[Event "SuperGM"]
[Site "Linares ESP"]
[Date "2002.02.24"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Adams, Mi"]
[Black "Ponomariov, R."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C92"]
[WhiteElo "2742"]
[BlackElo "2727"]
[Annotator "Malcolm Pein"]
[PlyCount "151"]
[EventDate "2002.02.22"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3
O-O 9. h3 Re8 10. d4 Bb7 11. Nbd2 Bf8 12. d5 {Its a matter of styles, Kasparov
would always go for a4, Bc2 Nf1 etc and headlong down the sharp main lines
made famous in the KK matches. Adams prefers a positional struggle based on
control of squares and space} 12... Nb8 13. Nf1 Nbd7 14. N3h2 {This odd looking
move is the first stage in the battle for d5. Without playing ...c6 Black
cannot free the Bb7 and then the d5 square will be vulnerable. White's plan is
to exchange as many defenders of the d5 square as possible starting with both
knights} 14... Nc5 15. Bc2 c6 {15...a5 led to disaster for Black in Adams v
Bacrot at the European Team last year} 16. b4 Ncd7 17. dxc6 Bxc6 18. Bg5 {
18.Ng4 was Adams' choice against Belyavsky also at the European Team in 2001
but he lost after playing too hard for the win from a balanced position. Bg5
is a typical idea removing the second knight with Bxf6 and Nh2-g4 and then
Nf1-e3 comes} 18... h6 19. Bxf6 Nxf6 (19... Qxf6 20. Ng4 Qe7 21. Nge3 Nb6 {
Maintains one more defender of d5 and could be considered} 22. Ng3 g6 23. Bb3 {
Keeps an edge}) 20. Ng4 Nxg4 (20... Nd7 $5 $14) 21. Qxg4 d5 (21... Qd7 22. Qxd7
(22. Qg3 $1 d5 23. Rad1 $16) 22... Bxd7 23. Ne3 (23. Bb3 Rec8 24. Rac1 Be6 25.
Ne3 $14) 23... Rec8 24. Nd5 Be6) 22. exd5 Qxd5 (22... Bxd5 23. Rad1 $18) 23.
Bb3 Qd8 (23... Qd7 24. Qh5) 24. Qh5 $1 {x e5 x f7} 24... Ra7 (24... g6 $2 25.
Qxg6+) (24... Qf6 25. Ne3 g6 26. Ng4 Qg7 27. Qh4 g5 28. Qg3 (28. Qh5 Ra7) 28...
Bd6 29. Rad1 Rad8 30. Nxe5 $1 Bxe5 31. Rxd8 Bxg3 32. Rexe8+ Bxe8 33. Rxe8+ Kh7
34. Bc2+) 25. Rxe5 Rxe5 26. Qxe5 $16 Qg5 27. Qxg5 hxg5 28. Ne3 g6 29. Rd1 {
Intending to meet Bf8-g7 with Rd6xg6+ Black wants to keep the bishop pair and
the rooks on to maximise his chances of activity and of a draw All exchanges
help white who even has good winning chances in the rook and oppposite bishop
ending should itarise} 29... Rc7 30. Kf1 {
Good players are never in a hurry in the ending} 30... Kg7 31. Ke2 Be7 32. Bd5
$1 Bd7 33. Rd3 Bf6 34. c4 bxc4 35. Bxc4 {
Black's task is made even harder by the appearance of an isolated pawn} 35...
Bc8 (35... a5) (35... Rxc4 36. Nxc4 Bb5 37. Ne3 {
Just simplifies and helps White}) 36. a3 Bb2 37. Kd2 {If The king gets to b3
then moves like Rd6 and Nd5 will decide quite quickly and a second pawn will
go} 37... f5 38. Kc2 Bxa3 {
The only way to resist but it fails to a brilliant manouevre} 39. Rxa3 f4 40.
Kb3 fxe3 41. fxe3 Re7 42. Ka4 (42. Kb2 {
Was discussed on the ICC but Re4 makes the win difficult} 42... Re4 43. Bxa6
Bxa6 44. Rxa6 Rxb4+ 45. Kc3) 42... Re5 {This was the move that looked like it
might hold because the threat is Bd7+. If the queenside pawns come off then
Black will almost certainly hold} 43. Rd3 $1 Bf5 44. Rd2 $1 {Hard to fore see
but by stopping the check and even leaving the e3 pawn en prise White forces
the win because in the long run Black must lose if the a6 pawn goes.} 44...
Rxe3 {What else?} (44... Bc8 45. Rd8 Bf5 46. Bxa6 Bc2+ 47. Ka3 Rxe3+ 48. Kb2)
45. Bxa6 Be4 46. Rf2 $1 {Leaving absolutely nothing to chance. Speaking as a
lowly 2400 I would have pushed b5 straight off but I noticed some good players
raving about the idea of Bf1 which keeps all White's pawn on the board for the
longest possible time.} (46. b5 Bd3 (46... Rg3 47. b6 Rxg2 48. Rxg2 Bxg2 49. b7
Bxb7 50. Bxb7 {Was perhaps what Mickey wanted to avoid. White's last pawn is a
rook's pawn of the wrong colour. If Black had no pawns it would be a draw but
with the second black g pawn on the board White can force the Black king into
a corner with his king and bishop after which ...g5-g4 hxg4 is forced turning
the rook's pawn of the wrong colour into a g pawn that is a clear win. I love
Mickey's choice, its just total control. The black king is cut off, Bf1 comes
keeping the g2 pawn and then the b pawn rolls}) 47. Rxd3 Rxd3 48. b6 Rd8 49.
Kb5 Kf6 50. Kc6 Ke7 51. b7 Rd6+ 52. Kc7 Rd7+ 53. Kb6 Rd6+ 54. Ka7) 46... Kh6
47. Bf1 g4 48. hxg4 Re1 49. Be2 Ra1+ 50. Kb3 Rb1+ 51. Kc3 Rc1+ 52. Kd4 Bb7 53.
Bf3 Ba6 54. Rb2 Bb5 55. Be2 Bc6 56. Bf3 {Giving out a bit of Soviet torture}
56... Bb5 57. Be2 Bc6 58. Ba6 Rg1 59. b5 Bxg2 60. b6 Kg5 61. Bc8 {
The clincher, a g pawn stays on the board} 61... Kf4 {One last trap} 62. Kc5 (
62. b7 Bxb7 63. Rxb7 (63. Bxb7 Rxg4 {Draw !}) 63... Rd1+ 64. Kc5 Rc1+) 62...
Be4 63. Rb4 Ke5 64. b7 Rc1+ 65. Kb5 Bxb7 66. Bxb7 Kf6 67. Rc4 Rb1+ 68. Kc6 Kg5
69. Bc8 Rd1 70. Bd7 Kh4 71. Kc7 Rd2 72. Kd8 Re2 73. Rc6 g5 74. Bf5 Re3 75. Re6
Rg3 {Maybe the kid has a sense of humour} 76. Rh6# 1-0

[Event "SuperGM"]
[Site "Linares ESP"]
[Date "2002.03.09"]
[Round "13"]
[White "Kasparov, G."]
[Black "Ponomariov, R."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C10"]
[WhiteElo "2838"]
[BlackElo "2727"]
[Annotator "Malcolm Pein"]
[PlyCount "75"]
[EventDate "2002.02.22"]

1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Nd7 {This has to be one of the most
solid lines you can choose against a raging bull desperate to win. It was
Ivanchuk's choice in his disastrous first game loss against Ponomariov in the
FIDE final.} 5. Nf3 Ngf6 6. Nxf6+ Nxf6 7. c3 c5 8. Ne5 Nd7 9. Bb5 {Incredibly
is position can be reached from the French Defence, as in this game or from
the Caro Kann 1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 dxe4 4.Nxe4 Nd7 5.Nf3 Ngf6 6.Nxf6+ Nxf6 7.
c3 c5 8.Ne5 Nd7 9.Bb5 or the Sicilian with 2.c3 via 1.e4 c5 2.c3 d5 3.exd5
Qxd5 4.d4 e6 5.Nf3 Nf6 6.Na3 Qd8 7.Nc4 Nc6 8.Nce5 Nxe5 9.Nxe5 Nd710.Bb5} 9...
Bd6 (9... a6 10. Qf3 {Better than 10.Qh5 first because the interpolation of...
g6 lets Black play ...f6 without fear of Qh5+} 10... Qe7 (10... f6 11. Qh5+ g6
12. Nxg6) 11. Bxd7+ Bxd7 12. Qxb7 $16) 10. Qg4 $1 {#} 10... Kf8 (10... O-O 11.
Bxd7 {This just wins, not the obvious 11.Bh6 because Black has practical
chances after 11...Qf6 12.Nxd7 Bxd7 13.Bg5 Qg6 14.Bxd7 h6 pinning} 11... Bxd7
12. Bh6 Qf6 (12... g6 13. Bxf8) 13. Bg5) 11. O-O $1 Nxe5 12. dxe5 Bxe5 13. Bg5
{Kasparov gets a long lasting initiative and development advantage although
Ponomariov's position looks very solid for a very long time in thisgame} 13...
Bf6 14. Rad1 Qc7 {the point is that after 15.Bxf6 gxf6 the Black king sits
relatively comfortably on e7 and even allows a rook to contest the 'd' file
something Black could only dream of in the game. But Kasparov finds a better
way to attack} (14... Qe7 $5 15. Bxf6 gxf6 16. Qh4 {with very good compensation
} 16... a6 $2 (16... h6 17. Rd3 {and Black still cannot free himself with ...a6
} 17... a6 18. Rfd1 axb5 19. Rd8+ Kg7 20. Rxh8 Kxh8 21. Qxh6+ Kg8 22. Rd3) 17.
Qh6+ Kg8 18. Rd3 $18) 15. Qh4 (15. Bxf6 gxf6 16. Qh4 Ke7 17. Rd3 Rd8 18. Qxh7
Rxd3 19. Bxd3 Bd7 {and the worst is over}) 15... Bxg5 16. Qxg5 f6 {Forced} 17.
Qh5 g6 (17... Qe7 18. Rfe1) 18. Qh6+ Kf7 (18... Qg7 19. Rd8+ Kf7 20. Be8+ Rxe8
21. Qxg7+ Kxg7 22. Rxe8 $18) 19. Rd3 a6 20. Rh3 $1 Qe7 (20... Qe5 21. Be8+ $1 (
21. Bd3 Bd7 22. Qxh7+ Rxh7 23. Rxh7+ Kg8 24. Rxd7 $15) 21... Kxe8 22. Qg7 Rf8
23. Rxh7 Qd6 24. Qxg6+ Kd8 25. Qh5 $18) (20... axb5 21. Qxh7+ Rxh7 22. Rxh7+
$18) (20... Bd7 $1 {Was a decent try but Ponomariov would have been afraid to
cut off the queen from the defence of the king. After 21.Be2!? the Bd7 cannot
move because of Qxh7+ and the pressure remains.} 21. Bxd7 (21. Be2 $5 Rad8 22.
Rd1 Qe5 23. Re3 Qg5 24. Qh3) 21... Qxd7 22. Qxh7+ Rxh7 23. Rxh7+ Ke8 24. Rxd7
Kxd7 $11) 21. Bd3 f5 {Again more or less forced} (21... Kg8 22. Bxg6 $16) (
21... Bd7 22. Qxh7+ Rxh7 23. Rxh7+ Kf8 24. Rxe7 Kxe7 25. Bxg6 Bc6 26. h4 $1)
22. g4 {# Because he wins so many games by virtue of superior preparation its
easy to forget what a brilliant hacker Kasparov is. He just bludgeons his way
through now when 22.Qxh7+ was a safe edge - I doubt if he gave it much thought
!} 22... Qf6 (22... fxg4 23. Rh4 Bd7 (23... e5 24. Bxg6+ Kg8 25. Rd1 $16) 24.
f3 {And its getting very warm in there} 24... Kg8 25. fxg4 Qg7 26. g5 Qxh6 27.
gxh6 Rf8 28. Rhf4 Rxf4 29. Rxf4 {and I can't see a good defence to Kg1-e7 !}
29... Be8 30. Rf6 Bf7 31. Bc4 {wins}) 23. Rd1 {Ponomariov had been playing
much quicker than Kasparov and his next couple of moves came quite fast to my
surprise. Here or on the next move g6-g5 to get the queens off should have
been considered} 23... b5 24. Be2 $1 e5 $6 {# Was Ponomariov playing for a win
now ? This looks too loosening in particular the diagonal c4-g8 is fatally
weakened} (24... Ra7 25. Qxh7+ Rxh7 26. Rxh7+ Qg7 (26... Ke8 27. Rxa7 $16) 27.
Rxg7+ Kxg7 28. g5 $16) (24... Qg7 25. Qe3) (24... g5 {
looks like the best chance} 25. gxf5 Qxh6 26. Rxh6 Kg7 27. Rh5 h6 28. h4 exf5
$1 29. Bf3 (29. Rd6 $5) 29... g4 $1 {Fritz} 30. Bxa8 Kg6) 25. Rhd3 Ra7 (25...
fxg4 26. f3 $1 (26. Rd6 Qf4 27. Qh4 (27. Rd7+ Bxd7 28. Rxd7+ Ke8 29. Qg7 Qf8 $1
$17) 27... g3 $1 28. Qxg3) (26. Rd7+ Bxd7 27. Rxd7+ Ke8 $17) 26... Qf4 (26...
Bf5 27. Rd6) (26... g5 27. Rd7+ $18) 27. Qh4 $18 g3 28. Rd7+ $3 Bxd7 29. Rxd7+
Kg8 30. Qe7 Qe3+ 31. Kg2 Qxe2+ 32. Kh3 Qxh2+ 33. Kg4 h5+ (33... Qh5+ 34. Kxg3
$18) 34. Kg5 $18) 26. Rd6 Qg7 {The problem with this move at any point is that
it makes the black queen passive and white queen more active. 26...Be6 was
better but still awkward to defend} (26... Be6 {with the idea of ...g5} 27. a4
(27. gxf5 Qxf5 (27... gxf5 $2 28. Bh5+ Ke7 29. Rxe6+) 28. R1d3 e4 $1) 27... g5
28. Qh5+ Qg6 29. gxf5 $1 $18) 27. Qe3 Rc7 28. a4 $1 {
Black is too discoordinated to exchange pieces before the c4-g8 diagonal opens}
28... e4 29. axb5 axb5 30. Bxb5 Qe5 31. Qg5 {Probably quite unexpected in a
time scramble. Now 31...Be6 runs into 32.Bd7! and Bc4+ and R1d5 are coming}
31... Qe7 32. Qh6 {Add Rxg6 to the threat list} 32... Be6 33. Qf4 {John H tells
me GK made the control with a couple of minutes to spare. Looks like he missed
the kill first time round} 33... Bc8 (33... Ra7 {
To get the rook out of range of the Qf4} 34. Bc6 Rf8 35. Qe5 Bc8 36. Bd5+ Ke8
37. Be6 $18) 34. Qh6 Be6 35. gxf5 {This finishes it} 35... gxf5 (35... Bxf5 36.
Bc4+ Ke8 37. Qf4 Rc8 (37... Rf8 38. Bb5+ Kf7 39. Rd7 $18) 38. Bb5+ Kf8 39. Rd7
Qe6 40. Qh6+ $18) 36. Be2 Qf6 37. Bh5+ Ke7 38. Rxe6+ {#} 1-0

