[Event "WCh"]
[Site "Brissago SUI"]
[Date "2004.09.25"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Leko,P"]
[Black "Kramnik,V"]
[Result "0-1"]
[WhiteElo "2741"]
[BlackElo "2770"]
[EventDate "2004.09.25"]
[ECO "C42"]

{Comments by James Coleman with addition comments by Malcolm Pein (MP). 
Defending champion Vladimir Kramnik has got off to
a flying start in his defence of the title, winning the first game with the
Black pieces. Playing the ultra solid Petroff Defence, the game livened up
when Kramnik was forced to sacrifice his Queen for Rook and Bishop. Most
spectators, including myself thought that White had some advantage, but it
quickly became clear that the Black position was very solid, and in the post
game press conference the players agreed that result of the game should be a
draw. Leko said that one of his problems was that the position after
twenty-seven moves reminded him of a Grunfeld which he loves to play as Black
and he found this psychologically difficult.} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Nxe5 d6 4.
Nf3 Nxe4 5. d4 d5 6. Bd3 Nc6 7. O-O Be7 8. c4 Nb4 9. Be2 O-O 10. Nc3 Bf5 11. a3
Nxc3 12. bxc3 Nc6 13. Re1 Re8 14. cxd5 Qxd5 15. Bf4 Rac8 16. h3 {So far,we are
still well inside theory. 16 h3 is an interesting psychological choice by Leko,
as it was Kramnik's own choice when he played against Anand in Corus 2003.} Be4
(16... Bf6 {was Anand's choice but after} 17. Nh2 Qa5 18. Bd2 Rcd8 19. Bf3 h6
20. Ng4 Bxg4 21. hxg4 Bg5 22. Bxg5 hxg5 {
and then according to Huzman White could have got a clear advantage by} 23. Qc1
Rxe1+ 24. Qxe1 Kf8 25. Rb1 Re8 26. Qc1) 17. Be3 Na5 {As Leko said after the
game, this move is provocative, and White takes up the challenge.} 18. c4 ({
The most direct.} 18. Nd2 {
was also possible as the g pawn could not be captured:} Bxg2 19. c4 Qc6 20. d5
$18 Qg6 21. Bh5 Bf3+ 22. Bxg6 Bxd1 23. Bf5 $1 {MP}) 18... Nxc4 19. Bxc4 Qxc4
20. Nd2 Qd5 21. Nxe4 Qxe4 22. Bg5 Qxe1+ 23. Qxe1 Bxg5 24. Qa5 Bf6 {This looked
very dicey for Black but now it looks as if Kramnik had obviously predicted it
all. He has a solid enough structure and if he can somehow secure his
queenside pawns he might have a blockade. However at this stage most people
thought that White looked to have the better chances.} (24... Bf4 25. Qxa7 b6 {
was an alternative suggestion, aiming for a complete blockade. At first sight
move observers figured this was the plan. After all Kramnik is now famous for
sacrificing his queen for a blockade. Kramnik had used very little time and it
seems the whole idea had been prepared at home.-MP}) 25. Qxa7 c5 {But no, this
method causes White far more problems because Black gets a passed c pawn. The
down side is the White passed a pawn but this is more than outweighed by the
mobility of the c pawn and a nice 'anchor square' for the bishop on d4. Good
stuff from Kramnik he could have played safe and made a draw with black. - MP}
26. Qxb7 Bxd4 27. Ra2 c4 28. Re2 Red8 ({Kramnik naturally saw that} 28... c3 {
was not a good idea for example} 29. Rxe8+ Rxe8 30. Qd7 Rb8 31. Qxd4 c2 32. Qd2
$1 {when Black's back rank problems stop him from playing Rb1+ and c1Q.}) 29.
a4 {Played instantly by Leko.} (29. Rd2 {
Threat Rxd4 looks safer but Leko must have been playing for the win} c3 (29...
Bf6 30. Rxd8+ Rxd8 31. Qc6 c3 32. a4 h6 33. a5 Rd2 34. a6 Bd4 (34... Ra2 35.
Kf1 $1 c2 (35... Bd4 $2 36. Qe8+ Kh7 37. Qe4+ g6 38. Qxd4 c2 39. Qc3 $18) 36.
a7 Rxa7 37. Qc8+ Kh7 38. Qxc2+ {should be a draw}) 35. a7 Bxa7 36. Qxc3 Rxf2 {
Will be drawn}) 30. Rxd4 c2 31. Rxd8+ Rxd8 32. Qc7 Rd1+ 33. Kh2 c1=Q 34. Qb8+ {
is similar to the above note -MP}) 29... c3 30. Qe4 Bb6 31. Qc2 {Well, I was
probably wrong about White being better and now the position is starting to
look quite pleasant for Kramnik. The Queen does not look happy blockading the
c-pawn and there are ideas such as ...Ba5 and Rd2, possibly after some
prophylaxis like g6 and Kg7. Clock times at this point : Leko - 11 minutes to
reach move forty, Kramnik - just over half an hour.} g6 32. Qb3 Rd6 33. Rc2 {
After the game, Leko was critical of his play around this time, and said that
once he reached this position, he began to immediately look for ways to bring
his queen back to e4.} Ba5 34. g4 Rd2 35. Kg2 Rcd8 36. Rxc3 {giving some
material to free himself. But now Black can aim to double up against the a
pawn, and win it - he should be able to do this. Then the two rooks against
queen ending is nice for Black, although maybe White can hold as it will be
difficult for Kramnik to infiltrate with his rooks without allowing a
perpetual.} (36. Rc1 $5 Rb2 37. Qc4 Rdd2 38. Qc5 {Is very scary but} Bb6 39.
Qxc3 Rxf2+ 40. Kg3 {Seems OK - MP} (40. Kh1 Rh2#)) 36... Bxc3 37. Qxc3 R2d5 38.
Qc6 Ra5 39. Kg3 Rda8 40. h4 R5a6 41. Qc1 {An ending, with exactly the same
material balance as this one, and with all the pawns on the same files,
occurred in Gurgenidze-Averbakh USSR Championship 1961, and it saw the rooks
triumph over the queen. However in that game the defending side's pawns were
placed worse than here. Thanks to Susan Polgar for pointing this out on ICC.}
Ra5 42. Qh6 Rxa4 43. h5 R4a5 44. Qf4 $2 {Probably the decisive mistake.} (44.
hxg6 {was necessary to prevent what happens in the game.}) 44... g5 45. Qf6 h6
$1 46. f3 (46. Qxh6 {is not possible because of} R8a6) 46... R5a6 {Kramnik's ba
sic plan is to get a position with his king on g7 and rooks on squares such as
f6 and f4, winning the f3 pawn and the game. It is incredible to watch the
inexorable way which the World Champion carries out the idea.} 47. Qc3 Ra4 48.
Qc6 R8a6 49. Qe8+ Kg7 50. Qb5 R4a5 51. Qb4 Rd5 52. Qb3 Rad6 53. Qc4 Rd3 54. Kf2
Ra3 55. Qc5 Ra2+ 56. Kg3 Rf6 57. Qb4 Raa6 58. Kg2 Rf4 59. Qb2+ Raf6 {And there 
we have it. Leko could safely resign now but plays on for a few moves to see
if it is really true.} 60. Qe5 Rxf3 61. Qa1 Rf1 62. Qc3 R1f2+ 63. Kg3 R2f3+ 64.
Qxf3 Rxf3+ 65. Kxf3 Kf6 {It goes without saying that the is is the worst
possible start from Leko. Needing to win the match, as Kramnik retains the
title in the event of a tie, after the champions convincing display today,
it's clear that the Hungarian has a mountain to climb.} 0-1

[Event "WCh"]
[Site "Brissago SUI"]
[Date "2004.09.26"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Kramnik, V."]
[Black "Leko, P."]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "C88"]
[WhiteElo "2770"]
[BlackElo "2741"]
[PlyCount "35"]
[EventDate "2004.09.25"]

{James Coleman annotates: Welcome to the second game of the 2004 Classical
Chess World Championship. The event did not start too well for me yesterday,
when I arrived at the playing venue and found that I had foolishly left the
cable for my laptop at my hotel, and had to endure a 20 minute walk there and
back to retrieve it. Such mistakes happen though and are forgivable - what was
not forgivable was that I then proceed to do exactly the same thing today!
Still, at least the fact that I am travelling home tomorrow will allow me to
avoid a three time repetition! So, on to today's game. It was always a strong
possibility, if not inevitable, that after the excitement of yesterday's game,
the players were not going to be in the mood for another long fight. And so it
proved - after an opening that could have potentially become quite sharp,
things fizzled out and the players agreed to a draw after nineteen moves in an
equal position.} 1. e4 {Despite the fact that Vladimir has been playing 1.e4 a
fair bit lately, this was still a mild surprise for some. After vistory in the
first game it was thought that he may start to play it safe.} 1... e5 2. Nf3
Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 {So, no Berlin Wall from Leko (unfortunately in my opinion
although I accept most won't agree!). However it is fascinating to see how
Kramnik reacts when faced with his own weapon.} 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5
7. Bb3 O-O 8. h3 Bb7 9. d3 Re8 10. Nc3 Bb4 {Already we have an unusual
position on the board, which has only been seen once before, with Leko on the
White side of things last year in his Monaco Blindfold game against Ivanchuk.}
11. Ng5 ({The above mentioned game continued} 11. Bd2 Na5 {and was a fairly
long, albeit uneventful draw. Kramnik's next move seems to be new, although I
was considering it just before he actually played it.}) ({If instead} 11. Bg5
Nd4 {should secure black comfortable equality.}) 11... Rf8 12. a3 Bxc3 13. bxc3
Na5 14. Ba2 c5 15. f4 exf4 16. e5 (16. Bxf4 {
is the obvious move then Kramnik mentioned the possibility of} 16... c4 {
blunting the important light squared bishop which he assessed as fine forBlack.
} (16... h6 {is what Leko said that he would have played and gave the line} 17.
Nf3 ({But I wonder if it would be possible to continue in "hackers mode" with} 
17. Nxf7 Rxf7 18. Bxf7+ Kxf7 19. e5 {when one line is} 19... Nd5 20. Qh5+ Kg8
21. Bxh6 {with a rook and two pawns for two pieces since} 21... gxh6 {
is impossible -} 22. Qg6+ Kh8 23. Qxh6+ Kg8 24. Re4 {wins.}) 17... d5 {
with an equal position.})) 16... Nd5 17. Bxd5 Qxg5 ({Kramnik mentioned} 17...
Bxd5 18. Qh5 h6 19. Bxf4 hxg5 20. Bxg5 {intending Bf6 with a messy position.})
18. Bxb7 (18. Bxb7 Nxb7 19. Qf3 Qg3 20. Qxg3 fxg3 21. Bf4 {is simply equal.
Tomorrow is a rest day and the third game will be played on Tuesday.}) 1/2-1/2

[Event "WCh"]
[Site "Brissago SUI"]
[Date "2004.09.28"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Leko,P"]
[Black "Kramnik,V"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[WhiteElo "2741"]
[BlackElo "2770"]
[EventDate "2004.09.25"]
[ECO "C42"]

{Brief notes by Mark Crowther} 
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Nxe5 d6 4. Nf3 Nxe4 5. d4 d5 6. Bd3 Nc6 7. O-O Be7 8. c4
Nb4 9. Be2 O-O 10. Nc3 Bf5 11. a3 Nxc3 12. bxc3 Nc6 13. Re1 Re8 14. cxd5 Qxd5
15. Bf4 Rac8 16. c4 Qe4 17. Be3 Qc2 $146 {Up until this point the moves were
played at great speed. Now Leko fell into a long thought.} (17... Bf6 18. Ra2 {
or} (18. Rc1 {have been played before.})) 18. d5 Na5 19. Nd4 Qxd1 20. Rexd1 (
20. Raxd1 {looks like an alternative if white wants to continue.}) 20... Bd7
21. Bd2 Bf6 22. Bxa5 Bxd4 23. Rxd4 Rxe2 {The position is absolutely equal.}
1/2-1/2

[Event "WCh"]
[Site "Brissago SUI"]
[Date "2004.09.30"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Kramnik,V"]
[Black "Leko,P"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[WhiteElo "2770"]
[BlackElo "2741"]
[EventDate "2004.09.25"]
[ECO "C88"]

{Brief notes by Mark Crowther} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 
6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. h3
Bb7 9. d3 d6 10. a3 Nd7 11. Nc3 Nd4 12. Ba2 $146 (12. Nxd4 exd4 13. Ne2 (13.
Nd5 Bxd5 14. Bxd5 Rb8 15. Bd2 c5 16. f4 Nb6 17. Ba5 Qd7 18. Bxb6 Rxb6 19. Qf3
Kh8 20. Re2 Rbb8 21. Rf1 a5 22. g4 Qc7 23. Rg2 c4 24. g5 c3 25. b4 Qa7 26. Rg4
axb4 27. axb4 Qa4 28. f5 Qxc2 29. f6 Bd8 30. Rg2 {
1-0 Lutz,C-Kloninger,P/Bad Zwesten 2000/EXT 2001.}) 13... c5 14. Ng3 g6 15. Bh6
Re8 16. Qd2 Rc8 17. Ba2 Bf6 18. Bd5 Rc7 19. a4 b4 20. Bxb7 Rxb7 21. b3 a5 22.
Rf1 Bh4 23. Ne2 d5 24. exd5 Nb6 25. Nf4 Bg5 26. Bxg5 Qxg5 27. Rae1 Rbb8 28. Qc1
Nxd5 29. Nxd5 Qxd5 30. Rxe8+ Rxe8 31. Re1 Re6 32. Rxe6 Qxe6 33. Kf1 Qe5 34. f4
Qd6 35. Kf2 h5 36. g3 Qe6 37. h4 Kg7 38. Qe1 Qh3 39. Qe5+ Kh7 40. Qd5 Kg8 41.
Qd8+ Kg7 42. Qd5 Qc8 43. Qe5+ Kg8 44. Qd5 Qe8 45. Qf3 Qe6 46. Qe2 {
1/2-1/2 Grischuk,A-Beliavsky,A/Tripoli LBA 2004/The Week in Chess 503 (46)})
12... Nxf3+ 13. Qxf3 Bg5 14. Bxg5 Qxg5 15. Nd5 c6 16. Ne3 g6 17. Rad1 Rad8 18.
c3 c5 19. Bd5 Bc8 20. b4 Nb6 21. c4 Nxd5 22. Nxd5 Be6 {The position is unclear.
} 23. bxc5 dxc5 24. Rb1 Rb8 (24... f5 25. Nc7 Bc8 26. cxb5 fxe4 27. Qxe4 Bxh3 {
May have been playable.}) 25. cxb5 Bxd5 26. exd5 axb5 27. d6 b4 28. a4 (28.
axb4 {was an alternative.}) 28... Rfd8 29. Qd5 Qf6 30. Qxc5 Qxd6 31. Qxd6 Rxd6
32. Rxe5 b3 33. Rb5 Ra8 {Black will end up a pawn down and eliminates the
slightly more dangerous a-pawn. The double rook ending is just drawn however.}
34. R1xb3 Rxa4 35. Rb6 Rd7 36. Rf6 Ra1+ 37. Kh2 Rd1 38. Rf3 h5 39. h4 Rd2 40.
g3 Kg7 41. Kg2 Rd1 42. Re3 Kh7 43. Kf3 Rd2 1/2-1/2

[Event "WCh"]
[Site "Brissago SUI"]
[Date "2004.10.02"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Leko,P"]
[Black "Kramnik,V"]
[Result "1-0"]
[WhiteElo "2741"]
[BlackElo "2770"]
[EventDate "2004.09.25"]
[ECO "D37"]

{Brief notes by Mark Crowther} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bf4 O-O 
6. e3 c5 7. dxc5 Bxc5 8.
cxd5 Nxd5 9. Nxd5 exd5 10. a3 Nc6 11. Bd3 Bb6 12. O-O Bg4 13. h3 Bh5 14. b4 Re8
15. Rc1 a6 16. Bxa6 Rxa6 17. b5 Rxa3 18. bxc6 bxc6 19. Rxc6 Ra7 (19... Re6 20.
Rxe6 fxe6 21. Qc1 {led to a draw in Schenk,A-Zumsande,M Bremen GER 2002.}) 20.
Rd6 {Heading for an endgame a pawn up in which white can then try and press
with no risk.} (20. Qb3 Bxf3 21. gxf3 Bc7 22. Rxc7 Rxc7 23. Bxc7 Qxc7 24. Qxd5
Qe5 25. Rd1 Qxd5 26. Rxd5 g6 27. Kg2 Kg7 28. e4 Re6 29. Kg3 Re7 30. h4 Ra7 31.
f4 Ra3+ 32. f3 Ra7 33. e5 Ra2 34. Rc5 Re2 35. Rc7 h5 36. Rb7 Kf8 37. Rc7 Kg7
38. Rc5 f5 39. Rc1 Kf7 40. Rf1 Ra2 41. Rf2 Ra4 42. Rc2 Rb4 43. Rc7+ Kf8 44. Rd7
Rb2 {1/2-1/2 Malakhatko,V-Pigusov,E/Ohrid MKD 2001/The Week in Chess 345 (44)})
20... Rd7 21. Qxd5 Rxd6 22. Qxd6 Qxd6 23. Bxd6 Bxf3 $6 {I prefer keeping the
two bishops here and this position has occurred before a couple of times.} (
23... Rd8 24. Bg3 (24. Bf4 Bg6 25. Rc1 Be4 26. Rc4 Bd5 27. Rb4 Bc5 28. Rb5 Rc8
29. Nd2 Be6 30. Ne4 Bf8 31. Bd6 f5 32. Bxf8 fxe4 33. Bc5 Bc4 34. Ra5 h6 35. Bd4
Rf8 36. Rc5 Bd3 37. Rc3 Be2 38. Kh2 Rf7 39. Kg3 Kh7 40. Rc2 Bd1 41. Rd2 Ba4 42.
Ra2 Bc6 43. Ra6 Bb7 44. Rb6 Bd5 45. h4 Bb7 46. Be5 Bd5 47. Rb5 Bc6 48. Rc5 Bb7
49. Bf4 Rd7 50. f3 exf3 51. gxf3 Bd5 52. Be5 Bb3 53. f4 Kg6 54. Bd4 Bd5 55. Kg4
h5+ 56. Kg3 Kf5 57. Rc8 g6 58. Re8 Bh1 59. e4+ {
1-0 Istratescu,A-Malakhatko,V/Patras 2002.}) 24... Bc5 25. Rc1 Bf8 26. Nd4 Bg6
27. Rc7 h6 28. h4 Re8 29. Nb5 Rb8 30. Nc3 Re8 31. Kh2 Bf5 32. Nb5 Rc8 33. Ra7
Bc5 34. Ra1 Rd8 35. Rc1 Rc8 36. Rd1 Bc2 37. Rd2 Bb4 38. Rd7 Bf5 39. Rd5 Be6 40.
Rd1 Be7 41. Nd4 Bd7 42. e4 Rd8 43. Rb1 Bc5 44. Ne2 Be7 45. f3 Bc6 46. Rb6 Bd7
47. Nf4 Bf8 48. h5 Rc8 49. Nd5 Be6 50. Nc7 Bc4 51. Bf4 Rd8 52. Rc6 Bb3 53. Rc3
Ba2 54. Nb5 Be6 55. Nc7 Ba2 56. Kg3 Be7 57. Nb5 Be6 58. Rc7 Bf8 59. Rc1 Bb3 60.
Be5 f6 61. Bf4 Bf7 62. Kg4 Be6+ 63. Kh4 Bf7 64. g4 Be6 65. Kg3 Bf7 66. Rc3 Bb4
67. Rc7 Be6 68. Rb7 Bc5 69. Nc7 Bc4 70. Rb2 Be7 71. Rc2 Bf7 72. Rc6 Bb3 73. Kf2
Rd3 74. Ke2 Rd4 75. Ke3 Rc4 76. Nd5 Bf8 77. Rxc4 Bxc4 78. Kf2 Kf7 79. Be3 Bd6
80. Bd4 Bb3 81. Ne3 Bf8 82. Nf5 Bd1 83. Be3 Ba4 84. Bf4 Bc5+ 85. Kg3 Bd7 86.
Bc7 Bb4 87. f4 Bc6 88. Kf3 Bd2 89. Bd6 Bc1 90. Bc5 Ba8 91. Bd4 Ba3 92. Be3 Bc6
93. Bd2 Bc5 94. Ba5 Ba4 95. Bc7 Bd1+ 96. Kg3 Bc2 97. e5 fxe5 98. fxe5 Bb3 99.
Bd6 Bb6 100. Bb4 Be6 101. Kf4 Ba2 102. Bc3 Be6 103. Nd6+ Kg8 104. Ne4 Bg1 105.
Be1 Bb6 106. g5 hxg5+ 107. Nxg5 Bc8 108. Bb4 Bd8 109. Nf3 Be6 110. Nd4 Bf7 111.
Kg4 Bb6 112. Nf3 Be6+ 113. Kf4 Bf7 114. Ke4 {
1/2-1/2 Karpov,A-Anand,V Moscow RUS 2002.}) 24. gxf3 Bd8 25. Rb1 Bf6 26. Kg2 {
The endgame with rook, bishop and four pawns to rook, bishop and three has
many defensive ideas. Leaving the rook on the first rank, the bishop on f6 and
the pawn on h7 was possible or perhaps Rd7 and Bf6 but Kramnik judged activity
to be more important. [MalcolmPein]} (26. Rb5 g6 27. f4 Rd8 28. Bb4 h5 29. Kg2
Rd1 30. Ba5 Kg7 31. f5 gxf5 32. Rxf5 Kg6 33. e4 Bd8 34. Bc3 Rd3 35. Be5 Bh4 36.
Bf4 f6 37. Rd5 Rb3 38. Be3 Bg5 39. Bd4 Rd3 40. Bb6 Rb3 41. Bc5 Rc3 42. Bd6 Rc4
43. e5 fxe5 44. Bxe5 Bf4 45. Bd4 Bg5 46. Kf3 Rc2 47. Ra5 Rc4 48. Ra6+ Kf5 49.
Rd6 Rc2 50. Rd7 Ra2 51. Rf7+ Kg6 52. Rf8 Ra4 53. Ke4 Be7 54. Rg8+ Kf7 55. Rg7+
Kf8 56. Rh7 Bc5 57. Rd7 Bxd4 58. Rxd4 Ra2 59. f4 Kf7 60. Ke5 Ra7 61. Rd5 Kg7
62. h4 Ra1 63. Rd7+ Kg6 {1/2-1/2 Gritsak,O-Kruppa,Y/Alushta 2002/EXT 2003.})
26... g6 27. f4 Kg7 28. Rb7 Re6 29. Rd7 Re8 30. Ra7 Re6 31. Bc5 Rc6 32. Ra5 Bc3
33. Rb5 Ra6 34. Rb3 Bf6 35. Rb8 h5 36. Rb5 Bc3 37. Rb3 Bf6 38. e4 Ra5 39. Be3
Ra4 40. e5 Be7 41. Rb7 Kf8 42. Rb8+ Kg7 {After extensive manoevering white
will now inevitably get his bishop to d4 and threaten a devestating e6. If
black can save this the next  few moves will be critical.} 43. Kf3 Rc4 44. Ke2
Ra4 45. Kd3 Bh4 46. Bd4 Ra3+ 47. Kc2 {
White goes on a walk to gain some time on the run up to move 60.} 47... Ra2+
48. Kd3 Ra3+ 49. Ke4 Ra4 50. Kd5 Ra5+ 51. Kc6 Ra4 52. Kc5 Be7+ (52... Ra7 {
must at least be a possibility.} 53. Re8 $5) 53. Kd5 Ra5+ 54. Ke4 Ra4 55. Rc8
Bh4 56. e6+ Bf6 57. e7 Rxd4+ 58. Ke3 Bxe7 59. Kxd4 Bh4 (59... f5 {with the idea
of switching the bishop to the long diagonal is the last saving idea but its
now very difficult for black. However Black is definitely lost after 59. ...
Bh4.}) 60. f3 f5 61. Rc7+ Kf6 62. Kd5 Bg3 63. Rc6+ Kg7 64. Ke5 h4 (64... Bh4
65. Rc7+ {will eventually lead to zugszwang.}) 65. Rc7+ Kh6 66. Rc4 Kg7 67. Ke6
Bh2 68. Rc7+ Kh6 69. Kf7 1-0

[Event "WCh"]
[Site "Brissago SUI"]
[Date "2004.10.03"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Kramnik, V"]
[Black "Leko, P"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "C88"]
[WhiteElo "2770"]
[BlackElo "2741"]
[EventDate "2004.09.25"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. h3
Bb7 9. d3 d6 10. a3 Na5 11. Ba2 c5 12. Nbd2 Nc6 13. c3 Qd7 (13... Bc8 {
is more normal.}) 14. Nf1 d5 {Fully equalises.} 15. Bg5 (15. exd5 Nxd5 16. Nxe5
Nxe5 17. Rxe5 Bf6 (17... Rad8 18. Bb1 Bd6 19. Re1 Nf4 20. f3 Nxh3+ 21. gxh3
Qxh3 {is another idea.}) 18. Re2 (18. Re1 Nxc3) 18... Bxc3) 15... dxe4 16. dxe4
c4 17. Ne3 Rfd8 18. Nf5 Qe6 19. Qe2 Bf8 20. Bb1 h6 {
If anything Black is better.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "WCh"]
[Site "Brissago SUI"]
[Date "2004.10.05"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Leko, P"]
[Black "Kramnik, V"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D16"]
[WhiteElo "2741"]
[BlackElo "2770"]
[Annotator "Malcolm Pein"]
[EventDate "2004.09.25"]

1. d4 {And why not?. After his success in game five Leko makes Kramnik face
the Queen's Pawn again.} 1... d5 2. c4 c6 {Immediately varying from the QGD of
Game five. Kramnik has plenty of experience in some of the sharpest lines of
Slav and Semi Slav.} 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Nf3 dxc4 5. a4 (5. e4 b5 {
The Geller Gambit just does not stand up to the scrutiny of top class players})
5... e6 {A very clever move order if} 6. e3 (6. e4 Bb4 7. Bg5 b5 {Is a sharp
of the Slav which Kramnik knows well and which holds many pitfalls for White.})
6... c5 {# and now the Queen's Gambit Accepted, a Kramnik speciality but with
a twist. Black has lost a tempo c6-c5 but White has used the tempo for the
horrible move a4. Well perhaps not so horrible...} 7. Bxc4 Nc6 8. O-O cxd4 9.
exd4 Be7 10. Be3 {
A quiet move, Re1, Bf4 and Bg5 were more active alternatives as was} (10. Qe2 {
Intending Rd1 would be akin to the Main Line with ...a6 and the absence of a6
makes itselffeltafter} 10... Nxd4 11. Nxd4 Qxd4 12. Nb5 $1 Qd8 (12... Qb6 13.
a5 $1 {not such a useless move after all !}) 13. Bf4 O-O 14. Nc7 $16 {
Presumably Leko did not want to fight Kramnik on his turf}) 10... O-O 11. Ne5
Nb4 {A normal move trying to hold d5 and also inhibiting the batter with
Bc4-b3-c2 and Qd1-d3} 12. a5 $5 {# An interesting attempt, aiming for Qf3 and
a6 perhaps dreaming of Qb3 one day. Black's queenside pawns can also come
under pressure due to the cramping effect of the pawn.} 12... Bd7 {#} 13. d5 {
Leko had used an hour to here and needed to do something. During the game I
was more enthusedby} (13. Qf3 Nc2 (13... Bc6 14. Nxc6 bxc6) 14. Rac1 Nxe3 15.
fxe3 Qxa5 16. Nxd7 Nxd7 17. Qxb7 {But looking at it now I can't think why.
because 13.Qf3 Bc6 14. Nxc6 bxc6 looks very solid}) (13. Qb3 Bc6 14. a6 Nfd5 {
Again looks solid enough}) 13... exd5 14. Nxd5 Nbxd5 15. Bxd5 Nxd5 (15... Bg4
16. Bxf7+ Rxf7 17. Nxg4 (17. Qb3 Bh5 {Kramnik} 18. Qxb7 Qd5 19. Qxd5 Nxd5 20.
Nxf7 Kxf7 21. Rfc1 Bf6) 17... Qxd1 18. Nxf6+ Bxf6 19. Rfxd1 Bxb2 20. Rab1 Bf6 {
And White has some pressure - Kramnik, a good example of what I was referring
to above with the a5 pawn.}) 16. Qxd5 Bc8 $1 {# A high class defensive move, I
was just thinking that a good player would know what to do. At lower levels
this kind of pressure is hard to deal with. Kramnik needed to see that} 17.
Rfd1 (17. Qe4 Bd6 $1 {Holds} (17... Bf6 $2 18. Bc5 Re8 19. Rfd1 Qc7 20. Bd6 $1
Qc6 $5 21. Qxc6 bxc6 22. Rac1 $14) 18. Nc4 Re8 19. Qd4 (19. Qf3 Bxh2+ 20. Kxh2
Qh4+ 21. Kg1 Qxc4 22. Rfc1 $11) 19... Be7) 17... Qxd5 18. Rxd5 Be6 19. Rb5 Bf6
20. Nf3 b6 21. axb6 {#} (21. axb6 axb6 22. Re1 (22. Rxa8 Rxa8 23. h3 Bd8 $1 $15
) 22... Ra6 (22... Bd8 23. Rb4 (23. Nd4 Bc4 24. Rb4 b5 {
Is the kind of thing White should avoid.}) 23... Ra6 24. Rc1 $11 {
With enough activity}) 23. Rxb6 Rxb6 24. Bxb6 Bxb2 $11) 1/2-1/2

[Event "WCh"]
[Site "Brissago SUI"]
[Date "2004.10.07"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Kramnik,V"]
[Black "Leko,P"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "C89"]
[WhiteElo "2770"]
[BlackElo "2741"]
[Annotator "Malcolm Pein"]
[EventDate "2004.09.25"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. c3
{Playing d3 and a3 and h3 did not achieve a whole lot so far so Kramnik goes
into the Marshall proper. Kasparov, who first developed the line properly for
his match against Short in 1993 virtually never accepts the pawn.} 8... d5 {#}
9. exd5 Nxd5 10. Nxe5 Nxe5 11. Rxe5 c6 {The orginal idea from the game
Capablanca - Marshall  New York 1918 was 11...Nf6 but this is now thought to
be dubious.} 12. d4 {12.Re1 followed by d3 is possible as is 12.d3 when the
rook can emerge again to e4 as in the game. This is a line Leko has played
with white for example against Adams at Linares 1999 and Svidler at Dortmund
1998} 12... Bd6 13. Re1 Qh4 14. g3 Qh3 15. Re4 {# An old line credited to the
Soviet player Sakharov in the fine book on the Marshall published thirty years
ago or so by Batsford and written by Bob Wade and others. Many British players
took up the line which was the subject of an article by David Levy suggesting
it put the Marshall out of business.} 15... g5 (15... Nf6 16. Rh4 Qf5 17. Bf4
Rd8 $2 18. Nd2 g5 19. Bc2 Qd5 20. Ne4 $1 Nxe4 21. Bxe4 Qxe4 22. Bxg5 Qe8 23.
Bxd8 Qxd8 24. Qh5 Kf8 25. Re1 Be6 26. Qxh7 Ke8 27. Rhe4 Be7 28. f4 {
1-0 Stean -  Eley, London 1971}) 16. Qf1 {
A real surprise and Leko started to fall well behind on the clock again} 16...
Qh5 (16... Qxf1+ 17. Kxf1 f5 18. Re1 f4 19. Nd2 Bf5 (19... Bh3+ 20. Kg1 {
and Ne4 +=}) 20. gxf4 Rae8 21. Nf3 Bh3+ 22. Kg1 $14) 17. Nd2 Bf5 18. f3 {#}
18... Nf6 (18... Bxe4 19. fxe4 Ne3 20. Qf3 Qxf3 (20... Ng4 21. Nf1 Rae8 22. Bd1
$1 $18) 21. Nxf3 Nc4 (21... g4 22. Bxe3 gxf3 23. e5 Be7 24. Rf1 $16) 22. Bxc4
bxc4 23. Bxg5 $16) 19. Re1 Rae8 20. Rxe8 Rxe8 {For the moment there seems no
way for Black's impressive looking force to penetrate so White opens a second
front.} 21. a4 Qg6 $3 {# Leko had seen everything here I believe. But now I
assumed the idea was the paradoxical 22.Ne4} 22. axb5 $2 (22. Ne4 Nxe4 23. fxe4
Bxe4 24. Bxg5 bxa4 $1 {Kramnik} (24... Bd3 $2 25. Bxf7+ Qxf7 26. Qxd3 Qh5 27.
Bh4 $18) 25. Bc4 (25. Rxa4 Rb8 26. Bc4 Qxg5 {
now that the rook is not en prise after Qxf7+}) 25... Bd5 {
Is alright for Black - Kramnik} 26. Bxd5 cxd5 27. Qxa6 Qxg5 28. Qxd6 Qe3+ {
forces a draw although perhaps if I leave Fritz on overnight it will be mate
in the morning}) 22... Bd3 $1 {This is the point, White has to sacrifice his
queen but hey Vlad loves to do that.} 23. Qf2 Re2 {# Kramnik was still playing
fast and afterwards said he could see no reason to give Leko any extra
thinking time by delaying.} 24. Qxe2 {There was a funny exchange in the press
conference when I asked Leko why not bxa6 Rxf2 Kxf2 Qh5 Kg1 - good question he
replied ! well the answer is below. There is no way back for White.} (24. bxa6
Rxf2 25. Kxf2 Qh5 26. Kg1 (26. Ke3 Bxa6 27. Rxa6 Qxh2) 26... Qh3 $1 27. a7 Bxg3
28. a8=Q+ Kg7 29. hxg3 Qxg3+ 30. Kh1 g4 $3 {
Found by Joe Gallagher who was in the audience today} 31. Qxc6 Qh3+ 32. Kg1 g3)
24... Bxe2 25. bxa6 Qd3 $3 {# And White can make a queen if he wants, this  is
an attack with four pieces and a g pawn. It was shoddy work not to consider
this move and even my computer works it out fairly quickly. Without a computer
I am sure it would have been foreseen because its the only realistic looking
try although Jon Speelman was also eyeing up 25...g4 as well.} 26. Kf2 {
Kramnik had a long think now but its gone.} (26. a7 Qe3+ 27. Kg2 Bxf3+ 28. Nxf3
Qe2+ 29. Kg1 Ng4 30. a8=Q+ Kg7 31. Qxc6 Qf2+ 32. Kh1 Qf1+ 33. Ng1 Nf2# {
Is what Team Kramnik missed}) 26... Bxf3 $1 27. Nxf3 Ne4+ 28. Ke1 Nxc3 $1 (
28... Qxf3 $4 29. a7) 29. bxc3 (29. a7 Qe2#) 29... Qxc3+ 30. Kf2 Qxa1 31. a7 h6
$1 {An amusing echo of game one, where h6 was decisive although of course Qxa7
also won easily} 32. h4 g4 0-1

[Event "WCh"]
[Site "Brissago SUI"]
[Date "2004.10.09"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Leko,P"]
[Black "Kramnik,V"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[WhiteElo "2741"]
[BlackElo "2770"]
[EventDate "2004.09.25"]
[ECO "E15"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. b3 Bb4+ 6. Bd2 Be7 7. Nc3 Bb7 8.
Bg2 d5 9. cxd5 exd5 10. O-O O-O 11. Bf4 Na6 12. Qc2 Re8 13. Rfd1 c6 14. Ne5
h6 15. a3 Nc7 16. e4 Ne6 {Still in the game Van der Sterren vs Vladimir Epishin 
Newark 1995 ½-½, 57} 1/2-1/2

[Event "WCh"]
[Site "Brissago SUI"]
[Date "2004.10.10"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Kramnik, V"]
[Black "Leko, P"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "C78"]
[WhiteElo "2770"]
[BlackElo "2741"]
[Annotator "Malcolm Pein"]
[EventDate "2004.09.25"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Bc5 6. c3 b5 7. Bc2 d5 {
Michael Adams played an interesting piece sacrifice against Leko at Wijk aan
Zee 2002 with:} (7... d6 8. d4 Bb6 9. a4 Bg4 10. h3 Bh5 11. d5 Na5 12. Na3 O-O
13. Qe2 c6 14. b4 cxd5 15. bxa5 Bxa5 16. Bg5 Bxc3 17. Rad1 b4 18. Nb1 d4 19.
Bb3 h6 20. Bxf6 Qxf6 21. g4 Bg6 22. Ne1 Kh8 23. Nd3 Qe7 24. Nd2 Bxd2 25. Rxd2
a5 26. Rc1 Rac8 27. Rc4 Rxc4 {
1/2-1/2 Leko,P-Adams,M/Wijk aan Zee NED 2002/The Week in Chess 377 (27)}) 8.
exd5 $5 {has not been tried at the top level and 9.a4 was a new move which
forces some weakening of the black pawn structure in preparation for the
endgame that arises.} 8... Qxd5 9. a4 b4 10. d4 exd4 11. Bb3 Qd8 (11... Qd6 12.
cxd4 Bxd4 13. Re1+ Be6 14. Ng5 O-O $2 (14... Ne5) 15. Nxe6 fxe6 16. Rxe6 Bxf2+
17. Kxf2 Qc5+ $2 (17... Qxh2) 18. Be3 Ne4+ 19. Ke2 Qh5+ 20. Ke1 Qh4+ 21. g3
Nxg3 22. hxg3 Qxg3+ 23. Kd2 Rad8+ 24. Kc2 Kh8 25. Qd2 $2 (25. Nd2) 25... Nd4+
$2 (25... Qf3 26. Qe1 Qf5+) 26. Bxd4 Rxd4 27. Qe2 Qf4 28. Re8 {
1-0 Boros,D - Csorba,J/
Papp Memorial Hungary 1995}) 12. Re1+ Be7 (12... Be6
13. Ng5 {with a dangerous initiative for white.}) 13. Nxd4 Nxd4 14. Qxd4 $1 {
# removes a defender of e7 so although Leko can exchange queens his king is
trapped in the centre.} 14... Qxd4 15. cxd4 Bb7 16. Bg5 h6 $5 {A forcing move
that Leko hoped would take Kramnik out of his preparation with still some
chances to hold. He suspected that a more normal continuation might lead him
into some  Fritz refutation.} (16... Rd8 17. Nd2 Rxd4 18. Rac1 Kd8 19. Be3 Rd7
20. Bxf7 Bd5 {was better than the game.}) 17. Bxf6 gxf6 18. Nd2 Rg8 19. g3 Rd8
20. Rac1 Rd7 21. Nc4 Rg5 22. Ne3 (22. h4 {would have won the exchange after}
22... Rgd5 23. Bc2 Rxd4 24. Bf5 Rd8 25. Na5 {attacks c7 and b7.}) 22... Kf8 23.
h4 Ra5 {#} 24. d5 $5 (24. Bd1 $5 Bd5 (24... Rxd4 25. Rxc7 Be4 26. f3 {wins.})
25. Nxd5 Raxd5 26. Be2 a5 27. Bb5 R7d6 28. Rxc7 Bd8) 24... Rc5 25. Rcd1 c6 $1 {
eliminates a weakness and Black should draw now.} 26. Nf5 cxd5 27. Rd4 Rdc7 {
An exact move.} 28. Red1 Rc1 29. Bxd5 Rxd1+ 30. Rxd1 Bc8 31. Be4 (31. Nxh6 $2
Kg7 32. Nxf7 Bg4 33. Re1 Bh5) 31... Bxf5 32. Bxf5 b3 33. Rd3 Rc4 34. Bd7 Rb4
35. Bc6 {#} 1/2-1/2

[Event "WCh"]
[Site "Brissago SUI"]
[Date "2004.10.12"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Leko, P"]
[Black "Kramnik, V"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2743"]
[BlackElo "2760"]
[Annotator "Mark Crowther"]
[EventDate "2004.10.12"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. Qa4 Bb7 6. Bg2 c5 7. dxc5 Bxc5 8. O-O
O-O 9. Nc3 Be7 10. Bf4 a6 11. Rfd1 d6 12. Qc2 (12. Rac1 Nh5 13. Be3 Qc7 14. Qc2
Nf6 15. Bf4 Rd8 16. Qd2 Ne4 17. Nxe4 Bxe4 18. Bg5 Nc6 19. Bxe7 Nxe7 20. Qf4
Bxf3 21. Qxf3 Rac8 22. Qb7 a5 23. e3 Qxb7 24. Bxb7 Rc7 25. Bf3 Kf8 26. Rc3 Nc8
27. Be2 Ke7 28. Kf1 Na7 29. Rb3 Rb8 30. Rbd3 Rd8 31. Rb3 Rb8 32. Rbd3 {
1/2-1/2 Timman,J-Kramnik,V/Wijk aan Zee NED 2004/The Week in Chess 481 (32)})
12... Qc7 13. Rac1 (13. Nd2 Bxg2 14. Kxg2 Nbd7 15. Rac1 Rfc8 16. Nce4 Qb7 17.
Kg1 Rc6 18. Qd3 Qc7 19. Rc3 h6 20. Qf3 Rc8 21. h4 Qd8 22. Rd3 Qf8 23. b3 b5 24.
Nxf6+ Nxf6 25. e4 Nd7 26. Qe2 Nb6 27. cxb5 axb5 28. Nf3 b4 29. Nd4 Rc5 30. Bd2
Re5 31. f4 Ra5 32. Bxb4 Raa8 33. Nb5 d5 34. Bxe7 Qxe7 35. a4 Qc5+ 36. Qe3 dxe4
37. Rd8+ Kh7 38. Qxc5 Rxc5 39. Rxa8 Nxa8 40. Rd6 Kg6 41. Kf2 Nc7 42. Nxc7 Rxc7
43. Rb6 Kf5 44. Rb5+ Kg4 45. Rb4 Rc2+ 46. Ke3 f5 47. a5 Rc3+ 48. Kd2 Rc5 49.
Ra4 Kf3 50. a6 e3+ 51. Kd3 e2 52. a7 Rd5+ 53. Kc2 e1=Q 54. a8=Q Kxg3 {
0-1 Amorim,A-Alzate,D/Elista RUS 1998 (54)}) 13... Rd8 14. Qd2 Nh5 $146 {
# The big novelty which leaves the position equal.} (14... Ne8 15. Bg5 Bxg5 16.
Qxg5 Nd7 17. b3 Rac8 18. Qe3 Nef6 19. h3 h6 20. Qd2 Nc5 21. Qe3 Qb8 22. Rd4 Qa8
23. Rcd1 Ne8 24. Rh4 Nd7 25. Rhd4 Rc7 26. Ne1 Bxg2 27. Nxg2 Ndf6 28. a4 Rdc8
29. R4d3 Rc6 30. Ne1 Qb7 31. Nf3 Qc7 32. Ne4 Nxe4 33. Qxe4 Nf6 34. Qe3 d5 35.
Ne5 Rc5 36. Qd4 dxc4 37. Nxc4 b5 38. axb5 axb5 39. Ne3 Qb7 40. Qf4 Kh7 41. Ng4
Nh5 42. Qe3 R8c7 43. Kh2 b4 44. Rd8 Rc3 45. Qe5 R7c5 46. Qd4 f5 47. Rd7 Rc7 48.
Ne5 Nf6 49. Rxc7 Qxc7 50. Nd3 Rxb3 51. Nxb4 Ne4 52. Nd3 Rc3 53. Ra1 Rc4 54. Ra7
Qxg3+ 55. fxg3 Rxd4 56. Re7 Rd6 57. Nf4 Nc5 58. Nh5 Kg6 59. Nxg7 Rd2 60. Ne8
Rxe2+ 61. Kg1 h5 62. Rg7+ Kh6 63. g4 Ne4 64. Re7 Ng3 65. Nc7 e5 66. gxf5 Nxf5
67. Rf7 Nd4 68. Nd5 Rd2 69. Ne7 e4 70. Rf8 e3 {
0-1 Jakobsen,O-Hansen,S/Greve 2002 (70)}) (14... Ne4 15. Nxe4 Bxe4 16.
Bg5 (16. b4 Qb7 17. c5 bxc5 18. bxc5 d5 19. Qa5 Nc6 20. Qb6 {
Leko. Big advantage to white.}) 16... Nc6 17. Bxe7 Nxe7 18. Qf4 Bxf3 19. Qxf3
Rac8 20. Qb7 a5 21. e3 Qxb7 22. Bxb7 Rc7 23. Bf3 Kf8 24. Rc3 Nc8 25. Be2 Ke7
26. Kf1 Na7 27. Rb3 Rb8 28. Rbd3 Rd8 29. Rb3 Rb8 {
is Timman,J-Kramnik,V/Wijk aan Zee NED 2004 by transposition.} 30. Rbd3) 15.
Bg5 Nf6 16. Bf4 Nh5 17. Bg5 Nf6 1/2-1/2

[Event "WCh"]
[Site "Brissago SUI"]
[Date "2004.10.14"]
[Round "12"]
[White "Kramnik, V."]
[Black "Leko, P."]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "B19"]
[WhiteElo "2760"]
[BlackElo "2743"]
[Annotator "Mark Crowther"]
[PlyCount "68"]
[EventDate "2004.09.25"]

1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nd2 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Bf5 5. Ng3 Bg6 6. h4 h6 7. Nf3 Nd7 8. h5
Bh7 9. Bd3 Bxd3 10. Qxd3 e6 (10... Ngf6 11. Bd2 e6 12. O-O-O Qc7 13. Ne4 O-O-O
14. g3 Nxe4 15. Qxe4 Bd6 16. Kb1 Rhe8 {is an alternate line.}) 11. Bf4 Qa5+ 12.
Bd2 Qc7 13. O-O-O Ngf6 14. Ne4 O-O-O 15. g3 Nxe4 16. Qxe4 Bd6 17. Kb1 ({
The following could have almost reached the same position as the game.} 17. c4
Nf6 18. Qc2 c5 19. d5 exd5 20. cxd5 Rhe8 21. Bc3 Qd7 22. Kb1 Kb8 23. Bxf6 gxf6
24. Nh4 Qg4 25. Nf5 Re2 26. Nxh6 Qf3 27. Qf5 Rxb2+ 28. Kxb2 Be5+ 29. Kc1 Qa3+
30. Kd2 Rxd5+ 31. Ke2 Qxa2+ 32. Kf3 Qb3+ 33. Kg2 Rxd1 34. Rxd1 Qxd1 35. Ng4
Qd5+ 36. Kh3 Qh1+ 37. Nh2 Qc1 38. f4 Bd4 39. h6 Qe1 40. h7 Qe8 41. Ng4 Qf8 42.
Qh5 f5 43. Ne5 Qh8 44. Qxf7 Bxe5 45. fxe5 {
1-0 Coelho,L-Molina,J/Sao Jose de Rio Preto 2003.}) 17... Rhe8 18. Qh7 $146 {
# Leko knew of this variation but didn't know if Kramnik had prepared this or
if it was an over-the-board inspiration.} (18. Qe2 {is the main line.}) (18. c4
) 18... Rg8 (18... Rh8 $5 {Leko thought Kramnik would just play Qd3 here.} 19.
Qxg7 Rdg8 20. Qxf7 Rf8 21. Qg7 Rfg8 22. Bxh6 Rxg7 23. Bxg7 {
is a crazy alternative.}) 19. c4 c5 20. d5 {
Kramnik thought for some time before choosing this continuation.} (20. Qc2 {
Black will probably play Qc6 at some point attacking the knight on f3.}) 20...
Nf6 (20... exd5 21. cxd5 Nb6 22. Nd4 cxd4 23. Rc1) 21. Qc2 exd5 22. cxd5 Qd7 $5
(22... Be7 {Fritz's suggestion wasn't even considered by Kramnik who thought
it just good for white.} 23. Bf4 Bd6 24. Bc1 (24. Be3)) 23. Bc3 Rde8 (23... Ng4
24. Rhe1 {and Black is already running out of moves according to Leko.}) 24.
Bxf6 {# Strategically winning, but maybe not tactically, according to Kramnik.}
24... gxf6 25. Qd3 {
Kramnik called this a strange move after the game. It intends Nd2 next move.}
25... f5 26. Nd2 b5 $5 {This brave move cuts across Kramnik's intentions.} (
26... Rg4 27. f4 {with Nc4 to follow looks close to winning for white.}) 27.
Rhe1 (27. a4) 27... Kb8 28. Qc3 Rxe1 29. Rxe1 c4 (29... Re8 30. Rxe8+ Qxe8 31.
Qf6 Qe1+ 32. Kc2) 30. Nf3 f4 $1 31. g4 $6 {Kramnik thought that, in retrospect,
this move might be a little more than his postion can stand.} (31. Ne5 Qf5+ 32.
Qc2 Qxc2+ 33. Kxc2 fxg3 34. fxg3 Bxe5 35. Rxe5 Rxg3 {
would probably just finish in a draw.}) 31... Bc7 {
After the game Kramnik admitted that he missed this. Now black is better.} 32.
Qd4 Qxg4 33. Qe4 $6 (33. Qc5 {Leads to a clear draw.} 33... Qxf3 34. Qxb5+)
33... Qxh5 34. Nd4 Qg6 {# on black's proposal. Leko believed that Kramnik had
no choice but to accept. Nf5 would have followed when both players thought
white should have enough to draw but surely black wasn't risking anything by
playing on.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "WCh"]
[Site "Brissago SUI"]
[Date "2004.10.16"]
[Round "13"]
[White "Leko,P"]
[Black "Kramnik,V"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A73"]
[WhiteElo "2743"]
[BlackElo "2760"]
[Annotator "Mark Crowther"]
[EventDate "2004.09.25"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 c5 {
Announcing a serious attempt to try and strike back with black.} 4. d5 d6 5.
Nc3 exd5 6. cxd5 g6 7. Nd2 Bg7 8. e4 O-O 9. Be2 Na6 10. O-O Ne8 (10... Nc7) 11.
Nc4 Nac7 (11... f5) 12. a4 f5 (12... b6) 13. exf5 (13. Bf4 {has been played
before and this position has been reached by transposition by Kramnik before
in the game:}) (13. f3 Qe7 14. Bf4 g5 15. Bg3 f4 16. Bf2 b6 17. Re1 Ba6 18. e5
Bxc4 19. exd6 Nxd6 20. Bxc4 Qd7 21. Ba2 Rae8 22. Qd3 Kh8 23. Rxe8 Rxe8 24. Rd1
Bf6 25. Bb1 Re7 26. h3 Nce8 27. Bc2 Be5 28. Re1 Nf6 29. a5 Bd4 30. Re2 Bxf2+
31. Kxf2 b5 32. b4 Rxe2+ 33. Qxe2 cxb4 34. Qe5 Nde8 35. Ne4 Qxd5 36. Qe7 Nxe4+
37. Bxe4 Qd4+ 38. Kf1 Qd1+ 39. Kf2 Qd4+ 40. Kf1 Nf6 41. Qf8+ Ng8 42. Qa8 b3 43.
Bd5 Qg7 44. Bxb3 Qa1+ 45. Kf2 Qd4+ 46. Kf1 Qa1+ {
Kramnik,V (2730) - Ivanchuk,V (2740) [A73]Belgrade (3), 16.11.1995}) 13... Rxf5
(13... Bxf5) (13... gxf5) 14. Bg4 Rf8 $146 {#} (14... Rf7 15. Bf3 b6 16. Ne4 h6
17. Re1 Bb7 18. Ng3 Nf6 19. Ne3 Qf8 20. Qd3 Nd7 21. Qxg6 Ne5 22. Qh5 Rxf3 23.
Nef5 Rxf5 24. Nxf5 Kh7 25. Ra3 Qe8 26. Nxg7 Nf3+ 27. gxf3 Qxe1+ 28. Kg2 Qxc1 {
0-1 Socha,C-Yudasin,L/Gdynia 1987}) 15. Bxc8 Rxc8 16. Qb3 b6 17. Nb5 {
Opening the a-file and relieving some pressure on d5.} 17... Nxb5 18. axb5 Rc7
19. Bd2 Rcf7 20. Bc3 Qd7 21. f3 g5 $5 22. Ne3 Rf4 23. Rfe1 h5 $5 24. Qc2 Qf7
25. h3 Bd4 26. Bxd4 {#} 26... Rxd4 (26... cxd4 {
is another game entirely but Kramnik couldn't find anything at the board.}) 27.
Nf5 $1 {# Completely equalising.} 27... Qxf5 28. Qxf5 Rxf5 29. Rxe8+ Kf7 30.
Rb8 Rdxd5 31. Rxa7+ Ke6 32. Re8+ Kf6 33. g4 $2 {
# Probably the move that puts Leko back under pressure.} (33. Rh7 {
is a clear draw.}) 33... hxg4 34. hxg4 Rd1+ 35. Kf2 Re5 36. Rh8 Rd2+ 37. Kg3
Ree2 38. Rf8+ Kg6 39. Rg8+ Kf6 40. Rf8+ Ke6 41. Re8+ Kd5 42. Rxe2 {Forced.}
42... Rxe2 43. Rg7 Re5 {This seems the best.} 44. Rb7 $1 {
The only way to try and hold the draw.} 44... c4 45. Rxb6 Re2 46. f4 Re3+ 47.
Kf2 gxf4 48. Rb8 Rb3 49. b6 {#} 49... Ke4 (49... Rxb2+ {must have been
considered strongly by Kramnik but it doesn't appear to yield a win.}) 50. Re8+
Kd3 (50... Kd4 {Is the best way to play for a win, its not clear to me whether
its winning or not.}) 51. Re2 d5 52. Kf3 {Now this position seems to be a draw.
} 52... d4 53. g5 c3 54. bxc3 dxc3 55. Rg2 Rb2 56. b7 Rxb7 57. Kxf4 Rb2 58. Rg1
c2 59. Rc1 Rb1 60. Rxc2 Kxc2 61. g6 Kd3 62. Kf5 Rb5+ 63. Kf6 Rb6+ 64. Kf7 Rxg6
65. Kxg6 {An amazing draw from Leko.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "WCh"]
[Site "Brissago SUI"]
[Date "2004.10.18"]
[Round "14"]
[White "Kramnik,V"]
[Black "Leko,P"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "B12"]
[WhiteElo "2760"]
[BlackElo "2743"]
[Annotator "Crowther,Mark"]
[EventDate "2004.09.25"]

1. e4 c6 {A risky choice according to Leko but he only had a limited number of
defences possible.} 2. d4 d5 3. e5 Bf5 4. h4 h6 5. g4 Bd7 6. Nd2 $146 {
# In a sharp position white finds an early prepared novelty.} (6. h5 c5 7. c3
Nc6 8. Bh3 e6 9. Be3 Qb6 10. Qb3 cxd4 11. Qxb6 axb6 12. cxd4 Na5 13. Nc3 b5 14.
Bf1 b4 15. Nb5 Kd8 16. Nf3 Nc4 17. Bxc4 dxc4 18. Nd6 Bxd6 19. exd6 Bc6 20. Ne5
Bxh1 21. Nxf7+ Ke8 22. Nxh8 Be4 23. d5 exd5 24. Bd4 Nf6 25. Kd2 Kd7 26. Nf7 Ke6
27. Ne5 Kxd6 28. f3 Bh7 29. g5 hxg5 30. h6 gxh6 31. Nf7+ Ke6 32. Nxh6 Ng8 33.
Ng4 Bf5 34. Ne3 Bg6 35. Ng4 Bf5 36. Ne3 Bg6 37. Ng4 Kd6 38. Ne5 Bf5 39. Nf7+
Kd7 40. Nxg5 Ne7 41. f4 Nc6 42. Nf3 Kd6 {
0-1 Tal,M-Botvinnik,M/Moscow (Russia) 1961 (42)}) 6... c5 7. dxc5 e6 8. Nb3
Bxc5 9. Nxc5 Qa5+ 10. c3 Qxc5 {
Black is perfectly OK here both Kramnik and Leko agreed on this after the game.
} 11. Nf3 Ne7 12. Bd3 Nbc6 13. Be3 Qa5 14. Qd2 Ng6 {Looks solid.} (14... d4 {
Leko said that at a different stage of the match he would have played this
dynamic move. He thought it unclear at the time which is why he rejected it.})
(14... O-O-O {also possible.}) 15. Bd4 $1 {A nasty shock for Leko. He didn't
take this possibility seriously before it was played and didn't seem in the
spirit of Kramnik's play so far. The endgame is far from easy for Leko but
should in the final analysis be OK.} 15... Nxd4 16. cxd4 Qxd2+ 17. Kxd2 Nf4 18.
Rac1 h5 {Leko stood by this move after the game and that he should always play
to the maximum rather than passive defence. He said that he had defended
dynamically throughout the match and wasn't going to change now.} (18... Nxd3
19. Kxd3 {
and grovelling defence but perhaps this was a better practical choice.}) 19.
Rhg1 Bc6 (19... Nh3 $1 {Leko.}) 20. gxh5 Nxh5 21. b4 a6 $2 22. a4 $1 Kd8 23.
Ng5 Be8 24. b5 Nf4 (24... axb5 25. Bxb5 {
and black's position disintegrates. Leko missed this.}) 25. b6 {
# After the game Kramnik told Beat Zueger "I was happy when I played b6."}
25... Nxd3 (25... f6 26. Nf3 Bh5 27. Rxg7 Bxf3 28. exf6) 26. Kxd3 {Now black is
definitely already in desperate trouble. Although Kramnik makes it look
comparitavely easy he is very accurate in finishing the game.} 26... Rc8 27.
Rxc8+ Kxc8 28. Rc1+ Bc6 29. Nxf7 Rxh4 30. Nd6+ Kd8 31. Rg1 Rh3+ 32. Ke2 Ra3 33.
Rxg7 Rxa4 34. f4 $1 {
# Looks like a winner. Perhaps even after 31.Rg1 this could also be said.}
34... Ra2+ 35. Kf3 Ra3+ 36. Kg4 Rd3 $2 {
Computers start to say white is winning very clearly.} 37. f5 Rxd4+ 38. Kg5
exf5 39. Kf6 Rg4 40. Rc7 Rh4 41. Nf7+ {#} 1-0

