GM Einar Gausel annotates the
Corus tournament
Ivanchuk
(2717) - Kramnik (2772)
Wijk aan Zee (7), 2001
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6 4.d3
Ivanchuk is evidently not impressed with White's recent achievements
in the main line after 4.0-0 Nxe4 5.d4 Nd6 6.Bxc6 dxc6 7.dxe5 Nf5
8.Qxd8+ Kxd8.
4...Bc5 5.c3 0-0 6.Bxc6!?
Giving up the two bishops to grab a centre pawn.
6...bxc6 7.Nxe5
7...d5! 8.Bg5
A nice example of what happens if White lets his greed get the
better of him: 8.Nxc6 Qe8 9.Nd4 dxe4 10.Be3 Ba6 11.dxe4 Nxe4 12.Nd2
Rb8 13.Qc2 f5 14.0-0-0 Nxd2 15.Bxd2 Qf7 16.Kb1 Bc4 17.b4 a5 18.Nc6
axb4 19.Nxb8 b3 20.axb3 Bxb3 21.Qb2 Rxb8 22.Kc1 Ra8 23.Bg5 Ra2
24.Rd8+ Bf8 25.Be7 Rxb2 26.Bxf8 Rc2+ 27.Kb1 h6 0-1 (Mayet-Anderssen,
Berlin 1865).
8...Re8 9.f4 dxe4 10.d4 Bb6 11.Nd2 c5
Black needs to open up before White is able to consolidate.
12.dxc5 Bxc5 13.Qe2 h6 14.Bh4
14...g5?!
14...Bb7 looked like a far more sensible choice.
15.fxg5 hxg5 16.Bg3 e3 17.Nb3 Bb6 18.Qf3 Be6 19.Rd1 g4 20.Qe2
Qe7 21.Nc6!?
I think a lot of players would have jumped at the chance to get
the king out of the middle with 21.0-0.
21...Qf8 22.Nbd4
Maybe White could have calmed things down by sacrificing an exchange,
i.e. 22.0-0 Bc4 23.Qxc4 e2+ 24.Nbd4.
22...Qc5 23.Ne5
23...Nh5?
Black definitely needed to hang on to g4. Fritz suggests the simple
23...Bc8.
24.Nxe6 Rxe6 25.Qxg4+ Ng7
26.Nxf7?
26.Qf3, hitting both f7 and Ra8, probably would have wrapped things
up. At any rate it's hard to see how Black survives after 26...Qf8
(26...Rf8 27.Nd7) 27.Nd7 Qc8 28.Be5.
26...Rf8!
Certainly not 26...Kxf7 27.Qf3+.
27.Ng5
27...e2!
Are we having fun yet, Chucky? White is running low on the clock,
and Black keeps finding ways of making life difficult for him.
28.Rd4
28.Nxe6 exd1Q+ 29.Kxd1 Qd5+ and Black wins a piece. White would
have three pawns for it, but he would still be the underdog in
this ending.
28...Rg6 29.h4
29...Qf5!
Now White's in trouble.
30.Qxf5 Nxf5 31.Bf2
31.Rd3 was no good because of 31...Nxg3 32.Rxg3 Bf2+.
31...Nxd4 32.cxd4 Re8 33.a3 Rc6 34.Kd2 Rf6 35.Nf3 Rg6 36.Ng5?
36.Re1 was White's best shot at salvation.
36...Rd6 37.Nf3 c5
38.Re1?
A blunder, but White was going down anyway.
38...Ba5+ resigns.
0-1
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Einar Gausel