[Event "3rd Norway Chess 2015"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2015.06.16"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Giri, A."]
[Black "Grischuk, A."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "B31"]
[WhiteElo "2773"]
[BlackElo "2781"]
[Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro"]
[PlyCount "83"]
[EventDate "2015.06.17"]
[SourceDate "2015.02.07"]

1. Nf3 c5 2. e4 $5 {Not the most common of transposition - a normal Sicilian
is on the board but definitely not on the normal move order!} Nc6 3. Bb5 g6 {
The Rossolimmo Sicilian is a popular way of preventing the Sveshnikov, a high
chance that Grischuk would have played that against 3.d4.} 4. Bxc6 bxc6 (4...
dxc6 {is the "safer" way but both captures on c6 are possible.}) 5. O-O Bg7 6.
Re1 Rb8 {Putting the rook in the half-open file makes sense...} 7. h3 $5 Qc7 {
However I am not so fond of this move. I keep wondering why the queen is on c7,
and later (and more importantly) we will see how the knight actually wanted to
go to this square.} 8. c3 Nf6 {A common idea in the structure, but the knight
gets kicked around too much.} (8... e5 $5) 9. e5 Nd5 10. c4 Nb4 (10... Nf4 11.
d4 Ne6 12. d5 {seems to leave Black completely squashed.}) 11. d4 $1 cxd4 12.
a3 Na6 13. Qxd4 {At this point Giri has a very comfortable position. His extra
space more than outweighs the pair of bishops, not to mention that Black is
lagging on development and he has to be careful that his king does not get
mated after 0-0 on the dark squares.} O-O 14. c5 $1 {Gaining more space and
making it difficult to find a move for Grischuk. So difficult, in fact, that
Grischuk was already in time pressure  by this point! With only 14 moves
played he had about 25 minutes left, not the situation anyone would like to be
in.} d6 $6 {Perhaps panic, perhaps a miscalculation. In either case this move
simply gives Giri a great initiative.} 15. cxd6 exd6 16. exd6 Qb6 17. Qh4 Nc5 {
Perhaps Grischuk was counting on some activity to compensat efor the pawn, but
in excellent fashion the Dutch player gives back the pawn an obtains a strong
attack.} 18. Be3 $1 Qxb2 19. Nbd2 Nd7 20. Rab1 $1 Qxa3 21. Rxb8 Nxb8 {The poor
knight has moved 7 (!) times in the opening, and although Black is now up a
pawn instead of down material, his kingside is difficult to defend. The
onslaught continues} 22. Bh6 Nd7 $1 {The best way of organizing a defense. The
knight must hurry up and defend h7.} 23. Bxg7 $6 {A little sloppy.} (23. Ng5
Nf6 24. Nde4 Qa5 $1 25. Rd1 $1 {with a huge initiative for White.}) 23... Kxg7
24. Qd4+ Kg8 25. Ne4 Re8 26. Kh2 {A cheeky move, and for practical reasons a
good one, though the objective evaluation is that this is too slow. Giri was
mostly putting pressure on Grischuk's clock that was ticking down.} a5 $4 {The
losing move.} (26... Qa5 $1 {Returning with the queen to the defense was
paramount. Here it is impossible for Giri to organize something decisive!
There are insufficient pieces to create threats once the queen returns.}) 27.
Nfg5 $1 {Very strong. Now there is no way of avoiding the move Nf6+.} Rf8 (
27... h6 28. Nf6+ Nxf6 29. Qxf6 {is decisive, with threats on e8 and f7} Rf8
30. Nxf7 $18) 28. Nf6+ Nxf6 29. Qxf6 {Re8 is now a threat.} Qa2 30. Re7 (30.
Nxh7 $1 Kxh7 31. Re4 {was also lights out.}) 30... Bf5 31. Nxf7 $6 {good
enough, but the easier variation was} (31. d7 Qxf2 32. d8=Q {and Black runs
out of checks soon} (32. Ne6 $1 {is a fancy way of winning.})) 31... Qxf7 32.
Rxf7 Rxf7 33. Qd8+ Kg7 34. Qxa5 Bd7 35. Qc5 Rf5 36. Qa7 Rf7 37. g4 {
Unfortunately for Grischuk he doesn't have any real hope of setting up a
fortress. His darksquare are too weak.} Kf6 38. f4 Kg7 39. Kg3 Kg8 40. Qe3 Kg7
41. h4 Kg8 42. Qe5 {White's next moves are h5-h6 and Black will be zugzwanged.
A nice game from Giri, even though the finish might have not been the most
precise.} 1-0

[Event "3rd Norway Chess 2015"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2015.06.16"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Anand, V."]
[Black "Caruana, F."]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "C65"]
[WhiteElo "2804"]
[BlackElo "2805"]
[Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro"]
[PlyCount "74"]
[EventDate "2015.06.17"]
[SourceDate "2015.02.07"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 Bc5 5. Nbd2 O-O 6. Bxc6 bxc6 7. Nxe5 Re8
8. Nef3 d5 9. O-O Bg4 10. h3 Bh5 11. Qe2 (11. e5 $5 {seems like the test of
fire, but Black has a clever resource.} Rxe5 12. g4 Nxg4 {otherwise e5 is
hanging.} 13. Nxe5 Qh4 $1 {And White can do nothing to prevent the perpetual
check on g3 and h3 since the f2 pawn is pinned by the c5 bishop.}) 11... dxe4
12. Nxe4 h6 13. Be3 Nxe4 14. dxe4 Rxe4 15. Qd3 Bxf3 16. Qxd8+ Rxd8 17. Bxc5 Be2
18. Rfc1 a5 {With eveerything traded off and the opposite colored bishops on
the board it is clear that this will be a draw, which it was on move 37.} 19.
b3 a4 20. Re1 Rd2 21. Rac1 axb3 22. axb3 Rd5 23. Be3 Bh5 24. Ra1 Bg6 25. Ra7
Re7 26. c4 Rd8 27. Rea1 Bc2 28. b4 Rd1+ 29. Rxd1 Bxd1 30. b5 cxb5 31. cxb5 Re5
32. Rxc7 Rxb5 33. Rc5 Rxc5 34. Bxc5 Bc2 35. Bd6 Bd1 36. Bc5 Bc2 37. Bd6 Bd1
1/2-1/2

[Event "3rd Norway Chess 2015"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2015.06.16"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Nakamura, Hi"]
[Black "Hammer, J."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A20"]
[WhiteElo "2802"]
[BlackElo "2677"]
[Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro"]
[PlyCount "105"]
[EventDate "2015.06.17"]
[SourceDate "2015.02.07"]

1. c4 e5 2. g3 Nf6 3. Bg2 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. Nf3 Nc6 6. O-O Nb6 7. b3 Be7 8.
Bb2 f6 9. d4 e4 10. Ne1 f5 11. f3 exf3 12. Nxf3 Nd5 13. Qd3 O-O 14. e3 Be6 15.
a3 Qd7 16. Nbd2 Rad8 17. Rac1 Nb6 18. b4 a6 19. Nb3 Na4 20. Ba1 Bd5 21. Nbd2
Qe6 22. Rfe1 Nb6 23. e4 fxe4 24. Nxe4 Qg6 25. Qe2 Rfe8 26. Ne5 Nxe5 27. dxe5 c6
28. Bd4 Nd7 29. Bf3 Rf8 30. Bh5 Qh6 31. Be3 Qe6 32. Bf4 a5 33. Ng5 Qf5 34. Bg4
Qg6 35. Bh5 Qf5 36. e6 Nf6 37. Bf7+ Kh8 38. Rf1 Ne4 $2 39. Nxe4 $1 Qxe4 40.
Qxe4 Bxe4 41. Be3 $1 {This is the key move. When Nakamura saw this he felt
confident in a victory. The point is that the threat of Bc5 is too strong,
simply destroying the blockade of the e6 pawn.} axb4 (41... Rc8 42. Bc5 Rc7 43.
Bb6 {costs Black a pawn, and it doesn't improve his position much, but it was
his best bet.}) 42. Bc5 Rd2 $6 {simply hastening his defeat.} 43. Rfe1 $1 Bxc5+
44. Rxc5 Rg2+ 45. Kf1 {Black runs out of threats and White wins easily with
his powerful passed pawn.} b3 46. Rxe4 b2 47. Re1 Rxh2 48. Rce5 Rh1+ 49. Kg2
b1=Q 50. Rxb1 Rxb1 51. e7 Ra8 52. e8=R+ Rxe8 53. Rxe8# 1-0

[Event "3rd Norway Chess 2015"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2015.06.16"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Carlsen, M."]
[Black "Topalov, V."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D43"]
[WhiteElo "2876"]
[BlackElo "2798"]
[Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro"]
[PlyCount "120"]
[EventDate "2015.06.17"]
[SourceDate "2015.02.07"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 e6 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bxf6 Qxf6 7. e3 Nd7 8. Rc1
g6 9. Be2 Bg7 10. cxd5 exd5 11. b4 a6 12. a4 O-O 13. b5 axb5 14. axb5 Qd6 15.
O-O Nb6 16. Qb3 Rb8 17. Nd1 Bf5 18. Nb2 Rfc8 19. Nd3 Bxd3 20. Qxd3 c5 21. dxc5
Rxc5 22. h4 Na4 23. h5 Rbc8 24. Rxc5 Nxc5 25. Qc2 gxh5 26. Nd4 Qg6 27. Nf5 Bf8
28. Rd1 Qe6 29. Rc1 Nb3 30. Qxc8 Nxc1 31. Qxc1 Qxf5 32. Qc7 Qb1+ 33. Bf1 d4 34.
exd4 Qd1 35. Qe5 Bg7 36. Qe8+ Bf8 37. Qd8 Kg7 38. Qd5 b6 39. Qe5+ Kg8 40. Qf6
Bg7 41. Qxb6 Bxd4 42. Qxh6 Qg4 43. Qd6 Qd1 44. Qd8+ Kh7 45. Qc7 Kg7 46. b6 Qg4
47. b7 Qh4 48. g3 Qf6 49. Qc2 Qe5 50. Qd3 Ba7 51. Qf3 Qf6 52. Qe2 Qc3 53. Kh2
Qd4 54. Qf3 Bb8 55. Kh3 Bc7 56. Be2 Bb8 57. Bd1 f5 58. Be2 f4 59. Qxh5 Qxf2 60.
Qg5+ {After a long defence, Topalov can resist no more. The combined threats
of the queen and bishop are decisive.} Kf7 {And White lost! He believed to
have an extra 15 minutes given to him on move 60, but they simply did not
exist.} (60... Kf7 61. Bc4+ Ke8 62. Bb5+ Kf7 63. Qf5+ Ke7 64. Qd7+ Kf6 65. Qd8+
Kg7 66. Qe7+ Kh6 67. Qf6+ Kh7 68. Bd3+ Kg8 69. Bc4+ Kh7 70. Qf7+ Kh6 71. Qf8+
Kg5 72. Qg7+ Kf5 73. g4+ Ke4 74. Qg6+ Ke5 75. Qe6+ Kd4 76. Qb6+ {And Black
loses. It might seem like a long sequence, but White should somehow stumble
upon it when he sees that other moves are not winning.}) 0-1

[Event "3rd Norway Chess 2015"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2015.06.16"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Vachier Lagrave, M."]
[Black "Aronian, L."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D38"]
[WhiteElo "2723"]
[BlackElo "2780"]
[Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro"]
[PlyCount "117"]
[EventDate "2015.06.17"]
[SourceDate "2015.02.07"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. cxd5 exd5 6. Bg5 h6 7. Bh4 Nbd7 8.
e3 g5 9. Bg3 Ne4 10. Qc2 h5 11. h3 Bxc3+ 12. bxc3 Nxg3 13. fxg3 Nb6 14. Bd3 g4
15. hxg4 Bxg4 16. O-O Qe7 17. Ne5 Be6 18. Bf5 Nd7 19. e4 $1 {Excellent,
opening up the position.} Nxe5 20. exd5 $1 {The point. Black has no good way
of responding to this move.} O-O-O (20... Bxd5 21. Rae1 Be6 22. Rxe5 {should
cost at least a pawn, but might have been the lesser evil.}) 21. dxe6 fxe6 22.
Rae1 $1 exf5 23. Rxe5 Qa3 24. Rfxf5 $1 {White's rooks are dominant, and he has
an extra pawn. Black was unable to create counterplay and after many moves MVL
converted his two extra pawns (after taking on h5).} Kb8 25. Rxh5 Rxh5 26. Rxh5
a6 27. Kh2 Rf8 28. Qb3 Qe7 29. Qd5 Qe2 30. a4 Qd3 31. c4 a5 32. Rh4 Qc3 33. g4
Qe1 34. Rh7 Qc1 35. Qe5 Qxc4 36. g5 Rg8 37. Rh8 Qf7 38. Rxg8+ Qxg8 39. Qf6 b5
40. axb5 a4 41. g6 a3 42. b6 a2 43. Qe5 Qd8 44. bxc7+ Qxc7 45. g7 Qxe5+ 46.
dxe5 a1=Q 47. g8=Q+ Kc7 48. Qc4+ Kd8 49. Qd5+ Ke7 50. Qd6+ Ke8 51. Qc6+ Ke7 52.
Qc7+ Ke6 53. Qd6+ Kf7 54. Qd7+ Kf8 55. Qf5+ Ke7 56. g3 Qc3 57. Kh3 Ke8 58. Kh4
Qe1 59. Qf4 1-0

[Event "3rd Norway Chess 2015"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2015.06.17"]
[Round "2.1"]
[White "Grischuk, Alexander"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A22"]
[WhiteElo "2781"]
[BlackElo "2780"]
[Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[EventDate "2015.06.16"]
[SourceDate "2015.02.07"]

1. c4 Nf6 2. Nc3 e5 3. e3 Bb4 4. Nge2 c6 5. a3 Ba5 6. b4 Bc7 7. Bb2 O-O 8. Ng3
d5 9. cxd5 Nxd5 10. Qc2 Nd7 11. Bd3 N7f6 12. O-O Nxc3 13. Bxc3 Be6 14. Rab1 Kh8
15. Rfd1 Ng4 16. Nf5 g6 $1 {This position is already very complicated. White
would like to retreat his knight, but he can't!} 17. f3 (17. Ng3 Qh4 18. h3
Nxf2 19. Kxf2 Kg8 $1 {With the incoming e4 and a very strong attack for Black.}
) (17. h3 Nxf2 18. Kxf2 gxf5 $15) 17... Nxh2 $1 18. Kxh2 gxf5 19. Bxf5 Qh4+ 20.
Kg1 Rg8 {Material is still even, but there are problems here for White:
Black's rook is threatening a sacrifice on g2 and White's king would be too
exposed.} 21. Bxe6 fxe6 22. Qe4 $1 {An excellent resource in a position that
would have been very difficult to hold in time pressure.} (22. d3 Raf8 $36)
22... Rxg2+ 23. Kxg2 Rg8+ 24. Qg4 (24. Kf1 Qh2 $19) 24... Rxg4+ 25. fxg4 Qxg4+
26. Kf2 {The computer gives Black an edge, but that doesn't seem right. White
has better practical chances than Black, so Aronian forces the draw.} Qh4+ 27.
Ke2 Qg4+ 28. Kd3 Qf5+ 29. Ke2 Qg4+ 30. Kd3 Qf5+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "3rd Norway Chess 2015"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2015.06.17"]
[Round "2.2"]
[White "Giri, Anish"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A14"]
[WhiteElo "2773"]
[BlackElo "2804"]
[PlyCount "105"]
[EventDate "2015.06.16"]
[SourceDate "2015.02.07"]

1. c4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 Be7 5. O-O O-O 6. b3 c5 7. Bb2 Nc6 8. e3 b6
9. Nc3 Ba6 10. Qe2 Qd7 11. Rfd1 Rac8 12. Nb5 Rfd8 13. Rac1 dxc4 14. bxc4 Qd3
15. Qxd3 Rxd3 16. Bf1 Rd7 17. d4 Rcd8 18. a4 Bb7 19. d5 exd5 20. Bh3 dxc4 21.
Bxd7 Nxd7 22. Nd6 Ba6 23. Nxc4 f6 24. Rd2 Bxc4 25. Rxc4 a6 26. Rc1 b5 27. axb5
axb5 28. Ba3 Kf7 29. Rxd7 Rxd7 30. Bxc5 Ne5 31. Nxe5+ fxe5 32. Bxe7 Kxe7 33.
Kf1 Kd6 34. Ke2 e4 35. Rc8 Ra7 36. Kd2 Ra2+ 37. Kc3 Rxf2 38. Rb8 Rxh2 39. Rxb5
Ke6 40. Kd4 Rg2 41. Kxe4 Rxg3 42. Kf4 Rg1 43. Rb6+ Kf7 44. e4 h5 45. Rb7+ Ke6
46. Rb6+ Kd7 47. Kf5 Kc7 48. Rb2 Kd7 49. e5 Rf1+ 50. Kg5 Ke6 51. Kxh5 Kxe5 52.
Kg4 g5 53. Kxg5 1/2-1/2

[Event "3rd Norway Chess 2015"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2015.06.17"]
[Round "2.3"]
[White "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "C78"]
[WhiteElo "2798"]
[BlackElo "2802"]
[PlyCount "104"]
[EventDate "2015.06.16"]
[SourceDate "2015.02.07"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O b5 6. Bb3 Bc5 7. a4 Rb8 8. Nxe5
Nxe5 9. d4 Bxd4 10. Qxd4 d6 11. Bf4 c5 12. Qd2 O-O 13. f3 c4 14. Ba2 Be6 15.
Nc3 b4 16. Ne2 b3 17. Bb1 bxc2 18. Bxc2 Rxb2 19. Rfb1 Rxb1+ 20. Rxb1 Qc7 21.
Rd1 Ne8 22. Qb4 Nd3 23. Bxd3 cxd3 24. Rxd3 Qc4 25. Qa3 d5 26. Kf2 Qc6 27. Nd4
Qc4 28. exd5 Qxd5 29. Nxe6 Qxe6 30. Qb3 Nf6 31. Qxe6 fxe6 32. Rb3 Rc8 33. Bd2
Rc2 34. Ke2 Nd5 35. Kd3 Rc7 36. Rb8+ Kf7 37. g4 Rd7 38. Kc2 Rc7+ 39. Kb3 e5 40.
Ra8 Rb7+ 41. Kc2 Rc7+ 42. Kd3 Rd7 43. Ke2 Rd6 44. h4 Nf4+ 45. Bxf4 exf4 46. a5
h6 47. h5 Ke7 48. Ra7+ Kf8 49. Ke1 Kg8 50. Ke2 Kf8 51. Ke1 Kg8 52. Ke2 Kf8
1/2-1/2

[Event "3rd Norway Chess 2015"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2015.06.17"]
[Round "2.4"]
[White "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C67"]
[WhiteElo "2805"]
[BlackElo "2876"]
[Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro"]
[PlyCount "89"]
[EventDate "2015.06.16"]
[SourceDate "2015.02.07"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 {The Berlin seemed to many as the logical
choice. Carlsen had just lost a game in the strangest of fashions, and going
for Caruana's throat after that might not have been so smart. That being said
- I think that Caruana is one of the best players, if not the best player in
the World, in the Berlin.} 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8.
Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. h3 h6 10. Rd1+ Ke8 11. Nc3 Ne7 12. b3 {Caruana had tried Bf4 a
couple of times before. This move is a little older and hasn't been seen since
2013, a rarity for the Berlin.} Bf5 {The computer's top choice, though not the
most common idea.} (12... Ng6 13. Ne2 a5 14. a4 Be6 {was Kamsky-Akobian, 2012.}
) 13. Nd4 Bh7 14. Bb2 Rd8 15. Nce2 {Part of Caruana's preparation.} (15. e6 Nc8
$5 {with a complicated position in Polgar-Howell, 2013.}) 15... Nd5 16. c4 Nb4
17. Nf4 {Fabiano played up to this point almost instantly, but stopped doing
so after Carlsen's response.} Rg8 $5 {What an interesting move! It is designed
against e6.} 18. g4 {Expanding on the kingside is one of the most common
motifs in the Berlin. Here Caruana secures f5 for his knight.} (18. e6 Bd6 19.
Nh5 {doesn't attack the g7 pawn with tempo anymore.}) 18... Na6 $6 {This move
regroups a knight that has already moved too much. Even though this is a
Berlin, Black has to develop at some point.} (18... Be7) 19. Nf5 Nc5 20. Rxd8+
Kxd8 21. Rd1+ Kc8 22. Ba3 $1 {A very nice prophylactic move - aimed against
Ne6.} Ne6 $2 {Based on a complete miscalculation!} (22... b6 $14) 23. Nxe6 Bxa3
(23... fxe6 24. Be7 {was the trick Carlsen forgot about when he played Ne6. A
big miscalculation for a World Champion!} b6 25. Rd8+ Kb7 26. Bxf8 exf5 27. e6
$18) 24. Nexg7 Bf8 {The tactics don't work out for Carlsen. Caruana can't
retreat his knight immediately. but he has a trick up his sleeve.} 25. e6 Bxf5
(25... fxe6 26. Nxe6 {gives Black no chance to take the hanging knight on f5,
since there is a checkmate threat on d8.}) 26. Nxf5 fxe6 27. Ng3 {The
resulting position is equal in pawns, but Caruana is dominating. His knight
has several excellent anchor spots, including h5 and e4. His pawn majority on
the kingside will be impossible to stop and Black's king is cut off from the
kingside. He makes the rest look very easy, which it was.} Be7 28. Kg2 Rf8 29.
Rd3 Rf7 30. Nh5 Bd6 31. Rf3 {Black cannot afford to trade rooks, but giving up
the f-file is not a pretty sight either.} Rh7 32. Re3 $1 Re7 33. f4 $1 Ba3 34.
Kf3 Bb2 35. Re2 Bc3 36. g5 Kd7 37. Kg4 Re8 38. Ng3 Rh8 39. h4 b6 40. h5 c5 41.
g6 {The passed pawn on g6 is too much. Carlsen by this point had a defeated
look on his face - and it's hard to blame him.} Re8 42. f5 exf5+ 43. Kf4 Rh8
44. Nxf5 Bf6 45. Rg2 1-0

[Event "3rd Norway Chess 2015"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2015.06.17"]
[Round "2.5"]
[White "Hammer, Jon Ludvig"]
[Black "Vachier-Lagrave, Maxime"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A29"]
[WhiteElo "2677"]
[BlackElo "2723"]
[Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro"]
[PlyCount "121"]
[EventDate "2015.06.16"]
[SourceDate "2015.02.07"]

1. c4 Nf6 2. Nc3 e5 3. Nf3 Nc6 4. g3 g6 5. Bg2 Bg7 6. O-O O-O 7. e4 d6 8. d3 h6
9. Be3 Kh7 10. h3 Nd7 11. Rc1 Nd4 12. Bxd4 exd4 13. Ne2 c5 14. h4 b5 15. cxb5
Rb8 16. a4 a6 17. b4 axb5 18. bxc5 dxc5 19. axb5 Rxb5 20. Nf4 Ne5 21. Bh3 Bb7
22. h5 Nxf3+ 23. Qxf3 Qd6 24. Rb1 Rb4 25. Nd5 Bxd5 26. exd5 c4 27. Rxb4 Qxb4
28. dxc4 Qxc4 29. d6 Qc5 30. d7 Qxh5 31. Qxh5 gxh5 32. Bf5+ Kg8 33. Re1 Bf6 34.
Re8 h4 35. g4 Kg7 36. f4 Bd8 37. Kg2 Bf6 38. Bd3 Bd8 39. Kf3 Bf6 40. Bf1 Bd8
41. Ke4 Bf6 42. Kd5 Rg8 43. Kc6 Bd8 {The computer claims, of course, that
White is better, but it doesnt' see a good way of making progress.} 44. Rxd8 {
The human reaction is to take the material, unfortunately it is insufficient.}
Rxd8 45. Kc7 Rf8 46. d8=Q Rxd8 47. Kxd8 h5 $1 {This is the move that saved
Black. It allows the king to come into the game and draw... by a single move!}
48. gxh5 Kh6 49. Ke7 Kxh5 50. Be2+ (50. Kxf7 Kg4 {wins White's last pawn.}) (
50. Kf6 Kg4 51. Ke5 Kf3 {and White has the choice between letting one of the
pawns queen, or allowing Black to take on f4.}) 50... Kh6 51. Bf1 {Already
necessary, other moves even lose:} (51. Kxf7 h3 52. Ke7 h2 53. Bf3 d3 $19)
51... Kh5 52. f5 Kg4 53. f6 h3 54. Bxh3+ (54. Kxf7 h2 55. Bg2 d3 56. Kg7 d2 57.
f7 d1=Q 58. f8=Q $11) 54... Kxh3 55. Kxf7 d3 56. Kg7 d2 57. f7 d1=Q 58. f8=Q
Qg4+ 59. Kf7 Qf5+ 60. Ke7 Qxf8+ 61. Kxf8 {Hammer looked absolutely devastated
after the game finished, but I have been unable to find a clear win for him in
any variation!} 1/2-1/2

[Event "3rd Norway Chess 2015"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2015.06.18"]
[Round "3.2"]
[White "Vachier-Lagrave, Maxime"]
[Black "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D47"]
[WhiteElo "2723"]
[BlackElo "2798"]
[Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro"]
[PlyCount "56"]
[EventDate "2015.06.16"]
[SourceDate "2015.02.07"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 c6 5. e3 {The Meran has been an
interesting battlefield for top players for many decades now. It is far from
being fully understood, as is clear in this game.} Nbd7 6. Bd3 dxc4 7. Bxc4 b5
8. Bd3 Bb7 9. O-O a6 10. e4 c5 11. d5 Qc7 12. dxe6 fxe6 13. Bc2 {This position
has been seen in thousands of games still.} Bd6 14. Ng5 Nf8 15. f4 O-O-O 16.
Qe1 {Qe2 and Qe1 are different variations, both have been seen many times.} e5
17. f5 $6 {From a practical perspective, even though this position has been
seen in dozens of games still, I cannot recommend closing the center. White
loses any chance for active play, his e4 pawn becomes a real target and it is
far easier to find moves and plans for Black than for White!} (17. Nd5 $5 Bxd5
18. exd5 exf4 19. Bd2 $1 {Is very unclear and has been seen in some old strong
games, such as Piket-Khalifman, 2000.}) 17... h6 18. Nf3 N8d7 19. Kh1 (19. Bd2
{seems more accurate, Kh1 was maybe unnecessary.}) 19... Rhe8 {Technically the
novelty of the game.} (19... Nb8 {was played in a strong correspondence game
between Knight-Loinjak, 2008.}) 20. Bd2 {Topalov criticized this plan after
the game, thinking that the idea to put the bishop on a5 was not good. I tend
to agree with him, but also fail to come up with a better idea.} (20. Be3 b4 {
leaves the e4 pawn undefended.}) (20. b3 {was probably ok, trying to prevent
c4 or b4 later, but after} Nb8 $1 {With the idea of Nc6-d4 Black seems to have
the edge.}) 20... Qc6 $1 {I like this move, putting further pressure on e4 and
disallowing any tricks on the a7-d8 diagonal.} 21. Rd1 Nb6 {Another strong
move. Black further controls d5, maybe threatens Nc4 and has the idea of
playing b4 in the near future now that White's knight cannot go to a4.} 22. Nd5
$2 {Perhaps based on a miscalculation, perhaps based on sheer panic of not
knowing what to do.} Nbxd5 23. exd5 Qd7 $1 {Not the only move for an advantage,
but definitely the most accurate. Black will take on d5 when he feels he is
ready, and for now prepares the advance of the e-pawn down the board.} 24. Ba5
e4 $1 25. Ng1 (25. Bxd8 exf3 {is completely winning as all of White's pieces
are hanging.}) 25... Bc7 {White isn't even down material yet, but d5 is very
lose and Black's strong pieces are better than MVL's. Another important factor
is the pressure generated by the e-pawn.} 26. d6 Bxa5 27. Qxa5 e3 $1 28. Ne2 $2
{Allowing Topalov to finish the game off quickly, but it was hopeless
regardless.} Qc6 {MVL simply threw in the towel, and it's impossible to blame
him.} (28... Qc6 29. Rf3 Rxd6 {and Black has every plus in this position.}) 0-1

[Event "3rd Norway Chess 2015"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2015.06.18"]
[Round "3.3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Giri, Anish"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "B51"]
[WhiteElo "2876"]
[BlackElo "2773"]
[Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro"]
[PlyCount "152"]
[EventDate "2015.06.16"]
[SourceDate "2015.02.07"]

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. Bb5+ Nd7 4. c3 Ngf6 5. Qe2 a6 6. Ba4 b5 7. Bc2 e6 8. d4
Bb7 9. O-O Be7 10. Re1 O-O 11. Nbd2 cxd4 12. cxd4 Rc8 13. Nf1 Re8 14. Ng3 Bf8
15. Be3 Rc7 16. Bd3 e5 17. d5 Nc5 18. Bc2 b4 19. a3 b3 20. Bxc5 Rxc5 21. Bxb3
Qb6 22. Bc4 Rec8 23. Bd3 g6 24. Nf1 Bh6 25. Ne3 a5 26. b4 axb4 27. axb4 R5c7
28. b5 Qc5 29. h3 Nh5 30. Qb2 Qb6 31. Qb4 Bxe3 32. Rxe3 Rc3 33. Rae1 f5 $5 {
Giri had sacrificed a pawn on the queenside for some pressure, but Carlsen
slowly but surely pushed him back. Now the Dutch tries some kind of desperate
attempt to break through the center and create complications.} (33... Nf6 34.
g3 {and White will slowly but surely consolidate and use his pawn on the
queenside.}) 34. exf5 Nf4 35. Be4 $1 R3c5 36. fxg6 hxg6 37. Bxg6 $1 {A
brilliant sacrifice... even though the position remains very complicated!} (37.
Nh4 {was perhaps easier from a human point of view.}) 37... Rxb5 (37... Nxg6
38. Qg4 Kf7 39. Ng5+ {loses very quickly.}) 38. Qe4 $2 {Surprisingly, White
has no win after this move. Carlsen had to find one of most brilliant,
machine-like and unlikely moves I have seen.} (38. Bf7+ $3 {This idea did not
occur to any of us in the analysis room. Talking later to Kasparov about it,
before he knew the answer to the "puzzle", he only knew that Qe4 was incorrect
as Carlsen played it. Instantly he thought of 38.Bh7+, but that move fails to
the surprising 38...Kh8! And instantly he smiled, thought for a second, and
said. "Of course, 38.Bf7+!"} Kxf7 39. Qe4 {Black cannot prevent the threats of
Qf5+ and Ng5+, even then it is not obvious how the attack proceeds, but Black
simply cannot save himself. We will not overwhelm the readers with the
analysis and instead invite you to try out the different variations, with or
without your favorite engine!}) 38... Rf8 39. Nxe5 $6 {spectacular but
insufficient} (39. Nh4 $1 Bxd5 {and White is up a pawn, but the position is
not clear at all.}) 39... dxe5 40. Rg3 Rxd5 $1 {The only move to survive, and
Giri did it with confidence. Carlsen thought for a long time after this trying
to come up with some idea, but there simply is no win in this position any
more.} 41. Qb1 {Inviting simplifications.} Qxb1 42. Bxb1+ Kh8 43. Be4 Rd7 44.
Bxb7 Rxb7 45. Rxe5 Rh7 46. Re4 Rhf7 47. Kh2 Kh7 {A dead drawn position.
Carlsen got more chances than he deserved, but Giri never let go of the draw.}
48. Rf3 Kg6 49. h4 Nh5 50. Rxf7 Rxf7 51. Re2 Nf4 52. Rd2 Nh5 53. g3 Nf6 54. Kg2
Rd7 55. Ra2 Rd5 56. Ra4 Re5 57. g4 Re4 58. Rxe4 Nxe4 59. Kf3 Nd6 60. Kf4 Nf7
61. Ke4 Kf6 62. f4 Nd6+ 63. Kd5 Nb5 64. h5 Nc3+ 65. Kd4 Nb5+ 66. Kc4 Nd6+ 67.
Kc5 Ke6 68. Kc6 Nf7 69. Kc7 Nh6 70. g5 Nf7 71. g6 Nh6 72. Kd8 Kf5 73. Ke7 Kxf4
74. Kf8 Kg5 75. g7 Kxh5 76. g8=Q Nxg8 1/2-1/2

[Event "3rd Norway Chess 2015"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2015.06.18"]
[Round "3.4"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Hammer, Jon Ludvig"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A29"]
[WhiteElo "2780"]
[BlackElo "2677"]
[PlyCount "114"]
[EventDate "2015.06.16"]
[SourceDate "2015.02.07"]

1. c4 e5 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. Nf3 Nc6 4. g3 d5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. Bg2 Nb6 7. O-O Be7 8.
a3 O-O 9. d3 Be6 10. Be3 Nd5 11. Bd2 f6 12. Qc2 Nb6 13. b4 Nd4 14. Nxd4 exd4
15. Na4 Bd5 16. Nxb6 cxb6 17. Bxd5+ Qxd5 18. Rfc1 Qd7 19. Qc7 Rad8 20. Rc2 Kf7
21. Rac1 g5 22. Qxd7 Rxd7 23. Rc7 Rfd8 24. g4 f5 25. h3 b5 26. Kg2 Ke6 27. Rxd7
Rxd7 28. Kf3 Kf6 29. Rg1 Bd8 30. Bc1 Kg6 31. gxf5+ Kxf5 32. Rg4 Bf6 33. Bb2 Rd8
34. Re4 h5 35. Kg3 Be5+ 36. Kg2 Bf6 37. Kf1 Rd7 38. Ke1 Rd8 39. Kd1 Rd7 40. Kc2
Rd8 41. Kb3 Kg6 42. f3 Kf5 43. a4 bxa4+ 44. Kxa4 a6 45. Kb3 b5 46. Kc2 Rc8+ 47.
Kd1 Rd8 48. Bc1 Ra8 49. Bd2 Rg8 50. Bc1 Ra8 51. Bb2 Rd8 52. Kc2 Rc8+ 53. Kd2
Rd8 54. Kd1 Rd6 55. Bc1 Rd8 56. Bb2 Rd6 57. Bc1 Rd8 1/2-1/2

[Event "3rd Norway Chess 2015"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2015.06.18"]
[Round "3.5"]
[White "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Black "Grischuk, Alexander"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "B33"]
[WhiteElo "2804"]
[BlackElo "2781"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "2015.06.16"]
[SourceDate "2015.02.07"]

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 e5 6. Ndb5 d6 7. Bg5 a6 8.
Na3 b5 9. Nd5 Be7 10. Bxf6 Bxf6 11. c3 Bg5 12. Nc2 Rb8 13. a4 bxa4 14. Ncb4
Nxb4 15. cxb4 O-O 16. Rxa4 a5 17. h4 Bh6 18. b5 Bd7 19. Nc3 d5 20. exd5 Kh8 21.
Be2 f5 22. g3 Qb6 23. O-O Rbd8 24. Kg2 Bc8 25. f4 Rfe8 26. fxe5 Rxe5 27. Qd4
Qf6 28. Rc4 Bd7 29. Rf3 Bxb5 30. Nxb5 Rxe2+ 31. Kh3 Rxb2 32. Rc6 Qxd4 33. Nxd4
Rd2 34. Ne6 Re8 35. Rxf5 g6 36. Rf6 Kg8 37. d6 Bg7 38. Nxg7 Kxg7 39. Rf4 Kg8
40. Rc7 Rxd6 41. Rff7 1/2-1/2

[Event "3rd Norway Chess 2015"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2015.06.18"]
[Round "3.1"]
[White "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Black "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A35"]
[WhiteElo "2802"]
[BlackElo "2805"]
[Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro"]
[PlyCount "111"]
[EventDate "2015.06.16"]
[SourceDate "2015.02.07"]

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. Nc3 Nc6 4. g3 d5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. Bg2 g6 7. O-O Bg7 8.
Nxd5 Qxd5 9. d3 O-O 10. Be3 Bd7 11. Nd4 Qd6 12. Nxc6 Bxc6 13. Bxc6 Qxc6 14. Rc1
Qa6 15. Qb3 b6 16. Rc4 Rfd8 17. Rfc1 Rd7 18. a3 Rad8 19. Rf4 Bf6 20. h4 Qb7 21.
Rc2 Qb8 22. Rf3 Rd5 23. Bg5 Qd6 24. Bxf6 exf6 25. Qa4 a5 26. Qf4 f5 27. Qxd6
R8xd6 28. Rf4 Rd4 29. Rxd4 Rxd4 30. Kg2 Kg7 31. Rc3 Kf6 32. e3 Rd6 33. Kf3 Ke5
34. a4 Kd5 35. Ke2 Rd7 36. Kd2 h6 37. Rc1 Kc6 38. Kc3 {The endgame here looks
to be about even. Perhaps White has the tiniest of pulls, but that must be the
extent of it.} b5 $2 {An inexplicable move, shattering his own pawn structure.
Still, with perfect play one would think Black should have no problems holding
a draw.} (38... Kd5 $11) 39. axb5+ Kxb5 40. b3 g5 $4 {But this move is
completely suicidal. The mistake is very hard to understand. Why does Black
shatter his own pawn structure and give White such a wonderful open file to
attack his pawns? It's a mistake that doesn't seem to be based on a
miscalculation... just an incomprehensible move!} 41. hxg5 hxg5 42. Rh1 Ra7 43.
Rh7 f4 44. gxf4 gxf4 45. e4 $1 {With this move White threats to wrap around
with Rh4 and take the f4 pawn for free. Caruana attempts some counterplay but
it falls way short.} a4 46. bxa4+ Rxa4 47. Rxf7 Ra3+ 48. Kd2 Ra2+ 49. Ke1 Ra3
50. Ke2 Ra2+ 51. Kf3 Rd2 52. Rd7 Kc6 53. Rd5 Kb6 54. e5 Kc6 55. Rd8 Kc7 56. Rd6
{1-0 (19) Nakamura,H (2802)-Caruana,F (2805) Stavanger NOR 2015 [Ramirez
Alvarez,Alejandro]} 1-0

[Event "3rd Norway Chess 2015"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2015.06.19"]
[Round "4.1"]
[White "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D38"]
[WhiteElo "2798"]
[BlackElo "2780"]
[Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro"]
[PlyCount "115"]
[EventDate "2015.06.16"]
[SourceDate "2015.02.07"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bxf6 Qxf6 7. Qa4+ Nc6 8.
e3 O-O 9. Be2 dxc4 10. O-O Bd7 11. Bxc4 Bxc3 12. bxc3 Rfd8 13. Be2 Be8 14. Qa3
Qe7 15. Qb2 Na5 16. Qb4 Qxb4 17. cxb4 Nc6 18. Rab1 a5 19. bxa5 Nxa5 20. Rfc1
Rdc8 21. Ne1 Ra7 22. Nd3 Nc6 23. Bf3 Nd8 24. Nb4 Ra5 25. h4 Kf8 26. Rc3 c6 27.
Bd1 Ke7 28. Bb3 c5 29. Nd3 b6 30. dxc5 bxc5 31. f3 Rc7 32. e4 Nb7 33. Rbc1 Ba4
34. e5 Rc6 35. Kh2 Rb6 36. h5 Bxb3 37. axb3 Kd7 $2 {After playing a tough and
passive defense, Aronian seemed to be finally be heading towards a draw. The
position seems even as White can only win the c5 pawn by losing his own b3
pawn, but disaster strikes... out of nowhere!} (37... Rab5 38. Nxc5 Rxc5 39.
Rxc5 Nxc5 40. Rxc5 Rxb3 (40... Rb7 $1 {with good chances to hold the endgame.})
41. Rc7+ Ke8 42. Rc8+ Ke7 43. Rg8 $16) 38. b4 $1 {Strangely this pawn is
poisoned due to a mating attack.} cxb4 39. Rc8 {The immediate threat is R1c7
mate, not an easy move to parry!} Nd8 40. R1c7+ Ke8 41. Nc5 {This is the point
of Topalov's combination - which Aronian clearly missed. Rd7 is unstoppable
next move, creating a deadly Rxd8 mating threat. The Armenian gave up the
exchange and put up a valiant fight, but the material difference was too big.}
Rxc5 42. Rxc5 b3 43. Rc1 Kd7 44. R8c7+ Ke8 45. Rc8 Kd7 46. R8c3 Ke7 47. Rd3 Nb7
48. Rdc3 Nd8 49. f4 f6 50. Rc7+ Ke8 51. Rxg7 fxe5 52. Rcc7 Kf8 53. Rh7 Kg8 54.
Rcg7+ Kf8 55. Rd7 Kg8 56. Rxh6 Nf7 57. Rg6+ Kh8 58. Rf6 1-0

[Event "3rd Norway Chess 2015"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2015.06.19"]
[Round "4.2"]
[White "Giri, Anish"]
[Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "C78"]
[WhiteElo "2773"]
[BlackElo "2802"]
[PlyCount "117"]
[EventDate "2015.06.16"]
[SourceDate "2015.02.07"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O b5 6. Bb3 Bc5 7. c3 d6 8. a4
Rb8 9. d4 Bb6 10. Na3 O-O 11. axb5 axb5 12. Nxb5 Bg4 13. Bc2 exd4 14. cxd4 d5
15. e5 Ne4 16. Ra3 f6 17. exf6 Qxf6 18. Nc3 Bxf3 19. gxf3 Nxc3 20. bxc3 Qxf3
21. Qxf3 Rxf3 22. Kg2 Rbf8 23. Bb3 R3f5 24. Ra2 Na5 25. Bc2 R5f6 26. Bd3 Nb7
27. Re1 Rf3 28. Rd2 Ba5 29. Bb2 c5 30. Ba6 Nd6 31. dxc5 Ne4 32. Rxd5 Rxf2+ 33.
Kg1 Rxb2 34. Bc4 Kh8 35. Rxe4 Rc2 36. Rf5 Rd8 37. Rd5 Rf8 38. Bd3 Rxc3 39. Kg2
h6 40. Ra4 Bd8 41. Re4 Bf6 42. Re6 Kg8 43. c6 Rc8 44. Rdd6 Rc5 45. Ba6 Ra8 46.
Be2 Kf7 47. Re3 Ra2 48. Kh3 Rac2 49. Bf3 R2c3 50. Bd5+ Rxd5 51. Rxf6+ Kxf6 52.
Rxc3 Rd8 53. Kg4 Rc8 54. c7 Ke6 55. Kh5 Kd6 56. Rd3+ Ke6 57. Rc3 Kd6 58. Rd3+
Ke6 59. Rc3 1/2-1/2

[Event "3rd Norway Chess 2015"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2015.06.19"]
[Round "4.3"]
[White "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C84"]
[WhiteElo "2804"]
[BlackElo "2876"]
[Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro"]
[PlyCount "93"]
[EventDate "2015.06.16"]
[SourceDate "2015.02.07"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. d3 d6 7. c3 O-O 8. Nbd2
Re8 9. Re1 b5 10. Bc2 Bf8 11. Nf1 g6 12. h3 Bb7 13. Ng3 Nb8 14. d4 {Notice
that White has wasted a tempo with d3-d4, but has recovered it by putting his
bishop on c2 without first stopping on b3. This direct transposition into the
Breyer System of the Closed Spanish cost the players 30 minutes on the clock.}
Nbd7 15. a4 c5 16. d5 c4 17. Bg5 Bg7 (17... h6 {is massively more popular, but
the idea of playing Bg7 without h6 has also been seen.}) 18. Qd2 {It's
difficult to kick out this bishop from g5 now, which is why most players
prefer to put the pawn on h6 before White can do this.} Rb8 {A novelty, and
not a very impressive one.} (18... Nc5 {was seen in the old game
Kuzmin-Spassky, 1973!}) 19. Nh2 $1 {A very classical idea. Anand swings the
knight to g4 to exploit the weakness of the dark squares around Black's king.}
Bc8 20. Ng4 {"I was kicking myself for not taking on b5 first!" was Anand's
reaction after the game. That being said, it is possible that there is no need
to take on b5 just yet.} (20. axb5 axb5 21. Ng4 $14) 20... Nc5 21. Nh6+ (21.
axb5 Bxg4 {is not clear as Black gets rid of a generally useless bishop for an
attacking knight.}) 21... Bxh6 (21... Kf8 22. Re3 {with Rf3 next move is too
dangerous. Black cannot afford to play like this, so he must give up the
bishop. Grischuk mentioned that something went wrong in Black's game if he was
forced to give up the darksquared bishop.}) 22. Bxh6 bxa4 {Black's counterplay
on the b-file is not terribly threatening. White has several ideas on how to
proceed, but Anand chooses a very direct and aggressive way - but first he
must close the hole on b2.} 23. Ra2 a3 24. bxa3 Nfd7 25. f4 {All-in. White
desires to attack on the kingside, specifically by launching his f-pawn
forward and backing it with his rooks on the f-file.} a5 $6 {Carlsen believes
he has some counterplay based on the activity of the bishop on a6 and the
weakness of d3, but this is not the case.} (25... exf4 26. Qxf4 Qf6 27. Qe3 Ne5
{is still a very complicated game.}) 26. Rf1 f6 {As Anand said after the game,
this is already a concession.} (26... exf4 27. Qxf4 Ne5 28. Bg5 {and it looks
very dangerous to be so weak on the darksquares, but Black's position already
looks to be bad.}) 27. f5 $1 {Excellent. This binds Black's pieces on the
kingside and White will transfer his queen to the g4 square.} Nd3 $1 {Trying
to create counterplay. Carlsen will be happy to give up this pawn if it means
that he will have play on the queenside and if it slows down the attack on the
kingside.} 28. Bxd3 cxd3 29. Qd1 $1 {A nice move, perfect in Anand's style.
The queen will swing over to g4 to put pressure on g6, not bothering to take
on d3 just yet.} Re7 30. Raf2 Rf7 31. Qxd3 (31. h4 {was more precise, and some
engiens give it as a decisive advantage already! However there is nothing
wrong with first taking the pawn.}) 31... Nc5 32. Qf3 Ba6 33. Qg4 $1 {An
important move. Now White does not slow down and the attack on the kingside
cannot be resisted. Black could try to move Bc8, pinning the f-pawn, but that
is just sad.} g5 34. h4 Bxf1 35. Rxf1 Qd7 {Anand was running low on time, so
he decides to take a very pragmatic route.} 36. hxg5 fxg5 37. Qh5 (37. Bxg5 {
was also good.}) 37... Kh8 38. f6 {Whtie will at the very least regain his
exchange with a bishop check on g7.} Rg8 39. Bg7+ Rfxg7 40. fxg7+ Qxg7 41. Nf5
$1 {After this Black's position is absolutely hopeless.} Qg6 {otherwise Nh6
followed by mate.} 42. Qxg6 Rxg6 (42... hxg6 43. Nxd6 {is kaput.}) 43. Ne7 Kg7
{desperation.} (43... Rh6 44. Rf8+ Kg7 45. Rc8 $1 Kf7 46. Nf5 Rg6 47. Nxd6+
Rxd6 48. Rxc5 {is a totally lost rook endgame.}) 44. Nxg6 Kxg6 45. Rf8 a4 (
45... Nxe4 46. Ra8 Nxc3 47. Rxa5 {is hopeless, Black cannot stop  the a-pawn
with just a knight.}) 46. c4 h5 (46... Nxe4 47. Ra8 Nc5 48. Kf2 {also wins
easily.}) 47. Kf2 (47. Kf2 Nxe4+ 48. Ke3 Nc5 49. Rd8 {and the d-pawn falls.})
1-0

[Event "3rd Norway Chess 2015"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2015.06.19"]
[Round "4.4"]
[White "Grischuk, Alexander"]
[Black "Hammer, Jon Ludvig"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A20"]
[WhiteElo "2781"]
[BlackElo "2677"]
[PlyCount "97"]
[EventDate "2015.06.16"]
[SourceDate "2015.02.07"]

1. c4 e5 2. g3 Nf6 3. Bg2 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. Nc3 Nb6 6. d3 Be7 7. Nh3 g5 8. Ng1
h5 9. h3 Nc6 10. Bxc6+ bxc6 11. Nf3 f6 12. Be3 Bxh3 13. Rxh3 g4 14. Rh1 gxf3
15. exf3 Bb4 16. Qb3 Nd5 17. Bd2 Bxc3 18. Bxc3 Nxc3 19. Qxc3 Qd5 20. Rc1 h4 21.
gxh4 O-O-O 22. Qxc6 Qxc6 23. Rxc6 Rxd3 24. Ke2 Rhd8 25. Rc2 R3d4 26. h5 R8d7
27. h6 Rh7 28. Rc6 Rd6 29. Rxd6 cxd6 30. f4 Kd7 31. fxe5 dxe5 32. f4 Ke6 33.
fxe5 fxe5 34. Ke3 Kf7 35. Ke4 Kg8 36. Kxe5 Rd7 37. Rg1+ Kh8 38. Rg7 Rd2 39. Rb7
a5 40. a4 Kg8 41. b3 Rh2 42. Rb6 Rd2 43. Rb5 Rd3 44. Ke4 Rh3 45. Kd4 Kh7 46.
Kc4 Rh4+ 47. Kc3 Rh3+ 48. Kb2 Kxh6 49. Rxa5 1-0

[Event "3rd Norway Chess 2015"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2015.06.19"]
[Round "4.5"]
[White "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Black "Vachier-Lagrave, Maxime"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "B90"]
[WhiteElo "2805"]
[BlackElo "2723"]
[PlyCount "84"]
[EventDate "2015.06.16"]
[SourceDate "2015.02.07"]

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. h3 e5 7. Nde2 h5 8. g3
Be6 9. Bg2 b5 10. O-O Nbd7 11. Be3 Be7 12. Nd5 Nxd5 13. exd5 Bf5 14. f4 Qc8 15.
Rc1 O-O 16. b3 exf4 17. Bxf4 Qc5+ 18. Nd4 Bf6 19. Be3 Rfe8 20. Nxf5 Rxe3 21.
Kh1 Re5 22. c4 b4 23. Qxh5 g6 24. Qg4 Rxf5 25. Rxf5 Ne5 26. Rxe5 Bxe5 27. Rf1
Qd4 28. Qxd4 Bxd4 29. Bf3 Re8 30. Kg2 Re3 31. Rd1 Bc5 32. h4 Kg7 33. g4 Rc3 34.
Rd2 Be3 35. Re2 a5 36. Be4 Bd4 37. Bf3 Bf6 38. g5 Bd4 39. Be4 Be5 40. Bf3 Bd4
41. Be4 Be5 42. Bf3 Bd4 1/2-1/2

