Poteva essere una partita in cui uno dei due protagonisti avrebbe finalmente potuto incassare un punto intero e non soltanto mezzo e invece l’ottavo atto della sfida mondiale di Londra tra Magnus Carlsen e Fabiano Caruana è finita ancora una volta patta. E’ stato così eguagliato il record di patte iniziali in un match iridato, quello finora detenuto da Garry Kasparov e Viswanathan Anand, che pareggiarono le prime otto partite del Mondiale PCA, la Professional Chess Association creata da Kasparov per gravi contrasti con la FIDE, la federscacchi internazionale, Kasparov perse la nona ma poi sconfisse il grande campione indiano in quattro delle successive cinque conservando il titolo. Eppure le premesse perché uno dei due potesse vincere c’erano tutte: lo sfidante italostatunitense coi pezzi bianchi deve affrontare ancora una volta la difesa siciliana ma finalmente alla terza mossa si decide a giocare la variante aperta che prevede uno scambio di pedoni in d4, il campione in carica norvegese da parte sua alla quinta mossa gioca la variante Sveshnikov, una delle più taglienti di tutta la teoria delle aperture nonché una delle più popolari. Il duello è molto interessante, tanto più che Carlsen, che stavolta dimostra finalmente di voler giocare per vincere, finisce in posizione inferiore per un attacco di pedoni troppo impulsivo sul lato di re, ma Caruana alla 24a mossa invece di attaccare l’alfiere avversario delle caselle scure in d6 portando il cavallo in c4 oppure, meglio ancora, di entrare nel campo avversario con la regina in h5, avanza di una casella il pedone h mancando la concretizzazione di un vantaggio che, seppur non decisivo, era pur sempre un vantaggio. Da lì in poi la partita non ha molta storia e dopo 38 mosse i due si accordano per l’ennesima patta quando Fabiano ha re, una torre, alfiere delle caselle scure e quattro pedoni e Magnus re, una torre, alfiere delle caselle chiare e quattro pedoni. Ricordiamo che il record di patte consecutive (non iniziali) in una sfida mondiale è di diciassette (17!) nell'epico match tra Kasparov e Anatoly Karpov che si protrasse a cavallo tra il 1984 e il 1985 prima di essere sospeso dalla FIDE dopo 48 partite, in quello stesso duello i due inanellarono un'altra serie di 14 patte consecutive: entrambe queste serie non saranno più ripetibili, almeno per le partite a tempo lungo, visto che l'attuale regolamento, a mio avviso molto discutibile, ne prevede solo 12. Oggi quarto giorno di riposo prima della nona partita di domani. Di seguito lo svolgimento della partita di ieri coi commenti per ChessBase del Grande Maestro statunitense di origini filippine Wesley So, numero 10 delle classifiche mondiali e grande avversario di entrambi. Foto: Chess World.
[Event "World Chess Championship 2018"]
[White "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Site "London"]
[Round "8"]
[Annotator "So, Wesley"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[Date "2018.11.19"]
[ECO "B33"]
[WhiteElo "2832"]
[BlackElo "2835"]
[PlyCount "75"]
{Game 8 of the Carlsen-Caruana match. Many questions are in the air. Are we
going to see the same Sicilian Rossolimo or will we finally see 1.e4 e5? Will
they break the drawing streak and someone draw first blood?} 1. e4 {Fabiano
sticks to his openings as you can see from his games so far. With White he
plays 1.e4 and with Black he does not change his lines. This is not really
surprising as this flow is recommended in many top matches. Plus, Leinier
Dominguez being one of his assistants and a fan of this same system himself, I
think it's safe to assume we will see 1.e4 whenever Fabiano is White here in
London.} c5 {I can't help wondering though why Magnus sticks to the Sicilian
in these games. Against Sergey Karjakin two years ago he only played 1...e5
and had absolutely no problems. I suppose it's a matter of fashion and
personal preference. Before this Championship match the Sicilian was never
really the main opening of Magnus even less so the Sveshnikov.} 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 {Checking what Magnus had prepared against the Open Sicilian, I must say I
am surprised that Fabiano avoided going for 3.Bb5. He must have run out of
good ideas there.} cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 e5 {Now we see the long-awaited
Sicilian Sveshnikov! This opening became very popular during the late 90s and
early 2000s thanks to the effort of Kasparov, Kramnik and Leko. These days it
has a rock solid reputation and is often employed as a barricade to any White
attempts at an advantage. It is obvious Fabiano expected this and accordingly
prepared a special idea. The Sveshnikov holds good memories for me as back in
the days of my youth it was my one and only opening against 1.e4. One of my
first ever chess books was by Mikhail Krasenkow published in 1996! I also had
books by Yuri Yakovich and Dorian Rogozenco on this specific opening. It is
always a pleasure for me to annotate a game on an opening that has good vibes
for me.} 6. Ndb5 d6 7. Nd5 Nxd5 8. exd5 Nb8 {This is the main retreat, the
knight will be transferred to the kingside via d7 later on. Even though I have
not checked the most updated theory here recently, it is known that this is
the most solid option for Black.} ({Retreating to e7 is possible} 8... Ne7 {
where Black's plan next consists of Nf5 followed by ...g6-Bg7.} )9. a4 {
This is the first surprise. 9.c4 is the main move here. I wonder if Magnus'
team preparation anticipated this. It is not clear yet if this idea poses any
serious threat to the Sveshnikov. I am sure over the board it can be difficult
to face.} ({The normal continuation for most games here is} 9. c4 Be7 10. Be2 0-0 11. 0-0 a6 12. Nc3 f5 {where we have a typical position. White has a grip
on the queenside while Black has more space on the other flank. The position
should be close to equal. I had this position in some of my games many years
ago. One of them went} 13. f3 Nd7 14. Rb1 Bg5 15. b4 b6 16. a3 $14 {when White
seems slightly better but the game ended in a draw later on. ½-½ (58) Wan,Y
(2471)-So,W (2577) Manila 2008} )Be7 10. Be2 0-0 11. 0-0 Nd7 (11... f5 12. Bd2 f4 )12. Bd2 {Quiet, refined and dangerous moves like this one are very
much Caruana! Remember 9.Bd2 in the Ruy Lopez against Aronian in the
Candidates? (Though to be fair Grischuk played it first.) Anyway my point is,
there is more to this move than meets the eye.} f5 {This looks like a most
natural response.} (12... Nf6 {Seems like a good move that requires further
research. After} 13. Be3 a6 14. Na3 Qa5 $5 {A funny instance that could work.} 15. c4 Qd8 $5 {The idea is to blockade the queenside dark-squares with a5 and
b6.} 16. Nc2 (16. b4 a5 )a5 17. Na3 b6 {Black has accomplished his
strategy and the position now looks very interesting to me.} )13. a5 a6 (13... f4 $5 14. Bb4 Nf6 15. c4 a6 16. Nc3 Bf5 17. f3 )14. Na3 e4 {I think Magnus is
playing all the most logical moves here. He fixes the problem of needing more
space for his pieces by securing the e5 post for his knight.} (14... f4 {
is one of the suggestions I saw on the live book.} 15. Nc4 Rf6 {The idea is to
attack on the kingside with Rh6 while keeping the b6 square protected for the
moment.} )(14... Nf6 15. Bb4 Bd7 16. Nc4 Bb5 17. Nb6 Bxe2 18. Qxe2 Rb8 19. f4 $14 )15. Nc4 Ne5 16. Nb6 {Keeping the queenside in check. This protected
knight is very annoying on b6 and it controls many squares. Now White can
always grab the bishop pair if need be.} (16. Nxe5 dxe5 17. Bc4 Bd6 18. Re1 Bd7 19. Bf1 )Rb8 17. f4 exf3 18. Bxf3 g5 $6 {The best word to describe my
thoughts when I first saw this move is "shocking"! This looks at first sight
like utter desperation. With a powerful knight on b6 tying down Black's
queenside and significantly more space, it looks like White's opportunities
have a substantially higher chance to succeed.} ({It seems to me that much
stronger is} 18... Bf6 19. c3 Nd7 {to get rid of the annoying White knight.
The f6 bishop can then be posted on e5.} 20. Be3 Be5 )({Or Black can also
start with} 18... Nd7 )19. c4 {While watching this game live I thought Magnus
was in deep danger here. His attack does not seem to be going anywhere. At the
same time Black has to be careful not to weaken his king's position. And
White's play on the queenside is definitely faster. We might finally see a
decisive result today!} f4 20. Bc3 ({Trading the light-squared bishops with} 20. Be4 {is a serious option too.} Bf5 21. Bxf5 Rxf5 22. Bc3 {White has a
stable advantage.} )Bf5 (20... Bf6 {is met by the same c5} 21. c5 $1 {
it is incredible how powerful this pawn sacrifice can be.} dxc5 22. d6 Nxf3+ 23. gxf3 Bxc3 24. bxc3 Be6 25. Re1 $18 {when White is just totally winning.
The knight on b6 and the pawn on d6 totally bind up Black's forces.} )21. c5 $1 {Fabiano is playing accurately and powerfully. White wastes no time in
mobilizing his forces at the cost of a pawn.} Nxf3+ (21... Bf6 22. c6 $16 )22. Qxf3 dxc5 23. Rad1 {This seems like a most natual move. What can be more
instinctive than putting a rook behind a passed pawn? But here White had two
great opportunities that would almost certainly lead to a win.} (23. g4 $1 {
is an enormously powerful move. It kicks away Black's bishop from its ideal
square on f5. After} Bg6 (23... fxg3 24. Qxg3 {leads to a winning attack. After
} Bd6 {White has Be5, with irresistible threats.} )24. Rad1 Bd6 (24... Bf6 25. d6 $18 {Once the d-pawn reaches d6, it is over.} )25. Rfe1 {White is cruising
to the win. Black cannot defend against the rook infiltration on e6. Nc4 is
another huge threat.} c4 26. Re6 Qc7 27. Qh3 $18 )(23. Rae1 Bf6 (23... Bd6 24. Nc4 )24. h4 {also looks absolutely dominating. After} h6 25. hxg5 hxg5 {
We have the now familiar motif} 26. g4 {which just crushes Black's defences.
Of course although in both cases the lines are totally winning for White, lets
be fair. It's easy to see it with a coffee in one hand, a sandwich in the
other, and an incredibly powerful computer analyzing lines right in front of
you. Poor Carlsen and Caruana have to do all the calculating in their heads
over a board.} )Bd6 24. h3 $2 {I suppose Fabiano panicked a little in
the face of the threat of g4. White can opt for more active possibilities at
his disposal.} (24. Qh5 {looks like a natural move to me. If White is afraid
of the g4 push then he can play this.} Qe8 (24... Bg6 {is met by} 25. Qh3 {Now} Bf5 {can be replied to by the typical} 26. g4 $1 {gaining time and dislodging
the Black bishop.} Bg6 27. Rfe1 f3 28. Re6 {and now Rxg6 is a threat. It seems
that once a White rook gets to e6 Black's defences fall apart.} )25. Qxg5+ Qg6 26. Qxg6+ hxg6 27. Nc4 {White still maintains a clear advantage in the ending.} )(24. Nc4 {could be stronger still. Albeit the lines look a bit more like
computer variations. It is probably too hard for a human to find them over the
board.} g4 25. Qf2 f3 (25... g3 26. Qd2 Qh4 27. h3 $18 )26. Rfe1 fxg2 27. Qxg2 {Black's king turns out to be much more vulnerable than White's.} )Qe8 $1 {Black more or less equalizes now and does not give White any second chance
after his mistake.} 25. Nc4 Qg6 {Black manages to mobilize his forces very
comfortably. Now he is ready to fight for control in the center and he is a
pawn up. So Fabiano decides its time to trade pieces.} 26. Nxd6 (26. Rfe1 Rbe8 )Qxd6 27. h4 (27. Qh5 Qg6 28. Qxg6+ hxg6 {does not lead anywhere for
White.} 29. d6 {could just be met by} Rbd8 )gxh4 28. Qxf4 Qxf4 29. Rxf4 h5 {The last accurate move. It secures the g4 square.} 30. Re1 (30. d6 Bg4 31. Rxf8+ Rxf8 32. Rd5 Rf5 $11 )Bg4 31. Rf6 Rxf6 32. Bxf6 Kf7 33. Bxh4 Re8 34. Rf1+ Kg8 35. Rf6 (35. d6 Re2 $11 )Re2 36. Rg6+ Kf8 37. d6 Rd2 38. Rg5 1/2-1/2
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