Candidates Rd5: Svidler pounces

[Event "FIDE Candidates Tournament 2014"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Date "2014.03.18"] [Round "5"] [White "Kramnik, Vladimir"] [Black "Aronian, Levon"] [Result "*"] [ECO "E14"] [WhiteElo "2787"] [BlackElo "2830"] [Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez, Alejandro"] [PlyCount "120"] [EventDate "2014.??.??"] [EventCountry "RUS"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. e3 {not the most active, but I have heard many grandmasters claim that this move has a bite to it. I personally don't believe it.} b6 (4... c5 {is Kramnik's own way of dealing with this position.}) 5. Nc3 Bb7 6. cxd5 exd5 7. Bb5+ c6 8. Bd3 Be7 9. O-O O-O 10. b3 Nbd7 11. Bb2 {We reach a king of Zukertort/Colle position but White has exchanged his c-pawn for his opponent's e-pawn. White must have a little bit of pressure thanks to his control of e5.} Re8 12. Ne5 {Technically a novelty, but surely this is nothing that is going to go into the theory books.} Bd6 (12... Nxe5 13. dxe5 Nd7 14. f4 Nc5 $13 {is the computer way of dealing with the position, following this with a5 and Ba6. However for a human it is hard to ignore a mass of pawns rolling down the board in front of your king.}) 13. f4 c5 14. Qf3 cxd4 15. exd4 {This structure is actually typical of an e3 variation of the Nimzo-Indian, but this is a very favorable version of that. Usually Black maneuvers a little more comfortably than he does here.} Bb4 16. Ne2 (16. Qh3 { seemed a lot more logical to me. I don't like giving up the e4 square so easily.} Nf8 (16... Bxc3 $2 17. Bxc3 Nf8 18. f5 $14) 17. Rad1 $1 Bxc3 18. Bxc3 Ne4 19. Bxe4 dxe4 20. d5 $14) 16... Ne4 17. a3 Bf8 18. Rad1 a6 19. a4 Rc8 20. Qh5 g6 21. Qh3 Ndf6 $6 {I don't like this idea at all. It is way too risky and visually ugly.} (21... f5 {Was far more logical. Now White must risk to make progress.} 22. g4 fxg4 23. Qxg4 Rc7 $1 $11 {swinging the rook to the kingside. Surely Black has enough counterplay here.}) 22. f5 g5 23. Ng3 {Black's kingside position has been weakened and White has some clear targets. I don't like Aronian's chances, especially since time pressure is looming.} b5 24. axb5 Qb6 25. Kh1 (25. bxa6 {was greedy, but possibly better.} Bxa6 26. Nxe4 $1 Nxe4 27. Bxe4 (27. Nd7 $1 Qd6 28. Nxf8 Rxf8 29. f6 $14) 27... Rxe5 28. Bb1 $1 f6 $1 $13) 25... axb5 26. Bxe4 $5 {With an interesting idea. The game becomes very messy now.} dxe4 27. d5 $1 {The opening of the dark-squared bishop and the power of the passed pawn have to be dealt with. However Black is not without resources.} e3 $1 28. Ng4 Nxg4 29. Qxg4 h6 30. Ne4 $5 Rc2 $1 {The only move in the position!} (30... Rxe4 31. Qxe4 {is simply an extra exchange.}) (30... Bg7 31. Bxg7 Kxg7 32. f6+ Kf8 33. Nxg5 $18 {is mate coming up.}) 31. Nf6+ Qxf6 { the point.} 32. Bxf6 e2 {Black is down a queen for a piece, but he will get a rook back and more importantly his pieces are very powerfully placed.} 33. Bxg5 $1 (33. Qd4 exf1=Q+ 34. Rxf1 Ree2 $11) 33... Bxd5 $2 {A blunder in time pressure. There was nothing wrong with swiping the bishop of the board.} (33... exf1=Q+ 34. Rxf1 hxg5 35. Qxg5+ Kh7 36. f6 Ree2 $11 {White is missing material to mate Black as a rook lift is not a possibility.}) 34. Bxh6+ Kh7 35. Bxf8 $6 (35. Rg1 $1 {An amazing move!} Bxh6 (35... exd1=Q 36. Qxd1 {loses buckets of material.}) 36. Rde1 $1 {Black retains compensation, but he is down a lot of material. It's unclear if this will be sufficient for White though as he is very tied up.} b4 37. Qh5 Rd2 38. h3 {and suddenly White is untangling.}) 35... exf1=Q+ 36. Rxf1 Rxg2 37. Qxg2 (37. Qh3+ Kg8 {doesn't change anything, the rook must be taken.}) 37... Bxg2+ 38. Kxg2 Rxf8 39. Kf3 Kg7 40. Ke4 Rh8 {With time control reached we have a position that is very close to a draw. White can still try to press, but it seems as if with perfect play Black should hold the half point.} 41. Kd4 {Played after a 30 minute thought.} Rc8 42. Rf4 Kf6 43. h4 Re8 44. Kc5 Re5+ 45. Kd6 (45. Kc6 {was a better but the tablebases do say it is a draw.} Rxf5 46. Rxf5+ Kxf5 47. Kxb5 Kg4 $11) 45... Re3 (45... Rxf5 $2 46. Rxf5+ Kxf5 47. Ke7 {is not a draw at all!}) 46. Rb4 Kxf5 47. Rxb5+ Kg4 48. h5 f5 49. h6 Rh3 {A fascinating struggle. Kramnik had his chances in the time pressure, but calculating through all the variations must have been a nightmare.} 50. Ke5 Rxh6 51. Rb4+ Kf3 52. Kxf5 Ke3 53. Ke5 Kd3 54. Rb8 Kc3 55. b4 Kc4 56. Rb7 Rh5+ 57. Kd6 Rh6+ 58. Kd7 Rh7+ 59. Kc6 Rxb7 60. Kxb7 Kxb4 1/2-1/2

[Event "FIDE Candidates Tournament 2014"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Date "2014.03.18"] [Round "5"] [White "Svidler, Peter"] [Black "Topalov, Veselin"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C78"] [WhiteElo "2758"] [BlackElo "2785"] [Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro"] [PlyCount "95"] [EventDate "2014.??.??"] [EventCountry "RUS"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Bc5 {it is refreshing to see something other than a Berlin, a Breyer or a Marshall in the Spanish.} 6. c3 b5 7. Bc2 (7. Bb3 d6 8. d4 {transposes to a very popular variation of the Spanish. } Bb6 9. Be3 $5) 7... d5 (7... d6 8. d4 Bb6 9. a4 $14 {is a slightly better version than the 7.Bb3 line as White's bishop is slightly safer and more importantly it can transfer to d3 much faster, pressuring on b5.}) 8. d4 dxe4 9. dxe5 (9. Nxe5 Nxe5 10. dxe5 Qxd1 11. Rxd1 Ng4 12. Bxe4 Nxf2 13. Bc6+ Ke7 14. Rd5 Bb6 15. Bxa8 Nd3+ 16. Kf1 Nxc1 {is supposed to be equal as Black's counterplay outweights his temporary material deficit. This is a long known line.}) 9... Qxd1 (9... exf3 {has already been played twice against Svidler.} 10. exf6 Qxf6 11. Nd2 $1 {and Svidler obtained an important advantage against Stefanova that he used to win his game against her in 2009.}) 10. Rxd1 exf3 11. exf6 gxf6 12. Be4 Bd7 13. a4 {Both sides show deep preparation despite the fact that the position hasnt' been seen before. So far these seem like the best moves for both sides.} (13. Bxf3 O-O-O {with Ne5 coming is fine for black. }) 13... O-O-O $1 {A surprising but strong move that was certainly part of Topalov's preparation.} 14. axb5 Ne5 $1 (14... axb5 15. Bxf3 $14 {is a pleasant advantage for White who has the better structure - Ne5 is not possible.}) 15. Bf4 Bxb5 {Black's pawn structure is shattered but that is not as important as his massive activity. White's rook is sealed by Black's pawn on a6, and as long as the light-squared bishop remains alive it will be difficult for that rook to do anything on the a-file. For this reason Svidler develops as quickly as possible.} 16. Na3 Rxd1+ (16... Be2 {was certainly more logical, keeping the file for Black.}) 17. Rxd1 Be2 18. Rd5 Rg8 $6 (18... Bd6 $11) 19. g3 {Black's up a pawn but his pawn structure is shattered and h7 is hanging at the moment. There doesn't seem to be any need to have forced White into playing g3, a move that he probably wanted to play anyways. Black has not way of threatening a rook transfer to the first rank to take advantage of White's king position.} Bxa3 $6 20. bxa3 $6 (20. Bxh7 $1 {seemed like a free pawn compared to the game continuation.}) 20... Ng6 21. Be3 Re8 22. Bf5+ Kb7 23. Rd4 {White has the pair of bishops and Black doesn't really have an extra pawn: just look at how bad his f-pawns are.} Re5 24. g4 a5 25. h3 h5 26. Be4+ Ka6 $2 {This simply puts the king in a bad position.} (26... Kc8 27. gxh5 Rxh5 {and Black doesn't need to worry about getting mated.}) 27. gxh5 Rxh5 28. Rd8 $1 {Now the a6 king is suffering.} Ne5 29. a4 {with a mate threat already.} c6 30. Rb8 Nc4 31. Bd4 c5 32. Bxf6 {White gets the pawn back and his passed h-pawn has potential danger. He is again threatening checkmate.} Nb6 (32... Rxh3 33. Ra8+ Kb6 34. Bd8#) 33. Bd8 Nd5 34. Ra8+ Kb7 35. Rxa5 Re5 36. Rxc5 Rxe4 37. Rxd5 Rxa4 {The dust has settled a little and Black's position is very bleak. The opposite colored bishops is the only thing that gives him any hope of holding this endgame, but the fact that White has two passed pawns on opposite flanks makes it difficult to believe that this endgame can be held.} 38. Rf5 Kc8 39. Bg5 Rc4 40. Bd2 Rc7 (40... Kd7 {the f7 pawn has no value. Bringing the king closer to the action was a better try.}) 41. h4 Kd8 42. Bg5+ Ke8 43. Rd5 f5 44. h5 Rc4 (44... Rxc3 45. h6 {is similar to the games end.}) 45. Rd4 $1 {A great move, sealing Black's fate.} Rxc3 (45... Rxd4 46. cxd4 $18 {is hopeless. All White has to do is support one of his pawns with his king, and keep one defended by the bishop. The distance between the pawns is too much for the king to defend both of their advances.}) (45... Kf7 46. Kh2 $1 { and since c3 is still poisoned White wins easily by bringing his king in.}) 46. h6 Rc8 47. h7 {The pawn cannot be stopped.} Kf7 48. Bd8 $1 (48. Bd8 Kg7 49. Rd7+ Kh8 50. Bf6# {Not the most accuurate game, an important win by Svidler, but it is strange that Topalov - a player that loves the initiative - prepared such a nice and interesting variation only to spoil it soon after exiting the opening.}) 1-0

[Event "FIDE Candidates Tournament 2014"] [Site "?"] [Date "2014.03.18"] [Round "5"] [White "Svidler, Peter"] [Black "Topalov, Veselin"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C78"] [WhiteElo "2758"] [BlackElo "2785"] [Annotator "Chirila, Cristian"] [PlyCount "95"] [EventDate "2014.??.??"] {Svidler's run was quite impressive before he got ran over by Aronian. But as a chess player, moreover as a candidate, you always have to come back the next day with a clean sheet, influence from your previous games can only harm you. Standing on the other side of the board, Topalov was having a very solid event, drawing every game and still waiting for his opportunity to make a move. Let's see what happened!} 1. e4 e5 {Already a surprise, his usual reply is 1...c5 heading for the dangerous waters of the Sicilian! Topalov's strategy is quite easy to udnerstand, he wants to play solid openings and restrain his wild style for the first part of the tournament, not losing is very important in such events. I'm sure after this game we will see a different Topalov in the next rounds.} 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Bc5 (5... b5 6. Bb3 Bc5 7. c3 d6 {This would have been a normal Arkhangelsk, opening championed by Caruana in recent years.}) 6. c3 b5 7. Bc2 {The difference with the main line is that white can now retreat his bishop all the way to c2. This can be a relief for somebody who wants to avoid the enourmous amounts of theory in the main lines. This position is already a very rare bird among top level games} d5 (7... d6 8. d4 Bb6 9. h3 O-O 10. Be3 Bb7 11. Nbd2 Re8 12. Re1 h6 13. d5 $14) 8. d4 dxe4 (8... exd4 9. e5 Ne4 10. cxd4 Bb6 11. Nc3 $14 {the position is already clearly better for white, black's pieces are stuck on the queen side while white will create a powerful attack against the black monarch.}) 9. dxe5 Qxd1 ( 9... exf3 10. exf6 Qxf6 11. Nd2 (11. Qd5 $5 {may be an interesting try}) 11... O-O (11... fxg2 $6 12. Re1+ Be7 13. Ne4 $16) 12. Ne4 Qg6 13. Ng3 Qf6 14. Qd3 g6 15. Ne4 Qf5 16. Nxc5 fxg2 17. Re1 Qxc5 18. Qf3 $18 {was seen in Svidler,P- Stefanova, A 1-0 2009}) 10. Rxd1 exf3 11. exf6 gxf6 12. Be4 Bd7 13. a4 O-O-O 14. axb5 Ne5 {The players are following some games between quite low rated players, I'm not sure if any of the players were still swimming in known waters by this time. Black seems to have obtained a good game after the opening phase, I think Topalov was quite happy with his weapon of choice.} 15. Bf4 $146 Bxb5 16. Na3 (16. Rxd8+ Rxd8 17. Nd2 fxg2 18. Bxh7 Ng6 {looks good for black}) 16... Rxd1+ 17. Rxd1 Be2 (17... Bxa3 $142 18. bxa3 fxg2 19. Bg3 h5 20. Bh4 Rh6 {I like black's chances in this position, the pawn on g2 delivers real pain for white, it is a demanding task to find a way to take it without passing the initiative to the opponent} 21. Rd4 $13 (21. Kxg2 $6 Nc4 22. Bf5+ Kb7 23. Be4+ Bc6 $15)) 18. Rd5 Rg8 19. g3 $14 {now white has the upper hand, his better structure coupled with his more active pieces will lean the balance to his favor} Bxa3 20. bxa3 (20. Bxh7 $5 Bc4 21. Bxg8 Bxd5 22. bxa3 $16) 20... Ng6 21. Be3 {The pair of bishops are extremely powerful in open positions} Re8 22. Bf5+ Kb7 23. Rd4 Re5 24. g4 a5 (24... h5 $1 {Creating some counterplay in a timely manner was essential towards black's survival} 25. Be4+ Kc8 26. Bf5+ Kb7 27. h3 (27. a4 $2 hxg4 28. Bxg4 f5 $17) 27... hxg4 28. hxg4 Ne7 $13) 25. h3 h5 {still not too late} 26. Be4+ Ka6 $2 {Black surely missed white's idea, much better was to go back and settle for the repetition} (26... Kc8 27. Kh2 c5 28. Bf5+ (28. Ra4 hxg4 29. hxg4 c4 $1 $15) 28... Rxf5 29. gxf5 cxd4 30. fxg6 fxg6 31. Bxd4 f5 $11) 27. gxh5 Rxh5 28. Rd8 {now the black king starts to feel uncomfortable} (28. Rd7 $5 {maybe a bit more precise}) 28... Ne5 (28... c5 29. a4 $16) 29. a4 c6 30. Rb8 Nc4 (30... Nd7 31. Ra8+ Kb7 32. Ra7+ Kc8 33. Bxc6 Ne5 34. Be4 $16) 31. Bd4 c5 32. Bxf6 {White starts collecting the weak pawns, black is already in serious trouble} Nb6 33. Bd8 Nd5 (33... Nxa4 34. Bc6 {with mate to follow}) 34. Ra8+ Kb7 35. Rxa5 Re5 36. Rxc5 Rxe4 37. Rxd5 {Black has mananged to eliminate one of the bishops, but the price was too high...} Rxa4 38. Rf5 Kc8 39. Bg5 Rc4 40. Bd2 Rc7 41. h4 Kd8 42. Bg5+ Ke8 43. Rd5 f5 (43... Rd7 44. Rxd7 Kxd7 45. h5 Ke6 46. h6 Bd3 47. Kh2 $18 {As a rule of thumb, if there are more than 3 lines between the pawns, the position should be winning}) 44. h5 Rc4 45. Rd4 Rxc3 46. h6 Rc8 47. h7 Kf7 48. Bd8 {Not a clear win, but a well deserved one. Svidler was the one making less mistakes and cashing on his chances, while Topalov made too many inaccuracies for his level. The battle at the top is heating up!} 1-0