CHESS

The world champion, Vishy Anand of India, secured his place among the greatest players in the history of chess, defeating the Russian challenger Vladimir Kramnik 6 1/2 to 4 1/2 in the world chess championship last week in Bonn, Germany. Only 14 players before him won the world title in an official match, one on one. Anand achieved his victory with fresh opening ideas and by brilliant but steady play throughout the match.

A Bumpy Finish

As in baseball, closing a winning match is not easy, but some do it in style and with the black pieces. I saw Bobby Fischer win the world title in 1972 after we analyzed together the last adjourned game of his match against Boris Spassky. In 1985, Garry Kasparov defeated Anatoly Karpov in the final game of their second match, employing a variation of the Scheveningen Sicilian I had introduced during the 1976 Manila Interzonal. The line, consisting of two "high-class waiting rook moves," had a double impact. It helped Kasparov to become the world champion and put a lid on Karpov's king-pawn opening. Karpov has not played 1.e4 as white against him ever again.

Needing only a draw with the black pieces, Anand lost Game 10 against Kramnik almost without a fight -- his only hiccup in the match. The next game was different. Anand forced a draw by playing sharply. Most commentators discovered that Anand and Kramnik followed a Najdorf Sicilian game I played in the German Bundesliga 26 years ago.

Anand-Kramnik

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Bg5 e6 7.f4 Qc7 8.Bxf6 gxf6 9.f5! (The most unpleasant line for black.) 9...Qc5 (After 9...Nc6 10.fxe6! fxe6 11.Bc4!, white has the edge as demonstrated in Radjabov-Grischuk, Sochi 2008.) 10.Qd3 Nc6 11.Nb3 Qe5 12.0-0-0?! (I have rejected this pawn sacrifice because of 12...exf5. I played instead 12.fxe6 against Murray Chandler in Bundesliga in 1982 and after 12...fxe6 13.0-0-0 b5 14.Kb1 Bb7?! 15.Qe3 Be7 16.Be2 0-0 17.Qh3 Kh8 18.Bg4 b4 19.Ne2 Nd8 20.Ng3 a5?! 21.Nd4, the pressure against the e-pawn was too much for black.) 12...exf5! 13.Qe3!? (Preventing 13...Be6 since 14.Qb6 is unpleasant.) 13...Bg7 (Considering Kramnik's situation, the messy 13...fxe4!? was a better choice, for example, 14.Nd5 Rb8; or 14.Qxe4 Be6 with a good game for black. Most likely Anand would have played 14.Rd5 and after 14...Qe6! 15.Nxe4?! f5 16.Nxd6+ [16.Rxf5? loses to 16...Bh6.] 16...Bxd6 17.Qxe6+ fxe6 18.Rxd6 Ke7, Kramnik could still fight. Better for white is 15.Nd4!? Nxd4 16.Qxd4 Bd7 17.Bc4 [Not 17.Nxe4 0-0-0 18.Nxd6+ Kc7! and black is fine.] 17...Bc6 18.Re1 0-0-0 19.Rxe4 Qd7 20.Qxf6 Rg8 and black may get some playground for his bishops.)

14.Rd5 Qe7 15.Qg3 Rg8 (Leaving the king dangerously in the middle, but after 15...0-0 16.exf5, white is clearly better.) 16.Qf4! (Eliminating most tricks.) 16...fxe4 17.Nxe4 f5 (After 17...Be6 Anand saw 18.Nxd6+ Kf8 19.Rd1 f5 20.Nxf5 Qf6 21.Qd6+.) 18.Nxd6+ Kf8 19.Nxc8! (Simplifying into a better position.) 19...Rxc8 20.Kb1 Qe1+ (20...Nb4 21.Rxf5 Rxc2? loses to 22.Rxf7+! Qxf7 23.Qxb4+, winning.) 21.Nc1 Ne7 22.Qd2 (Forcing a better endgame because of the threat 23.Rd8+ Rxd8 24.Qxd8 mate.) 22...Qxd2 23.Rxd2 Bh6 24.Rf2 Be3 draw.

Solution to today's study by M. Eisenstadt (White: Ka3,Nc5,Ne3,P:e6; Black: Ka5,Rh5): 1.e7 Rh8 2.Ne6 Re8 (or 2...Rc8 3.Nc4+ Ka6 4.Nd8 wins) 3.Nc7! Rxe7 4.Nc4 mate.