[Event "Shanghai Masters"]
[Site "Shanghai"]
[Date "2010.09.04"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Wang, Hao"]
[Black "Kramnik, Vladimir"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2724"]
[BlackElo "2790"]
[Annotator "CB"]
[PlyCount "94"]
[EventDate "2010.09.03"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "6"]
[EventCountry "CHN"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 138"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.09.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.09.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 7. Bg5 dxc4 8.
Qxc4 b6 9. Rd1 Ba6 10. Qa4 Qd7 $146 {This novelty by Kramnik, is his suggested
improvement over Ponomariov-Mamedyarov, (Dortmund, 2010) where Qd5 was played.}
11. Qc2 Qc6 $5 {A fascinating idea. Although it seems an attempt to quickly
draw by offering to exchange queens once again, that is not Black's plan at
all. Black saw that after the queen swap he would be able to play Rc8 and c5
before his opponent could do anything and achieve good play.} 12. Qxc6 Nxc6 13.
Bxf6 gxf6 14. Nf3 Bb7 15. e3 Ne7 16. Rc1 Rfc8 17. Bd3 c5 18. dxc5 bxc5 {
#Black got what he had played for, but how does he stand? c5 duly prevents a
piece from entering d4, and he has firm control over d5 as well. On the other
hand, he has four pawn islands to White's two, and White can use the c4 square
as pivotal point for his minor pieces, with Ne2-c4 plans for example.} 19. Ke2
({If White was to try and reposition the knight to c4, he had to do so now with
} 19. Nd2 {as Kramnik won't be giving him a second chance.}) 19... Rab8 20. Rc2
c4 21. Rxc4 Bxf3+ 22. Kxf3 Rxc4 23. Bxc4 Rxb2 24. Rc1 {The position is now
quite equal.} f5 25. g3 Kg7 26. a4 Ng8 27. h3 Nf6 28. Bd3 Ra2 29. Bc2 h5 30.
Kg2 a5 31. Bb3 Rb2 32. Bd1 Kg6 33. Bf3 Rb4 34. Bc6 Ne4 35. h4 Nf6 36. Rc2 Ng4
37. Kf1 e5 38. Bd7 Nf6 39. Bb5 Ne4 40. Kg2 Rb3 41. Bc6 Nc3 42. Rd2 Rb6 43. Be8
Ne4 44. Rc2 Rb3 45. Bc6 Rb4 46. Bb5 Rb3 47. Bc6 Rb4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Jermuk FIDE GP (Women)"]
[Site "Jermuk"]
[Date "2010.06.29"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Mkrtchian, Lilit"]
[Black "Chiburdanidze, Maia"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2477"]
[BlackElo "2514"]
[Annotator "CB"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[EventDate "2010.06.24"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "ARM"]
[EventCategory "10"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 137 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.09.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.09.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 7. Bg5 dxc4 ({
Alternativen sind} 7... c5 8. dxc5 d4 9. Qc2 e5 10. Nf3 Re8 11. e3 h6 12. Bxf6
Qxf6 13. Bd3 Nd7 14. O-O Nxc5 15. exd4 exd4 16. b4 Nxd3 17. Qxd3 Rd8 18. Qe4
Bf5 19. Qxb7 Rab8 20. Qxa7 Be4 21. Nd2 Bxg2 22. Kxg2 Qg5+ 23. Kh1 Qxd2 24. c5
Qf4 25. f3 Re8 26. Qa6 d3 27. Rad1 Re2 28. Qd6 Qxd6 {1/2-1/2 Morozevich,A 
(2771)-Anand,V (2791)/Nice 2009/CBM 129 Extra}) ({oder} 7... Nbd7 8. e3 c5 9.
cxd5 cxd4 10. Qxd4 Qa5+ 11. b4 Qxd5 12. Nf3 h6 13. Bh4 b6 14. Bc4 Qxd4 15. Nxd4
Bb7 16. O-O Rfc8 17. Rfc1 Ne4 18. f3 Nd6 19. Be2 a5 20. Bg3 e5 21. Nb5 Nf5 22.
Bf2 axb4 23. axb4 Rxa1 24. Rxa1 Ra8 25. Rxa8+ Bxa8 26. e4 Ne7 27. Nd6 Kf8 28.
b5 Ng6 29. g3 Ke7 30. Nc8+ Kd8 31. Nxb6 Nxb6 32. Bxb6+ Kd7 33. Bc4 f6 34. Bc5
Ne7 35. Bxe7 Kxe7 36. Bd5 Bxd5 37. exd5 {1-0 Gurevich,D (2540)-Jussupow,A 
(2630)/Dordrecht 1998/EXT 2002}) 8. Qxc4 b6 9. Rd1 ({Üblich ist} 9. Nf3 {z.B.:}
Ba6 10. Qa4 c5 11. dxc5 bxc5 12. Rd1 Qb6 13. Bxf6 gxf6 14. Rd2 Nc6 15. Qg4+ Kh8
16. Qh4 Kg7 17. Qg4+ Kh8 18. Qh4 Kg7 19. Qg4+ {1/2-1/2 Carlsen,M (2772)
-Kramnik,V (2759)/Dortmund 2009/CBM 131}) 9... Ba6 10. Qc2 Nbd7 11. e4 Bxf1 12.
Kxf1 Qc8 13. Qc6 e5 14. Ne2 (14. Bxf6 Nxf6 15. dxe5 Ng4 16. Nf3 Qa6+ 17. Kg1
Rae8 $11) 14... exd4 15. Nxd4 (15. Bxf6 Nxf6 16. f3 Nd7 17. Nxd4 Ne5 18. Qc3
Rd8 19. Kf2 c5 $11) 15... Ne5 16. Qc2 Qa6+ 17. Kg1 Rad8 18. f3 c5 19. Nf5 Qc4
20. Qb1 Rd3 21. Rf1 $6 (21. Rxd3 Nxd3 22. Bxf6 gxf6 23. Qd1 Rd8 24. h4 $11)
21... Rb3 22. Bxf6 gxf6 23. Qe1 (23. Rf2 $5) 23... Rxb2 24. Qg3+ Ng6 25. h4 h5
$17 26. Rd1 Kh7 27. Kh2 Rg8 28. Ne3 Qe6 29. Rd5 Ne5 30. Qf4 {Weiß denkt an
Matt auf h6.} c4 $2 ({Beide übersehen} 30... Rf2 $1 31. Z0 Nxf3+ $19) 31. Rg1 {
Um den Se3 ziehen zu können.} c3 $2 (31... Rg6 $17) 32. Rc1 $2 (32. Nc4 $1 Rf2
33. Nxe5 fxe5 34. Rxe5 Qh6 35. Qxf7+ Rg7 36. Qf5+ Qg6 37. Qxh5+ Qxh5 38. Rxh5+
$14) (32. Nf5 Rg6 $19) 32... Rb3 $2 {Zieht den Turm in eine Gabel.} (32... Rf2
$19) 33. Nf5 $18 Rg6 34. Nd4 Qxd5 (34... Qc8 35. Nxb3 $18) 35. exd5 Nd3 36. Qc7
1-0

[Event "Moscow Nutcracker"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2014.12.21"]
[Round "2.3"]
[White "Morozevich, Alexander"]
[Black "Fedoseev, Vladimir"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2712"]
[BlackElo "2661"]
[Annotator "CB"]
[PlyCount "77"]
[EventDate "2014.12.20"]
[EventType "schev"]
[EventRounds "4"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 164"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.01.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.01.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Kings"]
[BlackTeam "Princes"]
[BlackTeamCountry "RUS"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 dxc4 7. Qxc4 b6 8.
Bf4 Ba6 9. Qxc7 Qxc7 10. Bxc7 O-O 11. Bxb8 {Dieser freiwillige Tausch des
Läufers gegen den Springer scheint eine Neuerung zu sein.} Raxb8 12. f3 Nd5
13. Kd2 f5 14. e3 Bxf1 15. Rxf1 e5 $5 {Schwarz hat einen Bauern weniger, aber
Entwicklungsvorsprung. Mit 15...e5 gibt er einen zweiten Bauern, um die
Stellung zu öffnen und seinen Türmen Möglichkeiten zu geben.} 16. dxe5 Rfd8
17. Ke2 Rbc8 18. Rd1 Rc2+ 19. Ke1 {Weiß hat zwar alle seine Figuren auf der
Grundreihe, aber droht trotzdem vernichtend 20.e4.} Rd7 ({Nicht energisch
genug. Besser war das kaltblütige} 19... Kf7 {Nach} 20. e4 Ne3 21. Rxd8 Nxg2+
22. Kf1 Ne3+ {hätte die Partie mit Remis durch Dauerschach enden können.
Weicht Weiß dem Dauerschach aus, so hat Schwarz ausreichend Kompensation für
die zwei Minusbauern.}) 20. Ne2 Rxb2 21. Ng3 f4 22. exf4 Kf7 23. f5 {Weiß hat
immer noch zwei Bauern mehr, und obwohl sein König vom schwarzen Turm b2
abgeklemmt wird, stellen die weißen Bauern auf f5 und e5 Drohungen auf.} Ke7
24. Rd2 Rxd2 25. Kxd2 g6 ({Einen wirklich gefährlichen Abzug hat Schwarz
nicht. Nach} 25... Nf4+ 26. Ke3 Nxg2+ 27. Ke4 {ist der weiße König
plötzlich aktiv geworden.}) 26. Rc1 gxf5 27. Rc6 f4 ({Nach} 27... Nb4+ 28. Rd6
Rxd6+ 29. exd6+ {nimmt Weiß mit Schach.}) 28. Nf5+ Kd8 29. Rd6 {Weiß
erzwingt den Übergang in ein Springerendspiel mit Mehrbauern.} Rxd6 30. Nxd6
Kd7 31. Kd3 Ke6 32. Ke4 Nc3+ 33. Kxf4 b5 34. Nb7 Nb1 35. Ke4 Nxa3 36. f4 b4 37.
f5+ Ke7 38. f6+ Kf8 39. Nd6 1-0

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2014.03.30"]
[Round "14"]
[White "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Black "Kramnik, Vladimir"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2757"]
[BlackElo "2787"]
[Annotator "ChessBase Website"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[EventDate "2014.03.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 160"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.05.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.05.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[TimeControl "40/7200:20/3600:900+30"]
[WhiteClock "1:16:35"]
[BlackClock "1:04:48"]

1. d4 {[%emt 0:00:03]} Nf6 {[%emt 0:00:13]} 2. c4 {[%emt 0:00:05]} e6 {[%emt 0:
00:03]} 3. Nc3 {[%emt 0:00:04]} Bb4 {[%emt 0:00:52]} 4. Qc2 {[%emt 0:00:40]}
O-O {[%emt 0:01:25]} 5. a3 {[%emt 0:00:15]} Bxc3+ {[%emt 0:00:34]} 6. Qxc3 {
[%emt 0:00:02]} d5 {[%emt 0:00:08]} 7. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:25]} dxc4 {[%emt 0:00:
17]} 8. Qxc4 {[%emt 0:00:05]} b6 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 9. Bg5 {[%emt 0:00:35]} Ba6 {
[%emt 0:00:56]} 10. Qa4 {[%emt 0:01:56]} Qd7 {[%emt 0:03:33]} 11. Qxd7 {
[%emt 0:18:12]} Nbxd7 {[%emt 0:00:20]} 12. Bxf6 {[%emt 0:01:22]} Nxf6 $11 {
[%emt 0:01:41] Kramnik easily diffused Mamedyarov's Nimzo-Indian and it
quickly fizzled out to a draw.} 13. e3 {[%emt 0:00:22]} Bb7 {[%emt 0:12:00]}
14. Rc1 {[%emt 0:01:06]} Rac8 $146 {[%emt 0:00:50]} (14... c5 15. dxc5 Rac8 16.
Bb5 Rxc5 17. Rxc5 bxc5 18. Ke2 Rb8 19. Rd1 Bd5 20. a4 Ne4 21. Nd2 Nd6 22. e4
Ba8 23. f3 Kf8 24. Nb3 Nxb5 25. axb5 Rxb5 26. Rd8+ Ke7 27. Rxa8 Rxb3 28. Rxa7+
Kf6 29. Ra2 g5 30. Kd2 h5 31. Kc2 Rb5 32. Kd2 Rb3 33. Kc2 Rb5 34. Ra7 g4 35.
Rc7 gxf3 36. gxf3 h4 37. h3 Ra5 38. Kb1 Kg6 39. b3 f6 40. Rc6 e5 41. Kb2 Kg5
42. Kb1 Ra8 43. Rxc5 Kf4 44. Rc6 {Span,P (2296)-Rotstein,A (2500) Netherlands
2008 0-1}) 15. Ne5 {[%emt 0:03:01]} Rfd8 {[%emt 0:11:02]} 16. f3 {[%emt 0:06:
06]} c5 {[%emt 0:02:53]} 17. dxc5 {[%emt 0:00:21]} Nd7 {[%emt 0:06:43]} 18.
Nxd7 {[%emt 0:00:48]} Rxd7 {[%emt 0:00:18]} 19. e4 {[%emt 0:03:30]} Kf8 {
[%emt 0:06:50]} 20. b4 {[%emt 0:03:22]} bxc5 {[%emt 0:01:52]} 21. Bb5 {[%emt 0:
00:12]} Rdc7 {[%emt 0:00:43]} 22. Kd2 {[%emt 0:00:27]} cxb4 {[%emt 0:00:47]}
23. axb4 {[%emt 0:00:05]} Rxc1 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 24. Rxc1 {[%emt 0:00:02]} Rxc1
{[%emt 0:00:08]} 25. Kxc1 {[%emt 0:00:01]} e5 {[%emt 0:00:11]} 26. Kd2 {
[%emt 0:00:04]} Ke7 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 27. Kd3 {[%emt 0:00:03]} Kd6 {[%emt 0:00:
11]} 28. Bc4 {[%emt 0:00:02]} f6 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 29. g4 {[%emt 0:00:05]} g5 {
[%emt 0:00:08]} 30. Kc3 {[%emt 0:00:04]} Bc8 {[%emt 0:00:08]} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2014.03.13"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Andreikin, Dmitry"]
[Black "Kramnik, Vladimir"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2709"]
[BlackElo "2787"]
[Annotator "ChessBase Website"]
[PlyCount "64"]
[EventDate "2014.03.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 160"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.05.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.05.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[TimeControl "40/7200:20/3600:900+30"]
[WhiteClock "1:25:42"]
[BlackClock "1:14:56"]

1. d4 {[%emt 0:00:06]} Nf6 {[%emt 0:00:09]} 2. c4 {[%emt 0:00:07]} e6 {[%emt 0:
00:06]} 3. Nc3 {[%emt 0:00:11]} Bb4 {[%emt 0:00:20]} 4. Qc2 {[%emt 0:00:13]
For Dmitri Andreikin and Vladimir Kramnik, it was an opportunity to see
whether Kramnik would try to bully his way past Andreikin, or whether
Andreikin would be content to neutralize his prestigious opponent. Andreikin
is a superb technical player, but is not one prone to taking risks, and it
bears remembering that during his superb runner-up performance at the World
Cup last year, losing to the former world champion, he had only won a single
classical game, winning nearly all his matches in the rapid tiebreaks.} O-O {
[%emt 0:00:26]} 5. a3 {[%emt 0:00:30]} Bxc3+ {[%emt 0:00:13]} 6. Qxc3 {[%emt 0:
00:09]} d5 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 7. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:27]} dxc4 {[%emt 0:00:21]} 8.
Qxc4 {[%emt 0:00:24]} b6 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 9. Bg5 {[%emt 0:01:43]} Ba6 {[%emt 0:
00:28]} 10. Qa4 {[%emt 0:03:43]} (10. Qc3 h6 11. Bxf6 Qxf6 12. g3 Bb7 13. Bg2
Na6 14. O-O c5 15. Rac1 Rac8 16. Ne5 cxd4 17. Qxd4 Bxg2 18. Kxg2 Nc5 19. b4 Nb3
20. Rxc8 Rxc8 21. Qd7 Rf8 22. f4 Qf5 23. Rf3 Qc2 24. Qd3 Qxd3 25. Rxd3 Nc1 26.
Rd2 Rc8 27. h4 h5 28. b5 Rc7 29. Nc6 Kh7 30. Rb2 a5 31. Kf2 Rd7 32. Ne5 Rc7 33.
Rd2 f6 34. Nd7 Nb3 35. Nf8+ Kg8 36. Rd7 Rxd7 37. Nxd7 Nd4 38. a4 Nxb5 39. axb5
a4 {Nakamura,H (2786)-Kramnik,V (2793) Antalya 2013 1-0}) 10... Qd7 {[%emt 0:
01:16]} 11. Qc2 {[%emt 0:00:36]} c5 {[%emt 0:01:01]} 12. dxc5 {[%emt 0:00:59]}
Rc8 {[%emt 0:00:47]} 13. Bxf6 {[%emt 0:00:22]} gxf6 {[%emt 0:00:19]} 14. Qe4 {
[%emt 0:00:22]} Qb5 {[%emt 0:01:52]} 15. b4 {[%emt 0:04:24]} bxc5 {[%emt 0:04:
02]} 16. e3 {[%emt 0:05:34]} Qb7 {[%emt 0:01:00]} 17. Qg4+ {[%emt 0:00:20]} Kf8
{[%emt 0:01:24]} 18. b5 {[%emt 0:03:05]} Bxb5 {[%emt 0:00:45]} 19. Rb1 {
[%emt 0:00:20]} a6 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 20. a4 {[%emt 0:00:16]} f5 {[%emt 0:00:15]}
21. Qf4 $146 {[%emt 0:00:45]} (21. Qh4 Qe4 22. Qh6+ Ke7 23. Qg5+ Kf8 24. Qh6+
Ke7 25. Qg5+ Kf8 26. Qh6+ Ke7 {1/2-1/2 (26) Mamedyarov,S (2753)-Kramnik,V 
(2803) Moscow 2013}) 21... Qe4 {[%emt 0:01:21] To those seeing the opening
played for the first time, it might have seemed like sharp action was taking
place, but the entire Nimzo-Indian line played was a rinse-and-repeat
operation that had been seen up until the 21st move last year in
Mamedyarov-Kramnik (Moscow, 2013). That game ended in a draw shortly after on
the 26th move, and today was not a big improvement.} 22. Qxe4 {[%emt 0:00:07]}
fxe4 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 23. axb5 {[%emt 0:00:09]} exf3 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 24. b6 {
[%emt 0:00:10]} Rd8 {[%emt 0:07:51]} 25. gxf3 {[%emt 0:02:00]} Nc6 {[%emt 0:00:
33]} 26. f4 {[%emt 0:01:55]} Nb4 {[%emt 0:07:13]} 27. Bg2 {[%emt 0:02:09]} Rab8
{[%emt 0:00:21]} 28. b7 {[%emt 0:00:10]} Nd5 {[%emt 0:03:35]} 29. O-O {[%emt 0:
00:53]} Rd7 {[%emt 0:02:47]} 30. Rfc1 {[%emt 0:00:07]} Rdxb7 {[%emt 0:05:27]}
31. Rxb7 {[%emt 0:01:50]} Rxb7 {[%emt 0:00:37]} 32. Bxd5 {[%emt 0:00:12]} exd5
{[%emt 0:00:09]} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Francophone-ch 3rd"]
[Site "Montreal"]
[Date "2015.07.21"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Hambleton, Aman"]
[Black "Edouard, Romain"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2445"]
[BlackElo "2639"]
[Annotator "Edouard,R"]
[PlyCount "92"]
[EventDate "2015.07.17"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "CAN"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 168"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.09.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.09.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 c5 7. dxc5 d4 8.
Qg3 Nc6 9. Qxg7 ({A very critical game happened in the French league a couple
of months before mine:} 9. b4 e5 10. Qxg7 Rg8 11. Qh6 Be6 12. Bg5 Rg6 13. Qh4
a5 14. b5 Nb4 15. Rc1 (15. axb4 axb4 {followed by ...b3 is very dangerous for
White.}) 15... Na2 16. Rc2 Nc3 17. Nf3 Bf5 18. Rc1 Qe7 19. Bxf6 Rxf6 20. Qg3
Re6 (20... Qxc5 $5 21. Qxe5+ Qxe5 22. Nxe5 Rc8 {could be a better defence.})
21. Qg8+ Qf8 22. Qxf8+ Kxf8 23. g3 (23. Nh4 $5 {may pose problems.}) 23... Re7
24. Nh4 Be6 $13 {1/2-1/2 (50) Michiels,B (2536)-Ipatov,A (2612) Montpellier
FRA 2015}) 9... Rg8 10. Qh6 e5 11. g3 $146 (11. f3 $6 Na5 12. Bg5 $6 Rg6 13.
Qh4 Nxc4 14. O-O-O $6 h6 $17 {0-1 (25) Balla,T (2378)-Parligras,M (2625)
Brasov ROU 2011}) (11. b4 {would be critical and transpose into 9.b4.}) 11...
Rg6 $6 (11... Na5 {was the logical way to play:} 12. b4 (12. Bg5 $6 Rg6 13.
Bxf6 Qxf6 14. Qxh7 Bf5 $132) 12... Rg6 ({I only saw} 12... Nb3 13. Rb1 Rg6 14.
Qh4 Rg4 $11) 13. Qh4 (13. Qd2 Nb3 14. Qa2 Nxa1 15. Qxa1 a5 $13) 13... Nxc4 $5 (
13... Rg4 $11) 14. Bg2 a5 $13) 12. Qd2 $8 (12. Qh4 d3 $1 {followed by ...Nd4
would be terribly dangerous for White.}) 12... Ne4 13. Qd1 $1 (13. Qc2 Bf5 (
13... Nxc5 $5 14. b4 d3 15. exd3 Nd4 $44) 14. Bh3 Qf6 15. Bxf5 Qxf5 16. Nf3
Nxg3 17. Qxf5 Nxf5 $13) 13... Nxc5 $2 {A very bad move order.} (13... a5 {
was necessary.}) 14. Bg2 ({After} 14. b4 Ne4 {I was somehow delighted to bring
my knight to c3 but after} 15. Bg2 Nc3 16. Qc2 Qf6 17. Bb2 Bf5 18. e4 {I could
basically just resign!}) 14... a5 15. Nf3 e4 $6 {This logical move just helps
White a lot.} (15... a4 {was way better.}) 16. Nd2 $1 (16. Nh4 $6 Rg4 {with
the idea of saccing a rook on h4 looked nice for Black to me, although the
engine might disagree.}) 16... Bf5 17. O-O a4 $6 {Any move would be better
than this one, although White is probably clearly better anyhow.} (17... Qb6
18. Rb1 $1 {with the idea b4 would pose problems:} e3 19. fxe3 Bxb1 20. Nxb1 {
being just bad for Black.}) 18. b4 axb3 19. Nxb3 Na4 20. Bd2 Qd7 (20... Kf8 {
to at least hide the king was required.}) 21. Bb4 Rd8 22. Nc5 {Not a bad move,
but making Black's play a bit easier.} (22. Qc2 {was worrying me a lot. The
engine claims I could stay in the game playing} e3 23. Qc1 Nxb4 24. axb4 Nc3
25. Qe1 Bg4 $1 26. fxe3 Nxe2+ 27. Kh1 d3 {but the position is just very bad
anyway.}) (22. e3 d3 23. Nd2 Nxb4 24. axb4 Nc3 25. Qh5 {would also be very
strong.}) 22... Nxc5 23. Bxc5 Qe6 24. Qa4 Bh3 25. f4 $1 Qf5 (25... Bxg2 $2 26.
f5 $18) 26. Bb6 Bxg2 27. Kxg2 Rh6 28. Kg1 Rd7 29. Qb5 $2 (29. Qa8+ {with the
idea} Ke7 $2 30. Rab1 $1 e3 31. Rb5 Qh3 32. Bc5+ Kf6 33. Qh8+ {would pose big
problems. Fortunately for me my opponent was in time trouble and did not have
time to calculate these things.}) 29... Qh3 30. Rf2 Rh5 {All of a sudden my
position is playable.} 31. Qa4 Kf8 32. Rd1 Qg4 33. Qc2 Qg6 34. Qb2 Kg8 35. Rg2
Rh3 36. a4 h5 $6 {An optimistic move I could hardly play if White had time on
the clock!} 37. e3 $2 {There was no reason to play this move.} ({After} 37. a5
{with the idea Qb5, a6 White is still much better. In fact making ...h4 work
is nearly impossible.}) 37... d3 38. Qf2 Ne7 39. a5 Nf5 40. Qe1 Kh7 41. Qb4 $2
{A losing move in a difficult position.} h4 42. Qb5 (42. gxh4 Qh5 43. Rdd2 Nxh4
44. Qf8 Nxg2 45. Rxg2 Qd1+ $19) 42... hxg3 43. Qxd7 gxh2+ 44. Kh1 Ng3+ 45. Rxg3
Rxg3 46. Kxh2 Rg4 0-1

[Event "RUS-ch Superfinal 60th"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2007.12.29"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Dreev, Alexey"]
[Black "Sakaev, Konstantin"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2607"]
[BlackElo "2634"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "90"]
[EventDate "2007.12.18"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "17"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 122"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 c5 {Modern chess
often becomes more and more daring. The players make attempts to punish their
opponent for the smallest of sins. Black has given up the dark squared bishop,
but seemingly gained a small advantage in development.} 7. dxc5 d4 8. Qg3 (8.
Qc2) 8... Nc6 (8... O-O 9. Bh6 Ne8 10. e3 (10. h4 Nd7 11. h5 Qc7 12. Rh3 f5 13.
Qxc7 Nxc7 14. Bg5 e5 15. Be7 Re8 16. Bd6 Ne6 17. Rd1 Nexc5 18. f4 exf4 19. Nf3
d3 {1-0 Morozevich,A (2755)-Akopian,V (2713)/Crete 2007 (40)}) 10... Nc6 11.
O-O-O Qc7 12. Qxc7 Nxc7 13. Bf4 e5 14. Bg3 dxe3 15. fxe3 a5 16. Ne2 Ne6 17. Rd5
f6 18. Nc3 a4 19. Ne4 Ne7 20. Rd1 (20. Rd6 Nf5 21. Rd3 Nxg3 22. hxg3 f5 23. Nc3
Nxc5 24. Rd5 b6 25. Rxe5 Bb7 26. Nd5 Rae8 $11 {1-0 Gurevich,M (2633)-Gasanov,E
(2498)/Istanbul 2007 (46)}) 20... Nc6 21. Rd5 Ne7 22. Rd1 Nc6 23. Rd5 {1/2
Gelfand,B (2733)-Ponomariov,R (2703)/Moscow 2006}) 9. Nf3 e5 (9... O-O 10. Bh6
Ne8 11. O-O-O (11. h4 e5 12. h5 f5 13. e3 Qa5+ 14. Nd2 Kh8 15. Bg5 h6 16. Bh4
f4 17. exf4 exf4 18. Qf3 Bf5 19. O-O-O Nc7 20. Ne4 Na6 21. Nd6 Bh7 22. g4 Nxc5
{0-1 Gasanov,E (2503)-Miroshnichenko,E (2651)/Kharkov 2007 (27)}) 11... f6 12.
Bd2 b6 13. e3 bxc5 14. exd4 cxd4 15. Bd3 Qb6 16. Qh4 g6 17. b4 a5 18. b5 Qc5
19. Bh6 Qxa3+ 20. Kd2 Nb4 21. Qxd4 Qa2+ 22. Ke3 {1-0 Khismatullin,D (2584)
-Yemelin,V (2520)/Sochi 2006 (34)}) 10. b4 {This novelty by Dreev is an
admission that the shockingly provocative play by Black is well founded. The
complications after the straightforward 10.Nxe5 confirm Black's resilience.} (
10. Nxe5 Qa5+ 11. Kd1 Ne4 (11... Nxe5 12. Qxe5+ Be6 13. Bd2 Qa4+ 14. Ke1 Rd8
15. c6 Qxc6 16. Qb5 Bxc4 17. Qxc6+ bxc6 18. Rc1 Bb5 19. Bb4 Kd7 20. Bc5 {
1/2 Carlsen,M (2714)-Naiditsch,A (2639)/Khanty Mansiysk 2007 (70)}) 12. Qxg7 (
12. Qf4 Qa4+ 13. Ke1 Qa5+ 14. b4 Nxb4 15. axb4 Qxa1 16. Qxf7+ Kd8 17. Qd5+ Kc7
18. Qf7+ Kb8 19. Nd3 Qc3+ 20. Kd1 Qb3+ $11) 12... Nxf2+ 13. Kc2 Bf5+ 14. Kb3
O-O-O 15. Qf6 Be6 16. Nxc6 Qxc5 $5 (16... Qb5+ 17. Kc2 Qxc4+ 18. Kb1 Qxc5 19.
Qxf2 Bf5+ 20. Ka2 Be6+ $11) 17. e4 b5 18. Ka2 Nxe4 19. Ne7+ Kd7 $13) 10... O-O
11. Nxe5 (11. Bg5 $5 Re8 (11... e4 12. Ne5 Nh5 13. Bxd8 Nxg3 14. Nxc6 Nxh1 15.
Ne7+ Kh8 16. Bc7 $16) 12. O-O-O Bf5 13. e3 Ne4 14. Bxd8 Nxg3 15. hxg3 Raxd8 16.
exd4 Nxd4 17. Nxd4 exd4 18. Kd2 $16) 11... Ne4 (11... Nh5 12. Nxc6 (12. Qf3
Nxe5 13. Qxh5 Re8 14. f4 Nd3+ 15. Kd2 Nf2 16. Rg1 d3 17. exd3 Bg4 18. Qd5 Qf6
$19) 12... Nxg3 13. Nxd8 Nxh1 14. g3 Rxd8 15. Bg2 Nxf2 16. Kxf2 $16 {After
winning the exchange, Black would have been left with the nearly insoluble
problem of how develop the queenside pieces in a sensible fashion.}) 12. Nxc6 (
12. Qf3 Nxe5 13. Qxe4 Nxc4 $13 14. Qc2 (14. e3 $2 Re8 15. Qc2 dxe3 16. Bxc4
exf2+ 17. Kxf2 Qd4+ 18. Kf3 Qxa1 $19) 14... Be6 $13) 12... bxc6 13. Qd3 (13.
Qf4 Re8 14. Bb2 d3 (14... g5 15. Qf3 d3 16. exd3 Ng3+ 17. Kd2 Nxh1 18. g3 $16)
15. O-O-O d2+ 16. Rxd2 Nxd2 17. Qxd2 Qh4 18. e3 $16) 13... Bf5 14. Bb2 Qg5 {
The no-nonsense attitude by White has confronted Saakev with the unpleasant
necessity of seeking compensation for the material as well as the positional
disadvantage.} (14... Nxf2 15. Qxf5 Nxh1 16. g3 Re8 17. Rd1 Qe7 18. Bxd4 Rad8
19. Qf3 $18) 15. h4 (15. Qxd4 $5 Rad8 16. Qe3 Qxe3 17. fxe3 Nd2 (17... Rd2 18.
Bd4 Rc2 19. g3) 18. Kf2 Nxc4 19. Bd4 $16) 15... Qh6 16. Bxd4 {Dreev prefers to
avoid the problems with development which would arise after the swap of the
queens on e3 in the variation with 16.Qxd4.} (16. Qxd4 Rad8 17. Qe3 Qxe3 18.
fxe3 Rd2 19. Bd4 Rc2 20. g3 Be6 21. b5 Bxc4 22. bxc6 Rc8 $14) 16... Nxf2 17.
Qxf5 Nxh1 18. Qg5 {The elimination of the queens is necessary. White's trump
will be the pawn mass on the queenside.} (18. Qh3 $2 Qf4 19. Be3 Qe5 20. Rd1
Rad8 $19) 18... Qxg5 19. hxg5 Rfe8 20. e3 (20. b5 Ng3 21. Rd1 Rad8 22. a4 $13)
20... Ng3 21. Bd3 Ne4 22. b5 Nxg5 23. Kd2 Ne4+ (23... Ne6 24. Rb1 g6 25. a4 h5
$13) 24. Bxe4 $6 {The bishop pair is of huge importance in most positions; it
was safer to wait for the exchange of c-pawns.} (24. Kc2 cxb5 25. Bxe4 (25.
cxb5 Nxc5 26. Bxc5 Rac8 $19) 25... Rxe4 26. cxb5 Rg4 27. Rg1 $11) 24... Rxe4
25. Kc3 f5 26. b6 a5 (26... Kf7 27. a4 $13) 27. Rf1 g6 28. Kb3 h5 29. Rf4 Re7
30. e4 $5 {[%mdl 4096] Dreev would love to get into the enemy position and he
is ready to take risks.} (30. Bc3 Rxe3 31. Rd4 Kh7 32. Rd6 Rc8 $13) 30... fxe4
31. Bf6 $2 {This serious inaccuracy is pushing White to the brink of a lost
position; the f6-square was destined for the rook.} (31. Rf6 $5 e3 32. Rxg6+
Kf8 (32... Kh7 33. Rxc6 e2 34. Bf2 (34. Bc3 Re3 $19) 34... Rf8 35. Be1 Rf1 36.
Bxa5 Re3+ 37. Kc2 (37. Ka4 Ra1 38. Bb4 Raxa3+ 39. Kb5 Rab3 $19) 37... e1=Q 38.
Bxe1 Rfxe1 39. Rd6 (39. b7 R1e2+ 40. Kd1 Re1+ $11) 39... Rxa3 40. Rd2 Ree3 $1 (
40... Ra2+ 41. Kd3 Rxd2+ 42. Kxd2 Rb1 43. Kc2 Rb4 44. Kc3 Rb1 45. Kd4 Kg6 46.
Kd5) 41. b7 Ra2+ 42. Kd1 Ra1+ 43. Kc2 $11) 33. Rxc6 e2 34. Bf2 e1=Q 35. Bxe1
Rxe1 36. Ka4 Rb8 $11) 31... Re6 32. Kc2 e3 33. Kd1 e2+ 34. Ke1 a4 (34... Rae8
$5 35. Rf3 Re4 36. Bg5 Rxc4 37. Re3 Rxe3 38. Bxe3 Rc3 39. Bf4 Rb3 40. Kxe2 Kf7
$19) 35. Bh4 Kg7 $2 {Sakaev is paying back his opponent with the same coin.
After the correct move 35...Rae8! White's dreams would quickly vanish into
thin air.} (35... Rae8 $1 36. Rf6 (36. Bf2 Rd8 37. Rd4 Rf8 $19) 36... Re4 37.
Bf2 Rxc4 $19) 36. Rf2 $2 (36. Bg5 $1 Re3 (36... Rae8 $2 37. Rd4 $18) 37. Rf7+
Kxf7 38. Bxe3 Rd8 39. Kxe2 Ke6 $15) 36... Rae8 37. Bg3 (37. Bg5 Re4 38. Rf3 Rg4
39. Re3 Rb8 40. Re7+ Kf8 41. Bf6 Rxg2 $19) 37... Re3 38. Rf3 Rb3 $1 {The game
is decided; Black has naturally taken the chance to relocate the rook to the
attractive square b3.} 39. Rxb3 axb3 40. Kd2 b2 41. Kc2 Re3 42. Be1 Rxa3 43.
Kxb2 Rd3 44. Kc2 Rd1 45. b7 Rd8 (45... Rd8 46. Bg3 Kf7 $19) 0-1

[Event "Bundesliga 0506"]
[Site "Germany"]
[Date "2006.01.28"]
[Round "8.3"]
[White "Braun, Arik"]
[Black "Romanishin, Oleg M"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2465"]
[BlackElo "2547"]
[Annotator "Gofshtein,L"]
[PlyCount "49"]
[EventDate "2005.10.21"]
[EventType "team-tourn"]
[EventRounds "15"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 111"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Eppingen"]
[BlackTeam "Kreuzberg"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "GER"]
[BlackTeamCountry "GER"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 c5 {A rare move,
that Romanishin constantly plays, the main line is 6...Ne4 when 6...0-0 and 6..
.dxc4 are also quite popular.} 7. dxc5 {The most principled move, other moves
offer black an easy game.} (7. cxd5 cxd4 8. Qxd4 Nc6 {and Black is ahead in
development.}) 7... d4 {This is Black's idea, he tries to get a control over
the centre, and take care of the white c5 pawn later on.} 8. Qg3 (8. Qc2 {
is how White usually reacts, though the results are not satisfying for him.} e5
(8... a5 {also possible, black prevents b2-b4 and wants to attack the c5 pawn
later on} 9. Nf3 Nc6 10. Bf4 O-O 11. O-O-O Re8 12. Bd6 e5 13. h3 b6 {with
strong counterplay, 0-1 Lazarev,V-Rotstein,A/Porto San Giorgio 1998/EXT 2000 
(23)}) 9. e3 Nc6 10. b4 O-O {Black is ahead in development and he has plenty
of compensation for the pawn.} 11. e4 (11. Nf3 Re8 12. e4 a5 13. Rb1 axb4 14.
axb4 Bg4 15. Nd2 Nh5 16. b5 d3 $1 17. Qxd3 Nd4 18. Nb3 f5 {and Black got a
strong attack, 0-1 Lazarev,V-Romanishin,O/Arco 1999/EXT 2000 (25)}) 11... a5
12. b5 d3 $1 {A motif which is frequently seen in this line, Black sacrifices
another pawn but gets a control of the dark squares, which assures him a good
game.} 13. Bxd3 Nd4 14. Qc3 Nd7 15. Ne2 Nxc5 16. Nxd4 exd4 17. Qc2 Be6 18. O-O
Rc8 {and Black is surely no worse here, 1/2-1/2 Forintos,G-Romanishin,O/
Germany 1992/GER-chT2 (29)}) 8... O-O $6 {This move allows White a series of
strong moves to get the advantage.} (8... Nc6 $5 {was interesting} 9. b4 (9.
Qxg7 Rg8 10. Qh6 Rg6 11. Qh4 e5 {Black has a strong initiative which
compensates for the sacrificed pawns.}) 9... O-O 10. Bg5 e5 11. Nf3 e4 12. Ne5
Nh5 $1 (12... Nxe5 $6 {Black had a stronger move: 12...Nh5! and after all the
complications he has a fine position} 13. Qxe5 a5 14. b5 (14. Rd1 $1 {with
advantage for White.}) 14... Be6 15. Rd1 Nd7 16. Qg3 f6 17. Bh6 Qe7 18. Rxd4
Nxc5 19. Bf4 Qf7 {was unclear, 0-1 El Gindy,E-Sax,G/Cairo 1998/EXT 99 (45)})
13. Bxd8 (13. Nxc6 Nxg3 14. Nxd8 Nxh1 15. c6 f6 16. cxb7 Bxb7 17. Nxb7 fxg5 {
Black is surely isn't worse.}) 13... Nxg3 14. Nxc6 (14. hxg3 Nxd8 {[%csl Re5]
is good for Black, because the white knight is stuck in the centre and Black
threatens to catch it with f7-f6.}) 14... bxc6 $1 (14... Nxh1 $2 15. Ne7+ Kh8
16. Bc7 {it seems that White has the upper hand here.}) 15. hxg3 Rxd8 {Black
is not worse since white can't develop his bishop, e2-e3 is answered with
d4-d3.}) 9. Bh6 $1 {White develops as quickly as possible.} Ne8 10. O-O-O $1
Nc6 11. e3 {White plays correctly and combines the development with attacking
the black centre.} Qc7 {There is nothing better for Black.} (11... e5 12. Nf3
b6 (12... Kh8 13. exd4 $1 gxh6 14. d5 Nb8 15. Qxe5+ {and White seizes the
initiative.}) 13. exd4 exd4 14. Bd3 $1 {It is dangerous for White to open
lines on the queenside.} bxc5 15. Rhe1 {and White is much better since his
pieces are more active and he's ready to launch an attack with Ng5.}) 12. Qxc7
Nxc7 13. Bf4 e5 14. Bg3 dxe3 15. fxe3 a5 {White has the extra pawn, but Black
has good counterchances, since his centre is stable and the white pawn on c5
is weak.} 16. Nf3 $2 (16. Ne2 $1 {the best for the knight is obviously on c3
from where it can go either to d5 or to a4 to defend the pawn on c5} Ne6 (16...
Bg4 17. h3 Bxe2 (17... Bh5 18. Rd7 $16) 18. Bxe2 Ne6 19. Rd5 f6 20. Rhd1 {
with a big advantage for White.}) 17. Rd5 f6 18. Nc3 Ne7 19. Na4 $1 $16 {
similar to what White to do in the game, but more effective, White offers an
exchange but if Black takes it, White will get strong central pawns and his
pair of bishops would be very strong.}) 16... f6 {[%csl Yf3,Yg3] now, White's
dark-squared bishop and the knight are out of play and Black has good chances
to reach equality.} 17. e4 {White opens way for the bishop to f2, where it
protects the c5 pawn.} Bg4 {trying to get control over d4} 18. Bf2 Ne6 {
already planning to exchange on f3 and Ncd4 to cut the white pieces out of the
pawn c5, White's reply is forced.} 19. Rd5 {The best.} (19. Be2 Bxf3 20. Bxf3
Ncd4 {and Black might be better soon.}) 19... a4 $1 {Now b2-b4 is impossible,
and having in mind to play Ra5 someday.} (19... Bxf3 $6 {Now this is not as
good, after} 20. gxf3 Ncd4 21. Bh3 {White's bishops are no worse than the
knights, and White has the edge.}) (19... Ne7 $6 {is answered by} 20. Rd7) 20.
Kd2 {starting a raid of the king towards the c5 pawn, from now on it's
practically forced.} Rfc8 21. Kc3 Ne7 22. Kb4 $1 (22. Rd6 Nxc5 23. Nd2 Kf7 {
[%cal Gg4e6] and Black is already slightly better.}) 22... Nc6+ {obviously
taking the rook won't do Black any good, so he decides to force a draw.} (22...
Nxd5+ $2 23. cxd5 Nf4 24. Nd2 {with a clear advantage for white}) 23. Kc3 Ne7
24. Kb4 Nc6+ 25. Kc3 {a draw, neither side can avoid it} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Sigeman & Co 12th"]
[Site "Malmo/Copenhagen"]
[Date "2004.05.09"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Nielsen, Peter Heine"]
[Black "Hansen, Curt"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2628"]
[BlackElo "2635"]
[Annotator "Golod,V"]
[PlyCount "47"]
[EventDate "2004.04.30"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "SWE"]
[EventCategory "13"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 101"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.07.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.07.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%mdl 2]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. a3 Be7 $6 ({The only
playable move there is:} 5... Bxc3+ {For further comments you can see my
annotations to game: Belov,V-Lautier,J/Moscow,2004/CBM 100(0-1)(49)}) 6. Nf3 {
[%csl Gc2] As a result of black's previous move, White got better version of
Queen Gambit opening (with addition of a3 and Qc2).} O-O {If Black wanted
develop his knight to "d7", he had to do it immediately:} (6... Nbd7 7. cxd5
exd5 8. Bf4 c6 9. e3 $14 {Savchenko,V-Davidovic,A/Alushta,1998(1-0)(59)}) 7.
Bf4 ({Also it deserves attention:} 7. Bg5 $5 Nbd7 8. Rd1 c6 9. e3 a6 10. Bd3
dxc4 11. Bxc4 b5 12. Ba2 $14 {[%csl Rh7][%cal Ya2b1,Ge3e4,Ge4e5] Greenfeld,
A-Djuric,S/Rishon Le Ziyyon,1992(30)}) 7... Nbd7 $4 $146 {Painful blunder
leading to immediate loss.} ({It was necessary:} 7... c6 8. e3 Nbd7 $14) ({
Also loses:} 7... b6 $2 8. cxd5 exd5 9. Nb5 $18 {[%csl Rc7]}) (7... dxc4 8. e4
c5 (8... Nc6 9. Rd1 $14) 9. dxc5 $14) 8. Nb5 $1 {Now it is difficult to
suggest something valuable to Black.} dxc4 $6 (8... c5 $6 9. Bc7 Qe8 10. Nd6
Bxd6 11. Bxd6 cxd4 12. Nxd4 dxc4 13. e3 $18) (8... e5 9. dxe5 Nh5 10. Be3 {
[%csl Ra7,Rh5][%cal Gg2g4] +/-/+-}) 9. Bxc7 Qe8 10. Nd6 Bxd6 11. Bxd6 $18 {
[%csl Rf8] Black could resigned right there, but he prefers to extend the game
a little bit.} b5 12. g3 {There is no reason to hurry up with taking the rook.}
Bb7 13. Bg2 Nb6 14. O-O Rd8 15. Bxf8 Kxf8 16. Rfd1 Be4 17. Qd2 {The rest is
just a matter of technique.} Na4 18. Ne5 Bxg2 19. Kxg2 Qe7 20. f3 {[%csl Rd8,
Re7,Yg2][%cal Ge5c6]} Qd6 21. e4 Ne8 22. Qc2 {[%csl Ra4][%cal Ge5c4]} f6 $6 (
22... Nb6 $142 23. b3 $18) 23. Nxc4 $1 Rc8 (23... Qc7 24. Ne3 $18) 24. Qxa4 $1
{The last shot. Unfortunately, Curt Hansen has played this game very poorly.}
1-0

[Event "EU-ch 6th"]
[Site "Warsaw"]
[Date "2005.06.28"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Gurevich, Mikhail"]
[Black "Parligras, Mircea Emilian"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2630"]
[BlackElo "2560"]
[Annotator "Golod,V"]
[PlyCount "101"]
[EventDate "2005.06.18"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "POL"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 108"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.09.26"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.09.26"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Gurevich,M} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 Nc6 {
Black chose not the most popular continuation.} (6... Ne4 $5 {is the main line.
}) 7. Bg5 $5 {Good move. In most of the previous games White continued 7.e3,
but Mikhail Gurevich, before playing this move, wanted first to free his
black-squared bishop.} (7. e3 $143 O-O (7... e5 8. dxe5 (8. Nf3 {Gurevich,M}
exd4 9. Nxd4 Nxd4 10. Qxd4 Be6 11. cxd5 Qxd5 12. Qxd5 Bxd5 13. f3 O-O-O 14. b4
Rhe8 15. Kf2 Bb3 16. e4 Nd7 17. Bf4 Ne5 18. Rc1 Re7 19. Rc3 Ba4 20. b5 Rd1 21.
g3 Kb8 22. Rg1 Rb1 $132 {1-0 Grigore,G-Parligras,M/Iasi 1999/CBM 075/ (72)})
8... d4 9. Qd3 Ng4 10. Nf3 dxe3 11. Qxd8+ Kxd8 12. fxe3 Ke7 13. Bd2 Rd8 14. Be2
Ngxe5 15. Nxe5 Nxe5 16. Bc3 f6 17. Bxe5 fxe5 $11 {Yudasin,L-Khalifman,A/Minsk,
1985(1/2-1/2)(30)}) 8. Nf3 Qe7 9. b4 a6 10. Bb2 Bd7 11. Nd2 Rfe8 12. Be2 e5 13.
dxe5 Nxe5 14. cxd5 Nxd5 15. Qd4 Nf6 16. Nf3 Ng6 17. O-O $11 {Candela Perez,
J-Campora,D/Seville,2002(1/2-1/2)(60)} Bc6 $132 {(Gurevich,M) 1/2-1/2 Candela
Perez,J-Campora,D/Seville 2002/CBM 086 ext (60)}) 7... dxc4 $146 {Exchange of
queens doesn't lead to equality:} (7... Ne4 $6 8. Bxd8 Nxc3 9. bxc3 (9. Bxc7 $5
Nxd4 10. Rc1 Ne4 11. e3 $14) 9... Kxd8 10. e3 dxc4 11. Bxc4 Na5 12. Ba2 b6 13.
Nf3 Ke7 14. Nd2 Bb7 15. f3 Rac8 16. Rc1 c5 $11 {Radic,T-Morawietz,D/Porz,1991
(0-1)(49)}) 8. e3 h6 9. Bxf6 ({Could be recommended:} 9. Bh4 $5) 9... Qxf6 10.
Nf3 (10. Bxc4 {Gurevich,M} e5 (10... Qg6 $5) 11. d5 Ne7 12. Nf3 $14) 10... O-O
(10... Qg6 $142 11. Qxc4 O-O 12. Rc1 $14) 11. Bxc4 $14 {[%csl Rc8] White's
advantage is obvious thanks to the bad position of black's bishop.} Re8 {
Gurevich,M: '[/\12...e5]'} 12. Rd1 a6 13. O-O Bd7 ({It's not easy for black to
free himself from white's pressure:} 13... e5 14. dxe5 (14. d5 $143 Nd8 15. Nd2
c6 16. Ne4 $14) 14... Nxe5 15. Nxe5 Rxe5 (15... Qxe5 $2 16. Qxe5 Rxe5 17. Rd8+
Kh7 18. Bxf7 $18) 16. Rd8+ Qxd8 17. Qxe5 $16) 14. Rd2 {Gurevich,M: '[/\15.Rc1]'
} Qe7 15. Ba2 $1 $16 {[%csl Rg8][%cal Ga2b1,Gc3c2,Gb1h7] In addition to strong
positional pressure, White adds mate attacking ideas against black king.} Qd6
16. Rc1 $6 {White missed a good chance to increase his advantage:} (16. d5 $5
exd5 17. Bxd5 Qe7 (17... Qg6 $143 18. Qb3 {[%csl Rb7,Rd7,Rf7][%cal Gb3b7,Gb3f7,
Gd2d7] +/-/+-}) 18. Rfd1 Rad8 19. Qb3 Bc8 20. Bxc6 bxc6 21. Qc4 $16) 16... Rac8
$2 (16... Rad8 $142) 17. Bb1 $6 {White ignored another chance to play:} (17. d5
$1 exd5 18. Bxd5 Qe7 $140 {[%tqu "En","Please find the move, which brings for
White a decisive advantage!","","","c3b3","",10]} 19. Qb3 $1 Rb8 (19... Nd8
$143 20. Bxb7 {[%csl Rc7][%cal Gc1c7]} Nxb7 21. Qxb7 $18) 20. Bxf7+ Qxf7 21.
Qxf7+ Kxf7 22. Rxd7+ {'+/-' Gurevich,M.} Re7 23. Rcd1 {+/-/+-}) 17... Ne7 18.
Ne5 (18. Qc2 $5 {Gurevich,M} f5 (18... g6 19. Ne5 Bc6 20. Qd1 $36) 19. Ne5 Bc6
20. Ba2 $14) 18... Nd5 19. Qb3 Bb5 (19... c5 $142 {'!?' Gurevich,M.} 20. Nxd7
cxd4 21. Rcd1 Qxd7 (21... dxe3 {Gurevich,M} 22. fxe3 Qxd7 23. e4) 22. Rxd4 {
'+/=' Gurevich,M.} Qc7 23. Be4 $16) 20. Qc2 Nf6 21. h3 {Gurevich,M: '[/\22.Ng4]
' Another good move. White ensures a "window" for his king and plans to play
22.Ng4 in order to exchange knights and enter with the queen to kingside.} Red8
({Deserves attention:} 21... Kf8 $5) 22. Ng4 Qe7 (22... Nxg4 $5 23. Qh7+ Kf8
24. hxg4 {'+/-' Gurevich,M.} Bc6 25. Rc5 $16) 23. Nxf6+ Qxf6 24. Qh7+ Kf8 25.
Rdc2 (25. Be4 $5 {Gurevich,M} c6 26. Rc5 $14) 25... Bc6 26. Rc5 Ke7 27. Ba2 $6
{Gurevich,M: '[Ba2-c4-a6]' White planned to transfer his bishop to /^a6-f1.
Could be recommended:} (27. b4 $1 Rd7 28. Be4 (28. Rh5 $5) 28... Bxe4 29. Qxe4
c6 30. a4 $16) 27... Rd7 28. Bc4 {[%csl Rc6][%cal Gc4a6]} Bd5 29. Bf1 $6 {
Much better for White was to play the next position:} (29. Bxd5 $5 exd5 30. Qd3
(30. e4 {Gurevich,M} Qg6 31. Qxg6 fxg6 32. exd5 Kd6 $44) 30... c6 31. b4 $14 {
[%cal Ga3a4,Gb4b5] After 29.Bf1?! Black forced a transfer to an equal ending.})
29... g6 {[%csl Rh7][%cal Gc8h8]} 30. Qxh6 Rh8 31. Qf4 Qxf4 32. exf4 c6 {
'©' Gurevich,M. +/=/= The strong bishop and the weak pawn on "d4" compensate
white's extra pawn.} 33. R5c3 a5 {I'm not sure in this plan of Black. He wants
to play 34...a4 in order to ensure "b3" square for his bishop and in that way
open "d" file for his rooks. But in the future "a4" pawn will be weak and
could create problems. Probably better was to wait for white's active
operations.} (33... Rhd8 $5) 34. f3 (34. b3 $143 a4 35. b4 Bb3 36. b5 Rxd4 37.
bxc6 bxc6 38. Rxc6 Rxf4 $11) 34... Rhd8 35. Kf2 a4 36. Ke3 Bb3 37. Rd3 {
'(+)' Gurevich,M.} ({Interesting to check a transfer to a rook ending:} 37. Bc4
$5 Rxd4 38. Bxb3 axb3 39. Rxb3 R4d7 (39... R8d7 $44 {Gurevich,M} 40. Rxb7 $6
Rd3+ 41. Ke2 Rd2+ 42. Ke1 Rxg2 $13) 40. h4 $14) 37... f6 38. Be2 Rd5 39. Rc5 (
39. Bd1 $5 Bxd1 (39... e5 $143 40. fxe5 fxe5 41. Bxb3 exd4+ 42. Kd2 axb3 43.
Rxb3 R8d7 44. f4 $16) 40. Rcxd1 R8d7 41. Rc1 Rb5 42. Rd2 Kd6 43. Rc4 $14) 39...
R5d6 40. Bd1 (40. h4 $5 {Gurevich,M}) 40... b6 $6 (40... Bxd1 $142 41. Rxd1 Rd5
42. Rc4 $14) 41. Rc1 e5 {'!' Gurevich,M.} 42. fxe5 fxe5 43. d5 $2 {Only
time-trouble can explain this move.} ({After:} 43. Bxb3 exd4+ 44. Kd2 axb3 45.
Rxb3 c5 {'<=>' Gurevich,M.} 46. a4 $14 {[%cal Ga4a5] White keeps good chances
for win.}) 43... Bxd1 44. Rdxd1 ({Another option was:} 44. Rcxd1 cxd5 45. f4
Ke6 46. fxe5 Kxe5 47. Rd4 b5 $11) 44... Rxd5 (44... cxd5 $5 45. Rc7+ Ke6 46.
Ra7 $1 b5 $140 47. Rb7 d4+ 48. Kd3 Rd5 $11) 45. Rxd5 cxd5 46. Rc6 Rd6 47. Rc8 {
Unfortunately for White, the pawn ending is drawish:} (47. Rxd6 $5 Kxd6 48. h4
Ke6 49. g4 Kf6 {'=' Gurevich,M.} 50. Kd3 Ke6 51. Kc3 b5 52. b3 (52. Kb4 $2 d4
53. b3 d3 54. Kc3 b4+ 55. Kxd3 bxa3 56. Kc3 a2 57. Kb2 axb3 58. Ka1 Kd5 59. Kb2
Kc4 60. h5 Kd3 $19) (52. Kd3 Kd6 53. Kc3 Ke6 $11) 52... d4+ 53. Kb2 (53. Kb4 $2
d3 54. Kc3 b4+ $1 $19) 53... Kd5 54. bxa4 (54. b4 e4 55. fxe4+ Kxe4 56. h5 (56.
Kc2 $4 Kf3 $19 {[%csl Gd4,Rg4][%cal Gf3e2,Gf3g4]}) 56... gxh5 57. gxh5 Ke3 58.
h6 d3 59. h7 d2 60. h8=Q d1=Q $11) 54... bxa4 55. Kc2 e4 (55... Kd6 $144 56.
Kd3 Kd5 57. h5 gxh5 58. gxh5 Ke6 59. Ke4 Kf6 60. f4 exf4 61. Kxf4 d3 62. Ke3
Kg5 63. Kxd3 Kxh5 64. Kc4 Kg6 65. Kb4 Kf7 66. Kxa4 Ke7 67. Kb5 Kd7 68. Kb6 Kc8
69. Ka7 Kc7 $11) 56. fxe4+ Kxe4 57. h5 gxh5 58. gxh5 Kf5 59. Kd3 Kg5 60. Kxd4
Kxh5 61. Kc4 Kg6 62. Kb4 Kf7 63. Kxa4 Ke8 64. Ka5 Kd8 65. Kb6 Kc8 $11) 47...
Rd8 (47... Kd7 $5) 48. Rxd8 Kxd8 $11 49. Kd3 ({For:} 49. h4 $5 {see comments
to move 47 of White.}) 49... Ke7 50. Kc3 ({For:} 50. h4 $5 {again see comments
to move 47 of White.}) 50... Kf6 51. Kd3 ({Unexpectedly at once loses the game:
} 51. Kb4 $4 {in view of:} Kf5 $1 52. Kxa4 $140 Kf4 53. Kb3 (53. Kb5 d4 54. Kc4
Ke3 $19) 53... Kg3 54. Kc2 e4 55. fxe4 dxe4 56. Kd2 Kf2 $19) (51. h4 $5 Kf5 52.
g3 e4 53. g4+ Kf4 54. fxe4 dxe4 55. h5 gxh5 56. gxh5 e3 57. h6 Kf3 58. h7 e2
59. h8=Q e1=Q+ $11) 1/2-1/2

[Event "Sarajevo Bosnia 30th"]
[Site "Sarajevo"]
[Date "2000.05.29"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Gurevich, Mikhail"]
[Black "Short, Nigel D"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2694"]
[BlackElo "2683"]
[Annotator "Golod,V"]
[PlyCount "54"]
[EventDate "2000.05.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "BIH"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 077"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2000.07.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2000.07.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Gurevich,M} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 dxc4
$5 {[%mdl 4]} (6... Ne4 $5 {It's main line. You can see comments to Burmakin,
V-Markarov,A/St.Petersburg, 2000/CBM 76(1-0)Golod,V)(39)}) 7. Qxc4 b6 $5 {
[%cal Gc8b7,Gc8a6] Nigel Short's move!} 8. Nf3 ({Another alternative is:} 8.
Bf4 Ba6 9. Qxc7 (9. Qa4+ Qd7 (9... c6 10. e3 Bxf1 11. Kxf1 $132 {[%csl Rf1]})
10. Qxd7+ Kxd7 $132) 9... Qxc7 10. Bxc7 Nc6 11. Nf3 (11. Rc1 {See comments to
Lalic,B-Plaskett,J/Southend,1999/CBM 71(0-1)(Pein,M)(33)}) 11... Rc8 12. Be5
Nxe5 13. dxe5 Nd7 14. b4 Bb7 15. e3 Bxf3 16. gxf3 Nxe5 17. Bb5+ Ke7 18. f4 $11
{Baburin,A-Short,N/Port Erin,1998(1/2-1/2)(25)}) 8... Ba6 $5 (8... O-O 9. g3
Bb7 10. Bg2 Bd5 11. Qc2 Nbd7 12. O-O c5 13. Bg5 Rc8 14. Qa4 Bc6 15. Qc4 h6 16.
Bxf6 Qxf6 17. Rfd1 Bxf3 18. Bxf3 cxd4 19. Qxd4 Ne5 {+/=/= Ivanov,S-Beliavsky,A/
Vrnjacka Banja,1999(1-0)(41)}) 9. Qc2 O-O (9... Nbd7 $5 {You can see comments
to Gurevich,M-Davies,N/Germany,1998/CBM 69 (1-0)(Gurevich,M)(43)}) 10. Bg5 Nbd7
11. e4 Qc8 $146 {[%mdl 8]} ({Was checked in the two previous games:} 11... Bxf1
$5 12. Rxf1 h6 (12... Qe8 $5 13. O-O-O c5 14. d5 exd5 15. Bxf6 (15. exd5 Qe4
16. Rfe1 Qxc2+ 17. Kxc2 Rfe8 $132) 15... dxe4 $1 16. Bc3 exf3 17. Qf5 Nf6 (
17... fxg2 $2 18. Rg1 Rd8 19. Bxg7 $1 $16) 18. Bxf6 gxf6 19. Qg4+ (19. Rfe1 Qc6
20. gxf3 Kh8 21. Rd7 Rad8 22. Rxa7 Rd5 $132) 19... Kh8 20. Qxf3 Rd8 21. Qxf6+
Kg8 22. Qg5+ Kh8 23. Qf6+ $11 {Vera,R-Davies,N/Open,Saint Vincent,1999 (0-1)
(42)}) 13. Bxf6 Nxf6 14. O-O-O Rc8 15. Kb1 Qe7 16. Rfe1 Rfd8 17. Ne5 c5 18. d5
exd5 19. exd5 Qc7 20. Nc6 Rd7 21. Ne7+ Rxe7 22. d6 Qxd6 23. Rxd6 Rxe1+ 24. Rd1
Re7 $44 {Kramnik,V-Kasparov,G/Moscow,Kosmos m 5',1998(0-1)(58)}) 12. O-O-O ({
Another option is:} 12. Bxa6 Qxa6 13. O-O-O c5 14. d5 exd5 15. exd5 Rfe8 $132)
12... h6 13. Bxf6 ({After} 13. Bf4 Bxf1 14. Rhxf1 Qb7 (14... c5 $6 15. d5 $14)
15. Rfe1 c5 16. Kb1 $132 {the position is equal, so Gurevich decided to
simplify the game.}) 13... Nxf6 14. Bxa6 (14. Kb1 {Gurevich,M} Bb7 $1 15. Bd3
c5 $132) 14... Qxa6 15. Ne5 {Gurevich,M: '[/\16.Nc6]'} c5 $1 16. dxc5 (16. d5
$6 {Gurevich,M} b5 $1 $132 (16... exd5 17. exd5 b5 18. d6 Rfd8 19. d7 Qb7 20.
Rd2 $16) 17. d6 Rfd8 18. d7 Qb7 $17) 16... Qb5 {'!' Gurevich,M. Gurevich,M: '[/
\ 17...Rfc8]'} (16... bxc5 {Gurevich,M} 17. f3 $14) (16... Rfc8 {Gurevich,M}
17. c6 Qb5 18. f4 $16) 17. a4 {'!' Gurevich,M.} (17. f4 {Gurevich,M} bxc5 18.
g4 c4 $36) 17... Qb4 (17... Qxc5 {Gurevich,M} 18. Qxc5 bxc5 19. f3 Rab8 20. Rd3
$1 Rb4 21. b3 $16) 18. f3 ({Is a possible continuation of the play:} 18. Nd7
Nxd7 19. Rxd7 bxc5 20. Rhd1 Rab8 21. Rxa7 Ra8 22. Rxa8 Rxa8 23. b3 Rb8 (23...
c4 24. Qxc4 Qxc4+ 25. bxc4 Rxa4 26. Rd8+ Kh7 27. Rc8 Ra2 28. c5 $16) 24. Kb2 c4
$11 (24... Qxa4 $4 25. Rd8+ $18 {[%csl Ra4,Rb8,Gd8,Rg8]})) 18... Rfc8 (18...
bxc5 {Gurevich,M} 19. Rd3 Rfc8 20. Rhd1 $14 {(/\ 21.Rc3)}) 19. c6 b5 $1 {
Of course, white can't keep P over...} 20. Rd3 $1 (20. axb5 $2 Qxb5 21. Qc3 Nh5
$1 {[%csl Rc6,Ye5][%cal Gh5f4,Gf7f6] Gurevich,M: '(/\ 22... f6)'} 22. Kb1 (22.
g3 $2 f6 23. Ng6 Kf7 $19) (22. Rd6 {Gurevich,M} Nf4 23. Re1 Ne2+ 24. Rxe2 Qxe2
$15) 22... f6 $40) 20... bxa4 21. Rhd1 {'?!' Gurevich,M.} (21. Rc3 {Gurevich,M}
Rc7 22. Rd1 Rb8 23. Rc4 $14) 21... Qb5 22. Qc3 Ne8 {'=!' Gurevich,M. Gurevich,
M: '[/\ 23...f6]'} ({Interesting was} 22... Nh5 $1 {[%csl Rc6][%cal Gh5f4,
Gf7f6,Gc8c1]} {and white would have to solve some problems and to play very
accuretely:} 23. Rd6 $8 Nf4 24. Kb1 {and here} a3 (24... Ne2 25. Qd3 Qxe5 26.
Qxe2 a3 27. b3 (27. bxa3 Rab8+ 28. Ka2 Qc3 29. R6d3 Qxc6 $17 {[%csl Ra2]})
27... Rab8 28. Ka2 Qc3 29. R1d3 Qc5 30. Qd2 (30. e5 Rxc6 31. Rd8+ Rxd8 32.
Rxd8+ Kh7 $17) 30... Rxc6 31. Rxc6 Qxc6 32. Rd8+ (32. Kxa3 Qa6+ $15 {[%csl Ra3]
}) 32... Rxd8 33. Qxd8+ Kh7 34. Qd2 $44) 25. g3 $1 Ne2 26. Qxa3 Qxe5 27. Qd3
$11 {[%csl Re2]}) 23. Kb1 (23. Rd7 $2 {Gurevich,M} f6 24. Ng6 $2 Qg5+ $19)
23... f6 {Forcing draw.} (23... a3 24. b3 a5 25. Ka2 $132 (25. Rc1 {Gurevich,M}
a4 26. b4 Rab8 27. Ka2 $13)) 24. Ng6 $8 Kf7 (24... Kh7 25. Nf8+ Kg8 (25... Kh8
26. Ng6+ $11) 26. Ng6 $11) 25. Nh8+ Kg8 26. Ng6 Kf7 27. Nh8+ Kg8 1/2-1/2

[Event "Istanbul op 5th"]
[Site "Istanbul"]
[Date "2006.09.05"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Gurevich, Mikhail"]
[Black "Azarov, Sergei Nikolaevich"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2643"]
[BlackElo "2579"]
[Annotator "Gurevich,M"]
[PlyCount "157"]
[EventDate "2006.08.30"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "TUR"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2007"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.11.23"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.11.23"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 c5 7. dxc5 d4 8.
Qg3 $5 (8. Qc2) 8... Nc6 (8... O-O 9. Bh6 Ne8 10. e3 Nc6 11. O-O-O Qc7 12. Qxc7
Nxc7 13. Bf4 e5 14. Bg3 dxe3 15. fxe3 a5 16. Ne2 (16. Nf3 f6 17. e4 Bg4 18. Bf2
Ne6 19. Rd5 a4 20. Kd2 Rfc8 21. Kc3 Ne7 22. Kb4 Nc6+ 23. Kc3 Ne7 24. Kb4 Nc6+
25. Kc3 {1/2-1/2 Braun,A-Romanishin,O/Germany 2006/CBM 111/[Gofshtein,L]})
16... Ne6 17. Rd5 f6 18. Nc3 a4 19. Ne4 Ne7 20. Rd1 Nc6 21. Rd5 Ne7 22. Rd1 Nc6
23. Rd5 {1/2-1/2 Gelfand,B-Ponomariov,R/Moscow RUS 2006/The Week in Chess 627})
9. b4 (9. Nf3 $5 {TN} O-O 10. Bh6 Ne8 (10... Nh5 $5) 11. O-O-O f6 12. Bd2 b6
13. e3 bxc5 14. exd4 cxd4 15. Bd3 Qb6 16. Qh4 g6 17. b4 a5 18. b5 Qc5 19. Bh6
Qxa3+ 20. Kd2 Nb4 21. Qxd4 Qa2+ 22. Ke3 Qb3 23. Ke2 e5 24. Qc5 $14 {1-0
Khismatullin,D-Yemelin,V/Sochi 2006/CBM 111 ext (33)}) 9... e5 $5 {TN} (9...
O-O 10. Bh6 Ne8 11. e4 e5 12. Bd3 a5 13. b5 Nb8 14. Nf3 Nd7 15. c6 bxc6 16.
bxc6 Nc5 17. Nxe5 Qf6 18. Bf4 g5 19. Bxg5 Qxe5 20. Bc2 Qxg3 21. hxg3 f6 22. Bh6
Rf7 23. Rd1 $13 {1/2-1/2 Schrancz,I-Lopepe,P/ICCF Email 2002/ICCF Telechess
CBM 102 (32)}) 10. e4 $5 (10. Qxg7 Rg8 11. Qh6 Rg6 $44) 10... dxe3 (10... O-O)
11. Bxe3 O-O 12. Rd1 Qe7 13. Nf3 (13. Be2) (13. Ne2) 13... Bg4 $5 (13... Ne4
14. Qh4 Qxh4 15. Nxh4 a5 16. b5 Nd4 $44) 14. Be2 a5 (14... Rfd8 $5 15. O-O e4
16. Nd4 Bxe2 17. Nxe2 Rd3 18. Rxd3 exd3 19. Nd4 $5 $14) 15. b5 Bxf3 16. Bxf3 (
16. gxf3 $5 Nd4 17. Bxd4 exd4 18. Rg1 Nh5 $5 19. Qd6 Rfe8 20. Qxe7 Rxe7 21.
Rxd4 Rae8 22. Re4 Nf4 23. Kd2 $14) 16... Nd4 17. O-O Ne4 $1 (17... Qxc5 18.
Bxd4 exd4 19. Bxb7 Rab8 20. Bc6 Qxc4 21. Qd3 $16) 18. Qh3 Nxf3+ 19. Qxf3 Nxc5
20. Rd5 (20. Bxc5 $5 Qxc5 21. Qxb7 Qxa3 (21... Qxc4 22. Qd5 $14) 22. Qd5 $14 {
[/\b5-b6-b7]}) 20... Na4 $1 21. Qf5 $1 Qxa3 22. Qxe5 (22. Rd7 $5 b6 23. Qxe5
Rae8 24. Qd5 Re7 25. h3 $14) 22... Rfe8 23. Qc7 b6 24. Rd7 Rac8 25. Qb7 $6 (25.
Qf4 Re7 26. Rd6 Re4 $11) 25... Qf8 $1 {[/\26...Rxc4,26...Rxe3]} 26. Rc1 {
Diagram [#]} Rxe3 $1 27. fxe3 Nc5 28. Qd5 $2 (28. Qa7 Nxd7 29. Qxd7 $15) 28...
Qe8 $1 29. Rd1 Qxe3+ 30. Kh1 Nxd7 31. Qxd7 Rf8 $17 32. h3 g6 33. Qc7 a4 34. Qa7
$5 (34. c5 Qxc5 35. Qxc5 bxc5 36. Ra1 Rb8 $19) 34... a3 35. Rf1 Qc5 36. Rf3 (
36. Rf4 Qb4 $19) 36... Qxc4 37. Qxa3 Qxb5 38. Qe7 Qc4 39. Rf6 $5 b5 40. Qe5 b4
41. Rb6 {[Rb6-b7,Qf6]} Rd8 42. Rb7 h5 43. Qf6 Rf8 $6 (43... Re8 $17) 44. h4 (
44. Qb2 Qf1+ 45. Kh2 Qf4+ 46. g3 Qf3 47. Rxb4 $15) 44... Qe4 45. Rb6 Re8 46.
Kh2 Rc8 47. Rb5 $15 Qe6 48. Qxe6 fxe6 49. Rxb4 Kf7 50. Kg3 Kf6 51. Kf4 Rd8 52.
g3 Rd1 53. Ra4 (53. Rb8 $142) 53... e5+ 54. Ke4 Re1+ 55. Kf3 Kf5 56. Ra8 Rf1+
57. Kg2 Rd1 58. Ra4 Rd4 59. Ra5 $2 (59. Ra6 $15) 59... Rd2+ 60. Kf3 Rd3+ 61.
Kf2 Kg4 $1 $19 62. Ra6 $8 (62. Rxe5 Rf3+ 63. Ke2 Rxg3 64. Re4+ Kh3 $19) 62...
Rf3+ 63. Ke2 Rxg3 64. Rxg6+ Kxh4 65. Re6 Rg5 66. Kf3 Rf5+ 67. Ke4 Rf1 $2 (67...
Kg4 68. Ra6 h4 69. Ra1 Rf4+ 70. Kxe5 Rb4 $19) 68. Ra6 Re1+ 69. Kf5 Kg3 (69...
e4 70. Kf4 e3 71. Ra5 e2 72. Kf3 $15) 70. Ra3+ Kg2 71. Ra2+ Kg3 72. Ra3+ Kg2
73. Ra2+ Kf3 (73... Kg1 74. Ra3 e4 75. Rh3 e3 76. Kf4 $15) 74. Rh2 e4 75. Rh3+
$1 $11 Kf2 76. Kf4 e3 77. Rh2+ Kg1 78. Rxh5 Kg2 79. Ke4 1/2-1/2

[Event "BL2-West 9899"]
[Site "Germany"]
[Date "1999.03.07"]
[Round "7.3"]
[White "Gurevich, Mikhail"]
[Black "Davies, Nigel Rodney"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2629"]
[BlackElo "2515"]
[Annotator "Gurevich,M"]
[PlyCount "85"]
[EventDate "1998.10.??"]
[EventType "team-tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 069"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1999.04.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1999.04.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Godesberg"]
[BlackTeam "Plettenberg"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "GER"]
[BlackTeamCountry "GER"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 dxc4 7. Qxc4 b6 8.
Nf3 Ba6 (8... O-O 9. Bg5 Ba6 10. Qc2 Nbd7 11. e4 Bxf1 12. Rxf1 Qe8 13. O-O-O c5
14. d5 $14 {0-1 Vera,R-Davies,N/Saint Vincent ITA 1999 (42)}) 9. Qc2 Nbd7 10.
g3 $5 {TN} (10. Bg5 O-O 11. e4 Bxf1 12. Rxf1 h6 13. Bxf6 Nxf6 14. O-O-O Rc8 15.
Kb1 Qe7 16. Rfe1 Rfd8 17. Ne5 c5 $132 {0-1 Kramnik,V-Kasparov,G/Moscow RUS
1998 (58)}) 10... O-O 11. Bg2 Bb7 (11... c5 $5 12. dxc5 Nxc5 $13 (12... Rc8 13.
c6 $14)) 12. Bf4 Be4 $5 13. Qd2 (13. Qxc7 Qxc7 14. Bxc7 Rfc8 $36) 13... Qb8 $5
(13... Nd5 14. O-O Nxf4 15. Qxf4 $14) 14. Rc1 Rc8 15. O-O Qb7 16. Rfd1 h6 (
16... Nd5 17. Ne1 Bxg2 18. Nxg2 c5 19. dxc5 Nxf4 (19... Nxc5 20. Be5 $14) 20.
Nxf4 Nxc5 21. Nh5 $1 $36) 17. Ne1 $1 Bxg2 18. Nxg2 c5 19. dxc5 Nxc5 20. f3 Ncd7
(20... Nb3 21. Rxc8+ Rxc8 22. Qb4 Nc5 23. e4 $14) 21. Be3 $1 {[/\22.Bd4]} Rxc1
(21... e5 22. Nh4 $1 {(/\23.Nf5)|^}) 22. Rxc1 Rc8 23. Rxc8+ Qxc8 24. Bd4 $14 e5
25. Bc3 Qc5+ 26. Ne3 a5 $2 (26... Nd5 $2 27. Qxd5 Qxe3+ 28. Kf1 $16) (26... e4
$1 27. Kg2 (27. f4 Ng4 28. Bd4 Qh5 $11) 27... exf3+ 28. exf3 $14) 27. Kg2 {
[/\ g3-g4, Nf5|^>>]} e4 28. f4 Kh7 29. h3 h5 30. g4 $1 $16 hxg4 31. hxg4 Qc7
32. g5 Nh5 33. Nd5 Qc4 {[/\34...Qxd5]} (33... Qd6 $2 34. Nf6+ $18) 34. e3 Kg8 (
34... Qd3 35. Qxd3 exd3 36. Kf3 $16) 35. Kf2 $1 (35. Ne7+ Kh7 36. Qxd7 Qe2+ $11
) 35... Qc5 (35... Kf8 36. Nxb6 Nxb6 37. Qd8#) 36. Qd1 $1 g6 37. Qd4 $1 $18
Qxd4 38. Bxd4 b5 39. Nc3 b4 40. axb4 axb4 41. Nxe4 Ng7 42. Ke2 Nf5 43. Kd3 1-0

[Event "Tata Steel-A 81st"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2019.01.16"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Fedoseev, Vladimir1"]
[Black "Vidit, Santosh Gujrathi"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2724"]
[BlackElo "2695"]
[Annotator "Howell,David"]
[PlyCount "148"]
[EventDate "2019.01.12"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 188"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.12.21"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.12.21"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 7. e3 {This is
a relatively rare move at this juncture. White modestly develops while hoping
that his extra bishop will grant him chances for an advantage when the
position later opens up.} (7. Nf3 {and}) (7. Bg5 {are both far more common. I
have tested both of these moves recently, but Black appears to have worked out
some convincing replies.}) 7... b6 8. cxd5 exd5 9. Bd3 Ba6 10. Ne2 (10. Bxa6 {
featured in the game Nakamura-Anand, Norway Chess 2015:} Nxa6 11. Qd3 Qc8 12.
Ne2 c5 13. b3 cxd4 14. exd4 Nc7 {with an equal position.}) 10... c5 11. b3 Ne4
12. Qc2 Bxd3 13. Qxd3 Nc6 14. Bb2 cxd4 {Black resolves the central tension but
willingly saddles himself with the famous insolated d-pawn. As compensation,
he is ahead in development and his major pieces will be quick to find good
squares.} 15. Nxd4 Nc5 16. Qd1 Nxd4 17. Bxd4 (17. Qxd4 $2 {would be met
strongly by:} Qg5 $1 $17) 17... Ne6 18. O-O Qh4 19. Bb2 Rad8 20. Rc1 Rd7 21. f4
{Commital, and true to Fedoseev's style. White hints at a kingside attack
though in truth this move is aimed at limiting the scope of Black's knight.} (
21. Qf3 {might have been enough for a small (if somewhat symbolic) advantage:}
Rfd8 22. Rfd1 Qe4 (22... d4 $6 23. g3 Qe7 24. exd4 $14) 23. Kf1) ({moves such
as} 21. Rc3 $5 {were also on the radar.}) 21... Qe7 {This feels slightly too
passive.} ({There was no reason to refrain from} 21... Nc5 $11 {with the
simple idea of bringing the knight round to the newly-created outpost on e4.})
22. b4 $1 {Further restricting the black knight.} f6 (22... d4 {would have
been an immediate attempt to liquidate the centre:} 23. e4 d3 $132) 23. Qb3 Qf7
24. Rfd1 Rfd8 25. h3 (25. Rc6 $1 $14 {would keep an eye on the e6-knight and
prevent Black's next.}) 25... Qg6 $1 26. a4 Qe4 $11 {Now play is balanced.} 27.
a5 bxa5 28. bxa5 Kf7 29. Kh2 h5 30. Bd4 Re7 31. Rc3 Rdd7 32. a6 h4 33. Qb2 Rc7
34. Qf2 Rxc3 35. Bxc3 Rc7 36. Be1 Rc2 37. Rd2 Rxd2 38. Bxd2 Qd3 39. Bb4 Qc4 40.
Be1 Qxa6 41. Qxh4 Qe2 42. f5 Ng5 43. Qg3 $6 {Knowing Fedoseev, he was still
habouring hopes of a victory here. However Black's queen and knight are simply
too active.} ({It would have been pragmatic to try and force an immediate draw:
} 43. Qa4 Qxe1 (43... Nf3+ 44. Kg3 {changes nothing:} Nxe1 45. Qd7+) 44. Qd7+
Kg8 45. Qe8+ Kh7 46. Qh5+ {with perpetual check.}) 43... Kg8 44. Bc3 Qb5 $1 $15
{Vidit prevents any checks and prepares to push his a-pawn.} 45. Qc7 Ne4 46.
Bd4 $6 (46. Ba5 {was safer, blockading the a-pawn.}) 46... a5 $17 47. Qe7 a4
48. Bb2 Qb8+ 49. Kg1 Qc8 50. Kh2 Qb8+ 51. Kg1 Qc8 52. Kh2 Kh7 53. Qa7 Qf8 54.
Bd4 a3 55. Kg1 Qb4 56. Kh2 Qd6+ 57. Kg1 Qb4 58. Kh2 Qb3 59. Qa8 a2 60. Qe8 Qa3
{It is hard to criticise this, as Vidit has played superbly over the past
dozen moves. Black could now have converted his advantage although the winning
concept is still difficult to comprehend, even with engine assistance:} (60...
Qb4 $1 {wins due to a strange type of zugzwang. White cannot give perpetual
check, while it is impossible to keep both his king and bishop on the correct
squares. One sample variation:} 61. Qh5+ Kg8 62. Qe8+ Qf8 63. Qa4 Qb8+ 64. Kg1
Qb1+ 65. Kh2 Nd6 $1 {(preventing Qe8+ ideas and attacking f5)} 66. Qd7 Nxf5 67.
Qe8+ Kh7 68. Qh5+ Nh6 $19 {and with a safe king the path to victory should be
straightforward.}) 61. Ba1 $2 {allowing Black another chance.} (61. Bb2 $1 {
draws, but once again this is difficult for the untrained human eye:} Qd6+ (
61... Qxb2 62. Qh5+ Kg8 63. Qe8+) 62. Kg1 Qb4 63. Qh5+ Kg8 64. Qe8+ Qf8 65. Qa4
$11 {and now, as opposed to the variation with 60...Qb4!, Black cannot gain
time by checking the white king.}) 61... Qd6+ $2 {Letting the win slip for
good.} (61... Qc5 {would win}) ({while} 61... Qb4 {is similar to the
variations above:} 62. Qh5+ Kg8 63. Qe8+ Qf8 64. Qa4 Qb8+ 65. Kg1 Qb1+ 66. Kh2
Nd6 $19) 62. Kg1 Qc5 63. Qg6+ Kg8 64. Qe8+ Qf8 65. Qa4 $1 {Now Black has no
checks so he must abandon the a-pawn. Fedoseev now defends accurately to
ensure the draw.} Qc8 66. Qxa2 Qc1+ (66... Qxf5 {should also eventually lead
to a draw, although Black can press forever.}) 67. Kh2 Qc7+ 68. Kg1 Qc1+ 69.
Kh2 Nd2 70. Bb2 Qe1 71. Qxd5+ Kh7 72. Bc3 Nf1+ 73. Kg1 Nd2+ 74. Kh2 Nf1+
1/2-1/2

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 4th"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2009.11.05"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Kramnik, Vladimir"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2801"]
[BlackElo "2772"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "116"]
[EventDate "2009.11.05"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 133"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.11.19"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.11.19"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 7. cxd5 Ne4 8.
Qc2 exd5 9. Bf4 {This line was examined in CBM 132, annotations to Morozevich
- Alekseev.} Nc6 ({Everyone (apparently except Vladimir Kramnik) would like to
see what Magnus Carlsen had prepared against} 9... Bf5 10. Qxc7 Qxc7 11. Bxc7
Rc8 12. Bf4 Nc6 $1 (12... Rc2 $143 $6 13. f3 Nf6 14. g4 Bg6 15. h4 Rxb2 16. h5
Bc2 17. e3 Ba4 18. Rh2 $1 $16 {1-0 Morozevich,A (2751)-Alekseev,E (2714)/Biel
2009/CBM 132/[Krasenkow] (34)}) {Was it an improvement on the following game
between two top female players? :} 13. f3 (13. Rd1 $143 Na5 14. g4 Bd7 15. f3
Nf6 16. Nh3 Ba4 17. Rd3 Rc2 $36 {0-1 Wiley,T (2287)-Balogh,C (2595)/Arinsal
2009/CBM 131 Extra (21)}) 13... Nf6 14. g4 Bc2 (14... Bd7 $6 15. e3 Na5 16. Bd3
$16) (14... Nxd4 $5 15. Rd1 $1 Ne6 16. gxf5 Nxf4 17. e3 N4h5 18. Ne2 Rc2 19.
Rd2 Rac8 20. Nc3 $1 {consolidating his position and keeping some positional
advantage.}) (14... Bg6 $5 {[%cal Yc6a5,Ya5b3] looks, however, very strong})
15. e3 Na5 16. b4 (16. Kf2 $5 Bg6 17. Re1 Rc2+ 18. Re2 Rac8 19. Kg3 $5) 16...
Nb3 17. Ra2 Nc1 18. Rb2 Nxg4 $1 19. e4 $5 (19. h4 Nf6 $36) 19... Nd3+ 20. Bxd3
Bxd3 21. Kd2 $4 (21. e5 Rc4 $1 $36) 21... Nf2 22. Be3 Bf1 $1 23. Bxf2 Bg2 $19 {
0-1 Zhu Chen (2488)-Xu Yuhua (2485)/Nanjing CHN 2009/The Week in Chess 779 (40)
}) 10. e3 Re8 $146 {[%mdl 8]} ({Kramnik doesn't repeat a promising line played
by Vishy Anand:} 10... g5 $5 11. Bg3 f5 12. O-O-O (12. Nf3 $5 f4 13. exf4 g4
14. Ne5 Nxd4 $13) 12... f4 13. f3 Nd6 $6 (13... fxg3 $1 14. fxe4 Rf2 $36) 14.
exf4 gxf4 15. Bf2 Bf5 16. Qc5 Ne7 17. Ne2 Bg6 $13 {0-1 Karpov,A (2619)-Anand,V
(2788)/Corsica FRA 2009/The Week in Chess 782 (32)}) {In the game Black gets a
good position, too; it is unclear why Carlsen played such a line, which looks
rather risky for White.} 11. Nf3 g5 $1 12. Bg3 g4 13. Ne5 Nxe5 14. Bxe5 (14.
dxe5 $5 Bf5 15. Bd3 Bg6 (15... c5 16. f3 gxf3 17. gxf3 c4 18. Bxe4 dxe4 19. Rg1
$13) 16. Bxe4 (16. Bf4 c5 $1) 16... Bxe4 17. Qe2 Qg5 $11) 14... c5 15. Bd3 Bf5
(15... Qa5+ $2 {is premature as after} 16. b4 $1 cxb4 17. O-O bxa3 18. f3 {
White completes his development and obtains a strong attack.}) 16. Qe2 (16. O-O
c4 17. Bxe4 Bxe4 {[%cal Ye8e6,Ye6b6,Ye6h6] is favourable for Black (M.Notkin).}
) ({Or} 16. Bxe4 Bxe4 17. Qxc5 Bxg2 18. Rg1 Bf3 $17 {[%csl Re1]}) 16... f6 17.
Bxe4 (17. Bf4 $2 Qa5+ 18. Kf1 cxd4 $19) (17. f3 {leads to a bad endgame for
White:} gxf3 18. Qxf3 c4 $1 19. Bxe4 (19. Qxf5 cxd3 $19 {[%csl Gd3,Ge4]}) 19...
Bxe4 20. Qxf6 Qxf6 21. Bxf6 Re6 $17 {[%csl Rb2][%cal Ye6b6] according to IM
Maxim Notkin.}) 17... Bxe4 18. Bg3 Qa5+ 19. Qd2 Qxd2+ {A disputable decision.
White's drawing chances are more realistic in the endgame, due to the
opposite-coloured bishops, but Kramnik rejected} (19... Qa6 {in view of} 20. f3
(20. Qe2 $2 Qxe2+ 21. Kxe2 cxd4) 20... gxf3 21. gxf3 Bxf3 22. Rf1 {e.g.} Bh5 (
22... Bg4 23. Rf4 Bh5 24. Kf2) 23. Rf5 $5 (23. Rf4 cxd4 24. Rxd4 Rac8 $5 $40)
23... Rxe3+ $5 (23... Bg6 24. Rxd5) 24. Qxe3 Re8 25. Be5 $1 (25. Qxe8+ Bxe8 {
[%cal Ra6e6]} 26. Rf2 cxd4 {looks very bad for White}) 25... cxd4 26. Qg3+ Bg6
27. O-O-O $1 fxe5 ({or} 27... Qe2 28. Bxd4 Qe4 29. Qd3 $1 Bxf5 30. Qxe4 Bxe4
31. Kd2) 28. Rxe5 Rc8+ 29. Kd2 {, and White holds on, keeping chances to
survive.}) 20. Kxd2 {[%mdl 4096]} c4 {[%cal Ye8e6,Ye6b6]} ({After} 20... cxd4
21. exd4 Bxg2 22. Rhe1 {M.Notkin} Be4 23. Rac1 {White activates his rooks and
creates sufficient counterplay; of course, the exchange of all rooks will lead
to a dead draw.}) 21. f3 $1 {White must urgently create counterplay; otherwise
Black's queenside pawn advantage will decide the game.} gxf3 22. gxf3 Bg6 (
22... Bxf3 $6 23. Rhf1 $11) 23. h4 {[%cal Yh4h5]} Bh5 24. Ke2 Re6 25. Be1 Kf7
26. Kf2 Rae8 27. Bd2 Rb6 28. Bc3 Rb3 {[%cal Yb7b5,Ya7a5,Yb5b4] Black's plan is
double-edged as his rook can find itself out of play.} 29. a4 $1 {Preventing
29...b5} b6 {[%cal Ya7a6,Yb6b5]} 30. Rhe1 {[%cal Ye3e4]} Bg6 (30... a6 31. e4
b5 32. axb5 axb5 33. Ra7+ Re7 34. Ra3 Rxa3 35. bxa3 $11) 31. e4 $1 {Still!}
dxe4 32. d5 a6 $2 (32... exf3 $142 33. Rxe8 Kxe8 34. Kxf3 $11) 33. fxe4 $2 {
Missing an excellent chance:} (33. h5 $142 $1 Bxh5 ({or} 33... Bf5 34. Re3 $1 {
[%cal Ya1e1,Yf3e4]}) 34. Rxe4 Rxe4 35. fxe4 {[%csl Rb3] and the initiative
passes to White - see annotation to move 28!}) 33... Bxe4 34. d6 f5 35. Rg1 Ke6
36. Rg7 Kxd6 37. Rxh7 {White's passed h5 pawn should guarantee him a draw.} Bd3
38. Kf3 Re4 39. h5 Rh4 40. Rg1 Be4+ 41. Ke3 Rh3+ 42. Kf4 Rf3+ 43. Kg5 b5 44.
axb5 axb5 45. Kf6 (45. Ra1 $5 Rfxc3 46. bxc3 Rxc3 {doesn't change much.}) 45...
Rbxc3 46. bxc3 Rxc3 47. Rg8 Rh3 48. Rc8 c3 49. Rhc7 (49. Rhh8 $5 Bc6 50. Rh6 $1
{[%cal Rf6f5] was simpler, with a forced draw::} Kd7 51. Rhh8 Kd6 52. Rh6 {as}
Bd7 $2 {doesn't work due to} 53. Kf7+ Ke5 54. Rc5+ Kd4 55. Rc7 {, and White
wins a piece (M.Notkin).}) 49... c2 50. Kg5 Rh2 (50... Rh1 51. Rxc2 Bxc2 52.
Rxc2 $11) 51. Rc3 $6 (51. Rc5 $1 b4 52. Rc4 b3 53. Kf6 Kd5 54. R8c5+ Kd6 55.
Rc8 $11 {M.Notkin}) 51... Ke6 (51... Ke5 $142 {but White apparently has a draw
anyway. In many variations he achieves the endgame R vs. R+B:} 52. R3c5+ Kd4
53. Rxb5 Rg2+ (53... Bd3 54. Rb4+ Ke3 55. Rb3 Rg2+ 56. Kf6 f4 {is just a
transposition of moves}) 54. Kf6 (54. Kf4 $4 Rg4#) 54... f4 55. Rb4+ Ke3 56.
Rb3+ Bd3 (56... Kd2 $143 57. Ke5) 57. Rcc3 Rd2 (57... Ke2 58. Rb2 Kd2 59.
Rbxc2+ Bxc2 60. Rf3 Rg4 61. Ke5 $11) 58. h6 Ke2 $1 (58... f3 59. h7 f2 60. h8=Q
f1=Q+ 61. Ke7 $11) 59. Kg5 $1 f3 60. h7 f2 (60... Bxh7 61. Re3+ Kd1 62. Rxf3 $1
$11) 61. h8=Q f1=Q 62. Qe5+ Kd1 63. Rxc2 $3 {Parrying mating threats!} Qg2+ 64.
Kh4 $1 Qh1+ (64... Qf2+ 65. Qg3 $5 {forcing the exchange of queens}) 65. Kg5 $1
Qg2+ 66. Kh4 Bxc2 67. Qa1+ Ke2 68. Qe5+ Be4 (68... Kf1 69. Qf4+ Kg1 70. Rg3)
69. Rg3 $11) 52. Re8+ Kf7 53. Rb8 Rg2+ (53... Rh1 54. Rc7+ Ke6 55. Rb6+ Kd5 56.
Rxb5+ Kd4 57. Rbc5 $11 {M.Notkin}) 54. Kf4 Ke6 55. Re8+ Kd7 56. Rb8 Ke6 (56...
Rf2+ $5 {is very hard to assess but apparently White holds his ground after}
57. Kg5 $5 (57. Ke5 $143 Rf3 58. Rc5 Re3 59. Kf4 Re2) 57... Rf3 58. Rc5 Rf1 59.
Rbc8 {etc.}) 57. Re8+ Kf6 58. Rf8+ Ke6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Reggio Emilia 53rd"]
[Site "Reggio Emilia"]
[Date "2011.01.06"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Ivanchuk, Vassily"]
[Black "Morozevich, Alexander"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2764"]
[BlackElo "2700"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "143"]
[EventDate "2010.12.28"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ITA"]
[EventCategory "18"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 140"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2011.01.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2011.01.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 7. Nf3 dxc4 8.
Qxc4 b6 9. Bg5 Ba6 10. Qa4 h6 (10... c5 {is considered sufficient for equality
as Black's development advantage is likely to compensate for his inferior pawn
structure. However, the following line needs more tests:} 11. dxc5 (11. Rd1 Qd7
$5 12. Qc2 cxd4 13. Bxf6 gxf6 14. Rxd4 Qc6 15. Rg4+ Kh8 16. Qxc6 Nxc6 17. e3
Bb7 $11 {1/2 Khenkin,I (2617)-Bacrot,E (2715)/Geneva SUI 2010/The Week in
Chess 843 (29)}) 11... bxc5 12. Rd1 Qb6 13. Bxf6 gxf6 14. e3 $5 ({the
following famous draw was later repeated in a couple of games:} 14. Rd2 Nc6 15.
Qg4+ Kh8 16. Qh4 Kg7 17. Qg4+ Kh8 18. Qh4 Kg7 19. Qg4+ {1/2 Carlsen,M (2772)
-Kramnik,V (2759)/Dortmund 2009/CBM 131}) {So far the following has only been
played in a blitz game:} 14... Bxf1 15. Kxf1 Nc6 16. g3 Rad8 17. Kg2 Rxd1 18.
Rxd1 Rd8 19. Rxd8+ Nxd8 20. Nd2 $14 {1/2 Koneru,H (2614)-Kosintseva,N (2533)/
Moscow 2010/CBM 138 Extra (50)}) 11. Bh4 (11. Bxf6 {is harmless:} Qxf6 12. g3
c5 13. Bg2 Bb7 14. O-O (14. Rd1 Rd8 15. dxc5 Rxd1+ 16. Qxd1 Na6 17. cxb6 Qxb2
18. bxa7 Qc3+ 19. Qd2 Qa1+ 20. Qd1 Qc3+ 21. Qd2 Qa1+ 22. Qd1 {1/2 Dreev,A 
(2655)-Fier,A (2653)/Barcelona 2009/CBM 133}) 14... Bc6 (14... Rd8 $143 15.
dxc5 Qxb2 16. Rab1 Qf6 17. Rfc1 e5 18. cxb6 axb6 19. Qb5 Bxf3 20. Bxf3 Rxa3 21.
Qxb6 $14 {1-0 Matveeva,S (2389)-Kosintseva,N (2576)/Moscow RUS 2010/The Week
in Chess 838 (48)}) 15. Qc4 Bd5 16. Qc3 Nd7 17. Rac1 Rfd8 18. dxc5 Nxc5 19.
Qxf6 gxf6 20. Rfd1 a5 $11 {1/2 Enchev,I (2362)-Georgiev,K (2645)/Radomir 2009/
EXT 2010 (29)}) 11... Qe7 (11... Qe8 $6 12. Qxe8 Rxe8 13. Bxf6 gxf6 14. Rc1 {
[%csl Rc7]} Rc8 15. e3 Bxf1 16. Rxf1 c5 17. dxc5 bxc5 18. Ke2 $14 {1/2 Rajlich,
I (2406)-Javakhishvili,L (2460)/Montreal 2007/CBM 119 ext (56)}) (11... c5 {
is worse here than a move earlier as the position of the black king is
weakened:} 12. dxc5 bxc5 13. Rd1 Qb6 14. Bxf6 gxf6 15. Qg4+ Kh8 16. Qf4 Kg7 17.
h4 $1 Qxb2 18. Rh3 Qc3+ 19. Nd2 Qe5 20. Qg4+ Kh8 21. f4 Qf5 22. Qf3 Rc8 23. Rg3
c4 {1/2 Vitiugov,N (2710)-Alekseev,E (2700)/Dagomys 2010/CBM 136 (38)} {
, and now} 24. Nxc4 $1 Bxc4 25. Qxa8 Qa5+ 26. Kf2 Qc5+ 27. e3 Bd5 28. Rxd5 exd5
29. Qb7 $16 {[%csl Rd5,Rf6,Rf7]}) 12. e3 Bxf1 13. Rxf1 (13. Kxf1 $144) 13...
Rc8 14. Rc1 c5 15. dxc5 g5 16. Bg3 Rxc5 17. Ke2 $14 {Black has avoided the
isolation of his pawn but failed to equalise as his position is weakened on
both sides, and the white bishop is stronger than the black knight.} Nbd7 18.
b4 Rcc8 19. Rfd1 Nf8 (19... a5 $5 20. Rxc8+ $140 Rxc8 21. Bd6 Qe8 22. bxa5 bxa5
23. Qxa5 Ne4 $132) 20. Be5 Nd5 21. Bb2 Ng6 22. Nd4 Qb7 23. Kf1 a6 24. b5 axb5
25. Qxb5 Ra5 26. Rxc8+ Qxc8 27. Rc1 Qxc1+ $6 {In the endgame the drawbacks of
Black's position will be even more visible.} ({Of course, it is practically
impossible to find the following resource over the board:} 27... Qb8 $1 28. Qd7
Rc5 $1 29. Nxe6 $1 (29. Rxc5 bxc5 30. Nxe6 Qxb2 31. Qe8+ Kh7 32. Qxf7+ Kh8 33.
Qxg6 Qc1+ 34. Ke2 Nc3+ 35. Kf3 Qd1+ 36. Kg3 Ne2+ 37. Kh3 Ng1+ $11) 29... Ne5 $3
30. Qd8+ Qxd8 31. Nxd8 Nc4 32. e4 $1 Nf4 $1 $132) 28. Bxc1 Rxb5 29. Nxb5 {
[%mdl 4096]} f5 30. f3 {White's plan is to attack the black b6-pawn. If it
falls (even for White's central pawn), the a3-pawn will become passed and very
powerful.} Ne5 (30... Kf7 $144 31. e4 fxe4 32. fxe4 $1 Nf6 33. Be3) 31. e4 fxe4
32. fxe4 Nf6 33. Nd6 $1 Kf8 34. Be3 Ke7 35. Nc8+ Kd8 36. Nxb6 Nxe4 37. Bd4 Ng6
38. Nc4 Kc7 (38... h5 39. a4 $16) 39. g4 $1 {The "second weakness" (Black's
h6-pawn) will become decisive.} Kc6 40. Bg7 Kb5 41. Ne5 Nf4 (41... Nxe5 42.
Bxe5 Ka4 43. Ke2 $1 Kxa3 44. Ke3 Nc5 45. Bd6 $18) 42. Bxh6 Ka4 (42... Nd5 {
was relatively more stubborn.}) 43. h4 Nh3 44. Kg2 gxh4 {Desperation. Black
decides to check whether GM Ivanchuk knows how to mate with a bishop and a
knight. Although GM practice has seen amazing examples of failure to deliver
the mate, this is not the case.} (44... Nf4+ 45. Kf3 Nd2+ 46. Ke3 Nf1+ 47. Kf2
$18) 45. Kxh3 Nf2+ 46. Kxh4 Nxg4 47. Kxg4 Kxa3 48. Kg5 Kb3 49. Kf6 Kc2 50. Kxe6
Kd1 51. Kd5 Ke2 52. Ke4 Kf1 53. Kf3 Kg1 54. Bf4 Kh1 55. Nd3 Kg1 56. Nf2 Kf1 57.
Bh2 Ke1 58. Ne4 Kf1 (58... Kd1 59. Ke3 Kc2 60. Nd2 Kc3 61. Bd6 Kc2 62. Be5 {
etc. is the "main" line of this mating method.}) 59. Nd2+ Ke1 60. Ke3 Kd1 61.
Kd3 Ke1 62. Bg3+ Kd1 63. Nc4 Kc1 64. Bh4 Kd1 65. Nb2+ Kc1 66. Kc3 Kb1 67. Kb3
Kc1 68. Bg5+ Kb1 69. Nc4 Ka1 70. Bh6 Kb1 71. Na3+ Ka1 72. Bg7# 1-0

[Event "Biel GM 42nd"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2009.07.19"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Morozevich, Alexander"]
[Black "Alekseev, Evgeny V"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2751"]
[BlackElo "2714"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "67"]
[EventDate "2009.07.19"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 132"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.09.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.09.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 7. cxd5 {
Quite a rare move, compared to the main continuation} (7. Bg5) {It was
introduced into top GM practice by Vladimir Kramnik in the Nice rapid
tournament this year, against none other than Vishy Anand.} 7... Ne4 $1 {
Avoiding} (7... exd5 8. Bg5 (8. Bf4 $143 Nc6 9. f3 Re8 (9... Nh5 $142 10. Be3
f5 $132) 10. g4 h5 11. h3 Nd7 12. O-O-O Nb6 $6 (12... Nf8 {[%cal Yf8g6]}) 13.
e3 Qe7 14. gxh5 Bf5 15. Ne2 Qf6 16. Ng3 Na4 17. Qd2 Bh7 18. Bb5 $16 {1-0
Bocharov,D (2647)-Gajewski,G (2581)/Moscow 2009/CBM 129 (34)}) 8... Qd6 9. f3
Bf5 (9... b6 $143 10. Rc1 c6 11. e3 Re8 12. Kf2 Bb7 13. Bd3 Nbd7 14. Ne2 c5 15.
Ng3 c4 16. Bb1 b5 17. Nf5 Qb6 18. g4 $14 {1-0 Hracek,Z (2604)-Petrik,T (2508)/
Hustopece 2009/CBM 130 Extra (34)}) 10. e3 Nbd7 11. Ne2 Rac8 12. b4 Rfe8 13.
Bf4 Qe7 14. g4 Be6 15. h4 Nf8 16. h5 h6 17. Ng3 N8h7 18. Qc5 $14 {1/2 Gelfand,
B (2755)-Caruana,F (2670)/Biel SUI 2009/The Week in Chess 768 (33)}) 8. Qc2
exd5 9. Bf4 $146 {[%mdl 8] More active than} (9. e3 Bf5 10. Bd3 Bg6 (10... c5
11. dxc5 Nd7 12. Ne2 Ndxc5 13. Bxe4 Nxe4 14. Nd4 Bg6 15. Qd1 {1/2 Kramnik,V 
(2759)-Anand,V (2791)/Nice 2009/CBM 129 Extra}) 11. Ne2 Nd6 12. O-O (12. Nf4
Bxd3 13. Qxd3 c6 14. O-O Re8 15. b3 Nd7 16. a4 Nf8 17. Ba3 Ne6 18. Nxe6 {
1/2 Terrieux,K (2442)-Kosten,A (2497)/Nimes FRA 2009/The Week in Chess 770})
12... Bxd3 13. Qxd3 Nd7 14. b3 Re8 15. a4 c6 16. Ra2 Qh4 17. f3 Nf8 18. Ba3
Rad8 19. Ng3 g6 20. Re2 Ne6 $11 {1/2 Gasanov,E (2551)-Khairullin,I (2606)/
Dagomys RUS 2009/CBM 129 (25)}) 9... Bf5 $1 {Black plays actively, too. He
sacrifices a pawn for quick development.} (9... c6 10. f3 Nd6 11. e3 {leads to
a quiet, slightly better position for White, due to his bishop pair. If now}
Bf5 {then} 12. Qb3 $1 {[%csl Rb7]}) 10. Qxc7 Qxc7 11. Bxc7 Rc8 12. Bf4 Rc2 $6 {
Too early. Black should first develop his queenside.} (12... Nc6 $142 $1 {
played by GM Csaba Balogh on the same day!} 13. Rd1 Na5 14. g4 Bd7 15. f3 Nf6
16. Nh3 Ba4 17. Rd3 Rc2 {with an excellent position, which Black won in just 4
moves:} 18. b4 $6 (18. Rd2 $142) 18... Nc4 19. Kf2 Re8 20. Bg5 $6 Nd7 21. Bh4
$4 Nb2 {0-1 Wiley,T (2287)-Balogh,C (2595)/Arinsal AND 2009/The Week in Chess
767 White must now look for an improvement.}) 13. f3 Nf6 14. g4 Bg6 15. h4 (15.
Rc1 $1 {, eliminating Black's active rook, was probably even stronger, e.g.}
Nc6 16. Rxc2 Bxc2 17. Kd2 Bg6 18. e3 Nxg4 19. Ne2 {[%csl Rd5][%cal Ye2c3]
Black has recaptured the pawn but the endgame is clearly better for White.})
15... Rxb2 16. h5 Bc2 17. e3 Ba4 18. Rh2 $1 {An original way to bring this
rook into play. White is now hardly behind in development; at the same time he
keeps his bishop pair and more compact pawn structure; therefore, his
advantage is obvious.} Rb3 $5 {Black tries to keep his active rook for the
sake of some counterplay.} 19. Ne2 Nbd7 20. g5 Ne8 21. Nc1 Rb6 (21... Rc3 22.
Rb2 Nb6 23. Nd3 $16 {M.Notkin}) 22. Na2 $5 {[%cal Ya2b4,Ya2c3]} (22. Nd3 Bb5 {
looked less clear to White. If} 23. Nc5 {then} Rd8) 22... Nf8 ({To} 22... Bb5 {
White now plays} 23. Nc3 $1 Bc4 (23... Bc6 24. e4 $1) 24. Bxc4 dxc4 25. Rc2 $16
{[%csl Rc4,Gd4,Ge3][%cal Rc3d5]}) 23. Nb4 ({Here} 23. Nc3 {is not so killing
due to} Bc6 (23... Bb3 $143 24. Rb2)) 23... Rd8 24. h6 $5 {[%mdl 128]
According to the principle of two weaknesses, White must create another
problem for Black (besides his d5-pawn). The question is whether White is well
enough mobilised enough for such an action.} (24. Bh3 $5 Ne6 25. Bxe6 Rxe6 26.
Rc1 $14 {[%cal Gc1c8] was a simple way to keep an edge.}) 24... Ne6 $1 25. hxg7
$5 Nxf4 26. exf4 Nxg7 (26... a5 27. Nd3 Nxg7 28. Ne5 $36 {[%cal Yf1d3]}) 27.
Bd3 Ne6 {The position has become quite sharp; White must now create real
threats against the black king; otherwise his centre will just collapse.} (
27... h5 $5 {(M.Notkin) was probably more accurate:} 28. gxh6 Ne6 29. Kf2 a5
30. Rg1+ Kh8 31. h7 $1 {[%cal Rh2g2]} Nxf4 32. Rh4 Ng6 33. Bxg6 Rxg6 34. Rxg6
fxg6 35. Nd3 $14 {[%cal Yd3e5]}) 28. f5 $1 ({Of course, not} 28. Bxh7+ Kg7)
28... Nf4 ({Alas,} 28... Nxd4 {is insufficient:} 29. Kf2 Bd7 (29... Bb5 30.
Rah1 $1 Bxd3 31. Rxh7 Bxf5 (31... Kf8 32. Rh8+ Ke7 33. f6+ Kd7 34. Rxd8+ Kxd8
35. Nxd3 $18 {_|_}) 32. Rh8+ Kg7 33. Rxd8 $16) 30. f6 Bf5 31. Rah1 $1 Rxb4 32.
axb4 Bxd3 33. Rd1 $16 {as indicated by IM Maxim Notkin.}) 29. f6 $1 h5 $2 {
[%csl Rh5] This pawn now quickly falls and Black is mated along the h-file.} (
29... Nxd3+ $142 30. Nxd3 {leads to a clear advantage for White in quite a
stable situation, due to the poor position of Black's king and his "bad"
bishop.}) 30. Kf2 a5 31. Kg3 $1 Ng6 (31... axb4 32. Kxf4 {[%cal Yh2h5,Ya1h1]})
32. Rxh5 $1 axb4 33. Rah1 bxa3 34. Rh7 {[%cal Rd3g6,Rh7g7]} (34. Bxg6 $5 fxg6
35. Rh8+ Kf7 36. R1h7+ Ke6 37. Rxd8 $18) 1-0

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 6th"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2011.11.22"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"]
[Black "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2730"]
[BlackElo "2763"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "79"]
[EventDate "2011.11.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 146"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.01.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.01.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 7. Bg5 c5 8.
dxc5 d4 9. Qc2 e5 10. e3 h6 11. Bh4 Qe7 (11... Re8 {- see Malakhov - Karjakin
in CBM 140}) 12. Be2 $146 (12. O-O-O Nc6 13. Ne2 $6 (13. Nf3 $142 {A.
Mikhalchishin}) 13... dxe3 14. Rd6 Be6 15. fxe3 Rfd8 16. Bxf6 Qxf6 17. Nc3 Qg5
$13 {1-0 Zhu Chen (2522)-Kosintseva,T (2557)/Hangzhou 2011/CBM 144/
[Mikhalchishin,A] (34)}) 12... Re8 (12... Nc6 $5 {[%cal Ye5e4]} 13. Nf3 (13. b4
e4 14. exd4 Nxd4 15. Qc3 Qe5 16. Rc1 Rd8 $44) 13... g5 14. Bg3 Rd8 $44) 13. Rd1
(13. Nf3 d3 $1 14. Bxf6 gxf6 15. Qxd3 e4 {- White loses a piece without a
sufficient compensation. That's the idea behind 12...Re8.}) 13... a5 (13... g5
$5 14. Bg3 dxe3 15. fxe3 Qxc5 $13) 14. Nf3 (14. exd4 exd4 15. Rxd4 Na6 $44 {
[%csl Re1]}) 14... Nc6 (14... d3 {is now risky:} 15. Rxd3 e4 16. Rd6 $1 exf3
17. Bxf6 fxg2 (17... gxf6 18. gxf3 Kh8 19. Rg1 Rg8 20. Rxg8+ Kxg8 21. Qd3 Nc6
22. f4 $36) 18. Rg1 gxf6 19. Rxg2+ Kh8 20. Qd1 $44 {[%csl Rh8][%cal Ye2d3,
Yd1h5]}) 15. O-O (15. exd4 exd4 16. Nxd4 (16. Bxf6 Qxf6 17. O-O Bg4 $44) 16...
Nxd4 17. Rxd4 Bf5 18. Qd2 Ra6 {[%cal Ra6e6]} 19. Rd6 Qe4 20. Bxf6 Qxg2 21. Rf1
gxf6 $44 {[%csl Re1]}) 15... d3 {[%mdl 64] Black finally decides on this move!}
16. Rxd3 e4 (16... g5 $5 17. Rd6 (17. Bg3 Bf5) 17... gxh4 18. Nxh4 e4 19. Qc3
Ne5 $13) 17. Rd6 exf3 18. Bxf6 fxe2 (18... gxf6 19. Bxf3 Ne5 20. Bd5 $36) 19.
Bxe7 exf1=Q+ 20. Kxf1 Rxe7 {White has a material advantage but it is very
difficult to convert as pushing double pawns is not an easy task.} 21. b3 Be6
22. Qc3 Rc7 23. e4 (23. b4 $2 axb4 24. axb4 Ra4) 23... Re7 24. h3 f5 25. exf5
Bxf5 26. Kg1 Be6 27. Rd3 (27. b4 axb4 28. axb4 Bf7 29. b5 Ne5 30. Rd4 Rc8)
27... Bf5 28. Rd6 Be6 29. Rd3 Bf5 30. Rd5 Be6 31. b4 axb4 32. axb4 Rae8 33. b5
Bxd5 34. cxd5 Ne5 35. c6 (35. Kh2 $5 Nf7 36. c6 {, keeping the tension, was
White's last chance to play for a win.}) 35... bxc6 36. bxc6 Nxc6 $1 {The
simplest. Black collects White's remaining passed pawn, forcing a draw.} 37.
Qxc6 Rd8 38. g3 Red7 39. Qe6+ Kh8 40. Kg2 1/2-1/2

[Event "RUS-ch 63rd"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2010.12.22"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Malakhov, Vladimir"]
[Black "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2712"]
[BlackElo "2760"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "133"]
[EventDate "2010.12.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 140"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2011.01.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2011.01.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 7. Bg5 c5 8.
dxc5 d4 9. Qc2 e5 {This sharp line was examined by GM R.Wojtaszek in
annotations to his game against A.Dreev - see CBM 130.} 10. e3 $5 $146 {
[%mdl 8] A new move order. In previous games Black had no problems:} (10. e4 $6
{[%csl Gd4]} a5 11. f4 (11. Nf3 $6 h6 12. Bh4 Re8 13. Bd3 Nbd7 14. O-O a4 15.
Nd2 Nxc5 $17 {0-1 Thorfinnsson,B (2383)-Hammer,J (2566)/Oslo 2009/CBM 130
Extra (44)}) 11... h6 12. Bh4 exf4 13. O-O-O Nc6 14. Nf3 Re8 $1 15. e5 Nxe5 16.
Rxd4 Qe7 $36 {1/2 Dreev,A (2688)-Wojtaszek,R (2608)/Budva 2009/CBM 130/
[Wojtaszek] (42)}) (10. Nf3 Re8 11. e3 h6 12. Bxf6 Qxf6 13. Bd3 Nd7 14. O-O
Nxc5 15. exd4 exd4 16. b4 Nxd3 17. Qxd3 Rd8 $15 {1/2 Morozevich,A (2771)-Anand,
V (2791)/Nice 2009/CBM 129 Extra (28)}) (10. O-O-O Nbd7 (10... h6 11. Bh4 Nbd7
12. Nf3 Qe7 13. g4 $6 Nxc5 14. g5 hxg5 15. Bxg5 Bg4 16. Rg1 d3 $1 17. Qc3 Nce4
$17 {0-1 Lorscheid,G (2345)-Babula,V (2566)/Pardubice 2009/CBM 131 Extra (32)})
11. e3 h6 12. Bh4 dxe3 13. fxe3 Qe7 14. Nf3 a5 15. Kb1 a4 16. Be2 Ra6 17. Rd6
Nxc5 18. Rxa6 bxa6 $15 {1/2 Flear,G (2485)-Riff,J (2507)/Le Port Marly 2009/
CBM 130 Extra (56)}) 10... h6 11. Bh4 Re8 (11... dxe3 12. fxe3 Nbd7 13. b4 $5)
(11... Nbd7 12. exd4 exd4 13. O-O-O Nxc5 14. Nf3 {[%csl Rd4]}) 12. O-O-O Nc6
13. Nf3 b6 $5 {Black renounces any attempts to regain the c5-pawn in order
just to open up the files against the white king. However, he fails to obtain
sufficient counterplay.} (13... Bg4 14. Be2 Bh5 {[%cal Rh5g6]} 15. exd4 exd4
16. Rhe1 g5 (16... Bg6 $2 17. Bd3) 17. Bg3 Ne4 18. Bd3 Nxc5 19. Rxe8+ Qxe8 20.
Bh7+ Kg7 21. h4 $5 $36) 14. exd4 exd4 15. cxb6 axb6 16. Bd3 Qd6 {[%cal Rc6b4]}
17. Kb1 (17. Rhe1 $5 $16 Nb4 $2 18. Rxe8+ Nxe8 19. axb4 Ra1+ 20. Kd2 $18) 17...
Bg4 18. h3 Bxf3 19. gxf3 Ne5 20. Bg3 Qc6 21. Be4 (21. Bxe5 $142 Rxe5 22. f4
Ree8 23. Rhg1 $16) 21... Nxe4 22. Qxe4 Qxe4+ (22... Qxc4 $1 23. Rxd4 (23. Bxe5
Rxa3 $1 {forcing a perpetual}) (23. Qxd4 Qxd4 24. Rxd4 Nxf3 25. Rd6 Re2 26.
Rxb6 Nd2+ 27. Ka1 Ne4 $132) 23... Nxf3 $1 24. Qxe8+ (24. Qxa8 Nd2+ $1 25. Ka1
Nb3+ $11) 24... Rxe8 25. Rxc4 Nd2+ 26. Kc2 Nxc4 27. Rd1 g5 $14 {was a better
version of the same endgame for Black.}) 23. fxe4 Nxc4 24. Rxd4 Rxe4 25. Rhd1
$16 {In such a position, with potential passed pawns on both sides, the bishop
is usually (when there are no more important factors) stronger than the knight.
} Rxd4 (25... Rae8 $5 26. Rxe4 Rxe4 27. Kc2 {[%cal Rc2d3]} f5 28. Rd5 $1 f4 29.
Kd3 fxg3 30. fxg3 Re3+ 31. Kxc4 Rxg3 32. a4 Rxh3 33. Rd6 $16 {- White is
better here as his passed pawns are supported by his king.}) 26. Rxd4 {[%mdl
4096]} Nxa3+ (26... Rc8 27. Ka2 {etc. looks like a slow death for Black;
therefore he decides to give up his knight for White's queenside pawns.
Unfortunately, in the resulting ending White keeps good winning chances. Don't
forget that h8 is a "good corner" for the white bishop!}) 27. bxa3 Rxa3 28. h4
Rf3 29. Kc2 Rf5 30. Kd3 b5 31. Ke4 Rc5 32. Rd5 Rc4+ 33. Kd3 Rb4 34. Kc3 Rb1 35.
Kc2 Rb4 36. Rf5 f6 37. Kc3 Rb1 38. Rf4 Kf7 $6 (38... Rc1+ $142 {keeping the
b5-pawn for the time being.}) 39. Rb4 Rc1+ 40. Kd4 Rd1+ 41. Ke4 Ra1 42. Rxb5 {
and White gradually wins:} Ra4+ 43. Kd5 Ra6 44. Rb7+ Kg8 45. Ke4 Ra5 46. Rd7
Kh7 47. Rd5 Ra4+ 48. Kf3 Kg6 49. h5+ Kf7 50. Rd7+ Kg8 51. Bf4 Kh7 52. Rc7 Ra5
53. Kg4 Ra2 54. Be3 Ra4+ 55. f4 Ra1 56. Bd4 Ra6 57. Bc5 Kg8 58. Kf5 Ra2 59.
Rc8+ Kh7 60. Bf8 Kg8 61. Be7+ Kh7 62. Ke6 Ra4 63. Kf7 Ra7 (63... Rxf4 64. Rg8
Rg4 65. Bf8) 64. Rc2 Ra4 65. Rg2 Rxf4 66. Rxg7+ Kh8 67. Rg6 {It is now up to
Black to find a decent reply to 10.e3.} 1-0

[Event "EU-ch 14th"]
[Site "Legnica"]
[Date "2013.05.07"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Dreev, Alexey"]
[Black "Grigoryan, Karen H"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2654"]
[BlackElo "2559"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "79"]
[EventDate "2013.05.05"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "POL"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 155"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2013.07.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2013.07.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 7. Nf3 dxc4 8.
Qxc4 b6 9. Bg5 Ba6 10. Qc2 c5 $5 {[%mdl 512] This direct continuation is quite
possible. Other options:} (10... Nbd7) (10... h6) 11. dxc5 (11. Rd1 {is
absolutely harmless:} cxd4 12. Rxd4 (12. Nxd4 Nbd7 13. b4 h6 14. Bh4 Rc8 15.
Qb2 Qc7 16. b5 Bb7 $36 {1/2 (41) Flumbort,A (2516)-Neubauer,M (2452) Austria
2009}) 12... Qc8 13. Qxc8 Rxc8 14. Bxf6 gxf6 15. e3 Bxf1 16. Rxf1 Nc6 $11 {
1/2 (24) Istratescu,A (2651)-Naiditsch,A (2706) Nancy FRA 2013}) 11... bxc5 12.
Qxc5 (12. Rd1 Qa5+ 13. Bd2 (13. Qd2 Nc6 14. Rc1 Ne4 15. Qxa5 Nxa5 $36 {0-1 (46)
Lenic,L (2569)-Delchev,A (2632) Dresden 2008}) (13. Nd2 Nc6 14. Bxf6 gxf6 15.
e3 Bxf1 16. Rxf1 Rfd8 17. f4 Rab8 18. Kf2 Qb5 19. Nc4 Na5 $11 {1/2 (45) Morris,
J (2354)-Ganguly,S (2639) Queenstown 2012}) 13... Qb6 14. Bc3 Nbd7 15. e4 Bxf1
16. Kxf1 Qb7 17. Re1 Ne8 18. h4 Nd6 19. Rh3 Nb5 20. Rg3 f6 21. e5 f5 $13 {
0-1 (48) Karpov,A (2670)-Topalov,V (2769) Vitoria Gasteiz 2007}) (12. e4 Bxf1
13. Kxf1 Qb6 14. Bxf6 gxf6 15. e5 fxe5 16. Nxe5 Nc6 17. Nxc6 Qxc6 18. h4 Rfd8
19. Rh3 Rd4 $11 {1-0 (67) Akesson,R (2433)-Lindgren,P (2230) Stockholm 2012}) (
12. g3 Nbd7 13. Bg2 Qa5+ 14. Bd2 Qb5 15. Bc3 {1/2 (44) Andre,G (2368)-Jaeger,D
(2157) Germany 2011} Bb7 $132) 12... Nbd7 (12... Ne4 $6 13. Bxd8 Nxc5 14. Be7
Rc8 15. Bxc5 Rxc5 16. Rd1 (16. b4 $5 Rc2 17. e3 Bxf1 18. Rxf1) 16... Nc6 17. e3
Bb5 18. Bxb5 Rxb5 19. Rd2 Rab8 20. b4 a5 21. Nd4 {1/2 (21) Barrett,S (2212)
-Ward,C (2449) England 2011}) (12... h6 $5 13. Bxf6 Qxf6 14. Qd4 Qe7 15. e3
Bxf1 16. Kxf1 Rd8 17. Qb4 Qd7 18. g3 Na6 19. Qa5 Qb7 20. Kg2 Rd5 21. Qe1 Rad8
$44 {1/2 (62) Zhu Chen (2477)-Zhao Xue (2474) Guangzhou 2010}) 13. Qd4 Qb8 (
13... Qc7 $142 $1 14. Rc1 (14. Qa4 Nc5) 14... Qb7 15. Qb4 Qxb4+ 16. axb4 Rfc8
$44 {The difference is that Black's a6-bishop is not hanging!}) 14. g3 e5 (
14... Rc8 15. Bg2) 15. Qb4 $1 e4 (15... Qxb4+ 16. axb4 Bb7 17. Bg2 $14) (15...
Bb7 {is probably the lesser evil but after} 16. Bh3 $1 {Black's compensation
for the pawn remains under doubt.}) 16. Nd4 Qe5 17. Bf4 Qh5 18. Qd6 Bb7 19. Bg2
(19. e3 $5 {[%cal Yh2h3,Yf1e2]}) 19... Rfd8 20. Rd1 Nb6 (20... Nd5 $1 21. Nc6
Bxc6 22. Qxc6 Nxf4 23. gxf4 Qa5+ {was the last chance to obtain counterplay
for the pawn.}) 21. Qe5 Qxe5 22. Bxe5 Nc4 23. Bxf6 gxf6 24. Nf5 Rxd1+ 25. Kxd1
Nxb2+ 26. Kc2 Nc4 27. Kc3 {[%mdl 4096] Black has regained the pawn but his
pawn structure is ruined.} Ne5 (27... Nxa3 $2 28. Kb4 Nc2+ 29. Kb3 $18) (27...
Nb6 {was more stubborn.}) 28. Rb1 $1 {Black's bishop has no good square!} Rc8+
29. Kd2 Rd8+ 30. Ke1 Ba8 31. Rb4 $1 {Winning the e4-pawn.} a5 32. Ra4 Rb8 33.
Bxe4 $18 Bxe4 34. Rxe4 Rb5 35. Kf1 Kf8 36. Kg2 Nc4 37. g4 $2 {White was
probably under time pressure and therefore missed the simple} (37. Rxc4 Rxf5
38. Rf4 $1 Rb5 (38... Re5 39. Rxf6 Rxe2 40. Rf5) 39. Rxf6 Rb3 40. a4 $18 {
keeping two extra pawns.}) 37... Nxa3 38. Ra4 (38. Rd4 $142 Re5 (38... Rb8 39.
Ra4) 39. e4) 38... Nb1 39. e4 Rc5 40. Rd4 {Black probably lost on time.} ({
The position after} 40. Rd4 Ke8 {is far from clear.}) 1-0

[Event "Dortmund SuperGM 38th"]
[Site "Dortmund"]
[Date "2010.07.19"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Ponomariov, Ruslan"]
[Black "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2734"]
[BlackElo "2761"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "101"]
[EventDate "2010.07.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 138"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.09.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.09.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 7. Bg5 dxc4 {
A recently popular line, along with some other continuations:} (7... h6) (7...
Nbd7) (7... c6) (7... c5) 8. Qxc4 (8. e3 $6 b5 (8... h6 9. Bxf6 Qxf6 10. Bxc4
c5 11. Nf3 cxd4 12. Qxd4 Qxd4 13. Nxd4 Bd7 14. Ke2 Nc6 $11 {1-0 Doric,D (2464)
-Brulic,D (2348)/Sibenik 2010/CBM 136 Extra (50)}) 9. a4 c6 10. Be2 Bb7 11. Bf3
Qe7 12. Ne2 a6 13. O-O Nbd7 14. e4 h6 15. Bh4 {0-1 Paunovic,T (2355)-Bortnik,A
(2170)/ICC INT 2009/CBM 129 Extra (39)} g5 $1 $17) 8... b6 $1 {[%cal Yc8b7,
Yc8a6] The main idea.} (8... Qd5 9. Qxd5 Nxd5 10. e4 Nf6 11. f3 Nbd7 12. Rc1 c6
13. Bc4 e5 14. Ne2 exd4 15. Nxd4 h6 16. Bh4 Nh7 17. Ke2 $14 {1-0 Feigins,
M-Ichim,T/Munich 1936/EXT 2001 (32)}) 9. Rd1 (9. Nf3 Ba6 (9... Bb7 10. Rc1 $5 (
10. g3 h6 11. Bxf6 Qxf6 12. Bg2 c5 $11 {1/2 Enchev,I (2362)-Georgiev,K (2645)/
Radomir 2009/EXT 2010 (27)})) 10. Qa4 (10. Bxf6 Qxf6 11. Qxc7 Rc8 12. Qe5 Qg6
13. Qg5 Qc2 14. Qd2 Qb3 15. Qb4 Qc2 16. Qd2 Qe4 17. Qe3 Qxe3 18. fxe3 Nd7 $44
19. g3 $6 Nf6 20. Kd1 Bc4 21. Nd2 Bd5 $17 {0-1 Tarnopolsky,A (2312)-Huzman,A 
(2597)/Israel ISR 2010/The Week in Chess 810 (36)}) (10. Qc2 Nbd7 (10... h6 11.
Bh4 (11. Bxf6 Qxf6 12. g3 c5 13. Bg2 Nc6 14. dxc5 bxc5 15. O-O Rac8 $132 {
1/2 Hambleton,A (2131)-Cummings,D (2375)/Toronto CAN 2010/The Week in Chess
819 (33)}) 11... Nbd7 12. e3 Bxf1 13. Kxf1 c5 14. dxc5 Rc8 15. c6 Nb8 16. Rd1
Rxc6 $11 {0-1 Sbarra,M (2256)-Salvador,R (2491)/Milan 2009/CBM 133 Extra (28)})
11. e4 (11. Rd1 Qc8 12. Bxf6 Nxf6 13. e3 Bxf1 14. Rxf1 c5 15. dxc5 Qxc5 16.
Qxc5 bxc5 17. Ne5 Rab8 18. Nc4 Nd5 19. Kd2 Nb6 $11 {1/2 Kelecevic,N (2277)
-Berke,A (2140)/Pula CRO 2010/The Week in Chess 816 (32)}) 11... Bxf1 12. Rxf1
Qc8 13. O-O-O c5 $11 {0-1 Poniaev,R (2256)-Galliamova,A (2487)/Kazan RUS 2010/
The Week in Chess 815 (53)}) 10... c5 11. dxc5 (11. g3 Qd7 12. Qxd7 Nbxd7 $11 {
0-1 Doric,D (2452)-Pap,G (2496)/Chur SUI 2010/The Week in Chess 813 (24)})
11... bxc5 12. Rd1 Qb6 13. Bxf6 gxf6 14. Rd2 Nc6 15. Qg4+ Kh8 16. Qh4 Kg7 17.
Qg4+ Kh8 18. Qh4 Kg7 {1/2 Berkes,F (2663)-Almasi,Z (2685)/Paks 2009/CBM 133})
9... Ba6 10. Qa4 $146 {[%mdl 8]} (10. Qc2 Nbd7 11. e4 Bxf1 (11... Qc8 $143 12.
Bxa6 Qxa6 13. Ne2 c5 14. O-O Rac8 15. Nc3 $14 {0-1 Mkrtchian,L (2477)
-Dzagnidze,N (2478)/Jermuk ARM 2010/The Week in Chess 817 (43)}) 12. Kxf1 Qc8
13. Ne2 (13. Qc6 e5 14. Ne2 exd4 15. Nxd4 Ne5 16. Qc2 Qa6+ 17. Kg1 Rad8 18. f3
c5 19. Nf5 Qc4 $132 {1-0 Mkrtchian,L (2477)-Chiburdanidze,M (2514)/Jermuk ARM
2010/The Week in Chess 817 (36)}) 13... c5 14. f3 cxd4 15. Nxd4 Qxc2 16. Nxc2
Rfc8 {1/2 Iljin,A (2546)-Moiseenko,A (2667)/Dresden GER 2010/The Week in Chess
820}) 10... Qd5 (10... Qd7 11. Qc2 $5 (11. Qxd7 Nbxd7 $11 {[%cal Yc7c5]})) 11.
Bxf6 gxf6 12. Nh3 $5 (12. e3 $5 Bxf1 13. Kxf1 {[%cal Yg1e2,Ye2c3]}) (12. h4 $5
{[%cal Yh1h3] K.Sakaev}) 12... Rd8 13. f3 $5 (13. Nf4 $5) 13... Qc6 14. Qxc6
Nxc6 15. e3 Bb7 16. Rc1 Rac8 17. Bd3 Ne7 18. Ke2 e5 {Black gives up the ...
c7-c5 idea; the c7-pawn now remains weak.} 19. dxe5 fxe5 20. Nf2 $6 (20. b4 {
is more logical.}) 20... Kg7 $6 (20... c5 {was quite possible:} 21. Ng4 Nc6 22.
Rhd1 Kg7 {, and Black should hold his ground.}) 21. b4 $14 {It is amazing to
see how White now outplays his opponent without any obvious mistakes from his
side.} f5 22. Rhd1 h5 23. g3 Kf6 24. Bc4 Rd6 25. f4 exf4 26. exf4 h4 27. Rxd6+
cxd6 {[%mdl 4096]} 28. Kd2 hxg3 29. hxg3 Bd5 {Of course, here, as well as at
other moments, Black has a lot of other possibilities:} (29... d5) (29... a5) (
29... Rh8) {However, he has no sure draw anywhere.} 30. Be2 Rh8 31. Ke3 Be6 $6
(31... Bg2 $142 32. Bf3 Bxf3 33. Kxf3 Nd5) 32. Rh1 Rg8 {The bishop and knight
endgame after the exchange of rooks looks dangerous for Black, so he decides
to concede the h-file.} 33. Rh6+ Ng6 34. Bh5 Bf7 35. Rh7 Nh8 36. Bf3 Kg6 37.
Rh1 Be6 38. Nd1 Nf7 39. Nc3 Kf6 40. Kf2 Rc8 41. Rc1 Nh6 $6 (41... Kg7 $142 {
preventing the following knight manoeuvre.}) 42. Nd5+ $1 Kf7 43. Nc7 $16 {
[%csl Gc7] Finally White's advantage becomes substantial.} Bd7 44. Rc3 Kf8 45.
Ke3 Ng8 46. Bb7 $1 Rb8 47. Bc6 {Interestingly, White avoided the exchange of
bishops on some earlier occasions but now it helps the invasion of his pieces
on the queenside.} Rd8 48. Kd4 Nf6 49. Bxd7 Rxd7 50. Nd5 Nh5 (50... Nxd5 51.
Kxd5 Ke7 52. Rc8 $18 {_|_}) 51. Kc4 {[%cal Yc4b5] Black decides to avoid
further torture and resigns.} (51. Kc4 a6 52. b5 $1 Ra7 (52... a5 53. Nxb6 Rc7+
54. Kd4 Rxc3 55. Kxc3 Ke7 56. Nd5+ Kd7 57. Kb3 $18) 53. Rd3 $1 Kf7 54. bxa6
Rxa6 55. Kb5 $18) 1-0

[Event "WchT 9th"]
[Site "Antalya"]
[Date "2013.11.27"]
[Round "2.1"]
[White "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Black "Kramnik, Vladimir"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2786"]
[BlackElo "2793"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "99"]
[EventDate "2013.11.26"]
[EventType "team-tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "TUR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 158"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.01.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.01.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "US of America"]
[BlackTeam "Russia"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "USA"]
[BlackTeamCountry "RUS"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 7. Nf3 dxc4 8.
Qxc4 b6 9. Bg5 Ba6 10. Qc3 {A rare continuation in this popular line.} (10. Qa4
{and}) (10. Qc2 {are usually played. In the latter case after} Nbd7 11. Ne5 {
doesn't promise anything due to} c5 $1 {, e.g.} 12. Nxd7 Qxd7 13. Bxf6 gxf6 14.
dxc5 Rac8 15. Rd1 Qb5 16. e3 Qa5+ 17. Qd2 Qxd2+ 18. Rxd2 Bxf1 19. Rxf1 Rxc5 $11
{1/2 (64) Rotstein,A (2519)-Tischbierek,R (2507) Austria 2004}) 10... h6 (10...
Nbd7 {is quite logical; White can play} 11. Ne5 (11. Qc6 Rc8 12. Rd1 Nb8 13.
Qa4 Qd5 14. Bxf6 gxf6 15. h4 Bc4 16. Qb4 Bb3 17. Rd3 Bc2 18. Rd2 c5 $132 {
1/2 (40) Shen,Y (2453)-Xu Yuhua (2485) JinZhou 2009}) {but it is hardly
dangerous in view of} 11... Nxe5 ({the idea of 10.Qc3 is seen in the line} 
11... c5 12. Nxd7 Qxd7 13. Bxf6 gxf6 14. dxc5 {[%cal Rc3f6]}) 12. dxe5 Ne4 13.
Bxd8 Nxc3 {, e.g.} 14. Bxc7 (14. Bh4 Nd5) 14... Rfc8 15. Bd6 Ne4 {[%cal Rc8c2]}
16. f3 Nxd6 17. exd6 Rc2 18. e4 Bxf1 19. Rxf1 Rxg2 20. Rc1 Rd8 21. Rf2 Rg1+ 22.
Rf1 Rg2 23. Rf2 Rg1+ 24. Rf1 Rg2 {1/2 (24) Shen,Y (2435)-Xu Yuhua (2488)
Ulaanbaatar 2010}) 11. Bxf6 $1 (11. Bh4 $143 g5 12. Bg3 Ne4 13. Qc2 Qd5 14. Nd2
(14. Ne5 $5 $13) 14... Nxd2 15. Qxd2 Nc6 16. e3 Bxf1 17. Rxf1 Na5 $15 {1/2 (41)
Maiorov,N (2538)-Lekic,D (2430) Anogia GRE 2013}) 11... Qxf6 12. g3 $5 (12. e3
Bxf1 13. Kxf1 c5 $1 $11) (12. Rc1 Bb7 (12... Rc8 13. e3 Bxf1 14. Kxf1) 13. e3
Nd7 14. Bb5 c6 15. Be2 c5 $11) 12... Bb7 {A small inaccuracy. The bishop was
putting pressure on the e2-square; there was no need to remove it.} (12... c5 {
was quite possible and simple:} 13. dxc5 (13. Bg2 Nd7 14. Ne5 Rad8) 13... Qxc3+
14. bxc3 Rc8 $1 15. Bg2 Bb7 16. cxb6 axb6 {, and Black's counterplay is enough
for a draw}) 13. Bg2 Na6 $6 {[%mdl 32] To the edge of the board?} (13... c5 14.
O-O Nd7 {was still quite good.}) 14. O-O c5 15. Rac1 Rac8 (15... cxd4 16. Qxd4
Qxd4 (16... Qe7 17. b4) 17. Nxd4 Bxg2 18. Kxg2 {leads to a typical endgame,
where White's knight, aiming at the c6 square, is stronger than Black's.}) 16.
Ne5 cxd4 (16... Qe7 17. Rfd1 Rfd8 18. Qe3 $14 cxd4 $140 19. Rxc8 $1 Rxc8 20.
Rxd4) 17. Qxd4 Bxg2 18. Kxg2 $14 {Here, too, White keeps the better prospects
due to his stronger knight.} Nc5 19. b4 (19. Qe3 $5 Qe7 20. Rfd1 {[%cal Rb2b4]
deserved attention. It was not easy for Black to release pressure. The text
move leads to a more forced play, in which White keeps an edge, too.}) 19...
Nb3 20. Rxc8 Rxc8 ({Also after} 20... Nxd4 21. Rxf8+ Kh7 22. Nxf7 Qf5 $1 {
White keeps an edge with accurate play:} 23. f3 $1 (23. h4 Qe4+ 24. f3 Qxe2+
25. Rf2 Qe1 $132) 23... Nxe2 (23... Qb5 $143 24. Rd8 Qxe2+ 25. Rf2 Qe3 26. h4
$16) 24. Re1 $1 Qc2 (24... Nd4 $2 25. Rh8+ Kg6 26. Ne5+) 25. Rh8+ Kg6 26. Ne5+
Kh5 (26... Kf6 27. Kf1 $1) 27. Kf1 $1 (27. Kh3 Qd2 $1 28. Rf1 Qe3 $13) 27...
Nc1 28. Re4 Qd1+ 29. Kg2 Qc2+ 30. Kh3 $16 {[%csl Rh5]}) 21. Qd7 {[%csl Rb3]}
Rf8 (21... Rd8 22. Qc7 {[%cal Re5f7]} Rd2 (22... Nd4 23. Rd1) 23. Nd7 $16) 22.
f4 $16 {Black's main trouble is his ill-fated knight.} Qf5 23. Rf3 Qc2 24. Qd3
$1 Qxd3 25. Rxd3 {[%mdl 4096]} Nc1 26. Rd2 (26. Rd7 $5 Nxe2 27. Rxa7 $16 {
was more energetic - White has more active pieces and a potential passed
a-pawn.}) 26... Rc8 (26... Nb3 27. Rd7 a5 28. Rb7) 27. h4 h5 28. b5 Rc7 29. Nc6
Kh7 (29... Nb3 30. Rd8+ Kh7 31. Ra8 {. With the text move Black parries this
threat but now his knight doesn't come out.}) 30. Rb2 $1 a5 {After this move
the b6 pawn becomes weak but passive defence was hardly more stubborn:} (30...
f6 31. Kf2 Rd7 32. Ke3 Kg6 33. Rb4 {[%cal Yb4a4,Ya4a7]}) (30... a6 $2 {loses
due to} 31. Rc2 {[%cal Rc2c1,Rb5a6]}) 31. Kf2 Rd7 32. Ne5 Rc7 33. Rd2 (33. Ke3
$5) 33... f6 34. Nd7 {[%cal Rd7b6,Rd7f8]} Nb3 35. Nf8+ (35. Rd1 $6 Nc5 36. Nxb6
Rb7) ({The rook ending after} 35. Rd6 Nc5 36. Nxc5 Rxc5 37. Rxb6 Rc3 {gives
Black good drawing chances}) 35... Kg8 36. Rd7 Rxd7 $2 {The knight endgame
with an extra pawn is completely winning for White.} (36... Rc3 $1 {was a must,
and Black should apparently survive:} 37. Nxe6 Nc5 38. Rxg7+ (38. Nxc5 Rxc5 39.
a4 Rc4 40. Rb7 Rxa4 41. Rxb6 Rb4) 38... Kh8 39. Re7 Ne4+ 40. Kf1 Nxg3+ 41. Ke1
Rxa3 {etc.}) 37. Nxd7 Nd4 (37... a4 38. Ke3 $18) 38. a4 $1 Nxb5 {Desperation.
Black's a-pawn will be stopped.} 39. axb5 a4 40. Nc5 $1 a3 41. Nb3 a2 42. Ke3
Kf7 43. Kd4 Ke7 44. e4 {[%cal Yd4c3,Yc3b2]} e5+ 45. fxe5 Ke6 46. Na1 fxe5+ 47.
Kc3 g5 (47... Kd6 48. Nb3) 48. Kb2 gxh4 49. gxh4 Kd6 50. Nb3 1-0

[Event "Karlsbad-04 International Masters"]
[Site "Karlovy Vary"]
[Date "1929.08.10"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Euwe, Max"]
[Black "Capablanca, Jose Raul"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E36"]
[Annotator "L'Ami,E"]
[PlyCount "108"]
[EventDate "1929.07.31"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "21"]
[EventCountry "CZE"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2010"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.11.25"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.11.25"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {1)Munninghof, A. (1976) 'Max Euwe biografie van een wereldkampioen'
Amsterdam Andriessen bv. 2)Soloviev, S. (1997) 'Jose Raul Capablanca games
1927-1942' Sofia Chessstars.} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6.
Qxc3 dxc4 ({In his notes Euwe mentiones} 6... Ne4 {- which he encountered
against Petrov (Stockholm 1937) - as a better move and this is indeed the main
line nowadays.}) 7. Qxc4 O-O 8. Bg5 c6 (8... b6 $5 {deserves attention, when}
9. Rc1 Ba6 10. Qc3 (10. Qxc7 Qxd4) 10... Nbd7 11. Qxc7 $6 Qxc7 12. Rxc7 Rfc8 {
gives excellent play for the pawn.}) 9. Nf3 Nbd7 10. e3 ({Less good is} 10. e4
{for after} h6 {White has to give up his bishop;} 11. Bxf6 Qxf6 {and Black is
close to equalising.}) 10... Qa5+ 11. b4 Qd5 12. Qc2 {White wants of course
more then trading queens into a slightly better ending.} h6 13. Bc4 Qd6 14.
Bxf6 $6 ({It's a pity to give up this bishop. The 5th World Champion later
indicated: '} 14. Bf4 Qe7 15. h3 {(to protect the bishop against Nh5)} a5 16.
b5 c5 17. O-O {with the idea Ne5 and Black has a cramped position and problems
developing his c8-bishop.' Let's continue this line a little bit;} cxd4 (17...
b6 $5) 18. exd4 Nb6 19. Bd3 Nbd5 20. Bh2 b6 21. Ne5 Bb7 22. Nc6 Qd7 23. Rac1
Rac8 {(preparing to remove the knight from c6 with ...Ne7)} 24. Be5 (24. Qe2
Bxc6 $1 25. bxc6 Rxc6 26. Bb5 Rxc1 27. Bxd7 Rxf1+ 28. Qxf1 Nxd7 {I would asses
as a draw.}) 24... Ne7 25. Bxf6 Nxc6 $1 (25... gxf6 26. Be4 {gives some
pressure.}) 26. bxc6 Rxc6 27. Qd2 Rxc1 28. Rxc1 Qd5 29. f3 (29. Bf1 gxf6 30.
Qxh6 Qg5 31. Qxg5+ fxg5 32. Rb1 Bd5 33. Rxb6 Rc8 $1 {and Black is active
enough to make a draw.}) 29... gxf6 30. Be4 Qd7 31. Bxb7 Qxb7 32. Qxh6 Rc8 $1 {
and Black seems to be OK.}) ({(} 14. Bf4 Qe7 {) Of course the line given above
is by no means forced but it shows that White has to operate with great care.
In order to prevent Black from completing his development it could be more
precise to castle immideately without playing h3:} 15. O-O {when} Nh5 (15... a5
16. b5 c5 17. dxc5 Nxc5 18. Rfd1 {is a much better version of the lines above.}
) 16. Be5 $1 b6 (16... Nxe5 17. dxe5 $1 {reminds Black of the fact that the
knight is stuck on h5.}) 17. Be2 $1 Bb7 18. Nd2 Nhf6 (18... f6 19. Bc7 Rfc8 20.
Bxb6 {wins a pawn.}) 19. Bg3 c5 $6 20. bxc5 bxc5 21. Rab1 Bc6 22. Rfc1 {
gives White a big edge.}) 14... Nxf6 15. e4 $1 {The logical follow-up of
White's last move.} Qe7 16. O-O a5 $1 {A typical procedure, profylaxis against
White's expansion on the queenside.} 17. Rab1 axb4 18. axb4 Bd7 19. Bd3 Rfd8 (
19... Ra3 $1 {followed by Rfa8 should have been played, as Capablanca
indicated after the game.}) 20. Qc3 {'A multifunctional move, White stops Ra3
and protects d4 in preparation of Nf3-d2-c4.' - Euwe} Ne8 {'Since Black didn't
play 20...Be8 White changes his plan' - Euwe} 21. Qc5 Kf8 22. Ra1 Qxc5 ({
'Also not entirely satisfactory is} 22... b6 23. Qxb6 Rab8 24. Qc5 Rxb4 25.
Rfc1 Rc8 {given the weak c-pawn, the passive bishop, weakness of the Black
squares and Black's cramped position in general.' - Euwe}) 23. bxc5 Ke7 24.
Rfb1 Rxa1 25. Rxa1 Bc8 26. Kf1 ({In the book 'Jose Raul Capablanca games
1927-1942' the authors give '} 26. Bc4 $16 {'} {Altough this move indeed stops
Black from playing e6-e5 it also has concrete drawbacks:} f5 $1 (26... Nf6 $5)
27. e5 g5 $1 {with play against the d-pawn.}) 26... e5 ({This move has been
critised but Euwe noted: 'Passive play would have allowed White to easily
strenghten his position. At least 26...e5 offers -with correct play from
Black- good drawing chances' However} 26... Nc7 {, recommended by the
tournament book, is indeed much tougher. The idea is not to wait passively but
to play ....e5 followed up by ...Ne6. For example:} 27. Ke2 (27. Ra7 f6 $1 ({
not} 27... e5 28. Nxe5 Rxd4 29. Ke2 {and Nxc6 next decides.}) 28. Ke2 e5 29.
dxe5 Ne6 {is also not clear.}) 27... e5 $1 28. Nxe5 (28. dxe5 Ne6 $1) 28... Ne6
29. Ke3 Nxd4 30. Ra7 Kf6 (30... f6 $5) 31. f4 Ne6 {and Black holds.}) 27. Nxe5
Rxd4 28. Ke2 f6 $6 ({An inaccuracy, I think the manouevre Nf6-d7 was better:} 
28... Nf6 29. Ra8 $5 Rd8 30. Ra7 Nd7 $1 31. Nxd7 Kxd7 {and with the knights
off Black has very reasonable chances of holding.}) 29. Nc4 Rd8 30. Ra7 Kd7 31.
Nb6+ Kc7 32. Ba6 $1 {Euwe was known for his calculation and he once again
demonstrates his ability to do so.} Nd6 (32... Kb8 {doesn't work in view of}
33. Nxc8 $1 bxa6 34. Ne7 $1 Kxa7 35. Nxc6+ Kb7 36. Nxd8+ {with a winning
knight-ending:} Kc7 37. Ne6+ Kc6 38. Kd3 Kb5 39. f4 $1 {followed by f5 -
keeping the Black knight under quarantine.}) ({A more interesting alternative
is} 32... Rd4 $5 33. Nxc8 (33. Ke3 $5 Rb4 34. Ra8 Bd7 35. Bd3 {deserves
attention.}) 33... Rxe4+ (33... Kxc8 34. Bxb7+ Kb8 35. Ra8+ Kxb7 36. Rxe8 {
is an easy win.}) 34. Kd3 Ra4 35. Bc4 $1 (35. Nd6 $6 Nxd6 36. cxd6+ Kxd6 {
leads to an easy draw.}) 35... Rxa7 36. Nxa7 {and now} g5 $5 {is an
interesting defensive idea, anticipating on White's idea to penetrate with the
king:} ({Euwe gives} 36... Kb8 37. Nxc6+ bxc6 38. Ke4 Kc7 39. Kf5 Kd7 40. Kg6
Ke7 41. Bf7 $1 {winning.}) 37. Be6 $1 (37. Ke4 Ng7 38. f4 gxf4 $1 (38... Kb8 $6
39. fxg5 hxg5 40. Nxc6+ bxc6 41. g3 Kc7 42. h4 {is still dangerous for Black.})
39. Kxf4 Kb8 40. Nxc6+ bxc6 41. g4 Kc7 {and Black holds the game.}) (37. Bf7
Ng7 38. Kc4 Kb8 39. Nb5 cxb5+ 40. Kxb5 Nf5 $1 (40... Kc7 41. g4 $1 f5 42. h3 f4
43. f3 {zugzwang.}) 41. Kb6 Ne7 42. Be6 Nc6 (42... Nc8+ $2 43. Bxc8 Kxc8 44. g4
$5 {loses straightforward.}) 43. g3 (43. Bd5 Ne5 $1 44. Bxb7 Nd7+ 45. Kc6 Ne5+
{is a another narrow escape.}) 43... Ne7 {and Black seems to be making a draw,
as I dont see how White can improve his position.}) (37. f4 $5 {is another
interesting try to create a passed h-pawn:} Ng7 (37... gxf4 38. Be6 $1 {
is one of the ideas, now the White king easily penetrates the kingside.} Ng7
39. Bh3 f5 40. Kd4 Kb8 41. Nxc6+ bxc6 42. Ke5 {winning.}) 38. fxg5 (38. Ke4
gxf4 $1 {transposes to 37.Ke4}) 38... hxg5 39. g3 (39. Bf7 Kb8 40. Nxc6+ bxc6
41. g3 Nf5 {followed by Nh6 with a fortress.}) 39... Kb8 40. Nxc6+ bxc6 41. Ke4
(41. Bf7 Nf5 {transposes to 39.Bf7}) 41... Kc7 42. h4 Kd7 43. hxg5 fxg5 44. Ke5
Ke7 45. g4 Ne8 46. Be6 (46. Kf5 Nf6 47. Kxg5 Nd7 {draws.}) 46... Nf6 47. Bc8
Nd5 48. Kf5 Nf6 49. Kxg5 Ne4+ 50. Kh6 Nxc5 51. g5 Ne4 52. g6 Nf6 {and Black
narrowly escapes.}) 37... Ng7 38. Bh3 Kb8 (38... f5 39. f3 h5 (39... Kb8 40.
Nxc6+ bxc6 41. Kd4 {and the king will go on a pawn-hunt.}) 40. g3 g4 41. Bg2
Ne6 42. fxg4 hxg4 43. Kc4 f4 44. gxf4 Nxf4 45. Be4 Nh5 (45... Kb8 46. Nxc6+
bxc6 47. Bf5 {looks winning.}) 46. Kd4 g3 47. h4 {and as Black is not able to
trade the king-side pawns White is winning.}) 39. Nc8 f5 40. Nb6 $1 g4 41. Bxg4
fxg4 42. Ke4 Ne6 43. Na4 $1 {and it's hard to find a defence for Black.}) 33.
Nxc8 Kxc8 34. cxd6 bxa6 35. Rc7+ Kb8 36. Rxc6 Kb7 37. Rc7+ Kb6 38. Rxg7 Rxd6
39. Rg6 Kc5 40. Rxh6 Kd4 41. Kf3 ({'Simple and strong. The alternative given
by many} 41. Rh5 Kxe4 42. Ra5 {is by no means as effective.' - Euwe}) 41... a5
42. Kf4 ({The tournament book gives} 42. e5 Kxe5 43. Rh5+ f5 44. g4 Rf6 45. Ke3
{'winning' but if we continue the line} a4 46. Kd3 Rd6+ 47. Kc3 Kf4 {Black
draws, as pointed out by Euwe.}) 42... a4 43. Rh5 $4 ({It is hard to explain
why Euwe played Rh5 when he just opened the 3rd rank for the rook. In case of} 
43. Rh3 {the win would have been clear, as indicated by Tartakower:} Ra6 44.
Ra3 Kc4 45. h4 Kb4 46. Ra1 a3 47. Kf5 a2 48. g4 (48. h5 Kb3 49. h6 {is perhaps
slightly more precise.}) 48... Kb3 49. h5 {and the kingside pawns decide.})
43... Ra6 44. Rd5+ Kc3 45. Rd1 a3 {It is clear that White lost many tempi
compared to the lines above, Black is just in time to make a draw.} 46. Kf5 a2
47. f4 a1=Q 48. Rxa1 Rxa1 49. Kxf6 Ra6+ 50. Kf5 Kd4 51. e5 Kd5 52. g3 (52. g4
Ra8 53. h4 Rf8+ 54. Kg5 Rg8+ {is immideately drawn.}) 52... Ra8 53. Kf6 Ra6+ $1
({This is the most easy way to a draw. Euwe gives} 53... Rh8 54. h4 Rg8 $2 ({
Black can still hold on with} 54... Ke4 $1 55. e6 (55. Kg7 Ra8 56. e6 Kf5 57.
Kf7 Rh8 $1 {- 55.e6}) 55... Rh6+ 56. Kf7 Kf5 57. e7 Rh7+ 58. Kf8 Kf6 59. e8=N+
Ke6 {with a very suprising draw:} 60. Kg8 ({or} 60. h5 Rh8+ 61. Kg7 Rxe8 62. g4
Re7+ $1 63. Kg6 Re8 64. h6 Rg8+ 65. Kh5 Rh8 {draw.}) 60... Re7 61. Ng7+ Kf6 62.
Nh5+ Kf5 {drawing.}) ({Another suprise for me was that Black can play even} 
54... Rf8+ 55. Kg7 Rf5 $1 56. Kg6 Rf8 {and no win is apparent.}) 55. e6 $1 Rf8+
56. Kg7 Re8 57. f5 {winning.}) 54. Kf5 Ra8 ({And the players agreed to a draw
because of the line:} 54... Ra8 55. h4 Rg8 56. Kf6 (56. g4 Rf8+ 57. Kg5 Rg8+
58. Kf5 $11) 56... Rxg3 57. e6 Rg4 58. f5 Rxh4 59. e7 Re4 60. Kf7 Kd6 61. e8=Q
Rxe8 62. Kxe8 Ke5 {and not many pieces remain. A highly interesting game with
suprisingly many hidden ideas!}) 1/2-1/2

[Event "EU-ch 12th"]
[Site "Aix les Bains"]
[Date "2011.03.30"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Dreev, Alexey"]
[Black "L'Ami, Erwin"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2697"]
[BlackElo "2623"]
[Annotator "Marin,M"]
[PlyCount "86"]
[EventDate "2011.03.22"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "FRA"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 142 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2011.06.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2011.06.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 7. Bg5 dxc4 8.
Qxc4 b6 9. Rd1 Ba6 10. Qa4 {This is the latest trend. White keeps an eye on
the a6-bishop, preventing (or, as in the game, delaying) ...Nbd7.} (10. Qc2 {
proved less dangerous in several previous games.}) 10... Bb7 $5 $146 (10... Qd5
{failed to equalize:} 11. Bxf6 gxf6 12. Nh3 {Ponomariov,R (2734)-Mamedyarov,S 
(2761)/Dortmund 2010/CBM 138/[Krasenkow] (1-0, 51)}) (10... Qd7 {has been
successfully used by Kramnik, but a later white improvement leaves the
discussion wide open.} 11. Qc2 Qc6 12. Qxc6 Nxc6 13. Bxf6 gxf6 14. Nf3 Bb7 15.
e3 Ne7 16. Be2 $1 {The rook is useful on d1 yet, because it allows meeting ...
c5 with dxc5 followed by Rd7. By speeding up the kingside development, White
enables the manoeuvre Nd2 (when the g2-pawn will be defended by the king).} (
16. Rc1 Rfc8 17. Bd3 c5 18. dxc5 bxc5 19. Ke2 Rab8 20. Rc2 c4 $1 21. Rxc4 Bxf3+
22. Kxf3 Rxc4 23. Bxc4 Rxb2 24. Rc1 f5 $11 {Wang Hao (2724)-Kramnik,V (2780)/
Shanghai 2010/ (1/2, 47)}) 16... Rfc8 17. O-O Kf8 {Preparing ...c5 by
defending the knight in advance, but the extra tempo will prove essential for
White.} 18. Rc1 $1 c5 19. dxc5 bxc5 20. Nd2 $1 Rab8 21. Rc2 f5 22. Rd1 Bc6 23.
b3 Bd5 24. Rc3 {The queenside has been successfully blocked and time has come
to open a new front on the opposite wing.} Ng8 25. f3 Nf6 26. Kf2 Nd7 27. h3
Ke7 28. g4 $16 {Dreev,A (2697)-Movsesian,S (2716)/Olginka 2011 (1-0, 58).
White has the better structure on both wings.}) 11. f3 {An ambitious, but time
consuming plan.} (11. Nf3 $5) 11... Nbd7 12. e4 Qc8 13. Rc1 {Specialists of
the 4.Qc2 system have their own way of judging the priorities of the
development. In many games, they move with their queen a lot (as was the case
here), relying on other factors (space, bishop pair) to compensate for the
delay in development. The text move is aimed to inhibit (or anticipate) the
freeing ...c5, but I would have strongly considered continuing the development
at once.} (13. Nh3 $5 c5 14. Be2 (14. dxc5 Nxc5 15. Qd4 e5 $132 16. Qxe5 $2 Re8
$17 {The queen has no good squares for retreat, in view of the threatened ...
Nfxe4 or ...Bxe4, with a devastating attack. White probably has to give up the
queen, without any real compensation.} 17. Bxf6 $8) 14... h6 15. Bh4 cxd4 16.
Qxd4 Qc2 17. Nf2 Rfc8 18. Bb5 Bc6 19. Ba6 $14) 13... c5 14. b4 Bc6 15. Qc2 Qb7
{Self-trapping the bishop, but also preparing a promising sacrifice on e4.} 16.
Bd3 (16. b5 Bxe4 17. fxe4 cxd4 18. Nf3 Rac8 19. Bc4 Nxe4 $44) 16... h6 $6 {
If L'Ami had prepared this line at home, he may have forgotten which is the
right moment for playing this move. In this concrete situation, it just helps
White to improve the position of his bishop.} (16... Rac8 $5 17. b5 (17. dxc5
bxc5 18. bxc5 {is completely ineffective now because of} Rfd8 $36 {with the
threat of ...Nxc5 or, even stronger, ...Ne5. In the game, this latter will not
be available.}) 17... Bxe4 18. Bxe4 Nxe4 19. Qxe4 Qxe4+ 20. fxe4 cxd4 $44 {
If compared to the game, Black will not have ...e5 with gain of tempo at his
disposal, but his position may remain viable all-the-same.}) 17. Bf4 $1 {
[%csl Gb8,Gd6,Ge5]} Rac8 18. b5 $6 (18. dxc5 $1 bxc5 19. bxc5 {would have left
Black with problems justifying his previous play.} Rfd8 20. Rb1 (20. Bd6 Bb5
21. Bxb5 Qxb5 22. c6 Nb6 $11) (20. Qb1 Qxb1 21. Bxb1 Ba4 22. Be3 Nxc5 $1 $11 {
[%csl Gb1][%cal Gd8d1]}) 20... Qa8 21. Ba6 {[%csl Gc8]} Nxe4 {What else?} 22.
Bxc8 Rxc8 23. Ne2 $1 (23. fxe4 $2 Bxe4 24. Qb2 Bxg2 $19) 23... Nexc5 24. O-O
$14) 18... Bxe4 $1 {An optimal form of carrying out the sacrifice.} 19. Bxe4 {
White has to play a series of only moves in order to avoid major troubles.} (
19. fxe4 cxd4 20. Qb1 e5 21. Rxc8 Rxc8 22. Bg3 (22. Bd2 Nc5 $17) 22... Rc3 $17)
19... Nxe4 20. Qxe4 (20. fxe4 cxd4 21. Qe2 e5 22. Rxc8 Rxc8 23. Bd2 Nc5 $17)
20... Qxe4+ 21. fxe4 cxd4 22. Rc6 (22. Rxc8 Rxc8 23. Nf3 e5 24. Bd2 $8 {
[%csl Gc1]} Rc5 $44) 22... e5 23. Bd2 Rxc6 24. bxc6 Nc5 25. Bb4 Rc8 26. Bxc5
bxc5 27. Nf3 f6 28. Nd2 c4 $1 (28... Rxc6 29. Nc4 Ra6 $6 30. Kd2 $14) 29. Nxc4
Rxc6 30. Nb2 Rc1+ 31. Nd1 Ra1 32. O-O Rxa3 33. Nb2 Re3 34. Ra1 Rxe4 35. Kf2 {
Aiming for stability.} (35. Rxa7 Re2 36. Nd3 e4 $36) 35... Re3 36. Nc4 Rc3 37.
Nd6 Rc6 38. Nf5 Rc7 39. g4 {Despite his material advantage, Black cannot make
progress easily. The kingside blockade is quite strong and moving any pawn may
even put Black in some danger.} Kf7 40. Kf3 Kg6 41. Ng3 Rc3+ 42. Kf2 Rc2+ 43.
Kf3 Rc3+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "ROM-chT"]
[Site "Baile Govora"]
[Date "2017.11.13"]
[Round "3.5"]
[White "Ivanisevic, Ivan"]
[Black "Kuzubov, Yuriy"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2582"]
[BlackElo "2690"]
[Annotator "Marin,M"]
[PlyCount "154"]
[EventDate "2017.11.11"]
[EventType "team-tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ROU"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 182"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.01.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.01.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Timisoara Universitatea de Vest"]
[BlackTeam "Timisoara Medicina"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "ROU"]
[BlackTeamCountry "ROU"]

{It was a pleasure to have Yuriy as a team mate last year as his games are a
feast to watch. I believe the game below is typical for his uncompromising
style in all the phases, including mutual time trouble. But the same goes for
his opponent, only that, in this game and in the whole tournament, his result
was not the desired one, while Yuriy scored massively.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3.
Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 O-O ({The classical treatment of this
variation seems to remain valid:} 6... Ne4 7. Qc2 c5 8. dxc5 Nc6 {Giri,A (2784)
-Adams,M (2737) London 2015 CBM 170 [Krasenkow,M] (1/2-1/2, 26)}) 7. cxd5 (7.
Bg5 dxc4 8. Qxc4 b6 {is known to have drawish tendencies. Yuriy had faced this
line with White and despite the peaceful result the game shows there is room
for starting entertaining play:} 9. Rd1 Ba6 10. Qc2 h6 11. Bh4 Nbd7 12. e4 Bxf1
13. Kxf1 Qc8 14. Qc6 Qa6+ 15. Ne2 Rac8 16. f3 Nb8 17. Qc2 Nbd7 18. Kf2 c5 19.
d5 exd5 20. Bxf6 Nxf6 21. e5 Ne8 22. Rxd5 Nc7 23. Rd6 Ne6 24. Rhd1 c4 $11 {
Kuzubov,Y (2635)-Lalith,B (2579) Grosseto Prugna 2016 (1/2-1/2, 40)}) 7... Ne4
{The most active continuation.} ({But the solid} 7... exd5 {is also viable.} 8.
Bg5 h6 9. Bxf6 Qxf6 10. e3 c6 11. Nf3 Bf5 12. Bd3 Nd7 13. O-O Bxd3 14. Qxd3 Qd6
{1/2-1/2 Gagunashvili,M (2596)-Rozentalis,E (2631) Toronto 2010. With a
comfortable version of the Karlsbad structure.}) 8. Qc2 {The queen will soon
be exposed on this square but the alternative allows Black additional
possibilities:} (8. Qb3 $6 c5 $5 {[%csl Gf2][%cal Gd8a5]} ({Actually} 8... exd5
9. Nf3 c5 {as played in Kiriakov,P (2535)-Sjugirov,S (2670) Sochi 2015 (0-1,
18) to which we refer below, may just transpose.}) 9. dxc5 (9. Nf3 exd5 {
makes no difference.}) (9. dxc6 {helps Black developing, yielding him a strong
initiative.} Nxc6 {[%csl Rd2][%cal Gd8a5] Renewing the threat.} 10. Qd3 Qa5+
11. Bd2 Qxd2+ 12. Qxd2 Nxd2 13. Kxd2 Nxd4 $15) 9... exd5 10. Nf3 Nc6 ({
Targetting b3 also makes sense:} 10... Na6 11. e3 Naxc5 12. Qd1 Bd7 13. Nd4 Ba4
14. Qf3 Nb3 15. Nxb3 Bxb3 16. Bd3 Qa5+ 17. Ke2 Rac8 18. Qf5 Bc2 {0-1 Kiriakov,
P (2535)-Sjugirov,S (2670) Sochi 2015}) 11. e3 Qa5+ (11... Bg4 $36 12. Be2 $6
Qa5+) 12. Nd2 Qxc5 13. Be2 Bf5 14. O-O Nd6 $5 {Avoiding the knight exchange.
Black soon gets a tempo back after the white knight's recycling.} 15. Nf3 a5
16. Bd2 a4 17. Qd1 Ne4 18. Be1 Rfd8 $11 {Dao,T (2463)-Sasikiran,K (2676)
Ashkhabad 2017 (1/2-1/2, 30)}) 8... exd5 9. Bf4 {The bishop will soon be
exposed but keeping it within the pawn chain is more passive.} (9. e3 Bf5 10.
Bd3 $6 (10. Qd1 Nd7 $11) 10... c5 (10... Qg5 $36) 11. dxc5 Nd7 12. Ne2 Ndxc5
13. Bxe4 Nxe4 14. Nd4 Bg6 15. Qd1 {1/2-1/2 Kramnik,V (2759)-Anand,V (2791)
Nice (rapid) 2009}) 9... Nc6 {One may ask oneself what the knight is doing
here, in front of the pawn. But as the game goes White will have to play Ne5,
which turns the last move into a developing one, defending c7 on the way.} ({
But the sacrifice} 9... Bf5 {also offers Black counterplay:} 10. Qxc7 Qxc7 11.
Bxc7 Rc8 12. Bf4 Nc6 {But now developing is essential.} (12... Rc2 $6 13. f3
Nf6 14. g4 Bg6 15. h4 $16 {Morozevich,A (2751)-Alekseev,E (2714) Biel 2009 CBM
132 [Krasenkow,M] (1-0, 34)}) 13. f3 Nf6 14. g4 Bg6 15. h4 (15. e3 Na5 $132)
15... Nxd4 $13 {Al Sayed,M (2504)-Moradiabadi,E (2560) Ha Long City 2009 (1/
2-1/2, 62)}) 10. e3 Re8 11. Nf3 ({Hurrying to eliminate the optically
unpleasant opposition of the king with the enemy rook exposes His Majesty in
another way:} 11. O-O-O Bf5 12. Bd3 Rc8 13. f3 Nxd4 $1 14. exd4 c5 {Mkrtchian,
L (2503)-Kosintseva,T (2524) Nalchik 2010 CBM 136 [Mikhalchishin,A] (0-1, 40)})
11... g5 {The key move in Black's whole plan. White is slightly underdeveloped
and already has worries with his developed minor pieces.} 12. Bg3 g4 ({Even
though moving a lot with the kingside pawns looks risky,} 12... h5 {is
interesting, too.} 13. Ne5 Bd7 14. Nxc6 Bxc6 15. O-O-O h4 16. Be5 (16. f3 hxg3
17. fxe4 Rxe4 18. Bd3 Rxe3 19. Rdf1 Qd7 20. hxg3 Ba4 $1 {This does not leave
White the time to create threats on h7.} 21. b3 Qc6 $1 {[%cal Ge3d3]}) 16...
Re6 $6 (16... Qd7 $5 $132 {gains a developing tempo as} 17. f3 $2 {runs into}
Ba4 18. b3 Re6 $17) 17. f3 Be8 18. Kb1 Rc6 19. Qe2 f6 $6 ({Black should weaken
the enemy king and buttress his centre with} 19... Nc3+ $5 20. bxc3 f6 21. Bxf6
Qxf6 {offering at least some compensation.}) 20. fxe4 Bg6 21. Qg4 $16 Bxe4+ 22.
Bd3 Bxd3+ 23. Rxd3 Qc8 (23... fxe5 24. Rf1 exd4 25. Rxd4 Rg6 26. e4) 24. Qf3
fxe5 25. Rf1 Qe6 26. dxe5 Rd8 27. e4 d4 28. Rxd4 $1 $18 {Enchev,I (2435)-Ninov,
N (2513) Albena 2011 (1-0, 33)}) 13. Ne5 {As mentioned before this clears the
path to the c-pawn but White does not have a choice.} (13. Nd2 $2 Nxd4 14. exd4
$2 Nxg3+) (13. Bh4 Qd6 14. Nd2 Nxd4) 13... Nxe5 14. Bxe5 c5 15. Be2 $146 {
A interesting novelty. White intends targetting g4.} (15. Bd3 {will soon run
into ...c5-c4.} Bf5 16. Qe2 (16. Qd1 $5) 16... f6 17. Bxe4 Bxe4 18. Bg3 Qa5+
$36 {Carlsen,M (2801)-Kramnik,V (2772) Moscow 2009 CBM 133 [Krasenkow,M] (1/
2-1/2, 58)}) 15... Bf5 16. Qd1 {Well, this is the problem with the 4.Qc2
Nimzoindian. After moving around for a while the queen has the revelation that
there is no better place than home. "Next time I will let the minor pieces
develop first, as the old masters recommended."} Qa5+ 17. b4 {Nice but forced.}
cxb4 18. O-O b3 $5 {At this point in the game both sides have choices, with
the same evaluation: the position is very sharp but basically balanced.} (18...
bxa3 19. Bxg4 Bg6 20. h4 (20. Qc1 Nd2 {[%csl Gf1][%cal Gd2b3]}) 20... f6 21.
Bf4 b5 22. h5 Bf7 23. Rc1 Re7 24. Bf5 $44 {[%cal Gf5e4,Gd1g4]}) (18... Nc3 19.
axb4 Qxb4 20. Qd2 Nxe2+ 21. Qxe2 $44 {[%cal Gf2f3,Ge3e4] In both cases the
exposed black king's position offers White ample compensation for the pawn,
even though Black is in no immediate danger.}) 19. Bxg4 ({Another reasonable
exchange sacrifice is} 19. Qxb3 Nd2 20. Qxb7 Nxf1 21. Rxf1 {White has the
better structure and the black king may get into trouble later, but White's
material advantage keeps the balance even.} Rad8 22. Bb5 (22. Bc7 {is
premature due to} Rd7) 22... Rxe5 ({Or if Black wants to force a draw:} 22...
Re6 23. Bc7 Re7 24. Bxa5 Rxb7 25. Bxd8 Rxb5 26. Rc1 Rb1 $11) 23. dxe5 Qxa3 $13)
19... Nc3 20. Qf3 Bg6 {Trying to keep the king defended.} 21. h4 {There is
nothing to save on the queenside so the best defence is an attack!} b2 22. h5
bxa1=Q 23. Rxa1 Ne4 24. hxg6 hxg6 (24... fxg6 {avoids the threats along the
h-file but weakening the seventh rank is worse:} 25. Rc1 Qxa3 26. Rc7 Qf8 (
26... Re7 $2 27. Be6+ $1) 27. Qh3 (27. Rg7+ Qxg7 28. Bxg7 Kxg7 {leaves White
without attacking ideas and a material disadvantage.}) 27... Ng5 28. Qg3 Nf7
29. Bf6 $36) 25. Qf4 Qb6 26. f3 Rxe5 ({The spectacular} 26... Nf2 $5 {does not
unbalance the position:} 27. Qh2 (27. Kxf2 Qb2+ 28. Kg3 Qxa1 {[%cal Ge8e5]} 29.
Bf6 Qe1+ 30. Kh2 Qxe3) 27... Rxe5 (27... f6 28. Kxf2 Qb2+ 29. Kg3 Qxa1 30. Qh6
$11) 28. Qxe5 Nxg4 29. fxg4 {The queen's activity compensates for the
structural ruins.} Rd8 30. Qe7 Qd6 31. Qxd6 Rxd6 32. Rb1 b6 33. Rc1 $11) 27.
dxe5 (27. Qxe5 Nf6 $15 {[%cal Ga8e8,Gb6b2] stabilises the position in White's
favour.}) 27... g5 $1 {The second pawn goes to g5, this time attacking the
queen.} 28. Qf5 Qxe3+ 29. Kh2 Nc5 {Heading for e6 and preventing the thematic
e5-e6.} (29... Nc3 $5 {[%cal Ge3f4,Gc3e2]} 30. Re1 Qf4+ 31. Kh3 Re8 32. g3 Qxf5
33. Bxf5 $13 {White is very active and Black's pawn is not too relevant yet.})
30. Rd1 Rd8 31. g3 {WHite starts a slow attack against the weakened enemy
kingside. But his king is also exposed so the most probable result remains a
draw.} Ne6 32. Kh3 $5 {White is obviously playing for a win, as his last move
reduces the danger of perpetual check after his attack starts.} (32. Bh5 Rd7
33. Rxd5 Rc7 34. Bxf7+ Rxf7 35. Qxe6 Qe2+ 36. Kh3 Qf1+ {leads to a draw.})
32... Qc5 {By this moment both players experienced time problems, but Black
starts losing the thread first. Quite a typical situation with an exposed king.
The last move is not a mistake yet but it introduces a tendency.} ({It would
have been safer to keep the queen active and ready for delivering perpetual
check. There are many ways to do that, one of them being} 32... Ng7 33. Qf6 Re8
34. Rxd5 Qg1 35. Rd2 Qh1+ 36. Rh2 Qf1+ 37. Rg2 $11) 33. Qf6 $36 Re8 34. Bf5 Ng7
35. Bd7 (35. Qxg5 $5 Qxa3 (35... Rxe5 36. Bh7+) 36. e6 fxe6 37. Re1 Qxf3 $13)
35... Re7 36. Bg4 d4 {Black, too, is ambitious.} ({He does not wish to play
for a draw with:} 36... Qc2 37. f4 Qh7+) 37. Re1 Qc3 38. Rd1 Qc5 $2 {This
could have led to trouble.} ({It was not too late for} 38... Qc2 39. Rxd4 Qh7+)
39. f4 gxf4 {Black's main chance is weakening the enemy king, but it is also
true that the last move clears the g-file for White's attack.} (39... Qxa3 40.
Qxg5 $16) 40. gxf4 Qxa3+ 41. Kh4 Re8 42. Rxd4 $2 ({Ivan confessed that he had
seen} 42. Rg1 $1 {but thought} Qe3 {would defend. In fact} 43. Rg3 $1 {leaves
Black short of adequate defences.} Re6 (43... Qe4 {[%cal Ge4h7]} 44. Qxg7+ $1
Kxg7 45. Bf5+ Kf8 46. Bxe4 $18 f6 47. Bg6 Re6 48. Bf5 Re7 49. e6) 44. Qd8+ $1 (
44. Bxe6 $2 Qxg3+ 45. Kxg3 Nh5+ 46. Kf3 Nxf6 47. Bc8 $11) 44... Re8 45. Qg5 $18
{and Black is helpless aganst the attack along the g-file.}) 42... Qe3 {
Things re-enter the drawish zone, but with both players in time trouble
already.} 43. Rd7 Rf8 44. f5 Qe1+ 45. Kh3 Qh1+ 46. Kg3 Qg1+ 47. Kf3 Qf1+ 48.
Kg3 Qg1+ 49. Kf3 Qa1 {Black is the first one to avoid the draw. The last move
prevents e5-e6. It is interesting to mention that around this moment this was
the only remaining game at the score 3-2 in our favour. I am not sure whether
my team mate knew the situation but his wish to win was obvious.} 50. Kg2 Qb2+
51. Kh3 Qc3+ 52. Kh4 a5 53. Qe7 ({And now White could have drawn with} 53. Rd8
Rxd8 (53... a4 54. Rxf8+ Kxf8 55. Qd6+) 54. Qxd8+ Kh7 55. Qe7 Qc4 56. Kg3 $11 {
[%cal Ge7h4,Ge7d8] But Ivan needed to win to save his team...}) 53... Qe1+ 54.
Kg5 Qc1+ 55. Kh4 Qh6+ 56. Kg3 Qe3+ 57. Kh4 Qf4 58. Qf6 (58. Qg5 {is an idea
Ivan got only later, when it did not work out properly already.} Qxe5 (58...
Qh2+ 59. Bh3) 59. f6 Qxg5+ 60. Kxg5 Ne8 61. Rxb7 $11) 58... Qh2+ 59. Bh3 $2 (
59. Kg5 $1 Qb2 60. e6 Qxf6+ 61. Kxf6 fxe6+ 62. Kg6 Nxf5 63. Rxb7 $11 Ra8 64.
Bxf5 exf5 65. Kxf5 a4 66. Rb2) 59... Qf2+ 60. Kg5 Ne8 $6 {Black probably
thought he had to defend against e5-e6, but the threat is not real.} (60... a4
$5 61. e6 $6 Qe3+ 62. Kg4 (62. Kh4 Qf4+ 63. Bg4 $2 Nxe6 $1 $19) 62... Qg1+ 63.
Kf3 fxe6 $17) 61. Qe7 Qe3+ 62. Kh4 Qh6+ 63. Kg4 $6 {Ivan said he wanted to
keep the Qg5 idea, with some attacking hopes in the ending, but with seconds
on his clock he overlooked the next move.} (63. Kg3 a4 64. Bg4 b5 65. Rd8 $11 {
soon forces Black to deliver the long awaited perpetual.}) 63... Kh8 $1 $15 (
63... a4 64. Qg5+ Qxg5+ 65. Kxg5 $11) 64. Qxf7 $2 {Premature panicking.} (64.
Bg2 $2 {loses to} Rg8+ 65. Kf3 Qc6+) ({But paradoxically the white king
escapes after} 64. Bf1 $1 Rg8+ 65. Kf3 Qh5+ 66. Kf2 Qxf5+ 67. Ke1 b6 68. Qh4+
Kg7 69. Qg3+ Kf8 70. Qa3+ Kg7 71. Qg3+ Qg6 72. Qxg6+ Kxg6 73. Rb7 $11) 64...
Rxf7 $19 65. Rxf7 Qc6 66. Kg5 Kg8 67. Re7 Qc1+ 68. Kg4 Qd1+ 69. Kg5 Qc1+ 70.
Kg4 Kf8 71. f6 Qh6 72. Re6 Qd2 73. Kh4 a4 74. Bg4 a3 75. Re7 Nxf6 76. exf6 Qh6+
77. Kg3 a2 0-1

[Event "ROM-ch"]
[Site "Iasi"]
[Date "1999.12.21"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Grigore, George Gabriel"]
[Black "Parligras, Mircea Emilian"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2526"]
[BlackElo "2377"]
[Annotator "Marin,M"]
[PlyCount "143"]
[EventDate "1999.12.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "15"]
[EventCountry "ROU"]
[EventCategory "9"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 075"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2000.04.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2000.04.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 Nc6 7. e3 e5 8. Nf3
exd4 9. Nxd4 Nxd4 10. Qxd4 Be6 11. cxd5 Qxd5 12. Qxd5 Bxd5 13. f3 O-O-O 14. b4
Rhe8 15. Kf2 Bb3 16. e4 Nd7 17. Bf4 Ne5 18. Rc1 Re7 19. Rc3 Ba4 20. b5 Rd1 21.
g3 Kb8 22. Rg1 Rb1 23. Be2 Rb2 24. Bc1 Ra2 25. Ke3 {[#]} f5 $1 $17 26. h3 Nd7
27. Bd3 b6 28. Kf4 fxe4 29. fxe4 Ne5 30. Be3 Nxd3+ 31. Rxd3 Bxb5 32. Rc3 Rf7+
33. Ke5 Re2 34. Rgc1 c6 35. Ke6 Rf6+ 36. Ke7 Kb7 37. e5 Rf3 38. Bf4 Rxc3 39.
Rxc3 g5 40. Be3 c5 41. e6 h6 42. Kf7 Re1 43. e7 Rf1+ 44. Kg7 Kc8 45. Bxc5 Kd7
46. Re3 Ke8 47. Bd6 Rd1 48. Re6 h5 49. Rf6 Kd7 50. Rf8 Ke6 51. Bb4 a5 52. Rd8
Rh1 53. e8=Q+ Bxe8 54. Rxe8+ Kd7 55. Re7+ Kd8 56. Re1 Rxh3 57. Bd6 Kd7 58. Rd1
Kc6 59. Kg6 g4 60. Kg5 b5 61. Be5 Kc5 62. Rd8 b4 63. a4 b3 64. Rb8 Kc4 65. Rb5
Rh2 66. Rxa5 Kb4 67. Ra8 Re2 68. Bf6 Re3 69. a5 Rxg3 70. a6 b2 71. Rb8+ Kc5 72.
Bxb2 1-0

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 7th"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2012.06.08"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Kramnik, Vladimir"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2835"]
[BlackElo "2801"]
[Annotator "Marin,M"]
[PlyCount "46"]
[EventDate "2012.06.08"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 149"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.07.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.07.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 {The newest
trend in the 4.Qc2 variation.} 7. e3 {The practice of the last years has shown
that White risks falling behind in development if he spends a tempo on Bg5.
The game move saves an important tempo, but faces White with the risk of
remaining with a passive dark-squared bishop, especially after the exchange of
the light-squared bishops.} (7. Bg5 dxc4 8. Qxc4 b6 9. Rd1 Ba6 10. Qa4 Bb7 (
10... Qd7 {Nepomniachtchi,I (2711)-Amin,B (2609)/Ningbo 2011/CBM 144/[Marin,M]
(1-0, 46)}) 11. f3 Nbd7 {Dreev,A (2697)-L'Ami,E (2623)/Aix-les-Bains 2011/CBM
142/[Marin,M] (1/2, 43)}) (7. Nf3 dxc4 8. Qxc4 b6 {Golod,V (2590)-Almasi,Z 
(2720)/Rijeka 2010/CBM 136/[Marin,M] (1/2, 18)}) 7... b6 8. cxd5 {White
decides to play against the hanging pawns. His slight delay in development
makes this approach rather risky.} (8. Nf3 Ba6 (8... Bb7 {Vitiugov,N (2694)
-Karjakin,S (2723)/Khanty Mansiysk 2009/CBM 134/[Marin] (0-1, 47)}) 9. b4 {
Grachev,B (2652)-Bartel,M (2618)/Khanty Mansiysk 2009/CBM 134/[Marin] (1/2, 21)
}) 8... exd5 ({The dynamic} 8... Qxd5 {is also playable:} 9. f3 (9. Be2 c5 10.
Bf3 Ne4 11. Qc2 f5 12. Ne2 cxd4 13. exd4 Nc6 14. Be3 Ba6 $132 {Narciso Dublan,
M (2551)-Fedorchuk,S (2650)/Salou 2011/CBM 142 Extra (1/2, 36)}) 9... Ba6 (9...
Rd8 $5 {would prevent or at least delay e3-e4.}) 10. Bxa6 Nxa6 11. e4 Qb7 12.
Bg5 Nd7 13. Ne2 $14 {Michiels,B (2501)-Winants,L (2540)/Belgium 2012 (1/2, 60)}
) ({A previous game between the same opponents went:} 8... Nxd5 9. Qc2 Ba6 10.
Bxa6 Nxa6 11. e4 Ne7 12. Bg5 h6 13. Bxe7 Qxe7 14. Qc6 e5 15. Qb5 exd4 16. Qxa6
Qxe4+ 17. Kf1 Rfe8 $44 {Carlsen,M (2823)-Kramnik,V (2791)/Moscow 2011/CBM 144 
(1/2, 35)}) 9. Bd3 $146 {White takes measures against the occupation of the
e4-square.} (9. Nf3 Ne4 10. Qc2 Bf5 $132 {Vasilevich,T (2399)-Galojan,L (2373)/
Plovdiv 2010/CBM 138 Extra (1/2, 36)}) 9... Ba6 $1 {As a general rule, it is
the side playing against the hanging pawns who is interested in exchanging
these bishops. Here, we have enough elements to justify Black's last move.
Strategically, it is always a good idea to spoil the enemy's bishop pair.
Dynamically, the white bishop has moved already, which transforms the next
move into a loss of time.} (9... Ne4 10. Qc2 Bf5 $6 11. Ne2 $14) 10. Bxa6 Nxa6
11. Qd3 (11. Nf3 c5 $36) 11... Qc8 12. Ne2 ({With such poor development, White
cannot afford to play} 12. b4 c5 {. General exchanges on c5 would leave the
light squares desperately weak.}) 12... c5 13. b3 {Taking measures against the
threatened ...c5-c4.} cxd4 $5 {This seems to be the best moment to release the
tension.} ({After just a few neutral moves, such as} 13... Qb7 14. O-O Rac8 15.
Bb2 {Black would face some small problems already.}) 14. Qxd4 $2 {Too
ambitious. White wants to play against the Isolani, but underestimates the
significance of his delay in development.} (14. Nxd4 $2 {is almost as bad:} Nc5
15. Qb5 (15. Qe2 Nxb3 16. Nxb3 Qc3+ $17) (15. Qb1 Qa6) (15. Qc2 Qa6) 15... a6
16. Qxb6 Rb8 17. Qc6 Nxb3 18. Qxc8 Rfxc8 $32) (14. exd4 $11 {would have led to
plain equality.}) 14... Nc5 {White has problems defending the b3- and
d3-squares. Castling becomes a remote dream.} 15. Qd1 (15. Rb1 Qf5 $36) 15...
Qa6 16. Nf4 (16. O-O Nxb3 $17) 16... d4 {Strong enough, but maybe a bit
premature.} (16... g5 $6 17. Bb2 $132) ({Black could have prepared the central
break with:} 16... Rad8 $5 17. b4 (17. Bb2 d4 $1 18. Bxd4 Rxd4 19. Qxd4 Nxb3
20. Qb2 Nxa1 21. Qxa1 Qa5+ 22. Ke2 Qb5+ $40 {[%cal Gf8d8]}) 17... g5 18. bxc5 (
18. Bb2 d4) 18... gxf4 $36) 17. b4 {The only chance to stay in the game.} (17.
exd4 $2 Rfe8+ 18. Be3 g5 19. Ne2 Nd3+ 20. Kf1 Nd5 $40) 17... dxe3 ({The
unexpected resource} 17... Nd5 $5 {would have offered better chances for
retaining an attack:} 18. Nxd5 (18. bxc5 Nxf4 19. exf4 Rfe8+ 20. Kd2 bxc5 $19)
18... Nd3+ 19. Kd2 Nxf2 20. Qf1 Ne4+ 21. Ke1 d3 $40) 18. bxc5 Qa5+ 19. Kf1 Rad8
20. Qc2 Qb5+ {Resigning himself to a draw by perpetual.} 21. Ke1 (21. Kg1 $2
Qxc5 $19) 21... Qa5+ 22. Kf1 Qb5+ 23. Ke1 Qa5+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "WchT 8th"]
[Site "Ningbo"]
[Date "2011.07.21"]
[Round "5.2"]
[White "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"]
[Black "Amin, Bassem"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2711"]
[BlackElo "2609"]
[Annotator "Marin,M"]
[PlyCount "91"]
[EventDate "2011.07.17"]
[EventType "team-tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "CHN"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 144"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2011.09.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2011.09.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Russia"]
[BlackTeam "Egypt"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "RUS"]
[BlackTeamCountry "EGY"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 7. Bg5 dxc4 8.
Qxc4 b6 9. Rd1 Ba6 10. Qa4 Qd7 11. Qc2 Qc6 12. Qxc6 Nxc6 13. Bxf6 gxf6 14. Nf3
Rfd8 $146 {This novelty does not change the evaluation of the whole line as
unpleasant for Black.} (14... Ne7 15. e3 Bb7 16. Be2 $1 ({By means of rapid
development, White avoids the drawish simplifications arising after} 16. Rc1
Rfc8 17. Bd3 c5 18. dxc5 bxc5 19. Ke2 Rab8 20. Rc2 c4 $1 $11 {Wang Hao (2724)
-Kramnik,V (2780)/Shanghai 2010/CBM 138 (1/2, 47)}) 16... Rfc8 17. O-O Kf8 18.
Rc1 c5 19. dxc5 bxc5 20. Nd2 Rab8 21. Rc2 f5 22. Rd1 Bc6 23. b3 Bd5 24. Rc3 $14
{Dreev,A (2697)-Movsesian,S (2716)/Olginka 2011/CBM 142 (1-0, 58)}) 15. e3 Bxf1
16. Rxf1 Na5 17. Ke2 Rac8 18. Rd2 Kf8 19. Rb1 Ke8 20. Rc2 Nb7 21. Rbc1 $14 {
/+/- Black has pawn weaknesses on both wings and he also lacks space. White's
advantage may not be that big yet, but it certainly has enduring character.}
Kd7 22. b4 a5 23. g4 axb4 24. axb4 h6 25. h4 Rf8 26. g5 $1 $16 {This may look
like a declaration of war on the kingside, but the real target is the opposite
wing!} hxg5 27. hxg5 fxg5 28. Ne5+ Kd8 29. Nc6+ Kd7 30. Na7 Nd6 31. Kd3 g4 32.
e4 Rh8 33. Ke3 Rh3+ 34. Kf4 Rch8 35. Rxc7+ Kd8 36. Ke5 Ne8 37. Rxf7 R8h5+ 38.
Kxe6 Rh6+ 39. Ke5 R6h5+ 40. Rf5 Rxf5+ 41. Kxf5 Rf3+ 42. Kxg4 Rxf2 43. Kg3 Rb2
44. Nc6+ Kd7 45. Ne5+ Kd8 46. Kf4 1-0

[Event "EU-ch 11th"]
[Site "Rijeka"]
[Date "2010.03.08"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Golod, Vitali"]
[Black "Almasi, Zoltan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2590"]
[BlackElo "2720"]
[Annotator "Marin,M"]
[PlyCount "35"]
[EventDate "2010.03.06"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "CRO"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 136"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.05.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.05.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 7. Nf3 (7. cxd5
Ne4 8. Qc2 exd5 9. Bf4 Nc6 {Carlsen,M (2801)-Kramnik,V (2772)/Moscow 2009/CBM
133/[Krasenkow] (1/2, 58)}) 7... dxc4 8. Qxc4 b6 9. Bg5 Ba6 10. Qa4 c5 11. dxc5
(11. Rd1 cxd4 12. Nxd4 Qd7 13. Qxd7 Nbxd7 14. f3 Rac8 15. e4 Bxf1 16. Rxf1 Rc5
17. Be3 Ne5 18. b3 Rfc8 19. Ke2 Nc6 20. Nxc6 R5xc6 21. Rc1 Kf8 $11 {Buss,R 
(2416)-Ruck,R (2570)/Rijeka 2010/CBM 136 (1/2, 35)}) 11... bxc5 12. Rd1 Qb6 13.
Bxf6 gxf6 14. Rd2 Nc6 15. Qg4+ Kh8 16. Qh4 Kg7 17. Qg4+ Kh8 18. Qh4 {The same
moves and result as in Carlsen,M (2772)-Kramnik,V (2759)/Dortmund 2009/CBM 131.
} 1/2-1/2

[Event "World Cup"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2009.11.21"]
[Round "1.1"]
[White "Grachev, Boris V"]
[Black "Bartel, Mateusz"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2652"]
[BlackElo "2618"]
[Annotator "Marin,M"]
[PlyCount "42"]
[EventDate "2009.11.21"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 134"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.01.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.01.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 7. e3 b6 8. Nf3
Ba6 {A rare move. Black aims to exchange the light-squared bishops, which
favours him in the long run. However, after White's next move he will have to
give up the centre, which will leave White with some initiative.} (8... Bb7 {
is the main line.}) 9. b4 $1 {This position arose not only in the mini-match
at normal time rate, but also during the rapid games (twice!)} Bxc4 ({The
third game in which this line was played went} 9... dxc4 10. Bxc4 Ne4 11. Qc2
Bxc4 12. Qxc4 Qd5 13. Qc2 Nd7 14. O-O Rfc8 15. Bb2 Nd6 16. Rac1 a5 17. Ne5 Nxe5
18. dxe5 Ne8 19. Rfd1 Qb5 20. Qc6 {1/2 Grachev,B (2652)-Bartel,M (2618)/Khanty
Mansiysk 1.6 2009}) 10. Bxc4 dxc4 11. Qxc4 Qd5 12. Qxd5 Nxd5 ({In the next
game where this line was played, Black tried to improve with} 12... exd5 {
, but the opening's result did not seem entirely satisfactory.} 13. a4 Nbd7 14.
Ba3 Rfc8 15. Ke2 c6 16. Rhc1 {WHite intends to build up his queenside attack
slowly. It can be felt that Black should react immediately.} b5 $6 ({This
attempt to consolidate on light squares will fail painfully.} 16... a5 $5 {
may be better.}) 17. Ne5 Nxe5 18. dxe5 Nd7 19. Bb2 Nb6 20. axb5 cxb5 (20... Nc4
21. Bd4 cxb5 22. Ra6 Rc7 23. f4 $16) 21. Rxc8+ Rxc8 22. Bd4 Na4 23. Bxa7 Rc4
24. Bc5 $16 {Grachev,B (2652)-Bartel,M (2618)/Khanty Mansiysk 1.4 2009 (1/2,
37). Be it as it may, in his next game with White (7th of the match), Grachev
finally deviated with... 1.Nf3. Probably he was disappointed by the fact that
he could not win any single game from three more pleasant positions in the
Nimzo Indian.}) 13. Bd2 Nd7 14. Ke2 c5 15. Rhc1 {This also looks slightly
better for White. His king is active and the bishop may become very strong.}
Rfc8 16. bxc5 bxc5 17. Rab1 N5b6 18. dxc5 Nxc5 19. Nd4 Ne4 20. Nc6 Nxd2 21.
Kxd2 Kf8 1/2-1/2

[Event "Gibraltar Masters 11th"]
[Site "Caleta"]
[Date "2013.01.26"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Al Sayed, Mohammed"]
[Black "Georgiev, Kiril"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2507"]
[BlackElo "2643"]
[Annotator "Martin,A"]
[PlyCount "42"]
[EventDate "2013.01.22"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "GGB"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2016"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.10.08"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.10.08"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{I was very impressed by this coming game. Georgiev employs an old idea of
Nigel Short, which looks dubious at first sight, but which in fact,gives Black
very interesting counterplay.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. a3
Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 dxc4 7. Qxc4 b6 $5 {Black cedes the two Bishops early and the
pawn on c7 seems to be a target, but there are threats of ...Ba6 in the air
and it is going to take White quite some time to get his kingside going.} 8.
Bf4 ({Kingside development may well be superior than the immediate attack on c7
} 8. Nf3 Ba6 9. Qc2 (9. Qa4+ Qd7 10. Qxd7+ Nbxd7 11. Be3 Rc8 $11) 9... Nbd7 10.
Bg5 O-O 11. e4 Bxf1 12. Rxf1 h6 13. Bxf6 Nxf6 14. O-O-O Rc8 15. Kb1 Qe7 16.
Rfe1 Rfd8 17. Ne5 c5 18. d5 exd5 19. exd5 Qc7 20. Nc6 Rd7 21. Ne7+ Rxe7 22. d6
Qxd6 23. Rxd6 Rxe1+ $14 {Kramnik,V (2780)-Kasparov,G (2815)/Moscow 1998}) 8...
O-O ({The original game in this variation went:} 8... Ba6 9. Qxc7 Qxc7 (9...
Qxd4 10. Rd1 $18) 10. Bxc7 Nc6 11. Nf3 Rc8 12. Be5 Nxe5 13. dxe5 Nd7 14. b4 Bb7
15. e3 Bxf3 16. gxf3 Nxe5 17. Bb5+ Ke7 18. f4 Nd7 19. Ba6 Rc2 20. Bd3 Rc7 21.
Kd2 Nf6 22. Rac1 Rhc8 23. Rxc7+ Rxc7 24. Rg1 g6 25. h3 {1/2-1/2 Baburin,A 
(2590)-Short,N (2670)/Port Erin 1998}) 9. Bxc7 $146 (9. Nf3 Ba6 (9... Nd5 10.
Bg5) 10. Qxc7 Qd5 $1 11. Qd6 Qf5 12. g4 Qc2 13. Rc1 Qxb2 14. g5 (14. Qb4 Qa2
15. Bd6 Rd8 16. Bg3 Nbd7 17. e3 Rac8 18. Rd1 Nd5 19. Qd2 Qxa3 20. Bxa6 Qxa6 21.
Qd3 Qb7 22. O-O b5 23. Ng5 N7f6 24. e4 Nc3 25. e5 Rxd4 {0-1 Eames,R (2294)
-Buckley,G (2392)/Brentwood 2008}) 14... Nd5 15. Bd2 Nc6 $1 16. e3 (16. Rxc6
Rfd8 17. Qg3 Rac8 18. Rxc8 Rxc8) (16. Qxc6 Rac8 17. e3 Rxc6 18. Rxc6 Bb7 19.
Rc1 Nf4 20. exf4 Bxf3 21. Rg1 Qxd4) 16... Bxf1 17. Kxf1 Na5 18. Kg2 Rfd8 19.
Qg3 Nb3 20. Rcd1 Qc2 21. Rhe1 {1/2-1/2 Georgiev,K (2680)-Illescas Cordoba,M 
(2601)/Erts La Massana 2012}) ({The point of castling first is revealed after} 
9. Qxc7 Qxd4 {when Rd1 is no longer a winning threat.}) 9... Qd7 10. Be5 {
White has to spend time rescuing his bishop as the upcoming ...Ba6 followed by
...Rc8 is very fast.} ({It is very hard to believe in} 10. Bxb8 {as Black's
development momentum is increased:} Rxb8 11. Nf3 Bb7 12. e3 Bxf3 13. gxf3 Qb7 (
13... Rbc8 14. Qb5 Qb7 15. Rg1 g6 16. Be2 Rfd8) 14. Be2 Rbc8 15. Qa4 Rc7 {
White has equality at best in this position}) 10... Ba6 11. Qb3 (11. Qc7 Rc8
12. Qxd7 Nbxd7 13. Bxf6 Nxf6 14. Kd1 Rc7 15. Rc1 Rxc1+ 16. Kxc1 Ne4 17. Nh3
Rc8+ 18. Kd1 Bc4) 11... Rc8 {Georgiev sees no problem in letting White double
the kingside pawns, as this is yet another move by the dark-squared bishop,.}
12. Bxf6 gxf6 13. e3 (13. Rd1 Nc6 14. Qg3+ Kh8 (14... Kf8 15. Qh4 Kg7 16. Qg4+
Kf8) 15. Qf4 {can be suggested as an improvement for White, when Black has to
prove that he has more than just equality after} Kg7 16. Qg3+ (16. h4 $5 Ne7
17. Rh3)) 13... Bxf1 14. Kxf1 Nc6 15. Qb5 $6 ({Al-Sayed is obviously worried
about the idea of ...Na5, but he has to complete his development before
anything else and therefore} 15. Ne2 {was indicated. White is OK with care:}
Na5 16. Qd3 Qa4 17. b4 Qb3 18. Rd1 Qxd3 19. Rxd3 Nc4 20. g4 a5 21. Kg2 $13)
15... a6 $1 16. Qxb6 (16. Qa4 b5 17. Qd1 e5 18. Nf3 Rd8 19. Rc1 exd4 20. h4
Rac8 21. Rh3 dxe3 22. Qxd7 Rxd7 23. fxe3 Rdc7 {leaves Black better coordinated,
but of course, White has drawing chances.}) 16... Rcb8 17. Qc5 Rxb2 {Black's
initiative is starting to get very serious.} 18. g3 $2 {White does not like
his position any more and it shows.} (18. Ne2 {was again called for, but by
now Black is on top:} Rc8 19. Qc3 Qb7 20. Qd3 Na5 $17) 18... e5 $1 19. Nf3 $2 (
19. Qc1 $8 {was maybe the only move to survive, but even here the position is
most uncomfortable:} Rab8 20. Kg2 exd4 $17) 19... Rc8 20. Qc3 Qb7 ({Or} 20...
Qh3+ $1 21. Kg1 (21. Ke1 Nb4 $1) 21... Nxd4) 21. Qd3 Nxd4 $1 {Crushing, thanks
to 22.exd4 e4 23.Qd1 Rcc2 24.Ne1 Rxf2+ 25.Kg1 Qc8 26.h4 Qf5. Short's idea is
certainly a good practical weapon as we have seen, although there were several
points during this game where White could improve. Nevertheless, a
well-handled initiative by Black.} (21... Nxd4 22. exd4 e4 23. Qd1 Rcc2 24. Ne1
Rxf2+ 25. Kg1 Qc8 26. h4 Qf5 $19) 0-1

[Event "Abu Dhabi op 24th"]
[Site "Abu Dhabi"]
[Date "2017.08.16"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Mekhitarian, Krikor Sevag"]
[Black "Deac, Bogdan Daniel"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2534"]
[BlackElo "2573"]
[Annotator "Mekhitarian,K"]
[PlyCount "69"]
[EventDate "2017.08.14"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "UAE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 180"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2017.09.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2017.09.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteClock "0:00:41"]
[BlackClock "0:01:35"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 {I haven't played this line for 5 years,
so I thought it would be a nice try to surprise my opponent. Black now has a
wide range of options} d5 (4... O-O 5. a3 {is the main move} (5. e4 $5 {
an aggressive try} d5 (5... d6 $5 {accepting a somewhat passive position to
avoid contact} 6. a3 Bxc3+ 7. bxc3 e5 8. Bd3 c5 9. Ne2 Nc6 {with a strategic
battle} 10. O-O (10. d5 Ne7 11. O-O Nh5 12. f4 exf4 13. Nxf4 Nxf4 14. Bxf4 Ng6
$11 {0-1 (39) Shishkin,V (2511)-Nisipeanu,L (2664) Eforie Nord 2009}) 10... Nd7
11. f4 $5 $36 {0-1 (47) Kovar,V (2369)-Sasikiran,K (2654) Czech Republic 2017})
6. e5 Ne4 7. Bd3 c5 8. Nf3 cxd4 9. Nxd4 Nd7 10. Bf4 Qh4 $1 11. g3 Qh5 12. O-O
g5 {with heavy complications to follow, but again Black has no problems here}
13. cxd5 Bxc3 $1 {is the cleanest way to deal with it} (13... gxf4 14. dxe6
Bxc3 $2 (14... Nxc3 15. exd7 Bxd7 16. bxc3 Rac8 17. Qd1 Bg4 18. Be2 fxg3 19.
hxg3 Bxe2 20. Nxe2 Ba5 $44) 15. bxc3 Nxe5 16. Bxe4 Bxe6 17. Rfe1 $1 $16 (17.
Rfb1 Rae8 18. gxf4 Qg4+ 19. Kh1 Qxf4 20. Nxe6 Rxe6 21. Rb4 Kh8 $11 {½-½ (36)
Nisipeanu,L (2683)-Kramnik,V (2812) Dortmund 2017})) 14. bxc3 exd5 15. Bxe4
dxe4 16. e6 gxf4 17. exd7 Bxd7 18. Qxe4 fxg3 19. fxg3 b6 20. Nf5 Rae8 21. Qd5
Bxf5 22. Rxf5 Qe2 $11 {½-½ (25) Mamedyarov,S (2759)-Aronian,L (2795) Bilbao
2013}) (5. Nf3 c5 (5... d5 $5) 6. dxc5 Na6 7. g3 {is the current fashion,
trying to play like a g3 Nimzo} (7. c6 $5 {a creative move introduced by
Morozevich} dxc6 $6 (7... bxc6 $1) 8. a3 Bxc3+ 9. Qxc3 Nc5 10. Be3 Nce4 $6 11.
Qe5 $16 b5 $2 12. g4 $1 $18 c5 13. g5 Qa5+ 14. b4 cxb4 15. gxf6 Bb7 16. Bd2
Rfc8 17. Bxb4 Qb6 18. c5 {1-0 (37) Morozevich,A (2788)-Ponomariov,R (2718)
Moscow 2008, and White won with the extra piece.}) 7... Nxc5 8. Bg2 Nce4 (8...
b6 9. O-O Bb7 10. Nb5 Be4 11. Qd1 Nb7 {controlling a possible Nd6} 12. Bf4 $5 (
12. a3 Be7 13. Bf4 Rc8 14. Rc1 a6 15. Nc3 Bxf3 16. Bxf3 Na5 17. b4 Nxc4 18. Bb7
{White wins the exchange, but Black gets a pawn and a strong queenside
pressure in return} Nh5 19. Bxc8 Qxc8 20. Bd2 Qb7 21. e4 Nf6 22. Bf4 Rc8 23. e5
Ne8 24. Qd3 b5 25. Ne4 f5 $1 26. exf6 Nxf6 $132 {½-½ (58) Szabo,G (2540)
-Kovacevic,A (2522) Hungary 2016}) 12... a6 13. Nd6 Bxd6 14. Bxd6 Nxd6 15. Qxd6
Qb8 16. Rfd1 Qb7 17. Bf1 Bxf3 18. exf3 Rac8 19. f4 $14 {½-½ (71) Akobian,V 
(2661)-Bruzon Batista,L (2652) Saint Louis 2017}) 9. O-O Nxc3 10. bxc3 Be7 11.
e4 d6 12. e5 dxe5 13. Nxe5 Qc7 14. Qe2 Nd7 15. Bf4 Nxe5 16. Bxe5 Bd6 17. Rfe1
Rb8 18. Rad1 Bxe5 19. Qxe5 Qxe5 20. Rxe5 b6 21. c5 $1 $14 {1-0 (55) Navara,D 
(2730)-Caruana,F (2787) Wijk aan Zee 2016}) 5... Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 b6 {is the
classical approach} (6... d5 {has been the fashionable reply; Black tries to
open the position quickly} 7. Nf3 dxc4 8. Qxc4 b6 $1 {and has been doing well
in recent practice} 9. Bg5 Ba6 10. Qa4 h6 11. Bh4 c5 12. dxc5 bxc5 13. Rc1 Qb6
14. Bxf6 gxf6 15. Rc2 c4 16. e3 Bb5 17. Qb4 Rc8 18. Be2 Nd7 $6 (18... Na6 $1
$36) 19. O-O Rab8 20. Rfc1 $14 {½-½ (33) So,W (2810)-Anand,V (2783) Saint
Louis 2017}) 7. Bg5 Bb7 $11 {Theory has seen thousands of games in this
variation, when White battles to keep the strategic advantage of the bishop
pair, while Black tries to obtain a good initiative due to the better
development}) 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 c5 $5 {A very aggressive try, that he had
never played but I was well prepared against it and was happy to see it.} (6...
Ne4 $5 7. Qc2 c5 {trying to simplify} 8. dxc5 Nc6 9. Nf3 (9. b4 $4 Qf6 $19 {
[%csl Gf2][%cal Gf6f2,Gf6a1]}) 9... Qa5+ 10. Bd2 Qxc5 11. e3 Nxd2 12. Nxd2 dxc4
{Black achieves a symmetrical position, but White has a microscopic edge due
to the better development} 13. Nxc4 $5 (13. Bxc4 O-O 14. b4 Qe7 15. O-O Bd7 {
I lost this position in 2011} 16. Qb2 Rac8 17. Rac1 Rfd8 18. Be2 Be8 19. Nb3
Nb8 20. h3 Bc6 21. Nd4 Bd5 22. Rxc8 Rxc8 23. Rc1 $11 {/+/=: 1-0 (49) Leitao,R 
(2626)-Mekhitarian,K (2487) Campinas 2011}) 13... Ne5 14. Qe4 Nxc4 15. Bxc4 Qc7
16. O-O Bd7 17. Rac1 Qb6 18. Bd3 Rd8 19. Qe5 O-O 20. Rc4 $36 {1-0 (37)
Gustafsson,J (2626)-Sengupta,D (2583) Bangkok 2017}) (6... dxc4 7. Qxc4 b6 $5 {
kind of transposes to the O-O lines after 8.Nf3 O-O, for example}) 7. dxc5 d4
8. Qg3 Nc6 {Black sacrifices a pawn in order to get a nice initiative and also
exploit White's delayed development} 9. Nf3 (9. Qxg7 {is very risky} Rg8 10.
Qh6 Na5 $5 $146 {[%csl Rb3,Rc4]} (10... e5 11. g3 (11. b4 $5) 11... Rg6 (11...
Na5 $1 $36) 12. Qd2 Ne4 13. Qd1 Nxc5 14. Bg2 a5 15. Nf3 e4 $6 (15... a4 $44 {
should be interesting enough for black}) 16. Nd2 Bf5 17. O-O a4 18. b4 axb3 19.
Nxb3 Na4 20. Bd2 $16 {0-1 (46) Hambleton,A (2445)-Edouard,R (2639) Montreal
2015}) (10... Rg6 11. Qd2 e5 12. b4 Ne4 13. Qb2 a5 (13... Qf6 $5 14. e3 a5 $1
$44) 14. b5 Qf6 15. e3 Ne7 {with very nice compensation once again} 16. Nf3 Bh3
$2 (16... Bg4 $1 $44) 17. exd4 Bxg2 18. Nxe5 $2 (18. Bxg2 Rxg2 19. Qe2 $1 $16)
18... Bxh1 19. Nxg6 hxg6 $19 {0-1 (40) Huang,Q (2476)-Kosteniuk,A (2495)
Astana 2013})) 9... e5 10. b4 (10. Nxe5 $6 Qa5+ 11. Bd2 $6 (11. Kd1 {played by
the World Champion is his youth, back in 2007} Ne4 $1 (11... Nxe5 $6 12. Qxe5+
Be6 13. Bd2 Qa4+ 14. Ke1 Rd8 15. c6 Qxc6 16. Qb5 Bxc4 17. Qxc6+ bxc6 18. Rc1
$14 {½-½ (70) Carlsen,M (2714)-Naiditsch,A (2639) Khanty-Mansiysk 2007}) 12.
Qf4 Nxf2+ 13. Qxf2 Nxe5 14. Qxd4 f6 15. Kc2 O-O {and white is in bad shape} 16.
Bd2 Qc7 17. e4 Be6 $40 {0-1 (29) Debashis,D (2451)-Moiseenko,A (2702) Fujairah
2012}) 11... Qxd2+ 12. Kxd2 Ne4+ 13. Ke1 Nxg3 14. Nxc6 Nxh1 15. Nxd4 h5 $5 (
15... b6 $5 $146) 16. e3 h4 {with a very weird position: White has trouble
getting the knight back, remains a rook down, but with three pawns for it.} 17.
Nb5 Kf8 18. Bd3 $44 {0-1 (31) Henrichs,T (2492)-Moiseenko,A (2698) Germany 2014
}) 10... O-O (10... e4 11. Nd2 (11. b5 Na5 12. Nd2 e3 $1 13. fxe3 Ng4 $1 $44 {
1-0 (60) Gladyszev,O (2497)-Bentivegna,F (2361) Cutro 2008, with a strong
attack against White's king.}) 11... O-O (11... e3 $5 {with a similar idea,
but now this is a lesser evil for White, as the black knight would be more
dangerous on a5} 12. fxe3 O-O $5 $36 (12... Ng4 13. Ne4 $1 $16)) 12. e3 a5 13.
b5 Ne7 14. Be2 Be6 15. Bb2 Nf5 16. Qf4 Rc8 17. Rd1 $1 $18 {½-½ (36)
Ivanisevic,I (2643)-Naiditsch,A (2657) Bled 2016 White can't castle now
because of dxe3 hitting the d2-knight. Black's initiative is slowly
disappearing and he ended up in a lost position, but escaped after all.}) 11.
Nxe5 $1 Nh5 $146 (11... Ne4 $5 12. Nxc6 bxc6 (12... Nxg3 {transposes to the
game}) 13. Qd3 (13. Qf4 $5 $16 {with Bb2 to follow}) 13... Bf5 14. Bb2 $16 {
0-1 (45) Dreev,A (2607)-Sakaev,K (2634) Moscow 2007, is also good for White,
but this is a better try than 11...Nh5, which gives White a confortable
endgame.}) 12. Nxc6 Nxg3 13. Nxd8 Nxh1 14. g3 $1 {A tough endgame for Black:
White will get the knight back, the queenside pawns will be extremely
uncomfortable} Rxd8 15. Bg2 d3 $1 (15... Nxf2 $2 {Wnning a pawn is not worth
it, creating counterplay is more urgent} 16. Kxf2 {[%csl Rb7]} d3 17. Bf4 dxe2
18. Re1 $1 $18) (15... Nxg3 {similar to Nxf2} 16. hxg3 $18 {[%csl Rb7,Rc8]})
16. Bxh1 (16. exd3 {was an option, but during the game I thought it helped
Black to develop} Rxd3 17. Bxh1 Bg4 $1 {threatening mate} 18. Be3 Rad8 19. Bd5
$16 {White maintains a good edge and winning chances}) 16... dxe2 17. Bf4 a5 (
17... Rd4 $5 18. Kxe2 $16 {was my idea. Now I have Ke3 attacking the rook
after Bg4+}) 18. b5 Bg4 19. Bd5 Rac8 20. Be3 $6 (20. Bd6 $1 {I wanted to play
this natural move, but after a long think, I couldn't find the correct
variations} b6 {I was scared of this move - now I could win by improving my
rook position, something I didn't realise} (20... Rd7 21. b6 $1 {is very sad
for Black} Be6 22. Kxe2 $18) 21. Ra2 $1 (21. f3 $6 {I only thought about this}
bxc5 22. Bf4 Rxd5 $1 (22... Be6 $2 23. b6 Bxd5 24. cxd5 Rd7 25. Rb1 Rb7 26. Bc7
$1 Kf8 27. d6 $18 {is simply winning for White}) 23. cxd5 Bxf3 {with good
chances of holding the game} 24. d6 f6 25. Kf2 $14) (21. Rb1 $1 {also does the
job} bxc5 22. Bf4 $18) 21... bxc5 22. Bf4 $1 {b6 is unstoppable now} Be6 23.
Rd2 $1 {that is why Ra2} Bxd5 24. Rxd5 $18) 20... Rd7 21. f3 $6 {forces him to
find a good move, exchanging the bishops. There was no hurry to take on e2,
Now Black equalses} (21. Rb1 $1 {again gave me nice winning chances} Be6 22. c6
$1 bxc6 23. bxc6 Rd6 24. c7 $1 Rxc7 25. Bf4 Rxd5 26. cxd5 Bf5 {forced} 27. Rb5
$16 {should be close to winning}) 21... Be6 22. Bxe6 fxe6 23. Kxe2 e5 24. Rb1
Kf7 $11 25. a4 Ke6 26. Rb3 h5 27. h3 g6 28. Rb1 Kf5 29. g4+ hxg4 30. hxg4+ Kf6
31. Rh1 Kg7 32. Bf2 Rcd8 33. Be3 Rc8 34. Bf2 Rcd8 35. Be3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Hangzhou (Women) 1st"]
[Site "Hangzhou"]
[Date "2011.07.22"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Zhu, Chen"]
[Black "Kosintseva, Tatiana"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2522"]
[BlackElo "2557"]
[Annotator "Mikhalchishin,A"]
[PlyCount "67"]
[EventDate "2011.07.14"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "CHN"]
[EventCategory "11"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 144"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2011.09.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2011.09.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[TimeControl "40/5400+30:1800+30"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 7. Bg5 c5 ({
At the moment most players choose a simple continuation, which gives Black
chances to equalise. Speaking honestly - the positions are a bit boring. But
there exists a much sharper move and Kosintseva tries it!} 7... dxc4 8. Qxc4 b6
9. Rd1 Ba6 10. Qc2 h6 11. Bh4 Nbd7 12. e4 Bxf1 13. Kxf1 Qc8 14. Ne2 Qb7 15. f3
c5 16. Kf2 Rac8 17. Qd2 cxd4 18. Nxd4 Nxe4+ 19. fxe4 Nc5 20. Qe3 Nxe4+ 21. Kg1
Qd5 22. h3 g5 23. Be1 f5 24. h4 g4 25. Qxh6 Rf6 26. Qe3 Rd8 27. Kh2 f4 28. Qe2
g3+ 29. Kg1 e5 30. Qg4+ Kf7 31. Qh5+ Kg8 32. Qg4+ Kf7 33. Qh5+ Kg8 34. Qg4+ {
1/2 Ivanchuk,V (2779)-Kramnik,V (2785)/Monte Carlo 2011}) 8. dxc5 {This is
accepting the sharp play. But simpler moves promise White no less than in the
game.} d4 9. Qc2 {White has a completely different approach, to put the queen
to the kingside. It looks to be a very serious try:} (9. Qg3 e5 (9... Nbd7 10.
O-O-O (10. Nf3 e5 11. Nxe5 Nxc5 12. Nd3 Nce4 13. Bxf6 Nxf6 14. e3 $6 (14. Qf4 {
is much stronger!}) 14... Re8 15. O-O-O dxe3 16. fxe3 Bg4 17. Rd2 Qb6 18. Be2
Bxe2 19. Rxe2 Qb3 20. Rd1 Rad8 {with very real black compensation for the pawn,
1/2 Georgiev,K (2669)-Kosintseva,N (2552)/Caleta 2011}) 10... e5 11. e3 ({
White would have to fight for an advantage after} 11. Nf3 Re8 12. e3) 11... Qa5
12. Bh6 Nh5 13. Qg5 Nxc5 14. Qxh5 g6 15. Qh4 Bf5 16. e4 Bxe4 17. Rd2 f6 {
and Black can simply exploit White's lack of development,1-0 Turov,M (2631)
-Zakharov,A (2395)/Moscow 2011}) (9... Ne4 10. Bxd8 Nxg3 11. hxg3 Rxd8 12.
O-O-O Nc6 13. Nf3 e5 14. e3 Bg4 15. Be2 dxe3 16. fxe3 e4 17. Nd4 Rxd4 18. Rxd4
Bxe2 19. Rd7 Rb8 20. b3 Bg4 21. Rc7 {Black's two pieces are stronger than the
rook on the 7th rank.} h6 {0-1 Al Sayed,M (2502)-Minhazuddin,A (2350)/
Guangzhou 2010}) 10. Bh6 Ng4 11. Bxg7 Na6 12. Nf3 Kxg7 13. h3 e4 14. hxg4 exf3
15. Qf4 Rh8 16. Qh6+ Kg8 17. Rh5 f6 18. O-O-O Bxg4 19. Rh4 Bf5 20. Rdxd4 Qf8
21. Rhg4+ Bxg4 22. Rxg4+ Kf7 23. Qh5+ Ke7 24. Qd5 Qh6+ 25. e3 Rhd8 26. Qe4+ Kd7
27. Qxb7+ Nc7 28. Rd4+ Ke8 29. Re4+ Kf8 30. Qxc7 Kg8 31. Rg4+ Kh8 32. gxf3 Rg8
33. Bd3 Rac8 34. Qxa7 Rxg4 35. fxg4 Qh2 36. Qxh7+ Qxh7 37. Bxh7 Kxh7 38. b4 {
and the rook can't fight against 6 pawns! 1-0 Thingstad,E (2155)-Rubio Mejia,L
(2409)/Fagernes 2011}) 9... e5 {A very logical line to create a strong centre.}
10. e3 {Generally speaking, White has to try to attack the opponent's centre
immediately, and this correct approach is much stronger than other options.} (
10. e4 $6 {[%csl Gd4]} a5 11. f4 (11. Nf3 $6 h6 12. Bh4 Re8 13. Bd3 Nbd7 14.
O-O a4 15. Nd2 Nxc5 $17 {0-1 Thorfinnsson,B (2383)-Hammer,J (2566)/Oslo 2009})
11... h6 12. Bh4 exf4 13. O-O-O Nc6 14. Nf3 Re8 $1 15. e5 Nxe5 16. Rxd4 Qe7 $36
{1/2 Dreev,A (2688)-Wojtaszek,R (2608)/Budva 2009}) (10. Nf3 Re8 11. e3 h6 12.
Bxf6 Qxf6 13. Bd3 Nd7 14. O-O Nxc5 15. exd4 exd4 16. b4 Nxd3 17. Qxd3 Rd8 $15 {
1/2 Morozevich,A (2771)-Anand,V (2791)/Nice 2009}) (10. O-O-O Nbd7 (10... h6
11. Bh4 Nbd7 12. Nf3 Qe7 13. g4 $6 Nxc5 14. g5 hxg5 15. Bxg5 Bg4 16. Rg1 d3 $1
17. Qc3 Nce4 $17 {0-1 Lorscheid,G (2345)-Babula,V (2566)/Pardubice 2009}) 11.
e3 h6 12. Bh4 dxe3 13. fxe3 Qe7 14. Nf3 a5 15. Kb1 a4 16. Be2 Ra6 17. Rd6 Nxc5
18. Rxa6 bxa6 $15 {1/2 Flear,G (2485)-Riff,J (2507)/Le Port Marly 2009}) 10...
h6 11. Bh4 Qe7 ({The exchange with} 11... dxe3 {is much weaker:} 12. fxe3 Nbd7
13. b4 a5 14. Rb1 axb4 15. axb4 Ra3 16. Qc1 Ra2 17. Ne2 Nxc5 18. Nc3 $16 {
1-0 Mchedlishvili,M (2629)-Jumabayev,R (2562)/Tashkent 2011 (29)}) ({
Positional options are possible} 11... Re8 12. O-O-O Nc6 13. Nf3 b6 $5 (13...
Bg4 14. Be2 Bh5 {[%cal Rh5g6]} 15. exd4 exd4 16. Rhe1 g5 (16... Bg6 $2 17. Bd3)
17. Bg3 Ne4 18. Bd3 Nxc5 19. Rxe8+ Qxe8 20. Bh7+ Kg7 21. h4 $5 $36) 14. exd4
exd4 15. cxb6 axb6 16. Bd3 Qd6 {[%cal Rc6b4]} 17. Kb1 (17. Rhe1 $5 $16 Nb4 $2
18. Rxe8+ Nxe8 19. axb4 Ra1+ 20. Kd2 $18) 17... Bg4 18. h3 Bxf3 19. gxf3 Ne5
20. Bg3 Qc6 21. Be4 (21. Bxe5 $142 Rxe5 22. f4 Ree8 23. Rhg1 $16) 21... Nxe4
22. Qxe4 {1-0 Malakhov,V (2712)-Karjakin,S (2760)/Moscow 2010}) (11... Nbd7 12.
exd4 exd4 13. O-O-O Nxc5 14. Nf3 {[%csl Rd4]} Qb6 ({It was better to pin} 14...
Bg4 15. Rxd4 Qb6 16. Bxf6 Bxf3) 15. Nxd4 Rd8 16. f3 Bd7 17. Nb5 Bxb5 18. Rxd8+
Rxd8 19. cxb5 Ne6 20. Kb1 ({It was necessary to try to keep the bishop pair:} 
20. Bf2) 20... Nd4 21. Qf2 Qe6 22. Bd3 g5 23. Bg3 Nxb5 24. Bxb5 Qf5+ 25. Qc2
Qxb5 26. Re1 Rd5 27. Qc3 Kg7 28. Be5 Qd3+ 29. Qxd3 Rxd3 30. Kc2 {1/2 Romanko,M
(2414)-Zhukova,N (2447)/Antakya 2010}) 12. O-O-O ({There was another logical
attempt, but Black would obtain sufficient counterplay:} 12. Bxf6 Qxf6 13. Nf3
Re8 14. Bd3 Na6 15. O-O (15. b4 $2 e4 16. Bxe4 d3) 15... Nxc5 16. exd4 exd4 17.
b4 Nxd3 18. Qxd3 Rd8) 12... Nc6 ({White would just have small compensation for
the pawn after} 12... dxe3 13. fxe3 Qxc5 14. Bxf6 Qxe3+ 15. Kb1 gxf6 16. Bd3
Nc6 17. Nf3 Rd8 18. Rhe1 Qc5 19. h3 Kg7) 13. Ne2 $6 ({A much more natural
development would be} 13. Nf3 Bg4 14. Be2 d3 15. Bxd3 {and the typical tactics
does not work:} e4 16. Bxf6 exd3 17. Bxe7 dxc2 18. Rd4 $1 Nxd4 19. Nxd4 Rfe8
20. Bd6 $16) 13... dxe3 14. Rd6 $1 ({A clear advantage for Black was to be
expected after} 14. fxe3 Qxc5 15. Bf2 Be6) 14... Be6 $6 ({It was not necessary
to be afraid of active play:} 14... g5 15. Bg3 exf2 16. Bxf2 Be6) 15. fxe3 Rfd8
({It was possible to try a more direct approach:} 15... g5 16. Bf2 Nd7 17. e4 (
17. b4 a5 18. b5 Nxc5) 17... Rac8 18. Nc3 Nd4 19. Bxd4 exd4 20. Rxd4 Qxc5 21.
Qd2) 16. Bxf6 ({Here there was a nice possibility, which led to a slightly
better position for White:} 16. Nc3 Rxd6 ({It would be dangerous to weaken the
kingside by} 16... g5 17. Be1 Rxd6 18. cxd6 Qxd6 19. h4) 17. cxd6 Qxd6 18. Bxf6
gxf6 19. Bd3 Qc5 20. Qf2) 16... Qxf6 17. Nc3 ({It is neccessary to keep pieces
closer to the king, but of course the other knight move was playable:} 17. Ng3)
17... Qg5 18. Qe4 $6 ({It was not bad to try to fight for the d-file:} 18. Qd3)
18... Rxd6 $2 ({Much stronger was the direct attack of the c4-pawn:} 18... Na5)
19. cxd6 {Now White has no doubled pawns plus a free extra pawn; this is an
invaluable asset.} Rd8 20. h4 $6 ({Very sharp play would start after the
logical protection} 20. c5 Nd4 21. b4 b6) 20... Qg3 21. c5 f5 $2 ({White's
problems with the development would be exposed after} 21... Qe1+ 22. Nd1 Na5 ({
or} 22... Nd4)) 22. Qf3 Qe1+ 23. Kc2 f4 24. Bc4 $1 {The exchange sacrifice
looks logical, as the pawns c5 and d6 are sufficient compensation.} ({White
did not like a dangerous adventure for his own king:} 24. Qe2 Bf5+ 25. Kb3 Qc1
26. g4 Be6+ 27. Ka4) 24... Qxh1 25. Bxe6+ Kh8 {Pawns are not important -
activity is the key!} 26. Bd5 Qxh4 $2 ({Much better was the logical} 26... fxe3
27. Bxc6 bxc6 28. Qxc6 Qxh4 29. Qf3 Qf2+ 30. Qe2 {and the c5 and d6 pawns are
very dangerous.}) 27. Bxc6 bxc6 28. exf4 exf4 (28... e4 29. Nxe4 {would be no
better.}) 29. b4 $1 {The white king will find a safe heaven on b3 and White's
pawn mass will be the decisive factor in the position.} Rf8 30. Qxc6 Qf6 31.
Qd5 $1 {This queen centralisation is decisive - the white pawns are too strong.
} Rd8 32. d7 Qg6+ 33. Kb3 Qf6 34. c6 1-0

[Event "Nalchik FIDE GP (Women)"]
[Site "Nalchik"]
[Date "2010.05.07"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Mkrtchian, Lilit"]
[Black "Kosintseva, Tatiana"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2503"]
[BlackElo "2524"]
[Annotator "Mikhalchishin,A"]
[PlyCount "80"]
[EventDate "2010.04.26"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "10"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 136"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.05.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.05.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[TimeControl "5400"]
[WhiteClock "0:32:00"]

1. c4 Nf6 2. d4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 7. cxd5 Ne4 8.
Qc2 exd5 9. Bf4 Nc6 10. e3 Re8 11. O-O-O (11. Nf3 g5 12. Bg3 g4 13. Ne5 Nxe5
14. Bxe5 c5 15. Bd3 Bf5 16. Qe2 f6 17. Bxe4 Bxe4 18. Bg3 Qa5+ 19. Qd2 Qxd2+ 20.
Kxd2 c4 21. f3 $11 {1/2 Carlsen,M (2801)-Kramnik,V (2772)/Moscow RUS 2009 (58)}
) 11... Bf5 12. Bd3 Rc8 $3 {Played instantly! This means, there had been
serious preparation in the opening.} 13. f3 Nxd4 14. exd4 c5 15. fxe4 (15. Kb1
c4 ({Wrong would be} 15... cxd4 16. Qa4 Nc5 17. Qxe8+ Qxe8 18. Bxf5 {and White
has huge compensation for the queen.}) 16. fxe4 (16. Bxe4 Rxe4 17. fxe4 Bxe4
18. Qxe4 dxe4 19. Ne2 Qd7 20. Nc3 f5 21. g4 $1 {with a very unclear position.})
) 15... dxe4 16. Bc4 (16. Qb3 exd3 17. Nf3 Qd7 18. Kb1 Be6 19. d5 Bxd5 20. Qxd3
Be4 21. Qxe4 Qxd1+ 22. Rxd1 Rxe4 {and in such types of position a rook and two
pawns are better than White's two pieces.}) 16... cxd4 17. Kb1 Be6 (17... b5
18. Bxf7+ Kxf7 19. Qb3+ Be6 20. Qxb5 Kg8 21. Nh3 e3 22. Ng5 e2 23. Rc1 {
led to very unusual position with nothing to be afraid of for White.}) 18. Qxe4
Bxc4 19. Qf3 Qb6 20. Nh3 d3 $6 ({This is the only place where one can
criticiseTatjana - simpler was} 20... Be2 21. Qf2 Bxd1 22. Rxd1 Rc4) 21. Rxd3 (
{White could be mated after} 21. b4 Ba2+ 22. Kxa2 Rc2+ 23. Kb1 Qd4 24. Bc1 Qc4
25. Bb2 Qb3) 21... Bxd3+ 22. Qxd3 Rcd8 23. Qf3 ({Better was to be closer to
the king} 23. Qc2) 23... Qb5 $1 {A very strong move, which increases the
coordination of Black's pieces.} 24. Bc1 Rd3 25. Qf1 Qb3 26. Nf4 Rdd8 {A bit
strange - much more logical was to prepare doubling of the rooks.} (26... Rd6)
27. h4 Rc8 28. Qf2 (28. Qd3 {was more logical, to stop the attack with
exchanges.}) 28... b5 $1 {It is necessary to open up White's king.} 29. Rf1 a5
30. Qf3 Qc2+ 31. Ka1 b4 32. Nd5 f6 33. Qg4 $2 ({White had the incredible
chance to save the game with a perpetual here:} 33. Nxf6+ $1 gxf6 34. Qd5+ Kh8
35. Bg5 $1 fxg5 36. Qd4+ Kg8 37. Qd5+) 33... Kh8 34. Nb6 Rcd8 35. h5 h6 36.
axb4 ({White can not open the a-file, but the position was bad also after} 36.
Qc4 Qxg2) 36... axb4 37. Qxb4 Ra8+ 38. Nxa8 Rxa8+ 39. Qa3 Rxa3+ 40. bxa3 Qxg2
0-1

[Event "Redbus KO"]
[Site "Southend"]
[Date "1999.07.25"]
[Round "4.4"]
[White "Lalic, Bogdan"]
[Black "Plaskett, H James"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2550"]
[BlackElo "2510"]
[Annotator "Pein,M"]
[PlyCount "66"]
[EventDate "1999.04.??"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "4"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 071"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1999.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1999.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 dxc4 7. Qxc4 b6 {
A move first played by Nigel Short against Alexander Baburin at the Isle of
Man Open 1998 Short prepared it for his match against Kasparov in 1993 but
never got the chance to playit} 8. Bf4 Ba6 9. Qxc7 (9. Qa4+ Qd7 (9... c6 10. e3
Bxf1 11. Kxf1) 10. Qxd7+ Kxd7) 9... Qxc7 10. Bxc7 Nc6 11. Rc1 {A new move made
up at the board} Nxd4 12. Be5 (12. e3 Bxf1 13. Kxf1 Nb3 14. Rc3 Ne4 15. Rxb3
Nd2+) 12... Nb3 (12... Nf5) 13. Rc3 Nc5 14. Bxf6 (14. Rg3 Nce4 15. Rxg7) (14.
f3 Nd5) (14. Bd4) 14... gxf6 15. e3 Bxf1 (15... Bb7 16. b4 Nd7) 16. Kxf1 O-O $1
({Not} 16... Ke7 17. b4 Nd7 {When Black may even be fractionally worse}) 17.
Ke2 (17. b4 Na4 18. Rc6 Rac8) 17... Rac8 18. Nf3 Na4 19. Rcc1 Nxb2 20. Nd4 Nc4
21. Rc3 Nd6 22. Rhc1 (22. Nc6 Rc7 $1) (22. Rc6 {Was another try but the rook
and pawn endgame after} Nb5 23. Rhc1 Nxd4+ 24. exd4 Rxc6 25. Rxc6 Rd8 26. Rc7
a5 27. Ke3 Rd5 28. a4 b5 29. axb5 Rxb5 30. Ra7 Kg7 {is very bad. Black can
slowly improve (Lalic)}) 22... Rxc3 23. Rxc3 Rc8 24. Rd3 (24. Rxc8+ Nxc8 25.
Kd3 Kf8 26. Kc4 a6 27. a4 Nd6+ {and Black will gradually improve his position
and use the extra pawn. The kingside weaknesses just do not matter}) 24... e5 {
When I saw this I was very pleased ( Plaskett) This looks antipositional but
it forces the white knight onto a bad circuit and this is decisive if Nb3 then
Nb5 is strong} 25. Ne6 {Desperation and probably losing by force} Nc4 26. Nd8
Kf8 {The White knight will never escape from the back two ranks and Plaskett
gradually surrounds it} 27. Nb7 Ke7 28. a4 Rc7 29. Rc3 Rc6 {Preparing Kd7-c7}
30. Rd3 Nb2 {Winning a second pawn, its over} 31. Rd8 Nxa4 32. Ra8 Rc7 33. Rxa7
Nc3+ {and ...Nb5 wins a piece - White resigns} 0-1

[Event "Grand Slam Final 1st"]
[Site "Bilbao"]
[Date "2008.09.09"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2737"]
[BlackElo "2777"]
[Annotator "Postny,E"]
[PlyCount "115"]
[EventDate "2008.09.02"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 126"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.10.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.10.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 O-O {This is the
most solid continuation.} ({If Black is in an aggressive mood, he can try} 6...
c5 7. dxc5 d4 {the line that I investigated in CBM 122.}) 7. Nf3 dxc4 8. Qxc4
b6 9. g3 {To my surprise, there are only few games that went this way.
Objectively, this continuation is not that promising for White.} ({More common
continuations are:} 9. Bg5) (9. Bf4) 9... Ba6 (9... Bb7 10. Bg2 Bd5 11. Qc2
Nbd7 12. O-O (12. b4 $5) 12... c5 13. Bg5 Rc8 14. Qa4 Bc6 15. Qc4 h6 16. Bxf6
Qxf6 $11 {1-0 Ivanov,S (2538)-Beliavsky,A (2618)/Vrnjacka Banja 1999/EXT 2000 
(41)}) 10. Qc2 (10. Qa4 Qd5 $6 {Too risky.} (10... Bb7 $142 11. Bg2 Nbd7 {
[%cal Gc7c5]}) 11. Bg2 Bb5 12. Qc2 Nc6 13. Be3 Na5 14. b4 Nc4 15. Nh4 Nxe3 16.
fxe3 $16 {[%csl Ra8][%cal Gg2a8] 1-0 Riazantsev,A (2594)-Berkovich,M (2392)/
Cappelle la Grande 2006/CBM 110 ext (27)}) 10... Nbd7 11. Bg2 c5 12. b4 {
This move restricts Black's knight and prepares the fianchetto of the
dark-squared bishop, according to circumstances.} (12. O-O cxd4 13. Nxd4 Rc8
$11 {Now 14.Qa4 would be met by 14...Nc5.}) 12... Rc8 {In an interview after
the game Aronian criticized this move and suggested 12...Qc8 as an improvement.
I think that this move is not the reason for Topalov's troubles in this game.}
(12... Qc8 13. dxc5 bxc5 14. Be3 cxb4 15. Qxc8 Rfxc8 16. Nd4 Nd5 17. Bxd5 exd5
18. axb4 Bc4 19. Kd2 $14) (12... cxd4 $5 {This looks a bit unhuman but, the
following variations confirm that Black's position is perfectly playable.} 13.
Nxd4 Rc8 14. Qa4 (14. Qd1 Nd5 15. Bb2 (15. Bxd5 exd5 16. b5 Bb7 17. O-O Rc4 18.
Bb2 Nc5 $11) 15... Ne5 16. Nxe6 fxe6 17. Bxe5 Qg5 18. Qd4 (18. Bb2 $2 Nf4 $1)
18... Rc4 19. Qb2 Rfc8 20. O-O Rc2 $44) 14... Ne5 15. Bb2 Bc4 16. Rd1 (16. Qxa7
$4 Bd5 $19 {[%csl Ra7,Rg2][%cal Rc8a8]}) 16... Qe7 17. O-O Bd5 18. Bxd5 Nxd5
$11) 13. Qa4 Bb7 14. dxc5 bxc5 ({It was a bit more precise to include an
intermediate move before recapturing Pc5:} 14... Bc6 15. Qb3 bxc5) 15. O-O a6
$6 {This move is not necessary. It was more useful to develop the queen.} (
15... Qb6 16. Be3 Rfd8 17. Rab1 Bc6 18. b5 Be4 19. Rb2 Qb7 {and Black is not
worse.}) 16. Rd1 Nd5 $6 (16... Nb6 $1 17. Qb3 (17. Rxd8 Nxa4 18. Rxc8 Rxc8 19.
bxc5 Nxc5 $11) 17... Bd5 18. Qd3 cxb4 19. axb4 Bc4 20. Qc2 Nbd5 $1 {This is
tactically justified.} 21. e4 $140 $2 Bb5 $1 22. Qb1 Nc3 $1 23. Rxd8 Rfxd8 24.
Qb3 Ne2+ 25. Kh1 Nxc1 26. Qa3 Rd1+ 27. Ng1 Nd3 $1 {with a big storm in White's
camp.}) 17. Bg5 (17. Bb2 $143 Qe7 {[%csl Rb4]}) 17... Qe8 {The alternative 17..
.f6 was a concession that White wanted to provoke.} 18. Bd2 N5b6 (18... Qe7 19.
Rac1 h6 20. e4 N5b6 21. Qa5 Bxe4 22. Qxa6 $14 Ra8 $2 23. Qe2 Bd5 (23... Bb7 24.
bxc5 Nxc5 25. Bb4 $18) 24. bxc5 Nxc5 25. Bb4 Rfc8 26. Qe3 Nc4 27. Rxc4 Bxc4 28.
Nd2 $18 {[%csl Ra8,Rc4,Rc5]}) 19. Qc2 $1 $16 {After numerous inaccuracies
Topalov has landed in a difficult position. At the moment White is threatening
20.Ng5.} Nf6 (19... cxb4 {This tempting move does not help Black.} 20. Qb1 {
[%cal Gf3g5]} Bxf3 21. Bxf3 bxa3 22. Bb4 $16) (19... f5 $5 {is ugly but, at
least it could keep the material balance. After the move in the text Black
loses a pawn.}) 20. bxc5 Be4 21. Qb3 Na4 22. Bb4 a5 (22... Nxc5 23. Qe3 Ng4 24.
Qd4 e5 25. Qc4 {and Black loses material.}) 23. Bxa5 Nxc5 24. Qb2 Na4 25. Qd4
Qb5 26. Bb4 Rfe8 27. Qe5 Qb7 (27... Qxe2 $2 28. Nd4 Qc4 29. Bxe4 Nxe4 30. Qxe4
e5 31. Rac1 Qxc1 32. Rxc1 Rxc1+ 33. Kg2 Rc4 34. Qd5 Rxd4 35. Qc6 $18 {[%csl
Ra4,Re8]}) 28. Rac1 {So, Black lost a pawn without any compensation.} h6 29. h3
Bd5 30. Qa1 Ne4 31. Rxc8 {In general, piece exchanges are welcome for the side
that has the material advantage.} Rxc8 32. Rc1 Rxc1+ 33. Qxc1 Qa7 34. Qc8+ Kh7
35. e3 Nxg3 $1 {Good practical chance but insufficient.} 36. Nd4 $1 Ne4 (36...
Bxg2 37. Kxg2 Nf5 (37... Nh5 $2 38. Nb5 Qb6 39. Qc2+ f5 40. Qxa4 Qc6+ 41. Kh2
$18) (37... Ne4 $2 38. Nc6 Qb6 39. Ne7 {[%cal Gc8g8]} Nf6 $8 40. Qc2+ $18 {
[%cal Gc2a4,Gc2h7]}) 38. Nxf5 exf5 39. Qxf5+ g6 40. Qd5 $18) 37. Qc2 f5 38.
Nxe6 Bxe6 39. Bxe4 Qf7 40. Bg2 {After a short tactical melee the position has
become stable again. White's extra pawn should decide the outcome in his
favour. He only has to be a bit careful about his king. The process of
converting the advantage into a full point was performed convincingly by Levon.
} Nb6 41. Qc5 Nd5 42. Qf8 Qh5 43. Qd6 Bf7 44. Qe5 Nf6 45. f3 Qg6 46. a4 f4 47.
exf4 Qb1+ 48. Qe1 Qa2 49. a5 Bg6 50. Bf1 Nd5 51. Bd2 {White's bishops are
excellent.} Qa4 52. a6 Nxf4 53. Bxf4 Qxf4 54. a7 Qa4 55. Qf2 Qa1 56. Kh2 Qa4
57. Bc4 $1 Qa5 58. Qa2 (58. Qa2 Qe5+ 59. Kh1 Qe1+ 60. Kg2 $18) 1-0

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 4th"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2009.11.07"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Morozevich, Alexander"]
[Black "Kramnik, Vladimir"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2750"]
[BlackElo "2772"]
[Annotator "Postny,E"]
[PlyCount "90"]
[EventDate "2009.11.05"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 133"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.11.19"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.11.19"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{In last year's Tal memorial tournament Kramnik suffered a defeat against
Morozevich, also in round three. This time he managed to take a convincing
revanche.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 7.
Nf3 dxc4 8. Qxc4 b6 9. Bf4 (9. Bg5 Ba6 10. Qa4 c5 11. dxc5 bxc5 12. Rd1 Qb6 13.
Bxf6 gxf6 14. Rd2 Nc6 15. Qg4+ Kh8 16. Qh4 Kg7 17. Qg4+ Kh8 18. Qh4 Kg7 19.
Qg4+ {1/2-1/2 Carlsen,M (2772)-Kramnik,V (2759)/Dortmund GER 2009/The Week in
Chess 765}) 9... Ba6 $1 {Black can ignore the threat to Pc7.} ({The older
continuation} 9... Nd5 {proved to be insufficient for equality in view of} 10.
Bg5 $1) 10. Qc2 {Black gets sufficient compensation as proved in the following
games:} (10. Qxc7 Qd5 11. Qd6 (11. Qc2 Rc8 12. Qb1 Nbd7 13. e4 Qb7 14. e5 Bxf1
15. Rxf1 Nd5 16. Bd2 Qa6 $44 {1-0 Likavsky,T (2498)-Bosiocic,M (2578)/
Ansfelden AUT 2009/The Week in Chess 751 (46)}) 11... Qb5 12. Qb4 Qd5 13. Qd6 (
13. e3 Bxf1 14. Kxf1 Nc6 15. Qa4 Rfc8 $44) (13. Rc1 Nc6 14. Qd6 Qxd6 15. Bxd6
Rfc8 $44 {[%cal Gc6a5,Gf6e4]}) 13... Qb5 14. Qb4 Qd5 15. Qd6 Qb5 16. Qb4 Qd5 {
1/2-1/2 Khenkin,I (2647)-Wojtaszek,R (2599)/Dresden GER 2008/The Week in Chess
733}) 10... Nbd7 11. e4 {Again, both captures of Pc7 are risky for White as he
gets seriously behind in development.} (11. Qxc7 $6 Qxc7 12. Bxc7 Rfc8 13. Bf4
Rc2 $15) (11. Bxc7 $6 Qc8 12. Rc1 Qb7 13. Bf4 Rfc8 14. Qd1 Qe4 15. Bd2 Rxc1 16.
Qxc1 Rc8 17. Qd1 h6 $1 $17 {0-1 Likavsky,T (2480)-Delchev,A (2628)/Fuegen 2006/
CBM 115 (35)}) 11... Bxf1 12. Kxf1 c5 {Black must play actively through the
center before White consolidates his position.} 13. Bd6 Re8 14. e5 Nd5 {
It seems to me that White just lost the right to castle for nothing. Where did
he make a mistake? Hard to tell, perhaps the whole line starting with 9.Bf4 is
not so promising. White should search in the direction of 9.Bg5.} 15. h4 {
Trying to create some threats against the black king.} (15. dxc5 Nxc5 16. Bxc5
Rc8 17. b4 bxc5 $15) 15... cxd4 (15... Rc8 16. Ng5 g6 17. Qd2 cxd4 18. Rh3 (18.
h5 $2 Ne3+ 19. fxe3 Qxg5 $19) (18. Qxd4 Nc5 19. Rh3 h6 20. Ne4 Nxe4 21. Qxe4
Qd7 $15) 18... Nxe5 19. Bxe5 f6 20. Qxd4 fxg5 21. Qg4 $44 {[%csl Ge5]}) 16. Ng5
(16. Nxd4 Nc5 $1 17. Bxc5 Rc8 {The same trick yields Black a pleasant position.
}) 16... f5 17. Qc4 $6 ({It was possible to go back by} 17. Qd1 {[%cal Gd1h5]}
h6 18. Nf3 $15 {Objectively, this would have been better, but this is like to
admit the failure of the whole idea. Morozevich is not that kind of player.})
17... Qc8 $1 18. Qxd4 Nc5 19. Rd1 (19. Bxc5 bxc5 20. Qd2 h6 21. Nf3 Rb8 $17) (
19. Rh3 $2 h6 {and White loses material.}) (19. Rc1 Nb3 20. Rxc8 Nxd4 21. Rxa8
Rxa8 {The endgame is terrible for White.}) 19... Nb3 $1 20. Qd3 Nc1 $1 21. Qb5
Qc2 22. Rxd5 {Forced.} (22. Rd4 Nb3 {and the rook is trapped anyway.}) 22... a6
$1 {Necessary intermediate move.} 23. Qxb6 (23. Qd7 Qc4+ 24. Kg1 Ne2+ 25. Kf1
exd5 $19) 23... Qc4+ 24. Kg1 exd5 (24... Qxd5 25. Qc7 Ne2+ 26. Kh2 Nf4 {
was good as well.}) 25. g3 h6 26. Nf3 (26. Qb7 $5 {was an interesting chance,
though insufficient. The refutation is far from easy:} hxg5 27. e6 $1 {[%cal
Gb7f7,Gd6e5]} Ne2+ 28. Kh2 Rxe6 $3 29. Qxa8+ Kh7 30. hxg5 Qe4 $1 31. Qb8 Re8
32. f3 Qe3 33. Kg2+ Kg6 34. Bc5 Nd4 $1 35. Qb6+ Re6 $19) 26... f4 $19 {Black
is an exchange up, and even in possession of an initative.} 27. g4 Qe4 28. Kg2
Nd3 29. Qb3 Qc4 30. Qb7 (30. Qd1 Rac8 31. Qd2 {trying to trap the knight. This
would force Kramnik to find the following, not very difficult tactical idea:}
Qe4 32. Rd1 Nxf2 $1 33. Qxf2 Rc2 34. Rd2 Rxd2 35. Qxd2 Rc8 $19) 30... Nxf2 $1 {
Nice work by the black knight in this game.} 31. Kxf2 Qc2+ 32. Kg1 Qd1+ 33. Kf2
(33. Kg2 Qe2+ 34. Kg1 Qxf3 $19) 33... Qxh1 {Black is already two exchanges up,
but should still perform a minimal accuracy to clinch the full point.} 34. e6 (
34. Qxd5+ Kh8 $19 (34... Kh7 $4 35. Ng5+ hxg5 36. Qxh1 $18)) 34... Rac8 35.
Qf7+ Kh8 36. Bc5 Qc1 ({It's never too late to spoil everything:} 36... Rxc5 $4
37. Qxe8+ Kh7 38. Ng5+ $1 hxg5 39. Qh5+ {with perpetual check.}) 37. b4 Qc2+
38. Kg1 Qe2 39. Nd4 Qxg4+ 40. Kf2 Qxh4+ 41. Ke2 f3+ 42. Kxf3 Rf8 $1 {Finishing
the game in style.} 43. Bxf8 Rc3+ 44. Kg2 (44. Ke2 Qe4+ 45. Kf1 Rc1+ 46. Kf2
Qxd4+ {and the king will be mated very soon.}) 44... Qg3+ 45. Kf1 Rc1+ {
Excellently played by Kramnik!} (45... Rc1+ 46. Ke2 Re1+ 47. Kd2 Qe3+ 48. Kc2
Rc1+ 49. Kb2 Qc3+ 50. Ka2 Ra1#) 0-1

[Event "Rohde op 10th"]
[Site "Sautron"]
[Date "2010.10.24"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Berczes, David"]
[Black "Prohaszka, Peter"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2520"]
[BlackElo "2529"]
[Annotator "Primel,D"]
[PlyCount "51"]
[EventDate "2010.10.23"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "FRA"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2012"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2011.11.24"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2011.11.24"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 (6... b6 {
la grande ligne mais d5 est actuellement plus populaire а haut niveau}) 7. Nf3
dxc4 (7... Ne4) 8. Qxc4 b6 {[%cal Gc8a6]} 9. Bg5 (9. Bf4 Ba6 $11) 9... Ba6 10.
Qa4 (10. Qc2 Nbd7 (10... h6 11. Bh4 (11. Bf4 Nd5 {[%cal Gd5f4,Gd5c7]} 12. Bg3 (
12. Bd2 f5 13. e4 Bxf1 14. Kxf1 fxe4 15. Qxe4 {[%csl Re6][%cal Ga1e1,Gg2g3,
Gf1g2]} Qd7 16. Re1 Rf6 17. h4 $1 Nc6 (17... c5) 18. h5 {[%csl Rg6]} (18. g4 $2
{[%cal Gg4g5]} Qf7 19. Rh3 Rf8) 18... Raf8 19. Rh4 $13 {[%cal Gh4g4,Gd2h6]})
12... f5 $11) 11... c5 $1 {Les Noirs semblent avoir des bonnes compensations
si les Blancs acceptent le gambit.} 12. dxc5 bxc5 13. Rd1 (13. Qxc5 Nbd7 $32 {
[%csl Re1];Zhu Chen (2480)-Pelletier,Y (2592) Cap d'Agde CCAS Gp-B rapid 2010 
(3) 0-1})) 11. Rd1 {[%cal Gd1d8,Gd4c5]} (11. e4 $5 Bxf1 $11)) 10... c5 (10...
h6) 11. dxc5 bxc5 12. Rd1 Qb6 13. Bxf6 (13. e3 $5 $146 {Comme Bf6 ne donne pas
grand chose, 13.e3 mériterait peut-être un essai pratique} Bxf1 14. Bxf6 gxf6
15. Kxf1 Qxb2 16. g3 Qb7 17. Kg2 Nc6 {[%cal Gc6e5,Gb7g2]} 18. Rb1 Qc7 19. Rhc1
$14 {[%csl Rc5]}) 13... gxf6 14. Rd2 Nc6 15. Qg4+ Kh8 16. Qh4 Kg7 17. Qg4+ (17.
Qg3+ Kh8 {1/2-1/2 Gustafsson,J (2627)-Movsesian,S (2708)/Caleta 2010/Mega2010
Update 08}) 17... Kh8 18. Qh4 Kg7 19. Ng5 $146 {forçant la nulle} (19. Qg4+ {
Carlsen,M (2772)-Kramnik,V (2759) Dortmund SuperGM 2009 (3) 1/2}) 19... fxg5
20. Qxg5+ Kh8 21. Qf6+ Kg8 22. Qg5+ Kh8 23. Qf6+ Kg8 24. Qg5+ Kh8 25. Qf6+ Kg8
26. Qg5+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Rohde op 10th"]
[Site "Sautron"]
[Date "2010.10.30"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Maiorov, Nikita"]
[Black "Monroy, Charles"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2546"]
[BlackElo "2431"]
[Annotator "Primel,D"]
[PlyCount "87"]
[EventDate "2010.10.23"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "FRA"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2012"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2011.11.24"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2011.11.24"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {01h30+30s} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 {Trés populaire depuis
quelques années} (4... O-O) (4... c5) 5. a3 (5. cxd5 {L'alternative} Qxd5 {
Gagunashvili,M (2576)-Lalic,B (2531) Rohde op 08th 2008 (5) 1-0}) 5... Bxc3+ 6.
Qxc3 O-O (6... dxc4 {Carlsen,M (2714)-Adams,M (2729) Khanty-Mansiysk (m/1) 101/
434 2007 1-0}) (6... Ne4 {la grande ligne} 7. Qc2 c5 8. dxc5 Nc6 9. cxd5 exd5
10. Nf3 Bf5 $32 {[%cal Gf5c2]}) 7. e3 {Les alternatives Bg5 et Nf3 sont plus
populaires mais e3 va ensuite transposer dans les lignes plus populaires.} (7.
Bg5) (7. Nf3) 7... dxc4 {Développe le Bf1 avec tempo et cette ligne rarissime
est un peu douteuse} (7... Nbd7 $142 8. Nf3 c5 9. dxc5 Nxc5 10. b4 Nce4 11. Qd4
({RR} 11. Qb2) 11... dxc4 12. Qxd8 Rxd8 13. Bxc4 b5 14. Be2 ({RR} 14. Bxb5 Nc3
15. Be2 Nxe2 16. Kxe2 Ba6+ 17. Ke1 Rac8) 14... Nc3 15. Bb2 Nxe2 16. Kxe2 Bb7
17. Rhd1 Bd5 18. Bxf6 gxf6 19. Nd2 e5 20. f3 Kf8 21. Kf2 a5 22. bxa5 {O'Kelly
de Galway,A-Yanofsky,D/Groningen 1946/MCL/[ChessBase]/1/2-1/2 (54)}) (7... b6
$142 8. Nf3 {Carlsen,M (2772)-Bacrot,E (2721) Dortmund SuperGM 2009 (10) 1/2})
(7... c5 $5 8. Nf3 cxd4 9. Nxd4 Re8 10. cxd5 e5 $1 11. Nf3 Nxd5 $132 {
Rodshtein,M (2605)-Lafuente,P (2505) Barcelona Sants op 10th 2008 (9) 1/2}) 8.
Bxc4 $16 {01h27} b6 9. Ne2 {[%cal Ge2g3] 01h11} (9. Nf3 {Djukic,N (2494)
-Sjugirov,S (2643) EUR-ch 12th Aix les Bains 2011 (6.57) 0-1}) 9... Bb7 10. O-O
Nbd7 11. b3 {[%cal Gc1b2,Gc3g7] 01h05} (11. f3 {[%cal Ge3e4] Un coup candidat
naturel pour obtenir un centre fort tout en limitant la force du Bb7} c5 {
[%cal Ga8c8,Gc8c3]}) 11... Rc8 12. Bb2 c5 13. Ng3 {01h04} Qc7 14. Rfd1 Bd5 15.
Ba6 {53""} Bb7 16. Bxb7 Qxb7 17. d5 $1 Rce8 (17... exd5) 18. dxe6 fxe6 19. Rd3
$16 Re7 20. Rad1 Nd5 21. Qd2 {41""} Nb8 22. e4 {22""} Nf4 23. Rd8 Ref7 $2 $138
24. Be5 {24""} Ng6 25. Bxb8 Rxd8 26. Qxd8+ Rf8 27. Qd6 Qxb8 28. Qxe6+ Kh8 29.
Ne2 {20""} Re8 30. Qd5 Rf8 31. g3 Qc8 32. f4 Qa6 33. Qd3 Qxa3 34. f5 $40 c4 (
34... Ne7) 35. Qxc4 Ne5 36. Qc3 Qa2 $2 37. Nc1 {Joué а tempo} Qa5 38. Qxa5 bxa5
39. Rd5 $18 Re8 40. Rxa5 Nf3+ 41. Kg2 Ne1+ 42. Kf2 Rxe4 43. Rxa7 Re8 44. Rc7
1-0

[Event "World Cup"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2007.12.03"]
[Round "4.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Adams, Michael"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2714"]
[BlackElo "2729"]
[Annotator "Rogozenco,D"]
[PlyCount "153"]
[EventDate "2007.11.24"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 122"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 dxc4 ({Another
variation that becomes more and more popular lately is} 6... c5) ({Adams
usually prefered the main} 6... Ne4) 7. Qxc4 b6 {Nigel Short's idea. Black
tries to use the exposed position of the white queen.} 8. Bf4 {The most
principled answer.} (8. Nf3) 8... Ba6 ({Earlier this year Carlsen achieved
advantage in a blitz game against Onischuk after} 8... Nd5 9. Bg3 Ba6 10. Qa4+
Qd7 11. Qc2 Qb5 12. Nf3 Nc6 13. Rc1 Nde7 14. b4 Qh5 15. Qa4 Bb5 16. Qb3 Qd5 17.
Qxd5 exd5 18. e3 Bxf1 19. Kxf1 Rc8 20. Ke2 {1/2-1/2 Carlsen,M (2710)-Onischuk,
A (2650)/Biel (blitz) 2007 (54)}) 9. Qxc7 Qxc7 10. Bxc7 {Black has
compensation for the pawn thanks to the lead in development. However, the
present game reminds that the development advantage is a temporary factor and
can easily disappear.} O-O {With this novelty Black keeps the possibility to
develop the knight either on d7 or c6. However, Adams failed to show the
advantages of the knight on d7.} ({Short played} 10... Nc6 11. Nf3 Rc8 12. Be5
({The critical variation seems to be} 12. Bf4 Na5 13. b4) 12... Nxe5 13. dxe5
Nd7 14. b4 Bb7 15. e3 Bxf3 16. gxf3 Nxe5 17. Bb5+ Ke7 18. f4 Nd7 {and Black
soon achieved a draw in Baburin,A (2590)-Short,N (2670)/Port Erin 1998.}) 11.
Nf3 Rc8 12. Bf4 Nbd7 ({Another way to look for compensation is} 12... Nc6 13.
e3 Bxf1 14. Rxf1 Na5) 13. Nd2 {The begin of an impressive maneuver.} Rc2 ({
Deserves attention to chase away the bishop from the diagonal c1-h6:} 13... Nd5
14. Bg3 Rc2 15. Rb1 Rac8 16. Kd1 f5 {although after} 17. e3 Bxf1 18. Rxf1 {
White will most likely find a way to coordinate his pieces and keep the extra
pawn (appart from Ke2-d3, followed by Nb3 and Rfc1, White also has Re1-e2, or
in some cases even Nb3 and Rc1, using the pin on the c-file).}) 14. Rb1 Rac8 {
Adams achieved a visible activity, but Carlsen finds a strong defensive plan:
the knight goes to a1 in order to control square c2.} 15. Nb3 $1 Bc4 (15... Nd5
16. Bd2 N7f6 17. f3 $16 {[%cal Gb3a1]}) 16. Na1 $1 Ba2 17. Nxc2 Bxb1 18. Na1
Nd5 19. Bd2 {A rare case when White can be proud having a knight in the corner.
Indeed, it controls the vital square c2 and cannot be disturbed there. The
bishop controls square c1, so in fact the yound Norvegian is just a healthy
pawn up. White's position contains no weaknesses and he will soon complete
development.} e5 20. e3 $1 ({Stronger than} 20. dxe5 Nxe5 21. e3 Bd3 (21...
Nd3+ 22. Bxd3 Bxd3 23. f3 $16)) 20... exd4 21. exd4 Nb8 (21... Re8+ 22. Kd1 $16
) (21... Nf8 22. Ba6 Re8+ 23. Kd1 Ne6 24. Re1 Ndc7 $14 {/+/-}) 22. f3 Nc6 23.
Bc4 Rd8 24. Kf2 Bf5 25. Nb3 {White has everything protected and the game
enters in the phase of converting the extra pawn. This is not a trivial task,
though, since the isolated d-pawn is blockaded and it is difficult for White
to find targets for attack.} Be6 26. Rc1 f6 27. a4 $1 {Now Black faces an
unpleasant choice. Allowing the further advance of the a-pawn will open files
for white pieces. Adams chooses to blockade it, but then the b-pawn remains
weak.} a5 28. Bc3 Bf7 29. Nd2 Nde7 30. Bf1 $5 {Carlsen decides to give up the
d4-pawn in order to open the position, where his bishop pair together with the
weakness of pawn b6 will secure the advantage.} ({White could have kept the
extra pawn with} 30. Rd1 $16 Nxd4 $140 $6 31. Bxf7+ Kxf7 32. Nc4 Nec6 33. Nxb6
$18) 30... Nxd4 31. Re1 Ndc6 32. Nc4 Nd5 33. Rb1 Kf8 (33... Nxc3 34. bxc3 $16 {
[%csl Rb6]}) 34. Be1 Ke7 (34... Ncb4 35. Rd1 (35. Kg1 $5 Re8 36. Bf2 Re6 37.
Rd1 $14) 35... Nc2 36. Bd2 $14 (36. Nxb6 $6 Nxe1 37. Nxd5 Nxg2 $11)) 35. Kg1 $1
{Again Carlsen finds a powerful way to improve the position.} Nb8 36. Bf2 Nd7
37. Re1+ Kf8 38. Rd1 Ke7 39. Re1+ Kf8 40. Nd6 Ne5 (40... Nc5 41. Nxf7 Kxf7 42.
Bxc5 ({or} 42. Bb5 $14 {/+/-}) 42... bxc5 43. Bc4 Rd7 44. Rd1 Ke6 45. f4 g5 46.
g3 $16) 41. Nxf7 Kxf7 $16 42. Rd1 {The bishops are much stronger than the
knights and in spite of material eqiality White has a clear advantage.} Ke7 43.
f4 (43. Ba6 $16) 43... Ng4 (43... Nxf4 44. Rxd8 Kxd8 45. Bxb6+ $18) 44. Re1+
Kf8 45. Bd4 Rd6 ({Again taking on f4 loses:} 45... Nxf4 46. Bxb6 Rd5 47. b4 $1
axb4 48. a5 {and the knights can't fight against the marginal passed pawn.})
46. h3 Nh6 ({Here} 46... Nxf4 {was worth a try, at the same time containing a
trap.} 47. Re4 ({After} 47. Rd1 $2 {(threatening 48.Bc5) Black has a strong
answer} Ke7 $1 {which is also the only defense} (47... Ne6 48. Bc5 $18) (47...
Ke8 48. hxg4 Ne6 49. Re1 $18) 48. hxg4 Ne6 {and it is White who must look for
escape}) 47... Ne6 48. Rxe6 Rxe6 49. hxg4 $16 {White is clearly better, but
winning it might be a difficult task.}) 47. Rd1 $1 Nf5 (47... Nxf4 $2 48. Bc5
$18) 48. Bf2 Ke7 (48... Nxf4 49. Rxd6 Nxd6 50. Bxb6 $16) 49. g4 Nh6 50. f5 Nf7
51. Bg2 Nf4 52. Rxd6 Nxd6 53. Bxb6 {In spite of Adams' efforts the inevitable
happened. Now the extra pawn secures a technical win.} Nc4 54. Bc5+ Kd7 55. Bf1
({Even stronger is} 55. b3 Nxg2 (55... Nd2 56. Be3 Nxg2 57. Bxd2 $18) 56. Kxg2
Nd2 57. b4 $18) 55... Nxb2 56. Bb5+ Kd8 ({More stubborn is} 56... Kc7 {
although after} 57. Bf8 ({or} 57. h4 {[%cal Gc5f8]}) 57... g6 58. fxg6 hxg6 59.
h4 {Black's position is difficult anyway}) 57. Bb6+ Ke7 58. Kh2 $18 Nd5 59.
Bxa5 Kd6 60. Bd2 Kc5 61. Kg3 Nc7 62. Be3+ Kb4 63. Bd2+ Kc5 64. Bc1 Nc4 65. Bxc4
Kxc4 66. Bd2 Na6 67. a5 Kb5 68. Kf3 Nc5 69. Bc3 h6 70. Ke3 Kc4 71. Bd4 Na6 72.
Ke4 Nb4 73. h4 Kb5 74. Bc3 Na6 75. Kd5 Nc5 76. Bd4 Nd3 77. Ke6 1-0

[Event "WchT 8th"]
[Site "Ningbo"]
[Date "2011.07.17"]
[Round "1.2"]
[White "Roiz, Michael"]
[Black "Movsesian, Sergei"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2669"]
[BlackElo "2700"]
[Annotator "Roiz,M"]
[PlyCount "69"]
[EventDate "2011.07.17"]
[EventType "team-tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "CHN"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 144"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2011.09.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2011.09.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Israel"]
[BlackTeam "Armenia"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "ISR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "ARM"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 7. Nf3 dxc4 8.
Qxc4 b6 9. Bg5 {That line was quite predictable, although Sergei is known as a
great expert in the Chebanenko system.} Bb7 {The most fashionable move.} (9...
Ba6) 10. Rc1 {White should accept the challenge.} ({In the following game
Black shouldn't experience any problems due to his excellent development:} 10.
Rd1 Nbd7 11. e3 Qc8 (11... Bd5 12. Qc2 c5 13. dxc5 bxc5 $11) 12. Be2 c5 13. O-O
Bd5 14. Qa4 Bc6 (14... a6 15. dxc5 Nxc5 16. Qh4 Nce4 $11) 15. Qc2 Qb7 16. Bxf6
Nxf6 17. dxc5 Be4 18. Qb3 bxc5 19. Qxb7 Bxb7 20. Rc1 $14 {1-0 Bukavshin,I 
(2458)-Predojevic,B (2626)/Moscow RUS 2011/The Week in Chess 849 (38)}) 10...
c5 11. dxc5 Bd5 $2 $146 {This terrible move was made after a long meditation.
Black is just losing a lot of time, since e2-e4 will come soon with a tempo!
More than that, the queen has nothing to do on c4 anyway, so Black's decision
looks very strange.} ({Perhaps Sergei couldn't remember the ''official
theory'' which starts after} 11... h6 12. Bxf6 (12. Bf4 Bd5 (12... bxc5 $6 13.
Qxc5 Nbd7 14. Qc7 $1 {doesn't solve Black's problems.}) 13. Qc2 (13. Qa4 Nbd7)
13... Nbd7 (13... bxc5 14. e3 Nc6 15. Bc4) 14. Bd6 (14. c6 Rc8 15. c7 Qe7 16.
Ne5 (16. e3 e5 17. Bg3 Nc5) 16... Nc5 17. b4 Nb3 18. Nc6 Bxc6 19. Qxb3 e5 $132)
(14. cxb6 Qxb6 15. e3 (15. b4 Ne4 16. e3 Qb7 {followed by 17...Rac8.}) 15...
Qb7 16. Qc7 (16. Be2 Rac8 17. Qb1 Be4 18. Qa1 Rxc1+ 19. Qxc1 Rc8 $36) 16...
Rac8 (16... Qxb2 17. Rc2) 17. Qxb7 Rxc1+ 18. Kd2 Rxf1 19. Qxd5 Rxf2+ 20. Ke1
Nxd5 21. Kxf2 Rc8 $15) 14... Nxc5 $1 15. Bxf8 Qxf8 16. e3 (16. b4 Nb3 17. Rd1
a5 $1 18. e4 (18. Rxd5 Nxd5 19. Qxb3 axb4 20. a4 b5) 18... Rc8 19. Qb2 Nxe4 $15
) 16... Nb3 17. Bc4 (17. Rd1 Rc8 18. Qb1 Qc5 19. Bd3 Qa5+ 20. Ke2) 17... Nxc1 (
17... Bxc4 18. Qxc4 Nxc1 19. Qxc1 Rc8 20. Qb1 Nd5) 18. Bxd5 Nxd5 19. Qxc1 Rc8
20. Qb1 Qc5 21. O-O Qc2 22. Qxc2 (22. Nd4 $6 Qxb1 23. Rxb1 e5) 22... Rxc2 23.
Rb1 {1/2 Anand,V (2810)-Kramnik,V (2784)/Wijk aan Zee NED 2011/[Van Delft &
Ris]}) 12... Qxf6 13. Qc3 (13. cxb6 Qxb2) 13... Qxc3+ 14. Rxc3 Rc8 15. e3 Nd7
16. Bb5 Nxc5 $11 {1/2 Pushin,V (2393)-Virovlansky,S (2449)/Tolyatti RUS 2011/
The Week in Chess 857 (54)}) 12. Qf4 $6 {Missing a great chance.} ({After} 12.
Qh4 $1 h6 ({Even worse is} 12... Nbd7 13. c6 h6 (13... Nc5 14. Nd2) 14. Bxh6
gxh6 15. cxd7 Nxd7 16. Qxh6 Qf6 17. Qxf6 Nxf6 18. Nd4 Rac8 19. Rd1 $18) 13.
Bxf6 Qxf6 14. Qxf6 gxf6 15. cxb6 axb6 16. e3 $16 {White could get a winning
position from a technical point of view. Of course, Black has some practical
chances, but White should consolidate his position while retaining a sound
extra pawn.}) 12... bxc5 {That is the point! Now Black gets an extra option
due to the vulnerability of the queen.} 13. e4 Bb7 14. e5 Nd5 {Somehow I had
underestimated Black's defensive resources here. In fact, White is much better
and has 2 bishops and attacking prospects, but I still had to make 2 more
moves to complete my development!} 15. Qh4 (15. Qg3 $6 {is not a safe square
for my queen:} Ne7 16. Nd2 h6 17. Bf6 Nf5 18. Bxd8 Nxg3 19. hxg3 Rxd8 $11) ({
I mainly considered} 15. Qg4 $5 f6 16. exf6 Nxf6 17. Qxe6+ Kh8 18. Rd1 Nbd7 (
18... Qa5+ 19. Bd2 Qc7 20. Be3 $14) 19. Bxf6 Qxf6 20. Qxf6 Rae8+ 21. Be2 Nxf6
22. Rd2 $14 {and Black does not have sufficient compensation for the pawn.})
15... Qa5+ 16. Bd2 Qd8 ({After} 16... Qb6 17. Bd3 f5 18. exf6 Nxf6 19. Bc3 Nbd7
20. O-O Bxf3 21. gxf3 $36 {the bishops are extremely strong, so I believe
Black is in troubles here.}) 17. Bg5 Qa5+ 18. Bd2 Qd8 {Here I had several
tempting continuations, so my choice was quite complicated.} 19. Qe4 $1 {
Probably the strongest.} (19. Qh3 Ne7 20. Be2 (20. Rxc5 {is not in the spirit
of this position and offers Black quick development, so it didn't even cross
my mind.} Ng6 21. Be2 Nd7 $44) 20... Nd7 21. Bc3 h6 22. O-O Rc8 {looks normal
for Black.}) (19. Ng5 h6 20. Bd3 Nd7 (20... f5 $5 21. exf6 Nxf6 22. Bc4 Bd5
$132) 21. Qe4 (21. Bh7+ Kh8 22. Bb1 Ba6 $132) 21... N5f6 22. Qxb7 Nxe5 $132)
19... Qd7 $6 (19... Qb6 {was stronger:} 20. Bd3 f5 21. exf6 Nxf6 22. Qe2 Nbd7
23. O-O Bxf3 24. Qxf3 Ne5 25. Qe2 Nxd3 26. Qxd3 Qxb2 27. Be3 Rfd8 28. Qc4 {
with a very small advantage for White.}) 20. Bd3 (20. Rxc5 Ne7 21. Qf4 Na6 $44)
20... f5 21. exf6 (21. Qe2 Nb6 22. Bb5 Qe7 23. O-O $14 {is also slightly
better for White.}) 21... Nxf6 22. Qe2 Bxf3 (22... Rd8 $6 23. Ne5 Qd6 24. Ba5
$1 $16) 23. Qxf3 Nc6 {Black is counting only on the dynamic components of the
position.} (23... Rd8 $2 24. Ba5 $1 $18) 24. Bc3 {Although that is not the
strongest move, I am sure that from a human point of view I made the right
decision without spending much time.} ({Frankly speaking, I doubt if any GM
could be able to calculate everything till the end and find all the tactical
resources in the following line:} 24. Rxc5 $1 Rac8 {[%csl Rc5,Rd2,Rd3][%cal
Gc6d4]} (24... Nd4 25. Qd1 $16) 25. Qe3 $1 Rcd8 26. Bc3 Ng4 27. Bxh7+ (27. Qh3
Qxd3 28. Qxd3 Rxd3 29. Rxc6 Rxf2 $11) 27... Kxh7 28. Qe4+ Rf5 29. O-O $1 Rc8
30. h3 $1 Kh8 31. Rxc6 Rxc6 32. Qxg4 $16) 24... Nd4 25. Bxd4 (25. Qh3 $5 Qd5 (
25... h6 26. O-O Nd5 27. Bc4 $14) (25... g6 26. O-O Nd5 27. Bc4 $14) 26. Bxd4
cxd4 27. O-O Rac8 28. Rce1 Rfe8 29. f4 $14) 25... cxd4 ({I believe, Black's
defensive task is easier after} 25... Qxd4 $142 26. O-O Rad8 27. Bb1 Qxb2 28.
Qe3 $14) 26. O-O (26. Qc6 {would be premature:} Qxc6 27. Rxc6 Rab8 $1 28. b4
Rbc8 29. Rxc8 Rxc8 30. Kd2 Rc3 $132 {and Black is fine.}) 26... Rac8 27. Qe2
$14 {White has a stable advantage - Black has several weaknesses, while the
king cannot feel completely safe. Unfortunately, at this point it was already
clear that our team is going to lose the match. Somehow I couldn't find the
right plan and managed to spoil everything.} (27. g3 Rxc1 28. Rxc1 e5 29. Qe2
Qd6 30. b4 $14) 27... Qd6 28. Bc4 Rc6 29. Rfe1 Re8 30. Bb5 (30. Rcd1 $5 Re7 31.
b3 Kf8 32. f4 Qxf4 33. Rf1 Qe3+ 34. Qxe3 dxe3 35. Rf3 $14) 30... Rxc1 31. Rxc1
{White has got control of the c-file, but it's not easy to exploit that.} Re7
32. g3 $6 {A critical loss of time which allows Black to consolidate his
position.} (32. Rc6 Qd5 33. b4 g6 34. Rc5 Qe4 35. Qd2 Nd5 36. g3 $14) ({
I had an effective way of making some progress} 32. Qd3 $1 Rb7 (32... g6 $6 33.
Rc4 Ng4 (33... e5 $4 34. Rc6 $18) 34. Qxd4 Qxh2+ 35. Kf1 $16) 33. g3 Kf7 34. a4
$14 {[%cal Gc1c4,Gd3c2] and Black is doomed to passive defence and cannot push
his central pawns.}) 32... Kf7 33. Bc4 $6 ({White could still maintain some
advantage by} 33. Qd2 g6 34. a4 $14 {[%cal Gc1c6] although things are much
less clear than earlier.}) 33... g6 34. Re1 Nd7 $132 {Now Black is ok, as he
is ready to push his central pawns.} ({I was hoping for} 34... Kg7 35. Qe5 Qxe5
36. Rxe5 {but} Rb7 37. Rxe6 Rxb2 38. Re7+ Kh6 39. Rxa7 Ng4 $132 {was also
enough to keep the balance.}) 35. h4 {Having just few minutes left on my clock,
I decided to secure the only half point for our team in this match and offered
a draw...} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Hastings 0304 79th"]
[Site "Hastings"]
[Date "2004.01.05"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Rowson, Jonathan"]
[Black "Epishin, Vladimir"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2541"]
[BlackElo "2658"]
[Annotator "Rowson,J"]
[PlyCount "113"]
[EventDate "2003.12.28"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[EventCategory "13"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 099"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.03.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.03.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%mdl 2]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 {Epishin normally castles
here but perhaps he was not in the mood for 5.e4!? which I ventured earlier in
the tournament against Kunte.} 5. a3 (5. cxd5 Qxd5 {after which White
struggles to prove an advantage.}) 5... Be7 $6 {But this is definitely
sub-standard. The move a2-a3 is quite a big asset on general grounds because
it allows me to meet ...c5 with dc and b4 and I can also consider playing the
Carlsberg structure after cd ed when I can immediately start a minority attack.
I assume my opponent was hoping for} 6. Nf3 Nbd7 (6... O-O 7. Bf4 {And now
neither of the main defences to the Bf4 QGD are attractive:} c5 (7... Nbd7 $2
8. cxd5 exd5 9. Nb5 c6 10. Bc7 Qe8 11. Nd6 Bxd6 12. Bxd6) 8. dxc5 Nc6 9. e3
Bxc5 {(as is simply an extra tempo here)}) 7. Bf4 c6 {I thought this passive
move was more or less forced but there is probably an improvement here. A
further value of a3 is shown in the line:} (7... dxc4 8. e4 Nb6 9. Nb5 $1 Bd6 (
9... O-O 10. Nxc7 Rb8 11. Nb5 Ra8 12. Be2 {with a clear edge to white.}) 10. e5
{When Bb4+ is not possible.}) ({However,} 7... a6 $1 {is playable:} 8. cxd5
exd5 9. e3 (9. Nb5 $2 axb5 10. Bxc7 Bb4+ $1 11. Kd1 Qe7) 9... O-O 10. Bd3 c5)
8. e3 Nh5 {In some ways the only move, because if I play h3 the bishop will
enjoy a very juicy diagonal.} 9. Be5 O-O 10. h3 $1 {[#] The exclam is for
psychological restraint rather than objective strength. Some combination of
Bd3, g4 and cd was tempting and probably good but I had a feeling in my bones
that I should be more patient somehow, and I have found that my bones are
often wiser than my brain.} Nxe5 11. dxe5 g6 (11... f6 $5 {is more combative.}
12. g4 (12. Bd3 g6 {and now what?} 13. O-O-O Qc7) (12. Be2 {I would probably
have contented myself with a more positional approach} fxe5 13. Nxe5 {White
will castle kingisde and try to exert pressure on the centre, but without a
dark squared bishop I suspect my chances of being seriously better are slim.})
12... fxe5 13. Nxe5 Qc7 $1) 12. O-O-O $5 b5 $1 {A good practical decision
which causes me some problems.} (12... f6 13. g4 Ng7 14. h4 {Seems to give
White quite a dangerous initiative e.g.} fxe5 15. Nxe5 Bf6 16. f4 Qc7 17. Qh2
$1) 13. cxb5 (13. g4 $5 {I was tempted to keep the c-file closed like this,
but the problem is that Black can generate an attack immediately:} Ng7 14. h4
bxc4 15. Bxc4 (15. h5 $5 {is possible, but it looks too slow.}) 15... Qa5 16.
Bd3 Rb8) 13... cxb5 14. Bxb5 Bb7 {This bishop does very little over the next
few moves and it only functions well on b7 in conjunction with a timely f6.
This may not be a mistake, but I was pleased to see it somehow.} (14... Bd7 $5
{might be an improvement but perhaps my opponent was afraid of} 15. Bxd7 (15.
Be2 Qa5 {with b and c file action to follow, looks very dangerous}) 15... Qxd7
16. Kd2 $5 {when my king looks like it might be safe on e2 or f1.}) 15. Nd4 Rc8
16. Qa4 $6 {[#] "A real howler" according to Kotronias, because now if Black
plays Qb6 I can't play Kb1 and my king remains under fire.} (16. Kb1 $1 {
seems to retain some advantage but there is still scope for Black to cause
trouble. I think I was still too attached to the option of Kd2-e2 but that is
probably just the burden of what Tiger Hillarp Persson calls "too much talent",
and believe me, that is not a compliment.}) 16... Rc5 $6 {A multi-facted move,
designed to put the queen behind the rook and also to have Ra5 resources.
However, it is probably a mistake.} (16... Qb6 $1 17. g4 Ng7 18. f4 f6 19. exf6
Bxf6 20. Rd2 g5 $5 {Kotronias felt Black was better here, and I heard that my
opponent thought he was much better after 16...Qb6 but things don't look so
clear to me.} 21. Rhd1 a6 22. Be2 gxf4 23. exf4 e5 24. fxe5 Bxe5 {On second
thoughts, Black probably is better here. He has the safer king, two bishops
and now all his pieces make sense. There is also a lingering threat of taking
on d4 twice and playing Ne6 and d4.} (24... Bg5 $5 {is probably a mistake. The
e5 pawn and black squared bishop are worth a rook.})) 17. g4 {I was trying to
avoid weakening my position like this, but if I leave it too long he might
play f6 and retain the option of Nf6-e4 which could be troublesome.} Ng7 18.
Kb1 {I have to admit that this move felt good, White is probably fairly safe
now, although Black's compensation is not exhausted.} a6 (18... Qb8 19. f4 Rxc3
20. bxc3 a6 {I was pleased to see that this idea doesn't work} 21. Bd3 Bc6+ 22.
Qb3 $1 Ba4 23. Qxb8 Rxb8+ 24. Ka2) 19. Be2 Qc7 20. f4 Rb8 {Black's attack
doesn't convince, mainly because his knight and light squared bishop play
little part in it while all of my minor pieces contribute to the defence.} 21.
Na2 $1 {A safe move, removing any nasty Rc3 ideas and sometimes planning
Nb4-d3 to overprotect b2} Bc8 $2 (21... f6 $5 {was Speelman's suggestion in
The Independent.} 22. exf6 Bxf6 23. Rc1 (23. g5 $5 {was given by Spess, but it
doesn't seem necessary.}) 23... e5 24. Rxc5 Qxc5 25. fxe5 Bxe5 {It is curious
that Fritz 7 thinks this position is equal, despite Black's pawn deficit.} 26.
Rd1 {I guess White is better here.}) (21... Qb6 $5 22. Qb3 Qd8 23. Qd3 $1 (23.
Rc1 Ba8 24. Qd3 Qb6 {given by Short, is not so clear.}) 23... Qb6 24. Rd2 {
and it looks like White can soak up the pressure.}) 22. Rc1 Qb7 23. Nb4 {
[#] Now my opponent looked distinctly non-plussed and started to move quickly
and angrily,along the lines of "I'll huff and I'll puff and I'll blow your
house down" but even though he outplays me over the next few moves, my
position is good enough to absorb a few mistakes and the house remained
standing.} a5 24. Rxc5 Bxc5 25. Qxa5 Bb6 26. Qa4 {Sloppy. I didn't see g5
coming.} (26. Qb5 $1 g5 27. Qd3 {with the idea of Bd1-c2 should end the game.})
26... g5 27. Qd1 gxf4 28. exf4 Bd7 29. Qd2 $6 (29. Qd3) 29... Ba5 30. Rc1 h6
31. Rc5 $1 Bxb4 32. axb4 Qxb4 33. Qc3 $1 {An important move, which I had
foreseen. Otherwise I lose my shape.} Qxc3 34. Rxc3 Rb4 35. Rd3 Bb5 {Bye bye
bad bishop, hello lost endgame.} 36. Nxb5 Rxb5 37. Rd4 Rb8 38. b4 Ne8 39. Kb2
Kf8 40. b5 Ke7 {Time control reached. Now was I pleased to see that there is
no defence to the simple idea of overstretching him by pushing my kingside
pawns and that I don't really need to protect my b5 pawn.} 41. Ra4 Nc7 42. h4
$1 Rb7 43. g5 h5 {The best try to confuse matters but now I was enjoying
myself too much to make any mistakes.} 44. Ra5 d4 45. Bc4 Ne8 46. Kb3 Ng7 47.
Bd3 Nf5 (47... Rc7 48. b6 Rc3+ 49. Kb2) 48. Bxf5 exf5 49. Kc4 Rd7 50. Kd3 Rd5
51. Ra7+ Ke6 52. Kc4 Rd8 53. Ra6+ Ke7 54. Rd6 Rc8+ 55. Kb4 Rc1 56. Rxd4 Rh1 57.
b6 1-0

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Tbilisi"]
[Date "2017.09.03"]
[Round "1.1"]
[White "Eljanov, Pavel"]
[Black "Lenderman, Aleksandr"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2734"]
[BlackElo "2565"]
[Annotator "Sagar Shah"]
[PlyCount "114"]
[EventDate "2017.09.03"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "GEO"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 181"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2017.11.10"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2017.11.10"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[TimeControl "40/5400+30:1800+30"]

{[%mdl 8192]} 1. d4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Nf6 {[%emt 0:00:10]} 2. c4 {[%emt 0:00:00]
} e6 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 3. Nc3 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Bb4 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 4. Qc2 {
[%emt 0:00:00]} O-O {[%emt 0:00:20]} 5. a3 {[%emt 0:00:09]} Bxc3+ {[%emt 0:00:
07]} 6. Qxc3 {[%emt 0:00:03]} d5 {[%emt 0:00:17]} 7. Bg5 {[%emt 0:00:36]} dxc4
{[%emt 0:05:50]} 8. Qxc4 {[%emt 0:00:05]} b6 {[%emt 0:00:09]} 9. Rc1 {[%emt 0:
00:43]} Ba6 {[%emt 0:01:18]} 10. Qa4 {[%emt 0:00:06]} Qd7 {[%emt 0:03:27]} 11.
Qxd7 {[%emt 0:00:31]} Nbxd7 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 12. Bxf6 {[%emt 0:00:24]} Nxf6 {
[%emt 0:00:38]} 13. e3 {[%emt 0:00:06]} Bxf1 {[%emt 0:00:42]} 14. Kxf1 {
[%emt 0:00:04]} Rfc8 {[%emt 0:14:15] I am not sure if White has any advantage,
but these are the positions in which Pavel is an extremely dangerous opponent.
Look how he able to slowly convert this equal looking position into a
completely favourable one.} 15. Rc6 $1 {[%emt 0:13:31] Buying time. Black will
have to lose some moves to kick the rook out from c6, meanwhile White will
finish his development.} Nd5 {[%emt 0:00:34]} 16. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:05]} Ne7 {
[%emt 0:00:19]} 17. Rc2 {[%emt 0:00:36]} f6 {[%emt 0:08:51]} (17... c5 18. dxc5
Rxc5 19. Rxc5 bxc5 20. Nd2 $14) 18. Ke2 {[%emt 0:00:36]} Kf7 {[%emt 0:00:33]}
19. Rhc1 {[%emt 0:12:37]} c6 {[%emt 0:00:27]} 20. Ne1 $1 {[%emt 0:04:53] First
the knight goes to d3 where it is very well located.} Ke8 {[%emt 0:01:08]} 21.
Nd3 {[%emt 0:00:20]} Kd7 {[%emt 0:00:18]} 22. g4 $1 {[%emt 0:00:47] Clamping
move. Daniel King speaks about it at length in his Powerplay 5 DVD. Basically
one g-pawn controls three of Black's pawns on the kingside.} g5 {[%emt 0:07:13]
} 23. h4 {[%emt 0:09:14]} h6 {[%emt 0:06:06]} 24. Rh1 {[%emt 0:08:28]} Rh8 {
[%emt 0:01:17]} 25. e4 {[%emt 0:04:15]} Ng6 {[%emt 0:07:53]} 26. h5 {[%emt 0:
00:04] Now the h6-weakness is fixed forever.} Ne7 {[%emt 0:00:26]} 27. Ke3 {
[%emt 0:00:38]} Rhf8 {[%emt 0:01:57]} 28. f3 {[%emt 0:01:50]} a5 {[%emt 0:03:
13]} 29. Rhc1 {[%emt 0:03:17]} Ra7 {[%emt 0:10:49]} 30. Rc3 {[%emt 0:02:30]}
Rg8 {[%emt 0:01:40]} 31. b3 {[%emt 0:05:07]} Rf8 {[%emt 0:06:10]} 32. Nb2 {
[%emt 0:00:45]} Re8 {[%emt 0:01:42]} 33. Nc4 {[%emt 0:01:58]} Ra6 {[%emt 0:03:
03]} 34. Kf2 {[%emt 0:03:24]} Rd8 {[%emt 0:01:22]} 35. Rd3 {[%emt 0:08:23]} Ke8
{[%emt 0:04:04]} 36. e5 $1 {[%emt 0:10:46] Giving up the d5-square, but
getting d6 in return.} f5 {[%emt 0:01:01]} 37. Nd6+ {[%emt 0:00:05]} Kf8 {
[%emt 0:04:42]} 38. d5 $1 {[%emt 0:02:46] Brilliant breakthrough by Pavel. The
e-pawn cannot take it as then gxf5 is better for White. ...Nxd5 loses the
c6-pawn ad gxf5 also looks strong.} cxd5 {[%emt 0:01:30]} 39. Rc7 $1 {[%emt 0:
00:09] The rook enters the position and threatens all kind of things.} b5 {
[%emt 0:01:02]} 40. Nxb5 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Rc6 $6 {[%emt 0:05:00]} (40... fxg4
41. fxg4 Nc6 $11) 41. Nd4 $1 {[%emt 0:07:52]} Rxc7 {[%emt 0:00:25]} 42. Nxe6+ {
[%emt 0:00:05]} Kf7 {[%emt 0:00:50]} 43. Nxc7 {[%emt 0:00:38] White has not
only recovered the pawn, but also gained an extra one.} d4 {[%emt 0:00:41]} 44.
Nb5 {[%emt 0:01:05]} Rd5 {[%emt 0:02:35]} 45. e6+ {[%emt 0:05:34]} Kf6 {
[%emt 0:03:54]} 46. Nxd4 {[%emt 0:02:06]} Rd6 {[%emt 0:10:34] Lenderman had to
play this grudgingly as he had miscalculated.} (46... Nc6 {was his earlier
intention.} 47. Nxc6 Rxd3 48. e7 Kf7 49. Ne5+ $18 {and this was the check that
he had missed.}) 47. b4 {[%emt 0:09:07]} axb4 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 48. axb4 $18 {
[%emt 0:00:03] White is just two pawns up.} f4 {[%emt 0:01:01]} 49. b5 {
[%emt 0:01:26]} Ke5 {[%emt 0:02:17]} 50. Rd2 {[%emt 0:04:56]} Kf6 {[%emt 0:03:
04]} 51. Ke1 {[%emt 0:02:41]} Nd5 {[%emt 0:00:48]} 52. Re2 $2 {[%emt 0:01:27]}
(52. Kd1 $18) 52... Ne3 $1 {[%emt 0:01:01] The knight on d4 cannot move as
Rd1-f1 is a mate.} 53. e7 {[%emt 0:06:01]} Kf7 {[%emt 0:00:13]} (53... Rxd4 54.
Rxe3 $18) (53... Kxe7 54. Nf5+ $18) 54. Rd2 $4 {[%emt 0:01:05] The final
mistake of the game.} (54. Rxe3 $1 fxe3 55. Nf5 $14 {There is not a chance
that Black will be able to win this.}) (54. Rb2 {Lenderman also thought that
this move was holding for White. But it doesn't as after} Rxd4 $1 55. b6 Rb4 $1
$19 {is an important resource that was missed by Alex.}) 54... Rxd4 {[%emt 0:
00:34]} 55. Rb2 {[%emt 0:03:01]} Rd7 {[%emt 0:00:21]} 56. b6 {[%emt 0:00:10]}
Rb7 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 57. Ke2 {[%emt 0:00:18]} Nd5 {[%emt 0:01:04] A
heartbreaking loss for Eljanov and a happy end for Lenderman.} 0-1

[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 "EU-ch 10th"]
[Site "Budva"]
[Date "2009.03.16"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Dreev, Alexey"]
[Black "Wojtaszek, Radoslaw"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2688"]
[BlackElo "2608"]
[Annotator "Wojtaszek,R"]
[PlyCount "83"]
[EventDate "2009.03.06"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "MNE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 130"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.05.20"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.05.20"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 $5 {This rare
line is becoming very popular nowadays.} 7. Bg5 (7. Nf3 dxc4 {transposes to
the other lines, but Black was able to avoid lines with Bf4 and without Nf3.})
(7. cxd5 Ne4 (7... exd5 $6 8. Bf4 {White was better in Botcharov-Gajewski,
Aeroflot Open 2009.}) 8. Qc2 exd5 9. e3 Bf5 10. Bd3 c5 {and Black easily
equalized in Kramnik-Anand, Amber 2009.}) 7... c5 $146 {A novelty in this
particular position, but of course the idea is well-known in the Nimzo.} (7...
h6 $5 8. Bxf6 Qxf6 9. e3 dxc4 10. Qxc4 (10. Bxc4 {looked more natural.}) 10...
e5 $11 {Figura,A-Naiditsch,A, Bundesliga 2008}) 8. dxc5 d4 9. Qc2 e5 10. e4 $6
{After this innacurate move Black can even fight for the advantage.} ({Two
weeks later Morozevich played} 10. Nf3 {against Anand in Amber, but after} Re8
11. e3 h6 12. Bxf6 Qxf6 {Black was OK.}) 10... a5 11. f4 {White has to play
actively now.} (11. Nf3 $6 Nbd7 12. Bd3 Re8 13. O-O a4 $1 {followed by ...Nxc5
and Black is better.}) 11... h6 12. Bh4 (12. fxe5 $2 hxg5 13. exf6 Qxf6 14.
O-O-O Nc6 $15) 12... exf4 13. O-O-O Nc6 14. Nf3 Re8 $1 (14... Bg4 15. e5 $1
Bxf3 16. gxf3 Nxe5 17. Qf5 Re8 18. Bxf6 Qxf6 19. Qxf6 gxf6 20. Rxd4 $14 {
and White has some advantage, although Black should be able to defend.}) 15. e5
Nxe5 16. Rxd4 Qe7 17. Bd3 $6 ({During the game I calculated also} 17. Nxe5 Qxe5
18. Bxf6 Qxf6 19. Qf2 f3 $1 20. gxf3 Bf5 $44) 17... Qxc5 18. Bxf6 (18. Bf2 $2
Nxd3+ $1 19. Qxd3 Bf5 $17) 18... gxf6 19. Rd1 Nxd3+ 20. Qxd3 Bf5 21. Rd5 Bxd3
22. Rxc5 Be4 $15 {Black is slightly better here, but it's not easy to prove
anything because of the pawn structure.} 23. Rd4 Re6 24. Rh5 f5 25. Rh4 Rg6 26.
Nd2 Bc6 $6 ({Black had good winning chances after} 26... Rxg2 $1 27. Rxf4 (27.
Nxe4 fxe4 28. Rxf4 e3 29. Rde4 Re2 $17) 27... Rg1+ 28. Rf1 Rxf1+ 29. Nxf1 Re8
$17) (26... f3 $6 27. g3 $1 Re8 28. Rf4 $11) 27. Rhxf4 Rxg2 28. Rxf5 Rxh2 29.
Ne4 $1 {This is the move which I missed. White has activated his knight and
Black can't defend all the pawns.} Rg2 (29... Bxe4 30. Rxe4 b6 31. Re7 Rc8 32.
Rfxf7 Rxc4+ 33. Kb1 Rg4 34. Rf6 $11) 30. Nd6 Rd8 $5 {I wasn't sure if that was
a good move, but I wanted to keep playing because of my opponent's time
trouble.} (30... Rg1+ 31. Kc2 Rg2+ 32. Kc1 Rg1+ $11) 31. Rxa5 Rg6 32. Nf5 Re8
$6 {Not the best decision as I was also running out of time already.} (32...
Rxd4 33. Nxd4 Rg4 34. Nxc6 Rxc4+ 35. Kd2 Rxc6 36. b4 {and White will hold this
easily.}) 33. Kd2 Rg2+ 34. Kc3 Ree2 35. b3 $6 (35. Rg4+ $1 Kh7 36. Rxg2 Rxg2
37. b4 $14) 35... Kh7 36. Rh4 Rg6 37. Nd4 Re4 38. Rah5 Rg3+ 39. Kb4 Rxh4 40.
Rxh4 Bd7 41. Kc5 Kg6 42. a4 {... and my opponent offered me a draw. It's funny
because neither of us was sure about the evaluation of this position. Black's
R+B should be better than R+N, on the other hand White has connected pawns. I
wasn't in a gambling mood so I decided to accept. I calculated something like
42...h5 43.a5 Kg5 44.Rh1 h4 45.b4 h3 with an unclear position.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Norway Chess 6th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2018.06.02"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2808"]
[BlackElo "2769"]
[Annotator "Yermolinsky,A"]
[PlyCount "47"]
[EventDate "2018.05.28"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 185"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.07.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.07.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 {Lately it seems every time Shakh plays
this move the game ends in a quick draw.} ({Are the glory days of} 4. f3 {
completely gone?}) 4... O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 7. Bg5 dxc4 8. Qxc4 b6 9.
Rd1 {A little twist} ({on the usual} 9. Nf3 Ba6 {but essentially the same
thing.}) 9... Ba6 10. Qa4 h6 11. Bh4 Qe7 12. Nf3 Rd8 13. e3 ({Morozevich tried
to spice up the otherwise dull position by introducing} 13. g4 {lost to Leko
in 2014 and beat Oparin in 2015. I guess now, as the element of surprise is
gone, there are no takers.}) 13... Bxf1 14. Rxf1 c5 15. dxc5 Rxd1+ 16. Qxd1 g5
{The first independent move, but it was very predictable, being the engine's
#1 choice.} (16... bxc5 17. Ne5 Qc7 18. Bxf6 gxf6 {Guseva-Kashlinskaya, 2016,
gave White some initiative albeit the game also ended peacefully.}) 17. Bg3
Qxc5 18. Qd8+ Kg7 19. Be5 Qc1+ 20. Ke2 Qc4+ 21. Ke1 Qc1+ 22. Ke2 Qc4+ 23. Ke1
Qc1+ 24. Ke2 1/2-1/2

