Caruana, Fabiano - Naiditsch, Arkadij
While Caruana was to wow the world in 2014, in this game it was
Niaditsch who imposed a little humility. Black to play and win.
Caruana, Fabiano - Ponomariov, Ruslan
At the Olympiad, Caruana took down the former Ukrainian prodigy
Ponomariov in a delightful no-frills combination. White to play and win.
Carlsen, Magnus - Wojtaszek, Radoslaw
Magnus Carlsen's sense of esthetics cannot be argued with as he
dispatched the top Polish player in style. White to play and win.
Nakamura, Hikaru - Aronian, Levon
In the blitz leg of their match, Black got into trouble in the opening,
but found a fantastic resource to complicate the game and stay alive.
Can you find Black's move?
Nakamura, Hikaru - Dambacher, Martijn
Nakamura dispatches his opponent with a classic theme. White to
play and win.
Topalov, Veselin - Kramnik, Vladimir
A dreadful oversight by the former world champion allows Topalov to
win a pawn. White to play and win.
Kasimdzhanov, Rustam - Kramnik, Vladimir
Kasimdzhanov had a terrible score against Kramik, but took one back
at the Olympiad. White to play and win.
Svidler, Peter - Kramnik, Vladimir
In an incredibly inspired defense, Kramnik pulled out true magic to
save this game. His next move saved the game. Black to play and save.
Carlsen, Magnus - Anand, Viswanathan
Without a doubt one of the defining positions of 2014. Can you do
better? Black to play and win.
Carlsen, Magnus - Anand, Viswanathan
In a sense this was the shot of the match. Though Anand failed to
capitalize on it, his move was purest genius. Black to play and take
the advantage.
Kramnik, Vladimir - Vallejo Pons, Francisco
The Spaniard found a surprising tactic and won here. Black to play and win.
Solutions :
[Event "Tata Steel-A 76th"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee"] [Date "2014.01.25"] [Round "10"] [White "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Black "Naiditsch, Arkadij"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "A09"] [WhiteElo "2782"] [BlackElo "2718"] [SetUp "1"] [FEN "6k1/pR5p/1q2prp1/4N3/5r2/PP5n/2Q3BP/4R2K b - - 0 39"] [PlyCount "5"] [EventDate "2014.01.11"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "11"] [EventCountry "NED"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceDate "2014.01.29"] 39... Rf1+ $1 40. Rxf1 (40. Bxf1 Qg1#) 40... Rxf1+ 41. Bxf1 Qg1# 0-1 [Event "Dortmund 42nd"] [Site "Dortmund"] [Date "2014.07.13"] [Round "2"] [White "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Black "Ponomariov, Ruslan"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C42"] [WhiteElo "2789"] [BlackElo "2723"] [SetUp "1"] [FEN "3q4/k1p2br1/1pQ5/p2pR3/P2P4/1P1B4/K1P5/8 w - - 0 39"] [PlyCount "5"] [EventDate "2014.07.12"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "7"] [EventCountry "GER"] [EventCategory "19"] [Source "Chessbase"] [SourceDate "2014.07.26"] 39. Re7 $1 {Simplicity itself.} Qxe7 40. Ba6 $1 Kxa6 41. Qa8# 1-0 [Event "Tromsoe ol (Men) 41st"] [Site "Tromsoe"] [Date "2014.08.05"] [Round "4.1"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Wojtaszek, Radoslaw"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "B26"] [WhiteElo "2877"] [BlackElo "2735"] [SetUp "1"] [FEN "3r1r2/p3npk1/1q1p2p1/1b4P1/1p1PPN2/5R1B/PP3Q2/4R1K1 w - - 0 31"] [PlyCount "5"] [EventDate "2014.08.02"] [EventType "team-swiss"] [EventRounds "11"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [Source "Chessbase"] [SourceDate "2014.08.21"] [WhiteTeam "Norway"] [BlackTeam "Poland"] [WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"] [BlackTeamCountry "POL"] 31. Be6 $3 {You can't argue with his sense of esthetics.} Be8 (31... fxe6 32. Nxe6+ Kg8 (32... Kh7 33. Rf7+ $3 {why take a rook when you can mate?} Rxf7 ( 33... Kg8 34. Rg7+ Kh8 35. Qh2#) 34. Qxf7+ Kh8 35. Qg7#) 33. Rxf8+ Rxf8 34. Qxf8+ Kh7 35. Qg7#) 32. Nd5 Nxd5 33. Bxd5 1-0 [Event "Nakamura vs Aronian Blitz"] [Site "Saint Louis USA"] [Date "2014.11.25"] [Round "11"] [White "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Black "Aronian, Levon"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "A45"] [WhiteElo "2767"] [BlackElo "2797"] [SetUp "1"] [FEN "r2qkbr1/pp3p2/2bpp2p/3nP3/3RN3/5NB1/PPP2PP1/R2QK3 b Qq - 0 14"] [PlyCount "5"] [EventDate "2014.11.25"] 14... Ne3 $3 {A fantastic shot found in a blitz game with big money on the line. Although it did not win the game (he lost ultimately), it kept him alive after a very dubious opening.} 15. Qd3 {was played by Nakamura, and though not best, good luck trying to calculate all the lines with seconds.} ({The computer line is} 15. fxe3 Bxe4 16. Bh4 Qa5+ 17. b4 Bxf3 18. Qxf3 Qc7 19. exd6 Bxd6 20. O-O-O {and White is better.}) 15... Bxe4 16. Qxe3 (16. Rxe4 Nf5 17. Bh4 Nxh4 18. Rxh4 Rxg2 {and the position is balanced.}) 16... d5 {and Black had the edge.} 1-0 [Event "EU-Cup 30th"] [Site "Bilbao"] [Date "2014.09.19"] [Round "6.4"] [White "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Black "Dambacher, Martijn"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C26"] [WhiteElo "2782"] [BlackElo "2497"] [SetUp "1"] [FEN "1k2r3/1pp5/1p4q1/rN2np1p/PQP1b1pP/1P2R1B1/1KP2RP1/8 w - - 0 38"] [PlyCount "7"] [EventDate "2014.09.14"] [EventType "team-swiss"] [EventRounds "9"] [EventCountry "ESP"] [Source "Chessbase"] [SourceDate "2014.09.25"] [WhiteTeam "Obiettivo Risarcimento"] [BlackTeam "Eynatten"] [WhiteTeamCountry "ITA"] [BlackTeamCountry "BEL"] 38. Rxe4 $1 fxe4 39. Bxe5 Rxe5 40. Rf8+ Re8 41. Qe7 $1 {Classic.} 1-0 [Event "FIDE Candidates"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Date "2014.03.19"] [Round "6"] [White "Topalov, Veselin"] [Black "Kramnik, Vladimir"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "D37"] [WhiteElo "2785"] [BlackElo "2787"] [SetUp "1"] [FEN "r1q2rk1/4b2p/b1n1p1p1/pBPp3n/P4p1P/2N1PN2/5PPB/R2Q1RK1 w - - 0 19"] [PlyCount "17"] [EventDate "2014.03.13"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "14"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [EventCategory "21"] [Source "Chessbase"] [SourceDate "2014.04.03"] 19. Nxd5 $1 exd5 20. Qxd5+ Kh8 21. Qxc6 Qxc6 22. Bxc6 Rac8 23. Bb5 Bxb5 24. axb5 Bxc5 25. Rxa5 fxe3 26. fxe3 Bxe3+ 27. Kh1 1-0 [Event "Tromsoe ol (Men) 41st"] [Site "Tromsoe"] [Date "2014.08.08"] [Round "6.1"] [White "Kasimdzhanov, Rustam"] [Black "Kramnik, Vladimir"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "D37"] [WhiteElo "2700"] [BlackElo "2760"] [SetUp "1"] [FEN "rr3qk1/1bR2ppp/pn6/5B2/P2p1Q2/1P2P3/4N1PP/2R3K1 w - - 0 29"] [PlyCount "3"] [EventDate "2014.08.02"] [EventType "team-swiss"] [EventRounds "11"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [Source "Chessbase"] [SourceDate "2014.08.21"] [WhiteTeam "Uzbekistan"] [BlackTeam "Russia"] [WhiteTeamCountry "UZB"] [BlackTeamCountry "RUS"] 29. Rxf7 $3 Kxf7 (29... Qxf7 30. Bxh7+ Kf8 31. Qd6+ {White isn't winning a pawn. He is winning the house.} Ke8 32. Bg6) 30. Bxh7+ 1-0 [Event "FIDE Candidates"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Date "2014.03.15"] [Round "3"] [White "Svidler, Peter"] [Black "Kramnik, Vladimir"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "A39"] [WhiteElo "2758"] [BlackElo "2787"] [Annotator "Marin,M"] [SetUp "1"] [FEN "4Qbk1/8/3r3p/4PPpP/1p6/1P3R2/4qBK1/8 b - - 0 46"] [PlyCount "10"] [EventDate "2014.03.13"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "14"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [EventCategory "21"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2014.05.15"] [TimeControl "40/7200:20/3600:900+30"] [WhiteClock "0:18:15"] [BlackClock "0:23:05"] 46... Rf6 $1 {196} 47. Kg3 {750} (47. Re3 Qg4+ 48. Bg3 Ra6 $1 {with counterplay.}) 47... Qe4 {126} 48. Bc5 {131} Qe1+ {356} 49. Bf2 {145} Qe4 {50} 50. Bc5 {8} Qe1+ {5} 51. Bf2 {550} 1/2-1/2 [Event "World Championship"] [Site "Sochi"] [Date "2014.11.15"] [Round "6"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Anand, Viswanathan"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "B41"] [WhiteElo "2863"] [BlackElo "2792"] [SetUp "1"] [FEN "6rr/1k3p2/1pb1p1np/p1p1P2R/2P3R1/2P1B3/P1B2PP1/2K5 w - - 0 26"] [PlyCount "25"] [EventDate "2014.11.08"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "12"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceDate "2014.11.20"] 26. Kd2 $4 a4 $4 (26... Nxe5 $1 {Both players missed this in the game. Had Anand played it, the title match might have gone differently.} 27. Rxg8 Nxc4+ 28. Kd3 Nb2+ 29. Kd2 Rxg8 30. Rxh6 Rxg2 {and Black is winning.}) 27. Ke2 a3 28. f3 Rd8 29. Ke1 Rd7 30. Bc1 Ra8 31. Ke2 Ba4 32. Be4+ Bc6 33. Bxg6 fxg6 34. Rxg6 Ba4 35. Rxe6 Rd1 36. Bxa3 Ra1 37. Ke3 Bc2 38. Re7+ 1-0 [Event "World Championship"] [Site "Sochi"] [Date "2014.11.23"] [Round "11"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Anand, Viswanathan"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2863"] [BlackElo "2792"] [SetUp "1"] [FEN "r2r1b2/1kp2p2/1p2bNnp/p1pNP1p1/P1P3P1/1P4KP/1B3P2/3RR3 b - - 0 23"] [PlyCount "44"] [EventDate "2014.11.08"] [EventType "match"] [EventRounds "12"] [EventCountry "RUS"] [Source "Chessbase"] [SourceDate "2014.12.01"] 23... b5 $3 24. Bc3 (24. axb5 a4 25. bxa4 Rxa4 {and Black takes the initiative. }) (24. cxb5 c6 25. bxc6+ Kxc6 26. Ne3 Bxb3 {and Black is almost winning.}) 24... bxa4 25. bxa4 Kc6 26. Kf3 Rdb8 (26... Be7 27. Ne3 Bxf6 28. exf6 {and Black is better.}) 27. Ke4 Rb4 28. Bxb4 cxb4 29. Nh5 Kb7 30. f4 gxf4 31. Nhxf4 Nxf4 32. Nxf4 Bxc4 33. Rd7 Ra6 34. Nd5 Rc6 35. Rxf7 Bc5 36. Rxc7+ Rxc7 37. Nxc7 Kc6 38. Nb5 Bxb5 39. axb5+ Kxb5 40. e6 b3 41. Kd3 Be7 42. h4 a4 43. g5 hxg5 44. hxg5 a3 45. Kc3 1-0 [Event "Tromsoe ol (Men) 41st"] [Site "Tromsoe"] [Date "2014.08.10"] [Round "8.1"] [White "Kramnik, Vladimir"] [Black "Vallejo Pons, Francisco"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "D37"] [WhiteElo "2760"] [BlackElo "2698"] [SetUp "1"] [FEN "r2q2k1/1p3p1p/p1b1pPp1/3n4/3B1P1Q/6N1/4r1PP/2RR2K1 b - - 0 30"] [PlyCount "21"] [EventDate "2014.08.02"] [EventType "team-swiss"] [EventRounds "11"] [EventCountry "NOR"] [Source "Chessbase"] [SourceDate "2014.08.21"] [WhiteTeam "Russia"] [BlackTeam "Spain"] [WhiteTeamCountry "RUS"] [BlackTeamCountry "ESP"] 30... Nxf4 $3 31. Qxf4 (31. Nxe2 Nxe2+ 32. Kf2 Nxc1 33. Rxc1 Qd5 {and it is game over.}) 31... Qd5 $1 32. Ne4 Qxe4 33. Qxe4 Rxe4 34. Bb6 g5 35. Rd2 h6 36. Bd8 a5 37. Be7 a4 38. Rc3 Kh7 39. h3 Kg6 40. Kh2 Rf4 0-1
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