Dortmund (Preview)
Kramnik back in action in Dortmund
IM Malcolm Pein - Thursday 15th July 2010
Malcolm Pein looks forward to the tournament in Dortmund where Vladimir Kramnik returns to action.
Kramnik returns. Photo © Georgios Souleidis. | http://www.sparkassen-chess-meeting.de/2010/
The fifteenth world champion Vladimir Kramnik is back in action at his favourite tournament, the 15th Sparkassen Chess Meeting at Dortmund. Kramnik won the event for the ninth time last year and is top seed again. The 6 player double round all play all begins this afternoon so each player will play ten games.
As is customary, there are four elite players, local star Arkadij Naiditsch and a player who qualified by winning the Aeroflot Open, Le Quang Liem of Vietnam.
The full line up is: Vladimir Kramnik (Russia) world ranked 4
Shakhriyar Mamedyarov (Azerbaijan) 6
Ruslan Ponomariov (Ukraine) 14
Peter Leko (Hungary) 16
Arkadij Naiditsch (Germany) 51
Le Quang Liem (Vietnam) 55
It's always interesting to look at games where strong GMs play lines which usually only occur in club chess. This gambit against the French Defence looks well worth a go. White sacrifices two pawns to compromise Black's structure and get ahead in development. If this is played at Dortmund I'll eat my chocolate chess set. The finish is elegant, Black cannot move his bishop on d7. He had to castle or put his king on f7. 6...Nh6 is also playable.
S Sulskis - A Berescu
Eforie Nord
1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.Bd2 dxe4 5.Qg4 Qxd4 6.Nf3 f5 7.Nxd4
(7.Qh5+!? g6 8.Nxd4)
7...fxg4 8.Bc4 Nf6
(8...Nc6 9.Nxc6 bxc6 is offered by the computer who doesn't object to 7 doubled or isolated pawns)
9.0-0-0 e5
(9...Kf7 10.Rhe1)
10.Ndb5 Na6 11.Bg5
(White seems to be doing very well now Black should try and castle)
11...Bxc3
(11...Bd7 12.Nd5 Nxd5 13.Rxd5)
12.Nxc3 Bd7 13.Nd5!
A Berescu
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S Sulskis
Position after 13.Nd5!
Threatening Bxa6 and Nxc7+ and if 13...Nxd5 14.Rxd5 and e5 falls
13...c6 14.Nxf6+ gxf6 15.Bxf6 Rf8 16.Rd6 b5 17.Be2 Nc5 18.Rhd1 Rf7 19.Bxg4 Nd3+ 20.R1xd3 exd3 21.Bh5 dxc2 22.Bg5 1-0
A Berescu
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S Sulskis
Position after 22.Bg5
Another club player's line. Black is soon ahead in development and offers a pawn to gain more time. At the end he does not need to take the hapless knight on b2, Ng3+ and Nf3+ follow.
T Nabaty - B Chatalbashev
Eforie Nord
Scandinavian Defence
1.e4 d5 2.exd5 Qxd5 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.d4 Bg4 5.Be2 Nc6 6.h3 Bxf3 7.Bxf3 Qd7
(7...Qxd4 8.Bxc6+ bxc6 9.Qxd4)
8.c3 e5! 9.d5 Ne7 10.c4 Ng6 11.0-0 Bc5 12.Qb3 0-0 13.Qxb7 e4 14.Be2 Rab8 15.Qc6 Qe7 16.Nc3 e3 17.fxe3 Bxe3+ 18.Bxe3 Qxe3+ 19.Kh1 Rxb2 20.Nd1 Qxe2 21.Nxb2 Nh4! 22.Rg1 Ne4 23.Qxc7 Qf2 0-1
