London Classic: Caruana breaks the deadlock

by Albert Silver
12/6/2017 – A win! A win was scored! Let us all dance, rejoice and make merry! For those who have followed this very disappointing start to an all-star lineup, such words are not hyperbole in any way or form. 19 draws and one decisive game represents a 95% draw rate after all. Sergey Karjakin fell to Fabiano Caruana when he found himself in unknown territory, and the latter, sensing weakness, pounced in a game annotated by GM Tiger Hillarp-Persson. | Photo: Lennart Ootes
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The end of the drought

To be completely fair, this absurd streak of draws was not purely a case of Chamberlain chess by all the participants. Consider the wild game that played out between Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and Hikaru Nakamura, who went all-out in a mainline Sicilian Dragon, with fire-breathing bishops and all. It may have concluded in a split point, but no one will begrudge them the result in view of the effort that went into it. Likewise, Levon Aronian really did go all-out in round three against Sergey Karjakin, playing the role of the chicken crossing a busy highway to see if he reached the other side in one piece. Material was spurned and by all means he should have lost the game.

Levon Aronian may be counting his lucky stars for that peaceful end, and the fans and players were certainly delighted to see such undaunted fighting spirit, but it is his opponent, Sergey Karjakin, who had to really question his decision. Naturally, at the end of the game, he explained that he had missed the Be7 move given by engines that would win it outright, and no one is questioning him on this, or criticizing him for the oversight. It happens. The question is, why accept a draw regardless? He wasn’t in danger, the game was far from resolved in any way or form, and frankly, at least 2-3 of the next alternate moves would still have left black with a nice advantage to work. This too was dismissed as of no consequence, since a draw with black was a fine result. This argument is quite flawed, and is especially dangerous if the player actually believed it.

Dynamic play is what makes your chess effective and most importantly fun! Timur Gareyev shows severeal examples which aspects are important to remember when seizing for the initiative!

A draw with black is fine

The reason is that yes, by conventional thinking, without any position on the board to weigh in, a draw with black is a solid result. This argument works before the game starts, but not after. Once the game is underway, the only factor that should weigh in is the actual position on the board. If he is worse, and is offered a chance to draw, then of course it is a reasonable decision. Alternately, if the position has been sucked dry of all the marrow from it, then again a draw is understandable. However, if the position is full of life, and the battle has yet to be resolved, then drawing is frankly a very sorry state of affairs.

This might seem like the former Challenger is being singled out here, but not so. This question of ‘a draw with Black is fine’ being a justification to draw any game with black regardless of the position is a common phenomenon that has been voiced by numerous other players. I'm sure I'm not alone in saying that if I missed a chance to win a game and drew, I’d be mighty annoyed I had missed a chance to win! And would not claim to be happy since I had been black. 

Round four

The game that everyone was watching closest was not in fact the one that broke the streak, but the game between the two players leading the Grand Chess Tour overall standings:  Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and Magnus Carlsen. A win by the Frenchman would have seriously jeopardized Carlsen’s desire to win it all, and he actually had good chances of doing just that. A poor opening for Black in an Italian Game left the World Champion down a pawn, with some slight but insufficient compensation. Precisely after resolving his development issues, with the means to go for more, White buckled and started a retreat instead of an assault.

MVL will definitely be left feeling he could have gotten more | Photo: Lennart Ootes

Maxime Vachier-Lagrave 1/2-1/2 Magnus Carlsen

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1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.c3 Nf6 5.d3 d6 6.0-0 0-0 7.Re1 Ne7 5 8.d4 Bb6 9.a4N
9.h3 Ng6 10.Bd3 h6 11.Be3 c6 12.Nbd2 Bc7 13.c4 Nh5 14.Bf1 Nhf4 15.Qb3 1/2-1/2 (88) Sethuraman,S (2658)-Sevian,S (2589) Stockholm 2016 9...c6 10.dxe5 Ng4 11.Rf1 dxe5 12.Qxd8 Bxd8 13.h3 Nf6 14.Nxe5 Nxe4 15.Re1 Nd6 16.Bb3 Re8 17.Nf3 Nd5 18.Rd1 Ne4 19.Bxd5 cxd5 20.Rxd5 Be6 21.Re5 Nf6 White has emerged from the opening battle with an extra pawn, but making something of it is very unclear. Black's powerful pair of bishops alone ensure at least partial compensation and the underveloped white pieces don't help either. 22.Re1 Bc7 23.Na3 a6 24.Nc2 Nd5 25.c4 Nf4 26.Bxf4 Bxf4 27.b3 Rad8 28.Rad1 Kf8 29.Nb4 White had done an excellent job of securing his material advantage, completing his development, and restraining the light-squared bishop somewhat. It is here that he may have missed his chance to achieve more. Better was 29.Nfd4 Bd7 30.Rxe8+ Kxe8 30...Rxe8 31.Kf1 31.Kf1 Bd6 32.Ne3 Bc5 33.Ndc2 a5 34.Ke2 Bc6 35.Rxd8+ Kxd8 36.Kd3 g6 37.Nd4± and White's extra pawn is starting to really hurt. 29...Bc7
Threatening ...Ba5. 30.Nd3? This move is incomprehensible. Nb4 was with the clear idea of Nd5, so why wilt now and play the very passive Nd3? This is the equivalent of giving up on trying to play for more. A pity! 30.Nd5 Bxd5 31.Rxe8+ 31.Rxd5 Rxe1+ 32.Nxe1 Rxd5= 31...Kxe8 32.cxd5 30...Bf5 31.Rxe8+ Kxe8 32.Re1+ Kf8 33.Nc5 Bc8! 34.Kf1 Ba5 35.Re3 Rd1+ 36.Ke2 Rb1! 37.Ne4 Rb2+ 38.Kf1 Bf5 39.Nd6 Rb1+ 40.Ke2 Rb2+ 41.Kf1 Rb1+ 42.Ke2 Rb2+ ½–½
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Vachier-Lagrave,M2789Carlsen,M2837½–½2017C549th London Chess Classic 20174

A pity the game was unresolved this way. Whether a case of nerves or something else is hard to say, but it was a missed opportunity.

Magnus Carlsen post-game with Maurice Ashley | Source: Saint Louis Chess Club on YouTube

The purpose of this DVD is to teach players how to conduct the attack on the black king using different methods. Although the Italian Game and the Ruy Lopez are mostly positional openings, it is very often possible to make use of attacking methods of play

The next biggest game of the day was without question the one. You know the game we speak of. The moment we had all been waiting for with bated breath! Drum roll…

The reaction of the fans from the first win

We leave you in the sure hands of GM Tiger Hillarp-Persson who sent his annotations with the words, “I'm very happy there was a non-symmetrical win today!”

Sergey Karjakin 0-1 Fabiano Caruana (Annotated by GM Tiger Hillarp-Persson)

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After overcoming my initial impulse to comment on all the other games, I finally settled on this one. The result did play a part in my decision. 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nc6 5.Nc3 5.Nb5 d6 6.c4 Nf6 7.N1c3 a6 leads to a Maroczy set-up. 8.Na3 5...Qc7 The main reason for Black's move order is to avoid 5...a6 6.Nxc6 bxc6 7.Bd3 d5 8.0-0 which leads to a rather un-Sicilian position that demands a lot from a defensive point of view. 6.Be3 For a while White scored well with 6.Ndb5 Qb8 7.Be3 a6 8.Bb6 axb5 9.Nxb5 Bb4+ 10.c3 Ba5 11.Nc7+ Qxc7 12.Bxc7 Bxc7 13.Qg4 g6 14.Bb5 , but I always considered this to be a bluff. Black should be winning and it is a relief for me to see that White has scored horribly from this position in the last year. 6...a6 7.Qf3!? This move had popped up already in the early 2000's, but didn't catch on until a decade later. Since then it has even challenged 7.Qd2 for the prize of 'most popular' and it is easy to understand its charm. The 7.Qd2-lines can be answered by one thousand sharp lines, whereas here play becomes more linear and easier to remember. White will plonk the queen down on g3 and take it from there. 7.Qd2 Nf6 8.0-0-0 has been played in a few thousand (not exaggerating this time) tournament games. Lately Black has preferred Be7 to the alternatives. One critical line goes 9.f3 b5 10.g4 Nxd4 11.Bxd4 Bb7 12.g5 12.Kb1!? has been played by Caruana himself. 12...Nh5 13.Be5 Qxe5 14.Qxd7+ Kf8 15.Qxb7 Qb8 and Black was doing all right in - among others - Khairullin,I (2651)-Jumabayev,R (2564) Moscow 2014. 7...Ne5 Black has tried virtually everything under the sun here: 7...Nf6 8.0-0-0 Ne5 9.Qg3 b5 10.f4 Neg4 11.Bg1 leads to the game. 7...Bd6 8.0-0-0 Be5 looks rather forced and "unnatural" and Caruana had this position with White only a year ago: 9.g3!? Nge7 10.Qe2 0-0 11.f4 Bxd4 12.Bxd4 Nxd4 13.Rxd4 e5 14.Rd1 exf4 15.e5! White has a strong initiative and Black is struggling to find some coordination. f3 16.Qxf3 Qxe5 17.Bg2 d6 18.Rhe1 Qg5+ 19.Kb1 Be6 20.Qxb7 d5 21.Nxd5 Nxd5 22.Bxd5 Rab8 23.Qc6± Caruana,F (2810)-Movsesian,S (2675) chess.com IoM Masters 2016 8.Qg3 b5!? This is a very rare move order. Almost everyone and her uncle plays 8...h5 The most common move here is 9.0-0-0 when The game Swiercz,D (2645)-Durarbayli,V (2605) 28th Carlos Torre Mem 2016, saw a ton of preparation being meted out before things turned vague: 9.Bf4!? d6 10.Bg5! This idea is quite dangerous for Black. Now the h-pawn is caught in limbo, dreaming about how nice it would have been to still be able to go to h6. b5 11.f4 This is the "most wanted" engine line. h4 11...b4 12.Ncb5 axb5 13.fxe5± 11...Nc4 12.0-0-0 and White has some kind of accelerated Bg5-Najdorf where the h5-pawn has gone on a wild goose chase. 12.Bxh4 b4 12...Ng6 13.Bg5 b4 14.Nd1 13.Ncb5 axb5 14.fxe5 Bd7 15.0-0-0 Rxa2 15...Qc5!? 16.Nb3 16.Bxb5 Qa5 17.Bxd7+ Kxd7 16...Rxh4 17.Qxh4 dxe5 18.Bd3 9...h4 10.Qh3 b5 11.f4 Nc4 12.Bxc4 Qxc4 13.Kb1 Bb7 14.Rhe1 Rc8 15.Nb3 b4 16.Na4 Bxe4 worked beautifully for Black, in Abdumalik,Z (2420)-Fier,A (2565) St Louis Spring Classic B 2017. It looks to me like 9.Bf4 is the more dangerous move. 9.0-0-0 This time 9.Bf4 d6 10.Bg5 makes no sense due to h6 9...Nf6 10.f4 Neg4 10...Nc4 11.Bxc4 Qxc4 12.e5 Nd5 13.Nxd5 Qxd5 14.Nb3 Qc4 14...Qc6 15.Rd6! 15.Kb1± 11.Bg1 h5 I have played h5 under much worse circumstances. Now e4-e5 can be met with b5-b4 followed by Nf6-somewhere without the knight on g4 falling prey to the queen. 12.e5 12.a3?! h4! 13.Qf3 Bb7 is difficult for White. For instance 14.h3 Nh6 15.Qe3 Rc8 16.e5 Nh5 is hugely advantageous for Black. Even ignoring the threat of Bxa3, White has over-stretched and Black's knights are about to find excellent outposts. 12.Bd3 is also critical: Bb7 13.e5 13.h3!? h4 14.Qf3 Nh6 15.Qe3 Rc8 16.Kb1 Bc5 17.e5 Nh5 is quite unclear. 13...b4 14.Na4 Nd5 15.h3 Nh6 16.f5! h4!? 16...Be7 17.Qxh4 Qxe5 18.fxe6?! 18.Be4! , intending Be7 19.Qe1 avoids the exchange of queens, which should be high on White's wish-list. 18...dxe6 19.Kb1 Be7 20.Qe1 Qxe1 21.Rxe1 Ng4 and only Black could be better, in Henderson de La Fuente,L (2410) -Romanov,E (2625) 21st OIBM 2017. 12...b4! 13.Na4!? If you are a fan of statistics then this is your choice. I am guessing Karjakin had stronger reasons; like fighting for control of the dark squares, c5/b6. 13.Nb1 Ne4 14.Qe1 Bb7 15.Nd2 15.h3 Nh6 16.Nd2 Nxd2 17.Qxd2 Rd8∞ 15...Nxd2 16.Rxd2 For once we reach a position where the engine is optimistic about White's chances. g6!? An ambitious move. 16...Be7 looks like the solid candidate: 17.Kb1 Rd8 18.h3 Nh6 19.Bf2 0-0! 17.Kb1 Be7 18.Bd3 Nh6 19.Be4 Rd8 20.Bf2 Bxe4 21.Qxe4 d5 22.exd6?! 22.Qf3 22...Rxd6 23.Qa8+ Rd8 24.Qxa6 0-0 Oparin,G (2605)-Najer,E (2705) 70th ch-RUS HL 2017. 13...Nd5 After 13...Ne4 14.Qe1 Bb7 15.Nb3! Black is struggling to find a way to meet Nb6, while keeping Ne4 stable when Bd3 comes. 14.Nb3 Karjakin's plan is to occupy the c5-square and - if Black is not careful - perhaps even manage to exchange the dark squared bishops. However good this sounds, it seems like something goes wrong for White around here. Earlier games went 14.h3 and this seems like the better move. Nh6 15.Bd3 g6 and there have been two games from this position in the last few years: 16.Kb1 16.Be4 Bb7 17.Qf3 Nf5? 17...Rc8!? 18.Nxf5 gxf5 19.Bxd5 Bxd5 20.Rxd5 exd5 21.Nb6 was absolutely horrendous for Black, in Fier, A (2580)-Leenhouts,K (2485) 9th Batavia GM 2017. 16...Bb7 17.Nb3? 17.Be4 17...Bc6 18.Nac5 a5!? 18...Nf5! 19.Ne4 Rodi,L (2335)-Borges, G (2205) I Duchamp Int Open 2017 14.Nf5!? Bb7 15.Nd6+ Bxd6 16.exd6 Qxd6 17.Nb6 Rd8 18.Nxd5 Bxd5 19.Bc4 0-0 20.h3 Nh6 20...Nf6 21.Bd4 21.Bxd5 exd5 22.Qf3 Rc8 23.Rxd5 Qc7 24.Rc5 is pretty much forced and completely equal after Qd6 25.Rxh5 Rc4 14.Kb1!? 14...Bb7 15.Nac5 This turns out to be a questionable victory, but it was already too late to turn to other plans. The Sicilian is an unforgiving opening for those who do not play the best move; the difference between doing fine and being worse is often hard to discern. Bc6! Now Black is ready to continue with a6-a5-a4. 16.Ne4 This was the last opportunity to kick Ng4 back before it is too late. 16.h3! Nh6 17.Ne4! Nf5 18.Qf3 and the position remains about balanced. 16...f5! 17.h3? 17.exf6! gxf6 18.h3 is the best chance here, but after Qxf4+! 18...Nxf4 19.Qe1∞ 19.Qxf4 Nxf4 20.Rd4 Bh6 Black is better. The central pawn mass and the well coordinated minor pieces will control the game: 21.Kb1 Ne5 22.Na5 Bxe4 23.Rxe4 Nd5 24.Be2 Ke7 25.Bc5+ d6 26.Bxb4 Rag8 27.Bf1 f5 28.Rxe5 Nxb4 A very sample-ish line. 17.Nd6+ Bxd6 18.exd6 Qxd6 and not only is f4 a goner, but the queens will have to come off too. 17...h4! 18.Qe1 fxe4! 18...Nh6 19.Nd6+ Bxd6 20.exd6 Qxd6 21.Kb1 Qxf4 is also better for Black, but after 22.Nd4 White can mess things up much more than in the game. 19.hxg4 Nxf4 20.Rxh4 Rxh4 21.Qxh4 Qxe5 White's center has crumbled and he doesn't have anything to show for it. 22.Bd4 Ng6! 23.Qh3 Qg5+ 24.Kb1 A difficult situation for Black, in the sense that there are plenty of good moves that keep an advantage, while it is difficult to see which move is best. In those situation it is generally a good idea to play a good move. Bd5 ...and this is a good move. Perhaps 24...d5 or 24...Nf4 is better, but it would take a lot of time to decide which is better and why. 25.Bg1 25.Be3 Qh4 26.Qxh4 Nxh4 27.Nc5 a5 25...Be7 26.g3 It is hard to come up with good advice for White, but this is not it. Now the light squares are further weakened. Ne5 27.Be2 Nf3 28.Bxf3 exf3 29.Bd4 Kf7 30.Nc1 d6! If this were a movie, the camera would zoom in on the bishop's sweaty face as he hears a shout in the distance: "The pawns are coming. Run!" 31.Nd3 e5 32.Bf2 Be6 33.Nxb4 e4 34.Qh1 Rc8 35.Nxa6 Qa5 36.Qh5+ Qxh5 37.gxh5 Bg5 38.Re1 Bc4 38...Bd2! 39.Rxe4 Bf5 wins tons of material. 39.Nb4 Re8 40.Re3 Bxe3 41.Bxe3 Re5 42.g4 Rg5 0–1
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Karjakin,S2760Caruana,F27990–12017B489th London Chess Classic 20174

In our Powerbook we have brought together all games with the ECO codes B40-B49. Added to 62 000 selected master games from both Mega and correspondence chess there 122 000 high class games from the engine room on playchess.com.

Fabiano Caruana with Maurice Ashley | Source: Saint Louis Chess Club on YouTube

A good win for Fabiano Caruana who will sleep with a grin on his face as the sole leader, and only player to break the deadlock.

Vishy Anand has shown good fighting spirit, and above all, good chess | Photo: Lennart Ootes

The other games were not without spunk, and while Wesley So gave up a pawn in a sort of reversed Benko, only to recover it with massive exchanges, Hikaru Nakamura got a nice edge against Ian Nepomniachtchi in a 6.g3 Najdorf. In the post-game interview he expressed regret at his treatment of the position, feeling he had missed a chance to build and make more from it. Levon Aronian, playing black, somehow found a way to gambit his pawn in Marshall style in spite of Vishy Anand’s choice of the Anti-Marshall. Anand was ready for it all the same, but was unable to neutralize Black’s excellent activity and a draw was agreed on move 30.

Round four commentary

Commentary by GM Yasser Seirawan, WGM Jennifer Shahade and GM Cristian Chirila, with GM Maurice Ashley reporting from London | Source: Saint Louis Chess Club on YouTube

Standings

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Born in the US, he grew up in Paris, France, where he completed his Baccalaureat, and after college moved to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He had a peak rating of 2240 FIDE, and was a key designer of Chess Assistant 6. In 2010 he joined the ChessBase family as an editor and writer at ChessBase News. He is also a passionate photographer with work appearing in numerous publications, and the content creator of the YouTube channel, Chess & Tech.

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