Byrne -- Fischer, New York 1956

"Game of the Century"

It was quite an experience to watch [Bobby Fischer] during the critical stage of the game. There he sat like a little Buddha, showing his moves with the calm regularity of an automaton.
Hans Kmoch, "Game of the Century," Chess Review (December 1956)

Hans Kmoch, as manager for the Manhattan Chess Club, directed tournaments there. The Third Lessing J. Rosenwald Trophy Tournament took place 7-24 October 1956 at the Manhattan Chess Club and the Marshall Chess Club. Fischer was invited because he had won the U.S. Junior Championship in July, the youngest player ever to do so. The Rosenwald tournament was the first time that he played against the top masters in the United States. His round 8 win against Donald Byrne won the tournament's brilliancy prize and was dubbed the "game of the century" by Kmoch.*

Kmoch wrote that the game, "matches the finest on record in the history of chess prodigies" (Kmoch, Chess Review, rpt. in Bruce Pandolfini, The Best of Chess Life and Review, vol. 1, 1933-1960 [1988], 525).

This game has been annotated many times. For my annotations, I went through the game several times. At several critical positions, I wrote my anticipated variations without moving the pieces. After recording these lines, I checked mine against Garry Kasparov, My Great Predecessors, part IV Fischer (2004). I then checked some of my lines with Stockfish 7.

This game strikes me as a good one for honing a player's calculation skills. It is among my candidates for "best game ever played."


Byrne,Donald -- Fischer,Robert James [D97]
New York Rosenwald New York, 1956

1.Nf3 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.d4 0–0 5.Bf4 d5 6.Qb3 dxc4 7.Qxc4 c6 8.e4 Nbd7 9.Rd1 Nb6 10.Qc5?! 

10.Qb3 seems better.

10...Bg4 11.Bg5?

11.Be2 seems necessary.

11...Na4!

This move stunned me when I was playing through the game on a chess board last week. On the one hand, it is a simple deflection combined with a threat to remove the guard of the e4 pawn. On the other hand, Black cannot win a pawn, but rather offers an exchange sacrifice. Fischer had to calculate several lines. In all of these, the vulnerability of White's king proved decisive.

White to move

This position was on my board at the dining room table for most of the weekend. I returned to it several times to study and record possible variations.

12.Qa3

Alternatives begin with 12.Nxa4 Nxe4 and then:

a) 13.Bxe7 was the first line I recorded in my notes. 13...Re8 is the computer's second choice (The engine prefers 13...Qc7 14.Bd6 Nxd6) 14.Bxd8 Nxc5+ (Kmoch has this line, but revereses the order of the previous two moves) 15.Be2 Nxa4 16.Bh4 Nxb2 and Black is clearly better.

b) 13.Qxe7 was my second line. 13...Qxe7

My analysis falls short here. The engine prefers 13...Qa5+ 14.b4 Qxa4 15.Qxe4 Rfe8 16.Be7 Bxf3 17.gxf3 Bf8 Garry Kasparov credits Sergei Shipov with this line. Clearly Black is winning.

Continuing my line: 14.Bxe7 Rfe8 15.Be2 (The engine prefers 15.Bd3 ) 15...Rxe7 16.0–0 (The engine prefers 16.h3 ) 16...b5 17.Nc3 Nxc3 18.bxc3 Rxe2 Black is ahead a piece.

c) 13.Qc1 Qa5+ 14.Nc3 Bxf3 15.gxf3 Nxg5 is offered by Kasparov. I did not look at this line.

d) 13.Qb4 Nxg5 14.Nxg5 Bxd1 15.Kxd1 Bxd4–+ Kasparov. Another line that I failed to examine.

My third line continued:

e) 13.Qa3 Nxg5 14.Be2 Nxf3+ (Stockfish prefers 14...Bxf3 15.Bxf3 Qa5+ 16.Nc3 Qxa3 17.bxa3 Nxf3+ 18.gxf3) 15.Bxf3 Bxf3 16.Qxf3 and Black is winning.

12...Nxc3 13.bxc3 Nxe4 14.Bxe7 Qb6

White to move

15.Bc4

What if White accepts the exchange sacrifice?

15.Bxf8 Bxf8 16.Qc1

I also considered 16.Qb3 Qxb3 (Kasparov gives 16...Nxc3, attributing the suggestion to Yuri Averbakh) 17.axb3 Nxc3 18.Rd2 Re8+ 19.Be2 Bb4-+

16...Re8 17.Be2 Nxc3

Analysis diagram after 17...Nxc3

I spent a lot of time trying to find a defense for White here. Instead, I found only lines leading to checkmate or to an overwhelming material advantage for Black.

18.Rd2

(Stockfish prefers 18.Qxc3 Bb4 and there was no doubt in my mind that Black was winning here)

18...Rxe2+ 19.Rxe2 Nxe2 20.Kxe2 Qb5+ 21.Ke1

(21.Kd1 seems best 21...Qd3+ 22.Qd2 Bxf3+ 23.gxf3 Qxf3+ 24.Kc2 Qxh1-+)

21...Bb4+ 22.Kd1

(22.Qd2 Bxd2+ 23.Kxd2 [23.Nxd2 Qe2#])

22...Qd3+ 23.Qd2 Qxd2#

15...Nxc3 16.Bc5

I considered 16.Qxc3 Rfe8 17.0–0 is Stockfish's choice, as it was mine (I did not look at Kasparov's line 17.Bxf7+ Kxf7 18.Ng5+ Kxe7 19.0–0 Bxd1 20.Rxd1) 17...Rxe7 and Black has a clear edge.

16...Rfe8+ 17.Kf1 Be6!!

White to move

18.Bxb6

After the possible 18.Bxe6, I spent a lot of time looking at complex and unclear lines before I saw Fischer's plan: 18...Qb5+ 19.Bc4 Qxc4+ 20.Kg1 Ne2+ 21.Kf1 Ng3+ 22.Kg1 Qf1+ 23.Rxf1 Ne2#.

I also saw 18.Qxc3 Qxc5 19.dxc5 Bxc3 20.Bxe6 Rxe6.

After Fischer's queen sacrifice, the moves seemed rather forcing and I did not look at variations again for many moves.

18...Bxc4+ 19.Kg1 Ne2+ 20.Kf1 Nxd4+ 21.Kg1

I did not examine 21.Rd3 axb6.

21...Ne2+ 22.Kf1 Nc3+ 23.Kg1 axb6 24.Qb4 Ra4 25.Qxb6 Nxd1

White to move

26.h3

I did not examine 26.Qxb7 Bd5 27.Qd7 Re2.

26...Rxa2 27.Kh2 Nxf2 28.Re1 Rxe1 29.Qd8+ Bf8 30.Nxe1 Bd5 31.Nf3 Ne4

Here it seems to me that White is running out of moves. He has not been in the game since capturing Fischer's queen. In fact, he was lost before that. His role is to make the moves that permit the young Fischer to demonstrate his skill.

32.Qb8 b5

Kasparov mentions 32...Kg7.

33.h4 h5 34.Ne5 Kg7 35.Kg1 Bc5+

White to move

36.Kf1

I knew that 36.Kh2 would lose quickly, but my Ra1 is inferior to 36...Nd2!

I saw 37.Qc7 (37.Nf3 Bd6+) 37...Bg1+ 38.Kh1 Nf2#.

36...Ng3+

36...Bc4+? 37.Nxc4.

I found another checkmate as fast as Fischer's: 36...Rf2+ 37.Ke1

37.Kg1 loses faster 37...Rf4+ 38.Kh2 Rxh4#.

37...Bb4+ 38.Kd1 Bb3+ 39.Kc1 Rc2+ 40.Kd1 (40.Kb1 Nc3+ 41.Ka1 Ra2#) 40...Nf2#.

37.Ke1 Bb4+

Kasparov points out a faster checkmate: 37...Re2+ 38.Kd1 Bb3+ 39.Kc1 Ba3+ 40.Kb1 Re1#.

38.Kd1 Bb3+ 39.Kc1 Ne2+ 40.Kb1 Nc3+ 41.Kc1 Rc2# 0–1

After this game, the world noticed Bobby Fischer. Within a few years, he became a leading candidate for a future World Championship match. When he finally reached the summit, he gave up on chess. Of course, there were reasons. He set conditions that were not met wholly.


*For some of the historical details concerning this tournament, I am indebted to John Donaldson, and Eric Tangborn, Bobby Fischer: The Early Years: 1943-1962 (Amazon Digital Services, 2017).

Wei Yi

Tata Steel Chess 2016, Round Three

After two rounds, the leaders in the Masters Group of this year's tournament in Wijk aan Zee are Wesley So, Fabiano Caruana, and Ding Liren. Nonetheless, the focus today will be on the first game between current World Champion Magnus Carlsen, and probable World Championship contender, Wei Yi. Wei Yi is sixteen years old, the current youngest Grandmaster, and last summer won a game that many analysts have claimed is the best game of the twenty-first century.

In late December at Inland Chess Academy's Holiday Chess Camp after dismissing my young students for the lunch break, I walked into the classroom next door where FM Jim Maki was conducting camp for the advanced group. He had this position on the projection screen.

White to move

Seeing this position, I claimed to have seen it in the Encyclopedia of Chess Combinations, where it cannot be found. Maki pointed out that it is not there, yet. It could not be as it had been played several months after the latest edition of the Encyclopedia was published. I was probably remembering a position from Ragozin -- Veresov, Moscow 1945. The position above is from Wei -- Bruzon Batista, Danzhou 2015, Chess Informant 125/65. I had looked at Wei Yi's beautiful game last summer. The intuitive sacrifice on f7 is a familiar pattern, but is far less clear in this position than in Ragozin's game. There have been many instances of such a sacrifice, several of which are elucidated in Grigory Serper, "From Paul Morphy to Wei Yi," Chess.com (19 July 2015), http://www.chess.com/article/view/from-paul-morphy-to-wei-yi.

Not only this game, but Wei's rapid ascent, has created a great deal of anticipation of his coming battles with Carlsen. The young Chinese player will not dethrone the World Champion today because that is not how it works. But, he could score a symbolic victory. I predict a fighting draw. But, today's battle offers a first glimpse of more battles to come.

Magnus Carlsen is the strongest player ever to sit at a chess board. His style is torturous, rather than flashy. Wei's approach, on the other hand, reflects a hunger for tactical fireworks. Today, we will see a battle of styles as well as the current World Champion defending his position against one of his possible successors.

Wei,Yi (2706) -- Carlsen,Magnus (2844) [C89]
Tata Steel Chess Wijk aan Zee (3), 18.01.2016

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0–0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 0–0 8.c3 d5

The Marshall!

Carlsen previously has played 8...d6 9.h3 Nb8 10.d4 Nbd7 11.c4 c6 12.Nc3 b4 13.Na4 c5 14.d5 Re8 15.Bc2 Nf8 16.a3 a5 17.b3 Ng6 18.Nb2 Bd7 19.Nh2 h6 20.Nf1 Nh7 21.Ne3 Bg5 22.axb4 axb4 23.Rxa8 Qxa8 24.Nf5 Bxc1 25.Qxc1 Bxf5 26.exf5 Ngf8 27.Nd1 Nf6 28.f3 Qa2 29.g4 Ra8 30.Nf2 Qa3 31.Qb1 Qa2 32.Qc1 Qa3 33.Qb1 Qa2 34.Qc1 ½–½ Nakamura,H (2774) -- Carlsen,M (2815) Medias 2011.

9.exd5 Nxd5 10.Nxe5 Nxe5 11.Rxe5 c6 

White to move

12.d3

12.d4 has been more popular. 12.d3 was first played by Vassily Smyslov in 1949.

12...Bd6 13.Re1 Bf5 14.Qf3 Qh4 15.g3 Qh3

White to move

16.Be3

A relatively rare move.

16.Bxd5 has been most frequent.

16...Bxd3 17.Nd2 Qf5 18.Bd4 Rae8 19.Kg2 Qxf3+

19...h6 20.a4 Qxf3+ 21.Kxf3 Re6 22.axb5 axb5 23.Kg2 Rfe8 24.Rxe6 Rxe6 25.c4 bxc4 26.Nxc4 Be4+ 27.f3 Bd3 28.Nxd6 Rxd6 29.Kf2 Rd7 30.Ra3 Nc7 31.Be3 Nd5 32.Bc5 f6 33.Ba4 Bb5 34.Bc2 Nc7 35.Bg6 Na6 36.Re3 Rd8 37.Be7 Rc8 38.b4 c5 39.Bf5 Rc6 40.Bd7 cxb4 41.Bxc6 Bxc6 42.Re6 1–0 Vachier Lagrave,M (2731) -- Adams,M (2740) Biel SUI 2015.

20.Kxf3 Re6

Wei has gone into a long think.

White to move

21.Rac1

21.a4 might have been expected, as it is a common idea when playing against the Marshall. The threat to play c4, however, seems to complicate this position.

21...h6

Yasser Seirawan had commented on the absence of this move earlier. The rook could go to h6, provoking White to play h4, a possibly weakening move.

22.Kg2 Rg6 23.Ne4 Nf4+ 24.Kf3 Bxe4+ 25.Rxe4 Nd3 26.Rd1

I would have played 26.Rc2, which my engine tells me is a slight inaccuracy. The computer likes 26.Rb1, a move that Seirawan also mentioned.

26...Nxb2 27.Rd2 Ba3

White to move

28.Bb6 Rd6

Seirawan looked at 28...c5 29.Ba5 c4 30.Bc2 Nd3 and also other lines prior to 28.Bb6 where Black's queenside pawns become separated. At this point in the game, or a few moves earlier, it appeared that Wei had some chances to play for a win.

29.Rxd6 Bxd6 30.Re2 Nd3 31.Rd2 Ne5+ 32.Kg2 Be7 33.f4 Nc4 34.Bxc4 bxc4 

White to move

Black's pawns have become separated after all, but with substantially less material on the board, their weaknesses do not offer White much.

35.Rd7 Bf6 36.Rc7 Bxc3 37.Rxc6 Rb8 38.a4 Bb2 39.Ba5 c3 40.Bxc3 Bxc3

Both players have reached the time control.

41.Rxc3

Black to move

A few years ago, I would have suggested that this position should be a simple draw. However, Carlsen became the World Champion by squeezing blood from turnips. If there is anything to play for, any resource in the position, Carlsen will make his opponent play on. His opponents usually find themselves in time pressure and occasionally crack.

41...Rb4 42.a5 Rb5 43.Ra3 Rb2+ 44.Kh3 f5 

White to move

Although this position should be objectively drawn, it is worth noting that Black's rook is more active, his king is more active, and it is possible for the White king to blunder into checkmate (I have been on both sides of that particular checkmate in many a blitz game).

45.Rc3 Rb5 46.Ra3 g5 47.fxg5 hxg5 48.Kg2 Kg7 49.h4 g4 50.Rc3 Rxa5 51.Rc6 Ra2+ 52.Kg1 a5 53.Ra6 a4

White to move

54.Kh1 Kf7 55.Kg1 Ra1+ 56.Kg2 Ra3 57.Kh2 Ra2+ 58.Kg1 Ke7 59.Kh1 a3 60.Kg1 ½–½


David Navara!

While trying to sort out the possibilities in the endgame for Wei and Carlsen, David Navara created some excitement with a rook sacrifice against Anish Giri. My attention was diverted to Navara's game after Carlsen's 20...Re6.

Navara,David (2730) -- Giri,Anish (2798) [D97]
Tata Steel Chess Wijk aan Zee (3), 18.01.2016

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.Nf3 Bg7 5.Qb3 dxc4 6.Qxc4 0–0 7.e4 a6 8.Be2 b5 9.Qb3 c5 10.dxc5 Bb7 11.e5 Nfd7 12.Be3 e6 13.0–0 Qc7 14.Rad1 Nxc5 15.Qa3 Ne4 16.Nxe4 Bxe4 17.Ng5 Bc6 18.f4 Qb7 19.Bc5 Re8

White to move

20.f5! exf5 21.Rxf5 gxf5 22.Bh5 Bd5 23.Rxd5 Qxd5 24.Bxf7+ Qxf7 25.Nxf7 Kxf7

White to move

26.Qb3+ Kg6 27.Qg3+ Kf7 28.Qb3+ Kg6 29.Qg3+

Such a repetition could prove useful for reaching the time control before a difficult endgame.

29...Kf7 30.Qf3

30.Bd4 was examined by Seirawan during the commentary and may have been Navara's best chance to win.

30...Nd7 31.Qd5+ Kg6 32.Qc6+ Nf6 33.exf6 Rac8 34.Qxa6 Ra8 35.f7+ Kxf7 36.Qxb5 Rad8 37.Qb3+ Kg6 38.Qg3+ Kf7

Navara is essentially playing on the increment at this point in the game.

White to move

39.Qb3+ Kg6 40.Bd6?

40.h4!

Bxb2 41.Qxb2 Rxd6 42.h3 Ra6 ½–½

Giri dodged a bullet. After the forcing continuation initiated by 20.f5! both players faced a position with difficult imbalances. Giri managed to stay ahead on the clock and Navara was unable to take advantage of his inaccuracies. I hope to see this game with detailed analysis in Chess Informant 127.

The decisive games in the round came when Shakhriyar Mamedyarov blundered a rook in a winning position to Pavel Eljanov. In his postgame interview, Eljanov seemed relieved to have escaped without a loss but did not enjoy such a win. Fabiano Caruana also managed to grind out a win against Michael Adams, which now puts Caruana in sole possession of first place with ten rounds remaining. It is a long tournament.

So -- Vachier-Lagrave

Live Blogging

Wesley So has been impressing me during his post-game analysis with Yasser Seirawan. He is currently tied for second place with Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and Ding Liren in the 2015 Tata Steel Chess Tournament in Wijk aan Zee with 5.5/8. Today's match-up between So and Vachier-Lagrave has important implications for the race to catch Magnus carlsen, if that is even possible. If not, the battle for second place has importance too.

I was awake and looking at the website on my iPad when the games started. Usually, the games have been underway for 90 minutes when I rise. I started trying to guess the move.

The first moves came fast and with the 30-second increment, So had built up his time from the initial 1:40 to 1:49 by the time he played 20.Qc1. Vachier-Lagrave was moving slightly slower, but still managed to add three minutes to his clock. I am using the Ches24 iPad app to watch the game, and find no reason to expect that the clock in the app is particularly reliable.

So,Wesley (2762) -- Vachier-Lagrave,Maxime (2757) [D87]
Tata Steel Wijk aan Zee, 20.01.2015

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.e4 Nxc3 6.bxc3 Bg7 7.Bc4 c5 8.Ne2 Nc6 9.Be3 0–0 10.0–0 

I've been in this position often enough both as White and Black that this game stimulates additional interest.

Black to move

10...b6

I have played 10...Na5 in recent games. I had White in the only game in my personal database with 10...b6. I won.

10...Qc7 is the most popular move, and is one that I have both played and played against.

11.dxc5 Qc7

Vachier-Lagrave has had both sides of this position in recent years. So has played the Black side.

12.Nd4 Ne5 13.Nb5 Qb8 14.Be2 bxc5 15.f4

I thought about this move but did not have time to think about its merits before it was played. So's moves seem to come instantly while Vachier-Lagrave thinks for almost half a minute.

15...Ng4 16.Bxc5

So has won a pawn.

16...a6 17.Na3

But, now, perhaps his knight is misplaced.

17...Qc7 18.Bd4 e5 19.fxe5 Nxe5

White to move

Three games in my Grandmaster database have reached this position.

20.Qc1

So moved instantly. Clearly he prepared to reach this position.

Reference Game:

Bacrot,E (2720) -- Vachier Lagrave,M (2762) [D86]
FIDE World Rapid 2014 Dubai UAE (4.5), 16.06.2014

20.Qd2 Rb8 21.Nc2 Rb2 22.Kh1 Rd8 23.Bd1 Be6 24.Qc1 Qb8 25.Be2 Bxa2 26.c4 Nf3 27.Rxf3 Bxd4 28.Ra3 Rxc2 29.Qxc2 Bxa1 30.Qxa2 Be5 31.Rxa6 Qb4 32.Bf1 0–1

20...Bg4

Here So thought for a few minutes. I had the time to contemplate two alternatives: 21.Qe3 and the line So played.

21.Bxg4 Nxg4 22.Qf4 Qxf4 23.Rxf4 Ne5 24.Rb1

Black to move

Seizing the open file seems obvious, but can White secure it?

If 24...Rab8, 25.Rxb8 concedes the file. Two other possibilities suggest themselves:

25.Rff1 and 25.Rb3.

24...Rac8

Vachier-Lagrave avoids trades. He is down a pawn after all.

25.h3N

25.Rff1 was played in Estremera Panos -- Rambaldi, Chambery 2014.

25...Rfd8

So has used nearly an hour since move 21 and is thinking still. Vachier-Lagrave has used 35 minutes.

26.Rff1

And now Vachier-Lagrave is thinking.

26...Nd3

Seeing that Black can exchange bishops and win back the pawn, I started to consider Rb7 when So played it.

27.Rb7 Nc5

Vachier-Lagrave moved instantly.

White to move

28.Rfxf7 Nxb7 is hope chess because of the zwischenzug 28...Bxd4+.

28.Bxc5 sets up 29.Rfxf7, but after 29...Bxc3, White's rooks are not even blind swine with g7 defended. Black would be better.

28.Rbxf7 doubles the rooks on the f-file when the sseventh rank is the goal. It will take time for White to get his pieces better coordinated.

28.Re7

Seem best.

28...Bf8

White's position seems a little more difficult than Black's. While I was looking at an open file, Vachier-Lagrave simply brought his rooks to the center. Then, he repositioned his knight, which was already better than So's misplaced stallion.

As White, I would like to get both rooks on the seventh rank, but not at the cost of letting the center collapse.

29.Re5 does not retain the extra pawn. 29...Nxe4 30.Rxe4 Bxa3, but it might be nice to trade knights.

29.Rexf7 is not particularly attractive. 29...Nxe4 30.Nb1. 30.Nc2 looks as though it would lose a piece.

29.Bxc5!?

I was looking at this move, but wary.

29...Rxc5

I expected 29...Bxc5.

30.Rexf7 Rxc3 31.Nb1

The king's knight has found himself on the queen's knight's starting square.

Black to move

31...Rc2 32.Kh1 Bg7

So has 22 minutes for the next eight moves. Vachier-Lagrave has 50.

While I was putting out the garbage, Levon Aronian offered some analysis of this game. He thinks that Black is better. I need to rewind the video to see his analysis as I caught only the last few seconds.

Aronian showed a variation in which White goes after the a-pawn and gets mated. So will find something better, but he should be playing for a draw, it seems to me.

33.Na3 Rxa2 34.Nc4 Rf8 35.Rxf8+ Bxf8 36.e5

Black to move

36...Bc5 37.g4 Rc2 38.Nd6 Re2 39.Ra1 Rxe5 40.Nb7

I expected 40.Rxa6 Bxd6 41.Rxd6 and a draw, which would be convenient as I have essays to grade for the college history course that I am teaching.

40...Be7

Both players get another 50 minutes on the clock.

41.Rxa6 Kg7 42.Nd6 Bxd6 43.Rxd6 1/2-1/2

I was rooting for So, but also found Vachier-Lagrave's resilience impressive. He got the better position and was ahead on the clock. So, however, did not lose his head and go for Aronian's fantasy line that spelled disaster.

As a devotee of the Grunfeld on the Black side, I sense that studying some of Vachier-Lagrave's games are in my immediate future.

The host is interviewing So. I'll watch that and then see if I can get some papers graded before this afternoon's chess club.

Anand -- Carlsen, Game 10

World Champion Magnus Carlsen leads challenger and former champion Viswanathan Anand 5-4 after nine games. The match is being played at the Olympic Media Center in Sochi, Russia. Yesterday's game 9 started with the variation of the Berlin Defense to the Spanish Opening that appeared in game 7. Game 7 was on the verge of setting the record for longest World Championship game ever played, but fell short by two moves.

With three games remaining, Anand is under pressure to produce a win. Both players have demonstrated exceptional opening preparation for this match. Both are confident.

Following these games live and blogging them while in progress is both enjoyable and exhausting. The games start at 3:00 pm in Sochi, which is 4:00 am my time. Because of the importance of game 10, I set my alarm for 4:00 am for the first time during this match. I also prepared the beginning of this post last night.


I predict the game's first moves: 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4.

Every time that Anand has had White, these have been the moves. Will they vary today?

Anand,Viswanathan (2792) - Carlsen,Magnus (2863) [D97]
WCC Sochi (10), 21.11.2014

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.Nf3 Bg7 5.Qb3 dxc4 6.Qxc4 0–0 7.e4 Na6 8.Be2 c5 9.d5 e6 10.0–0 exd5 11.exd5 Re8

These moves were played rapidly, and now Anand begins to think. Carlsen opted for a Grunfeld Defense, as in game 1 of this match. However, Anand varied from that game on move 4.

After Carlsen's 11...Re8

I have played the Grunfeld and have played against it. However, I have no experience  with 5.Qb3 and subsequent moves.

12.Bg5

Anand spent about ten minutes. 12.Rd1 is the most popular move, and was Anand's choice when he had the diagram position twenty years ago. 12.Be3 and 12.Bc4 have also been played by Grandmasters.

12...h6 13.Be3 Bf5 14.Rad1 Ne4N

After Carlsen's 14...Ne4

Reference Game:

Wojtaszek,Radoslaw (2713) - Ponomariov,Ruslan (2729) [D97]
Poikovsky Karpov 13th Poikovsky (2), 29.09.2012

14...Qb6 15.b3 Rad8 16.Rd2 Ng4 17.Bf4 Qa5 18.Rc1 g5 19.Bg3 Bxc3 20.Qxc3 Qxc3 21.Rxc3 Nf6 22.Bb5 Ne4 23.Re3 Nxd2 24.Rxe8+ Rxe8 25.Bxe8 Ne4 26.Ne5 f6 27.Nc4 Kf8 28.Bb5 Nxg3 29.Bxa6 bxa6 30.hxg3 Ke7 31.f3 Bb1 32.a3 Bc2 33.Na5 Kd6 34.Nc4+ Kc7 35.Na5 Bg6 36.Nc4 Bf7 37.d6+ Kd7 38.Kf2 Bg6 39.Ke3 Bc2 40.Na5 Kxd6 41.g4 Bg6 42.Nc4+ Ke6 43.Na5 Kd5 44.Nc4 f5 45.gxf5 Bxf5 46.Na5 Bd7 47.Nc4 Bb5 48.Nd2 a5 49.Ne4 Bc6 50.Kd3 Ke5 51.Nxc5 Kf4 52.Ke2 Kg3 53.Kf1 g4 54.fxg4 Bxg2+ 55.Kg1 Bd5 56.b4 axb4 57.axb4 Kxg4 58.Kf2 Kf4 59.Na4 Bc6 60.Nc3 a6 61.Ne2+ Ke4 62.Ng3+ Kd3 63.Nf5 h5 64.Ng7 h4 65.Nf5 h3 66.Kg3 Kc3 67.Ne3 Bg2 0–1

15.Nxe4

When the reference game was a long Black win, it dawns on me that Carlsen could be seeking to bring this match to a rapid conclusion. If he manages a win with Black, he needs only one draw in the last two games to secure his title.

15...Bxe4

Peter Svidler, who with Sopiko Guramishvili is providing live commentary for the official site, thinks that it is likely both players are still in their preparation.

16.Qc1

Anand spent fifteen minutes on this move.

Svidler, who plays the Grunfeld, thinks that Anand's advanced central pawn is strong. I find it reminiscent of a game Garry Kasparov played in his youth, which he comments upon in some depth in Kaparov on Kasparov, Part 1: 1973-1985 (2011).

16...Qf6

I expected 16...Kh7. Anand had been thinking for eight minutes as Svidler and Guramishvili return from a short break.

Svidler is confessing that he considered Carlsen's move, although he did not mention it earlier.

After Carlsen's 16...Qf6

17.Bxh6 Qxb2

A queen swap here followed by exchanges of bishops for knights to double the opponent's pawns seems to make the d-pawn less of a threat. Black should hold the position.

18.Qxb2 Bxb2

Although 19.Bxa6 is tempting, keeping the bishop pair on the board offers better prospects for applying the sort of pressure that could lead to a win.

In general, I like having the Black side of the Grunfeld with a two to one pawn majority on the queenside. However, in my experience, Black's c-pawn usually gets exchanged for White's d-pawn. Here, that d-pawn is a potential monster.

19.Ng5

Susan Polgar suggested this move in a tweet while Anand was contemplating 18.Qxb2.

Anand has 51 minutes remaining. As Carlsen is thinking, I notice that he is a player who tips his head from side to side while calculating potential exchanges. It is subtle, which helps to explain why I had not noticed it before.

Carlsen has been thinking for twenty minutes.

"The gloves are off," Fabiano Caruana tweeted.

After thirty minutes of thinking, Carlsen played.

19...Bd4

Problems with the delay, feed, or hackers caused Svidler to briefly perceive that 19...Bxg2 had been played.

20.Nxe4 Rxe4 21.Bf3 Re7 22.d6 Rd7 23.Bf4

I had these moves in my database before they were played.

After Anand's 23.Bf4

White's d-pawn is blockaded and Black's knight may now have time to find a more useful square, perhaps Na6-b4-c6. Would Anand snap it off on c6? Perhaps, Carlsen needs to slide the other rook to c8 first.

23...Nb4 24.Rd2

Surely White cannot let the a-pawn drop. Or, can he?

24...Re8

This move must be much stronger than my idea.

Svidler has introducing a guest, an expert on the Grunfeld, when the live commentary feed died. Perhaps the broadcast is working elsewhere in the world.

Refreshing my browser brought it back, so the problem seems to be local.

25.Rc1

Anand has 22 minutes to get to move 40.

25...Re6 26.h4

Anand avoids backrank checkmates and also prevents g6-g5.

The problems I was having listening to the commentary continue, so I am missing interesting Grandmaster analysis. These problems seem to stem from my notebook computer, which often has connectivity issues. It is a nice box, but the internal WiFi seems substandard. The video works fine on my iPad, but the battery needed charging so I switched to my notebook.

I suppose that I could move the charger to where I am sitting in the living room. These First World problems with technology are soo troubling.

26...Be5

The analysts are not optimistic concerning Anand's ability to play for a win in this position now.

After Carlsen's 26...Be5

27.Bxe5 Rxe5 28.Bxb7 Rxb7 29.d7 Nc6 30.d8Q+ Nxd8 31.Rxd8+

White looking at the position after 26...Be5, I entered some moves in my database. These moves were soon played on the board.

31...Kg7 32.Rd2 1/2-1/2

I did not get as far as the last move by each player in my guess-the-move.

The draw should be considered a victory for Carlsen in terms of the match situation. With two games remaining, Carlsen leads 5.5-4.5.

In the press conference, Anand mentioned 24.Re1 as an alternative to 24.Rd2. The commentators seemed to suggest that Anand lost control of the position near that point in the game.

Anand -- Carlsen, Game 1

The World Chess Championship has begun.

Will Viswanathan Anand regain his title from Magnus Carlsen? Anand's loss last year capped a period of several years where his play had been uninspiring. Nor was he considered the favorite to win the Candidates Tournament and earn another match. At first, Anand was ambivalent concerning whether he would play in the Candidates Tournament. There was some talk of retirement.

He played and he won. His play over the past year has reminded chess fans of the man who has earned the World Champion title in more ways than any other. He was FIDE World Champion via both the knockout system and a tournament, as well as earning the classical title through a championship match when he defeated Vladimir Kramnik in 2008. Kramnik had participated in the 2007 Championship Tournament, placing second.

Carlsen, the highest rated chess player in history, has proven vulnerable in the past year. Although he lost several notable games, he also won a couple of prestigious tournaments.

This match is the fifth time in history that a dethroned World Champion earned a rematch with the new champion. The first three were successful restorations of the crown to its former owner. After surprising Alexander Alekhine in 1935, Max Euwe was unsuccessful defending his title in 1937. Mikhail Botvinnik twice lost the title and then gained in back in a rematch. Vasily Smyslov won in 1957, then lost in 1958. Mikhail Tal became World Champion in 1960, then lost the title in 1961.

In 1984-1985, Garry Kasparov played a record number of World Championship games with Anatoly Karpov over two matches, winning the title. The return match of 24 games was played 28 July to 8 October 1986. Kasparov won 12.5 - 11.5.

Today's game explored an obscure line of the Grunfeld Defense, following a game between Anand and Jon Ludwig Hammer, one of Carlsen's seconds.

Anand,Viswanathan (2792) -- Carlsen,Magnus (2863) [D85]
WCC  Sochi, 08.11.2014

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.Bd2 Bg7 6.e4 Nxc3

Carlsen has played 6...Nb6 in the past, winning against Wang Yue in 2010. Anand also has played this position, beating Peter Svidler with the White pieces in 2009.

7.Bxc3 0–0 8.Qd2

8.Nf3 is slightly more popular in the small number of games that have reached this position.

8...Nc6

8...c5 9.d5 Bxc3 10.bxc3 e6 11.d6 e5 12.h4 Be6 13.Nh3 Qxh4 14.0–0–0 Qxe4 15.Bd3 Qa4 16.Ng5 Qxa2 17.Qe3 Qa3+ 18.Kd2 Qb2+ 19.Bc2 Bf5 20.Rc1 Rd8 21.Nxf7 Kxf7 22.Qxe5 Rxd6+ 23.Qxd6 Nc6 24.Rxh7+ Kg8 25.Rd7 Re8 26.Qf6 Bxd7 27.Qxg6+ Kf8 28.Qf6+ Kg8 29.Rh1 Re2+ 30.Kxe2 Nd4+ 31.cxd4 Qxc2+ 32.Ke3 Qc3+ 33.Kf4 Qxd4+ 34.Qxd4 cxd4 35.Ke4 a5 36.Kxd4 a4 37.Kc3 b5 38.Kb4 Kf7 39.Rh7+ Ke6 40.g4 Be8 41.f4 Kf6 42.Rh6+ Kg7 43.g5 Bg6 44.Rh3 Bf5 45.Re3 1–0 Anand,V (2783) -- Hammer,J (2608) Sandnes NOR 2013

After Carlsen's 8...Nc6

9.Nf3 Bg4 10.d5 Bxf3 11.Bxg7N

11.gxf3 Ne5 12.Be2 c6 13.f4 Nd7 14.Bxg7 Kxg7 15.dxc6 bxc6 16.Rc1 Nf6 17.Rc4 Qb8 18.b3 Rd8 19.Qe3 a5 20.0–0 a4 21.b4 a3 22.Rb1 Ra4 23.Bf3 c5 24.Rxc5 Rxb4 25.Rxb4 Qxb4 26.e5 Ng8 27.Rc3 Nh6 28.Rb3 Qc4 29.Rc3 Qxa2 30.Rxa3 Qb1+ 31.Kg2 Nf5 32.Qc3 Nh4+ 33.Kh3 Qf1+ 34.Kxh4 Qxf2+ 35.Kh3 Rd2 36.f5 Qxh2+ 37.Kg4 h5+ 38.Kg5 Qg3+ 0–1 Moiseenko,A (2707) -- Nepomniachtchi,I (2714) Yaroslavl 2014

11...Kxg7 12.gxf3 Ne5 13.0–0–0 c6 14.Qc3 f6 15.Bh3 cxd5 16.exd5 Nf7 17.f4

After Anand's 17.f4

I enjoy following such games live, with or without the Grandmaster commentary, and struggling to keep my blog posts up-to-date with the game as it develops. The game is broadcast via the official site sochi2014.fide.com, and is rebroadcast via many chess news outlets.

I have a youth chess tournament to run today. Hence, I may need to leave before this game finishes.

17...Qd6 18.Qd4 Rad8

Anand is nearly thirty minutes ahead of Carlsen on the clock.

19.Be6 Qb6 20.Qd2 Rd6 21.Rhe1 Nd8 22.f5 Nxe6 23.Rxe6 Qc7+ 24.Kb1 Rc8

After Carlsen's 24...Rc8

"The game will end when all the resources are exhausted," Peter Svidler notes, is what we can expect when Magnus Carlsen plays chess.

Anand has perhaps three minutes more than Carlsen at this point.

25.Rde1 Rxe6

My youth tournament was a success with 77 players, the largest youth event in my city since 2009. However, the Wi-Fi there was not strong enough for me to update this blog, nor even to know the result of the game until I arrived home.

I could see enough of the game to understand that Anand found himself in a difficult position where he was hoping to escape with a draw, He managed to succeed.

26.Rxe6 Rd8 27.Qe3 Rd7 28.d6 exd6 29.Qd4 Rf7 30.fxg6 hxg6 31.Rxd6 a6 32.a3 Qa5 33.f4 Qh5 34.Qd2

After Anand's 34.Qd2

34...Qc5 35.Rd5 Qc4 36.Rd7 Qc6 37.Rd6

I think that exchanging rooks with 37.Rxf7+ Kxf7 must be bad because of the pawn weaknesses on White's kingside.

37...Qe4+ 38.Ka2 Re7 39.Qc1 a5 40.Qf1 a4 41.Rd1 Qc2 42.Rd4 Re2 43.Rb4

This evening after dinner, I watched part of the commentary that I missed this morning. It seems that Carlsen spent a lot of time thinking in this position.

43...b5 44.Qh1!

Anand has proven himself resourceful in a difficult position. With this move, he maintains control of the central light squares.

44...Re7 45.Qd5 Re1 46.Qd7+ Kh6 47.Qh3+ Kg7 48.Qd7+ ½–½

It was a rough start for Anand. He created complications from his opening choice, but then failed to capitalize in the middle game. In the ending, he was on the defensive.

Carlsen -- Anand 2013, Game 1

It came as a bit of a slap in the face to everyone...
Andrew Martin

In his YouTube analysis of today's game, IM Andrew Martin called the short draw "a slap in the face." Short draws are unpopular with most chess fans. World Championship matches are particularly afflicted with this demon. However, I agree with Boris Gelfand's provocative comments last year. Draws are the business of the players.

We are here to play the match, we are not here to entertain spectators. We don’t have to play out the moves; commentators can explain that.
Boris Gelfand (see "Backlash on Short Draw," The Chess Drum)

Carlsen,Magnus (2870) -- Anand,Viswanathan (2775) [D78]
FWCM 2013 Chennai (1), 09.11.2013

1.Nf3

My time zone is ten hours behind that of Chennai, so it is not possible for me to follow the games live and continue to get the sleep that my body requires. When I awoke early this morning, I quickly checked the initial moves of the game and was happy to see Carlsen's first move!

I predicted this move in a comment on the forums of Chess.com. 1.Nf3 is a flexible move that may transpose into many different opening systems. It is a move that I have played in many important games, and Carlsen has adopted it prior to this match, as have many other strong players.

Officially, 1.Nf3 is called the Reti Opening. However, the Reti proper is a particular set of moves in response to a particular response by Black. This game did not follow that path. Naming an opening solely by the first move strikes me as silly.

In his video, Martin used the term King's Indian Attack for Carlsen's opening moves. There is a KIA variation of the Reti. The ECO classification places the game as a variation of the Grunfeld Defense.*

1...d5 2.g3 g6 3.Bg2 Bg7 4.d4

4.O-O keeps the game within ECO A07, a Reti. Carlsen's move appears slightly more popular in ChessBase Online (1800 to 1649), but other searches suggest that O-O may be more popular, and significantly more so in older games.

As one should both expect and hope for in this World Championship match, both players are employing move order transpositions to probe the other's opening preparation without revealing too much of their own. Today's game was a psychological battle and reconnaissance.

Black to move

4...c6

4...Nf6 is vastly more popular, occurring roughly ten times as often. However, Carlsen played 4...c6 against Teimour Radjabov in the 2012 Tata Steel tournament.

Reference Game:

Radjabov,T (2773) -- Carlsen,M (2835) [A07]
74th Tata Steel GMA Wijk aan Zee NED (8), 22.01.2012

1.Nf3 d5 2.g3 g6 3.Bg2 Bg7 4.d4 c6 5.0–0 Nf6 6.Nbd2 0–0 7.c4 a5 8.b3 a4 9.Bb2 Bf5 10.Ne5 Nbd7 11.Nxd7 Bxd7 12.Bc3 axb3 13.axb3 Bg4 14.Rxa8 Qxa8 15.h3 Bf5 16.Qa1 h5 17.Qxa8 Rxa8 18.Ra1 Rxa1+ 19.Bxa1 Bc2 20.e3 g5 21.Bf1 g4 22.hxg4 hxg4 23.Be2 Kh7 24.cxd5 cxd5 25.Bc3 Kg6 26.Kf1 Kf5 27.Ke1 Nd7 28.b4 e6 29.Nf1 Kg5 30.Nh2 Nf6 31.Bd2 Kf5 32.b5 Bf8 33.Ba5 Be7 34.Bc7 Kg5 35.b6 Bb3 36.f4+ Kf5 37.Kf2 Bc4 38.Bd1 Bb4 39.Bd8 Ba5 40.Kg2 Bd3 41.Kf2 Ne4+ 42.Kg2 Nf6 43.Kf2 Ne4+ 44.Kg2 Nf6 ½–½

5.0–0 Nf6 6.b3

Carlsen deviates from his game with Radjabov with a move played by Sergei Karjakin against Vladimir Kramnik in the Tal Memorial blitz. It is reasonable to assume that both Carlsen and Anand looked at such games in their preparation for this match. Anand certainly would have studied all of Carlsen's recent games, while considering where alternative moves might be desirable.

6...0–0 7.Bb2 Bf5 8.c4

Black to move

8...Nbd7

Kramnik played 8...Ne4. Anand's choice is more popular in recent games, while Kramnik's holds the lead overall. White's scoring percentage is a little above average.

9.Nc3 dxc4!

Anand's move here is not the game's novelty, but it is close. ChessBase Online has three games with the resulting position. One of these games is of no significance as it was played by class players. The other two games were played by relatively weak masters. Andrew Martin examines one of these games in some detail in his video.

Anand's move is the strongest in the position, according to the three engines that I consulted--Stockfish 4, Hiarcs 12, and Rybka 4. The engine evaluations favor Anand's move by 1/3 to nearly 1/2 pawn over the second choice. It is the only move that tilts in Black's favor, and it clearly offered Carlsen some problems after the subsequent moves. Both players match the top engine moves until Anand's 12...Nd5.

10.bxc4 Nb6 11.c5

Black to move

11...Nc4!

While considering this move before it was played, International Masters Lawrence Trent and Tania Sachdev considered whether the knight might become trapped.

12.Bc1

Anand mentioned that this move surprised him. On his The Week in Chess site, Mark Crowther published excellent commentary on today's game that employs postgame comments by the players as well as comments by Gary Kasparov.

12...Nd5 13.Qb3

Trent and Sachdev favored 13.Nxd5.

13...Na5 14.Qa3 Nc4 15.Qb3 Na5 16.Qa3 Nc4 ½–½

A draw by repetition permits a short draw without running up against the rule that neither player may offer a draw prior to Black's move 30.

*ECO Code is a trademark of Chess Informant.