GM Mikhail Golubev  annotates games

Round 2

Dominguez - Shirov

Shirov won a complex game in the Neo-Archangelsk Variation of the Ruy Lopez, in his trademark attacking style. Black had a typical for this variation uncertain compensation for the pawn. Alexei was not sure after the game about some of his decisions (16...Ne7 and also allowing 22.Nb5 later) but Lenier spent a lot of time at this stage. On the 25th move Black opted for a risky 25...dxe4, after which White went astray by 26.d5?! instead of the correct 26.Na7!, to which Shirov planned to respond with 26...Qd6!? 27.Nc6 Nd3 28.Nxb8 Rxb8 (insufficient was 28...f4 29.Nd7! - Shirov). Some curious lines like 29.Qh5 f4 30.Bb3+ (or 30.Rxg6 Qxg6 31.Qd5+ Kh8 32.Rg1 with mutual chances) 30...Kh8 31.Rh3 h6 32.Rg1 fxe3 33.Rxg6 Qf4 34.Rxb6 Rf8! were examined during the post mortem, but White should be able to improve on these lines and to pose some problems for Black. 26.d5?! was became a turning point of the game. Black quickly obtained the better position and could have won even faster (35...f4! 36.exf4 Rfe8! -+ Shirov or maybe 35...Qf3; and later 42...f4! -+ Marusenko). White's last chance could have been 44.Bd1!, which is still hardly sufficient after 44...fxg3! 45.Qxg4 Ref5 46.Ra7 Qf6 47.Qxg7+ Qxg7 48.Rxg7 Kxg7.

0-1

Rublevsky - Svidler

Atypically for him, Svidler played the Caro-Kann Defence. Rublevsky opted for the closed 3.e5 line. A draw was agreed as quickly as on move 13 when Black was at least not worse. After the game opponents shared the opinion that Rublevsky's 12.Bc3 was not especially good. Instead, the critical continuation is 12.cxd5! exd5!? (12...Nxd5 13.Ne1!, planning Bd3 - Svidler). The last move of the game was 13.h3. Rublevsky calculated an interesting variation 13.Qd2 b6 14.Bd3 Bg4 15.cxd5 Nxd5 16.Nxg5! hxg5 17.Qxg5 Bf5 18.Bxf5 exf5 19.Qxf5 with three pawn for a piece, but he also saw that Black has a simple 15...cxd5! in this line.

0.5-0.5

Eljanov - Karjakin

A nice victory by Karjakin in the mere 28 moves. In the Chebanenko Slav he showed a very interesting novelty: a piece sacrifice 12...Nxf2!? 13.Kxf2 Bd6. After a long think Eljanov played 14.g3 (other options were 14.Nxc6, undoubtedly prepared by Karjakin at home; also 14.e4!? and so on). After 17...Ne6 Black's position was already more promising, but 19...Qg5 was possibly a bit imprecise (he could play 19...Nc5! instead). As Eljanov's second GM Brodsky pointed out, instead of 21.h5?, much stronger for White would have been 21.Bh5 Qf5 (or 21...Qf6 22.Rf1!) 22.Qf3! (but not 22.Rf1? Nf4+) with a possible repetition of moves after 22...Qc2 23.Qd1! =. Neither Eljanov nor Karjakin saw this line during the game. The final White's mistake probably was 22.Rh4?!. After the best 22.e4 Nf4+ 23.Bxf4 Qxg4 (23...exf4? 24.Bxd7+-) 24.Qxg4 Bxg4 25.Rh4! Black would have been better but not yet winning.

0-1

Ivanchuk - Nisipeanu

In the Vienna Variation of the Queen's Gambit Declined, Black used a very rare idea 10...Nxe4, related with a sacrifice of this queen for the rook + bishop. But Nisipeanu did not manage to solve the opening problems. On the 12th move 12...Nxf2 13.Nxc6 Nxd1 14.Qxb4 Bxc6 15.Bxc4 Nf2 16.Rf1 would possibly have been insufficient as well. After Ivanchuk's 15.Qa3! he obtained reasonable winning chances and gradually converted his advantage. It is curious that only on the 18th move Black deviated from a 2007 computer chess game.

1-0

Jakovenko - Sasikiran

Jakovenko's chances were slightly better in the line of the 4...Nd7 Caro-Kann, which his opponent already used back in 1999. But Sasikiran's position always remained healthy - until he managed to lose a drawish rooks endgame, where only certain accuracy from his side was normally required to save half a point. At the first glance, 56...Kg4! 57.Rg6+ Kh5 58.f5 Ra4+ 59.Ke5 Ra5+ 60.Kf6 Ra6+ 61.Kg7 Ra7+ 62.Kg8 Ra5 = looks as one of missed by the Indian Grandmaster ways to a draw. After Sasikiran made some mistakes he was finally mated on the 72nd move.

1-0

Van Wely - Onischuk

The Queen's Gambit Declined with 5.Bf4 resulted in an equal middlegame. Van Wely's careless moves 30.Nd2 (trying to improve his position and missing Black's counterplay with ...f5 and e5) and, especially, 33.g4?! (better was 33.dxe5 Bxe5 34.Kf1) led him into serious trouble. Onischuk won a pawn and converted it into a full point in the rooks endgame.

0-1