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Super GM
Tournament
clash in the M-Tel Masters |
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The Mtel Masters Super Tournament is under way. It is a category 20 event with an Elo average of 2744. The time controls are classic (up to seven hours per game) and the tournament is a double round robin (every player plays every other player twice). There is a special rule in place at this Super Tournament: draw offers are not allowed, i.e. draws by mutual agreement between the players are forbidden, only technical draws may be given by the arbiter.
Yes, they are all behind you. |
The rest of the world's players would like to know whatever it is England's Mickey Adams knows about beating Vladimir Kramnik. When he beat him at Dortmund 2000 it was Kramnik's first classical loss in years. Last year at Corus Adams notched another victory over Kramnik, and today another.
Kramnik played a long sacrificial combination that gave Adams the choice of giving up his queen for rook, bishop and knight or having knight and bishop vs rook. In either case Kramnik, black, would have two extra pawns on the queenside. Adams gave up the queen and steadily worked his magic to pick off Black's pawns. Some quick analysis is below. The loss dropped Kramnik back to an equal score, along with everyone but Adams at +1 and Ponomariov at -1.
Topalov played the Berlin Defense against Judit Polgar, not something you would usually associate with his sharp style. He has played it a few times before, but mostly in rapid and blindfold games at Melody Amber. Apparently he wasn't concerned with the way Polgar demolished Kasparov when he tried the Berlin against her in a rapid game in 2002. (Bruzon played it against her at Corus this year and drew.) Topalov missed some chances to improve and the endgame was drawn.
Anand-Ponomariov was also drawn, despite appearances! It looked like Anand was crashing through with his far advanced central pawn chain, but it turned out Ponomariov had a blockade and White couldn't make progress. Anand decided he didn't have enough compensation for the pawn and repeated moves.
| Round 3 (Saturday, May 14, 2005) |
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Viswanathan Anand |
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Ruslan Ponomariov |
Michael Adams |
Vladimir Kramnik | |
Judit Polgar |
Veselin Topalov | |
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Finally it was Kramnik who slipped up, pushing his a-pawn a square too far and losing this crucial passer to a pretty sequence. (Better was 34...Bf5 or 35...Bc8 with three results still possible.) White can't play 35.Nxd7 because of 35...a2 and Black wins (not 35...Kxd7?? 36.Bxa3+ winning the queen). Adams played 35.Re3+ and now 35...Kd8 loses to 36.Re7 with mate
threats. So 35...Kf7 36.Nd3! forced the win of the a-pawn thanks
to the threat of a discovered attack with check with Ne5. After 36...Qb1
37.Bxa3 it was mostly a matter of time. (If 36...Qa1 37.Bxa3 anyway.
37...Qxa3?? 38.Ne5+) Kramnik resigned on move 41. |
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The tournament hall in Sofia (with Polgar vs Topalov on center stage)
Mickey Adams at the start of his game against Kramnik
Judit Polgar facing Topalov's Berlin Defence
Vishy Anand at the press conference after the round
Ruslan Ponomariov being interviewed for Russian TV [Pictures by Olena Boytsun]
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