Game Five Drawn, Carlsen Defends Well

Game Five Drawn, Carlsen Defends Well
By Arvind Aaron

The fifth match game was a draw much to the disappointment of the Anand fans who were expecting something more from this encounter. It was a crucial encounter and in the end, Carlsen drew without much sweat at Sochi, Russia on November 14, 2014.

In the remaining seven games, Carlsen had four white games and Anand three white games on hand. The sixth match game will take place on Saturday with Anand having to defend with the black pieces. The scores are level at 2.5-2.5 now. The winner is the first player to reach 6.5 points in the 12-match series.

The players drew in under three hours after 39 moves when they reached a level rook and pawn ending. Anand started with the queen pawn and Carlsen revealed his third opening choice, the queen’s Indian defence. Carlsen had done a lot of learning and his third large repertoire means he is holding a lot of opening theory in his head.

White did not get much after the opening. The pawn mass in the centre did not yield any advantage and whatever advantage for white was in space that black was able to manage. In the opening, Carlsen took less time for the first time in the match.

Carlsen sidestepped many traps that could have put the black side in immense danger. The pressure on the Norwegian was high in this encounter and stood the test well. Anand who had impressed in previous white games, has made his fans to raise expectations with his penetrative preparation. That was missing in this game although he drew comfortably.

The moves:
GM Viswanathan Anand  –  GM Magnus Carlsen  – Match Game Five, Sochi, Russia   – Queen’s Indian Defence, E15

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Be7 6. Nc3 Bb7 7. Bg2 c6 8.e4 d5 9. exd5 cxd5 10. Ne5 O-O 11. O-O Nc6 12. cxd5 Nxe5 13. d6 Nc6 14. dxe7 Qxe7 15. Bg5 h6 16. d5 Na5 17. Bxf6 Qxf6 18. dxe6 Qxe6 19. Re1 Qf6 20.Nd5 Bxd5 21. Bxd5 Rad8 22. Qf3 Qxb2 23. Rad1 Qf6 24. Qxf6 gxf6 25. Re7 Kg7 26. Rxa7 Nc6 27. Rb7 Nb4 28. Bb3 Rxd1+ 29. Bxd1 Nxa2 30. Rxb6 Nc3 31. Bf3 5 32. Kg2 Rd8 33. Rc6 Ne4 34. Bxe4 fxe4 35. Rc4 f5 36. g4 Rd2 37. gxf5 e3 38.Re4 Rxf2+ 39. Kg3 Rxf5 1/2-1/2

Score