The third round of the Tal Memorial was played on Thursday 29th September. It saw a bloody round of chess, after which a couple of players would leave with their tails up and at least one would feel a bit battered.
The win of the round (or maybe the collapse of the round, depending on how one looks at it) was seen in Mamedyarov-Gelfand. In a Semi-Slav, Black was punished for going pawn-grabbing, with his 19…Qxb2. It left White a pawn thrust in the centre, 20.e6 (!) which needed a very accurate response from Black, after which he should be ok. Gelfand got it wrong and Mamedyarov punished him very hard. Anish Giri also converted a nice game against Evgeny Tomashevsky, but needed to call on all of his technique in the complex endgame in order to out maneuver his opponent. It all came down to a lovely knight versus horrible bishop in the end, which left Black powerless. Ian Nepomniachtchi and Vladimir Kramnik got into a tense game in which White always seemed to have a foothold. The decisive mistake was 37…Nxf2 (?), and this gave White his opportunity to seize the point.
Aronian-Svidler saw a Neo-Grunfeld, in which White did not seem to have huge intentions and in any case, Black had organised himself very well. The players shuffled about a bit, but when neither could find a foothold, they exchanged down and split the point. Li Chao and Viswanathan Anand drew a Nimzo-Indian in which Black equalised rather effortlessly. White obtained the bishop pair, but they were rather hemmed in by his own pawns. In the end it was a rather uneventful game, even with White picking up a pawn. The players soon exchanged a couple of pieces and repeated.
All this left Anish Giri and Ian Nepomniachtchi commanding the top of the standings, in the lead on 2½/3. It would be interesting to see what round-4 would bring, especially for Boris Gelfand, who would no doubt be suffering from his implosion in this round. Also, it is not unnoticeable that Vladimir Kramnik is lingering near the bottom of the standings on 1/3, and he will no doubt be wanting to do something about that. At the moment, though, the event seems to belong to the young whipper-snappers.
Round-3 Standings:
- Giri, Nepomniachtchi — 2½
- Anand — 2
- Svidler, Li, Mamedyarov, Aronian — 1½
- Kramnik — 1
- Tomashevsky, Gelfand — ½
[Site “Moscow RUS”]
[Date “2016.09.29”]
[Round “3.2”]
[White “Nepomniachtchi, Ian”]
[Black “Kramnik, Vladimir”]
[Result “1-0”]
[BlackElo “2808”]
[BlackFideId “4101588”]
[BlackTitle “GM”]
[ECO “A30”]
[EventDate “2016.09.26”]
[Opening “English”]
[Variation “symmetrical, hedgehog system”]
[WhiteElo “2740”]
[WhiteFideId “4168119”]
[WhiteTitle “GM”]{ Annotations by John Lee Shaw for www.hotoffthechess.com. } 1.c4 e6 2.Nc3 c5 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.g3 b6 5.Bg2 Bb7 6.O-O Be7 7.d4 cxd4 8.Qxd4 O-O 9.Rd1 d6 10.Bg5 Nc6 11.Qf4 Qb8 12.Bxf6 Bxf6 13.Rxd6 Na5 14.Rad1 Qc7 { …Rc8 had been played here before, Kramnik’s move is perhaps a little preferable. } 15.Rd7 Qxf4 16.gxf4 { White’s play appears a little strange to me. He has surrendered the bishop pair and allowed this exchange of queens. I think Black would be rather satisfied all things considered. } 16…Bc6 17.Ng5 Bxd7 { This was one way to go, but …Bxg2 was also perfectly viable. As things are, there follows a rather natural sequence of moves. } ( 17…Bxg2 18.Kxg2 Nxc4 { and Black is slightly better than equal here one would have to say. } ) 18.Bxa8 Bxc3 19.Rxd7 Bxb2 20.Be4 { Withdrawing the bishop was not mandatory, here, Rxa7 also being an option. But the h-pawn will fall anyway, so Nepomniachtchi perhaps figured that re-deploying the bishop with a tempo was the best way to proceed. } 20…h6 { This move is not only about defending the pawn, it was most likely going to be played anyway, just prevent accidents on the back rank and free up the rook, which at the moment really isn’t earning its keep. } ( { in the case of } 20…g6 { White switches his tack with } 21.Bd3 { and if then, } 21…Nc6 { he follows with } ( 21…a6 { Doesn’t really achieve very much, the Black Queenside pawns remain a problem. It could see play continuing as follows. } 22.Rc7 h6 23.Nf3 Bc1 24.e3 Rd8 25.Bf1 { and White has a very tidy position. } ) 22.c5 { and then …Rc7, with an edge } ) 21.Nf3 Nxc4 { Looking at other variations at previous moves, (21…a6, above for example), I think that Black makes the right decision, here, whopping the c4-pawn off. The a-pawn is rather a liability, whereas the c4-pawn has the potential to become quite a thorn in the side. } 22.Rxa7 { Things are about equal here, I think. Black will be feeling quite content, having got rid of White’s c-pawn and his own a-pawn in one move. } 22…Rc8 { Placing the rook along a file that he knows will remain open, but also giving his Knight cover. To …Rd8, White would play Bd3. } 23.Kg2 { A prudent move, looking after the King and removing check shannanigans in the future. But this is also a constructive waiting move. How will Black proceed? } 23…Bf6 24.Bd3 g5 25.f5 g4 { This indicates that Kramnik fancies his chances. …exf5 seemed safer, but probably would be on its way to a draw. } ( 25…exf5 26.Bxf5 { Hard to see where a win is coming from in this position, it is quite level and simplified. } 26…Rc5 27.Bg4 Kf8 28.Rd7 { = } ) 26.Ne1 { The best retreat, White wants to reactivate this piece immediately (from g1 it is going nowhere fast) and infact, this is the first of four consecutive knight moves. } 26…e5 27.Nc2 h5 28.Nb4 Kg7 29.Nd5 { White can be rather satisfied, here, considering that Black has not been able to improve his position during the time taken during these knight moves. } 29…Bh4 { The position is rather complicated and unclear, still, both players getting up to mischief with their knights. Black intends …Nb2 and …Nd1. } 30.h3 Rc5 31.hxg4 hxg4 32.Nc7 { White has the same idea, Ne8 and Nd6. } 32…Kh6 33.Ne8 Nb2 34.Be4 Nd1 35.Nd6 Kg5 36.Rxf7 Bxf2 { ? A blunder. Correct was …Nxf2, crucially guarding g4. This becomes immediately clear as the game continues. } ( 36…Nxf2 { with absolute equality here. Possible continuations being 37.f6, 37.Rh7, 37.e3. or even 37.Bb7. 37.Rg7+ fails miserably here to 37…Kf4, when Black might actually be considerably better with Rxg4 ruled out. } ) 37.Rg7+ { Taking a huge initiative now, all based around the g4-pawn, which Black has handed on a plate. } 37…Kf4 38.e3+ Kxe3 39.Rxg4 { It is immediately apparent that the position has changed dramatically in the space of a couple of moves. The Black King is now in the lion’s den, the f-pawn is free to march and Black’s pieces are not well organised for either attack or defence. } 39…Kd2 40.Bf3 { Freeing the e4-square for the knight. This allows Black to exchange two pieces for White’s rook, but in this situation, this is a concession. White is decisively better here. } 40…Ne3+ 41.Kxf2 Nxg4+ 42.Bxg4 Rd5 43.Ne4+ Kd3 44.f6 { White pushes, and Black has only his rook left with which to fight. } 44…Ra5 45.Be2+ Kd4 { Not …Kxe4 of course — White plays Bf3+ and then f7 and the Black rook can not be retreated to a8 in order to stop the pawn. As it is, Black’s rook is doomed anyway … } 46.f7 { The pawn can’t be stopped without huge loss. } 46…Ra8 47.Ng5 { And here, Vladimir Kramnik resigned, powerless against Nepomniachtchi’s pawn and knight. } 1-0[Event “10th Tal Mem 2016”]
[Site “Moscow RUS”]
[Date “2016.09.29”]
[Round “3.3”]
[White “Giri, Anish”]
[Black “Tomashevsky, Evgeny”]
[Result “1-0”]
[BlackElo “2731”]
[BlackFideId “4147235”]
[BlackTitle “GM”]
[ECO “D02”]
[EventDate “2016.09.26”]
[Opening “Queen’s pawn game”]
[WhiteElo “2755”]
[WhiteFideId “24116068”]
[WhiteTitle “GM”]
{ Annotations by John Lee Shaw for www.hotoffthechess.com. } 1.Nf3 Nf6 2.d4 e6 3.Bf4 { These 3 moves signify The London System, which is widely played amongst amateurs especially, because of it’s very clear and simple setup and development. Infact, the first three moves can be played almost regardless of Black’s responses. As a minus point, it can lack shaprness, and does not demand a huge theoretical knowledge to be able to play, therefore it is not widely seen at higher levels. } 3…b6 { Just one of the many possible replies that Black had at his disposal here. } 4.e3 Bb7 5.Bd3 Be7 6.h3 O-O 7.Nbd2 c5 8.c3 { All very standard stuff. } 8…cxd4 { …d5 and …Nc6 were playable alternatives, here, but Tomashevsky chooses not to maintain the tension. He wants White to commit to a decision on structure rather than allowing him too much flexibility. } 9.exd4 { Creating a very spicy imbalance in structures. …cxd4 would have been a far less ambitious recapture. } 9…d6 10.O-O Nbd7 11.Re1 Re8 12.Bh2 a6 13.a4 Nf8 14.Ng5 Qd7 { a new move, …Ng6 had been seen in previous outings here. } 15.Qe2 Bc6 16.Bxa6 Bxa4 17.Bd3 Bc6 18.Nc4 Qc7 19.Na3 Qb7 20.Nb5 Qd7 { Black is holding his own very nicely, here, and is equal at worst. } 21.Nf3 Rxa1 22.Rxa1 Ra8 23.Rxa8 Bxa8 24.Na3 Bc6 { In hindsight, …Ng6 was perhaps more advisable, here, the Nf8 is not really doing anything. } 25.Bb5 Ne8 { Two knights on the back rank now, that’s hardly pretty. Black has to watch that he does not become passive. } 26.Bxc6 { Good chess from Giri — when one’s opponent has some pieces ineffective pieces, exchanges off the active ones. } 26…Qxc6 27.Qb5 { Forcing the Queen’s off also. It is hardly what Black wants, but it is not possible to keep the Queen on while defending b6 and the Ne8. } 27…Qxb5 28.Nxb5 Nd7 { Black wants to try to avoid playing d6-d5 at the moment, due to the possibility for White to play b3 and c4. } 29.Kf1 { White, with the advantage, begins the work of activating his King. Though he has the advantage, this position will take some converting. } 29…f6 { Black, defending, begins to batten down the hatches. It is very much a case of making preparations and seeing if White can prove himself. } 30.Ke2 Kf7 31.Ne1 Nb8 32.Na7 { aiming for c8, of course, which would attack b6, d6, and the Be7 — hence Black’s next. } 32…Bd8 33.Nc2 Ke7 34.Nb4 Kd7 35.d5 exd5 36.Nxd5 Nc6 37.Nb5 Ne7 38.Ne3 d5 39.Kd3 Nc7 40.Nd4 g6 41.c4 dxc4+ 42.Kxc4 Nc6 43.Bxc7 Bxc7 44.Nf3 { Nd5 was a good alternative to this, Black is standing fine here. } 44…Bd8 45.Kb5 Kc7 46.Nd5+ Kb7 47.b4 f5 48.Kc4 Kc8 { Black is defending very well, but the problem is that he is unable to get active. This enable White to make progress, even though it is not as quick as he would like. } 49.Nf4 Bc7 50.Ne6 Bd6 51.b5 Ne7 52.Nfg5 h5 { White’s grip on the position has increased dramatically, but winning from here is still going to take patience and technique. } 53.Nf7 Bh2 54.Nf8 Bg1 55.f4 Be3 56.Ne5 g5 57.fxg5 Bxg5 58.Nfg6 Nxg6 59.Nxg6 Kd7 60.Kd5 { The difference between the quality of the two positions is easy to see, here, the White monarch is dictating to his Black counterpart, who is now technically rooted to his square. } 60…Be3 61.Nh4 { It is very curious that with this move, Giri is targetting the b6-pawn. He will take advantage of the unfortunate misplacement of Black’s bishop. } 61…f4 62.Ng6 Bc1 63.Ne5+ Ke7 64.Nc4 Be3 65.g3 { A very nice move to have at one’s disposal. The Black bishop is vulnerable and overworked. Tomashevsky’s predicament is doom and gloom from here. } 65…Bc1 66.gxf4 Bxf4 67.Nxb6 { Very nicely done by Giri, a well deserved reward of a pawn. } 67…Bg3 68.Nc4 { The other way was Kc6, ruling out Black’s next, but Giri has it covered anyway. } 68…Kd7 69.b6 h4 { This move is as good as anything, Black is waiting for White to mess up now rather than being able to do too much to influence the outcome of the game. } ( 69…Kc8 70.Kc6 Kb8 71.Na3 { Black is struggling for constructive moves, here. The following moves show the kind of the that White is aiming for. } 71…Be1 72.Nb5 h4 73.b7 Bg3 74.Kb6 Bc7+ 75.Ka6 Be5 76.Na7 Kc7 77.b8=Q+ Kxb8 78.Nc6+ Kc8 79.Nxe5 { and White wins. } ) 70.Kc5 Kc8 71.Kc6 { From here Black is very much a sitting duck. But accuracy is a must as it is very easy to go wrong in situations like this, hence Tomashevsky plays on. And why not? He has nothing to lose. } 71…Kb8 72.Kb5 Kc8 73.Kc6 Kb8 74.Nd2 Bf4 75.Ne4 Bg3 { Absolutely illustrating the quality of the White knight, which is playing its part fully in the coming victory, compared to the Black bishop, which is totally impotent and a mere spectator. } 76.Nc5 Bh2 77.Kb5 Bg1 78.Nb3 Bh2 79.Ka6 Bg3 80.Nd4 Kc8 81.b7+ Kd7 82.Ka7 { And here, Tomashevsky resigned. The deciding factor is not only that he will soon have to give his bishop once White queens on b8, but that the awesome White knight will pick up the h4-pawn and dictate the resulting endgame versus the lone Black King. A very convincing conversion by Giri. } 1-0
[Event “10th Tal Mem 2016”]
[Site “Moscow RUS”]
[Date “2016.09.29”]
[Round “3.5”]
[White “Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar”]
[Black “Gelfand, Boris”]
[Result “1-0”]
[BlackElo “2743”]
[BlackFideId “2805677”]
[BlackTitle “GM”]
[ECO “D43”]
[EventDate “2016.09.26”]
[Opening “QGD semi-Slav”]
[WhiteElo “2761”]
[WhiteFideId “13401319”]
[WhiteTitle “GM”]
{ Annotations by John Lee Shaw for www.hotoffthechess.com. } 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.Nc3 c6 5.Bg5 h6 6.Bxf6 Qxf6 7.g3 Nd7 8.Bg2 dxc4 9.O-O Be7 10.Ne4 Qf5 11.Ned2 e5 12.e4 Qh5 { The usual move here was …Qe6, Gelfand goes his own way. } 13.Nxc4 exd4 14.Qxd4 Qc5 { Castling was also a good way to continue, here, very much putting the ball in White’s court as to how to proceed. Black either wants to be more confrontational, or wants to simplify the position. } 15.e5 O-O 16.Qe4 Nb6 17.Ne3 Qb4 { Black would be feeling rather happy with his opening, he is equal at worst here. } 18.Nd4 Rd8 { The game might have taken a different course had Black gone for …Bc5 here, with …Qxb2 to follow. } 19.Rad1 Qxb2 20.e6 { ! the perfect response to Black’s pawn-grabbing. Black is still ok, here, but must be accurate. } 20…Bxe6 { ? not the way to go. Correct was …Bf6, as can be seen in the variation. This move allows White to dictate the theatre of operation, in which he is in complete control. } ( 20…Bf6 21.exf7+ Kxf7 22.Ndf5 Bxf5 23.Nxf5 { = } ) 21.Nxe6 fxe6 22.Bh3 { ! bringing another piece into the situation. The immediate Qxe6+ (which Gelfand perhaps expected) would have been much less effective and Black would be fine after …Kf8. } 22…Kh8 23.Bxe6 { The situation is dramatically changed from a couple of moves ago and Black will be concerned. It is true that he has an extra pawn, but White’s pieces are vastly superior, as is his activity. } 23…g5 { Worsening his situation, but it is hard to suggest a move that does not do that. The problem is that White has a very flexible position and not all options can be covered. } 24.Ng4 { Immediately pouncing on the h-pawn, a weakness that Black has inflicted upon himself. There is also the follow-up of Ne5, which intends all kinds of nasty things. } 24…Rxd1 25.Rxd1 Qg7 { Black covers h5, but not White’s next. } 26.Ne5 { With a commanding position, Black does not have the resources to prevent White’s threats of Nf7+ or Ng6+, without major loss. } 26…Qf6 { Making the g7-square available for the King as well as hitting White’s bishop. This is not a huge problem for White. } 27.Bb3 { Poised for Nf7+. Bc2 is also possible in some instances. Black is toast here. } 27…Kg7 28.Ng4 { Boris Gelfand resigned, here. There is just too much going on for him to survive. The threat here is not only towards his Queen, but also to the bishop on e7. The Queen must go to f8 in order to not leave it hanging and after that, White plays Bc2 to which there is absolutely no defence. A very powerful attack from Shakhryar Mamedyarov. } 1-0
[Event “10th Tal Mem 2016”]
[Site “Moscow RUS”]
[Date “2016.09.29”]
[Round “3.1”]
[White “Aronian, Levon”]
[Black “Svidler, Peter”]
[Result “1/2-1/2”]
[BlackElo “2745”]
[BlackFideId “4102142”]
[BlackTitle “GM”]
[ECO “D70”]
[EventDate “2016.09.26”]
[Opening “Neo-Gruenfeld defence”]
[WhiteElo “2795”]
[WhiteFideId “13300474”]
[WhiteTitle “GM”]
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 Qd6 10.Kb1 Rd8 11.Nb5 Qd7 12.d5 a6 13.Nc3 Qe8 14.Qc1 Na5 15.Bh6 Bxh6 16.Qxh6 e6 17.h4 exd5 18.h5 Qf8 19.Qf4 Qe7 20.hxg6 fxg6 21.Nge2 Be6 22.Nd4 dxe4 23.Qxe4 Rd6 24.Nxe6 Rxe6 25.Qg4 Nc6 26.Ne4 Rd8 27.Rc1 Rd5 28.Qf4 Rf5 29.Qe3 Nb4 30.Qb3 N4d5 31.a3 Ree5 32.Bd3 Kg7 33.Ka1 Nf4 34.g4 Rf8 35.Bb1 Ne6 36.Qc3 Nf4 37.Qxc7 Nfd5 38.Qxe7+ Rxe7 39.Rh2 Nf4 40.Rch1 Rh8 41.Rc1 1/2-1/2
[Event “10th Tal Mem 2016”]
[Site “Moscow RUS”]
[Date “2016.09.29”]
[Round “3.4”]
[White “Li, Chao b”]
[Black “Anand, Viswanathan”]
[Result “1/2-1/2”]
[BlackElo “2776”]
[BlackFideId “5000017”]
[BlackTitle “GM”]
[ECO “E21”]
[EventDate “2016.09.26”]
[Opening “Nimzo-Indian”]
[Variation “three knights variation”]
[WhiteElo “2746”]
[WhiteFideId “8604436”]
[WhiteTitle “GM”]
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.Nf3 b6 5.e3 Ne4 6.Qc2 Bb7 7.Bd3 Bxc3+ 8.bxc3 f5 9.O-O O-O 10.Nd2 Nxd2 11.Bxd2 Qh4 12.f3 d6 13.a4 Nc6 14.g3 Qh5 15.e4 Na5 16.Rae1 fxe4 17.fxe4 Ba6 18.Bf4 Bxc4 19.Bxc4 Nxc4 20.Qb3 d5 21.Qb5 Rac8 22.Qc6 Rfe8 23.Rf2 Na5 24.Qd7 Qf7 25.Qxf7+ Kxf7 26.Bxc7+ Kg8 27.Bf4 Nc4 28.Rfe2 Kf7 29.Rf2 Kg8 30.Rfe2 Kf7 31.Rf2 1/2-1/2
[/pgn]
