Magnus Carlsen’s end of 2015 just keeps getting better. Merely weeks after winning the London Chess Classic and inaugural Grand Chess Tour in the same day, the World Champion has won the Qatar Masters Open.
The event, held in Doha, was played over 9-rounds, and boasted some big names among its field of 132. Vladimir Kramnik, Anish Giri, Wesley So, Sergey Karjakin, Li Chao, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov and Pentala Harikrishna, were all present. Defending Champion was Yu Yangyi. But, as Mark Crowther of The Week in Chess remarks, “It is possible that this is the first appearance by a reigning World Champion in a Swiss Open at standard time controls since Boris Spassky played in Vancouver in 1971.”
Carlsen did not have things his own way during the event, however, and took a little while to get going. After 3 rounds, Anish Giri and Li Chao were leading, with 3/3 and Magnus lagged a half point behind. The leaders would play each other in round 4, and draw. Carlsen would see a chance to get his foot in the door, and this he did by defeating Jan-Krzysztof Duda.
[Event “Qatar Masters Open 2015”]
[Site “Doha QAT”]
[Date “2015.12.23”]
[Round “4”]
[White “Li, Chao b”]
[Black “Giri, Anish”]
[Result “1/2-1/2”]
[BlackElo “2784”]
[BlackTitle “GM”]
[ECO “D90”]
[EventDate “2015.12.20”]
[Opening “Gruenfeld”]
[Variation “Three knights variation”]
[WhiteElo “2750”]
[WhiteTitle “GM”]1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.Nf3 Bg7 5.cxd5 Nxd5 6.g3 Nxc3 7.bxc3 c5 8.Bg2 Nc6 9.Be3 cxd4 10.Nxd4 O-O 11.O-O Na5 12.Qd3 a6 13.c4 Qc7 14.Rac1 Bd7 15.Qa3 Nxc4 16.Qxe7 Rae8 17.Qb4 b5 18.Bf4 Be5 19.Bxe5 Qxe5 20.Rfd1 a5 21.Qc3 Rc8 22.Nb3 Qe7 23.Bb7 Rb8 24.Bd5 Rfc8 25.Bxc4 Rxc4 26.Qxa5 Bh3 27.Qd2 Rbc8 28.Qe3 Qxe3 29.fxe3 Be6 30.Kf2 Ra8 31.Nd4 Rxc1 32.Rxc1 Bc4 33.Rc2 Kg7 34.Rb2 Kf6 35.g4 Ra3 36.h4 h6 37.Kf3 Bd5+ 38.Kf2 Bc4 39.Nxb5 Bxb5 40.Rxb5 Rxa2 41.Rb6+ Kg7 42.e4 Ra3 43.Rb5 Rh3 44.h5 gxh5 45.gxh5 Kf6 46.e3 Rh1 47.Kf3 Rh4 48.Ra5 Rh1 49.Ra6+ Kg7 50.Ra5 Kf6 51.e5+ Kf5 52.Kg2 Re1 53.Kf3 Rh1 1/2-1/2[Event “Qatar Masters Open 2015”]
[Site “Doha QAT”]
[Date “2015.12.23”]
[Round “4”]
[White “Duda, Jan-Krzysztof”]
[Black “Carlsen, Magnus”]
[Result “0-1”]
[BlackElo “2834”]
[BlackTitle “GM”]
[ECO “B92”]
[EventDate “2015.12.20”]
[Opening “Sicilian”]
[Variation “Najdorf, Opovcensky variation”]
[WhiteElo “2663”]
[WhiteTitle “GM”]1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be2 e5 7.Nb3 Be7 8.Bg5 Nc6 9.Qd3 Nb4 10.Qd2 h6 11.Bxf6 Bxf6 12.Nd5 Nxd5 13.Qxd5 Qc7 14.O-O-O Be7 15.Kb1 Be6 16.Qd3 O-O 17.f4 exf4 18.Nd4 Bd7 19.Rhf1 Bf6 20.Rxf4 Be5 21.Rff1 Rac8 22.c3 b5 23.Nf3 Be6 24.Nd4 Bc4 25.Qf3 b4 26.cxb4 Qb6 27.Bxc4 Rxc4 28.Nc2 Rfc8 29.Rd2 Qc6 30.Qxf7+ Kh8 31.Qf2 a5 32.a3 axb4 33.Nxb4 Qxe4+ 34.Ka2 Rxb4 35.axb4 Ra8+ 36.Kb3 Rb8 37.Ka2 Qxb4 38.Rc1 Qa4+ 39.Kb1 Qe4+ 40.Rcc2 Bxb2 41.Qf3 Qe1+ 42.Rd1 Bd4+ 0-1[/pgn]
In round 5, the gloves came off, Carlsen would face Li Chao, and it may surprise some to learn that they have never played before. Carlsen, playing white, could bank on facing a Grunfeld if he planned to open 1.d4, but clearly took nothing else for granted — “… playing through Li Chao’s games before the round today, I realized that I don’t understand the way that he plays at all.” Compliment or insult? Answers on a postcard. The game itself was a sharp affair, in which players exchanged threats, counter-threats, mating threats, all over the place. It was clearly going to be a question of who would take their eyes off the ball first. Well, it would not be Carlsen, who seemed to be on a mission, and used the round to assert himself.
[Site “Doha QAT”]
[Date “2015.12.24”]
[Round “5”]
[White “Carlsen, Magnus”]
[Black “Li, Chao b”]
[Result “1-0”]
[BlackElo “2750”]
[BlackTitle “GM”]
[ECO “D70”]
[EventDate “2015.12.20”]
[Opening “Neo-Gruenfeld defence”]
[WhiteElo “2834”]
[WhiteTitle “GM”]{ Annotations by John Lee Shaw, for www.hotoffthechess.com } 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.f3 d5 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.e4 Nb6 6.Nc3 Bg7 7.Be3 O-O 8.Qd2 Nc6 9.O-O-O f5 10.e5 { All standard stuff. } 10…Nb4 11.Nh3 Qe8 12.Kb1 a5 13.Be2 c6 { Carlsen stated that he was quite happy to see this move, according to the game notes on the official site. The point being that it stops the black Queen going to a4. As compensation, though, Black has reinforced the d5-square a little; and, with the Queen on e8, White will always have to look at the possibility of …Qa4 with regard to any future exchanges taking place on d5. } 14.Rc1 { Carlsen contents himself with constructive waiting moves. } 14…Kh8 15.Ka1 Be6 $2 { I have to mark this as questionable. The move is not without spice, aiming along the a2-g8 diagonal. However, these kind of moves are rarely nice moves in my opinion, and only worth playing in either favourable circumstances, or when resulting in favourable circumstances. in this instance, it does nothing but hand White a tempo. …Bd7 is a respectable alternative here, though much quieter in appearance, but Black is probably reluctant to play that because he also wants to not mask the possibility of …Qa4, should exchanges take place on d5, as mentioned in my comment to 13…c6. } 16.Nf4 { Good chess, attacking the unprotected piece. The computer gives 16.Bh6 instead, here, but I don’t think that really offered much, Carlsen wants to improve his knight and follow up with h4 — good, human, chess. } 16…Qf7 17.h4 { In positions of opposite castling, players often probe each others position with pawn advances such as this. The objective is to open lines towards the enemy King. Evaluations will ultimately boil down to who has to take time out of their own plans first in order to defend. So, how does this fit together with offering the a2-pawn? } 17…Bxa2 { …Rfd8 was also perfectly respectable, lining up against the white Queen: } ( 17…Rfd8 18.h5 $1 { Sticking to the plan, which is best. (Not 18.g4? As tempting as it is, it is nicely answered with 18…c5! and Black is doing very well!). } 18…g5 19.Nxe6 Qxe6 20.f4 { This position is about equal. Possible continuations are …gxf4 …g4 or …c5, depending on how Black feels. } ) 18.h5 { A good move, but Carlsen is also committed. Anything else, here, would call his last few moves in to question. } 18…Kg8 { This move has to be played. All of this is what Magnus Carlsen has balanced against relinquishing his a2-pawn — time and potential. } ( 18…gxh5 19.Rxh5 { This is a highly unattractive predicament for Black. } 19…a4 20.Rch1 Kg8 { The only move, here, (…h6 fails to either e6 or Rxh6), but now the h7-pawn is at White’s mercy. A horrid situation for Black. } ) 19.hxg6 hxg6 20.g4 $1 { A super, optimum continuation. Carlsen demonstrates the nuances of opposite side castling very effectively. Compare the two wings, Black’s ‘theatre of operation’, if you like, is the Queenside, and White’s the Kingside. The Queenside is quiet, Black’s bishop on a2, knight on b4, knight on b3, they are currently spectators in events. Meanwhile, Carlsen is the one making potent progress towards the black monarch. } 20…Bb3 { Worth a try I suppose, there is not really anything hugely helpful here, Black has to fight, create problems, and hope for a mistake. } ( 20…g5 21.Nh3 f4 22.Bf2 { White is still very much in command, here. } ) 21.Bd1 { covering c2, mainly, but there is also a threat to g6 now aswell. } 21…a4 { It was necessary to defend the bishop, but this move was always going to be played ASAP anyway. All of a sudden Black is creating one or two avenues of his own. Don’t get me wrong, White is still very much better, but one wrong move and things can turn on a penny. This is the beauty of chess and the battle of minds! } 22.Qh2 { Mate threat #1. Black King hemmed in by its own pieces, Carlsen wastes no time in making it sweat. } 22…Rfd8 23.Qh7+ Kf8 24.d5 $1 { This is a very instructive move. It is very tempting for the attacking player to get focussed on the King, or on one area of the board, but here, Carlsen leaves things as they are on the Kingside and makes the most effective move, getting the central pawns marching, threatening e5-e6, hitting the vulnerable knight on b6, improving the scope of his e3-bishop. Giving Black a multitude of problems to consider, and ultimately solve. All this while one wrong move will mean that his King is toast. Fabulous. } 24…Nc4 { Li Chao wants to deflect and distract. He is barely hanging on and hopes for an error. } 25.Nxg6+ Ke8 26.e6 a3 { It is obvious that Li Chao has decided to go all or nothing long ago. He is going to get mated, or deliver mate himself. Attempts to save the Queen, here, are futile, after …Qf6, Qg8+ leads to mate for Carlsen. } 27.exf7+ Kd7 { This is a better option than …Kxf7, but White is still stomping here. } 28.Ne5+ { White’s play requires precision and nothing else will do, on account of …axb2 and …Ra1 threats. } 28…Bxe5 29.Qxf5+ Kc7 30.Qxe5+ $1 { One of the tricks to being material up, is knowing when to give it back in order to further the campaign. Being a Queen to the good, it is tempting to try to hang on to it, but Carlsen decided many moves ago, that here he would relinquish the material edge in order to convert the position to one in which Black’s counter chances are neutralised, and the resulting situation is one in which White is assured of the point. A fine display of chess maturity. } 30…Nxe5 31.Bxb3 axb2+ 32.Kxb2 Nbd3+ 33.Kb1 Nxc1 34.Rxc1 Kc8 ( 34…Nxf7 { changes nothing — just as an example: } 35.dxc6 bxc6 36.Bxf7 Rf8 37.Be6 Rxf3 38.Nd5+ Kd6 39.Bc5+ Kxe6 40.Nc7+ ) 35.dxc6 bxc6 36.f4 1-0[/pgn]
And so, with Anish Giri being held to a draw by Wesley So, Carlsen would enjoy sole lead of the tournament. Hot on his heels, though, would be the likes of Anish Giri, Vladimir Kramnik, Sergey Karjakin, and Shakhriyar Mamedyarov. Going in to the penultimate round, Mamedyarov had joined Carlsen at the top of the table, along with Sanan Sjugirov. But Sjugirov would be facing Vladimir Kramnik with black, which (no disrespect to Sjugirov) would be a tough task, so Carlsen must have been thinking that a win over Mamedyarov was what he should be going for. He would have black, also, but he plays it just as positively as he does White. He actually made quite light work of it in their Queens Gambit Declined — or is it more accurate to say that Mamedyarov fell on his own sword? Judge for yourself.
[Site “Doha QAT”]
[Date “2015.12.28”]
[Round “8”]
[White “Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar”]
[Black “Carlsen, Magnus”]
[Result “0-1”]
[BlackElo “2834”]
[BlackTitle “GM”]
[ECO “D38”]
[EventDate “2015.12.20”]
[Opening “QGD”]
[Variation “Ragozin variation”]
[WhiteElo “2748”]
[WhiteTitle “GM”]{ Annotations by John Lee Shaw, for www.hotoffthechess.com } 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.Nc3 Bb4 5.Bg5 h6 6.Bxf6 Qxf6 7.e3 O-O 8.Rc1 dxc4 9.Bxc4 c5 10.O-O { All fairly routine so far. } 10…cxd4 11.Ne4 Qe7 12.exd4 Rd8 { It is always good practice to place a rook along open (or in this case semi-open) files. Even better if it is opposite the opponent’s Queen. And it follows that it is usually prudent to move the Queen, hence Black’s next. } 13.Qe2 Nc6 14.Rfd1 { Things are pretty much even here, perhaps a very slight first-move-edge to White, but nothing telling. It is instructive to note that, even though there have been a couple of exchanges, both players are merely content to develop and make good constructive moves. } 14…Ba5 { Black prepares to start to target White’s isolated pawn with another piece, the Bishop on its way to b6. } 15.Ng3 Bb6 16.Qe4 { I am not sure I would like this move under normal circumstances, however, here it is the secret to the validity of White’s play so far. The Queen is not exposed on e4, (…f5 would simply lose a pawn to Nxf5, the e6-pawn being pinned by the Bishop on c4), and can later on swing over to the flank at will. } 16…Bd7 17.h4 Be8 18.a3 { A quiet-looking move, but strategic in foundation. When playing against the isolated pawn, one wishes to blockade the pawn, fixing it in place, before piling pieces on it. So, Black would really like to establish a piece on d5. In Black’s current situation, the only way to do this would be …Nb4 and then …Nd5 — a3 rules this out. } 18…Rd6 { Carlsen begins to pile up on the pawn, deciding to use the open line to it to his advantage. } 19.Qg4 Rad8 20.d5 { White is committed to this, the pawn can not be held on d4. } 20…Qf8 { The best move, perfectly highlighting the problems in White’s position. Mamedyarov’s d-pawn is doomed, and his pieces are not reallly influencing events. Infact, the only piece that could be said to be doing something is the Bishop on c4. Meanwhile, Carlsen, having successfully muted White’s play so far, is ready to pounce. } ( 20…exd5 { leads to a sacrifice of the exchange, which is probably going to work out better for White, with the following natural variation. } 21.Nf5 Qf6 22.Nxd6 Rxd6 23.Bxd5 Qxb2 24.Qe4 Qxf2+ 25.Kh1 Qe3 26.Qxe3 Bxe3 27.Rxc6 Bxc6 28.Bxf7+ Kxf7 29.Rxd6 { With a slight edge to White, but whether anything can be realised from it is unclear. } ) 21.Qe4 Ne7 { 20…Qf8 has of course freed up the e7-square for the Knight. } 22.Bd3 { A sign that White doesn’t really appreciate the nuances in the position. He doesn’t really have this resource, as Black now demonstrates. } 22…f5 { It is hard to imagine that White would have played Bd3 if he thought this was possible. } 23.Qe5 Nxd5 24.Bxf5 $4 { This move reinforces the notion that Mamedyarov has got something wrong somewhere. } 24…exf5 25.Nxf5 { The idea behind White’s play is the e7-square — Nf5-e7 is check, forks d5, and the square is guarded only by Black’s Queen. White assumes that the Rook on d6 will move, after which he has Rxd5 followed by Ne7+, (if …R6d7, for example), but he is in for a shock. } 25…Rc6 $3 { Perfectly demonstrating the error in White’s calculations, but even 25…Bc6 would have sufficed, here, giving the rook but obtaining good quality minor pieces and activity. …Rc6 is more immediate, and white must accept his material loss without compensation. Thus, Mamedyarov resigned. What is notable in this game, is that Carlsen did not really make any agressive moves himself, but merely made good quality moves, more than adequately refuting the out of context agression shown by his opponent. } ( 25…Bc6 26.Nxd6 Rxd6 27.Rd2 Rg6 { and black is still miles better, here, thanks to the vastly superior pieces and activity. } ) 0-1[/pgn]
The above win taken into account, along with the fact that Carlsen’s main rivals (Giri, Ponomariov, Karjakin, etc.) drew, other than Kramnik, who did indeed defeat Sanan Sjugirov, meant that Magnus Carlsen would lead by a half point, (over Kramnik and defending champion, Yu Yangyi), at the end of round 8 on 6.5/8. Kramnik and Carlsen would play each other in the final round, and draw a rather tame Berlin. This meant that Carlsen would be assured of the title, unless Yu Yangyi could deliver the goods against Wesley So. Well, he did, in a game lasting 77-moves, which saw some good quality passed pawns overcoming knight and rook.
And so, Yangyi and Carlsen, would finish the scheduled 9-rounds with a score of 7-points. The event would be settled by means of blitz tiebreaks. Carlsen would wrap things up in straight games, a precise sacrificial attack in the first, and a miniature in the second, thanks to a blunder from his opponent.
This 2-0 score meant that Magnus Carlsen claimed victory, and the $27,000 (£18,313; €24,861) first prize. Yu Yangyi and Vladimir Kramnik would finish in second and third respectively. A nice, competitive tournament, and it is very good to see that some well funded opens are attracting the big names.
Final Standings:
[table id=6 /]
