[Event "Tel Aviv super 1st"]
[Site "Tel Aviv"]
[Date "1999.05.14"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Alterman, Boris"]
[Black "Huzman, Alexander"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2615"]
[BlackElo "2575"]
[Annotator "Alterman,B"]
[PlyCount "39"]
[EventDate "1999.05.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ISR"]
[EventCategory "14"]
[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. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8.
cxd5 Nxd5 9. Bd2 Nb6 10. Nc2 Be7 11. O-O Nc6 12. b3 $6 {[%mdl 16400]} (12. Ne3
e5 13. Ned5 $14) 12... e5 $8 (12... Bd7 13. Rc1 $14) 13. Be3 Be6 14. Qxd8 (14.
Qc1 Rc8 15. Rd1 Qc7 16. Nb5 (16. Qb2 $2 Nb8) 16... Qb8) 14... Rfxd8 15. Rfd1
$11 Rac8 16. Bxb6 $8 axb6 (16... Rxd1+ 17. Rxd1 axb6 18. Nd5 Bd8 19. Nde3 $1
$14) 17. Nd5 (17. Bd5 $2 Na7 18. Rd3 e4 $1 $19) 17... Bc5 18. b4 (18. e3 b5 $1)
18... Bxd5 19. Rxd5 Rxd5 20. Bxd5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Interzonal-16"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "1993.??.??"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Dreev, Alexey"]
[Black "Salov, Valery"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2570"]
[BlackElo "2685"]
[Annotator "Ambroz,J"]
[PlyCount "110"]
[EventDate "1993.07.16"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 037"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1993.12.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1993.12.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Salov} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 O-O 6. e4 Re8 (6... exd5
7. cxd5 Re8 8. Nge2 d6) 7. Bd2 exd5 8. cxd5 d6 9. Nge2 Nbd7 (9... Nh5 $5 10.
Qc2 Bxc3 11. bxc3 f5 12. exf5 Re5 (12... Qh4+ $142) 13. g4 Qh4+ 14. Kd1 Qf2 15.
f4 $1 Rxd5 16. c4 Qf3 17. Rg1 Nxf4 18. cxd5 $18 {Kouatly-Korchnoi, Royan 1986})
10. Ng3 (10. a3 {Salov}) 10... a6 (10... Ne5 11. Be2 Bd7 12. O-O c4 $5 13. Be3
b5 14. Qd2 Ba5 15. Rfc1 Bb6 16. Nh1 $5 Rc8 17. Nf2 {1/2, Costa-Bischoff,
Mitropa-Cup 1991}) 11. Be2 (11. a4 $5) 11... b5 12. O-O Ne5 13. a4 bxa4 (13...
Bd7 14. axb5 Bxc3 15. Bxc3 (15. bxc3 $5) 15... axb5 16. b3 $14) 14. Nxa4 Rb8 (
14... Bxd2 $1 {Salov} 15. Qxd2 Rb8 $10) 15. Bg5 h6 16. Be3 c4 17. Bd4 Bd7 18.
Nc3 a5 19. Kh1 (19. f4 Ng6 (19... Bxc3 20. bxc3 Nd3 $2 21. Bxd3 cxd3 22. Qxd3
Nxe4 23. Nxe4 Bf5 24. Qg3 $18) 20. Qc2 $13 (20. Bxc4 {Salov} Bxc3 21. bxc3 Nxe4
$14)) 19... h5 $1 20. f4 h4 21. fxe5 (21. Nh5 Nxh5 22. Bxh5 (22. fxe5 $2 {Salov
} Ng3+ 23. hxg3 hxg3 $19) 22... Nd3 23. b3 Bxc3 24. Bxc3 Rxb3 25. Bxa5 Qc8 $36)
21... dxe5 22. Nh5 (22. Ba7 $143 Rb7) (22. Be3 hxg3 23. hxg3 (23. Bg5 gxh2 24.
d6 Re6 $17) 23... Qc8 $5 $13 {/\ Ng4}) 22... exd4 23. Nxf6+ (23. Qxd4 {Salov}
Bd6 $1 24. Rxf6 Be5 $1) 23... gxf6 24. Qxd4 Bd6 $1 $132 25. Ra2 (25. Qxf6 Qxf6
26. Rxf6 Be5 $17 {/\ Rb2}) (25. Bxc4 $142 Rxb2 26. Rab1 $1 $13 {/\ Bb5!?} (26.
Qd3 Qe7 $5 {/\ Qe5}) (26. Qxf6 Qxf6 27. Rxf6 Be5 28. Rf3 Rc8 $19)) 25... Be5
26. Qxc4 Rb4 27. Qd3 Qb8 $44 28. Qd2 Kg7 (28... Bxh2 29. Rxf6 $132) 29. h3 Qc8
$5 {/\ Bh3} 30. Rf3 (30. Rxa5 Bxh3 (30... Rxb2 31. Qxb2 Bxc3 32. Qb6) 31. Bb5
Bd7 $36) 30... Qc7 31. Qe1 Reb8 32. Qd2 (32. Qxh4 Rxb2 33. Rxb2 Rxb2 34. d6
$143 (34. Bf1 Bxc3 (34... a4 $5 $17) 35. Rg3+ (35. Qg3+ Qxg3 36. Rxg3+ Kf8 37.
Rxc3 Rb1 38. Kg1 Bb5 39. Rf3 Rxf1+ $19) 35... Kf8 36. d6 $1 Qxd6 37. Rxc3 Rb1
38. Rc1 $17) 34... Qxc3 $1 35. Rxc3 Rb1+) 32... a4 {/\ a3, >< Nc3} 33. Rf1 $2 (
33. Bf1 Qb7 34. Rf2 Bg3 35. Re2 Qc7 36. Qe3 Qe5 $36) 33... a3 34. d6 Qc6 35.
Rxa3 Rxb2 36. Qe3 (36. Qe1 Qc5) 36... R8b3 $1 37. Bb5 Rxb5 (37... Qxd6 {Salov}
38. Rxb3 Rxb3 39. Bxd7 Rxc3 $19) 38. Nxb5 Qxb5 39. Rd3 Rb1 40. Qf3 Kf8 $138 41.
Rdd1 Rb3 (41... Rxd1 {Salov} 42. Rxd1 Kg7 $17) 42. Qh5 Kg7 43. Qxh4 Qe2 44.
Rde1 Qd2 (44... Qb2 {Salov} 45. Rf2 Qd4 46. Ref1 Qxd6 $17) 45. Rd1 Qc2 46. Rc1
Qb2 47. Qf2 Qxf2 48. Rxf2 Rd3 $19 49. Rff1 Ba4 50. Kg1 Rxd6 51. Kf2 Rd2+ 52.
Kf3 (52. Kg1 Bc2 53. Rfe1 (53. Rce1 Bd4+ 54. Kh2 Bf2 55. Ra1 Bxe4) 53... Bd4+
54. Kh1 Bb2) 52... Rd3+ 53. Ke2 Bb5 54. Rf3 (54. Kf2 {Salov} Bd4+ $19) 54...
Rc3+ 55. Kd1 Ba4+ (55... Ba4+ {Salov} 56. Kd2 Rxf3 57. gxf3 Bf4+ $19) 0-1

[Event "ESP-ch"]
[Site "El Sauzal"]
[Date "2010.09.12"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Arizmendi Martinez, Julen Luis"]
[Black "Illescas Cordoba, Miguel"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2551"]
[BlackElo "2591"]
[Annotator "Arizmendi,J"]
[PlyCount "66"]
[EventDate "2010.09.04"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 138 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.10.29"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.10.29"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 $6 {No, there is nothing wrong with the
move itself (as a matter of fact, it had worked very well for me in the past),
but in this case it was not a good choice. Entering the last round, Vallejo,
Illescas, Moreno Ruiz and myself were tied in first place, and the pairings
were Vallejo-Moreno and Arizmendi-Illescas. I had the best tiebreak, but
thought that, since Vallejo is usually a killer with the White pieces 
(although Moreno Ruiz had played an excellent tournament and had not suffered
much in any game), I had to win in order to have a shot at first place. So, I
wanted to win, but I believe that perhaps I should have played something more
solid and use to my advantage the fact that Illescas was in a must-win
situation if he was to take his eighth title (he had the worst tiebreak). To
my mind, the opening choice for this specific game was pretty bad.} c5 $1 {
The most adequate for the situation. Whatever White does now, the game will be
double-edged.} 5. d5 O-O 6. e4 d6 {The most accurate move order.} (6... exd5 7.
cxd5 d6 {allows} 8. Bd3 {and 9.Nge2. In this case White won't need to move his
knight to g3 in order to finish his development.}) 7. Nge2 ({The problem with} 
7. Bd3 {is that after} Nbd7 8. Nge2 Ne5 {the light-squared bishop can't move
because the c4-pawn is hanging.}) 7... exd5 8. cxd5 Nbd7 9. Ng3 a6 {9...Ne5
and 9...Re8 are the usual moves here, both impeding 10.Bd3. Illescas decides
to keep more flexibility in his position.} 10. Be2 ({Perhaps} 10. Bd3 b5 11.
O-O c4 12. Bc2 Bc5+ 13. Kh1 {makes sense. After all, White must strive to play
in the centre and on the kingside, and with that aim in mind the c2-bishop
covers e4 in case he decides to play f4 later on. Another plus is that e2 is
now available for the c3-knight.}) 10... b5 11. O-O (11. a4 Rb8) 11... c4 12.
Kh1 (12. Be3 {seems more accurate.}) 12... Re8 ({Black could consider} 12...
Bc5 {here.}) 13. a4 ({The best move should be the simple} 13. Be3 {, finishing
my development before deciding what to do.}) (13. Bf4 Ne5 14. Bg5 h6 15. Bxf6 {
is a possibility my opponent proposed after the game, but this doesn't
convince me.} Qxf6 16. f4 Nd7 {Here, with a pawn on g6 like in the Benoni, 17.
e5 dxe5 18.Nce4, followed by f5, would be strong. But as it is now, with no
contact squares, I don´t see how to continue.}) 13... Rb8 14. axb5 axb5 15. Nf5
$6 {The beginning of a bad plan. Funny, I didn't notice until my opponent had
already refuted it :-)} ({A very interesting idea is} 15. Na2 Ba5 16. b4 cxb3 (
16... Bc7 17. Nc3 {is an ideal pawn structure for White: the knight on c3 is a
stable blockader and puts pressure on b5.}) 17. Qxb3 b4 18. Bf4 {The position
is complicated, but I prefer White´s play in the centre to Black´s initiative
on the queenside, since} Nc5 19. Qb2 Na4 20. Qd4 {doesn't get Black anywhere.})
15... Ne5 16. Nd4 Bd7 17. g4 $6 {This is the move I put my trust in when I
played 13.a4. I knew it was risky, of course, but during the game I lost all
objectivity and thought that concrete play would justify my decision. But
looking at it now, it really surprises me that I could believe Black would
have any problems here, for all his pieces occupy excellent squares and White
is in fact the one who has obvious weaknesses. Usually, in order for such
moves to work, the pieces need to be on their optimal squares, which isn´t the
case here.} Bc5 $5 ({The engine insists that} 17... h6 $1 18. g5 hxg5 19. Bxg5
Bc5 {is better, evaluating that White's weaknesses weigh more than the g-file.
This is probably so, but it does play into White's hands.}) 18. g5 b4 $1 {
The key move.} 19. Na4 ({I thought about moving my knight to b1, but my sense
for aesthetics simply didn´t allow me to play such an ugly move. After} 19. Nb1
{Rybka finds the spectacular} Nxd5 $1 ({another possibility is the simple} 
19... Bh3 $5 20. gxf6 (20. Rg1 Nxf3 21. Bxf3 Nxe4 22. Be3 Qb6 {and White can
barely move.}) 20... Bxf1 21. Bxf1 Qxf6) 20. exd5 Ra8 21. Rxa8 Qxa8 {, with
more than enough compensation for the piece. Black will soon take a second
pawn and will dominate the entire board. The truth is that my g4 push looks
quite poor when one looks at such variations...}) 19... Bxa4 20. Rxa4 Nfd7 21.
f4 $2 ({Right after playing this I wished I had gone for} 21. Nf5 {which is
the best move. Black´s game is still easier, since his plan on the queenside
is pretty clear, but the evaluation would be close to equality.} Nb6 22. Ra1
Ra8 23. Rxa8 Qxa8 24. Be3 $1 {White needs to put his queen or bishop on the
a1-h8 diagonal in order to cooperate with the knight and put pressure on g7.}
Qa5 (24... Qa2 25. Bd4 Na4 26. f4) 25. Bd4 g6 26. Nh6+ Kf8 27. f4 Nd3 ({
Black should not get carried away:} 27... Ned7 28. Bf3 Qa2 29. f5 {, with a
strong attack.}) 28. Bxc5 Qxc5 29. Bxd3 cxd3 30. Qxd3 Qc4 31. Qxc4 Nxc4 32. f5
Nd2 33. Ra1 Nxe4 34. Ra7 Re7 (34... Nxg5 $4 35. h4) 35. Ra8+ Re8 36. Ra7 $11 {
From now on, Illescas, with very precise play, will expose the defects of my
plan.}) 21... Bxd4 $1 22. Qxd4 Nd3 $1 23. Bxd3 cxd3 24. Rxb4 $2 {Engines like
this grave mistake. At least I'm not the only one...} ({My first intention was
} 24. b3 $1 {, but I didn't like} Qb6 $1 (24... Qe7 $2 {meets} 25. Ra7 $1) ({
Another possibility is the curious} 24... f5 $5 {, although the position after}
25. Bb2 $1 (25. exf5 Qe7 {clearly highlights the problems stemming from my
quest for space.} 26. Qxd3 Nc5 27. f6 Qb7 28. Qf3 Nxa4 29. bxa4 Qa6 {and White
is really suffering.}) 25... Qe7 26. Ra7 fxe4 27. f5 Rf8 28. f6 Qe8 {is just
too complicated.}) (24... Nc5 $6 25. Bb2 f6 26. gxf6 Qxf6 27. e5 Qf5 (27...
Rxe5 $2 28. Ra7 $1) 28. e6 {is not what Black is really looking for.}) 25. Qxb6
Rxb6 {Now White has chances to survive with} 26. Be3 (26. Ra7 Nc5 27. Be3 Rb5 {
is a nightmare for White as well.}) 26... Rbb8 27. Rd1 Rxe4 28. Rxd3 Rbe8 29.
Ra7 Nf8 {, although the position is no picnic for him, at least in practice
and with little time on the clock.}) 24... Rxb4 25. Qxb4 Nc5 26. Re1 (26. e5
Qc8 27. Re1 {transposes to the comment to move 27.} (27. Qb5 Kf8 28. f5 Rxe5
29. Qc6 (29. b4 Qb7) 29... Qxc6 30. dxc6 Ke7 {doesn't solve White's problems.})
) 26... Qc8 $1 27. f5 $4 {A very typical mistake. I had seen this tactic
before, but was so worried with all the problems in my position that I simply
missed it now.} ({My position was hell anyway:} 27. e5 Qh3 28. Kg1 (28. exd6 $2
{, unfortunately, is met by} Ne4 $1 29. d7 Qf3+ 30. Kg1 Qf2+ 31. Kh1 Ng3+ $19)
28... h6 29. gxh6 $6 Kh7 $1 {, for example, is not bad at all.}) 27... Nxe4 $1
28. Rf1 g6 (28... Qc2 {is stronger, but the text move doesn't change much.})
29. Qd4 gxf5 30. b4 (30. g6 fxg6 31. Bh6 Qb7) 30... Qc2 31. Bf4 Qe2 32. Kg1
Qg4+ 33. Bg3 d2 {There are so many threats in this position that it hurts to
look at it. A good game by Illescas, who managed to take advantage of his
opportunities. Vallejo eventualy drew his game, which allowed Illescas to take
the title, his eighth.} 0-1

[Event "Berkeley East Bay CC"]
[Site "Berkeley"]
[Date "2005.04.02"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Atalik, Suat"]
[Black "Stein, Alex"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2560"]
[BlackElo "2362"]
[Annotator "Atalik,S"]
[PlyCount "45"]
[EventDate "2005.03.29"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[EventCategory "9"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 107"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{The second game in the day. I was absolutely determined to make the score
even with Alan!} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 $5 {Sometime in 1994 I
have analysed this line popularised by Kasparov in Mid 80s with GM Rogozenko.}
c5 5. g3 O-O 6. Bg2 cxd4 7. Nxd4 d5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 $5 {The line
championed by Zvjaginsev.} (9. Bd2 Nxc3 10. bxc3 Be7 11. O-O e5 12. Nc2 $13 {
is the alternative.}) 9... Nc6 ({I believe that} 9... Qa5 10. Bd2 Nc6 11. Nxc6
bxc6 12. O-O {is more logical to reach the game continuation.}) (9... Qb6 10.
Bxd5 $1 exd5 11. Be3 $14) 10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. O-O Qa5 $1 {Alan showed true
knowledge of theory. This line is the best for black in this system.} (11...
Rb8 $6 12. a3 Nxc3 13. bxc3 Bd6 14. Qa4 $14 {is Atalik-Ulibin,Beijing(open)
1996 where things went very smooth for me after this win I have also taken the
first place in the tournament.}) 12. Bd2 Rb8 $4 {Alan who was spending some
precious amount of time after every move blunders. However by some strange
coincidence I knew about the move. In the room Alex has given me during my
stay in his place in San Fransisco I have rediscovered a book by GM Rowson
with the name 'Seven Deadly Chess Sins'. From time to time I was taking the
book to the bathroom. There I have seen that he had fallen into this 'trap'.
Actually as one can understand there ain't no trap whatsoever 12...Rb8 is
simply a bad move .} (12... Bxc3 $1) 13. Nxd5 cxd5 14. a3 $18 {Now black is
losing an exchange.} Bxd2 $8 (14... Bd6 $2 15. Qxb8 $18) 15. Qxb8 Bd7 {In the
bathroom when I came across this chapter based on Rowson's book, this was what
he had played after having blundered.} (15... Ba6 16. Qxa7 Bxe2 17. Qxa5 Bxa5
18. Rfc1 d4 19. b4 Bb6 20. a4 d3 21. Ra2 Rb8 22. a5 Bd4 23. b5 Kf8 24. b6 $18)
16. Qe5 $1 {After some long thought I have chosen the move which is also
recommended by Rowson. Now Bd2 has a tough time to return into the game.
Probably I should have prepared in the bathroom to my future games.} (16. Qb7
$2 Ba4 17. Ra2 Qc5 $132 {Barsov-Rowson York 1999.}) 16... Qb6 (16... Rc8 17.
Rfd1 $18) 17. Rfd1 $1 (17. Bxd5 exd5 (17... Qb5 18. Rad1) 18. Qxd5 Bh3 19. Qxd2
Qc6 20. f3 Bxf1 21. Rxf1 Qb6+ 22. Kg2 a5 23. b4 axb4 24. axb4 $18 {is also
winning.}) 17... f6 18. Qh5 Be8 19. Qh3 $1 Bh6 20. e3 {Now the bishops
position is still awkward.} f5 21. Qh4 $1 Qxb2 22. Qe7 Qe5 $2 {Two blunders in
one game is enough to resign!} (22... Qf6 23. Qxf6 (23. Qxa7 $18) 23... gxf6
24. Rac1 $18) 23. Bxd5 $1 {So I had 2 out of 2 after a long day!} 1-0

[Event "CCA-ICC op"]
[Site "Lake George"]
[Date "2005.05.15"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Atalik, Suat"]
[Black "Kiriakov, Petr"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2561"]
[BlackElo "2565"]
[Annotator "Atalik,S"]
[PlyCount "167"]
[EventDate "2005.05.11"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 107"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{GM Petr Kiriakov is a very solid player. Probably my opening choice against
him was not the best.} 1. d4 e6 2. c4 Nf6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6.
Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Qb6 10. Bxd5 exd5 11. Be3 Bxc3+ 12. Qxc3
Qa6 $5 {This move caught me surprised. Probably this is one of the best moves
in the position.} 13. O-O {White does not get much just like any other line in
this subvariation of the Nimzo!} (13. Qd3 Qxd3 14. exd3 Bd7 15. Kd2 Nc6 16.
Rac1 Nxd4 17. Bxd4 $14) 13... Bg4 $1 $146 {A good novelty} 14. Rfd1 (14. f3 Rc8
15. Qd3 Qxd3 16. exd3 Bd7 17. Rac1 Nc6 $11) (14. Qd3 Qxd3 15. exd3 Rc8 $1 (
15... Nd7 16. f3) 16. Rfc1 Nd7 17. f3 Bh3 18. Kf2 Ne5 19. Ke2 $14) 14... Rc8 (
14... Nc6 $6 15. Nxc6 bxc6 16. f3 Bf5 17. Rd2 $16) 15. Qd3 Qxd3 16. Rxd3 Nc6
17. f3 Nxd4 18. Bxd4 Bf5 19. Rd2 (19. Re3 $142 $14 {may be better taking into
consideration the game continuation.}) 19... h5 $1 $11 {From now on I have
tried to have a breakthrough using all the possible means in the position, but
black's position is simply too solid thus he was able to repulse my attacks.}
20. Kf2 a6 21. h3 $1 {Preparing to impair kingside pawn structure which can
only be dangerous with 4 rooks over the board.} Rc2 $1 {Petr has a vast
experience in such endgames.} 22. Rxc2 Bxc2 23. g4 hxg4 24. hxg4 Rc8 25. Rh1 (
25. Rc1 Bf5) 25... Bg6 26. g5 {What else?} Rc6 27. Bc3 f6 28. gxf6 gxf6 29. Rd1
Bf7 30. a4 Kg7 31. Bd4 Bg6 32. a5 Kf7 33. Bc3 Ke6 34. Rh1 b6 {Black has to
reduce the material and just stay!} 35. axb6 Rxb6 36. Rh8 Rc6 37. Rf8 Ke7 38.
Bb4+ Ke6 39. Bc3 Ke7 40. Rb8 Bc2 41. Rb4 Ke6 42. Rf4 Ke7 43. e3 Bb1 44. Kg3 Bc2
45. Rd4 Ke6 46. Rd2 Bg6 47. Rh2 Kf5 48. Rh6 Bf7 49. Rh7 Kg6 50. Rh8 Kf5 51. Ra8
(51. Kh4 $5 {was not in my agenda yet since I was trying to steal f4 square
for my king.}) 51... Bh5 $1 52. Ra7 Be8 53. Ra8 Bh5 54. Bd4 Bf7 55. Kh4 {
Now it comes out of necessity!} Re6 56. Rc8 Kg6 57. Rc7 Be8 58. Kg4 Rc6 59. Re7
Re6 $1 60. Rc7 Rc6 61. Ra7 Bf7 62. b4 Be6+ 63. Kf4 {Eventually I have stolen
the square but it is not something to glorify.} Bf7 64. Bc5 Be6 65. Bf8 Bf7 66.
Kg3 {Trying to break into the otherside.} Rc8 67. Be7 Rc6 68. Bf8 Rc8 69. Bc5
Rc6 70. Kg4 Be6+ 71. Kf4 Bf7 72. Ra8 Be6 73. Kg3 Bf7 74. Kf2 Kf5 75. Ke2 Bh5 $1
$11 {Now f3 became an headache.Actually it was time to offer a draw and call
it a day.} 76. Ra7 Ke6 77. Ra8 Kf5 78. Kf2 Bf7 79. Kg3 Kg6 80. Kf4 Be6 81. Ra7
Bf7 82. e4 {Showing my peaceful intentions.} dxe4 83. fxe4 Re6 84. Re7 {
A pathetic game in which white could not prove anything.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Senta op 19th"]
[Site "Senta"]
[Date "2015.07.14"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Atalik, Suat"]
[Black "Arsovic, Zoran"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2564"]
[BlackElo "2418"]
[Annotator "Atalik,S"]
[PlyCount "66"]
[EventDate "2015.07.11"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "SRB"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2016"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.10.08"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.10.08"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 Nc6 $5 5. e4 O-O $5 {A confusing move
order.} (5... d5 6. cxd5 exd5 7. e5 Ng8 8. Bb5 Bd7 (8... Nge7 9. Nge2) 9. Bxc6
Bxc6 10. Nge2 $14) (5... e5 6. a3 Bxc3+ 7. bxc3 d6 8. Bg5 h6 9. Be3 $14) 6. Bg5
{I believe this is the most reliable response to what Zoran came up with.} (6.
Nge2 d5 $1) (6. a3 Bxc3+ 7. bxc3 Ne8 8. Bd3 b6 9. Nh3 Ba6 {transposes into a
known line.}) 6... e5 $5 (6... Be7 7. Be3 $5) (6... h6 7. Bh4 e5 8. Nge2 $13)
7. d5 Ne7 $5 {A very good reaction.} (7... Nd4 8. Nge2 c5 (8... Bc5 9. Na4) (
8... Nxe2 9. Bxe2) 9. Ng3 $13) 8. Bxf6 $5 {Taking with all the risks included
looked like the solution over the board.} (8. Nge2 Ng6 9. Be3 $5 (9. h4 h6 10.
Be3 d6 11. h5 Ne7 $13) 9... d6 10. Qd2 Bc5 11. Bxc5 dxc5 12. h4 h5 13. g3 $14)
8... gxf6 9. Qd2 d6 (9... f5 $2 10. Qg5+ Ng6 11. Qxd8 Rxd8 12. exf5 Nh4 13. g4
$16) 10. g4 c6 11. Nge2 cxd5 12. cxd5 {I have had a sharper alternative, but
it is not clear if it provides White with any advantage.} (12. Qh6 $5 Ng6 (
12... d4 $2 13. Ng3) 13. O-O-O Bxc3 (13... d4 $2 14. Nd5) 14. Nxc3 d4 15. Nd5
Be6 16. Bd3 Kh8 17. h4 Rg8 18. h5 Nf8 19. Nxf6 Rg7 20. Nd5 Nd7 $13 (20... Qg5+
21. Qxg5 Rxg5 22. h6 $13)) 12... Kh8 (12... Bd7 13. Qh6 Ng6 14. h4 $13) 13. Rg1
$6 {The start of an artificial plan: Rg1-g3-h3.} (13. Ng3 $142 Ng6 14. Nh5)
13... Bd7 14. Rg3 Rg8 (14... Bb5 $2 15. Rh3 Rg8 16. Ng3) 15. Rh3 Rg6 {Black
has a great plan in this sharp position.} (15... Rg5 $5 16. O-O-O (16. Ng3 $2
Ng6 17. Nh5 Rxh5 18. Rxh5 Nf4 $17) 16... Ng6 {is another idea.} 17. Kb1 Qb6 $17
) 16. Nc1 (16. a3 Bc5 $1) 16... Rc8 17. Nd3 Ba5 18. Rc1 Rg7 19. b4 Bb6 20. Ne2
Rxc1+ 21. Qxc1 a5 22. a3 axb4 23. axb4 Ba7 $1 {Sharp plans are abundant in the
position.} (23... f5 $6 24. gxf5 Nxf5 25. exf5 Bxf5 26. Ng3 Bxh3 27. Bxh3 Qh4
28. Qc8+ Rg8 29. Qf5 $13) 24. Ng3 Qb6 25. Nh5 Bb5 26. Qd2 {White has to accept
the fact that he is still worse here.} (26. Qh6 $2 Rg6 27. Qf8+ Ng8 $19) 26...
Rg6 27. Rg3 (27. Ng3 $6 Bxd3 28. Bxd3 Rg8 $19) 27... Bxd3 $2 {After this
unnecessary exchange White's worries are left behind.} (27... Qa6 28. Be2 $17)
(27... Qd4 28. Rg2 Qa1+ (28... f5 29. Nc1 Qxd2+ 30. Rxd2 Bxf1 31. exf5 $1 {
this intermezzo saves White.}) 29. Qd1 Qa6 $17) 28. Bxd3 Qd4 29. Rg2 (29. Kf1
f5 30. exf5 Nxf5 31. gxf5 Rxg3 32. hxg3 Qg1+ 33. Ke2 Qh2+ 34. Kd1 Qxh5 $11)
29... Bb6 30. Bb1 Qc4 31. Bd3 (31. Ba2 Qa6) 31... Qd4 (31... Qb3 32. Kf1 $11)
32. Bb1 Qc4 33. Bd3 Qd4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Bangkok op 14th"]
[Site "Bangkok"]
[Date "2014.04.15"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Atalik, Suat"]
[Black "Schebler, Gerhard"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2562"]
[BlackElo "2451"]
[Annotator "Atalik,S"]
[PlyCount "171"]
[EventDate "2014.04.12"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "THA"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 161"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.07.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.07.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 {My new affiliation!} c5 5. d5 b5 $5 {
The sacrificial line on which I have done some work, but even then my opponent
surprised me.} 6. e4 bxc4 7. Bxc4 exd5 $5 (7... Nxd5 {is the way to force the
recapture by the bishop.} 8. Bxd5 exd5 9. Qxd5 {goes back in the game.}) 8.
Bxd5 (8. exd5 O-O 9. Nge2 Ba6 $1 {did not impress me.}) 8... Nxd5 9. Qxd5 O-O
$5 {I could not really appreciate this move. It obviously deserves attention
but is it good or just risky?} (9... Nc6 10. Nge2 Ba6 11. Kf2 O-O 12. Rd1 $1 {
After this White should be somehow better due to the better pawn structure.}
Re8 (12... Ba5 13. a3 Rb8 14. Bg5 Qe8 15. Rab1) (12... Qb6 13. Be3 d6 14. Rab1
Rad8 15. a3 Bxc3 16. Nxc3 Ne5 17. b4 Bc4 18. Qd2 $14) 13. Bf4 Qb6 14. a3 Ba5
15. Rab1 $14) 10. Nge2 (10. Qxa8 $6 {did not make much sense.} Bxc3+ 11. bxc3
Nc6 {may turn out to be bad for White after the material balance is restored
when the queen vs 2 rooks middlegame arises.} 12. Ne2 Qa5 13. Bd2 Ba6 14. Qxf8+
Kxf8 15. Kf2 Ne5 $17) 10... Qb6 $1 (10... Nc6 11. O-O Ba6 12. Rd1 {transposes
into the regular lines.}) 11. Kf2 $5 {This turned out to be very risky.} ({
Safer lines are} 11. O-O Bb7 12. Qf5 c4+ (12... Qe6 13. Rd1 Qxf5 14. exf5 Re8
15. Bf4 $40) 13. Kh1) (11. a3 $5 Bb7 (11... Ba5 $6 12. Be3 $1 Qxb2 13. Kf2 $16)
(11... Bxc3+ 12. bxc3 Ba6 13. Be3 d6 14. Kf2 Nc6 15. Rab1 Qc7 16. Rhd1 Rad8 17.
Ng3 Ne7 18. Qa2 $11) 12. Qa2 Bxc3+ 13. bxc3 Ba6 14. Nf4 Nc6 15. Nd5 Qd8 16. Bf4
$13) 11... Bb7 12. Qd1 d5 $1 13. Nxd5 Bxd5 14. Qxd5 Nc6 $44 {Black has obvious
compensation for the sacrificed pawn and small decisions became very important
for the outcome.} 15. a3 $5 (15. Be3 Rad8 16. Qb3 Qa6 17. Rhd1 c4 18. Qc2 Rd3
$44) 15... Rad8 16. Qg5 h6 (16... f6 17. Qf5) 17. Qe3 (17. Qf4 c4+ 18. Be3 Bc5
19. Bxc5 Qxc5+ 20. Qe3 Qxe3+ 21. Kxe3 Rd3+ 22. Kf2 Rd2 23. Rhd1 Rxb2 24. Rab1
Ra2 $36 (24... Rfb8 25. Rxb2 Rxb2 26. f4 $13)) 17... Ba5 18. g4 $2 {Good or
bad I really had to go for this.} (18. b4 cxb4 19. Qxb6 Bxb6+ 20. Be3 $11)
18... Qa6 19. Nf4 c4 $2 (19... Nd4 20. Rb1 (20. b4 Bb6 21. bxc5 Bxc5 22. Kg2
Ne6 23. Qe1 Qc4 24. Nd5 Bd4) 20... Bc7 21. Qe1 Rfe8 22. h4 h5 23. g5 (23. gxh5
Qf6) (23. Nxh5 Nxf3) 23... f5 $19 {is grim for White but it is really
difficult to find it over the board.}) 20. Kg2 Nd4 (20... Ne5 $5 $44) 21. Rb1
Rfe8 $2 (21... Bb6 $142 22. Qc3 (22. Qe1 Rfe8 $40) 22... Ba5 23. Qe3 $11) 22.
Qf2 Bc7 23. Rd1 $2 {A silly mistake!} (23. Be3 $142 Bxf4 24. Bxf4 Nb3 $44)
23... Bxf4 $2 {He had a not very obvious but a very strong winning line} ({with
} 23... Qa4 $1 24. Re1 (24. Bd2 $2 Bxf4 25. Bxf4 Ne6) (24. Be3 $2 Nc2 25. Nd5
Rxd5 26. Rxd5 Nxe3+ 27. Qxe3 Qc2+ $19) (24. Rf1 Nxf3 25. Kxf3 Qc6 26. Re1 Bxf4
27. Bxf4 Rd3+ 28. Kg2 Rxe4 29. Kg1 Rf3 $19) 24... Nc2 25. Re2 Bb6 $40) 24. Bxf4
(24. Rxd4 Rxd4 25. Qxd4 Be5 26. Qd1 Rb8 $40) 24... Ne6 $138 (24... Nb3 $142 25.
Be3 Rd3 $44) 25. Be3 Rd3 (25... Rxd1 26. Rxd1 c3 {is the game.}) 26. Rbc1 (26.
Rxd3 cxd3 27. Rd1 Qb5 28. Rd2 a5 $44) 26... Rxd1 {He changed his mind and
possibly with a good reason behind it.} (26... Red8 27. Rxd3 cxd3 28. Qd2 $16)
27. Rxd1 c3 28. bxc3 $6 {Always the wrong decision!} (28. Rc1 cxb2 29. Qxb2 Rd8
30. h4 $16) 28... Qxa3 29. c4 Rc8 30. c5 g5 31. Rc1 (31. h4 gxh4 32. Re1 Rb8
33. Re2 Rb3 34. Ra2 Qb4 $13) 31... Qa4 32. Qc2 Qxc2+ 33. Rxc2 a5 34. Kf2 (34.
c6 a4 35. Bb6 a3 36. c7 f6 37. Kg3 Nxc7 $14) (34. Ra2 Ra8 35. Ra4 Kf8 $14) (34.
Kg3 $142 a4 35. h4 {looks like the way to proceed since throwing in h4 is of
high priority.}) 34... a4 35. Ke2 a3 36. Kd2 a2 37. Rxa2 Nxc5 38. h4 (38. Rc2
Nb3+ (38... Rd8+ 39. Ke2 Ne6) 39. Kd3 Rxc2 40. Kxc2 Na5 $14) 38... Ne6 (38...
gxh4 $5 {is my choice.} 39. Bxh6 (39. Bxc5 Rxc5 40. f4 h3 $11 {No
Gligoric-Euwe, Zürich 1953 today especially in this part of the world!}) 39...
h3 40. Ke3 Kh7 41. Bf4 Ne6 42. Be5 Kg6 43. Kf2 f6 $13) 39. Ra5 f6 40. Ra6 Kf7
41. h5 Rc7 42. Rb6 Ke7 43. Kd3 Kf7 44. Rd6 Ke7 45. Ra6 $2 {A very bad
judgement which could leave my rook stuck there.} Rd7+ $2 {He could have
immediately punished my unnecessary mistake with a forced draw.} (45... Nc5+ $1
46. Bxc5+ Rxc5 47. Kd4 Rb5 48. Kc4 Re5 49. Ra7+ Kf8 50. Rh7 Kg8 51. Rxh6 Kg7
52. Rg6+ Kf7 53. Kd4 Ra5 54. Ke3 Ra3+ 55. Kf2 Ra2+ 56. Kg3 Ra5 $1 (56... Ra3 $2
57. e5 $18) 57. f4 Ra3+ 58. Kf2 Ra2+ $11 {and lateral checks provide Black
with an easy draw.} (58... gxf4 59. g5)) 46. Kc4 Rc7+ 47. Kb4 Rb7+ 48. Kc3 Rc7+
49. Kd2 Rd7+ 50. Ke1 Rb7 51. Bb6 $1 $14 {I have started to line up my pieces
to push e5!} Kf7 52. Kf2 Rd7 53. Ba5 Rb7 54. Bc3 Rc7 55. Ba1 Rc5 56. Ke3 Rc7
57. Rb6 Ra7 58. Bb2 Rd7 59. e5 $1 fxe5 60. Bxe5 Ra7 (60... Re7 61. Bd6 {
and the game continues.} (61. Ke4 $2 Nc5+)) 61. Rb8 Ra3+ 62. Ke2 $1 {I have to
hide my king before any active operation.} (62. Ke4 $2 Nc5+ (62... Ra4+ 63. Kf5
Ng7+ 64. Bxg7 Rf4+ $11) 63. Kd5 Nd7 64. Rb7 Ke8 65. Bg7 Rxf3 66. Bxh6 Rd3+ 67.
Kc4 Ne5+ $11) 62... Ra2+ 63. Kf1 Ra6 $2 {This turns out to be bad!} ({He
should never stop attacking the bishop.} 63... Ra5 $1 64. Rb7+ Kg8 65. Bb2 Nf4
$132 {is good enough to keep the balance.}) 64. Rb7+ Kg8 65. Re7 Kf8 66. Rh7
Nd8 (66... Nf4 $2 67. Bxf4 gxf4 68. Rd7 Ra3 69. Ke2 Re3+ 70. Kf2 Re6 71. Rd4
Rf6 72. Ke2 Ke7 73. Kd3 Kf7 74. Ke4 Kg7 75. Ke5 $18) 67. Rh8+ Ke7 68. Bg7 Nf7
69. Rb8 Rc6 70. Kf2 Ra6 71. Kg3 Rc6 72. Rg8 Kd7 73. Ra8 Ke7 74. Bf8+ Kd7 75.
Ra7+ Ke6 76. Ba3 Kf6 (76... Nd6 77. Bb2 Nf7 78. Bg7 $1 Rb6 79. Ra1 Kd7 80. Rd1+
Ke7 81. Re1+ Kd7 82. Bf8 Rf6 (82... Re6 83. Rxe6 Kxe6 84. Bg7 $1 Kd5 85. f4 $18
) 83. Re7+ Kd8 84. Rxf7 Rxf7 85. Bxh6 $18) 77. Bb2+ Ke6 78. Ra8 $6 $138 (78.
Bg7 $1 $18 {wins as is already mentioned above.}) 78... Rb6 79. Re8+ (79. Bg7
$18) 79... Kd7 80. Rf8 Ke7 81. Ba3+ $2 {The wrong diagonal as I have already
indicated!} Ke6 $2 {The bishop should never return to a1-h8 diagonal to land
on g7!} (81... Kf6 $2 82. Bc5 Rc6 83. Bd4+ Ke7 84. Bg7 $18) (81... Nd6 $1 82.
Rh8 (82. Rg8 Kf7 83. Rg6 Nc4 $11) 82... Kf7 83. Bc5 (83. Rxh6 Nf5+ 84. gxf5
Rxh6 $11) 83... Rc6 84. Bd4 Nb5 $11 {and Black makes a draw by attacking the
white bishop.}) 82. Rg8 $2 {The usual mistake!} (82. Re8+ Kd5 83. Bf8 Rb3 84.
Bg7 $18) 82... Kd7 $2 $138 {The final mistake.} (82... Ne5 $8 83. Bc5 Rb3 84.
Rf8 $14) 83. Rg6 $1 $18 {This concludes the game immediately by exchanging the
rooks by force.} Re6 84. Bf8 Rc6 85. Rxc6 $1 Kxc6 86. f4 (86. f4 gxf4+ (86...
Kd5 87. fxg5 hxg5 88. Bg7) 87. Kxf4 Kd7 88. Kf5 Ke8 89. Bg7 Ke7 90. Kg6 Ke6 91.
Kh7 $1 $18 (91. Bxh6 $2 Ne5+ 92. Kg5 Nf7+ $11)) 1-0

[Event "Lee Cup 3rd"]
[Site "Beijing"]
[Date "1996.??.??"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Atalik, Suat"]
[Black "Ulybin, Mikhail"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2525"]
[BlackElo "2550"]
[Annotator "Atalik,S"]
[PlyCount "73"]
[EventDate "1996.08.??"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "CHN"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 054 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1996.11.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1996.11.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 e6 (1... Nf6 $145 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 {E20} Ne4 (5... b6
6. Bg2 Bb7 7. O-O Bxc3 8. bxc3 Nc6 9. Be3 $5 d6 (9... Na5 $6 10. dxc5 Nxc4 11.
Bd4 bxc5 12. Bxc5 Ne4 13. Qd4 Nxc5 14. Qxg7 $1 Rf8 15. Qd4 $18) 10. d5 Na5 11.
dxe6 fxe6 12. Bf4 e5 13. Bg5 O-O 14. Nd2 Bxg2 15. Kxg2 {xd5}) (5... Nc6 6. Bg2
Qa5 (6... Ne4 7. Qd3 cxd4 8. Nxd4 Nxc3 9. bxc3 Ne5 10. Qc2 Bc5 (10... Be7 11.
Qb3 O-O 12. Bf4) 11. Qa4 O-O 12. Nb3 d6 13. Nxc5 dxc5 14. Bf4 Ng6 15. Be3 Bd7
16. Qb3 b6 17. Bxa8 Qxa8 18. f3 {xe4} Ne5 19. O-O Nc6 20. Qd1 $1 Rd8 21. Qd6
$40) 7. O-O Bxc3 8. bxc3 Qxc3 9. Bf4 Qxc4 10. Rc1 Qxa2 11. dxc5 O-O 12. Bd6 Rd8
(12... Re8 13. Nd4 Nxd4 14. Qxd4 Qxe2 15. Be5 Qh5 16. h3 $1 $16) 13. Nd4 Ne8
14. Bf4 Nxd4 15. Qxd4 Qxe2 16. Rfe1 Qh5 17. Qb4 $1 Qg6 18. h4 h6 19. Qa5) 6.
Qd3 Qa5 7. Qxe4 Bxc3+ 8. Bd2 Bxd2+ 9. Nxd2 Nc6 10. dxc5 $5 $146 Qxc5 11. Bg2
O-O 12. O-O) 2. Nf3 c5 3. c4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 Bb4 6. g3 O-O (6... Ne4 7.
Qd3 Qa5 (7... Bxc3+ 8. bxc3 Nc5 9. Qd2 b6 10. Nb5 O-O 11. Nd6 Ba6 (11... Bb7
12. Nxb7 Nxb7 13. Ba3 Re8 14. Bg2 Qc8 (14... Nc6 15. Rd1 $16) 15. Rd1 d6 16.
Bxd6 Rd8 17. O-O $1 $16) 12. Bg2 Nc6 13. O-O Rb8 14. Ba3 Na5 15. Qd4 Nab7 16.
Nb5 $1 $16) 8. Nb3 Nxc3 (8... Qf5 9. Qe3 Nc6 10. Bg2 Nd6 (10... Nc5 11. Nd4 Qe5
12. Nxc6 Qxe3 13. Bxe3 bxc6 14. O-O-O Rb8 15. Kc2 Ba6 16. b3 d5 17. a3 $1 $18)
(10... Nxc3 11. bxc3 Be7 12. O-O O-O 13. c5 Rd8 14. Ba3 $1 d6 (14... b6 $6 15.
Nd4 Nxd4 16. cxd4 Rb8 17. c6 $1 $18) 15. cxd6 Bxd6 16. Bxd6 Rxd6 17. Rad1 $16)
11. c5 Nc4 12. Qd3 Qxd3 13. exd3 N4a5 14. Nxa5 Nxa5 15. Be3 d6 16. cxd6 Bd7 17.
O-O Bxd6 18. Ne4 Be7 19. Rfc1 Nc6 20. Nc5 Bxc5 21. Rxc5 $16) 9. Bd2 Ne4 10.
Qxe4 Bxd2+ 11. Nxd2 O-O 12. Bg2 Nc6 13. Qd3 (13. Qf4 e5 14. Qe3 Nd4 15. Qd3 d5
16. Bxd5 Bf5 17. e4 Bh3 18. a3 Kh8 19. O-O-O) 13... Qe5 14. Rb1 Nb4 15. Qb3 a5
16. a3 Nc6 17. Nf3 Qe4 18. O-O) 7. Bg2 d5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Nc6 (9... Qb6 10.
Bxd5 exd5 (10... Qxd4 11. Bg2 Nc6 12. Be3 $1) 11. Be3 Bh3 (11... Qa5 12. Rc1
Nc6 (12... Bh3 13. a3 Bxc3+ 14. Qxc3 Qxc3+ 15. Rxc3 Nc6 16. Nxc6 bxc6 17. Kd2
Rfb8 18. b3 $14) 13. O-O Nxd4 14. Bxd4 Bh3 15. Rfd1 Bxc3 16. Rxc3 {with the
idea of 17.g4} Be6 (16... Qa6 $4 17. g4 $1 Bxg4 18. Rg3 Qxe2 19. f3 f5 20. fxg4
fxg4 21. Rg2 $18) 17. Qxb7 Qxa2 (17... Rab8 18. Qc7) 18. Qc7 $36) (11... Nc6
12. Rd1 $1 (12. Nxc6 Qxc6 13. Qxb4 d4 14. f3 dxe3) 12... Qa5 13. O-O Bh3 14.
Rfe1 Rac8 15. Rc1 Ne5 16. Ndb5 $5 Be6 17. Nd4 $10) 12. Nc2 $1 (12. g4 $5 Nc6
13. Nxc6 Qxc6 14. Rg1 Bxc3+ 15. Qxc3 Qxc3+ 16. bxc3 f5 17. Rd1 Bxg4 18. Rxd5
Rae8 19. Kd2 a6 (19... Bxe2 20. Kxe2 (20. Rd7 Bg4) (20. Bd4 g6 (20... Rf7 21.
Re1 Rfe7 22. Rxf5) 21. Re1 Ba6 22. Rd7) 20... f4 21. Rd7 Rf7 $10) 20. f3 Bh5
21. Bd4 Rf7 22. Rg5 g6 23. Rg3 $14) (12. Rc1) 12... Bxc3+ 13. Qxc3 Qe6 14. Nd4
{with the idea of 15.f3,16.Kf2}) (9... Qa5 10. Bd2 Na6 (10... Nc6 11. Nxc6 bxc6
12. O-O {-9...Nc6 10.Nc6 bc6 11.0-0 Qa5 12.Bd2}) 11. O-O Nxc3 12. Bxc3 Bxc3 13.
Qxc3 Qxc3 14. bxc3 Nc5 15. Nb3 $16) (9... Na6 10. O-O Nc5 (10... Nxc3 11. bxc3
Be7 12. Rd1 Nc5 13. Qc4 $1 e5 (13... Bd7 14. Ba3 Rc8 15. Nc6 Bxc6 16. Rxd8
Rfxd8 $44) (13... b5 14. Qxb5 Ba6 15. Qb2 Rc8 $44) 14. Ba3 Qa5 15. Nb5 $1 a6
16. Bxc5 axb5 17. Qb4 Qxb4 18. cxb4 Bxc5 19. bxc5 $14) 11. Qc2 $1 Bxc3 12. bxc3
Bd7 13. Nb3 Qc7 (13... Ba4 $6 14. Ba3 Rc8 15. c4 $1 $16) 14. c4 Na6 15. Ba3
Rfc8 16. Rac1 b5 17. c5 Bc6 18. e4 Ndb4 19. Qe2 Rd8 20. Rfd1 e5 21. Bf1 Rab8
22. f3 Be8 23. Rxd8 Rxd8 24. Rd1 Nc6 25. Rd5 $14) 10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. O-O Rb8 (
11... Qa5 12. Bd2 Nxc3 (12... Bxc3 13. bxc3 Ba6 14. Rfd1 $1 Qc5 (14... Rab8 15.
c4 Qc5 16. cxd5 Rxb3 17. axb3 Bxe2 18. Re1 Bb5 19. dxc6 Bxc6 $140 $2 20. Rac1
$1 $18) 15. e4 Bc4 16. Qa4 Nb6 17. Qb4 Qxb4 18. cxb4 Rfd8 19. Be3 Bb5 20. Rxd8+
Rxd8 21. Bxb6 $5 axb6 22. a4 Ra8 23. a5 $14) 13. Bxc3 Bxc3 14. bxc3 Ba6 15. Qb4
Qxb4 (15... Qc7 16. c4 c5 17. Qa3 Bb7 18. Bxb7 Qxb7 19. Qxc5 Rfc8 20. Qb5 $16)
(15... Qb6 16. Rfb1 Bxe2 17. Qxb6 axb6 18. Rxb6 Bb5 19. Bxc6 Bxc6 20. Rxc6 Ra3
21. Rc7 $14) 16. cxb4 Rab8 17. a3 $1 $14) (11... a5 12. Rd1 Qe7 13. Bd2 Ba6 14.
Bf3 Rfd8 15. a3 Bxc3 16. Bxc3 a4 17. Qc2 Bb5 18. Bd4 e5 19. Bc5 Qe6 20. Rd2 Rd7
21. Rad1 Rad8 22. Be4 $36) 12. a3 $146 Nxc3 13. bxc3 Bd6 14. Qa4 Qc7 15. Qxc6 (
15. Bxc6 $6 Rb6 16. Bf3 Qxc3 17. Be3 Ra6 $15) 15... Qxc6 16. Bxc6 Ba6 (16...
Rb3 17. Bd2 (17. Rd1 Be5 18. Be3 Rxc3 19. Rac1 Rxc1 20. Bxc1 Ba6 21. Bf3 Bb5
22. Bf4 Bxf4 23. gxf4 $10) (17. c4 Ba6 18. Ba4 Rb7 $10) 17... Rxa3 (17... Ba6
18. Bf3 Bxa3 19. Bc1 $1 Bxc1 20. Rfxc1 Rb6 21. c4) 18. Rxa3 Bxa3 19. Ra1 Bc5
20. Be3 Bxe3 21. fxe3 a6 22. c4 Rd8 23. Rb1 Kf8 24. Rb8 Ke7 25. Ra8 (25. c5 Bd7
26. Rb7 Ke8) 25... Kd6 26. Bf3 (26. Bb7 Kc7 27. Bxc8 Rxc8 28. Rxa6 Kb7 29. Ra4
$14) 26... Kc5 $140 27. Kf2) 17. Bf3 Rb3 (17... Rfc8 18. Rd1 Be5 19. Bf4 Bxf4
20. gxf4 $16 Rxc3 $140 21. Rd7) 18. Rd1 Bc5 (18... Be5 19. Bd2 $1 $16 (19. Be3
Bxc3 20. Rac1)) 19. Be3 $1 Bxe3 (19... Bxa3 $2 20. Rd7 Bc4 21. Rc7 $1 $16) 20.
fxe3 Rxc3 21. Rd7 Rxe3 22. Kf2 Rb3 23. Rxa7 Bc4 24. a4 Rb2 (24... Bd5 25. Bxd5
exd5 26. a5 Rb2 27. a6 Re8 28. Rb7 $1 Rexe2+ (28... Rbxe2+ 29. Kf1 Rxh2 30. Kg1
Rc2 31. a7 Rcc8 32. Rab1 $18) 29. Kf3 Rf2+ 30. Ke3 $18) 25. a5 g6 (25... Bd5
26. Bxd5 exd5 27. a6 Re8 28. Rb7 {-24...Bd5}) 26. Rb7 $18 Rxb7 27. Bxb7 Rb8 28.
a6 Bxa6 29. Bxa6 h5 $138 30. Rc1 Rb6 31. Bc8 Kg7 32. Rc7 Kf8 33. Bb7 Rb3 34.
Ba6 Ra3 35. Bc4 Rc3 $2 (35... Ra1 $142 36. Kf3 Rh1 37. h3 $1 Rf1+ 38. Kg2 Re1
39. Kf2 Rh1 40. e4 $5 (40. h4 $142 Ra1 41. e3 $1 Rb1 42. Kf3 Rg1 43. e4 Re1 44.
Kf4 Rg1 45. e5 Rg2 46. Kg5 Rxg3+ 47. Kh6 {-40.e4!?}) 40... Rh2+ (40... h4 41.
Bf1 hxg3+ 42. Kg2 Rh2+ 43. Kxg3 Rb2 44. Bc4 $18) 41. Kf3 Rh1 (41... h4 42. Bf1
$1 hxg3 43. Bg2 $18) 42. h4 Rg1 43. e5 Re1 44. Kf4 Rg1 (44... Ke8 45. Bxe6 $3
fxe6 46. Rg7 Rf1+ 47. Kg5 Rf5+ (47... Rf3 48. Rxg6 $1 Rxg3+ 49. Kxh5 Re3 50.
Rxe6+ Kd7 51. Rd6+ Ke7 52. Rd5 $18) 48. Kxg6 Rxe5 49. Kh6 $1 $18) 45. Kg5 $3
Rxg3+ 46. Kh6 Re3 47. Rc5 $1 Ke7 $8 48. Kg7 $1 (48. Bb5 $5 Kd8 $1 49. Kg7 Rf3
50. Ba6 $1 {-48.Kg7!} (50. Rc4 Rf5 51. Rd4+ Kc7 52. Rd7+ Kb6 53. Bd3 Rf3 $13))
48... Rc3 (48... Re4 49. Bb5 Rb4 50. Rc7+ Kd8 51. Rd7+ Kc8 52. Bc6 Rb6 53. Rd6
Kc7 54. Kxf7 Rxc6 55. Rxc6+ Kxc6 56. Kxe6 $18) 49. Rc8 $1 Re3 (49... Rc1 50.
Bxe6 $18) 50. Rc7+ Kd8 51. Rc5 $1 (51. Rxf7 Rxe5 52. Bd3 (52. Rf4 g5 53. Rd4+
Ke7) 52... Rd5 $1 (52... g5 53. Kf6 Re3 (53... Rd5 54. Be4 Rd4 55. Ke5) 54.
hxg5 (54. Rf8+ Kc7 55. hxg5 Rxd3 56. Rh8 $1 (56. g6 Rf3+ 57. Kg7 Rg3 58. Kh6 h4
59. Rf4 h3 60. g7 Kd6 61. Kh7) 56... Kd7 (56... Rf3+ 57. Kxe6 Rg3 58. Kf5 Rf3+
59. Kg6) 57. g6 Rf3+ 58. Kg7 e5 59. Rxh5 e4 (59... Ke6 60. Kh7 e4 61. g7 Rg3
62. g8=Q+) 60. Kh7 e3 61. g7 Rg3 (61... e2 62. g8=Q e1=Q 63. Qd5+) 62. g8=Q)
54... Rxd3 55. g6 (55. Rf8+ Kd7 56. g6 Rf3+ 57. Kg7 Rg3 58. Kh6 h4) 55... Rf3+
56. Kxe6 Re3+ 57. Kf6 Ke8 $1 $10) 53. Bxg6 Rd4 $10) 51... Rf3 (51... Ke7 52.
Bb5 Re4 53. Rc7+ Kd8 54. Rd7+ Kc8 55. Rxf7 Rxe5 56. Ba6+ Kd8 57. Kxg6 $18) 52.
Ba6 Ra3 (52... Rf4 53. Rc8+ Kd7 $8 54. Rf8 Rxh4 55. Rxf7+ Kc6 56. Kf6) 53. Rc8+
Kd7 54. Ra8 Re3 55. Kxf7 Rxe5 56. Kxg6) 36. Rc8+ Ke7 37. Bxe6 1-0

[Event "Veliko Gradiste Silver Lake op"]
[Site "Veliko Gradiste"]
[Date "2016.06.20"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Atalik, Suat"]
[Black "Nestorovic, Dejan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2572"]
[BlackElo "2387"]
[Annotator "Atalik,S"]
[PlyCount "67"]
[EventDate "2016.06.19"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "SRB"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 174"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.09.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.09.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 $5 ({Trying to bypass} 4. Nf3 b6) 4... O-O
5. Bg2 d6 {Actually a good decision.} (5... d5 {is also critical.} 6. a3 Bxc3+
7. bxc3 dxc4 8. Qa4 $5 (8. Nf3 Nbd7 9. a4 $13)) 6. Bd2 $6 {A meek move which I
have already played.} (6. Nf3 Bxc3+ 7. bxc3 Nbd7 8. O-O (8. Qd3 Re8 9. Nd2 c5
10. O-O e5 11. e4 $13) 8... Rb8 (8... c5 9. Bf4) 9. Qa4 Nb6 10. Qb4 $13) (6.
Qb3 c5 7. Nf3 Nc6 8. dxc5 dxc5 9. O-O e5 10. Bg5 Bxc3 11. bxc3 $5 $36) 6... e5
7. a3 (7. Nf3 Nc6 8. Nd5 $5 (8. d5 Ne7 9. O-O $13) 8... Bxd2+ 9. Qxd2 Bg4 10.
dxe5 dxe5 11. O-O $13 {is worth considering.}) 7... Bxc3 8. Bxc3 exd4 9. Bxd4 (
9. Qxd4 Re8 (9... Nc6 10. Qf4) 10. Nf3 Qe7 11. e3 Nc6 12. Qd3 {and White loses
way too many tempi.}) 9... Nc6 10. Nf3 (10. Bc3 $6 Re8 11. Nf3 Ne4 $40) 10...
Bf5 $146 (10... Nxd4 11. Nxd4 c6 12. O-O a5 13. b4 $1 $14 {is my game with IM
Dusan D. Jovanovic from the Central Serbian League 2014 where I barely kept
the balance. What really is intriguing that I did not remember it at all.}) 11.
O-O Re8 (11... Be4 12. Bc3) 12. b4 (12. Bc3 Ne4) 12... a5 13. b5 (13. Bxf6 Qxf6
14. b5 Nd8 15. Nd4 Be4 16. f3 Bg6 17. e4 Ne6 18. Nxe6 fxe6 $1 $132) 13... Nxd4
14. Nxd4 Be4 15. f3 Bg6 16. e4 (16. Bh3 d5) 16... Nd7 {A particular position.
Who has a bad bishop? The question is not easy to answer.} 17. a4 (17. Bh3 Nc5
18. Qd2 $13) 17... Nc5 (17... Qg5 $142 $1 18. Kh1 (18. f4 $2 Qc5 19. Qd3 Qb6
$17) 18... Qc5 19. Qd2 Ne5 20. Rfc1 f6 21. Qc3 Bf7 22. Bf1 $11 {when White
repulses the attack he has equal chances.}) 18. Nb3 Nxb3 $6 {Black should not
be afraid of Nxc5 dxc5!} (18... f6 $5 19. Nxc5 dxc5 20. Qd5+ Qxd5 21. cxd5 f5
22. Rae1 fxe4 23. fxe4 Re5 24. Rf4 Rae8 25. Kf2 b6 $1 $11) (18... Qf6 19. Nxc5
dxc5 20. Qd7 Rac8 (20... Qd4+ 21. Qxd4 cxd4 22. Rfd1 Rad8 23. Rd2 c5 24. bxc6
bxc6 25. c5 $16) (20... Rad8 21. Qxc7 Rd2 22. e5 $1 Rxe5 23. Rad1 Rxd1 24. Rxd1
h5 25. Qd8+ Qxd8 26. Rxd8+ Kh7 27. f4 $16) 21. Bh3 Rcd8 22. Qxc7 b6 $44) 19.
Qxb3 b6 20. Qc3 (20. Rad1 f6 21. Rfe1 Qe7 22. f4 Rad8) 20... Re7 $2 (20... Qg5
$1 21. Qd4 Rad8 22. Rad1 f6 $11) 21. Rae1 {After this Black has difficulties
to stop e5.} ({However the immediate} 21. e5 $2 dxe5 22. f4 e4 23. f5 Bh5 24.
g4 Bxg4 25. Qg3 Bxf5 $1 $19 {kills the joy!} (25... Qd4+ 26. Kh1 Bf3 $1 (26...
Bxf5 $2 27. Rad1 Qc5 (27... Qe5 $4 28. Qxe5 Rxe5 29. Rxf5 Rxf5 30. Bxe4 $18)
28. Rd5 Qxc4 29. Rdxf5) 27. Bxf3 exf3)) 21... f6 22. f4 Rc8 23. e5 dxe5 24.
fxe5 fxe5 25. Bb7 {There is no difference between the text} ({and} 25. Rd1 Rd7
(25... Qe8 $4 26. Bc6 $18) 26. Bd5+ Kh8 27. Qxe5 Qe7 28. Qxe7 (28. Qe6 $5 Re8)
28... Rxe7 29. Rde1 (29. c5 $5 bxc5 30. Rc1) 29... Rxe1 30. Rxe1 Re8 31. Rf1
Rd8 32. Rf4 h6 33. Kf2 $16 {and the ending is clearly better for White.}) (25.
Rxe5 Qd6 $132) 25... Rb8 26. Rd1 Qe8 $2 {An oversight after which Black loses
the exchange.} (26... Rd7 27. Bd5+ Kh8 28. Qxe5 Qe7 29. Qxe7 Rxe7 30. Rde1 Rxe1
31. Rxe1 Re8 32. Rf1 Rd8 33. Rf4 $1 {transposes to the ending mentioned above.}
) 27. Bc6 Qc8 28. Qa3 $18 Rf7 (28... Re8 $142 {is trickier.} 29. Bd7 $1 (29.
Rd7 $6 Rd8 30. Bd5+ Kh8 31. Rxg7 Kxg7 32. Qe7+ Kh6 33. Be6 Rd7 $1 (33... Qb7
34. Qh4+ Kg7 35. Qf6+ Kh6 36. h4 $1 Rf8 (36... Rd6 37. Qg5+ Kg7 38. Qxe5+ Kh6
39. Bd5 Rxd5 (39... Qc8 40. Qg5+ Kg7 41. Rf7+ $18) 40. cxd5 $18) 37. Qg5+ Kg7
38. Qxe5+ Kh6 39. Qg5+ Kg7 40. Qe7+ $18) 34. Bxd7 Qd8 35. Qe6 Qg5 $44) 29...
Qd8 30. Bxe8 (30. Be6+ $2 Rxe6 31. Rxd8+ Rxd8 32. c5 e4 33. Qe3 h6 $44) 30...
Qxe8 31. c5 Qe7 32. Qc3 $18) 29. Bd5 Qe8 30. c5 Qe7 31. Rd3 $1 {This pseudo
tactical move decides the issue at once.} bxc5 32. Rc3 c6 33. bxc6 $1 (33.
Bxf7+ Bxf7 34. Qxc5 Qxc5+ 35. Rxc5 cxb5 36. Rxb5 Ra8 37. Rxe5 Bb3 38. Rf4 $18 {
is a tougher nut to crack.}) 33... Rb4 34. Rcf3 1-0

[Event "Jakarta Japfa"]
[Site "Jakarta"]
[Date "2014.04.24"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Atalik, Suat"]
[Black "Barus, Cerdas"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2562"]
[BlackElo "2392"]
[Annotator "Atalik,S"]
[PlyCount "133"]
[EventDate "2014.04.20"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "INA"]
[EventCategory "8"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 161"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.07.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.07.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 {For some reason I have become a magnet
for this move.} 5. d5 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 d6 7. e4 {This should be compared to pawn
structures coming from the Leningrad Variation in which Black comes closer to
equalising because of White's tempo losses.} e5 ({I remembered that I had
played against GM Marin in a very similar sturcture back in 1986.} 7... Qa5 8.
Ne2 e5 9. Qb3 Nbd7 10. Ng3 Nf8 11. Bg5 $40) 8. Bd3 {I am not so sure if this
move should have been thrown in.} (8. Ne2 Nbd7 9. g4 Nf8 10. Ng3 h5 11. g5 Ng8
12. Nf5 Bxf5 13. exf5 Ne7 14. Bd3 $16) (8. Qa4+ Nbd7 9. Nh3 $16) 8... Nbd7 9.
Ne2 Nf8 10. g4 $5 ({A more popular move is} 10. h4 h5 11. Qa4+ Bd7 12. Qa3 Qc7
13. Bc2 Kd8 14. Rb1 $14) 10... Ng6 11. Ng3 $146 (11. h4 h5 12. g5 Ng8 13. Be3
N8e7 14. Qd2 Kd7 15. f4 exf4 16. Bxf4 Kc7 17. Bg3 f6 $132) 11... h5 (11... Nf4
12. Bxf4 exf4 13. Ne2 Nd7 14. Nxf4 Qh4+ 15. Ke2 Ne5 16. Qe1 Qe7 (16... Qf6 17.
Qg3) 17. h4 $16 {is a pawn to me.}) 12. g5 Ng8 13. Nf5 Kf8 14. h4 N8e7 {
Cedras is tactically alert.} (14... Nf4 $2 15. Bxf4 exf4 16. Qd2 g6 17. Qxf4
gxf5 18. exf5 $16) 15. Ng3 Qa5 (15... Nf4 $2 16. Bxf4 exf4 17. Ne2 Ng6 18. Qd2
Ne5 19. Kf2 $16) 16. Ne2 Bd7 17. Be3 Ke8 18. Qd2 (18. Rb1 Rb8 19. Qc1 f5 20.
gxf6 gxf6 21. Rb3 a6 22. Kf2 $14) 18... f5 (18... Kd8 $5 19. f4 $40) 19. gxf6
$2 {Hesitation took hold of me in this part of the game.} ({Black has no
problems after} 19. exf5 Bxf5 $1 (19... Nxf5 20. Bxf5 Bxf5 21. Ng3 Ne7 22. f4
e4)) ({but} 19. f4 $1 Rf8 20. O-O fxe4 21. Bxe4 Bg4 22. Qc2 Nf5 23. fxe5 Nxe3
24. Bxg6+ Ke7 25. Qe4 Nxf1 26. Bxh5 $3 $18 {is a sample line.}) 19... gxf6 20.
Rb1 Rb8 21. Ng3 (21. f4 Bg4 $5 (21... exf4 22. Bxf4 Ne5 23. Bxe5 fxe5 24. Rf1
Bg4) 22. f5 Nf8 $132) 21... Kd8 22. Rb3 Kc7 23. Qb2 Kc8 24. Ra3 (24. Kf2 Qc7 (
24... Qd8 25. Qa3 a6 26. Rhb1 Qc7 27. Rb6 $40) 25. Qa3 b6 $11) 24... Qb6 25.
Qc1 a6 26. Rb3 Qd8 27. Rh2 b6 $11 {I think Black really equalised in this part
of the game. In such positions if the side with the doubled pawns cannot
generate enough tactics to confuse the issue he becomes worse.} 28. f4 $6 {
I felt like doing something but probably anything else was better.} exf4 29.
Bxf4 Ne5 30. Bxe5 fxe5 31. Be2 Rg8 (31... Ng6 $142 32. Nxh5 Nf4 33. Nxf4 Rxh4
34. Ne6 Bxe6 35. Rf2 Bd7 36. Qe3 Rh3 37. Bf3 Kb7 $17) 32. Qe3 (32. Nxh5 $2 Rg1+
33. Bf1 Qh8 $19) 32... Ng6 33. Nxh5 Nxh4 34. Qf2 $5 {Another active move but
not better} ({than} 34. Kd2 Kc7 35. Rb1 Ng2 36. Qh6 Qe7 37. Rhh1 Rbf8 38. Rbf1
$15) 34... Ng6 (34... Qg5 $5 35. Rxh4 Kc7 {was an amazing possibility.} 36. Rb1
Rbf8 37. Qg3 Qxh5 38. Rxh5 Rxg3 39. Kd2 Rg2 40. Rh7 $15 {and White holds.}) {
Not only did I have significantly less time but I was seriously worse with my
bad pawn structure.} 35. Qf6 $6 ({I was between the text and} 35. Qf7 {the one
I should have played after all.} Nh8 (35... Rb7 36. Qf6 Kc7 37. Qxd8+ Rxd8 38.
Rg2) (35... Qg5 $5 36. Qxg8+ Kc7 37. Qg7 Rf8 38. Rxb6 Kxb6 39. Qxd7 Qc1+ 40.
Bd1 Qxc3+ $11) 36. Qf6 Kc7 37. Qxd8+ Rbxd8 38. Nf6 Rg7 39. Kd2 Bc8 40. Rb1 $11
{survives.}) 35... Kc7 36. Rf2 {Here something amazing happened, my opponent
tried to offer me a draw without making a move. I refused his proposal by
reminding him of the rules of chess, which was one of the most stupid things I
did in this game.} Qf8 $1 {Yes, the chess rules... he immediately played the
best move after the discuission.} 37. Qxf8 Rgxf8 $5 (37... Rbxf8 38. Nf6 Rg7
39. Nxd7 Rxd7 40. Rxf8 Nxf8 41. Kf2 Rh7 42. Rb1 Ng6 43. Rg1 Rh6 44. Ke3 $11)
38. Rb1 Nf4 39. Nxf4 exf4 40. Kd2 Rf6 $6 {He blew it and I already started to
lick my chops.} (40... Rbe8 41. Rbf1 Rxe4 42. Bd3 Re7 43. Rxf4 $11) 41. Rh1
Rbf8 42. Rh4 $6 (42. Rh7 $1 R6f7 43. Rfh2 $36) 42... b5 $1 43. cxb5 $2 (43. Rh7
$142 R8f7 44. Rfh2) (43. Kd3 $5 bxc4+ 44. Kd2 Bb5 45. Bg4 Rg6 46. Bh3 Rg1 47.
Bf1 f3 48. Rh7+ Kb6 49. Ke3 $13) 43... axb5 $36 {I was not aware that the
initiative had changed hands. All I wanted was to force c4 and bring my king
on to d4. Alas it is obviously not the safest place in the world.} 44. Kd3 $138
Kb6 45. Bg4 Bxg4 46. Rxg4 Ra8 47. e5 $6 (47. Rgxf4 Rxf4 48. Rxf4 c4+ 49. Ke3
Ra3 (49... Rxa2 50. Rf8) 50. Kd2 $1 (50. Kd4 Rxa2 51. Rf6 (51. e5 $6 Rd2+ 52.
Ke3 Rxd5 53. Rf6 (53. e6 $2 Re5+ 54. Re4 Rxe4+ 55. Kxe4 Kc7 56. Kd5 Kd8 $19)
53... Kc5 54. exd6 Rd3+ 55. Ke2 Kc6 56. d7+ Kxd7 57. Rf3 $3 $15 Rxf3 $140 58.
Kxf3 Kc6 59. Ke3 Kc5 60. Kd2 Kd5 61. Ke3 Ke5 62. Kf3 $11) 51... Rd2+ 52. Ke3
Rd3+ 53. Ke2 Rxc3 54. e5 Rh3 (54... Rd3 55. Rxd6+ Kc5 56. Rc6+ Kxd5 57. Rd6+ $1
$11) 55. Rxd6+ Kc5 56. Rd7 c3 57. e6 Kd4 58. e7 Re3+ 59. Kd1 Kd3 (59... b4 60.
Kc2) 60. Rc7 c2+ $11) 50... Rxa2+ 51. Kd1 Kc5 52. Rf8 $11) 47... dxe5 48. Ke4
Rd6 49. Kxe5 Rad8 $1 50. Rd2 c4 51. Rxf4 Kc5 $15 {It is not so unbelievable
that in spite of the pawn minus Black is better.} 52. Rfd4 $2 (52. a3 $6 Re8+ (
52... Rxd5+ 53. Rxd5+ Rxd5+ 54. Ke4 Rd3 55. Rf8 Rxc3 56. Rc8+ Kd6 57. a4 b4 58.
Kd4 Rd3+ 59. Ke4 $11) 53. Kf5 Re3 54. Rc2 Rxd5+ 55. Kf6 Re8 $1 $17) ({I had to
equalise immediately with} 52. Rf7 $142 $8 Rxd5+ 53. Rxd5+ Rxd5+ 54. Ke4 Rd3
55. Rc7+ Kd6 56. Rc8 Rxc3 57. a4 $1 b4 58. Kd4 $11) 52... Rh8 53. Rf2 $4 {
I still can not believe that in a double rook ending I lost one of my rooks.} (
{However things were not good even after the logical moves.} 53. Rg4 Re8+ (
53... Rh3 54. Rg8 $1 $11) 54. Kf4 Rf6+ (54... Rxd5 55. Rxd5+ Kxd5 56. Rg5+ Kc6
57. a4) 55. Kg5 Rf1 56. Kh6 Rf3 57. d6 Rxc3 58. d7 Rd8 59. Rg5+ Kc6 60. Rdd5
Rh3+ 61. Kg6 Rd3 62. Rc5+ Kxd7 $17) (53. Rf4 Re8+ 54. Kf5 Rxd5+ 55. Rxd5+ Kxd5
56. Rf3 b4 (56... Ra8 $2 57. Kf4 Rxa2 58. Rh3 $11 (58. Ke3 $2 Rc2 59. Rf5+ Kc6
$19)) 57. cxb4 Rf8+ 58. Kg4 Rc8 $1 (58... Rxf3 59. Kxf3 c3 60. Ke3 Kc4 61. b5
$11) 59. Rc3 Kd4 60. Rc1 c3 61. b5 Kd3 $19) 53... Rh3 $4 {Mutual blindness!} (
53... Re8+ 54. Kf4 Rf6+ 55. Kg3 Rg8+ $19 {would have won a rook and the game
on the spot.}) 54. Rf6 $2 {Missing another chance to run away with a draw.} (
54. Rf8 Re3+ 55. Kf4 Rxc3 56. Ke4 $1 $11 Rc2 $140 57. Rc8+ Kb4 58. Ke5 $40)
54... Re3+ $2 {He also started to miss things one after another.} (54... Rh5+
55. Rf5 Rxf5+ 56. Kxf5 b4 $1 (56... Rxd5+ $2 57. Rxd5+ Kxd5 58. Kf4 $1 $11 (58.
a3 Kc6 59. Ke6 Kb6 60. Kd5 Ka5 $19)) 57. Ke4 bxc3 58. Rd1 Rd7 59. Ke3 Re7+ 60.
Kf4 c2 61. Rc1 Kxd5 62. Rxc2 Kd4 $19) 55. Kf4 Rxc3 56. Rxd6 Kxd6 $2 {Capturing
obviously the wrong rook.} (56... Kxd4 57. Rd8 Rc2 58. d6 Rf2+ 59. Kg5 Rxa2 60.
d7 Ra7 $19) 57. Rd2 Rh3 58. Ke4 Rh5 59. Rg2 Rxd5 $6 {After the move he has
chosen game peters out to be a draw.} ({However in the event of} 59... Rh4+ $1
60. Ke3 Kxd5 61. Kd2 (61. Rg5+ $2 Kc6 62. Kd2 Rh2+ $19) 61... b4 62. Kc2 Kc5
63. Rf2 Kb5 64. Rg2 Ka4 65. Rg8 Rh2+ 66. Kb1 c3 67. Rb8 Rb2+ 68. Ka1 b3 69.
Ra8+ (69. axb3+ Ka3 70. Rb7 Rh2 71. Kb1 $11) 69... Kb4 70. Rb8+ Kc4 71. axb3+
Kd3 {I knew how to make a draw.} 72. Rd8+ $8 (72. Rh8 $2 Rd2 $3 (72... Re2 73.
Rh1 Kc2 74. Ka2 Rd2 75. b4 Rd1 76. Rh2+ $11) 73. Rh3+ (73. Rh1 Kc2 74. Ka2 Rd1
75. Rh2+ Kc1 76. b4 Rd2+ $19) 73... Kc2 74. Ka2 Kc1+ 75. Ka1 c2 $19 {
Bobotsov-Yukhtman,URS-Bulgaria(m),Kiev 1964}) 72... Kc2 73. Rh8 Kxb3 74. Rb8+
Kc2 75. Rh8 $11) 60. Rg8 $1 $11 Rh5 61. Kd4 Rh2 62. Rg6+ Kc7 63. a4 $1 (63. Kc5
c3 64. Rg7+ Kd8 65. Rg3 $11) 63... Rd2+ (63... Rh4+ 64. Kc3 bxa4 65. Ra6 a3 66.
Kb4 $11) 64. Kc5 c3 65. axb5 c2 66. Rc6+ (66. b6+ $4 Kd8 $19) 66... Kb7 67. Kb4
1/2-1/2

[Event "SRB-chT Central"]
[Site "Kraljevo"]
[Date "2014.09.18"]
[Round "8.3"]
[White "Atalik, Suat"]
[Black "Milanovic, Slavisa"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2549"]
[BlackElo "2418"]
[Annotator "Atalik,S"]
[PlyCount "103"]
[EventDate "2014.09.13"]
[EventType "team-tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "SRB"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 163"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.11.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.11.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Kraljevo"]
[BlackTeam "Ub"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "SRB"]
[BlackTeamCountry "SRB"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 b5 6. e4 bxc4 7. Bxc4 Nxd5 8. Bxd5
exd5 9. Qxd5 Nc6 (9... O-O 10. Nge2 Qb6 {Atalik-Schebler, Bangkok 2014.} 11.
O-O $1) 10. Nge2 Ba6 11. Kf2 (11. Bf4 $6 O-O 12. Kf2 Bxc3 13. bxc3 Bxe2 14.
Kxe2 Qf6 {is at least equal.}) 11... Rb8 $5 {A rare and also a risky move.} (
11... O-O 12. Rd1 Rb8 (12... Ba5 13. a3 Rb8 14. Bg5 Qc8 15. Rab1 $14) 13. Bf4
Bxc3 14. bxc3 Rb2 15. Rd2 Rxd2 16. Qxd2 $14) 12. Bf4 $1 $146 {This seemingly
impossible move makes the rest of the game almost forced.} (12. Bg5 Qb6 $1) (
12. Rd1 Ne7) 12... Bxc3 (12... Rb6 13. Rhd1) 13. bxc3 (13. Bxb8 $2 Bxb2 $1)
13... Rb2 14. Rhe1 Qf6 $1 (14... O-O 15. Rad1 Qf6 16. Rd2 Rxd2 17. Qxd2 $14) (
14... Qa5 15. Rad1 O-O 16. Rd2 $14) 15. Qd6 Bxe2 $2 (15... Qxd6 16. Bxd6 f6 17.
Rab1 (17. Bxc5 Kf7 $44) 17... Rc2 $1 $11 {is the only way to deal with Black's
problems.}) 16. Rxe2 Qxc3 17. Rd1 $1 (17. Rc1 Qd4+) 17... Rxe2+ 18. Kxe2 Nd4+ (
18... Qc4+ 19. Ke1 (19. Ke3 Qe6 20. Qxc5 $16) 19... Qb4+ 20. Rd2 Qb7 21. Qxc5
$16) 19. Rxd4 $1 (19. Kf2 {also looks good so both lines should have been
calculated to the very end.} Qb4 $1 (19... Qb2+ $6 20. Rd2 Qb6 21. Qe5+ Ne6 (
21... Kf8 22. Qd5 (22. Qd6+ $5) 22... Ke7 23. Qg5+ $18) 22. Rb2 $18) 20. Bh6 f6
21. Qd5 $1 Rf8 22. Bxg7 Qb2+ 23. Kg1 Rf7 24. Bh6 $16) 19... cxd4 20. Qb8+ Ke7
21. Qxh8 d3+ (21... h6 22. Qb8 $18) 22. Kf2 Qd4+ 23. Kg3 $1 (23. Be3 Qb2+ 24.
Kg3 Qe5+ 25. Bf4 Qxf4+ $1 26. Kxf4 d2 27. Qxg7 d1=Q $16 {is not such an easy
queen ending.}) 23... d2 24. Bg5+ Kd6 $1 {With this move one starts the king
hunt in which sometimes a single mistake may turn the tables.} (24... Qf6 $2
25. Qxg7) (24... f6 25. Qxg7+ Ke6 26. Qg8+ Ke7 27. Bh6 $1 Qe5+ 28. f4 Qc3+ 29.
Kh4 $18) 25. Qb8+ Kc6 26. Qc8+ $1 {The other checks are also good but this is
the most exact touch.} (26. Qa8+ Kc7 27. Bf4+ d6 $1 (27... Kb6 28. Qb8+ Ka6 29.
a4 $1 $18) 28. Bxd2 Qxd2 29. Qxa7+ Kc6 30. Qxf7 Qg5+ 31. Kh3 Qh6+ 32. Kg4 Qxh2
33. g3 g6 34. Qd5+ Kc7 35. a4 $18) 26... Kb6 27. Bd8+ Kb5 28. Qb7+ Kc5 (28...
Kc4 29. Qb3+ Kc5 30. Qd1 Qe3 31. Ba5 $18) 29. Qxa7+ Kc4 30. Qa6+ Kc3 31. Ba5+
$2 $138 {This is an incredible mistake in time trouble. I had simply forgotten
that my bishop could use the d8-h4 diagonal as well as d8-a5.} (31. Qa3+ Kc2
32. Qb3+ Kc1 33. Bg5 Qe5+ 34. Bf4 $18) 31... Kc2 (31... Kb2 32. Bxd2 Qxd2 33.
h4 $16) 32. Bxd2 (32. Qe2 $2 Qe5+) 32... Kxd2 33. Qa5+ Ke2 34. Qb5+ Kd2 $2 {
Loses on the spot since the ensuing king and pawns ending is hopeless due to
the outside passer on the a-file.} (34... Ke1 35. Qd5 Qf2+ 36. Kh3 $18 {
should make me sweat a little bit.}) 35. Qd5 $1 Qxd5 36. exd5 Kd3 37. d6 $1 $18
{This pawn is anyway doomed and is to be sacrificed after which the dirty job
will be done by the a-pawn.} Kd4 (37... Ke3 38. Kg4 Kd4 39. Kf4) 38. Kf4 Kd5
39. Ke3 Kc4 (39... Kxd6 40. Kd4 Kc6 41. a4 {wins easily.}) 40. Ke4 Kc5 41. Kd3
Kb4 42. Kd4 Kb5 43. Kd5 Kb4 44. h4 Kb5 45. h5 h6 46. g4 f6 47. f4 Kb4 48. a4 $1
{Winning a tempo by deflecting the king} ({compared to} 48. Ke4 Kc5 49. Kf5 (
49. a4 $1 $18) 49... Kxd6 50. Kg6 Kc7 $1 51. Kxg7 d5 52. g5 d4 53. gxh6 d3 54.
h7 d2 55. h8=Q d1=Q) 48... Kxa4 49. Ke4 Kb5 50. Kf5 Kc6 51. Kg6 Kxd6 52. Kxg7
1-0

[Event "SRB-chT Central"]
[Site "Kraljevo"]
[Date "2014.09.15"]
[Round "4.5"]
[White "Atalik, Suat"]
[Black "Jovanovic, Dusan D"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2549"]
[BlackElo "2401"]
[Annotator "Atalik,S"]
[PlyCount "134"]
[EventDate "2014.09.13"]
[EventType "team-tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "SRB"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 163"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.11.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.11.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Kraljevo"]
[BlackTeam "Valjevo VSK"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "SRB"]
[BlackTeamCountry "SRB"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 $5 (4. Nf3 d6 $5 {Since after this I won't
be forced to play g3, the positions in our game should not occur.} 5. Qc2 $1
$13) ({For many people} 4. Nf3 {ought to be played to reach Kasparov's line in
Nimzo-Indian.} b6 (4... O-O $5 5. Bg5 c5 6. e3 $5 h6 7. Bh4 cxd4 8. exd4 Qa5 9.
Bd3 Bxc3+ 10. bxc3 Qxc3+ 11. Kf1 $44) 5. Qb3 c5 6. Bg5 h6 7. Bh4 g5 8. Bg3 Ne4
9. e3 Bb7 10. Bd3 $5 Bxc3+ 11. bxc3 Nxg3 12. hxg3 {should properly be studied.}
) 4... O-O 5. Bg2 d6 $5 (5... d5 6. Nf3 dxc4 7. a3 Be7 (7... Bxc3+ 8. bxc3 c5
9. O-O $44) 8. Ne5 {I wanted to play this kind of position with him but his
response was quite intelligent.}) 6. Bd2 $5 ({I rightfully did not like} 6. Nf3
Bxc3+ 7. bxc3 Nbd7 8. O-O Rb8) 6... e5 7. a3 Bxc3 8. Bxc3 exd4 9. Bxd4 $146 ({
I did not like the looks of} 9. Qxd4 Re8 $5 10. Qh4 Nbd7 11. Nh3 Ne5) 9... Nc6
10. Nf3 Nxd4 11. Nxd4 c6 12. O-O a5 13. b4 axb4 14. axb4 Rxa1 15. Qxa1 Re8 16.
Rd1 ({I was reluctant to play} 16. e3 {in any stage of this game.}) 16... Qe7
17. Rd3 Be6 (17... Ng4 18. h3 Nxf2 19. Kxf2 c5 20. Bf3 $1 cxd4 21. Qxd4 $16 {
and White should be better.}) 18. Re3 (18. b5 Bxc4 19. Re3 Qf8 20. Rxe8 Qxe8
21. bxc6 bxc6 22. Bxc6 $14) 18... Qf8 (18... Ng4 19. Nxe6 fxe6 20. Ra3 $14) 19.
Nxe6 Rxe6 20. Rxe6 ({Possibly I had to go for} 20. Qa7 Rxe3 21. Qxe3 $14 {
with a minimal advantage for the home team.}) 20... fxe6 21. Qa7 Qc8 22. e4 (
22. Bh3 Kf7 $11) (22. b5 d5 23. bxc6 bxc6 24. Bh3 Qe8 $11) 22... Qc7 23. b5 (
23. c5 dxc5 (23... d5 24. exd5 exd5 25. Bf1 $14) 24. Qxc5 e5 25. b5 Ne8 26. Bf1
g6 27. Bc4+ Kg7 28. bxc6 bxc6 $14) 23... cxb5 24. cxb5 Nd7 $1 {After this it
became quite difficult to proceed for White.} 25. h4 (25. Bf3 Kf7 26. Kg2 Ke7
27. Qa8) 25... Kf7 26. Qe3 $6 {Rejecting his draw offer I have started to play
in a self destructive manner.} (26. Bf3 Qb6 27. Qxb6 Nxb6 28. e5 d5 29. Be2 $11
) 26... b6 27. Bf3 Qc5 28. Qf4+ Nf6 (28... Ke7 29. Be2 $15) 29. g4 Ke7 $1 (
29... e5 $6 30. Qd2 Ke7 31. g5 Ne8 32. Qa2 $1 Qxb5 33. Qg8 $36 {was my plan.})
30. g5 Nd7 31. Be2 Qe5 32. Qxe5 dxe5 $1 {Strange enough this position turned
out to be defendable for White.} 33. Kg2 Kd6 34. Kf3 Nf8 $1 35. h5 h6 36. gxh6
$1 {I had to reduce the number of pawns and make a point of entry for my king
on that flank to maintain the balance.} gxh6 37. Ke3 Ke7 38. f4 $1 Kf6 39. Kf3
Nd7 40. Bd3 Nc5 41. Bc2 Nb7 42. Bb1 Nd6 (42... Na5 43. Ba2) 43. Bd3 Nb7 44. Bb1
Nc5 45. Bc2 exf4 46. Kxf4 e5+ 47. Kg4 Ne6 48. Bb3 $1 Nd4 49. Bc4 Ke7 50. Bd5 $1
{Making use of the f5-square.} Kd6 51. Bf7 $1 Kc5 52. Be8 Kc4 (52... Nxb5 53.
Bxb5 Kxb5 54. Kf5 $11) 53. Bc6 Kd3 54. Bd5 Kc3 55. Bc6 Kc4 56. Bd7 Kb4 57. Bc6
Kc5 58. Be8 Kd6 59. Bf7 Ke7 ({He could have tried} 59... Nxb5 60. Kf5 Nd4+ 61.
Kg6 Ke7 62. Bd5 b5 63. Kxh6 Kf6 64. Kh7 Nf3 65. Bb3 Ng5+ (65... b4 66. Kg8 Kg5
67. Bd1 Nd4 68. Kg7 Ne6+ 69. Kf7 Nf4 70. h6 Kxh6 71. Kf6 Ng6 72. Bb3 $11) 66.
Kg8 Nxe4 67. h6 Ng5 68. Bc2 b4 69. Kf8 $11) 60. Bc4 Kf6 61. Bd3 Nb3 62. Bc4 Nd4
63. Bd3 Ne6 64. Bc4 Nc7 65. Kh4 Ne8 66. Bd5 Ke7 67. Kg4 Kf6 (67... Nf6+ 68. Kf5
$11) 1/2-1/2

[Event "RUS-ch Superfinal"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2005.12.28"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Volkov, Sergey"]
[Black "Tomashevsky, Evgeny"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2614"]
[BlackElo "2564"]
[Annotator "Atlas,V"]
[PlyCount "129"]
[EventDate "2005.12.19"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "17"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 111"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 Qa5 7. Bd2 d6 8. e4
Nbd7 9. Ne2 Ne5 10. Ng3 Bd7 11. a4 h5 12. h4 O-O-O 13. Be2 Ng6 {An interesting
novelty, which seems to be a good alternative to 14.Kf2.} 14. Nf1 Kb8 15. Qc2
Ka8 16. Ra2 Rb8 17. Ne3 Rhe8 18. Kd1 Ne7 19. Kc1 Nfg8 20. Bd3 Nh6 21. Kb2 Ng6
22. Ka1 Rf8 23. Nf1 Ng8 24. Ng3 Nf6 25. Be2 Rh8 26. Nf1 Rhf8 27. Ne3 Ne7 28.
Be1 e5 29. g3 Nfg8 30. Bd3 Nh6 31. Rg1 f5 $5 (31... g6 $5 {preparing 32...f5,
was a good alternative.}) 32. exf5 Nhxf5 33. Nd1 Nh6 34. Qe2 Bf5 35. Nf2 Bxd3
36. Qxd3 Qc7 37. Ne4 Qd7 38. Ng5 Rf6 39. Bd2 Nhf5 40. Ne4 Rf7 41. Ng5 Rf6 42.
Qe2 Ng6 43. Kb2 Rff8 44. Ka3 Rfe8 45. Qe4 Nf8 46. Qb1 Ne7 47. Rb2 Ng8 48. Bc1
Nf6 49. Re2 b6 50. Rge1 a6 51. Rb2 Qa7 52. Qd3 N8d7 53. Ne6 Nf8 54. Bg5 Nxe6
55. dxe6 Rxe6 56. Reb1 Qc7 57. Qf5 Ree8 58. Bxf6 gxf6 59. Qxh5 Rg8 60. g4 Rh8
$2 ({After this mistake Black's position falls apart. Correct was} 60... Ka7) {
[%tqu "En","How can White take advantage of Black's imprudent rook move?",
"Exploit the shaky position of Black's h8-rook.","Use the power of your
battery on the b-file.","b2b6","This excellent move decides the game.",5]} 61.
Rxb6 $1 {[%csl Rb8,Rh8][%cal Ob6a6,Ca8a7,Cb8b6,Gb1b8] Convincingly punishing
Black's mistake. Now the game is over.} Rxb6 (61... Rxh5 {loses to} 62. Rxb8+
Ka7 63. R1b7+ Qxb7 64. Rxb7+ Kxb7 65. gxh5) 62. Qxh8+ Ka7 63. Rxb6 Kxb6 64. Qe8
Qh7 65. Qb8+ (65. Qb8+ {, and Black resigned in view of:} Kc6 66. Qa8+ Kb6 67.
a5+ Kxa5 (67... Kc7 68. Qa7+ {, winning the queen.}) 68. Qd8+) 1-0

[Event "Bundesliga 0607"]
[Site "Germany"]
[Date "2006.11.19"]
[Round "4.4"]
[White "Chuchelov, Vladimir"]
[Black "Babula, Vlastimil"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2539"]
[BlackElo "2584"]
[Annotator "Babula/Meyer,CD"]
[PlyCount "64"]
[EventDate "2006.10.28"]
[EventType "team-tourn"]
[EventRounds "15"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 116"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Katernberg"]
[BlackTeam "Werder Bremen"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "GER"]
[BlackTeamCountry "GER"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 Ne4 7. Qd3 Bxc3+ 8.
bxc3 Nc5 9. Qf3 d6 10. Bg2 O-O $6 ({Erst} 10... Nbd7 $1 11. O-O Ne5 12. Qf4 Bd7
{, also die Rochade aufzuschieben und den Damenspringer nach e5 zu überführen,
gilt als stärker und erlaubt es Schwarz, seine Eröffnungsprobleme leicht zu
lösen.} 13. Nb5 (13. Nb3 Rc8) 13... Bxb5 14. cxb5 O-O) 11. O-O Nbd7 12. Rd1 Ne5
13. Qf4 Bd7 (13... Nxc4 $2 14. Nb3 $16) 14. Nb3 $1 {Die ungenaue Zugfolge des
Schwarzen wird hiermit geahndet, während} (14. Nb5 Bxb5 15. cxb5 {wieder zur o.
a. Hauptvariante überleiten würde.}) 14... Ba4 (14... Qc7 $2 15. Nxc5 Qxc5 (
15... dxc5 16. Rxd7) 16. Be3 Qc7 17. c5 d5 18. c4 $16) 15. Qxe5 $5 $146 ({
Eine interessante Neuerung, die Chuchelov am Brett eingefallen ist, anstelle
des bekannten (und soliden)} 15. Ba3 $5 Bxb3 16. axb3 Qc7 17. Bxc5 $6 (17. Rab1
$142 $14) 17... dxc5 18. Bxb7 Rab8 $6 {P. Wells - P. Smirnov, EU-ch Warschau
2005, Gavrikov/CBM} (18... Qxb7 $142 19. Qxe5 Qxb3 20. Qxc5 Qxc3 $11)) 15...
Nxb3 (15... dxe5 $2 16. Rxd8 Rfxd8 17. Nxc5 Rd1+ 18. Bf1 $16) 16. Rxd6 (16.
axb3 $6 dxe5 17. Rxd8 Raxd8 18. bxa4 Rd1+ 19. Bf1 Rc8 $15 {<=>}) 16... Nxa1 17.
Rxd8 Raxd8 18. Bxb7 $1 ({Die Pointe der weißen Idee. Nach} 18. Be3 $6 {indes
wird das Spiel unklar:} Rd1+ 19. Bf1 Bd7 (19... Nc2 20. Bxa7 Bc6 $44) (19...
Bc6 $2 20. Bd4) 20. Bd4 f6 21. Qc7 Bc6 22. Bxa7 Nc2 23. f3 Re8 24. Kf2 Na3 25.
e4 Rd2+ 26. Kg1 (26. Ke3 Rxh2) 26... Rxa2 $13) 18... Rd1+ 19. Kg2 Rxc1 20. Qa5
$2 ({Ein schwerwiegender Zeitverlust! Statt dessen hätte} 20. c5 {den
wohlverdienten Vorteil festgehalten. Babula meint jedoch, daß Schwarz nach dem
weiteren} Rb1 $5 (20... Rc2 $6 21. c6 Bxc6+ 22. Bxc6 Rxa2 23. Qb5 g6 24. Qb1
Ra6 25. Bf3) 21. c6 Rb6 22. Qe4 Bc2 23. Qc4 Nb3 $1 24. Qa4 Be4+ $1 25. Qxe4 Nc5
26. Qc4 Nxb7 27. cxb7 Rxb7 $14 {das Gleichgewicht halten kann} {(} 28. a4 a5 $1
{).}) 20... Bd1 $1 21. c5 $2 ({Das sollte der letzte Fehler in der Partie
gewesen sein, während} 21. Qa3 $142 $1 {mit weiterhin kompliziertem Spiel
erforderlich war. Zwar wäre Schwarz darauf auch am Drücker gewesen, aber er
hätte nach z.B.} Rb1 22. Be4 Bc2 23. Bc6 $1 (23. Bxc2 $6 Nxc2 24. Qxa7 Ne1+ $17
) 23... Bf5 (23... Bg6 24. c5) (23... Re1 24. Bf3) 24. g4 $1 Nc2 (24... Bxg4 $2
25. Be4 $1 Rbb8 (25... Re1 $2 26. Bxh7+) 26. Bd3 Bf5 27. Qc1) 25. Qa4 $15 {
nichts Entscheidendes erreicht.}) 21... Bxe2 22. c6 ({Für} 22. Qa3 {war jetzt
keine Zeit mehr:} Rd1 23. Qxa7 Nc2 24. Kh3 (24. h4 Ne1+) 24... f5 {mit
vernichtender Attacke}) 22... Nc2 $1 {Bläst die finale Jagd auf den weißen
König an!} 23. c7 ({Andere, prophylaktische Maßnahmen scheitern ebenfalls.
Hier bietet sich reichlich Tüftelarbeit, z.B.: I} 23. g4 Ne1+ 24. Kg3 Bf3 25.
Qxa7 (25. g5 f5 26. Kf4 (26. gxf6 Rxf6 27. Qd8+ Rf8 28. Qd2 (28. Qe7 Bd5 $19)
28... Nd3 $19) 26... Bd5 27. Ke5 (27. Qxa7 Rxc3 $19) 27... Nd3+ 28. Kd6 Nxf2
$19) 25... f5 26. gxf5 exf5 27. Kf4 Rxc3 $19) ({II} 23. h4 Ne1+ 24. Kh3 f5 $19
25. c7 Bg4+ 26. Kh2 Nf3+ 27. Bxf3 Bxf3 28. g4 f4 {nebst Rh1#}) ({III} 23. f4
Rf1 $1 24. Qxa7 Ne1+ 25. Kh3 f5 $1 26. c7 Bg4+ 27. Kh4 h6 28. h3 Bf3 29. g4
Bxb7 30. Qxb7 Rf3 31. Qb2 Kh7 32. Qe2 (32. Qh2 Re3 $19) 32... Re3 $19) ({IV} 
23. f3 Ne1+ 24. Kf2 (24. Kh3 f5 $19) 24... Bxf3 25. Qb5 Bd5 (25... Be4 $5 {/\}
26. c7 Rb1) 26. c7 (26. Ke2 Nf3) 26... Bxb7 27. Qxb7 Nd3+ 28. Ke3 Rxc3 29. Kd4
Nc5 $1 30. c8=Q (30. Qb1 Na4 31. Qb4 Rxc7 $19) 30... Rd3+ 31. Kxc5 Rc3+ 32. Kd4
Rfxc8 $19) 23... Ne1+ 24. Kh3 f5 $1 $19 ({Hält den Wanderkönig fest, während} 
24... h5 {nach} 25. Kh4 {auf ungeahnte Schwierigkeiten stößt, z.B.} Bf3 $1 (
25... f6 $2 26. g4 $13) 26. Qa3 Bxb7 27. Qxc1 Nf3+ 28. Kh3 (28. Kxh5 $2 f5 {
/\Kh7, g6#}) 28... Rc8 $17 (28... e5 $17)) 25. Qa3 ({Alternativen: I} 25. Qb4
Bg4+ 26. Kh4 h6 $19 {und gewinnt - analog der Anmerkung zum 25. Zug von
Schwarz.}) ({II} 25. f3 g5 $19 26. g4 Bf1+ 27. Kg3 f4+ 28. Kf2 Nd3+ 29. Kg1
Bh3#) ({III} 25. g4 g5 $1 (25... fxg4+ $2 26. Kh4 $1 $13 (26. Kg3 $2 Nf3 $1 $19
)) 26. f4 (26. Bg2 h5) 26... Nd3 $1 $19 {und die Strapazen wird Weiß nicht
überstehen}) ({IV} 25. Kh4 h6 26. f4 Bg4 {/\Rc2-+} 27. Qxa7 Rc2 28. Qg1 Kf7 $19
{nebst Mattsetzung}) 25... g5 $2 $138 ({Schade! Mit nur noch ein paar Minuten
Bedenkzeit übersieht Babula die prächtige Krönung seines Mattangriffs:} 25...
Bg4+ 26. Kh4 h6 $1 {und nun} 27. Qxf8+ (27. Qxc1 Nf3+ 28. Bxf3 g5+ 29. Qxg5+
hxg5+ 30. Kxg5 Bxf3 $19) (27. f4 Rc2 28. Qxf8+ Kh7 29. h3 Rh2 $19) 27... Kxf8
28. c8=Q+ Kf7 29. Qd7+ (29. f4 Rc2 30. Qd7+ Kg8 31. h3 Rh2 32. Qxe6+ Kh7 $19)
29... Kg8 30. Qxe6+ Kh7 $19 31. Qf7 Rc2 32. Bd5 (32. h3 Rxf2 $19) 32... Ng2+ $1
33. Bxg2 Rxf2 34. h3 Rxg2 $19) 26. Qxf8+ $8 {Diese Gelegenheit zum Dauerschach
läßt sich Weiß natürlich nicht entgehen.} Kxf8 27. c8=Q+ $11 Kf7 28. Qd7+ Kf6
29. Qd8+ Kg6 30. Qe8+ Kf6 31. Qd8+ Kg6 32. Qe8+ Kf6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Belgrade Investbank"]
[Site "Belgrade"]
[Date "1995.??.??"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Beliavsky, Alexander G"]
[Black "Timman, Jan H"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2650"]
[BlackElo "2590"]
[Annotator "Baburin,A"]
[PlyCount "137"]
[EventDate "1995.11.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "YUG"]
[EventCategory "17"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 051"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1996.04.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1996.04.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 c5 4. Nf3 cxd4 5. Nxd4 Bb4+ 6. Nc3 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8.
cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Qb6 10. Bxd5 exd5 11. Be3 Nc6 12. Rd1 Qa5 13. O-O Bh3 14. Rfe1
Rac8 15. Rc1 Ne5 16. Ndb5 Be6 17. Nd4 Nc4 18. a3 Bxc3 19. Qxc3 Qxc3 20. Rxc3
Nxb2 21. Rb3 Nc4 22. Rxb7 a5 23. Bf4 {This position is yet another example of
the vulnerability of the d5-pawn in the endgame.} Rfe8 24. a4 h6 25. h4 Red8
26. f3 Bd7 27. Ra1 Bc6 28. Ra7 Kf8 29. Kf2 Be8 30. Rb7 Rd7 31. Rb3 Ra7 32. h5
Ra6 33. g4 Bd7 34. Nb5 Rb6 35. Rab1 Rcc6 36. Rd3 Rc5 37. Rc3 Bxb5 38. Be3 Rcc6
39. Bxb6 Bxa4 40. Bd4 Rc8 41. Rb7 Bc6 42. Ra7 a4 43. e4 Kg8 44. exd5 Bxd5 45.
Rxa4 Be6 46. Kg3 Kh7 47. Ra6 Rc7 48. Be5 Rc5 49. Bf4 Bd5 50. Rd6 Be6 51. Rd4 g6
52. hxg6+ Kxg6 53. Rc1 h5 54. g5 f6 55. gxf6 Kxf6 56. Re1 Rc8 57. Bg5+ Kxg5 58.
Rxe6 Kf5 59. Re7 Kf6 60. Re2 Rc5 61. Rf4+ Kg6 62. Re6+ Kg7 63. Kh4 Nd2 64. Re2
Rd5 65. Rg2+ Kh7 66. Rf7+ Kh6 67. Rf6+ Kh7 68. Rg5 Rd3 69. Kxh5 1-0

[Event "Goglidze Memorial"]
[Site "Tbilisi"]
[Date "1983.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Ubilava, Elizbar"]
[Black "Sturua, Zurab"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2445"]
[BlackElo "2450"]
[Annotator "Belov,I"]
[PlyCount "57"]
[EventDate "1983.08.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "15"]
[EventCountry "URS"]
[EventCategory "8"]
[SourceTitle "MCL"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1999.07.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1999.07.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 Ne4 (5... cxd4 6. Nxd4 Ne4 7. Qd3
Qa5 8. Nb3 Nxc3 $10) 6. Qd3 d5 $6 (6... f5 $6 7. Bg2 cxd4 8. Nxd4 Na6 9. O-O
Nac5 10. Qe3 O-O {Aleksandrija,N-Lematschko,T (04)/Alicante m/1983/} 11. Nb1 $1
{/\a3,Nc2; Dvoretzky/}) (6... Qa5 7. Qxe4 Bxc3+ 8. Bd2 Bxd2+ 9. Nxd2 Nc6 10. d5
Nd4 $13) 7. Bg2 Qa5 8. O-O Bxc3 9. bxc3 Qxc3 10. Ba3 $1 Qxc4 (10... cxd4 $2 11.
cxd5 exd5 12. Rac1 $18) 11. Qxc4 dxc4 12. Rfc1 f5 (12... O-O 13. Ne5 Nf6 14.
Bxc5 Rd8 15. Nxc4 $16) (12... Na6 13. Ne5 Nf6 14. dxc5 $16) (12... cxd4 13.
Nxd4 Nf6 14. Nb5 Na6 15. Rxc4 $16) 13. dxc5 (13. Rxc4 b5 14. Rc2 c4 15. Ne5 Nd7
$13) 13... Nc6 14. Rxc4 Bd7 $5 (14... O-O 15. Rd1 Rd8 16. Rxd8+ Nxd8 17. Ne5
$16) 15. Rd1 O-O-O 16. Bb2 $1 Rhg8 17. h4 h6 (17... g6 $6 18. Ne1 $1) (17...
Nf6 $5) 18. Nd4 Ne5 $6 (18... Nxd4 $142 19. Rdxd4 Nf6 20. Rd6 $16) 19. Rcc1 Ba4
$6 20. Re1 Rge8 $6 (20... Rde8 $142) 21. Nb3 $1 $18 Rd5 (21... Nc6 22. Bxg7 Nb4
23. Rc4 $18) 22. f3 Nxg3 23. e4 Nd3 $8 24. exd5 Nxb2 25. Kh2 Nh5 26. Rxe6 Nf4
27. Rxe8+ Bxe8 28. Re1 Kd8 29. Na5 1-0

[Event "BCF-ch"]
[Site "Dundee"]
[Date "1993.??.??"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Kumaran, Dharshan"]
[Black "Emms, John M"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2425"]
[BlackElo "2455"]
[Annotator "Bulletin"]
[PlyCount "95"]
[EventDate "1993.08.??"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "SCO"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 038"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1994.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1994.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8. Qb3
Bxc3+ 9. Qxc3 e5 10. Nb3 Nc6 11. Bg5 d4 12. Qf3 a5 13. Nd2 Bg4 14. Qxg4 Nxg4
15. Bxd8 Rfxd8 16. h3 Nf6 17. Ne4 Nxe4 18. Bxe4 Ne7 19. g4 Rac8 20. b3 Rc7 (
20... b6) 21. h4 $1 g6 (21... f6 $5 22. h5 $14) 22. g5 h6 23. Kd2 Kg7 24. Kd3
Rd6 25. a3 f5 26. gxf6+ Rxf6 27. f3 Nf5 28. Bxf5 $1 $14 gxf5 29. b4 Kf7 30.
Rhg1 b5 $2 (30... Rfc6 31. Rgc1 b5 $1 32. c5 Ra7 33. f4 Kf6 34. fxe5+ Kxe5 $10)
31. cxb5 Rc3+ 32. Kd2 Rb6 33. a4 $1 axb4 34. Rab1 e4 35. fxe4 fxe4 36. Rxb4 e3+
37. Kd1 Ra3 $2 (37... Rb8 $1) 38. Kc2 Ra2+ 39. Kd3 Rd2+ 40. Kc4 Rb8 (40... Rxe2
41. Kxd4 $18) 41. Re1 Ke6 42. b6 Kd6 43. Kb5 Re8 44. a5 Re5+ 45. Ka6 Ra2 46.
Rb5 Rxb5 47. Kxb5 Rb2+ 48. Ka6 1-0

[Event "BCF-ch 82nd"]
[Site "Swansea"]
[Date "1995.??.??"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Ward, Christopher"]
[Black "Arkell, Keith C"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2500"]
[BlackElo "2505"]
[Annotator "Bulletin"]
[PlyCount "97"]
[EventDate "1995.08.??"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "WLS"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 1997"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1996.11.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1996.11.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 c5 5. Nf3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 Qc7 7. Qb3 (7. Qd3
Nc6 8. Ndb5 Qb8 9. Bf4 Ne5 10. Qd4 d6 11. Nxd6+ Bxd6 12. O-O-O {with a big
advantage to White was the game Polugaevsky-Seirawan Philips & Drew 1984.})
7... Bc5 (7... Na6) 8. Be3 d6 9. Bg2 a6 10. Na4 (10. Nc2 Nbd7 {has been played
before. Ward's choice is more aggressive.}) 10... Ba7 11. Nc2 Nbd7 12. O-O O-O
13. Rfd1 Bxe3 14. Nxe3 Rb8 {If Black can play ...b5 and exchange the white
c-pawn he will have an easy game due to his central pawns. Wwhite should have
now considered 15 Rac1.} 15. Qd3 b5 16. cxb5 axb5 17. Nc3 d5 18. Nxb5 Qb6 (
18... Qa5 $1 19. Na3 (19. a4 Ba6) 19... Rxb2 20. Nac4 dxc4 21. Nxc4 Qb5 22.
Nxb2 Qxb2 {Keith was worried about this position during the game, but
afterwards he realised that Black is absolutely fine.}) 19. Nd4 Ba6 (19... Qxb2
20. Rdb1) 20. Qa3 $1 e5 21. Ndf5 Bxe2 22. Rd2 $1 (22. Ne7+ Kh8 23. N7xd5 Nxd5
24. Nxd5 Qxb2) 22... Bc4 23. Ne7+ Kh8 24. N7xd5 Bxd5 25. Nxd5 Nxd5 26. Rxd5 Nf6
27. Rxe5 Qxb2 28. Qxb2 Rxb2 29. a4 {with a completely winning position.} g6 30.
Rb5 (30. a5 {was simpler.}) 30... Rxb5 31. axb5 Nd7 32. Ra8 Rxa8 33. Bxa8 Kg7
34. f4 Kf6 35. Kf2 Ke6 36. Ke3 h6 37. Kd4 Kd6 38. Bd5 f6 (38... f5 39. h4 $1) (
38... Ke7 39. Bc6 Nb6 40. Kc5 {so Black must make a weakness on the kingside
and the White king penetrates decisively.}) 39. Bf7 g5 40. Ke4 Ke7 41. Ba2 Kd6
42. Kf5 Kc5 43. Bf7 gxf4 44. gxf4 Nb6 45. Be8 Nd5 46. Bc6 Ne3+ 47. Kg6 Ng4 48.
h3 Nf2 49. h4 {[#]} 1-0

[Event "Yerevan"]
[Site "Yerevan"]
[Date "1989.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Dokhoian, Yury"]
[Black "Petrosian, Arshak B"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2575"]
[BlackElo "2475"]
[Annotator "Bulletin"]
[PlyCount "49"]
[EventDate "1989.05.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "URS"]
[EventCategory "12"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 014"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1990.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1990.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 Qa5 7. Bd2 d6 (7...
exd5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 $2 9. c4 Nb4 10. a3 $18) 8. e4 O-O 9. Nh3 $6 exd5 10. cxd5
Bxh3 11. gxh3 Nh5 12. Rg1 Nd7 13. Rg5 g6 14. Qc2 Ng7 15. O-O-O f6 16. Rg2 f5
17. exf5 Rxf5 18. Bd3 Rxf3 19. Bxg6 hxg6 20. Qxg6 Rxc3+ 21. Kb1 Qb4+ 22. Ka1
Qd4 23. Qe6+ Kh7 24. Qh6+ Kg8 25. Qe6+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "GER-ch 85th"]
[Site "Verden/Aller"]
[Date "2014.11.29"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Stern, Rene"]
[Black "Fridman, Daniel"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2546"]
[BlackElo "2639"]
[Annotator "CB"]
[PlyCount "113"]
[EventDate "2014.11.21"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 163 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.12.23"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.12.23"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{Rene Stern hätte es in dieser Partie mit einem frühen Remisangebot
wahrscheinlich ruhig angehen lassen können. Doch Stern spielte von Beginn an
entschlossen auf Gewinn - und hätte fast Erfolg damit gehabt.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4
e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Bd2 c5 5. dxc5 O-O 6. Nf3 Bxc5 7. g3 Qb6 8. e3 Be7 9. Qb3 Qc5
10. Bg2 Nc6 11. Qb5 Qd6 12. O-O a6 13. Qa4 Qc5 14. e4 Ng4 15. Rac1 Nce5 16.
Nxe5 Nxe5 17. Qd1 Qc7 (17... Qxc4 18. Nd5) (17... Nxc4 18. Ne2 Qb5 19. a4 Qc5
20. b3) 18. Na4 Nd3 19. Rc2 d6 20. Be3 Nc5 21. Nc3 Rb8 22. Rd2 Nd7 23. Qe2 b5
24. cxb5 axb5 25. Rc2 (25. Nxb5 Qa5 26. a4 Qxa4 27. Nxd6 Ba6 28. Qd1 Qb4) 25...
Qa5 26. b4 Qxb4 27. Rb1 Qa3 28. Nxb5 Qa5 29. Rcb2 Ba6 30. Qd2 Qxd2 31. Bxd2 Nc5
32. Nd4 Rxb2 33. Rxb2 Bc4 (33... Bb7) 34. Nc6 Bd8 35. e5 Bc7 (35... dxe5 36.
Rc2) 36. Be3 Na6 37. f4 $6 {Hier hätte Stern den neuen deutschen Meister in
Schwierigkeiten bringen können - und zwar mit:} (37. exd6 Bxd6 38. Na5 {
Die schwarzen Leichtfiguren stehen so unglücklich, dass er Materialverlust
nicht vermeiden kann: Nach} Rc8 {folgt} ({Nach} 38... Bd3 39. Rd2 Bb4 (39...
Nb4 40. a3) 40. Rxd3 Bxa5 {gewinnt} 41. Ra3) (38... Be5 {versucht es mit einem
Gegenangriff, aber nach} 39. Nxc4 Bxb2 40. Nxb2 {hat Weiß mit dem
a-Freibauern und dem Läuferpaar beste Gewinnaussichten.}) 39. Bb7) 37... f6
38. exd6 Bxd6 39. Rc2 Bd5 {Die Gefahr für Schwarz ist vorbei und die Stellung
verflacht bald zu einem Remisendspiel.} 40. Bxd5 exd5 41. a4 Nb4 42. Nxb4 Bxb4
43. Bd2 Bxd2 44. Rxd2 Ra8 45. Ra2 Ra5 46. Kf2 Kf7 47. Ke3 Ke6 48. g4 h5 49. h3
hxg4 50. hxg4 g5 51. fxg5 fxg5 52. Kd4 Kd6 53. Ra1 Rc5 54. a5 Rc4+ 55. Kd3 Kc7
56. a6 Kb8 57. Ra5 1/2-1/2

[Event "World Cup"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2007.12.07"]
[Round "5.2"]
[White "Cheparinov, Ivan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2670"]
[BlackElo "2714"]
[Annotator "CB"]
[PlyCount "159"]
[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"]

{The second match game between Carlsen and Cheparinov left a strange feeling.
The Bulgarian grandmaster chose a deeply analyzed opening variation, very well
known to his opponent - a rather surprising strategy, especially since this
variation leads to simple positions with visible drawish tendencies. The game
quickly entered a four-rooks endgame with an extra pawn for White, but without
real winning chances for Cheparinov. His further efforts were in vain: such
endgames can hardly be won, no matter of one's efforts and willingness to win.
Thus Carlsen's draw with the black pieces was unexpectedly easy, and he won
the match 1.5-0.5.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4
O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 (9. Bd2 Bxc3 10. bxc3 e5 11. Nb3 Nc6 12. O-O
Nb6 13. Be3 Qc7 14. Qc2 Be6 15. Rfd1 Nc4 16. Bc5 Rfd8 17. Qe4 Rac8 18. f4 f5
19. Qf3 b6 20. Bf2 e4 $17 {Onischuk,A (2650)-Carlsen,M (2710)/Biel (blitz) 2007
}) 9... Qa5 10. Bd2 Nc6 11. Nxc6 bxc6 12. O-O Bxc3 13. bxc3 Ba6 14. Rfd1 Qc5
15. e4 Bc4 16. Qa4 ({The position is well-known to Carlsen also from the white
side:} 16. Qc2 Nb6 17. Bf4 e5 18. Be3 Qa3 19. Bh3 Rab8 20. Qc1 Qxc1 21. Rdxc1
Bd3 22. f3 Rb7 $11 {Carlsen,M (2698)-Leko,P (2741)/Moscow 2006}) 16... Nb6 17.
Qb4 Qh5 18. Bf4 c5 19. Qa5 ({The Norvegian has pleasant memories with this
position. Less then a month ago he won a nice game against Jakovenko:} 19. Qb2
Rad8 20. Re1 Rd7 21. h3 h6 22. a4 Ba6 23. Qa2 Rfd8 24. a5 Nc4 25. Bf1 e5 26. g4
Qg6 27. Bxc4 exf4 28. Bd5 f3 29. c4 h5 30. Kh2 Qf6 31. Rg1 hxg4 32. Rab1 Bxc4
$1 33. Qxc4 Qf4+ 34. Rg3 Rxd5 $19 {Jakovenko,D (2710)-Carlsen,M (2714)/Moscow
2007}) 19... e5 {Without waiting for some improvements from his opponent,
Magnus is the first one to produce a new move.} (19... Rfc8 20. h3 f6 21. Be3
e5 22. Bxc5 Be6 23. Bxb6 axb6 24. Qxb6 {was slightly better for White in Van
Wely,L (2683) -Karjakin,S (2678)/Wijk aan Zee 2007}) 20. Be3 Be2 21. Re1 Nc4
22. Qa6 (22. Qxc5 Rfc8 23. Qe7 Nxe3 24. fxe3 $17 {is of course not an option
for White}) 22... Nxe3 23. Rxe2 Nxg2 24. Kxg2 Rad8 25. Rae1 Rd7 26. Qb5 Rfd8
27. Qxc5 f6 28. Qc4+ Qf7 29. Qxf7+ Kxf7 {White's extra pawn on c3 is rather
weak and his rooks are passive. Besides, with four rooks it is even more
difficult for White to make progress than with two. Carlsen confidently
handles the last part of the game.} 30. Rb1 Rc8 31. Rc2 Rc4 32. Rb4 Rc5 33. Kf1
a5 34. Ra4 g5 35. Ke2 g4 36. Ra3 Rdc7 37. Rc1 h5 38. Kd3 Rd7+ 39. Ke3 Rdc7 40.
Rb3 Rc4 41. Kd3 Ra4 42. Rc2 Rd7+ 43. Ke3 Rc7 44. Rb5 Ke6 45. Rb6+ Kf7 46. Ra6
Kg6 47. Ra8 Kf7 48. Ra6 Kg6 49. Rd6 Kf7 50. Kd3 Ke7 51. Rd5 Ke6 52. Rd8 Kf7 53.
c4 Ra3+ 54. Kd2 Ra4 55. Kd3 Ra3+ 56. Kd2 Ra4 57. c5 Rxe4 58. Kd3 Ra4 59. Rd6
Ke7 60. Ra6 Rd7+ 61. Kc3 Rdd4 62. Kb2 Rab4+ 63. Kc1 a4 64. Rc3 Rbc4 65. Kc2 Re4
66. Ra7+ Ke6 67. c6 Kd6 68. c7 Kd7 69. Rxc4 Rxc4+ 70. Kd3 Rd4+ 71. Ke3 f5 72.
Ra6 Kxc7 73. Rf6 Re4+ 74. Kd3 Rd4+ 75. Ke3 Re4+ 76. Kd3 Rd4+ 77. Kc3 f4 78. Rf5
Re4 79. Kd3 Rd4+ 80. Kc3 1/2-1/2

[Event "ESP-ch ko"]
[Site "Ayamonte"]
[Date "2007.11.11"]
[Round "2.1"]
[White "Illescas Cordoba, Miguel"]
[Black "Moreno Ruiz, Javier"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2598"]
[BlackElo "2466"]
[Annotator "CB"]
[PlyCount "89"]
[EventDate "2007.11.09"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "4"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2008"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.11.25"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.11.25"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. c4 Bb4+ 4. Nc3 c5 5. g3 Ne4 6. Qd3 cxd4 7. Nxd4 Qa5 8.
Nb3 Nxc3 9. Bd2 (9. Nxa5 Ne4+ 10. Bd2 Bxd2+ 11. Qxd2 Nxd2 12. Kxd2 $11) 9...
Ne4 10. Qxe4 Bxd2+ 11. Nxd2 O-O 12. Bg2 Nc6 13. Qd3 d5 (13... Qe5 14. Rb1 d5
15. O-O Rd8 16. b4 Qf6 17. Rfd1 dxc4 18. Qxc4 Rd4 19. Qc3 Rxb4 20. Qxf6 gxf6
21. Ne4 Rxb1 22. Rxb1 f5 23. Nd6 Nd8 24. f4 Rb8 25. Kf2 Bd7 26. Ke3 Kf8 27. Rb3
b6 28. Ra3 a5 29. Rc3 b5 30. Kd4 Ke7 31. Kc5 b4 32. Re3 Kf8 33. Rd3 a4 34. Rd2
Ke7 35. e4 fxe4 36. Bxe4 f5 37. Bf3 b3 38. axb3 Rxb3 39. Bd1 Rb1 40. Bc2 Nb7+
41. Kd4 Rb6 42. Nc4 Ra6 43. Rd3 Bb5 44. Ra3 Rc6 45. Ne3 Nc5 46. h3 h5 47. Bd1
Ne4 48. g4 Rd6+ 49. Ke5 Nf6 50. gxf5 Nd7+ {0-1 Izeta Txabarri,F-De la Villa
Garcia,J/Andorra 1987}) 14. cxd5 Rd8 15. O-O exd5 16. Rfd1 (16. Nf3 d4 17. Rfd1
Bf5 18. Qd2 Qb6 19. Ne1 Re8 {1/2-1/2 Hutters,T-Berg,K/Denmark 1996}) 16... d4
17. Nb3 Qb6 18. Rac1 (18. Bxc6 $5 bxc6 19. Qe4 Be6 (19... Ba6 20. Rac1 Rac8 21.
Nxd4 Qxb2 22. Nxc6 Re8 23. Rc2 Qf6 24. Qf3 Bxe2 25. Qxf6 gxf6 26. Ne7+ Kf8) 20.
Nxd4 Bd5 21. Qc2) 18... Be6 19. Nc5 Bd5 20. Bxd5 Rxd5 21. Qc4 Rd6 22. Qb3 {
Diagrama #} Na5 ({más natural es} 22... Qxb3 23. Nxb3 Kf8) 23. Qxb6 axb6 24.
Nd3 Nc6 25. a3 h6 26. Rc2 {en cambio ahora el negro está atado a b6 y d4} Kh7
27. Ne1 {preparando tanto Cf3 como Td3-Tb3} Re6 28. Rd3 b5 29. b4 {corta de
raiz la liberadora b4 y permite el canje de d4 por a3 porque ha visto más
lejos...} Ne5 30. Rxd4 Rxa3 31. Kg2 {Diagrama #} Nc6 ({si} 31... Re7 32. Rd5 {
el blanco presionaría en el ala de dama, por ejemplo} Rb3 (32... Nc6 33. Rb2
Re5 34. Rd7 Re7 35. Rxe7 Nxe7 36. Nc2 Ra6 37. Nd4 Rb6 38. e4 Nc6 39. Nf5 g6 40.
Ne3) 33. Rxb5 Nc6 34. Rb6 Nd4 35. Rd2 Nxe2 36. Nd3 Rd7 37. Nc5 Rxg3+ 38. hxg3
Rxd2 39. Rxb7) 32. Rd7 Nxb4 33. Rb2 Na2 34. Rxf7 Nc3 35. e3 Rb6 36. Rd2 {
ahora es el rey negro el atacado} Ne4 37. Rdd7 Rg6 38. Rfe7 (38. Nf3 $5 Ra2 (
38... Ng5 39. Nxg5+ hxg5 40. Rxb7 Ra5 41. Rf5) 39. Nh4 Rg4 40. Rf8 $1 b4 41.
Rdd8 Rxf2+ 42. Rxf2 Nxf2 43. Kxf2 b3 44. Rd2 Ra4 45. Kf3 Ra2 46. Rd3 Ra3 47.
Rd4) 38... Nd6 39. h4 Nf5 40. Rf7 Nd6 (40... Nxh4+ $4 41. Kf1) 41. Rf8 {
Diagrama #} Re6 (41... Ne4 42. Re7 $1 (42. h5 Rf6 43. Rxf6 Nxf6 44. Rxb7 Ra5
45. Nf3 Nxh5 46. Nd4 Nf6 47. Rxb5) 42... Nc5 43. Ree8 Rf6 44. Rh8+ Kg6 45. h5+
Kf5 46. Nc2 $18) 42. Nc2 Ra6 43. Nb4 Ra4 44. Nd5 Rc4 45. h5 1-0

[Event "Tashkent FIDE GP"]
[Site "Tashkent"]
[Date "2014.10.29"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Black "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2764"]
[BlackElo "2767"]
[Annotator "CB"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "2014.10.21"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "UZB"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 163"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.11.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.11.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. a3 Bd6 6. e4 dxe4 (6... c5 {is the
hot line in this variation, but Karjakin's approach makes a lot of sense.}) 7.
fxe4 e5 {Rarely played but this idea of breakin with e5 instead of c5 looks
completely logical for the position. White will be very weak on the
darksquares no matter which approach he takes to the central tension.} 8. d5
O-O 9. Nf3 Bg4 10. h3 Bh5 11. Bd3 Bc5 12. g4 Bg6 13. Bc2 (13. Nxe5 Nbd7 14.
Nxg6 fxg6 $5 {Already looks scary for White after Black installs a knight on
e5. Notice how far away from castling he is.}) 13... Re8 14. Bg5 (14. b4 Bd4
15. Nxd4 exd4 16. Qxd4 Nc6 17. Qe3 Ne5 {should give Black enough compensation
to regain his pawn.}) 14... h6 15. Bh4 c6 16. b4 Be7 17. O-O a5 (17... Nxd5 {
is tempting but incorrect.} 18. exd5 Bxh4 19. Bxg6 fxg6 20. Ne4 {and now it is
White that has the compensation! His powerful knight on e4 and the passed pawn
on d5 give him enough for an advantage.}) 18. Nxe5 axb4 19. Nxg6 fxg6 20. e5 $5
{A risky move.} (20. axb4 Rxa1 21. Qxa1 Nxd5 22. exd5 Bxh4 23. Bxg6 Qd6 {
looks like a draw.}) 20... Nfd7 21. Bxe7 Qxe7 22. Bxg6 bxc3 23. Bxe8 Qxe8 (
23... Nxe5 $5) 24. e6 Nf6 25. Qd3 cxd5 26. cxd5 Na6 {Black has a material
advantage, but with those huge pawns on d5 and e6 it is clear that he is not
the one fighting for the advantage.} 27. Rae1 Nc7 28. d6 Nxe6 29. Qc4 Kf7 {
Visually this looks super risky, but the knights are excellent defenders.} 30.
Qe4 Rd8 31. Rxf6+ gxf6 32. Qh7+ Kf8 33. Qh8+ Kf7 34. Qh7+ Kf8 35. Rf1 Nf4 $1 {
This critical resource keeps Karjakin in the game... and with equality!} 36.
Qxh6+ Kf7 37. Qh7+ Kf8 38. Qh6+ Kf7 39. Qxf4 Qe6 40. Qf3 Qe5 41. Qxb7+ {
Even though White is up a pawn (he will lose d6 soon) his main problem is that
his king is too weak to do anything. Draw is the logical conclusion.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Danzhou 2nd"]
[Site "Danzhou"]
[Date "2011.05.23"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Wang, Yue"]
[Black "Yu, Yangyi"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2714"]
[BlackElo "2646"]
[Annotator "CB"]
[PlyCount "90"]
[EventDate "2011.05.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "CHN"]
[EventCategory "17"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 143"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2011.07.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2011.07.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 Nc6 6. Bg2 Ne4 7. Bd2 Nxd2 8.
Qxd2 cxd4 9. Nxd4 Qb6 10. Nb3 a5 {[#]} 11. c5 $5 {An enterprising decision
that gives White good play for his pawn.} Bxc5 12. Nxc5 Qxc5 13. Ne4 Qb4 14.
Nd6+ Ke7 15. O-O-O Qxd2+ 16. Rxd2 Rb8 17. Rhd1 Ne5 {Though Black is pretty
tied up at the moment, White still has to play precisely. The knight on e5 is
threatening to do a real show in the position.} 18. h3 b5 19. b3 f6 20. Be4 Nf7
21. Nxf7 Kxf7 22. Rc2 (22. Rxd7+ Bxd7 23. Rxd7+ Kf8 24. Bd3 {might have
offered good drawing chances, but Wang Yue was a half point behind, and was no
doubt seeking the win.}) 22... f5 23. Bf3 d5 24. Rc7+ Kf6 {[#]} 25. Ra7 ({
A stronger plan was probably} 25. Kb2 a4 26. Rdc1 Rd8 27. Ra7 Bd7 (27... Rd7 $2
28. Rxc8) 28. Rcc7 {and the doubled rooks should be enough for the draw.})
25... a4 26. Kb2 axb3 27. axb3 Rd8 28. Rc1 Bd7 29. Rcc7 Ke7 30. e3 Kd6 31. Be2
b4 32. f4 Rb6 33. h4 g6 34. Bd3 h6 35. Bc2 Rc6 36. Rcb7 Rc3 37. Rxb4 Rxe3 38.
Rb6+ Kc5 39. Rbb7 Bc6 40. Rc7 Kb6 41. b4 d4 42. Bb3 d3 43. Ba4 Re2+ 44. Kc3 Ra2
45. b5 Rxa4 0-1

[Event "Grenke Chess Classic 1st"]
[Site "Baden-Baden"]
[Date "2013.02.08"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Fridman, Daniel"]
[Black "Meier, Georg"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2667"]
[BlackElo "2640"]
[Annotator "CB"]
[PlyCount "51"]
[EventDate "2013.02.07"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 153"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2013.03.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2013.03.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. c4 Nf6 2. Nc3 c5 3. Nf3 e6 4. d4 cxd4 5. Nxd4 Bb4 6. g3 Ne4 7. Qd3 Bxc3+ 8.
bxc3 Nc5 9. Qe3 b6 10. Bg2 Bb7 11. Bxb7 Nxb7 12. Ba3 Nc6 13. Nb5 Nca5 $146 ({
Predecessor:} 13... f6 14. Rd1 Nca5 15. Bb4 a6 16. Nd6+ Nxd6 17. Rxd6 Nc6 18.
Rxc6 {1-0 (18) Lenic,L (2598)-Horvath,T (2429) Austria 2009}) 14. Bb4 {Fridman
wasn't yet low on time, but he explained his reasoning for playing this
instead of potentially more promising moves: "In some ways I just believed him.
If I started to calculate all the variations I might play the same Bb4 but
without time on the clock."} a6 15. Qd4 {There was a lively tactical sequence
featuring this nice zwischenzug, but the game never left the bounds of
equality and finished in a logical repetition of moves.} f6 16. Bxa5 bxa5 17.
Nd6+ Nxd6 18. Qxd6 Rc8 19. Qxa6 Qc7 20. O-O Qxc4 21. Qxa5 Qxc3 22. Qh5+ Ke7 23.
Qg4 Kf7 24. Qh5+ Ke7 25. Qg4 Kf7 26. Qh5+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Moscow Aeroflot op-A 10th"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2011.02.08"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Korobov, Anton"]
[Black "Vocaturo, Daniele"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2670"]
[BlackElo "2570"]
[Annotator "CB"]
[PlyCount "109"]
[EventDate "2011.02.08"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 141 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2011.05.03"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2011.05.03"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. g3 dxc4 6. Bg2 O-O 7. O-O Nc6 8. a3
Be7 9. e4 Na5 10. Be3 c5 11. dxc5 Nd7 12. Qe2 Bxc5 13. Rad1 Bxe3 14. Qxe3 Qb6
15. Qe2 Nc5 16. Ne5 Qa6 17. Qh5 f6 {#} 18. Rd8 $3 {Korobov is a player capable
of great brilliancies, however he also tends to be a bit of a hit-and-miss,
possibly due to an excessive desire for that flashy win. This move is
definitely one of the "hits".} fxe5 (18... Rxd8 19. Qf7+ Kh8 20. Qe7 {It might
seem as if White is just winning back the rook here, but it goes deeper, since
after} Bd7 21. Nf7+ Kg8 22. Nxd8 h6 23. e5 $1 {White's attack is winning.}) 19.
Rxf8+ Kxf8 20. f4 Ke7 {#} 21. fxe5 $6 {Not the most precise, though the
Italian will eventually buckle under the pressure.} (21. Qxe5 Nd3 22. Qxg7+ Ke8
23. Bf3 $1 {with the idea of Bh5+ not to mention avoid problems from Qb6+ Kh1
Nf2+.} Kd8 24. f5 $1 {and the attack will break through.}) 21... Kd8 22. Qg5+
Kc7 23. Qe7+ Nd7 24. Kh1 Kb8 25. Bh3 Qc6 26. Bxe6 a6 27. Rf7 Nb6 28. Bd5 Nxd5
29. exd5 Qb6 30. e6 Ka7 {#} 31. Qb4 $1 {Anton offers to exchange queens since
the knight will be forced to move, and the kingside pawns are sitting ducks.}
Qxb4 32. axb4 Nb3 33. Rxg7 Nd4 34. Rxh7 {The rook is gobbling pawns quicker
than Pacman.} Nxe6 35. dxe6 Bxe6 36. Kg1 Rd8 37. Re7 Bh3 38. Kf2 Rd6 39. Re4
Rd2+ 40. Re2 Rd6 41. Ke3 Re6+ 42. Kf4 Rf6+ 43. Ke5 Re6+ 44. Kd4 Rd6+ 45. Nd5
Be6 46. Re5 b6 47. h4 Kb7 48. Ke4 Kc6 49. Nf4 Bg4 50. Rd5 Rf6 51. h5 b5 52. Rg5
Bd1 53. Rg6 Bc2+ 54. Ke5 Rxg6 55. hxg6 1-0

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 2nd"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2007.11.12"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Jakovenko, Dmitrij"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2710"]
[BlackElo "2714"]
[Annotator "Carlsen,M"]
[PlyCount "82"]
[EventDate "2007.11.10"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 122"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 {I hadn't seen Jakovenko play this before,
so I was somewhat surprised. I soon remembered that Grischuk played this way
against Gelfand in the World championship, so Jakovenko had to be well
prepared for the main lines with c5. Anyway I decided to follow my preparation.
Dies hatte ich bei Jakovenko zuvor noch nicht gesehen, daher war ich etwas
überrascht. Bald fiel mir ein, dass Grischuk bei der Weltmeisterschaft gegen
Gelfand auch so gespielt hatte, also musste Jakovenko für die Hauptabspiele
mit c5 gut gewappnet sein. Trotzdem beschloss ich, meiner Vorbereitung zu
folgen.} c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Qa5 10. Bd2
Nc6 11. Nxc6 bxc6 12. O-O Bxc3 13. bxc3 Ba6 14. Rfd1 Qc5 (14... Rab8 15. c4 Qc5
16. cxd5 Rxb3 17. axb3 {and bzw.}) (14... Bxe2 15. c4 {are both known to give
White relatively risk-free pressure. gibt Weiß bekanntlich relativ
risikofreien Druck.}) 15. e4 Bc4 16. Qa4 Nb6 17. Qb4 Qh5 18. Bf4 c5 (18... Be2
19. Re1 c5 20. Qb3 e5 21. Bc1 {was the Grischuk-Gelfand game, where White
developed some pressure. war die Grischuk-Gelfand-Partie, wo Weiß einigen
Druck entwickelte.}) 19. Qb2 (19. Qa5 {was Cheparinov-Carlsen from the World
cup. This game was played only a little more than 3 weeks later (but still in
Russia!). After playing a few more moves relatively quickly I realised that
there was an embarrassing flaw in my preparations, after which I had to defend
an endgame a pawn down, which I luckily managed to do. The former game
continued war Cheparinov-Carlsen aus dem World Cup. Diese Partie fand nur
etwas mehr als 3 Wochen später statt (aber noch immer in Russland!). Nachdem
ich relativ schnell ein paar Züge gemacht hatte, dämmerte mir, dass meine
Vorbereitungen ein peinliches Loch hatten, wonach ich ein Endspiel mit
Minusbauern verteidigen musste, was mir glücklicherweise gelang. Weiter ging
es mit} e5 20. Be3 Be2 21. Re1 Nc4 22. Qa6 Nxe3 23. Rxe2 Nxg2 24. Kxg2 {
The position is quite symmetrical, but the black pawns are weaker than the
white ones, and one of them is bound to fall fairly soon, which did indeed
happen in the game. Die Stellung ist ziemlich symmetrisch, aber die schwarzen
Bauern sind schwächer als die weißen, und einer von ihnen muss ziemlich bald
fallen, was auch tatsächlich in der Partie geschah.}) 19... Rad8 {This appears
to be a novelty. I had indeed prepared the move at home, but it's probably the
most natural move anyway, so I guessed that Jakovenko had taken it into
account Dies scheint eine Neuerung zu sein. Tatsächlich hatte ich den Zug zu
Hause vorbereitet, aber es wahrscheinlich sowieso die natürlichste Fortsetzung,
daher vermutete ich, dass Jakovenko ihn auf dem Zettel hatte.} 20. Re1 {
He spend some time for this move, which was a surprise for me. Anyway I
couldn't remember what to do against it anyway, so I think we were both on our
own from now on Für diesen Zug brauchte er einige Bedenkzeit, was mich
überraschte. Wie dem auch sei, ich konnte mich sowieso nicht mehr daran
erinnern, was dagegen zu tun war, also denke ich, von jetzt an waren wir beide
auf uns allein gestellt.} (20. Rxd8 Rxd8 21. h3 {and und}) (20. f3 {were two
of the most important alternatives. waren zwei der wichtigsten Alternativen.})
20... Rd7 {I liked this move, which prepares the doubling of the rooks, while
at the same time protecting the a-pawn, enabling me to meet Qa3 with Rc8.
Apparently, Black has no problems here.  Dieser Zug gefiel mir - er bereitet
die Turmverdopplung vor und deckt gleichzeitig den a-Bauern, was mir
ermöglicht, Qa3 mit Rc8 zu begegnen. Offenbar hat Schwarz keine Probleme hier.}
21. h3 {A natural move, giving the king some air and preparing g4 in some
lines. Ein natürlicher Zug, dem König wird etwas Luft verschafft und in
manchen Abspielen g4 vorbereitet.} h6 {I decided to make a useful waiting move,
since Ich beschloss, einen nützlichen Wartezug zu machen, denn} (21... Rfd8 22.
Qa3 {isn't really desirable; the rook will have to go to c8 anyway. ist nicht
wirklich wünschenswert; der Turm wird sowieso nach c8 gehen müssen.}) 22. a4 {
My opponent probably felt that since he didn't have many useful moves he had
to do something active. Da er nicht viele nützliche Züge hatte, glaubte mein
Gegner vermutlich, etwas Aktives unternehmen zu müssen.} Ba6 $1 {I have to
make space for the knight. I like this move better than Bd3, as the bishop
seemed to be a little loose there in some lines.  Ich muss Platz für den
Springer machen. Dieser Zug gefällt mir besser als Bd3, denn dort schien der
Läufer in manchen Varianten etwas in der Luft zu hängen.} 23. Qa2 {The
sharpest move, but probably not the best one, as Black seems to benefit from
the coming complications. I think my opponent offered a draw here (or maybe on
the next move), but since I was ahead on time and liked my position, I
declined Der schärfste Zug, aber wahrscheinlich nicht der beste, da die
kommenden Komplikationen Schwarz zu begünstigen scheinen. Ich glaube, hier 
(oder im nächsten Zug) bot mein Gegner Remis an, aber da ich in der Bedenkzeit
vorn lag und mir meine Stellung gefiel, lehnte ich ab.} (23. g4 Qh4 24. Red1 {
was safer and probably better, but Black is certainly not worse in any case.
war sicherer und womöglich besser, aber so oder so steht Schwarz bestimmt
nicht schlechter.}) 23... Rfd8 24. a5 Nc4 25. Bf1 (25. e5 {This move,
preventing e5, was an important alternative, I would then have had to play the
energetic Dieser Zug, der e5 verhindert, war eine wichtige Alternative; darauf
hätte ich das energische} g5 $1 26. g4 (26. Bc1 $2 Rd1 27. Ba3 Rxe1+ 28. Rxe1
Rd1 29. Rxd1 Qxd1+ 30. Kh2 Qa4 $19) 26... Qg6 27. Be4 Qg7 28. Bg3 Nd2 {with
very active play and probably the better chances. spielen müssen, mit sehr
aktivem Spiel und wahrscheinlich den besseren Chancen.}) 25... e5 26. g4 {
Practically forced as Praktisch erzwungen, denn} (26. Bc1 Rd1 27. g4 Rxe1 $1
28. gxh5 Rdd1 {is disastrous for White. ist katastrophal für Weiß.}) 26... Qg6
27. Bxc4 exf4 $1 (27... Bxc4 28. Qxc4 exf4 29. Qxc5 Rd3 {with good counterplay
for the pawn was possible, but rather drawish-looking. I wanted more at this
point. mit gutem Gegenspiel für den Bauern war möglich, sah aber ziemlich
remislich aus. Zu diesem Zeitpunkt wollte ich mehr.}) 28. Bd5 {The logical
follow-up. Die logische Folge.} f3 {The key move. Black is just in time to
prevent White from playing c4 with the better position. h6-h5 is a big threat
now.  Der Schlüsselzug. Schwarz kommt gerade rechtzeitig, um Weiß daran zu
hindern, c4 mit besserer Stellung zu spielen. Jetzt ist h6-h5 eine schwere
Drohung.} 29. c4 $2 {White simply doesn't have time for this. Dazu hat Weiß
einfach keine Zeit.} (29. Re3 Be2 30. Rxe2 fxe2 31. Qxe2 Rb8 {is not very
pleasant for White, but it does give him reasonable chances for survival due
to his strong bishop. ist nicht sonderlich angenehm für Weiß, gibt ihm
angesichts seines starken Läufers aber doch ordentliche Überlebenschancen.})
29... h5 30. Kh2 Qf6 $1 {Threathening Qf4 in some lines, and quite importantly,
attacking the apparently well protected a1-rook.  Droht in einigen Abspielen
Qf4 und greift, ganz wichtig, den scheinbar gut gedeckten Turm a1 an.} 31. Rg1
hxg4 32. Rab1 $2 {The final mistake. White had to try Der letzte Fehler.
Versuchen musste Weiß} (32. Rxg4 Bxc4 33. Qxc4 $1 (33. Bxc4 Rd2 34. Qa4 (34.
Qa3 Rxf2+ 35. Kg1 Qd4 $19) 34... Rxf2+ 35. Kg1 Rfd2 $1 {with the lethal
threats of Qd4+ and Qe5-h2. mit den tödlichen Drohungen Qd4+ und Qe5-h2.} (
35... Qd4 $4 36. Bxf7+ $1 $18)) 33... Qxa1 34. Qxc5 {with some saving chances.
mit einigen Rettungschancen.}) (32. Rac1 Qf4+ 33. Kh1 Qh6 $1 {was certainly
not better than the game. war bestimmt nicht besser als die Partie.}) 32...
Bxc4 $1 {I guess my opponent missed this stroke, which combines a couple of
tactical motifs.  Ich schätze, diesen Schlag, der einige taktische Motive
miteinander kombiniert, hatte mein Gegner übersehen.} 33. Qxc4 Qf4+ 34. Rg3
Rxd5 35. Qxd5 Rxd5 36. exd5 c4 {The simplest. White has such bad coordination
that it's hard to stop the c-pawn.  Am einfachsten. Weiß hat eine derart
schlechte Koordination, dass es schwer ist, den c-Bauern aufzuhalten.} 37. Rd1
{A desperate attempt. But White was lost anyway. Ein verzweifelter Versuch.
Aber Weiß war sowieso verloren.} c3 38. d6 c2 39. Rd3 Qc4 (39... c1=Q 40. d7
Qc2 41. d8=Q+ Kh7 42. Qh4+ Qh6 {would also have won, but I tried to be precise
till the end. hätte ebenfalls gewonnen, aber ich versuchte, bis zum Ende genau
zu spielen.}) 40. Re3 Qc6 (40... c1=Q 41. d7 Qd2 {was quicker, but the text is
more than sufficient. ging schneller, aber der Textzug ist mehr als
ausreichend.}) 41. Rd3 Qc5 $1 {And since 42.Rd2 c1=Q would attack the white
rook White has no sensible way to protect f2, so he resigned. My only victory
in the Tal memorial so far, but a very pleasing one! Und da 42.Rd2 c1=Q den
weißen Turm angreifen würde, hat Weiß keine vernünftige Möglichkeit, f2 zu
decken, daher gab er auf. Mein einziger Sieg im Tal Memorial bislang, aber ein
sehr angenehmer!} 0-1

[Event "Riga zt"]
[Site "Riga"]
[Date "1995.??.??"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Ehlvest, Jaan"]
[Black "Kaunas, Kestutis"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2615"]
[BlackElo "2415"]
[Annotator "Chekhov,V"]
[PlyCount "113"]
[EventDate "1995.03.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "LAT"]
[EventCategory "10"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 047"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1995.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1995.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 b5 $5 {N/} (5... b6 6. Bg2 Bb7 7.
O-O Bxc3 8. bxc3 d6 9. d5 e5 10. Nh4 O-O 11. e4 $14 (11. Bg5 $5 h6 12. Bc1 $14
{Georgadze,T/})) (5... Ne4 6. Qd3 d5 7. dxc5 Qf6 8. cxd5 Nxc3 9. a3 Nxd5+ 10.
axb4 Nxb4 11. Qb3 N8c6 12. Bd2 a5 13. Bg2 e5 14. Bxb4 $1 Nxb4 15. Qa4+ Ke7 16.
O-O $10) (5... O-O 6. Bg2 cxd4 7. Nxd4 d5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Bd2 Bxc3 (9... Nxc3
10. bxc3 Be7 11. Rb1 Qd7 $5) 10. bxc3 e5 11. Nb5 Nc6 12. O-O Be6 13. Bc1 a6 14.
c4 Nb6 15. Nd6 Nxc4 16. Nxb7 Qb6 $13 {Piket,J-Korchnoi,V/Nijmegen(m/2)/1993/0,
5/27/ Inf 57/524/}) 6. cxb5 a6 7. bxa6 Ne4 8. Bd2 (8. Qc2 $5 d5 9. Bg2 Nc6 10.
O-O) 8... Bxc3 9. Bxc3 d5 10. Bg2 O-O 11. Rc1 (11. O-O $5) 11... Nxc3 12. Rxc3
cxd4 13. Nxd4 Rxa6 14. a3 e5 15. Nf3 d4 16. Rc1 Nc6 $44 17. Nd2 (17. b4 $5 {
/\17...e4 18.Nd2(b5? Qa5)e3 19.b5+/=/}) 17... Ne7 18. O-O Be6 (18... Bg4 $5)
19. Ne4 Bd5 20. Nc5 (20. Qd3 Qa8 $1) 20... Bxg2 21. Kxg2 Rh6 (21... Qd5+ $2 22.
e4 $1 $18) 22. Qd3 Nd5 $6 (22... Qc8 $5 23. h4 Ng6 $1 $14) 23. Qf5 Qa8 24. Qf3
(24. Kg1 $2 Nf4 $1 25. gxf4 Rg6+) 24... Re8 (24... f5 $5) 25. Rfd1 f5 (25... e4
26. Nxe4 Rxe4 27. Qxe4 Ne3+ 28. Kg1 $1 Qxe4 29. Rc8+ $18) 26. e4 $1 fxe4 27.
Qxe4 Kh8 28. Kg1 Qd8 29. Re1 Nf6 (29... Rb6 $5 30. b4 Nc3 31. Qd3 {/\Ne4/}) 30.
Qf3 Rg6 31. b4 h6 32. b5 Qa5 $6 (32... Rg4 $5) 33. a4 Rg4 34. Nd7 $1 $18 e4 35.
Qd1 $1 (35. Nxf6 $1 exf3 36. Rxe8#) 35... Nxd7 36. Qxg4 Nf6 37. Qd1 d3 38. Rf1
(38. Rc4 $1) 38... Ra8 $2 (38... Nd7 $1 {/\Ne5/}) 39. Rc4 Re8 40. Qb3 Qb6 $6 (
40... Ng4 $1) 41. Rc6 Qd4 42. Qc3 $18 Qd7 43. Rc7 Qg4 {/\Nd5/} 44. Qd4 Nh5 45.
Qd7 Re6 46. f3 $1 Qg6 (46... exf3 47. Qd8+ Kh7 48. Qxd3+ {/\Qf3+-/}) 47. Rc8+
Kh7 48. Qd8 Qf7 49. fxe4 Qa7+ 50. Kg2 Nf6 51. Qxd3 Qb7 52. Rc4 (52. Rc6 $1 $18)
52... Ng4 53. Rd4 h5 54. Rd7 Qa8 55. Rd5 Kg6 56. h3 Ne5 57. Rxe5 1-0

[Event "RUS-Cup2"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "1996.??.??"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Moskalenko, Viktor"]
[Black "Kiselev, Sergey"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2470"]
[BlackElo "2545"]
[Annotator "Chekhov,V"]
[PlyCount "86"]
[EventDate "1996.11.28"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 056 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1997.03.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1997.03.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 d6 6. e4 O-O 7. Bd3 b5 8. Nge2
Nbd7 $5 {N/} (8... Qb6 $5 9. O-O Bxc3 10. Nxc3 exd5 11. Nxb5 a6 12. Nc3 dxc4
13. Bxc4 Be6 14. b3 Nbd7 15. Bg5 Bxc4 16. bxc4 Qb4 $132 {Moskalenko,V-Kiselev,
S/Belgorod/1990/0|1/36/}) (8... bxc4 9. Bxc4 Ba6 (9... exd5 $6 10. Bxd5 Nxd5
11. Qxd5 Qb6 12. Kf2 Nc6 13. Be3 Ba6 14. Rhd1 Rad8 15. Qb3 $16 {Huzman,
A-Zolnierowicz,K/Baku/1988/1|0/38/}) 10. Bxa6 Nxa6 11. O-O Nc7 12. Bg5 Bxc3 13.
Nxc3 exd5 14. exd5 h6 15. Bh4 Rb8 16. Rb1 Rb4 17. f4 $14 {Milos,G-Sunye Neto,J/
Porto Velho/1988/0,5/27/}) (8... exd5 $5 9. cxd5 c4 10. Bc2 Bc5 11. Nxb5 Qa5+
12. Nbc3 Na6 13. Nd4 Nb4 14. Be3 Re8 15. Kf2 Rb8 16. Re1 Nd3+ $1 17. Bxd3 Rxb2+
18. Re2 Qxc3 19. Rc1 Qa3 20. Bxc4 Rxe2+ 21. Kxe2 Rxe4 $1 $17 {Shishkin,
V-Arkhipov,S/Moscow/1996/0|1/27/}) 9. dxe6 fxe6 10. cxb5 Ne5 11. Bf4 (11. Bc2
d5 12. exd5 exd5 13. O-O d4 14. Ne4 d3 15. Nxf6+ gxf6 $19) 11... Nxd3+ 12. Qxd3
d5 13. exd5 (13. O-O d4 14. Nd1 a6 $36) 13... exd5 14. O-O d4 15. Ne4 Nxe4 16.
fxe4 (16. Qxe4 $6 Bf5 17. Qc6 (17. Qe5 Bd3 $17) 17... Bd3 18. Rf2 Bxe2 19. Rxe2
Rxf4 $19) 16... Be6 17. b3 (17. a3 Ba5 18. b4 cxb4 19. axb4 Bb6 $146) 17... Rc8
18. Rac1 Ba3 19. Rcd1 (19. Rc2 Qf6 $1 $146) 19... c4 20. Qxd4 Bc5 21. Qxc5 Rxc5
22. Rxd8 Rxd8 23. Be3 Rxb5 24. Nd4 Rb6 (24... Re5 $2 25. Nc6 Rxe4 26. Nxd8 Rxe3
27. Nxe6 Rxe6 28. bxc4 $16) 25. bxc4 Bxc4 26. Rc1 Rc8 27. Nf5 Re6 28. Bxa7 g6
29. Ng3 Ra6 30. Bd4 Rxa2 $17 31. h4 Be6 32. Rxc8+ Bxc8 33. h5 g5 34. Bf6 Ra5
35. Kf2 Kf7 36. e5 Ra2+ 37. Ke3 (37. Kf1 Ba6+ 38. Kg1 Bb7 $19) 37... h6 38. Ne4
Bg4 39. Nd6+ Kg8 (39... Ke6 40. Bg7 Bxh5 41. Bxh6 Rxg2 42. Ne4 g4 43. Bf4 Bg6
$19) 40. g3 Bxh5 41. Nf5 Kh7 42. Kd4 Bg4 43. Ne7 Ra3 0-1

[Event "Belgrade Trako"]
[Site "Belgrade"]
[Date "1995.??.??"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Komarov, Dimitri"]
[Black "Arsovic, Zoran"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2575"]
[BlackElo "2430"]
[Annotator "ChessBase"]
[PlyCount "36"]
[EventDate "1995.03.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "YUG"]
[EventCategory "9"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 047 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1995.09.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1995.09.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 b6 6. Bg2 Bb7 7. O-O cxd4 8. Qxd4
O-O 9. b3 Na6 10. Bb2 Nc5 11. Rad1 d6 12. Nb5 Nce4 13. Ng5 Bc5 14. Qd3 d5 15.
Nxe4 Nxe4 16. cxd5 exd5 17. b4 Be7 18. Bxe4 dxe4 (18... dxe4 19. Qc3 Bf6 20.
Rxd8 Bxc3 21. Rxf8+ Kxf8 22. Bxc3 $18) 1-0

[Event "Yerevan"]
[Site "Yerevan"]
[Date "1976.03.20"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Romanishin, Oleg M"]
[Black "Ornstein, Axel"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2560"]
[BlackElo "2470"]
[Annotator "ChessBase"]
[PlyCount "63"]
[EventDate "1976.03.19"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "15"]
[EventCountry "URS"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 1999"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1998.11.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1998.11.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 c5 5. Nf3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 Ne4 7. Qd3 Qa5 8.
Nc2 Nxc3 (8... Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 Nc5 10. Qd4) 9. Nxb4 Nxa2 10. Rxa2 Qxb4+ 11. Bd2
Qe7 12. Bc3 e5 13. Bg2 O-O 14. O-O Nc6 15. Ra4 d6 16. b4 a6 17. b5 Nd4 18. Bxd4
exd4 19. Qxd4 Qxe2 20. Qxd6 Be6 21. bxa6 Rxa6 22. Rxa6 bxa6 23. c5 Qc2 (23...
a5 24. c6 Qb2 25. c7 a4 26. Bd5 Bc8 27. Re1 a3 28. Qf4 Qb5 29. Rd1 Qc5 30. Bc4
g6 31. Rd8 Kg7 32. h4 $16) 24. c6 a5 25. Re1 (25. Qd4 a4 26. Be4 Qc4 27. Qxc4
Bxc4 28. Rc1 Be6 29. c7 a3 30. Bd5 Rc8 31. Bb7 Re8 32. c8=Q Bxc8 33. Bxc8 g6
34. Ba6 Ra8 35. Bc4 $18) 25... a4 26. Be4 (26. c7) 26... Qc3 27. Re3 Qa1+ $2 (
27... Qc1+ $142 28. Kg2 Rc8) 28. Kg2 Qf6 29. Qb4 Qa1 $2 30. c7 g6 $2 (30... Qc1
) 31. Bb7 Qa2 32. Rd3 $18 (32. Rxe6 Qxe6 33. Qxa4 Kg7 34. Qd4+ Qf6 35. Qc5 $18)
1-0

[Event "URS-ch55"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "1988.07.??"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Malaniuk, Vladimir P"]
[Black "Ivanchuk, Vassily"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2520"]
[BlackElo "2625"]
[Annotator "ChessBase"]
[PlyCount "68"]
[EventDate "1988.07.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "17"]
[EventCountry "URS"]
[EventCategory "14"]
[SourceTitle "100 Jahre Schach"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2000.04.19"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2000.04.19"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%mdl 16] Sowjetische Landesmeisterschaften waren immer etwas besonderes,
weil die sie sich durch so wahnsinnig starke Teilnehmerfelder auszeichneten.
Am 55. Championat nahmen sogar Kasparov und Karpov teil, die im übrigen
einträchtig den ersten Platz teilten und ohne Stichkampf beide den Titel
erhielten. Die Partie zwischen Malaniuk und Ivanchuk scheint unbegreiflich.
Die Kommentare stützen sich vor allem auf die Anmerkungen Ivanchuks im
Informator. Doch eine Bearbeitung mit Fritz bringt ein paar zusätzliche
Varianten und Bewertungen ans Tageslicht.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3
d5 5. a3 Be7 6. e4 dxe4 7. fxe4 e5 8. d5 Ng4 9. Nf3 Bc5 10. b4 Bf2+ 11. Ke2 c5
$5 12. Nb5 $2 ({Richtig ist} 12. dxc6 $1 Bd4 13. c7 $1 Qxc7 14. Nd5 $16 Qxc4+
15. Kd2 Qc6 $6 16. Nxd4 exd4 17. Bb5 $18) 12... a6 $1 13. Qa4 axb5 $3 14. Qxa8
Bd4 $1 15. Nxd4 $2 {Laut Ivanchuk ein Fehler.} (15. Ra2 Nd7 $17 {oder}) (15.
Qxb8 Bxa1 $17 {wären für Weiß spielbarer gewesen.}) 15... cxd4 16. Qxb8 O-O {
Wahrscheinlich steht Schwarz auf Gewinn.} 17. Ke1 (17. h3 Qh4 $1 18. Qc7 Qg3
$19) (17. c5 Qf6 18. Qd6 Qf2+ 19. Kd1 Ne3+ 20. Bxe3 Bg4+ 21. Kc1 Qxe3+ 22. Kb2
Qc3+ 23. Kb1 d3 24. Bxd3 Qxd3+ 25. Kb2 Qd4+ 26. Ka2 Be2 $19) 17... Qh4+ $1 18.
g3 Qf6 19. Bf4 $1 (19. Ra2 Qf3 20. Bg2 Qc3+ 21. Bd2 Qb3 22. Ra1 bxc4 $19) 19...
g5 $2 {Hier verpasst Ivanchuk den Gewinn:} (19... d3 $3 {[%cal Ye5a1,Yb5c4]}
20. Rc1 (20. Bxd3 exf4 $19) (20. Rd1 bxc4 $19) 20... exf4 21. Qxf4 Qd4 $1 {
/\ 22...bxc4, /\ 22...d2+! 23.Qxd2 Qxe4+ (I.)} 22. h3 Re8 23. Bg2 Ne3 24. Qf2
bxc4 $19) 20. c5 $3 $13 exf4 21. Qd6 Qg7 22. Bd3 (22. gxf4 d3 23. e5 gxf4 24.
Rg1 f3 25. Rg3 $13) 22... Ne5 $5 23. Kd2 f3 (23... f5 24. gxf4 (24. Rae1 $5)
24... Nxd3 25. Kxd3 fxe4+ 26. Kxe4 Rxf4+ 27. Qxf4 $3 gxf4 28. Rag1 Bg4 29. h3
$13 {(I.)}) 24. Qe7 g4 25. Bxb5 Ng6 $5 (25... Qh6+ 26. Kc2 Qe3 27. Qxe5 Qc3+
28. Kb1 Qb3+ $10) 26. Qg5 $1 ({Ivanchuk glaubte, dass Schwarz nach} 26. Qd6 {
nur die Züge wiederholen kann; dem ist nicht so:} Qh6+ $1 27. Kc2 Qe3 28. Bd3
f2 $1 {/\ f5} 29. Qf6 Bd7 $1 30. a4 Re8 31. Rhd1 Ne5 32. Qf4 Nxd3 33. Rxd3 Qe2+
34. Qd2 Rxe4 $19) 26... h6 27. Qh5 d3 {Es gibt zwei weitere Züge, die in Frage
kommen.} (27... Ne5) (27... f5) 28. Bxd3 $4 {Weiß gibt die Kontrolle über e8
auf und verliert deshalb die Dame.} (28. Kxd3 $6 Qb2 $1 $17 29. Rhc1 Kg7 {/\ f5
}) ({Richtig war} 28. e5 $1 {Nach} Nxe5 29. Rhe1 f5 {kann Weiß das Remis
erzwingen:} 30. Rxe5 Qxe5 31. Qg6+ Kh8 32. Qxh6+ Kg8 33. Qg6+ Kh8 $11) 28...
Re8 $3 $19 29. h3 Re5 30. hxg4 Rxh5 31. gxh5 Ne5 32. Rae1 Qg5+ 33. Kc2 f2 34.
Rd1 Qe3 {Quelle: i46/745 Ivanchuk} 0-1

[Event "Candidates sf2"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "1989.10.03"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Speelman, Jonathan S"]
[Black "Timman, Jan H"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2615"]
[BlackElo "2635"]
[Annotator "ChessBase"]
[PlyCount "62"]
[EventDate "1989.10.??"]
[EventType "match"]
[EventRounds "8"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[SourceTitle "Candidates"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1999.07.01"]
[SourceVersion "2"]
[SourceVersionDate "1999.07.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 e6 5. g3 Bb4+ 6. Nc3 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8.
O-O dxc4 9. Bg5 $6 {9.Nc2, 9.Qa4} h6 10. Bxf6 Qxf6 11. Ndb5 (11. Ne4 Qe7 12.
Qc2 e5 $15) 11... Nc6 12. Qa4 Qe5 $1 13. Rad1 (13. Bxc6 bxc6 14. Qxb4 cxb5 15.
a4 $1 $15 (15. Qxb5 $6 Qxb5 16. Nxb5 Rb8 $1 $17)) 13... a6 14. e3 Bd7 $1 $17
15. Rxd7 axb5 16. Qxb5 $2 (16. Qc2 $15) 16... Bxc3 17. Rxb7 Qxb5 18. Rxb5 Na7
19. Rc5 (19. Rb6 Nc8 20. Rb5 Ra5 $1 $19) 19... Bb4 20. Rxc4 (20. Rc7 Ba5 21.
Rd7 Rfd8 22. Rfd1 Rab8 $19) 20... Rab8 21. Rd1 Nc8 22. a3 Be7 23. b4 Nb6 24.
Rc7 Rfd8 25. Rxd8+ Bxd8 26. Ra7 Kf8 27. Bc6 Nc4 28. Kf1 Bb6 29. Ra6 Ke7 30. Bb5
Nd6 31. Bd3 Ne8 0-1

[Event "Pamplona 9495 5th"]
[Site "Pamplona"]
[Date "1994.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Zvjaginsev, Vadim"]
[Black "Kortschnoj, Viktor Lvovich"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2585"]
[BlackElo "2635"]
[Annotator "Dautov,R"]
[PlyCount "45"]
[EventDate "1994.12.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "13"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 046"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1995.06.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1995.06.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 d5 6. Bg2 dxc4 7. O-O O-O (7...
Nc6 8. dxc5 Qxd1 9. Rxd1 Bxc5 10. Nd2 Na5 11. Nde4 Be7 12. Bf4 Bd7 13. Nd6+
Bxd6 14. Bxd6 Bc6 15. e4 O-O-O 16. b4 cxb3 17. axb3 Ne8 18. e5 Bxg2 19. Rxa5
Nxd6 20. exd6 Bf3 21. Rd3 Bc6 22. Rxa7 Kb8 23. Ra1 b6 24. f3 {1/2-1/2
Romanishin,O-Tal,M/Sochi 1984}) 8. dxc5 Qa5 $6 {N} (8... Nc6 {>=} 9. Qa4 Qa5
10. Qxa5 Nxa5 11. Ne5 (11. Be3 Bxc3 12. bxc3 Nd5 13. Bd4 Bd7 $132) 11... Bxc5
12. Rd1 h6 $10 {Renet,O-Sharif,Meh/Marseille 1986}) 9. Qd4 $1 Nc6 (9... Qxc5
10. Qxc5 Bxc5 11. Ne5 Nbd7 12. Nxc4 $14) (9... Bxc5 10. Qxc4 Nbd7 11. Bf4 $14)
10. Qxc4 e5 $2 (10... Bxc5 11. Bg5 Be7 12. Rfd1 $14) (10... Qxc5 {>=} 11. Qxc5
Bxc5 12. Bf4 (12. Bg5 Bd7 13. Bxf6 gxf6 14. Ne4 Be7 15. Rac1 $14 {/\Nc5}) 12...
Bd7 (12... Nh5 13. Rfd1 Nxf4 14. gxf4 $14 {@}) 13. Ne5 Rac8 14. Rad1 (14. Rfd1
$2 Nxe5 15. Bxe5 Bxf2+ 16. Kxf2 Ng4+ $17) (14. Nxd7 Nxd7 15. Rac1 $14) 14...
Rfd8 15. Nxc6 Bxc6 16. Rxd8+ Rxd8 17. Bxc6 bxc6 18. Rc1 $14) 11. Ne4 $1 Nxe4
12. Qxe4 $16 Bxc5 (12... Qxc5 $2 13. a3 Ba5 14. b4 Qc3 15. Bd2 $18) 13. Ng5 g6
14. Qh4 h5 15. Bxc6 $1 bxc6 16. Ne4 $18 f5 (16... Rb8 17. Bh6 $18) 17. Bd2 Qd8
(17... Qb6 18. Nxc5 Qxc5 19. Bb4 $18) 18. Bg5 Qd4 19. Nxc5 Qxc5 20. Be7 Qd4 21.
Qxd4 exd4 22. Bxf8 Kxf8 23. Rfd1 1-0

[Event "RUS-ch"]
[Site "Elista"]
[Date "1995.??.??"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Zvjaginsev, Vadim"]
[Black "Bareev, Evgeny"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2600"]
[BlackElo "2650"]
[Annotator "Dautov,R"]
[PlyCount "51"]
[EventDate "1995.10.??"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 050"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1996.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1996.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 O-O 6. Bg2 cxd4 7. Nxd4 d5 8.
cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Nc6 (9... Qb6 10. Bxd5 Qxd4 11. Bg2) (9... Na6 10. O-O Nxc3
11. bxc3 Be7 12. Rd1) 10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. O-O Rb8 (11... Qa5 $5 12. Ne4 (12. Bd2
Bxc3 $1 13. bxc3 $6 (13. Bxc3 Nxc3 $10) 13... Ba6 14. Rfd1 Rab8 15. c4 Qc5 16.
cxd5 Rxb3 17. axb3 Bxe2 18. Rdc1 Qd6 $1 19. Be3 cxd5 20. Bc5 Qb8 21. Bxf8 Kxf8
22. Rc2 Bb5 $17 {Nielsen,PH-Emms,J/Copenhagen BSF (07) ;CBM 46/ 1995}) 12...
Ba6 13. Qc2 Be7 14. Bd2 Qb5 15. Rfc1 Rab8 16. Qxc6 Qxc6 17. Rxc6 Bxe2 18. Nc3
Rxb2 19. Bc1 Bb5 20. Nxd5 exd5 21. Bxb2 Bxc6 22. Rc1 $10 {Sulava,N-Grosar,A/
JUG-ch (03)/ 1991}) 12. Na4 {N} (12. e4 Nxc3 13. bxc3 Bd6 14. Qa4 Qc7 15. Be3
c5 16. Rfd1 Bd7 $10 {Zvjaginsev,V-Romanov,O/URS-chJ Alma-Ata/ 1991}) 12... Ba6
13. Qc2 Bd6 {/\Nb4} 14. a3 (14. Rd1 $5 Nb4 (14... Qa5 15. Bd2 Qb5 16. e4 Nb4
17. Bxb4 Bxb4 18. Bf1 Qb7 19. Bxa6 Qxa6 20. Rac1 $14) (14... Qe7 $142 $1) 15.
Qe4 $1 (15. Qd2 $2 Qa5 $1 16. b3 (16. Qxd6 $4 Rfd8 $19) (16. Nc3 Rfd8 17. Qg5
Qxg5 18. Bxg5 f6 19. Bd2 Be5 $15) 16... Rfd8 17. Ba3 Bb5 $15) 15... Nd5 (15...
Qe7 16. Rxd6 $1 Qxd6 17. Bf4 Qd5 18. Bxb8 Qxe4 19. Bxe4 Rxb8 20. a3 Nd5 21. Bf3
$14) 16. Bd2 Qc7 17. Rac1 $14) 14... Qe7 15. Re1 Bb5 16. e4 Nb6 $10 17. e5 (17.
Nxb6 axb6 18. a4 (18. e5 Bc5 19. a4 (19. b4 Bd4 20. Bb2 Bxb2 21. Qxb2 c5 $10)
19... Ba6 20. Bxc6 Rfc8 21. Qe4 (21. Be4 $2 Bb4 $19) 21... Bxf2+ 22. Kxf2 Qc5+
23. Be3 Qxc6 $10) 18... Ba6 $10 19. Qxc6 $4 Rfc8 $19) (17. Nc3 Be5 18. f4 Bd4+
19. Be3 Bxe3+ 20. Rxe3 Nc4 (20... Qc5 21. Qf2 $10) 21. Ree1 Rfd8 22. Rad1 Ba6
$1 23. Rxd8+ Qxd8 $15) 17... Bc7 18. Nc3 (18. Nc5 Nc4 19. Nd3 Rfd8 20. b3 Nb6
21. Nc5 Nd7 (21... Nc4 $2 22. Bg5 $1 Qxg5 23. bxc4 Bxe5 24. Rad1 $16) 22. Nxd7
Rxd7 23. Be4 Kh8 24. Bb2 Rbd8 25. Rad1 Bb6 $10) 18... Rfd8 19. Nxb5 cxb5 20.
Be3 (20. Bg5 Qxg5 21. Qxc7 Qd2 22. Qxa7 (22. b4 a6 23. Qa7 Qb2 24. Qxa6 Nc4 $10
) 22... Qxb2 23. Rab1 Qc3 $10) 20... a6 21. Rac1 Nc4 22. b3 Nxe3 23. Qxc7 Qxc7
24. Rxc7 Nxg2 25. Kxg2 Rd3 26. Rec1 (26. Rec1 g6 27. Rc8+ Rxc8 28. Rxc8+ Kg7
29. Ra8 Rxb3 30. Rxa6 $10) 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tilburg"]
[Site "Tilburg"]
[Date "1994.??.??"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Zvjaginsev, Vadim"]
[Black "Olafsson, Helgi"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2585"]
[BlackElo "2520"]
[Annotator "Dautov,R"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[EventDate "1994.09.??"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 044"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1995.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1995.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 O-O 6. Bg2 cxd4 7. Nxd4 d5 8.
cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Qb6 10. Bxd5 Qxd4 $1 (10... exd5 11. Be3 Qa5 12. Rc1 Nc6 13.
O-O Nxd4 14. Bxd4 Bh3 15. Rfd1 Bxc3 16. Rxc3 $14 Qa6 $4 17. g4 Bxg4 18. Rg3 $18
{Zvjaginsev-Almasi/Altensteig/1994}) 11. Bg2 Nc6 12. O-O (12. Be3 $5 Bxc3+ (
12... Qe5 13. Rc1 $14) 13. bxc3 Qg4 $5 (13... Qe5 14. Rd1 Qc7 15. O-O e5 (15...
Bd7 16. Bc5 Rfd8 17. Bd6 Qc8 18. c4 Na5 19. Qb4 $14) 16. Bc5 Be6 17. Qa3 Rfd8
18. Bd6 Qd7 $10) 14. Rd1 e5 15. h3 Qh5 16. Rd6 e4 17. Bxe4 (17. Rd5 $5 Qg6 18.
c4 Be6 19. Rg5 Qf6 $13) 17... Qe5 18. Qd5 Qxc3+ 19. Kf1 Be6 20. Qh5 g6 21. Qb5
$13) 12... Na5 $1 13. Qc2 Bxc3 14. bxc3 Qc5 15. Rd1 (15. Be3 $5 Qc7 16. c4 Bd7
(16... Nxc4 $4 17. Rac1 $18) (16... Qxc4 17. Rfc1 Qxc2 18. Rxc2 $44) 17. c5 Bc6
$10) 15... Nc4 $1 {ץc1} 16. Qe4 {/\Rd4} (16. Rb1 Rb8 {/\b6}) 16... e5 17. Qh4
(17. Qd5 $5 Qc7 18. Rb1 Rb8 19. Rb4 Be6 20. Rxb7 Rxb7 21. Qxb7 Qxb7 22. Bxb7
Rb8 23. Bd5 Rd8 24. e4 Kf8 $44) 17... Be6 $1 (17... Rb8 18. Bg5 $1 f6 (18...
Re8 19. Rd5 Qc7 20. Bd8 Qc6 21. Rxe5 $16) 19. Bd5+ Kh8 20. Qxc4 (20. Be4 $2
Qxf2+ $1) 20... Qxc4 21. Bxc4 fxg5 22. Rab1 $14) 18. Bxb7 Rab8 $44 19. Be4 (19.
Bg2 f6) 19... f5 20. Bc2 (20. Bd3 h6 (20... Nb2 21. Bxb2 Rxb2 22. a4 e4 23. Bb5
Qxc3 24. Qe7 $14) 21. Bxc4 Qxc4 22. Qxc4 Bxc4 $10) 20... h6 21. Bb3 (21. Bxh6
$5 gxh6 22. Qxh6 Qe7 23. Qg6+ Kh8 24. Qh6+ $10) 21... Rf6 22. Rd3 $2 (22. Bxc4
Qxc4 23. Qxc4 Bxc4 24. Be3 $10) 22... a5 23. Be3 Qc6 24. Rad1 a4 $17 25. Bc2 (
25. Bxc4 Bxc4 26. Rd8+ Rxd8 27. Rxd8+ Kh7 28. Rd2 f4 29. Ba7 Qc7 $19) 25... Rb2
26. Bb1 Nxe3 $1 27. Rxe3 e4 {ץb1} 28. a3 Qb7 29. Bxe4 fxe4 30. Rxe4 $2 (30.
Qxe4 {>=} Qxe4 31. Rxe4 Ra2 32. Rxa4 Rxe2 33. f4 Bh3 $19) 30... g5 0-1

[Event "Belgrade Investbank"]
[Site "Belgrade"]
[Date "1995.??.??"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Beliavsky, Alexander G"]
[Black "Ivanchuk, Vassily"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2650"]
[BlackElo "2740"]
[Annotator "Dautov,R"]
[PlyCount "58"]
[EventDate "1995.11.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "YUG"]
[EventCategory "17"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 051"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1996.04.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1996.04.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Ftacnik} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 c5 4. Nf3 cxd4 5. Nxd4 Bb4+ 6. Nc3 O-O 7.
Bg2 d5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 {Ftacnik: An important line for this opening.
Equalizing for black is far from an easy task.} Qa5 $1 {N} (9... Qb6 10. Bxd5
exd5 11. Be3 Nc6 12. Rd1 Qa5 13. O-O Bh3 14. Rfe1 Rac8 15. Rc1 Ne5 16. Ndb5 Be6
17. Nd4 Nc4 $10 {Beliavsky,A-Timman,J/Belgrade (02) ;CBM 51 1995}) (9... Nc6
10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. O-O Rb8 12. Na4 Ba6 13. Qc2 Bd6 {/\Nb4} 14. a3 Qe7 15. Re1
Bb5 16. e4 Nb6 $10 {Zvjaginsev,V-Bareev,E/RUS-ch Elista (11) ;CBM 50 1995}) (
9... Na6 {cf. Survey CBM 51 by Ftacnik}) 10. Bd2 (10. Bxd5 exd5 11. O-O (11.
Bd2 Nc6 12. Nc2 Be6 $10) 11... Nc6 12. Be3 Bxc3 13. bxc3 $10) 10... Nc6 11. Nc2
$6 (11. Nxc6 $5 {Ftacnik: This continuation is probably more ambitious} bxc6
12. O-O Bxc3 (12... Rb8 $2 13. Nxd5 cxd5 14. a3 Bd6 15. Qxb8 $18) 13. Bxc3 (13.
bxc3 $5 {Ftacnik Nielsen,PH-Savon,V/Pardubice op/1995/}) 13... Nxc3 14. bxc3
Ba6 $10) 11... Bxc3 12. bxc3 (12. Bxc3 {Ftacnik} Nxc3 13. bxc3 Qc7 $10) 12...
Qc7 {/\Na5} 13. Qa3 $2 (13. Bxd5 Na5 (13... exd5 {Ftacnik} 14. Qxd5 Rd8 $132)
14. Qb5 Bd7 15. Qb4 exd5 16. Bf4 Qd8 $10) 13... Ne5 14. Bxd5 (14. Nb4 {Ftacnik}
Nc4 15. Nxd5 exd5 16. Qc1 Qc5 $10) 14... exd5 15. Bf4 f6 16. O-O Qf7 $15 17.
Ne3 $2 {Ftacnik: An inacuracy, that can be punished with active play.} (17.
Rfd1 {Ftacnik} Bg4 18. Nd4) 17... Bh3 18. Rfd1 (18. Ng2 {Ftacnik} Rfe8 $15)
18... g5 $1 $17 19. Bxe5 fxe5 $40 20. f3 e4 {Ftacnik: All of sudden Beliavsky
has to be concerned for the safety of his own K.} 21. Qc5 (21. Rxd5 exf3 (21...
h6 {Ftacnik} 22. Rd2 exf3 23. exf3 Qxf3 $17) 22. Rxg5+ Kh8 23. exf3 h6 $1 (
23... Qxf3 24. Qc5 Qf2+ 25. Kh1 Qf3+ $10) 24. Re5 (24. Rd5 Qxf3 25. Qc5 Rae8
26. Rh5 Kh7 27. Rxh3 Rxe3 $19) 24... Qxf3 25. Qb2 (25. Qc5 Rad8 $19 {/\Rd1})
25... Rad8 26. Re1 (26. Qc2 Rde8 27. Rxe8 Rxe8 28. Nc4 Re2 $19) 26... Rd1 $3
27. Rxd1 Qxd1+ 28. Nxd1 Rf1#) 21... exf3 22. exf3 Rae8 $1 23. Rxd5 (23. Qxd5
Qxd5 24. Nxd5 Rxf3 (24... Re2 25. f4 h6 $17) 25. Re1 (25. Rab1 b6 $17) 25...
Ref8 $17) 23... h6 {Ftacnik: This calm move shows, that danger for white's
monarch is systematic and the power of the counterplay only limited.} 24. Re5 (
24. Rd2 Qxf3 25. Qd5+ Rf7 26. Qxf3 Rxf3 27. Nd5 Ref8 28. Rdd1 h5 $17 {/\h4} (
28... Rf2 $2 29. Nf4 $14)) (24. Rd3 {Ftacnik} Qxf3 25. Qd5+ Qxd5 26. Nxd5 Re2
$19) 24... Qxf3 $19 25. Qc4+ Kg7 26. Rxe8 (26. Qb5 Rxe5 27. Qxe5+ Kh7 28. Qd4
Re8 29. Qd3+ Kg7 30. Qd4+ Kg6 31. Qd3+ Re4 32. Re1 Kh5 33. Qe2 Rxe3 $19) (26.
Qd4 {Ftacnik} Qf2+ 27. Kh1 Bg2+ $3 28. Nxg2 Qf1+ 29. Rxf1 Rxf1+ 30. Qg1 Rxg1+
31. Kxg1 Rxe5 $19) 26... Rxe8 27. Qd4+ Kg6 (27... Kg8 {Ftacnik} 28. Qc4+ Be6
29. Qd4) 28. Qd3+ Re4 (28... Kh5 {Ftacnik} 29. g4+ Bxg4 30. Re1 Bh3 $19) 29.
Re1 Kh5 (29... Kh5 $1 {Ftacnik} 30. Qd2 Rxe3 $19) 0-1

[Event "Madrid"]
[Site "Madrid"]
[Date "1993.??.??"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Kramnik, Vladimir"]
[Black "Izeta Txabarri, Felix"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2685"]
[BlackElo "2505"]
[Annotator "Dautov,R"]
[PlyCount "80"]
[EventDate "1993.06.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "14"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 036"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1993.10.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1993.10.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Bb4+ 4. Bd2 c5 5. g3 Bxd2+ (5... Qb6 6. Bg2 Nc6 7. d5
exd5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. a3 (9. O-O Nde7 10. e4 d6 11. Be3 Qc7 12. a3 Ba5 13. Nbd2
$44) 9... Ba5 10. Bxa5 Qxa5+ 11. Nfd2 Nf6 12. Nc3 d5 (12... O-O 13. Nb3 $14)
13. Nb3 Qb6 14. Na4 Qb5 15. Naxc5 O-O 16. Qd3 $14) 6. Qxd2 (6. Nbxd2 cxd4 7.
Nxd4 Qb6 8. Nb5 $5 {N} (8. N2b3 e5 9. Nf3 d6 $10) 8... a6 (8... d5 $5) 9. Nc3
Qc6 10. e4 d6 11. Bg2 O-O 12. O-O Qc7 13. Kh1 Nc6 14. Rc1 Bd7 15. f4 Rac8 16.
g4 h6 17. Nb3 Rfd8 18. g5 hxg5 19. fxg5 Nh7 $13 {->Yudasin-Izeta/Dos Hermanas/
1993}) 6... Ne4 7. Qd3 (7. Qc2 Qa5+ 8. Nbd2 Nxd2 9. Qxd2 Qxd2+ 10. Kxd2 cxd4
11. Nxd4 Nc6 12. e3 d6 13. Bg2 Bd7 14. Rac1 Ke7 15. Rhd1 Rac8 16. b3 a6 $10 {
Yudasin-Karpov/Madrid/1993}) 7... Qa5+ 8. Nbd2 Nxd2 9. Nxd2 cxd4 10. Qxd4 O-O
11. Bg2 Nc6 12. Qe3 (12. Qd6 $5 Qe5 (12... Qb6 13. Nb3 $14) (12... e5 13. e3)
13. Qxe5 Nxe5 14. O-O d6 15. Rac1 Rd8 16. Rfd1 Kf8 $14) (12. Qd3 $5 d5 13. cxd5
(13. O-O Ne5 14. Qc2 $13) 13... exd5 14. Qxd5 Qb6 $44) 12... d5 13. O-O d4 14.
Qd3 e5 15. a3 f5 16. b4 Qc7 17. Nb3 (17. Bd5+ Kh8 18. Nb3 Ne7 19. Bg2 Rd8 (
19... f4 $5) 20. Rac1 Rb8 21. Rfd1 Be6 22. Nc5 Bf7 $132) 17... e4 18. Qd2 Be6
19. Nxd4 (19. Rac1 Rad8 20. b5 Ne5 21. Nxd4 Bxc4 22. Qb2 Qb6 $10) 19... Nxd4
20. Qxd4 Bxc4 $10 (20... Qxc4 21. Qe3 Qb3 $10) 21. Rfc1 b5 22. a4 Qb6 (22... a6
$10 23. g4 $6 Rad8 24. Qe3 fxg4 25. Bxe4 Qf4 $15) 23. Qxb6 axb6 24. e3 Rac8 (
24... Bd3 25. axb5 Bxb5 26. Bh3 Bd7 $10) 25. axb5 Bxb5 26. Bh3 Bd7 27. Rd1 Rc7
28. Rd6 Rf6 29. Rxf6 gxf6 30. Bf1 Kf7 31. Kg2 (31. Ra6 Rc1 32. Ra7 Ke6 33. Rb7
Ba4 34. Rxb6+ Ke5 35. Kg2 Bd1 36. Ba6 Bf3+ 37. Kh3 Bg4+ 38. Kg2 Bf3+ $10) 31...
Ke7 32. Ra6 Rb7 33. Ra8 (33. h3 Rb8 34. Be2 Kd6 $10) 33... Be8 34. Ba6 (34. Be2
Rc7 35. Rb8 Rc2 36. Rb7+ Kd8 37. Ba6 Bh5 $132) 34... Rc7 35. Rb8 Bh5 36. Rb7
Rxb7 37. Bxb7 Kd6 38. Kh3 h6 39. Bc8 Bg6 40. Kh4 (40. g4 fxg4+ 41. Kxg4 Ke5 $10
) 40... Ke5 1/2-1/2

[Event "EU-chT (Men) 12th"]
[Site "Batumi"]
[Date "1999.12.03"]
[Round "5.2"]
[White "Volkov, Sergey"]
[Black "Dautov, Rustem"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2575"]
[BlackElo "2597"]
[Annotator "Dautov,R"]
[PlyCount "138"]
[EventDate "1999.11.06"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "GEO"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 074"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2000.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2000.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Russia"]
[BlackTeam "Germany"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "RUS"]
[BlackTeamCountry "GER"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 c6 7. e4 $1 {
Eine neue Idee. Weiß opfert einen Bauern für die schnelle Entwicklung.} dxe4 8.
fxe4 e5 $1 (8... Nxe4 $2 9. Qg4) (8... Qa5 $2 9. e5 Qxc3+ 10. Bd2 Qxd4 11. exf6
Qh4+ 12. g3 Qe4+ 13. Kf2 Qxh1 14. Nf3 gxf6 15. Be1 $18 {/\Bg2}) 9. Nf3 Qa5 10.
Qd3 exd4 {Es gab zwei Alternativen:} (10... Nxe4 $5 11. Qxe4 Qxc3+ 12. Kf2 Qxa1
13. Qxe5+ Be6 14. Qxg7 Rf8 15. Be2 Nd7 16. Rd1 O-O-O 17. Bg5 Qb2 $1 (17... Qxa3
$2 18. d5 $1 Rg8 19. Qd4 $36) 18. Bxd8 Rxd8 $11) (10... O-O 11. Bd2 (11. Nxe5
$6 Nxe4) 11... Nbd7 12. Be2 b6 13. O-O Ba6 14. Bg5 $14) 11. Bd2 $1 dxc3 12.
Bxc3 Qd8 (12... Qc7 $5) 13. Qxd8+ Kxd8 14. O-O-O+ {In dieser Stellung endete
die Partie Volkov-Rashkovsky/Biel 1999 mit einem Remisschluß. Dieses verfrühte
Ergebnis gab mir Grund zu der Annahme, daß Volkov die Variante nicht erneut
spielen wird. Falsch gedacht! Mein Gegner schien die Stellung ausführlich
analysiert zu haben und machte seine nächsten Züge a tempo.} Ke7 (14... Ke8 $5)
15. Bb4+ Ke8 16. Bd3 $44 Na6 17. Bd6 Nd7 $1 {Dieses Manöver ist stark. Der Nf6
entkommt der dauernden Drohung e4-e5 und wird auf ein sicheres Feld c5
überführt.} (17... Be6 18. c5 Nd7 19. Bxa6 bxa6 20. Nd4 $36) 18. Rhe1 Ndc5 19.
Bc2 $1 {Weiß opfert den zweiten Bauern, um seine Stellung maximal zu
verstärken.} ({Dagegen war} 19. Bf1 {ungefährlicher für Schwarz:} Be6 20. Nd4 (
20. e5 Rd8 {/\Rd7, Kd8-c8}) 20... f6 $1 21. e5 f5 22. g3 Kf7 $15) 19... Be6 20.
Nd4 $1 Bxc4 (20... f6 $2 21. e5 $16) (20... Rd8 $5 21. Nf5 Rg8 22. e5 Rd7 $13)
21. Nf5 Ne6 $8 (21... Rg8 $4 22. Bxc5 Nxc5 23. Nd6+ $18) 22. a4 $1 {/\Ba3,Nd6}
b5 $1 (22... Rd8 $2 23. Ba3 Rd7 24. Nd6+ Rxd6 25. Rxd6 $16) 23. axb5 (23. Ba3
b4 24. Bb2 Ba2 $17) 23... cxb5 24. e5 Nac5 25. Kb2 $1 {Weiß plant, den
schwarzen Bc4 mittels Ne3 abzutauschen und in die gegnerische Stellung auf dem
Damenflügel einzudringen.} a5 {Hier unterschätzte ich die Gefahr.} (25... Rc8
$1 26. Ne7 (26. Ra1 $2 Nd3+ 27. Bxd3 Bxd3 $17) (26. Ne3 $6 Nf4 $1 {><d3} 27.
Nxc4 bxc4 $17) 26... Ra8 (26... Rd8 27. Nc6 Rd7 28. Na5 $1 $44 (28. Ra1 $6 Na4+
)) 27. Nf5 Rc8 $11) 26. Ne3 h5 $2 {Schwarz hat keine Zeit, um den anderen Turm
über die h-Linie ins Spiel zu bringen. Es war noch nicht zu spät für 26...Rc8.}
(26... Rc8 $1 27. Nxc4 bxc4 28. Kc3 (28. Rd5 Nd3+ 29. Bxd3 cxd3 $11) 28... Nd3
(28... Nf4 29. Rd4 $44) 29. Ba4+ (29. Rf1 Nec5) 29... Kd8 30. Rf1 Nec5 31. Bxc5
Rxc5 32. Rxf7 Rc7 33. Rxc7 Kxc7 34. e6 Nc5 $11) 27. Nxc4 bxc4 28. Kc3 Rc8 29.
Rd5 h4 30. Ra1 a4 31. Rxa4 $1 $14 {Brilliant gespielt! Das starke weiße
Läuferpaar ist nicht weniger wert als die schwarzen Figuren Turm und Springer.}
(31. Bxa4+ Nxa4+ 32. Rxa4 Nf4 $132) 31... Nxa4+ 32. Bxa4+ Kd8 33. Bc5+ Kc7 34.
Rd7+ Kb8 35. Bd6+ Ka8 36. Rxf7 Ng5 $1 (36... Rhd8 $2 37. Bc2 $16) 37. Rf4 h3 $2
$138 {><h3 Es ist sehr schwer, solche Stellungen bei knapper Zeit zu
verteidigen.} ({Nach dem korrekten} 37... Ne6 38. Rg4 $1 {/\Rg6} (38. Rf7 Ng5)
(38. Rf1 Rhd8 39. Bc2 Ka7 $11) 38... Rh6 39. Bd7 Rd8 40. Bxe6 (40. Bc6+ Ka7 41.
Rxc4 Rc8 $11) 40... Rxe6 41. Rxg7 Rc8 $14 {hätte Schwarz gute Chancen,
ungeschoren davon zu kommen.}) 38. g3 $16 Ne6 (38... Rhd8 39. Bc2 $16) 39. Rf1
$2 {Auch Weiß unterläuft in der gegnerischen Zeitnot ein Fehler.} (39. Rg4 $1
Rh6 40. Bd7 Rd8 41. Bxe6 Rxe6 42. Rxg7 $16) 39... Nc5 40. Bc2 Rhd8 $2 {Dieser
letzte Zug vor der Zeitkontrolle ist, wie sehr oft, ein schwerer Fehler. Der
schwarze König sollte unbedingt aktiviert werden.} (40... Kb7 $1 41. Rf7+ Kc6
42. Rxg7 (42. Bf5 Kd5 $1 43. Bxc8 Ne4+ 44. Kc2 Rxc8 $11) 42... Kd5 43. Rg4 Nd3
$11) 41. Rf7 g5 (41... Rd7 $2 42. Rxd7 Nxd7 43. Bf5 Rd8 44. Bc7 Rc8 45. Ba5 Rc5
46. Bb4 Rc7 47. Bd6 $18) 42. Rg7 Nd3 43. Rxg5 $18 Kb7 44. Rh5 Rh8 45. Rf5 Kb6
46. Rf6 Nc5 47. g4 $2 {><g4 Übersieht einen Trick, leicht gewann 47.e6.} (47.
e6 $1 Kc6 48. e7 Kd5 49. Bxc5 Kxc5 50. Bg6 $18) 47... Rhg8 48. Bf5 Rc6 49. Rh6
Nb7 $1 $11 {Einen solchen Zug kann man leicht übersehen. Wegen der Schwächung
g3-g4 sind alle entstehenden Turmendspiele remislich.} 50. Bd7 Nxd6 51. Bxc6 (
51. exd6 Kc5 52. Bxc6 Kxc6 53. Rxh3 Rxg4 $11) 51... Kxc6 52. Rxd6+ Kc5 53. Rd4
Rf8 $6 (53... Ra8 $1 54. Re4 Kd5 $11) 54. Re4 Kd5 (54... Rf3+ $2 55. Kd2 Kd5
56. e6 Kxe4 57. e7 $18) 55. Re3 Ra8 56. Kb2 Rb8+ 57. Kc2 Rg8 $2 {Unglaublich!
Ich sah nicht den einfachen Remisweg 57...Rb3! Zum Glück bleibt die Stellung
trotzdem remislich.} (57... Rb3 $1 58. Re1 Ke6 $11) 58. e6 Kd6 59. e7 Kd7 60.
Kc3 (60. e8=Q+ Rxe8 61. Rxe8 Kxe8 62. Kc3 Kf7 63. Kxc4 Kf6 $11) 60... Ke8 61.
Re4 Rg6 62. Kxc4 Rd6 (62... Rf6 63. Kd5 Rf2 64. Ke6 Rxh2 65. g5 Rg2 66. Rh4
Re2+ 67. Kf6 Rf2+ 68. Kg7 h2 69. g6 Rg2 $1 (69... Kxe7 $2 70. Kh8 Rg2 71. g7
Kf7 72. Rh7 $18) 70. Kh7 (70. Kf6 Rf2+ $11) 70... Kxe7 71. g7 Kf7 $11) 63. Rd4
(63. Re2 Rg6 $11) (63. Kc5 Rd2 $11) 63... Rf6 64. Kd5 Rf2 65. Ke6 Rf6+ $1 66.
Ke5 Rf2 67. g5 Kxe7 68. Rh4 Rxh2 69. Kf5 Kf7 1/2-1/2

[Event "NED-ch50"]
[Site "Amsterdam"]
[Date "1995.06.22"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Piket, Jeroen"]
[Black "Sokolov, Ivan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2670"]
[BlackElo "2645"]
[Annotator "Dautov,R"]
[PlyCount "161"]
[EventDate "1995.06.09"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "11"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 048"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1995.10.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1995.10.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8.
cxd5 Nxd5 9. Bd2 Bxc3 10. bxc3 e5 11. Nb5 a6 (11... Nc6 12. O-O (12. Bc1 Be6
13. Ba3 Qa5 14. Bxf8 Qxb5 15. Ba3 Nxc3 $44 {Piket}) (12. c4 Nb6 13. c5 Nc4 14.
Qc2 a6 $1 15. Qxc4 Be6 16. Qa4 axb5 17. Qxb5 Nd4 $44) 12... Be6 13. Bc1 a6 14.
c4 Nde7 $1 (14... Nb6 15. Nd6 Nxc4 16. Nxb7 Qb6 17. Qb3 Qd4 18. Ba3 Nxa3 19.
Qxa3 Qb4 20. Qxb4 Nxb4 21. Nc5 Bd5 22. a3 Bxg2 23. Kxg2 Nd5 $10 {Piket,
Je-Kortchnoi,V/Nijmegen (m/2) 1993}) 15. Nd6 b6 16. Ba3 Ra7 $10 {Campos Moreno,
J-David,Al/Moscow olm ;EXP 44 1994}) 12. c4 Nb6 13. Na3 Qe7 $6 (13... Nc6 {>=}
14. Qc1 Be6 15. Rb1 Rc8 16. c5 Nd7 17. Rxb7 Nd4 18. c6 Nf6 $15 {Zaitshik,
G-Makarichev,S/URS/1981}) 14. Qb3 N6d7 15. Nc2 $1 $14 Nc6 16. Nb4 Nd4 17. Nd5
Qd6 18. Qb2 Nc5 19. Be3 Nce6 20. O-O Bd7 21. f4 $1 Rae8 (21... f6 $2 22. f5 Nc5
23. Bxd4 exd4 24. Qxd4 $16) 22. Rad1 $16 f6 23. Bf2 {/\e3} (23. f5 Nc5 24. Bxd4
exd4 25. Rxd4 Qe5 26. e4 Bc6 $14) (23. Bxd4 exd4 (23... Nxd4 $2 24. e3 $18) 24.
Qxb7 Rb8 (24... Nc5 25. Qb2 $16) 25. Qa7 Rf7 26. c5 Nxc5 27. Rxd4 $16) 23...
Nc5 24. e3 $1 (24. Bxd4 exd4 25. Rxd4 $16) 24... Nc6 25. Nb6 Qc7 26. Rd5 $1 Nb8
$8 27. Qb4 Ne6 28. f5 $1 Nd8 29. Nxd7 Nxd7 30. Qd6 Qxd6 31. Rxd6 Nc5 32. Bd5+
Nf7 33. Rb6 Kh8 34. e4 Rc8 35. Bxc5 Rxc5 36. Rxb7 Nd6 37. Ra7 $18 a5 (37...
Nxc4 $2 38. Rc1 $18) (37... Rfc8 $2 38. Rxa6 Nxc4 39. Be6 $18) 38. Ra6 Rd8 39.
Rb1 h5 40. h4 Nxc4 41. Rc1 Kh7 (41... Rdc8 42. Be6 Nd2 43. Rxc5 Rxc5 44. Ra8+
Kh7 45. Bf7 $18) 42. Be6 $1 (42. Bxc4 Rdc8) (42. Rxc4 Rdxd5) 42... Rd4 43. Ra8
Nb6 $8 44. Rxc5 Nxa8 45. Rxa5 Nc7 46. Ra7 (46. Bf7 $1 Rxe4 47. Rc5 Na6 48. Bg6+
Kh6 49. Rc8 $18) 46... Nb5 47. Ra8 Nd6 $1 48. Bg8+ Kh6 49. Bd5 g6 $1 (49... Kh7
50. a4 Nxe4 51. Bf7 $18) 50. Ra6 (50. Rh8+ Kg7 51. Rg8+ Kh6 (51... Kh7 $2 52.
fxg6+ Kh6 53. Bf7 $18) 52. Rxg6+ Kh7 53. Rxf6 Nxe4 54. Bxe4 Rxe4 55. Rf7+ $1
Kg8 56. Ra7 $18) 50... Nxf5 51. exf5 Rxd5 52. Rxf6 Kg7 53. Rxg6+ Kf7 54. Rh6
Rd3 55. Kf2 Ra3 56. Rxh5 Kf6 57. g4 Rxa2+ 58. Ke3 Ra3+ 59. Kd2 e4 60. Rh8 Rg3
61. Rg8 Ke5 62. Re8+ Kd4 63. f6 e3+ 64. Ke2 Rg2+ 65. Kf3 $2 (65. Kd1 Rg1+ 66.
Kc2 Rg2+ 67. Kb3 Rf2 68. g5 e2 69. Rxe2 Rxe2 70. f7 Rf2 71. g6 $18) 65... Rf2+
66. Kg3 Rxf6 67. g5 Rf1 68. h5 Rh1 69. h6 Kd3 70. Kf3 Rh3+ 71. Kg4 Rh1 72. Kf5
e2 $10 73. Kf6 (73. g6 Rh5+ 74. Kf4 Rxh6 $10) 73... Rh3 74. Kf7 Rf3+ $1 (74...
Re3 $2 75. Rxe3+ Kxe3 76. h7 e1=Q 77. h8=Q $16) 75. Kg6 Re3 76. Rxe3+ Kxe3 77.
h7 e1=Q 78. h8=Q Qb1+ 79. Kh6 Qh1+ 80. Kg7 Qb7+ 81. Kh6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Bad Lauterberg Bohemia"]
[Site "Bad Lauterberg"]
[Date "1991.11.10"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Soffer, Ram"]
[Black "Romanishin, Oleg M"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2450"]
[BlackElo "2600"]
[Annotator "Dautov,R"]
[PlyCount "74"]
[EventDate "1991.11.05"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[EventCategory "10"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 027"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1992.04.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1992.04.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 Nh5 6. g3 (6. Nh3 Qh4+ 7. Nf2 Qxc4
8. e4 (8. Bd2 Bxc3 9. Bxc3 Qxd5 10. Ne4 Qxd1+ 11. Rxd1 f5 12. Nxc5 b6 $17) 8...
Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 Qxc3+ 10. Bd2 $44) 6... f5 7. e4 (7. dxe6 Bxc3+ 8. bxc3 dxe6 9.
Qxd8+ Kxd8 10. Nh3 Nc6 11. e4 fxe4 12. Ng5 Kc7 $13) (7. Bg2 Nf6 8. f4 $2 Bxc3+
9. bxc3 O-O 10. Nf3 d6 11. O-O Qe7 12. Rb1 Nbd7 $15) (7. Nh3 Bxc3+ 8. bxc3 e5 (
8... Qf6 9. Bd2 O-O 10. Bg2 d6 11. O-O Qg6 12. e4 fxe4 13. fxe4 Rxf1+ 14. Qxf1
e5 15. Ng5 $14 {van der Sterren-Timman,Niederland 1978}) 9. e4 f4 10. d6 Nc6
11. Qd5 b6 12. gxf4 Qh4+ 13. Kd1 Nf6 14. Qd3 Ba6 $13 {Sines-Dizdar,Jug(ch) 1982
}) 7... O-O (7... Bxc3+ 8. bxc3 f4 (8... Qf6 $2 9. f4 Nxg3 10. hxg3 Qxc3+ 11.
Bd2 Qxg3+ 12. Ke2 fxe4 13. Qb3 $16) 9. dxe6 Qf6 (9... fxg3 10. Qd5 $1 $16) 10.
Ne2 fxg3 11. Bg2 gxh2 12. Rxh2 g6 13. exd7+ Bxd7 14. Qd5 Nc6 15. Bg5 Qe5 16. f4
Qg7 17. Rd1 h6 18. Rxh5 gxh5 19. Bf6 Qxf6 20. Qxd7+ Kf8 21. e5 $16 {
Moskalenko-Novikov,I,Lvov 1988}) 8. e5 $1 (8. Nh3 Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 d6 10. Bg2 $14)
8... Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 f4 10. Ne2 d6 11. Nxf4 Nxf4 12. Bxf4 dxe5 13. Bxe5 Nd7 14.
Bd6 (14. Bf4 Qf6 $2 15. Kf2 Qxc3 16. dxe6 $16) (14. Bf4 Rxf4 15. gxf4 Qh4+ 16.
Ke2 Qxf4 (16... Nf6 17. Qd2 exd5 18. cxd5 Bf5 19. Re1 $16) 17. dxe6 Qxc4+ 18.
Kd2 (18. Kf2 Qh4+ 19. Kg1 Nf8 $146) 18... Qxe6 19. Qb3 Ne5 $14) (14. Bf4 Nb6 $1
$10 15. d6 $140 Qf6 16. Kf2 e5 17. Be3 Bg4 $36) 14... Re8 15. Bf4 $2 (15. Kf2
$2 e5 16. Bh3 Nf6 17. Be6+ Bxe6 18. dxe6 Rxe6 19. Bxc5 Qc7 $17) (15. dxe6 $1
Rxe6+ 16. Kf2 Qf6 17. Bf4 Qxc3 18. Rc1 Qf6 19. Bh3 Re8 20. Qd5+ Qf7 21. Bxd7
Bxd7 22. Qxb7 $16) 15... Qf6 16. Kf2 Qxc3 17. Rc1 Qf6 18. dxe6 Nf8 $1 $10 19.
Bg2 $2 (19. Bd3 Bxe6 20. Qc2 Rad8 21. Rhd1 Ng6 22. Bxg6 Qxg6 (22... hxg6 23. h4
$10) 23. Qxg6 hxg6 24. a4 Rxd1 25. Rxd1 Bxc4 26. Rd7 $10) 19... Bxe6 20. Be3
Rad8 21. Qb3 Nd7 $1 $17 {><d3} 22. Rhd1 Ne5 $5 (22... b6 $1 23. Kg1 Ne5 $17)
23. Bxc5 (23. Kg1 Nxf3+ 24. Bxf3 Qxf3 25. Bxc5 Qc6 26. Bxa7 Bh3 27. Qc2 Rxd1+
28. Rxd1 Qf3 $19) 23... Rxd1 (23... b6 24. Bd4 $8 Ng4+ 25. Kg1 Rxd4 26. fxg4
$10) 24. Rxd1 Bxc4 25. Qa4 $2 (25. Qxb7 Nd3+ 26. Rxd3 Bxd3 27. Qd5+ Kh8 28.
Qxd3 Qb2+ 29. Kg1 Qc1+ $19) (25. Qa3 Nd3+ 26. Kg1 b6 27. Bf2 Nxf2 28. Kxf2 Re2+
29. Kg1 Rxa2 $17) (25. Qc2 $1 $8 Qe6 26. Kg1 Bxa2 $15) 25... b5 26. Qxa7 (26.
Qa3 Nd3+ 27. Kg1 Qe5 28. Bxa7 Qe2 29. Rf1 Ne1 30. Rf2 (30. Bh3 Qd2 31. Rf2 Qd1)
30... Qd1 31. Bf1 Nd3 $19) 26... Be2 $3 $19 27. Rd4 (27. Kxe2 Nc6+ $19) 27...
Bxf3 28. Rf4 Nd3+ 29. Kxf3 Ne1+ 30. Kg4 Qe6+ 31. Rf5 Nxg2 32. Bd4 h5+ 33. Kh3
Qxf5+ 34. Kxg2 Re2+ 35. Bf2 Qd5+ 36. Kg1 Rxa2 37. Qb8+ Kh7 0-1

[Event "Altensteig"]
[Site "Altensteig"]
[Date "1994.??.??"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Zvjaginsev, Vadim"]
[Black "Almasi, Zoltan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2585"]
[BlackElo "2620"]
[Annotator "Dautov,R"]
[PlyCount "41"]
[EventDate "1994.08.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[EventCategory "12"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 043"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1994.12.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1994.12.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8.
cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Qb6 (9... Nc6 10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. O-O Rb8 12. e4 Nxc3 13. bxc3
Bd6 14. Qa4 Qc7 15. Be3 c5 16. Rfd1 Bd7 17. Qc2 e5 18. Bf1 Be6 19. Qa4 $14 {
Zvjaginsev-Romanov/URS-chJ/1991}) (9... Na6 10. O-O Nxc3 11. bxc3 Be7 12. Rd1
Nc5 13. Qc4 e5 (13... Bd7 14. Be3 Rc8 15. Nc6 Bxc6 16. Rxd8 Rfxd8 17. Bxc6 Rxc6
18. Qb5 $14) 14. Ba3 Qa5 15. Qb4 (15. Nb5 $5 a6 16. Bxc5 axb5 17. Qb4 Qxb4 18.
cxb4 Bxc5 19. bxc5 $14 {Zvjaginsev}) 15... Qxb4 16. Bxb4 a5 17. Ba3 Bg4 18. f3
Bd7 19. Nb3 Nxb3 20. Bxe7 Nxa1 21. Rxd7 $44 {Zvjaginsev-Solozhenkin/Sankt
Peterburg/1993/}) 10. Bxd5 $1 $146 (10. e3 Nc6 11. Nxc6 bxc6 {Hort-Kindermann/
Dortmund/1985} 12. O-O Ba6 13. Rd1 Rab8 14. Bd2 Qa5 15. Qc2 $10 {Hort}) 10...
exd5 11. Be3 Qa5 12. Rc1 Nc6 (12... Bh3 $5 13. a3 Bxc3+ 14. Qxc3 Qxc3+ (14...
Qa6 15. f3 Nd7 16. g4 Rfe8 17. Nf5 Qg6 18. Rg1 $16 {/\Rg3}) 15. Rxc3 Nc6 16.
Nxc6 (16. Kd2 $5) 16... bxc6 17. Kd2 (17. Rxc6 $4 d4 18. Bxd4 Bg2 $19) 17...
Rfb8 18. b3 $14) 13. O-O Nxd4 (13... Bh3 $5 14. Rfd1 Rfd8 15. Nxc6 (15. a3 Bxc3
16. Qxc3 Qxc3 (16... Qa6 17. Nxc6 bxc6 18. Qxc6 Qxe2 19. Rxd5 h6 $44) 17. Rxc3
Nxd4 18. Bxd4 Bd7 19. Rc7 Bc6 20. Rd3 $14) 15... bxc6 16. Na4 Rab8 17. Qc2 Bf8
18. a3 $14 {/\Bc5}) (13... Be6 14. a3 Bxc3 15. Qxc3 $14) 14. Bxd4 Bh3 15. Rfd1
Bxc3 16. Rxc3 Qa6 $4 (16... Be6 17. Qxb7 Qxa2 (17... Rab8 $2 18. Qc7 $16 Qxa2
$2 19. Qe5 $18) 18. Rc6 Rfb8 (18... Rfe8 $2 19. Rxe6 $18) 19. Qc7 $14) 17. g4
$1 $18 Bxg4 18. Rg3 Qxe2 19. f3 f5 (19... h5 20. fxg4 hxg4 21. h3 $18) 20. fxg4
fxg4 21. Rg2 (21. Rg2 Qe6 22. Qxb7 $18) 1-0

[Event "Pamplona 9596 6th"]
[Site "Pamplona"]
[Date "1996.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Zvjaginsev, Vadim"]
[Black "Ljubojevic, Ljubomir"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2600"]
[BlackElo "2600"]
[Annotator "Dautov,R"]
[PlyCount "73"]
[EventDate "1995.12.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "13"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 052"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1996.06.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1996.06.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 O-O 6. Bg2 cxd4 7. Nxd4 d5 8.
cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Qa5 10. Bd2 Nc6 11. e3 {N} (11. Nxc6 bxc6 12. O-O Bxc3 13.
Bxc3 Nxc3 14. bxc3 Ba6 $10) (11. Nc2 $6 Bxc3 12. bxc3 Qc7 13. Qa3 Ne5 14. Bxd5
exd5 15. Bf4 f6 16. O-O Qf7 17. Ne3 Bh3 18. Rfd1 g5 $17 {Beliavsky,A-Ivanchuk,
V/Belgrade Invest (06) ;CBM 51 1995}) 11... Qa6 (11... Nxd4 12. exd4 Bd7 (12...
Qb6 13. Rd1) (12... Rd8 13. O-O Nf6 14. a3 Bf8 15. Ne4 Qf5 16. Nxf6+ Qxf6 17.
Bc3 $14) 13. O-O (13. a3 Bc6 14. O-O Nxc3 15. bxc3 Bd6 $10) 13... Ba4 $1 14.
Qxa4 Qxa4 15. Nxa4 Bxd2 $10) 12. Nxc6 (12. Nxd5 Bxd2+ 13. Kxd2 exd5 14. Qc3 Be6
(14... Nxd4 15. Qxd4 Be6 16. Rhc1 Rac8 17. a3 $14) 15. Rhc1 Rac8 $10) (12.
O-O-O $2 Nxd4 13. exd4 Bxc3 14. bxc3 Bd7 $40) 12... bxc6 13. Bxd5 $1 (13. e4
Nxc3 14. Bxc3 Bxc3+ 15. Qxc3 Rb8 {עe1}) (13. O-O-O $6 Nxc3 14. Bxc3 Bxc3 15.
bxc3 e5 $40) 13... Bxc3 14. Bc4 Bxd2+ 15. Kxd2 Qa5+ 16. Ke2 Qh5+ (16... Ba6 17.
Bxa6 Qxa6+ 18. Qd3 Qb7 19. b3 Rfd8 20. Qc4 $14) 17. f3 e5 18. e4 Qh3 19. Kf2
Be6 20. Bf1 (20. Bxe6 fxe6 21. Rad1 Rad8 22. Rxd8 (22. Rd3 c5 {/\Rd4}) 22...
Rxd8 23. Qc3 (23. Qe3 h6 24. Qc3 Kh7 $10) 23... Qh6 24. Ke2 Qh3 25. Kf2 $10)
20... Qh5 (20... Qxf1+ 21. Rhxf1 Bxb3 22. axb3 Rab8 23. Ra3 Rb6 24. Rd1 Rfb8
25. Rd3 a6 $10) 21. Qc3 Rad8 22. Bg2 f5 23. exf5 (23. Qxe5 $2 Rd2+ 24. Kg1 (24.
Ke1 $2 Qh6 25. exf5 Rxf5 $19) 24... Qh6 (24... Qf7 25. f4 fxe4 26. Bxe4 Bd5 $40
) 25. f4 fxe4 26. Bxe4 Qh3 $40) 23... Qxf5 24. Rhd1 (24. Rhe1 $2 Rd3 25. Qxe5 (
25. Qxc6 Bd5 $19) 25... Rd2+ 26. Kg1 Rxg2+ 27. Kxg2 Qxf3+ 28. Kg1 Qf2+ 29. Kh1
Bd5+ $19) 24... Bd5 25. Kg1 Rde8 26. Re1 $6 (26. Rf1 $142 {/\Rae1-e3}) 26...
Bxf3 27. Qb3+ Rf7 (27... Kh8 28. Bxf3 Qxf3 29. Qxf3 Rxf3 30. Rac1 Rf6 31. Re4
Kg8 32. Rc5 Rfe6 33. Ra5 R8e7 34. b3 Kf7 35. Rea4 $10) 28. Bxf3 Qxf3 29. Rxe5
$1 $10 Rxe5 30. Qb8+ Rf8 31. Qxe5 Qf2+ 32. Kh1 Qf3+ 33. Kg1 Qf2+ 34. Kh1 h6 35.
Re1 Qf3+ 36. Kg1 Qf2+ 37. Kh1 1/2-1/2

[Event "YUG-ch"]
[Site "Tivat"]
[Date "1994.??.??"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Ilincic, Zlatko"]
[Black "Abramovic, Bosko"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2530"]
[BlackElo "2500"]
[Annotator "Dautov,R"]
[PlyCount "75"]
[EventDate "1994.03.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "YUG"]
[EventCategory "10"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 043"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1994.12.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1994.12.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 c6 $5 7. e3 O-O 8.
Bd3 (8. Nh3 b6 9. cxd5 cxd5 10. a4 Qc7 11. Bd2 Ba6 12. Bxa6 Nxa6 13. Qe2 Nb8
14. O-O Nbd7 15. e4 e5 16. Nf2 Rfe8 17. Rfe1 Rac8 $10 {Bareev-Rozentalis/
URS-ch/1990}) 8... b6 9. Nh3 (9. e4 $5 dxe4 10. fxe4 Nxe4 11. Nf3 Nf6 (11... f5
$5) (11... Nd6 $5) 12. Bg5 Nbd7 13. Ne5 $44) 9... Ba6 10. Qe2 (10. cxd5 $5 cxd5
11. e4 Qc7 (11... Bxd3 12. Qxd3 dxe4 13. fxe4 Nbd7 14. Qf3 Rc8 15. O-O Qc7 16.
Bd2 $13) 12. Bxa6 Nxa6 13. e5 Nd7 14. Qd3 Rac8 15. Bd2 Qc4 $10) 10... Nbd7 11.
O-O e5 {/\e4} 12. Nf2 Re8 13. cxd5 $6 (13. Bb2 $2 e4 14. fxe4 dxe4 15. Bc2 Rc8
$15 {/\c5}) (13. e4 $1 h6 (13... dxe4 14. fxe4 c5 (14... Nf8 15. Be3 Ne6 16. d5
$14) 15. d5 $14) 14. Be3 exd4 15. cxd4 dxe4 16. fxe4 c5 17. d5 Ne5 $13) 13...
Bxd3 14. Qxd3 cxd5 15. c4 (15. e4 Rc8 16. Bd2 Qc7 $10) 15... dxc4 16. Qxc4 Rc8
17. Qa4 exd4 18. Qxd4 Nc5 19. Qxd8 Rexd8 20. Bb2 $6 (20. e4 Nb3 21. Rb1 Nd2 22.
Bxd2 Rxd2 23. Rfc1 Rcc2 24. Rxc2 Rxc2 25. Rd1 $10) 20... Nd5 21. Rfe1 b5 $15
22. Rab1 a6 23. h4 h6 24. g4 $6 {><f3} (24. Kf1 Nb3) (24. Bd4 Ne6 25. Ba1 Rc2)
24... Nb6 $1 (24... Na4 25. Bd4 Rc2 $15) 25. Bd4 Nc4 26. Bxc5 Rxc5 $17 27. Rbc1
(27. Rb3 $2 Nd2 $19) (27. Ne4 Rcd5 28. a4 bxa4 29. Rb4 Ne5 30. Rf1 Ra5 31. Kg2
a3 32. Ra1 Rd3 $17) 27... Rcc8 $1 28. Ra1 Rd2 29. f4 (29. Kg2 Rc2 $17) 29...
Rc2 30. e4 Rc3 31. a4 b4 $19 32. Rec1 Nd2 33. Rd1 Rc2 34. Nd3 b3 35. Nb4 Nf3+
36. Kf1 Rh2 37. Rab1 b2 38. Nd3 (38. Nd3 Rcc2 $19) 0-1

[Event "YUG-chT"]
[Site "Tivat"]
[Date "1995.??.??"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Miladinovic, Igor"]
[Black "Goldin, Alexander"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2555"]
[BlackElo "2585"]
[Annotator "Dolmatov,S"]
[PlyCount "114"]
[EventDate "1995.??.??"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "YUG"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 048 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1995.11.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1995.11.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 O-O (4... c5) 5. Bg2 d6 (5... d5) 6. Nf3
Qe7 (6... Nc6 7. Qb3 Ne4 $2 8. O-O Bxc3 9. bxc3 Na5 10. Qc2 f5 11. c5 $16 {
Romanishin,O-Liljedahl,L/Geteborg/1971/}) 7. Qb3 (7. O-O e5 8. dxe5 dxe5 9. Nd5
Nxd5 10. Qxd5 Nc6 11. Bg5 Qe8 $10) 7... Nc6 8. O-O Bxc3 (8... e5 $6 9. Nd5 Nxd5
10. cxd5 $18) 9. Qxc3 a5 (9... e5 10. d5 Nb8 11. b4 $14) 10. b3 (10. Ne1 $5 e5
11. d5 Nd4 12. Qd2 Bd7 13. e3 Nf5 14. e4 (14. Nc2 $6 e4 15. b3 h5 16. Bb2 h4
$132) 14... Nd4 15. Nc2 c5 16. dxc6 $14) 10... e5 11. dxe5 (11. d5 $5 Nb8 12.
Ne1 Nbd7 13. e4 $14) 11... dxe5 12. Bb2 Re8 13. a3 Ne4 14. Qc2 Nc5 (14... Bf5
$2 15. Nh4) 15. Rad1 Ra6 $6 (15... Bg4 16. h3 Bd7) (15... f6 16. Nh4 g6 17. f4
exf4 18. Rxf4 Ne5) 16. Rd5 f6 17. Bc3 Rb6 18. Rb1 Be6 19. Rdd1 Nd7 20. Bb2 (20.
Qc1 $2 Bf5) 20... Nc5 21. Nd2 $6 Bf7 (21... Rd8 $5) 22. Bd5 Kh8 23. Bxf7 Qxf7
24. Bc3 Qg6 25. Qxg6 hxg6 26. b4 axb4 27. Bxb4 (27. axb4 $2 Na4 $17) 27... Na6
28. Bc3 Rxb1 29. Nxb1 Re7 $6 (29... Kg8 $15 30. Rd7 Re7) 30. Rd5 Kg8 31. Nd2
Kf7 32. Ne4 Nab8 (32... g5 33. Kg2 Ke6 $10) 33. Rb5 Nd8 (33... b6 34. c5 $14)
34. Kg2 Nd7 35. a4 Ke8 (35... Re6) 36. a5 Re6 37. h4 Rc6 38. Nd2 Nc5 39. f4 Na4
(39... e4 40. g4 $14) 40. Ba1 Rd6 41. Nb3 Rd1 42. fxe5 (42. Rb4 Nc5 43. Nxc5
Rxa1 44. fxe5 Rxa5) 42... f5 43. Rb4 (43. e6 $6 Rb1 (43... Nxe6 $2 44. Rxb7
Nec5 45. Nxc5 Nxc5 46. Rb5 $16 (46. Rxc7 $2 Ne6 47. Rc6 Kd7 $17)) 44. Bxg7 c6)
43... Rb1 44. Rxa4 Rxb3 45. a6 bxa6 46. Rxa6 Kf7 $10 47. Ra2 Ne6 48. Rd2 Rb4
49. Rc2 Ra4 50. Bb2 Ra2 51. Rd2 Ke7 52. Kf3 Nc5 53. Bc1 Ra4 54. Rc2 Ne6 55. Be3
Ra5 56. c5 Ra3 57. Kf2 Ra4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Sitges Sunway op-A 5th"]
[Site "Sitges"]
[Date "2018.12.20"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Edouard, Romain"]
[Black "Lopez Martinez, Josep Manuel"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2644"]
[BlackElo "2580"]
[Annotator "Edouard,R"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "2018.12.14"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 187 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.11.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.11.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 Ne4 7. Qc2 Nxc3 {
The most solid line.} 8. bxc3 Be7 9. Bg2 a6 $5 {A smart move, which I had no
idea about. Black wants to play ...d6, ...Nd7, ...Qc7 and his problems will be
solved.} (9... O-O {gives Black no time for the same plan.} 10. O-O Nc6 (10...
d6 11. Rd1 a6 12. c5 $1 Qc7 13. cxd6 Bxd6 14. c4 Nd7 15. Nb3 Nc5 16. Ba3 Be7
17. Rab1 Ra7 18. Nxc5 Bxc5 19. Bxc5 (19. Qb3 $1 $146) 19... Qxc5 20. Qd3 $14 {
½-½ (41) Shimanov,A (2586)-Durarbeyli,V (2515) India 2011}) 11. Rd1 (11. Bf4
$5 $146) 11... Ne5 12. Qe4 $5 Qa5 (12... Nxc4 13. Nxe6 fxe6 14. Qxc4 d5 15. Qd3
$14) 13. Bf4 f6 (13... Nxc4 $6 14. Nxe6 $14) (13... Ng6 14. Nb3 Qxc3 15. Rac1
Qb2 16. Rc2 Qa3 17. Bc7 $40) 14. Rab1 $5 {is nice for White.}) (9... Nc6 10.
O-O O-O {transposes to 9...0-0.}) (9... Qc7 {isn't so good, but isn't as bad
as it looks like:} 10. Nb5 $1 Qxc4 11. Qb3 Qxb3 12. axb3 Na6 13. Rxa6 bxa6 14.
Nc7+ Kd8 15. Nxa8 d5 16. Bf4 g5 17. Be5 f6 18. Bb8 Bb7 19. Nc7 Kd7 20. Nxe6
Rxb8 21. Nd4 (21. Bh3 $5) 21... Bc5 22. Kd2 $14 {1-0 (54) Stocek,J (2559)
-Cifka,S (2439) Zdar nad Sazavou 2008}) 10. Bf4 {A novelty over the board, but
nothing brilliant!} (10. O-O Qc7 (10... d6 11. c5 $5 dxc5 12. Nf3 {looks
dangerous for Black.}) 11. Qa4 $5 {At least White forces ...Nd6!} (11. Rb1 d6 {
followed by ...Nd7 seems easy for Black.}) 11... Nc6 (11... O-O $2 12. Nb5 $1
$16) 12. Nb3 d6 13. c5 $5 Bd7 (13... d5 $5 14. c4 dxc4 15. Qxc4 O-O 16. Bb2 e5
{looked solid for Black, although White should be on the easier side if he goes
} 17. Bd5 $1 $36) 14. Qg4 O-O 15. Bh6 Bf6 16. cxd6 Qxd6 17. Be3 Qc7 18. Nc5 Bc8
19. Rab1 $14 {1-0 (32) Wen,Y (2592)-Yilmazyerli,M (2460) Bulgaria 2015}) (10.
Rb1 $5 {also makes sense:} Qc7 11. Qa4 Nc6 12. Nxc6 bxc6 $6 (12... dxc6 {
followed by ...0-0 and ...e5 should be close to equal}) 13. Bf4 e5 14. Be3 $14
{Bagirov,V-Kogan,B Rostov on Don 1971}) 10... O-O $2 {A huge mistake!} (10...
d6 {was the annoying move I expected. Black wants to go ...Qc7/...Nd7 before
he castles, otherwise White may have time to prevent it. I wanted to go} 11.
Nf3 {creating Ng5-ideas, but after} Nd7 12. O-O Qc7 13. Rfd1 h6 $1 (13... O-O
14. Ng5 $36) 14. Qd3 e5 15. Be3 O-O {Black seems to be fine.}) 11. Rb1 (11. Rd1
{would also be an improvement compared to 10...d6, but after} d6 12. Nb3 Qc7
13. c5 e5 {it seems the position is unclear.}) 11... Nc6 $6 ({Best was to give
away the b7-pawn:} 11... d6 12. Bxb7 Bxb7 13. Rxb7 Bf6 {with the idea ...Qc8,
and good drawing chances.} (13... e5 $2 14. Nf5 $18)) 12. O-O {Now I got the
outmost best out of my 10.Bf4 novelty. Black is paralyzed.} Na5 13. Qd3 d6 14.
Nb3 Nc6 ({After} 14... Nxb3 {both recaptures would be good.}) 15. Rfd1 Ne5 (
15... e5 16. Be3 Qc7 17. Nd2 $16) 16. Qd4 $5 (16. Bxe5 dxe5 17. Qxd8 Rxd8 18.
Rxd8+ Bxd8 19. Nc5 {was surely simpler.}) 16... f6 $6 (16... Bf6 $8 17. Kf1 $1
{with a clear advantage, e.g.} Qc7 18. c5 (18. Nd2 $5) 18... d5 19. h4 $16) 17.
c5 d5 (17... dxc5 18. Qxd8 Rxd8 19. Rxd8+ Bxd8 20. Nxc5 $16) 18. Bxe5 (18. e4
$5) 18... fxe5 19. Qxe5 Bf6 20. Qe3 Qc7 21. Qd3 a5 22. c4 (22. a4 Bd7 23. c4
Bxa4 24. cxd5 exd5 25. Qxd5+ Rf7 {seemed a little less clear to me.}) 22... a4
23. Nd2 $5 {After some thought I considered this best.} (23. Nd4 Qxc5 24. cxd5
exd5 25. Rb5 $18) 23... d4 (23... Qxc5 24. cxd5 exd5 (24... Qxf2+ $2 {would be
nice if the d1-rook was standing on e1!} 25. Kxf2 Bd4+ 26. Ke1 $18) 25. Bxd5+
Kh8 26. Ne4 $18) 24. Ne4 e5 25. e3 $1 $18 Be7 (25... Bf5 26. Rxb7 $1 $18) 26.
exd4 Bf5 27. Rb5 exd4 28. Qxd4 Rad8 (28... Bxe4 29. Bxe4 Rad8 30. Bd5+ $18) 29.
Nd6 Bc8 30. Bxb7 Bxb7 31. Rxb7 Qxb7 32. Nxb7 Rxd4 33. Rxd4 Rc8 34. Rd5 a3 35.
Kf1 Rb8 36. c6 Kf7 37. c5 Ke6 38. Rd6+ Ke5 39. c7 Rc8 40. f4+ Kf5 41. Rc6 1-0

[Event "Guilan Stars Cup 1st"]
[Site "Guilan"]
[Date "2016.07.16"]
[Round "6.3"]
[White "Edouard, Romain"]
[Black "Idani, Pouya"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2639"]
[BlackElo "2560"]
[Annotator "Edouard,R"]
[PlyCount "67"]
[EventDate "2016.07.11"]
[EventType "schev"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "IRI"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 174"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.09.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.09.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "World Stars"]
[BlackTeam "Iran Stars"]
[BlackTeamCountry "IRI"]
[WhiteClock "0:18:16"]
[BlackClock "0:13:08"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 Qa5 7. Bd2 b6 8.
Bg2 Bb7 9. O-O O-O 10. d5 Qa6 (10... exd5 11. Nh4 $1 $146 Qa6 12. Nf5 {is the
other critical option. Black's position is very dangerous.}) 11. Re1 $1 {
A nice move. Black cannot take a pawn either way.} Ne4 (11... Qxc4 $2 12. e4
$16) (11... exd5 12. cxd5 Nxd5 (12... Bxd5 13. Bg5 $16) 13. e4 $16) 12. Qb3 $5
$146 {A nice idea.} (12. Qc2 {is however highly interesting too, and Alexander
Ipatov won a fantastic game there:} f5 13. Bf4 Qxc4 14. Ne5 Qa6 15. Bxe4 fxe4
16. dxe6 dxe6 (16... Nc6 $1 17. Nxd7 Rfe8 {was probably the way to go for Black
}) 17. Rad1 Nc6 18. Rd7 Rad8 19. Qxe4 Rxd7 20. Nxd7 Re8 21. Bh6 $1 Re7 22. Bxg7
$1 $18 {1-0 (31) Ipatov,A (2625)-Panjwani,R (2422) USA 2013}) 12... d6 13. Ng5
$1 {The all point.} Nxg5 (13... Nxd2 $2 14. Qc2 $16) 14. Bxg5 Re8 15. a4 $5 (
15. e4 Nd7 16. Bf4 e5 17. Bd2 Qa5 {and Black is very solid.}) 15... Nd7 16. Bf4
$6 {A logical move in a way, but not really the one White should play.} (16. a5
$1 {was critical:} exd5 17. axb6 Qxb6 18. Qc2 (18. Qd1 $5) 18... dxc4 {
(otherwise White is just better)} 19. Reb1 (19. Rab1 Bxg2 20. Rxb6 Be4 21. Qd1
axb6 22. Qxd6 $14 {is the other version White can get}) 19... Bxg2 20. Rxb6 Be4
(20... axb6 21. Rxa8 Bxa8 22. Bf4 $14) 21. Qd2 axb6 22. Rxa8 Rxa8 23. f3 Bf5
24. Be7 {and Black will have a tough time.}) (16. dxe6 $5 {makes sense as well:
} fxe6 17. Qb5 Qxb5 18. axb5 Bxg2 19. Kxg2 Ne5 20. Ra4 $14) 16... e5 17. Bd2 e4
(17... Qa5 {was the other option, and in case of} 18. Reb1 Bc8 19. Qb5 Qxb5 20.
axb5 f5 21. Rb2 a5 22. bxa6 Rxa6 23. Rba2 Rxa2 24. Rxa2 Kf7 {Black should hold,
although he is slightly worse.}) 18. Bf4 Ne5 19. Bxe5 Rxe5 20. a5 bxa5 21. Reb1
Re7 $5 (21... Bc8 22. Qb5 {with a difficult endgame for Black.}) 22. Ra4 $5 ({
I had difficulties to assess} 22. Bxe4 {but after} Rxe4 23. Qxb7 Qxb7 24. Rxb7
Rxe2 25. Rxa5 g6 26. Ra6 Rc2 27. Rxd6 Rxc3 28. Rf6 Rf8 29. Rf4 f5 {Black
should make a draw.}) 22... Bc8 23. Qb5 (23. Qa2 Bf5 24. Rxa5 Qc8 25. Rb6 $1
Qd8 26. Raa6 Rd7 27. e3 {was the other option but I thought after} h6 {
followed by ...Qe7 it would be difficult to breakthrough.}) 23... Qxb5 (23...
f5 $1 24. Rxa5 Qb7 $1 {was the best defense, which I absolutely missed.}) ({
Of course} 23... Rb7 $4 {is impossible due to} 24. Qe8#) 24. cxb5 Rb8 25. Rxa5
f5 (25... a6 26. b6 {and Black cannot touch the b6-pawn. Shortly White will
target the a6 pawn, and later bring his king to the queenside.}) 26. Rba1 c4 $5
(26... Kf7 27. Bf1 g5 28. f4 $14) 27. e3 Rc7 28. Bf1 Rc5 29. Rxa7 Bb7 $2 (29...
Rbxb5 $1 30. R1a4 Kf8 {was necessary. Black is worse but may hold.}) 30. R1a5
Bxd5 $6 (30... Kf8 {was mandatory.}) 31. Rd7 $2 (31. R5a6 $1 {was more precise:
} Rcxb5 32. Rxd6 Kh8 $8 33. Rdd7 Bg8 34. Rxg7 Rb1 35. Rac7 Rc1 36. Rg5 $16)
31... Rcxb5 32. Raa7 Kf8 $2 (32... Kh8 $1 33. Rxg7 Bg8 34. Bh3 Rf8 {and the
position is not so clear.}) 33. Rxd6 R8b7 $4 (33... Bg8 {was necessary but
Black is in trouble:} 34. h4 $1 (34. Rd4 $16) 34... Rb3 35. h5 $1 h6 (35...
Rxc3 36. h6 $18) 36. Ra5 $16) 34. Rxd5 1-0

[Event "FIDE Chess.com Grand Swiss"]
[Site "Douglas"]
[Date "2019.10.14"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Fedoseev, Vladimir1"]
[Black "Wojtaszek, Radoslaw"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2664"]
[BlackElo "2748"]
[Annotator "Fedoseev,V"]
[PlyCount "93"]
[EventDate "2019.10.10"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "IOM"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 193"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.12.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.12.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 b5 6. e4 {This is the most common
theory in the Nimzo with 4.f3.} d6 $5 {This line is not so popular, but to me
it looks like a very principled conception, with Black trying to get the best
winning chances.} 7. Bd2 {I guess this line is at least playable at this
moment, kind of an empty place in theory.} Bxc3 $5 {This position was
discussed in the final round game between Aronian and Magnus Carlsen!} (7... a6
$5 {- most common theory - was tried by 9 players in practice:} 8. a4 $1 bxc4
9. Bxc4 O-O 10. Nge2 $14 {Volkov was better in this game and finally won.} Re8
11. Nf4 e5 12. Nd3 Ba5 13. b3 Nh5 14. O-O Nd7 15. g3 g6 16. Nb2 Rb8 17. Bd3 Bb4
18. Nc4 Nb6 19. Ne3 Ng7 20. Qe2 a5 21. Nc2 Nd7 22. Nb5 Bxd2 23. Qxd2 Nf8 24.
Nca3 Ra8 25. Nc4 Ra6 26. f4 {What a beautiful domination for White!} f6 27. Kg2
g5 28. fxg5 fxg5 29. Qf2 Ng6 30. Qf7+ Kh8 31. Qc7 Kg8 32. Rf7 Qxc7 33. Rxc7 Rd8
34. Nbxd6 {1-0 (34) Volkov,S (2583)-Santos Latasa,J (2584) Stockholm 2019}) 8.
Bxc3 b4 9. Bd2 O-O 10. Be3 {This move was my idea for this game. I guess here
position is very principled, and both sides can simply go the wrong way.} exd5
11. cxd5 a5 $2 {The first mistake in the game.} (11... Nfd7 {Magnus' novelty
against Aronian.} 12. Ne2 f5 (12... Nb6 $5 {is an interesting alternative:} 13.
Ng3 f5 14. exf5 Bxf5 15. Nxf5 Rxf5 16. Bd3 Re5 17. Be4 N8d7 $11 {and finally
Black gets a balanced position.}) 13. exf5 (13. Nf4 $5 $146 {I think this move
was better than 13.exf5.} Qh4+ 14. g3 Qf6 15. Be2 $14 {Black's position is
very risky.}) 13... Rxf5 14. Ng3 Re5 15. Kf2 Qh4 16. Qd2 (16. Bd3 $1 {is hard
to calculate, risky to play, but a very principled decision. White is better
prepared for the ultimate fight.} Rxe3 $5 (16... Nb6 $5 17. Re1 $1 N8d7 18. Kg1
$1 $14 {White is better, with many active pieces!}) 17. Kxe3 Qd4+ 18. Ke2 Ne5
19. Nf5 $1 {A very important resource!} Qxb2+ 20. Qc2 Nxd3 21. Ne7+ Kf8 22.
Qxb2 Nxb2 23. Nxc8 Nc6 $1 {With this move Black gets enough compensation,
otherwise the position is simply worse for him.} 24. Nxd6 Nd4+ 25. Kd2 Ke7 26.
Nb7 c4 27. Rae1+ Kd7 28. Re4 c3+ 29. Ke3 Nf5+ 30. Ke2 a5 {All these moves were
forced, but here we start to play with many options:} 31. Nc5+ $5 (31. a3 $5) (
31. Rb1 $5) (31. g4 $5)) 16... Nf6 17. Rc1 Ba6 18. b3 Nxd5 19. Rc4 Qe7 20. Re4
Qe6 21. Bf4 Nxf4 22. Qxf4 Bxf1 23. Rxe5 dxe5 24. Qe4 Nc6 25. Rxf1 c4 26. Nf5
cxb3 27. Qxc6 Qxc6 28. Ne7+ Kf8 29. Nxc6 bxa2 30. Nxb4 Rb8 31. Ra1 Rxb4 32.
Rxa2 Rb7 33. Ke3 Ke7 34. Ra6 {1/2 (34) Aronian,L (2758)-Carlsen,M (2876)
Douglas 2019}) 12. a3 (12. Ne2 $1 $14 {was better, we always have a3 as a
possibility.}) 12... bxa3 $6 {Not the best.} (12... Nxe4 $1 {was very strong!}
13. fxe4 Qh4+ 14. Kd2 Qxe4 {A critical position, pretty unbalanced, tough to
play with both sides.} 15. Qf3 $5 Qe7 $5 (15... Qe5 $5 {is much more forcing:}
16. Kc1 Nd7 17. Bf4 Qe1+ 18. Qd1 Qe4 19. Qf3 $11 (19. Bxd6 $5 {also leads to a
draw:} Rd8 $1 20. Bd3 Qe3+ 21. Qd2 Qxd2+ 22. Kxd2 Nf6 23. Bxc5 Rxd5 24. Nf3
Rxc5 25. axb4 Rd5 26. Rxa5 $11))) (12... Nbd7 $5 13. Ne2 Nh5 14. axb4 f5 $1 {
Dynamic chess! We are entering a wild fight.} 15. bxc5 fxe4 16. c6 Ne5 17. Nd4
exf3 $36 {with a strong initiative for Black.}) 13. Rxa3 Nbd7 $6 (13... Ne8 $5
{was better, Black needs counterplay on the kingside.} 14. Ne2 f5 15. Nf4 Qf6
$13 16. Ne6 $5 Bxe6 17. dxe6 Qxe6 18. Rc3 Kh8 19. Bc4 Qf6 20. O-O $13 {An
unbalanced position which is more pleasant for White.}) 14. Ne2 Rb8 15. Bd2 $5
{The most natural strategic concept.} Rxb2 $2 {After that Black's position is
much worse and he doesn't have any counterplay.} (15... Nh5 $1 16. Qc1 Ne5 $1
17. g4 $5 f5 $3 {It's absolutely impossible to find such a variation during
the game!} 18. exf5 Qh4+ 19. Kd1 Nxf3 $1 20. Rxf3 Qxg4 21. Re3 Qa4+ $1 22. Qc2
Qa1+ 23. Qc1 $11 (23. Bc1 Bxf5 24. Qc3 Qa4+ 25. b3 Qd7 $44 {with an unbalanced
position, and a full fight.})) 16. Bxa5 Qe7 17. Bc3 Rb7 18. Ng3 Ne5 19. Be2 h5
20. h4 $1 Bd7 (20... Ne8 $1 $14 {Black needs some counterplay, and it's
impossible to achieve it with the knight on f6!} 21. Qc1 $5 (21. Qa1 $5 {
A very good looking move!} c4 $1 22. Bxe5 dxe5 23. Bxc4 Qc5 24. Be2 Rc7 $1 $44
{and after this difficult move Black gets good counter chances!}) (21. Ra1 $5
Nc7 22. Qd2 Nb5 23. Bxb5 Rxb5 24. Nxh5 Rb3 $1 $44 {and Black has counterplay!})
21... f5 22. Qg5 {This is was my plan minimum during the game.} fxe4 23. Nxe4
Bf5 {and the position is equal.}) 21. Kf2 $16 Rfb8 22. Qd2 Rb3 23. Rha1 Nh7 24.
Rxb3 Rxb3 25. Qc2 $5 c4 $2 {After this move there is nothing to write anymore,
Black is simply lost!} (25... Rb8 $1 26. Rh1 g6 $14 {White has many options,
but Black is absolutely in the game.}) 26. Bxc4 Rb8 27. Be2 Rc8 28. Qb2 Qf6 29.
Bxe5 dxe5 30. Rh1 Nf8 31. Nxh5 Qh6 32. g4 Ng6 33. Ra1 Nf4 34. Ra6 f6 35. Ra7
Nh3+ 36. Kg2 Qe3 37. Ra1 Nf4+ 38. Nxf4 exf4 39. Ra3 Qc5 40. Rb3 Kh7 41. Bd3 Ba4
42. e5+ Kh6 43. Rb8 Bd1 44. Rxc8 Bxf3+ 45. Kxf3 Qe3+ 46. Kg2 Qg3+ 47. Kf1 1-0

[Event "Teheran FIDE GP (Women)"]
[Site "Teheran"]
[Date "2016.02.17"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Koneru, Humpy"]
[Black "Ju, Wenjun"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2583"]
[BlackElo "2558"]
[Annotator "Fischer,J"]
[PlyCount "52"]
[EventDate "2016.02.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "IRI"]
[EventCategory "11"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 171"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.03.14"]
[SourceVersion "2"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.03.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 O-O 5. e4 d5 6. cxd5 exd5 7. e5 Nfd7 8. f4
({In einer Top-Partie zwischen S. Mamedyarov und L. Aronian 2014 hatte Weiß
mit einem anderen Zug Erfolg:} 8. a3 Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 f6 10. exf6 Qe8+ 11. Qe2 Qf7
12. fxg7 Re8 13. Be3 Nc6 14. Qd2 Na5 15. Rb1 Nb6 16. Rb4 Nac4 17. Bxc4 dxc4 18.
Rb5 Bf5 19. Kf2 Nd5 20. Rxd5 Qxd5 21. Ne2 a5 22. h4 b5 23. h5 b4 24. cxb4 axb4
25. axb4 Qb5 26. Re1 Bd3 27. Nf4 Ra3 28. d5 Bb1 29. Kg3 c3 30. Qc1 Rb3 31. Bc5
Rxe1 32. Qxe1 Qd7 33. h6 Qf7 34. Nh5 Bg6 35. Qe8+ Qxe8 36. Nf6+ Kf7 37. Nxe8
Ra3 {Mamedyarov,S (2757)-Aronian,L (2830) Khanty-Mansiysk 2014 1-0}) 8... c5 9.
Nf3 $6 {Das ist in Anbetracht der Partiefortsetzung schon ungenau.} ({Die
Engines empfehlen} 9. a3 {mit Ausgleich.}) 9... cxd4 10. Nxd4 Nxe5 $1 {Wie in
alten Zeiten: Schwarz opfert im zehnten Zug eine Figur, um Linien zu öffnen
und den weißen König ins Freie zu treiben. Das gefällt übrigens auch den
Engines, die Schwarz hier klar im Vorteil sehen.} 11. fxe5 Qh4+ 12. Ke2 (12. g3
Qe4+) 12... Bc5 13. Be3 Bg4+ 14. Nf3 d4 15. Bg1 Bxf3+ 16. Kxf3 Nd7 17. g3 Nxe5+
18. Kg2 Qf6 19. Na4 Qc6+ 20. Kf2 d3+ 21. Nxc5 Qxc5+ 22. Kg2 Qc6+ 23. Kf2 Rac8
24. g4 $146 {Erstaunlich, aber dies ist tatsächlich der erste neue Zug in der
Partie. Allerdings steht Weiß bereits hoffnungslos auf Verlust.} ({In der
Vorgängerpartie geschah} 24. Bg2 Qf6+ 25. Ke1 Rfe8 {0-1 (25) Sriram,J (2408)
-Khenkin,I (2586) Port Erin 2006}) 24... Qxh1 25. Bg2 Rc2+ 26. Qxc2 Qxg2+ $1 {
Nach 27.Kxg2 dxc2 sichert der Freibauer auf c2 Schwarz den Sieg.} 0-1

[Event "Linares 08th"]
[Site "Linares"]
[Date "1990.??.??"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Gelfand, Boris"]
[Black "Short, Nigel D"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2615"]
[BlackElo "2635"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "70"]
[EventDate "1990.02.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "16"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 017"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1990.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1990.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 e6 2. c4 Nf6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 b5 6. e4 bxc4 7. Bxc4 exd5 (7...
O-O $5) 8. Bxd5 Nxd5 9. Qxd5 Nc6 10. Nge2 O-O 11. O-O Rb8 $6 (11... Bb7 {/\ Qb6
}) 12. Bf4 Rb6 13. Bd6 Ne7 $2 14. Qe5 Ng6 15. Qg3 Ba6 (15... Re8 16. Bc7) 16.
Bxf8 Nxf8 17. Rfd1 Ba5 $5 18. Rab1 Rh6 19. Qf2 Bc7 20. g3 (20. h3 $5 $16) 20...
Ne6 21. Nd5 Be5 22. f4 Bd6 23. Ne3 Bf8 24. Ng4 Rh5 25. Qf3 Bb7 26. Nc3 (26.
Nf6+ Qxf6 27. Qxh5 Bxe4 $16) 26... f5 $1 27. Ne5 (27. Nf6+ gxf6 $1 28. Qxh5
fxe4 $132) 27... Qe8 28. Rxd7 fxe4 29. Qg4 Ba8 30. Rxa7 $6 (30. Rbd1 $18) 30...
Rh6 31. Qd1 $6 (31. Rd1) 31... c4 32. Nd7 $6 (32. Rxa8 Qxa8 33. Qd5 $18) 32...
Nxf4 33. gxf4 Bc6 $5 (33... Qg6+ 34. Kh1 Bc6 35. Ne5 Qg3 36. Qe2 $18) 34. Nd5
$2 $138 (34. Nxf8 e3 (34... Kxf8 35. Ne2 Rg6+ 36. Ng3 e3 37. Qd4 $18) (34...
Qxf8 35. Ra5 $1 Qxf4 36. Qd8+ Kf7 37. Rf1 Rg6+ 38. Rg5 $1 $18) 35. Qd4 $1 $18 (
35. Qg4 Qxf8 36. f5 $2 Rg6 $1 37. fxg6 Qf2#)) 34... Qg6+ 35. Kh1 e3 {Ftacnik,L}
0-1

[Event "Reykjavik Summit"]
[Site "Reykjavik"]
[Date "1990.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Thorsteins, Karl"]
[Black "Polugaevsky, Lev"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2455"]
[BlackElo "2610"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[EventDate "1990.03.??"]
[EventType "team"]
[EventRounds "6"]
[EventCountry "ISL"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 018"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1990.10.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1990.10.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8. Qb3
Bxc3+ 9. Qxc3 e5 10. Nb3 dxc4 {N} (10... d4 11. Qa5) (10... Nc6 11. O-O dxc4
12. Qxc4 Be6 13. Qb5 Qb6 14. Qxb6 axb6 15. Be3 Ra6 16. Nc1 Nd5 17. Bxd5 Bxd5 {
1/4-1/4/Van Wely,L-Winants,L/Wijk aan Zee II/1990/ ->CBM 17}) 11. Qxc4 (11. Na5
$22 Nd5 12. Qd2) 11... Be6 12. Qb5 Bd5 13. O-O a6 14. Qd3 (14. Qb4 Bxg2 15.
Kxg2 Qd5+ 16. Kg1 Nc6 $22 17. Qxb7 Rfb8 18. Qc7 Ne8 $19) 14... Bxg2 15. Qxd8
Rxd8 16. Kxg2 Nc6 17. Bg5 Rd5 $1 18. Rfd1 Rad8 19. Rxd5 Rxd5 20. Rc1 (20. Bxf6
gxf6 21. Rc1 Rb5 $10) 20... Nd7 21. g4 f6 22. Be3 Kf7 23. f3 g6 24. Kf1 f5 25.
gxf5 gxf5 26. Ke1 Kg6 27. Rc4 f4 28. Bf2 Rb5 $1 29. Kd1 Kf5 30. Rc3 (30. Kc1
Rb4 31. Rc3 e4) 30... e4 31. fxe4+ Kxe4 32. Nd2+ Kf5 33. b3 Rd5 34. Ke1 Nde5
35. Nf3 Ng4 36. h3 {Ftacnik,L} (36. Bb6 $5) 1/2-1/2

[Event "Linares 08th"]
[Site "Linares"]
[Date "1990.??.??"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Kasparov, Garry"]
[Black "Ljubojevic, Ljubomir"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2800"]
[BlackElo "2625"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "54"]
[EventDate "1990.02.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "16"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 017"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1990.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1990.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. a3 Be7 6. e4 dxc4 $5 {N} 7. Bxc4 c5
8. dxc5 (8. d5 $5) 8... Qxd1+ 9. Kxd1 Bxc5 10. Nb5 Bb6 11. e5 Nd5 12. Nd6+ (12.
f4 {/\ Nf3, Ljubojevic}) 12... Ke7 13. f4 Nc6 14. Nf3 Ne3+ 15. Bxe3 Bxe3 16. g3
Rd8 17. b4 $5 (17. Ke2 Bc5 18. Nxc8+ Raxc8 $10) 17... f6 18. Ke2 Bd4 19. b5
Bxa1 20. bxc6 fxe5 21. Nxc8+ Raxc8 22. Rxa1 exf4 23. Rb1 Rxc6 24. Rxb7+ Kf6 25.
Rb4 $6 fxg3 $6 (25... e5 $15) 26. hxg3 h5 27. Ke3 e5 {Ftacnik,L} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Linares 08th"]
[Site "Linares"]
[Date "1990.??.??"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Beliavsky, Alexander G"]
[Black "Spassky, Boris Vasilievich"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2640"]
[BlackElo "2560"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "105"]
[EventDate "1990.02.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "16"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 017"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1990.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1990.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. a3 Be7 6. e4 c5 7. cxd5 exd5 8. e5
Nfd7 9. Nxd5 cxd4 10. Nxe7 Qxe7 11. f4 f6 12. Nf3 $5 {N} (12. Qxd4) 12... fxe5
13. Bc4 Nc6 (13... exf4+ 14. Kf2 $40) 14. O-O e4 15. Bd5 Nf6 16. Bxc6+ bxc6 17.
Nxd4 O-O 18. Be3 Ba6 19. Re1 c5 20. Qb3+ Kh8 21. Nc6 Qe8 22. Ne5 Rb8 23. Qc2
Nd5 24. Qxe4 Nxe3 25. Rxe3 Rxb2 26. Rh3 h6 27. Ng6+ Kg8 28. Ne7+ Kh8 29. Re1
Rf6 30. Rg3 Qd8 31. Ng6+ Kg8 32. h4 Rd2 $2 (32... Qd4+ 33. Qxd4 cxd4 34. f5 $5
Rb8) (32... Rb8 33. Ne7+ Kh8 34. Nc6 Bb7 $1) 33. Qe8+ Kh7 34. Nf8+ $1 Kg8 (
34... Rxf8 35. Qg6+) 35. Nd7+ Qxe8 36. Rxe8+ Kf7 37. Nxf6 gxf6 38. Ra8 Ke6 39.
Rxa7 Bd3 40. Rg8 c4 41. Rc7 Ra2 42. Rc5 Rxa3 43. Rgc8 h5 44. Rxh5 c3 45. Rhc5
c2 46. h5 Be4 47. h6 Kf7 48. R8c7+ Kg6 49. h7 Ra8 50. g4 f5 51. gxf5+ Bxf5 52.
h8=N+ Kf6 53. R5c6+ {Ftacnik,L} 1-0

[Event "OHRA-A"]
[Site "Amsterdam"]
[Date "1990.??.??"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Beliavsky, Alexander G"]
[Black "Kortschnoj, Viktor Lvovich"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2605"]
[BlackElo "2630"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "76"]
[EventDate "1990.07.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "14"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 020"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1991.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1991.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 d6 6. e4 O-O 7. Nge2 $5 (7. Bd3 b5
8. Nge2 exd5 9. cxd5 a6 10. O-O Nbd7 11. Kh1 Re8 12. g4 $14 {Flear,G-Kosten,A/
BCF-ch/1989/ ->CBM 15}) 7... Nh5 (7... b5 8. Ng3 bxc4 9. Bxc4 Ba6 10. Bxa6 Nxa6
11. dxe6 fxe6 12. O-O $14) 8. g4 Qh4+ (8... Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 Qh4+ 10. Kd2 Nf6 11.
Qe1 Qxe1+ 12. Kxe1 Nbd7 13. Ng3 Nb6 14. Bf4 Rd8 15. Kd2 Ne8 16. Bd3 Bd7 17. h4
$14 {Georgadze,G-Vaganian,R/URS-56ch/1989/ ->TD89_09}) 9. Kd2 Nf6 10. Qe1 Qxe1+
11. Kxe1 Nbd7 12. Ng3 b5 (12... Ne5 13. Be2 (13. Kf2 $5 Bxc3 14. bxc3 b5 15. g5
Nfd7 16. cxb5 exd5 17. exd5 Nb6 18. f4 Ng4+ 19. Kf3 $14) 13... b5 14. g5 Nfd7
15. cxb5 exd5 16. exd5 Nb6 (16... Bb7 17. Nf5) 17. f4 Ng6 $13) 13. g5 Ne8 14.
cxb5 exd5 15. exd5 Nb6 (15... f6 16. Nf5 (16. Bh3 Ne5 17. Bxc8 Rxc8 18. f4 Nd3+
19. Ke2 c4 $36) 16... fxg5 17. Ne7+ Kf7 18. Nc6 $13) 16. Kf2 (16. Bd2 $5 Bxc3
17. bxc3 Nxd5 18. Bd3) 16... Bxc3 17. bxc3 Nxd5 18. Bd2 a6 19. a4 axb5 20. Bxb5
Ndc7 21. c4 f6 22. Rhe1 Ra7 $1 (22... fxg5 23. Bxg5 Nf6 24. Red1 $1 $14) 23.
Ne4 Bb7 24. gxf6 (24. a5 fxg5 25. Bxg5 Bxe4 26. Rxe4 d5 27. Re7 (27. Re5 Nf6)
27... Nd6 $13) 24... Bxe4 25. Rxe4 Nxf6 26. Re2 d5 27. Kg2 d4 (27... Kf7 $5 {
/\ Ne6-d4}) 28. Re5 Nxb5 29. cxb5 c4 30. a5 (30. Bb4 $1 Rb8 31. Bc5 (31. a5 c3
32. Bc5 (32. Kf2 $5 c2 33. Ke2) 32... Rd7 33. a6 d3 34. a7 Ra8 35. b6 d2 $132)
31... Rxb5 32. Bxa7 Rxe5 33. Bxd4 $14) 30... c3 31. Be1 Rb8 32. a6 c2 33. Bd2
Kf7 34. Kf2 Nd7 35. Rd5 Ke6 36. Rxd4 Rxb5 37. Rc4 Rb1 38. Ra2 Rb6 {Ftacnik,L}
1/2-1/2

[Event "Voskresensk"]
[Site "Voskresensk"]
[Date "1990.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Khenkin, Igor"]
[Black "Barle, Janez"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2450"]
[BlackElo "2430"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "47"]
[EventDate "1990.07.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "URS"]
[EventCategory "9"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 019"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1990.12.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1990.12.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. a3 Bd6 $5 6. e4 c5 7. cxd5 exd5 8.
dxc5 (8. e5 cxd4 9. Qxd4 Nc6 10. Qe3 d4) 8... Bxc5 9. e5 Nfd7 10. Qxd5 O-O 11.
f4 Bxg1 12. Rxg1 Qh4+ $6 {N} (12... Qb6 13. Rh1 Nc6 (13... Nc5 14. b4 Ne6 15.
Na4 Qc7 16. Be3 Nc6 17. Qd6 Qxd6 18. exd6 Re8 19. Kf2 $16 {Gelfand,B-Spasskij,
B/Linares/1990/ ->CBM 17}) 14. Bc4 Ndxe5 $5 15. fxe5 Be6 16. Qb5 Bxc4 17. Qxc4
Nxe5 18. Qb5 Qd4 $132 {Shirov,A-Rausis,I/Dauvgapils/1990/ ->CBM 17}) 13. g3
Qxh2 14. Qg2 Qxg2 15. Rxg2 $1 (15. Bxg2 Nc5 $132) 15... Nc5 16. Be3 Nb3 (16...
b6 17. Bxc5 bxc5 18. Na4 Nd7 19. Rc2 Rb8 20. O-O-O $16) (16... Nbd7 17. b4 $16)
17. Rd1 Bh3 (17... Nc6 18. Bc4 Nca5 19. Bd5 $16) 18. Rc2 Bxf1 19. Kxf1 Nc6 20.
Nb5 $1 Rad8 21. Nd6 (21. Rxd8 Rxd8 22. Nxa7 Nxa7 23. Bxa7 $16) 21... a6 (21...
Rd7 22. Rd3 Nca5 23. Bxa7) 22. Rc3 Nca5 (22... Nba5 23. b4 $18) 23. Bb6 Rd7 24.
Rd5 {Ftacnik,L} 1-0

[Event "USA-ch"]
[Site "Long Beach"]
[Date "1993.??.??"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Kamsky, Gata"]
[Black "Christiansen, Larry Mark"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2645"]
[BlackElo "2555"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "196"]
[EventDate "1993.12.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[EventCategory "14"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 039"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1994.04.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1994.04.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Bb4+ 4. Nc3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8.
Qb3 Bxc3+ 9. Qxc3 e5 10. Nb3 d4 11. Qa5 Qe8 $1 12. Bg5 Nc6 13. Qc7 Qd7 14. Qxd7
Nxd7 (14... Bxd7 15. Nc5) 15. Rc1 a5 $1 16. O-O a4 17. Na1 (17. Nd2 h6) 17...
h6 (17... Nc5 $2 18. Bxc6 bxc6 19. Be7 $16) 18. Bd2 Nf6 19. Nc2 Bg4 20. Rfe1 e4
21. f3 Bf5 22. fxe4 Bxe4 23. Bh3 (23. Bf4 Rfe8 $10) 23... Rfe8 24. Nb4 Ne5 25.
Bf4 a3 26. b3 Rad8 27. Rcd1 Nfg4 28. Bxg4 Nxg4 29. Bc7 $2 (29. c5 {/\ Bd6}) (
29. Bc1 Ne3 30. Rd2 {xa3}) 29... Rd7 30. Bb6 Re6 $1 31. Rxd4 (31. Bxd4 Red6 32.
e3 Nxe3 33. Rxe3 Rxd4 $17) 31... Rxb6 32. Rxd7 Rxb4 33. Re7 (33. Rd8+ Kh7 34.
Ra8 b5 35. Rxa3 bxc4 36. bxc4 Rxc4 $17) 33... Bg6 34. Rd1 (34. Re8+ Kh7 35. Ra8
Ne3 36. Rc1 Nc2 $17) 34... Kh7 35. Rdd7 $2 Rxb3 $1 36. Rxb7 (36. axb3 a2 37.
Rd1 Bb1 $19) 36... Rb2 $1 37. Ra7 Rxa2 38. h3 Nf6 39. Re3 Rc2 40. Rexa3 Rxc4
41. g4 h5 42. gxh5 Bxh5 43. Re7 Rf4 44. Re5 g6 $6 (44... Bg6 {/\ Kh6, Nh7-g5})
45. Ra7 Kg7 46. Rae7 Ng8 47. Re8 Rd4 48. Kf2 Rd7 49. Ra8 Ne7 50. Ra3 Nf5 51.
Re4 Rd1 52. Raa4 Rh1 53. Kg2 Rc1 54. Ra3 Rc2 55. Kf2 Nd6 56. Re7 Kf6 57. Raa7
g5 58. Rad7 Rc4 59. Rc7 Ne4+ 60. Ke1 (60. Ke3 Rxc7 61. Rxc7 Ng3 $19) 60... Rc3
$1 61. Rxc3 Nxc3 62. Ra7 Nxe2 63. Ra6+ Kf5 64. Ra5+ Kg6 65. Kf2 Nf4 66. Kg3 Bd1
67. Rc5 Bb3 $2 (67... Nh5+ 68. Kg2 f5 69. Rc6+ Nf6 {/\ Ba4-d7}) 68. h4 Nh5+ 69.
Kg2 f5 (69... gxh4 70. Kh3) 70. hxg5 Kxg5 71. Kf3 Bd1+ 72. Ke3 Kg4 73. Rd5 f4+
74. Kf2 Bc2 75. Rc5 Be4 76. Rc7 Nf6 77. Rf7 Kf5 78. Ke2 Bd5 79. Rf8 Ke5 80. Rb8
Ng4 81. Re8+ Kd4 82. Rf8 Ke4 83. Re8+ Ne5 84. Kf2 Kd4 85. Rf8 Bf7 86. Rb8 Ke4
87. Rb4+ Bc4 88. Rb8 Nd3+ 89. Kg2 Bd5 90. Re8+ Kd4+ 91. Kf1 f3 92. Rd8 Ke4 93.
Rd7 Ke5 94. Rd8 Be4 95. Rh8 Kf4 96. Rh2 Ke3 97. Ra2 Nf4 98. Ke1 f2+ 0-1

[Event "Sochi-A"]
[Site "Sochi"]
[Date "1989.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Lautier, Joel"]
[Black "Kholmov, Ratmir D"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2465"]
[BlackElo "2485"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "66"]
[EventDate "1989.01.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "15"]
[EventCountry "URS"]
[EventCategory "10"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 016"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1990.06.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1990.06.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Bb4+ 4. Nc3 c5 5. g3 O-O 6. Bg2 cxd4 7. Nxd4 d5 8.
Qb3 Na6 9. cxd5 Nxd5 10. O-O Nxc3 11. bxc3 Be7 12. Rd1 (12. Ba3 Bxa3 13. Qxa3
e5 14. Nb5 Qb6 15. Rab1 Nc5 16. Nd4 $10 {Nogueiras,J-Romanishin,O/Szirak/1986/
1/4-1/4/21/}) 12... Nc5 13. Qc2 Bd7 14. a4 Qe8 15. Nb5 $1 Bxb5 (15... a6 16.
Nc7 Bxa4 17. Rxa4 Qxa4 18. Qxa4 Nxa4 19. Nxa8 Rxa8 20. Rd7) 16. axb5 Qxb5 17.
Be3 $10 Rfd8 18. Rdb1 Qd7 19. Bxc5 Bxc5 20. Rxb7 Qd6 21. Be4 g6 22. Kg2 Rac8
23. Bf3 Bb6 24. Rc1 Rc4 25. e3 Qc5 26. Rd1 Rxd1 27. Qxd1 Rxc3 28. Qd7 Qf8 29.
Bg4 Rc2 30. Kg1 Rc1+ 31. Kg2 Rc2 32. Kg1 Rc1+ 33. Kg2 Rc2 {Ftacnik} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Lvov zt"]
[Site "Lvov"]
[Date "1990.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Shirov, Alexei"]
[Black "Yudasin, Leonid"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2500"]
[BlackElo "2575"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "67"]
[EventDate "1990.02.??"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "URS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 018"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1990.10.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1990.10.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. a3 Be7 (5... Bd6 6. Bg5 (6. e4 c5 $22
7. e5 cxd4 8. Qxd4 Nc6) 6... Be7 7. e3 O-O 8. Bd3 c5 9. dxc5 Bxc5 10. cxd5 h6
11. Bxf6 Qxf6 12. Qd2 exd5 13. Nxd5 $14 {Yakovich,Y-Garcia Martinez,S/Bayamo/
1990/ ->CBM 18}) 6. e4 c5 7. dxc5 Bxc5 8. b4 Bxg1 (8... Bd6 9. Bb2 Be5 10. Qd2
O-O 11. Rd1 Nbd7 12. Nh3 dxe4 13. f4 Bc7 $14 {Malaniuk,V-Gurevich,V/Kherson/
1989/ ->CBM 16}) 9. Rxg1 Qc7 (9... a5 10. Rb1 axb4 11. axb4 O-O 12. cxd5 exd5
13. Nxd5 Be6 14. Nxf6+ Qxf6 $44 {Yakovich,Y-Hernandez,Rom/Bayamo/1990/ ->CBM 18
}) 10. g3 dxc4 11. Nb5 Qe5 (11... Qb6 12. Nd6+ Ke7 13. Nxc4 Qxg1 14. Be3 Rd8 (
14... Qxh2 15. Bc5+ Ke8 16. Qd6 Nc6 17. Na5 $18) 15. Qxd8+ Kxd8 16. Bxg1 $16)
12. Nd6+ Ke7 13. Bf4 Qc3+ 14. Bd2 (14. Kf2 Rd8 $13) 14... Qd4 15. Nxc4 b5 $1 (
15... Qxg1 16. Be3) 16. Ne3 Bd7 17. Rc1 Na6 (17... Nc6 18. Bxb5) 18. Kf2 Rac8
19. Bc3 Qxd1 20. Nxd1 Rhd8 21. Be2 Nb8 22. Nb2 Bc6 23. Nd3 Nbd7 (23... Bxe4 $2
24. Bxf6+ $18) 24. Bd4 a6 25. Nc5 e5 $1 26. Be3 Nxc5 27. Bxc5+ Ke8 28. a4 (28.
Rgd1 Rxd1 29. Rxd1 Rd8 $22 30. Bd6 Bxe4 $1) 28... Rd2 29. Ke3 Ra2 30. a5 Rd8
31. Bb6 Rdd2 32. Bd3 Kd7 (32... Bd7 33. Rc7 Rxh2 34. Ra7) 33. Rc5 {/\ Rgc1}
Bxe4 $1 34. Bxe4 {Ftacnik,L} (34. fxe4 Ng4+ 35. Kf3 Nxh2+ 36. Ke3 Rf2 $1) (34.
Bxe4 Re2+ 35. Kd3 Red2+ 36. Kc3 Nxe4+ 37. fxe4 Rac2+ 38. Kb3 Rb2+ $10) 1/2-1/2

[Event "USA-ch"]
[Site "Key West"]
[Date "1994.??.??"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Christiansen, Larry Mark"]
[Black "Benjamin, Joel"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2575"]
[BlackElo "2610"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "66"]
[EventDate "1994.10.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[EventCategory "13"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 044"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1995.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1995.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 c5 5. Nf3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8. O-O
dxc4 9. Nc2 Be7 (9... Bxc3 10. bxc3 Qc7 11. Qd4 $5 $13) 10. Bf4 $6 (10. Qxd8 $5
Rxd8 11. Ne3 Nc6 12. Nxc4 Bd7 13. Bf4 $14) 10... Nc6 11. Ne3 $6 e5 $1 12. Bg5 (
12. Bxc6 $4 exf4 $19) 12... Be6 13. Bxf6 Bxf6 14. Ned5 Rc8 $2 (14... a6 $5 15.
Nxf6+ Qxf6 16. Bxc6 bxc6 17. Qa4 $15) 15. Qa4 g6 16. Rfd1 (16. Qxc4 $5 Bg7 17.
Qa4 $13) 16... Bg7 17. Qb5 b6 (17... Nd4 18. Qxb7 Rb8 19. Qxa7 Rxb2 20. e3 $13)
18. e3 $1 Nd4 (18... Bg4 19. Rd2 $13) 19. Qa6 (19. exd4 $2 exd4 20. Nb4 Rc5 $17
) 19... Rc5 20. Qb7 $1 (20. Qxa7 Bxd5 21. Nxd5 Rxd5 22. Bxd5 Qxd5 23. exd4 exd4
24. Qxb6 d3 $132) 20... Re8 (20... Bg4 $5 21. Rd2 Re8 22. Qxa7 Nf3+ 23. Bxf3
Bxf3 24. Qxb6 Qxb6 25. Nxb6 $16) 21. h3 Bd7 $2 (21... Qb8 22. Qxb8 Rxb8 23. Nb4
$16) 22. Qxa7 Bc6 (22... Nc6 23. Qxb6 $16) 23. Qxb6 Qxb6 (23... Rxd5 24. Nxd5
Bxd5 25. Qxd8 Rxd8 26. exd4 exd4 27. Bxd5 Rxd5 28. Rac1 $16) 24. Nxb6 Nf3+ 25.
Kh1 e4 26. a4 Rb8 27. a5 Be5 (27... Rxa5 28. Rxa5 Rxb6 29. Rd8+ Bf8 30. Rc5 $16
) 28. Bf1 Bxc3 29. bxc3 Ne5 30. Rdb1 Nd3 31. a6 Rf5 32. a7 Rd8 33. Kg1 Nxf2
$138 (33... Nxf2 34. Nxc4 Nd3 35. Rb8 $18) 1-0

[Event "Linares 08th"]
[Site "Linares"]
[Date "1990.??.??"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Kasparov, Garry"]
[Black "Salov, Valery"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2800"]
[BlackElo "2645"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "112"]
[EventDate "1990.02.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "16"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 017"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1990.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1990.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. d4 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8.
cxd5 Nxd5 9. Bd2 Nxc3 10. bxc3 Be7 11. Rb1 Nd7 {N} (11... e5 12. Rxb7 exd4 13.
Rb3 Na6 14. Bxa8 Bh3 15. Bf3 Nc5 16. Rb4 Nd3+ $6 17. exd3 Bxb4 18. cxb4 Re8+
19. Be4 f5 20. f3 fxe4 21. dxe4 $16 {Staniszewski-Suba/Warszaw zt/1987/ ->CBM
03}) 12. O-O (12. Bxb7 Bxb7 13. Rxb7 Bf6 $44) 12... Nb6 13. Bf4 (13. Qb3 e5 14.
Nf3 Be6 $10) 13... Nd5 14. Qb3 Nxf4 15. gxf4 Qc7 16. e3 $14 a6 17. Rfd1 Ra7 18.
c4 Bc5 19. Nf3 a5 $1 (19... b6 20. Ne5 $16) 20. Ng5 h6 21. Ne4 a4 22. Qb5 Ra5
23. Qb2 b6 24. Qe5 Qxe5 25. fxe5 Ba6 26. Bf1 Bb7 27. Nxc5 Rxc5 28. f4 (28. Rxb6
Bf3 29. Rd4 Rxe5) 28... Ba6 29. Rd4 Rfc8 30. Rb4 a3 31. Ra4 Ra5 32. Rb4 (32.
Rxa5 bxa5 {x a2}) 32... Rac5 33. Be2 g5 34. Kf2 Kg7 35. Ke1 R8c6 36. Rd6 Rc7
37. Rd4 gxf4 38. exf4 f6 39. exf6+ Kxf6 40. Kd2 R7c6 41. Re4 Kf5 42. Ke3 Kf6
43. h3 e5 44. Bf3 Rd6 45. h4 Bc8 46. fxe5+ Rxe5 47. Rxe5 Kxe5 48. Rb5+ Kf6 49.
Bd5 Bd7 50. Rb3 b5 51. Rxa3 Be6 52. Rd3 Bxd5 53. cxd5 Ke5 54. h5 Rxd5 55. Rxd5+
Kxd5 56. Kf4 Kc4 {Ftacnik,L} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Rotterdam"]
[Site "Rotterdam"]
[Date "1990.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Timman, Jan H"]
[Black "Kortschnoj, Viktor Lvovich"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2680"]
[BlackElo "2625"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "68"]
[EventDate "1990.05.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "6"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "16"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 018"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1990.10.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1990.10.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 d6 6. e4 O-O 7. Nge2 Re8 8. a3 Ba5
9. Ng3 Bxc3+ $1 10. bxc3 Qa5 11. Bd2 Bd7 (11... exd5 12. cxd5 Nxd5 $2 13. c4
$18) 12. Be2 Ba4 13. Qb1 Nbd7 14. Ra2 Rab8 15. O-O a6 16. Rb2 Qc7 (16... b5 17.
cxb5 axb5 18. c4) 17. Re1 Nf8 18. Bd3 Ng6 (18... e5 19. Nf5 (19. f4 $6 exf4 20.
Bxf4 Ng6 21. Bg5 Ng4 {x e5})) 19. f4 e5 20. f5 Nf4 $5 (20... Nf8 $14 {()}) 21.
Bf1 Kh8 22. Qc1 b5 23. Bxf4 exf4 24. Qxf4 Re5 (24... bxc4 25. Rxb8 Qxb8 26.
Bxc4 $14) 25. Reb1 h6 26. cxb5 axb5 27. c4 b4 28. axb4 $6 (28. Qe3 $22 b3 29.
Be2 {/\ Bd1 +-}) 28... cxb4 29. Qe3 b3 30. Ra1 Rb4 31. Bd3 Nd7 32. Ne2 Nc5 33.
Nc3 Nxd3 34. Qxd3 Rxc4 {Ftacnik,L} (34... Rxc4 35. Nxa4 (35. Rxa4 $1 Rxc3 36.
Qd4 $22 Rc1+ 37. Kf2 Rc2+ 38. Kf3) 35... Qa7+ (35... Rc1+ $2 36. Rxc1 Qxc1+ 37.
Qf1 $18) 36. Kh1 Rcxe4 $17) 1/2-1/2

[Event "Debrecen"]
[Site "Debrecen"]
[Date "1990.??.??"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Polgar, Zsuzsa"]
[Black "Adorjan, Andras"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2500"]
[BlackElo "2520"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "47"]
[EventDate "1990.06.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "HUN"]
[EventCategory "13"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 020"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1991.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1991.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. a3 Be7 6. e4 c5 7. e5 Nfd7 8. cxd5
exd5 9. Nxd5 cxd4 10. Nxe7 Qxe7 11. f4 f6 12. Nf3 fxe5 13. Bc4 d3 14. b4 (14.
fxe5 Nxe5 15. Nxe5 Qxe5+ 16. Kd2 Rf8 $1 17. Qe1 Nc6 $15 {Arencibia,W-Schneider/
Cuba/1989/}) 14... e4 15. O-O Nc6 16. Re1 (16. Bxd3 $2 exf3 $1 17. Re1 Nde5 18.
fxe5 O-O $15 {Shirov}) 16... Nf6 17. Bxd3 Bg4 $1 18. Bxe4 $1 Nxe4 19. Qd5 Rd8
20. Qxe4 Bxf3 21. gxf3 Qxe4 22. fxe4 Nd4 23. Rf1 $8 O-O 24. Be3 {Ftacnik,L} (
24. Be3 Nc2 25. Bc5 Nxa1 26. Bxf8 Rxf8 27. Rxa1 Rxf4 $10) 1/2-1/2

[Event "EU-Cup 35th"]
[Site "Budva"]
[Date "2019.11.15"]
[Round "6.2"]
[White "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Black "Ponomariov, Ruslan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2772"]
[BlackElo "2648"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "99"]
[EventDate "2019.11.10"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "MNE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 193 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.01.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.01.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Alkaloid"]
[BlackTeam "Lysa nad Labem Joly"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "MKD"]
[BlackTeamCountry "CZE"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8. Nc2
Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 Qc7 10. cxd5 Nxd5 11. Nb4 $1 {The ballet of White's pieces
begins early in the game, since he has to compensate for the inferior pawn
structure.} Qxc3+ (11... Nxb4 12. cxb4 Rd8 13. Qb3 Nc6 14. O-O Nd4 15. Qb2 e5
16. Be3 Bg4 17. Rac1 (17. f3 Be6 18. Rad1 Qc4 19. Rd2 Rac8 20. f4 $11 {1-0 (25)
Sadorra,J (2539)-Vazquez,G (2436) chess.com INT 2018}) 17... Qd7 18. f3 Bh3 19.
Rfd1 Bxg2 20. Kxg2 Qe6 21. Rc7 $14 {1-0 (77) Yu,Y (2736)-So,W (2775) Doha 2015}
) 12. Bd2 Qc5 {[%mdl 4] Previously in the annotations to one game, 12...Qf6!?
got high marks as the move with a chance to fight for full equality.} (12...
Qf6 $5 13. Bxd5 (13. Nxd5 exd5 14. O-O Nc6 15. Bxd5 Rd8) 13... exd5 14. Nxd5
Qd8 15. Bf4 (15. Bb4 Re8 16. Ne7+ Kh8 $11) 15... Qa5+ 16. Qd2 Qxd2+ 17. Bxd2
Na6 $11) 13. Rc1 Qb5 $6 {Most generals are born after the battle (and each of
them knows better), but it might be modest enough to suggest that the most
natural 13...Qd6! was most likely also objectively best.} (13... Qd6 $1 14.
Nxd5 exd5 15. O-O Be6 16. Bf4 Qa6 17. Bxd5 Bxd5 18. Qxd5 Nc6 $11) 14. a4 Qd7
15. O-O Re8 (15... Nxb4 16. Bxb4 Re8 17. Qxd7 Nxd7 18. a5 $14) (15... Nc6 16.
Nxc6 bxc6 17. e4 $14) 16. Qb3 {Mamedyarov was hungry for more than the natural
and good move 16.Nxd5.} (16. Nxd5 exd5 17. Bc3 Nc6 (17... Rd8 18. Ba5 $16) 18.
Bxd5 Qe7 19. a5 $14) 16... Nb6 17. Rfd1 {Similar to some card games, in a game
with high stakes it is advisable to play the best you can. White certainly
considered also the more exact 17.Rc2!, but the problem was to choose the best
from the many alluring lines.} (17. Rc2 $1 Qxa4 18. Qxa4 Nxa4 19. Rfc1 Nd7 20.
Na6 Rd8 21. Bg5 Nf6 22. Bf4 $14) 17... Qxa4 18. Qb1 (18. Qxa4 Nxa4 19. Rxc8
Rxc8 20. Bxb7 Nd7 21. Ra1 Nab6 22. Nc6 Kf8 23. f3 a6 $11) 18... N8d7 19. Bc3 a5
20. Na2 {The engine knows best (at least we sometimes pretend or admit) and it
claims it is better to centralize the knight to c2.} (20. Nc2 $5 Nd5 21. Bxd5
exd5 22. Ne3 b5 23. Rxd5 Qe4 24. Qxb5 $14) 20... Nd5 21. Bb2 (21. Ba1 Ra6 22.
Nc3 Nxc3 23. Bxc3 e5 $11) 21... Qg4 22. Rd4 Qg6 23. e4 {White plays a bit
murky chess with piece activity for the missing two pawns, but so far the risk
is all with Black.} (23. Be4 f5 24. Bxd5 exd5 25. Nc3 Nb6 26. Nxd5 Nxd5 27.
Rxd5 Be6 28. Rb5 Qf7 $11) 23... Nb4 (23... N5f6 24. Nc3 Qh5 25. Ba3 Nf8 26. Nb5
e5 27. Rd3 Ne6 28. Nd6 Rd8 29. Bf3 Qh3 30. Bg2 Qh5 $11) 24. Nxb4 axb4 25. Rxc8
(25. Rxb4 Nb8 26. Qd3 Nc6 27. Rb5 $11) 25... Raxc8 26. Rxd7 Red8 {On paper
there is no tragedy in numbers as Black has rook and two pawns for the bishop
pair. Unfortunately, the two bishops are by far the strongest combination of
the two light pieces.} 27. Qd1 (27. Rxb7 $2 Qh5 $1 28. Bf1 (28. f3 Qc5+ 29. Kh1
Rd2 $19) 28... Qf3 29. Rxb4 Rd1 $19) 27... Qg5 28. h4 Rxd7 29. Qxd7 Rd8 (29...
Qd8 $1 30. Qxb7 Rb8 31. Qc6 $14) 30. Qc7 Qd2 (30... Rd1+ 31. Kh2 Qd8 32. Qe5
Qf8 (32... Qf6 33. Qc5 Qd8 34. Qxb4 $16) 33. Bd4 h6 34. Bf3 $16) 31. Bf3 {
Time might have easily played a role in White's ommitting the very attractive
line 31.Qe5!?} (31. Qe5 $5 f6 32. Qxe6+ Kf8 (32... Kh8 33. Qb6 $16) 33. Bf1 Re8
34. Qb3 Rxe4 35. Bd3 $16) 31... Kh8 (31... f6 32. e5 Rf8 33. exf6 gxf6 34. Bc1
Qc3 35. Qf4 b3 36. Bd2 Qd3 37. Be4 $16) 32. Kg2 (32. Be5 f6 33. Bf4 Qd7 34. Qb6
$16) 32... Rg8 33. Ba1 b3 34. Qxb7 Qa5 (34... Qc1 35. Bd4 Qd2 36. Qb6 Qc2 37.
g4 $14) 35. Bb2 Qa2 36. Bd4 f6 $2 {Pieces love to have the chance to play, to
be active and to do some damage. The weakening of Black's pawn structure is
more than welcome as the prospects for White are improving.} (36... Qd2 37. Qb6
$14) 37. e5 $1 f5 38. Qb6 Qd2 39. Bc6 {If anybody expects perfect play just
before the typical time control at move 40, they probably never played
competitive chess over the board. The move 39.Bh5 was attractive, but very
difficult to judge.} (39. Bh5 $5 f4 40. Bf7 Rf8 41. Bxe6 fxg3 42. Bc5 Re8 43.
Bf7 gxf2 44. Bxe8 b2 45. Bxf2 Qd5+ 46. Kh2 Qxe5+ 47. Kg1 Qxe8 48. Qxb2 $16)
39... f4 40. g4 Qd1 41. Bf3 Qd3 42. h5 h6 43. Bb2 Qc4 44. Ba3 (44. Qd6 Qc2 45.
Qd4 Rc8 46. Bb7 Re8 47. Be4 Qe2 48. Bf3 Qc2 49. Bd1 $16) 44... Rc8 (44... Re8
45. Qb7 Qc2 46. g5 hxg5 47. h6 Qh7 48. Qd7 $16) 45. Qd6 Kg8 {Ponomariov is
tired of taking care of all his weaknesses, so he exposes the king to peril.
Defending a passive worse position belongs to the most unrewarding tasks of
any chessplayer.} (45... Re8 46. Qd7 Rb8 47. Qa7 Rd8 (47... Re8 48. Qf7 $18)
48. Qf7 Qc2 49. Qxe6 b2 50. Bxb2 Qxb2 51. Qf5 Kg8 52. g5 $16) 46. Bb7 (46. Qe7
Rb8 47. g5 hxg5 48. h6 gxh6 49. Qf6 b2 50. Qg6+ Kh8 51. Qxh6+ Kg8 52. Qxg5+ Kh8
53. Qh6+ Kg8 54. Qg6+ Kh8 55. Be7 Qf1+ 56. Kxf1 b1=Q+ 57. Qxb1 Rxb1+ 58. Kg2
$18) 46... Re8 47. Bc6 Rc8 48. Bd7 Qe4+ 49. Kh2 Qe2 (49... Ra8 50. Bxe6+ Kh8
51. Bf5 Qe2 52. Bc5 $18) 50. Bc5 $1 {The bishops are supposed to play on both
flanks in the endgames, but the same is true in many middlegame situations.} (
50. Bc5 b2 51. Bxc8 b1=Q 52. Bxe6+ Kh7 53. Qf8 $18) 1-0

[Event "Reggio Emilia Top15 33rd"]
[Site "Reggio Emilia"]
[Date "1991.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Romanishin, Oleg M"]
[Black "Portisch, Lajos"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2610"]
[BlackElo "2590"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "59"]
[EventDate "1991.01.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ITA"]
[EventCategory "15"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 022"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1991.06.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1991.06.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8. O-O
dxc4 9. Qa4 Na6 10. Ndb5 Nd5 11. Rd1 Bxc3 $5 12. Nxc3 Nxc3 13. bxc3 Nc5 14. Qc2
Qc7 15. Ba3 $5 {N} (15. Rd4 e5 16. Rxc4 Be6 17. Rh4 f5 18. a4 h6 19. Rb4 $15 {
Orlov,G-Zagrebelnyj,S/Belgorod GMA-qual/1989/ ->TD89_O2}) 15... Rb8 16. Rd4 b6
17. Rxc4 Bb7 18. Bxb7 Rxb7 19. Rd1 Rbb8 20. Rcd4 (20. Bxc5 bxc5 $15) 20... Rbc8
21. Bxc5 Qxc5 22. Qa4 Qxc3 (22... a5 23. Rd6 $10) 23. Qxa7 Qb2 24. R4d2 Qb5 25.
Qa3 h6 26. Rb2 Qc4 27. Qd3 Qa4 28. a3 Rc5 29. Qb3 Qa8 30. Qxb6 {Ftacnik,L}
1/2-1/2

[Event "Linares 08th"]
[Site "Linares"]
[Date "1990.??.??"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Gelfand, Boris"]
[Black "Spassky, Boris Vasilievich"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2615"]
[BlackElo "2560"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "63"]
[EventDate "1990.02.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "16"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 017"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1990.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1990.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. a3 Be7 6. e4 c5 7. cxd5 exd5 8. dxc5
$1 {N} Bxc5 9. e5 Nfd7 10. Qxd5 O-O 11. f4 Bxg1 12. Rxg1 Qb6 13. Rh1 Nc5 $6 (
13... Nc6 14. Bc4 Ndxe5 15. fxe5 Be6 16. Qb5 Bxc4 17. Qxc4 Nxe5 18. Qb5 Qd4
$132 {Shirov,A-Rausis,J/Dauvgavpils/1990/ ->CBM 17}) 14. b4 Ne6 15. Na4 Qc7 16.
Be3 $16 Nc6 17. Qd6 Qxd6 18. exd6 Re8 19. Kf2 Bd7 20. Nc5 Nxc5 21. bxc5 Nb8 22.
Rb1 b6 23. Bb5 $1 bxc5 24. Bxc5 Bxb5 25. Rxb5 Nd7 26. Bb4 g6 27. Rc1 Re6 28.
Rc7 a5 29. Rxa5 Rxa5 30. Bxa5 Rxd6 31. Bb4 Rd5 32. a4 {Ftacnik,L} 1-0

[Event "Linares 08th"]
[Site "Linares"]
[Date "1990.??.??"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Illescas Cordoba, Miguel"]
[Black "Jussupow, Artur"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2530"]
[BlackElo "2615"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "103"]
[EventDate "1990.02.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "16"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 017"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1990.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1990.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. c4 e6 4. g3 Bb4+ 5. Nc3 dxc4 6. Bg2 O-O 7. O-O Nc6 8. a3
$1 (8. Re1 Nd5 9. Qc2 Be7 10. Ne4 $6 Ndb4 11. Qxc4 Qd5 12. Qxd5 exd5 13. Nc3
Nc2 $17 {Gulko,B-Yusupov,A/Linares/1990/ ->CBM 17}) 8... Ba5 {N} (8... Be7 9.
e4 Na5 10. Bf4 c6 11. Qe2 b5 12. Rad1 $44 {Gulko,B-Popovic,P/Clichy/1986/}) 9.
Bg5 h6 10. Bxf6 Qxf6 11. Qa4 Bb6 12. e3 Na5 $6 13. Ne5 Qe7 14. Ne4 $1 (14. Nxc4
$2 Bd7 $19) 14... Rd8 15. Nxc4 Bd7 16. Qc2 Nxc4 17. Qxc4 Bc6 18. Qc3 Rd7 19.
Rac1 Re8 20. Nc5 Bxg2 21. Kxg2 Bxc5 22. Qxc5 $14 e5 $6 23. dxe5 Qxc5 24. Rxc5
b6 25. Rc6 Rxe5 26. Rfc1 Ree7 27. h4 Kf8 28. Kf3 Ke8 29. Ke2 Kd8 30. h5 Re5 31.
g4 Red5 32. R1c2 f5 33. f3 fxg4 34. fxg4 a5 $6 (34... Rg5 $1) 35. Rg6 a4 36.
Rc4 b5 37. Rd4 Rxd4 38. exd4 Rxd4 39. Rxg7 Ke8 40. Ke3 c5 41. g5 $1 hxg5 42. h6
Kf8 43. Rxg5 Rh4 44. Rxc5 Rxh6 45. Rxb5 Ke7 46. Kd4 Kd7 47. Kc5 Kc7 48. Rb4
Rh5+ 49. Kc4 Ra5 50. Rb5 Ra8 51. Kb4 Kc6 $2 (51... Ra6 $13 52. Ra5 Rb6+ 53. Kc3
Rc6+ 54. Kd2 Rb6) 52. Ra5 {Ftacnik,L} 1-0

[Event "Groningen"]
[Site "Groningen"]
[Date "1990.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Shirov, Alexei"]
[Black "Wahls, Matthias"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2580"]
[BlackElo "2525"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "87"]
[EventDate "1990.12.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "13"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 021"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1991.04.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1991.04.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 b5 6. e4 bxc4 7. Bxc4 Nxd5 8. Bxd5
exd5 9. Qxd5 Nc6 10. Nge2 (10. Bg5 Qb6 11. Nge2 Bxc3+ 12. bxc3 Ba6 13. Rd1 O-O
14. Kf2 Rfe8 15. Bf4 Na5 16. Rhe1 $14 {Georgadze,G-Chernin,A/Lvov/1990/ ->CBM
18}) 10... Ba6 11. Bg5 (11. Be3) 11... Qb6 12. Rd1 O-O 13. Kf2 Rfe8 14. Bf4
Rad8 (14... Bxc3 15. bxc3 Na5) 15. Ng3 Ba5 (15... Bxc3 16. bxc3 Qb2+ 17. Rd2
Qxc3 18. Nf5 $40) 16. Na4 (16. Rd2 Nb4 $1) 16... Qb5 17. b3 d6 (17... Nb4 18.
Qxc5 Nd3+ $2 19. Rxd3 Qxd3 20. Qxa5 $18) 18. Qg5 h6 19. Qg4 Bc8 (19... Nb4 20.
Nf5 Qe2+ 21. Kg3 $40) 20. Nf5 Bxf5 21. Qxf5 Nb4 22. Nb2 d5 $1 23. a4 Qa6 24.
Be3 c4 (24... d4 25. Bd2 Rc8 26. Nc4) 25. bxc4 dxe4 (25... dxc4 26. Qb5 $1 (26.
Rxd8 Rxd8 27. Nxc4 Nd3+ 28. Kg3 Bc7+ $19) 26... c3 27. Nc4 $13) 26. Rxd8 Bxd8 (
26... Rxd8 27. Qxe4 $14) 27. Qb5 $1 (27. fxe4 Bf6) 27... Qxb5 28. axb5 Bf6 29.
Na4 Nd3+ 30. Ke2 (30. Kg3 exf3 31. Kxf3 Ne5+) 30... Ne5 31. Rc1 (31. c5 $2
exf3+ 32. gxf3 Nc4 $19) 31... exf3+ 32. gxf3 Nxf3 $1 33. Kxf3 Rxe3+ 34. Kxe3
Bg5+ 35. Ke4 Bxc1 36. c5 Kf8 37. b6 axb6 38. cxb6 g5 39. Nc5 Bf4 40. b7 Ke7 (
40... Bxh2 $2 41. Nd7+ Ke7 42. Ne5 $18) 41. h3 Kf6 42. Kd5 Ke7 (42... h5 43.
Na6 g4 44. hxg4 hxg4 45. Kc6 g3 46. Nc7 g2 $10) 43. Nd3 Bc7 44. Nb4 {Ftacnik,L}
1/2-1/2

[Event "Groningen op"]
[Site "Groningen"]
[Date "1990.??.??"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Romanishin, Oleg M"]
[Black "Gipslis, Aivars P"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2535"]
[BlackElo "2465"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "49"]
[EventDate "1990.??.??"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 022"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1991.06.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1991.06.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Bb4+ 4. Nc3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8.
O-O dxc4 9. Qa4 Na6 10. Ndb5 Nd5 11. Rd1 Bd7 12. Nxd5 exd5 13. Rxd5 Qe8 14. Be3
Rc8 15. Rad1 Bc6 16. Rf5 $5 {N} (16. Rh5 Bxg2 17. Kxg2 f5 18. Rh4 Qc6+ 19. Kg1
Be7 20. Rhd4 Nc7 21. Rd7 Bf6 22. Nc3 Qxa4 23. Nxa4 b5 $17 {Basin,L-Ulibin,M/
Nab.Chelni/1988/}) 16... Bxg2 17. Kxg2 Bc5 (17... Qe4+ 18. Rf3 Bc5 19. Nd6 Bxd6
20. Rxd6 $14) 18. Bxc5 Qe4+ (18... Nxc5 19. Qxc4 $16) (18... Rxc5 $5 19. Rxc5
Qe4+ 20. Kg1 Nxc5 21. Qb4 Qxe2 22. Re1 Qh5 23. Qxc4 $10) 19. f3 Nxc5 (19...
Qxe2+ 20. Bf2 Nc5 21. Rxc5 Rxc5 22. Nc3 $18) 20. fxe4 Nxa4 21. Rd7 Nxb2 $2 22.
Nc3 $1 Na4 (22... b5 23. Rxb5 Rb8 24. Rdb7 Rxb7 25. Rxb7 $18) (22... a6 23.
Rxb7 (23. Rd2 Na4 24. Nxa4 c3 25. Rc2 b5 26. Nb6 $18) 23... Rb8 24. Rfxf7 $1
$18) 23. Nxa4 c3 24. Rc5 c2 $6 (24... Rxc5 25. Nxc5 c2 26. Nb3 Rc8 27. Rxb7 $18
) 25. Rdc7 {Ftacnik,L} 1-0

[Event "Chalkidiki"]
[Site "Chalkidiki"]
[Date "1992.??.??"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Khenkin, Igor"]
[Black "Kotronias, Vasilios"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2570"]
[BlackElo "2550"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "51"]
[EventDate "1992.09.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "GRE"]
[EventCategory "14"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 032"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1993.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1993.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 b5 6. e4 bxc4 7. Bxc4 Nxd5 8. Bxd5
exd5 9. Qxd5 Nc6 10. Nge2 Ba6 11. Kf2 O-O 12. Rd1 Bxc3 $6 (12... Ba5) 13. bxc3
$1 (13. Nxc3 Qb6 14. Kg1 Nd4 $13) 13... Bxe2 (13... Qb6 14. Ng3 $40) 14. Kxe2
Qb8 (14... Qh4 15. Qg5 $1 $16) (14... Qa5 15. Be3 Qxc3 16. Rac1 Qb2+ 17. Qd2
$16) 15. h3 (15. Qxd7 Qxh2 16. Qxc6 Qxg2+ 17. Ke3 Rad8 $1 $44) 15... Kh8 (15...
Qb6 16. Bf4 $1 $16) 16. Kf2 (16. Qxc5 f5 $1 17. exf5 Qg3 18. Kf1 Rae8 19. Qf2
Qh2 20. Ba3 Rxf5 21. Bd6 Qh1+ 22. Qg1 Rxf3+ $1 23. gxf3 Qxf3+ 24. Qf2 Qh1+ $10)
16... f5 17. exf5 Ne5 (17... Ne7 18. Qd6 $1 $16) 18. Bf4 Rxf5 (18... Nd3+ 19.
Rxd3 Qb2+ (19... Qxf4 20. Qxd7 $18) 20. Rd2 Qxa1 21. Bd6 Qxc3 22. Bxf8 Rxf8 23.
Qxd7 $16) 19. Rab1 Qe8 20. Qe4 (20. Re1 Ng4+ $1 21. hxg4 Qxe1+ 22. Rxe1 Rxd5
$17) 20... g6 (20... Nd3+ 21. Rxd3 Qxe4 22. fxe4 Rxf4+ 23. Ke3 Rf7 24. Rb7 Rd8
25. Rxa7 $18) (20... Ng4+ 21. Kg3 $1 Qxe4 22. fxe4 $18) 21. Kg3 $5 (21. Rd5
Ng4+ 22. Kg3 Nf6 23. Be5 d6 24. Bxf6+ Rxf6 25. Qxe8+ Rxe8 26. Rb7 Re2 27. Rxa7
Rc2 28. Rd1 Rxc3 29. Rb1 Kg8 30. Rb8+ Rf8 31. Rbb7 $16) 21... Rb8 $2 (21... Rd8
22. Rd6 $1 $16) 22. Rxb8 Qxb8 23. Rxd7 Rxf4 24. Rb7 $1 Rxf3+ (24... Qd6 25.
Qxf4 g5 26. Qf5 Nf7+ 27. f4 gxf4+ 28. Qxf4 $18) 25. gxf3 Qd6 26. f4 1-0

[Event "Moscow Alekhine op"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "1992.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Sakaev, Konstantin"]
[Black "Savon, Vladimir A"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2540"]
[BlackElo "2420"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "59"]
[EventDate "1992.10.??"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 033"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1993.04.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1993.04.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 d6 6. e4 Bxc3+ 7. bxc3 e5 8. Bd3
Nh5 9. g3 (9. Ne2 Qf6 10. h4 h6 11. Be3 Nf4 12. Bxf4 exf4 13. Qd2 g5 14. g3
fxg3 15. hxg5 hxg5 16. Rxh8+ Qxh8 17. O-O-O Qf6 18. e5 Qxe5 19. Rg1 Nd7 20.
Rxg3 Kd8 21. Rxg5 Qh8 22. f4 Nf6 23. Qe3 Bd7 24. Kd2 $10 {Moskalenko,V-Savon,V/
Odessa Kotov-mem/1989/}) 9... Qf6 10. Bd2 (10. Be3 g5 11. Qd2 Rg8 12. O-O-O Nd7
13. Nh3 h6 14. Nf2 Nf8 15. Ng4 Qg7 16. Bf2 Bxg4 17. fxg4 Nf6 18. h3 N8d7 19.
Rdf1 O-O-O 20. Be3 Rdf8 21. Rf5 Nb6 22. Qc2 Nfd7 23. Qb3 Kc7 24. Qb5 $14 {
Vyzmanavin,A-Novikov,I/URS-FL Lvov/1987/}) 10... g6 11. Qe2 Kd8 12. O-O-O Re8
13. Rf1 $1 Qg7 (13... Nd7 14. f4 exf4 15. gxf4 $16) 14. f4 exf4 15. gxf4 f5 16.
e5 $1 Nd7 (16... dxe5 17. fxe5 Qxe5 18. Qf2 (18. Qxe5 Rxe5 19. Nf3 Re8 20. Ng5
Nf6 21. Re1 $44) 18... Nd7 19. Nf3 $40) 17. Nf3 b5 (17... dxe5 18. fxe5 Nxe5
19. Re1 Nxd3+ 20. Qxd3 $16) 18. cxb5 a6 19. bxa6 dxe5 20. fxe5 Nxe5 21. Re1 $1
Nxd3+ $8 22. Qxd3 Bxa6 23. Rxe8+ (23. Bg5+ Kc7 $13) 23... Kxe8 24. Re1+ Kf8 25.
Qe3 Kg8 (25... Qc7 26. Ng5 $18) 26. Qxc5 Bd3 27. Re7 Qf6 28. d6 Be4 (28... Rb8
29. Qd5+ Kh8 30. Qxd3 $18) 29. Ng5 Ng7 30. Nxe4 (30. Nxe4 fxe4 31. Qd5+ Kh8 32.
Qxa8+ $18) 1-0

[Event "URS-sf"]
[Site "Daugavpils"]
[Date "1989.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Shirov, Alexei"]
[Black "Dautov, Rustem"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2495"]
[BlackElo "2535"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "45"]
[EventDate "1989.11.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "15"]
[EventCountry "URS"]
[EventCategory "9"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 016"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1990.06.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1990.06.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. a3 Be7 6. e4 dxe4 7. fxe4 e5 8. d5
Bc5 9. Nf3 Ng4 10. Na4 Bf2+ (10... Nd7 $5 11. Nxc5 Nxc5 12. Qc2 f5 $132 {Dautov
}) 11. Ke2 Bd4 $6 {N} (11... b5 12. h3 bxa4 13. hxg4 Bg3 14. Rh3 Bf4 15. Bxf4
exf4 16. Qd4 O-O $13 {Raicevic,V-Ruban,V/Pula/1989/0-1/42/} 17. Rh4 g5) 12.
Nxd4 exd4 13. Qxd4 O-O 14. h3 $1 (14. Kd3 Nc6 15. dxc6 Nf2+ 16. Kc3 Nd1+ 17.
Kd3 Nf2+ {1/4-1/4/Malaniuk,V-Dautov,R/Sverdlovsk/1989/}) 14... Qh4 (14... Nf6
15. Bg5 Nc6 16. Qf2 $16) 15. g3 $1 Qh5 (15... Qxg3 16. hxg4 Bxg4+ 17. Kd2 Qf3
18. Rg1 Nc6 19. Qe3 Qd1+ 20. Kc3 $18) 16. Bg2 Ne5+ 17. g4 Bxg4+ 18. hxg4 Qxg4+
19. Kf2 Nbd7 20. Qd1 Qg6 21. Qh5 Ng4+ 22. Ke2 Nde5 23. Bf4 {Ftacnik} 1-0

[Event "Barcelona"]
[Site "Barcelona"]
[Date "1992.05.??"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Lautier, Joel"]
[Black "Gurevich, Mikhail"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2580"]
[BlackElo "2635"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "115"]
[EventDate "1992.05.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "13"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 030"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1992.10.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1992.10.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Dautov} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2
d5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Bd2 Bxc3 10. bxc3 e5 11. Nc2 Nc6 12. c4 (12. Nb4 Nde7 13.
O-O Be6 14. Bg5 Qc7 15. Qa4 h6 16. Bxe7 Nxe7 17. Qb5 Rab8 18. Nd3 Rfc8 19. Qxe5
Qxe5 20. Nxe5 Rxc3 $15 {Van Wely,L-Dautov,R/Krumbach op/1991/}) 12... Nde7 {N}
(12... Nb6 13. Ne3 Be6 14. Rc1 (14. c5 {Dautov} Nc4 15. Nxc4 Bxc4 16. Qa4 Bd5
17. f3 Nd4 $15 {Osnos,V-Kochiyev,A SSSR 1980}) 14... Qd7 15. a4 $6 Bh3 16. a5
Bxg2 17. Nxg2 Nxc4 $1 18. Rxc4 Qd5 19. Qc2 Qxg2 20. Qe4 Qxe4 21. Rxe4 Rfd8 $17
{Alburt,L-Kochiev,A/URS-ch/1977/}) 13. Ne3 Be6 14. O-O Rc8 15. Bc3 f6 16. Nd5
$1 Nf5 (16... b6 17. Rc1) (16... Re8 $5 {Dautov /\Na5}) 17. Qd3 Qe8 18. Rfb1 (
18. e3 {Dautov} Qh5 19. Qd1 $1 $14) 18... b6 19. e3 (19. a4 Nfd4 20. e3 Bf5 21.
Be4 Nf3+ 22. Kg2 Bxe4 23. Qxe4 Ng5 $132) 19... Qh5 20. a4 (20. Qd1 $1 $14 {
Dautov}) 20... Nh6 21. a5 bxa5 22. Rb7 (22. Bxa5 Bf5 (22... Bh3 $132 {Dautov})
23. e4 (23. Be4 Ng4 24. h4 Bxe4 25. Qxe4 f5 $40) 23... Bh3 $40) 22... Rf7 (
22... Bf5 23. Qd1) (22... Ng4 {Dautov} 23. h3 Nh6 24. g4 Qh4 25. f4 $16 {/\Be1}
) 23. Rxf7 Nxf7 24. Bxa5 Bh3 (24... Ng5 25. Nc7 $1 (25. e4 {Dautov} Bg4 $36))
25. Qd1 $1 Qxd1+ (25... Qh6 26. Bc3 Bxg2 27. Kxg2 Ng5 28. Qg4 $36) 26. Rxd1
Bxg2 27. Kxg2 Kf8 (27... Nxa5 $2 28. Ne7+ $18) 28. Bc7 Ke8 29. c5 Ne7 (29... a5
30. Ra1 Ra8 31. Bxe5 $1) 30. Nxe7 Kxe7 (30... Rxc7 31. Nf5 g6 32. Nd6+ $10) 31.
Ba5 Ke6 (31... Ke8 $142 {Dautov} 32. Bb4 Nd8 33. Rd6 Nc6 34. Ba3 a5 35. f4 $10)
32. Bb4 Rb8 33. Be1 Ra8 34. Ba5 Rc8 35. Bb4 Rc6 (35... e4 $5 {Dautov}) (35...
Rb8 $10 {Dautov}) 36. e4 (36. Ra1 a6 37. e4) 36... Ke7 37. f4 Ke8 38. Kf3 Ra6
39. Rd3 Ra4 (39... Nd8 {Dautov} 40. fxe5 Nc6 41. Bc3 Ra3 $6 (41... fxe5 42. Rd6
$16) 42. exf6 Ne5+ 43. Bxe5 Rxd3+ 44. Ke2 Ra3 45. fxg7 Kf7 46. c6 Ra6 47. c7
Rc6 48. Kd3 a5 49. Kd4 a4 50. Kd5 Rc1 51. Kd6 a3 52. Kd7 Rd1+ 53. Bd6 $18) 40.
Bd2 Nd8 (40... exf4 {Dautov} 41. gxf4 Nd8 $14) 41. fxe5 fxe5 42. Ke3 Nc6 43.
Rd6 Ra3+ 44. Kf2 Ra2 45. Ke2 (45. Rxc6 Rxd2+ 46. Ke3 Rxh2 47. Re6+ Kd7 48. Ra6
$10) 45... Nd4+ 46. Kd3 Nb3 47. Bb4 (47. Be3 $1 $16 {Dautov /\c6,/\Re6}) 47...
a5 48. Kc4 Ra4 $1 (48... axb4 49. Kxb3 Rxh2 50. Kxb4 $16) (48... Nc1 {Dautov}
49. Bd2 Rc2+ 50. Kb5 Nb3 51. Be3 $16) 49. Kxb3 Rxb4+ 50. Kc3 Ke7 (50... Rxe4
51. c6 Re1 52. Kd2) 51. Rd1 Ke6 (51... Rxe4 52. c6 Re3+ 53. Kc4 Re4+ 54. Kc5
Re2 55. c7 Rc2+ 56. Kb6 $16) 52. Rd6+ Ke7 53. Rd5 Rxe4 54. c6 Re1 55. Kd2 Re4
56. Rd7+ Ke6 57. Rxg7 Rc4 58. Rxh7 {Ftacnik,L} (58. Rxh7 Rxc6 59. Ra7 $10 (59.
Rh6+ Kd5 60. Rxc6 $2 Kxc6 61. h4 Kd5 $19) (59. Ra7 {Dautov} Rc5 $10)) 1/2-1/2

[Event "URS-sf Ukraine-ch"]
[Site "Kherson"]
[Date "1989.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Malaniuk, Vladimir P"]
[Black "Gurevich, Vladimir"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2560"]
[BlackElo "2395"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "76"]
[EventDate "1989.11.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "15"]
[EventCountry "URS"]
[EventCategory "7"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 016"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1990.06.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1990.06.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. a3 Be7 6. e4 c5 7. dxc5 {N} Bxc5 (
7... d4 8. Nb5 e5 9. b4 O-O 10. Nd6 Bxd6 11. cxd6 b6 12. Bd3 Qxd6 13. Ne2 a5
14. Bd2 Na6 {Malaniuk,V-Oll,L/URS-ch/1989/0-1/37/}) 8. b4 Bd6 (8... Bxg1 $6 9.
Rxg1 d4 10. Nb5 e5 11. c5 $16) 9. Bb2 Be5 10. Qd2 O-O 11. Rd1 Nbd7 12. Nh3 dxe4
13. f4 $1 Bc7 14. Nf2 b6 15. Ncxe4 e5 16. Nd6 Qe7 17. Be2 exf4 18. O-O $1 Bxd6
19. Bf3 Rb8 20. Qxd6 Qxd6 21. Rxd6 Bb7 22. Bg4 $1 Nxg4 23. Nxg4 h5 24. Rxd7
hxg4 25. Rxf4 $16 f6 26. Rxg4 Rf7 27. Rd6 Kf8 28. Bd4 Rc8 29. c5 bxc5 30. Bxc5
Kg8 31. Rgd4 a6 32. h4 Bc6 33. a4 Bxa4 34. Rxa6 Bc6 35. Kf2 Rb7 36. g4 Bb5 37.
Re6 Bc6 38. h5 Rf7 $138 {Ftacnik} 1-0

[Event "URS-ch U26"]
[Site "Minsk"]
[Date "1990.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Orlov, Georgi"]
[Black "Karpman, Vadim"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2505"]
[BlackElo "2500"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "110"]
[EventDate "1990.01.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "URS"]
[EventCategory "10"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 017"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1990.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1990.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 Bb4+ 4. Nc3 c5 5. Nf3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8.
Qb3 Bxc3+ 9. Qxc3 e5 10. Nb3 d4 11. Qa5 Qe8 $5 {N} 12. f4 (12. O-O Nc6 13. Qc5
$13) 12... Nc6 13. Qc5 exf4 14. Bxf4 Bg4 15. O-O Rd8 (15... Bxe2 16. Rae1 d3
17. Bd6 Ne4 $13) 16. Rae1 (16. Bd6 Qe3+ 17. Rf2 Rfe8) 16... Ne4 17. Qb5 Nd6 (
17... Qe7 $5) 18. Qg5 f5 19. Bxd6 Rxd6 20. h3 Rg6 (20... Bxe2 21. Bd5+ Kh8 22.
Nc1 d3 23. Nxe2 dxe2 24. Rf2 $22 Nd4 25. Qf4 $18) 21. Qf4 Bh5 22. g4 Bxg4 $8 (
22... fxg4 $2 23. Bd5+) 23. hxg4 Rxg4 24. Qd6 Qe3+ 25. Rf2 Rf6 26. Qd5+ Kh8 27.
Kf1 Ne7 28. Qd8+ Ng8 29. Rd1 $2 (29. Qd5 $5) 29... Rxg2 $1 30. Kxg2 (30. Rxg2
Rh6 31. Qg5 Rh1+ 32. Rg1 Qxg5 $19) 30... Rg6+ 31. Kf1 Qh3+ 32. Ke1 Rg1+ 33. Kd2
Qe3+ 34. Kc2 Rxd1 35. Kxd1 Qxf2 36. Nxd4 Qf1+ 37. Kc2 Qf4 38. Qd5 Qe4+ 39. Qxe4
fxe4 40. Nb5 Nf6 41. Nxa7 g5 42. Kd2 g4 43. Ke1 g3 44. Nb5 Ng4 45. Kf1 Ne3+ 46.
Kg1 h5 47. Nd6 h4 48. c5 Kg7 49. Nxb7 Kf6 50. Nd6 Ke5 51. b3 h3 52. Nc4+ Nxc4
53. bxc4 Kf4 54. c6 Ke3 55. c7 h2+ {Ftacnik,L} 0-1

[Event "Nordic zt"]
[Site "Ostersund"]
[Date "1992.??.??"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Olafsson, Helgi"]
[Black "Tisdall, Jonathan D"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2495"]
[BlackElo "2435"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "79"]
[EventDate "1992.??.??"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 031"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1992.12.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1992.12.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. d4 e6 3. c4 c5 4. Nc3 cxd4 5. Nxd4 Bb4 6. g3 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8. Qb3
Bxc3+ 9. Qxc3 e5 10. Nb3 d4 11. Qa5 Qe7 12. O-O Nc6 13. Qc5 Qe6 14. f4 Nd7 15.
Qd5 Nb6 16. Qxe6 Bxe6 17. fxe5 (17. c5 Nd7 (17... Na4 18. fxe5 Bxb3 19. axb3
Nxc5 20. Bxc6 bxc6 21. b4 Nd7 22. Rd1 Nxe5 23. Rxd4 Rfe8 24. Bd2 h5 25. Bc3 Re7
$10 {Ward-Winants,L/Haringey/1988/}) 18. fxe5 Ndxe5 19. Bf4 f6 20. Nd2 Rfd8 21.
Bxe5 fxe5 22. Ne4 Bd5 23. Rac1 $14 {Dzhandzhava,L-Levin,F/Novosibirsk/1989/}) (
17. Bxc6 bxc6 18. fxe5 Nxc4 19. Nxd4 Bd5 20. e6 fxe6 21. Rxf8+ Rxf8 22. b3 Nb6
23. Ba3 Rf6 24. Rc1 e5 25. Nc2 $14 {Ubilava,E-Novikov,I/Tbilisi/1988/}) 17...
Nxc4 (17... Bxc4 18. Bxc6 bxc6 19. Nxd4 c5 20. Nb3 Bxe2 21. Re1 $16) 18. Nc5
Bg4 (18... Bc8 19. Bxc6 bxc6 20. Rd1 Nxe5 21. Rxd4 $14) (18... N4xe5 19. Nxb7
$14) 19. Nxb7 N4xe5 (19... N6xe5 20. b3 $1) 20. Rf2 Rab8 (20... d3 $5 21. exd3
(21. Bxc6 dxe2 $1) 21... Nd4 22. Nc5 Rac8 23. b4 $14) 21. Bf4 Rxb7 (21... f6
22. Rc1 $16) 22. Bxe5 Rb5 (22... Rb6 23. Bc7 $16) 23. Bd6 (23. Bxg7 Kxg7 24.
Bxc6 Rxb2 $10) 23... Rc8 24. Rc1 Nd8 (24... Nb4 25. Rxc8+ Bxc8 26. a3 $14) 25.
Rxc8 Bxc8 26. b3 Bb7 (26... Ne6 27. Rf1 Rb6 28. Rc1 $14) 27. Bh3 Rd5 28. Bf4
Ne6 (28... d3 29. exd3 Rxd3 30. Rd2 $16) 29. Bd2 Re5 (29... d3 30. Bg2 Rd7 31.
Bxb7 Rxb7 32. exd3 Rd7 33. Be3 $16) 30. b4 Ba6 (30... Ng5 31. Bxg5 Rxg5 32. Rf4
Rd5 33. Bg2 Rd7 34. Bxb7 Rxb7 35. Rxd4 $18) 31. Bg4 h5 32. Bf3 Ng5 (32... d3
33. exd3 Bxd3 34. Bc3 Re3 35. Bxh5 $16) 33. Bxg5 Rxg5 34. Rf1 h4 35. Rc1 $1
hxg3 36. hxg3 d3 (36... Rxg3+ 37. Kf2 Rg6 38. Rc7 Rb6 39. Rxa7 $16) 37. exd3
Bxd3 (37... Rxg3+ 38. Kf2 Rg6 39. Rc7 Bxd3 40. Rxa7 $16) 38. Kf2 a5 $2 (38...
a6 $5 $14) 39. Rc8+ Kh7 40. Rc5 {Ftacnik,L} (40. Rc5 Rxc5 41. bxc5 Bf5 42. Bb7
Kg6 43. c6 Be4 44. Ke3 Bg2 45. Kd4 $18) 1-0

[Event "URS-ch U26"]
[Site "Minsk"]
[Date "1990.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Khenkin, Igor"]
[Black "Epishin, Vladimir"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2450"]
[BlackElo "2550"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,L"]
[PlyCount "68"]
[EventDate "1990.01.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "URS"]
[EventCategory "10"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 017"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1990.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1990.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 b5 6. e4 bxc4 7. Bxc4 Nxd5 $1 {N}
(7... exd5 8. exd5 $5) 8. Bxd5 (8. exd5 $6 Qh4+) 8... exd5 9. Qxd5 Nc6 10. Nge2
Ba6 11. Be3 Qb6 12. O-O-O O-O 13. a3 $6 (13. Na4 Qa5 14. Nec3 Bxc3 (14... Rfc8
15. Bxc5 Bb5 $1) 15. Nxc3 Nb4 16. Qxc5 Nxa2+ 17. Kb1 Nxc3+ 18. Qxc3 $13) 13...
Rab8 $1 14. axb4 Nxb4 15. Bxc5 (15. Qxc5 Nd3+ 16. Rxd3 Qxb2+ 17. Kd1 Bxd3 {
/\ Rfc8-+}) 15... Qh6+ 16. Qd2 Nd3+ 17. Kb1 Rxb2+ 18. Qxb2 Nxb2 19. Rd6 (19.
Kxb2 Rb8+ 20. Kc2 Bxe2 21. Nxe2 Qc6 22. Rd5 Rb5 $19) 19... Bd3+ 20. Kxb2 Rb8+
21. Ka1 Qd2 22. Ba3 Rb3 23. Bc1 Qc2 24. Rxd3 Rb6 $3 (24... Qxd3 25. Bb2 {/\ Rd1
}) 25. Rd4 (25. Ba3 Ra6 26. Nb1 Qxd3 27. Nec3 Rxa3+ 28. Nxa3 Qxc3+) 25... Ra6+
26. Ra4 Rxa4+ 27. Nxa4 Qxa4+ 28. Kb1 Qb5+ 29. Bb2 Qd3+ 30. Kc1 Qxe2 31. Rd1
Qxg2 32. Rxd7 h6 33. Rd2 Qxf3 34. e5 a5 {Ftacnik,L} 0-1

[Event "Tata Steel-B 82nd"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2020.01.26"]
[Round "13"]
[White "Smirnov, Anton"]
[Black "Ganguly, Surya Shekhar"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2604"]
[BlackElo "2636"]
[Annotator "Ganguly,Surya"]
[PlyCount "52"]
[EventDate "2020.01.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "15"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 194"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 {I noticed that Anton had employed this
line in this very tournament a couple of rounds before. However, after losing
the penultimate round with Eljanov I was reluctant to open my laptop and went
for a long morning walk instead. Anton was also playing many other things so I
decided not to prepare anything at all.} c5 {After some thought, I played
something that I haven't played before but had it prepared for a long time
already.} 5. d5 O-O 6. e4 b5 7. e5 Ne8 8. f4 exd5 9. cxd5 {Here somehow I went
totally blank. I could not remember how Black plays right at this moment, but
I did remember that Black goes ...c4 after White plays Nf3 and ...Qb6 after
White goes Be2. I also remembered a lot of lines which come later but didn't
figure out how to get there. As a result, the following happened...} Bb7 $146 {
About a hundred games reached this position, and no one ever played this. The
moment I played Bb7 Anton started to think and after some time curious Anish
came to our board and started making mischievous inquisitive faces. It was a
clear indication that I cooked up something new. This is also the moment my
memory started rebooting and I vividly remembered every single line that
starts with 9...d6 instead of 9...Bb7. So, I got myself probably into some
horrible position and now my best bet is to keep the poker face on and pretend
that it was all part of Anand files! I should, after all, take some advantage
of the newly published book on Team Anand :) This not only just worked in the
game which convinced Anton that I was in some deep preparation but also later
in the closing ceremony both Erwin and Anish told that they also felt it was
some sort of a deep preparation!!} (9... d6 10. Nf3 c4 11. a4 Nd7 12. Be2 Qb6
13. axb5 dxe5 14. fxe5 Nc7 {and long theory here which is what I was aiming
for. I am still baffled how I conjured the move Bb7 which basically never
happens in this line!}) 10. Nf3 (10. d6 f6 {This didn't bother me as such.
White is far too advanced and might not be ready for the breaks yet.}) (10.
Bxb5 {Only while analysing for CBM now I am seeing that the computer says this
is the way to go for White. During the game, however, both players felt this
is not so great for White.} Qa5 11. Be2 (11. a4 Nc7 12. Bd2 Bxd5 13. Nge2 a6
14. Bd3 Nc6 $132) 11... Nc7 12. Bd2 (12. d6 Bxg2 13. dxc7 Bxh1 14. cxb8=Q Raxb8
{It's a messy position and I don't think Black is worse here by any means.})
12... Nxd5 {I stopped here during the game thinking that Black has nice play.
I am just giving one of the top lines what the computer gives. In order to get
more clarity about this position, I think some players have to forget their
preparation too and accidentally land in this position.} 13. Bf3 Bxc3 14. bxc3
Qa6 15. Ne2 d6 16. Bc1 {I am not taking responsibility for any of these moves.
My calculation stopped long back.} Nb6 17. Qxd6 N8d7 18. Bxb7 Qxb7 19. O-O {
and White is apparently slightly better.}) 10... c4 {Played instantly in order
to pretend that it is all part of the Anand files :)} 11. Be2 (11. d6 Nc6 12.
Be2 Qb6 {transposes.}) 11... Qb6 12. Bd2 $6 (12. d6 {I was mainly concerned
about this.} Nc6 (12... f6 13. Bd2) 13. a3 Bxc3+ (13... Ba5 14. Bd2 Qc5 15. Qc1
Bb6 16. Nd1 {The machine thinks White is clearly better, but in a game I would
still feel it is messy.}) 14. bxc3 Na5 {I left here during the game thinking
it is complicated and that turns out to be right.} 15. Rb1 Nb3 16. Rxb3 cxb3
17. Qxb3 g6 18. Qxb5 Ng7 19. Qxd7 Rfc8 {Very difficult to evaluate this
position. I will stick with engines. 0.00. Obvious, isn't it?}) 12... Nc7 $36 {
On the 9th move I forget my lines, and on move 12 I am significantly better! I
can bet that even if I played this game with my laptop on, I still could not
have achieved this since in that case, Anton would also know what to do as
White.} 13. d6 Ne6 14. f5 $6 (14. a3 {was probably the lesser evil but already
Black is taking over:} Bxc3 15. bxc3 f6) 14... Nd4 15. f6 {If only White could
castle, then probably Black would have to resign but that is not happening in
reality.} Re8 $1 {The most logical way.} 16. a3 {This move was a bit
unexpected and put me into very deep think. There were simply way too many
lucrative options available to chose from.} (16. Nxd4 Qxd4 17. Nxb5 Qh4+ 18. g3
Qe4 19. Rf1 Nc6 $19) 16... Ba5 {After about 36 min of thought I decided to
keep it as simple as possible.} (16... Bxd6 17. exd6 Nxe2 (17... Bxf3 18. gxf3
Nxf3+ 19. Kf1 {didn't work.}) 18. Nxe2 Be4 $1 {I briefly saw this but was
looking for more clarity. }) (16... Bc5 17. Bf4 Nbc6 (17... gxf6 18. Rf1 {
It is winning of course, but once again I didn't see a direct way thus was
reluctant to take gxf6.}) 18. Nd5 {The point of including a3-Bc5} Nxe5 $1 {
This is a move that I wanted to make and it cost me quite some time on the
clock.} 19. Nxb6 Nexf3+ 20. gxf3 axb6 $19 {It's funny that I actually saw
until here and felt Black should be doing fine despite having just one knight
and one pawn for the queen. The computer confirms it is actually winning for
Black! During the game, I somehow didn't want to put everything on one single
line with a queen sacrifice when I had multiple options in which I would win
for sure.}) (16... Nxf3+ $1 {was even simpler than text:} 17. Bxf3 (17. gxf3
Ba5) 17... Rxe5+ 18. Kf1 Ba5) 17. fxg7 (17. Be3 Nc2+ $1 {Keeping it simple.} (
17... Nxf3+ 18. Kf2 {and there were many ways to sac the queen but I didn't
see a mate.}) 18. Qxc2 Qxe3 $17) (17. Nxd4 Qxd4 18. Nxb5 Qxe5 (18... Qh4+ 19.
g3 Qe4 {is also good enough.}) 19. Bxa5 Qxb5 20. Bc3 Qg5 $1 $19 {This was a
very important move to spot beforehand. Now White is collapsing.} (20... Bxg2
21. Rg1 Bf3 22. Rxg7+ Kh8 23. Rxf7 {[%cal Gf7f8] with the threat of Rf8 now it
is White who is winning.}) 21. Rf1 Qxg2 22. Qd2 Bf3 $19) 17... Nxf3+ 18. Bxf3
Rxe5+ 19. Kf1 Na6 $1 {This way White is never getting Nd5/Ne4.} (19... Rf5 20.
Qc2) (19... Nc6 20. Nd5) 20. Be1 (20. Bf4 Bxc3 $1 21. bxc3 Rf5 $19) 20... Bxc3
{At this point, we were a bit low on time so I decided to eliminate the deadly
potential piece of White. Now my king on g8 is super safe. It is not bughouse
chess, so after I take the last knight off there will be no knight check
coming on f6 and my king can use White's g7 pawn as its shield.} (20... Rae8
21. Bf2 Nc5) 21. Bf2 (21. Bxc3 Rf5 22. Qc2 Qc5 {wins}) 21... Nc5 (21... Bxf3
22. Qxf3 Bd4 23. Qxa8+ Nb8 $17 {is a fantasy line that I briefly saw but then
asked myself why bother about this when I can win just by normal moves.}) 22.
bxc3 Rae8 23. h4 Bxf3 24. Qxf3 (24. gxf3 Qc6 $19) 24... Qxd6 25. h5 (25. Bg3
Nb3 {[%cal Gb3d2,Gb3a1]}) 25... Nd3 {Everything wins around here but I liked
this one the most for the final move of this game.} 26. Bg3 Qxa3 $1 {was a
nice way to finish.} (26... Qxa3 $1 27. Rxa3 Re1+ 28. Bxe1 Rxe1#) 0-1

[Event "Minneapolis HB Global op"]
[Site "Minneapolis"]
[Date "2005.05.22"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Moiseenko, Alexander"]
[Black "Antonio, Rogelio Jr"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2665"]
[BlackElo "2513"]
[Annotator "Gavrikov,V"]
[PlyCount "69"]
[EventDate "2005.05.18"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 107"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 Ne4 6. Bd2 ({A side-line instead
of the common} 6. Qd3) 6... Nxd2 ({More popular is the continuation} 6... Bxc3
7. bxc3 Nc6 8. Bg2 O-O {e.g.} 9. O-O Na5 $5 ({Black has some problems after} 
9... d6 10. Be3 $1 Qe7 11. Qd3 f5 12. Rfd1 e5 $140 $6 13. dxe5 dxe5 14. Nh4 {
1-0 Moiseenko,A-Arencibia,W/Kapuskasing 2003/CBM 095 ext (19)}) 10. dxc5 Qc7
11. Nd4 Nxd2 12. Qxd2 Nxc4 13. Qg5 f6 14. Qf4 Ne5 (14... Qxc5 $5 15. Nb3 Qb5)
15. Nb3 Rb8 16. Qd4 b6 {1/2-1/2 Kasparov,G-Karpov,A/Moscow 1985/MainBase (29)})
7. Qxd2 cxd4 8. Nxd4 a6 ({In case of} 8... Qc7 9. Rc1 a6 10. Bg2 O-O 11. O-O
Be7 {interesting is} 12. c5 $5 {with the idea} Qxc5 13. Nd5 Qd6 14. Nc7 Ra7 15.
Qe3 $1 Bg5 {1-0 Smagin,S-Robatsch,K/Trnava 1987/TD (36)} (15... b6 $2 16. Ndb5
axb5 17. Nxb5) {and now correct was} 16. f4 Bd8 17. Rfd1 Qb6 (17... Bxc7 $2 18.
Nc6 Qxd1+ 19. Rxd1 Nxc6 20. Bxc6 b6 21. Bxd7 Bxd7 22. Rxd7 Bxf4 23. Qd3 Rxd7
24. Qxd7 Be3+ 25. Kg2 $16 {.}) 18. Ncxe6 fxe6 19. Rxc8 Nc6 20. Kh1 $14) 9. Bg2
Qc7 10. a3 ({Deserved attention} 10. Rc1 {transposing to the game mentioned
above.}) 10... Be7 11. Rc1 d6 12. O-O Nd7 13. b4 Rb8 (13... Ne5 {is well met by
} 14. Ne4 {since} Nxc4 $4 15. Rxc4 Qxc4 16. Rc1 {loses a queen}) ({but perhaps
better than the text was} 13... Nf6 {planning Bd7.}) 14. Rfd1 O-O 15. Qa2 $6 {
A waste of time.} ({It seems to me that strong was} 15. Na4 $5 {[%cal Gc4c5]}
Nf6 16. c5 Rd8 (16... e5 $2 17. cxd6 Qxd6 18. Nc6 $1) (16... d5 17. Nb6) 17.
cxd6 Qxd6 18. Qc2 Qe5 19. Nf3 Qb5 (19... Rxd1+ $2 20. Rxd1 Qb5 21. Qc7 $1 Qxa4
22. Rd3 Nd7 23. Ne5 $1 Ra8 24. Nxd7 Bxd7 25. Qxd7 Qxd7 26. Rxd7) 20. Rxd8+ Bxd8
21. Nc5 {with promising position for White.}) 15... Nf6 16. c5 $6 ({Here this
advance is dubious. White should settle for the continuation} 16. e4 Bd7 17. h3
Rbc8 18. Nce2) 16... dxc5 17. bxc5 Qxc5 $1 ({After} 17... Bxc5 $6 18. Na4 b6 (
18... Nd7 $2 19. Qc2 e5 (19... b6 20. Nc6) 20. Nf5 $1 b6 21. Ne7+ Kh8 22. Bh3
$1 Rd8 23. Nxc5 bxc5 24. Qd3 {loses a piece}) 19. Nc6 Rb7 20. Nxc5 bxc5 21.
Rxc5 {Black has not a good square for his queen.}) 18. Nd5 Qxa3 19. Nxf6+ gxf6
20. Qb1 Bd7 ({Much more unpleasant for White was} 20... Qb4 $1 21. Qe4 Rd8 $17)
21. Rc7 $1 {[%csl Rd7,Re7] White finds a saving resourse.} Bc6 ({Worse is} 
21... Ba4 22. Rd3 Qb4 {in view of} 23. Qc1 $1 {for example:} Rfd8 24. Rc4 Qa5
25. Qa1 b5 26. Rc1 ({but not} 26. Nc6 $2 bxc4 $1 27. Rxd8+ Rxd8 28. Nxe7+ Kg7
29. Nc6 Qd2 30. Nxd8 c3 31. Be4 c2 32. Bxc2 Bxc2 $19) 26... Rbc8 (26... Qb6 $2
27. Nc6 Rxd3 28. Nxe7+ Kf8 29. Nc6 Rd6 30. Qxf6 Rxc6 31. Rxc6 Qd8 32. Qh6+ Ke8
33. Rxa6 Qd1+ 34. Bf1 $16) 27. Nc6 Rxc6 28. Rxc6 Rxd3 29. exd3 $14) 22. Rd3 $1
Qd6 (22... Qc5 23. Bxc6 bxc6 24. Qa2 $1 {[%cal Gd4e6]} Rb6 ({or} 24... Rfc8 25.
Rxc8+ Rxc8 26. Nxe6 $1 Qc1+ 27. Kg2) {allows} 25. Nxe6 $1 fxe6 26. Qxe6+ Rf7
27. Rd8+ $1 Kg7 28. Rxe7 $1 Qxe7 (28... Rxe7 $4 29. Rg8+ Kh6 30. Qxf6+ Kh5 31.
g4#) 29. Qg4+ Kh6 30. Qh4+ Kg7 31. Qg4+ {forcing perpetual check.}) 23. Nxe6
Qxe6 24. Re3 Qd6 ({Insufficient for an advantage was} 24... Qxe3 25. fxe3 Bd6
26. Rxc6 bxc6 27. Qf5) 25. Rcxe7 Rbe8 ({Giving back a pawn, because} 25... Bxg2
26. Kxg2 b5 27. R7e4 $1 {looks dangerous for Black.}) 26. Rxe8 Rxe8 27. Rxe8+
Bxe8 28. Qxb7 Qd1+ 29. Bf1 Bb5 30. Qc8+ Kg7 31. Qg4+ Kf8 32. Qb4+ Kg7 33. Qg4+
Kf8 34. Qb4+ Kg7 35. Qg4+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "EU-ch 6th"]
[Site "Warsaw"]
[Date "2005.06.29"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Wells, Peter K"]
[Black "Smirnov, Pavel"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2525"]
[BlackElo "2624"]
[Annotator "Gavrikov,V"]
[PlyCount "51"]
[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 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 ({Less precise is} 4. g3 {after which
Black has a supplementary reliable possibility} d5 5. Bg2 O-O 6. Nf3 dxc4 7.
O-O Nc6) 4... c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 Ne4 ({Another popular continuation is} 6...
O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Nc6 10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. O-O Qa5 {when Black
seems to have adequate counterplay,for example:} 12. Bd2 (12. Ne4 Ba6 13. Qc2
Be7 14. Bd2 Qb5 15. Rfc1 Rab8 $11 {1/2-1/2 Sulava,N-Grosar,A/Kladovo 1991/TD 
(46)}) 12... Bxc3 13. bxc3 (13. Bxc3 Nxc3 14. bxc3 Ba6 15. Qb4 Qxb4 16. cxb4
Rab8 $11) 13... Ba6 14. Rfd1 Qc5 $1 15. e4 Bc4 16. Qa4 Nb6 17. Qb4 Qh5 18. Be3
Be2 19. Rd2 Rab8 20. Bxb6 axb6 21. Qd6 Rfc8 22. h3 Bf3 23. Rb1 Bxg2 24. Kxg2
Qa5 {1/2-1/2 Van Wely,L-Short,N/Wijk aan Zee 2000/CBM 075 (24)}) 7. Qd3 Bxc3+
8. bxc3 Nc5 9. Qf3 {The idea of this move is to prevent b7-b6.} d6 10. Bg2 Nbd7
11. O-O O-O $6 ({The immediate} 11... Ne5 12. Qf4 Bd7 {is considered as
stronger than the text and allows Black to solve his opening problems easily.})
12. Rd1 Ne5 ({In case of} 12... a6 $6 13. Nb3 Qc7 14. Ba3 $1 {Black has
difficulties developing his queenside pieces since} Nb6 ({or} 14... Ne5 15. Qf4
{/\ Rxd6}) {loses material after} 15. Rxd6 $1 Nxc4 16. Bxc5 Nxd6 17. Qd3 {
1-0 Nilssen,J-Berczes,D/Budapest 2003/CBM 095 ext (59)}) 13. Qf4 Bd7 14. Nb3
Ba4 15. Ba3 Bxb3 $146 ({Bad is} 15... Nxb3 $2 16. axb3 Bxb3 17. Rxd6 Qa5 18.
Bxb7 Rad8 19. Ra6 Qxc3 20. Bxf8 Kxf8 21. Rxa7 $18 {1-0 Zvjaginsev,V-Yemelin,V/
Orel 1992/EXT 97 (30)}) 16. axb3 Qc7 17. Bxc5 ({Instead of this premature
exchange} 17. Rab1 $5 {appears to be a little better for White.}) 17... dxc5
18. Bxb7 Rab8 $6 {An inaccuracy.} (18... Qxb7 $142 19. Qxe5 Qxb3 20. Qxc5 Qxc3
$11) 19. Ba6 {This leads to a draw.} ({White could have continued} 19. Rxa7 $1
f6 (19... Rxb7 $6 20. Rxb7 Qxb7 21. Qxe5 Qxb3 22. Rd7 Qxc4 23. Rc7 $16) 20. Qe4
Qb6 (20... f5 $6 21. Qf4 g5 22. Bc6 $1 (22. Qxg5+ $2 Ng6) 22... Qxa7 23. Qxe5
Qf7 24. Rd6 Rxb3 25. Rxe6 Qg7 26. Qxc5 $16) 21. Rda1 Rf7 (21... Qxb3 $6 22. f4
Nf7 23. Bc6 $16) 22. f4 Rfxb7 (22... Ng6 $2 23. R1a6 Qxb3 24. Ra8 Rbf8 (24...
Rfxb7 25. Qxe6+ Kf8 26. Rxb8+ Rxb8 27. Ra7 $18) 25. Bc8 $18) 23. Rxb7 Qxb7 24.
Qxb7 Rxb7 25. fxe5 Rxb3 26. Ra5 (26. exf6 Rxc3) 26... Rxc3 27. Rxc5 fxe5 28.
Rxe5 Rxc4 29. Rxe6 $14 {,although he hardly has any real chances to realize
the extra pawn.}) 19... Rxb3 20. Bb5 Rxc3 21. Rd7 Qb8 22. Rdxa7 Nxc4 23. Qxb8 (
23. Rxf7 Qxf4 24. Rxf4 Rxf4 25. gxf4 $13) 23... Rxb8 24. Bxc4 Rxc4 25. Rc7 Rc2
26. Raa7 1/2-1/2

[Event "EU-ch 6th"]
[Site "Warsaw"]
[Date "2005.06.26"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Milov, Vadim"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2653"]
[BlackElo "2693"]
[Annotator "Gavrikov,V"]
[PlyCount "165"]
[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 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 Ne4 7. Qd3 Bxc3+ 8.
bxc3 Nc5 9. Qf3 ({The main alternative is} 9. Qe3 b6 10. Bg2 Bb7 11. Bxb7 Nxb7
12. Qe4 (12. Ba3 $6 Nc6 13. Rd1 Nca5 14. Nf5 Qf6 15. Qd3 Rd8 16. Nd6+ Nxd6 17.
Bxd6 Nb7 18. Bc7 Nc5 19. Qe3 Rc8 20. Bd6 {1-0 Vera,R-Brittner,S/Bled 2002/EXT
2003 (41)} Nb7 21. Be5 Qg6 $15) 12... Nc6 $1 13. Nxc6 dxc6 14. Qxc6+ Qd7 15.
Qxd7+ Kxd7 16. Ba3 Rhc8 17. O-O-O+ Ke8 18. Rd4 Rc7 19. Kc2 Rac8 20. Rhd1 {
1-0 Potapov,A-Dezelin,M/Ikaros 2001/EXT 2002 (77)} Rxc4 21. Rxc4 Rxc4 22. Rd4
Rc7 {with an approximately equal ending.}) 9... d6 ({Another possible reaction
is} 9... Nc6 {, for example:} 10. Bf4 O-O 11. Bg2 b6 12. Nxc6 dxc6 13. Rd1 Qf6
14. Bd6 Qxf3 15. Bxf3 Rd8 16. Bxc5 (16. Bxc6 Bb7 17. Bxb7 Nxb7 18. Bb4 Rxd1+
19. Kxd1 Rc8) 16... Rxd1+ 17. Kxd1 bxc5 18. Kc2 Ba6 19. Bxc6 Rd8 20. Bb5 Bb7
21. f3 Kf8 $44 {1/2-1/2 Bacrot,E-Kulaots,K/Bled 2002/EXT 2003 (37)}) 10. Bg2
Nbd7 11. O-O Ne5 12. Qf4 Bd7 ({A known mistake is} 12... Nxc4 $2 13. Nb3 $1 Nb6
14. Nxc5 dxc5 15. Qe5 O-O 16. Qxc5 $16 {1-0 Kumaran,D-Ruban,V/Hastings 1991/
CBM 026 ext (33)}) 13. Nb5 {The most logical continuation, which allows White
to improve his pawn structure. However the weakened c-file gives Black
sufficient counterplay.} ({Worse is} 13. Nb3 Qc7 14. Ba3 f6 15. Rfd1 O-O-O 16.
Qd4 Ba4 17. Rab1 b6 $15 {1/2-1/2 Horvath,P-Gyimesi,Z/Balatonlelle 2002/CBM 090
(62)}) 13... Bxb5 14. cxb5 O-O 15. Rd1 Rc8 16. Qb4 {A harmless innovation.} ({
Previous practice has seen:} 16. Be3 Qe7 (16... f6 $5 {/\ d5}) 17. Qd4 Rfd8 18.
h3 f6 19. f4 Nf7 20. Qb4 {1-0 Shishkin,V-Gyimesi,Z/Koszalin 1999/CBM 073 (49)}
{and now correct was} b6 21. a4 Nb7 $132) (16. Qd4 Qa5 17. Qb4 Qb6 (17... Qc7
$5) 18. a4 a5 19. Qd4 (19. bxa6 $142 $5 Qxa6 20. Be3) 19... Qc7 20. Ba3 $6 (20.
Rb1 b6 $132) 20... Nb3 $1 21. Qxd6 Nxa1 22. Qxc7 Rxc7 23. Bxf8 Kxf8 24. Rxa1 b6
25. f4 Nd7 26. Bc6 (26. Ra3 Rc4) 26... Nb8 27. Kf2 Nxc6 28. bxc6 Rxc6 29. Ra3
Ke7 $15 {0-1 Flumbort,A-Almasi,Z/Budapest 2004/CBM 103 (60)}) 16... d5 {
Securing the c4-square for the knight.} 17. Bf4 Qf6 {Before playing Nc4 is
necessary to remove the queen from the opposition with white rook.} (17... Nc4
$2 18. e4) 18. Be3 b6 19. Bd4 Qf5 20. f3 h5 $5 {Preventing g3-g4.} ({To a
dynamic balance leads} 20... Nc4 21. e4 Qh5 22. exd5 exd5 23. Bf2 Rfd8 24. f4
Qf5 25. Qb1 (25. Bxd5 $6 Rxd5 26. Qxc4 Nd3 27. Qa4 Rxb5) (25. Rd4 Ne6 26. Rdd1
Nc5 $11) 25... Ne4 26. Bd4 Re8) 21. Qb1 Qxb1 22. Raxb1 Nc4 23. Rb4 Na3 $5 (
23... f5 {also looked tempting.}) 24. Rc1 Nb7 {[%cal Gb7d6]} (24... Rfe8 {
/\ e5 came into consideration.}) 25. e4 {Forced because of the threat Nd6.}
dxe4 26. fxe4 Nd6 27. Bf1 Rfd8 ({Avoiding the trap} 27... Nxe4 $2 28. c4 Nd2
29. Bb2 Nab1 30. Bd3 Nf3+ 31. Kf2 Nbd2 32. Ke3 Rfd8 33. Bc3) 28. Bf2 Ndc4 29.
Ra4 Rd2 ({Perhaps Black should have preferred} 29... Rc7 $5 {first.}) 30. e5 $2
{This decision is hard to explain.} ({White should have played} 30. Bxc4 Nxc4
31. Rxa7 Ne5 32. Bxb6 (32. Rf1 $6 Nf3+ 33. Kg2 Rxc3 {/\ Ng5}) 32... Nf3+ 33.
Kf1 Nxh2+ 34. Ke1 Nf3+ {with perpetual check.}) 30... Rc7 31. Re1 Rb2 $5 {
Going for the b-pawn.} ({Black could try} 31... Rxa2 {when White has to find
the saving path:} 32. Re4 $5 (32. Bxc4 $6 Rxc4 33. Rxa7 Rxc3 34. Rd1 (34. Bxb6
Rcc2 35. Ra5 Rcb2 $17) 34... Re2 35. Rd8+ $140 $2 (35. Bxb6 Nxb5 36. Rd8+ Kh7
37. Rxf7 Kg6 38. Rdd7 Rc1+ 39. Rf1 Rxf1+ 40. Kxf1 Rxe5 $17) 35... Kh7 36. Rxf7
Nc4 37. Rdd7 Rc1+ 38. Kg2 Nxe5 39. Rxg7+ Kh6 40. Rh7+ Kg6 41. Rdg7+ Kf6 42. Rg8
Rcc2 43. Rf8+ Kg6 44. Re7 Ng4 45. Ref7 Ne3+ $1 46. Kh3 Nf5 47. Bg1 Rc1 48. Bxb6
Rh1 49. Rf6+ Kg5 50. Rxf5+ exf5 51. Bd8+ Kg6 52. Rf6+ Kg7 53. Kh4 Rd1 $19) (32.
Re2 Ra1 33. Re1 Rxe1 34. Bxe1 f6 35. exf6 gxf6 $15) 32... Nd2 33. Re2 Rxc3 34.
Be1 Nf3+ 35. Kf2 Rxe2+ 36. Bxe2 Nxe1 37. Kxe1 Re3 (37... Rb3 38. Bd1 Rd3 39.
Rxa7) 38. Kd2 Rb3 39. Bd1 Rb2+ 40. Kc3 Rb1 41. Rxa3 Rxd1 42. Rxa7 Rd5 43. Kb4
Rxe5 44. Rb7 Re2 45. Rxb6 Rxh2 46. Rb8+ Kh7 47. b6 Rb2+ 48. Kc5 g5 49. Rd8 h4
50. gxh4 g4 51. Rd7 Kg6 (51... Kg7 52. b7 g3 53. Kc6 $11) 52. h5+ $1 (52. b7 $2
f5 53. Kc6 f4 54. Rd8 g3 55. b8=Q Rxb8 56. Rxb8 Kf7 $1 $19) 52... Kxh5 53. Rxf7
g3 54. Kc6 Kg4 55. b7 g2 56. Rg7+ Kf3 57. Rf7+ {with draw.}) 32. Bd3 Rxb5 $6 ({
Stronger was} 32... Rxa2 33. Re4 (33. Bxc4 Rxc4 {transposes to the variation a)
from the comment above.}) 33... Nb2 34. Red4 Nxd3 $1 (34... f5 35. Ra6 Rxc3 36.
Bf1 Ra1 37. Kg2 Nd1 $140 38. Rd8+ Kh7 39. Rxa7 Nxf2 40. Kxf2 Rc2+ 41. Kg1 Rcc1
42. Rdd7 Rxf1+ 43. Kg2 Rg1+ (43... Kh6 44. Rxg7 f4 45. Rgf7) 44. Kh3 Nxb5 45.
Rxg7+ Kh8 46. Rh7+ Kg8 47. Rag7+ Kf8 48. Rb7 Kg8 $11) 35. Rxd3 Ra1+ 36. Kg2 Nc2
37. Rxa1 Nxa1 38. c4 Nc2 (38... Rxc4 39. Ra3 Nc2 40. Rxa7 Rb4 41. Ra2 Nd4 42.
Bxd4 Rxd4 43. Ra6 Rd5 44. Rxb6 Rxe5 45. Rb8+ Kh7 46. Kf3) 39. Rc3 Nb4 40. Kf3
Nd5 41. Rc1 Kf8 $15) 33. Re4 Nb2 ({Not dangerous for White is} 33... Rxe5 34.
Raxc4 Nxc4 35. Rxc4 Rxc4 36. Bxc4) 34. Bxb5 Nxb5 35. Rab4 (35. Bxb6 $5 Rc6 $1 (
35... axb6 $6 36. Ra8+ Kh7 37. Rb4) 36. Rab4 Nxc3 37. Rxb2 Nxe4 38. Bxa7 $11)
35... Nxc3 36. Rh4 Nd3 37. Rbc4 {The exchange of the rooks permits White to
maintain the equality.} Rxc4 38. Rxc4 Nxa2 39. Bd4 $5 (39. Ra4 Nc3 40. Rxa7
Nxe5 41. Bxb6 Nd5 $11) 39... Nab4 40. Rc3 Ne1 41. Kf1 Nec2 42. Bf2 Kh7 43. Ke2
({Another adequate possibility is} 43. Rc7 a5 44. Bxb6 (44. Rxf7 Nd5 45. Ke2 a4
) 44... a4 45. Bc5 Nd5 46. Rxf7 (46. Ra7 Nc3) 46... a3 47. Ra7 Nc3 48. Bxa3 Nb5
49. Ra6 Ncxa3 50. Rxe6 Nc4 51. Rc6 (51. Kf2 Nd4 52. Re8 Kg6 53. e6 $140 Nd6 54.
Rd8 Ne4+ 55. Ke3 Nxe6 56. Re8 N4c5) 51... Ne3+ 52. Kf2 Ng4+ 53. Kg2 Nd4 54. Rc5
Kg6 $11) 43... Kg6 44. Kd2 a5 45. Bxb6 a4 46. Bc5 a3 47. Rxc2 Nxc2 48. Kxc2 a2
49. Kb2 Kf5 50. Bf8 g6 51. Kxa2 Kg4 (51... Kxe5 52. Kb2 Kf5 53. h3 Ke4 54. h4
e5 55. Bg7 f5 56. Kc3 f4 57. gxf4 exf4 58. Kd2 Kf3 59. Ke1 $11) 52. h4 {
The simplest way to the draw.} Kxg3 53. Be7 Kf4 54. Bf6 g5 55. Bxg5+ Kxe5 56.
Kb3 f5 57. Kc3 Ke4 58. Kd2 Kf3 59. Bf6 f4 60. Be5 Ke4 61. Bc7 e5 62. Ke2 Kf5
63. Bd6 e4 64. Kf2 Kg4 65. Bc7 f3 66. Bd6 ({Easier was} 66. Bd8 e3+ 67. Kxe3
Kg3 68. Bb6 $1 $11) 66... Kxh4 67. Bc7 Kg4 68. Bd6 Kf5 69. Bg3 Ke6 70. Ke3 Kd5
71. Bh4 Ke5 72. Bg3+ Kf5 73. Kf2 Kg4 74. Bd6 h4 75. Bc7 h3 76. Bb8 Kf5 77. Ke3
Ke6 78. Bc7 Kd5 79. Bb8 Kc4 80. Bc7 Kc3 81. Bd6 Kc2 82. Be5 Kd1 83. Bg3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Asia-ch 5th"]
[Site "Hyderabad"]
[Date "2005.10.13"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Kazhgaleyev, Murtas"]
[Black "Neelotpal, Das"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2602"]
[BlackElo "2509"]
[Annotator "Gavrikov,V"]
[PlyCount "105"]
[EventDate "2005.10.05"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "IND"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 110"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.01.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.01.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O ({In my opinion
the position after} 6... Ne4 7. Qd3 Bxc3+ 8. bxc3 Nc5 {is easier to play for
Black because of White´s double c-pawns.}) 7. Bg2 d5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 ({
An alternative is} 9. Bd2) 9... Nc6 10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. O-O Qa5 {The most
popular reply.} ({However quite possible is also} 11... Rb8 12. a3 (12. Na4 Ba6
13. Qc2 Be7 14. a3 Bb5 $132 {0-1 Pajeken,W-Dautov,R/Germany 2002/EXT 2003 (43)}
) 12... Bd6 13. Qa4 {1-0 Pedersen,N-Venkatesh,M/Pardubice 2005/CBM 107 ext (46)
} Qb6 $132) 12. Bd2 Bxc3 13. bxc3 Ba6 14. Rfd1 {Threatening c3-c4.} Qc5 15. e4
Bc4 16. Qa4 Nb6 17. Qb4 Qh5 ({Less good is} 17... Qxb4 18. cxb4 Rfd8 19. Be3
Bb5 {1/2-1/2 Fish,G-Shipov,S/Yalta 1996/EXT 98 (31)} 20. f4 $14) 18. Bf4 $5 {
A recent idea of Bacrot. White wants to provoke the advance e6-e5.} ({Not
dangerous for Black looks} 18. Be3 Be2 $1 {e.g.} 19. Rd2 (19. Re1 Nc4 20. Qc5
Rfd8 {1/2-1/2 Bacrot,E-Grischuk,A/Cap d'Agde 2003/CBM 098 (68)} 21. f3 Qxc5 22.
Bxc5 Rd2 $11) 19... Rab8 20. Bxb6 axb6 21. Qd6 Rfc8 22. Rb1 h6 23. e5 Bf3 $11 {
1/2-1/2 Bacrot,E-Leko,P/Moscow 2004/CBM 102 (27)}) 18... e5 $6 $146 {Perhaps
not the best reaction allow White to gain control over c5-square.} ({Stronger
is} 18... c5 19. Qb2 e5 ({also interesting is the suggestion of Ftacnik} 19...
Rfd8 $5 20. f3 Bd3 21. Bc7 Rd7 22. Bxb6 axb6 23. Qxb6 Qe5 $44 {/\ c5-c4}) 20.
Be3 Rfc8 21. f3 Qg6 22. a4 a5 23. Bh3 {1-0 Bacrot,E-Grischuk,A/Poikovsky 2005/
CBM 106/[Gavrikov] (61)} {and now} Rcb8 {gives Black sufficient counterplay.})
19. Be3 {[%csl Rc5]} Be2 20. Re1 Nc4 ({Favourable for White is} 20... Bf3 21.
a4) 21. Qc5 Rfc8 22. Rab1 Nxe3 23. Qxe3 Bc4 24. Rb4 Be6 ({Of course not} 24...
Bxa2 $4 25. c4 $18) 25. Qc5 $1 {In result White´s pieces are more active and
black queen is out of play.} Rd8 $2 {[%csl Rc6] This try to activate the rook
only aggravate the situation for Black.} ({Correct was the passive defence} 
25... f6 26. Rb7 Qe8 {planning Qf8.}) 26. a4 h6 ({If} 26... Rd1 {then simply}
27. Rb1) 27. Rd4 $1 Rdb8 ({Black rook is practically forced to leave the
d-file,since} 27... Qg5 $6 28. h4 Qf6 29. Rxd8+ Qxd8 (29... Rxd8 30. Qxa7 Rd2
31. Ra1 $16) 30. Qxe5 Qd2 31. Rb1 Bb3 32. a5 {loses a pawn without compensaton.
}) 28. h4 $1 {[%csl Rh5] Restricts the mobility of opponent´s queen and solves
possible problem with first rank.} Rb2 (28... Rb6 29. Rd6 $16) 29. a5 (29. Rd3
$5 {[%csl Re5] /\ Bf3 was good too.}) 29... Ra2 ({After} 29... Rab8 {White
continues} 30. Rdd1 $1 {/\ Qxa7} ({not} 30. Rd6 $6 Rb1 31. Rxb1 Rxb1+ 32. Kh2
Qe2 $132)) 30. Rdd1 $5 (30. Rd6 $16) 30... Rb8 31. Qxa7 Rbb2 (31... Rb5 32. a6
Rba5 33. Bf1 c5 {(/\Qf3)} 34. Kg2 c4 35. Rd6 Qg4 36. Qc7 $16) 32. Qc5 ({
Better is instead} 32. Ra1 $1) 32... Qg6 ({The immediate} 32... Rxf2 $2 33.
Qxf2 Rxf2 34. Kxf2 Bc4 {is bad in view of} 35. Ra1 Ba6 36. Bf1) 33. Rb1 $6 {
The waste of time.} (33. Ra1 $1) 33... Rxf2 34. Qxf2 Rxf2 35. Kxf2 Qf6+ 36. Kg1
Qe7 $2 {The idea to blockade White´s passed pawn with the queen is wrong.} ({
Black could play} 36... Bc4 37. Rb6 Qd6 38. Ra1 Qd3 39. a6 Qxc3 40. Rbb1 Bxa6
41. Rxa6 Qxg3 {with good drawing chances.}) 37. Kh2 Qa7 38. Ra1 g5 39. h5 Bc4 (
39... Kf8 40. Reb1 Ke7 41. a6 Bc8 42. Ra5 f6 43. c4 $18 {/\ c5.}) 40. Reb1 Bb5
41. Rb2 Qa6 $2 {Repeating the same mistake.} ({Necessary was} 41... Ba6 42. Rb6
Qa8) 42. Ra3 g4 43. c4 $1 Bxc4 44. Rb6 Qa7 45. Rxc6 Be2 (45... Ba6 46. Rxh6 $18
) 46. a6 Kg7 $2 {Loses at once.} (46... Bb5 47. Rd6 Kg7 48. Rd5 Bc4 49. Rxe5
$18) 47. Rc7 $1 Qxc7 (47... Qa8 48. a7 $18) 48. a7 Bf3 49. Ra2 $1 Bxg2 50. Kxg2
Qc3 51. a8=Q Qf3+ 52. Kh2 Qf1 53. Qa3 1-0

[Event "Corus-B"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2006.01.27"]
[Round "11"]
[White "L'Ami, Erwin"]
[Black "Naiditsch, Arkadij"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2550"]
[BlackElo "2657"]
[Annotator "Gavrikov,V"]
[PlyCount "96"]
[EventDate "2006.01.14"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "15"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 111"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8.
cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Qb6 $5 ({This continuation is less investigated than} 9... Nc6
) ({or} 9... Qa5) 10. Bxd5 ({Favourable for Black is} 10. e3 $6 Nc6 11. Nxc6
bxc6 12. Bd2 Qa6 {0-1 Hort,V-Kindermann,S/Dortmund 1985/MCL (33)}) 10... exd5 (
{A playable alternative is} 10... Qxd4 11. Bg2 Nc6 12. Be3 $5 (12. O-O Na5 $5
13. Qc2 Bxc3 14. bxc3 Qc5 $132 {0-1 Zvjaginsev,V-Olafsson,H/Tilburg 1994/CBM
044/30)}) 12... Bxc3+ 13. bxc3 Qe5 14. Rd1 Qc7 15. Bc5 (15. O-O $143 e5 16. Bc5
Be6 17. Qa3 Rfd8 18. Bd6 Qd7) 15... Rd8 16. O-O Bd7 17. Bd6 Qc8 {with unclear
position.}) 11. Be3 Bh3 ({Another possibilities are:} 11... Nc6 12. Rd1 (12.
Nxc6 Qxc6 $5 13. Qxb4 d4 14. f3 dxe3 15. O-O Be6 16. Qd4 {1-0 Nilssen,
J-Laursen,N/Copenhagen 2001/CBM 083 ext (28)} Rfe8 $13) 12... Qa5 13. O-O Bh3
14. Rfe1 Rac8 15. Rc1 Ne5 $13 {1-0 Beliavsky,A-Timman,J/Belgrade 1995/CBM 051/
69)}) (11... Bxc3+ 12. Qxc3 Qg6 13. h4 h5 (13... Qe4 14. f3 Qe7 {1/2-1/2
Ostojic,N-Kovacevic,A/Herceg Novi 2001/CBM 083 (14)}) 14. g4 $5 Bxg4 (14...
hxg4 $6 15. h5) 15. f3 Bd7 (15... Rc8 16. Qd2 Bd7 17. Kf2 $13 {1-0 Kantorik,
M-Lisko,F/Slovakia 2000/EXT 2001 (48)}) 16. Rg1 Rc8 $1 17. Qd2 (17. Qxc8+ Bxc8
18. Rxg6 fxg6 19. Nb5 Nc6 20. Nc7 Rb8 21. Rd1 Bf5 22. Nxd5 Kf7 $11 {1/2-1/2
Singh,S-Rogozenko,D/FIDE.com 2002/EXT 2003 (45)}) 17... Qf6 18. Rg5 g6 19. Kf2
Nc6 {1-0 Rogozenko,D-Ionescu,C/Bucharest 2000/CBM 077/(33)} 20. Nxc6 Rxc6 21.
Rag1 (21. Bd4 $143 Qd6) 21... Re8 22. Bd4 (22. Rxh5 $4 Rce6 $19) 22... Rc2 $1
23. Qxc2 Qxd4+ 24. Kf1 (24. Ke1 $2 Qxh4+ 25. Kd1 Qd4+ 26. Qd2 Ba4+ 27. Ke1 Qh4+
28. R5g3 Bb5 29. e3 Qf6 $17) 24... Bh3+ 25. Ke1 Qxh4+ 26. Kd1 Kh8 $44) (11...
Qa5 12. Rc1 (12. O-O Bxc3 13. bxc3 Nc6 $11) 12... Nc6 13. O-O (13. a3 Bxc3+ 14.
Qxc3 Qxc3+ 15. Rxc3 Nxd4 16. Bxd4 Bd7 $11 {1/2-1/2 Nielsen,P-Fossan,E/Gausdal
1996/CBM 054 ext (42)}) 13... Bh3 14. Rfd1 Rfd8 15. Nxc6 bxc6 16. Na4 Rab8 17.
Qc2 d4 $5 (17... Bf8 18. a3 Qb5 $132) 18. Bxd4 Bf5 19. e4 Bxe4 20. Qxe4 Qxa4
21. b3 Qxa2 22. Bxg7 $1 Rxd1+ 23. Rxd1 Qxb3 $1 24. Rb1 (24. Rd7 Bf8 25. Bxf8
Qb1+ 26. Qxb1 Rxb1+ 27. Kg2 Kxf8 28. Rxa7 $11) 24... Qd5 25. Qf4 Bd6 26. Rxb8+
Bxb8 27. Qxb8+ Kxg7 28. Qxa7 $11 {1/2-1/2 Gonzalez Velez,F-Ayas Fernandez,A/
Barbera 1997/EXT 99 (47)}) 12. g4 ({Interesting that nobody has tried} 12. Qxd5
{after which is possible} Rd8 13. Qb5 Bxc3+ 14. bxc3 Qc7 $13) 12... Na6 $146 {
[%cal Ga6c5] A new idea in this situation.} ({Dubious is} 12... Bg2 $6 13. Rg1
Be4 {1/2-1/2 Matamoros Franco,C-Korneev,O/Coria del Rio 2004/CBM 098 ext (24)}
14. Nf5 Qa5 15. Bd4 f6 16. O-O-O Rc8 17. f3 Bxf5 18. gxf5 Kh8 19. Kb1 $16) ({
but the natural} 12... Nc6 {allows to equalize without problems,e.g.} 13. Nxc6
Qxc6 14. Bd4 Bc5 15. Rd1 Bxg4 16. Qxd5 {1-0 Kuemin,S-Lopez Martinez,J/Zug 2001/
CBM 086 (32)} Qxd5 17. Nxd5 Bxd4 18. Rxd4 Be6 $11) 13. Nf5 ({Here} 13. Qxd5 $2
{is wrong because of} Rac8 14. Rc1 Bc5 15. Qf3 Qxb2 16. Rc2 Qb4 17. Qxh3 Bxd4
18. Bxd4 Qxd4 19. O-O Rc4 $17) 13... Qa5 $6 (13... Qe6 $142 14. Rg1 h5 $5 (
14... Rac8 $2 15. Bd4 Rfe8 16. O-O-O Bf8 17. Ne3 $16 {[%csl Rh3][%cal Gg1g3]})
15. a3 (15. Nd4 Qg6 $132) (15. Bd4 f6 $13) 15... Bxc3+ 16. Qxc3 f6 17. Nd4 Qe5
18. gxh5 Qxh5 $13) 14. Bd4 $6 ({White could claim for a slight advantage by} 
14. O-O-O $1 Rac8 (14... Bxc3 15. bxc3 $14) 15. Rxd5 b5 16. Kb1 Bg2 17. Rhd1
Bxc3 (17... Bxd5 $143 18. Nxd5 $16) 18. Ne7+ Kh8 19. Nxc8 Be4+ 20. R5d3 (20.
Ka1 $6 Nb4 $1) 20... Rxc8 21. bxc3 $14) 14... Nc5 15. Qxd5 Rfd8 16. Qf3 $8 (16.
Qe5 $4 Nd3+ 17. exd3 Re8) (16. Qc4 $4 b5) 16... Rxd4 $1 17. Qxh3 (17. Nxd4 $2 {
loses to} Bg2 $1 18. Qxg2 Bxc3+ 19. Kf1 Bxd4) 17... Bxc3+ 18. bxc3 (18. Qxc3
$143 Qxc3+ 19. bxc3 Rxg4 $15) 18... Nd3+ $1 19. Kf1 Qxc3 20. Rd1 Nf4 $1 21.
Qxc3 Rxd1+ 22. Qe1 Rxe1+ 23. Kxe1 Ne6 $5 {Preventing Nd4. Although the ending
should be drawn some accuracy is required from White.} (23... g6 $143 24. Nd4
$11) 24. e3 g6 25. Nd6 (25. Ng3 Rc8 26. Kd2 Rc4 {also allowed Black to
activate his rook.}) 25... Rd8 26. Ne4 Rd3 27. Ke2 Ra3 28. Ra1 b5 29. Kd2 b4
30. g5 (30. Kc2 a5 31. Kb2 f5 32. gxf5 gxf5 33. Rg1+ Kf8 34. Nd6 (34. Ng5 $2
Nc5 $1 35. Nxh7+ Kf7 $17) 34... Rd3 35. Nc4 a4 36. Rc1 $11) 30... b3 31. Kc3
bxa2+ 32. Kb4 Ra6 33. Kb3 Rb6+ 34. Kxa2 Rb4 35. Nf6+ (35. f3 $11) 35... Kg7 36.
f4 Ra4+ 37. Kb2 Rxa1 38. Kxa1 Nc5 39. Ne8+ $6 ({Simpler is} 39. Kb2 {with easy
draw.}) 39... Kf8 40. Nf6 Ke7 $1 {Black´s only winning chance is to attack
opponent´s pawns.} 41. Nxh7 Ne4 {[%cal Ge7e6,Ge6f5]} 42. Ka2 $6 ({A strange
move instead of the logical} 42. Kb2 Ke6 43. Nf8+ Kf5 44. Nd7 Nd6 45. Ne5 Ke4
46. Ng4 Nc4+ (46... Kf3 47. h3 Kg3 48. Kc3 Kxh3 49. Ne5 $11) 47. Kc3 Nxe3 48.
Ne5 Kxf4 49. Nxf7 Ng4 50. h4 Ne5 51. Nh8 Kg4 52. Kd4 Nf3+ 53. Kc5 Kf5 54. Kb5
Nd4+ 55. Ka6 Nc6 56. Kb5 {with peaceful end.}) 42... Nc3+ 43. Kb3 Nd5 44. h4
Kd6 $5 (44... Nxe3 45. Nf6 Ke6 46. h5 gxh5 47. Nxh5 Kf5 48. Kb4 Nd5+ (48... Kg4
49. Nf6+ Kxf4 50. Kb5 Kxg5 51. Ne4+ $11) 49. Kb5 Nxf4 50. Nf6 $11) (44... Ke6
45. Nf8+ Kf5 46. Nd7 Nxe3 47. Ne5 Ke6 48. Nc6 Ng2 $140 49. Nxa7 Nxf4 50. Nc6
Ng2 51. Kc4 $1 Nxh4 52. Nd8+ Ke7 53. Nc6+ Kd7 54. Ne5+ Ke6 55. Kd4 $11) 45. Nf6
$4 ({Missing the last way to the draw} 45. f5 $1 gxf5 46. h5 Ke7 47. h6 Nxe3
48. Nf6 Kf8 49. Kc3 Ng4 50. Nd5 Ne5 (50... a5 51. Kb3) 51. Kd4 Nf3+ 52. Ke3
Nxg5 53. Kf4 Ne6+ 54. Kxf5 a5 55. Kf6 Nc5 56. Nb6 $11) 45... Nxf6 46. gxf6 Ke6
47. e4 Kxf6 48. Kc4 Kg7 {[%cal Gg7h6,Gh6h5]} 0-1

[Event "Morelia/Linares 23rd"]
[Site "Morelia/Linares"]
[Date "2006.03.05"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2801"]
[BlackElo "2752"]
[Annotator "Gavrikov,V"]
[PlyCount "151"]
[EventDate "2006.02.18"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 112"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.06.07"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.06.07"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 {Black has a few reliable
possibilities to equalize in this line.} cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O ({The main
alternative to the text is} 6... Ne4) 7. Bg2 d5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Qb6 ({
Some players prefer the position after} 9... Nc6 10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. O-O Qa5) 10.
Bxd5 exd5 11. Be3 Bh3 12. Rc1 ({This continuation is not so investigated as} 
12. g4 {after which Black´s simplest way to equality is} Nc6 13. Nxc6 Qxc6 {
[%cal Gd5d4]} 14. Rg1 Bxc3+ 15. Qxc3 Qxc3+ 16. bxc3 f5 17. Rd1 (17. f3 fxg4 18.
fxg4 a6 19. Kd2 Rae8 20. Rg3 Bf1 $11) 17... Bxg4 18. Rxd5 Rae8 {1/2-1/2 Bezold,
M-Horvath,C/Budapest 1994/CBM 045 ext (23)}) 12... Nc6 $146 ({Previous
practice has seen} 12... Rd8 13. a3 Ba5 14. Qxb6 Bxb6 15. Rg1 (15. Na4 Bxd4 16.
Bxd4 Nc6 17. Rd1 Rac8 18. Nc3 f6 $11) 15... h5 16. Rd1 Nc6 $11 {1/2-1/2 Atalik,
S-Pieniazek,A/Cappelle la Grande 1995/EXT 97 (30)}) 13. Nxc6 ({Favourable for
Black is} 13. Qxd5 $6 Bc5 $1 14. Nc2 Bxe3 15. Nxe3 Qxb2) 13... Qxc6 14. f3 Qc4
$6 ({More logical was to keep queens and choose} 14... Rfe8 15. Qxb4 (15. Kf2
Rxe3 $1 16. Kxe3 $140 $2 Qh6+ 17. f4 (17. Kd3 Bf5+ 18. e4 dxe4+ 19. fxe4 Bxc3
20. Qxc3 Rd8+ 21. Ke2 Bxe4 $40) 17... Re8+ 18. Kd2 Qb6 19. Rc2 d4 $17) 15...
Rxe3 16. Kf2 Rae8 17. Rhe1 R3e5 {when Black´s activity compensates the
weakness on d5.}) 15. Kf2 Be6 16. Qxc4 dxc4 17. Rhd1 {[%cal Gc3d5]} Bxc3 ({
White also maintains initiative after} 17... Ba5 18. Nb5 a6 19. Nd4 b5 20. Nxe6
fxe6 21. Rd6 Rfe8 22. Rcd1 Bc7 23. Rc6 Be5 24. Bc1) 18. bxc3 b6 19. Rd4 {
In this situation White´s pawn majority on the kingside is more important than
Black´s on the queenside.} Rfd8 20. g4 Rd5 $6 {An inaccuracy.} ({Better looks} 
20... f6 {followed by Kf7}) 21. g5 $1 {[%mdl 4096]} Rad8 22. h4 Kf8 23. Rb1 Ke7
24. Rb2 R8d6 25. Rxd5 ({After} 25. Rxc4 $6 Ra5 26. Re4 Rc6 27. a4 Rc4 {Black
restores the material balance.}) 25... Rxd5 26. Bd4 f6 27. e4 Ra5 28. f4 Bd7
29. Ke3 {White needs to open a file on the kingside for activate his rook.} Rb5
30. Rg2 Kf7 31. h5 $1 {[%cal Gg5f6,Gh5h6]} fxg5 32. fxg5 g6 ({Bad is} 32... Kg8
$2 {because of} 33. h6 $1 g6 34. Rf2 $1 Be8 35. Bg7 Bf7 36. e5 {[%csl Rg8]
[%cal Ge5e6]}) 33. Rf2+ Ke8 34. hxg6 hxg6 35. Bf6 Rb1 36. Kd4 Rd1+ ({Another
defensive idea was} 36... Re1 37. Kd5 (37. Rh2 Bc6) 37... Re3 38. Rh2 $140 Rh3)
37. Kxc4 Be6+ 38. Kb5 Ra1 39. Rh2 Rxa2 40. Rh7 $1 {[%csl Re8] Finally the rook
penetrates in Black´s camp.} (40. Rh8+ $143 Kd7 41. Rh7+ Kd6) 40... Bd7+ 41.
Kc4 Rd2 $2 {This seems to be a decisive mistake.} ({Necessary was} 41... Be6+
$1 42. Kd3 (42. Kd4 $140 Rd2+ 43. Ke5 Rd7 $1 44. Rh8+ Kf7) 42... Kf8 43. Re7
Bg4 44. Rg7 Bh5 45. e5 $140 Bg4) 42. Bd4 {Threatening Kd5-d6.} Be6+ 43. Kb5 {
[%cal Gb5c6]} Bd7+ 44. Ka6 Bc6 ({Or} 44... Ra2+ 45. Kb7 Bb5 46. Kc7 Bc4 47. Kd6
{and e-pawn becomes very dangerous.}) 45. Kxa7 Bxe4 46. Kxb6 {The resulted
position should be lost for Black.} Rb2+ 47. Kc5 Rb7 48. Rh4 Rc7+ 49. Kb4 Rb7+
50. Kc4 Bf5 (50... Rc7+ $142 51. Bc5 Bf5 52. Kd5 Kd7) 51. Kc5 Rc7+ $6 ({
More tenacious was again} 51... Kd7) 52. Kd6 Rd7+ 53. Kc6 Re7 54. Bf6 Re4 55.
Rh8+ Kf7 56. Rh7+ Kg8 57. Rg7+ Kf8 58. Kb5 {Preparing the advance of c-pawn.}
Re8 (58... Re1 59. c4 Rb1+ 60. Kc5 Rc1 61. Rc7 Be6 62. Kd4 $18) 59. c4 Rb8+ 60.
Ka5 Ra8+ 61. Kb4 Rb8+ 62. Kc3 Rc8 63. Ra7 $1 {Planning Be7+ and c5.} Be6 64.
Be7+ Kg8 65. c5 Bd5 66. Kd4 Bg2 67. Ke5 Ra8 68. Rc7 ({Also wins} 68. Rxa8+ Bxa8
69. Kf6 Be4 (69... Kh7 70. Ke6 Kg7 71. Bf6+ Kf8 72. Kd7) 70. Bd6 Kh7 71. Ke7
Kg8 72. Bf4 Bg2 73. Kd7 Bh3+ 74. Kc7 Kf7 75. c6 Ke8 76. Kb8) 68... Ra1 69. Kf6
Be4 70. Rc8+ Kh7 71. Rd8 {[%cal Gf6f7]} Ra6+ (71... Rf1+ 72. Ke6 $18) 72. Kf7
Bf5 (72... Bf3 73. Rd4 Bh5 74. Rh4 Rc6 75. Bd6 $1 {[%cal Gh4h5]}) 73. Rd4 Be6+
74. Kf8 Ra8+ 75. Bd8 Bg4 76. c6 1-0

[Event "Morelia/Linares 23rd"]
[Site "Morelia/Linares"]
[Date "2006.02.26"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Bacrot, Etienne"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2717"]
[BlackElo "2752"]
[Annotator "Gavrikov,V"]
[PlyCount "110"]
[EventDate "2006.02.18"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 112"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.06.07"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.06.07"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%mdl 1]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 Ne4 6. Qd3 Qa5 ({
This queen sortie is more popular after} 6... cxd4 7. Nxd4 {-} Qa5 {although
is also good without exchange on d4 and allows Black even easier to solve
opening problems.}) 7. Qxe4 Bxc3+ 8. Bd2 Bxd2+ 9. Nxd2 Nc6 10. dxc5 ({Earlier
Bacrot continued} 10. d5 Nd4 11. Kd1 (11. Bg2 $142 Nb3 $1 12. Rd1 Qxa2 13. O-O
Qxb2 14. Nxb3 Qxb3 15. dxe6 dxe6 16. Qe5 O-O 17. Qxc5 e5 18. Rb1 Qa2 $11 {
1/2-1/2 Tisdall,J-Fossan,E/Gausdal 1992/CBM 028 ext (27)}) 11... Nf5 12. e3 Qc7
$1 13. Bd3 Ne7 14. dxe6 dxe6 15. Kc2 e5 {but could not be satisfied with
resulting position, 1/2-1/2 Bacrot,E-Bogdanovski,V/Chalkidiki 2002/CBM 092 (30)
}) 10... b6 $5 ({Sufficient for equality is} 10... Qxc5 11. Bg2 b6 12. O-O Bb7
13. Nb3 Qe7 14. Qf4 O-O {1/2-1/2 Van Wely,L-Van der Wiel,J/Rotterdam 1990/EXT
2002 (50)}) 11. Bg2 (11. cxb6 Bb7 12. f3 Qxb6 $44) 11... Bb7 12. Qf4 bxc5 $6 ({
Better is} 12... Qxc5 13. a3 O-O 14. Ne4 Qd4 15. Nc3 Qxf4 16. gxf4 Na5 17. Bxb7
Nxb7 18. O-O-O Rfd8 $11 {1/2-1/2 Lautier,J-Guyot,P/Rouen 1987/EXT 97 (40)}) 13.
Qd6 ({In my opinion more unpleasant for Black is the continuation} 13. O-O $1
Nd4 14. Qg5 Nxe2+ 15. Kh1 Bxg2+ 16. Kxg2 O-O 17. Nb3 Qb4 18. Qxc5 Qxc5 19. Nxc5
Rfc8 20. Nb3 Rxc4 21. Rfd1 Rc2 22. Rab1 e5 23. Kf3 $5 {[%cal Gb3a1]} (23. Rxd7
h6 24. Kf1 Nd4 25. Nxd4 exd4 26. Rxd4 {1/2-1/2 Bacrot,E-Sokolov,A/Germany 2004/
CBM 100 (47)} Re8 $11) 23... Rb8 24. Rxd7 f5 {and now deserves attention} 25.
Rxa7 $5 ({not} 25. Re1 $6 g5 $1 $132 {1/2-1/2 Bacrot,E-Volokitin,A/Moscow 2004/
CBM 100 (52)} 26. Rxe2 $140 $2 e4+ 27. Ke3 f4+) 25... e4+ 26. Kg2 {with the
idea Rd1-Rdd7.}) 13... Qb6 ({Simpler was to neutralize the pressure along
diagonal h1-a8 by} 13... Nd8 14. O-O Bxg2 15. Kxg2 Nb7 16. Qd3 Qc7 17. Rad1 O-O
18. Ne4 d6 19. Ng5 g6 {with equal play, 1/2-1/2 Christensen,N-Lechtynsky,J/
Bayern 1998/EXT 2000 (34)}) 14. Ne4 (14. O-O-O Na5 15. Qxb6 axb6 16. Bxb7 Nxb7
$11) 14... Nd4 $5 $146 {An interesting tactical idea.} ({The text is an
improvement in comparison with} 14... Qb4+ $6 {because of} 15. Kf1 $1 (15. Qd2
$6 Ke7 $11 {1/2-1/2 Priehoda,V-Hiebel,J/Germany 1994/GER (23)}) 15... Qxb2 16.
Re1 Ne5 ({worse is} 16... Ne7 $6 17. Nxc5 Bc6 18. Bxc6 dxc6 19. Rd1 Qb8 20.
Qd7+ Kf8 21. Kg2) 17. Qxc5 Bxe4 18. Bxe4 d6 $8 (18... Rd8 $4 19. Rb1 Qc3 20.
Rb3 Qa1+ 21. Kg2 Qxa2 22. Ra3 Qb2 23. Rb1 $18) 19. Qxd6 Rd8 20. Bc6+ Nxc6 21.
Qxc6+ Rd7 22. Kg2 $16) 15. Qxb6 axb6 16. Nd6+ Ke7 17. Bxb7 ({White has no real
winning chances in case of} 17. Nxb7 Nc2+ 18. Kd2 Nxa1 19. Rxa1 Ra7 20. a4 Rc8
$1 (20... Rb8 $143 21. a5 Rbxb7 22. Bxb7 Rxb7 23. a6 Ra7 24. Kc3 {[%cal Gb2b4]}
) 21. a5 bxa5 22. Rxa5 (22. Nxa5 Ke8 23. Kc3 Rb8) 22... Rxa5 23. Nxa5 Rb8)
17... Nc2+ 18. Kd2 Nxa1 19. Nxf7 $1 Rxa2 $1 {The best.} (19... Kxf7 20. Bxa8
Rxa8 21. Rxa1 $16) 20. Nxh8 Rxb2+ 21. Kd3 Rb3+ 22. Ke4 {[%csl Rh8]} ({Black
has sufficient compensation for the piece because White´s knight on h8 is
trapped. Therefore was more reasonable to accept the perpetual check after} 22.
Kd2 Rb2+ 23. Kd3 Rb3+ {.}) 22... Nc2 23. e3 {Preventing Nd4.} (23. Rc1 Na3 (
23... Nd4 $5) 24. Ba6 {allows to win back the pice by} b5 $1 25. cxb5 Nxb5 26.
Rxc5 Nd6+ 27. Kd4 Rb8 $11) ({and if} 23. Rd1 {then} Rc3 $1 ({not} 23... b5 $2
24. Bc8 d6 25. Nf7 $1 Kxf7 26. Rxd6 Rb2 27. cxb5 $1 $16) 24. Ba6 (24. Rc1 $6
Kf6 $1) 24... Nb4 25. Ra1 (25. Bb5 $6 d5+ 26. Ke5 Ra3 {[%cal Ga3a8]}) 25...
Nxa6 26. Rxa6 Rxc4+ 27. Kd3 b5 {with adequate counterplay.}) 23... b5 $5 {
[%cal Gb3b7,Gb7b8,Gb8h8]} ({Also possible was} 23... Na3 24. Ba6 b5 25. cxb5
Nxb5 26. Rc1 $140 (26. Bxb5 $143 Rxb5 27. Rc1 Kf6 $5 {[%csl Rh8]}) 26... Nd6+
27. Kf3 Rb8 28. Rxc5 Rxh8 $11) 24. Kf4 {Planning Be4.} ({In Black´s favour is} 
24. cxb5 Rxb5 25. Rc1 Nb4 26. Bc8 Nc6) 24... bxc4 ({Stronger looks} 24... Rb4
$1 25. Be4 Rxc4 26. Kf3 g6 27. Bd3 $140 $2 Rc3 28. Bxb5 $4 Nd4+) 25. Be4 Nb4
26. Bxh7 Nd3+ 27. Kg5 $5 ({To the draw leads} 27. Bxd3 cxd3 28. h4 Kf6 (28...
c4 $2 29. Ng6+ Kf6 30. Ne5 $16) 29. e4 (29. h5 $143 $6 c4) 29... e5+ 30. Ke3
Rb8 31. Kxd3 Rxh8 32. Kc4 Ke6 $1 (32... d6 $143 33. Kd5) 33. Kxc5 Rc8+ 34. Kb4
Rc2 35. Rf1 g6 $1 36. Kb3 Re2 37. f3 Rg2 38. g4 Rh2) 27... Nxf2 28. Rf1 Rb2 29.
h4 (29. Ng6+ Kd6 30. Nf4 Ke5 $132) 29... d5 30. Ra1 Kd7 $2 {A waste of
important time.} ({Correct was the immediate} 30... c3 $1 {with perpetual
check after} 31. Ng6+ Kd6 32. Ra6+ Kd7 33. Ne5+ Ke7 34. Ra7+ (34. Kf4 c4 $1 $44
) 34... Kd6 35. Nf7+ Kc6 36. Nd8+ Kd6 37. Nf7+) 31. Nf7 c3 32. Kg6 {Intending
to create a passed pawn which will cost Black another piece.} Ng4 $6 (32... Re2
$142 33. Kxg7 Rxe3 34. h5 (34. Rg1 $6 d4) 34... Rxg3+ 35. Bg6 Ng4 36. h6 Nxh6
37. Kxh6 $16) 33. Rg1 $5 {Played against possible Rg2.} (33. Kxg7 Rg2 34. h5
Rxg3 35. Bg6 $16) 33... Re2 ({Worse is} 33... Rd2 34. Kxg7 c2 (34... Nxe3 35.
h5 c2 36. Bxc2 Rxc2 37. g4 $1 Ke7 38. h6 Rh2 39. Ne5) 35. Rc1 Nxe3 36. h5 Rd1
37. Rxc2 Nxc2 38. Bxc2 Rg1 39. h6 Rxg3+ 40. Bg6 Rh3 41. h7 Rxh7+ 42. Bxh7 $18)
({or} 33... Rh2 34. Kxg7 Nxe3 35. Bg6 c2 36. h5) 34. Kxg7 Rxe3 35. h5 d4 36. h6
c4 $2 ({The only possibility to continue the fight was} 36... Nxh6 37. Nxh6 Kd6
(37... c4 $2 38. Ng4 Re2 39. Rd1 e5 40. Kf6 Kd6 41. Nxe5 $18)) 37. Bc2 $2 ({
Missing an easy win} 37. Rd1 $1 Rxg3 (37... d3 38. Bxd3 cxd3 39. h7 c2 40. Ra1
Rxg3 41. h8=Q Ne5+ 42. Kf6 Ng4+ 43. Kg5 Ne5+ 44. Kf4 Ng6+ 45. Kxg3 Nxh8 46.
Ne5+ Kd6 47. Nxd3 $18) 38. Rxd4+ Kc6 39. Rxc4+ Kd5 40. Ra4) 37... Nxh6 {
Now Black is out of danger.} 38. Nxh6 ({In case of} 38. Ba4+ {was possible} Kc7
$5 39. Nxh6 d3 40. g4 Kb6 41. g5 Ka5 42. Ra1 Kb4 43. g6 c2 {threatening Re1!})
38... d3 39. Ba4+ Kd6 40. g4 Kc5 {[%cal Gc5b4]} 41. g5 ({Wrong is} 41. Kf6 $2
Kb4 42. Ra1 c2 43. Bxc2 (43. g5 Re1 $1 44. Rxe1 d2 $19) 43... dxc2 44. g5 Kb3
45. g6 Kb2 46. Rf1 c1=Q $1 (46... Rf3+ $2 47. Rxf3 c1=Q 48. Nf7 $132) 47. Rxc1
Kxc1 48. Ng4 (48. Nf7 Rf3+ 49. Kxe6 c3 $19) 48... Rg3 $1 49. Kg5 Ra3 $1 50. g7
Ra8 51. Kf6 c3 52. Ne3 Kd2 53. Nc4+ Kd3 54. Na3 Rg8 $1 55. Kf7 Rxg7+ 56. Kxg7
e5 {winning.}) 41... Kb4 42. Ng4 $1 Re4 ({White saves himself after both} 42...
Rf3 43. Ra1 Rg3 (43... c2 44. g6 $132) 44. Ne5 Rxg5+ 45. Kf6 Rh5 46. Kxe6 c2
47. Bxc2 dxc2 48. Rc1 Rh2 (48... Kc3 49. Nxc4 $11) 49. Nf3 Rg2 (49... Rf2 50.
Nd4 Kc3 51. Kd5 $11) 50. Kd5 Kc3 51. Ne1 Rd2+ 52. Kc5 Kb3 53. Nxc2 (53. Rxc2 c3
) 53... Kb2 54. Nd4 Kxc1 55. Kxc4 $11) ({and} 42... Re2 43. Ra1 c2 {[%cal
Ge2e1]} 44. Bxc2 Rxc2 45. g6 d2 46. Rb1+ Ka4 (46... Ka3 47. Ne3 Rc1 48. Nxc4+
Rxc4 49. Rd1 Rd4 50. Kf6 $11) (46... Kc3 47. Nf2 Rc1 48. Ne4+ Kc2 49. Nxd2 Rxb1
50. Nxb1 Kxb1 51. Kf6 $11) 47. Ne3 Rc1 48. Nxc4 d1=Q 49. Nb2+ Kb4 50. Nxd1+
Rxb1 51. Ne3 Kc3 52. Kf7 Rg1 53. g7 Kd3 54. Nd1 $11) 43. Nf6 $2 {The decisive
mistake.} ({Instead} 43. g6 $1 Kxa4 44. Kf7 d2 ({or} 44... c2 45. g7 d2 46.
g8=Q c1=Q 47. Qa8+ Kb4 48. Qb7+ Ka5 49. Qa7+ $11) 45. g7 d1=Q 46. g8=Q $1 ({not
} 46. Rxd1 $2 Rxg4 $19) 46... Qxg1 47. Qa8+ Kb3 48. Qb7+ Ka3 49. Qa8+ Kb2 50.
Qb7+ Kc1 51. Qxe4 c2 52. Ne3 {(that is why was necessary to keep the knight on
g4)} Qf2+ 53. Kxe6 Qe2 54. Ke5 {allowed to neutralize opponent´s passed pawns
with draw e.g.} Kb1 55. Qb7+ Ka2 56. Qa7+ Kb2 57. Qd4+ Kb1 58. Qb6+ Kc1 59. Qd4
$11) 43... Re5 44. Bd1 ({To the lost queen ending leads} 44. g6 Kxa4 45. Kf7
Rb5 $1 46. Ne4 (46. Ra1+ Kb4 47. g7 Rb7+ 48. Kf8 Rxg7 49. Kxg7 c2 50. Ne4 c3
$19) 46... c2 47. Nc3+ (47. g7 Rb7+ 48. Kf6 Rb8 49. Kxe6 Kb3 50. Kf7 Kb2 51.
Nd6 c3 52. Nc4+ Ka2 $1 $19) 47... Kb4 48. Nxb5 d2 49. g7 d1=Q 50. g8=Q c1=Q 51.
Rxd1 Qxd1 52. Kxe6 Kxb5) 44... d2 $1 {[%cal Ge5e1]} 45. g6 Re1 46. Kf7 Rxg1 47.
g7 Ka3 48. Bg4 Rxg4 $1 49. Nxg4 d1=Q 50. g8=Q Qd7+ ({Simpler wins} 50... Qf3+
51. Nf6 (51. Ke7 c2 52. Qg5 Ka4 53. Kxe6 Qa3 $19) 51... c2 52. Qg5 (52. Qg1 Kb2
53. Qd4+ Kb1 $19) 52... Qc3 53. Qc5+ Ka2 54. Qa7+ Qa3 55. Qf2 Kb1 $19) 51. Kf6
Qd4+ 52. Kxe6 c2 53. Qa8+ Kb2 54. Qb8+ (54. Qb7+ Kc3 55. Qf3+ Qd3 56. Qf6+ Kb3
57. Qf4 Qc3 58. Qc1 Qb2 59. Qe3+ Ka2 60. Qa7+ Qa3 61. Qf2 Qa6+ $1 62. Kf7 (62.
Kd5 Kb1 $19) 62... Qb7+ $1 63. Kg8 Qb2 64. Qa7+ Kb1 $19) 54... Kc1 {[%cal
Gc1d1,Gd4g4]} 55. Qg8 Kd1 0-1

[Event "Poikovsky Karpov 06th"]
[Site "Poikovsky"]
[Date "2005.02.26"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Bacrot, Etienne"]
[Black "Grischuk, Alexander"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2715"]
[BlackElo "2710"]
[Annotator "Gavrikov,V"]
[PlyCount "121"]
[EventDate "2005.02.26"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "18"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 106"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.06.06"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.06.06"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Ftacnik} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 O-O 6. Bg2 cxd4 7. Nxd4
d5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 ({Formerly} 9. Bd2 {was played more often, but White
can hardly count on a plus after} Bxc3 ({Practice has also seen} 9... Nxc3 10.
bxc3 Be7 11. Rb1 {/\ Rxb7} (11. O-O e5 12. Nc2 Nc6 13. Ne3 Be6 14. c4 Rc8 15.
Nd5 Bc5) 11... a6 12. O-O e5 13. Nc2 Nc6 14. Ne3 Bc5 15. Qc2 f5 {0-1 Diesen,
M-Gligoric,S/Lone Pine 1979/MCL (60)}) 10. bxc3 e5 {, for example:} 11. Nb5 (
11. Nb3 Nc6 12. O-O Nb6 ({or} 12... Nde7 13. c4 Qc7) 13. Be3 Qc7 {gives Black
sufficient counterplay, too.}) 11... Nc6 12. O-O Be6 13. Bc1 a6 14. c4 Nb6 (
14... Nde7 15. Nd6 b6 16. Ba3 Ra7 {/\ Rd7 0-1 Campos Moreno,J-David,A/Moscow
1994/CBM 044 ext (65)}) 15. Nd6 Nxc4 16. Nxb7 Qb6 (16... Qxd1 17. Rxd1 Nd4 18.
Nc5 Rad8 {1/2-1/2 Ksieski,Z-Szymczak,Z/Polanica Zdroj 1983/MCD (25)} 19. Kf1
$13) 17. Qb3 Qd4 18. Ba3 Nxa3 (18... Nd2 19. Qd1 Nxf1 20. Bxf8 Rxf8 21. Kxf1
Rc8) 19. Qxa3 Qb4 20. Qxb4 Nxb4 $11 {1/2-1/2 Piket,J-Kortschnoj,V/Nijmegen
1993/CBM 036 (27)}) 9... Qa5 ({Sometimes Black chooses another move order} 9...
Nc6 10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. O-O Qa5 {when White usually transposes to the text by}
12. Bd2) ({Not so good is the alternative} 9... Qb6 {because of} 10. Bxd5 exd5
11. Be3 Qa5 12. Rc1 Nc6 13. O-O Bh3 14. Rfd1 Rfd8 {1/2-1/2 Gonzalez Velez,
F-Ayas Fernandez,A/Barbera 1997/EXT 99 (47)} 15. a3 Bxc3 16. Qxc3 {and Black´s
position is devoid of active play.}) 10. Bd2 Nc6 11. Nxc6 bxc6 12. O-O Bxc3 13.
bxc3 ({The continuation} 13. Bxc3 Nxc3 14. bxc3 Ba6 15. Qb4 Qxb4 (15... Qe5 16.
Rfe1 Rab8 17. Qa3 Rb6 18. Rad1 h6 {1/2-1/2 Miladinovic,I-Schmaltz,R/Fuerth
2002/CBM 091 (24)} 19. Rd7 $5) 16. cxb4 Rab8 17. a3 Bxe2 18. Rfc1 Rfc8 19. Bxc6
Kf8 20. f4 Ke7 21. Kf2 Ba6 {1/2-1/2 Moiseenko,A-Zugic,I/Toronto 2003/CBM 095
ext (38) does not promise White any advantage.}) 13... Ba6 14. Rfd1 Qc5 ({
It is necessary to remove the queen from the opposition with the white bishop
because after} 14... Rab8 15. c4 $1 Qc5 16. cxd5 Rxb3 17. axb3 Bxe2 18. Re1
cxd5 (18... Bb5 19. dxc6 Rc8 (19... Bxc6 $2 20. Rac1) 20. Rac1 Qb6 21. Be3 Qa5
22. Red1 $14 h6 23. Rd7 Rc7 $4 24. b4 {1-0 Nilssen,J-Carstensen,J/Holbaek 2001/
EXT 2002 (24)}) 19. Rxe2 Qb5 20. Ree1 Qxb3 21. Rxa7 {1-0 Fish,G-Fedorchuk,S/
Alushta 2000/EXT 2001 (51) White´s prospects are preferable.}) 15. e4 Bc4 16.
Qa4 Nb6 17. Qb4 Qh5 ({Worse is} 17... Qxb4 18. cxb4 Rfd8 19. Be3 Bb5 {1/2-1/2
Fish,G-Shipov,S/Yalta 1996/EXT 98 (31)} 20. f4 $14) 18. Bf4 $5 {A new try.} ({
Earlier between the same players occurred} 18. Be3 Be2 19. Re1 (19. Rd2 Rab8
20. Bxb6 axb6 21. Qd6 Rfc8 22. Rb1 h6 23. e5 Bf3 $11 {1/2-1/2 Bacrot,E-Leko,P/
Moscow 2004/CBM 102 (27)}) 19... Nc4 20. Qc5 Rfd8 21. e5 $6 Nb2 $1 22. Qxc6 Nd3
23. Qxa8 Rxa8 24. Bxa8 Nxe1 25. Rxe1 a5 26. Rb1 h6 27. Rb8+ Kh7 28. Be4+ g6 $15
{1/2-1/2 Bacrot,E-Grischuk,A/Cap d'Agde 2003/CBM 098 (68)}) 18... c5 19. Qb2 e5
{'?' Ftacnik. Ftacnik: 'A serious strategical error, vene though the pawn on
e5 should have replaced the missing dark squared bishop.'} (19... Be2 20. Re1
Bf3 21. Qb5 Bxg2 22. Kxg2 Rac8 23. a4 {looks slightly unpleasant for Black.}) (
19... Rfd8 $1 {Ftacnik} 20. f3 Bd3 21. Bc7 Rd7 22. Bxb6 axb6 23. Qxb6 Qe5 24.
Rdc1 Rb8 25. f4 Rxb6 26. fxe5 c4 $11) 20. Be3 Rfc8 (20... Be2 {Ftacnik} 21. Re1
Bd3 22. Bxc5 Na4 23. Qa3 Nxc5 24. Qxc5 Rfc8 25. Qa5 $14) 21. f3 Qg6 (21... Rab8
{Ftacnik} 22. Qf2 Be6 23. Rab1 Nc4 24. Bxc5 $14) 22. a4 {'!?' Ftacnik.} a5 ({
Probably less justified is} 22... Rab8 23. Rab1 Qc6 (23... Nd7 {Ftacnik} 24.
Qd2 Rxb1 25. Rxb1 $14) 24. a5 Nd7 25. Qc2 Be6) 23. Bh3 Be6 $2 {A strange
decision because it is evident that the ending is difficult for Black. Ftacnik:
'The transfer to the endgame with opposite coloured bishops is an attempt to
lessen white's pressure. Bacrot was right in his assesment, that his chances
for succes will be excellent.'} ({After the correct} 23... Rcb8 24. Qa3 (24.
Qf2 Bb3) 24... Be2 $1 {it would appear that a draw is the limit of White´s
dreams,e.g.} 25. Rdb1 (25. Bf5 Qc6 26. Re1 (26. Rdb1 Nc4 27. Rxb8+ Rxb8 28.
Qxc5 Qxc5 29. Bxc5 g6 30. Bd7 Bxf3 31. Bb5 Rc8) 26... Bxf3 27. Qxc5 Qxc5 (27...
Bxe4 28. Bxe4 Qxe4 29. Bd4 Qg6 30. Qxe5) 28. Bxc5 Nc4 29. Kf2 Bh5 30. g4 Bg6
$132) 25... Bxf3 (25... Bd3 {Ftacnik} 26. Qxc5 $1 Bxb1 27. Rxb1 Nxa4 28. Rxb8+
Rxb8 29. Qxe5 $16) 26. Qxc5 Qh5 27. Bf5 (27. Bf1 $2 {is bad in view of} Nd7 28.
Rxb8+ (28. Qd5 Nf6) 28... Rxb8 29. Qc7 Bxe4 $1 30. Qxd7 Qf3 31. Bd2 Qh1+ 32.
Kf2 Qxh2+ 33. Ke1 Qxg3+ 34. Kd1 Bf3+ 35. Kc2 Qg6+ 36. Kc1 Qg1 37. Qd3 (37. Qh3
$2 Be2 38. Kc2 Qg6+ 39. Kc1 Qb6 $1) 37... Qh1 $1 38. Qc4 Bg2 39. Kc2 Be4+ 40.
Kc1 Rd8 $1 41. Be1 Qh6+ 42. Kb2 Rb8+ 43. Ka2 Qh2+ 44. Qe2 (44. Be2 Bf5 $1 {
/\ Be6}) 44... Bd5+ 45. Ka3 Rb3+ 46. Ka2 Rxc3+ 47. Kb2 Rb3+ 48. Kc2 Qf4 {
with decisive threats}) 27... g6 28. Rxb6 ({or} 28. Qxe5 Nd7 29. Qc7 Rxb1+ 30.
Rxb1 gxf5 31. Qxd7 Bxe4 32. Rf1 Qe2 33. Qd2 Qxd2 34. Bxd2 Rc8 $11 {/\ Rc4})
28... Rxb6 29. Qxb6 gxf5 30. exf5 Qxf5 (30... Be4 31. Qf6 Qf3 32. Qg5+ Kh8 33.
Qf6+ $11) 31. Rf1 Qe4 32. Qh6 f6 {and} 33. Bg5 $1 Bh1 (33... Qe2 34. Rf2 Qe1+
35. Rf1 Qe2 $11) 34. Qh3 $1 fxg5 35. Qe6+ Kh8 36. Qf6+ {leads to a perpetual
check.}) (23... Rc6 {Ftacnik} 24. Qd2 Re8 25. Rab1 h6 26. Qd8 Rxd8 27. Rxd8+
Kh7 28. Bf5 $16) 24. Qxb6 Bxh3 25. Qxg6 fxg6 (25... hxg6 {Ftacnik} 26. g4 f5
27. Rd5 fxg4 28. fxg4 Bxg4 29. Bxc5 $16) 26. Kf2 Be6 27. Rab1 Rab8 (27... Rc7 {
intending to meet} 28. Rb5 {with} Bd7 {deserves attention.}) 28. Rxb8 Rxb8 29.
Bxc5 Kf7 $6 (29... Rc8 30. Bb6 Rxc3 31. Bxa5 Rc2+ 32. Rd2 Rc4 33. Ra2 Bd7 {
is more tenacious.}) 30. Bd6 Rb2+ 31. Ke3 Kf6 32. Bc7 Bc4 $2 ({The only way to
create counterplay was} 32... Rxh2 $1 33. Bxa5 Ra2 (33... Bb3 $6 34. Rd6+ Kf7
35. Bc7 Bxa4 36. Rd5) 34. Bd8+ Kf7 35. Bc7 (35. a5 Bc4 36. Rd2 Ra3 37. Rc2 g5)
35... Kf6 36. a5 Bc4 {and in the position which arises after} 37. Rd6+ (37. f4
exf4+ 38. gxf4 Ke7) 37... Ke7 38. Rd2 Rxd2 39. Kxd2 Ke6 40. f4 exf4 41. Bxf4 (
41. gxf4 h5) 41... h6 42. Ke3 g5 43. Bc7 Ba6 44. Kd4 h5 45. Bd8 g4 46. c4 Bb7 {
the win is problematic for White.}) 33. Rd6+ $1 Ke7 34. Rd2 {Forcing the
exchange of rooks because Black is unable to save the game.} Rxd2 35. Kxd2 Ke6
36. f4 {'!' Ftacnik.} exf4 37. gxf4 Bb3 38. Bxa5 Bxa4 39. Ke3 Bb5 40. Bb6 Ba6
41. Bd4 Kf7 42. Be5 Bb7 43. Kd4 h6 (43... Bc6 44. c4 Bb7 45. Bd6 Ke6 46. e5 Kf5
47. Kc5 Ba6 48. Kb4 Bc8 49. Kb5 Kxf4 50. e6+ Kf5 51. e7 Bd7+ 52. Kb6 Ke6 53. c5
g5 54. Kc7 Be8 55. Kd8 Kf7 56. Be5 g6 57. Bf6 h6 58. Bg7 h5 59. Bh6 g4 60. Bg5
Bb5 61. Kc7 $18 {followed by c6.}) 44. c4 g5 45. fxg5 hxg5 46. Bd6 Ke6 47. e5
Kd7 48. Kc5 Ba6 49. Bf8 g6 50. Kb4 Kc6 (50... Ke6 51. Bd6 g4 52. Bb8 Kd7 53. c5
Bd3 54. Bd6 Be2 (54... Be4 55. Kb5 Bd5 56. Kb6 Be4 57. Bf8 Bd5 58. c6+ $1 Bxc6
59. e6+ $18) 55. Ka5 Kc6 56. e6 Bc4 57. e7 Bf7 58. Ka6 Be8 59. Ka7 g5 60. Kb8
Bd7 61. Bg3 $22 $18) 51. e6 Bc8 52. e7 Kd7 (52... Bd7 53. Kc3 g4 54. Kd4 Be8
55. Ke5 Kc5 56. Bh6 Kxc4 57. Kd6 Kd4 58. Kc7 Ke4 59. Kd8 Bc6 60. Bg5 Kf3 61.
Bh4 $18) 53. Kc5 Ba6 54. Kd5 g4 55. c5 Bb7+ 56. Ke5 g5 57. Kf5 Bf3 58. Kxg5 Ke8
59. Kf4 Be2 60. Ke5 Kd7 61. c6+ (61. c6+ Ke8 62. Kd6 Bf3 63. c7 Bb7 64. Kc5 Bc8
65. Kb6 Kd7 66. Ka7 $18) 1-0

[Event "Gausdal GM-A"]
[Site "Gausdal"]
[Date "2005.04.18"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Nordahl, Helge Andreas"]
[Black "Tiviakov, Sergei"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2402"]
[BlackElo "2631"]
[Annotator "Gavrikov,V"]
[PlyCount "74"]
[EventDate "2005.04.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "10"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 107"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 c6 {An interesting
idea instead of usual reply 6...c5. Black wants in case of c4xd5 take with
c-pawn and is planning the exchange of light-squared bishops by b6 and Ba6.  '}
7. e3 {The most popular line for White in this variation.} ({A tempting
alternative is} 7. Qc2 $5 O-O (7... dxc4 $6 8. e4 b5 9. a4 Nbd7 10. Ba3 Qc7 11.
Ne2 $44 {Moskalenko,V-Vehi Bach,V/Paretana,1999 (1/2-1/2)(53)}) 8. e4 ({not} 8.
cxd5 $6 cxd5 9. e4 dxe4 10. fxe4 e5 11. d5 $6 Nbd7 12. Bd3 Nc5 $15 {0-1 Golod,
V-Rozentalis,E/Neum 2000/CBM 080/ (30)}) 8... dxe4 9. fxe4 e5 10. Nf3 {, for
example:} exd4 11. e5 Re8 12. Bd3 $5 (12. cxd4 c5) 12... dxc3 13. O-O Rxe5 $5 (
{dangerous for Black looks} 13... Ng4 $6 14. Bxh7+ Kh8 15. Ng5 Nxe5 16. Bf4 $36
) 14. Nxe5 Qd4+ 15. Kh1 (15. Qf2 Qxe5 16. Be3 Be6 17. Bd4 Qg5 $13) 15... Qxe5
16. Bf4 Qa5 17. Bd6 Be6 $44 {1/2-1/2 Yakovich,Y-Tunik,G/Krasnodar 2002/CBM 091
(36)}) 7... O-O 8. Bd3 ({The try to exchange both c-pawns gave Black adequate
counterplay after} 8. cxd5 cxd5 9. c4 b6 10. cxd5 exd5 11. Bd3 Ba6 12. Ne2 Bxd3
13. Qxd3 Nc6 14. Ng3 Qd7 15. Bd2 {1/2-1/2 Borg,G-Sturua,Z/Panormo 1998/CBM 067
ext (15)}) ({White has also played} 8. Nh3 b6 9. cxd5 cxd5 10. Nf2 (10. a4 Qc7
11. Bd2 Ba6 12. Bxa6 Nxa6 13. Qe2 Nb8 14. O-O Nbd7 15. e4 e5 $1 $11 {1/2-1/2
Bareev,E-Rozentalis,E/Leningrad 1990/URS-ch (22)}) 10... Qc7 11. Bd2 {when the
continuation} Ba6 12. Bxa6 Nxa6 13. Qe2 Nb8 14. O-O Rc8 15. e4 Nc6 16. e5 Ne8
17. f4 Na5 18. Rad1 Nc4 19. Bc1 f5 20. exf6 Nxf6 21. Qxe6+ Qf7 22. Qh3 Nd6 23.
f5 Nde4 24. Nxe4 Nxe4 25. Rd3 Rc6 {0-1 Hochstrasser,M-Renet,O/Switzerland 2002/
EXT 2003 (61) was promising for Black.}) 8... b6 ({Less consistent but
possible is} 8... Nbd7 9. Ne2 e5 10. cxd5 cxd5 11. O-O Re8 12. Ng3 Nb6 13. dxe5
Rxe5 14. e4 dxe4 15. fxe4 Bg4 16. Qc2 Nbd7 {1/2-1/2 Gabriel,C-Cvitan,O/
Switzerland 2001/EXT 2002 (43)}) 9. cxd5 cxd5 10. Nh3 $6 {Here the knight is
misplaced.} ({A known mistake is the immediate} 10. e4 $2 dxe4 11. fxe4 Nxe4 $1
12. Nf3 Bb7 13. Qc2 f5 {0-1 Liardet,F-Graf,A/Geneve 1999/CBM 068 ext (23)}) ({
More common choice is} 10. Ne2 Ba6 11. Bxa6 (11. O-O Qc8 12. e4 Bxd3 13. Qxd3
Qa6 14. Qc2 Rc8 15. e5 Nfd7 16. f4 f5 17. exf6 Nxf6 18. f5 exf5 19. Qxf5 Nbd7
20. Nf4 Qb7 21. Bd2 Nf8 {1/2-1/2 Schuurman,P-Babula,V/Graz 2002/EXT 2003 (93)})
11... Nxa6 12. Qd3 Qc8 13. e4 Nc7 14. Bg5 Nd7 15. O-O Qa6 16. Qxa6 Nxa6 17. a4
f6 18. Bd2 dxe4 19. fxe4 e5 20. Ng3 g6 21. Rfb1 Nc7 22. a5 {1/2-1/2 Moskalenko,
V-Beltran Rueda,S/Sitges 2002/EXT 2003 (22)}) 10... Ba6 11. O-O $6 {Allows
Black to develop his knight on c6.} ({Better was} 11. Bxa6 Nxa6 12. Qd3 {.})
11... Qc8 $1 12. Bb2 Nc6 13. a4 ({Also} 13. e4 Na5 {makes it hard for White to
compensate the weakness of c4-square.}) 13... Na5 14. Ba3 Bxd3 15. Qxd3 Re8 16.
Bb4 Nc4 17. e4 ({There is no relief for White in} 17. a5 bxa5 18. Bxa5 Qc6)
17... a5 18. e5 $2 ({This intermediate move loses a pawn. Necessary was} 18.
Ba3) 18... Nd7 19. Ba3 ({Or} 19. Ng5 g6 ({not} 19... axb4 $2 20. Qxh7+ Kf8 21.
Qh5 $1) 20. Bd6 f6 21. Nh3 fxe5 22. dxe5 Ndxe5 23. Bxe5 Nxe5 $17) 19... Nxa3
20. Rxa3 Nxe5 $1 {[%csl Ra3] Exploiting the unprotected position of white rook.
} 21. Qb5 (21. dxe5 $4 Qc5+) 21... Nc4 22. Ra2 Qc7 23. Re2 Rec8 24. Rc1 Qc6 25.
Qxc6 ({If} 25. Qb3 {then} Rab8 26. Rb1 Nd6 27. Rc2 b5 28. axb5 Rxb5 29. Qa2
Rxb1+ 30. Qxb1 Nf5 {/\ Nxd4}) 25... Rxc6 26. Nf2 Rac8 27. Nd1 Kf8 28. Kf2 Ke7
29. Ra2 Kd7 30. Ke2 Re8 31. Rcc2 e5 32. Kf2 ({More tenacious was} 32. dxe5 Nxe5
33. Kf1) 32... e4 33. f4 Rf6 34. g3 g5 35. Ne3 gxf4 36. Nxd5 fxg3+ 37. Kg2 Rf5
0-1

[Event "Barcelona Casino"]
[Site "Barcelona"]
[Date "2005.10.26"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Moskalenko, Viktor"]
[Black "Fedorchuk, Sergey A"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2529"]
[BlackElo "2564"]
[Annotator "Gavrikov,V"]
[PlyCount "57"]
[EventDate "2005.10.24"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "5"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "15"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 110"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.01.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.01.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 c6 7. e3 ({An
important alternative is here} 7. Qc2 O-O 8. e4 dxe4 9. fxe4 e5 10. Nf3 {e.g.}
Re8 (10... exd4 11. e5 Re8 12. Bd3 dxc3 13. O-O Rxe5 $1 14. Nxe5 Qd4+ 15. Kh1
Qxe5 $44 {1/2-1/2 Yakovich,Y-Tunik,G/Krasnodar 2002/CBM 091 (36)}) 11. Bd3 c5
$1 12. d5 Nbd7 13. O-O Nf8 14. Rb1 Ng6 15. Qf2 b6 16. Nh4 Rf8 17. Nf5 Ne8 18.
Qg3 {1-0 Bauer,C-Pelletier,Y/Biel 2005/CBM 108 (41)} {and now correct was} Nd6
{with unclear position.}) 7... O-O 8. Bd3 ({After} 8. cxd5 cxd5 9. c4 {
interesting is} dxc4 (9... b6 10. cxd5 exd5 11. Bd3 Ba6 12. Ne2 Bxd3 13. Qxd3
Nc6 14. Ng3 Qd7 15. Bd2 {1/2-1/2 Borg,G-Sturua,Z/Panormo 1998/CBM 067 ext (15)}
) 10. Bxc4 b5 $5 11. Bd3 Nc6 12. Ne2 a6 13. O-O Bb7 14. Bb2 Rc8 (14... Nd5 $5
15. Qd2 Nb6) 15. e4 Na5 16. Rc1 Qb6 {and Black was able to maintain the
balance in 1/2-1/2 Milov,V-Delgado,N/Yucatan 2004/CBM 105 (46)}) 8... b6 9. Ne2
({Another move order} 9. cxd5 cxd5 10. Ne2 {usually leads to the same position.
}) 9... Ba6 10. cxd5 cxd5 ({More natural looks} 10... Bxd3 11. Qxd3 cxd5 {
intending to develop the knight on c6,e.g.} 12. O-O ({in the event of} 12. e4 {
1-0 Sandipan,C-Rohit,G/Hyderabad 2005/CBM 110 no vc (52)} {Black can reply with
} Nc6 $5 13. Bg5 $140 h6 14. Bh4 dxe4 15. fxe4 Ne5 16. Qh3 Ng6 17. O-O Nxh4 18.
Qxh4 Rc8 $11) 12... Qc8 $1 13. e4 Qa6 14. Qe3 Nc6 15. e5 Nd7 16. Nf4 Rae8 17.
a4 f6 18. exf6 Nxf6 19. Ba3 Rf7 20. Rfe1 e5 {1/2-1/2 Bagirov,R-Palac,M/Biel
1998/EXT 99 (20)}) 11. Bxa6 Nxa6 12. Qd3 Qc8 (12... Nb8 {transposes to the
line 10...Bxd3 from comment above.}) 13. e4 Qb7 $6 $146 {A dubious move.} ({
Earlier Black continued} 13... Nc7 14. Bg5 Nd7 15. O-O Qa6 {and had no any
problems after both} 16. Qe3 ({and} 16. Qxa6 Nxa6 17. a4 f6 18. Bd2 dxe4 19.
fxe4 e5 $11 {1/2-1/2 Moskalenko,V-Beltran Rueda,S/Sitges 2002/EXT 2003 (22)})
16... f6 17. Bh4 Qc4 18. Rab1 Rac8 19. Bg3 dxe4 20. fxe4 e5 $132 {1/2-1/2
Milov,V-Kortschnoj,V/Switzerland 2004/EXT 2006 (47)}) 14. e5 Nd7 15. a4 {
[%cal Gc1a3]} Nab8 $2 ({It was necessary to prepare the manoeuvre Qa6 by} 15...
Nc7) 16. Ba3 Rc8 17. f4 {[%cal Gf4f5] Now Black has to reckon with unpleasant
advance f4-f5.} Qa6 $6 (17... Nc6 $142 18. f5 exf5 19. Qxf5 Na5 20. O-O Nf8)
18. Qb5 $1 {This strong reply puts Black in difficult situation.} Rc4 $6 ({
Dubious is also} 18... Qxb5 $6 19. axb5 f5 20. Bd6 a5 (20... Rc4 21. Kd2 a5 22.
Ng3 Nf8 23. Nf1 Nbd7 24. Ne3 Rcc8 25. Ra4) 21. Ra4 Nf8 22. Kd2 Nbd7 23. Kd3 {
followed by Rc1 and c4.}) ({but perhaps more tenacious was} 18... f5 19. g4 $1
g6 (19... fxg4 $2 20. f5 Qxb5 21. axb5 exf5 22. Nf4 Rxc3 23. Nxd5 Rc4 24. e6
Nf6 25. Ne7+ Kh8 26. Nxf5 $18) 20. gxf5 gxf5 21. Rg1+ Kf7) 19. Bd6 Qc8 20. f5
$1 {[%csl Re6]} Rxc3 $2 {An incomprehensible mistake.} ({The only way to
continue the fight was} 20... Nc6 21. O-O Qe8 $16) 21. O-O Rc4 $6 (21... a6 22.
Qb1 Rc2 (22... Rc4 23. Ra3 $40 {[%cal Gf5e6,Ga3h3]}) 23. Nf4 Qc3 24. Qxc2 $1
Qxc2 25. Rac1 Qc6 26. fxe6 fxe6 27. Nxe6 h6 28. Rxc6 Nxc6 {prolonged the
resistance.}) 22. fxe6 fxe6 23. Rac1 $1 {Preventing Nc6 when Black has no
useful moves.} a6 (23... Nc6 24. Rxc4 dxc4 25. Qxc4 Nd8 26. Qb3 Qc6 27. Nf4 $18
) 24. Qb3 b5 25. Rxc4 bxc4 26. Qh3 Qe8 27. Nf4 {The e6-pawn collapses and with
it Black´s position.} Nc6 28. Nxe6 Rc8 ({After} 28... Ra7 {decides} 29. Qf3 $1
Nf6 30. Qf5 Nd7 31. Ng5 g6 32. Qf3) 29. Nf8 1-0

[Event "Corus"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2006.01.27"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Ivanchuk, Vassily"]
[Black "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2729"]
[BlackElo "2801"]
[Annotator "Gavrikov,V"]
[PlyCount "123"]
[EventDate "2006.01.14"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 111"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 O-O 6. Bg2 cxd4 7. Nxd4 d5 8. Qb3
({Usually White prefers} 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3) 8... Bxc3+ 9. Qxc3 ({The
continuation} 9. bxc3 e5 10. Nb5 dxc4 11. Qa3 $5 (11. Qxc4 a6 12. Nc7 Ra7 13.
Nd5 b5 14. Qc5 Rd7 $132 {0-1 Gorelov,S-Petrosian,A/Telavi 1982/MCD (54)}) {
gives White sufficient compensation for the pawn but perhaps only enough for
an equal game,e.g.} 11... Nc6 12. Be3 Be6 13. Rd1 Qc8 $5 (13... Nd7 $143 $6 {
1/2-1/2 Kappler,J-Andruet,G/Ales 1984/EXT 2004 (17)} 14. O-O a6 15. Nd6 Qc7 16.
f4 exf4 17. Bxf4 $14) (13... Qb8 14. O-O Rd8 15. Qc5 Rxd1 16. Rxd1 a6 17. Nd6
Nd7 18. Qa3 Qc7 19. Qa4 Na5 20. Nxb7 $1 Nxb7 21. Qc6 Qxc6 22. Bxc6 Rb8 23. Bxd7
Rd8 24. Ba4 Rxd1+ 25. Bxd1 Kf8 $11 {1-0 Giorgadze,T-Polugaevsky,L/Moscow 1983/
EXT 2002 (59)}) 14. Nd6 (14. O-O Rd8) 14... Qc7 15. Nb5 Qc8 16. Nd6 Qc7 17. Nb5
Qc8 {1/2-1/2 Zilberstein,V-Kharitonov,A/Irkutsk 1983/MCD (17)}) 9... e5 10. Nb3
Nc6 $5 ({To an unclear position leads} 10... d4 11. Qa5 Qe8 $5 (11... Qe7 12.
O-O Nc6 13. Qc5 Qc7 14. f4 $36) 12. O-O (12. Bg5 Nc6 13. Qc7 Qd7 $1 14. Qxd7
Nxd7 15. Rc1 a5 $1 16. O-O a4 17. Na1 h6 18. Bd2 Nf6 $11 {0-1 Kamsky,
G-Christiansen,L/Long Beach 1993/CBM 039/(98)}) 12... Nc6 13. Qc7 Qe6 14. Nc5
Qxc4 15. Nxb7 Bxb7 16. Qxb7 e4 17. Bg5 Rab8 18. Qc7 {1-0 Starcic,T-Zeljko,T/
Bled 1998/EXT 2000 (58)} Qe6 19. Bxf6 gxf6) 11. Bg5 ({In case of} 11. cxd5 Nxd5
12. Qc5 Be6 13. Bd2 {deserves attention} Nde7 $5 14. Bc3 b6 15. Qa3 Qe8 16. Rd1
Rd8 17. Rxd8 Qxd8 18. O-O Qb8 {0-1 Gaprindashvili,N-Portisch,L/Reggio Emilia
1992/EXT 2000 (43)}) 11... d4 ({Difficult to say what has Ivanchuk prepared
after} 11... dxc4 {which is probably Black´s simplest way to solve opening
problems,e.g.} 12. Qxc4 Be6 13. Qh4 Bxb3 $1 14. axb3 Nd4 15. O-O Nxe2+ 16. Kh1
Nd4 17. Bxb7 (17. f4 $143 h6) 17... Rb8 18. Be4 h6 19. Bxf6 Qxf6 20. Qxf6 gxf6
21. Rxa7 Rxb3 22. Rb1 Rd8 23. Rb7 Rxb7 24. Bxb7 $11 {1/2-1/2 Grigore,
G-Anapolsky,S/Bucharest 1994/EXT 97 (48)}) 12. Qf3 Be6 ({Also playable is} 
12... a5 13. Nd2 Bg4 14. Qxg4 Nxg4 15. Bxd8 Rfxd8 16. h3 Nf6 17. Ne4 Nxe4 18.
Bxe4 Ne7 19. g4 Rac8 20. b3 b6 21. Kd2 f6 {followed by g6 and f5, 1/2-1/2 Ward,
C-Emms,J/Dundee 1993/TD (38)}) 13. Rc1 Rc8 14. O-O b6 15. Nd2 h6 16. Bxf6 Qxf6
17. Qxf6 gxf6 18. Ne4 f5 $146 {This natural move is a novelty.} ({
Unsatisfactory is} 18... Na5 $6 19. b3 f5 20. Nd6 Rc7 21. Nb5 Re7 22. c5 $14 {
1/2-1/2 Zhukova,N-Goloshchapov,A/Moscow 2005/EXT 2006 (38)}) 19. Nd6 Rc7 20.
Nb5 Rcc8 21. Nd6 Rc7 22. Nb5 Rcc8 23. b3 {White has decided to continue the
game although Black has sufficient counterplay for maintain the balance.} e4
24. f3 $6 {A risky move.} ({More reasonable was} 24. Rfd1 Rfd8 25. e3 (25. c5
$2 bxc5 26. Rxc5 a6 27. Na3 Nb4 28. Rxc8 Rxc8 29. Rxd4 Nxa2 $17) 25... d3 (
25... dxe3 26. fxe3 $13) 26. f3 a6 27. Nc3 b5 $5 28. fxe4 (28. cxb5 $2 Nb4 {
/\ d2}) 28... bxc4 29. exf5 (29. bxc4 fxe4 30. Nxe4 Ne5 $132) 29... d2 30. Rc2
cxb3 31. Rcxd2 Rxd2 32. Rxd2 bxa2 33. Nxa2 Bxf5 34. Rd6 Ne5 35. Rxa6 Be6 $11 {
/\ Rc2}) 24... a6 25. Nd6 Rcd8 26. c5 e3 27. f4 Nb4 28. Nb7 Rb8 29. c6 $5 {
Best practical chance.} ({If} 29. cxb6 $6 {then} Nxa2 30. Rc7 Nc3 31. Re1 Bxb3
32. Nc5 $140 Rxb6 33. Nd7 Rb4 34. Nxf8 Kxf8 35. Ra7 Bc4 36. Bf3 Ra4 $17) 29...
Nxa2 30. Bf3 $5 {By protecting the pawn on e2 White prepares Rcd1.} Nxc1 ({
Stronger was} 30... Bxb3 $1) 31. Rxc1 Bxb3 {Allows White to win back the
exchange.} (31... Rbe8 $142 $5 32. c7 $140 Re7 33. Nd6 Bc8) 32. c7 Rbe8 33. Nd6
Be6 34. Bb7 Bc8 35. Nxc8 Rxc8 36. Bxa6 Rfe8 37. Bxc8 Rxc8 38. Kg2 $11 b5 (38...
Kf8 39. Rc4 Ke7 40. Rxd4 Rxc7 41. Rb4 Rc6 42. Rb5 Kf6 43. Kf3 Re6 $11) 39. Kf3
b4 40. Rc4 b3 41. Rxd4 Rxc7 42. Rb4 Rc3 43. Rb5 Kf8 44. Rxf5 Ke7 45. g4 Kd6 46.
Rb5 ({Of course not} 46. Rxf7 $4 Kc6 47. Rf8 Kb7 48. Rf5 Rc6 $19) 46... Kc6 47.
Rb8 Kd5 48. h4 f6 49. h5 Kd4 50. Rb4+ Kc5 51. Rb7 Kd5 52. g5 fxg5 53. fxg5 hxg5
54. Rb8 Rc4 55. Rxb3 Ke5 56. Rxe3+ Kf5 57. Kg2 Rg4+ 58. Rg3 Re4 59. Kf2 Rh4 60.
Rf3+ Ke4 61. Re3+ Kf5 62. Rf3+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Dortmund SuperGM 33rd"]
[Site "Dortmund"]
[Date "2005.07.17"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Bacrot, Etienne"]
[Black "Kramnik, Vladimir"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2729"]
[BlackElo "2744"]
[Annotator "Gavrikov,V"]
[PlyCount "111"]
[EventDate "2005.07.07"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 108"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.09.26"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.09.26"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 {A usual weapon of Bacrot
against the Nimzo-Indian Defence.} cxd4 6. Nxd4 Ne4 7. Qd3 Bxc3+ ({In my
opinion this continuation is much stronger than the mostly played} 7... Qa5 {
because it always allows Black to obtain at least an adequate counterplay
thanks to the weaknesses in White's pawn structure.}) 8. bxc3 Nc5 9. Qf3 ({
Otherwise Black solves all problems by b6 and Bb7. For example:} 9. Qd2 b6 10.
Nb5 O-O 11. Nd6 Bb7 12. Nxb7 Nxb7 13. Ba3 Re8 14. Rd1 {Rogozenko-Gavrikov,
Internet rapid,2004,} (14. Bg2 Nc6 15. O-O Qc7 16. Rfd1 Rad8 17. Bd6 Qc8 18.
Rab1 Nca5 19. Bxb7 Nxb7 20. Qf4 Qc6 $15 {1/2-1/2 Bang,A-Horvath,S/Copenhagen
1986/EXT 97 (42)}) {and now correct was} 14... Nc6 $1 15. Qxd7 $140 $2 Qf6 16.
Qd3 (16. Rc1 Nba5) 16... Rad8 17. Qf3 Rxd1+ 18. Kxd1 Rd8+ 19. Kc2 (19. Kc1 $2
Qg5+ 20. Qf4 Qa5 21. Kb2 Nc5 22. Bxc5 bxc5 $19) 19... Qg6+ 20. e4 Qg5 {with
dangerous attack.}) 9... d6 10. Bg2 Bd7 $146 {Black is planning Bc6 but the
drawback of this innovation is the loss of time.} ({Perhaps Kramnik had no
confidence in the theoretical line} 10... Nbd7 11. O-O Ne5 12. Qf4 Bd7) ({
but I can suggest another, even easier way to equality:} 10... e5 $5 $146 11.
Nb3 (11. Nf5 Bxf5 12. Qxf5 Nbd7 $132) 11... Nba6 (11... Nbd7 12. O-O Qc7 13.
Rd1 Nb6 14. Nxc5 dxc5 $13) 12. Be3 Qc7 13. Nxc5 (13. Rd1 Na4) 13... Nxc5 14.
Rd1 Be6 $1 15. Bxc5 dxc5 16. Qxb7 Qxb7 17. Bxb7 Rb8 18. Bd5 (18. Bc6+ Ke7 19.
Bb5 a6 20. Bxa6 Ra8 21. Bb5 Rxa2 $44) 18... Rb2 19. Bxe6 fxe6 20. Rd2 Rb1+ 21.
Rd1 Rb2 {with repetition of moves.}) 11. O-O Bc6 12. Qg4 O-O 13. Bh6 $1 {
Forcing the black queen to leave the unprotected the d6-pawn.} Qf6 14. Bg5 Qg6
15. Nxc6 Nxc6 16. Qh4 f6 ({Black has to reckon with Bxc6 and Be7,e.g.} 16...
Qc2 17. Bxc6 bxc6 18. Be7 Rfe8 19. Bxd6 Nb7 20. c5 Qxe2 21. Rfe1 (21. Rab1 Nxd6
22. cxd6 Rad8 23. Rb7 Qd3 $1 (23... Rxd6 $4 24. Qe7 $1) 24. Qf4 Rf8 $11) 21...
Qd3 22. Qb4 Nxd6 23. cxd6 Red8 24. Rad1 Qf3 25. c4 Rab8 26. Qa5 Rd7 27. Qc7 $1
Rbd8 28. Rb1 $1 h5 29. Rb8 Rxb8 30. Qxb8+ (30. Qxd7 Qc3 31. Rf1 Qxc4 32. Qc7 (
32. Qxa7 Rf8) 32... Rf8 33. d7 Qd3 34. h4 e5 $132) 30... Kh7 31. c5 Qc3 32.
Qb1+ g6 33. Qc1 {with better prospects for White}) ({another possibility was} 
16... Rac8 17. Rfd1 f6 {when} 18. Be3 (18. Bf4 $143 Ne5 19. Be3 Rfd8 20. Bxc5
Rxc5 21. Be4 Qh6 22. Qxh6 gxh6 23. Bxb7 Nxc4) 18... Rfd8 19. Bxc5 dxc5 20. Be4
(20. Bxc6 bxc6 21. Qf4 e5 22. Qe3 Qc2 23. Rxd8+ (23. Rdc1 Qd2) 23... Rxd8 24.
Qxc5 Qxe2 25. Qe7 Qd2 26. Qe6+ Kh8 27. Qxc6 Qb2 28. Rf1 Qxa2 29. Qc7 Qd2 (29...
Rg8 30. c5) 30. Ra1 h6 $1 (30... e4 $143 31. Qe7) 31. c5 Rd7 32. Qb8+ Rd8 33.
Qxa7 Qxc3 34. Rb1 Rc8 35. Rb8 Qe1+ 36. Kg2 Qe4+ $11) 20... Qh6 21. Qxh6 gxh6
22. Rxd8+ (22. Bxc6 $143 Rxd1+ 23. Rxd1 Rxc6 $1 24. Rd8+ Kf7 25. Rd7+ Kg6 26.
Rxb7 Ra6 27. Rb2 Ra4 $11) 22... Rxd8 (22... Nxd8 $2 23. Rd1) 23. Bxc6 ({
it seems that Black is able to maintain the balance after} 23. Rb1 Na5 24. Bxb7
Rb8 25. Be4 Rxb1+ 26. Bxb1 Nxc4) 23... bxc6 24. Rb1 Rd2 25. Rb8+ Kf7 26. Rb7+
Kg6 27. Rxa7 Rxe2 28. Ra5 e5 (28... Kf7) 29. Kf1 Rc2 30. a4 Rxc3 31. Rxc5 Ra3
32. a5 Ra2 {leads to the endgame with slight edge for White, but the most
probable result is draw.}) 17. Be3 Rfd8 ({Deserved attention} 17... Na5 {
(/\ Rac8,b6)} 18. Rfd1 Rfd8 {intending to meet} 19. Rd2 (19. Rab1 Rac8) (19.
Bxc5 dxc5 20. Be4 Qh6 21. Qxh6 gxh6 22. Rab1 f5 23. Rxd8+ Rxd8 24. Bxb7 Rb8 25.
Be4 Rxb1+ 26. Bxb1 Nxc4 $13) {with} 19... Qf7 20. Rad1 g5 (20... Qe7 21. Qf4)
21. Qd4 Rac8 22. f4 (22. h4 Nd7 $5 $13) 22... Nc6 23. Bxc6 bxc6 24. fxg5 f5 25.
Rb2 e5 26. Qd2 (26. Qh4 Ne4 $44) 26... Ne4 27. Qd3 d5 28. cxd5 cxd5 29. Rb3 Rd7
$132) 18. Rab1 $1 Qf7 $2 {After this mistake Black´s position becomes very
difficult.} ({It was necessary to parry the threat of Bxc5 by} 18... Rab8 19.
Rb5 (19. Bxc5 dxc5 20. Be4 Qh6 (20... f5 $2 21. Bxc6 bxc6 22. Qe7) 21. Qxh6
gxh6 22. Rb5 (22. Bxc6 bxc6 $11) 22... Ne5 23. Rxc5 Rd7 24. f4 b6 25. Rb5 Nxc4
26. f5 Nd2 27. fxe6 Rd6 28. Rf4 Nxe4 29. Rxe4 Re8 $11) 19... Qe8 $1 (19... a6
$143 20. Rb6 Na4 $140 $6 21. Rxb7 $1) 20. Bxc5 dxc5 21. Rxc5 Rd2 {with equal
play.}) 19. Bxc6 bxc6 20. Bxc5 dxc5 21. Qe4 e5 22. Rb2 $1 {Now White seizes
the b-file which is much more important than d-file because can be used for
invasion in Black´s camp.} Rab8 23. Rfb1 Rxb2 24. Rxb2 Qd7 25. Kg2 Re8 26. Qe3
Qe7 27. a4 $1 {[%cal Ga4a6,Gb2b7]} g6 $2 {Black is doomed to passivity and
cannot prevent the threatening penetration of white rook. However the text
makes White´s task easier.} ({Black should have tried} 27... e4 28. a5 Qe5 29.
Rb7 Re7 30. a6 (30. Rxe7 Qxe7 31. Qf4 Qe5 32. Qxe5 fxe5 $11) 30... Kf7) 28. a5
Rd8 $2 (28... Rc8 $142 29. a6 Rc7) 29. a6 Rd7 30. Rb8+ Kg7 31. Rc8 Qd6 32. Qe4
f5 (32... Rc7 33. Rxc7+ Qxc7 {allows} 34. Qb1 $1 Qf7 35. Qb7) 33. Qxc6 Qxc6+
34. Rxc6 Kf7 35. f4 $1 {White needs to activate his king.} exf4 36. gxf4 Re7
37. Kf3 Ke8 38. Rxc5 Kd7 39. Re5 Rxe5 ({In the event of} 39... Rf7 40. Rb5 Kc6
{White wins by} 41. e4 fxe4+ 42. Kxe4 Re7+ 43. Kf3 Rd7 44. h4 $1 Rd3+ 45. Kg4
h5+ (45... Rxc3 46. Rb7) 46. Kg5 Rg3+ 47. Kh6 Rg4 48. Rg5 Rxh4 49. Rxg6+ Kc5
50. f5) 40. fxe5 g5 41. c5 h6 42. c4 h5 (42... Kd8 43. c6 Kc7 44. c5 Kxc6 45.
e6 Kc7 46. Ke3 h5 47. Kd4 $18) 43. h4 $1 g4+ 44. Kf4 Ke6 45. c6 Ke7 46. c5 Ke6
47. c7 Kd7 48. e6+ Kxc7 49. e3 Kc6 50. Ke5 $1 g3 51. e7 Kd7 52. Kf6 g2 53. c6+
Kc7 54. e8=Q g1=Q 55. Qd7+ Kb6 56. c7 1-0

[Event "Mataro GM 1st"]
[Site "Mataro"]
[Date "2004.12.30"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Moskalenko, Viktor"]
[Black "Gonzalez Garcia, Jose"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2551"]
[BlackElo "2447"]
[Annotator "Gavrikov,V"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[EventDate "2004.12.26"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "9"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 106"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.06.06"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.06.06"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 O-O ({An interesting alternative to the
usual continuation} 4... d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 c5) 5. e4 d5 6. e5 Nfd7 7. cxd5
({Dubious is} 7. a3 $6 Bxc3+ 8. bxc3 dxc4 9. f4 (9. Bxc4 $2 Nxe5) (9. Nh3 c5
10. Ng5 cxd4 11. cxd4 {1/2-1/2 Sakaev,K-Timoshenko,G/Kherson 1991/CBM 021 ext 
(32)} h6 $5 12. Ne4 Nc6 {/\ Nb6 =/+}) 9... Nb6 10. Nf3 Nc6 11. Qc2 f5 12. a4
Na5 13. Ba3 Re8 $15 {0-1 De Santis,A-Rotstein,A/Arco 2003/EXT 2004 (56)}) 7...
exd5 8. a3 ({After} 8. f4 c5 9. Nf3 (9. a3 Ba5 10. Nf3 cxd4 11. Nxd4 Nxe5 $1
12. fxe5 Qh4+ 13. Ke2 Bb6 14. Be3 Bg4+ 15. Nf3 d4 16. Bxd4 Bxf3+ 17. Kxf3 Bxd4
18. g3 Qh5+ 19. Kg2 Qxe5 20. Qf3 Nc6 $17 {0-1 Volkov,S-Vekshenkov,N/Togliatti
2003/CBM 094 ext (72)}) {Black can exploit an untested idea} 9... cxd4 $5 (9...
Nc6 10. a3 Ba5 11. Be3 cxd4 12. Nxd4 Bxc3+ 13. bxc3 Qa5 14. Qc2 Nc5 $13 {
1/2-1/2 Mohr,S-Skrobek,R/Debica 1987/EXT 2005 (20)}) 10. Nxd4 Nxe5 $1 11. fxe5
Qh4+ 12. Ke2 Bc5 13. Be3 Bg4+ 14. Nf3 d4 15. Bg1 Rd8 16. Qe1 Qh6 {with more
than sufficient compensation for the piece} 17. Ne4 $140 d3+ 18. Kd1 Bxg1 19.
Rxg1 Qxh2 20. Qe3 Nc6 $17) 8... Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 f6 10. exf6 ({A well-known
mistake is} 10. f4 $2 fxe5 11. dxe5 Nxe5 $1 {0-1 Naumann,A-Timoshenko,G/Berlin
1997/CBM 059 ext (30)} 12. fxe5 $140 $2 Qh4+ 13. Kd2 Qf4+) 10... Qxf6 ({
Playable is} 10... Re8+ 11. Kf2 Qxf6 12. h4 Nb6 13. Bg5 Qf7 14. Bd3 Bf5 15.
Bxf5 Qxf5 16. g4 Qf7 17. Nh3 Nc6 18. Qd3 h6 19. Rae1 Ne7 (19... Nc4 $142) 20.
h5 Nc4 21. Bc1 {1/2-1/2 Korniukov,A-Brodsky,M/Krasnodar 2003/EXT 2005 (21)})
11. Bd3 Nb6 12. Ne2 Bf5 {By exchanging the light-squared bishops Black secures
the c4-square for the knight with a pleasant position.} 13. Bf4 {The idea of
this new move is to prepare the manoeuvre Be5 and f4.} (13. O-O Nc6 14. Bf4 Rf7
15. Rb1 Re8 {0-1 Kantorik,M-Johansson,J/Stare Mesto 2003/CBM 095 ext (50)})
13... Bxd3 14. Qxd3 Qe7 15. O-O Nc4 16. Rfe1 Nc6 ({The other way to develop
this knight is} 16... Qf7 17. Be5 c6 18. f4 Nd7 {with roughly equal chances.})
17. Ng3 Qf7 ({Attention deserves} 17... Qd7 18. Be5 N4xe5 19. dxe5 Rae8 20. Qb5
Rxe5 (20... b6 21. Rad1 Nxe5 22. Qxd7 Nxd7 23. Rxe8 Rxe8 24. Rxd5 Nc5 25. Kf2
$11) 21. Rxe5 Nxe5 22. Qxb7 a5 23. Rd1 Rd8 {with Nc4 to follow.}) 18. Be5 N6xe5
(18... N4xe5 19. dxe5 Rae8 20. f4 Qxf4 $140 21. Qxd5+ Kh8 22. e6 $14) 19. dxe5
Rae8 20. f4 ({After} 20. Qd4 $2 b6 21. Rad1 c6 22. a4 Re6 23. Re2 Qf4 $1 {
the e5-pawn is vulnerable.}) 20... Qxf4 ({Black could also play} 20... g5 $5
21. e6 (21. fxg5 Nxe5 22. Qd4 c5 23. Qd1 Kh8) 21... Rxe6 22. Rxe6 Qxe6 23. fxg5
Qe3+ 24. Qxe3 Nxe3 25. Re1 Nc4 {and White has nothing better than a repetition
of moves.} 26. Re7 Rf7 27. Re8+ Rf8 (27... Kg7 28. h4) 28. Re7 Rf7) 21. Qxd5+
Kh8 22. Qxb7 Rxe5 23. Qxa7 Ra5 24. Qd4 Qxd4+ 25. cxd4 Rxa3 26. Rac1 Ne3 27. Nf1
({Or} 27. Rxc7 Ra2 28. Re7 Nxg2 29. Rf1 Rxf1+ 30. Kxf1 Kg8 31. d5 (31. Nh5 Nh4
32. Rxg7+ Kf8 33. Rxh7 Nf3 $11) (31. Nf5 g6 32. Nh6+ Kf8 33. Rxh7 Ne3+ $11)
31... Kf8 32. d6 Nh4 33. Re4 Ng6 {with a draw.}) 27... Nxf1 28. Rxf1 Rxf1+ 29.
Kxf1 Ra7 30. Ke2 Kg8 1/2-1/2

[Event "RUS-ch sf 58th"]
[Site "Kazan"]
[Date "2005.09.04"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Volkov, Sergey"]
[Black "Bocharov, Dmitry"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2622"]
[BlackElo "2574"]
[Annotator "Gavrikov,V"]
[PlyCount "83"]
[EventDate "2005.09.03"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 109"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.11.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.11.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 O-O ({After} 5... b5 6. e4 bxc4 7.
Bxc4 Nxd5 8. Bxd5 exd5 9. Qxd5 Nc6 10. Nge2 Ba6 11. Kf2 O-O 12. Rd1 Ba5 (12...
Qb6 13. Be3 d6 14. Rab1 $14 {1/2-1/2 Sakaev,K-Kochyev,A/St Petersburg 1995/CBM
047 (21)}) {deserves attention} 13. a3 $5 Rb8 14. Bg5 Qc8 15. Rab1 {1/2-1/2
Volkov,S-Sorokin,M/Ekaterinburg 2002/CBM 090 (54) with better prospects for
White.}) ({but two other alternatives are quite playable for Black:} 5... exd5
6. cxd5 d6 7. e4 O-O 8. Nge2 (8. Bd3 Nbd7 9. Nge2 a6 10. O-O b5 11. Ng3 c4 12.
Bc2 Bc5+ 13. Kh1 Ne5 $132 {0-1 Zaichko,A-Totsky,L/Ekaterinburg 1996/EXT 2000 
(41)}) 8... a6 9. Ng3 Re8 10. Be2 Nbd7 11. O-O Nf8 12. Qc2 Bd7 13. Nd1 b5 14.
a3 Ba5 15. Ne3 Ng6 16. Nef5 Bxf5 17. Nxf5 Ne7 18. Ng3 c4 19. Kh1 Nd7 20. Bf4
$11 {1/2-1/2 Shirov,A-Wedberg,T/Stockholm 1989/EXT 2002 (20)}) (5... Bxc3+ 6.
bxc3 d6 7. e4 e5 8. Bd3 Nbd7 9. Ne2 Nf8 (9... h6 10. O-O g5 11. Ng3 Nf8 12. Bc2
Ng6 13. Nf5 Kf8 14. g3 Ne7 15. Be3 Nxf5 16. exf5 Bd7 $13 {1-0 Gomez,
J-Hernandez,E/Santo Domingo 2001/EXT 2003 (53)}) 10. h4 h5 11. Bg5 N8h7 12. Bd2
Qa5 13. a4 Bd7 14. Nc1 Qc7 15. Nb3 g6 16. a5 O-O-O 17. Qe2 Ng8 $1 18. Kd1 f5
19. Be3 Ngf6 20. Nd2 Rde8 $132 {0-1 Malaniuk,V-Vladimirov,E/Moscow 1992/EXT 97
(34)}) 6. e4 d6 ({In case of immediate} 6... b5 {Black has to reckon with} 7.
e5 (7. Bg5 h6 8. Bh4 Re8 $5 9. dxe6 Rxe6 10. Nge2 g5 11. Bf2 bxc4 12. a3 Ba5
13. h4 g4 14. Nf4 (14. Bxc5 d5 $15) 14... Rb6 15. Qd2 Nc6 $1 16. Bxc5 {[#]}
Rab8 $5 17. Bxb6 Qxb6 $44 {0-1 Volkov,S-Sakaev,K/New Delhi/Teheran 2000/CBM
081/ (43)}) 7... Ne8 8. f4 $5 $146 {e.g.} (8. dxe6 fxe6 9. cxb5 a6 $13 {
1/2-1/2 Radjabov,T-Istratescu,A/Antalya 2004/CBM 101 (42)}) 8... d6 9. Nf3 bxc4
10. Bxc4 Ba6 11. Bxa6 Nxa6 12. O-O Bxc3 13. bxc3 exd5 14. Qxd5 dxe5 15. Qxd8
Rxd8 16. Nxe5 f6 $6 (16... Nec7 $142) 17. Nc6 Rd7 18. Rb1 $14 {1-0 Bluvshtein,
M-Efimenko,Z/Montreal 2005/CBM 109_01 (68)}) 7. Nge2 (7. Bd3 b5 8. Nge2 exd5 9.
cxd5 a6 10. O-O Nbd7 {transposes to the line 5...exd5}) 7... b5 ({This is
Black´s main continuation,however also here more promising is instead} 7...
exd5 8. cxd5 a6 ({or} 8... Nbd7)) 8. Nf4 $1 {Practically forcing Black to
close the centre after which White´s space advantage will play an important
role.} e5 9. Nfe2 bxc4 10. Ng3 Nbd7 {This new try does not change the
evaluation of position as preferable for White.} (10... Ba6 11. Bg5 $5 h6 12.
Be3 Bc8 $6 (12... Nbd7) 13. Bxc4 Nbd7 14. O-O Nb6 15. Be2 Bxc3 16. bxc3 Bd7 17.
a4 $14 {1-0 Shirov,A-Savon,V/Moscow 1991/URS-ch (43)}) (10... Ne8 11. Bxc4 f5
12. exf5 Qh4 13. Qe2 Bxc3+ 14. bxc3 Bxf5 15. O-O Bg6 16. Bd3 Bxd3 17. Qxd3 $14
{1-0 Milov,V-Zelcic,R/Ohrid 2001/CBM 084/ (41)}) 11. Bxc4 Nb6 12. Be2 c4 {
Vacating the c5-square for the bishop but now Black´s c-pawn can be vulnerable.
} 13. O-O Bd7 14. Kh1 Re8 $6 {The waste of time because White is not planning
f3-f4.} ({Black should have protect his queenside by} 14... Qe7 15. Be3 Rfc8)
15. Bg5 $5 h6 16. Be3 Rc8 17. Qc2 Bc5 18. Bd2 Bd4 $6 ({It seems to me that
better was here} 18... Bb4 19. a3 Ba5 {preventing the advance a4-a5.}) 19. a4
$1 Rc5 ({Bad is} 19... a5 $2 20. Nb5 Bxb5 21. axb5 a4 22. Ba5) 20. a5 Nc8 21.
Na4 Rc7 22. Rfc1 Bb5 23. Nc3 Bd7 $2 {This mistake places Black in serious
trouble.} (23... Ba6 24. Nd1 Ne7 25. Ne3 Qb8 {with the idea} 26. Nxc4 Bxc4 27.
Bxc4 Qxb2 28. Ra2 Qxc2 29. Raxc2 Rb8 {allowed to continue the game in slightly
worse ending.}) 24. Nd1 $1 {[%csl Rc4]} Bb5 25. Ne3 Ne7 $2 {Now White´s task
is much easier.} ({More tenacious is} 25... Qd7 26. Nxc4 Bxc4 27. Bxc4 Rxc4 28.
Qxc4 Bxb2 29. Rab1 Bxc1 30. Qxc1 $16) 26. Nxc4 Ng6 ({Or} 26... Bxc4 27. Bxc4
Rxc4 28. Qxc4 Bxb2 29. Rab1 Bxc1 30. Qxc1 $1 {[%cal Gd2h6,Gb1b7] with decisive
threats.}) 27. Nf5 Nh5 (27... Bxc4 28. Bxc4 Rxc4 29. Qxc4 Bxb2 30. Qa6 Bxa1 31.
Rxa1 $18) 28. g3 ({Also possible was} 28. Nxd4 exd4 29. Qd1 Nhf4 30. Bf1) 28...
Bxc4 29. Bxc4 Rxc4 30. Qxc4 Bxb2 31. Qb4 Bxa1 32. Rxa1 {The d6-pawn collapses
and with it Black´s position.} Kh7 33. Qxd6 Qc8 34. Rc1 Qb7 35. Qb4 Qd7 36. Be3
Rc8 37. Rc4 Rxc4 38. Qxc4 Qb7 39. a6 Qb1+ 40. Kg2 Qb2+ 41. Kg1 Qa3 (41... Qb1+
42. Qc1 Qd3 43. Qf1 Qa3 44. Bxa7 $18) 42. d6 1-0

[Event "GER-ch 76th"]
[Site "Altenkirchen"]
[Date "2005.02.20"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Fish, Gennadij"]
[Black "Khenkin, Igor"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2523"]
[BlackElo "2604"]
[Annotator "Gavrikov,V"]
[PlyCount "70"]
[EventDate "2005.02.18"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 106"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.06.06"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.06.06"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 ({A more precise move order is} 4. Nf3 c5
5. g3 {because now Black can transpose to a favourable version of Catalan
Opening by playing d7-d5xc4.}) 4... O-O 5. Bg2 d5 6. Nf3 dxc4 7. O-O Nc6 8. Bg5
({White has also tried:} 8. a3 Be7 9. e4 Na5 10. Bf4 c6 11. Qe2 b5 12. Rad1 Bb7
13. Rfe1 a6 $15 {1-0 Gulko,B-Popovic,P/Paris 1986/TD (33)}) (8. Re1 Nd5 9. Qc2
Be7 10. Ne4 Ndb4 11. Qc3 b5 12. a3 Nd5 13. Qc2 Bd7 $15 {0-1 Ward,C-Timman,J/
Breda 1998/EXT 99 (37)}) (8. e3 Rb8 9. Qe2 b5 10. Rd1 {[%cal Ge3e4]} Nd5 11.
Bd2 Be7 $5 12. e4 Nxc3 13. bxc3 Na5 $1 {[%cal Gc7c5]} 14. h4 Bb7 15. Ng5 {
[%cal Ge2h5]} h6 16. Nh3 {[%cal Gh3f4,Gf4h5]} c5 $1 {1-0 Mikhalevski,V-Divljan,
I/Montreal 2004/CBM 101 ext/(42)} 17. Bf4 (17. dxc5 $2 Qc7 $1 18. Nf4 Bxc5 19.
Nh5 Kh7 $1 $17) 17... Rc8 18. dxc5 Qe8 19. Bd6 Ba8 $1 20. Nf4 Nb7 21. a4 bxa4
22. Bxe7 Qxe7 23. Rxa4 Nxc5 24. Rxc4 a5 {with a promising position for Black.})
8... h6 9. Bxf6 Qxf6 10. e3 {This has been played most often but it seems to
me that the whole line is certainly risky for White.} ({White has two other
popular possibilities:} 10. Ne4 Qe7 11. a3 Ba5 12. Qa4 Bb6 13. Qxc4 e5 14. d5
Nd4 $36 {0-1 Abbondanza,L-McMahon,D/Massy 1993/EXT 97 (30)}) (10. Rc1 {
(probably the better choice)} Rd8 11. e3 Qe7 12. Qe2 Na5 13. Nd2 Bd7 14. Nxc4
Bxc3 15. Rxc3 Bb5 16. b3 c5 17. Qh5 Bxc4 18. bxc4 cxd4 19. exd4 Qb4 20. Rf3 g6
21. Qxh6 Rxd4 22. Qg5 Nxc4 (22... Rxc4 23. a3 Qc5 24. Qf6 Rf8 25. Rd3 $13) 23.
Rb3 Qd2 24. Qf6 Nd6 {1/2-1/2 Ftacnik,L-Gabriel,C/Germany 1996/GER-chT (31)} 25.
Bxb7 Rb8 26. Bf3 {with approximately equal position.}) 10... Rb8 $1 {This
looks best since it prepares b7-b6 and it is unlikely for White to win back
the sacrificed pawn.} ({For the alternative} 10... Rd8 {interesting is the
following recent example:} 11. Ne4 $146 (11. Nd2) 11... Qe7 12. a3 Bd6 13. Nfd2
e5 14. Nxc4 exd4 15. exd4 Bf5 16. Nc3 (16. Re1 $142 Qd7 17. Nexd6 cxd6 18. Qd2)
16... Qf6 17. Nd5 Qxd4 18. Nxd6 Qxd1 19. Rfxd1 cxd6 (19... Rxd6 20. Nxc7 Rad8
21. Rxd6 Rxd6 $11) 20. Rac1 (20. Nc7 Rab8 21. Nb5) 20... Be6 21. b4 Rac8 22. b5
(22. Rxc6 bxc6 23. Ne7+ Kf8 24. Nxc8 Rxc8 25. Rxd6 c5 26. bxc5 Rxc5 $11) 22...
Bxd5 23. Bxd5 Na5 24. Ba2 $44 Kf8 25. Kg2 (25. Rxc8 $6 Rxc8 26. Rxd6 $4 Rc2 27.
b6 axb6 28. Bd5 Rd2 $19) 25... Ke7 26. Re1+ Kf8 27. Red1 {1/2-1/2 Ehlvest,
J-Yermolinsky,A/Moscow 2005/CBM 106_01 (27)}) 11. Nd2 Na5 ({In the event of} 
11... Bxc3 12. bxc3 Na5 13. Qa4 b6 {White can reply} 14. Nxc4 $5 ({worse is} 
14. Rfb1 $6 Ba6 15. Ne4 Qe7 16. Nc5 Bc8 17. f4 Rd8 18. Rb2 Bd7 19. Nxd7 Qxd7
20. Qc2 Qe7 $15 {1/2-1/2 Burmakin,V-Sarosi,Z/Harkany 1993/EXT 97 (61)}) 14...
Ba6 (14... Nxc4 15. Qxc4 Qe7 16. Rfc1 Bb7 17. Bxb7 Rxb7 18. Qc6 Rfb8 19. c4 Qd6
$11 {1/2-1/2 Arkhipov,S-Horvath,C/Kecskemet 1985/EXT 2000 (45)}) 15. Nxa5 Bxf1
16. Rxf1 bxa5 17. Qxa5 {with adequate compensation for the exchange.}) 12. Qa4
$6 ({Perhaps} 12. Qc2 {is stronger, although Black can keep the c4-pawn by} Qd8
$5 (12... Qe7 13. a3 Bd6 14. Nce4 b6 (14... b5 $6 15. a4 Bd7 $6 (15... b4 $142
16. Nxc4 b3 17. Qc1 Nxc4 18. Qxc4 e5) 16. axb5 Rxb5 17. Nc3 Nb3 18. Nxb5 Nxa1
19. Qxc4 Bxb5 20. Qxb5 Nc2 21. Nc4 $16 {1-0 Khalifman,A-Gurevich,M/Kiev 1986/
URS-ch (65)}) 15. Nxc4 Nxc4 16. Qxc4 Bb7 $11 {1/2-1/2 Kruppa,Y-Splosnov,S/
Minsk 1997/EXT 2000 (22)}) 13. a3 Be7 14. Ne2 b5 15. a4 c6 {with the idea} 16.
b3 (16. axb5 cxb5 17. Qc3 b4 18. Qc2 Ba6 19. Rfe1 Bb5) 16... Bb4 $1 (16... cxb3
17. Nxb3 Nxb3 18. Qxb3 Ba6 $15) 17. bxc4 Bxd2 18. Qxd2 Nb3 19. Qb2 Nxa1 20.
Rxa1 Qc7 21. c5 b4 $17 {1/2-1/2 Sulava,N-Lukacs,P/Budapest 1990/EXT 97 (30)})
12... Qe7 $1 13. a3 Bxc3 14. bxc3 b6 15. Rfd1 {Unfortunately for White he
cannot take on c4 in view of Bd7.} (15. Qb4 c5 (15... Qd6 $5) 16. dxc5 Qxc5 17.
Qxc5 bxc5 18. Ne4 Nb3 19. Rad1 Rb6 20. Nd6 Ba6 $15 {0-1 Alvarez,J-Vera,R/Cuba
1993/TD (33)}) 15... c5 $17 16. dxc5 Qxc5 17. Ne4 Qc7 18. Rab1 (18. Nd6 Bd7 19.
Qb4 Nb3 (19... Bc6) 20. Rab1 b5 21. Ne4 Bc6) 18... Bb7 19. Rd7 Qe5 20. Qc2 Rbd8
21. Rbd1 Bd5 22. f4 Qb8 23. Rxd8 Rxd8 24. Nf2 Bxg2 25. Kxg2 Nb3 26. e4 b5 27.
Kf3 Kf8 28. Ke2 f6 29. e5 Rxd1 ({But not} 29... fxe5 $2 30. Qh7 Kf7 {which
allows White to win the queen by} 31. Ng4 $1 exf4 32. Nxh6+ Kf6 33. Ng4+ Kf7
34. gxf4 Rxd1 35. Ne5+ Qxe5+ 36. fxe5) 30. Qxd1 fxe5 31. Qd7 exf4 32. Ne4 Qe5
33. Qd8+ Kf7 34. Kf3 fxg3 35. hxg3 Nc5 0-1

[Event "St Maxime-02"]
[Site "St Maxime"]
[Date "1982.05.??"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Giffard, Nicolas"]
[Black "Cebalo, Miso"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2345"]
[BlackElo "2495"]
[Annotator "Giffard,N"]
[PlyCount "76"]
[EventDate "1982.05.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "FRA"]
[EventCategory "7"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2018"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2017.10.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2017.10.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[TimeControl "40/9000:16/5400:0"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 c5 5. Nf3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 Ne4 7. Qd3 Qa5 8.
Nb3 Nxc3 9. Bd2 Ne4 10. Qxe4 Bxd2+ 11. Nxd2 O-O 12. Bg2 Nc6 13. Qe3 d5 14. O-O
d4 15. Qd3 e5 16. a3 Be6 (16... f5 17. Nb3 {Ljubojevic,L (2590)-Szmetan,J 
(2400) Konex Buenos Aires 1979 (7) 1-0} (17. b4)) 17. b4 Qc7 18. f4 exf4 19.
gxf4 g6 $146 (19... f6 20. Nb3 {Farago,I (2510)-Kruszynski,W (2285) Rubinstein
Memorial 17th 1979 (2) 1-0}) 20. f5 $2 (20. Ne4 $5 {[%csl Rf6]}) 20... Bxf5 21.
Rxf5 $6 {L'attaque Blanche est inexistante} gxf5 22. Qxf5 f6 23. b5 Ne7 24.
Qe6+ Kg7 25. Kh1 Ng6 26. Qd5 Rae8 27. Qxb7 Qxb7 28. Bxb7 Rxe2 29. Rd1 Ne5 30.
Nb3 d3 31. Nd4 Re8 32. h3 Rf2 33. Bd5 d2 34. Kg1 Nd3 35. Ne6+ Kh6 36. c5 Rg8+
37. Kh1 Rg3 38. c6 Re3 0-1

[Event "Tel Aviv Last Autumn"]
[Site "Tel Aviv"]
[Date "2002.11.03"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Kaganskiy, Gleb"]
[Black "Gofshtein, Leonid D"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2315"]
[BlackElo "2519"]
[Annotator "Gofshtein,L"]
[PlyCount "88"]
[EventDate "2002.11.01"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ISR"]
[EventCategory "8"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 092"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2003.02.06"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2003.02.06"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 c5 5. Nf3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8. O-O
{8.cxd5 line is more popular, but black may equalize in that case as well;} (8.
cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Qb6 $5 (9... Nc6 $5 10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. O-O Qa5 (11... Rb8 12.
Qc2 Be7 13. Rd1 Qb6 14. Na4 Qb5 $132 {1/2-1/2 Beliavsky,A-Alburt,L/Odessa 1974/
EXT 99 (40)}) 12. Bd2 Bxc3 13. bxc3 Ba6 14. Rfd1 Qc5 15. e4 Nb6 16. Be3 Qh5 17.
Rd6 Nc4 18. Rxc6 Nxe3 19. Rxa6 Rab8 20. Qa4 Rb2 21. Re1 Qe2 {0-1 Bacrot,
E-Anand,V/Bastia 2001/EXT 2002 (21)}) 10. Bxd5 (10. e3 Nc6 11. Nxc6 bxc6 12.
Bd2 Qa6 13. Rd1 Rb8 $132 {time. 0-1 Hort,V-Kindermann,S/Dortmund 1985/MCL (33)}
) 10... exd5 11. Be3 Nc6 12. Rd1 Qa5 13. O-O Bh3 14. Rfe1 Rac8 (14... Rfd8 15.
Rc1 Rac8 16. a3 Bxc3 17. Rxc3 Nxd4 18. Bxd4 Rc4 19. Rd1 $14 {1-0 Nielsen,
P-Akesson,R/Asker 1997/CBM 62/[Tisdall] (41)}) 15. Rc1 Ne5 $132 {Beliavsky,
A-Timman,J/Belgrade Invest 1995/CBM 51/[Baburin]/1-0 (69)}) 8... dxc4 9. Qa4 {
White's compensation is mostly based on strength of Bg2;} Na6 (9... Qxd4 10.
Qxb4 Nc6 11. Qa4 $44) (9... Qa5 10. Qxa5 Bxa5 11. Ndb5 $44) 10. Ndb5 Qb6 $5 {
Other moves, 10...Qe8 and 19...Nd5 gives black satisfactory play as well;} (
10... Qe8 $5 11. Rd1 Nd5 12. Qc2 $5 (12. a3 $6 Bxc3 $5 (12... Bd7 13. axb4 Nxc3
$132 {1/2-1/2 Lisik,V-Tregubov,P/Voronezh 1991/CBM 22 ext (35)}) 13. Nxc3 Nxc3
14. Qxe8 Nxe2+ 15. Kf1 Rxe8 16. Kxe2 Nc5 $17) 12... Bd7 13. Nxd5 exd5 14. Nc3
Bxc3 $132) (10... Nd5 $5 11. Nxd5 exd5 12. Rd1 Bd7 13. Rxd5 Qe8 14. Bf4 Bc5 15.
Rxc5 Nxc5 16. Qxc4 Bxb5 17. Qxc5 Qd7 $15 {1/2-1/2 Sunye Neto,J-Rodriguez
Cespedes,A/Merida 1993/EXT 97 (61)}) (10... Bxc3 11. Nxc3 Bd7 12. Qxc4 Rc8 13.
Qd4 Bc6 14. Qxa7 Ra8 15. Qe3 Nb4 16. Bxc6 bxc6 17. Qc5 $16 {1/2-1/2 Brumen,
D-Tolnai,T/Budapest 1994/EXT 97 (65)}) 11. Be3 {In case of 11.a3 white keeps
some edge;} (11. a3 $5 Be7 12. Qxc4 Bd7 13. Be3 Bc5 14. Na4 Qxb5 15. Qxb5 Bxb5
16. Nxc5 Nd5 17. Nxb7 Rab8 18. Na5 Bxe2 19. Rfe1 Nxe3 20. Rxe2 Nxg2 21. Kxg2
$14 {1-0 Kekki,P-Raaste,E/Helsinki 1989/EXT 97 (50)}) 11... Bc5 12. Bxc5 Qxc5
13. Rfd1 Nb4 14. Nd6 Nbd5 $5 $146 {[%mdl 8] Tochniu xod ,privodjashiu k
ravenstvy} (14... Rb8 15. Rac1 a6 (15... Bd7 16. Ncb5 Nfd5 17. Qxa7 Qxa7 18.
Nxa7 Ra8 19. a3 $14) 16. Nce4 Nxe4 17. Nxe4 Qe7 18. Rxc4 Nd5 19. Qc2 $14 {
1-0 Bewersdorff,O-Leutwyler,M/Bad Ragaz 1994/EXT 97 (30)}) 15. Nxc4 Nxc3 (15...
Bd7 $5 16. Qb3 Bc6 $11) 16. bxc3 Bd7 17. Qb4 Rac8 18. Nd6 Qxc3 19. Qxb7 Rc7 20.
Qa6 Rb8 $11 {Black has fully equalized the game now; Kaganskiy had to score 1.
5 out of 2 in 2 last rounds to achieve Im-norm, that's why he decided to play
on;} 21. Rab1 Rxb1 22. Rxb1 g6 23. Ne4 Nxe4 24. Bxe4 Bc6 25. Bxc6 Qxc6 26. Qa3
Kg7 27. h4 Qc2 $15 {Chernie yze imeut nebolshoi pereves} 28. Qb2+ Qxb2 29. Rxb2
Rc3 30. Rb3 $2 {Horrible blunder- pawn ending is probably lost for white;
Simple 30.Kg2 would keep it drawish;} (30. Kg2 $5 Ra3 31. g4) 30... Rxb3 31.
axb3 {[%mdl 4096]} Kf6 32. Kf1 Ke5 33. Ke1 f5 $1 {Black finds out the winning
plan: by f7-f5-f4 black creates weaknesses in white's position, and then more
active king of black decides;} 34. Kd2 {In case of 34.f3 f4 35.gxf4 Kxf4 black
wins thanks to much more active king as well as in the game line;} (34. f3 f4
35. gxf4+ Kxf4 36. Kf2 a5 37. e3+ Ke5 38. Ke1 (38. Kg3 Kd5 39. Kf4 Kc5 $19)
38... Kf5 39. Kf2 e5 40. Kg3 e4 41. Kg2 exf3+ 42. Kxf3 h6 $19) 34... f4 35. Kd3
{35.g4 was much more resistant; As it's proved below black wins there as well
but some exactness is required;} (35. e3 fxg3 36. fxg3 Ke4 37. Ke2 h5 38. b4 a6
$19) (35. g4 $5 Kd4 36. g5 (36. Kc2 h5 $1 37. gxh5 gxh5 38. Kd2 Ke4 39. Kc2 f3
40. e3 Kf5 41. Kd3 Kg4 42. Ke4 a5 43. Ke5 Kh3 $1 44. Kxe6 Kg2 45. e4 Kxf2 46.
e5 Kg3 $19) 36... e5 37. Kc2 Ke4 38. b4 Kd4 39. Kb3 a6 40. Ka4 e4 41. Kb3 f3
42. exf3 exf3 $19) 35... fxg3 36. fxg3 Kf5 37. Ke3 Kg4 38. Kf2 e5 39. b4 (39.
Kg2 a5 40. e4 (40. Kf2 e4 41. Kg2 e3 42. Kh2 Kf5 43. Kg2 Ke4 $19) 40... h6 41.
Kf2 Kh3 42. Kf3 g5 $18) 39... a6 $19 {The rest is simple- black wins now
easily;} 40. Kg2 e4 41. Kf2 Kf5 42. Ke1 Ke5 43. Kf1 Kd4 44. Kf2 h5 0-1

[Event "Championship of Israel prel"]
[Site "Tel Aviv"]
[Date "2000.08.23"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Golod, Vitali"]
[Black "Gershon, Alik"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2590"]
[BlackElo "2502"]
[Annotator "Golod,V"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "2000.08.16"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ISR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 079"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2000.11.21"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2000.11.21"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 Bxc3+ (5... b5 $5 {It's main line.
}) 6. bxc3 d6 7. e4 Qe7 $5 8. Ne2 ({Pretty dubious:} 8. Bd3 {because of:} Nbd7
9. Ne2 $140 Ne5 $36 {[%csl Rc4,Rd3] Bruzon,L-Barroso,W/Matanzas,1999(1-0) (39)}
) 8... Nbd7 ({Repeatedly was checked in the previous games:} 8... Nh5 $5 9. g4
Qh4+ $13) 9. Ng3 Nf8 $5 $146 {[%cal Gf8g6][%mdl 8]} ({It deserves attention:} 
9... Nb6 10. Be2 Bd7 11. a4 a5 12. O-O {+/=/= See comments to Costa,J-Kachiani
Gersinska,K/Mitropa Cup,1995/CBM46 (1-0) (Hecht)(82)}) ({Perilously:} 9... h5
$6 10. Be2 h4 11. Nf1 h3 12. g4 $1 $14 {[%cal Gf1g3]} (12. g3 $6 exd5 13. cxd5
Nxe4 14. fxe4 Qxe4 15. Be3 Ne5 $44 (15... Qxh1 $4 16. Bf3 $18 {[%csl Rh1]})))
10. Bd3 e5 ({Impossibly:} 10... exd5 11. cxd5 $140 Nxd5 $4 {in view of:} 12.
Bb5+ {[%csl Rd5]}) 11. Qa4+ $1 {Differently,I don't have a advantage after:} (
11. Bc2 $6 h5 12. Ba4+ Kd8 $13) ({or} 11. Nf5 Bxf5 12. exf5 e4 $1 13. fxe4 N8d7
$44) (11. O-O $5) 11... Kd8 {This move a much better,than:} (11... Bd7 $6 12.
Qb3 {[%csl Rb7]} Rb8 $140 13. Qa3 a6 14. Rb1 $14) 12. O-O $14 ({Is a possibe
continuation of the play:} 12. Be3 Ng6 13. Ne2 {+/=/=}) 12... Ng6 13. Nf5 $5
Bxf5 (13... Qf8 $143 14. Rb1 $36) 14. exf5 Nf4 $1 15. Bxf4 exf4 16. Rfe1 Qc7 $1
({Badly:} 16... Qd7 $2 {because of:} 17. Qc2 {[%csl Rf4][%cal Gc2d2,Gd2f4]})
17. Qc2 $6 {[%csl Rf4][%cal Gc2d2]} ({White save a advantage after:} 17. Qa3 $5
Re8 18. Rxe8+ Nxe8 19. Qc1 Qa5 20. Rb1 $1 Kc8 21. Rb3 {[%csl Rf4][%cal Gb3a3]})
17... Kd7 $1 ({Pretty dubious:} 17... g5 {because of:} 18. fxg6 hxg6 $140 19.
Qd2 Nh5 (19... g5 20. Bf5 $14) 20. g4 $1 fxg3 21. hxg3 $14 (21. Qg5+ $2 f6 22.
Qxg6 gxh2+ 23. Kh1 Qd7 $17 {[%csl Rh1][%cal Gh5g3,Yd7h3]})) 18. Qd2 ({After:} 
18. Qa4+ {also possibly:} Kc8 $13 (18... Kd8 19. Qc2 Kd7 $11)) 18... Qa5 19.
Rab1 b6 20. Rb5 $2 ({Can be recommended:} 20. Rec1 $13 {[%csl Yc1,Rc3][%cal
Yc1c3,Gd2f4]}) 20... Qa4 $1 {It's best reaction to 20.Rb5.} (20... Qa6 $2 21.
Ra1 {[%csl Ya1,Rf4][%cal Ya1a2]} Qa4 22. Qxf4 Nxd5 23. Qg4 $16 {[%csl Rg7]
[%cal Gc4d5]}) 21. Rc1 ({Another alternative is:} 21. Qxf4 Rhe8 (21... Nxd5 $2
22. Qg4 $40) 22. Ra1 (22. Rxe8 $2 Qd1+ 23. Bf1 Rxe8 $36) 22... Nxd5 $13) 21...
Rae8 {[%cal Ge8e3]} ({It deserves attention:} 21... Rhe8) 22. Qxf4 (22. Rbb1
Re3 $15) 22... Nxd5 23. Qd2 ({Weakly:} 23. Qg4 {because of:} Qa3 $1 $36 {
[%cal Ga3c1]} (23... Ne3 24. Qxg7 Qxa2 25. Bf1 $15)) 23... Ne3 {[%csl Rc4]} 24.
Rbb1 ({Interestingly:} 24. Be4 $5 Nxc4 (24... Rxe4 25. fxe4 Nxc4 26. Qd5 Qxb5
27. Qb7+ Ke8 28. Qc8+ Ke7 29. Qxh8 Qb2 30. Rf1 Qxc3 31. Qxh7 $13) 25. Qd5 Ke7
$15 (25... Qxb5 $4 26. Qb7+ Kd8 27. Bc6 {[%csl Rb5,Rd8][%cal Gc6b5,Gb7d7]} Qxc6
28. Qxc6 $16)) 24... Re5 25. Re1 (25. f4 Re7 $15) 25... Rhe8 26. Be4 ({
Senselessly:} 26. Rxe3 $2 Rxe3 $140 27. Be4 {[%csl Re3]} R3xe4 28. fxe4 Qc6 $1
$17 {[%csl Re4]}) 26... Nxc4 27. Qd3 d5 28. Red1 Kc7 (28... Ne3 $5 {Fritz 6}
29. Qxe3 $140 Kc8) 29. Bxd5 Ne3 30. Be4 $8 ({Leads to bad endgame:} 30. Bb3 $2
{because of:} Nxd1 $1 (30... Qc6 $5 {[%csl Rb3,Rd1,Rd3][%cal Gc5c4]} 31. Bxf7
Nxd1 $19 {[%csl Rg1][%cal Ge5e1]}) 31. Bxa4 Re1+ 32. Qf1 Rxf1+ 33. Kxf1 Nxc3
34. Bxe8 Nxb1 35. Bxf7 $17) ({Loses right away:} 30. Bxf7 $4 Nxd1 31. Rxd1
Qxd1+ $1 32. Qxd1 Re1+ $19) 30... Nxd1 31. Rxd1 Rxe4 $6 {A little strange
decision.} (31... Kc8 $142 32. Qd6 $17) 32. fxe4 Qxe4 33. Qd7+ Kb8 34. h3 {
[%csl Yg1][%cal Yg1h2] -/+/=/+} Qe7 35. c4 {From my point of view this move a
much better,than:} (35. Qxe7 $6 Rxe7 36. f6 gxf6 37. Rd8+ Kc7 38. Rh8 Kd6 39.
Rxh7 Kd5 $17 {[%csl Rc3][%cal Gd5c4]}) 35... f6 (35... Qxd7 $6 36. Rxd7 $132 {
[%csl Gd7]}) 36. Qc6 $6 (36. g4 $5 {An interesting idea which was mentioned by
Finkel,A after the game:}) 36... Rc8 $6 ({Good enough:} 36... Rd8 $1 37. Rb1 (
37. Rxd8+ Qxd8 $17) 37... Qd7 $1 $17 38. Qxc5 $140 $4 Qd1+ $1 $19) 37. Qf3 $1
Re8 ({Leads to easy draw:} 37... Rd8 $2 38. Qg3+ Kc8 39. Rxd8+ Qxd8 (39... Kxd8
40. Qb8+ $11 {[%csl Ra7]}) 40. Qxg7 Qd4+ 41. Kh2 Qe5+ 42. Kg1 Qxf5 43. Qxa7 $11
) 38. Kh1 Qe2 $2 {Decisive oversight.} (38... Qe4 $6 39. Rd8+ Kc7 40. Rxe8 Qxe8
41. Qg3+ Kc6 42. Qxg7 Qe1+ 43. Kh2 Qe5+ 44. Kg1 $1 {[%csl Yg1][%cal Yg1f1]}
Qxf5 45. Qxa7 $11) ({It is necessary:} 38... Kc7 $5 39. Qg3+ $140 Kc8 $15) 39.
Rd8+ Kc7 $8 40. Rc8+ $3 {[%mdl 64] Effective tactical move.} (40. Rxe8 $5 Qxe8
41. Qg3+ Kc6 42. Qxg7 Qe1+ 43. Kh2 Qe5+ 44. Kg1 $1 {[%csl Yg1][%cal Yg1f1]}
Qxf5 45. Qxa7 $11) 40... Kxc8 $8 (40... Rxc8 $4 41. Qxe2) (40... Kd6 $4 41.
Qd5+ Ke7 42. Rc7+ Kf8 43. Qf7#) 41. Qc6+ (41. Qc6+ Kd8 42. Qd6+ Kc8 43. Qc6+
Kb8 44. Qd6+ Kb7 45. Qd7+ Ka6 46. Qa4+ $11) 1/2-1/2

[Event "Linares Anibal op 08th"]
[Site "Linares"]
[Date "2001.01.17"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Golod, Vitali"]
[Black "Turov, Maxim"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2591"]
[BlackElo "2546"]
[Annotator "Golod,V"]
[PlyCount "47"]
[EventDate "2001.01.08"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 081"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2001.03.20"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2001.03.20"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. c4 Nf6 2. d4 e6 {It already present surprise. On my database,Maxim always
answers 2...g6.} 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 O-O {[%mdl 4]} (5... Bxc3+ 6. bxc3
d6 7. e4 Qe7 $5 {See comments to Golod,V-Gershon,A/Tel-Aviv,2000/CBM 79(1/2-1/
2)(Golod,V)(41)}) (5... b5 $5 {It's main line.}) 6. e4 Re8 7. Nge2 d6 {
Interestingly,that in the same round,same position stood on a board in a game:
Kobalija,M-Kacheishvili,G(there has followed 8.Bg5?!)} 8. Bd2 $5 (8. a3 $5 {
See comments to Timman,J-Kortschnoj,V/Rotterdam,1990/ CBM 18 (1/2-1/2)(Ftacnik,
L)(34)}) (8. Ng3 $143 Bxc3+ (8... b5 $5 $132) 9. bxc3 Qa5 $13 {Wells,P-King,D/
London,1991(1-0)(43)}) 8... exd5 {It was possible to not hasten with this move.
} (8... Nbd7 $5 9. dxe6 $140 $6 (9. Ng3 $5) 9... fxe6 10. Nb5 Bxd2+ (10... d5
11. Bxb4 cxb4 12. cxd5 exd5 13. Rc1 $5 $13 {[%csl Ra8,Re8][%cal Gb5c7]}) 11.
Qxd2 d5 $13) 9. cxd5 Nbd7 10. Ng3 (10. a3 $143 Ba5 11. Ng3 Ne5 12. Be2 Bd7 13.
O-O c4 $13 {Prudnikova,S-Sygulski,B/Naleczow,1989(1/2-1/2)(45)}) 10... Ne5 $5 (
10... a6 $5 11. Be2 b5 12. O-O Ne5 13. a4 {See comments to Dreev,A-Salov,V/
Biel,1993/CBM 37(0-1)(Ambroz,J)(55)}) 11. Be2 c4 {I am not sure that was
necessary to make this move.} ({It deserves attention:} 11... Bd7 $5) 12. O-O (
{Weakly:} 12. Be3 {in view of:} Qa5 {[%cal Gb4c5]}) 12... Bd7 13. Kh1 $5 $146 (
{Was checked in the previous game:} 13. Be3 b5 14. Qd2 Ba5 15. Rfc1 Bb6 16. Nh1
Rc8 17. Nf2 $11 {1/2-1/2 Costa,J-Bischoff,K/Brno,1991(17)}) 13... b5 $6 {
Maxim did not see up to last moment my 17-th move.} 14. a4 a6 $2 {[%mdl 8192]}
({It is necessary:} 14... bxa4 15. Nxa4 {[%csl Ra7,Rc4]} a5 $14) 15. axb5 $1
axb5 $8 (15... Bxb5 $2 16. Nxb5 Bxd2 17. Nxd6 Qxd6 18. Qxd2 $18) 16. Rxa8 Qxa8
17. Bg5 $1 $16 {[%csl Rf6]} ({Much worse is:} 17. Nxb5 Bxd2 18. Nxd6 Bf4 19.
Nxe8 Qxe8 (19... Bxe8 $143 20. Nf5) (19... Nxe8 $143 20. Nh5) 20. Qd4 {+/=/+/-}
) 17... Kf8 $2 {It's decisive mistake.} (17... Kh8 $6 18. Bxf6 gxf6 19. f4 (19.
Nh5 $5 {[%csl Rf6][%cal Gd1d2,Gd2h6]}) 19... Nd3 (19... Ng6 $143 20. f5 (20.
Qd4 $5) 20... Ne5 21. Nh5 $18 {[%csl Rf6,Rh8][%cal Gd1c1,Gc1h6]}) 20. Bxd3 cxd3
21. Qxd3 $16) ({More stubborn resistance after:} 17... Qd8 $5 18. Nh5 Ng6 $16)
18. Bxf6 gxf6 19. Nh5 $1 Ke7 ({Also loses:} 19... Qd8 20. Qd2 {[%csl Rf6][%cal
Gd2h6]} Ng6 $140 21. Qh6+ Ke7 22. Qg7 $18 {[%csl Rf6]}) 20. f4 Nd3 (20... Ng6
21. Qd4 Kd8 22. Nxf6 (22. Qxf6+ $5 Re7 23. e5 $18) (22. Nxb5 $5) 22... Bc5 23.
Qd2 $18 {[%csl Rb5,Rc4,Yd7][%cal Gf6d7]}) 21. Bxd3 cxd3 22. Qxd3 $18 Bg4 $2 {
[%mdl 8192] Again tactical mistake the truth already in a hopeless position.} (
22... Bc5 23. e5 fxe5 24. fxe5 Kd8 (24... dxe5 $2 25. Rxf7+ $1 Kd8 (25... Kxf7
$4 26. Qxh7+ Kf8 27. Qg7#) 26. Rxd7+ Kxd7 27. Qxb5+ Kd8 (27... Kd6 28. Ne4+
Kxd5 29. Nhf6+ Kd4 30. Qxc5+ Kd3 31. Qc3+ Ke2 32. Qd2+ Kf1 33. Qd1#) 28. Qxc5
Qa1+ 29. Qg1 Qxb2 30. Ne4 $18) 25. exd6 Bxd6 26. Nf6 $18) 23. Nxf6 $1 Bxc3 (
23... Kxf6 24. Qd4+ {[%csl Rb4,Gd4,Rf6]}) 24. Nxe8 (24. Nxe8 Bxb2 {and now I
have as a minimum three ways of a win:} 25. Nxd6 (25. Nc7 $18 {[%csl Rb5][%cal
Gc7b5]}) (25. Qxb5 $18 {[%csl Rb2]}) 25... Kxd6 26. e5+ Ke7 (26... Kc7 27. Qc2+
{[%csl Rb2]}) (26... Kd7 27. Qxb5+ {[%csl Rb2]}) 27. d6+ Kd8 (27... Kf8 $2 28.
Qxh7 {[%csl Ra8,Rf8][%cal Gh7h8]}) 28. Qxh7 Bd7 29. Qxf7 $18) 1-0

[Event "Mukachevo m"]
[Site "Mukachevo"]
[Date "2010.08.14"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Efimenko, Zahar"]
[Black "Naiditsch, Arkadij"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2689"]
[BlackElo "2684"]
[Annotator "Golubev,M"]
[PlyCount "68"]
[EventDate "2010.08.12"]
[EventType "match"]
[EventRounds "6"]
[EventCountry "UKR"]
[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. Nf3 c5 5. g3 O-O 6. Bg2 cxd4 7. Nxd4 d5 8.
cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Qa5 10. Bd2 Nc6 11. Nxc6 bxc6 12. O-O Bxc3 13. bxc3 Ba6 14.
Rfd1 Qc5 15. e4 Bc4 16. Qa4 Nb6 17. Qb4 Qh5 18. Re1 $5 {The famous Kramnik's
novelty from the 2008 world championship match. Since then, a couple of new
games on the same topic were played.} c5 19. Qa5 Rfc8 20. Be3 Be2 21. Bf4 Bd3 {
In Kramnik-Anand, Bonn Wch 2008 (Game 10) Black tried 21...e5 but did not
manage to solve his problems and later lost.} 22. Rad1 ({In the game
Mamedyarov-Jakovenko, Astrakhan 2010 (Round 1) White achieved no advantage
after} 22. e5 Nd5 23. Be3 Qxe5 24. Bxc5 Qc7 25. Qxc7 Rxc7) 22... Be2 (22... Bc2
23. Rc1 Bd3 {transposes to the game}) 23. Rc1 Bd3 $1 $146 ({Mamedyarov-Leko,
Astrakhan 2010 (Round 12) saw} 23... Bg4 $6 24. c4 $1 Bh3 25. Bxh3 Qxh3 26. Qb5
f6 27. e5 {with a big White's advantage.}) 24. Bd6 ({Black's novelty was
already analysed by GM Shipov who provided the line} 24. e5 Nc4 25. Qa6 g5 26.
Bxa8 Rxa8 {with Black's attack.}) 24... e5 ({After the more obvious} 24... Nc4
{White must play} 25. Qa6 {This line was undoubtedly prepared by Efimenko.})
25. Bxc5 {After this capture, Black obtains a sufficient positional
compensation for the pawn: White's dark squared bishop will be dominated by
the black knight.} Nc4 26. Qb5 a6 27. Qd7 Be2 $1 ({Avoiding} 27... Rd8 28. Qf5
$1) 28. Be7 ({Black also seems to be OK after} 28. Rc2 Bg4) 28... Bg4 29. Qb7
f6 $5 ({Black hardly should go for} 29... Rcb8 30. Qd5 Be6 31. Qd1) ({Possible
was} 29... Be6) 30. Bc5 {This retreat is unimpressive.} ({maybe White could try
} 30. Rb1 $5) 30... Qe8 {Around here only Black could have tried to play for a
win, but Naiditsch did not find serious chances. The game ended in a
repetition of moves.} 31. Be3 Be6 32. Bf1 Rcb8 33. Qc7 Rc8 34. Qb7 Rcb8 1/2-1/2

[Event "Bayern-chI Bank Hofmann 14th"]
[Site "Bad Wiessee"]
[Date "2010.11.04"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Khalifman, Alexander"]
[Black "Naumann, Alexander"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2626"]
[BlackElo "2544"]
[Annotator "Gutman,L"]
[PlyCount "55"]
[EventDate "2010.10.30"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2011"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.11.26"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.11.26"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. g3 O-O 6. Bg2 c5 7. dxc5 Na6 8. O-O
Nxc5 9. Qd4 $1 {Eine wichtige Neuerung.} ({Nach} 9. cxd5 {gleicht 9...} Bxc3 $1
({dies ist stärker als} 9... exd5 10. Qd4 Bxc3 11. Qxc3 Nce4 12. Qa3 Bd7 {
, Gaprindashvili-Peptan, Interzonal Kishinev 1998, wonach} 13. Be3 Re8 14. Rac1
$14 {etwas Plus versprach}) 10. bxc3 exd5 11. Qd4 Nce4 12. Ne5 Re8 13. Bf4 Qe7
14. Nd3 b6 $11 {das Spiel aus.}) 9... Qe7 ({Auch} 9... b6 {reicht nicht zum
Ausgleich wegen} 10. cxd5 Bxc3 11. Qxc3 Nxd5 12. Qd4 Bb7 13. b3 f6 14. Ba3 $14)
10. Be3 ({Einfacher war} 10. Bg5 $5 Bxc3 11. Qxc3 Nce4 12. Bxf6 Nxf6 13. Rac1
$14 {mit besseren Aussichten für Weiß.}) 10... Nce4 11. cxd5 Bxc3 12. d6 Qxd6
13. bxc3 Qxd4 $2 ({Danach ist die Partie nicht mehr zu retten. Notwendig war} 
13... Qc7 {, wenn auch nach} 14. Rac1 Rd8 15. Qb4 e5 16. Ng5 Nxg5 17. Bxg5 Rb8
18. Rfd1 Rxd1+ 19. Rxd1 Be6 20. Bxf6 gxf6 21. Bd5 $14 {Weiß mehr vom Spiel
behält.}) 14. Bxd4 Bd7 15. Ne5 Bb5 16. c4 Ba6 17. Rfc1 Rfc8 18. c5 Bxe2 19. f3
Rd8 20. Bb2 Nd2 21. Rc2 Ne8 22. f4 Rac8 23. Bc1 f6 24. Bxd2 fxe5 25. Bxb7 Bd3
26. Bxc8 Bxc2 27. Bxe6+ Kf8 28. Ba5 1-0

[Event "Biel"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "1995.??.??"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Adianto, Utut"]
[Black "Brunner, Lucas"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2590"]
[BlackElo "2530"]
[Annotator "Hansen,Cu"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "1995.07.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "15"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 049"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1995.12.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1995.12.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 Ne4 7. Qd3 Qa5 8.
Nb3 Nxc3 9. Bd2 Ne4 10. Qxe4 Bxd2+ 11. Nxd2 O-O 12. Bg2 Nc6 13. Qe3 d5 14. O-O
d4 15. Qd3 e5 (15... Rd8 16. Rfd1 $5 $146 (16. a3 Ne5 (16... Qh5 17. f4 $1 a5
18. b3 e5 19. f5 Ne7 20. f6 $1 $16 {Ubilava-Sturua, USSR 1980}) 17. b4 {[#]} (
17. Qc2 Qc7 18. Qe4 (18. Rac1 Bd7 {= Gulko,B-Georgadze,G/URS 34/(655) 1982})
18... a5 19. Rac1 (19. b3 Ra7 20. e3 dxe3 21. Qxe3 b6 22. Rfe1 Nd3 23. Red1 Qc5
24. Qxc5 Nxc5 25. Bc6 Kf8 26. Ne4 Rxd1+ 27. Rxd1 Ke7 28. Nxc5 bxc5 29. f4 {
1/2-1/2 Georgadze,T-Ostermeyer,P/Hannover (15) 1983}) 19... a4 20. c5 Ra5 21.
b4 axb3 22. Nxb3 Ra4 23. Qf4 h6 24. h4 $14 {Polugaevsky,L-Ftacnik,L/Moscow 39/
680 1985/}) 17... Qc7 18. Qb3 Bd7 19. f4 Ng6 20. Nf3 Bc6 21. Rfd1 e5 22. f5 Ne7
23. Qc2 f6 24. Rac1 Rac8 25. g4 $14 {Gaprindashvili,N-Mokry,K/Polanica Zdroj
42/720 1986}) 16... e5 17. a3 Be6 (17... Qc7 18. b4 Be6 {- 17... Be6}) 18. b4
Qc7 19. Ne4 $13 {Zvjaginsev,V-Tiviakov,S/Wijk (op) 62/(547) 1995 (24)} (19. c5
$6 f5)) (15... Qb6 16. Qa3 e5 17. c5 Qb5 18. Rfe1 Nb4 19. Rac1 Be6 20. Ne4 Nd5
21. Nd6 Qc6 22. f4 f6 23. e3 dxe3 24. f5 $16 {Gulko,B-Agzamov,G/URS 34/655 1982
}) 16. Nb3 (16. a3 f5 (16... Bf5 17. b4 (17. Qxf5 $1 Qxd2 18. Qd3 {[#]} Qh6 $1
(18... Qxd3 19. exd3 Rfe8 20. b4 f5 21. Bd5+ Kf8 22. Rae1 g5 23. f4 gxf4 24.
gxf4 $16 {Izeta,F-Fernandes,An/Andorra zt 1987 (37)}) 19. Rfd1 Rac8 20. Rac1 {
1/2-1/2 Eger,A-Stoliar,EJ/WT/M\463 1989\91 CCYB 6\319 1992}) (17. Ne4 $6 Bg6
18. b4 Qc7 19. f4 f5 20. Ng5 e4 21. Qd2 Bf7 $15 {Ftacnik L.-Prandstetter E.,
CSSR 1982}) 17... Bxd3 18. bxa5 Bxe2 19. Rfe1 d3 20. a6 Rac8 21. axb7 Rc7 22.
Rab1 Rb8 23. Rb5 f5 24. Bd5+ Kf8 25. Rc5 $14 {Krakops,M-Berzinsh,R/LAT-ch Riga
1993}) (16... g6 $1 17. b4 Qc7 18. c5 Bf5 19. Qb5 (19. Be4 Be6 20. f4 exf4 21.
Bxc6 Qxc6 22. Rxf4 {1/2-1/2 Hergott,D-Polaczek,R/Brussels OHRA op (09) 1987})
19... Rad8 20. Ne4 Bxe4 21. Bxe4 f5 22. Bxc6 Qxc6 $10 {Cvitan,O-Nikolic,Pr/
Sarajevo 43/(691) 1987}) (16... Be6 17. b4 Qc7 18. f4 (18. Ne4 Ne7 19. c5 Bd5
20. f4 Rad8 21. f5 $14 {Ricardi,P-Garcia Gonzales,G/Bayamo 41/630 1986 (47)})
18... exf4 19. gxf4 Bg4 (19... g6 20. f5 Bxf5 21. Rxf5 gxf5 22. Qxf5 f6 {
-/+ Giffard,N-Cebalo,M/Sainte Maxime 33/(659) 1982}) 20. h3 Bh5 21. Rf2 Rfe8
22. Nf1 Re7 23. e4 dxe3 24. Nxe3 $14 {Farago,I-Budde,V/Wuppertal 1986 (40)}) (
16... Qc7 17. f4 exf4 18. Rxf4 Be6 (18... Re8 19. Bd5 Be6 20. Raf1 Qb6 21. b4
Ne5 22. Qxd4 $16 {Popov,N-Chekhov,V/URS 27/587 1979}) 19. Bxc6 bxc6 20. c5 Qe5
21. b4 Bd5 22. Rxd4 f5 23. Nc4 {+/- Catalan,T-Saeed,S. A/Dubai 31/(625) 1981})
17. b4 Qd8 (17... Qc7 18. c5 (18. Nb3 {Dautov} e4 19. Qd2 Be6 20. Nxd4 (20.
Rac1 {Dautov} Rad8 21. b5 Ne5 22. Nxd4 Bxc4 23. Qb2 Qb6 $10) 20... Nxd4 21.
Qxd4 Bxc4 $10 {Kramnik,V-Izeta,F/Madrid/1993/ (41)} (21... Qxc4 {Dautov} 22.
Qe3 Qb3 $10)) (18. Bd5+ {Dautov} Kh8 19. Nb3 Ne7 20. Bg2 Rd8 (20... f4 $5) 21.
Rac1 Rb8 22. Rfd1 Be6 23. Nc5 Bf7 $132) 18... Be6 19. Nc4 e4 20. Qc2 Rfd8 21.
Rfd1 Kh8 $15 {Padevsky,N-Semkov,S/BUL 31/625 1981 (46)}) 18. Bd5+ Kh8 19. Nb3
Ne7 20. Bg2 f4 21. Nc5 Rb8 22. Rac1 Qe8 23. Qe4 Ng6 24. Qc2 $14 {Alterman,
Boris-Gruenfeld,Yehuda/Haifa VIDRA-mem (06) 1995}) (16. f4 g6 17. Nb3 Qc7 18.
fxe5 Bf5 19. Qd2 Qxe5 20. Bxc6 bxc6 21. Qxd4 Qxe2 22. Rae1 Qd3 23. Re3 Qxd4 24.
Nxd4 $14 {Wells,P-Kinsman,A/BCF-ch 1989/1-0 (58)}) 16... Qb6 17. f4 {[%csl Rd4]
קd4} Rd8 18. c5 Qc7 19. Be4 {[%cal Ye4h7] /^b1-h7} g6 20. f5 {[%csl Ge4]} Qe7
21. Nd2 {[%csl Rc8] ץc8} Bd7 (21... Qxc5 $2 22. fxg6 hxg6 23. Bxg6 fxg6 24.
Qxg6+ Kh8 25. Rf7 $18) 22. a3 {[%cal Yb2b4,Yd2c4,Yc4d6] /\b2-b4,Nd2-c4-d6} a5
23. Rf2 {[%cal Ya1f1] /\Raf1 <->f} Be8 {[%csl Rf7]} 24. Qc4 {[%cal Yf5g6] /\25.
fxg6 fxg6 26.Bxg6} a4 25. Raf1 $5 (25. fxg6 hxg6 26. Bxg6 Na5 27. Qa2 $16)
25... Na5 26. Qa2 Ra6 27. fxg6 hxg6 28. Bd5 {[%csl Rf7]} Rxd5 29. Qxd5 $18 Re6
30. c6 $1 (30. Ne4 $2 Bc6 $19) 30... Nxc6 31. Ne4 {[%csl Rf6] ><f6} Nd8 32. Rf6
Rc6 33. Nd6 {[%cal Yf6g6] /\Rxg6+} Kg7 34. h4 Rc2 35. Nxe8+ Qxe8 36. Rd6 Rc8 (
36... Nc6 37. Rd7 $18) 37. h5 gxh5 38. Rf5 Ne6 39. Qxe5+ Kg8 40. Rxh5 Ng7 41.
Rdh6 {[%cal Yh6h8]} 1-0

[Event "Linares Anibal op 08th"]
[Site "Linares"]
[Date "2001.01.16"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Kobalia, Mihail"]
[Black "Ibragimov, Ildar"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2581"]
[BlackElo "2571"]
[Annotator "Hecht,H"]
[PlyCount "111"]
[EventDate "2001.01.08"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 081"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2001.03.20"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2001.03.20"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 c6 7. Qc2 Nbd7 8. e4
dxe4 9. fxe4 e5 10. Nf3 c5 11. Bd3 O-O 12. O-O h6 13. d5 Ne8 14. Qf2 Qe7 15.
Qg3 Kh7 16. Nh4 Nd6 17. Ra2 Nf6 18. Qe1 Bd7 19. Raf2 Ng8 20. Rb2 b6 21. Qg3
Rae8 22. Rbf2 g5 23. Nf3 f6 24. h4 g4 25. Nxe5 fxe5 26. Rxf8 Rxf8 27. Rxf8 Qxf8
28. Qxe5 b5 29. Qg3 bxc4 30. Bc2 Nf6 (30... Kh8) 31. Qxd6 $1 Qxd6 32. e5+ Kg7
33. exd6 Nxd5 34. Be4 {Starkes weißes Läuferpaar bei offener Stellung.} Nf6 35.
Bb7 Be6 36. Be3 Nd7 37. h5 Kf6 38. Bxh6 Bf7 39. Kf2 Bxh5 40. Kg3 Ke6 41. Bf4
Kf5 42. Bd5 Be8 43. Bxc4 Nf6 44. Bd3+ Ke6 45. Kh4 Nd5 (45... Bc6 $142 46. g3 a5
) 46. Bc4 Bd7 47. Kg5 a5 48. Bg3 a4 49. Bh2 Bc8 50. Bd3 Kf7 51. Bg6+ Kf8 52.
Bg1 c4 53. Bd4 g3 54. Bf5 Bxf5 55. Kxf5 Kf7 56. d7 1-0

[Event "Mitropa Cup 16th"]
[Site "Buekfuerdo"]
[Date "1995.??.??"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Costa, Jean Luc"]
[Black "Kachiani Gersinska, Ketino"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2425"]
[BlackElo "2380"]
[Annotator "Hecht,H"]
[PlyCount "163"]
[EventDate "1995.02.27"]
[EventType "team-tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "HUN"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 046 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1995.07.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1995.07.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 d6 7. e4 Qe7 8. Ne2
Nbd7 9. Ng3 Nb6 10. Be2 Bd7 11. a4 a5 12. O-O h5 13. dxe6 fxe6 14. Qb3 Ra6 15.
e5 dxe5 16. Bg5 Bc6 17. Bd3 h4 18. Bg6+ Kd8 19. Ne4 Kc8 20. Rfd1 Rd8 21. Rxd8+
Kxd8 22. Bxh4 Kc7 23. Bg3 Nfd7 24. h4 Ra8 25. Nf2 Rf8 26. Re1 Bxa4 27. Qa2 Kc8
28. Nd3 Bc6 29. Qxa5 Nxc4 30. Qa7 Qd6 31. Qa2 Bd5 32. Qe2 Kc7 33. Nf2 b5 34.
Bd3 Kb6 35. Rb1 Na3 36. Rb2 b4 37. Ne4 Qb8 38. Bf2 Kc6 39. cxb4 c4 40. b5+ Kb7
41. Bb1 Qc7 42. Nc3 Nxb1 43. Rxb1 Ra8 44. Qd2 Qd6 45. Qc1 Nc5 46. Qg5 Nd3 47.
Qxg7+ Qc7 48. Qxc7+ Kxc7 49. Be3 Rh8 50. Bg5 Kb6 51. Kf1 Rh7 52. Ke2 Nf4+ 53.
Kf2 Kc5 54. Bxf4 exf4 55. b6 Bb7 56. Ne4+ Bxe4 57. fxe4 Rb7 58. h5 c3 59. h6 c2
60. Rc1 Rxb6 61. h7 Rb8 62. Rxc2+ Kd4 63. Kf3 Ke5 64. Rc5+ Kf6 65. Rh5 Rh8 66.
e5+ (66. Kxf4 e5+ 67. Kg4 Kg6 68. g3 $18) 66... Kg6 67. Kg4 Rxh7 68. Rxh7 Kxh7
69. Kxf4 $18 Kh6 70. Kg4 (70. g4 Kg6 71. Kf3 Kh6 72. Kg2 Kg6 73. Kh3 Kg5 74.
Kg3 Kh6 75. Kh4 Kg6 76. g5 Kf5 77. Kh5 Kxe5 78. g6 Kf6 79. Kh6 $18) 70... Kg6
71. g3 Kh6 72. Kh4 Kg6 73. g4 Kh6 74. g5+ Kg6 75. Kg4 Kg7 76. Kh5 Kh7 77. g6+
Kg8 78. g7 $1 {Weiss erobert die 6.Reihe absolut mit Hilfe der Oppsition.
Regel: Weiß gewinnt immer den Pe6, wenn er eines der drei neben dem Pe6
liegenden Felder betritt.} Kxg7 (78... Kf7 79. g8=Q+ Kxg8 80. Kg6 $18) 79. Kg5
Kf7 80. Kh6 {Gewinnfeld. (auch b6 ist ein Gewinnfeld, nicht aber a6, denn
gegen Ka6 kann sich Scharz mit Kc6 wehren).} Kf8 81. Kg6 Ke7 82. Kg7 1-0

[Event "FRA-ch"]
[Site "Val d'Isere"]
[Date "2002.08.29"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Bacrot, Etienne"]
[Black "Lautier, Joel"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2653"]
[BlackElo "2663"]
[Annotator "Hecht,H"]
[PlyCount "95"]
[EventDate "2002.08.19"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "FRA"]
[EventCategory "13"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 091"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2002.11.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2002.11.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 Ne4 6. Qd3 Qa5 7. Qxe4 Bxc3+ 8.
Bd2 Bxd2+ 9. Nxd2 d6 10. Bg2 O-O 11. dxc5 dxc5 12. Qe3 Rd8 13. a3 Nc6 14. Rd1
Nd4 15. O-O Bd7 16. Nb3 Nxb3 17. Qxb3 Bc6 18. Bxc6 bxc6 19. Rxd8+ Rxd8 20. Rd1
h6 21. Kg2 Qc7 22. Rxd8+ Qxd8 23. Qb7 Qb6 24. Qxb6 axb6 {[#] 7-7 Bauern mit
etwas besserer weißer Bauernstruktur - Reservetempi am Damenflügel} 25. e4 e5
26. f4 exf4 27. gxf4 Kf8 28. Kf3 g6 29. e5 Ke7 30. Ke4 f5+ 31. exf6+ Kxf6 32.
a4 Ke6 33. Kd3 g5 34. fxg5 hxg5 35. Kc3 Ke5 36. b4 cxb4+ 37. Kxb4 Kd6 38. h3 (
38. c5+ bxc5+ 39. Kc4 g4 40. a5 Kc7 41. Kxc5 Kb7 42. Kd6 Ka6 43. Kxc6 Kxa5 44.
Kd5 Kb6 45. Ke5 Kc7 46. Kf5 Kd7 47. Kxg4 Ke8 $11 {locker}) 38... Kc7 39. c5 Kb7
40. cxb6 Kxb6 41. a5+ Ka6 42. Kc5 Kxa5 43. Kxc6 Ka6 44. Kd5 Kb6 45. Ke5 Kc6 46.
Kf5 Kd6 47. Kf6 Kd7 48. Kxg5 1/2-1/2

[Event "RUS-chT 09th Group1"]
[Site "Ekaterinburg"]
[Date "2002.05.19"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Moiseenko, Alexander"]
[Black "Bologan, Viktor"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2575"]
[BlackElo "2652"]
[Annotator "Hecht,H"]
[PlyCount "149"]
[EventDate "2002.05.17"]
[EventType "team-tourn"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 090"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2002.09.20"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2002.09.20"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Novokuznetsk"]
[BlackTeam "Tyumen Gazovik"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "RUS"]
[BlackTeamCountry "RUS"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 O-O 5. Bg2 d5 6. Nf3 dxc4 7. O-O Nc6 8. Bg5
h6 9. Bxf6 Qxf6 10. Rc1 Rd8 11. e3 Qe7 12. Qe2 Na5 13. Ne5 Bd7 14. Nxc4 Bxc3
15. Rxc3 Bb5 16. b3 c5 17. Qh5 Bxc4 18. bxc4 cxd4 19. exd4 Qb4 20. Rf3 Rd7 21.
d5 exd5 22. cxd5 Rad8 23. Rf4 Qc5 24. Re1 Nc4 25. Qh4 b5 26. Rg4 Kf8 27. Rd4
Re7 28. Rdd1 Rde8 29. Rxe7 Rxe7 30. Qf4 Qd6 31. Qd4 Qb4 32. Bf1 Re1 33. Rxe1
Qxe1 34. Qc5+ Kg8 35. Qxb5 Nd2 36. Qe2 Qc1 37. Kg2 Kf8 38. d6 Qxf1+ 39. Qxf1
Nxf1 40. Kxf1 Ke8 41. Ke2 Kd7 42. Kd3 Kxd6 43. Kc4 {[#] Weißer Raumvorteil bei
gleicher Bauernverteilung} Kc6 44. g4 g5 45. Kd4 Kb5 46. Ke4 a5 47. f4 f6 (
47... Kb4 48. f5 Ka3 49. Ke5 Kxa2 50. Kf6 a4 51. Kxf7 a3 52. Kg6 Kb3 53. f6 a2
54. f7 a1=Q 55. f8=Q {und Weiß kann noch spielen}) 48. fxg5 (48. f5 $2 Kc4 $1
49. Ke3 a4 50. Ke4 a3 51. Ke3 Kc3 52. Ke4 Kb2 53. Kd3 Kxa2 54. Kc2 $11) 48...
fxg5 49. Kf5 Ka4 50. Kg6 Ka3 51. Kxh6 Kxa2 52. Kxg5 a4 53. Kh6 a3 54. g5 Kb2
55. g6 a2 56. g7 a1=Q 57. g8=Q {Remis laut TABLEBASE, was die Partie bestätigt.
} Qc1+ 58. Qg5 Qc6+ 59. Qg6 Qc1+ 60. Kh7 Qf4 61. Qg2+ Ka1 62. h3 Qf5+ 63. Kh6
Qe6+ 64. Kh5 Qf5+ 65. Kh4 Qh7+ 66. Kg3 Qc7+ 67. Kf2 Qc5+ 68. Kg3 Qc7+ 69. Kg4
Qg7+ 70. Kf3 Qb7+ 71. Kf2 Qb6+ 72. Kf1 Qb1+ 73. Ke2 Qc2+ 74. Kf3 Qc6+ 75. Kg3
1/2-1/2

[Event "EU-ch 2nd"]
[Site "Ohrid"]
[Date "2001.06.03"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Miladinovic, Igor"]
[Black "Graf, Alexander"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2519"]
[BlackElo "2649"]
[Annotator "Hecht,H"]
[PlyCount "258"]
[EventDate "2001.06.01"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "YUG"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 084"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2001.09.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2001.09.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 c5 5. Nf3 Nc6 6. Bg2 Ne4 7. Qd3 cxd4 8.
Nxd4 Nxc3 9. bxc3 Ne5 10. Qc2 Be7 11. Qb3 O-O 12. Bf4 Qc7 13. Nf3 Bd6 14. Nxe5
Bxe5 15. Bxe5 Qxe5 16. Rd1 Rb8 17. Qa3 b5 18. cxb5 Rxb5 19. O-O Ra5 20. Qb2 Rc5
21. Rd4 Qc7 22. Rc1 Ba6 23. e4 h6 24. Qd2 Bb5 25. e5 Rxe5 26. a4 Bc6 27. Bxc6
dxc6 28. Rd7 Qa5 29. Qd4 a6 30. Qf4 Rc5 31. Rb1 Rf5 32. Qd6 Rc8 33. Rb4 Qd5 34.
Rb8 Qxd6 35. Rxc8+ Qf8 36. Rxf8+ Kxf8 37. Kf1 g5 38. h3 h5 39. Ke2 Re5+ 40. Kf1
Kg7 41. Rb7 a5 42. Rb6 Rc5 43. Ra6 h4 44. gxh4 gxh4 45. c4 Kf6 46. Ke2 Ke5 47.
Kd3 Kf4 48. Kd4 Re5 49. Rxc6 Re2 50. Ra6 Rd2+ 51. Kc3 Rxf2 52. Rxa5 Rf3+ 53.
Kb4 Rxh3 54. Rh5 Rh1 55. a5 h3 56. a6 f5 57. c5 h2 58. c6 Kg4 59. Rh8 Rb1+ 60.
Kc5 h1=Q 61. Rxh1 Rxh1 62. a7 Rh8 63. Kb6 f4 64. Kb7 f3 65. a8=Q Rxa8 66. Kxa8
f2 67. c7 f1=Q 68. c8=Q Qa1+ (68... Qf5 $142) 69. Kb7 Qb2+ 70. Ka6 Qa3+ 71. Kb7
Qb3+ 72. Ka6 Kf5 73. Ka7 Kf4 74. Qf8+ Ke4 75. Qg8 Kd4 (75... Qe3+ $142 76. Ka8
e5) 76. Qg4+ Ke5 77. Qg1 Kd6 78. Qd4+ Kc6 79. Qe4+ Qd5 80. Qa4+ Kd6 81. Kb8 e5
82. Qb4+ Qc5 83. Qh4 Qb6+ 84. Ka8 Qc6+ 85. Ka7 Qc5+ 86. Ka6 Qd4 87. Qf6+ Kc5
88. Qb6+ Kc4 89. Qb5+ Kc3 90. Qa5+ Kd3 91. Qa3+ Qc3 92. Qd6+ Kc2 93. Qe7 Qc4+
94. Ka7 e4 95. Qh7 Qd4+ 96. Kb8 Kc3 97. Qc7+ Kb3 98. Qf7+ Kc2 99. Qf5 Kc3 100.
Qc8+ Kd2 101. Qg4 Qd6+ 102. Ka8 e3 103. Qg5 Kd3 (103... Qd4 $142) 104. Qb5+ Kd4
105. Qb6+ Qc5 106. Qb2+ Ke4 107. Qb1+ Kf4 108. Qf1+ Ke5 109. Qe2 Qd5+ 110. Ka7
Kf4 $2 {Jetzt ist der Bauer nicht von der Dame gedeckt und der König klebt an
der Dame!} (110... Qb3 $1 111. Qh2+ Ke4 112. Qg2+ Kd3 113. Qg6+ Kd2 114. Qg5
Qc4 115. Ka8 Qd4 116. Kb7 Kc3 117. Qg3 Qd3 $19) 111. Qh2+ $11 {[#] Dauerschach!
} Kg4 112. Qg1+ Kf4 113. Qh2+ Ke4 114. Qg2+ $2 (114. Qh1+ $1 Kd4 115. Qa1+ Kd3
116. Qd1+ Ke4 117. Qh1+ Ke5 118. Qh8+ Kf5 119. Qh5+ $11) 114... Kd4 {[%csl Gd2]
} 115. Qb2+ Kd3 116. Qb1+ Ke2 117. Qc2+ Kf3 118. Qc3 Kf2 (118... Qd6 $142) 119.
Qf6+ Qf3 120. Qd4 Qf5 121. Qh4+ Kf3 122. Qh1+ Ke2 123. Qh2+ Qf2 (123... Kd1
$142 124. Qh1+ Kd2 125. Qh6 Qe5 126. Ka6 Qd4 127. Kb7 Qe4+ 128. Kc8 Kc3 {#22})
124. Qh5+ Qf3 125. Qh2+ (125. Qe5 $142) 125... Kf1 126. Qc2 e2 127. Qc4 Kg2
128. Qg8+ Qg3 129. Qd5+ Kg1 0-1

[Event "Reykjavik op"]
[Site "Reykjavik"]
[Date "1996.??.??"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Gulko, Boris F"]
[Black "Gausel, Einar"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2615"]
[BlackElo "2515"]
[Annotator "Hecht,H"]
[PlyCount "92"]
[EventDate "1996.03.??"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ISL"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 052"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1996.06.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1996.06.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. c4 e6 2. g3 d5 3. Bg2 Nf6 4. d4 Bb4+ 5. Nc3 O-O 6. Nf3 dxc4 7. O-O Nc6 8.
Re1 Nd5 9. Qc2 Be7 10. Ne4 Ndb4 11. Qc3 b5 12. a3 Nd5 13. Qc2 Bb7 14. Bg5 Bxg5
15. Nexg5 Nf6 16. Rad1 h6 17. Nh3 Na5 18. e4 Nb3 19. d5 exd5 20. exd5 Qd6 21.
Ne5 Rae8 22. Qc3 Re7 23. Nf4 Rfe8 24. Nc6 Bxc6 25. dxc6 Rxe1+ 26. Rxe1 Rxe1+
27. Qxe1 Nd4 28. Qd1 Qe5 29. h4 Qc5 30. Qe1 Nxc6 31. Nd5 Nd4 32. Nxf6+ gxf6 {
DL-DS: schlechte schwarze Technik bei 2 Mehrbauern} 33. Qe8+ Kg7 34. Qd7 Qd6 (
34... Nf5 $1 {Plan: Sd6/a5/b4}) 35. Qg4+ Kf8 36. Qc8+ Ke7 37. Qa8 a6 38. Bb7
Qb6 39. Bxa6 c5 40. a4 bxa4 41. Bxc4 Ne6 42. Qxa4 Qxb2 43. Qa7+ Kf8 44. Bxe6
Qc1+ 45. Kg2 fxe6 46. Qb8+ Ke7 1/2-1/2

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Khanty Mansiysk"]
[Date "2019.09.12"]
[Round "1.2"]
[White "Naiditsch, Arkadij"]
[Black "Huschenbeth, Niclas"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2643"]
[BlackElo "2620"]
[Annotator "Huschenbeth,N"]
[PlyCount "80"]
[EventDate "2019.09.10"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 192"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.10.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.10.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%evp 0,15,25,25,22,13,24,-15,-3,-19,-22,-16,-2,-16,2,0,-8,-32] The second
game in my first round match against Naiditsch in the World Cup. After winning
the first game, it was clear that Naiditsch would come at me with everything
he had.} 1. Nf3 d5 2. d4 Nf6 3. c4 e6 4. g3 {The Catalan certainly came as a
surprise to me. It was not the kind of opening I expected in a must-win
scenario. However, Naiditsch had prepared a sharp line in which White
sacrifices a pawn for long-term compensation.} dxc4 5. Bg2 Bb4+ 6. Nc3 $5 (6.
Bd2 {is the clear main move.}) 6... Nc6 7. O-O O-O {This position can also
arise via the Nimzo-Indian with 4.g3. White has many ways to proceed.
Naiditsch's continuation has been popular recently, for example has it been
played several times by Daniil Dubov.} 8. Qa4 Nd5 9. Qc2 Be7 {Vacating the
b4-square for the knights which becomes especially important in case of e2-e4.
So far, I still remembered vaguely my computer notes.} 10. Rd1 Rb8 {This move
makes a lot of sense as b7-b5 is prepared and the rook steps prophylactically
out of the long diagonal.} 11. e4 Ncb4 $1 {This is an important move as the
knight on c6 is often misplaced.} (11... Ndb4 12. Qe2 Nd3 13. Be3 b5 14. b3 {
looks a bit dodgy for Black.}) 12. Qd2 (12. Qb1 {did not scare me much. After}
Nxc3 13. bxc3 Nd3 14. Qb5 c5 15. Qxc4 Nxc1 16. Raxc1 b5 17. Qe2 Qc7 $11 {
Black has equalized comfortably.}) 12... Nxc3 13. Qxc3 {The point behind 12.
Qd2. White is able to take back with the queen and leverage the pawn on c4
with b2-b3.} b5 14. b3 Bb7 15. Ne1 $1 {A good move, protecting the pawn on e4
and stopping any Nb4-d3 ideas.} cxb3 16. axb3 {I was quite happy to see this
move as it allows me to (finally) create some counter play.} ({However, also} 
16. Qxb3 {does not promise White an advantage.} Nc6 (16... a5 $5) 17. d5 (17.
Be3 a6 $15 {with the idea Nc6-a5-c4 and White needs to prove his compensation.}
) 17... Na5 18. Qxb5 c6 $1 19. Qd3 cxd5 20. exd5 Bxd5 $11 {Mass exchanges
follow and the position is equal.}) 16... f5 $1 {attacking the center and
opening up the light squares for my pieces. The pawn on a7 is not important
for now. It is more important that I create some threats of my own.} 17. exf5 (
17. f3 {is not a move White happily plays as it weakens his king and the g1-a7
diagonal.} fxe4 {was my intention.} (17... Ra8 $5 {is the engine's suggestion
and might be just much better for Black.}) 18. fxe4 c5 19. Be3 (19. Bf4 cxd4
20. Rxd4 Rc8 $1 $17) 19... Nc6 20. dxc5 Qc7 $13 {looked fine to me during the
game.}) 17... Bxg2 18. Nxg2 Rxf5 19. Ne3 (19. Rxa7 {can be answered by} Bc5 20.
Ra1 Bd6 $11 {and Black is doing perfectly fine.}) 19... Nd5 {I am happy to
trade the pair of knights, further reducing the white potential.} 20. Qc2 Nxe3
21. fxe3 $5 {Objectively dubious, but White needs to win and this is his best
chance.} (21. Bxe3 Ra8 ({or} 21... Qd5 22. Qxc7 Bd6 23. Qc2 (23. Qxa7 h5 $1 {
looks promising for Black.}) 23... Rf7 $11) 22. Ra6 Qd5 23. Qxc7 Bd8 24. Qc6
Bb6 $15 {Black should never lose this position.}) {White's intentions are
clear. He would like to take on a7 with the rook and follow up with e4-e5,
increasing his space advantage and putting the pawn on c7 under further
pressure. For a while, I could not see a remedy against this simple plan and
as my time became shorter, I was getting nervous. Finally though, I spotted an
important idea...} 21... Rf7 $1 (21... Rd5 {is also possible.} 22. Bb2 (22.
Rxa7 Bc5 23. Ra2 e5 $11) 22... Ra8 $13) 22. Rxa7 Bd6 23. e4 $6 {The natural
follow-up, but it runs into a strong counter.} (23. Ra2 {should be played, but
after} Qf6 24. e4 e5 $15 {Black is also quite comfortable.}) 23... e5 $1 {
This is the important idea I had to spot before playing 21...Rf7. Black stops
e4-e5 and secures the bishop on d6. Furthermore, the diagonal g1-a7 will be
opened and tactical ideas hang in the air.} 24. Be3 (24. dxe5 Bc5+ $1 25. Kg2 (
25. Qxc5 Qxd1+ {is mate next move.}) 25... Qf8 26. Ra2 Rf2+ $19) (24. d5 Qe7
25. Be3 Rf3 $19 {shows the troubles along the g1-a7 diagonal. No matter what
White does, Black sacrifices his rook against the bishop and follows up with
Bd6-c5.}) 24... exd4 25. Bxd4 Qg5 26. b4 $1 {Naiditsch keeps posing problems.}
Rbf8 27. Qb3 {I had missed this idea altogether. Due to my weak back rank, I
cannot comfortably unpin my rook on f7. As my time became critically short, I
resorted to a move which looks insane, but ultimately works.} c5 $5 {Opening
the seventh rank for the white rook, but with the intention to either trade a
lot of pieces or close the a2-g8 diagonal with c5-c4.} (27... Kh8 28. e5 {
was my worry. However, Black can force a draw right away with} Qg4 $1 ({not} 
28... Bxe5 29. Qxf7 $18) 29. exd6 Rf1+ 30. Rxf1 Qxd4+ 31. Kg2 Qd2+ 32. Kh3 Qh6+
$11) (27... h6 $1 {keeps the advantage for Black.} 28. Rf1 Qg6 29. Bc5 (29. e5
Bxe5 $1 {This is the idea I missed in my calculations.} 30. Bxe5 Qb6+ $19)
29... Bxc5+ 30. bxc5 Qc6 $17) 28. Rxf7 {Naiditsch spent almost his entire time
to find a way to an advantage. But it turns out, there is nothing White can do.
} Rxf7 29. bxc5 (29. Bxg7 c4 30. Qc3 Bxb4 $1 31. Qxb4 Qe3+ 32. Kg2 Qf3+ $19) (
29. e5 c4 30. Qc3 Qg4 $1 31. Rd2 (31. Re1 Bxb4 $1 $19) 31... Be7 $19) (29. Be3
c4 30. Qa3 {I calculated this move for a while.} (30. Bxg5 {is an important
variation.} cxb3 31. Rxd6 (31. Rb1 {is also no winning attempt.} Bxb4 32. Rxb3
Bc5+ 33. Kg2 Rf2+ 34. Kh3 b4 $17) 31... b2 32. Rd1 Ra7 $19) (30. Qd3 $5 {
is curiously the best move White has.}) 30... Bf4 {was my intention and
secures Black at least an equal position.} (30... Qf6 $1 {is even better.} 31.
Bd4 Qf3 $17) 31. Qa8+ Rf8 32. Bxf4 Qxf4 33. gxf4 (33. Qd5+ Qf7 $17) 33... Rxa8
$15 {Due to his protected passer on c4, Black has nothing to worry about in
this endgame.}) 29... Bxc5 30. Bxc5 Qxc5+ 31. Kg2 {We were both now in severe
time trouble and played the next moves with around one minute on the clock.}
Qf2+ ({It's not too late to go wrong with} 31... Qc4 $4 32. Qxc4 bxc4 33. Rd8+
{White forces the pawn endgame and wins.} Rf8 34. Rxf8+ Kxf8 35. Kf3 Ke7 36.
Ke3 Ke6 37. Kd4 $18) 32. Kh3 Qf6 {Stopping Rd1-d8+ and intending to answer
Qb3xb5 with Qf6-e6+.} 33. Qd5 h6 34. Re1 b4 {Played with only two seconds on
the clock.} 35. Qc4 Kh7 (35... Qc3 $1 {would have been simplest. Black forces
a rook endgame in which White has to defend.}) 36. Qxb4 $4 {This loses. Most
other moves make a draw for White.} Qe6+ 37. Kg2 (37. Kh4 g5+ 38. Kh5 Qh3#) (
37. g4 Rf3+ 38. Kg2 Qxg4+ 39. Kh1 Rf2 $19) 37... Qa2+ $1 {The move that
Naiditsch missed. White has no good way to react to the side-check.} 38. Kh3 (
38. Kh1 Rf2 $19) (38. Kg1 Qf2+ (38... Rf2 39. Qc5 $11) 39. Kh1 Ra7 $1 $19)
38... Qe6+ 39. Kg2 Qa2+ 40. Kh3 {Now I could have repeated the position for a
third time with 40...Qe6+ and secure the match victory. However, I spent my
remaining one an and a half minutes to consider Rf7-f2 and concluded that I
will certainly not lose this position.} Rf2 {Naiditsch resigned right away
which seems a bit premature. However, the position is indeed lost and
Naiditsch likely did not want to continue a game in which he has no chances to
win and even a draw would mean defeat in the match.} (40... Rf2 {Here is a
sample line, how the game could have continued:} 41. e5 Rxh2+ 42. Kg4 Qf7 $1
43. Qe4+ g6 44. Rd1 h5+ 45. Kg5 Qe7+ 46. Kf4 Rf2+ 47. Ke3 Rf5 48. Rd5 Qg5+ 49.
Kd4 Qxg3 $19 {Black has picked up another pawn and the white king is still up
in the open.}) 0-1

[Event "Yerevan"]
[Site "Yerevan"]
[Date "1996.??.??"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Khalifman, Alexander"]
[Black "Epishin, Vladimir"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2650"]
[BlackElo "2645"]
[Annotator "Khalifman,A"]
[PlyCount "79"]
[EventDate "1996.04.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "ARM"]
[EventCategory "15"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 053"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1996.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1996.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Ftacnik Dautov} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 O-O 6. Bg2 cxd4
7. Nxd4 d5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Nc6 (9... Qa5 10. Bd2 Nc6 11. Nxc6 bxc6 12. O-O
$5) (9... Qb6 10. Bxd5 exd5 11. Be3 Nc6) 10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. O-O Be7 $6 $146 {N}
(11... Qa5 12. Bd2 (12. Ne4 Ba6 13. Qc2 Be7 14. Bd2 (14. Bf3 Nb4 15. Qc3 Qf5
16. a3 Nd5 17. Qc2 c5 18. Re1 Rab8 19. Bg2 Rb6 20. Bd2 Rfb8 21. Ra2 h6 22. Qc1
c4 23. Nc3 Nxc3 24. Bxc3 Bc5 25. Rf1 e5 26. Ra1 Bd4 {0-1 Dive,R-Martin,B/
NZD-ch Otago (05)/1991/ (40)}) 14... Qb5 15. Rfc1 Rab8 16. Qxc6 Qxc6 17. Rxc6
Bxe2 $10 {Sulava,N-Grosar,A/JUG-ch (03)/ 1991 (22)} (17... Bxe2 18. Nc3 Rxb2
19. Bc1 Bb5 20. Nxd5 exd5 21. Bxb2 Bxc6 22. Rc1 Rc8 23. Bh3 Rb8 24. Be5 Rb6 25.
Bc7 Ba3 26. Bxb6 Bxc1 27. Bxa7 {1/2-1/2 Sulava,N-Grosar,A/JUG-ch (03)/1991/ 
(46)})) 12... Bxc3 13. bxc3 {Ftacnik} (13. Bxc3 Nxc3 $10) 13... Ba6 14. Rfd1
Rab8 15. c4 Qc5 16. cxd5 Rxb3 17. axb3 Bxe2 18. Re1 (18. Rdc1 Qd6 19. Be3 cxd5
20. Bc5 Qb8 21. Bxf8 Kxf8 22. Rc2 Bb5 23. Rca2 a6 24. Bf1 Bxf1 25. Kxf1 Qxb3
26. Rxa6 g5 {0-1 Nielsen,PH-Emms,J/Copenhagen BSF (07) ;CBM 46 1995 (50)})
18... cxd5 19. Rxe2 Qb6 20. b4 Rc8 21. Be1 h6 22. Rea2 Rc7 23. Bf1 Qd4 24. b5 {
1-0 Nielsen,PH-Savon,V/Pardubice op/1995/ (43)}) (11... Rb8 $142 12. Na4 (12.
e4 {Dautov} Nxc3 13. bxc3 Bd6 14. Qa4 Qc7 15. Be3 c5 16. Rfd1 Bd7 $10 {
Zvjaginsev,V-Romanov,O/URS-chJ Alma-Ata/ 1991} (16... Bd7 17. Qc2 e5 18. Bf1
Be6 19. Qa4 Rb6 20. Rd2 Rfb8 21. Rad1 Bf8 22. f3 h5 23. Bc4 Qc8 {Zvjaginsev,
V-Romanov,O/URS-chJAlma-Ata/1991/1/2-1/2 (49)})) 12... Ba6 13. Qc2 Bd6 14. a3
Qe7 15. Re1 Bb5 16. e4 Nb6 $10 {Zvjaginsev,V-Bareev,E/RUS-ch Elista (11) ;CBM
50 1995}) (11... a5 12. Rd1 Qe7 13. Bd2 Ba6 14. Bf3 Rfd8 15. a3 Bxc3 16. Bxc3
a4 17. Qc2 Bb5 18. Bd4 e5 19. Bc5 Qe6 20. Rd2 Rd7 21. Rad1 Rad8 22. Be4 {
1/2-1/2 Segal,Al-Miralles,G/Dubai olm (04)/1986/}) 12. Rd1 {/\ 13.e4} Ba6 (
12... Qb6 13. Nxd5 $1 (13. e4 Qxb3 14. axb3 Nb4 $132) (13. Qc2 Ba6 $132) 13...
cxd5 (13... exd5 14. Qc2 $14) 14. Qxb6 axb6 15. e4 $16) 13. e4 Rb8 (13... Nxc3
14. Rxd8 Ne2+ 15. Kh1 Rfxd8 16. Be3) 14. exd5 $1 (14. Qc2 Nb4 $1 (14... Nb4 {
Ftacnik} 15. Qa4 Qb6 $132)) (14. Qa4 Nxc3 15. bxc3 Qb6 $10) 14... Rxb3 15. axb3
cxd5 (15... Qb6 16. d6 (16. Be3 c5 17. b4 $1 Bc4 18. bxc5 Qxb2 (18... Bxc5 $2 {
Dautov} 19. Na4 $18) 19. d6 Bf6 20. Ne4 $16 Qxa1 $2 21. Rxa1 Bxa1 22. c6 Bd5
23. Nc5 Bxg2 24. Kxg2 $18) (16. dxc6 Bc5 17. Ne4 Qxb3 18. Bf4 (18. Rd7 {Ftacnik
} Qb4 19. Bd2 Qxb2 20. Bc3 Qb6 21. Nxc5 Qxc5 22. Bxg7 Kxg7 23. Rxa6 $13) 18...
Bb4 19. Rdc1 $36) 16... Bf6 17. Be3 $18 (17. Be3 {Dautov} Qxb3 18. Rxa6 Bxc3
$17)) (15... Qc8 {Dautov} 16. dxc6 $16 (16. dxc6 Rd8 (16... Bc5 17. Rd7 Bb6 18.
Be3 $16) 17. Rd7 $1)) (15... Bc8 16. dxc6 Qb6 17. Be3 Qxb3 18. Rxa7 Bf6 19. Ne4
(19. Bf3 Qxb2 20. Ne4)) 16. Rxa6 Qb8 17. Be3 $1 Qxb3 18. Rxa7 Bf6 19. Rd2 Qc4 (
19... Bxc3 20. Ra3 (20. bxc3 $142 Qxc3 21. Bf1 $16 (21. h4 $16)) 20... Qxa3 21.
bxa3 Bxd2 22. Bxd2 Rc8 $13) 20. Bf1 Qb4 21. Ra4 (21. h4 $5 d4 $2 22. Ra4 dxe3
23. Rxb4 exd2 24. Nd1 $18) 21... Qb3 22. Ra3 Qb4 23. Ra4 Qb3 24. Ra5 $1 (24.
Bd4 $5 {Ftacnik} Bxd4 25. Raxd4 $16) 24... Rb8 (24... Bxc3 25. Ra3) 25. Bf4 (
25. Rb5 $6 Rxb5 26. Nxb5 Bxb2) 25... Bxc3 (25... e5 26. Rdxd5 $1 exf4 27. Rdb5
$18) 26. bxc3 (26. Ra3 $2 Bxd2 27. Rxb3 Rxb3 28. Bxd2 Rxb2 $17) 26... Qxc3 27.
Rda2 (27. Bxb8 {Ftacnik} Qxa5 28. Rc2 f6) 27... Rc8 (27... e5 $2 28. Ra8 Rf8
29. Bxe5 $3 Qxe5 30. Re2 Qxg3+ (30... Qd6 31. Ree8 $18) 31. hxg3 Rxa8 32. Bg2
$18) 28. Ra8 $1 {/\ 29.R:c8, 30.Rb2} f6 (28... h6 29. Bd3 $1) (28... g6 29. Be5
$1 (29. Be5 Qc6 30. Rxc8+ Qxc8 31. Rb2 $18)) 29. Bd2 (29. Rxc8+ {Ftacnik} Qxc8
30. Bh3 g5 $10) 29... Qc6 30. R8a6 Qe8 31. Bh3 Rc6 (31... f5 {Ftacnik} 32. Ra7
$16) 32. Ra8 Rc8 33. R8a6 Rc6 34. Ra8 Rc8 35. R8a7 h6 36. Ra1 (36. Rb2 $5) (36.
Rb2 $5 Rc6 37. Rbb7 Qg6 $16) 36... Kh8 37. Bb4 Rc4 38. Be7 $1 (38. Re7 $6 {
Ftacnik} Qb8) 38... Rc6 (38... e5 $2 39. Ra8 $18) (38... f5 39. Bd6 $18 {/\Be5}
) (38... Qc6 39. Bf8 $18) 39. Bf1 $1 Rc8 40. Bd3 $138 (40. Bd3 Rc3 (40... e5
41. Bf5 Rb8 42. Bd6 Rd8 43. Bc7 $18) (40... f5 41. Bd6 $18 (41. Bd6 Rc3 42. Be5
Rxd3 43. Rxg7 $18)) (40... Kg8 {Ftacnik} 41. R1a6 $16) 41. Ra8 Rc8 42. Rxc8
Qxc8 43. Bg6 e5 44. Bd6 $18 {/\Ra7-e7}) 1-0

[Event "Kecskemet Szechenyi"]
[Site "Kecskemet"]
[Date "1991.??.??"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Van Wely, Loek"]
[Black "Steingrimsson, Hedinn"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2475"]
[BlackElo "2505"]
[Annotator "Kortschnoj,V"]
[PlyCount "59"]
[EventDate "1991.07.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "HUN"]
[EventCategory "8"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 026"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1992.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1992.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 c5 5. Nf3 b6 6. Bg2 Bb7 7. O-O cxd4 8. Qxd4
Nc6 9. Qd3 $5 Rc8 10. Bf4 Na5 11. Rac1 $1 {11.Sb5 a6 12.Sd6 Ld6 13.Ld6 Sc4=+,
12.Ld6 ab 13.Lb4 Tc4=+,13...bc=+} Rxc4 $2 {11...a6+=,11...0-0!? +=} 12. Nb5 d5
13. a3 $1 $16 Be7 14. Nc7+ Kf8 15. Ne5 Rxc1 16. Rxc1 Nd7 {16...Ld6!? 17.b4 Le5
18.Le5 Sc6 was better.} 17. b4 Nxe5 18. Bxe5 Nc6 {Or 18...Sc4 19.Tc4 dc 20.Dd8
Ld8 21.Lb7 Lc7 22.Lc7 c3 23.Le4 with big advan tage to white} 19. Rxc6 $1 $18
Bxc6 20. Qc3 Bf6 21. Bxf6 Qxf6 22. Qxc6 Qa1+ 23. Bf1 g5 24. Qa8+ Kg7 25. Qxa7
Kg6 26. Qxb6 Qxa3 27. Nxd5 Ra8 28. Ne7+ Kg7 29. Qd4+ Kf8 30. Nc6 1-0

[Event "Bucharest Int 04th"]
[Site "Bucharest"]
[Date "1954.02.??"]
[Round "15"]
[White "Kortschnoj, Viktor Lvovich"]
[Black "Pachman, Ludek"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[Annotator "Kortschnoj,V"]
[PlyCount "82"]
[EventDate "1954.02.25"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "17"]
[EventCountry "ROU"]
[SourceTitle "MCL"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1999.07.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1999.07.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. a3 Be7 $5 (5... Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 c5 7.
cxd5 exd5 8. e3 c4 $5 {[%cal Yc8f5] /\Lf5} 9. e4 $13 {/+/=}) 6. e4 $5 dxe4 7.
fxe4 e5 8. d5 O-O 9. Nf3 Ng4 10. Bd3 Bc5 11. Qe2 Bf2+ 12. Kd1 $1 $13 Bd4 13.
Kc2 c5 14. Rf1 Bxc3 15. Kxc3 Nd7 16. Kc2 a6 17. Bd2 Ngf6 18. Bc3 Qc7 19. Nh4
Ne8 20. Qh5 b5 21. Nf3 f6 22. Nd2 Nb6 23. b3 bxc4 24. Nxc4 Nxc4 25. Bxc4 Qd6
26. g4 $16 Bd7 27. g5 f5 28. exf5 Bxf5+ 29. Kb2 Nc7 30. Rae1 e4 31. Qh4 Nb5 32.
Qf4 Qxf4 33. Rxf4 Nxc3 34. Kxc3 g6 35. Bf1 {[%cal Yf1g2] /\Lg2} a5 36. Bb5 {
[%cal Yc3c4,Yb5c6,Yc4c5] /\Kc4, Lc6, Kc5} Rab8 37. a4 Kg7 38. Kc4 Rbc8 39. Re3
h6 40. h4 hxg5 41. hxg5 {[%cal Yb5c6,Yc4c5,Yc5b6] /\Lc6, Kc5, Kb6} Rh8 1-0

[Event "FIDE-Wch k.o."]
[Site "New Delhi/Teheran"]
[Date "2000.11.29"]
[Round "1.3"]
[White "Volkov, Sergey"]
[Black "Sakaev, Konstantin"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2554"]
[BlackElo "2627"]
[Annotator "Kostakiev,D"]
[PlyCount "86"]
[EventDate "2000.11.27"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "IND"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 081"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2001.03.20"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2001.03.20"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 $5 {This is one of the contributions of
Bogoljubow in the early 30-s. After him a lot of very strong maestros used it.
The real boom started around 1992 and continues up to our days. The statics is
more than favorable for White. Here we shal see one efficient way to meet this
line.} c5 (4... Qe7 5. e4 d5 6. e5 {1-0 Bogoljubow,E-Weissgerber,G/Swinemuende
1931/EXT 2000 (42)}) 5. d5 b5 6. e4 O-O 7. Bg5 (7. Nh3 bxc4 8. Bxc4 Bxc3+ 9.
bxc3 Qa5 10. Qc2 {1-0 Moskalenko,V-Morozevich,A/Moscow 1994/EXT 97 (17)}) (7.
a3 Bxc3+ 8. bxc3 {0-1 Varga,P-Lorincz,I/HUN-chT 9394 1994/TD (38)}) (7. e5 exd5
8. exf6 {1-0 Legky,N-Levacic,D/Cannes 1993/EXT 2000 (26)}) 7... h6 8. Bh4 Re8
$146 (8... d6 9. a3 Ba5 {1/2-1/2 Dorendorf,H-Menacher,M/Augsburg 1995/EXT 2001
(44)}) 9. dxe6 Rxe6 10. Nge2 (10. Qb3 $5 Qa5 $140 11. Bxf6 bxc4 12. Bxc4 $14)
10... g5 (10... bxc4 $5 11. Nf4 Re8 $11) 11. Bf2 bxc4 12. a3 Ba5 13. h4 (13.
Qa4 Qb6 $15) 13... g4 14. Nf4 (14. Qd2 Qb6 15. Nf4 Rd6 16. Qc2 Nc6 17. Bxc4 Nd4
$15) (14. Bxc5 d5 $15) 14... Rb6 15. Qd2 Nc6 $1 (15... d5 $2 16. Nfxd5 $16) 16.
Bxc5 {[#]} Rab8 $3 (16... Rb5 17. b4 Rxc5 18. bxc5 Qe7 19. Nfe2 Ne5 20. Kd1
Qxc5 21. Qxh6 Nd3 22. Kc2 $14) 17. Bxb6 Qxb6 $44 18. O-O-O Nd4 $1 19. Bxc4 (19.
Kb1 $5) 19... Ba6 $1 20. b4 Bxb4 21. Qxd4 Bc5 22. Na4 Bxa3+ 23. Kc2 Qc6 {[#]}
24. Kd3 $2 (24. Nc3 $2 Rb2+ 25. Kc1 Bxc4 $19) (24. Rb1 Qxa4+ 25. Kd2 Bb4+ $15)
(24. Kd2 $1 Bxc4 25. Rb1 Bb3 26. Nd3 $11) 24... Rb4 $17 25. Bxa6 $2 (25. Rc1
Bxc1 26. Rxc1 $17) 25... Rxd4+ $19 26. Kxd4 Qxa6 27. Nc3 Bb2 28. e5 Qa4+ 29.
Ke3 Bxc3 30. exf6 g3 31. Nd5 Bb2 32. f4 a5 33. Kf3 Qb3+ 34. Kg4 a4 35. Rhe1 a3
36. Ne7+ Kh7 37. Nf5 a2 38. Nxg3 Qa4 39. Nf5 a1=Q 40. Rxa1 Bxa1 41. Re7 Kg6 42.
h5+ Kxf6 43. Re1 Qa5 0-1

[Event "Dortmund SuperGM 39th"]
[Site "Dortmund"]
[Date "2011.07.24"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Black "Kramnik, Vladimir"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2770"]
[BlackElo "2781"]
[Annotator "Kramnik,V"]
[PlyCount "94"]
[EventDate "2011.07.21"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 144"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2011.09.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2011.09.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 {As expected. Since Hikaru has
started working with Kasparov this has become his favourite weapon against the
Nimzo Indian.} cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8. Qb3 {A rather forgotten line
nowadays, but it was played by Kasparov several times in the eighties.} (8.
cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 {is the most fashionable nowadays.}) 8... Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 Nc6
10. cxd5 Na5 11. Qc2 Nxd5 12. O-O (12. Qd3 {was Garry's choice in this
position, but after} Qc7 {was found, the whole line went out of fashion} 13.
Nb5 Qc6) 12... Qc7 (12... Bd7 {is a serious alternative here.}) 13. Re1 {
This makes sense, but it's hard to believe that White can seriously pretend to
be better with such a slow move.} (13. e4 Nxc3 {I guess that it is what Hikaru
did not like} (13... Nb6 {is always an option, of course}) 14. Bb2 (14. Bd2
Ne2+ 15. Kh1 Qxc2 16. Nxc2 Nc6) 14... Nb5 15. Qxc7 Nxc7 {and although White
definitely has enough play for the pawn, it seems very drawish.}) 13... Bd7 {
Logical.} (13... Rd8 14. e4) 14. e4 Nb6 (14... Nxc3 {is already not working
here:} 15. Bd2 Rac8 16. Rac1) 15. e5 {So far White had not spent any time on
his moves, so I started to search for a decent move which would make him think.
} Ba4 {Right choice! Nakamura started to think here finally!} (15... Rfc8 {
is perfectly playable, of course, but too logical to be a surprise :)}) 16. Qd3
Qc4 {That is the point, I start to bother his pieces immediatly, not allowing
White to gather his forces around my king.} (16... Rac8 17. Be4 $36) 17. Qf3 (
17. Qxc4 {might be the best choice actually, but somehow I was sure Hikaru
would not do it :)} Nbxc4 18. Rb1 Rab8 19. f4 {might be little better for
White, but nothing to worry about really, I thought.}) 17... Nc6 {The move
which I had to see in advance, otherwise Black's operation would not make
sense at all.} 18. Re4 {Probably the best move, played after ve-e-e-ery long
reflection, approximately one hour! Usually experience shows, that after such
a long thought a player comes up with a bad move, but this time it is an
exception to the rule.} (18. Qg4 {was possible, but gives me a wide choise of
interesting options:} Bc2 (18... Kh8 {might be the simplest}) (18... h5 19. Qh4
$13 Qxc3 (19... Nd5)) 19. Ba3 (19. Bh6 Bg6) 19... Rfc8) 18... Nxd4 19. Rxd4 Bc6
{Again a very important move which I had to have foreseen in advance, solving
all problems, if there were any at all.} 20. Rxc4 {There is no other sensible
way for White to play for advantage.} Bxf3 21. Rc7 Bxg2 22. Kxg2 Rab8 23. Rb1
Rfc8 24. Rxc8+ Rxc8 25. Rb3 {Already strange, since White obviously can't win
anymore.} (25. Be3 {was a forced draw:} Rxc3 26. Bxb6 axb6 27. Rxb6 Rc7) 25...
h5 26. Be3 Nd5 27. Bd4 $2 {Probably the voice of the blood. Hikaru, like a
true samurai, is making hara-kiri :)} (27. Bxa7 {leads to a draw in all lines:}
Rxc3 28. Rxc3 (28. Rxb7 Ra3) 28... Nxc3 29. a3) 27... b6 {Obviously Black is
just much better here. Plus Nakamura was already getting into time trouble.}
28. f4 {I would prefer to leave this pawn on f2.} (28. Kf3 $142) 28... Rc4 {
Very important. Now my rook gets to a4 and White's position starts to collapse
slowly but surely.} 29. Kf1 (29. Ra3 $142 a5 {/\a4} 30. Rb3 a4 (30... Kh7 31.
Kf3 a4) 31. Rb2 Nxc3 32. Bxb6 Nd5 33. Bf2 {with some drawing chances} Kh7)
29... Ra4 30. Rb2 (30. a3 Ne7 $1 {/\ Nc6, Na5} 31. Be3 Nc6 $17 32. Bc1 Re4)
30... Kh7 {No need to hurry, Black gets his king into play with decisive
effect.} 31. Kf2 Kg6 32. Rc2 Ra3 33. h3 b5 34. Rb2 a6 35. Rc2 Kf5 (35... h4 {
is not bad either, but I decided that it is time to force matters already.})
36. Kf3 b4 37. g4+ hxg4+ 38. hxg4+ Kg6 39. Ke4 bxc3 40. Rh2 (40. f5+ Kg5 41.
fxe6 fxe6 42. Kf3 Ra4 $19) 40... Ra4 41. Rf2 a5 {Strangely enough White is in
some kind of zugzwang here, therefore I decided to ask him to move.} 42. Kd3 (
42. Rc2 Nxf4) (42. f5+ Kg5) 42... c2 {This is the end of the story.} 43. f5+
Kg5 44. Bb2 Nb4+ 45. Kc3 Rxa2 46. Rf1 Kxg4 47. fxe6 fxe6 {I am very strong in
such positions, so Hikaru resigned here.} 0-1

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2014.03.27"]
[Round "12"]
[White "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Black "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2757"]
[BlackElo "2766"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "119"]
[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"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 b5 6. e4 O-O 7. e5 Ne8 8. f4 {
This sharp line has gained popularity. It was examined in CBM 138, annotations
to Shirov - Kramnik by GM I.Stohl.} exd5 ({The immediate} 8... d6 {has been
seen in practice, too.}) 9. cxd5 d6 10. Nf3 c4 (10... dxe5 11. fxe5 Bb7 12.
Bxb5 Nc7 13. Bd3 Nxd5 14. O-O Nxc3 15. Qc2 $3 $16 (15. bxc3 Bxc3 16. Rb1 Ba6
17. Be4 Bxf1 18. Qxd8 Rxd8 19. Kxf1 Nd7 20. Bxa8 Rxa8 $15 {1/2 (73) Batchuluun,
T (2529)-Vaibhav,S (2527) Jakarta 2013}) 15... Nd5 $140 16. Bxh7+ Kh8 17. Qf5
$18) (10... Nc7 $5 11. a4 (11. Bd3 c4 12. Be4 f5 13. exf6 Qxf6 14. O-O Bf5 15.
Bxf5 Bc5+ 16. Kh1 Qxf5 17. Nd4 Bxd4 18. Qxd4 Nba6 $17 {0-1 (35) Toth,E (2477)
-Navara,D (2679) Pardubice 2012}) 11... Bb7 12. Bd3 g6 13. O-O c4 14. Be4 Bc5+
15. Kh1 b4 16. Nb5 Nxb5 17. axb5 Nd7 $13 {1-0 (25) Narkun,M (2176)-Tausnev,V 
(1757) Lechenicher SchachServer 2012}) 11. a4 $1 Nd7 (11... Bb7 12. axb5 dxe5
13. fxe5 Qxd5 14. Qxd5 Bxd5 15. Kf2 $1 (15. Bd2 Bxc3 16. Bxc3 Nc7 17. O-O-O Nd7
$132 {0-1 (43) Filippas Ntekouan,S (2263)-Volkov,S (2594) Kavala 2012}) (15.
Nd2 $5) 15... Bxc3 16. bxc3 Nc7 17. Nd4 $14) (11... Bg4 12. axb5 (12. Be2 $5)
12... Nd7 13. e6 $5 fxe6 14. dxe6 Nb6 15. Be2 Nc7 16. Ng5 {1-0 (38) Shirov,A 
(2749)-Kramnik,V (2780) Shanghai 2010 CBM 138 [Stohl,I]} Bxe6 $13) 12. Be2 (12.
axb5 dxe5 $13 {/\} 13. fxe5 $6 Nxe5 $1 14. Nxe5 Qh4+ 15. Ke2 Nd6 $36 {[%csl
Re2] ->עe2 (I.Stohl)}) (12. Bd2 dxe5 13. fxe5 Qe7 14. axb5 Nxe5 15. Nxe5 Qxe5+
16. Qe2 Qd6 17. Qxc4 Nf6 $44 {1/2 (77) Volkov,S (2615)-Bukavshin,I (2578)
Khanty-Mansiysk 2013}) 12... Qb6 13. axb5 Nc7 (13... dxe5 14. fxe5 Bb7 15. Qd4
Nc7 16. Qxb6 Nxb6 17. d6 Nxb5 18. Bd2 Bxf3 19. Bxf3 (19. gxf3 $5 Nd4 20. Be3 $1
Nc2+ 21. Kd2 Nxe3 22. Kxe3 f6 $1) 19... Rae8 20. Nxb5 Rxe5+ 21. Kd1 Bxd2 22.
Nxa7 Bf4 $132 {1/2 (57) Ding,L (2714)-Bacrot,E (2714) Biel 2013}) 14. Qd4 {
White wants to evacuate his king as soon as possible.} (14. Nd2 Nxb5 15. Nxc4
Nxc3 16. bxc3 Bxc3+ 17. Bd2 Qd4 $13) (14. Ra4 Qc5 $13) 14... Bb7 15. Bd2 Bxc3
16. bxc3 $6 (16. Bxc3 dxe5 (16... Nxb5 17. Qxc4 Nxc3 18. bxc3 dxe5 19. fxe5 {
[%cal Yc4d4]}) 17. fxe5 Bxd5 (17... Nxd5 18. O-O $13) 18. Ba5 Qxd4 19. Nxd4 Ne6
$11 {M.Notkin}) 16... dxe5 17. fxe5 Bxd5 18. Be3 Qxb5 {Black boldly accepts
the pawn sacrifice. It is not easy for White to develop his kingside
counterplay.} 19. O-O Ne6 20. Qh4 Ndc5 $6 {[%mdl 32] Removing this knight from
defence was not a good idea.} (20... a5 $1 $17 {P.Maletin}) 21. Rab1 Nb3 (21...
Qc6 $1 22. Bxc4 Bxc4 23. Qxc4 Qe4 $11) 22. Bd1 $1 Qa5 23. Bc2 g6 24. Ng5 $1
Nxg5 25. Bxg5 {White has finally weakened the position of Black's king and
created serious threats.} Qxc3 26. Rf2 Nd4 $1 {An urgent retreat.} 27. Bh6 Nc6
$1 28. Rd1 (28. Bxf8 Rxf8 {is favourable for Black, who is going to win a
third pawn for the exchange (e5), while White's attack is over.}) (28. Rd2 Nxe5
(28... Qxe5 $2 29. Re1 Qd6 30. Be4 Qc5+ 31. Be3 $16) 29. Rxd5 Qxc2 30. Rf1 f6
$1 $13) 28... Qxe5 29. Rf5 $1 Qe7 $2 (29... gxf5 30. Rxd5 Qa1+ 31. Rd1 Qe5 $1
$11 (31... Qc3 $4 32. Qg5+ Kh8 33. Qxf5 $18)) 30. Bg5 $1 f6 31. Rfxd5 $2 {
This leads to simplifications and eventually a draw.} (31. Bxf6 $142 Qe3+ 32.
Rf2 {keeping a strong attack. Besides, Black was under tremendous time
pressure and could hardly find a good defence.}) 31... fxg5 32. Qxc4 Qe6 33.
Bb3 Kh8 34. Qc5 (34. Qc3+ Qf6 35. Qxf6+ Rxf6 36. Rxg5 {, and White must fight
for a draw.}) 34... Rae8 35. h4 $5 Qe3+ 36. Qxe3 Rxe3 37. Ba4 Ne7 38. Rxg5 Nf5
39. h5 Kg7 40. hxg6 hxg6 {Black passes the time control and retains an extra
pawn in the endgame. Unfortunately, in such positions, with pawns on both
sides, the bishop is stronger than the knight; besides, there are too few
pawns on the board. The rook endgame after the exchange of minor pieces is
also satisfactory for White. Therefore, he holds his ground.} 41. Bc2 Kh6 42.
Rg4 Re5 43. Bxf5 Rexf5 {[%mdl 4096]} 44. Ra4 a5 45. Rd6 Rg5 46. Ra6 Rff5 47.
Rh4+ Kg7 48. Ra7+ Rf7 49. Ra6 Rb7 50. Ra4 Rbb5 51. Ra3 Rb1+ 52. Kh2 Rh5+ 53.
Kg3 Rbb5 54. Kf2 Kh6 55. Kg1 Rb1+ 56. Kf2 Rb2+ 57. Kg1 Rg5 58. Rh3+ Kg7 59.
Ra7+ Kf6 60. Ra6+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "World Cup"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2009.11.21"]
[Round "1.1"]
[White "Ganguly, Surya Shekhar"]
[Black "Filippov, Anton"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2654"]
[BlackElo "2607"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "77"]
[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. f3 d5 5. a3 Be7 6. e4 dxe4 7. fxe4 e5 8. d5
Bc5 9. Nf3 Bg4 {The most popular move in this position.} (9... Ng4 10. Na4 {
etc. - see S.Ernst - Van der Wiel in CBM 84.}) 10. h3 Bxf3 11. Qxf3 Nbd7 12.
Bg5 (12. Bd3 {is more common but} c6 $1 {gives Black a sufficient counterplay:}
(12... O-O $143 13. Ne2 $5 (13. Bg5 Bd4 $1 {[%csl Rb2][%cal Rd4c3]} 14. Bc2 c6
15. Rf1 $2 (15. O-O-O Rc8 16. Kb1 Qb6 $13 {An.Izmagambetov}) 15... Rc8 16. Rd1
Qb6 $15 {1-0 Volkov,S (2627)-Ismagambetov,A (2523)/Tashkent 105/305 2009/Inf
105/[Ismagambetov,An] (46)}) 13... c6 14. b4 Bd4 15. Nxd4 exd4 16. O-O cxd5 17.
exd5 b5 18. Bg5 bxc4 19. Bxc4 h6 20. Bxf6 Nxf6 21. Rad1 $14 {1/2 Leskiewicz,M 
(2220)-Ostrowski,L (2400)/Warsaw 1999/EXT 2003 (45)}) (12... a5 13. Bd2 O-O 14.
g4 (14. O-O-O Ne8 15. Kb1 Nd6 16. Rc1 Qe7 17. Rhe1 Rfb8 18. Na4 b5 19. cxb5
Nxb5 20. Bxb5 Rxb5 $13 {1-0 Volkov,S (2558)-Shaposhnikov,E (2514)/Tomsk 2001/
CBM 082 ext (39)}) 14... Bd4 15. O-O-O Nc5 16. Bc2 Ne8 17. Nb5 Nd6 18. Nxd4
exd4 19. Bf4 Nxc4 20. Rxd4 b5 21. e5 $16 {1/2 Bagirov,R (2471)-Maherramzade,J 
(2422)/Abu Dhabi 1999/EXT 2000 (44)}) 13. Bg5 (13. Bd2 a5 14. g4 O-O 15. g5 Ne8
16. h4 Bd4 17. Ne2 Bxb2 18. Rb1 Bxa3 19. Ng3 Bb4 {0-1 Boor,C (2233)
-Perelshteyn,E (2526)/Las Vegas 2006/CBM 112 ext}) (13. Rb1 O-O 14. Be3 cxd5
15. cxd5 Qb6 16. Na4 Qa5+ 17. Nc3 Bd4 $13 {1-0 Toth,E (2409)-Prohaszka,P (2509)
/Budapest 2008/CBM 125 Extra (32)}) 13... h6 14. Bd2 Bd4 $1 (14... Qe7 15. g4
a5 16. Ne2 Bd4 17. O-O-O c5 18. Ng3 g6 19. Rdf1 Ra6 20. Rh2 Qd6 21. Kb1 a4 22.
Bc1 Kd8 23. h4 $16 {1/2 Krizsany,L (2395)-Loginov,V (2610)/Harkany 1994/CBM
045 ext (41)}) 15. g4 (15. O-O-O Qb6 $1) 15... a5 16. Rf1 Nc5 17. Bc2 Qb6 $36 {
1-0 Toth,E (2392)-Prohaszka,P (2510)/Winterthur SUI 2009/The Week in Chess 779
(30)}) (12. g4 $5 {[%cal Rg4g5]} O-O 13. Bd2 (13. Bd3 Ne8 (13... Bd4 $5) 14.
Bd2 a5 15. O-O-O Nd6 16. Kb1 c6 17. Rdf1 Qb6 18. Qd1 Bd4 $36 {0-1 Sammour
Hasbun,J (2463)-Gareev,T (2570)/Pawtucket 2008/CBM 125 Extra (34)}) 13... c6
14. O-O-O a5 15. h4 Bd4 16. g5 Ne8 17. Ne2 c5 18. h5 Nd6 $13 {1-0 Palliser,R 
(2406)-Hunt,H (2463)/Hinckley Island ENG 2009/CBM 128 Extra (44)}) 12... Bd4 $6
$146 {This move is now met with a nice tactical response.} (12... a5 $5 13.
O-O-O O-O 14. g4 Be7 15. Be3 Ne8 16. h4 Bc5 17. g5 Nd6 18. Qg3 b6 19. Bd3 Bxe3+
20. Qxe3 Nc5 21. Rdf1 c6 22. Kb1 Rc8 23. Be2 cxd5 24. cxd5 Qd7 25. h5 Na4 $132
{1/2 Bluvshtein,M (2548)-Kovalyov,A (2548)/Montreal 2008/CBM 126 (49)}) 13. Ne2
$1 {[%mdl 64]} Bxb2 14. Ra2 $1 (14. Rb1 $143 Bd4 15. Nxd4 exd4 16. Rxb7 Nc5 {
[%cal Rc5b7,Rc5e4]} 17. Bxf6 gxf6 18. Rb5 Qd6 $13) 14... Bd4 15. Nxd4 exd4 16.
e5 $1 O-O $2 {This piece sacrifice is incorrect. Meanwhile Black could have
given it up in a much better version:} (16... Nxe5 $1 17. Re2 Qd6 18. c5 $1 (
18. Bf4 Nfd7 19. c5 Qxc5 $1 20. Bxe5 O-O $36 {[%csl Re1]}) 18... O-O-O $1 19.
cxd6 (19. Qf5+ Qd7 20. Rxe5 (20. Qxe5 $2 d3 $1 21. Re3 Nxd5) 20... Rde8 21.
Qxd7+ Nxd7 22. Rxe8+ Rxe8+ 23. Kd1 Nxc5 $13) 19... Nxf3+ 20. gxf3 Rxd6 21. Bxf6
Rxf6 22. Kf2 Rd8 23. Re5 $14) 17. exf6 Re8+ 18. Kf2 Ne5 19. Qf5 h6 20. Bc1 b5
21. fxg7 (21. Rd2 $142 $1 $18 {[%cal Yd2d4]}) 21... bxc4 22. Qf4 Qxd5 23. Qxh6
f6 (23... Ng6 24. h4 $1 $18 {[%cal Rh4h5]}) 24. Qh8+ $6 (24. Kg1 $1 $18 {
[%cal Ya2f2]}) 24... Kf7 25. Qh5+ (25. Qh7 Rg8) 25... Kxg7 26. Bh6+ Kg8 27. Kg1
d3 28. Rf2 Qf7 29. Qh4 Re6 {White has allowed Black to consolidate his
position a little bit but now he finds the right arrangement of pieces:} 30.
Bd2 $1 Rd8 31. Bc3 Rdd6 32. Qf4 Re8 33. h4 $1 Ng6 34. Qg4 Kh8 35. Rh3 Ne5 36.
Qf4 Qh5 37. Re3 Rg8 38. Rxe5 fxe5 39. Bxe5+ 1-0

[Event "Gashimov Memorial 3rd"]
[Site "Shamkir"]
[Date "2016.06.02"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Black "Safarli, Eltaj"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2748"]
[BlackElo "2664"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "87"]
[EventDate "2016.05.26"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 173"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.07.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.07.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 d5 5. Bg2 O-O 6. a3 Bxc3+ (6... Be7 {
is another line.}) 7. bxc3 c5 (7... dxc4 {is more principled. White has to
sacrifice this pawn or waste a lot of time to regain it. A recent example:} 8.
Nf3 Nbd7 9. O-O Rb8 10. Qc2 b5 11. a4 a6 12. axb5 axb5 13. Ba3 Re8 14. Ne5 Nxe5
15. dxe5 Nd5 16. Rfd1 Bd7 17. Bxd5 exd5 18. Rxd5 {1/2 (18) Berkes,F (2664)
-Papp,G (2594) Zalakaros 2015}) {The text move yields White a small but
comfortable edge due to his bishop pair.} 8. cxd5 (8. Nf3 Nc6 9. O-O {is less
logical. Black finally played} dxc4 {and equalised in the following game:} 10.
Qa4 cxd4 (10... Na5 $5 11. Ne5 Nd5) 11. cxd4 Bd7 12. Qxc4 Na5 13. Qd3 Bc6 14.
Bg5 h6 15. Bxf6 Qxf6 16. Rac1 Rac8 17. Ne5 Bxg2 18. Kxg2 Rfd8 19. Qb5 Rxc1 20.
Rxc1 Nc6 21. Qxb7 Nxe5 22. dxe5 Qxe5 $11 {1/2 (27) Kuzubov,Y (2558)-Safarli,E 
(2328) Dubai 2005}) 8... exd5 (8... Nxd5 9. Qc2 $14 {[%cal Ye2e4]}) 9. Nf3 cxd4
(9... c4 $5 10. Qc2 Nc6 11. Bg5 h6 12. Bxf6 Qxf6 13. Nd2 Qd6 14. O-O b5 15. e4
Be6 16. exd5 Bxd5 17. Ne4 Qd8 18. f4 {1/2 (18) Yermolinsky,A (2588)-Serper,G 
(2540) Salt Lake City 1999}) 10. Nxd4 Nc6 11. O-O Ne4 $6 {After this move
White successfully opens up the position for his bishops.} (11... h6 $142) 12.
c4 $1 {[%mdl 32]} Re8 13. Bb2 Na5 14. cxd5 Nc4 15. Rb1 Nxb2 16. Rxb2 Qxd5 {
White has no bishop pair anymore but he has a huge development advantage.} 17.
Qd3 Bd7 {After this move White gets a material advantage by means of a small
tactical trick.} ({but preventing it by means of} 17... a6 {is very ugly, and
White has a clear advantage after, say,} 18. Rc1 $16) 18. Rfb1 Rab8 (18... Bc6
19. Nxc6 ({the rook ending after} 19. Rb5 Qd7 20. Nxc6 Qxd3 21. exd3 bxc6 22.
Bxe4 cxb5 23. Bxa8 Rxa8 24. Rxb5 Kf8 {is less clear}) 19... bxc6 20. Qc2 $16 {
[%csl Rc6,Gg2]}) 19. Rb5 $1 Bxb5 20. Rxb5 Nxf2 21. Kxf2 Qd6 $2 {Giving up
another pawn for an unclear reason.} (21... Qd7 $142 $16) 22. Bxb7 Rbd8 23. e3
Re5 24. a4 h5 25. h4 Rde8 26. e4 Qf6+ 27. Kg2 Rxb5 28. axb5 g6 29. Bd5 Re7 30.
Qd2 {White should gradually convert his material advantage. However, a series
of mutual mistakes comes up.} a6 $2 {[%mdl 8192]} 31. bxa6 $2 ({Both players
missed} 31. Nc6 $1 Rd7 32. Nb8 $1 $18) 31... Qxa6 {With pawns on the same side
things are less clear.} 32. Nc6 $6 {An unnecessary manoeuvre.} (32. Qf4 $1 {
[%cal Ye4e5] should be enough for a win.}) 32... Rc7 33. Nd8 Qa4 34. Qh6 $2 (
34. Qd3 $142 {, and then capture on f7 as} Rc2+ {is not dangerous due to} 35.
Kf3) 34... Rc2+ $6 (34... Qc2+ $142 35. Kh3 Qd1 36. Qxg6+ Kf8 {, and White
must give a perpetual.}) 35. Kh3 Qd7+ 36. Ne6 $1 fxe6 37. Qxg6+ Kf8 (37... Kh8
$1 {was the right way although after} 38. Qxh5+ ({but not} 38. Bxe6 $2 Rh2+ 39.
Kxh2 Qd2+ 40. Kh3 Qh2+ 41. Kxh2 {- stalemate!}) ({and not} 38. Qh6+ Qh7) 38...
Kg7 39. Qg4+ Kf6 (39... Kf7 40. h5 $1) 40. e5+ Kxe5 41. Qe4+ Kf6 42. Qxc2 exd5+
43. g4 d4 44. Qd3 {Black should work hard for a draw.}) 38. Bxe6 Qg7 39. Qxh5 {
White has restored his decisive material advantage and now wins without
problems.} Rc3 40. Qg4 Qxg4+ 41. Kxg4 Kg7 42. Kf4 Rc1 43. Kg5 Re1 44. Bf5 1-0

[Event "RUS-chT 16th"]
[Site "Dagomys"]
[Date "2009.04.05"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Volkov, Sergey"]
[Black "Eljanov, Pavel"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2594"]
[BlackElo "2693"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "174"]
[EventDate "2009.04.04"]
[EventType "team-tourn"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2020"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.10.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.10.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Saransk TPS"]
[BlackTeam "Saratov Ekonomist SGSEU"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "RUS"]
[BlackTeamCountry "RUS"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 O-O 6. e4 Re8 7. Nge2 d6 8. a3 (8.
Bd2 {- see Golod-Turov in CBM 81.}) (8. Ng3 $5 Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 Qa5 10. Bd2 Bd7
11. Be2 Ba4 12. Qc1 Nbd7 13. O-O a6 14. Bf4 Qc7 15. Rb1 Nf8 16. h4 $14 {
1-0 Wells,P-King,D/London 1991/CBM 024 (42)}) 8... Ba5 9. Rb1 $146 {This is
hardly a serious improvement.} ({It is not clear what Black had prepared to
meet} 9. Ng3 $5 {In the following games he failed to equalize:} Bxc3+ (9...
exd5 10. cxd5 Nbd7 11. Be2 Ne5 12. O-O c4 13. Kh1 Bd7 $6 (13... h6 14. Bf4 Bd7
15. Bxe5 Rxe5 16. Bxc4 Rc8 17. Qd3 $14) 14. Bg5 h6 15. Bxf6 Qxf6 16. f4 Nd3 17.
Bxd3 cxd3 18. Qxd3 Rac8 19. Nb5 a6 20. Nd4 $16 {1-0 Hadet,E-Houtman,J/IECG
2004/Telechess 117 (46)}) (9... Nbd7 10. dxe6 Bxc3+ 11. bxc3 Rxe6 12. Be2 b6
13. O-O Bb7 14. Bg5 h6 15. Be3 Ne5 16. Nf5 Qd7 17. Ra2 Rd8 18. Rd2 Ng6 19. Bf2
Bc6 20. Bg3 $14 {0-1 Widjajas,I-Ottenweller,W/IECG 2005/Telechess CBM 119 (44)}
) 10. bxc3 Qa5 11. Bd2 Nbd7 (11... Bd7 12. Be2 Ba4 13. Qb1 Nbd7 14. Ra2 Rab8
15. O-O a6 16. Rb2 Qc7 17. Re1 Nf8 18. Bd3 (18. h4 $5 $16) 18... Ng6 19. f4 e5
20. f5 $14 {1/2-1/2 Timman,J-Kortschnoj,V/Rotterdam 1990/CBM 018/[Ftacnik] (34)
}) 12. Be2 Ne5 13. f4 Ng6 14. O-O Bd7 15. Bd3 Qa4 16. Qf3 exd5 17. cxd5 c4 18.
Bb1 Qa5 19. h3 Re7 20. Kh2 Rae8 21. Ra2 $14 {1-0 Volkov,S-Loginov,V/Elista
2001/CBM 083 (42)}) (9. Bd2 {is less energetic:} exd5 10. cxd5 Nbd7 11. Ng3 a6
12. Be2 b5 13. O-O c4 14. b3 cxb3 15. Qxb3 Nc5 16. Qb2 Rb8 17. Rab1 Nfd7 18.
Nd1 Bxd2 19. Qxd2 Qf6 20. Ne3 Ne5 21. Rfc1 Bd7 $132 {0-1 Novoa,R-Amann,K/
Chessfriend.com 2003/Telechess CBM 97 (32)}) 9... exd5 10. cxd5 c4 11. Ng3 b5
12. Be2 Nbd7 13. O-O Ne5 (13... a6 $5 14. b4 $140 cxb3) 14. b4 Bb6+ 15. Kh1 Bd7
16. a4 a6 17. Ra1 h6 18. Qd2 Rb8 19. Bb2 Nh7 $2 {[%mdl 16384] Black is passive
at the moment and must wait. However, he should not remove his knight from f6 
(from where it attacks the e4 pawn and threatens ...Nf6-g4 in the event of
f3-f4).} (19... Ng6 $142) 20. f4 $16 Nd3 (20... Ng4 21. Bxg4 Bxg4 22. axb5 axb5
23. Nxb5 $16) (20... Ng6 21. axb5 axb5 22. Nh5 $1 {[%cal Yf1f3,Yf3g3,Rf4f5,
Rf5f6]}) 21. Bxd3 cxd3 22. axb5 (22. Qxd3 {is not so clear due to} bxa4 23.
Nxa4 Bb5 24. Qc3 Nf6 25. Rfc1 Bf2 26. Nf5 Rxe4 27. Qf3 Rxb4) 22... Nf6 $5 {
Black tries to complicate matters.} (22... axb5 23. Qxd3 Nf6 24. Nce2 Ng4 25.
Bd4 {is hopeless enough - Black has no compensation for the pawn whatsoever.})
23. Qxd3 (23. bxa6 $5 Ng4 24. h3 Ne3 (24... Qh4 25. Rf3) 25. Rf3 Nc4 26. Qxd3
Nxb2 27. Qe2 Bg4 $1 28. Qxb2 Bxf3 29. gxf3 Qh4 30. Qg2 $16) 23... Ng4 24. h3
Qh4 25. Nd1 $1 axb5 (25... Bxb5 $2 26. Qc3 {[%cal Rg3f5,Rc3g7]}) 26. Ra6 (26.
Bc3 $1 {[%cal Yc3e1] was the best way to parry Black's attack and keep a
healthy extra pawn.}) 26... Nf6 27. Nf2 (27. Bxf6 $5 Qxf6 28. Nc3 $16) 27...
Bxf2 {Liquidating to an endgame with opposite-coloured bishops, which Black
eventually holds.} 28. Rxf2 Nxe4 29. Nxe4 Rxe4 30. Qxe4 Qxf2 31. Qd4 Qxd4 32.
Bxd4 {[%mdl 4096]} Rc8 33. Rxd6 Rc1+ 34. Kh2 Bf5 35. g4 Be4 36. Rd8+ Kh7 37. d6
{Black's defence is still quite difficult. He's got "two weaknesses": the
b5-pawn and White's passed d-pawn, and his bishop can't control them both.} Rd1
38. Bc5 Rd2+ 39. Kg1 h5 $6 (39... f5 $142 $1 40. Be3 $1 (40. Rb8 $143 fxg4 41.
hxg4 Bf3 42. g5 hxg5 43. fxg5 Kg6) 40... Rd3 41. Kf2 $16) 40. Re8 $6 (40. gxh5
{, and Black can't recapture a pawn on h5 or h3 without losing his own on b5.})
40... Bc6 41. Rc8 Bf3 42. gxh5 Bxh5 {That's the difference!} 43. Rb8 $6 (43.
Rc7 $1 Bg6 44. Rb7 {was still quite strong.}) 43... Be2 44. Kf2 $6 {White
consequently underestimates the importance of putting the rook to the 7th rank.
} (44. Rb7 $142 $1 {[%cal Rb7f7,Rd6d7]} Bc4 45. f5 {[%cal Rd6d7]} Bd5 46. Re7
f6 47. Be3 Rd3 48. Kf2 Bc6 49. Bc5 {keeping his f-pawn and gradually making
progress.}) 44... Bc4+ 45. Ke3 Rd5 46. f5 (46. Rb7 {was now too late due to} f5
$1 47. d7 $140 Rd3+ 48. Kf2 Be6) 46... Bd3 {The f5 pawn is now lost.} 47. h4 f6
48. Rb6 Kh6 49. Rb7 Bxf5 50. Rxb5 g5 {This passed pawn gives Black sufficient
counterplay.} 51. hxg5+ fxg5 52. Rb7 Kg6 53. Rc7 Rd3+ 54. Ke2 Rd5 55. Kf2 Bd3
56. Ke3 Bf1 57. Ra7 Bh3 58. Ra8 Bf5 59. Rg8+ Kf6 60. Rh8 Rd3+ 61. Ke2 Rd5 62.
Rh6+ Ke5 63. Rh8 Kf4 64. Rf8 Ke4 65. Ra8 Kf4 66. Ra1 Bg4+ 67. Ke1 Bf3 68. Rc1
g4 $44 69. b5 g3 70. Rc4+ Kf5 71. Rc1 g2 72. Kf2 Be4 73. b6 Rd3 74. Re1 Rf3+
75. Ke2 Ke6 76. Kd2 Rd3+ 77. Ke2 Kd7 78. Ra1 Kc6 79. Rc1 Kb7 80. Ra1 Kc6 81.
Rc1 Kb7 82. Kf2 Rf3+ 83. Kg1 Rf1+ 84. Rxf1 gxf1=Q+ 85. Kxf1 Bc6 86. Kf2 Kc8 87.
Ke3 Kd7 1/2-1/2

[Event "Morelia/Linares 25th"]
[Site "Morelia/Linares"]
[Date "2008.02.15"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2780"]
[BlackElo "2739"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "73"]
[EventDate "2008.02.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 123"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.04.02"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.04.02"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 Ne4 7. Qd3 Bxc3+ 8.
bxc3 Nc5 9. Qf3 d6 10. Bg2 {This system was examined in several CBM issues:
108 (several games annotated by GM V.Gavrikov), 115 (Bareev-Nyback), 116 
(Chuchelov-Babula).} e5 ({To} 10... Nbd7 {(previously considered the most
appropriate) White has recently achieved good results by means of} 11. Qg4 {
, e.g.} O-O (11... Qf6 12. Nb5 O-O 13. Bg5 Qg6 14. Qh4 f6 15. Be3 Qc2 16. O-O
Qxe2 17. Rfe1 Qc2 18. Qd4 $16 {1-0 Le Quang Liem-Smirnov,P/Moscow RUS 2008/The
Week in Chess 693 (24)}) 12. Bh6 Qf6 13. Bg5 Qg6 14. Qh4 Nf6 (14... f6 15. Be3
a6 16. O-O Qf7 17. Nb3 Qe7 18. Qd4 Na4 19. Rfd1 Ne5 20. Rab1 Re8 21. Na5 Qc7
22. Nxb7 $16 {1-0 L'Ami,E-Sher,M/Cappelle La Grande FRA 2008/The Week in Chess
694 (53)}) (14... a6 15. O-O Nf6 16. Bxf6 Qxf6 17. Qxf6 gxf6 18. Nb3 Rd8 19.
Nxc5 dxc5 20. Rfd1 Rd7 21. Rxd7 Bxd7 22. Bxb7 Ra7 23. Rb1 $16 {1-0 L'Ami,
E-Gofshtein,L/Hoogeveen 2007/CBM 120 ext (64)}) 15. Nb3 (15. Bxf6 gxf6 16. Rd1
Bd7 17. O-O Ba4 18. Rb1 Rac8 19. Nb3 b6 20. Rfd1 e5 21. Rb2 Rfd8 22. Bd5 Bc6
23. Nxc5 Bxd5 24. cxd5 Rxc5 $11 {1/2-1/2 Moiseenko,A-Kveinys,A/Cappelle La
Grande FRA 2008/The Week in Chess 693 (29)}) (15. O-O Bd7 16. Nb3 Rac8 17. Rfd1
Bc6 18. Bxf6 Qxf6 19. Qxf6 gxf6 20. Nxc5 dxc5 21. Rd6 Rfd8 22. Rad1 Rxd6 23.
Rxd6 Kf8 {1/2-1/2 Nielsen,P-Gyimesi,Z/Crete 2007/CBM 121 (39)}) 15... Nce4 16.
Bxf6 Nxf6 17. Qd4 e5 (17... Rd8 $5) 18. Qxd6 Bg4 19. Rd1 Rae8 20. Bxb7 Qh5 21.
h3 e4 22. Nd4 $16 {1-0 Delchev,A-Kveinys,A/Crete 2007/CBM 121 (63)}) 11. Qe3 $5
$146 {[%mdl 8] After provoking ...e6-e5 White starts regrouping his pieces to
make use of the hole on d5. Earlier practice had seen:} (11. Nb3 Nba6 12. Ba3
Qc7 13. Rd1 (13. Bxc5 Nxc5 14. Nxc5 Qxc5 15. Qd5 Qxd5 16. Bxd5 Rb8 17. Kd2 Be6
$11 {1/2-1/2 Furman,B-Greet,A/Hastings 2007/CBM 116 ext (48)}) 13... Be6 14.
Nxc5 (14. Bxc5 Nxc5 15. Nxc5 dxc5 (15... Qxc5 $142 $1) 16. O-O Rb8 17. Qh5 O-O
18. Bd5 Rfe8 19. Bxe6 Rxe6 20. Rd5 Re7 21. Rfd1 Rbe8 22. Qg5 b6 23. Rd6 $14 {
1-0 Aronian,L-Nielsen,P/Turin 2006/CBM 113 (66)}) 14... Nxc5 15. Bxc5 Qxc5 16.
Qxb7 Rc8 17. O-O (17. Bd5 Bxd5 18. Qxd5 Qxc4 19. Qxd6 Qxc3+ 20. Kf1 Qc7 21. Kg2
Qxd6 22. Rxd6 Ke7 23. Ra6 Rc7 $11 {1/2-1/2 Moiseenko,A-Gyimesi,Z/
Maalot-Tarshiha ISR 2008/The Week in Chess 688 (33)}) 17... Qxc4 18. Rxd6 O-O
19. Qxa7 Qxe2 20. a4 Rxc3 21. a5 Bc4 22. Ra1 Ra3 23. Rdd1 Rxa1 24. Rxa1 Qb2 25.
Rd1 Be2 26. Re1 Qd2 27. Rb1 Bd3 $132 {1/2-1/2 Wang Yue-Meier,G/Yerevan 2006/
CBM 114 ext (36)}) (11. Nf5 $5 Qf6 12. Ne3 Qxf3 13. Bxf3 (13. exf3 Nba6 14. Ba3
Be6 15. O-O-O O-O-O 16. f4 exf4 17. gxf4 f5 18. h4 Rhe8 19. h5 Kc7 $13 {
1/2-1/2 Ivanchuk,V-Asrian,K/Sochi 2007/CBM 118 (62)}) 13... Be6 14. Ba3 Nba6
15. O-O-O Ke7 16. Bg2 Rad8 17. f4 f6 18. Rhf1 b6 19. g4 Nc7 20. h4 g6 21. Kc2
Rhf8 22. Bc6 f5 23. fxe5 dxe5 24. Rxd8 Kxd8 25. gxf5 gxf5 26. Bxc5 bxc5 27. Be4
$14 {1-0 Kramnik,V-Anand,V/Monte Carlo 2007/CBM 117 ext (29)}) 11... O-O (11...
Nba6 $6 {was a later attempt at an improvement, which was brilliantly refuted:}
12. f4 $1 Qe7 (12... O-O 13. fxe5 dxe5 14. Nb3 $16) 13. Nc6 $1 Qd7 14. Nb4 O-O
15. Nxa6 Nxa6 16. fxe5 Re8 17. O-O Rxe5 18. Qd4 Nc5 19. Bd5 Ne6 20. Qf2 Qe7 21.
Rb1 $16 Nd8 22. Bf4 Rxe2 23. Bxd6 Qe8 24. Qxe2 Qxe2 25. Rfe1 Qxe1+ 26. Rxe1 Be6
27. c5 {1-0 Gajewski,G-Macieja,B/Lublin POL 2008/The Week in Chess 694 (41)})
12. Nb3 Qc7 (12... Nba6 13. Ba3 Qc7 14. Nxc5 Nxc5 15. Bxc5 dxc5 {and White
gets a favorable structure as in Aronian-Nielsen (see above)} ({or} 15... Qxc5
16. Qxc5 dxc5 17. O-O-O)) {However, the text move leads to an even better
situation for White as his bishop pair proves really strong.} 13. Nxc5 dxc5 14.
O-O Nd7 15. f4 $5 {[%mdl 32] Making space for the bishops!} exf4 $6 (15... Re8
$142 16. f5 $5 (16. Bd5 $5 Nf6 17. f5)) 16. Rxf4 {Despite his destroyed pawn
structure, White has a clear advantage. In fact, it is difficult for Black to
develop his pieces without losses!} a5 ({It was relatively better for Black to
give up a pawn but complete his development:} 16... Nb6 17. Ba3 Be6 18. Qxc5
Rfc8 19. Qxc7 Rxc7 20. Bd6 Rxc4 21. Bxb7 Rd8 $16) 17. Qe7 (17. Ba3 $5 Ra6 18.
Bd5) 17... Qe5 18. Qxe5 Nxe5 19. Be3 Nd7 (19... Be6 {hardly helps now:} 20.
Bxc5 Rfd8 21. Rd4 $5) 20. Re4 (20. Rd1 $5 {was perhaps more accurate. If} Re8 {
then} 21. Re4 Kf8 22. Rd5 {etc.}) 20... Ra6 (20... Nf6 $1 21. Re7 Be6 $16 {
was the last chance of consolidation.}) 21. Rb1 Rg6 22. Re7 b6 23. Bf4 h5 24.
Be4 Re6 25. Rxe6 fxe6 26. Bd6 Rf6 27. Rd1 {Total domination!} Kf7 28. Bf4 {
[%cal Rf4g5]} Kg8 29. Bc7 Rf7 $6 {Loses material.} (29... e5 $142) 30. Bg6 {
The rest is clear.} a4 31. Bxh5 Nf6 32. Bxf7+ Kxf7 33. Bxb6 Ba6 34. Bxc5 e5 35.
a3 Bxc4 36. Bb4 e4 37. Kf1 1-0

[Event "POL-ch 65th"]
[Site "Lublin"]
[Date "2008.02.25"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Gajewski, Grzegorz"]
[Black "Macieja, Bartlomiej"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2594"]
[BlackElo "2617"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "83"]
[EventDate "2008.02.02"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "POL"]
[EventCategory "13"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 123"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.04.02"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.04.02"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 Ne4 7. Qd3 Bxc3+ 8.
bxc3 Nc5 9. Qf3 d6 10. Bg2 e5 11. Qe3 Nba6 {An unsuccessful attempt at an
improvement.} (11... O-O {- see Topalov - Aronian in this issue.}) 12. f4 $1 {
[%mdl 32]} Qe7 (12... O-O 13. fxe5 Re8 (13... dxe5 14. Nb3) 14. O-O Rxe5 15.
Qf3 {[%cal Rf3f7,Rc1f4]} Re7 16. Bg5 f6 17. Bxf6 gxf6 18. Qxf6 Be6 19. Rf5 $1
$40) 13. Nc6 $5 (13. fxe5 Qxe5 (13... dxe5 14. Ba3 $1) 14. Nb5 O-O 15. Qd4 {
was quite strong but the text move is more spectacular!}) 13... Qd7 {It was
probably better to give up a pawn but complete development:} (13... Qc7 14.
fxe5 dxe5 15. Qxe5+ Qxe5 16. Nxe5 f6 17. Nd3 Be6) 14. Nb4 O-O 15. Nxa6 Nxa6 16.
fxe5 Re8 17. O-O (17. Qd4 $5 Rxe5 $140 18. Bf4) 17... Rxe5 18. Qd4 {The same
story as in Topalov-Aronian: Black's superior pawn structure is less important
than White's powerful bishop pair and development advantage.} Nc5 19. Bd5 Ne6 (
19... Re7 {runs into} 20. Bg5 $1 Ne6 $8 21. Bxe7 $1 Nxd4 22. Rxf7 Nxe2+ 23. Kf2
g6 $8 24. Rf4+ $1 Kg7 25. Bf6+ Kf8 26. Kxe2 Qa4 $1 27. Kf2 Qc2+ 28. Kg1 {
with a decisive attack.}) 20. Qf2 Qe7 21. Rb1 Nd8 {Black has no other way to
develop his pieces!} 22. Bf4 $1 Rxe2 23. Bxd6 $1 Qe8 (23... Rxf2 24. Bxe7 Rxf1+
25. Kxf1 Nc6 (25... Be6 26. Bxd8 Rxd8 27. Rxb7) 26. Bd6 {with total domination.
}) (23... Qe3 24. Qxe3 Rxe3 25. Rfe1 Rxe1+ 26. Rxe1 {-game.}) 24. Qxe2 $5 Qxe2
25. Rfe1 Qxe1+ 26. Rxe1 {[%mdl 4096] In spite of simplifications, White's
pressure remains strong as he has exchanged Black's developed pieces!} Be6 27.
c5 Rc8 (27... Nc6 28. Bxe6 fxe6 29. Rxe6 $16) 28. c4 h5 29. Kf2 Kh7 30. Rb1 $1
f6 31. Re1 $2 (31. Bxb7 {was quite good but Black's last move has created a
new possibility for White. He takes it - and wrongly! His rook was placed much
more strongly on the b-file.}) (31. Ke3 $5 {was also satisfactory}) ({or even} 
31. a4 $5) 31... Bxd5 32. cxd5 Nf7 33. Be7 (33. Re7 Nxd6 34. cxd6 Rc5 35. Rxb7
Rxd5 36. d7 a5 37. Ke3 Kg6 38. Ke4 Rd1 {and White can't break through.}) 33...
Rc7 $2 {A mistake in reply. The black rook was perfectly placed on c6;
meanwhile, he should have activated his king:} (33... Kg6 $1 {with good
drawing chances.} 34. Kf3 $140 Kf5) 34. Kf3 Kg6 35. Kf4 {That's the point!} Rd7
$6 {This move is probably losing but it is not easy to suggest something
instead:} ({Waiting with} 35... a6 {is met by} 36. Bd6 $1 Rd7 (36... Nxd6 37.
cxd6 Rd7 (37... Rc4+ 38. Ke3 Kf7 39. d7 Ke7 40. Kd3+) 38. Re6 {[%cal Yf4e4,
Ye4d4,Yd4c5]}) 37. Re6 Rd8 38. Ke3 $16) (35... Ne5 36. Bd6 Rc8 37. Re3 ({
the pawn endgame after} 37. Bxe5 fxe5+ 38. Rxe5 Rxc5 39. d6 Rxe5 40. Kxe5 Kf7 {
is drawish}) 37... Nf7 (37... Nc4 38. Re6 {[%cal Yf4e4,Ye4d4]}) 38. Re6 {
is not too attractive either}) (35... Rc8 {[%cal Yf7e5] (trying to "correct"
his mistake but White keeps winning chances anyway)} 36. Re6 $1 (36. Bd6 $6 b6)
(36. h4 Ne5 37. Rxe5 $2 fxe5+ 38. Kxe5 Kf7) 36... Ng5 37. Re3 $1 Nf7 38. h4 Ne5
$140 39. Rb3 $1) 36. d6 $22 {[%csl Rd7]} Ne5 $6 {Black collapses at once but
he had no hope of saving the game in any case:} (36... Nh6 37. Ke4 Nf5 38. Kd5
Kf7 39. c6 $1 $18) (36... a6 37. Ke4 (37. a3 a5 38. a4 {is more complicated:}
Nh6 39. Ke4 Nf5 40. Kd5 Kf7 41. Bf8 $3 (41. c6 $143 bxc6+ 42. Kxc6 Ra7 43. Kb6
Rd7 44. Kxa5 Nxd6 45. Bxd6 Rxd6 46. Re2 $16) 41... Rd8 (41... Kxf8 42. Ke6 $18)
42. Bxg7 $3 Kxg7 43. Rb1 $1 {and White must win, e.g.} Rb8 44. d7) 37... Ne5
38. Kd5 {[%cal Rd5e6]} Kf7 39. Rxe5 fxe5 40. Kxe5 Rxe7+ (40... a5 41. Bh4 a4
42. a3 Ke8 43. Ke6 $18) 41. dxe7 Kxe7 42. Kf5 Kf7 43. h3 {and White wins due
to his a2-pawn being on its initial square, e.g.} g6+ 44. Ke5 $1 (44. Kg5 Kg7
45. a3 a5 46. a4 Kf7 47. Kh6 Ke6 $1 48. Kxg6 Kd5 49. Kxh5 Kxc5 50. g4 b5 $11)
44... Ke7 45. g4 a5 (45... hxg4 46. hxg4 a5 47. g5 $18) 46. a3 a4 47. g5 h4 48.
Kd4 $1 Ke8 (48... Ke6 49. Ke4 {with a decisive triangulation}) (48... Kd7 49.
Kd5 $18) 49. Kc4 $18 {[%csl Ra4]}) 37. Rxe5 fxe5+ 38. Kxe5 Kf7 39. Bg5 g6 40.
Kd5 a6 41. h4 a5 42. a4 $22 (42. a4 Ke8 43. Ke6 Rh7 44. Be7 $18) 1-0

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2014.03.23"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2757"]
[BlackElo "2830"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "87"]
[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"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 O-O 5. e4 d5 6. e5 Nfd7 7. cxd5 exd5 8. a3
Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 f6 10. exf6 Qe8+ (10... Qxf6 {is the common move in this
position - see CBM 106, annotations to Moskalenko - Gonzalez by V.Gavrikov.
Here is a later GM game:} 11. Ne2 Nb6 12. Nf4 c5 $6 (12... Nc6 $13) 13. a4 Nc6
14. a5 Nc4 15. Nxd5 Qe6+ 16. Qe2 N4xa5 17. Qxe6+ Bxe6 18. Nc7 $16 {1/2 (26)
Aleksandrov,A (2604)-Kravtsiv,M (2546) Bhubaneswar 2010}) 11. Qe2 (11. Kf2 $6
Nxf6 12. Bd3 Ne4+ 13. Bxe4 dxe4 14. Qb3+ Kh8 15. f4 Nc6 16. Ne2 Na5 $17 {
1/2 (48) Hawkins,J (2383)-Zdebskaja,N (2408) Hastings 2010}) 11... Qf7 $5 $146
{Black goes for sharp play, not content with equality after the recapture on
f6:} (11... Nxf6 12. Qxe8 Nxe8 13. Ne2 Nd6 (13... Nd7 $142 $11 {[%cal Yd7b6]})
14. Bf4 Rd8 15. Ng3 Nc6 16. Bd3 Be6 17. Kf2 Bf7 18. Nf5 Bg6 {1/2 (18) Shmeliov,
D (2270)-Kraai,J (2505) Las Vegas 2007} 19. Nxd6 cxd6 20. Bxg6 hxg6 21. Rab1 b6
22. Rb5 $14) 12. fxg7 Re8 13. Be3 Nc6 14. Qd2 Na5 15. Rb1 Nb6 16. Rb4 {White
must give up an exchange; however, if he successfully completes his
development after that, Black's exposed king will guarantee him good
compensation.} Nac4 17. Bxc4 dxc4 $6 {Too subtle.} (17... Nxc4 $142 18. Rxc4
dxc4 19. Ne2 Bf5 {[%cal Ya8d8,Yc7c5] with an excellent position for Black.})
18. Rb5 $1 Bf5 $6 {In the second half of the Candidates tournament Levon
Aronian often took strange decisions when he should have made simple and good
moves.} (18... Nd5 $142 19. Rxd5 Qxd5 20. Ne2 Bf5) 19. Kf2 $6 {White prefers
to follow his initial plan but it was quite possible to play} (19. Re5 {, e.g.}
Rxe5 20. dxe5 Qe7 21. Ne2 Qxe5 22. Nf4 Re8 23. Kf2 Qxg7 {- Black restores the
material balance but his position is poor as his king is completely
unprotected.}) 19... Nd5 20. Rxd5 ({It is strange to suggest} 20. Bf4 $5 {
after White has not played 19.Re5.}) 20... Qxd5 21. Ne2 a5 {[%mdl 32] The plan
of advancing queenside pawns eventually fails. Black can only make c4 a passed
pawn but it will be safely blocked on c3; meanwhile, White develops his
initiative on the kingside.} (21... Rad8 {[%cal Yc7c5] deserved attention here,
too, although it would work better with Black's queen on f7 (see annotation to
move 17).}) 22. h4 b5 23. h5 b4 $6 (23... Qd6 $5 {(recommended by P.Maletin)}
24. Ra1 Qf6 {probably offered Black more counter-chances.}) 24. cxb4 axb4 25.
axb4 Qb5 $6 (25... Bd3 $142 26. Nf4 Qd6 {, according to P.Maletin.}) 26. Re1
Bd3 (26... Ra3 27. Bg5 $1) 27. Nf4 Ra3 (27... Ra4 28. d5 Qxb4 29. Qxb4 Rxb4 30.
h6 $16 {[%csl Gg7] _|_, P.Maletin}) 28. d5 Bb1 29. Kg3 c3 {Black has finally
managed to push his c-pawn but the collapse on the e-file comes before it can
queen.} 30. Qc1 Rb3 31. Bc5 (31. Bd4 {was even simpler:} c2 32. h6 $18 {
[%cal Rf4h5]}) 31... Rxe1 (31... Qd7 32. Ne6 {[%cal Yc1g5]}) 32. Qxe1 Qd7 33.
h6 Qf7 34. Nh5 Bg6 35. Qe8+ $1 Qxe8 36. Nf6+ Kf7 37. Nxe8 Ra3 38. Nf6 Ra8 39.
g8=Q+ Rxg8 40. Nxg8 Kxg8 {[%mdl 4096]} 41. Kf4 Bd3 42. Ke5 Kf7 43. Be3 {
The principle of the diagonal: the bishop stops Black's passed pawn and
supports White's kingside pawns along the same diagonal.} Bf1 44. g4 {White
plays g5, f4-f5 (the g5-g6 threat forces Black's king to stay on f7) -f6, then
d5-d6, creating a decisive passed pawn on the b-file.} 1-0

[Event "Sinquefield Cup 6th"]
[Site "Saint Louis"]
[Date "2018.08.24"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Black "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2822"]
[BlackElo "2773"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "59"]
[EventDate "2018.08.18"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 186"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.09.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.09.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 {Fernandez,D: 'Not one of the most common
answers to the Nimzo-Indian. What seems to have occurred is that White gambled
on Black wanting to try and play a Catalan-type structure, regardless of any
slightly better options around.'} O-O (4... c5 {seems like the most principled
continuation to me, especially since d5 is probably an ill-advised response.
Sample lines:} 5. dxc5 (5. d5 Ne4 $1 6. Qc2 Qf6 $1 $15 {is a nice tactical
point}) (5. Nf3 b6 6. Bg2 Bb7 7. O-O Bxc3 8. bxc3 $132 {is a normal Bogo-type
position where Black could play, for instance, ...Be4 or ...Nc6.}) 5... Na6 6.
Bg2 O-O 7. Nf3 Nxc5 8. O-O Bxc3 9. bxc3 d6 $11) 5. Bg2 d5 {Fernandez,D: 'Not a
mistake, but giving White the kind of game he asked for.'} (5... Nc6 $5 6. Nf3
Na5 {This is quite an unusual concept, relying from very early on upon the one
weakness that has been created by White's fianchetto.} 7. Qa4 Bxc3+ 8. bxc3 b6
$11) 6. Nf3 dxc4 7. O-O {Fernandez,D: 'Of course, this is a position with
significant theory around it, and Black should not be worse if he is extremely
vigilant. In the next note, we will see a Black win...'} Nc6 8. Qa4 $5 {
The idea of this move is prompt recapture of the c4-pawn.} Bd7 (8... Nd5 {
is the main theoretical line, after which White has to play a pawn down and
seek compensation: Fernandez,D: 'This is the early suggestion of my machine,
but in my experience, the defence of a 'Catalan c4-pawn' with ...Nb6 or ...Na5
is extremely easy to over-rate.'} 9. Qc2 Be7 (9... Nb6 10. Rd1 $44 {There will
follow e4 and b3.}) ({Attempting to mix ideas doesn't work:} 9... a6 10. a3 Be7
11. e4 Nb6 12. Be3 $14) 10. Rd1 {etc.}) 9. Bg5 {The most logical move.
Fernandez,D: 'This is almost a novelty, although its previous usage indicates
some pedigree.'} (9. Rd1 Bxc3 10. bxc3 Nxd4 11. Qxc4 Nxf3+ 12. Bxf3 Qc8 13. Qc5
Re8 14. Bg5 Nd5 15. e4 Nb6 16. e5 Bc6 17. Bxc6 bxc6 18. Qxc6 h6 19. Be3 Nd5 $11
{1/2 (71) Baryshpolets,A (2609)-Henderson de La Fuente,L (2485) Rockville USA
2018}) ({Fernandez,D: 'Previously} 9. Qc2 {was tested.'} Be7 (9... Rb8 10. Rd1
b5 11. Ne5 Nxe5 12. dxe5 Nd5 13. Bxd5 exd5 14. Nxd5 Ba5 15. Bf4 $14 {1-0 (51)
Mochalov,E (2374)-Vaganian,R (2550) Minsk 2018}) 10. e4 (10. Bg5 $5 {seems
advisable here too, and there could follow} Rb8 11. Bxf6 Bxf6 12. Ne4 b5 13. b3
$13 {with considerable mess}) 10... Nb4 (10... Rb8 11. Rd1 b5 12. Qe2 b4 13. d5
$13 {1/2 (35) Porat,M (2274)-Mascaro March,P (2413) Arinsal 2011}) 11. Qe2 Nd3
12. Ne1 $13 (12. Be3 {0-1 (41) So,W (2780)-Anand,V (2768) Saint Louis 2018} c5
$17 {Fernandez,D: '=/+!'} (12... b5 13. Ne1 Nxe1 14. Rfxe1 c6 15. Rad1 Rc8 16.
d5 cxd5 17. exd5 Qa5 $36 {So,W-Anand,V Saint Louis 2018, White's Catalan
bishop was looking less useful than usual.}))) 9... a5 $6 {Hardly the best
continuation. Fernandez,D: 'This is a reasonable choice. The various
alternatives all reflect the reality that over the next few moves, both sides
will lose their bishop pairs and White will recover the c4-pawn.'} (9... Rb8 {
Fernandez,D: 'might be the most clinical move to equalise.'} 10. Rad1 (10. Bxf6
$5 Qxf6 11. Ne5 Qe7 12. Nxc6 bxc6 13. Bxc6 $14 {M.Roiz}) 10... Bxc3 11. bxc3 h6
12. Bxf6 Qxf6 13. Qxc4 $14 {1/2 (67) Matlakov,M (2735)-Tomashevsky,E (2713) St
Petersburg 2017} Rfc8 $1 $11 {Matlakov,M-Tomashevsky,E St Petersburg 2017.
Black gets ...Na5 and ...c5 soon, Grünfeld-style, and I believe the position
is approximately equal.}) (9... Bxc3 $142 $1 10. bxc3 Nxd4 11. Qxc4 Nc6 $1 {
, and White's compensation for the pawn (pair of bishops and active pieces) is
insufficient to claim an advantage:} 12. Rfd1 Qe7 13. Rab1 $1 Rab8 14. Nd4 h6
15. Be3 Qe8 $1 16. Nxc6 Bxc6 17. Bxa7 Ra8 18. Bxc6 Qxc6 19. Qxc6 bxc6 20. Rb7
Rfc8 21. c4 {1-0 (41) Roiz,M (2614)-Psakhis,L (2475) Israel ISR 2018} Ne8 $1
22. Rd7 e5 $11 {[%cal Yg7g5,Yg8g7,Yg7f6,Yf6e6] M.Roiz}) 10. Bxf6 $1 (10. Rfd1
$6 {1-0 (17) Lenderman,A (2600)-Gretarsson,H (2568) Reykjavik ISL 2018} Bxc3 (
10... Nxd4 $5 11. Rxd4 Bxc3 $6 (11... Bxa4 12. Rxd8 Rfxd8 13. Nxa4 h6 $15 {
still leaves White a little awkwardly placed}) 12. Rxd7 Qxd7 13. Qxd7 Nxd7 14.
bxc3 f6 15. Be3 Rab8 16. Nd4 Kf7 17. Nb5 $16 {Lenderman,A -Gretarsson,H
Reykjavik 2018. Black's resignation here was perhaps a little early, but it is
clear that the two pieces are very much better than the rook.}) 11. bxc3 Nb4
$17 {Fernandez,D: '-/+!' Fernandez,D: 'was the correct way of exploiting
White's awkward queen position.'}) 10... Qxf6 (10... gxf6 11. Qc2 {[%csl Rg8]})
11. a3 {White regains a pawn and obtains a small but clear positional
advantage.} Bxc3 (11... Nxd4 12. Qxd7 Bxc3 13. bxc3 Nxe2+ 14. Kh1 Nxc3 15. Rfc1
b5 16. Qd4 $16) 12. bxc3 Qd8 (12... b6 $5 13. Qxc4 Rac8 $14) 13. Qxc4 a4 14.
Nd2 Na5 15. Qb4 Ra7 {[%csl Ra7]} 16. Rab1 b6 {This defensive arrangement is
too passive.} 17. e3 {This, however, allows an exchange of bishops, which
improves Black's position.} (17. Rfd1 $142 Bc6 18. e4) (17. Nc4 $142 $5 Bc6 18.
e4) 17... Bc6 18. Bxc6 Nxc6 19. Qb5 Qa8 20. c4 Rd8 21. Rfc1 e5 $2 {[%mdl 16384]
It was better to wait:} (21... h6 $14) 22. d5 Nb8 (22... Ne7 23. e4 {[%cal
Yc4c5]}) 23. c5 $1 Ra5 24. Qb2 Qxd5 25. cxb6 cxb6 26. Nc4 Rc5 27. Qxb6 $16 {
White has a clear advantage now due to the poor position of Black's knight.} f6
$2 {[%mdl 8192] This move loses at once.} (27... Rf8 $142 28. Qxb8 Rxc4 29.
Rxc4 Qxc4 30. Qxe5 $16) 28. Rd1 $1 Qxd1+ 29. Rxd1 Rxd1+ 30. Kg2 (30. Kg2 Nd7 (
30... Rxc4 31. Qe6+) (30... Rc8 31. Qe6+) 31. Qe6+ Kf8 32. Nd6 Rxd6 33. Qxd6+
Ke8 34. Qe6+ Kd8 35. Qg8+ $18) 1-0

[Event "London Classic 2nd"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2010.12.09"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Kramnik, Vladimir"]
[Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2791"]
[BlackElo "2741"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "108"]
[EventDate "2010.12.06"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 140"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2011.01.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2011.01.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 c5 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O d6 7. d4 {White
plays d2-d4 now, instead of move 1, but it is still a well-known Nimzo-Indian
position which arises.} Bxc3 {Alternatives:} (7... Nc6 8. d5 $1) (7... Nbd7) 8.
bxc3 Qe7 {Here, too,} (8... Nc6 {is quite common.}) 9. dxc5 {White often does
without this exchange:} (9. Bg5 Nbd7 10. Qd3 h6 11. Bxf6 Nxf6 12. Rfd1 Bd7 13.
dxc5 dxc5 14. Ne5 Ba4 15. Qd6 Rfe8 16. Rd2 Rac8 17. Rb1 b6 18. Rbb2 Qxd6 19.
Rxd6 Red8 20. Rd3 Kf8 21. Rbd2 {1/2 Georgiev,K (2677)-Anand,V (2803)/Turin
2006/CBM 113}) (9. Qd3 Nc6 10. Rd1 h6 11. Ba3 Bd7 12. Nd2 Rac8 13. f4 b6 14.
Nf1 e5 $6 (14... Na5 $5) 15. fxe5 dxe5 16. dxc5 bxc5 17. Ne3 $14 {1/2 Gupta,A 
(2495)-Kunte,A (2550)/Ooty 2008/CBM 123 Extra (29)}) (9. Nh4 $5 e5 10. d5 e4
11. f4 Re8 12. a4 Na6 13. h3 Nh5 14. Kh2 f5 15. e3 Nf6 16. Rf2 Kh8 17. Bf1 Rg8
18. Be2 $14 {1-0 Milov,V (2595)-Djuric,S (2488)/Genova 2003/CBM 095 ext (61)})
(9. Bf4 $5 Rd8 10. Qc2 Nc6 11. Rfd1 cxd4 (11... d5 12. Ne5 Bd7 13. Bg5 h6 14.
Bxf6 Qxf6 15. cxd5 Nxe5 16. dxe5 Qxe5 17. dxe6 Bxe6 18. Bxb7 $16 {1/2 Stocek,J
(2480)-Balashov,Y (2505)/Passau 1995/EXT 1999 (44)}) 12. cxd4 Bd7 13. Qb2 $14 {
1/2 Moehring,G (2405)-Augustin,J (2445)/Stary Smokovec 1977/MCD (30)}) (9. Nd2
$5 e5 10. Re1 Nbd7 11. e4 cxd4 $6 12. cxd4 exd4 13. Ba3 Ne5 14. Qb3 Nfd7 15. f4
Nc6 16. e5 Nc5 17. Qf3 $14 {0-1 Kindermann,S (2455)-Kuzmin,G (2545)/Dortmund
1981/MCD (32)}) 9... dxc5 10. Ne5 $6 {This knight route is hardly the best.} (
10. Bf4 $5 Rd8 11. Qb3 Nc6 12. Rfd1 Rxd1+ 13. Rxd1 e5 14. Bg5 Be6 15. Nd2 Bf5 (
15... Rd8 $5) 16. Nf1 $1 Rd8 17. Rxd8+ Nxd8 18. Ne3 Be6 19. Qa4 $16 {1/2
Dvirnyy,D (2457)-Leniart,A (2423)/Chotowa 2010/CBM 137 Extra (56)}) 10... Qc7 (
10... Nbd7 $5 11. Nd3 (11. Nxd7 Nxd7 {[%cal Ya8b8,Yb7b6]}) 11... e5 {[%csl Rd3]
} 12. Qb3 Rb8 {[%cal Yb7b6]}) 11. Bf4 (11. Nd3 Nbd7 {[%cal Ya8b8,Yb7b6]} 12.
Qa4 a6) 11... Nh5 {White now loses his bishop pair, and his destroyed pawn
structure will be quite painful. Therefore he goes in for a risky piece
sacrifice.} 12. Qd2 $6 {[%mdl 512]} (12. e3 {was a quiet alternative:} Nxf4 13.
exf4 Nd7 14. Nd3 {The activity of White's pieces should be enough for equality.
}) 12... g5 13. Bxg5 Qxe5 14. Rad1 $6 (14. g4 $142 Ng7 15. Rad1 (15. Bd8 {
[%cal Rf2f4]} Nc6 $1 {liquidates into a favorable ending for Black:} 16. f4
Rxd8 17. Qxd8+ Nxd8 18. fxe5 Bd7 $17) 15... Nd7 16. e4 $44 {Theoretically
Black should consolidate his position but it is not an easy task in practice!})
14... f6 15. Bh6 Ng7 16. Bf4 Qh5 {White's pieces are very active but he has no
real target. Black gradually completes his development keeping - at least
partly - his material advantage.} 17. Bd6 Re8 18. Qf4 Nd7 19. g4 Qf7 20. Rd3 e5
21. Qh6 Qg6 22. Qxg6 hxg6 $19 {After the queen exchange the rest looks
relatively easy; still, Black has to overcome some technical problems.} 23. Be4
Kf7 (23... Nb6 $142 $1 $19 24. Bxg6 $140 Bxg4 25. Bxe8 Bxe2 26. Bg6 Bxd3 27.
Bxd3 Rd8 {K.Sakaev}) 24. f4 exf4 25. Bd5+ Ne6 26. Bxf4 Nb6 $6 {This move gives
White an unpleasant attack.} (26... Kg7 $1 27. Re3 Nb6 $19 {K.Sakaev}) 27. Be5
Nxd5 (27... Nd7 28. Bxf6 $1 Nxf6 29. g5) 28. cxd5 Nf8 (28... Nf4 $5 29. Bxf4
Bxg4 {, then winning the e2 pawn, was safe and simple but opposite-coloured
bishops gave White some drawing chances.}) 29. Rxf6+ Kg8 30. Bd6 Kg7 31. Rf4 g5
32. Rf2 b6 (32... Ng6 $144 33. h3 (33. Rdf3 Bxg4 34. Rf7+ Kh6 35. Rxb7 Bxe2 36.
Rff7 Rh8 {, and Black should win.}) 33... b6 34. Rdf3 Ba6 35. Rf7+ Kh6) 33.
Rdf3 Ng6 34. Rf7+ Kh6 35. h3 (35. R2f6 $5 Bxg4 36. e4 Rxe4 37. Bf8+ Rxf8 38.
Rxf8 Bh3 $1 39. Rh8+ (39. Kf2 Kh5 $1) 39... Kg7 40. Rxg6+ Kxg6 41. Rxh3 {
The rook ending is better for Black but still far from winning.}) 35... Ba6 36.
R2f6 Bxe2 37. Be7 $1 (37. Kf2 Bc4 38. h4 $1 Re2+ 39. Kf3 Bxd5+ 40. Kxe2 Bxf7
41. Rxf7 gxh4 $17 {K.Sakaev}) 37... Bc4 38. Rd6 Bxd5 $6 {Nothing was really
threatened, so Black could have started moving his pawns:} (38... b5 $17 {e.g.}
39. Kf2 a5 40. Kg3 {now threatening 41.Bxg5+! Kxg5 42.h4+!} Bd3 $1 {[%cal
Yb5b4]}) 39. Bxg5+ Kxg5 40. Rxd5+ Kh4 41. Rf3 $2 {White collapses when
salvation is not far away.} (41. Kg2 $1 Re2+ $1 (41... Re5 42. Rxe5 Nxe5 43.
Rf5 Nxg4 44. Rf4 $1 {- the simplest -} Rg8 45. hxg4 Rxg4+ 46. Kf3 Rxf4+ 47.
Kxf4 $11) (41... Rh8 $4 42. Rff5) 42. Kf3 Re5 43. Rh7+ Kg5 44. h4+ $1 Kf6 (
44... Nxh4+ $2 45. Rxh4 Rxd5 46. Rh5+) 45. Rd6+ Re6 46. g5+ Ke5 47. Rxe6+ Kxe6
48. h5 {(indicated by GM K.Sakaev)} Ne7 49. Kg4 {with excellent drawing
chances due to his strong passed pawns. A possible line:} Rf8 50. h6 Ng6 51.
Rg7 Ne5+ 52. Kg3 $1 Kf5 53. h7 Ng6 (53... Rh8 54. Kh4) 54. Rg8 Rf7 $8 55. Rxg6
Rxh7 56. Rg8 {, and White should not lose.}) 41... Re5 $1 42. Rxe5 (42. Rd6 Rf8
$1) 42... Nxe5 43. Rf5 Nd3 44. Kh2 Rh8 $19 {Black's rook is tied up but he has
enough pieces and pawns to decide the game on the queenside.} 45. a4 Rh6 46.
Kg2 a5 47. Kf3 Nb2 48. Kf4 Nxa4 49. c4 Nc3 50. Ke3 a4 51. Kd3 Nd1 52. Rf8 Kxh3
53. g5 Rd6+ 54. Ke4 Kg4 0-1

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 1st"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2006.11.14"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Leko, Peter"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2698"]
[BlackElo "2741"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "110"]
[EventDate "2006.11.06"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 116"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 c5 5. Nf3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8.
cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Qa5 10. Bd2 Nc6 11. Nxc6 bxc6 12. O-O Bxc3 13. bxc3 Ba6 14.
Rfd1 Qc5 15. e4 Bc4 {This line was examined in CBM 106 by GM V.Gavrikov 
(annots to Bacrot-Grischuk).} 16. Qc2 $146 (16. Qa4 {is usually played. Here
is the latest example:} Nb6 17. Qb4 Qh5 18. Bf4 e5 $1 $146 19. Be3 Be2 20. Re1
Nc4 21. Qc5 Rfd8 22. Rab1 h6 23. h3 Nxe3 24. Qxe3 Bc4 25. a4 a5 26. Qc5 Be6 $11
{0-1 Najer,E-Jakovenko,D/Moscow RUS 2006/The Week in Chess 631 (50)}) 16... Nb6
17. Bf4 {White provokes ...e6-e5 to clarify the situation and open the h3-c8
diagonal for his bishop. However,} (17. Be3 $5 {was probably better. If} Qa5 (
17... Qa3 18. Bf4 $5) {then} 18. Qb2 {[%cal Yb2b4]}) 17... e5 18. Be3 Qa3 19.
Bh3 Rab8 20. Qc1 Qxc1 21. Rdxc1 Bd3 22. f3 Rb7 23. Rd1 Bc2 24. Rdc1 Bd3 25. Rd1
Bc2 26. Re1 $2 {White has absolutely no grounds to play for a win.} (26. Rdc1
$11) 26... Nc4 27. Bc5 Rd8 $15 {[%csl Gc4][%cal Gd8d2,Gb7b2]} 28. Bf1 Nd2 29.
Bg2 a5 30. Re2 Bb1 31. Re1 Bc2 32. Re2 Bb1 33. Re1 h6 34. Ba3 {it is not easy
to find a move for White!} (34. Be3 Rb2 $15) 34... Rd3 {Black has created a
strong pressure but it is still difficult to break down White's position.} 35.
Rc1 Rd8 (35... Rxf3 $5 36. Bxf3 Nxf3+ 37. Kf2 Bxe4 $15 {Kasparov}) 36. Re1 Bc2
37. Bc1 (37. Re2 Nb1 $1 $17) 37... Nb1 38. c4 Rd4 (38... Bd3 $1 39. Rd1 (39. c5
Nc3 $17) 39... Nc3 40. Rd2 Ne2+ 41. Kf2 Nxc1 42. Rxc1 Rd4 $17 {Jakovenko}) 39.
c5 a4 40. Bf1 a3 41. Re3 Ra7 $6 {Too passive. After this move White gets a
drawish endgame with opposite-coloured bishops.} (41... Rd1 $5 42. Bxa3 Ba4 {
Dvoretzky} 43. Kf2 Rd2+ 44. Kg1 {Emelin} g5 $5 $36 {[%cal Yh6h5,Yh5h4]}) 42.
Re2 Bd3 43. Re3 Bxf1 44. Rxb1 Rd1 45. Kf2 Bd3 46. Rb8+ Kh7 47. Re1 Rxe1 48.
Kxe1 Bc4 49. Rd8 Ra5 50. Rd2 f6 51. Rc2 Be6 52. Kd2 g5 53. Rc3 Kg6 54. Rxa3
Rxa3 55. Bxa3 Bxa2 1/2-1/2

[Event "Capablanca Memorial Elite 45th"]
[Site "Havana"]
[Date "2010.06.11"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Ivanchuk, Vassily"]
[Black "Alekseev, Evgeny V"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2741"]
[BlackElo "2700"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "105"]
[EventDate "2010.06.10"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "CUB"]
[EventCategory "18"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 137"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.07.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.07.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 c6 7. e3 {
Alternatives:} (7. Qc2) (7. Bg5) ({and even} 7. e4) 7... O-O (7... b6 {is less
common.}) 8. Nh3 (8. Bd3 {is the main theoretical move. Black usually replies
either} b6 {[%cal Yc8a6]} ({or} 8... Nbd7 {[%cal Ye6e5]}) ({or even} 8... Re8 {
[%cal Ye6e5] Here is an example:} 9. Ne2 e5 10. cxd5 (10. O-O e4 $1) 10... cxd5
11. dxe5 Rxe5 12. c4 Nc6 13. O-O dxc4 14. Bxc4 Be6 15. Bd3 Qe7 16. Nf4 Rd8 $132
{0-1 Chibukhchian,A (2293)-Izoria,Z (2489)/Batumi 2001/EXT 2002 (33)})) 8...
Re8 {Black has the same alternative now:} (8... b6 9. cxd5 cxd5 10. a4 $5 (10.
Bd3 Ba6 11. O-O Qc8 12. Bxa6 Qxa6 13. Qe1 Nbd7 14. e4 e5 $132 {0-1 Grujic,N 
(2245)-Abramovic,B (2500)/Nis 1994/EXT 1997 (33)}) (10. Nf2 Qc7 11. Bd2 Ba6 12.
Bxa6 Nxa6 13. Qe2 Nb8 14. O-O Rc8 15. e4 Nc6 16. e5 Ne8 17. f4 Na5 18. Rad1 Nc4
19. Bc1 f5 $1 20. exf6 Nxf6 21. Qxe6+ Qf7 22. Qh3 Nd6 $44 {0-1 Hochstrasser,M 
(2311)-Renet,O (2546)/Switzerland 2002/EXT 2003 (61)}) 10... Ba6 ({or} 10...
Qc7 11. Bd2 Ba6 12. Bxa6 Nxa6 13. Qe2 Nb8 14. O-O Nbd7 15. e4 e5 $1 16. Nf2
Rfe8 17. Rfe1 Rac8 18. a5 bxa5 19. Qb5 dxe4 20. fxe4 exd4 21. cxd4 Qc4 22. Qxc4
{1/2 Bareev,E (2590)-Rozentalis,E (2565)/Leningrad 1990/URS-ch}) 11. Bxa6 Nxa6
12. Qd3 Qc8 13. O-O Nc7 14. e4 Qa6 15. Qc2 Rfc8 16. e5 Nd7 17. Ng5 Nf8 18. Ba3
h6 19. Bxf8 Kxf8 $13 {0-1 Nordahl,H (2303)-Rozentalis,E (2585)/Gausdal 2003/
CBM 092 ext (41)}) 9. Nf2 e5 10. Be2 {That's the point of White's plan.
Comparied to the 9.Bd3 line (see above), ...e5-e4 is not dangerous.} Nbd7 (
10... Qc7 $142 $1 {to prevent a future c3-c4, e.g.} 11. O-O Be6 12. cxd5 cxd5
13. dxe5 Qxe5 14. Rb1 Qc7 $11 {1-0 Cebalo,M (2509)-Ogloblin,N (2362)/Budva
2009/CBM 130 (28)}) 11. O-O Nf8 $6 {White now opens up the position in favour
of his bishops.} (11... Qc7 $1) 12. cxd5 cxd5 13. dxe5 Rxe5 14. c4 $1 {[%mdl
32]} Re8 15. Re1 Ng6 16. Rb1 b6 17. cxd5 Nxd5 18. Bf1 {A curious provocation.}
(18. Rb3 $14 {was normal.}) 18... Nc3 {This "blow" is not dangerous: White
keeps an edge in the endgame.} 19. Qxd8 Rxd8 20. Rb3 Na4 21. e4 Be6 22. Rb4 Nc5
23. f4 $1 Ne7 24. Be3 Rac8 25. f5 Bd7 26. Rd4 Nb3 27. Rdd1 Ba4 28. Ba6 (28.
Rxd8+ $142 Rxd8 29. Rd1) 28... Rxd1 29. Nxd1 (29. Rxd1 $142 Re8 30. g4 Nc5 31.
Rd4 Nd5 $5 32. Rxd5 Nxa6 33. g5 $14) 29... Rc2 30. Bd3 Rc7 $6 (30... Ra2 $142
31. Nc3 Rxa3 32. Nb5 (32. Nxa4 Rxa4 33. Bc2 Ra3 34. Rd1 f6 $13) 32... Bxb5 33.
Bxb5 $44) 31. Nb2 Bc6 32. Kf2 Rd7 33. g4 Kf8 34. h4 b5 $6 {Hardly a good move,
weakening the dark squares.} (34... f6 $14) (34... Bb7 $14 {[%cal Ye7c6]}) 35.
Rd1 Ke8 $2 {[%mdl 8192] Loses a pawn and subsequently the game.} (35... a5 {
is a logical continuation of the 34...b5 plan although White keeps a clear
advantage after} 36. Kg3) 36. Bc2 Rxd1 37. Nxd1 Na1 38. Bd3 {[%csl Ra7,Rg7]
[%cal Re3a7,Re3d4]} a5 (38... Nc8 39. Bd4 Nb3 40. Bxg7 Nc5 41. Ke3 Nxd3 42.
Kxd3 Nd6 43. Nf2 Nc4 44. a4 $1) 39. Bd4 Nb3 40. Bxg7 Nc5 41. Ke3 Nxd3 42. Kxd3
$18 {_|_ Despite the opposite-coloured bishops, White is winning as there are
knights on the board.} Nc8 43. Bc3 Nd6 44. Nf2 Nc4 45. g5 Bb7 46. h5 Ba6 47. g6
fxg6 48. fxg6 hxg6 49. h6 b4 50. h7 Ne5+ 51. Ke3 Nf7 52. Bg7 bxa3 53. Ng4 1-0

[Event "World Cup"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2007.12.06"]
[Round "5.1"]
[White "Ponomariov, Ruslan"]
[Black "Kamsky, Gata"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2705"]
[BlackElo "2714"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[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. Nf3 c5 5. g3 b6 6. Bg2 Bb7 7. O-O cxd4 8. Qxd4
O-O 9. Rd1 h6 $6 $146 {Once again Gata Kamski looks for his own ways. He
prevents Bg5 before playing ...Nc6. However, it doesn't pay off - White
develops his pieces and creates a strong pressure.} (9... Nc6 {is the main
theoretical move. White maintains a small edge:} 10. Qd3 (10. Qf4 Bxc3 11. bxc3
Qb8 12. Qh4 Ne7 13. Bg5 Ng6 14. Qd4 e5 $6 (14... Ne4 $11) 15. Qe3 (15. Nxe5
Nxe5 16. Bxb7 Qxb7 17. Qxe5 $14) 15... Ng4 16. Qc1 h6 17. h3 Nxf2 18. Kxf2 hxg5
19. Qxg5 Qc7 $15 {1/2-1/2 Renet,J-Adrian,C/Epinal 1986/EXT 1997 (40)}) (10. Qh4
Rc8 11. Bg5 Be7 12. Rac1 h6 13. Bd2 Na5 14. b3 d5 15. cxd5 Nxd5 16. Qd4 Bf6 17.
Ne5 Nc6 $11 {1-0 Meinsohn,F-Adrian,C/Epinal 1986/EXT 1997 (37)}) 10... Be7 (
10... Na5 11. b3 d5 12. cxd5 Rc8 13. Bb2 Nxd5 14. Nxd5 Qxd5 15. Qe3 Qe4 16.
Qxe4 Bxe4 17. Rd4 Bxf3 18. Bxf3 $14 {1/2-1/2 Grahn,L-Petersen,S/Copenhagen
2000/CBM 077 ext (69)}) 11. Bg5 (11. a3 Rc8 12. b4 a6 13. Bf4 h6 14. Rac1 Re8
15. h3 Ba8 16. h4 $14 {1-0 Hasanova,E-Van Ruitenburg,J/Hoogeveen 2005/EXT 2006
(31)}) 11... d6 12. Rac1 Ne8 13. Bxe7 Qxe7 14. Qe3 Nf6 15. Rd2 Rfd8 16. Rcd1
Na5 17. b3 Rac8 $14 {1-0 Miladinovic,I-Nikcevic,N/Pula 1990/TD (30)}) 10. b3
Nc6 11. Qd3 Qe7 12. Bb2 Ba3 13. Bxa3 Qxa3 14. Nb5 Qe7 15. Nd6 {[%csl Gd6]} Rab8
16. a3 Ba8 17. b4 Rfd8 18. b5 Na5 19. Ne5 Bxg2 20. Kxg2 Rf8 21. Qf3 Qd8 22. Rd4
(22. Ne4 Nxe4 23. Rxd7 Ng5 $1 24. Rxd8 Nxf3 25. Rxf8+ Rxf8 26. Kxf3 Rc8 {
[%cal Yf7f6]}) 22... Qc7 23. Rad1 Nb7 24. Nxb7 $6 {Missing} (24. Nexf7 $1 Nc5
$1 25. Ne5 Nd5 (25... Nfe4 26. Qe3 Rxf2+ 27. Kg1 $18) 26. Qh5 Qxd6 {[%cal
Rf8f5]} 27. Ng4 {[%cal Rg4h6]} Kh7 (27... Rf5 28. Qg6) 28. cxd5 Rf5 29. Qh4 Nb3
30. R4d3 Nc5 31. Rf3 $1 Rxd5 32. Nxh6 $1 $18) 24... Rxb7 (24... Qxe5 $5 25. Nd6
Ra8 {[%cal Ya7a6]}) 25. Rd6 Qc8 26. R1d4 Rc7 27. Qd3 Rd8 28. f3 a6 $6 {This
pawn sacrifice is hardly correct but passive defense was hopeless - White
could easily create a decisive kingside attack.} 29. a4 (29. Rxb6 $5 axb5 30.
Rxb5 Ra7 31. c5) 29... axb5 30. axb5 Rb7 31. g4 $6 {Overlooking Black's
unexpected counterplay.} (31. f4 Qc5 32. Rc6 $1 Qe7 33. Rcd6 $16 Nd5 $140 $2
34. Qa3 Nf6 35. Nc6) 31... Qc5 {[%cal Rf6d5]} 32. Nxd7 $6 {White decides to
force a draw. It was still possible to play on sacrificing an exchange:} (32.
f4 $1 Nd5 33. R4xd5 exd5 34. Rxd5 $44) 32... Rbxd7 33. Rxd7 Rxd7 34. Rxd7 Nxd7
35. Qxd7 Qxc4 36. Kf2 Qc5+ 37. e3 Qc2+ 38. Kg3 Qc5 39. Kf2 Qc2+ 40. Kg3 Qc5 41.
Kf2 {A disappointing game for the former World Champion!} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tashkent FIDE GP 2nd"]
[Site "Tashkent"]
[Date "2012.11.27"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Black "Leko, Peter"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2775"]
[BlackElo "2732"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "85"]
[EventDate "2012.11.22"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "UZB"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 152"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2013.01.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2013.01.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bxf6 Qxf6 7. g3 {This
Catalan-style continuation is rare. The exchange of White's dark-squared
bishop is hardly favourable for him in the resulting structure.} O-O (7... c5
8. cxd5 exd5 9. Bg2 Nc6 10. O-O Be6 11. Nb5 O-O 12. a3 Ba5 13. dxc5 Qxb2 14.
Rb1 Qf6 15. Nbd4 Nxd4 16. Nxd4 Bc3 17. Nxe6 fxe6 18. Rxb7 Bd4 19. c6 Bxf2+ 20.
Kh1 $14 {[%csl Gc6] 1-0 Chabanon,J (2414)-Kalka,A (2407)/Belgium 2006/CBM 115
ext (61)}) (7... dxc4 $5 8. Qa4+ (8. Bg2 O-O {- game}) 8... Nc6 9. Ne5 $6 (9.
a3 Bxc3+ 10. bxc3 O-O 11. Qxc4 e5 $11) 9... Bd7 10. Nxd7 Qxd4 $1 11. Rc1 Qxd7
12. Bg2 O-O 13. O-O Bxc3 14. Rxc3 Ne5 15. Qxd7 Nxd7 16. Rxc4 c6 $17 {1/2
Condie,M (2425)-Blatny,P (2415)/Poznan 1986/EXT 1997 (40)}) 8. Bg2 dxc4 $1 {
It is logical to accept this pawn offer. White has yet to prove his
compensation.} (8... Nd7 9. Qb3 Bxc3+ 10. bxc3 dxc4 11. Qxc4 c6 12. a4 e5 {
Here this move is less effective.} 13. a5 $1 {[%csl Rd7]} Qe7 14. O-O e4 15.
Nd2 Nf6 16. e3 $14 {0-1 Huzman,A (2505)-Inkiov,V (2450)/Cannes 1992/TD (34)}) (
8... c6 9. O-O Nd7 {leads to a position arising from the Moscow Variation (4...
c6). Here is an old example:} 10. e4 $5 (10. Qd3 Rd8 11. Rad1 b6 12. cxd5 cxd5
13. a3 Bxc3 14. Qxc3 Ba6 15. Qd2 Rac8 16. Rc1 Qe7 17. Rfe1 {1/2 Wirthensohn,H 
(2397)-Pelletier,Y (2583)/Lenzerheide 2006/CBM 113 ext}) 10... dxc4 11. e5 Qd8
(11... Qg6 $5) 12. a3 Be7 13. a4 Rb8 (13... a5 $142 {[%cal Yd7b6]}) 14. Nd2 b5
15. Bxc6 b4 16. Ne2 Ba6 17. Bb5 $1 Bxb5 18. axb5 Rxb5 19. Nxc4 $14 {1-0
Lputian,S (2520)-Conquest,S (2430)/Hastings 1986/CBM 004 (50)}) 9. O-O Nc6 {
And this position usually arises from the Nimzo-Indian with 4.g3.} 10. e3 (10.
Ne4 $6 Qf5 11. Qc2 (11. Nh4 Qb5 $5) 11... Rd8 12. Rfd1 Be7 13. e3 (13. Rac1 Rb8
14. Qxc4 Qxe4 15. Ne5 Nxe5 16. Qxc7 Qxe2 17. Qxe7 Rd7 18. Qe8+ Kh7 19. Re1 Nf3+
20. Bxf3 Qxf3 $17 {1/2 Nikolic,P (2600)-Biehler,T/Lugano 1987/TD (36)}) 13...
Nb4 (13... b5 $142 $17 14. a4 $140 Bb7 $1 {[%cal Rc6b4]}) 14. Qb1 Nd3 15. Ned2
(15. Nfd2 $142 $13) 15... e5 16. Nxc4 e4 $17 {1-0 Safin,S (2493)-Bakre,T (2459)
/Kolkata 2008/CBM 123 Extra (36)}) 10... Rd8 (10... Bd7 $5 11. Ne5 (11. Qe2 Na5
12. Ne5 Qe7 13. Ne4 Rac8 14. Nxd7 Qxd7 15. Rfd1 b5 $15 {1-0 Ghaem Maghami,E 
(2579)-Zhou Weiqi (2624)/Zaozhuang CHN 2012/The Week in Chess 916 (45)}) 11...
Nxe5 12. dxe5 Qe7 13. Bxb7 Rab8 14. Bg2 Rfd8 15. Qd4 Bc5 16. Qxc4 Rxb2 17. Rab1
Rdb8 18. Rxb2 Rxb2 19. Rd1 Be8 20. Na4 Rb5 $11 {0-1 Dias,P (2394)-Rotstein,A 
(2542)/Figueira da Foz 2010/EXT 2011 (41)}) (10... Rb8 {[%cal Yb7b5] is
probably the most ambitious move. It is not even clear how White can keep the
balance:} 11. Nd2 (11. Qc2 b5 12. a4 a6 13. axb5 axb5 14. Nd2 Na5 15. Ra2 Bb7
$15 {0-1 Neelotpal,D (2458)-Shyam,N (2418)/Aurangabad 2011/CBM 144 Extra (75)})
11... Na5 (11... e5 12. Nd5 Qd8 13. Nxc4 exd4 14. exd4 Be6 15. Nce3 Bxd5 16.
Nxd5 Bd6 17. Rc1 Ne7 18. Ne3 c6 $11 {1/2 Fominyh,A (2515)-Sokolov,A (2585)/
Elista 1995/CBM 050 (36)}) (11... Bxc3 $5 12. bxc3 Na5 13. f4 $5 Bd7 14. g4 Qe7
15. g5 hxg5 16. Qh5 g6 17. Qh6 g4 18. h3 gxh3 19. Rf3 Qf6 20. Rxh3 Qg7 21. Qg5
$44 {1-0 Soffer,R (2489)-Dougherty,M (2183)/Caleta 2011/CBM 141 (29)}) 12. Qc2
(12. Qa4 Qe7 13. a3 Bxc3 14. bxc3 b6 15. Rfd1 c5 $17 {0-1 Fish,G (2523)
-Khenkin,I (2604)/Altenkirchen 2005/CBM 106/[Gavrikov] (35)}) (12. Qh5 Qg5 13.
Qxg5 hxg5 14. Rfc1 b5 $17 {0-1 Gurevich,D (2580)-Ellers,H (2260)/Ischia 1997/
EXT 2000 (63)}) 12... Qd8 $5 {Probably the best regrouping.} (12... Qe7 13. a3
Bd6 (13... Bxc3 14. Qxc3 b6 15. Nxc4 Nxc4 16. Qxc4 c5 17. Rac1 cxd4 18. Qxd4
Bb7 19. Bxb7 Qxb7 20. Rfd1 Rbc8 21. h4 {1/2 Sokolov,I (2677)-Van Wely,L (2691)/
Wolvega NED 2012/The Week in Chess 941}) 14. Nce4 b6 $5 (14... b5 15. a4 Bd7
16. axb5 Rxb5 17. Nc3 Nb3 18. Nxb5 Nxa1 19. Qxc4 Bxb5 20. Qxb5 Nc2 21. Nc4 $16
{1-0 Khalifman,A (2490)-Gurevich,M (2510)/Kiev 1986/URS-ch (65)}) (14... e5 15.
Nxc4 Nxc4 16. Qxc4 c6 17. d5 cxd5 18. Qxd5 Rd8 19. Rfd1 Bc7 20. Qc4 Be6 21. Qc5
$14 {1/2 Kozul,Z (2589)-Palac,M (2582)/Murska Sobota 2006/EXT 2008 (72)}) 15.
Nxc4 Nxc4 16. Qxc4 Bb7 17. Qa4 Bxe4 18. Bxe4 c5 19. dxc5 Bxc5 20. b4 Bd6 21.
Rfd1 Rbd8 22. Ra2 Bb8 {1/2 Kruppa,Y (2520)-Splosnov,S (2280)/Minsk 1997/EXT
2000}) (12... b5 13. a3 Be7 14. a4 b4 15. Nce4 Qf5 16. Nxc4 b3 17. Qc1 {
1-0 Riemersma,L (2420)-Van Kampen,R (2570)/Hoogeveen NED 2012/The Week in
Chess 938 (23)} Bb7 $1 $11) (12... Qf5 13. Be4 Qh5 14. Bf3 Qf5 15. Be4 Qh5 16.
a3 Bxc3 $6 (16... Bd6 $13) 17. Qxc3 Qb5 18. Rfc1 Bd7 19. a4 Qa6 20. Nxc4 $14 {
1/2 Postny,E (2648)-Colin,V (2415)/Wroclaw 2009/CBM 130 Extra (57)}) 13. a3 Be7
14. Ne2 b5 15. a4 c6 16. b3 Bb4 17. bxc4 Bxd2 18. Qxd2 Nb3 19. Qb2 Nxa1 20.
Rxa1 Qc7 21. c5 b4 22. Nf4 {1/2 Sulava,N (2425)-Lukacs,P (2505)/Budapest 1990/
EXT 1997 (30)} e5 $1 $17) 11. Qa4 {Or else:} (11. Ne4 Qf5 $5 (11... Qe7 12. a3
Bd6 13. Nfd2 e5 14. Nxc4 exd4 15. exd4 Bf5 16. Nc3 Qf6 $11 {1/2 Ehlvest,J 
(2622)-Yermolinsky,A (2570)/Moscow 2005/CBM 106 (27)})) (11. a3 Bxc3 12. bxc3
e5 13. Nd2 Be6 14. Rb1 Rab8 15. Ne4 Qf5 16. Nc5 exd4 17. exd4 Bd5 18. Rxb7 Bxg2
19. Kxg2 Rxb7 20. Nxb7 Rb8 21. Nc5 Rb2 22. Qa4 Qd5+ 23. Kg1 Kh7 {1/2 Fages,
J-McDowall,M/LSS 2006/Telechess CBM 127}) (11. Qe2 e5 12. Qxc4 exd4 13. Nd5 Qd6
14. Nxd4 (14. Nxb4 Be6 15. Qb5 Qxb4 16. Qxb4 Nxb4 17. Nxd4 Bd5 $11 {1/2 Almasi,
Z (2667)-Balogh,C (2575)/Heviz 2008/CBM 123 (23)}) 14... Nxd4 15. Qxd4 Bc5 16.
Qh4 c6 17. b4 Bb6 18. Ne7+ Kf8 19. Nxc8 Raxc8 $11 {1/2 Perelshteyn,E (2534)
-Neimer,V (2373)/Lubbock 2011/CBM 144 Extra (78)}) (11. Nd2 e5 $1 12. Nxc4 (12.
d5 Na5) (12. a3 Bf8 13. Nd5 Qg6) (12. Nd5 Rxd5 $1 13. Bxd5 Bh3 (13... exd4 14.
Nxc4 {- see below}) (13... Bxd2 $5 14. dxe5 Nxe5 15. Qxd2 Be6 $44 (15... Bh3 $6
16. f4 $1)) 14. dxe5 (14. Bg2 Bxg2 15. Kxg2 Bxd2 16. Qxd2 exd4 17. exd4 Nxd4
$17) 14... Nxe5 15. Nxc4 (15. f4 $2 Ng4 16. Nxc4 Rd8) 15... Nxc4 16. Bxc4 Bxf1
{1/2 Nilssen,J (2385)-Olsen,H (2248)/Klaksvik 2002/CBM 090 ext}) 12... exd4 13.
Nd5 Rxd5 $1 14. Bxd5 Bh3 15. Bg2 Bxg2 16. Kxg2 b5 17. a3 (17. Nd2 dxe3 18. Nf3
Re8 $15 {0-1 Fominyh,A (2535)-Tikzhanov,E (2265)/Omsk 1996/CBM 057/[Tisdall] 
(46)}) 17... Be7 18. Nd2 dxe3 19. fxe3 Qe6 20. Nf3 Bf6 $44 {1/2 Ghitescu,T 
(2450)-Luczak,A (2200)/Lodz 1978/MCD (43)}) 11... a6 (11... Bd7 $5 12. Qc2 Bd6
13. Rfd1 Rac8 (13... Rab8 $5 {[%cal Yb7b5]}) 14. Qe2 e5 15. Qxc4 exd4 16. Nxd4
Nxd4 17. Rxd4 Be5 18. Rxd7 Rxd7 19. Bh3 Rcd8 20. Bxd7 Rxd7 $11 {1/2 Kozul,Z 
(2600)-Dizdar,G (2564)/Split 2008/CBM 122 Extra (24)}) 12. Nd2 Bd7 13. Qc2 (13.
Bxc6 Bxc3 14. Ne4 Qf5 15. Bxd7 Bxb2 16. Rab1 Qxe4 17. Rxb2 b5 (17... c3 18. Rb3
) 18. Bxb5 axb5 19. Qxb5 c3 20. Rb3 {is a way to force a draw as} c2 {can be
met with} 21. Rc3 Rxa2 22. Qc4 {[%cal Yf1c1] Instead, White goes for a risky
continuation but the position soon levels out anyway.}) 13... Na5 (13... b5 $5
14. b3 $5 cxb3 15. axb3 $44 {[%csl Rc7]}) 14. Rfd1 Qe7 15. a3 Bd6 16. Nce4 Bc6
17. Nxc4 Nxc4 18. Qxc4 Bd5 19. Qc2 Bxe4 20. Qxe4 c6 $11 {The rest is due to
the Sofia rule.} 21. h4 h5 22. b4 a5 23. Rab1 g6 24. Rd3 Rd7 25. b5 Bxa3 26.
bxc6 bxc6 27. Qxc6 Rad8 28. Rc3 Bb4 29. Rc4 Qd6 30. Qa4 Rc7 31. Rbc1 Rdc8 32.
Bc6 e5 (32... Bd2 $5 33. R1c2 Bxe3 34. fxe3 Qxg3+ 35. Kf1 Qxe3 36. Qxa5 {
is also drawish (indicated by GM M.Golubev)}) 33. d5 Kg7 34. Kg2 Qf6 35. Qb5
Qd6 36. R1c2 Re7 37. Qa4 Rb8 38. Qb3 Rc8 39. Qd3 Rd8 40. Qe2 Qf6 41. Qd3 Qd6
42. Qe2 Qf6 43. Qd3 {Conclusion: this opening line is completely harmless for
Black; it is White who must take care to achieve equality.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Bundesliga 0607"]
[Site "Germany"]
[Date "2006.12.09"]
[Round "5.1"]
[White "Khenkin, Igor"]
[Black "Ivanchuk, Vassily"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2620"]
[BlackElo "2741"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "86"]
[EventDate "2006.10.28"]
[EventType "team-tourn"]
[EventRounds "15"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 116"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Tegernsee"]
[BlackTeam "Remagen"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "GER"]
[BlackTeamCountry "GER"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 Nh5 6. g3 d6 (6... O-O {is
usually played but GM V.Ivanchuk has his own idea.}) 7. e4 exd5 8. cxd5 f5 $1
$146 {[%mdl 8] Undermining White's centre.} (8... O-O {is quite possible, too,
e.g.} 9. Bg2 (9. Nh3 $142 f5 10. Nf2) 9... f5 10. f4 Qe8 11. Nge2 fxe4 12. h3
Bxc3+ 13. bxc3 b5 14. O-O Na6 15. g4 Nf6 16. Ng3 Bb7 17. Qc2 Bxd5 18. Rd1 Nc7
19. c4 bxc4 20. Bb2 Rd8 $17 {0-1 Moskalenko,V-Howell,J/Belgorod 1990/EXT 99 
(53)}) 9. exf5 (9. f4 $6 Nf6) 9... O-O 10. Nge2 Bxf5 11. Bg2 (11. g4 $2 Qh4+
12. Kd2 Bd7 13. Qe1 (13. gxh5 Rxf3 $19) 13... Qe7 14. gxh5 Rxf3 $40 {[%csl Rd2]
}) 11... c4 12. O-O Bd3 $15 {[%csl Gd3] Black has got better prospects after
the opening. Is the whole system unplayable for White?} 13. Bh3 (13. Be3 Re8
14. Bd4 Nd7 (14... Bxc3 15. Nxc3 Bxf1 16. Qxf1 $44) 15. Rf2 Nc5 $15) 13... Na6
14. Be6+ Kh8 15. g4 Nf6 16. Nf4 $5 {[%mdl 512] An interesting exchange
sacrifice, which Black declines.} Nc5 (16... Bxf1 $5 17. Qxf1 (17. Kxf1 g5 18.
Nh3 h6 19. Qd4 Nc5) 17... g5 18. Ng2 (18. Nh3 h6 {[%cal Ya6c7] with no
sufficient compensation for White.}) 18... Qa5 (18... Qb6+ 19. Kh1 Bxc3 20.
bxc3 Nc7 21. Qxc4 Qc5 22. Qxc5 dxc5 23. Bxg5 Nfxd5 24. Bf5 $44) 19. Bxg5 Nc5 {
The position is extremely complicated but Black's prospects look preferable, e.
g.} 20. Bf5 Nd3 $1 21. Bxd3 Nxg4 22. fxg4 Rxf1+ 23. Bxf1 Re8 $15 {due to the
better co-ordination of Black's pieces.}) 17. Nxd3 (17. g5 Nfd7 $17) (17. Re1
Nfd7 {[%cal Yd7e5,Yg7g5]}) 17... Nxd3 18. Ne2 Qa5 19. a3 b5 {Not the most
accurate move but the position is already unclear:} (19... Bc5+ 20. Kg2 Rae8
21. b3 (21. Nf4 $2 Nxf4+ 22. Bxf4 Nxd5) (21. Rb1 $5 Be3 $1 22. Bxe3 Nxd5 23.
Bd2 (23. Bxd5 Rxe3 {[%cal Re3e2]} 24. Nc3 Nf4+ 25. Kg3 Rd3 $17) 23... Rxe6 24.
Bxa5 Ne3+ 25. Kg3 Nxd1 26. Nd4 Re5 27. Rfxd1 Rxa5 28. b3 $132) 21... b5 (21...
Be3 $6 22. bxc4) 22. Bd2 Qa6 23. Nc3 $13) 20. Kg2 Bc5 (20... Rae8 $2 21. Bg5
Bc5 22. b4) 21. Nf4 {This is the difference! The capture on d5 after the
exchange on f4 is impossible and White obtains sufficient counterplay due to
the g4-g5 threat.} Nxc1 22. Qxc1 Rae8 (22... Qb6 23. Re1 Bf2 $5 24. Re2 Bh4)
23. Re1 Bd4 $6 {Now White seizes the initiative.} (23... Qd8 {[%cal Yf6g8,
Yd8h4]}) 24. g5 Qd8 $5 {Looks like a bluff but what else?} (24... Ng8 25. Re4
Qb6 26. Nh5) 25. Qd2 $2 {White probably was under time pressure already.} (25.
Ne2 $1 Bxb2 (25... Nxd5 26. Bxd5 Be3 $6 27. Qc3 Qxg5+ 28. Ng3) 26. Qxb2 Nxd5
27. Bxd5 Qxg5+ 28. Ng3 Qxd5 29. Qc3 $14 {Black's passed pawns are safely
blocked.}) 25... Be5 $1 $17 26. Nh3 $6 {This loses the g5 pawn and the game.} (
26. gxf6 Qxf6 27. Rxe5 dxe5 28. Ne2 Qxf3+ 29. Kg1 Qf2+ 30. Kh1 Rf6 $17) (26.
Ne2 Nh5 27. h4 Nf4+ 28. Nxf4 Rxf4 29. Re4 Ref8 $17) 26... Nh5 27. Re4 Nf4+ $1
28. Nxf4 Qxg5+ 29. Kh1 Rxf4 30. Bd7 Ref8 $1 {Black doesn't care about the b5
pawn although} (30... Rb8 {was quite possible.}) 31. Bxb5 Qh5 32. Rxf4 Rxf4 33.
Rf1 g6 (33... Rxf3 $6 34. Bxc4) (33... Rd4 34. Qe2 Bxh2 35. Qe8+ Qxe8 36. Bxe8
Be5 $19) (33... Qf7 $5 $19 {[%cal Rf4f3]} 34. Kg2 $2 Rh4) (33... a6 $1 34. Bxa6
(34. Bc6 Rxf3 35. Rf2 Bxh2 $1 36. Rxf3 Bf4+ 37. Kg1 Qxf3 $19) 34... Rd4 35. Qe2
Bxh2 $1 $19) 34. Rf2 Qh4 35. Bd7 $6 (35. Qe2 Rd4 36. Kg1 {was the only (quite
hopeless) way to play on.}) 35... Rd4 36. Qe2 Rd1+ 37. Qxd1 Qxf2 38. f4 Bxf4
39. Qg1 Qf3+ 40. Qg2 Qd1+ 41. Qg1 Qxd5+ 42. Qg2 Qd1+ 43. Qg1 Qe2 {Winning a
third pawn (on b2).} 0-1

[Event "RUS-ch Superfinal"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2006.12.10"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Khismatullin, Denis Rimovich"]
[Black "Alekseev, Evgeny V"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2583"]
[BlackElo "2639"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "78"]
[EventDate "2006.12.03"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "15"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 116"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 c5 5. Nf3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 Qc7 7. Qb3 {An
aggressive alternative to the classic} (7. Qd3) 7... Bc5 (7... Na6 $6 8. Bg2 d5
9. cxd5 Nxd5 10. O-O Nxc3 11. bxc3 Bc5 12. Qb5+ Kf8 13. Nb3 Rb8 14. Nxc5 Nxc5
15. Ba3 b6 16. Rab1 {1-0 Greenfeld,A-Hoelzl,F/Balatonlelle 2002/EXT 2004}) (
7... Nc6 $6 8. Nxc6 Qxc6 $6 9. Qxb4 a5 10. Qa3 Qxh1 11. Nb5 Ra6 12. Nc7+ Kd8
13. Nxa6 bxa6 14. Qxa5+ $18 {1/2-1/2 Carlsen,M-Malakhov,V/Khanty Mansyisk 2005/
CBM 111 (48)}) 8. Bf4 {A relatively new, sharp approach} (8. Be3 {doesn't
bring White any advantage:} a6 (8... d6 $5 9. Bg2 a6 10. Nc2 (10. Na4 Ba7 11.
Nc2 Nbd7 12. O-O O-O 13. Rfd1 Bxe3 14. Nxe3 Rb8 15. Qd3 b5 16. cxb5 axb5 17.
Nc3 d5 $13 {1-0 Ward,C-Arkell,K/Swansea 1995/EXT 97/[Bulletin] (48)}) 10... O-O
11. O-O Nbd7 12. Rfd1 (12. Rac1 Rb8 13. Rfd1 b6 14. Ne4 Nxe4 15. Bxe4 Nf6 16.
Bg2 Bb7 17. Qd3 Bxg2 18. Kxg2 Bxe3 19. Nxe3 Rfd8 20. f3 Qc5 $11 {0-1 Navas,
N-Csom,I/Dubai 1986/TD (45)}) 12... Rb8 13. Bxc5 dxc5 14. Rd2 b5 15. Ne3 Bb7
16. Bxb7 Qxb7 17. Rad1 Ne5 $132 {1/2-1/2 Geller,E-Alburt,L/Reykjavik 1986/EXT
2000 (39)}) 9. Na4 (9. Nc2 b6 10. Bg2 Nc6 11. Na4 Bxe3 12. Nxe3 Rb8 13. Qc3 O-O
14. O-O b5 15. cxb5 axb5 16. Bxc6 bxa4 17. Bxa4 Qa7 18. Bc2 d5 $44 {0-1 Popov,
N-Tseshkovsky,V/Yerevan 1977/MCD (37)}) (9. h3 Nc6 10. Nxe6 fxe6 11. Bxc5 Na5
12. Qb4 Nxc4 13. Qxc4 b6 14. Bg2 Bb7 15. Bxb7 Qxb7 16. O-O Rc8 17. Na4 bxc5 18.
Nxc5 Qxb2 19. Rab1 Qa3 20. Rfc1 O-O 21. Qxa6 Qxa6 22. Nxa6 Ra8 23. Rb6 Ne4 {
1/2-1/2 Komljenovic,D-Garcia,G/Linares 1997/CBM 058 (25)}) 9... d6 10. Nxc5
dxc5 11. Nf3 e5 (11... O-O 12. Bg2 Ng4 13. O-O Nd7 14. Rfd1 Rb8 15. Bg5 Re8 16.
h3 Ngf6 17. Bxf6 Nxf6 18. Rd2 Bd7 19. Qc2 Bc6 20. Rad1 Red8 {1/2-1/2 Gorelov,
S-Yermolinsky,A/Aktjubinsk 1985/MCD}) 12. Bg2 O-O 13. O-O Re8 14. Bg5 Nbd7 15.
Nd2 Rb8 16. Rfd1 h6 17. Bxf6 Nxf6 18. Ne4 Nxe4 19. Bxe4 b5 20. cxb5 axb5 {
1/2-1/2 Nielsen,P-Anand,V/Monte Carlo 2006/CBM 111 ext}) 8... d6 $6 (8... e5 $5
9. Ncb5 (9. Ndb5 $5 $13) 9... Qa5+ 10. Bd2 Qb6 11. Nf5 d5 (11... Bxf2+ $5 12.
Kd1 O-O 13. Nbd6 $44) 12. Nbd6+ Bxd6 13. Qxb6 axb6 14. Nxd6+ Ke7 15. Bb4 Be6
16. Nc8+ Ke8 17. Nxb6 Ra6 18. Nxd5 Nxd5 19. cxd5 Bxd5 20. f3 Rxa2 21. Rxa2 Bxa2
22. Bh3 $14 {1/2-1/2 Botsari,A-Lalic,S/Pula 1997/CBM 057 ext (23)}) 9. Ndb5 Qc6
10. O-O-O $4 {[%mdl 512] There was no need to sacrifice material.} ({After} 10.
Rg1 $1 {Black apparently faces serious problems, e.g.} e5 (10... a6 11. Bg2 Qd7
12. Qa4 O-O 13. O-O-O e5 14. Be3 Bxe3+ 15. fxe3 Ng4 16. Nd5 $16) 11. Bg2 Bxf2+
(11... Qd7 12. Be3 O-O 13. O-O-O $16) 12. Kxf2 Qb6+ (12... Qc5+ 13. Be3 Ng4+
14. Ke1 Nxe3 15. Ne4 $1 Qb6 16. Nexd6+ Ke7 17. Qc3 $16) 13. Kf1 exf4 (13... Ng4
14. e3 exf4 15. Nd5) 14. c5 $1 dxc5 15. Na4 $16) 10... Qxh1 11. Bxd6 (11. Nc7+
Ke7 12. Nxa8 Na6 $17 {[%csl Ra8]}) 11... Na6 12. Bxc5 Nxc5 13. Nc7+ Ke7 14. Qa3
b6 {Well, White is a rook down and where is his compensation?} 15. b4 Ncd7 16.
b5+ Kd8 (16... Nc5 {was possible, too.}) 17. Bh3 Qxd1+ 18. Kxd1 Kxc7 {and
Black gradually brought home his material advantage:} 19. Qe7 Rf8 20. e4 Ng8
21. Qg5 Bb7 22. Qxg7 Rad8 23. Kc2 Kb8 24. f3 Nc5 25. Bf1 f5 26. exf5 exf5 27.
Nd5 Bxd5 28. cxd5 Nf6 29. Bc4 Nb7 30. Qh6 Nd6 31. Kb3 Rf7 32. Qh4 Nxc4 33. Qxc4
Nxd5 34. Qd3 f4 35. gxf4 Rxf4 36. a3 Rf7 37. h4 Rdd7 38. h5 Nc7 39. Qe4 Nxb5
0-1

[Event "Baku FIDE GP"]
[Site "Baku"]
[Date "2008.04.23"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Cheparinov, Ivan"]
[Black "Bacrot, Etienne"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2696"]
[BlackElo "2705"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "134"]
[EventDate "2008.04.21"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 124"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.05.28"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.05.28"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 Ne4 7. Qd3 Qa5 8.
Nb3 Nxc3 9. Bd2 Ne4 10. Qxe4 Bxd2+ 11. Nxd2 O-O 12. Bg2 Nc6 13. Qe3 d5 14. O-O
d4 15. Qd3 Rd8 {[%cal Yc6e5,Yc6b4]} (15... e5 {is another plan.}) 16. a3 Ne5
17. b4 $5 {An interesting idea. Apparently, White destroys his own pawn
structure but the open b-file guarantees him good counterplay. However, it is
hardly enough for an advantage.} (17. Qc2 {is played more frequently:} Qc7 18.
Qe4 (18. Rac1 Bd7 19. Nf3 Nxf3+ 20. Bxf3 Bc6 21. Qd3 a5 22. b3 e5 23. Bxc6 Qxc6
24. e4 Qc5 25. a4 Ra6 $15 {1/2-1/2 Orr,M-Johansen,D/London 1985/EXT 2007 (77)})
18... a5 (18... Rb8 19. Qf4 b6 20. Rfd1 (20. Rac1 Bb7 21. Ne4 Rbc8 22. c5 Bxe4
23. cxb6 Qxb6 24. Bxe4 Nd7 25. b4 Nf6 26. Bf3 Rc3 27. Rxc3 dxc3 28. Qc4 Qd4 29.
Qxd4 Rxd4 30. Rc1 Rc4 31. Kf1 Kf8 $11 {1/2-1/2 Kopylov,M-Berelovich,A/Donetsk
1998/CBM 068 (55)}) 20... Bb7 21. Bxb7 Rxb7 22. Nb3 Qxc4 23. Qxe5 Qxb3 24. Rxd4
Rxd4 25. Qxd4 Qd5 26. Rc1 f6 27. Qxd5 exd5 28. Rc6 Kf8 29. Kg2 $14 {1-0
Plaskett,J-Elyoseph,H/Groningen 1979/EXT 2001 (53)}) 19. Rac1 (19. b3 Ra7 20.
e3 dxe3 21. Qxe3 b6 22. Rfe1 Nd3 23. Red1 Qc5 24. Qxc5 Nxc5 25. Bc6 Kf8 26. Ne4
Rxd1+ 27. Rxd1 Ke7 28. Nxc5 bxc5 29. f4 {1/2-1/2 Giorgadze,T-Ostermeyer,P/
Hannover 1983/MCL}) 19... a4 (19... d3 $5) 20. c5 Ra5 21. b4 axb3 22. Nxb3 Ra4
23. Qf4 h6 24. h4 $14 {1-0 Polugaevsky,L-Ftacnik,L/Moskva 1985/Inf 39 (60)})
17... Nxd3 $146 (17... Qc7 18. Qe4 $1 $14 (18. Qb3 $143 Bd7 $11 19. f4 $6 Ng6
$6 ({Why not} 19... Ng4 {[%csl Re3] ?}) 20. Nf3 Bc6 21. Rfd1 $6 (21. Rad1 $142
e5 $140 22. fxe5 Nxe5 23. Nxe5 Qxe5 24. c5) 21... e5 22. f5 Ne7 23. Qc2 f6 24.
Rac1 Rac8 25. g4 Bd5 $17 {1-0 Gaprindashvili,N-Mokry,K/Polanica Zdroj 1986/EXT
1997 (39)})) 18. bxa5 Nc5 19. Rab1 Rb8 20. Ne4 Na4 $1 21. Rb4 Bd7 22. Rfb1 Bc6
23. Nc5 Nxc5 (23... Nc3 24. R1b2 Bxg2 25. Kxg2 b6 26. axb6 axb6 27. Rxb6 Rxb6
28. Rxb6 Nxe2 29. Nd3 $14) 24. Bxc6 Rdc8 25. Bxb7 Rxb7 26. Rxb7 Nxb7 27. Rxb7 {
[%mdl 4096] This endgame has arisen practically by force. Of course, it is
drawish, despite White's eventual outside passed pawn.} g5 28. Rb4 $6 {White
is looking for trouble.} (28. Rxa7 $142 Rxc4 29. Kg2 Ra4 (29... g4 $143 30. a6
Ra4 31. Rd7 Rxa6 32. Rxd4 Rxa3 33. Rxg4+ $14) 30. Kf3 f5 {White can't win but
losing is even less probable.}) 28... a6 29. Kf1 Rc5 30. Ke1 Rxa5 31. a4 Kg7
32. Kd2 Kf6 33. Kd3 Ke5 34. f4+ gxf4 35. gxf4+ Kxf4 36. Kxd4 e5+ 37. Kd3 Kf5
38. Kc3 Ke4 39. Kb3 Ke3 40. Rb7 e4 41. Rxf7 $6 {Here and on the next move
White should advance his c-pawn as quickly as possible:} (41. Kb4 Rf5 (41...
Rh5 42. c5 Rxh2 43. c6 Rxe2 44. Kb3 Re1 45. Kb2 Re2+ $11) (41... Re5 $6 42. c5
Kxe2 43. c6) 42. c5 Kxe2 43. c6 Rf1 44. Re7 $5 f5 45. Re5 $11) 41... Re5 42.
Rxh7 $2 {This unnecessary capture wastes a crucial tempo.} (42. Rc7 $1 Kxe2 43.
c5 {was probably the only way. Here is a possible line:} e3 44. c6 Re6 $1 (
44... Rc5 45. Kb4 Rc1 46. Ka5 $132) 45. Rc8 $1 Re7 $1 (45... Ke1 46. c7 Re7 47.
Kb4 e2 48. Kc5 Rf7 $2 49. Kc6 {[%cal Rc8e8]}) 46. Rd8 Kf2 (46... Rc7 47. Rd6
Ke1 48. Kc2 e2 49. Re6 Rf7 50. Kd3 $11) 47. Rd7 Re8 (47... Re4 48. c7 e2 49.
c8=Q e1=Q $11) 48. Rf7+ Kg2 (48... Ke1 $6 49. c7 e2 50. Kc2) 49. Rg7+ Kh1 $1
50. c7 e2 51. c8=Q Rxc8 52. Re7 Kxh2 53. Rxe2+ Kg3 54. Re6 $1 $11) ({but not} 
42. Kb4 a5+ $1 43. Kc3 Kxe2 44. Kd4 Re8 45. c5 e3 {[%cal Re2d2]} 46. Kc3 Re6 $1
{[%cal Ye2e1,Ye3e2]} 47. Kc2 Re5 48. Rc7 Ke1 49. c6 e2 $19) 42... Kxe2 43. Kc3
(43. Rc7 e3 44. c5 Kf2 {or}) (43. Kb4 e3 44. c5 Kf2 {is now too late.}) 43...
e3 44. Rf7 Ke1 45. Rf4 e2 46. Kc2 Ra5 (46... Rg5 $5 {[%cal Yg5g2,Yg2f2]}) 47.
h4 Rxa4 48. h5 Ra2+ $1 49. Kc1 Ra3 50. h6 Rc3+ $1 51. Kb2 Rh3 52. Rf6 Kd2 53.
Rd6+ Ke3 54. Re6+ Kd3 {[%cal Rh3h6]} 55. Rd6+ Kxc4 56. Re6 Kd3 57. Rd6+ Ke3 58.
Re6+ Kd3 59. Rd6+ Kc4 60. Re6 Rh2 $1 61. Kc1 Kd3 62. Rd6+ Ke3 63. Re6+ Kf2 64.
Rf6+ Ke1 65. Kc2 a5 {This pawn destroys White's defensive arrangement.} 66. Kb3
Rh4 67. Ka3 Rh1 (67... Rh1 68. Kb2 Kd2 $19) 0-1

[Event "Geneva FIDE GP"]
[Site "Geneva"]
[Date "2017.07.08"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Rapport, Richard"]
[Black "Jakovenko, Dmitrij"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2694"]
[BlackElo "2703"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "172"]
[EventDate "2017.07.06"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 180"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2017.09.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2017.09.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 O-O 5. Bg2 d5 6. cxd5 {A harmess move. As
a rule, the Karlsbad pawn structure with White's bishop on g2 creates no
problems for Black. White doesn't want to go for the gambit continuation} (6.
Nf3 dxc4) 6... exd5 7. a3 {Asking Black's bishop to take on c3 or retreat to
e7. The drawback of this move is clear: it wastes a precious tempo.} (7. Nf3 {
is more common but after} c6 {Black's bishop will be able to retreat to d6, e.
g.} 8. O-O Re8 9. a3 Bd6 {This line, seen in a number of games, is hardly
promising for White.}) 7... Bxc3+ {This exchange is the simplest way to
equality.} ({The position after} 7... Be7 {often arises from other move orders:
} 8. Nf3 (8. e3 c6 9. Nge2 Bf5 10. O-O Re8 11. f3 Bd6 (11... Bf8 $142) 12. e4
dxe4 13. fxe4 Bxe4 14. Rxf6 Bxg2 15. Rxd6 Qxd6 16. Kxg2 $14 {1-0 (48) Meier,A 
(2280)-Ankerst,M (2115) Germany 2007}) (8. Nh3 c6 (8... Bf5 9. O-O Re8 10. Nf4
c6 11. h3 h5 12. e3 Qc8 13. Kh2 g6 $132 {1/2 (28) Ivanisevic,I (2614)-Bacrot,E
(2709) Novi Sad 2009}) 9. O-O (9. Nf4 Na6 10. O-O Nc7 11. Qc2 Ne6 12. Rd1 Bd6
13. Nxe6 Bxe6 14. b4 Rc8 15. Bg5 {1/2 (15) Berkes,F (2664)-Raznikov,D (2484)
Zalakaros 2015}) 9... a5 (9... Re8 10. Nf4 Bd6 11. f3 Bc7 12. b4 h6 13. Kh1 Bf5
14. Re1 Bb6 15. Na4 Nbd7 16. Bb2 Bc7 $132 {1/2 (60) Gajewski,G (2577)-Lenic,L 
(2569) Dresden 2008}) (9... Nbd7 10. Nf4 Re8 11. b4 a6 12. Nd3 Nb6 13. Qb3 Nc4
14. Rd1 Bf5 $132 {1/2 (34) Jovanic,O (2533)-Tratar,M (2493) Nova Gorica 2010})
10. Nf4 Re8 11. b3 Na6 12. f3 c5 13. Be3 b6 14. dxc5 Bxc5 15. Bxc5 Nxc5 16.
Ncxd5 Nxd5 17. Qxd5 Bb7 18. Qxd8 Raxd8 19. b4 Nb3 20. Ra2 Nd2 21. Rf2 Re3 $44 {
1/2 (33) Ivanisevic,I (2638)-Brkic,A (2586) Jerusalem 2015}) 8... c6 9. O-O (9.
Qc2 a5 10. O-O Be6 11. Bf4 Nbd7 12. Rad1 Re8 13. Ne5 Nb6 14. h3 Nfd7 15. g4 Nf8
$11 {1/2 (22) Sedlak,N (2572)-Tiviakov,S (2663) Al Ain 2012}) 9... Re8 (9...
Bf5 10. Nh4 Be6 11. f4 Ne4 12. f5 Nxc3 13. bxc3 Bc8 14. Qd3 Nd7 (14... Bxh4 15.
gxh4 Qxh4 16. Rf4 $44) 15. Nf3 Bd6 16. Nd2 Nf6 17. e4 dxe4 18. Nxe4 Nxe4 19.
Bxe4 $14 {1-0 (33) Pfleger,H (2545)-Keene,R (2465) Elvetham Hall 1979}) 10. Ne5
Nbd7 11. f4 Nf8 12. e3 Bd6 13. b4 Bf5 14. g4 Bxe5 15. fxe5 Bxg4 16. Bf3 Bxf3
17. Qxf3 N6d7 18. Qxf7+ Kh8 $13 {0-1 (71) Slipak,S (2444)-Bachmann,A (2543)
Villa Martelli 2013}) 8. bxc3 Ne4 $5 9. c4 c6 (9... Nc6 $5) 10. cxd5 cxd5 $11
11. e3 (11. Nf3 Re8 {[%cal Re4c3]}) 11... Bd7 (11... Nc6 12. Ne2 Bf5 13. O-O
Rc8 {is comfortable for Black but Dmitrij Jakovenko choses another arrangement
of his pieces.}) 12. Ne2 Bb5 13. O-O Re8 14. Re1 Nc6 15. f3 Nf6 16. g4 $6 {
[%mdl 32] This "active" move just weakens White's position.} (16. Nf4 $11)
16... Bxe2 (16... Bc4 $5 {[%cal Yb7b5]}) 17. Rxe2 Rc8 18. Qd3 h6 19. Bd2 a6 20.
Kh1 $6 {White starts an unjustified kingside attack, which Black successfully
parries.} (20. Rb1 $142 b5 21. a4) 20... Na5 21. Rg1 Nc4 22. Bc1 Rc6 (22... Re6
$142 $5 23. h3 Qc7 24. e4 Qg3 {[%cal Rd5e4,Rf6g4]}) 23. h3 b5 (23... Qc7 24. e4
Qg3 $6 25. exd5) 24. e4 dxe4 25. fxe4 Rd6 26. Rd1 Rd7 (26... Nd7 27. Bf4 Nc5
28. Qc3 Na4 29. Qa1 $13) 27. g5 $6 (27. Bf4) 27... Nh5 $1 28. Qf3 (28. gxh6 $2
Rxd4 29. Qxd4 Ng3+ 30. Kh2 Qxd4 31. Rxd4 Nxe2 $19) 28... g6 29. gxh6 Rxd4 {
White's centre has been ruined, and Black starts exploiting numerous
weaknesses in White's position.} 30. Rf1 Ne5 31. Qf2 Rd1 (31... Rd3 32. Re3) (
31... f6 $5) 32. Bb2 Rxf1+ 33. Bxf1 Qg5 34. h7+ Kxh7 35. Bxe5 Qxe5 36. Qxf7+
Kh6 {[%csl Rf1,Rh1]} 37. Rg2 Qe6 38. Qxe6 Rxe6 $17 {[%mdl 4096]} 39. a4 (39.
Bd3 Nf4 40. Rg3 Nxd3 41. Rxd3 Rxe4 $19 {_|_}) 39... bxa4 40. Kh2 Rxe4 (40...
Rf6 $5 41. Kg1 Rf3) 41. Ra2 (41. Bd3 Re6 42. Ra2 Re3 43. Bxa6 a3) 41... a5 $6 {
Allowing White's bishop to b5 is not a good idea.} (41... Nf4 $142 42. Bxa6 Rb4
) 42. Bb5 Nf4 43. Ra3 {Preparing Bb5xa4, which was not possible yet.} (43. Bxa4
Re2+ 44. Rxe2 Nxe2 $19) 43... Kg5 (43... Nd5 $5 44. Bxa4 Nb6 45. Bc6 Rc4 46.
Bb5 Rc5 47. Bf1 a4 {although Black's b6-knight is not perfectly placed.}) 44.
Bxa4 Kh4 $6 {This loses the a5 pawn, too.} (44... Re5 $142) 45. Bb5 g5 46. Rxa5
Re5 {This pin looks formidable but Black can't improve his position.} 47. Kh1
Rd5 48. Kh2 Rd2+ 49. Kh1 Kxh3 50. Bf1+ {The position is drawish now but Black
keeps trying.} Kh4 51. Ra4 Kg3 52. Ra3+ Kf2 53. Bc4 Rd4 (53... g4 54. Ra2 Rxa2
55. Bxa2 g3 56. Bd5 $1 Nd3 57. Bc6 Ne1 58. Bg2 $1 Nf3 59. Bh3 $11) 54. Ra2+ Kg3
55. Ra3+ Kh4 56. Bf1 g4 57. Kg1 g3 58. Ra1 Kg4 59. Re1 Rd2 60. Ra1 Rb2 61. Kh1
Nd5 62. Bg2 Nf4 63. Bf1 Kf3 64. Kg1 Nd5 65. Bh3 Ne3 66. Re1 Rc2 67. Ra1 Re2 68.
Bf1 Rb2 69. Bh3 Rc2 70. Re1 g2 71. Be6 (71. Bxg2+ $2 Rxg2+ 72. Kh1 Rd2 {
is theoretically winning for Black.}) 71... Rc3 72. Bh3 Kg3 73. Be6 $1 {
Accurately played.} (73. Bd7 $2 Nd5 $19 {[%cal Yd5f4]}) 73... Kf3 (73... Ra3
74. Bd5 $1 Nxd5 75. Re3+ $11) (73... Rd3 74. Bd5 $1 Nc2 75. Rb1 Rxd5 76. Rb3+
$11) 74. Bh3 Rc2 75. Be6 Rc6 76. Bh3 Rc3 77. Bd7 (77. Be6 {was simpler.}) 77...
Nd5 78. Bh3 Nf4 79. Bxg2+ Nxg2 80. Rf1+ $2 {This "natural" check is losing.} ({
White had a draw after} 80. Re8 Rc1+ 81. Kh2 Nf4 82. Rf8 {etc.}) ({Even} 80.
Ra1 {was enough: if} Kg3 {then} 81. Kf1 Re3 82. Rb1) 80... Kg3 81. Rf8 (81. Ra1
Ne3 {caging White's king and then encircling it, e.g.} 82. Re1 (82. Kh1 Ng4 83.
Rg1+ Kh3 84. Ra1 Nh2 {[%cal Yh2f3]} 85. Kg1 Kg3 86. Rb1 Rc2 $19 {[%cal Rh2f3]})
82... Ra3 $22 83. Rc1 (83. Kh1 Ng4) 83... Ng4 84. Kf1 Re3 85. Ra1 Nh2+ 86. Kg1
Re2 $19) 81... Rc1+ 82. Rf1 Rc6 (82... Ne1 $1 83. Kh1 Ra1 84. Rg1+ Kf2 $19) 83.
Ra1 (83. Rf8 Rc1+ 84. Rf1 Ne1 $19) 83... Ne3 84. Rb1 (84. Re1 Rc3 {[%cal Ye3g4,
Yg4h2,Yh2f3]}) 84... Rc2 85. Re1 Ng2 {[%cal Yg2h4,Yh4f3] This is as good as} (
85... Ng4 $19 {[%cal Yg4h2,Yh2f3]}) 86. Rd1 Nh4 0-1

[Event "Moscow Aeroflot op-A"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2007.02.21"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Harika, Dronavalli"]
[Black "Volokitin, Andrei"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2421"]
[BlackElo "2645"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "70"]
[EventDate "2007.02.14"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 117"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 O-O 6. e4 d6 7. Nge2 b5 8. Nf4 {
This line is discussed in CBM 109, where GM V.Gavrikov annotates the game
Volkov-Bocharov. He says:"Practically forcing Black to close the centre after
which White´s space advantage will play an important role." But closing the
centre is not forced!} exd5 $1 $146 (8... e5 9. Nfe2 bxc4 (9... Nh5 10. g4 Qh4+
11. Kd2 Nf4 12. Nxf4 exf4 13. Kc2 Bxc3 14. bxc3 b4 15. Bxf4 Bd7 16. Qd2 Ba4+
17. Kd3 $16 {1-0 Miton,K-Charbonneau,P/Montreal 2006/CBM 114 (32)}) 10. Ng3
Nbd7 (10... Ba6 11. Bg5 $5 Nbd7 (11... h6 12. Be3 Bc8 $6 (12... Nbd7) 13. Bxc4
Nbd7 14. O-O Nb6 15. Be2 Bxc3 16. bxc3 Bd7 17. a4 $14 {1-0 Shirov,A-Savon,V/
Moscow 1991/URS-ch (43)}) 12. Be2 h6 13. Be3 Rb8 14. O-O Nb6 15. f4 Re8 16.
fxe5 Rxe5 17. Bf4 Bxc3 18. bxc3 Rxe4 19. Nxe4 Nxe4 20. Qc2 Nf6 21. Bg3 Nbxd5
22. Qd2 $44 {1-0 Tritt,M-Guinsburg,M/IECG 2003/Telechess CBM 105 (58)}) (10...
Ne8 11. Bxc4 f5 12. exf5 Qh4 13. Qe2 Bxc3+ 14. bxc3 Bxf5 15. O-O Bg6 16. Bd3
Bxd3 17. Qxd3 $14 {1-0 Milov,V-Zelcic,R/Ohrid 2001/CBM 084/ (41)}) 11. Bxc4 Nb6
12. Be2 c4 13. O-O Bd7 14. Kh1 Re8 $6 (14... Qe7 15. Be3 Rfc8 {Gavrikov}) 15.
Bg5 $5 h6 16. Be3 Rc8 17. Qc2 Bc5 18. Bd2 $14 {1-0 Volkov,S-Bocharov,D/Kazan
2005/CBM 109/[Gavrikov] (41)}) 9. Nfxd5 Nxd5 10. Qxd5 Qb6 $1 11. Bd2 $6 {
This modest move gives Black an excellent position. Further analyses will be
probably devoted to} (11. cxb5) (11. Kf2) ({and} 11. Bf4) 11... Be6 $1 {
[%mdl 512]} 12. Qxa8 bxc4 13. a3 Ba5 $6 {After this move White saves his queen.
} (13... Bxc3 14. Bxc3 Nc6 15. Qxf8+ Kxf8 $15) 14. b4 $1 cxb3 15. Nd5 Bxd2+ 16.
Kxd2 Qa5+ 17. Ke3 $2 {A tactical mistake.} ({After} 17. Ke2 $1 {it is
difficult for Black to prove that his attack is worth a rook, e.g.} Qa4 {
[%cal Rb3b2]} (17... b2 18. Rb1 {[%cal Ya8b7]}) (17... c4 18. Qb7 Nd7 19. Qb4)
18. Re1 Qxa3 19. Kf2 {etc.}) 17... Nd7 $1 18. Qc6 Bxd5 19. Qxd7 Qc3+ $2 {
Missing his chance.} (19... Be6 $1 20. Qb5 (20. Qxd6 $2 Rd8) 20... Qc3+ 21. Bd3
Qd4+ 22. Ke2 c4 $19 {->}) 20. Bd3 Qd4+ 21. Ke2 c4 22. exd5 Qxd3+ (22... cxd3+
$2 23. Kd2) 23. Kf2 c3 {The black pawns are very formidable but White's
counterplay comes in time.} 24. Rae1 c2 25. Re8 Qd2+ 26. Kg3 Qg5+ 27. Kf2 Qd2+
28. Kg3 g6 $6 {Playing for a win in this position is really crazy!} 29. Rxf8+
Kxf8 30. Qxd6+ Kg7 31. Qe5+ Kh6 $2 (31... f6 32. Qe7+ Kg8 33. Qxf6 b2 $1 $11)
32. d6 $2 {Now Black gets off lightly. Meanwhile, White could have severely
punished his opponent:} (32. h4 $1 f5 (32... c1=Q 33. Qg5+ $1 Kg7 34. Rxc1 $18)
(32... Qd1 33. Qe3+ Kg7 34. Qc3+ Kh6 35. Kh2 Qxd5 36. g4 $18) 33. d6 (33. Qb2
$143 {is too passive}) 33... c1=Q 34. Rxc1 Qxc1 35. d7 b2 36. d8=Q b1=Q 37.
Qde7 f4+ 38. Qxf4+ Qxf4+ 39. Kxf4 {and White should win this queen endgame.})
32... b2 $1 33. Qxb2 Qg5+ 34. Kf2 Qd2+ 35. Kg3 Qg5+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Jermuk FIDE GP"]
[Site "Jermuk"]
[Date "2009.08.13"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Cheparinov, Ivan"]
[Black "Ivanchuk, Vassily"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2678"]
[BlackElo "2703"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "84"]
[EventDate "2009.08.09"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "ARM"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 132"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.09.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.09.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 e6 2. c4 Nf6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 Nc6 6. Bg2 Ne4 7. Bd2 Nxd2 8.
Qxd2 cxd4 9. Nxd4 Qb6 {A rare continuation, instead of the usual} (9... Ne5)
10. e3 $146 {[%mdl 8] A simple and logical move. White didn't obtain any
advantage in the following games:} (10. Nc2 Be7 11. O-O (11. Rd1 d6 12. O-O O-O
13. b3 Rd8 14. e3 Bd7 15. Nd4 Rac8 16. f4 Nxd4 17. exd4 d5 18. Rb1 dxc4 19.
bxc4 Qa5 20. Qd3 b6 $15 {0-1 Provotorov,I (2368)-Kostin,A (2386)/Voronezh 2007/
EXT 2008 (33)}) 11... O-O 12. Rab1 d6 13. Rfd1 Rd8 14. Ne3 a6 15. b4 Qa7 16. a4
Bd7 17. a5 Ne5 18. b5 axb5 19. Nxb5 Qxa5 20. Qxa5 Rxa5 21. Nxd6 Ba4 22. Nxb7
Bxd1 23. Nxd8 {1/2 Sasikiran,K (2669)-Macieja,B (2612)/Warsaw POL 2009/The
Week in Chess 768}) (10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. a3 Be7 12. b4 d5 13. b5 cxb5 14. cxd5
Rb8 15. O-O O-O 16. dxe6 fxe6 17. e3 a5 18. Rab1 Ba6 19. Qa2 Rfc8 20. Rfc1 b4
21. axb4 axb4 22. Ne2 b3 $36 {0-1 Martinovic,S (2427)-Macieja,B (2607)/Budva
2009/CBM 130 (69)}) 10... Ne5 11. b3 Qa5 12. Rc1 a6 13. O-O O-O 14. f4 Ng4 {
Provocative but after the natural} (14... Nc6 {Black has yet to find a way to
develop his queenside.}) 15. Qd3 Be7 (15... d6 $5) 16. h3 Nf6 17. g4 Rb8 $6 (
17... h6 {is safer.}) 18. g5 Ne8 19. Ne4 {[%cal Rf4f5]} Qd8 20. Rcd1 Nc7 21. c5
b6 22. c6 {It is clear that Black has not solved his opening problems.} a5 23.
Rf3 $2 {An far from obvious but significant mistake. This rook has nothing to
do here.} (23. Rf2 $142 $1 Ba6 24. Qc2 Rc8 (24... Nd5 25. Nf6+ $1 gxf6 26. Bxd5
{[%cal Rc6c7]} Rc8 27. Bc4 $1 Bxc4 28. bxc4 fxg5 29. Rg2 $40) 25. Nc3 d5 26. e4
Bc5 27. Na4 $16) 23... Ba6 24. Qd2 (24. Qc2 Nd5 25. Qb2 Rc8 $132) 24... Bb4 25.
Qc1 d5 26. Ng3 Qd6 {Black has suddenly activated his pieces.} 27. Nh5 Qc5 (
27... Rbc8 $5 {[%csl Rc6][%cal Yc7e8,Yb4c5]}) 28. Qb2 $2 {Simply giving up the
c6-pawn.} (28. Rf2 {was logical to protect it although Black had good
counterplay after} Qxc1 29. Rxc1 Rfc8 {[%csl Rc6]}) 28... Bc3 29. Qf2 Bxd4 30.
exd4 Qxc6 {All White's attempts to create a kingside attack now prove vain.}
31. Rg3 Kh8 32. Qe3 Qd6 33. Rc1 Rfc8 34. Rg4 Ne8 35. Re1 g6 36. Nf6 Nxf6 37.
gxf6 Rc2 38. Rh4 Rbc8 39. Qg3 Qb4 40. f5 Qxe1+ $1 41. Qxe1 Rc1 42. Qxc1 Rxc1+
0-1

[Event "Astrakhan FIDE GP"]
[Site "Astrakhan"]
[Date "2010.05.22"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Ponomariov, Ruslan"]
[Black "Gashimov, Vugar"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2733"]
[BlackElo "2734"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "93"]
[EventDate "2010.05.10"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 137"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.07.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.07.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 c5 4. g3 cxd4 5. Nxd4 Bb4+ 6. Nc3 Ne4 7. Qd3 Nxc3 8.
bxc3 Be7 {About this system - see Nakamura - Karjakin in CBM 135.} 9. Bf4 (9.
Bg2 {and}) (9. Nb5 {are more common continuations.}) 9... d6 (9... a6 $5) 10.
Nb5 e5 11. c5 $5 $146 {[%mdl 8]} (11. Be3 a6 (11... Be6 $5 12. Nxa7 (12. Bxa7
Nc6 13. Be3 Ra4) 12... f5 $1 $132 {[%cal Re5e4]}) 12. Na7 Bd7 13. Bg2 (13. Rb1
$1 Nc6 14. Rxb7 $16) 13... Nc6 14. Nxc6 Bxc6 15. Bxc6+ bxc6 16. O-O O-O 17.
Rab1 Qc7 $11 {1/2 Mastrovasilis,A (2510)-Fedorchuk,S (2641)/Cappelle la Grande
FRA 2010/The Week in Chess 797 (95)}) 11... exf4 12. cxd6 O-O 13. dxe7 Qxe7 14.
Bg2 $14 {[%csl Gg2]} Rd8 15. Nd4 Qc7 16. O-O fxg3 17. hxg3 Nc6 18. Rab1 Bd7 19.
Rfd1 Na5 20. Be4 g6 21. Qf3 Bc6 22. Nxc6 Rxd1+ 23. Rxd1 Nxc6 24. Bd5 {[%mdl 32]
A typical open position, in which the white bishop is stronger than the black
knight.} Re8 25. c4 Qe7 26. Kg2 h5 27. Rd3 Kg7 (27... Ne5 28. Qe4 $1 {[%cal
Rd3e3]}) 28. Qf4 Rf8 29. Re3 Qd7 30. a3 Qd8 ({Black misses a chance to play} 
30... b6 {depriving White of a crucial target (the b7-pawn).}) 31. Rb3 Qd7 32.
e4 Qe7 $2 {This minor mistake proves decisive!} (32... b6 {was too late due to}
33. e5 {[%cal Rf4f6]} Nd8 34. Qf6+ Kh6 35. a4 $1 Re8 (35... Qxa4 36. e6 $1 Nxe6
37. Rf3 Nd8 38. Rf5 $1 $18 {[%cal Rf5h5]}) 36. a5 bxa5 37. Rb8 $18) (32... f6
$142 $1 33. c5 {[%csl Rb7]} Rd8 $14 {[%cal Yd7e7,Yd8d7]}) 33. Qd2 $1 Kh7 34.
Qb2 Nd8 (34... Na5 35. Rb5 b6 36. c5 $1 $18) 35. Rf3 Nc6 36. e5 $1 a5 {
Desperation.} (36... Nxe5 37. Re3 f6 38. f4 Qc5 39. Qxb7+ Kh6 40. Qb4 $1 Nd7
41. Re7 $16) 37. e6 $1 f5 {[%csl Ge6]} (37... fxe6 38. Rxf8 Qxf8 39. Qxb7+ Ne7
40. Bxe6 $18) 38. Qb6 {White's position is strategically winning. Black can't
both stop White's e-pawn and protect his own ruined queenside. But,
interestingly, the game is decided with a kingside attack!} Re8 39. Re3 Rc8 40.
Rd3 Kg8 41. Qe3 $1 {[%cal Re3h6]} g5 (41... Kh7 42. Bxc6 Rxc6 43. Rd7 $18) 42.
Bxc6 bxc6 43. Rd7 Qf6 44. Rf7 Qg6 45. Qe5 f4 46. Rf5 f3+ 47. Kh2 1-0

[Event "Linares 26th"]
[Site "Linares"]
[Date "2009.02.21"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Ivanchuk, Vassily"]
[Black "Grischuk, Alexander"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2779"]
[BlackElo "2733"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "129"]
[EventDate "2009.02.19"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 129"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8.
cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Qa5 10. Bd2 Nc6 11. Nxc6 bxc6 12. O-O Bxc3 13. bxc3 Ba6 14.
Rfd1 Qc5 15. e4 Bc4 16. Qa4 Nb6 17. Qb4 Qh5 18. Re1 c5 {This popular line
became even more famous after the World Championship match game Kramnik -
Anand (see CBM 127, with annotations by GM M.Marin).} 19. Qa5 Be2 $146 (19...
Rfc8 20. Be3 $5 (20. Bf4 e5 21. g4 $5 Qxg4 22. Bxe5 Be2 23. Bg3 Bf3 24. h3 Qh5
25. Qb5 Bxg2 26. Kxg2 Qg6 27. Rad1 Rc6 28. a4 h5 29. h4 Qe6 30. a5 a6 31. Qe2
Nc4 32. Rd5 Nxa5 33. Qxh5 Nc4 $13 {1/2 Harikrishna,P (2659)-Hracek,Z (2613)/
Dresden 2008/CBM 128 (73)}) 20... Be2 21. Bf4 $5 e5 22. Be3 Bg4 $6 23. Qa6 $1
$16 f6 24. a4 Qf7 25. Bf1 Be6 26. Rab1 $1 $16 {1-0 Kramnik,V (2772)-Anand,V 
(2783)/Bonn 2008/CBM 127/[Marin,M] (29)}) 20. Bf4 (20. Be3 Rfc8 {- see above
Kramnik - Anand.}) 20... e5 21. Bxe5 $5 (21. Be3 $5 Rfc8 (21... Nc4 22. Qa6
Nxe3 23. Rxe2 Nxg2 24. Kxg2 $14) 22. h3 $14) 21... Nc4 22. Qa6 Qxe5 23. Rxe2
Qxc3 24. Ree1 $14 {The bishop is stronger than the knight as the position is
quite open.} Nd2 (24... Nb2 25. Bf1 $1 $36) 25. Rac1 Qb4 26. e5 Rad8 27. Qxa7
c4 {[%csl Gc4] Black's passed pawn guarantees him counterplay in return for
the material deficit.} 28. Re3 (28. a4 Nb3 29. Rb1 c3 {[%csl Gc3]}) 28... Rfe8
29. e6 $6 {White unnecessarily gives his material advantage back.} (29. Qb7 Qa5
$140 30. Qb2 $14) (29. Rce1 $5 $14 {A Sayapin}) 29... fxe6 30. Rec3 e5 31. Bc6
Re7 32. Qe3 e4 33. Kg2 (33. a4 $5 {[%cal Yc6b5]} Rf7 $1 34. Bxe4 Qxa4 $11)
33... h6 $2 $138 (33... Re6 34. R1c2 Rxc6 35. Rxd2 Rxd2 36. Qxd2 Rd6 $11 {
A Sayapin}) 34. Rd1 $2 $138 (34. R1c2 $1 Rd3 35. Rxd3 exd3 36. Qxd2 Qc5 37.
Qxd3 Qxc6+ 38. Qf3 $16) 34... Rd6 $6 (34... Qb2 $142 35. Rxc4 Rd3 36. Rxd2 Qxd2
37. Qc5 Qg5 38. Qxg5 hxg5 39. Bxe4 Rd2 $11) 35. Rxd2 Rxc6 $14 {White keeps a
pull as Black's c4- and e4-pawns are now extremely weak.} 36. Rd8+ Kh7 37. Rd4
Kh8 38. a3 Qb5 39. Qe2 e3 $6 {Returning the favour for 29.e6.} (39... Qb7 $5 {
and White can't comfortably win a pawn:} 40. Kg1 (40. Rdxc4 Rxc4 41. Rxc4 e3+
42. f3 Qb3 $11) 40... Qb1+ 41. Rd1 Qb5 42. Rdc1 Qa6 {etc.}) 40. Rxe3 $6 (40.
fxe3 $142 $1 {, creating a passed pawn, with some winning chances.}) 40... Rxe3
41. Qxe3 (41. Rd8+ Kh7 42. Qxe3 Qf5 $132) 41... Rc8 42. Qc3 Qb7+ 43. Kg1 Qb3 $1
{Correct. In the rook ending all Black needs for a draw is to swap the
queenside pawns.} 44. Qxb3 cxb3 45. Rb4 Rc1+ 46. Kg2 Rb1 47. g4 g5 48. Rb7 b2
49. f3 Ra1 50. Rxb2 Rxa3 51. Rb5 Kg7 52. h4 gxh4 53. Rh5 Ra2+ 54. Kh3 Ra3 55.
Rf5 Kg6 56. Kxh4 h5 $1 {The simplest.} 57. Rg5+ Kf7 58. Kxh5 Rxf3 59. Kh6 Rh3+
60. Rh5 Rg3 61. g5 Kg8 62. Rh1 Ra3 63. Rb1 Ra6+ 64. g6 Ra8 65. Rb7 1/2-1/2

[Event "Corus"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2010.01.26"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Black "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2708"]
[BlackElo "2720"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "96"]
[EventDate "2010.01.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 135"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.03.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.03.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 Ne4 7. Qd3 Nxc3 {
Quite a rare move, compared to the usual} (7... Qa5 {and}) (7... Bxc3+) 8. bxc3
Be7 9. Bg2 O-O 10. O-O (10. Nb5 $5 Nc6 11. Bf4 (11. O-O $6 a6 12. Nd6 Ne5 13.
Qd4 Bxd6 14. Qxd6 Nxc4 15. Qd4 Qc7 $17 {0-1 Colls Gelaberto,E (2203)-Vehi Bach,
V (2411)/La Massana 2008/CBM 125 Extra (41)}) 11... e5 12. Bc1 (12. Be3 d6 13.
O-O a6 14. Na3 Be6 15. Bd5 Qa5 16. Nc2 Rfc8 17. Rfb1 $14 {1/2 Sulypa,A (2478)
-Can,E (2411)/Olomouc 2007/CBM 119 ext (28)}) 12... Qa5 (12... d6 13. Ba3 Qa5
14. Bxd6 Rd8 15. Bc7 Rxd3 16. Bxa5 $14) 13. O-O d6 14. a4 Be6 15. Ba3 Rfd8 16.
Rfb1 Rac8 17. Nxd6 Bxd6 18. Bxd6 b6 19. Rd1 Qa6 20. c5 Bc4 21. Qf5 Bxe2 22. Rd2
Bc4 23. Be4 $14 {1/2 Rogozenco,D (2440)-Itkis,B (2410)/Bucharest 1995/CBM 048 
(30)}) 10... d6 (10... Nc6 11. Rd1 $5 (11. Bf4 g5 12. Be3 Ne5 13. Qe4 d6 14.
Nf3 f5 15. Qd4 Nf7 16. Rfd1 Bf6 17. Qd3 Bd7 $132 {0-1 Shchekachev,A (2530)
-Fedorchuk,S (2655)/Coubertin 2009/CBM 131 Extra (29)}) 11... Qa5 (11... Ne5 $5
12. Qe4 Qa5) 12. Nb3 Qc7 13. c5 b6 14. Bf4 e5 15. Be3 Rb8 16. Be4 h6 17. Bd5
$14 {0-1 Jianu,V (2531)-Fedorchuk,S (2671)/Plovdiv 2008/CBM 124 (60)}) (10...
Na6 $6 11. Rd1 (11. Nb5 Nc5 12. Qd4 d6 13. Rd1 e5 14. Qe3 (14. Qd2 Qa5 15. Ba3
Be6 16. Bb4 Qb6 17. Qe3 Rac8 $15 {0-1 Parker,J (2325)-Topalov,V (2495)/
Singapore 1990/EXT 1997 (46)}) 14... Re8 15. Qd2 Qa5 16. Nxd6 Rd8 17. Nxc8 $5
Raxc8 18. Bd5 Na4 19. Qd3 Nb6 20. Qf5 Nxd5 21. cxd5 Qxc3 22. Be3 Qc2 {1/2
Abbasov,F (2444)-Tahirov,F (2545)/Tula 2007/EXT 2008}) (11. Nb3 Qc7 12. Bf4 d6
13. Rfd1 Rd8 {0-1 Stuart,P-Ker,A (2305)/New Zeeland 1991/EXT 1999 (59)} 14.
Rab1 $5) 11... Nc5 12. Qc2 $1 (12. Qe3 d6 (12... Qa5 $5 13. Bd2 Na4 14. Rab1
Qc7 15. Qd3 a6 16. Bf4 d6 {0-1 Kuthan,A (2220)-Schlosser,P (2556)/Austria 2009/
EXT 2010 (33)} 17. Qc2 Nc5 18. Nb3 $14) 13. Ba3 Bd7 14. Rab1 Rb8 15. Bxc5 dxc5
16. Nb5 a6 17. Nd6 Qc7 $13 {1/2 Nielsen,P (2651)-Hracek,Z (2598)/Germany 2007/
CBM 123 (41)}) 12... a6 13. Nb3 Qc7 14. Bf4 d6 15. Rab1 Rb8 16. Nxc5 Qxc5 17.
Qd3 e5 18. Be3 Qa3 19. Ba7 Ra8 20. Bb6 g6 21. Bd5 $16 {1/2 Kravtsov,S (2438)
-Ogloblin,N (2380)/Novokuznetsk 1999/EXT 2001 (54)}) (10... a6 11. Rd1 Qc7 12.
Bf4 d6 13. c5 e5 (13... Qxc5 14. Nb3 Qb6 15. Bxd6 Rd8 16. Bc5 $1 $14) 14. cxd6
Qxd6 15. Nf5 Qf6 16. Nxe7+ Qxe7 17. Be3 $14 {1-0 Zhumabaev,R (2550)-Babujian,L
(2515)/Martuni 2009/CBM 132 (73)}) 11. Rd1 (11. Ba3 a6 12. Rfd1 Qc7 13. Nc2 Rd8
14. Ne3 Nc6 15. f4 g6 16. g4 Rb8 17. g5 Qa5 18. Bc1 Qc5 19. Kh1 b6 20. a4 Na5
21. Ba3 Qc7 22. Rab1 Bb7 {0-1 Furman,B (2263)-Tahirov,F (2545)/Hastings 2006/
CBM 116 ext (34)}) 11... a6 (11... Nd7 $5) 12. Nb3 (12. f4 Nd7 13. Ba3 Qc7 14.
Nc2 Nc5 15. Qe3 Rb8 16. Rd2 g6 17. Rad1 b6 18. g4 Bb7 $15 {0-1 Quinn,M (2429)
-Alekseev,E (2593)/Hoogeveen 2002/CBM 090 ext (40)}) (12. Be3 Nd7 13. f4 Qc7
14. Kh1 Nb6 15. Rab1 Nxc4 16. Bg1 Rb8 17. e4 Bd7 18. Bf1 Rfc8 19. Rdc1 Qa5 20.
Nb3 Qxa2 {0-1 Fogel,P (2193)-Akopian,V (2700)/Gibraltar 2007/CBM 116 ext}) (12.
Nf3 Nd7 13. Ba3 Nc5 14. Bxc5 dxc5 15. Qxd8 Rxd8 16. Ne5 Rb8 17. Rab1 Rxd1+ 18.
Rxd1 Kf8 19. Nd7+ Bxd7 20. Rxd7 b6 21. a4 Bf6 $11 {1/2 Agrest,E (2574)
-Iordachescu,V (2572)/Dresden 2008/CBM 128 (42)}) 12... Qc7 13. Bf4 e5 14. Be3
{A typical position. Which is more important: the pressure of White's bishop
and the weakness of the d5 square in Black's camp or White's doubled c3- and
c4-pawns and the c5-square? A lot depends on the position of the pieces. Here
chances are approximately equal.} Nd7 15. Nd2 f5 16. Rab1 Rb8 17. Ba7 (17. Rb2
{V.Yemelin} e4 $5) 17... Ra8 18. Be3 Rb8 19. Ba7 Ra8 20. Bd5+ $6 {White
decides to play for a win. A poor idea. Black obtains the bishop pair, and all
White's attempts to create a blockade prove vain.} Kh8 21. Qe3 Nf6 22. Bb6 Qd7
(22... Nxd5 $142 23. cxd5 Qd7) 23. f4 (23. Bg2 $142) 23... Qe8 {Black prepares
kingside counterplay but his queenside is still "frozen".} 24. Nf3 Qh5 25. Kh1
Re8 26. Qg1 (26. fxe5 $5 Ng4 27. Qg1 dxe5 28. Bc7) 26... Nxd5 27. cxd5 Bf6 28.
Qf2 Bd7 (28... exf4 29. gxf4 Bxc3 $6 30. Bc7) 29. c4 Rac8 30. Rdc1 h6 31. e3
Re7 $15 {The clue to the position is that Black has possibilities to improve
it (e.g. preparing ...g7-g5), and White has none. For instance, any retreat of
the b6 bishop allows ...b7-b5. Therefore White takes the opportunity to break
through immediately (objectively it was better to wait).} 32. c5 $6 {The black
bishop now obtains the important b5-square.} (32. fxe5 dxe5 {[%cal Yf5f4] is
hardly good, too: Black's kingside attack will be more dangerous than White's
passed pawns.}) 32... exf4 33. gxf4 dxc5 34. Bxc5 Re4 $6 (34... Ree8 $142 $1
35. Rxb7 (35. Bd6 Bb5 {[%cal Yb5d3,Yd3e4]}) (35. Bd4 Rxc1+ 36. Rxc1 Bxd4 37.
Nxd4 Qf7 38. Qf3 Re4 $17 {[%csl Rd5,Re3]}) 35... Bb5 {[%cal Rb5d3,Rd3e4]} 36.
Ne5 $5 Re7 $1 37. Rxe7 Bxe7 38. e4 fxe4 $17) 35. Rxb7 $2 (35. Bd6 $142 $1 {
[%cal Yd6e5]} Rxc1+ 36. Rxc1 Qf7 37. Qd2 Qh5 38. Qf2 $11) 35... Bb5 36. Qg2 (
36. Nd2 Bc4 $1 (36... Re7 $5) 37. Nxc4 Rxc4 $1 38. Rxc4 Qd1+ 39. Kg2 Qxd5+ 40.
Qf3 Qxc4 $19) 36... Rc4 $1 37. Rg1 Rc2 $1 $19 (37... R4xc5 $143 38. Rxg7 Qxf3
39. Qxf3 Bxg7 $17) 38. Qg3 (38. Qxc2 Qxf3+ 39. Qg2 (39. Rg2 Qxd5 $19) 39...
Qxg2+ 40. Kxg2 Rxc5 $19) 38... Be2 $1 39. Ne1 R2xc5 40. e4 {Desperation. The
rest is clear.} (40. Rxg7 Bg4 $19) 40... fxe4 41. Rxg7 Bf3+ 42. Nxf3 Qxf3+ 43.
Qxf3 exf3 44. R7g6 Bg7 $1 45. Rxa6 (45. Rxg7 f2 $19) 45... Rc1 46. Rc6 Rxg1+
47. Kxg1 Bd4+ 48. Kh1 Rb8 (48... Rb8 49. Rc1 f2 {[%cal Rb8g8,Rg8g1]}) 0-1

[Event "RUS-chT 16th"]
[Site "Dagomys"]
[Date "2009.04.07"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Timofeev, Artyom"]
[Black "Tomashevsky, Evgeny"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2677"]
[BlackElo "2684"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "89"]
[EventDate "2009.04.04"]
[EventType "team-tourn"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2020"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.10.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.10.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Tomsk 400"]
[BlackTeam "Saratov Ekonomist SGSEU"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "RUS"]
[BlackTeamCountry "RUS"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. a3 Be7 6. e4 c5 7. cxd5 exd5 8. e5
Nfd7 9. Nxd5 cxd4 10. Nxe7 Qxe7 11. f4 {This old line is considered risky for
Black; however, GM Evgeny Tomashevsky makes an attempt to rehabilitate it.} Nc6
(11... f6 {was explored 20 years ago, in the pre-computer era so there is room
for improvement. It looks like Black doesn't equalise:} 12. Nf3 fxe5 13. Bc4 d3
$5 (13... Nc6 14. O-O e4 15. Bd5 $1 Nf6 16. Bxc6+ bxc6 17. Nxd4 O-O 18. Be3 $14
{1-0 Beliavsky,A-Spassky,B/Linares 1990/CBM 017/[Ftacnik] (52)}) (13... Nb6 14.
Bb3 Bg4 15. fxe5 Nc6 16. O-O O-O-O 17. Bg5 Bxf3 18. Qd2 Qxe5 19. Rxf3 $16 {
1/2-1/2 Ivanchuk,V-Dimitrov,V/Adelaide 1988/TD (35)}) 14. b4 (14. fxe5 Nxe5 15.
Nxe5 Qxe5+ 16. Kd2 Rf8 $1 17. Qe1 Nc6 18. Qxe5+ Nxe5 19. Re1 Rf2+ 20. Kc3 Rc2+
$1 21. Kb3 Re2 22. Rxe2 dxe2 23. Bxe2 Be6+ $36 {1/2-1/2 Arencibia,W-Shneider,A/
Cuba 1989/Inf 48/[Shneider,A; Gurevich,V] (29)}) (14. Kf2 $5) 14... e4 15. O-O
Nc6 (15... Nb6 16. Bxd3 $1 exf3 17. Re1 Be6 18. Bf5 Bxf5 19. Rxe7+ Kxe7 20. Bb2
$16) 16. Re1 Nf6 17. Bxd3 Bg4 $1 18. Bxe4 $1 (18. Bc4 $1 $16 {[%csl Re8]})
18... Nxe4 19. Qd5 Rd8 20. Qxe4 Bxf3 21. gxf3 Qxe4 22. fxe4 Nd4 23. Rf1 $14 {
1/2-1/2 Polgar,Z-Adorjan,A/Debrecen 1990/CBM 020/[Ftacnik] (23)}) 12. Nf3 O-O
13. b4 (13. Bc4 Nb6 14. Bb3 Bf5 15. O-O Rad8 16. Bd2 Nd5 17. Qe2 Qc5 18. Rac1
Qb6 19. Bxd5 Rxd5 20. b4 Rfd8 $11 {1-0 Conquest,S-Plachetka,J/Prague 1989/EXT
1997 (36)}) 13... a5 $5 $146 {[%mdl 8]} (13... a6 14. Bd3 f6 15. Qb3+ Kh8 16.
e6 Nb6 17. f5 Qd6 18. O-O Nd5 19. Qb2 $1 Nde7 20. Be4 g6 21. Bh6 Rg8 22. fxg6
hxg6 23. Qf2 $18 {1-0 Milov,V-Arbakov,V/Biel 1993/TD (33)}) 14. b5 Ncxe5 $5 {
[%mdl 512] The point! White doesn't get time to exploit his bishop pair,
kingside pawn advantage, weakness of Black's d4 pawn etc. Black sacs a piece
and starts an attack of the white king.} 15. fxe5 Nxe5 16. Kf2 d3 $5 17. h3 $2
(17. Bxd3 $1 {apparently puts Black's idea under doubt:} Rd8 (17... Bg4 18. Qe2
Bxf3 19. gxf3 Rfe8 20. Be3 Nxd3+ 21. Qxd3 Rad8 22. Qe4 Qf6 23. Qf4 $16) 18. Re1
(18. Nxe5 Qxe5 19. Bxh7+ Kxh7 20. Qxd8 Qf5+ {leads to a perpetual}) 18... Qc5+
19. Be3 Ng4+ 20. Kg3 Nxe3 21. Rxe3 $1 (21. Bxh7+ Kxh7 22. Qxd8 Be6 23. Qd3+
Nf5+ 24. Kh3 Kg8 25. Rxe6 fxe6 26. Re1 $14) 21... Qxe3 22. Bxh7+ Kxh7 23. Qxd8
$16 {Hm... try to find all this over the board!}) 17... Nxf3 18. gxf3 (18. Qxf3
$2 Qh4+ 19. Kg1 Qd4+) 18... Qh4+ 19. Kg2 Bf5 $44 {[%csl Gd3] The pawn White
didn't dare to capture has now become very strong.} 20. Ra2 (20. Bxd3 $2 Rad8
21. Bxf5 Rxd1 22. Rxd1 Qf6) (20. Bd2 $5 {was probably the best way to develop
pieces, e.g.} Rac8 21. Qe1 Qd4 22. Rc1 $13) 20... Rac8 21. Rf2 (21. Be3 $5)
21... Rfe8 22. Rh2 Qc4 23. Bd2 Qxb5 24. h4 h5 25. Kg1 {White has consolidated
his position but, of course, Black's strong d3-pawn gives him excellent
compensation. However, he doesn't play in the best way, and the game
eventually ends in a draw.} Rc6 (25... Qd5 $1 {[%csl Gd5]} 26. Qa4 (26. Rhg2
Qd4) 26... b6 27. Rhg2 f6 $36 {[%cal Ye8e6]}) 26. Rhg2 Rg6 {An unnecessary
exchange.} 27. Rxg6 fxg6 28. Bg5 Re6 29. Qd2 Kh7 30. Kg2 Qd5 31. Qa2 Qd7 32.
Kg3 b5 33. Bf4 Rc6 34. Qa1 Rc5 35. Qe1 Rc4 36. Qe5 b4 37. axb4 axb4 38. Rb2 Qa7
39. Qe3 Qa1 40. Rf2 b3 41. Be5 Qa5 42. Bxg7 $1 Kxg7 43. Qe7+ Kg8 44. Qe8+ Kg7
45. Qe7+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Olympiad-42"]
[Site "Baku"]
[Date "2016.09.09"]
[Round "7.1"]
[White "Le, Quang Liem"]
[Black "Predojevic, Borki"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2723"]
[BlackElo "2642"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "103"]
[EventDate "2016.09.02"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 175"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.11.10"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.11.10"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Vietnam"]
[BlackTeam "Bosnia&Herzegovina"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "VIE"]
[BlackTeamCountry "BIH"]

1. d4 e6 2. c4 Nf6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 O-O 6. e4 d6 {Since the famous
game Nakamura-Carlsen (Shamkir 2014) this setup is considered risky for Black.}
7. Bd2 Re8 (7... Nbd7 {was played by Carlsen - see CBM 160}) (7... Nh5 $5 {
may be the best try:} 8. g3 f5 9. exf5 exf5 10. Nh3 Nd7 11. Be2 {1/2 (13)
Sakaev,K (2570)-Ivanov,V (2460) St Petersburg 1995 EXT 1997 [Nikitin,A]} f4 $5
12. g4 Ne5) 8. Nge2 a6 9. a4 {The simplest continuation.} exd5 10. cxd5 {
It is now very difficult for Black to attack White's pawn centre while White
is finishing his development.} Nbd7 (10... Nh5 $5 {was possible even here:} 11.
g3 Nd7 $5 (11... f5 12. Bg2 fxe4 13. Nxe4 Nf6 14. Bxb4 cxb4 15. Qd2 Nxe4 16.
fxe4 a5 17. Nd4 Na6 18. O-O Nc5 19. Qf4 Nd3 20. Qd2 Nc5 21. Qf4 Nd3 22. Qd2 Nc5
{1/2 (22) Le,Q (2715)-Nakamura,H (2770) Dortmund 2011}) 12. Bg2 Ne5) 11. Ng3
Ne5 (11... c4 $6 12. Bxc4 Ne5 13. Qe2 Nxc4 (13... Bc5 $5) 14. Qxc4 Bc5 15. b4
b5 16. Qd3 Bxb4 17. axb5 Bc5 18. Be3 $16 {1-0 (40) Volkov,S (2609)-Hakki,I 
(2431) Dubai 2002}) (11... Rb8 12. Be2 Ne5 13. O-O c4 14. Kh1 (14. Be3 $5)
14... b5 15. axb5 axb5 16. Bg5 h6 17. Be3 Ned7 18. Nf5 Bc5 19. Nd4 Ne5 20. Qd2
Bd7 21. Rfe1 Qb6 22. Nc2 Bxe3 23. Nxe3 {1/2 (23) Spassky,B-Cherepkov,A
Leningrad 1957}) 12. Be2 c4 13. Be3 {[%mdl 32]} (13. O-O Nfd7 14. Kh1 Nc5 15.
Be3 Qa5 16. Qc2 Bd7 17. Bxc5 Qxc5 18. f4 Nd3 19. Bxd3 cxd3 20. Qxd3 Rac8 21.
Rac1 Qc4 22. Qf3 Qb3 $44 {1-0 (36) Bocharov,D (2595)-Eljanov,P (2724) Olginka
2011}) 13... Bd7 14. O-O Rc8 (14... h5 $5 15. Qd2 h4 16. Nh1 Qa5 17. Nf2 Bc5
18. Bg5 $36) 15. Kh1 Ba5 16. Bd4 h6 {Too passive but it is unclear what to do
anyway:} (16... Bb6 17. Qd2 $1 {[%cal Yd2e3]} (17. f4 Nd3 {like in
Bocharov-Eljanov})) 17. f4 Ng6 18. Qc2 Bb6 19. Bxb6 Qxb6 20. Nh5 Nxh5 (20...
Ng4 21. Bxg4 $5 Bxg4 22. Ng3) 21. Bxh5 Qd8 22. a5 Rc5 23. e5 $1 dxe5 24. Bxg6
fxg6 25. Qxg6 exf4 26. Rxf4 $14 {[%csl Gc3,Gd5,Rg8]} Rf8 (26... Rxa5 27. Raf1
$1) 27. Rxf8+ Qxf8 28. Qb6 Kh7 29. Kg1 (29. Qxb7 Rxa5 $1) 29... Qe7 30. Rf1
Qe3+ 31. Kh1 Bf5 32. h3 (32. Qxb7 Rxa5 33. Rg1 $5 $14) 32... Bd3 33. Rf7 Qe1+ (
33... Kg8 $142 $1 34. Rf3 (34. Qxb7 Qe1+ 35. Kh2 Qe5+ 36. g3 Rb5 $1 37. Nxb5
Qe2+ $11) 34... Qe1+ 35. Kh2 Qe5+ 36. g3 Rc7 37. Re3 $1 Qf5 38. Qe6+ $14 {_|_})
34. Kh2 Qe5+ 35. g3 Rc8 $2 {This just loses a pawn.} (35... Qd4 $142 36. h4 $1
(36. Qxb7 $2 Bg6) 36... Bg6 37. Rf8 Qd2+ 38. Kh3 Rc8 $8 39. Qf2 Qxf2 40. Rxf2
$16 {_|_}) 36. Qxb7 Rb8 (36... Re8 37. Qa7) 37. Rxg7+ Kh8 38. Re7 $1 Rxb7 39.
Rxe5 Kg7 (39... Rxb2+ 40. Kg1 Kg8 41. d6 $18) 40. Na4 Rb5 41. g4 Rxa5 42. Nc3
$18 Kf7 43. Kg3 Rc5 44. Kf4 Rc7 45. Re6 Rb7 46. Rxa6 Rxb2 47. Ke5 Rd2 48. Ra7+
Kg6 49. d6 Bf1 50. d7 Bg2 51. Ra6+ Kf7 52. Rd6 1-0

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "Ekaterinburg"]
[Date "2020.03.18"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Black "Alekseenko, Kirill"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2842"]
[BlackElo "2698"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "67"]
[EventDate "2020.03.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 195"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.04.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.04.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. a3 Be7 6. e4 dxe4 7. fxe4 c5 (7... e5
{is played more often in this system.}) 8. d5 exd5 (8... O-O $5 9. Bd3 (9. Nf3
{looks more to the point}) 9... Bd6 10. Bg5 Nbd7 11. Nf3 exd5 12. Nxd5 h6 13.
Bh4 Qa5+ 14. Qd2 Qxd2+ 15. Kxd2 Ng4 $11 {1/2 (19) So,W (2763)-Karjakin,S (2748)
Riga 2019}) 9. exd5 (9. cxd5 Bd6 {is satisfactory for Black, e.g.} 10. Bb5+
Nbd7 11. Bg5 O-O 12. Nf3 Qc7 13. Bxd7 Nxd7 14. O-O a6 15. a4 b6 16. h3 Re8 $13
{0-1 (51) Tabatabaei,M (2566)-Maghsoodloo,P (2560) Teheran 2017}) 9... O-O 10.
Be2 (10. Bf4 Re8 11. Be2 Bg4 12. Qd2 Nh5 13. Be3 $6 Bd6 $1 14. O-O-O Rxe3 15.
Bxg4 Rxc3+ 16. Qxc3 Qg5+ $19 {0-1 (32) Volkov,S (2645)-Vitiugov,N (2722) St
Petersburg 2017}) (10. Nf3 Bg4 $5 (10... Re8 11. Be2 {- game}) 11. Be2 (11. h3
$5 Bxf3 (11... Bh5 $5) 12. Qxf3 Bd6 13. Be2 Nbd7 14. O-O a6 (14... Be5 $5) 15.
g4 h6 16. h4 Qe7 17. g5 $36 {1/2 (45) Braun,A (2574)-Schramm,C (2368) Germany
2017}) 11... Bd6 (11... Bxf3 $5 12. Bxf3 Bd6 13. O-O Nbd7 14. g3 a6 15. Bg2 Re8
16. Bf4 Qb6 $11 {1/2 (82) Smirnov,A (2416)-Ter Sahakyan,S (2623) St Petersburg
2019}) 12. O-O (12. Nb5 $6 Bxf3 13. Bxf3 Re8+) 12... Nbd7 (12... Bxf3 13. Rxf3
$5 Nbd7 14. Rh3 Re8 15. Bd3 Be5 $132 {1-0 (94) Polak,T (2527)-Menezes,C (2423)
Blansko 2019}) 13. Bg5 (13. Ng5 Bxe2 14. Qxe2 Re8 15. Qc2 h6 16. Nf3 Ne5 17.
Nxe5 Bxe5 {1/2 (17) Volkov,S (2547)-Turov,M (2575) Hell 2019}) (13. h3 Bxf3 14.
Rxf3 Qe7 15. Bg5 Rae8 16. Qd2 Qe5 17. Bf4 Qe7 18. Bg5 Qe5 19. Bf4 {1/2 (19)
Goryachkina,A (2493)-Oparin,G (2607) Moscow 2018}) 13... Re8 14. Qd2 Qb8 15. h3
Bh5 16. Bd3 h6 17. Be3 {0-1 (54) Tsvetkov,A (2350)-Najer,E (2661) Moscow RUS
2019} Bg3 $13) 10... Re8 ({In case of} 10... Bd6 {White gets an additional
opportunity:} 11. Nb5 $5 a6 (11... Re8 12. Nf3 Bg4 13. O-O a6 14. Nxd6 Qxd6 15.
b3 Nbd7 16. Qd2 Re7 17. Bb2 Ne4 18. Qc2 $14 {1/2 (23) Lashkin,J (2368)
-Iordachescu,V (2602) Chisinau MDA 2020}) 12. Nxd6 Qxd6 13. Nf3 Bg4 14. O-O
Nbd7 15. Nh4 (15. b3 $5 {deserves attention here, too}) 15... Bxe2 16. Qxe2
Rae8 17. Qf3 {1-0 (30) Matlakov,M (2710)-Predke,A (2650) Izhevsk 2019} Qe5 $132
) 11. Nf3 Bg4 12. O-O Nbd7 (12... Bd6 13. Nb5 $5 {- see 10...Bd6} (13. h3 Bh5 (
13... Bxf3 $5) 14. Bg5 Nbd7 15. Qc2 a6 16. Bd3 Qc7 17. Nh4 Bg6 18. Nf5 Bxf5 19.
Bxf5 Be5 $11 {1/2 (27) Costachi,M (2484)-Haug,J (2391) Porto Carras 2018})) 13.
d6 {An aggressive continuation, preventing the blockading move ...Be7-d6 once
and for all.} (13. Bg5 h6 14. Bh4 Bd6 15. Qc2 Qb8 16. h3 (16. Kh1 Bh5 17. Nb5
$2 {0-1 (55) Lombaers,P (2383)-Schoppen,C (2489) Leiden NED 2020} Bxh2 $17)
16... Bh5 17. Bd3 {0-1 (45) Ragnarsson,J (1968)-Gower,S (2069) Akureyri 2019}
Bg3 {looks satisfactory for Black}) 13... Bf8 14. h3 Bh5 15. Nb5 Re6 $6 {
Not the most useful move.} ({Chesspro.ru recommends} 15... Qb6 $5 16. Nc7 Bxd6
17. Nxa8 Rxa8 $44) ({or} 15... Rb8 $5 16. Nc7 (16. Nxa7 $6 Bxd6 17. Qxd6 Rxe2)
(16. Bf4 a6 17. Nc7 Re4 {is more favourable for Black than the game.}) 16...
Re4 17. Bd3 Bxd6 18. Bxe4 Qxc7 $44) 16. Bf4 a6 (16... Re4 17. Qd2 Nb6 18. Rad1
$1 Nxc4 19. Bxc4 Rxc4 20. Be5 $36) 17. Nc7 Re4 18. Bh2 (18. Qd2 $142 $5 {
[%cal Ya1d1]}) 18... Rc8 19. g4 {This move, provoking a piece sacrifice, leads
to an absolutely crazy position.} (19. Bd3 Bxf3 20. Qxf3 Ne5 $1) (19. Qc2 Ne5
$1 (19... Bxd6 20. Bxd6 Rxc7 21. Bxc7 Qxc7 22. Bd3 $16) 20. Bxe5 Bxf3 21. Bxf6
Rxe2 22. Qxe2 Bxe2 23. Bxd8 Rxd8 24. Rf4 $1 Bxd6 25. Re4 {was probably the
best way for White to keep winning chances. If} Bxc4 {then} 26. Rd1 $1 Be6 27.
Nxe6 fxe6 28. Rf1 $14) 19... Bxg4 {[%mdl 512]} (19... Nxg4 20. hxg4 Rxg4+ 21.
Kh1 Rg6 22. Rf2 $1 {, and White should successfully consolidate his position,
although the practical result is highly uncertain.}) 20. hxg4 Nxg4 (20... Rxg4+
$5 21. Kh1 Ne4) 21. Bd3 $1 Nxh2 22. Bxe4 Nxf1 23. Qxf1 Bxd6 (23... Nf6 $1 $14 {
[%cal Rf6e4,Yd8d6] was much stronger.} 24. Bxb7 $2 {is bad in that case as
after} Rb8 25. Bd5 Qxd6 {White loses a piece.}) 24. Nd5 g6 25. Qh3 $16 {
[%mdl 128] Black has 3 pawns for a knight but White gets a strong attack on
the kingside.} Kg7 26. Kh1 Ne5 27. Nh4 $1 {White avoids exchanges, of course.}
h5 $2 {A strange move, further weakening Black's position.} (27... Nxc4 28.
Nf5+ $1 Kh8 29. Rf1 $18 {[%cal Rf5h6]}) ({Something like} 27... Rc6 28. Rg1 Bf8
$16 {was relatively better.}) 28. Rg1 $18 {->} Bf8 29. Nf4 (29. Nxg6 $5 fxg6
30. Nf4 Ng4 31. Nxh5+) 29... Ng4 30. Nxh5+ $1 gxh5 31. Bf5 Be7 32. Bxg4 hxg4
33. Qxg4+ Bg5 34. Qh5 1-0

[Event "EU-Cup 26th"]
[Site "Plovdiv"]
[Date "2010.10.19"]
[Round "3.1"]
[White "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Black "Jobava, Baadur"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2756"]
[BlackElo "2710"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "59"]
[EventDate "2010.10.17"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "BUL"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 139"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.11.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.11.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Azerbaijan Socar"]
[BlackTeam "Chernigov"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "AZE"]
[BlackTeamCountry "UKR"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 Nc6 6. Bg2 Ne4 7. Bd2 Bxc3 8.
bxc3 Nxd2 {The most straightforward reply to the system selected by White.} (
8... O-O {is the main move.}) 9. Qxd2 d6 (9... O-O 10. O-O b6 $6 11. Rfd1 Ba6
12. dxc5 Bxc4 13. Ng5 Rc8 14. Ne4 $14 {1-0 Kuzubov,Y (2578)-Sulskis,S (2562)/
Reykjavik 2008/CBM 126 Extra (39)}) 10. O-O Qe7 (10... O-O 11. Rfd1 Qe7 12.
Rab1 Rb8 13. dxc5 dxc5 14. Qd6 Qxd6 15. Rxd6 Na5 16. Ne5 b6 17. Rbd1 f6 18. Nc6
Nxc6 19. Bxc6 $14 {1-0 Khalifman,A (2624)-Chiburdanidze,M (2510)/Bazna 2007/
CBM 118 ext (42)}) 11. Qe3 O-O 12. dxc5 $1 dxc5 13. Ne5 Nxe5 14. Qxe5 f6 15.
Qe3 $14 {In this position Black should work a while to complete his
development.} Rb8 16. a4 a5 $1 {[%csl Ra4,Rc4]} 17. Rfd1 b6 18. Bc6 Rd8 19.
Rxd8+ Qxd8 20. Ra2 $6 (20. Qf4 $142 $1 {forcing the weakening ...e6-e5} e5 (
20... Bb7 21. Bd7 $1 e5 22. Qd2 Qe7 23. Rd1 Kf8 24. Bb5 $14) (20... Ba6 21. Bd7
$1) 21. Qe4 Kh8 $13) 20... Qd1+ 21. Kg2 Bd7 $6 (21... Qd6 $142 22. Bf3 Bd7 $15
{/= Once Black completes his development without concessions, he may be better
due to White's weak queenside pawns.}) 22. Be4 $5 (22. f3 $5 Qd6 23. Bb5 $14
Bxb5 $140 24. Rd2 $1) 22... Rd8 $4 {[%mdl 16384] A suicidal "self-pin".} (22...
Be8 $1 23. Rd2 Qxa4 24. Qf4 e5 25. Qf5 Bg6 26. Qe6+ Bf7 (26... Kh8 $143 27.
Bxg6 hxg6 28. Rd7) 27. Qf5 (27. Qh3 $6 g6) (27. Bxh7+ $6 Kxh7 28. Qxf7 Qe8)
27... Bg6 $11 (27... g6 $5 28. Qxf6 Qxc4 29. Bc6 $1 $13)) 23. Rd2 Qxa4 24. Qd3
{[%cal Gd2d8,Yd3d6] Black is now completely paralysed.} Kf7 (24... f5 25. Bf3
$1 {[%cal Ye2e4]}) 25. Bf3 {[%cal Rd3h7]} g6 26. h4 $6 (26. Qd6 h5 27. Qc7 Ke7
28. Qxb6 $18 {was much simpler.}) 26... b5 $8 {Black now creates a passed pawn;
alas, this counterplay proves insufficient.} 27. Qd6 $1 (27. cxb5 $6 c4) 27...
b4 28. cxb4 Qxb4 (28... cxb4 29. c5 $18) (28... axb4 $142 29. Qc7 Ke8 (29...
Ke7 30. Qxc5+ Ke8 31. Rd6 {[%cal Rd6e6]} (31. Qb6 $5) 31... Rc8 32. Qd4 Ke7 33.
Rb6 b3 34. Qd6+ Ke8 35. c5 $18) 30. Qxc5 (30. Rxd7 $2 Rxd7 31. Bc6 Qd1) (30.
Bb7 $6 Qa7 $1 (30... b3 31. Rxd7 $1 Rxd7 32. Bc6 $18) 31. Rd6 b3 32. Rxe6+ Bxe6
33. Bc6+ Bd7 34. Qxa7 Bxc6+ 35. f3 Rd2 36. Qxc5 Rxe2+ 37. Kf1 Bxf3 38. Qb5+ Kf8
39. Qxb3 Bg4 40. c5 h5 41. c6 Re8 $11 {- fortress}) 30... b3 (30... Rc8 31. Qd4
) 31. h5 $16 {White keeps a strong attack and should win.}) 29. Rd3 Ke8 $2 {
Losing at once but Black can hardly survive after} (29... Qa4 $8 {, e.g.} 30.
h5 $5 {Even better than} (30. Qxc5 Re8 (30... Rc8 31. Qa7) 31. Ra3 Qb4 32. Rxa5
) 30... g5 31. Qc7 Ke8 32. h6 {[%cal Rf3h5]} g4 33. Be4 f5 34. Bb7 $22) 30. Bc6
1-0

[Event "Zuerich Chess Challenge"]
[Site "Zuerich"]
[Date "2014.02.01"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2789"]
[BlackElo "2872"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,M"]
[PlyCount "122"]
[EventDate "2014.01.30"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "5"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 159"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.03.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.03.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. a3 Be7 6. e4 dxe4 7. fxe4 e5 8. d5
Bc5 9. Bg5 (9. Nf3 {is more common.}) 9... O-O (9... h6 {is usually played
here. An old example:} 10. Bh4 Bd4 11. Nf3 Bxc3+ 12. bxc3 Qd6 13. Bd3 Nbd7 14.
O-O O-O 15. Kh1 Nc5 16. Qe2 Bg4 17. Qe3 Nfd7 18. Bg3 Bxf3 {1/2 (18) Moskalenko,
V (2500)-Chekhov,V (2480) Leningrad 1989}) 10. Nf3 Bg4 {Black has a different
concept. Anticipating White's long castling, he doesn't want to weaken his
queenside by means of ...h7-h6. However, the present game shows that it is not
easy to equalise in any case.} (10... h6 11. Bh4 Bg4 12. Bd3 (12. h3 $5) 12...
Nbd7 13. h3 Bxf3 14. Qxf3 c6 15. O-O-O Bd4 16. Ne2 Qb6 17. Nxd4 exd4 18. Bxf6
Nxf6 19. e5 cxd5 20. exf6 dxc4 21. fxg7 Rfc8 22. Bf5 c3 23. Qf2 cxb2+ 24. Kb1
Rc3 25. Rd3 $18 {1-0 (47) Yakimenko,A (2178)-Stojcevski,Z (2352) Sunny Beach
2011}) (10... a5 $5 11. Qd2 Qd6 12. Be3 $6 (12. O-O-O) 12... Na6 13. Bd3 Bd7
14. O-O Qb6 15. Rae1 Ng4 $36 {0-1 (57) Kantorik,M (2289)-Solodovnichenko,Y 
(2430) Zvolen 2000}) 11. h3 Bxf3 12. Qxf3 Nbd7 (12... Bd4 13. Ne2 $1 Bxb2 $140
$6 14. Ra2 Bd4 15. Nxd4 exd4 16. e5 $16) 13. O-O-O Bd4 14. Ne2 $1 {[%mdl 4]} c5
(14... Nc5 $4 15. Nxd4 exd4 16. e5 h6 17. Bxf6 gxf6 18. exf6 {1-0 (18)
Petrosian,K (2340)-Suess,M Budapest 1990}) ({But perhaps it was better to
refrain from the text move keeping a possibility to play ...c7-c6 later on:} 
14... Re8 {Black even sacrifices a pawn but obtains the e5-square if White
takes on d4:} 15. Nxd4 (15. Kb1 c6 $1) 15... exd4 16. Rxd4 Qe7 17. Bd3 $140 Ne5
18. Qe3 c5 19. dxc6 bxc6) 15. g4 a5 $2 (15... a6 $1 {[%cal Yb7b5,Ya8b8] was
now a must.}) 16. Kb1 Ra6 17. Ng3 {[%mdl 128] Suddenly it turns out that Black
can hardly develop his attack since he can't push ...b7-b5. Meanwhile, White's
assault goes slowly but smoothly.} g6 $6 {This weakening move makes White's
attack unstoppable. It was better to refrain from it, even allowing White's
knight will a powerful position on f5:} (17... Rb6 {is useless, e.g.} 18. Rh2
a4 19. h4 Rb3 20. Rd3) (17... a4 $142 18. Nf5 Qa5 19. Rh2 Rb6 {[%cal Rb6b3]}
20. Bc1 $140 Ne8 $1 {[%cal Ye8d6]}) 18. h4 a4 19. Rh2 (19. Bh6 Ne8 (19... Re8
$2 20. g5 Nh5 21. Nxh5 gxh5 22. Bh3) 20. Bxf8 Rf6 21. Qd3 Kxf8 {wins an
exchange but White wants more.}) 19... Qa5 20. Bd2 Qc7 21. g5 Ne8 22. h5 Rb6
23. Bc1 Rb3 24. Qg4 Nb6 25. Be2 Nd6 26. Rdh1 Bxb2 {Desperation.} (26... Nbxc4
27. Bxc4 Nxc4 28. hxg6 fxg6 29. Qe6+ Qf7 30. Rxh7 $1 Qxe6 31. dxe6 $18) 27.
Bxb2 Nbxc4 28. Bxc4 Nxc4 29. hxg6 Qb6 $1 {[%mdl 256] Magnus Carlsen finds the
most stubborn defence. It is not easy for White to find the decisive blow over
the board.} 30. g7 (30. gxf7+ $142 $1 Rxf7 31. Nh5 $1 Rxb2+ 32. Ka1 Rxh2 33.
Nf6+ Kg7 34. Rxh2 $18 {(K.Landa)}) 30... Rd8 31. Qh4 Rxb2+ 32. Ka1 Rxh2 33.
Rxh2 Qg6 34. Nf5 Re8 35. Qg4 {[%mdl 64] White fails to find the winning idea:}
(35. Qf2 b6 (35... Nd6 36. Rh6) 36. Rxh7 $1 Qxh7 37. Nh6+ $18) 35... Qb6 36.
Qh3 (36. g6 $1 Qxg6 (36... fxg6 37. Nh6+ Kxg7 38. Qd7+) 37. Qh3 $18 {[%cal
Rh2g2]}) 36... Qg6 37. d6 $2 {Wrong!} (37. Qf3 $1 {[%cal Rh2h7] was still good
enough.}) 37... Nxd6 $8 38. Nxd6 Rd8 $1 39. Nc4 $2 (39. Nc8 $3 Kxg7 40. Ne7
Rd1+ 41. Ka2 Qe6+ (41... Qb6 42. Qxh7+ Kf8 43. Qh6+) (41... Qxg5 42. Nf5+ Kf8
43. Ne3) 42. Qxe6 fxe6 43. Rh6 {still gave White some winning chances but
Hikaru Nakamura had no chances to find such niceties that day.}) 39... Qxe4 40.
Qh5 $4 (40. Ne3 $13) 40... Rd3 $1 {Black starts a decisive counter-attack.} 41.
Rh4 Qf5 42. Qe2 b5 43. Nd2 Qxg5 (43... Rxa3+ 44. Kb2 Rg3 {was even stronger
but the World Champion correctly judges that his pawn avalanche will be much
stronger than White's knight anyway.}) 44. Qxd3 Qxh4 45. Ne4 Kxg7 46. Qf3 (46.
Qd5 Qf4 47. Nxc5 Qd4+ $19 {_|_}) 46... Qf4 47. Qg2+ Kf8 48. Kb2 h5 49. Nd2 h4
50. Kc2 b4 51. axb4 cxb4 52. Qa8+ Kg7 53. Qxa4 h3 54. Qb3 h2 55. Qd5 e4 56. Qh5
e3 57. Nf3 e2 58. Kb3 f6 59. Ne1 Qg3+ 60. Ka4 Qg1 61. Qxe2 Qa7+ 0-1

[Event "Biel GM"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2001.08.02"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Lautier, Joel"]
[Black "Kortschnoj, Viktor Lvovich"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2675"]
[BlackElo "2617"]
[Annotator "Lautier,J"]
[PlyCount "85"]
[EventDate "2001.07.23"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "16"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 085"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2001.11.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2001.11.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 Ne4 7. Qd3 Nc5 $6 8.
Qe3 d5 9. Bg2 (9. Nc2 $5 Bxc3+ 10. Qxc3 O-O 11. Bg2 Ne4 (11... dxc4 12. Qxc4
$14) 12. Qd3 $14) 9... dxc4 10. O-O (10. Nc2 $5 Nca6 $1 (10... Qa5 11. Bd2 $16)
(10... Bxc3+ 11. Qxc3 $14) 11. O-O Nc6 12. Qe4 O-O 13. Qxc4 Na5 14. Qe4 Bxc3
15. bxc3 Qc7 16. Ba3 Re8 $14) 10... Ncd7 (10... O-O 11. Nc2 Bxc3 (11... Qa5 12.
Bd2 Bxc3 (12... Na4 13. Nxb4 Qxb4 14. Nd5 $16) 13. Bxc3 Qc7 14. Be5 Qb6 15. Na3
$16) 12. Qxc3 (12. Qxc5 Bf6 13. Qxc4 $14) (12. bxc3 $5) 12... Nc6 13. Qxc4 $16)
(10... Nca6 $142 11. Rd1 (11. Nc2 {->> 10.Nc2 Nca6 11.0-0}) 11... Qa5 12. Ndb5
O-O 13. Qe4 $14) 11. Nd5 (11. Nc2 Bc5 12. Qe4 O-O (12... Nb6 13. Qe5) 13. Qxc4
Qc7 $14) 11... Bc5 12. Nxe6 $1 fxe6 (12... Bxe3 $2 13. Ndc7+ Ke7 14. Nxd8 Kxd8
(14... Bxc1 15. Raxc1 $18) 15. Nxa8 $18) 13. Qxe6+ Be7 (13... Kf8 14. Be3 Na6 (
14... Nc6 15. Qf5+ Ke8 (15... Kg8 16. Ne7+ $1 Nxe7 17. Bd5+ Nxd5 18. Qxd5+ Kf8
19. Bxc5+ $18) 16. Qf4 $16) 15. Rad1 Qe8 16. Bxc5+ Ndxc5 17. Qd6+ Kf7 18. Rd4 (
18. Qf4+ Kg8 19. Qxc4 Be6 20. b4 $36) 18... Ne6 19. Rxc4 $40) 14. Bf3 $1 (14.
Rd1 Nc6 15. Bf4 Nde5) 14... Nf8 $2 (14... Rf8 15. Bf4 (15. Bg5 $5 Nc6 16. Nxe7
Nxe7 17. Rad1) 15... Nf6 (15... Nb6 $2 16. Bh5+ g6 17. Bxg6+ hxg6 18. Qxg6+ Rf7
19. Nc7+ $18) 16. Nxf6+ Rxf6 17. Qg8+ Rf8 18. Qxg7 $16) (14... Nf6 $1 15. Nxf6+
Kf8 $1 16. Qxc4 Bxf6 17. Bf4 $40) 15. Qe5 $1 (15. Bh5+ Ng6 16. Bxg6+ hxg6 17.
Qxg6+ Kf8 $132) 15... Ne6 (15... Ng6 $2 16. Qxg7 Rf8 (16... Nc6 17. Bf4 $18)
17. Qxh7 Qd6 18. Bh5 Qxd5 19. Bxg6+ Kd8 20. Bh6 $18) 16. Bh5+ Kf8 17. Bh6 $1
Kg8 $8 (17... Nc6 $2 18. Qf5+ $18) 18. Bg4 $1 (18. Bxg7 $4 Nc6 $1 19. Qf5 (19.
Nf6+ Kxg7 20. Ne8+ Kg8 $19) 19... Kxg7 20. Qf7+ Kh6 21. Ne3 Ng5 $19) 18... gxh6
19. Bxe6+ Bxe6 20. Qxe6+ Kf8 21. Rac1 (21. Rad1 Nc6 22. Qxh6+ Kf7 23. Qf4+ Bf6
24. Nxf6 Qxf6 25. Rd7+ Ne7 26. Qxc4+ Qe6 $16) (21. Qe5 Kf7 22. Nc7 (22. Nxe7
Re8 23. Qf5+ Kxe7 24. Qxh7+ Kf8 25. Qxb7 Nd7 26. Rad1 Re7 27. Qc6 $16) 22...
Qc8 (22... Nc6 23. Qh5+ Kg8 24. Qg4+ Kf7 25. Qxc4+ Kg6 26. Qe4+ Kf7 27. Qe6+
Kg7 28. Qg4+ Kf7 29. Qh5+ Kg8 30. Nxa8 Qxa8 31. Qxh6 $18) 23. Nxa8 Nc6 24. Qh5+
Kg7 25. Rac1 $16) 21... Nc6 22. Qxh6+ $2 (22. Rxc4 $1 Kg7 (22... Bg5 23. h4 $18
) (22... Qd6 23. Rf4+ Ke8 24. Rd1 $3 Nd8 (24... Qxe6 25. Nc7#) 25. Qxh6 $18 (
25. Nf6+ Kf8 26. Qxd6 $18)) 23. Nxe7 Nxe7 (23... Qxe7 24. Rxc6 $18) 24. Qe5+
Kg8 25. Rd4 Qe8 (25... Qf8 26. Rf4 $18) 26. Re4 $18) 22... Kf7 (22... Kg8 23.
Qe6+ Kg7 24. Rxc4 $40) 23. Qh5+ (23. Rfd1 $1 $16 Qd6 24. Qh5+ Kg7 (24... Qg6
25. Qf3+ Kg7 26. Rxc4 $18) 25. Nxe7 Qxe7 26. Qg4+ Kf8 27. Rxc4 $18) 23... Kg7
24. Qg4+ Bg5 25. Nf4 Ne5 $2 $138 (25... h5 $142 26. Ne6+ Kh6 27. Qxc4 Qg8 28.
f4 Bf6 29. f5 $36) 26. Ne6+ $2 $138 (26. Qxg5+ Qxg5 27. Ne6+ Kf6 28. Nxg5 Kxg5
29. f4+ Kg6 30. fxe5 $18) 26... Kf6 27. Qh3 Qd7 28. Nxg5 Kxg5 29. Qh4+ (29. f4+
Kg6 30. f5+ Kg7 31. f6+ (31. Qh4 Rhd8) 31... Kg6) 29... Kg6 30. Rfd1 Qc6 $6 (
30... Qc7 31. Rd5 Rae8 32. f4 Qb6+ 33. Kh1 $36) (30... Qe6 31. Qe4+ Kf6 32.
Qxb7 $14) 31. Qe7 $1 Nf7 $8 32. Rd4 Qf6 33. Qe4+ $6 (33. Rg4+ $142 Ng5 34. Qxb7
h5 35. Rgxc4 $16) 33... Kg7 34. Rcxc4 Rhd8 $1 35. Rxd8 Rxd8 36. Qxb7 Qe6 (36...
Rd2 37. Rg4+ Kf8 38. Rf4 Qe7 39. Qc8+ Rd8 40. Qc3 $36) 37. Rc7 Qxa2 38. b3 Qb1+
(38... Rf8 $5) 39. Kg2 Qf5 $6 (39... Qg6 $142) 40. e4 Qg6 41. Re7 a6 42. Qc7 (
42. e5 $2 Kf8 43. e6 Ng5 $1 (43... Nd6 44. Qc7 Re8 $13) 44. Rd7 Nxe6 $17) 42...
Rd1 $4 (42... Rd3 43. Qc4) (42... Rd4 $1 43. Qc3 Qf6 $11 44. Re8 Ng5 $132 45.
e5 $2 Qf5 $19) 43. Qe5+ (43. Qe5+ Kh6 (43... Qf6 44. Rxf7+ Kxf7 45. Qh5+ $18)
44. Qf4+ Kg7 (44... Ng5 45. h4 $18) 45. Rxf7+ Qxf7 46. Qg4+ Qg6 47. Qxd1 Qxe4+
48. Qf3 $18) 1-0

[Event "EU-ch 9th"]
[Site "Plovdiv"]
[Date "2008.04.29"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Romanov, Evgeny"]
[Black "Macieja, Bartlomiej"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2547"]
[BlackElo "2599"]
[Annotator "Macieja,B"]
[PlyCount "120"]
[EventDate "2008.04.21"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "BUL"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 125"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.07.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.07.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 Ne4 7. Qd3 Bxc3+ 8.
bxc3 Nc5 9. Qf3 d6 10. Bg2 e5 11. Qe3 Be6 $1 $146 {A very interesting novelty.
Black gets control over the crucial d5-square.} 12. Nxe6 (12. Nb3 Nba6 $11)
12... fxe6 13. Ba3 Nba6 14. Rd1 (14. O-O O-O (14... Qa5 $6 15. Bxc5 Nxc5 16. f4
exf4 17. Rxf4 $36) 15. Rad1 {is just a transposition.}) 14... O-O 15. O-O Qc7
16. Rd2 Rad8 17. Rfd1 Rf6 $5 {A useful prophylactic move, protecting the
e6-square.} 18. Kh1 h6 19. f4 $6 {Too sharp. I would recommend something like}
(19. Bb4 $5 {taking control over the a5-square.}) 19... exf4 20. gxf4 Qa5 $1
21. Bc1 ({White could have forced a draw after} 21. Bxc5 Nxc5 22. Rxd6 Rdf8 $1
(22... Rxd6 23. Rxd6 Qxa2 $140 $4 24. Qxc5 Qa1+ 25. Qg1 $18) 23. Bh3 (23. Rf1
b6 24. Qd2 Qa4 $15) 23... Rxf4 $11) 21... Qa4 $1 22. Qd4 (22. Rxd6 $4 Qxd1+ 23.
Rxd1 Rxd1+ $19) 22... Nb8 {I had huge hopes connected with that move, but
White has a defence.} (22... Rf7 $5 {deserved attention}) 23. Rg1 $6 {Played
instantly. White should have been protected his d1-rook by} (23. Qg1 $3 Qxc4
24. Rxd6 Rxd6 25. Rxd6 Nc6 26. Qe3 $11) 23... Qd7 $2 {A mistake. I saw several
not too promising lines such as} (23... Kf8 $4 24. Qxc5 $18) (23... Nc6 $4 24.
Qxf6 $1 $18) (23... Kh8 $4 24. Qxc5 $1 $18) (23... Kh7 $2 24. Be4+ Nxe4 25.
Qxe4+ Kh8 26. Qxb7 Qc6+ 27. Qxc6 Nxc6 $16) ({but completely missed} 23... Rf7
$1 $17 {Now the next move is ...Nc6}) 24. Rdd1 (24. Qxf6 gxf6 25. Bc6+ Qg7 26.
Rxg7+ Kxg7 $11) 24... Kh8 25. e4 Nc6 26. Qf2 e5 {Black has to try to set up a
blockade, as his position is tactically much weaker, for instance} (26... Qf7
$2 27. e5 Nxe5 28. Qxc5 $1 $18) 27. f5 Qf7 28. Qe2 {The right choice. Immediate
} (28. Qh4 {gives Black good counter-play.} Qxc4 29. Bg5 Nd7 30. Bf1 Qxa2 (
30... Qxc3 $2 31. Rd3 $18) 31. Rd2 Qf7 32. Rdg2 Ne7 $1 (32... Rg8 $4 33. Bc4 $1
Qxc4 34. Bxf6 Nxf6 35. Rxg7 $1 $18) 33. Bxf6 Nxf6 34. Rxg7 Qxg7 35. Rxg7 Kxg7
36. Qf2 Rd7 $5 $44 (36... b6 37. Qa2 $1)) 28... Na4 29. Qd3 Nc5 30. Qf1 $5 {
White keeps playing for a win.} (30. Qe2 $11) 30... Rf8 $5 {Another
prophylactic move, to protect Rf6. Sooner or later White will put the queen on
h3/h4 and the bishop on g5. I understood very well that I will never be able
to step down due to f6 or Bxh6.} 31. Bf3 Na4 32. Qd3 Na5 33. Be2 Nc5 34. Qf3 ({
Exchanging queens would be in favour of Black.} 34. Qd5 Qxd5 35. Rxd5 b6 $15)
34... Nxc4 35. Rg2 Nb6 $4 {I was hoping for d5, but I should have played} (
35... b5 36. Qg4 Qb7 37. Bf3 Na4 38. Rdg1 Nxc3 39. Qh4 d5 40. Bg5 (40. exd5 $6
Nd6 $1) 40... Nxe4 (40... Ra6 $2 41. Be7 Rf7 42. Rxg7 $1 Rxg7 43. Rxg7 Kxg7 44.
f6+ Kh7 45. f7 $18) (40... d4 $2 41. Bxf6 Rxf6 42. Rg6 $1 $18) 41. Bxe4 dxe4
42. Bxf6 Rxf6 43. Rxg7 Qxg7 44. Rxg7 Kxg7 $11) 36. c4 $1 {I missed that strong
move.} Qc7 ({Taking the pawn loses instantly:} 36... Nxc4 37. Rdg1 Rg8 38. Rg6
Rxg6 39. Rxg6 b5 40. h3 $3 (40. Qh5 Nxe4 $1) 40... Qb7 41. Qh5 Nxe4 (41...
Qxe4+ 42. Kh2 $18) 42. Bf3 $18) 37. Qg4 R8f7 38. Rdg1 Qc6 39. Bf3 Nd3 40. Qh4
$1 Nd7 {Unfortunately forced. The time trouble has passed, my opponent spent
over 20 minutes thinking about his next 2 moves, but failed to find any way to
win.} (40... Nxc1 41. Rxg7 Rxg7 42. Qxf6 Qd7 43. Qxh6+ Kg8 44. Rxc1 $18) 41.
Bg5 (41. Bh5 $1 Nf4 (41... Nxc1 42. Bxf7 Rxf7 43. f6 $1 Nxf6 44. Rxg7 $1 $18) (
41... Re7 42. Bxh6 $1 gxh6 43. Bg6 Rg7 44. Qxh6+ Kg8 45. Bh7+ $18) 42. Bxf4
exf4 43. Bxf7 Rxf7 44. Qxf4 $18) 41... Kh7 (41... Nf4 42. Bxf6 Nxg2 (42... Nxf6
43. Rxg7 $18) 43. Qxh6+ Kg8 44. Bxg7 Rxg7 45. Qe6+ $18) 42. Bxf6 $4 (42. Qh5 $1
Qc7 $8 43. Bxh6 gxh6 44. Rg6 Nf2+ 45. Kg2 Kh8 46. Kxf2 Qc5+ 47. Kg2 $18) 42...
Nxf6 $44 {Now the things are not simple at all. Black has very good
compensation for the exchange.} 43. Rg6 $6 {Any attack without the
dark-squared bishop should fail.} (43. Bh5 $2 Nxh5 (43... Rd7 $5 $17) 44. Qxh5
Qxe4 $17) (43. Rc2 $142) 43... Qc5 $1 44. Qg3 (44. h3 Qf2 $1 45. Qg3 Qxg3 46.
R6xg3 Nf2+ 47. Kg2 N2xe4 48. Bxe4 Nxe4 49. Re3 Nc5 $15) 44... Nf2+ 45. Kg2
N2xe4 46. Bxe4 Nxe4 47. Qg4 $2 ({The only chance for White was to try to hold
the following rook ending:} 47. Rxh6+ Kg8 48. Qh4 $1 (48. Qg6 $4 Qf2+ 49. Kh3
Qf3+ 50. Kh4 Qf4+ 51. Kh3 Nf2+ 52. Kg2 Qxh6 53. Qxh6 gxh6 54. Kxf2+ Kh7 $19)
48... gxh6 49. Kh1+ Kh7 50. Qxe4 Qc6 51. Qxc6 bxc6 52. Rg6 $17) 47... Qxc4 48.
Rxh6+ $2 (48. Re1 {was strictly essential, though not sufficient} Nd2 (48... d5
49. Rxh6+ $1) 49. Qxc4 Nxc4 $19) 48... gxh6 49. Qg6+ Kh8 50. Qxh6+ Rh7 51. Qf8+
Qg8+ {The reason fot 47...Qxc4!} 52. Qxg8+ Kxg8 53. Kf3+ Kf7 54. Kxe4 Rh4+ 55.
Ke3 Rxh2 56. Rd1 Ke7 57. f6+ Ke6 58. f7 Rh3+ 59. Ke2 Rh8 60. Rh1 Rf8 0-1

[Event "World Cup"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2007.11.28"]
[Round "2.2"]
[White "Radjabov, Teimour"]
[Black "Macieja, Bartlomiej"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2742"]
[BlackElo "2606"]
[Annotator "Macieja,B"]
[PlyCount "72"]
[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. Nf3 d5 {I prepared this system especially for the World
Cup. I used it also in the first match against GM Viktor Laznicka. Usually I
choose between 3...Bb4 and 3...b6.} 4. g3 {Played after a 10-minute thought.
More often Teimour chooses 4.Nc3.} Bb4+ {Aiming for a solid type of position.}
5. Nc3 $1 ({Again played after a long thought. My opponent seemed to be
surprised with my opening choice.} 5. Bd2 Be7 6. Bg2 O-O 7. O-O c6 {has
happened 3 times in Teimour's games.}) 5... O-O 6. Bg2 dxc4 7. O-O Nbd7 $2 {
A bad idea. I didn't see equality after 7...c5 8.dxc5, however the correct
plan was 7...Nc6 followed by Rb8.} 8. Qa4 {8.Qc2 was a reasonable alternative
for White.} a5 9. a3 Nb6 ({Originally I intended to play} 9... Bxc3 10. bxc3
Nb6 11. Qc2 Bd7 {but later I realised, it was worse for Black after} 12. e4 (
12. a4 $6 Bc6) 12... Ba4 13. Qb1 {or 13.Qe2.}) 10. Qc2 Be7 11. e4 Bd7 {White
is not threatening to push the e pawn further, however Black should keep
control over the g5 square. For this reason, c5 cannot be played.} 12. Be3 h6
$6 {Already during the game I had serious doubts about this move. If White
goes with a knight to e5, my move becomes useless, moreover it creates
tactical possibilities for White around my king. However, playing without it
strongly limits the possibilities of Black due to continues threats connected
with e5-Ng5.} 13. Ne5 Qe8 {I understood my position was already difficult. I
desperately needed some air to breathe for my pieces. Unfortunately, all plans
connected with c5 were always met with d5, only increasing already existing
problems.} 14. f4 {This move was not a big surprise for me. The attack has
already started!} Ba4 15. Qe2 $1 ({After} 15. Nxa4 Qxa4 16. Rfc1 $1 Qxc2 17.
Rxc2 {White could win back a pawn, keeping a small advantage, however I
considered changing so many pieces, including queens, as a huge achievement
for Black.}) 15... Bb3 {Some air has been found for pieces, the drawback is
that the bishop cannot help the king now.} 16. f5 Ra6 $1 {Having spent almost
all of my time, I found this prophylactic move. It appeared to be a crucial
moment of the game! Black cannot touch anything on the king's side, while the
control over the 6th rank is essential.} 17. Ng4 $2 {I was much more afraid of
the simple 17.fxe6 fxe6 18.Bh3 followed by Rf2-Raf1. Immediate doubling on the
f-file with 17.Rf2 also deserves serious attention. Another interesting
possibility for White is the prompt pawn attack: g4-h4 (or h4-g4).} Nxg4 18.
Qxg4 exf5 19. Rxf5 Nd7 20. e5 Rg6 $1 {I was very happy with the recent
development of the game. One piece has been changed, leaving more space for
the other black pieces. Moreover, a rook has been transferred from the passive
a8 square to the king's side, significantly increasing defensive possibilities.
Last but not least - I was proud I found such a useful move as 16...Ra6, which
worked out so well!} 21. Qe2 c6 22. Raf1 b5 {At this point I started feeling
that not everything is lost!} 23. Ne4 $2 {Teimour shocked me with this move. I
expected only 23.Be4 which I was going to meet with 23...Re6. Things would not
be simple yet, though I believe with careful play Black should already be able
to escape with a draw.} c3 $1 24. Nxc3 {Frankly speaking, there was nothing
better.} Bc4 25. Qh5 Bxf1 26. Rxf1 {Obviously, White has strong compensation
for the exchange, however I had no reason to complain. I managed to change an
out-of-play bishop for a rook doubled on the f-file, thus I had decreased the
attacking potential of my opponent by a rook, not losing anything from my
defensive potential. What a great deal! Having acknowledged that, my morale
drastically improved. If I managed not to get mated with two white rooks on
the f-file, why should it be worse with only one rook left?} c5 $1 {I knew I
couldn't relax for a second, as it would be punished immediately by my
opponent. My last move opens the position, leaving problems behind once and
for all!} 27. Bf4 ({Objectively,} 27. Bd5 {was stronger, but after the
exchange sacrifice} Nb6 $1 28. Qxg6 Nxd5 29. Qe4 Nxe3 30. Qxe3 cxd4 31. Qxd4
Qc6 {White would have to fight for a draw (with} 32. Qd5 {)}) ({The key idea
of my last move lies in a small tactical trick} 27. d5 Bg5 $1 28. Bf4 Nxe5 $19)
27... cxd4 28. Nxb5 Nc5 $6 {Having more time on the clock, I would have
probably opted for 28...Rb6, but being in time trouble, I decided to change as
many pieces as possible.} 29. Nxd4 Ne6 30. Nf5 {The last attempt to complicate
the position. Without knights, White can only fight for a draw.} Nxf4 31. gxf4
Bc5+ 32. Kh1 Qb5 $1 {The initiative already belongs to Black, even some mating
threats have appeared.} 33. Ng3 Rd8 $1 {The last piece enters the game. The
outcome has already been decided.} 34. Qh4 Rd2 35. f5 Rg5 36. e6 Rxg2 $1 0-1

[Event "Dortmund SuperGM 40th"]
[Site "Dortmund"]
[Date "2012.07.16"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Fridman, Daniel"]
[Black "Meier, Georg"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2655"]
[BlackElo "2644"]
[Annotator "Marin,M"]
[PlyCount "64"]
[EventDate "2012.07.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 150"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.09.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.09.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 Nc6 6. Bg2 d5 7. cxd5 Nxd5 8. Bd2
cxd4 9. Nxd4 Nxd4 10. Nxd5 Bxd2+ 11. Qxd2 e5 $5 {Weakening the d5-square, but
aiming for minor piece activity. White needs to be careful, since there are
all kind of tricks available, several forms of ...Bh3 in the first line.} ({
The more passive} 11... Nc6 {Kasparov,G (2740)-Karpov,A (2705)/London/
Leningrad eventually allowed Black to hold a draw in 1986/MainBase (1/2, 52)})
12. Nc3 (12. O-O {Winants,L (2415)-Short,N (2615)/Brussels 1987/CBM 002/
[Winants] (1/2, 56)}) (12. e3 Bh3 $1 {Ivanisevic,I (2569)-Abramovic,B (2488)/
Budva 2003/CBM 094 ext (1/2, 32)}) (12. Rd1 Bh3 $1 13. Bxh3 Qxd5 14. O-O Rd8
$36 {Pedersen,S-King,D (2455)/Gausdal 1994/EXT 1998 (1-0, 31)}) 12... O-O 13.
Rd1 $146 {Probably the best way to maintain the stability, but maybe not
enough for an advantage.} (13. e3 Bh3 $1 {Lesiege,A-Levitt,J/Lloyds Bank
Masters 1990/ (1/2, 16)}) 13... Bf5 14. e3 Nc2+ 15. Kf1 Nb4 {The loss of the
right to castle does not imply any serious dangers for White, but Black gets
some tempi for completing his own development and neutralising White's
initiative.} 16. a3 Nc6 17. Qxd8 Rfxd8 18. Ke2 Kf8 19. Bd5 Rac8 20. Rd2 Ne7 21.
Bf3 Rxd2+ 22. Kxd2 Rd8+ 23. Kc1 b6 24. Rd1 Rxd1+ 25. Kxd1 Nc8 26. Bd5 Nd6 27.
Kd2 Ke7 28. f3 h6 29. b3 Bd7 30. Kd3 f6 31. Kd2 Nb5 32. Nxb5 Bxb5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Sofia MTel Masters 2nd"]
[Site "Sofia"]
[Date "2006.05.14"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Bacrot, Etienne"]
[Black "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2708"]
[BlackElo "2804"]
[Annotator "Marin,M"]
[PlyCount "58"]
[EventDate "2006.05.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "BUL"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 113"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.07.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.07.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 {An interesting psychological
moment. Both players are specialists of this system with White. See for
instance their interesting games against Aronian played at Linares in 2006.}
Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 Qa5 {A relatively rare variation, brought into the attention of
theoreticians by Viktor Kortschnoj.} 7. Bd2 ({The most common answer. Caught
by surprise, Polugajevsky did not react too accurately with} 7. Qd3 {and
allowed his opponent obtain a nice position after} Ne4 8. Bd2 f5 9. Bg2 Nc6 10.
d5 Nd8 11. O-O Nf7 12. Rfd1 O-O 13. a4 d6 {, Polugaevsky-Kortschnoj, Linares
1985}) ({The newest try consists of ignoring the threat with} 7. Bg2 {. In the
only game where this was played so far, Black declined the sacrifice, but
failed to equalize completely:} cxd4 (7... Qxc3+ 8. Bd2 Qxc4 9. dxc5 {offers
White obvious compensation, but has to be checked concretely.}) 8. Qxd4 Nc6 9.
Qd3 d5 10. cxd5 exd5 11. O-O O-O 12. c4 Qa6 13. Bb2 Qxc4 14. Qxc4 dxc4 15. Rfc1
Re8 16. e3 Be6 17. Nd2 Nb4 18. Bxf6 gxf6 19. Nxc4 Rac8 20. Nd6 {with a small
but persistent advantage for White in Moiseenko-Epishin, Albox 2005.}) 7... O-O
({Topalov deviates from} 7... b6 {where both players had some experience with
White.} 8. Bg2 Bb7 9. O-O O-O 10. d5 ({The most active continuation. Black had
no problems after} 10. Qb3 Qa6 11. Bg5 Ne4 12. d5 d6 13. Rad1 Re8 {
Topalov-Kramnik, Monte Carlo 2003}) 10... Qa6 11. Re1 $5 Ne4 12. Qc2 f5 13. Ng5
exd5 14. cxd5 Bxd5 15. Nxe4 Bxe4 16. Bxe4 fxe4 17. Qxe4 Nc6 18. Qd5+ Rf7 19.
Bf4 Re8 20. e4 Na5 {and the control of the c4-square counter-balanced White's
superiority on the other wing in Bacrot-Ponomariov, Cap d'Agde 2003.}) 8. Bg2
Nc6 9. O-O Qa6 10. Ne5 d5 $5 {An interesting moment. In the Nimzo Indian, the
control of the c4-square is more important than the weak pawn itself. This
explains why Topalov willingly allows his opponent get rid of the doubled
pawns.} 11. Qc2 Re8 12. Bf4 cxd4 13. Nxc6 Qxc6 14. cxd4 b6 ({Same policy.
Black prepares to increase the pressure against the c4-square by means of ...
Ba6, thus completing his development at the same time.} 14... Qxc4 $6 {would
have left Black behind in development after} 15. Qxc4 dxc4 16. Rfc1) 15. Rfc1
Ba6 16. cxd5 Qxc2 17. Rxc2 Nxd5 18. Bd6 Rac8 19. Rac1 Rxc2 20. Rxc2 Rd8 21. Ba3
f5 22. e3 Rc8 23. Rxc8+ Bxc8 24. Bxd5 $6 ({Quite surprising. White had no need
to force a draw so soon. He could have parried the threat ...Nc3xa2 with} 24.
Bd6 {and then centralise his king and prepare the pawn break h3 and g4. In
spite of Black's stability in the centre and of his queen side majority,
White's pair of bishops would have offered him the better chances.}) 24... exd5
25. Bd6 Kf7 26. Bb8 a6 27. Bc7 b5 28. a3 g5 29. f4 g4 1/2-1/2

[Event "World-ch Anand-Kramnik +3-1=8"]
[Site "Bonn"]
[Date "2008.10.27"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Kramnik, Vladimir"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2772"]
[BlackElo "2783"]
[Annotator "Marin,M"]
[PlyCount "57"]
[EventDate "2008.10.14"]
[EventType "match"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 127"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.11.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.11.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 {This time, Kramnik chooses a more ambitious
continuation than in the 8th game.} Bb4 {It is too early still to judge
Anand's opening choice from a psychological point of view. The Nimzo Indian
can lead to such a wide range of types of position that we cannot anticipate
which of the players will feel more at home.} 4. Nf3 {Previously, Kramnik had
played this move just once, which makes it almost such a big surprise as had
been Anand's 4.f3 (as a coincidence, same move number, same square...).
However, the difference of style between the opponents is quite clear. Anand's
intention had been to give play an irrational character as soon as possible,
while Kramnik aims for purely technical positions. And yet, Anand could not
have been taken unaware, as can be seen from a further comment...} c5 {Frankly
speaking, this seems a bit like playing into Kramnik's hands.} (4... b6 {
would have offered better chances for unclear play, which yielded Anand two
important wins in his games with black.}) 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O ({It is
possible that Anand had not paid too much attention to the game he had lost
against Kramnik in a blindfold encounter:} 6... Ne4 7. Qd3 Bxc3+ 8. bxc3 Nc5 9.
Qf3 d6 10. Bg2 e5 11. Nf5 Qf6 12. Ne3 Qxf3 13. Bxf3 Be6 14. Ba3 Nba6 15. O-O-O
Ke7 16. Bg2 Rad8 17. f4 f6 18. Rhf1 b6 19. g4 Nc7 20. h4 $16 {Kramnik,V (2766)
-Anand,V (2779)/Monte Carlo 2007/CBM 117 ext (1-0, 30). Or maybe he relied on
the fact that his main repertoire was well analysed?}) 7. Bg2 d5 {The most
solid continuation, but also the least ambitious. White is given the
opportunity to play a slightly more pleasant position at virtually no risk.
Just what Kramnik must have prayed for...} 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Qa5 10. Bd2 Nc6
11. Nxc6 bxc6 12. O-O Bxc3 13. bxc3 Ba6 14. Rfd1 Qc5 15. e4 Bc4 16. Qa4 Nb6 17.
Qb4 Qh5 {We have reached a modern tabyia. The pawn structure is almost
symmetrical and White's pair of bishops seems to be compensated for by the
stability of Black's minor pieces, something not really unusual in the Nimzo
Indian. However, there is an element that slightly favours White. His queen is
actively placed, being a permanent threat for the enemy queenside pawns, while
the black queen is somehow out of play. Indeed, there is not much to be
attacked on the kingside. First of all, the white structure is quite compact
in that area, while the king is an useful defending piece.} 18. Re1 $5 $146 {
It took me a lot of time to get some idea about the purpose of this
interesting novelty. Obviously, White anticipates ...Be2, but it is far from
clear how this will influence the further course of the game. My feeling is
that Kramnik wanted to provoke the advance of the black c-pawn, in order to
get the a5-square for his queen.} ({The older continuation is} 18. Be3 {
, which was tried at the highest thinkable level} Be2 {(Justifying the queen's
placement on h5, in view of a further exchange of bishops with ...Bf3)} 19. Rd2
Rab8 20. Bxb6 axb6 21. Qd6 Rfc8 ({A possible improvement over} 21... Bf3 {
when White managed to win a pawn after} 22. Qxc6 Bxg2 23. Kxg2 Qe5 24. Qc4 Rfc8
25. Qd4 Qa5 26. Rb1 h6 27. Rb4 Qc5 28. Rd3 Qc7 {, although he could not deal
with the technical problems, connected with the weaknesses on both wings,
Kasparov,G (2851)-Anand,V (2769)/Wijk aan Zee 2000/CBM 075/[Wells] (1/2, 56)})
22. Rb1 h6 23. e5 Bf3 $11 {Now, the exchange of bishops is entirely possible.}
24. a4 Ra8 25. Qd4 b5 26. Bxf3 Qxf3 27. Rd3 {1/2 Bacrot,E (2675)-Leko,P (2741)/
Moscow 2004/CBM 102}) ({The latest word in theory was (up to this game)} 18.
Bf4 {The game that may have inspired Kramnik continued with} c5 ({The other,
possibly better, pawn move played here is} 18... e5 {as in Najer,E (2648)
-Jakovenko,D (2671)/Moscow 2006/CBM 116 (0-1, 50), which I have commented in
the notes to Grischuk,A (2726)-Gelfand,B (2733)/Mexico City 2007/CBM 120/
[Marin] (1-0, 61)}) (18... Be2 {Grischuk,A (2726)-Gelfand,B (2733)/Mexico City
2007/CBM 120/[Marin] (1-0, 61)}) 19. Qa5 $1 e5 20. Be3 Be2 21. Re1 Nc4 ({
The exchange operation initiated by this move will fail to equalise. It is
worth mentioning that} 21... Rfc8 $5 {would lead to a position from our main
game, but with an extra tempo for Black! Meaning that for the sake of
obtaining this structure, Kramnik gladly lost a tempo...}) 22. Qa6 Nxe3 23.
Rxe2 Nxg2 24. Kxg2 Rad8 25. Rae1 Rd7 26. Qb5 Rfd8 ({If Black had defended the
pawn with} 26... Rc7 {he would have lost the control of both open files after}
27. Rd2 $14) 27. Qxc5 $14 {Cheparinov,I (2670)-Carlsen,M (2714)/
Khanty-Mansiysk 2007/CBM 122 (1/2, 80)}) 18... c5 {If my supposition was
correct, then Kramnik's opening experiment has been crowned by success.} ({
One critical alternative is} 18... Be2 {but in this case Black would have
faced some problems of coordination after} 19. h3 $5 {The bishop's retreats
along the d1-h5 diagonal are prevented (...Bf3? drops a piece to g4)} Rfd8 (
19... c5 20. Qb3 $5 {would not solve Black's problems, because the queen would
remain out of play on h5. Besides, once the queen's access to b5 has been
obstructed, the threat g4 becomes real.}) 20. Bf4 Rac8 (20... e5 $6 {would
lose a pawn without compensation after} 21. g4 Qg6 22. Bxe5 $16) 21. g4 Qb5 22.
a4 Qa6 23. a5 $14 {with advantage for White on both wings.}) 19. Qa5 Rfc8 20.
Be3 $5 {Another interesting moment.} ({Kramnik probably discarded the immediate
} 20. Bf4 {because of} e5 21. Be3 Be6 {and Black's bishop has reached
stability with economy of time.}) 20... Be2 21. Bf4 $5 {Once the enemy bishop
has abandoned the favourable diagonal, this move makes more sense although it
may seem a loss of time. The idea is to provoke ...e5, in order to leave the
queen completely out of play on h5.} ({After} 21. h3 Nc4 22. Qa6 Nxe3 23. Rxe2
Nxg2 24. Kxg2 {the queen can return into play with} Qe5 $11) 21... e5 22. Be3 {
Kramnik does not wish to change the character of the position.} ({Optically,
it may seem that White keeps a tiny advantage after} 22. Bxe5 Nc4 23. Qa6 Qxe5
24. Rxe2 Qxc3 {. However, the position has simplified and the c-pawn provides
Black with counterplay.}) 22... Bg4 $6 {A straightforward attempt to recycle
the pieces that have remained isolated on the kingside. However, White is
allowed to establish control over the f1-a6 diagonal and increase his
queenside pressure. However, it is not easy to recommend a worthy alternative.
Black should probably had chosen a line where White is allowed to win a pawn,
but the technical difficulties remain quite big.} (22... Nc4 23. Qa6 Nxe3 (
23... Bd3 24. Rad1) 24. Rxe2 Nxg2 25. Kxg2 $14 {Black would probably have to
give up the c5-pawn as Carlsen did.}) (22... f6 23. Bxc5 $5 Nc4 24. Qb5 Rab8
25. Qd7 Rxc5 26. Rab1 $3 {An elegant move, leaving Black completely
uncoordinated despite his extra piece.} Rb6 (26... Rf8 27. Rb7 Qf7 28. Rxe2 $14
) (26... Rxb1 27. Rxb1 h6 (27... Nb6 28. Qxa7 $16) 28. Bh3 $40) 27. Bh3 $1 Kf8
28. Rxb6 axb6 29. Be6 {[%cal Ge1e2]} Qe8 30. Qxe8+ Kxe8 31. Rxe2 $14) (22... h6
23. h3 $14 {[%csl Re2,Rh5]}) 23. Qa6 $1 $16 {[%csl Ra7,Rb6][%cal Ga2a4,Ga4a5]
White has en easy way to develop his queenside initiative now.} f6 24. a4 Qf7
25. Bf1 {[%csl Gc4]} Be6 26. Rab1 $1 {White develops his last piece,
preventing the occupation of the c4-square. Black is in big trouble. If he
loses the a7-pawn, the game will be as good as gone.} (26. a5 $6 Bc4 27. Bxc4
Nxc4 (27... Qxc4 $4 28. axb6 $1 $18) 28. Rab1 Rc7 $1 $14) 26... c4 $6 ({
Black cannot transpose to the previous note with} 26... Rc7 $2 {because of} 27.
Rxb6 $1 $18) ({The tactical point behind 26.Rab1 is that} 26... Bc4 $2 {
is impossible:} 27. Bxc4 Qxc4 (27... Nxc4 28. Rb7 $18) 28. Rxb6 $1 $18) (26...
f5 {[%cal Gf5f4] has been widely recommended, but Black's position remains
critical after the simple} 27. exf5 $16 {[%csl Re5]}) 27. a5 Na4 (27... Nd7 28.
Rb7 $18 {[%csl Ra7]}) 28. Rb7 Qe8 29. Qd6 ({For many spectators, Anand's
resignation may have seemed a bit premature. However, from the psychological
point of view, it looks like one of his best decisions in the whole match. He
simply decided to forget as soon as possible about this horrible day and get
prepared for the next, decisive game...} 29. Qd6 Bf7 30. Qb4 Rab8 31. a6 $18)
1-0

[Event "EU-ch 12th"]
[Site "Aix les Bains"]
[Date "2011.03.23"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Feller, Sebastien"]
[Black "Romanishin, Oleg M"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2657"]
[BlackElo "2530"]
[Annotator "Marin,M"]
[PlyCount "121"]
[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. Nf3 c5 5. g3 {An interesting psychological
moment. The fianchetto line against the Nimzo-Indian bears Romanischin's name.
Nowadays, this variation is quite popular and has been extensively analysed
and rehearsed in practice, having become common knowledge of many young
players. However, it certainly looks provocative to use it against its
Godfather himself...} Nc6 6. Bg2 Ne4 $5 {An old-fashioned line, in which Black
refrains from establishing full pawn contact in the centre. It not only well
suits Romanischin's style, but also allows one to avoid massive computer
preparation, since the ensuing lines have a less forced character.} 7. Bd2 ({
The other major branch is} 7. Qd3 {, when the main way of avoiding releasing
the tension in the centre with ...cxd4 is} Qa5 $5 {as played in several games.}
) 7... Nxd2 {Romanischin seems to adapt himself to the modern trend.} ({
The classical treatment of the variation is} 7... Bxc3 8. bxc3 Na5 ({More
ambitious than} 8... O-O 9. O-O Na5 {Kasparov,G (2700)-Karpov,A (2720)/Moscow
1985/MainBase (1/2, 29)}) 9. Bf4 d5 10. cxd5 Nxc3 11. Qc1 $5 (11. Qd3 Nxd5 12.
dxc5 Nxf4 13. Qxd8+ Kxd8 14. gxf4 Bd7 15. Rb1 Rc8 16. Ne5 Be8 17. Bxb7 Rxc5 18.
Ba6 f6 19. Nd3 Rc6 20. Nb4 Rb6 $11 {Whitehead,J-Suba,M/Saint John 1988/ (1/2,
26)}) 11... cxd4 (11... Nxd5 12. dxc5 Nxf4 13. Qxf4 $14) 12. d6 {The position
has become strategically irrational, but Black seems to have resources because
of the numerous queenside squares available for the knights.} Bd7 13. Nxd4 Rc8
14. Qd2 b5 $132 {Socko,B (2646)-Olszewski,M (2424)/Warsaw 2007/CBM 121 Extra 
(1/2, 44)}) 8. Qxd2 cxd4 9. Nxd4 {Black has opted for some kind of Hedgehog,
in which his delay in dveelopment should be compensated for by the bishop pair.
} Qb6 (9... Ne5 {Bacrot,E (2627)-Lautier,J (2658)/Enghien les Bains 2001/CBM
083/[Wells] (1/2, 34)}) 10. Nc2 {The natural reaction.} (10. e3 $5 {is
interesting, though.} Ne5 11. b3 Qa5 {Cheparinov,I (2678)-Ivanchuk,V (2703)/
Jermuk 2009/CBM 132/[Krasenkow] (0-1, 42). According to Krasenkow, Black did
not quite equalise in that game.}) 10... Be7 11. O-O ({The rooks belong on d1
and c1/b1 in this structure, which makes} 11. Rd1 {look a bit strange.} d6 12.
O-O O-O 13. b3 Rd8 14. e3 Bd7 15. Nd4 Rac8 {Black has completed his
development harmoniously and has little to fear.} 16. f4 $6 {Unjustified
optimism.} Nxd4 17. exd4 (17. Qxd4 Qc7 $5 {[%cal Gd6d5]}) 17... d5 $1 18. Rb1 (
18. c5 Bxc5 $1 $17) (18. cxd5 Bb4 19. Rc1 exd5 $17 {In both lines, the absence
of a rook on c1 makes itself felt.}) 18... dxc4 19. bxc4 Qa5 $17 {Provotorov,I
(2368)-Kostin,A (2386)/Voronezh 2007/EXT 2008 (0-1, 33)}) 11... O-O 12. Rab1 (
12. Rac1 Rd8 13. b3 d6 14. Rfd1 Bd7 15. Qe3 {Not really dangerous for Black.
After the queen exchange, the king will get the possibility to approach the
centre either along the back rank, or by means of ...f5 and ...Kf7.} Qxe3 16.
Nxe3 Be8 17. Rd2 a6 {[%cal Ga8b8,Gb7b5]} 18. Na4 (18. Rcd1 {[%cal Gc3e4]} f5 $5
) 18... Rab8 19. Nb6 Kf8 20. Rcd1 Ne5 $1 {Preparing to unblock the b-pawn.} 21.
a4 Nd7 22. a5 Nxb6 23. axb6 Rdc8 24. b4 Bc6 $15 {Lauber,A (2503)-Wojtaszek,R 
(2637)/Stockholm 2009/CBM 134 Extra (1/2, 39)}) 12... d6 13. Rfd1 ({Black's
position proved solid enough against a radical attack on both wings in a game
at the top level:} 13. b4 Rd8 14. Kh1 Bd7 15. Ne3 Bf8 16. b5 Na5 17. f4 Qc7 18.
Rfc1 Rac8 19. Ne4 b6 20. Rc2 h6 21. Rf1 f5 22. Nf2 g6 23. Nd3 Bg7 24. Rfc1 Be8
25. Nd1 Qe7 26. Qb4 Rc7 $15 {Nakamura,H (2751)-Ponomariov,R (2744)/Wijk aan
Zee 2011/CBM 141 (1/2, 43). Black has regrouped harmoniously and is ready to
enjoy the weaknesses created by White's overoptimistic aggression.}) 13... Ne5
$146 {This looks like premature display of activity, although concrete
analysis proves it to be OK. In principle, Black should be concerned about
completing his development first of all.} (13... Rd8 {is natural and sound.}
14. Ne3 a6 15. b4 Qa7 16. a4 Bd7 17. a5 Ne5 {Sasikiran,K (2669)-Macieja,B 
(2612)/Warsaw 2009/CBM 132 (1/2, 23), With a solid position for Black.}) 14.
Qd4 {Taking advantage of the availability of the d4-square. White offers the
queen exchange under favourable circumstances.} Qc7 (14... Qxd4 15. Rxd4 a6 16.
Rbd1 $14) 15. Ne3 Bd7 16. Rbc1 {White is fully mobilised and Black has
problems maintaining his coordination.} a6 $6 {After this standard move, Black
will not be able to equalise completely.} ({His main problem is that the
generally desirable} 16... Rfd8 $2 {, planning to regroup with ...Be8 and ...
Rac8 loses to} 17. Ncd5 $1 $18) (16... Rfc8 $5 17. b3 Be8 18. Bh3 $5 Bf8 (18...
Rd8 $2 19. Ned5 $1 Qd7 20. Nxe7+ Qxe7 21. c5 $18) 19. Ne4 Rd8 {Not without
some effort, Black has managed to re-arrange his pieces and his position looks
viable.}) 17. b3 $1 {A necessary move, not only consokidating the c4-pawn
"just in case", but also covering the d1-a4 diagonal.} (17. Ne4 Rfd8 $11 18.
Nxd6 $6 Ba4 $1) 17... f5 (17... Rfe8 18. Ne4 $16) 18. Qd2 Nf7 19. c5 $1 $14 {
For the experts of the Romanischin system, it is quite important to get a
Catalan type of position, with play along the central files. The Hedgehog
contours are gone now and White's superior mobilisation gives him the upper
hand.} Bc6 $8 (19... d5 20. Ncxd5 $1 $18 exd5 21. Nxd5 Qd8 22. Nxe7+ Qxe7 23.
Qxd7) (19... Qxc5 20. Ncd5 $18) 20. cxd6 Bxd6 21. Bxc6 Qxc6 22. Ncd5 Qb5 23. a4
(23. Nc7 Bxc7 24. Rxc7 Rfd8 25. Qc2 Rxd1+ 26. Qxd1 Rd8 27. Qc2 $14 {Catalan
specialists would love such a position with White. The structure is almost
symmetrical, but Black has more weaknesses and White's pieces are more active.}
) 23... Qxb3 24. Rb1 (24. Ra1 exd5 25. Rdb1 Bb4 26. Qxb4 (26. Qd4 Bc3) 26...
Qxb4 27. Rxb4 $14 {Retrieving the pawn and keeping the upper hand. This is
another promissing ending, in which the presence of knights offers White more
practical chances than in the game.}) 24... Qa3 (24... Qxa4 25. Nb6 Qc6 26.
Nxa8 Rxa8 27. Rbc1 $14 {The queenside pawns are not too threatening yet, while
the weakened kingside may soon come under attack.}) 25. Nc4 Qc5 26. Nxd6 Qxd6
27. Nf6+ gxf6 28. Qxd6 Nxd6 29. Rxd6 Rf7 30. Rxe6 $14 {White has the better
strucure and more active rooks. Black will reach a draw, but not without a
share of suffering.} Rd8 31. Rb4 Kg7 32. Kg2 Rdd7 33. e3 Rfe7 34. Reb6 Kg6 35.
g4 (35. h3 h5) 35... fxg4 36. Rxg4+ Kf7 37. Rh4 Kg7 38. Rf4 Rf7 39. Rf5 Kg6 40.
Rf4 Kg7 41. Kf3 Rc7 42. Rfb4 h5 43. Kg3 Kg6 44. e4 Rc3+ 45. f3 Rd7 46. Rb2 Rdd3
$132 47. Rf2 Rb3 48. Rxb3 Rxb3 $11 49. Rd2 Rb4 50. Rd7 a5 51. h4 Rxa4 52. Rxb7
Rb4 53. Ra7 a4 54. Ra5 Rc4 55. Ra6 Kg7 56. Kf4 Kg6 57. Ke3 Rc3+ 58. Ke2 a3 59.
e5 Kf5 60. exf6 Kg6 61. Ra5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Sinquefield Cup 3rd"]
[Site "Saint Louis"]
[Date "2015.08.26"]
[Round "4"]
[White "So, Wesley"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2779"]
[BlackElo "2765"]
[Annotator "Marin,M"]
[PlyCount "56"]
[EventDate "2015.08.23"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 168"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.09.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.09.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 {If Black wants to play for a win
against the Gheorghiu Samisch, this is the best way to do it.} ({The last move
features an entirely different approach than} 4... d5 {, which aims at
preventing White's central expansion.}) 5. d5 O-O 6. e4 d6 {This structure
illustrates both the merits and the shortcomings of White's system. He has
been allowed to build up a massive centre, but faces problems completing his
kingside development.} 7. Nge2 ({The ultra-solid} 7. Bd2 {was played in
Nakamura,H (2772)-Carlsen,M (2881) Shamkir 2014 CBM 160 [Stohl,I] (0-1, 52)}) (
7. Bd3 {speeds up the development, but exposes the bishop to the knight's
attack, indirectly weakening the c4- and d5-pawns. To my taste, the most
convincing continuation is} Bxc3+ (7... b5 {is interesting, too, as played in
Macedo,M (2369)-Mekhitarian,K (2566) Joao Pessoa 2013 CBM 158 [Mekhitarian,K] 
(0-1, 26)}) 8. bxc3 Nbd7 9. Ne2 ({Maybe} 9. Nh3 {is more flexible, but it does
not change much:} Ne5 10. Nf2 Qa5 11. Qc2 Nfd7 {[%csl Gc4]}) 9... Ne5 10. Ng3
Qa5 11. Qc2 b5 $1 {This comes with much greater effect than on move 7.} (11...
Nfd7 {is playable here, too.}) 12. cxb5 exd5 $36 {Malaniuk,V (2545)-Kuzmin,G 
(2470) Frunze 1987 (1-0, 30)}) 7... a6 $5 {A rare continuation. Black prepares
the typical Benko-like sacrifice ...b7-b5.} ({The immediate break} 7... b5 {
has been tested quite often, too:} {In the times I used to play this line with
White, the best continuation was cosidered} 8. Nf4 {aiming at stabilziing the
centre, even at the cost of one tempo. I still believe this is a safe way of
meeting the pawn sacrifice.} (8. dxe6 {this gives Black plenty of play.} fxe6 (
{If} 8... Bxe6 {White should take on b5 rather than} 9. Nf4 $6 bxc4 10. e5 {
when in Marin,M (2485)-Inkiov,V (2510) Stara Zagora 1990 (1-0, 35) Vegh
suggested the strong improvement} Ne8 $1 11. Nxe6 fxe6 12. exd6 Nxd6 {[%csl
Rd4][%cal Gb8c6] with an extra pawn and the better development.}) 9. e5 dxe5
10. Qxd8 Rxd8 11. cxb5 a6 $44 {Zhou,J (1938)-Wei,Y (2629) China 2014 (0-1, 73)}
) 8... e5 (8... exd5 {was played in Grischuk,A (2781)-Topalov,V (2798)
Stavanger 2015 (0-1, 39) and now White in vain refrained from} 9. Nfxd5 {
which is one of the main ideas of Ne2-f4} Nxd5 10. Qxd5 {[%csl Ga8]} Qb6 11.
Bf4 $14) 9. Nfe2 Nh5 ({One of the games I had as a model went} 9... bxc4 10.
Ng3 Ba6 11. Bg5 h6 12. Be3 {[%csl Rh6][%cal Gg3f5,Gg2g4]} Bc8 13. Bxc4 $14 {
Shirov,A (2610)-Savon,V (2460) Moscow 1991 (1-0, 43)}) 10. g4 Qh4+ 11. Kd2 Nf4
12. Nxf4 exf4 {Berkes,F (2702)-Yemelin,V (2574) Skopje 2013 (0-1, 29)} 13. cxb5
Nd7 14. Kc2 $14 {[%csl Gf4] The white king is safe enough and Black has some
worries with his f4-pawn. For instance} Qf6 15. Qd2 g5 16. h4 h6 17. hxg5 hxg5
18. Qh2 $16) 8. a4 {A natural move which seems to prevent ...b7-b5 for a long
time at least.} (8. Ng3 b5 $1 {The critical move.} ({But Black can also
transpose to some sort of Benoni structure with} 8... Re8 9. Be2 exd5 10. cxd5
Nbd7 {Sethuraman,S (2576)-Vishnu,P (2465) Sharjah 2014 (½-½, 36). The only
question is why did he need ...a7-a6 if he did not plan to play an early ...
b7-b5?}) 9. Bf4 (9. dxe6 Bxe6 10. cxb5 Qa5 $36) (9. cxb5 exd5 10. exd5 Qb6 11.
bxa6 Re8+ 12. Be2 c4 $17 {[%csl Ge1]}) 9... exd5 10. cxd5 Qb6 {[%csl Ge1][%cal
Gb8d7,Gc5c4]} 11. a4 {[%cal Ga1a8,Ga4b5]} Ba5 $1 $13) ({One of the main ideas
of 7...a6 is that} 8. Nf4 {is an early committment and does not work as well
as in the similar line with 7...b5. The main difference is that the a8-rook is
not hanging, offering Black an important tempo for his initiative.} exd5 9.
Nfxd5 ({With the knight on f4 the structure after} 9. cxd5 Nbd7 {tends to
favour Black.}) 9... Nxd5 10. Qxd5 Qh4+ 11. g3 Bxc3+ 12. bxc3 Qf6 13. Qd3 Nc6
$15) 8... Ba5 $5 $146 {A deep novelty, aiming to transform the pin along the
a-file into a potential battery.} (8... exd5 9. cxd5 Nbd7 {would lead to
normal play.} 10. Ng3 Rb8 11. Be2 b5 12. axb5 axb5 13. O-O c4 14. Nf5 {Bandza,
A (2380)-Ilinsky,V (2350) Prague 1990 (½-½, 23)}) (8... Re8 9. Bg5 $2 (9. Ng3
$1 {is similar to the game above.}) 9... h6 10. Bh4 exd5 11. cxd5 Nbd7 12. Nc1
$2 Nxe4 $1 13. fxe4 (13. Bxd8 Nxc3+) 13... Qxh4+ 14. g3 Qxe4+ 15. Qe2 Nf6 {
Barron,P-Jeske,M Hildesheim 1996 (0-1, 15)}) 9. Bd2 {A seemingly solid move
which delays the kingside development though. But other moves allow Black
carry out his planned sacrifice:} (9. Ng3 b5 10. dxe6 (10. axb5 axb5 11. cxb5
$4 Bxc3+ 12. bxc3 Rxa1) 10... Bxe6 11. cxb5 d5 $36) (9. Nf4 b5 10. dxe6 (10.
cxb5 e5 11. Nd3 axb5 $132) 10... fxe6 11. axb5 axb5 12. Be3 g5 13. Nh3 (13.
Nfe2 bxc4 14. Bxg5 Nc6) 13... g4 {with good counterplay for Black in all lines
and a rather messy position.}) 9... exd5 10. cxd5 (10. exd5 {exposes the king
too much.} Re8 11. Kf2 {What else?} Nbd7 12. Ng3 Nh5 $3 $36 13. Nxh5 Qh4+ 14.
Ng3 $2 Qd4+ {followed by mate.}) (10. Nxd5 Nc6 $15 {[%csl Gd4]}) 10... Nh5 $1 {
An excellent reaction to 9.Bd2. Black's kingside counterplay is hard to stop.}
11. g3 ({The main point is that with the d2-square unavailable for the king,} 
11. g4 $2 {loses to} Qh4+) 11... Nd7 12. Bg2 b5 {[%csl Rc3][%cal Gb5b4,Gc3b1]
For the underdeveloped white army Aronian's play on both sides is very
annoying.} 13. g4 {Risky, but White had problems anyway.} (13. Qc2 {clears the
d1-square for the knight but keeps the king in the centre.} f5 ({Black should
not hurry to push the knight towards a good square:} 13... b4 14. Nd1 f5 15.
Nf2) 14. exf5 (14. O-O b4 15. Nd1 fxe4 16. fxe4 Rxf1+ 17. Bxf1 Ne5 $17) 14...
Ne5 15. g4 Qh4+ 16. Kf1 Nxg4 $1 {Rather similar to Aronian's sacrifice.} 17.
fxg4 Qxg4 18. Qe4 Bxf5 19. Qxg4 Bxg4+ 20. Ke1 (20. Kg1 Bxe2 {[%csl Gd2]}) 20...
Rae8 21. Ne4 Bxd2+ 22. Kxd2 Bxe2 23. Nxd6 (23. Kxe2 Nf4+ $19) 23... Re5 $17 {
[%cal Gf8f2]}) (13. axb5 axb5 14. b4 {White is not well prepared for this
principled pawn break} ({Maybe the greedy} 14. Nxb5 Bxd2+ 15. Kxd2 {is a bit
safer, even though Black has great compensation after} Ba6 16. Nec3 Bxb5 17.
Nxb5 Qb6 $36) 14... cxb4 15. Nxb5 ({The thematic} 15. Na2 {aiming to
consolidate with Nxb4 and Nd4, invading c6, allows Black too much activity:}
Ne5 16. O-O Nc4 17. Bxb4 Ne3 $19) 15... Ne5 16. O-O Ba6 17. Nbd4 Bb6 $15) 13...
b4 14. Nb1 $2 {After this counter-developing move only a miracle can save
White.} ({He should have gone for} 14. gxh5 bxc3 15. bxc3 Qh4+ 16. Ng3 Ne5 17.
O-O {Black surely has compensation for the pawn, but at least White's position
looks decent.}) 14... Qh4+ 15. Kf1 Ne5 $1 {Given White's awful coordination,
it is obvious that the sacrifice is good and effective.} ({I tried to analyze
the engines' slight favourite} 15... f5 {but stopped when seeing that after}
16. gxf5 {Black's best is} Bd8 {I must confess I am not deep enough to
understand and comment on this kind of lines so I will stick to annotating on
Aronian's human choice.}) 16. Be1 $6 {Just pushing the queen on a better
square.} (16. Qe1 $2 {has the same drawback:} Qf6 17. gxh5 Nxf3 $19) ({True,
White's life is not rosy after the immediate piece capture:} 16. gxh5 f5 17.
Be1 Qe7 18. exf5 (18. f4 fxe4 {[%cal Ge5d3,Ge5g4]}) 18... Bxf5 19. Nd2 (19. Bf2
Nxf3 $1 20. Bxf3 Bh3+ 21. Bg2 Bxg2+ 22. Kxg2 Qe4+ 23. Kg1 Rxf2 24. Kxf2 Rf8+
25. Kg1 Qg4+ 26. Ng3 Qxd1+ {winning the queen and, after a few more moves, the
king as well.}) 19... b3 $1 $19 {[%cal Ga5d2,Ge5f3] This way of activating the
bishop is more natural than the aforementioned ...Ba5-d8.}) 16... Qf6 17. gxh5
Nxf3 18. Bf2 Bg4 {Consequent, but not the only move.} ({There was nothing
wrong with material grabbing:} 18... Qxb2 {Strange enough, White cannot save
his rook.} 19. Bxf3 (19. Nd2 Nxd2+ 20. Qxd2 Qxa1+) 19... Qxa1) 19. Qc1 (19.
Bxf3 Qxf3 20. Rg1 Qh3+ 21. Ke1 f5 $19) ({This was the last moment when White
could have put up some resistance, based, of course, on trying to get
developed:} 19. h3 Bxh5 20. Nd2 Ne5 {[%csl Gb2,Gf2][%cal Ge5d3] Black's
initiative is overwhelming, but White still is in the game.}) 19... Nd4 (19...
Ne5 {could have transposed to a theme mentioned above:} 20. Qe3 (20. Nf4 g5 $1
21. hxg6 $2 fxg6 {[%cal Gf8f1]}) 20... Nc4 21. Qb3 Ne3+ 22. Qxe3 Qxb2 {Oh,
again that rook...}) 20. Nxd4 cxd4 21. e5 {Hoping to get the e4-square for the
knight.} (21. Nd2 {would come too late to change anything:} Rac8 22. Qb1 (22.
Nc4 d3 {[%cal Gd3d2]} 23. b3 {[%csl Gc4]} Bb6 $1 $19 {[%csl Rf2][%cal Gc8c1,
Gf6f1]}) (22. Qe1 b3 {[%cal Gc8c2,Ra5e1]}) 22... d3 $1 {[%cal Gc8c2]} 23. Qxd3
Qxb2 24. Rb1 (24. Bd4 Rc3 $1 25. Bxc3 bxc3 26. Rb1 c2 $19) 24... Rc1+ 25. Rxc1
Qxc1+ 26. Be1 b3 {[%csl Rd2][%cal Gb3b2]}) 21... dxe5 22. Nd2 Rac8 23. Qb1 b3
$1 {Activating the last reserves, the bishop.} 24. Nxb3 ({The problem is that
after the planned} 24. Ne4 Qf4 {[%csl Rb1][%cal Gc8c2] the white queen cannot
move, making the threat ...Rc2 killing.}) 24... Bb6 25. a5 Ba7 ({There was no
need already for such tricks as} 25... Rc2 $1 26. Qxc2 d3 27. Qd2 Be2+) 26. Kg1
Bf5 27. Be4 $6 {Losing on the spot.} ({But} 27. Qe1 e4 $19 {is crushing}) 27...
Qg5+ (27... d3 $19 {is another possible move order based on the same idea.} 28.
Qxd3 Bxe4 $19 {[%csl Rh1]}) 28. Kf1 Qf4 {The queen has side-stepped the own
bishop to increase the pressure on both white bishops..} (28... Qf4 29. Bxf5 d3
30. Qe1 Rc2 $19 {A fantastic attacking game by Aronian.}) 0-1

[Event "Olympiad-37"]
[Site "Turin"]
[Date "2006.06.02"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Bareev, Evgeny"]
[Black "Kaidanov, Gregory S"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2701"]
[BlackElo "2603"]
[Annotator "Marin,M"]
[PlyCount "69"]
[EventDate "2006.05.21"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "ITA"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 113"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.07.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.07.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Russia"]
[BlackTeam "US of America"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "RUS"]
[BlackTeamCountry "USA"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 Ne4 6. Qd3 Qa5 7. Qxe4 Bxc3+ 8.
Bd2 Bxd2+ 9. Nxd2 O-O {By playing this modest move, Black accepts a slightly
inferior, but defensible position.} ({The recent discussion at top level has
been held in the variation} 9... Nc6 10. dxc5 b6 11. Bg2 Bb7 12. Qe3 ({A
possible improvment over} 12. Qf4 bxc5 13. Qd6 Qb6 14. Ne4 Nd4 {Bacrot,E (2717)
-Aronian,L (2752)/Morelia/Linares 2006 which led to incontrolable
complications.}) 12... Nb4 ({The difference regarding the placement of the
queen can be seen in the fact that after} 12... bxc5 13. O-O Nd4 {is
impossible because there is no fork on e2 available in case of} 14. Bxb7) 13.
O-O Nc2 14. Qg5 Bxg2 15. Nb3 Qa4 16. Qxg7 Rf8 17. Kxg2 Nxa1 18. Rxa1 bxc5 19.
Rc1 {Topalov,V (2739)-Kramnik,V (2809)/Monaco 2002 and after carrying out his
customary exchange sacrifice Topalov eventually won.}) 10. dxc5 Qxc5 11. Bg2
Nc6 12. O-O b6 13. Qf4 Ba6 14. Rac1 Rab8 15. Rfd1 Qe7 16. Ne4 f5 17. Nd6 e5 18.
Qe3 Rf6 19. Nb5 Rc8 20. Qd2 e4 21. Nd6 Rb8 22. b4 Nd8 23. Qd5+ Qe6 24. g4 g6
25. gxf5 gxf5 26. f3 exf3 27. Qxf3 Nf7 28. Qf4 Rg6 29. Nxf7 Kxf7 30. Qxb8 Rxg2+
31. Kxg2 Qxe2+ 32. Kg1 Qe3+ 33. Kf1 Qf3+ 34. Kg1 Qe3+ 35. Kf1 1/2-1/2

[Event "World-ch Tournament"]
[Site "Mexico City"]
[Date "2007.09.23"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Grischuk, Alexander"]
[Black "Gelfand, Boris"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2726"]
[BlackElo "2733"]
[Annotator "Marin,M"]
[PlyCount "121"]
[EventDate "2007.09.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "MEX"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 120"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.10.02"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.10.02"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Earlier in this tournament, Gelfand has successfully defended Black's
point of view in the Petroff three times already. Grischuk wisely decided to
change the background. Durante este Campeonato, Gelfand había defendido con
éxito el punto de vista delas negras en la defensa Rusa nada menos que en 3
ocasiones. Logicamente, Grischuk decide cambíar el paisaje.} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3.
Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 {Also logical. During his relatively short career as a
1.d4 player, Grischuk has played the Catalan a couple of times, and not
without success. From this point of view, his desire to develop the king's
bishop to g2 in the Nimzo-Indian, too, looks understandable.} cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O
7. Bg2 d5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 {This variation is almost universally played
nowadays.} Qa5 10. Bd2 Nc6 11. Nxc6 bxc6 12. O-O Bxc3 13. bxc3 Ba6 14. Rfd1 Qc5
15. e4 Bc4 16. Qa4 Nb6 17. Qb4 Qh5 18. Bf4 {The position is very slightly more
pleasant for White, but most of the games in which this variation was played
ended in draws. Black has a normal development, but experiences some
micro-problems. Now, he needs to establish some communication between his
queen and the rest of the pieces. La posición es microscopicamente más
agradable para las blancas, pero en práctica la mayoría de las partidas en las
cuales se había jugado esta variante acabaron en tablas. Las negras tienen un
desarrollo normal, pero quedan con unos micro-problemas de coordinación. En
este momento, tienen que encontrar una forma de abrir la comunicación entre su
dama y el resto del ejército.} ({The main alternative is} 18. Be3 {, which was
tried at the highest imaginable level in Kasparov,G (2851)-Anand,V (2769)/Wijk
aan Zee 2000/CBM 075/[Wells] (1/2-1/2, 56)}) 18... Be2 ({Grischuk happened to
be on the black side in the first game in which 18.Bf4 was played:} 18... c5
19. Qb2 e5 {Bacrot,E (2715)-Grischuk,A (2710)/Poikovsky 2005/CBM 106/[Gavrikov]
(1-0, 61). Apparently, he felt that Black's task is not that easy and decided
to put Gelfand to a similar test.}) ({The other pawn move played here is} 18...
e5 19. Be3 {Once the connection between the black queen and the queenside has
been cut off, the bishop returns on this diagonal.} Be2 20. Re1 Nc4 21. Qc5
Rfd8 22. Rab1 h6 {It might seem that Black enjoys excellent stability for his
pieces, affording to make such prophylactical moves. However, the sensation of
comfort is only an illusion, as proven by the next move.} 23. h3 $1 {Suddenly,
3 of Black's pieces are in danger because of the threat g4.} Nxe3 24. Qxe3 Bc4
25. a4 {In the absence of the queen, the black queenside is vulnerable to such
simple actions as the advance of the a-pawn, with the idea of occupying the
b7-square with a rook.} a5 {Preventing White's plan, but weakening the
queenside even more.} 26. Qc5 Be6 27. h4 {Finally, Black has provoked a small
weakness in White's kingside, but the queen has the same problems with finding
a way to join the rest of the army.} Rd2 $1 ({Black has to counterattack at
any cost.} 27... Rdc8 {would be too passive.}) 28. Qxc6 Rc8 29. Qb5 Rxc3 30.
Qxa5 Rcc2 31. Qa7 Ra2 32. Ra1 {It seems that White has good possibilities to
advance his extra-pawn, because the f2-pawn is defended.} Qe2 $5 {This must
have come as a shock. Psychologically, it means the failure of White's plan to
keep the enemy queen out of play, but objectively White is very much OK still.}
33. Rxe2 $6 (33. Rf1 $1 {and Black has no obvious way to continue his attack.
Maybe best would have been} Kh7 {avoiding back rank checks (Qb8+ - xe5) and
passing to White the responsability of finding a constructive plan.}) 33...
Rxa1+ 34. Kh2 Rxe2 {Najer,E (2648)-Jakovenko,D (2671)/Moscow 2006/CBM 116 (0-1,
50). and Black's material advantage as well as the passivity of the g2-bishop
leave White struggling already.}) 19. Re1 c5 ({After the intermediate bishop
move,} 19... e5 $2 {loses a pawn to} 20. Bxe5 $1) 20. Qb3 e5 21. Bc1 $1 {
Necessary prophylaxis.} ({The more natural} 21. Be3 {allows the activation of
the knight with} Nc4 {when} 22. Rxe2 $2 Qxe2 23. Bf1 {is met by} Qb2 $1 {
[%csl Ga1]}) 21... Rac8 ({Now, after} 21... Nc4 $2 22. Rxe2 Qxe2 23. Bf1 $18 {
, the b2-square is protected.}) 22. a4 {We are familiar to this method of
queenside attack from the game Najer-Jakovenko.} Bc4 23. Qb2 Qg6 24. a5 Nd7 25.
Rd1 Qc6 {The queen is back in the game, but meanwhile the knight has occupied
an unfavourable square. We can state that Black's micro-problems persist. La
damaha vuelto en el juego, pero mientras tanto el caballo ha sido forxado a
ocupar una casilla incómoda. Podemos apreciar que la micro-ventaja de las
blancas persiste.} 26. Bh3 Be6 {My feeling is that in this phase of the game
Gelfand was too open to simplifications, a policy that will eventually lead to
an unpleasant ending.} ({Here, he could have maintained some tension with} 
26... Rc7 27. Be3 Nf6 {when the practically forced weakening move} 28. f3 {
leads to a more double edged situation with queens on the board. Black could
choose the right moment to retreat with his bishop to e6.}) 27. Bxe6 Qxe6 28.
Be3 Rc7 29. Qa2 Qxa2 $6 ({Here, too, avoiding the exchange with} 29... c4 {
was an important alternative. Although the bishop's pressure against the
a7-pawn is quite worrying, things could eventually happen on the white
kingside, too.}) 30. Rxa2 Nf6 31. f3 Rfc8 (31... Rb8 {would not have prevented
no hubiera prevenido} 32. Rb2 $1 {anyway. en absoluto.}) 32. Rb2 {The knight
has reached a stable square, but White maintains the better prospects because
of his control over both open files. By contrast,Black's rooks are doubled
behind his own c-pawn. El caballo ha alcanzado una casilla estable, pero las
blancas mantienen na posición más activa, por el control de ambas columnas
abiertas. Por contraste, las torres negras están dobladas detrás del peón
proprío de c5.} Kf8 33. Kf2 Ke7 ({Maybe it would have made some sense to
prevent the exchange of the knight with} 33... h6 $5 {, when the d5-square
would not have been available for the white rooks.}) 34. Bg5 h6 35. Bxf6+ Kxf6
36. Rd6+ Ke7 37. Rd5 f6 38. Ke3 g5 39. c4 Rc6 40. Rb5 {In the absence of any
minor pieces, White has a stable advantage, because Black is reduced to
complete passivity.} Ke6 41. f4 {In order to increase his advantage, White
needs to open a new front of action. Para aumentar su ventaja, las blancas
necesitan abrir un nuevo frente de lucha.} R6c7 42. Kf3 h5 {Preventing the
king's infiltration to h5, but weakening his own kingside structure.} 43. Ke3
gxf4+ {At first sight, this looks like a premature release of the tension, but
Gelfand probably hoped for some kingside counterplay at some moment.} ({
In fact, Black seems to be in some sort of zugzwang. The only reasonable move
with a piece is} 43... Rc6 {, when White is at crossroads.} 44. Rb1 {looks
better, threatening fxe5 followed by Rf1-f5.} (44. fxe5 {is a premature
release of the tension.} fxe5 45. Rb2 Ra6 $1 (45... Rf8 46. Rb7 $16) 46. Rf2
Rxa5 47. Rf5 Ra3+ 48. Kd2 Rb8 {and Black has powerful counterplay, forcing
White to force a draw by perpetual.}) 44... Ra6 {The only active possibility,
but Black's counterplay will fail by one tempo.} 45. f5+ $1 Ke7 46. Rb7+ Kf8
47. Rh7 Kg8 48. Rxh5 {Clearing the g4-square for the king.} Rxa5 49. Kf3 $1 {
Just in time to avoid being cut off along the 3rd rank.} Ra3+ 50. Kg4 Re3 51.
Rh6 Rxe4+ 52. Kh5 {Black is in a dangerous situation.} Rd4 {is the only way to
keep fighting, but White can ignore the tension in the centre.} 53. Rxf6 g4 (
53... Rxd5 $2 54. cxd5 c4 55. Rc6 $1 $18) 54. Rxe5 {with a strong, probably
decisive, attack.}) 44. gxf4 h4 45. f5+ Kf7 46. Kf3 Kg7 47. Rb1 $6 {Neglecting
the king's activation.} ({Grischuk might have worried that his king would be
in danger if he captures the h4-pawn. His fears were only partly justified.} 
47. Kg4 $1 Kh7 48. Rd6 $1 ({Only not} 48. Kxh4 $4 Rg7 $1 {[%csl Gh4][%cal
Yc8h8,Yh7g8]}) 48... Rg7+ 49. Kh3 $1 {Simplest. The h4-pawn acts as an
umbrella for the king.} ({The courageous} 49. Kh5 {is also possible, for if}
Rh8 {, then} 50. Rxf6 Kg8+ 51. Rh6 $18) 49... Rf7 50. a6 $16 {[%cal Yb5b7]}
Rcc7 51. Rb8 $18) 47... Kh6 48. Rd6 Rc6 49. Re6 ({Grischuk intends to clear
the f5-square for his king. This plan will be crowned by success only after
Gelfand's mistake on the 53rd move.} 49. Rd2 $5 {would have maintained the
tension.}) 49... Rxe6 50. fxe6 Re8 51. Rb7 Rxe6 52. Rxa7 Rd6 53. a6 $2 {
The same mistake, with the difference that here it lets White's advantage slip
away.} (53. Kg4 $1 Kg6 54. Ra8 {Black is helpless against the advance of the
a-pawn to a7.} Rd4 {This counterplay will fail by just one tempo.} ({Passive
defence would not save the game:} 54... Rc6 55. a6 Kg7 56. a7 Ra6 57. Kxh4 Ra1
58. Kg4 Ra6 59. h4 Ra1 60. h5 Ra2 61. h6+ Kh7 62. Kf5 Ra6 63. Re8 $1 Rxa7 64.
Kxf6 $1 $18) 55. a6 Rxe4+ 56. Kf3 Rf4+ 57. Ke3 Kf5 58. Rg8 $1 (58. a7 $2 Re4+
59. Kf3 Rf4+ $11 60. Kg2 $2 Rg4+ 61. Kh3 Rg7 $17) 58... Re4+ 59. Kf3 Rf4+ 60.
Kg2 $18) 53... h3 $2 ({Gelfand had been under constant pressure for a long
time and, just when he was relatively close to a draw, his nerves finally
cracked. He should have prevented the activation of the enemy king with} 53...
Kg5 {when} 54. Rg7+ Kh6 55. a7 {is not dangerous becauseof} Ra6 56. Rb7 Kg5 {
and White cannot make progress.}) 54. Kg4 Rd3 55. Ra8 Kg7 56. Kf5 Rd6 57. Ra7+
Kh6 58. Rf7 {Offering a simplification to a won pawn ending. Ofreciendo una
simplificación hacía un final de peones ganado.} Rd2 59. a7 Rf2+ 60. Ke6 Ra2
61. Kxf6 {Black is paralyzed and will lose most of his pawns. Las negras están
paralizadas y perderán la mayoría de sus peones.} 1-0

[Event "Excelsior Cup"]
[Site "Gothenburg"]
[Date "2001.??.??"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Kallio, Heikki"]
[Black "Marin, Mihail"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2424"]
[BlackElo "2604"]
[Annotator "Marin,M"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[EventDate "2001.01.08"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "SWE"]
[EventCategory "7"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 081"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2001.03.20"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2001.03.20"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 O-O 5. e4 (5. a3) 5... d5 6. e5 (6. cxd5
exd5 7. e5 Ne8 8. f4 c5 9. Nf3 Nc6 10. Be3 Bg4 (10... Nc7 11. Ke2 Bg4) 11. Be2
Nc7 12. O-O Ne6) 6... Nfd7 7. cxd5 exd5 8. f4 (8. a3 Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 f6 $32) 8...
c5 9. Nf3 Nc6 10. a3 $6 (10. Be3) 10... Ba5 11. Bd3 $2 (11. Be3) 11... cxd4 12.
Bxh7+ Kxh7 13. Ng5+ Qxg5 $1 (13... Kg8 14. Qh5 Nf6 (14... Qxg5 15. Qxg5) 15.
exf6 Bf5 $13) 14. fxg5 dxc3 15. O-O (15. b4 Bb6 16. e6 Nde5 17. exf7 Rxf7 18.
Qh5+ Kg8 19. g6 Nxg6 (19... Nd3+ $19) 20. Qxg6 Bf5 $19) 15... Ndxe5 16. h4 $6 (
16. bxc3 $142 Bb6+ 17. Kh1 Be6 $17) 16... Bg4 (16... d4 17. Rf4 $5) 17. Qxd5
Rad8 18. Qe4+ Kg8 19. bxc3 Rfe8 20. Qc2 Bh5 (20... Bb6+ 21. Kh1 Ng6) 21. Bf4
Nd3 22. Bg3 Bb6+ 23. Kh1 Re3 24. Kh2 Re2 25. Qa4 Nc5 26. Qb5 $6 (26. Qf4 $142
$8 Ne6 (26... Rdd2 27. Rf2) 27. Qf5 Rdd2 28. Qh3 $17) 26... Rdd2 27. Rae1 (27.
Rg1 Ne6) 27... Rxg2+ 28. Kh3 Bc7 $1 (28... Rxg3+ 29. Kxg3 Bc7+ 30. Rf4 Ne6 31.
Rxe6 Bxf4+ (31... fxe6 32. Qxb7) 32. Kxf4 fxe6 33. Qxb7 $17) 29. Re8+ Kh7 30.
g6+ (30. Qb1+ Bg6) (30. Bxc7 Bg4#) (30. Re3 Rh2+ 31. Bxh2 Rxh2#) 30... fxg6 0-1

[Event "GBR-ch 100th"]
[Site "Torquay"]
[Date "2013.08.01"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Gormally, Daniel"]
[Black "Kosten, Anthony C"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2496"]
[BlackElo "2458"]
[Annotator "Martin,A"]
[PlyCount "42"]
[EventDate "2013.07.29"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2016"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.10.08"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.10.08"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{The art of defence is often neglected in favour of the study of tactics or of
opening theory. It is never pleasant to have to defend, but we will all be
called upon at some stage to do so. In this coming game Tony Kosten shows
wonderful calm and defensive excellence in beating off a strong attack by
Danny Gormally.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. g3 d5 4. c4 Bb4+ 5. Nc3 dxc4 6. Bg2 Nc6
7. O-O O-O 8. Re1 {There is no immediate prospect of regaining the pawn, so
White readies himself for e2-e4, after which he has compensation in the form
of a big centre.} (8. a3 {is a luxury here:} Be7 9. e4 Na5 $1 10. Qe2 (10. Be3
c5 (10... c6 $1 11. Ne5 Nd7 12. Qg4 Nxe5 13. dxe5 Qc7 14. f4 b6 15. Rad1 Nb3
16. Qe2 Ba6 17. g4 Rad8 $17) 11. dxc5 Nd7 12. Qe2 Bxc5 13. Rad1 Bxe3 14. Qxe3
Qb6 15. Qe2 Nc5 $15 {Korobov,A (2670)-Vocaturo,D (2570)/Moscow 2011}) 10... c6
$1 11. Bf4 b5 {Why surrender the extra pawn?} 12. Rad1 Bb7 13. Ne5 Re8 14. g4
Nd7 15. Nf3 Qb6 16. Rfe1 Rad8 17. e5 Nb3 18. Be3 c5 19. d5 exd5 20. Nxd5 Bxd5
21. Rxd5 Nf8 22. Red1 Ne6 23. Qc2 Nbd4 24. Nxd4 cxd4 25. Bxd4 Nxd4 26. R1xd4
Qxd4 27. Rxd4 Rxd4 28. e6 fxe6 29. Be4 Kh8 30. Bxh7 Rxg4+ 31. Kf1 Rf8 32. Qe2
Rgf4 33. Bc2 Bg5 34. Qh5+ Bh6 35. Qg6 Rxf2+ 36. Kg1 Rxc2 {0-1 Ernst,S (2556)
-Movsesian,S (2688)/Wijk aan Zee 2013}) 8... Rb8 9. e4 b5 10. e5 ({Opening a
queenside file is a transaction likely only to benefit Black:} 10. a4 a6 11.
axb5 axb5 12. Bf4 Na5 $15) 10... Nd5 11. Ng5 h6 (11... Be7 12. Qg4 h6 13. Nge4)
12. Nge4 Be7 13. Qh5 {I am guessing Gormally's theory ran out at this point
and he had to choose between 13.Qh5 and 13.Qg4.} (13. Qg4 {is more pointed:} f5
(13... Kh7 $1 {may be best of all.}) (13... Kh8 $6 14. Qh5 Nxd4 15. Bxh6) 14.
Qg6 $1 Qe8 (14... Ndb4 15. Bxh6 Rf7) 15. Nf6+ (15. Qxe8 Rxe8 16. Nxd5 fxe4 (
16... exd5 17. Nf6+) 17. Bxe4 Nxd4 18. Nxc7 (18. Nxe7+ Rxe7 19. Be3 c5) 18...
Rd8) 15... Nxf6 16. Qxe8 Nxe8 17. Bxc6 a6 18. d5 $13) 13... Nxd4 $1 14. Bxh6 {
The main point of putting the queen on h5 had to be this sacrifice. It looks
very frightening, but Kosten is able to cover all the squares.} ({The
alternative} 14. Rd1 {was unconvincing:} c5 15. Nd6 Bxd6 16. exd6 Re8 17. Nxd5
exd5 18. Qxd5 Rb6 $17) 14... gxh6 15. Rad1 {After long thought.} (15. Qxh6 {
is repelled by} Nf5 16. Qh5 b4 $1 {and White cannot break through:} 17. Qg4+ (
17. Ne2 Ng7 18. Qh6 Re8 19. g4 Rb6 20. Rad1 a5 21. N2g3 Bd7 22. Nh5 Nxh5 23.
gxh5 Bf8) 17... Ng7 18. Nd1 Rb5 $1) 15... c5 {Just by strengthening his
central position, Black indicates that he does not think that White is able to
commit enough resources quickly enough to justify his sacrifice. He is right!}
16. Rxd4 (16. Qxh6 {is again met comfortably by} Nf5 17. Qh5 Ng7 18. Qf3 Bb7
19. Nxb5 Bc6 20. Na3 Rxb2 21. Nxc4 Rb4 22. Rc1 Nb6 23. Nf6+ Bxf6 24. Qxc6 Rxc4
$17) 16... cxd4 17. Qxh6 Re8 $1 {Simple, effective and calm. Black vacates f8
both for defence and the possible evacuation of his king.} 18. Nd6 {There
seems to be no way to finish the attack.} (18. Nf6+ Bxf6 19. Re4 {is met
cold-bloodedly by} Bg5 $3 20. Rg4 dxc3 21. Rxg5+ Qxg5 22. Qxg5+ Kf8 {and Black
remains with the advantage:} 23. Bxd5 (23. Qh6+ Ke7 24. bxc3 Bb7 25. Qh4+ Kd7)
23... cxb2 $1 24. Qh6+ Ke7 25. Qf6+ Kd7 26. Qxf7+ Kd8 27. Be4 Rb7 28. Qf6+ Rbe7
29. h4 Kc7 $17) (18. Nxd5 exd5 19. Nf6+ Bxf6 $19) 18... Bf8 $1 19. Qh5 (19. Qh3
Bxd6) 19... Bxd6 20. Re4 (20. exd6 dxc3 {seems winning for Black:} 21. Bxd5 Qf6
$1 (21... cxb2 22. Bc6 Qf6 $1 23. Bxe8 c3 24. Bxf7+ Qxf7 25. Qg5+ Qg7 26. Qd8+
Kh7 27. Qh4+ Kg6 28. Qg4+ Kf7 29. Qh5+ Qg6) 22. Bc6 cxb2 23. Bxe8 c3) 20...
Bxe5 $1 {A final twist.} 21. Rxe5 (21. Nxd5 Bg7 22. Rg4 (22. Nb4 Bb7 23. Rf4 f5
) 22... exd5) (21. Qxe5 dxc3 22. Rg4+ Kf8 $19) 21... dxc3 {Gormally resigned,
seeing 22.Rg5+ Kf8 23.Bxd5 cxb2 24.Be4 Bb7 25.Bh7 Qd2!  Fine defence!} 0-1

[Event "EU-ch 10th"]
[Site "Budva"]
[Date "2009.03.11"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Cheparinov, Ivan"]
[Black "Meier, Georg"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2679"]
[BlackElo "2608"]
[Annotator "Meier,Georg"]
[PlyCount "109"]
[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"]

{Ich freute mich auf die Partie gegen Cheparinov, da ich die Chance hatte,
mein erstes "Mini-Match" gegen einen Top-GM für mich zu entscheiden (Dabei ist
es erst das 2.te; gegen Mickey Adams ging es 1:1 aus :) ) Bei der Olympiade
war ich mit Weiß in Führung gegangen und erwartete voller Neugier was mich bei
Ivans Aufschlag erwarten würde.} 1. d4 e6 {Vielleicht lieber doch Französisch?}
2. c4 {Nein!} Nf6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 ({Mit} 5... Nc6 6. Bg2 Ne4 7.
Bd2 Bxc3 8. bxc3 O-O {geriet ich 2 Jahre vorher in Schwierigkeiten.} 9. Be3 $1
cxd4 10. Nxd4 d5 11. Qc2 Qa5 12. O-O Qxc3 13. Bxe4 Nxd4 14. Bxd4 Qxd4 15. cxd5
exd5 16. Bxh7+ Kh8 17. Rfd1 Qe5 18. Bd3 $16 {1-0 Kacheishvili,G (2587)-Meier,G
(2506)/Dresden 2007/CBM 118 (45)}) 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3
Nc6 10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. O-O {Ich hatte die Entwicklungen in der Hauptvariante
nur oberflächlich verfolgt, den ich erwartete nicht allzu bald mit dem
g3-System konfrontiert zu werden. Ohne gezielte Vorbereitung ist es sicherlich
keine gute Idee, sich mit Cheparinov auf ein prinzipielles Eröffnungsduell
einzulassen, also entschied ich mich, eine Nebenvariante auszuprobieren.} Rb8
$5 (11... Qa5 12. Bd2 Bxc3 13. bxc3 Ba6 14. Rfd1 Qc5 15. e4 Bc4 16. Qa4 Nb6 17.
Qb4 Qh5 {Wird hier für gewöhnlich runtergespult. Nach der Stamm-Partie aus dem
WM-Match ist nun} 18. Re1 {in Mode} c5 19. Qa5 Rfc8 20. Be3 Be2 21. Bf4 e5 22.
Be3 Bg4 23. Qa6 f6 24. a4 Qf7 25. Bf1 Be6 26. Rab1 c4 27. a5 Na4 28. Rb7 Qe8
29. Qd6 {1-0 Kramnik,V (2772)-Anand,V (2783)/Bonn 2008/CB45}) 12. Na4 Ba6 (
12... Bd6 13. Qc2 Be5 14. a3 Qf6 15. Rb1 Rd8 16. Bd2 Bd7 17. b4 Be8 18. Nc5 $16
{1-0 Lautier,J (2682)-Cheparinov,I (2635)/Turin 2006/CBM 113 (61)}) 13. Qc2 Bb5
14. a3 Be7 15. Bf3 {Erst nach der Partie fiel mir auf, dass Lautier diese Idee
zu seiner Partie gegen Ivan im Informator preisgegeben und die Stellung mit +/
= bewertet hatte!} (15. Rd1 $6 Qa5 16. Nc5 $140 Bxe2) 15... e5 $1 {Einfach und
stark! Gegen f7-f5 nebst e4 kann sich Weiß nicht wehren.} ({Die Idee von Lf3
wird nach} 15... Qa5 16. Nc5 Bxe2 17. b4 {ersichtlich.}) 16. Rd1 (16. Nc3 Bc4
17. Qa4 Bb3 18. Qxa7 f5 $44) 16... Qa5 17. b3 f5 18. Bb2 (18. Bd2 Qa6 19. Bb4
Bxb4 20. axb4 e4) 18... e4 19. Bg2 {Der Bg2 ist nun für eine Weile vom Spiel
ausgeschlossen. Dass ich die übrigen weißen Leichtfiguren abtauschen sollte,
um die Oberhand am Damenflügel zu gewinnen, war klar, allerdings fand ich
nicht die richtige Ausführung.} Bxa4 $6 {Ursache der fehlerhaften
Abtausch-Kombi war ein Rechenfehler.} ({Nach} 19... Bf6 $142 20. Bxf6 Bxa4 $1
21. bxa4 Rxf6 {hätte Schwarz die angenehmere Stellung.}) 20. bxa4 Rxb2 $2 (
20... Bf6 21. Qxc6 Ne3 $1 22. Qe6+ Kh8 23. Bxf6 Nxd1 (23... Rxf6 24. Rdb1) 24.
Bxg7+ Kxg7 25. Rxd1 Rb7) 21. Qxb2 Bf6 22. Qc2 Bxa1 23. Qxc6 Nb6 (23... Nc3 24.
Qc4+ {Dieses Zwischenschach hatte ich übersehen und deshalb Dxc6 kaum beachtet!
}) 24. Qe6+ Kh8 25. Qe7 Kg8 26. Qe6+ Kh8 27. Qe7 Kg8 28. Rxa1 Qxa4 {Nachdem
die Stütze des Springers verloren gegangen ist, verbleibt Schwarz mit der
langfristig schlechteren Leichtfigur und einem offenen König. Das geringe
verbliebene Material verspricht Schwarz dennoch gute Remischancen.} 29. Rc1 Rf7
30. Qd8+ Rf8 31. Qd6 Rf6 32. Qd8+ Rf8 33. Qe7 Rf7 34. Qc5 Rf8 35. Qe5 Rf7 36.
g4 $2 {Diese Liquidierung kam mir sehr entgegen. Weiß sollte lieber die
Stellung stabilisieren und dann allmählich seinen Läufer aktivieren. Schon bei
der Olympiade kam mir diese Schwäche in Cheparinovs Spiel zugute: Er strebt
auch dann zuweilen kompromisslos nach Aktivität, wenn es seine Stellung
überhaupt nicht erfordert!} ({Ein Kramnik, Leko oder Karpov würde zweifellos} 
36. Qb2 $1 Rd7 37. e3 $14 {spielen.}) 36... Qxa3 37. Rc5 Qa2 $1 {Mit ein paar
genauen Zügen gleicht Schwarz aus.} 38. gxf5 Qxe2 39. Qxe4 Re7 $1 {Mit
Remisangebot...} (39... Qxe4 40. Bxe4 Re7 41. f3 {Ist zwar auch nicht
vorteilhaft für Weiß, würde aber den Bauernabtausch erschweren und die Partie
wohl unnötig verlängern.}) 40. Qxe2 Rxe2 41. Bf3 Re7 42. Kg2 Kf7 43. Kg3 g6 44.
fxg6+ hxg6 45. Kf4 Kg7 46. Be4 Nd7 47. Rg5 Nf8 48. Ke3 Kf6 49. Ra5 Kg7 50. Kf4
Nh7 51. h4 Rf7+ 52. Kg3 Nf6 53. Bf3 Kh6 54. Ra6 Nh5+ 55. Bxh5 {In Sofia macht
man eben 16 Züge mehr als in Deutschland...!} 1/2-1/2

[Event "BRA-ch 80th"]
[Site "Joao Pessoa"]
[Date "2013.12.21"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Macedo, Maximo Iack Miranda"]
[Black "Mekhitarian, Krikor Sevag"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2369"]
[BlackElo "2566"]
[Annotator "Mekhitarian,K"]
[PlyCount "52"]
[EventDate "2013.12.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "BRA"]
[EventCategory "7"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 158"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.01.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.01.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 $5 {A very ambitious way to fight the
Nimzo-Indian. This leads to double-edged positions, and is suited for players
looking for unbalanced positions. GM Volkov has been fond of this line for
many years (and 161 games according to my database, that's a lot!).} c5 $5 {
Going with the flow, I choose a very challenging line, based on a P sacrifice
on move 8 that I had checked for a short time before the game, but it felt
consistent to me.} 5. d5 d6 6. e4 O-O 7. Bd3 b5 8. Nge2 Nbd7 $5 (8... bxc4 $5 {
was possible as well} 9. Bxc4 exd5 10. Bxd5 Nxd5 11. Qxd5 Qb6 $1 12. O-O (12.
Qxa8 $2 Bb7 $19) 12... Nc6 13. Be3 Rd8 {with Be6 next, again into an
unbalanced position. 8...Nbd7 is riskier, but keeps things way more tense.}) 9.
dxe6 fxe6 10. cxb5 d5 $44 {This reminded me of some sort of Blumenfeld
structure, where Black plays for positional compensation, and a 'movable'
centre.} 11. O-O Bb7 12. exd5 $5 {A correct decision, I think. The e-file is
now open for Black, but White also gets space for some of his pieces as well.}
exd5 13. Nf4 Re8 14. Bf5 Nf8 $6 {Looks logical, controlling the counterplay,
but not the most vigorous.} (14... Ne5 $1 {this was the alternative I
considered for a while. After all, it the correct way to deal with the
position, with strong active ideas} 15. Be6+ (15. Ne6 Qd6 16. Bf4 Rxe6 17.
Bxe6+ Qxe6 18. Re1 Ne4 $5 (18... Nxf3+ $5) 19. fxe4 d4 $13) 15... Kh8 16. Bxd5
Nxd5 17. Ncxd5 (17. Nfxd5 Bxc3 18. Nxc3 Nd3 $44) 17... Ba5 $44 {with a very
rich position, Black maintains a strong compensation, even being 2 Ps down -
g5 right now is threatened. For example:} 18. Ne3 c4 $5 (18... Qb6 $5 {Rad8 to
come})) 15. Kh1 (15. Nd3 $1 {had me really worried during the game. I just
realized this after playing 14...Nf8. I didn't know exactly what to do} Bc8 {
was a possible idea, developing the a8-R and wanting to get the P back on b5
at some point. Things now become very delicate, and Black is able to try and
hold the balance with perfect play:} 16. Bxc8 Rxc8 17. Bg5 $1 Bxc3 18. bxc3 Ne6
19. Bxf6 $2 (19. Bh4 $1 c4 20. Nb4 d4 $1 21. Nc6 Qb6 22. cxd4 (22. Nxd4 $2 Nd5
$1 $36) (22. Bxf6 gxf6 23. cxd4 Nxd4 24. Qxd4 Rxc6 25. Qxb6 Rxb6 26. a4 a6 $14
{with huge drawing chances}) 22... Nd5 23. Re1 (23. a4 Ne3 24. Qd2 Nxf1 25.
Rxf1 a6 $1 $13) (23. Bf2 a6 24. a4 Nef4 $1 $44 {Nd3 next}) 23... a6 24. a4 axb5
25. axb5 Nc3 26. Qd2 Nxb5 27. Ne7+ Rxe7 28. Bxe7 c3 29. Qe3 Qxd4 {with good
chances to hold once again}) 19... Qxf6 $44) 15... Ba5 16. Qc2 g6 17. Bh3 {
For each move, there are many possibilities. For example:} c4 (17... Qd6 $5 {
now Bc7 with mating ideas on h2, as well as simply bringing Rad8, or even Bc8.
Specially in this case, after a possible Bxc8 Raxc8, White has to be watching
d4 seriously, because Na4 attacking c5 won't be an option anymore.}) (17... a6
$5) 18. Na4 (18. Bd2 $5 {trying to develop slowly. I had this crazy idea
during the game, apparently it kind of works} g5 19. Nfe2 g4 $1 20. fxg4 d4 $1
$36 {and who knows what's going on here?}) 18... Qd6 (18... Bc8 $1 {getting
the R on c8 is very important, so d4 becomes possible} 19. Bxc8 Rxc8 20. Bd2
Bc7 $44) 19. Ne2 {This makes sense, trying to blockade on d4, and also
bringing the B out to g5 (not to Bf4 because of ...Rxe2!).} (19. Bd2 $1 Bxd2
20. Qxd2 d4 $44 {was my idea during the game. With Rad8 next.}) 19... Rad8 $6 (
19... N8d7 $1 {this was very important, trying to bring it to e5, and
specially to avoid Bg5:} 20. Bg5 $2 Qe5 $1 {This was my idea also with 19...
Rad8, but in that case, after 20.Bg5 Qe5, 21.f4! is good for White, since the
f6-N is hanging} 21. Bxf6 Nxf6 {and without the dark-squared B, the
compensation becomes much bigger} 22. Ng3 Bc8 23. Bxc8 Raxc8 $17 {now simply
d4 is coming, and White is in bad shape.}) 20. Nac3 $2 (20. Bg5 $1 Qe5 $2 (
20... N8d7 {would have to be played, and now, under worse circumstances} 21.
Ng3 $14 {with Rad1 next, White is regrouping slowly, and thinks about soon
consolidating his material advantage. Naturally, there is still play, but it's
much more comfortable than before}) 21. f4 $1 Qxe2 22. Qxe2 Rxe2 23. Bxf6 Rde8
24. Rad1 $16 {now after Bd4-Nc3, Black is the one in potential trouble.}) 20...
d4 $17 21. Ne4 Nxe4 22. fxe4 Qc5 {This looks awful for White, but the game
wasn't over yet.} 23. b4 $2 {Now it's over.} (23. Ng3 d3 24. Qa4 $1 d2 25. Qxa5
d1=Q 26. Be3 $1 Qxf1+ 27. Nxf1 Qe5 $17) 23... Bxb4 $19 24. Rxf8+ Rxf8 25. Be6+
Kg7 26. Ng3 d3 {And with this, I was able to catch the silver medal in the
Brazilian Championship. A crazy rollercoaster tournament, where I started with
6.5/7, and lost two very important games in a row with White (9th and 10th
rounds), losing my chances to fight for the title against GM Leitao, and at
the same time, almost letting the 2nd place slip through my fingers. After all,
I was very satisfied to score this very important win.} 0-1

[Event "Metz op 30th"]
[Site "Metz"]
[Date "2012.04.18"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Colovic, Aleksandar"]
[Black "Eingorn, Vereslav S"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2436"]
[BlackElo "2569"]
[Annotator "Metz Alekhine/Primel,D"]
[PlyCount "54"]
[EventDate "2012.04.14"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "FRA"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2013"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.11.22"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.11.22"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 e6 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. c4 Bb4+ 4. Nc3 c5 5. g3 O-O 6. Bg2 cxd4 7. Nxd4 d5 8.
cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Bc5 (9... Qa5 {Plus courant}) (9... Qb6 10. Bxd5 exd5 11. Be3
Nc6 12. Nxc6 Qxc6 13. Qxb4 d4 14. f3 dxe3 15. O-O Be6 16. Rfd1 Rad8 17. Qa5 b6
18. Qxa7 Rd2 19. Rxd2 exd2 20. Qe7 Bxa2 21. Qe3 Re8 22. Qxd2 Qc5+ 23. Kg2 Bc4
24. Ne4 Qe7 25. Qd6 Qb7 26. Re1 h6 27. Kf2 Bd5 28. Nc3 Bc4 29. Ra1 Rc8 30. g4
Re8 31. h4 b5 32. b4 Qc8 33. Ra7 Rd8 34. Qb6 Re8 35. Qd6 Rd8 36. Qe7 Rd2 37.
Qe4 Rd8 38. Qe5 Qc6 39. Rc7 {Vitiugov,N (2694)-Georgiev,K (2643) Caleta 2013
1-0 (77)}) 10. Nc2 Nc6 $146 (10... Nxc3 11. Qxc3 Qb6 12. Be3 Na6 13. Rd1 Rb8
14. O-O Bxe3 15. Nxe3 f6 16. a3 Rf7 17. b4 Bd7 18. Nc4 Qc7 19. Qb3 Re7 20. Rc1
Rc8 21. Qe3 Qb8 22. Na5 Rxc1 23. Rxc1 b6 24. Nc6 Bxc6 25. Rxc6 Nc7 26. Qd3 Qe8
27. Rd6 Qg6 28. Be4 f5 29. Rd8+ Kf7 30. Bc6 Qf6 31. Kg2 h6 32. e4 Qe5 33. f4
Qb2+ 34. Kh3 Qc1 35. Rd6 g6 36. exf5 gxf5 37. Bf3 Qb2 38. Bh5+ Kg7 39. Rd4 Nd5
40. Bf3 {Rambaldi,F (2308)-Kovacevic,A (2560) Geneve 2012 1/2-1/2}) 11. Nxd5
exd5 12. Qxd5 Qa5+ 13. Qd2 Qa6 14. O-O Rd8 15. Qc3 Bd4 16. Nxd4 Nxd4 17. Qc7
Nxe2+ 18. Kh1 Be6 19. Be3 Rd7 20. Qe5 Rad8 21. a3 Nd4 22. Rad1 Nc6 23. Rxd7
Rxd7 24. Qc3 Rd3 25. Qc5 Bd5 26. Rc1 Bxg2+ 27. Kxg2 h6 1/2-1/2

[Event "World Women-ch k.o."]
[Site "Teheran"]
[Date "2017.02.11"]
[Round "1.1"]
[White "Zhukova, Natalia"]
[Black "Khurtsidze, Nino"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2447"]
[BlackElo "2383"]
[Annotator "Mikhalchishin,A"]
[PlyCount "62"]
[EventDate "2017.02.11"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "IRI"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 177"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2017.03.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2017.03.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[TimeControl "6000+1365"]
[WhiteClock "0:00:49"]
[BlackClock "0:43:15"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. a3 Bd6 $5 ({In my opinion the old
way is better} 5... Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 b6) 6. e4 dxe4 7. fxe4 e5 8. d5 b5 $5 {
A sharp way, but simpler methods are possible:} (8... c6 9. Nf3 cxd5 10. cxd5
Bg4 11. h3 Bxf3 12. Bb5+ Nfd7 13. Qxf3 O-O 14. O-O a6 15. Bd3 b5 16. a4 bxa4
17. Nxa4 {Yakovich,Y (2566)-Zvjaginsev,V (2663)/Novokuznetsk 2008/CBM 126 (50),
with clearly better play.}) (8... O-O 9. Nf3 Bg4 10. h3 Bh5 11. Bd3 Bc5 12. g4
Bg6 13. Bc2 Re8 14. Bg5 h6 15. Bh4 c6 16. b4 Be7 17. O-O a5 18. Nxe5 axb4 19.
Nxg6 fxg6 20. e5 Nfd7 21. Bxe7 Qxe7 22. Bxg6 bxc3 23. Bxe8 Qxe8 24. e6 Nf6 {
Mamedyarov,S (2764)-Karjakin,S (2767)/Tashkent 2014, with very sharp play.}) 9.
Nf3 ({Possible is of course} 9. cxb5) 9... bxc4 10. Bxc4 O-O 11. Bg5 h6 12. Bh4
Bg4 13. h3 Bh5 14. g4 $5 ({A much safer and logical choice is} 14. O-O Nbd7 15.
Qe2) 14... Bg6 15. Qe2 Nbd7 16. Rg1 ({Once more safer} 16. O-O {would be safer.
}) 16... Qb8 17. Bb5 ({Still it was necessary to care about her own king:} 17.
O-O-O) 17... Qb6 (17... Bc5 {was stronger:} 18. g5 hxg5 19. Rxg5 Bd4) 18. Kf1 (
{A good option was} 18. Na4 Qb8 19. g5) 18... Rab8 (18... Bc5 19. Rg2 Bd4) 19.
Nd2 a6 $2 ({Once more} 19... Bc5 {would be better.}) 20. Nc4 Qa7 21. Nxd6 $2 ({
It was necessary to block fully her opponent's counterplay with} 21. Bxd7 $1
Nxd7 22. b4) 21... cxd6 22. Bf2 (22. Bd3 {was safer:} Rfc8 23. Bf2 Qa8 24. Rg2)
22... Qb7 23. Bxa6 Qxb2 24. Qxb2 Rxb2 25. Re1 Ra8 {And suddenly the endgame is
totally lost for White - all pieces and the king are in the wrong places!} 26.
Bb5 Rxa3 27. Bxd7 Rxc3 28. Bf5 Bxf5 29. gxf5 Rxh3 30. Bg3 Rb3 31. Bf2 Rhf3 0-1

[Event "Montreal-B 5th"]
[Site "Montreal"]
[Date "2004.08.12"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Mikhalevski, Victor"]
[Black "Divljan, Igor"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2551"]
[BlackElo "2317"]
[Annotator "Mikhalevski,V"]
[PlyCount "83"]
[EventDate "2004.08.04"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "CAN"]
[EventCategory "8"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 101 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.09.01"]
[SourceVersion "2"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.09.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 dxc4 5. Nf3 Nc6 6. O-O (6. Qa4 {is the main
move.}) 6... Rb8 7. Nc3 Bb4 {Now we get a mix of Nimzo-Indian with Catalan.} 8.
e3 {[%cal Gd1e2,Gf1d1] Sometimes a similar idea takes place without including
Nc3 and Bb4.} O-O 9. Qe2 b5 10. Rd1 {[%cal Ge3e4]} Nd5 11. Bd2 Be7 $1 12. e4 (
12. a3 $6 {doesn't look good as it weakens the b3-square.} a6 13. e4 Nb6 14. d5
exd5 15. exd5 Nxd5 16. Nxd5 Qxd5 17. Ng5 Qe5 $17 {0-1 Piven,I-Dokhoian,Y/
Cuxhaven 1993/EXT 97 (33)}) 12... Nxc3 (12... Ndb4 $5 {deserved serious
attention.} 13. d5 (13. Be3 Nd3 {1/2-1/2 Van Laatum,G-Lalic,B/Hastings 1998/
EXT 2000 (13).}) 13... exd5 14. exd5 Nxd5 15. Ne1 $1 ({Playing 12.e4 I missed
that after} 15. Nxd5 Qxd5 16. Ne1 {[%csl Rc6,Re7][%cal Gg2c6] Black saves a
piece with} Qe5 $1 {[%csl Re2]}) 15... Nd4 (15... Nxc3 $2 {loses a piece to}
16. Bxc3 Qe8 17. Bxc6 Qxc6 18. Qxe7) 16. Qe5 $1 Nb4 17. Bf4 {[%csl Rc7,Rd4]}
Nd3 18. Nxd3 cxd3 19. Qxc7 Qxc7 20. Bxc7 Bf5 21. Bxb8 Rxb8 $44 {with
sufficient compensation for the sacrificed exchange.}) 13. bxc3 Na5 $1 {
[%cal Gc7c5] Black prepares a typical for these positions advance c5.} 14. h4
$5 {I've decided to launch an attack on the kingside considering it to be the
only reasonable plan.} ({I didn't like} 14. Bf4 {in view of} Bd6 $5) ({
Including} 14. Rab1 a6 {deserved some attention.}) 14... Bb7 15. Ng5 $5 {
[%cal Ge2h5] Provoking weakening of the kingside.} ({And again} 15. Rab1 a6 {
could be included.}) 15... h6 16. Nh3 {[%cal Gh3f4,Gf4h5] Now I want to bring
the knight to h5 to create some threats to the black king.} c5 $5 17. dxc5 $6 {
An optimistic move which could cost me a pawn.} ({It was better to start with} 
17. Bf4 {taking control over the important b8-h2-diagonal and winning back the
c-pawn.} Rc8 18. dxc5 Qe8 19. Bd6 $13) 17... Qc8 $2 {Black justifies my
previous move and obtains a worse version of 17.Bf4.} ({I've overestimated my
attacking potential after} 17... Qc7 18. Nf4 Bxc5 19. Nh5 {Simple} Kh7 {
with the idea} 20. Qg4 $140 f5) 18. Bf4 Ra8 $6 ({An exchange sacrifice with} 
18... Bxc5 $5 {deserved serious attention.} {For example} 19. Bxb8 Qxb8 20. e5
$1 (20. Nf4 Qe5 {[%csl Rc3,Rg2][%cal Ge5c3]}) 20... Bxg2 21. Kxg2 Nc6 $1 22.
Re1 $1 (22. f4 $2 {allows the knight to get to d5.} Ne7 $1 {[%csl Rc3,Re3]
[%cal Ge7d5]})) 19. Bd6 {Now White keeps an extra pawn.} Bxd6 $2 {Another bad
move. Now White gets a strong pawn on d6.} ({Black had to protect the bishop
either by means of} 19... Qe8) ({or} 19... Re8) 20. cxd6 {[%csl Gd6]} e5 {
It looks logical to disconnect the pawns, but now an important a7-g1 diagonal
will be in White's hands.} ({From the other hand in case of} 20... Qc5 {
Black would have to face} 21. e5 Bxg2 22. Kxg2 Nc6 23. f4) 21. Qe3 $1 $14 {
[%cal Gd1d2,Gf2f4]} Qc6 ({Black could try to bring the light-squared bishop to
d7.} 21... Bc6 $5 {[%cal Gc6d7]}) 22. Rd5 $1 {[%cal Ga1d1] Suddenly White
obtains a good square for the rook.} Rfd8 23. Rad1 f6 24. f4 $1 ({White has no
time for attack on the kingside by means of} 24. g4 $6 {in view of} Qd7 $1 {
[%csl Rd5,Rg4]}) 24... Qa6 25. R5d2 {[%cal Gh3f2]} (25. Rc5 {was possible, but
I wasn't sure whether my rook is great on c5...} Qb6 $1 ({Other moves are
worse.} 25... Rxd6 $2 26. Rxd6 Qxd6 27. Rxb5 Qc7 28. Qc5 $1) (25... Bc6 $2 {
[%cal Ga5b7]} 26. fxe5 $1 Nb7 27. Rxc6 $1 Qxc6 28. exf6 Rxd6 29. Rxd6 Qxd6 30.
e5 Qc7 31. Bd5+ Kh8 32. f7 $18) 26. fxe5 fxe5 27. Nf2 $13) 25... Qb6 {Black
trades the queens and hopes to obtain counterplay on the queenside.} 26. Qxb6
axb6 27. Nf2 ({White could start with} 27. fxe5 $5 {and only after} fxe5 28.
Nf2 {[%cal Gf2g4]}) 27... b4 $5 {This interesting temporary pawn sacrifice
allows Black to get the d4-square for the knight.} ({In case of} 27... Nc6 $5 {
[%cal Gb5b4] I would prevent b4 with} 28. Bf1 $1) 28. cxb4 Nc6 29. fxe5 $1 fxe5
30. Bf1 $1 {Just in time. Otherwise the c-pawn supported by the knight from d4
could become a real strength.} b5 $2 {Black underestimates an exchange
sacrifice.} ({After correct} 30... c3 $1 {White would be only slightly better.}
31. Rc2 Ra3 $1 (31... Nxb4 $143 32. Rxc3 Nxa2 33. Rc7 $1 Ba6 34. Bh3 $1 $16 {
with a clear positional advantage.}) 32. Rdc1 Rxd6 33. Rxc3 Rxc3 34. Rxc3 Nxb4
35. Rc7 $14) 31. Rd5 $1 Nd4 (31... Ba6 $5 {was worth trying.} 32. a3 $1 {
[%cal Gf2g4]} ({Not so clear} 32. a4 Nxb4 33. Rxe5 (33. axb5 $2 Nxd5 34. Bxc4
Bb7 35. Bxd5+ Bxd5 36. Rxd5 Ra1+ $1 37. Kg2 Ra2 {is ok for Black.}) 33... bxa4
34. Ra5 c3 35. Rxa4 Bxf1 36. Rxb4 Be2 37. Re1 $1 c2 38. Rc1 Rxd6 39. Rxc2 $14)
32... h5 $1) 32. R1xd4 $1 {I've prepared a double exchange sacrifice which as
it turned out was a complete surprise for my opponent.} ({I also had another
interesting idea.} 32. Rxb5 $5 Nxb5 33. Bxc4+ Kf8 34. Bxb5 Ra3 (34... Rxa2 35.
Ng4 {[%cal Gd1f1,Gb5c4]}) 35. Kf1 Rxa2 36. Ng4 $36) 32... exd4 33. Rxb5 Ba6 (
33... d3 $2 {doesn't promise sufficient counterplay.} 34. Rxb7 Rxd6 35. Rc7
Rxa2 36. Rxc4 d2 ({or} 36... Ra1 37. Kg2 d2 38. Be2 {[%cal Gf2d1]} Re1 39. Bd1
$18) 37. Nd1 Ra1 38. Be2 $18) 34. Bxc4+ $1 {I didn't have much time to
hesitate!} (34. Ra5 d3 35. e5 $13 {was completely unclear.}) 34... Kh8 35. e5
$1 {Pawns are soul of the game!} ({Of course not} 35. Rc5 $2 Bxc4 36. Rxc4 Rxd6
) 35... Bxb5 (35... Rac8 {is worse} 36. Bd3 $1 Bxb5 37. Bxb5 $18) 36. Bxb5 Rxa2
37. Ne4 $5 {[%cal Ge5e6] Now Black had to solve complicated problems being in
the time-trouble.} ({I was afraid that it will be difficult to win the endgame
which arises after} 37. e6 Rxd6 38. e7 Ra8 39. e8=Q+ Rxe8 40. Bxe8 d3 41. b5 d2
42. Bh5 Rb6 43. Be2 Re6 $44 {and it's not so easy for White to make progress.
nevertheless it was worth trying.}) 37... Rb8 $2 $138 {A serious mistake.
Black fails to find the only move which promised chances for escape.} (37...
Ra1+ $1 38. Kf2 (38. Kg2 Re1) 38... Ra2+ 39. Ke1 {leads to a slightly better
for White endgame.} (39. Kf3 Ra3+ 40. Kg4 (40. Kf4 Rf8+ 41. Kg4 Re3 42. Bc6 d3
43. e6 (43. d7 $2 Rd8 44. e6 (44. Kf5 Rxe4 45. Kxe4 d2 46. Ba4 Rxd7) 44... d2
45. Nxd2 Rxe6 46. b5 Rd6 47. Ne4 R6xd7 $17) 43... d2 $1 {and Black doesn't run
risks.}) 40... Re3 41. Bc6 d3) 39... Rb2 40. e6 Ra8 $1 41. Nd2 Rxb4 42. Bc6 Rb6
$1 43. Bxa8 Rxd6 44. Ke2 Rxe6+ 45. Be4 $14 {And I'm not sure whether it's
possible to win the position.}) 38. e6 $1 {Only now Black realized that the
bishop is untouchable.} Ra1+ 39. Kf2 Kg8 $6 ({Doesn't help} 39... Ra2+ 40. Kf3
(40. Ke1 $5 Ra1+ 41. Kd2 Ra2+ 42. Kd3 Ra3+ 43. Kc4 $1 (43. Kxd4 Rxb5 44. d7
Rxb4+ 45. Kc5 Rxe4 46. d8=Q+ Kh7 47. e7 Rae3)) 40... Ra3+ 41. Kf4 Rxb5 42. d7
Rb8 43. e7 Raa8 44. Nd6 $18 {[%cal Ge7e8] and each pawn worth a rook.}) 40. d7
$1 $138 Kf8 41. Nd6 $1 $18 {[%cal Gd6c8,Gd6f5] It turns out that Black can't
prevent both Nc8 and Nf5 and the pawns are unstoppable. Tarrash would be happy
to see that his ideas still work.} Ra2+ 42. Ke1 $1 (42. Ke1 $1 Raa8 (42... Ra1+
43. Kd2 Ra2+ 44. Kd3 Ra3+ 45. Kxd4) (42... Ke7 43. Nc8+ Kd8 44. e7+) 43. Nf5 $1
$18 {[%cal Ge6e7,Ge7e8]}) 1-0

[Event "EU-ch 2nd"]
[Site "Ohrid"]
[Date "2001.06.02"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Milov, Vadim"]
[Black "Zelcic, Robert"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2605"]
[BlackElo "2503"]
[Annotator "Milov,V"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "2001.06.01"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "YUG"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 084"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2001.09.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2001.09.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 b6 5. f3 c5 6. d5 O-O 7. e4 d6 8. Nge2 b5
9. Nf4 $1 e5 10. Nfe2 bxc4 11. Ng3 Ne8 (11... Ba6 12. Bg5 $1 h6 13. Be3 {
-53/521}) 12. Bxc4 f5 13. exf5 (13. O-O $2 f4 $15) 13... Qh4 14. Qe2 Bxc3+ 15.
bxc3 Bxf5 16. O-O Bg6 17. Bd3 $14 Bxd3 18. Qxd3 Nd7 19. Ne4 h6 (19... Ndf6 20.
Bg5 Qh5 21. Bxf6 gxf6 (21... Nxf6 22. Nxd6 Rad8 23. Ne4 Nxd5 24. Rad1 $16) 22.
Ng3 (22. f4 $5) 22... Qg6 23. Nf5 $16) 20. Rb1 Ndf6 $6 (20... Nb6 21. c4 (21.
a4 Nxa4 22. Qa6 Nxc3 23. g3 Qh5 24. Nxc3 Rxf3 $13) 21... Qe7 22. a4 Rb8 (22...
Qc7 23. a5 Nd7 24. Bd2 Nef6 25. Ng3 $16) (22... Nxa4 23. Qa3 Qd7 24. Rb5 Nc7
25. Qxa4 Nxb5 26. Qxb5 $16) 23. a5 Nd7 24. Rxb8 Nxb8 25. Bd2 $14) 21. Ng3 $1
$16 Nh5 (21... Rf7 22. Nf5 Qh5 23. c4 $16) 22. Nf5 Qf6 23. g4 Rf7 (23... Nf4 $2
24. Bxf4 exf4 25. Rfe1 Rf7 26. Re6 Qd8 27. Rbe1 $18) 24. f4 $1 Nxf4 25. Bxf4
exf4 26. Rxf4 Nc7 (26... Qg5 27. Rbf1 Kh8 28. h4 Qg6 (28... Qd8 29. c4 $16) 29.
Qe2 $1 Nf6 30. Ne7 Rxe7 (30... Qh7 31. h5) 31. Qxe7 Nxd5 (31... Qd3 32. R4f3
$18) 32. Qb7 Nb6 33. Qe4 $18) 27. Re1 (27. Rbf1 Rff8 (27... Raf8 28. Qe4 $18 {
/\Ne7}) 28. c4 Rae8 29. Qg3 $16) 27... Qg5 $8 (27... Raf8 28. Ne7+ Rxe7 29.
Rxf6 Rxe1+ 30. Kf2 $18) (27... Re8 28. Ne7+) (27... Kh8 28. Ne7 $18) 28. Qf3 {
/\Nh6} (28. Ref1 Kh8 29. h4 Qg6) 28... Kh7 (28... Raf8 29. Ne7+ $18) (28... Kh8
29. h4 Qd8 (29... Qg6 $2 30. Ne7) 30. g5 $1 Qf8 (30... hxg5 31. Qh5+ Kg8 32.
Nh6+ $18) (30... Qg8 31. Ne7 $1 Rxe7 32. Rxe7 Nxd5 33. Rxa7 $3 Rxa7 34. Rf8 $18
) 31. Rf1 Re8 32. c4 Re5 33. Qg4 Ne8 (33... Qc8 34. Nxd6) 34. Kg2 $1 $18) 29.
h4 Qg6 (29... Qf6 30. g5 Qg6 (30... hxg5 31. Qh5+ Kg8 32. Nh6+ $18) 31. Ne7
Rxe7 (31... Rxf4 32. Qxf4 Qd3 33. g6+ Kh8 34. Rf1 Rg8 35. c4 $18) 32. Rxe7 Qb1+
(32... hxg5 33. Rg4 $18) 33. Kg2 Qxa2+ 34. Kh3 Nxd5 35. Qe4+ $18) (29... Qd8
30. g5 $40) 30. Ne7 $1 (30. h5 Qg5) 30... Rxf4 31. Qxf4 Qd3 (31... Qf6 32. Qxf6
gxf6 33. c4 Re8 34. Kf1 $18 {/\Nf5}) 32. c4 $1 {><Nc7} (32. g5 $2 Nxd5 33. g6+
Kh8 34. Nxd5 Qxd5 35. Qf7 Qc6 $8 36. Re7 Rg8 37. Qf4 Rb8 38. Qf7 Rg8 $11) 32...
Qd4+ (32... Re8 33. g5 Qd4+ (33... hxg5 34. hxg5 Qd4+ 35. Kg2 $1 $18) 34. Qxd4
cxd4 35. g6+ Kh8 36. Kf2 (36. c5 $5) 36... d3 37. Nc6 $18) 33. Qxd4 cxd4 34.
Nf5 $18 d3 35. Rd1 (35. Nxd6) 35... Ne8 36. Rxd3 Rc8 37. Re3 Rb8 38. Re6 Nf6
39. g5 Nh5 40. g6+ Kg8 41. Rxd6 1-0

[Event "World Women-ch k.o."]
[Site "Teheran"]
[Date "2017.02.13"]
[Round "1.3"]
[White "Guramishvili, Sopiko"]
[Black "Khademalsharieh, Sarasadat"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2357"]
[BlackElo "2452"]
[Annotator "Moradiabadi,E"]
[PlyCount "61"]
[EventDate "2017.02.11"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "IRI"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 177"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2017.03.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2017.03.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 {This strategy seems to work perfectly ok
for Sopiko. She goes after a clear plan for White while Black needs to know
her plan well and be prepared for White's direct play.} Nc6 {Keres' Idea. Be
sure to look through Kotov-Keres in Budapest Candidates final in 1950.} 5. a3
Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 e5 7. e4 d6 8. Be3 O-O 9. Bd3 b6 10. Ne2 Na5 {White has a great
centre and pair of bishops while Black plans to take quick advantage of
White's queenside weaknesses. One thing is obvious: if Black does not manage
to pressure White's weaknesses, White's extra space and kingside attack will
prevail.} 11. Ng3 Ne8 $2 {I think Sara mixed up two different ideas here. This
move does not make any sense as Black's knight is not going to have any future
on e8.} 12. O-O Ba6 13. Qe2 Qd7 14. f4 c5 (14... Qa4 {Whether she liked it or
not, Sara had to play this move.}) 15. Nf5 exd4 16. cxd4 Nb3 17. Rab1 cxd4 18.
Rxb3 dxe3 19. Qxe3 Qc7 20. Kh1 Qc5 21. Qh3 g6 22. Be2 (22. Qh6 {wins on the
spot.}) 22... Qc7 23. Nh6+ Kg7 24. f5 Qe7 25. Ng4 Qg5 26. Rg3 Qd2 27. Bd3 Rc8
28. Qh4 Bxc4 29. Bxc4 Rxc4 30. fxg6 h6 31. Ne3 {And White's attack prevailed!}
1-0

[Event "World Women-ch k.o."]
[Site "Teheran"]
[Date "2017.02.11"]
[Round "1.1"]
[White "Guramishvili, Sopiko"]
[Black "Khademalsharieh, Sarasadat"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2357"]
[BlackElo "2452"]
[Annotator "Moradiabadi,E"]
[PlyCount "75"]
[EventDate "2017.02.11"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "IRI"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 177"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2017.03.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2017.03.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 $5 {Sopiko, unlike her husband Anish Giri,
plays very uncompromising chess. It'd be a mistake to think of her recent poor
result in Tata Steel 2017 as an indicator of her strength. This move suggests
that she is up to her task to make the most out of her white pieces.} c5 $5 {
Interestingly, Sara is up for the challenge and chooses the most committal and
complicated continuation. When I was her coach long ago, we prepared the much
safer, albeit a bit passive, d5.} 5. d5 O-O 6. e4 d6 {We soon will get a form
of what is known as the Snake Benoni. I have to confess that I personally am
not a fan of this setup.} 7. Nge2 Ba5 {This move has only been played once
before, however it was played between two correspondence chess GMs. That means
that the two parties must have thoroughly analysed it. However, from a human
standpoint, I really cannot understand where Black is heading to with this
move. This is a very difficult position to play as Black. It is not something
I'd pick for an event with such a brutal format, but it seems that Sara is up
to the task.} (7... a6 {Here is a beautiful victory from Aronian in this line
against the current world no. 2 Wesley So.} 8. a4 Ba5 9. Bd2 exd5 10. cxd5 Nh5
11. g3 Nd7 12. Bg2 b5 13. g4 b4 14. Nb1 Qh4+ 15. Kf1 Ne5 16. Be1 Qf6 17. gxh5
Nxf3 18. Bf2 Bg4 19. Qc1 Nd4 20. Nxd4 cxd4 21. e5 dxe5 22. Nd2 Rac8 23. Qb1 b3
24. Nxb3 Bb6 25. a5 Ba7 26. Kg1 Bf5 27. Be4 Qg5+ 28. Kf1 Qf4 {0-1 (28) So,W 
(2779)-Aronian,L (2765) Saint Louis 2015}) 8. Ng3 a6 {Change in plans?} (8...
b5 $5 9. cxb5 exd5 10. exd5 Bb7 11. Bd2 Nxd5 12. Nxd5 Bxd5 13. Bxa5 Qxa5+ 14.
Qd2 Qxd2+ 15. Kxd2 Rd8 16. a4 Nd7 17. h4 Rab8 $132 {1/2-1/2 (60) Papenin,N 
(2687)-Clever,H (2520) ICCF email 2013}) 9. Bf4 $146 exd5 10. cxd5 b5 $6 (10...
Nbd7 {is possible.} 11. Bxd6 $4 Qb6 {and the loss of b2 and winning the knight
on c3 leads to disaster for White.}) 11. Be2 Ne8 12. O-O Nd7 (12... f5 {
is a move which is hard to play but the position calls for it. Although White
is still much better after it.}) 13. Kh1 (13. a4 b4 14. Nb1) 13... Rb8 14. Qc1
Ne5 15. Nd1 (15. a4 b4 16. Nd1 {might have been better.}) 15... Ng6 16. Be3 Qc7
17. f4 f5 18. Nxf5 Bxf5 19. exf5 Ne7 20. g4 Nxd5 (20... h5 21. h3 Nf6 {is
preferred by engines. However, it is hard for a human to voluntarily enter
this position.}) 21. Bf3 $1 {White has an eye on the d5 square.} Qf7 $2 {
The queen does not belong on this square. Black had to remove her knight.} 22.
Nf2 {This knight will land on g5 one way or another.} Nef6 23. Nh3 Nc7 24. Bg1
Qe8 25. Qc2 {White is strategically winning.} Kh8 26. Rad1 Rd8 27. b3 {From
here until the end of the game, slowly but surely, Sopiko Guramishvili
converts her advantage into a full point. Her technique is rather impressive.}
Qf7 28. a3 Bb6 29. Ng5 Qg8 30. Rfe1 Rfe8 31. b4 Rxe1 32. Rxe1 Qf8 33. Qa2 Rd7
34. Bc6 Re7 35. Rxe7 Qxe7 36. Nf7+ Kg8 37. Nxd6+ Kf8 38. Nc8 {Have an look at
their return game!} 1-0

[Event "Chigorin Memorial"]
[Site "St Petersburg"]
[Date "1995.??.??"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Sakaev, Konstantin"]
[Black "Ivanov, Victor L"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2570"]
[BlackElo "2460"]
[Annotator "Nikitin,A"]
[PlyCount "25"]
[EventDate "1995.09.??"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 1997"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1996.11.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1996.11.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 Nh5 $5 6. Nh3 (6. g3 f5 7. e4 O-O
(7... d6 8. exf5 Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 exf5 10. Nh3 O-O 11. Be2 Re8 12. O-O Nd7 13. Qc2
Nf8 14. Bd3 g6 15. Bg5 Qc7 16. Rae1 Bd7 17. Qd2 $14 {Ilinchic,Z-Levin,F/
Belgrade/1992/1-0/33/}) 8. e5 Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 f4 10. Ne2 d6 11. Nxf4 Nxf4 12.
Bxf4 dxe5 13. Bxe5 Nd7 14. Bd6 Re8 15. Bf4 Qf6 16. Kf2 Qxc3 17. Rc1 Qf6 $13 {
Soffer,R-Romanishin,O/Bad Lautenberg/1991/1-0/37/}) 6... f5 (6... Qh4+ 7. Nf2
Qxc4 8. e4 Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 Qxc3+ 10. Bd2 Qd4 11. Qc1 exd5 12. Bc3 Qa4 13. Qg5 O-O
14. Qxh5 d4 15. Bd2 d6 16. Be2 Nc6 17. O-O Be6 $13 {Sakaev,K-Guseinov,A/Doha/
1993/1-0/54/}) 7. e4 O-O 8. exf5 (8. f4 Nf6 9. e5 Ne4 $15) (8. Bg5 Qe8 9. e5 d6
$1 $13 10. dxe6 Bxe6 11. Qxd6 Nc6 $44) 8... exf5 (8... Bxc3+ $1 9. bxc3 exf5
$10) 9. Bd2 d6 10. g3 Nd7 11. Be2 Ne5 $1 12. O-O Bxc3 $6 (12... Bd7 $5 13. Bg5
Qe8 14. Re1 Qg6 15. f4 Ng4 16. Bxg4 fxg4 17. Nf2 Bxc3 18. bxc3 Nf6 $13) 13.
bxc3 (13. Bxc3 $1 f4 14. g4 g5 (14... Qh4 15. Kg2 Nf6 (15... Ng3 16. Qe1 $16)
16. Nxf4 $16) 15. Bxe5 dxe5 16. Bd3 Nf6 17. Re1 Re8 18. Nf2 $14) 1/2-1/2

[Event "EU-Cup 22nd"]
[Site "Fuegen"]
[Date "2006.10.10"]
[Round "3.4"]
[White "Bareev, Evgeny"]
[Black "Nyback, Tomi"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2688"]
[BlackElo "2575"]
[Annotator "Nyback,T"]
[PlyCount "120"]
[EventDate "2006.10.08"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "AUT"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 115"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.11.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.11.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Cheboksary"]
[BlackTeam "Werder Bremen"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "RUS"]
[BlackTeamCountry "GER"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 {I mainly expected 4.Qc2, which is what
Bareev mostly plays. My preparation against the line that occurred in the game
turned out to be fairly superficial.} c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 Ne4 7. Qd3 Bxc3+ 8.
bxc3 Nc5 9. Qf3 O-O {Well, the idea is right one. Implementation is lacking in
accuracy, though. 9..d6 10.Bg2 Nbd7 11.0-0 Ne5 12.Qf4 Bd7! is the main line
here. It seems to me that Black has little, if any, problems there.} 10. Bg2 d6
11. O-O Nbd7 ({Something like} 11... Bd7 12. Be3 (12. Rd1 Ba4 13. Rd2 Nbd7)
12... Qe7 {appears more convincing here. While transferring the knight to e5
seems desirable, it turns out to be too slow with black having castled already.
}) 12. Rd1 Nb6 $5 {Tricky move, which cost me plenty of time. While it's
questionable whether black's position in the game is good or bad, this is
certainly better than} (12... Ne5 13. Qf4 Qa5 (13... Nxc4 14. Nb3 $1 $18) 14.
Nb5 Nb3 15. Rb1 $1 $16) 13. Nb5 {Most principal, and probably the best move.}
Nxc4 14. Bf4 (14. Qf4 d5 15. Nc7 Bd7 16. Nxa8 Qxa8 {is similar to the position
that might have arised in the game. Black seems to have reasonable
compensation here as well.}) (14. Nxd6 Nxd6 15. Bf4 Nce4 16. Qd3 (16. Qe3 Qa5
17. Bxd6 Nxd6 18. Rxd6 Rb8 $11) 16... Qb6 17. Bxe4 Nxe4 18. Qxe4 f6 {should be
ok too, white has temporary activity, but Black's structure is better.}) 14...
d5 15. Nc7 Bd7 $8 16. Rxd5 $5 (16. Nxa8 Qxa8 {is what I was expecting, and
would be the logical consequence of Black's 12th move. While my way of
handling the opening certainly deserves some criticism - after all, Black ends
up being exchange down almost by force - I'm not really sure if White is
better here. The position is difficult to assess, but it seems to me that
Black's strong grip on the center and well-placed knights offer plenty of
compensation. Sheer luck?}) 16... exd5 17. Qxd5 (17. Nxa8 $2 Bc6 18. Nc7 g5 $1
19. Qg4 h6 $3 {and Bd7 seems impossible to prevent. I'm not sure if I would
have found this over the board, but of course white's intention was not to
take the rook immediately. It would hardly make much sense doing that now,
instead of the previous move in which he still had a rook in d1..}) 17... Qe7
$1 (17... Rc8 18. Qxc5 b5 {may be playable too, but white has some annoying
pressure there. The text move appears stronger, protecting c5-knight which is
doing good job looking after the pawn on b7.}) 18. Bg5 $4 ({I think my
opponent might have missed 17...Qe7, which would to some extent explain this
blunder. There was no reason to panic,} 18. Qxc4 Be6 19. Nd5 Bxd5 20. Qxd5 $44
b6 {seems to offer White sufficient compensation from the exchange in form of
pawn and the bishop pair.}) (18. Nxa8 $4 Be6 $19 {is another way to lose.})
18... Qe5 $1 $19 {Now White will remain piece down, and it only remains for
Black to consodilate his position, which has plenty of pieces hanging.} 19.
Qxe5 Nxe5 20. Nxa8 Rxa8 21. Be3 Rc8 22. Rd1 Be8 $1 23. Bh3 Rc7 24. Rd8 Kf8 25.
Rd5 Ncd7 26. Bxa7 b6 27. Bxb6 Nxb6 28. Rxe5 {It has cost Black a pawn and some
exchanges to get rid of White's bishop pair and activity, but it's still a
fairly trivial win.} Ra7 $6 {Too tricky, simpler and better was 28...Rxc3,
when the a-pawn is also going down soon.} 29. Bf5 Rxa2 30. Bd3 Ra1+ 31. Kg2 Rc1
32. Rc5 Na4 $2 (32... Ke7 $19) 33. Rc8 Nb6 ({I realized to my horror that the
intended} 33... Nxc3 {fails to} 34. Bb5 $1) (33... Rxc3 34. Rxe8+ Kxe8 35. Bb5+
{looks drawish too.}) 34. Rb8 Nd7 35. Rc8 Ke7 36. h4 Nf6 37. c4 h6 38. f3 Bd7
39. Ra8 Be6 40. Kf2 Nd7 {Black has managed to regroup his pieces to perfect
squares, rest is matter of technique.} 41. Rg8 g6 42. h5 Nf6 43. Rh8 Nxh5 44.
Rxh6 Bxc4 45. Bxc4 Rxc4 46. Rh8 Nf6 (46... f5 {directly was fine too, but
there is nothing wrong with improving the placement of Black's pieces first.})
47. Ra8 Rc6 48. Ra2 Ke6 49. Ke3 Nd5+ 50. Kf2 f5 51. Rb2 g5 52. Ra2 Ke5 53. Rb2
Rh6 54. Kg1 f4 $1 55. Ra2 Nc3 56. Rc2 Kd4 57. Rd2+ Kc4 58. gxf4 gxf4 59. Rc2
Re6 60. Kf2 Rxe2+ $1 0-1

[Event "Norway Chess 3rd"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2015.06.22"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Grischuk, Alexander"]
[Black "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2781"]
[BlackElo "2798"]
[Annotator "Postny,E"]
[PlyCount "78"]
[EventDate "2015.06.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 167"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.07.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.07.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 O-O 6. e4 d6 7. Nge2 {In CBM 161
I did a survey of this variation. The current game adds to my conclusion that
Black is doing fine in this line.} b5 {The most aggressive.} 8. Nf4 {This move
strengthens White's centre, but the knight on f4 might be misplaced in some
cases.} (8. Ng3 {is another option.}) 8... exd5 {Topalov deviates from his own
game, where he also achieved a good position.} (8... a6 9. Bd2 exd5 10. cxd5
Ba5 11. Be2 Nbd7 12. O-O Ne5 13. Kh1 c4 14. b3 b4 15. Na4 c3 16. Be3 Bc7 $15 {
[%csl Gb4,Gc3] 0-1 (41) Timofeev,A (2631)-Topalov,V (2751) Eilat 2012}) (8...
e5 {has appeared in practice as well with good results for White. Closing the
centre gives White some time to regroup his pieces.}) 9. cxd5 (9. Nfxd5 Nxd5
10. Qxd5 Qb6 11. Bf4 Be6 $1 {has never appeared so far, but might be an
improvement that Topalov had in mind.} (11... Rd8 $2 12. Bg5 $1 Re8 13. Rd1 $16
{1-0 (19) Khairullin,I (2602)-Karthikeyan,P (1983) Vlissingen 2009}) (11...
bxc4 $6 12. Bxc4 Nc6 13. O-O Be6 14. Qd3 $14 {1/2-1/2 (40) Volkov,S (2636)
-Maletin,P (2545) Novokuznetsk 2008}) 12. Qxd6 (12. Qxa8 $6 Nc6 13. Qxf8+ Kxf8
$15) 12... Qa5 13. Kf2 Rd8 14. Qc7 Rd2+ 15. Kg3 Qxc7 16. Bxc7 Bxc3 17. bxc3
bxc4 $13) 9... a6 {We have here a Benoni type structure with, somewhat
unusually, Black's bishop on b4 and a slight lag in development for White.
It's important for Black that he has already managed to expand his play on the
queenside.} (9... c4 $6 10. a4 Nbd7 11. axb5 Ne5 12. Be3 $14 {0-1 (34) Moranda,
W (2533)-Dziuba,M (2556) Lublin 2008}) 10. Be2 (10. a4 {is worth checking.
Black should reply with} Ba5 $1 {tactically protecting the Pb5.} 11. Be3 (11.
axb5 axb5 {[%cal Ga5c3]} 12. Bd2 Qb6 $132) 11... c4 12. axb5 axb5 13. b4 $1
cxb3 (13... Bxb4 $6 14. Rxa8 Bxc3+ 15. Kf2 $14) 14. Qxb3 Ba6 $13) 10... Nbd7
11. O-O c4 $146 {More flexible than the previously played 11...Ne5. It's not
clear yet, where Black's knight should go.} (11... Ne5 12. Kh1 (12. a4 $5)
12... Bd7 13. Nd3 Nxd3 14. Qxd3 $13 {1/2-1/2 (30) Richter,M (2470)-Babula,V 
(2583) Pardubice 2013}) 12. Be3 $6 {This allows the exchange of dark-squared
bishops, which, to my mind, White should avoid, at least at this stage of the
game.} (12. Kh1 {looks more in the spirit of the position.} Bc5 $1 (12... Ne5
13. a3 Bc5 14. b4 Bb6 15. g4 h6 16. Ng2 a5 17. Bf4 {This is the kind of
position that White should strive for in this line - to stabilise the
queenside and try to create chances on the kingside.}) 13. g4 Ne5 14. Ng2 h6
15. a3 {trying to push b2-b4 even in a slightly inferior version.}) 12... Bc5
13. Bxc5 Nxc5 14. b4 (14. Qd4 g5 $1 15. b4 cxb3 16. Nd3 Nfd7 $15) 14... cxb3
15. axb3 b4 16. Nb5 $2 {This is, actually, a blunder. It would be good for
White, if the knight reached the d4 square, but not in this game...} (16. Na4
Nxa4 17. Rxa4 Qb6+ 18. Kh1 a5 19. Nd3 Ba6 20. Nb2 Rfc8 21. Bxa6 Qxa6 $15 22.
Nc4 $2 Rxc4 $1 23. bxc4 Nd7 $17 {[%cal Gd7c5]}) (16. Nb1 Nfd7 17. Nd2 a5 18.
Nh5 $5 {would be acceptable for White, though I already slightly prefer
Black's position.}) 16... Qb6 17. Kh1 {[%tqu "En","How can Black win
material?","","","g7g5","White can't keep both knights and has to sacrifice
one of them.",5]} g5 $1 {White can't keep both knights and has to sacrifice
one of them.} 18. Qd4 Ncd7 19. Qxb6 (19. Qxb4 gxf4 20. Qd2 Nh5 $19) 19... Nxb6
20. Nc7 (20. Nxd6 gxf4 {is another version of giving a piece, but White's
compensation is insufficient.}) 20... Ra7 21. Nb5 {Unfortunately for Grischuk
it's not a repetition. Black's rook can have squares along the seventh rank.}
Re7 $6 {It's not clear why Topalov gave up the Pd6, when he could defend it.} (
21... Rd7 22. Nxd6 ({Perhaps, he was slightly concerned about} 22. Ne6 {
but, it should be winning for Black after} fxe6 23. dxe6 Re7 24. Nxd6 Bxe6 25.
Rxa6 Rb8) 22... Rxd6 23. e5 Rdd8 $19) 22. Nxd6 gxf4 23. Bxa6 Rd8 24. Bxc8 $6 (
24. Nxc8 Nxc8 25. Ra4 Ra7 26. Bb5 {would be a better chance. The bishop will
be annoying on c6.}) 24... Rxd6 25. Bf5 Nbd7 26. g3 (26. Ra7 Kf8 27. Ra8+ Kg7
28. Ra7 Re5 {and slowly, but surely Black will regroup his pieces and
eventually win.}) 26... fxg3 27. Rg1 $6 {Grischuk insists on opening the
g-file, but it makes the things even worse for him.} (27. hxg3 {should have
been played, at least keeping the structure intact. Here Black's winning task
would be far more difficult.}) 27... Kf8 28. Rxg3 Nc5 $19 {White has no
threats. Meanwhile, the weakening of the f4-square will become apparent very
soon.} 29. Bh3 Re8 30. Rb1 Nh5 31. Rg5 Nf4 {The perfect blockade. The rest is
easy.} 32. Bf1 Ra8 33. Bc4 Ra2 34. Rg4 Rh6 $1 35. h4 (35. Rxf4 Raxh2+ 36. Kg1
Rh1+ $19 {[%csl Rb1]}) 35... Nfd3 36. Rg2 Rxh4+ 37. Kg1 Ra7 38. d6 Rh6 39. Rh2
Rxd6 {Well played by Topalov.} 0-1

[Event "Dortmund SuperGM 34th"]
[Site "Dortmund"]
[Date "2006.08.02"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Naiditsch, Arkadij"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2761"]
[BlackElo "2664"]
[Annotator "Postny,E"]
[PlyCount "89"]
[EventDate "2006.07.29"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 114"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.10.02"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.10.02"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 {This "hybrid" of Nimzo-Indian
and Catalan opening is very fashionable nowadays. Aronian employs this system
with both colours.} O-O ({A wild and uncompromising game by Aronian as Black
is worth to be mentioned:} 5... Ne4 6. Qd3 Qa5 7. Qxe4 Bxc3+ 8. Bd2 Bxd2+ 9.
Nxd2 Nc6 10. dxc5 b6 11. Bg2 Bb7 12. Qf4 bxc5 13. Qd6 Qb6 14. Ne4 Nd4 15. Qxb6
axb6 16. Nd6+ Ke7 17. Bxb7 Nc2+ 18. Kd2 Nxa1 19. Nxf7 Rxa2 20. Nxh8 Rxb2+ $44 {
0-1 Bacrot,E (2717)-Aronian,L (2752)/Morelia/Linares MEX/ESP 2006/The Week in
Chess 590 (55)}) 6. Bg2 cxd4 (6... Bxc3+ 7. bxc3 d6 8. O-O Qe7 9. Bg5 Nbd7 10.
Qd3 h6 11. Bxf6 Nxf6 12. Rfd1 Bd7 13. dxc5 dxc5 14. Ne5 Ba4 $11 {1/2-1/2
Georgiev,K (2677)-Anand,V (2803)/Turin ITA 2006/The Week in Chess 604 (21)}) 7.
Nxd4 d5 8. cxd5 (8. O-O dxc4 9. Qa4 Na6 10. Ndb5 Nd5 11. Rd1 Qe8 12. Nxd5 exd5
13. Bxd5 Bd7 14. Bxc4 Bc6 15. Qb3 Bxb5 16. Bxb5 Qxb5 17. a3 Qxe2 18. axb4 Nxb4
19. Bf4 a5 {1/2-1/2 Moiseenko,A (2664)-Naiditsch,A (2612)/Sant Lluis ESP 2005/
The Week in Chess 565}) 8... Nxd5 9. Qb3 Qb6 10. Bxd5 {The exchange of this
key bishop is obviously risky, but in this case it's the only way to fight for
an opening advantage. White will try to take advantage of black's isolated d5
pawn and a vulnerable position of black's queen.} (10. e3 $6 Nc6 11. Nxc6 bxc6
12. Bd2 Qa6 $15 {0-1 Hort,V (2545)-Kindermann,S (2480)/Dortmund 1985/MCL (33)})
10... exd5 11. Be3 Bh3 {Trying to prevent white's smooth development.} 12. g4
$1 {The idea of this move is to trap the black bishop by Rh1-g1-g3. It's
nearly always bad for Black to take on g4, since White might get a strong
attack along the "g" file.} (12. Rc1 Nc6 13. Nxc6 Qxc6 14. f3 Qc4 $6 15. Kf2
Be6 16. Qxc4 dxc4 17. Rhd1 Bxc3 18. bxc3 b6 19. Rd4 Rfd8 20. g4 $14 {1-0
Topalov,V (2801)-Aronian,L (2752)/Morelia/Linares MEX/ESP 2006/The Week in
Chess 591 (76)}) 12... Na6 {The knight is heading to e4.} (12... Bg2 $6 13. Rg1
Be4 14. a3 Bxc3+ 15. Qxc3 $14) (12... Bxg4 $2 13. Rg1 $18) (12... Nc6 13. Nxc6
Qxc6 14. Rg1 (14. Qxb4 $2 d4 {[%csl Rh1]}) 14... Bxc3+ 15. Qxc3 Qxc3+ 16. bxc3
f5 17. Rd1 Bxg4 18. Rxd5 Rae8 19. Kd2 a6 20. f3 Bh5 21. Bd4 $14 {1/2-1/2
Bezold,M (2475)-Horvath,C (2540)/Budapest 1994/CBM 045 ext (23)}) 13. a3 $1
$146 {[%mdl 8] An important novelty, which probably refutes the line with 12...
Na6. Obviously, Aronian studied the previous Naiditsch game and found an
improvement.} (13. Nf5 Qa5 14. Bd4 Nc5 15. Qxd5 Rfd8 16. Qf3 Rxd4 17. Qxh3
Bxc3+ 18. bxc3 Nd3+ 19. Kf1 Qxc3 20. Rd1 Nf4 21. Qxc3 Rxd1+ 22. Qe1 Rxe1+ 23.
Kxe1 Ne6 $15 {[%csl Ra2,Ga7,Gb7] 0-1 L'Ami,E (2550)-Naiditsch,A (2657)/Wijk
aan Zee NED 2006/The Week in Chess 586 (48)}) 13... Qa5 (13... Bxc3+ 14. Qxc3
Rfc8 (14... Bxg4 $2 15. Nf5 {[%csl Rb6,Rg7]} (15. Rg1 $40) 15... d4 16. Ne7+
Kh8 17. Bxd4 Qh6 18. Rg1 $18) 15. Qd2 Qf6 16. Rg1 Nc5 17. f3 $18 {[%csl Rh3]})
14. Rc1 Bxc3+ (14... Bc5 15. Rg1 $18 {[%csl Rh3] trapping the light-squared
bishop.}) 15. Rxc3 (15. Qxc3 $6 Qxc3+ 16. Rxc3 Bxg4 17. Rg1 h5 18. f3 Be6 19.
Rg5 $44) 15... Nc5 ({Again, it's bad to capture the Pg4:} 15... Bxg4 16. Rg1 h5
17. h3 Bxh3 18. Bd2 Bg4 19. Rc6 $1 Qd8 20. Qxb7 $18 {[%csl Ra6]}) 16. Qb4 $1
Qxb4 17. axb4 Na4 (17... Ne4 18. Rd3 f5 19. Ne6 (19. f3 $2 f4) 19... Rf7 (19...
Rf6 20. Nc7 $16) 20. g5 $16 {[%csl Rh3]}) 18. Ra3 Nxb2 (18... Nb6 19. Rg1 {
[%csl Rh3][%cal Gg1g3]} h5 20. gxh5 {and White is simply a pawn up, keeping a
promising initiative as well.}) 19. Bc1 {[%csl Rb2,Rh3]} Bg2 20. Rg1 Nc4 {
Black is not able to save a piece, and is lucky to get a rook for two light
pieces.} 21. Rxg2 Nxa3 22. Bxa3 $16 {This position arised nearly by force
after the opening! The position is materially balanced, but, obviously White
got a big advantage in this case. The knight is great on d4, while Black's
rooks does not have enough space for any activity.} Rfc8 23. Rg3 g6 24. g5 Rc4
25. Rd3 a6 26. Kd2 Rac8 27. e3 h6 28. gxh6 $6 {This is rather unnatural. Now
Black is getting counterplay.} (28. h4 $16 {keeping the pawn structure
complete.}) 28... Kh7 29. Rb3 Kxh6 30. Bb2 Kh5 $1 {White's Ph2 is doomed.
White needs to be in a hurry to reorganise his forces.} 31. Bc3 (31. b5 $2 a5
$132 {[%csl Ga5]}) 31... Kg4 32. Kd3 Kh3 33. Ne2 Kxh2 34. Rb1 {Black has to be
careful, since his king is in danger.} g5 $2 {Too optimistic, but in the game
it worked fine.} (34... R8c6 $5 35. Be5+ Kg2 36. Rg1+ Kxf2 37. Bg3+ Kf3 38. Be1
Rg4 39. Nd4+ Rxd4+ 40. Kxd4 Rc1 {with good chances for a draw.}) 35. f4 $2 {
Spoiling everything...} (35. Be5+ $1 Kh3 (35... Kg2 36. Rg1+ Kxf2 37. Rxg5 $18
{The drawback of 34...g5 is now clear.}) 36. Rh1+ Kg4 (36... Kg2 37. Rg1+ Kxf2
38. Rxg5 $18) 37. Nd4 Rc3+ 38. Kd2 $18 {[%cal Rf2f3]}) 35... g4 36. Be1 Kg2 37.
Bg3 {Probably, Aronian was counting on a mating net, but with the next move
Naiditsch frustrates his plans.} Rc1 $1 (37... Rh8 $5 {was sufficient for a
draw as well.} 38. Rg1+ Kf3 39. Be1 (39. Nd4+ $2 Rxd4+ 40. Kxd4 Rh3 41. Be1 g3
42. Rxg3+ Rxg3 43. Bxg3 Kxg3 44. Kxd5 b6 $19 {[%cal Ga6a5]}) 39... Rh3 40. f5
Re4 41. Nd4+ Rxd4+ 42. Kxd4 g3 43. Rxg3+ Rxg3 44. Bxg3 Kxg3 45. Kxd5 b6 46. e4
Kf4 47. f6 a5 48. bxa5 bxa5 49. e5 Kf5 50. Kd6 a4 51. e6 a3 52. exf7 a2 53.
f8=Q a1=Q $11) 38. Nxc1 (38. Rxc1 $2 Rxc1 39. Nxc1 Kxg3 {White has problems to
stop the "g" pawn.}) 38... Kxg3 39. Ne2+ Kf2 40. Rb2 g3 {Black's passed pawn
compensates the lack of a piece.} 41. f5 Re8 42. Nd4+ Kf1 43. Nf3 g2 44. Nh2+
Kg1 45. Nf3+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Cappelle op 32nd"]
[Site "Cappelle la Grande"]
[Date "2016.02.13"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Feller, Sebastien"]
[Black "Shirazi, Kamran"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2610"]
[BlackElo "2367"]
[Annotator "Primel,D"]
[PlyCount "125"]
[EventDate "2016.02.13"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "FRA"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2017"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.10.25"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.10.25"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[TimeControl "40/5400+30:1800+30"]
[WhiteClock "1:30:00"]
[BlackClock "1:30:00"]

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. Nc3 e6 4. d4 cxd4 5. Nxd4 Bb4 6. g3 Qc7 7. Bg2 Qxc4 (
7... a6) 8. O-O Bxc3 (8... O-O 9. Ncb5 Nc6 10. b3 Qc5 11. a3 Nxd4 12. axb4 Qxb5
13. Qxd4 d5 14. Bg5 Ne4 15. Bxe4 dxe4 16. Ra5 Qxe2 17. Be7 Re8 18. Rg5 g6 19.
Re5 Qd3 20. Qxd3 exd3 21. Bf6 b6 22. Rd1 Ba6 23. b5 Bb7 24. Rxd3 Rec8 25. Re1
Bd5 26. Ra1 h6 27. g4 Rc5 28. Rh3 Kh7 29. Bg5 h5 30. gxh5 gxh5 31. f4 Kg6 32.
Be7 Rxb5 33. Kf2 f6 34. b4 a5 35. Bd6 axb4 36. Rg1+ Kh6 37. Rhg3 Ra2+ 38. Ke3 {
Chatalbashev,B (2550)-Ivanisevic,I (2642) Struga 2012 0-1}) 9. bxc3 a6 $146 (
9... O-O 10. Ba3 Re8 11. Qb3 Qxb3 12. axb3 d5 13. Nb5 Na6 14. Nd6 Rd8 15. c4
Nc7 16. Rfd1 Nce8 17. Nb5 b6 18. e4 Bb7 19. exd5 exd5 20. Nc3 Rd7 21. Bh3 Rdd8
22. Be7 Rdb8 23. Nxd5 Ne4 24. Bg2 N4f6 25. Bxf6 gxf6 26. Ne7+ Kf8 27. Nc6 Rc8
28. Nxa7 Rc7 29. Nb5 Rxa1 30. Rxa1 Re7 31. Bxb7 Rxb7 32. Ra8 {1-0 (32)
Zacurdajev,M (2374)-Shimanov,A (2419) St Petersburg 2007}) 10. e4 O-O (10...
Qxc3 11. e5 Ng8 (11... Qxa1 12. exf6) 12. Be3 $44 {[%csl Rc3,Rc8,Re8][%cal
Ga1c1,Gc1c8]} Ne7) 11. Ba3 $44 Qc7 (11... Re8 12. e5 Nd5 13. Nf5 $36) 12. Bxf8
Kxf8 13. Qd2 d6 14. Rfd1 Nbd7 15. Nb3 Ne8 16. c4 Rb8 17. Rac1 b6 18. f4 Nc5 19.
Nxc5 Qxc5+ 20. Qd4 Qc7 21. e5 dxe5 22. fxe5 Bb7 23. Bxb7 Rxb7 24. c5 bxc5 25.
Qxc5+ Qxc5+ 26. Rxc5 Ke7 27. Rdc1 Kd7 28. Rd1+ Ke7 29. Rdc1 Kd7 30. Rc6 Nc7 31.
Rd6+ Ke7 32. Rcd1 Nd5 33. Rxa6 f6 34. exf6+ gxf6 35. a4 h5 36. Ra8 f5 37. Rh8
Rb2 38. Rxh5 Ra2 39. Rh4 Nc3 40. Re1 Nxa4 41. Rh7+ Kd6 42. Ra7 Nc3 43. Rxa2
Nxa2 44. h4 Ke7 45. h5 Kf7 46. h6 Nb4 47. Rxe6 Kg8 48. Rf6 Kh7 49. Rxf5 Kxh6
50. Rf6+ Kg5 51. Rd6 Nc2 52. Kg2 Ne3+ 53. Kh3 Nc4 54. Rd5+ Kg6 55. Kh4 Kh6 56.
Rc5 Nd2 57. Rc6+ Kg7 58. Kh5 Ne4 59. g4 Ng3+ 60. Kg5 Ne4+ 61. Kf5 Ng3+ 62. Kf4
Ne2+ 63. Ke3 1-0

[Event "Syre Memorial op 36th"]
[Site "Issy les Moulineaux"]
[Date "2013.05.09"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Dubessay, Bastien"]
[Black "Roser, Kevin"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2378"]
[BlackElo "2401"]
[Annotator "Primel,D"]
[PlyCount "80"]
[EventDate "2013.05.08"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "FRA"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2015"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.11.20"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.11.20"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[TimeControl "40/5400+30:1200+30"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 O-O (4... c5) (4... d5) 5. Bg2 d5 {
Transpose sur des positions proches de la Catalane} 6. Nf3 dxc4 $1 {Par
rapport à la Catalane, le fait de jouer rapidement Nc3 prive les Blancs
d'option pour récupérer le Pc4} 7. a3 (7. O-O $142 Nc6 8. a3 Be7 9. e4 Na5 $1
{[%cal Ga5c4,Gc7c5,Ga5b3,Gb3a1,Gb3c1]} (9... Rb8 {[%cal Gb7b5]} 10. Qe2 Nxd4
11. Qxc4 e5 12. Be3 {Ftacnik,L (2544)-Fernando,D (2449) POR-chT 50th 2008 (6)
1-0} (12. Nxe5 c5 13. Be3 Be6 14. Nd5 b5 $13)) 10. Qe2 (10. Be3 Nb3 11. Rb1)
10... Nb3 11. e5 Nd5 12. Rb1 b5 13. Nxb5 Rb8 14. Qxc4 Nxc1 $11 {Sandipan,C 
(2622)-Bacrot,E (2713) Gibraltar Masters 8th 2010 (5) 1/2}) 7... Be7 8. O-O {
Tente d'améliorer sa position jouée contre l'ancien candidat au titre} (8.
Qa4 a6 9. Qxc4 b5 10. Qd3 Bb7 11. Bg5 Nbd7 12. b4 a5 13. O-O axb4 14. axb4 Bxb4
15. Nxb5 c5 16. dxc5 Rxa1 17. Rxa1 Bxc5 18. Bxf6 Qxf6 19. Qc3 Qxc3 20. Nxc3
Bxf3 21. Bxf3 Ne5 22. Bb7 Bd4 {Radjabov,T (2751)-Topalov,V (2767) Sofia 2008 1/
2-1/2}) (8. e4 $6 c5 $1 9. d5 exd5 10. exd5 Bd6 11. O-O Bf5 12. Re1 Nbd7 13.
Nh4 Bd3 14. Bf1 Bxf1 15. Kxf1 Ne5 16. Bg5 Qd7 17. Bxf6 Qh3+ 18. Ng2 gxf6 19.
Re4 Ng6 20. Kg1 a6 21. a4 f5 22. Rxc4 Rae8 {Dubessay,B (2350)-Kortschnoj,V 
(2519) Geneve 2012 1-0 (53)}) (8. Ne5 Nc6 (8... c5) 9. Bxc6 bxc6 10. Nxc6 Qe8
11. Nxe7+ Qxe7 12. Qa4 c5 13. Qxc4 cxd4 14. Qxd4 e5 $11 {Aronian,L (2737)
-Karjakin,S (2727) Sochi FIDE GP 2008 (5) 1/2}) 8... Nc6 9. e4 $1 a6 {[%cal
Ga8b8,Gb7b5] Joué dans l'esprit de la variante ouverte Nc6 de la Catalane} (
9... Na5 {[%cal Ga5c4,Ga5b3]} 10. Qe2 Nb3 11. Rb1 Nxd4 12. Nxd4 Qxd4 13. Rd1
Qc5 14. Be3 Qa5 15. Bd2 Qa6 16. e5 Nd7 17. b4 c6 18. a4 Qb6 19. a5 Qc7 20. f4
b5 21. Nxb5 cxb5 22. Bxa8 c3 23. Bxc3 Qxc3 24. Qxb5 {Barle,J (2430)-Sisniega,M
(2525) Manila 1992 1-0 (63)}) 10. Qe2 $5 {87 Probablement le fruit de la
préparation nocturne des Blancs qui ont joué trés vite} (10. Be3 Na5 {
Li,C (2710)-Tkachiev,V (2631) Jakarta Indonesia op 2011 (4) 0-1}) (10. Bf4 b5
11. Qe2 Nxd4 12. Nxd4 Qxd4 13. Rad1 $44 {Postny,E (2577)-Macieja,B (2639)
GRE-chT Div-A 38th 2010 (5) 1/2}) 10... Na5 $1 {70} 11. Rd1 $5 $146 {[%cal
Gd1d8,Gd4d5]} (11. Bf4 $142 $1 Re8 (11... c5 12. dxc5 Bxc5 13. Rad1 $44) (11...
Nb3 12. Rad1) (11... b5 12. Rad1 Bb7 13. h4 {Halkias,S (2581)-Lenderman,A 
(2614) Chigorin Memorial rap 20th rapid 2012 (7) 1-0}) 12. Rad1 b5 13. Ne5 $44
{[%cal Gg2a8,Gd4d5];Sandipan,C (2622)-Vallejo Pons,F (2705) Gibraltar Masters
playoff 8th rapid 2010 (1.2) 1/2} (13. d5 $5)) 11... Nb3 $1 {Gagne la paire de
B et force la R à occuper une position passive} 12. Rb1 Nxc1 (12... b5 $5 {
L'alternative pour terminer le développement et laisser la Rb1 sur une
mauvaise case} 13. Bf4 Bb7) 13. Rbxc1 b5 14. d5 $1 {Il faut profiter de la
petite avance de développement pour prendre l'initiative} exd5 15. e5 $1 (15.
Nxd5 $143 Nxd5 16. Rxd5 Qe8 {[%cal Gc8e6]}) 15... c6 $1 16. Nd4 (16. exf6 Bxf6
{[%cal Gf8e8]} 17. Ne5 Bb7 (17... Re8 18. Nxc6) 18. Ng4 Re8 19. Nxf6+ Qxf6 $11
{[%cal Ga8d8]}) 16... Bd7 17. exf6 Bxf6 18. Nxc6 Bxc6 19. Nxd5 Bxd5 20. Rxd5
Qe8 21. Qc2 Rd8 22. Rc5 Qe7 23. Rc6 Rd6 24. Rxd6 Qxd6 25. Rd1 Qe6 26. Bf3 g6
27. Kg2 Rc8 28. h4 Qe5 29. Rd2 a5 30. Re2 Qc5 31. h5 b4 32. axb4 axb4 33. hxg6
hxg6 34. b3 c3 35. Be4 Kg7 36. Qb1 Re8 37. Qf1 $2 Rh8 38. Bf3 Qf5 39. Qe1 Qh3+
40. Kg1 Bd4 0-1

[Event "Sautron op 18th"]
[Site "Sautron "]
[Date "2018.10.20"]
[Round "5.1"]
[White "Rausis, Igors"]
[Black "Gascon del Nogal, Jose Rafael"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2651"]
[BlackElo "2471"]
[Annotator "Primel,D"]
[PlyCount "109"]
[EventDate "2018.10.20"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "FRA"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2021"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.10.23"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.10.23"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[TimeControl "40/5400+30:1800+30"]
[WhiteClock "0:25:59"]
[BlackClock "0:03:49"]

1. d4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Nf6 {[%emt 0:00:00]} 2. c4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} e6 {[%emt 0:
00:00]} 3. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:59]} d5 {[%emt 0:00:00]} 4. g3 {[%emt 0:01:20]} Bb4+
{[%emt 0:00:00]} 5. Nc3 {[%emt 0:00:14] Une partie commençant par une
Catalane mais qui transpose dans la variante Romanishin de la Nimzo-Indienne}
O-O {[%emt 0:02:20]} 6. Bg2 {[%emt 0:00:21]} dxc4 $1 {[%emt 0:01:42] Par
rapport à une Catalane classique, le développement précoce du Nc3 rend la
récupération du P"c4" plus difficile} 7. O-O {[%emt 0:00:21]} c5 {[%emt 0:03:
52]} (7... Nc6 8. a3 (8. Qa4 Nd5 9. Qc2 Be7 10. Rd1 Nb6 11. e4 $13 {Fridman,D 
(2636)-Zherebukh,Y (2633) St Louis Summer-A 2018 (3) 1/2}) 8... Be7 9. e4 Na5 {
[%cal Ga5c4,Ga5b3]} (9... a6 10. Bf4 $44 {Ivanisevic,I (2602)-Perunovic,M 
(2547) SRB-ch Vrsac 2007 (3) 1/2}) 10. Be3 Nb3 11. Rb1 c5 $132 {Gareyev,T 
(2653)-Onischuk,A (2668) USA-ch Saint Louis 2014 (7) 1/2}) 8. dxc5 {[%emt 0:04:
44]} Qa5 {[%emt 0:06:58]} (8... Bxc5 9. Bg5 Nc6 10. Qa4 h6 11. Rad1 Qe7 12.
Bxf6 Qxf6 13. Qxc4 Bb4 14. Nd4 Bxc3 15. Qxc3 Bd7 16. Nxc6 Bxc6 17. Qxf6 gxf6
18. Bxc6 bxc6 19. Rd6 Rfb8 20. Rb1 Rb6 21. b3 c5 22. Rbd1 Rc8 23. Rd8+ Rxd8 24.
Rxd8+ Kg7 25. Rd2 a5 26. Rc2 a4 27. bxa4 Rb4 28. Rxc5 Rxa4 29. Rc2 f5 30. Kf1
f4 31. Ke1 fxg3 32. hxg3 Kf6 33. Kd2 h5 34. Kc3 h4 35. gxh4 Rxh4 36. a3 Ke5 37.
Ra2 Rf4 38. e3 {Bacrot,E (2710)-Shirov,A (2742) Odessa 2010 1-0 (65)}) 9. Qd4 {
[%emt 0:02:04]} Nc6 {[%emt 0:16:09]} (9... Bxc5 10. Qxc4 Nc6 11. Bd2 Be7 12.
Nb5 (12. e4 $5 Rd8 13. Rfd1 $14) 12... Qb6 {Delorme,A (2483)-Rizouk,A (2524)
Catalunya-chT GpA final 2015 (11.1) 1-0}) 10. Qxc4 {[%emt 0:01:07]} Qxc5 {
[%emt 0:00:13]} 11. Qxc5 {[%emt 0:00:19]} Bxc5 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 12. Bf4 {
[%emt 0:01:25]} Bd7 {[%emt 0:16:15]} 13. Rac1 {[%emt 0:17:25] Le Top GMI a
joué assez lentement l'ouverture et on connait maintenant l'histoire du
scandale de Strasbourg. J'ai néanmoins l'impression que cette partie est
"propre".En effet, il n'obtient pas grand-chose dans l'ouverture et dans la
phase suivante du millieu de jeu où il y a une passe tactique, il a joué
vite et donc sans se rendre aux toilettes pour tricher.  C'est l'intérêt de
sauvegarder le temps de réflexion} Rac8 {[%emt 0:02:00]} 14. Nb5 {[%emt 0:08:
55]} Be7 $146 {[%emt 0:09:05]} (14... e5 15. Rxc5 exf4 16. Nd6 b6 17. Rcc1 Rcd8
18. gxf4 Nb4 19. a3 Nbd5 20. e3 Ba4 21. Nf5 g6 22. N5d4 Kg7 23. b3 Bd7 24. Ne5
Rfe8 25. Rfd1 h6 26. Rc2 Ng4 27. Bxd5 {1-0 (27) Gleizerov,E (2485)-Enhbat,P 
(2300) Cheliabinsk 1991}) 15. Rfd1 $32 {[%emt 0:03:36][%csl Rd7] Les Blancs
ont une petite avance de développement et une position plus facile à jouer}
e5 $5 {[%emt 0:03:32]} 16. Nxe5 {[%emt 0:11:24]} Nxe5 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 17. Rxc8
{[%emt 0:00:22]} Rxc8 {[%emt 0:02:08]} 18. Nxa7 {[%emt 0:00:26]} Rc5 $1 {
[%emt 0:03:55][%csl Ra7][%cal Ge7d8,Gd8b6,Gb6a7] Essaye d'enfermer le Na7} 19.
b4 $1 {[%emt 0:00:30]} Ba4 {[%emt 0:00:37]} 20. bxc5 {[%emt 0:04:29]} Bxd1 {
[%emt 0:01:47]} 21. Bxe5 {[%emt 0:02:19]} Bxc5 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 22. Nc8 {
[%emt 0:02:06]} Ng4 $1 {[%emt 0:04:24][%cal Gg4e5,Gg4f2]} (22... Bxe2) 23. Bd6
$1 {[%emt 0:01:06] A part le 16ème coup ou le temps de réflexion dépasse 10
mns, tous les coups suivants sont joués rapidement malgré les complications
tactiques} Bxf2+ {[%emt 0:00:13]} 24. Kf1 {[%emt 0:00:50]} Bd4 {[%emt 0:00:50]}
25. Ne7+ $1 {[%emt 0:00:35] Forçant le K à s'éloigner du centre et dans la
finale, c'est un facteur important.} Kh8 {[%emt 0:00:33][%csl Rh8]} 26. Nf5 {
[%emt 0:00:29]} Bc3 {[%emt 0:06:20]} 27. h3 {[%emt 0:00:30]} Ne5 {[%emt 0:01:
05]} 28. Bxb7 {[%emt 0:00:50][%csl Ga2,Rh8] Les Blancs ont une bonne finale
avec le P passé protégé} Nc4 {[%emt 0:00:25]} (28... g6 {[%cal Gh8g7]} 29.
Ne3 $16 {[%cal Ge3d1]}) 29. Bc5 {[%emt 0:12:30]} Nd2+ {[%emt 0:04:13]} 30. Kf2
{[%emt 0:01:50][%csl Gf2,Rh8] La différence d'activité des K donne des
bonnes chances de gain aux Blancs} Bc2 {[%emt 0:03:28]} 31. Nd6 {[%emt 0:02:41]
} f5 {[%emt 0:00:16]} 32. Bd5 {[%emt 0:01:04]} h5 {[%emt 0:02:03]} 33. a3 {
[%emt 0:05:06]} Bb2 {[%emt 0:04:51]} (33... Kh7 $6 {Les Noirs n'ont pas le
temps car Bb4 force l'échange des B} 34. Bb4 $1 {[%csl Rc3,Rd2][%cal Gb4d2]}
Bxb4 (34... Nb1 35. Ba2) 35. axb4 Ba4 36. b5 $40) 34. Bb4 {[%emt 0:09:53]} Nb1
{[%emt 0:02:03]} 35. Nb5 {[%emt 0:02:36]} Ba4 {[%emt 0:01:10]} 36. Ba2 {
[%emt 0:00:08]} Bxb5 {[%emt 0:04:03]} 37. Bxb1 {[%emt 0:00:02]} g6 {[%emt 0:00:
16]} 38. Bc2 $1 {[%emt 0:00:39][%cal Ga3a4]} Bd4+ {[%emt 0:00:05]} 39. e3 {
[%emt 0:00:17]} Be5 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 40. a4 $36 {[%emt 0:00:00][%csl Ga4]
Gagnant un tempo important} Ba6 {[%emt 0:00:00]} 41. Bd1 {[%emt 0:08:36][%cal
Gd1e2]} Kg7 {[%emt 0:02:47]} 42. a5 {[%emt 0:05:01]} Kf6 {[%emt 0:01:28]} 43.
Bc5 {[%emt 0:08:15]} (43. Be2 Bxe2 44. Kxe2 Bxg3 45. a6 Bb8 46. Bc5 Ke6 47. a7
$18) 43... Ke6 {[%emt 0:01:51]} 44. Bb3+ {[%emt 0:00:55]} Kf6 {[%emt 0:01:59]}
45. Bd4 $1 {[%emt 0:07:55][%cal Gd4f6]} (45. Kf3) 45... h4 {[%emt 0:01:03] Une
dernière tentative} 46. gxh4 {[%emt 0:01:59]} f4 {[%emt 0:00:09]} 47. Bxe5+ {
[%emt 0:00:55]} Kxe5 {[%emt 0:00:01]} 48. exf4+ {[%emt 0:00:15]} Kxf4 {[%emt 0:
01:07]} 49. Bc2 $18 {[%emt 0:00:13]} g5 {[%emt 0:00:13]} 50. h5 {[%emt 0:00:41]
} Ke5 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 51. h6 {[%emt 0:00:38]} Kf6 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 52. Bf5 {
[%emt 0:02:06]} Bc4 {[%emt 0:02:13]} 53. Kg3 {[%emt 0:00:15]} Ba6 {[%emt 0:00:
39]} 54. h7 {[%emt 0:00:19]} Kg7 {[%emt 0:00:09]} 55. Kg4 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 1-0

[Event "Donner Memorial"]
[Site "Amsterdam"]
[Date "1996.08.25"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Van Wely, Loek"]
[Black "Morozevich, Alexander"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2605"]
[BlackElo "2610"]
[Annotator "Psakhis,L"]
[PlyCount "56"]
[EventDate "1996.08.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "16"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 055"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1996.12.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1996.12.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Dautov HarZvi} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 c5 5. Nf3 Nc6 6. d5 (6. Bg2
{HarZvi Survey ;CBM 55}) 6... Na5 (6... Bxc3+ 7. bxc3 Na5 8. Nd2 b6 9. e4 (9.
Qc2 $5) 9... O-O 10. Be2 exd5 11. cxd5 Re8 {Sergeev,V-Anastasian,A/Groningen
op/1993/0:1/25/} 12. f3 Qe7 13. Nb3 $13) 7. Nd2 (7. Qd3 {>=} b5 8. dxe6 fxe6 9.
cxb5 a6 $44) 7... b6 $146 (7... O-O 8. Bg2 Bxc3 9. bxc3 d6 10. O-O b6 $5 11.
dxe6 Bxe6 12. Bxa8 Qxa8 13. f3 Nxc4 14. Nxc4 Bxc4 $44 {Gulko,B-Kuzmin,G/
Tashkent(URS-sf)/1984/0-1/46/}) (7... d6 8. Qc2 exd5 9. Nxd5 Nxd5 10. cxd5 O-O
11. a3 Bxd2+ 12. Bxd2 c4 13. Rd1 b5 14. Bg2 $14 {Panchenko,A-Barsov,A/Bern op/
1994/1:0/34/} (14. Bg2 {HarZvi} Nb3 15. Bf4 Bg4 $13 {/=/+ Panchenko,AG-Barsov,
A Bern op 1994} (15... Bg4 16. h3 Bh5 17. g4 Bg6 18. Qc3 Re8 $15 {Panchenko,
AG-Barsov/Bern op/1994}))) (7... Bxc3 $5 8. bxc3 b6 9. e4 O-O 10. Be2 exd5 11.
cxd5 Re8 12. O-O (12. f3 Nxd5 13. exd5 Ba6 14. Ne4 Bxe2 15. Qxe2 f5 $36) 12...
Nxe4 13. Nxe4 Rxe4 $17 {Sergeev-Anastasian/Groningen op/1993}) 8. Qc2 O-O 9.
Bg2 Bxc3 10. Qxc3 (10. bxc3 d6 $5) 10... exd5 11. cxd5 Re8 12. b3 (12. Qd3 $5
Bb7 (12... c4 {Dautov} 13. Qd4 Ba6 14. e4 Nb7 $36) 13. O-O Qe7 14. e4 $14)
12... Ba6 13. Bf3 (13. e3 $5) (13. e3 {Dautov} Ng4 $1 (13... d6 14. Bb2 $14)
14. Bb2 (14. Nf3 Qf6 $36 {/\} 15. Bb2 $2 Qxc3+ 16. Bxc3 Nxe3 $1 $17) 14... Ne5
15. Be4 Qf6 16. Rc1 Bd3 (16... Nb7 $5 {/\Nd6}) 17. Bxd3 Nxd3+ 18. Qxd3 Qxb2 $10
) 13... d6 14. Bb2 Re7 $1 (14... Qd7 15. Ne4 $1) 15. a4 {this move gives black
exactly the time he needs to create strong initiative after 15.Ne4 black would
have to go back playing Ne8} (15. g4 Qf8 $1 (15... Re5 16. Qc2 Re8 17. g5 Nd7
18. h4 $36) 16. g5 Nd7 17. Ne4 Rae8 $1 18. Qc2 (18. Nxd6 $2 Rxe2+ 19. Bxe2
Rxe2+ 20. Kd1 Rxb2 21. Qxb2 Qxd6 $19) 18... Ne5 19. Bg2 Ng6 $36) (15. Ne4 Ne8)
(15. Ne4 {HarZvi}) (15. Nc4 {HarZvi} Nxc4 16. bxc4 b5 17. O-O $1 bxc4 18. e4
$13 (18. e4 {Dautov} Rb8 19. Rfe1 $44)) 15... Qf8 16. Nc4 (16. e3 Nd7 17. Qc2
$5 (17. O-O-O Ne5 18. Be4 Ng4 $1) 17... Ne5 18. Be4 h6 $13) 16... Ne4 17. Qc2 (
17. Bxe4 Rxe4 18. f3 Re7 (18... Rxc4 $5 19. bxc4 Nxc4 $44) 19. e4 Nxc4 20. bxc4
f5 21. O-O fxe4 22. fxe4 Qe8 $15) 17... Rae8 18. e3 (18. Nxa5 Ng5 $1 19. O-O-O
bxa5 (19... Bxe2 20. Bxe2 Rxe2 21. Qf5) 20. Rd2 c4 $40) (18. O-O {HarZvi} Ng5)
18... f5 {in few moves black got a very nice position with some pressure,as we
will see he made very good things with his position} (18... Nxc4 19. bxc4 Bc8
20. O-O Bf5 $10) 19. O-O (19. Bh5 $5 Nxc4 (19... g6 20. Nxa5 bxa5 21. Bf3 Ng5
22. Bg2 Rb7 23. Qc3 Nf7 $13) 20. bxc4 g6 21. Bf3 Ng5 22. Bg2 f4 $132) 19... Qf7
20. Rad1 (20. Rfd1 Nxc4 21. bxc4 Ng5 22. Bg2 (22. Be2 f4 $1 23. gxf4 Nh3+ 24.
Kf1 Nxf4 $1) 22... Re4 $1 23. Bxe4 (23. Bf1 Nf3+ 24. Kg2 Qh5 25. Bd3 (25. Be2
$2 Qxh2+ 26. Kxf3 g5 $1 27. Bd3 Rxe3+ $1 28. fxe3 g4+ 29. Kf4 Qh6+ 30. Kxf5
Bc8# $1) (25. h3 Ng5 26. h4 (26. Kh2 Rxc4) 26... Rxh4 $1 27. gxh4 Qg4+ 28. Kh1
Nf3 $19) 25... Ng5 26. Bxe4 Rxe4 $17 (26... fxe4 $5)) 23... fxe4 $40) (20. Rfd1
{HarZvi}) (20. Bxe4 $5 {Dautov} Bxc4 (20... Nxc4 $2 21. Bd3 $16) 21. Bxf5 Bxf1
22. Bxh7+ Kh8 23. Rxf1 Qxd5 24. Bg6 Rf8 (24... Qxb3 25. Qf5 $40) 25. Rd1 $44)
20... Qg6 {for a few moves white does not feel the danger but now it became
very close, and still white playes a very "positional" move but after it there
are no more chances} (20... Ng5 $5) 21. Rfe1 (21. Bg2) (21. Bg2 $142 $10) 21...
Nxc4 22. bxc4 f4 $1 {/\Ng5} 23. Kg2 (23. Bg2 $8 f3 $1 24. Bf1 (24. Bxf3 Ng5 $1
(24... Ng5 25. Qe2 Bxc4 $19)) 24... Bc8 $17 {->}) (23. exf4 $2 Ng5 $1 24. Rxe7
(24. Qxg6 Nxf3+ 25. Kg2 Nxe1+ 26. Rxe1 hxg6 $19) 24... Nxf3+ 25. Kg2 Nh4+ 26.
Kh1 Rxe7 $19) 23... Bc8 $1 $19 {a fantastic move,the bishop has nothing to do
on the a6-f1 diagonal but on the c8-h3 he is deciding the game! /\Bh3} 24. Qe2
(24. Qd3 Bf5 25. Qe2 Ng5 26. Bg4 f3+ $1 27. Bxf3 Nxf3 $19) (24. Qc1 Ng5 25.
exf4 Bh3+ 26. Kh1 Nxf3 $19) (24. exf4 Bh3+ $1 25. Kg1 (25. Kxh3 {HarZvi} Ng5+)
25... Ng5 $19) (24. Bxe4 Rxe4 $19 {->}) 24... Ng5 $1 {blacks play is so simple
thanks to white of courese which let him do what ever he wanted} 25. Bh5 {
loses immediately but there are no chances} (25. h4 Nxf3 26. Qxf3 Bg4 27. Qxf4
Rf7 (27... Bxd1 {HarZvi} 28. Rxd1 Rf7 29. Qg5 Qc2 $19) 28. Qg5 Qc2 $19) 25...
f3+ $1 26. Bxf3 (26. Qxf3 Nxf3 27. Bxg6 Nxe1+) 26... Nxf3 27. Qxf3 Bg4 28. Qf4
Re4 0-1

[Event "POL-chT 66th"]
[Site "Katowice"]
[Date "2010.09.05"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Miton, Kamil"]
[Black "Balogh, Csaba"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2629"]
[BlackElo "2608"]
[Annotator "RR"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[EventDate "2010.09.04"]
[EventType "team-tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "POL"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2016"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.10.08"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.10.08"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Katowice Szopienice"]
[BlackTeam "Wroclaw Polonia"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "POL"]
[BlackTeamCountry "POL"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bxf6 Qxf6 7. g3 O-O 8. Bg2
dxc4 9. O-O Nc6 10. e3 Rb8 11. Ne4 (11. Nd2 Na5 12. Qc2 Qe7 13. a3 Bxc3 14.
Qxc3 b6 15. Nxc4 Nxc4 16. Qxc4 c5 17. Rac1 cxd4 18. Qxd4 Bb7 19. Bxb7 Qxb7 20.
Rfd1 Rbc8 21. h4 {1/2-1/2 (21) Sokolov,I (2677)-Van Wely,L (2691) Wolvega 2012}
) 11... Qe7 12. a3 Bd6 13. Nfd2 b5 14. a4 (14. Nxd6 Qxd6 15. Ne4 Qe7 16. Nc5
Ne5 17. a4 Nd7 18. Nxd7 Bxd7 19. axb5 Bxb5 20. Rxa7 c3 21. Re1 cxb2 22. Qc2 Qb4
23. Rb1 Bc4 24. Ra4 Qxa4 25. Qxa4 Bd3 26. Qd1 Bxb1 27. Qxb1 Rb3 28. Be4 Rfb8
29. Qa2 b1=Q+ 30. Bxb1 Rxb1+ 31. Kg2 c5 32. dxc5 Rc1 33. h4 Rxc5 34. Qa7 Rbc8
35. Qd7 h5 36. f4 g6 37. Kf3 R5c7 38. Qd6 Rc3 39. Qd7 Rb8 40. Qd6 Rbb3 41. Qd8+
Kg7 42. Qd4+ Kh7 43. Qf6 Rxe3+ {Li,D (2172)-Ni,H (2654) China 2014 0-1}) 14...
a6 15. axb5 axb5 16. b3 cxb3 17. Nxd6 Qxd6 18. Qxb3 Bb7 $1 19. Ne4 (19. Qxb5
Nxd4 $1 {[%cal Gb8b5]}) 19... Qb4 20. Rfb1 Qxb3 21. Rxb3 Ne7 22. Rxb5 Bxe4 23.
Rxb8 Rxb8 24. Bxe4 f5 25. Bf3 Kf7 26. Rc1 c6 27. Rc2 Rb6 28. Kg2 Kf6 29. Rc5
Nd5 30. Bxd5 cxd5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Reggio Emilia 54th"]
[Site "Reggio Emilia"]
[Date "2012.01.03"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Vitiugov, Nikita"]
[Black "Ivanchuk, Vassily"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2729"]
[BlackElo "2775"]
[Annotator "RR"]
[PlyCount "61"]
[EventDate "2011.12.27"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "ITA"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[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. Nf3 c5 5. g3 Nc6 6. Bg2 Ne4 7. Bd2 Nxd2 8.
Qxd2 cxd4 9. Nxd4 O-O 10. a3 Be7 11. O-O Ne5 12. b3 a6 13. Rfd1 Qc7 14. Ne4 f5
15. Nc3 Rb8 16. e4 fxe4 17. Nxe4 b6 18. Qe2 Bb7 19. f4 Nc6 20. Nf3 Na5 21. Rd3
Bxe4 22. Qxe4 Nb7 23. b4 Nd6 24. Qe2 Nf7 25. Qd2 Rfd8 26. Re1 a5 27. Qc3 axb4
28. axb4 Rbc8 29. Nd2 Nd6 30. Rc1 Nxc4 $2 (30... Bf6 31. Qb3 Nb5 $11) 31. Nxc4
$18 1-0

[Event "URS-chT Cup 11th"]
[Site "Rostov on Don"]
[Date "1980.05.??"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Osnos, Viatcheslav"]
[Black "Kochyev, Alexander"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2470"]
[BlackElo "2535"]
[Annotator "RR"]
[PlyCount "78"]
[EventDate "1980.05.23"]
[EventType "team-tourn"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "URS"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2020"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.10.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.10.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Trud"]
[BlackTeam "Burevestnik"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "URS"]
[BlackTeamCountry "URS"]

1. c4 Nf6 2. Nc3 c5 3. Nf3 e6 4. d4 cxd4 5. Nxd4 Bb4 (5... Nc6 6. a3 $5 {
Baratz,A-Monosson,L Paris Ch 04th 1928 1-0}) 6. g3 {On peut aussi arriver а
cette position avec la variante ROMANISCHIN de la Nimzo-Indienne} O-O 7. Bg2 d5
$1 8. cxd5 (8. Qb3 {[%cal Gb3c3] L'alternative mais les blancs risquent d'être
en retard de développement}) 8... Nxd5 9. Bd2 Bxc3 (9... Nxc3 10. bxc3 Be7 (
10... Bc5 11. Nb3 Be7 $11 {[%csl Rc3]})) 10. bxc3 e5 11. Nc2 Nc6 12. c4 Nb6 13.
Ne3 Be6 $132 14. c5 $6 $146 (14. Rc1 $142 Qd7 15. a4 Bh3 16. a5 Bxg2 17. Nxg2
Nxc4 18. Rxc4 Qd5 19. Qc2 Qxg2 20. Qe4 Qxe4 21. Rxe4 Rfd8 22. Bc3 Rd5 23. Ra4
Rc5 24. Ra3 Nd4 25. Bxd4 Rc1+ 26. Kd2 Rxh1 27. Bxe5 Rxh2 28. Bd4 Rd8 {Alburt,L
(2505)-Kochyev,A (2490)/Leningrad 1977/URS-ch/1/2-1/2 (60)}) 14... Nc4 15. Nxc4
Bxc4 16. Qa4 $6 (16. Bc3) 16... Bd5 $1 $15 17. f3 $6 Nd4 $40 {[%csl Re1]} 18.
Kf2 Bc6 19. Qa5 b6 20. Qc3 Rc8 $32 21. Rac1 Bb5 22. Qb2 Nxe2 $3 (22... Rxc5)
23. Qxb5 Nxc1 24. Bxc1 Rxc5 {les échanges ont limité le nombre de pièces
pouvant défendre le K blanc} 25. Qb1 Qc7 {[%cal Gc5c2]} 26. Re1 Rc2+ 27. Kg1
Qc3 28. Be3 Rxa2 $1 29. f4 Rd8 $1 30. fxe5 Rb2 31. Qc1 Qxc1 (31... Rc2 32. Qa1
{[%cal Ga1e5,Ga1a7]} Qxa1 33. Rxa1 h6 34. Bf1 (34. Rxa7 $2 Re2)) 32. Rxc1 h6
33. Bf3 a5 34. Rc7 a4 35. Ra7 b5 36. Bc5 (36. Bg4 $5 {[%csl Gc8][%cal Ge3c5,
Ge5e6]}) 36... Rc8 37. Be4 $2 {[%csl Rh7]} g6 38. Be3 Re2 39. Bb7 Rd8 0-1

[Event "Bundesliga 1112"]
[Site "Germany"]
[Date "2011.11.19"]
[Round "4.1"]
[White "Spoelman, Wouter"]
[Black "Macieja, Bartlomiej"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2563"]
[BlackElo "2613"]
[Annotator "RR"]
[PlyCount "74"]
[EventDate "2011.10.14"]
[EventType "team-tourn"]
[EventRounds "15"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 146"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.01.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.01.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Emsdetten Turm"]
[BlackTeam "Wattenscheid"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "GER"]
[BlackTeamCountry "GER"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 Nc6 5. e4 O-O 6. Be3 d5 7. e5 Nd7 8. cxd5
exd5 9. a3 Bxc3+ 10. bxc3 f6 11. f4 fxe5 12. dxe5 Nb6 13. Bd3 Nc4 14. Bc1 Qh4+
15. g3 Qe7 16. Ra2 N6xe5 17. fxe5 Nxe5 18. Ne2 Bg4 19. h3 Nf3+ 20. Kf1 Ne5+ 21.
Ke1 Nf3+ $2 (21... Bf3 22. Rh2 Be4 $19) 22. Kf1 $17 Ne5+ 23. Ke1 Bf3 24. Rf1
Bg2 25. Rxf8+ Rxf8 26. Bf4 g5 27. Kf2 Bxh3 28. Bb1 c6 29. Qh1 Bg4 30. Kg1 gxf4
31. gxf4 Ng6 32. Qg2 Qe3+ 33. Kh2 Bxe2 34. f5 Qf4+ 35. Qg3 Qxg3+ 36. Kxg3 Bc4
37. Rg2 Ne7 0-1

[Event "Hoogovens"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "1993.01.??"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Van der Sterren, Paul"]
[Black "Lobron, Eric"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2490"]
[BlackElo "2620"]
[Annotator "Ribli,Z"]
[PlyCount "62"]
[EventDate "1993.01.??"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "5"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 034"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1993.06.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1993.06.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 Bxc3 5. bxc3 c5 (5... b6 6. d3 Bb7 7. e4
d6 8. Bg2 c5 9. O-O O-O 10. Nh4 Nc6 11. f4 Ne8 12. f5 $36 {Ribli,Z-Razuvaev,Y
Bundesliga 1991/92 54/15}) 6. Bg2 Nc6 7. O-O O-O 8. d4 d6 9. dxc5 $6 (9. Bf4 $1
Nh5 10. Be3 Qe7 11. dxc5 dxc5 12. Nd2 Nf6 13. Nb3 Qc7 14. Bxc5 Rd8 15. Nd4 e5
16. Nb5 $14 {Mihalcishin-Lerner URS 1982}) 9... dxc5 10. Bf4 Qa5 11. Qc2 h6 12.
Rfd1 (12. Ne5 $5) (12. Rab1 $5) 12... Bd7 13. a4 Rfd8 14. h3 Be8 15. Rxd8 Rxd8
16. g4 Qa6 17. Ne5 Nxe5 18. Bxe5 Qxc4 19. Bxf6 gxf6 20. Bxb7 Rb8 21. Bf3 Rb3
$17 22. Qd1 Kg7 $1 23. a5 Rxc3 24. Rb1 a6 25. Kg2 Qd4 26. Qxd4 cxd4 27. Rb6 Bb5
28. Bb7 Bxe2 29. Bxa6 Bf3+ 30. Kh2 d3 31. Rd6 Bd5 0-1

[Event "Hoogovens"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "1999.01.28"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Van Wely, Loek"]
[Black "Sokolov, Ivan"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2636"]
[BlackElo "2610"]
[Annotator "Ribli,Z"]
[PlyCount "68"]
[EventDate "1999.01.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "17"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 069"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1999.04.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1999.04.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%mdl 2056]} 1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 {Zwei Runden später
versuchte van Wely gegen Timman 4.g4. Ribli.} O-O 5. Bg2 d5 6. Qb3 Nc6 (6... c5
7. O-O Nc6 8. d3 h6 9. Na4 (9. Bf4 Re8 10. Ne5 Nxe5 11. Bxe5 Ng4 12. a3 Ba5 13.
Bf4 e5 14. Bc1 Bxc3 15. bxc3 d4 16. h3 Nf6 17. cxd4 cxd4 18. e3 Nd7 19. Qb5 a6
20. Qd5 Qb6 21. exd4 exd4 22. Bf4 {1/2-1/2 Greenfeld,A-Gruenfeld,Y/ISR-chT
1996 (34)}) 9... b6 10. Bf4 Bd7 $1 11. a3 Ba5 12. Nc3 Bxc3 13. Qxc3 Re8 $1 14.
d4 Ne4 $1 15. Qd3 cxd4 16. cxd5 exd5 17. Nxd4 Nc5 18. Nxc6 Nxd3 19. Nxd8 Nxf4
20. gxf4 Raxd8 21. Rfd1 {1/2-1/2 Illescas Cordoba,M-Almasi,Z/Ubeda 1997 (35)})
7. d4 {Jetzt wir haben eine halb-katalanische, halb-nimzoindische Stellung.
Schwarz hat lebendiges Figurenspiel und nach der Partiefortsetzung
kontrolliert er das Feld e4.} (7. a3 Bxc3 $1 8. Qxc3 d4 9. Qc2 d3 $1 10. Qxd3
Qxd3 11. exd3 e5 $44 {[%csl Rc1,Rd3,Yd4] 1/2-1/2 Zvjaginsev,V-Ivanchuk,V/
Elista 1998/CBM 65_03/[Ribli] (24)}) (7. cxd5 exd5 8. a3 Be7 9. d4 Na5 10. Qa2
Nc4 11. Bg5 c6 12. O-O Nd6 13. Bxf6 Bxf6 14. e3 Re8 15. Rfc1 Bf5 16. Na4 h5 17.
Nc5 h4 18. b4 {1-0 Suba,M-Pogorelov,R/Anibal op4th 1997 (39)} (18. b4 g5 19. a4
a6 20. Nd2 Kg7 21. Qb3 Qe7 22. Qd1 hxg3 23. hxg3 Rh8 24. Qf1 Rh6 25. b5 axb5
26. axb5 Rxa1 27. Rxa1 Nxb5 28. Ndb3 b6 29. Na4 Qb4 30. Nc1 Nxd4 31. exd4 Bxd4
32. Ne2 b5 33. Qc1 bxa4 34. Qxg5+ Rg6 35. Qf4 Be4 36. Rd1 Bb2 37. g4 a3 38. Ng3
Qe7 39. Nf5+ Kf8 40. Nxe7 {1-0 Suba,M-Pogorelov,R/Linares 1997/CBM 58 (40)}))
7... Ne4 8. cxd5 (8. Qc2 Nd6 9. cxd5 exd5 10. O-O Bf5 11. Qb3 {1/2-1/2 Kramnik,
V-Khalifman,A/BL9596 1996}) (8. O-O Bxc3 9. cxd5 Qxd5 $1 10. bxc3 Qxb3 11. axb3
Nxc3 12. e3 Bd7 13. Bb2 Nd5 {0-1 Bang,A-Rozentalis,E/Copenhagen 1988/CBM 10 
(26)}) 8... Qxd5 $5 $146 {[#]Eine natürliche Antwort. Ähnliche Motive finden
sich in der Variante 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.Qc2 d5 5.cxd5 Qxd5. Es
scheint, daß die weiße Dame auf b3 unglücklich steht. Nach möglichem
Damentausch hat Schwarz keine Probleme.} (8... exd5 9. O-O Nxc3 (9... Bxc3 10.
bxc3 Na5 11. Qc2 b6 12. Rd1 Re8 13. a4 Ba6 14. Ne5 Nc4 15. Nxc4 Bxc4 16. f3 Nd6
17. e4 f6 18. a5 {1-0 Nikolic,P-Arnold,L/Wattignies 1976/EXT 99 (68)}) 10. bxc3
Ba5 11. c4 dxc4 12. Qxc4 Be6 13. Qd3 h6 14. Bb2 Bb6 15. Rfd1 Ne7 16. Ne5 c6 17.
Nc4 Qd7 18. e4 $14 {1-0 Corral Blanco,J-Salov,V/Groningen 1982/EXT 99 (53)}) 9.
Qxb4 $6 {Weiß komplitziert das Spiel.} (9. Qxd5 exd5 10. Bd2 $11) 9... Nxb4 10.
Nxd5 Nc2+ $5 {[%cal Rc2e1,Rc2a1]} (10... exd5 $11) 11. Kd1 $2 (11. Kf1 $5 Nxa1
(11... exd5 12. Rb1 $11) 12. Nxc7 Rb8 13. Bf4 $44) 11... Nxa1 12. Nxc7 Nxf2+ {
[%cal Rf2h1,Rf2d1]} (12... Rb8 13. Be3 $13) 13. Ke1 Nxh1 14. Nxa8 {[#]Es
bietet sich das Bild einer Caféhaus-Partie.} Bd7 $15 {[%cal Rf8a8] Weiß hat
eine Qualität weniger, aber der schwarze h1-Springer hat keine
Befreiungsmöglichkeiten. Trotzdem hat Schwarz Übergewicht, denn auch Weiß hat
Probleme mit seinem Springer a8. Mit dem Textzug aktiviert Schwarz seinen Turm.
} 15. Nc7 Nc2+ 16. Kf1 {[%cal Rf1g1,Rg1h1]} Rc8 {[%csl Gc8]} 17. Bf4 h6 {
[%cal Rg7g5] Schwarz bereitet 18...g5 vor, um seine Bauern am Königsflügel zu
mobilisieren.} 18. h4 (18. Kg1 g5 19. Bd6 Nxg3 20. hxg3 Bc6 $15 {[%csl Rc7]})
18... e5 $5 19. dxe5 (19. Bxe5 Ne3+ 20. Kg1 Nf2 $5 (20... Ng4 {[%csl Rc7,Re5]}
21. Bf4 Nhf2 22. Nh2 $15) 21. Kxf2 Ng4+ 22. Ke1 Nxe5 23. Nxe5 Rxc7 $17) 19...
Rxc7 20. e6 {[%cal Re6d7,Rf4c7]} Ne3+ 21. Bxe3 (21. Kg1 $2 Rc1+ $19) 21...
Nxg3+ 22. Ke1 (22. Kf2 $2 Ne4+ $19) 22... Bxe6 $5 (22... Bb5 23. Bf4 {[%cal
Rf4c7,Rf4g3]} Rc2 24. Nd4 {[%cal Rd4c2,Rd4b5]} Nxe2 25. Nxc2 Nxf4 26. exf7+
Kxf7 27. Bxb7 Nd3+ 28. Kd2 Nxb2 29. Nd4 $15 {Schwarz hat zwar einen Mehrbauern,
aber das reduzierte Material bietet Weiß Chancen.}) 23. Bf4 {[%cal Rf4c7,Rf4g3]
} Rc2 {[%csl Gc2][%cal Rc2a2,Rc2g2]} 24. Bxg3 Rxb2 {[%csl Ra2,Gb2] Theoretisch
herrscht auf dem Brett materielles Gleichgewicht, denn Schwarz hat Turm und
zwei Bauern gegen zwei Leichtfiguren, aber in Wirklichkeit ist die Aktivität
des Turms sehr bedeutend und die schwarzen Damenflügelbauern sind sehr
gefährlich.} 25. a3 Bd5 $17 {[%csl Gd5,Rg2][%cal Gd5h1] Der schwarze Läufer
steht ausgezeichnet auf d5, fesselt den g2-Läufer.} 26. Bd6 b5 27. Bb4 Ra2 {
Schwarz bereitet den Zug 28...a5 vor, um sich einen gefährlichen Freibauern zu
bilden.} 28. Kf2 a5 29. Bxa5 (29. Bd6 $5) 29... Rxa3 {[%csl Gb5]} 30. Be1 Ra4 {
[%cal Rb5b4]} 31. Bf1 $2 (31. Bh3) 31... b4 {[%csl Gb4] Der starke schwarze
b-Bauer entscheidet die Partie.} 32. Nd4 b3 33. Bc3 Ra2 {[%cal Rb3b2]} 34. Bh3
g6 $1 $19 {[%cal Rb3b2] Und Weiß gab in hoffnungsloser Stellung auf, denn es
droht 35...b2 nebst 36...b1Q. Die Möglichkeit 35.Bf5 ist jetzt verhindert und
Weiß müßte eine Figur für den Bauern geben.} 0-1

[Event "Leon"]
[Site "Leon"]
[Date "1994.??.??"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Ubilava, Elizbar"]
[Black "Leko, Peter"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2535"]
[BlackElo "2545"]
[Annotator "Ribli,Z"]
[PlyCount "121"]
[EventDate "1994.05.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "12"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 042"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1994.10.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1994.10.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. c4 c5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nc6 5. Nc3 e6 6. g3 Be7 $6 7. Bg2 d5 (
7... O-O 8. O-O a6 9. b3 Qc7 10. Bb2 b6 11. Rc1 Bb7 12. Nd5 $1 $16 {Galliamova,
A-Martinidesz,D/Oakham/1992/CBM30/}) 8. O-O O-O 9. cxd5 Nxd5 (9... exd5 10. Be3
$14 {-> D34}) 10. Nxc6 (10. Nxd5 $5 exd5 11. Be3 $14 {Portisch,L-Darga,K/
Amsterdam/1969/}) 10... bxc6 11. Bd2 Rb8 12. Qc2 (12. b3 Ba6 13. Re1 Bf6 (13...
Bb4 14. Na4 $14) 14. Rc1 Nxc3 15. Bxc3 Qxd1 16. Rexd1 Bxc3 17. Rxc3 Bxe2 18.
Rd2 $14) 12... Ba6 13. Rfd1 Qb6 14. Na4 Qb7 15. e4 Nb4 16. Bxb4 Qxb4 17. Rac1
Bb5 18. Nc3 Bf6 19. a3 Qa5 20. Bf1 Bxf1 (20... Rfd8 21. Bxb5 cxb5 22. Na2 $1
Qb6 23. Nb4 $13) 21. Kxf1 Bxc3 22. Qxc3 Qb5+ 23. Kg2 Qxb2 24. Qxb2 Rxb2 25.
Rxc6 $14 Rb7 26. Rd4 g6 27. a4 (27. Ra4 $2 Rd8 $1) 27... Rfb8 28. a5 e5 29. Rd5
Re7 30. Rcc5 Rbe8 31. Kf3 Kg7 32. Ke3 Kf6 33. Rd6+ Kg7 34. Rdc6 f6 35. Rc7 Kf7
36. Kd3 f5 37. exf5 gxf5 38. R5c6 Rd8+ 39. Ke3 Rde8 40. a6 Rxc7 41. Rxc7+ Re7
42. Rb7 Ke6 43. f4 e4 44. g4 fxg4 45. Kxe4 (45. f5+ Kf6 46. Rxe7 Kxe7 47. Kxe4
Kf6 48. Kf4 h5 $10) 45... Re8 (45... h5 $2 46. Rxe7+ Kxe7 47. Kf5 $18) 46. Rxh7
(46. f5+ $5 Kf6+ 47. Kf4 $14) 46... Kf6+ 47. Kd3 Ra8 48. Ke3 Kg6 49. Rc7 Rh8
50. Rc6+ (50. Rxa7 Rh3+ 51. Ke4 Rxh2 52. Ra8 Re2+ $1 53. Kd3 Ra2 54. f5+ Kf7
$10) 50... Kf5 51. Rc5+ Kg6 52. Ke4 Rxh2 53. Rc6+ Kh7 54. Rc7+ Kg6 55. f5+ Kg5
56. Rg7+ Kf6 57. Rg6+ Kf7 58. Kf4 Rf2+ 59. Kxg4 Rg2+ 60. Kh5 Rh2+ 61. Kg5
1/2-1/2

[Event "Ciocaltea Memorial"]
[Site "Bucharest"]
[Date "2000.03.04"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Rogozenco, Dorian"]
[Black "Ionescu, Constantin"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2562"]
[BlackElo "2446"]
[Annotator "Rogozenco,D"]
[PlyCount "65"]
[EventDate "2000.03.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "ROU"]
[EventCategory "10"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 077"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2000.07.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2000.07.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8.
cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Qb6 10. Bxd5 exd5 11. Be3 Bxc3+ 12. Qxc3 Qg6 13. h4 $1 h5 14.
g4 Bxg4 15. f3 Bd7 $146 {Better than the piece sacrifice played by Polgar:} (
15... Rc8 16. Qd2 Nc6 17. fxg4 Ne5 18. gxh5 $2 (18. Nf5 $1) 18... Qe4 $13 19.
Rg1 Nc4 20. Qd3 Nxe3 21. Qxe4 dxe4 22. Kf2 Nc2 23. Rad1 Rc5 24. Nxc2 Rxc2 25.
Rd7 Rxb2 26. h6 e3+ 27. Kxe3 Re8+ {1/2-1/2 Zvjaginsev,V-Polgar,J/Las Vegas 1999
}) 16. Rg1 Rc8 17. Qd2 Qf6 (17... Qa6 $6 18. Rg5 g6 19. Kf2 $16) 18. Rg5 g6 19.
Kf2 $44 Nc6 20. Rag1 $6 {When I played this, I didn't realize that black
Knight may become a very active piece. That's why it was better to swap the
Knights.} (20. Nxc6 $142 Rxc6 21. Rag1 $44 (21. Bd4 Qd6 $13)) 20... Ne5 $1 21.
Ke1 (21. Rxh5 $5 Ng4+ 22. Rxg4 Bxg4 23. Rg5 Bd7 24. h5 $44) 21... Nc4 22. Qd3
Be8 (22... Nxe3 $2 23. Rxg6+ $18) (22... Kf8 $5) 23. Bf2 $5 (23. b3 Nxe3 24.
Qxe3 $13) 23... Nxb2 24. Qb1 Nc4 25. Qd3 Qf4 $6 (25... Qa6 26. Nb3 Qxa2 27. Bd4
Kf8 (27... Nb2 28. Qe3 $18) 28. Kf2 $5 $44 {White has a good compensation here:
} Qa3 $140 29. Qf5 $1 $18 Qd6 (29... Qe7 30. Rxh5 $18) (29... gxf5 30. Bf6 $18)
30. Rxg6 Qh2+ 31. Ke1 Qxh4+ 32. Bf2 $18) (25... Ne5 $142 26. Qe3 Nc4 27. Qd3
$11) 26. Nb3 $1 {/\ 27.Bd4->} Nb2 (26... Na3 27. Kf1 Qc4 28. Qf5 $1 $13) 27.
Qb1 Qb4+ 28. Kf1 Nc4 29. Qd3 Rc6 $2 $138 (29... Kf8 $1 $13) 30. Qxd5 $16 Kh7
31. Bd4 f6 32. Rxh5+ gxh5 $4 (32... Kg7 33. Qe4 $1 {/\34.Qf4-h6.} (33. Qg5 $4
Nd2+ $1 34. Qxd2 (34. Nxd2 Rc1+ $19) 34... Qxd2 35. Nxd2 Rc1+ 36. Kf2 Rxg1 37.
Kxg1 gxh5 38. Ne4 Kg6 $19) (33. Rf5 $2 Rd6 (33... Bf7 34. Qd7 Re8 35. h5 Re7
36. Qd8 Re8 37. Qd7 Re7 $11) 34. Qc5 Qxc5 35. Rxc5 Nd2+ 36. Nxd2 Rxd4 37. Rc7+
Rd7 38. Rxd7+ Bxd7 39. h5 g5 $17) 33... Qf8 (33... Rac8 34. Qf4 $18) 34. Rhg5
Ne5 35. Bxe5 (35. R5g2 $18) 35... fxe5 36. Rxe5 Bf7 37. Re7 $18) 33. Qg8+ 1-0

[Event "St Petersburg-ch"]
[Site "St Petersburg"]
[Date "1996.??.??"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Lugovoi, Aleksei"]
[Black "Orlov, Vassily"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2500"]
[BlackElo "2430"]
[Annotator "Rogozenco,D"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "1996.04.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "11"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 056"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1997.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1997.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 Ne4 6. Qd3 Qa5 7. Qxe4 Bxc3+ 8.
Bd2 Bxd2+ 9. Nxd2 d6 $6 (9... Qb6) (9... Nc6) (9... O-O) 10. Bg2 O-O 11. Qe3
Qc7 (11... cxd4 12. Qxd4 Rd8 13. O-O Nc6 14. Qe3 Qe5 15. Qxe5 Nxe5 16. f4 Ng4
17. Rf3 Bd7 18. Rd3 Bc6 19. Rd1 Bxg2 20. Kxg2 $16 {Wassin-Ooi Chern Ee/Moskow
(ol)/94.}) 12. O-O Bd7 13. Ne4 Na6 {The only way to finish development. White
has a small, but stable advantage due to the weakness on d6.} 14. Rad1 Rad8 15.
Rd2 {White has a clear plan to improve his position,whilst Black has no
counterplay at all.} b6 (15... Bc6 16. dxc5 $140 $2 (16. Rfd1 Bxe4 17. Qxe4 $16
b6 18. Qb7) 16... dxc5 17. Rxd8 Rxd8 18. Nxc5 Bxg2 19. Nxa6 Qc6 20. Nb4 Qxc4
21. Kxg2 Qxb4 $10) 16. Rfd1 Bc6 17. dxc5 dxc5 18. Nd6 Bxg2 19. Kxg2 Nb4 20. Nb5
Qb7+ 21. f3 Rxd2 22. Qxd2 a6 (22... Nxa2 23. Ra1 Nb4 (23... a6 24. Nd6 Qd7 25.
Rxa2 Rd8 26. Rxa6 Qxd6 27. Qxd6 Rxd6 28. Ra8+) 24. Rxa7 $16) 23. Nc3 Nc6 {
Finally Black managed to bring his knight into play, but the life didn`t
become easier for him. On the contrary, now White`s advantage is even biger
because of weak pawn structure (b6) and the possession of d-line.} 24. Qd7 Qxd7
25. Rxd7 Rb8 (25... Rd8 26. Rxd8+ Nxd8 27. Na4 $18) 26. Rd6 Nb4 27. a3 Nc2 28.
Kf2 Kf8 {As always, Black needs just one more move to hold the position.} 29.
Na4 $18 b5 30. cxb5 axb5 31. Nxc5 Rc8 32. Nd3 Rb8 33. Rc6 Nd4 34. Rc7 Rd8 35.
Ne5 f6 36. Nd3 e5 37. Nc5 Rd6 38. e3 Nf5 39. Ke2 Ne7 40. Rb7 f5 41. Nd7+ 1-0

[Event "RUS-ch"]
[Site "Elista"]
[Date "1996.??.??"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Volzhin, Alexander"]
[Black "Epishin, Vladimir"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2485"]
[BlackElo "2620"]
[Annotator "Rogozenco,D"]
[PlyCount "107"]
[EventDate "1996.10.15"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 056"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1997.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1997.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Belov King} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 O-O 6. Bg2 cxd4 7.
Nxd4 d5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Qa5 10. Bd2 Nc6 (10... Na6 11. O-O Nc5 (11... Nxc3
{Belov} 12. Bxc3 Bxc3 13. Qxc3 Qxc3 14. bxc3 Nc5 15. Nb3 Na4 16. c4 Rb8 17. c5
e5 18. Rfc1 Be6 19. Na5 $16 {Zvjaginsev,V-Podgaets,M/Moscow/1992/1:0/59/}) 12.
Qc2 $14 {Beliavsky.}) 11. Nxc6 (11. Nc2 $6 Bxc3 12. bxc3 Qc7 $10 {
Beliavsky-Ivanchuk/Belgrade/95.} (12... Qc7 {Belov} 13. Qa3 Ne5 14. Bxd5 exd5
15. Bf4 f6 16. O-O Qf7 17. Ne3 Bh3 18. Rfd1 g5 $1 $17 {Beliavsky,A-Ivanchuk,V/
Belgrade/1995/0:1/29/})) (11. e3 {Belov} Qa6 12. Nxc6 bxc6 13. Bxd5 $1 Bxc3 14.
Bc4 Bxd2+ 15. Kxd2 Qa5+ 16. Ke2 Qh5+ 17. f3 e5 18. e4 $10 {Zvjaginsev,
V-Lujbojevic,L/Pamplona/1995/0,5/37/}) 11... bxc6 12. O-O {In this system (9. .
.. Qa5) almost all the positions (usually endgames) are slightly better for
White. Black must be ready to fight for a draw in an inferior endgame - not a
pleasant task for many chess players.} Bxc3 13. bxc3 $5 (13. Bxc3 Nxc3 14. bxc3
Ba6 {This position is considered equal by theory. However Black still has to
solve some problems for achieving a draw.} 15. Qb4 $1 $14 Qe5 (15... Qc7 $6 16.
c4 Rad8 17. Qa4 Bc8 18. Bxc6 Rd6 19. Bf3 Bd7 20. Qa3 Bc6 21. c5 $18 {
Rogozenko-Reeh/Hamburg/96.}) 16. Rfe1 Rab8 17. Qa3 Qb5 $2 {Rogozenko-Blauert/
Deutschland/96.} (17... Rb6 18. Rad1 $14) 18. Be4 $1 $16) 13... Ba6 14. Rfd1
Qc5 {N/} (14... Rab8 15. c4 Qc5 16. cxd5 Rxb3 17. axb3 Bxe2 18. Re1 (18. Rdc1
Qd6 19. Be3 cxd5 20. Bc5 Qb8 21. Bxf8 Kxf8 22. Rc2 Bb5 23. Rca2 a6 $17 {
Nielsen,PH-Emms,J/Copengagen BSF/1995/0:1/50/}) 18... cxd5 $2 (18... Bb5 19.
dxc6 $16) 19. Rxe2 Qb6 20. b4 $18 {NielsenPH-Savon/Pardubice/95.} (20. b4 {
Belov} Rc8 21. Be1 $16 {Nielsen,PH-Savon,V/Pardubice op/1995/1:0/43/})) 15. e4
Bc4 16. Qa4 Nb6 17. Qb4 Qxb4 18. cxb4 Rad8 $6 (18... Rfd8 19. Be3 Bb5 20. Rxd8+
$6 (20. f4 $5) (20. Bc5 $14) 20... Rxd8 21. Bxb6 axb6 22. a4 Ra8 23. a5 $10 {
Fish-Shipov/Yalta/96.}) 19. Be3 $16 (19. a3 $4 {Belov} Be2 $19) 19... Rxd1+ 20.
Rxd1 Bxa2 21. Bc5 $1 (21. Ra1 {Belov} Bb3 22. Rxa7 Nc4 23. Bc5 $16) 21... Rb8 (
21... Ra8 $2 {Belov} 22. Ra1 Bc4 23. Bxb6 $18) 22. Ra1 Bc4 23. Rxa7 h6 24. f4
Bb5 25. Rc7 (25. Kf2 {Belov} Na4 26. Bd4 $16) 25... Na8 26. Re7 Nb6 27. Bf3 (
27. f5 exf5 28. exf5 Nd5 $14) (27. Kf2 $5 {Belov}) 27... Nc4 28. f5 exf5 29.
exf5 Nd2 30. Bg2 (30. Bh5 {Belov} Bc4 31. Rd7 Bd5 $14) 30... Nb3 (30... Rc8 {
Belov} 31. f6 gxf6 32. Be3 Nc4 33. Bxh6 $16 c5 $2 34. Bb7 $18) 31. Rc7 Nxc5 32.
bxc5 Kf8 33. g4 Rd8 34. Bxc6 Bxc6 35. Rxc6 Ke7 (35... Rd2 36. Rc7 (36. f6 {
Belov} gxf6 37. Rxf6 Kg7 38. Rf2 Rd4 39. h3 Rc4 40. Rf5 Rc2 $16) 36... Rc2 37.
c6 $18) 36. Kf2 Rd2+ 37. Kg3 Rd3+ (37... Kd7 $5 {Belov} 38. Ra6 Rc2 39. Ra7+
Ke8 40. Rc7 Rc4 41. h4 Kf8 42. g5 h5 43. f6 gxf6 44. gxf6 Ke8 45. Re7+ Kf8 46.
Re5 Rg4+ 47. Kh3 Rf4 48. Rxh5 Rxf6 49. Rd5 $16) 38. Kf4 Rd4+ 39. Ke5 Rxg4 (
39... Rd7 {Belov} 40. h4 Ra7 41. g5 hxg5 42. hxg5 f6+ 43. gxf6+ gxf6+ 44. Kd5
Rd7+ 45. Rd6 Rc7 46. Re6+ Kf7 47. Kd6 $18) 40. Rc7+ Ke8 41. c6 Rg2 42. Rb7 Re2+
43. Kd6 Rd2+ 44. Kc7 Rc2 (44... Rxh2 {Belov} 45. Kb8 h5 46. c7 Rc2 47. c8=Q+
Rxc8+ 48. Kxc8 h4 49. Rc7 h3 50. Rc3 Ke7 51. Rxh3 Kf6 52. Rh5 g6 53. fxg6 Kxg6
54. Ra5 f5 55. Kd7 Kg5 56. Ke6 $18) 45. Kb6 Rxh2 {King: So where are the
doubled pawns? Coming right up. Volzhin employs a neat trick to finish the
game cleanly.} (45... Rb2+ 46. Ka7 Rxh2 47. Kb8 Rc2 48. c7 h5 49. c8=Q+ Rxc8+
50. Kxc8 h4 51. f6 gxf6 52. Rd7 h3 53. Kc7 h2 54. Rd1 $18) 46. f6 {King: I
have a feeling that White should win the position with an immediate Rb8+, but
splitting the pawns is absolutely decisive.} (46. c7 {Belov} Rb2+ 47. Ka7 Ra2+
48. Kb8 Rc2 49. c8=Q+ Rxc8+ 50. Kxc8 h5 51. Rc7 h4 52. Kb7 h3 53. Rc3 Ke7 54.
Rxh3 Kf6 55. Rf3 g5 56. Kc6 g4 57. Rf1 Kg5 58. Kd5 g3 59. Ke4 Kg4 60. f6 $18)
46... gxf6 47. Rb8+ Ke7 48. c7 Rc2 (48... Rb2+ 49. Ka5 Rc2 50. c8=Q Rxc8 51.
Rxc8 Kd6 52. Kb4 Ke5 53. Kc3 $18) 49. c8=Q Rxc8 50. Rxc8 Kd6 51. Rc5 $1 f5 52.
Kb5 (52. Rxf5 {Belov} Ke6 53. Rh5 f5 54. Rxh6+ Ke5 $132) 52... f4 53. Kc4 Ke6
54. Kd4 1-0

[Event "Morelia/Linares 25th"]
[Site "Morelia/Linares"]
[Date "2008.02.22"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2780"]
[BlackElo "2799"]
[Annotator "Rogozenco,D"]
[PlyCount "83"]
[EventDate "2008.02.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 123"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.04.02"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.04.02"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 {In their previous encounters Topalov used more
frequently (and successfully) 3.Nf3.} Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 b6 ({In the first
round of the same tournament Aronian played} 5... cxd4 6. Nxd4 Ne4 7. Qd3 Bxc3+
8. bxc3 Nc5 {but after} 9. Qf3 d6 10. Bg2 e5 11. Qe3 O-O 12. Nb3 Qc7 13. Nxc5
dxc5 14. O-O Nd7 15. f4 {failed to solve all the problems and lost, 1-0
Topalov,V-Aronian,L/Morelia 2008 (35).}) 6. Bg2 Bb7 7. O-O cxd4 8. Qxd4 Nc6 9.
Qd3 O-O 10. b3 d5 11. cxd5 Ne7 {A small trick. White can't keep the extra pawn
since 12.dxe6 loses the knight to c3 after 12...Qxd3.} 12. Bd2 Rc8 $146 (12...
Bxc3 13. Bxc3 Qxd5 14. Qc2 {1/2-1/2 Farago,I-Timman,J/Netherlands 1979 (47).
leaves White with advantage thanks to his bishop pair.}) (12... Bxd5 13. Nxd5
Nexd5 14. Rac1 Bxd2 15. Qxd2 Rc8 16. Rxc8 Qxc8 17. Rc1 Qb7 18. Qc2 $14 {
The control over the c-file secures White better prospects.}) 13. e4 {The most
aggressive continuation.} ({In the event of} 13. Rfd1 {Black can already take
on d5 with the bishop} Bxd5 {since} 14. Nxd5 Nexd5 15. Rac1 {brings White
nothing anymore:} Bxd2 16. Qxd2 Nc3 $1 {and Black makes full use of his rook
on c8.}) 13... Bxc3 14. Bxc3 Nxe4 {This small combination is the only way to
solve the problems.} (14... exd5 15. Bxf6 {is of course unacceptable for Black.
White has a clear advantage after} gxf6 16. Nd4 dxe4 17. Bxe4 Bxe4 18. Qxe4 $16
) 15. Bxg7 {A counter-sacrifice: before dying the bishop takes an important
pawn.} ({Bad for White is} 15. Qxe4 Rxc3 16. Ng5 Ng6 17. Qd4 Rc8 {and the pawn
on d5 is still pinned.}) 15... Kxg7 16. Qxe4 Bxd5 17. Qg4+ Ng6 {After the more
or less forced sequence of moves we reach a position where thanks to his
better pawn structure and a slightly vulnerable king on g7 Topalov has some
objective reasons to fight for the advantage. On the other hand all this
should not be overestimated: Black will place the queen on f6 and his pieces
will control most important files and diagonals. Therefore the position is
very close to equal.} 18. h4 ({The alternative} 18. Rfd1 Qf6 19. h4 Bxf3 20.
Bxf3 Rc3 21. Be2 $1 {looks preferable. If then} (21. Bg2 Rc2) 21... Kh8 {
White continues} 22. Rac1 Rfc8 23. Rxc3 Rxc3 24. h5 {with initiative}) 18...
Bxf3 {The easiest decision. Anand eliminates a potentially dangerous attacking
piece.} 19. Qxf3 (19. Bxf3 f5 20. Qa4 Ne5 21. Bg2 (21. Qxa7+ $2 Rf7) 21... Rf7
$11) 19... Qf6 20. Qb7 Qe7 {In an endgame the vulnerability of black king is
not a factor anymore and Vishy cleverly exploits this factor.} 21. Qe4 Qc5 22.
Rad1 ({The last real chance to fight for the advantage was} 22. Rac1 {after
which Black should probably continue} Qe5 ({rather than} 22... Qxc1 23. Rxc1
Rxc1+ 24. Kh2 {and the rooks are bad defenders of the black king})) 22... Rfd8
23. Rfe1 Rxd1 24. Rxd1 Rc7 25. Bf3 Qe5 {The same simple strategy: the exchange
of pieces favours Black, who won't feel any problems with the king after that.}
26. Qb4 Qc3 27. Qg4 f5 28. Qh5 Qf6 29. Bg2 e5 {Considering the fact that
Topalov was short on time Anand makes some attempts to fight for the
initiative.} 30. Bh3 {Veselin immediately notices the newly created weakness -
the f5-pawn.} Rf7 ({After} 30... f4 31. Bg2 Rf7 32. Qg4 fxg3 33. fxg3 Qf2+ 34.
Kh2 {Black's aggressive play could easily backfire: White has a very
unpleasant threat to advance the h-pawn.}) 31. Qe2 $11 e4 (31... f4 32. h5 Ne7
33. Rd7 fxg3 34. fxg3 $14) 32. Rd5 f4 (32... Ne5 33. Kg2 $14) 33. Rf5 (33. Qxe4
$2 fxg3 34. fxg3 Qf2+ 35. Kh1 Qxg3 $40) 33... Qa1+ 34. Kh2 fxg3+ 35. fxg3 Rxf5
36. Bxf5 Nxh4 $1 37. Bxe4 (37. gxh4 $2 Qe5+ 38. Kg2 Qxf5 $17) 37... Qe5 38.
Qg4+ Ng6 39. Bxg6 hxg6 40. Qd7+ Kh6 41. Qxa7 Qe2+ 42. Kh3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Olympiad-41"]
[Site "Tromsoe"]
[Date "2014.08.09"]
[Round "7.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Naiditsch, Arkadij"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2877"]
[BlackElo "2709"]
[Annotator "Roiz,M"]
[PlyCount "124"]
[EventDate "2014.08.02"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 162"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.09.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.09.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Norway"]
[BlackTeam "Germany"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "GER"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 O-O 6. Bg2 cxd4 7. Nxd4 d5 8.
cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Nc6 ({In his preceding game Arkadiy went for a more popular
order of moves:} 9... Qa5 10. Bd2 Nc6 11. Nxc6 ({A rare alternative here is} 
11. Nc2 {but after} Bxc3 12. bxc3 Qc7 {Black has comfortable play:} 13. e4 (13.
Qa3 Ne5 14. Bxd5 exd5 $15 {0-1 Beliavsky,A (2650)-Ivanchuk,V (2740)/Belgrade
1995/CBM 051/[Dautov] (29)}) 13... Nb6 14. O-O Na5 15. Qb4 Nbc4 $11 {1/2-1/2
Georgiev,V (2559)-Draskovic,L (2135)/Sunny Beach 2011/CBM 144 Extra (55)})
11... bxc6 12. O-O Bxc3 13. bxc3 Ba6 14. Rfd1 Qc5 15. e4 Bc4 16. Qa4 Nb6 17.
Qb4 Qh5 18. Re1 c5 19. Qa5 Rfc8 20. Be3 Be2 21. Bf4 Bd3 22. Rad1 Be2 23. Rc1
Bd3 24. Bd6 e5 25. Bxc5 Nc4 26. Qb5 a6 27. Qd7 Be2 $44 {1/2-1/2 Efimenko,Z 
(2689)-Naiditsch,A (2684)/Mukachevo 2010/CBM 138 (34)}) 10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. O-O
Qa5 {Black is trying to switch to the main lines, but here White has an extra
resource.} ({Some top players have gone for} 11... Rb8 $5 12. Na4 (12. Ne4 Ba6
13. Qc2 Be7 14. a3 Qb6 15. b4 Rfc8 $11 {1-0 Ponomariov,R (2705)-Kramnik,V 
(2785)/Moscow 2007/EXT 2008 (79)}) 12... Ba6 13. Qc2 Qa5 14. a3 Be7 15. Bf3 (
15. b4 $5 Qb5 16. Re1 Qc4 17. Qxc4 Bxc4 18. Bd2 Bb3 19. Nc5 $14) 15... c5 16.
Bd2 Qb5 17. Rfc1 Rfc8 $11 {1/2-1/2 Edouard,R (2692)-Wojtaszek,R (2724)/
Saint-Quentin FRA 2014 (21)}) 12. Ne4 $5 {Magnus is happy to deviate from the
known paths. Black has a weak Pc6, so he has to search for active piece play.}
(12. Bd2 {will just transpose us to the above-mentioned game against Efimenko.}
) 12... Ba6 13. Qc2 {Black's pieces are a bit far away from the king, so
Arkadij has to parry a threat of 14.Ng5.} h6 {This prophylactic move is a bit
slow.} ({However, in other cases White is able to fight some edge as well:} 
13... Rab8 14. Ng5 $1 (14. a3 Be7 15. Bf3 c5 16. Bg5 Bxg5 17. Nxg5 Nf6 18. Ne4
Nxe4 19. Bxe4 g6 $11 {1/2-1/2 Miroshnichenko,E (2670)-Ismagambetov,A (2496)/
Tashkent 2011/CBM 141 Extra (30)}) 14... g6 15. Ne4 Be7 16. Bh6 Rfd8 17. b3 $14
) (13... Be7 14. Ng5 (14. Bd2 Qb5 15. Rfc1 Rab8 16. Qxc6 Qxc6 17. Rxc6 Bxe2 $11
{1/2-1/2 Sulava,N (2405)-Grosar,A (2370)/Kladovo 1991/TD (46)}) 14... g6 15.
Ne4 Rfd8 16. Bh6 $14) 14. a3 Be7 15. b4 $1 $146 {White comes up with an
important tactical resource. This novelty definitely poses Black some problems.
} (15. Bd2 Qb5 16. Rfc1 c5 17. Nxc5 (17. e3 $5) 17... Bxc5 18. Qxc5 Qxb2 $11 {
1/2-1/2 Von Herman,U (2400)-Schulz,J (2255)/Germany 2003/CBM 100 ext (68)})
15... Qb5 ({White's idea is based on the following line:} 15... Bxb4 16. axb4
$1 (16. Bxh6 Bc3 17. Rac1 gxh6 18. Nxc3 Qxc3 19. Qxc3 Nxc3 20. Rxc3 Bxe2 $11)
16... Qxa1 17. Bb2 Qa2 18. Nd2 $1 {[%csl Ra2][%cal Gf1a1]} Nxb4 19. Qc3 e5 20.
Ra1 Qe6 21. Qxb4 Bxe2 22. Re1 $14 {and White should be better in this position,
although it would be not easy to achieve a victory.}) 16. Re1 Qc4 ({An attempt
to get rid of the Pc6 leads to a slighty inferior position:} 16... c5 17. bxc5
Rac8 18. Rb1 Qc6 19. Qd2 Bxc5 20. Nxc5 Qxc5 21. Bb2 $14) 17. Qb2 c5 (17... Rfd8
18. Bd2 Rab8 19. Rac1 Qb5 20. Qc2 $14) 18. Nxc5 {The most natural response.
Magnus is ready to simplify the position in order to exchange the opponent's
dark-squared bishop.} ({The alternative wasn't obvious:} 18. Qe5 $5 Qd4 (18...
cxb4 19. Bb2 Nf6 20. Nd2 $16) 19. Qxd4 cxd4 20. Bb2 d3 21. exd3 Bxd3 22. Nc5
$14) 18... Bf6 {This move was probably connected with some tactical blunder.} (
{Black could have opted for} 18... Bxc5 19. bxc5 Qxc5 20. Bd2 Rab8 21. Qe5 Qc2
22. Red1 Qb2 $14 {with a holdable endgame.}) 19. Qa2 Rac8 $6 {A serious
mistake - now Black is going to lose a pawn without getting any compensation.}
({The point is that after} 19... Bxa1 $2 20. Qxa1 {[%csl Ra6,Rc4] Black's
pieces are in trouble:} Rac8 21. Bb2 Rxc5 22. bxc5 f6 23. e4 Nc7 24. e5 f5 25.
c6 $18) ({Black's task wasn't easy, but} 19... Nc3 $1 {was called for:} 20.
Qxc4 Bxc4 21. Bxa8 (21. Bb2 Nxe2+ 22. Rxe2 Bxe2 23. Bxf6 gxf6 24. Re1 Bc4 25.
Bxa8 Rxa8 $14) 21... Rxa8 {Black wins the material back and gets excellent
drawish chances.} 22. e4 Ne2+ 23. Rxe2 Bxe2 24. Rb1 Rd8 $14) 20. e4 Nc3 21.
Qxc4 Bxc4 22. e5 Be7 {Black has some activity, but White can prevent any
reasonable counterplay now.} 23. Bd2 {This bishop is somewhat misplaced there.}
(23. Be3 $5 {would be simpler:} Rfd8 24. Ne4 $16) 23... Ne2+ 24. Kh1 Nd4 25.
Rac1 Bd5 (25... Bb5 26. Be3 Nf5 27. Nb7 Nxe3 28. fxe3 $16) 26. Bxd5 exd5 {
The knight on d4 is quite tricky, so White should be careful.} 27. Nd7 $1 {
Magnus correctly avoids the exchange of his knight.} ({In the following lines
Black could get some compensation for a pawn:} 27. Kg2 Bxc5 28. Rxc5 Rxc5 29.
bxc5 Nc2 30. Rd1 Rc8 31. Bb4 a5 32. Bxa5 Rxc5 $14) (27. Be3 Bxc5 28. bxc5 Nc6
29. Red1 Rfd8 30. f4 d4 31. Bf2 f6 32. exf6 gxf6 33. Kg2 Kf7 $14) 27... Rxc1 (
27... Rfd8 28. Rxc8 Rxc8 29. Rc1 Rc4 30. Rxc4 dxc4 31. Kg2 Nb5 32. Bc1 $16) 28.
Rxc1 Rd8 29. Nc5 {The first step in the wrong direction - there was no reason
to come back.} (29. Rc7 $1 {did require precise calculating, but after} Nb3 (
29... Nb5 30. Rb7 Nxa3 31. Rxa7 $16) 30. Be1 d4 31. Rxa7 d3 32. Kg2 d2 33. Bxd2
Nxd2 34. b5 Nb3 35. Rc7 Bxa3 36. b6 $16 {White's winning chances shouldn't be
understimated.}) 29... Bxc5 30. Rxc5 (30. bxc5 Nc6 31. f4 Rb8 $44) 30... Nf3 $1
{Arkadij has managed to activate his forces, while the d-pawn may be dangerous.
} (30... Nb3 31. Rc2 Re8 32. f4 f6 33. Rb2 Nxd2 34. Rxd2 fxe5 35. Rxd5 exf4 36.
gxf4 $16) 31. Bc3 $2 {This natural move is a serious mistake - White spoils
the advantage.} ({Carlsen's task wasn't easy, but after the correct} 31. Bf4 $1
g5 32. Kg2 Ne1+ 33. Kf1 Nf3 (33... Nd3 34. Rc3 Nxb4 35. Bxg5 hxg5 36. axb4 $16)
34. Bc1 d4 (34... Nxe5 35. Ke2 Nc4 36. f4 $16) 35. Ke2 Nxh2 36. Kd3 $16 {
it was still possible to win this game.}) 31... g5 $1 $132 {After securing the
Nf3 Black gets sufficient counterplay.} (31... d4 $2 32. Kg2 Ng5 33. Bd2 Ne4
34. Rc2 $16) 32. h3 h5 33. Kg2 g4 34. b5 Rd7 (34... d4 $5 35. Ba5 Rd7 36. hxg4
hxg4 37. Rc7 Rd5 $132) 35. Rc8+ Kh7 36. Ba5 d4 {The passed d-pawn is very
strong, but White is still OK.} (36... Nxe5 $2 37. hxg4 hxg4 38. Rc7 $16) 37.
hxg4 hxg4 38. e6 $2 {A very strange decision by the World Champion. White just
gives the pawn back.} ({After} 38. Rc7 Rxc7 39. Bxc7 d3 40. Kf1 {Black would
still have to find some precise moves in order to avoid a loss:} Nd4 $1 41. Ke1
Nxb5 42. Bd6 Kg6 43. Kd2 Kf5 44. Kxd3 Ke6 $1 45. Kc4 (45. Ke4 f5+ 46. Kf4 a6
$11) (45. Bf8 Kd5 $11) 45... Nxd6+ 46. exd6 Kxd6 47. Kd4 f5 48. a4 a5 $11)
38... fxe6 39. Rc7 Rxc7 40. Bxc7 d3 {Suddenly White is in a real danger.} 41.
Kf1 Nd4 42. Ke1 Nxb5 {Black is a pawn up now!} 43. Bb8 (43. Bd8 e5 $1 44. a4
Nd4 45. Kd2 e4 $19) 43... Nxa3 44. Kd2 {The position looks very bad now for
Magnus, but most probably a draw is still attainable at this moment.} a5 (44...
Nb5 45. Kxd3 Kg6 46. Ke4 a5 47. Be5 a4 48. Kf4 Kh5 49. f3 gxf3 50. g4+ Kg6 (
50... Kh4 51. Bf6+ Kh3 52. Kxf3 $11) 51. Kxf3 a3 52. Ke2 Na7 53. Kd3 Nc6 54.
Bc3 e5 55. Kc4 Kg5 56. Bd2+ Kxg4 57. Kb3 $11) 45. Kxd3 Kg6 46. Ke4 $1 {White
chooses the right route for his king!} ({After} 46. Bd6 $2 Nb5 47. Bf4 Kf5 $1 (
47... a4 48. Kc4 e5 49. Bxe5 Kf5 50. Ba1 Nd6+ 51. Kb4 $11) 48. Kc4 Na7 49. Bc7
a4 50. Bb6 Nc8 $1 (50... Nc6 51. Kb5 Ne5 52. Kxa4 Ke4 53. Kb3 Kf3 54. Kc3 Ke2
55. Ba7 Nd3 56. Kd4 Nxf2 57. Ke5 Kf3 58. Kxe6 $11) 51. Bc5 Ke4 52. Kb4 Kd5 53.
Be3 e5 54. Kxa4 Kc4 $19 {Black should win here quite easily.}) 46... a4 47. Be5
(47. f3 Nc4 48. Ba7 Nd6+ 49. Ke3 a3 50. fxg4 e5 $19) 47... Nc4 48. Bc3 a3 49.
Kf4 Kh5 {Obviously, White's chances are connected only with exchanging the
k-side pawns, but this time Magnus fails to find a correct version of that
plan!} 50. f3 $2 (50. Ke4 $2 {was also bad:} Kg5 51. Ba1 a2 52. Kd3 Nd6 53. Bb2
Kf5 54. Ba1 Ne4 $19) ({But} 50. Bb4 $1 a2 51. Bc3 {could save the day:} Na5 (
51... Nb6 52. Ba1 Nd7 53. f3 e5+ 54. Ke4 Kg5 55. fxg4 Kxg4 56. Kd5 Kxg3 57. Kc4
e4 58. Kb3 e3 59. Kxa2 e2 60. Bc3 Kf2 61. Kb3 Ne5 62. Kc2 $11) 52. f3 gxf3 53.
Kxf3 Kg5 54. Ke4 Kg4 55. Ke5 Kxg3 56. Kxe6 Kf3 57. Kd5 Ke2 58. Kc5 Kd3 59. Kb4
Kc2 60. Bh8 Nc6+ 61. Ka3 Kb1 62. Bg7 $11) 50... e5+ 51. Ke4 Nd6+ $1 {That is
the point! Black is not obliged to take on f3.} (51... gxf3 $2 52. Kxf3 Kg5 53.
g4 Kf6 54. Ke2 Ke6 55. g5 Kf5 56. g6 Kxg6 57. Kd3 $11) 52. Ke3 Kg5 $19 {
Now Black's king is back in the game, so 2 passed pawns will decide the game.}
53. fxg4 e4 (53... Kxg4 54. Kd3 e4+ 55. Kc2 e3 56. Kb3 e2 57. Be1 Nb5 $19) 54.
Kd2 Nb5 55. Be5 Kxg4 56. Ke3 Kf5 57. Ba1 Nd6 {Protecting the pawn. White is
completely helpless.} 58. Kd2 Kg4 59. Ke3 ({Or} 59. Kc3 e3 60. Kb3 Ne4 61. Kxa3
e2 $19) 59... a2 60. Bc3 (60. Kf2 Nc4 61. Bc3 e3+ 62. Kg2 Na3 63. Kf1 Kf3 64.
g4 Nc2 $19) 60... Kxg3 61. Ba1 Kg4 62. Kd2 Kf3 0-1

[Event "ISR-chT"]
[Site "Israel"]
[Date "2018.02.23"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Roiz, Michael"]
[Black "Psakhis, Lev"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2608"]
[BlackElo "2472"]
[Annotator "Roiz,M"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "2018.01.05"]
[EventType "team-tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "ISR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 184"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.05.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.05.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 e6 2. c4 Nf6 3. Nf3 d5 {This came as a big surprise, since GM Psakhis is
consistent in his opening repertoire.} ({Lev has exceptional experience after
both} 3... b6) ({and} 3... c5) 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. g3 $5 {I decided to deviate from
the main lines of the Ragozin.} O-O 6. Bg2 dxc4 {Black has to accept the
challenge - otherwise the Bb4 would be misplaced.} 7. O-O Nc6 {Again, the most
challenging.} (7... Nbd7 8. Qa4 a5 9. a3 Nb6 10. Qc2 {offers White promising
compensation for the pawn.}) 8. Qa4 $5 {A somewhat unusual move, which
recently has gained some popularity.} Bd7 {What can be more natural than
developing a piece with a tempo?} ({Another logical way of handling the
position is} 8... Nd5 {and then White plays} 9. Qc2 {intending to push e2-e4
as soon as possible. As recent practical tests illustrate, White hardly has
more than sufficient compensation for a pawn:} Be7 10. Rd1 Rb8 (10... b6 11. e4
Ndb4 12. Qe2 Ba6 13. Be3 Na5 14. a3 Nd3 15. b4 Nb3 16. Rab1 $44 {Grandelius,N
- Mareco,S Linares ESP 2017}) 11. e4 Ncb4 12. Qb1 Nxc3 13. bxc3 Nd3 14. Qb5 c5
15. Qxc4 Nxc1 16. Raxc1 b5 17. Qe2 Qb6 $11 {Onischuk,A - Naroditsky,D Saint
Louis USA 2017}) 9. Bg5 $1 {It turns out, that White can keep his queen on a4
for a while.} ({A concession would be} 9. Qc2 Be7 10. e4 Rb8 11. Rd1 b5 {
and White's compensation is questionable.}) 9... Bxc3 $1 $146 {No doubt,
capturing the central pawn is the best solution.} ({But} 9... a5 $6 {is worse:}
10. Bxf6 Qxf6 11. a3 $14 {and White manages to regain the pawn in a favourable
situation.}) ({The only preceding game saw} 9... Rb8 10. Rad1 ({Another
possibility is} 10. Bxf6 $5 Qxf6 11. Ne5 Qe7 12. Nxc6 bxc6 13. Bxc6 $14) 10...
Bxc3 11. bxc3 h6 12. Bxf6 Qxf6 13. Qxc4 $14 {Matlakov,M - Tomashevsky,E St
Petersburg RUS 2017, White was somewhat better.}) 10. bxc3 Nxd4 11. Qxc4 Nc6 $1
{The knight is coming back in order to cover the long diagonal.} ({Another
retreat was much worse:} 11... Nf5 12. Ne5 Nd6 13. Qh4 $16) ({Also
insufficient for equality is} 11... Nxf3+ 12. Bxf3 Bc6 13. Bxc6 bxc6 14. Rfd1
Qe7 15. Qxc6 $14) 12. Rfd1 Qe7 13. Rab1 $1 {This move poses Black the major
practical problems.} ({I rejected the natural} 13. Nd4 Nxd4 14. Qxd4 Bc6 15.
Bxc6 bxc6 16. Qc4 h6 17. Bxf6 Qxf6 18. Qxc6 Qe5 19. e3 Rab8 {and Black is
close to full equality.}) ({The typical knight's transfer to c5 also wouldn't
offer much:} 13. Nd2 h6 14. Bxf6 Qxf6 15. Ne4 Qe7 16. Nc5 Bc8 $11 {and Black
should be able to neutralise the pressure along the long diagonal.}) 13... Rab8
{GM Psakhis is reasonably focused on patient defence.} ({After} 13... Rad8 14.
Rxb7 Na5 15. Qb4 Qxb4 16. Rxb4 c5 17. Rf4 Bb5 18. Re1 $1 $14 {White's
advantage is indisputable.}) 14. Nd4 $1 (14. Nd2 $6 {is dubious:} h6 15. Bxf6
Qxf6 {and then} 16. Ne4 Qe7 17. Nc5 {runs into} b5 $1 $17 {and Black is much
better.}) (14. Bxf6 {is harmless:} gxf6 15. Nd4 Ne5 16. Qxc7 Rfc8 17. Qa5 Qc5
18. Qxc5 Rxc5 19. f4 Ng6 $11) 14... h6 15. Be3 $1 {I was happy to find this
resource, which enables White to maintain the tension.} ({The obvious} 15. Bxf6
Qxf6 16. Nxc6 Bxc6 17. Bxc6 bxc6 18. Qxc6 Qe5 19. e3 Rxb1 20. Rxb1 Rd8 $11 {
would most likely end in a draw.}) 15... Qe8 $1 {My opponent was under strong
time pressure, but he still managed to find the best move.} (15... Rfd8 16.
Bxc6 Bxc6 17. Nxc6 bxc6 18. Rxb8 Rxb8 19. Qxc6 $14) 16. Nxc6 (16. Nb5 {wasn't
a serious alternative:} Na5 17. Qxc7 Bxb5 18. Qxa5 Bxe2 19. Re1 Ba6 $11) 16...
Bxc6 17. Bxa7 (17. Bxc6 Qxc6 18. Qxc6 bxc6 $11) 17... Ra8 ({I also seriously
considered} 17... Bxg2 18. Kxg2 b5 $1 19. Qxc7 Rc8 20. Qb7 {I had a feeling,
that Black might be able to solve the problems. Indeed, after} Nd5 21. Bd4 Nxc3
22. Bxc3 Rxc3 23. Rxb5 Ra3 24. Rb2 Qa8 25. Qxa8 Rfxa8 26. Rdd2 g5 $11 {a draw
seems unavoidable.}) 18. Bxc6 Qxc6 19. Qxc6 bxc6 20. Rb7 {Visually White is
better, but the vulnerablity of Ba7 offers Black excellent counterplay.} Rfc8
21. c4 (21. a4 Ne4 22. Rd7 Nxc3 $11) 21... Ne4 $6 {The first step in the wrong
direction.} ({Much better was} 21... Ne8 $1 22. Rd7 e5 {Now, when the Pc7 is
protected Black feels free to sit and wait} 23. f3 g5 $1 {White can do nothing
against the activation of his opponent's king} 24. Kf2 Kg7 25. a4 Kf6 26. a5
Ke6 27. Rd3 Nd6 28. a6 Nxc4 $11) 22. Rd7 Nd6 ({I was mostly expecting} 22...
Nc3 {and then after} 23. a3 (23. Kg2 $5 Nxa2 24. Rbxc7 Rxc7 25. Rxc7 $16) 23...
Nxe2+ 24. Kf1 Nc3 25. Ke1 g5 26. Kd2 Ne4+ 27. Kc2 c5 28. Rdxc7 Rxc7 29. Rxc7
Nxf2 30. Bxc5 $16 {the a-passer offers White excellent winning chances.}) 23.
Rbxc7 Rxc7 24. Rxc7 Nxc4 25. a4 {The a-passer is powerful, but White cannot
promote yet.} Nb2 $2 {Lev is inviting fresh troubles, since the advance of the
a-passer is my big achievement.} (25... e5 $1 26. Kg2 Nb2 27. a5 Nc4 28. a6 g5
$1 {would have still offer Black a defendable position. For instance,} 29. f4
gxf4 30. gxf4 exf4 31. Kf3 Na3 32. Rb7 Kh7 33. Bd4 Nc2 34. Be5 Rxa6 $11) 26. a5
Nc4 27. a6 f6 $2 ({The only way to put up resistance was} 27... Na3 $1 28. Rb7
Kh7 29. Bd4 (29. Rxf7 Kg6 30. Rb7 Nb5 31. Bb8 Rxa6 32. Be5 Ra7 33. Rb6 Kf5 34.
f4 Nc7 35. Rxc6 Nd5 $16) 29... Nb5 30. Be5 Rxa6 31. Rxf7 Ra7 32. Rf8 $16 {
White is much better, but the limited material balance leaves Black some hopes.
}) 28. g4 $2 $138 {Alas, this mistake could have spoiled all my efforts!} ({
I should have played} 28. Rb7 Kh7 29. Bd4 Rxa6 30. Bxf6 $18 {achieving a
winning position.}) 28... Na3 $2 {Luckily, Lev was the last to err in this
game.} ({Had Black played} 28... e5 $1 {his problems would be almost solved:}
29. f3 (29. h4 c5 30. e3 Nd6 $11) 29... c5 30. e3 h5 $1 31. gxh5 Na3 32. Rb7
Kh7 33. Bxc5 Rxa6 34. Bf8 Kh6 $11) 29. Rb7 Kh7 30. Bd4 $1 ({I didn't see how
to refute} 30. Bc5 $2 Rxa6 31. Bf8 {, but still rejected it. Indeed, after} Ra8
$1 32. Bxg7 Kg6 33. h4 Rg8 34. h5+ Kg5 35. f3 f5 $11 {Black manages to survive.
}) 30... e5 31. Ra7 $1 {This is the point! Now the a-passer easily decides the
game.} Rd8 32. Bc5 Nb5 33. Rb7 $18 {Black would be forced to give up the piece.
The rest was just an agony.} h5 34. gxh5 Kh6 35. a7 Rd1+ 36. Kg2 Ra1 37. Rb8
Rxa7 38. Bxa7 ({There was also the equally good} 38. Rxb5 cxb5 39. Bxa7 $18)
38... Nxa7 39. Rh8+ Kg5 40. Rh7 Nb5 41. Rxg7+ 1-0

[Event "ARG-ch 89th"]
[Site "Saenz Pena"]
[Date "2014.07.16"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Manzone, Alessandro Jr"]
[Black "Mareco, Sandro"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2317"]
[BlackElo "2592"]
[Annotator "Rosito,J"]
[PlyCount "26"]
[EventDate "2014.07.09"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "ARG"]
[EventCategory "9"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 161 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.08.29"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.08.29"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 c5 5. Nf3 {Con esta línea Kasparov derrotó
a Karpov en la primera partida del segundo match entre ambos disputado en 1985.
} Bxc3+ ({La variante principal es} 5... cxd4) 6. bxc3 Qa5 7. Qd3 b6 8. Bg2 Bb7
9. d5 exd5 10. cxd5 ({Era para considerar} 10. Qe3+) 10... Bxd5 11. O-O O-O 12.
Bg5 c4 13. Qf5 Bc6 $6 {En la posición final Mareco queda en una situación un
tanto incómoda debido a 14.Dxa5 bxa5 15.Axf6 gxf6 16.Tfd1. La vulnerabilidad
de su estructura de peones es evidente.} ({Mejor era} 13... Ne4 14. Be7 g6 15.
Qf4 Nc6 16. Bxf8 Rxf8 {Las negras van a capturar el peón de c3, arribando a
una posición incierta.}) 1/2-1/2

[Event "EU-Cup 16th"]
[Site "Neum"]
[Date "2000.09.27"]
[Round "4.3"]
[White "Golod, Vitali"]
[Black "Rozentalis, Eduardas"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2590"]
[BlackElo "2570"]
[Annotator "Rozentalis,E"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[EventDate "2000.09.24"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "BIH"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 080"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2001.01.25"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2001.01.25"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Beer Sheva"]
[BlackTeam "Warsaw Polonia"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "ISR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "POL"]

1. d4 {Golod,V} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 c6 {
[The main idea is to take back with the "c" pawn, when sooner or later white
will take on d5.]} 7. Qc2 {Golod,V: 'Relatively new idea.Repeatedly was
checked in the previous games:7.e3'} ({Also interestingly:} 7. e4 $5 {(Golod,V)
See comments to Volkov,S-Dautov,R/ Batumi,1999/CBM 74 (1/2-1/2)(Dautov,R)(69)})
(7. e3 {Golod,V}) 7... O-O ({Most probably, slightly dubious:} 7... dxc4 {
(Golod,V) in view of:} 8. e4 b5 9. a4 Nbd7 10. Ba3 Qc7 11. Ne2 a6 12. e5 Nd5
13. Bd6 {[%csl Yd6]} Qd8 14. Ng3 (14. Qd2 $5 {[%cal Yd2g5]}) 14... Qg5 15. Qd2
Qxd2+ 16. Kxd2 $44 {Moskalenko,V-Vehi Bach,V/Paretana,1999 (1/2-1/2)(53)}) (
7... b6 $143 {Golod,V} 8. cxd5 cxd5 9. e4 Bb7 10. Bb5+ $1 Bc6 11. a4 dxe4 12.
fxe4 O-O 13. e5 Nd5 14. Nf3 {[%cal Yf3g5]} h6 15. O-O Qc7 16. Be2 $1 Bb7 17. c4
Rc8 18. Qd2 Ne7 19. Ba3 $16 {Sakaev,K-Yudasin,L/St.Petersburg,1997 (1-0)(49)})
8. cxd5 ({Also insufficiently for advantage:} 8. e4 {Golod,V because of:} dxe4
9. fxe4 e5 $1 $13 {Wells,P}) 8... cxd5 9. e4 dxe4 10. fxe4 e5 11. d5 $6 Nbd7 {
'N!' Golod,V. Golod,V: 'Very strong and at the same time easy move.Black's
plan is:Nc5 with pressure in the pawns centre of the white,and,probably
advance f7-f5.From my point of view this novelty brings black at least
equality.'} ({Against I.Khenkin (Bundesliga 99/00) I played} 11... Qa5 {
, which was simple waste of time. Black has to attack the centre immediately.})
({Dubious:} 11... Qa5 {(Golod,V) You can see comments to:  Khenkin,I-
Rozentalis,E/Germany,2000/CBM 75 (1-0)(Wells,P)(38)}) ({and} 11... Ne8 {
[%cal Gf7f5] Golod,V} 12. Nf3 f5 13. Bd3 Nd6 14. c4 $1 (14. O-O $143 fxe4 15.
Bxe4 Qb6+ $13) 14... fxe4 15. Bxe4 Nxe4 16. Qxe4 $14) 12. Bd3 ({Leads to
tactical complications:} 12. Nh3 {Golod,V} Nc5 13. Nf2 Nfxe4 $1 14. Nxe4 $140
Bf5 15. Qf2 $1 {[%csl Rc5,Rf5] This only move was mentioned by Fritz 6 after
the game:} (15. Bd3 $2 Nxd3+ 16. Qxd3 Qh4+ $19) 15... Nxe4 16. Qxf5 Qh4+ 17. g3
(17. Ke2 Nxc3+ $40) 17... Nxg3 18. hxg3 Qxh1 19. c4 Rac8 $15) (12. Nf3 $5 {
Golod,V} Nc5 13. Bd3 {see comments to 13.Nf3}) 12... Nc5 {'|^' Golod,V.} 13.
Bg5 {'?!' Golod,V. Golod,V: 'Earnest inexactitude.'} (13. Nf3 Nfxe4 ({or} 13...
Bf5) (13... Bf5 $5) 14. Bxe4 f5 {with advantage for black} (14... f5 {Golod,V}
15. Bd3 e4 16. Be2 exf3 17. Bxf3 Re8+ 18. Kf1 $15)) ({Quite weakly:} 13. Be3 $2
{Golod,V in view of:} Nfxe4 {[%csl Gd8,Re1][%cal Gd8h4]}) 13... h6 14. Bh4 (14.
Bxf6 Qxf6 15. Nf3 Qf4 $17) 14... Qd6 {'!' Golod,V.} 15. Ne2 {'?' Golod,V.
Golod,V: 'I blundered,because I didn't see 17...Ne3,in case of 17.0-0'} (15.
Nf3 {could again be met by} Nfxe4 16. Bxe4 f5 (16... f5 {Golod,V} 17. Bd3 e4
18. Be2 exf3 19. Bxf3 Re8+ 20. Kf1 (20. Kf2 $2 g5 21. Bg3 f4 $19 {[%csl Rg3]})
20... Bd7 {=/+/-/+})) ({After:} 15. Bxf6 {Golod,V} Qxf6 16. Nf3 Bd7 {black has
a big positional advantage}) 15... Ng4 {'-/+' Golod,V. [xe3]} 16. Nc1 (16. Qb1
{Golod,V} Ne3 17. Kf2 $140 Ng4+ 18. Ke1 f5 $17 {(now "castle" - impossible
move)}) 16... f5 $1 {[ White was late with his development, and thus lost the
struggle in the centre. Black is winning.]   Golod,V: 'Full domination.It's
difficult to give a good advise for white.'} 17. h3 (17. O-O $2 {Golod,V} Ne3
$19 {[%csl Rc2,Rf1]}) 17... fxe4 {'!' Golod,V.} ({A little worse is:} 17... Ne3
{Golod,V} 18. Qe2 f4 19. Rg1 $17) 18. hxg4 ({Also loses:} 18. Bxe4 {Golod,V}
Ne3 19. Qe2 Nxe4 20. Qxe3 Qxd5 $19) 18... exd3 19. Nxd3 Qxd5 {'-+' Golod,V.}
20. Nf2 ({Impossibly:} 20. Nxc5 {Golod,V} Qxc5 $140 {[%csl Gc5,Re1][%cal Gc5e3]
} 21. Bf2 {in view of:} Rxf2 $1 22. Qxf2 Qxc3+ 23. Ke2 Bxg4+ $19) 20... Bxg4 $1
(20... Qxg2 $143 {Golod,V} 21. O-O-O) 21. O-O (21. Nxg4 Nd3+ $19 (21... Nd3+ {
Golod,V} 22. Ke2 (22. Kd1 Nf2+ $19) 22... Qxg2+ 23. Kxd3 e4+ {[%csl Rc2,Yd3,
Ge4,Gg2][%cal Ge4d3]})) 21... Bf5 {Golod,V: 'The rest is the matter of
technics.'} 22. Qe2 Rae8 23. Rfe1 b6 24. a4 Bc8 25. Red1 Qc6 26. Qc4+ Kh8 27.
Nd3 Bb7 (27... Ba6 28. Nb4) 28. Rd2 Ba6 29. Nb4 Bxc4 30. Nxc6 Nb3 {Golod,V:
'Whole this game despite the my mistakes Eduardas Rozentalis conducted very
strong.'} 0-1

[Event "Southwest Class-ch 7th"]
[Site "Dallas"]
[Date "2016.02.14"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Sadorra, Julio Catalino"]
[Black "Liang, Awonder"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2514"]
[BlackElo "2379"]
[Annotator "Sadorra,J"]
[PlyCount "114"]
[EventDate "2016.02.11"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 171"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.03.14"]
[SourceVersion "2"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.03.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 {The Kasparov-Romanishin Variation which
was effectively used by Yu Yangi in the critical round of the 2015 Qatar Open.
See Sagar Shah's annotation of this game in his fantastic ChessBase report for
the 9th round of the event.} O-O ({Other popular continuations here are} 4...
b6) ({and} 4... c5) 5. g3 (5. Bg5 $5 {is also worth considering, leading to
Leningrad type positions.}) 5... d5 6. Bg2 dxc4 7. O-O Nc6 8. a3 $5 {I know
that this line objectively has a dubious reputation, but once again I chose it
for surprise purposes.} Be7 9. e4 Na5 ({A more standard plan is} 9... a6 {
followed by ...b5, ...Bb7 and ...Na5 at some point.}) 10. Be3 ({Another way to
play for compensation here is} 10. Qe2) 10... Nb3 11. Rb1 c5 12. dxc5 Nxc5 (
12... Bxc5 $6 13. Bxc5 Nxc5 14. e5 $1 $146 (14. Qxd8 $6 {leads to a postion
that's too simple to pose Black any problems.} Rxd8 15. Ne5 b6 16. Nc6 Re8 17.
e5 Nd5 18. Nxd5 exd5 19. Bxd5 Bb7 20. f4 Rad8 21. Bh1 Rd7 22. Rfd1 Rxd1+ 23.
Rxd1 g5 24. Rd4 gxf4 25. gxf4 Bxc6 26. Bxc6 Rc8 27. Bb5 Ne6 28. Rxc4 Rxc4 29.
Bxc4 Nxf4 30. Kf2 Kf8 31. Ke3 Ng6 32. Ke4 Ke7 33. b4 Nh4 34. Be2 Ng6 35. Bg4
Nh4 36. Kd5 Ng6 37. Bf5 h6 38. Bxg6 fxg6 39. e6 b5 40. Kc5 g5 41. Kxb5 g4 42.
Kc5 h5 43. Kd5 h4 44. Ke4 Kxe6 45. Kf4 g3 46. hxg3 hxg3 47. Kxg3 Kd5 48. Kf4
Kc4 49. Ke5 Kb3 50. Kd5 Kxa3 {1/2-1/2 (50) Nguyen Huynh Minh Huy (2496)
-Hossain,E (2436) Al-Ain UAE 2015}) 14... Nd5 15. Qd4 Nxc3 (15... b6 16. Rfd1
$36) 16. Qxc3 Bd7 17. Qxc4 Rc8 18. Rfd1 $14 {with a standard Catalan-type of
edge.}) ({A better way to fight for equality may be} 12... Ng4 13. Bf4 e5 (
13... Bxc5 14. e5 $14 {the c8-B is still a problem}) 14. Nxe5 Nxe5 15. Bxe5
Bxc5 (15... Nd2 $6 16. Nd5 $1 Nxb1 17. Nxe7+ Qxe7 18. Bd6 Qd7 19. Qxb1 Re8 20.
e5 $44 {with more than enough compensation} Qb5 21. Qc2 Bd7 22. Bd5 Be6 23. Be4
a6 $2 {and here in Zontakh,A (2541)-Yaksin,O (2400) Dagomys 2010, the best way
to continue is the simple:} 24. Bxh7+ Kh8 25. Be4 g6 26. f4 $18 {with a
winning attack!}) 16. Qh5 {but it's still easier to play for White in practice.
}) 13. Ne5 Bd7 {Played after a long think, which is the correct decison.} ({
He probably smelled danger if he takes the pawn, though it's not so clear on
the surface} 13... Qc7 14. Nxc4 Ncxe4 15. Nxe4 Qxc4 16. Rc1 Qb5 17. a4 $1 {
the key idea, undermining the active placement of his Q but of course it must
work concretely:} (17. Nd6 Bxd6 18. Qxd6 Nd5 $1 {White surely has compensation
but not more as there's no way to break through without giving up the monster
on g2.}) 17... Qxb2 18. Bd4 Qb4 (18... Qa3 {faces the same reply}) 19. Nxf6+
gxf6 (19... Bxf6 20. Bc5 $16) 20. Qg4+ Kh8 21. Bxf6+ $18) 14. Nxc4 Bc6 $6 {
Black probably missed something in his calculations.} 15. Ne5 $1 Qxd1 16. Rfxd1
Be8 17. Nc4 {With the idea to unleash the monster on g2. I was happy to find
this back-and-forth manoeuvre, showing that my thinking is free from
stereotypes & assumptions! But the main reason lies in the concrete changes
that have occurred in the position.} Ng4 $1 {Black tries to disturb my
coordination and simplify the position to relieve the pressure.} ({Now if} 
17... Bc6 {I have} 18. Na5 {which wasn't possible with his queen on d8 - the
concrete change.}) 18. Bf4 g5 $1 19. Bc7 $5 {It's either I get to keep more
pieces or I make his rook more vulnerable.} Rc8 20. Bd6 Bxd6 21. Nxd6 Rd8 22.
b4 Na4 {So far things are holding for Black tactically.} 23. Ne2 {But
positionally White still remains better due to his better piece placement and
space advantage.} (23. Nxb7 Rb8 24. Nxa4 Bxa4 $17 25. Rd4 e5 $1 (25... Rxb7 26.
e5)) 23... b5 24. Bh3 Ne5 25. f4 gxf4 26. gxf4 Nc4 27. Nxc4 Rxd1+ 28. Rxd1 bxc4
29. Kf2 Bc6 $5 {Going for active play before I tied him down on c4.} ({During
the game, I wasn't really sure if the normal defence of the c-pawn is bad for
him} 29... Bb5 30. Rg1+ $5 (30. Ke3 Rc8 31. Nd4 a6) 30... Kh8 31. Ke3 Rg8 32.
Rc1 Rc8) 30. Ke3 f5 31. Ng3 (31. Rd6 Bxe4 32. Rxe6 Rd8 $132) 31... Nc3 32. Rd4
Nxe4 {The critical moment.} 33. Rxc4 ({The other choice was better, as it
doesn't allow any counterplay at all!} 33. Nxe4 Bxe4 34. Rxc4 Rd8 35. Rd4 {
with the idea of} Rc8 36. Rxe4 $1 Rc3+ 37. Kd4 Rxh3 38. Rxe6 Rxa3 39. Ke5 {
with a better rook ending, but when I saw this I wasn't sure how great my
winning chances were in this rook ending, with all its trickiness.}) 33... Bb5
34. Rc7 Rd8 $1 {This is what I underestimated.} 35. Bf1 ({I was originally
planning to play} 35. Nxe4 Rd3+ 36. Kf2 fxe4 37. Bxe6+ Kf8 {but I noticed how
easily his pawn could push forward and how difficult it was for me to stop it!}
38. Rxa7 e3+ 39. Kf3 (39. Ke1 e2 $1 (39... Rc3)) 39... e2+ $1 (39... Bc6+ 40.
Ke2 Bb5 41. Rb7) 40. Kxe2 Rd6+) 35... Nf6 $1 {A nice active follow-up.} 36. Kf2
(36. Rxa7 Ng4+ 37. Kf3 Nxh2+ {could only lead to trouble.}) 36... Ng4+ 37. Ke1
a6 $1 {Otherwise, my queenside majority decides the game.} (37... Bxf1 $2 38.
Nxf1 Rd4 (38... a6 39. Rc6) 39. Rxa7 Re4+ 40. Kd1 $1 Rxf4 41. Nd2 {and White
should have better chances in the upcoming pawn race.}) 38. Bxb5 axb5 39. Nh5
Rd3 40. Rg7+ Kf8 41. Ra7 {Keeping the tension on the board.} Rh3 {My opponent
has been playing the ending well up to this point. But now he loses the thread:
} 42. Ng7 Rh6 $2 ({It was better to stay put} 42... Re3+ 43. Kd2 Re4 $11) 43.
a4 $1 {It was his turn to underestimate the enemy's resource :-)} bxa4 44. b5
e5 45. Nxf5 {This position is very tricky for Black.} Rf6 (45... Re6 46. Ra6 $1
Kf7 47. Nd6+ $16) (45... Rb6 46. Ra6 $1 Rb8 (46... Rxb5 $2 47. Ra8+ Kf7 48.
Nd6+) 47. h3 Nh2 48. Kf2 Kf7 49. fxe5 $18) 46. h3 $1 Rxf5 47. hxg4 Rf6 (47...
Rxf4 48. b6 Rb4 49. b7) 48. Rxa4 Rb6 49. Rb4 exf4 50. Kf2 {The game has now
transformed into a much better simple rook ending.} Ke7 51. Kf3 Kd6 52. Kxf4
Kc5 53. Rb1 Kd5 {Unfortunately, with energy low, I rushed into playing a move
and let my guard down!} 54. g5 $4 ({The transfer of the king to h5 should
eventually win} 54. Kg5 Ke4 55. Kh5 h6 56. Re1+ Kf4 57. Rf1+ Ke4 (57... Kg3 58.
Rf5 Kh3 59. Rf3+ Kh2 60. Rc3) 58. Rf5 Ke3 59. Rf7 Ke4 60. Rh7 Rxb5+ 61. Kxh6
Kf4 62. Rg7) (54. Rh1 $5 {should also work.}) 54... h6 55. gxh6 Rxh6 56. b6 Rh8
57. b7 Rb8 {It's sad to see how all winning chances vanish after a single
error!} 1/2-1/2

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Tbilisi"]
[Date "2017.09.03"]
[Round "1.1"]
[White "Sambuev, Bator"]
[Black "Wei, Yi"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2529"]
[BlackElo "2748"]
[Annotator "Sagar Shah"]
[PlyCount "47"]
[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"]

1. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Nf6 {[%emt 0:00:20]} 2. c4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} e6 {
[%emt 0:00:48]} 3. Nc3 {[%emt 0:00:00]} d5 {[%emt 0:00:16]} 4. d4 {[%emt 0:00:
00]} Bb4 {[%emt 0:04:48]} 5. g3 $5 {[%emt 0:01:05] An interesting line against
the Ragozin, taking the game into Catalan territory.} O-O {[%emt 0:01:17]} 6.
Bg2 {[%emt 0:00:48]} dxc4 {[%emt 0:00:26]} 7. O-O {[%emt 0:00:11]} Nc6 {
[%emt 0:00:24]} 8. a3 {[%emt 0:02:31]} Be7 {[%emt 0:05:54] The most critical.}
({I was once preparing this line for White and I remember that if Black took
on c3 I would be quite happy with the position.} 8... Bxc3 9. bxc3 Rb8 (9...
Na5 10. a4 $44) 10. Bg5 b5 11. e4 h6 12. Bh4 e5 (12... g5 13. Nxg5 $36) 13.
Nxe5 Nxe5 14. dxe5 Qxd1 15. Rfxd1 Nd7 16. f4 Re8 17. e6 fxe6 18. e5 Nxe5 19.
Bd8 Nd3 20. Bxc7 {1-0 (73) Carlsen,M (2646)-Adams,M (2720) Turin 2006}) 9. e4 {
[%emt 0:00:29] This is a typical Catalan pawn sacrifice. White is not
interested in recovering his c4 pawn. Instead he just expands in the centre
and looks for a kingside attack.} Na5 {[%emt 0:02:46]} 10. Be3 {[%emt 0:02:49]
White doesn't really care about the c4 pawn much. He continues with his
development.} Rb8 {[%emt 0:19:43]} (10... Ng4 11. Bf4 $13) 11. Qe2 {[%emt 0:06:
13]} b5 {[%emt 0:02:16]} 12. Rad1 {[%emt 0:02:20] Solid central play by
Sambuev. He gets all his pieces into the game before doing anything concrete.}
Bb7 {[%emt 0:06:31]} 13. Ne5 {[%emt 0:07:57]} a6 {[%emt 0:13:59]} 14. g4 $1 {
[%emt 0:02:09][%cal Gg4g5,Gf2f4] This was the move that Sambuev was very proud
of. He starts to create some pressure on his opponent with the idea of the
pawn storm with g5 followed by f4.} Ne8 {[%emt 0:05:49]} (14... Nd7 $5 15. f4
f6 {This was interesting!} 16. Nf3 {with a complex position.} (16. d5 $6 Nxe5
$1 17. fxe5 fxe5 18. dxe6 Bd6 $17)) 15. d5 {[%emt 0:05:17]} exd5 {[%emt 0:02:
10]} (15... Bd6 16. f4 {was also possible.} exd5 17. exd5 Qe7 (17... Nf6 18. g5
Nd7 19. Nc6 $16 {White has a firm grip on the position.}) 18. Nc6 $13) 16. Nxd5
{[%emt 0:02:30]} Nd6 {[%emt 0:07:00]} (16... Bd6 {was a move that had to be
considered.} 17. f4 Bxd5 18. exd5 Qe7 19. Qd2 Nb3 20. Qc3 {with a complicated
position.}) 17. g5 $5 {[%emt 0:08:48] Once again a powerful move. The idea is
to continue with f4.} Bxd5 {[%emt 0:15:42]} (17... Bxg5 $5 18. Bxg5 Qxg5 19.
Nd7 Rbe8 20. Nxf8 Bxd5 $13 21. f4 Qf5 $1 22. exf5 Rxe2 23. Rxd5 Kxf8 24. Rc5
Re7 $44 {[%csl Gf5] Black has good compensation for the sacrificed exchange.})
18. Rxd5 {[%emt 0:01:10]} c6 {[%emt 0:00:45]} 19. Rdd1 $14 {[%emt 0:01:45] The
position has settled down and White is better because Black's pieces are
awkwardly placed.} Qc7 {[%emt 0:00:08]} ({Taking the pawn with} 19... Bxg5 {
doesn't look that good as after} 20. Bc5 Be7 21. Bh3 {[%cal Ge5d7] Threatening
Nd7.} Rb7 22. Bb4 {[%cal Gb4a5,Ge5c6]} c5 23. Bxc5 $16 {White's piece activity
plus bishop pair will give him a good advantage.}) 20. Qh5 {[%emt 0:03:46]} g6
$2 {[%emt 0:03:49] It's very rare that Wei Yi makes such huge errors in sharp
positions. But if he does, it is usually when he is defending rather than
attacking!} (20... Rbd8 $5 21. Ng4 Nb3 22. f4 c3 $13) 21. Qh6 {[%emt 0:07:50]}
Nxe4 $2 {[%emt 0:01:31] Snatching the pawn is bad as White has an intermediate
move.} (21... Rfd8 {was a better option to bring his bishop to f8 for the
king's safety but White still holds all the trumps.} 22. Bf4 Bf8 23. Qh3 Bg7
24. Ng4 $18) 22. Nd7 $1 {[%emt 0:01:48] Full credit to Sambuev for finding
flaws in his opponent's calculation.} Nd6 {[%emt 0:00:45]} 23. Bh3 {[%emt 0:00:
45] The knight has been stopped from coming to f5. Now Nf6+ is a big threat.} (
23. Nf6+ Bxf6 24. gxf6 Nf5 $17) 23... Rfd8 {[%emt 0:00:18]} 24. Rd4 $1 {
[%emt 0:00:58] The idea is just Rh4 and there is no good way to stop it. Wei
Yi had had enough. Sambuev was very close to eliminating Wei Yi in this event.
In the end he wasn't able to but he gave the Chinese phenomenon a very tough
fight.} (24. Nf6+ Bxf6 25. gxf6 Ne8 {Black is somehow clinging on.}) 1-0

[Event "Norway Chess 4th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2016.04.20"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Eljanov, Pavel"]
[Black "Harikrishna, Pentala"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2765"]
[BlackElo "2763"]
[Annotator "Sagar Shah"]
[PlyCount "89"]
[EventDate "2016.04.19"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 {Eljanov signals his aggressive intentions.
He would like to play the Saemisch system and we are in for an exciting game
of chess.} c5 (4... d5 {is the more solid way to play.}) 5. d5 b5 $5 {What can
we say about this line! You can say that it is the Blumenfeld delayed. The
move f3 makes sense because a direct e4 is now possible.} 6. e4 O-O 7. Nh3 (7.
e5 Ne8 $1 {White's centre is over extended and will come under great stress
after the move d7-d6.}) 7... d6 8. Nf4 {This position was reached in the game
Grichuk-Topalov where the Bulgarian went for the Benoni structure with exd5.
Here Harikrishna closes the centre.} e5 9. Nfe2 Nh5 (9... bxc4 10. Ng3 $13 {
[%cal Rf1c4]}) 10. g4 $5 {Eljanov is ready to forego castling in order to
stall the move f5.} Qh4+ (10... f5 $5 {Wow! This move was really possible. But
isn't the knight on h5 hanging?} 11. gxh5 (11. exf5 Qh4+ 12. Kd2 Qf2 {With
attack.}) 11... Qh4+ 12. Kd2 fxe4 13. fxe4 Qxe4 14. Ng3 Rf2+ 15. Be2 Qxc4 {
And the position is completely crazy. Something like} 16. Ke1 Rxe2+ 17. Ngxe2
Bg4 {And Black has some compensation for the missing rook.}) 11. Kd2 Nf4 12.
Nxf4 exf4 13. Kc2 {White has found a safe shelter for his king and his
position looks better.} bxc4 14. Bxf4 Qf6 15. Qd2 Nd7 16. Be2 (16. Bxc4 {
was better and after} Ne5 (16... Nb6 17. Be2 {White can claim a small edge.})
17. Be2 $14) 16... Qe7 17. Bxc4 Rb8 18. b3 Nb6 19. Qd3 Bd7 20. Bd2 Nxc4 21.
bxc4 Rb6 {Black's position is much easier to play.} 22. Rhb1 Rfb8 23. a3 Bxc3
24. Bxc3 {It is true that we have opposite coloured bishop endgame but the
White king is weaker than Black's but White has an extra pawn. So it shouldn't
such a huge edge.} Ba4+ 25. Kc1 h5 26. Rxb6 Rxb6 27. Rb1 $1 {After the mass
rook exchange Black remains slightly better but White won't be in danger of
getting mated.} hxg4 28. f4 $1 (28. fxg4 Qg5+ $17) 28... Rxb1+ 29. Kxb1 Qb7+ (
29... Qh4 30. Qg3 {And there is no way in.} Qxg3 31. hxg3 Bb3 32. Ba5 Bxc4 33.
Kc2 Kf8 34. Kc3 Ba2 35. Kb2 Bc4 36. Kc3 $11) 30. Bb2 Qb3 31. Qxb3 Bxb3 {
Once the queens are exchanged, it is just a draw.} 32. e5 dxe5 33. d6 Kf8 34.
Bxe5 g6 35. d7 Ke7 36. Kb2 Bxc4 37. Kc3 Bb5 38. Bd6+ Kxd7 39. Bxc5 Ke6 40. Kd4
a6 41. Ke3 Bc6 42. Bb4 Bb5 43. Bc5 Bc6 44. Bb4 Bb5 45. Bc5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Qatar Masters op"]
[Site "Doha"]
[Date "2015.12.22"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Black "Lenderman, Aleksandr"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2748"]
[BlackElo "2626"]
[Annotator "Sagar Shah/CB Website"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[EventDate "2015.12.20"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "QAT"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 170"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.01.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.01.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Bb4+ 4. Nc3 c5 5. g3 Nc6 6. Bg2 Ne4 7. Bd2 Nxd2 8.
Qxd2 cxd4 9. Nxd4 Qb6 10. e3 Ne5 11. b3 Qa5 12. Rc1 O-O 13. O-O a6 14. Rfd1 Ba3
15. Rc2 Rb8 16. Qe2 Rd8 17. h3 Be7 18. f4 Nc6 19. Kh2 Nb4 20. Rcc1 Nc6 21. Qd3
Ba3 {Up until this point Black has been doing not much, just trying to
inconvenience the white pieces by attacking them with ...Ba3 or ...Nb4.
Mamedyarov finally has enough and decides to sharpen the play by sacrificing
an exchange.} 22. Bxc6 $5 {I should give this a dubious mark, but the
refutation is not at all easy to see and we should credit Mamedyarov's
creativity.} Bxc1 (22... dxc6 $1 {What is happening here? Isn't the rook on c1
hanging and c5 threatened?} 23. Nxc6 {was the idea prepared by Mamedyarov.}
Rxd3 24. Nxa5 {and maybe at this point Lenderman saw that he has to take on d1
and then after Rd1 he is badly tangled up as the bishop on c8 cannot develop
and Rd8+ is threatened. But here he has a superb move which gives him a clear
advantage. And maybe this is what both the players missed.} Rd7 $3 {The
c1-rook is still attacked, and if it moves to b1 then ...Bb4 is extremely
strong. On the other hand Rxd7 is met by ...Bxd7 and Black simply has the
bishop pair and the knight on a5 is not at all well placed.} 25. Rxd7 (25. Rb1
Bb4) 25... Bxd7 26. Rd1 Be8 $1 {and b6 is going to trap the knight!}) 23. Be4
$1 Bb2 $6 (23... Ba3 24. Bxh7+ Kf8 $13 {White has to prove his compensation
here, but knowing the way Mamedyarov plays we can be sure that he would have
enjoyed handling this position as white.}) 24. Nxe6 $5 {A brilliant creative
sacrifice. What exactly is happening? Just follow the Shak!} fxe6 25. Bxh7+ Kh8
(25... Kf7 26. Ne4 {is also a strong attack with Ng5+ coming up.}) 26. Ne4 Rf8
(26... Qh5 27. Ng5 $18 {[%cal Gh7g6,Gg5f7]}) (26... Bf6 {might have been the
best. Let's try to make a few moves here.} 27. Nd6 $1 Rf8 28. Bg6 Kg8 29. Qe2
$18 {[%cal Gf4f5,Ge2h5] is most probably what Mamedyarov was planning with f5
followed by Qh5. This looks like a crushing attack.}) 27. Bg6 Kg8 28. Qe2 Bf6
29. c5 {Cutting the queen off on a5 and getting ready to play Qh5.} Bc3 30. Qh5
Rf5 31. Bxf5 (31. Qh7+ Kf8 32. Qh8+ Ke7 33. Qe8# {Ok, this should not have
been missed!}) 31... exf5 32. Qe8+ Kh7 33. Ng5+ Kh6 34. Rd6+ Bf6 35. Qh8+ Kg6
36. Qh7# {A spectacular game by the Azeri player who used his brilliant
intuitive and imaginative powers to beat his American opponent.} 1-0

[Event "FIN-SWE"]
[Site "Helsinki"]
[Date "1991.??.??"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Yrjola, Jouni"]
[Black "Andersson, Ulf"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2500"]
[BlackElo "2625"]
[Annotator "Schussler,H"]
[PlyCount "80"]
[EventDate "1991.??.??"]
[EventType "team"]
[EventRounds "2"]
[EventCountry "FIN"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 026"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1992.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1992.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 Bxc3+ (5... b5 $5) (5... Nh5 $5)
6. bxc3 d6 7. e4 O-O 8. Ne2 (8. Bd3 Nbd7 {/\ Ne5}) 8... Re8 9. Ng3 Nbd7 (9...
Qa5 10. Bd2 Bd7 11. Be2 (11. a4 $2 exd5 12. cxd5 Nxd5 13. c4 Nb4) 11... Ba4 12.
Qc1 Nbd7) 10. Be2 Ne5 (10... Nf8 11. O-O e5) 11. O-O Ng6 12. dxe6 $1 {
verhindert 12...e5} Bxe6 (12... Rxe6 13. Nf5 {/\ Nf5-e3}) 13. f4 Bd7 14. Qxd6
Nxe4 15. Nxe4 Rxe4 16. Bf3 Re7 $1 (16... Rxc4 17. Rd1 Nf8 18. Qd3 $1 Ra4 19.
Bxb7 Rb8 20. Bc6) 17. Qxc5 (17. Bxb7 Rb8 18. Bd5 Qb6 19. Qxb6 axb6) 17... Bc6
$1 18. Bxc6 Rc7 19. f5 Rxc6 20. Qd4 Nf8 21. c5 Qe7 22. Be3 Nd7 23. Rae1 Nxc5 $2
(23... f6 24. Bf2 Qf7 25. Qb4 Ne5 26. Rd1) 24. f6 Qe4 (24... gxf6 25. Bh6 Ne6
26. Qg4+ Kh8 27. Bg7+) 25. fxg7 b6 $6 (25... Qxd4 26. Bxd4 Ne6 27. Bf6) 26. Bg5
Qg6 27. Qd5 Rac8 28. Re7 Re6 (28... Ne6 29. Rexf7 Qxg5 30. Rf8+ Kxg7 31. Qd7+)
29. Rexf7 $2 (29. Rxa7) 29... Qxf7 30. Rxf7 Kxf7 31. Qf5+ (31. Be3 $5) 31...
Kg8 32. Be3 (32. Bh6 Ree8) 32... Rce8 33. Bxc5 bxc5 34. Qxc5 R6e7 35. h4 Rxg7
36. Qd5+ Rf7 37. c4 Ree7 38. c5 h6 39. h5 Kh7 40. c6 Rg7 1-0

[Event "Lloyds Bank op 17th"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "1993.??.??"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Plaskett, H James"]
[Black "Speelman, Jonathan S"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2470"]
[BlackElo "2605"]
[Annotator "Speelman,J"]
[PlyCount "50"]
[EventDate "1993.08.??"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 038"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1994.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1994.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 O-O 5. Bg2 Nc6 $5 6. Nf3 b6 7. Ne5 $5 Bb7
8. Bg5 (8. Qa4 Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 Na5 10. Bxb7 Nxb7 11. Bg5 Nd6 12. Bxf6 gxf6 $1 13.
Ng4 $13 (13. Nxd7 $2 b5) (13. Nd3)) 8... Nxe5 $8 9. Bxf6 $2 (9. Bxb7 Nxc4 10.
Bxa8 (10. Bxf6 Qxf6 11. Bxa8 Nxb2 $5 (11... Bxc3+ 12. bxc3 Rxa8 $44) 12. Qb3
Qxd4 13. O-O $13) 10... Qxa8 11. O-O Bxc3 12. bxc3 Ne4 13. Bc1 $44) 9... Qc8 $1
10. Bxe5 Bxg2 11. Rg1 Bxc3+ $1 12. bxc3 Bb7 {xc4,c3} 13. c5 $6 d6 $1 14. cxd6
$2 (14. Bf4 bxc5 (14... e5 $5) 15. f3 $17) 14... cxd6 15. Bxd6 Rd8 16. Bf4
Qxc3+ 17. Kf1 Rxd4 $19 18. Qc1 Qa5 19. Be3 Rd7 20. f3 Rc8 21. Qb2 Rc3 $1 22.
Bf2 (22. Kf2 Rxe3 23. Rgd1 (23. Kxe3 Qc5+ 24. Kf4 g5+ 25. Kg4 Qf5+ 26. Kh5 h6)
23... Qc5 $1 $19) (22. Bd2 Rxf3+ 23. exf3 Rxd2) 22... Qe5 $1 23. Rb1 Qc7 24.
Kg2 Rc2 25. Rgc1 Bxf3+ $1 (25... Bxf3+ 26. exf3 Rxb2 27. Rxc7 Rxf2+ 28. Kxf2
Rxc7 $19) 0-1

[Event "Shanghai Masters"]
[Site "Shanghai"]
[Date "2010.09.06"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Shirov, Alexei"]
[Black "Kramnik, Vladimir"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2749"]
[BlackElo "2780"]
[Annotator "Stohl,I"]
[PlyCount "75"]
[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. f3 {Probably quite a surprise. Although about
20 years ago Shirov used to play this sharp line often, currently he mostly
preferred the Catalan, or Queen's Indian. The last time he essayed the
text-move was in 2001 after a long break...} c5 {Kramnik deviates from his
previous experience with 4.f3, in which he used the more popular alternative} (
4... d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 c5 7. cxd5 Nxd5 8. dxc5 f5 $5 ({For more details
about this line see my opening survey in CBM 128. It seems to be a plausible
alternative to the main move} 8... Qa5) 9. Qc2 Nd7 10. e4 fxe4 11. fxe4 N5f6
12. c6 bxc6 13. Nf3 Qa5 14. Bd2 Ba6 15. c4 Qc5 16. Bd3 Ng4 17. Bb4 Qe3+ 18. Qe2
O-O-O 19. Qxe3 Nxe3 20. Kf2 Ng4+ 21. Kg3 {Anand,V (2783)-Kramnik,V (2772)/WCh
Bonn/2008/ - see notes by Krasenkow in CBM 127.} Nge5 $132) 5. d5 {The most
natural and usual reaction.} (5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 {can transpose to the lines
from the above note with} d5 ({Black also has} 6... Nc6 {, aiming for
positions from the Sämisch system.})) 5... b5 {Leads to a sharp fight, but
this is difficult to avoid anyway after 4...c5.} ({After} 5... Nh5 {Whte has
the dangerous sacrifice} 6. Nh3 $5 Qh4+ (6... f5 7. e4 fxe4 8. fxe4 Qh4+ 9. Nf2
O-O 10. Be3 exd5 11. Qxd5+ Kh8 12. g3 Qf6 13. e5 Qe7 14. Be2 Nf6 15. exf6 Qxe3
16. fxg7+ Kxg7 17. O-O Nc6 18. Rae1 Qe5 19. Qd2 d6 20. a3 Bxc3 21. bxc3 Kh8 22.
Bf3 $18 {Mamedyarov,S (2742)-Ponomariov,R (2718)/Moscow WCh blitz/2008/}) 7.
Nf2 Qxc4 8. e4 Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 Qxc3+ 10. Bd2 $44 {Returning material with} Qd4
11. Qc1 exd5 12. Bc3 Qa4 13. Qg5 O-O 14. Qxh5 d4 15. Bd2 d6 16. Qd5 $1 $14 {
also doesn't fully solve Black's problems.}) (5... d6 6. e4 O-O 7. Nge2 b5 8.
Nf4 $1 e5 9. Nfe2 bxc4 10. Ng3 Ba6 11. Bg5 h6 12. Be3 Bc8 $6 (12... Nbd7 13.
Nf5 Ne8 14. g4 $44 {Shirov}) 13. Bxc4 Nbd7 14. O-O Nb6 15. Be2 Bxc3 16. bxc3
Bd7 17. a4 Rb8 18. a5 Na8 19. Qd2 Qe7 20. f4 exf4 21. Rxf4 Nc7 22. Raf1 Nce8
23. Qd3 $16 {[%cal Yc3c4,Ye3d2,Yd2c3] /\c4,Bd2-c3,Shirov,A (2610)-Savon,V 
(2460)/USSR-ch/1991/}) ({The only way to keep the struggle in positional
waters is} 5... Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 d6 7. e4 e5 (7... Qe7 8. Ne2 Nbd7 9. Ng3 $14) 8.
Bd3 Nbd7 {, but this gives White () and a slight advantage without much risk
after} 9. Ne2 Nf8 10. h4 $5 h5 11. Qa4+ Bd7 12. Qa3 Qc7 13. Bc2 Kd8 14. Rb1 Ng8
15. Ng3 Bc8 16. Rb2 f6 17. Be3 g6 18. Bd3 Nh6 19. Kd1 Nf7 20. Kc2 Nd7 21. Kb1
Nh6 22. Ka1 a6 23. Rhb1 $14 {Volkov,S (2636)-Javakhishvili,L (2461)/Banja Luka/
2008/}) 6. e4 O-O $5 {A rare and provocative continuation, which is probably
stronger, than it's reputation. Black invites White to expand in the [+]
instead of the more usual} (6... bxc4 7. Bxc4 Nxd5 8. Bxd5 exd5 9. Qxd5 Nc6 10.
Nge2 Ba6 (10... O-O 11. O-O Ba6 12. Rd1 $16) {Although not all is clear here,
White certainly has an excellent score in this position and justifying Black's
weaknesses by active <=> is far from simple:} 11. a3 $5 ({Maybe even stronger
than the more often played} 11. Kf2 O-O 12. Rd1 Ba5 13. Bg5 Qb6 14. Be3 Rfb8 {
Berkes,F (2614)-Cao Sang (2545)/HUN-ch Budapest/2004/} 15. b3 $5 Nb4 16. Qxc5
Qxc5 17. Bxc5 Nd3+ 18. Rxd3 Bxd3 19. Nd5 $44 {Berkes}) 11... Bxc3+ 12. Nxc3 Qb6
(12... Nd4 $2 13. Bg5 $1 f6 14. Bxf6 gxf6 15. Qh5+ $18) 13. Kf2 c4+ 14. Kg3 O-O
15. Na4 Qa5 16. Nc5 Rfc8 17. Bd2 Qc7+ 18. Bf4 Qb6 19. Bd6 Rd8 20. Rac1 Bb5 21.
h4 $40 {Ganguly,S (2654)-Mahjoob,M (2510)/Calcutta/2009/}) 7. e5 {Double-edged,
but principled.} (7. Nh3 bxc4 8. Bxc4 Nxd5 (8... Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 Qa5 10. Qc2 d6
11. dxe6 Bxe6 12. Bxe6 fxe6 13. O-O Nc6 14. Bf4 e5 15. Bg5 $14 {Moskalenko,V 
(2535)-Morozevich,A (2590)/Moscow/1994/}) 9. Bxd5 exd5 10. Qxd5 Nc6 (10... Ba6
$5 $132 {/\} 11. Qxa8 $2 Qh4+ 12. Kd1 Nc6 $40) 11. O-O Ba6 12. Rf2 Nd4 13. Be3
Rc8 14. Nf4 Qc7 15. Qh5 Qa5 16. Ncd5 $36 {Simantsev,M (2402)-Golovchenko,G 
(2353)/Serpukhov/2004/}) (7. Bg5 h6 (7... exd5 8. cxd5 Re8 9. Qd2 a6 10. Nge2
d6 11. Ng3 Nbd7 12. Be2 c4 13. O-O Bc5+ 14. Kh1 h6 15. Be3 Bxe3 16. Qxe3 Nc5
17. Qd4 Bd7 18. Rab1 Qb6 19. b4 cxb3 20. axb3 $14 {Mamedyarov,S (2721)
-Fressinet,L (2658)/EU Cup Ohrid/2009/}) 8. Bh4 Re8 9. dxe6 Rxe6 10. Nge2 g5 $5
11. Bf2 bxc4 12. a3 Ba5 13. h4 g4 14. Nf4 Rb6 15. Qd2 Nc6 16. Bxc5 Rab8 $5 17.
Bxb6 Qxb6 18. O-O-O Nd4 19. Bxc4 (19. Kb1 Qb3 20. Rc1 d5 $1 $40) 19... Ba6 20.
b4 Bxb4 $36 {Volkov,S (2554)-Sakaev,K (2627)/FIDE WCh New Delhi/Teheran 2000/})
(7. Bd2 bxc4 8. Bxc4 Ba6 9. Bxa6 (9. b3 exd5 10. Nxd5 Nxd5 11. Bxd5 Qg5 $5 12.
Bxb4 Qxg2 13. Bxc5 Qf1+ 14. Kd2 Qd3+ 15. Ke1 Qf1+ 16. Kd2 Qd3+ 17. Ke1 {
1/2,Volkov,S (2636)-Gershon,A (2556)/EU Cup Chalkidiki/2002/}) 9... Nxa6 10.
Nge2 exd5 11. e5 Ne8 $5 (11... Bxc3 12. Bxc3 d4 13. exf6 dxc3 14. fxg7 Re8 15.
bxc3 Qe7 16. Qd2 c4 17. Kf2 Nc5 18. Nf4 Qg5 19. Rhd1 Re5 20. Kg1 Rae8 {
Rosenthal,J (2291)-Pelletier,Y (2589)/Biel/2010/} 21. Rab1 $14) 12. Nxd5 d6 13.
O-O Bxd2 14. Qxd2 dxe5 15. Rfd1 Nec7 16. Nec3 Nxd5 17. Qxd5 Qb8 18. Qc4 Qxb2
19. Rab1 Qc2 $15 {Vokac,M (2435)-Stocek,J (2584)/CZE-ch Havlickuv Brod/2008/})
7... Ne8 ({Even} 7... exd5 {deserves attention, although it's probably just
too wild:} 8. exf6 d4 (8... Qxf6 9. cxd5 Bxc3+ 10. bxc3 Qxc3+ 11. Bd2 $16) 9.
a3 Ba5 10. b4 dxc3 11. bxa5 Qxf6 12. Qd5 (12. cxb5 c2 13. Qd5 Qxa1 14. Ne2 Re8
15. Kf2 Nc6 $13) 12... b4 13. Bg5 (13. Qxa8 $6 Nc6 $40) 13... Qe6+ (13... Qa6
$5 14. axb4 cxb4 15. Kf2 $14 {/\} b3 16. Ra3) 14. Qxe6 fxe6 15. Be7 Na6 (15...
b3 16. O-O-O $18) 16. Bxf8 Kxf8 17. Bd3 Rb8 18. Ne2 d5 19. Kf2 d4 20. axb4 Nxb4
21. Bxh7 Ba6 22. Rhc1 Bxc4 23. Nxc3 dxc3 24. Rxc3 $18 {Legky,N (2510)-Levacic,
D (2385)/Cannes/1993/}) 8. f4 (8. cxb5 d6 $5 (8... a6 9. bxa6 exd5 $44) 9. Bf4
(9. dxe6 $142 Bxe6 10. exd6 Nxd6 11. Bf4 c4 12. Qa4 $13) 9... Nc7 $1 10. dxe6
Nxe6 11. Qd5 $2 (11. Bg3 d5 12. Kf2 Bb7 $15) 11... Nxf4 12. Qxa8 Qa5 13. Kf2 c4
$1 $40 14. Qe4 Qb6+ 15. Ke1 dxe5 16. Qxe5 Bd6 17. Qe4 Bb7 18. Qxc4 Rc8 19. Qa4
Qe3+ 20. Kd1 Be7 21. Kc2 Nd5 22. Bc4 Nb4+ 23. Kb1 Rxc4 {0-1,Malmstroem,J (1965)
-Baroin,B (2063)/corr/2005/}) (8. dxe6 fxe6 9. cxb5 a6 10. f4 axb5 11. Bd3 c4
12. Bc2 d5 13. Nf3 Nc6 14. Be3 d4 15. Bxd4 Nxd4 16. Qxd4 Qxd4 17. Nxd4 Rxf4 18.
Ndxb5 Bb7 19. g3 Rf3 20. O-O-O Bxc3 21. Nxc3 Rxc3 22. bxc3 Bxh1 23. Rxh1 Rxa2
24. Rd1 Ra5 25. Rd8 Kf8 $11 {Radjabov,T (2670)-Istratescu,A (2587)/EU-ch
Antalya/2004/}) 8... exd5 (8... d6 9. Nf3 bxc4 (9... Qa5 10. Bd2 $14) 10. Bxc4
Ba6 11. Bxa6 Nxa6 12. O-O Bxc3 13. bxc3 exd5 14. Qxd5 dxe5 15. Qxd8 (15. Qc4 $5
e4 16. Qxe4 {[%csl Ra6] פa6}) 15... Rxd8 16. Nxe5 f6 17. Nc6 Rd7 $6 (17... Rd3
$142 $1 $132) 18. Rb1 $1 Kf7 19. f5 $1 Kg8 20. Bf4 g5 21. fxg6 hxg6 22. Rb5 $16
{/\Ra5,Bluvshtein,M (2525)-Efimenko,Z (2643)/Montreal/2005/}) (8... bxc4 9.
Bxc4 Ba6 10. Bxa6 Nxa6 11. d6 $5 {[%csl Gd6,Ge5,Re8,Gf4] ()[+],פe8}) 9. cxd5
d6 10. Nf3 c4 ({Rybka indicates} 10... Nc7 $5 {, immediately putting extra
pressure on White's [+]. This certainly deserves attention as well:} 11. Be2
Bb7 12. O-O c4 (12... Bxc3 13. bxc3 Nxd5 (13... dxe5 14. d6 $5 Nd5 15. fxe5
Nxc3 16. Qc2 $44) 14. Qc2 $13) 13. Qc2 dxe5 14. fxe5 Nxd5 15. Ng5 g6 16. Bf3
Qb6+ 17. Kh1 {Geiger,W (2071)-Grafen,D (2324)/corr/2005/} Nxc3 18. bxc3 Bxf3
19. Rxf3 Be7 20. Be3 Qc6 21. Raf1 Bxg5 22. Bxg5 Nd7 23. Bh6 Nxe5 24. Rf6 Qd5
$13 {/=/+}) 11. a4 $5 $146 {[%mdl 8]} ({A logical new move instead of} 11. a3
Ba5 12. Be2 Bb7 13. O-O Nc7 14. Qc2 h6 ({Perhaps Black in analogy with the
previous note can afford even} 14... Nxd5 $5 15. Ng5 g6 $13) 15. a4 a6 16. Kh1
Re8 17. e6 Bxc3 18. exf7+ Kxf7 19. bxc3 Kg8 20. Nd4 Bxd5 21. axb5 Nxb5 22. Qd2
Nxd4 23. Qxd4 Bxg2+ 24. Kxg2 Rxe2+ 25. Kf3 {1/2,Daus,P (2237)-Herbst,B (2271)/
corr/2004/} Rxh2 26. Qd5+ Kh8 27. Qxa8 Qc8 28. Be3 Qh3+ 29. Ke4 Qg2+ 30. Rf3
Qc2+ 31. Kd5 Qd3+ 32. Ke6 Qg6+ 33. Kd5 Qd3+ $11) 11... Bg4 {[%mdl 64] White
undermines the <<P, in turn Black hits back against his [+] and the struggle
quickly heats up tactically...} (11... Nd7 12. Be2 $1 $14 (12. axb5 dxe5 $13 {
/\} 13. fxe5 $6 Nxe5 $1 14. Nxe5 Qh4+ 15. Ke2 Nd6 $36 {[%csl Re2] ->עe2}) (12.
e6 $6 fxe6 13. dxe6 Nc5 $15)) 12. axb5 {Very natural, but also} (12. Be2 {
is a valid alternative:} dxe5 (12... Nd7 13. Nd4 $5 Bxc3+ (13... Qh4+ 14. g3
Bxe2 15. Qxe2 Qh3 16. e6 $36) (13... Bxe2 14. Qxe2 dxe5 15. Nc6 Bxc3+ 16. bxc3
$16) 14. bxc3 Bxe2 15. Qxe2 Nc5 16. O-O Nxa4 17. Qf3 $44 {[%cal Yd4c6,Ye5e6] /
\Nc6,e6|^ White has safeguarded his [+] and he has realistic attacking chances.
}) 13. fxe5 (13. Nxe5 Bxe2 14. Qxe2 f6 $5 $132) 13... Nd7 14. Bf4 (14. Ng5 Nxe5
$1 15. Bxg4 h6 $13 {/=/+}) (14. Qd4 Bxf3 15. gxf3 Nc5 $32 {|^}) 14... Nb6 15.
axb5 (15. d6 Nxa4 16. Qc2 f6 $1 $15 {[%csl Re1] עe1}) 15... Nxd5 (15... Qxd5
16. Qxd5 Nxd5 17. Bd2 $14) 16. Bg5 Qd7 17. Bxc4 Nxc3 18. Qxd7 Bxd7 19. Bd2 $14
{/<=>}) 12... Nd7 13. e6 $5 ({After} 13. Ra4 Bxc3+ 14. bxc3 dxe5 $32 {[%csl
Re1] White dangerously falls behind in development, while his K is still in
the [+].}) (13. Be2 Bxf3 14. Bxf3 dxe5 15. O-O Nd6 $132 {/=}) 13... fxe6 14.
dxe6 Nb6 (14... Bxe6 $5 15. Ng5 Qe7 16. Nxe6 Qxe6+ 17. Qe2 Qxe2+ 18. Bxe2 d5
19. Be3 Nc7 $132) 15. Be2 Nc7 (15... Bxe6 16. Nd4 Nc7 17. O-O Bc5 18. Kh1 $13)
16. Ng5 (16. O-O Bxe6 {transposes to the line from the previous note after} ({
Black can consider also} 16... Nxe6 17. h3 Bh5 {, but he must reckon with} 18.
f5 $5 $14) (16... Bxc3 17. bxc3 Nxb5 18. Bd2 Bxe6 19. Ng5 $44) 17. Nd4 {
-15...Be6}) 16... Bxe2 $2 {Black relies on tactics to win back the o^e6, but
here he had the last chance to play the simple and direct} (16... Bxe6 $13) 17.
Qxe2 {[%cal Re6e7] /\e7+-} d5 ({This almost surely wasn't the original idea,
but} 17... Qe7 18. O-O {is not ideal:} (18. Qe4 g6 {[%cal Rd6d5] /\d5|^}) {
Similar is} 18... Bc5+ (18... h6 {allows the powerful} 19. f5 $1 hxg5 20. Ne4
$40 {Here a large part of Black's pieces remains on the <<, while his K has to
face a vicious onslaught. A possible sample line is} d5 (20... Nxe6 21. Nxg5
$16) 21. Bxg5 Qe8 22. Ng3 Be7 23. Qg4 Bxg5 24. Qxg5 Qxb5 25. Nh5 Qxb2 26. Rae1
$1 {[%cal Rf5f6] /\f6+-}) 19. Kh1 h6 20. f5 hxg5 21. Ne4 Qe8 22. Nxc5 $1 (22.
Bxg5 Nxe6 $132) 22... dxc5 23. Bxg5 $40 {White can advance his Pe6 and (or)
Pf5, or transfer his major pieces to the <->h (Qg4-h4,Rf3-h3), it's difficult
to parry all his ideas without major concessions.}) 18. O-O {[%cal Rf4f5] /\f5}
Qf6 (18... h6 19. Nf7 Qf6 20. f5 Bxc3 21. bxc3 Nxb5 22. Bd2 $16 (22. Qg4 $16) {
/\} 22... Nxc3 23. Bxc3 Qxc3 24. f6 $18 {->}) 19. f5 $16 {[%csl Ge6,Gf5] WIth
his extra and protected o^ White is clearly on top, but the adventures are not
over.} Rae8 20. Rxa7 $6 {A tactical mistake.} (20. Nf7 $2 {[%cal Rc1g5]} Nxe6
21. fxe6 Qxe6 22. Qxe6 Rxe6 23. Rxa7 Bc5+ 24. Kh1 d4 25. Nd1 Be7 $15) (20. Be3
$142 $1 $16 {/\} d4 (20... h6 21. Rxa7 $18) 21. Nce4 Qe5 22. Qh5 h6 23. Qg6
hxg5 24. f6 $18) 20... Nxe6 $1 {By eliminating the powerful o^ Black revives
his hopes.} 21. Nxe6 Rxe6 22. Qf2 (22. fxe6 $4 Bc5+ $19) (22. Be3 Rxe3 23. Qxe3
d4 24. Qe6+ Qxe6 25. fxe6 dxc3 26. Rxf8+ Kxf8 27. bxc3 Bxc3 $132) 22... Qe5 $6
{Black returns the favour.} (22... Ree8 23. Rc7 $5 $14) (22... Re5 $142 23. Be3
(23. g4 $2 d4 $1 $36) 23... Rxe3 24. Qxe3 d4 $132 {-22.Be3 leads to the line
from the previous note.}) 23. g4 Rg6 24. Qg2 $5 {The B aims for f4 and this is
probably the best choice.} (24. Qf4 {is an attempt to calm things down and
swap queens, but after} Re6 $5 {Black can still put up a fight:} 25. Qf3 (25.
Qxe5 $5 Rxe5 {[%cal Rd5d4] /\d4<=>} 26. Bf4 Ree8 27. Bc7 Bc5+ 28. Kh1 $36)
25... Re7 (25... d4 $2 26. Bf4 $18) 26. Rxe7 Qxe7 27. Be3 (27. Nxd5 Qc5+ 28.
Be3 Qxd5 29. Bxb6 Qxb5 $14) 27... Bc5 28. Nxd5 Bxe3+ 29. Nxe3 Qe5 $16 {/+/=})
24... Rgf6 (24... Qd4+ 25. Kh1 Rxg4 26. Be3 $1 Qd3 27. Qxg4 Qxf1+ 28. Qg1 Qxg1+
(28... Qf3+ $143 29. Qg2) 29. Kxg1 Rb8 (29... Nc8 30. Rd7 $18) 30. Bd4 Bf8 31.
Kg2 {[%csl Gb5,Rd5][%cal Ra7c7,Rc7c6] /\Rc7-c6+-,><d5,o^b5}) 25. Bf4 Qd4+ 26.
Qf2 $1 $16 {Even now White forces an _|_, in which he will have an extra P and
majorities on both flanks - all in all excellent chances, but still not a
completely clear win.} (26. Kh1 Bxc3 27. bxc3 Qxc3 $13) 26... Qxf2+ (26... Bxc3
27. bxc3 Qxc3 28. Be3 Nc8 29. Rd7 $40 {[%cal Re3d4] ><d5,/\Bd4} Qd3 $2 30. Bc5
Re8 31. Re1 $1 $18) 27. Kxf2 d4 (27... g6 28. Be3 $1 gxf5 29. g5 $18) 28. Ne4
R6f7 (28... Re6 29. fxe6 Rxf4+ 30. Kg2 Rxe4 31. Rb7 $18) 29. Rxf7 Rxf7 30. Ra1
h6 (30... Rb7 31. Be5 d3 32. Bd4 {is similar.}) 31. Be5 d3 32. Bd4 Rb7 33. h4 (
33. Ra6 $142) 33... Bf8 34. Rc1 Nd5 (34... Be7 $142 $5) 35. Rxc4 Rxb5 36. Rc8
Kf7 37. g5 Ne7 $2 $138 {[%mdl 8192] The tension combined with a lack of time
takes its toll.} ({The only way to fight on, albeit in a dreary _|_, was} 37...
d2 $8 38. Nxd2 (38. Ke2 Nf4+ 39. Kxd2 Rxf5 $14) (38. g6+ Kg8 39. Nxd2 Nf4 $5
40. Ke3 Rxf5 41. Ke4 Nxg6 42. Kxf5 Ne7+ $14) 38... Ne7 39. g6+ (39. Rc5 Rxc5
40. Bxc5 Nxf5 (40... hxg5 41. hxg5 Nxf5 42. Bxf8 Kxf8 43. Kf3 $16) 41. g6+ {
-39.g6+}) 39... Kg8 40. Rc5 Rxc5 41. Bxc5 Nxf5 42. Bxf8 Kxf8 43. h5 $16) (37...
hxg5 $2 38. Nxg5+ Ke7 39. Ne6 $18) 38. Nd6+ (38. Nd6+ Kg8 39. Rxf8+ $18) 1-0

[Event "Sarajevo Bosnia 29th"]
[Site "Sarajevo"]
[Date "1999.05.19"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Kasparov, Garry"]
[Black "Short, Nigel D"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2812"]
[BlackElo "2697"]
[Annotator "Stohl,I"]
[PlyCount "79"]
[EventDate "1999.05.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "BIH"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 071"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1999.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1999.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {McShane} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 {After preferring
Capablanca's 4.Qc2 for a long time Kasparov returns to his old love, which has
brought him the World title in 1985. He has tried it recently in a few blitz
games, so it was only a question of time when it would appear in a tournament
encounter.} O-O (5... cxd4 6. Nxd4 Ne4 7. Qd3 Qa5 8. Nb3 Nxc3 9. Bd2 Ne4 10.
Qxe4 Bxd2+ 11. Nxd2 O-O 12. Bg2 Nc6 13. Qe3 $14 (13. Qd3 $5)) 6. Bg2 cxd4 7.
Nxd4 d5 8. cxd5 ({Already the K-K matches proved Black has no problems after} 
8. Qb3 Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 (9. Qxc3 e5 10. Nb3 d4 11. Qa5 Qe8 12. Bg5 Nc6 13. Qa3 Qe6
14. Rc1 b6 15. O-O Bb7 16. Bxf6 Qxf6 17. c5 Rfc8 18. Nd2 Nd8 19. Ne4 Qe6 20. b4
Rc7 21. Qa4 h6 22. Rc2 f5 23. Nd6 Bxg2 24. Kxg2 bxc5 25. bxc5 Nf7 $11 {1/2,
Boensch,U-Ftacnik,L/Munich/1993/}) 9... Nc6 $1 10. cxd5 Na5 11. Qc2 Nxd5 12.
Qd3 Qc7 $1 $132) 8... Nxd5 9. Bd2 ({Garri understandably refrains from} 9. Qb3
Qb6 10. Bxd5 exd5 11. Be3 Bxc3+ 12. Qxc3 Qg6 $1 13. O-O Nc6 14. Rfc1 Bh3 15.
Qc2 Nxd4 16. Bxd4 Qe6 17. f3 Rfe8 $132 18. Kf2 $6 Qh6 19. Qd3 Re7 20. Rc2 Rae8
21. Re1 Qh5 22. Kg1 Bf5 {0-1,Kasparov,G-Kramnik,V/Moscow m 5'/1998/}) 9... Bxc3
{A theoretically important moment. What is more-a tempo or the ^^?} ({Also
playable is} 9... Nxc3 10. bxc3 Be7 11. Rb1 a6 $5 (11... e5 $2 12. Rxb7 exd4
13. Rb3 Be6 14. Bxa8 Na6 15. Bf3 Bxb3 16. Qxb3 d3 17. Qc4 Nc5 18. O-O dxe2 19.
Qxe2 Bf6 20. Be3 Qc7 21. c4 Re8 22. Qc2 Rb8 23. Rb1 $18 {Kasparov,G-Anand,V/
Wijk aan Zee 5'/1999/}) (11... Qd7 12. Bf4 Bf6 13. Nb5 a6 14. Qxd7 Nxd7 15. Nd6
Bxc3+ 16. Kf1 Bf6 17. Nxb7 $14 {Stohl,I-Aronian,L/Portoroz/1999/}) 12. O-O Qc7
13. Qb3 (13. Qc2 Nd7 14. c4 Rb8 15. Bf4 e5 16. Nf5 Bc5 17. Be3 b6 18. Rfd1 Nf6
19. Bxc5 Qxc5 20. Ne3 Be6 21. Qa4 b5 22. cxb5 Rxb5 $11 {1/2,Panzer,P-Ribli,Z/
BL9192/1992/}) 13... Nd7 14. Bf4 e5 15. Nf5 Bc5 16. Bg5 Nb6 17. Ne7+ Kh8 18.
Nxc8 Raxc8 19. a4 Rb8 20. Rfd1 Nc4 21. Bd5 b5 22. axb5 axb5 23. Kg2 h6 24. Bc1
Ba7 $132 {Piket,J-Nielsen,P/Moscow olm/1994/}) 10. bxc3 Nb6 $5 {[%csl Rc4] A
rare move, which however has it's logic. The main struggle will take place on
the <<, where White's ^^ is already aimed. Black therefore wants to create <=>
on this part of the board, ><c4 is a welcome target. On the other hand Black
loses time.} ({More usual is} 10... e5 11. Nb5 {Currently the most topical
move.} Nc6 12. O-O Be6 13. Bc1 a6 14. c4 Nb6 (14... Nde7 15. Nd6 b6 16. Ba3 Ra7
17. c5 bxc5 18. Ne4 $1 c4 19. Ng5 Qxd1 20. Rfxd1 Rc8 21. Nxe6 fxe6 {Kasparov,
G-Kramnik,V/Wijk aan Zee/1999/} 22. e3 $44 {[%csl Ga3,Gg2] ^^|^}) 15. Nd6 Nxc4
16. Nxb7 Qb6 17. Qb3 Qd4 18. Ba3 Nxa3 19. Qxa3 Qb4 20. Qxb4 Nxb4 21. Nc5 Bd5
22. a3 Bxg2 23. Kxg2 Nd5 24. Rfc1 Rfd8 25. Rab1 h6 26. a4 Nf6 27. Rd1 $11 {
1/2,Piket,J-Kortschnoj,V/Nijmegen m/1993/}) 11. Be3 $5 {This move is certainly
more enterprising, than the stereotyped} (11. O-O e5 12. Nb5 ({Harmless is} 12.
Nc2 Nc6 13. Be3 Qxd1 14. Rfxd1 Na4 $1 15. Nb4 Nxc3 16. Nxc6 bxc6 17. Bxc6 Nxd1
18. Rxd1 Be6 (18... Rb8 19. Bxa7 $14 {/\Bc5}) 19. Bxa8 Rxa8 20. a3 a6 {1/2,
Izhnin,A-Gurevich,V/UKR-ch sf/1986/}) 12... Nc4 (12... Nc6 $6 13. Be3 $36 {
[%cal Rb5a7] /\Na7}) 13. Bc1 Nc6 14. Bd5 Nb6 $142 $11 (14... N6a5 $6 15. Qd3 a6
16. Na3 Bf5 {1/2,Makarichev,S-Yudasin,L/Ivano Frankovsk/1982/} 17. e4 Nb6 18.
c4 $36) (14... Be6 $5 $13)) (11. Nb5 $143 $6 Bd7 {/\Bc6=/+}) (11. Qb3 $143 $6
e5 {/\Be6|^}) 11... Nd5 $146 (11... Nc4 12. Qd3 Nxe3 13. Qxe3 Nd7 14. O-O {
[%csl Rb7][%cal Gb1b7,Gg2b7] <->b,/^h1-a8,><b7} e5 15. Nb5 Qb6 16. Qxb6 $5 (16.
Rab1 $6 Qxe3 17. fxe3 Nc5 18. Nd6 Rb8 19. Bd5 Be6 20. Bxe6 fxe6 21. Rb4 Rxf1+
22. Kxf1 b6 23. Ke1 Rd8 24. Ne4 Nxe4 {1/2,Mochalov,E-Dydyshko,V/Minsk/1982/})
16... axb6 17. Nd6 $14) (11... N8d7 12. Qb3 $5 $14 {/\} Nd5 $2 13. Bxd5 Nc5 14.
Qc4 Qxd5 15. Qxd5 exd5 16. Nb5 $16) 12. Qd2 (12. Qd3 $143 Nd7 {[%cal Yd7c5,
Yd7e5] /\Nc5,Ne5}) (12. Bd2 $11 {is a move Kasparov would never play.}) 12...
Nd7 {[%csl Rc4][%cal Yd7b6] /\N7b6} (12... Nxe3 $14 {-11...Nc4}) 13. Bg5 $1 {
If White doesn't want to relinquish the initiative, hew must act fast.} (13. c4
Nxe3 (13... N5b6 $6 14. Rc1 Ne5 15. c5 Nbc4 16. Qc3 $16) 14. Qxe3 {Compared to
the position after 11...Nc4 White has played c4 instead of 0-0, this eases
Black's task.} Qc7 $5 (14... Nc5 $143 15. Nb3 $1 $36) 15. Rc1 (15. O-O $5 Qxc4
16. Rfc1 $44) 15... Nc5 16. O-O (16. Nb3 Nxb3 17. axb3 Bd7 $11) 16... Bd7 17.
Nb5 Qb6 $132) (13. O-O $6 N7b6 $15) 13... Qc7 14. Nb5 (14. Bxd5 $6 exd5 {
[%csl Rc4,Re1] ע,c4} 15. Nf5 Kh8 $5 16. O-O Qe5 $15) (14. e4 N5b6 $15 (14...
Qxc3 $2 15. exd5 Qxa1+ 16. Ke2 $18)) 14... Qc5 (14... Qa5 $2 15. c4 $16) (14...
Qc4 15. Nd6 (15. Rb1 $5) 15... Qc5 16. c4 Qxd6 17. cxd5 e5 18. O-O $14) 15. c4
$1 {[%mdl 512] A typical Kasparovian intuitive "stab".} ({Less energetic is} 
15. Rb1 a6 $142 $1 (15... N7b6 $143 16. e4 Nc4 17. Qd4 $14 {/+/-}) (15... f6
16. Bf4 $5 (16. e4 Nxc3 $1) 16... Nxf4 17. gxf4 $32 {and Black has problems
with unravelling his <<.}) (15... h6 16. c4 $5 (16. Bxd5 hxg5 (16... exd5 17.
Be3 $16) 17. Bg2 $36 {[%csl Rg5][%cal Rb5d6,Rd2d6,Rd2d4] /\Nd6,Qd6,Qd4}) 16...
N5b6 (16... Qxc4 $6 17. Bxd5 exd5 18. Nd6 {[%cal Rg5e7] /\Be7+/-}) 17. Be3 Nxc4
(17... Qf5 18. Qd3 $1 $16 {/\} Nxc4 $2 19. Be4 $18) (17... Qxc4 $2 18. Rb4 $16)
18. Bxc5 Nxd2 19. Bxf8 (19. Rc1 Nxc5 20. Rxc5 Rd8 21. Rc2 Bd7 22. Na3 Rac8 $1
$15 {saves the N.}) 19... Nxb1 20. Bb4 $36 {[%csl Rb1] פb1}) 16. Bxd5 (16. e4
axb5 17. exd5 Qc4 $1 $15) (16. c4 $2 f6 $1 17. Nd4 fxg5 18. cxd5 e5 19. Nf3 g4
$17) 16... exd5 (16... axb5 17. Bg2 $11) 17. Be3 Qc4 18. Nd6 Qc6 $11 {<=>})
15... Qxc4 16. Rb1 {[%cal Rg2d5] /\Bd5,Be7,Nd6} N7b6 (16... Nc5 $6 17. Bxd5
exd5 18. Rb4 $1 (18. Nd6 Qa4 19. Be7 Ne4) 18... Ne4 19. Rxc4 Nxd2 20. Rxc8 $16)
(16... f6 17. Bf4 $5 (17. Nd6 $143 Qc6 $15) (17. e4 $2 fxg5 18. exd5 Nc5 $40)
17... N7b6 $5 (17... Nxf4 18. gxf4 Nb6 19. O-O Bd7 (19... e5 $5) 20. Nd6 Qa4
21. Rfc1 $5 $36 (21. Rb4 Qa3 22. Nxb7 $14 {/\Rb6})) 18. O-O (18. Bd6 $6 {
[%csl Rd6] ץd6} Rd8 19. O-O Bd7 20. Rfc1 Bxb5 $1 $17) 18... Bd7 19. Rfc1 (19.
Nd6 Qa6 20. Rxb6 $6 Qxb6 21. Bxd5 exd5 22. Qxd5+ Kh8 23. Nf7+ Rxf7 24. Qxf7 Be6
$17) 19... Qa4 20. Nc7 Rac8 21. Nxd5 Rxc1+ 22. Rxc1 Nxd5 23. Bxd5 exd5 24.
Qxd5+ Kh8 25. Qxb7 Be6 $11 {/+/=,^- Despite being a pawn down black should be
able to hold this position.}) (16... a6 $2 17. Bxd5 $1 exd5 18. Nd6 $16 {
wins an exchange.}) ({Interesting also is} 16... N7f6 $5 17. O-O Ne4 18. Bxe4
Qxe4 19. f3 $44 {/\e4}) 17. O-O h6 $5 {Brave, but probably the best.} (17... f6
$6 18. e4 $1 fxg5 (18... Ne7 19. Be3 $44 {|^}) 19. Rfc1 $40 {/\ed5}) (17... Bd7
18. Rfc1 Qa4 19. Nd6 $36 h6 (19... f6 20. e4 $1 Ne7 (20... fxg5 21. exd5 Qa3
22. Nxb7 exd5 23. Nc5 $16 {[%cal Rb1b3,Rg2d5] /\Rb3,Bd5}) 21. Be3 $16 {with
very strong pressure,e.g.} Bc6 22. Bh3) 20. Bxh6 (20. e4 hxg5 21. exd5 exd5 $5
$13) 20... gxh6 {Much more effective is the surprising} 21. Bxd5 $1 (21. e4 Qa3
$142 $5 (21... Nf6 22. e5 (22. Qxh6 Qd4 23. Rd1 Qxf2+ $1 (23... Ng4 $17)) 22...
Nfd5 (22... Ng4 $2 23. Rb4) 23. Bxd5 $1 {[%cal Rb1b4,Rc1c4] /\Rc4,Rb4->}) (
21... Ne7 22. Rc5 $5 (22. Qxh6 Qd4) (22. e5 Qg4 $1) 22... Rfc8 (22... Rfd8 23.
Qxh6 Be8 24. Rg5+ Ng6 25. Nxf7 Bxf7 26. Rxg6+ Bxg6 27. Qxg6+ $40) (22... Kh7
23. Ra5 Nc4 (23... Qc6 24. Rc1 $18) 24. Nxc4 Qxc4 25. Rc1 $1 $18) 23. Rh5 Ng6 (
23... Qc2 $2 24. Qxh6 Qxb1+ 25. Bf1 $18) 24. Qxh6 Be8 25. e5 $40) 22. e5 (22.
exd5 Qxd6 23. Qxh6 Qe5 $15) (22. Qxh6 Qxd6 23. Qg5+ $11) 22... Kg7 23. Rb3 Qa6
(23... Qa4 24. Bxd5 {/\Rb4,Rc4}) 24. Bxd5 $5 Nxd5 25. Rc4 Ne7 (25... f5 26. Rh4
Rh8 27. Rxb7 Nb6 (27... Rad8 28. Nxf5+ exf5 29. Qxd5 $18) 28. Nxf5+ exf5 29.
Rxb6 $5 Qxb6 30. Qxd7+ Kg6 31. Rc4 $40) 26. Rxb7 Rad8 27. Rcc7 Bc6 28. Rxa7 Qb5
$3 $17 {/\Qb1,Qe5,Qd5} (28... Qb6 29. Qc1 $40)) 21... exd5 (21... Nxd5 $2 22.
Rc4) 22. Rb4 Qa3 (22... Qa6 23. Rh4) 23. Rc7 $1 Rfd8 (23... Kh7 24. Rxd7 Nxd7
25. Nf5 Kg6 (25... Qa6 26. Rh4) 26. Qxh6+ Kxf5 27. g4+ Ke5 28. f4#) (23... Bh3
24. Nb5 {[%cal Rd2h6] /\Qh6+-}) (23... Rad8 24. Rxd7 Rxd7 25. Rg4+ Kh7 26. Nf5
Rd6 27. Rg7+ Kh8 28. Qd4 Qc1+ 29. Kg2 f6 30. Qg4 $18 {[%cal Rg7h7] /\Rh7}) 24.
Qf4 (24. Nb5 $6 Qa6 $1 (24... Bxb5 25. Rg4+) 25. Qxh6 Nc4 $13) 24... Rf8 25.
Rxb6 axb6 26. Rxd7 $16) 18. Bxh6 $1 {[%mdl 704] The only consistent
continuation of the attack, which leads to amazing tactical complications.} (
18. Rfc1 Qg4 $15) (18. e4 hxg5 19. Rfc1 Qa4 $13) 18... gxh6 19. e4 {The Q must
be cut off from the >>.} (19. Qxh6 $2 Qg4 $17) 19... Ne7 (19... Bd7 $2 20. Rfc1
Qa4 21. exd5 Bxb5 22. Rb4 $18 {/\Rg4-h4->}) 20. Rfc1 Qa4 21. Qxh6 $44 {A very
important critical position. White has sacrificed a piece to attack Black's K,
moreover Short's pieces are uncoordinated and his << undeveloped. But White's
forces are also still quite far from the main action, so it's a question of
who manages to mobilize his reserves more effectively. Although it was very
hard to foresee, Black's logical next move probably loses, so now is the time
to look for alternatives.  McShane: 'So white has a queen hovering around the
vulnerable black king. But that's not enough for a winning attack, so Kasparov
swings an extra rook around.'} Bd7 $6 ({The weakening} 21... f6 $6 {gives
White a whole array of attacking possibilities:} 22. Rc5 $5 (22. Rc7 Bd7 (22...
Rf7 23. Nd6 Qxa2 24. Rbc1 e5 25. Nxf7 Qxf7 26. Rd1 $36) 23. Nc3 Qd4 24. Rd1 Qe5
25. Rdxd7 Nxd7 26. Rxd7 Rf7 $13 {/=/+}) (22. g4 $5 $40 {[%cal Rg4g5,Yc1c3,
Yc3h3,Yb1b3,Yb3h3] /\Rc3,b3-h3,g4-g5}) (22. a3 $5 $40 {[%cal Rb1b4] /\Rb4}) (
22. e5 $5 Qg4 23. Rc7 (23. exf6 $6 Nf5) 23... Qg6 24. Qxg6+ Nxg6 25. exf6 Rxf6
26. Nd6 $44) 22... e5 (22... Qxa2 $2 23. Rh5 Qxb1+ 24. Bf1 $18) 23. Rc7 (23.
Rxe5 fxe5 24. Qg5+ Kh8 25. Qxe7 Rxf2 $5 $13) 23... Rf7 (23... Bd7 24. Nc3 Qd4 (
24... Qa3 25. Rxb6 axb6 26. Rxd7 $40 {[%cal Rc3d5,Rg2h3] /\Nd5,Bh3}) 25. Bh3 $1
$36 {/\} (25. Rd1 $143 Qb4 26. Rdxd7 Nxd7 27. Rxd7 Rad8 $11) 25... Rac8 $6 26.
Rxd7 Nxd7 27. Be6+ Rf7 28. Nd5 $1 $18) 24. Nd6 Qxa2 25. Rbc1 $36) (21... Ng6
$142 $5 22. h4 $142 $1 (22. Rc5 $6 Qxa2 $1 (22... Rd8 23. Bf3 $5) (22... Nd7
23. Rg5) (22... e5 23. Nc7 $1 {[%cal Rb1b6,Rc7d5] /\Rb6,Nd5->}) 23. Nc3 Qa3 $17
{enables Black's Q to join the defence effectively.}) 22... Nc4 $5 {is better,
White's attack is very dangerous, but probably not winning by force.} (22...
Bd7 23. h5 Ne7 (23... Nh8 24. Qf6 Kh7 25. Nd6 {/\e5,Be4+-}) 24. Qf6 (24. Rc5 f6
) 24... Kh7 25. h6 $16) 23. a3 $1 $36 (23. h5 $143 Nge5)) (21... Rd8 {is not
an ideal defence either.} 22. Qf6 $1 (22. h4 $44) (22. Qg5+ Kf8 23. Qh6+ $11 (
23. h4 $5)) 22... Nc6 23. e5 $40) 22. Rc5 (22. Nd6 $2 Qd4 $17) 22... Ng6 {
The best.} (22... Bxb5 $2 23. Rh5 $18) (22... Rfd8 $6 23. Rg5+ Ng6 {The
simplest is} 24. Nd6 (24. Rxg6+ $5 fxg6 25. Qxg6+ Kh8 (25... Kf8 26. Qf6+ Kg8
27. Nd6 Be8 28. Qxe6+ $40) 26. Nd6 Rf8 27. e5 $40) (24. h4 Bxb5 25. Rbxb5 Qxa2
26. Rxg6+ fxg6 27. Rg5 Qa1+ 28. Kh2 Kf7 $1 29. Qxg6+ Ke7 30. Bh3 (30. e5 $2 Rf8
$1) 30... Rd1 $1 31. Qxe6+ Kd8 32. Qf7 Rh1+ 33. Kg2 Qf1+ 34. Kf3 Qd1+ $11)
24... Be8 25. e5 (25. Nxf7 $2 Rd1+) 25... Rxd6 26. exd6 Qd4 27. h4 Qh8 28.
Qxh8+ Kxh8 29. h5 $16) 23. Rg5 {[%cal Rh2h5,Re4e5,Rb5d6,Rd6e4,Rg2e4] /\h4-h5,
e5,Nd6-e4,Be4 McShane: 'Now white always has a perpetual check up his sleeve
with Rxg6+'} (23. Rh5 Rfd8 24. Qh7+ Kf8 25. Nd6 Be8 26. e5 Rxd6 $5 (26... Nxe5
$2 27. Qh8+ Ke7 28. Nf5+ $1 exf5 29. Qxe5+ Kd7 30. Rc1 $18 {->}) 27. exd6 Qd4
28. Qh6+ $11 {was possible, but here White's attack is grounded and Kasparov
didn't want that.}) (23. h4 $2 Qxa2 24. Nc3 Qa3 25. Rg5 Rfc8 $1 (25... Qxc3 26.
e5 Qd3 27. Rb4 Nd5 28. Be4 Qd1+ 29. Kh2 Be8 30. h5 Nde7 31. Rxb7 Qe2 32. Rxe7
Qxe4 33. Rxg6+ $18) 26. h5 Qf8 $19 {enables Black's Q to return to the defence.
It's crucial for White to prevent this.}) 23... Qc2 {Black can't avoid a
perpetual and has to do something against the abovementioned attacking ideas.
Short's move is the best practical chance, although objectivly it should also
lose.} (23... Bxb5 $5 24. Rbxb5 (24. Rxg6+ fxg6 25. Qxg6+ Kh8 26. Qh5+ Kg8 27.
Rxb5 $2 Rf7) 24... Qd1+ $5 (24... Rfd8 $2 25. Rxg6+ fxg6 26. Qxg6+ Kf8 27. Qf6+
$18) (24... Qd4 25. e5 $1 (25. Rxg6+ fxg6 26. Qxg6+ Qg7 27. Qxe6+ Rf7) 25...
Qd1+ 26. Bf1 Rfc8 27. Rb4 $1 Rc4 28. Rxc4 Nxc4 29. Rxg6+ fxg6 30. Qxg6+ Kf8 31.
Qf6+ $18 {[%cal Rf6e6,Re6c4] /\Qe6-c4+-}) 25. Bf1 Qd4 26. e5 Rfc8 27. Rb3 $1 {
White needs h4 for his R.} (27. h4 Qd1 $1 28. Rb4 Rc1 29. Rxg6+ fxg6 30. Qxg6+
Kh8 $11) 27... Qe4 (27... Qd1 28. Rb4 {-24...Qd4}) 28. h4 Nd7 29. h5 Ndxe5 30.
Re3 Ng4 31. Rxe4 Nxh6 32. hxg6 $16 {_|_}) (23... Qxa2 $2 24. Nc3 Qc2 25. e5
Qxc3 (25... Bc6 26. Bxc6 bxc6 27. Rb4 $18) 26. Be4 Be8 27. Rh5 $1 {#2}) (23...
Rfd8 {-22...Rfd8}) 24. Na3 Qd3 {[%csl Ge4] Controls e4.} (24... Qxa2 $2 25. e5
Qxa3 (25... Rfc8 26. Be4 Be8 27. Rh5 $1 {[%cal Re4g6] /\Bg6+-}) 26. Be4 Be8 27.
Rh5 $18) (24... Qe2 25. h4 Qxa2 26. e5 $1 $18) 25. h4 $6 ({Kasparov's
intuition proved him right once again: just after the game he proposed the
winning} 25. Rb3 $1 Qd1+ (25... Qd4 26. e5 Rac8 27. Bf1 Bc6 (27... Rc1 28. Rf3
$1 $18) 28. Rd3 Qe4 29. f3 Qe1 30. Nc2 Qa5 31. Rd4 Qc5 32. Kg2 $1 {[%cal Rd4h4]
/\Rh4+-}) 26. Bf1 Rfc8 27. Rxg6+ $1 (27. g4 $2 Rc1 28. Rxg6+ fxg6 29. Qxg6+ Kf8
30. Qf6+ Ke8 31. Qh8+ Ke7 32. Qh4+ Kd6 $19) (27. Rd3 $6 Qa1 $142 $1 (27... Qe1
$2 28. Rxg6+ fxg6 29. Qxg6+ Kf8 (29... Kh8 30. g4 Rc3 31. Qf6+ $18) 30. Rf3+
Ke7 31. Qf6+ Kd6 32. Rd3+ Kc7 (32... Kc6 33. Qe5 $1 Qb4 34. Rc3+ Qxc3 35. Bb5#)
33. Nb5+ Bxb5 34. Qe5+ $18) 28. e5 Be8 $1 (28... Rc1 $2 29. Rxg6+ $11) 29. Rh5
(29. Rf3 Nd7 $19) 29... Bc6 $1 {/\} (29... Rc1 30. Qh7+ Kf8 31. Qh6+ $11) 30.
Rg5 Be4 $19) 27... fxg6 28. Qxg6+ Kf8 (28... Kh8 $2 29. g4 $18) 29. Qf6+ $142
$5 (29. Rd3 Qa1 30. Rf3+ Ke7 31. Qg5+ Kd6 $5 (31... Ke8 {-29.Qf6+!}) 32. Qd2+
Nd5 33. exd5 $40) 29... Kg8 $1 (29... Ke8 $2 30. Rf3 Qd6 31. Nb5 $1 Qc5 (31...
Bxb5 32. Bxb5+ Rc6 33. Qh8+ Ke7 34. Qg7+ Ke8 35. Qg8+ $18) 32. e5 $1 $18) 30.
Qg5+ $1 Kf7 31. Rd3 Qa1 (31... Qc1 32. Rf3+ Ke8 33. Qg8+ Ke7 34. Qg7+ Kd6 (
34... Kd8 35. Qf6+) 35. Qd4+ Ke7 36. Qf6+ Kd6 37. Rd3+ Kc7 38. Rc3+ $18) 32.
Rf3+ Ke8 33. e5 $1 $18 Ba4 34. Qg8+ Kd7 35. Qf7+ Kd8 36. Qf8+ Be8 37. Rd3+ Nd5
38. Rxd5+ exd5 39. Qf6+ Kd7 40. Qd6# {A beautiful finish, White's Q does the
job single-handed.}) (25. e5 $2 Rfc8 $1 {[%cal Rd3a3,Ra3f8] /\Qa3-f8-+} (25...
Qxa3 $2 26. Be4 $18)) 25... Qxa3 26. h5 $6 {McShane: 'This move gives up the
last opportunity to play Rxg6+ with a draw, so its is an extremely crucial
moment. Objectively its probably best to take the perpetual check, as Short
has an improvement at move 30, but full marks for bravery.'} (26. Rxg6+ $142
$11) 26... Qe7 (26... Be8 $2 27. hxg6 fxg6 28. Rxg6+ Bxg6 29. Qxg6+ Kh8 30. Rb5
$1 $18) 27. e5 (27. hxg6 {McShane} f6 28. g7 (28. Rh5 Qg7) 28... fxg5 {is no
good}) 27... Be8 $1 {[]} (27... Bc6 $2 28. Bxc6 (28. hxg6 $2 f6 $17) (28. Rb4
Qxb4 (28... Be8 $2 29. Rbg4 $1 Nd7 30. hxg6 f6 31. g7 fxg5 32. Rxg5 $1 Bg6 33.
Rxg6 Rfe8 34. Bh3 $18) 29. hxg6 Qb1+ $16 {-28.Bc6 bc6 29.Rb4}) 28... bxc6 29.
Kg2 $1 {Kasparov's move wins by force.} (29. Rb4 Qxb4 30. hxg6 Qe1+ 31. Kg2
Qe4+ 32. Kh2 fxg6 33. Rxg6+ Qxg6 34. Qxg6+ Kh8 35. Qh6+ Kg8 36. Qxe6+ {[%cal
Rf2f4] /\f4+/-/+-}) 29... Qd7 (29... Qb7 $2 30. hxg6 f6 31. g7 fxg5 32. Qh8+
Kf7 33. gxf8=Q+ Rxf8 34. Qh7+ $18) (29... c5 30. Rh1 Qb7+ 31. f3 (31. Kg1 $2
Rfd8) 31... Nc4 32. hxg6 Ne3+ 33. Kf2 Qb2+ 34. Kxe3 $18 {the K escapes to h3.})
30. Rh1 Qd5+ 31. f3 Qd2+ 32. Kh3 Qd7 33. g4 $1 {[%cal Rh3g3,Rh5g6] /\Kg3,hg6+-}
) 28. Be4 f5 29. exf6 (29. hxg6 $2 Qg7 $19) 29... Rxf6 30. hxg6 $2 (30. Bxg6
$142 Bxg6 31. Rxg6+ Rxg6 32. Qxg6+ Kf8 $5 (32... Kh8 33. Qh6+ Qh7 34. Qf6+ Qg7
35. Qxe6 $44) 33. Re1 (33. Rb3 Qf7) 33... Qf7 $13 {But with Short in
time-trouble Kasparov wants to keep as many pieces and tension on the board as
possible.}) 30... Qg7 $6 $138 {'?' McShane.} (30... Bc6 $1 $19) (30... Bc6 $1 {
McShane: gains time to regroup and make use of the extra piece.}) 31. Qh7+ Kf8
32. Qh4 $5 {A suprising retreat.} ({Also interesting, but probably weaker was} 
32. Kg2 Bc6 (32... Rd8 33. Rh1 Rd2 $2 34. Qxg7+ Kxg7 35. Rh7+ Kg8 36. g7 $1 $18
) 33. Bxc6 bxc6 34. Rh1 Rf5 $1 (34... Nd5 $2 35. Qh8+ Qg8 36. Rxd5 $18) (34...
Rc8 35. a4 $5 $44) 35. Qh5 (35. Rxf5+ exf5 36. Rh5 $2 Qxh7 37. gxh7 Kg7) 35...
Rxg5 36. Qxg5 $15) 32... Rc8 $2 {[%mdl 8192] The decisive mistake.} ({Critical
is} 32... Bxg6 $142 33. Rb3 (33. Rb4 $1 {McShane For instance,} Rc8 34. Bxg6
Rxg6 35. Rf4+ Ke8 (35... Kg8 36. Rxg6 Qxg6 37. Rg4) 36. Qh5) 33... Nd5 $1 {
Hiarcs-this protects f4!} (33... Kf7 $2 34. Bxg6+ $1 (34. Rf3 $2 Rxf3 35. Rxg6
Qa1+ 36. Kg2 Rh8 $19) (34. Qg4 Rg8 35. Rc3 $5 (35. Rf3 $2 Rxf3 36. Bxg6+ Kf6)
35... Qh6 $1 (35... Kf8 36. Rf3 Rxf3 37. Qxf3+ Qf7 38. Qd3 $1 Bh7 $1 39. Qd8+
Qe8 40. Qf6+ $11) 36. Rc7+ Kf8 {/\Rh8-/+}) 34... Rxg6 35. Rf3+ (35. Qh5 Rg8)
35... Kg8 36. Rxg6 Qxg6 37. Rf4 $1 $18 (37. Rf6 Qg7 38. Rxe6 Rf8 $1 $11)) 34.
Qg4 (34. Rf3 Rxf3 35. Rxg6 Qa1+ 36. Kg2 Rf6 $1 37. Qh8+ Ke7 38. Qxa8 (38. Qg7+
Kd6 39. Bxd5 Rh8 $1 $19) 38... Ne3+ 39. Kh3 Rxg6 40. Qxb7+ Kf6 41. Bxg6 Qf1+
42. Kh4 Ng2+ 43. Kg4 Kxg6 44. Qe4+ $11) 34... Ne7 (34... Kf7 $2 35. Rxb7+ $18)
35. Rxb7 Qh6 36. Bxg6 (36. Rxe7 Rc8 $1 37. Rd7 Rc1+ 38. Rd1 Bxe4 $19) 36...
Rxg6 37. Rxg6 Qxg6 38. Qh4 Re8 $15) (32... Kg8 $5 {also deserves close
attention, White probably doesn't have more than a draw after} 33. Qh7+ $11) (
32... Ke7 $143 33. Bxb7 {[%csl Re7][%cal Rh4b4] /\Qb4->,ע[+]}) (32... Bc6 $2
33. Rh5 Bxe4 34. Rh8+ Ke7 35. Rh7 Qxh7 36. Qxh7+ Kd6 37. Rd1+ Nd5 38. Qh4 $1
$18 {[%cal Rh4e4,Rh4f6]}) 33. Rh5 $1 $18 {[%cal Gh4h8] -><->h '!' McShane.}
Bxg6 $8 (33... Rxg6 34. Rh8+ $18 {/\Rh7}) (33... Kg8 34. Rh7 $18) 34. Rh8+ Kf7
35. Rxc8 Nxc8 36. Rxb7+ Ne7 37. Bxg6+ Qxg6 (37... Kxg6 38. Qg4+ Kh7 39. Qxg7+
Kxg7 40. Rxe7+ $18 {_|_ loses another pawn.}) 38. Qb4 {McShane: 'How
embarassing. Almost any square is better than f6 for the rook!'} Qf5 $6 {
Hastens the end, but Black was lost anyway.} (38... Kg8 $8 39. Qxe7 Rf8 40. Rb5
Re8 (40... Rf7 41. Rb8+ Kg7 42. Qh4 $18) 41. Qxa7 $18 {->}) 39. Qxe7+ Kg6 40.
Qh7+ (40. Qh7+ Kg5 41. Rg7+ Qg6 (41... Rg6 42. Qh4#) 42. Qh4+ Kf5 43. Qf4#) 1-0

[Event "Gashimov Memorial-A 1st"]
[Site "Shamkir"]
[Date "2014.04.27"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2772"]
[BlackElo "2881"]
[Annotator "Stohl,I"]
[PlyCount "104"]
[EventDate "2014.04.20"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 160"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.05.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.05.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 {This time Carlsen leaves the main
lines even earlier than in his previous games.} (4... d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ (5... Be7
6. e4 dxe4 7. fxe4 e5 8. d5 Bc5 9. Bg5 (9. Nf3 {is the more usual move order:}
Bg4 10. h3 Bxf3 11. Qxf3 Nbd7 12. Bg5 h6 (12... Bd4 13. Ne2 $1 Bxb2 14. Ra2 Bd4
15. Nxd4 exd4 16. e5 $1 O-O $2 17. exf6 Re8+ 18. Kf2 Ne5 19. Qf5 h6 20. Bc1 $18
{Ganguly,S (2654)-Filippov,A (2607)/Khanty-Mansiysk WCup/2009/ For more
details see the notes to this game by Krasenkow in CBM 134.}) (12... O-O 13.
O-O-O Bd4 14. Ne2 {transposes back to Nakamura-Carlsen}) 13. Bh4 Bd4 14. Ne2
O-O 15. Nxd4 (15. O-O-O $142 $1 $14) 15... exd4 16. O-O-O Re8 17. Rxd4 Qe7 18.
Kc2 a5 19. Bd3 Ne5 20. Qf5 Qc5 21. Rd1 Qxd4 22. Bf2 Qxd3+ 23. Rxd3 Nxd3 24.
Kxd3 Nxe4 $11 {Almarza Mato,C (1995)-Belanoff,S (2066)/email/2011/}) 9... O-O (
9... Bd4 $5 {was suggested by PH Nielsen. White's best reaction is probably}
10. Qd2 (10. Nf3 Bxc3+ 11. bxc3 Qd6 12. Bd3 Na6 13. O-O Nc5 14. Qc2 h6 15. Bxf6
Qxf6 16. Kh1 Qe7 17. Nd2 Bd7 18. Qb1 b6 19. Nb3 Nb7 20. Bc2 O-O $15 {Formanek,
E (2330)-McCambridge,V (2465)/Chicago/1985/}) 10... O-O (10... Bxc3 11. Qxc3
Qe7 {[%cal Rf6e4,Rf6d5]} 12. Qf3 $14 (12. Bxf6 Qxf6 13. Nf3 $32)) (10... Bg4 $5
11. Be2 (11. Nb5 Nxe4 12. Bxd8 Nxd2 13. Bxc7 Nb3 $5 (13... Nxf1 14. Nxd4 exd4
15. Kxf1 $14) 14. Rb1 Bxg1 15. Rxg1 Kd7 16. Kf2 a6 17. Bxb8 Raxb8 18. Nc3 Bf5
19. Re1 Kd6 $13) 11... h6 12. Bxf6 (12. Bxg4 $2 hxg5 13. Qxg5 Nxg4 14. Qxg4
Bxc3+ 15. bxc3 Qh4+ 16. Qxh4 Rxh4 $15) 12... Qxf6 13. Bxg4 Qh4+ 14. g3 Qxg4 15.
Nge2 c5 $14 {/<=>}) 11. Nf3 c5 12. Nb5 Nbd7 13. Bd3 Qb6 14. a4 a5 15. O-O-O h6
16. Bh4 Re8 17. Rhf1 Nh5 18. Kb1 Nf4 19. Rc1 f6 20. h3 Ra6 21. Bc2 Ng6 22. Be1
Qd8 23. g4 Nh8 24. Bg3 Nf7 25. Bd3 Nf8 26. Nfxd4 exd4 27. Nc7 $16 {Dolya,
A-Orekhov,V/email/2010/}) 10. Nf3 Bg4 11. h3 Bxf3 12. Qxf3 Nbd7 13. O-O-O Bd4
14. Ne2 c5 15. g4 a5 16. Kb1 Ra6 17. Ng3 g6 18. h4 a4 19. Rh2 Qa5 20. Bd2 Qc7
21. g5 Ne8 22. h5 Rb6 23. Bc1 $40 {Nakamura,H (2789)-Carlsen,M (2872)/Zuerich/
2014/ In the end in a heavy tactical struggle Black turned the tables - for
more details about this game see the notes by Krasenkow in CBM 159.}) 6. bxc3
c5 7. cxd5 Nxd5 ({The double-edged} 7... exd5 8. e3 c4 $5 {was played in the
9th game of the World Championship match Anand-Carlsen in 2013. Lev Gutman
annotated the game in detail and devoted a whole article to this line in CBM
158.}) 8. dxc5 Qa5 9. e4 {is the standard continuation, even more recently
Black seems to be doing OK after} Nf6 {This was the topic of another
theoretical article by Gutman in CBM 159. After} 10. Be3 O-O 11. Qb3 Nfd7 12.
a4 (12. Bb5 Qc7 13. Ne2 (13. Qb4 Nc6 14. Bxc6 (14. Qa4 Nce5 $11 (14... Na5 15.
Rd1 $1 Nxc5 16. Bxc5 Qxc5 17. Qxa5 a6 18. c4 Rb8 19. Ne2 axb5 20. cxb5 e5 21.
Rd5 Qe7 22. Qb4 $14 {Ulibin,M (2506)-Nyback,T (2575)/Stockholm/2007/})) 14...
bxc6 15. Nh3 Ba6 16. Qa4 Bb5 17. Qc2 Qa5 18. Kf2 Nxc5 19. Bxc5 Ba4 20. Qd2
Qxc5+ 21. Qd4 Qa5 22. Rhb1 {Pacher,M (2446)-Haba,P (2503)/CZE-chT2/2014/} Bc2
23. Rb7 Rad8 $36) 13... Nxc5 14. Qc4 b6 15. Bxc5 bxc5 16. O-O a6 17. Ba4 Nd7
18. Bxd7 Bxd7 19. a4 e5 20. Ng3 Be6 21. Qe2 g6 22. a5 Rfd8 $15 {Richter,M 
(2473)-Michalik,P (2584)/Bundesliga/2014/}) (12. Qb4 Qc7 13. Rd1 Nc6 14. Qa4
Nce5 15. Qd4 Nc6 16. Qa4 (16. Qd2 Nce5 17. Qd6 Qa5 $132) 16... Nce5 17. Qd4 Nc6
{1/2, Timman,J (2630)-Karpov,A (2730)/Tilburg/1991/}) 12... Qc7 13. Qa3 b6 14.
a5 bxc5 15. a6 c4 16. Qa5 Qxa5 17. Rxa5 Nc6 18. Ra2 Nde5 19. f4 Ng4 20. Bc1 Rb8
21. Nh3 Rb1 22. Kd2 Rb6 23. Bxc4 Nb8 24. Be2 Nf6 25. Nf2 Bxa6 $11 {Wang,H 
(2743)-Radjabov,T (2745)/Stavanger/2013/}) ({Another new direction in which
the 4.f3 system is developing is} 4... O-O $5 5. e4 (5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 Nh5 $5
7. Nh3 f5 8. e3 d6 9. Be2 c5 10. O-O Nc6 11. g4 fxg4 12. fxg4 Nf6 13. Nf2 h6
14. e4 e5 15. d5 Ne7 16. g5 hxg5 17. Bxg5 Qe8 18. Qd3 Qg6 19. Qg3 Bd7 20. Kh1
Rf7 21. Qh4 Raf8 $15 {Karjakin,S (2772)-Carlsen,M (2881)/Shamkir/2014/}) 5...
d5 6. e5 Nfd7 7. cxd5 exd5 8. a3 Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 f6 10. exf6 Qe8+ (10... Qxf6 11.
Bd3 Nb6 12. Ra2 Bf5 13. Bxf5 Qxf5 14. Nh3 N8d7 15. O-O Rae8 16. Nf4 c6 17. Re1
Nf6 18. g4 Qd7 19. Nd3 Rxe1+ 20. Qxe1 Nc4 21. Re2 Re8 $11 {Millstone,M (2473)
-Hertel,P (2641)/email/2009/}) 11. Qe2 Qf7 $5 $146 (11... Nxf6 12. Qxe8 Nxe8
13. Ne2 Nd6 14. Bf4 Rd8 15. Ng3 Nc6 16. Bd3 Be6 17. Kf2 Bf7 18. Nf5 Bg6 {
1/2, Shmeliov,D (2270)-Kraai,J (2505)/Las Vegas/2007/} 19. Nxd6 $14) 12. fxg7
Re8 13. Be3 Nc6 14. Qd2 Na5 15. Rb1 $1 Nb6 16. Rb4 Nac4 17. Bxc4 dxc4 $6 (17...
Nxc4 $142 18. Rxc4 dxc4 19. Ne2 Bf5 20. Kf2 $44) 18. Rb5 Bf5 19. Kf2 (19. Re5
$5) 19... Nd5 20. Rxd5 Qxd5 21. Ne2 a5 22. h4 b5 23. h5 b4 24. cxb4 axb4 25.
axb4 {Mamedyarov,S (2757)-Aronian,L (2830)/Khanty-Mansiysk Candidates/2014/} {
Now Giri's suggestion} Bd3 $1 {would have still given Black chances to save
the game.}) 5. d5 O-O {[%mdl 32] A restrained approach, this Nakamura-Carlsen
encounter will be more strategic than their tussle in Zuerich.} (5... b5 6. e4
O-O 7. e5 Ne8 8. f4 exd5 9. cxd5 d6 10. Nf3 c4 11. a4 Nd7 ({Black started to
avoid the rather unpleasant} 11... Bg4 12. axb5 Nd7 13. e6 $14 {Shirov,A (2749)
-Kramnik,V (2780)/Shanghai/2010/ See the notes to this game in CBM 138.}) 12.
Be2 Qb6 13. axb5 (13. Bd2 Nc7 14. Nxb5 Bxd2+ 15. Nxd2 Nxd5 16. Nxc4 Qc5 17. Qd2
dxe5 18. fxe5 Nxe5 19. Nxe5 {1/2, Nenciulescu,S (2179)-Antonov,V (2283)/email/
2011/} Ne3 20. Nd3 Nc2+ 21. Kd1 Ne3+ $11) 13... Nc7 $5 $146 (13... dxe5 14.
fxe5 Bb7 15. Qd4 Nc7 16. Qxb6 Nxb6 17. d6 Nxb5 18. Bd2 Bxf3 19. Bxf3 Rae8 20.
Nxb5 Rxe5+ 21. Kd1 Bxd2 22. Nxa7 Bf4 23. Ra6 {Ding,L (2714)-Bacrot,E (2714)/
Biel/2013/} Nd7 $132) 14. Qd4 (14. Ra4 $5 Qc5 $132) 14... Bb7 15. Bd2 Bxc3 16.
bxc3 dxe5 17. fxe5 Bxd5 18. Be3 Qxb5 19. O-O Ne6 20. Qh4 Ndc5 (20... a5 $5 $15)
21. Rab1 Nb3 22. Bd1 Qa5 23. Bc2 g6 24. Ng5 Nxg5 25. Bxg5 Qxc3 26. Rf2 (26.
Rbd1 $1 $44) 26... Nd4 27. Bh6 (27. Bf6 Qe3 28. Bg5 $11) 27... Nc6 $1 28. Rd1
Qxe5 $15 {Mamedyarov,S (2757)-Karjakin,S (2766)/Khanty-Mansiysk Candidates/
2014/}) 6. e4 d6 7. Bd2 (7. Nge2 {gives Black's counterplay a faster start with
} b5 8. Nf4 (8. Ng3 bxc4 (8... exd5 9. cxd5 a6 10. Be2 Nbd7 11. O-O c4 12. Be3
Re8 13. Kh1 Bc5 14. Bxc5 Nxc5 15. b4 cxb3 16. axb3 b4 17. Nb5 Qb6 18. Nd4 Bd7
19. Qd2 a5 20. Bc4 h6 21. Nc6 $1 Bxc6 22. dxc6 Qxc6 23. Nf5 $16 {Milov,V (2570)
-De Firmian,N (2605)/Biel/1995/}) 9. Bxc4 Bxc3+ 10. bxc3 Qa5 $132 {[%cal Yc8a6]
}) 8... a6 $5 (8... e5 9. Nfe2 Nh5 $5 (9... bxc4 10. Ng3 Ba6 11. Bg5 h6 12. Be3
Bc8 13. Bxc4 Nbd7 14. O-O Nb6 15. Be2 Bxc3 16. bxc3 Bd7 17. a4 Rb8 18. a5 Na8
19. Qd2 Qe7 20. f4 $36 {Shirov,A (2610)-Savon,V (2460)/Moscow/1991/}) 10. g4
Qh4+ 11. Kd2 Nf4 12. Nxf4 exf4 13. Kc2 Bxc3 (13... bxc4 14. Bxc4 (14. Bxf4 $142
Qf6 15. Qd2) 14... Ba6 15. Bxa6 Nxa6 16. Bxf4 c4 17. Qd4 Rfc8 18. a3 Bc5 19.
Qd2 Qe7 20. h4 Rab8 21. g5 Rb3 $40 {Cheng,B (2440)-Papin,V (2514)/Melbourne/
2013/}) 14. bxc3 b4 15. Bxf4 Bd7 16. Qd2 $5 (16. Qd3 $6 Ba4+ 17. Kd2 Nd7 18.
Be2 f5 $1 19. exf5 Rae8 20. Rae1 Ne5 21. Bxe5 Rxe5 22. f4 Rfe8 $1 $19 {Berkes,
F (2702)-Yemelin,V (2574)/Skopje/2013/} {/\} 23. fxe5 Qg5+ 24. Qe3 bxc3+ 25.
Kd3 Bc2+) 16... Ba4+ (16... Qe7 $5) 17. Kd3 bxc3 18. Qxc3 (18. Qe3 Qe7 19. Ke2
c2 20. Kf2 Nd7 $13 {Miton,K (2638)-Charbonneau,P (2501)/Montreal/2006/}) 18...
f5 19. exf5 Qf2 (19... Na6 20. Bg3 $16) 20. Be3 Qxf3 21. Be2 Qh3 22. Qe1 $1 {
[%cal Re1g3]} Bc2+ 23. Kd2 Be4 24. Rg1 Qxh2 25. Qg3 $16) 9. Be2 (9. Bd2 exd5
10. cxd5 Ba5 11. Be2 Nbd7 12. O-O Ne5 13. Kh1 c4 $132 {is similar to our game,
Black was on top after} 14. b3 $6 b4 15. Na4 c3 16. Be3 Bc7 17. a3 a5 18. Bb5
Rb8 19. Qe2 h6 20. Rfd1 Qe7 21. axb4 axb4 $15 {Timofeev,A (2631)-Topalov,V 
(2751)/EU Cup Eilat/2012/}) 9... exd5 (9... e5 10. Nd3 Nbd7 11. Nxb4 cxb4 12.
Nb1 Qb6 13. g4 bxc4 14. Nd2 c3 15. bxc3 a5 16. Nc4 Qc7 17. cxb4 axb4 18. Be3
Ba6 19. Rc1 Bxc4 20. Rxc4 Nc5 21. Qd2 Rfb8 22. O-O b3 $11 {Tritt,M (1896)
-Kolanek,R (2098)/email/2008/}) 10. cxd5 Nbd7 11. O-O Ne5 12. Kh1 Bd7 13. Nd3
Nxd3 14. Qxd3 h6 15. g4 Nh7 16. Nd1 Re8 17. Ne3 c4 18. Qd1 Bc5 19. Qe1 Qb6 20.
Nf5 Bxf5 21. gxf5 Be3 22. Qg3 Kh8 23. Bxe3 Qxe3 24. Rg1 Rg8 $13 {/=/+, Richter,
M (2470)-Babula,V (2583)/Pardubice/2013/}) 7... Nbd7 ({Nakamura himself
preferred} 7... Re8 8. Nge2 a6 (8... Na6 9. Ng3 Nc7 10. Be2 a6 11. a4 Bd7 12.
O-O Qe7 13. Re1 exd5 14. cxd5 b5 15. Kh1 bxa4 16. Nxa4 Bxd2 17. Qxd2 Reb8 18.
Nxc5 dxc5 19. d6 Qe5 20. f4 Qxb2 21. Qxb2 Rxb2 22. dxc7 Rc8 $11 {Volkov,S 
(2620)-Cekro,E (2441)/EU Cup Rethymnon/2003/}) 9. a4 (9. Ng3 b5 10. dxe6 Bxe6
11. cxb5 d5 12. bxa6 c4 (12... Nxa6 $5) 13. exd5 Bh3+ $2 (13... Nxd5 14. Be2
Nxc3 15. Bxc3 Qb6 $44 {[%csl Re1]}) 14. Nce4 Nxd5 15. Bxb4 Nxb4 16. gxh3 Qa5
17. Kf2 $18 {Steadman,M (2217)-Hansen,S (2603)/Sydney/2011/}) 9... exd5 10.
cxd5 Nh5 11. g3 f5 12. Bg2 fxe4 13. Nxe4 Nf6 14. Bxb4 cxb4 15. Qd2 Nxe4 16.
fxe4 a5 17. Nd4 Na6 18. O-O Nc5 19. Qf4 Nd3 20. Qd2 Nc5 21. Qf4 Nd3 22. Qd2 Nc5
{1/2, Le Quang,L (2715)-Nakamura,H (2770)/Dortmund/2011/}) ({Carlsen once
again simply continues his development and spurns more direct attempts, such as
} 7... exd5 8. cxd5 Nh5 $5 (8... a6 9. Nge2 Nbd7 10. Ng3 b5 11. Be2 (11. a4 $1
$14) 11... c4 12. Be3 Bc5 13. Bxc5 Nxc5 14. b4 cxb3 15. axb3 b4 16. Nb5 Qb6 17.
Nd4 a5 18. Ngf5 Re8 $15 19. g4 $2 {Khenkin,I (2600)-Dgebuadze,A (2505)/El
Sauzal rpd/2007/} Nfxe4 20. fxe4 Nxe4 $40) 9. g3 ({I doubt Nakamura would have
repeated Aronian's aggressive reaction} 9. g4 Qh4+ 10. Ke2 Ng3+ 11. hxg3 Qxh1
12. Kf2 Nd7 (12... c4 $5 $17) 13. Bg2 Qh2 14. a3 Bxc3 15. Bxc3 Qh6 16. f4 Qg6
17. Bf3 Re8 18. Kg2 f6 19. Qc2 b5 20. Nh3 Nb6 21. f5 Qf7 22. b3 Nd7 23. Nf4 Ne5
24. Rh1 h6 25. Ne6 $44 {1-0 Aronian,L (2693)-Efimenko,Z (2620)/Warsaw 2005/CBM
108 (49)}) (9. Nge2 f5 10. Qc2 b5 11. O-O-O Bxc3 12. bxc3 fxe4 13. fxe4 $6 (13.
Ng3 $132) 13... Bg4 14. Re1 Nd7 15. Ng3 Nxg3 16. hxg3 Ne5 17. Bxb5 c4 $40 {
0-1 Gomez Esteban,J (2425)-Supatashvili,K (2450)/Debrecen 1992/EU-chT (26)})
9... f5 10. Bg2 $142 (10. f4 $6 Qe8 11. Be2 Bxc3 12. Bxc3 Qxe4 13. Nf3 Re8 14.
Kf1 b6 15. Rg1 Qxe2+ 16. Qxe2 Ba6 17. Qxa6 Nxa6 18. Kf2 Nc7 $17 {Bilobrk,F 
(2390)-Zelcic,R (2519)/Zadar/2013/}) 10... Bxc3 (10... Nf6 $142 $1 {seems
promising for Black}) 11. Bxc3 fxe4 12. fxe4 Qe8 13. Ne2 Bg4 14. Rf1 Rxf1+ 15.
Kxf1 Nd7 16. Qc2 Ne5 17. Kg1 Nf3+ 18. Kh1 Qg6 19. Rf1 Nxh2 20. Kxh2 Bxe2 21.
Qxe2 Nxg3 22. Qe3 Nxf1+ 23. Bxf1 Re8 24. Bg2 $13 {Van Osmael,A-Huybrecht,F/
corr/2002/}) 8. Nge2 Ne5 $146 (8... exd5 9. Nxd5 $6 ({Nakamura would have
almost certainly played} 9. cxd5 $142 a6 10. Ng3) 9... Nxd5 10. cxd5 f5 11.
Bxb4 cxb4 12. Nd4 Nc5 13. Be2 fxe4 14. O-O Qg5 15. Qc1 Qe5 16. Qe3 exf3 17.
Qxe5 dxe5 18. Nxf3 e4 19. Nd4 Bd7 20. Bc4 $132 {Akshat,K (2354)-L'Ami,E (2640)/
Dieren/2013/}) (8... Re8 9. Ng3 a6 10. Be2 exd5 11. cxd5 b5 (11... Qc7 12. O-O
Ne5 13. Bg5 Nfd7 14. f4 Ng6 15. f5 $1 Nge5 16. f6 h6 17. Bxh6 Nxf6 18. Rxf6
gxf6 19. Nh5 Qd8 20. Qd2 Ng6 21. Bg7 {1-0, Bobykin,K (2000)-Pilipchuk,A (2172)/
email/2008/}) 12. a4 bxa4 13. Nxa4 (13. Qxa4 $142 Rb8 14. O-O $13 {/+/=}) 13...
Rb8 14. O-O Bxd2 15. Qxd2 Rb4 16. Ra2 Ne5 17. Rfa1 h5 18. Qg5 Ng6 19. Nc3 h4
20. Nf5 Bxf5 21. Qxf5 Re5 22. Qh3 Rh5 $1 {[%cal Rg6f4]} 23. g4 hxg3 24. Qxg3
Re5 25. Kh1 Nh5 $36 {Landgren,A (2220)-Bjork,C (2473)/SWE-chT/2004/}) (8... Nh5
9. Be3 $2 (9. Nf4 $142) 9... Ne5 10. b3 Qh4+ 11. Bf2 Qf6 12. Qc2 b5 $1 $32 13.
cxb5 exd5 14. O-O-O Nxf3 $5 15. Rxd5 Ne5 16. Be3 Bb7 17. Rd1 Ng4 18. Bg1 Rfe8
$17 {Skula,E-Krcmar,J/corr/1997/}) 9. Ng3 exd5 10. cxd5 {[%mdl 16] The
pawn-structure originates from the Benoni, but the dark-squared bishop is on
the queenside instead of the long diagonal. In the Snake Benoni Black plays
Bd6-c7-a5; here it's similar, but he didn't allow White to get in the d5-d6
advance (the main problem of most Snake Benoni versions). All in all the
position seems very unclear to me.} Bd7 {Carlsen wants to get in a quick b5,
but without allowing White to reach a positon such as the one seen in Milov-De
Firmian above. However, d7 is an important square also for Black's knights and
a few moves later he will feel the bishop should retreat.} (10... a6 11. Be2 b5
12. a4 $5 $14) (10... c4 $5 11. Be3 (11. f4 Nd3+ (11... Ng6 12. Bxc4 Re8 13.
Bb5 Bd7 $44 {[%csl Re1]}) 12. Bxd3 cxd3 13. Qf3 Re8 14. O-O (14. Qxd3 Bxc3 15.
Bxc3 Nxe4 16. Nxe4 Bf5 $11) 14... Bd7 $13 15. Qxd3 $2 Ng4 $17) 11... Qc7 12.
Be2 Bc5 $132) 11. a3 {Nakamura first of all wants to slow down the advancing
pawns.} ({Perhaps he didn't like} 11. Be2 {due to} c4 $5 (11... b5 12. Nxb5
Bxb5 13. Bxb5 Qa5 14. Be2 Rab8 15. b3 $14) 12. Be3 Qa5 13. O-O Bc5 14. Qd2 $13)
11... Ba5 12. Be2 b5 13. O-O (13. Nxb5 Bxb5 14. Bxb5 c4 {[%csl Rb5]} (14... Rb8
15. b4 Rxb5 16. bxa5 Nd3+ 17. Ke2 c4 $13) 15. b4 cxb3 16. Rb1 Rb8 17. Rxb3 Qc7
$44 {[%csl Re1]}) (13. b4 cxb4 (13... Bb6 $5 14. Nxb5 Bxb5 15. Bxb5 c4 $44) 14.
axb4 Bxb4 15. Nxb5 Bc5 16. Ba5 Qe7 17. Nd4 Ng6 $132) 13... c4 14. Be3 Bb6 15.
Qd2 Rb8 (15... a5 16. a4 $5 {and the c4-pawn will be vulnerable:} b4 17. Nb5
Bxb5 18. axb5 g6 19. Rfc1 Rc8 20. Kh1 Bxe3 (20... Re8 21. Bg5 $36) 21. Qxe3 Rc5
22. f4 $14) 16. Nd1 Bc8 $6 {Preparing the knight transfer is rather slow.} (
16... h5 $5) (16... Re8 $13) 17. Kh1 ({White gradually improves his position,} 
17. a4 a6 $13 {achieves nothing tangible.}) 17... Nfd7 {[%cal Yd7c5,Yc5b3,
Yc5d3]} 18. f4 $1 {At the right moment - now Black won't control d3 with both
knights.} Ng6 19. Bxb6 (19. a4 a6 20. Nc3 {Zagrebelny} Bc5 $5 {doesn't look
too impressive.}) 19... Rxb6 20. Ne3 Nc5 21. Bd1 Nd3 (21... Re8 22. f5 Nf8 23.
f6 Nxe4 24. Nxe4 Rxe4 25. Bc2 $44) 22. f5 $1 ({Houdini prefers} 22. a4 a6 23.
b3 $14 {, but Nakamura decides to act.}) 22... Ngf4 $8 {More or less forced.} (
22... Nge5 $2 23. f6 $40 g6 $2 24. Nxc4 {[%cal Rd2h6]}) 23. a4 (23. Bc2 Qh4 24.
f6 $5 g6 25. a4 $36) 23... a6 24. Ng4 {[%cal Rf1f4]} (24. Bc2 $5 {deserves
attention even here.}) 24... h5 (24... Qg5 $2 25. Nh5 $1 $18) 25. Nf2 $5 ({
This is at least as good as the more energetic} 25. Rxf4 Nxf4 (25... hxg4 $5
26. Rxg4 Ne5 {is a safer choice, although White is better after} 27. a5 (27.
Rf4 Qg5 $14)) 26. Nh6+ gxh6 (26... Kh8 27. Qxf4 Qf6 28. Nxf7+ Rxf7 29. Bxh5 Rf8
(29... Qxb2 30. Rd1 $18) 30. Bg6 Qxg6 (30... Kg8 31. Qg4 {[%cal Rg4h5]} Rd8 32.
e5 $1 dxe5 33. Qh5 $18 {[%cal Rg3e4]}) 31. Qe3 Qf6 32. Qxb6 Qxb2 33. Rf1 $16)
27. Qxf4 Qg5 28. Qf2 $16 {[%cal Rf2b6,Rg3h5] ->}) 25... Qf6 (25... Nxf2+ 26.
Qxf2 Nd3 27. Qe3 {[%cal Rf5f6]} f6 (27... h4 28. f6 $1) 28. a5 Rb7 29. Bxh5 $18
{[%cal Rh5g6,Re3f3,Rf3h5]}) (25... bxa4 26. Nxd3 Nxd3 27. f6 $18) 26. Nxd3 $2 (
26. Nxh5 $142 $1 Nxh5 (26... Nxf2+ 27. Qxf2 Nxh5 28. Qxb6 $18) 27. Nxd3 cxd3
28. a5 Rb8 29. Bxh5 $16 {[%cal Yb2b4,Ya1a3,Ya3d3]}) 26... Nxd3 27. Qe3 (27.
Nxh5 Qxb2 $13) 27... Rb7 28. Nxh5 ({This looks like a good moment to flick in} 
28. axb5 axb5 29. Nxh5 Qh6 30. Qd4 $5 $36) 28... Qh6 $1 (28... Qxb2 $2 29. f6
Qxa1 30. Qg5 (30. fxg7 {[%cal Re3h6]} f5 31. gxf8=Q+ Kxf8 32. Be2 $18) 30...
Nf2+ 31. Kg1 Nh3+ 32. gxh3 Qd4+ 33. Rf2 $1 g6 34. Ng3 $1 Qxd1+ 35. Kg2 $18) 29.
Qxh6 {Nakamura simplifies the position.} ({After} 29. Qd4 {White has to reckon
also with} bxa4 $5 $132) 29... gxh6 $44 {/+/=} 30. axb5 axb5 {[%csl Gb5,Gc4]
Black has survived the onslaught, without queens his dangerous pawns give him
reasonable compensation. In the following phase Nakamura's time trouble plays
a crucial role.} (30... Rxb5 $2 31. b3 $16 {/\} cxb3 32. Be2) 31. Bc2 (31. Rb1
$142 $5 Nc5 (31... Ra7 32. Bc2 Nb4 33. Rf2) 32. Re1 $14) 31... Ne5 $6 {
Objectively this isn't ideal, but Carlsen is already ambitious.} (31... Nxb2
$142 $5 32. Nf6+ Kg7 33. Nh5+ Kh8 34. Ra6 Rd8 35. Rfa1 b4 36. Rc6 b3 37. Bxb3
cxb3 38. Ra8 Nd3 39. Rcxc8 Rxc8 40. Rxc8+ Kh7 41. Nf6+ Kg7 42. Nh5+ $11 {
is an unforced, but plausible sample line.}) 32. Ra6 (32. Ra8 b4 33. Rb1 $14) (
32. b4 $5 cxb3 33. Bxb3 $14 {/+/-}) 32... Rd8 33. Ng3 $6 $138 (33. Rb1 b4 34.
Ra8 $14) 33... Rb8 34. Ra7 b4 35. Ne2 (35. Rb1 $13 {was still playable, the
knight transfer doesn't improve White's coordination.}) 35... Bd7 36. Rfa1 $6 (
36. Nd4 Ra8 $44 37. Rfa1 (37. Rb7 $142 $5) 37... Rxa7 38. Rxa7 b3 39. Bb1 Rc8
40. Ne2 Be8 41. Nc3 (41. Ra1 Nd3 42. Bxd3 cxd3 43. Nc3 Rxc3 44. bxc3 b2 45. Rb1
d2 $19 {[%cal Re8a4]}) 41... Nd3 $15) 36... Bb5 37. h3 (37. Nd4 b3 38. Bd1 (38.
Bb1 c3 39. Nxb5 c2 40. Bxc2 bxc2 $19) 38... c3 39. bxc3 (39. Nxb5 Rxb5 40. bxc3
b2 41. Rb1 Rc8 $19) 39... b2 40. Rb1 Bd3 41. Bc2 Bxc2 42. Nxc2 Rdc8 43. Ra2 Nd3
$5 $19 (43... Rxc3 44. Raxb2 Rxb2 45. Rxb2 Nd3 46. Ra2 Nb4 $17)) 37... Rdc8 $1
$36 {All is ready for the pawn break.} 38. Kh2 $2 (38. Rb1 c3 39. Nd4 b3 40.
Nxb3 Bd3 41. Bxd3 Nxd3 42. bxc3 Rxc3 $17) 38... c3 $19 39. Nd4 cxb2 40. Rb1 Rc4
$1 41. Nxb5 Rxc2 42. Nd4 (42. Nxd6 Rd8 43. Re7 (43. Nxf7 Nxf7 44. Rb7 Kh8 $1 {
[%cal Rd8g8]} (44... Nd6 45. Rxb4 Nc4 46. Kg3 $17) 45. Kg3 (45. Rxf7 Rg8 $19)
45... Ne5 46. Rxb4 Rg8+ 47. Kh4 Rgxg2 $19) 43... Rxd6 44. Rxe5 Ra6 45. d6 Rxd6
46. Rd5 Rxd5 47. exd5 Kf8 48. f6 Ke8 $19) 42... Rd2 $6 (42... b3 $1 {[%cal
Re5c4]} 43. Ra3 (43. Nc6 Nf3+ 44. Kg3 Nd2 45. Rxb2 Rxb2 46. Nxb8 Ra2 $19) 43...
Nc4 44. Rxb3 Rxb3 45. Nxb3 Na3 46. Nd4 Rd2 $19) 43. Nc6 Re8 44. Ra4 (44. Rb7
Nd3 45. e5 Nxe5 46. Nxe5 Rxe5 47. Rxb4 Ree2 $17 {/-+}) ({A more resilient try,
but hardly sufficient, was} 44. Nxe5 Rxe5 45. Ra2 Rxe4 46. Raxb2 Rxb2 47. Rxb2
Kg7 48. g4 Kf6 $17 {/-+}) 44... Nd3 45. Nxb4 Nf2 $1 $19 {[%cal Re8e4,Rf2d1,
Rd1c3]} (45... Rxe4 $2 46. Ra8+ Kg7 47. Nxd3 $11) 46. Ra2 Nd1 47. Rxd1 Rxd1 48.
Rxb2 Rxe4 {The rest is a matter of technique, White's pieces are uncoordinated
and his pawns are vulnerable.} 49. Nc6 (49. f6 Rf4 $19) 49... Kg7 50. f6+ Kxf6
51. Rf2+ Kg6 52. Nd8 Re8 (52... Re8 53. Nxf7 Rxd5 {[%csl Rf7][%cal Rg6g7,Re8f8]
traps the knight.}) 0-1

[Event "Corus"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2007.01.19"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Black "Navara, David"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2783"]
[BlackElo "2719"]
[Annotator "Stohl,I"]
[PlyCount "111"]
[EventDate "2007.01.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 117"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 e6 5. g3 Bb4+ 6. Nc3 {Preparing for
Topalov, we reckoned with a Nimzo-Indian, but paid more attention to the
standard move-order and systems with 4.Qc2. Now White has reached the
Fianchetto Nimzo-Indian in a round-about way.} ({The alternative} 6. Bd2 {
is considered rather tame, a good reaction is} Qb6 $5 $132) 6... Ne4 {Already
when preparing for an earlier game, Navara decided to play this line. The more
popular} (6... O-O 7. Bg2 d5 {is also fully playable, although in Wijk Black
experienced some problems after} 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Nc6 10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. O-O
Qa5 12. Bd2 Bxc3 13. bxc3 Ba6 14. Rfd1 Qc5 15. e4 Bc4 16. Qa4 Nb6 17. Qb4 Qh5
18. Bf4 c5 19. Qa5 (19. Qb2 Rfd8 $1 $132) 19... Rfc8 20. h3 f6 21. Be3 e5 22.
Bxc5 Be6 $6 (22... Be2 $1 23. Re1 Nc4 $11) 23. Bxb6 axb6 24. Qxb6 Bxh3 25. Bxh3
Qxh3 26. Qb7 (26. Qb3+ $142 Kh8 27. a4 $16 {Landa}) 26... h5 $5 $44 27. Rd3
Rab8 28. Qd5+ Kh7 29. a4 Rb2 30. a5 h4 31. a6 Rcb8 32. Rad1 Rxf2 $1 33. Kxf2
Qh2+ 34. Kf3 Qxg3+ 35. Ke2 Qg2+ 36. Ke1 Qg1+ 37. Ke2 {1/2,Van Wely,L (2683)
-Karjakin,S (2678)/Wijk aan Zee-A/2007/}) 7. Qd3 Bxc3+ (7... Qa5 8. Nb3 Nxc3 9.
Bd2 Ne4 10. Qxe4 Bxd2+ 11. Nxd2 Nc6 12. Bg2 O-O 13. Qe3 {/\0-0+/= is another
theoretical line. Here White in my opinion is slightly better despite the
simplification, as Black still has develop his Bc8 effectively to connect his
R. The text move leads to a more complex and unbalanced position.}) 8. bxc3 Nc5
9. Qf3 {[%csl Gc1,Rc3,Rc4,Gf1]} ({The older move} 9. Qe3 {after} b6 10. Bg2 Bb7
11. Bxb7 Nxb7 12. Qf3 Nc6 $1 13. Nxc6 dxc6 14. Qxc6+ Qd7 $44 {gives Black
excellent compensation for the P. White has to seek active play with his ^^ to
outweigh his ruined P-structure, therefore he prevents the fianchetto of the
Bc8.}) 9... d6 10. Bg2 Nbd7 {This is the most often played move.} ({Possibly
the radical} 10... e5 {[%csl Rd5] is playable, but weakening ><d5 didn't
appeal to Navara.} 11. Nb3 Nba6 12. Ba3 Qc7 13. Rd1 Be6 14. Nxc5 (14. Bxc5 Nxc5
15. Nxc5 dxc5 (15... Qxc5 $5 {-14.Nc5}) 16. O-O Rb8 17. Qh5 O-O 18. Bd5 Rfe8
19. Bxe6 Rxe6 20. Rd5 Re7 21. Rfd1 Rbe8 22. Qg5 b6 23. Rd6 e4 24. R1d5 e3 25.
f3 h6 26. Qg4 Qc8 27. Qxc8 Rxc8 28. g4 f6 29. Kg2 Rce8 30. h4 $36 {_|_,Aronian,
L (2756)-Nielsen,P (2646)/Torino olm/2006/}) 14... Nxc5 15. Bxc5 Qxc5 16. Qxb7
Rc8 17. O-O Qxc4 18. Rxd6 O-O 19. Qxa7 Qxe2 20. a4 Rxc3 21. a5 Bc4 22. Ra1 Ra3
23. Rdd1 Rxa1 24. Rxa1 Qb2 25. Rd1 Be2 26. Re1 Qd2 27. Rb1 Bd3 28. Qd7 Qc3 29.
Rd1 e4 $11 {1/2 Wang Yue (2644)-Meier,G (2484)/Yerevan 2006/CBM 114 ext (36)})
({Also Kramnik's less committal} 10... Bd7 11. O-O Bc6 {deserves attention:} (
11... O-O 12. Ba3 (12. Rb1 Bc6 13. Nxc6 Nxc6 14. Bf4 Qe7 15. Rfd1 Rfd8 16. Qh5
Rac8 17. Rd2 Na5 18. Rd4 g6 19. Qh6 e5 20. Bg5 f6 21. Bd5+ Kh8 22. Qxh7+ $3
Kxh7 23. Rh4+ Kg7 24. Bh6+ Kh8 25. Bg5+ Kg7 26. Bh6+ Kh8 27. Bg5+ Kg7 {1/2,
Nilssen,J (2374)-Berg,K (2420)/Aarhus/2005/}) 12... Bc6 13. Nxc6 Nxc6 14. Qe3
Na5 (14... Qe7 15. Rfd1 Rfc8 16. Rab1 $36) (14... Rc8 $5 15. Bxc5 dxc5 16. Qxc5
Qa5 $44) 15. Bxc5 dxc5 16. Qxc5 b6 17. Qb5 a6 $6 (17... Rc8 $142) 18. Qb4 Rc8
19. Rfd1 Qc7 20. Rd6 Rb8 21. Rb1 Qxc4 22. Qxc4 Nxc4 23. Rc6 Rfc8 24. Rxc8+ Rxc8
25. Bb7 $16 {Landa,K (2584)-Grooten,H (2362)/Vlissingen op/2006/}) 12. Qg4 (12.
Nxc6 Nxc6 13. Ba3 Ne5 $5 $11) 12... O-O 13. Bh6 Qf6 14. Bg5 Qg6 15. Nxc6 Nxc6
16. Qh4 f6 (16... Qc2 17. Bxc6 bxc6 18. Be7 Rfe8 19. Bxd6 Na4 $132) (16... Rac8
17. Rfd1 f6 18. Be3 Rfd8 19. Bxc5 dxc5 20. Be4 Qh6 $14 {/<=>}) 17. Be3 Rfd8 (
17... Na5 $5 $132 {Gavrikov}) 18. Rab1 Qf7 $6 19. Bxc6 bxc6 20. Bxc5 dxc5 21.
Qe4 e5 22. Rb2 Rab8 23. Rfb1 Rxb2 24. Rxb2 Qd7 25. Kg2 Re8 26. Qe3 Qe7 27. a4
$16 {[%cal Gb2b8] |^<->b,Bacrot,E (2729)-Kramnik,V (2744)/Dortmund/2005/}) 11.
O-O Ne5 {The accurate move-order.} (11... O-O $143 $6 12. Rd1 Ne5 13. Qf4 Bd7
14. Nb3 $1 Ba4 15. Ba3 Bxb3 16. axb3 Qc7 {Wells,P (2525)-Smirnov,P (2624)/
EU-ch Warsaw/2005/} 17. Rab1 $36 {[%csl Ga3,Gg2] ^^}) 12. Qf4 Bd7 (12... O-O $6
13. Rd1 {-11...0-0?!}) ({Even worse is} 12... Nxc4 13. Nb3 Nb6 14. Nxc5 dxc5
15. Qe5 O-O 16. Qxc5 $16 {, opening the position for White's ^^.}) 13. Nb5 (13.
Nb3 Rc8 ({or} 13... Qc7 {also enables Black to hold on to his outpost on c5.
Therefore White seeks other pluses, the text move is the main try, which
strives to undouble the c-pawns.})) 13... Bxb5 (13... Qb6 14. a4 (14. Rd1 $5 {
is maybe more accurate, as it forces Black to exchange on b5.}) 14... Bxb5 (
14... Rc8 $5) 15. cxb5 O-O 16. Be3 Rac8 17. Rfd1 Rfd8 {is similar to the game.
Reaching this position, I had a feeling White should be able to profit form
his ^^ somehow, but it's very difficult and opening the position led to
simplification after} 18. Qb4 (18. Bd4 $5 {is perhaps more promising.}) 18...
d5 19. Bf4 f6 20. a5 Qd6 21. e4 (21. c4 $5 d4 22. b6 $13 {is more ambitious.})
21... Nxe4 22. Bxe4 Qxb4 23. cxb4 dxe4 24. Bxe5 fxe5 25. Rxd8+ Rxd8 26. Rc1 Rd7
27. Rc5 Kf7 28. Rxe5 Rd5 29. Rxe4 {1/2,Stohl,I (2578)-Hracek,Z (2612)/
Bundesliga 0001/2000/}) 14. cxb5 O-O {Once again White has the ^^, but Black's
N occupy strong central squares and potentially he has play on the <->c.} 15.
Rd1 (15. Be3 {can transpose into the examples with 16.Be3}) 15... Rc8 {[%cal
Gc8c1]} (15... Qc7 16. Qd4 Rfd8 (16... Rac8 {[%cal Gc8c1] transposes into the
game - the <->c is important for Black.}) 17. Bf4 Rd7 (17... Rac8 $142 $132)
18. Rd2 Rad8 19. Rad1 Ng6 20. Be3 Ne7 21. g4 b6 22. Qb4 h6 23. Bf4 e5 24. Bg3
d5 25. e3 a5 26. bxa6 Nxa6 27. Qb5 Nc5 28. h3 f6 29. c4 $14 {Ftacnik,L (2597)
-Gyimesi,Z (2614)/Torino olm/2006/}) 16. Qd4 (16. Be3 Qe7 {[%cal Yf7f6,Yd6d5] /
\f6,d5} 17. Qd4 (17. h3 f6 18. c4 Na4 19. Rdc1 Rc7 20. Qd4 Nc5 21. Rd1 Nf7 22.
Rd2 Rfc8 23. Rad1 b6 24. f4 f5 (24... Nb7 $132) 25. Rc2 Nd7 26. Qd3 Nc5 27.
Bxc5 $1 Rxc5 28. e4 fxe4 29. Qxe4 $14 {Tomashevsky,E (2586)-Maletin,P (2538)/
Cheboksary/2006/}) 17... Rfd8 18. h3 f6 (18... a6 $5 19. f4 Ng6 20. Rab1 e5 21.
fxe5 Nxe5 22. bxa6 bxa6 23. Bf2 Qc7 24. Bd5 {1/2,Barsov,A (2519)-Medvegy,Z 
(2444)/Cairo/2001/} Ne6 $13) 19. f4 Nf7 20. Qb4 Rc7 (20... b6 $142 21. a4 Nb7
$11 {Gavrikov}) 21. a4 a5 22. bxa6 Nxa6 23. Qb3 Rdc8 24. c4 Nd8 25. Bb6 Rd7 26.
a5 $36 {Shishkin,V (2475)-Gyimesi,Z (2531)/Koszalin/1999/}) (16. Qb4 {is
harmless, as it allows Black to expand in the [+] with} d5 17. Bf4 Qf6 18. Be3
b6 19. Bd4 Qf5 20. f3 h5 21. Qb1 Qxb1 22. Raxb1 Nc4 23. Rb4 Na3 24. Rc1 Nb7 25.
e4 dxe4 26. fxe4 Nd6 27. Bf1 Rfd8 28. Bf2 Ndc4 29. Ra4 {Milov,V (2653)-Aronian,
L (2693)/EU-ch Warsaw/2005/} Rc7 $5 $15) 16... Qc7 $146 {This is technically a
novelty, but it doesn't significantly change the character of the position.} (
16... Qa5 17. Qb4 (17. c4 Qa4 $5 (17... Na4 18. Bd2 (18. Bxb7 Nc3 19. Rd2 Rxc4
20. Qxd6 Nxb5 21. Qxe5 Rxc1+ 22. Rxc1 Qxd2 $132) 18... Qc7 19. c5 Nxc5 20. Bc3
Ne4 (20... Na4 21. Bb4) 21. Bxe4 Qxc3 22. Qxd6) 18. Bb2 f6 19. Rdc1 a6 $132)
17... Qb6 (17... Qc7 {is more logical}) 18. a4 a5 19. Qd4 (19. bxa6 $142 {
as in Shishkin-Gyimesi, White is the side, which should try to keep the
position open.}) 19... Qc7 20. Ba3 $6 Nb3 $1 21. Qxd6 Nxa1 22. Qxc7 Rxc7 23.
Bxf8 Kxf8 24. Rxa1 b6 25. f4 Nd7 26. Bc6 Nb8 27. Kf2 Nxc6 28. bxc6 Rxc6 $15 {
Flumbort,A (2493)-Almasi,Z (2644)/HUN-ch Budapest/2004/}) (16... f6 $143 $6 17.
Ba3 Qa5 18. Bxc5 dxc5 19. Qd6 $36) 17. f4 (17. Qxd6 $4 Rfd8 $19) 17... Ng4 (
17... Rfd8 18. c4 Ng4 $132 {is similar} (18... Na4 $2 19. c5 $1 Nxc5 20. Bb2
$18)) 18. c4 f5 $5 {[%csl Re4][%cal Ga1h8] When fighting the ^^, the N need
central outposts - Black's N aims for e4. The drawback of this move is it
weakens the /^ a1-h8.} (18... e5 19. fxe5 Nxe5 20. Bf4 $14) 19. h3 (19. Ba3
Rfd8 20. h3 Nf6 21. Bxc5 dxc5 22. Qe3 Kf7 $11 {/+/= and although White has a
better minor piece, Black's set-up remains very solid.}) ({However, chasing
the N with the text move doesn't seem too logical, as it aims for f6 anyway.
More promising was} 19. Bb2 $5 Rfd8 20. Rac1 {, although even here after} Nf6
$13 {/+/= Black's position is a tough nut to crack.}) 19... Nf6 20. Bb2 Nce4 {
[%cal Rc7c4,Re4g3] /\Qc4,Ng3} (20... Nfe4 21. Kh2 {is playable as well, but
the forcing text move leads to an immediate crisis and is better.}) 21. Qe3 $1
(21. Qxa7 Nxg3 (21... Qxc4 $5) 22. Qe3 Nge4 $13 {and White's P-structure is
too compromised to give him any advantage.}) 21... Qxc4 22. Bxf6 (22. Rac1 $2
Nd5 $1 $17 (22... Qa4 $15)) 22... gxf6 {This weakens the 7-th rank and creates
some problems for Black in the major piece _|_.} ({Safer was} 22... Rxf6 $142
$5 23. Bxe4 (23. Rac1 Nc3 {Ne2} 24. Rc2 Nxd1 (24... d5 $2 25. Rd3 $18) 25. Rxc4
Nxe3 26. Rxc8+ Rf8 27. Rc7 (27. Bxb7 Rxc8 28. Bxc8 Kf7 29. a4 Nc4 $15) 27...
Nxg2 28. Kxg2 Rf7 29. Rc8+ Rf8 30. Rc7 $11) 23... Qxe4 24. Qxe4 fxe4 25. Rxd6
h5 $5 $11 {[%csl Rg3][%cal Rf6g6,Rc8c3] Rc3,Rg6,<=>g3}) 23. Bxe4 fxe4 (23...
Qxe4 $143 24. Qxe4 fxe4 25. Rxd6 Rc3 26. Kf2 e5 (26... Re8 27. Rd7 $36) 27. f5
$14 {><f6,e4}) 24. Rxd6 Qxb5 (24... Rfd8 25. Rad1 $5 (25. Rxd8+ Rxd8 26. Rc1
Qxb5 (26... Qxa2 27. Qxe4 $16) 27. Qxe4 Qd7 $11 {/+/=}) 25... Rxd6 26. Rxd6 f5
27. Kf2 $1 (27. Rd7 Qxb5 28. Qd4 Qc5) 27... Qxb5 28. Rxe6 $14 {[%csl Rg8] |^,
עg8}) ({Risky, but perhaps playable was} 24... f5 $5 $132) 25. Rad1 $5 {
White risks nothing by keeping the tension.} (25. Rxe6 {deserved atttention,
but Black should be able to hold after} Qf5 (25... Qb2 26. Rd1 f5 (26... Rc3
27. Qxe4 (27. Qf2 Qxa2 28. Rxe4 Qb3) 27... Rxg3+ 28. Kf2 (28. Kh2 Qa3 (28...
Qc3 29. e3 Rg7 30. Re8 $40) 29. e3 Rg7 30. Re8 (30. Rd2 $5 {/\Rg2+/=}) 30...
Kh8 $14)) 27. Rd7 Rc1+ 28. Kg2 Re1 29. Rd2 Qc1 30. Red6 Rh1 31. Qb3+ {[%cal
Rd2d1] /\Rd1|^}) ({Just as one move earlier, even now} 25... f5 $5 {is a
viable alternative.}) 26. Rxe4 Qxh3 27. Re7 Kh8 28. Qf3 Rfe8 $132 {/\} 29. Rxb7
Rc2 30. Rd1 Rg8 31. Qg2 Qxg2+ 32. Kxg2 Rxe2+ 33. Kf3 Rxa2 34. Rdd7 Ra3+ $11)
25... Rc6 26. Kf2 (26. Rxc6 Qxc6 27. Qxa7 Qc2 $11) ({More testing seems to be} 
26. Qxe4 $5 Qc5+ (26... Rxd6 27. Rxd6 Qc5+ 28. Qd4 Qxd4+ 29. Rxd4 $14 {/\} Rf7
$6 30. Rd8+ Rf8 31. Rd6 {nets White a P with winning chances.}) 27. Qd4 (27.
R6d4 e5 28. Qd5+ Qxd5 29. Rxd5 Rc2 $11) 27... Rxd6 (27... Qa3 28. Kf2 Rxd6 29.
Qxd6 Qxa2 30. Qe7 e5 (30... Rf7 31. Rd8+ Kg7 32. Qe8 $40) 31. Qxb7 $36) 28.
Qxc5 Rxd1+ 29. Kf2 Rd7 30. Qxa7 $14 {[%csl Gf2] ק>> With his safer K White
can play this _|_ for a win, although a draw is still a very plausible result.}
) 26... Qb6 {A practical decision. Navara had less time on the clock and
decides to play it safe. Black steers for a formally worse, but prectically
drawish R_|_.} ({The computer fearlessly suggests} 26... a6 $5 27. Rd7 (27. g4
$5) 27... Qb6 28. g4 $44) (26... Rxd6 27. Rxd6 e5 $13 {also deserves attention.
}) 27. Qxb6 axb6 28. Rxc6 (28. Rd7 Rf7 29. Rxf7 Kxf7 30. Rd7+ Kg6 31. Rxb7 h5
$11) 28... bxc6 29. Rd6 Kf7 (29... Ra8 $2 30. Rxe6 Rxa2 31. Rxc6 $16 {[%csl
Rb6,Re4,Rf6] ק}) 30. Rxc6 h5 $1 {[%mdl 4352] The best move, active defence is
currently more important, than clinging on to material equality with} (30...
Ra8 $143 $2 31. Rc7+ (31. Rxb6 Rxa2 32. Rb7+ Kg6 33. Re7 Ra6 $11) 31... Kg6 32.
Re7 $1 Kf5 (32... Rxa2 33. Rxe6 Kf5 34. Rxb6 Ra3 35. Rb5+ $16) 33. Rxh7 Rxa2
34. Rh5+ Kg6 35. Rb5 Ra6 36. g4 $16) 31. Rxb6 (31. Rc7+ Kg6 32. Re7 Kf5 33. Rh7
Kg6 34. Rb7 Ra8 35. Rxb6 Kf7 $11 {-31.Rb6}) (31. g4 hxg4 32. Rc7+ (32. hxg4 Ra8
33. Rc7+ Kf8 $11) 32... Kg6 33. hxg4 Ra8 34. Re7 e5 $1 35. fxe5 f5 $1 36. Re6+
Kg5 37. gxf5 Kxf5 38. Rxb6 Rxa2 $11 (38... Kxe5 39. Rb2 Ra3 $44 {=})) 31... Ra8
32. Rb4 (32. Rb2 f5 $5 (32... Ra3 33. g4 $5 Rxh3 34. gxh5 Rxh5 35. a4 Ra5 36.
Ra2 Kg6 37. e3 Kf5 $11) 33. e3 Ra3 34. Re2 Kf6 35. Ke1 Rd3 $11 {/\ and White
can't make any progress:} 36. a4 Ra3) 32... Rxa2 33. Rxe4 Ra3 $11 {/+/= With 4:
3 on one flank the _|_ should be drawn, but Black must still play carefully.}
34. Re3 Ra4 35. Kf3 f5 $1 {Limits White's chances to advance his P, on the
other hand now Black has to reckon with a R transfer to g5. However, Navara
rightly judges he will be able to prevent this.} 36. Rb3 Kf6 37. Rb8 Ra3+ 38.
e3 Kg7 39. Re8 Ra6 40. Rc8 (40. Re7+ Kg6 41. e4 Ra3+ 42. Kf2 Ra2+ 43. Ke1 Kf6
44. Rh7 Kg6 45. Rh8 fxe4 46. Rg8+ Kf6 47. Rg5 h4 48. gxh4 Ra3 $11) 40... Ra4
41. Rc6 Kf6 42. Rb6 Kf7 43. Rb8 Kg7 44. h4 {White's K can now sometimes hide
on h3, but his P lose mobility.} (44. g4 hxg4+ 45. hxg4 fxg4+ 46. Kxg4 e5 $11)
44... Ra3 45. Re8 (45. Rb4 Kf6 46. Rd4 Kg6 47. Kf2 Ra2+ 48. Kf1 Ra3 49. Ke2
Ra2+ 50. Rd2 Ra4 $11 {gets White nowhere, his R won't get to g5 and he can't
push e4 either.}) 45... Ra6 46. Re7+ Kg6 (46... Kf6 $143 $2 47. Rh7 Kg6 48. Rh8
{[%cal Rh8g8,Rg8g5] /\Rg8-g5}) 47. e4 (47. Ke2 Ra2+ 48. Kd3 Kf6 49. Rh7 Rg2 50.
Rxh5 Rxg3 51. Kd4 Rg4 (51... Rh3 $5 $11) 52. Rh6+ Kg7 $1 53. Rxe6 Rxh4 54. Ke5
Rh5 $22 55. Re7+ Kg6 56. Rb7 Rh3 57. Rb6+ Kg7 58. Kxf5 Rxe3 59. Rb7+ Kg8 60.
Kf6 Rf3 61. f5 Rf2 62. Rb8+ Kh7 63. Rf8 (63. Ke6 Kg7 $11) 63... Ra2 $11) 47...
Kf6 $1 {The simplest.} (47... Ra3+ $2 {only causes problems after} 48. Kg2 Ra2+
49. Kh3 Kf6 50. Rc7 $1 fxe4 51. Rc5 $16) 48. Rh7 fxe4+ 49. Kxe4 Ra3 50. Rh6+
Kf7 (50... Kg7 $4 51. Rxh5 Rxg3 52. Rg5+ $18) 51. Rxh5 Rxg3 52. Rh6 Rh3 53. h5
Kg7 54. Rg6+ Kf7 55. Rg5 Kf6 56. Rg6+ (56. Ra5 Kf7 $11 {and again White has no
way to achieve progress.}) 1/2-1/2

[Event "HUN-ch15 playoff"]
[Site "Budapest"]
[Date "1960.02.??"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Portisch, Lajos"]
[Black "Szabo, Laszlo"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[Annotator "Szabo,L"]
[PlyCount "56"]
[EventDate "1960.02.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "12"]
[EventCountry "HUN"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2000"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1999.11.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1999.11.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. a3 Be7 6. e4 dxe4 7. fxe4 e5 8. d5
Bc5 9. Bg5 h6 10. Bh4 a5 11. Bd3 Qd6 12. Nf3 Nbd7 13. Qd2 c6 14. O-O-O O-O 15.
Bf2 cxd5 16. exd5 Bxf2 17. Qxf2 Nc5 18. Bc2 Bd7 19. Nxe5 Qxe5 20. Qxc5 Qf4+ 21.
Kb1 Rfc8 22. Qb6 Qxc4 23. Rhf1 Ra6 24. Qxb7 Raa8 25. Bb3 $2 (25. Rxf6 $1 Rab8
26. Qxd7 Rxb2+ 27. Ka1 Rxc2 (27... Qxc3 28. Qxf7+ Kh8 29. Qf8+) 28. Qxf7+ Kh8
29. Rxh6+) 25... Qc5 26. Ne4 $2 (26. Rxf6 Ra7 27. Qb6 Bf5+ 28. Ka2 gxf6 29.
Qxf6 Bg6 $44) 26... Nxe4 27. Qxd7 a4 $1 28. Bxa4 (28. Rxf7 $2 Qc1+ $1 29. Rxc1
Nd2+ 30. Ka1 Rxc1+ 31. Ka2 axb3#) (28. Ba2 $5) 28... Nc3+ 0-1

[Event "ARG-ch"]
[Site "Buenos Aires"]
[Date "1998.04.21"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Ricardi, Pablo"]
[Black "Szmetan, Jorge"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2555"]
[BlackElo "2420"]
[Annotator "Tisdall,J"]
[PlyCount "41"]
[EventDate "1998.04.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "15"]
[EventCountry "ARG"]
[EventCategory "9"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 065"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1998.08.06"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1998.08.06"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. Nc3 e6 4. d4 cxd4 5. Nxd4 Bb4 6. g3 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8. Qb3
Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 dxc4 10. Qa3 Nbd7 (10... Qb6) 11. O-O a6 (11... Nb6 12. Nb5 Bd7
13. Nd6 Bc6 14. Bxc6 bxc6 15. Rd1 Qe7 16. e4 Rfd8 17. e5 Nfd5 18. Qa5 h6 19.
Rd4 f6 20. Nxc4 c5 21. Ba3 Rac8 22. Re1 Qc7 23. Rh4 g5 24. Rxh6 Nxc4 25. Qa6
Nxe5 26. Qxe6+ Kg7 27. Rxf6 Nxf6 28. Rxe5 Rd1+ {0-1 Ubilava,E-Tukmakov,V/
URS-FL 1986}) 12. Rd1 Rb8 (12... Qc7 $142 $5 13. Nb5 $140 Qe5 14. Nd6 Qxe2 15.
Be3 $32 {[%csl Ra6,Rb7,Rc4,Rc8] gives white similar pressure to the game, but
black has more material to sell back.}) 13. Qd6 Re8 (13... Qb6 14. Ba3 Re8 15.
Rab1) 14. Rb1 Qa5 15. Ba3 e5 16. Nf5 $32 {[%csl Rb7,Rc8]} Re6 17. Qb4 Qxb4 18.
Bxb4 g6 19. Ne7+ Kg7 20. Ba3 Rb6 21. Nxc8 {A peculiar time to resign - perhaps
the game score is incomplete?} (21. Nxc8 Rxc8 22. Bxb7 Rc7 (22... Rb8 23. Rxb6
Nxb6 24. Bc6 Rc8 25. Rd6 $16) 23. Bg2 $16) 1-0

[Event "RUS-Cup06"]
[Site "Nizhnij Novgorod"]
[Date "1998.07.07"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Volkov, Sergey"]
[Black "Filippov, Valerij"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2545"]
[BlackElo "2595"]
[Annotator "Tisdall,J"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[EventDate "1998.06.29"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2000"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1999.11.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1999.11.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 O-O 5. e4 d5 6. e5 Nfd7 7. cxd5 (7. a3
Bxc3+ 8. bxc3 dxc4 9. f4 (9. Nh3 c5 10. Ng5 cxd4 11. cxd4 Qa5+ 12. Kf2 Rd8 13.
Qc2 Nf8 14. Be3 b5 15. Qe4 Bd7 16. Qf4 Be8 17. Ne4 Nc6 18. h4 Ng6 19. Qg4 Nge7
20. h5 Nf5 21. h6 g6 22. Qg5 Nxe3 23. Kxe3 Qb6 24. Nf6+ Kh8 25. Ne4 Qxd4+ 26.
Kf4 Kg8 27. Qf6 Kf8 28. Be2 Rd5 29. Qg7+ Ke7 30. Qf6+ Kf8 31. Qg7+ Ke7 32. Qf6+
Kf8 {1/2-1/2 Sakaev,K-Timoshenko,G/Kherson 1991/EXP 21 (32)}) 9... Nb6 10. a4
a5 11. Nf3 Bd7 12. Ba3 Re8 13. Bc5 Nxa4 14. Rxa4 b6 15. Rxc4 bxc5 16. Bd3 h6 {
1/2-1/2 Lauber,A-Lopushnoy,D/Budapest 1997/EXT 97 (16)}) 7... exd5 8. f4 $5 {
An ambitious move, an apparently a novelty.} (8. a3 Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 f6 10. exf6 (
10. f4 fxe5 11. dxe5 Nxe5 12. Be2 Ng6 13. g3 c6 14. Nf3 Qb6 15. Qd4 Re8 16. Kf2
Nd7 17. Be3 Qc7 18. f5 Nf6 19. fxg6 Ng4+ 20. Kg1 Rxe3 21. gxh7+ Kh8 22. Ra2 Bf5
23. Nh4 Be4 24. Ng2 Bxg2 25. Kxg2 Re4 26. Qd3 Ne3+ 27. Kf2 Rf8+ 28. Ke1 Qe5 29.
Rb2 b5 30. Rg1 Qf5 {0-1 Naumann,A-Timoshenko,G/Berlin 1997/EXP 59 (30)}) 10...
Qxf6 (10... Nxf6 11. Bd3 Nh5 12. Ne2 Qh4+ 13. g3 Qh3 14. Kf2 Nc6 15. Qb3 Ne7
16. Bg5 Nxg3 17. hxg3 Rxf3+ 18. Kxf3 Qg4+ 19. Kg2 Bf5 20. Bxe7 Bxd3 21. Qxd5+
Kh8 22. Nf4 {1-0 Karner,C-Nabil,A/Zagan 1997/EXP 59 (22)}) 11. Nh3 c5 12. Bg5
Qd6 13. Bd3 cxd4 14. cxd4 Nb6 15. Nf2 Nc6 16. O-O Bf5 17. Bb5 Rac8 18. Qd2 a6
19. Bf4 Qf6 20. Bxc6 Rxc6 21. Be5 Nc4 22. Qe2 Qe7 23. f4 Rb6 24. Qf3 Qf7 25.
Rfe1 h5 26. g3 a5 27. a4 Rb4 28. Re2 Bd7 29. Rae1 Bxa4 30. Nh3 Rb3 31. Qg2 Bc6
32. f5 Qxf5 33. Nf4 a4 34. Bxg7 Kxg7 35. Ne6+ Kg8 36. Nxf8 Qxf8 37. Rf2 Qg7 38.
Rf4 Nd6 39. Qh3 Ne4 40. Qe6+ Kh8 41. Ref1 Bd7 42. Qxd5 Rxg3+ 43. hxg3 Qxg3+ 44.
Kh1 Qh3+ 45. Kg1 Qg3+ 46. Kh1 Qh3+ 47. Kg1 Qg3+ 48. Kh1 {1/2-1/2 Marin,
M-Maksimenko,A/Caciulata 1992/EXT 97 (48)}) 8... c5 9. a3 Ba5 10. Nf3 (10. dxc5
Bxc3+ 11. bxc3 Nxc5 $32) 10... Nc6 11. Be3 cxd4 12. Nxd4 Re8 13. Be2 f6 14.
Ndb5 (14. e6 $5 Nxd4 15. exd7 Rxe3 16. Qxd4 Rxc3 $1 (16... Qxd7 17. Qxe3 d4 18.
Qf3 dxc3 19. bxc3 Bb6 (19... Qc7 20. O-O $16) 20. Qe4 $16) (16... Bxc3+ 17.
bxc3 Rxe2+ 18. Kxe2 Qxd7 19. Rhe1 $16) 17. bxc3 Qxd7 $132) 14... d4 $1 15. Bxd4
$2 {An incredibly ambitious continuation. White bets the house that a knight
excursion to f7 will be worth having no development.} (15. Nxd4 fxe5 (15...
Nxd4 16. Bxd4 fxe5 17. fxe5 Nxe5 18. O-O Bb6 $11) 16. Nxc6 bxc6 $11) 15... fxe5
16. Qb3+ Kh8 17. Nd6 Rf8 18. Bf2 Nd4 $1 {The most energetic - now white must
pay for his crimes.} 19. Nf7+ Rxf7 20. Qxf7 Nc2+ 21. Kd2 Nxa1 22. Rxa1 Nc5+ 23.
Ke1 Be6 24. Qh5 Nd3+ 25. Bxd3 Qxd3 26. Rd1 (26. Qxe5 Bc4 27. Bd4 Qf1+ 28. Kd2
Qxg2+ $17) 26... Qe4+ 27. Kf1 Qxf4 28. Ne2 Qa4 $1 $19 29. Rd6 (29. Rc1 Bd2 30.
Ra1 Bg4 31. Qf7 (31. Qh4 Qc4) 31... Qa6) 29... Qc2 30. Qg5 (30. Ng3 Rf8) 30...
Bc4 (30... Bc4 31. Qe3 Qb1+) 0-1

[Event "Sigeman & Co 06th"]
[Site "Malmo"]
[Date "1998.06.15"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Miladinovic, Igor"]
[Black "Brynell, Stellan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2565"]
[BlackElo "2475"]
[Annotator "Tisdall,J"]
[PlyCount "55"]
[EventDate "1998.06.09"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "SWE"]
[EventCategory "13"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 066"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1998.09.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1998.09.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 e6 2. c4 Nf6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 c5 5. Nf3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 Ne4 7. Qd3 Qa5 8.
Nb3 Qf5 9. Qe3 Nc6 10. Bg2 Nxc3 11. bxc3 Be7 12. O-O O-O 13. Rd1 b6 {This
creates problems for black - the queen loses the use of the e5 square. Black
must nowsolve some very difficult problems.} (13... Rd8 14. Qf4 Qc2 15. Rd2
Qxc3 16. Bb2 Qb4 17. Rd3 d6 18. Rad1 e5 19. Qc1 Be6 20. Bd5 Rac8 21. Ba3 Qa4
22. Bxe6 fxe6 23. Bxd6 Bxd6 24. Rxd6 Qxa2 25. Qe3 Nd4 26. Qxe5 Rxd6 27. Qxd6
Nxe2+ 28. Kg2 Rf8 29. Qxe6+ Kh8 30. Qf7 Rg8 31. Rd3 Qb1 32. Re3 h6 33. Rxe2
Qxb3 34. Re7 a5 35. Rxb7 Qc3 36. Re7 Qb4 37. Rb7 Qf8 38. Qd5 a4 39. Ra7 Qb4 40.
c5 a3 41. c6 Rf8 42. f4 Qb6 43. Rb7 Qa6 44. c7 Qe2+ 45. Kh3 h5 46. Qg5 Qe6+ 47.
Kh4 a2 48. c8=Q {1-0 Ricardi,P-Amura,C/San Luis 1995/EXT 95 (48)}) 14. h3 $5 (
14. Nd4 $5) 14... Rd8 15. g4 Qg6 16. Qg3 Ba6 17. Bf4 Bxc4 18. Bc7 Re8 (18...
Bxe2 19. Bxd8 Rxd8 20. Rd2 (20. Bxc6 Bxd1 21. Rxd1 dxc6 22. Rxd8+ Bxd8 23. Qb8
Qf6 24. Nd4 Kf8 25. Nxc6 Ke8 26. Qc8 $5) 20... Bb5 21. a4 Bc4 (21... Bxa4 22.
Rxa4 Qb1+ 23. Kh2 Qxb3 24. Bxc6 dxc6 25. Rxd8+ Bxd8 26. Qb8 $18) 22. Bxc6 Bxb3
23. Rxd7 Rxd7 24. Bxd7 Qe4 $132) 19. Rxd7 e5 20. Bxe5 Rac8 $2 {A strange error
- after the natural} (20... Nxe5 21. Qxe5 Bf6 $44 {black appears to have
tremendous compensation for a pawn.}) 21. Bf4 Bxe2 22. Re1 Bf8 (22... Bb5 23.
Bxc6 Bxc6 24. Rdxe7 Rxe7 25. Rxe7 Qb1+ 26. Nc1) 23. Bd5 Ne7 24. Bb7 $1 $18 (24.
Rxe2 Nxd5 25. Rxe8 Rxe8 (25... Nxf4 26. Rxf8+) 26. Rxd5 Re1+ 27. Kh2 (27. Kg2
Qe4+ 28. Qf3 Rg1+) 27... Qe4 $17) 24... Bb5 25. Rdxe7 Rxe7 26. Rxe7 Bxe7 27.
Bxc8 Bc6 28. Bf5 1-0

[Event "Skolernes Skakklub"]
[Site "Aarhus"]
[Date "1997.06.24"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Nielsen, Peter Heine"]
[Black "Stefansson, Hannes"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2525"]
[BlackElo "2555"]
[Annotator "Tisdall,J"]
[PlyCount "31"]
[EventDate "1997.06.20"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "DEN"]
[EventCategory "14"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 060"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1997.09.29"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1997.09.29"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8.
cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Nc6 10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. O-O Qb6 $6 {A waste of time and an
indication that black was having an off day. More normal continuations:} (11...
Qa5 12. Bd2 (12. Ne4 Ba6 13. Qc2 Be7 14. Bd2 Qb5 15. Rfc1 Rab8 16. Qxc6 Qxc6
17. Rxc6 Bxe2 18. Nc3 Rxb2 19. Bc1 Bb5 20. Nxd5 exd5 21. Bxb2 Bxc6 22. Rc1 $10
{Sulava,N-Grosar,A/JUG-ch (03)/ 1991}) 12... Bxc3 13. bxc3 Ba6 14. Rfd1 Rab8
15. c4 Qc5 16. cxd5 Rxb3 17. axb3 Bxe2 18. Re1 cxd5 19. Rxe2 {Nielsen-Savon,
Pardubice Op 1995, 1-0, 43.}) (11... Rb8 12. a3 $5 (12. e4 Nxc3 13. bxc3 Bd6
14. Qa4 Qc7 15. Be3 c5 16. Rfd1 Bd7 $10 {Zvjaginsev,V-Romanov,O/URS-chJ
Alma-Ata/ 1991}) (12. Na4 Ba6 13. Qc2 Bd6 14. a3 (14. Rd1 $5 Nb4 15. Qe4 $1 Nd5
16. Bd2 Qc7 17. Rac1 $14 {Dautov}) 14... Qe7 15. Re1 Bb5 16. e4 Nb6 $10 {
1/2-1/2 Zvjaginsev,V-Bareev,E/RUS-ch Elista 1995 (25)}) 12... Nxc3 13. bxc3 Bd6
14. Qa4 Qc7 15. Qxc6 Qxc6 16. Bxc6 Ba6 17. Bf3 Rb3 18. Rd1 Bc5 19. Be3 Bxe3 20.
fxe3 Rxc3 21. Rd7 $16 {1-0 Atalik,S-Ulibin,M/Beijing Lee Cup 1996 (36)}) (11...
a5 $5 12. Rd1 Qe7 13. Bd2 Ba6 14. Bf3 Rfd8 15. a3 Bxc3 16. Bxc3 a4 17. Qc2 Bb5
18. Bd4 e5 19. Bc5 Qe6 20. Rd2 Rd7 21. Rad1 Rad8 22. Be4 {1/2-1/2 Segal,
Al-Miralles,G/Dubai olm (04)/1986/}) 12. Na4 Qb5 $6 13. a3 Ba5 (13... Be7 14.
Qxb5 cxb5 15. Bxd5 exd5 16. Nc3 Bb7 17. Nxb5 $16 (17. Rd1 $16)) 14. Qc2 Bb6 $4
15. Be4 $18 Ba6 16. Bd3 $1 (16. Bxh7+ $6 Kh8 17. Bd3 Qa5 {is only "slightly
winning" for white.}) (16. Bd3 Qa5 17. Bxh7+ Kh8 18. Bd2 Qb5 19. Bd3) 1-0

[Event "FRA-ch"]
[Site "Meribel"]
[Date "1998.08.15"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Chabanon, Jean Luc"]
[Black "Dorfman, Josif D"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2490"]
[BlackElo "2585"]
[Annotator "Tisdall,J"]
[PlyCount "115"]
[EventDate "1998.08.14"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "15"]
[EventCountry "FRA"]
[EventCategory "10"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 067"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1998.11.30"]
[SourceVersion "2"]
[SourceVersionDate "1998.11.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%mdl 1032]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7.
Bg2 d5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Qa5 10. Bd2 Nc6 (10... Na6 11. O-O Nc5 (11... Nxc3
12. Bxc3 Bxc3 13. Qxc3 Qxc3 14. bxc3 Nc5 15. Nb3 Na4 16. c4 Rb8 17. c5 e5 18.
Rfc1 Be6 19. Na5 $16 {Zvjaginsev,V-Podgaets,M/Moscow/1992/1:0/59/}) 12. Qc2 $14
{Beliavsky.}) 11. Nxc6 (11. e3 Qa6 12. Nxc6 bxc6 13. Bxd5 $1 Bxc3 14. Bc4 Bxd2+
15. Kxd2 Qa5+ 16. Ke2 Qh5+ 17. f3 e5 18. e4 $10 {Zvjaginsev,V-Lujbojevic,L/
Pamplona/1995/0,5/37/}) 11... bxc6 12. O-O Bxc3 13. bxc3 (13. Bxc3 Nxc3 14.
bxc3 Ba6 15. Qb4 $1 $14 Qe5 (15... Qc7 $2 16. c4 Rad8 17. Qa4 Bc8 18. Bxc6 Rd6
19. Bf3 Bd7 20. Qa3 Bc6 21. c5 $18 {Rogozenko-Reeh/Hamburg/96.}) 16. Rfe1 Rab8
17. Qa3 Qb5 $2 {Rogozenko-Blauert/Deutschland/96.} (17... Rb6 18. Rad1 $14) 18.
Be4 $1 $16) 13... Ba6 14. Rfd1 Bxe2 $5 $146 (14... Rab8 15. c4 Qc5 16. cxd5
Rxb3 17. axb3 Bxe2 18. Re1 (18. Rdc1 Qd6 19. Be3 cxd5 20. Bc5 Qb8 21. Bxf8 Kxf8
22. Rc2 Bb5 23. Rca2 a6 $17 {Nielsen,PH-Emms,J/Copengagen BSF/1995/0:1/50/})
18... cxd5 $2 (18... Bb5 19. dxc6 $16) 19. Rxe2 Qb6 20. b4 $18 {
NielsenPH-Savon/Pardubice/95.}) (14... Qc5 15. e4 Bc4 16. Qa4 Nb6 17. Qb4 Qxb4
18. cxb4 Rad8 $6 (18... Rfd8 19. Be3 Bb5 20. Rxd8+ $6 (20. f4 $5) (20. Bc5 $14)
20... Rxd8 21. Bxb6 axb6 22. a4 Ra8 23. a5 $10 {Fish-Shipov/Yalta/96.}) 19. Be3
$16 {1-0 Volzhin,A-Epishin,V/Elista 1996/CBM 56/[Rogozenko] (54)}) 15. c4 Bxd1
16. Rxd1 Qb6 17. cxd5 cxd5 {A very interesting material balance. Ordinarily
one would favor the bishop pair, but black is very solid and can create
counterplay on the queenside rather quickly.} 18. Qf3 $14 (18. Qxb6 axb6 19.
Bb4 Rfc8 20. a3 Rc2 {and black's control of the c-line and solid pawn
structure give him good chances. It is more tempting for white to try and
probe for weaknesses with the queens on, and try to create some attacking
chances.}) 18... Rac8 19. Bf1 (19. Be3 $5 Qa5 $5 20. Bd4 Qa4 21. Bf1 Rfe8 $132
22. Be5 $5 {looks interesting, trying to provoke the f-pawn into motion, and
bring more pressure to bear on the kingside.}) 19... Rc2 20. a3 Rfc8 21. Bd3
Ra2 22. Bb4 a5 23. Be7 Qb2 $6 (23... Rc3 $5 {looks to cause white more
problems.}) (23... Qc7 $5 {was also interesting, to make a3 more of a target.})
24. Kg2 Rc1 $6 25. Rxc1 Qxc1 26. Qf4 $1 Qb2 $2 {In an ending black's a-pawn
quickly becomes weak while white's pawns hinder black's center from becoming
mobile.} (26... Qc8 {looks more prudent.}) 27. Bc5 Qb7 28. Qd6 $2 (28. Qh4 $1 {
looks much more dangerous:} f5 (28... d4+ $2 29. Be4 Rxf2+ 30. Kh3 $1) 29. Qd8+
Kf7 30. g4 {and white's attack is crushing.}) 28... Qa8 29. Bd4 h6 (29... Rd2
$5 30. Qe5 Qf8 31. Qe3 Ra2 32. Qc1 Qb8 33. Bb1 (33. Qg5 $5 f6 34. Qh4 (34. Bxf6
Qa7 $1) 34... h6 (34... f5 35. Qe7 $18) 35. Qg4 e5 (35... Qe8 36. Bxf6 Qf7 37.
Bd4 Rxa3 38. Bg6 Qd7 39. Bc2 $16) 36. Qe6+ Kh8 37. Qxd5 Rxa3 38. Be3 $14) 33...
Rxa3 34. Bxh7+ (34. Qxa3 Qxb1 35. Qc3 Qe4+) 34... Kxh7 35. Qxa3 $16) 30. Qe5
Qf8 31. Bb2 {[%csl Ra2]} Rxb2 (31... Rxa3 $4 32. Bxa3 Qxa3 33. Qb8+ Qf8 34.
Bh7+) 32. Qxb2 g6 33. a4 Qd8 34. Qd4 (34. Qe5 $1) 34... h5 35. Kf3 Qd6 36. Bb5
Qc7 37. Kg2 Kf8 38. Bd3 Kg8 39. f4 $2 {There is no reason to expose the king
like this.} (39. Qf6) (39. h4) 39... Qc1 40. Be2 (40. Bb5 Qc2+ 41. Kg1 Qc1+ (
41... Kf8 42. Qh8+ Ke7 43. Qe8+ Kf6 44. Qd8+ {[%csl Ra5]}) 42. Kf2 Qc2+ (42...
Qh1 $5) 43. Be2 Kf8 {-> game.}) 40... Qc2 {Now it is extremely difficult to
find a progressive plan for white.} 41. Kf2 Kf8 42. h3 Kg8 43. g4 h4 $1 44. g5
Qb3 45. Bg4 Qc2+ 46. Ke3 Qb3+ 47. Kd2 Qa2+ 48. Ke1 Qb3 49. Kf2 Qg3+ 50. Ke2 Qb3
51. Bf3 Qc2+ 52. Kf1 Qb3 53. Kf2 Qa3 54. f5 gxf5 55. Qxh4 Qc5+ 56. Kg2 Qc2+ 57.
Kf1 Qc1+ 58. Kf2 1/2-1/2

[Event "EU-Cup 13th Group2"]
[Site "Eupen"]
[Date "1997.09.23"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Relange, Eloi"]
[Black "Kurajica, Bojan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2505"]
[BlackElo "2545"]
[Annotator "Tisdall,J"]
[PlyCount "62"]
[EventDate "1997.09.22"]
[EventType "team-k.o."]
[EventRounds "3"]
[EventCountry "BEL"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2020"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.10.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.10.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Clichy Echecs 92"]
[BlackTeam "Sarajevo Bosna"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "FRA"]
[BlackTeamCountry "BIH"]

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 O-O 5. Bg2 d5 6. d4 dxc4 7. O-O Nc6 8. e3
Rb8 9. Qc2 Be7 (9... b5 10. b3 (10. a3 Bd6 11. e4 e5 12. dxe5 Nxe5 13. Nxe5
Bxe5 14. Be3 a5 15. Ba7 Rb7 16. Bc5 Bd6 17. Rad1 Qe7 18. Bd4 Be5 19. Bxe5 Qxe5
20. h3 b4 21. Nd5 c3 22. axb4 axb4 23. bxc3 b3 24. Qb2 Nxd5 {Bezold,M-Hracek,Z/
New York op 1995/EXP 47/0-1 (60)}) (10. Rd1 Qe8 11. e4 e5 12. dxe5 Nxe5 13.
Nxe5 Qxe5 14. Be3 Bb7 15. Bxa7 Rbd8 16. f4 Qe7 17. Rxd8 Rxd8 18. e5 Bxg2 19.
Qxg2 Bxc3 20. bxc3 Nd5 21. Bd4 c5 22. Bf2 Nxc3 23. Qc6 Ne2+ 24. Kf1 Nd4 25.
Bxd4 cxd4 26. Qxb5 Qc7 27. Rc1 d3 {[%emt 0:00:50] 0-1 Bezold,M-Romanishin,O/
Balatonbereny 1995/CBM}) 10... cxb3 11. axb3 Bxc3 12. Qxc3 Bb7 13. Bb2 a6 14.
Rfc1 Ne4 15. Qe1 Qd7 16. Rc2 {1/2-1/2 Konopka,M-Tolnai,T/HUN-chT 1994/TD 94\03}
) 10. Qa4 b5 $5 $36 11. Nxb5 Bd7 12. Nc3 (12. Nxa7 $2 Nb4 $1 (12... Nxd4 $6 13.
Qxc4 Rb4 14. Qxd4 $1 Rxd4 15. Nxd4 $44) 13. Qa5 Rb6) 12... Nxd4 13. Qxa7 $6 (
13. Qxc4 $142 Rb4 14. Qa6 (14. Qd3 $2 Bb5 $1) 14... Nc2 $36) 13... Nc2 14. Rb1
Nd5 15. Bd2 Qc8 16. Qa5 Ncb4 17. Nxd5 Nxd5 18. Qa7 Ra8 19. Qd4 Bb5 20. Rfc1 c5
21. Qe5 f5 $4 {Apparently setting up the devastating threat of ...Bf6...} (
21... Bf6 22. Qe4 Rxa2 $17) 22. Nd4 $3 $16 cxd4 23. Bxd5 Ra6 (23... exd5 24.
Qxd5+ Kh8 25. Qxb5 $16) 24. exd4 Qd7 25. Bxc4 Bxc4 26. Rxc4 Bf6 (26... Rxa2 27.
Rc7 Qd6 28. Bf4 Qxe5 29. Bxe5 Bf6 30. Bxf6 gxf6 31. b4 $18 (31. Re7)) 27. Rc7
Qa4 28. Qc5 Qxa2 $1 (28... Bxd4 29. Bc3 $3 Bxc5 30. Rxg7+ Kh8 31. Rg4+ Bd4 (
31... e5 32. Bxe5+ Rff6 33. Bxf6+ Rxf6 34. Rxa4) 32. Bxd4+ Qxd4 33. Rxd4 Rxa2
34. b4) 29. Rc1 Qxb2 30. Rc8 Rxc8 (30... Rd8 31. Ba5 Rxa5 32. Qxa5 Rxc8 33.
Rxc8+ Kf7 34. Qc7+ Kg6 35. Qc6 $18) (30... Bd8 31. Bb4 Re8 32. Qb5 $18) 31.
Qxc8+ Kf7 (31... Kf7 32. Rc7+ Be7 33. Rxe7+ Kxe7 34. Bg5+ Kf7 35. Qxa6) 1-0

[Event "St Petersburg-ch"]
[Site "St Petersburg"]
[Date "1998.04.07"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Shchukin, Dmitry"]
[Black "Aseev, Konstantin N"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2390"]
[BlackElo "2565"]
[Annotator "Tisdall,J"]
[PlyCount "61"]
[EventDate "1998.04.07"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "10"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 065"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1998.08.06"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1998.08.06"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 c5 5. Nf3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8. Qb3
Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 e5 10. Nb5 dxc4 (10... a6 11. Qa3 dxc4 12. Be3 Nc6 13. Bc5 Bh3
14. Rd1 Qxd1+ 15. Kxd1 axb5 16. Qb2 Rfd8+ 17. Kc1 Bxg2 18. Rg1 Bd5 19. a3 Na5
20. Bb6 Nb3+ 21. Kd1 Rd7 22. Ke1 Be4 23. Be3 Ng4 24. Bg5 f6 25. f3 fxg5 26.
fxe4 Rad8 27. Qb1 Rd2 28. h3 Ne3 29. Kf2 Nd1+ 30. Rxd1 Rxd1 {0-1 Mitrofanov,
A-Selin,O/Tula 1995}) 11. Qa3 Bh3 $5 $146 {A startling idea - it is easy to
understand why it has not been played before. Can it be correct?} (11... Nc6
12. Be3 Be6 13. Rd1 Qb8 14. O-O Rd8 15. Qc5 Rxd1 16. Rxd1 a6 17. Na3 Qf8 18.
Rb1 Qxc5 19. Bxc5 Rc8 20. Bd6 Ne8 21. Bxc6 Nxd6 22. Bxb7 Nxb7 23. Rxb7 Rd8 24.
f3 h5 25. Kf2 Rd2 26. Rc7 Rxa2 27. Nxc4 e4 28. fxe4 a5 29. Ne3 Bb3 30. c4 a4
31. Rb7 Ra1 32. h4 Rc1 33. Ra7 g6 34. Kf3 Kf8 35. Kf4 Ke8 36. Ke5 Kd8 37. Kd4
Kc8 38. c5 Kb8 39. Ra5 Rg1 40. Nd5 Rd1+ 41. Ke5 f5 42. c6 Rc1 43. Rb5+ {
1-0 Olafsson,H-Hjartarson,J/Nordic-ch plof-1pl 1985}) (11... Qd7 12. Rb1 Nc6
13. O-O Qf5 14. Nc7 Qxb1 15. Qxf8+ Kxf8 16. Ba3+ Qb4 17. cxb4 Rb8 18. b5+ Ne7
19. Bd6 Bd7 20. Ne6+ fxe6 21. Bxb8 Bxb5 22. Bxb7 Ned5 23. Rc1 a6 24. Bxe5 Nb6
25. Rc3 {1-0 Adianto,U-Mainka,R/Liechtenstein op 1993}) 12. Bxh3 (12. Bxb7 {
is the critical test of black's novelty.} Nbd7 13. Bxa8 Qxa8 {leaves white
with long term problems finding a way to safeguard his king and complete his
development. Also, the Nb5 is on a very poor circuit and will find it
difficult to return to play (after ...a6 and ...Qc6). With these factors in
mind, and white's lack of coordination, declining the offer seems prudent.})
12... Qd5 13. O-O Qxb5 14. Rb1 $1 {White's turn to employ cute tactics.} Qc6 (
14... Qxb1 15. Qxf8+ Kxf8 16. Ba3+ {looks to favor white who will have the
bishop pair and quick access to the b-line, and should recover his pawn with
interest. Of course, Fritz and similar "thinkers" quickly suggest the
extremely counter-intuitive but sensible reply} Qb4 $1 {which prevents white
from using the b-line.} 17. Bxb4+ Ke8 18. Bc8 a5 19. Bd6 {should nevertheless
keep white on top as the bishops are quite powerful.}) 15. Rd1 Nbd7 16. Be3 Nb6
17. Bg2 Nbd5 18. Qa5 (18. Rb2 $5 {is similar, but might gain a bit of time.})
18... e4 19. Bd4 b6 20. Qa3 Rfe8 21. Rb2 h6 22. Rbd2 Qc7 23. e3 Re7 (23... a6
$5 {looks like a better way of making use of the extra pawn.}) 24. Qa6 Qc6 25.
Bf1 Rc8 26. Bh3 Rce8 27. Bf1 Rc7 28. Bxf6 Nxf6 29. a4 Qc5 30. Rd4 Qh5 31. h3 {
Result? The pawn will be recovered, but unless black lost on time, the result
is hard to understand.} 1-0

[Event "Hastings 9798"]
[Site "Hastings"]
[Date "1998.01.03"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Ward, Christopher"]
[Black "Plaskett, H James"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2485"]
[BlackElo "2450"]
[Annotator "Tisdall,J"]
[PlyCount "90"]
[EventDate "1997.12.29"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[EventCategory "13"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 063"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1998.03.26"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1998.03.26"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 O-O 5. Bg2 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 d6 7. Nf3 (7. a4
$5 a5 (7... Nbd7 8. Nf3 Rb8 9. a5 b6 10. O-O Bb7 11. a6 Ba8 12. Ne1 Bxg2 13.
Nxg2 Qe7 14. f3 d5 15. Qd3 c5 16. cxd5 exd5 17. g4 Rfd8 18. h4 b5 19. Bf4 c4
20. Qd2 Ne8 21. Bxb8 Nxb8 22. Qe3 Qd6 23. Qf4 Qb6 24. e4 Nxa6 25. Ne3 Nac7 26.
exd5 a5 27. Rfe1 a4 28. Qe5 Qf6 29. Rab1 h6 30. Kg2 a3 31. Ra1 Qa6 32. Qe7 {
Van Wely,L-Psakhis,L/OHRA-B 1990/CBM 20/1/2-1/2 (43)}) 8. Rb1 Nc6 9. Ba3 Re8
10. e4 e5 11. d5 Nb8 12. c5 Na6 13. cxd6 cxd6 14. Ne2 Qc7 15. O-O Nc5 16. Qc2
Bd7 17. Bxc5 Qxc5 18. Rxb7 Qc4 19. Ra1 Rab8 20. Rxb8 Rxb8 21. Nc1 Rb4 22. Bf1
Qxe4 23. Bd3 Qe1+ 24. Kg2 Rxa4 25. Rb1 Ra3 26. Nb3 Qxb1 27. Qxb1 a4 28. Nd2
Rxc3 29. Qb8+ Ne8 30. Bb5 Rc8 31. Qb7 Rc7 32. Qb6 Bxb5 33. Qxb5 Kf8 34. Qxa4
Rc5 35. Qa8 f5 36. Nf3 {1-0 Van Wely,L-Carlier,B/Dieren op 1989/EXT 89op}) 7...
b6 $5 {Plaskett's patented brand of early provocation.} 8. Nd2 (8. Ne5 $5 d5 (
8... dxe5 9. Bxa8 exd4 10. cxd4 c6 11. O-O Ba6 12. Ba3 Re8 13. Rc1 Qc8 14. Qa4)
9. O-O $14) 8... c6 9. O-O e5 10. a4 a5 11. c5 $5 {Interesting, but} (11. f4 $5
{[%csl Gd4,Ge4,Ge5,Gf1,Gf4][%cal Gf1f6] looks like the most spirited move to
me, to either open the f-line or increase his influence in the center. Perhaps
this is largely a matter of taste.}) 11... bxc5 12. dxe5 dxe5 13. Nc4 $44 {
[%csl Ra5,Rc5,Rc6,Re5]} Qe7 {The greedier} (13... Qc7 $5 {was a serious
alternative.}) 14. Ba3 Ba6 $1 {Black must jettison his extra material to
achieve full development, and this seems the most active way to do so.} 15.
Nxa5 e4 {[%csl Gc4,Ge2][%cal Ga6e2,Ga8a4] Blocking in the Bg2 finally gives
black some time to catch up in development and begin to create counterplay.}
16. Nb3 Nbd7 17. Qc2 Qe5 18. c4 Rfe8 19. a5 Qh5 {[%csl Gc4,Gd7,Ge5]} 20. Rfd1
Ne5 21. Bxc5 Bxc4 22. Nd4 $2 {Natural, but now white has a very hard time
maintaining piece coordination and protecting e2.} (22. Nc1 $1 e3 $5 (22...
Neg4 23. Qxc4 Qxh2+ 24. Kf1 e3 25. Nd3 $18) 23. f3 $1 (23. fxe3 Neg4 24. Qxc4
Qxh2+ 25. Kf1 Ne4 $19)) 22... Nfd7 $1 23. Bd6 c5 24. Bxe5 Nxe5 25. Bxe4 $1 (25.
Nc6 Bxe2) (25. Nb3 Bxe2 26. Rd5 Bd3 (26... Nf3+ 27. Bxf3 Qxf3 28. Nd2 $15) 27.
Qxc5 Rac8 28. Z0 $140 Bc4) 25... cxd4 26. Bxa8 Rxa8 27. Qe4 {White has made
the best of a bad deal, and now time pressure appears to have created a
temporary lottery.} Rf8 $6 (27... Re8 $142 28. f3 $141 $2 (28. f4 Bxe2) 28...
Bxe2 $1 $19) 28. f3 $1 d3 29. g4 $8 Qg5 30. exd3 Ba6 31. h4 $2 (31. d4 {
would leave the result of the game completely open. Now white's exposed king
and misplaced pieces allow black to regain control.}) 31... Qf6 32. Kg2 Bxd3 $1
33. g5 $4 (33. Qe3 Bb5 $1 $17) 33... Bxe4 34. gxf6 Bxf3+ 35. Kg3 Bxd1 $19 36.
Rxd1 gxf6 37. a6 Ra8 38. Ra1 Ra7 39. Kf4 Nd3+ 40. Kf5 Kg7 41. h5 h6 42. Rg1+
Kf8 43. Ra1 Nc5 44. Ra5 Nxa6 45. Kxf6 Ra8 0-1

[Event "Olympiad-33"]
[Site "Elista"]
[Date "1998.10.09"]
[Round "10.1"]
[White "Alterman, Boris"]
[Black "Timman, Jan H"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2600"]
[BlackElo "2655"]
[Annotator "Tisdall,J"]
[PlyCount "88"]
[EventDate "1998.09.29"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 068"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1999.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1999.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Israel"]
[BlackTeam "Netherlands"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "ISR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NED"]

1. d4 {Hecht} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 O-O 6. Bg2 cxd4 7. Nxd4
d5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Qa5 (9... Qb6 {has a reputation for being an
unambitious, minimalistic variation but...} 10. Bxd5 exd5 11. Be3 Nc6 (11...
Bxc3+ $5 {may well revive interest in this line for black:} 12. Qxc3 Qg6 13.
O-O Nc6 14. Rfc1 Bh3 15. Qc2 Nxd4 16. Bxd4 Qe6 17. f3 Rfe8 18. Kf2 Qh6 19. Qd3
Re7 20. Rc2 Rae8 21. Re1 Qh5 22. Kg1 Bf5 {0-1 Kasparov,G-Kramnik,V/g/5 Match,
Moscow RUS 1998 (22)}) 12. Rd1 Qa5 13. O-O Bh3 14. Rfe1 Rfd8 (14... Rac8 15.
Rc1 Ne5 16. Ndb5 Be6 17. Nd4 Nc4 18. a3 Bxc3 19. Qxc3 Qxc3 20. Rxc3 Nxb2 21.
Rb3 Nc4 22. Rxb7 a5 23. Bf4 Rfe8 24. a4 h6 25. h4 Red8 26. f3 Bd7 27. Ra1 Bc6
28. Ra7 Kf8 29. Kf2 {Beliavsky,A-Timman,J/Belgrade Invest 1995/CBM 51/[Baburin]
/1-0 (69)}) 15. Rc1 Rac8 16. a3 Bxc3 17. Rxc3 Nxd4 18. Bxd4 Rc4 19. Rd1 Qa4 (
19... b5 $142) 20. Qxa4 Rxa4 21. Rc7 Rc8 $2 (21... b6 $142 {[%csl Ra4,Ra7,Rb6]
though black's position is unpleasant due to his paralyzed queenside.}) 22.
Rxc8+ Bxc8 23. Bxa7 $1 $16 {1-0 Nielsen,P-Akesson,R/Asker 1997/CBM 62/[Tisdall]
(41)}) 10. Bd2 Nc6 (10... Na6 11. O-O Nxc3 (11... Nc5 12. Qc2 $14 {Beliavsky.})
12. Bxc3 Bxc3 13. Qxc3 Qxc3 14. bxc3 Nc5 15. Nb3 Na4 16. c4 Rb8 17. c5 e5 18.
Rfc1 Be6 19. Na5 $16 {Zvjaginsev,V-Podgaets,M/Moscow/1992/1:0/59/}) 11. Nxc6 (
11. Nc2 $6 Bxc3 12. bxc3 Qc7 13. Qa3 Ne5 14. Bxd5 exd5 15. Bf4 f6 16. O-O Qf7
17. Ne3 $2 Bh3 18. Rfd1 g5 $1 $17 {Beliavsky,A-Ivanchuk,V/Belgrade/1995/0:1/29/
}) (11. e3 Qa6 12. Nxc6 bxc6 13. Bxd5 $1 Bxc3 14. Bc4 Bxd2+ 15. Kxd2 Qa5+ 16.
Ke2 Qh5+ 17. f3 e5 18. e4 $10 {Zvjaginsev,V-Lujbojevic,L/Pamplona/1995/0,5/37/}
) 11... bxc6 12. O-O Bxc3 13. bxc3 (13. Bxc3 $5 Nxc3 14. bxc3 Ba6 15. Qb4 $1
$14 Qe5 (15... Qc7 $6 16. c4 Rad8 17. Qa4 Bc8 18. Bxc6 Rd6 19. Bf3 Bd7 20. Qa3
Bc6 21. c5 $18 {Rogozenko-Reeh/Hamburg/96.}) 16. Rfe1 Rab8 17. Qa3 Qb5 $2 {
Rogozenko-Blauert/Deutschland/96.} (17... Rb6 18. Rad1 $14) 18. Be4 $1 $16)
13... Ba6 14. Rfd1 Rab8 (14... Qc5 $5 15. e4 Bc4 16. Qa4 Nb6 17. Qb4 Qxb4 18.
cxb4 Rad8 $6 (18... Rfd8 19. Be3 Bb5 (19... e5 20. Rxd8+ Rxd8 21. Bf1 Bb5 22.
Rc1 f6 23. Bxb5 cxb5 24. Rc7 Nc4 25. Bxa7 Rd1+ 26. Kg2 Ra1 27. Bc5 Rxa2 28. Rb7
Nd2 29. Rxb5 Nxe4 30. Be3 Rb2 31. Rb8+ Kf7 32. Rb7+ Kg6 33. g4 h5 34. gxh5+
Kxh5 35. Rxg7 Rxb4 {1/2-1/2 Wells,P-Lalic,B/Szeged 1997/CBM 62 (35)}) 20. Rxd8+
$6 (20. f4 $5) (20. Bc5 $14) 20... Rxd8 21. Bxb6 axb6 22. a4 Ra8 23. a5 $10 {
Fish-Shipov/Yalta/96.}) 19. Be3 $16 {1-0 Volzhin,A-Epishin,V/Elista 1996/CBM
56/[Rogozenko] (54)}) 15. c4 Qc5 16. cxd5 Rxb3 17. axb3 Bxe2 18. Rdc1 $2 {
This has a bad reputation and this game does nothing to change it - a curious
case of preparation.} (18. Re1 $1 {is supposed to be best.} cxd5 (18... Bb5 19.
dxc6 $16 {has been the standard assessment. This position is critical for the
assessment of this variation. White's c-pawn looks extremely dangerous.}) 19.
Rxe2 Qb6 20. b4 Rc8 21. Be1 h6 22. Rea2 Rc7 23. Bf1 Qd4 24. b5 Qc5 25. Bd2 e5
26. Rc1 Qe7 27. Rc6 Rd7 28. Ra4 d4 29. Bb4 Qe8 30. Bh3 Rd8 31. Rxa7 d3 32. Rac7
g6 33. b6 e4 34. Rc8 Kh7 35. Bd2 Rxc8 36. Rxc8 Qb5 37. Bc3 g5 38. b7 d2 39.
Bxd2 Qb1+ 40. Rc1 Qxb7 41. Bf5+ Kg7 42. Be3 f6 43. Re1 {1-0 Nielsen,P-Savon,V/
Pardubice 1995/EXT 95op (43)}) 18... Qd6 19. Rxc6 (19. Be3 cxd5 20. Bc5 Qb8 21.
Bxf8 Kxf8 22. Rc2 Bb5 23. Rca2 a6 24. Bf1 Bxf1 25. Kxf1 Qxb3 26. Rxa6 g5 {
0-1 Nielsen,P-Emms,J/Copenhagen 1995/CBM 46 (50)}) (19. Bf4 {looks more
tempting but it is hard to transform the d-pawn into a threatening force:} e5
20. Rxc6 Qb8 21. Be3 Qxb3 22. Bxa7 Bf3 $1 $17 (22... Ra8 23. d6 Bf3 24. Bxf3
Qxf3 25. Rc7 $36)) 19... Qd7 20. Bf4 exd5 21. Rd6 Qb5 22. Bxd5 a6 23. h4 h6 24.
Rc1 Qb4 25. Kh2 Bh5 26. Bg2 $6 {This leads more or less by force, to a grim
position.} (26. Rxa6 $2 Qd4 27. Bg2 Qxf2 $17) (26. Rc7 $5 $132 {looks like a
more entertaining try.} Qe1 27. Be3 Re8 28. Rdd7 Rxe3 29. fxe3 Qe2+ 30. Kh1 $11
) 26... Qxb3 27. Rxa6 Bf3 28. Bxf3 Qxf3 29. Be3 Kh7 {[%csl Rf2,Rg2,Rh1,Rh2,Rh3]
Creating very unpleasant attacking ideas.} 30. Ra4 (30. Rc2 $5) 30... g5 {
A move of psychological strength, but the crisis it provokes is not
necessarily good for black. However, allowing the eviction of the queen with
Rf4 would increase white's chances of a normal defence.} 31. Rc3 (31. Rc7 $5)
31... Rd8 (31... Rb8 $5) 32. Rd4 $2 (32. Ra6 $3 {was the last chance to get
cheap and nasty, as your friendly analysis engine will verify. After this
unexpected trick, it is difficult to see how black can demonstrate any
advantage.} Rd1 (32... f6 33. Bd4 $1 {and black's king position is too breezy
to sustain winning chances.}) 33. Rxh6+ $1 Kg8 34. Rh8+ $1 Kxh8 35. Bd4+ Rxd4
36. Rxf3 {is the idea.}) 32... Rxd4 33. Bxd4 Qe4 {Hecht: '[#] Da Stützpunkte
fehlen, gelingt Weiß keine Auffangstellung zum Remis. '} 34. Bf6 (34. Be3 {
Hecht} gxh4 35. Rc1 (35. gxh4 Qe5+) 35... hxg3+ 36. Kxg3 h5 {und es ist nicht
erkennbar, wie Weiß unter Opfer des Läufers gegen den f-Bauern die
Remisstellung mit dem Turm auf der 3. Reihe (g3/h3) erreichen kann.}) 34... Qf5
$19 35. hxg5 Qxf2+ 36. Kh3 Kg6 37. Bd8 Qf1+ $1 38. Kh2 Qe2+ 39. Kh3 Qh5+ 40.
Kg2 Qe2+ 41. Kh3 hxg5 {[%csl Rd8,Rh1,Rh3][%cal Ge2d1]} 42. g4 Qd1 43. Rc6+ (43.
Bc7 {Hecht} Qh1+ 44. Bh2 (44. Kg3 Qe1+) 44... Qf1+ 45. Kg3 Qe1+ $19) 43... Kh7
44. Rf6 Kg7 (44... Kg7 45. Be7 Qd3+ 46. Kg2 Qe2+) 0-1

[Event "Ciocaltea Memorial"]
[Site "Bucharest"]
[Date "1998.??.??"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Florean, Andrei"]
[Black "Kiselev, Sergey"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2455"]
[BlackElo "2510"]
[Annotator "Tisdall,J"]
[PlyCount "123"]
[EventDate "1998.02.??"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "ROU"]
[EventCategory "11"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 064"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1998.06.02"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1998.06.02"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 Ne4 6. Qd3 Qa5 7. Qxe4 Bxc3+ 8.
Bd2 Bxd2+ 9. Nxd2 O-O 10. dxc5 Qxc5 $6 (10... Na6 $142 11. Bg2 Nxc5 12. Qc2 d6
13. O-O Bd7 14. a3 Qc7 15. b4 Ba4 16. Qb2 Nd7 $11 {0-1 Mayer,J-Kaunas,K/
Bischwiller op 1993/EXT 93op (62)}) 11. Bg2 d6 (11... Nc6 12. O-O f5 13. Qd3
Qe7 14. f4 d6 15. e4 e5 16. Rae1 Be6 17. Bh3 fxe4 18. Bxe6+ Qxe6 19. Qxe4 Rad8
20. Nf3 Qf5 21. Qd5+ Kh8 22. Ng5 Nd4 23. Ne4 Qf7 24. Qxf7 Rxf7 25. Ng5 Re7 26.
fxe5 Rde8 27. Nf7+ Kg8 28. Nxd6 Rf8 29. Rxf8+ Kxf8 30. Kf2 Nc6 31. e6 Nd4 32.
Nc8 Rc7 33. e7+ {1-0 Furman,B-Shanshaadorsh/Russian Winter op 1991/TD 91\03})
12. O-O Nd7 13. Rfd1 Rd8 $2 (13... Nf6 $14) 14. Qh4 $1 {[%csl Rd6,Rd8,Ge4]} Rf8
(14... Qb6 15. Ne4 f6 16. Rxd6 Qxb2 17. Rad1 $18) 15. Ne4 Qe5 (15... Qxc4 $4
16. Nf6+) 16. Rd2 d5 17. cxd5 exd5 18. Nc3 {[%csl Rd5]} Nf6 19. Nxd5 Nxd5 20.
Bxd5 Be6 21. Qe4 Qxe4 22. Bxe4 Rad8 23. Rad1 Rxd2 24. Rxd2 g6 25. a3 b6 26. f4
Rc8 27. Rc2 Rd8 28. Bd3 Rd7 29. Rc8+ Kg7 30. Ra8 Kf6 31. Kf2 h6 32. Ke3 Bg4 33.
b4 Be6 34. Bb5 Rc7 35. Kd4 Kf5 36. h3 h5 37. e4+ Kf6 38. h4 Bc8 39. Bc4 Ke7 40.
Bd5 Bd7 41. Ke5 Bc8 42. f5 f6+ 43. Kf4 gxf5 44. exf5 Bd7 45. g4 hxg4 46. h5 Kd6
47. h6 Bxf5 48. Kxf5 Kxd5 49. Rd8+ Kc4 50. Kxg4 a5 51. bxa5 f5+ 52. Kxf5 bxa5
53. Kf6 Kb3 54. Rd3+ Ka4 55. Rh3 Rc6+ 56. Kg5 Rc5+ 57. Kf4 Rc4+ 58. Ke5 Rc5+
59. Kd6 Rc8 60. h7 Rh8 61. Kc7 Kb5 62. Rh4 {/\ Kg7} 1-0

[Event "Asker 75th"]
[Site "Asker"]
[Date "1997.11.25"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Nielsen, Peter Heine"]
[Black "Akesson, Ralf"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2515"]
[BlackElo "2520"]
[Annotator "Tisdall,J"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "1997.11.22"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "10"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 062"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1998.01.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1998.01.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8.
cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Qb6 10. Bxd5 exd5 11. Be3 Nc6 12. Rd1 Qa5 13. O-O Bh3 14. Rfe1
Rfd8 (14... Rac8 15. Rc1 Ne5 16. Ndb5 Be6 17. Nd4 Nc4 18. a3 Bxc3 19. Qxc3 Qxc3
20. Rxc3 Nxb2 21. Rb3 Nc4 22. Rxb7 a5 23. Bf4 Rfe8 24. a4 h6 25. h4 Red8 26. f3
Bd7 27. Ra1 Bc6 28. Ra7 Kf8 29. Kf2 {Beliavsky,A-Timman,J/Belgrade Invest 1995/
CBM 51/[Baburin]/1-0 (69)}) 15. Rc1 Rac8 16. a3 Bxc3 17. Rxc3 Nxd4 18. Bxd4 Rc4
19. Rd1 Qa4 (19... b5 $142) 20. Qxa4 Rxa4 21. Rc7 Rc8 $2 (21... b6 $142 {
[%csl Ra4,Ra7,Rb6] though black's position is unpleasant due to his paralyzed
queenside.}) 22. Rxc8+ Bxc8 23. Bxa7 $1 $16 Be6 (23... Rxa7 24. Rxd5 {[%csl
Rc8,Rd8]}) 24. Bd4 h5 25. f3 Rc4 26. Kf2 Bd7 27. Bc3 Bc6 28. Rd3 f6 29. Ke3 Ra4
30. Kd2 Kf7 31. Bb4 Ra8 32. b3 Re8 33. a4 Re6 34. Rd4 g5 35. Bc5 Re8 36. Rd3
Kg6 37. Re3 Rxe3 38. Bxe3 Kf5 39. Kc3 g4 40. Bd4 Ke6 41. Kb4 {Resignation is
premature but the ending is wretched. Black must constantly guard against the
disruptive advance of the a-pawn, and his d, f and h-pawns will also be
vulnerable.} (41. Kb4 f5 42. Kc5 Kd7 43. Kb6 Kc8 44. a5 Kb8 (44... Bd7 45. f4 (
45. Be5 Be6 46. b4 gxf3 47. exf3 d4 48. Bxd4 Bd5 49. f4 {and black has held
the queenside now that he has a long diagonal.}) 45... Kb8 46. b4 Be6 47. e3 {
and black cannot mind the queenside and prevent white's king from strolling
into the rest of his position.}) 45. a6 {and black is completely paralyzed,
and will soon be forced to relinquish b7 due to zugzwang.}) 1-0

[Event "Sigeman & Co 06th"]
[Site "Malmo"]
[Date "1998.06.11"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Miladinovic, Igor"]
[Black "Lautier, Joel"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2565"]
[BlackElo "2645"]
[Annotator "Tisdall,J"]
[PlyCount "135"]
[EventDate "1998.06.09"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "SWE"]
[EventCategory "13"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 066"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1998.09.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1998.09.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Hecht} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 c5 5. Nf3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2
d5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Bd2 Nxc3 10. bxc3 Be7 11. O-O Nd7 12. a4 $5 $146 (12. Rb1
Nb6 13. Bf4 Nd5 14. Bxd5 Qxd5 15. Nb5 Qc6 16. e4 b6 17. Nc7 g5 18. Nxa8 gxf4
19. Nxb6 axb6 20. Qg4+ Kh8 21. Qxf4 Bb7 22. Rfe1 f5 23. Qe5+ Kg8 24. Qb5 Bc5
25. Qxc6 Bxc6 26. exf5 Rxf5 27. Rb2 Kf7 28. Rd1 Rf3 29. Rc1 e5 30. Kf1 Ke6 31.
Ke1 h5 32. Re2 Kf5 33. h3 h4 34. gxh4 Rxh3 35. Kd2 Bf3 36. Ree1 Rxh4 37. Rg1
Rh2 38. Rcf1 Bg2 {0-1 Miladinovic,I-Shipov,S/Thessaloniki 1996/EXP 55 (38)})
12... a6 $1 (12... Nb6 13. Qb3 e5 14. a5 $5 $14) 13. Be3 Qc7 (13... Nb6 14. Qb3
$14) 14. Qb1 Bc5 15. Qb3 Rb8 {Black slowly and steadily unravels his queenside,
leaving white to seek new targets.} 16. Rfd1 e5 17. Nc2 b6 18. Qd5 $5 Nf6 (
18... Bxe3 19. Nxe3 Qxc3 20. Rac1 {[%csl Rc8,Rd7]}) 19. Qc4 Bf5 (19... Be6 20.
Qxa6 Bxe3 21. Nxe3 Qxc3 22. Rac1 $14) 20. Nb4 Be6 21. Nd5 (21. Nxa6 Bxc4 22.
Nxc7 Bxe3 23. fxe3 Rfc8 $15) 21... Bxd5 22. Bxd5 Rbc8 23. Bxc5 Qxc5 24. Qxc5
Rxc5 25. Bb7 Rxc3 $6 (25... a5 26. Rd6 $14 {[%csl Ra5,Rb6]} (26. Rab1 Rc4 $5))
26. Bxa6 Ne4 $2 27. Rdb1 $16 Rc5 (27... Rc6 28. Bb7) (27... Rb8 $5 28. a5 Rc6
29. Rxb6 (29. Bd3 Nc3 30. Rxb6 Rcxb6 31. axb6 g6 32. Ra3 Nd5 33. Ra5 Nxb6 34.
Rxe5 $16) 29... Rcxb6 30. axb6 Rxb6 31. Bd3 (31. Bb7 f5 32. Bxe4 fxe4 33. Ra5
$16) 31... f5 32. Ra5 $18) 28. Rxb6 Ra5 29. Bd3 Nc5 30. Bb5 g6 31. Rc6 Nb3 32.
Rb1 Nd4 33. Ra6 Rxa6 34. Bxa6 Ra8 35. Bb5 Kf8 36. e3 Ne6 37. Bc6 Ra6 38. Rb8+
Kg7 39. Rc8 Kf6 40. Kf1 Ke7 41. Ke2 Kd6 42. Bb5 Ra7 43. Kd3 Nc7 44. Kc4 Nxb5
45. axb5 {[#] Hecht: Hier steht der weiße König schon bereit zur Unterstützung
des Freribauern. Das ist eine Situation, wie sie sich sonst erst nach Aufgabe
eines Königsflügelbauern ergibt.} Ra2 46. Kb3 (46. Rc6+ $2 {Hecht} Kd7 47. Rf6
Ke7) 46... Ra5 (46... Rxf2 $2 47. b6 Rf1 48. Kc2 Rf2+ 49. Kc3 $18 Rf1 {Hecht}
50. b7 $18) 47. Kb4 Ra2 48. b6 Rb2+ (48... Rxf2 {Hecht} 49. Kc3 $18) 49. Ka5
Ra2+ 50. Kb5 Rb2+ 51. Ka6 Ra2+ 52. Kb7 Rxf2 53. Rc6+ Kd7 54. Rc7+ Ke6 55. h3 {
Hecht:Rettet den Bauern und bereitet eine Gewinnführung vor, wie sie bei dem
Materialverhältnis T+Bauer vs Turm üblich ist, nämlich den "Brückenbau".} (55.
Kc8 {Hecht} Rxh2 56. b7 Rb2 57. b8=Q Rxb8+ 58. Kxb8 h5 (58... e4 59. Kb7 h5 60.
Kc6 g5 61. Kc5 $18) 59. e4 $18 {gewinnt auf andere Art und Weise.}) 55... Rb2 (
55... Rf3 56. Rc3 Kd7 (56... Rxg3 57. Kc7 Rg1 58. Rb3 $18) 57. Rd3+ Ke6 (57...
Ke7 58. Kc7 Rf1 59. Rd7+ Ke8 60. b7 Rc1+ 61. Kd6 Rb1 62. Rc7) 58. Kc7 Rf1 59.
Rd6+ $18) 56. Rc3 Kd7 57. Ka7 Ra2+ 58. Kb8 f5 59. b7 e4 60. Rc7+ Kd8 61. Rc5
Kd7 62. Rd5+ Ke6 63. Rd4 Ra3 64. Kc7 Rc3+ 65. Kb6 Rb3+ 66. Kc6 g5 (66... Rc3+
67. Kb5) 67. Rd6+ Ke7 68. Rd5 1-0

[Event "ISR-ch"]
[Site "Ramat Aviv"]
[Date "1998.11.10"]
[Round "2.1"]
[White "Rabinovich, Alexander"]
[Black "Kantsler, Boris"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2460"]
[BlackElo "2535"]
[Annotator "Tisdall,J"]
[PlyCount "82"]
[EventDate "1998.11.08"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "5"]
[EventCountry "ISR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 068"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1999.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1999.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 b5 6. e4 bxc4 $5 (6... O-O 7. a3 (
7. Nh3 bxc4 8. Bxc4 Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 Qa5 10. Qc2 d6 11. dxe6 Bxe6 12. Bxe6 fxe6
13. O-O Nc6 14. Bf4 e5 15. Bg5 Ne8 16. Qb3+ Kh8 $4 17. Qb7 {1-0 Moskalenko,
V-Morozevich,A/Moscow 1994/EXT 97 (17)}) 7... Bxc3+ 8. bxc3 bxc4 9. Bxc4 Ba6
10. Bxa6 Nxa6 11. Ne2 c4 $5 $13 {0-1 Varga,P-Lorincz,I/HUN-chT 1994/TD 94\03 
(38)}) (6... exd5 7. cxd5 Bb7 8. Nh3 Qb6 9. Be3 d6 10. Be2 Nbd7 11. O-O Bxc3
12. bxc3 O-O 13. Rb1 $16 {1-0 Watson,A-Umezinwa,G/Chicago 1990/EXT 97 (41)}) 7.
a3 (7. Bxc4 Nxd5 8. Bxd5 (8. exd5 Qh4+) 8... exd5 9. Qxd5 Nc6 10. Nge2 $14)
7... Bxc3+ 8. bxc3 d6 9. Bxc4 O-O 10. Ne2 Nxd5 $5 {This is an interesting way
to negotiate the exchange of the Bc4.} 11. Bxd5 exd5 12. Qxd5 Qb6 13. O-O (13.
Bf4 $5 {deserved attention. White should probably rush to press black's
weaknesses, especially since his king position is not in immediate danger:} Rd8
(13... Be6 14. Qxd6 Qb2 15. Kf2 Bc4 (15... Nd7 16. Rhb1 $16) 16. Qd2) 14. O-O
$14) 13... Ba6 14. Re1 Bxe2 15. Rxe2 Na6 16. Rb2 Nc7 17. Qb7 Qa5 18. Bd2 Ne6
19. f4 $2 {[%csl Re4]} (19. a4 $14 {should keep whitely clearly on top. He
dominates the b-line, which should provide a route to the seventh rank, and is
fully active while the d6 pawn remains a target.} c4) (19. c4 $5) 19... c4 $1
$132 {[%csl Rb3,Gc5,Rd3,Re4]} 20. Rb5 Qa4 21. Rab1 Qc2 $1 22. R5b2 Qd3 $36 {
Suddenly black is active and the f4 advance has created regrettable weaknesses.
} 23. e5 (23. Qd5 Nc5 24. Qxa8 (24. Rb4 Rfe8 $5 $15) (24. Qxd3 Nxd3 (24... cxd3
$5) 25. Rb7 Rfe8 $36) 24... Qxb1+ 25. Rxb1 Rxa8 {and the e4 pawn is huge
liability, and the bishop saddled with defensive tasks.}) 23... d5 24. f5 (24.
Rf1 Nc5) 24... Qxf5 25. Qxd5 Rad8 $17 {[%csl Re5] It is extremely difficult
for white to maintain his e-pawn. Add to this a passive bishop and rooks now
staring into a useless file, and black's superiority is clear.} 26. Qf3 $2 {
White should at least make it difficult for black to win material:} (26. Qb5 $5
a6 27. Qb4 Rd5 28. Rf1 Qd3 29. Rf3 {was more determined.}) (26. Qxc4 $4 Rxd2)
26... Qxe5 27. Rb5 Qd6 28. Bg5 Rd7 (28... a6 $5) 29. a4 a6 30. Ra5 Rb8 $1 {
Forcing the exchange of one of white's few sensibly posted pieces.} 31. Rxb8+
Qxb8 32. Be3 Rd6 (32... Qb1+ 33. Kf2 Qc2+ 34. Qe2 {does not accomplish
anything for black.}) 33. h3 Qd8 $1 {Black finds that the rook on a5 is
actually interfering with his plans by eyeing a6, and chases it, apparently
into play.} 34. Rf5 Rd3 $1 $19 35. Qe4 (35. Rxf7 $4 Rxe3) 35... Rxc3 36. Bf2
Rc1+ 37. Kh2 g6 38. Re5 Qb8 39. Bg3 Qa7 40. Be1 Qb8 41. Bg3 Qb1 0-1

[Event "Hoogeveen Essent op"]
[Site "Hoogeveen"]
[Date "2000.10.20"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Ulybin, Mikhail"]
[Black "Tiviakov, Sergei"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2583"]
[BlackElo "2608"]
[Annotator "Tiviakov,S"]
[PlyCount "130"]
[EventDate "2000.10.13"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 078 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2000.11.10"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2000.11.10"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 Nc6 5. e4 d5 (5... e5) 6. cxd5 (6. e5 Ng8
7. a3 (7. Be3 Nge7 8. c5 Nf5 9. Bf2 O-O 10. Nge2 b6 11. cxb6 axb6 12. a3 Be7
13. Ng3 Nxg3 14. hxg3 Ba6 15. Bxa6 Na5 16. b4 Rxa6 17. Qd3 h6 18. Qxa6 Nc4 19.
O-O Qd7 20. Rfc1 Qc6 21. Qa4 Qb7 22. Qb3 c6 23. Nd1 b5 24. Nb2 Ra8 25. Nxc4
bxc4 26. Qc2 Qb5 27. Be1 Ra4 28. Bc3 Bd8 29. f4 g6 30. g4 Kg7 31. f5 Bg5 32.
Rf1 Bh4 33. fxe6 fxe6 34. g3 Bg5 35. Qf2 Ra7 36. Qf8+ Kh7 37. Rf7+ Rxf7 38.
Qxf7+ Kh8 39. Qf8+ Kh7 40. Rf1 {1-0 Balabaev,F-Skoberne,J/Nova Gorica SLO 2000
(40)}) 7... Bxc3+ 8. bxc3 dxc4 9. Qa4 Bd7 10. Qxc4 Na5 11. Qb4 c5 $1 $17 {
50/(557)}) (6. a3 Bxc3+ 7. bxc3 dxe4 8. fxe4 e5 $1 $13 {50/(557)}) 6... exd5 7.
e5 Ng8 (7... Nd7 8. f4 Nb6 (8... Nf8 9. Nf3 Bg4 10. Be2 Ne6 11. Be3 O-O 12. O-O
Ne7 13. Nh4 Bxe2 14. Nxe2 Nc6 15. Nf5 f6 16. Neg3 Kh8 17. Qg4 g6 18. Nh4 f5 19.
Nxg6+ hxg6 20. Qxg6 Ncxd4 21. Qh6+ Kg8 22. Bxd4 Nxd4 23. Qg6+ Kh8 {1/2-1/2
Adorjan,A-McCambridge,V/New York 1984/MCD (23)}) 9. Nf3 Bg4 10. Be2 O-O 11. O-O
Ne7 12. a3 Bxc3 13. bxc3 Nc4 14. Qb3 Qd7 15. Bxc4 dxc4 16. Qxc4 Be6 17. Qe2 Qc6
18. Qc2 Rfd8 19. Ng5 {1/2-1/2 Riazantsev, Alexander - Moizhess, Igor/Moscow
Russia (5) 1995}) (7... Nh5 8. Nge2 g6 9. g3 Ng7 10. Bg2 Be6 11. O-O Qd7 12. a3
Be7 13. b4 h5 14. h4 Nf5 15. Qd3 Bxh4 16. gxh4 Nxh4 17. Rf2 Nf5 18. Bg5 h4 19.
Bf6 Rh7 20. Kh2 Nce7 21. Nf4 c6 22. Nxe6 Qxe6 23. Ne2 O-O-O 24. Nf4 Qd7 25. Bh3
Rg8 26. Bxe7 Qxe7 27. Bxf5+ Kb8 28. Bg4 h3 29. Rc2 {1-0 Auram,S-Kostovski,K/
Logrono 1998/EXT 2000 (29)}) 8. Bb5 $146 (8. a3 Ba5 {[><d4]} 9. Bb5 (9. Be3
Nge7 10. Bb5 O-O (10... Bd7 $5 {50/(557)}) 11. Nge2 Bb6 12. Bf2 f6 13. exf6
Rxf6 14. O-O Ng6 $13 {/\Nce7, c6, 50/(557)}) (9. f4 Nge7 10. Be3 O-O 11. Nf3 (
11. Bb5 f6 12. Qd2 fxe5 13. fxe5 Nf5 14. Bf2 Bxc3 15. bxc3 Na5 16. Ra2 Nh4 17.
Be3 c6 18. Bg5 Qb6 19. Bd3 Nc4 20. Qe2 Ng6 21. Qc2 Be6 22. Nf3 Rf7 23. Bc1 Raf8
24. Ng5 Nf4 25. Bxf4 Rxf4 26. Nxe6 Ne3 27. Qb2 {1-0 Varga, Peter - Holzmann,
Herbert/Balatonbereny Hungar 1993}) 11... Bg4 12. Be2 Nf5 13. Bf2 Bxf3 14. Bxf3
Nh4 15. b4 Nxf3+ 16. Qxf3 Bb6 17. Rd1 Ne7 18. f5 f6 19. e6 a5 20. b5 a4 21. O-O
Qd6 22. Bg3 Qd8 23. Bf2 Qd6 24. Bg3 Qd8 25. Rd3 c6 26. bxc6 bxc6 27. Be1 Ra7
28. Ne2 Bc7 29. Qh3 Bd6 30. Qh4 g6 31. g4 g5 32. Qh6 Kh8 33. h4 Ng8 34. Qh5 Rg7
35. Bd2 gxh4 36. Qxh4 Qb6 37. Nf4 Ne7 38. Ng2 Qb5 39. Rdf3 Qb2 40. Be3 Ng8 41.
Kh1 Rb8 42. Bf4 Bc7 43. Bxc7 Rxc7 44. g5 Rg7 45. R3f2 Qxa3 46. gxf6 Rg3 47. Nf4
{1-0 Marin, Mihai - Barle, Janez/Manila Philippines (5) 1992}) 9... Bd7 (9...
Nge7 10. Bg5 O-O $13 {50/(557)}) 10. Nge2 (10. Bxc6 Bxc3+ $1 11. bxc3 Bxc6 $13
{50/(557)}) 10... Bxc3+ 11. bxc3 Nxe5 12. Qb3 $8 c6 13. dxe5 cxb5 14. Nd4 (14.
Qxd5 Qc7 (14... Bc6 15. Qxd8+ Rxd8 16. Nd4 $14 {50/(557)}) 15. O-O Ne7 16. Qd6
Rc8 $13 {Dokhoian,Y, 50/(557)}) 14... Ne7 15. Bg5 O-O 16. O-O Re8 17. f4 Qc7
18. Bxe7 $1 Rxe7 19. Rf3 (19. Qxd5 Qxc3 20. Rac1 Qxa3 $17 {50/(557)}) 19... Qc4
20. Qb2 $44 Rae8 21. Qd2 a6 22. h3 Qc8 23. Qd3 Qc4 24. Qd2 Qc8 25. Qd3 {
1/2-1/2 Khenkin,Igor-Dokhoian,Yury/Werfen (Austria) 1990, 50/(557). 1.d4 Nf6 2.
c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4-4.f3 Nc6 5.e4 d5 (25)}) 8... Bd7 9. Bxc6 Bxc6 (9... Bxc3+ $5
10. bxc3 Bxc6 $13) 10. f4 Qd7 $1 (10... Ne7 11. Nf3 $14 {/\0-0}) 11. Nf3 Bxc3+
12. bxc3 Ba4 (12... Bb5 $5 13. a4 Ba6 $13) 13. Qd2 Bb5 14. Kf2 O-O-O 15. a4 Ba6
16. Ba3 h5 17. Bc5 Kb8 18. Rhe1 Nh6 19. Kg1 Rhe8 20. Rab1 Ka8 21. a5 Qf5 $15
22. Rb2 Rb8 23. Nh4 Qg4 (23... Qd3 $5 $15) (23... Qh7 24. Qd1 $1 {><h5}) 24.
Nf3 Re6 $6 (24... Qf5 25. Nh4 Qd3 $15) 25. h3 Qg6 26. Nh4 Qd3 (26... Qg3 $2 27.
Qf2 Qxc3 {- 26...Qd3} (27... Qxf2+ 28. Rxf2 $16)) 27. Qf2 Qxc3 $6 (27... g6 $11
) 28. f5 Ree8 29. Bb4 Qc6 $6 (29... Qd3 $142) 30. Qd2 Ng8 31. Qg5 $16 {|^>>}
Qh6 32. Qg3 Bc4 (32... Rbc8) (32... Ne7 33. Bxe7 Rxe7 34. f6 gxf6 35. Nf5 Qf8
36. Nxe7 Qxe7 37. Qf3 $16) 33. Rf2 $138 Rbc8 $138 34. Kh2 Bb5 35. Nf3 g6 $5 36.
e6 (36. f6 Bd7 37. Ng5 Be6 $13) 36... fxe6 37. fxg6 Nf6 38. Ne5 Ne4 39. Rxe4 $2
(39. Qf4 Qxf4+ 40. Rxf4 $14 b6 {/\c5} (40... Rg8 {/\Be8})) 39... dxe4 40. g7
Rg8 $17 {[#]} 41. Rf8 $5 (41. Rf7 a6 $5 $17 (41... e3 $5)) 41... Kb8 (41...
Rcxf8 42. gxf8=Q+ (42. Bxf8 h4 43. Qg4 e3 $17) 42... Rxf8 43. Bxf8 Qxf8 44. Qe3
$15 {/\g2-g4, o^g}) 42. Rf7 a6 $1 (42... e3 43. a6 $1 Bxa6 (43... bxa6 44. Ba5
$13 {/\Bc7}) (43... h4 44. Qg4 bxa6 45. Be1 $13 {/\Bh4}) 44. Nd7+ Ka8 45. Nf6
$13) (42... h4 43. Qg4 {/\Be1, ><h4}) 43. Nd7+ (43. Ba3 $5 e3 $140 44. Bc1) (
43. Bc5 $5) 43... Bxd7 44. Rxd7 e3 (44... h4 45. Qe5) 45. Bd6 (45. Qe5 e2 $19)
45... e2 (45... cxd6 46. Qxd6+ Ka8 47. Rxb7 $11 Kxb7 48. Qb6+ Ka8 49. Qxa6+ Kb8
50. Qb6+) (45... h4 46. Bxc7+ Ka8 47. Qe5 (47. Qf3 Rxg7 48. Bf4 Rxg2+ 49. Kxg2
Qg6+ $19) 47... e2 $17) 46. Bxc7+ Ka8 47. Bd6 (47. Be5 Qc1 $1 48. Qf3 Qc6 49.
Qxc6 Rxc6 50. Bg3 Rc1 51. Rf7 Rf1 $19) 47... Qc1 48. Bb4 $138 Qc6 $138 49. Rf7
Qc4 50. Qd6 (50. Be1 Qxd4 $19) 50... e5 $1 51. Qe7 (51. d5 Rxg7 52. Rxg7 Qf4+
$19 53. Rg3 (53. Kg1 Rc1+ $19) 53... h4) 51... Rb8 52. dxe5 (52. Rf8 exd4 53.
Bd6 Rc8 $19) 52... Rge8 $1 53. Qf8 $8 Rxf8 54. gxf8=Q Rxf8 55. Rxf8+ Ka7 56.
Be1 Qc5 (56... b5 $19) 57. Rf5 (57. Re8 b5 $19) 57... b6 58. Rf7+ Kb8 59. axb6
Qxe5+ 60. Kg1 Qd4+ 61. Kh2 Qd6+ 62. Kg1 Qxb6+ 63. Rf2 Qd4 64. Kh2 Qd6+ 65. g3
Qd1 0-1

[Event "Corus"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2001.01.22"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Shirov, Alexei"]
[Black "Tiviakov, Sergei"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2718"]
[BlackElo "2597"]
[Annotator "Tiviakov,S"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "2001.01.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 081"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2001.03.20"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2001.03.20"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%mdl 1]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 Nc6 5. e4 d5 6. cxd5 exd5 7. e5
Ng8 8. f4 $146 (8. a3 Ba5 {/\Bb6, ><d4}) (8. Bb5 {Ulibin,M-Tiviakov,S/
Hoogeveen 2000}) 8... Nh6 $1 (8... Nge7 9. Be3 $1 O-O 10. Nf3 $14) (8... f6 $5)
9. Nf3 (9. Be2 Bg4 $5 (9... Nf5 10. Nf3 O-O 11. O-O $14) (9... f6 $5) 10. Bxg4
(10. Nf3 {- 9.Nf3 Bg4 10.Be2}) 10... Qh4+ 11. g3 Qxg4 12. Qxg4 Nxg4 13. Nf3 $13
) (9. Be3 $6 Ng4) 9... Bg4 10. Be3 (10. Be2 Nf5 (10... O-O 11. Be3 Nf5 12. Bf2
$14) 11. O-O Ba5 $5 (11... O-O 12. Ng5 $1 Bxe2 13. Nxe2 $14) (11... Bxf3 12.
Bxf3 Nfxd4 13. Nxd5 $14) (11... Qd7 $5 $13 {/\0-0-0}) 12. Ng5 (12. h3 Bxf3 13.
Bxf3 Ncxd4 14. Nxd5 (14. Bxd5 c6 $15) 14... c6 15. Ne3 Ng3 $13) 12... Bxe2 13.
Nxe2 Bb6 (13... Nfxd4 $2 14. Nxd4 Nxd4 15. f5 $40 Bb6 16. Kh1 h6 17. Qh5 $16)
14. Nf3 Qd7 $13 {/\h5, 0-0-0} (14... O-O 15. Qd3 $14)) 10... Nf5 11. Bf2 Bxf3 (
11... O-O 12. Be2 $14) 12. gxf3 O-O 13. Rg1 $6 (13. Qd3 Nce7 (13... Nfxd4 $6
14. Bxd4 Nxd4 {- 13...Ncd4 14.Bd4 Nd4} (14... Qh4+ 15. Bf2 Qxf4 16. Bg3 $16)) (
13... Ncxd4 $5 14. Bxd4 Nxd4 (14... Qh4+ 15. Kd1 $1 (15. Bf2 Qxf4 16. Bg3 Bxc3+
(16... Nxg3 17. hxg3 Qxg3+ (17... Qxe5+ 18. Kf2 h6 19. f4 Qf6 20. Qxd5 $14) 18.
Kd1 h6 $13) 17. bxc3 Nxg3 18. hxg3 Qxg3+ (18... Qxe5+ 19. Kf2 h6 20. Re1 $14)
19. Kd1 h6 $13) 15... Nxd4 (15... Qxf4 16. Ne2) 16. Qxd4 c5 17. Qd3 (17. Qg1 d4
18. Nb1 Qe1+ (18... Qxf4 19. Qg3 $16) 19. Kc2 Bd2 20. Nxd2 Qxa1 21. Bc4 Qxg1
22. Rxg1 $16) 17... Qxf4 (17... d4 18. Nd5 $1 $18 Qe1+ $140 (18... c4 19. Qe4
$18) 19. Kc2 c4 (19... Qxa1 20. Nf6+ $18) 20. Rxe1 cxd3+ 21. Bxd3 Bxe1 22. Rxe1
$18) 18. Nxd5 Qxe5 19. Kc2 $16) 15. Qxd4 c5 (15... Qh4+ 16. Ke2 $16) 16. Qf2 (
16. Qd3 d4 17. a3 dxc3 18. axb4 Qh4+ 19. Ke2 cxb2 20. Rb1 Qxf4 $13) 16... Qa5 (
16... d4 17. O-O-O Qa5 18. Ne4 Qxa2 19. Bd3 $16) 17. O-O-O Bxc3 18. bxc3 Qxc3+
19. Kb1 $14 (19. Qc2 Qxf3) 19... Qb4+ 20. Qb2 Qxf4 21. Rxd5 Rad8 22. Qb3 (22.
Rxc5 Rd1+ 23. Rc1 Rxc1+ 24. Qxc1 Qxf3 25. Rg1 Qe4+ $11) 22... Rfe8 $5 (22...
Rxd5 23. Qxd5 Re8 24. Bc4 Qf5+ 25. Kb2 $16) 23. Rxc5 (23. Bc4 Rxd5 24. Bxd5
Qf5+ $13) 23... Rxe5 (23... b6 24. Rc4 Qf5+ 25. Re4 Rxe5 26. Bh3 Qg6 27. Rhe1
$16) 24. Rxe5 Qxe5 25. Bd3 g6 $14 {/\Rd6-b6, <=>עb1}) 14. Bh3 (14. O-O-O Qd7
$5 $13 (14... Bxc3)) 14... g6 (14... Qd7 $6 15. Bh4) 15. Rg1 Kh8 $13) (13. Bh3
$2 Nfxd4 14. Bxd4 Qh4+ (14... Nxd4 15. Qxd4 Qh4+ 16. Kd2 Bxc3+ 17. Kxc3 Qxh3
18. Qxd5 $15) 15. Bf2 Qxh3 $17) 13... Ncxd4 $5 (13... Nfxd4 $5 {(Kasparov)} 14.
Bxd4 Qh4+ 15. Bf2 (15. Rg3 Qxf4 (15... Qxh2 16. Bf2 d4 17. a3 dxc3 18. axb4
Rad8 $13) 16. a3 (16. Rg4 Qxh2 17. e6 (17. Qd2 Qxd2+ 18. Kxd2 h5 $17) (17. Qe2
Qxe2+ 18. Bxe2 (18. Kxe2 h5 $19) 18... h5 $17) 17... g6 18. exf7+ Rxf7 $15)
16... Qxd4 (16... Nxd4 17. axb4 Qxe5+ $15) 17. axb4 Qxe5+ $15 {><b4}) 15...
Qxf4 16. Be2 Qxe5 (16... Rad8 $13) (16... Rfd8 $13) 17. Kf1 $13) (13... Nce7
$11 {/\c5}) 14. Bxd4 Qh4+ 15. Bf2 Qxf4 16. Bd3 $1 (16. Be2 d4 $1 (16... Qxe5
17. Kf1 c6 $13 (17... Bxc3 18. bxc3 c6 $13)) 17. Rg4 Qxh2 18. Qd3 (18. Bxd4
Rad8 $19) 18... h5 $1 19. Rxd4 Nxd4 20. Qxd4 Bxc3+ 21. bxc3 Rfe8 $15) (16. a3
Qxe5+ 17. Be2 Bxc3+ 18. bxc3 Qxc3+ 19. Kf1 Qe5 $15) (16. Rg4 Qxe5+ 17. Be2
Bxc3+ 18. bxc3 Qxc3+ $15) 16... d4 $6 (16... Qxe5+ 17. Kf1 Bxc3 18. bxc3 Ne3+
19. Bxe3 Qxe3 $13) (16... Rfe8 17. Kf1 Bxc3 18. bxc3 Rxe5 $11) 17. Rg4 Qxe5+
18. Qe2 (18. Re4 $2 Qxh2 $19) (18. Kf1 dxc3 19. Rxb4 Rad8 $40) 18... Qa5 (18...
dxc3 19. Qxe5 Rae8 20. O-O-O Rxe5 21. Rxb4 cxb2+ 22. Rxb2 $16) (18... Qxe2+ 19.
Kxe2 dxc3 20. Rxb4 Rfe8+ 21. Kf1 (21. Be4 Nd6 $11 {/\f5}) 21... cxb2 (21...
Ne3+ 22. Bxe3 Rxe3 23. Be4 $16) 22. Rxb2 Nd6 23. Rc1 $16 {^^}) 19. O-O-O $1
dxc3 (19... h5 $5 20. Rg5 (20. Rxd4 Bxc3 (20... Nxd4 21. Bxd4 $40) 21. bxc3 (
21. Rc4 Bf6 22. Rc5 Qxa2 $13) 21... Qxc3+ 22. Kb1 Nxd4 23. Bxd4 Qb4+ (23...
Qxd4 $4 24. Bh7+ $18) 24. Bb2 $40 {^^}) 20... dxc3 21. Bxf5 (21. bxc3 Bxc3 22.
Rxf5 Qa3+ 23. Kb1 Qb4+ 24. Kc1 Qa3+ $11) 21... Qxa2 (21... Rfe8 22. Bh7+ Kh8
23. Qxe8+ Rxe8 24. Rxa5 Bxa5 25. Be4 $18) 22. Rdg1 Qxb2+ 23. Qxb2 cxb2+ 24.
Kxb2 g6 25. Rxh5 $16) 20. Bxf5 Qxf5 (20... cxb2+ 21. Qxb2 Bc3 22. Qc2 g6 23.
Ra4 Qxf5 (23... Qe5 24. Bd7 $16 (24. Bd3 $5)) 24. Qxc3 $16) 21. Rxb4 Rae8 22.
Re4 cxb2+ (22... Qf4+ 23. Kb1 Rxe4 24. fxe4 (24. Qxe4 $2 Qxh2) 24... cxb2 (
24... Qxh2 25. bxc3 $16) 25. Bg3 $14) 23. Kxb2 Rxe4 24. Qxe4 (24. fxe4 $14)
24... Qb5+ (24... Qxe4 25. fxe4 $16 {/\Rd7, ׫}) 25. Ka1 b6 26. Bd4 Qd7 $1 {
[/\f6]} (26... Re8 27. Qg4 g6 $16 {גa1-h8}) (26... f6 $6 27. Qe6+ Kh8 28. Qe7
Re8 29. Qxc7 Qa4 30. Qc1 $16) 27. Rd2 $1 (27. Rg1 f6 $11) 27... Re8 $138 (27...
c5 $5 28. Bc3 Qh3 29. Qg4 Qf1+ (29... Qxg4 30. fxg4 $16 {/\Rd7}) 30. Kb2 Qb5+
31. Kc1 f6 32. h4 $14 (32. Rd7 Qf1+ 33. Kc2 Qe2+ 34. Bd2 Rf7 $13)) (27... f6 $5
28. Bc3 (28. Be3 Qe8) 28... Qe8 (28... Qb5 29. Qe6+ $14) 29. Qc4+ (29. Qxe8
Rxe8 $11 {/\Re3}) 29... Rf7 (29... Qf7 30. Qc6 $16) 30. Rd5 $1 Qe7 (30... c5
31. h4 $16 h6 $140 32. Qd3 Rf8 (32... Qe6 33. Rd6) 33. Rd7) 31. Qc6 a5 32. h4
h6 33. h5 Kh7 $14) 28. Bc3 Qb5 29. a4 $1 (29. Qd4 f6 $11 (29... Re1+ 30. Rd1
Rxd1+ 31. Qxd1 $14)) 29... Rxe4 $8 (29... Qf1+ 30. Kb2 Rf8 31. Qe5 $18) 30.
axb5 Ra4+ $8 31. Kb2 f6 $4 (31... Kf8 32. Kb3 (32. Rd7 Rc4 33. Kb3 Rc5 34. Bb4
Ke8 $1 $11) (32. Rd4 Rxd4 33. Bxd4 f6 $8 34. Kc3 Ke7 35. Kc4 Kd6 $11 {/\c6})
32... Rf4 33. Rd7 Rf5 34. Rxc7 (34. Ka4 Rc5 35. Bb4 Ke8) 34... Rxb5+ 35. Bb4+
Ke8 36. Rxa7 (36. Re7+ Kd8 37. Rxf7 $140 $4 a5) 36... Rf5 37. Re7+ Kd8 38. Re3
Kd7 $14 (38... Rh5 $5)) 32. Kb3 $1 (32. Rd4 Rxd4 33. Bxd4 Kf7 $11) (32. Rd8+
Kf7 33. Rd7+ Kg6 34. Kb3 $18 (34. Rxc7 a6 $14)) 32... Rf4 (32... Rh4 $142 33.
Rd8+ Kf7 34. Rd7+ Kg6 35. Rxc7 Rxh2 36. Rxa7 $18) 33. Rd8+ Kf7 34. Rd7+ Kg6 35.
Rxc7 Rxf3 (35... Rf5 36. Kc4 Rf4+ 37. Bd4 $18) 36. Rxa7 Rf5 37. Kc4 Rc5+ 38.
Kb4 Rd5 39. Rb7 Rd6 40. Kc4 h5 41. Bd4 1-0

[Event "EU-Cup 32nd"]
[Site "Novi Sad"]
[Date "2016.11.07"]
[Round "2.1"]
[White "Van Wely, Loek"]
[Black "Klein, David"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2685"]
[BlackElo "2513"]
[Annotator "Van Wely,L"]
[PlyCount "39"]
[EventDate "2016.11.06"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "SRB"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 176"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2017.01.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2017.01.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Zuerich SG"]
[BlackTeam "Kennemer Combinatie"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "SUI"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NED"]

{Maybe this was not the most exciting of games, but from an educational point
of view it was definitely a rich game. Apart from that, there was something
else at stake: prestige. In 2015 I changed clubs in Holland, I started to play
for the Kennemer Combinatie, in fact the same guys we were playing today. I
helped them a bit to qualify for the European Club Cub, and as a good traitor
does, I left them when they needed me the most. Instead of friendship I chose
Swiss Francs :) In order to be able to play for the Kennemer Combinatie you
need to able to scream well, needless to say, when I did my audition, I passed
the exam summa cum laude! My opponent, David Klein used to be quite a gifted
boy, unfortunately he didn't always show up when I was giving training; today
I made him pay for that.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 {In most of my games I
play Nf3 here, but first of of all I was sure my opponent had prepared very
well for this game, since I had the feeling this was the most important game
of his life :) Secondly I noticed he had one obscure game in the Nimzo, so I
wanted to test him there.} Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 Bxc3+ {Not the most common move,
that's why it caught my interest.} 6. bxc3 Qa5 7. Qd3 ({More often they
continue here with} 7. Bd2 {but this bishop looks quite stupid on d2, doesn't
it?}) 7... b6 8. Bg2 Bb7 9. d5 $5 {I must say I hadn't prepared particularly
well for this game (I mean: why would I ? :) and the move played was already
an over the board inspiration. However I had the feeling, once I allow ...Be4,
things are pretty much ok for Black. Here however, David makes a serious
mistake, not so much the move played, although it's a bad move, it was more
how he handled the situation} O-O $2 {His biggest mistake, in my opinion is,
once you are faced with a surprise, you should take your time. But he didn't.
Not only that, when your opponent sacrifices a pawn, it's refutation normally
starts with accepting it. But he didn't, probably because it looked a bit
scary, so he chose the lazy (but not very good) castling kingside.} (9... exd5
$1 {would have taken up the challenge} 10. Qe3+ (10. cxd5 Bxd5 11. O-O {
looks similar to what was played in the game}) 10... Kf8 (10... Ne4 {is
probably also possible}) 11. O-O dxc4 12. Qf4 {and this is just a very unclear
position!}) 10. O-O $2 {Doesn't punish Black.} (10. Bg5 {was my original
intention, however I simply wrongly evaluated that after} Ne4 11. O-O f5 12.
Rfc1 {followed by Bf4, Black has serious problems to complete his development.}
({by the way} 12. dxe6 dxe6 13. Nd2 Nc6 14. Nxe4 Ne5 15. Qd6 Nf7 16. Qxe6 fxe4
{is also better for White})) 10... exd5 11. cxd5 Bxd5 12. Bg5 c4 13. Qf5 Ne4 ({
My idea was that after} 13... Bc6 14. Qxa5 bxa5 15. Bxf6 gxf6 16. Rfd1 {
although Black is a pawn up (for what it's worth), the endgame is pretty
hopeless with my knight soon landing on f5 for example.}) 14. Be7 g6 15. Qf4
Re8 $2 {Here David commits his 2nd (and fatal this time) mistake. Once again
it's a crucial moment in the game. First of all he had some options, in this
case trying to regain the initiative. Being able to change the course of the
game is an important weapon, since many don't react well to a change of
circumstances. Last but not least, he had a nice trick up his sleeve, but did
I really miss that? Maybe he was just being naive there. At least, once again
he should have double-checked it.} ({After} 15... Nc6 16. Bxf8 Rxf8 17. Rfc1
Nxc3 18. Qd2 Na4 $1 {it would still have been a tough game.}) 16. Bb4 Nxc3 $2 {
With a lot of force David took here on c3. Kramnik looked a bit confused, who
is this guy?, and didn't he just blunder? :)} 17. Bxc3 Qxc3 18. Ng5 Qe5 19.
Bxd5 Qxd5 20. e4 {The "little"detail David had missed but shouldn't have
missed. The most logical move would have been 20.Rad1, but then there is still
...Qf5. If you think a little bit further, you realise e4 attacks the queen
and prevents ...Qf5 as well. So I sent David back to bed crying but it seems 
(?) he has learned his lesson well, because in the Dutch League he has been a
good boy (finally!).} 1-0

[Event "Gibraltar Masters 13th"]
[Site "Caleta"]
[Date "2015.02.04"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Vitiugov, Nikita"]
[Black "Mareco, Sandro"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2735"]
[BlackElo "2583"]
[Annotator "Vitiugov,N"]
[PlyCount "121"]
[EventDate "2015.01.27"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "GGB"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 165"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.03.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.03.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{This game was played in the ninth round. I had +4, and was intending to
improve my result} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 {Black has a lot of
options here, but this is the most principled.} 5. g3 Nc6 ({Top players think
that} 5... cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 {is the most solid line.}) 6. Bg2 Ne4 7.
Bd2 Nxd2 8. Qxd2 cxd4 9. Nxd4 Ne5 {An inaccuracy. Black must not have known
White's reply.} (9... Qb6 {is the most modern reaction.}) (9... O-O $5) 10. Nf3
$1 {That's the point.} Qc7 {A new, reasonable move} (10... Nxc4 11. Qd4 d5 12.
Qxg7 Rf8 13. O-O $14) (10... Nxf3+ 11. Bxf3 O-O 12. Rc1 a6 13. O-O Qc7 14. Rfd1
Rd8 15. Qg5 h6 16. Qh4 Bf8 17. c5 $36 {1-0 Inarkiev,E (2625)-Khismatullin,D 
(2568)/Tomsk 2006/CBM 114 ext (45)}) 11. Nxe5 Qxe5 12. Rc1 Rb8 13. O-O {
I felt it was an important moment, but perhaps wasn't able to find the most
exact move order.} (13. a3 Be7 14. O-O {was better and after} O-O 15. b4 a6 16.
Rfd1 f5 {the position from the game appeared.}) 13... a6 $6 (13... b5 $5 14.
cxb5 Rxb5 (14... Qxb5 $2 15. Qd4 $1 $18) (14... O-O 15. a3 (15. a4 a6 16. bxa6
Qa5 $44) 15... Bxc3 16. Rxc3 Qxb5 17. Rfc1 $14) 15. a3 (15. Nd5 $5 exd5 16.
Rxc8+ Ke7 17. Qd3 Rxc8 18. Qxb5 Qxb2 19. Bxd5 Rc1 {with a very comfortable
endgame, but it is unlikely it would be enough to win the game}) (15. Nxb5 $6
Bxd2 16. Rxc8+ Ke7 17. Rxh8 Qxb5 $132) 15... Bxc3 16. Rxc3 O-O 17. Rfc1 Bb7 {
and White had some pressure, but nothing special} 18. b4 (18. Qxd7 Bxg2 19.
Kxg2 Rxb2 20. Rc8 Rb8 21. Rxb8 Qxb8) (18. a4 Rb4 19. Qxd7 Bxg2 20. Kxg2 Qxe2)
18... Bxg2 19. Kxg2 $14) 14. a3 Be7 15. Rfd1 f5 {This was a necessity.} (15...
O-O 16. Ne4 $1 {and it would be too easy a game for White.}) 16. b4 O-O 17. c5
$6 {I wasn't sure about this move, and I may have been right, but the
alternative wasn't clear for me.} (17. f4 Qc7 18. e4 g5 $5) 17... b6 18. Na4
bxc5 19. Nxc5 d5 20. e3 {Black has a strong centre, but I knew my next 8-10
moves and was pretty happy with my position.} Qd6 21. Rc2 Rd8 22. h4 Qb6 23.
Rdc1 Qa7 $6 {A bad square for the queen anyway and also it gave me a great
opportunity.} 24. Nb3 Bd7 25. Na5 Rbc8 26. Nc6 ({Of course, White would have
some advantage after} 26. Rxc8 Rxc8 27. Rxc8+ Bxc8 28. Nc6 Qd7 29. Nxe7+ Qxe7
30. Qc3 Bb7 {but it is smaller than it looks.}) 26... Bxc6 27. Rxc6 Rxc6 28.
Rxc6 Kf7 (28... Rd6 $2 29. Rxd6 Bxd6 30. Bxd5 Kf7 31. Bc4 $18) 29. Qe2 $1 {
An important move.} Rd6 30. Qh5+ Kf8 31. Rc8+ {I went for a forced line with a
bishop sacrifice.} (31. Rxd6 {was more playable, but in my opinion not so
strong} Bxd6 32. Qxh7 Be5 $16) 31... Rd8 32. Qxh7 (32. Rxd8+ $6 Bxd8 33. Qxh7
Qf7 $14) 32... Rxc8 33. Qh8+ Kf7 34. Qxc8 a5 35. Bxd5 {The only move.} exd5 36.
Qxf5+ Ke8 37. Qc8+ Kf7 38. Qf5+ Ke8 39. Qxd5 axb4 $2 (39... a4 $1 {Objectively
speaking, it was the last chance for Black. White would never be able to
exchange queens because of this key a-pawn. I am not sure about the evaluation,
but White's task would become more difficult.}) 40. axb4 Qb6 41. b5 Bc5 42.
Qg8+ Bf8 43. Qc4 Bc5 44. Kg2 Qb7+ $2 {This didn't change too much, but I don't
understand why he should help his opponent.} (44... Ke7 $5) (44... g6 $5) 45.
e4 Qb6 46. f3 Ke7 47. e5 Bd4 48. f4 Qb7+ 49. Qc6 $1 $18 {The final touch. The
queens will be exchanged and four pawns are enough to beat the bishop.} Qa7 50.
Qd6+ Ke8 51. Qa6 Qd7 52. Qc6 Qxc6+ 53. bxc6 Kd8 54. h5 Kc7 55. g4 Bc5 56. g5
Kxc6 57. h6 gxh6 58. g6 Bf8 59. f5 Kd5 60. f6 Ke6 61. Kh3 ({I was very
disappointed that} 61. Kh1 {didn't win} h5 62. Kg2 Bh6 63. Kh1 Bf8 {and the
king had to go to h5.}) 1-0

[Event "Bundesliga 9900"]
[Site "Germany"]
[Date "2000.03.12"]
[Round "12.1"]
[White "Khenkin, Igor"]
[Black "Rozentalis, Eduardas"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2622"]
[BlackElo "2553"]
[Annotator "Wells,P"]
[PlyCount "75"]
[EventDate "1999.10.09"]
[EventType "team-tourn"]
[EventRounds "15"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 076"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2000.05.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2000.05.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Tegernsee"]
[BlackTeam "Castrop Rauxel"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "GER"]
[BlackTeamCountry "GER"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 c6 $5 {[%csl Rc3]
[%cal Yc4d5,Gc6d5,Gc8c3,Ge6e5,Gb7b6,Gc8a6] Of course the moves ...c6 ...e6 ...
d5 combined with the exchange of the black squared bishop make a strange
impression. The only comparable case I can think of is the Marshall Gambit
where at least after 1 d4 d5 2 c4 e6 3 Nc3 c6 4 e4 dxe4 5 Nxe4 Bb4+ white has
to give up a pawn after 6 Bd2 Qxd4 7 Bxb4 Qxe4+ or after 6 Nc3 c5 7 a3 Bxc3+
black can at least argue that white has lost some time with his knight. So
what is the argument here? Black has several ideas: 1) He might want to play ..
.b6 and ...Ba6 to challenge white's bishop pair by seeking to exchange
light-squared bishops. Here ...c6 provides a service in that any cxd5 he can
force can be recaptured with the c-pawn, which might leave white's remaining
c-pawn rather unhappy. In fact this can be regarded as a general argument for .
..c6 - black prepares to recapture on d5 towards the centre! 2) He prefers to
challenge in the centre with ...e5 than with the more traditional ...c5.  3)
On occasions, despite the absence of a bishop to cover the black squares, he
can consider ...dxc4 and clinging onto the pawn 'a la Semi-Slav Botvinnik
variation'. Of course the fact that white has a pawn and not a knight on c3
impacts upon the strength of this plan. Whatever the ultimate merits of this
fascinating move, its list of adherents continues to impress - Nenashev,
Dautov, Shariyazdanov and Rozentalis himself, to name but a few.} 7. Qc2 $5 {
This appears at first to be a rather unassuming reaction, but white wishes to
play e4 at a moment where the pawn is protected by more than just a tactical
trick, and thereby, as we shall see, extend his range of options for dealing
with black's central counterthrust ...e5. The initial evidence is rather
encouraging.} ({To get a better idea of what this all means we should take a
look at the most direct move} 7. e4 dxe4 8. fxe4 e5 $1 (8... Nxe4 $2 9. Qg4 $16
) 9. Nf3 Qa5 (9... Nxe4 $5) 10. Qd3 exd4 (10... Nxe4 $5 {is also given by
Dautov. His variation and conclusion both look sound, although of course such
an approach is not without risks.} 11. Qxe4 Qxc3+ 12. Kf2 Qxa1 13. Qxe5+ Be6
14. Qxg7 Rf8 15. Be2 Nd7 16. Rd1 {It is difficult for white to do more than
win back his material since there is no d5 break in the position.} O-O-O 17.
Bg5 Qb2 $1 {[%csl Yd4][%cal Yb2g7]} 18. Bxd8 Rxd8 $11) 11. Bd2 dxc3 12. Bxc3
Qd8 13. Qxd8+ Kxd8 14. O-O-O+ {and already agreed drawn in Volkov,S
-Rashkovsky,N/Biel MTO 1999. So later he was willing to have another go, but
it does not so convincing for white, although as Dautov related in CBM 74, the
tempo of white's moves here betrayed a man well-prepared.} Ke7 {Drawing the
bishop to b4 in order to gain a tempo later with ...Na6. However the bishop
will be well placed on d6 and therefore} (14... Ke8 $5 {might be considered.})
15. Bb4+ Ke8 16. Bd3 Na6 17. Bd6 Nd7 $1 {[%csl Gc5]} 18. Rhe1 Ndc5 19. Bc2 $1
Be6 20. Nd4 Bxc4 21. Nf5 Ne6 {1/2-1/2 Volkov,S-Dautov,R/Batumi GEO 1999 (69)
and white had dangerous compensation for two pawns, although black's resources
are sufficient with careful defence - see CBM 74 for notes by Dautov.}) ({
It is also possible, and has been the most common reply to settle for the
genuinely modest} 7. e3 {Here of those described above plan 1). is more likely
to come into operation.} O-O (7... b6 8. cxd5 cxd5 9. Bb5+ Bd7 $5 (9... Nbd7
10. a4 a6 11. Bd3 O-O 12. Ne2 e5 13. O-O Re8 14. Ng3 Qc7 15. Qb3 Bb7 16. Bd2
Rac8 17. Rae1 e4 $13 {0-1 Lerner,K-Rozentalis,E/Groningen 1997/CBM 63 (50)})
10. Bd3 Nc6 11. Ne2 e5 {Plan 2) plays a role too!} 12. Ng3 O-O 13. O-O Re8 14.
e4 $6 (14. Bd2 $13) 14... exd4 15. cxd4 dxe4 16. Bxe4 $6 Nxe4 17. fxe4 Bg4 18.
Qxg4 Qxd4+ 19. Kh1 Qxa1 20. Bh6 f5 $1 21. Qxf5 Qf6 $17 {0-1 Bozinovic,
B-Shariyazdanov,A/Zadar 1999/CBM 73 ext (52)}) 8. Bd3 (8. Nh3 b6 9. cxd5 cxd5
10. a4 Qc7 11. Bd2 Ba6 12. Bxa6 Nxa6 13. Qe2 Nb8 14. O-O Nbd7 15. e4 e5 $5 {
A recurring theme, which leads to great tension in the centre.} 16. Nf2 Rfe8
17. Rfe1 Rac8 18. a5 bxa5 19. Qb5 dxe4 20. fxe4 exd4 21. cxd4 Qc4 22. Qxc4 {
1/2-1/2 Bareev,E-Rozentalis,E/Leningrad 1990/URS-ch (22)}) (8. cxd5 cxd5 9. c4
b6 10. cxd5 exd5 11. Bd3 Ba6 12. Ne2 Bxd3 13. Qxd3 Nc6 14. Ng3 Qd7 15. Bd2 $13
{1/2-1/2 Borg,G-Sturua,Z/Zonal 1998 (15)}) 8... b6 9. cxd5 (9. e4 $5 dxe4 10.
fxe4 Nxe4 11. Nf3 f5 12. O-O $13) (9. Ne2 Ba6 10. cxd5 Bxd3 11. Qxd3 cxd5 12.
O-O Qc8 13. e4 Qa6 14. Qe3 Nc6 15. e5 Nd7 $13 {[%csl Rb3,Rc4][%cal Yf3f5,Ye2g3,
Gc6a5,Ga8c8,Ye2f4,Yf4h5] This might be regarded as a 'typical' position that
this variation could be expected to produce. White has reasonable chances on
the king-side, while black can produce counterplay/distraction on the
queenside light-squares and the c-file. It is interesting that in most of the
other examples cited here, both sides employ quite radical ideas to avoid this
interesting structure.} 16. Nf4 Rae8 17. a4 f6 $5 18. exf6 Nxf6 19. Ba3 Rf7 20.
Rfe1 e5 {1/2-1/2 Bagirov,R-Palac,M/Biel 1998/EXT 99 (20)}) 9... cxd5 {[%cal
Yc8a6]} 10. Ne2 (10. e4 $6 dxe4 11. fxe4 Nxe4 12. Nf3 Bb7 13. Qc2 f5 (13... Nf6
14. O-O $44 {[%cal Yc1g5]}) 14. O-O Nd7 15. c4 Rc8 16. Qe2 e5 $1 $17 {0-1
Liardet,F-Nenashev,A/Geneva 1999 (23)}) 10... Ba6 11. Bc2 {[%cal Ga6e2,Gc2h7]
Risky!} (11. e4 $5) 11... Qc7 12. O-O Rc8 13. Rf2 Bxe2 14. Qxe2 Qxc3 15. Bb2
Qc7 16. e4 Nc6 17. e5 Nd7 18. f4 $44 f5 19. exf6 Nxf6 20. Qxe6+ Qf7 21. Bf5 Rc7
22. Qxf7+ Kxf7 23. Rc1 g6 24. Bh3 Rd8 25. Rfc2 Rd6 26. a4 Ng8 $14 {1/2-1/2
Malaniuk,V-Ivanov,A/Katowice 1991/EXT 97 (52)}) 7... O-O {and with this highly
natural response we are already in new territory. Chess? Inexhaustible?} (7...
dxc4 {Looks a bit greedy, although consistent as an attempt to exploit white's
last.} 8. e4 b5 9. a4 Nbd7 10. Ba3 Qc7 11. Ne2 a6 12. e5 $40 Nd5 13. Bd6 {
[%csl Yd6] Again a comparison with the Marshall Gambit comes to mind. I am in
no doubt that white has enough for the pawn, although black's position might
not be as bad as it looks ( which is just as well ).} Qd8 14. Ng3 (14. Qd2 $5)
14... Qg5 15. Qd2 Qxd2+ 16. Kxd2 f5 17. exf6 gxf6 18. Be2 Bb7 19. Ne4 Rg8 20.
Bg3 Ke7 21. Rhb1 {[%csl Rb7]} c5 22. Bxc4 cxd4 23. cxd4 N7b6 24. Bd3 Bc6 25.
Rc1 Bd7 26. Nc5 Nxa4 27. Nxa4 bxa4 28. Bxh7 Rgc8 29. Rc5 Rxc5 30. dxc5 e5 31.
Be4 Bc6 32. Bxd5 Bxd5 33. Rxa4 Bc6 34. Ra5 $14 {1/2-1/2 Moskalenko,V-Vehi Bach,
V/Paretana 1999/CBM 74 ext (53)}) (7... b6 8. cxd5 cxd5 9. e4 Bb7 10. Bb5+ $1
Bc6 11. a4 dxe4 12. fxe4 O-O 13. e5 Nd5 14. Nf3 {[%cal Yf3g5]} h6 15. O-O Qc7
16. Be2 $1 ({Still better than} 16. c4 Bxb5 17. axb5 Rc8 18. Ra4 a5 19. Bd2 {
As black is cramped, the avoidance of exchanges leaves his pieces badly
tangled up.}) 16... Bb7 17. c4 Rc8 18. Qd2 Ne7 19. Ba3 $16 {1-0 Sakaev,
K-Yudasin,L/St.Petersburg 1997/CBM 59 (49) White has more space on all fronts.}
) 8. cxd5 $1 {White is intending to answer his opponent's subsequent ...e5
break with the push of the d-pawn, and does not want a couple of ugly c-pawns
trailing behind.} (8. e4 dxe4 9. fxe4 e5 $13) 8... cxd5 9. e4 dxe4 10. fxe4 e5
11. d5 $1 {The point - by first securing his e-pawn, white has this new and
useful option, and while the resulting pawn structure is not without some
counterchances for black, it looks relatively healthy from white's point of
view.} Qa5 {With the benefit of hindsight, we can say that even though black
is able to fully mobilise his forces to decent looking squares, he has
problems creating really telling counterplay and, in the absence of pawn
breaks never looks like equalising in the face of white's undoubted asset -
the supported passed d-pawn.} ({Although it looks a little radical and single
minded to concentrate on the ...f5 break right away, when this entails
retreating one of the few developed pieces in the position, I am tempted by
the idea of} 11... Ne8 $5 {[%cal Gf7f5] here.} 12. Nf3 (12. Bd3 Nd6) 12... f5
13. Bd3 Nd6 14. O-O (14. Bg5 Qb6) 14... fxe4 15. Bxe4 Qb6+ (15... Bf5 16. Bxf5
Rxf5 17. Be3 Nd7) 16. Kh1 Bf5 (16... Nxe4 $6 17. Qxe4 {[%csl Re5]}) 17. Bxf5
Rxf5 $13 {and although black's position looks a little loose, this does not
seem easy to exploit, while he now has some trumps of his own, including
ironically, tyhe more mobile passed pawn.}) 12. Bd3 Nbd7 13. Nf3 Re8 (13...
Nxe4 $4 {does not work after} 14. Bxe4 f5 15. Bxf5 Rxf5 16. Qxf5 Qxc3+ 17. Ke2
Qxa1 18. Qe6+ Kf8 19. Ng5 $18) ({However, there might still be a case for
prioritising the blockade with} 13... Ne8 14. Bd2 (14. a4 Nd6 15. Ba3 Qc7)
14... Nd6 15. c4 Qc7 {[%cal Gf7f6,Gd7c5]}) 14. O-O Nc5 15. c4 Bg4 16. Be3 Rac8
(16... Bxf3 $5) 17. Nd2 Nfd7 18. Rfb1 Qc7 19. a4 Bh5 20. a5 Bg6 21. Be2 Nf6 22.
Bf3 $14 {[%csl Yd5] As I mentioned before black's problem is a lack of a means
to generate counterplay.} b6 23. Rb5 Nfd7 24. Bg4 Rb8 25. Bxd7 Nxd7 26. Rab1
Rec8 27. Qb3 Ra8 28. Qb4 $16 {[%csl Rb6][%cal Yc4c5,Yd5d6,Rb6a5]} Nf6 29. axb6
axb6 30. Rxb6 Qa7 (30... Nxe4 31. Rxg6 $16 Nxd2 $2 32. Rc6 $18) 31. c5 $18 Ng4
(31... Bxe4 32. Nxe4 Nxd5 33. Qb3 $18) 32. Qb3 Qe7 33. d6 Qd8 34. h3 Nf6 35.
Qd3 Nd7 36. c6 Nxb6 37. Bxb6 Qf8 38. c7 {[%cal Yd6d7,Yb1c1,Yg1h1]} 1-0

[Event "RUS-ch 54th"]
[Site "Elista"]
[Date "2001.04.30"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Potapov, Alexander"]
[Black "Pigusov, Evgeny"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2490"]
[BlackElo "2584"]
[Annotator "Wells,P"]
[PlyCount "110"]
[EventDate "2001.04.29"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 083"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2001.07.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2001.07.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 c5 5. Nf3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 Ne4 7. Qd3 Bxc3+ 8.
bxc3 Nc5 9. Qe3 b6 10. Bg2 Bb7 11. Bxb7 Nxb7 12. Qe4 {[%csl Rb7,Rc3,Rc4][%cal
Gb8c6,Ga8c8]} Nc6 $1 (12... d5 $6 13. cxd5 Qxd5 14. Qxd5 exd5 15. Nb5 $36) 13.
Nxc6 (13. Ba3 $5) 13... dxc6 14. Qxc6+ $2 {Surely this cannot be right. White
has no right to be overjoyed at the outome of the opening, but can at least
point to the fact that he has closed the c-file which gives his c-pawns a
fighting chance!} (14. O-O $5) (14. Bg5 $5) 14... Qd7 15. Qxd7+ Kxd7 16. Ba3
Rhc8 17. O-O-O+ Ke8 $15 {[%csl Rc3,Rc4]} 18. Rd4 Rc7 19. Rhd1 Rac8 20. Kc2 Na5
21. c5 b5 22. Bb4 Nb7 23. a4 bxa4 24. c6 Rxc6 25. Rd7 R8c7 26. Rxc7 Rxc7 27.
Rd4 Rc6 28. Ba3 Ra6 29. Kd3 Nd8 30. f4 h5 31. Rb4 Kd7 32. Rb5 g6 33. c4 Rb6 34.
Bc5 Rxb5 35. cxb5 Nb7 36. Bxa7 Nd6 37. Bd4 Nxb5 38. Be5 Kc6 39. Kc4 a3 40. Kb4
a2 41. Kc4 Nd6+ 42. Kb3 Kd5 43. Kxa2 Nf5 44. Kb3 Ne3 45. Kc3 Ke4 46. Bd4 h4 47.
Ba7 h3 48. Bc5 f6 49. Bd4 g5 50. fxg5 fxg5 51. Ba7 Nf1 52. Bg1 Nxh2 53. Bxh2
Ke3 54. g4 Kxe2 55. Kd4 Kf3 0-1

[Event "EU-ch 1st"]
[Site "Saint Vincent"]
[Date "2000.07.10"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Yakovich, Yuri"]
[Black "Lalic, Bogdan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2585"]
[BlackElo "2520"]
[Annotator "Wells,P"]
[PlyCount "46"]
[EventDate "2000.07.03"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "ITA"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 078"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2000.10.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2000.10.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 $5 c5 5. d5 d6 (5... Nh5 $5 {Is another
fun line which was popular about a decade ago, and for which I feel some
nostalgia. I really hope white succeeds in repairing a couple of problem lines
( see my notes to Volkov - Yevseev in this CBM ) and that 4 f3 returns to
fashion.} 6. Nh3 $1 Qh4+ 7. Nf2 Qxc4 8. e4 Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 Qxc3+ 10. Bd2 Qd4 11.
Qc1 exd5 12. Bc3 Qa4 13. Qg5 Qa3 (13... O-O 14. Qxh5 d4 15. Bd2 d6 16. Be2 Be6
17. O-O Nc6 18. f4 f6 19. Rfb1 Rab8 20. Bb5 Qc2 21. Qe2 a6 22. Rc1 Qb2 23. Bc4
Bxc4 24. Qxc4+ Kh8 25. Be1 Qb6 26. Rab1 Qd8 27. a4 $14 {1-0 Simantsev,
M-Shishkin,V/Bank Zachodni Open, Swidnica POL 1999 (50) I prefer the piece to
the pawns in almost all these lines.}) 14. Bxg7 (14. Nd1 $1 d4 15. Bd2 d6 16.
Qxh5 Nc6 17. Bc4 $14 {Wells}) 14... Qb4+ {1/2-1/2 Karolyi,T-Orso,M/HUN 1998/
EXT 2000.}) (5... b5 6. e4 bxc4 7. Bxc4 Nxd5 8. Bxd5 exd5 9. Qxd5 Nc6 10. Nge2
Ba6 11. Kf2 $14 {does not give black equality. The bishop on b4 is somehow out
on a limb, while the backward d-pawn combines with a certain vulnerability of
black's king-side togive white real play.}) 6. e4 O-O (6... Bxc3+ $5 7. bxc3 e5
8. Bd3 Nbd7 9. Ne2 Nf8 10. Be3 h6 11. Qd2 Ng6 12. O-O {My general opinion is
that white is also a little better in these slower manouevering positions. The
knights are supposed to like such blocked structures of course but white has
far more plausible breaks. In this example, black negotiated the problems well.
} Bd7 13. Ng3 Qc7 14. Rab1 O-O-O 15. Rb2 Kb8 16. Rfb1 Ka8 17. Rxb7 Qxb7 18.
Rxb7 Kxb7 19. Ne2 Rb8 20. Nc1 Ka8 21. Nb3 Rhc8 22. Qc1 Be8 23. Qa3 Nd7 24. g3
Ne7 25. Bf1 Rc7 26. Qa6 Rb6 $11 {1-0 Yakovich,Y-Ibragimov,I/Sochi 1997/CBM 62 
(80)}) 7. Nge2 (7. Bd3 {rather invites} b5 $1 8. Nge2 Nbd7 $5 9. dxe6 fxe6 10.
cxb5 Ne5 11. Bf4 (11. Bc2 d5 $132) 11... Nxd3+ 12. Qxd3 d5 13. exd5 exd5 14.
O-O d4 15. Ne4 Nxe4 16. fxe4 (16. Qxe4 Bf5 $32) 16... Be6 $44 {0-1 Moskalenko,
V-Kiselev,S/Moscow 1996/Inf 68 (43)}) 7... Nh5 (7... Re8 8. Ng3 Bxc3+ 9. bxc3
Qa5 10. Bd2 Bd7 11. Be2 Ba4 $6 12. Qc1 Nbd7 13. O-O a6 14. Bf4 $1 Qc7 (14... e5
$6 15. Bg5 {[%cal Gg3f5]}) 15. Rb1 Nf8 16. h4 b5 17. Qd2 Ng6 18. Bg5 Nd7 19. h5
Ngf8 20. h6 g6 {[%csl Rf6,Rg7]} 21. f4 Rab8 22. e5 $5 exd5 23. cxd5 dxe5 24. d6
Qc6 25. Be7 c4 26. f5 $40 {1-0 Wells,P-King,D/London 1991/CBM 24 (43)}) (7...
b5 8. Ng3 $1 exd5 (8... bxc4 9. Bxc4 exd5 $140 10. Bxd5 $16) 9. cxd5 a6 10. Be2
Nbd7 11. O-O c4 12. Be3 Re8 13. Kh1 Bc5 14. Bxc5 Nxc5 15. b4 $1 {In general,
these Benoni type structures arising from the Nimzo-Indian seem a little
suspicious for black. The Benoni itself gains its force from the counterplay
which the g7 bishop promotes. Here white seizes the opportunity to show that
his knights can head for more promising squares than black's unpromising
light-squared bishop can contain.} cxb3 16. axb3 b4 (16... Bb7 {[%csl Rf5]
[%cal Yg3f5]}) (16... Bd7 17. b4 Nb7 {[%csl Rb7]} (17... Na4 18. Nxa4 bxa4 19.
Qd4 {[%csl Ra4][%cal Ye2d1]})) 17. Nb5 {[%cal Gb5d4,Gd4c6,Gg3f5]} Qb6 18. Nd4
Bd7 19. Qd2 a5 20. Bc4 h6 21. Nc6 $1 Bxc6 22. dxc6 Qxc6 23. Nf5 {[%csl Yc4,Yf5]
and white's instructive pawn offer has secured him truly superb minor pieces.
V.Milov - N.de Firmian, Biel 1995 1-0 (40).}) 8. g4 Qh4+ ({It is also possible
to exchange immediately on c3, at a moment which at least guarantees that
white must recapture with the pawn. This of course also avoids the possibility
( which black experiences but survives in the game here ) of the c3 knight
later moving, leaving the b4 bishop in a sense 'stranded' out of play. However,
there are also advantages to delaying the exchange - the pin is more effective
than inflicting the doubled c-pawns, for example in the event that black
wishes to create play with ...b5. For the record white had an edge after} 8...
Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 Qh4+ 10. Kd2 Nf6 11. Qe1 Qxe1+ 12. Kxe1 Nbd7 13. Ng3 Nb6 14. Bf4
Rd8 15. Kd2 Ne8 16. Bd3 Bd7 17. h4 {in 1/2-1/2 Giorgadze,G-Vaganian,R/Odessa
1989/URS-ch (19)}) 9. Kd2 Nf6 10. Qe1 $1 {This move is an important part of
white's strategy. In the middlegame the king on d2 and the pin on the c3
knight would constitute a serious handicap.} Qxe1+ 11. Kxe1 Nbd7 (11... b5 $6
12. a3 Ba5 13. Bf4 $1 e5 {[%csl Rf5]} 14. Bd2 bxc4 15. Ng3 Ba6 16. Nf5 Bc7 17.
Nd1 Nfd7 18. a4 g6 19. Nfe3 Nb6 20. a5 Nc8 21. Bxc4 Ne7 22. Ke2 f5 23. gxf5
gxf5 24. Rg1+ Kh8 25. Bxa6 Nxa6 26. f4 $5 fxe4 27. fxe5 dxe5 28. Nf2 Nb4 (28...
Rad8 29. Nxe4 Nxd5 30. Nxd5 Rxd5 31. Bh6 $40) 29. Bxb4 cxb4 30. Nxe4 $16 {
[%csl Rc7,Yd5,Ye4] 1-0 Wells,P-Helgason,R/Cappelle 1992/EXT 97 (47)}) 12. Kf2 (
12. Ng3 b5 $5 (12... Ne5 13. Be2 {[%csl Gf6][%cal Gf6e8,Yf3f4,Gb4e1,Gb7b5]
helps to throw light on how black's two potential breaks ( ...b5 and ...f5 )
together secure just about enough play. In contrast with the case of 13 Kf2,
white does not have to worry about ideas involving ...f5, since a move by the
f6 knight would enable the space-gaining 14 f4!. However, with the king still
on e1, counterplay with ...b5 remains an issue.} (13. Kf2 $5 {[%csl Rb4,Yb5]
[%cal Gb4e1,Gf6e8,Yf7f5] transposes to the main game.} Ne8 $1) 13... b5 $1 14.
g5 Nfd7 15. cxb5 exd5 16. exd5 Nb6 17. f4 Ng6 $13) 13. g5 Ne8 14. cxb5 exd5 15.
exd5 Nb6 (15... f6 $5) 16. Kf2 Bxc3 17. bxc3 Nxd5 18. Bd2 {1/2-1/2 Beliavsky,
A-Kortschnoj,V/Amsterdam 1990/CBM 20 (38)} Be6 19. a4 Nb6 20. a5 Nc4 21. Bc1
Nc7 $13 {Beliavsky.}) ({Another idea of black's move is to answer} 12. Bf4 {
with} Ne5 $1 ({as so often in these notes, the weakening of f5 involved in
playing} 12... e5 $6 {is well worth avoiding.} 13. Bd2 $36 {[%cal Ye2g3,Yh2h4]}
) 13. Bxe5 dxe5 $13 {-Ftacnik.}) 12... Ne5 13. Ng3 Ne8 $1 {[%cal Gf7f5,Yc8f5]}
(13... Nfd7 $2 14. Nb5) (13... Bxc3 $6 14. bxc3 b5 15. g5 Nfd7 16. cxb5 exd5
17. exd5 Nb6 18. f4 Ng4+ 19. Kf3 $14 {[%csl Rg4] Ftacnik. It looks even better
to me, since the threat of h3 is hard to meet, eg.} Nxd5 20. h3 Nxc3 21. Bd2
Bb7+ 22. Kxg4 Bxh1 23. Bxc3 $16) 14. Nd1 f5 15. gxf5 exf5 16. exf5 Bxf5 17.
Nxf5 Rxf5 18. f4 Nc7 {I wonder if this is a shade commital, since black does
not seem to have to worry unduly about a bishop landing on e6. Why not} (18...
Ng6 $5 19. Bd3 (19. Bh3 Rf8 20. Be6+ Kh8 21. Kg3 Nf6 $1 $132 {suddenly there
are a number of light-squares which our ambitious friend on e6 should be
covering.}) 19... Rf6 20. Kg3 Ne7 $13) 19. Kg3 Ng6 20. Bd3 Rf6 21. Nf2 Ne7 $1
22. Ne4 Nf5+ 23. Kf2 Rff8 $13 {[%csl Rb4,Rf2,Rf4,Gf5] An interesting position
brought to a premature close. I suspect that the slight weakness of white's f4
pawn, the f5 square associated with that weakness, and the potential slight
vulnerability of his king compensates the fact that the b4 bishop is out of
play. Even this piece helps to cover the e1 square, and the e-file is of
considerable potential importance here. It would have been interesting to test
this position further.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Vikings GM 2nd"]
[Site "York"]
[Date "2000.12.16"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Barsov, Alexei"]
[Black "Wells, Peter K"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2534"]
[BlackElo "2506"]
[Annotator "Wells,P"]
[PlyCount "64"]
[EventDate "2000.12.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[EventCategory "12"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 081"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2001.03.20"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2001.03.20"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8. O-O
$5 {My opponent's adoption of the Nf3/g3 variation against the Nimzo was
fairly easy to predict from the database. This move, however, popular during
the first wave of renewed interest in this variation in the mid-late 1980s, is
rarely seen these days, and came as a complete surprise. Alexei's explanation
for his choice was almost touching. He said that he had been reading my
annotations for ChessBase, and wanted to find a line which I hadn't yet
commented! What ammunition this job stacks up against me!} dxc4 9. Qa4 {
As usual, at my age, a surprise in the opening can result in extreme strain on
the resources of memory! At least this was the line against which I had some
recollection of a general set-up if not precise moves. In fact white has some
alternatives of which I was only very faintly aware, but neither} (9. Nc2 Bxc3
$1 10. bxc3 Qc7 11. Ne3 (11. Rb1 Nc6 $11) 11... Rd8 12. Qa4 Bd7 13. Qxc4 Qxc4
14. Nxc4 Bc6 $11) ({nor} 9. Bg5 h6 10. Bxf6 Qxf6 11. Ndb5 Nc6 12. Qa4 Qe5 $1
13. Rad1 a6 14. e3 Bd7 $1 15. Rxd7 axb5 16. Qxb5 $2 Bxc3 17. Rxb7 Qxb5 18. Rxb5
Na7 $19 {0-1 Speelman,J-Timman,J/London 1989/Candidates (31) look very
threatening.}) 9... Na6 10. Ndb5 (10. Rd1 $5 Bd7 11. Qc2 $13) 10... Nd5 {
This is about as much as I fully remembered, and it all seemed logical too.
Black fully protects the bishop on b4 and ensures that the c-pawn will not
simply be removed for no positional concession.} 11. Rd1 Qe8 $5 {Around here I
started to consume time, confirming the well-known saying that 'a little
knowledge is a dangerous thing'. I had a notion that at some early stage black
can capture on c3 to advantage, but I couldn't seem to make it work. Strangely,
in the post-mortem, my opponent also didn't seem very impressed by/ aware of
this idea, but in the cold light of day, it is difficult to fault} (11... Bxc3
$5 12. Nxc3 Nxc3 13. bxc3 Nc5 14. Qc2 Qc7 15. Ba3 {N} Rb8 16. Rd4 b6 $1 {
I think it was this idea which I overlooked. If you are fixated on keeping the
c4 pawn then the black squares can easily all collapse in a heap!} 17. Rxc4 Bb7
18. Bxb7 Rxb7 19. Rd1 Rbb8 20. Rcd4 Rbc8 21. Bxc5 Qxc5 22. Qa4 Qxc3 23. Qxa7
Qb2 24. R4d2 Qb5 $11 {Romanishin,O-Portisch,L/Reggio Emilia 1991/ (24). I
strongly suspect that this might be black's easiest route to equality.}) 12.
Nxd5 (12. Qc2 Bd7 13. Nxd5 {I.Sokolov - M.Gurevich,} exd5 14. Nc3 Bxc3 15. Qxc3
Bc6 16. Bxd5 Bxd5 17. Rxd5 Qxe2 18. Be3 $11 {Gurevich.}) 12... exd5 13. Bxd5 (
13. Rxd5 $6 Qxe2 $15 {should be one advantage of 11...Qe8 over 11...Bd7.})
13... Bd7 14. Bxc4 Rc8 15. Bd3 Nc5 $5 {[%mdl 8] An interesting novelty,
although I was of course unaware of this. I somehow didn't like the look of} (
15... Rc5 16. a3 Bxb5 17. Bxb5 Rxb5 18. axb4 Qxe2 19. Bd2 {[%csl Rb5]} Rf5 20.
Be3 {[%csl Ra6] 1-0 Volkov,N-Mitenkov,A/Pavlodar 1991/EXT 97 (33) when I
sensed that black's forces are rater uncoordinated, and the knight on a6 is
awful.}) 16. Qxb4 Nxd3 17. Rxd3 Bxb5 18. Re3 Qd7 {The opposite coloured
bishops and white's difficulty developing leave white no better alternative
than to head for a major piece ending as in the game.} 19. Bd2 $1 Rc2 20. Re7
Qxd2 21. Qxb5 Rxb2 22. Qa4 a6 23. Rd1 Qb4 24. Qd7 Rb1 $6 {Complicating the
task. There was not much wromg with the obvious} (24... Rxa2 $11) 25. Rxb1
Qxb1+ 26. Kg2 Qxa2 27. Qxb7 Qa4 28. e4 {[%cal Ye4e6] Still one idea to make
trouble!} g6 29. e5 Qd4 $1 {[%csl Gg7][%cal Gd4g7]} 30. h4 a5 31. h5 gxh5 32.
Qf3 Qg4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Rovno"]
[Site "Rovno"]
[Date "2000.??.??"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Gutman, Gennadi"]
[Black "Kushch, Nikolai"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2499"]
[BlackElo "2400"]
[Annotator "Wells,P"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[EventDate "2000.01.20"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "15"]
[EventCountry "UKR"]
[EventCategory "8"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 076"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2000.05.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2000.05.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 c5 5. Nf3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8. Qb3
{Before the recent trend for 8 cxd5 Nxd5 and only then 9 Qb3, the text was
quite popular. The game can take on an interesting blend of hypermodern and
classical ideas. White affords his opponent the opportunity to build a strong
pawn centre, but puts his faith in the bishop pair as a weapon to chip away at
it.} Bxc3+ 9. Qxc3 $5 {This had a vogue in the late 1980s/ early 1990s when
the alternative, as a result of games such as Kasparov-Suba looked in trouble.
I still believe it to be the best try, although I suspect that the entire 8
Qb3 system should in principle be OK for black.} (9. bxc3 Nc6 $5 {in my view
the most reliable. After both 9...dxc4 and 9...e5 white gets the sort of
activity he seeks, even if often at the expense of a pawn.} (9... dxc4 10. Qa3
$1 {[%cal Ya3f8,Yg2b7]} (10. Qxc4 e5 11. Nb5 a6 12. Nc7 Ra7 {[%cal Gb7b5]} 13.
Nd5 Nxd5 $11) 10... Nbd7 11. O-O Nb6 $5 {might be worth another look too.}) (
9... e5 10. Nb5 dxc4 11. Qa3 Bh3 $5 {was the latest defensive wrinkle, but by
means of a counter-tactic} 12. Bxh3 Qd5 13. O-O Qxb5 14. Rb1 $1 Qc6 (14... Qxb1
15. Qxf8+ Kxf8 16. Ba3+ {when black can do no better than minimise his
disadvantage with} Qb4 $1 17. Bxb4+ Ke8 18. Bc8 a5 $14) 15. Rd1 Nbd7 16. Be3 {
Shchukin,D - Aseev,K/St.Petersburg (ch) 1998, CBM 65 1-0 (31) Tisdall. White
has typical compensation based on the bishop pair and open lines.}) 10. cxd5
Na5 $1 {This is the point - black exploits the weak c4 point with admirable
directness.} 11. Qc2 Nxd5 {[%csl Rc4][%cal Ga5c4]} 12. Qd3 (12. Ba3 Re8 13. Qd3
Bd7 14. Nf5 $5 exf5 15. Bxd5 Bc6 16. Rd1 Bxd5 17. Qxd5 Qc7 (17... Qxd5 $5 18.
Rxd5 Nc4 {must be fine for black.}) 18. Bb4 Nc4 19. Qxf5 Rad8 20. O-O a5 21.
Bc5 Nd2 22. Rfe1 g6 23. Qc2 Qxc5 24. Rxd2 Rc8 25. Rb1 Re7 {1/2-1/2 Ftacnik,
L-Palkovi,J/BL9596 1996/BL 90 (34) and black had to struggle a bit but
eventually held.}) (12. O-O Qc7 13. e4 Nb6 14. Ba3 Rd8 15. Nb5 Qc6 16. Rfc1 Bd7
17. Nd6 Qa4 18. Qxa4 Bxa4 19. Rab1 Nac4 20. Nxc4 Nxc4 21. Bc5 Rdc8 22. Rb4 Rxc5
23. Rxa4 a5 $1 {[%csl Ra4]} 24. e5 Rb8 25. Rb1 b5 26. Bf1 Rbc8 $17 {0-1
Gormally,D-Parker,J/Hastings 1995/CBM 48 ext (40)}) (12. c4 $4 Nb4 $19 {
[%cal Gd8d4,Gb4c2] is of course the tactical point backing up this fine
positional stuff.}) 12... Qc7 $1 {[%csl Rc4]} 13. O-O Bd7 14. e4 Nb6 15. f4 e5
16. fxe5 Nac4 17. g4 Nxe5 18. Qg3 Nbc4 19. Bf4 Qc5 20. Rae1 Rad8 $15 {1/2-1/2
Kasparov,G-Suba,M/Dubai 1986 (63)}) 9... e5 10. Nb3 Nc6 ({If black wants to
prioritise the blunting of whites's potentially powerful bishop on g2, there
is an attractive simplicity about Tiviakov's approach viz:} 10... dxc4 $5 11.
Qxc4 (11. Na5 $5 {might be a more critical test, eg.} Nd5 12. Qd2 (12. Qxc4 $6
Qxa5+ 13. Bd2 Nb6 14. Qxc8 Qxd2+ 15. Kxd2 Rxc8 16. Bxb7 Nc6 $15 {Wells}) 12...
Nc6 13. Nxc4 Be6 14. O-O b5 $5 {I am not sure whether this potential weakening
is fully justified, or an example of the psychological imperative to be active
at all costs when enjoying a dynamic advantage ( development ) against a
static one ( the bishop pair ).} (14... Nf4 $5 15. gxf4 Bxc4 16. fxe5 Qxd2 17.
Bxd2 Nxe5 18. Rfe1 {Might fall under the same suspicion.}) (14... Nb6 $5) 15.
Na3 a6 16. Nc2 Rc8 17. e4 Nb6 18. b3 $14 {o. Thorsteins,K-Browne,W/Reykjavik 
(open) 1990/Inf 49/.}) 11... Be6 12. Qh4 {[%cal Yg2b7]} Bd5 $1 {[%cal Gd5g2]}
13. Bxd5 Qxd5 14. O-O Nbd7 $1 {[%cal Gd7f6]} (14... Nc6 $6 15. Bg5 Ne4 16. Rfd1
{[%csl Re4]} Nd4 17. Nxd4 exd4 18. Be3 $16) 15. Bg5 Qb5 16. Rfe1 a5 {[%csl Rb3]
} 17. Nd2 Qxb2 18. Nc4 Qc2 19. Bxf6 Nxf6 20. Nxe5 b5 21. Ng4 Nxg4 22. Qxg4 b4
$15 {[%csl Ya5,Yb4][%cal Yb4b3,Ya5a4] 0-1 Parker,J-Tiviakov,S/Port Erin 1999/
CBM 74 (39)}) (10... d4 {is also possible immediately, accepting that the
g2-a8 diagonal will have to be opened anyway, and that the role of the b8
knight is not yet so clear. The drawback is that white has the active move} 11.
Qa5 $1 {at his disposal.} Qe8 $1 {A favourite of the talented Rumanian GM
Mihail Suba who during some years in England produced many fine games, and a
great book 'Dynamic Chess Strategy'. The move is probably better than} (11...
Qe7 12. O-O (12. Qc5 Re8 $6 (12... Qe6 $5) 13. O-O Na6 14. Qxe7 Rxe7 15. f4 {
These endgames tend to favour white. The g2 bishop is vastly superior to its
opposite number, and black's centre is ripe to be undermined.} Ng4 16. h3 Ne3
17. Bxe3 dxe3 18. Rad1 Bf5 19. fxe5 Bc2 20. Rd6 Bxb3 21. axb3 Rf8 22. Bd5 Nb4
23. e6 Nxd5 24. exf7+ Rexf7 25. Rxf7 Kxf7 26. Rxd5 g6 27. Rd3 b5 28. Rxe3 Rc8
29. Rc3 $16 {1-0 Ward,C-Yu,S/Beijing 1993 (35)}) 12... Nc6 13. Qc5 Qe6 (13...
Qxc5 14. Nxc5 $14 {[%cal Yg2b7]}) (13... Qc7 $5 14. f4 Nd7 15. Qa3 a5 $1 $13 {
Dzhandzhava.}) 14. f4 Nd7 15. Qd5 Nb6 16. Qxe6 Bxe6 17. fxe5 (17. c5 $5) 17...
Nxc4 18. Nc5 {[%cal Gc5e6,Gc5b7,Yg2b7] The typical aggressive minor piece
formation for this variation.} Bg4 19. Nxb7 N4xe5 20. Rf2 Rab8 21. Bf4 Rxb7 22.
Bxe5 Rb5 23. Bd6 Rc8 24. Rc1 Nd8 25. Rxc8 Bxc8 26. b3 $14 {1-0 Olafsson,
H-Tisdall,J/Nordic zt 1992/CBM 31 (40) The bishop pair again!!}) 12. Bg5 $5 (
12. O-O Nc6 13. Qc7 $5 (13. Qa4 h6 {A hint that white should already have gone
for Bg5!? )} 14. Nc5 a5 15. a3 e4 16. b4 Qe7 17. Nb3 Rd8 18. Bb2 e3 $1 19. f4
Bh3 $3 {[%csl Ra4][%cal Gd8a8,Ga8d8] A glorious idea, connecting the rooks,
embarrassing white's queen and resolving the queenside tension such that black
will gain a big passed pawn on a3.} 20. Bxh3 axb4 21. Qb5 bxa3 22. Bc1 Ne4 {
[%cal Ge4c3]} 23. Bg4 d3 24. exd3 Rxd3 25. c5 Nf2 26. Rxf2 (26. Bf5 Rd5 27. Bb1
a2 28. Rxa2 Rxa2 29. Bxa2 Qe4 {-Wells/Fritz.}) 26... exf2+ 27. Kxf2 Qe4 28. Ra2
Qd5 29. Rd2 Rxd2+ (29... Rxb3 $5) 30. Bxd2 a2 31. Bf3 Qxf3+ 32. Kxf3 a1=Q 33.
Qxb7 Qh1+ 34. Ke3 Rb8 {0-1 Ward,C-Suba,M/Great Britain (ch) 1990/Inf 50 (34)
As I recall, this game beat me to the best game prize at the event. No
complaints there!}) 13... Qe6 14. Nc5 Qxc4 15. Nxb7 Bxb7 16. Qxb7 e4 17. Bf4
Qe6 18. Rac1 Ne7 19. f3 e3 20. Rfd1 $13 {1/2-1/2 Kumaran,D-Almasi,Z/Parana
1991 (20)}) (12. f4 $5 {-Orlov.}) 12... Nc6 13. Qc7 {I think I was to the
first to play this. White hopes ( with some good reason ) that the disruption
to black's development will outweigh any potential problems extricating the
queen.} Qe6 (13... Qd7 $1 14. Qxd7 Nxd7 {[%csl Rg5][%cal Gd7c5,Ga7a5,Ga5a4]}
15. Rc1 a5 $1 16. O-O a4 17. Na1 h6 18. Bd2 Nf6 19. Nc2 Bg4 20. Rfe1 e4 21. f3
Bf5 22. fxe4 Bxe4 $11 {0-1 Kamsky,G-Christiansen,L/USA ch 1993 (95) It seems
to me that this game sets the standard for black defence in this line. The
exchange of queens at a moment when black can both prevent white's knight
entering c5, and then use the a-pawn to force it back further is very
instructive. Note that after ...Nxd7 the bishop on g5 lacks a clear role too.})
14. Bxf6 gxf6 15. Rc1 Nb4 16. Qa5 Na6 17. c5 Nb8 18. O-O Nc6 19. Qc7 {Back
again!} a5 20. f4 Qd7 21. Qd6 Qxd6 22. cxd6 Rd8 23. fxe5 fxe5 24. Bxc6 bxc6 25.
Rxc6 Be6 26. Nc5 Bd5 27. Rb6 $14 {1-0 Wells,P-Suba,M/Hastings 1991/CBM 26 ext 
(41)}) 11. Bg5 $1 ({Whilst it might appear logical to break up black's centre
and open the game for the bishop pair with} 11. cxd5 Nxd5 12. Qd2 {experience
has shown that after} Ndb4 {black is too active to have real difficulties, eg.}
13. O-O Qb6 $5 14. Qc3 Nd4 15. Nxd4 exd4 16. Qd2 $6 (16. Qf3 $11) 16... Bf5 17.
Qf4 Bg6 {The position looks like a very comfortable indeed Semi-Tarrasch for
black.} 18. Bd2 Nc2 19. Rab1 Qa6 20. Bf3 Qxa2 21. h4 h6 22. h5 Bh7 23. Bxb7
Rab8 24. Qf3 Ne3 $1 $17 {1/2-1/2 Beliavsky,A-Portisch,L/Reykjavik 1991/Inf 52 
(57)}) 11... d4 12. Qf3 Qe7 ({Looks weaker than} 12... a5 13. Nd2 h6 (13... Bg4
14. Qxg4 $1 Nxg4 15. Bxd8 Rfxd8 16. h3 Nf6 17. Ne4 Nxe4 18. Bxe4 Ne7 19. g4 $1
{[%csl Gf5]} Rac8 20. b3 Rc7 21. h4 $1 g6 (21... f6 $5 22. h5 $14) 22. g5 h6
23. Kd2 Kg7 24. Kd3 Rd6 25. a3 f5 26. gxf6+ Rxf6 27. f3 Nf5 28. Bxf5 $1 $14 {
The exchange of a good piece, the securing of which has taken much effort, for
another good piece is never an easy decision. White's play throughout this
game has an effortless ease about it which shows profound understanding.} gxf5
29. b4 Kf7 30. Rhg1 b5 $2 (30... Rfc6 $1) 31. cxb5 Rc3+ 32. Kd2 Rb6 33. a4 $1
axb4 34. Rab1 e4 35. fxe4 fxe4 36. Rxb4 e3+ 37. Kd1 Ra3 $2 38. Kc2 Ra2+ 39. Kd3
Rd2+ 40. Kc4 Rb8 (40... Rxe2 41. Kxd4 $18) 41. Re1 Ke6 42. b6 Kd6 43. Kb5 Re8
44. a5 Re5+ 45. Ka6 Ra2 46. Rb5 Rxb5 47. Kxb5 Rb2+ 48. Ka6 {1-0 Kumaran,D-Emms,
J/BCF-ch 1993/CBM 38/[Bulletin] (48) Gata Kamsky is not the only fine talent
lost to medicine!}) 14. Bxf6 Qxf6 15. Qxf6 gxf6 16. Ne4 Kg7 17. Nd6 Rd8 18. c5
{also looks slightly more pleasant for white.} a4 19. Kd2 Rb8 20. b3 axb3 21.
axb3 f5 22. Bxc6 {I am not sure this is necessary, since ...e4 can always be
met with g4 undermining.} bxc6 23. Rhb1 Be6 24. b4 Ra8 25. Ra5 Kf6 26. Kd3 Bd5
27. f4 Ke6 28. fxe5 Kxe5 29. Nc4+ Ke6 30. Rba1 Be4+ 31. Kd2 Rab8 32. Nb6 f4 33.
gxf4 Rg8 34. Ra8 {1/2-1/2 Ward,C-Psakhis,L/Barcelona 1993/CBM 38 (34)}) 13. O-O
Be6 14. Nd2 h6 15. Bxf6 gxf6 $6 (15... Qxf6 16. Qxf6 gxf6 17. f4 {also looks
very pleasant for white, but the same plan from white in the middlegame looks
really worth avoiding.}) 16. Qh5 Kg7 17. f4 $1 f5 18. Nf3 e4 19. Nh4 Qf6 20. g4
Rh8 (20... fxg4 21. Bxe4 $16) 21. gxf5 Bxc4 22. Bxe4 Rhe8 23. Bf3 Rad8 24. Kh1
Bd5 $6 25. Rg1+ Kf8 (25... Kh7 26. Rg2 $16 {[%cal Ya1g1]}) 26. Ng6+ fxg6 27.
Rxg6 Qf7 (27... Bxf3+ 28. exf3 Qh8 29. Rxh6 {is also terminal.}) 28. Qxh6+ Ke7
29. Rg7 $18 Bxf3+ 30. exf3 Qxg7 31. Qxg7+ Kd6 32. b4 a6 33. Rd1 Re7 34. Qg6+
Kc7 35. f6 Red7 36. a4 1-0

[Event "NED-ch56"]
[Site "Leeuwarden"]
[Date "2001.06.27"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Ernst, Sipke"]
[Black "Van der Wiel, John"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2435"]
[BlackElo "2493"]
[Annotator "Wells,P"]
[PlyCount "77"]
[EventDate "2001.06.20"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "12"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 084"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2001.09.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2001.09.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 $5 {I am not yet ready to start playing
this again myself for the reason outlined in the next note. However, I am
grateful to those who do, since it is a lot of fun, as this game will show.} d5
5. a3 Be7 ({It is not for the first time that I find myself writing that in my
opinion black's best is to enter the main line with} 5... Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 c5 {
with excellent chances for equality.}) 6. e4 dxe4 7. fxe4 e5 8. d5 Bc5 {
While white's whole idea is justified by the fact that for black to disturb
the white king also entails getting his minor pieces in something of a tangle,
I am still convinced that black needs to go down this path. Otherwise the
white centre is simply too broad and too comfortable.} (8... Ng4 9. Nf3 Bc5 {
is merely transpositional.}) (8... O-O 9. Nf3 Bg4 10. Bd3 Bc5 11. h3 Bxf3 12.
Qxf3 c6 13. Bg5 Nbd7 14. O-O-O a6 15. Rhf1 Qc7 16. Kb1 cxd5 17. exd5 $36 {
1-0 Lerner,K-Ivanov,A/New York 1990/CBM 16 ext (45) looks promising for white.}
) 9. Nf3 Ng4 10. Na4 Bf2+ 11. Ke2 Bh4 $6 {An unusual and slightly unlikely
line as is} (11... Bd4 $6 12. Nxd4 exd4 13. Qxd4 O-O 14. h3 Qh4 15. g3 $1 Qh5
16. Bg2 Ne5+ 17. g4 Bxg4+ 18. hxg4 Qxg4+ 19. Kf2 Nbd7 20. Qd1 Qg6 21. Qh5 Ng4+
22. Ke2 Nde5 {I am still convinced that black's best shot is the tricky line I
had to face some years ago} 23. Bf4 {1-0 Shirov,A-Dautov,R/Daugavpils 1989/CBM
16 (23)}) (11... b5 $5 12. h3 bxa4 13. hxg4 Bg3 $1 {Only this way. Black will
exchange dark squared bishops on f4, and then try by means of the move ...f6
to contain white's breaks both in the centre and on the king-side. Some chance
for overload? I expect so, but it is not so easy to prove.} 14. Rh3 Bf4 15.
Bxf4 exf4 16. Rh4 f6 17. c5 Nd7 18. Qd4 (18. Qxa4 $5) 18... O-O 19. Kd2 Ne5 $1
20. Bc4 Qe8 21. Rah1 h6 {0-1 Wells,P-Lendwai,R/Graz 1991/CBM 22 ext (34) and
black is surprisingly solid}) 12. g3 Be7 13. h3 Nf6 14. Qc2 O-O 15. Kf2 Bd7 16.
Nc3 Bc5+ 17. Kg2 Re8 18. b4 Bd4 19. Bd3 a5 20. Rb1 ({Looks better than} 20. Bb2
axb4 21. axb4 Rxa1 22. Bxa1 Na6) 20... axb4 21. axb4 c5 22. Ne2 Ba4 23. Qd2 b5
24. Nexd4 $6 {This looks to be playing ball a little too much.I do not see
much wrong with calling black's bluff, and examining the compensation after} (
24. cxb5 $5 c4 25. Bc2 $14 c3 26. Qd3 Bxc2 27. Qxc2) 24... bxc4 25. Nf5 cxd3
$132 26. Qg5 {Looks tempting, but white lacks a killer punch as his own king
is rather exposed.} g6 27. Nh6+ Kg7 28. Qh4 Bc2 29. Rb2 c4 30. Ng5 Nbd7 31.
Nhxf7 Qb6 $1 {[%cal Gb6g6]} 32. Rf1 (32. Qh6+ Kg8 33. Ne6 Rxe6 34. dxe6 Qxe6
$132) 32... c3 33. Rxc2 dxc2 34. Ne6+ Rxe6 35. dxe6 Qxe6 36. Ng5 Qc4 37. g4 Ra6
38. Nxh7 Qxe4+ 39. Kh2 1/2-1/2

[Event "Enghien les Bains 4th"]
[Site "Enghien les Bains"]
[Date "2001.04.18"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Bacrot, Etienne"]
[Black "Akopian, Vladimir Eduardovic"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2627"]
[BlackElo "2654"]
[Annotator "Wells,P"]
[PlyCount "30"]
[EventDate "2001.04.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "FRA"]
[EventCategory "17"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 083"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2001.07.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2001.07.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 Ne4 7. Qd3 Bxc3+ 8.
bxc3 Nc5 9. Qf3 $5 {My interest in this game stems largely from the fact that
I have long believed this to be white's most promising move, and in CBM 75 (
cf Razan - Zelcic ) I wrote as much. I am still inclined to think that the
alternatives are not very promising, and therefore black's novelty on the next
move, if it holds up, is of considerable importance for the entire g3 complex.}
({Recent developments after the other main main move} 9. Qe3 {do nothing to
damage this assessment. My view is simple. White should prevent ...b6.} b6 $1
10. Bg2 Bb7 11. Bxb7 Nxb7 12. Qe4 Nc6 $1 13. Ba3 (13. Nxc6 dxc6 14. Qxc6+ $6
Qd7 $15 {[%csl Rc3,Rc4][%cal Ga8c8]}) 13... Rc8 14. O-O Nc5 15. Bxc5 {This
exchange is certainly good news for the weak c-pawns, but white's very light
initiative which persists hereafter, just about compensates for them, but not
more.} bxc5 16. Nf5 O-O 17. Nd6 Rb8 18. Rab1 Qa5 19. Rxb8 Rxb8 20. Qc2 Qa6 $11
{1/2-1/2 Van Wely,L-Adams,M/Frankfurt 2000 (44)}) 9... Nc6 $5 {[%mdl 8] This
natural enough developing move has never been played before, and I suspect the
fact that doubt was cast on its credentials in his notes by so eminent an
authority as Vladimir Kramnik right back in 1991 has had some influence on
this.} ({Previously, attention has focussed on} 9... d6 10. Bg2 Nbd7 11. O-O
Ne5 (11... O-O 12. Rd1 Ne5 13. Qf4 Bd7 14. Nb3 $1 {The key move again
according to my understanding of white's dynamic potential} Ba4 15. Ba3 Nxb3
16. axb3 Bxb3 17. Rxd6 Qa5 18. Bxb7 Rad8 19. Ra6 Qxc3 20. Bxf8 Kxf8 21. Rxa7
$18 {1-0 Zvjaginsev,V-Yemelin,V/Orel 1992/EXT 97 (30)}) 12. Qf4 Bd7 (12... Nxc4
$6 13. Nb3 $1 {A key move in the position, undermining black's important
knight on c5. The idea is to loosen the apparently solid black pawn centre
which should reveal 'hidden' dark square weaknesses. If white can get his
'unchallenged' dark squared bishop motoring around these, then he will have
more than full compensation for the far from beautious pawn which has been
removed.} Nb6 14. Nxc5 dxc5 15. Qe5 O-O 16. Qxc5 Re8 17. Ba3 {[%csl Rc8][%cal
Yg2b7,Ya3f8] A typical 'success' for the white strategy. It is enough just to
compare the respective minor pieces.} Rb8 18. Rad1 Bd7 19. Qh5 Nc4 20. Bc1 Qc8
21. Rd4 e5 22. Rh4 Bf5 23. Rxc4 Qxc4 24. Qxf5 Qxa2 25. Be4 g6 26. Qf3 Qe6 27.
Be3 b6 28. c4 $1 {[%csl Yd5] A second nice pawn sacrifice on c4 to bring in
white's last remaining forces with tempo.} Qxc4 29. Bd5 Qc7 30. Rc1 Qe7 31. Bg5
e4 32. Qf4 Qd7 33. Bc6 {1-0 Kumaran,D-Ruban,V/Hastings 1991/CBM 26 ext (33)})
13. Nb3 $1 {In my view it is the chunky knight on c5 rather than the bishop on
d7 which needs o be exchanged, hence I very strongly applaud the text.} ({
However, there are several games played by strong players with} 13. Nb5 Bxb5
14. cxb5 Rc8 $13 {[%csl Gc5,Gd6,Ge5,Ge6] my hunch though, is that this
transformation of the pawn structure, while it looks favourable for white,
leaves black's centre pawns and well posted knights just a little bit too
comfortable.} 15. Rd1 O-O 16. Be3 Qe7 17. Qd4 Rfd8 18. h3 f6 ({or} 18... a6 $5
19. f4 Ng6 20. Rab1 e5 21. fxe5 Nxe5 22. bxa6 bxa6 23. Bf2 Qc7 24. Bd5 {
1/2-1/2 Barsov,A-Medvegy,Z/Cairo EGY 2001/The Week in Chess (24)}) 19. f4 Nf7
20. Qb4 Rc7 21. a4 $14 {1-0 Shishkin,V-Gyimesi,Z/MK Cafe Cup Open A, Koszalin
POL 1999 (49)}) 13... Rc8 $5 (13... Qc7 14. Rd1 Na4 15. c5 $1 {Black was
actually threatening a 'stable' capture on c4 which would have been serious.
Now white's bishop is coming to a3, and the c7 queen which is desparately
trying to hold the whole business together will be overworked.} Nxc5 16. Ba3 {
[%cal Yd1d6,Yb3c5,Ya3c5,Yg2b7]} Rc8 17. Nxc5 dxc5 18. Bxb7 Qxb7 19. Qxe5 {
[%csl Rc5]} O-O {The best chance to attend to the dark squares. The opposite
coloured bishops will be an asset in holding the game only if white cannot
attack the king.} (19... f6 $2 20. Qh5+ g6 21. Qh6 $40) 20. Bxc5 Qb5 21. a4 Qa5
22. Rxd7 Rxc5 23. Qd4 a6 24. Qb4 h6 25. Rb1 g6 26. Ra7 Rf5 $6 27. e4 Rh5 28. h4
Qe5 29. Qd4 Rb8 30. Rxb8+ Qxb8 31. Qd7 Qf8 32. Rxa6 $18 {1-0 Wells,P-Tompa,J/
Hungarian League Final 1997/[Wells] (37)}) 14. Qd4 f6 $5 15. Qxd6 b6 16. Qd4
Na4 17. Nd2 Bc6 18. Bh3 Qe7 19. f4 Nf7 20. Qe3 {1/2-1/2 Kramnik,V-Serper,G/
Gdynia 1991/Inf 52 (20). 1/2-1/2 Rezan,S-Zelcic,R/Pula 2000/CBM 75/[Wells] (20)
}) 10. Bf4 ({The other critical test is} 10. Nxc6 $5 bxc6 ({Even} 10... dxc6 $5
{looks possible, eg.} 11. Ba3 (11. Bg2 Qa5 12. O-O O-O $13 (12... Nb3 $6 13.
axb3 Qxa1 14. Bh6 Qxf1+ 15. Kxf1 gxh6 16. Qf6 $36)) 11... Qe7 12. Bg2 Nd3+ 13.
exd3 Qxa3 14. d4 $13) 11. Ba3 {I strongly suspect that Akopian's idea involves
tactically exploiting the loose position of the bishop on a3, and by
threatening check to interrupt white's intended positional turning of the
screws with} Qe7 $1 (11... Qa5 $6 12. Bb4 Qb6 13. Bg2 a5 14. Ba3 O-O 15. O-O
Rb8 16. Rfd1 $16 {[%csl Ya3,Rd6,Yg2] was Kramnik's note, stating his opinion
of 9...Nc6 with little ambiguity. The point is well made that white's bishop
pair and superiority on the dark squares will tell if black does not manage to
disrupt - to 'make some mess' as Jonathan Speelman would say.}) {The question
is, can white take his pin seriously enough to start ambling around with his
ling in its support? The principled move is} 12. Kd1 $5 {[%csl Rc5][%cal Yf3e3,
Ya3e7]} (12. Bg2 Nd3+ 13. Qxd3 Qxa3 14. O-O O-O {[%cal Gd7d5,Gc8a6] should not
offer white anything much}) 12... O-O $1 ({this looks better than the tempting
} 12... Qd6+ $5 13. Kc2 Qe5 $1 14. Qf4 $5 {Is it odd to propose an exchange of
queens when trying to prove dynamic compensation for static weaknesses? Maybe
a bit, but the point is to push the knight to a square that has drawbacks.
Also, with c4 weak, the bishop might be better staying on f1 for the time
being.} (14. Bg2 Ba6 15. Qf4 Qxf4 16. gxf4 Nb7 $132 {[%cal Gb7a5]}) 14... Qxf4
(14... Qe4+ $5 15. Qxe4 Nxe4 16. f3 Nf6 17. e4) 15. gxf4 Ne4 (15... Na4 $2 16.
c5 {[%csl Ra4]}) 16. f3 Nf6 17. Rg1 $44 {with a very unusual position in which
white has distinct compensation for his many positional indiscretions.}) 13.
Qe3 (13. Bg2 Ba6) (13. Rb1 Ba6 14. Qe3 d6 $132) 13... d6 14. Bg2 Ba6 $1 $132)
10... O-O 11. Rd1 (11. Nxc6 dxc6 12. Qe3 Na4 13. Bg2 f6 $5 $132 {[%cal Ge6e5]})
({Having witnessed the game, there might be a case for simplicity. If white
develops unpretentiously with} 11. Bg2 $5 Qe7 (11... b6 12. Nxc6 dxc6 13. Rd1
Qf6 14. Bd6 $14) 12. O-O {black still, despite ...Nc6, has to decide how to
get his other pieces out.} e5 $6 13. Nf5 Qe6 14. Be3 Na4 15. Rfd1 $1 Nxc3 (
15... e4 16. Qg4 Qg6 17. Qxg6 hxg6 18. Nd6 Nxc3 19. Rd2 $14) (15... d6 16. Nxd6
Nxc3 17. Rd2 $14) 16. Rd6 Qxc4 17. Nxg7 $5 $40) 11... Qa5 12. Bd6 (12. Nb3 Nxb3
13. axb3 {would be positionally rather a pleasant turn of events for white.
However, black again has tactical resources since white's bishop has no
convenient square to run too after} e5 $1 {[%csl Rd2][%cal Rf4e3,Rf4d2,Rf4c1,
Gc6d4]} 14. Bd2 (14. Bc1 Nd4 $1) 14... Qa2 $1 15. b4 Qxc4 16. e4 Qe6 $15) 12...
Nxd4 13. Rxd4 b6 $1 {Nice touch. If you are attacked on one cheek, bare the
other. White has two rooks to choose from, but neither capture promises
advantage.} 14. Qxa8 {Wise under the circumstances! Black has more than enough
options after} (14. Bxf8 Bb7 15. Qe3 (15. e4 Rxf8 16. Qe3 e5 $36) 15... Rxf8 $5
(15... Bxh1 16. Bxc5 bxc5 17. Rxd7 Qxa2 18. f3 $13 {[%csl Rh1][%cal Ye1f2,
Ye3g1]}) 16. Rg1 Qxa2 $44 {[%csl Rc3,Rc4,Re1]}) 14... Qxc3+ 15. Rd2 Qa1+
1/2-1/2

[Event "Corus"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2000.01.23"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Kasparov, Garry"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2851"]
[BlackElo "2769"]
[Annotator "Wells,P"]
[PlyCount "112"]
[EventDate "2000.01.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "18"]
[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. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8.
cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 {In the last few years, this has become very popular, almost
completely replacing the old 9 Bd2.} Nc6 {Also becoming established as the
main line.There are several important alternatives however:} (9... Qa5 10. Bd2
Na6 (10... Nc6 11. Nxc6 bxc6 12. O-O {- main line.}) 11. O-O Nxc3 12. Bxc3 Bxc3
13. Qxc3 Qxc3 14. bxc3 Nc5 {A fairly typical scenario. Black's structure is
neat and he has a happy knight sitting comfortably on c5. However, with his
next move white easily dislodges it, and shows that his superior bishop and
the pressure on the half-open b file are more salient factors.} 15. Nb3 $1 $14
{[%csl Gc5][%cal Yb3c5,Yg2b7,Ya1b1]} Na4 16. c4 Rb8 17. c5 e5 18. Rfc1 Be6 19.
Na5 b6 20. Nc6 Nxc5 $1 {Sensible, under the circumstances.} 21. Nxb8 Rxb8 22.
Kf1 Kf8 23. Ke1 Ke7 24. Rd1 Rc8 25. Bd5 {and although white's task is not at
all easy he eventually converted} Bd7 {1-0 Zvjaginsev,V-Podgaets,M/Moscow 1992/
EXT 97 (59)}) (9... Qb6 10. Bxd5 $1 exd5 (10... Qxd4 11. Bg2 Nc6 12. Be3 Bxc3+
13. bxc3 Qg4 14. Rd1 e5 15. h3 Qh5 16. Rd6 {Dautov, and in my view '+/='.}) 11.
Be3 Nc6 (11... Bxc3+ 12. Qxc3 Qg6 $5 13. h4 $5 (13. O-O Nc6 14. Rfc1 Bh3 15.
Qc2 Nxd4 16. Bxd4 Qe6 {Black has enough activity for the IQP and the opposite
coloured bishops only help. In blitz he has more than enough.} 17. f3 Rfe8 18.
Kf2 Qh6 19. Qd3 Re7 20. Rc2 Rae8 21. Re1 $2 Qh5 $1 $17 22. Kg1 Bf5 {0-1
Kasparov,G-Kramnik,V/Moscow 1998/CBM 67 ext (22)}) 13... h5 14. g4 Bxg4 15. f3
Rc8 16. Qd2 Nc6 17. fxg4 Ne5 18. gxh5 {Strange.} Qe4 19. Rg1 Nc4 20. Qd3 Nxe3
21. Qxe4 dxe4 22. Kf2 Nc2 23. Rad1 Rc5 24. Nxc2 Rxc2 25. Rd7 Rxb2 26. h6 $1 e3+
27. Kxe3 (27. Kf3 $5) 27... Re8+ {1/2-1/2 Zvjaginsev,V-Polgar,J/Las Vegas 1999/
CBM 72 (27) I must confess - I simply do not understand this game, although
its players and setting render it to important to pass over.}) (11... Bh3 $5 {
Interesting, although since g4 is a recurring theme in the line, it does seem
rather to invite it!} 12. g4 $5 Nc6 (12... Nd7 13. Rg1 Nf6 14. Rg3 Bxg4 15. Nf5
Bxc3+ 16. Qxc3 Qe6 17. Nd4 (17. Nxg7 $5 Qa6 18. Rxg4 Nxg4 19. Nf5 $40) 17...
Qd7 18. f3 Bh5 19. Bg5 Ne8 20. Kf2 f6 21. Bf4 Rc8 $15 {0-1 Rogozenko,D-Socko,B/
Hamburg HSK 1996/CBM 56 (39)}) 13. Nxc6 Qxc6 14. Rg1 Bxc3+ 15. Qxc3 Qxc3+ 16.
bxc3 f5 $13 {1/2-1/2 Bezold,M-Horvath,C/Budapest Honved 1994/EXP 45 (23)}) 12.
Nxc6 (12. Rd1 Qa5 13. O-O Bh3 14. Rfe1 Rac8 15. Rc1 Ne5 16. Ndb5 Be6 17. Nd4
Nc4 {1-0 Beliavsky,A-Timman,J/Beograd 1995/Inf 65 (69) looks OK for black})
12... Qxc6 (12... Bxc3+ 13. Qxc3 Qxc6 14. Qxc6 bxc6 15. Rc1 Bd7 16. f3 Rfb8 17.
b3 a5 18. Bc5 a4 19. b4 Re8 20. a3 Bc8 21. Kf2 Ba6 22. e3 h5 23. h3 f6 24. Bd4
$16 {1-0 Alterman,B-Baumegger,S/Elista 1998/CBM 66 ext (64) is no easy
technical task for white, but no fun at all for the opponent!}) 13. Qxb4 d4 14.
f3 dxe3 {1/2-1/2 Nielsen,P-Pinter,J/Kobenhavn 1995/Inf 63 (14) is where the
whole business started. No-one has seen fit to test this obscure position.
Probably after} 15. O-O-O $5 {Black's e-pawn will eventually prove too
vulnerable.}) (9... Na6 10. O-O Nxc3 (10... Nc5 $5) 11. bxc3 Be7 12. Rd1 Nc5
13. Qc4 Bd7 14. Be3 Rc8 15. Nc6 $1 Bxc6 (15... bxc6 16. Bxc5 Bxc5 17. Qxc5 Qc7
18. Rd4 Rb8 19. Rad1 Be8 20. Rb4 Rb6 21. a4 $16 {[%csl Re8,Rf8] 1-0 Avrukh,
B-Finkel,A/Antwerp 1998/EXT 99 (34) looks quite unpleasant for black. Again
the relative activity of the forces tells us a great deal.}) 16. Rxd8 Rfxd8 17.
Bxc6 Rxc6 18. a4 $1 {This queen sacrifice might be found to be sufficient for
a draw with perfect play - in any case it seems to me to be a rather
masochistic variation to choose with black. White sets about preparing to
undermine black's queenside, since ...b6 is likely to be required to
consolidate it.} Rd5 (18... h6 19. Rb1 b6 20. a5 bxa5 $6 21. Rb7 $1 Nxb7 22.
Qxc6 Nd6 23. c4 Kf8 24. Qa6 a4 25. Bxa7 a3 26. Bb6 Rb8 27. c5 {[%cal Yc5c8]
1-0 Huzman,A-Loginov,V/Beersheva 1998/EXT 99 (37) Once the blockade is broken,
of course, the shrewd money has to be on white.}) 19. Rb1 Nd7 20. Qb3 b6 21. c4
Rdd6 22. Qb5 Rc8 23. a5 Rdc6 24. Qa6 (24. Rd1 $5 {around here I had a good
feeling. The game is still too painful for a rigourous analysis.}) 24... R6c7
25. Rd1 Nc5 26. Qb5 Rc6 27. axb6 axb6 28. Ra1 Bf8 29. Ra7 Ne4 30. Qh5 R6c7 31.
Rxc7 Rxc7 32. Qb5 Nd6 33. Qxb6 Rxc4 {1/2-1/2 Wells,P-Alterman,B/FIDE WCh KO,
Groningen NED (1.2) 1997 (82) and now it should probably be a draw, although
white constructed at least three more winning positions, two of them trivial,
before it eventually was.}) (9... Bc5 $5 10. Bxd5 exd5 11. Be3 Bxd4 12. Bxd4
Nc6 13. Rd1 $14 b6 14. Qxd5 Qxd5 15. Nxd5 Rd8 16. Bc3 Be6 17. e4 Rd7 18. O-O
Rad8 19. a3 f5 20. f3 Bxd5 21. Rxd5 {1/2-1/2 Kuemin,S-Cvitan,O/Zurich 1999/CBM
73 ext.}) 10. Nxc6 $1 bxc6 11. O-O Qa5 12. Bd2 Bxc3 (12... Rb8 $2 {[%csl Ra5,
Rb8][%cal Yb3b8,Yd2a5]} 13. Nxd5 cxd5 14. a3 Bxd2 15. Qxb8 Bd7 16. Qb7 $16 {
1/2-1/2 Barsov,A-Rowson,J/York 1999/CBM 75_02 (27)}) 13. bxc3 (13. Bxc3 $5 {
is not particularly dangerous, but black has to be a bit careful. The endgame
reached in Ribli-Wahls is not lost, but it is no joy to play for black either.
The move is also a decisive headache for those wishing to play for a win with
black.} Nxc3 14. bxc3 Ba6 15. Qb4 Qe5 (15... Qxb4 16. cxb4 Rab8 17. a3 Bxe2 18.
Rfc1 Bb5 19. Bxc6 Bxc6 20. Rxc6 Rfc8 21. Rac1 Rxc6 22. Rxc6 $14 {[%csl Ya3,Ga7,
Yb4][%cal Yg1g2,Yg2f3,Yf3e4,Ye4d4]} g5 23. Ra6 Rb7 24. Kg2 Kg7 25. Kf3 Kg6 26.
Ke4 h5 27. f4 g4 28. f5+ Kf6 29. fxe6 fxe6 30. Ra5 Kg6 31. Re5 Rb6 32. Kd4 Rd6+
33. Kc3 Ra6 34. Kb3 $16 {[%csl Ra6,Ye5] The relative activity of the rooks
tells the story!} Rd6 35. b5 Rd2 36. Rxe6+ Kf5 37. Re7 Rxh2 38. Rxa7 Rh3 39. b6
Rxg3+ 40. Kb4 Re3 41. b7 Re4+ 42. Kb3 Re1 43. Ra5+ Kg6 44. Kc2 Re2+ 45. Kc3
Re3+ 46. Kc4 {1-0 Ribli,Z-Wahls,M/Bundesliga 1998.}) 16. Rfe1 Rab8 17. Qa3 Qb5
18. c4 Qxc4 19. Rac1 Qb5 20. Bxc6 Qb6 21. Be4 Bb5 22. Rb1 Rfd8 $11 {1/2-1/2
Rogozenko,D-Blauert,J/BL2-N 1996. (28)}) 13... Ba6 14. Rfd1 Qc5 ({The most
played alternative is clearly in crisis -} 14... Rab8 $6 15. c4 $1 {Otherwise
black would control the c4 square and be slightly more than comfortable.} Qc5
16. cxd5 $1 {This queen offer is of great importance since it underpins
white's play in the whole line.} Rxb3 17. axb3 Bxe2 18. Re1 $1 {White simply
attacks the bishop, and ensures that he will either reach RBBv.Q or obtain a
very powerful supported passed pawn. Since this seems to be very strong, and
is well-known to be better than} (18. Rdc1 $6 {it was strange to see that
Alterman was apparently unaware of this. He payed the price after} Qd6 19. Rxc6
(19. Be3 $6 cxd5 20. Bc5 Qb8 21. Bxf8 Kxf8 22. Rc2 Bb5 23. Rca2 a6 24. Bf1 Bxf1
25. Kxf1 Qxb3 26. Rxa6 g5 $17 {0-1 Nielsen,P-Emms,J/Copenhagen BSF 1995/CBM 46
(50)}) (19. Bf4 $5 e5 {[%csl Rd5]} 20. Rxc6 (20. Be3 $5 {Wells}) 20... Qb8 21.
Be3 {Alterman might be the best chance, but in view of the strength of 18 Re1
it is largely academic.}) 19... Qd7 20. Bf4 exd5 21. Rd6 Qb5 22. Bxd5 a6 23. h4
(23. Bc4 Bxc4 24. bxc4 Qxc4 25. Rdxa6 $11 {Alterman.}) 23... h6 24. Rc1 Qb4 {
0-1 Alterman,B-Timman,J/Elista 1998/CBM 66 ext (44) and white should maybe
hold the balance, but that is the extent of his ambitions.}) 18... cxd5 (18...
Bb5 19. dxc6 $16 {[%csl Yc6][%cal Yc6c7]} Bxc6 $6 20. Rac1 Qd6 (20... Qd4 21.
Be3 $18) 21. Bf4 $18) 19. Rxe2 Qb6 20. b4 Rc8 21. Be1 h6 22. Rea2 Rc7 23. Bf1
Qd4 24. b5 Qc5 25. Bd2 e5 26. Rc1 Qe7 27. Rc6 Rd7 28. Ra4 d4 29. Bb4 Qe8 30.
Bh3 Rd8 31. Rxa7 $18 {1-0 Nielsen,P-Savon,V/Pardubice op 1995/EXT 95op (43)}) (
{In 1998 the move} 14... Bxe2 $5 {at last received a test. I had been
expecting that someone would be moved to give it a try for some time, since
black does get a rook and two pawns for his minor pieces, even though it is
the bishop pair. Moreover, black's pawn structure is very solid.} 15. c4 Bxd1
16. Rxd1 {desirable other things being equal, but I had analysed} (16. Qxd1 $5
{at home because I believed that it was imperative for white to keep the
queens on the board.}) 16... Qb6 17. cxd5 cxd5 $6 (17... Qxb3 $5 {looks much
more logical to me. Is white better without queens?}) 18. Qf3 $1 Rac8 19. Bf1
Rc2 20. a3 Rfc8 21. Bd3 Ra2 22. Bb4 a5 23. Be7 Qb2 $6 24. Kg2 Rc1 25. Rxc1 Qxc1
26. Qf4 $5 {Now the situation is altered in the key sense that the exchange of
queens now would leave black's a-pawn defenceless.} Qb2 (26... Qxf4 27. gxf4 {
[%csl Ra5][%cal Yd3b5,Ya3a4,Ye7d8]}) 27. Bc5 Qb7 28. Qd6 Qa8 29. Bd4 h6 30. Qe5
Qf8 31. Bb2 $16 {[%csl Ra2] 1/2-1/2 Chabanon,J-Dorfman,J/Meribel 1998/CBM 67 
(58)}) 15. e4 Bc4 $1 16. Qa4 Nb6 17. Qb4 Qh5 $5 ({I have thought that} 17...
Qxb4 {is a legitimate defence too, even if the ending is not entirely
comfortable for black. Obviously Kasparov, who does not leave such things to
chance, considers the white position promising enough eg.} 18. cxb4 Rfd8 (18...
Rad8 $6 {weakens a7 and is thus clearly inferior:} 19. Be3 Rxd1+ 20. Rxd1 Bxa2
21. Bc5 Rb8 22. Ra1 Bc4 23. Rxa7 h6 24. f4 Bb5 25. Rc7 Na8 26. Re7 Nb6 27. Bf3
$16 {1-0 Volzhin,A-Epishin,V/RUS-ch Elista 1996/CBM 56 (54)}) 19. Be3 e5 $5 (
19... Bb5 20. Rxd8+ (20. e5 $5) 20... Rxd8 21. Bxb6 axb6 22. a4 Ra8 23. a5 Kf8
24. e5 Ke7 25. f4 bxa5 26. bxa5 Kd7 27. Kf2 Kc7 28. Ke3 {1/2-1/2 Fish,G-Shipov,
S/Yalta op 1996/EXP 53 (31) should draw, although if my memory serves me, I
managed to lose a similar ending in a rapid game ( with black! ) and it is not
trivial to hold.}) 20. Rxd8+ $6 {Criticised by Leko, and rightly so.} (20. Rdc1
{is more thematic.}) 20... Rxd8 21. Bf1 Bb5 22. Rc1 f6 23. Bxb5 cxb5 24. Rc7
Nc4 {[%csl Gc4] This excellent piece will suffice to hold the game.} 25. Bxa7
Rd1+ 26. Kg2 Ra1 27. Bc5 Rxa2 28. Rb7 Nd2 29. Rxb5 Nxe4 30. Be3 Rb2 31. Rb8+
Kf7 32. Rb7+ Kg6 33. g4 h5 34. gxh5+ Kxh5 35. Rxg7 Rxb4 {1/2-1/2 Wells,P-Lalic,
B/Szeged 1997/CBM 62 (35)}) 18. Be3 Be2 {This is a key part of black's idea.
The bishop is sometimes headed for f3, sometimes just facilitating a changing
of the c4 blockade guard.} 19. Rd2 (19. Re1 Nc4 20. Qc5 (20. Rxe2 $2 Qxe2 21.
Bf1 Qb2 $17) 20... Rfd8 21. e5 $1 a5 22. h3 (22. Bd4 $2 Nd2 $132 {[%cal Gd2f3]}
) 22... Nxe3 23. Qxe3 Bc4 24. Bxc6 Rac8 25. Bg2 a4 26. Qa7 Bb5 27. Qa5 $14 {
0-1 Shaked,T-Georgiev,K/Las Vegas 1999/CBM 72 (55)}) 19... Rab8 20. Bxb6 (20.
Qc5 $5) (20. Bc5 Nc4 21. Bxf8 Rxb4 22. Rd8 h6 23. cxb4 Kh7) 20... axb6 21. Qd6
Bf3 (21... Rfc8 $5 22. h3 (22. Rb1 h6 $5) 22... Bf3 23. Rb1 (23. g4 Qg5 {
[%csl Rd2][%cal Gc8d8]}) 23... Bxg2 24. Kxg2 Qa5 {1/2-1/2 Van Wely,L-Short,N/
Wijk aan Zee 2000/CBM 75_02 (24)}) 22. Qxc6 Bxg2 23. Kxg2 Qe5 24. Qc4 Rfc8 25.
Qd4 Qa5 26. Rb1 h6 27. Rb4 Qc5 28. Rd3 Qc7 {White has clear advantage and
reasonable winning chances, although the weakness of the c-pawn of course
complicates the technocal task.} 29. a4 Rd8 30. Qe3 Rxd3 31. Qxd3 Rc8 32. Qb1
Qxc3 33. Rxb6 Rc4 34. Rb8+ Kh7 35. Rb7 f6 36. Re7 Rb4 37. Qa2 Qc4 38. Qxc4 Rxc4
39. a5 Ra4 40. Rxe6 Rxa5 41. Rd6 Ra4 42. Kf3 Ra3+ 43. Ke2 h5 44. Rd3 Ra2+ 45.
Ke3 Kg6 46. h3 Ra4 47. f4 Rb4 48. Ra3 Rc4 49. g4 hxg4 50. hxg4 Rb4 51. Ra6 Kf7
52. Ra7+ Kg6 53. f5+ Kh6 54. g5+ fxg5 55. e5 g4 56. e6 Kg5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Enghien les Bains 4th"]
[Site "Enghien les Bains"]
[Date "2001.04.19"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Bacrot, Etienne"]
[Black "Lautier, Joel"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2627"]
[BlackElo "2658"]
[Annotator "Wells,P"]
[PlyCount "67"]
[EventDate "2001.04.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "FRA"]
[EventCategory "17"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 083"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2001.07.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2001.07.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 Nc6 6. Bg2 ({If the course of
the game doesn't appeal to white, he can also consider} 6. d5 Na5 7. Nd2 b6 $5
(7... d6 8. Bg2 Bxc3 9. bxc3 O-O 10. O-O Re8 11. e4 b6 12. Re1 Ba6 13. Bf1 {
leads to a very heavy, slow manouevering struggle. I don't think black has
particular problems, but it wouldn't be to everyone's taste} Qd7 14. f3 h6 15.
Qc2 Re7 16. Rd1 Rd8 17. Bb2 Qe8 18. Re1 Bc8 19. Kf2 Bd7 20. Qd3 e5 21. Be2 Rb8
22. Reb1 a6 23. Bc1 Ba4 24. Rb2 Reb7 25. Rab1 Qc8 26. Qe3 Bd7 27. Nb3 Qc7 28.
Nxa5 bxa5 29. Qd2 {1/2-1/2 Miladinovic,I-Short,N/Istanbul 2000/EXT 2001 (29)})
8. Qc2 (8. e4 $6 Bxc3 9. bxc3 O-O 10. Be2 exd5 11. cxd5 Re8 $132 {[%cal Yf2f3,
Gf6d5,Ye4d5,Gc8a6] transposes to Sergeev,V-Anastasian,A/Groningen 1993/CBM 38
ext 0-1 (25), which looks quite promising for black, since if} 12. f3 Nxd5 $1
13. exd5 Ba6 14. c4 Nxc4 15. Ne4 f5 {black has a strong attack, able to answer}
16. Bg5 {with} fxe4 17. Bxd8 exf3 $132) 8... O-O 9. Bg2 Bxc3 10. Qxc3 exd5 11.
cxd5 Re8 12. b3 Ba6 13. Bf3 d6 14. Bb2 Re7 15. a4 Qf8 $1 {[%cal Ga8e8]} 16. Nc4
Ne4 17. Qc2 Rae8 18. e3 f5 $15 {0-1 Van Wely,L-Morozevich,A/Amsterdam 1996/CBM
55 (28)}) 6... Ne4 7. Bd2 $5 (7. Qd3 {is a reasonably common alternative, but
seems to me much more clumsy than in the analagous position without Bg2 and ...
Nc6 ( see Bacrot - Akopian from Round 7. ) The reason is that now after} cxd4
8. Nxd4 {the approach in which black retains the bishop pair is much more
promising,} Nxc3 9. bxc3 {not least because black has a useful zwischenzug} Ne5
$1 {which prevents white from using superior development to immediately
inconvenience black. The resulting battle between white's greater space and
black's neater structure holds no terrors for the defender.} 10. Qc2 Be7 11.
Qb3 O-O 12. Bf4 Qc7 13. Nf3 Bd6 $1 $146 14. Nxe5 Bxe5 15. Bxe5 Qxe5 16. Rd1 Rb8
17. Qa3 b5 $1 {Black needs to develop. Dissolving the doubled pawn does
white's structure but a small favour - he is left with weaknesses which can
prove serious if black mobilises.} 18. cxb5 Rxb5 19. O-O Ra5 20. Qb2 Rc5 21.
Rd4 Qc7 22. Rc1 Ba6 $15 {0-1 Miladinovic,I-Graf,A/2nd IECC, Ohrid MKD 2001 
(129!)}) 7... Nxd2 8. Qxd2 cxd4 9. Nxd4 Ne5 10. Nc2 Be7 11. b3 {Again the play
leads to a tussle between clearly defined advantages: White has a considerable
spatial plus, has avoided the customary pawn weaknesses with which these lines
are associated ( although the absence of doubled c-pawns also means no
half-open b-file which should ease the task of the defence ) and above all,
black may have very serious problems bringing his 'problem piece' - the bishop
on c8 - into the game. Black can boast the bishop pair and a central majority.
The problem, as we shall see, is that white's initiative is possibly strong
enough to pretty well force black to relinquish his dark-squared bishop. Even
is true, this does not yet prove that black has big troubles, but it does
result in the kind of position where a black victory barely features in the
possible results.} a6 $5 {Technically a novelty, although this and the next
few moves were all given by Yudasin in his notes to the game Alterman -
Yudasin in Informator 63. I looked at this some time ago and came to a
conclusion which I think the present game confirms. Yudasin's assessment of
'=' might be close to the mark, but black does not achieve this without a good
deal of further care. The point of the move compared with the previously
played 11...0-0 is that in case of the type of position ( which practice
suggests is likely to arise ) in which the c3 knight reaches d6 and black,
feeling unable to live with its presence exchanges off minor pieces and queens,
it is of course advantageous to have the king in the centre. Specifically after
} (11... O-O 12. Rd1 a6 13. Ne4 Rb8 14. Nd6 Qc7 15. a4 Qb6 {from Alterman,
B-Yudasin,L/Israel 1995/Inf 63 0-1 (68) Yudasin suggests that, instead of the
unconvincing 16 Qb4?! of the game, white should play} 16. Qe3 $1 {(Yudasin)}
Qxe3 (16... Qa5+ $6 17. b4 Qxa4 18. Qxe5 Qxc2 19. O-O $44 {is huge value for a
pawn.}) 17. Nxe3 Bxd6 18. Rxd6 b6 19. f4 $14 {when Yudashin still seems to
believe that black might still equalise the play by tortuously returning his
king to the centre, but I an any case, clearly better that it remains there in
such a scenario.}) 12. Ne4 Qc7 13. Rd1 Rb8 14. Nd6+ Bxd6 15. Qxd6 Qxd6 16. Rxd6
b6 $11 {as mentioned according to Yudasin, who mentions a choice of plan's for
black to evict the intrusive rook- to play ...Ke7 and ...d6, or alternatively .
..f6, ...Nf7 and ...d6. White's next move looks critical to me, and a rather
obvious way to restrict black to plan 'a'.} 17. f4 Ng4 18. O-O Ke7 19. Rfd1 f6
{[%csl Yd6][%cal Gg4h6,Gh6f7]} 20. R6d3 Re8 (20... Rd8 $5) 21. a4 Nh6 22. a5 $5
{Despite white's substantial spatial pull, black is very solid, and it is hard
to see any real alternative to this plan of opening the a-file to create a
target in the a6 pawn. Pressure on the d7 pawn alone cannot keep black's
bishop stuck to c8 indefinitely.} bxa5 23. Ra1 Nf7 24. Rxa5 d6 25. Nd4 Kf8 26.
Bc6 Re7 27. Be4 f5 28. Bg2 Rb6 29. e4 ({Until now, I have been impressed with
white's attempts to squeeze something out of his slight initiative. Here I
wonder whether it might have been the time to force the issue with} 29. c5 $5
dxc5 30. Rxc5 Bb7 (30... Bd7 $5 {might improve.}) 31. Bxb7 Rexb7 32. Re3 Nd8
33. Rc8 Ke7 34. Nxf5+ $5 Kd7 35. Ra8 exf5 36. Rd3+ Ke7 37. Rdxd8 Rxb3 38. Re8+
Kf7 39. Rf8+ {and black still has some problems to solve.}) 29... fxe4 30. Bxe4
g6 31. Bg2 (31. c5 dxc5 32. Rxc5 Bb7 33. Bxb7 Rexb7 34. Re3 Ke7 {is nothing
special.}) 31... e5 32. c5 dxc5 33. Rxc5 Bd7 $11 {...and black has achieved
the long sought after equality!} 34. fxe5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Bundesliga 9900"]
[Site "Germany"]
[Date "2000.04.08"]
[Round "14.4"]
[White "Rogozenco, Dorian"]
[Black "Hoffmann, Michael"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2576"]
[BlackElo "2439"]
[Annotator "Wells,P"]
[PlyCount "112"]
[EventDate "1999.10.09"]
[EventType "team-tourn"]
[EventRounds "15"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 076"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2000.05.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2000.05.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Magdeburg"]
[BlackTeam "Castrop Rauxel"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "GER"]
[BlackTeamCountry "GER"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 Nc6 6. Bg2 Qa5 {An unusual line
which is probably too risky to acquire much popularity. It is well worth
white's while being prepared though, since he is all but obliged to sacrifice
at least one pawn.} (6... Ne4 $5 7. Bd2 Nxd2 8. Qxd2 cxd4 9. Nxd4 Ne5 {is an
interesting alternative here, and among the more promising ways to attain a
position against the g3 systems where some dry equality is not the maximum
that can be hoped for. Black may be rendered passive, but gets to retain the
bishop pair with no glaring weaknesses.} 10. Nc2 Be7 11. b3 (11. Ne3 a6 12. O-O
O-O 13. Rfc1 Rb8 14. Ne4 d6 15. Rd1 Qc7 16. Rac1 Rd8 17. Nc3 b6 18. f4 Ng6 19.
Rf1 {1/2-1/2 Zvjaginsev,V-Iordachescu,V/Linares 2000/CBM 75_02 (19)}) 11... O-O
12. Rd1 a6 13. Ne4 Rb8 14. Nd6 Qc7 15. a4 Qb6 16. Qb4 $6 (16. Qe3 $5) 16...
Qxb4+ 17. Nxb4 b5 $132 {0-1 Alterman,B-Yudasin,L/Israel 1995/Inf 63 (68)}) 7.
O-O $1 {This looks both sounder and more dangerous than the alternative} (7. d5
Bxc3+ 8. bxc3 exd5 9. O-O (9. cxd5 Nxd5 10. Bd2 Qa6 (10... c4 $5 $15) 11. Bh6
Nxc3 12. Qd2 Qxe2+ 13. Qxe2+ Nxe2 14. Bxg7 Rg8 15. Bb2 Ned4 16. Nxd4 Nxd4 17.
Bxd4 cxd4 18. O-O-O d6 19. Rxd4 Be6 20. Rxd6 Rg5 $15 {Izeta,F-Vaiser,A/Capelle
la Grande 1987/Inf 43 (20)}) 9... dxc4 10. Qd6 Ne4 11. Qf4 d5 12. Ne5 O-O 13.
Nxc6 bxc6 14. Bxe4 dxe4 15. Be3 (15. Qxe4 Bh3 16. Re1 Qxc3 $15) 15... Re8 $15 {
0-1 Sokolov,I-Seirawan,Y/Lugano 1987/Inf 43 (66)}) 7... Bxc3 8. bxc3 Qxc3 9.
Bf4 $1 Qxc4 (9... cxd4 10. Rc1 Qb2 (10... Qa5 11. Nxd4 e5 (11... Nxd4 12. Qxd4
O-O 13. Bd6 Re8 14. c5 Qxa2 15. Be5 $16) (11... O-O 12. Bd6 Rd8 13. Nb5 $44)
12. Bd2 $1 Qxa2 13. Nf5 O-O 14. Bg5 d5 15. Nh6+ gxh6 16. Bxf6 dxc4 17. e3 Qb3
18. Qh5 Qd3 19. e4 $40) 11. Rc2 Qb6 12. c5 Qb4 13. Qc1 $5 {It feels right to
reinforce threats on the dark squares where black is at his most vulnerable.} (
13. Qd3 b6 14. Bd6 Qa4 15. Rb1 Ba6 16. Qb3 Qxb3 17. Rxb3 Nd5 18. Ne5 Nxe5 19.
Bxe5 O-O 20. Bxd5 exd5 21. cxb6 axb6 22. Bxd4 Rfc8 23. Rxc8+ Rxc8 $15 {0-1
Valdes,L-Vera,R/CUB-ch 1995/EXP 46 (43)}) 13... O-O 14. Bd6 Re8 15. Rc4 Qa5 16.
Nxd4 Nxd4 17. Rxd4 e5 18. Rd2 e4 19. Rc2 b5 20. Rd1 Bb7 21. Qb2 Bc6 22. e3 Re6
23. Bh3 Rae8 24. Rcd2 Qd8 25. Rd4 h6 26. a4 a6 27. axb5 axb5 28. Bxe6 Rxe6 29.
Bf4 g5 30. Bd6 Ng4 31. R1d2 Qf6 32. h3 Ne5 33. Bxe5 Qxe5 34. Qa3 $14 {1-0
Valdes,L-Lipnowski,I/Capablanca mem Masters I, Havana CUB 1998 (40)}) (9...
Nxd4 10. Nxd4 (10. Rc1 Nxf3+ 11. Bxf3 Qd4 12. Qxd4 cxd4 13. Bd6 $44) 10... cxd4
(10... Qxd4 11. Qb3 $1 (11. Qxd4 cxd4 12. Bd6 $44) (11. Qc2 d5 12. cxd5 Nxd5
$13) 11... d5 12. Rac1 $16 {[%csl Rd4]} dxc4 $140 13. Rxc4 Qd8 14. Rxc5 O-O 15.
Rd1 Qb6 16. Rb5 Qa6 17. Rd6 $18) 11. Rc1 Qb2 12. Rc2 $44) 10. Rc1 Qxa2 11. dxc5
O-O 12. Bd6 $32 {[%csl Rc8,Yd6,Yg2]} Rd8 13. Nd4 Ne8 14. Bf4 d5 $5 $146 ({
Better than} 14... Qa5 15. Qd3 e5 16. Bd2 Qa4 17. Nxc6 bxc6 18. Ra1 Qg4 19. Ba5
Qg5 20. Bxd8 Qxd8 21. Bxc6 $18 {1-0 Rashkovsky,N-Novikov,I/Kujbyshev 1986/MCL 
(28)}) 15. cxd6 Nxd4 16. Qxd4 Qxe2 17. Rfd1 $32 {[%csl Yd6,Yf4,Yg2][%cal Yg2b7]
Yes it is two pawns, but white has a very strong passed pawn which exerts a
tremendous cramping effect, and each of his pieces are really superbly placed.
Black sensibly tries to start developing, but this involves the return of
material, and white should have excellent chances to retain the advantage.} (
17. Rfe1 $5) 17... Bd7 18. Bxb7 Rab8 19. Qxa7 e5 20. Bg5 (20. Be3 $5) 20... Nf6
21. Bg2 Qh5 22. h4 h6 23. Bxf6 gxf6 24. Rb1 Be6 25. Qe7 (25. Qxb8 Qxd1+ 26.
Rxd1 Rxb8) 25... Kg7 26. Bc6 Qe2 {The queen has been the cause of a serious
loss of time, but finally she will be the source of black's only
counterchances.} 27. d7 (27. Re1 Rxb1 28. Rxb1 Qd3 29. Qxd8 Qxb1+ 30. Kh2 e4
$132) 27... e4 $1 $132 28. Qd6 (28. Bb5 Qf3 29. Bc6) 28... e3 29. Rxb8 (29.
fxe3 Qxe3+ $11) 29... exf2+ 30. Kh1 f1=Q+ (30... Rxb8 31. Bg2 Rd8 32. Qd2 Bg4
$1 $17 {A shocking turn of events.}) 31. Rxf1 Qxf1+ 32. Kh2 Qe2+ 33. Kg1 Qe1+
34. Kg2 Rxb8 35. Qxb8 Bxd7 36. Bxd7 Qd2+ 37. Kf3 Qxd7 $11 {This ending is
notoriously difficult even with straight pawns, and while black's king is well
shielded, it is not hard to see that dreams of making progress are just that.}
38. Qb4 Qf5+ 39. Kg2 Qd5+ 40. Kf2 Qe5 41. Qg4+ Kh7 42. Qd7 Qe6 43. Qd3+ Kg7 44.
Qd8 Qe4 45. Qb8 Qf5+ 46. Kg2 Qe5 47. Qa8 Qe2+ 48. Kg1 f5 49. Qb8 Qf3 50. Kh2
Qf2+ 51. Kh3 Qf1+ 52. Kh2 Qe2+ 53. Kh3 Qe6 54. Kg2 Kg6 55. Qg8+ Kf6 56. Qh8+
Kg6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Mondariz zt 1.1"]
[Site "Mondariz"]
[Date "2000.09.12"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Parker, Jonathan"]
[Black "Hauchard, Arnaud"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2539"]
[BlackElo "2539"]
[Annotator "Wells,P"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "2000.09.03"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 079"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2000.11.21"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2000.11.21"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 O-O 5. Bg2 d5 6. cxd5 exd5 7. Nf3 c6 8. O-O
Re8 9. Qb3 Bf8 10. Bg5 Nbd7 11. Rad1 Qb6 12. Qc2 h6 13. Bf4 g6 14. Qc1 Kh7 15.
Ne5 Re7 16. e4 {The obvious break, but there is nothing routine about white's
follow-up} dxe4 17. Nc4 $1 Qa6 18. Nd6 Nb6 19. Be5 $1 {How many players would
snatch at the c8 bishop. Jonathan Parker, however, intends to use the
embarrassment of black's disparate forces to exchange it under incomparably
better circumtances.} Bg7 20. Bxf6 $1 Bxf6 21. Ndxe4 Bg7 22. Rfe1 $16 {[%csl
Re7,Rg6][%cal Gc8e6,Ye4c5,Ye4g5,Gf7e6] The point! The rook on e7 is the
weakness -the consequence of an opening of the centre for which white's major
pieces are superbly prepared, while black's queen and queen's rook play no
positive role at all.} Be6 23. Nc5 Qa5 24. Nxe6 Rxe6 25. Rxe6 fxe6 26. Qc2 {
[%csl Rg6] Again, that aspect of the initiative based solely upon superior
mobilisation and development will ultimately be neutralised. However white has
two permanent gains: a chronically weak g6 pawn to target, and the opposite
coloured bishops which guarantee that its successful defence is out of the
question.} Rd8 27. Ne2 e5 28. Be4 Rd6 29. h4 h5 30. dxe5 Rxd1+ 31. Qxd1 Qxe5
32. Qd3 Kh6 33. Bxg6 Qxb2 34. Bxh5 Qf6 35. Bf3 Qa1+ 36. Kg2 Be5 37. Bh5 Kg7 38.
Qg6+ Kh8 39. Qe8+ Kg7 40. Qf7+ Kh8 41. Bg6 1-0

[Event "Brussels"]
[Site "Brussels"]
[Date "1987.04.22"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Winants, Luc"]
[Black "Short, Nigel D"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2415"]
[BlackElo "2615"]
[Annotator "Winants,L"]
[PlyCount "111"]
[EventDate "1987.04.10"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "BEL"]
[EventCategory "14"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 002"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1988.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1988.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Bb4+ 4. Nc3 c5 5. g3 d5 6. cxd5 Nxd5 7. Bd2 Nc6 8.
Bg2 cxd4 9. Nxd4 Nxd4 10. Nxd5 Bxd2+ 11. Qxd2 e5 $5 ({Instead of} 11... Nc6 {
, Kasparov,G-Karpov,A / London 1986}) 12. O-O (12. e3 Bh3) 12... O-O $1 (12...
Be6 13. Qe3 $1 {Short}) 13. f4 $5 {What else?} (13. e3 Be6 $1 (13... Bh3 $2 14.
f4 {with a clear white edge}) 14. exd4 Bxd5 15. dxe5 Bxg2 16. Qxd8 Rfxd8 17.
Kxg2 Rd2) 13... Be6 14. e4 Bxd5 15. exd5 Qb6 16. Kh1 exf4 17. Qxf4 ({More
prudent was} 17. Rxf4 Nb5 18. Rg4 Rac8 19. a4 Nd6 20. Rxg7+ {with equal play.})
17... Rad8 18. Rae1 Nb5 (18... Rd7 19. Bh3 Rxd5 20. Qxf7+ $1) 19. Re7 Nd6 20.
b3 Rfe8 21. Rfe1 Rxe7 22. Rxe7 Qc5 (22... a5 $142 $1 {increasing the control
of the black squares.}) 23. b4 Qc3 24. h4 h6 25. Kh2 a5 26. bxa5 Qxa5 27. a4
Qc5 28. g4 $5 Kf8 29. Re1 Ne8 30. Rb1 {Useless} (30. Rc1 $1) 30... Qe7 $2 {
Missing his chance.} (30... Qd6 31. Qg3 (31. Kg3 Rc8 $5 (31... g5 $15) 32. Rxb7
$2 Rc3+ 33. Bf3 Rxf3+ 34. Kxf3 Qxd5+ 35. Qe4 Qxe4+ 36. Kxe4 Nd6+ {and wins})
31... Qxg3+ 32. Kxg3 Nd6 33. g5 hxg5 34. hxg5 Rc8 $15) 31. g5 hxg5 32. hxg5 Qd6
33. Kg3 Qxf4+ 34. Kxf4 Nd6 35. Rh1 Ke7 36. Re1+ Kf8 37. Rh1 Rc8 38. Rh8+ Ke7
39. Rxc8 Nxc8 40. Ke5 b6 41. Bf1 Nd6 42. Bd3 Kd7 43. Be2 Nb7 44. Ba6 Nd6 45.
Be2 Ke7 46. Bd3 f6+ 47. gxf6+ gxf6+ 48. Kd4 Ne8 49. Bg6 Nc7 50. a5 $5 bxa5 51.
Kc5 Na6+ 52. Kb6 a4 53. Kxa6 Kd6 54. Kb5 a3 55. Bb1 Kxd5 56. Kb4 1/2-1/2

[Event "EU-ch 12th"]
[Site "Aix les Bains"]
[Date "2011.03.28"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Wojtaszek, Radoslaw"]
[Black "Hracek, Zbynek"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2711"]
[BlackElo "2631"]
[Annotator "Wojtaszek,R"]
[PlyCount "53"]
[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"]

{This game was important for me because it was the last one before the free
day and it's always better to rest with a win. The problem was that my
opponent has a very solid style, so I expected a difficult game.} 1. d4 Nf6 2.
c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 {I used to play this line quite often but I've never
had good results in those games. This time I decided to try it one more time
because I thought it could be a surprise for my opponent.} c5 ({3 games later,
GM Khairulin reacted in a different way:} 4... b6 {and after} 5. e3 Bb7 6. Bd3
O-O 7. O-O d5 {we ended up in a classical line of the e3 Nimzo. After a
strategic battle I was able to win that game.}) 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 Ne4 (6...
O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Nc6 10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. O-O {is more popular
than my opponent's choice.}) 7. Qc2 $5 {A very rare line which I had analysed
back in 2006. I decided that it could be a good try against a solid player.} (
7. Qd3 {is the main line but recently Black is doing fine after} Bxc3+ 8. bxc3
Nc5) 7... Qa5 (7... Nxc3 8. bxc3 Be7 {was possible but I believe that the
queen is better placed on c2 than d3.}) 8. Bg2 Nxc3 9. O-O $1 {That's the
whole concept, White wants to sacrifice a pawn in order to get some
compensation.} Nc6 ({It was impossible to keep the knight:} 9... Na4 $2 10. a3
Be7 11. Nb5 $1 {and White is much better.}) ({During my preparation I
considered also} 9... Nxe2+ 10. Qxe2 O-O 11. Be3 {but White has very pleasant
compensation here.}) 10. bxc3 Bxc3 (10... Be7 {I believe this was the best
practical choice. It was clear that my opponent was out of book as he spent
about 20 minutes on this move. In this kind of situation he could choose a
calm continuation where he is only slightly worse.} 11. Rb1 O-O 12. Rd1 {
and of course White would be better thanks to more active pieces.}) 11. Nb3 ({
It's interesting that this game was annotated in the tournament bulletin but
there was a mistake as it was written that I'd played} 11. Nb5 Nd4 (11... Bxa1
12. Bd2 Qd8 13. Rxa1 O-O) 12. Nxd4 Bxd4 {with transpositon. Of course Nb3 was
the move I played. After Nb5 Black can simply take on a1. The author of these
comments believes White has compensation but I can't really see it...}) 11...
Nd4 $5 $146 {Novelty, but I was prepared for this natural move. Black wants to
exchange as many pieces as possible.} ({Till this moment we were following the
game Radjabov-Gashimov which continued} 11... Qe5 12. Bf4 Qf6 13. Rab1 {
with good compensation for White.}) 12. Nxd4 Bxd4 13. Rb1 {During my
preparation before the game I finished here and I decided that White has
pleasant compensation. That's probably true but now I believe that Black
should be ok with some careful moves.} O-O $6 {It's not often when castling is
a mistake. This time it's not the best decision because of the forced line:} (
13... Qc7 $1 14. Ba3 Bc5 (14... d6 15. Rfd1 Bc5 16. Bxc5 dxc5 17. Qa4+ $1 Ke7
18. Qa3 {with good compensation}) 15. Bxc5 Qxc5 16. Bxb7 Rb8 {and Black should
equalise soon.}) 14. Rd1 Bc5 15. Rb5 ({There was nothing after} 15. Bxb7 Bxb7
16. Rxb7 d6 $11) 15... Qc7 16. Bf4 $1 e5 17. Rxc5 $1 {I was quite happy during
the game. White will have a great compensation and I was sure it's not easy to
play this position with Black.} (17. Bxe5 Qxe5 18. Rd5 Bxf2+ $1 $15) 17... Qxc5
18. Rd5 Qb4 $6 (18... Qxd5 $6 19. Bxd5 exf4 20. gxf4 {and I don't see a clear
way to develop the black pieces.}) ({Black should play} 18... Qe7 $1 19. Bxe5
Re8 20. e3 d6 $1 {because it was the only chance to develop his pieces.} 21.
Bxd6 Qf6 22. Bc5 {[%cal Gc5d4,Gc4c5] and White has great compensation but at
least Black can move all his pieces.}) 19. Bxe5 Re8 20. Be4 $1 $16 {...and now
Black is completely paralysed because ...d6 is not an option anymore.} ({
During the game I considered} 20. Bxg7 {but it doesn't work:} Kxg7 21. Rg5+ Kf6
$1 {and Black is winning.}) (20. e3 $5 {was of course also possible but I
thought I should prevent d6.}) 20... h6 21. Bd6 Qe1+ 22. Kg2 a5 {This doesn't
look good but I don't think there is anything better for Black.} 23. Rf5 $1 {
White can start a decisive attack.} (23. Rd1 $2 Qxd1 24. Bh7+ Kh8 25. Qxd1 Kxh7
{and Black can still defend.}) 23... Ra6 24. c5 Re6 25. Bd5 Qa1 $2 {The last
mistake in a very bad position.} (25... Qxe2 26. Qxe2 Rxe2 27. Rxf7 Kh7 28. Rf8
Ra8 29. Kf3 $18) (25... Rc6 {During the game I considered mainly this and I
found a nice finish:} 26. Rxf7 $1 (26. Rf4 {with the threat Qf5 was also fine})
26... Kxf7 27. Qf5+ Kg8 28. Qf8+ Kh7 29. Be5 $1 (29. Bxe6 $4 dxe6 30. Be5 Rc7
$1 31. Bxc7 Bd7 {and Black is already better.}) 29... Qxf2+ $1 30. Kxf2 Rf6+
31. Bxf6 Rxf6+ 32. Qxf6 gxf6 33. Be4+ Kg7 34. Ke3 {and it's an easy win for
White.}) 26. Bxe6 dxe6 27. Be5 $1 {...and my opponent resigned because of} (27.
Be5 $1 Qe1 28. Rf4 (28. Bc3 $2 Qxc3 29. Qxc3 exf5 {and it's not clear if White
can win}) 28... Rc6 29. Rg4 $1 {and White is winning.}) 1-0

[Event "RUS-Cup Final"]
[Site "Sochi"]
[Date "1997.09.24"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Yakovich, Yuri"]
[Black "Ibragimov, Ildar"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2610"]
[BlackElo "2585"]
[Annotator "Yakovich,Y"]
[PlyCount "159"]
[EventDate "1997.09.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "13"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 062"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1998.01.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1998.01.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 d6 6. e4 Bxc3+ 7. bxc3 e5 8. Bd3
Nbd7 9. Ne2 Nf8 10. Be3 (10. h4 h5 (10... h6 11. Be3 Ng6 12. Qd2 Kd7 13. O-O-O
Qa5 14. Kb2 Kc7 15. Ka1 Bd7 16. Rb1 b6 17. Rb3 Qa6 18. h5 Ne7 19. Bf2 Nh7 20.
Ng3 Ng5 21. Nf1 f6 22. Ne3 Rhb8 23. Bg3 Qc8 24. Qf2 Qf8 25. Rb2 Re8 26. Rf1
Rad8 27. Qg1 Nc8 28. Qh2 Re7 29. Be1 Kb7 30. Bd2 Ka8 31. Bc1 Be8 32. g3 Rb7 33.
f4 Nf7 34. Nf5 Ne7 35. Nh4 Bd7 36. Rbf2 Qe8 37. Ng6 Rdb8 38. Rb2 Nc8 39. Be3
Ne7 40. Rfb1 Nxg6 41. hxg6 Nd8 42. f5 Rc7 43. Qe2 Nb7 44. g4 Na5 45. Bc1 {
Piket,J-Seirawan,Y/Monaco blind 1993/EXP 34/1-0 (70)}) 11. Bg5 N8h7 12. Bd2 Qa5
13. a4 Bd7 14. Nc1 Qc7 15. Nb3 g6 16. a5 O-O-O 17. Qe2 Ng8 18. Kd1 f5 19. Be3
Ngf6 20. Nd2 Rde8 21. Kc2 fxe4 22. Nxe4 Nxe4 23. fxe4 Rhf8 24. Bh6 Bg4 25. Qd2
Rf7 26. a6 b6 27. Rhf1 Ree7 28. Kb2 Rxf1 29. Rxf1 Rf7 30. Qe1 Qe7 31. Bc2 Bd7
32. Rf3 Kd8 33. Bd1 Ke8 34. Qg3 {0-1 Malaniuk,V-Vladimirov,E/Moscow rapid 1992/
EXT 92}) 10... h6 11. Qd2 Ng6 12. O-O Bd7 13. Ng3 Qc7 14. Rab1 O-O-O 15. Rb2
Kb8 16. Rfb1 Ka8 $1 (16... Bc8 $6 17. a4 a5 $2 18. Rb5 $16) 17. Rxb7 Qxb7 18.
Rxb7 Kxb7 19. Ne2 $1 {[%cal Ye2c1,Yc1b3,Yb3c5,Yd2c1,Yc1a3,Ya3c5,Ye3c5]} Rb8 20.
Nc1 Ka8 21. Nb3 {/\Nc5} Rhc8 $1 {[%cal Gc8c5,Gf6d7,Gd7c5,Yd7e8]} 22. Qc1 Be8 $1
23. Qa3 {/\Nc5} Nd7 $1 24. g3 {[%cal Yd3f1,Yf1h3,Yh3d7]} Ne7 25. Bf1 Rc7 26.
Qa6 (26. Bh3 Nb6 {[%cal Rb6c4]}) 26... Rb6 27. Qa5 Kb7 (27... Rbb7 $11) 28. Bh3
Nc8 $2 (28... Ra6 29. Qb5+ Rb6 $11) 29. Bxd7 Bxd7 30. Bxc5 $1 Ra6 (30... dxc5
31. Nxc5+ Ka8 32. Nxd7 Rxd7 33. c5 $16) 31. Bxd6 $1 (31. Qb4+ $2 Ka8 32. Bxd6 (
32. Be3 Ra4) 32... Nxd6 $19 33. c5 Ra4) 31... Rxa5 (31... Nxd6 32. Nc5+ $18)
32. Nxa5+ Kb6 33. Bxc7+ $138 (33. Bxe5 $5 Rc5 (33... Kxa5 34. Bxc7+ Ka4 35. c5
Ka3 36. c6 Be8 37. Kf2 Kxa2 38. Ke3 Kb3 39. Kd4 $18) 34. Bd4 Kxa5 35. Bxc5 Nb6
36. Bb4+ Ka4 (36... Ka6 37. c5 $18) 37. c5 Nc4 38. c6 Be8 39. Bf8 g6 40. Kf2
$18) 33... Kxc7 34. c5 Bb5 $138 35. c4 Ba4 36. Kf2 f6 37. Ke3 g5 38. Kd2 h5 39.
h4 a6 40. Ke3 gxh4 41. gxh4 Na7 42. Kd2 $3 (42. f4 Bc2 {[%cal Rc2e4]}) 42...
Nc8 43. f4 $1 exf4 (43... Na7 44. fxe5 fxe5 45. Nb3 {[%cal Rb3c1,Rc1d3,Rd3e5]}
Bxb3 (45... Nc8 46. Nc1 Kd8 47. Nd3 $18) 46. axb3 a5 47. Kc3 Nc8 48. b4 $18)
44. Ke2 Kd8 45. Kf3 Ne7 46. Kxf4 Bd7 47. c6 Ng6+ 48. Kg3 Bg4 49. d6 Ne5 50.
Nb7+ Kc8 51. d7+ Nxd7 52. cxd7+ Kxd7 53. Nc5+ Kd6 54. Nxa6 Ke5 55. c5 Kxe4 56.
c6 Kd5 57. Nb4+ Kc5 58. a3 Kd6 59. Kf4 Be6 60. Ke4 Kc5 61. c7 $1 Kd6 62. Kd4 $1
{[%cal Rb4d5,Rd5f6]} Kxc7 63. Nd5+ Kd6 64. Nxf6 Bf7 65. Ne4+ Kc6 66. Ke5 Bg6
67. Ng3 Kb5 68. Kf6 Bc2 69. Nxh5 Ka4 70. Kg5 Kxa3 71. Nf6 Kb4 72. h5 Kc5 73.
Ng8 Kd6 74. Kf6 Kd7 75. h6 Ke8 76. Kg7 Kd7 77. Nf6+ Ke6 78. Ng4 Bb1 79. Ne3 Ke5
80. Ng2 1-0

[Event "Sharjah FIDE GP"]
[Site "Sharjah"]
[Date "2017.02.27"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Black "Hou, Yifan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2766"]
[BlackElo "2651"]
[Annotator "Yermolinsky,A"]
[PlyCount "63"]
[EventDate "2017.02.18"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "UAE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 177"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2017.03.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2017.03.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 (3... c5 4. d5 exd5 5. cxd5 Bd6 6. e4 Bc7 7. Nf3
d6 8. h3 O-O 9. Bd3 Ba5 {The original Snake Benoni}) 4. f3 {Mamedyarov's
favorite reply to the Nimzo. He took up where Shirov blazed the trail some
twenty years ago, and ever since the Azeri star has been the main driving
force behind the development of this line.} c5 {Transposing to a Snake Benoni
is one of many options available for Black. The advantage is in getting there
quicker, but the question still remains how good Black's position really is.} (
{Karpov used to play} 4... d5) ({and there's} 4... O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 Nh5
{Karjakin-Carlsen, 2014.}) 5. d5 O-O (5... b5 6. e4 O-O {transposes.}) 6. e4 b5
({Some players prefer to hide their intentions a bit and first go} 6... d6 {
Just five days ago it was seen in the marquee match-up of Chess.com Pro League
Week 7 between Mamedyarov and So. There followed} 7. Bd3 b5 (7... Nbd7 8. Nge2
Ne5 {gets the bishop, but White may be OK with that as} 9. Bg5 {creates
problems with the pin.}) 8. Nge2 bxc4 9. Bxc4 exd5 10. Bxd5 Nxd5 11. Qxd5 {
this appears to be the problem with putting the pawn on d6 - Black doesn't
have Nc6 to save the rook. Wesley, as we might always expect, had something
prepared.} Qb6 12. Bf4 Be6 13. Qxa8 Nc6 14. Qxf8+ Kxf8 15. Bxd6+ Kg8 16. O-O-O
Na5 {with extra-sharp play. At the end of that crazy game Shakh was able to
inflict a rare defeat on the hard-to-beat Wesley}) 7. e5 {No looking back.} ({
The positional approach} 7. Nh3 d6 8. Nf4 e5 9. Nfe2 {takes too much time, and
Black gets to start his own play with} Nh5 10. g4 Qh4+ 11. Kd2 Nf4 12. Nxf4
exf4 13. Kc2 {Eljanov-Harikrishna, Stavanger 2016}) 7... Ne8 8. f4 d6 9. Nf3
exd5 10. cxd5 Nc7 ({The game that started it all was a classic battle
Shirov-Kramnik, Shanghai 2010:} 10... c4 11. a4 Bg4 (11... Nd7 12. Be2 Qb6 13.
axb5 Nc7 {in the later game Mamedyarov-Karjakin.}) 12. axb5 Nd7 13. e6 fxe6 14.
dxe6 Nb6 15. Be2 Nc7 16. Ng5 Bxe2 17. Qxe2 d5 ({Possibly a better move was} 
17... Qf6 18. O-O h6 19. Nce4 Qf5) 18. O-O Qf6 19. f5 $1 {leading to a victory
for the Latvian.}) 11. a4 {There comes a novelty.} (11. Bd3 c4 12. Be4 f5 $1 {
worked out well for Black number of times, including Shirov-Grandelius, 2016.})
11... Bb7 12. Bd3 h6 $2 {Hou chooses the wrong way to secure the king.} ({
Granted, it was hard to ignore the threat, but} 12... Nxd5 13. Bxh7+ Kxh7 14.
Ng5+ Kg8 (14... Kg6 15. f5+ {crashes}) 15. Qh5 Qxg5 16. fxg5 Nxc3 {might just
be playable for Black, e.g.} 17. O-O g6 18. Qg4 Nc6 19. bxc3 Bxc3 20. Ra3 Bd4+
21. Be3 b4) ({The best way was} 12... g6 13. O-O c4 14. Be4 Nd7 15. exd6 Ne8)
13. O-O Bxc3 ({Now in the event of} 13... c4 {White has a powerful idea in} 14.
Bb1 dxe5 15. fxe5 Nxd5 16. Qc2) 14. bxc3 dxe5 15. axb5 e4 (15... Nxd5 16. fxe5
{with his bishop pair and strong pawn on b5 White should be very optimistic
here:} Nxc3 17. Qd2 Nd5 18. Be4 Qd7 19. Ba3 $16) 16. Bxe4 Bxd5 17. Bb1 $1 Nd7
18. c4 $1 Bb7 ({Naturally, not} 18... Bxc4 $2 19. Qc2) ({but} 18... Bxf3 19.
Qxf3 Ne6 {was a must, although I doubt Black can survive this.}) 19. Ra3 $1 {
Shakh is incredibly strong in such positions.} Ne6 20. Qc2 ({A mere extra pawn
after} 20. Rd3 Bxf3 21. Qxf3 Nd4 22. Qf2 Qc7 23. Bb2 Nf6 24. Bxd4 {etc. was
not good enough for Shakh.}) 20... Nf6 21. Bb2 Ne4 ({Black should have tried
her luck in the endgame:} 21... Be4 22. Bxf6 Bxc2 23. Bxd8 Bxb1 24. Be7 Rfe8
25. Bxc5 Nxc5 26. Rxb1 Re4 {although White then has the powerful} 27. b6) 22.
Rd3 Qc7 23. f5 {Black's pieces are totally overwhelmed.} Nd4 24. Nxd4 cxd4 25.
Bxd4 a6 26. b6 Qc6 27. f6 Rfd8 28. fxg7 Rd6 29. c5 Rg6 30. Ba2 Ng5 31. Rg3 Nh3+
{One last try, but...} 32. Kh1 {...forced resignation. It seemed Hou was a bit
out of her league challenging Shakh in his territory, but overall, she showed
solid play in Sharjah. Shakh, in his case, must be content with making up for
his loss to Grischuk in the previous round and gaining a share of first place.}
1-0

[Event "Norway Chess 6th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2018.06.02"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Vachier Lagrave, Maxime"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2789"]
[BlackElo "2764"]
[Annotator "Yermolinsky,A"]
[PlyCount "49"]
[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. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8.
cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 {Predictable.} ({Perhaps, it is time for White to revisit} 9.
Bd2) 9... Nc6 10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. O-O Rb8 ({The main line used to be} 11... Qa5
12. Bd2 Bxc3 13. bxc3 Ba6 14. Rfd1 Qc5) 12. Qc2 ({White has a little pull after
} 12. a3 Nxc3 13. bxc3 Bd6 14. Qa4 {known since Atalik-Ulibin, 1996(!)}) 12...
Ba6 13. Rd1 Bxc3 14. bxc3 Qa5 {Aronian uses known ideas in a different
interpretation.} 15. Bb2 {Probably this is not the kind of future MVL
visualised for his bishop.} ({but} 15. Bd2 {was no longer possible on account
of} Bxe2 16. c4 Nb4) 15... Bc4 16. Rd4 Qa6 17. e4 (17. Ba3 Qxa3 18. Rxc4 Rfc8)
17... Nb6 18. a4 e5 19. Rd2 Qa5 20. Rd6 c5 21. Bh3 {I think Maxime was already
looking for an escape. Conveniently, Levon was OK with a draw, and the players
took the first chance for a repetition.} Nc8 22. Rd2 Nb6 23. Rd6 Nc8 24. Rd2
Nb6 25. Rd6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Qatar Masters op"]
[Site "Doha"]
[Date "2015.12.29"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Yu, Yangyi"]
[Black "So, Wesley"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2736"]
[BlackElo "2775"]
[Annotator "Yu,Yangyi"]
[PlyCount "153"]
[EventDate "2015.12.20"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "QAT"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 170"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.01.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.01.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{Before the final round Vladimir Kramnik and I shared second and third place
with 6.0/8 each. Magnus Carlsen was leading the tournament with half a point
ahead of us. When I saw that Carlsen would play with White against Kramnik in
the final round, I felt that their game would very likely end in a draw.  I
had to play with White against Wesley So in the final round. If memory serves
me right, I think our past encounters have always ended in draws. Wesley is
widely viewed as an excellent and solid player. Thus, I knew that if I wanted
to play for a win, I would have to choose an unusual and risky opening to
avoid running into lengthy preparation. As a first step I decided to open with
1.d4 instead of my usual 1.e4.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3
cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 {Up to this point all moves are common opening
theory, although neither of us seems to have played this position before. With
my next move, which is played rather rarely in this position, I hoped to take
him out of his book.} 8. Nc2 $5 Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 Qc7 (9... dxc4 10. Ba3 Re8 11.
Qxd8 Rxd8 12. Ne3 $14) 10. cxd5 Nxd5 11. Nb4 Nxb4 {I think Black should have
taken on c3, which leads to an equal position.} (11... Qxc3+ 12. Bd2 Qf6 13.
Bxd5 (13. Nxd5 exd5 14. O-O Nc6 15. Bxd5 Rd8) 13... exd5 14. Nxd5 Qd8 15. Bf4 (
15. Bb4 Re8 16. Ne7+ Kh8 $11) 15... Qa5+ 16. Qd2 Qxd2+ 17. Bxd2 Na6 $11) 12.
cxb4 Rd8 13. Qb3 Nc6 14. O-O (14. Be3 $5 e5 (14... Nd4 15. Bxd4 Rxd4 16. e3)
15. O-O Be6 16. Qb2 Bd5) 14... Nd4 15. Qb2 e5 (15... Qc4 16. e3 Ne2+ 17. Kh1
Bd7 18. Qb3 Bb5 $11) 16. Be3 Bg4 17. Rac1 Qd7 18. f3 Bh3 19. Rfd1 Bxg2 20. Kxg2
Qe6 21. Rc7 b6 {Here I spent a lot of time assessing the position and
calculating lines. I felt that 22.Bxd4 would be good for White but that the
resulting endgame would be too difficult to win and after some (mis-)
calculation came to the conclusion that 22.a4 is stronger. Later I realised
that things are actually far from clear.} 22. a4 $6 (22. Bxd4 $1 Rxd4 23. Rxd4
exd4 24. Qc2 $14) 22... Nf5 23. Rxd8+ Rxd8 24. Bf2 (24. Bg1 $5 h5 (24... e4 25.
Qc2 exf3+ 26. exf3 h5 $11) 25. Qc2 $1 (25. Rxa7 e4 26. Qc2 exf3+ 27. exf3 g5 $1
)) 24... e4 {When calculating 22.a4 I had overlooked that White after 25.Rxa7
e3 26.Be1 Qc4 would have the crushing 27.a5!} {As I did not see 27.a5, I went
for the moderate} 25. Qc2 ({However, later, when using the engine, I
discovered that after} 25. Rxa7 {Black can still maintain the tension with} h5
(25... e3 26. Be1 Qc4 27. a5 $1 b5 28. Kf1 Nd4 29. Re7 Nxf3 30. Qc3 $16) 26.
Rc7 exf3+ 27. exf3 h4 $13) 25... e3 (25... exf3+ 26. exf3 Ne3+ 27. Bxe3 Qxe3
28. Rd7 Re8 $1 $11) 26. Be1 h5 $1 {Here I had little time left and from a
purely objective point of view I should have kept the position more or less
balanced with 27.a5 instead of going for complications.} 27. Rxa7 $6 (27. a5 $1
h4 (27... bxa5 28. bxa5 a6 29. Rc5 $14) (27... Nd4 28. Qd3 Qe8 29. Qa6 $16) 28.
gxh4 (28. g4 h3+ $13) 28... Nd4 29. Qd3 Qe8 (29... Qa2 30. Qxe3 $16) 30. Qe4
Nxe2 31. Rxa7 bxa5 32. bxa5 (32. Qxe8+ Rxe8) 32... Qxe4 33. fxe4 Rd1 $11) 27...
Nd4 28. Qe4 Qc4 29. Qxe3 $2 ({Here I should have played} 29. Qd3 {to go for a
draw.} Qc1 (29... Qxd3 30. exd3 Rc8 31. Re7 Rc2+ 32. Kf1 Nxf3 33. Rxe3 Nxh2+
34. Kg1 g5 $11) 30. Bc3 Nc6 31. Rd7 Rxd7 32. Qxd7 Qxc3 33. Qe8+ Kh7 34. Qxf7
Qe5 35. Qb7 $11) 29... Nc2 30. Qe7 Nxe1+ 31. Kf2 Qd4+ $2 {I think Black played
this move too fast.} ({If he had spent a bit more time he might have found} 
31... Rd1 $1 {which probably wins:} 32. Qe8+ (32. Rd7 Rxd7 33. Qxd7 Nc2 34. a5
bxa5 35. Qe8+ Kh7 36. bxa5 Qc5+ 37. e3 Qc3 $19) 32... Kh7 33. Qe4+ Qxe4 34.
fxe4 Nc2 35. Rxf7 Ra1 (35... Nxb4 36. Rf5) 36. a5 bxa5 37. bxa5 Nd4 $17) 32.
Kf1 Nc2 $2 ({I believe Black by now had realised that 31...Qd4 was a mistake.
Probably still in a state of psychological shock he did not find the drawing
move} 32... Rf8 $1 33. Kxe1 Qg1+ 34. Kd2 Qd4+ 35. Kc2 Qc4+ $11) 33. Qxf7+ Kh8
34. Qxh5+ Kg8 35. Qf7+ Kh8 36. Qh5+ Kg8 37. Qf7+ Kh8 38. Kg2 $1 {Because we
had only three more moves to play before the first time control and the
position still offered good prospects, I decided to avoid the three-fold
repetition to continue fighting.} Ne3+ 39. Kh3 Kh7 40. Qh5+ Kg8 41. Re7 Rf8 42.
a5 bxa5 43. bxa5 Nd5 44. Qe5 Qxe5 45. Rxe5 Nb4 46. Re4 (46. Rb5 Nc2) (46. Rc5
Ra8 47. Kg2 Ra6 48. Rb5 Nc2 49. Kf2 Nd4 50. Rb4 Nf5 51. e4 Ne7 52. Rb5 Ra7 $16)
46... Nd5 (46... Nc6 47. a6 Ra8 48. Ra4 Ra7 49. e4 Nb8 50. Rb4 Nxa6 51. Ra4 Ra8
52. Kg4 Nc7 53. Rxa8+ Nxa8 54. f4 $16) 47. Rc4 Rf6 48. Rc5 Rf5 49. Rc8+ Kf7 50.
a6 Ne3 51. g4 Ra5 52. Rc7+ Kf6 53. Rc6+ $6 ({Here I missed a direct tactical
win:} 53. a7 $1 Nd5 54. g5+ $1 Kxg5 (54... Kg6 55. Rc5 Nf4+ 56. Kg4 $18) 55.
Rc5 Rxc5 56. a8=Q Nf4+ 57. Kg3 Nxe2+ 58. Kf2 Nf4 59. Qd8+ Kh5 60. Qd7 $1 Rc2+
61. Ke3 Ng2+ 62. Kd3 Ne1+ 63. Ke4 Kg6 64. Qf5+ Kh6 65. Qh3+ Kg6 66. Qg3+ Kh7
67. Qxe1 Rxh2 68. f4 Rh6 69. f5 Rf6 70. Qh4+ Rh6 71. Qg5 $18) 53... Kf7 54. Kg3
g5 55. h4 gxh4+ 56. Kxh4 Nd5 57. e4 $2 {To be honest, I overestimated White's
advantage. After this careless move the position is again unclear.} (57. g5 $1
$18 {would have been much stronger.}) 57... Ne7 58. Rb6 Ng6+ 59. Kg3 Ra3 60. g5
Ne5 61. Rf6+ Ke7 (61... Kg7 $1 {is probably better.}) 62. Kg2 Nd3 63. Rh6 $2 ({
I didn't see} 63. f4 $1 Nc5 64. f5 Nxa6 (64... Rxa6 65. Rxa6 Nxa6 66. Kf3 $18)
65. Re6+ Kf8 66. Rc6 Nb4 67. Rc8+ Kg7 68. Rc7+ Kg8 69. g6 Nd3 70. Kf3 $18)
63... Ra5 64. a7 (64. Kh3 Rxg5 65. Rh8 Ne5 66. Re8+ Kxe8 67. a7 Nxf3 68. a8=Q+
Kf7 $11) 64... Rxg5+ 65. Kf1 Rg8 66. Ke2 {After the pendulum has swung back
and forth throughout the game, Black now makes the crucial mistake.} Ne5 $2 ({
Instead} 66... Nf4+ $1 {would have secured the draw.} 67. Ke3 Ne6 $11 68. e5
Kd7 $11) 67. f4 Nd7 68. Ra6 Ra8 69. Ke3 Nc5 (69... Kd8 70. Kd4 Kc7 71. e5 Kb7
72. Ra1 $18) 70. Ra1 $18 Nb7 (70... Ne6 71. e5 Nc7 (71... Nd8 72. Ra6 Kd7 73.
f5 Nc6 74. e6+ Kc7 75. f6 $18) 72. Ke4 Nb5 73. Ra5 Nxa7 74. f5 $18) 71. e5 Nd8
72. Ra6 Kd7 73. f5 Nc6 74. e6+ {Basically White can always sacrifice his rook
for Black's knight. Black's rook and the king on c6 cannot stop White's
connected e- and f-pawns.} Kc7 (74... Kd6 75. f6 Rxa7 76. Rxc6+ Kxc6 77. f7 $18
) 75. f6 $18 Nb4 (75... Kb7 76. Rxc6 Kxc6) 76. f7 Kb7 77. Rd6 {Finally after
five hours and lots of ups and downs, I brought home the full point. This
victory gave me the opportunity to play a tie-break against Magnus Carlsen.}
1-0

[Event "Olympiad-31"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "1994.12.09"]
[Round "8.2"]
[White "Zvjaginsev, Vadim"]
[Black "Ehlvest, Jaan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2585"]
[BlackElo "2600"]
[Annotator "Zvjaginsev,V"]
[PlyCount "76"]
[EventDate "1994.12.01"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 045"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "1995.04.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "1995.04.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Russia II"]
[BlackTeam "Estonia"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "RUS"]
[BlackTeamCountry "EST"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 Nc6 6. Bg2 Bxc3+ 7. bxc3 b6 {N/}
8. Bf4 Bb7 9. dxc5 bxc5 10. Rb1 Na5 11. Rb5 $1 Bc6 (11... Ne4 12. Qa4) 12. Rxc5
Qb6 (12... Ne4 13. Qd4 $1 Qb6 (13... Nxc5 14. Qxg7 $18) 14. Rxa5 $1 Qxa5 15.
Ne5 $16) (12... Nb7 13. Rg5 $5) 13. Be3 Qa6 14. Qd4 h6 $1 15. g4 Nb7 16. g5
hxg5 (16... Nxc5 17. gxf6 $18) 17. Rxg5 Qxa2 18. O-O Rh7 19. Ne5 $6 (19. Rxg7
$6 Rxg7 20. Qxf6 Rxg2+ 21. Kxg2 Qxe2 22. Qh8+ Ke7 23. Bg5+ Kd6 $10) (19. Rg3 $1
$16) 19... Bxg2 20. Rxg2 d6 $1 (20... Qxe2 21. Bg5) 21. Ng4 Nxg4 22. Qxg4 d5
23. cxd5 Qxd5 24. Qa4+ Qd7 25. Qe4 g6 (25... f5 $32) 26. f4 $1 (26. Rb1 Rd8 $3
$10) 26... f5 (26... Rd8 $2 27. f5 Nd6 28. Qe5 Nc4 (28... Nxf5 29. Rxf5) 29.
fxg6 $1 Nxe5 30. gxh7 $18) (26... Rh5 27. f5 $18) 27. Qe5 $2 (27. Qf3 Rc8 (
27... Kf7 28. Rb1) 28. Rxg6 $16) 27... Rh6 $1 $14 28. Rb1 Nd8 29. Bd4 Nc6 30.
Qf6 Nxd4 31. cxd4 Rd8 32. e3 Qe7 33. Qxe7+ $6 (33. Qe5 $14) 33... Kxe7 34. Rb7+
Rd7 35. Rxd7+ Kxd7 36. Ra2 Ke7 37. Rxa7+ Kf6 $10 38. Kg2 Rh4 1/2-1/2

