London Chess Classic 2016 Archives - Chessentials https://chessentials.com/tag/london-chess-classic-2016/ Chess blog about chess tactics, chess games and chess books Tue, 29 Jan 2019 22:29:48 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.0 https://chessentials.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/cropped-vjeks2-2-1-32x32.png London Chess Classic 2016 Archives - Chessentials https://chessentials.com/tag/london-chess-classic-2016/ 32 32 London Chess Classic 2016 – Round 7 https://chessentials.com/london-chess-classic-2016-round-7/ https://chessentials.com/london-chess-classic-2016-round-7/#comments Sat, 17 Dec 2016 14:48:24 +0000 https://chessentials.com/?p=857 CHAOS REIGNS IN THE NAJDORF ERA AS NAKAMURA BEATS MVL London Chess Classic 2016 – Round 7 has been the best round so far for a modest commentators for me. There are two specific reasons why...

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]]> CHAOS REIGNS IN THE NAJDORF ERA AS NAKAMURA BEATS MVL

London Chess Classic 2016 – Round 7 has been the best round so far for a modest commentators for me.

There are two specific reasons why I venture to say that:

  • For the first time since the start of the tournament I didn’t have ANY DOUBTS whatsoever about the GAME OF THE ROUND choice. Since Nakamura – MVL game was the most interesting game of the tournament so far, surpassing the Caruana – Nakamura queen sacrifice game from the previous round (analysis of which can be found here)
  • The afore mentioned game finally allowed me to insert another Warcraft reference, since the richness of the tactical play on the board can rightfully be described with the CHAOS REIGNS 

Other than that, London Chess Classic 2016 – Round 7 saw little going on on the other boards. Apart from a slight chance in the Giri – Topalov, which was not used by the somewhat cautious Netherlands player, there weren’t any winning chances for either of the remaining players.

Therefore, it is proper to say that chaos has saved the Round 7 similarly as Warcraft III has saved 7 year olds from boredom.

And not only 7 years old it would seem.

reign-of-chaos

Anyway.. In the remainder of the post we will briefly examine every game played in the round. And afterwards, the detailed analysis with commentary of the game Nakamura – MVL will be given.  Hint: Click on any move, and the pop-up board will appear.

ARONIAN – ANAND

One of the serious contenders for the most boring game of the tournament. In the Bf4 line of the Queen’s gambit declined Aronian avoided the trendy 6 c5 continuation and went on with the more modest 6 e3, allowing the Black to carry out his 6… c5 idea. Very soon a symmetrical position was reached, and simplification followed, leaving the bishop vs knight endgame on the board.

Therefore, it is rightfull to say, that not very much happened here.

 SO – KRAMNIK

Another not very tense game which followed similar course as the Aronian – Anand game. The very same Bf4 variation of the Queen’s gambit declined was employed, and once again White allowed the “freeing” c5 advance.  However, So prefered to take both on c5 and d5, in order to gain control of the d4 square. However, Kramnik masterfuly exploited the weakening of the b5 and combined pressure on the queenside with the d4 breakthrough in the centre.

Once again, a draw was agreed very soon.

bored-cat_work-600x384
Aronian – Anand and So – Kramnik games weren’t the most attractive ones to be honest

 ADAMS – CARUANA

Adams – Caruana game from the London Chess Classic 2016 – Round 7 was the first game in the round that brought some excitement. Caruana played the popular g6-Bg7-c5-e5-d6 setup against the English opening. Moreover, he proceeded with a5, in order not to allow the dangerous b4 sacrifice.

Mickey played very well though, and held the initiative throughout the whole game. Ultimately, as a result of his initiative, he managed to win a pawn.

Unfortunately, together with the pawn capture there was also transpotion to the “ULTIMATE COLOURED BISHOPS” endgame, where White didn’t have any winning chances. Therefore, the draw was the only logical result.

GIRI – TOPALOV

Apart from Nakamura – MVL, the most exciting game of the round.

Once again, the opening was the Bf4 queen’s gambit declined. However, in Giri didn’t avoid the confrontation and chose the most critical c5 line of the variation. Both players were prepared, and the structure typical for the variation in question was reached. The position was blocked, but White had active ideas on the kingside connected with a timely g5 breakthrough.

For a number of moves Topa defended accurately and both sides merely shuffled their pieces around. However, on move 50, Topa played the incatious 50… Qa4, which could have allowed 51 g5!! followed by a pawn sacrifice which could have resulted in a winning attack.

Fortunately for Topalov, Giri played catiously, which allowed him to correct his mistake and reach the save heaven of a much needed draw. Thus gaining a respite in this tournament which turned out to be very difficult for him.

NAKAMURA – MAXIME VACHIER LAGRAVE

Finally we have arrived at my favourite game of the tournament so far.

After losing in Round 6 in the Najdorf, Nakamura wanted to play the White side of the opening, since he opened with e4. MVL’s response was very much predictable, as he is the most fervent supporter of the favourite opening of Fischer and Kasparov.

Furthermore,  the players repeated the very same variation that was played in the Caruana – Nakamura game, untill MVL deviated first with 13… Bb7.

Nakamura seemed rather prepared, and soon played the very interesting 16 Qh3!?, which casts serious doubts on the entire setup chosen by MVL.

In the tactical skirmish that followed, Nakamura seemed to be always on top, and finally managed to break down MVL’s resistance with a very nice mating combination.

To sum up, wonderful game from the both players. Because MVL always tried to create new problems for Nakamura, and the American was consistent in solving them convincingly.

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]]> https://chessentials.com/london-chess-classic-2016-round-7/feed/ 1 London Chess Classic 2016 – Rounds 5 and 6 https://chessentials.com/london-chess-classic-2016-rounds-5-and-6/ https://chessentials.com/london-chess-classic-2016-rounds-5-and-6/#comments Fri, 16 Dec 2016 17:42:00 +0000 https://chessentials.com/?p=849 Wesley So leads the pack, Caruana on his heels with three rounds to go The 2016 Grand Chess Tour 2016 reaches its climax as there are 3 round remaining in the London Chess Classic 2016....

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]]> Wesley So leads the pack, Caruana on his heels with three rounds to go

The 2016 Grand Chess Tour 2016 reaches its climax as there are 3 round remaining in the London Chess Classic 2016. The calculations about the overall winner have already started, and it seems that Wesley so currently has the best chances to remain on the top. Since Caruana beat Nakamura in round six, he has practicaly stepped with one foot over the finishing line.

Because if Nakamura wants to win the Grand Chess Tour, he should finish first with So simultaneously finishing on the 4th place or lower (source: Chess.com article). Which is very unlikely to happen.

Therefore, it is very probable to expect another nice picture of Wesley So with a big cheque in his hands.

so_cheque

The remainder of this post will bring highlights of the rounds five and six together with detailed analysis of the games Adams – Topalov, and Caruana – Nakamura.

ROUND 5

It seems like it has become customary that players lose part of their sharpness in the games before the rest day. London Chess Classic 2016 was no exception. Because four out of  five games finished with the most frequent chess result.

However, it doesn’t neccessarily mean that those draws were boring. It would be highly unjustful too refer to the games Nakamura – Kramnik and Maxime Vachier Lagrave – Caruana as boring.

And while Nakamura played for the win out of sheer tenacity (which is very laudable of course), his every attempt was diffused efficiently by Kramnik. The game followed a fashionable Bf4 Queen’s gambit declined line, which left White slightly better after the opening. However, Kramnik neutralized White’s play very precisely and managed to draw. This game is a very nice example of an excellent technical defence.

In contrast to that game, MVL – Caruana game saw some real fireworks over the board. In a popular Petroff line (a surprising opening choice for Caruana), MVL played too cautiously and allowed Caruana to advance in the centre. The latter built some serious advantage, but unfortunately for him, chose a safer, but drawing continuation in the critical moment of the game. Had he played the tension keeping – 24… Re8, it might have all turned out quite differently. As it was, the MVL escaped with a draw.

ADAMS – TOPALOV

The choice of the game of the round was not hard, considering it was the only decisive game. Furthermore, the excellent preparation by my personal favourite Adams is worth analyzing even without being biased like me. In a popular line of the 4 d3 Anti Berlin he played a great e5-Qg4 combination, which posed some questions for the Black side. Topalov, who seems to have the nightmare tournament, missed the best defence, and was left much worse after his chosen Qd3.

Nevertheless, it wasn’t that easy for Adams as it might sound, because it seemed that his undeveloped queenside might create some worries for his king on the other side of the board. However, with series of great moves (c4! is especially pretty) he managed to dispell that optical illusion and convert his advantage to a full point.

The game analysis is below.

ROUND 6

In contrast to round 5, round six was once again very “bloody“. However, in contrast to what might be expected, the decisive results were not the consequence of the grandiose battles where players displayed serious preparation after the rest day.

On the contrary, it would appear that players were still somewhat “sleepy” during their games.

rest_day
This is how I imagine the world elite during the rest day

Why am I saying all that? Let’s start with the Topalov – So game. Topalov, who seems to be the HERO OF THE BAD NEWS in this tournament, seemed to have a perfectly normal position. However, on move 18, he retreated his bishop on the wrong square, and suddenly So grabbed what can safely be called the winning initative.

Next, consider the Aronian – MVL game. After a quiet Italian opening Aronian didn’t experience any problems, and started outplaying the Frenchman rather convincingly. When the Black’s centre started looking seriously threatening, MVL sacrificed a piece halfly out of desperation. The sacrifice was possible to “REFUTE”, but the best continuation was hard to find at the board. Therefore, Aronian decided to enter a position where he will be an exchange up, although only White has winning chances. Albeit very slight.

However, first Aronian played the incatious 34… Rd1, allowing the activation of White queen. And afterwards he proceeded with 36.. b6?? which turned out to be an outright blunder.

Therefore in two out of three decisive games the losing side selfdestructed. What about the third decisive game?

CARUANA – NAKAMURA

Luckily for the spectators, the Caruana – Nakamura game turned out to be the most beautiful game of the tournament. Since Nakamura was practicaly obliged to play for the win (once again, consider the Grand Chess Tour standings). Caruana said he noticed that : “Nakamura often plays the Najdorf when he wants to win with Black.”

Therefore Caruana was prepared for the sharp battle and he himself chose one of the sharpest lines, with 6 Bg5. This time there was no fashionable Poisoned Pawn Variation, as Nakamura decided to deviate with 7… h6 first. Players played very fast for the first 15th moves, until Caruana unleashed the magical Qxf6 queen sacrifice.

The remainder of the game is a tremendous example of coordinated minor pieces dominating the queen. And although the sacrifice didn’t lead to a forced win, in practical terms it was very hard to play the weaker side, and Nakamura went on to lose in the end.

The game analysis can be found below.

That’s all for now. If you have any thoughts, comments about the games, the posts, or the blog overall, feel free to comment below 🙂

 

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]]> https://chessentials.com/london-chess-classic-2016-rounds-5-and-6/feed/ 3 London Chess Classic 2016 – Rounds 3 and 4 https://chessentials.com/london-chess-classic-2016-rounds-3-4/ https://chessentials.com/london-chess-classic-2016-rounds-3-4/#respond Mon, 12 Dec 2016 22:45:15 +0000 https://chessentials.com/?p=840 WHILE EVERYBODY DRAWS, NAKA WINS IN ROUNDS 3 AND 4 It seems that players have slowed down a bit after a furious start to the tournament. Because in London Chess Classic – Round 3 and...

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]]> WHILE EVERYBODY DRAWS, NAKA WINS IN ROUNDS 3 AND 4

It seems that players have slowed down a bit after a furious start to the tournament. Because in London Chess Classic – Round 3 and 4 there was “only” one decisive game per round. And both time the hero of the round was Hikaru Nakamura, since he managed to take Anand and Topalov respectively in nice tactical skirmishes.

Since this day time job of my is taking its toll, unfortunatelly I am running somewhat short on time. Therefore I decided to make this post into some sort of “HIGHLIGHTS POST” for rounds 3 and 4 combined.

Which basically means I am shortening my work here under a very convenient excuse. Because although all the other games apart from the Naka games ended in a draw, that doesn’t mean that they were boring.

As the greatest French Expert  ever would say here “AU REVOIR, MY FRIEND, AU REVOIR”. There were some games which were typical grandmaster draws ( for instance Caruana – Aronian game from the 4th round), but make sure not to miss both games of Wesley So for instance.

Because yesterday I was quite surprised when So managed to save the draw against Aronian. Whereas today I was quite amazed he managed not to win his game against Giri.

Anyway, the analysis of the games Nakamura – Anand and Topalov – Nakamura follows below. It is interesting that in both games Nakamura’s opponents self destructed to an extent. And his victories are more a result of the opponent going bad in a good position, than Naka outplaying them convincingly.

But then again, the only things that matters is result I guess.

Hint: Click on any move (main line or side line) and the pop -up board will appear.

HIKARU NAKAMURA – VISWANATHAN ANAND, ROUND 3, GAME ANALYSIS

VESELIN TOPALOV – HIKARU NAKAMURA, ROUND 4, GAME ANALYSIS

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]]> https://chessentials.com/london-chess-classic-2016-rounds-3-4/feed/ 0 London Chess Classic 2016 – Round 2 https://chessentials.com/london-chess-classic-2016-round-2/ https://chessentials.com/london-chess-classic-2016-round-2/#respond Sun, 11 Dec 2016 17:07:17 +0000 https://chessentials.com/?p=822 WESLEY SO BREAKS 2800 WHILE ADAMS AND TOPALOV START WITH SHORT CASTLES London chess classic – Round 2 continued to treat the spectators with majority of the decisive games. And once again it was a THREEPEAT...

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]]> WESLEY SO BREAKS 2800 WHILE ADAMS AND TOPALOV START WITH SHORT CASTLES

London chess classic – Round 2 continued to treat the spectators with majority of the decisive games. And once again it was a THREEPEAT from the day before, since three games out of five finished with less friendly variation of the handshake and the words “I resign“.

It was a rather happy day for Wesley So, since he become the 12th player in the history to break the mythical 2800 barrier (source : Chess.com). However, in Croatia there is a saying that “When it darkens for someone, it lightens up for someone else“. And Wesley so’s luck was polarised by the tournament start of the Topalov and Adams. Because zero points out of two games allowed me to write the joke from the title.

Because, you know… 0-0.. okay, never mind

adams-topalov
Both players have had better chess moments

It has to be said that compared to the Carlsen – Karjakin match, the quality of the play in this tournament is somewhat lacking. Most probably it is due to character of match play, which allows much better preparation, and where players usually take less risks. Since every loss is much more costly in match compared to tournament play.

In the remainder of the post we will briefly examine every game from the round. Finally, the detailed analysis of the Topalov – Caruana clash is provided. Because the tactical complexity and variations are extremely interesting and beautiful and there was alot to analyse.

Hint: Click on any move and the pop-up board will appear

WESLEY SO – MICHAEL ADAMS

Wesley So has really had a stellar 2016 year and this tournament seems to be a climax so far. Because after winning the Sinquefield Cup 2016 and the Gold Medal at the Chess Olympiad, he has accomplished another feat, by breaking the 2800 line with his live elo rating.

so-ashley-smile-lo
There is much reason for So to be smiling right now

The game with Adams started with the Catalan opening, which Wesley has been using very often recently, and with good results. This time also he obtained slightly more comfortable position with his bishop pair against a bishop and a knight.

However, with his queenside pawns divided it seemed that bishop pair alone shouldn’t be enough to win the game. But little by little he played on and built up his advantage and set Adams some problems, untillthe later blundered heavily with 5 minutes left on his clock.

Therefore, it was not a real smooth sail by Wesley as described by Chess.Com, but he has always had a nice edge in his hands and was playing with a draw in his hand.

VISWANATHAN ANAND – MAXIME VACHIER LAGRAVE

The three-names Frenchman has been considered the worlds’ greates expert in the Sicilian Najdorf.

However, after obtaining nothing yesterday as White against Giri his reputation was somewhat shaken.

And today he lost to the evergreen “Tiger from Madras” who carved another hole in the MVL’s Sicilian Najdorf reperotire.

I wonder, if he ever switches to Sicilian Dragon, will we be allowed to call his Black games, the three headed Dragon.

blue-eyes-ultimate-dragon
The good old times of Yugi Oh Cards..

In the game, Anand seemed excellently prepared as always. On the move 11 MVL refrained from the typical Rxc3 Sicilian sacrifice that many commentators were demanding. Anand said that positions arising after that sacrifice : “Aren’t unkown to him”

However, refraining from the sacrifice didn’t bring MVL many benefits as Anand came out clearly better out of the opening.  But the accuracy on the move 21 practically forced him to sacrifice the exchange, leading to a materialy unbalanced, but equal endgame.

Unfortunatelly for French fans, MVL was the one to make the last mistake, as he went with the “full greed mode” and captured the c2 pawn. It was a fatal error and Anand exploited it in a very nice tactical way. Make sure to check the final combination as it is very very pretty.

VLADIMIR KRAMNIK – LEVON ARONIAN

Kramnik played the White pieces for the second time in a row, and he repeated the opening from the day before. Levon chose the solid Queengambit-like set-up and offered to transpose into Catalan. Kramnik avoided the Catalan with b3, and another transpotion to some sort of Queen’s Indian hybrid followed. The position was rather symmetrical and draw was expected all along. There were some tactical escapades along the way, but the result was never in any real doubt.

ANISH GIRI – HIKARU NAKAMURA

The familiar story from the Giri’s games continues. In his game against Nakamura he once again obtained a position with a clear positional edge. Furthermore, Naka had no active plans and no counterplay, and could  therefore just defend passively.

Unfortunatelly, similarly as in Candidates tournament, Giri couldn’t just find that winning plan and the winning idea. His decision to open up the position with a5 allowed counterplay along the b-file, and in the end, when the threefold repetition occured, he might even be slightly worse.

VESELIN TOPALOV – FABIANO CARUANA

The feelings are very mixed about this game.

Because simultaneously it was the game of a lesser quality and of a great excitement.

The players made a great deal of mistakes, but the variations they missed with a little time on their clock are really very deep and highly tactical.

Caruana was apparently very lucky in the end, but I guess he won’t be complaining alot.

It was great pleasure to analyze the game and discover all the intricacies, so without further ado, the analysis can be found below.

 

caruana

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]]> https://chessentials.com/london-chess-classic-2016-round-2/feed/ 0 London Chess Classic 2016 – Round 1 https://chessentials.com/london-chess-classic-2016-round-1/ https://chessentials.com/london-chess-classic-2016-round-1/#comments Sat, 10 Dec 2016 16:58:49 +0000 https://chessentials.com/?p=811 THE CATEGORY 22 SUPERTOURNAMENT IN LONDON STARTS WITH THREE BLOODSHEDS After treating us with a tense Carlsen – Karjakin match, the end of the year 2016 brings another great event. The London Chess Classic 2016 is...

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]]> THE CATEGORY 22 SUPERTOURNAMENT IN LONDON STARTS WITH THREE BLOODSHEDS

After treating us with a tense Carlsen – Karjakin match, the end of the year 2016 brings another great event. The London Chess Classic 2016 is really a supertournament in the purest sense of that word. Out of the world top ten players by rating, only the heroes of the recently concluded match, that is Carlsen and Karjakin, are absent. And the remaining two players are also not that far away either (Source: Live Chess Ratings).

And all those who had High Hopes  after seeing the complete lineup were certainly not dissapointed. Because the London chess classic 2016 – round 1 saw three decisive results. And more than 50 % of the decisive games is really a rarity in the tournaments of such a calibre.

Moreover, in the two of decisive games one player more or less didn’t make it out of the opening. While in the third decisive games there were ups and downs and ups and downs more typical for players lower rated than 2700.

The somewhat lower standard of play compared to the recently concluded World Championship match can probably be explained by the aclimatization period, or as  Aronian put it : “I am a slow starter“.

And usually I don’t like excuses in anything, but getting accustomed to the city with the bad breakfast, never ending rains and tea with milk is always rather challenging, no?

If you don’t believe me, ask Dennis Farinna.

In the remainder of the post I will briefly comment the course of the every single game. After every round I will choose the game of the round and analyze it in greater detail.

Hint: Click on any move in the analysis and the pop-up board will appear.

HIKARU NAKAMURA – WESLEY SO

It can safely be said that the game of the teammates from the golden USA Olympic team finished even before it started. Since an uncharacteristic mistake on the move 13 of the topical Grünfeld variation led to a lost position for Nakamura. The tactic he missed was rather simple and many people joked that he has been playing too much bullet recently. It is true that such misscalculations are more typical for faster time controlls, but it can happen even to the best players in the world.

nakamura01am

Which really gives hope to all us patzers out here.

FABIANO CARUANA – VISWANATHAN ANAND

The only game that payed tribute to the home team, since it started with the English opening.

However, “serving from the other side” didn’t bring any tangible gains to the Italian American (or American Italian?!) and Vishy was able to equalize comfortably.

Consequently, he probably relaxed too early and decided to give his bishop for a knight, leaving Caruana with a bishop pair and prospects of an edge. For a long time Vishy manage to extinguish Caruana’s active plans.

However, it is known since Carlsen – Anand matches that defending slightly weaker positions is not Anand’s forte. And at one point it seemed that his position got dangerous when Caruana managed to carry out d4. The pawn mass on the kingside and in the centre looked threatening indeed, but the pawns were also far advanced, which made the White king looking not that secure.

Caruana probably missed the best moment to advance with the e5, and thus with active queen play Vishy managed to liquidate enough material and finally reach a very safe endgame. Therefore, a draw was agreed.

LEVON ARONIAN – MICHAEL ADAMS

Michael Adams has always been one of my favourite chess players. Because some of his annotations in New in Chess are full of  typical British irony and cynism. And I get an impression that he is very sporting, a true chess gentleman. (The choice of the featured might be even more clear now).

On the other hand, I am not a great fan of Levon Aronian. And I don’t have a very reasonable argument for that claim. I simply think he is sometimes too bitter after his bad results, and too unobjective (he always claims he has had some chances).

Therefore, for subjective people like me, the course of this game was rather painfull to watch. Because as Aronian himself admitted, he hasn’t played very well. And Adams was almost never worse for the 32 moves of the Italian game.

Unfortunately, in the position where he should probably never lose he blundered an elementary double attack, and there was no going back. Not the best game from both of the players, but then again, “A good player is always lucky.”

levon_aronian
You might not prefer Levon as a player.. but you can’t deny that he has style

MAXIME VACHIER LAGRAVE – ANISH GIRI

Easily the candidate for the most boring game of the round. Although this time it was not purely Giri’s fault. Because he chose the fighting Sicilian Najdorf as Black, an opening in which precisely MVL is considered to be the greatest expert as Black.

MVL responded with the currently very popular 6 h3, the so called “Keres Attack Deferred” variation. And he even gained slightly the more pleasant position with the pawn on d5 and activity on the queenside. However, Giri’s action in the centre and the timely h4 equalized comfortably and players decided not to risk it and drew with the help of a threefold repetition.

giri_anand
And than I told him : I am playing for the win…

VLADIMIR KRAMNIK – VESELIN TOPALOV

For the game of the round I decided to choose the Kramnik – Topalov game. Because this beautiful positional crush by the Garry Kasparov’s executioner is so amazing that I am still shaking.

Unlike the hands of the players before or after the game. (LAUGHTER please)

If you are not familiar with this reference, these two players aren’t on speaking terms since their controversial 2006 Elista Match. Because kids, accusing the World Champion of cheating in the toillete might make that Champion refuse to shake his hands with you in the future.

the-art-of-small-talk-forgotten
The art of the small talk

Anyway, in THIS game Kramnik once again displayed amazing preparation and virtually refuted the risky opening setup that Topalov chose. Or at least cast serious doubts on the early c5 in the Symmetrical Grünfeld.

As promised, the full analysis of the game is available below:

 

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