Norway 02: Carlsen starts 0-2

[Event "3rd Norway Chess 2015"] [Site "Stavanger NOR"] [Date "2015.06.17"] [Round "2.1"] [White "Grischuk, Alexander"] [Black "Aronian, Levon"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "A22"] [WhiteElo "2781"] [BlackElo "2780"] [Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro"] [PlyCount "60"] [EventDate "2015.06.16"] [SourceDate "2015.02.07"] 1. c4 Nf6 2. Nc3 e5 3. e3 Bb4 4. Nge2 c6 5. a3 Ba5 6. b4 Bc7 7. Bb2 O-O 8. Ng3 d5 9. cxd5 Nxd5 10. Qc2 Nd7 11. Bd3 N7f6 12. O-O Nxc3 13. Bxc3 Be6 14. Rab1 Kh8 15. Rfd1 Ng4 16. Nf5 g6 $1 {This position is already very complicated. White would like to retreat his knight, but he can't!} 17. f3 (17. Ng3 Qh4 18. h3 Nxf2 19. Kxf2 Kg8 $1 {With the incoming e4 and a very strong attack for Black.} ) (17. h3 Nxf2 18. Kxf2 gxf5 $15) 17... Nxh2 $1 18. Kxh2 gxf5 19. Bxf5 Qh4+ 20. Kg1 Rg8 {Material is still even, but there are problems here for White: Black's rook is threatening a sacrifice on g2 and White's king would be too exposed.} 21. Bxe6 fxe6 22. Qe4 $1 {An excellent resource in a position that would have been very difficult to hold in time pressure.} (22. d3 Raf8 $36) 22... Rxg2+ 23. Kxg2 Rg8+ 24. Qg4 (24. Kf1 Qh2 $19) 24... Rxg4+ 25. fxg4 Qxg4+ 26. Kf2 {The computer gives Black an edge, but that doesn't seem right. White has better practical chances than Black, so Aronian forces the draw.} Qh4+ 27. Ke2 Qg4+ 28. Kd3 Qf5+ 29. Ke2 Qg4+ 30. Kd3 Qf5+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "3rd Norway Chess 2015"] [Site "Stavanger NOR"] [Date "2015.06.17"] [Round "2.4"] [White "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2805"] [BlackElo "2876"] [Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro"] [PlyCount "89"] [EventDate "2015.06.16"] [SourceDate "2015.02.07"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 {The Berlin seemed to many as the logical choice. Carlsen had just lost a game in the strangest of fashions, and going for Caruana's throat after that might not have been so smart. That being said - I think that Caruana is one of the best players, if not the best player in the World, in the Berlin.} 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. h3 h6 10. Rd1+ Ke8 11. Nc3 Ne7 12. b3 {Caruana had tried Bf4 a couple of times before. This move is a little older and hasn't been seen since 2013, a rarity for the Berlin.} Bf5 {The computer's top choice, though not the most common idea.} (12... Ng6 13. Ne2 a5 14. a4 Be6 {was Kamsky-Akobian, 2012.} ) 13. Nd4 Bh7 14. Bb2 Rd8 15. Nce2 {Part of Caruana's preparation.} (15. e6 Nc8 $5 {with a complicated position in Polgar-Howell, 2013.}) 15... Nd5 16. c4 Nb4 17. Nf4 {Fabiano played up to this point almost instantly, but stopped doing so after Carlsen's response.} Rg8 $5 {What an interesting move! It is designed against e6.} 18. g4 {Expanding on the kingside is one of the most common motifs in the Berlin. Here Caruana secures f5 for his knight.} (18. e6 Bd6 19. Nh5 {doesn't attack the g7 pawn with tempo anymore.}) 18... Na6 $6 {This move regroups a knight that has already moved too much. Even though this is a Berlin, Black has to develop at some point.} (18... Be7) 19. Nf5 Nc5 20. Rxd8+ Kxd8 21. Rd1+ Kc8 22. Ba3 $1 {A very nice prophylactic move - aimed against Ne6.} Ne6 $2 {Based on a complete miscalculation!} (22... b6 $14) 23. Nxe6 Bxa3 (23... fxe6 24. Be7 {was the trick Carlsen forgot about when he played Ne6. A big miscalculation for a World Champion!} b6 25. Rd8+ Kb7 26. Bxf8 exf5 27. e6 $18) 24. Nexg7 Bf8 {The tactics don't work out for Carlsen. Caruana can't retreat his knight immediately. but he has a trick up his sleeve.} 25. e6 Bxf5 (25... fxe6 26. Nxe6 {gives Black no chance to take the hanging knight on f5, since there is a checkmate threat on d8.}) 26. Nxf5 fxe6 27. Ng3 {The resulting position is equal in pawns, but Caruana is dominating. His knight has several excellent anchor spots, including h5 and e4. His pawn majority on the kingside will be impossible to stop and Black's king is cut off from the kingside. He makes the rest look very easy, which it was.} Be7 28. Kg2 Rf8 29. Rd3 Rf7 30. Nh5 Bd6 31. Rf3 {Black cannot afford to trade rooks, but giving up the f-file is not a pretty sight either.} Rh7 32. Re3 $1 Re7 33. f4 $1 Ba3 34. Kf3 Bb2 35. Re2 Bc3 36. g5 Kd7 37. Kg4 Re8 38. Ng3 Rh8 39. h4 b6 40. h5 c5 41. g6 {The passed pawn on g6 is too much. Carlsen by this point had a defeated look on his face - and it's hard to blame him.} Re8 42. f5 exf5+ 43. Kf4 Rh8 44. Nxf5 Bf6 45. Rg2 1-0

[Event "3rd Norway Chess 2015"] [Site "Stavanger NOR"] [Date "2015.06.17"] [Round "2.5"] [White "Hammer, Jon Ludvig"] [Black "Vachier-Lagrave, Maxime"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "A29"] [WhiteElo "2677"] [BlackElo "2723"] [Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro"] [SetUp "1"] [FEN "4R1r1/3P1pk1/2K2b1p/8/3p1PPp/8/8/5B2 b - - 0 43"] [PlyCount "36"] [EventDate "2015.06.16"] [SourceDate "2015.02.07"] 43... Bd8 {The computer claims, of course, that White is better, but it doesnt' see a good way of making progress.} 44. Rxd8 {The human reaction is to take the material, unfortunately it is insufficient.} Rxd8 45. Kc7 Rf8 46. d8=Q Rxd8 47. Kxd8 h5 $1 {This is the move that saved Black. It allows the king to come into the game and draw... by a single move!} 48. gxh5 Kh6 49. Ke7 Kxh5 50. Be2+ (50. Kxf7 Kg4 {wins White's last pawn.}) (50. Kf6 Kg4 51. Ke5 Kf3 {and White has the choice between letting one of the pawns queen, or allowing Black to take on f4.}) 50... Kh6 51. Bf1 {Already necessary, other moves even lose:} (51. Kxf7 h3 52. Ke7 h2 53. Bf3 d3 $19) 51... Kh5 52. f5 Kg4 53. f6 h3 54. Bxh3+ (54. Kxf7 h2 55. Bg2 d3 56. Kg7 d2 57. f7 d1=Q 58. f8=Q $11) 54... Kxh3 55. Kxf7 d3 56. Kg7 d2 57. f7 d1=Q 58. f8=Q Qg4+ 59. Kf7 Qf5+ 60. Ke7 Qxf8+ 61. Kxf8 {Hammer looked absolutely devastated after the game finished, but I have been unable to find a clear win for him in any variation!} 1/2-1/2