Carlsen-Nepomniachtchi, Game 7: A Very Short Draw

The number of moves wasn't what made it short - they reached move 41 - but it was the time (just two and a half hours) and the number of moves that actually mattered (approximately 21-23) that made it short. After Ian Nepomniachtchi's 21st move, it was evident that the players had given up on the game, and with a couple of short thinks just to make sure that all the i's were dotted and t's crossed, the players hoovered up almost all of the pieces, then blitzed out another 10 moves to get to move 40. At that point they were allowed to offer draws, and did.

After their epic game 6, it's no surprise that today's game was considerably shorter and less energetic. That favored Magnus Carlsen, of course, as he got through another black game while maintaining his lead. Still, it was useful for the challenger as well, as Nepo must have been exhausted from the previous game, and a little separation from the pain of yesterday's loss may have helped his mood. It may also have been to his advantage to finish things early today, to have some added reserves in case Carlsen tries to grind him to death in game 8 as well.

That will take place on Sunday; for now, here's today's game, with my brief annotations.

Carlsen-Nepomniachtchi, Game 5: Nepo Has Chances, but Another Draw Results

The match approaches its middle section on Friday, after a rest day today (Thursday), and the tension is rising after a fifth straight draw. It was an eventful draw, too, as Ian Nepomniachtchi was clearly better prepared than Magnus Carlsen in another Anti-Marshall, and after 19 moves he enjoyed a clear advantage and a lead on the clock. Unfortunately for the challenger, he failed to play the best move here, and after some further, but less acute suffering, Carlsen managed to hold the draw. It may not have been as great an opportunity as he enjoyed in game 2, objectively speaking, but it was at least a good chance for him to press for the full point.

Will Nepo be heartened by his having had two good chances already in five games, and by his having been better prepared in today's game? Or will the missed opportunities harm his confidence? And how long can this drawing run continue before the players go into ultra-safe mode and save the big risks for the rapid playoff? We'll have to wait for answers to these soap opera-like questions; for now, here's game five, with my notes.

Carlsen-Nepomniachtchi, Game 3: A Well-Played Draw

Three games, three draws. (Eleven to go? Probably not.) That was not the only trend to persist from the earlier games. Once again, it was Magnus Carlsen who steered the opening into relatively fresh channels, choosing a sideline for the third time in the match, this time against Ian Nepomniachtchi's Anti-Marshall with 8.a4. As in game 1, Nepomniachtchi was well-prepared for the sideline Carlsen chose, and by the time both players were out of preparation he seemed to have an edge, or at least the more comfortable play.

Here Carlsen fully rose to the challenge, and his plan of 16...a5 followed by 17...Bc8 and 20...Be6 (intending ...d5) appeared to equalize. Nepomniachtchi spent half an hour on his 21st move, but found no way to cause the champion any serious problems. The game soon reached a bishop ending with White enjoying a better pawn structure, but Black's more active king assured him of a draw, which was agreed after White's 41st move.

It was a well-played game, but far less exciting than the previous game. Will we see that level of craziness again in round 4? We'll find out on Tuesday, as tomorrow is a rest day. (Chess fans in danger of suffering withdrawal symptoms can watch an online blitz match between Fabiano Caruana and Maxime Vachier-Lagrave.) For now, here's game 3, with my comments.

Carlsen-Nepomniachtchi, Game 1: A Draw After an Opening Surprise

Both players were inaccurate at times in the first game of their World Championship match, but it was nevertheless an interesting, hard-fought, and reasonably well-played game between Ian Nepomniachtchi and Magnus Carlsen.

Nepo had White in game 1, and played his usual 1.e4. Carlsen replied with 1...e5 - his old repertoire choice, before he became a Sveshnikov Sicilian player for his 2018 title match with Fabiano Caruana. After 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 we were thankfully spared the sight of the Berlin, and Carlsen went into a Closed Ruy and threatened the Marshall Gambit with 7...0-0. White played the 8.h3 Anti-Marshall, and here a bit of a shocker: 8...Na5!? This is very much a minor line, but it's Marshall-like: Black sacrifices a center pawn for the bishop pair and some central control.

It turned out that Nepomniachtchi had done his due diligence, and while Carlsen surely spent more time preparing the line than Nepo did, the challenger had done enough to sidestep any traps and achieve a position where he could slowly fight for a win. This remained the assessment until his 22.Bf4, which is at best a serious inaccuracy and maybe just a mistake. In general, swapping two pairs of minor pieces and getting rid of both black bishops was a great idea, but he underestimated Black's chances and the problems with his kingside structure. After further inaccuracies, he was almost in trouble after Carlsen's excellent 33...b4. Fortunately for Nepo, the damage wasn't too severe at that point, and after gaining his bearings he found a good defensive idea, and the game petered out to a draw.

You can replay the game here, with my brief notes. (Subscribers can look forward to a much more deeply annotated version later today, along with my video recap. If you're interested in joining them, you can find more information here.)

A Short Book Review of Kotronias' The Modern Spanish: Breyer and Zaitsev Systems

Despite my best efforts, publishers still send me books to review from time to time. This can be irritating, as a proper book review requires a serious time investment. Ignoring the book and doing nothing, though justifiable under the circumstances, bothers me too. So I'll split the difference, mention the books, and offer some very general comments.

We begin with a book by Greek grandmaster Vassilios Kotronias. (You might think his nationality would bias me in favor of his book. It's possible that I'm slightly inclined to be sympathetic, but as I've had no difficulty in criticizing other Greek authors, when relevant, you can rest assured that any bias I do have will be easily overcome.) He's no longer at his playing peak, when he was over 2600 (age and book-writing aren't helpful to one's rating), but he's still a good GM and a very well-respected analyst. His series of books on the King's Indian are exceptionally good and have been widely praised, and this new work seems to demonstrate the same virtues: Kotronias seems to know everything that has been tried and offers an enormous amount of new analysis; analysis that is part of his normal working process and not something thrown together for the sake or making a quick buck on a book. It is evident that he understands what is going on, both in the particulars and in terms of generalities as well, when applicable. The text is dense with analysis, but Kotronias lets the reader up for a gulp of air every so often. Here is a great passage on pages 107-8 that comes after a lengthy analysis of the main line Breyer variations with 20.Bg5 (The preceding moves: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 0-0 9.h3 Nb8 10.d4 Nbd7 11.Nbd2 Bb7 12.Bc2 Re8 13.Nf1 Bf8 14.Ng3 g6 15.a4 c5 16.d5 c4 17.Bg5 h6 18.Be3 Nc5 19.Qd2 h5.)

So what can we conclude after all these lines? I said at some point that the Breyer is an opening that mostly relies on principles rather than concrete variations, but to get a feel of the ideas that form these principles, one has to see a lot of games as well as move the pieces back and forth quite a lot, either in the company of fellow players or with the computer. I must say that quite often after looking at a variety of games concerning a certain position, I fail out of laziness to systematize my thoughts in a way that would help me understand and play the position better.

But actually the Breyer is an opening I have shuffled the pieces around so much that I can afford to tell you one thing or two without even trying to be systematic the way a professional has to be. Here are some:

As White:

(1) Usually strive to play f2-f4. It is only  in rare cases that queenside play can be successful.

(2) Beware of being left with a bad bishop on c2, especially if the opening of the a-file has taken place and, additionally, an exchange of a pair of rooks has also occurred; in endings the bishop can prove to be a liability if White cannot carry out a successful b2-b3 advance.

(3) Consider using the d4-square as a means of attacking b5 if after f2-f4 Black plays ...e5xf4, freeing that square.

(4) If Black commits his bishop prematurely to g7, you do not have to exchange it; strive for Nf3-h2, f2-f4 immediately.

As Black:

(1) Do not move the queen quickly away from d8; it could be missing from the defense later on.

(2) Do not move the bishop to g7 too early; that can prove too committal.

(3) Try to keep decent control of the critical c5-square so that b2-b3 will not find you unpreared on the queenside.

(4) Anticipate the plan with f2-f4; do not only look at your own threats on the queenside.

Those of you familiar with Kotronias's books will either roll your eyes or feel guilt and despair at his referring to his "laziness". Granted, these are general points, but they are quite helpful and sometimes neglected even by very strong players.* Indeed, he harkens back to them in the game from which this is taken, Anand-Oparin, Zurich 2017, where Anand played 20.Kh1 instead of 20.Bg5 and Oparin replied with 20...Qc7, violating the first recommendation for Black given above. Anand replied with 21.Ng5, which wasn't bad, but it was even better to play 21.Nh4, a move that the queen on d8 could have prevented had Oparin chosen the move Kotronias prefers, 20...Nfd7.

Switching from the author to the book, the book, at its most general level, is exactly what the subject line suggests: an investigation of the Breyer System (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 0-0 9.h3 Nb8) and the Zaitsev System (the same first eight and a half moves, and then 9...Bb7 10.d4 Re8). It is not a repertoire book; Kotronias goes where the evidence leads him, and is relatively encyclopedic in examining options for both sides. The book comprises 20 games; eight (pp. 19-115) on the Breyer and 12 (pp. 117-349!) on the Zaitsev. Taking over 300 pages to go through just 20 games might seem downright Huebnerian, but it's not that the games as wholes are analyzed to an extraordinary depth; rather, the games serve as the scaffolding for Kotronias's theoretical explorations.

How is the analysis? I checked some of his analysis of the 20.Bg5 line mentioned above, and for the most part it held up, with one significant if secondary exception. After 20...Be7 21.Bh6 Nh7 (only one of several moves he examines, and not the main line) 22.Ra3 Rb8 23.Rea1 Bc8 24.axb5 axb5 the main line (both his, and the main line in practice) is 25.Be3, but he also spends some time looking at the interesting 25.Qe3. He acknowledges that it's not objectively good, but allows that it's probably okay if White wants to play for tricks. Yes, if Black does everything right he's a little better, but not meaningfully so. (And who says he'll do everything right?) The problem is that in the main line of his 25.Qe3 analysis Black is not just a little better, but winning. After 25...Bd7 26.Nd4 h4 27.Ne2 g5 28.Ra7 Kh8 29.Qf3 Bf6 30.Qh5 Rg8 31.Qxf7 Nb7 32.b3 Black can do better than 32...Be8, as given by Kotronias. Instead, 32...g4 is winning. For example, 33.hxg4 Bg7 34.Bxg7+ (34.Be3 Rf8 35.Qh5 Be8 wins the trapped queen) 34...Rxg7 35.Qf3 Qg5 36.Ra8 Rbg8 37.Rxg8+ Rxg8 38.Qe3 Qxe3 39.fxe3 Bg4. Despite White's extra pawn and Black's misplaced knight on b7, Black has a winning advantage thanks to White's tactical problems with e2 and g2.

In Kotronias's defense, I think much of his analysis of 25.Qe3 was old, it's a sideline of a sideline, and he has already acknowledged that 25.Be3 is the better move. And in my admittedly brief check of his work, that was the only notable error I found. There are no chess books containing analysis that goes beyond simple tactics and tablebase endings that will be free from error; the question is how well they do, given the author's strength and the engines available to him at the time of writing. And as far as I can tell here, and from some of the author's other work, he is a conscientious analyst whose work is excellent. Still, as the old line goes, trust...but verify.

As you will have gathered from the foregoing, this book is not aimed at novices or even the average club player. If you're a professional or a correspondence player and you play either side of the Breyer or Zaitsev, it's a must-have. If you're an ambitious adult and at least 2000, or an ambitious youngster rated at least 1900, get it. Everyone else, save your money.

The book's layout could be improved. It was often difficult to figure out where I was in the morass of variations. There are few numbers or letters given to outline the variations, and on small pages with a two-column format indenting would result in lines of text with only two or three characters. Perhaps more spacing and different font sizes and styles (italics, bold type, etc.) would have helped. (I don't know if the book is coming out on the Forward Chess app; if it is, that's probably the best way to go through it.)

For more on the book, go here or here.

* For an example of this same sort of critique, have a look at this entertaining video. (But then, all Dmitry Komarov videos are entertaining. I'm not sure anyone else should be doing live commentary on blitz games.) Komarov criticizes Polgar's ...Qc7 at the 1:38 mark of the video, and as he reiterates this at various points throughout the video  (2:20, 3:50, and 4:16) it becomes increasingly clear that his judgment was correct. (P.S. Stick around for the finish of the Mamedyarov-Nakamura game afterwards. The whole game was fascinating, and worth studying.)

Svidler on the Archangelsk (Updated)

For those of you who aren't Chess24 premium members, there's a bit of fresh bait dangling before you in the form of a new opening series by Peter Svidler. This one is the Archangelsk Variation starting with 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 b5 6.Bb3 Bc5. His two previous opening series, on the Gruenfeld and on the Closed Ruy with 6.d3 (the same moves as above through 5.0-0, then 5...Be7), were both very well-received, especially the one on the Gruenfeld.

The preview (which is really too short) is here, and to see more there's a choice: buy the series for $14.99, or become a Premium Member for $10.99 a month or $99 a year. (Maybe try it for a month, see how many videos you can watch - there are way more series than just those offered by Svidler - and then go longer if you like them.)

Update: As Macauley Peterson notes in the comments, there is a substantial clip available to watch for free, here, and it's worth the time to check it out even if you're not particularly interested in either side of the Archangelsk.

A New Svidler Video Series (Updated)

Chess24 has an improving playing zone and worthwhile news reports, but their biggest attraction is their growing library of video series. The most noteworthy series was by Peter Svidler on the Gruenfeld, but there have been many other interesting ones as well. Still, when a player of Svidler's caliber engages in such a project it's likely to be something special, and that was certainly true of the one on the Gruenfeld.

Now Svidler has released another opening series, this one offering a White repertoire in the Ruy Lopez with the very trendy 6.d3 (after 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 Be7). Nowadays this is considered a more promising way for White to avoid the Marshall Gambit (6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 0-0 8.c3 d5) than the standard 8th move dodges like 8.a4 and 8.h3, and it has almost become the new main line of the Ruy. Svidler acknowledges that it doesn't seem to promise White an advantage - what does? - but aims to offer White fresh ideas that will at least put the onus on Black (especially if he hasn't already prepared for those them) to solve new problems.

Svidler has long been a specialist in the Ruy, having played both sides of the opening with great regularity for the past 20 years or so; indeed, he states that he probably knows this opening better than anything else in his repertoire apart from the Gruenfeld. So the series should be a very attractive one to anyone who plays either side of the opening, and also for those who simply want to understand the game better; the Ruy is an extremely rich opening.

As usual, there are two ways to access the series. One is to buy a premium membership on the site for $135.99 for a year (pricy, but if you like watching chess videos it's a good deal), and the other is to buy the series a la carte for $14.99 - not a bad deal at all. (It would be an even better deal if Chess24 would finally create the downloadable PGN files they've promised since the site's inception, but even without that it's a very good price in comparison to comparable video series across the landscape.)

UPDATE: As noted in the comments section, there's a third way to access the series, which works for all the other series as well: purchase a one-month membership for $13.99.

This Week's ChessVideos Show: Quick Ruy XXXIV: The Breyer Variation

At last, the grand finale of the Quick Ruy series! The Breyer System (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 0-0 9.h3 Nb8) is especially popular nowadays, and with high profile authors like Larry Kaufman and Boris Avrukh (forthcoming) advocating it, that is unlikely to change in the near future. So in this week's show I look at what several sources say, both pro and con, and do my best to both offer improvements for both sides and to help viewers understand what sorts of things they ought to do, to make sense of the mass of theory.

After 34 shows, I hope that anyone who wants to play the Ruy with White will have all the external tools necessary to play it with success, and likewise for those who wish to play one variation or another with Black. And for those of you who won't touch the Ruy with either color, there's good news too: the series is over!

This Week's ChessVideos Show: Quick Ruy XXXIII: The Complicated Zaitsev Variation

The quick Ruy Lopez series is almost at an end - there's just one more episode left after this one! As the coverage now is of big main lines, there's a lot to discuss, and this week's episode on the Zaitsev Variation (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 0-0 9.h3 Bb7) is huge: 83 minutes long.

So here's my recommendation: break your viewing up into three parts. The first part, through 19:30, examines relative sidelines for both sides. Everything after that starts with the position reached after 10.d4 Re8 11.Nbd2 Bf8 12.a4 h6 13.Bc2 exd4 14.cxd4 Nb4 15.Bb1 c5 16.d5 Nd7 17.Ra3, and now there are two main lines: 17...f5 and 17...c4. I cover the first from 19:30 through about 52:45, which is where I'd recommend taking a(nother) break, and then the rest is on 17...c4.

I think I've managed to provide a good overview of the line, a decent summary of a lot of the theory, and - on a number of occasions - some new analysis that goes beyond and corrects existing theory. The show is free, as always, and I hope you enjoy it. Next week is the grand series finale, on the Breyer (9...Nb8)!

This Week's ChessVideos Show: Quick Ruy XXXII: The Chigorin Variation

In this week's ChessVideos show, we examine one of the meatiest variations in the entire Ruy Lopez, the Chigorin Variation. (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 0-0 9.h3 Na5) This complex is too rich to be exhaustively covered in a single video (obviously!), but there is enough material here to get you started and then some. After 10.Bc2 c5 I examine both 11.d3 (but fairly briefly) and 11.d4, and after 11.d4 both 11...Nd7 and 11...Qc7 are covered in some depth. As a sort of ad for the video, I'll note that the research I did on the Graf Variation (11...Nd7 12.Nbd2 [12.dxc5 is examined as well] 12...exd4 13.cxd4 Nc6) helped me to win a pretty easy and devastating victory over a strong IM (albeit in blitz) - it's good material!

As always, the show is free. Two more to go in the Quick Ruy series: the Zaitsev is next, and then we'll finish up with the Breyer.