After four rounds in Bilbao, the highest level tournament in chess history, Carlsen is dead last. He dropped his games against Kramnik and Anand, before managing to draw with Shirov in 175 moves! In the fourth round, with white against Kramnik, Carlsen escaped with a half-point.
Kramnik leads with two wins and two draws, Anand is in second with a win and three draws while Shirov has three draws and is half a point ahead of Carlsen.
Game of the week. GM Sergey Shipov annotates.
White: V. Kramnik (2780)
Black: M. Carlsen (2826)
Bilbao 2010
1. d4Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 The Queen’s Indian Defense. 4. g3 Ba6 5. Qa4 Vladimir decides not to enter the now fashionable line 5. Qc2 Bb7 6. Bg2 c5 7. d5!5…Bb7 Having tempted the white queen to a4, black returns to the struggle for the center.6. Bg2 c5 With the queen on d1 the clamp d4-d5 could be applied. But now you have to allow an exchange of pawns, easing black’s position.7. dxc5 As practice has shown, after 7. 0-0 cxd4 8. Nxd4 Bxg2 9. Kxg2 Qc8 black has no problems.7…bxc5 Until the 1970s people took on c5 with the bishop, but then they realized that being one tempo behind in development was an acceptable luxury. It’s more important to create a pawn advantage in the center.8. 0-0 Be7 9. Nc3 0-0 10. Rd1 Pressure on the d file is the main line for white. And it should be pushed as far as possible.10…Qb6 Black is by no means obliged to play d7-d5. In that case white would have concrete and very accessible points of attack.11. Bf4 Rd8 A flexible continuation. The d7 pawn isn’t rushing to reveal its plans. 11…Qxb2? would be a serious blunder in light of 12.Rab1 Qxc3 13.Rxb7 and there’s no Nc6 because of 14.Bd2 trapping the black queen.12. Rab1 In the years of my wild youth they played 12. Rd2. Now fashion’s changed. 12…h6 Yet another cunning and somewhat useful move. For now the pawn remains on d7.13. Qb5 Completely in Kramnik’s style. He loves to play endings with a slight, but persistent edge. By the way, it’s a surprise!Previously Vladimir first included the moves 13.a3 a5 and only then played 14.Qb5, which, to be honest, looks more logical than the continuation in the game. In the game Kramnik-Bacrot, Dortmund 2009, there followed: 14…Qxb5 15.cxb5 d5 16.Ne5 g5 17.Be3 Nbd7 18.Nc6 Bxc6 19.bxc6 Ne5 20.Na4 Nxc6 21.Bxc5 Bxc5 22.Nxc5 Rab8 23.e4 dxe4! and the exchanges led to equality.13…Bc6 That’s the difference. Black’s queen is defended, so it’s not obligatory for him to exchange queens himself. Magnus is offering his opponent the chance to exchange on b6, so as to improve the pawn structure.It also looked good, with the same aim, to play 13…Nc6 For example, 14.Qxb6 axb6 15.Bc7 Rdc8 16.Bxb6? Ra6 and the greedy bishop gets trapped. 14. Qxb6Good. After the cunning withdrawal 14. Qb3 was 14…d6!14…axb6 15. b3 Very modestly played. Strong, but unpretentious.More interesting was15.Bc7 Rc8 and here again you can’t take on b6, but there’s 16.Bxb8!? and after anything takes the bishop the knight comes to e5. For example, 16…Rcxb8 17.Ne5 Bxg2 18.Kxg2 … However, black has a way to simplify the game: 18…d5! and it’s unlikely to be dangerous for him, 19.cxd5 exd5 20.Nxd5 Nxd5 21.Rxd5 Rxa2 and so on.15…g5 Fighting for space and a clear provocation. If the bishop won’t enter the fight by itself, it’ll be driven away by pawn attacks!It seems to me that a route to simple equality was 15…Ne4.16. Bxb8 Without further ado. The black rook’s left on d8, so that the knight fork on c6 in some lines will be particularly effective.16…Raxb8 17. Ne5 Of course it’s risky to leave black with a pair of bishops.17…Bxg2 18. Kxg2 Now black has to refrain from the move d7-d6. There’s a serious reason for that.18…Rbc8 Covering the c6 square. The d7 pawn is ready to enter the fray.Visual impression: white has a certain initiative. The b6 pawn is chronically weak. However, the position’s closed in character. It’s hard to break through… The players have plenty of time: 1.13 – 1.0119. e4 Correct. It’s important to fix the backward d7 pawn. And the space won’t do any harm either.The jump 19.Na4 made it easier for black to launch counterplay: 19…d6! 20.Nd3 (after 20.Nxb6 dxe5 21.Nxc8 Rxc8 it’s difficult for white to develop his rooks) 20…Rb8 21.Nc3 d5!here chances are equal.19…d6 A gulp of air is essential.The alternative was centralizing the king, 19…Kf8. But in that case black could be let down by the move g7-g5, as after all white has a point of attack on the kingside.20. Nd3On 20.Nf3 Vladimir might not have liked 20…g4, and there could follow 21.Ne1 h5 22.Nd3 Nh7 23.Nf4 h4 and it looks as though black’s fighting on equal terms here.20…Kf8 20…g4 is clearly out of place. After 21. h3 h5 22. Nf4! black just gets another headache, on h5 But 20…d5 looked logical. 21. h3 Kramnik fixes the black pawns on black squares…but again he allows his opponent to break through in the center. Time: 1.06 – 0.49.21…Nd7 A variation on the plan mentioned. True, it doesn’t look like the most successful one to me. Now the white knight on b5 will be comfortably placed, and put pressure on the d6 pawn. And the rook on d8, whose own knight has blocked off his oxygen, is no doubt also unhappy. 22. f4 The war begins! The sharp g7-g5 move is making itself felt.22…Nb8 A cold and very reasonable response. The knight returns to the center via c6. White’s a tempo or two short of direct threats. Black will manage to build a defense…if, of course… 23. Na4 Exactly! White returns the black knight to its awkward position. There’s no one else to defend the weak b6. 23…Nd7 It has to be said that black’s actions don’t make a good impression. Is Carlsen really still not in the best of form? Or perhaps the guy’s ill? It happens in autumn in Russia. After all Magnus is just back from Khanty-Mansiysk. 24. Nf2 Logically and competently played.24…Ra8 25. Rd2 Simple and strong.25…Ra5 Ah Magnus, Magnus. He’s on the wrong path! 26. Nc3 Nb8 27. Rbd1 27…Nc6 Nb5 Two birds with one stone. The enemy knight can’t get to d4 and the pawn on d6 won’t have a dull life. 28…gxf4 Clearly Carlsen was afraid that the pawn would get to f5, leaving black with an unpleasant structure on the kingside. 29. gxf429…d5 30. exd5 exd5 Kramnik continues to think hard. He’s still got some time to spare: 0.37 – 0.18. 31. cxd5 Rxb5 There wasn’t full compensation for the pawn after 31…Nd4 32.Nxd4 cxd4 33.Rxd4 Rxa2 34.R4d2 although chances for a draw might have remained: 34…Rxd2 35.Rxd2 f5! 32. dxc6 Rc8 It seems as though black will be able to destroy the dangerous passed pawn. But at the same time his rooks will end up in extremely passive positions. The activity of the white pieces looks as though it could be the deciding factor in this position. 33. Ng4 First to step up. 33…Nxc6 The most natural move. 34. Ne5 The knight has brutally clamped down on black’s hopes of carrying out the simplifying c5-c4 break. Consequently, the b5 rook is kept out of play. 34…Re635. Kf3 Ra5? A time trouble blunder. There were still chances of survival after 35…Rb4! Then 36. Rg2 wasn’t dangerous because of Bf6 and the knight move 37.Nd7+ Ke7 38.f5 doesn’t lead to black losses at all due to 38…Ree4! 36. Rg2! The most precise move. 36…f6 Here clearly bad were 36…Bf6 37. Nd7+ Ke7 38. f5! and 36…f5 37. Rd7! 37. Nc4 A calm and strong continuation. 37…Ra7 38. f5 One more touch from an experienced player. The black bishop becomes a total invalid. 38…Rc6 39. a4 White’s position is strategically won. Finally and irrevocably. 39…Rb7 Kramnik is thinking over the control move while having sat back in his chair. He clearly likes the position! 40. Rg6 As it’s written in scripture, there’s a time to gather pawns. 40…h5 The first time control has passed. I think the end is nigh. Black isn’t even threatening the b6-b5 break because of the knight fork on a5. There’s an abyss on the board. 41. Rdg1 With the threat of mate in two moves. 41…Ke8 42. Ne5 And now the rook’s attacked. 42…Rc8 Black is defending with only moves and by a miracle balancing, for now, on the very edge… 43. Rg8+ Bf8 44. Ng6 The decisive pin. A precise path to victory. 44…Rf7 45. Rd1 Black is completely paralyzed. The rook on c8 can’t abandon the last rank because of check on the e-file and then taking the bishop. On 45…Rb8 there would follow 46. Rd6 with total zugzwang and so 1-0.
Puzzler.
White: Qa8, Nd5, Bg5, Kh7
Black: Ke5
White to play and mate in three.
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