Anand Keeps Lead After Draw With Kramnik

Anand Keeps Lead After Draw With Kramnik
By Arvind Aaron

In a very sharp game, former world champions Viswanathan Anand and Vladimir Kramnik battled a queen’s gambit declined opening with the Indian making the first move. In the end, it was a fighting 30-move draw in the fourth round of the FIDE Candidates Tournament at Khanty-Mansiysk in Russia on March 17.

Kramnik sacrificed a knight in the middle of the board to repeat the position and take a draw. Welcome to the new aggressive chess of the new digital age. Both players did not castle! Kramnik and Anand are doing exactly what the younger breed like Carlsen, Nakamura and Caruana are doing.

Anand leads the 8-player event with 3/4 and is followed by Kramnik and Aronian on 2.5 points. Aronian crushed Svidler and pushed him out of the second slot. In the other games, Mamedyarov recovered with a win over Andreikin and Karjakin drew with Topalov.

Ten rounds remain to be played in this event. The winner will challenge Carlsen later this year. The event will conclude on March 31, 2014.

The moves:

White: V Anand – Black: V Kramnik
Round four, Queen’s Gambit D37
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. e4 Bb4 6. Bg5 c5 7. Bxc4 cxd4 8.Nxd4 Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 Qa5 10. Bb5+ Nbd7 11. Bxf6 Qxc3+ 12. Kf1 gxf6 13. h4 a6 14. Rh3 Qb4 15. Be2 Ne5 16. h5 Qd6 17. Qd2 Nc6 18. Rd3 Qh2 19. f4 Rg8 20. Bf3 Bd7 21. Ne2 Qh1+ 22. Ng1 Nd4 23. Rxd4 Bb5+ 24. Kf2 Qh4+ 25. Ke3 e5 26. fxe5 Qg5+ 27. Kf2 Qg3+ 28. Ke3 Qg5+ 29. Kf2 Qg3+ 30. Ke3 Qg5+ 1/2-1/2