From Saint Louis to Larsen: CBM 180

by Nagesh Havanur
11/30/2017 – A detailed review of our recent ChessBase Magazine from Prof. Nagesh Havanur. Among other things this issue includes all games from Sinquefield Cup, FIDE Grand Prix Geneva, Biel Festival and Dortmund FIDE Grand Prix Tournaments. The icing on the cake is the set of games from Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz event with Kasparov’s participation. Our reviewer re-examines two of his games and also sets up a little test for young readers from the Carlsen-Aronian encounter at Sinquefield Cup. 955 games (several annotated) with 12 opening surveys from Sicilian to Semi-Slav. Not to be missed.
Enjoy the best moments of recent top tournaments (Sinquefield Cup, FIDE Grand Prix Geneva, Biel) with analysis of top players. In addition you'll get lots of training material. For example 12 new suggestions for your opening repertoire.

Kasparov comes and goes

ChessBase Magazine 180 Review

CBM 180

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After ages Garry Kasparov has made his appearance on the covers of this magazine. Not without reason. The legendary player competed in the recent St. Louis Rapid and Blitz Tournament. Sadly, success eluded him and he suffered from a reversal of fortunes in quite a few games.

His meeting with David Navara was a tragicomedy. Readers are quite familiar with the finale and here I shall only dwell on what may have been missed.

Kasparov,Garry (2812)-Navara,David (2735), Saint Louis Rapid 2017 
 
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34.Nd3? This is an attempt to neutralize the rook so that the c-pawn can be pushed. But it costs tempi. The immediate 34.e6! Re5 35.c6 Rc5+ 36.Kd4 Rxc6 37.Ke5+- would have finished the game. 34...Re3 35.Kd2? still trying to push the rook away 35.c6! f4 36.Ra8+ Ke7 37.c7 Rxd3+ 38.Kc4+- would have been decisive. 35...Rh3? returning the compliment He would have made his opponent's task harder with 35...f4 36.Nxf4 Rxe5 37.c6 Rc5 38.Nxg6 fxg6 though White has the upper hand after 39.a4 Rxc6 40.a5± 36.c6 Rxh2+ 37.Ke3? A terrible move allowing Black rook to occupy the c-file. By now Garry was in serious time trouble. The win was still there. 37.Kc3! f4 37...Kd8 38.c7+ Kc8 39.Nf4+- 38.e6 fxe6 39.c7+- 37...Rc2 38.e6? This advance comes too late. Even now he would have made it with 38.Nb4! Rc4 39.Ra8+ Ke7 40.c7 f4+ 41.Kf2 Bf5 42.Nd5++- 38...h3 39.Nb4 f4+ 40.Kd4 h2 41.Ra8+ Ke7 42.Rh8 Rd2+ 43.Kc5 Be4 44.c7 Bb7 45.Kb6 In the Spanish Chess Magazine,"Peon de Rey" Jose Gonzalez gives 45.a3 Bc8 If 45...fxe6? 46.Kb6 Bc8 47.Nc6+ Kf7 48.Rxc8 h1Q 49.Ne5+ Ke7 50.Re8+ Kd6 51.Nc4+ Kd5 52.Nxd2 Qc1 53.c8Q+- -NSH However, after 45...f3! 46.Kb6 f2 47.Kxb7 f1Q 48.c8Q Qb5+ 49.Ka7 Rd6! matters are not so clear, though White has a theoretical plus. 50.Rxh2?? Qb6+ 51.Ka8 Rd8-+ -NSH 46.Rxc8 h1Q 47.Nc6+ Qxc6+ 48.Kxc6 Rc2+ 49.Kb7 Rb2+ 50.Ka6 The point. There is no rook check on the a-file as the pawn has moved from a2 to a3. Rc2 51.exf7 Kxf7 52.Kb7 Rb2+ 53.Kc6 Rc2+ 54.Kd6 f3 55.g6+ Kxg6 56.Rf8+- 45...Bc8 46.Rxc8 h1Q 47.Re8+ At this point Navara thought, he was lost. However, he played on. 47.Nc6+ Qxc6+ 48.Kxc6 Rc2+ 49.Kb7 Rb2+ 50.Ka7 Rxa2+= This is the difference with the previous line. The a-file is available to the Black rook. 47...Kxe8 48.c8Q+ Ke7 49.Nc6+?? The old lion pounces on his opponent only to be shot back with There was a draw with 49.Qc7+! Kxe6 50.Qc8+ Ke7= perpetual check. 50...Rd7 51.Qe8+ Kd6 52.Qb8+ Ke6 52...Ke7?? 53.Nc6+ Ke6 54.Qe5# 50...Ke5? 51.Qc3+ Kf5 52.Qxd2 Kxg5 53.Qd4± 49...Qxc6+! 50.Qxc6 50.Kxc6 Rc2+-+ is the other point of the combination. 50...Rd6 Rd6 Courageous play by Navara in a lost position. Garry could not hold his nerves in the end. 0–1
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Kasparov,G2812Navara,D27350–1 Saint Louis Rapid

This DVD concentrates on the King's Gambit accepted with 3.Bc4. Williams has included a lot of novelties and interesting attacking variations that should wet the lips of any attacking player, looking for an interesting way of meeting 1...e5!

The decisive moment was captured by IM Saravanan for ChessBase:

Garry finished the rapid tournament with the score, 3.5/9 (+1 -3 = 5). He was outplayed in a few games and in the rest he was just unlucky. 

Garry’s turbulent quest for victory

Then began the blitz tournament. In his turbulent quest for victory Garry took appalling risks.  In the game with Karjakin he opened with King’s Gambit and then followed it up with 4.Ke2, stunning the spectators not to mention his opponent. 

Kasparov and Karjakin

Kasparov's realpolitik | Photo: Lennart Ootes

Fortunately, Karjakin did not lose his nerve and held back the attack by his legendary rival. Here is what happened:

Kasparov,Garry(2812)-Karjakin,Sergei (2773),Saint Louis Blitz 2017 
 
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1.e4 e5 2.f4 The King's Gambit! Garry's tribute to the Romantic Era. exf4 Karjakin accepts the challenge. 3.Nc3 The Mason Gambit. 3.Nf3 is standard. So is 3.Bc4 Nf6 3...Qh4+ 4.Kf1 is known to be good for white as the queen would be driven away with a tempo after Nf3. 3...Qh4+ 4.Ke2 Qd8!? Improvisation over the board. The Black queen returns home to guard c7 against a possible knight invasion with Nd5. 4...d5 5.Nxd5 Bg4+ 6.Nf3 Na6 was seen in the stem game, James Mason-Samuel Rosenthal, Paris 1868 (0-1,28 moves). Subsequent theory of the line was developed by Keres and Villemson. The opening is also called Pärnu Gambit, named after the city in which they lived. Since 1976 4...Qe7! threatening...d5 and...Nf6 has become the main line for Black. White has to play carefully for a draw with 5.d3 followed by Bxf4 and Kd2. 5.d4 Nf6 6.Kf2 d5 7.e5? 7.Bxf4 dxe4 was the lesser evil. 7...Ng4+ 8.Ke2 Nxe5!-+ Black was already winning in the stem game, Tarasevich-Malevinsky,Tallinn 1976 (0-1, 25 moves). 5.d4 Nf6!? He hopes to exert pressure on e4 with this move and the next. A better move would be 5...d5! 6.Nxd5 6.e5 c5 7.dxc5 d4 8.Nb5 Bxc5 9.Bxf4 Nc6 6...Nf6 7.c4 Nxd5 8.cxd5 f5 9.Qc2 fxe4 10.Qxe4+ Be7 6.Bxf4 Bb4?! A slight inaccuracy. A precise line would be 6...d5! 7.Nxd5 Nxd5 8.exd5 Bg4+ 9.Nf3 Bd6 10.Bxd6 Qxd6 11.Kf2 0-0= 7.Bg5? Garry loses a tempo to pin the knight with the threat of e4-e5. Also bad is 7.e5? Bxc3 8.bxc3 Nd5 9.Bd2 So is 9.Qd2 0-0 threatening...f6 followed by...d6 opening lines against the king. 9...0-0 10.Nf3 f6 Instead 7.Nd5! Nxd5 8.exd5 followed by c3 and Kf2 would have given White advantage in space as shown by GM Mikhalevski at ChessPublishing.com. 7...Bxc3 8.bxc3 d6 9.Nf3 0-0 10.Bxf6 Garry wants to remove Black's last defender on the kingside. If 10.Qd3 h6 11.Bxf6 not 11.Bh4? g5 12.Bg3 Nxe4! 11...Qxf6 12.Kd2 c5 10...Qxf6 11.Kf2 c5! 12.h3 Garry is anxious to prevent ...Bg4. If 12.dxc5 Nc6 13.cxd6 Bg4 14.Be2 Rad8 After the plausible 12.Be2 Bg4 13.Rf1 Bxf3 14.Bxf3 Nc6 15.d5 Ne5 16.Kg1 Rae8 Black has pressure. Perhaps 12.Rb1 restraining Black from developing queenside pieces deserves attention. 12...Re8 13.Qd3 b6 14.Re1 Bb7 15.g3 Nc6 15...Nd7 keeping the diagonal free for the bishop is preferable. If 16.Bg2 Rac8 threatening 17...c4 followed by the capture of the e-pawn as pointed out by Mikhalevski. 16.Bg2 Rac8 17.a3 Nb8 18.Re3 Nd7 19.Rf1 Qe7 20.Kg1? Sacrifice or bluff!? If the bishop takes the pawn it would be pinned. As it happens, the pin turns out to be temporary. If 20.d5 c4 21.Qd2 Rc5 Mikhalevski suggests 20.Rfe1 I think 20.Nd2 followed by Kg1 also deserves attention. 20...Bxe4 21.Qe2 d5 Black is a pawn up with a healthy position. 22.Nh4 g6 preparing to follow up with...f5 and...Nf6 23.Bxe4 dxe4 24.Qg4 Nf6 Mikhalevski suggests 24...h5 25.Qf4 Rc6 However, 26.Rxe4 Qxe4 27.Qxf7+ can be scary in blitz, though Black is winning. Kh8 28.Qxd7 Qe6-+ 25.Qg5 Nh5 26.Qg4 Nf6 27.Qg5 Nh5 Both sides are repeating moves to gain time. 28.Qg4 Ng7! A powerful retreat.The knight covers the g-file so that...f5 advance becomes possible. 29.Qe2 cxd4 30.cxd4 f5 31.Ng2 Qd6 32.c3 A practical decision hoping to deflect the queen from the scene of action. Qxa3 33.Qd2 Ne6 34.g4 Beginning a hand-to-hand combat. Ng5 35.gxf5 Nf3+ 36.Rexf3 exf3 37.Rxf3 Rf8 38.Nh4 Qe7 39.Qf2 Qg5+ 40.Rg3 It's wonderful to see how Garry has fashioned an attack out of a position in shambles. In fairness Karjakin's defence is also of high order. Qc1+ 41.Kg2 Rxc3 42.Nxg6!? A gamble that works in the end. This is blitz, after all. Rxg3+ 43.Qxg3 Qd2+? After the game Karjakin reproached himself for missing the winning move 43...Qc6+! Even then it is not easy. After 44.d5! Black has to find Qxd5+ 45.Kh2 Qd2+ 46.Kg1 Qc1+ 47.Kh2 Qb2+ 48.Kg1 hxg6 49.Qxg6+ Qg7-+ 44.Kh1 The rest of the game is a race with the clock with neither side gaining advantage. Qd1+ 45.Kg2 Qe2+ 46.Kg1 Qd1+ 47.Kg2 Qc2+ 48.Kg1 Qb1+ 49.Kh2 Qb2+ 50.Kh1 Qb1+ 51.Kh2 Qa2+ 52.Kg1 Qa1+ 53.Kh2 Qb2+ 54.Kh1 Qc1+ 55.Kh2 Qd2+ 56.Kh1 Qd1+ 57.Kh2 Qe2+ 58.Kg1 Qd1+ 59.Kh2 Qd2+ 60.Kh1 Qd1+ ½–½
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Kasparov,G2812Karjakin,S2773½–½2017C33Saint Louis Blitz 2017

Scarcely any world champion has managed to captivate chess lovers to the extent Carlsen has. The enormously talented Norwegian hasn't been systematically trained within the structures of a major chess-playing nation such as Russia, the Ukraine or China.

There are as many as 27 games played by Garry in this issue. I would have loved to see all of them annotated. Readers looking for more would find it here: Kasparov in St. Louis, a closer look

To return to the tournament, the rapid section was won by Aronian, and the blitz by Karjakin. To his credit Levon took the combined standings.

Apart from rapid & blitz encounters at Saint Louis event this issue includes games from four major tournaments, Sinquefield Cup, FIDE Grand Prix Geneva, Biel Festival and Dortmund 2017. It’s hard to do justice to all of them. At Sinquefield Cup Carlsen was pipped at the post by Maxime Vachier Lagrave.  Here a major role was played by their personal encounter that Magnus lost in a game of fluctuating fortunes. Yet Magnus redeemed himself by beating Aronian. That game is annotated by Krisztian Szabo in this issue.

Carlsen and Aronian

A Challenge for Young Readers 

In the following position Levon played 37…Kh7. Did he miss a continuation that would have turned tables on Magnus? Here is an opportunity for young readers to match their wits with the Armenian talent. Your move.

 
Magnus Carlsen vs. Levon Aronian
Position after 37.Rg1

After Aronian played the cautious 37…Kh7 Magnus had less than a minute to time control. Instantly he moved 38.Qd3!, Levon responding with 38…Qe5 at lightning speed to trip up the opponent. 

Carlsen moves

However, Magnus was not to be caught off stride and duly won. Readers can see the rest of the game here:

Carlsen, Magnus (2822)-Aronian, Levon (2809), Sinquefield Cup 2017
 
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37...Kh7 Aronian avoids the queen check on e8 so that he can still try ...Rf3 or ...Qg3 with decisive threats. Both Carlsen and Aronian saw the immediate 37...Rf3? (the tempting move, our young readers were asked to find and refute) 38.Qe8+ Kh7 39.Nf4‼ Qxf4 40.Qg6+ Kg8 41.Qxg7# 38.Qd3! preventing invasion on the third rank and coming up with a threat of his own Qe5 39.Qe3 Ra2 40.Qf4 Qc3 41.Ne3 Qf6 Forced. There is no other way of meeting Qg5. 42.Qxf6 gxf6 and Carlsen won.
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Carlsen,M2822Aronian,L28092017Sinquefield Cup

_REPLACE_BY_ADV_5

This brings me to other sections of this magazine. Apart from trademark sections on strategy, tactics and the endgame, there are 12 opening surveys ranging from the Sicilian to the Semi-Slav. Among them I would single out the analyses of Sicilian Sveshnikov by Petra Papp and the English Opening by Mihail Marin.

In all there are 955 OTB games of which 141 are annotated. The annotators include HouYifan, Mihail Marin and Krasenkow.  

The Great Dane Remembered

A special mention should be made of Peter Heine Nielsen who has annotated three wins of Carlsen from Paris and Leuven Grand Chess Tour events. Two of them are with Maxime Vachier Lagrave and one is with Kramnik. The last game began with a rare ‘bird” in modern praxis, 1.f4!?

 
Bird's Opening
1.f4!?

Apparently, the choice was inspired by a Viking Magnus has always admired.

Bent Larsen

Bent Larsen | Photo: Netherlands National Archive

Last but not least, a major contribution is made by veteran grandmaster, Suat Atalik who has annotated as many as 36 games for this issue.

More info. on this issue may be found here.

Recommended.

Enjoy the best moments of recent top tournaments (Sinquefield Cup, FIDE Grand Prix Geneva, Biel) with analysis of top players. In addition you'll get lots of training material. For example 12 new suggestions for your opening repertoire.

Links

 

Prof. Nagesh Havanur (otherwise known as "chessbibliophile") is a senior academic and research scholar. He taught English in Mumbai for three decades and has now settled in Bangalore, India. His interests include chess history, biography and opening theory. He has been writing on the Royal Game for more than three decades. His articles and reviews have appeared on several web sites and magazines.

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