Shanghai Masters 2010 (2)
Shanghai Masters Round 2
IM Malcolm Pein - Tuesday 7th September 2010
Malcolm Pein reports on the early rounds of the Shanghai Masters.
The Shanghai Masters is well underway with two of the four players to go through to the Grand Slam Final in Bilbao next month. After two of the six rounds Levon Aronian and Alexey Shirov were best placed. Aronian was the victor in the only decisive game, given below, while Shirov had held both Aronian and Vladimir Kramnik to draws with black. Kramnik missed a winning chance against Shirov and was also better in the endgame but could not convert his slight advantage.
Scores (three points for a win) 1) Aronian 4; 2-3 Kramnik, Shirov 2; 4 Wang Hao 1
Wang Hao - L Aronian
Shanghai Masters (1)
Catalan
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.g3 Bb4+ 5.Bd2 Be7 6.Bg2 c6
(Black sets up a pawn barrier against the Catalan bishop on g2)
7.Qc2 0-0 8.0-0 b6 9.Bf4 Ba6 10.Nbd2 Nbd7 11.Rfe1
(11.e4 dxe4 12.Nxe4 Nxe4 13.Qxe4 Bxc4)
11...Nh5 12.Ne5 Nxe5 13.Bxe5 f6 14.Bf4 Nxf4 15.gxf4 Bb4 16.Red1 Qd6
(Black is more active)
17.Nf1!
(17.e3 Bxd2 and takes on c4)
17...dxc4
(17...Bxc4 18.a3 Ba5 19.b4)
18.a3 Ba5 19.f5 Kh8
(19...exf5 20.Ne3=)
20.Ne3 b5 21.Qe4 Bb7 22.Qxe6
(22.a4 a6 23.axb5 axb5 24.fxe6 and Black cannot play Rae8 so White would be in the game)
22...Qc7!
(Black will lose time with his queen)
23.Qe4 Rae8 24.Qg4 Bb6 25.Nf1
(25.d5 Bxe3 26.d6 Bxf2+ 27.Kxf2 Qb6+)
25...Bc8! 26.Ng3 g6 27.e3 gxf5 28.Nxf5 Qd7 29.e4 Qf7
(Black's pieces are well placed to attack down the g file and White's rooks are passive)
30.Qf3 Bxf5! 31.Qxf5 Rg8 32.Kh1 Rg5 33.Qf3 Qg6 34.d5
(34.Rg1 Bxd4)
34...Rg8 35.Bh3 Bxf2! 0-1
35...Bxf2 36.Qxf2 Qxe4+ 37.Bg2 Rxg2 38.Qxf6+ R2g7+ wins and 35...Bxf2 36.d6 Rg1+ 37.Rxg1 Qxg1+ 38.Rxg1 Rxg1 is mate.
Levon Aronian
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Wang Hao
Final position after 35...Bxf2!
Developing a knight to h3 is rarely good but White makes it work very well here.
D Fitzsimons - P Cech
Dun Laoghaire Centenary IM
French Tarrasch
1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nd2 Nf6 4.e5 Nfd7 5.c3 c5 6.Bd3 Nc6 7.Ndf3 cxd4 8.cxd4 f6 9.exf6 Nxf6 10.Nh3 Bd6 11.0-0 0-0 12.Re1 Qc7 13.Nhg5 e5
(13...Re8 14.Nxh7 Nxh7 15.Bxh7+ Kxh7 16.Ng5+ is good for White whichever way the king goes)
14.dxe5 Nxe5
15.Bxh7+! Nxh7 16.Nxe5 Nf6
(16...Bxe5 17.Qxd5+)
17.Nef3 Bf5 18.Be3 Rac8 19.Rc1 Qa5 20.Qb3 Qa6 21.Bd4 Rc4 22.Bc3 Ne4
(22...Bf4!)
23.Nxe4 Bxe4
P Cech
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D Fitzsimons
Position after 23...Bxe4
24.Rxe4! dxe4
(24...Rxe4 25.Qxd5+)
25.Nd2 Bf4
(25...b5)
26.Bb4 e3 27.Rxc4 exf2+ 28.Kxf2 Qb6+ 29.Ke2 1-0
