Kg8 41. Qe6+ Kh8 42. Kh2 Rc6 43. Qb3 Rc8 44. Bd6 Qg6 45. Qb7 Rd8 46. Bg3 Rg8 47. h4 Qf5 48. Qc7 Qd5 49. Ra5 Qe4 50. Qd7 Qc4 51. Qf5 Qc8 52. Qf3 Qd7 53. Bf4 Qf7 54. g3 Re8 55. Be3 Rg8 56. Ra6 Re8 57. Ra7 Re7 58. Qa8+ Qf8 59. Ra6 Re8 60. Qc6 Rc8 61. Qf3 Qf7 62. Ra7 Qe6 63. Qb7 Qg8 64. Bf4 Rd8 65. Qa6 Re8 66. Rc7 Ra8 67. Qc6 Re8 68. Be3 Rb8 69. Bd4 Qf8 70. Qc3 Re8 71. Rc6 Qf7 72. Bxf6 Rf8 73. Bxg7+ Qxg7 74. Qe3 Qb2 75. Kg2 Qb7 76. Qxh6 Qf7 77. Rc2 1-0 [Event "Olympiad-38"] [Site "Dresden"] [Date "2008.11.13"] [Round "1"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Ragger, Markus"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C95"] [WhiteElo "2786"] [BlackElo "2518"] [PlyCount "131"] [EventDate "2008.11.13"] [EventType "team-swiss"] [EventRounds "11"] [EventCountry "GER"] [SourceTitle "CBM 128"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2009.01.28"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2009.01.28"] [SourceQuality "1"] [WhiteTeam "Norway"] [BlackTeam "Austria"] [WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"] [BlackTeamCountry "AUT"] 1. e4 {Ernst,Thomas} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 Nb8 10. d4 Nbd7 11. Nbd2 Bb7 12. Bc2 Re8 13. a4 Bf8 14. Bd3 c6 15. b3 Qc7 ({RR} 15... g6 16. Ba3 ({RR} 16. Bb2 Bg7 ({RR} 16... exd4 17. cxd4 d5 18. e5 Nh5 19. Nf1 Nf4 20. Bc2 c5 21. dxc5 Nxc5) 17. Bf1 ({RR} 17. Qc2 Qb6 ({RR} 17... Rc8 18. c4 exd4 19. Bxd4 Nh5 20. Bxg7 Nxg7 21. b4 a5) ({RR} 17... Nh5 18. Bf1 Nf4 19. Rad1 ({RR} 19. Rab1 Ne6 20. Ba1 Qc7 21. b4 Rad8 22. Qa2) 19... Ne6) 18. b4 c5 19. bxc5 dxc5 20. dxe5 ({RR} 20. Nxe5 Nxe5 21. dxe5 Nd7 22. c4 b4 23. f4 g5) 20... Nh5) 17... Qb6 18. Qc2 Rac8 ({RR} 18... Nh5 19. b4 Nf4 20. dxe5 Nxe5 21. Nxe5 dxe5 22. c4) 19. Rad1 Nh5 20. b4) 16... Qc7 ({RR} 16... Nh5 17. Qc2 ({RR} 17. Bf1 Qb6 18. b4 Rad8 19. Bb2 c5) 17... Nf4 18. Bf1 Qc7 19. g3 Ne6 20. Bb2 Bg7 21. b4) 17. Qc2 Bg7 ({RR} 17... Rad8 18. Rab1 d5 19. Bxf8 Kxf8 20. b4 dxe4 21. Bxe4 exd4 22. cxd4) ({RR} 17... Rac8 18. Rab1 ({RR} 18. Rad1 Qb6 19. Bf1 c5 20. d5 Rb8) 18... Qb8 19. Qa2 Bg7 20. dxe5 dxe5 21. c4 Ba8 22. b4) 18. Rad1 ({RR} 18. Bf1 d5 19. exd5 Nxd5 20. c4 b4 21. cxd5 bxa3) ({RR} 18. Rab1 Rad8 19. Bf1 d5) 18... d5 19. exd5 Nxd5 20. Ne4 exd4 21. cxd4 b4 22. Bb2 a5 23. Bc4) ({RR} 15... Rb8 16. Ba3 Nh5 17. Bf1 Nf4 18. Qc2 Bc8) 16. Bb2 g6 17. Qc2 Bg7 18. Bf1 ({RR} 18. c4 bxa4 19. c5 axb3 20. Nxb3 Bf8 21. cxd6 Bxd6 22. dxe5 Nxe5 23. Nxe5 Bxe5 24. Nc5 Nd7 25. Nxb7 Qxb7 26. Reb1 Qc7 27. Bxe5 Qxe5 28. Rc1 c5 29. Ra5 Qd4 30. Rd1 Qb4 31. Ra4 Qb7 32. Rda1 Nb6 {Cahaya,S (2360)-Ervan,M (2383) Bandung INA 2025 ½-½ (36)}) 18... Rac8 19. Rad1 bxa4 $146 ({RR} 19... Qb8 20. Qb1 Re6 21. axb5 axb5 22. c4 bxc4 23. Bxc4 Re7 24. dxe5 dxe5 25. Ba3 c5 26. b4 Qa8 27. Qb3 h6 28. Nh4 Nf8 29. bxc5 Bc6 30. Ra1 Rd8 31. Bb2 Qc8 32. Qe3 Ne6 33. Nhf3 Nd7 34. Nb3 {Djukic,N (2567)-Hansen,E (2629) Batumi 2018 1-0 (42)}) ({RR} 19... Qb8 20. g3 Nf8 21. Bg2 Ne6 22. b4 Nd7 23. axb5 axb5 24. dxe5 Nxe5 25. Nd4 c5 26. bxc5 Nxc5 27. Re3 Nc4 28. Nxc4 bxc4 29. Ba3 Nd3 30. Rb1 Qa8 31. Nb5 d5 32. Nd6 d4 33. cxd4 Qxa3 34. Nxe8 {Ponomariov,R (2718)-Ivanchuk,V (2781) Moscow 2008 0-1 (36)}) ({RR} 19... Qb8 20. Qb1 Ba8 21. Qa2 Nh5 22. b4 Re7 23. c4 exd4 24. Bxd4 Bxd4 25. Nxd4 c5 26. Nc2 bxa4 27. Qxa4 cxb4 28. Nxb4 Nc5 29. Qa3 Qa7 ({RR} 29... Nxe4 30. Nxe4 Rxe4 31. Rxe4 Bxe4 32. Nxa6) 30. Re3 Rce8 31. Rde1 Nf6 ({RR} 31... Nxe4 32. Qxa6 Qxa6 33. Nxa6) 32. f3 h5 33. h4 Qb6 34. Kh1 {Steingrimsson,H (2420)-Hauchard,A (2450) Reykjavik 1993 CBM 035 [Ernst,Thomas] 1-0 (57)}) 20. bxa4 d5 21. dxe5 Nxe4 22. Nxe4 dxe4 23. Ng5 Rxe5 24. Bc1 Re7 25. Rxe4 Ne5 26. f4 h6 27. fxe5 hxg5 28. e6 f5 29. Ree1 Bf6 30. Bc4 Kg7 31. Qd3 Qa5 32. h4 gxh4 33. Qe3 g5 34. Rd7 Rce8 35. Rxe7+ Rxe7 36. Ba3 f4 37. Qd3 c5 38. Re2 f3 39. gxf3 Qc7 40. Qe3 h3 41. f4 Qxf4 42. Qxf4 gxf4 43. Bxc5 Re8 44. Bd4 Bc6 45. Kh2 Kg6 46. Bxa6 Bxa4 47. Bd3+ Kg5 48. Ra2 Bxd4 49. cxd4 Bb3 50. Ra5+ Kf6 51. Rf5+ Ke7 52. d5 Kd6 53. Be4 Re7 54. Bf3 Ra7 55. Kxh3 Rg7 56. Rxf4 Ba2 57. Kh4 Bb3 58. Rb4 Ba2 59. Rg4 Rxg4+ 60. Kxg4 Bb1 61. Kf4 Bh7 62. Bg2 Bg6 63. Kg5 Be8 64. Kf6 Bh5 65. Be4 Be8 66. Bf3 1-0 [Event "Reykjavik op 22nd"] [Site "Reykjavik"] [Date "2006.03.06"] [Round "1"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Weeks, Manuel William"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C95"] [WhiteElo "2625"] [BlackElo "2273"] [PlyCount "81"] [EventDate "2006.03.06"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "ISL"] [SourceTitle "CBM 111 Extra"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2006.05.09"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2006.05.09"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 Nb8 10. d4 Nbd7 11. Nbd2 Bb7 12. Bc2 Re8 13. Nf1 Bf8 14. Ng3 g6 15. a4 Bg7 16. Bd3 c6 17. Bg5 Qc7 18. Qd2 Nf8 19. Bh6 Ne6 20. b4 Nd7 $146 ({RR} 20... Rad8 21. Ra3 Qe7 22. axb5 cxb5 23. d5 Bxh6 24. Qxh6 Nf4 25. Bf1 Rc8 26. Re3 Nd7 27. Nd2 Nb6 28. Ne2 Nh5 29. Rf3 Rc7 30. g4 Ng7 31. Qe3 Nc4 32. Nxc4 Rxc4 33. Nc1 Rc7 34. Nb3 Bc8 35. Na5 {Shetty,R (2335)-Vijayalakshmi,S (2399) Raipur 2002 0-1 (53)}) 21. Bf1 Nb6 22. Bxg7 Kxg7 23. a5 Nd7 24. c4 Rad8 25. Rac1 Qb8 26. Red1 f6 27. d5 cxd5 28. exd5 Nf4 29. cxb5 axb5 30. Bxb5 Bxd5 31. Bc6 Bxc6 32. Rxc6 d5 33. Rdc1 Nf8 34. Rb6 Qa7 35. Nd4 Rc8 36. Nb5 Qd7 37. Nd6 Rxc1+ 38. Qxc1 Re7 39. a6 Qa7 40. Qc6 N4e6 41. Nc8 1-0 [Event "NOR-chT2"] [Site "Oslo"] [Date "2006.06.10"] [Round "4"] [White "Hansen, Torbjorn Ringdal"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C95"] [WhiteElo "2319"] [BlackElo "2646"] [PlyCount "96"] [EventDate "2006.06.07"] [EventType "team"] [EventRounds "5"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [SourceTitle "CBM 112 Extra"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2006.07.14"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2006.07.14"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {Marin,Mihail} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 Nb8 10. d4 Nbd7 11. Nbd2 Bb7 12. Bc2 Re8 13. Nf1 Bf8 14. Ng3 g6 ({RR} 14... c6 15. Be3 Qc7 16. a4 Rad8 17. Qc1 h6 18. b3 Qb8 19. Rb1 Qc8 20. b4 Qc7 21. Nd2 d5) 15. b3 c6 16. Bg5 Bg7 ({RR} 16... h6) 17. dxe5 $146 ({RR} 17. Qd2 Qe7 ({RR} 17... Qc7 18. a4 Rac8 ({RR} 18... d5 19. dxe5 Nxe5 20. Nxe5 Qxe5 21. Bf4 Qe6 22. e5) ({RR} 18... Rad8 19. Bd3 Nf8 20. Qc2 Ne6 21. Be3 Nd7 22. Rec1 Qb8 23. axb5 axb5 24. b4) 19. Bd3 Nf8 20. Rec1 Ne6 21. Be3 Nd7 22. Bf1 Nb6 ({RR} 22... Rcd8 23. b4 Qb8 24. axb5 axb5 25. Ra5 Nf6 26. dxe5 dxe5 27. Qc2 Nd7 28. c4 bxc4 29. Bxc4 Qc7 30. Qa2) 23. a5 Nd7 24. b4) 18. a4 Qf8 19. axb5 ({RR} 19. Bd3 d5 20. Nxe5 Nxe5 21. dxe5 Rxe5 22. f4 Ree8 23. e5 Nd7 24. axb5 cxb5 25. Kh1 Qc5 26. b4 Qc7 27. Ne2 f6 28. exf6 Nxf6) ({RR} 19. axb5 axb5 20. dxe5 Nxe5 21. Nxe5 dxe5 22. Qe2 Nd7 23. b4 Bh6 24. Bxh6 Qxh6 25. Bb3 Qf8 26. Nf1 Qe7 27. Nh2 Kg7) ({RR} 19. b4 Nb6 20. dxe5 dxe5 21. Qe2 Nxa4 22. Bxa4 bxa4 23. Be3 Nd7 24. Rxa4 c5) ({RR} 19. Rad1 Rac8 ({RR} 19... d5) 20. Bd3 h6 21. Be3 Rcd8 22. Qa2 Ra8 23. Bc1 ({RR} 23. Qc2) 23... Re6 24. Qd2 Qb8 25. c4 bxa4 26. bxa4 Re8 27. Bb2) 19... axb5 20. dxe5 Nxe5 21. Nxe5 dxe5 22. Qe2 Rxa1 23. Rxa1 Ra8 24. Rxa8 Qxa8 25. Qd3 h6 26. Be3 Bf8 27. b4 Qc8 28. Bb3 Qd7 29. Qe2 h5 30. Qf3 Bg7 31. Bg5 Nh7 {Arjun,K (2322)-Ghosh,D (2569) Bhubaneswar 2017 ½-½ (32)}) ({RR} 17. Qd2 Qe7 18. a4 Qf8 19. Kh1 Rac8 ({RR} 19... d5 20. dxe5 Nxe5 21. Nxe5 Rxe5 22. f4 Ree8 23. e5 Nd7 24. c4) 20. axb5 cxb5 21. Bd3 h6 22. Be3 exd4 23. cxd4 d5 24. e5 Ne4 25. Qb2 f5 26. exf6 Qxf6 27. Rac1 Ndc5 28. Bb1 Nxg3+ 29. fxg3 Ne4 30. Bf4 Qb6 31. Kh2 b4 {Svidler,P (2736)-Sasikiran,K (2690) Foros 2007 CBM 119 [Marin,Mihail] ½-½ (67)}) ({RR} 17. Qd2 Nf8 18. Rad1 Qc7 19. Bh6 Ne6 20. b4 Rad8 21. Bb3 Bc8 22. Bxe6 Bxe6 23. Qg5 Bc8 24. Bxg7 Kxg7 25. dxe5 dxe5 26. Rxd8 Rxd8 27. Qxe5 Qxe5 28. Nxe5 Rd2 29. Nxc6 Rxa2 30. f3 Be6 31. Ne2 Bc4 {Kourkoulos Arditis,S (2570)-Tarlev,K (2579) Mamaia ROU 2024 1-0 (45)}) ({RR} 17. Qd2 Qe7 18. a4 Qf8 19. Rad1 h6 20. Be3 Rad8 21. Qc1 Kh7 22. b4 Re6 23. Qb1 d5 24. dxe5 Nxe4 25. Bxe4 dxe4 26. Nxe4 Nxe5 27. Nfg5+ hxg5 28. Nxg5+ Kg8 29. Nxe6 Rxd1 30. Qxd1 fxe6 31. Bd4 Qd6 {Carlsen,M (2714)-Pruijssers,R (2408) Kemer 2007 1-0 (40)}) ({RR} 17. Qd2 Qc7 18. a4 d5 19. dxe5 Nxe5 20. Nxe5 Qxe5 21. Bf4 Qe6 22. e5 Nd7 23. Bh6 Bh8 24. f4 Qe7 25. Qf2 Nf8 26. Rf1 {½-½ (26) Zhigalko,S (2504)-Belov,V (2589) St Petersburg 2006}) 17... Nxe5 18. Nxe5 Rxe5 19. Qd2 Qf8 20. Bf4 Re6 21. Rad1 d5 22. c4 b4 23. exd5 Rxe1+ 24. Rxe1 cxd5 25. cxd5 Nxd5 26. Be5 Bxe5 27. Rxe5 Rd8 28. Qe1 Qd6 29. Re8+ Rxe8 30. Qxe8+ Kg7 31. Bd3 Bc6 32. Qe1 a5 33. Bc4 Nf4 34. f3 Qf6 35. Qe3 Qg5 36. Kf2 h5 37. Qd4+ Kg8 38. Qa7 Qf6 39. Ne2 Nxg2 40. Nd4 Nf4 41. Nxc6 Nxh3+ 42. Kg3 Ng5 43. Qb8+ Kh7 44. Qf4 Qa1 45. Bxf7 Qg1+ 46. Kh4 Kh6 47. Bd5 Qe1+ 48. Qg3 Qh1+ 0-1 [Event "EU-Cup 23rd"] [Site "Kemer"] [Date "2007.10.03"] [Round "1.1"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Pruijssers, Roeland"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C95"] [WhiteElo "2714"] [BlackElo "2408"] [PlyCount "79"] [EventDate "2007.10.03"] [EventType "team-swiss"] [EventRounds "7"] [EventCountry "TUR"] [SourceTitle "CBM 121"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2007.11.14"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2007.11.14"] [SourceQuality "1"] [WhiteTeam "Baden-Baden"] [BlackTeam "Hagendoorn Homburg"] [WhiteTeamCountry "GER"] [BlackTeamCountry "NED"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 Nb8 10. d4 Nbd7 11. Nbd2 Bb7 12. Bc2 Re8 13. Nf1 Bf8 14. Ng3 g6 15. b3 c6 16. Bg5 Bg7 17. Qd2 Qe7 18. a4 Qf8 19. Rad1 h6 20. Be3 Rad8 21. Qc1 Kh7 22. b4 $146 ({RR} 22. Qb1 Qe7 23. Bc1 Nf8 24. Ba3 Qc7 25. Re2 c5 26. d5 Bc8 27. b4 N8d7 28. a5 Bb7 29. Bc1 Rc8 30. Bd3 Rb8 31. Bd2 Rec8 32. Qa2 c4 33. Bb1 Rf8 34. Nh2 Rbe8 35. Bc2 Qd8 36. Qb1 Ng8 {Jones,R (2393)-Stefansson,H (2515) Istanbul 2012 ½-½ (75)}) ({RR} 22. Qb1 Qe7 23. Kh2 Nf8 24. dxe5 dxe5 25. b4 Qc7 26. Bb3 bxa4 27. Bxa4 Ne6 28. Bb3 Ra8 29. Nd2 Bf8 30. Bxe6 Rxe6 31. Nb3 h5 32. f3 Ree8 33. Qa2 Bc8 34. Qa5 Qb7 35. Qb6 Qxb6 36. Bxb6 Be6 {Xu,Y (2500)-Paehtz,E (2449) Dagomys 2008 ½-½ (40)}) 22... Re6 23. Qb1 d5 24. dxe5 Nxe4 25. Bxe4 dxe4 26. Nxe4 Nxe5 27. Nfg5+ hxg5 28. Nxg5+ Kg8 29. Nxe6 Rxd1 30. Qxd1 fxe6 31. Bd4 Qd6 32. f4 Nc4 33. Bxg7 Kxg7 34. Qxd6 Nxd6 35. Rd1 Nc4 36. Rd7+ Kf6 37. axb5 Bc8 38. Rc7 Nd6 39. bxa6 Bxa6 40. Rxc6 1-0 [Event "Corus"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2008.01.22"] [Round "9"] [White "Leko, Peter"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C95"] [WhiteElo "2753"] [BlackElo "2733"] [PlyCount "80"] [EventDate "2008.01.12"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "13"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 122"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2008.01.30"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2008.01.30"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. c3 d6 9. h3 Nb8 10. d4 Nbd7 11. Nbd2 Bb7 12. Bc2 Re8 13. Nf1 Bf8 14. Ng3 g6 15. b3 a5 16. Bd2 ({RR} 16. a3 c6 17. Bg5 h6 18. Be3 exd4 19. cxd4 c5 20. Qd2 Kh7 21. Rad1 Rc8 22. d5 Bg7 23. Qe2 Ba6 24. Rc1 Qb6 25. Bd3 Qb7 26. Rb1 Qc7 27. b4 axb4 28. axb4 cxb4 29. Rxb4 Nc5 30. Reb1 Nxd3 {Ivanchuk,V (2728)-Mamedyarov,S (2764) Izmir 2016 1-0 (46)}) ({RR} 16. a4 b4 17. cxb4 axb4 18. Bb2 exd4 19. Qxd4 Rb8 20. Qd2 Bg7 21. Rad1 Nc5 22. e5 Bxf3 23. gxf3 Nfd7 24. f4 Qh4 25. Qd5 Ne6 26. Bc1 Nxf4 27. Bxf4 Qxf4 28. exd6 cxd6 29. Rxe8+ Rxe8 30. Qxd6 Ne5 {Agmanov,Z (2480)-Amartuvshin,G (2429) Al Ain UAE 2025 1-0 (56)}) 16... Rb8 $146 ({RR} 16... Qb8 17. a4 bxa4 18. Rxa4 c5 19. dxe5 dxe5 20. c4 Bd6 21. Rxa5 Rxa5 22. Bxa5 Nf8 23. Nh2 Ne6 24. Nhf1 Nd4 25. Ne3 Qa8 26. Bc3 Rb8 27. Qd3 Bc8 28. b4 Rxb4 29. Bxb4 cxb4 30. Bb1 Qa7 31. Ne2 {Fernandez Cardoso,A (2438)-Perez Leiva,J (2393) Holguin CUB 2023 1-0 (52)}) ({RR} 16... Bg7 17. Bg5 {½-½ (19) Chumfwa,S (2189)-Chumfwa,K (2135) Lusaka ZAM 2024}) 17. Bd3 b4 18. Qc2 d5 19. cxb4 dxe4 20. Nxe4 Bxb4 21. Bxb4 Bxe4 22. Bxa5 Bxd3 23. Qxd3 e4 24. Qc4 exf3 25. Bxc7 Qc8 26. Bxb8 Qxb8 27. Rxe8+ Qxe8 28. a4 fxg2 29. a5 Qe4 30. a6 Nb6 31. a7 Kg7 32. Qc7 Qxd4 33. Re1 Qb4 34. Re7 Qxb3 35. Kxg2 Qd5+ 36. Kg1 Qd1+ 37. Kg2 Qd5+ 38. Kg1 Qd1+ 39. Kh2 Qf3 40. Qxb6 Qf4+ 1-0 [Event "Wch U14"] [Site "Chalkidiki"] [Date "2003.11.01"] [Round "10"] [White "Rohit, Gogineni"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C95"] [WhiteElo "2346"] [BlackElo "2450"] [PlyCount "96"] [EventDate "2003.10.23"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventRounds "11"] [EventCountry "GRE"] [SourceTitle "EXT 2004"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2003.11.25"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2003.11.25"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 Nb8 10. d4 Nbd7 11. Nbd2 Bb7 12. Bc2 Re8 13. Nf1 Bf8 14. Ng3 g6 15. b3 Bg7 16. d5 Qe7 17. Be3 c6 18. c4 Rec8 ({RR} 18... Nc5 19. Qd2 a5 20. a3 a4 21. Bxc5 dxc5 22. cxb5 cxd5 23. exd5 axb3 24. Bxb3 Qd6 25. Ra2 h6 26. Qd3 Rad8 27. Rd2 Nxd5 28. Red1 Qb6 29. Qc4 Qc7 30. Rxd5 Bxd5 31. Rxd5 Rxd5 32. Qxd5 Rd8 33. Qc6 {Anand,V (2773)-Harikrishna,P (2729) Kolkata 2018 1-0 (33)}) 19. Nd2 a5 20. a4 $146 ({RR} 20. cxb5 cxd5 21. Rc1 h6 22. exd5 Nxd5 23. Nc4 Nxe3 24. Nxe3 Rc5 25. Be4 Rxb5 26. Bxb7 Rxb7 27. Ne4 Nf6 28. Nxf6+ Qxf6 29. Qd5 Rbb8 30. Rc7 a4 31. b4 a3 32. Rec1 Qe6 33. Qxe6 fxe6 34. Rd7 Rd8 {Svidler,P (2733)-Harikrishna,P (2599) Playchess.com INT 2004 ½-½ (53)}) 20... bxc4 21. bxc4 Ba6 22. Rb1 Qf8 23. Ngf1 Bh6 24. Bxh6 Qxh6 25. Ne3 cxd5 26. cxd5 Rc3 27. Nb3 Nc5 28. Nxc5 Rxc5 29. Rb6 Qf8 30. Qd2 Qd8 31. Reb1 Qc7 32. R1b2 Bc8 33. Kh2 Bd7 34. Qe2 Rc8 35. Qa6 Ne8 36. Rb7 Qd8 37. Qa7 Nf6 38. Qb6 Qf8 39. Bd1 Be8 40. Bg4 Ra8 41. Ra7 Rxa7 42. Qxa7 h5 43. Bf3 Qh6 44. g3 h4 45. Qe7 hxg3+ 46. Kg2 Kg7 47. Qxd6 Bd7 48. fxg3 Qxe3 0-1 [Event "Gausdal Byggern Masters"] [Site "Gausdal"] [Date "2005.10.08"] [Round "8"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Ostmoe, Geir S Tallaksen"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C95"] [WhiteElo "2570"] [BlackElo "2350"] [PlyCount "73"] [EventDate "2005.10.01"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [SourceTitle "CBM 108 Extra"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2005.11.04"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2005.11.04"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {Minic,Dragoljub} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 Nb8 10. d4 Nbd7 11. Nbd2 Bb7 12. Bc2 Re8 13. Nf1 Bf8 14. Ng3 g6 15. a4 Bg7 ({RR} 15... c5 16. d5 ({RR} 16. Be3 exd4 ({RR} 16... Qc7 17. Qd2 cxd4 18. cxd4 Nb6) 17. cxd4 Bxe4 ({RR} 17... Nxe4 18. Bxe4 ({RR} 18. Nxe4 Bxe4 19. Bg5 Bxf3 20. Bxd8 Bxd1 21. Rxe8 Bxc2) 18... Bxe4 19. Bg5) 18. Nxe4 Nxe4 19. Bxe4 Rxe4 20. dxc5 Nxc5 21. Qd5 Re8 ({RR} 21... bxa4) 22. axb5 axb5 23. b4 Ne6 24. Rxa8) 16... Qc7 ({RR} 16... c4 17. Be3 ({RR} 17. Bg5) 17... Nc5 18. Qe2 ({RR} 18. Qd2 Nfd7 19. h4 h5 20. Ng5 Qe7) 18... Nfd7 ({RR} 18... Qc7 19. Ra3 ({RR} 19. Nd2) 19... Bg7 20. Rea1 Rec8 21. Nd2 Qd8 22. R1a2 Nfd7) 19. Nd2 Qc7 20. Ra3 Nb6 21. axb5 axb5) ({RR} 16... Nb6 17. Qe2 Nxa4) ({RR} 16... Bg7 17. b4 ({RR} 17. c4 Nb6 18. Nd2 bxa4 19. Bxa4 Nxa4 20. Qxa4 Nd7 21. Ndf1 a5) ({RR} 17. Bg5 h6 18. Bd2 Nb6) 17... cxb4 18. cxb4 Nb6 19. a5 Nc4 20. Bd3 Rc8 21. Ra2 Re7 ({RR} 21... Rf8 22. Rc2 Ne8 23. Qe2 Kh8 24. Bxc4 bxc4 25. Rxc4 Rxc4 26. Qxc4 Nc7) 22. Rc2 Rec7) 17. Be3 c4 18. Qd2 Nc5 19. Ra3 Nfd7 20. Rea1 Bg7 21. Bh6 Bh8 22. Nh2 Nb6 23. axb5 axb5 24. Rxa8 Rxa8 25. Rf1 Qe7) ({RR} 15... exd4 16. cxd4 c5 17. d5 Bg7 18. Bf4 Qc7 19. Rc1 Nb6 20. b3 bxa4 21. b4 Nfd7 22. Bxa4) 16. Bd3 ({RR} 16. d5 Qe7 17. b3 c6 18. c4) 16... c6 17. Bg5 h6 18. Bd2 ({RR} 18. Be3 Qc7 19. dxe5 dxe5 20. b4 Rad8 21. Qe2 Bf8 22. Reb1 Nb6 23. a5 Nc8 24. c4 Qd6 25. Ra3 Qe6 26. c5 Na7 27. Bc1 Bg7 28. Bb2 Nh7 29. Rd1 Bc8 30. Bc2 Rxd1+ 31. Qxd1 Nf8 32. Rd3 Qe7 {Sokolovsky,Y (2546)-Sriansh Das (2278) Reykjavik ISL 2025 1-0 (72)}) 18... Qc7 ({RR} 18... Kh7 19. Qc2 d5 ({RR} 19... Qb6) 20. exd5 Nxd5 21. h4 exd4 22. h5 Ne7 ({RR} 22... Qf6 23. cxd4) 23. cxd4 c5 ({RR} 23... Nf8 24. Ne5) 24. Nh4 Nf8 25. dxc5 Qd4 26. hxg6+ fxg6 27. Rxe7 ({RR} 27. c6 Bxc6 ({RR} 27... Bc8 28. Rxe7 Rxe7 29. Nxg6) ({RR} 27... Rac8 28. Rxe7 Rxe7 29. Nxg6 Nxg6 30. Bxg6+ Kh8 31. cxb7) 28. Rxe7 Rxe7 29. Bxg6+ Nxg6 30. Qxg6+ Kg8 ({RR} 30... Kh8 31. Qxc6) 31. Nhf5) 27... Rxe7 28. Nxg6 Nxg6 29. Bxg6+ Kh8 30. c6 ({RR} 30. Nf5 Qg4) 30... Bxc6 ({RR} 30... Bc8 31. axb5) 31. Qxc6 Rf8 32. Be3 ({RR} 32. Bc3 Qxf2+ 33. Kh2 Qf4 34. Rf1 Qh4+ 35. Kg1 Bd4+) 32... Rxe3 33. fxe3 {Karpov,A (2705)-Kavalek,L (2590) Tilburg 1979 MCL [Minic,Dragoljub] ½-½ (44)}) ({RR} 18... d5 19. exd5 Nxd5 20. dxe5) 19. Qc2 Rad8 20. b4 $146 ({RR} 20. Bf1 d5 21. exd5 Nxd5 22. c4 bxc4 23. Bxc4 Qd6 24. Ne4 Qf8 25. Qb3 Rb8 26. dxe5 Nxe5 27. Nxe5 Bxe5 28. Nc3 Bc8 29. Rxe5 Rxb3 30. Rxe8 Qxe8 31. Bxb3 Nxc3 32. Bxc3 Be6 33. Re1 Qd7 34. Bxe6 fxe6 {Fusthy,Z (2325)-Akots,G (2269) Hungary 2013 1-0 (61)}) 20... Nf8 21. dxe5 dxe5 22. c4 Ne6 23. Bf1 bxc4 24. Bxc4 c5 25. b5 axb5 26. axb5 Ra8 27. Rxa8 Bxa8 28. Qb3 Nd7 29. Rd1 Bb7 30. Nh4 Kh7 31. Ba5 Qxa5 32. Rxd7 Bxe4 33. Qd1 Ba8 34. Rxf7 Rd8 35. Qb1 Nf4 36. Nh5 Nxh5 37. Rxg7+ 1-0 [Event "Bundesliga 0607"] [Site "Germany"] [Date "2006.12.09"] [Round "5.2"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Socko, Bartosz"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C95"] [WhiteElo "2698"] [BlackElo "2630"] [PlyCount "123"] [EventDate "2006.10.28"] [EventType "team-tourn"] [EventRounds "15"] [EventCountry "GER"] [SourceTitle "CBM 116"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2007.02.01"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2007.02.01"] [SourceQuality "1"] [WhiteTeam "Baden-Baden"] [BlackTeam "Kreuzberg"] [WhiteTeamCountry "GER"] [BlackTeamCountry "GER"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 Nb8 10. d4 Nbd7 11. Nbd2 Bb7 12. Bc2 Re8 13. Nf1 Bf8 14. Ng3 g6 15. b3 Bg7 16. d5 Qe7 17. c4 Qf8 $146 ({RR} 17... c5 18. dxc6 Bxc6 19. Bg5 bxc4 20. bxc4 Nc5 21. Qd2 Qf8 22. Qe2 h6 23. Bd2 Rab8 24. Bc3 Kh7 25. Nh2 Qe7 26. Ng4 Nxg4 27. hxg4 Qe6 28. Rab1 Rec8 29. Nf1 Ba4 30. Ne3 Bc6 31. f3 Bf6 32. Nd5 {Ameir,M (2364)-Gattani,S (1944) chess.com INT 2025 ½-½ (82)}) ({RR} 17... c6 18. Be3 Nc5 19. Qd2 a5 20. a3 a4 21. Bxc5 dxc5 22. cxb5 cxd5 23. exd5 axb3 24. Bxb3 Qd6 25. Ra2 h6 26. Qd3 Rad8 27. Rd2 Nxd5 28. Red1 Qb6 29. Qc4 Qc7 30. Rxd5 Bxd5 31. Rxd5 Rxd5 32. Qxd5 {Anand,V (2773)-Harikrishna,P (2729) Kolkata 2018 1-0 (33)}) ({RR} 17... c5 18. cxb5 axb5 19. Bd3 b4 20. Nd2 Nb6 21. a4 bxa3 22. Bxa3 Qc7 23. Qe2 Bh6 24. Ngf1 Ra7 25. Bb2 Rea8 26. Rxa7 Rxa7 27. Ra1 Bc8 28. Ba6 Bd7 29. Bb5 Rxa1 30. Bxa1 Qa7 {½-½ (30) Balogh,C (2609)-Socko,B (2637) Wroclaw 2009}) 18. Be3 Bh6 19. Bxh6 Qxh6 20. cxb5 axb5 21. b4 Rec8 22. Bb3 c5 23. dxc6 Rxc6 24. Qd3 Ba6 25. Nf1 Rac8 26. Ne3 Qf4 27. Qd1 h6 28. h4 Kg7 29. Bd5 Nxd5 30. Nxd5 Qg4 31. Ne7 Nf6 32. Nxc6 Rxc6 33. a4 Bb7 34. axb5 Rb6 35. Nd2 Qxh4 36. Qe2 d5 37. Nf3 Qh5 38. exd5 e4 39. Nd2 Ng4 40. Qxe4 Rf6 41. Qd4 Nxf2 42. Nf3 Nh3+ 43. Kf1 Ng5 44. Re3 Bxd5 45. Ra6 Ne6 46. Qc3 Qh1+ 47. Kf2 g5 48. Ra1 Qh4+ 49. Kg1 Bxf3 50. Rxf3 Nd4 51. Re3 Qf2+ 52. Kh2 Nxb5 53. Qe5 Qh4+ 54. Kg1 Qf2+ 55. Kh1 Kg6 56. Rh3 Nd6 57. Ra8 Nf5 58. Rg8+ Kh7 59. Rxg5 Ne3 60. Qg3 Qf1+ 61. Kh2 Nf5 62. Qe5 1-0 [Event "FIDE World Cup"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Date "2007.12.04"] [Round "4.2"] [White "Adams, Michael"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C96"] [WhiteElo "2729"] [BlackElo "2714"] [Annotator "Marin,Mihail"] [PlyCount "165"] [EventDate "2007.11.24"] [EventType "k.o."] [EventRounds "7"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [SourceTitle "CBM 122"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2008.01.30"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2008.01.30"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 Na5 10. Bc2 d5 11. exd5 ({Just few days ealrier, Carlsen found himself in some toruble after} 11. d4 {Dominguez Perez,L (2683)-Carlsen,M (2714)/Khanty-Mansiysk 2007/CBM 122/[Marin] (½-½, 45). However, it was obvious that he had found an improvement since he was ready to play the same line again. Besides, having familiarized himself during a couple of hours in an over-the-board game and whi knows how many others examining it before the tournament would have offerd him an advantage from practical point of view.}) 11... e4 12. Bxe4 {White has to give up the pride of his position.} (12. Ng5 {offers Black good play.} Nxd5 13. Nxe4 ({The tactical operation initiated with} 13. Nxh7 {wins two pawns after} Kxh7 14. Bxe4+ Kg8 15. Bxd5 Qxd5 16. Rxe7 {. However, White is strongly undderdeveloped (while the weakness of the d3-square makes one remember the games Paulsen-Morphy 1857 and Fischer-Matulovic 1970. In both games, Black installed a queen on d3, causing White huge problems in development, although in the second game he managed to survive somehow. Here, The least Black could do is} Be6 {winning the exchange. White should give up the rook for the e6-bishop, because} 17. Rxc7 Qd6 {would only make things worse.}) 13... f5 14. Ng3 f4 15. Ne4 f3 $40 16. d4 fxg2 17. Ng3 (17. Qh5 g6 18. Qh6 Rf5 19. Ng3 Bf8 20. Qd2 Rf7 $32 {Guliyev,N (2560)-Fressinet,L (2654)/Ajaccio 2007/CBM 120 ext (0-1, 36)}) 17... Qd6 18. Qd3 g6 19. Ne4 Qe6 20. Bh6 Nf4 21. Bxf4 Rxf4 $44 {Wang Hao (2624)-Jones,G (2526)/Liverpool 2007/CBM 120 (½-½, 104)}) 12... Nxe4 13. Rxe4 Bb7 {It can be expected that Black will get the usual... Marshall-Attack-like compensation for the pawn. His strong pair of bishops as well as White's delay in development make the small material defficit rather insignifiant.} 14. d4 Re8 $5 {A theoretical refinment. By defending the bishop, Black threatens to capture the d5-pawn with the queen, putting the enemy kingside under serious pressure.} (14... Bxd5 15. Re1 Qd6 16. b3 $1 Nc6 17. Be3 $6 ({This is unconsequent. The previous move was useful to restrict the enemy knight, but could also have been taken advantage of for an active development of the bishop with} 17. Ba3 b4 18. Bxb4 Nxb4 19. cxb4 Bxf3 20. Qxf3 Qxd4 21. Na3 Bxb4 22. Red1 Qh4 23. Nc4 $14 {With such a stable knight, White has a stable advantage.}) 17... f5 $44 {[%csl Ge3] Onischuk,V (2469)-Drozdovskij,Y (2567)/Kharkov 2007 (0-1, 44)}) 15. Bf4 Nc4 ({Once the c1-bishop has been developed on an active square,} 15... Qxd5 {allows White win some time to complete his development in adequate way after} 16. Re5 Qd7 17. Nbd2 {The importance of the bishop's good placement can be seen after} Bd6 $6 18. Rxe8+ Rxe8 19. Bxd6 $14) ({However, the immediate} 15... Bxd5 $5 {comes into consideration.}) 16. Re2 $146 ({The slightly paradoxical} 16. b3 Nb6 17. c4 {allows White retain some pressure. The d5-pawn will not be easy to win back.} bxc4 18. bxc4 Nxc4 19. Nc3 Nd6 (19... Nb6 20. Qb3 Bxd5 21. Bxc7 $1) 20. Re1 Nb5 21. Rc1 $14 {[%csl Gc7] Kaplan,S (2466)-Ragger,M (2528)/Yerevan 2007/CBM 120 ext (½-½, 51)}) 16... Bxd5 17. Ne5 Bg5 18. Bg3 ({Generally speaking, White would be interested to exchange these bishops, but his delay in development would leave him in trouble after} 18. Bxg5 $2 Qxg5 $17 {[%csl Ge5,Gg2]}) 18... Nxe5 19. Rxe5 Rxe5 20. Bxe5 Qd7 {White is close to complete his development and, unlike in the Marshall Attack, his king is in absolute safety. However, Black's firm control over the light squares keeps the position balanced.} 21. Na3 (21. Nd2 {would almost surely lead to a draw after} Bxd2 22. Qxd2 f6 23. Bg3 Re8 {It is virtually impossible for White to create a queenside passed pawn.}) 21... f6 22. Bg3 Qc6 23. f4 {The first significant weakness. Adams wanted the d2-square for his queen, but the e4-square will remain chronically weak now.} (23. f3 Re8 $44) 23... Bh6 24. Qd2 g6 (24... f5 $5 25. Nc2 Be4 {[%CAl Gg7g6,Gh6f8,Gf8d6] would have allowed Black retain his pair of bishops.}) 25. Nc2 Bf8 26. f5 $1 $14 {White has managed to get rid of this pawn, opening the way to his passive bishop. It is hard to claim a clear advantage yet, but it is clear that only White can play for a win.} Re8 27. fxg6 hxg6 28. Rc1 Re4 29. b3 Qe6 30. Re1 c6 31. Kh2 a5 32. Qd3 f5 33. Be5 a4 34. Qg3 Rxe1 35. Nxe1 Be4 36. Nf3 {[%CAl Gf3g5]} Bxf3 37. Qxf3 axb3 38. axb3 {A curious endgame. I would say that White is not without chances here, but Carlsen defends with such great confidence that the final part of the games leaves the sensation that the position is absolutely equal.} Be7 39. Kg1 Kf7 40. Kf2 Ke8 41. Qe2 Kf7 42. c4 bxc4 43. bxc4 Bh4+ 44. Kf1 Be7 45. Ke1 Bb4+ 46. Kd1 Be7 47. Kd2 Bb4+ 48. Kd3 Be7 49. Qe3 Ke8 50. Qh6 Kd7 51. Qh8 Bd8 52. Qg7+ Be7 53. Kc3 Ke8 54. Qh8+ Kd7 55. Qb8 Bd8 56. Kb3 Be7 57. Qb6 Ke8 58. Qb8+ Kf7 59. Kc3 Qd7 60. Qh8 Qe6 61. h4 Bf8 62. g3 Be7 63. c5 Bf8 64. Kb4 Be7 65. h5 gxh5 66. Qxh5+ Kf8 67. Qh8+ Kf7 68. Qh1 Ke8 69. Qf3 Kd7 70. Qd3 Bf8 71. Kc3 Be7 72. Qb1 Ke8 73. Qb7 Bd8 74. Kb4 Be7 75. Qa8+ Kd7 76. Qa7+ Ke8 77. Qa6 Kd7 78. Qa8 Bxc5+ $1 {Bravo Magnus! It is not easy to spot such chances after having been moving the pieces around for such a long time.} 79. dxc5 ({The black queen has sufficient mobility along diagonals to give perpetual check after} 79. Kxc5 Qd5+ 80. Kb6 (80. Kb4 $4 c5+ $1 $19) 80... Qb3+ 81. Ka7 Qa2+ (81... Qa3+ {is also possible} 82. Kb8 Qf8+) 82. Kb8 Qg8+ 83. Kb7 Qb3+) 79... Qxe5 80. Qb7+ Qc7 81. Qxc7+ Kxc7 82. Kc4 Kd7 83. Kd3 1/2-1/2 [Event "Morelia/Linares 24th"] [Site "Morelia/Linares"] [Date "2007.03.04"] [Round "10"] [White "Anand, Viswanathan"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C96"] [WhiteElo "2779"] [BlackElo "2690"] [Annotator "Anand,Viswanathan"] [PlyCount "75"] [EventDate "2007.02.17"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "14"] [EventCountry "ESP"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "CBM 117"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2007.03.30"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2007.03.30"] [SourceQuality "1"] {At this stage, we were both tied in the lead with +2.} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 Na5 10. Bc2 c5 11. d4 Nd7 12. d5 {Magnus choice had come as a surprise to me, so I decided not to repeat my usual systems. I had seen some games of Leko with 12.d5 and felt that it was a better try.} Nb6 13. Nbd2 g6 (13... f5 14. exf5 Bxf5 15. Bxf5 Rxf5 16. Ne4 {and Leko got an advantage against both Kramnik and Adams in 2005.}) 14. b4 {Following Leko's game against Mamedyarov.} cxb4 15. cxb4 Nac4 16. Nxc4 Nxc4 17. Bb3 $1 {Leko went for ?h6, but in fact there is no need for this move.} Nb6 18. Be3 {In fact, the bishop belongs on e3.} Bd7 19. Rc1 Rc8 (19... Qb8 {This may be worth considering, to first play ?b7 and then ?c8.}) 20. Rxc8 Bxc8 (20... Nxc8 21. Qc2 Nb6 {comes to the same thing.}) 21. Qc2 Bd7 22. Rc1 {This forces the knight back to a8.} Na8 (22... Qb8 $2 23. Qc7 Rc8 24. Qxb8 Rxb8 25. Bxb6 Rxb6 26. Rc7) 23. Qd2 (23. Ne1 {I was initially attracted to this move, but} Bg5 24. Qd2 (24. Bxg5 Qxg5 {and here White has to deal with both ?c8 and ?xh3}) 24... Bxe3 25. Qxe3 Qb8 {though even here} (25... f5 26. Nf3 fxe4 27. Ng5 $16) 26. f4 {gives White a nice edge.}) 23... Qb8 (23... f6 24. Ne1 {with the idea to play ?d3 and ?c5!}) 24. Bg5 $1 {Exploiting the fact that f6 is impossible.} Bxg5 (24... Qd8 $1 25. Qe3 (25. Bxe7 Qxe7 26. Qe3 Rc8 $1) 25... Bxg5 26. Nxg5 Qe7 27. f4 $36) (24... Bd8 25. Bxd8 Qxd8 26. Qh6 f6 (26... Qf6 27. Ng5 Qg7 28. Qh4 Rc8 (28... Re8 29. Ne6 $1) (28... Kh8 29. Nxh7 $1 Qxh7 30. Qe7) 29. Rxc8+ Bxc8 30. Nxh7 $1) 27. Rc6 $1 Bc8 28. h4 $1 Rf7 29. h5 Rg7 (29... g5 30. Nxg5 fxg5 31. Rxd6 $16) 30. hxg6 hxg6 31. Nh4 g5 32. Nf5 Bxf5 33. exf5 {Now White's rook can never be dislodged from c6.}) 25. Nxg5 Rc8 26. Rf1 h6 27. Ne6 $1 {An aesthetically pleasing move, but White has no other way to keep the pressure.} (27. Nf3 Kg7 $11) 27... Kh7 {The best try.} (27... fxe6 28. dxe6 Be8 29. Qxh6 $1 (29. e7+ Kg7 30. Qd5 Rc4 31. Bxc4 bxc4 32. Qxc4 Nc7 33. Rc1 Nb5 34. Qc8 Qxc8 35. Rxc8 Kf7 36. Ra8 Kxe7 37. Rxa6 Nc3 {Will be very difficult technically.}) 29... Nb6 30. e7+ (30. f4 Nc4 31. f5 Qa7+ {followed by ?e3 is too messy.}) 30... Nc4 31. Qf8+ Kh7 32. f4 (32. Bd1 {The computer even suggests ?d1 winning!} Bc6 33. Qf7+ Kh6 34. f4 Rg8 35. fxe5 Nxe5 36. Qf8+ Kh7 37. Rf4 $1 {and Black has nothing better than to give up the exchange.} Rxf8 38. exf8=Q Qxf8 39. Rxf8 $18) 32... Qa8 33. Rf3 (33. f5 gxf5 34. Rxf5 Qxe4 35. Rf6 Qe3+ 36. Kh2 e4 37. Rf4 {and White wins.}) 33... Qxe4 34. f5 gxf5 35. Rg3 $18) 28. f4 Qa7+ 29. Kh2 Be8 (29... fxe6 30. dxe6 Be8 31. f5 gxf5 (31... Qd4 $2 32. Qxd4 exd4 33. f6 Nb6 34. f7 Bxf7 35. Rxf7+ Kg8 {By not taking on f5, Black has to return to g8.} 36. Rd7 Nc4 37. e7 Re8 38. Rxd6 Rxe7 39. Rxd4 Rc7 40. Rd6 $1 $18) 32. exf5 Qd4 33. Qxd4 {This is what I intended.} (33. Qe1 {This is harder to work out over the board.} e4 34. Qh4 {This seems to win.} (34. f6 Qe5+ 35. Kh1 (35. Qg3 Qxg3+ 36. Kxg3 Nb6 {Again, its not completely clear.}) 35... Bg6 36. f7 Rf8 37. Qh4 d5 $1) 34... Qe5+ 35. Kg1 e3 36. Qe7+ Qg7 37. Qxg7+ Kxg7 38. f6+ Kg8 39. Rf3 $18) 33... exd4 34. f6 Nb6 35. f7 Bxf7 36. exf7 (36. Rxf7+ Kg6 37. Rf4 d5 38. e7 Re8 39. Bc2+ Kg7 40. Rg4+ Kh8 41. Rg6 Nc4) 36... Rf8 37. Be6 $1 {Before Black can play d5 or ?c4} Nc4 38. Rd1 Ne5 39. Rxd4 Nxf7 40. Rf4 $1 ({Not} 40. Bxf7 $2 Rxf7 41. Rxd6 Rf4 $1 42. a3 a5 43. bxa5 Ra4) 40... Kg7 41. Bxf7 Rxf7 42. Rxf7+ Kxf7 43. Kg3 {White wins the pawn ending.} Ke6 44. Kf3 Ke5 45. g4 d5 46. h4 d4 47. g5 hxg5 48. hxg5 Kf5 49. g6 Kxg6 50. Ke4 $18) 30. f5 gxf5 31. exf5 (31. Ng5+ Kg8 32. exf5) 31... f6 (31... fxe6 32. dxe6 {would transpose to the above note}) 32. Re1 $1 {The rook is going via the 4th rank.} (32. Rf3 Bf7 33. Rg3 Rg8) 32... Nc7 (32... Nb6 33. Re4 Nc4 (33... h5 34. Qe1 Nc4 35. Bd1 $18 {Black has no defence against ?xh5.}) 34. Nf8+ $1) 33. Rc1 {Now White can use the pin.} Bd7 34. Rc3 e4 (34... Ne8 35. Rg3 Bxe6 {White threatened ?f8} 36. Rg6 $1 $18) 35. Rg3 (35. Qc1 Nxe6 36. fxe6 Rxc3 37. Qxc3 Be8 38. Qxf6) 35... Nxe6 (35... Rg8 36. Rxg8 Kxg8 37. Qxh6) 36. dxe6 Be8 37. e7 $1 Bh5 (37... Qxe7 38. Bg8+) 38. Qxd6 {In addition to being my best win in Morelia/Linares, this win gave me a one point lead in the tournament.} (38. Qxd6 Re8 39. Qxf6 Qxe7 40. Bg8+ $18) 1-0 [Event "FIDE World Cup"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Date "2007.11.30"] [Round "3.1"] [White "Dominguez Perez, Leinier"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C96"] [WhiteElo "2683"] [BlackElo "2714"] [Annotator "Marin,Mihail"] [PlyCount "89"] [EventDate "2007.11.24"] [EventType "k.o."] [EventRounds "7"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [SourceTitle "CBM 122"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2008.01.30"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2008.01.30"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 Na5 10. Bc2 d5 $5 {This highly unusual move seems to be part of Carslen's special preparation for the World Cup 2008.} 11. d4 ({A couple of days later,} 11. exd5 {was tried in Adams,M (2729)-Carlsen,M (2714)/Khanty-Mansiysk RUS 2007/CBM 122/[Marin] (½-½, 83)}) 11... dxe4 12. Nxe5 c5 13. Bg5 {We are following the main theoretical stream still.} ({However, the solid} 13. Be3 {is less inoffensive than it might look.} Bb7 14. Nd2 Qd5 $6 {This pseudo-active move places the queen on a vulnerable square and deprives the f6-knight of the possibility of a jump to the centre.} (14... Qc7 $6 15. Bf4 $1 {[%csl Gc7,Ge4]}) (14... Rc8 $5 $13 {might be better} 15. Ng4 $140 Nd5 $1) 15. Ng4 $1 {[%csl Ge4]} cxd4 (15... Nxg4 16. hxg4 f5 17. gxf5 Qxf5 18. f3 $5 $14) 16. Bxd4 $1 e3 $5 (16... Nxg4 17. Qxg4 $18 {[%csl Ge4,Gg7]}) 17. Nxe3 Qc6 18. Nf3 $16 {Kotronias,V (2614)-Mastrovasilis,A (2529)/Igoumenitsa 2007 (1-0, 36)}) 13... Bb7 14. Nd2 (14. dxc5 {was played in Volokitin,A (2678)-Wojtaszek,R (2635)/Crete 2007/CBM 121/[Ftacnik] (0-1, 33), which also contains a survey of the variation.}) 14... cxd4 15. cxd4 {Black has obtained the control of the d5-square, but the vulnerability of the e4-pawn, combined with the activity of White's minor pieces and the relative weakness of the c5-square maintain the position quite tensioned.} Re8 (15... Qxd4 16. Nxe4 Qxd1 17. Raxd1 $14) 16. Nb3 $146 (16. Bxf6 {Charbonneau,P (2503)-Benjamin,J (2576)/ICC 2007 (0-1, 80)}) 16... Nxb3 (16... Nc4 $5 {is an important alternative, preventing the activation of the Spanish bishop.}) 17. Bxb3 Nd5 {This move leaves the f7-pawn under the X-Ray attack of the b3-bishop. The merits of the move is that after the exchange of the g5-bishop Black will get some stability on dark squares.} (17... Bd5 $5 {should also be mentioned. Here, too, it is not easy for Black to neutralize White's pressure completely.} 18. Rc1 h6 (18... Rc8 $2 19. Rxc8 Qxc8 20. Bxf6 Bxb3 21. Qxb3 Bxf6 22. Qxf7+ $18) 19. Bh4 $14 (19. Bxf6 Bxf6 20. Rc5 Bxb3 21. Qxb3 Qxd4 22. Qxf7+ Kh8 $132)) 18. Bxe7 Rxe7 19. Rc1 Nf4 $6 {Black moves again with a well-placed piece, before having completed his development. Besides, the dangerous diagonal is opened.} ({The developing move} 19... Qd6 {would be more desirable.} 20. Rxe4 $5 ({This looks tempting, but maybe the more restrained} 20. Qc2 $14 {is better and only if} Rd8 {then} 21. Rxe4 $1 {for instance} Nb4 22. Nxf7 $1 Rxf7 23. Bxf7+ {[%CAl Gg8f7,Gc2c7]} Kf8 24. Re6 Nxc2 25. Rxd6 Rxd6 26. Rxc2 Bxg2 27. Kxg2 Kxf7 $14) 20... f6 21. Rc5 $5 (21. f4 $5) 21... Rae8 {[%CAl Gf6e5] ?fxe5.} (21... fxe5 $2 22. Rxd5 Bxd5 23. dxe5 Rxe5 24. Rxe5 Qxe5 25. Qxd5+ Qxd5 26. Bxd5+ Kf8 27. Bxa8 $18) 22. Nf7 $1 Kxf7 23. Bxd5+ Bxd5 24. Qh5+ Kf8 25. Rxd5 Qc6 26. Rxe7 Qc1+ $1 $11) 20. Qg4 Ng6 (20... Nd3 21. Qf5 $1 {[%csl Gf7]} Nxe5 22. dxe5 {transposes}) 21. Qf5 Nxe5 22. dxe5 Qf8 23. Rc5 Rd8 24. Rec1 $14 {Black is under serious pressure.} Qe8 25. Rc7 h6 26. R1c5 Rxc7 27. Rxc7 Bd5 28. Bxd5 Rxd5 29. Rc8 Rd8 30. Rc7 Rd1+ 31. Kh2 Rd5 32. Rc8 Rd8 33. Rxd8 Qxd8 34. Qxe4 Qd2 35. Qa8+ Kh7 36. Qe4+ Kg8 37. f4 Qxb2 38. e6 fxe6 39. Qxe6+ Kh7 40. Qe4+ Kh8 41. Qa8+ Kh7 42. Qxa6 Qd4 43. Qxb5 Qxf4+ 44. Kg1 Qd4+ 45. Kh2 1/2-1/2 [Event "Qatar Masters op"] [Site "Doha"] [Date "2015.12.26"] [Round "6"] [White "So, Wesley"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C97"] [WhiteElo "2775"] [BlackElo "2834"] [Annotator "Marin,Mihail"] [PlyCount "77"] [EventDate "2015.12.20"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "QAT"] [SourceTitle "CBM 170"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2016.01.15"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2016.01.15"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. c3 d6 9. h3 Na5 {The Chigorin is a rare guest in Carlsen's play.} 10. Bc2 c5 11. d4 Qc7 {But only this move is "new" for his repertoire.} 12. Nbd2 Bd7 13. Nf1 Nc4 $5 {This old specialty of Tigran Vartanovich Petrosian is one of the systems I recommended in "A Spanish Repertoire for Black". Instead of putting pressure on the white centre with committal moves such as ...?b7 or ...?a5-c6, usually met with d4-d5, Black keeps the global harmony of his position.} (13... Rfe8) (13... cxd4 14. cxd4) 14. b3 (14. Ne3 Nxe3 15. Bxe3 {absolves Black of the problem of finding a good square for his queen's knight.} Rfc8 {This was one (and probably the best) choices of Petrosian.} ({The latest game with this system went} 15... Rfe8 16. d5 {Not really necessary since Black was not threatening to break open the centre} c4 17. Nh2 a5 18. a3 Rab8 19. Bd2 h6 20. Nf1 Nh7 21. Ne3 Bg5 $11 {Naroditsky,D (2622)-Glud,J (2531) Helsingor 2015 (½-½, 24)}) ({Things did not go well for Petrosian in the following game which became famous for his trademark exchange sacrifice:} 15... Be6 16. Nd2 Rfe8 17. f4 Rad8 18. fxe5 dxe5 19. d5 Bd7 20. c4 Rb8 21. a4 b4 22. a5 Rf8 23. Ba4 Bxa4 24. Rxa4 Rbd8 25. Qf3 Rd6 26. Nb3 Nd7 27. Raa1 Rg6 28. Rf1 Bd6 29. h4 Qd8 30. h5 Rf6 31. Qg4 Rf4 $5 {Tal,M-Petrosian,T Riga 1958 URS-ch [ChessBase] (½-½, 73). This position is mentioned by Tal in his foreward to the modern edition of Nimzowitsch's "My system" in Russian.}) 16. Rc1 Bc6 17. Nd2 cxd4 18. cxd4 Qb7 19. d5 Be8 20. Qe2 Bd8 {Karpov,A (2705)-Petrosian,T (2645) Milan 1975 (½-½, 28), with a perfect regrouping for Black.}) ({Against} 14. d5 {Petrosian designed the paradoxical retreat} Nb6 $5 {The main idea is that in order to develop his bishop without having to return at once after ...?b6-c4, White would need to play b2-b3. In that case Black could speed up his queenside counterplay with the knight optimally placed.} 15. g4 (15. N3h2 Ne8 16. Ng3 g6 17. Bh6 Ng7 18. Nhf1 Qd8 19. f4 exf4 20. Bxf4 Nc4 21. Qc1 Bf6 22. Bd3 Ne5 $15 {Palac,M (2591)-Delchev,A (2598) Skopje 2015 (½-½, 42)}) (15. b3 a5 {[%CAl Gc5c4,Ra5a4]}) 15... h5 $1 16. gxh5 ({In a modern game White reacted poorly:} 16. N3h2 hxg4 17. hxg4 Nh7 18. Ng3 Bg5 $15 {Dvirnyy,D (2459)-Vocaturo,D (2480) Brescia 2009 (0-1, 49)}) 16... Bxh3 17. N3h2 Bxf1 18. Nxf1 Qd7 19. Ng3 Qh3 20. Qf3 g6 21. Bd1 Rfe8 22. Qg2 Qxg2+ 23. Kxg2 {Kasparov,G-Petrosian,T (2610) Banja Luka 1979 (½-½, 23)}) 14... Nb6 15. Ne3 c4 {Virtually forced since White was threatening dxe5 followed by c3-c4 and ?d5.} 16. Ba3 Rfe8 17. Qd2 Bf8 {A typical position for this line: White cannot fully enjoy his advantage in the centre due to Black's queenside pressure.} 18. bxc4 {A rare move. White usually tries increasing the pressure in the centre, but without any special consequences.} (18. Rad1 a5 19. dxe5 dxe5 20. Bxf8 Kxf8 21. Nd5 (21. Qd6+ Qxd6 22. Rxd6 cxb3 23. axb3 Nc8 24. Rd2 Nb6 25. c4 bxc4 26. bxc4 Rac8 $11 {The same line with a white rook on a1, resulting after 18.?ed1 given below, would not work since the a5- and e5-pawns would be hanging.}) 21... Nbxd5 22. exd5 Qd6 $2 (22... cxb3 23. axb3 Rac8 24. Re3 e4 25. Ne1 Qb6 $15) 23. bxc4 bxc4 24. Qe3 e4 25. Nd2 Nxd5 26. Qd4 $16 {Nijboer,F (2552)-Bosch,J (2456) Dieren 2009 (1-0, 33)}) (18. Rab1 a5 19. bxc4 Nxc4 20. Nxc4 bxc4 21. d5 Rab8 22. Qe2 {Nijboer,F (2583)-Pruijssers,R (2487) Groningen 2011 (1-0, 59)} Nh5 $5 23. g3 g6) (18. Red1 a5 (18... Bc6 {looks like the best way to take advantage of the rook's departure from e1.}) 19. dxe5 dxe5 20. Bxf8 Kxf8 21. Qd6+ Qxd6 22. Rxd6 Nc8 23. Rd2 cxb3 24. axb3 Bc6 (24... Nb6 25. c4 $14 {[%CAl Ge3d5]}) 25. Nd5 (25. c4 $1 bxc4 26. Nxc4 $14) 25... Bxd5 26. exd5 Nd6 $15 {Bildat,J (2098)-Wenzel,B (2072) Hamburg 2011 (½-½, 36)}) 18... Nxc4 19. Nxc4 bxc4 20. Rab1 Rab8 21. Rxb8 (21. Rbd1 Rb6 22. Bb4 {1-0 (51) Bannik,A-Lilienthal,A Yerevan 1954} Rb7) 21... Rxb8 22. Bb4 {Securing the bishop against the threat ...?a5.} h6 23. Rd1 a5 24. Ba3 {The position is about equal. In principle, one would say that it could only be White who might take a decision in the centre, but Carlsen thinks differently.} Bc6 $5 ({A waiting move such as} 24... Rb7 {possibly followed by ...?b7-b8, would have given White a hard job making any shadow of progress.}) 25. Qe2 (25. dxe5 $6 dxe5 26. Bxf8 Kxf8 27. Qd6+ $2 Qxd6 28. Rxd6 Bxe4 $17 {[%csl Ga2,Gc3]}) 25... exd4 $5 (25... Bd7 $11) 26. Qxc4 {Any other capture would be met with ...?xe4, based on different tactical nuances.} (26. cxd4 Bxe4 27. Bxe4 Re8 28. Nd2 d5 $17) (26. Rxd4 Bxe4 27. Bxe4 d5 28. Bxf8 Nxe4 29. Bxg7 (29. Ba3 Nxc3 30. Qe3 Rb1+ 31. Ne1 Nb5 $17) 29... Kxg7 30. Qc2 Qb6 31. Rxd5 Qb1+ 32. Qxb1 Rxb1+ 33. Kh2 Nxc3 34. Rxa5 Nd1 $11 {[%csl Gf2][%CAl Gc4c3]}) (26. Nxd4 Bxe4 27. Bxe4 Nxe4 28. Qxe4 d5 29. Qxd5 Rd8 {It is important to pin the white knight.} (29... Bxa3 $2 30. Nb5 Qe7 31. Nxa3 Qxa3 32. Qxc4 $16) 30. Qb5 Bxa3 $11) 26... dxc3 27. Qxc3 Rc8 28. Qd4 {Optically, White has the better structure but in fact his e4-pawn is just as vulnerable as the d6-pawn. Defending it with f2-f3 would create weaknesses on the dark squares so all in all the position remains balanced.} Bd5 $5 {An amusing way to anticipate a possible attack along the a2-g8 diagonal..} (28... Bb7 29. Bd3 Nd7 30. Rc1 Nc5 $11) 29. Bb1 (29. Rc1 $5 Be6 $1 (29... Bxa2 $6 30. Qa1 Be6 31. e5 dxe5 32. Bh7+ $14) 30. Bb3 Qd7 $11) 29... Be6 {If White does not create mating threats along the b1-h7 diagonal the bishop risks becoming a sourece of worries.} 30. Qe3 Rb8 (30... d5 $5 31. Bxf8 Rxf8 32. e5 Ne4 33. Rc1 Qb8 34. Nd4 {The perfect blockade on d4 is compensated for by the queenside weaknesses.} Qb2 $132 (34... Qxe5 35. f3 Qg5 36. Qxg5 Nxg5 37. Rc5 Ra8 38. Kf2 $44)) 31. Nd4 Bd7 32. Rc1 Qb6 {The game lasts for a few more moves but neither of the players managed to find a constructive plan to improve his position.} 33. Qd2 Re8 34. Re1 a4 35. Bc2 Qb7 36. Qd3 Qc7 37. Qd2 Qb7 38. Qd3 Qc7 39. Qd2 1/2-1/2 [Event "Politiken Cup 25th"] [Site "Copenhagen"] [Date "2003.07.23"] [Round "9"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Harestad, Hans Krogh"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C98"] [WhiteElo "2385"] [BlackElo "2249"] [PlyCount "75"] [EventDate "2003.07.14"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventRounds "11"] [EventCountry "DEN"] [SourceTitle "CBM 095 Extra"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2003.09.04"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2003.09.04"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 {Wedberg,Tom} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O b5 6. Bb3 Be7 7. Re1 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 Na5 10. Bc2 c5 11. d4 Qc7 12. Nbd2 Nc6 13. d5 Nd8 14. a4 Ra7 ({RR} 14... Qb7 15. Nf1 Ne8 16. N3h2 f6 17. b3 ({RR} 17. Ng3 g6 18. f4 exf4 19. Bxf4 Nf7 20. Nf3 Bd7) 17... Nf7 18. f4 exf4 19. Bxf4 Ne5 20. Ne3 g6 21. Neg4 Bxg4 22. Nxg4 Nxg4 23. hxg4 ({RR} 23. Qxg4 Ng7) 23... Nc7 24. Rf1 Rf7 25. Qf3 b4 26. Bd2 ({RR} 26. c4) 26... a5 27. cxb4 cxb4 28. Rac1 Raf8 ({RR} 28... Na6) 29. Bd3 {Svidler,P (2710)-Piket,J (2605) Tilburg 1998 EXT 1999 [Wedberg,Tom] 1-0 (47)}) 15. Nf1 ({RR} 15. b4 cxb4 16. cxb4 a5 17. axb5 axb4 18. Rxa7 Qxa7 19. Nb3 Bd7 20. Be3 Qb8 21. b6 Nb7 22. Qa1 Rc8 23. Qa7 Nc5 24. Qxb8 Rxb8 25. Nxc5 dxc5 26. Nxe5 Rxb6 27. Nc4 Ra6 28. f3 Bb5 29. Bb3 Nd7 {Vogt,L (2401)-Bentsen,H (2071) Fornebu 2017 ½-½ (37)}) 15... g6 $146 ({RR} 15... Ne8 16. Ng3 g6 17. Bh6 Ng7 18. Nh2 f6 19. Qe2 Bd7 20. axb5 axb5 21. Bd3 c4 22. Bc2 Nf7 23. Be3 Ra5 24. Ng4 Rfa8 25. Rxa5 Rxa5 26. Nh6+ Nxh6 27. Bxh6 Ra2 28. Rb1 Qa5 29. Qd1 Bd8 30. Be3 {Elseth,R (2358)-Harestad,H (2196) Panormo 2001 1-0 (59)}) ({RR} 15... Ne8 16. Be3 f6 17. Bd3 Bd7 18. axb5 axb5 19. Qe2 Rxa1 20. Rxa1 Qb7 21. b4 Nf7 22. Qa2 Nc7 23. Qa7 Qxa7 24. Rxa7 Rc8 25. N3d2 Kf8 26. bxc5 dxc5 27. c4 Ke8 28. cxb5 Nxb5 29. Rxd7 Kxd7 30. Bxb5+ {Kashdan,I-Balogh,J Hamburg 1930 1-0 (54)}) 16. Bh6 Re8 17. Ng3 Nd7 18. Nh2 f6 19. Be3 Nb6 20. axb5 axb5 21. Bd3 Bd7 22. Qd2 Nf7 23. Rxa7 Qxa7 24. Qe2 Qa6 25. Ng4 Kg7 26. Bc1 Na4 27. Bc2 Ra8 28. Qe3 c4 29. Rf1 Nc5 30. Nh6 Ng5 31. f4 exf4 32. Qxf4 Bxh3 33. Qh4 Bd7 34. e5 dxe5 35. Nh5+ gxh5 36. Qxg5+ fxg5 37. Rf7+ Kxh6 38. Rxh7# 1-0