OUT OF ARMENIA
By Boris Gulko And Gabriel Schoenfeld
The New York Sun
March 17, 2006 Friday
The first intercontinental chess tournament in history concluded this
week. The first half was played in Morelia, Mexico, and the second,
across the Atlantic Ocean, in Linares, Spain. This superclass event
was won by the young grandmaster Levon Aronian, who lives in Germany
but plays under the flag of his native Armenia. After his outstanding
victory at the close of 2005 in the World Cup, and on the heels of this
new and equally stellar achievement, Aronian has propelled himself
to the very summit of the chess elite. Together with Veselin Topalov
and Viswanathan Anand, he forms a triumvirate of the best players in
the world. In his encounter with Peter Svidler in the Morelia-Linares
tournament, he won in classical positional style, gathering minuscule
advantages step by step and not giving his opponent an opportunity to
fight back in open struggle. Indeed, Svidler was forced to surrender
without having a chance to fire a single shot.
ARONIAN VS. SVIDLER (white) (black) Grunfeld Defense
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 4.Bg5 Ne4 5.Bh4 c5 Not happy with results of
the opening in this game, playing against Ivanchuk on the following
day, Svidler steered to the same position but deviated here to
play 5…Nxc3 6.bxc3 dxc4 7.e3 Be6 8.Qb1 c5?! but after 9.Qxb7 Bd5
10.Qb5+ Nd7 11.Nf3 Rb8 12.Qa4 cxd4 13.cxd4 Qc8 14.Rc1 e6 15.Bxc4 Rb4
16.Qa6 Bb7 17.Qa5! but he could not capture the c4 bishop because
of mate on d8 and fell into an inferior position. 6.cxd5 Nxc3
7.bxc3 Qxd5 8.e3 cxd4 9.Qxd4 Qxd4 10.cxd4 e6! Discussion of this
move dates back to 1970. In the game of origin, Taimanov-Uhlmann,
black received a terrible position after 10…Nc6 11.Bb5 Bd7 12.Nf3
Bg7 13.Rb1. The move played in this game was introduced in the same
year in Donner-Hort and for a long time was considered sufficient to
produce equality. Now, however, the old estimate has been called into
question. 11.Rb1 Black’s idea is that after 11.Bf6 he has 11…Bb4+
12.Kd1 0-0. 11… Be7! 12.Bxe7 Kxe7 13.Bd3 Nc6 Black has to blockade
the c- file. In case of 13…Nd7 14.Nf3 b6 15.Be4 Rb8 16.Kd2 Nf6 17.Bc6
Bb7 18.Bxb7 Rxb7 19.Rhc1 white would obtain control over the only open
file on the board. 14.Nf3 b6 15.Ke2 Bb7 16.Rhc1 Rhc8 Only this move
is a novelty, and an insignificant one. The game Sarkissian-Bobras,
2005, continued from this position with 16…Rac8 17.g4 h5?! 18.g5
and led to a clear advantage for white. The attempt not to enable
white to fix the black center with a pawn on g5 via 16…h6 17.h4 h5
18.Rc3 Rac8 19.Rbc1 Na5 20.Rc7+ Kd6 21.Rxc8 Rxc8 22.Rxc8 Bxc8 23.Ne5
Ke7 24.f3 would leave white with a comfortable advantage because of
the dangerous g2-g4 thrust, creating either a weak black pawn on h5
or giving white a passed-pawn on the h-file.
17.g4! h6! 18.h4 Na5 19.g5! hxg5 20.hxg5 Here black has fewer
problems than in the previously mentioned Sarkissian-Bobras game
because he is rid of the h-pawns. But white’s position is still more
comfortable. 20… Rxc1 21.Rxc1 Rc8 22.Rxc8 Bxc8 23.Ne5 Bb7
(See diagram)
24.a3! A characteristic subtle touch, depriving black of counterplay
in the variation 24.Kd2 Nc6 25.Ng4 Nb4. 24… Nc6 25.Ng4 Nb8 26.Kd2
Bc6 27.Kc3 Nd7 28.f4 a5 29.e4 b5 30.Bc2 f5? Black collapses under
pressure. Svidler had hoped to create a fortress, but its structure
is completely insecure. The problems are obvious in the variation
30…Bb7 31.Kd3 Ba6 32.Ke3 Bb7 (the best chance for black to draw
is in the line 32…b4 33.axb4 axb4 34.Bd3) 33.Bb3 Bc6 34.Ne5 Nxe5
35.fxe5 where white plays d4-d5, heads to c5 with his king, and wins.
31.exf5 exf5 32.Ne5 Nxe5 33.dxe5 b4+ 34.axb4 axb4+ 35.Kxb4 Bd7 36.Bb3
Bc6 37.Kc5 Be8 This loses immediately, but other moves didn’t save
the day. For example 37…Bf3 38.Bg8 Bd1 39.Bh7 Kf7 (Or 39…Bh5
40.Kc6 Bf3+ 41.Kb6! Bh5 42.Kc7 and black is in zugzwang.) 40.e6+! Kg7
(40…Kxe6 41.Bxg6 Bc2 42.Kd4 Bb1! 43.Bh7 Bc2 44.Bg8+ Kd6 45.Bc4
with two decisive threats 46.g6 or 46.Bd3) 41.Kb5! Bc2 42.e7 Kf7
43.Bxg6+ Kxe7 44.Kc5 Ke6 45.Kd4 and the white bishop goes to c4 or d3,
transposing the game into the same winning position. After 37…Bd7
38.Bg8 Ba4 39.e6 Bd1 (39…Bb3 40.Bf7 Bxe6 41.Bxg6 the game also
transposes into the same winning position.) 40.Kd5 Bf3+ 41.Ke5 Bd1
42.Bf7 Bh5 43.Kd5 Bf3+ 44.Kd4 Bh5 45.Ke5 black is in zugzwang again.
38.e6 1-0.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress