Norway Chess: Ambush in the Najdorf

by André Schulz
4/20/2016 – After the very lively first round of the Norway Chess tournament in Stavanger round two was more quiet. Four of the five games ended in a draw though three of them had a number of interesting moments. In the only decisive game of the round Anish Giri fell victim to an ambush Maxime Vachier-Lagrave had prepared in one of his pet lines in the Najdorf.
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Round two of the Altibox Norway Chess tournament may have been quieter than the first round but it had interesting strategic moments and one really tactical game.

Magnus Carlsen played with Black against Veselin Topalov but found no convincing idea against White's slightly unorthodox treatment of the Queen's Gambit Exchange Variation. After a number of exchanges the game quickly petered out to a lifeless position and a quick draw.

Levon Aronian played with Black against Nils Grandelius and with 6...bxc6 he tried something unorthodox in an Anti-Berlin. This move initiated a pawn sacrifice for which Black had enough compensation but after Aronian did not find the best later in the game he was content with a draw.

 
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1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6 4.d3 Bc5 5.Nbd2 0-0 6.Bxc6 bxc6 An interesting pawn-sacrifice. "Normal" is 6...dxc6 7.Nxe5 Re8 8.Nef3 d5 9.0-0 Bg4 10.h3 Bh5 11.Qe2 h6 Last year a game in the Norway Chess tournament continued 11...dxe4 12.Nxe4 h6 13.Be3 Nxe4 14.dxe4 Rxe4 15.Qd3 Bxf3 16.Qxd8+ Rxd8 17.Bxc5 Be2 18.Rfc1 a5 19.b3 a4 20.Re1 Rd2 21.Rac1 axb3 22.axb3 Rd5 23.Be3 Bh5 24.Ra1 Bg6 25.Ra7 Re7 26.c4 Rd8 27.Rea1 Bc2 28.b4 Rd1+ 29.Rxd1 Bxd1 30.b5 cxb5 31.cxb5 Re5 32.Rxc7 Rxb5 33.Rc5 Rxc5 34.Bxc5 Bc2 35.Bd6 Bd1 36.Bc5 Bc2 37.Bd6 Bd1 1/2-1/2 (37) Anand,V (2804) -Caruana,F (2805) Stavanger 2015 12.Re1 a5 13.Qf1 a4 14.e5 Nd7 15.d4 Bb6 16.c4 Nf8 17.c5 Ba5 18.Re3 Ne6 19.g4 Bg6 20.a3 f5 21.b4 axb3 22.Nxb3 fxg4 23.hxg4 Rf8 24.Nh2
24...Be4 After 24...Bc2 25.Nxa5 Rxa5 26.Rc3 Be4 27.Be3 Ra4 the engines give Black an advantage. 28.Qd1? Qh4 29.-- with the idea Ng5 25.Rg3 Qe7 If now 25...Bc2 26.Nxa5 Rxa5 27.Be3 Be4 White blocks the path to h4: 28.g5 26.Ra2 g5 27.Rb2 Qh7 28.Qd1 Qf7 29.Qe2 Qg6 30.Qd1 Qf7 Black's advantage is gone and he contents himself with a draw. 31.Qe2 Qg6 32.Qd1 ½–½
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Grandelius,N2649Aronian,L2784½–½2016C654th Norway Chess 20162

Pavel Eljanov and Pentala Harikrishna, who both had lost in round one, played an interesting game in the Nimzo-Indian with 4.f3. Black soon sought action on the queenside but this did not stop the white king from walking over to the queenside to flee the many checks and threats of Black's queen. However, White's king was not real safe on the queenside. But because the fierce battle led to a number of exchanges the game wound up in an endgame with opposite-colored bishops that soon was drawn.

Li Chao and Vladimir Kramnik played the Glek-Variation of the Vienna which led to a middlegame in which Li Chao fought with two bishops against two knights. After some tactical skirmishes White gave his queen for two rooks which led to a dynamically balanced endgame, n which Kramnik tried for some time to catch his opponent offguard before finally agreeing to a draw.

The only decisive game of the round was a theoretical duel between Anish Giri and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave. The two discussed a sharp line of the Najdorf but it soon turned out that Vachier-Lagrave was better prepared. Two inaccuracies by Giri were enough to ruin the white position which Vachier-Lagrave exploited with some powerful tactical strokes.

 
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1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Bg5 e6 7.f4 h6 8.Bh4 Qb6 The Poisoned Pawn variation with 7...h6 is a pet line of Vachier-Lagrave. 9.a3 The alternative is 9.Qd2 Qxb2 10.Rb1 Qa3 z.B.: 11.Bxf6 gxf6 12.Be2 Nc6 13.Nxc6 bxc6 14.0-0 Bg7 15.Kh1 0-0 16.Rb3 Qa5 17.Qxd6 Rd8 18.Qa3 Qxa3 19.Rxa3 Rb8 20.Bd3 Bf8 21.Rb3 Rb4 22.Rxb4 Bxb4 23.Na4 a5 24.Rb1 c5 0-1 (44) Grischuk,A (2783)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2745) Beijing 2013 9...Be7 10.Bf2 Qc7 11.Qf3 Nbd7 11...b5 12.g4 Nc6 13.0-0-0 Bb7 14.h4 d5 15.e5 Ne4 16.Nxe4 dxe4 17.Qc3 Rc8 18.Rh3 b4 19.axb4 Nxb4 20.Qxc7 Rxc7 21.f5 0-0 22.Be1 Bd5 23.g5 Rfc8 24.Bxb4 Bxb4 25.f6 Kh7 26.c3 gxf6 27.gxf6 Rg8 28.Bxa6 Bc5 29.Nb5 Rc6 30.Bb7 Rb6 31.Bxd5 exd5 32.Nd4 Bxd4 33.cxd4 Rg2 34.Rd2 Rxd2 35.Kxd2 Kg6 36.b3 Kf5 37.Rg3 Kf4 38.Rg1 e3+ 39.Kd3 Rxb3+ 40.Kc2 Rb6 41.Kd3 Rb3+ 42.Kc2 Rb6 43.Kd3 1/2-1/2 (43) Grischuk,A (2750) -Vachier Lagrave,M (2765) London 2015 12.0-0-0 12.Bd3 b5 13.0-0 Bb7 14.Qh3 0-0 15.Rae1 Rfe8 16.Kh1 Nc5 17.Bh4 Nxd3 18.cxd3 Qc5 19.Bf2 Qh5= 0-1 (61) Solak,D (2611)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2742) Rhodes 2013 12...b5 13.g4 g5 13...Bb7 14.Bg2 Rc8 15.Kb1 g5 14.h4 gxf4 15.Be2 Rg8
15...Ne5 16.Qxf4 Nexg4 17.Bxg4 e5 18.Nd5 Nxd5 19.Qf3 Bxg4 20.Qxg4 Nf6 21.Qf3 Rc8 22.c3 Rg8 23.Nf5 a5 24.Rhg1 Rxg1 25.Bxg1 b4 26.axb4 axb4 27.Nxd6+ Bxd6 28.Qxf6 bxc3 29.b4 Bxb4 30.Bb6 Qe7 31.Qh8+ Qf8 32.Qxe5+ Qe7 33.Qh8+ Qf8 34.Qd4 Qe7 35.Kc2 Qe6 36.Qxb4 Qa2+ 37.Kd3 Qa6+ 38.Ke3 c2 39.Rc1 Rb8 40.Rxc2 1/2-1/2 (40) Nekhaev,A (2535)-Yamaliev,V (2477) ICCF email 2013 16.Rdg1? This move looks natural enough but a few moves later White is busted. 16.g5 has been extensively analysed by the engines - as you can see in Let'sCheck - and seems to be quite promising for White. Ne5 17.Qxf4 hxg5 18.hxg5 Nfd7 19.Nxe6!? fxe6 20.Rh7± threatening Bh5 and g6. 16...d5! 16...Ne5 17.Qxf4 yields Black nothing. 17.exd5 Ne5 17...Bb7!? 18.Nc6 Bf8 18.Qh3 18.Qxf4 now fails to Nd3+ 18.Qg2 Bb7-+ 18...exd5 19.Re1?! 19.Bf3 b4 20.axb4 Bxb4 21.Nxd5 Nd3+ 19...Kf8 The black king sidesteps the x-rays coming from White's rook on e1. 19...h5!? is a also good as the following long engine-line shows: 20.Nf5 hxg4 21.Bxg4 Rxg4 22.Bd4 Attacking the Ne5, which cannot move. Bxf5 22...Rg3 is also possible but even more complicated. 23.Bxe5 Qxe5 24.Rxe5 Rg1+ 25.Qf1 Rxf1+ 26.Rxf1 Be6 27.Rxf4-+ 20.Nf5 Not good but slightly better was 20.Nb3 h5-+ 20...Bxf5 21.gxf5 Bc5 Or 21...Bxa3 22.Nxd5 Bxb2+ 23.Kxb2 Nxd5-+ 22.Qf1 22.Bxc5+ Qxc5 threatening d4 and Rg3xc3. 22...d4 23.Nb1 Ne4 24.Bf3 24.Bd1 Ng3-+ 24...Nxf2 25.Bxa8
25...Ned3+ 26.Kd2 26.cxd3 Bxa3+ 27.Kd2 Bb4+-+ 26...Nxe1 27.Qxf2 d3 28.Qxe1 Be3+ 28...Be3+ 29.Kd1 Qxc2# 0–1
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Giri,A2790Vachier Lagrave,M27880–12016B964th Norway Chess 20162

Results of round two

Br. Tit Name Coun ELO Ergebnis Titel Name Coun ELO
1 GM Nils Grandelius
 
 2637 ½ - ½ GM Levon Aronian
 
 2786
2 GM Li Chao
 
 2755 ½ - ½ GM Vladimir Kramnik
 
 2801
3 GM Anish Giri
 
 2793 0 - 1 GM Maxime Vachier Lagrave
 
 2785
4 GM Veselin Topalov
 
 2780 ½ - ½ GM Magnus Carlsen
 
 2844
5 GM Pavel Eljanov
 
 2760 ½ - ½ GM Penteala Harikrishna
 
 2753

Games of rounds one and two

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1.d4 Nf6 2.Bf4 d5 3.e3 e6 4.c3 c5 5.Nd2 Nc6 6.Bd3 Bd6 7.Bxd6 Qxd6 8.f4 cxd4 9.cxd4 0-0 10.a3 Ne7 11.Ngf3 Qb6 12.Qb3 Qxb3 13.Nxb3 b6 14.Rc1 Bd7 15.Ke2 Nc8 16.Ne5 Ba4 17.Nd2 Nd6 18.b3 Bb5 19.Bxb5 Nxb5 20.a4 Nd6 21.Rc6 Rfd8 22.Ra1 Nfe8 23.a5 f6 24.axb6 axb6 25.Rxa8 Rxa8 26.Nd7 b5 27.Nc5 Kf7 28.e4 dxe4 29.Ndxe4 Nxe4 30.Nxe4 Ra2+ 31.Kf3 Rb2 32.Nc5 g5 33.Rb6 gxf4 34.Rb7+ Kg6 35.Nxe6 Kf5 36.Nc5 Rc2 37.Ne4 Nc7 38.Rb6 Nd5 39.Rd6 1–0
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Kramnik,V2801Grandelius,N26491–02016A454th Norway Chess 20161
Carlsen,M2851Harikrishna,P27631–02016E154th Norway Chess 20161
Vachier Lagrave,M2788Li Chao22755½–½2016C424th Norway Chess 20161
Giri,A2790Eljanov,P27651–02016C504th Norway Chess 20161
Aronian,L2784Topalov,V2754½–½2016A294th Norway Chess 20161
Grandelius,N2649Aronian,L2784½–½2016C654th Norway Chess 20162
Li Chao22755Kramnik,V2801½–½2016C264th Norway Chess 20162
Giri,A2790Vachier Lagrave,M27880–12016B964th Norway Chess 20162
Topalov,V2754Carlsen,M2851½–½2016D374th Norway Chess 20162
Eljanov,P2765Harikrishna,P2763½–½2016E204th Norway Chess 20162

 

Standings after round two


Tournament page...

André Schulz started working for ChessBase in 1991 and is an editor of ChessBase News.

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