For our annotated game this week, we take a look at a game from one of the all-time-greats of chess, (if not ‘the’ great), Garry Kasparov. The game is taken from the 2005 Linares International. In round-twelve, Kasparov would play Michael Adams with the black pieces and this is our game for today.
The game turned into a Sicilian Defence, Najdorf variation, which will come as little surprise, due to it being one of Kasparov’s main weapons against 1.e4. The game took a rare line with 10…Nc6 and saw Adams up for a fight with his novelty of 11.0-0-0, clearly taking the game into a position with opposite side castling. Such decisions are not to be taken lightly.
Opposite side castling changes things in chess. Very often, the usual principles are abandoned and the game becomes a direct (and sometimes urgent) hunt for the King. Pawns are advanced “with gusto” as aptly described by Alexander Kotov, in order to open lines to the enemy King. The player who can make the opponent defend first and make concessions, will have the advantage. This makes perfect sense, of course — when castled on opposite wings, it is very hard to defend and attack and the same time.
The decision to castle long was perhaps ill-considered by Adams and it has not been repeated very often since — and never at top level, that I can find. Kasparov wastes no time in advancing his b-pawn and lining up towards Adams’ King position. As remarked in my annotations, Kasparov’s moves, for the main, are nothing dramatic, but good, logical, useful positional play. This sees him being very aggressively placed, before White has even got going.
Every move counts in chess and even more so when the players are castled on opposite wings. Unfortunately for Adams, he would make an inadequate move or two at crucial times and allow Kasparov to seize the initiative.
With his rook and Queen already nicely placed on the Queenside, he would then add a super dark-squared bishop and two beautifully poised knights into the fray. One of these knights would ultimately create havoc in the Adams position and render his King helpless. This, regardless of there having been only one piece exchanged. The finish of the game shows Kasparov’s lethal tactical abilities, but the tactic itself is created by superb positional play.
Of course, the 2005 Linares Tournament was a bitter-sweet occasion for Garry. Though he would pip Veselin Topalov on tie-breaks (wins with black) in order to win the tournament, he would lose to him in the final round before announcing his retirement from professional chess.
[Event “XXII Torneo Ciudad de Linares”]
[Site “Linares ESP”]
[Date “2005.03.08”]
[Round “12”]
[White “Michael Adams”]
[Black “Garry Kasparov”]
[Result “0-1”]
[ECO “B90”]
[EventDate “????.??.??”]{ Annotations by John Lee Shaw for www.hotoffthechess.com. } 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 { The Najdorf Sicilian, one of Kasparov’s favourite responses to 1.e4. } 6.Be3 e6 7.Be2 Qc7 8.Qd2 b5 9.a3 Bb7 10.f3 { A common position, seen quite a few times before and since. } 10…Nc6 { At the time, this move had only been seen on a few occasions, the first in my database being the draw of Van Nies-Muhren, 2001. } 11.O-O-O { This was a new approach by Adams and the fact that it has seldom been repeated could be an indication as to its quality. More usual, here, was g2-g4 or Kingside castling. In the case of the latter, this seems to be with very good reason. } 11…b4 { ! This move, I would say, is the best here, though there are certainly alternatives — one or two being heavily favoured by the chess engines. However, one must bear in mind that the position is one of opposite side castling. In this case, the normal rules of chess are often adjusted and the game becomes that of a race to the King. Pawns are used, often sacrificed, to create open files towards the enemy King. The player who manages this and have his opponent defend, will have the initiative. This is a positional principle that is rarely understood by engines, even now. } 12.axb4 { This move was rather obligatory. White does not want to move the knight and start defending. However, the compromise, here, is that Black now has that semi-open b-file. By contrast, take a look at the Kingside of the board, White has not even got going. } 12…Nxb4 13.g4 { In light of what has been said in the previous annotations, Adams could not delay with this move. Steadily but surely, Kasparov is building on the Queenside and it is imperative that White creates threats of his own. Once one begins to defend in these positions, things can snowball very quickly. } 13…Be7 { Preparing to castle. Once Black achieves this, his King’s rook will become influential very quickly. Another thing that becomes very interesting about this, is that Kasparov’s play so far is nothing spectacular. He is simply making good, useful moves with very easy to comprehend positional reasoning. } 14.g5 { Pushing on, but this move should not be over-estimated in value. It was likely that Black would re-locate this knight anyway and as you will see, he has plans for it on c5. Furthermore, once the pawn leaves g5 (likely a matter of time), the f6-square has been prepared for the Be7, which will then be beautifully situated along the long diagonal. Unwittingly, White is in effect helping Black along with his wishes. } 14…Nd7 15.h4 Nc5 { It amazes me that engines continue to see White as better, after Kb1 anyway. I am not sure that I agree — he may not be worse, but better is not clear to see. Black’s …Nc5 has changed things and White now has to be very careful. Up to now, play has largely been positional. However, little tactical tickles are now being put in place by Black. White’s knights look like good pieces, but they are actually unable to move now without concrete analysis, bearing in mind the potential weakness of the b3-square, due to the c-pawn being all but pinned to the King. It is not immediate of course, but things can change very quickly in chess. } 16.Kb1 { Prudent. White moves the King out of the potential line of sight with Black’s Queen. This of course frees the c-pawn should it be required. } 16…Rb8 { Again, a very simple, logical move. Kasparov reapplies the indirect pressure towards the King. I like this move a lot better than …Rc8, for example, b8 seems the right square for this rook. Once castled, Black will situate his King’s rook on c8. } 17.h5 O-O 18.g6 Bf6 { As expected — Black’s aspirations are starting to be realised very quickly now. } 19.Rdg1 { We are reaching the crux of the play so far in this game and the question is whether Adams could afford these types of ‘prepping’ moves. I think he probably had to take the chance to open the g-file for himself as shown in the variation. Instead, Kasparov is left to continue his own prepping. } ( 19.gxh7+ { This is more direct and has two advantages over Adams’ Rdg1. Firstly, there is now the semi-open g-file for his rook. But also, Black must take a time out from his own manoeverings. It is bare-knuckle stuff, punch and counter punch, with both side focussing on the knockout. Whoever drops their guard first will suffer for it. } 19…Kxh7 { There doesn’t seem to be anything better than this. Sometimes, moves like …Kh8 can be slightly better, when the opponent (in this case, White) can find themselves shut out from the enemy King by their own pawns. This does not appear to be one of those occasions. The problem that White has, here, is that there are many valid ways to continue, Rhg1, Rdg1, Ncb5, to name but three. At a crucial time like this, the move has to be blob on in order to stand up to Black’s various options at his next move, …Qa5, …Rfc8, …Ba8 for instance. } ( 19…Kh8 20.h6 { Bg5 was a good alternative, but it seems advisable to coax the g-pawn forward first, when Black will have to watch his dark squares. } 20…g6 21.Bg5 { Keeping up the moves that Black can not ignore, good distraction! } 21…Qe7 { Probably a wise, but not happy, decision. White can be somewhat satisfied here, having lured the Queen away from the Queenside. However, …Rfc8 will be happening as soon as Black is able to play it, so it is very much tit-for-tat — good, exciting chess! } 22.Bxf6+ { Again, dictating. } 22…Qxf6 { And here, the question is how to continue and there are many options. Interesting is 23.Ncb5. } 23.Ncb5 axb5 { This appears to be no threat to White. Actually, he may even be quite better now with Black’s build up on the Queenside being somewhat unbuilt. } 24.Qxb4 e5 { A natural continuation, which could result in the following: } 25.Nb3 Nxb3 26.Rxd6 Qe7 27.cxb3 Kxh7 { Personally, I can’t make my mind up on this position. Engines say White is better, but I switch and change between White, Black and not having a clue. In such instances, I tend to focus on potential, which is one of my watchwords when evaluating a position. It is hard to see a clear cut case for either side on that, so if I had to stick my neck out, I would plump for a draw with correct play. } ) 20.Rhg1 { This is the option I would go for, I think White must try to assert himself along the g-file and this rook seems more useful here than behind the pawn. } 20…Ba8 21.Nb3 Nxb3 22.cxb3 Be5 { anticipating Bg5 which is just wasteful now. } 23.Bd4 { The Queen is eyeing the g5-square. Upon Bf4, Black would most likely play …Nc6 and White has concerns along the b-file. f3-f4 is of course not possible due to …Bxc3 and then …Bxe4+ } 23…Nc6 { bringing the rook alive along the b-file. } 24.Bxe5 dxe5 25.Qg5 Rg8 { is about equal, but play must be accurate. } ) 19…Ba8 20.Bg5 { ? Not really good enough. Once again, gxh7+ seems the most positive way to go, but looks a little late at this point. } ( 20.gxh7+ Kxh7 21.Nb3 Nxb3 22.cxb3 Qa5 { And Black is equal at worst, here. } ) 20…Be5 { ! } 21.gxh7+ { Not great and this leads to Kasparov now taking a firm grasp on the game. However, Adams was in a tough situation already. Bf4 does not seem sufficient. Black can just play …fxg6 and White finds his Kingside action largely thwarted. On the other hand, f3-f4 leaves Black very much to the good after …Nxe4, Nxe4 Bxd4. } 21…Kxh7 22.Nb3 { ? Allowing Kasparov to unleash a tactic, which has resulted from his play earlier on in the game. } 22…Nxc2 { ! This must have come as quite the surprise to Michael Adams, it pulls the rug from under his feet in this game. The point is not the pawn, or actually the Nb3 which is currently hanging, but that the White King is slowly being stripped of its defenders and this is where Black’s built up power is now decisive. } 23.Nxc5 { There was nothing better. } 23…Na3+ { ! all roads lead to Rome for Black from here. } 24.Ka2 Qxc5 { And now to play …Qb4, and pile up on c3 with …Rfc8. } 25.Na4 Nc2 { ! Instant refutation to Na4, this move makes the Queen safe — if Nxc5 then …Rxb2 mate. Another thing that …Nc2 does is unleash the threat of …Rxb2+ followed by …Qa3, which is terminal. This is the kind of position that should be absorbed rather than merely looked at. The contrast in the predicament of the sides, together with how all of White’s pieces are completely unable to help his King, is astounding. There is no good move for Adams, here and he folds quickly. } 26.Kb1 { the best possible in a bad situation. } 26…Qa3 { And here Adams resigned. There is no respectable defence to the threat of …Rfc8, followed by …Qa1. A very solid game by Garry Kasparov. } 0-1[/pgn]
