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Главная страница Новости Турниры претендентов Турнир претендентов 2016

Турнир претендентов 2016

10.03.2016 - 29.03.2016

Турнир проходил в Москве, победил Сергей Карякин

Турнир проходил в 2 круга, место проведения - здание Центрального телеграфа (Тверская, д.7)

Участники

1. Фабиано Каруана
Рейтинг: 2805
30.07.1992
США

2. Хикару Накамура
Рейтинг: 2802
09.12.1987
США

3. Виши Ананд
Рейтинг: 2750
11.12.1969
Индия

4. Сергей Карякин
Рейтинг: 2750
12.01.1990
Россия

5. Левон Аронян
Рейтинг: 2739
06.10.1982
США

6. Аниш Гири
Рейтинг: 2733
28.06.1994
Нидерланды

7. Веселин Топалов
Рейтинг: 2717
15.03.1975
Болгария

8. Пётр Свидлер
Рейтинг: 2698
17.06.1976
ФИДЕ

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.11"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Black "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C65"]
[WhiteElo "2762"]
[BlackElo "2780"]
[Annotator "Sagar Shah"]
[PlyCount "97"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{In the 2014 Candidates, Vishy Anand began with a win over Levon Aronian with
1.e4 in the first round. Two years later and 2500 kilometres apart 
(Khanty-Mansisyk to Moscow), Vishy Anand sees no reason to change his strategy.
} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 {Of course the Berlin - the opening that
cannot be refuted! The best way to make a solid start to a long and gruelling
14 round event.} 4. d3 {This was Vishy Anand's main weapon against the Berlin
at the Candidates 2016. He got absolutely no advantage and hence resorted to
Giuoco Piano towards the end of the tournament.} Bc5 {The interesting part
about this position is that Anand has reached it with the white pieces on 24
occasions in the past, with 15 of them continuing with Bxc6. In this game,
however, he keeps his options open and goes for 0-0.} 5. O-O d6 6. c3 O-O 7.
Nbd2 (7. d4 $6 Bb6 $5 8. Bxc6 bxc6 9. dxe5 Nxe4 $15) (7. h3 {was later tried
by Anand in his games against Caruana and Karjakin from the same tournament.
But that is another story.}) 7... Ne7 {Kramnik introduced this plan with ...
Ne7 in his game against Aronian in 2012. The idea is to take the game into
territory where the pawn structures would not be symmetrical.} 8. d4 {Now that
the d2-knight is defending the e4-pawn, Black has to cede the centre.} exd4 9.
cxd4 Bb6 {Now we have a position with quite some imbalances. White has a
beautiful central pawn duo, but Black has absolutely no problems in finding
squares for his pieces. If Vishy can develop his guys on c1 and a1, keeping
his centre intact, his position would be much better. But as we will see this
is not so easy.} 10. Re1 (10. h3 {Trying to limit the B is met with} d5 $1 11.
e5 Ne4 12. Bd3 Bf5 13. Qe2 Nc6 $132) 10... Bg4 11. h3 Bh5 {All this has been
seen many times, with Topalov himself having this position against Fabiano
Caruana in 2015 with the white pieces. But now Anand makes the first new move
of the game - the novelty!} 12. a4 $5 $146 {The idea of this move is simply to
gain more space on the queenside with a4-a5. At some point the rook may come
into the game via a3.} a6 13. Bf1 Re8 14. a5 Ba7 15. Qb3 Nc6 $1 {As Boris
Gelfand rightly pointed out in the commentary room, "Good players are always
flexible with their plans." Nc6-e7 wasn't played with the intention to return
back to c6, but Topalov sees that the position has changed since his Ne7-move.
This is the best and although it may look weird Veselin doesn't hesitate to
play it.} (15... Rb8 {is possible but is quite passive. White can continue with
} 16. Qc3 $14 {with the idea of b4 and developing the c1-bishop.}) 16. d5 (16.
Qxb7 Nxd4 17. Nxd4 Bxd4 {Looks pretty good for Black as after} 18. Bxa6 d5 $1 {
White has serious co-ordination issues.}) 16... Nd4 17. Nxd4 Bxd4 18. Qxb7 $5 {
Good or bad, this pawn had to be taken. Anand had made his previous moves with
the intention of taking on b7, so there was no backing out now.} Nd7 $1 {
A strong move by the Bulgarian. The knight not only threatens to go to c5 but
also opens the route for the queen to come to f6 or h4. White's pieces are
uncoordinated and undeveloped and the queen is looking a bit silly on b7.
Anand has to be really careful here.} 19. Nc4 $6 (19. Ra3 {was Anand's
original intention but he changed his mind at the last moment.} Qh4 {is now
met by} 20. Rae3 $1 {A completely appropriate exchange sacrifice. The bishop
on d4 is worth the rook. Anand saw this and even mentioned it in the press
conference, but during the game he changed his mind.} Nc5 21. Qxc7 f5 $1 $13 (
21... Bxe3 $6 22. Rxe3 $14 {White is better here.})) 19... Nc5 20. Qc6 {
[%csl Rf2,Rg1][%cal Gd4f2,Gd8h4,Gc5e4] A look at the position reveals that
Black has clear-cut compensation and a player of Topalov's class knows that.
However, it is one thing to know that you have compensation and quite another
to find a concrete tactical refutation. This was the moment when Black had a
chance to take the advantage but Topalov was unable to find it.} Nb3 $2 (20...
Bxf2+ $1 {This was the move that would have destroyed Anand's position.} 21.
Kxf2 Qh4+ {The rook is hanging, so g3 has to be played.} 22. g3 Nxe4+ {Once
again the knight has to be taken or else g3 falls.} 23. Rxe4 Qxe4 $17 {and
even though White has two pieces for a rook his position is pretty bad as his
king is exposed. It's not so easy to come up with a good move for White here.
E.g.} 24. Bf4 $2 {fails to} g5 $1 $19) ({Another extremely interesting idea is
the following:} 20... f6 {What is the point, you may ask? Well for starters
how do you meet the threat of trapping the white queen with Re7 and Be8. It
seems very difficult.} 21. Be3 Bxe3 22. Rxe3 Re7 $1 {Be8 is threatened and the
queen will perish. The best White can try is} 23. b4 Be8 24. Qxa8 Qxa8 25. bxc5
$44 {Black should be better here, but the position is not so easy to play due
to the material imbalance.}) 21. Rb1 Nxc1 $6 {This makes White's task easier.}
(21... f5 {creating some play was better.} 22. Be3 Rxe4 23. Nd2 Rxe3 $1 (23...
Nxd2 24. Bxd2 $14) 24. fxe3 Nxd2 25. exd4 Nxb1 26. Rxb1 $11) 22. Rbxc1 Rb8 23.
Qxa6 $16 {White is two pawns up right now. Black may regain one of them but
even then he would be in a poor position, mainly because the a5-pawn is
super-strong. Topalov had to make quite a few inferior moves to reach this
position from what he had.} Qh4 {This looks like the most natural human move
to make as it attacks both the f2- and e4-pawns.} (23... f5 $5 {could have
been a tricky move to face.} 24. exf5 $6 (24. Ne3 $1 $14) 24... Bxf2+ $1 25.
Kxf2 Qh4+ 26. g3 Qd4+ 27. Kg2 Bf7 $3 $40 {Only computers can see moves like
these!}) 24. Rc2 Rxe4 25. Ne3 $1 {Experts praised this extremely accurate move
by Vishy Anand. The knight saves the kingside and now the c7 pawn is attacked.}
(25. Rxe4 Qxe4 {gives some activity to Black, although White is still better
after} 26. Rd2 $16) 25... Qd8 26. Qc4 Bg6 27. Bd3 $1 {Once again very accurate.
} (27. Qxc7 Bxe3 $1 28. fxe3 (28. Qxd8+ Rxd8 29. fxe3 Ra4 30. Rc6 Rxa5 $16)
28... Ra4 {The rook on c2 is attacked and the pride of White's position - the
a5 pawn falls.}) 27... Rf4 28. Bxg6 hxg6 (28... Bxe3 29. Be4 $18) 29. g3 $1 (
29. Qxc7 $6 Qxc7 30. Rxc7 Rxb2 $132) 29... Re4 30. a6 Qe8 31. Rce2 {This is a
human move to make. The computer comes up with a very interesting solution.} (
31. Qxc7 $1 Bxe3 32. Rxe3 Rxe3 33. fxe3 Qxe3+ {Many players would see until
this move and reject this variation because of counterplay. But the engine
suggests} 34. Kh2 {with a completely winning position.} Rb3 35. Qd8+ Kh7 36.
Qh4+ $18) 31... Bb6 32. Qd3 Ra8 33. Kg2 (33. b4 {With the idea of b5 looked
more logical.}) 33... Qa4 34. b3 Rd4 35. bxa4 $6 (35. Qc2 {was much better as
the natural} Qxa6 {loses to the very nice tactical shot} 36. Nf5 $3 gxf5 37.
Re8+ Rxe8 38. Rxe8+ Kh7 39. Qxf5+ $18) 35... Rxd3 {White's advantage has been
reduced at this point, but still it is much more pleasant to be in Anand's
shoes than Topalov's!} 36. Nc4 Rxa6 37. a5 {This is a nice tricky solution
that Vishy came up with.} Bd4 (37... Bxa5 $2 38. Ra1 Rxd5 39. Rea2 Rc5 40. Nxa5
$16) (37... Bc5 {was much better as after} 38. Re8+ Kh7 39. R1e7 {The d5-pawn
is hanging. The same was not possible when the bishop was on d4.} Rxd5 40. Rxf7
Rf5 $11) 38. Re8+ Kh7 39. R1e7 Rc3 40. Nd2 $5 {Anand transfers his knight to
better squares after Nd2-e4.} (40. Rxc7 $1 $16) 40... Rc2 $6 (40... f5 {
prevents Ne4, but the knight can reach g5 via another route.} 41. h4 $1 $14 {
[%cal Gd2f3,Gf3g5]}) 41. Ne4 f6 {stops Ng5 but exposes the seventh rank, which
Anand takes full advantage of.} 42. h4 $1 {Stopping Black from going g5.} (42.
Rf7 g5 {was Black's idea.}) 42... Rxa5 43. Rf7 g5 44. h5 {The mating net
cannot be broken.} Rxf2+ 45. Nxf2 Ra2 46. Rff8 Rxf2+ 47. Kh3 g4+ 48. Kxg4 f5+
49. Rxf5 {A complete exchange down, there is no way to survive as Black, and
hence Topalov resigned. A game filled with lots of ups and downs.} 1-0

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.11"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Giri, Anish"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D37"]
[WhiteElo "2793"]
[BlackElo "2786"]
[Annotator "Sagar Shah"]
[PlyCount "130"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{In this game I will avoid commenting too much about the opening as it is all
well known and many games have been played in this line. But the middlegame
and the late endgame are particularly interesting.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3
d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bf4 O-O 6. e3 Nbd7 7. c5 c6 8. h3 (8. Bd3 {is the other main
move in this position.}) 8... b6 9. b4 a5 10. a3 h6 {Just to give you an
example of what quick learners these top players are: in Zurich Chess
Challenge just a month before this game, Nakamura played this move against
Aronian. Now Aronian tries the same idea with the black pieces.} 11. Bd3 Ba6
12. O-O Qc8 13. Rb1 axb4 14. axb4 Bxd3 15. Qxd3 Qb7 {This position had been
reached, just 15 days previously in the game of Sargissian with the black
pieces against Ding Liren. Sargissian is one of Levon's seconds and there is a
high possibility that Aronian and Sarigissian worked on this line together.}
16. Rfc1 Rfc8 17. Ne1 $146 {Giri's novelty, not an earth shattering one but
just improving his f3-knight.} (17. Nd2 {Aronian with the white pieces tried
to put his knight on b3 and it wasn't too successful. Giri aims for the
d3-square.}) 17... Bd8 18. Qd1 Bc7 {Black tries to exchange a few pieces,
which is the right thing to do when you are short of space.} 19. Nd3 Bxf4 20.
exf4 Ne4 21. Ne2 (21. Nxe4 dxe4 22. Ne5 b5 $1 {with Nf6-d5 coming up, Black
shouldn't have any problems.}) 21... Ra2 22. Rc2 {As Anish mentioned after the
game, Black is comfortable here. He should only be careful not to allow b4-b5.
Aronian misses this threat and ends up with a very difficult position.} Rca8 $6
(22... Rxc2 23. Qxc2 Nef6 (23... Ra8 $6 24. b5 $1) (23... b5 24. Ra1 Ra8 25.
Ra5 Rxa5 26. bxa5 b4 27. Qa4 b3 28. a6 b2 29. axb7 b1=Q+ 30. Kh2 Qxb7 {is just
an illustrative variation of how complicated things can get.}) 24. Ra1 Ra8 25.
Rxa8+ Qxa8 {also seems pretty fine until you notice the queenside breakthrough!
} 26. b5 $1 cxb5 27. c6 Nf8 28. c7 Qc8 29. Nb4 Ne8 30. Na6 Ng6 31. Qc6 {
White is dominating and Black will have to be extremely accurate if he wants
to hold this position.}) (22... Ra4 {it seems better if you keep the rooks on
the board.} 23. Rcb2 b5 {Followed by Rca8 and Black should be completely fine.}
) 23. f3 Rxc2 (23... Nef6 {is also met with} 24. b5 $1 bxc5 25. dxc5 cxb5 26.
Nd4 $1 {White has quite some pressure.} (26. c6 Qb6+ $13)) 24. Qxc2 Nef6 25. b5
$1 {Aronian is now under a lot of pressure.} Rc8 (25... bxc5 26. dxc5 cxb5 27.
Nd4 $36 (27. c6 Qb6+ $11)) 26. Qa4 $1 {An extremely strong move by Anish who
threatens to play his queen to a6 here. This idea was missed by Levon. Anish
mentions that he found this idea after much deliberation and his thoughts were
mainly concerned with breaking on the kingside with f5. But when that didn't
work he turned his attention on the other wing and found this idea.} Qc7 (26...
bxc5 27. dxc5 cxb5 28. Rxb5 Qc7 29. Nd4 $16) (26... cxb5 27. Qxb5 $16 {it is
not at all easy for Black to untangle.}) 27. bxc6 Qxc6 28. Qxc6 Rxc6 29. Rc1 {
While this move isn't bad, White had a way to increase the pressure with Nb4.}
(29. Nb4 $1 Rc7 30. c6 Nb8 31. Nc3 $1 {The absolute star move and hats off to
Aronian for having seen this for his opponent. It just shows how good these
guys are, always looking out for opponent's threats.} (31. Ra1 Nxc6 32. Rc1
Nxd4 33. Rxc7 Nxe2+ 34. Kf2 Nxf4 $11) (31. Rc1 Ne8 32. Nc3 Nd6 {Stopping Nb5.}
33. Ncxd5 exd5 34. Nxd5 Na6 $1 35. Nxc7 (35. Ra1 Ra7 36. Nb4 Nxb4 37. Rxa7 Nxc6
$11) 35... Nxc7 36. Ra1 Kf8 37. Ra7 Nde8 $1 38. d5 Ke7 $17) 31... Nxc6 32. Nb5
Rc8 33. Nd6 Rd8 (33... Rc7 34. Rc1 $18) 34. Nxf7 $1 Kxf7 35. Nxc6 $16 {The
knight comes to e5. The position might not be 100% lost, but it is really
unpleasant to be Black here.}) 29... Rc7 (29... Rc8 30. c6 Nb8 31. Nb4 Ne8 32.
f5 $1 {Once again Aronian suggested this move. One gets the feeling that the
Armenian wanted to get up from the board and switch sides! He was seeing some
really excellent winning resources for his opponent.} Nd6 33. fxe6 fxe6 34. Nf4
$16 Kf7 $2 35. c7 $1 Nd7 36. Rc6 $18) 30. Nc3 bxc5 31. dxc5 Ne8 (31... Nxc5 32.
Nb5 {Anish thought that he was winning at this point, but the computer shows
an excellent defensive resource for Black.} Nfd7 $3 {Even 2800 players can
miss such moves!} (32... Nxd3 33. Rxc7 Nxf4 34. Nd6 d4 35. Rc8+ Kh7 36. Nxf7 d3
37. Rh8+ Kg6 38. Ne5+ Kf5 39. Nc4 $18 {The pawn is caught.}) 33. Nxc7 Nxd3 $11
{The f4-pawn is lost and the rook cannot enter with the same force as it did
in the previous variation.}) 32. Nb5 Rc8 33. Kf2 $1 {Giri brings his last
resource into the game.} Nc7 34. Nxc7 (34. Nd6 Rd8 {threatening ...Nxc5 if the
rook moves from c1.}) 34... Rxc7 35. Ke3 {White is better here, but Black can
cling on by quickly bringing his king to the centre.} Kf8 36. Kd4 {Optically
White's position looks completely dominating but Levon's next move is pretty
strong.} (36. f5 $5 Ke7 (36... e5 $2 37. f4 $1 e4 38. Ne5 $1 Nxc5 39. Rxc5 Rxc5
40. Nd7+ $18) 37. fxe6 fxe6 38. Kd4 Nb8 39. Ne5 Nd7 40. c6 Nxe5 41. Kxe5 d4 $1
42. Kxd4 Kd6 $11) 36... Nb8 $1 {A nice move! Knights are always the best
blockaders of passed pawns. Suddenly it is not easy to make progress.} 37. Nb4
Rb7 (37... Nc6+ 38. Nxc6 Rxc6 39. f5 $16) 38. Kc3 Ke7 39. Ra1 Kd7 40. Nd3 f6 {
Aronian offered a draw at this point, but Giri saw that he will always have
some chances with the f5-break or the kingside pawn storm and hence decided to
continue the battle.} 41. Ra8 Kc6 42. h4 Kb5 43. Ra1 Nc6 44. Rb1+ Ka6 45. Re1
Re7 46. Ra1+ Kb7 47. Nb4 {The knight exchange would give White some chances in
the rook endgame because his king is active and he has a passed pawn on c5.} g5
$5 {Aronian defends actively in this position.} (47... Nxb4 $6 48. Kxb4 e5 {
Trying to create counterplay.} 49. fxe5 Rxe5 50. Kb5 d4 51. Rd1 Rd5 52. Rb1 Kc7
53. Kc4 Rh5 54. Ra1 {White has some chances in this position but with accurate
defence it should end in a draw.}) 48. fxg5 fxg5 49. h5 Rf7 {Trying to fix the
h6-weakness.} ({A very interesting variation showed by both the players was} 
49... Re8 50. Ra6 Nxb4 51. Rb6+ Kc7 52. Kxb4 Rb8 53. Kb5 {Both the players
thought this was lost for Black, but as always the computer begs to differ!}
Kc8 $1 {A passive, backward retreat and a difficult move for humans to see.} (
53... e5 {Aronian and Giri showed this line and this is really nice.} 54. Rxb8
Kxb8 55. Kc6 $1 d4 56. Kd7 d3 57. c6 d2 58. c7+ Ka7 59. c8=Q d1=Q+ 60. Ke7 {
and this endgame is completely winning for White}) 54. Rxb8+ (54. Kc6 $2 Rxb6+
55. cxb6 d4 $19) 54... Kxb8 55. Kc6 Kc8 $11 {and miraculously Black holds the
draw.}) 50. Ra6 (50. Nxc6 Kxc6 51. Ra6+ (51. Kd4 Rf4+ 52. Ke5 Kxc5 53. Kxe6 d4
$17 {starts to become risky for White.}) 51... Kxc5 52. Rxe6 g4 $1 {A key
point that had to be seen beforehand.} 53. fxg4 Rf2 $11) 50... Nxb4 51. Rb6+
Kc8 (51... Kc7 $2 {is losing. The point is that Black doesn't have ...Rb7 now.}
52. Kxb4 $1 g4 53. fxg4 Rf4+ 54. Kb5 Rxg4 55. Rxe6 Rxg2 56. Re7+ Kd8 57. Rh7
$18 {[%cal Gh7h6,Gc5c6]}) 52. Rxb4 (52. Kxb4 Rb7 $1 {This pawn ending is drawn.
} 53. Kb5 Rxb6+ 54. cxb6 d4 55. Kc4 e5 56. g3 Kb7 57. f4 exf4 58. gxf4 gxf4 59.
Kxd4 $11) 52... Rf4 $1 {The king and pawn ending is drawn. But it is not so
trivial. Aronian calculated all the details pretty well.} 53. Rxf4 gxf4 54. Kd4
Kd7 55. Ke5 Kc6 56. Kxf4 Kxc5 57. g4 {Threatening g5.} (57. Ke5 $2 d4 58. Ke4
Kc4 $19) 57... Kd6 $1 {The king rushes back to take measures against the
g5-break. Aronian knows that g6-h5 versus h6 is a theoretical draw. Hence all
he has to do is exchange his e6- and d5-pawns for the guy on f3.} 58. Ke3 (58.
g5 hxg5+ (58... Ke7 {is also a draw.}) 59. Kxg5 Ke7 (59... d4 $2 60. h6 d3 61.
h7 d2 62. h8=Q d1=Q 63. Qd8+ $18) 60. h6 Kf8 61. Kg6 Kg8 $11) 58... e5 $1 (
58... Ke7 $2 59. Kd4 $1 Kf6 60. f4 Kg7 61. Ke5 Kf7 62. f5 exf5 63. gxf5 $1 $18
(63. Kxf5 $2 d4 64. Ke4 Kf6 65. Kxd4 Kg5 $11)) 59. g5 Ke7 $1 60. g6 Kf6 61. Kd3
e4+ $1 {Aronian knows his endgame fortresses!} (61... Kg7 {was the less
dramatic way to draw.}) 62. fxe4 dxe4+ 63. Kxe4 Kg7 64. Kf5 Kg8 65. Kf6 Kf8 {
A superb game with some very nice resources found by both players. An entire
chapter on how to keep pressing your opponent and finding small nuances in
simplified positions can be written on this very game.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.11"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Black "Svidler, Peter"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D16"]
[WhiteElo "2760"]
[BlackElo "2757"]
[Annotator "Sagar Shah"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. Nf3 {Sergey usually begins with 1.e4 but every now and then you see him
opening with his king's knight. So it didn't come as such a huge surprise for
Svidler.} d5 2. d4 Nf6 3. c4 c6 {Svidler is known all over the chess world for
his Grьnfeld. But there was a brief period betwee 2007 to 2009 where he played
the Slav Defence. In the Candidates 2016 this became the main weapon of Peter
who had excellent results with it. Draws against Karjakin and Nakamura and a
win against Aronian.} 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. a4 e6 $5 {This is considered a tad
passive as Black transposes the game into Queen Gambit Accepted territory.
Especially because the move c5 will come with a loss of of tempo (c7-c6-c5).
But Black would like to say that the way White has made use of his extra tempo
is not particularly the best by playing a2-a4.} (5... Bf5 {is certainly the
main line when the theory runs into pages.}) 6. e3 (6. e4 Bb4 7. e5 Nd5 8. Bd2
b5 9. axb5 Bxc3 10. bxc3 cxb5 11. Ng5 {is the sharp tactical line which
Svidler looked at great depth before the game.}) 6... c5 7. Bxc4 Nc6 8. O-O
cxd4 9. Nxd4 $5 {As Svidler said after the round, "Sergey is used to doing
this everytime against me. I prepare all the lines against him and he comes up
with a move that I haven't looked at in the morning prior to the game!"
Although this move might not be as popular as 9.exd4 it is not without venom.
Basically if Black would take on d4 then after exd4 White gets a nice
initiative after exd4 threatening the d5 break. On the other hand, if you
don't take on d4 then you are not able to fully unwind.} (9. exd4 {is the main
line.}) 9... Bd7 {Peter made this move quickly. Even though he hadn't revised
this line before the game, he remembered that Bd7 was the main move. That was
where his theoretical knowledge ended, but it was important for him to bluff
to his opponent that he was well prepared. You can see how over the board
psychology plays an important role in the games of these top players.} (9...
Nxd4 10. exd4 {If Black was able to get in Bd7-c6 here he would be completely
fine. But that is a long way off and White has shown that he is better in this
line.} Be7 11. d5 $1 exd5 12. Nxd5 Nxd5 13. Bxd5 O-O 14. Be3 $14 {and this
symmetrical structured position is simply torture for Black. There is simply
no easy way to neutralise White's forces.}) 10. Nf3 $5 {A nice piece of
prophylactic thinking. Black wanted to take on d4 and follow it up with Bc6,
so White simply retreats his knight.} a6 {Although this wastes time it secures
the excellent c7-square for the black queen.} 11. e4 (11. b3 Bb4 12. Bb2 O-O {
and Black has no real problems.}) 11... Qc7 {Ng4 followed by Ne5 is one of the
common ideas in this position, so Karjakin prevents it with his next move.} 12.
h3 Bd6 13. Qe2 O-O 14. Bd3 (14. Bg5 {is another option for White but after} Ne5
15. Bxf6 gxf6 16. Bb3 Rfd8 $15 {followed by Rac8, the doubled pawns on the
kingside don't really affect Black whereas the bishop pair might become an
extrmely potent force.}) 14... Ne5 15. Nxe5 Bxe5 {Black's next idea is to put
his bishop on c6. Overall his position is quite harmonious.} 16. f4 Bd4+ (16...
Bxc3 17. bxc3 Qxc3 {is liked by the engines but Svidler didn't even consider
this move for a second. After} 18. Bb2 $44 {White has bucket loads of
compensation for the pawn in the form of an extremely strong dark-squared
bishop.}) 17. Be3 (17. Kh1 e5 $11) 17... Bxe3+ 18. Qxe3 {This might be a good
positional exercise for anyone who might want to learn about good bishops and
bad bishops and prophylactic thinking. Currently the bishop on d3 is not so
great. It is desperate for the e-pawn to move ahead and open up the b1-h7
diagonal. However, Svidler willhave none of that. He just shuts off everything
with this next fine move.} e5 $1 (18... Bc6 {is not bad but it is not in the
spirit of the position.} 19. e5 Nd5 20. Nxd5 Bxd5 $11 {Black is not worse but
White is also doing fine.}) 19. Rac1 (19. fxe5 Qxe5 $15 {The e-pawn is
isolated and the bishop is coming next to c6, this is quite a depressing and
one-sided position in Black's favour.}) (19. f5 Bc6 20. b4 Rfd8 21. b5 Bxb5 $1
22. Nxb5 axb5 23. Bxb5 Rd4 $17) 19... exf4 20. Qxf4 Qxf4 {Although Black had
an option to stay in the middlegame with Qc5+, once Svidler saw that he could
transpose the game into a slightly favourable endgame he didn't hesitate.} (
20... Qc5+ {was an option, but once Svidler saw that he could go into a
slightly better endgame with nothing to worry about, he immediately exchanged
the queens.}) 21. Rxf4 Be6 22. Kf2 {This thematic move, which could have been
a text-book example of activating your king in the late middlegame/ early
endgame, is double edged. The king can be well placed on e3 or it may become a
target for some small tactical tricks.} Rac8 23. Ke3 Nd7 {Svidler's play is
natural and there might not be such a great point in going into the details of
whether Rfd8 was more accurate before Nd7 or Rfe8 before the knight move. As
things stand Black has the slightly better game but Sergey has things under
control.} (23... Rfd8 24. Ne2 $1 {exchanging a pair of rooks eases White's
defensive task.}) (23... Rfe8 {tries to take advantage of the white king.} 24.
Be2 Nd7 25. Rd1 Ne5 26. Rff1 Rc6 $15 {And Black definitely has pressure.}) 24.
Rff1 Rfe8 25. Be2 Nb6 $6 {This idea of Nc4+ exchanges a pair of minor pieces
and reduces White's difficulties.} (25... Rc6 {Followed by doubling of the
rooks on the c-file, and ...Nc5, puts more pressure on White.} 26. Rfd1 Nc5 27.
Bf3 Nb3 28. Rc2 Na5 $36) 26. Rcd1 Nc4+ 27. Bxc4 Rxc4 28. Rf2 $11 {Now it is
just equal.} Kf8 29. Rd4 Rxd4 30. Kxd4 Rc8 {After a subsequent Nd5 the
position will peter out and the players agreed to a draw. It can be said that
the game was a success for Svidler as with the black pieces he was able to put
substantial pressure on his compatriot.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.11"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Black "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A30"]
[WhiteElo "2790"]
[BlackElo "2794"]
[Annotator "Sagar Shah/CB Website"]
[PlyCount "61"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. c4 c5 2. g3 g6 3. Bg2 Bg7 4. e3 $5 {While Nf3 and Nc3 are the main moves in
this position, e3 is not very uncommon. White's idea is simple that he wants
to play an immediate d4 or Nge2 followed by d4 and for that he doesn't need to
develop his b1-knight.} e6 {Fabiano wants to keep the game in uncharted
territory. ...Nf6 and ...Nc6 are both more popular.} (4... Nf6 5. d4 (5. Ne2
O-O 6. Nbc3 {might soon lead to a main line in the English.}) 5... cxd4 6. exd4
d5 {looks great for Black.}) 5. d4 cxd4 6. exd4 Ne7 7. d5 $5 exd5 8. cxd5 d6 {
Interesting comments were made about this position by Miroshnichenko,
Kosteniuk and Gelfand. As Kosteniuk and Miro said, "It's a tradeoff between
having more space with the pawn on d5 and the open bishop on g7. What is more
important? It is not so easy to decide!" Boris had some other important points
to make. "Black would have been completely fine if the black knight would have
been on f6 instead of e7. As things stand right now, the f5-square is the best
for both the knight and the c8-bishop and that in some ways hinders Black's
development."} 9. Nc3 Nd7 10. Nf3 O-O 11. O-O h6 $5 {An intersting move
preventing ideas like Bg5 and getting ready to play g6-g5 at an appriopriate
moment.} 12. h4 $5 {White nips the g5 idea in the bud. But everything comes at
a cost. This move weakens the g4-square and the c8-bishop would like to reach
there soon.} Nc5 13. Re1 Bg4 {Now things look quite smooth for Fabi. The
knight is coming to f5 and the queen to f6 and the rooks to c8 and e8.
Suddenly all the co-ordination issues seem to have been solved, or have they?!}
14. Bf4 Nf5 15. Qd2 Bxf3 (15... Qf6 16. Nh2 {makes the bishop on g4 looks
silly and hence taking on f3 was the right choice.}) 16. Bxf3 Qf6 17. Rac1 {
This move prepares b4. After the knight on c5 is displaced, the c3-knight
jumps to e4. Black might have got his pieces co-ordinated but the bishop pair,
combined with the space always give the first player some better chances.} a5
18. Nb5 $1 {Nakamura is never averse when it comes to tactical complications.
He sees that exchanging the b2 pawn for the guy on d6 would be a good deal.}
Qxb2 19. Qxb2 Bxb2 20. Rc2 Bf6 21. Bxd6 (21. Nxd6 {looks natural but fails to}
Nd4 $1 {The knight on b5 keeps this possibility under check.}) 21... Nxd6 22.
Nxd6 (22. Rxc5 b6 23. Rc6 Nxb5 24. Rxf6 $14 {might also be a position to
explore for White, especially because Black cannot get his blockade on d6.})
22... b6 23. Rb1 Rab8 24. Nc4 (24. h5 $5 {Throwing in this move at some point
would have created an additional tension in the position that would have been
to White's advantage. It is a Karpovian move whose benefits are not so
apparent in the current position. But later, when the rooks penetrate, the
possibility of opening the seventh rank with hxg6 fxg6 might play an important
role.}) 24... Na4 25. Bg4 $6 {Black equalises after this inaccurate move.} (25.
Ne3 Nc3 26. Rb3 Rfc8 {also looks pretty much fine for Black.}) (25. h5 $5)
25... Rfd8 $1 {Attacking the d5-pawn.} 26. d6 h5 $1 27. Bh3 b5 28. Nxa5 Rxd6
$11 29. Nc6 Rb6 30. Nb4 Nc3 31. Rb3 {Nakamura had really got the pressure
going in the position. But he couldn't sustain it. One wrong move and Caruana
was right back and made what looked like an effortless draw.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.12"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D37"]
[WhiteElo "2786"]
[BlackElo "2762"]
[Annotator "Marin,M"]
[PlyCount "61"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Nbd7 5. Bf4 dxc4 6. e3 b5 $5 {This seems
to be the latest trend. In my article for CBM 155 I only examined three other
continuations:} (6... Nd5) (6... Nb6) (6... a6) 7. Nxb5 {White has to pick up
the gauntlet. Even though in most of the lines Black will manage to keep
material equality, the control over the c3-square and the relative
vulnerability of the c4-pawn offer him at least a theoretical advantage. But
in practice Black has usually managed to neutralise the slight pressure.} Bb4+
(7... Nd5 {sacrifices a pawn for certain compensation:} 8. Bxc4 Bb4+ 9. Kf1
Nxf4 10. exf4 O-O {White has lost the right to castle and his structure is
imperfect. But as long as he does not lose his extra pawn, he can hope for a
global regrouping leading to an advantage.} 11. g3 a6 12. Nc3 Bb7 (12... c5 13.
a3 $6 Bxc3 14. bxc3 Bb7 15. Kg2 Qa5 $44) 13. Be2 Qe7 {Defining the queen's
intentions a bit too early.} (13... c5 $5) 14. Kg2 c5 15. a3 Bxc3 16. bxc3 cxd4
17. cxd4 Nf6 18. Re1 Rfc8 19. Kg1 Ne4 20. Bf1 Rc3 21. Bg2 $14 {L'Ami,E (2645)
-Rabiega,R (2507) Germany 2013 (1-0, 41), White has completed his regrouping
and can hope to convert his extra pawn.}) 8. Nd2 ({The main alternative is} 8.
Nc3 Nd5 9. Qc2 (9. Rc1 N7b6 10. Bg3 O-O 11. Be2 c5 12. O-O cxd4 13. Nxd4 Bb7
14. Nxd5 Qxd5 15. Bf3 Qd7 {Wojtaszek,R (2727)-Grandelius,N (2635) Gibraltar
2016 (1/2-1/2, 30)}) (9. a3 Nxc3 10. Qd2 Nd5 11. axb4 Nxf4 12. exf4 Bb7 13. Be2
Nb6 14. O-O Qd6 15. Rfc1 O-O 16. Ne5 Rfd8 $132 {Gustafsson,J (2630)-Naiditsch,
A (2685) Linares 2015 (1/2-1/2, 47)}) 9... N7b6 $6 (9... Nxf4 10. exf4 Bb7 11.
Be2 Nb6 12. O-O O-O 13. Ng5 g6 14. Rad1 Qf6 15. g3 Qf5 $132) 10. Bg3 O-O 11.
Be2 c5 12. O-O cxd4 13. Nxd4 Bb7 14. Bf3 Qd7 {1/2-1/2 Karjakin,S (2762)
-Mamedyarov,S (2736) Baku 2015. The draw agreement is premature as White keeps
strong pressure with, say,} 15. Rfd1 Rfd8 16. a4 a5 17. Ndb5 $16) 8... Nd5 9.
Bg3 (9. a3 {wastes an important tempo:} Bxd2+ 10. Qxd2 Nxf4 11. exf4 Nb6 12. a4
Qd7 $1 {[%csl Ga4,Gb5]} (12... a6 $2 {This returns the offered tempo and loses
the c4-pawn.} 13. Na3 a5 14. Nxc4 Nxc4 15. Bxc4 $16 {Andersen,M (2504)
-Thorsteinsson,T (2258) Reykjavik 2016 (1-0, 34)}) 13. Be2 Bb7 14. O-O O-O 15.
Na3 a5 16. Rfd1 (16. Nxc4 $2 Nxc4 17. Bxc4 Qc6 $19) 16... Bd5 {[%csl Ga4]})
9... N7b6 10. Qc2 O-O 11. Be2 Ba6 {A solid move consolidating the c4-pawn but
dooming the bishop to at least temporary passivity.} ({The more active
alternative is} 11... Bd7 12. Nc3 c5 13. dxc5 Nxc3 14. bxc3 Ba4 15. Qb2 Bxc5
16. O-O (16. Nxc4 Nxc4 17. Bxc4 h5 $5) 16... Qe7 17. Nxc4 Rfd8 {[%cal Ga8c8]
Black's activity, combined with the weakness of the c3- and a2-pawns and the
relative uselessnes of the g3-bishop leave White without an obvious plan of
converting his minimal material advantage.}) 12. Nc3 c5 13. dxc5 Nxc3 $146 (
13... Bxc5 14. Nxd5 Nxd5 15. Bxc4 Bxc4 16. Nxc4 Rc8 (16... Bb4+ 17. Ke2 Rc8 {
looks like a better or at least more restrictive move order}) 17. Qb3 (17. O-O
$5 {could have led to a position with a curious material balance:} Bxe3 18.
fxe3 Nxe3 19. Nxe3 Rxc2 20. Nxc2 Qb6+ 21. Bf2 Qxb2 22. Nd4 {Strictly speaking
the material is equal, but the position remains very interesting. Even though
they do not have active squares defended by pawns, White's well coordinated
pieces may cause Black some problems.}) 17... Bb4+ 18. Ke2 Qg5 19. Rhc1 h5 20.
Ne5 Rxc1 (20... h4 {is a better try, weakening White's structure:} 21. Nf3 Qg4
22. Bxh4 Qxg2 23. Bg3 $14) 21. Rxc1 Bd6 22. h4 Qd8 23. e4 $16 {Gelfand,B (2735)
-Grachev,B (2639) Moscow 2016 (1-0, 119)}) 14. bxc3 Bxc5 15. O-O Rc8 16. Rfd1
Qg5 {Both sides have completed their development but despite his space
advantage Black has some problems of coordination as his minor pieces are far
from optimally placed.} 17. Nf3 $6 {This defines the knight's intentions too
early. White should have kept the possibility of invading the d6-square.} ({
True,} 17. Ne4 Qg6 18. Rd2 Ba3 {looks alright for Black}) ({but} 17. a4 {
would have gained the control over the a4- and a3-squares with chances for
retaining some initiative:} Qg6 (17... Be7 18. a5 Nd5 19. Nf3 $36) (17... Nd5
18. Ne4 Qg6 19. Rd2 Be7 20. Nd6 Qxc2 21. Rxc2 Rc5 22. e4 $14) 18. Qxg6 hxg6 19.
Ne4 Be7 20. Bd6 $14) 17... Qg6 $11 {Black will manage now to either weaken the
defence of the c3-pawn or get the control over a4.} 18. Qd2 (18. Qxg6 hxg6 19.
a4 Nd5 20. Rac1 Rfd8 21. Ne5 Bb6 $11 {[%csl Rc3][%cal Gb6a5]}) (18. Qb2 Na4 19.
Qd2 f6 {[%csl Gf3]}) 18... Bb5 19. Qe1 Ba4 {The character of the position has
changed a lot and White has very little space left for his pieces. But since
he does not have any significant weakness, the position remains within the
drawing zone.} 20. Ne5 (20. Rd2 f6 21. Bd6 Bxd6 22. Rxd6 Qf7 23. Rb1 (23. Nd4
Bd7 24. Rd1 Qe7 25. Nf3 Ba4 26. R1d2 Nd5 {wins an exchange}) 23... Qe7 24. Rd2
e5 {[%csl Gf3]}) 20... Qg5 (20... Qe4 $5 {[%csl Gc4]} 21. Bf3 Qf5 22. Rd2 Rcd8)
21. Rd2 Rfd8 {This leads to global exchanges and an obvious draw.} 22. Rxd8+
Qxd8 23. Nxc4 Nxc4 24. Bxc4 Bxe3 25. Qxe3 Rxc4 26. Rb1 Rc8 27. h3 a6 28. c4
Rxc4 29. Rb8 Rc8 30. Qb6 Rxb8 31. Qxb8 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.12"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Black "Giri, Anish"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "C65"]
[WhiteElo "2794"]
[BlackElo "2793"]
[Annotator "Sagar Shah/CB Website"]
[PlyCount "83"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[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. d3 Bc5 5. c3 O-O ({Anish opted for} 5... d5 {
against MVL in Tashkent 2014. The game ended in a comfortable draw.}) 6. O-O d6
7. Nbd2 {Caruana had earlier gone for 7.h3 in Malmo 2012 against Giri! Four
years later, both are players have become super strong and we are sure to see
many more battles in the years to come.} (7. h3 Ne7 8. d4 Bb6 9. Re1 c6 10. Bd3
Ng6 11. Be3 Re8 12. Nbd2 {1-0 (41) Caruana,F (2770)-Giri,A (2693) Malmo 2012})
7... Ne7 8. d4 exd4 9. cxd4 Bb6 10. Re1 Bg4 11. h3 Bh5 {All this was seen in
the game Anand-Topalov from the first round of the Candidates 2016. Anand went
12.a4 in this position. Caruana prefers to break the pin immediately and plays
Qb3.} 12. Qb3 d5 {Recently Caruana himself played this with Topalov in
Sinquefeld Cup 2015 and won a nice game. Its important to note though he won
with black he still chose to play this line from white. This shows that the
top players analyze their games objectively and make use of any new ideas that
they come across, especially in their own games.} 13. e5 Nd7 14. Qd1 {[%cal
Gd1b3,Gb3d1] What's going on?!! Qd1-b3-d1? Is Caruana our of his mind? Not
really! Things in the centre are settled now and the queen doesn't mind this
backward move, mainly vacating the b3-square for the knight.} f6 $5 {
Immediately challenging the center. As Giri said during the press conference,
he thought that this line was fine for Black, but after the game he thinks
that his seconds somehow had underestimated the dangers in the position.} 15.
e6 Nb8 {Undeveloping moves seem to be the order of the day. However, to be
fair, the knight simply didn't have a good square to go to.} 16. Nb3 {Eyeing
for the c5-outpost which would force Black to part with his dark-squared
bishop. At the same time the route for the bishop to develop on d6 has been
opened.} Qd6 (16... Nbc6 {was possible but it seems as if Anish wanted to
prevent his opponent from going Bf4.}) 17. g4 Bg6 18. Nh4 Nbc6 19. Bxc6 (19.
Nxg6 Nxg6 {looks fine for Black.}) (19. Ng2 {preparing Bf4 can be an option,
but Black has a strong move in the form of} f5 $1 20. Bf4 Qb4 21. Bxc6 Nxc6 $11
) 19... Qxc6 (19... bxc6 20. Ng2 {is now a clearly better position for White
as Bf4 is threatened and there is no bishop to attack on b5 with ...Qb4.} f5
21. Bf4 Qb4 22. a3 Qa4 23. g5 $16 {Black is left without any counterplay.}) 20.
Bd2 {White is ready to give up the d4-pawn in order to get good amount of
piece activity.} (20. Bf4 {is natural but it always seems dangerous to put a
piece where a pawn fork can happen. In this case the move g7-g5.} Bc2 21. Qd2
Bxb3 22. axb3 g5 23. Bxg5 fxg5 24. Qxg5+ Kh8 {Giri showed some blistering
analysis in this position. One of the lines that was very entertaining was the
following.} 25. Qe5+ Kg8 26. Nf5 Nxf5 27. gxf5 Qd6 28. f6 Qxe5 29. dxe5 $16 {
[%csl Ge5,Ge6,Gf6] Anish gave us an example of four rows of pawns (32 pawns!)
vs all the other pieces. Truly wonderful the kind of thing these top players
like to indulge in!}) 20... Bc2 21. Qe2 Bxb3 22. axb3 Bxd4 {Although Black has
won a pawn, it doesn't really matter. The pawn on e6 is a monster and the rook
on a1 is also activated without any efforts. Giri has to play carefully here.}
23. Bb4 Bc5 (23... Rfe8 $2 24. Bxe7 Rxe7 25. Nf5 $18) 24. Rec1 b6 25. Bxc5 bxc5
26. Ra6 (26. Ra5 {winning the c5-pawn could have been even stronger.}) 26...
Qb7 27. Rxc5 Rfe8 28. Qb5 {It was possible to play more aggressively, but
Caruana had already spent a lot of his thinking time and hence decided it was
safer to simplify the game.} (28. Nf5 $142 $1 Qxb3 29. Ra3 $1 (29. Rxc7 $2 Nxf5
30. gxf5 Qxh3 $11) 29... Qb4 30. Rxc7 $16) 28... Qxb5 29. Rxb5 d4 $1 {This
pawn is the soul of Black's position. It will create threats and give him the
necessary counterplay.} 30. Nf5 (30. f4 {looks natural.} Rad8 31. Nf3 d3 32.
Nd2 {This was Vladimir Kramnik's suggestion. White threatens f5 now, so Black
must do something about it.} f5 $1 33. gxf5 (33. Kf2 {looks stronger but after}
Rd5 {it should nevertheless be around equal.}) 33... Rd5 34. Rxd5 Nxd5 35. Rxa7
Rf8 $11) 30... Rad8 31. Rxa7 (31. Nxe7+ Rxe7 32. Kf1 d3 33. Ke1 Rde8 34. Kd2
Rxe6 35. Rxe6 Rxe6 36. Kxd3 Rd6+ $11) 31... Nxf5 32. gxf5 d3 {Now it is just a
draw.} 33. Ra1 g6 34. Rc5 Re7 35. Rd1 gxf5 36. Rc6 Rd4 37. Kg2 Kg7 38. Kf3 Kg6
39. Rc4 Rd5 40. Rc3 d2 41. Re3 Rd6 42. Re2 {An exciting game where we could
have seen even more fireworks had Caruana not been under time pressure.}
1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.12"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2760"]
[BlackElo "2790"]
[Annotator "Roiz,M"]
[PlyCount "75"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. b3 Bb4+ 6. Bd2 Be7 7. Bg2 d5 (7... c6
{is the most common continuation here.}) 8. cxd5 exd5 {This pawn structure was
seen in many games of Sergey in this tournament.} 9. O-O O-O 10. Nc3 Nbd7 ({
Sergey was able to prove, that Black's position is very solid after} 10... Re8
{, which might be more flexible.}) 11. Qc2 {The most common setup - the
d1-spot is now vacant for one of White's rooks.} ({The ambitious transfer of
the knight to f5 doesn't offer White any advantage:} 11. Nh4 Re8 12. Nf5 Bb4
13. Re1 Nf8 $11) ({Another possible plan is based on leaving the Qd1 on its
initial spot, but after something like} 11. Ne5 Bb7 12. Rc1 Re8 13. Nb5 c5 $132
{Black's position seems perfectly playable.}) 11... Re8 12. Rfd1 ({In the
following recent game Black didn't pose any problems:} 12. Bf4 Nf8 13. Rfd1 Ne6
14. Be5 Bb7 15. a3 Ne4 16. b4 $6 Nxc3 17. Qxc3 c6 18. Rab1 a5 $15 {1/2 Gelfand,
B (2735)-Martirosyan,H (2425)/Moscow RUS 2016 (25)}) (12. Ne5 Bb7 13. Rfd1 Bd6
14. Nc4 Bf8 15. Bf4 Rc8 16. Qb2 Ba8 17. Ne5 c5 $132 {1/2 Spassov,L (2475)
-Georgiev,K (2430)/Plovdiv 1984/MCD (19)}) 12... Nf8 $146 {A novelty. This is
a standard manoeuvre - the knight is heading to e6, where it will put more
pressure on White's centre, whereas the Qd8 becomes more mobile.} ({In one
preceding game Black was able to solve all the problems after} 12... Bd6 13.
Bc1 (13. Nh4 $5 c6 14. Nf5 Bf8 15. Bf4 $14) 13... c6 14. Bb2 Qe7 15. Rac1 Rac8
16. Nh4 g6 $11 {1-0 Pashikian,A (2617)-Hayrapetyan,H (2441)/Al-Ain UAE 2014/
The Week in Chess 1051 (66)}) 13. Ne5 (13. e4 {leads only to simplifications:}
dxe4 14. Nxe4 Bb7 15. Ne5 Nxe4 16. Bxe4 Bxe4 17. Qxe4 Bd6 $11) 13... Bb7 {
Of course, Black has to cover the vulnerable c6-spot.} 14. Bc1 $1 {An
excellent move! White gets more control over the centre now.} ({Once again,} 
14. e4 {would be harmless:} dxe4 15. Nxe4 Bxe4 16. Bxe4 Nxe4 17. Qxe4 Bd6 18.
Qf3 Bxe5 19. dxe5 Qe7 20. Bc3 Rad8 $11) 14... Ne6 15. Bb2 Bd6 ({After} 15... c5
16. dxc5 bxc5 17. Rac1 Bf8 18. e3 $36 {the pressure on both hanging pawns is
very annoying.}) ({The modest} 15... c6 $5 16. Rac1 Rc8 17. e3 Bd6 {would lead
to a passive, but solid position.}) 16. e3 a6 {A somewhat inaccurate move,
which makes Black's queenside pawn structure less flexible.} (16... c5 {
would be premature:} 17. Nb5 Bb8 18. dxc5 bxc5 19. Nc4 $36) ({However,} 16...
c6 $5 {was a safer option.}) 17. Ne2 c5 {It looks like Hikaru has
underestimated the consquences of creating 2 hanging central pawns.} ({
Otherwise, he would have continued} 17... Rc8 18. Rac1 c6 $14) 18. dxc5 {
GM Karjakin dosn't see a reason for delaying this exchange.} ({Indeed,
something like} 18. Nc4 Bf8 19. dxc5 Nxc5 20. Nf4 Rc8 21. Qe2 Ne6 $14 {would
hardly offer him more.}) 18... Nxc5 $1 {A correct choice - the isolated Pd5 is
under strong pressure, but Black's pieces are becoming more active now.} (18...
bxc5 19. Qf5 Qc7 20. Nd3 Ne4 21. Bxe4 dxe4 22. Ndf4 $16) 19. Nd3 Nce4 $1 {
Hikaru sensibly deviates from the exchange of knights.} (19... Rc8 20. Nxc5
Bxc5 21. Qd3 Ne4 22. Rac1 $16) 20. Rac1 ({Possibly,} 20. Bd4 $5 Rc8 21. Qb2 $14
{would be more annoying for Black.}) 20... Rc8 21. Qb1 Qe7 22. Bd4 Rxc1 $6 {
There was no reason for losing control over open c-file.} (22... Bc5 $142 23.
Qa1 a5 $14) 23. Rxc1 b5 24. b4 $1 {Now, when Black's knight is far from
reaching the stable c4-spot, it makes sense to fix the favourable pawn
structure.} Nd7 25. a3 {This move gives Black time for regrouping his forces.}
({A more energetic way was} 25. Nef4 h6 26. Qb3 $16) 25... Nf8 26. Ba1 {
At this stage of game Sergey avoids any ''drastic'' measures.} (26. Nc5 $5 Bxc5
27. bxc5 Bc6 28. Qb2 Ne6 29. f3 Nf6 30. Bxf6 gxf6 31. Qb4 $16) 26... Ne6 27.
Qa2 Bc7 28. Nd4 Bb6 {Black has been able to improve the placement of his minor
pieces, but the position is still quite unpleasant.} 29. h4 {[%mdl 8192]} Nxg3
$2 {A terrible tactical blunder.} (29... Nxd4 30. Bxd4 Bxd4 31. exd4 Qf6 32.
Qb2 h6 33. Nc5 Ba8 $14 {would have kept a worse, but solid position.}) 30. fxg3
Nxd4 {Hikaru's calculations were based on the vulnerablity of Nd3, but he had
missed an important detail...} 31. Bxd4 Bxd4 32. exd4 Qe3+ 33. Qf2 $1 Qxd3 34.
Rc7 $18 {That's it! The double attack immediately decides the battle. The
remaining few moves were just an agony.} f5 35. Rxb7 h6 36. Bxd5+ Kh7 37. Bg2
Re2 38. Bf1 1-0

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.12"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Svidler, Peter"]
[Black "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "C67"]
[WhiteElo "2757"]
[BlackElo "2780"]
[Annotator "CB"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[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. Re1 Nd6 6. Nxe5 Be7 7. Bf1 Nxe5
8. Rxe5 O-O {Diagramm [#] Eine auf allerhöchstem Niveau extrem beliebte
Variante. Die Remisquote ist auch extrem - hoch!} 9. Nc3 {Weiß versucht
zunächst, den Zug d7-d5 für Schwarz zu erschweren. Dessen Durchsetzung
ließe letztlich eine "Französische Abtauschvariante" entstehen - früher die
"Remisvariante" schlechthin.} Ne8 10. Nd5 Bd6 11. Re1 c6 12. Ne3 Be7 13. c4 Nc7
14. d4 d5 {Diagramm [#] Dauerhaft verhindern ließ es sich nicht.} 15. cxd5 Bb4
{Ein neuer Zug Topalovs.} 16. Bd2 (16. dxc6 $2 {funktioniert offensichtlich
nicht:} Bxe1 17. cxb7 Bxf2+ 18. Kxf2 Bxb7) 16... Bxd2 17. Qxd2 Nxd5 18. Nxd5
Qxd5 {Diagramm [#] Weiß verfügt über eine leichte Initiative.} 19. Re5 Qd6
20. Bc4 Bd7 21. Rae1 b5 ({In der e-Linie einen Turm entgegenzustellen wäre
nicht wirklich zielführend, da Weiß ggfs. auf e5 mit dem Bauern schlagen
würde:} 21... Rae8 22. Qe3 Rxe5 23. dxe5 $14) 22. Bb3 a5 {Der schwarze
Angriff am Damenflügel hindert den Weißen daran, über einen Zug wie Te7
auch nur nachdenken zu können.} 23. a4 {Diagramm [#] Jetzt löst sich in
Windeseile alles in Wohlgefallen auf.} bxa4 24. Bxa4 Be6 25. Rxa5 Rxa5 26. Qxa5
Qxd4 27. Bxc6 Qxb2 28. Bd5 Bxd5 29. Qxd5 Qf6 30. g3 g6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.13"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Black "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "C65"]
[WhiteElo "2794"]
[BlackElo "2762"]
[Annotator "Sagar Shah/CB Website"]
[PlyCount "79"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. e4 {It worked for him in game one and Vishy continues with 1.e4.} e5 2. Nf3
Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 {Berlin! I wonder how the a-pawn must be feeling at this point
of time. Earlier just about everyone used to pushing it. Now no one really
cares about it and goes for ...Nf6!} 4. d3 {This seems to be Anand's weapon
against the Berlin in this event.} Bc5 5. O-O d6 6. c3 O-O 7. h3 $5 {A small
change by Anand. In his game against Topalov he had gone Nbd2, whereas here he
plays the little rook pawn move. It has two advantages: 1. it stops ...Bg4 in
the future, and 2. it gets Caruana out of his preparation.} Ne7 {Caruana
sticks to his plan of transferring his knight to the kingside.} 8. d4 Bb6 9.
Bd3 {Definitely more common is Re1. However, Anand played this move quickly.
Caruana went into a think after this, which meant that he hadn't really
revised the line before the game. The variation with Bd3 is less played than
Re1, but it has been essayed by players like Magnus Carlsen and Vasily
Ivanchuk!} (9. dxe5 {leads to absolutely othing for White after} Nxe4 $11) 9...
Ng6 (9... d5 {was Kramnik's reaction against Carlsen. And after} 10. Nbd2 dxe4
11. Nxe4 Nxe4 12. Bxe4 exd4 13. Qc2 h6 14. a4 $5 {we saw an extremely
interesting game develop.}) 10. Re1 Re8 11. Qc2 {At this point Anand had used
only two minutes of his time while Caruana down by twenty five minutes. The
interesting thing is that Anand has already played this opening with black
against Michael Adams in 2013.} exd4 $146 {Caruana comes up with a new move,
but this is not home preparation. It was played after due thought.} 12. cxd4 c5
{An interesting move by Caruana trying to fight for the dark squares.} 13. dxc5
(13. d5 Ba5 {leads to a very odd kind of a Benoni which should be completely
fine for Black.}) (13. e5 $5 {is an interesting move. Although both players
rejected it after ...Nd5, it could be interesting to see a few more moves.} Nd5
{Threatening ...Nb4.} (13... dxe5 14. dxe5 {looks completely crushing for
White as after} Nd7 15. e6 fxe6 16. Bxg6 $18 {Black is busted.}) 14. Bg5 $1 (
14. a3 {might be too slow as after} cxd4 {Black is completely fine.}) 14... Qc7
{After the game Fabi said that he was planning to play this move but it
wouldn't have been great as White can now play} (14... Nb4 15. Qc3 Qc7 16. Bb5
$13) (14... f6 $6 15. dxc5 $1 dxc5 16. Nc3 $1 Nxc3 17. exf6 $1 gxf6 18. Bxg6 {
with a very strong attack.}) 15. Nc3 $1 {The main idea is to connect the rooks
on the first rank.} Nb4 (15... Nxc3 16. exd6 $1) 16. exd6 $1 $18 {Not an easy
move to see from a distance but now the rook on e8 is undefended.}) 13... Bxc5
14. Nc3 Be6 15. Be3 Qc8 (15... Ne5 $5 {After the game Miroshnichenko suggested
this smart move for Black which seems to equalise immediately.} 16. Nxe5 Bxe3
$1 17. Nxf7 Bxf2+ 18. Qxf2 Bxf7 {This looks like a much preferable position
for Black than was reached in the game.}) 16. Bxc5 Qxc5 17. Qd2 Ne5 18. Be2 $1
Nxf3+ 19. Bxf3 {Black has an isolated pawn on d6 while White is relatively
solid. This should give White an edge. However, it is not so clear as to how
White should proceed.} Rad8 20. Red1 $5 {One of the most difficult questions
in the game of chess is where should I place my rooks. In this position White
has many options. The most natural of course looks to be Rad1, but Red1 also
has its point. Vishy would like to put the a rook on c1.} (20. Rac1 {looks
natural. Black could reply with} Qe5) (20. Rad1 {is also answered by} Qe5 21.
Qd4 a6 22. Qb4 $14 {when White has an edge.}) 20... h5 $5 21. Qd4 Qg5 22. Qd2 (
22. Qxa7 Bxh3 $132) 22... Qe5 {I asked Fabiano whether he wanted to play on
and that was the reason why he chose ...Qe5 instead of ...Qc5. He said his
queen was much better placed on e5 than on c5 and Vishy would not have
repeated the position again.} 23. Qe3 $1 {Attacking the a7-pawn and getting
ready to double rooks on the d-file.} a6 24. Rd4 Bd7 $5 {The bishop wasn't
doing much on e6. On c6 it would not only control the d5-square but also
attack the one on e4.} 25. Rad1 Bc6 26. g3 Re6 27. Bg2 {White gets ready to
start his expansion with f4. Vishy truly has played really well until this
point.} h4 {[%cal Gh5h4]} 28. gxh4 $1 {An extremely bold move by Vishy.
Usually in chess not many times you will see people taking such a pawn and
accepting doubled rook pawns. However, here it is more important to make sure
that White is getting in f4 and hence this gxh4 move is very flexible and
meets the demands of the position.} (28. g4 $5 {Keeping the pawn structure
intact is definitely an idea. But it can be possible that Vishy was afraid of}
g5 {When f4 is stopped. However, White should at least be a tad better after}
29. Qd2 $14) (28. f4 $2 Qc5 29. g4 $2 Bxe4 $1 30. Nxe4 Nxe4 31. Bxe4 Rde8 $15)
28... Rde8 (28... Nh5 $2 {Trying to keep an eye on the f4-square loses to} 29.
Rd5 $1 Bxd5 30. Rxd5 $18) 29. Bf3 {After the game Vishy thought that this was
extremely clever as he was preparing Bg4.} (29. f4 Qc5 $13 {The e4-pawn would
be falling in this case.}) 29... a5 30. a4 $6 {Anand wants to stop all these
ideas beginning with ...b5 but this was a crucial loss of time.} (30. Bg4 R6e7
(30... Nxg4 31. hxg4 $16) 31. Rxd6 Nxe4 32. Nxe4 Qxe4 {Should be around equal.}
) (30. a3 {was definitely much better remaining flexible.} b5 31. Bg4 $1 $14)
30... Qc5 31. Qf4 (31. Bg4 R6e7 $11) (31. Rxd6 $5 Qxd6 32. Rxd6 Rxd6 33. Qc5
Rde6 34. Qxa5 Nxe4 35. Nxe4 Bxe4 36. Bxe4 Rxe4 {might be an edge for White but
will most probably end in a draw.}) 31... Re5 32. R1d3 {Not really sure what
this move is all about, but it keeps up the pressure.} (32. Rxd6 Nxe4 33. Nxe4
Bxe4 $11) 32... R8e6 33. Kh2 Qb6 34. Rd2 Qd8 35. Qg3 $6 {This lets Caruana
equalise immediately.} (35. h5 $5 Nxh5 36. Bxh5 Rxh5 37. Rxd6 Rxd6 38. Qxd6
Qxd6+ 39. Rxd6 f5 {Black should regain his pawn, but in any case White will
maintain a small edge.}) 35... Bxe4 36. Nxe4 Nxe4 37. Bxe4 Rxe4 38. Rxe4 Rxe4
39. Rxd6 Qxh4 40. Qxh4 {...and a draw was agreed. It should be said that Anand
seemed to be slightly better throughout the game, but was never really able to
cash in.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.13"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Giri, Anish"]
[Black "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2793"]
[BlackElo "2760"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. b3 Bb4+ 6. Bd2 Be7 7. Nc3 d5 8. cxd5
exd5 9. Bg2 O-O 10. O-O Re8 11. Ne5 Bb7 12. Bc1 {A rare continuation. The
position of White's bishop on d2 is not very fortunate but few players decide
to waste two tempi to tranfer it to b2.} ({Main theoretical lines:} 12. Rc1 {
(see e.g. Meier-Kramnik in CBM 144)}) (12. Qc2) ({Black has no problems after} 
12. Bg5 Nbd7 13. f4 (13. Rc1 Ba3 $1 {[%cal Rd7e5]} 14. Nxd7 Qxd7 15. Bxf6 Bxc1
16. Qxc1 gxf6 17. Qh6 Qf5 $15 {1/2 (45) Sargissian,G (2702)-Tomashevsky,E 
(2728) Huaian 2016}) 13... c5 14. Kh1 Ne4 15. Nxe4 dxe4 16. Bxe7 Rxe7 17. Nc4 {
1-0 (51) Sargissian,G (2686)-Zhigalko,S (2678) Dubai 2014} cxd4 18. Qxd4 Nf6)
12... Nbd7 (12... h6 $6 {is quite strange:} 13. Bb2 Nbd7 14. Rc1 a6 15. e3 Bd6
16. f4 b5 17. g4 b4 18. Ne2 Ne4 {1/2 (37) Anton Guijarro,D (2630)-Vazquez
Igarza,R (2565) Madrid 2015} 19. Bxe4 dxe4 20. Ng3 $36) 13. Bb2 {This position
often arises from other move orders (when Black doesn't give a check on b4 but
his bishop comes to b7 in one go).} Bd6 ({After} 13... Bf8 {White launched a
kingside attack in the following game:} 14. f4 c5 15. e3 cxd4 16. exd4 Ne4 17.
Nxe4 dxe4 18. Qe2 Nf6 19. g4 a5 20. g5 Ba6 21. Qe3 Bxf1 22. Rxf1 Nd7 23. Bxe4
Nxe5 24. fxe5 $16 {1/2 (48) Anton Guijarro,D (2639)-Harikrishna,P (2755)
Caleta ENG 2016}) 14. Nd3 {A modest continuation.} (14. Nc4 {is harmless, e.g.}
Bf8 15. Ne3 c6 16. Qc2 g6 17. Rad1 a5 18. Bh3 Ne4 19. Nxe4 Rxe4 20. Nc4 Ba6 21.
Bg2 Re6 22. Ne3 Qe7 $132 {1/2 (53) Kosten,A (2514)-El Gindy,E (2498) Cairo 2003
}) (14. f4 $5 {deserved attention here, too:} c5 (14... Ne4 15. Nxe4 dxe4 16.
e3 Nf6 17. a3 c5 18. Qe2 cxd4 19. Bxd4 Qe7 20. b4 a5 21. b5 Bxe5 22. Bxe5 Nd7
23. Bd4 Nc5 24. f5 $16 {1-0 (27) Botvinnik,M-Padevsky,N Monte Carlo 1968}) 15.
e3 a6 (15... cxd4 16. exd4 Ne4 17. Nxe4 dxe4 18. Qe2 Nf6 19. g4 {, like in
Anton-Harikrishna}) 16. Rc1 (16. g4 $5) 16... Rc8 17. Na4 (17. Bh3 $5) 17... b5
18. Nxd7 Nxd7 19. Nxc5 Nxc5 20. dxc5 Bxc5 21. Rxc5 $1 Rxc5 22. Bxg7 (22. Qd4
Qf6 23. Qxc5 Qxb2 24. Qb6 Bc8 25. Qc6 Rf8 26. Qxd5 Qxa2 27. b4 $14) 22... d4
23. Bxd4 Bxg2 24. Bxc5 Bxf1 25. Qg4+ Kh8 26. Bd4+ f6 27. Qf5 Kg7 28. Kxf1 $14 {
1/2 (42) Rashkovsky,N (2485)-Kuzmin,G (2565) Sochi 1976}) 14... a5 {[%mdl 32]
I don't like this move when White's knight is on c3. Black can't play ...a5-a4;
moreover, he must continue ...c7-c6 to protect the b5-square, after which his
b6-pawn will become vulnerable.} (14... a6 {[%cal Yf6e4] , preventing Nc3-b5,
is more standard and quite good.}) 15. Rc1 c6 16. Na4 Rc8 17. e3 Ba6 $6 {
The bishop does nothing here.} (17... Ne4 18. f3 (18. Re1 f5) 18... Ng5 19. Re1
f5 {, preventing e3-e4, was the most solid continuation.}) 18. Re1 h5 $6 {
This prophylaxis is risky as it weakens Black's position. Sergey Karjakin
relied on his next move but it was a tactical miscalculation. However, Black
was in some trouble already:} (18... Qe7 19. Ne5 $1 Nxe5 20. dxe5 Bxe5 21. Bxe5
Qxe5 22. Nxb6 Rb8 23. Na4 $14 {[%csl Gc5] was what White hoped for}) (18... Ne4
19. f3 Ng5 20. e4 $14) (18... g6 19. f3 {[%cal Ye3e4]}) 19. Bh3 Ng4 {Otherwise
18...h5 is senseless.} 20. Nf4 $6 (20. f3 $1 {was quite possible; the
resulting complications are favourable for White:} Rxe3 $1 (20... Nxe3 21. Qd2
Bxd3 22. Bxd7 $1 ({but not} 22. Qxd3 Qg5 $1 {[%cal Rd6g3]} 23. Kh1 $6 h4 $1 {
[%cal Rh4g3]} 24. f4 Qh6 25. Rxe3 Rxe3 26. Qxe3 hxg3) 22... Qxd7 23. Qxd3 Qe7
24. Rc3 b5 $8 25. Nc5 Bxc5 26. Rxc5 {[%cal Rb2c1] , and Black inevitably loses
a piece.}) (20... Bxd3 21. Qxd3 Ngf6 22. Re2 $16) 21. Rxe3 Nxe3 22. Qd2 Bxd3
23. Qxd3 Qg5 24. Kh1 $1 Rd8 (24... Bxg3 25. Rg1 Qf4 $1 26. hxg3 Qxf3+ 27. Rg2 {
[%cal Rd3e2]} Re8 $1 28. Qe2 Qe4 29. Bxd7 Re7 30. Bh3 Nxg2 31. Qxe4 Rxe4 32.
Kxg2 b5 33. Nc3 Rxd4 34. Bc1 $16) 25. f4 $1 (25. Re1 Bxg3 26. Qxe3 Qh4) 25...
Bxf4 26. Re1 Ng4 $1 27. Bxg4 Qxg4 28. gxf4 Qxf4 29. Bc1 $16 {[%cal Ge1e8]})
20... g6 (20... Bxf4 21. exf4 f5 22. Qd2 $14) 21. Bxg4 hxg4 22. Qxg4 Nf6 {
White has won a pawn but Black has some compensation due to his bishop pair.}
23. Qg5 (23. Qf3 $142 $14) 23... Be7 24. Nxg6 (24. Qh6 Bf8 25. Qh3 {looks
illogical but after the text move White has nothing better than a perpetual.})
24... fxg6 25. Qxg6+ Kh8 26. Nc5 ({White will finally have to settle for a
draw after other attempts, too, e.g.} 26. e4 Bb4 27. Re3 Bd2 28. Rf3 Rf8 29.
Rc2 Nxe4 {etc.}) 26... bxc5 27. dxc5 Rf8 {[%cal Rd8e8]} 28. Qh6+ (28. e4 $6 d4)
28... Kg8 29. Qg6+ Kh8 30. Qh6+ Kg8 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.13"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Black "Svidler, Peter"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D16"]
[WhiteElo "2790"]
[BlackElo "2757"]
[Annotator "Sagar Shah"]
[PlyCount "127"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Nakamura invites Svidler to play his favourite Grьnfeld.} d5 {No thank
you! I will stick to the Slav. Svidler plays the same line that he played
against Karjakin in round 1.} 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. a4 e6 {
Svidler shows that the opening that he essayed in the first round against
Karjakin was not just a onetrick pony. He was serious about his opening and
had prepared it in depth.} 6. e3 c5 7. Bxc4 Nc6 8. O-O cxd4 9. exd4 {This is
definitely much more challenging than Nxd4 which was played by Sergey Karjakin
in the first round.} Be7 10. Qe2 O-O 11. Rd1 Nb4 {Preventing the d4-d5 break.}
12. Bg5 {Interestingly Svidler reached this position twice in his games, once
against Ivanchuk and once against Kazhgalayev. However, on both occasions he
chose a different move. h6 is the modern treatment of this line making White
decide where he would like to keep his bishop.} h6 (12... Bd7 13. d5 exd5 14.
Nxd5 Nbxd5 15. Bxd5 Nxd5 16. Rxd5 Bxg5 17. Nxg5 h6 18. Rad1 hxg5 19. Rxd7 $16 {
1/2-1/2 (46) Ivanchuk,V (2729)-Svidler,P (2765) Monte Carlo 2006}) (12... Re8
13. Ne5 Bd7 14. Bb3 Rc8 15. a5 a6 16. Na4 Nfd5 17. Nc5 $6 Bxg5 18. Nexd7 Be7
$15 {1-0 (56) Kazhgaleyev,M (2626)-Svidler,P (2726) Le Port Marly 2009}) 13.
Bxf6 {This is a highly concrete move. The idea is not related with the
d5-break but to get the knights to menacing locations in the centre - on the
e4- and e5-squares.} (13. Bh4 Bd7 14. Ne5 Bc6 {is the other critical position
of the opening, and if Svidler tries this Slav line again the chances of this
position arising can be quite good.}) 13... Bxf6 14. Ne4 (14. d5 {doesn't
really look too threatening as after} exd5 15. Nxd5 Nxd5 16. Bxd5 Qe8 $11 {
Black has solved most of his opening problems because the b2-pawn is as weak
as the b7-pawn.}) 14... b6 (14... Be7 {Trying to preserve the bishop is met
with} 15. Ne5 b6 16. Ra3 Bb7 17. Qg4 {[%cal Ga3g3] White has good attacking
chances.}) 15. Ne5 {We are still following five games, but we have reached a
stage where you can no longer find games played by amateurs. All the games
have taken place in the practice of 2600+ players.} Bh4 $5 {This has already
been played by two players Mchedlishvili against Tomashevsky and van Foreest
against Ikonnikov. The idea is to provoke g3 so that the a1-rook cannot use
the entire third rank when it comes to a3.} (15... Bb7 $2 16. Nxf6+ Qxf6 (16...
gxf6 17. Ng4 Kg7 18. Qd2 $18) 17. Nd7 Qg5 18. f4 Qxf4 19. Nxf8 Rxf8 {when
Black has compensation for the exchange but it is not enough} 20. a5 $14) 16.
g3 $146 (16. Ra3 {was played in both the games but after} Bb7 17. Rh3 {it
looks scary but after} Nd5 $11 {according to the computer this looks
completely fine for Black.} (17... Bd5 18. Nc3 Bxc4 19. Qxc4 Be7 20. Qe2 Rc8
21. Qg4 Kh7 22. Rg3 Bf6 23. Ne4 {1-0 (34) Tomashevsky,E (2743)-Mchedlishvili,M
(2618) Reykjavik 2015. White had good attacking chances and for a player like
Tomashevsky this is a position that he would love.}) 18. Qg4 Bg5 19. Nxg5 (19.
Bxd5 Bxd5 $15) 19... Qxg5 20. Qxg5 hxg5 21. Bxd5 Bxd5 $15 {1/2-1/2 (77)
Ikonnikov,V (2527)-Van Foreest,J (2514) Dieren 2015. When Black was already
slightly better.}) 16... Be7 17. Nc3 Bf6 {Svidler has got this covered. Even
though White played a novelty, the Russian player is well prepared. After the
game Svidler said that even though 16.g3 is technically a novelty, it is a
natural move to consider when you are preparing this line in depth.} (17... Bb7
$6 {looks the most natural but fails to} 18. Nxf7 $5 Rxf7 19. Qxe6 Qe8 20. Re1
$40 {with a most probably decisive attack for White.}) 18. d5 {Nakamura also
plays concrete chess in this position.} Qc7 $5 (18... exd5 {looks like the
most natural move but it fails to} 19. Nxd5 $1 Nxd5 20. Bxd5 $18 {when the
threats of Bxf7 and Bxa8 give White a winning position.}) 19. d6 Qc5 {Svidler
was really proud that he had found this Qc7-c5 idea at home. It is not often
that you allow the pawn to go all the way down to d6. But here concretely
Black is doing fine. He has to be very well prepared for all of White's myriad
possibilities in this position but it can be supposed that Svidler had done
his homework.} 20. Ng4 Bxc3 {Once again a dangerous move but it works in this
specific situation.} 21. bxc3 Nc6 22. Rab1 (22. d7 Bb7) 22... a6 {Preventing
Rb5. It is simply amazing that this is all a part of Svidler's preparation.} (
22... Bd7 23. Rb5 Qa3 24. Qd2 Qxa4 25. Rh5 $1 Qxc4 26. Nf6+ $1 gxf6 27. Qxh6
$18) 23. d7 {It seems like Nakamura missed something here. He couldn't
remember his preparation and played the most obvious move, pushing his pawn to
d7. However, he could have just played Bd3 directly which is what he thought
was the move he had prepared.} ({Here's an illustrative line} 23. Bd3 f5 $5 24.
Ne3 (24. Nxh6+ $5 gxh6 25. Bc4 Ne5 26. d7 Bxd7 27. Rxd7 Nxd7 28. Qxe6+ Kg7 29.
Qxd7+ Kg6 30. Be2 $44) 24... Bd7 (24... Qxd6 $6 25. Nc4 $18) 25. Bxa6 f4 26.
Ng4 h5 27. Rb5 Qxc3 28. Rxh5 Rxa6 29. Qxa6 Qf3 30. Qd3 Qxg4 31. Rh4 Qf5 32.
Rxf4 Qc5 $13) 23... Bb7 24. Bd3 Rfd8 25. Qe4 Kf8 $1 {At this point Peter had
one hour forty five minutes, five minutes more than the start of the game!
Completely mind boggling! It just showed that Svidler had come well prepared
to his event. Nakamura was under grave pressure and he was already looking for
ways to bail out.} 26. Qh7 {This position looks really scary if you are
unprepared. However, if you know the intricacies this might well be enjoyable
to play, like the current position where Black has only one good move but
Peter plays it! As Svidler said after the game he had considered only two
moves in this position Be2 and Bc2. So Qh7 was a new move for him, and he
found himself in a common situation where you know that the move made by your
opponent is not the best, but you don't know why.} (26. Be2 {was the main line
of Svidler's preparation, with some crazy lines like} Rab8 27. Qh7 Ne7 28. Nxh6
gxh6 29. Rxb6 Qxb6 30. Bh5 Ng6 31. Qxh6+ Kg8 32. Bxg6 fxg6 33. Qxg6+ Kf8 34.
Qf6+ Kg8 35. Qg6+ $11) 26... h5 $1 (26... Qg5 $2 27. Ne3 Ne5 28. Be4 Bxe4 29.
Qxe4 $18 {The d7-pawn is untouchable and the queen is completely misplaced on
g5.}) (26... Ne5 $5 27. Qh8+ Ke7 28. Qxg7 Qd5 29. Qf6+ Kf8 30. Qh8+ {is a draw.
}) (26... Qh5 $2 27. Be2 $18) 27. Ne3 (27. Qh8+ Ke7 28. Qxg7 hxg4 29. Qxg4 Rh8
$19) 27... Ne5 $1 $15 {Black's king looks safe, and the pawn on d7 doesn't
look threatening. The light-squared holes on the kingside might cost White
dearly.} 28. Be4 {Before things went completely wrong Nakamura exchanges the
powerful b7-bishop.} Bxe4 29. Qxe4 Ra7 $1 {Svidler also made this move
relatively quickly. I am not sure whether he was still in his preparation but
he must have seen similar ideas when he was working on this opening.} 30. Nd5
$5 {Nakamura is in damage control mode now. He sees that the position has
spiralled out of control. Hence he tries to simplify, even ready to go into a
pawn down or an inferior rook ending.} Ng4 (30... Raxd7 {looks pretty natural,
but after} 31. Qxe5 Rxd5 32. Rxd5 Rxd5 (32... Qxd5 33. Qxd5 Rxd5 34. Rxb6 $11)
33. Qb8+ Ke7 34. Rxb6 (34. Qxb6 $2 Rd1+ 35. Kg2 Qd5+ 36. f3 (36. Kh3 Qf5+ $19 {
[%cal Gf5b1]}) 36... Rd2+ 37. Kg1 Qa2 $19) 34... Rd1+ 35. Kg2 Qd5+ 36. Kh3 {
and there is no real finishing shot available for Black at this point. This
might be the reason why Svidler steered clear of this variation.}) 31. Ne3 Nf6
(31... Nxe3 32. Qxe3 Raxd7 33. Rxd7 Rxd7 34. Qxc5+ bxc5 35. Rb6 $15 {We would
most probably reach a three vs four rook endgame which would end in a draw.})
32. Qb4 Qxb4 (32... Raxd7 33. Rxd7 Nxd7 (33... Rxd7 34. Qxb6 $11) 34. Qxc5+
Nxc5 (34... bxc5 35. Rb7 Ne5 36. Rc7 Nd3 37. Kf1 $15 {is not much as White is
very active.}) 35. Rxb6 Nxa4 36. Rxa6 Nxc3 $17 {would also lead to something
similar to what we will see in the main game.}) 33. Rxb4 (33. cxb4 Rdxd7 {
is just a pawn down position.}) 33... Nxd7 $5 {Such a move can be made by only
very strong player.} (33... Raxd7 34. Rdb1 (34. Rxd7 Nxd7 35. Nc4 Rb8 {is very
favourable for Black who is not only a pawn up but also has everything under
control.}) 34... Rd2 35. Rxb6 Ne4 36. Nc4 Ra2 (36... Rxf2 37. Nd6 $1 Re2 38.
Nxe4 Rxe4 39. Rxa6 $11) 37. Rxa6 Nxc3 38. Rb2 Rxa4 39. Rxa4 Nxa4 $17 {Once
again we reach this endgame with one side having an extra pawn and all pawns
on the same side.}) 34. Rxb6 Nxb6 35. Rxd8+ Ke7 36. Rd4 a5 $1 {Svidler,
instead of winning a pawn, wanted to reach this endgame, which shows his
excellent feel for the game. He thought that here with his pieces co-ordinated,
he had much better chances of converting the position.} 37. Nc4 $1 {This move
was not really given importance by Peter. If Black could have played his rook
to c7 before Nc4 then he would have great winning chances. But here after Nc4
we will end in a position with 4 vs 3 on the same side.} Nd5 (37... Nxa4 38.
Ne5 Kf6 39. Nd7+ Kg5 40. h4+ Kh6 41. Rxa4 Rxd7 42. Rxa5 $11) 38. Rd3 Rc7 39.
Nxa5 Nxc3 40. Kg2 (40. Rd4 Ne2+ $19) 40... Nxa4 41. Ra3 Nc3 42. Nb3 g5 {
Black has an extra pawn and more space on the kingside. With just the rooks it
would have been drawn, but with the knights things look pretty good for Black.
In any case Nakamura has a very tough defensive task ahead of him.} 43. Nd2 f5
44. h3 Kf6 45. g4 $5 {As always it is a decision of whether to do something in
the position or just sit tight. Nakamura felt that he had to do something
against the slow advance of Black's forces and hence goes for this move. It
might well be that the position is lost after this but at least White also has
some targets to attack.} Nd5 46. gxf5 Kxf5 47. Nf1 $1 {Nakamura sees that e3
will be the best spot for his knight.} Nf4+ 48. Kg3 Rc1 (48... h4+ 49. Kh2 (49.
Kf3 Nxh3) 49... Rd7 50. Ne3+ Kf6 51. Ng4+ Kg7 52. Ra5 Rd5 53. Ra7+ Kg6 54. Ra3
Rd2 55. Ra6 {It is not so easy to make progress once you give up the g4-square
to the white knight.}) 49. Ne3+ Kg6 50. Kh2 Rb1 51. Ng2 Rb2 (51... Ne2 {
keeping the knights would have increased Svidler's chances of success:} 52. Re3
Nd4 53. Re4 Rb4 $17) 52. Nxf4+ gxf4 {This endgame looks much more drawish than
with the knights on the board. Let's look and see if that is the case.} 53. Kg1
(53. Kg2 {looked as if it was not accurate because White would like to meet e5
with f3. But maybe that is not very important as after} e5 (53... Kf5 54. Ra8
e5 55. Rh8 Kg5 56. Rg8+ Kh4 57. Re8 Re2 58. Rf8 $11) 54. Ra6+ Kf5 55. Rh6 $1
Kg5 56. Re6 $11 {and it is very difficult to make progress.}) 53... e5 54. Ra5
(54. f3 h4 {Nakamura and Svidler thought this was a winning position for Black,
but it turns out that this will also be a draw.} 55. Ra5 Kf5 56. Ra6 $1 {
Cutting the king off from e6 and preventing its entry.} (56. Rc5 Ke6 57. Rc6+
Kd5 58. Rh6 Kd4 59. Rh5 e4 60. fxe4 Ke3 $19)) 54... Re2 55. h4 f3 56. Kh2 $1
Rxf2+ 57. Kg3 Re2 58. Kxf3 {With excellent play Nakamura finally could heave a
sigh of relief. He had successfully made it to a draw.} Re1 59. Ra8 Rh1 60. Ke4
Rxh4+ 61. Kxe5 Rb4 62. Rg8+ Kh7 63. Rg1 Kh6 64. Kf5 {A great game by Svidler
who had Nakamura under pressure throughout the game.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.13"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A29"]
[WhiteElo "2780"]
[BlackElo "2786"]
[Annotator "Sagar Shah"]
[PlyCount "100"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. c4 {Topalov played his first white today and opened with the c-pawn.} Nf6 {
Aronian played this quite instantly, so the English Opening wasn't really a
surprise for him.} 2. Nc3 e5 3. Nf3 Nc6 4. g3 Bb4 5. Bg2 O-O {This opening
position occurred quite a few times at the Candidates 2016. In this position,
many new and interesting ideas were found in this tournament.} 6. Nd5 (6. O-O {
is the other main line.}) 6... e4 7. Nh4 {Black usually replies ...Re8. But
Aronian went for a relatively unknown move which has not been played by any
top player.} d6 $5 {This move has been played by Aronian's compatriot Minasian,
but Levond was unaware of that game. 12 days later Anand would land in the
same position as Black against Nakamura and get badly burned.} 8. Nxb4 (8.
Nxf6+ Qxf6 9. Bxe4 Re8 $1 10. Bg2 Bg4 $1 {Just have a look at the black pieces.
This is a completely winning position for Black.} 11. f3 Be6 $19) (8. a3 Bc5 9.
O-O Re8 10. e3 g5 $5 {was Nakamura-Anand, a game which the American won with
ease.}) 8... Nxb4 9. a3 Nc6 10. d3 d5 $1 {A very concrete way to approach the
position.} 11. O-O (11. cxd5 Qxd5 12. dxe4 Qxd1+ 13. Kxd1 Rd8+ 14. Kc2 Nd4+ $36
) 11... exd3 12. Qxd3 $6 (12. exd3 $11 {would have given White an entirely
viable position, but without any advantage. This was not to Topalov's liking.})
(12. cxd5 {is also fine but does not give an advantage.} dxe2 13. Qxe2 Nxd5 14.
Rd1 Be6 $11) 12... Ne5 $1 13. Qd4 $6 (13. Qc2 Nxc4 14. e4 {is a possible way
to play. The queen is of course better placed on c2 than on d4.} c6 (14... Be6
15. b3 Nb6 16. e5 $1 $44) 15. b3 Ne5 16. Bb2 Ng6 17. Nxg6 hxg6 18. Bxf6 (18. e5
Bf5 $15) 18... Qxf6 19. exd5 cxd5 20. Bxd5 Rd8 $11) 13... Nxc4 14. e4 {Topalov
thought that he had excellent compensation but that isn't the case. Aronian
makes the best move.} Be6 15. b3 Na5 $1 (15... Nb6 {is also possible but ...
Na5 attacks a pawn.}) 16. Qa4 Nc6 (16... c6 17. Bd2 b6 18. Bxa5 bxa5 19. Qxc6 (
19. exd5 cxd5 $17) 19... dxe4 20. Bxe4 Rc8 21. Qa4 Qb6 $17 {is some sort of a
computer line showing that even c6 was not so bad.}) (16... c5 {is possible
and Topalov was intending to meet it with} 17. b4 cxb4 18. axb4 Nc4 $15 {
Black seems to be slightly better.}) 17. Rd1 $2 {This was a big blunder by
Veselin, after which he is effectively two pawns down.} (17. exd5 Nxd5 18. Bb2
$44) 17... Nxe4 $1 18. Bb2 (18. Bxe4 Qf6 $1 $17 {This move, which attacks the
a1-rook, was missed by Topalov.}) 18... Qe7 $17 {Black is two pawns up and
with some care he should win the game with ease. Aronian didn't realise his
advantage in the best possible manner but it was good enough.} 19. b4 a6 20.
Qc2 f6 21. Rac1 Rad8 22. Bf1 Rd7 23. f3 Nd6 24. Re1 (24. Bd3 g5 25. Ng2 Nc4 26.
Bxc4 dxc4 27. Rxd7 Qxd7 28. Rd1 Qe7 29. f4 {was a line suggested by Aronian in
the press conference as better than what Topalov played in the game. But here
the computer comes up with an counter-intuitive move which gives Black a
strong advantage.} gxf4 $5 {Usually humans would never make such a move
because the knight on g2 was passive and on f4 it would sit very nicely. But
the engine sees that the knight on f4 cannot do much due to the bishop on f7
and Black has a huge advantage.} 30. Nxf4 Bf7 $19) 24... Qf7 25. Bd3 g5 26. Ng2
Nc4 27. f4 Nxb2 28. Qxb2 Bh3 29. a4 h6 30. b5 axb5 31. axb5 Ne7 32. Qf2 Nf5 33.
Qf3 Kg7 34. Kh1 Re7 35. Rxe7 Qxe7 36. Qh5 (36. Qxd5 {is possible, but after}
Rd8 37. Qe4 Qxe4 38. Bxe4 Nd6 39. Rxc7+ Rd7 40. Rxd7+ Bxd7 41. Bd5 Bxb5 $17 {
Black should have excellent winning chances.}) 36... Bxg2+ 37. Kxg2 Ne3+ 38.
Kg1 f5 39. Qe2 Rf6 40. Qb2 gxf4 41. gxf4 Kh7 42. Kh1 Qg7 43. Qe2 d4 44. Qf3 c6
45. bxc6 bxc6 46. h3 Rg6 47. Rb1 Rg3 48. Qh5 Qd7 49. Kh2 Rg2+ 50. Kh1 Qd5 {
One can say that this was a pretty one sided affair and Topalov didn't really
have a chance in the game after he was two pawns down post opening.} 0-1

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.15"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Black "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "C54"]
[WhiteElo "2794"]
[BlackElo "2780"]
[Annotator "Sagar Shah/CB Website"]
[PlyCount "104"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. O-O Nf6 5. d3 d6 6. c3 h6 7. a4 a5 {The
players are following the game Carlsen-Adams from Wijk aan Zee 2016. Here
Carlsen went Na3 but Caruana first inserts Re1.} 8. Re1 O-O 9. Na3 Re8 10. Nc2
Ba7 11. Be3 Be6 12. Bb5 Bd7 13. Bxa7 Nxa7 14. Bc4 Nc8 {Caruana thought that
this manoeuvre was a little odd, but according to Topalov Black should be
completely fine here.} 15. Ne3 Nb6 16. Bb3 c6 17. h3 Be6 18. Bc2 Qc7 19. d4 {
White has a slight more pleasant position.} Nc4 20. Nxc4 Bxc4 21. Qd2 Rad8 22.
Rad1 Be6 23. Qe3 b6 24. Nd2 c5 25. Bd3 Re7 $6 {This doesn't seem to be a very
useful move. Emil Sutovsky was very critical about it in his facebook post:
"Topalov didn't have much of a problem out of the opening, but he simply
stunned me by making a move Re8-e7 in a very complex position literally within
a few seconds. The position required quite some thought, and it could have
been a critical point"} 26. d5 Bd7 27. Ra1 {The idea of Ra1 followed by b4 is
very interesting.} Nh5 28. b4 Nf4 {The knight is well placed on f4 but later
on it becomes the sole reason why Black's position goes downhill. It comes in
the way of other pieces.} 29. bxa5 bxa5 30. Reb1 Rf8 31. Bb5 Bc8 32. Bf1 f5 {
It is an interesting position with White playing on the queenside and Black on
the other wing. But soon Topalov goes wrong.} 33. c4 Ref7 34. Ra3 fxe4 35. Nxe4
Bf5 36. Rab3 {As previously pointed out the knight on f4 really stops Black
from getting his required counterplay.} Bg6 37. Rb6 Qe7 $2 (37... Bxe4 {
was necessary and although White is clearly better, Black doesn't lose
material. Instead Topalov hallucinated and committed a blunder.}) 38. Nxd6 {
White has simply won material and stands just better.} Nxh3+ 39. Qxh3 {True
the rook on b1 is hanging but so is the guy on f7. So it just a complete piece
up position.} Rf6 40. Nc8 $1 Qd8 41. R1b5 $2 {An error on the 41st move. Very
surprising.} (41. Rxf6 Qxf6 42. Rb2 {is just curtains. White is a piece up and
there is nothing more to play for as} Bf5 {fails to} 43. Qxf5 $18 {[%csl Rf5,
Rg8][%cal Rc8e7]}) 41... Rxf2 {Now it gets a little complicated.} 42. Rxg6
Rxf1+ 43. Kh2 Qxc8 44. Qxc8 (44. Qxh6 {would have still given White excellent
winning chances.}) 44... Rxc8 45. Rc6 (45. Rb7 Rf7 46. Rc6 $5 {was an option.
But it is not enough to win because after} Rxb7 47. Rxc8+ Kf7 48. Rxc5 Rb4 $11
{it is just equal.}) 45... Re8 {The two black rooks combined with the e-pawn
give Black enough counterplay to hold a draw.} 46. Rcxc5 e4 47. d6 Rd8 48. Rc6
Rd1 49. c5 e3 50. Rb2 Rd2 51. Rb1 e2 52. Re1 Rf8 {Quite a heartbreak for
Caruana who could have been on 2.5/4 with this win.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.15"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A13"]
[WhiteElo "2760"]
[BlackElo "2762"]
[Annotator "Marin,M"]
[PlyCount "85"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. Nf3 d5 2. e3 {An apparently inoffensive but highly inspired opening choice
against a well prepared opponent.} Nf6 3. c4 e6 4. b3 Be7 5. Bb2 O-O 6. Nc3 c5
7. cxd5 Nxd5 {Black wants to avoid any weaknesses in the centre but leaves the
kingside poorly defended.} (7... exd5 {is more thematic and ambitious at the
same time. Here is a recent example.} 8. d4 Nc6 9. Be2 Bg4 ({A simpler way was
} 9... cxd4 10. Nxd4 Bc5 $11) 10. dxc5 Bxc5 11. O-O a6 12. h3 Be6 13. Na4 Bd6
14. Nd4 Qe7 15. Rc1 Bd7 16. Nxc6 Bxc6 17. Qd4 Bxa4 18. bxa4 $14 {Alekseev,E 
(2700)-Hracek,Z (2615) Rijeka 2010 (1/2-1/2, 55)}) 8. Qc2 ({Since in many
lines White can consider castling long, this is more logical than} 8. Qb1 Nc6
9. Bd3 {Bischoff,K (2505)-Beliavsky,A (2640) Munich 1990 CBM 018 [Ribli] (1/
2-1/2, 23)}) 8... Nc6 9. h4 $5 $146 {A very ambitious move, aiming at
weakening the enemy kingside with Ng5. But if for any reason White will have
to castle short, the early advance of the h-pawn will also count as a
weakening move.} ({Previously, White was successful with a reversed Hedgehog
approach:} 9. a3 Nxc3 10. Bxc3 Bd7 11. Be2 Rc8 12. O-O b6 13. Qb2 Bf6 14. b4
$14 {Lysyj,I (2691)-Zhou,W (2627) China 2015 (1-0, 40)}) 9... b6 ({Black
cannot really exploit the exposed position of the white queen. If} 9... Ndb4
10. Qb1 b6 11. a3 Nd5 {White can choose between transposing to the game with}
12. Qc2 {or playing some other constructive move.}) 10. a3 (10. Ng5 {is
premature due to} f5 {Karjakin decides to wait until Black develops his bishop,
which would leave the e6-pawn undefended.}) 10... f5 {Not an easy move to play,
but with Ng5 hanging in the air there were micro problems in all the
alternative lines.} (10... Bb7 11. Ng5 g6 {looks dangerous. Over the board one
would be afraid of} 12. Nxh7 (12. Nce4 $5 {may be simpler}) 12... Kxh7 13. Nxd5
exd5 14. h5 {but things are not entirely clear:} f5 15. hxg6+ Kxg6 16. Bd3 d4
17. Bxf5+ Kf7 (17... Rxf5 18. g4) 18. exd4 cxd4 (18... Nxd4 19. Rh7+ Ke8 20.
Bg6+ Kd7 21. Bxd4 cxd4 22. Kf1 $1 $18 {[%csl Re7][%cal Ga1e1,Rc2c8] leaves the
black king cut off along the c-file and the e7-bishop vulnerable.}) 19. Rh6 $5
{[%csl Gc6]} (19. Rh7+ Ke8 20. Bg6+ Kd7) 19... Ne5 20. f4 Rh8 $1 21. Rxh8 Qxh8
22. O-O-O Nc6 23. g4 $44) (10... h6 11. g4 $36 {[%csl Rh6][%cal Gg4g5]}) (10...
Nf6 11. g4 $1 $36 Nxg4 $2 12. Qe4 $18 {[%csl Rc6,Rg4]}) 11. Bb5 Bb7 12. Nxd5
exd5 (12... Qxd5 {leaves the e6-pawn vulnerable.}) 13. d4 Rc8 ({Black misses a
good chance for counterplay:} 13... c4 $5 14. bxc4 a6 15. Bxc6 Bxc6 16. c5 (16.
cxd5 Bxd5 {[%csl Rf3,Rh4][%cal Ga8c8,Gd5c4]}) 16... Rc8 {Black will soon
retrieve the c-pawn as} 17. cxb6 $2 Bb5 {leaves the king trapped.}) 14. dxc5
bxc5 15. O-O Bf6 16. Rfd1 {Black's position has two minor defects: the bad
placement of the knight and the weaknesses induced by ...f7-f5.} Ne7 {Not
really a good square for the knight.} ({But} 16... Bxb2 $5 17. Qxb2 Qb6 18. Be2
Nb8 {does not seem to solve all the problems:} 19. Rac1 Nd7 {[%cal Ga7a5]} 20.
b4 Nf6 (20... f4 21. e4 $1 {[%csl Gd7]}) 21. Qe5 {[%csl Gc5,Gf5]}) 17. Bxf6
Rxf6 18. g3 Ba6 {With hanging pawns, this is not a bad bishop. In fact, it
permanently keeps White under the threat of ...d5-d4, opening the long
diagonal.} ({True} 18... d4 $6 {is premature due to} 19. Qe2 {[%cal Ge3d4]
when Black will soon have a weak pawn on d4.}) (18... Qb6 $5 19. Qe2 a6 20. Bd3
Bc6 (20... a5 $5) 21. Rab1 (21. Bxa6 Ra8 22. Bd3 Qxb3) 21... Bb5 {This is a
much better way to offer the exchange. Taking on b5 would strengthen Black's
structure while otherwise White will have to permanently count with ...Bxd3
followed by ...c5-c4.} (21... Be8 $5 {[%cal Ge8h5]} 22. Ng5)) 19. Bxa6 Rxa6 20.
Qc3 $14 {Black starts facing problems with his over-extended position. With
the f5-pawn on its initial square and the knight on, say, f6, he would be
absolutely fine, but these "small" differences count.} Rb6 21. Rac1 Qd6 $6 {
Actually the queen belongs on b6.} (21... Rb7 22. Ne5 (22. b4 c4 $14) 22... Qb6
$14 {[%csl Gb3][%cal Gb7c7]}) 22. Ne5 Rb7 23. Nd3 {[%csl Gc5][%cal Gd3f4] A
perfect trajectory for the knight.} c4 24. bxc4 Rxc4 (24... dxc4 25. Ne5 Qf6
26. Qxc4+ $1 Rxc4 27. Rd8+ Qf8 28. Rxf8+ Kxf8 29. Rxc4 $16) 25. Qe5 Qxe5 26.
Nxe5 Rxc1 27. Rxc1 g6 28. Rc5 $16 {The endgame is very unpleasant for Black.
His structure is weak and his pieces have to stay passive in order to defend
the weaknesses.} Kg7 29. Ra5 {Forcing the black rook to keep the a7-pawn
defended.} Kf6 30. Nd3 Rc7 31. Ra6+ Kg7 32. Nf4 Rd7 33. Kf1 Ng8 34. Ne6+ Kf7
35. Nd4 Ne7 36. Nb5 Nc8 37. a4 Rb7 38. Rc6 Ne7 39. Ra6 Nc8 40. Rc6 Ne7 41. Rd6
Rb6 $2 {This loses at once.} ({But there was little joy after} 41... Kg7 42.
Ke2 Kf7 43. Kf3 Kg7 44. Kf4 Kf7 45. Kg5 Kg7 46. Nd4 h6+ 47. Kf4 Kh7 48. a5 Kg7
49. a6 $18) 42. Rd7 a6 43. Nc3 (43. Nc3 {[%cal Gc3d5]} Ke8 44. Rxe7+ Kxe7 45.
Nxd5+) 1-0

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.15"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Black "Giri, Anish"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D46"]
[WhiteElo "2790"]
[BlackElo "2793"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "63"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e3 e6 5. Nf3 Nbd7 6. Qc2 Bd6 7. Be2 O-O 8. O-O
dxc4 9. Bxc4 b5 10. Be2 Bb7 11. e4 e5 12. dxe5 Nxe5 13. Nd4 Neg4 14. g3 Re8 (
14... g6 15. Nb3 a5 16. h3 Ne5 17. f4 Nc4 18. e5 a4 19. Bxc4 bxc4 20. Nd2 Bc5+
21. Kh2 Nd5 22. Nde4 Bd4 23. Nxd5 cxd5 24. Nf6+ Kh8 25. Qd2 $16 {1-0 (53)
Bluebaum,M (2580)-Loiseau,Q (2419) Khanty-Mansiysk 2015}) (14... Bxg3 15. hxg3
Qxd4 16. Qd1 $1 Qxd1 17. Rxd1 {gives White excellent compensation for the pawn
in the endgame. Here is a typical example:} Rfe8 18. f3 Ne5 19. Be3 a5 20. Rac1
h5 21. b3 a4 22. b4 Bc8 23. Bd4 a3 24. f4 Nc4 25. Bxf6 gxf6 26. Bxc4 bxc4 27.
Rd6 $16 {1/2 (41) Lenic,L (2621)-Grachev,B (2687) Legnica 2013}) (14... Bc5 15.
Nf5 Qb6 (15... Re8 $142 {transposing to the game}) 16. Bxg4 Nxg4 17. b4 $1 Bd4
(17... Bxb4 18. Qb2 Bxc3 19. Qxc3 f6 20. Ba3 $16 {1-0 (54) Khismatullin,D 
(2680)-Ponkratov,P (2610) Izhevsk 2014}) 18. Bb2 Be5 19. Qe2 Nf6 20. Na4 Qc7
21. Nc5 Bc8 22. Nd4 a5 23. a3 Bh3 24. Rfc1 $14 {1-0 (58) Cori,J (2612)-Ankit,R
(2508) Pune 2014}) 15. Nf5 Bc5 16. Bf4 (16. Kg2 Bc8 $5) 16... Qb6 $1 {Both
sides must play actively.} (16... b4 17. Bxg4 Nxg4 18. Na4 Bf8 19. Nc5 Bc8 20.
Rad1 Qa5 21. Nd6 $16 {1-0 (48) Levin,F (2489)-Ashton,A (2395) Gallipoli 2014})
(16... Ne5 17. Rad1 Qb6 18. Kg2 Bb4 19. f3 a6 20. Qb3 Bf8 21. Nd6 $14 {1/2 (21)
Gledura,B (2395)-Fodor,T (2462) Zalakaros 2014}) 17. Kg2 (17. Bxg4 {is not too
promising:} Nxg4 18. Kg2 (18. b4 $6 {is untimely now; Black grabs a pawn
without any risk:} Bxb4 19. Qb2 Bf8 20. Bd6 Bxd6 21. Nxd6 Re6 22. Rad1 Qc7 23.
Qd2 Nf6 24. Rfe1 Ne8 25. Nf5 b4 26. Na4 c5 $17 {1-0 (60) Lingnau,C (2407)
-Schreiner,T (2331) Germany 2015}) (18. Qe2 Nf6 19. e5 Bf8 20. Be3 c5 $1 21.
exf6 Qxf6 22. g4 b4 23. Nd1 g6 24. Ng3 Qc6 25. f3 Ba6 26. Qf2 Bxf1 27. Nxf1 c4
$132 {0-1 (34) Sebenik,M (2511)-Diermair,A (2426) Bad Gleichenberg 2013}) (18.
Rac1 Rad8 19. Nd1 Bf8 20. Nde3 Nxe3 21. Bxe3 c5 22. f3 g6 23. Nh4 Qe6 24. Bxc5
Bxc5+ 25. Qxc5 Qxa2 $11 {1-0 (44) Banusz,T (2585)-Pourramezanali,A (2432)
Dubai 2015}) 18... Rad8 19. f3 Ne5 20. Rad1 Bf8 21. Rxd8 Qxd8 22. Rd1 Qf6 23.
Bxe5 Qxe5 24. Qd2 b4 25. Ne2 c5 $11 {1/2 (34) Onischuk,A (2665)-Sethuraman,S 
(2623) Tsaghkadzor 2015}) 17... g6 (17... Nxf2 {proved insufficient for
equality in the following game:} 18. e5 Nd7 (18... N6g4 19. Ne4 $1 Nxe4 20.
Bxg4 Bf8 21. Bf3 Nc5 22. Be3 $1 Rxe5 23. Bd4 {[%cal Rd4e5,Rb2b4]} Qc7 $8 24.
Bxe5 Qxe5 25. Rad1 $14) 19. b4 $1 Bxb4 20. Rxf2 Nxe5 21. Ne4 (21. Nxg7 c5+ 22.
Kh3 Bc8+ 23. g4 Kxg7 24. Bxe5+ Rxe5 25. Rxf7+ Kxf7 26. Qxh7+ Ke6 27. Qg6+ {
1/2 (33) Wagner,D (2481)-Shirov,A (2685) Germany 2014}) 21... c5 22. Kf1 Bxe4
23. Qxe4 Ng6 24. Qd5 Nxf4 25. Ne7+ Kh8 26. Rxf4 c4 27. Nc6 Bc3 28. Rb1 Rac8 29.
Bf3 $16 {1-0 (75) Giri,A (2768)-Shirov,A (2691) Hoogeveen 2014}) 18. h3 $1 Ne5
$146 {[%mdl 8]} ({The line played in the previous game looks quite decent for
Black:} 18... gxf5 19. hxg4 Bd4 $5 (19... Nxe4 20. gxf5 $14) 20. gxf5 Bxc3 (
20... Nxe4 21. Nxe4 Rxe4 22. f3 $14 {[%cal Yf1h1]}) 21. bxc3 c5 22. f3 Rxe4 23.
Rae1 Rxf4 $1 24. gxf4 Nd5 $44 {1/2 (40) Svane,R (2543)-Shirov,A (2715) Skopje
2015}) {However, the text move is hardly worse.} 19. Nh6+ (19. Bg5 $142 {
but after} Ned7 20. Nh6+ Kg7 21. f4 Bd4 22. Bf3 b4 $1 {Black's position is
satisfactory, e.g.} 23. Ne2 (23. e5 Nd5 24. Nxd5 cxd5 25. Ng4 Rac8 26. Qd2 Rc4
$13) (23. Na4 Qa6 $1 24. Be2 (24. Qb3 c5 25. Qxf7+ Kh8) 24... Qa5 25. Qc4 Rxe4
26. Qxf7+ Kh8 $13) 23... c5 24. Qb3 $1 Rf8 $13 (24... Rxe4 $143 25. Qxf7+ Kh8
26. Nxd4 cxd4 27. Rae1 $1)) 19... Kg7 20. Bg5 Bd4 (20... Ned7 {is not
necessary now.}) 21. Bxf6+ {This knight should be eliminated, otherwise it can
become dangerous, e.g.} (21. f4 Nc4 22. Bxc4 bxc4 23. f5 Nxe4 $1 24. Nxe4 Rxe4
25. fxg6 c5 $17) 21... Kxf6 22. f4 Nc4 23. Bxc4 bxc4 24. f5 $1 {White must
urgently create counterplay. If Black consolidates his position, he will be
clearly better due to his bishop pair and weakness of White's king.} c5 $1 (
24... Kg7 {is risky for Black:} 25. fxg6 fxg6 (25... Kxh6 26. gxf7 $40) 26.
Rf7+ Kxh6 27. Raf1 $1 {[%cal Rc3a4]} (27. Na4 Qa5 28. Qc1+ g5 {[%csl Ra1]})
27... Be3 28. Nd1 $1 Bc8 29. R1f3 $40) 25. fxg6+ Kxg6 26. Nxf7 Rf8 27. Nd5 {
This leads to a perpetual.} (27. Kh2 $143 Rxf7 28. e5+ Kg7 29. Rxf7+ Kxf7 30.
Qxh7+ Ke6 {, and White has no clear draw.}) 27... Qxb2 28. Ne7+ Kg7 29. Nf5+
Kg6 30. Ne7+ Kg7 31. Nf5+ Kg6 32. Ne7+ {The game looks home-cooked, both
players probably followed their analyses (certainly Black did!).} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.15"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Svidler, Peter"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A22"]
[WhiteElo "2757"]
[BlackElo "2786"]
[Annotator "Marin,M"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. c4 Nf6 2. Nc3 e5 3. g3 Bb4 4. Bg2 O-O 5. e4 Bxc3 6. bxc3 c6 7. Nf3 $5 {
Giri,A (2798)-Anand,V (2803) Grand Slam Final 8th 2015 (4) 1-0 The new trend
in an old line, launched by the game} Nxe4 ({The hyper-ambitious} 7... d5 {
seems to play into White's hands:} 8. exd5 $1 $146 (8. cxd5 {Deac,B (2486)
-Tarlev,K (2580) Alba Iulia 2016 (0-1, 39)} Nxe4 9. dxc6 Nxc6 $13) 8... Re8 (
8... e4 9. Nd4 cxd5 10. cxd5 Qxd5 11. O-O Nc6 12. d3 Re8 13. Be3) (8... cxd5 9.
Nxe5) 9. O-O (9. dxc6 Nxc6 10. O-O e4 $44 {[%csl Gc4,Gd3]}) 9... cxd5 10. cxd5
Qxd5 (10... Nxd5 11. c4 Nb6 12. d3 $36) 11. Ng5 Qa5 (11... Qd3 12. Re1 Nc6 13.
Qb3 Qg6 14. d4 $16) 12. Qb3 Qc7 13. Re1 $14) 8. O-O {"The threat is stronger
than its execution."} ({The premature} 8. Nxe5 {offers Black enough
counterplay:} Re8 9. d4 d6 10. Bxe4 dxe5 11. O-O Nd7 $6 {But this is too
passive.} (11... exd4 {is more challenging.} 12. Qc2 f5 13. Bxf5 Bxf5 14. Qxf5
dxc3 $13) 12. Bg2 (12. d5 $5 $14) 12... exd4 {Jones,G (2645)-Gupta,A (2634)
Reykjavik 2016 (1/2-1/2, 47)} 13. cxd4 $14 {[%csl Gc1,Gg2]}) 8... d6 9. Nxe5
Nc5 $146 ({Deviating from the aforementioned game which went} 9... dxe5 {
Giri,A (2798)-Anand,V (2803) Bilbao 2015 CBM 169 [Roiz,M] (1-0, 37)}) (9... Ng5
{exposes the knight whereas any targetting of h3 is illusory:} 10. Ng4 f5 11.
f4 Ne4 12. Ne3 Nf6 13. Qc2 g6 14. Ba3 Na6 15. d4 Rb8 16. Rfe1 Re8 17. Re2 Be6
18. Rae1 Bf7 19. Qd3 $14 {Wang,H (2707)-Mchedlishvili,M (2635) Al Ain 2015 
(1-0, 44). As we see, there are already a bunch of games since Giri-Anand.})
10. Ng4 {The knight is heading for e3, a good square if White finds remedies
against ...f5-f4.} (10. Nf3 {looks a bit like a loss of time, since the knight
has already been on this square. White keeps some pressure but Black should
hold his own with simple moves.} Nd3 11. Qc2 (11. Ba3 Na6 12. Qc2 Nac5) 11...
Nxc1 (11... Bf5 $6 12. Nh4 Qf6 13. Ba3 Re8 14. f4 {[%cal Gf1f3]} Re2 15. Rf3
Ne1 16. Qxf5 Rxg2+ 17. Kf1 Rg1+ 18. Kxg1 Nxf3+ 19. Kf2 Qxf5 20. Nxf5 Nxh2 21.
Re1 $16) 12. Raxc1 Nd7 13. Rfe1 Nf6 14. Rb1 Qc7 15. Nd4 Bd7 16. Qb3 Rab8 {
and it is hard to see how to make progress with White.}) 10... f5 {A very
provocative move, weakening the dark squares.} (10... Nd3 {[%csl Gg4] looks
safer but once again White's position remains more active:} 11. Ba3 (11. Qf3
Nxc1 12. Raxc1 f5 13. Ne3 Qf6 14. d4 Nd7 $132 {[%cal Gf5f4]}) 11... Na6 12. Ne3
Nac5 13. Qc2 Re8 (13... f5 14. f4 $1) 14. Rab1 {[%cal Gf2f4,Gf4f5]} h5 15. f4
h4 16. Bxc5 Nxc5 17. Rfe1 $14 {Due to White's pressure along the b-file and
the long diagonal Black faces problems completing his queenside development.})
11. Ne3 f4 {Apparently promising but White has a strong reply.} (11... Nd3 12.
f4 Na6 13. Ba3 Nac5 14. Qc2 Qa5 15. Bxc5 Nxc5 16. a4 $5 $14 {[%csl Gf5]}) 12.
d4 $1 (12. gxf4 Nd3 $15 {[%csl Gf4]}) 12... fxe3 ({There is no way back:} 12...
Ne6 13. Nc2 Qf6 14. Re1 {White has more space and the bishop pair while
Black's attack is not really dangerous. In fact, the advance of the f-pawn has
brought him only weaknesses.} f3 (14... fxg3 15. fxg3 {[%cal Ge1f1]}) (14...
Na6 15. d5 $36) 15. Bf1 Nd7 16. a4 $16) 13. dxc5 exf2+ 14. Rxf2 Rxf2 15. Kxf2
Qf8+ 16. Qf3 Qxf3+ {This looks like a micro-inaccuracy, allowing White to
activate his position slightly.} ({It is true that after} 16... dxc5 17. Qxf8+
Kxf8 18. Be3 Nd7 19. Rb1 $44 {it remains hard to suggest a way of completing
the development, while the extra pawn does not count yet.}) 17. Bxf3 dxc5 18.
Bf4 Nd7 19. Bd6 $6 {This does not really prevent ...Nb6 and actually loses an
important tempo, allowing Black to get out of the opening satisfactorily.} (19.
Re1 $5 Nb6 20. Re7 {[%cal Gf4e5]} Nxc4 21. Bh5 {[%csl Rc4,Rg8][%cal Ge7e8,
Yh5f7]} g6 22. Bf3 Nb6 {[%cal Gc8d7]} 23. Be5 $36 {Despite his extra pawns
Black's position looks very dangerous.}) (19. a4 $5 a5 (19... Nb6 20. a5 Nxc4
21. a6 $16 {leaves Black's queenside completely paralysed.}) 20. Rb1 $32) 19...
Nb6 $1 20. Re1 Bd7 21. Bxc5 Re8 $6 {This allows White to retain at least a
symbolic advantage.} ({Black could play} 21... Nxc4 $1 {for if against} 22. Re7
{he has the fantastic resource} Rf8 $3 {[%cal Gf8f7]} 23. Rxd7 Rxf3+ 24. Ke2 (
24. Kxf3 Ne5+ 25. Ke4 Nxd7 26. Bxa7 b6 {[%csl Ga5,Gb5,Gc5,Gd5,Ge5,Ge6,Gf6] The
bishop is caged and the white king cannot cross the barrier:} 27. Kf5 Kf7 28.
c4 h6 29. c5 g6+ 30. Ke4 b5) 24... Rf5 25. Bxa7 b5 $11) 22. Rb1 Be6 23. Bxb6
axb6 24. Rxb6 Bc8 25. Rb4 $14 {The extra pawn is anything but simple to
convert, but Black has to permanently watch out for the possibility of
a2-a4-a5-a6.} Re5 26. Ra4 Kf7 27. Ra8 Bf5 28. Be2 Re7 29. c5 (29. a4 Ke6 30.
Rd8 Rd7 {[%cal Ge6d6,Gd6c5]} 31. Rxd7 Kxd7 32. c5 Ke6 33. Bc4+ Ke5 34. Ke3 h6
$5) 29... Kf6 30. a4 Re5 31. Rf8+ Kg6 32. Rb8 Rxc5 (32... Re7 33. Bf3 {[%cal
Ga4a5]}) 33. Rxb7 Rxc3 34. a5 {Optically it looks as if White had made a lot
of progress, but the next accurate move reminds us that "all rook endings are
drawn".} Bd3 $1 35. Bxd3+ Rxd3 36. a6 c5 $1 {The pawn rushes to help the rook
in creating a barrier in front of the white king.} 37. a7 Ra3 38. Ke2 c4 39.
Kd2 h5 40. Kc2 c3 41. h4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.16"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "C65"]
[WhiteElo "2762"]
[BlackElo "2790"]
[PlyCount "55"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[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. d3 Bc5 5. O-O Nd4 6. Nxd4 Bxd4 7. Nd2 a6 8.
Ba4 b5 9. Bb3 d6 10. a4 Bb6 11. axb5 Bg4 12. Nf3 axb5 13. Rxa8 Qxa8 14. h3 Be6
15. Bxe6 fxe6 16. Nh2 O-O 17. Ng4 Qe8 18. Be3 Bxe3 19. Nxe3 Qc6 20. Qd2 d5 21.
f3 d4 22. Ng4 Nxg4 23. hxg4 h6 24. g5 hxg5 25. Qxg5 Qxc2 26. Qxe5 Qxd3 27.
Qxe6+ Kh7 28. Qh3+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.16"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A77"]
[WhiteElo "2786"]
[BlackElo "2794"]
[Annotator "Marin,M"]
[PlyCount "59"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 c5 4. d5 d6 5. Nc3 exd5 6. cxd5 g6 7. e4 Bg7 8. Be2 {
Classical systems never lose their actuality, even though other systems (such
as h3 and Bd3 or Bf4/h3) enjoy long periods of being in the limelight.} O-O 9.
O-O Re8 10. Nd2 Nbd7 11. Qc2 {This used to be the fashion in the '70s.} ({
But after several historic games at the top level, White eventually switched to
} 11. a4 {. The main thing is that unlike most other pieces, the queen is well
placed on its initial square, keeping the control over the d1-h5 diagonal and
adding latent force to the d5-pawn. Here are two relatively recent examples:}
a6 12. Ra3 (12. h3 {1-0 (31) Atalik,S (2608)-Atanasov,R (2218) Golden Sands
2012 CBM 149 [Atalik,S]}) 12... Rb8 {1-0 (105) Drenchev,P (2511)-Atalik,S 
(2550) Paracin 2014 CBM 163 [Atalik,S]}) 11... Ne5 ({The eccentric but
possibly not entirely sound} 11... Nh5 {yielded Fischer his first win over
Spassky ever:} 12. Bxh5 gxh5 13. Nc4 Ne5 14. Ne3 Qh4 15. Bd2 Ng4 {Spassky,B 
(2660)-Fischer,R (2785) Reykjavik 1972 MainBase [ChessBase] (0-1, 41)}) ({
My perception was that the move putting an end to the 11.Qc2 line was} 11...
Nb6 {[%csl Ge2][%cal Gf6d5]} 12. Bb5 (12. Re1 {[%csl Gf2]} Ng4 13. h3 $2 Nxf2
$1 14. Kxf2 Bd4+ 15. Kf1 Qh4 16. Nd1 Bxh3 $40) (12. a4 Nfxd5 13. exd5 Bxc3 {
[%csl Ge2]}) 12... Bd7 13. a4 Bxb5 14. Nxb5 a6 15. Nc3 Nfd7 16. a5 Nc8 17. b3
Na7 18. Bb2 Nb5 {Polugaevsky,L (2620)-Mecking,H (2635) Luzern 1977 (1/2-1/2,
42)}) 12. b3 Bg4 $5 $146 {By offering the exchange of the light-squared
bishops Black wishes to solve his development problems. In the Benoni, his
minor pieces (with the exception of the g7-bishop) compete with each other for
comfortable developing squares.} ({Prior to his game with Polugaevsky, Mecking
had also tried} 12... g5 13. Bb2 g4 14. Rfe1 Nh5 15. Nd1 Nf4 16. Bb5 Rf8 17.
Ne3 Qg5 $132 {Kortschnoj,V (2670)-Mecking,H (2615) Augusta 1974 (1-0, 42)}) ({
After White has weakened the long diagonal, Fischer's idea looks sounder:} 
12... Nh5 $5 13. Bxh5 gxh5 14. Bb2 Bd7 15. Rae1 Qh4 16. f4 $2 Ng4 17. Nf3 Bd4+
$40 {Polugaevsky,L (2635)-Nunn,J (2515) Skara 1980 (0-1, 32)}) 13. Bxg4 (13. f3
{[%cal Re2h5] only apparently gains a tempo. In fact, it simplifies the
knight's access to h5.} Bd7 14. Bb2 (14. f4 $2 Neg4 15. Nc4 Nxe4 $19) 14... Nh5
$132) 13... Nfxg4 14. Bb2 a6 15. h3 Nf6 16. f4 Ned7 17. Nc4 {White has almost
completed his development and gained considerable space. His only problem is
that the b2-bishop is not optimally placed. By now, it is sort of hanging
along the long diagonal but later we will notice another negative aspect.} Nb6
{The typical reaction to the attack on d6 and a good one here!} (17... Qc7 $6 {
Offers White the needed tempo to start the same kind of attack as in the game
without allowing Black's freeing ...b7-b5.} 18. a4 Nb6 19. Rae1 Nxc4 20. bxc4
Nd7 21. e5 dxe5 22. f5 $36) ({But the provocative} 17... Qe7 $5 {[%csl Ge4]
may be playable:} 18. e5 dxe5 19. Rae1 (19. f5 $2 b5) 19... b5 (19... e4 20. d6
$14 {[%csl Ge4]} Qe6 $2 21. g4 $1 $16) 20. d6 {Of course the position looks
promising for White, but concretely things may not be entirely clear.} Qf8 $1 (
20... Qe6 $6 21. fxe5 Nh5 (21... bxc4 $2 22. exf6 $18 {[%csl Re6,Rg7]}) 22. Ne4
$3 bxc4 23. Ng5 Qd5 24. Rd1 cxb3 25. axb3 Qb7 (25... Qc6 26. Qc4 $40) 26. Rxf7
(26. Qc4 Nb6) 26... Qb5 {[%csl Gc4]} 27. e6 Bxb2 28. Qxb2 Rxe6 29. Nxe6 Kxf7
30. Nc7 Qc6 31. Nxa8 Qxa8 32. Re1 $36) 21. Nxe5 Qxd6 22. Rd1 Qe6 23. Nxd7 Nxd7
24. Nd5 Bxb2 25. Qxb2 $44) 18. Rae1 Nxc4 19. bxc4 Nd7 {In principle this
structure favours White, as the exchange on c4 has strengthened his centre.
But with the bishop on b2 he is not optimally prepared for the thematic attack
launched by Aronian. In many lines White will miss the Bg5, increasing his
kingside pressure.} 20. e5 ({It would be nice to insert} 20. a4 {before the
central break, but Black could use the offered tempo for activating his play:}
Bd4+ 21. Kh1 Qh4 $132 22. e5 $6 dxe5 23. f5 e4) 20... dxe5 21. f5 {Penrose,
J-Tal,M Leipzig ol (Men) fin-A 1960 (11) 1-0 A pawn sacrifice known ever since}
b5 $1 {Shattering White's stability in the centre before the intiative becomes
too strong.} (21... Nf6 $6 22. Bc1 $1 $36 {[%cal Gc1g5,Gc3e4]}) 22. Ne4 (22.
cxb5 axb5 23. Nxb5 Rxa2 $132) 22... Nb6 {The second knight lands on b6. A
brave decision as it seems as if Black is neglecting his kingside defence, but
the pressure on c4 and d5 forces him to rush things or sacrifice material.} ({
The ultra-cautious} 22... Nf6 {is likely to offer White an edge:} 23. fxg6 fxg6
(23... hxg6 24. Qf2 Nxe4 25. Qxf7+ Kh7 26. Rxe4 Rf8 27. Bxe5 $1 Rxf7 28. Rxf7
Qf8 (28... Qg8 $4 29. Rh4#) 29. Rxg7+ Qxg7 30. Bxg7 Kxg7 31. Kf2 $16) 24. Nxf6+
Bxf6 25. cxb5 axb5 26. Qxc5 $14) 23. Bc1 {Humanly the most natural move. In
this case the engines' scepticism shows that they are still far from
exhausting our favourite game. White finally retrieves his complete harmony
but Black's counterplay is too advanced to allow the last move to yield an
advantage.} ({The simplistic} 23. cxb5 axb5 24. fxg6 fxg6 (24... hxg6 $2 25.
Rxf7 $3 $36 Kxf7 $2 26. Rf1+ Kg8 27. Nf6+ Bxf6 28. Qxg6+ Bg7 29. Rf7 $18) 25.
Qxc5 Na4 26. Qxb5 Nxb2 27. Qxb2 Qxd5 28. Rf2 {is a worthy alternative.
Personally I prefer White due to his strong knight, but the engines 0.00
evaluation is a bit depressing. True, the a2-pawn is vulnerable and Black has
some activity, but over the board White's position should be at least easier
to play.}) 23... Nxc4 {[%csl Gd5]} 24. d6 gxf5 $5 {A clever way to more or
less force a draw.} (24... Nxd6 $2 25. Rd1 Bf8 26. fxg6 hxg6 27. Bg5 $18) (
24... Ra7 25. Bg5 f6 26. Bh4 $44) 25. Rxf5 Nxd6 26. Bg5 Qa5 $1 {[%csl Ge1]
That is the point: due to his hanging rooks White does not have anything
better than repeating the moves.} 27. Bd2 Qd8 (27... Qb6 28. Nf6+ Bxf6 29. Rxf6
{[%cal Gd2h6,Gc2f2]} c4+ 30. Be3 Qc7 31. Qf2 $36) (27... Qc7 28. Nf6+ Bxf6 29.
Rxf6 Qe7 30. Bg5 $36) 28. Bg5 Qa5 29. Bd2 Qd8 30. Bg5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.16"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Giri, Anish"]
[Black "Svidler, Peter"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D78"]
[WhiteElo "2793"]
[BlackElo "2757"]
[Annotator "Sagar Shah/CB Website"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. Nf3 $5 {Anish wants to stay away from Svidler's excellent home preparation
and just have a normal game of chess.} d5 2. g3 g6 3. Bg2 Bg7 4. d4 Nf6 5. c4
c6 {By a transposition we have reached the popular solid variation of the
Fianchetto Grьnfeld. As Peter said in the press conference: "It is funny that
people are trying to find weird move orders to force me into playing the
Grьnfeld, which is clearly my strongest opening!"} 6. Qb3 O-O 7. O-O a5 $5 {
Svidler's main move is 7...Qb6 but he had played this once before against
Pavel Tregubov in 2004.} 8. cxd5 a4 9. Qd1 cxd5 10. Nc3 {The players could
have reached the same position with the pawn on a7 as well. What does having
the pawn on a4 mean? In some cases it can be a weakness, but it is also a
strength that confers a lot of space to Black on the queenside.} Ne4 11. Nd2
$146 (11. Nxa4 {doesn't really make sense as after} Qa5 12. Nc3 (12. b3 b5 13.
Nb2 Nc6 $44 {followed by ...Bf5 is a free flowing position for Black.}) 12...
Nxc3 13. bxc3 Qxc3 14. Bd2 Qc4 $11) 11... Nxc3 12. bxc3 Qa5 13. Qc2 Bf5 $6 {
"I just blanked out!" Svidler was quite critical about this move and rightly
so. He could have kept better control on the position by playing his bishop to
e6 instead of f5.} (13... Be6 {with ...Rc8 coming up next. The opening has
gone really well for Black.}) 14. e4 dxe4 15. Nxe4 Nd7 16. Rb1 Qc7 17. Qe2 {
White definitely has a small edge now, mainly because his pieces are much
better co-ordinated. The rook on b1, the bishop on g2 and the dark squared
bishop coming to f4, it all looks pretty good for Anish.} Rfe8 18. Be3 (18. Bf4
e5 {is fine for Black.}) 18... Rab8 19. Rb4 $1 {Giri wanted to stop Black from
playing e5 at all costs but was not able to do so. But this rook lift is
excellent. It puts pressure on the a4-pawn and also prepares doubling on the
b-file.} e5 20. Rc4 (20. d5 {was definitely an option} Bxe4 21. Rxe4 $5 {
so that ...Bf8 doesn't come with a tempo.} (21. Bxe4 Bf8 22. Rxa4 Nc5 {Anish
didn't ike the solid control that Black had on the dark squares.} 23. Rb4 Nxe4
24. Rxe4 b5 $44 {Black is a pawn down but has excellent compensation.}) 21...
Nc5 (21... f5 22. Rxa4 $16) 22. Rb4 $16 {[%cal Gf1b1]}) (20. Rxa4 Bxe4 21. Bxe4
b5 22. Rb4 exd4 23. Bxd4 Bxd4 24. cxd4 Nf6 25. f3 Qc3 $44) 20... Qb6 21. Rb4
Qc7 22. dxe5 Nxe5 23. Bf4 Bd7 $1 {A strong regrouping of pieces by Svidler.
The bishop will be well placed on c6.} 24. Rd1 Bc6 $11 {Black has absolutely
no problems now.} 25. Rbd4 Re6 26. Ng5 Ree8 27. Ne4 Re6 28. Ng5 Ree8 29. Ne4
Re6 30. Ng5 Ree8 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.16"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Black "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2780"]
[BlackElo "2760"]
[Annotator "Schulz,Andre"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. b3 Bb4+ 6. Bd2 Be7 7. Nc3 d5 8. cxd5
exd5 9. Bg2 O-O 10. O-O Re8 11. Rb1 c5 12. dxc5 bxc5 13. Ne5 Bb7 14. Bf4 Bf8
15. Rb2 {[#]} Bd6 {[#]} (15... g5 {provoziert} 16. Nxf7 $5 Kxf7 17. Bxg5 Qd7
18. Nxd5 {mit drei Bauern und Angriff für die Figur.}) 16. Nd3 (16. Nxf7 $5
Kxf7 17. Nxd5 Bxf4 18. Nxf6 Qxd1 19. Rxd1 Re7 20. Nd5 {war auch hier möglich
und wird von der Maschine als vorteilhaft für Weiß angesehen.}) 16... Na6 17.
Bxd6 Qxd6 18. Nf4 Qe5 19. Rc2 Rad8 20. Na4 c4 21. Qd2 g5 22. Nh3 h6 23. f4 gxf4
24. Qxf4 cxb3 25. axb3 Kg7 26. Qxe5 Rxe5 27. Nf4 Re7 28. Nd3 Ng4 29. Rf4 Ne3
30. Rd2 d4 31. Bh3 Be4 32. Nac5 Nxc5 33. Nxc5 f5 34. g4 fxg4 35. Bxg4 Nxg4 36.
Rxg4+ Bg6 37. Kf2 Re5 38. Nd3 Rf5+ 39. Ke1 h5 40. Rg1 a5 41. Rc2 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.17"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Black "Svidler, Peter"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C88"]
[WhiteElo "2762"]
[BlackElo "2757"]
[Annotator "Sagar Shah"]
[PlyCount "47"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{An emphatic victory for Anand. Let's have a look at the game to see what
really went right for him and wrong for Svidler.} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6
{Svidler is one of those top level grandmasters who doesn't like to play the
Berlin. He sticks to the normal lines of the Ruy Lopez.} 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7
6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. a4 {Allowing Svidler to play the Marshall was not in
Anand's plans.} ({The following game between Anand and Svidler with the
inclusion of h3 and h6 is very similar to the main game. And Svidler played
much better back then.} 8. h3 Bb7 9. d3 Re8 10. a4 h6 11. Nbd2 Bf8 12. c3 Na5
13. Bc2 c5 14. d4 cxd4 15. cxd4 exd4 16. e5 Nd5 17. Nxd4 Nb4 18. axb5 Nxc2 19.
Qxc2 axb5 20. Nxb5 Qb6 $15 {1/2-1/2 (47) Anand, V (2779)-Svidler,P (2728)
Morelia/Linares 2007}) 8... Bb7 {Although this is the main move in the
position, Anand thought for a good ten minutes. Why? Because Svidler has got
this position 13 times in his games and all the while he had chosen b4.
Although this is the main move in the position, Anand thought for a good ten
minutes. Why? Because Svidler has had this position 13 times in his games and
on every occasion he had chosen b4.} (8... b4 {is Svidler's move.}) 9. d3 Re8
10. Nbd2 Bf8 11. c3 Na5 12. Bc2 c5 {This is all very standard Ruy Lopez stuff.
Now White must remain consistent and break in the centre with d4.} 13. d4 exd4
{This came as a bit of a surprise to Anand. But Peter was mainly trying to
play very concrete chess.} (13... d6 14. d5 {Leads to a slightly passive
position for Black. leads to a slightly passive position for Black.}) 14. cxd4
d5 $6 {Although this is very thematic. It is extremely dangerous. The main
reason being that the two bishops on c1 and c2 are opened up against the black
king.} (14... cxd4 {looks like the best way for Black to proceed.} 15. e5 Nd5
16. axb5 axb5 17. Nxd4 Nb4 18. Bb1 {The pieces are quite weirdly placed but
after} Nbc6 19. Nxc6 Bxc6 20. Nf3 g6 $11 {Black seems to have a pretty fine
position.}) 15. e5 Ne4 {This was a critical position where Anand took a lot of
time. There are a lot of captures. As Anand correctly pointed out, the main
question for him was whether to take on b5 or not. On one hand keeping the
a-file closed keeps the rook on the back rank safeguarding it. On the other
hand the rook doesn't take part in the game. It is a very difficult decision
to make and almost impossible to see what possibilites may arise after say
eight to ten moves. But this is where intuition comes into picture and Anand
felt that bringing the a1-rook into the game was more important and that
explains his next move.} 16. axb5 (16. Nxe4 dxe4 17. Rxe4 {This exchange
sacrifice is not as effective now as in the game.} (17. Bxe4 Bxe4 18. Rxe4 Qd5
$1 {It is important to blockade the d-pawn before attacking it.} 19. Re3 (19.
Qe2 Nb3 $17) 19... Nc6 $15) 17... Nb3 $1 18. Ng5 (18. Rh4 Bxf3 19. Bxh7+ Kh8
20. Rh3 Bxd1 21. Bg6+ $11 {All of these analyses lead us to the concusion that
Anand's decision to take with axb5 was better than not taking.}) 18... Nxa1 19.
Qh5 Qxg5 $1 20. Bxg5 g6 (20... Nxc2 21. Rh4 h6 22. Bxh6 g6 23. Rg4 Nxd4 24.
Rxg6+ fxg6 25. Qxg6+ Kh8 $11) 21. Qd1 Nxc2 22. Qxc2 Bxe4 23. Qxe4 cxd4 $15 {
Only Black can be better here.}) 16... axb5 (16... Nxd2 $2 17. Bxd2 axb5 18.
Bxh7+ $1 {wins! It's a standard Greek Gift!} Kxh7 19. Ng5+ Kg8 (19... Kg6 20.
Qg4 $18) 20. Qh5 $18) (16... cxd4 $6 17. bxa6 Rxa6 18. Nxe4 dxe4 19. Bxe4 Bxe4
20. Rxe4 Bc5 21. b4 $1 Bxb4 22. Rxd4 Qb8 (22... Qb6 23. e6 $1 fxe6 24. Qd3 $1 {
Threatening Rxb4.} Raa8 25. Rh4 $18) 23. Qd3 Ra8 24. Ng5 $18) 17. Nxe4 dxe4 18.
Rxe4 $1 {This move might be natural for a player like Anand, but for us who
from a young age are taught about the relative value of the pieces, it is not
easy to consider a such a move. Once you see it, though, and you realise that
the bishop on e4 will be a complete monster, breathing fire in both directions.
..} (18. Bxe4 Bxe4 19. Rxe4 Qd5 $11 {gives Black excellent chances to hold.})
18... Nb3 {This is what Svidler had prepared, but it falls just short.} (18...
Bxe4 19. Bxe4 {[%cal Ge4a8,Ge4h7]} Ra7 (19... Rb8 20. Bxh7+ Kxh7 21. Ng5+ Kg8
22. Qh5 $18) (19... g6 20. Bxa8 Qxa8 21. Bd2 b4 22. Qa4 $18) 20. Bxh7+ Kxh7 21.
Ng5+ $18) 19. Rxa8 Bxa8 {At this point I went into the tournament hall to
check out what exactly was going on. I expected Anand to be looking happy
while Svidler would be on the board with his head in his hands. But the scene
I saw was completely the opposite. Peter had just captured the rook on a8 and
was moving around confidently. Anand on the other hand was nervous, fidgety,
biting his nails and looked as if he was the one on the back foot. But it was
clear that Vishy was calculating the details of his final attack, anxious to
make sure that his opponent had no defensive resources. And in the above
position he picked up his knight and made the best move 20.Ng5!} 20. Ng5 $1 {
Svidler came back and saw this move. I thought that he would think for a while
before making his move but he blitzed it out. He was showing that he had
things under control.} (20. Rh4 Bxf3 21. Bxh7+ Kh8 22. Rh3 Bxd1 23. Bg6+) 20...
Nxc1 (20... Bxe4 21. Bxe4 $18 {[%cal Gd1b3,Gd1h5]}) 21. Qh5 $1 {[%csl Rf7,Rh7]
Once again the only move. There is an attack on both the h7- and f7-pawns.} h6
{This move was also made quickly.} (21... Qxg5 {was a way to avoid an
immediate defeat, but doesn't really serve any purpose as after} 22. Qxg5 Bxe4
23. Qxc1 $1 Bxc2 24. Qxc2 $18 {the position is technically winning. It won't
be so difficult for a player of Anand's calibre to turn this into a full point.
}) (21... Bxe4 22. Bxe4 h6 23. Qxf7+ Kh8 24. Qg6 $18) 22. Qxf7+ Kh8 {At this
point Peter once again stood up from the board and started walking around.
Anand was making his final calculations, the other players were all coming to
the board, disbelief showing in their faces. Nakamura stood right next to
Svidler's seat for almost a minute. He just didn't want to leave. He checked
the scoresheet, then the board and couldn't believe that Anand was just
winning. He went back to his board, Anand lifted his hand and once again made
the only winning move in the position.} 23. Rg4 $1 {The rook defends the
knight and now the threat is Qg6. Black doesn't really have a way to stop the
attack.} (23. Rf4 Ne2+ $19) 23... Qa5 {With the engine on it seems like a
trivial win here but on the board when you see moves like Qe1+ followed by Ne2,
those are tense moments!} (23... Ne2+ 24. Kf1 $1 {wins!} (24. Kh1 $4 {however
loses in an amazing fashion.} Qa5 $3 {Suddenly the back rank weakness turns
out to be the critical factor in the game.} 25. h4 Qe1+ 26. Kh2 Qg1+ 27. Kh3
Qh1#)) 24. h4 $1 {Svidler resigned as he saw no point in continuing. His bluff
of playing quickly had not worked. Many of you might be wondering why this is
the only move. Wouldn't h3 also win? The point is subtle. The h3-square has to
be kept for the knight to control g1.} (24. h3 $2 Qe1+ 25. Kh2 Ne2 26. Nf3 Bxf3
27. gxf3 Nxd4 $17) (24. h4 Qe1+ 25. Kh2 Ne2 26. Nh3 $18 {Like a gentleman
Svidler analysed the game with Anand, kept a very calm face in the press
conference, and showed great sportsmanship. Anand on the other hand had made
his point clear, he was looking for another Candidates victory!}) 1-0

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.17"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2786"]
[BlackElo "2790"]
[Annotator "Roiz,M"]
[PlyCount "166"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. Qc2 c5 6. d5 exd5 7. cxd5 Bb7 8. Bg2
Nxd5 9. O-O Nc6 10. Rd1 Be7 {No doubt,this theoretical positionhad been deeply
explored by both players.} 11. Qa4 ({The other popular continuations are:} 11.
a3) ({and} 11. Qf5) 11... Nf6 {White is a pawn down, so it is necessary to
play very energetically.} 12. Nh4 {The knight is heading to f5, whereas the
Bg2 is getting more powerful.} ({Another possible plan is advancing the e-pawn:
} 12. e4 O-O 13. e5 Ne8 14. Nc3 Nc7 15. Be3 {The pressure along the d-file
offers White full compensation for a pawn, but not more. Levon had good
memories from his experience in this line, but objectively after} Qe8 (15... f5
$5 {Potkin,V (2653)-Volokitin,A (2677)/Aix-les-Bains 2011, seems an
alternative worth considering.}) 16. Nd2 Rb8 17. Nc4 b5 18. Nxb5 Nxb5 19. Qxb5
Nxe5 20. Nxe5 Bxg2 21. Qxd7 Ba8 {Aronian,L (2802)-Leko,P (2735)/Wijk aan Zee
2013/CBM 153/[Krasenkow,M], Black's position was not bad at all.}) 12... O-O ({
Another logical response -} 12... g6 13. Bh6 Bf8 14. Bxf8 Kxf8 {has also been
seen in Aronian's practice. Nowadays, the resulting positions are considered
somewhat shaky for Black.}) 13. Nc3 $146 {This innovation hardly poses Black
any problems, but this way of handling the position doesn't lead to
simplifications.} (13. Nf5 {was well known to Hikaru, who had employed it one
year earlier:} d5 14. Nc3 Nd4 $1 15. Nxd4 cxd4 16. Rxd4 (16. Qxd4 Bc5 17. Qa4
Qc8 18. Nxd5 Nxd5 19. Bxd5 Bxd5 20. Rxd5 Qe6 21. e4 Rfe8 $11 {1/2 Leko,P (2739)
-Karjakin,S (2720)/Wijk aan Zee 2010/CBM 135/[Krasenkow,M] (36)}) 16... Qe8 17.
Qxe8 Rfxe8 18. Rd1 Bb4 19. Bd2 Bxc3 20. Bxc3 Rxe2 21. Bf3 Re6 22. Bxf6 Rxf6 23.
Bxd5 Bxd5 24. Rxd5 g6 $11 {1/2 Nakamura,H (2776)-Harikrishna,P (2723)/Caleta
ENG 2015 (68)}) 13... g6 {Comparing to the above-mentioned note, the
consequences of this weakening move are less scary.} 14. Bg5 Rb8 {Protecting
the light-squared bishop is the most natural reaction to White's new idea.} ({
Another possibility was} 14... a6 15. Rd2 b5 $5 {seizing some space on the
q-side. For instance,} 16. Qf4 Rb8 17. Rad1 Nd4 18. Bxf6 Bxf6 19. Bxb7 Bg5 (
19... Rxb7 20. Ne4 Be7 21. Nf3 $44) 20. Qe4 Bxd2 21. Rxd2 Re8 22. Qd5 Qc7 23.
e3 {with complex, double-edged play.}) 15. Bf4 Rc8 16. Bh6 {The main idea
behind this move is freeing a way for the queen.} (16. Rd2 d5 17. Rad1 d4 18.
e3 Qe8 19. exd4 cxd4 20. Nb5 Nd7 {wouldn't pose Black any problems.}) 16... Re8
17. Qf4 Na5 {The exchange of bishops is clearly in Black's favour, so it makes
sense to force matters.} ({Of course, Hikaru doesn't fall into a nice trap:} 
17... Nh5 $4 18. Qxf7+ Kxf7 19. Bd5+ Kf6 20. Ne4+ Ke5 21. f4+ Nxf4 22. Bxf4#) (
17... Ba8 $5 {also deserved serious attention:} 18. Nf5 Nh5 19. Nxe7+ Nxe7 20.
Qh4 Bxg2 21. Kxg2 Nf5 22. Qxd8 Rcxd8 {with approximate equality.}) 18. Nf5 (18.
Bxb7 $5 Nxb7 19. Nf5 Bf8 20. Bxf8 Rxf8 21. Ne3 $44 {would have kept the
long-term compensation for a pawn.}) 18... Bxg2 19. Nxe7+ Qxe7 20. Kxg2 Qe5 $1
{Like in most cases, the centralised queen has excellent prospects.} 21. e3 $6
{A small tactical blunder.} ({There was no way to keep the queens on the board:
} 21. Qh4 $6 Nc6 22. Bg5 Ne4 23. Nxe4 Qxe4+ 24. Qxe4 Rxe4 $15) ({However, a
better try was} 21. Bg5 Qxf4 22. gxf4 Ne4 23. Nxe4 Rxe4 24. Kf3 Rd4 25. Rxd4
cxd4 26. Rd1 Nc6 27. Bf6 $11) 21... d5 $6 {Returning the favour.} ({Both
players missed} 21... Qe6 $1 {, and then after something like} 22. Qd6 (22. Rd6
$4 Nh5 $19) 22... Qxd6 23. Rxd6 Re6 $15 {White would be forced to fight for a
draw.}) 22. Bg5 Ne4 $6 {One more mistake, which leads to an unpleasant endgame.
} ({The correct move was} 22... Kg7 23. Qxe5 Rxe5 24. Bxf6+ Kxf6 25. Nxd5+ Kg7
26. Nc3 Nc6 {and Black should be able to neutralise White's control over the
open file.}) 23. Rxd5 Qxf4 24. gxf4 {The extra pawn is gone, while White's
pieces are still much more active.} Nxc3 ({Liquadating the powerful bishop
wouldn't solve the problems:} 24... Nxg5 25. fxg5 Kf8 26. Rad1 Nc6 27. Rd7 Re7
28. h4 $14) 25. bxc3 Kg7 $6 ({Black's defensive task would be easier after
swapping one pair of rooks:} 25... Rc7 $1 26. Rad1 Kg7 27. Rd7 Rxd7 28. Rxd7 h6
29. Bh4 Nc6 30. Rc7 Re6 $14) 26. Rd7 h6 27. Be7 Nc4 {Alas, Black cannot really
benfit from having such a stable knight.} ({As the following line illustrates,
Black was doomed to a passive defence:} 27... Nc6 28. Bh4 Re4 29. Rad1 Ra4 $140
$2 30. R1d6 Rxa2 31. Bf6+ Kg8 32. Rxc6 Rxc6 33. Rd8+ Kh7 34. Rh8# $18) 28. Rad1
a5 29. R1d5 {Keeping an eye on the Pc5, so Black's pawns are not mobile
anymore.} Rc6 30. Ra7 Re6 31. Rdd7 Kg8 {Black is almost paralysed, but it's
not easy to make progress.} 32. h4 Kg7 33. Bd8 Kg8 34. Be7 Kg7 35. Rab7 {
Both players were interested in crossing the time control without committing
serious mistakes.} (35. a4 $1 {was stronger:} Kg8 36. Rab7 Kg7 37. Kf3 Nd2+ 38.
Ke2 Ne4 39. Bd8 Kg8 40. c4 $16) 35... Kg8 36. Rbc7 Na3 37. Bd8 Nc4 38. Be7 {
Levon doesn't let Black remove the knight from the q-side.} ({It was possible
to convert one type of advantage into another:} 38. Ra7 $5 {, and if} Nd6 {then
} 39. Bxb6 Nc8 40. Bxc5 Nxa7 41. Rxa7 $16) 38... Na3 39. Rb7 Nc4 40. Kf3 ({
Levon has missed the last chance to fix the favourable pawn structure:} 40. a4
$1 Kg7 41. Kf3 Nd2+ 42. Ke2 Ne4 43. Bd8 Kg8 44. Bxb6 Nxc3+ 45. Kf3 Nxa4 46.
Bxa5 Rf8 47. Bc7 $16 {the domination of White's pieces offers excellent
winning chances.}) 40... a4 $1 41. Rbc7 $6 {This inaccurate move allows Black
to liquidate into a rook endgame.} ({A better one was} 41. Ra7 $1 Na5 42. f5
gxf5 43. Bd6 h5 44. Bf4 Nc6 45. Rxa4 $16) 41... Nd2+ $1 42. Rxd2 ({A similar
type of endgame would arise after} 42. Ke2 Ne4 43. c4 Nf6 44. Bxf6 Rxf6 45. Re7
Rxe7 46. Rxe7 b5 47. cxb5 Rb6 48. Ra7 Rxb5 49. Rxa4 Rb2+ 50. Kf3 c4 {and Black
should be able to hold it.}) 42... R6xe7 43. Rc6 Re6 44. Rxe6 Rxe6 45. c4 {
Despite the major simplifications, Black's position is still difficult.} Kg7
46. e4 ({After} 46. Rd7 b5 47. cxb5 Rb6 48. Ra7 Rxb5 49. Rxa4 Rb2 50. a3 Ra2 {
it would be impossible to avoid the exchange of q-side pawns.}) 46... Re8 {
This move isn't a serious mistake yet,} ({But a more natural one would be} 
46... Re7 47. e5 Rb7 48. Rd6 b5 49. Ra6 bxc4 50. Rxa4 Rb4 51. Ra5 Kf8 52. Rxc5
Ra4 $11) 47. e5 Rb8 48. Rd7 {Now the threat of 49.e6 forces Black to spend a
tempo.} Kf8 49. f5 gxf5 50. Kf4 b5 {Still, Hikaru manages to activate his rook.
} 51. cxb5 Rxb5 52. Kxf5 a3 $4 {An unbelievable mistake.} ({Instead,} 52... Ke8
{would have secured an easy draw:} 53. Ra7 c4 54. Rc7 Rb2 55. f4 Rxa2 56. Rxc4
a3 57. Ra4 Rh2 58. Rxa3 Rxh4 $11) 53. f4 $2 {Returning the favour!} ({For some
reason, both players missed} 53. Kf6 Rb6+ 54. Rd6 {and Black loses on spot:}
Rb8 55. f4 Rc8 56. f5 c4 57. Rd7 c3 58. Rxf7+ Ke8 59. Rg7 Kf8 60. e6 $18) 53...
Rb4 54. Ra7 c4 55. Rxa3 Rb2 {Now White cannot save the Pa2, so the resulting
endgame seems drawish.} 56. Ra6 Kg7 57. a4 c3 58. Ra7 c2 59. Rc7 Rb4 60. a5 Ra4
61. Rxc2 Rxa5 {Liquidating the last q-side pawn is Black's indisputable
achivement.} 62. Rc4 Ra1 63. Rc7 Kf8 64. Rd7 Ra4 65. Rd3 Rc4 66. Re3 Ke7 67.
Re4 Rc1 68. Rb4 Kf8 69. Rb6 Kg7 70. Rb7 Kf8 71. Rb8+ Kg7 72. Rb4 Ra1 73. Rd4
Ra2 74. Rd7 {[%mdl 4096]} Kf8 $4 {Like earlier in the game, Black invites the
opponent's king into his camp! This time this blunder was dramatic - Hikaru
was forced to move his king after touching it!} ({At the same time, after} 
74... Re2 75. h5 Re1 76. Rc7 Re2 77. Rc3 Ra2 78. Rg3+ Kf8 {Black should be
able to achieve a draw.}) 75. Kf6 {This time Levon doesn't miss his chance!}
Ra6+ 76. Rd6 Ra8 77. h5 Kg8 78. f5 Rb8 79. Rd7 ({Or} 79. e6 fxe6 80. fxe6 Kf8
81. Rd7 Ra8 82. Rf7+ Kg8 83. Rg7+ Kh8 84. Rg6 $18) 79... Rb6+ 80. Ke7 Rb5 81.
Rd8+ Kh7 82. Kf6 Rb6+ 83. Rd6 Rb7 {Black resigns in view of 84.e6, promoting.}
1-0

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.17"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Black "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2794"]
[BlackElo "2760"]
[Annotator "Sagar Shah/CB Website"]
[PlyCount "72"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. b3 Bb4+ 6. Bd2 Be7 7. Nc3 d5 8. cxd5
exd5 9. Bg2 O-O 10. O-O Re8 11. a3 $5 {[%cal Ga2a3] While Topalov wanted to
enforce b4 with the move Rb1, Caruana went for a3. But this move has a deeper
point which is to use the safer square a2 to lift the rook rather than the
b2-square.} c5 12. dxc5 bxc5 13. Ne5 Bb7 14. Bf4 Nbd7 (14... Bf8 {was played
by Karjakin against Topalov, and when Topalov had responded with Rb2, the
bishop came back to d6 as in many lines the rook was hanging on b2. Here
Caruana can avoid all of that with the move Ra2!} 15. Ra2 $1 Bd6 $2 16. Nxd5 $1
$18) 15. Nc4 $5 (15. Nxf7 $6 Kxf7 16. Nxd5 Nxd5 17. Bxd5+ Bxd5 18. Qxd5+ Kf8
$15) 15... Nb6 16. Na5 Ba6 17. b4 $5 (17. Nc6 Qd7 18. Nxe7+ Qxe7 $11 {should
be around equal.}) 17... cxb4 {This move was not expected by Caruana. It is
really not the best, but to prove an advantage against it is not an easy task.}
({Better was} 17... Bd6) ({or} 17... Qd7) 18. axb4 Bxb4 19. Nc6 Bxc3 20. Nxd8
Bxe2 21. Qb3 (21. Qc2 {was also possible.} Bxa1 22. Rxa1 Raxd8 (22... Rexd8 23.
Qxe2 $18) 23. Rxa7 $16) 21... Bxa1 22. Rxa1 Raxd8 {Karjakin didn't want to
allow the manoeuvre Be5-d4 and hence took with this rook. But this means that
the a7-pawn falls.} (22... Rexd8 23. Bc7 Rdc8 24. Bxb6 axb6 25. Rxa8 Rxa8 26.
Bxd5 $16) 23. Rxa7 Nc4 {This is critical for assessing the quality of
Karjakin's sacrifice. It must be said that over the board this position is not
so easy to win for White. Black hardly has any weaknesses. The pawns are all
on one side, which greatly reduces White's chances. Caruana tried hard but
couldn't crack through Karjakin's defences.} 24. h3 Bh5 25. Bg5 Bg6 26. Bxf6
gxf6 27. g4 Kg7 28. Qc3 d4 $1 {This was truly a study-like finish by Karjakin.
His defensive capabilities are truly fantastic.} 29. Qxc4 d3 30. g5 {This
looks like the most natural way to force events, but better could have been} (
30. Kh2 d2 31. Bf3 d1=Q 32. Bxd1 Rxd1 $16 {when White can keep trying. Whether
he can win or not is a different question, but he has some chances.}) 30... d2
(30... fxg5 $2 31. Bd5 $1 d2 32. Qd4+ Kg8 33. Qxd2 $18) 31. gxf6+ Kh8 (31...
Kxf6 32. Qc3+ Kg5 33. Bf3 {and the king on g5 doesn't really feel safe.} d1=Q+
34. Bxd1 Rxd1+ 35. Kh2 Kh6 36. Qf6 Re6 37. Qf4+ Kg7 38. Rxf7+ Bxf7 39. Qg4+ Kf8
40. Qxd1 {and although White is up a lot of material this might well be a
theoretical draw.}) 32. Bf3 Be4 $1 {A very strong move that had to be
accurately calculated.} 33. Kh2 (33. Qxf7 $2 d1=Q+ (33... Rg8+ 34. Qg7+ Rxg7+
35. fxg7+ Kg8 36. Bd1 $11) 34. Bxd1 Rxd1+ 35. Kh2 Rg8 36. Qxg8+ Kxg8 $19) (33.
Bg4 Rg8 34. Ra1 d1=Q+ 35. Rxd1 Rxd1+ 36. Kh2 Bd5 $11) 33... Bd5 $1 34. Qg4 (34.
Qh4 Rg8 $1 35. Rxf7 (35. Bxd5 d1=Q) 35... Bxf7 36. Be4 Bg6 37. f7 d1=Q 38. Qf6+
Rg7 39. f8=Q+ Rxf8 40. Qxf8+ Rg8 41. Qf6+ $11) 34... Rg8 35. Bd1 Rxg4 36. hxg4
h6 {A brilliant defensive effort by Sergey.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.17"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Black "Giri, Anish"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E60"]
[WhiteElo "2780"]
[BlackElo "2793"]
[Annotator "Bronznik,V"]
[PlyCount "135"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. h4 $6 {As Giri shows convincingly in the game, this
daredevil move is really dubious. But we would like to understand what
convinced Topalov to use this continuation. The Grünfeld Defence is one of
Giri's main openings, something with which the Bulgarian grandmaster was
obviously familiar. Wie Giri in der Partie überzeugend zeigen wird, ist
dieser draufgängerische Zug recht zweifelhaft. Wir wollen aber verstehen, was
Topalov zu dieser Fortsetzung überhaupt bewegte. Zu einer von Giris
Haupteröffnungen gehört die Grünfeld-Indische Verteidigung, was dem
bulgarischen Großmeister selbstverständlich bekannt war.} ({From time to
time (even at the top level) attempts have been made to meet the Grünfeld
Defence with the Ab und zu versuchte man (auch auf hohem Niveau), das
Grünfeld-Indisch mit der Variante} 3. Nc3 d5 4. h4 {variation. zu bekämpfen.}
{Statistics confirm that after Die Statistik verrät uns, dass während Weiß
nach} Bg7 {White scores wonderfully well. wunderbar punktet,} ({according to
results ist seine Bilanz nach} 4... c5 {is absolutely unsatisfactory.  As
Topalov explained immediately after the game, the idea behind 3.h4 is to
deprive the opponent of the opportunity of reaching the position which would
arise after the 3.Nc3 d5 4.h4 c5 move order. absolut unbefriedigend.  Wie
Topalov gleich nach der Partie erklärte, bestand der Sinn von 3.h4 darin, dem
Gegner die Möglichkeit zu nehmen, die Position zu erreichen, die bei der
Zugfolge 3.Nc3 d5 4.h4 c5 entstehen würde.})) 3... c5 $5 {The idea behind
this continuation and the plan linked to it is to obtain a Volga Gambit type
of position so that the move h2-h4 is of no use and possibly even harmful. Die
Idee dieser Fortsetzung und des mit ihm verbundenen Plans ist, eine
"wolgagambitartige" Stellung zu bekommen, um den Zug h2-h4 möglichst unnütz,
ja sogar schädlich zu machen.} ({In the event of Im Falle von} 3... Bg7 4. Nc3
d5 {there would arise by transposition of moves the position (a rather
unpleasant one for Black!) from the 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.h4 Bg7
variation of the Grünfeld Defence, entstünde durch Zugumstellung die - für
Schwarz ziemlich unangenehme! - Position der Variante 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3
d5 4.h4 Bg7 aus der Grünfeld-Verteidigung,} ({whereas während} 4... d6 5. e4
{would lead to a rare variation of the King's Indian - 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3
Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.h4. In both of these cases there appears to be much more
justification for the move h2-h4 than is the case in the Volga Gambit. zu
einer seltenen Variante 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.e4 d6 5.h4 vom
Königsindisch überleiten würde - in beiden diesen Fällen scheint der Zug
h2-h4 viel mehr Berechtigung zu haben, als es im Wolga-Gambit der Fall ist.}))
(3... d5 $6 4. cxd5 Nxd5 $140 $6 5. h5 $36) 4. d5 (4. dxc5 Na6 5. Nc3 Bg7 6.
Be3 Ng4 7. Bd2 Nxc5 8. Nh3 d6 9. e3 Nf6 (9... Ne5 $5) 10. Nf4 Nfe4 $1 (10...
O-O 11. h5 $13) 11. Rc1 O-O (11... h5 $5) 12. Be2 Bf5 (12... a5 $5) 13. h5 g5
14. Nfd5 h6 15. b4 Nxd2 16. Qxd2 Nd7 17. Nb5 {(Ivanisevic,I (2645) - Neubauer,
M (2413)/Plovdiv 2012)} a6 18. Nd4 Bh7 19. O-O e6 20. Nc3 Ne5 $36 {[%cal Rg5g4,
Rd8h4,Ra8c8]}) 4... b5 $1 5. cxb5 a6 6. bxa6 Bg7 7. Nc3 O-O 8. e4 d6 $1 $146 {
Black sticks to the idea of reaching a typical Volga Gambit setup. Schwarz
hält sich an die Idee, einen typischen Wolga-Gambit-Aufbau zu erreichen.} (
8... e6 {(this move is playable but not so strong as 8...d6) (dieser Zug ist
spielbar, aber nicht so stark, wie 8...d6)} 9. dxe6 (9. Nf3 $5 exd5 $140 10. e5
) 9... fxe6 $6 {(an interesting but at the same time very risky continuation) 
(eine interessante, aber gleichzeitig sehr riskante Fortsetzung)} (9... dxe6
10. Qxd8 Rxd8 $44) 10. e5 $1 {(Notkin)} (10. Bg5 $6 Qa5 $44 {Korobov,A (2713)
- Jumabayev,R (2607)/Moscow Aeroflot op-A 2016; with very good compensation.
mit sehr guter Kompensation.}) 10... Nh5 (10... Ne8 $2 11. h5 $1 $16 {/+- /+-})
11. g4 Nf4 12. Qf3 Nd5 13. Qg2 Rxa6 $1 (13... Bxa6 $143 14. Nxd5) 14. Bxa6 Bxa6
15. Nxd5 exd5 16. Qxd5+ Kh8 17. Rh3 Nc6 18. Bd2 Nxe5 19. Bc3 Bc4 20. Qd6 Rf6 (
20... Nxg4 21. Bxg7+ Kxg7 22. O-O-O $16) 21. Qxc5 Rc6 22. Qa5 {, and in my
opinion it does not look as if Black has sufficient compensation. , und nach
einer ausreichenden schwarzen Kompensation sieht es m. E. nicht aus.}) ({
After Bei} 8... Bxa6 $2 9. e5 Ne8 10. Nf3 d6 11. e6 $1 fxe6 12. h5 $1 $16 {
White's handling of the opening would have been completely justified. hätte
sich die weiße Eröffnungsbehandlung völlig gerechtfertigt.}) ({In the case
of Auch im Falle von} 8... Nxa6 $6 {too, the first player's h2-h4 can make
sense. kann der Anziehende seinem h2-h4 einen Sinn geben:} 9. e5 (9. h5 $5 Nxh5
10. Be2 Nf6 $140 11. e5 Ne8 12. Nf3 d6 13. Ng5 h6 14. Nge4 $36) 9... Ne8 10. h5
$1 (10. Nf3 d6 11. h5 Nb4 12. e6 gxh5 13. exf7+ Rxf7 14. Bc4 Bf5 $13) 10...
Bxe5 11. Bh6 Ng7 12. Nf3 Bf6 13. Qd2 $36) 9. Nf3 Qa5 10. Bd2 Bxa6 {Giri's
opening plan has worked completely. One could think that the position had
arisen from a Volga Gambit, and then one would be wondering what White's
h-pawn is doing on h4. It must not be overlooked that the move h2-h4 has been
more harmful than useful for White: apart from it having cost valuable time,
it has weakened the g4-square. On the other hand the possibility cannot be
excluded that in some variations White will play h4-h5, but with his lag in
development and the fact that his rooks are not in touch with each other, he
would really need a lot of luck for such an advance to prove dangerous to his
opponent.  Giris Eröffnungskonzept ist voll und ganz aufgegangen. Man könnte
denken, die Position entstand aus dem Wolga-Gambit, und dann würde man sich
fragen, was denn der weiße h-Bauer auf h4 macht. Es ist nicht zu übersehen,
dass der Zug h2-h4 dem Weißen mehr Schaden als Nützen gebracht hat: außer
dass er wertvolle Zeit kostete, hat er das Feld g4 geschwächt. Andererseits
ist es natürlich nicht ausgeschlossen, dass Weiß in einigen Varianten h4-h5
spielt, aber bei seinem Entwicklungsrückstand und den getrennten Türmen muss
er wirklich viel Glück haben, damit sich dieser Vorstoß für den Gegner als
gefährlich erweist.} 11. Qc2 {As Topalov explained at the press conference,
his idea consisted of the manoeuvre Nc3-d1-e3. Wie Topalov auf der
Pressekonferenz erklärte, bestand seine Idee im Manöver Nc3-d1-e3.} (11. Bxa6
$5 Qxa6 12. Qe2 Nbd7 {(Topalov)} (12... Re8 13. Qxa6 Nxa6 14. O-O Nb4 {
(according to Giri at the press conference) (soweit Giri auf der
Pressekonferenz)} 15. a4 Reb8 16. Rfb1 {[%cal Yf3e1]} Nc2 17. Ra2 Nb4 18. Raa1
Nc2 {with a repetition of moves mit Zugwiederholung}) 13. Qxa6 Rxa6 {[%csl Rg4]
[%cal Rf8b8,Rf6g4,Rg4e5,Re8a8] with at least sufficient compensation, but in
return White has no problems with his king - he can castle short or play
Ke1-e2. mit mindestens ausreichender Kompensation, dafür aber hat Weiß keine
Probleme mit seinem König - er kann kurz rochieren oder Ke1-e2 spielen.}) (11.
Be2 $6 Qb4 $1 {(Giri)} 12. Bxa6 Nxa6 13. Qe2 (13. Qc2 $2 Qc4 $1 $19 {[%csl Re1]
[%cal Ra6b4,Rf8b8,Rf6g4]}) 13... Qxb2 14. Rb1 (14. O-O Qa3) 14... Qa3 15. Rb3
Qa5 16. O-O Ng4 $36 {[%cal Rf8b8]}) 11... Nbd7 ({I prefer Besser gefällt mir} 
11... Bxf1 $5 12. Kxf1 Na6 $5 {[%csl Rd3][%cal Ra6b4,Ra5a6] , e.g. , z. B.} 13.
Kg1 ({or oder} 13. g3 Nb4 14. Qb1 Qa6+ 15. Kg2 Ng4 16. Rf1 Rfb8) (13. Nd1 Qb5+
14. Kg1 Nb4 15. Bxb4 Qxb4 16. Nd2 Bh6 17. Ne3 Qd4 $1) 13... Nb4 14. Qb1 Qa6 {
[%cal Rf8b8,Rb4d3,Rf6g4] - in all variations he has wonderful compensation for
the pawn he has sacrificed. - in allen Varianten mit traumhafter Kompensation
für den geopferten Bauern.}) 12. Ne2 $5 {[%cal Yd2c3,Yh4h5] Topalov is
planning Bd2-c3 followed by h4-h5, which in the event of a future Nf6xh5 would
allow him to swap off the dangerous Bg7 and even to hope to be able to use the
opened h-file for counterplay. In certain circumstances either Ne2-g3 or
Ne2-f4 is possible. But there is also a disadvantage - the white king is still
left in the middle. Topalov plant Bd2-c3 gefolgt von h4-h5, was um Falle des
weiteren Nf6xh5 ihm erlauben würde, den gefährlichen Bg7 abzutauschen und
sogar zu hoffen, die geöffnete h-Linie fürs Gegenspiel zu benützen. Unter
Umständen ist auch Ne2-g3 oder Ne2-f4 möglich. Es gibt dabei aber auch einen
Nachteil - der weiße König bleibt nach wie vor in der Mitte.} ({A "normal"
continuation might be Eine "normale" Fortsetzung wäre} 12. Na4 Qd8 $5 (12...
Bxf1 13. Bxa5 Bxg2 {During the game Topalov did not particularly like this
position, but let us continue the variation: Während der Partie hat Topalov
diese Position nicht besonders gefallen, aber setzen wir die Variante fort:}
14. Nd2 Bxh1 15. Bc3 Bh6 $5 {[%cal Rh6d2,Rh1e4]} 16. Ke2 Bg2 (16... Bxd2 $6 17.
Rxh1) 17. Rg1 Bh3 {- it is far from easy to correctly evaluate this position.
My computer prefers White here but I am not sure it is correct. In any case
this line seems to be very playable for White. - es ist alles andere als
leicht, diese Stellung richtig einzuschätzen. Mein Computer bevorzugt hier
Weiß, aber ich bin mir nicht sicher, dass er recht hat. In jedem Fall scheint
diese Linie für Weiß mindestens gut spielbar zu sein.}) (12... Qc7 13. Bxa6
Rxa6 14. O-O e6 $5 $44) 13. Bxa6 Rxa6 14. O-O Qa8 15. Nc3 Rb8 $44 {- in this
and in the previous variation (12...Qc7) the position of the white h-remains
unfavourable, but at least White has castled. - in dieser und in der
vorherigen Variante (12...Qc7) ist die Lage des weißen h-Bauern nach wie vor
ungünstig, aber Weiß hat zumindest rochiert.}) (12. Nd1 Qb6 {(Giri)} (12...
Bxf1 $2 13. Bxa5 Bxg2 14. Nd2 Bxh1 15. Bc3 $16 {[%csl Rh1][%cal Rd1e3,Rf2f3]})
13. Bc4 $5 (13. Ne3 $6 Bxf1 14. Rxf1 (14. Kxf1 Qa6+ 15. Kg1 Qa4 $1 $17 {
[%csl Re4]}) (14. Nxf1 Ng4 15. Bc3 Bd4 $1 16. Ne3 Nxe3 17. fxe3 Bxc3+ 18. Qxc3
Ra4 19. Nd2 Qa6 $17) 14... Qa6 $1 $17 {[%csl Re1][%cal Re7e6]}) 13... Bxc4 14.
Qxc4 Qa6 $1 15. Qxa6 Rxa6 16. Nc3 Nb6 {[%cal Rb6a4,Rf8a8] - once again with
very good compensation. - wiederum mit sehr guter Kompensation.}) 12... Qb6 13.
Bc3 h5 $6 {Giri's desire to exclude the idea of h4-h5 once and for all,can be
easily achieved; on the other hand, he now gives his opponent time to
consolidate his position. Black has the following reasonable alternatives:
Giris Wunsch, die Idee h4-h5 für immer und ewig auszuschließen, kann man
leicht nachvollziehen, andererseits gibt er jetzt dem Gegner Zeit, seine
Stellung zu konsolidieren. Dabei hatte Schwarz folgende sinnvolle Alternativen:
} (13... e6 14. dxe6 fxe6 {[%cal Rd6d5]} 15. h5 $5 (15. Ng3 $6 d5 $1) 15...
Nxh5 (15... d5 16. hxg6 hxg6 17. Nf4 $13) 16. Bxg7 Kxg7 17. Nc3 {- Black is no
longer behind on material and according to the computer he is somewhat better;
but in return White can finally breathe again - he is planning by means of 
Qc2-d2 to bring his queen to an active position, thanks to the absence of the
Bg7 queenside castling can be considered, the semi-open h-file promises
counter-chances in many variations, the exchange sacrifice on h5 is in the air
- all in all White feels much happier in this variation than a few moves
previously in the game. - Schwarz hat keinen materiellen Nachteil mehr und
steht laut Computer etwas besser, dafür aber kann der Anziehende jetzt
endlich aufatmen - er plant, mittels Qc2-d2 seine Dame auf eine aktive
Position zu bringen, dank der Abwesenheit des Bg7 kommt die lange Rochade in
Betracht, die halboffene h-Linie verspricht in vielen Varianten Gegenchancen,
das Qualitätsopfer auf h5 hängt in der Luft - alles in allem fühlt sich
Weiß in dieser Variante viel besser, als ein paar Züge zuvor in der Partie.})
({Analysis shows that Die Analyse zeigt, dass} 13... c4 $5 {[%cal Rd7c5,Rf6g4]
- despite giving up control of the d4-square - was well worth considering, e.g.
- trotz die Aufgabe der Kontrolle über das Feld d4 - sehr beachtenswert war,
z. B.} 14. Ned4 (14. Ng3 Ng4 $1 {[%csl Re1,Rf1] This option was also missed by
both players when discussing the game - together with the queen, the knight
ensures that White will have major problems with his further development.
Diese Option ist auch bei der gemeinsamen Besprechung der Partie beiden
Spielern entgangen - der Springer sorgt zusammen mit der Dame dafür, dass
Weiß große Probleme mit seiner weiteren Entwicklung hat.} ({Giri only
considered Giri zog nur} 14... Nc5 {but on acoount of in Betracht, was aber
wegen} 15. Be2 {[%cal Ye1g1,Yh1f1] (Topalov) followed by 0-0 does not appear
totally convincing. gefolgt von 0-0 nicht ganz überzeugend aussieht.}) {
For example Zum Beispiel:} 15. h5 Nc5 (15... Bf6 $5 16. Bxf6 $140 exf6 $5 $17 {
[%csl Re4][%cal Rf8e8,Rd7c5]}) 16. Bxg7 Kxg7 17. Rh4 Ne5 18. Nxe5 dxe5 19. Qd2
Nd3+ 20. Bxd3 cxd3 $17 {[%cal Ra8c8]}) (14. Bd4 Nc5 15. Nc3 Qa5 {[%csl Re4] -
Black's activity counts for more than his opponent's extra pawn - die schwarze
Aktivität wiegt mehr, als der gegnerische Mehrbauer}) 14... Nc5 15. Nd2 e6 $1
16. Nxc4 (16. dxe6 fxe6 17. Nxc4 Qc7 18. Nd2 Bxf1 19. Rxf1 Qb7 20. f3 Nh5 $17 {
[%csl Re1,Rf4,Rh4]}) 16... Bxc4 (16... Qc7 $5 17. Ba5 Qd7) 17. Bxc4 Nfxe4 18.
dxe6 (18. O-O Ra4 $1 19. b3 Nxc3 20. Qxc3 Ne4 21. Qc2 Rxc4 22. bxc4 Qxd4 $17)
18... fxe6 19. Nxe6 d5 $1 20. Nxf8 (20. Bxd5 Nxc3 21. bxc3 Rae8 22. O-O Nxe6
$17) 20... dxc4 21. O-O Nxc3 22. Nxh7 Kxh7 23. bxc3 Nd3 {[%csl Rg1][%cal Rb6c6,
Rd3f4] , and despite White's material advantage he has to struggle for a draw.
But firstly he has considerable chances of achieving one and secondly no-one
could could have calculated over the board the complications which lead to
this position.  Thus we can easily comprehend that Giri, who very much liked
his position, during the game evaluated the 13...c4 continuation as
double-edged and for that reason rejected it. , und trotz seines materiellen
Vorteiles muss Weiß ums Remis kämpfen. Aber erstens hat er beträchtliche
Chancen dies zu erreichen und zweitens hätte kein Mensch die zu dieser
Position führenden Komplikationen am Brett berechnen können.  Somit können
wir leicht nachvollziehen, dass Giri, dem seine Stellung sehr gefiel, die
Fortsetzung 13...c4 während der Partie als zweischneidig bewertete und aus
diesem Grund verwarf.}) (13... Rfb8 $5 {(Topalov)} {The best reply is
presumably Die beste Antwort ist vermutlich} 14. a4 $1 {[%cal Ya1a2] , e.g. ,
z. B.} (14. h5 $2 Nxh5 $17 15. Bxg7 $140 $6 Kxg7 {[%cal Rb6b2]} 16. b3 Qb4+ 17.
Nc3 Bxf1 18. Kxf1 c4 19. Rc1 cxb3 20. axb3 Qxb3 $17 {/-+. /-+.}) (14. Ng3 {
The immediate Stärker ist das unverzügliche} Ng4 $1 {is stronger, e.g. , z.
B.} ({Topalov's suggestion das von Topalov angebotene} 14... Bxf1 {does not
appear to be the best continuation: scheint nicht die beste Fortsetzung zu
sein:} {But Zu bevorzugen ist} 15. Nxf1 $1 {is preferable (the knight gets
back into the game) (der Springer kommt wieder ins Spiel)} ({at the press
conference Topalov showed only auf der Pressekonferenz zeigte Topalov nur} 15.
Kxf1 {(in reality it is a mistake) (in Wirklichkeit ist es ein Fehler)} Ng4 {
, which is in fact very bad for White, e.g. , was für Weiß in der Tat ganz
schlecht ist, z. B.} 16. Nh2 (16. h5 Bxc3 $1 17. bxc3 Qb2 $1 18. Qxb2 Rxb2 19.
hxg6 hxg6 20. Ne2 Raxa2 21. Rxa2 Rxa2 $19) 16... Bxc3 17. bxc3 Nge5 18. a4 c4 {
[%csl Rf1]} 19. Nf3 Nd3 20. Nd4 N7e5 21. f3 (21. Kg1 Qa5 {[%cal Rb8b2]} 22. Ra2
Ng4 23. f3 Ngf2 24. Rh2 Rb3 $19) 21... Nc5 $17 {[%cal Rc5b3] /-+ /-+}) 15...
Ng4 16. N1d2 {, even if here after , auch wenn Schwarz auch hier nach} Bxc3 17.
bxc3 Qa6 {Black has more than sufficient compensation for the pawn. eine mehr
als ausreichende Kompensation für den Bauern hat.}) 15. Bxg7 (15. a4 Bd4 $5
$17) (15. Bxa6 Bxc3+ 16. Qxc3 Qxa6 17. h5 Nde5 18. Nxe5 Nxe5 $17 19. hxg6 $140
$6 fxg6 $1 {[%cal Rc8f8]}) 15... Bxf1 $1 16. Rxf1 {[%csl Rf2][%cal Gf1f2]} (16.
Nxf1 $6 Kxg7 {[%cal Rb6b2]} 17. b3 c4 $1 18. bxc4 Ra3 19. N1h2 Qb4+ 20. Qd2 (
20. Nd2 Rc3 21. Qd1 Nge5 22. Nhf3 Nd3+ 23. Kf1 Nf6 {[%cal Rf6g4]} 24. Ne1 Qc5
$19) 20... Nxh2 21. Rxh2 Qxc4 22. Qd4+ Qxd4 23. Nxd4 Rb4 24. Nc2 Rxe4+ 25. Kf1
Ra5 26. Ne3 Nf6 $19) (16. Kxf1 Kxg7 17. b3 c4 $1 18. Rd1 (18. bxc4 Qb2 $1 19.
Qxb2+ Rxb2 $17 {/-+ /-+}) 18... Nc5 $1 19. Nh2 (19. bxc4 $2 Qb2 $19) 19... Ne5
20. Nf3 (20. bxc4 $2 Qb2 $19) 20... cxb3 21. axb3 Nxf3 22. gxf3 Qxb3 23. Qxb3
Rxb3 24. Kg2 Ra2 $17) 16... Kxg7 17. b3 Nde5 18. Nxe5 Nxe5 19. f4 Ng4 {(at
this point White can once again rue his decision to play 3.h4?!) (an dieser
Stelle darf Weiß seine Entscheidung 3.h4?! ein weiteres Mal bereuen)} 20. Rf3
(20. Ne2 f6 {[%cal Rg4e3]} 21. Rf3 Ra3 $17 {[%csl Ra2,Re1]}) 20... f6 {[%cal
Ra8a3]} (20... c4 $5 {[%cal Rb6g1]}) 21. Qc1 Ra7 $17 {[%csl Ra2,Re1][%cal
Rc5c4]}) (14. b3 c4 $5 ({Another good move is gut ist auch} 14... Ng4 15. Bxg7
Kxg7 {, once again with wonderful compensation for the pawn , wiederum mit
wunderbarer Kompensation für den Bauern}) 15. b4 Bb5 16. Bd4 (16. h5 $2 Ba4
17. Qb1 Nc5 $1 $19) 16... Ba4 17. Qxc4 Qb7 18. Nc3 Rc8 19. Qd3 Qxb4 {[%cal
Rf6d5,Rf6e4]} 20. Qd2 Ne5 $1 21. Rb1 (21. Nxe5 $2 dxe5 22. Bxe5 Nxe4 $1 $19) (
21. Bxe5 $2 dxe5 $19 {[%cal Rc8c3,Rf6e4]}) 21... Qa5 22. Bd3 (22. Nxe5 dxe5 23.
Bxe5 Nxe4 24. Nxe4 Bxe5 25. Qxa5 Rxa5 $17 {/-+ /-+}) 22... Nxf3+ (22... Nxd5 $5
23. Nxd5 Nxd3+ 24. Kf1 Qxd2 25. Nxe7+ Kf8 26. Bxg7+ Kxg7 27. Nxd2 Rc2 28. Ke2
Nxf2 $17) 23. gxf3 Nxe4 $1 24. Bxe4 Bxd4 25. Qxd4 Qxc3+ 26. Qxc3 Rxc3 $17)
14... Ng4 15. Bxg7 Kxg7 16. Ra2 Nde5 17. Nxe5 Nxe5 18. Nc3 Bxf1 19. Kxf1 Qa6+
20. Qe2 Nd3 21. Rh3 $1 Nxb2 22. h5 Qxe2+ 23. Kxe2 $15 {- White has returned
the pawn, but in return consolidated his position and although he is still
filling the role of the defender he has realistic chances of holding this
endgame. - Weiß hat den Bauern zurückgegeben, dafür aber seine Stellung
konsolidiert, und obwohl er sich immer noch in der Rolle des Verteidigers
befindet, verfügt er über realistische Chancen, dieses Endspiel zu halten.})
14. Ng3 Ng4 15. Bxg7 Kxg7 16. Bxa6 Qxa6 17. Ne2 Nge5 18. Nxe5 Nxe5 19. O-O (19.
Rh3 $5 {(Notkin)}) 19... Qd3 20. Qxd3 (20. Rfc1 $5) 20... Nxd3 21. b3 {Of
cours Black still has good compensation for the pawn, but White's position is
nowhere near as critical as it was before 13... h5. Natürlich hat Schwarz
immer noch gute Kompensation für den Bauern, aber die weiße Stellung ist
nicht annähernd so kritisch, wie sie vor 13... h5 war.} Rfb8 ({After Nach} 
21... Ra3 22. Rfd1 Nb4 23. Rd2 Rfa8 24. Nc1 {(Topalov) White protects all his
weaknesses and it is hardly possible to imagine any other result than a draw.
deckt Weiß all seine Schwächen, und ein anderes Ergebnis als Remis kann man
sich hier kaum vorstellen.}) 22. Rfd1 Ne5 23. f3 Ra3 24. Kh2 {So that the king
can protect the pawn on h4 (which becomes vulnerable after f7-f5, e4xf5, gxf5).
Damit der König den Bauern h4 (der nach f7-f5, e4xf5, gxf5 anfällig wird)
decken kann.} Rba8 25. Nc1 f5 26. exf5 gxf5 27. Rb1 Rb8 28. Rb2 Rb4 29. Kh3 c4
30. Re2 ({M. Notkin's recommended Genauer ist das von M. Notkin empfohlene} 30.
Rbd2 $1 {is more accurate (White prophylactically overprotects his d5-pawn), e.
g. (Weiß überdeckt seinen schwachen Bauern d5 im Voraus), z. B.} cxb3 31.
axb3 Kf6 (31... Ng6 32. Rd4 {- according to Notkin - - soweit Notkin -} Rxd4
33. Rxd4 Ra1 34. Ne2 {- White certainly does not lose this position - diese
Stellung verliert Weiß bestimmt nicht}) 32. Kg3 Ng6 33. Rd4 Rxd4 34. Rxd4 Ra1
35. Ne2 Ra2 36. Nc1 Ke5 37. Rd1 Ra5 38. Nd3+ Kf6 39. Nb4 Ra3 40. Rb1 Ra5 {
[%cal Ra5b5]} 41. Rd1 {and there is no more than a draw in it for Black. und
mehr als das Unentschieden ist für Schwarz nicht drin.}) 30... cxb3 31. Nxb3
$6 ({A better impression is made by Einen besseren Eindruck macht} 31. axb3 {
, which would maintain control over the a4-square. , was die Kontrolle über
das Feld a4 behalten würde, z. B.} Ra1 (31... Kf6 $5) 32. Nd3 Rxd1 33. Nxb4
Kf7 (33... Rd4 $2 34. Nc6) 34. Nc6 Rxd5 35. Nxe5+ dxe5 {with an obvious draw.
mit offensichtlichem Remis.}) {After the move in the game Black gets the
option of rapidly restoring material equality, so that he can continue to
torment his opponent. Nach dem Partiezug bekommt Schwarz die Möglichkeit, das
materielle Gleichgewicht schnell wiederherzustellen, um dann den Gegner weiter
zu quälen.} 31... Ng6 32. Kg3 (32. g3 $2 Rxh4+ 33. gxh4 Nf4+ 34. Kh2 Nxe2 35.
Rd2 Nc3 36. Nc1 Ra5 $17) 32... Raa4 (32... Rxh4 $6 {allows White to draw with
childlike ease. erlaubt dem Anziehenden, kinderleicht zu remisieren:} 33. Rxe7+
Nxe7 34. Kxh4 Rxa2 35. Rd2 Rxd2 36. Nxd2 Kg6 37. g3 Nxd5 38. Nc4) 33. Red2 Kf6
({Or Oder} 33... Rxh4 34. Nd4 Kf6 35. Ne6 Ra5 $15 {[%cal Rh4a4]}) 34. Kf2 ({
After Nach} 34. Nd4 Rc4 $1 {(Giri/Topalov) White is in zugzwang - every move
would lose material. befindet sich Weiß im Zugzwang - jeder Zug würde
Material verlieren.}) (34. Rd4 $5 Rxd4 35. Nxd4 Rxa2 $15 {[%csl Rd5,Rh4]})
34... Rb5 $5 (34... Rxh4 35. Nd4 Ra5 36. Nb3 Rb5 $15 {[%csl Rd5]}) 35. Rh1 ({
The position after Die Stellung nach} 35. g3 $6 f4 $1 36. gxf4 Nxh4 37. Rh1
Rxf4 {[%csl Ra2,Rd5,Rf3] looks rather suspect for White. sieht für Weiß
ziemlich verdächtig aus.}) 35... Rxh4 36. Rxh4 Nxh4 {[%cal Rf5f4]} 37. f4 Ng6
38. g3 h4 (38... Nf8 $5 {[%csl Rd5][%cal Rf8d7,Rd7b6]}) 39. Rd3 ({After Auf} 
39. Rd4 $5 {(Notkin) then ist} hxg3+ 40. Kxg3 Nf8 {[%cal Rf8d7,Rd7b6] is
unpleasant, e.g. unangenehm, z. B.} 41. Rd3 Nd7 42. a4 Rb4 43. a5 Nb8 44. Rc3
Na6 {[%cal Rb4b5,Ra6c7] , and the d5-pawn is lost. , und der Bauer d5 geht
verloren.}) 39... hxg3+ ({There is the very interesting recommendation of M.
Notkin: Sehr interessant ist die Empfehlung von M. Notkin} 39... Rb8 $5 {
[%cal Rb8h8] - from here The white rook can continue according to need to h8,
g8, c8 or a8. - von hier aus kann sich der Turm je nach Bedarf weiter nach h8,
g8, c8 oder a8 begeben.}) 40. Kxg3 Nf8 41. Kf3 Nd7 42. a4 Rb4 43. a5 Nf8 {
[%cal Rf8g6]} ({After the game Giri showed the variation Nach der Partie
zeigte Giri die Variante} 43... Ra4 44. Rd4 Ra3 45. Rd3 {[%cal Rb3c5]} Nb8 46.
Ke3 Na6 47. Nc5 Rxa5 48. Nxa6 Rxa6 {and evaluated this endgame as drawn.
Topalov agreed with this evaluation. und bewertete dieses Endspiel als Remis.
Topalov stimmte dieser Einschätzung zu.}) 44. Nd4 ({It was worth considering
Beachtung verdiente} 44. Nd2 $5 {(Notkin)} Ra4 (44... Ng6 45. Ra3 {[%csl Ga5] 
(Notkin)} Nxf4 46. a6 Nxd5 47. a7 Nb6 48. a8=Q Nxa8 49. Rxa8 {with a draw mit
Remis}) 45. Nb3 {, and if Black wins the a5-pawn, but in doing so exhcanges
knights, the result is the rook ending from the previous note, e.g. , und wenn
Schwarz den Bauern a5 gewinnt, aber dabei die Springer abtauscht, kommt es zum
Turmendspiel aus der vorherigen Anmerkung, z. B.} Nd7 46. Rc3 Nb8 47. Ke3 Na6
48. Rd3 Nc7 49. Kf3 Ra3 50. Ke3 Nb5 51. Kf3 Nd4+ 52. Rxd4 Rxb3+ 53. Ke2 Ra3 54.
Rd3 Rxa5 55. Kf3) 44... Ng6 45. a6 ({At the press conference the players
analysed the continuation Auf der Pressekonferenz analysierten die Gegner die
Fortsetzung} 45. Ke3 Ra4 {. .} 46. Nc6 {and came to the conclusion that the
position after und kamen zum Schluss, dass die Stellung nach} Re4+ $1 ({
in the event of im Falle von} 46... Nxf4 $2 47. Rd4 $1 {(according to Giri) 
(soweit Giri)} Ng2+ 48. Kd3 Ra3+ 49. Kc4 {White obtains sufficient counterplay
for a draw. erhält Weiß zum Remis ausreichendes Gegenspiel}) 47. Kd2 Nxf4 48.
Ra3 Nxd5 49. a6 Rc4 50. a7 Nc7 {would be won for Black. für Schwarz gewonnen
wäre.}) (45. Ra3 Rxd4 46. a6 Rxf4+ 47. Kg3 Rc4 48. a7 Rc8 49. a8=Q Rxa8 50.
Rxa8 Ke5 $19 {[%cal Rg6f4,Rf4d5] Giri}) ({Giri was worried anout the
continuation Giri machte sich Sorgen über die Fortsetzung} 45. Ne6 $5 {
, which would deprive his Ng6 of the f8-square. , was seinem Ng6 das Feld f8
nehmen würde.}) 45... Ra4 46. Ne2 Rxa6 47. Nd4 Nf8 48. Nc2 Nd7 49. Ne3 Ra2 50.
Rd1 Rh2 51. Rg1 Rh3+ 52. Rg3 Rxg3+ {After the game Giri expressed the opinion
that he ought to play on with the rooks. From a practical point of view that
may well be correct but Black could hardly make progress without the help of
his opponent.  Nach der Partie äußerte Giri die Meinung, dass er mit der
Türmen weiter spielen sollte. Aus praktischer Sicht mag es durchaus stimmen,
aber ohne gegnerische Hilfe käme Schwarz auch dann nicht weiter.} 53. Kxg3 Nc5
54. Kf3 e6 55. dxe6 Kxe6 56. Nc2 Kd5 57. Ne3+ Ke6 58. Nc2 Nb3 59. Ne3 Nd4+ 60.
Kf2 Nc6 ({After the game Giri demonstrated the variation Nach der Partie
demonstrierte Giri die Variante} 60... d5 61. Ng2 Nc6 62. Nh4 d4 63. Ke2 Ne7
64. Kd2 Kd6 65. Kc2 (65. Kd3 $2 Kd5 $22 $19) 65... Kc5 66. Kd2 Kc4 67. Kc2 {
with a draw mit Remis} {( (} d3+ 68. Kd2 {) )}) 61. Ke2 Nb4 62. Kd2 Nd5 63. Ng2
Ne7 64. Kd3 Nc6 65. Nh4 Nb4+ 66. Kd4 Nc6+ 67. Kc4 Nb8 68. Nxf5 {During the
online commentary by GM S. Shipov a spectator spoke and said that according to
the 7-piece Tablebases (which have unfortunately so far only been available to
selected people) Black could win the knight ending. On Shipov's request for
more specific information, there was (at least during the broadcast) no
reaction. Thus we must decide for ourselves whether to take this suggestion
seriously or as a joke. Während der Online-Kommentare von GM S. Shipov
meldete sich ein Zuschauer und teilte mit, dass laut 7-Figuren-Tablebases (die
bis jetzt leider nur für Auserwählte zugänglich sind) Schwarz das
Springerendspiel gewinnen könnte. Auf Shipovs Bitte, eine konkretere
Information zu geben, gab es (zumindest während der Sendung) keine Reaktion,
somit dürfen wir selbst entscheiden, ob wir diesen Hinweis ernst nehmen oder
als einen Scherz betrachten wollen.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.19"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Giri, Anish"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2793"]
[BlackElo "2762"]
[Annotator "Sumets,A"]
[PlyCount "61"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Nbd7 5. Qc2 {Is this going to become the
main line? Up to the moment, 5.Bg5, 5.Bf4 and 5.cxd5 have been more popular.}
Bb4 {This is a very rare line, that reminds one of the Ragozin Variation.
Including Qc2 and ...Bb4 seems to be in White's favour, however Vishy has
played it twice and he could be satisfied with the results of the openings.} (
5... dxc4 6. e4 c5 7. dxc5 Bxc5 8. Bxc4 Qc7 9. Qe2 a6 10. O-O Bd6 (10... b5 11.
Bd3 (11. Bb3 $1) 11... Bd6 12. Bg5 h6 13. Bh4 (13. Bxf6 gxf6 14. Rac1 Qb8 15.
Rfd1 Ne5 16. g3 Bd7 $13) 13... g5 14. Bg3 Bxg3 15. hxg3 g4 16. Nh4 Bb7 $132 {
Khismatullin,D (2674)-Shariyazdanov,A (2572) 1-0 (35)Khanty-Mansiysk 2013}) 11.
Bb3 O-O 12. Rd1 Ne5 13. Nd4 Bd7 14. Bf4 Rad8 15. Bg3 $14 {Bukavshin,I (2657)
-Khismatullin,D (2654) 1-0 (35) Khanty-Mansiysk RUS 2015}) (5... c6 {leads to
the Slav Defence.}) (5... Be7 6. cxd5 exd5 7. Bf4 c6 {leads to the Queen's
Gambit Declined. Thanks to his bishop on f4, White can get an extra tempo. I
consider this line in White's favour.}) 6. a3 (6. cxd5 exd5 7. a3 (7. Bg5 c6 8.
e3 O-O 9. Bd3 h6 10. Bh4 Be7 {It seems that White is doing well. He has an
extra tempo compared with theoretical lines.} 11. O-O ({I think that White
should have tried} 11. h3 {or even 11.0-0-0}) 11... Re8 12. Rab1 a5 13. a3 Ne4
14. Bxe7 Qxe7 15. b4 axb4 16. axb4 b5 17. Bxe4 (17. Ra1 $5 Rxa1 18. Rxa1 Nd6
19. h3 {White is slightly better}) 17... dxe4 18. Nd2 Nf6 19. Rfc1 Bd7 20. Nb3
Qxb4 21. Nc5 Qa5 22. N3xe4 Nxe4 23. Nxe4 Qa2 24. Rb2 Qd5 25. Nc5 Bf5 26. Qc3
Qd6 27. f3 Be6 28. Ne4 {Four years later Alexander Beliavsky tried to find an
improvement but he didn't succeed.} (28. Rbb1 Ra2 29. Ra1 Rea8 30. Ne4 Qa3 31.
Rxa2 Qxa2 32. h4 Ra3 33. Qe1 Qb2 34. Kh2 Bd5 $17 {Beliavsky,A (2626)-Koneru,H 
(2537) 1/2 (60) Wijk aan Zee 2006}) 28... Qe7 29. Ng3 Ra3 30. Qe1 Bc4 31. e4
Qa7 32. Rd2 Rd8 33. Nf5 Be6 $15 {Sasikiran,K (2650)-Koneru,H (2473) 1/2 (45)
Torquay 2002}) 7... Bxc3+ 8. Qxc3 Ne4 9. Qc2 O-O 10. e3 (10. Bf4 {looks a bit
dangerous for White:} c5) 10... Re8 11. b3 c6 12. Bd3 Nf8 {Black's
light-squared bishop is heading to f5 and we can state that Black has got a
comfortable position.} 13. Bb2 Bf5 14. O-O Qf6 $1 15. Ne5 Nd6 16. Rae1 Bxd3 17.
Nxd3 (17. Qxd3 Qe6 18. f3 f6 19. Ng4 Ng6 $11) 17... Qg6 18. f3 f6 19. a4 Ne6
20. Qd2 h5 21. Ba3 Nf5 $15 {Topalov,V (2780)-Anand,V (2762) 1/2 (51) Moscow
RUS 2016}) (6. Bg5 c5 (6... h6 7. Bxf6 Bxc3+ (7... Nxf6 $4 8. Qa4+ $18) 8. Qxc3
Nxf6 9. e3 $14) 7. cxd5 exd5 8. a3 Bxc3+ 9. Qxc3 O-O 10. Nd2 h6 11. Bf4 Nb6 $2
(11... c4 12. b3 b5 13. a4 Ba6 14. axb5 Bxb5 15. e3 Nb6 16. Be2 Qd7 (16... a6
17. O-O Rc8 $13) 17. Be5 Ng4 18. Bg3 Rfc8 19. bxc4 $6 (19. Qa5 $1 Nf6 20. O-O
Qc6 21. Rfb1 $16) 19... dxc4 $2 (19... Nxc4 20. Nxc4 Bxc4 21. Bxc4 Rxc4 22. Qa5
Nf6 23. O-O Ne4 $11) 20. O-O $16 {Dreev,A (2682)-Milov,V (2632) 1-0 (69)
playchess.com INT 2004}) (11... b6 $5 12. e3 cxd4 13. Qxd4 Nc5 14. Be5 Ne6 15.
Qh4 Nd7 16. Qxd8 Rxd8 17. Bc3 Ndc5 {Black is OK.}) 12. a4 $2 (12. dxc5 $1 d4
13. Qd3 Nbd5 14. Bd6 Re8 15. Qxd4 Ne7 16. g4 $1 b6 17. Rg1 $16) 12... Bg4 13.
e3 c4 $6 (13... Ne4 $1 14. Nxe4 dxe4 15. dxc5 (15. Qxc5 Rc8 16. Qd6 Nd5 17.
Qxd8 Rfxd8 18. Bg3 Nb4 $17) 15... Nd5 16. Qd2 Nxf4 17. exf4 Qc7 18. Bc4 Rfd8
19. Qc3 Rac8 20. O-O (20. b4 a5 21. O-O axb4 22. Qxb4 Qxc5 $11) 20... Qxc5 $11)
14. a5 (14. h3 Bh5 15. a5 Nbd7 16. b3 $14) 14... Nbd7 15. f3 Bf5 16. Be2 Re8
17. g4 Bh7 18. O-O Qe7 $132 {(35) Sachdev,T (2422)-Bakre,T (2452) 0-1 Pune 2014
}) 6... Bxc3+ 7. Qxc3 O-O ({Black can't get an equal position after} 7... Ne4
8. Qc2 O-O 9. g3 {(e3 and Bd3 would look natural)} c6 (9... b6 10. Bg2 Bb7 11.
cxd5 exd5 12. O-O $14) 10. Bg2 f5 11. O-O Qe7 12. b3 Kh8 13. a4 Qf6 14. Bf4 $16
{Jussupow,A (2555)-Handoko,E (2420)1-0 (41) Indonesia 1983}) 8. Bg5 h6 9. Bh4
c5 10. e3 cxd4 $146 (10... b6 11. cxd5 exd5 12. Nd2 Qe7 13. Rc1 {It is not
easy to evaluate a computer game but I would recommend Bb5:} (13. Bb5 Qe6 14.
O-O a6 15. Be2 Bb7 16. dxc5 bxc5 17. Bxf6 Qxf6 18. Qxf6 Nxf6 19. Rfc1 $14)
13... Qe6 14. Bd3 g5 15. Bg3 Nh5 16. O-O Nxg3 17. hxg3 c4 18. Be2 Nf6 $13 {
Rajlich (2600)-New Man (2618) 1/2 (87) playchess.com INT 2007}) 11. Qxd4 Re8
12. Bxf6 $11 {Anish didn't want to check Anand's preparation after 12.cxd5 e5
and went for a dull, drawish endgame. In fact he proposed a draw after 12.Bxf6.
} (12. cxd5 e5 $1 {If Black doesn't want to play a worse position, this is the
only choice. White can choose between 13.Qc3, 13.Qd2, 13.Qd1 and 13.Bxf6. The
resulting positions are very complicated. I believe that White has better
chances and Black's strategy is risky.} ({Black shouldn't play} 12... Qa5+ $6
13. b4 Qxd5 {White has many pleasant options. For instance} 14. Be2 e5 15. Qb2
Ne4 16. O-O Nb6 17. Rfd1 $14) (12... exd5 $6 13. Bd3 $16) 13. Bxf6 (13. Qc3
Nxd5 14. Bxd8 Nxc3 15. bxc3 (15. Bc7 Nd5 16. Rc1 Nxc7 17. Rxc7 {It seems that
White has an advantage but everything isn't so easy.} Nb6 $1 18. Bb5 Rd8 19.
Ke2 Bf5 (19... Be6 $5 20. Rxb7 Nc4 21. Rc7 $6 (21. Ba6 $6 e4 22. Nd4 Bg4+ 23.
f3 exf3+ 24. gxf3 Bc8 $17) (21. Ba4 Nb6 22. Bb5 (22. Bd1 Bc4+ 23. Ke1 Rac8 24.
Nxe5 Ba6 25. Rxa7 Rc1 $17) 22... Nc4 $11) 21... Rab8 $1 22. Bxc4 Rxb2+ 23. Kf1
Rc2 24. Bxe6 Rxc7 $17) 20. Rhc1 Rd5 (20... Nd5 21. R7c5 b6 22. R5c4 f6 23. Bc6
Ne7 24. Bxa8 Bd3+ 25. Ke1 Bxc4 26. Rxc4 Rxa8 27. Rc7 $14) 21. R1c5 Rxc5 22.
Rxc5 f6 $11) (15. Bh4 Ne4 16. Rd1 a6 17. Bd3 Ndc5 $11) 15... Rxd8 16. Rd1 Rf8
$8 17. Bb5 Nc5 18. Nxe5 Be6 19. O-O Rac8 $44) (13. Qd2 g5 14. Bg3 g4 15. Nh4
Ne4 16. Qc2 Ndf6 {The position which has arisen is very complicated. White can
try 17.Bd3 or 17.Bc4:} 17. Bd3 (17. Bc4 b5 (17... Qd6 $5 18. O-O Bd7 19. Rad1
Rac8 $44 {Due to White's knight on h4, Black has compensation for the pawn})
18. Bd3 Qxd5 19. O-O Be6 20. Rfd1 Rac8 21. Qe2 Qc5 22. Bxb5 Red8 $44) 17...
Qxd5 18. f3 (18. Rd1 Be6 19. O-O Rac8 20. Qb1 $13) 18... Nxg3 19. Bc4 Qxc4 $8
20. Qxc4 Nxh1 21. Kf1 Be6 22. Qe2 e4 23. Kg1 exf3 24. gxf3 Bd5 25. Kxh1 Re5 $44
) (13. Qd1 {I think White should choose between 13.Qd1 and 13.Bxf6 Qxf6 14.Qb4.
} Qa5+ (13... Qb6 $5 14. Qd2 Nc5 15. Bc4 Nfe4 16. Qb4 Nd6 17. Qxb6 axb6 18. Be2
Bf5 19. O-O Nb3 20. Rae1 Be4 $44) 14. Qd2 $1 (14. b4 Qxd5 15. Qc2 (15. Qxd5 $6
Nxd5 16. Nd2 N7b6 17. Rc1 Be6 18. Ne4 Rec8 $15 {White can't finish his
development}) 15... Qe4 16. Rc1 (16. Bd3 $6 Qg4 {White is in trouble.}) 16...
Qxc2 17. Rxc2 a5 $132) 14... Qxd2+ 15. Nxd2 Nxd5 16. Rc1 N7b6 17. Ne4 f6 18.
Nc5 Re7 19. Bd3 Rc7 20. Ke2 $14) 13... Qxf6 14. Qb4 $5 {White is intending to
play e4} (14. Qc3 Qg6 15. h4 $5 {The h-pawn can help White to finish his
development.} (15. Nd2 Nf6 16. d6 Bd7 17. Rd1 Rac8 18. Qd3 e4 19. Qd4 Rc2 $44)
15... e4 16. h5 Qf5 17. Nd4 Qg5 (17... Qxd5 $4 18. Nb5 $18) 18. d6 Ne5 $5 (
18... Nf6 19. Qb3 Qa5+ (19... Bg4 $6 20. Qb5 Qxb5 21. Nxb5 Rad8 22. Nxa7 Rxd6
23. Nb5 Rc6 24. Nd4 Rb6 25. b4 Bxh5 26. b5 $16) 20. Qb4 Qxb4+ 21. axb4 Rd8 22.
Nb5 a6 23. Rh4 Bg4 24. Nc3 Bxh5 25. Nxe4 Nxe4 26. Rxh5 Rxd6 27. Re5 $14) 19.
Bb5 Rd8 (19... Qxg2 $6 20. O-O-O Bg4 (20... Rd8 $2 21. Rdg1 Qxf2 22. Ne6 $1
Bxe6 23. Qxe5 $18) 21. Rdg1 Qxf2 22. Bxe8 $16) 20. Qc2 Qxg2 21. O-O-O Bh3 $1
22. Rhg1 Rac8 23. Rxg2 Rxc2+ 24. Kxc2 Bxg2 25. Nf5 Bf3 26. Rd5 f6 27. Nd4 Bg4
$11) 14... Qg6 15. Nd2 Nb6 (15... Nf6 16. e4 Bd7 17. g3 $16) (15... e4 16. g3
Nb6 17. d6 Bd7 18. Nc4 $16) 16. e4 f5 17. Bb5 Qxg2 18. O-O-O Bd7 19. Bxd7 Nxd7
20. f3 $14) 12... Nxf6 13. cxd5 Nxd5 {It seems to me this continuation is a
little bit stronger than 13...Qd5 but I don't think that Vishy would lose the
position after} (13... Qxd5 14. Qxd5 Nxd5 15. Bb5 Re7 $11) 14. Be2 Nf6 (14...
e5 $5 15. Qc5 (15. Nxe5 Qa5+ 16. b4 (16. Kf1 Nxe3+ 17. fxe3 Rxe5 18. Kf2 Bf5
$15) 16... Nxe3 $1 17. fxe3 (17. Qxe3 Qxe5 18. Qxe5 Rxe5 19. f3 Be6 20. Kf2 $11
) 17... Qxe5 18. Qxe5 Rxe5 19. Kf2 $11) 15... e4 16. Rd1 Be6 17. Nd4 Qg5 18. g3
Bh3 {seems to be good for Black.}) 15. Qxd8 {Other continuations don't promise
any advantage to White.} (15. O-O Qxd4 16. Nxd4 Bd7 17. Rac1 e5 18. Nf3 Bc6 $11
) (15. Qe5 Bd7 16. O-O Qb6 17. Rac1 Rac8 $11) (15. Qb4 Nd5 16. Qd2 b6 (16...
Nf6 $11) 17. O-O Bb7 18. Rac1 Qe7 $11) 15... Rxd8 16. O-O {White can't finish
his development with the king in the centre.} Bd7 17. Rfc1 Rac8 18. Kf1 Kf8 19.
Ke1 Ke7 $11 20. Ne5 Rxc1+ {It's time to trade rooks.} 21. Rxc1 Rc8 22. Rxc8
Bxc8 {Now it's time to offer a draw.} 23. f4 Nd7 24. Nxd7 Bxd7 25. Kd2 Kd6 26.
Kc3 e5 27. g3 b6 28. Bc4 f6 29. b4 g5 30. h4 gxh4 31. gxh4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.19"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A07"]
[WhiteElo "2760"]
[BlackElo "2786"]
[Annotator "Sadorra,J"]
[PlyCount "61"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{In this game, a top player employs an interesting idea that could very well
take the sting out of the venomous King's Indian Attack. While there's still
plenty of room for exploration here, I have given a summary of the recent
ideas tried up until April 2016 and shown paths of improvement for the Black
side.} 1. Nf3 Nf6 2. g3 d5 3. Bg2 e6 4. O-O Be7 5. d3 O-O 6. Nbd2 a5 $5 {
A surprise for Sergey as Levon has always played Nc6 in his recent games
including against Sergey himself. Black's idea is to quickly weaken White's
queenside first before deciding how to arrange his pieces.} (6... Nc6 7. e4 (7.
d4 b6 8. b3 Bb7 9. Bb2 Na5 10. Ne5 c5 $11 {1-0 (87) Rapport,R (2649)-Aronian,L
(2765) Munich GER 2016, with a comfortable game}) 7... dxe4 8. dxe4 e5 9. c3 a5
10. Qc2 Be6 11. Ng5 Bd7 12. Rd1 Ng4 $1 13. Ngf3 Bc5 14. Rf1 {White has lost
many tempi while Black has significantly improved his pieces} Qc8 $1 {aimed
against h2-h3:} 15. a4 h6 (15... Be6 $5 16. h3 Nf6 17. Ng5 Bd7 18. Kh2 h6 19.
Ngf3 Be6 $15) 16. Nc4 Be6 17. Qe2 b6 {0-1 (66) Karjakin,S (2760)-Aronian,L 
(2777) Zurich SUI 2015, Black has obtained a comfortable game, and even won in
the end.}) 7. e4 ({In one of the recent games in this line, White tried to
stop the a-pawn at once:} 7. a4 Nc6 $5 {going back to Aronian's Nc6 system in
the hopes of taking advantage of the fact that White has played a4 instead of
a different useful move.} (7... c5 8. e4 Nc6 {is also possible}) 8. Re1 e5 9.
e4 dxe4 10. Nxe4 (10. dxe4 Bc5 $1 {is a better version of the 2015
Karjakin-Aronian game above.}) 10... Nxe4 11. Rxe4 Bf5 12. Re1 e4 $5 (12... Qd6
{keeping the tension could give Black room to fight for more.}) 13. dxe4 Qxd1
14. Rxd1 Bxe4 $11 15. c3 Bd6 16. Be3 Rfe8 17. Nd2 Bc2 18. Rdc1 Bd3 19. b3 Rab8
20. Nc4 Bxc4 21. bxc4 Rxe3 22. fxe3 Ne5 {1/2-1/2 (22) Markus,R (2647)
-Svetushkin,D (2561) Skopje MKD 2016}) 7... a4 8. a3 ({Recently, the
open-minded and imginative GM Rapport has also tried to ignore Black's
pawn-push:} 8. Re1 a3 9. e5 axb2 10. Bxb2 Nfd7 11. Nd4 (11. a4 Nc5 12. a5 Bd7
13. Bd4 Nc6 (13... Na4 $142 $1 {this move gives Black chances to obtain a
better game:} 14. Nb3 Na6 $15 {with c5 next}) 14. Bc3 b5 15. axb6 Na4 16. b7 $1
Ra7 (16... Ra6 $142 $5 17. Bd4 Nxd4 18. Nxd4 Qb8 19. c4 Qxb7 20. cxd5 exd5 {
[%csl Ge6][%cal Ga6e6]} 21. Qb3 Qb4 $1 $15) 17. Bd4 Nxd4 18. Nxd4 Bb4 $11 {
1/2-1/2 (51) Rybarczyk,K (2130)-Wittje,B Germany 1998} (18... Qb8 19. c4 Qxb7
20. cxd5 exd5 21. e6 $1 $132)) 11... Nc5 12. N2b3 Nbd7 (12... Na4 $142 $1 {
right away gives Black good play as it forces White's B to a more passive
square and gives Black flexibility in development:} 13. Bc1 c5 14. Nb5 Nc6 {
The knight is simply more active here than on d7.} 15. h4 (15. Bf4 {maybe
Levon was bothered by this possibility and that's why he delayed it?!?} Bd7 $17
16. c4 (16. Nd6 f6 $1) 16... Nb4 {and Black has nothing worry about.}) 15... f6
$1 16. exf6 Bxf6 17. Rb1 Na7 $1 $17 {this tactical possibility only underlines
the benefit of playing Na4 right away.}) 13. Bc3 Ra6 14. h4 Na4 15. Bd2 c5 16.
Nb5 f6 {similar is not the same!} 17. exf6 Bxf6 18. Rb1 {no Na7 tactic here,
but Black still has a healthy position after} Ne5 19. Qe2 c4 $5 {1-0 (35)
Rapport,R (2649)-Gajewski,G (2646) Dresden GER 2016 a complex game ensues with
chances for both sides.}) 8... c5 9. Re1 Nc6 10. h4 $146 {This is technically
the novelty in this game. Sergey may have come up with it over the board in
fear of facing preparation in the mainline.} (10. e5 Nd7 (10... Ne8 $5 11. Nf1
f6 {is worth exploring}) 11. Nf1 b5 12. h4 {transposes to standard lines of
KIA vs. Classical French. Here's an example on how play might develop, from
Sergey's game as Black:} b4 13. Bf4 bxa3 14. bxa3 Ba6 15. Ne3 Rb8 16. c4 dxc4
17. Nxc4 (17. dxc4 Nb6 18. Nd2 Nd4 {It is always a good sign when a knight is
drawn away from Black's kingside.}) 17... Nb6 18. Nd6 (18. Qc2 Nd5 $1 $146 (
18... Nd4 $6 19. Nxd4 Qxd4 (19... cxd4 20. Nd6 $15) 20. Be3 $1 Qd7 21. Nd6 $14
{1-0 (49) Skoberne,J (2544)-Kraemer,M (2570) Austria AUT 2016}) 19. Bg5 (19.
Bd2 Rb3 $36) 19... Rb3 20. Rab1 (20. Bxe7 Qxe7 21. Rab1 Rfb8) (20. Nd6 f6)
20... Bxg5 21. hxg5 (21. Nxg5 Nd4 22. Qd2 h6 23. Ne4 Bxc4 24. dxc4 Nc3 $1 $17)
21... Qb8 $1 {with nice pressure on the q-side and centre.}) 18... Nd5 $1 {
a nice pawn sac for piece activity, and to deprive White of the chance of
using his N on d6 in the near future.} 19. Qxa4 Rb6 (19... Nxf4 20. gxf4 Rb6
$44) 20. Rac1 Nxf4 21. Qxf4 Nxe5 22. Nxe5 Bxd6 23. Qe3 Rb3 24. a4 Qc7 25. Nc4
Be7 (25... Rc8 $5 {preparing the Be7-f6 manoeuvre:} 26. Red1 (26. Nxd6 Qxd6 $15
) 26... Be7 27. Ne5 Bf6 $15) 26. Ne5 Bd6 (26... Bf6 $2 27. Rxc5) 27. Nc4 Be7
28. Ne5 {1/2-1/2 (28) Svidler,P (2756)-Karjakin,S (2772) Loo 2014. This shows
that Sergey is well aware of his opponent's ideas and that Black is at least
OK in the mainlines.}) 10... dxe4 11. Nxe4 (11. dxe4 $6 {the resulting pawn
structure & position are favourable for Black:} e5 $1 {[%csl Gb7,Rc4,Rg4][%cal
Gb7b5,Gb5c4,Gc8g4,Gf6g4]} 12. Nc4 Qc7 13. Ne3 (13. c3 {[%csl Rb3]} Be6 14. Qe2
h6 $15) 13... Nd4 $15) 11... Nxe4 12. Rxe4 (12. dxe4 {will once again be met
with} e5 $1) 12... b5 $1 {Levon goes ahead with the standard q-side expansion
as there is no immediate danger along the a8-h1 diagonal Levon goes ahead with
the standard q-side expansion as there is no immediate danger along the a8-h1
diagonal} 13. Ng5 Ra6 14. Qh5 $6 {too ambitious} ({In the post-mortem, both
players agreed that an objectively better move is} 14. Re1 {which should be
roughly equal. This is correct, and I believe Black's play is even easier:} h6
15. Ne4 Bb7 16. Bf4 (16. Be3 Qb6 $1 (16... Nd4 17. Nxc5 $1 $13)) 16... Rb6 $36
{with an eventual b5-b4}) 14... h6 15. Nf3 ({Originally Sergey was planning} 
15. Rg4 {and after} Ne5 {Sergey was intending to reply with} 16. Re4 {but
Aronian pointed out} Nd7 $1 $19 {with jolly grin :-)}) 15... f5 16. Re1 Bd7 (
16... Bf6 $1 {"is an easy move to make" (Aronian), but he didn't see the need
to play it as he thinks Black is just as fine after Bd7. The key thing to see
is that by placing the B right away on f6, White's pieces are restricted and
his Q will be in trouble soon!} 17. Rb1 Bd7 18. Nh2 (18. Bf4 $4 Be8 $19) 18...
Be8 19. Qd1 e5 $15 {with a nice bind and space advantage.}) 17. Ne5 Nxe5 18.
Rxe5 Bd6 19. Re1 {with the N traded off, it's easy to see that White can
breathe more freely} Qf6 20. Rb1 (20. c3 b4 $1 $36 21. Bd2 bxa3 22. bxa3 Rb8 {
and according to Levon, "Black has a wonderful position..."}) 20... f4 $6 {
logically opening up lines to exploit White's discoordinated pieces, but White
has enough resources to defend. It "spoiled the game" according to Levon as it
only leads to mass simplification of the position.} ({The straightforward
approach can give Black an edge:} 20... b4 21. Bd2 (21. f4 Rb8 $15) 21... Rb8
22. Qe2 Rab6 {taking over the b-file and the queenside.}) (20... e5 $5 {
may have also given Black better chances to obtain an edge.}) 21. Bxf4 Bxf4 22.
gxf4 Qxf4 23. Qxc5 Rf5 (23... Qxh4 24. Re4 Qf6 25. Rg4 $11 (25. Re2)) 24. Qe3
Qxh4 25. Qg3 {Now according to Levon it's important to have e5 under control.}
Qh5 ({The other queen retreat is not so convincing:} 25... Qf6 26. Qb8+ Kh7 27.
Be4 Bc6 28. Bxf5+ exf5 29. Kf1 {which Levon thought was not so clear. In fact,
Black has to be careful as White can get his king safe by running to d2} Bf3
30. Qf4 $1 Bh5 31. f3 Rc6 32. c3 g5 33. Qe3 $14 {and Black's compensation is
still in question.}) 26. Qc7 Qf7 (26... Qh4 27. Qg3 Qh5 28. Qc7) 27. Qb7 Rd6 ({
An attempt to fight on with} 27... Rg5 {can only lead to trouble for Black
after} 28. f4 $1 {so Levon didn't see any sense in going for this} (28. Kf1 $5)
(28. Re5 $5) 28... Rxg2+ 29. Qxg2 e5 30. f5 Bxf5 31. Re3 $13 {It's difficult
to clearly assess this during the game, but it's clear that Black doesn't
achieve anything special here.}) 28. Qb8+ Qf8 29. Qxf8+ Kxf8 30. Re3 Bc6 31.
Rbe1 {And in this equal ending, the players decided to split the point.}
1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.19"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Black "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D12"]
[WhiteElo "2790"]
[BlackElo "2780"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "77"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 Bf5 5. Nc3 e6 6. Nh4 Bg6 7. Nxg6 hxg6 8. Rb1
{Nakamura is using the idea that was introduced into practice by his great
opponent in the world championship match of 2006. White is ready to build up a
strong pawn chain and even attack his opponent's structure with the help of
the advance of the b-pawn.} Nbd7 (8... Bd6 9. c5 Bc7 10. b4 e5 11. g3 Qe7 12.
Bg2 exd4 13. Qxd4 a5 14. a3 axb4 15. axb4 Be5 16. Qd3 Nbd7 17. O-O O-O 18. Ne2
Ra2 19. Nd4 Rfa8 $11 {1-0 (70) Ni,H (2691)-Gledura,B (2538) Karlsruhe 2016}) 9.
c5 a5 {It should make great sense to develop the rook from a8 with the help of
the exchange of a-pawns.} (9... e5 10. b4 a6 (10... a5 11. b5) (10... Qc7 11.
b5 Be7 12. bxc6 bxc6 13. Qa4 O-O 14. Be2 Rfb8 15. O-O Rxb1 16. Nxb1 Nf8 17. Nd2
Ne6 18. Nb3 Ne4 19. Bf3 Bf6 20. Bxe4 dxe4 21. Bb2 exd4 22. Bxd4 Bxd4 23. Nxd4
Nxd4 24. Qxd4 $14 {1/2-1/2 (51) Volke,K (2475)-Huebner,R (2605) Switzerland
2008}) (10... Be7 11. g3 exd4 12. exd4 Ne4 13. Nxe4 dxe4 14. Bg2 Nf6 15. O-O
Qd5 16. Bf4 Rd8 17. Qe2 Qe6 18. b5 Nd5 19. bxc6 bxc6 20. Qxe4 Qxe4 21. Bxe4 $16
{1/2-1/2 (73) Roiz,M (2594)-Girya,O (2456) Minsk 2015}) 11. g3 Be7 (11... g5
12. Bg2 g6 13. e4 Nxe4 14. Nxe4 dxe4 15. dxe5 Nxe5 16. Qxd8+ Rxd8 17. Bxg5 Be7
18. Be3 f5 19. a4 Ng4 $15 {0-1 (57) Nakamura,H (2640)-Volkov,S (2634)
playchess.com INT 2006}) 12. Bg2 O-O (12... e4 13. f3 exf3 14. Bxf3 Nf8 15. e4
dxe4 16. Nxe4 Nd5 17. Qb3 Ne6 18. Bb2 Qd7 19. O-O Rd8 20. Rbd1 O-O 21. Nd2 $11
{1-0 (47) Nisipeanu,L (2648)-Malakhov,V (2700) Burgas 2012}) 13. O-O Re8 14. a4
Qc8 15. b5 Bd8 16. Bd2 axb5 17. axb5 Ba5 18. Qc2 exd4 19. exd4 Nf8 20. Ra1 Bxc3
21. Bxc3 $14 {1/2-1/2 (51) Gelfand,B (2743)-Wang,H (2710) Beijing 2014}) (9...
Qc7 10. g3 b6 11. b4 a5 12. a3 axb4 13. axb4 Be7 14. Bd3 O-O 15. O-O bxc5 16.
bxc5 e5 17. f4 exd4 18. exd4 Nh7 19. f5 Bf6 20. Ne2 g5 21. Be3 Ra3 $11 {
0-1 (61) Moreno Trujillo,A (2522)-Candela Perez,J (2430) Madrid 2015}) 10. a3
Be7 (10... e5 11. b4 axb4 12. axb4 Qc7 13. f4 exf4 14. exf4 Be7 15. Be2 (15.
Bd3 $5 Nf8 16. Qf3 Ne6 17. Ne2 b5 $5) 15... Nf8 16. O-O Ne6 17. g3 Qd7 18. Qd3
Ne4 19. Nxe4 dxe4 20. Qxe4 Qxd4+ 21. Qxd4 Nxd4 22. Bc4 O-O 23. Kg2 Ra4 24. Rd1
$11 {1/2-1/2 (66) Topalov,V (2813)-Kramnik,V (2743) Elista 2006}) 11. g3 e5 12.
Bg2 e4 13. b4 {The fight has not yet left the famous examples played by strong
players in the quest to find the best continuation for both sides. White is
abstaining from the immediate advance of the f-pawn, which would undermine the
e4-stonghold.} (13. f3 exf3 14. Bxf3 Nh7 15. e4 dxe4 16. Nxe4 O-O 17. O-O Ndf6
18. Nc3 Qd7 19. Be3 Rad8 20. b4 axb4 21. axb4 Rfe8 22. Re1 Qf5 23. g4 Qc8 24.
h3 $14 {0-1 (50) Ashwin,J (2478)-Ragger,M (2528) Yerevan 2007}) 13... axb4 14.
axb4 Nf8 15. b5 Ne6 16. Bd2 O-O {Even this position has been tested in
practice, but the queen move to d7 does not have to be the candidate for the
most precise solution.} (16... Qd7 17. Na4 Bd8 18. h4 g5 19. bxc6 bxc6 20. Nb6
Bxb6 21. cxb6 O-O 22. hxg5 {1/2-1/2 (22) Sasikiran,K (2661)-Malakhov,V (2690)
Sibenik 2007}) 17. Na4 Ng5 18. h4 (18. Nb6 Ra7 19. bxc6 bxc6 20. Bb4 Nd7 $14)
18... Nf3+ 19. Bxf3 exf3 20. bxc6 {The White player is sitting close to the
top of the pyramid of human players, but the computer engine is not
impressionable and suggests a somewhat different solution.} (20. Nc3 $5 b6 21.
cxb6 Qxb6 (21... Rb8 22. Qxf3 Rxb6 23. O-O $16) 22. Qxf3 cxb5 23. Nxd5 Nxd5 24.
Qxd5 b4 25. O-O Rfb8 $14) 20... bxc6 21. Nc3 Bxc5 $6 {The great moment in the
game and a genuine mystery for any annotator. Topalov surprises his dangerous
opponent with a magificent idea of sacrificing a piece for the initiative.
Objectively speaking the adventure wasn't sufficient to equalise, but Nakamura
will struggle to find the best solution.} (21... Qd7 22. Qxf3 Bd8 23. Kf1 $14)
22. dxc5 d4 23. exd4 Qxd4 (23... Re8+ 24. Be3 Ra3 25. Rb3 Rxb3 26. Qxb3 Qxd4
27. Nd1 Qd7 28. Nb2 $14) 24. O-O (24. Qxf3 Ra3 25. O-O Qxd2 26. Ne4 Rxf3 27.
Nxd2 $11) 24... Qg4 25. Re1 (25. Bf4 Rfd8 26. Bd6 Ra3 $1 27. Qd3 Nd5 28. Be5
Kh7 $11) 25... Rfd8 26. Rb2 Rd4 {Black needed a lot of fantasy in order to
guess that the counterplay for the missing piece could be nearly successful.
White must be very cautios, as the f3-pawn is ready to support the Qh3 with
mating ideas.} 27. Re7 (27. Re3 $1 Rad8 28. Nb1 Ne4 29. Qxf3 Qxf3 30. Rxf3 Nxd2
31. Nxd2 Rxd2 32. Rb6 f6 33. Rxc6 Rc2 34. Re3 $16) 27... Rad8 28. Qb3 Rf8 29.
Qd1 (29. Be3 $2 Qh3 $19) 29... Rfd8 30. Qb3 Rf8 (30... Nd5 31. Nxd5 R4xd5 32.
Kh2 $18) 31. Nd1 Nd5 {Only the computer can understand very quickly, that the
most exact idea for Black would have been 31...Qf5! with sufficient
counterplay.} (31... Qf5 $1 32. Re3 (32. Bg5 Rd3 $19) 32... Rfd8 33. Rxf3 Qxc5
34. Qa2 Qd6 35. Ne3 Rxd2 36. Rxd2 Qxd2 37. Qxd2 Rxd2 38. Nc4 $11) 32. Re5 (32.
Ra7 Qe6 33. Raa2 Qe2 34. Nc3 Nxc3 35. Qxc3 Rfd8 36. Qe3 Re4 37. Qxe2 fxe2 $11)
32... Kh7 $2 {Black actually needs to generate compensation for the missing
piece and it was still possible with the help of the active move 32...Ra8!} (
32... Ra8 $1 33. Re1 (33. Kh2 Rxd2 34. Rxd2 Nf4 35. Kg1 Ne2+ 36. Kh2 Nf4 $11)
33... Qf5 34. Ra2 Rc8 $11) 33. Kh2 $1 Nf6 (33... f6 34. Ne3 Qc8 35. Rxd5 cxd5
36. Bc3 Rd3 37. Qc2 Rxe3 38. fxe3 Qxc5 39. Bb4 $18) 34. Be3 Rb8 (34... Rd7 35.
Rg5 Qe4 36. Nc3 $18) 35. Qxb8 Rxd1 36. Rb1 $1 {The rook is gone, but it does
not mean that Black would not be able to bite. Unfortunately for him White is
able to defend against all the tricks.} (36. Re7 $2 Qh3+ 37. Kxh3 Rh1#) 36...
Qd7 37. Rg5 Ne4 (37... Ng4+ 38. Rxg4 Rxb1 39. Qxb1 Qxg4 40. Qd3 $18) 38. Rxd1
Qxd1 39. Qf4 {Without the missing pieces Topalov can not really hope to fight
on.} (39. Qf4 Nxg5 40. hxg5 Kg8 41. Bd4 $18) 1-0

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.19"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Svidler, Peter"]
[Black "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A34"]
[WhiteElo "2757"]
[BlackElo "2794"]
[Annotator "Sagar Shah/CB Website"]
[PlyCount "89"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. c4 {This was the third white game for Peter in the event. In the first one
he opened with 1.e4, while against Aronian he went 1.c4. Today he repeats the
English Opening.} c5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Nc3 Nc6 4. g3 d5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 {Fabiano has
had good success with black in this line, most notable being his win against
Topalov from the 2014 Sinquefield Cup.} 6. Bg2 g6 7. Ng5 $5 {This has been
played in eight encounters before this game, with the top game being Wang Yue
vs Ian Nepomniachtchi. But that was only a blitz.} (7. Ne4 {was an interesting
knight sortie tried in Li Chao vs Peter Leko.}) 7... e6 8. d3 (8. Nge4 Be7 9.
d3 O-O 10. Bh6 Re8 11. h4 $5 {1-0 (42) Agdestein,S (2560)-Polugaevsky,L (2575)
Haninge 1988}) 8... Bg7 9. Nge4 $146 (9. Bd2 {1/2 (61)-1/2 (61) Wang,Y (2723)
-Nepomniachtchi,I (2721) Beijing 2013}) 9... O-O (9... f5 10. Nxc5 $5 Nxc3 11.
bxc3 Bxc3+ 12. Bd2 Bxa1 13. Qxa1 O-O 14. h4 $5 {Even though White is an
exchange down and has no pawns to show for it, he has good compensation thanks
to the dark square weaknesses in Black's position.}) 10. h4 (10. Nxc5 Nxc3 11.
bxc3 Bxc3+ 12. Bd2 Bxa1 13. Qxa1 Nd4 $15 {White doesn't have enough
compenstation.}) 10... b6 $6 {[%cal Gb7b6] As Caruana said in the press
conference, this was not the most accurate move.} (10... f5 11. Nxc5 Nxc3 12.
bxc3 Bxc3+ 13. Bd2 Bxa1 14. Qxa1 Qd6 15. Qc3 $44) (10... h5 11. g4 $5 hxg4 12.
h5 {Using brute force to break through, but this may not be very good for
White.} f5 13. Nxd5 exd5 14. Nc3 Be6 15. hxg6 f4 $17) (10... h6 11. Nxc5 Nxc3
12. bxc3 Bxc3+ 13. Bd2 Bxa1 14. Qxa1 Nd4 (14... Qd4 15. Qxd4 Nxd4 16. Bxh6 $16)
15. O-O Nxe2+ 16. Kh2 Nd4 17. Bxh6 $44) 11. h5 Bb7 12. hxg6 hxg6 (12... fxg6 {
was necessary but to give the knight on e4 a permanent outpost is not
something that Black would like to do voluntarily.}) 13. Bh6 Nxc3 {Here
Svidler thought for 20 minutes, trying to understand whether he should take
back with the pawn or the knight.} (13... f5 {wouldn't make much sense as after
} 14. Bxg7 Kxg7 15. Qd2 fxe4 16. Qh6+ Kf6 17. Nxe4+ Ke7 18. Qxg6 $16 {White is
just better.}) 14. bxc3 $1 (14. Nxc3 {is also possible, but taking with the
pawn is stronger.}) 14... f5 (14... Bxh6 15. Rxh6 Ne5 16. Qd2 $16) 15. Qc1 $1 (
15. Qd2 $6 {This move is not the most accurate as e4-e3 would come with a
tempo.} fxe4 16. Bxg7 e3 $1 17. Qxe3 Kxg7 18. Qh6+ Kf6 $13) 15... fxe4 16. Bxg7
Kxg7 17. Qh6+ Kf6 (17... Kf7 18. Qh7+ Kf6 19. Qxb7 $16) 18. dxe4 Rh8 (18... Qe7
19. e5+ Kf7 (19... Kxe5 20. Qxg6 Kd6 21. Rh7 $18) 20. Be4 Nxe5 21. Qf4+ Qf6 22.
Rh7+ Kg8 23. Qxf6 Rxf6 24. Rxb7 $16) 19. e5+ $1 (19. Qf4+ Kg7 $19) 19... Kf7 (
19... Kxe5 20. Qf4#) (19... Nxe5 20. Qf4+) 20. Qf4+ Kg7 21. Rxh8 Qxh8 (21...
Kxh8 22. Qh6+ Kg8 23. Qxg6+ Kf8 24. Qh6+ Kg8 25. Qxe6+ $18) 22. O-O-O $1 Kg8
23. Rd7 {Threatens mate on f7, and b7 is also hanging.} Rf8 24. Qg4 (24. Qg5
Qh5 25. Qxh5 gxh5 26. Rxb7 Nxe5 27. f4 $16 {was also another good position
that White could have aimed for.}) 24... Qh6+ 25. f4 Re8 26. Rxb7 Nxe5 27. Qh3
Qxh3 28. Bxh3 $16 {And there we have it. Svidler has a technically better –
and you can even go to the extent of saying close to winning position. But the
problem with facing guys like Caruana is that they defend staunchly and never
really give up.} Nc4 29. Rxa7 e5 30. Bg2 (30. Ra4 $1 Ne3 (30... Nd6 31. Ra6 $16
) (30... b5 31. Bd7 $1 $18 {is the key point.}) 31. Re4 Nd5 32. Kc2 $16) 30...
Ne3 31. Bc6 Re6 32. Bb5 exf4 33. gxf4 Rf6 34. Kd2 Nf1+ 35. Kd3 Rxf4 {Another
key moment of the game. Svidler said that he regretted the fact that he didn't
play Rb7 here.} 36. e4 $6 (36. Rb7 Rf6 37. e4 Kf8 38. e5 Re6 39. Ke4 $18 {
with complete domination.}) 36... Ng3 37. e5 Rf3+ 38. Kc4 Ne4 {Things have
already started becoming tricky and White's advantage is no longer obvious.}
39. Bc6 Rxc3+ 40. Kb5 Re3 41. Kxb6 c4 42. Bd5+ Kh8 43. e6 (43. Bxc4 Nd2 44. Bf7
Rxe5 {should end in a draw.}) 43... c3 44. Rc7 g5 45. Bxe4 {Peter calls it a
day. It was really a close call for the American GM, who is having a real
topsy turvy tournament.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.20"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Giri, Anish"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D43"]
[WhiteElo "2786"]
[BlackElo "2793"]
[Annotator "CB"]
[PlyCount "84"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. Nf3 d5 2. d4 Nf6 3. c4 c6 4. Nc3 e6 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bxf6 Qxf6 7. Qb3 dxc4 8.
Qxc4 Nd7 9. e3 g6 10. Ne4 Qe7 11. Ne5 Qb4+ 12. Qxb4 Bxb4+ 13. Ke2 Be7 14. f3 {
Im 14. Zug weicht Aronian von der unlängst zwischen beiden Partnern in
Zürich gespielten Partie ab. Alles in allem ist hier kein Kampfgeist
erkennbar - bei beiden nicht!} (14. f4 b6 15. Kf2 Bb7 16. Rd1 Rd8 17. Be2 O-O
18. Bf3 c5 19. Ng3 Nxe5 20. dxe5 Ba6 21. Ne4 Bd3 22. Nf6+ Kg7 23. Nd5 exd5 24.
Rxd3 d4 25. exd4 Rxd4 26. Rxd4 cxd4 27. Ke2 f6 28. Kd3 fxe5 29. fxe5 Rc8 30.
Rd1 Bg5 31. Ke4 Be3 32. Rd3 Kf7 33. Ra3 Rc7 34. Be2 Ke7 35. Ra4 Bc1 36. Rxd4
Bxb2 37. Rc4 {1/2-1/2 (37) Aronian,L (2792)-Giri,A (2798) Zuerich 2016}) 14...
Rg8 15. Rc1 f5 16. Nxd7 Kxd7 17. Nd2 b6 18. Kf2 Bb7 19. h4 Rac8 20. f4 {
Diagramm [#] Die Stellung ist vollkommen ausgeglichen, doch Schwarz hat
immerhin noch das Läuferpaar und die eine oder andere Hebelmöglichkeit - er
könnte den Anziehenden noch ein wenig ärgern.} Bf6 21. b4 Rg7 22. Be2 g5 23.
hxg5 hxg5 24. fxg5 (24. Rh6 Ke7 25. g3 {war ebenfalls gut.}) 24... Bxg5 25. Bf3
Ba6 26. Nc4 Bxc4 27. Rxc4 f4 28. e4 Be7 29. a3 e5 {Diagramm [#] Dies kann
jetzt eigentlich nur noch eines werden: Giris achtes Remis in der achten
Partie.} 30. dxe5 Ke6 31. Ke2 Kxe5 32. Rh5+ Bg5 33. Bg4 Rd8 34. Rxc6 Kxe4 35.
Re6+ Kd4 36. Rh3 Kc4 37. Re5 Kd4 38. Re6 Kc4 39. Bf5 Re7 40. Rxe7 Bxe7 41. Rh7
Bd6 42. Rxa7 Re8+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.20"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C65"]
[WhiteElo "2794"]
[BlackElo "2790"]
[Annotator "Stohl,I"]
[PlyCount "65"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[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 {Apart from the Ruy Lopez, the Candidates featured
a few Italian games.} ({However, even here one could see the modern tendency
to avoid forcing lines and and fight for an advantage in manoeuvring struggles
with a predominantly strategic content. The positions after} 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. O-O
Nf6 5. d3 d6 6. c3 a6 {resemble a Closed Ruy Lopez; in Moscow the fashionable
modern idea} 7. a4 $5 {was tested in 3 games.} (7. Nbd2 {and}) (7. Bb3 {
are the standard continuations.})) 3... Nf6 ({The trend, mentioned in the
previous note, was noticeable also after} 3... a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 {
, in Moscow we saw either} 6. d3 ({, or an Anti-Marshall with} 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3
O-O 8. a4)) 4. d3 {No simplification, keep the tension!} ({We saw no Berlin
endgames in Moscow, the only game with} 4. O-O Nxe4 {went} 5. Re1 (5. d4 Nd6 6.
Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 {is the famous main line}) 5... Nd6 6. Nxe5
Be7 7. Bf1 Nxe5 (7... Nf5 8. Nf3 O-O 9. d4 d5 10. c3 Nh4 11. Nxh4 Bxh4 12. Nd2
Bg5 13. g3 Be6 14. Bd3 Qd7 15. Qc2 Bxd2 16. Bxd2 h6 17. Re3 Rae8 18. Rae1 Nd8
19. Qd1 Bg4 20. f3 Rxe3 21. Rxe3 Bf5 22. Bf1 Re8 23. Qb3 c6 24. Rxe8+ Qxe8 25.
Qa3 a6 26. Qd6 Qd7 27. Qxd7 Bxd7 $11 {Gao,R (2552)-Lin,C (2526) China 2016}) 8.
Rxe5 O-O 9. Nc3 Ne8 10. Nd5 Bd6 11. Re1 c6 12. Ne3 Be7 (12... Bc7 13. Nf5 d5
14. Ne7+ Kh8 15. Nxc8 Rxc8 16. d3 f5 17. g3 Nf6 18. Qf3 Qd7 19. Be3 d4 20. Bf4
Nd5 21. Be5 {Vachier Lagrave,M (2788)-Kramnik,V (2801) Stavanger blitz 2016}
Nb4 $132) 13. c4 Nc7 14. d4 d5 15. cxd5 Bb4 $5 $146 (15... Nxd5 16. Nxd5 cxd5
17. Bf4 Bf6 18. Be5 Bxe5 19. Rxe5 Re8 20. Rxe8+ Qxe8 21. Qb3 Qc6 22. Bb5 Qb6
23. Qxd5 a6 24. Bd3 Be6 25. Qe4 g6 26. d5 Bf5 27. Qe2 Bxd3 28. Qxd3 Qxb2 29.
Re1 Rd8 30. d6 Rd7 $14 {/<=>, Carlsen,M (2850)-Caruana,F (2787) London 2015,
Black is slightly worse, but with careful defence he should hold - the game
was drawn later on.}) 16. Bd2 Bxd2 17. Qxd2 Nxd5 18. Nxd5 Qxd5 19. Re5 Qd6 20.
Bc4 Bd7 21. Rae1 b5 22. Bb3 a5 23. a4 bxa4 24. Bxa4 Be6 25. Rxa5 Rxa5 26. Qxa5
Qxd4 $11 {Svidler,P (2757)-Topalov,V (2780) Moscow 2016}) 4... Bc5 5. Bxc6 {
The popular Anti-Berlin was played in Moscow quite a few times, but this was
the only game that featured the text move:} (5. O-O Nd4 6. Nxd4 Bxd4 {is a
welcome swap,} 7. Nd2 a6 8. Ba4 b5 9. Bb3 d6 10. a4 Bb6 11. axb5 Bg4 12. Nf3
axb5 13. Rxa8 Qxa8 14. h3 Be6 15. Bxe6 fxe6 16. Nh2 O-O 17. Ng4 Qe8 18. Be3
Bxe3 19. Nxe3 Qc6 20. Qd2 d5 (20... Ra8 $142 $1 $11) 21. f3 d4 22. Ng4 Nxg4 23.
hxg4 h6 24. g5 (24. Ra1 $5 {/\} Ra8 25. Rxa8+ Qxa8 26. g5 $14) 24... hxg5 25.
Qxg5 Qxc2 26. Qxe5 Qxd3 27. Qxe6+ Kh7 28. Qh3+ {½, Anand,V (2762)-Nakamura,H 
(2790) Moscow 2016 led to perpetual. After losing with Karjakin in the
previous round Vishy preferred to play it safe.}) ({The Candidates favourite
was} 5. c3 O-O 6. O-O {and now:} d6 (6... Re8 {is not played too often,
although Black is still doing OK here:} 7. Bg5 (7. Nbd2 a6 8. Bxc6 dxc6 9. Nc4
Bg4 ({For} 9... Nd7 {Karjakin,S (2766)-Aronian,L (2830) Khanty-Mansiysk 2014 -
see the notes to this game in CBM 160.}) 10. Bg5 h6 11. Bh4 Re6 12. h3 Bxf3 13.
Qxf3 b5 14. Nxe5 Rxe5 15. d4 Re6 16. dxc5 Qd2 17. Bxf6 Rxf6 18. Qe3 Qxb2 19.
Rfb1 Qc2 20. Rd1 Re8 21. f3 Qb2 22. Rdb1 Qc2 23. Rd1 Qb2 $11 {Vachier Lagrave,
M (2765)-Leko,P (2708) EU-chT Reykjavik 2015}) ({For} 7. Re1 {Anand,V (2775)
-Carlsen,M (2870) Chennai 2013 - see the notes to this game in CBM 158.}) 7...
h6 8. Bh4 {Black first expands on the queenside.} a6 ({For the immediate} 8...
Be7 9. Nbd2 {Balogh,C (2637)-Rodshtein,M (2671) Tromso olm 2014: 1-0 (65); CBM
162 [Stohl,I] - see the notes to this game in CBM 162.} (9. Re1 d6 10. Nbd2 g5
$5 $13 {Inarkiev,E (2688)-Aronian,L (2797) Moscow 2014 For more details see
the notes to this game in CBM 164 by Marin.})) 9. Ba4 b5 10. Bb3 Be7 11. a4 b4
12. Bg3 $146 (12. Nbd2 Rb8 13. h3 d6 14. d4 bxc3 15. bxc3 exd4 16. cxd4 Nb4 17.
Re1 Be6 18. d5 Bd7 19. Bg3 Nd3 20. Re3 Nc5 $11 {Efimenko,Z (2661)-Stern,R 
(2513) Germany 2013}) 12... d6 13. a5 Be6 14. Bxe6 fxe6 15. Nbd2 Rb8 16. d4
bxc3 17. bxc3 exd4 18. cxd4 Rb5 19. Qc2 Nb4 20. Qb3 d5 21. Rfc1 c6 22. Ne5 Rxa5
23. Ng6 Rxa1 24. Rxa1 Qb6 25. Be5 a5 $13 {Giri,A (2784)-Ponomariov,R (2710)
Doha 2015/ Black's shaky king gives White compensation for the pawn, but not
more than that.}) 7. Nbd2 (7. h3 Ne7 8. d4 Bb6 9. Bd3 d5 $5 (9... Ng6 10. Re1
Re8 11. Qc2 exd4 12. cxd4 c5 13. dxc5 Bxc5 14. Nc3 Be6 15. Be3 Qc8 16. Bxc5
Qxc5 17. Qd2 Ne5 18. Be2 Nxf3+ 19. Bxf3 Rad8 20. Red1 h5 21. Qd4 Qg5 22. Qd2
Qe5 23. Qe3 a6 24. Rd4 Bd7 25. Rad1 Bc6 26. g3 Re6 27. Bg2 h4 $1 28. gxh4 Rde8
29. Bf3 a5 30. a4 Qc5 31. Qf4 Re5 32. R1d3 R8e6 $132 {Anand,V (2762)-Caruana,F
(2794) Moscow 2016 The position was more pleasant for White, but with
energetic play Caruana secured effective counterplay for Black.}) 10. Nxe5 $146
{White prefers a slight pull in a symmetrical structure.} ({Karjakin was
definitely prepared for} 10. Nbd2 dxe4 (10... exd4 $5 11. e5 Nh5 $13) 11. Nxe4
Nxe4 12. Bxe4 exd4 13. Qc2 h6 14. a4 $1 c6 15. Rd1 Nd5 16. Nxd4 Re8 17. a5 $1
$36 {Carlsen,M (2863)-Kramnik,V (2783) Shamkir 2015/ For more details see the
notes to this game in CBM 166 by M.Pavlovic.}) 10... Nxe4 11. Nd2 Nd6 12. Nb3
c6 13. Nc5 Ng6 14. Qh5 Bxc5 15. dxc5 Ne4 16. Bxe4 dxe4 17. Rd1 Qe7 18. Nxg6
hxg6 19. Qg5 Qxg5 20. Bxg5 f6 21. Be3 g5 22. Rd6 Re8 23. Rad1 Be6 24. b3 Kf7
25. R1d4 $14 {/=, Anand,V (2762)-Karjakin,S (2760) Moscow 2016 Further
concessions brought White a full point.}) 7... Ne7 8. d4 exd4 9. cxd4 Bb6 10.
Re1 Bg4 11. h3 Bh5 12. Qb3 (12. a4 a6 13. Bf1 Re8 14. a5 Ba7 15. Qb3 Nc6 $5 16.
d5 Nd4 17. Nxd4 Bxd4 18. Qxb7 Nd7 19. Nc4 $6 (19. Ra3 $1 $13 {/\} Qh4 20. Rae3)
19... Nc5 20. Qc6 Nb3 $6 (20... Bxf2+ 21. Kxf2 Qh4+ 22. g3 Nxe4+ 23. Rxe4 Qxe4
$36) (20... f6 $5 21. Be3 Bxe3 22. Rxe3 Re7 {[%cal Rh5e8]} 23. b4 Be8 24. Qxa8
Qxa8 25. bxc5 dxc5 $15 {[%cal Ye8b5]}) 21. Rb1 Nxc1 $2 (21... Bg6 $142 $132)
22. Rbxc1 Rb8 23. Qxa6 $16 {1-0 (49) Anand,V (2762)-Topalov,V (2780) Moscow
2016}) 12... d5 13. e5 Nd7 14. Qd1 $146 (14. a4 a5 15. Qd1 Nb8 16. Nb3 Nbc6 17.
Bg5 h6 (17... Nb4 18. Rc1 h6 19. Bh4 c6 20. Be2 Qc7 21. g4 Bg6 22. Qd2 Na2 23.
Ra1 Nb4 24. Rec1 Qd7 25. Nc5 $1 Bxc5 26. dxc5 $16 {Vachier Lagrave,M (2758)
-Leko,P (2723) Beijing rpd 2014}) 18. Bh4 Qc8 19. g4 Bg6 20. Rc1 Bh7 21. Bg3
Nb4 22. Re3 Na2 23. Ra1 Nb4 $11 24. Ne1 Nec6 25. Qd2 Qe6 26. Bxc6 Qxc6 27. Rc3
Qe6 28. Ng2 f6 29. Nf4 Qd7 30. e6 Qe7 31. Re1 f5 $36 {Topalov,V (2816)-Caruana,
F (2808) Saint Louis 2015}) 14... f6 15. e6 Nb8 16. Nb3 Qd6 17. g4 Bg6 18. Nh4
Nbc6 19. Bxc6 Qxc6 20. Bd2 Bc2 21. Qe2 Bxb3 22. axb3 Bxd4 23. Bb4 Bc5 24. Rec1
b6 25. Bxc5 bxc5 26. Ra6 Qb7 27. Rxc5 Rfe8 28. Qb5 Qxb5 29. Rxb5 d4 30. Nf5
Rad8 31. Rxa7 Nxf5 32. gxf5 d3 33. Ra1 g6 $11 {Caruana,F (2794)-Giri,A (2793)
Moscow 2016}) 5... dxc6 6. Nbd2 (6. h3 Nd7 7. Be3 (7. O-O O-O 8. Nc3 Re8 9. Be3
Bd6 10. Nd2 Nf8 11. Nc4 Ng6 12. a4 Be6 13. Nxd6 cxd6 14. d4 Qf6 15. d5 Bd7 16.
a5 {1/2-1/2 (42) Caruana,F (2811)-Aronian,L (2777) Zurich 2015} Nf4 $132) 7...
Bd6 8. Nc3 c5 9. O-O Nf8 10. Nd2 Ng6 11. Nc4 Be6 12. Ne2 Qd7 (12... O-O $5) 13.
Nxd6+ cxd6 14. f4 exf4 15. Nxf4 Nxf4 16. Rxf4 {Carlsen,M (2872)-Caruana,F 
(2782) Zuerich 2014/ For more details about this branch I will refer to the
notes to this game in CBM 159.} O-O $11 {[%cal Yf7f5]}) ({White doesn't commit
his king yet - we will see that for the future he has different plans from} 6.
O-O Nd7 (6... Bd6 7. Nbd2 Be6 (7... Bg4 8. Nc4 Nd7 9. h3 Bh5 10. g4 $6 (10. Ne3
$142 Qf6 11. Nf5 Bxf3 12. Qxf3 g6 13. Nxd6+ cxd6 14. Qg3 $36) 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 23. Qe1 g6
24. fxg6 Nc5 $1 $40 {Karjakin,S (2756)-Leko,P (2730) Beijing rpd 2013}) 8. d4
$5 (8. b3 O-O 9. Nc4 Bxc4 10. bxc4 Nd7 11. Rb1 b6 12. g3 f5 13. exf5 Rxf5 14.
Be3 Qe8 15. Nd2 Qg6 16. Ne4 Raf8 17. Kg2 Nf6 $11 {Anand,V (2785)-Aronian,L 
(2815) Dubai rpd 2014}) 8... Nd7 9. dxe5 Nxe5 10. Nxe5 Bxe5 11. f4 Bd4+ (11...
Qd4+ 12. Kh1 Bd6 13. Qe2 O-O-O 14. f5 Bd7 15. Nf3 Qa4 16. b3 Qa5 17. Bd2 Bb4
18. Bxb4 Qxb4 19. Qf2 b6 20. Ng5 Qe7 21. f6 gxf6 22. Qxf6 Qxf6 23. Rxf6 $14 {
Nakamura,H (2787)-Aronian,L (2792) Zuerich blitz 2016}) 12. Kh1 f5 13. Qh5+ g6
14. Qe2 O-O 15. Nf3 Bf6 16. e5 Be7 17. Rd1 Qe8 18. Nd4 Qf7 19. Nxe6 Qxe6 20.
Be3 Rfd8 21. c4 a6 22. b3 Kf7 23. a4 Ke8 24. h3 Rxd1+ 25. Rxd1 Rd8 26. Rxd8+
Bxd8 27. Bc5 $14 {Caruana,F (2787)-Grischuk,A (2750) London 2015}) 7. Nbd2 O-O
8. Nc4 Re8 9. Bd2 (9. Kh1 {starts preparing f4:} a5 $5 10. a4 b6 11. Be3 (11.
g3 $5 {[%cal Yf3h4] deserves attention.}) 11... Bb4 12. Nfd2 b5 $1 13. axb5
cxb5 14. c3 bxc4 15. cxb4 cxd3 16. bxa5 Ba6 17. Qb3 Nf6 18. h3 Nh5 19. Rfc1 Nf4
$132 20. Rc6 {Anand,V (2780)-Kramnik,V (2810) Zuerich 2013} Nxh3 $1 21. gxh3
Qd7 $11) 9... Bd6 (9... Bf8 10. b4 f6 11. a4 Nb6 12. Ne3 Be6 13. Qe2 (13. Qb1
Qd7 14. Rd1 Bf7 15. h3 Rad8 16. Be1 Bh5 17. g4 Bf7 18. c4 c5 19. b5 Nc8 20. Qc2
Re6 21. Kf1 Ne7 22. Nh4 Rd6 23. Ke2 Re6 24. f3 b6 $11 {1/2-1/2 (40) Anand,V 
(2775)-Kramnik,V (2795) London 2012}) 13... Qd7 14. a5 Nc8 15. c4 Rd8 16. Ra3
Ne7 17. Rb1 Ng6 (17... Bf7 $5 $11 {[%cal Yf7h5]}) 18. g3 Be7 19. Ne1 Rf8 20.
Bc3 Rad8 21. Ra2 a6 22. Rd2 Qc8 23. N1g2 c5 24. b5 $14 {Alekseenko,K (2468)
-Baryshpolets,A (2546) Pardubice 2014}) 10. Bc3 f6 (10... c5 11. g3 (11. a4 b6
12. Kh1 Bb7 13. Ne3 Nf8 14. Nf5 Ng6 15. b3 Bc8 16. Bd2 Ne7 17. Ng3 Nc6 18. Bg5
Qd7 19. h3 Qe6 20. Be3 g6 21. Nh2 f5 22. exf5 gxf5 23. f4 {Wei,Y (2530)-Zhao,J
(2589) China 2013} Qg6 $15) 11... f6 12. Nh4 Nb6 13. Ne3 Bh3 14. Re1 Be6 15. a4
Qd7 16. b3 Nc8 17. Rf1 Bh3 18. Nhg2 Be6 19. Nh4 Bh3 20. Nhg2 Ne7 21. f4 exf4
22. gxf4 $14 {Wei,Y (2649)-Parligras,M (2594) Bazna 2014}) 11. Nh4 Nf8 12. Kh1
Ng6 13. Qh5 Be6 (13... Nf4 14. Qf3 Bf8 15. g3 Ne6 16. Qd1 Nd4 17. Ne3 (17. f4
$5) 17... c5 18. b3 Be6 19. f4 exf4 20. gxf4 f5 $5 21. Nhxf5 Bxf5 22. Nxf5 Nxf5
23. exf5 Qd5+ 24. Qf3 Qxf3+ 25. Rxf3 Re2 $44 {Zhao,J (2578)-Melkumyan,H (2678)
Doha 2014}) 14. Nf5 Qd7 (14... Nf4 $5 15. Qf3 (15. Qg4 g6 16. g3 Nd5 $1 $15)
15... Bxf5 (15... Bf8 $5) 16. exf5 Qd7 $11) 15. Nce3 Bc5 16. g3 Ne7 17. g4 Ng6
18. Ng2 Bd6 19. Rae1 a5 20. Re3 Bb4 21. Rh3 Nf8 22. f4 Bxc3 23. bxc3 Qf7 24.
Qh4 $36 {1/2-1/2 (47) Wei,Y (2706)-Balogh,C (2655) Tsaghkadzor 2015}) 6... O-O
(6... Be6 7. O-O Nd7 8. Nb3 Bb6 9. Ng5 Bxb3 10. axb3 f6 (10... Qe7 11. Bd2
O-O-O 12. b4 Kb8 13. c4 Bd4 14. Nf3 Nf8 15. Qa4 a6 16. b5 cxb5 17. cxb5 Qd7 18.
bxa6 Qxa4 19. Rxa4 Ne6 20. axb7 Nc5 21. Ra3 Bxb2 22. Ra2 Nxd3 23. Rb1 c5 {
1-0, Giri,A (2790)-Carlsen,M (2851) Stavanger blitz 2016} 24. Ne1 $18) 11. Nf3
Nc5 (11... Nf8 12. Nd2 Ne6 13. Qh5+ g6 14. Qd1 Qd7 (14... Bc5 15. Nc4 b5 16.
Na5 Qd7 17. Be3 Bb6 18. b4 O-O 19. Qd2 f5 20. exf5 gxf5 21. Qc3 f4 22. Bxb6
cxb6 23. Nxc6 Qd6 24. Rxa7 Rxa7 25. Nxa7 f3 26. Qc6 $18 {Yu,Y (2705)-Kramnik,V
(2760) Doha 2014}) 15. Nc4 Bc5 16. Be3 Bxe3 17. Nxe3 a6 18. b4 O-O 19. Kh1 Kh8
20. Qd2 Rad8 21. Ra5 Qe7 22. g3 Rd4 23. c3 Rdd8 $132 {Van den Doel,E (2564)
-Arnaudov,P (2446) Delft 2016}) 12. Nd2 O-O 13. Nc4 Ne6 14. g3 (14. Kh1 Qd7 15.
Qg4 Rad8 16. Be3 Bd4 17. Bxd4 Nxd4 18. Qxd7 Rxd7 19. Rxa7 Nxc2 20. Rxb7 Rxd3
21. h4 Nd4 $11 {½-½ (72) Nakamura,H (2787)-Kramnik,V (2801) Zuerich rpd 2016}
) 14... Qd7 15. Be3 Bxe3 16. Nxe3 a5 17. Kh1 b6 18. f4 exf4 19. gxf4 Rad8 20.
f5 Nc5 21. Qf3 Qd4 22. Rab1 Rfe8 23. Rg1 Rd7 24. Rg3 Ree7 25. Rbg1 $36 {
Giri,A (2790)-Kramnik,V (2801) Stavanger blitz 2016}) (6... Bg4 7. Nb3 $5 ({
An attempt to improve upon} 7. h3 Bh5 8. Nf1 Nd7 9. Ng3 Bxf3 10. Qxf3 g6 11.
Be3 Qe7 12. O-O-O O-O-O $11 {Anand,V (2775)-Carlsen,M (2870) Chennai 2013})
7... Bd6 8. h3 Bh5 9. Bd2 b6 10. g4 Bg6 11. Nh4 Qd7 12. Qf3 a5 13. Bg5 Ng8 14.
Nf5 f6 15. Be3 a4 16. Nd2 Bxf5 17. exf5 a3 18. b3 Bb4 19. O-O-O Bc3 20. Ne4
Bb2+ 21. Kb1 O-O-O $13 {Yu,Y (2667)-Wen,Y (2581) China 2014/ While the current
position might be unclear, later in the endgame Black paid for his offside Bb2.
}) 7. Qe2 (7. Nc4 Nd7 8. Qe2 {doesn't necessarily have to transpose, Black can
try} f6 9. Bd2 Nb6 $5 10. Ne3 Be6 11. a4 Nc8 12. a5 Ne7 13. b4 Bd6 14. O-O c5
15. b5 a6 16. c4 Ng6 17. g3 axb5 18. cxb5 Qd7 19. Rfb1 Rfd8 20. Bc3 Bf8 21. Ne1
Ne7 22. Nc4 Nc8 $11 {Inarkiev,E (2677)-Bok,B (2611) Moscow 2016}) 7... Re8 (
7... Nd7 $5 {is also interesting, possibly leading to the previous note.
Practical examples are still quite scarce, the theory here is only developing.}
) 8. Nc4 Nd7 9. Bd2 (9. Bg5 f6 10. Bd2 {is an attempt to emulate Caruana, but
Black was OK after} Nf8 11. O-O-O Be6 12. Kb1 Qd7 13. Rhg1 a5 14. g4 Bxg4 15.
Rg3 Ng6 16. Rdg1 Bh5 17. Qf1 Bf8 18. Ne3 Nf4 19. Nf5 g6 20. Bxf4 exf4 21. Rh3
Bxf3 22. Rxf3 Kh8 23. Qg2 Qf7 24. Nh4 {Giri,A (2790)-Eljanov,P (2765)
Stavanger blitz 2016} Re5 25. Rxf4 Rh5 26. Nf3 Bd6 $132) 9... Bd6 (9... b5 $5
10. Na5 Qf6 11. a4 Bb6 {seems weakening, but Black got counterplay after} 12.
Nb3 a6 13. Be3 Rb8 14. O-O Nf8 15. a5 Bxe3 16. Qxe3 Qd6 17. Rad1 Bg4 18. d4
Bxf3 19. Qxf3 Ne6 20. d5 cxd5 21. Rxd5 Qb4 22. Rxe5 Nd4 $11 {Areshchenko,A 
(2661)-Balogh,C (2659) Germany 2016}) (9... f6 10. h4 ({Caruana possibly
intended the analogous} 10. O-O-O $13) (10. b4 $5 Be7 11. O-O {is also
interesting.}) 10... Nf8 11. h5 Be6 12. Ne3 Qd7 13. h6 g6 14. O-O Bg4 15. Nxg4
Qxg4 16. Nd4 Qxe2 17. Nxe2 Ne6 18. g3 g5 19. Be3 (19. Kg2 $11) 19... Bf8 20.
Kg2 Bxh6 21. Rh1 Bg7 22. Kf3 h6 23. Kg4 Re7 24. Raf1 Rf8 25. Rh3 Nd4 26. Nxd4
exd4 27. Bc1 Re5 28. f4 $44 {Adams,M (2744)-Nakamura,H (2793) London 2015
White had enough play for the pawn to hold the balance.}) 10. O-O-O (10. h4 {
was Fabiano's previous try in Wijk 2016; the following 2 games were played on
the same day:} Nf8 (10... c5 11. h5 h6 $2 12. O-O-O Nb8 13. Rdg1 Nc6 14. g4 f6
15. g5 fxg5 16. Nxg5 Nd4 17. Qd1 hxg5 18. Bxg5 Be7 19. Be3 Bf6 20. h6 $18 {
->, Wei,Y (2706)-Navara,D (2730) Wijk aan Zee 2016}) 11. h5 Ne6 12. O-O-O c5
13. Qf1 f6 14. Nh4 Nd4 15. c3 Nc6 16. Nf5 Bxf5 17. exf5 h6 18. g4 Bf8 19. Qe2
Qd7 (19... b5 20. Qe4 Qd7 21. Ne3 Rad8 $13) 20. Be3 Rad8 21. Qc2 Kh7 22. Qb3 a6
23. Nd2 Na5 24. Qc2 Qd5 25. Kb1 Qxd3 (25... c4 $5) 26. Qxd3 Rxd3 27. Ne4 c4 28.
b4 $1 Nc6 29. Rxd3 cxd3 30. a4 Rd8 31. Rd1 Kg8 32. Kb2 $14 {½-½ (60) Caruana,
F (2787)-Karjakin,S (2769) Wijk aan Zee 2016 For more details see the notes by
Mekhitarian in CBM 171.}) (10. g4 Nf8 11. Ne3 Ne6 12. Nf5 a5 (12... c5 13. h4
b5 14. Rg1 Rb8 15. h5 c4 $6 16. dxc4 Qd7 17. c5 $6 (17. O-O-O $14) 17... Nxc5
18. O-O-O Bb7 19. Kb1 Nxe4 20. Ng5 Nxd2+ 21. Rxd2 Qc6 22. f3 e4 23. Nxe4 Bf4
24. Rdd1 Qc4 25. Qf2 Be5 26. Rge1 Rbd8 $15 {Libiszewski,F (2515)-Pashikian,A 
(2606) Al Ain 2015}) 13. h4 a4 14. Ng5 a3 15. b3 Bc5 16. Nxe6 Bxe6 17. Qf3 Bf8
18. Ke2 c5 19. c4 Ra6 20. Bc3 Bd7 21. Ne3 Rae6 22. g5 c6 23. Ng4 R6e7 24. Ne3
b5 25. Rag1 b4 26. Ba1 Bc8 27. h5 Qd6 28. Nc2 f6 $5 29. g6 (29. gxf6 Rf7) 29...
h6 30. Ne3 Rd8 31. Rd1 Qc7 $11 {Anand,V (2803)-Giri,A (2798) Bilbao 2015 The
complete blockade led to a quick draw.}) 10... b5 {Nakamura starts a bayonet
attack. While this is a natural reaction, subsequently he criticised it -
Black's pawns will lack piece support (especially from major pieces) later on.}
({Thus an interesting concept is} 10... c5 11. Kb1 Nb8 $5 {, Black got his
play going after} 12. c3 Nc6 13. Ne3 b5 14. g4 Ne7 15. Ne1 Be6 16. h4 Qc8 17.
Rc1 c4 18. d4 exd4 19. cxd4 Qa6 20. Rc2 c5 21. d5 Nxd5 22. exd5 Bxd5 23. f3 Be6
24. Bc1 Rad8 25. Rf1 c3 26. bxc3 Bc4 $44 {Perez Candelario,M (2527)-Sargissian,
G (2677) Villafranca 2010}) ({On the other hand, in a later game he was too
slow after} 10... Nf8 {Note the N will be misplaced...} 11. h4 b5 12. Ne3 Be6
13. Kb1 c5 14. h5 Qc8 15. Nh4 $1 Qa6 16. b3 Nd7 17. Nef5 Bf8 18. Qg4 c4 19. Bh6
cxb3 20. cxb3 Bxf5 21. Nxf5 g6 22. Rh3 Ba3 23. Rdh1 $40 {Brkic,A (2598)
-Blagojevic,T (2273) Skopje 2016}) 11. Ne3 (11. Na5 $143 $6 c5 {- the N has
nothing it can achieve on the queenside.}) 11... a5 12. Nf5 a4 13. Bg5 $5 {
[%mdl 32] Provocative, White invests time to force a weakness. His strategy
will fully pay off later on...} f6 {Natural enough.} ({One can hardly fault
Black for avoiding} 13... Nf6 14. g4 Be6 15. Kb1 $14 {- the pin seriously
limits his active options.}) 14. Be3 Nc5 15. g4 Be6 ({A logical move, but as
Black will later take on f5 anyway} 15... b4 $5 {might have saved him a tempo.
However, after} 16. g5 {he should again prefer} (16. Bxc5 Bxc5 17. d4 Ba6 $13)
16... a3 $1 (16... b3 $6 17. Kb1 {is similar to the game}) 17. b3 Bxf5 18. exf5
e4 $132) 16. Kb1 b4 17. g5 b3 $2 {The problem with this break is Black can't
activate his major pieces to join the counterattack - his Q and both his Rs
will be ineffective until the bitter end.} ({The right way was already
indicated above:} 17... a3 $142 $1 18. b3 Bxf5 19. exf5 e4 20. dxe4 (20. d4
exf3 21. Qc4+ Ne6 22. fxe6 Qe7 23. Qxc6 Qxe6 $11) 20... Nxe4 21. Qc4+ Kh8 22.
Bd4 {allows} Ra5 $1 {[%csl Rf5]} 23. gxf6 gxf6 $13 {Here Black's forces are
well coordinated and he is doing fine.}) (17... Kh8 18. Rhg1 (18. Bxc5 Bxc5 19.
d4 exd4 20. N3xd4 Qd7 $5 $132) 18... Bxf5 19. exf5 a3 {is a try to get a
better version of the aforementioned position. However, the king on h8 is not
safe due to} 20. Nh4 $1 $36 {[%cal Re2h5,Rg5g6]}) 18. Rhg1 $1 {[%mdl 128]
After the game Caruana admitted he had analysed this type of position and
realised he could simply ignore Black! - the kingside attack is more powerful.}
bxa2+ {Now White's king will be safe, but this goes also for the alternatives:}
(18... a3 19. cxb3 $16) (18... bxc2+ 19. Qxc2 $16) 19. Ka1 Bxf5 (19... g6 20.
gxf6 Qxf6 (20... a3 21. b3 (21. b4 $5) 21... Qxf6 22. d4 Nxe4 23. Nh6+ Kh8 24.
dxe5 Qg7 25. Bd4 $36) 21. d4 $1 Nxe4 22. Nh6+ Kh8 23. dxe5 Qg7 24. Bd4 (24.
exd6 a3 25. c4 $1 {[]} (25. Bd4 $2 axb2+ 26. Bxb2 Qxb2+ $1 27. Kxb2 a1=Q+ 28.
Rxa1 Reb8+ $19) 25... Nc3 26. Qc2 $16) 24... Be7 25. Qxe4 Qxh6 26. Qxc6 $16)
20. exf5 a3 (20... Kh8 21. Nh4 $1 $40 {is a motif we have already mentioned.})
21. b3 Na6 ({Nakumura's original intention} 21... e4 22. dxe4 Rxe4 (22... Nxe4
23. Qc4+ Kh8 24. gxf6 Nxf6 25. Ng5 $18) 23. Rd4 Kh8 24. Qc4 Qe7 25. Kxa2 $16 {
also fails to impress.}) (21... Qe7 {is perhaps more resilient, but White is
still well on top after} 22. Kxa2 $5) 22. c3 $1 {Asks Black a very unpleasant
question - "What do you want?" Stopping Nb4 is even more effective than the
straightforward} (22. d4 $5 e4 23. Qc4+ Kh8 24. gxf6 Qxf6 25. Ne5 $1 $16) 22...
Bf8 (22... Nc5 23. Bxc5 Bxc5 24. d4 exd4 25. Qc4+ Qd5 26. gxf6 Kf7 27. cxd4
Qxc4 28. bxc4 Bb4 29. fxg7 {and Black's counterattack is too slow:} Re2 30.
Ne5+ Kg8 31. Rd3 {[%cal Rf5f7]} Rxf2 32. Ng4 $18) (22... Kh8 23. Nd2 $40 {
is similar to the game.}) 23. Nd2 {[%csl Ge4] Another strong positional move.}
fxg5 24. Rxg5 Nc5 25. Rg3 $1 e4 {Desperately trying to get at the Ka1.} (25...
Qxd3 26. Qxd3 Nxd3 27. Ne4 Nb2 (27... Red8 28. Bg5 {[%cal Rg3d3,Rg5d8]}) 28.
Rdg1 $40 {[%csl Rg7]} Re7 (28... Kf7 29. Bc5 $1 $18) 29. Bh6 Rf7 30. Bxg7 $1
Rxg7 31. Rxg7+ Bxg7 32. f6 $18) 26. Bxc5 (26. dxe4 $18) 26... Bxc5 (26... exd3
$2 27. Qg4 {wins a piece.}) 27. Nxe4 $18 {Material is equal, but only formally
- all White's pieces will soon pounce on the Kg8. The rest is agony.} Bd6 28.
Rh3 Be5 29. d4 Bf6 30. Rg1 Rb8 (30... Bxd4 31. Rd3 $18) (30... c5 31. Qc4+ Kh8
32. Nxc5 $18) 31. Kxa2 Bh4 32. Rg4 Qd5 33. c4 (33. c4 Qxd4 34. Rgxh4 $18 {
and in addition to the extra piece White has an ongoing attack.}) 1-0

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.20"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Svidler, Peter"]
[Black "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A29"]
[WhiteElo "2757"]
[BlackElo "2760"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "99"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%mdl 32]} 1. c4 Nf6 2. Nc3 e5 3. Nf3 Nc6 4. g3 Bb4 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O e4 7.
Ng5 Bxc3 8. bxc3 (8. dxc3 Re8 9. Qc2 Qe7 $11) 8... Re8 9. f3 (9. d3 $5 exd3 10.
exd3 b6 (10... h6 $5) 11. Bd5 $5 Nxd5 12. cxd5 h6 13. Nxf7 $1 $40 {
Christiansen,L-Kaidanov,G/USA ch/1994/}) 9... e3 $5 {The opening discussion is
very interesting, as the advance of the e-pawn disrupts White's coordination
and forces him into unusual solutions. The older solution with the exchange on
f3 unleashes the potential of White's pieces and is more dangerous.} (9... exf3
10. Nxf3 d5 11. d4 $1 Ne4 12. Qc2 Bf5 (12... dxc4 13. Rb1 f5 14. g4 g6 (14...
Nd6 15. Bg5 Qd7 16. Nh4 Nf7 17. Rxf5 Nxd4 18. cxd4 Qxd4+ 19. e3 Qxg4 20. Rxf7
Kxf7 21. Nf3 Bf5 22. Qf2 Kg8 23. Rc1 Bd3 24. Bf4 c6 25. Ne5 Qf5 26. Nxc4 Bxc4
27. Rxc4 {David,P-Polak,T/CZE-ch 1995/1-0 (53)}) (14... fxg4 $6 15. Ne5 Nxe5 $2
(15... Nd6 16. Nxc6 bxc6 17. e4 $44) 16. Bxe4 Ng6 17. Bxg6 hxg6 18. Qxg6 $16 {
1-0 Lesiege,A-Zugic,I/Montreal 2001/ (21)}) 15. Bf4 Be6 16. Rxb7 Bd5 17. gxf5
Nxd4 18. cxd4 Bxb7 19. fxg6 hxg6 20. Ne5 $36 {1-0 Smirin,I-Avrukh,B/Koop
Tjuchem op 1996 (24)}) 13. Nh4 $36 Bg6 14. Bf4 Na5 15. cxd5 Qxd5 16. Be5 Rxe5
17. Nxg6 hxg6 18. dxe5 Qc5+ 19. e3 Ng5 20. Qf2 {Chernin,A-Farago,I/AUT-chT9596
1996/1-0 (114)}) 10. d3 $1 {Svidler is a classical player with a love of sound,
flexible strategic solutions. It is no wonder that he prefers the most
harmonious move.} (10. d4 d6 $5 {/\ Qe7, Na5, h6, Be6 Dlugy,M} (10... Na5 11.
Qd3 b6 12. c5 $2 (12. Bxe3 $1 Ba6 13. Rfe1 Nxc4 14. Bf2 {/\ e4[+]}) 12... Bb7
$1 13. Bxe3 Qe7 14. Bf4 {0-1 Olafsson,H-Naumkin,I/Belgrade GMA 1988 (41)} (14.
Kf2 $4 Ba6 $1 $19) 14... Qxe2 15. Qf5 $5 (15. Qxe2 Rxe2 16. Bxc7 Nd5 $17) 15...
h6 16. Ne4 Nxe4 17. Rae1 (17. fxe4 Qxg2+ $1 18. Kxg2 Bxe4+ 19. Qxe4 Rxe4 20.
Bxc7 Nc4 $17) 17... Nxg3 $6 (17... Nxc3 $1 18. Rxe2 Nxe2+ 19. Kh1 Nxd4 20. Qxd7
Rad8 21. Qg4 (21. Qxc7 Ne6 22. Qe5 Nxc5 $17) 21... Bc8 $17) 18. hxg3 Qb5 (18...
Qxe1 19. Rxe1 Rxe1+ 20. Kf2 $13 Rae8 21. Be5 $1 (21. Bf1 Bxf3 $1)) 19. Qg4 $2 (
19. Bxc7 $10) 19... Qc6 20. Kh2 bxc5 21. d5 Qxd5 22. Bxh6 g6 23. Rd1 Qe5 $1 (
23... Qh5+ 24. Qxh5 gxh5 25. Rxd7 $10) 24. Qxd7 (24. Rxd7 Bc8 $1 $19) 24... Nc4
25. Bf4 Qxc3 26. Qxc7 Ba6 $17 {0-1 (41) Olafsson,H (2525)-Naumkin,I (2440)
Belgrade 1988}) (10... b6 $5) 11. Qd3 Qe7 12. Rb1 Rb8 13. Bh3 b6 14. Bxc8 Rbxc8
15. Nh3 Na5 16. Nf4 c5 17. d5 Nd7 18. Ng2 Ne5 19. Qxe3 Nexc4 20. Qxe7 Rxe7 21.
Kf2 $11 {1/2-1/2 (57) Vaisser,A (2525)-Barbero,G (2495) San Bernardino 1989}) (
10. dxe3 d6 $44 (10... b6 11. e4 (11. f4 {Ribli} h6 12. Nf3 Bb7 13. c5 Na5 14.
Qd4 Qe7 15. cxb6 axb6 16. c4 Qe4 17. c5 Qxd4 18. exd4 Rxe2 {0-1 Fatin,T-Soffer,
R/London Lloyds 1989 (34)}) 11... h6 (11... Ba6 $6 12. f4 h6 13. Nxf7 Kxf7 14.
e5 $40 Bxc4 (14... Ng8 $2 15. Bd5+ Kf8 16. Ba3+ Nge7 17. Qd3 d6 18. Qh7 $18)
15. exf6 $16 {|^}) 12. Nxf7 $5 (12. Nh3 $5 d6 $5 (12... Qe7 13. Nf4 Qc5+ 14.
Kh1 Qxc4 15. Nd5 Nxd5 16. exd5 Na5 17. e4 c6 18. d6 Bb7 19. g4 Qxc3 20. Bd2 Qf6
21. Bxa5 bxa5 22. Qd3 {1/2-1/2 (22) Psakhis,L (2590)-Avrukh,B (2500) Groningen
1996}) 13. Nf2 (13. f4 $6 Nxe4 14. Qd5 Bxh3 $17) 13... Ba6 14. f4 Na5 $13) (12.
Nh3 Ba6 $44 13. Nf2 (13. c5 bxc5 14. Ba3 d6 15. Qa4 (15. f4 $5) 15... Nb8 16.
e5 dxe5 17. Rfd1 Qc8 18. e4 Nbd7 19. Nf2 Nb6 $15 {1/2-1/2 (32) Gulko,B (2595)
-Timoshenko,G (2510) Nova Gorica 1997})) 12... Kxf7 13. f4 Kg8 14. e5 Nh7 15.
Ba3 $2 (15. f5 $8 Qe7 (15... Kh8 16. f6 Nxe5 17. fxg7+ Kxg7 18. Bxa8 c6 19. Bf4
$18) (15... Bb7 16. f6 Rxe5 17. Bd5+ Kh8 18. fxg7+ Kxg7 19. Rf7+ Kh8 20. Bxh6
$18) (15... Ba6 16. e6) 16. f6 gxf6 17. Bd5+ Kg7 (17... Kh8 18. exf6 Nxf6 19.
Bxc6 dxc6 20. Qd4) 18. Qd2 Qxe5 19. Qxh6+ Kh8) 15... Bb7 $17 16. Be4 (16. Qd3
Kh8) (16. Bd5+ Kh8 17. Bf7 Na5 $17 (17... Nxe5 18. Bxe8 Nxc4)) 16... Kh8 17.
Bc2 (17. Bg6 Ne7 18. Bxe8 Qxe8 $13) 17... Nxe5 $1 (17... d6 18. Qd3 Nf8 19.
exd6 cxd6 20. Bxd6 Na5 21. Bxf8 Qxd3 22. Bxg7+ Kxg7 23. exd3 $13) 18. fxe5 Rxe5
(18... Ng5 19. e4 $17) 19. Bxh7 (19. Qd3 Be4) (19. Rf7 {Ribli} Ng5 20. Rf8+
Qxf8 21. Bxf8 Nh3+ 22. Kf1 Rxf8+ 23. Ke1 Ng1 $40) 19... Kxh7 20. c5 Qe8 (20...
bxc5 21. Bxc5 $17) 21. Qd3+ (21. cxb6 {Ribli} axb6 22. Rf8 Qe6 23. Rxa8 Bxa8
$17) 21... Be4 $19 {0-1 (29) Topalov,V (2725)-Gelfand,B (2700) Novgorod 1997})
(10... Na5 {Ribli} 11. e4 h6 12. Nh3 Nxc4 13. Qd4 d5 (13... Ne5 14. c4 d6 15.
Nf4 b6 16. Nd5 c5 $1 17. Qc3 Nxd5 18. cxd5 b5 $6 19. f4 $1 b4 20. Qc2 Nd7 21.
e5 $1 $11 {1-0 Gulko,B-Illescas Cordoba,M/Espana 1996 (41)}) 14. Nf4 c6 15.
exd5 cxd5 16. e4 Qb6 {0-1 Kopilov,N-Raetsky,A/Voronezh 1990 (38)}) (10... Qe7
11. Nh3 (11. e4 Qc5+ 12. Kh1 h6 13. Nh3 Qxc4 14. Nf4 d6 15. Qd2 (15. Nd5 Nxd5
16. exd5 Ne5 17. e4 f5 18. Bf4 fxe4 19. Bxe5 Rxe5 20. fxe4 Qb5 21. Rf4 Qe8 22.
Qf3 Bd7 23. Rf1 $11 {1/2-1/2 (55) Istratescu,A (2618)-Rodriguez Guerrero,E 
(2464) La Roche sur Yon 2006}) 15... b6 16. Rd1 Ba6 17. Rb1 Rad8 18. Rb2 Qa4
19. Qe1 Bc4 20. Nd5 Nxd5 21. exd5 Ne5 22. Qd2 Qa6 $17 {0-1 (73) Conquest,S 
(2536)-David,A (2568) Liverpool 2008}) 11... Qc5 12. Nf4 Qxc4 13. e4 d6 14. Qd3
Ne5 (14... Be6 15. Be3 {1/2-1/2 (15) Khalifman,A (2690)-Grischuk,A (2702)
Kallithea 2002}) 15. Qxc4 Nxc4 16. g4 Rb8 17. Rd1 b6 18. g5 Nd7 19. Nd5 Rb7 20.
f4 Nf8 21. Rd4 Na5 22. f5 Bd7 23. Rb1 c5 24. Rd3 Ba4 25. Bf4 Bc2 $11 {1/2-1/2 
(43) Kasparov,G (2827)-Sadvakasov,D (2585) Astana 2001}) (10... h6 11. Nh3 b6 (
11... Ne5 12. e4 Nxc4 13. Qd4 Ne5 (13... d5 14. Nf4 c6 15. exd5 cxd5 16. e4 Qb6
17. Nxd5 Nxd5 18. exd5 Qxd4+ 19. cxd4 b6 20. d6 Bb7 21. d7 Re7 22. Bh3 Bc6 23.
Bf4 Bxd7 {0-1 Kopilov,N-Raetsky,A/Voronezh 1990 (38)}) 14. c4 d6 15. Nf4 b6 16.
Nd5 c5 $1 17. Qc3 Nxd5 18. cxd5 b5 $6 (18... f6 $1 $13) 19. f4 $1 b4 20. Qc2
Nd7 21. e5 $1 {1-0 Gulko,B-Illescas Cordoba,M/Espana 1996 (41)}) (11... d5 12.
Nf4 dxc4 13. e4 $14) 12. Nf4 (12. e4 Ba6 (12... Qe7 13. Nf4 Qc5+ 14. Kh1 Qxc4
15. Nd5 Nxd5 16. exd5 Na5 17. e4 c6 18. d6 Bb7 19. g4 Qxc3 20. Bd2 Qf6 21. Bxa5
bxa5 22. Qd3 {1/2-1/2 Psakhis,L-Avrukh,B/Koop Tjuchem op 1996}) (12... d6 13.
Nf2 (13. f4 $6 Nxe4 14. Qd5 Bxh3 $17) 13... Ba6 14. f4 Na5 $13) 13. c5 (13. Qa4
$5 Na5 14. c5 Bxe2 15. Re1 Ba6 16. f4 Bb7 17. Nf2 $14) 13... bxc5 14. Ba3 d6
15. Qa4 Nb8 16. e5 $5 dxe5 17. Rfd1 Qc8 18. e4 Nbd7 $1 19. Nf2 Nb6 {1/2-1/2
Gulko,B-Timoshenko,G/Nova Gorica 1997 (32)}) 12... Na5 (12... d6) 13. c5 $13
Qe7 (13... bxc5 $5 14. Rb1 (14. e4)) 14. cxb6 axb6 15. e4 Qc5+ 16. Kh1 (16. Qd4
Nb3 17. Qxc5 bxc5 18. Rb1 Nxc1 19. Rfxc1 Rxa2 $11) 16... Bb7 (16... Qxc3 17.
Bd2 $14) 17. Nd3 Qc4 (17... Qxc3 18. Bb2 $14) 18. Bf4 d6 19. Qc2 $14 Nd7 20.
Rfd1 Qe6 21. Be3 Nc4 22. Bd4 Ra5 (22... c5 23. Bf2 $14 {[%csl Rb6,Rd6]}) (22...
Na3 23. Qb3 $14) 23. Nf4 $11 {1-0 (82) Hansen,C (2595)-Brynell,S (2475) Malmo
1998}) 11. e4 h6 12. Nh3 Be6 13. g4 Qd7 14. c5 dxc5 15. Qe1 Ne5 16. Qg3 Bc4 17.
Re1 Ng6 18. Nf2 Qe6 19. h4 Qa6 20. h5 Nf8 21. e5 Nd5 22. f4 Qa5 23. Bxd5 Bxd5
24. f5 $14 {1-0 (32) Kasparov,G (2775)-Rao,V Harvard 1989}) 10... d5 11. Qa4 {
Technically speaking Svidler is using a new move. Previously only 11.cxd5 and
11.Qb3 were considered worthy of serious consideration. It is no surprise that
he was striving to find an independent idea in case White was well informed .}
(11. cxd5 Nxd5 12. Qb3 (12. Ne4 $6 f5 13. c4 Nf6 (13... fxe4 14. cxd5 exf3 15.
Rxf3 Nd4 16. Rxe3 Bg4 17. Be4 Qf6 $44 {Beltran,S-Veingold,A/Oviedo 25'/1993/
EXP38/} 18. Bb2 Qb6 $1 19. Bxd4 Qxd4 20. Qc1 $8 Bxe2 21. Kg2 Bxd3 $19) (13...
Nde7 $10) 14. Nxf6+ (14. Nc3 Nd4 $10) 14... Qxf6 15. Rb1 f4 16. Bb2 Nd4 17.
gxf4 b6 {0-1 Cuadras,J-Rodriguez,A/Terrassa open 1996 (40)}) (12. f4 Nxc3 13.
Qb3 Nxe2+ 14. Kh1 Be6 15. Nxe6 Rxe6 16. f5 Rh6 17. Bxe3 Ncd4 18. Qxb7 Nxg3+ 19.
Kg1 Nge2+ {0-1 (19) Uhlmann,W (2461)-Hansen,C (2607) Germany 1999}) 12... Na5 (
12... Qxg5 13. f4 Qh5 (13... Nxf4 14. Rxf4 $44 {Karpov}) 14. Bxd5 Bg4 15. Bf3
Rab8 16. Rb1 h6 {0-1 Grant,J-Timoshchenko,G/EU-chTM 1997 (29)}) 13. Qa3 b6 (
13... Qxg5 14. Qxa5 Qe5 (14... b6 15. f4 $16) 15. d4 (15. f4 $2 Nxf4 16. Qxe5
Nxe2+ 17. Kh1 Rxe5 18. Bb2 Rb5 $17) (15. Bb2 $5) 15... Qd6 $10 {/\ Karpov} 16.
Ba3 Qc6 17. f4 Qxc3 18. Qa4 Nf6) 14. f4 (14. c4 $6 Qxg5 15. f4 Nxf4 $1 16. Rxf4
Bb7 $15) 14... Bb7 15. Bb2 (15. c4 Ne7 (15... Nf6 16. Bxb7 Nxb7 17. Rf3 h6 18.
Nh3 Qd7 19. Kg2 Ng4 $13) 16. Bxb7 Nxb7 17. Bb2 c5 18. f5 f6 {1/2-1/2 Nielsen,
P-Savchenko,S/Minsk 1996}) 15... c5 16. c4 Nb4 17. Qc3 f6 18. Bxb7 Nxb7 19. Nf3
Nd6 20. g4 $5 Nc6 21. Kh1 {1/2-1/2 Gulko,B-Ivanchuk,V/Horgen 1995 (29)} (21. g5
Nf5 22. gxf6 Ncd4 $15) 21... Qd7 $1 22. Rg1 Qb7 $1 23. g5 (23. Rg2 $5) 23...
Nd4 24. gxf6 g6 $1 (24... Nxe2 $4 {[#]} 25. f7+ $1 $18) 25. Rg2 N6f5 $1 (25...
Nxf3 $2 26. f7+ $1 Kxf7 27. Qf6+ Kg8 28. Qh8+ Kf7 29. Qxh7+ Ke6 30. Rxg6+ $18)
26. Ng5 Rf8 27. f7+ Rxf7 28. Nxf7 Kxf7 $10 29. Qe1 $1 Nc2 {1/2-1/2 (29) Gulko,
B (2620)-Ivanchuk,V (2740) Horgen 1995} (29... Nc2 30. Qc3 Ncd4 $10)) (11. Qb3
Na5 12. Qa3 c6 (12... b6) (12... c5 13. cxd5 Nxd5 14. f4 c4 15. Re1 Bg4 16. Rb1
Bxe2 17. d4 Nb3 18. Rxb3 cxb3 19. Qxb3 Bh5 20. Bxd5 Qd7 21. Bxe3 Rad8 22. Bg2
Qf5 23. Kf2 Qd3 24. Bf1 Qf5 25. Qb1 Bg6 26. Qxf5 Bxf5 27. c4 {1-0 (27)
Schussler,H (2490)-Garcia Palermo,C (2520) Malmo 1987}) 13. cxd5 cxd5 14. f4
Bg4 $5 {14...Nc6 15.Rb1, Qc7 Kasparov,G-Karpov,A Sevilla (m/2) 1987 i 44/22 14.
..Nc6 15.Bb2!?, Bg4 16.Rae1 Archipov-Naumkin Moskva GMA-op 1989 i 47(45)} (
14... Nc6 $6 15. Rb1 (15. Nf3 Bd7 16. Rb1 (16. Bb2 Ng4 17. Qd6 Ne7 18. Ne5 Nxe5
19. Qxe5 Bg4 20. Rfe1 Qb6 21. Ba3 f6 22. Qd6 Qxd6 23. Bxd6 Rad8 $11 {1/2-1/2 
(37) Cvitan,O (2541)-Gonda,L (2501) Sibenik 2008}) 16... b6 (16... Qc7) 17. c4
Rc8 (17... dxc4 18. dxc4 $13 (18. Ne5 Nd4 $13) (18. Bb2 cxd3 19. Qxd3 $44)) 18.
cxd5 Nxd5 19. Bb2 a5 20. Rfc1 Ncb4 21. Ba1 $1 h6 (21... Nf6 $5 $13) 22. Qb2 $14
{1-0 (29) Mamedyarov,S (2662)-Papa,S (2397) Lausanne 2004}) (15. Bb2 Bg4 16.
Rae1 h6 17. Nf3 Qc8 $5 (17... Qd7 $6 18. Ne5 $1 Qf5 19. c4 Bh3 20. Nxc6 Bxg2
21. Kxg2 bxc6 22. Bxf6 $14)) 15... Qc7 (15... h6 16. Nf3 Qc7 17. Bb2 Rd8 18.
Qc5 Ng4 19. Nd4 Qb6 20. Nb3 Nf2 21. Rfc1 Nh3+ 22. Kf1 g5 23. fxg5 hxg5 24. c4
d4 25. Bxc6 Qxc5 26. Nxc5 bxc6 27. Nb3 $16 {1-0 (38) Komarov,D (2615)-Tseitlin,
M (2505) St Petersburg 1997}) 16. Bb2 Bg4 17. c4 $10 (17. Nf3 Qd7 (17... Rac8
18. Qb3 h6 19. Rfc1 Qd7 20. c4 dxc4 21. Qxc4 Be6 22. Qa4 Nd5 {1-0 Brooks,
I-Fuzishawa,R/ICCF Email 2001/ICCF Telechess CBM 100 (55)}) 18. Ba1 Re7 $5 (
18... b6 19. Rfc1 {/\} Rad8 $6 20. c4 d4 21. c5 $1 $16) (18... Bh3 19. Bxh3
Qxh3 20. Rxb7 Ng4 21. Qc5 $1 $16) 19. Rfc1 Bh3 20. Bh1 Nh5 {/\ Nf4}) (17. Rfe1
$1 $14) 17... dxc4 18. Bxf6 gxf6 19. Ne4 Kg7 (19... Rxe4 $5 20. Bxe4 $8 f5 $1 (
20... Bxe2 21. Rfe1 $16) 21. Bf3 Nd4 (21... Bxf3 22. Rxf3 Nd4 23. Rxe3 Nc2 24.
Qe7 $18) 22. dxc4 Bxf3 23. exf3 e2 24. Rfe1 Qxc4 $44) 20. dxc4 $15 {0-1 (32)
Kasparov,G (2740)-Karpov,A (2700) Seville 1987} (20. Nxf6 $5 Kxf6 21. Rb5 {
Makarichev,S; Radovsky} Rad8 22. Qc3+ Ke7 23. Qxc4 $13) (20. h3 Bxe2 21. Nxf6
Bxf1 22. Qc3 Re5 $1) (20. Qc3 Qd8 $1 (20... Qe7 21. Rxb7 Qxb7 22. Nxf6 Kf8 23.
Nxg4 $18) 21. dxc4 Qd4 (21... Nd4 22. Qxe3 $1) 22. Rxb7 Rxe4 23. Qxd4 Rxd4 24.
Bxc6 $10) (20. Nd6 Re6 21. Nxc4 Rd8 22. f5 Ree8 23. Rb2 Nd4 24. Rxb7 Nxe2+ 25.
Kh1 Nxg3+ $1 $10 26. Kg1 $1 (26. hxg3 $2 Qxg3 $19) 26... Ne2+ (26... Qxb7 27.
Bxb7 Nxf1 28. Kxf1 Bxf5 29. Nd6 $18) (26... Nxf1 27. Rxc7 e2 28. Qxa7 $8 e1=Q
29. Rxf7+ Kh6 30. Rxf6+ $1 Kg5 31. Qg7+ Kf4 32. Qh6#) 27. Kh1 Qc8 $5 (27...
Ng3+ $10) 28. Nd6 Rxd6 29. Qxd6 Bxf5 $44)) 15. Re1 (15. Nf3 Nc6 16. h3 (16. Rb1
Qd7 17. Qb3 b6 18. Bb2 Rac8 19. Rfc1 Bxf3 20. Bxf3 Na5 {0-1 Brooks,I-Tochachek,
M/ICCF Email 2002/ (55)}) 16... Bxf3 (16... Bd7 17. Rb1 Qc7 18. Ne1 Ne7 19. Rf3
d4 20. cxd4 Nf5 21. Qc5 Qd8 22. g4 Rc8 23. Qxa7 Nh4 24. Rg3 Nxg2 25. Nxg2 $11 {
1-0 (67) Papin,V (2534)-Khmelniker,I (2483) Zuerich 2010}) 17. Rxf3 (17. Bxf3
h5 (17... d4 18. c4 $14) 18. Qc5 Rc8 19. Bb2 b6 20. Qb5 Na5 21. Rac1 Rc5 {
1/2-1/2 Eriksson,A-Oestroem,R/Hallsta 1996/ (21)}) 17... d4 18. Bb2 Rc8 19. Rb1
a5 20. cxd4 Nb4 21. Rc1 Rxc1+ 22. Bxc1 h5 23. Bb2 b6 {1/2-1/2 (23) Gulko,B 
(2570)-Korneev,O (2638) Montreal 2006}) 15... h6 (15... Nc6 16. Rb1 Qd7 $6 (
16... h6 $5) 17. h3 $1 $16 {Karpov} (17. Nf3 b6 18. Bb2 $13 Rac8 {18...Bh3!?}
19. c4 Bxf3 20. Bxf3 dxc4 21. dxc4 Na5 {21...Nd4 22.Bxd4, Qxd4 23.Qxa7 +/=} 22.
Bxf6 gxf6 23. Qd3 $1 $14 {1-0 (50) Soffer,R (2440)-Kindermann,S (2560) Bern
1990})) 16. Nf3 Nc6 17. Rb1 Qd7 18. d4 $14 {/\ Ne5+/=} Bh3 19. Bh1 (19. Bxh3
Qxh3 20. Rxb7 Rac8 $5 (20... Ng4 21. Qd6 $1 $13)) 19... Nh5 $1 20. Ne5 Nxe5 21.
fxe5 Qg4 22. Bxe3 Nxg3 23. Bf3 Qg6 (23... Nxe2+ $2 24. Kf2 $18) 24. hxg3 Qxg3+
25. Kh1 Bg4 {0-1 Lautier,J-Illescas Cordoba,M/Dos Hermanas 1995 (40)}) 11... h6
12. cxd5 Nxd5 13. Ne4 f5 (13... a5 14. Bb2 Nde7 15. Rad1 $14) 14. Nc5 f4 $5 {
Karjakin has no interest in opening up the position for the white bishops.
Black would love to capitalise on the fact that the white pieces are quite
cramped due to the black e3-pawn.} (14... Nxc3 $2 15. Qb3+ Nd5 16. f4 Nce7 17.
Nxb7 Bxb7 18. Qxb7 Qd6 19. Ba3 Qxa3 20. Bxd5+ $16) 15. Bb2 (15. Ne4 Rb8 16. Bb2
$14) 15... Rb8 16. c4 (16. Qb5 a6 17. Qb3 b5 18. Rab1 Kh7 19. c4 Nde7 $11) (16.
Ne4 $5) 16... Nde7 (16... Nf6 17. Qa3 b6 18. Ne4 Nxe4 19. dxe4 fxg3 20. hxg3
Qe7 21. Qxe3 Na5 $11) 17. g4 (17. Ne4 $5 Rf8 18. Rae1 $14) 17... b6 18. Ne4 Be6
19. g5 $2 {The position was so original, that both players had to rely on
positional feeling and the proverbial "nose". Svidler is feeling nervous about
the situation and seeks active action on the kingside. Due to the lack of
supporting forces the whole idea should have worked against him. Both players
have been under impression, that the exchange of g5 would not be good for
Black.} (19. Rfd1 Nd4 20. Bxd4 Qxd4 21. Qxa7 Rec8 22. Qa3 Nc6 $11) 19... h5 $6
{Ever since Shakespeare's plays people have known the expression "comedy of
errors".} (19... hxg5 20. Nxg5 Nf5 $17) 20. Rfd1 Nd4 $6 {Black is equally
anxious to fight actively in the centre, but it was completely unnecessary to
sacrifice the pawn.} (20... Bd7 $1 21. c5 Nf5 $17) 21. Bxd4 Qxd4 22. Qxa7 Qd7
23. Qa3 h4 (23... Nc6 24. Rdb1 Bf5 25. h4 $11) 24. Qc3 Bf5 25. h3 (25. Bf1 Ng6
26. a4 $11) 25... Bxh3 $6 {The winner of the whole event was not fsensing the
problems well enough and grabbing the h3-pawn makes life a lot easier for
White .} (25... Nc6 26. Kh2 Nd4 $15) 26. Qe5 $1 Ng6 (26... Bxg2 27. Kxg2 Rf8
28. a4 $14) 27. Qd5+ (27. Bxh3 Qxh3 28. Qxc7 Ne5 29. Rf1 b5 $11) 27... Be6 28.
Qxd7 Bxd7 29. Kh2 Ra8 (29... Kf7 30. Bh3 $11) 30. Bh3 Bxh3 {Ever since the
promising middlegame position Karjakin has begun to drift away with
second-rate decisions. Black is indirectly preparing the scene for the turning
of the tables.} (30... Bc6 31. Nc3 Re5 32. a4 Rxg5 33. d4 $11) 31. Kxh3 Ra3 32.
Rdc1 Rea8 33. Rc2 Kf7 34. d4 (34. Nc3 R3a5 35. Nd5 Nf8 36. Nxf4 Rxg5 $11) 34...
Rd8 35. d5 (35. Rd1 Rda8 36. Nc3 $14) 35... Ne5 36. Rb1 Kg6 $2 (36... Ra6 $1
37. c5 Rxd5 38. cxb6 cxb6 $11) 37. d6 $1 {For the first time in the game White
will be able to reasonably hope for overall success. His pieces will become
active and the black king can not be called safe for the rest of the game.}
cxd6 38. Rxb6 Kh5 39. Nxd6 Rda8 (39... Nd7 40. Rb5 Nc5 41. Rxc5 Rxd6 42. g6+
Kxg6 43. Rb5 Raa6 44. Kxh4 Rd2 45. Rxd2 exd2 46. Rd5 Rxa2 47. Kg4 d1=Q 48. Rxd1
Rxe2 49. Kxf4 $16) 40. Rb5 (40. Nf5 R8a7 41. c5 Nxf3 42. exf3 e2 43. Rxe2 Rxf3+
44. Kg2 Kg4 45. Nd4 Rg3+ 46. Kf1 Ra4 47. Rd6 $14) (40. g6 R8a5 (40... Nxg6 41.
Rb5+ Kh6 42. Nf5+ Kh7 43. Rb7 R3a7 44. Rxa7 Rxa7 45. c5 Ne5 46. c6 Rc7 47. Rc5
Nxc6 48. Kxh4 $18) 41. Nf5 Kg5 42. Nxg7 Rxa2 43. Rxa2 Rxa2 44. Ne6+ Kxg6 45. c5
Kf7 46. Nxf4 $16) 40... Nc6 (40... R3a6 41. Ne4 Nf7 42. c5 $16) 41. g6+ $1 Kxg6
42. Rc1 $1 {An excellent choice of moment for vacating his defensive positions
in order to concentrate forces against the black king.} Kh7 (42... Rxa2 43.
Rg1+ Kh7 44. Rb7 R8a7 45. Rgxg7+ Kh8 46. Rxa7 Nxa7 47. Ne8 Nc6 48. Rc7 Ra6 49.
Nf6 Ne7 50. Rxe7 Rxf6 51. Kxh4 $18) 43. Rg1 R3a7 (43... Nd4 44. Rb7 Rg8 45. Rg4
Nxe2 46. Nf5 Ra6 47. c5 $1 Rf6 48. Rxh4+ Kg6 49. Ne7+ Kf7 50. Nxg8+ Kxg8 51.
Rg4 $18) 44. Rg4 Kg8 {The black king has run for its life into relative safety
on the g8-square. As collateral damage the defender has to live with the fact
that his pawns have become as easy target for the white rooks.} (44... Nd4 45.
Rh5+ Kg8 46. Rgxh4 g6 47. Rh8+ Kg7 48. Ne8+ Kf7 49. Rxf4+ Nf5 50. Kg4 $16) 45.
Rh5 (45. Rxf4 Rxa2 46. Rg4 R8a7 47. Rb6 $16) 45... Ne7 46. Rgxh4 (46. Rxf4 Rxa2
47. Re4 Ng6 48. Rg5 Nf8 49. Rxe3 $18) 46... Ng6 47. Rg4 Nf8 48. Rxf4 (48. Re5
$1 Rxa2 49. Re7 g6 50. Rxf4 R2a7 51. Rxe3 $18) 48... Rxa2 49. Rfh4 $2 {Svidler
must have been deluded when he aligned his rooks on the h-file. Too many of
his last moves were imprecise and suddenly the huge advantage is gone...} (49.
Nf5 R8a7 50. Rfh4 $16) 49... g6 50. Re5 (50. Re5 Rxe2 51. Rhe4 Raa2 52. Kg3 $11
) 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.20"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D37"]
[WhiteElo "2780"]
[BlackElo "2762"]
[Annotator "Sagar Shah"]
[PlyCount "101"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Nbd7 {Such is Anand's faith on his opening,
... he tried it against Aronian, then against Giri and now once again against
Topalov. That's the thing with Anand: once he believes in his opening
preparation he is not afraid of his opponents' novelties.} 5. Qc2 {Topalov
made this move that was played by Giri as well. He got up from his chair and
Anand replied instantly.} Bb4 {A combination of QGD, Ragozin and Nimzo Indian.}
6. cxd5 (6. a3 {was Anish's choice.}) 6... exd5 7. a3 Bxc3+ 8. Qxc3 Ne4 9. Qc2
{Up till here the players have been following the game between Sakaev and
Eljanov from Dagomys 2009. But now Anand deviates.} O-O (9... Ndf6 10. Ne5 Bf5
11. f3 Nd6 12. Qc3 Nd7 13. Bf4 O-O 14. g4 Be6 15. e3 Nxe5 16. Bxe5 h5 17. gxh5
Qh4+ 18. Bg3 Qxh5 $11 {0-1 (50) Sakaev,K (2627)-Eljanov,P (2693) Dagomys 2009})
10. e3 Re8 11. b3 $5 {[%cal Gb2b3] This doesn't seem to be too ambitious.
After that Black can equalise without too many difficulties.} (11. b4 {If you
wanted to develop the bishop on b2 then why not b4? Well, then the b4-pawn
could become a weakness after} a5 12. Bb2 axb4 13. axb4 Rxa1+ 14. Bxa1 Qe7 $15)
11... c6 12. Bd3 Nf8 13. Bb2 Bf5 14. O-O (14. Nd2 Qg5 $15) 14... Qf6 15. Ne5
Nd6 {By exchanging the light-squared bishops, Vishy is mainly aiming for a
position where he would have a knight against the b2-bishop. That would give
Black an excellent position.} 16. Rae1 Bxd3 17. Nxd3 Qg6 18. f3 $5 {The thing
about Topalov is that he always likes to play actively. Here he is looking for
the right moment when he can break in the centre with e4 and at the same time
take that square away from the d6-knight. But Black is just too solid and well
developed.} f6 19. a4 Ne6 20. Qd2 (20. Ba3 Nf5 $11) 20... h5 $5 {In some ways
securing the f5-square for the knight.} 21. Ba3 Nf5 22. Nf4 $6 {This move is
completely illogical. White exchanges the knights and leaves himself with some
weaknesses. Why would White voluntarily want to defend an inferior endgame
when he has an equal position?} Nxf4 23. exf4 {The resulting position looks
mildly in Black's favour. The main reason being that the knight is better than
the bishop and Black's pawn structure is better than White's.} Rxe1 (23... h4
$1 {Securing the f5-knight was also possible.}) 24. Rxe1 Re8 25. Rxe8+ Qxe8 26.
Kf2 {Anand with his micro edge has the right to keep trying.} Nh6 27. Qd3 b6 {
This is a very responsible decision. On one hand Black is weakening the c6
pawn but on the other he is preventing the move a5 followed by Bc5 which would
paralyse his queenside majority. It is always a trade-off and Vishy chose the
move b6. It turns out that the c6-pawn was the reason why he couldn't really
make much progress. What would have happened if Vishy had not played b6 is a
completely different story.} 28. Bb4 Qe6 29. Qc2 Kf7 30. Ba3 Qd7 31. Bb4 Nf5
32. Qd3 g6 33. g3 Ng7 {White doesn't have too many active possibilities. Black
on the other hand can try to use his queenside majority by having the knight
on e6 at some point. Right now it doesn't seem possible because Ne6 is met
with f4-f5, but whether Black can prepare it is the question.} 34. Qe3 Kg8 (
34... h4 35. g4 $11) (34... Qe6 {might have been the best move.} 35. Qxe6+ (35.
Qc3 h4 $17 36. g4 f5 37. g5 Qd7 {and the position has changed in Black's
favour.}) 35... Nxe6 36. Ke3 c5 37. dxc5 bxc5 38. Ba3 f5 $15) (34... Ne6) 35.
Qd3 Kh7 36. Kg2 Qf5 37. Qc3 (37. Qxf5 Nxf5 {would definitely be some progress
for Black.}) 37... Qe6 (37... Qb1 {was possible, but as Vishy said in the
press conference with three moves to go until the time control he didn't want
to let things spiral out of control. In any case it was just a draw.} 38. Qxc6
Qb2+ 39. Kh3 Qxb3 40. Bf8 Qxf3 41. Qxf6 (41. Qc7 $2 Qf1+ 42. Kh4 g5+ $1 43.
fxg5 fxg5+ 44. Kxg5 Qf5+ 45. Kh4 Qg4#) 41... Nf5 42. Qf7+ Kh8 43. Qf6+ $11) 38.
Qd3 a5 39. Bd2 Qf5 40. Qc3 Qe6 41. Qd3 Qf5 42. Qc3 h4 {Vishy shuns the draw
and tries to play for a win.} 43. g4 Qb1 {The queen has made its way into the
enemy camp, but without the knight it cannot do much.} 44. Be3 (44. Qxc6 Qd3
$19 {The bishop on d2 will drop.}) 44... Qd1 45. Bf2 Qe2 46. Qe3 Qxe3 47. Bxe3
Ne6 48. Kh3 g5 49. f5 $1 (49. fxg5 fxg5 {might be a tad better for Black,
although a draw here looks most likely.}) 49... Nf4+ (49... Nc7 {being
over-ambitious might make things completely bad for Black.} 50. f4 $1 $16 {
It's White who has the chances to play for a win now.}) 50. Bxf4 gxf4 51. Kg2 {
There is no way to break through and hence the players agreed to a draw.} (51.
Kxh4 $2 c5 52. dxc5 bxc5 53. Kh3 c4 $19) 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.21"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C54"]
[WhiteElo "2762"]
[BlackElo "2786"]
[Annotator "Marin,M"]
[PlyCount "131"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. O-O d6 5. d3 Nf6 6. c3 a6 7. a4 $5 {Anand
had faced this relatively unexplored line with Black recently and despite
winning the game he must have found it interesting enough to include it in his
repertoire for the Candidates tournament.} Ba7 (7... O-O 8. Re1 h6 {Giri,A 
(2798)-Anand,V (2784) Zuerich 2016 CBM 171 [Marin,M] (0-1, 45)}) 8. Na3 Ne7 9.
Nc2 ({Four rounds later he deviated with} 9. Bg5 c6 10. Nc2 (10. Bxf6 gxf6 {
[%cal Gd6d5,Gh8g8]} 11. d4 d5 12. Bd3 f5 $36) 10... O-O 11. Nh4 d5 12. exd5
Nexd5 13. Nf3 Qd6 14. Re1 Bg4 15. Bh4 Rae8 16. h3 Bh5 17. Bg3 Nf4 18. Bxf4 exf4
19. d4 c5 $36 {Anand,V (2762)-Giri,A (2793) Moscow 2016 (1/2-1/2, 52)}) 9...
Ng6 10. Be3 ({Since the knight will soon land on e3. it does not make sense to
waste a tempo on preventing ...Bg4 with} 10. h3 O-O 11. Re1 c6 12. Ba2 Re8 13.
d4 exd4 14. Ncxd4 Nxe4 15. Bxf7+ Kxf7 16. Rxe4 Rxe4 17. Ng5+ Kg8 18. Nxe4 d5
19. Ng3 Qf6 $11 {Pacher,M (2502)-Kantor,G (2418) Budapest 2016 (1-0, 33)})
10... O-O (10... Bxe3 11. Nxe3 O-O {transposes to the line from the next
comment.}) 11. Bxa7 Rxa7 12. Ne3 Ng4 $6 {Aronian probably felt like taking
advantage of Anand's omitting h2-h3, but his last move will eventually prove a
waste of time resulting in delayed development.} (12... Ra8 13. a5 c6 {[%cal
Gd6d5] looks normal for Black.}) {Anand does not seem keen to play with
doubled pawns.} 13. Qd2 ({Actually, the position resulting after} 13. a5 Ra8
14. h3 Nxe3 15. fxe3 {[%cal Gd1b3,Gd3d4];Anand,V (2784)-Aronian,L (2792)
Zuerich Chess Challenge Rapid 5th 2016 (1) 1-0 yields White some initiative.
In this structure it is useful to have the queen on d1 as it could later go to
b3 or in some cases to f3. Compare with} {If} Be6 (15... Qe7 16. Qb3) 16. Bxe6
fxe6 17. Qb3 Qc8 18. h4 Nh8 19. d4 $14 {White's chances are better despite the
almost symmetrical structure.}) 13... a5 {Black keeps neglecting his
development for the sake of strategic moves.} ({A simpler way was} 13... Ra8
14. a5 Nxe3 15. Qxe3 Qe7 {[%cal Gc8e6]}) 14. d4 Ra8 (14... Nxe3 15. Qxe3 b6 {
highlights White's advance in development after} 16. dxe5 dxe5 (16... Nxe5 17.
Nxe5 dxe5 18. Rad1 Qe8 19. b3 Be6 20. Bd5) 17. Rfd1 Qf6 (17... Qe7 18. g3) 18.
Qg5 Qxg5 19. Nxg5 $14) 15. dxe5 $1 {A principled decision: the better
developed side should open the centre.} N4xe5 16. Nxe5 Nxe5 17. Bb3 $14 {
White has more space and is better coordinated. Black has no significant
weaknesses but needs to act with care.} Nd7 $5 {Anticipating the permanent
threat f2-f4 and aiming to trasfer the knight to a better square. But on c5
the knight will not enjoy the desired stability either.} (17... Be6 18. Bd5
Bxd5 19. Qxd5 Nd7 $14) 18. Bc2 Re8 19. f3 b6 $6 {To a certain extent the same
policy as when Black played ...a6-a5. Black's structure looks nice, but the
last move does not help developing the queenside. Moreover, the weakness of
the long diagonal will cause him huge problems in the endgame.} 20. Rfd1 Nc5
21. b4 Nd7 22. Bb3 {This knight has jumped around a lot without achieving
anything concrete.} Nf6 ({Aronian probably rejected} 22... Bb7 {because he
wanted to neutralise the enemy bishop with ...Be6. But this will not happen.})
23. Qd4 Qe7 24. Nd5 Nxd5 25. Bxd5 Ra7 ({Had Aronian anticipated the problems
with freeing this caged rook, he might have preferred} 25... Rb8 {even though
it implies weakening his queenside.} 26. bxa5 bxa5 27. Qa7 Be6 (27... Rb2 28.
Ra2 $16) 28. Bxe6 fxe6 29. Rab1 Ra8 30. Qb7 $14) 26. b5 $1 Bb7 27. c4 $1 {
After White's precise pawn moves Black can free his rook only by strenghening
White's structure with ...Bxd5, cxd5, when the c7-pawn would be chronically
weak.} Qe5 28. Rac1 Qxd4+ 29. Rxd4 {The endgame is very unpleasant for Black.
White can start a slow kingside attack, enjoying practically an extra rook!}
Kf8 30. Kf2 Ke7 31. f4 f6 32. Rc3 Kd7 33. Rh3 h6 34. Rg3 Re7 35. Rg6 Bxd5 {
A necessary concession.} ({The tortuous regrouping started with} 35... Kc8 {
is too slow:} 36. h4 Ra8 (36... h5 37. Bc6 Bxc6 38. bxc6 Ra8 39. Rd5 $18 {
[%csl Gh5]}) 37. h5 Rb8 (37... Kb8 38. Rd3 Ka7 39. Rdg3 Bxd5 40. exd5 $16 Rg8
$2 41. Rxh6 $1 $18) 38. e5 $1 fxe5 (38... dxe5 39. Rxg7 $3 {[%cal Ge7g7,Gd5e6]}
Bxd5 40. Rxe7 exd4 41. cxd5 $18) 39. Be6+ Rxe6 (39... Kd8 40. fxe5 $18) 40.
Rxe6 exd4 41. Re8+ Kd7 42. Rxb8 Be4 43. Rg8 $18) 36. cxd5 Ra8 37. Kf3 Rae8 {
Black has finally managed to regroup properly. His only chance to survive
White's crushing space advantage is the pressure on e4.} 38. Kg4 ({The most
consistent plan starts with} 38. f5 {for instance} Kc8 39. Kf4 Kd7 40. Rg3 Kc8
41. Rc4 Kd8 42. Re3 Kc8 43. Kg4 Kb7 44. Kh5 Re5 45. Kg6 R8e7 46. g4 Kc8 47. h4
Kd7 48. Rg3 Kd8 49. g5 hxg5 50. hxg5 fxg5 51. Rxg5 Rd7 52. Kh7 Ree7 53. Rg6 Kc8
54. Re6 Kd8 55. Rc2 $18 {[%cal Gc2g2]}) 38... Rxe4 39. Rxg7+ Kc8 {Evacuating
the king from the centre leaves White a free hand on the kingside.} 40. Rd2 Kb8
(40... Rxa4 41. Rc2 Re5 $2 {does not work any more due to} 42. Rgxc7+ Kd8 43.
Rc8+ Ke7 44. R2c7#) 41. Rc2 Rc8 42. Ra2 $18 {For the time being White keeps
his a-pawn. When his kingside attack will reach more advanced phases the rook
will be able to return into play.} Rd4 43. Kf5 Rxd5+ (43... Rf8 44. g3 Rxd5+
45. Ke6 Rd4 46. Ke7 $18) 44. Kxf6 Rf8+ 45. Rf7 Rxf7+ 46. Kxf7 Rf5+ 47. Kg6 Rxf4
48. g3 Rc4 49. Kxh6 {Black has a passive king and an inferior structure. With
just one passed pawn he cannot generate enough counterplay.} d5 50. Kh5 {
The simplest way to start advancing the pawns.} d4 51. g4 d3 52. h4 Rd4 (52...
Rc2 53. Ra1 d2 54. Rd1 $18) 53. Rd2 Kc8 54. g5 Kd7 55. Kg6 Rxh4 56. Rxd3+ Ke8
57. Ra3 {Same comment as on move 42.} Rc4 58. Kg7 Kd7 59. g6 c6 60. Kf6 cxb5
61. g7 Rg4 62. axb5 Rg1 63. Rd3+ Ke8 64. Re3+ Kd7 65. Re5 Rxg7 66. Rd5+ (66.
Rd5+ Ke8 67. Kxg7 {leaves the king cut off from the play, preventing any
counterplay based on advancing the passed pawn.}) 1-0

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.21"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Giri, Anish"]
[Black "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D70"]
[WhiteElo "2793"]
[BlackElo "2794"]
[Annotator "Wagner,D"]
[PlyCount "191"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{In round 9 of the Candidates Tournament attention was especially drawnd to
the game of Giri agianst Caruana, because the latter implemented a completely
fresh and surprising idea with Black in one of the sharpest lines against the
Grьnfeld.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. f3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nb6 6. Nc3 Bg7 7. Be3
O-O 8. Qd2 e5 9. d5 c6 10. h4 cxd5 11. exd5 Na6 $5 {Caruana's team decided to
spring a surprise with this concrete approach. Though probably Black won't
gain full equality if confronted with the best possible play he hopes for the
practical value of the innovation and the complicated character of the
resulting position.} (11... N8d7 $1 {is the normal move.}) 12. h5 Nb4 13. hxg6
(13. Bc5 $6 N4xd5 14. Bxf8 Bxf8 $11) 13... Bf5 $1 {The strong and consistent
follow-up. Black gives up all his kingside pawns, but is able to initiate his
own counterplay afterwards.} (13... fxg6 14. Bc5 N4xd5 15. Nxd5 Nxd5 16. Bc4
Be6 17. Rd1 $16) (13... hxg6 14. g4 $18) 14. gxh7+ Kh8 15. Rd1 $1 {Not
surprisingly Giri was already out of book, but nevertheless he finds all the
critical moves.} (15. g4 Nc2+ 16. Kf2 Bg6 17. Rd1 Nxe3 18. Qxe3 Rc8 19. d6 f5
$132) (15. Ne4 $2 N6xd5 $1 (15... N4xd5 16. Bc5 $14) 16. Bc5 Qa5 $1 17. Bxf8
Bxf8 $19) 15... Nc2+ (15... Rc8 $5 {can be considered.} 16. Nh3 Nc2+ 17. Kf2
Nxe3 18. Qxe3 Na4 {transposition.}) 16. Kf2 Nxe3 (16... Rc8 17. Bh6 $1) 17.
Qxe3 Bd7 (17... Rc8 $5 18. Nh3 (18. Be2 $5 Bc2 (18... Bd7 19. Nh3 f5 20. Kg1
$14) 19. Rd2 Bg6 20. Nh3 f5 21. f4 $14) 18... Na4 19. Nxa4 Qh4+ 20. Kg1 Qxa4
21. Rd2 $1 Qxa2 22. g4 Bd7 (22... Bg6 23. Bd3 f5 24. Ng5 $16) 23. Ng5 Qb1 (
23... f5 24. gxf5 Bxf5 25. Bd3 Rc1+ 26. Kh2 Rxh1+ 27. Kxh1 $16) 24. Ne4 f5 25.
gxf5 Bxf5 26. Nc3 Qa1 27. Kg2 $16) 18. Nh3 f5 ({In the interview after the
game Caruana mentioned} 18... Rc8 {as the right move and explained that he had
mixed up his analysis. But there too White stays on top.} 19. Kg1 f5 20. Nf2 (
20. f4 Qc7 $1) 20... Qf6 (20... e4 21. fxe4 f4 22. Qf3 $18) 21. Bd3 Qd6 22. Rh5
Qg6 23. Qg5 $14) 19. f4 $1 {a good response. The black pawns are blocked and
White intends to consolidate his pieces.} Rc8 (19... e4 20. Ng5 $16 {[%cal
Gg2g3,Gf1e2] is strategically bad for Black.}) 20. g3 Nc4 $2 (20... e4 21. Ng5
{is no fun for Black, of course, but the text move should lose the game.} Bf6
22. d6 Qe8 23. Rd2 Qg6 24. Kg2 $16) 21. Bxc4 Rxc4 22. fxe5 f4 23. Nxf4 Qg5 24.
Rd4 $2 {Unfortunately for Giri, who had already spent a huge amount of time,
he couldn´t come up with the most convincing solution.} (24. Ke1 $1 Bxe5 (
24... Rf5 25. Rh5) 25. Ng6+ Qxg6 26. Qxe5+ Qf6 27. Qxf6+ Rxf6 28. Rd2 $18 {
is technically much easier.}) 24... Rxd4 25. Qxd4 Bxe5 26. Qb4 Rf7 27. Nce2 Bg4
28. Qe4 $16 {Here too White is pretty close to winning with three extra pawns!
But Black still has the pair of bishops and the "safer king" for the moment,
so White's task is still not trivial.} Qf6 29. Rh4 Bf5 30. Qe3 b6 (30... Bxb2
31. Qxa7) 31. b3 Re7 32. Qd2 $6 {This retreat is a bit modest and doesn't
exploit the concrete circumstances of the position well enough.} (32. Rh5 $1
Bxh7 33. Kg1 $18 {Now the Black king is pretty jeopardised and White should
eventually break through.}) (32. Nh5 $5 Qf8 33. Qf3 Rxh7 34. Re4 $1 Qc5+ 35.
Re3 $18) 32... Rc7 33. d6 $6 {Understandably Giri wants to activate his queen,
but there was no need to give up the pawn.} (33. Kf3 $5 Bxh7 (33... Rc2 34. Qe3
Rc7 35. g4 $18) (33... Rxh7 34. Rxh7+ Kxh7 35. g4 Bb1 36. Qc1 $18) 34. Qe3 Kg8
35. Nd4 $18) 33... Bxd6 (33... Qxd6 $5 34. Qxd6 Bxd6 35. g4 Be4 {will also be
a difficult technical job against the two bishops.} 36. Ne6 Rf7+ 37. Ke3 Bb7
38. g5 Re7 39. N2d4 Rxh7 40. Rxh7+ Kxh7 41. Nf4 $14) 34. Qd5 Rf7 35. Kg2 Bc5 $6
(35... Rg7 $1 {is more precise, allowing the defence of the back rank with Qf8.
} 36. Qa8+ Qf8 37. Qxf8+ Bxf8 38. Nd4 Be4+ 39. Kh3 Be7 40. Rh5 Bf6 $14) 36. Rh5
Bg4 37. Rh6 {Exchanging the rooks should make the task easier for White, but
he could have created more practical problems.} (37. Rg5 $1 Bxe2 (37... Bf5 38.
Nc3 Bf8 39. Rg8+ Kxh7 40. Rg5 Kh8 41. Rh5+ Kg8 42. Ne4 Bxe4+ 43. Qxe4 $18) 38.
Qa8+ Rf8 39. Rg8+ Kxh7 40. Rxf8 Bxf8 41. Nxe2 $16 {should be nearly winning
with his queen and strong knight.}) 37... Qxh6 38. Qxf7 Qc6+ 39. Nd5 Be6 40.
Qf6+ Kxh7 41. Qh4+ Kg7 42. Qg5+ Kf8 {Even without rooks it's difficult to make
progress against the two bishops.} 43. Qf6+ (43. Nef4 $5) 43... Kg8 (43... Ke8
44. Qxe6+ Qxe6 45. Nc7+ Kd7 46. Nxe6 Kxe6 47. Nf4+ Kf5 48. Kf3 Bd6 49. g4+ Ke5
50. Ng6+ Kf6 51. Nh4 Kg5 52. Nf5 Bc5 53. Ng3 Kg6 54. Ne4 $18) 44. Qg6+ Kf8 45.
Qh6+ Kg8 46. Qg5+ Kf8 47. Nef4 Bf7 48. Qe5 Kg8 49. Kh3 Qd6 50. Nf6+ Kf8 51. Qf5
Ke7 52. N6d5+ Kf8 53. Kg4 $1 {activating the king!} Bd4 54. Nc7 (54. Qc8+ Kg7
55. Qb7 a5 56. Ne7 $1 {maximizing the coordination of the knights!} Be6+ 57.
Kf3 Kf8 58. Neg6+ Kg8 59. Nxe6 {It´s better to exchange the light-coloured
bishop, because the weakness of the light squares on the kingside is more
easily felt.} Qxe6 60. Nf4 $1 $18) 54... Be5 55. Ncd5 a5 56. Qc8+ Kg7 57. Ne3
Kh7 58. Qb7 (58. Nf5 $1 Qd1+ (58... Qf6 59. Qd7 Kg8 60. Kf3 Bxf4 61. Kxf4 $16)
59. Kg5 $18) 58... Kg8 59. Qa8+ Qb8 60. Qe4 Qd6 61. Nf5 Qd1+ 62. Ne2 (62. Qf3
Qxf3+ 63. Kxf3 Kh7 {should be drawn.}) (62. Kh3 $1 Qf1+ 63. Kh2 Qf2+ 64. Ng2 {
For the moment White needs to retreat with his pieces in order to activate
them with even more force after consolidation. Of course it´s difficult to
decide on such a way of play during a practical game.} Bf6 65. Kh3 Kh7 66. Ngh4
Qf1+ 67. Kg4) (62. Kg5 Qd8+ $1) 62... Bg7 63. Nxg7 $2 {I don't like this
exchange at this specific moment. In general it's good to halve the opponent's
pair of bishops, but the problem is that the remaining White knight is
currently pinned and it's difficult to restore coordination in the white camp.}
(63. Kh3 $1 Qf1+ 64. Kh4 $16 {should be preferred.}) 63... Kxg7 64. Qe5+ Kg6
65. Kf3 (65. Qe7 Kg7 66. Kf3 Qd3+ 67. Qe3 Qf5+ 68. Kg2 Qc2 69. Qc3+ Qxc3 70.
Nxc3 Kf6 71. Kf2 Ke5 72. Ke3 Be6 {with enough activity for a draw.}) 65... Qd3+
66. Kf2 Qc2 67. Qd6+ Kg7 68. Qd4+ Kg8 69. Qg4+ Kf8 70. Qa4 Be8 (70... Qd2 71.
g4 Kg8 $11) 71. Qa3+ Kg8 72. Qe7 Bf7 73. Qd8+ Kg7 74. Qd4+ Kg8 75. Qa4 Qd2 (
75... Kg7 $11 {is easier.}) 76. Qg4+ Kf8 77. Qc8+ $1 Ke7 (77... Be8 $5 78. a3
Qb2 79. Qe6 Qxa3 80. Qxb6 Qb2 $11) 78. Qc7+ Kf8 79. a3 $1 Bxb3 80. Qb8+ Kf7 81.
Qb7+ Kg8 82. Qxb6 Qa2 83. Qd8+ Kf7 84. Qd7+ Kg8 85. Qe8+ Kg7 86. Qe7+ Bf7 87.
g4 Qd2 {White still cannot make real progress.} 88. Qc5 (88. Qe3 Qxe3+ 89. Kxe3
Kf6 {the main problem is that the ending is drawn without queens.} 90. Nd4 a4
91. Kf4 Bb3 92. g5+ Kg6 93. Nf3 Bc2 94. Ne5+ Kg7) 88... Be6 89. Qe5+ Kf7 90. g5
Qa2 91. Qf6+ Ke8 {White suffers from his weak king and lacks activity. He has
no chance of converting his extra pawn.} 92. Qh8+ (92. g6 Bc4) (92. Ke3 Qxa3+
93. Kf4 Qd6+) (92. Qc3 Bc4) 92... Ke7 93. Qh7+ Kf8 94. Qh8+ Ke7 95. Qg7+ Ke8
96. Qh8+ {Giri reacted pretty well in the opening. Had he made the decisive
blow on move 24 he would have definitely won the game. After this inaccuracy
Caruana defended very tenaciously and deservedly reached a draw} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.21"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Black "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2790"]
[BlackElo "2760"]
[Annotator "Sagar Shah/CB Website"]
[PlyCount "88"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. b3 Bb4+ 6. Bd2 Be7 7. Nc3 d5 8. cxd5
exd5 9. Bg2 O-O 10. O-O Re8 {What is wrong with Sergey, or should we ask: how
exactly does he believe so much in his system! He has played this for the
fourth time in the tournament. Nakamura tries to follow the path taken by
Veselin Topalov.} 11. Rb1 {[%cal Ga1b1]} Nbd7 {Karjakin improves on his game
against Topalov, where he went c5.} 12. b4 Bc4 13. Bf4 {This is the logical
move with the threat of Nd2.} Ne4 {Stopping Nd2.} 14. Nxe4 dxe4 15. Nd2 Bxa2
16. Bxe4 Bxb1 17. Qxb1 Nf6 $1 {Giving back the exchange. Saving the rook and
giving up the h7 pawn is just too dangerous.} 18. Bxa8 Qxa8 {The position is
relatively even at this point. The question is what exactly was Nakamura's
home preparation all about if the best he could manage was this position.} 19.
e4 Rd8 $5 {This natural move was not studied by Nakamura in his home
preparation.} 20. Be3 $5 (20. d5 {is a bad move because of} c6 $1 21. d6 Bxd6
22. e5 Bxe5 $1 23. Bxe5 Rxd2 $17) (20. Be5 Ng4 $15) 20... Ng4 21. h3 $5 (21.
Rc1 {is another option at this point.} Nxe3 {Ok, Black is not really forced to
take on e3, but definitely the move Rc1 looks useful. Nakamura wanted to open
the f-file immediately for his rook.} 22. fxe3 $14) 21... Nxe3 22. fxe3 a5 $1 {
I like this move – it immediately clarifies the situation on the queenside.}
23. bxa5 (23. Qb3 Rf8) 23... Qxa5 24. Qc2 Qg5 25. Rf3 (25. Qxc7 Qxe3+ 26. Rf2
Bf6 $17) 25... c5 {Black is already very comfortably placed.} 26. Qb3 cxd4 27.
Qxf7+ Kh8 28. h4 (28. exd4 Qxd2 29. Qxe7 Qxd4+ 30. Kg2 $11) 28... Qe5 (28...
Qc5 29. Nb3 Qe5 30. Nxd4 Qxe4 31. Ne6 Rg8 32. h5 $36) 29. Nc4 Qxe4 30. Rf4 Qb1+
31. Kh2 (31. Kg2 Qa2+ 32. Kh3 Bb4 $11) 31... Rg8 32. exd4 b5 33. Ne5 Bd6 34.
Qd5 Qc2+ 35. Kg1 Bxe5 36. dxe5 Qe2 37. Rf2 Qe3 38. Kg2 b4 39. e6 (39. Qb5 $5 g5
$1 {Not at all an easy move to make, but it does equalize the game.} 40. h5
Qe4+ 41. Kh2 Qg4 $11) 39... h6 40. Qd7 Qe4+ 41. Kh2 Kh7 42. e7 Ra8 $1 {An
important idea creating mating nets on the back rank and securing the draw.}
43. Rg2 b3 44. Qb5 Qxe7 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.21"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Black "Svidler, Peter"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "C88"]
[WhiteElo "2780"]
[BlackElo "2757"]
[PlyCount "93"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[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. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. a4
b4 9. d3 h6 10. Nbd2 d6 11. c3 Rb8 12. h3 Re8 13. d4 Bf8 14. a5 bxc3 15. bxc3
exd4 16. cxd4 Nb4 17. Ba3 d5 18. Ne5 Bb7 19. Qf3 Ba8 20. Nxf7 Kxf7 21. e5 Kg8
22. exf6 Qxf6 23. Rxe8 Rxe8 24. Qc3 c5 25. Nf3 Rb8 26. Ne5 cxd4 27. Qxd4 Bd6
28. Bb2 Qxe5 29. Qxe5 Bxe5 30. Bxe5 Rb5 31. Bd1 Nd3 32. Bd4 Bc6 33. Bc2 Nf4 34.
Be5 Rc5 35. Bd1 Nd3 36. Bd6 Rc3 37. Bg4 Kf7 38. Ra2 Bb5 39. Re2 Rc6 40. Bb8 Nc5
41. Re5 d4 42. Bf3 Rc8 43. Bd6 Ne6 44. Bh5+ Kf6 45. Bg4 Rc1+ 46. Kh2 Bc4 47.
Rf5+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.23"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A29"]
[WhiteElo "2786"]
[BlackElo "2780"]
[Annotator "Mekhitarian,K"]
[PlyCount "116"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. c4 {The English Opening, extensively discussed in the 2016 Candidates
Tournament. It can be justified by the current trend - being able to develop
your pieces and keep the game flexible without engaging in a theoretical
battle every single game.} e5 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. Nf3 Nc6 4. g3 Bb4 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O
d6 7. d3 h6 8. Na4 $5 {White simply wants to play a3-b4. This is a rare idea,
but it was also played in the very same round at the same Candidates
Tournament, by Svidler against Nakamura.} a5 {The standard reaction.} 9. b3 {
This is also possible because of Na4 (otherwise the knight would be hanging on
c3). After Bb2, e3, we go into a complex middlegame full of possibilities.} Qe7
(9... Re8 {was played in the other twin game of the round} 10. Bb2 Bf5 {
Black is not scared of e4, because that would simply weaken d4 too much} 11. e3
Qe7 12. a3 Bc5 13. Nc3 Qd7 14. Nd5 $5 {defines the position rather quickly, it
was also possible to keep everything more flexible, as did Aronian in his game.
} (14. d4 $5 exd4 15. exd4 Bb6 {and now both 16.d5 or the cool 16.Qd2 look
interesting for White}) 14... Nxd5 15. cxd5 Ne7 16. d4 exd4 17. Nxd4 Bh3 18. e4
$11 {½-½ (30) Svidler,P (2757)-Nakamura,H (2790) Moscow 2016, and after many
simplifications, the game ended in a draw at move 30.} (18. Qd3 $5 Bxg2 19.
Kxg2 c6 (19... Nxd5 $2 20. Nf5 $1 Qc6 21. Kg1 f6 22. b4 $1 axb4 23. axb4 Rxa1 (
23... Bxb4 $2 24. Rxa8 Rxa8 25. e4 $18 {because of Ne7+}) 24. Rxa1 Bxb4 25. Rd1
Nc3 26. Rc1 Qe4 27. Qxe4 Rxe4 (27... Nxe4 28. Rxc7 $18 {with a decisive attack}
) 28. Bxc3 Rc4 29. Bb2 Rxc1+ 30. Bxc1 $16 {should be winning for White}) 20.
dxc6 bxc6 21. Rac1 {also doesn't look much because Black has counterplay on
the b3-pawn as well} Rab8 $44)) 10. Bb2 Bc5 11. e3 {This is the spirit,
keeping a very flexible position, Black has to be watching d4 or Nh4-f4 as
well. Also, Black's dark-squared bishop becomes somewhat awkward, since White
is the one who will decide if he is going for d4, and when. I think the whole
point is that White can gradually improve his position by pushing his pawns 
(like the ones I mentioned, or even a3-b4). And that is annoying for Black,
who doesn't have a clear pawn break. His pieces eventually will lack space.}
Ba7 12. Nc3 Re8 13. Nh4 $5 {Avoiding ...Bf5 and asking Black how is he going
to develop from here.} Qd8 {A kind of mysterious way to reorganise the pieces,
the queen just came from d8!} 14. Qd2 Ne7 15. Rad1 c6 {Having developed almost
all the pieces, Aronian could start thinking about some central action.} 16.
Ne2 $5 {I think he wants to play d4 and be able to take with a piece, and then
put some pressure on d6.} (16. d4 exd4 17. exd4 d5 {probably wasn't too
attractive for White. If c5, Black is able to regroup with Bb8, and then the
d4-pawn could become a weakness.}) 16... Nf5 17. Nxf5 Bxf5 18. d4 Qc8 (18...
Qc7 {followed by Rad8 was also possible.The Qc8-Bh3 idea could be prepared
later, after bringing the rook to d8.} 19. Nc3 Rad8 $13) 19. Nc3 {The problem
for Black is that White gradually improves his position, and Black has to be
waiting. Topalov did try to take immediate action, but ended up in a worse
position.} exd4 $5 20. exd4 {Now there is a positional threat of d5, and Black
has to be creative to avoid going into a worse position.} Ne4 $2 {Seemingly
natural, this move puts Topalov in big trouble, because of his lack of
development.} (20... Bh3 $1 21. d5 {Black has to deal with the weakness of the
d6-pawn without playing ...c5 (that would simply bury the bishop on a7)} a4 $1
22. dxc6 (22. Nxa4 Ne4 23. Qd3 Qf5 $1 $132) 22... Bxg2 23. Kxg2 bxc6 24. Nxa4
Ne4 $132 {followed by ...Ng5, with counterplay.}) 21. Nxe4 Bxe4 22. Bxe4 Rxe4
23. Rfe1 $1 $16 {Simple and good, Black has problems controlling the invasion
on the e-file.} (23. d5 $6 {wouldn't be a big deal now} Bc5 $1 $11 {and Black
is fine after ...Qf5 and ...Rae8}) 23... Rxe1+ 24. Rxe1 Qf5 25. Re7 Rb8 26. Kg2
Bb6 27. Qe2 d5 28. c5 $2 (28. Qf3 $1 {keeping the pressure on d5, was stronger.
It is really hard to give Black any good advice here, his pieces are paralysed
and White has a clear plan (Rd7 to threaten d5, or force Black to play ...dxc4
and give White a passed pawn on the d-file)} Qxf3+ 29. Kxf3 dxc4 (29... a4 30.
cxd5 axb3 31. axb3 cxd5 32. Rd7 $16 {with big winning chances, after taking on
d5}) (29... Bd8 30. Re8+ Kh7 31. Ba3 Bc7 32. Re7 $18) 30. bxc4 $16 {and Ke4
followed by d5 (or Ba3-Bd6) most likely will be decisive.}) 28... Bd8 29. Re8+
Kh7 30. Bc3 (30. Qf3 $5 {was a possible try, but was not going to lead White
anywhere at this point} Qxf3+ (30... Qd7 $6 31. Rf8 f6 32. Qe2 {with a strong
initiative} Bc7 $2 33. Qd3+ g6 34. Rxf6 $18) 31. Kxf3 Kg6 {threatening ...Bc7
now that f7 is defended} (31... Bc7 $2 32. Re7 $18 {wins the f7-pawn and most
likely the game}) 32. Bc3 (32. a4 {there is no time for this} Bc7 $11) 32... a4
$1 (32... Bc7 33. Rxb8 Bxb8 34. Bxa5 $18 {is an easy win after a4-b4-b5, etc})
33. bxa4 Bc7 {now Black wants to play ...Ra8 if the white rook retreats} 34.
Rxb8 (34. Re2 Ra8 35. Rb2 Ra7 $11 {and it looks like Black will not have any
kind of problems holding this}) 34... Bxb8 $11 {has to be a draw, the extra
a-pawn is useless}) (30. Qe5 Qd7 $1 {and Black holds his own after ...Rc8 and
the bishop moving to f6, for example} (30... Qxe5 $2 31. dxe5 Kg6 {here
playing ...Bc7 doesn't help that much, White has a strong central pawn mass now
} 32. f4 Bc7 33. Re7 Rc8 34. g4 $18) 31. Bc3 Rc8 32. Qe2 {White tries to
retain a little pressure, but I think this is going nowhere} g6 33. h4 h5 $11 {
it is important to notice that the d4-pawn also could be under attack (after ..
.Bf6, for example).}) 30... Rc8 31. Rf8 (31. Qf3 Qd7 32. Rf8 Bf6 $1 33. Rxc8
Qxc8 34. Bxa5 Qa8 $132 {with enough counterplay to equalise the game.}) (31. h4
$5 Bc7 32. Re7 Kg8 33. h5 {this could be a small achievement - fixing the
structure on the dark squares on the kingside.} Kf8 34. Re3 Ra8 35. a4 Qd7 $11
{with ...Re8 next, I don't see how White will pose sany problems for Black.
The weakness on a5 and the fixing of the h6-g7 structure will not be enough,
the position remains very closed.}) 31... Bc7 32. Rxc8 Qxc8 33. Qe7 Kg8 34. h4
h5 35. Bd2 Qd8 $11 {Reaching full equality; White still plays on, but the
worst has passed for Black.} 36. Qe2 g6 37. Qe1 Kg7 38. a3 Qf6 39. b4 axb4 40.
axb4 Qf5 41. Qd1 f6 42. Be1 Kf7 43. f3 g5 44. Bf2 Qg6 45. Kf1 Qf5 46. Kg2 g4
47. f4 Qe4+ 48. Kg1 Ke6 49. Qb3 Qe2 50. Qb1 f5 51. Qa1 Qa6 52. Qe1+ Kf7 53. Qb1
Kf6 54. Qe1 Qa8 55. Qe2 Qc8 56. b5 Qe6 57. Qxe6+ Kxe6 58. b6 Bd8 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.23"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A29"]
[WhiteElo "2794"]
[BlackElo "2762"]
[Annotator "Marin,M"]
[PlyCount "65"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. c4 e5 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. Nf3 Nc6 4. g3 Bb4 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O e4 7. Ng5 Bxc3 8.
bxc3 Re8 9. f3 exf3 {Almost three decades have passed since Kasparov surprised
Karpov by introducing the English Opening as a main weapon in the 1987 Seville
match, but the theoretical discussion still seems far from reaching an end.} ({
In the first match of the game the surprise turned out to be a boomerang when
Karpov reacted here with} 9... e3 $5 {, a novelty he had prepared for his
earlier matches with Korchnoi but which he had never got the chance to use.
Taken away from his analysed lines, Kasparov thought a lot before playing} 10.
d3 {, eventually got into severe time trouble and lost. Based on the fact that
Karpov did not repeat 9...e3 in later games, many commentators including
Kasparov and some of his seconds claimed that 10.d3 was some sort of
refutation of Karpov's idea. But then I wonder why in a much later game
Kasparov,G (2827)-Sadvakasov,D (2585) Astana 2001 (½-½, 43) Kasparov
deviated with 10.dxe3. Be it as it may, the game Svidler,P (2757)-Karjakin,S 
(2760) Moscow 2016 (½-½, 50) played two rounds earlier than Caruana-Anand
went 10.d3 and Black eventually came under serious positional pressure.}) 10.
Nxf3 d5 11. d4 ({This novelty over} 11. cxd5 Nxd5 12. e4 Nb6 13. d4 {Uhlmann,W
(2530)-Smyslov,V (2620) Hastings 1972 (1-0, 30); was introduced by Kasparov in
his Moscow 1988 game against Ivanchuk. White sacrifices the c4-pawn in order
to obtain a central majority which was not that easy to block.}) 11... dxc4 {
Anand surely knew what he was doing since he had played this before.} ({
The aforementioned game went} 11... Ne4 12. Qc2 dxc4 13. Rb1 f5 14. g4 {
causing Black to lose ground in the centre and ending in a white win just ten
moves later Kasparov,G (2760)-Ivanchuk,V (2625) Moscow 1988 . (1-0, 24)}) 12.
Qc2 $146 ({Deviating from} 12. Bg5 h6 13. Bxf6 Qxf6 14. e4 $14 {Aronian,L 
(2765)-Anand,V (2816) Saint Louis 2015 (½-½, 31); and depriving Anand of the
possibility of showing his improvement. In principle, Bc1-g5 remains a
thematic threat, but the move order chosen by Caruana is more subtle. He not
only keeps an eye on the e4-square, preparing the dreamed of e2-e4, but also
prevents the natural and most desirable developing move for Black, namely ...
Bf5.}) 12... h6 {Anand decides to prevent Bg5, but the weakness of the h6-pawn
will soon prove decisive. However, it is not easy to find a convenient way of
completing Black's development.} (12... Bg4 {exposes the bishop to} 13. Bg5 h6
14. Bxf6 Qxf6 15. Ne5 Qg5 16. Nxg4 Qxg4 17. e4 {with a clear superiority of
the bishop over the knight. Black's extra pawn does not really count while
White's initiative in the centre and on the kingside is not easy to neutralise.
}) ({The pressure along the e-file set up by} 12... Qe7 {is partly illusory:}
13. Re1 Ne4 ({The most natural move, which fails to stabilise the centre,
though. If} 13... Bg4 14. Rb1 Rab8 15. e4 $1 {White gets a threatening
position since} Nxe4 $2 {loses material:} 16. Nh4 f5 17. h3) (13... Qe4 {
only apparently gains a tempo because the queen is exposed on e4:} 14. Qb2 {
Targeting b7 and delaying the c8-bishop's development.} Qg4 15. e4 $1 Rxe4 16.
Bg5 {with a considerable advance in development and strong initiative for
White.}) 14. Ne5 Nxe5 15. Qxe4 Ng6 16. Qxe7 Nxe7 ({Keeping the control of the
d5-square for if} 16... Rxe7 17. Bd5 {retrieves the pawn keeping the bishop
pair and the mobile centre.}) 17. Bf4 c6 18. e4 Be6 19. a4 {White will soon
set up pressure along the b-file while the permanent threat of d4-d5 restricts
Black's regrouping possibilities. Once again the extra pawn is not too
relevant and White has chances for a one-sided squeeze.}) (12... Be6 13. e4 $16
{is simply bad for Black.}) 13. Bf4 Ne4 14. Rad1 $5 {Very logical play by
Caruana who before undertaking anything concrete completes his development
harmoniously. The last move deserves some special attention, though, since the
rook may seem to belong to either b1 or e1. Caruana's idea was to force Black
to reveal his cards in view of the positional threat d4-d5.} (14. Rae1 {
[%cal Gf3d2] has a hidden drawback:} Bf5 15. Ne5 Nxg3 16. e4 Nxf1 17. exf5 Nxh2
18. Bxh2 f6 {[%csl Ge1]}) 14... Bf5 {Aiming to consolidate in the centre while
also completing the development.} (14... f5 {fails to consolidate the knight
after} 15. Ne5 Nxe5 16. Bxe5 {, when the e5-bishop is an unchallenged monster
on the dark squares.}) ({The optically safer} 14... Qe7 {does not spare Black
problems:} 15. d5 Nb8 16. Rd4 Nd6 17. e4 {White's compensation for the pawn is
beyond doubt.} f6 18. e5 fxe5 19. Nxe5 Bf5 20. Qf2 $36) 15. Ne5 Nd6 $6 {
Losing ground in the centre.} (15... Nxg3 {allows} 16. e4 Nxf1 17. exf5 Nxh2
18. Bxh2 {but things may be not entirely clear due to Black's numerous pawns.}
Nxe5 19. Bxe5 Qg5 20. Rf1 c6 {For instance if} 21. f6 Rxe5 $5 22. dxe5 Re8 {
Three pawns for a bishop may well ensure a draw.}) 16. e4 Bh7 {The bishop has
landed on a joyless position and the knights are far from optimally placed,
too. We can see one more benefit of having played Rad1: the exchange on e5
loses a piece to dxe5.} 17. Qe2 $1 {A strong queen switch to the kingside.} Ne7
$6 {Removing the pressure on the central knight frees the bishop from its
defensive task making it available for an elegant combination. But at the same
time Black has no constructive moves...} 18. Bxh6 $1 {By far not the only good
move and curiously not among the engines' favourites.} gxh6 19. Qh5 Nef5 {
A despairing defence, returning the extra piece in order to exchange queens.} (
19... Z0 {White threatened to continue his attack with simple moves:} 20. Qxh6
Nc6 21. Ng4 Re6 22. Qf4 (22. Nf6+ Rxf6 23. Rxf6 Qf8 24. Qh4 {is also
reasonable, maintaining the initiative with approximately equal material, but
the main continuation, threatening to reinforce the threat Nf6+ with e4-e5, is
stronger.}) 22... f5 23. d5 {with a winning attack in which all White's pieces
take an active part.}) ({If} 19... Kh8 20. Rxf7 Rf8 21. Rxf8+ Qxf8 22. Rf1 Qg8
23. Nf7+ Nxf7 24. Rxf7 Nc6 25. e5 Qg5 26. Qxg5 hxg5 27. Rxc7 {White would soon
get a lot of pawns for the knight, with every chance to win.} Re8 28. Rxb7 Nxe5
(28... Ne7 29. d5 $18) 29. dxe5 Rxe5 30. Bf1 $5 Bd3 31. Bxd3 cxd3 32. Rd7 Re1+
33. Kg2 Re2+ 34. Kh3 Rxa2 35. Rxd3 Kg7 36. Kg4 Rxh2 37. Rd7+ Kf6 38. Rxa7 $18)
20. exf5 Qg5 21. Qxg5+ hxg5 22. f6 $16 {White has retrieved the sacrificed
pawn and even though the position has calmed down, Black is under serious
pressure on both wings.} Ne4 {The adventure initiated by this move will only
speed up Black's demise.} 23. Rfe1 ({The simple} 23. Bxe4 Bxe4 24. Nxc4 Rad8
25. Ne5 {also looks convincing. White is a pawn up and his stable centralised
knight is more impressive than the bishop.}) 23... Nxc3 24. Rc1 Nb5 25. Bxb7
Rad8 {Sacrificig the exchange for insufficient compensation.} ({But} 25... Rab8
26. Bd5 {would win the c4-pawn with a more or less winning position.}) 26. Bc6
Nxd4 27. Bxe8 Rxe8 28. Kf2 Nc2 29. Red1 Be4 ({Freeing the h7-square for if} 
29... Rxe5 30. Rd8+ {mates on the next move.}) 30. Nxc4 Re6 31. Rd8+ Kh7 32.
Kg1 $1 {Planning to defend the f6-pawn with Rf1.} Rxf6 33. Rf1 {After the
forced exchange of the rooks White will soon win at least one pawn, with an
elementary win.} 1-0

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.23"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Black "Giri, Anish"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D46"]
[WhiteElo "2760"]
[BlackElo "2793"]
[PlyCount "62"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. Nf3 d5 2. d4 Nf6 3. c4 c6 4. Nc3 e6 5. e3 Nbd7 6. Qc2 Bd6 7. Be2 O-O 8. O-O
dxc4 9. Bxc4 b5 10. Bd3 Bb7 11. a3 Rc8 12. b4 a5 13. Qb3 e5 14. Ne4 Nxe4 15.
Bxe4 g6 16. dxe5 Nxe5 17. Nxe5 Bxe5 18. Bb2 a4 19. Qc2 Bxb2 20. Qxb2 Qe7 21.
Qc2 Rfe8 22. Bf3 c5 23. Bxb7 Qxb7 24. bxc5 Re5 25. Rfc1 Qc6 26. Rab1 Rxc5 27.
Qxc5 Qxc5 28. Rxc5 Rxc5 29. Kf1 h5 30. Ke2 Rc2+ 31. Kf3 Rc5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.23"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Svidler, Peter"]
[Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A29"]
[WhiteElo "2757"]
[BlackElo "2790"]
[Annotator "Sagar Shah/CB Website"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. c4 e5 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. Nf3 Nc6 4. g3 Bb4 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O d6 (6... e4 {
is the much sharper line.}) 7. d3 h6 8. Na4 $5 {Of course, the idea of this
move is to catch the bishop on b4.} a5 9. b3 Re8 10. Bb2 Bf5 11. e3 Qe7 {
The main reason why the queen is not so well placed on e7 is because from d7
it can prepare the bishop going to h3, and also the e7 square can be kept free
for the knight on c6.} ({After the game Hikaru said that he knew Qd7 wasn't a
good move. It seems like he confused this position with some other position,
or he saw something really deep, because on the surface Qd7 looks perfectly
alright. The thing to worry about is surely d4 trying to trap the bishop. So
let's have a look at that move.} 11... Qd7 12. d4 e4 13. Nh4 Bg4 14. Qc2 d5 $5
(14... g5 {now doesn't work due to} 15. f3 $1 {and now Black would have hoped
that his queen was on e7.}) 15. a3 Bf8 16. Nc3 {and this might be the position
which has to be delved into.}) 12. a3 (12. d4 e4 13. Nh4 Bg4 14. Qc2 g5 $15)
12... Bc5 13. Nc3 (13. h3 $5 $14 {I like this move because it takes advantage
of the fact that the queen and the bishop have not taken control of the c8-h3
diagonal.}) 13... Qd7 {Now that d4 is no longer a threat, Black puts his queen
on the right spot and prepares Bh3.} 14. Nd5 (14. Re1 $5 {should have been
given a serious thought, as the g2 bishop is the soul of the position, and
keeping it on the board is in White's favour.} Bh3 15. Bh1 $14) 14... Nxd5 15.
cxd5 Ne7 16. d4 exd4 17. Nxd4 {White would have had a pretty big edge here if
his rook was on e1. As it turns out the rook is still on f1 and the bishops
can be exchanged with Bh3.} Bh3 $1 $11 18. e4 c6 19. dxc6 Nxc6 20. Bxh3 Qxh3
21. Nxc6 bxc6 22. b4 Bb6 (22... axb4 23. axb4 Rxa1 (23... Bxb4 24. Qd4 $18) 24.
Bxa1 (24. Qxa1 Bxb4 25. Bxg7 Rxe4 $11 26. Bh8 {is nicely refuted by} Qxf1+ $1
27. Kxf1 Re1+ 28. Qxe1 Bxe1 $17) 24... Ba7 25. Qxd6 Rxe4 26. Bc3 (26. Qxc6 $2
Bxf2+ $1 $19) 26... Qe6 $11) 23. Qxd6 Rxe4 24. Qxc6 Rae8 25. Qxb6 $6 (25. Bc3 {
was an oppotunity to play for a win with the extra pawn.} axb4 26. axb4 Qe6 27.
Qxe6 R8xe6 $14 {White has decent chances to press in this position.}) 25... Rh4
$1 {This leads to an immediate draw.} 26. gxh4 Qg4+ 27. Kh1 Qf3+ 28. Kg1 Qg4+
29. Kh1 Qf3+ 30. Kg1 Qg4+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.24"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Black "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C65"]
[WhiteElo "2762"]
[BlackElo "2760"]
[Annotator "Anand,V"]
[PlyCount "139"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[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. d3 Bc5 5. c3 O-O 6. O-O d6 7. h3 Ne7 8. d4
Bb6 9. Bd3 {A new twist on 9.Re1 that Gajewski showed me.} (9. Re1 d5 10. Nxe5
Nxe4 11. Nd2 Nd6 {and now White has to move his bishop.}) 9... d5 10. Nxe5 Nxe4
11. Nd2 Nd6 12. Nb3 $1 {The point, White can keep moving forward.} c6 13. Nc5
Ng6 {Played after a long think and it was time well spent.} 14. Qh5 {Now I
also had to find my way around and this seemed reasonable.} Bxc5 15. dxc5 Ne4
16. Bxe4 dxe4 17. Rd1 (17. Nc4 {My original intention, but I was unable to
make it work after} f5 $1 18. Nd6 b6 $1) 17... Qe7 18. Nxg6 hxg6 19. Qg5 {
I was slightly disappointed that I couldn't do better than this, and Sergey
felt this was close to a draw offer. I did feel that I could still pose some
questions to Black before acquiescing.} Qxg5 20. Bxg5 f6 21. Be3 (21. Bf4 g5
22. Bg3 Re8 23. Rd4 e3 {doesn't accomplish anything} (23... Bf5 {nor does this}
)) 21... g5 {Black takes away the crucial f4-square (as we will see, quite
important).} 22. Rd6 Re8 23. Rad1 Be6 24. b3 Kf7 (24... a5 25. R1d4 a4 26. bxa4
Bxa2 27. Rd7 $1 {still with some problems}) (24... Re7 25. R1d4 Bf7 26. g4 {
Of course, Black can choose between several setups. Its hard to tell which is
best, since Black's drawing margin is very high in all of them.}) 25. R1d4 Bf5
(25... Re7 26. Rxe4 Bf5 {I wasn't very excited about winning the Pe4, but a
pawn is still a pawn.}) 26. a4 {I should have played g4 first} Re7 27. g4 Bh7 (
27... Be6 28. c4 (28. b4 a5 $1 29. b5 {now this fails:} cxb5 30. axb5 a4 $1)
28... Rh8 29. Kg2 a6 30. b4 Bc8 31. b5 Re6 32. bxc6 bxc6 33. Rd1 Rhe8 34. Rb1)
28. b4 Bg8 (28... a5 {The computer is happy here, but it is not easy to
concede connected passers with Black:} 29. b5 cxb5 30. axb5 a4 31. Rd2 Ke8) 29.
b5 Rc8 30. Rd7 Rce8 (30... Ke8 $1 31. Rxe7+ Kxe7 32. Rxe4+ Be6 $1 {I believe
this position is equal.}) 31. b6 $1 {Its hard to lock one's pawns like this,
but the only way I saw to put any pressure on Black was with Rc7.} a6 32. Rc7
Kf8 {Still, it looks like Black hasn't done anything wrong, but...} 33. c4 $1 {
blocks the Black bishop, and equally importantly allows Bd2-a5 to protect a
pawn on c7. It was important not to play a5 too early} Be6 {Thanks to White's
last two pawn moves, some chances have appeared, and Black finally ditches the
Pe4.} (33... Bf7 $1 {However, the Pe4 serves a purpose which is to restrain
the Pf2} {So here White will have to play...} 34. Kh2 Bg8 $1 (34... Bg6 35. h4
(35. Kg3 Bf7 36. h4 gxh4+ 37. Kxh4 g5+ $1 {and White still has no access to f4}
) 35... gxh4 36. Bf4 {Misplaced Bg6} (36. g5 Kf7 37. gxf6 gxf6 38. Bf4 Bf5 $1))
35. h4 gxh4 36. Bf4 Rxc7 37. bxc7 Be6 $1 {I couldn't see how to break through
here.}) 34. Rxe4 {Now f4 and the white bishop will enter.} Kf7 35. f4 {We were
already short of time, but it's harder for the defending side since opposite
coloured bishop endings need time for working out.} Rxc7 (35... f5 $1 36. Re5
g6 (36... Rxc7 37. bxc7 Bc8 38. Rxe8 Kxe8 39. fxg5 fxg4 40. h4 {Karjakin was
reluctant to enter this} g6 41. Kf2 Be6 42. Kg3 (42. a5 Kd7 43. Bf4 Bxc4 44.
Kg3 Bd3 {I think this drawn} 45. Kxg4 Be2+ 46. Kg3 Bh5 {is a fortress}) 42...
Kd7 43. Bf4 a5 44. h5 gxh5 45. g6 Bf5 46. g7 Be6 47. Kh4 Bf7 48. Kg5 Kc8 49.
Kh6 h4 50. Kh7 Bxc4 51. g8=Q+ Bxg8+ 52. Kxg8 g3 53. Kf7 g2 54. Bh2 g1=Q 55.
Bxg1 Kxc7 56. Kg6 b5 57. cxb6+ Kb7 {and White is short of time to defend b6})
37. fxg5 fxg4 38. h4 {I wasnt sure this was winning, but I knew that Black
couldnt make such a critical decision so easily - if it's lost, it's too late}
Rxc7 39. bxc7 Bc8 40. Rxe8 Kxe8 {transposes to the earlier analysis.}) 36. bxc7
Rc8 $2 (36... f5 $1) 37. f5 {Thanks to Pc4.} Bd7 38. h4 g6 (38... gxh4 39. Bf4
g5 (39... Re8 40. Rd4 Bc8 41. Rd8 {followed by Kxh4}) 40. Rd4 $1 Ke7 41. Bd6+
Kf7 42. Kg2 Re8 43. Bh2 Ke7 44. Bg1 Rf8 45. Rd6 Rf7 46. Bd4 Rf8 47. Bc3 Rf7 {
Still, it's hard to believe this fortress can hold} (47... Bc8 48. Rd8 $18))
39. Rd4 $1 Rxc7 40. hxg5 fxg5 41. Bxg5 Be8 {Now I realised that I was
completely winning, Black has to stay completely passive.} 42. f6 Kf8 43. Bf4
Rh7 44. Kg2 {Missing a faster win:} (44. Re4 $1 Bf7 (44... Bd7 45. Bd6+ Kg8 46.
g5) 45. g5 $1 $18) 44... Bd7 45. Bg5 Be6 46. Rd8+ Kf7 47. Rb8 Bxc4 48. Rxb7+
Kg8 49. Rb8+ Kf7 50. Kg3 Ke6 51. Re8+ Kf7 $1 (51... Kd7 52. Rd8+ $1) 52. Rc8
Bd5 53. Kf4 Ke6 54. Re8+ Kd7 55. Ra8 (55. Rd8+ $4 Kxd8 56. f7+ Kc7 (56... Kd7
$2 57. f8=N+ $1) 57. f8=Q Rf7+ $11) 55... Ke6 56. Re8+ Kd7 57. Re3 a5 58. Kg3
Rf7 59. Kf4 Rh7 60. Re1 Kc8 61. Kg3 (61. Ke5 $1) 61... Rf7 (61... Kd7 62. Bd2
Rf7 63. g5) 62. Re8+ Kd7 63. Ra8 Kc7 64. Kf4 Rd7 65. Bh4 {Now it's easy, with
the Kg5.} Kb7 66. Re8 Bf7 67. Re4 Bd5 68. Re3 Bf7 69. Kg5 Ka6 70. Re7 {And
finally he resigned. I was euphoric, first to beat a tenacious defender (in
fact, this was his only loss), but also with my technique.  Still, Sergey
recovered and qualified convincingly. He fully deserved qualification!} (70.
Re7 Rxe7 71. fxe7 Kb7 72. Kf6 Be8 73. Kg7 g5 74. Bxg5 Kc8 75. Kf8 Kd7 76. Bd2 {
isn't difficult.}) 1-0

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.24"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Svidler, Peter"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D16"]
[WhiteElo "2786"]
[BlackElo "2757"]
[Annotator "Sumets,A"]
[PlyCount "96"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. a4 e6 6. e3 c5 7. Bxc4 Nc6 8. O-O
cxd4 9. exd4 Be7 10. Be3 O-O 11. Qe2 ({The main line is} 11. Ne5 Bd7 {Probably
the strongest continuation. White has nothing after 12.Nxd7 so let's look at
12.Qf3 and 12.Qe2:} (11... Nb4 12. Qf3 Nfd5 13. Rac1 Bf6 (13... Rb8 $6 {
This is a bad square for Black's rook.} 14. Rfd1 $6 (14. Qg3 $1 Bd7 15. Bh6 Bf6
16. Ne4 Bxa4 (16... Bc6 17. Bxd5 Bxd5 18. Nxf6+ Qxf6 19. Bf4 $18) 17. Rc3 $3
Nxc3 (17... Bxe5 18. dxe5 g6 19. Bg5 $18) 18. bxc3 Rc8 19. Nxf6+ Qxf6 20. Bg5
Qf5 21. cxb4 $18) 14... Bd7 15. Nxd5 (15. Bd2 $14) 15... Nxd5 16. Bxd5 exd5 17.
Nxd7 Qxd7 18. Bf4 Rbc8 19. Qb3 a6 20. h3 $11 {Lalic,B (2495)-Postny,E (2651)1/
2 (41) Sibenik 2009}) 14. Ne4 Be7 15. Nc3 Bf6 16. Bb3 Nxe3 17. Qxe3 (17. fxe3
Bd7 18. Qxb7 $6 Bxe5 19. Qxb4 Qh4 $40) 17... Qb6 18. Rfd1 Bxe5 $6 (18... Nc6
19. Nxc6 bxc6 20. Ne4 Be7 $132) 19. Qxe5 Bd7 20. a5 Qa6 21. Ra1 Rac8 22. d5 $14
{Postny,E (2651)-Sedlak,N (2556) 1-0 (49) Achaea 2012}) (11... Nd5 {I don't
like this move, because it leads to passive positions where White has a small
advantage.} 12. Nxd5 exd5 13. Bd3 g6 14. a5 (14. Bb5 $5 Bd7 15. Qb3 a6 16. Bxc6
Bxc6 17. Rfc1 Rb8 18. Bf4 Bg5 19. Bxg5 Qxg5 20. Rc5 $16 {Ulibin,M (2516)
-Bruzon Batista,L (2641)1-0 (34) La Laguna 2010}) (14. Rc1 $5 Nb4 15. Bb1)
14... Bf6 15. Nxc6 bxc6 16. Qc1 Bd7 17. Qc3 Qb8 18. g3 Be7 19. Bf4 Bb4 20. Bxb8
Bxc3 21. Bxa7 Bxb2 22. Bc5 Bxa1 23. Rxa1 $44 {1/2 (42) Aronian,L (2737)-Anand,
V (2798) Bilbao 2008; the position is rather drawish.}) 12. Nxd7 (12. Qf3 Rc8
13. Bb3 Nxe5 14. dxe5 Bc6 15. Qg3 (15. Qe2 $5 Nd5 16. Nxd5 Bxd5 17. Rfd1 $14)
15... Ne4 16. Nxe4 Bxe4 17. Rad1 Qc7 18. Bxa7 $6 b6 $17 {Postny,E (2658)
-Rublevsky,S (2702) 0-1 (44) World Blitz Championship Berlin GER 2015}) (12.
Qe2 Nb4 13. Rad1 Bc6 {see the game Aronian,L-Ponomariov,R}) 12... Qxd7 13. d5
exd5 14. Nxd5 Rad8 15. Nxf6+ Bxf6 16. Qxd7 Rxd7 17. Rad1 Rfd8 18. Rxd7 Rxd7 19.
Bb5 (19. b4 Nxb4 20. Bb5 Rd8 21. Bxa7 Bd4 $11 {Corrales Jimenez, F (2496)
-Perez Garcia,R (2385)1/2 (52) Havana 2006}) 19... a6 {1/2 (19) Vitiugov,N 
(2608)-Kobalia,M (2634) Krasnoyarsk 2007}) 11... Nb4 (11... b6 12. Rad1 Nb4 13.
Ne5 Bb7 (13... Nfd5 14. Bc1 $6 {I don't understand this move. Black doesn't
want to take on e3} (14. Qg4 $5 Nxe3 $2 (14... Nf6 15. Qf3 Rb8 16. Qg3 Nh5 17.
Qh3 Nf6 18. Bb3 Bb7 19. f4 Nbd5 20. Bc1 $14) 15. fxe3 Bf6 (15... Bb7 $2 16.
Nxf7 $18) 16. Ne4 Bxe5 17. dxe5 Qc7 18. Nf6+ Kh8 19. Qh4 h6 20. Qe4 g6 21. Qf4
Kg7 22. Ng4 $18) 14... Bb7 15. f4 Nxc3 16. bxc3 Nd5 17. Rf3 Rc8 18. Rh3 g6 19.
Bxd5 (19. Bd2 Bf6 20. Bb3 $13) 19... Qxd5 20. c4 Qd8 $6 (20... Qd6 21. Ba3 Qc7
$11) 21. d5 (21. Bb2 $5 f6 22. Ng4 $40) 21... exd5 22. cxd5 Rxc1 23. Rxc1 Qxd5
$44 {Jankovic,A (2553)-Kobalia,M (2666)0-1 (54) Plovdiv 2012}) 14. f4 Bd5 15.
Nxd5 exd5 16. Bb3 Ne4 17. Qh5 Rc8 18. Rc1 Bf6 19. Qh3 Rxc1 20. Rxc1 Bxe5 (20...
Re8 $5) 21. fxe5 f5 22. Rf1 $14 {Ponomariov,R (2744)-Shirov,A (2722) 1/2 (71)
Wijk aan Zee 2011}) 12. Ne5 Bd7 13. Rad1 Nbd5 $146 {In other games Black
played 13...Bc6 with the idea to face f4 with ...Bd5.} (13... Bc6 14. f4 Bd5
15. Nxd5 exd5 16. Bb3 Rc8 17. Rf3 (17. Bd2 Re8 18. Bc3 Qb6 19. Kh1 Nc6 20. Qc2
Na5 21. Ba2 Nc4 22. Rf3 Bd6 23. Rh3 h6 24. Rf1 Bxe5 (24... Rc7 $5 25. g4 Bxe5
26. fxe5 Ne4) 25. fxe5 Ne4 26. Qe2 $14 {Aronian,L (2786)-Ponomariov,R (2739) 1/
2 (74)Moscow 2009}) 17... Rc7 18. Rh3 Qc8 19. Bd2 Re8 20. Rf1 Nc6 21. Bxd5 Nxd5
22. Qh5 Bf6 (22... Bh4 $8 23. Qxh4 Qf5 $44) 23. Qxh7+ Kf8 24. Qe4 Bxe5 25. fxe5
$16 {Debashis,D (2504)-Balogh,C (2656)1/2 (66) Dubai 2014}) 14. Bc1 $5 Bc6 {
Peter didn't dare to take on a4 but in any case his position remains dangerous.
I think that objectievely Black should have gained a pawn.} (14... Nxc3 15.
bxc3 Bxa4 16. Rd3 b5 17. Ba2 ({White can't play} 17. Nc6 $2 {due to} bxc4 $1
18. Nxd8 cxd3 19. Qa2 Bc2 20. Nc6 Bd6 $17 {d3-pawn is too strong.}) 17... b4
18. c4 a5 {The position which has arisen is reminiscent of the Noteboom
Variation.} 19. Bb1 {Here Black has many options and I hope that my brief
analysis will help you to wade through the innumerable details.} g6 {I believe
it is the strongest move for Black. Black is ready to play ...Nd7.} (19... Rc8
$6 20. Rh3 Qxd4 (20... g6 21. Qe3 Re8 22. Re1 $1 {After this move Black is in
danger.} (22. Nxg6 {This looks dangerous but it isn't the strongest move.} fxg6
23. Qxe6+ Kh8 24. Bxg6 Bf8 25. Bxe8 Bxe8 26. Bg5 Bg7 27. Rf3 Rc6 28. Qe5 a4 29.
d5 Ra6 30. Rd1 b3 31. d6 Nd7 $8 32. Qe3 Qc8 33. Bh6 Bxh6 34. Qxh6 Bg6 35. c5 b2
36. Qd2 a3 (36... b1=Q 37. Rxb1 Bxb1 38. Qd4+ Kg8 39. Re3 $18) 37. Qd4+ Kg8 38.
Qc4+ Kg7 39. Qd4+ $11) 22... Rc7 (22... Bf8 23. Qf3 Bg7 24. Bg5 $18) 23. Nxf7
Kxf7 24. Qxe6+ Kg7 25. Bxg6 $1 Rf8 26. Bxh7 $1 $18) 21. Bb2 Qc5 22. g4 $1 (22.
Nd7 $4 Bxd7 23. Bxf6 g6 $1 $19) (22. Nd3 Qxc4 23. Bxf6 Bxf6 24. Ne5 Qxe2 25.
Bxh7+ Kh8 26. Bg6+ $11) 22... g6 23. g5 Nd7 24. Nxg6 fxg6 25. Qxe6+ Rf7 26.
Rxh7 Qxg5+ 27. Kh1 Kxh7 28. Qxf7+ Kh6 29. Qg7+ Kh5 30. Qh7+ Kg4 31. Rg1+ $18) (
19... Ra6 {As you can see, in numerous lines White can sacrifice the knight or
bishop on f7 or g6, so Black protects the e6-pawn. Another idea of 19...Ra6 is
to play ...Rd6 and strengthen the pressure on d4.} 20. Bb2 Rd6 (20... g6 21.
Rh3 h5 22. Bxg6 fxg6 23. Nxg6 Be8 24. Nxf8 Bxf8 25. Rg3+ Bg7 26. d5 $40) 21.
Re1 Be8 22. Rh3 h5 {This computer move is the only way to survive.} (22... g6
$2 23. Qe3 a4 24. Qh6 a3 25. Ng4 $18) 23. Qd2 $1 (23. Qe3 Ng4 24. Nxg4 hxg4 25.
Bh7+ Kh8 26. Bd3+ Kg8 $11) 23... Ng4 24. d5 f5 25. Nxg4 hxg4 26. Rh8+ Kf7 $8 (
26... Kxh8 27. Qh6+ Kg8 28. Qxg7#) 27. Qd4 (27. Bxg7 Rxh8 28. Bxh8 Bf6 29. Qh6
Bxh8 30. Qxh8 Qf6 31. Qh7+ Kf8 32. Qc7 Qd8 33. Qh7 Qf6 $11) 27... Bf6 28. Qa7+
Qd7 29. Rxf8+ Kxf8 30. Qc5 $1 Bf7 31. Bxf6 gxf6 32. Qxa5 b3 33. Qb4 $14) (19...
Be8 $6 {trying to push pawns. It's too slow.} 20. Rh3 g6 (20... a4 $4 21. Bxh7+
Nxh7 22. Qh5 $18) 21. Qe3 h5 (21... Kh8 22. Bb2 a4 23. Qh6 Rg8 $8 24. d5 Rg7
25. dxe6 fxe6 26. Bxg6 $18) 22. Qh6 Bd6 23. Bg5 $2 (23. f3 Bxe5 24. dxe5 Qd4+
25. Be3 (25. Rf2 Qd1+ 26. Rf1 Qd4+ 27. Rf2 $11) 25... Qxe5 26. Rd1 Qc7 27. g4
Rd8 28. Rxd8 Qxd8 29. Kg2 $1 Qd1 30. Bc5 Qe2+ 31. Kg1 Qe1+ $11) (23. Bxg6 $1
fxg6 (23... Bxe5 24. Bh7+ Nxh7 25. Rxh5 $18) 24. Nxg6 Nh7 25. Nxf8 Nxf8 26. c5
Bb8 27. d5 $1 Be5 28. Rg3+ Bxg3 29. fxg3 $18) 23... Bxe5 24. dxe5 Ng4 $17) 20.
Bh6 (20. Qe3 $6 Ra6 21. Re1 Rd6 22. Bb2 Nh5 23. g3 Bf6 $17) (20. Re1 $6 Nd7 21.
Bh6 Nxe5 22. Qxe5 Bf6 23. Qf4 Bh8 $5 (23... Bg7 24. Bxg7 Kxg7 25. Rh3 h5 26.
Rxh5 gxh5 27. Qg3+ Kf6 $8 28. Qh4+ Kg7 29. Qg3+ $11) 24. Bxf8 Qxf8 25. h4 Bd7
26. h5 Bg7 $44) 20... Be8 21. h4 a4 22. h5 Nxh5 23. Qxh5 (23. d5 exd5 24. Rxd5
Qc7 25. Nd7 Bxd7 26. Qxe7 Rfe8 27. Qxd7 Qxd7 28. Rxd7 b3 29. Rb7 a3 $11) 23...
gxh5 24. Rg3+ Bg5 $8 25. Bxg5 Kh8 $1 26. Bxd8 Rxd8 $13) 15. Rd3 Nxc3 {Usualy
Black doesn't want to take on c3 but other continuations are dangerous.} (15...
Rc8 16. Rg3 g6 (16... Kh8 17. Rh3 Kg8 18. Nxd5 Bxd5 19. Bd3 g6 20. Qe3 $16) 17.
Bh6 Re8 18. h4 Bf8 19. Bg5 Qd6 20. Bxd5 $1 Nxd5 21. Qf3 f5 (21... Rc7 22. Ne4
Qb4 23. h5 $16) 22. Qe2 Bg7 23. h5 $40) (15... Nd7 16. Bxd5 exd5 17. Rh3 g6 18.
Qe3 $16) (15... Qb6 16. Rg3 Kh8 17. Rd1 Nxc3 18. bxc3 Bxa4 19. Re1 Rac8 20. Rh3
$16 {White's attack is very dangerous.}) 16. bxc3 Bd5 17. Rg3 Bxc4 ({Another
way is} 17... Ne4 $5 {aiming to trade minor pieces.} 18. Rh3 Bxc4 (18... Ng5
19. Bxg5 Bxg5 20. Bxd5 Qxd5 (20... exd5 $2 21. f4 Bf6 22. Qh5 h6 23. Ng4 Qd6
24. Rg3 Kh8 25. Nxf6 Qxf6 26. Qxd5 $16) 21. Rh5 Qd8 22. Qb5 (22. Qg4 $5 h6 23.
f4 Bf6 24. Rxh6 Rc8 25. Rxf6 Qxf6 26. Nd7 Qe7 27. Nxf8 Kxf8 $44) 22... f6 23.
Nf3 Rc8 24. Qxb7 Qe8 25. Rh3 Bh6 26. Qxa7 Rxc3 {Black has good chances to make
a draw.}) 19. Nxc4 Qd5 20. Ne5 f5 21. Re1 Rf6 22. Rd3 $16) 18. Nxc4 g6 {
Peter doesn't want to include Bh6 Re8. Now if White plays Ne5 Black can reply .
..Nd7 and if White plays Bh6 he will meet it with ...Re8, Bf8.} ({The other
option is} 18... Qd5 $5 19. Bh6 (19. Ne5 Rac8 20. Bh6 Ne8 21. Rd1 $1 (21. Re1
Rc7 22. Qe3 Qb3 23. Bf4 (23. Bxg7 $2 Nxg7 24. Qh6 Bg5 $8 25. Qxg5 f6 $17) 23...
Bd6 $11) 21... Qb3 (21... Rc7 22. c4 Qd8 23. Bf4 Bd6 24. Rb3 b6 25. a5 $16) 22.
Nd7 Qxa4 23. Nxf8 Bxf8 24. Bd2 $14) 19... Ne8 20. Ne5 Bf6 $6 (20... Rc8 {
see the line Ne5}) 21. f4 Kh8 22. Bg5 Bxe5 23. fxe5 $16) 19. Ne5 Nd7 20. Bh6
Re8 21. f4 $1 {The forthcoming f5 is really unpleasant for Black so his next
moves are forced.} Bf8 22. Bg5 Be7 23. Ng4 h5 $5 {Other options aren't very
exciting for Black.} (23... Rc8 24. Nh6+ Kg7 25. f5 $3 Bxg5 (25... exf5 26.
Bxe7 Rxe7 27. Nxf5+ $18) 26. fxg6 f5 $8 (26... Kxh6 27. Rh3+ Bh4 28. gxf7 Rf8
29. Qg4 $18) 27. Nf7 Qe7 28. Nxg5 hxg6 29. Nh3 Rc6 30. Qb5 $16) (23... Bxg5 $2
24. fxg5 Qxg5 25. Ne5 Qd8 26. Nxf7 Qb6 27. Qg4 $18) 24. Bxe7 $6 {Despite the
fact, that his position remains better, Levon missed his chance.} (24. Nh6+ Kg7
25. h4 $1 ({White doesn't have much after} 25. Bxe7 Qxe7 26. Qxh5 Rh8 27. Qg5
Nf6 28. Ng4 Rh5 29. Qxf6+ Qxf6 30. Nxf6 Kxf6 $44 {Black has good chances to
draw}) 25... Qc7 26. Re3 Qd8 (26... Nf6 27. f5 $1 exf5 (27... gxf5 {leads to
the same consequence after} 28. Rxf5 $1) 28. Rxf5 gxf5 29. Nxf5+ Kf8 30. Bh6+
Kg8 31. Nxe7+ Kh7 32. Qf1 Qb6 33. a5 Qa6 34. Qf5+ Kxh6 35. Qg5+ Kh7 36. Nf5 $18
) 27. Nxf7 Kxf7 28. Rxe6 Bf6 29. f5 gxf5 30. Qxh5+ Kxe6 31. Re1+ Ne5 $8 (31...
Kd6 32. Bf4+ Kc6 33. Qf3+ Re4 34. Rxe4 fxe4 35. Qxe4+ Kb6 36. Qb1+ Kc6 37. Qb5#
) 32. Rxe5+ Bxe5 33. Bxd8 Raxd8 34. dxe5 $16) 24... Qxe7 25. Ne5 Kh7 26. Qc2
Rg8 $1 {Black shouldn't trade knights on e5} (26... Nxe5 $6 27. fxe5 Rac8 28.
Rf6 $16) 27. Rg5 Kh8 28. Rf3 $6 {Carelessness. Now Black can take on e5 and
White is not able to play fxe5.} (28. Qd2 $1 {Keeping control over the
g5-square.} Rg7 (28... Kh7 29. f5 exf5 30. Rfxf5 Nf6 31. Rf4 Rg7 32. h4 $16) (
28... Rac8 $2 29. f5 exf5 30. Rxh5+) 29. Rg3 Rc8 30. a5 $14) 28... Nxe5 $1 29.
Rxe5 Qd6 $11 {Now Black can exert pressure on White's weaknesses.} 30. Qd2 Kg7
31. Rg3 Rh8 32. Qb2 ({White could have tried} 32. d5 exd5 33. Rxd5 Qb6+ 34.
Qd4+ Qxd4+ 35. Rxd4 {with a slightly worse but drawish endgame}) 32... Rac8 $1
({Peter avoids} 32... b6 $6 33. c4 $1 Rac8 34. c5 Qc6 35. Rxh5 (35. a5 $5)
35... Qe4 (35... Qxa4 $2 36. d5+ f6 37. Qb1 $1 $16) 36. Re5 Qxf4 $11) 33. Qxb7
Rb8 ({Black shouldn't play} 33... Qa3 $2 {due to} 34. Rxe6 Qc1+ 35. Kf2 Qxf4+ (
35... Qd2+ 36. Re2 Qxf4+ 37. Rf3 Rc7 38. Rxf4 Rxb7 39. d5 $18) 36. Rf3 Rc7 $8
37. Rxf4 Rxb7 38. Rc6 $16) 34. Qe4 (34. Qxa7 $2 {is too greedy due to} Rb1+ 35.
Kf2 Rb2+ 36. Kf1 Rhb8 $17) 34... Rhc8 $6 {An inaccuracy which may lead to
problems.} (34... Qa3 $1 35. Qe1 Qxa4 36. Rxe6 fxe6 37. Rxg6+ Kxg6 38. Qxe6+
Kg7 39. Qe7+ Kg8 40. Qe6+ Kf8 41. Qf6+ $11) 35. Rb5 $6 (35. Rxg6+ {leads to a
draw due to} fxg6 36. Rxe6 Rb1+ 37. Kf2 Rb2+ 38. Kg1 $11) ({However White
could have prepared Rxg6 by means of} 35. h3 $1 Qc6 (35... Rb3 $2 36. Rxg6+
fxg6 37. Rxe6 Rb1+ 38. Kh2 $1 $18) (35... Kf8 $2 36. Rxg6 fxg6 37. Qxg6 Ke7 38.
d5 $18) (35... Rb6 $6 36. a5 Rbc6 37. Reg5 Rxc3 38. Rxg6+ Kf8 $8 39. Rg8+ Ke7)
36. d5 exd5 37. Rxd5 Qf6 38. Rxh5 Rxc3 39. Rxc3 Qxc3 40. Qe5+ Qxe5 41. Rxe5 Rb4
42. Ra5 Rxf4 43. Rxa7 $14 {The endgame which has arisen is drawish.}) 35...
Rxb5 36. axb5 Qa3 $44 {White must now play precisely.} 37. Qc2 $6 (37. Rxg6+ {
leads to a draw:} fxg6 38. Qb7+ Kh6 39. Qxc8 Qc1+ 40. Kf2 Qxf4+ 41. Ke2 Qe4+
$11) 37... Rb8 38. Qe2 $2 {Now White is in trouble.} Qc1+ 39. Kf2 (39. Qf1 Qb2
40. f5 exf5 41. Qxf5 Rxb5 42. Qf1 Rb7 43. Rf3 a5 {Black is slightly better but
the most likely result of the game is a draw}) 39... Qxf4+ 40. Kg1 Qc1+ 41. Kf2
Qf4+ 42. Kg1 Kg8 $1 $17 {Certainly Svidler wants to continue the game.} 43. Qb2
$6 (43. Rf3 $1 Qc1+ 44. Qf1 Qxf1+ 45. Rxf1 (45. Kxf1 Rxb5 46. c4 Rf5 $19) 45...
Rxb5 46. Ra1 Rb7 47. c4 Rd7 48. Rd1 $17 {White retains chances to draw.}) 43...
a6 $1 44. c4 $6 (44. b6 Qd6 45. b7 Qc6 $19 {gaining the b7-pawn.}) (44. Rf3 $1
Qc7 45. Qa1 Rxb5 46. Qxa6 Rb1+ 47. Rf1 (47. Kf2 Qxh2 $19) 47... Rxf1+ 48. Kxf1
Qxc3 49. Qa8+ Kg7 50. Qe4 $17 {with some chances to make a draw.}) 44... axb5
$19 45. c5 (45. cxb5 Rc8 $1 46. Rf3 Rc1+ 47. Kf2 Qh4+ 48. Rg3 Rd1 49. b6 (49.
Qc3 Qxh2 50. Ke2 Qg1 $19) 49... Qxh2 50. b7 Qg1+ 51. Kf3 Qf1+ 52. Qf2 Qd3+ 53.
Kf4 Qf5+ 54. Ke3 Rd3+ 55. Ke2 Rd2+ 56. Kxd2 Qxf2+ 57. Kc1 Qxg3 $19) 45... Qe4
46. Qd2 {Now the game is over. 46.Rf3 is more stubborn but it can't help
either.} (46. Rf3 b4 47. Rf1 b3 48. h3 Rb4 49. Rd1 Qe3+ 50. Kh2 Ra4 51. Qd2 Qe4
52. Qd3 Qf4+ 53. Qg3 Rxd4 $19) 46... Qb1+ 47. Kf2 Ra8 48. Qe1 Qb2+ 0-1

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.24"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Giri, Anish"]
[Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "C54"]
[WhiteElo "2793"]
[BlackElo "2790"]
[Annotator "Mekhitarian,K"]
[PlyCount "105"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 {The Giuoco Piano, (or Italian Opening) has become
quite fashionable lately, running away from forced lines of the Ruy Lopez (or
Spanish) with 3.Bb5. And White has been doing very well, as did Giri in this
game.} Bc5 4. O-O Nf6 5. d3 d6 6. c3 a6 7. a4 {Normally White plays 7.Bb3 to
save the bishop (from a possible ...Na5). But this is a standard alternative
as well.} O-O 8. Re1 (8. Bg5 $5 {isn't supposed to be a great move here,
because Black plays h6-g5 quickly, but I think the sacrifice on g5 is
underrated and could be interesting for White:} h6 9. Bh4 g5 10. Nxg5 (10. Bg3
$13 {this is what we see normally after h6-g5, with a complex game}) 10... hxg5
11. Bxg5 Kg7 12. Qf3 {and I feel like there is a lot to be explored here. I
mean, it could be just bad for White, but it doesn't look easy for Black, and
it's weird that there haven't been any games with 10.Nxg5. White's dream plan
could be Nd2-Kh1-Qg3-f4.}) 8... Ba7 9. h3 (9. Na3 $5 {Carlsen,M (2844)-Adams,M
(2744) Tata Steel-A 78th 2016 (9) 1-0 it's not easy to find the reference
games, because either White or Black could have some minor piece placed
somewhere else compared to the other games, but this Na3 has been used a lot,
following with Nc2 and Ne3. Wesley So was able to keep a slight edge, and
there was also a great win from the world champion Magnus Carlsen in Wijk an
Zee 2016:} h6 10. Nc2 Re8 11. Be3 Be6 12. Bxe6 Rxe6 13. Bxa7 Rxa7 14. d4 (14.
Ne3 $5 {would be in the same spirit as Carlsen's game, first putting the
knight on f5 and only then d4}) 14... exd4 15. Nfxd4 Nxd4 16. Qxd4 Ra8 17. f3
a5 18. Ne3 Qd7 19. Red1 b6 20. Qc4 Rae8 21. Qb5 Qc8 22. b4 Qa8 23. Qd3 c6 24.
bxa5 bxa5 25. c4 g6 $11 {1/2-1/2 (38) So,W (2773)-Mamedyarov,S (2747) Wijk aan
Zee 2016. White probably had something earlier, here Black should be ok.}) 9...
h6 10. Nbd2 Ne7 {Black places his knight on g6 trying to eliminate this
problem (the knight on c6 sometimes becomes an awkard piece) and equalise the
game. Nevertheless, White is always one tempo ahead in the centre for playing
d4.} (10... Re8 {would be a solid alternative, played by the current Women's
World Chess Champion} 11. Nf1 Be6 12. Bxe6 Rxe6 13. Be3 Bxe3 14. Nxe3 d5 15.
Qc2 Qd7 16. Rad1 Rd8 17. Nf5 Qe8 18. b4 b5 19. axb5 axb5 20. Nd2 Ne7 $11 {
1/2-1/2 (31) Muzychuk,M (2554)-Hou,Y (2673) Lvov 2016}) 11. Nf1 Ng6 12. Ng3 c6
13. Ba2 Be6 (13... d5 {it is always somewhat risky to try getting the
initiative with Black. For example:} 14. exd5 Nxd5 15. d4 $1 (15. Nxe5 $2 {
is a typical trap in these positions} Nxe5 16. Rxe5 Bxf2+ $1 17. Kxf2 Qf6+ $17)
15... exd4 16. Nxd4 $14 {as Black I wouldn't be happy here, White has a slight
but comfortable edge because of having the rook already developed to e1.}) 14.
Bxe6 fxe6 15. d4 $1 $14 {Securing an advantage for White. Black already
doesn't have an easy life.} exd4 (15... Qe7 $5 {keeping the structure was an
alternative. dxe5 is not scary for Black:} 16. dxe5 Nxe5 17. Nxe5 dxe5 18. Be3
Bxe3 19. Rxe3 Rad8 20. Qb3 $14 {White probably maintains a slight edge here as
well.}) 16. cxd4 d5 17. exd5 $1 {Suddenly Black starts getting into trouble,
there is no good way to take the pawn back.} (17. e5 {did not make much sense,
because Black plays ...Nd7 and prepares ...c5 soon, opening up routes for all
his pieces} Nd7 $132) 17... exd5 (17... Qxd5 18. Qc2 Ne7 19. Ne2 $1 Qd7 20. Nf4
Ned5 21. Nd3 $16 {when White probably is going to play Bd2, double on the
e-file and decide when and how to use the c5- and e5-squares for his knights.})
(17... Nxd5 $6 {just loses a pawn} 18. Rxe6 Nh4 19. Ra3 $1 $16 {An important
move. Now it is clear that 7.a4 helped a lot!}) 18. Qd3 Ne7 19. Bd2 Bb8 {
Positionally Black is supposed to be fine, but the pressure on the e-file
starts to become stronger every move.} 20. Bb4 $16 Bd6 21. Bxd6 (21. Qa3 $5 Nc8
22. Bc5 {(threatening Re6)} Re8 23. Ne5 Bxc5 24. dxc5 $40 {Avoiding 24...Nd6
and threatening Nf5. On the other hand, this gives a passed d5-pawn for Black.
White has the advantage naturally, but there is a lot of play.}) 21... Qxd6 22.
Re3 Rae8 23. Ne5 Qc7 24. b4 Nc8 25. Rc1 Qd8 $6 (25... Nd6 $1 {was a good
defensive resource, had Black followed this line precisely:} 26. b5 axb5 27.
axb5 Nc4 $1 28. Rxc4 {has to be tried, but probably Black defends himself:} (
28. Nxc4 cxb5 $1 $15 {this is the key move, making use of the pin on c1, Black
is suddenly better.}) 28... dxc4 29. Qxc4+ Nd5 30. Re4 Kh7 31. bxc6 bxc6 $13)
26. b5 axb5 27. axb5 cxb5 28. Qxb5 $16 {Now White has a big advantage, with
nicely placed pieces, and Black has a horrible pawn structure and a weakened
king. But probably both players were approaching time trouble, so it wasn't
easy to be precise. Besides, this is the kind of position that I personally
think is one of the most difficult in chess. Maybe not only for me, but for
everybody. The reason is that there are no pawn breaks, and the board is wide
open with major pieces on it, meaning there are a lot (and by that I mean a
lot!) of options in every single move, and we, humans, can not find patterns
in such positions. Even with a computer, it is very hard to analyse and come
to a sensible explanation about what is going on. In any case, it goes to show
how strong these players are, because the game maintains a good level, despite
the difficulty of the position, and the probable time trouble they were under.}
Nd6 {.} 29. Qb3 b5 30. Rce1 Qa5 31. Qb1 Qb6 32. Qg6 $6 {This gives Black a
golden opportunity to fight for equality.} (32. Qb4 $1 {keeping the pressure,
possibly releasing it at some point with Ng6. For example:} Re7 33. Ng6 Rxe3
34. Rxe3 Rd8 35. Ne7+ Kh8 36. Re6 $16) 32... Qc7 $2 (32... Qxd4 $1 {and White
doesn't have anything decisive. For example:} 33. Nc6 (33. Nh5 Nxh5 (33... Qa7
$5 $11) 34. Qxd6 Rf6 35. Qc7 Qf4 $11) 33... Rxe3 34. Rxe3 (34. Nxd4 Rxe1+ 35.
Kh2 Nfe8 $13 {still looks hard to evaluate, but this is definitely not bad for
Black}) 34... Qc5 35. Ne7+ Kh8 $11) 33. Qd3 Re6 34. Ne2 Rfe8 (34... Nh5 $5 $14
{a weird way to stop ...Nf4, but it looks acceptable.}) 35. Nf4 R6e7 36. Nfg6
Re6 37. Qb1 Qb7 38. Qb4 Nf5 39. Rf3 Ne7 40. Nf4 Nc6 41. Qb2 R6e7 $6 (41... Rd6
$1 {this had to be played} 42. Rfe3 Qb6 43. Nxc6 Rxe3 44. Rxe3 Rxc6 45. Re5 $14
) 42. Rfe3 $1 $16 {Creating strong pressure on the e-file, and threatening
Nfg6 followed by Nxc6 winning (White has ideas with Ne7+ after the massive
exchanges). To defend this, Black has to make an awkard move like ...Na7 in
the game.} Na7 43. Qb3 Nc8 44. Qb4 Nd7 45. h4 Nxe5 46. dxe5 Rf7 47. Nh5 Qe7 48.
Qd4 Ref8 49. e6 Rf5 50. Nxg7 $2 {After a great series of moves by Giri, he
allows Nakamura to escape.} (50. Re5 $1 Nd6 51. Rxf5 Nxf5 52. Qxd5 Nxh4 53.
Qxb5 $16 {and White should win this, but there is still work to be done.})
50... Qxg7 51. Rg3 Rg5 $1 {And there is nothing decisive.} 52. Rxg5 hxg5 53.
Qxd5 (53. Qxd5 {a draw was agreed. For example:} Ne7 54. Qxb5 gxh4 55. Qh5 $11)
1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.24"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Black "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A33"]
[WhiteElo "2780"]
[BlackElo "2794"]
[Annotator "Mekhitarian,K"]
[PlyCount "82"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. c4 c5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nc6 5. Nc3 e6 6. g3 Qb6 {This
Symmetrical English is a very complicated variation; both sides have found
interesting new ideas and improvements over the last years. This game is
another example.} 7. Ndb5 Ne5 8. Bf4 Nfg4 9. e3 (9. Qa4 $5 {Aronian,L (2739)
-Leko,P (2753) Morelia/Linares 25th 2008 (6) 1/2 I was really surprised the
first time I saw this idea. How could it be good to give up the f2-pawn with
check, without any clear reason? Aronian played this novelty in 2008 against
Peter Leko (who amazingly reacted very well - it is very hard to deal with
such a strong novelty over the board)} g5 {is the common move (played by Leko
in 2008 and then in 2015 also)} (9... Qxf2+ 10. Kd2 {and white has his 'jumps'
as well - Nc7+ is threatened, there is no easy way to deal with it} Qb6 $2 (
10... Qc5 11. Ne4 {with a complex position}) 11. h3 $16) 10. Bxe5 Qxf2+ 11. Kd1
Nxe5 12. Nc7+ Kd8 13. Nxa8 Qd4+ 14. Kc2 Nxc4 15. e4 Qd2+ (15... Ne3+ $2 {
was a tragic confusion by Karjakin. He mixed up the lines and couldn't figure
it out during the game, leading to a quick end} 16. Kb3 Qd2 17. a3 $1 {and
Black is in deep trouble as White's king is safe on a2} Qc2+ 18. Ka2 Qxa4 19.
Nxa4 Nxf1 20. Rhxf1 b5 21. N4b6 $1 axb6 22. Nxb6 Bb7 23. Rxf7 Bc6 24. Rd1 $18 {
1-0 (27) Nakamura,H (2776)-Karjakin,S (2760) Zuerich 2015}) 16. Kb3 Qxb2+ 17.
Kxc4 Bg7 18. Qa5+ b6 19. Qxg5+ f6 20. Qb5 Ba6 21. Qxa6 f5 22. Qxa7 Qxc3+ 23.
Kb5 {1/2-1/2 (23) Shankland,S (2661)-Leko,P (2713) Tsaghkadzor 2015; is a
bizarre forced line that leads to a draw.}) 9... a6 10. Qa4 Ra7 (10... g5 {
is another option} 11. Bxe5 Nxe5 12. O-O-O Rb8 13. Nd4 Qb4 14. Qc2 Be7 15. a3
Qa5 16. f4 Nc6 17. Nb3 $14 {1/2-1/2 (43) Rambaldi,F (2560)-Abdumalik,Z (2390)
Doha 2015; and White had the better chances.}) 11. h3 axb5 $1 $146 (11... g5 {
is possible here also, and had been played by Grischuk once already, but
didn't look convincing} 12. hxg4 gxf4 13. gxf4 axb5 (13... Nxg4 14. Bh3 Nxf2
15. Kxf2 axb5 16. Qxb5 $14) 14. Qxb5 Qxb5 15. Nxb5 Nc6 16. Nxa7 Nxa7 17. Bd3
Bg7 18. O-O-O $16 {1/2-1/2 (52) Matlakov,M (2689)-Grischuk,A (2792) Dubai 2014;
with advantage for White in this weird endgame.}) 12. Qxb5 Qc6 (12... Qxb5 $5 {
is also playable, apparently} 13. Nxb5 Bb4+ 14. Ke2 Ra5 15. hxg4 Nxc4 $13 {
with a super complicated and odd endgame for both players.}) 13. hxg4 Qxh1 14.
Bxe5 Qc6 15. Bd4 Ra8 16. a3 (16. O-O-O $5 {I think Topalov didn't want to
allow ...Qxb5, because a2 was hanging. But it was in fact playable:} Qxb5 {
(this is not forced, I'm just trying to justify 16.a3)} 17. Nxb5 Rxa2 18. Kb1
Ra4 19. Be2 $1 {is an important move to stop h5, but a very hard move to find!
Because 19.Na7 simply wins the exchange back, but apparently it is not enough}
(19. Na7 e5 20. Bb6 Rxa7 21. Bxa7 h5 $11 {with a balanced endgame}) 19... d6
20. b3 Ra5 21. Kb2 $16 {followed by Bc3, winning the exchange and getting big
chances in the endgame, because of his opponent's lack of development.}) 16...
Be7 17. Qh5 (17. Bxg7 $5 Rg8 18. Bd4 {(threatening Qh5)} Rg5 19. Qb3 Rxg4 20.
O-O-O {and again we have an irrational position, but I would definitely choose
White here:} d6 21. c5 Kf8 22. Bb5 Qc7 23. cxd6 Bxd6 24. Be2 $36) 17... Kf8 (
17... O-O $6 18. O-O-O $40) 18. O-O-O $6 (18. c5 $1 {was a key move to create
more problems for Black. In the game, Caruana was able to play 18...b6 and 19..
.Ba6.} d6 $6 19. Rd1 $1 $16 dxc5 $2 20. Bxc5 Qxc5 21. Qxc5 Bxc5 22. Rd8+ Ke7
23. Rxh8 $18) 18... b6 {Now Black has easy and simple moves to bring his
pieces into play.} 19. Kb1 Ba6 20. Nb5 Rd8 21. Bc3 {Topalov chooses to play on
and gradually gets into trouble.} (21. Nd6 $5 {would force a draw immediately}
Bxd6 22. Bxg7+ Kxg7 23. Qg5+ Kf8 24. Qxd8+ Kg7 25. Qg5+ Kf8 26. Qd8+ Kg7 $11)
21... Bxb5 22. cxb5 (22. Qxb5 $5 Qxb5 23. cxb5 $13 {Black has to be watching
his queenside, b4-a4-a5 could be an idea.}) 22... Qf3 23. Rd2 Bf6 24. Bb4+ Kg8
25. Bd6 Rc8 26. Qh3 {Threatening the pretty Bg2.} Qe4+ (26... h5 27. gxh5 Rxh5
28. Qg2 Qxg2 29. Bxg2 Rxb5 30. Bb7 $1 $44 {followed by b4, puts the black
rooks in awkward positions.}) 27. Bd3 Qd5 28. Bb4 (28. Qf1 $5 {(threatening
Bxh7+)} g6 (28... Qf3 29. Qe2 Qxe2 30. Bxe2 $132 {now Black has trouble to
activate his h8-R. Meanwhile, White could start play on the queenside with
a4-b4-a5}) 29. Bf4 {(wanting to play e4-e5)} h5 30. e4 Qc5 31. Be3 $13 {
with an unclear position.}) (28. Bxh7+ $4 {fails because the queen on h3 also
stays under attack} Rxh7 $19) 28... Qf3 $1 29. Bf1 h5 30. Bg2 (30. gxh5 {
(similar to 26...h5)} Rxh5 31. Qg2 (31. Bg2 $5 Rxh3 32. Bxf3 d5 33. Ka2 {
The endgame remains complex, but Black has the better chances} Rh2 $17) 31...
Qxg2 32. Bxg2 d5 $17 {the difference is that Black is able to play the freeing
move ...d5, obtaining good chances in the endgame.}) 30... Qxg4 31. Qxg4 hxg4
32. Bd6 {Topalov wants to play a4-a5 (that would be very dangerous for Black).}
(32. Rxd7 {wouldn't change matters} Rh2 33. Bb7 Rb8 {and White is in trouble,
because there is no time to defend on f2 safely} 34. Be1 Rxb7 $1 35. Rxb7 Rh1
$19 {and Black wins the bishop.}) 32... Rc4 $1 {Stopping a4.} 33. Ka2 Rh2 34.
Bf1 Rc1 35. Bd3 Bg5 36. Bf4 Be7 (36... Bxf4 {was not an easy decision, because
White is marching fast with a4-b5-a5. But with precise play, it was good
enough for a win.} 37. exf4 Kf8 38. a4 Ke7 39. b4 Rg1 $1 40. a5 Rxg3 {scary,
but Black gets back in time} 41. axb6 Rgg2 42. b7 Rh8 $19) 37. e4 Bc5 38. e5
Re1 $2 {Throwing away the benefit of all the work so far by removing the R
from c1. Now White plays the strong 39.Rc2! threatening Rxc5 followed by b6.
Suddenly White has big chances to survive.} (38... f6 {is one of the winning
moves, threatening ...g5} 39. Bg6 fxe5 40. Bxe5 d5 $19 {and after taking on f2,
Black wins easily.}) (38... Kf8 {is also good enough, bringing the king to e7
and then thinking} 39. b4 Bd4 40. a4 Ke7 $19 {and Black takes on f2 at the
right moment, with an easy win.}) (38... Bxf2 $4 39. Rxf2 Rxf2 40. Bxc1 $18)
39. Rc2 $1 {Taking the opportunity to survive.} g5 $2 (39... Kf8 40. a4 $1 $132
{renewing threats (either Rxc5 or a5); it suddenly gets very dangerous for
Black} (40. Rxc5 $2 bxc5 41. b6 Ke7 $19 {and Black wins with ...Rh8})) (39...
Bxf2 $4 {it is never too late to go wrong} 40. Rc8#) (39... Rxf2 $2 40. Rxc5 $1
bxc5 41. b6 c4 42. b7 cxd3 43. b8=Q+ Kh7 44. Qb4 Ree2 45. a4 d2 46. Qd4 $16 {
Black is still fighting, but White should win this.}) 40. Bxg5 Rxe5 41. Bf6 Rd5
(41... Rd5 42. Be4 Rxf2 43. Rxf2 Bxf2 44. Bxd5 exd5 45. Be5 $13 {could have
been played, and it's hard to evaluate this weird bishop endgame, Black should
have the better chances, but White's queenside is scary. In any case, Caruana
probably wasn't in his best mindset to keep on pushing for the win. What a
crazy game!}) 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.25"]
[Round "12"]
[White "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "C77"]
[WhiteElo "2794"]
[BlackElo "2786"]
[Annotator "Sagar Shah/CB Website"]
[PlyCount "133"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[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. O-O Be7 6. d3 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. Nc3
d6 9. a3 Na5 10. Ba2 Be6 11. b4 (11. Bxe6 fxe6 12. b4 {was played by the same
players in Sinquefield Cup 2014.}) 11... Bxa2 12. Rxa2 Nc6 13. Bg5 {Until now
we are following the game Anand-Aronian and Dominguez-Tomashevsky but now
Aronian deviates.} Nd7 14. Be3 Nf6 15. Qb1 {Angling for a4.} d5 16. Bg5 d4 17.
Bxf6 dxc3 $5 {This was an interesting pawn sacrifice. Caruana didn't think too
highly of this move at first but later realised that it was tricky. He
commended his opponent for his play after the game.} (17... Bxf6 18. Nd5 a5 {
was a normal way to continue.}) 18. Bxe5 Nxe5 19. Nxe5 Qd6 20. Ng4 $5 (20. Nf3
$5 a5 21. Ra1 $14) (20. f4 {was what Aronian thought was the most natural move.
} Bf6 21. Kh1 Bxe5 22. fxe5 Qxe5 23. Rf5 Qd6 24. Ra1 {Black has regained the
pawn but White has much better structure and stands better.}) 20... a5 21. Ne3
c6 22. a4 $5 (22. Nf5 Qe6 23. Nxe7+ Qxe7 24. Ra1 {Would not be sufficient
compensation for Black for the pawn as after} axb4 25. Qxb4 $1 $16 {There is
no way to regain the pawn.}) 22... axb4 23. axb5 cxb5 24. Nd5 Rfb8 25. Nxe7+ $2
{A pretty poor move which reduces all of White's advantage. It was better to
keep the knight on d5 as it is not possible to dislodge it from there.} (25.
Rxa8 Rxa8 26. d4) 25... Qxe7 26. Qb3 h5 (26... Ra3 27. Rxa3 bxa3 28. Ra1 b4 29.
Rxa3 bxa3 30. Qxb8+ Qf8 31. Qb7 g6 $11) 27. Rfa1 Rxa2 28. Qxa2 Qc5 29. Rb1 Rd8
30. h3 g6 31. Qb3 Rd4 {The position is round about equal.} 32. Re1 Qa7 33. Kf1
{This plan of centralizing the king looks pretty dubious. Maybe it was better
to just stay put. The position is equal.} Kg7 34. Ke2 h4 35. Rd1 Qa5 36. Rb1
Qa6 37. Kf1 Qd6 38. Ra1 $2 {A careless move by Caruana. Aronian had a winning
move here, which could have been of the most brilliant combinations of the
entire tournament!} (38. Re1 $11) 38... Qc5 $2 (38... Rxd3 $3 {Unbelievable as
it may seem, this rook sacrifice is made not for an immediate finish but to
clear the path for the queenside pawns which just cannot be stopped!} 39. cxd3
Qxd3+ 40. Ke1 (40. Kg1 $2 Qc4 $3 $19 {And the pawns are just cruising with
b3-c2 etc.}) 40... Qxe4+ 41. Kf1 (41. Kd1 c2+ $1 42. Qxc2 Qd4+ $19) 41... Qd3+
42. Ke1 Qd2+ 43. Kf1 c2 44. Qb2+ Kh7 {The king is safe here and now the next
threat is b3, b4 followed by Qc3!} 45. Kg1 b3 46. Rf1 (46. Kh2 Qf4+ 47. Kg1 b4
$19) (46. Qxb3 c1=Q+) 46... Qf4 $19 (46... b4 $2 47. Qxb3 c1=Q 48. Qxf7+ $11))
39. Rb1 Qa7 40. Ke2 g5 $6 {This move weakens the kingside a bit and it was
quite a drastic decision to make especially on the 40th move.} 41. Rg1 Qd7 42.
Ra1 Qe7 43. Ra6 Qc7 44. Ra8 Qf4 45. Ra1 g4 (45... Rxd3 {is similar to the
previous Rxd3 variation. The only difference is that the pawn is on g5 and
this is the thing which allows White to hold.} 46. cxd3 Qd2+ 47. Kf1 Qxd3+ 48.
Kg1 Qc4 49. Qd1 c2 50. Qc1 $1 {Attacking the g5 pawn. This is the crucial
tempo.} (50. Qh5 c1=Q+) 50... Kh6 (50... f6 51. e5 $1) (50... Kg6 51. Ra6+ Kh5
52. g4+ hxg3 53. fxg3 Qe2 54. Qb2 (54. g4+ Kh4 55. Rh6+ Kg3 $19) 54... Qe1+ 55.
Kg2 Qe2+ $11) 51. Qb2 $11) 46. hxg4 Qxg4+ 47. Ke3 (47. Kf1 h3 48. gxh3 Qxh3+
49. Ke2 Qg4+ 50. Ke3 Rd6 51. Qxb4 Rf6 $2 (51... Qh3+ $11) 52. Kd4 $1 $18) 47...
Rd6 48. Qxb4 Qg5+ 49. Ke2 Rf6 $1 (49... Qd2+ 50. Kf1 Rf6 51. Qc5 $11) 50. Qxc3
Qxg2 51. Qd4 h3 (51... Qf3+ 52. Ke1 (52. Kd2 h3) 52... h3 {forces White to be
extremely accurate.} 53. e5 Re6 54. Qe4 Qxe4+ 55. dxe4 Rxe5 56. Kf1 Rxe4 57.
Kg1 {With a probable draw.}) 52. Qe3 Qg4+ 53. Kd2 (53. f3 Qg2+ 54. Qf2 Rg6 55.
Qxg2 Rxg2+ 56. Kf1 Rxc2 57. Kg1 $11) 53... Qg2 54. Ke2 Qg4+ 55. Kd2 h2 56. Rh1
Qg2 57. Qg3+ Qxg3 58. fxg3 Rf2+ 59. Kc3 {This is a complicated endgame.
Although the evaluation is equal, White is the one who has to be careful. He
must create counterplay before the Black king reaches to g3.} Kf6 60. d4 Kg5 (
60... Rg2 61. Kb4 Rxc2 62. Kxb5 $11) 61. d5 Kf6 (61... Kg4 62. d6 Kxg3 63. d7
$18) 62. g4 Ke5 63. g5 b4+ 64. Kxb4 Rxc2 65. Kb5 Kd6 66. Kb4 Ke5 67. Kb5 {
No improvement can be made and the game ends in a draw. A very interesting
battle.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.25"]
[Round "12"]
[White "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Black "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "B81"]
[WhiteElo "2760"]
[BlackElo "2780"]
[Annotator "Stohl,I"]
[PlyCount "69"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. e4 c5 {The Sicilian occurred in the Candidates only twice! Apart from this
game Caruana used it in the last round in a must win situation. Karjakin
scored two crucial points against the Sicilian, indicating why the elite
considers 1...e5 safer in such a significant event.} 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4.
Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. h3 {Karjakin lost the lead in the previous round, now he
wants to get back to the top and goes for a popular and complex system.} e6 {
No wonder Topalov goes for the Scheveningen setup.} ({Last December in London
he lost 2 games after} 6... e5 7. Nde2 h5 8. Bg5 (8. g3 Nbd7 9. Bg2 b5 10. Nd5
Nxd5 11. Qxd5 Rb8 12. Be3 Be7 13. Qd2 Nf6 14. O-O O-O 15. Kh2 Bb7 16. Nc3 Rc8
17. a4 b4 18. Nd5 Nxd5 19. exd5 a5 20. Qe2 Bg5 21. Bxg5 Qxg5 22. h4 (22. Qb5
Ba8 23. Qxa5 h4 $1 $44) 22... Qf6 (22... Qe7 23. Qxh5 f5 $44 (23... Rc5 $132))
23. Qb5 Qe7 24. Qxa5 Rxc2 25. Rac1 Rxb2 26. Rb1 Ra2 27. Qxb4 Ba6 28. Qb3 Bxf1
29. Qxa2 Bxg2 30. Kxg2 $14 {Vachier Lagrave,M (2765)-Topalov,V (2803) London
2015}) 8... Be6 9. Bxf6 Qxf6 10. Nd5 Qd8 11. Qd3 g6 ({Earlier Black preferred} 
11... Nc6 12. O-O-O g6 {with mixed success.}) 12. O-O-O Nd7 13. Kb1 {only
appeared later} Nc5 $142 $5 (13... Rc8 14. Nec3 Rc5 15. Be2 b5 16. a3 Nb6 17.
g4 hxg4 18. Nxb6 Qxb6 19. hxg4 Rxh1 20. Rxh1 Bg7 21. Qe3 Qb7 22. Rd1 Qc7 23. g5
Qc6 24. Rg1 (24. Qg3 $1 {/\} a5 25. Bg4 b4 26. Bxe6 fxe6 27. Qh3 $1 $36) 24...
Qd7 (24... a5 $1 $132) 25. Qg3 $36 {[%cal Ye2g4] Anand,V (2803)-Topalov,V 
(2803) London 2015}) 14. Qf3 Bg7 15. Nec3 b5 16. Be2 Rb8 17. a3 Bd7 $5 18. Qe3
a5 19. b4 (19. Na2 $5 {is maybe safer, but can hardly give White an advantage
after} Bh6 20. Qf3 Kf8 $13) 19... Ne6 20. g3 Nd4 21. Bd3 Be6 22. f4 axb4 23.
axb4 Ra8 $132 24. f5 gxf5 25. exf5 Nxf5 26. Bxf5 Bxf5 27. g4 $6 (27. Nxb5 O-O
28. g4 $13) 27... hxg4 28. hxg4 Rxh1 29. Rxh1 Be6 $15 {Ganguly,S (2648)-Giri,A
(2784) Doha 2015}) 7. g4 Nfd7 {We'll check the more popular reactions:} (7...
b5 8. Bg2 ({Karjakin would maybe continue as in the game} 8. g5 $5 Nfd7 9. a3
$13) 8... Bb7 9. O-O Nfd7 ({Black avoids the tactics} 9... b4 10. Nd5 $1 $44 {
, or}) (9... Nc6 10. e5 $36) 10. a4 $5 (10. Re1 Nc6 11. e5 d5 12. Nxc6 Bxc6 13.
Ne2 Bb7 14. Nd4 Bc5 15. Be3 O-O 16. f4 Qc7 17. c3 Rae8 18. g5 Bb6 19. Kh1 Nc5
20. Rg1 Rc8 21. Rc1 Rfd8 22. h4 Ne4 23. Bf3 Qe7 24. Rg2 b4 $132 {Bruzon
Batista,L (2669)-Bu,X (2695) Danzhou 2015}) 10... b4 11. Na2 a5 12. c3 bxc3 13.
Nxc3 Nc5 14. Ndb5 Be7 15. Be3 Nba6 16. Qe2 O-O 17. Rad1 Qb8 18. f4 Bc6 19. b3
Nb4 20. f5 Re8 21. f6 $1 Bxf6 22. Rxf6 gxf6 23. Nxd6 Nd7 24. Nxe8 Qxe8 25. Qf2
Qf8 26. Rd2 Rc8 27. Ne2 Na6 28. Ng3 $36 {Schnabel,M (2439)-Horvat,M (2456)
email 2013}) (7... h6 8. Bg2 Be7 9. f4 Nc6 10. Be3 Nd7 11. O-O {To avoid these
problems, Black should prefer the safer} O-O (11... Nxd4 12. Qxd4 O-O 13. Qd2
Rb8 14. Ne2 b5 15. Rad1 Qc7 16. f5 Nf6 17. Ng3 Bb7 (17... Re8 18. Bd4 (18. Kh1
$5 {could have been Anand's intention in 2015, according to M.Pavlovic.}) 18...
e5 19. Be3 Bb7 20. Bxh6 gxh6 21. Qxh6 Nh7 22. f6 Bf8 23. Qh5 Qc5+ 24. Kh2 Qe3
25. h4 Qh6 26. Qxh6 Bxh6 27. g5 $16 {Navara,D (2716)-Grischuk,A (2795) Tromso
olm 2014/ For details see the notes to this game in CBM 162.}) 18. Kh1 $5 Rbd8
$2 (18... d5 19. Bf4 (19. e5 Qxe5 20. Bf4 Qxb2 $132) 19... e5 20. Bxh6 gxh6 21.
Qxh6 Rfd8 22. g5 Bf8 23. Qh4 Nxe4 24. Nh5 Rd6 25. Bf3 $1 $44 {[%cal Yf1g1,
Yh5f6]}) 19. Bxh6 $1 gxh6 20. Qxh6 d5 21. g5 Qxg3 22. Rd3 $1 Nh5 23. g6 $18 {
Anand,V (2804)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2723) Stavanger 2015 For more details see
the notes to this game in CBM 167 by M.Pavlovic.}) 12. Nce2 Nxd4 13. Qxd4 (13.
Nxd4 e5 14. Nf5 exf4 15. Bxf4 Ne5 16. Qd2 (16. Qd5 Bxf5 17. exf5 b5 18. Qxa8 $2
(18. Rad1 $11) 18... Qb6+ 19. Kh1 Rxa8 20. Bxa8 Bg5 21. Bxg5 hxg5 22. b3 Qc5
$36 {[%csl Ra8,Ge5,Rh1] Shirov,A (2712)-Korobov,A (2700) Poikovsky 2015}) 16...
Bxf5 17. exf5 Rc8 18. b3 b5 19. Rfe1 Bf6 20. Rad1 Re8 21. Kh1 Rc7 22. c3 Rce7
$132 {Kruse,H (2374)-Riccio,E (2477) email 2010}) 13... b5 14. Ng3 e5 $5 15.
Qd2 exf4 16. Bxf4 Ne5 17. Nf5 Bxf5 18. exf5 Rc8 19. Rad1 Nc4 20. Qc1 Bf6 21. b3
Ne5 22. Qd2 Qb6+ 23. Be3 Qc7 24. Qxd6 Qxc2 25. Qd2 Qc7 26. Qd6 Qa5 27. Qd2 Qc7
$11 {½, Shirov,A (2684)-Anand,V (2784) Zuerich blitz 2016}) ({Black should
gradually equalise after} 7... d5 8. exd5 Nxd5 9. Nde2 Bb4 10. Bg2 O-O 11. O-O
Nxc3 12. Nxc3 Qc7 13. Qd4 Bd6 14. Be3 Bd7 15. Rad1 Bh2+ 16. Kh1 Be5 17. Qb6
Qxb6 18. Bxb6 Bxc3 19. bxc3 Bc6 20. Rd4 Bxg2+ 21. Kxg2 Nc6 22. Rd7 Rab8 23. Rb1
Ne5 24. Rdd1 Rbc8 25. Bd4 Nc6 26. Rxb7 Nxd4 27. Rxd4 Rxc3 $11 {Evtushenko,S 
(2522)-Teichmann,C (2394) email 2013 However, I have a feeling Topalov
probably wanted to win at least one game in Moscow! Instead of gradual
equality, Black goes for a full-blooded fight.}) 8. Be3 {Karjakin develops his
queenside first, intending to hide his king there.} ({Two years ago we examined
} 8. Bg2 Be7 9. Be3 Nc6 10. h4 $5 (10. Qd2 O-O 11. O-O-O Nde5 12. Qe2 (12. b3
$5) 12... Nxd4 13. Bxd4 Nc6 14. Be3 b5 15. f4 Bb7 16. Kb1 Rc8 17. g5 Na5 $1 18.
Qe1 Qc7 19. Rc1 Nc4 20. Nd1 d5 21. exd5 Rfd8 $36 {Radjabov,T (2738)-Duda,J 
(2658) Berlin rpd 2015}) 10... Nde5 11. g5 Nc4 $5 ({More concrete and better
than} 11... Bd7 12. Nxc6 Bxc6 13. b3 f5 14. f4 Ng4 15. Qe2 Nxe3 16. Qxe3 fxe4
17. O-O-O d5 18. Nxe4 Ba3+ 19. Kb1 Qe7 20. Nf2 Bc5 21. Qg3 Bxf2 22. Qxf2 O-O
23. Qd4 Rf5 24. Rde1 $14 {Anand,V (2770)-Topalov,V (2785)/Candidates
Khanty-Mansiysk/2014/ See the notes to this game by Anand in CBM 160.}) 12. Bc1
O-O 13. b3 (13. Nxc6 bxc6 14. b3 Nb6 15. Bb2 a5 16. Ne2 Ba6 17. Ng3 d5 18. Qd4
Bb4+ 19. Kd1 {Stevic,H (2613)-Yilmaz,M (2564)/Sarajevo/2014/} f6 $5 $13 {/=/+})
13... Qa5 14. Nde2 N4e5 $5 (14... Na3 15. O-O b5 16. Bd2 Qc7 17. Qc1 b4 18. Na4
{Nestorovic,N (2461)-Hajbok,R (2367)/Kazan/2013/} Nb5 $11) 15. f4 (15. h5 $5)
15... Ng4 $1 16. Bf3 h5 17. Bxg4 hxg4 18. Qd2 d5 19. exd5 Rd8 20. a3 exd5 21.
Na4 Qc7 22. h5 b5 23. h6 gxh6 24. Bb2 d4 $17 {Stevic,H (2619)-Tadic,B (2505)/
Neum/2014/}) (8. g5 b5 9. a3 Bb7 10. h4 ({We will consider} 10. Be3 $5 {
in the following note.}) 10... Nb6 11. h5 N8d7 {leads to a line from the Keres
Attack, but with a tempo up for White. As he has played h2-h4, his bishop is
already on e3 and this enables the powerful temporary rook sacrifice 12.g6!
hxg6 13.hxg6. Here he needs the preparatory} 12. Rh3 Nc5 (12... d5 $142 $5 13.
g6 e5 $13) 13. g6 (13. Qg4 e5 14. Nf5 g6 15. hxg6 fxg6 16. Be3 Rc8 17. O-O-O
Qd7 18. Nh6 Bxh6 19. Qxd7+ Nbxd7 20. Rxh6 Nxe4 21. Bg2 Nxc3 22. Bxb7 Nxd1 23.
Bxc8 Nxe3 24. fxe3 Nc5 25. b4 O-O 26. bxc5 Rxc8 27. cxd6 Rd8 $15 {Gopal,G 
(2580)-Areshchenko,A (2666) Al Ain 2014}) 13... hxg6 14. hxg6 Rxh3 15. gxf7+
Kxf7 16. Bxh3 e5 17. Qh5+ g6 18. Qh7+ Bg7 19. Ne6 Qh8 20. Ng5+ Kf6 21. b3 Qxh7
22. Nxh7+ Kf7 23. Be3 Rh8 24. Ng5+ Ke7 25. O-O-O $14 {Volokitin,A (2628)
-Kuzubov,Y (2640) Lvov 2015}) 8... Be7 ({Black usually plays the immediate} 
8... b5 {and now:} 9. a3 (9. a4 $6 b4 10. Na2 Bb7 11. Bg2 {allows} Nc5 $1 {
Contrary to the note to move 7 here White hasn't castled yet and has no
comfortable way to protect the Pe4, Black had an edge after} 12. Nxb4 Nxe4 13.
O-O d5 14. c3 Be7 15. f3 Nd6 16. f4 Nc4 17. Bf2 a5 18. Nd3 Nd7 19. Qe2 O-O 20.
f5 e5 21. Nb5 e4 22. Nf4 Bg5 23. Bd4 Qb8 $36 {Potkin,V (2585)-Artemiev,V (2674)
Moscow 2016}) (9. Bg2 Bb7 10. Qd2 Nb6 11. b3 N8d7 12. O-O Rc8 (12... Be7 13. f4
O-O 14. f5 $1 b4 15. Nce2 e5 16. f6 Bxf6 17. Nf5 $36 a5 18. Neg3 g6 19. Nh6+ $5
Kg7 20. g5 Be7 21. Ngf5+ $1 gxf5 22. exf5 Bxg2 23. Qxg2 Rc8 24. f6+ Kh8 {
Horvath,A (2536)-Kuzubov,Y (2667) Abu Dhabi 2014} 25. fxe7 Qxe7 26. Bxb6 Nxb6
27. Rf6 $40) 13. f4 Qc7 14. Nce2 e5 15. Nf5 g6 16. Nfg3 Qxc2 17. Qa5 exf4 $6 (
17... Qc7 $142 $1 $13 {is unclear.}) 18. Nxf4 Bg7 19. Rac1 Qb2 20. Nd3 $6 (20.
Nfe2 $1 {[%cal Re3b6] practically forces Black to play} Rc5 $16) 20... Bc3 $1
21. Nxb2 Bxa5 22. Nd3 Bc3 23. Ne2 Bg7 24. Rxc8+ Nxc8 25. Rc1 Kd8 26. Nd4 Bxd4
27. Bxd4 Re8 $15 {Andriasian,Z (2612)-Raznikov,D (2494) Jerusalem 2015}) 9...
Bb7 10. g5 {once again resembles the Keres without h6:} Nb6 11. Qg4 (11. h4
N8d7 12. Bg2 Rc8 13. Nde2 Be7 14. b3 h6 15. Qd2 Qc7 16. Bd4 e5 17. Be3 hxg5 18.
hxg5 Rxh1+ 19. Bxh1 f5 20. gxf6 Nxf6 21. Bg2 Nbd7 22. O-O-O Nc5 23. Bxc5 Qxc5
24. Kb2 a5 $132 {Adams,M (2742)-Ragger,M (2695) Germany 2016}) 11... N8d7 12.
O-O-O Ne5 (12... g6 13. h4 Rc8 14. h5 Ne5 15. Qh3 Rxc3 16. bxc3 Bxe4 17. hxg6
Bxg6 18. f4 Nd5 19. Nxe6 $1 $16 Qa5 20. Rxd5 Qxc3 {Shirov,A (2708)-Al Sayed,M 
(2507) Caleta 2013} 21. Nd4 $18) 13. Qg3 Nec4 14. f4 Rc8 15. Bxc4 Nxc4 16. Rd3
(16. f5 $5) 16... g6 17. Rhd1 Bg7 18. e5 d5 19. Kb1 Qc7 20. Bc1 Bf8 $132 {
Milde,L (2061)-Huerga,A (2174) LSS email 2013}) 9. g5 b5 (9... Bxg5 $2 {
fails to} 10. Nxe6 fxe6 11. Qh5+ $16) (9... Nc6 10. h4 {is again a Keres
Attack with an extra tempo. While the position is probably unclear, in
practice it's easier to handle with White.}) 10. a3 Bb7 11. h4 O-O {
Provocative.} ({Black usually postpones castling with} 11... Nc6 12. Qd2 (12.
Nxc6 Bxc6 13. Qd4 O-O 14. O-O-O Rb8 $132 {[%cal Ya6a5,Yb5b4]}) 12... Rc8 13.
Nxc6 (13. O-O-O b4 $1 14. axb4 Nxb4 15. Nb3 Bxe4 16. Nxe4 Rxc2+ 17. Qxc2 Nxc2
18. Kxc2 O-O 19. Nc3 Qa8 20. Be2 Qb7 21. Na5 Qc7 22. Ra1 d5 23. Nb3 e5 $15 {
Hovhannisyan,R (2623)-Zhigalko,S (2664) Martuni 2013}) (13. Rh3 b4 14. axb4
Nxb4 15. Nce2 a5 16. c3 Nc6 17. Nb5 Nc5 18. Bxc5 dxc5 19. Rd3 Qb6 20. Nd6+ Bxd6
21. Rxd6 O-O 22. f4 Rcd8 23. Rxd8 Rxd8 24. Qc2 c4 $36 {[%csl Re1] Demchenko,A 
(2583)-Gelfand,B (2735) Moscow 2016}) 13... Rxc6 14. O-O-O O-O 15. h5 Qa5 ({
Not even} 15... Ne5 16. h6 g6 17. Qd4 f6 18. f4 Nc4 19. f5 Nxe3 20. Qxe3 Rc5
21. fxg6 hxg6 $13 {Pichot,A (2517)-Cheparinov,I (2682) Antofagasta 2016}) 16.
Kb1 Rxc3 $5 17. Qxc3 Qxc3 18. bxc3 Bxe4 19. Rh4 Bf3 20. Re1 Ne5 $44 {
Bromberger,S (2532)-Cheparinov,I (2684) Reykjavik 2016 Isn't Cheparinov
Topalov's second anymore?}) 12. Qd2 {Development first.} (12. f4 Nc6 13. Rh3
Rc8 14. f5 Nxd4 (14... Nce5 $5 {/\} 15. fxe6 Rxc3 $1 16. bxc3 Nc5 $36 {[%csl
Re1]}) 15. Qxd4 Nc5 16. Bd2 Re8 17. O-O-O Qc7 18. f6 Bf8 19. Bd3 Qb6 20. Kb1
Na4 21. Qxb6 Nxb6 22. Ne2 Nd7 23. Rf1 Ne5 24. Nf4 Nd7 25. Nh5 $36 {Grischuk,A 
(2797)-Dominguez Perez,L (2751) Baku 2014 Although White won, the notes by
Havasi in CBM 163 show Black missed several improvements on the way.}) 12...
Nb6 $146 {[%mdl 8]} ({Veselin had bad memories of} 12... Nc6 13. O-O-O Nxd4 14.
Bxd4 Rc8 (14... Bc6 15. f4 Rb8 16. f5 exf5 17. Bg2 f4 18. Nd5 a5 19. Qxf4 Bxd5
20. exd5 b4 21. a4 Qc7 22. b3 Rbc8 23. Rd2 Ne5 24. Kb1 f6 25. Qf5 Qd7 26. Qxd7
Nxd7 27. Bh3 $16 {Demchenko,A (2589)-Gabrielian,A (2576) Iasi 2015}) 15. Rg1
Ne5 16. Qe3 Nc4 17. Bxc4 Rxc4 18. f4 Re8 19. f5 Bf8 20. f6 e5 21. Bb6 $40 {
Vallejo Pons,F (2697)-Topalov,V (2752) Leon rpd 2012 White has a lead in his
attack and went on to win.}) ({Postal games saw Black successfully adopting
the central counter} 12... d5 $5 13. exd5 (13. h5 dxe4 14. g6 Ne5 15. O-O-O
Nbc6 16. h6 fxg6 17. hxg7 Rf7 18. Bh3 Nc4 19. Nxc6 Qxd2+ 20. Bxd2 Bxc6 21. Bxe6
e3 22. fxe3 Bxh1 23. Rxh1 Bf6 24. Rf1 Kxg7 25. Bxf7 Nxd2 26. Kxd2 Bxc3+ 27.
bxc3 Rf8 28. c4 Rxf7 29. Rxf7+ Kxf7 {½, Lovakovic,F (2272)-Ilyin,P (2255)
email 2012}) 13... Nb6 14. Rg1 Nxd5 15. Nxd5 Bxd5 16. h5 (16. O-O-O Nc6 17.
Nxc6 Bxc6 18. Bg2 Bxg2 19. Rxg2 Qxd2+ 20. Rxd2 Rad8 $11 {½, Korzh,L (2089)
-Lubas,J (2061) email 2014}) 16... Qc7 17. Nf5 Nc6 18. Bf4 Qb7 19. Nxe7+ Qxe7
20. O-O-O b4 21. Qe3 bxa3 22. bxa3 Rac8 $132 {Zolochevsky,V (2349)-Baldin,V 
(2332) email 2012}) 13. h5 {Natural enough, but the more energetic} (13. g6 $5
{also deserved attention:} {/\} hxg6 14. h5 $36) 13... N8d7 14. g6 Ne5 {
The knight aims for c4, while e6 is indirectly protected due to the fork on f3.
} ({However, the typical} 14... Bf6 $132 {was also interesting.}) ({, or the
more concrete} 14... Nc5 $5 15. Rg1 (15. O-O-O Nxe4 $1 16. Nxe4 Bxe4 17. gxf7+
Rxf7 18. Nxe6 Qc8 $17) 15... Bf6 $13) 15. O-O-O {Karjakin finishes his
development, contrary to Caruana-Nakamura, Moscow 2016 White's major pieces
will be able to support his bayonet attack.} ({The direct} 15. h6 fxg6 16. Bh3
(16. hxg7 Re8 $5) 16... Rf6 17. O-O-O (17. Bxe6+ Rxe6 18. Nxe6 Nf3+ 19. Kd1 Qc8
$36) 17... Nbc4 18. Qe1 Qa5 $13 {leads to immense complications, which are
almost impossible to evaluate correctly over the board. One plausible
follow-up is} {/\} 19. Bxe6+ (19. Bg5 $5) 19... Rxe6 20. Nxe6 Nxb2 21. Kxb2
Nc4+ 22. Kb1 Nxa3+ $1 (22... Qxa3 23. Bc1 Qb4+ $11) 23. Kc1 Rc8 24. Rd3 b4 $40)
15... Nbc4 16. Bxc4 ({Swaps a potential attacking unit, but after} 16. Qe2 Bf6
17. Bh3 Bc8 {Black's knights are alive and dangerous, e.g.} 18. gxf7+ Rxf7 19.
Bxe6 $6 Bxe6 20. Nxe6 Qa5 $44 {[%cal Rc4b2] /\Nb2}) 16... Nxc4 17. Qe2 Rc8 $2 {
The Sicilian is often about one mistake, which can often be irredeemable.} (
17... Nxe3 $6 18. fxe3 $1 (18. Qxe3 Bg5 19. f4 Bh6 20. Kb1 Qe7 $132) {opens
the <->f and also isn't ideal:} 18... Bf6 19. h6 hxg6 20. Qh2 {-> /\} Re8 21.
hxg7 Bxg7 22. Qh7+ Kf8 23. Rhg1 {[%cal Rg1g6]} Bxd4 24. exd4 Qf6 25. Rdf1 Qg7
26. Qxg6 Qxg6 27. Rxg6 $16) (17... Bf6 $142 $1 {Adams,M (2741)-Kasparov,G 
(2804) Linares 22nd 2005 (12) 0-1 retains the tension and is a typical move in
similar situations - see} 18. Qg4 (18. h6 {gives Black a choice between} fxg6
$5 (18... hxg6 19. hxg7 Bxg7 $13) 19. Nxe6 Qe7 20. Nxf8 Bxc3 $132) 18... Qe7 $5
$13 {/\} ({The Pe6 still requires protection:} 18... Rc8 $2 19. h6 hxg6 20.
Nxe6 Nxe3 21. fxe3 Qd7 22. hxg7 Bxg7 23. Qh3 fxe6 24. Qh7+ Kf7 25. Rdg1 Ke8 26.
Qxg6+ Rf7 27. Rh7 Kf8 28. Qh5 $1 {[%cal Rh7g7]} Rf6 (28... Bxc3 29. Qh6+ Ke7
30. Rxf7+ Kxf7 31. Rf1+ Kg8 32. bxc3 $18) 29. Qh4 $1 Rc7 30. Rhxg7 Qxg7 31.
Rxg7 Kxg7 32. Qg3+ $18) 19. Rdg1 h6) 18. h6 $1 $40 {[%mdl 128] This break
comes at the exactly right moment. White's Q and rooks are ready to pounce on
the hapless enemy king; the attack is simply too powerful.} fxg6 {loses
material without compensation.} ({However,} 18... hxg6 {is hopeless:} 19. hxg7
Re8 (19... Kxg7 20. Bh6+ Kg8 21. Rdg1 {[%cal Re2h5,Rd4e6]}) 20. Qf3 $40 (20.
Nxe6 $5 fxe6 21. Rdg1 $18 {[%csl Rg8]})) 19. Nxe6 Qd7 (19... Qa5 20. hxg7 Rfe8
21. Rxh7 $1 $18 {and taking the R leads to a quick mate after} Kxh7 22. Rh1+
Kg8 23. Qg4 Kf7 (23... Ne5 24. Qf4) 24. Rh7 Rg8 25. Nf4 $18) 20. Nxf8 (20. hxg7
Rf7 21. Nc5 $16 {is good for White, but the text move is far simpler. Topalov
allegedly overlooked it, a definite sign he was totally out of form in Moscow.}
) 20... Bxf8 21. hxg7 Bxg7 22. Bd4 a5 ({After} 22... Bxd4 23. Rxd4 Nxa3 {
the computer solution is} 24. bxa3 $5 Rxc3 25. Rhd1 $18 {White's win is a
matter of technique.}) 23. Bxg7 Qxg7 24. Qg4 Re8 25. Qg5 Bc6 26. Qh6 Qh8 (26...
Bxe4 27. Qxg7+ Kxg7 28. Rhe1 Bc6 29. Rxe8 Bxe8 30. Rd4 $18 {[%cal Ra3a4]}) 27.
b3 $5 ({With an extra exchange White sees no need for} 27. Rh4 b4 28. Rd4 $1
$18 {and first of all strives to stop any meaningful counterplay.}) 27... Nxa3
{Endgames are hopeless:} (27... Qxc3 28. Qxh7+ Kf8 29. Qh8+ {as well as} Qxh8
30. Rxh8+ Ke7 31. Rxe8+ Bxe8 32. bxc4 $18) (27... Bxe4 28. bxc4 (28. Rh3 $5)
28... Bxh1 29. Rxh1 {/\} Qxc3 30. Qxh7+ Kf8 31. Qh8+ Qxh8 32. Rxh8+ Ke7 33.
Rxe8+ Kxe8 34. cxb5 $18) 28. Rh3 (28. Qh3 $5 $18) 28... Bd7 29. Rg3 Qf6 30. Rh1
(30. Rdg1 $142 $1 Re6 31. f4 $18 {[%cal Rf4f5]}) 30... Re7 31. Qh4 Qg7 {
This loses by force.} ({A more resilient try was} 31... Qxh4 32. Rxh4 Bc6 {
, but in the endgame White should gradually convert his extra exchange in the
long run.}) 32. Nd5 Rf7 (32... Qa1+ 33. Kd2 Qd4+ 34. Rd3 $18) 33. Qd8+ Qf8 (
33... Rf8 34. Ne7+ $18 {so Black can't avoid the queen swap anyway. But now
White already has a better choice...}) 34. Qxa5 Nxc2 35. Qc3 (35. Qc3 Rxf2 36.
Rxg6+ hxg6 37. Rh8+ Kf7 38. Rh7+ $5 (38. Rxf8+ Kxf8 39. Qh8+ Kf7 40. Qh7+)
38... Ke8 39. Qc7 Rf1+ 40. Kb2 {and White mates after the checks run out.}) 1-0

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.25"]
[Round "12"]
[White "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A29"]
[WhiteElo "2790"]
[BlackElo "2762"]
[Annotator "Marin,M"]
[PlyCount "51"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. c4 e5 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. Nf3 Nc6 4. g3 Bb4 5. Nd5 e4 {This provocative move is a
worthy alternative to the more restrained:} (5... Bc5 6. Bg2 O-O 7. O-O d6 8.
d3) 6. Nh4 O-O 7. Bg2 d6 {This usually is a disclosure of Black's intentions
to trap the h4 knight, something I have evaluated as risky in my English
trilogy.} ({The classical main line goes} 7... Bc5) 8. a3 $5 $146 {This
novelty had devastating effects in this game, but its objective merits are far
from clear yet. Mor practice is needed.} ({My book line goes} 8. O-O g5 9. d4
h6 (9... gxh4 $2 10. Bg5 $18) (9... Ne8 $6 10. Nxb4 Nxb4 11. Qd2 $16) (9...
Nxd5 $6 10. cxd5 Nb8 11. Qa4 $16) {McNab,C (2410)-Haik,A (2370) Metz 1988 (0-1,
25)} 10. Nxb4 $146 Nxb4 11. f3 $1 $36 {At the time when I analysed this
position the engines evaluated it as slightly preferable for Black. In fact,
White has a very dangerous initiative for the inevitably lost piece, given
that the black knights do not have good squares, the black king is weak and
the c1-bishop is unchallenged on the dark squares. I provided many
illustrative lines, managing to more or less moderate the engines' initial
optimism and I thought that the next computer generations would see it more
clearly. But now that I checked it again after 5 years, the evaluation remains
the same. The only thing I can say is that I would always choose to play on
the White side.}) 8... Bc5 9. O-O Re8 ({One of the ideas behind Nakamura's
novelty is that after} 9... g5 $2 10. d4 $1 $16 {[%csl Gc5,Gg5] the bishop is
attacked. Anand's move is natural, but not the only reasonable one.}) ({
It appears that the e4-pawn does not need defending yet, as after} 9... Bg4 10.
Nxf6+ Qxf6 11. Bxe4 Rae8 12. Bf3 Bh3 13. Bg2 (13. Ng2 Nd4) 13... Bg4 $11 {
White does not have anything better than agreeing to a draw by repetition:} 14.
Nf3 $2 Nd4 15. Nxd4 Bxd4 16. Bf3 Bxf3 17. exf3 Re6 $36) (9... Nxd5 $6 {leads
to a typical English structure with a passive black dark-squared bishop.} 10.
cxd5 Nd4 11. e3 (11. Bxe4 Bg4 $36 12. Re1 $6 f5) 11... Nf5 12. Nxf5 Bxf5 13.
Qc2 Re8 14. f3 $14 {[%csl Gc5]}) 10. e3 $3 {[%cal Gf2f3,Gb2b4,Gc1b2] A typical
move, restricting the c5-bishop and preparing f2-f3. But the exclamation marks
are for ignoring the threat against the knight on the edge.} (10. b4 Bd4 11.
Rb1 Ne7 12. e3 Nexd5 13. exd4 Ne7 14. d3 Nf5 15. Nxf5 Bxf5 $11) 10... g5 $6 {
Playing with fire.} ({It was not too late to return to normal development:} 
10... Be6 11. d4 exd3 12. b4 Bb6 13. Bb2 Bxd5 14. cxd5 Ne5 {In principle the
structure favours White, but retrieving the d3-pawn will require making some
concession.}) 11. b4 Bb6 $6 ({Having started to go down one route, Black
should have continued:} 11... gxh4 12. Bb2 $5 Nxd5 13. cxd5 Ne5 14. bxc5 Bg4
15. Qb3 Nf3+ 16. Bxf3 Bxf3 {Optically, the position is not entirely clear but
after} 17. cxd6 cxd6 18. h3 {[%csl Gg8][%cal Gg1h2,Gb2h8] it appears that only
Black's king is in some danger while White's is relatively safe.}) 12. Bb2 $16
{Forcing the next exchange.} Nxd5 13. cxd5 Nd4 $5 {Neither better nor worse
than any other knight move, but the most spectacular of them.} (13... Ne5 14.
f4 Nc4 15. fxg5 Nxb2 16. Qh5 $40 Qd7 (16... Qe7 17. Bxe4) 17. Bh3 Qe7 18. Nf5 {
[%csl Rf7][%cal Gf5h6]} Bxf5 19. Bxf5 f6 20. gxf6 Qf7 21. Bxh7+ Qxh7 22. f7+) (
13... Ne7 14. Bf6 gxh4 15. Qh5 $18) (13... Nb8 14. Qh5 gxh4 15. Qh6 f6 (15...
Re5 16. Bxe4 $1 f5 17. f4 $1 $18) 16. Bxf6 Qd7 17. Qg5+ Kf8 18. f3 $18) 14. d3
$1 {Dotting the i and crossing the t. White intends to open the d-file in
order to capture the self-trapped knight quite comfortably.} (14. exd4 gxh4)
14... gxh4 (14... exd3 15. Qxd3 Qf6 16. Rfd1 gxh4 17. Bxd4 Qg6 18. Rac1 $16 {
[%csl Gc7,Gg8]}) 15. dxe4 Ne6 (15... Nb5 16. a4 $16) 16. dxe6 Rxe6 ({The
developing} 16... Bxe6 {leaves the king helpless after} 17. Qh5 {[%cal Gh5h6]}
Rf8 (17... f6 18. Qxh4) 18. gxh4 $18 {[%cal Gg1h1,Gf1g1]}) 17. e5 {The game is
basically over. White has a huge advance in development and the black king is
desperately weak. In the next sequence almost any reasonable white move wins.}
hxg3 18. hxg3 Qg5 19. exd6 Rxd6 20. Qb3 h5 (20... c6 {[%cal Gc8g4]} 21. Qc3 f6
22. Rad1 Rxd1 23. Rxd1 Bg4 24. Rd6 $18) 21. Rad1 Rh6 {Black will not be in
time to launch his desired attack with ...h5-h4.} 22. Rd5 Qe7 23. Qc4 Bg4 24.
Qf4 Rg6 25. Re5 Qd6 26. Be4 1-0

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.25"]
[Round "12"]
[White "Svidler, Peter"]
[Black "Giri, Anish"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A29"]
[WhiteElo "2757"]
[BlackElo "2793"]
[Annotator "Sagar Shah"]
[PlyCount "169"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. c4 e5 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. Nf3 Nc6 4. g3 d5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. Bg2 Nb6 7. O-O Be7 8.
a3 O-O 9. b4 Be6 10. Rb1 (10. b5 Nd4 11. Nxe5 Bb3 $19) 10... f6 11. d3 {
In this position Black has two ways to continue. One is to go directly Nd4 and
other one is to include a5 and b5 before playing Nd4. Anish chooses the latter.
} a5 12. b5 Nd4 13. Nd2 Qc8 {Defending the b7 pawn.} 14. e3 Nf5 15. Qc2 a4 16.
Rd1 Nd6 $146 {The first new move of the game but it seemed as if both were
already out of their preparation. The plans in this position are pretty well
established and both the players are following them. A move here or there
doesn't really change the character of the game.} 17. Nde4 $5 {An interesting
idea by Peter who doesn't mind giving up an exchange to Bb3.} Nxe4 (17... Bb3
18. Rxb3 axb3 19. Qxb3+ $44) 18. Nxe4 (18. dxe4 Bb3 19. Rxb3 axb3 20. Qxb3+ Kh8
{With the bishop closed on g2 this doesn't look great.}) 18... Bd5 {Giri is
always well aware of the dangers and chooses the most solid way to play.} (
18... Bb3 $6 {This wins an exchange but gives White excellent light square
control.} 19. Rxb3 axb3 20. Qxb3+ $44 Kh8 {White can now continue either with
his light square strategy with Nc3 or break in the centre with d4.}) 19. Nc5
Bxg2 20. Kxg2 Bxc5 21. Qxc5 Qe6 $1 {At this point the position might be round
about equal but it seems like Black has much easier play thanks to his knight
having more scope against the bishop.} 22. Bb2 (22. Qxc7 $2 Nd5 23. Qc2 (23.
Qxb7 Rfb8 24. Qc6 Qxc6 25. bxc6 Rxb1 $19) 23... Rfc8 $19 {With the knight
coming to c3 this is just winning for Black.}) (22. e4 {Svidler wanted to play
this but was afraid of} f5 {White should be fine after} (22... Rf7 23. Be3 {
And the bishop is much better posted on e3 than in the game.}) 23. Bb2 Rae8 24.
exf5 Qxf5 25. Rd2 {White is not getting mated here and should have a decent
position.}) 22... Rf7 23. Bc3 Rd7 24. Bb4 Rad8 (24... h5 {Giri was thinking
about this move here.} 25. h4 Rad8 26. e4 f5 27. exf5 Qxf5 28. Re1 Rf7 $17 {
When the insertion of h4 and h5 looks to be in Black's favour and he doesn't
have any back rank problems now.} 29. Rxe5 $2 Qf3+ 30. Kg1 Nd7 $19) 25. e4 f5
26. exf5 $6 (26. Rbc1 {Keeping the position was better.}) 26... Qxf5 {Black
has some initiative now because White's kingside is weak and the rook is
coming to the f-file and the knight is joining in via d5.} 27. Re1 Nd5 $1 (
27... Qxd3 28. Rbd1 $36) (27... Rxd3 28. Qxc7 $16) 28. Qc4 Rf7 29. Rb2 h6 {
This looks a little bit too slow.} (29... Qf3+ {According to the computer this
was the best move. Giri had seen it but he wasn't sure if it was any good.} 30.
Kg1 Nxb4 31. Qxb4 Rd4 (31... Rxd3 32. Qxa4 $11) 32. Qc5 Rxd3 $17 {Engines
claim this is just better but Anish thought it was extremely drawish. Well
what can we say? When it comes to evaluating drawn positions you cannot argue
with a man who made 14/14 draws in the tournament.}) 30. Qe4 Qd7 31. Qxe5 Qxb5
{This exchange of the b5-pawn for e5 is in Black's favour.} 32. Qe4 (32. Be7 $2
Qc6 $1 {was the point missed by Peter.} 33. Bxd8 Nf4+ $19) 32... Qd7 (32... c5
33. Bc3 Qc6 34. Be5 b5 $15 {looks to be in Black's favour with his queenside
pawns rolling down, although one cannot underestimate the power of the e5
bishop which has finally found a good square.}) 33. Qe6 Qxe6 (33... b6 34. Qxd7
Rdxd7 35. Bd2 {With the idea of later Bf4 if the knight moves seems fine for
White. In any case these positions are always slightly more pleasant for Black.
}) 34. Rxe6 Nxb4 35. Rxb4 Rxd3 36. f4 (36. Rxa4 Rd2 37. Re8+ Kh7 38. Rf4 Rxf4
39. gxf4 Kg6 $15 {This might well be a draw but during the game Peter thought
that this was really bad for him.}) 36... Rxa3 37. Rxb7 Ra2+ 38. Kh3 Rc2 39.
Ra6 Rf5 40. Rxa4 Rh5+ 41. Kg4 Rhxh2 42. Ra8+ (42. Raa7 h5+ 43. Kg5 Rc3 44. Rxc7
Rxg3+ 45. Kf5 Kh7 $17) 42... Kh7 43. Rbb8 Rc4 $1 {A strong move by Anish which
keeps the game going although it should be a draw.} 44. Rf8 (44. Re8 {was
surely better to keep the option of giving a check on e6.} Kg6 45. Re6+ Kf7 46.
Rae8 $11) 44... Kg6 45. Rae8 h5+ 46. Kf3 Rcc2 47. Re6+ Kh7 48. Re3 Rhf2+ 49.
Ke4 Rc6 50. Rf5 Kh6 51. Rd5 (51. Re5 $2 h4 52. gxh4 Rc4+ 53. Kd3 Rfxf4 54. h5
Rfd4+ 55. Ke2 Rc2+ 56. Kf3 Rh4 $19) 51... h4 52. gxh4 Rc4+ 53. Kd3 Rfxf4 (53...
Rcxf4 54. Re6+ Rf6 55. Rxf6+ Rxf6 56. Rc5 c6 57. Ke4 $11) 54. Re6+ Kh7 55. Rh5+
(55. Re7 {was the easier way to draw.} Rxh4 56. Rdd7 Rhg4 57. Rxg7+ Rxg7 58.
Rxg7+ Kxg7 59. Kxc4 $11) 55... Kg8 56. Re7 Rfd4+ 57. Ke3 Rd1 58. Ke2 Rg1 59.
Rg5 Rxg5 60. hxg5 Kh7 (60... Kf8 61. Rd7 Re4+ 62. Kf3 Re7 {is also drawn but
there are some more chances.}) 61. Ke3 Kg6 62. Rd7 {The rest of the game is
not so important. White has sufficient defensive resources.} Rc5 63. Re7 Rc1
64. Kd2 Rc6 65. Ke2 Rc3 66. Kd2 Rc4 67. Kd3 Rc5 68. Ke3 c6 69. Rc7 Re5+ 70. Kf4
Rf5+ 71. Ke4 Rf1 72. Ke3 Re1+ 73. Kf3 Rc1 74. Kg4 Rc3 75. Kf4 Rc4+ 76. Kf3 Rc2
77. Kg4 Rc1 78. Kf4 c5 79. Kg4 c4 80. Rc6+ Kf7 81. Kf5 Rf1+ 82. Ke5 Re1+ 83.
Kf5 g6+ 84. Kf4 Rf1+ 85. Ke4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.27"]
[Round "13"]
[White "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Black "Giri, Anish"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "C54"]
[WhiteElo "2762"]
[BlackElo "2793"]
[Annotator "Stohl,I"]
[PlyCount "103"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. O-O Nf6 5. d3 d6 6. c3 a6 ({Even after} 6...
h6 {White can try the analogous} 7. a4 a5 8. Na3 O-O 9. Nc2 Re8 10. Re1 Ba7 11.
Be3 Be6 12. Bb5 Bd7 13. Bxa7 Nxa7 14. Bc4 Be6 (14... Nc8 15. Ne3 Nb6 16. Bb3 c6
17. h3 Be6 18. Bc2 Qc7 19. d4 Nc4 20. Nxc4 Bxc4 21. Qd2 Rad8 22. Rad1 Be6 23.
Qe3 b6 24. Nd2 c5 25. Bd3 Re7 26. d5 Bd7 27. Ra1 Nh5 28. b4 Nf4 29. bxa5 bxa5
30. Reb1 Rf8 31. Bb5 Bc8 32. Bf1 f5 33. c4 Ref7 34. Ra3 fxe4 35. Nxe4 Bf5 36.
Rab3 $14 {Caruana,F (2794)-Topalov,V (2780) Moscow 2016}) 15. Bxe6 Rxe6 16. Ne3
Nc8 17. Nf5 Ne7 18. d4 exd4 19. N3xd4 Re5 $2 (19... Rxe4 $1 20. Rxe4 Nxe4 21.
Qg4 Ng5 22. h4 Nxf5 23. Nxf5 Ne6 24. Nxh6+ Kf8 25. Nf5 Qf6 $11) 20. Ng3 Ng6 21.
Qc2 c6 22. Rad1 Qc7 23. Ndf5 Rd8 24. Qd2 $16 {Carlsen,M (2844)-Adams,M (2744)
Wijk aan Zee 2016 For more details see the notes to this game by Carlsen in
CBM 171.}) (6... O-O 7. Bg5 h6 8. Bh4 g5 9. Bg3 g4 10. Nh4 Nh5 11. a4 a6 12.
Na3 Qg5 13. Nc2 Ba7 14. Ne3 Ne7 15. d4 Qg7 16. dxe5 dxe5 17. Nef5 Bxf5 18. exf5
Bc5 {Muzychuk,M (2554)-Hou,Y (2673) WChW Lvov 2016} 19. f6 $1 $36) 7. a4 $5 {
A new wrinkle instead of the more common} (7. Nbd2 {and}) (7. Bb3 {White keeps
open various options to develop his Nb1; it doesn't necessarily have to go via
d2...}) 7... Ba7 (7... O-O 8. Re1 ({After} 8. Na3 {White has to reckon with}
Na5 $5 $132) 8... Ba7 (8... h6 $5 9. h3 Be6 10. Bxe6 fxe6 11. Be3 Bxe3 12. Rxe3
Qd7 13. Nbd2 Qf7 14. g3 Nd7 15. Kg2 a5 16. Qc2 Nc5 17. Rf1 Qd7 18. b3 Ne7 19.
Nc4 b5 20. axb5 Qxb5 21. Rb1 Nc6 $132 {Giri,A (2798)-Anand,V (2784) Zuerich
rpd 2016}) 9. h3 (9. Na3 h6 10. Nc2 Re8 11. Be3 Be6 12. Bxe6 Rxe6 13. Bxa7 Rxa7
14. d4 exd4 15. Nfxd4 Nxd4 16. Qxd4 Ra8 17. f3 a5 18. Ne3 Qd7 19. Red1 b6 20.
Qc4 Rae8 21. Qb5 Qc8 22. b4 Qa8 $11 {So,W (2773)-Mamedyarov,S (2747) Wijk aan
Zee 2016}) (9. Nbd2 Ng4 $1 10. Re2 Kh8 {[%cal Yf7f5]} 11. h3 Nh6 12. Nf1 f5 13.
Bxh6 gxh6 14. exf5 Bxf5 15. Bd5 Bg6 16. Qd2 Qf6 17. Ng3 Qf4 18. Qxf4 Rxf4 19.
Be4 Bf7 20. Bxc6 bxc6 $132 {/=/+, Movsesian,S (2624)-Morozevich,A (2718)
Prague rpd 2002}) 9... h6 10. Nbd2 Ne7 ({The immediate} 10... Be6 {seems
stronger than the knight manoeuvre:} 11. b4 (11. Bxe6 fxe6 12. Nf1 Qe7 13. Be3
Bxe3 14. Nxe3 Nh5 15. d4 exd4 16. Nxd4 Nf4 $15 {Gundogan,S (1795)-Unlu,A (1575)
Kemer 2014}) (11. Bb3 Re8 12. Nf1 d5 13. Bc2 dxe4 14. dxe4 Qxd1 {½, Wang,Y 
(2445)-Maiorov,N (2558) Moscow 2016}) 11... Qd7 12. Bxe6 fxe6 13. Nf1 Nh5 14.
Be3 Nf4 15. b5 Ne7 16. bxa6 bxa6 17. d4 exd4 18. cxd4 Neg6 19. N1h2 a5 20. h4
Qf7 21. g3 Nh5 22. Rc1 Nf6 23. Qc2 Bb6 24. Nd2 d5 25. e5 Nd7 26. Nb3 Ne7 27. f3
Nf5 $132 {½, Karthikeyan,M (2435)-Vaibhav,S (2535) Mumbai 2013}) ({Another
solid option is} 10... Re8 11. Nf1 Be6 12. Bxe6 Rxe6 13. Be3 Bxe3 14. Nxe3 d5
15. Qc2 Qd7 16. Rad1 Rd8 17. Nf5 Qe8 18. b4 b5 19. axb5 axb5 20. Nd2 Ne7 21.
Nxe7+ Qxe7 22. Nb3 dxe4 23. dxe4 Red6 $11 {Muzychuk,M (2554)-Hou,Y (2673) WChW
Lvov 2016}) 11. Nf1 Ng6 12. Ng3 c6 13. Ba2 Be6 14. Bxe6 fxe6 15. d4 $1 exd4 16.
cxd4 d5 ({Playing for the better B has concrete drawbacks, but the engine move
} 16... c5 17. Be3 $14 {is also pleasant for White.} (17. Qb3 $5)) 17. exd5 $1
exd5 18. Qd3 Ne7 19. Bd2 Bb8 20. Bb4 Bd6 21. Bxd6 Qxd6 22. Re3 Rae8 23. Ne5 $36
{Giri,A (2793)-Nakamura,H (2790) Moscow 2016}) 8. Na3 Ne7 (8... O-O 9. Bg5 h6
10. Bh4 g5 11. Bg3 (11. Nxg5 $1 hxg5 12. Bxg5 $44 {[%cal Yd1f3,Yb3c2,Yc2e3] is
probably a good version of the positional sacrifice, White's Na3 can quickly
join the attack.}) 11... Bg4 12. h3 Bh5 13. Qe2 Ne7 14. Nc2 Ng6 15. Ne3 Kh7 16.
Nf5 Ne7 17. Ne3 Ng6 18. Nf5 {½, Chocenka,D (2403)-Jasinski,M (2393) email 2014
}) (8... h6 9. Nc2 O-O 10. Ne3 Ne7 11. a5 (11. Bb3 Ng6 12. Nf5 d5 13. Qc2 Be6
14. Be3 c5 15. Rad1 Qc7 16. N3h4 Nxh4 17. Nxh4 c4 18. dxc4 dxc4 19. Ba2 Bxe3
20. fxe3 Qc5 21. Rde1 Rfd8 $17 {Arakhamia Grant,K (2363)-Kantane,A (2280)
Germany 2016}) 11... c6 12. Bb3 Be6 (12... Ng6) 13. Bxe6 fxe6 14. Qb3 Qd7 15.
Nc4 Ng6 16. Qc2 Nh5 17. Qd1 Ngf4 18. Be3 Qe7 19. Bxa7 Rxa7 20. g3 Ng6 21. d4
exd4 22. Ne1 Nf6 23. Qxd4 Raa8 24. Qxd6 $16 {Siebarth,M (1788)-Ritter,U (1740)
GER email 2012}) 9. Bg5 $146 {Anand decides to change tack and deviates from
his earlier win against Aronian. The players now enter uncharted territory
with a full board of pieces and an interesting position.} (9. Nc2 Ng6 10. Be3 (
10. h3 O-O 11. Re1 c6 12. Ba2 Re8 13. d4 exd4 14. Ncxd4 Nxe4 15. Bxf7+ Kxf7 16.
Rxe4 Rxe4 17. Ng5+ Kg8 18. Nxe4 d5 19. Ng3 Qf6 20. Be3 Bd7 21. Qb3 {Pacher,M 
(2502)-Kantor,G (2418) Budapest 2016} Rb8 $11) 10... O-O 11. Bxa7 (11. a5 $5)
11... Rxa7 12. Ne3 Ng4 ({Black wants to simplify the position, but} 12... a5
$142 {[%cal Yc7c6,Yd6d5] gives him better chances to gradually neutralise
White's pressure.}) 13. Qd2 a5 14. d4 $1 Ra8 15. dxe5 N4xe5 16. Nxe5 Nxe5 17.
Bb3 Nd7 18. Bc2 Re8 19. f3 $1 b6 20. Rfd1 Nc5 21. b4 Nd7 22. Bb3 Nf6 23. Qd4
Qe7 $6 (23... Bd7 $142 $14 {/\} 24. Nd5 Be6) 24. Nd5 Nxd5 25. Bxd5 Ra7 26. b5
Bb7 27. c4 Qe5 28. Rac1 Qxd4+ 29. Rxd4 $16 {[%csl Ra7] Anand,V (2762)-Aronian,
L (2786) Moscow 2016/ Suddenly as if out of nowhere White has strong pressure
- to reanimate the Ra7 Black will sooner or later have to take on d5.}) 9... c6
{Giri is not worried about the doubled pawns.} (9... Ng6 {seems more
consistent, when Anand possibly intended} 10. Nh4 c6 (10... Nxh4 11. Bxh4 h6
12. d4 $5 $13) 11. Nf5 Bxf5 (11... O-O 12. Qf3 Bxf5 13. Qxf5 d5 14. Bxf6 gxf6
15. Ba2 $14) 12. exf5 Ne7 $13) 10. Nc2 O-O (10... Ng6 11. Nh4 Nf4 $5 12. Bxf4
exf4 $13 {/\} 13. Qd2 O-O 14. Qxf4 $2 Nh5 $19) 11. Nh4 (11. Bxf6 $5 gxf6 12. d4
{is principled, but far from clear and White might miss his dark
squared-bishop further on:} Bg4 (12... d5 13. exd5 cxd5 14. Ba2 Qd6 (14... e4
15. Nh4 f5 16. Qh5 f4 17. f3 (17. Qg5+ $6 Ng6 $15) 17... e3 18. g3 $36) 15. Ne3
Rd8 16. g3 Kh8 $132) 13. Ne3 (13. Re1 d5 14. Ba2 f5 $13) (13. Bb3 Kh8 $13)
13... Bh5 14. Be2 Kh8 15. Nh4 Bg6 $132) (11. Ne3 Ng6 {[%csl Yh7][%cal Yh7h6]}
12. Nh4 Nf4 $1 $15) 11... d5 $1 12. exd5 (12. Ba2 Qd6 {is comfortable for
Black.}) 12... Nexd5 (12... cxd5 $142 $1 13. Ba2 (13. Bxf6 dxc4 14. Bxe5 Nc6
$17) 13... Bg4 14. Qd2 Qd6 {[%csl Gd5,Ge5] seems stronger, if anyone is better
here it's Black with his centre.}) 13. Nf3 (13. Bxd5 $5 cxd5 14. Qf3 {is
interesting:} h6 ({A cooperative line is} 14... Be6 15. Nf5 e4 16. Qh3 Qd7 (
16... h6 17. Bh4 Bxf5 18. Qxf5 Qd7 19. Ne3 Bxe3 20. fxe3 Qxf5 21. Rxf5 Ng4 22.
Re1 exd3 23. Rxd5 $14) 17. Nce3 Ne8 18. dxe4 Nd6 19. Nxd5 Nxe4 (19... Nxf5 $2
20. Nf6+ $1 gxf6 21. Bxf6 h6 22. exf5 $18) 20. Nde7+ Kh8 21. Qg4 Nxg5 22. Qxg5
Bxf5 23. Nxf5 $14) 15. Bxf6 $8 (15. Be3 d4 $36) 15... Qxf6 16. Qxf6 gxf6 17. d4
$13 {[%csl Rd5][%cal Ya1d1,Yc2e3] /+/=}) 13... Qd6 (13... Bg4 $143 14. h3 Bxf3
15. Qxf3 {is pleasant for White.}) ({However,} 13... Qc7 $5 {is at least
equivalent to the text move.}) 14. Re1 Bg4 (14... Re8 15. d4 exd4 (15... e4 16.
Ne5 $14) 16. Rxe8+ Nxe8 17. Ncxd4 $32 {+/=}) 15. Bh4 (15. Ne3 Nxe3 16. Bxe3
Bxe3 17. Rxe3 Nd5 $11 {/=/+}) (15. h3 Bh5 {/\} 16. g4 $2 e4 $1 $36 {[%cal
Rd6g3]}) 15... Rae8 16. h3 (16. Bg3 Nh5 $15) 16... Bh5 17. Bg3 Nf4 18. Bxf4
exf4 19. d4 c5 {[%csl Ga7,Gh5] Black's active piece play fully compensates for
the doubled pawns - Anand must tread with care.} 20. Be2 ({It's safer to
simplify and seek equality with} 20. Rxe8 $5 Rxe8 21. dxc5 Qxc5 22. Qd4 Ne4 (
22... Bxf3 23. Qxc5 Bxc5 24. gxf3 $11) 23. Qxc5 Bxc5 24. Nfd4 $11) 20... cxd4
21. Ncxd4 (21. Nfxd4 Bg6 $15) 21... Re4 22. Qc2 Rc8 (22... Bxd4 $1 23. Nxd4
Rfe8 (23... Qe5 24. Qd2 Re8 25. Kf1 Bxe2+ 26. Nxe2 $1 (26. Rxe2 f3 $40)) 24.
Red1 Bxe2 25. Nxe2 Qc5 26. Nd4 f3 $1 27. b4 (27. Nxf3 $2 Re2) (27. g3 Qh5 $36)
27... Qc7 (27... Qa7 28. g3 {[%csl Rf3]}) 28. Nxf3 Rxb4 $15) 23. Rad1 Bxf3 (
23... Qc7 24. Ng5 Rxe2 (24... Rxd4 25. Bxh5) 25. Rxe2 (25. Nxe2 $2 Qc5) 25...
Bxe2 26. Qxe2 $11) 24. Nxf3 Bxf2+ $6 {[%mdl 576] This tempting sacrifice is
the point behind Black's two previous moves, but objectively the tactics
should have worked well for White.} (24... Qc5 $142 25. Bd3 Rxe1+ $11) 25. Kxf2
Qb6+ 26. Kf1 (26. Nd4 $2 Rxd4 27. Rxd4 Qxd4+ $17) 26... Nh5 27. g4 $1 ({
White can already fight for more than} 27. Nd4 Ng3+ 28. Kg1 Rxd4 29. Rxd4 Qxd4+
30. cxd4 Rxc2 31. Bxa6 g5 32. Bxb7 Rxb2 33. Bd5 $132) 27... fxg3 28. Bd3 {
Anand repays the favour.} (28. Rd4 $142 $1 Rce8 $5 (28... Rxd4 29. Nxd4 Nf4 (
29... Qxd4 30. Bxh5 $18) 30. Qf5 $18) 29. a5 $1 (29. Bd1 Rxe1+ 30. Nxe1 Qe6 31.
Ng2 $14 {/+/- /\} Qxh3 $2 32. Rh4) 29... Qc6 (29... Qc5 30. Qxe4 Rxe4 31. Rd8+
Qf8 32. Rxf8+ Kxf8 33. Bd1 $18) 30. Rxe4 Rxe4 31. Qd2 Nf4 (31... h6 32. Bd1
Rxe1+ 33. Qxe1 $16) 32. Bd1 Rxe1+ 33. Qxe1 Qd7 34. Qd2 Qxh3+ 35. Kg1 Ne6 36.
Bb3 $16 ({or} 36. Qd7 $5 $16 {Although Black has 3 pawns for the piece, they
are not too threatening, while White's pieces are very active - he has great
winning chances.})) 28... Rxe1+ (28... Rf4 $6 29. Kg2 {leads nowhere.}) 29.
Rxe1 Nf4 (29... g6 30. Re4 Rd8 31. Bc4 $36) 30. Nd4 (30. Bxh7+ Kh8 31. Nd4 g6
32. Qe4 Qc7 33. Bxg6 fxg6 34. Qe7 Qxe7 35. Rxe7 Rc4 $11) 30... g6 31. Be4 $6 {
White has two better tries to keep an edge:} (31. Qd2 Qf6 (31... g2+ 32. Kg1
Nxd3 33. Qxd3 Qxb2 34. Qf3 $14) 32. Re3 $1 Nxd3+ (32... Qh4 33. Be4 Qxh3+ 34.
Bg2 Qd7 35. a5 $14) 33. Rf3 Qh4 34. Rxd3 Qxh3+ 35. Qg2 Qh6 36. Qxg3 Re8 (36...
Qc1+ 37. Qe1 Qxb2 38. Nf5 $1 Qc2 39. Rf3) 37. Kg2 $14) (31. Re3 $5 Qf6 (31...
Nxh3 32. Bf5 $1 $16) (31... g2+ 32. Kg1 $16) 32. Qd2 {transposes to 31.Qd2.} (
32. Rf3 Qh4 33. Qd2 Qxh3+ 34. Kg1 Nxd3 35. Rxd3 Rc5 $132)) 31... Qf6 32. Bf3 (
32. Kg1 {gives Black at least a draw with} Nxh3+ ({, but he can even play for
more with} 32... Re8 $1 $36) 33. Kg2 Nf4+ 34. Kxg3 Qg5+ 35. Kf3 Qh5+ $11) ({
Maybe the safest is} 32. Nf3 $5 Qb6 (32... Qe6 33. Qd2 $5) 33. Nd4 $11) 32...
g2+ {Wins the exchange and leads to a roughly equal endgame.} (32... Qxd4 $2
33. Re8+ Kg7 34. Rxc8 Qe3 35. Bg2 Nd3 36. Re8 $1 Qxe8 37. Qxd3 $16) (32... Rc5
33. Qe4 $1 {with the computer-like idea} g2+ 34. Kg1 Rg5 (34... Nxh3+ 35. Kxg2
$16) 35. Bg4 h5 36. Bf5 $1 Qd6 37. h4 Rxf5 38. Nxf5 gxf5 39. Qd4 $16) 33. Bxg2
(33. Kg1 $2 Qxd4+ $19) 33... Nd3+ 34. Nf3 (34. Ke2 $2 Nxe1 35. Kxe1 Qxd4 $19)
34... Nxe1 35. Kxe1 $132 b5 (35... Re8+ 36. Kf2 Qf4 $5 {seems more testing,
Black keeps the a-pawn on the board as a possible target.} 37. a5 Qc7) 36. axb5
axb5 37. Qe4 Rb8 (37... Qa6 38. Kf2 Qa2 39. Qb4 {[%cal Yf3d4]}) (37... Rd8 38.
Bf1 $11) 38. Qd4 Qe6+ 39. Kf2 Qb3 40. Ne5 {A plausible pawn sacrifice, but
White had other ways to hold the balance:} (40. Qd2 b4 41. Nd4 Qc4 42. Qe2 $11)
(40. Qb4 Qc2+ (40... Qxb4 41. cxb4 Rc8 42. Nd4 {/\} Rc4 43. Ke3 Rxb4 $2 44. b3
$18 {[%csl Rb4]}) 41. Kg3 Qe2 42. Qf4 Re8 43. Ng5 Re7 (43... Qe1+ 44. Kh2 Qe5
45. Kg3 Qxf4+ 46. Kxf4 Re2 47. Bd5 $11) 44. Bf3 $11 {/\} Qxb2 $2 45. Qb8+ Kg7
46. Qd6 Re1 47. Qd4+ $40) 40... Qxb2+ 41. Kg1 (41. Kg3 $2 b4 $19) 41... Rc8 (
41... b4 42. Nxf7 $1 Kxf7 (42... bxc3 $2 43. Nh6+ Kf8 44. Qf6+ Ke8 45. Bc6#)
43. Qa7+ Kf6 44. Qxb8 Qc1+ 45. Kh2 bxc3 $11) 42. Qf4 (42. Qd7 $2 Qc1+ 43. Bf1 (
43. Kh2 Qf4+ {[%cal Rc8c3]}) 43... Qg5+ 44. Kh1 Qf5 $17) (42. Nc6 $5 Re8 $5 (
42... Qb1+ 43. Kh2 (43. Kf2 Qf5+ 44. Kg1 Qe6 $15) 43... Qe1 44. c4 bxc4 45. Ne5
$11 {[%cal Yg2d5,Ye5g4]}) 43. Ne7+ Rxe7 44. Qd8+ Kg7 45. Qxe7 Qxc3 $11 {/=/+})
42... Qa2 43. c4 Qa7+ 44. Kh2 bxc4 45. Bd5 Rf8 $6 {Throws away any winning
chances. A trickier line was} (45... Rc5 $5 46. Qd4 $1 (46. Bxf7+ Kg7 47. Bxc4
Qc7 48. Nxg6 Qxf4+ 49. Nxf4 Rxc4 $19) 46... Rc7 47. Qxa7 Rxa7 48. Bxc4 Kg7 49.
Nxf7 (49. Bxf7 $2 Kf6) 49... Rc7 (49... Rxf7 50. Bxf7 Kxf7 51. Kg3 Kf6 52. Kg4
$8 (52. Kf4 $2 g5+ 53. Kg4 Kg6 54. Kg3 Kf5 55. Kf3 h5 56. Ke3 Ke5 57. Kf3 Kd4
$19) 52... h6 53. Kf4 Ke6 54. Ke4 $11 {is a TB draw}) 50. Nd6 $1 (50. Bd5 $2
Rc5 51. Bb3 Rc3 52. Bd5 Rd3 53. Bc4 Rd4 54. Bb3 Rd2+ 55. Kg1 Rd3 56. Be6 Kf6
57. Bc4 Rxh3 $19) 50... Rc6 51. Ne8+ Kf8 52. Bb5 Rc2+ 53. Kg3 Ke7 54. Kf3 $15 {
/= looks dangerous, but Black has no obvious way to exploit the position of
White's minor pieces.}) (45... Kg7 46. Nxf7 Qa2+ 47. Bg2 $1 (47. Kg3 Qa3+ 48.
Kg2 Qb2+ 49. Kg3 Qc3+ 50. Bf3 (50. Kh2 Qc2+ 51. Bg2 Qf5 $19) 50... Qf6 $19)
47... Rf8 48. Qe5+ Kxf7 49. Kg3 Qb3+ (49... Qa3+ 50. Kh2 Qe7 51. Bd5+ Ke8 52.
Bc6+ $11) 50. Kh4 $1 g5+ (50... Rd8 51. Qc7+) 51. Kh5 Qd1+ 52. Kh6 Rd8 $8 53.
Qf5+ Ke7 54. Qxg5+ Ke6 55. Qe3+ Kd6 56. Qb6+ Ke7 57. Qe3+ $11) 46. Qf6 {
[%cal Ye5g6,Ye5g4] This guarantees a draw, Black can only get into trouble, if
he wants more.} ({Also sufficient is} 46. Bxc4 Kg7 47. Nxf7 Rxf7 48. Bxf7 Qxf7
49. Qxf7+ Kxf7 50. Kg3 $11) 46... Qa2+ (46... c3 47. Nxg6 Qc7+ (47... Qb8+ $2
48. Kg2 hxg6 49. Qxg6+ Kh8 50. Qh6+ Kg8 51. Be4 $19) (47... hxg6 48. Qxg6+ $11)
48. Ne5 (48. Kg2 hxg6 49. Qxg6+ $11) 48... c2 49. Qg5+ $11) 47. Kg3 Qa7 $8 (
47... Qa3+ $4 48. Kh4 Qa7 49. Ng4 $18) 48. Kg2 (48. Kf3 Qa3+ 49. Ke4 Qa7 50.
Bxc4 Qa4 51. Kf4 {already forces Black to find} Qb4 $1 $11 {[]}) (48. Ng4 Qg1+
49. Bg2 h5 50. Nh6+ Kh7 51. Nf5 gxf5 52. Qxf5+ Kh6 53. Qf6+ $11) 48... Qa2+ 49.
Kf3 Qa3+ 50. Kg4 Qa7 51. Kf3 Qa3+ 52. Kg4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.27"]
[Round "13"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A29"]
[WhiteElo "2786"]
[BlackElo "2760"]
[Annotator "Sagar Shah"]
[PlyCount "202"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. c4 e5 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. Nf3 Nc6 4. g3 d5 {Against Svidler in this same
tournament Karjakin had played 4...Bb4. This time he goes for the reversed
Sicilian Dragon.} 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. Bg2 Nb6 7. O-O Be7 8. d3 Be6 9. a3 O-O 10.
Be3 {This was already played by Aronian against Jon Ludvig Hammer in Norway
Chess 2015.} (10. b4 {is of course, the natural follow up.}) 10... Qd7 11. b4
f6 12. Ne4 Nd5 13. Bd2 a5 14. Nc5 (14. b5 Nd4 $11 {is completely fine for
Black.}) 14... Bxc5 15. bxc5 a4 16. Rb1 Rfb8 17. Qc2 (17. e4 Nde7 18. Be3 Bb3
19. Qd2 Rd8 {and White isn't able to get the d4-break.}) 17... Nde7 18. Rb2 {
Making a square for the queen on b1.} Bb3 19. Qb1 (19. Rxb3 axb3 20. Qxb3+ Kh8
{is surely not enough compensation.}) 19... Kh8 (19... Nf5 20. e3 Rd8 21. Bh3
Be6 22. Rxb7 Qxd3 23. Rxc7 $14) 20. Rc1 Na7 $1 {Played after a long think. The
knight will be well placed on b5 and the other knight could go to c6. This
Nc6-a7-b5 is a great manoeuvre by Sergey.} 21. Bb4 {The main idea of this move
is to clear the d2-square for the knight on f3.} Nb5 (21... Nec6 22. Nd2 Nd4
23. Nxb3 Nxb3 24. Rc4 c6 25. Rh4 h6 26. Bh3 Qd5 $11 {with a fine position for
Black.}) 22. Nd2 Bf7 $6 {After this move White is able to wrest the initiative
from Black.} (22... Nd4 $1 23. Nxb3 (23. Re1 Bd5 $15) 23... Nxb3 24. Rc4 c6 $11
) 23. e3 $1 {Taking the d4-square under control. Suddenly the knight on b5
looks misplaced. Around this point Aronian was very happy with his position.}
Bg6 (23... c6 {weakens the b6- and d6-squares.} 24. Nc4 $14 {[%cal Gc4b6]}) (
23... Bd5 {neutralising the g2-bishop might well be the best idea in this
position.} 24. c6 bxc6 25. Ne4 $44 {with excellent compensation for White} Bxe4
26. Bxe4 f5 27. Bg2 Nd5 28. Qc2 Ra6 (28... Nxb4 29. Rxb4 Nxa3 30. Rxb8+ Rxb8
31. Qxa4 $16) 29. Qc4 $14) 24. Ne4 Nd5 25. Be1 $1 {Keeping the bishop pair.
But what about the a3-pawn?} Nxa3 $6 (25... c6 {was more solid, but here White
has an interesting exchange sacrifice with} 26. Rxb5 cxb5 27. Nd6 $5 Nc7 28.
Bb4 $44 {White has full compensation for the missing exchange.}) 26. c6 $1 {
Of course this was prepared beforehand by Aronian.} Qe7 $8 (26... Qxc6 27. Qa1
$1 $18) (26... Nxb1 27. cxd7 Na3 28. Nc5 $18) 27. Qa2 bxc6 28. Rxc6 Bf7 29. Rc5
$1 {This move is not so easy to see but is extremely strong. A lot of factors
are at work here and the lining up of the g2-bishop against the a8-rook is one
of the reasons why White is clearly better.} (29. Ng5 fxg5 30. Rxb8+ Rxb8 31.
Bxd5 Be8 $1 $13) (29. Nd6 cxd6 30. Rxb8+ Rxb8 31. Bxd5 Qb7 $1 $17) 29... Nxe3
$6 {This sacrifice looks scary for White} (29... f5 30. Ng5 $1 Qxg5 (30... Bg8
31. Rxb8 Rxb8 32. Qxa3 Rb3 (32... Rb1 33. Bxd5 Rxe1+ 34. Kg2 Bxd5+ 35. Rxd5 $1
$18) 33. Qc1 $18) 31. Bxd5 Bxd5 32. Rxd5 {The knight on a3 is sort of trapped.}
c6 33. Rxb8+ Rxb8 34. Rxe5 Qf6 35. Ra5 $18) (29... Nc3 30. Qxa3 Rxb2 31. Qxb2
Nxe4 32. Bxe4 Qxc5 33. Bxa8 $18) (29... Rxb2 30. Qxb2 $18) (29... Nb5 30. Rbxb5
Rxb5 31. Rxb5 $16) 30. Qxa3 $6 (30. Rxb8+ $1 {was the better move but Aronian
was afraid of} Rxb8 31. Qxa3 Nc2 {This was the move that Levon was afraid of} (
31... Nxg2 32. Kxg2 $16) 32. Qc1 $1 {This move gives White a clearly better
position.} Nxe1 (32... Nd4 33. Rxc7 Qd8 34. Kf1 $16) 33. Rxc7 $1 (33. Qxe1 $6
f5 $1 $11) 33... Qf8 (33... Qd8 34. Rxf7 $18) (33... Qb4 34. Rxf7 Nxd3 35. Qc3
Qb1+ 36. Bf1 $18) 34. Qxe1 a3 35. Qa1 a2 36. Nc3 $18) 30... Rxb2 31. Qxb2 Nxg2
32. Kxg2 a3 33. Qb7 Qd8 34. Qxc7 Qxc7 (34... a2 35. Qxd8+ Rxd8 36. Ra5 Rxd3 37.
Ra8+ Bg8 38. Nc3 Rd8 39. Ra5 h6 40. Nxa2 $16) (34... Qxd3 35. Nxf6 $1 (35. Qxf7
Qxe4+ 36. Kf1 a2 37. Ra5 a1=Q 38. Rxa1 Qh1+ 39. Ke2 Qe4+ $11) (35. Nd6 Bd5+ 36.
Kg1 h6 $1 $19 (36... Qd1 $2 37. Qc8+ Rxc8 38. Rxc8+ Bg8 39. Nf7#)) 35... gxf6
36. Qxf7 $18) 35. Rxc7 Bd5 (35... a2 36. Bc3 Bd5 {transposes.}) 36. Rc5 (36.
Kh3 a2 37. Bc3 a1=Q 38. Bxa1 Rxa1 39. Rc8+ Bg8 $11) 36... a2 37. Bc3 Bg8 {
At first sight it may seem that the position is just winning for White as he
has extra piece against the pawn. However, it is not true. Black has some
defensive chances this because the a2-pawn is just too strong.} 38. Ba1 Rb8 39.
Ra5 $6 (39. Rc1 Rb1 40. Rf1 Rb3 (40... Bd5 41. f3 Rb3 42. Nc3 $16) 41. Nc3 $16
{and White is able to preserve the d3-pawn which makes a huge difference as
compared to the game.}) 39... Rb1 40. Bc3 Rd1 $1 {And this is the huge
difference. White loses the d3-pawn and Black is able to defend this position.}
41. Kf3 Rxd3+ {Now Black's defensive chances have improved by leaps and bounds
as he has two pawns.} 42. Ke2 Rd8 43. f4 {Aronian was pinning his hopes on
this move.} Bc4+ 44. Kf2 exf4 45. gxf4 Kg8 46. Nd2 Bf7 47. Ke3 h5 48. f5 Rc8
49. Ne4 Bd5 50. Rc5 (50. Rxd5 Rxc3+ $19) 50... Rd8 51. Nd2 Bf7 52. Ra5 Rc8 53.
Ne4 Bd5 54. Nc5 Re8+ 55. Kd3 Rd8 56. Bd4 Re8 57. Kd2 Ra8 $1 58. Rxa8+ Bxa8 {
After the rook exchange the position is drawn because while White is busy
winning the a2-pawn, his f5-pawn would fall.} 59. Ke3 Kh7 60. Kf4 Kh6 61. Ne6
Kh7 62. Nf8+ Kg8 63. Ng6 Kf7 64. Ke3 Bc6 65. Bb2 Bd7 66. Ke4 Bc6+ 67. Kd4 Bd7
68. Nh4 Ba4 69. Ng2 Bc2 70. Ne3 Bb1 71. Kc3 Kg8 72. Nc2 Kh7 73. Nd4 Kh6 74.
Bc1+ Kh7 75. Kb2 Kg8 76. Bd2 Kh7 77. Bb4 Kg8 78. Bc3 Kh7 79. Kc1 Kh6 80. h4 Kh7
81. Kd2 Kg8 82. Ke3 Kh7 83. Kf4 Bd3 84. Nc6 Kg8 85. Nb4 Bb1 86. Na6 Kf7 87. Nc5
Bc2 88. Ne4 Bd1 89. Ng3 Kg8 90. Ke3 Bc2 91. Bb2 Kh7 92. Kf4 Bd1 93. Ne4 Bc2 94.
Nd6 Kg8 95. Ke3 Kf8 96. Kd4 Ke7 97. Kc5 Kd7 98. Bc3 Bd3 99. Kd5 Bc2 100. Ne4
Bxe4+ 101. Kxe4 Kd6 {A masterful defensive effort by Karjakin. Aronian was
noticeably depressed after the game. With this draw he had lost his chance to
win the Candidates. "It is like you are in the process of making a beautiful
painting and then you just throw the brush away!"ќ was Aronian's way of
describing how the game went for him.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.27"]
[Round "13"]
[White "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Black "Svidler, Peter"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "C84"]
[WhiteElo "2794"]
[BlackElo "2757"]
[Annotator "Sagar Shah"]
[PlyCount "231"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[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 {Two games in a row for Caruana against the Ruy
Lopez. These days it is normal to expect the Berlin starting with 3...Nf6. But
Svidler and Aronian both preferred the standard Ruy Lopez.} 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O
Be7 6. d3 {Caruana plays the 6.d3 variation, the same as he did against Levon
Aronian in the previous round.} b5 7. Bb3 d6 {Threatening ...Na5 to win the
b3-bishop now that the e5-pawn is defended.} ({Aronian's} 7... O-O {was met by
8.Nc3 in the previous round.}) 8. a4 Bd7 9. c3 O-O 10. Bc2 b4 11. Re1 Re8 12.
Nbd2 {Leko-Caruana and Karjakin-Aronian are the two main games that reached
this position.} Bf8 $146 {The first new move of the game. But definitely not
prepared at home. Both the players were taking quite a lot of time to make
their moves.} (12... Na5 {had been previously played.} 13. d4 (13. cxb4 Nc6 {
and the b4-pawn falls}) 13... Bf8 14. h3 h6 15. Bd3 bxc3 16. bxc3 c5 17. d5 Qc7
18. Nc4 Nxc4 19. Bxc4 Reb8 20. Nd2 $14 {1-0 (45) Leko,P (2735)-Caruana,F (2781)
Wijk aan Zee 2013}) (12... Rb8 {has also been played.} 13. Nf1 Bf8 14. Bg5 h6
15. Bh4 Be7 16. h3 Nh7 17. Bg3 Ng5 18. N1d2 Bf6 19. a5 bxc3 20. bxc3 Na7 $11 {
1-0 (61) Karjakin,S (2775)-Aronian,L (2815) Beijing 2012}) 13. a5 g6 14. Bb3 (
14. d4 bxc3 15. bxc3 exd4 16. cxd4 Bg7 {is what Black is looking forward to.})
14... Be6 15. Ba4 Bd7 16. Nf1 {Caruana isn't interested in going d4
immediately. Instead he tries to strengthen his position with Ne3.} (16. Bxc6
Bxc6 17. cxb4 {wins a pawn but after} Rb8 {it is difficult to hold on to the
extra pawn.} 18. Qb3 d5 19. exd5 Qxd5 $1 20. Qxd5 Nxd5 21. Nxe5 f6 22. Nef3
Nxb4 $17 {with excellent play.}) 16... h6 {Although Bg5 wasn't such a huge
threat, Svidler prevents it.} 17. Ng3 {At first sight this move looks pretty
illogical as the knight on g3 is sort of dominated by the pawn on g6. The
knight could have been placed better on e3. However, White's idea now would
surely be to break in the centre with d4.} (17. Ne3 {with ideas of going to d5
and c4 looks natural.}) 17... bxc3 18. bxc3 Bg7 19. h3 {Caruana is taking it
slow. He wants to maintain maximum pressure in the position before committing
to anything.} (19. d4 {was of course possible. An illustrative line would go
something like} exd4 20. cxd4 Rb8 21. Bd2 Nb4 22. Bb3 c5 23. Bf4 {[%cal Gf4b8]}
Bb5 $1 {A very nice positional exchange sacrifice.} 24. dxc5 dxc5 25. Bxb8 Qxb8
{[%cal Gb4d3,Gc5c4]} 26. e5 Ng4 27. e6 f5 $13) 19... d5 $6 {Peter loses his
patience and breaks in the centre but this is exactly what Caruana was looking
for. This completely justifies the placement of the knight on g3 as it gets to
the e4-square.} (19... Rb8 {maintaining the pressure was better.}) 20. exd5
Nxd5 21. Ne4 $1 Nb8 (21... f5 22. Nc5 Nxc3 23. Qb3+ Kh7 24. Qxc3 e4 25. Qd2
exf3 26. Bb2 $18) (21... Nce7 22. Bb3 $16) 22. Bb3 (22. Qb3 {was also possible.
} Bxa4 23. Rxa4 Nf6 24. Nxf6+ Qxf6 25. Rc4 $16) 22... Be6 23. Bd2 $6 ({A very
weird but quite strong move was} 23. Nc5 $5 {sacrificing the c3 pawn.} Nxc3 24.
Nxe6 Rxe6 (24... Nxd1 25. Nxd8 Rxd8 26. Nxe5 $18) 25. Qc2 Nd5 (25... Rc6 26.
Nxe5 Bxe5 27. Rxe5 Qd4 28. Re8+ Kh7 29. Bb2 $18) 26. d4 $1 exd4 27. Rxe6 fxe6
28. Qxg6 $18) (23. Bb2 Nd7 $11) (23. Ra3 Nd7 24. d4 $1 $16) 23... Nd7 $1 {
Black has limited the damage by quite some extent by controlling the c5-square.
} 24. Ba4 (24. Qc2 {with the idea of d3-d4 was better way to proceed.} f5 $6
25. Qa2 $16) 24... f5 $1 25. Ng3 (25. Bxd7 Bxd7 26. Nc5 Bc6 $11) 25... c5 {
Black is already doing completely fine.} 26. Bb3 {Repeatedly moving the bishop
from b3 to a4 and back gains nothing.} (26. Bxd7 Bxd7 27. Qb3 Be6 $15) (26. c4
Nb4 27. Bc3 {putting additional pressure on e5 seems like the right way
forward.} Qc7 28. Qd2 {with a very complex position.}) 26... Qc7 27. h4 N5f6 $1
$11 {Black has a comfortable position.} 28. h5 f4 {The human reaction.} (28...
c4 $1 {was an extremely strong positional move.} 29. Bxc4 (29. dxc4 f4 30. Ne4
Nxe4 31. Rxe4 Nc5 $1 32. Re1 Bg4 $19) 29... Bxc4 30. dxc4 f4 31. Ne4 Nxe4 32.
Rxe4 Nc5 33. Re1 g5 $17 {Black's position is clearly to be preferred.}) 29.
Bxe6+ Rxe6 30. Ne4 Nxh5 31. d4 $5 (31. Qb3 c4 $1 32. dxc4 Kh8 $11) 31... Qc6 $1
{What a cool and calm move. Svidler calculates that all the captures lead to
an inferior position and just maintains the tension. He now has the threat of
taking exd4 and at the same time has prevented d4-d5.} (31... cxd4 $2 32. Qb3
$1 Qc6 33. cxd4 exd4 34. Rac1 $16) (31... exd4 $6 32. cxd4 Rae8 (32... c4 33.
Rc1 $16) 33. Nxc5 Rxe1+ 34. Bxe1 Nxc5 35. Rc1 $1 Rd8 36. Bb4 Kh7 37. Bxc5 $16)
32. Qb3 c4 $1 33. Qa4 Qd5 $1 {After a series of accurate moves Black is now
clearly better.} 34. Rad1 Rae8 $2 {A bad mistake by Svidler which changes the
evaluation of the position by 180 degrees.} (34... Rf8 $1 {Not an easy move to
find but this rook had to be brought into the game and the most natural square
is e8. However, Re8 fails tactically and hence Rf8 is the best move.} 35. dxe5
Nxe5 36. Nxe5 Rxe5 $17 37. Bxf4 $2 Rxe4 $1 38. Rxd5 Rxe1+ 39. Kh2 Rxf4 $19) (
34... exd4 $6 35. cxd4 Rxe4 36. Rxe4 Qxe4 37. Qxd7 $14) (34... Qb5 $5 35. Qa2
$13 (35. Qxb5 axb5 $17)) (34... Rc8 $5 {is also not bad.}) 35. dxe5 Nxe5 36.
Nxe5 (36. Bxf4 Nd3 $1 $19) 36... Rxe5 (36... Qxe5 37. Qxc4 $16) (36... Bxe5 37.
Bxf4 Qb5 38. Qxb5 axb5 39. Bxe5 Rxe5 40. f3 $18) 37. Bxf4 $1 Qb5 (37... Rxe4
38. Qxe8+ $1 {This is the move which Svidler saw just in the nick of time. Or
else he would have had to resign!} Rxe8 39. Rxe8+ Kf7 40. Rxd5 $18) 38. Qxb5
Rxb5 39. Bd6 {White is better now as the bishop will sit on b4 defending both
the pawns, while the black pawns on a6 and c4 would be weak.} Kh8 (39... Rxa5
$2 40. g4 $18 {[%cal Ge4f6]}) 40. g4 Nf6 41. Nxf6 Rxe1+ 42. Rxe1 Bxf6 43. Re8+
Kg7 44. Bb4 $16 Re5 45. Rc8 Re6 46. Rc7+ Kg8 47. Rxc4 $16 {Caruana is a pawn
up but as the game shows, the conversion into a win is not at all easy.
However, Svidler was quite depressed at this point, because he had blown a
clearly better position. From this point onwards he began to play quickly and
not really think much about what his opponent would do. He began to just
respond.} h5 48. Kg2 Kf7 49. Rc5 (49. gxh5 gxh5 {the passed h-pawn gives some
counterplay.}) (49. Rc7+ $145 $1 Ke8 50. gxh5 gxh5 51. f4 {is Kasimdzhanov's
proposal in his video.}) 49... hxg4 50. Rc7+ Ke8 51. Rc4 Kd7 52. Rxg4 Be5 53.
c4 Bc7 54. Kf3 Rf6+ 55. Ke3 Re6+ 56. Kd3 Rf6 57. Ke3 Re6+ 58. Kd3 Rf6 59. Rg5
Rxf2 60. Rxg6 Rf3+ 61. Kc2 Rf5 62. Rxa6 {White has won a second pawn but the
a5-pawn will soon fall.} Kc8 63. Kd3 Rh5 64. c5 Kb7 65. Rg6 Bxa5 {Svidler is
ready to defend the rook+bishop vs rook endgame.} 66. Bxa5 Rxc5 {The notorius
bishop+rook vs rook. Svidler defends this well for a while but soon goes
astray.} 67. Bb4 Rc6 68. Bd6 Kc8 69. Kd4 Rb6 70. Kd5 Rb7 71. Rg8+ Kd7 72. Bc5
Kc7 73. Rg6 Kd7 74. Rh6 Kc7 75. Rc6+ Kd7 76. Bb6 Ke8 77. Bd4 Kd7 78. Rd6+ Kc8
79. Ke6 Kc7 80. Ra6 Rb5 81. Ra1 Kc6 82. Rc1+ Kb7 83. Kd6 Ka6 84. Rc6+ Ka5 85.
Bc5 Rb7 86. Kd5 Kb5 87. Bd6 Ka4 88. Ra6+ Kb5 89. Ra1 Kb6 90. Rc1 Kb5 91. Rc6
Ka4 92. Bc5 Kb5 93. Rd6 Ka4 94. Kc6 Rb8 95. Rd3 Rc8+ 96. Kd5 Rd8+ 97. Bd6 Rc8
98. Ra3+ Kb5 99. Rb3+ Ka4 100. Rb4+ Ka5 101. Bc5 Rh8 102. Rb7 Ka4 $2 (102...
Ka6 {is the easiest way to draw} 103. Rb2 Rd8+ 104. Kc4 Rc8 $11) 103. Kc4 $1 {
This is the Philidor position and everything is in place. But can White win
within 116 moves? (The fifty move rule). Svidler said during the game that he
wanted to get up and sit adjacent to his board because that is the way he had
studied this endgame. Sitting at the place where he was did not give the
orientation of the board and pieces when he had worked on this endgame at
home! Peter has asked many players if it is possible to get up and view the
board from the side, but he has not yet received a conclusive answer!} Rh4+
104. Bd4 Rh5 {The enemy rook is already on the first rank so it is time to
take the rook from one side to the other.} 105. Bf2 $2 {This is incorrect. The
right way to remember it is the bishop should be defended by the rook. So you
should play Bf2 when your rook is on b2.} (105. Rb2 $1 Rh3 (105... Ka3 106. Re2
$1 {Threatening a check on c5.} Rh4 107. Re6 Ka2 108. Re1 {and it is game over}
) 106. Bf2 $1 {The rook defends the bishop and the bishop controls the
h4-square. This is the ideal formation.} Rf3 {Once the rook has been forced to
an inferior square on the third rank it is time to improve your bishop with a
tempo.} (106... Ka3 107. Re2 Ka4 108. Re7 Rh5 109. Be1 Ka3 110. Bc3 Rh4+ 111.
Bd4 Ka2 112. Re1 $18) 107. Bc5 Rf4+ 108. Bd4 Rf3 109. Rb4+ $1 {This check is
crucial.} Ka3 (109... Ka5 110. Rb7 {is immediate curtains.}) 110. Rb6 Ka2 111.
Rb2+ $1 {An important intermediate check.} Ka3 112. Re2 {Threatening Bc5+.
Keep an eye on the move counter - it is still not 116 moves!} Ka4 113. Be3 $1 {
Blocking the rook.} Ka3 114. Bc5+ Ka4 115. Ra2+ Ra3 116. Rxa3# {And wins on
exactly the 50th move! This analysis proves that Caruana not only
theoretically had a winning position, but if he made all the accurate moves
then he would have won the game within the 50 moves rule.}) 105... Rg5 {
The rook moves to a better square.} 106. Rh7 $2 {A crucial waste of time.} (
106. Bd4 {transposing back to Philidor is theoretically winning but now it is
impossible to win in 50 moves!}) 106... Rg4+ (106... Rb5) 107. Bd4 Rg5 108. Rh8
Rb5 109. Ra8+ Ra5 110. Rb8 Rh5 111. Bf6 $2 (111. Rb2 {as shown above was the
right way but it is already too late now.}) 111... Ka5 $1 {The king escapes
from the net.} 112. Bc3+ Ka6 113. Bd4 Rh6 114. Be3 Re6 115. Rb3 Rc6+ 116. Kd5 {
So many twists and turns! Just like a Hollywood movie!} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.27"]
[Round "13"]
[White "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D37"]
[WhiteElo "2780"]
[BlackElo "2790"]
[Annotator "Sagar Shah/CB Website"]
[PlyCount "80"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bf4 O-O 6. a3 {The idea of playing
a3 before e3 is to discourage the Nbd7 move. Nbd7 now can be met with Nb5.} c5
7. dxc5 Bxc5 8. e3 Nc6 9. cxd5 (9. Qc2 {is the main line of this variation.})
9... exd5 (9... Nxd5 {is played more often by Black. Play might continue
something like} 10. Nxd5 exd5 11. Bd3 {which has already been played by
Topalov against Morozevich in San Luis 2005.}) 10. b4 (10. Be2 {looks normal
but allows Black to break in the centre with} d4 11. Na4 Bb6 12. exd4 (12. Nxb6
Qxb6 $11) 12... Bxd4 {This might not be such a huge edge for White.}) 10... d4
$1 {Nakamura is extremely alert and breaks right away in the centre.} 11. exd4
Bxd4 12. Nxd4 Nxd4 13. Be3 Nf5 14. Qxd8 Rxd8 $15 {Even though White has the
bishop pair, this position is completely favourable for Black thanks to his
developmental advantage. a7-a5 break looks strong and also Be6 followed by
Rac8 is not so easy to meet.} 15. Be2 Nxe3 16. fxe3 {Hikaru sank into deep
thought as to how he should use this small advantage that he has got out of
the opening. It is definitely an edge but not so huge and hence accurate play
is of paramount importance.} Ng4 $5 17. e4 (17. Bxg4 Bxg4 {is a pretty sad
position. The bishop is definitely superior to the knight and 0-0 is met with
Rd3.} 18. O-O Rd3 $17) 17... Be6 (17... Ne3 18. Kf2 $11) 18. O-O Ne3 19. Rfc1
Rd2 20. Bf3 (20. Kf2 Nc4 21. Ke1 Rd4 $15) 20... Rad8 21. e5 b6 22. Ne4 Rb2 23.
Re1 Nc4 (23... Nc2 24. Re2 $13) (23... Rb3 $5 {renewing the threat of Nc2 is
pretty strong.} 24. Re2 g6 $17) 24. Ng5 h6 25. Nxe6 fxe6 {Once the e6 bishop
is exchanged Black doesn't really have so much of an edge.} 26. Rac1 Rd4 27. h3
b5 28. Rc3 Rdd2 29. a4 a6 30. Bb7 Nb6 31. axb5 axb5 32. Be4 Nc4 33. Rg3 Re2 $15
34. Ra1 $2 (34. Rxe2 Rxe2 35. Bc6 Rxe5 36. Rc3 {Black has better defensive
chances here.}) 34... Nxe5 35. Ra8+ Kf7 36. Bh7 g5 37. Bg8+ Kf6 38. Rf8+ Kg7
39. Re8 Ng6 40. Bxe6 Nf4 {The bad tournament for Veselin continues.} 0-1

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.28"]
[Round "14"]
[White "Giri, Anish"]
[Black "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E06"]
[WhiteElo "2793"]
[BlackElo "2780"]
[PlyCount "58"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 Be7 5. Nf3 O-O 6. Nc3 dxc4 7. Ne5 c5 8. dxc5
Qxd1+ 9. Nxd1 Bxc5 10. Nc3 Nc6 11. Nxc4 Rd8 12. Be3 Bxe3 13. Nxe3 Rb8 14. f4 e5
15. f5 Nd4 16. g4 b6 17. Rc1 Bb7 18. Bxb7 Rxb7 19. Kf2 h6 20. h4 g5 21. fxg6
fxg6 22. Rhg1 Ne6 23. g5 hxg5 24. hxg5 Nh7 25. Ne4 Kg7 26. Rc6 Nd4 27. Rc3 Ne6
28. Rc6 Nd4 29. Rc3 Ne6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.28"]
[Round "14"]
[White "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Black "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "B67"]
[WhiteElo "2760"]
[BlackElo "2794"]
[Annotator "Karjakin,S"]
[PlyCount "83"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{In the final encounter I quite simply wanted to concentrate on my game and to
play well.  In der letzten Begegnung wollte ich mich schlicht und einfach auf
meine Partie konzentrieren und gutes Spiel zeigen.} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4
cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 d6 {Fabiano puts his trust in the complicated Rauzer
Variation, which is not particularly popular nowadays. . Fabiano setzt auf die
komplizierte Rauser-Variante, die heutzutage nicht besonders populär ist.} 6.
Bg5 e6 7. Qd2 a6 8. O-O-O Bd7 9. f4 {Black has several options here. Hier
verfügt Schwarz über mehrere Möglichkeiten.} h6 {As I learned later, one
great fan of this move order is the Chinese grandmaster Li Chao.  Wie ich
später erfahren habe, ist ein großer Anhänger dieser Zugfolge der
chinesische Großmeister Li Chao.} 10. Bh4 b5 (10... Nxe4 {would on account of
wäre für so eine wichtige Partie wegen} 11. Qe1 Nf6 12. Nf5 $1 {have been
too challenging for such an important game. zu herausfordernd gewesen.}) 11.
Bxf6 gxf6 12. f5 {The idea of weakening the light squares of the opponent's
king's residence seemed very tempting to me. All the more so that in
comparison with the variation with the pawn on h7, Black no longer has
available to him the manoeuvre Bf8-h6-f4. Die Idee, die weißen Felder der
gegnerischen Königsresidenz zu schwächen, schien mit sehr verlockend. Umso
mehr, dass dem Schwarzen im Vergleich mit der Variante mit dem Bauern auf h7
das Manöver Lf8-h6-f4 jetzt nicht mehr zur Verfügung steht.} Qb6 13. fxe6 ({
A more accurate move would be Genauer wäre} 13. Nxc6 Qxc6 14. Bd3 {, which
would offer White additional options compared to the game. , was im dem
Weißen im Vergleich zur Partie zusätzliche Möglichkeiten anbieten würde.})
13... fxe6 14. Nxc6 Qxc6 $1 {Black continues to leave the e6-pawn protected..
Schwarz läßt den Bauern e6 weiterhin gedeckt.} ({In the event of Im Falle von
} 14... Bxc6 15. Bd3 {the plan h6-h5, b5-b4, Qb6-c5, Bf8-h6, a6-a5 looks less
convincing than it does in the game: sieht der Plan h6-h5, b5-b4, Qb6-c5,
Bf8-h6, a6-a5 weniger überzeugend aus, als in der Partie:} h5 16. Kb1 b4 17.
Ne2 Qc5 18. Rhf1 Bh6 19. Qe1 a5 20. b3 {[%csl Re6][%cal Rd3c4,Rf1f6] , and
Black must take defensive measures which will cost him time. , und der
Nachziehende muss Verteidigungmaßnahmen treffen, was ihn Zeit kosten wird.})
15. Bd3 h5 16. Kb1 b4 (16... Bh6 {would be inaccurate - after wäre ungenau -
nach} 17. Qf2 {White would obtain a better piece setup than will be the case
in the game. würde Weiß eine bessere Figurenauftsellung erreichen, als es in
der Partie der Fall sein wird.}) 17. Ne2 Qc5 18. Rhf1 ({THe typical central
breakthrough Stärker wäre der typische zentrale Durchbruch} 18. e5 $1 {
would be stronger, and after the rather forced variation , und nach der
ziemlich forcierten Variante} fxe5 19. Qg5 Be7 20. Qg7 Rf8 21. Rhf1 Rxf1 22.
Rxf1 Bc6 23. Rf7 d5 24. Bg6 Kd8 25. Qxe5 Be8 26. Rg7 Qf2 27. a3 $1 ({though
nicht so klar ist} 27. Qxh5 {is not so clear: .} Bxg6 28. Rxg6 Kd7) 27... Qf6
28. Qd4 $5 Qxd4 29. Nxd4 Kd7 30. axb4 Bxg6 31. Rxg6 e5 32. Nf3 e4 33. Ne5+ Kc7
34. c3 {White obtains an advantageous endgame. But that would be another story.
.. erhält Weiß ein vorteilhaftes Endspiel. Aber das wäre eine andere
Geschichte...}) 18... Bh6 19. Qe1 a5 20. b3 $1 {I like this move, which
obtains a better square for the bishop. Mit gefällt dieser Zug, der dem
Läufer einen besseren Platz besorgt.} Rg8 ({Opening the file with Die
Linienöffnung} 20... a4 21. Bc4 axb3 {does not pay dividends for Black; after
bringt dem Schwarzen keine Dividenden - nach} 22. Bxb3 {the white king feels
safe enough. fühlt sich der weiße König sicher genug.}) 21. g3 Ke7 22. Bc4
Be3 {as one might say in hockey, "cleverly sending the puck into the
opponent's zone". Wie man es beim Hockey sagen würde, "der geschickte Einwurf
in die Zone des Gegners".} ({After Nach} 22... Rg4 23. Nd4 a4 24. Rf3 {White
keeps everything under control and Black is short of ideas. hält Weiß alles
unter Kontrolle und dem Nachzienden mangelt an aktiven Ideen.}) 23. Rf3 ({
It was also worth considering Beachtung verdiente auch} 23. Nf4 {, which would
lead to more concrete play. , was zu einem konkreteren Spiel führen würde.})
23... Rg4 24. Qf1 Rf8 25. Nf4 Bxf4 ({The attempt to retain the bishop by means
of Der Versuch, mittels} 25... Bd4 {would on account of den Läufer zu
behalten, wäre wegen} 26. Rfd3 Be5 27. Nxh5 {have been too risky. zu riskant
gewesen.}) 26. Rxf4 a4 ({After the game Caruana thought it would have been
better to play Nach der Partie meinte Caruana, dass es besser wäre, mit} 26...
Bc6 {to maintain the tension. die Spannung aufechtzuerhalten.} {After Auf} 27.
Qd3 {Black plays spielt Schwarz} Rf7 {, and White cannot become active quickly.
I agree with him. , und dem Anziehenden gelingt nicht, schnell aktiv zu werden.
Ich bin mit ihm einverstanden.}) 27. bxa4 Bxa4 28. Qd3 {Now the idea of the
pawn sacrifice e4-e5 is in the air. Nun hängt die Idee des Bauernopfers e4-e5
in der Luft.} ({But Frühzeitig wäre} 28. Bb3 {would be premature - after -
nach} Bxb3 29. axb3 Rgg8 {Black has the initiative. besitzt Schwarz die
Initiative.}) 28... Bc6 29. Bb3 Rg5 30. e5 $1 {Even if I did not see how Black
could seriously defend his position I preferred to bring some clarity to the
situation. Auch wenn ich nicht sah, wie Schwarz seine Stellung ernsthaft
verstärken könnte, wollte ich die Lage lieber klären.} Rxe5 31. Rc4 ({
It was also worth considering Beachtenswert war auch} 31. Qh7+ Rf7 32. Qh8 {
with dynamic equality. mit dynamischem Gleichgewicht.}) 31... Rd5 32. Qe2 Qb6
33. Rh4 Re5 ({There was the interesting Interessant war} 33... Rxd1+ 34. Qxd1
Qe3 {(Nepomniachtchi), which, after (Nepomniachtchi), was nach} 35. Rxb4 Be4
36. a3 {, would lead to a complicated position. zu einer komplizierten
Stellung führen würde.}) 34. Qd3 Bg2 ({After Nach} 34... d5 35. Qh7+ Rf7 36.
Qh8 {Black has problems with the coordination of his pieces. hat Schwarz
Probleme mit Figurenkoordination.}) 35. Rd4 $1 {A useful centralisation.
Nützliche Zentralisierung.} d5 36. Qd2 Re4 $2 ({I was expecting the variation
with Ich erwartete die Variante} 36... Be4 37. Rxb4 Qc6 38. Kb2 {with
approximate equality. mit ungefährem Gleichgewicht.}) 37. Rxd5 $1 {I spotted
this decisive nove relatively quickly. But there was too much depending on the
game to play it quickly without first checking the variations. Dieser
entscheidende Zug ist mir relativ schnell eingefallen. Aber auf dem Spiel
stand zu viel, um ihn zu machen, ohne zuerst die Varianten zu überprüfen.}
exd5 38. Qxd5 {The black pieces are unharmoniously distributed and cannot
protect their king. Die schwarzen Figuren stehen unharmonisch und können
ihren König nicht beschützen.} Qc7 ({More resistance could have been offered
with Mehr Widerstand bot} 38... Rd4 39. Qxd4 Qxd4 40. Rxd4 Rb8 {, but it is
hard to believe that it would save him in the end. , aber es ist schwer zu
glauben, dass es am Ende die Rettung bringen würde.}) 39. Qf5 $1 Rf7 {Fabiano
offered me a draw here. Let us put that down to the nervous tension and the
high stakes...  Hier hat mir Fabiano Remis angeboten. Schreiben wir es der
Nervenanspannung und dem hohen Wetteinsatz zu...} 40. Bxf7 Qe5 41. Rd7+ Kf8 42.
Rd8+ 1-0

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.28"]
[Round "14"]
[White "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D38"]
[WhiteElo "2790"]
[BlackElo "2786"]
[PlyCount "65"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. Qa4+ Nc6 6. e3 O-O 7. Qc2 Re8 8. Bd2
a6 9. a3 Bd6 10. h3 h6 11. Rd1 dxc4 12. Bxc4 e5 13. O-O Bd7 14. dxe5 Nxe5 15.
Nxe5 Rxe5 16. f4 Bf5 17. Qb3 Re7 18. Qxb7 Bc2 19. Rc1 Rb8 20. Qxa6 Rxb2 21. Nd1
Rb6 22. Qa5 Bb3 23. Nf2 Qb8 24. Bxb3 Rxb3 25. a4 Qb7 26. Qf5 Bb4 27. Bxb4 Qxb4
28. e4 Nxe4 29. Nxe4 Qxe4 30. Qxe4 Rxe4 31. Rxc7 Rxa4 32. Kh2 Rb2 33. Rf3
1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2016.03.28"]
[Round "14"]
[White "Svidler, Peter"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A29"]
[WhiteElo "2757"]
[BlackElo "2762"]
[PlyCount "69"]
[EventDate "2016.03.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. c4 e5 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. Nf3 Nc6 4. g3 Bb4 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O Re8 7. Ne1 d6 8. Nc2
Bc5 9. Rb1 a5 10. a3 Be6 11. d3 d5 12. cxd5 Nxd5 13. Ne3 Nce7 14. Ncxd5 Nxd5
15. Nc4 Bd6 16. d4 exd4 17. Nxd6 Qxd6 18. Qxd4 Qe7 19. e4 c5 20. Qd1 Nc7 21.
Be3 b6 22. f4 Rad8 23. Qc2 Bd5 24. Rbe1 Bxe4 25. Bxc5 Bxc2 26. Bxe7 Rd7 27. Bh4
Rxe1 28. Rxe1 f6 29. g4 Nd5 30. Bg3 f5 31. gxf5 Nf6 32. Bf2 Rd6 33. Re6 Rd1+
34. Re1 Rd6 35. Re6 1/2-1/2