Position after 18.Nf1
GM Anand (2799) – GM Aronian (2739) [C89]
16.02.2008 – Round 2
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0–0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 0–0 8.c3 d5 9.exd5 Nxd5 10.Nxe5 Nxe5 11.Rxe5 c6 12.Re1 Bd6 13.g3 Re8 14.d4 Rxe1+ 15.Qxe1 Ra7 16.Be3 Re7 17.Nd2 Qe8 18.Nf1 h5 19.a4 Be6 20.Bd1 h4 21.axb5 axb5 22.Bf3 = Bh3 23.Bxd5 cxd5 24.Qd1 f5 25.Bg5 Re4 26.Bxh4 Qg6 27.Bd8 f4 28.Qd3 Qh5 29.Nd2 Re2 30.Nf3 Re3 31.fxe3 Qxf3 32.Qc2 fxg3 33.hxg3 Qxg3+ 34.Kh1 Bf5 0–1
Chess Daily News from Susan Polgar
That’s the Marshall Variation of the Ruy Lopez, right?
Susan, this is demanding, but can you please annotate Anand Aronian game, that will be great!.
Thanks
Anand Blundered and Aronian Won !!! what a surprise!
Aronian is a very good player and this is quite an exciting beginning for the tournament!
Besides, the other games are also very interesting and that is surely nice… or cute, the young one would say… 😉
I hate to say it but I think Anand’s best days may be past. I can’t ever remember Kasparov losing in this fashion. The only think that position offered Aronian was a king side attack. That’s all Anand had to watch out for. I am afraid that these type of mistakes signify something deeper than just a mistake. I don’t think Anand of ten years ago would have missed this in a classical game with plenty of time left.
Oh, Aronian has played in a nice way everybody should see in the first step. Why does anybody make this success smaller than it is?
This is chess that I love, and both, Aronian as well as Anand are excellent players – only look at yesterdays victory over Shirov by Anand.
They will show us chess as art and sports hopefully for many years.
And: They both will never be warriors like Topalov and Kramnik with their managers. Aronian and Anand are real gentlemen.
okay
Anand will lose to Kramnik and Kamsky will lose to Topalov. Then we have Toiletgate again!!!!
Unbelieveable that Anand made 30.Nf3?? in a classical game. Nice play by Aronian after that.
30.Nf3?? now Bobby would never do that!!! Bobby was the greatest!!!
not sure that 30. was a blunder … it was, but the game was already lost baby blue !
HULK
Kramnik overlooked mate in one against a computer! Were his days over then? What rubbish comments, you’re talking of the world champion Anand here. The best we have now, the best of your own generation as we speak. Wake up!
anonymous (of 4.31 am) should go and look at game 1 of the Fischer-Spassky match, I think. Nobody is immune to blunders. Reports of Anand’s demise are still somewhat exaggerated.
That said, it doesn’t look like the game was lost until the thirtieth move, although after 29.Nd2 Re2 it seems that White has nothing better than a perpetual: 30. Bh4 Rxd2 31. Ra8+ (31. Qxd2? Qf3) Kf2 32. Ra7+ Kg8 ( 32. … Ke6? 33.Qxd2) and so on.
So both 29.Nd2 and 30.Nf3 are mistakes, turning what looks like a win (or at least a strong position) into a draw, and then a draw into a loss.
the blunder was indeed 29.Nnd2 and NOT 30.Nf3 (which is a bad move, too, of course).
the game was lost after 29.nd2
after 29…re2! 30.bh4 rxd2 31.ra8+ bf8! black is completely winning
instead of 29.nd2 anand should have tried 29.b3 or 29.b4
Aronian did not disappoint Anand. Anand predicted Aronian will win the tournament. 🙂