Games
[Event "9th Masters Final 2016"] [Site "Bilbao ESP"] [Date "2016.07.13"] [Round "?"] [White "Carlsen, M."] [Black "Nakamura, Hi"] [Result "0-1"] [WhiteElo "2855"] [BlackElo "2787"] [PlyCount "100"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] 1. e4 c5 2. Ne2 {A move-order finesse. Depending on Black's reply White may refrain from playing d4 and then his knight might be better placed on e2 than f3.} d6 3. Nbc3 a6 {Inviting White to a Najdorf.} 4. g3 g6 5. Bg2 Bg7 6. d4 cxd4 7. Nxd4 Nf6 8. O-O O-O {Now a position from the Fianchetto-Variation of the Dragon Sicilian is on the board.} 9. b3 Nc6 10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. Bb2 Qa5 12. Na4 Bg4 13. Qe1 Qh5 14. f3 Bh3 15. g4 $5 ({Solid alternatives were} 15. Rd1) ({ or} 15. c4) 15... Qh6 16. Rd1 $14 g5 17. Bc1 Bxg2 18. Kxg2 Qg6 19. h4 (19. Nb6 $5 Rab8 20. Nc4 h5 21. h3 $14) 19... gxh4 20. Qxh4 d5 {(#)} 21. g5 $2 {Too optimistic.} ({Less risky was} 21. exd5 cxd5 (21... Qxc2+ 22. Rd2 Qg6 23. dxc6 Rac8 $11) 22. Qg5 Qxc2+ 23. Rd2 Qc6 24. Bb2 $11 {with an equal position.}) 21... dxe4 22. f4 {White has not enough play for his pawn. The knight on a4 in particular is too far away from the action.} ({After} 22. fxe4 Nxe4 {Black is a pawn up and White's king is vulnerable.}) 22... e6 23. c4 Rfd8 24. Rde1 Ne8 25. Nc5 Nd6 26. Qf2 f5 27. Bb2 {(#)} Nf7 {Sooner or later Black will be able to play ...e5 to make his pawn majority in the center felt.} 28. Bxg7 Kxg7 29. Qg3 Rd6 30. Rd1 Rad8 31. Rxd6 Rxd6 32. Qc3+ Kg8 33. Rf2 Qh5 (33... e5 $5 34. fxe5 ({Or} 34. Qg3 Qh5 {with the idea} 35. -- Rd1 36. -- Qh1#) 34... Qxg5+ $18) 34. Qh3 Qd1 35. Qe3 e5 36. Qg3 (36. fxe5 Rg6 $1 ({After} 36... Nxe5 {White may try} 37. Nxe4 fxe4 38. Qxe4 {. After} Qg4+ 39. Qxg4 Nxg4 40. Re2 {Black still has to work a bit.})) 36... Rg6 37. Kh2 exf4 38. Qxf4 {White's position is in ruins.} Qh5+ 39. Kg1 Qd1+ 40. Kh2 Qh5+ 41. Kg1 Nxg5 42. Qb8+ Kg7 43. Qe5+ Kh6 44. Qf4 Qd1+ 45. Kh2 Qd4 46. b4 Kg7 47. Qc7+ Kh8 48. Qc8+ Rg8 49. Qxf5 Nf3+ 50. Kh3 Qd6 (50... Qd6 51. Rg2 Qh6+ {leads to mate.}) 0-1 [Event "9th Bilbao Masters"] [Site "Bilbao"] [Date "2016.07.13"] [Round "1.2"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "B91"] [WhiteElo "2855"] [BlackElo "2787"] [Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"] [PlyCount "100"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] [WhiteClock "0:49:07"] [BlackClock "0:42:38"] 1. e4 c5 2. Ne2 {Carlsen used this Anti-Najdorf line back in 2010.} d6 3. Nbc3 a6 4. g3 g6 5. Bg2 Bg7 6. d4 cxd4 7. Nxd4 Nf6 {Now a Fianchettoed Dragon appears.} 8. O-O O-O 9. b3 Nc6 ({Black can also start with} 9... Bg4 10. Qd2 Nc6 11. Nxc6 bxc6 12. Bb2 Qa5 13. h3 Be6 14. Rad1 {with approximate equality in Landa,K (2596)-Shneider,A (2532) Cappelle-la-Grande 2007}) 10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. Bb2 Qa5 {Technically speaking this is a novelty, but as we have seen from the game Landa-Shneider from above, this is not a new idea. Kovchan preferred instead:} (11... Nd7 12. Qd2 a5 13. Na4 Bxb2 14. Nxb2 f6 {although White seems a tad better here to me, Hansen,M (2165)-Kovchan,A (2571) Copenhagen 2010}) 12. Na4 Bg4 13. Qe1 {In the case of:} (13. Qd3 {Nakamura would have probably played } Qh5 {again. Although} (13... Nd7 14. Bxg7 Kxg7 {should be also playable, as in the aforementioned game by Kovchan.})) 13... Qh5 {A very risky decision. Although one can easily understand why Nakamura did not choose the worse endgame after} (13... Qxe1 14. Rfxe1 Nd7 {against Carlsen.}) 14. f3 {An ambitious approach. Carlsen wants to exclude the black queen from the play.} ({ Simpler was} 14. e5 $1 dxe5 ({Black loses a pawn in the line} 14... Nd7 15. exd6 exd6 (15... Bxb2 16. dxe7) 16. Bxg7 Kxg7 17. Qc3+ ({But not} 17. Bxc6 Rac8 18. Bxd7 Bxd7 {when Black has plenty of play on the light squares, or equality after} 19. Qd1 Qxd1 20. Rfxd1 Bxa4 21. bxa4 Rxc2) 17... Qe5 18. Qxe5+ Nxe5 19. f4) 15. Qxe5 Qxe5 16. Bxe5 Nd5 17. Rfe1) 14... Bh3 15. g4 Qh6 16. Rd1 {Now Bb2-c1 is a deadly threat, thus} (16. Bc1 g5 17. Bxh3 Qxh3 18. Bxg5 {would be met with} Nxg4 $1 19. fxg4 Bxa1 20. Qxa1 Qxg4+ 21. Kh1 Qxe4+ {when Black is on top.}) 16... g5 {is forced. However after} 17. Bc1 {Black's position seems very suspicious. Still, Carlsen might have done better had he played:} (17. Qe3 {instead, a move that prevents Black's activity in the line} Bxg2 18. Kxg2 Qg6 19. Nb6 $1 {The key move that keeps an eye on the d5 square.} Rad8 {And now} ({ Not} 19... Rab8 $2 20. Bxf6 Bxf6 21. Nd7) 20. Bc3 {After} (20. c4 $2 Nxg4 { drops a pawn instead.}) (20. Ba1 {is also possible though.}) 20... d5 {White has a choice between} 21. e5 ({And} 21. Bxf6 Bxf6 22. exd5 cxd5 23. Nxd5 Qxc2+ 24. Rd2 Qg6 25. Rff2) 21... Nd7 22. Nxd7 Rxd7 {with advantage for the first player in either line.}) 17... Bxg2 18. Kxg2 Qg6 19. h4 {It was not too late to prevent the central break with} (19. Qe3 h6 20. Nb6 Rab8 21. Nc4 {with the idea} d5 $2 22. Ne5) 19... gxh4 20. Qxh4 d5 $1 {Nakamura seizes his chance.} 21. g5 $6 {Carlsen continues to play for domination, but his forces do not seem active enough. Instead:} (21. exd5 cxd5 ({Or} 21... Qxc2+ 22. Rd2 Qg6 23. dxc6 Rac8) 22. c3 Rac8 {would have left the worst behind for Black.}) 21... dxe4 22. f4 e6 $1 {Missed by Carlsen. Perhaps White was hoping for an attack in the lines:} (22... h6 23. f5 hxg5 24. Bxg5 Qh7 25. Qxh7+ Kxh7 26. Rh1+ (26. Nb6 Rad8 27. Rh1+ Kg8 28. Rdg1 {is also good for White.}) 26... Kg8 27. Bxf6 Bxf6 (27... exf6 {looks ugly, self-trapping the bishop.}) 28. Nb6 Rad8 29. Nd7 Rfe8 30. Kf2 {and Black can hardly survive here.}) 23. c4 {Takes away the d5 square from Black. That is important in the line} (23. Kf2 Nd5 24. c4 Nb4) 23... Rfd8 {Simple and good. Clearly worse was} (23... h6 24. Nc5 hxg5 25. fxg5 Nh7 26. Qxe4 {with an edge for White.}) 24. Rde1 ({Now} 24. Nc5 {is met with} Bf8) 24... Ne8 {Black's queen survived. Black has won a pawn and has some juicy outposts for the knight.} 25. Nc5 {Active play is doomed to failure.} ( 25. f5 exf5 26. Qh3 Nd6 27. c5 Nb5 28. Rxf5 Rd3) 25... Nd6 26. Qf2 f5 27. Bb2 Nf7 {Also good was} (27... Bxb2 28. Qxb2 Nf7 29. Qf6 Qxf6 30. gxf6 Nh6 31. Nxe6 Rd6 {with a clear edge in the endgame.}) 28. Bxg7 Kxg7 29. Qg3 ({More resilent seemed} 29. Re3 {with the idea to double the heavy pieces along the h-file.}) 29... Rd6 30. Rd1 Rad8 31. Rxd6 Rxd6 {In addition to the extra pawn, Nakamura has added open files for his heavy pieces. The decisive counter-attack is just around the corner.} 32. Qc3+ Kg8 33. Rf2 Qh5 34. Qh3 Qd1 35. Qe3 e5 36. Qg3 ({ Or} 36. fxe5 Nxe5 37. Rxf5 $2 Qg4+) 36... Rg6 37. Kh2 exf4 38. Qxf4 Qh5+ 39. Kg1 Qd1+ 40. Kh2 Qh5+ 41. Kg1 Nxg5 42. Qb8+ Kg7 43. Qe5+ Kh6 44. Qf4 Qd1+ 45. Kh2 (45. Rf1 Qd4+) 45... Qd4 {The long diagonal is secured; the king may run away from the pin.} 46. b4 Kg7 47. Qc7+ Kh8 48. Qc8+ Rg8 49. Qxf5 Nf3+ 50. Kh3 Qd6 0-1 [Event "9th Masters Final 2016"] [Site "Bilbao ESP"] [Date "2016.07.14"] [Round "?"] [White "Wei Yi"] [Black "Carlsen, M."] [Result "0-1"] [WhiteElo "2696"] [BlackElo "2855"] [PlyCount "120"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] 1. d4 g6 2. e4 Bg7 3. Nc3 d6 4. Be3 a6 {The Swedish GM Tiger Hillarp-Persson wrote a voluminous book on this opening which recently appeared in a new, revised edition.} 5. f4 b5 6. Nf3 Nd7 (6... Bb7 7. Bd3 Nf6 8. e5 Ng4 9. Bd2 c5 10. dxc5 dxe5 11. h3 Nf6 12. fxe5 Nfd7 13. e6 fxe6 14. Ng5 Nxc5 15. Qe2 Nc6 16. Nxe6 Nxe6 17. Qxe6 Ne5 18. O-O Qd7 $11 {0-1 (50) Zelbel,P (2450)-Hillarp Persson,T (2541) Gothenburg 2015}) 7. e5 Bb7 8. Bd3 c5 (8... Nh6 9. Qe2 Nb6 10. O-O-O Qd7 11. h3 Nf5 12. Bf2 e6 13. Kb1 Ne7 14. Be3 Ned5 15. Nxd5 Bxd5 16. Rhf1 b4 17. g4 O-O 18. f5 Na4 {0-1 (36) Byklum, B (2275)-Hillarp Persson,T (2557) Stockholm 2006} 19. f6 $5 $16) 9. Be4 Bxe4 (9... Qc8 10. Bxb7 Qxb7 11. dxc5 dxe5 12. Qd5 Qxd5 13. Nxd5 Rc8 14. Nb6 Nxb6 15. cxb6 Nf6 16. O-O-O Ng4 17. Rhe1 Nxe3 18. Rxe3 Bh6 $11 {0-1 (53) Mortensen,E (2450)-Hillarp Persson,T (2461) Denmark 2003}) 10. Nxe4 Nh6 11. dxc5 dxe5 (11... Ng4) 12. c6 Nf6 13. Qxd8+ Rxd8 14. Nxf6+ exf6 15. c7 Rc8 16. Bb6 Kd7 {This kind of position should suit Carlsen. After an early exchange of queens White's far advanced pawn on c7 is vulnerable.} 17. Ba5 Nf5 18. O-O-O+ Kc6 {All this has been played before.} 19. Rd8 (19. Rd3 Nd6 {and now 1/2-1/2 (19) in Tan,J (2322)-Buchal,S (2296) Haarlem 2013 - a bit premature.}) 19... Nd6 20. fxe5 fxe5 21. Rd1 Nc4 22. Bc3 Rxc7 ( 22... b4 23. Bxb4 e4 24. Nd4+ Kxc7 25. Rxh8 Bxh8 26. Bc3 Be5 $11) 23. b3 Ne3 24. Bxe5 (24. R1d6+ Kb7 25. R8d7 Kc8 26. Rxc7+ Kxc7 27. Rxa6 Rc8 28. Ba5+ Kb7 29. Rb6+ Ka7 30. Rd6 Nxc2 $15) 24... Nxd1 25. Rd6+ (25. Bxc7 Nc3 26. Rxh8 Nxa2+ 27. Kd2 Bc3+ 28. Kd3 Bxh8 29. Ba5 {and Black is a pawn up.}) 25... Kb7 26. Bxg7 Rg8 27. Bd4 Nc3 {At the moment Black is an exchange up - however, he has to part with some material.} 28. Rb6+ Kc8 29. Be5 {Now White regains the exchange. } Rd8 30. Kb2 ({But not} 30. Bxc7 $2 Kxc7 31. Rxa6 Rd1+ 32. Kb2 b4 {and White is caught in a mating net.}) 30... Nd5 31. Bxc7 Kxc7 32. Rxa6 {Now White is a pawn up but his rook is awkwardly placed and White has to return the pawn.} Kb7 33. Ra3 {White wants to keep his extra-pawn.} (33. Ra5 Kb6 34. b4 Nxb4 35. Ra3 $11 {leads to an equal position.}) 33... Ne3 {Typical Carlsen. Only a few pieces remain on the board but he manages to exert enormous pressure.} 34. c4 ( {After} 34. g3 {follows} Nd1+ 35. Kc1 Nc3 {and Black again threatens} 36. -- Rd1+ 37. Kb2 b4 38. Ra5 Rb1#) 34... bxc4 35. Ne5 $2 {Not the best. The World Champion will now advance his c-pawn to reach the first rank for a touchdown.} (35. bxc4 $4 Nxc4+) (35. b4 Nd5 36. Ra5 Ne3 37. a4 Nxg2 38. Ne5 Ne3 39. Rc5 $11 ) (35. Ra4 cxb3 36. Rb4+ Kc6 37. Rxb3 Nc4+ (37... Nxg2 38. Ne5+) 38. Kc2 Ra8 39. Rc3 Kb5 40. Rb3+ Kc5 41. Rc3 $11) 35... Rd2+ 36. Kc3 (36. Kc1 c3 37. -- { und} Rd1#) 36... Rc2+ 37. Kd4 Nf5+ 38. Kd5 c3 39. Kc5 Nd6 $1 40. Nc6 {White is still in the game. He threatens to win a piece with Ra7+.} (40. Kxd6 $2 Rd2+ 41. Ke7 c2 {and the pawn queens.}) 40... Ne4+ ({After} 40... Kc7 41. Nb4 (41. Ra7+ Nb7+ $19) 41... Rd2 (41... Rc1 42. Ra7+ Nb7+ 43. Kc4 c2 44. Kb5 $11) 42. Ra6 c2 43. Rc6+ {the position is objectively (engine) won for Black but subjectively (human) rather double-edged.} Kb7 (43... Kd7 $2 44. Kb6 {and White stopped the pawn.}) 44. Rb6+ Ka8 (44... Ka7 $4 45. Nc6+ Ka8 46. Rb8#) 45. Nc6 c1=Q+ {and Black queens with check.}) 41. Kb5 Kc7 42. Ra7+ Kd6 43. Ra4 $2 ( {Besser} 43. Nb4 Rxg2 44. Rxf7 Rxh2 {and White can still fight for the draw.}) 43... f5 $19 44. Kb6 Rxg2 ({White threatened} 44... -- 45. Rd4+ Ke6 46. Rxe4+ fxe4 47. Nd4+) 45. Rd4+ Ke6 46. a4 Ra2 ({Maybe it was better to play} 46... Rb2 {immediately.}) 47. a5 Rb2 48. Kc7 $5 (48. a6 c2 49. Rc4 Rxb3+ 50. Ka7 Nc3 $19) (48. b4 Nd6 $17 (48... c2 $2 49. Rc4)) 48... Nc5 $1 (48... c2 $2 49. Rc4 $11) ( 48... Rxb3 $4 49. Rxe4+ fxe4 50. Nd4+ $16) 49. Rc4 {(#)} Na6+ 50. Kb6 Rxb3+ 51. Kxa6 Kd5 {The point. The white rook is once again in trouble.} 52. Rb4 c2 53. Ne7+ Kc5 54. Rxb3 c1=Q 55. Rb6 Qc4+ 56. Kb7 Qe4+ 57. Nc6 Qd5 58. Kc7 Qd6+ 59. Kb7 Qd7+ 60. Kb8 f4 0-1 [Event "9th Masters Final 2016"] [Site "Bilbao ESP"] [Date "2016.07.14"] [Round "?"] [White "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Black "Giri, A."] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [WhiteElo "2773"] [BlackElo "2785"] [PlyCount "165"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. O-O Nf6 5. d3 O-O (5... d6 6. c3 a6 7. a4 Ba7 8. Na3 Ne7 9. Nc2 O-O 10. Be3 Bxe3 11. Nxe3 a5 12. Re1 Ng6 13. Bb3 c6 14. Bc2 Re8 15. d4 Qc7 16. dxe5 dxe5 17. g3 h6 18. Qe2 Be6 19. Red1 Rad8 20. b4 Nf8 21. Nc4 axb4 22. cxb4 Bg4 23. Rxd8 Qxd8 24. Rd1 Qe7 25. Rb1 Ne6 26. Ncxe5 Nd4 27. Qd3 Nxf3+ 28. Nxf3 Qxe4 29. Qxe4 Nxe4 30. Rb3 Nf6 31. Kg2 Be6 32. Ra3 Bd5 33. Kf1 Ng4 34. h3 Bxf3 35. hxg4 Bxg4 36. Kg2 Kf8 37. Rc3 Rd8 38. b5 cxb5 39. axb5 Rc8 40. Rxc8+ Bxc8 41. f4 Ke7 {0-1 (41) Anand,V (2770)-Carlsen,M (2855) Leuven 2016}) 6. c3 d5 7. exd5 Nxd5 8. a4 a6 9. a5 b5 (9... Bg4 10. Nbd2 Nf6 11. Re1 Bd6 12. Qb3 Rb8 13. Ng5 Bh5 14. Nf1 h6 15. Ne4 Bg6 16. Nfg3 $14 {1-0 (62) Ponomariov,R (2706)-Ismagambetov,A (2542) Almaty 2016}) 10. axb6 Nxb6 11. Bb3 Bg4 (11... Bf5 $5 12. Bc2 Qd7 $11) 12. Qe2 Kh8 13. Be3 Bd6 14. h3 Bh5 15. g4 Bg6 16. Nbd2 Be7 17. Ne4 f5 18. gxf5 Bxf5 19. Kh2 {It seems as if the white king is in a precarious position but it is Black's king which soon is under fire.} Qe8 20. Nfd2 Qd7 21. Rg1 Bxh3 $2 (21... a5 $11) 22. Qh5 Bf5 {(#)} 23. Rxg7 $5 (23. Bh6 $1 {may have been a better way to open the g-file. Now Black's best is} g6 (23... Rg8 24. Rxa6 Rxa6 25. Qf7 Raa8 26. Bxg7+ Rxg7 27. Qxg7#) (23... gxh6 24. Qxh6 Bg4 25. f3 Rf4 26. fxg4 $16) 24. Bxf8 Bxf8 $16 ( 24... gxh5 25. Bg7#)) 23... Kxg7 24. Rg1+ Kh8 25. Qh6 Bd6 (25... Rg8 26. Ng5 Rg7 27. Nf7+ Rxf7 28. Bxf7 Bg4 29. Bg6 (29. f3 $2 Bf8) 29... Bf8 30. Qh4 { and Black is under pressure.}) 26. Bxb6 ({Correct was} 26. Nxd6 cxd6 {and now} 27. Bxb6 $11) 26... Bxe4 27. Nxe4 cxb6 {(#)} 28. Rg6 $5 (28. Nxd6 $2 {does not work:} Rxf2+ 29. Kh1 Qe7 30. Ne4 Rf4 $19) ({is even worse:} 28. Qxd6 $4 { erst recht nicht:} Rxf2+) 28... Na5 (28... Bc5 $5 29. Rxc6 Rf4 $19) 29. Rxd6 Qg7 30. Qxg7+ Kxg7 31. Rd7+ Kh8 32. Be6 h6 $6 (32... Rad8 $11) 33. b4 Nc6 34. Bd5 Rac8 35. Rb7 $6 (35. Nd6 $1 $16) 35... b5 36. Kh3 Rf4 37. Kg2 {Things have quietened down. Black is an exchange up but his king is in danger and his pawns are weak.} Rg4+ 38. Kf1 Rg7 39. Rb6 Ne7 40. Rxh6+ Rh7 41. Rd6 Nxd5 42. Rxd5 Re7 43. Rd6 Ra8 44. Kg2 Rf7 45. Kf1 Re7 46. Ke2 a5 47. bxa5 Rxa5 48. Rb6 Rc7 49. Ke3 Kg8 50. Re6 b4 51. cxb4 Rb5 52. Nc5 Ra7 53. Rxe5 Rxb4 {(#) Now White is playing for a win.} 54. Ne4 Kf7 55. f4 Ra1 56. f5 Re1+ 57. Kd2 Rf1 58. Nd6+ Kf8 59. Re8+ Kg7 60. Re6 Rbf4 61. f6+ Kg6 62. f7+ Kg7 63. Re8 Rf6 64. Rg8+ Kh7 65. Rd8 Kg7 66. Ke2 R6f2+ 67. Ke3 Rxf7 68. Nxf7 Kxf7 69. Rd4 Ke6 70. Rf4 Rxf4 71. Kxf4 {This is a very basic endgame but the grandmasters still make a few moves...} Kd5 72. Ke3 Ke5 73. d4+ Kd5 74. Kd3 Kd6 75. Kc4 Kc6 76. d5+ Kd6 77. Kd4 Kd7 78. Ke5 Ke7 79. d6+ Kd7 80. Kd5 Kd8 81. Ke6 Ke8 82. d7+ Kd8 83. Kd6 1/2-1/2 [Event "9th Bilbao Masters"] [Site "chess24.com"] [Date "2016.07.14"] [Round "2.2"] [White "Wei, Yi"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "B06"] [WhiteElo "2696"] [BlackElo "2855"] [Annotator "mycomputer"] [PlyCount "120"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "China"] [BlackTeam "Norway"] [WhiteTeamCountry "CHN"] [BlackTeamCountry "NOR"] [WhiteClock "0:31:52"] [BlackClock "0:37:23"] 1. d4 g6 2. e4 Bg7 3. Nc3 d6 4. Be3 a6 5. f4 b5 6. Nf3 Nd7 7. e5 Bb7 8. Bd3 c5 9. Be4 Bxe4 10. Nxe4 Nh6 11. dxc5 dxe5 12. c6 Nf6 13. Qxd8+ Rxd8 14. Nxf6+ exf6 15. c7 Rc8 16. Bb6 Kd7 17. Ba5 Nf5 18. O-O-O+ Kc6 19. Rd8 Nd6 20. fxe5 fxe5 21. Rd1 Nc4 22. Bc3 Rxc7 23. b3 Ne3 24. Bxe5 Nxd1 25. Rd6+ Kb7 26. Bxg7 Rg8 27. Bd4 Nc3 28. Rb6+ Kc8 29. Be5 Rd8 30. Kb2 Nd5 31. Bxc7 Kxc7 32. Rxa6 Kb7 33. Ra3 Ne3 34. c4 bxc4 35. Ne5 Rd2+ 36. Kc3 Rc2+ 37. Kd4 Nf5+ 38. Kd5 c3 39. Kc5 Nd6 40. Nc6 Ne4+ 41. Kb5 Kc7 42. Ra7+ Kd6 43. Ra4 f5 44. Kb6 Rxg2 45. Rd4+ Ke6 46. a4 Ra2 47. a5 Rb2 48. Kc7 (48. b4 {should lead to a draw, but Wei Yi thought that the text move was promising for White. He missed the next move completely.}) 48... Nc5 $1 {Carlsen had seen this in advance. A great trick.} 49. Rc4 ({ The point was} 49. b4 c2 50. Rc4 Na6+ 51. Kb6 (51. Kc8 Kd5) 51... Nxb4 $1 52. Nxb4 Rxb4+ 53. Rxb4 c1=Q {and wins.}) 49... Na6+ 50. Kb6 Rxb3+ 51. Kxa6 Kd5 52. Rb4 c2 53. Ne7+ Kc5 54. Rxb3 c1=Q 55. Rb6 Qc4+ 56. Kb7 Qe4+ 57. Nc6 Qd5 58. Kc7 Qd6+ 59. Kb7 Qd7+ 60. Kb8 f4 0-1 [Event "9th Bilbao Masters"] [Site "chess24.com"] [Date "2016.07.14"] [Round "2.3"] [White "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Black "Giri, Anish"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C54"] [WhiteElo "2773"] [BlackElo "2785"] [Annotator "mycomputer"] [PlyCount "164"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "Russia"] [BlackTeam "Netherlands"] [WhiteTeamCountry "RUS"] [BlackTeamCountry "NED"] [WhiteClock "0:01:17"] [BlackClock "0:38:46"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. O-O Nf6 5. d3 O-O 6. c3 d5 7. exd5 Nxd5 8. a4 a6 (8... a5 {was played three times by Aronian last month in Paris and Leuven.} ) 9. a5 (9. Nbd2 Nb6 10. Ba2 Qxd3 11. a5 Nd7 12. Bb1 Qd6 13. Ng5 Nf6 14. Qc2 Ne7 15. Nge4 Bf5 16. Nxd6 Bxc2 17. Nxb7 Bxb1 18. Nxc5 Bf5 {Cornette,M (2583) -Naroditsky,D (2634) Ajaccio FRA 2016}) 9... b5 (9... Bg4 10. Nbd2 Nf6 11. Re1 Bd6 12. Qb3 Rb8 13. Ng5 Bh5 14. Nf1 h6 15. Ne4 Bg6 16. Nfg3 Kh8 {Ponomariov,R (2706)-Ismagambetov,A (2542) Almaty KAZ 2016}) 10. axb6 Nxb6 11. Bb3 Bg4 (11... Bf5 12. Bc2 Qd7 13. Qe2 Rfe8 14. Nbd2 a5 15. Ne4 Bf8 16. Ng3 Be6 17. Ng5 Bd5 18. Qh5 h6 19. N5e4 Be6 {Piorun,K (2591)-Lampert,J (2469) Dresden GER 2016}) 12. Qe2 Kh8 13. Be3 Bd6 14. h3 Bh5 15. g4 Bg6 16. Nbd2 Be7 17. Ne4 f5 18. gxf5 Bxf5 19. Kh2 Qe8 ({Black should probably have played} 19... Qd7 {right away.}) 20. Nfd2 Qd7 21. Rg1 $5 Bxh3 {Giri is not afraid to take some material.} 22. Qh5 Bf5 ({After} 22... Be6 $2 23. Rxg7 $1 {is winning:} Kxg7 24. Qh6+ Kh8 25. Bxe6 Qe8 26. Rg1 Rf7 27. Bxf7 Qxf7 28. Qxc6) 23. Rxg7 $5 ({The players didn't look at the amazing computer suggestion} 23. Bh6 $5 {and if} gxh6 24. Qxh6 Bd6 (24... Bg4 25. f3) 25. Rg3 $1 {with a winning attack.}) 23... Kxg7 24. Rg1+ Kh8 25. Qh6 Bd6 26. Bxb6 $6 {The wrong move order.} ({Correct was} 26. Nxd6 cxd6 27. Bxb6 Qe7 28. Bd5 Rf6 29. Qh4 Rg6 30. Qxe7 Rh6+ 31. Kg2 Nxe7 32. Bxa8 Rg6+ { and Black gives a perpetual.}) 26... Bxe4 $1 27. Nxe4 cxb6 28. Rg6 $5 {Missed by Giri.} Na5 $6 ({Giri did see} 28... Bc5 $1 {but with the little time he had left he missed that} 29. Rxc6 Rf4 30. Rf6 {can simply be met by} Rxf6 31. Qxf6+ Qg7) 29. Rxd6 Qg7 30. Qxg7+ Kxg7 31. Rd7+ Kh8 32. Be6 h6 (32... Rad8) 33. b4 Nc6 34. Bd5 Rac8 35. Rb7 b5 36. Kh3 Rf4 37. Kg2 Rg4+ 38. Kf1 Rg7 39. Rb6 Ne7 40. Rxh6+ Rh7 41. Rd6 Nxd5 42. Rxd5 {This endgame is slightly better for White but a draw.} Re7 43. Rd6 Ra8 44. Kg2 Rf7 45. Kf1 Re7 46. Ke2 a5 47. bxa5 Rxa5 48. Rb6 Rc7 49. Ke3 Kg8 50. Re6 b4 51. cxb4 Rb5 52. Nc5 Ra7 53. Rxe5 Rxb4 54. Ne4 Kf7 55. f4 Ra1 56. f5 Re1+ 57. Kd2 Rf1 58. Nd6+ Kf8 59. Re8+ Kg7 60. Re6 Rbf4 61. f6+ Kg6 62. f7+ Kg7 63. Re8 Rf6 (63... Rxf7 64. Nxf7 Kxf7 {is also a tablebase draw.}) 64. Rg8+ Kh7 65. Rd8 Kg7 66. Ke2 R6f2+ 67. Ke3 Rxf7 68. Nxf7 Kxf7 69. Rd4 Ke6 70. Rf4 Rxf4 71. Kxf4 Kd5 {A draw offer would certainly have been accepted by the arbiter here, but the players decided to show the spectators why this is a draw. :-)} 72. Ke3 Ke5 73. d4+ Kd5 74. Kd3 Kd6 75. Kc4 Kc6 76. d5+ Kd6 77. Kd4 Kd7 78. Ke5 Ke7 79. d6+ Kd7 80. Kd5 Kd8 81. Ke6 Ke8 82. d7+ Kd8 1/2-1/2 [Event "9th Masters Final 2016"] [Site "Bilbao ESP"] [Date "2016.07.15"] [Round "?"] [White "Carlsen, M."] [Black "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Result "1-0"] [WhiteElo "2855"] [BlackElo "2773"] [PlyCount "79"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. c3 Nf6 4. Be2 g6 ({According to the ChessBase Mega-Database more than 200 players have blundered here with} 4... Nxe4 5. Qa4+ ) 5. O-O Bg7 6. Bb5+ Nc6 (6... Bd7 7. Bxd7+ Nfxd7 8. d4 O-O 9. Bg5 Nc6 10. d5 Nce5 11. Nfd2 b5 12. a4 {1/2-1/2 (64) Carlsen,M (2868)-Wang,H (2743) Stavanger 2013}) 7. d4 Qb6 8. Ba4 cxd4 9. cxd4 O-O 10. d5 Nb8 (10... Na5 $5 $11) 11. Nc3 Bg4 12. h3 Bxf3 13. Qxf3 Nbd7 14. Rb1 Rfc8 15. Bc2 Ne5 16. Qe2 Nfd7 17. Bg5 h6 18. Bh4 (18. Bxe7 $6 g5 19. Nb5 Ng6 20. Nxd6 Nxe7 21. Nxc8 Rxc8 $13) 18... g5 19. Bg3 Qa6 20. Qd1 Rc4 $2 {This move does not make a good impression. In the further course of the game the rook moves too often but does too little.} ( 20... Nc4 {with complications.} 21. Bd3 Nc5 22. Be2 Bxc3 23. bxc3 Qxa2) (20... Ng6 21. Bd3 Qa5 $11) 21. Kh1 Rac8 22. f4 gxf4 23. Bxf4 Qb6 24. Qh5 Nf6 25. Qf5 Qd8 26. Bb3 Rd4 ({After} 26... R4c7 $2 {White simply takes on e5:} 27. Bxe5 dxe5 28. Qxe5 {and the white queen is safe.}) 27. Bxe5 dxe5 28. Rbd1 (28. Qxe5 $6 Nxe4) 28... Qd7 29. Qf3 Rb4 (29... Rxd1 30. Bxd1 b5 31. Ne2 $14) 30. Rd2 Rf8 {(#)} 31. g4 $1 {Energetic play on the kingside.} a5 32. Rg2 {White simply threatens g5 - a pawn advance Black cannot stop.} Nh7 33. h4 Rb6 34. g5 Kh8 ( 34... hxg5 $2 35. hxg5 -- {threatening} 36. d6 (36. d6 Rxd6 37. Bxf7+ Kh8 38. g6 $18)) 35. Rfg1 f5 ({More stubborn was} 35... Rg6 36. Ba4 Qc8 37. Rh2 Kg8) 36. Qh3 Rb4 {The sixth move of this rook.} 37. gxh6 ({Or} 37. d6 exd6 38. gxh6 $18) 37... Bxh6 38. Qg3 {Threatening mate on g8.} (38. Rg6 {would also have been strong.} Bf4 39. Qg2 Nf6 40. d6 Qxd6 41. Nd5 $18) 38... Nf6 39. Qg6 Ng4 40. Rxg4 (40. Rxg4 fxg4 41. Qxh6+ Kg8 42. Qg6+ Kh8 43. Qh5+ Kg7 44. Rxg4+ $18) 1-0 [Event "9th Bilbao Masters"] [Site "Bilbao"] [Date "2016.07.15"] [Round "3.2"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "B50"] [WhiteElo "2855"] [BlackElo "2773"] [Annotator "Rensch,Danny"] [PlyCount "79"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "Norway"] [BlackTeam "Russia"] [WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"] [BlackTeamCountry "RUS"] [WhiteClock "0:03:02"] [BlackClock "0:00:40"] {The battle we've all been waiting for! How hard will Magnus try for a win against his soon to be challenger to the throne? Knowing that he's White, and that he's Magnus, we can safely assume that at the very least we will get a fighting game. And indeed we did!} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. c3 Nf6 4. Be2 g6 5. O-O Bg7 6. Bb5+ Nc6 ({The Chinese GM Wang Hao played} 6... Bd7 7. Bxd7+ Nfxd7 8. d4 {in Carlsen,M (2868)-Wang Hao (2743) Stavanger NOR 2013}) 7. d4 Qb6 8. Ba4 {This move might as well be the first "novelty" of the game.} (8. Na3 cxd4 9. cxd4 d5 {Rasik,V (2516) -Zhigalko,A (2601) Czech Republic CZE 2013}) 8... cxd4 9. cxd4 O-O 10. d5 Nb8 {Officially the first novelty.} (10... Na5 { Palit,S (2421) -Gopal,G (2558) Kolkata IND 2014}) 11. Nc3 Bg4 12. h3 Bxf3 13. Qxf3 Nbd7 14. Rb1 ({Maybe better was} 14. Be3 {but I'm not sure the rook on b1 is misplaced for White anyway. It's hard to tell whether Black can take the pawn with} Qxb2 {or not?} 15. Rfc1 Qa3 16. Rab1 Nc5 (16... b6 17. Rb3 {Queen trapped.}) 17. Bxc5 Qxc5 18. Rxb7 Nxe4 19. Qxe4 Bxc3 {What's going on here? It's above my pay-grade...}) 14... Rfc8 {And we have equality. The next few moves make sense for both sides. (However, Carlsen said: "His play from move 16 to 20 could be improved upon. After 21.Kh1, at the very least my position is easier to play." - PD)} 15. Bc2 Ne5 16. Qe2 Nfd7 17. Bg5 h6 18. Bh4 { The last few were natural moves. The world champion is baiting Black into being aggressive.} g5 $5 {Aggressive! Although this leads to Karjakin's undoing later, the initial decision is not bad. I like it. Black just needed to be more accurate in the coming moves OR prevent the f4-pawn strike as I suggest later.} 19. Bg3 Qa6 20. Qd1 Rc4 $6 {It's really surprising just how "bad" this move is, and how much the following moves (lots of rook shuffling) were for Karjakin. I mean, this move seems supremely natural. It prepares to double rooks, increases c-file pressure, maybe creates tactical pressure on 4th-rank, etc. Yet, it seems Karjakin's play from here on out was trying to justify the rook's awkward 4th rank position to no avail.} ({I'd prefer} 20... Ng6 {even if I don't play for ...Be5 at some point. It's very risky to extend the g5-pawn without doing a little bit of "house keeping" on the kingside.}) ({ The engines (Stockfish and Komodo) seem to like} 20... Nc4 {which makes sense. (Carlsen suggested this afterward as well - PD.) It's similar to ...Ng6 (suggested by me) in that it kind of stops f4, but it's different in that it's only stopping it with temporary counterplay. f4 is not permanently prevented. The game is definitely unclear.}) 21. Kh1 {This might be unnecessary, but it makes sense from a human point of view to remove the king from checks. Notice that a retreat of the knight on e5 to g6 is not possible because of Bd3, pinning the rook.} Rac8 {This is a natural followup to Black's choice of plan. Unfortunately, the tide is turning as soon as White plays...} 22. f4 $1 { The principled move! Like Nakamura did against him, Carlsen will open up the kingside, punish his opponent for extending pawns around his king, and attack, attack, attack!} gxf4 23. Bxf4 Qb6 24. Qh5 Nf6 25. Qf5 Qd8 {It's hard to find serious criticism for Black's last few moves, but we're all loving White's chances now.} 26. Bb3 Rd4 {My reaction on first seeing this move was: "Say what!?". My second thoughts? Forest Gump: "Well, I figured since I brought the rook this far, might as well keep on runnin!".} 27. Bxe5 $1 {This is a move that I would have been hesitant to play myself. It gives up the dark-squared bishop when the pawn on h6 seems so ripe for ganging up on. However, it is an accurate decision by the world champion. The knight on e5 is Black's most actively placed piece. So let's take it off. Also, this allows more squares (f3, g4, etc.) to be available to White in his future attack.} dxe5 28. Rbd1 ({ The engine is screaming for} 28. Rbc1 {which actually looks rather tasty! How can Black deal with threats like Nb5 or Ne2, opening the c-file? Nice!} Qd7 29. Qxd7 Nxd7 30. Ne2 Rxc1 31. Rxc1 Rxe4 32. Ng3 Rb4 (32... Rf4 33. Rc7 {And White has a winning endgame.}) 33. Rc7 Nf6 34. d6 $1 exd6 35. Bxf7+ Kh7 36. Be6 { followed by Nf5. Wow. What an engine line to impress!}) 28... Qd7 29. Qf3 Rb4 { Something just feels wrong about this. It seems like the Russian must try to justify the rook's position as is?} ({I'm not sure regarding the tactical accuracy, but my "strong player-intuition" (not to be confused with good moves and accurate calculation by the Komodo engine) says to try and open the bishop on g7 and get that f6-knight to a better square. That means I have to play} 29... Rf8 {and then} 30. a3 Ne8 {White is still better, but is Black any worse off than the game? I don't think so...}) 30. Rd2 Rf8 31. g4 $1 {It. Is. Time.} a5 32. Rg2 Nh7 33. h4 Rb6 34. g5 {Natural. White justifies the last few moves (Rd2, g4, h4, etc.) and turns up the heat on the g-file.} Kh8 35. Rfg1 f5 $2 { A desperate, defensive lashout.} ({As torturous as it is, Black does best to just sit tight with a move like} 35... Rg6 {and make White figure out how to improve on the kingside from here. Since the obvious} 36. gxh6 {fails to} Bxh6 {where Black is fine, Carlsen would need to find something else to do to improve his attack.}) 36. Qh3 Rb4 $2 {This definitely made Carlsen's job a littler easier. Now the sixth rank becomes available for immediate entry.} ({ Better was} 36... Rd6 {but after} 37. Ba4 (37. gxh6 Bxh6 38. Qg3 Nf6 39. Qxe5 { also seems reasonably easy for Carlsen.}) 37... Qc8 {to keep an eye on f5.} ( 37... Qc7 38. exf5 {crushing.}) 38. Nb5 Rdd8 39. Rc2 Qd7 40. Rc7 {and the game is soon over since White can capture the f5-pawn on 40...Qe8.}) 37. gxh6 Bxh6 38. Qg3 Nf6 39. Qg6 Ng4 40. Rxg4 {Resignation: the only reasonable option left to Black.} 1-0 [Event "9th Bilbao Masters"] [Site "Bilbao"] [Date "2016.07.15"] [Round "3.1"] [White "Giri, Anish"] [Black "So, Wesley"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C50"] [WhiteElo "2785"] [BlackElo "2770"] [Annotator "mycomputer"] [PlyCount "111"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "Netherlands"] [BlackTeam "United States"] [WhiteTeamCountry "NED"] [BlackTeamCountry "USA"] [WhiteClock "0:00:07"] [BlackClock "0:02:00"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. O-O Nf6 5. d3 O-O 6. Re1 (6. c3 d5 7. exd5 Nxd5 8. Nbd2 Nb6 9. Bb5 Bd6 10. Re1 Bg4 11. h3 Bh5 12. Ne4 Re8 {Carlsen,M (2855)-Aronian,L (2792) Leuven 2016}) 6... a6 7. a4 Ng4 8. Rf1 h6 9. c3 d6 10. Nbd2 Ba7 11. h3 Nf6 12. Re1 Nh5 (12... Re8 13. Nf1 Be6 14. Bxe6 Rxe6 15. Be3 Bxe3 16. Nxe3 d5 17. Qc2 Qd7 {Muzychuk,M (2554)-Hou,Y (2673) Lvov 2016}) 13. Nf1 Qf6 14. Ne3 Nf4 15. Ng4 Qg6 16. Bxf4 exf4 17. d4 $1 {A strong pawn sacrifice.} Bxg4 18. hxg4 Qxg4 19. Qd3 {The bishop on a7 is completely out of play for a quite some time. The next few black moves are all intended to solve that issue.} Ne7 20. Re2 Rad8 21. b4 Bb8 22. b5 axb5 23. axb5 c6 24. Rb1 (24. Bb3 $5) 24... d5 25. Ba2 dxe4 26. Rxe4 Bd6 27. bxc6 bxc6 28. Rxe7 $5 {Another very interesting continuation by Giri.} Bxe7 29. Ne5 Qg5 30. Qc4 ({A funny move was} 30. Qg6 $5) 30... Qf6 31. Rb7 c5 32. Nd7 Rxd7 33. Rxd7 cxd4 34. Rxd4 Rd8 35. Rxd8+ Bxd8 36. Qe4 Be7 37. Qd4 Qxd4 38. cxd4 Bf6 39. d5 Be7 40. f3 Bc5+ 41. Kf1 Kf8 42. Bc4 Ke7 43. Bb5 Kd6 44. Be8 f6 45. Bf7 Ke5 46. Be6 f5 47. Bd7 Kf6 48. Ke2 g6 49. Be8 $1 {A well-known technique in opposite-colored bishop endings is to force the enemy pawns foward to squares where they can be blocked.} g5 50. Bd7 Bb6 51. Kf1 Ba7 52. Ke2 Bc5 53. Kf1 h5 54. Be8 h4 55. Bd7 Ke5 56. Ke2 1/2-1/2 [Event "9th Bilbao Masters"] [Site "chess24.com"] [Date "2016.07.15"] [Round "3.3"] [White "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Black "Wei, Yi"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "D41"] [WhiteElo "2787"] [BlackElo "2696"] [Annotator "mycomputer"] [PlyCount "69"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "United States"] [BlackTeam "China"] [WhiteTeamCountry "USA"] [BlackTeamCountry "CHN"] [WhiteClock "0:35:18"] [BlackClock "0:06:33"] 1. Nf3 d5 2. d4 Nf6 3. c4 e6 4. Nc3 c5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. e4 Nxc3 7. bxc3 cxd4 8. cxd4 Bb4+ 9. Bd2 Bxd2+ 10. Qxd2 O-O 11. Bc4 Nd7 12. O-O b6 13. Rfe1 Bb7 14. a4 Rc8 15. Bd3 a5 ({Relevant:} 15... Qc7 16. a5 Rfd8 17. h3 h6 18. Rec1 Qd6 19. Rcb1 Rc7 20. axb6 axb6 {Bu,X (2719)-Ni,H (2681) China 2016}) 16. Bb5 (16. h3 h6 17. Bc2 Qc7 18. Rac1 Qc3 19. Qf4 Qa3 20. Ra1 Qc3 21. Rac1 Qa3 22. d5 exd5 23. e5 Nc5 {Wang,H (2717)-Harikrishna,P (2753) Huaian 2016}) 16... h6 17. Qb2 Bc6 18. Rad1 ({Wei Yi suggested} 18. Ba6 Rc7 19. Nd2 {and Nakamura admitted that it was a better try.}) 18... Bxb5 19. Qxb5 Qc7 20. d5 {Otherwise Qc6 and White is a bit worse. (Nakamura)} exd5 21. exd5 Qd6 22. Nd4 Rc5 23. Qf1 ({Far in advance, Nakamura had missed} 23. Qb2 Rxd5 24. Nf5 Qe5 $1) 23... Rxd5 24. Nf5 Rxd1 25. Nxd6 Rxd6 26. Rd1 Rxd1 27. Qxd1 Nc5 {This is just a drawn position.} 28. h4 Re8 29. h5 Re6 30. f4 Kh7 31. Qd5 Rf6 32. Qe5 Re6 33. Qd5 Rf6 34. Qe5 Re6 35. Qd5 1/2-1/2 [Event "9th Masters Final 2016"] [Site "Bilbao ESP"] [Date "2016.07.16"] [Round "?"] [White "Carlsen, M."] [Black "So, W."] [Result "1-0"] [WhiteElo "2855"] [BlackElo "2770"] [PlyCount "51"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 Bc5 5. Bxc6 dxc6 6. Qe2 Qe7 7. Nbd2 { (#)Carlsen once again opted for a seemingly modest opening.} Bg4 8. h3 Bh5 9. a3 Nd7 10. b4 Bd6 11. Nc4 f6 12. Ne3 a5 13. Nf5 Qf8 14. bxa5 Rxa5 15. O-O Qf7 16. a4 Nc5 17. Qe1 $1 {White moves the queen out of the pin.} b6 ({The a-pawn is taboo:} 17... Rxa4 $2 18. Rxa4 Nxa4 19. Qa5 {and White threatens 20.Qa8+ and attacks the knight. Black loses material because} Nb6 {fails to} 20. Nxd6+ cxd6 21. Qxb6) 18. Nd2 $1 {An intereresting pawn sacrifice.} Rxa4 19. Nc4 { (#) White is a pawn down but his pieces are very active - and Black's king is still in den center. All of a sudden Black has to be very careful.} Bf8 $6 ( 19... Be7 20. Be3 Kd7 {would have been better but of course White has enough compensation for the pawn.}) 20. Be3 Kd7 $6 {(#) Now Black gets into serious trouble.} ({The engines propose the inhuman} 20... Rg8 {Black defends the pawn on g7, puts the rook on a square where it is protected and hopes to untangle his pieces.}) 21. Qc3 Nxe4 {Black cracks under the pressure.} ({Black's best defense was} 21... Rxc4 22. dxc4 Nxe4 23. Qd3+ Nd6 {and White is an exchange up and clearly better but Black can still hope.}) 22. Nxb6+ cxb6 23. dxe4 { Now Black's king is too exposed and White quickly wins.} Qc4 24. Qd2+ Kc7 25. g4 Bg6 26. Rfd1 1-0 [Event "9th Bilbao Masters"] [Site "Bilbao"] [Date "2016.07.16"] [Round "4.2"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "So, Wesley"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C65"] [WhiteElo "2855"] [BlackElo "2770"] [Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"] [PlyCount "51"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] [WhiteClock "0:20:45"] [BlackClock "0:08:00"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 {Carlsen generally does not like to enter the Berlin endgames.} Bc5 5. Bxc6 dxc6 6. Qe2 ({Carlsen recently defeated Kramnik in Paris with} 6. h3 Nd7 7. Be3 O-O 8. Qd2 Re8 9. Nc3 a5 10. Bxc5 Nxc5 11. O-O-O f6 12. Qe3 Qe7 13. d4 exd4 14. Nxd4 Bd7 15. Rhe1) 6... Qe7 7. Nbd2 Bg4 8. h3 {It is useful to ask the bishop to choose a diagonal.} Bh5 ({Nobody has ever tried} 8... Bd7 {as the bishop stands on the place of the knight and} 9. Nc4 {is awkward for Black.}) 9. a3 {Play on both flanks. Both the b- and g-pawns are on standby, ready to go forward at the moment the black king castles.} ({Previous game did not bring White much after} 9. Nc4 Nd7 10. g4 Bg6 11. Be3 O-O-O 12. O-O-O Rhe8 13. Bxc5 Qxc5 14. Qe3 f6 15. Qxc5 Nxc5 16. a3 Ne6 {thanks to the control of the d4 and f4 squares Black is very comfortable, Mendoza,R (2390)-Bruzon Batista,L (2620) Santo Domingo 2007}) 9... Nd7 { This move is part of So's plan and he needs to do it sooner or later. The knight is heading to e6. It also frees the f-pawn, which will go to f6 and then the light-squared bishop will have the f7 square. Castling either side makes things easier for White.} (9... O-O 10. g4 Bg6 11. Nc4 Nd7 12. h4) (9... O-O-O 10. b4 (10. Nc4 Nd7) 10... Bd4 11. Rb1 Nd7 12. g4 Bg6 13. Nxd4 exd4 14. f4 (14. Bb2 {with advantage for the first player in either line.})) 10. b4 Bd6 ({The pseudo-active} 10... Bd4 {will give White a chance to exchange the bishop and open the road for his f-pawn. For example} 11. Rb1 Nb6 (11... O-O-O 12. g4 Bg6 13. Nxd4 exd4 14. f4 (14. Bb2 $5)) 12. g4 Bg6 13. Nxd4 exd4 14. f4 { and White is better.}) 11. Nc4 f6 12. Ne3 {The knight makes it to the f5 square.} (12. Bb2 Nf8 {is good for Black.}) 12... a5 {So tries to generate counterplay before his opponent finish the development. The problem is that he is underdeveloped as well.} (12... Bg6 13. Nh4 {cannot stop the knight from reaching f5.}) ({Perhaps he needed to proceed with his plan with} 12... Nf8 13. Nf5 Qd7 14. g4 (14. Nxd6+ Qxd6) 14... Bg6 15. Kf1 Ne6 16. Be3 a5 17. Kg2 O-O { and once White determines the position of his king, it is safer to castle on that side.}) 13. Nf5 Qf8 $2 {This one is slightly mysterious to me.} ({Why not the simple} 13... Qf7 {when after} 14. Rb1 ({In the line} 14. bxa5 Rxa5 15. O-O {Black has an extra tempo.} (15. Bd2 {But please note that Black should not get greedy} Ra4 16. O-O Bxa3 $4 17. Bc1)) 14... axb4 15. axb4 O-O $2 16. O-O $2 {the game is approximately equal.}) 14. bxa5 Rxa5 15. O-O Qf7 ({Perhaps Black needed to castle by hand on the queenside with} 15... Kd8 {followed by Kd8-c8.} ) 16. a4 {The tempo that Black has lost is vital. He did not have the time to castle and Carlsen manages to open the position.} Nc5 ({White achieves what he wants after} 16... b5 17. Qe1 $1 Rxa4 18. Rxa4 bxa4 19. N3h4 {and the black king must stay in the middle as} O-O 20. Bh6 $1) ({Please note that Black cannot castle} 16... O-O 17. Bh6 $1 {is a familiar trick.}) 17. Qe1 b6 { Black realizes the danger and tries to keep the position closed. In comparison: } (17... Rxa4 $2 {loses on the spot due to} 18. Rxa4 Nxa4 19. Qa5) ({White is much better after} 17... Ra8 {When he has a choice between} 18. Nd2 {with the idea} ({Or} 18. N3h4 Ne6 19. Rb1 {and Black has some weaknesses (Carlsen)}) 18... O-O 19. Nc4 {And if Black defends or retreats the bishop} Rad8 (19... Be7 20. Bh6 $1) 20. Bh6 $1) 18. Nd2 Rxa4 {Or} (18... Ra6 19. Nc4 {when White is about to open the game with f2-f4 and Black still cannot castle} O-O 20. Bh6) 19. Nc4 $1 {The decisive reinforcement.} Bf8 {Instead:} (19... Rxa1 20. Ncxd6+ cxd6 21. Nxd6+ {drops the queen.}) (19... Be7 {might be most resilient, although White's attack is huge after both} 20. Be3 ({Or} 20. Rxa4 Nxa4 21. f4 exf4 22. Bxf4 Bc5+ 23. Kh1 Bg6) 20... Kd7) (19... Qd7 20. Ba3 $1 {is hopeless for Black.}) (19... Kd7 $2 {loses on the spot after} 20. Nfxd6 cxd6 21. Nxb6+) 20. Be3 Kd7 {There is no way to bring the rook out of h8:} (20... Rxa1 21. Qxa1 Qd7 22. Bxc5 Bxc5 (22... bxc5 23. Rb1) 23. Qa8+) 21. Qc3 {The rest is a piece of cake for the world champion.} Nxe4 {The last chance. White's threat is seen in the line:} (21... Be7 22. Nxb6+ cxb6 23. Bxc5 Rxa1 24. Rxa1 bxc5 25. Ra7+) 22. Nxb6+ $1 ({Not} 22. dxe4 Qxc4) 22... cxb6 23. dxe4 Qc4 (23... Rxa1 24. Rxa1 {leaves Black no defenders.}) 24. Qd2+ Kc7 25. g4 Bg6 26. Rfd1 ({Black resigned due to} 26. Rfd1 Ba3 27. Qd7+ Kb8 28. Rxa3 Rxa3 29. Qd6+) 1-0 [Event "9th Bilbao Masters"] [Site "Bilbao"] [Date "2016.07.16"] [Round "4.1"] [White "Wei, Yi"] [Black "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "E00"] [WhiteElo "2696"] [BlackElo "2773"] [Annotator "mycomputer"] [PlyCount "45"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "China"] [BlackTeam "Russia"] [WhiteTeamCountry "CHN"] [BlackTeamCountry "RUS"] [WhiteClock "0:21:53"] [BlackClock "0:44:14"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 Bb4+ 4. Nd2 c5 5. a3 Bxd2+ 6. Qxd2 cxd4 7. Nf3 b6 8. Bg2 Bb7 {"In the opening I tried to play a very principled line." (Karjakin)} 9. O-O Bxf3 10. exf3 (10. Bxf3 Nc6 11. b3 O-O 12. Bb2 Rc8 13. Bxd4 Nxd4 14. Qxd4 Rc5 15. b4 Rc7 16. e4 d6 17. Rfd1 e5 18. Qd3 Qc8 {Tomashevsky,E (2728) -Eljanov,P (2760) Wijk aan Zee 2016}) 10... Nc6 11. f4 O-O 12. b4 Rc8 13. Bb2 d6 14. Bxc6 (14. Bxd4 Nxd4 15. Qxd4 Qc7 16. Rfc1 Rfd8 17. Qe3 Qd7 18. Qd4 Qc7 19. Qe3 Qd7 20. Qd4 {?-? Volkov,S (2615)-Tomashevsky,E (2707) Taganrog 2011}) 14... Rxc6 15. Qxd4 Qc7 16. Rfc1 Rc8 17. b5 Rc5 (17... Rxc4 $2 18. Rxc4 Qxc4 19. Rc1) 18. a4 Ne8 {Threatening 19...Rxc4.} 19. Qe3 Qb7 {Again c4 is hanging.} ({Again} 19... Rxc4 $2 20. Rxc4 Qxc4 {fails to} 21. Rc1) 20. Qd3 Qc7 21. Qe3 Qb7 22. Qd3 Qc7 23. Qe3 {"A funny repetition." (Karjakin)} 1/2-1/2 [Event "9th Bilbao Masters"] [Site "Bilbao"] [Date "2016.07.16"] [Round "4.3"] [White "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Black "Giri, Anish"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "D46"] [WhiteElo "2787"] [BlackElo "2785"] [Annotator "mycomputer"] [PlyCount "94"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "United States"] [BlackTeam "Netherlands"] [WhiteTeamCountry "USA"] [BlackTeamCountry "NED"] [WhiteClock "1:09:32"] [BlackClock "1:05:01"] 1. Nf3 d5 2. d4 Nf6 3. c4 e6 4. Nc3 c6 5. e3 Nbd7 6. Qc2 Bd6 7. Be2 O-O 8. O-O dxc4 9. Bxc4 b5 10. Be2 Bb7 11. a3 a5 ({Giri mentioned the game} 11... Re8 12. Rd1 Qb8 13. e4 e5 14. g3 a6 15. dxe5 Nxe5 16. Bg5 Neg4 17. h3 Bxg3 18. hxg4 Nxg4 19. Be3 Nxe3 20. fxe3 Re6 {Aronian,L (2783)-Shirov,A (2749) Shanghai 2010} ) 12. e4 e5 13. Rd1 (13. dxe5 Nxe5 14. Nxe5 Bxe5 15. Be3 Qe7 16. f3 Rfd8 17. Rad1 h5 18. Nb1 Bc7 19. Nd2 Nd5 {Colas,J (2210)-Li,R (2212) Rockville 2013}) 13... Qc7 14. g3 Rfe8 15. dxe5 Nxe5 16. Bg5 Nxf3+ (16... Neg4 17. h3 Bxg3 18. hxg4 Nxg4 19. Be3 Nxe3 20. fxe3 {is similar to Aronian-Shirov (Giri).}) 17. Bxf3 Be5 18. Bxf6 gxf6 {This isn't so terrible for Black as long as the white knight isn't ending up on f5.} (18... Bxf6 $2 19. Nxb5) 19. Bg4 Rad8 20. Bf5 Bc8 21. Bxc8 Qxc8 22. Ne2 a4 {Giri thought that Black is a bit better here.} 23. f4 Bb8 24. Kg2 Ba7 25. h3 h5 ({Afterward the players suggested} 25... Qe6 26. g4 Rxd1 27. Rxd1 f5 (27... Qxe4+ $2 28. Qxe4 Rxe4 29. Rd8+ Kg7 30. Ng3 { wins}) 28. gxf5 (28. Ng3 fxe4 29. Nh5) 28... Qxe4+ 29. Qxe4 Rxe4 30. Rd8+ Kg7 31. Ng3 Rd4 {and Black has the advantage.}) ({However, after} 25... Qe6 26. g4 Rxd1 27. Rxd1 f5 {there is} 28. e5 $1 fxg4 {and now the intermediate move} 29. Rd6 $1 {is fine for White e.g.} gxh3+ 30. Kg3 Qb3+ 31. Qxb3 axb3 32. Kxh3) 26. f5 Qc7 27. h4 Qe5 28. Kf3 Rd5 29. Nf4 Rc5 30. Qe2 Rc4 31. Re1 Rd4 32. Nxh5 { Black has enough activity. Giri pointed out similarities with some lines in the Rauzer Sicilian.} Red8 33. Rad1 Rxd1 34. Rxd1 Rxd1 35. Qxd1 Bd4 36. Qc1 Kh7 37. Qxc6 Bxb2 38. Qb7 Qc3+ 39. Kg2 Qc4 40. Nf4 Be5 41. Ne6 Kh6 42. Qa8 Qe2+ 43. Kh3 Qf1+ 44. Kg4 Qd1+ 45. Kh3 Qh1+ 46. Kg4 Qd1+ 47. Kh3 Qh1+ 1/2-1/2 [Event "9th Masters Final 2016"] [Site "Bilbao ESP"] [Date "2016.07.17"] [Round "?"] [White "Giri, Anish"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [WhiteElo "2785"] [BlackElo "2855"] [PlyCount "123"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] 1. d4 d5 2. c4 dxc4 3. Nf3 a6 4. e3 Bg4 5. Bxc4 e6 6. h3 Bh5 7. Nc3 Nc6 8. O-O Nf6 9. b3 Bd6 10. Bb2 O-O 11. Be2 Qe7 12. Rc1 Rad8 13. Ne5 Nxe5 14. Bxh5 Ng6 15. Bxg6 hxg6 16. Qf3 c6 17. Rfd1 e5 18. dxe5 Bxe5 19. Rxd8 Rxd8 20. Rd1 b5 21. g3 Rxd1+ 22. Qxd1 c5 23. Qd3 {(#) The position looks drawish but Carlsen still manages to get some chances.} Kh7 24. Nd1 Bxb2 25. Nxb2 Qe6 26. g4 Qc6 27. Qe2 Ne4 28. Qc2 Ng5 29. f4 Ne6 30. Qg2 Qd6 31. Qe2 $6 {(#)This could have increased White's difficulties.} ({The engines propose} 31. Kh2 {as safer. After} g5 {White has} 32. Qe4+ g6 33. Nd3 {with a roughly equal position.}) 31... Qd5 $6 (31... g5 $1 {would have given White a few problems to solve.}) 32. Qg2 Qd6 33. h4 Nc7 34. h5 gxh5 35. gxh5 Qe7 36. Qf3 Qd7 37. Nd1 Qd5 38. Qe2 Qf5 39. Nf2 {Black is clearly better but finds no way to win.} Nd5 40. Kg2 c4 41. bxc4 bxc4 42. Kg3 c3 43. Qxa6 c2 44. Qd3 Ne7 45. Qc4 Qxh5 46. Qxc2+ Nf5+ 47. Kg2 Qg6+ 48. Kh2 Qg3+ 49. Kh1 g6 50. Qe2 Nxe3 51. Ne4 {Liquidating into a knight endgame in which Black is a pawn up but that White should be able to draw.} Qxf4 52. Qh2+ Qxh2+ 53. Kxh2 Nc4 54. Kg3 Kg7 55. a4 f5 56. Ng5 Kf6 57. Kh4 Na5 58. Nh7+ Kg7 59. Ng5 Nc6 60. Ne6+ Kf6 61. Ng5 Ke5 62. Nh3 {(#)Black cannot make progress.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "9th Bilbao Masters"] [Site "Bilbao"] [Date "2016.07.17"] [Round "5.3"] [White "So, Wesley"] [Black "Wei, Yi"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C42"] [WhiteElo "2770"] [BlackElo "2696"] [Annotator "mycomputer"] [PlyCount "146"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "United States"] [BlackTeam "China"] [WhiteTeamCountry "USA"] [BlackTeamCountry "CHN"] [WhiteClock "0:51:29"] [BlackClock "0:48:09"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Nxe5 d6 4. Nf3 Nxe4 5. Nc3 Nxc3 6. dxc3 Nc6 7. Bf4 Be7 8. Qd2 Be6 9. O-O-O Qd7 10. h3 Bf6 11. g4 h6 12. Bg2 (12. Qe3 g5 13. Bg3 O-O-O 14. Bb5 Rde8 15. Qd2 a6 16. Ba4 Bxa2 17. b3 b5 18. Kb2 bxa4 19. Kxa2 axb3+ 20. cxb3 Na5 21. Qd3 Qb5 {Saptarshi,R (2435)-Visakh,N (2400) Mumbai 2016}) 12... O-O-O 13. b3 Rde8 (13... Rhe8) 14. Rhe1 Kb8 15. Be3 a6 16. Ng1 g5 17. Ne2 h5 18. f3 Qe7 19. Ng3 d5 20. Kb2 (20. Nxh5 $4 Qa3+ 21. Kb1 Nb4) 20... Rd8 $6 21. Ne2 $6 ({Here} 21. Nxh5 {was possible though:} d4 22. cxd4 Bxd4+ 23. Bxd4 (23. c3 Bb6 (23... Bc5) 24. Qf2 Rxd1 25. Rxd1 Bxb3) 23... Nxd4 24. Qc1 (24. Qe3 $5) 24... Nb5 {and now} 25. Rxd8+ $1 Rxd8 26. Bf1 $1 Qa3+ 27. Ka1 {and White is just a pawn up.}) 21... Rhe8 22. Nd4 Nxd4 23. cxd4 Rg8 24. Bf1 Qd6 25. f4 hxg4 26. fxg5 Be7 27. hxg4 (27. h4 $5 Rh8 28. Bf4 Qa3+ 29. Kb1 (29. Ka1 Rxh4 30. g6 Bb4 31. c3 Bd6) 29... Rxh4 30. g6 Rf8 (30... Rg8 31. gxf7 Bxf7 32. Bxc7+) 31. gxf7 {and we have reached the puzzle position. Here the computer goes} Bc8 $1 { and there is a difference:} ({the players only saw} 31... Bxf7 $2 32. Rxe7 $1 { which wins here:} Qxe7 33. Bg5 Rh2 34. Bxe7 Rxd2 35. Rxd2 Re8 36. Bh4 {and White remains a piece up.}) 32. Rxe7 Qxe7 33. Bg5 Rh2 34. Bxe7 Rxd2 35. Rxd2 Rxf7 {and with the bishop on c8 instead of f7, Black is attacking two bishops now.}) 27... Bxg4 28. Be2 Bxe2 29. Rxe2 f6 30. gxf6 Bxf6 (30... Qxf6) 31. Bf4 Qd7 32. Rde1 Qg7 33. Kb1 Bg5 34. Bxg5 Qxg5 35. Qb4 Rg6 36. Re5 Qh4 37. Re8 Rgd6 38. R1e7 Rxe8 39. Rxe8+ Rd8 40. Re6 b6 41. a4 a5 42. Qc3 Rg8 43. Ka2 Qh7 44. Qc6 Rd8 45. b4 axb4 46. a5 Qd7 ({The engines don't see a win for White after} 46... bxa5 {but Wei's choice is very practical.}) 47. axb6 Qxc6 48. Rxc6 cxb6 49. Rxb6+ Kc7 50. Rxb4 Rh8 {This shouldn't be too difficult to draw.} 51. Rb5 Kc6 52. Rc5+ Kd6 53. Kb3 Rh4 54. c3 Rh8 55. Kb4 Rb8+ 56. Rb5 Rc8 57. Rb6+ Kd7 58. Kb3 Ke7 59. Rh6 Kd7 60. Kb4 Rc4+ 61. Kb3 Rc8 62. Kc2 Rg8 63. Rh3 Kd6 64. Kd3 Rc8 65. Ke2 Kd7 66. Re3 Kd6 67. Kf3 Rf8+ 68. Kg4 Rg8+ 69. Kf5 Rf8+ 70. Kg4 Rg8+ 71. Kf4 Rf8+ 72. Kg4 Rg8+ 73. Kf4 Rb8 1/2-1/2 [Event "9th Masters Final 2016"] [Site "Bilbao ESP"] [Date "2016.07.19"] [Round "?"] [White "Wei Yi"] [Black "Giri, A."] [Result "1-0"] [WhiteElo "2696"] [BlackElo "2785"] [PlyCount "81"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. h3 ({After} 9. Nc3 {in a couple of games Black opted for the set-up with} Bd7 10. h3 h6 11. Bf4 Kc8 {.}) 9... h5 10. Nc3 Be7 ({The usual move is} 10... Ke8 11. Bf4 Be7 12. Rad1 Be6 13. Ng5 Rh6 14. g3 Bxg5 15. Bxg5 Rg6 16. h4 f6 17. exf6 gxf6 18. Bf4 Nxh4 19. f3 Rd8 20. Kf2 Rxd1 21. Nxd1 Nf5 22. Rh1 Bxa2 23. Rxh5 Be6 24. g4 Nd6 25. Rh7 Nf7 26. Ne3 b6 27. Ng2 Rg8 28. Bxc7 Rh8 29. Rxh8+ Nxh8 30. Ne3 Nf7 31. Bg3 Nh6 32. Bf4 Nf7 33. Bg3 Nh6 { 1/2-1/2 (33) Anand,V (2803)-Giri,A (2778) London 2015}) 11. Bf4 Be6 12. Rad1+ Kc8 13. Ng5 Bxg5 14. Bxg5 b6 15. g4 hxg4 16. hxg4 Nh4 {(#) Black's slightly unusual 10....Be7 did not make much of difference. The position is equal.} 17. Bxh4 Rxh4 18. f3 Kb7 19. Kg2 Rah8 20. Rh1 Rxh1 21. Rxh1 Rxh1 22. Kxh1 c5 23. Kg2 Kc6 24. a4 a6 25. Kg3 b5 26. axb5+ axb5 27. f4 {(#) White has a mobile pawn majority on the kingside whereas the doubled c-pawn compromises Black's pawn majority on the queenside. But is that enough to claim an advantage for White?} b4 28. Ne4 Ba2 {A strange-looking move.} 29. Nd2 {White prevents ... Bb1 - maybe that was Black's idea.} Kd5 (29... Be6 30. f5 {with a tangible advantage.}) 30. c3 {Controlling d4.} bxc3 31. bxc3 g5 $6 ({After} 31... c4 32. Kf3 Bb3 $11 {the bishop would come back into the game.}) 32. Kf3 {(#)} Ke6 $2 { Now White buries the bishop.} (32... c4 33. Ke3 Bb3 34. Ne4 gxf4+ 35. Kxf4 Ba4 36. Ng3 $14) 33. c4 {White is winning.} gxf4 34. Kxf4 f6 35. exf6 Kxf6 36. g5+ Kg6 37. Kg4 Kh7 38. Kh5 ({Here} 38. g6+ Kg7 (38... Kxg6 39. -- {and} Bxc4 { would draw immediately.}) 39. Kg5 c6 40. Kh5 Kg8 41. Kh6 {was first given as game continuation. But this is does not look very likely.}) 38... Kg7 39. g6 c6 40. Kg5 Kg8 41. Kh6 (41. Kh6 Kh8 42. g7+ Kg8 43. Ne4 Bxc4 44. Nf6+ Kf7 45. g8=Q+) 1-0 [Event "9th Bilbao Masters"] [Site "Bilbao"] [Date "2016.07.19"] [Round "6.3"] [White "So, Wesley"] [Black "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "E46"] [WhiteElo "2770"] [BlackElo "2773"] [Annotator "mycomputer"] [PlyCount "92"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "United States"] [BlackTeam "Russia"] [WhiteTeamCountry "USA"] [BlackTeamCountry "RUS"] [WhiteClock "0:48:28"] [BlackClock "0:47:56"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Nge2 d5 6. a3 Be7 7. cxd5 exd5 8. Nf4 Re8 9. Bd3 Bd6 (9... c6 10. O-O Nbd7 11. f3 Nf8 12. Bd2 Ng6 13. Nfe2 c5 14. Rc1 b6 15. Be1 Bf8 16. Bf2 Bb7 {Gupta,A (2613)-Almasi,Z (2684) Gibraltar 2016}) 10. O-O Bxf4 11. exf4 Nc6 12. Be3 Ne7 13. Qc2 g6 14. f3 h5 $6 ({Black should have played} 14... Bf5 {immediately (Karjakin).}) 15. Qd2 (15. Bf2 Bf5 16. h3 Qd6 17. Ne2 Bxd3 18. Qxd3 a5 19. Rac1 Ra6 20. g4 hxg4 21. hxg4 Rb6 {Swayams,M (2440)-Goganov,A (2598) Moscow 2015}) 15... Bf5 16. Be2 {Keeping the bishops is good for White because he has a space advantage, as So explained.} Qd7 17. Rfe1 (17. h3 $5 Be6 (17... Bxh3 $6 18. gxh3 Qxh3 19. Rf2 {Karjakin}) 18. g4 hxg4 19. hxg4 Nh7 20. Rae1 f5 21. g5 {with a slight edge for White, who can bring his knight to e5.}) 17... Be6 18. Bf2 Nf5 19. Bd3 Nd6 20. Re5 c6 21. Rae1 Bf5 22. Bh4 Nh7 23. Be7 Bxd3 (23... f6 $5) 24. Bxd6 Bf5 25. Bb4 b6 26. a4 a5 ( 26... Re6 $5) 27. Ba3 Re6 28. h3 Rae8 29. g4 Rxe5 30. fxe5 ({Karjakin was worried about} 30. dxe5 hxg4 31. hxg4 Bxg4 $1 (31... Be6 32. Bd6 f5 33. g5 { but So was a bit "scared about his d- and c-pawns."}) 32. fxg4 Qxg4+ 33. Kf1 Nf6 $1 ({Karjakin looked at} 33... c5)) 30... hxg4 31. hxg4 Bxg4 $1 {This saves the game.} 32. fxg4 Qxg4+ 33. Kf1 Ng5 (33... c5 $5 {Karjakin}) 34. Qg2 Qf5+ 35. Qf2 Nf3 36. Ke2 (36. Re3 Nxd4 37. Qxf5 Nxf5 38. Re1 Kg7 {should be a draw (Karjakin).}) 36... Nxe1 37. Qxf5 gxf5 38. Kxe1 f6 39. Bd6 Kf7 40. Ne2 fxe5 41. dxe5 Ke6 42. Kf2 Kd7 43. Nf4 Rg8 44. Ba3 Re8 45. Bd6 Rg8 46. Ba3 Re8 1/2-1/2 [Event "9th Bilbao Masters"] [Site "Bilbao"] [Date "2016.07.19"] [Round "6.2"] [White "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "E08"] [WhiteElo "2787"] [BlackElo "2855"] [Annotator "mycomputer"] [PlyCount "64"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "United States"] [BlackTeam "Norway"] [WhiteTeamCountry "USA"] [BlackTeamCountry "NOR"] [WhiteClock "0:12:38"] [BlackClock "0:11:09"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Be7 5. Bg2 O-O 6. Qc2 c6 {"I wanted to play something different for sure. I knew of course that these lines are potentially dangerous for Black, but you get to play a game at least. And (it) was interesting, so..." (Carlsen)} 7. O-O b6 8. Rd1 Bb7 9. b3 Nbd7 10. Nc3 Rc8 11. e4 c5 (11... Ba6 12. e5 Ne8 13. cxd5 cxd5 14. Qb2 Nc7 15. h4 Nb5 16. Nxb5 Bxb5 {Buhmann,R (2615)-Maksimenko,A (2469) Austria 2016}) 12. dxc5 dxc4 { Now things become sharp quickly.} 13. b4 a5 14. a3 (14. Ng5 $5) 14... axb4 15. axb4 bxc5 16. b5 Qc7 17. Bf4 (17. h3 Rfd8 18. Be3 Ra8 19. Rxa8 Bxa8 20. Bf4 e5 21. Be3 Nb6 22. Rxd8+ Bxd8 {Nyzhnyk,I (2499) -Aghasaryan,R (2249) Moscow 2009}) 17... e5 18. Bg5 (18. b6 Qxb6 19. Nxe5 Nxe5 20. Bxe5 Qe6 {and Black is OK.}) 18... Nb6 19. Nd2 {After this the game quickly peters out to an equal position. } (19. Bxf6 Bxf6 20. Na4 {Ponomariov} c3 $1 {Carlsen/ Nakamura.}) ({Nakamura's suggestion of} 19. Ra7 Qb8 20. Rxb7 Qxb7 21. Nxe5 Rfd8 22. Nc6 Rxd1+ 23. Qxd1 { was perhaps more promising than he thought right after the game.}) 19... Rfd8 20. Bxf6 Bxf6 21. Nd5 Bxd5 22. exd5 e4 23. Rab1 Rxd5 24. Nxc4 Rd4 25. Nxb6 Qxb6 26. Bxe4 Rxd1+ 27. Rxd1 Qxb5 28. Bxh7+ Kf8 29. Bf5 Rd8 30. Rxd8+ Bxd8 31. Qd3 Qxd3 32. Bxd3 Bf6 1/2-1/2 [Event "9th Bilbao Masters"] [Site "?"] [Date "2016.07.19"] [Round "6.1"] [White "Wei, Yi"] [Black "Giri, Anish"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C67"] [WhiteElo "2696"] [BlackElo "2785"] [Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"] [PlyCount "81"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] [WhiteClock "1:11:00"] [BlackClock "1:06:54"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 {Giri has played the Sicilian more often, but the Berlin is a temptation one can hardly resist on a high level.} 4. O-O ({ The Dutchman latest game here went} 4. d3 Bc5 5. c3 O-O 6. O-O d6 7. Nbd2 Ne7 8. d4 exd4 9. cxd4 Bb6 {Caruana,F (2794)-Giri, A (2793) Moscow 2016}) 4... Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. h3 h5 {Already a new move order for Wei according to Megabase. He faced previously:} (9... Ke8 {(twice). This can also transpose to the game, while one recent example saw:} 10. Nc3 h6 11. Rd1 Ne7 12. Bf4 Ng6 13. Bg3 Bc5 14. e6 {Vachier Lagrave,M (2789)-Aronian,L (2792) Paris 2016}) ({And} 9... Bd7 10. Rd1 Be7 11. g4 Nh4 12. Nxh4 Bxh4 13. Nd2 Kc8 14. Nf3 Be7 15. Rd3 {as in Wei,Y (2718)-Ding,L (2757) Xinghua 2015}) 10. Nc3 Be7 11. Bf4 Be6 12. Rad1+ ({Instead} 12. Ng5 Ke8 {would have transposed to another game of Wei after} 13. Rad1 Rh6 14. Rfe1 Bb4 15. g4 hxg4 16. hxg4 Ne7 17. Nxe6 Rxe6 18. Kg2 {which ended in a draw later, Wei,Y (2718) -Wang,H (2710) Xinghua 2015}) 12... Kc8 13. Ng5 Bxg5 14. Bxg5 {The opposite-colored bishops are generally considered good for Black in the Berlin. } b6 (14... h4 $5 {to prevent White's next move was another idea.}) 15. g4 hxg4 16. hxg4 Nh4 17. Bxh4 Rxh4 18. f3 {The kingside majority moved forward but at a price. Black has control of the open h-file, and therefore Wei is more or less forced to trade the rooks.} Kb7 19. Kg2 Rah8 ({(The move} 19... a5 { was suggested by Wei Yi. The players agreed that if Black wants to play it safe, he should trade one pair of rooks but not all. However, at this point Giri didn't realize he's the one defending here. - PD)}) 20. Rh1 Rxh1 21. Rxh1 Rxh1 22. Kxh1 {But isn't it White actually heading to this endgame? He has a good knight, a solid pawn majority... All he needs is to bring his king to g3 and start rolling his pawns, right? The problem is that it is Black to move, and he has enough time to organize queenside play.} c5 $6 {There was a faster was to activate the king:} ({The somewhat counter-intuitive and ugly} 22... b5 $1 {with the threat b5-b4 and to grab the pawn was allowing strong counter play after} 23. a3 Kb6 24. Kg2 (24. Ne4 Bd5 {will also give a chance to the black king to get to c5.}) 24... Kc5 25. Kg3 Kd4 $1 {Activity of the pieces is priority in the endgames.} 26. f4 Ke3 {and if} 27. f5 Bd7 {with the threats Ke3-d2 or Ke3-d4.}) ({Worse was} 22... a5 23. Kg2 b5 24. a3 Kb6 25. Kg3 Kc5 ({ Or} 25... c5 26. f4 b4 27. Ne4) 26. f4 b4 27. axb4+ axb4 28. Nd1 {and due to the threat f4-f5 and Kg3-f4 White has the advantage.}) 23. Kg2 Kc6 24. a4 a6 25. Kg3 b5 26. axb5+ axb5 27. f4 b4 28. Ne4 {Now the position is similar to the one in subline 22...a5 and Giri has to be very careful to achieve a draw.} Ba2 29. Nd2 {Probably even better was:} (29. Kf3 Bb1 30. c4 bxc3 31. Nxc3 { followed by f4-f5.}) 29... Kd5 30. c3 bxc3 31. bxc3 g5 $2 {Black blunders.} ({ Instead} 31... c4 $1 {would have held after} 32. Kf3 ({Or} 32. Kf2 Bb3 33. Ke3 Bd1) 32... Bb3 33. Ke3 Bd1 34. Nf3 ({Black has nothing to worry about if the pawns are blocked} 34. g5 Bc2 35. Nf3 g6) 34... Kc5 35. Ng5 Bxg4 36. Nxf7 Kd5 { and this should be a draw.}) 32. Kf3 $2 ({Wei misses the win.} 32. c4+ $1 { was the right move order to achieve the position in the game:} Kd4 ({since} 32... Bxc4 {is punished by} 33. Nxc4 Kxc4 34. e6 $1 {and the g-pawn promotes.}) (32... Ke6 33. Kf3 {and White wins.}) 33. e6 gxf4+ {and now} 34. Kh4 $1 ({or} 34. Kh3) ({but not} 34. Kxf4 fxe6 35. g5 e5+ 36. Kf5 e4 37. g6 e3 38. Nf3+ Kxc4 39. Ke4 e2 40. g7 Kc3 {which is a draw.}) 34... fxe6 35. g5 Ke3 36. g6 Kxd2 37. g7 Bxc4 38. g8=Q Bd5 39. Qg5 {should win.}) 32... Ke6 $2 ({Giri errs last. He could have saved the game with} 32... c4 33. Ne4 (33. Ke3 Bb3) 33... gxf4 34. Kxf4 Bb1 35. Nf6+ Ke6 36. Ne8 Kd7 37. Ng7 Ke7) 33. c4 $1 {This time Wei grabs his chance.} gxf4 34. Kxf4 {The bishop is trapped and on the kingside White is up a pawn. The rest is a matter of technique.} f6 {Or:} (34... Ke7 35. Kf5) ( 34... c6 35. Ke4 Ke7 36. Kf5 Ke8 37. Kf6 Kf8 38. e6) 35. exf6 Kxf6 36. g5+ Kg6 37. Kg4 Kh7 38. Kh5 c6 39. g6+ Kg7 40. Kg5 Kg8 41. Kh6 ({Black resigned due to } 41. Kh6 Kh8 42. Ne4 Bxc4 43. Nf6 Bd5 44. g7#) 1-0 [Event "9th Masters Final 2016"] [Site "Bilbao ESP"] [Date "2016.07.20"] [Round "?"] [White "Giri, A."] [Black "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [WhiteElo "2785"] [BlackElo "2773"] [PlyCount "85"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 Bb4+ 4. Bd2 Be7 5. Bg2 d5 6. Nf3 O-O 7. O-O c6 8. Qc2 Nbd7 9. Bf4 b6 10. cxd5 (10. Rd1 Bb7 11. Nc3 dxc4 12. Nd2 Nd5 13. Nxc4 Nxf4 14. gxf4 Qc7 15. e3 {1-0 (55) Wang,Y (2718)-Harikrishna,P (2753) Huaian 2016}) 10... cxd5 11. Rc1 Bb7 12. Qb3 Rc8 13. Rxc8 Qxc8 14. Nc3 Nh5 15. Bg5 Bxg5 16. Nxg5 Qb8 (16... Nhf6 17. e3 a6 18. Rc1 Qc7 19. Bf1 Rc8 20. Nf3 Ne4 21. Bd3 Qd8 22. Ne2 Rxc1+ 23. Nxc1 g6 24. Ne2 Qf6 25. Bxe4 dxe4 26. Ne5 Nxe5 {1/2-1/2 (26) Straka,Z (2547)-Pessoa,F (2566) ICCF email 2013}) 17. e3 Nhf6 18. Bf1 Rc8 19. a4 h6 20. Nf3 Ne4 21. a5 Bc6 22. Ba6 bxa5 23. Qc2 Bb7 24. Rxa5 Bxa6 25. Rxa6 Rc7 26. Kg2 Qb4 27. Ra4 Qb7 28. Ra3 Nb6 29. Ne5 Nc4 30. Nxc4 Rxc4 31. Qe2 Nxc3 32. bxc3 Qe7 33. Qa2 Rc7 34. Ra5 g6 35. h4 h5 36. Qa3 Qxa3 37. Rxa3 a5 38. Rxa5 Rxc3 {(#) Close to the finish line the black and white pawns do their best to form a nice symmetrical pattern.} 39. Ra8+ Kg7 40. Ra5 Kg8 41. Ra8+ Kg7 42. Ra5 Kg8 43. Ra8+ 1/2-1/2 [Event "9th Masters Final 2016"] [Site "Bilbao ESP"] [Date "2016.07.20"] [Round "?"] [White "Nakamura, Hi"] [Black "So, W."] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [WhiteElo "2787"] [BlackElo "2770"] [PlyCount "83"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] 1. Nf3 d5 2. d4 Nf6 3. c4 e6 4. g3 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Be7 6. Bg2 O-O 7. O-O c6 8. Qc2 b6 9. Rd1 Nbd7 10. b3 ({In Giri - Karjakin the bishop went to f4.} 10. Bf4) 10... Ba6 11. a4 c5 12. Na3 Bb7 13. Qb2 Qc8 ({Nakamura also plays this line with Black.} 13... Ne4 14. Be1 f5 15. e3 Bf6 16. Rac1 Qe7 17. b4 Bc6 18. Qb3 a5 $11 {1-0 (99) Le,Q (2694)-Nakamura,H (2733) Cap d'Agde 2010}) 14. Rac1 Bc6 15. dxc5 bxc5 16. cxd5 exd5 17. Nh4 Re8 18. Nf5 Bf8 19. Bf4 Qb7 {(#)} (19... a6 $11 ) 20. Nb5 $5 {Nakamura tries to spice things up.} Bxb5 21. axb5 Qxb5 22. Ne3 Rac8 23. Nxd5 Nxd5 24. Bxd5 {White has the slightly better pawn-structure.} Nb6 (24... Rxe2 $2 25. Qa1 {and after} Ree8 $2 {White wins material:} 26. Qxa7 { eyeing the knight on d7 and the pawn on f7.}) 25. Bc4 Nxc4 26. Rxc4 Rcd8 27. Ra1 Re6 (27... Rd7 $14) 28. Be3 ({After} 28. Rxa7 Rd1+ 29. Kg2 Re1 {Black is very active.}) 28... Rb8 29. Qc2 Qxb3 30. Qxb3 Rxb3 31. Rxa7 Re8 32. Rc7 Rb2 33. Bxc5 (33. Kf1 $5 $14 {is the move the engines propose.}) 33... Bxc5 34. R7xc5 Rbxe2 35. Rc8 Re1+ 36. Kg2 g6 37. h4 Rxc8 38. Rxc8+ Kg7 39. Rc7 Rd1 40. Rc8 Re1 41. Rc7 Rd1 42. Rc8 1/2-1/2 [Event "9th Masters Final 2016"] [Site "Bilbao ESP"] [Date "2016.07.20"] [Round "?"] [White "Carlsen, M."] [Black "Wei Yi"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [WhiteElo "2855"] [BlackElo "2696"] [PlyCount "120"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] 1. Nf3 d5 2. g3 g6 3. Bg2 Bg7 4. O-O Nf6 5. c4 O-O 6. cxd5 Nxd5 7. d4 Nb6 8. Nc3 Nc6 9. d5 Na5 10. e4 c6 11. Bf4 Nac4 ({Not so long ago this position occurred in a game of Jon-Ludvig Hammer, friend and second of Carlsen:} 11... cxd5 12. Nxd5 Nxd5 13. exd5 Nc4 14. b3 Nb6 15. d6 exd6 16. Nd4 d5 17. Rc1 Bd7 18. Qd2 Qf6 19. Be3 Qd6 20. a4 Rac8 21. Ne2 Rxc1 22. Rxc1 Rc8 23. Rxc8+ Nxc8 24. Bxd5 b6 25. Bf4 Qe7 26. Nc3 Bh3 27. Ne4 Be5 28. Bxf7+ Kg7 29. Bh6+ Kxf7 30. Ng5+ Ke8 31. Nxh3 Nd6 32. Qd5 Nf5 33. Bg5 Qd6 34. Qg8+ Kd7 35. Qxh7+ Kc6 36. Qxa7 Qd1+ 37. Kg2 Qxb3 38. Qa8+ Kd7 39. Nf4 {1-0 (39) Hammer,J (2665) -Grandelius,N (2623) Oslo 2015}) 12. Qe2 cxd5 13. exd5 ({Two years ago Wei Yi, too, had this line on the board:} 13. Nxd5 Nxd5 14. exd5 Nxb2 15. Rac1 Bf5 16. Bc7 Bd3 17. Bxd8 Bxe2 18. Bxe7 Bxf1 19. Bxf1 Rfe8 20. d6 Rxe7 21. dxe7 Re8 22. Rc7 Bf6 23. Rxb7 {1/2-1/2 (23) Xiu,D (2553)-Wei,Y (2641) Zhongshan 2014}) 13... Bg4 14. h3 Bxf3 15. Bxf3 Nd6 16. Rfe1 Re8 17. Rac1 a6 18. b3 Rc8 19. Qd2 Nd7 20. Na4 Rxc1 21. Qxc1 Bd4 22. Qd2 Bg7 23. h4 h5 24. Nb2 Nb5 25. Re3 Nd4 26. Bg2 e5 27. dxe6 Nxe6 28. Nc4 ({The alternative was} 28. Rd3 $5 Nxf4 29. Rxd7 Ne2+ 30. Kh2 Qf6 31. Nd1 b5 {and now White might try something, e.g.} 32. Bd5 Re7 33. Rd6 Qf5 34. Kg2 $14) 28... Nxf4 29. Rxe8+ Qxe8 30. Qxf4 b5 31. Ne3 Qe5 32. Qxe5 Bxe5 33. b4 Bd6 34. Bb7 Nb8 35. Nd5 Kf8 36. Kg2 Ke8 37. f3 f5 38. Kf2 Kd7 39. Nf4 Kc7 40. Bd5 Bxf4 41. gxf4 Kd6 42. Bf7 Nc6 43. a3 (43. Bxg6 Nxb4 44. Bxh5 Nxa2 45. Bg6 Ke6 46. h5 Kf6 47. Bh7 a5 {leads to a draw but offers both sides chances to go wrong.}) 43... Ne7 44. Ke1 Kd7 45. Kd1 Kd6 46. Kd2 Kd7 47. Kd3 Kd6 48. Kc2 Kd7 49. Kb3 Kd6 50. a4 Nc6 (50... Kd7 $11) (50... Nd5 $2 51. Bxg6 Ke6 52. axb5 axb5 53. Bxh5 Nxf4 54. Be8 {is a line White dreams of.}) 51. axb5 axb5 52. Kc3 Ne7 53. Kd2 Nd5 (53... Kd7 $11) 54. Bxg6 Nxb4 55. Bxh5 Nd5 56. Be8 Nxf4 57. Bxb5 Ke5 58. Bf1 Ng6 59. h5 Nh4 60. Ke2 Nxf3 (60... Nxf3 { forces the draw. The black king simply goes to h8 and White has the "wrong" bishop - White cannot force Black's king out of the corner and cannot bring his pawn to queen.}) 1/2-1/2 [Event "9th Bilbao Masters"] [Site "Bilbao"] [Date "2016.07.20"] [Round "7.3"] [White "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Black "So, Wesley"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "E15"] [WhiteElo "2787"] [BlackElo "2770"] [Annotator "mycomputer"] [PlyCount "83"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "United States"] [BlackTeam "United States"] [WhiteTeamCountry "USA"] [BlackTeamCountry "USA"] [WhiteClock "1:28:39"] [BlackClock "1:20:13"] 1. Nf3 d5 2. d4 Nf6 3. c4 e6 4. g3 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Be7 6. Bg2 O-O 7. O-O c6 8. Qc2 b6 9. Rd1 Nbd7 10. b3 Ba6 11. a4 c5 (11... Rc8 12. a5 c5 13. axb6 Qxb6 14. Qa2 Bb7 15. Ba5 Qa6 16. Qb2 dxc4 17. bxc4 Bxf3 18. Bxf3 cxd4 19. Bd8 Qd6 20. Bxe7 Qxe7 21. Rxa7 Qc5 {Wang,Y (2718)-Wang,H (2717) Huaian 2016}) 12. Na3 Bb7 13. Qb2 Qc8 14. Rac1 Bc6 {The critical position according to Nakamura.} (14... dxc4 15. Nxc4 Bd5 16. Bf4 Qb7 17. Nd6 Bxd6 18. Bxd6 Rfc8 19. dxc5 bxc5 20. Ne1 c4 { Siva,M (2401)-Almasi, Z (2700) Abu Dhabi 2015}) 15. dxc5 bxc5 16. cxd5 exd5 ( 16... Bxd5 17. Nc4 Qb7 18. Ne1 {is probably also fine for Black.}) 17. Nh4 { "At least here it's gonna get interesting." (Nakamura)} Re8 18. Nf5 Bf8 19. Bf4 (19. Nb5 Bxb5 20. axb5 Rxe2 21. Ne3 d4 22. Nf5 Ne4) 19... Qb7 {If knight weren't on a3 White would be a little bit better. (Nakamura)} 20. Nb5 (20. Qc2 a6 21. Nd6 Bxd6 22. Bxd6 Rac8 23. Bxc5 Bxa4) 20... Bxb5 21. axb5 Qxb5 22. Ne3 ( 22. e3 a5 23. Bxd5 Nxd5 24. Rxd5 a4) (22. e4 dxe4 23. Bf1 c4 24. Nd4 Qh5) 22... Rac8 {"Wesley found all the best moves here." - Nakamura} 23. Nxd5 Nxd5 24. Bxd5 Nb6 25. Bc4 (25. Bf3 c4 26. Rb1 c3 (26... cxb3 27. Qxb3 Qxb3 28. Rxb3 Rcd8 29. Ra1) 27. Qc2 Bb4 28. Rd3 (28. Ra1 a5 29. Be4 g6) 28... a5 29. Rbd1 a4 { "doesn't feel like it's enough to me." (Nakamura)}) 25... Nxc4 26. Rxc4 Rcd8 27. Ra1 Re6 28. Be3 Rb8 29. Qc2 Qxb3 30. Qxb3 Rxb3 31. Rxa7 Re8 32. Rc7 Rb2 33. Bxc5 Bxc5 34. R7xc5 Rbxe2 35. Rc8 Re1+ 36. Kg2 g6 37. h4 Rxc8 38. Rxc8+ Kg7 39. Rc7 Rd1 40. Rc8 Re1 41. Rc7 Rd1 42. Rc8 1/2-1/2 [Event "9th Bilbao Masters"] [Site "chess24.com"] [Date "2016.07.20"] [Round "7.1"] [White "Giri, Anish"] [Black "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "E08"] [WhiteElo "2785"] [BlackElo "2773"] [Annotator "mycomputer"] [PlyCount "85"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "Netherlands"] [BlackTeam "Russia"] [WhiteTeamCountry "NED"] [BlackTeamCountry "RUS"] [WhiteClock "1:31:07"] [BlackClock "1:14:55"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 Bb4+ 4. Bd2 Be7 5. Bg2 d5 6. Nf3 O-O 7. O-O c6 8. Qc2 Nbd7 9. Bf4 b6 10. cxd5 cxd5 11. Rc1 Bb7 12. Qb3 (12. Qa4 a6 13. Nbd2 Rc8 14. Qd1 Nh5 15. Rxc8 Bxc8 16. Rc1 Nxf4 17. gxf4 Bb7 18. e3 Qb8 19. a3 Rc8 20. Ne5 Rxc1 {?-? Ghaem Maghami,E (2551)-Wei,Y (2694) Tashkent 2016}) 12... Rc8 13. Rxc8 Qxc8 14. Nc3 Nh5 15. Bg5 Bxg5 16. Nxg5 Qb8 (16... Nhf6 17. e3 a6 18. Rc1 Qc7 19. Bf1 Rc8 20. Nf3 Ne4 21. Bd3 Qd8 22. Ne2 Rxc1+ 23. Nxc1 g6 24. Ne2 Qf6 25. Bxe4 dxe4 26. Ne5 Nxe5 {?-? Straka,Z (2547)-Pessoa,F (2566) corr. 2013}) 17. e3 Nhf6 18. Bf1 Rc8 19. a4 h6 20. Nf3 Ne4 21. a5 Bc6 22. Ba6 $2 ({With} 22. axb6 {White keeps a small edge.}) 22... bxa5 $1 {This solves everything. The rest is just equal.} 23. Qc2 Bb7 24. Rxa5 Bxa6 25. Rxa6 Rc7 26. Kg2 Qb4 27. Ra4 Qb7 28. Ra3 Nb6 29. Ne5 Nc4 30. Nxc4 Rxc4 31. Qe2 Nxc3 32. bxc3 Qe7 33. Qa2 Rc7 34. Ra5 g6 35. h4 h5 36. Qa3 Qxa3 37. Rxa3 a5 38. Rxa5 Rxc3 39. Ra8+ Kg7 40. Ra5 Kg8 41. Ra8+ Kg7 42. Ra5 Kg8 43. Ra8+ 1/2-1/2 [Event "9th Bilbao Masters"] [Site "Bilbao"] [Date "2016.07.20"] [Round "7.2"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Wei, Yi"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "D76"] [WhiteElo "2855"] [BlackElo "2696"] [Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"] [PlyCount "120"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] [WhiteClock "0:31:25"] [BlackClock "0:13:41"] 1. Nf3 d5 2. g3 g6 3. Bg2 Bg7 4. O-O Nf6 5. c4 O-O 6. cxd5 Nxd5 7. d4 Nb6 8. Nc3 Nc6 9. d5 Na5 10. e4 c6 11. Bf4 {As usual, the world champion has an opinion of his own. The main theoretical path goes:} (11. Bg5 {first and only after} h6 12. Bf4 cxd5 13. exd5 Nac4 14. Qe2 {when White tries to make use of the h7-h6 advance. Black should also use this advance, by the way, as the main move for him now is} g5) 11... Nac4 12. Qe2 cxd5 13. exd5 Bg4 ({Black can also develop the bishop on f5.} 13... Bf5 14. Rac1 Rc8 15. Nh4 ({Black was fine after} 15. b3 Nd6 16. Ne5 Nd7 17. Rfe1 Re8 (17... g5 $5) 18. h4 Qa5 {Valsecchi, A (2435)-Cheparinov,I (2706) Skopje 2013}) 15... Bd7 16. b3 Nd6 17. Be5 { Now instead of} Bh6 ({Black had} 17... Rxc3 $5 18. Rxc3 Bb5 {with counter-play. }) 18. Rcd1 Re8 19. Rfe1 {with some advantage for White in Khismatullin,D (2673)-Duzhakov,I (2420) Moscow 2015}) 14. h3 Bxf3 15. Bxf3 Nd6 ({The captures on b2 usually do not work due to simple recaptures such as} 15... Nxb2 16. Qxb2 Na4 17. Nxa4 Bxb2 18. Nxb2 {when the pieces clearly outweigh the queen and the pawn.}) 16. Rfe1 Re8 17. Rac1 {"I think I had a very comfortable advantage out of the opening. I mean Black is solid, but not very active. I think my play could certainly have been improved upon. I lost the thread at some point." (Carlsen) Indeed, the knight on d6 is gorgeous, but it is too far away from the white camp, and Black can hardly do any harm to his opponent. At the same time, Carlsen can seize space on both flanks. On top of that, slow grinding is his favorite method.} a6 18. b3 Rc8 19. Qd2 Nd7 {Rerouting the knight to a better position.} 20. Na4 {Carlsen plays around the knight.} ({In a previous game, White tried to deal with the blockader at once:} 20. Ne4 Nxe4 ({However, Black can defend better with} 20... Rxc1 21. Rxc1 Be5) 21. Bxe4 Qb6 22. Bg2 Rxc1 23. Rxc1 Be5 24. Be3 {with advantage for White in Matveeva,S (2454)-Huang, Q (2380) Ergun 2006}) 20... Rxc1 21. Qxc1 (21. Rxc1 Be5 {is easier for Black.}) 21... Bd4 ({Further trades are desirable in general, but concretely inconvenient:} 21... Qc8 22. Qxc8 Nxc8 23. b4 {followed by Na4-c5 will give a clear edge to White.}) ({Waybe Wei could have tried to relieve his position a bit with} 21... Nb5 22. Qd2 Nb6 {swapping off a pair of knights as} 23. Nc5 $2 Bc3 {loses material.}) 22. Qd2 Bg7 23. h4 {Carlsen didn't like h3-h4 and believed that Bg2 still gives an edge. Indeed} (23. Bg2 h5 ({Here} 23... Nb5 { is bad since after} 24. d6 Nxd6 25. Bxd6 exd6 26. Rxe8+ Qxe8 27. Bxb7 {Black has too many weaknesses.}) 24. Nb2 {followed by Nb2-c4 or Nb2-d3 looks better for White.}) (23. Nb2 {at once is less accurate due to} Nb5) 23... h5 {Best, as otherwise White will play h4-h5 and attack on the open h-file.} 24. Nb2 ({ It was not too late to go for} 24. Bg2 {but Carlsen was probably worried about the counterplay after} Nb5 25. d6 Nxd6 26. Bxd6 exd6 27. Rxe8+ Qxe8 28. Bxb7 Nf6 29. Qxd6 ({However, instead of the capture on d6, there is} 29. Bxa6 Qc6 ( 29... Ng4 30. Be2 Qe4 31. Bxg4 hxg4 32. Qxd6 Qb1+ 33. Kg2 Qe4+ 34. Kh2 Qc2 35. Qf4) 30. Be2 Ne4 31. Qd1 d5 {and although Black has compensation for the pawn, it is still an extra one!}) 29... Qe1+ 30. Kg2 Ng4 $1 {and this is the reason why he criticized his h3-h4 move. Indeed, White has no more than a draw here after say} 31. Qb8+ Bf8 32. Qf4 Bh6 33. Qf3 Be3 $1 34. fxe3 Qd2+ 35. Kg1 Qe1+ { with perpetual, or White can "play for a loss" in the case of} 36. Qf1 Qxg3+ 37. Qg2 Qe1+ 38. Qf1 Qxe3+) 24... Nb5 $1 {"I had seen this, but I didn't see anything else." (Carlsen)} 25. Re3 Nd4 {Thanks to this extra tempo, Wei gets enough time to free himself in the center.} 26. Bg2 e5 27. dxe6 Nxe6 28. Nc4 ({ Or equality after} 28. Rd3 Nxf4 29. Qxf4 (29. Rxd7 Ne2+ 30. Kh2 Qf6) 29... Re1+ 30. Kh2 Qe7) 28... Nxf4 29. Rxe8+ Qxe8 30. Qxf4 b5 (30... Qe1+ 31. Bf1 b5) 31. Ne3 Qe5 {Black traded almost everything, and the draw is within his reach.} 32. Qxe5 Bxe5 {An accuracy which creates some headaches for the Chinese GM.} (32... Nxe5 {"would have been completely equal." (Carlsen) For example} 33. Bb7 (33. b4 Nd3 34. Nc2 Bc3 35. Bb7 Bxb4 36. Bxa6 Bc5) 33... a5 34. Ba6 b4) 33. b4 $1 { Now the pawns are fixed on light squares, and Wei has to be careful.} Bd6 34. Bb7 Nb8 35. Nd5 Kf8 36. Kg2 Ke8 37. f3 ({Perhaps} 37. Kf3 f5 38. Ke2 {gave more chances to White.}) 37... f5 38. Kf2 Kd7 39. Nf4 Kc7 40. Bd5 Bxf4 41. gxf4 Kd6 42. Bf7 Nc6 43. a3 {Or} (43. Bxg6 Nxb4 44. a3 Nc2 45. Bxf5 Nxa3 46. Bg6 b4 47. Bxh5 b3 48. Ke3 b2 49. Bg6 b1=Q 50. Bxb1 Nxb1 51. Kd4) 43... Ne7 44. Ke1 ( 44. Ke3 Nd5+ {is an instant draw as White needs to trade the bishop} 45. Bxd5 Kxd5 46. Kd3 Ke6 47. Kd4 Kd6 48. Ke3 Kd5 49. Kd3) 44... Kd7 45. Kd1 Kd6 46. Kd2 Kd7 47. Kd3 Kd6 48. Kc2 ({No zugzwang after} 48. Kd4 Nc6+ 49. Kc3 Ne7) 48... Kd7 49. Kb3 Kd6 50. a4 Nc6 {It seemed as if Black ran out of moves, but the knight can start to counter-attack.} ({There was an alternative defense:} 50... Kc6 51. Be8+ Kd6 52. axb5 axb5 53. Bxb5 Nd5) 51. axb5 axb5 52. Kc3 ({Or} 52. Bxg6 Nd4+ 53. Kc3 Nxf3 54. Bxf5 Nxh4 55. Be4 Ke6) 52... Ne7 53. Kd2 Nd5 { The most forceful continuation.} 54. Bxg6 (54. Bxd5 Kxd5 55. Kd3) 54... Nxb4 55. Bxh5 Nd5 56. Be8 Nxf4 57. Bxb5 {Now all Black needs is to trade his knight for the "f" pawn, and he does it duly.} Ke5 58. Bf1 Ng6 59. h5 Nh4 60. Ke2 Nxf3 {Followed by Ke5-f6-g7-h8 and the well-known fortress. There was never a win for White. "After the time control, it's just drawn because I can never put him in zugzwang." (Carlsen)} 1/2-1/2 [Event "9th Masters Final 2016"] [Site "Bilbao ESP"] [Date "2016.07.21"] [Round "?"] [White "Wei Yi"] [Black "Nakamura, Hi"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [WhiteElo "2696"] [BlackElo "2787"] [PlyCount "90"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 Be7 5. Nf3 O-O 6. Nc3 (6. O-O dxc4 7. Ne5 Nc6 8. Bxc6 bxc6 9. Nxc6 Qe8 10. Nxe7+ Qxe7 11. Qa4 {leads to a position that is similar to one of the main lines of the Catalan, however, with the difference that the white knight on b1 has not moved yet. Recently, Nakamura had this position on the board.} e5 12. dxe5 Qxe5 13. Qxc4 Be6 14. Qd3 Rad8 15. Qe3 Qh5 16. f3 Bc4 17. Nc3 Rfe8 18. g4 Qg6 19. Qf2 Nd5 20. Nxd5 Rxd5 21. Re1 h5 22. g5 f6 23. h4 Rde5 24. e4 f5 25. Bf4 R5e7 26. Rac1 Bxa2 27. Qxa7 Bf7 28. Rxc7 Rxc7 29. Qxc7 fxe4 30. Rxe4 Rxe4 31. fxe4 Qxe4 32. Qe5 Qf3 33. Bg3 Bd5 34. Qe8+ Kh7 35. g6+ Kh6 36. Qh8+ Kxg6 37. Qe8+ Kh7 {0-1 (37) Kramnik,V (2812) -Nakamura,H (2787) Paris 2016}) 6... dxc4 7. Ne5 Nc6 8. Bxc6 bxc6 9. Nxc6 Qe8 10. Nxe7+ Qxe7 11. Qa4 c5 12. dxc5 ({After} 12. Qxc4 cxd4 13. Qxd4 e5 14. Qh4 Rb8 15. O-O Rb4 16. e4 h6 {Black scored well.}) 12... Qxc5 13. Be3 Qc7 14. Rd1 Bd7 {A new move - however, it does not change the evaluation of the position much.} (14... Bb7) (14... Nd5) 15. Qa3 Nd5 16. Bd4 a5 17. Rd2 Nb4 18. O-O Qb7 19. Na4 Bxa4 ({White threatened} 19... -- 20. Bxg7 Kxg7 21. Nc5) 20. Qxa4 Rfc8 21. Rc1 f6 22. f3 Qa6 23. Bf2 Nd5 24. Rdc2 Nb4 25. Rd2 Nd5 26. Rdc2 Nb4 27. Rc3 {Wei Yi rejects the invitation to repeat moves. But there is not much play left in the game.} h6 28. Kg2 Rab8 29. b3 cxb3 30. Rxc8+ Rxc8 31. Rxc8+ Qxc8 32. Qxb3 Kf7 33. Qa4 Qa6 34. Qd7+ Kg8 35. Qd2 Qc4 36. Qd8+ Kh7 37. Qxa5 Nxa2 38. Qd2 Nb4 39. Qb2 Nc6 40. Qb1+ Kg8 41. Qb7 Ne5 42. Qb8+ Kh7 43. Qb1+ Kg8 44. Qb8+ Kh7 45. Qb1+ Kg8 1/2-1/2 [Event "9th Masters Final 2016"] [Site "Bilbao ESP"] [Date "2016.07.21"] [Round "?"] [White "So, W."] [Black "Giri, A."] [Result "1-0"] [WhiteElo "2770"] [BlackElo "2785"] [PlyCount "113"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. O-O Nf6 5. d3 O-O 6. Re1 ({The most popular move is} 6. c3) 6... Ng4 $5 ({Or the quieter} 6... d6 7. c3 (7. h3) 7... Bb6 8. Bb3 Ne7 9. Nbd2 {e.g.} c6 10. Nf1 Ng6 11. Ng3 h6 12. d4 Bg4 13. h3 Bxf3 14. Qxf3 exd4 15. Nf5 dxc3 16. bxc3 d5 17. e5 Ne4 18. Rxe4 dxe4 19. Qg4 Kh7 20. Qxe4 Qc7 21. Bf4 Nxf4 22. Qxf4 f6 23. Nh4 Qxe5 24. Bc2+ Kg8 25. Bb3+ Kh7 26. Bc2+ Kg8 27. Bb3+ {1/2-1/2 (27) Anand,V (2770)-Giri,A (2782) Leuven 2016}) 7. Re2 ({With the rook on e1 it does not make much sense to open the f-file with} 7. Be3 Nxe3 8. fxe3 d6 {.}) 7... Kh8 (7... Nd4 8. Nxd4 Bxd4 9. h3 Nf6 10. Nd2 d6 11. Nf3 Bb6 $11 {0-1 (51) Brkic,A (2606)-Filippov,A (2606) Sibenik 2011}) 8. h3 f5 9. Nc3 (9. c3 fxe4 10. dxe4 Rxf3 11. hxg4 Rg3 12. g5 d6 13. b4 Bb6 14. Rc2 Rg4 15. Bd3 Be6 16. Na3 Qg8 17. Nc4 Qf7 18. Nxb6 axb6 19. g3 Qh5 20. Be2 Ne7 21. Bf3 Ng6 22. Bg2 Nh4 23. Qf1 Nxg2 24. Qxg2 Rxe4 25. Qxe4 Qd1+ 26. Kh2 Bd5 27. Rd2 Qxd2 28. Bxd2 Bxe4 29. a4 Kg8 30. Be3 Kf7 31. g4 Ke6 32. Kg3 Kd5 33. f3 Bc2 34. a5 bxa5 35. bxa5 Kc4 36. Ra3 Ra6 37. Kf2 b6 {0-1 (37) Jandourek, L (2192)-Londyn,R (2380) Czech Republic 2015}) (9. hxg4 $2 fxg4 {was no serious option for White. After} 10. Ng5 {Black plays} g3 11. -- gxf2+ 12. Kf1 d6 {and} 13. -- Bg4 {with a winning attack.}) 9... Nf6 {The position is similar to the Jänisch-Variation of the Ruy Lopez.(#)} 10. Be3 ({Alternatives: } 10. Ng5 Nd4 11. Re1 Qe8 $11) ({Or} 10. Nd5 fxe4 11. dxe4 Nxd5 12. exd5 Nd4 13. Nxd4 Bxd4 14. c3 Bb6 15. Rxe5 Qf6 16. Re2 Bxf2+ $11) 10... Bxe3 11. fxe3 $5 (11. Rxe3 f4 12. Re1 d6 {did not seem to be to White's liking. Black has good chances for an attack on the kingside.}) 11... fxe4 12. dxe4 d6 {Black now has very comfortable and active play.} 13. a3 Qe8 14. Qd3 {(#)} Nd8 (14... Qg6 $5 15. Kh1 Qh6 {with the idea} 16. -- Bxh3 {was well worth considering.}) 15. Rf2 Be6 16. Raf1 a6 17. Nd2 b5 18. Bxe6 Nxe6 19. Nd5 Nd7 20. Rxf8+ Ndxf8 21. c4 c6 22. Nc3 Qe7 23. b4 {After his energetic opening play Black slowed down a bit allowing White to equalize the game.} Nd7 24. Nb3 Nf6 25. Na5 Qc7 26. Rc1 Qd7 27. cxb5 axb5 28. a4 {(#)} bxa4 $2 (28... Ng5 $5 {with the idea} 29. axb5 (29. h4 $2 Nh3+) 29... Nxh3+ 30. gxh3 Qxh3 {with the strong threat Ng4 offered Black good chances for counterplay, e.g.} 31. Rc2 Qg3+ 32. Rg2 Qe1+ 33. Kh2 h5 $5 {and White is under pressure.}) 29. Nxa4 Rf8 30. Nb6 Qf7 31. Nxc6 ({After} 31. Nbc4 $5 Nh5 32. Rf1 Qxf1+ 33. Qxf1 Rxf1+ 34. Kxf1 Ng3+ 35. Ke1 Nxe4 36. Nxc6 $16 {White's b-pawn is dangerous.}) 31... Ng5 32. Rf1 Qc7 33. Qb5 Ngxe4 ({ After} 33... Qb7 $11 {White has difficulties to make progress.}) 34. Nd5 $16 Qd7 35. Nxf6 gxf6 $6 {Hoping for counterplay on the g-file - but this plan does not work.} (35... Nxf6 36. Qc4 Rc8 37. b5 $16) 36. Qd5 Nc3 37. Qc4 Na4 38. b5 Nb6 39. Qd3 Rg8 40. e4 Qe6 41. Rd1 Nd7 42. Kh2 Nc5 43. Qxd6 Qxd6 44. Rxd6 Nxe4 45. Re6 Nc5 46. Rxf6 e4 47. Rf5 Nb7 48. Re5 Nd6 49. Nd4 Rb8 50. g4 Kg8 51. Kg3 Kf7 52. Nf5 Kf6 (52... Nxb5 $2 53. Rxb5 Rxb5 54. Nd6+ $18) 53. Kf4 Nxb5 { Black was in trouble - but now Black's king is caught in a mating-net.} 54. g5+ Kg6 55. Re7 Rh8 56. Kg4 h5+ 57. Kf4 {There's no defense against the threats of 58.Nh4# or 58.Rg7#.} 1-0 [Event "9th Bilbao Masters"] [Site "Bilbao"] [Date "2016.07.21"] [Round "8.2"] [White "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "D38"] [WhiteElo "2773"] [BlackElo "2855"] [Annotator "mycomputer"] [PlyCount "38"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "Russia"] [BlackTeam "Norway"] [WhiteTeamCountry "RUS"] [BlackTeamCountry "NOR"] [WhiteClock "0:46:46"] [BlackClock "0:13:31"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. Qa4+ Nc6 6. e3 O-O 7. Qc2 Re8 8. Bd2 a6 (8... e5 9. dxe5 Nxe5 10. cxd5 Nxf3+ 11. gxf3 Nxd5 $4 12. Nxd5 Qxd5 13. Bxb4 Qxf3 14. Rg1 Bf5 15. Qe2 Qe4 16. Bc3 Bg6 17. Qc4 {1-0 Nakamura,H (2787) -Carlsen,M (2855) Leuven 2016}) 9. a3 Bd6 10. h3 Bd7 (10... h6 11. Rd1 dxc4 12. Bxc4 e5 13. O-O Bd7 14. dxe5 Nxe5 15. Nxe5 Rxe5 16. f4 Bf5 17. Qb3 Re7 18. Qxb7 Bc2 19. Rc1 Rb8 20. Qxa6 Rxb2 {Nakamura,H (2790)-Aronian,L (2786) Moscow 2016}) 11. cxd5 exd5 12. Bd3 Na7 13. Qb3 c6 14. Qxb7 $6 {Tactually this is inaccurate, but more about that later. What happens is that like against Nakamura, Karjakin goes for a quick draw with the white pieces. He said: "The problem is that Nb5 is coming. I underestimated this 12...Na7 which is very strong. I don't think White is fighting for an advantage."} (14. a4 Qe7 15. O-O Ne4 { is an excellent Queen's Gambit, Exchange Variation for Black.}) 14... Nb5 15. Nxb5 axb5 $6 ({Engines suggest the counter-intuitive} 15... cxb5 $1 {and now the white queen is actually in danger. The main point is that} 16. Ne5 $2 { now fails to} Re7 $1 {(threatening 18...Be8 trapping the queen)} 17. Nc6 Bxc6 18. Qxc6 Rc7 {and with the pawn on a6, b5 is protected.}) ({Another option is} 15... cxb5 16. O-O {when Black goes} Bc7 $1 {threatening 17...Bb6 and 18... Ra7. Now White will have to find the best way to give up its queen, e.g.} ({not } 16... Re7 17. Ba5 {and here Black cannot take on a5 with check}) 17. Ne5 Rb8 18. Qxa6 Re6 19. Qa7 Bb6 20. Qa6 Ra8 21. Qxa8 Qxa8 22. Nxd7 Nxd7 23. Bf5 Nf6 24. Bxe6 fxe6) 16. Ne5 {On his next three moves Carlsen spent more than half an hour.} Rb8 17. Qa6 Ra8 18. Qb7 Rb8 {"I tried to calculate many variations, but I didn't find anything. As often in such situations, if I wanted to continue I had to do it immediately. In the end if I don't see anything and I don't have time, it doesn't make sense to continue playing." (Carlsen)} 19. Qa6 Ra8 1/2-1/2 [Event "9th Bilbao Masters"] [Site "Bilbao"] [Date "2016.07.21"] [Round "8.3"] [White "Wei, Yi"] [Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "E06"] [WhiteElo "2696"] [BlackElo "2787"] [Annotator "mycomputer"] [PlyCount "90"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "China"] [BlackTeam "United States"] [WhiteTeamCountry "CHN"] [BlackTeamCountry "USA"] [WhiteClock "1:01:34"] [BlackClock "1:15:19"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 Be7 5. Nf3 O-O 6. Nc3 dxc4 7. Ne5 Nc6 8. Bxc6 bxc6 9. Nxc6 Qe8 10. Nxe7+ Qxe7 11. Qa4 c5 12. dxc5 Qxc5 13. Be3 Qc7 14. Rd1 (14. O-O Nd5 15. Bd4 Bb7 16. Rac1 e5 17. Nxd5 Bxd5 18. Bc3 f6 19. Rfd1 Qc6 20. Qxc6 Bxc6 21. Rd6 Ba4 {Dominguez Perez,L (2732)-Lysyj,I (2668) Sochi 2016}) 14... Bd7 (14... Bb7 15. O-O Nd5 16. Bd4 Rfd8 17. f3 e5 18. Nxd5 Bxd5 19. Be3 Be6 {?-? Gupta,A (2619)-Ganguly,S (2631) Al Ain 2015}) 15. Qa3 Nd5 16. Bd4 a5 17. Rd2 Nb4 18. O-O Qb7 19. Na4 $1 {"I must have mixed up some moves. Now it's a bit difficult." (Nakamura)} Bxa4 (19... Bb5 20. Nc5 Qc7 21. Qe3) 20. Qxa4 Rfc8 21. Rc1 f6 22. f3 {After this it's just equal.} ({White had to try} 22. a3 e5 23. Be3 Nd5 24. Rxc4 {said Nakamura but Wei Yi thought that White doesn't have enough after} Nxe3 25. fxe3 h5) 22... Qa6 23. Bf2 Nd5 24. Rdc2 Nb4 25. Rd2 Nd5 26. Rdc2 Nb4 27. Rc3 h6 28. Kg2 Rab8 29. b3 cxb3 30. Rxc8+ Rxc8 31. Rxc8+ Qxc8 32. Qxb3 Kf7 33. Qa4 Qa6 34. Qd7+ Kg8 35. Qd2 Qc4 36. Qd8+ Kh7 37. Qxa5 Nxa2 38. Qd2 Nb4 39. Qb2 Nc6 40. Qb1+ Kg8 41. Qb7 Ne5 42. Qb8+ Kh7 43. Qb1+ Kg8 44. Qb8+ Kh7 45. Qb1+ Kg8 1/2-1/2 [Event "9th Bilbao Masters"] [Site "Bilbao"] [Date "2016.07.21"] [Round "8.1"] [White "So, Wesley"] [Black "Giri, Anish"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C50"] [WhiteElo "2770"] [BlackElo "2785"] [Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"] [PlyCount "113"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] [WhiteClock "0:29:11"] [BlackClock "0:16:57"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. O-O Nf6 5. d3 O-O 6. Re1 {More common moves are:} (6. c3 {although Black hasn't experienced particular problems lately after} d5 7. exd5 Nxd5 8. Nbd2 Nb6 9. Bb5 Bd6 {Carlsen,M (2855)-Aronian,L (2792) Leuven 2016}) ({Or} 6. Bg5 {which is not considered especially dangerous for Black once that the first player had castled short:} h6 7. Bh4 d6 8. c3 {as in Fedorchuk,S (2656)-Gunnarsson,A (2441) Reykjavik 2013}) 6... Ng4 ( {So was probably expecting} 6... d6 {which Giri played very recently against Anand:} 7. c3 Bb6 8. Bb3 Ne7 9. Nbd2 c6 10. Nf1 Ng6 {Anand,V (2770) -Giri,A (2782) Leuven 2016}) 7. Re2 Kh8 {"Quite an original idea 7...Kh8 by Giri", tweeted IM Robert Ris. And added: "Is he ready to meet 8.h3 with 8... f5!?"} ({ Another way to play it is} 7... Nd4 8. Nxd4 Bxd4 {as in a couple of games of the Uzbek GM Anton Filippov.}) 8. h3 {So spent about twelve minutes on this move.} f5 {It turns out Robert Ris was right!} 9. Nc3 {Only to bang out this novelty in a flash.} (9. hxg4 $2 {is simply bad due to} fxg4 10. Ng5 Qf6 11. Qf1 Nd4 {with large advantage for Black after} 12. Nf7+ Rxf7 13. Bxf7 Nxe2+ 14. Qxe2 Qxf7) (9. c3 fxe4 (9... Nxf2 10. Rxf2) 10. dxe4 Rxf3 11. hxg4 (11. gxf3 Nf6) 11... Rg3 12. g5 d6 13. b4 Bb6 14. Rc2 Rg4 {Jandourek,L (2192) -Londyn,R (2380) Czech Republic 2015}) 9... Nf6 {So far Giri was practically blitzing and after 17 minutes of thought So decided to go for a very solid continuation. } 10. Be3 Bxe3 11. fxe3 ({Of course not} 11. Rxe3 d6 {with the clear intention of a kingside attack after f5-f4.}) 11... fxe4 12. dxe4 ({Forced, as} 12. Nxe4 d5 13. Nxf6 dxc4 {is clearly better for Black.}) 12... d6 {This not only finishes the development but it also creates the positional threat of Nc6-a5 to trade the white bishop.} 13. a3 Qe8 14. Qd3 {Giri can be proud of his opening prep. His position lacks any weaknesses and he has a clear plan of kingside play.} Nd8 {Solid, but instead better seemed} (14... Qg6 15. Kh1 { and only now} Nd8 {with the idea Nd8-e6-g5.} ({Or even better, the computer resource} 15... Qh6 $1 {aiming for g7-g5-g4!})) 15. Rf2 Be6 16. Raf1 {Now it is equal but somewhat easier for White to play as he has some nice squares on d5 and f5 for his knights.} a6 17. Nd2 $1 {Moving the knight to d5.} ({In the line} 17. Nh4 b5 18. Bxe6 Nxe6 19. Nd5 {There is} (19. Nf5 {is a possibility but the knight can not do any harm to Black from here - it lacks supporters.}) 19... Nc5 20. Qe2 Ncxe4 {with equality at the end of the line:} 21. Nxc7 Qc6 22. Nxa8 Nxf2 23. Qxf2 Qxa8) 17... b5 18. Bxe6 Nxe6 19. Nd5 Nd7 ({Now} 19... Nc5 {will be answered by} 20. Qc3) 20. Rxf8+ Ndxf8 21. c4 {The knight on d5 is unbearable and this forces...} c6 {...but now both pawns on c6 and d6 are vulnerable.} 22. Nc3 Qe7 23. b4 Nd7 24. Nb3 Nf6 (24... Nb6 25. Na5 {limits Black's options.}) 25. Na5 Qc7 26. Rc1 {So mounted a lot of pressure on the queenside pawns and now threatens to capture twice on b5. Black's resources are not yet over.} Qd7 ({One interesting idea was} 26... Nc5 27. Qc2 Qb6 28. bxc5 (28. Kh2 Rd8) 28... Qxa5 29. cxd6 Rd8 {with unclear consequences.}) 27. cxb5 axb5 28. a4 bxa4 {Inaccurate.} ({Giri should have inserted} 28... Ng5 $1 { first:} 29. axb5 ({In case of} 29. Kh2 bxa4 30. Nxa4 {the simple} Rf8 {is a much better version of the game thanks to the extra Ne6-g5 move.} ({But also interesting is the computer suggestion} 30... Ng4+ 31. hxg4 Qxg4 32. Qf1 Qh4+ 33. Kg1 Qg3 34. Rc2 Nxe4 35. Qf3 Qe1+ 36. Kh2 Nf6 {with a total mess.})) 29... Nxh3+ 30. gxh3 Qxh3 {and here White cannot avoid the perpetual:} 31. Rc2 (31. Ne2 $4 {Well, he can avoid it but by losing quickly:} Ng4 {and mate in two.}) 31... Qg3+ 32. Rg2 Qe1+ 33. Kh2 Qh4+) 29. Nxa4 Rf8 30. Nb6 Qf7 {Now White wins a pawn.} 31. Nxc6 {The wrong one! Correct was} (31. Nbc4 $1 {and after} Ng5 ({ If} 31... Ng4 {with the idea} 32. hxg4 $4 ({White gets instead a close to decisive advantage with} 32. Rf1 $1) 32... Qf2+ 33. Kh2 Rf6) 32. Nxd6 Qg6 33. Kh2 Nfxe4 34. Nxe4 Nxe4 {The super-nice move} 35. Kg1 $3 {stops all counterplay and leaves the pawn on c6 helpless. The other moves are not good:} (35. Rxc6 $2 {even loses to} Qg3+ 36. Kg1 Qe1+ 37. Kh2 Nd2) ({While} 35. Nxc6 $6 {leads to a strong attack for Black after} Qg3+ 36. Kg1 Ng5)) 31... Ng5 32. Rf1 Qc7 $1 {The best defense. The super-duper silent move is once again a top perfomer after} (32... Qg6 33. Kh2 Ngxe4 34. Kg1 $1 {with advantage for White.} ) 33. Qb5 Ngxe4 $2 {This is wrong though. Black should have pinned the b6 knight to keep him away from the game with:} (33... Qb7 $1 {and only then go for the e4 pawn:} 34. Kh2 Ngxe4 35. Na5 Qc7 36. Nd5 Qc2 {and Black should not be worse.}) 34. Nd5 Qd7 35. Nxf6 gxf6 $1 {The best chance, Giri looks for kingside counterplay.} (35... Rxf6 $4 36. Qb8+ {is mate.}) (35... Nxf6 36. Qa6 {leaves Black no adequate defense against the b-pawn advance.}) 36. Qd5 $1 { So is alert. Black's idea would have worked after} (36. Qa6 Rg8 $1 37. Kh2 d5 ( {Or the immediate} 37... Qg7) 38. b5 Qg7 39. g4 Qg5 {when Black's attack is worth more than the passer on b5.}) 36... Nc3 37. Qc4 Na4 38. b5 Nb6 39. Qd3 { Once that the knight was forced to leave the center things are not good for him.} Rg8 ({He cannot move the central pawns either:} 39... d5 40. Nxe5) 40. e4 {This means that one white pawn stops three black ones in the center and that So is strategically winning.} Qe6 41. Rd1 Nd7 42. Kh2 {Entering an endgame where the outside passer is a huge asset.} (42. Qxd6 Qxh3 {is less clear.}) 42... Nc5 43. Qxd6 Qxd6 44. Rxd6 Nxe4 45. Re6 Nc5 ({Or} 45... Kg7 46. Re7+ Kg6 47. b6) 46. Rxf6 e4 ({Black's pawn is not going anywhere after} 46... Re8 47. Rf5) 47. Rf5 Nb7 48. Re5 Nd6 49. Nd4 Rb8 50. g4 {Intending Kg3-f4 followed by Nd4-f5 to win a second pawn.} Kg8 51. Kg3 Kf7 52. Nf5 $1 {Well calculated.} Kf6 (52... Nxb5 53. Rxb5 Rxb5 54. Nd6+ {drops material.}) 53. Kf4 Nxb5 54. g5+ Kg6 55. Re7 Rh8 (55... Rg8 56. Nh4+ Kh5 57. Rxh7#) 56. Kg4 $1 h5+ 57. Kf4 {Mate is inevitable.} 1-0 [Event "9th Masters Final 2016"] [Site "Bilbao ESP"] [Date "2016.07.22"] [Round "?"] [White "Carlsen, M."] [Black "Giri, A."] [Result "1-0"] [WhiteElo "2855"] [BlackElo "2785"] [PlyCount "89"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] 1. d4 d5 2. Bf4 {Carlsen does not want a theoretical discussion - but this move, with which White avoids heavily analysed lines is becoming more and more popular.} Bf5 (2... Nf6 3. e3 c5 4. Nc3 cxd4 5. exd4 a6 6. Nf3 Bg4 7. Be2 e6 8. h3 Bxf3 9. Bxf3 Nc6 10. Ne2 Bd6 11. Be3 O-O 12. O-O Ne7 13. g3 Nf5 14. Bc1 Rc8 15. c3 b5 $11 {1-0 (83) Nakamura,H (2767)-Giri,A (2776) London 2014}) 3. e3 e6 4. Bd3 Bxd3 5. Qxd3 c6 6. Nd2 Nf6 7. Ngf3 Be7 (7... Bd6 8. Bxd6 Qxd6 9. O-O Nbd7) 8. O-O O-O 9. h3 Nbd7 10. a4 (10. c4 c5 {has been played in a couple of games.}) 10... c5 11. a5 c4 12. Qe2 b5 13. axb6 axb6 14. Ne5 Nxe5 15. dxe5 Nd7 16. Qg4 {Indicating the wish to attack.} Re8 17. h4 f5 18. Qh3 Rxa1 19. Rxa1 c3 ({Apparently considered} 19... Bxh4 {to be too risky:} 20. g4 g5 (20... fxg4 21. Qxg4 -- {threatening} 22. Nf3 Be7) 21. gxf5 gxf4 22. exf4 exf5 23. Nf3 Be7 24. Ra7 Rf8 25. Nd4 {and White has a strong attack.}) 20. bxc3 Qc7 21. c4 {(#)} Nxe5 $6 {This leads to difficulties.} (21... dxc4 22. g4 Nxe5 23. gxf5 exf5 24. Qxf5 $13) 22. Qg3 Bd6 23. cxd5 {Carlsen plays the obvious move.} ({The engines propose} 23. c5 $5 bxc5 24. Ra6 {and evaluate the position as clearly better for White - Black has no adequate defense against White's threat 25.Rxd6 followed by 26.Bxe5.}) 23... exd5 24. Nb3 Qxc2 25. Nd4 Qc8 26. h5 {(#) White is a pawn down but White's pieces are active, Black's pawns are weak and Black's king looks vulnerable.} Qd7 27. Rb1 Bc7 28. f3 Qf7 29. Ra1 Bd6 30. Ra6 {White continues to give Black problems to solve.} Qxh5 $2 {An error in a difficult situation.} ({Correct was} 30... Qb7 {e.g.} 31. Nxf5 Nxf3+ 32. gxf3 Bxf4 33. exf4 Rf8 34. Nxg7 Qxg7 35. Qxg7+ Kxg7 36. Rxb6 $11 {with a drawn rook ending.}) 31. Rxb6 Nc4 {(#)How did Carlsen now win material?} (31... Bc7 32. Rb7) 32. Rxd6 Nxd6 33. Bxd6 Rxe3 {Now White has two pieces for the rook and Black has to be careful.} 34. Be5 (34. Qf4 $5 Re1+ 35. Kf2 Rb1 (35... Qh1 36. Nxf5 $18) 36. Nxf5 {might have been a bit better objectively.}) 34... Qg6 35. Qf4 Re1+ 36. Kf2 Ra1 37. Qd2 {Otherwise ...Ra2 might be annoying.} Ra8 $2 { But why is Black's last move a mistake?} ({Correct was} 37... f4 38. Bxf4 Qa6 39. Ne2 (39. Kg3 Qg6+ 40. Kf2 (40. Kh2 Qh5+) 40... Qa6) 39... Qc4 {and White cannot make progress.}) 38. Nxf5 Qe6 (38... Qxf5 39. Qxd5+ $18) ({The alternative} 38... Re8 39. Qxd5+ Qe6 40. Qxe6+ Rxe6 41. Bxg7 {neither offered Black much joy.}) 39. Qg5 g6 40. Nh6+ Kf8 41. Ng4 Ke8 42. Nf6+ Kf7 43. Nxh7 Ra4 (43... Ra2+ 44. Kg1 Re2 45. Bd4 $18 (45. f4 $2 Qb6+ 46. Kh2 Re1 {with counterplay.})) 44. Qd8 Ra2+ 45. Kg1 (45. Kg1 Qxe5 46. Qf8+ Ke6 47. Qe8+ Kd6 48. Qb8+ Ke6 49. Nf8+ Kf6 50. Nd7+) 1-0 [Event "9th Bilbao Masters"] [Site "Bilbao"] [Date "2016.07.22"] [Round "9.2"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Giri, Anish"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "D02"] [WhiteElo "2855"] [BlackElo "2785"] [Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"] [PlyCount "89"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] [WhiteClock "0:56:24"] [BlackClock "0:38:34"] 1. d4 d5 2. Bf4 {Let's skip the opening part today. Both players just played chess.} Bf5 3. e3 e6 4. Bd3 Bxd3 5. Qxd3 c6 6. Nd2 Nf6 7. Ngf3 Be7 8. O-O O-O 9. h3 Nbd7 10. a4 {Carlsen grabs space on the queenside and does not want to initiate any pawn clashes. The immediate} (10. c4 {led to quick release of the central pressure and eventually a draw after} c5 11. cxd5 Nxd5 12. Bg3 cxd4 13. Nxd4 Nc5 {in Jugelt,T (2436)-Kopylov,M (2410) Bargteheide 2016}) 10... c5 11. a5 ({The play in the center} 11. b3 {is also possible. In the following game Black found a good way to build barricades after} Rc8 12. c4 cxd4 13. exd4 Bb4 14. Rfc1 Nb8 15. c5 Nc6 16. Ne5 a5 {when the queenside was sealed, Brus,H (1478)-Alvarez Camino,J (1438) corr. 2011}) 11... c4 {Giri reacts energetically and equalizes completely.} 12. Qe2 b5 13. axb6 axb6 14. Ne5 { In case of} (14. b3 $6 {Black can put the white knight into prison after} c3 ( 14... b5 {is good as well.}) 15. Rxa8 Qxa8 16. Nb1 Qa5) 14... Nxe5 15. dxe5 { Petrosian liked to close the center in similar positions of the Torre attack, followed by a piece attack against the enemy king. In most of the cases though, he still had his light-squared bishop on the board, while here it seems as White's resources are not that great.} (15. Bxe5 Nd7) 15... Nd7 16. Qg4 Re8 { Giri wants to end the kingside expansion once and for all. But the devil might not be that black as he is painted after:} (16... Qc7 17. Nf3 Rfb8 18. h4 b5 19. h5 Bf8 20. h6 g6 {and Black is very solid; the bishop is covering the dark squares.}) 17. h4 f5 18. Qh3 (18. exf6 Bxf6 {is OK for Black.}) 18... Rxa1 ({ In case of} 18... Nc5 19. Nf3 {White will have time to prepare the second wave of the attack with} Qd7 20. Nd4 b5 21. g4) ({The pawn is not edible:} 18... Bxh4 $2 19. Rxa8 Qxa8 20. Qxh4) 19. Rxa1 c3 $5 {Opening the road for the queen. It is a question of taste how to defend in a situation like this. The passive, greedy approach was possible too:} (19... Bxh4 20. Nf3 Be7 21. Nd4 Bc5 { is perfectly playable when White has compensation after} ({Or} 21... Nf8 22. Ra7 Qc8 23. g4) 22. Qh5 (22. Ra7 b5 23. Rb7 Qc8) (22. g4)) 20. bxc3 Qc7 21. c4 Nxe5 $2 {A blunder.} (21... dxc4 {seemed perfectly fine after} 22. Nf3 Nc5 23. Nd4 Qd7 {when White has a bit of a pressure but without any clear weaknesses and with the b-pawn walking, Black should be OK.}) ({The capture with the queen on c4 seems less precise though:} 21... Bb4 22. Nf3 Qxc4 23. Ra7 Qc8 ( 23... Qc6 $6 24. Nd4) 24. Nd4) 22. Qg3 Bd6 {On the other side the bishop will not be good enough to rescue the knight:} (22... Bf6 23. Kh1 $1 {prepares the deadly Nd2-f3, putting more pressure onto the pinned piece.}) 23. cxd5 ({ Both players missed} 23. c5 $1 bxc5 24. Ra6 {"Oops," was heard at the post-mortem when the players were shown this!} Qb7 (24... Rd8 25. Rxd6 Qxd6 26. Bxe5 {should be close to winning as well.}) 25. Rxd6 Nf7 26. Nf3 Nxd6 27. Bxd6 {is huge for White because Black cannot go} Qb1+ 28. Kh2 Qxc2 29. Be5 Re7 30. Qg5 Rd7 31. Bxg7 $1 Rxg7 32. Qd8+ Kf7 33. Ne5#) 23... exd5 24. Nb3 ({The computer suggestion} 24. Nf3 {will regain the material but would hardly lead to anything significant after} Nxf3+ 25. Qxf3 Bxf4 26. Qxd5+ Kh8 27. exf4 Qxf4 28. g3 Qe4 29. Qxe4 fxe4 {when Black should hold, say} 30. Rb1 Re6 ({or even} 30... e3)) 24... Qxc2 25. Nd4 Qc8 {In the arising time trouble the Dutchman sensibly keeps the queen close to his king.} (25... Qd3 26. h5) 26. h5 Qd7 27. Rb1 Bc7 {The endgame that arises after} (27... Nc4 28. Bxd6 Qxd6 29. Qxd6 Nxd6 30. Rxb6 {is far more unpleasant for Black as it seems.}) 28. f3 {Remarkably, Black has very few useful moves, while White can improve the situation further. The most obvious thing is to occupy the open a-file and get into the opponent's seventh rank.} Qf7 (28... Kh8 29. Ra1 {would be similar to the game. }) (28... Re7 {with the idea to free himself with Ne5-c4 is a move short after} 29. Ra1 Nc4 30. Ra7) 29. Ra1 Bd6 30. Ra6 Qxh5 {Giri sacrifices some material to clarify the situation.} ({There was a study-like draw after} 30... Qb7 $1 { with the idea} 31. Nxf5 Nxf3+ $3 32. gxf3 Bxf4 33. exf4 ({Funnily} 33. Qxf4 { also leads to a draw after} Qxa6 34. Nh6+ gxh6 35. Qg4+ Kf7 36. Qf5+ Ke7 37. Qe5+ Kd7 38. Qxd5+ Kc8 39. Qc6+) 33... Rf8 {and Black regains the piece, for example} 34. Qg5 ({Or} 34. Nh6+ Kh8) 34... Rxf5 35. Qxf5 Qxa6 {and a draw.}) 31. Rxb6 Nc4 (31... Bc7 $2 {loses to} 32. Rb7) 32. Rxd6 Nxd6 33. Bxd6 Rxe3 { Rook and two pawns will do great without the queens on the board, but with them it is very difficult to defend. The light pieces and the queen can create all sort of attacking schemes.} 34. Be5 {Carlsen plays for attack. Presumably, he discarded} (34. Qf4 {due to the endgame arising after} Qh6) ({Black should also hold after} 34. Bb4 Qg6 35. Qf4 Re8 36. Nxf5 Qb6+ 37. Kh2 Qf6 38. Ne7+ Kf7 ) 34... Qg6 35. Qf4 Re1+ 36. Kf2 Ra1 37. Qd2 ({At first Carlsen thought he was winning immediately but here he saw} 37. Nxf5 $2 Ra2+ 38. Ke1 Qe6) 37... Ra8 $2 {"Someone who is in bad shape, at some point he will blunder something given that the opponent puts pressure the whole game." - Giri.} (37... Qa6 {would have most likely held thanks to the same old idea of trading queens:} 38. Kg3 ( {White can keep on playing with} 38. Ne2 Qb6+ 39. Bd4 Qa5 {although Black should be able to hold.}) 38... Ra2 39. Qg5 Qg6 $1 {and once that the queens are off the board it should be a draw.}) 38. Nxf5 $1 {Simple and effective.} Qe6 (38... Qxf5 {would drop the rook after} 39. Qxd5+) ({while the endgame after} 38... Re8 39. Qxd5+ Qe6 40. Qxe6+ Rxe6 41. Bxg7 {is not the one that Giri wishes for.}) 39. Qg5 {And what Black feared has happened. The attack is unstoppable.} (39. Qxd5 $2 {should be avoided though for concrete reasons} Qxd5 40. Ne7+ Kf7 41. Nxd5 Ra5) 39... g6 (39... Qg6 40. Ne7+) (39... Qf7 40. Nh6+) 40. Nh6+ Kf8 41. Ng4 Ke8 42. Nf6+ Kf7 43. Nxh7 Ra4 44. Qd8 Ra2+ {The last little trick.} (44... Qxe5 {would have lost the queen, not the rook in the line } 45. Qf8+ Ke6 46. Qe8+ Kd6 47. Qb8+ Ke6 48. Nf8+ Kf6 49. Nd7+) 45. Kg1 { The only square, but good enough for resignation.} ({Instead} 45. Kf1 $2 { would only be a draw after} Qa6+ 46. Kg1 Rxg2+ 47. Kxg2 Qe2+ 48. Kg3 Qxe5+) 1-0 [Event "9th Bilbao Masters"] [Site "Bilbao"] [Date "2016.07.22"] [Round "9.1"] [White "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Black "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "D37"] [WhiteElo "2787"] [BlackElo "2773"] [Annotator "mycomputer"] [PlyCount "68"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "United States"] [BlackTeam "Russia"] [WhiteTeamCountry "USA"] [BlackTeamCountry "RUS"] [WhiteClock "1:08:46"] [BlackClock "0:16:18"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Nbd7 5. Bf4 dxc4 6. e3 b5 7. Nxb5 Bb4+ 8. Nc3 Ne4 9. a3 Nxc3 10. Qd2 Nd5 11. axb4 Nxf4 12. exf4 Bb7 13. Be2 O-O 14. O-O Nb6 15. Ne5 Qd6 16. Rfd1 Rfb8 17. Rac1 ({Nakamura suggested the immediate} 17. h4 $5 {which keeps open the option of Ra1-a3.}) 17... a6 ({Karjakin improves upon} 17... Qd5 $6 18. Bf1 h6 19. Nxc4 Nxc4 20. Rxc4 Qd6 21. Rc5 Bd5 22. b5 c6 23. bxc6 Bxc6 24. b4 Bd5 25. b5 {which was good for White in Nakamura,H (2787) -Carlsen,M (2855) Paris 2016}) 18. h4 Bd5 19. h5 h6 20. Re1 ({Nakamura didn't see anything in} 20. g4 f6 21. Ng6 Be4) 20... Rb7 21. Nxc4 Nxc4 22. Bxc4 Bxc4 23. Rxc4 Rab8 24. Ra1 Rxb4 25. Rxb4 Qxb4 26. Qxb4 Rxb4 27. Rxa6 Rxd4 28. Ra8+ Kh7 29. g3 Rb4 30. Ra7 Rxb2 31. Rxc7 Kg8 32. Rc8+ Kh7 33. Rc7 Kg8 34. Rc8+ Kh7 1/2-1/2 [Event "9th Bilbao Masters"] [Site "Bilbao"] [Date "2016.07.22"] [Round "9.3"] [White "Wei, Yi"] [Black "So, Wesley"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "E05"] [WhiteElo "2696"] [BlackElo "2770"] [Annotator "mycomputer"] [PlyCount "61"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "China"] [BlackTeam "United States"] [WhiteTeamCountry "CHN"] [BlackTeamCountry "USA"] [WhiteClock "0:13:41"] [BlackClock "0:50:28"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 Be7 5. Nf3 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Ne5 Nc6 8. Bxc6 bxc6 9. Nxc6 Qe8 10. Nxe7+ Qxe7 11. Na3 {So said during his prep he had forgotten about this "third main move" but during the game he remembered quite a bit of his analysis.} (11. Qa4 e5 12. dxe5 Qxe5 13. Qxc4 Be6 14. Qd3 Rad8 15. Qe3 Qa5 16. Qa3 Qh5 17. f3 Rfe8 {Kramnik,V (2812)-Aronian,L (2792) Paris 2016}) 11... Rd8 12. Qc2 Ba6 13. Nxc4 c5 14. dxc5 Qxc5 15. b3 Bxc4 16. Bb2 (16. Be3 Qh5 17. Qxc4 Ng4 18. h4 Nxe3 19. fxe3 Rd2 {So}) 16... Rac8 17. Bxf6 gxf6 18. Rfc1 (18. Rac1 Qa5 19. bxc4 Rd2 20. Qe4) 18... Qe5 {A novelty that equalizes completely.} (18... Qa5 19. bxc4 Rd2 20. Qe4 Rxa2 21. Rxa2 Qxa2 22. c5 Qd2 23. Rc4 f5 24. Qe5 Qd5 25. Qc3 a5 26. Rd4 Rxc5 27. Rxd5 Rxc3 28. Rxa5 {?-? Gajewski,G (2648)-Fressinet,L (2712) Montpellier 2015}) 19. bxc4 Rd4 20. Rab1 Rdxc4 21. Qxc4 Rxc4 22. Rxc4 Qxe2 23. Ra4 (23. Rc7 Qxa2 24. Rbb7 e5 25. Rxa7 Qd5 {should be a draw (So).}) 23... a6 24. Kg2 Qe5 25. Rd1 (25. Rc1 h5) 25... h5 $1 {Giving more air to the king and sometimes preparing h5-h4-h3.} ({ White was threatening to win, e.g.} 25... Qb5 $4 26. Rd8+ Kg7 27. Rg4+ Kh6 28. Rdg8) 26. Rd3 Qb5 27. Raa3 Qc6+ 28. Kg1 (28. Rf3 Kg7 29. h4 f5 30. Kh2 Kg6 31. Rf4 Kf6 32. Rfa4 Qb6 33. Kg1 Qb1+ 34. Kg2 Qb7+ {So}) 28... Qc1+ 29. Kg2 Qc6+ 30. Kg1 Qc1+ 31. Kg2 1/2-1/2 [Event "9th Bilbao Masters"] [Site "Bilbao"] [Date "2016.07.23"] [Round "10.3"] [White "Giri, Anish"] [Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "D37"] [WhiteElo "2785"] [BlackElo "2787"] [Annotator "mycomputer"] [PlyCount "95"] [EventDate "2016.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "Netherlands"] [BlackTeam "United States"] [WhiteTeamCountry "NED"] [BlackTeamCountry "USA"] [WhiteClock "1:19:44"] [BlackClock "1:21:18"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bf4 O-O 6. e3 c5 7. dxc5 Bxc5 8. cxd5 exd5 9. Be2 Nc6 10. O-O a6 11. Rc1 Ba7 12. Ne5 Ne7 (12... Bb8 13. Nxc6 bxc6 14. Bxb8 Rxb8 15. Na4 Rb4 16. a3 Rh4 17. Rxc6 Qe8 18. Rxf6 gxf6 {Zubov,A (2630)-Senador,E (2325) Olongapo City 2015}) 13. Bg5 d4 (13... Be6 14. Bxf6 gxf6 15. Nf3 Kh8 16. Nd4 Rg8 17. Bf3 Qd6 18. Nce2 Rg5 19. Nf4 Rag8 {?-? Strathmann,S-Michalczak,T (2265) Boeblingen 1999}) (13... Qd6 14. Nc4 Qe6 15. Bxf6) 14. exd4 Qxd4 15. Qxd4 (15. Nf3 Qxd1 (15... Qb6 16. Na4 Qa5 17. Bxf6 gxf6 ) 16. Rfxd1 Be6 17. Nd4) 15... Bxd4 16. Nf3 Bxc3 (16... Ba7 17. Rfd1) 17. Rxc3 Ned5 (17... Ne4 18. Re3 Nxg5 19. Rxe7 Nxf3+ 20. Bxf3 Rd8 21. Bxb7 $2 (21. Bd5) 21... Ra7) 18. Rc4 h6 19. Bd2 {Carlsen said that the two passive bishops are better than the knights. "To be honest this endgame is very little. I'd like to have full coordination of my pieces. Something is missing for White." (Giri) } b5 20. Rd4 (20. Rcc1 Ne4 21. Ba5 Nf4) 20... Re8 (20... Bf5 21. a4 bxa4 22. Rxa4 Rfb8) 21. Re1 Ne7 22. Bd3 Be6 23. a4 Nf5 24. Rf4 (24. Rb4 Nd5 25. Rbe4 Nd6 26. Re5 Nc4 27. Bxc4 bxc4 28. Nd4 Rab8) 24... Nd6 25. axb5 axb5 26. Rd4 Nc4 27. Bc3 Rac8 28. Rb1 (28. b3 Na3) 28... Bd5 29. Nd2 Nxd2 30. Bxd2 Be4 31. Bc3 Bxd3 32. Rxd3 Ne4 33. h3 Nxc3 34. bxc3 Rc5 35. Rd2 Rxc3 36. Rxb5 Rc7 37. Rb1 Rec8 38. Rbd1 Rc1 39. Rxc1 Rxc1+ 40. Kh2 g6 41. g4 g5 42. Kg2 Rc3 43. Rd6 Kg7 44. Rb6 Rd3 45. Rc6 Rb3 46. Ra6 Rd3 47. Rc6 Rb3 48. Ra6 1/2-1/2