Photo by Fred Lucas
Magnus is fighting hard to hold a very difficult endgame against Kramnik. Below is the LIVE game.
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Kramnik is best in endgame.
I like 50… f5 to break the white’s couple of pawn…
Poor Magnus. All that hairspray fried his brain.
(attribution to ChessPub forum)
Susan, could you explain why Kramnik took so long for move 50? After all doesn’t look like to be a very strong one, as some moves later it turned out…
Consul,
Because Kramnik was drinking his wine. Look at the picture! He beat Magnus while drunk!
Well, well… he’s done it! He’s managed to make a draw – with the White pieces! But of course, that’s always better than loosing with the White pieces like in the other day. Hopefully, next time he plays white he’ll have the better of it. Otherwise he will forget how it feels to win against a GM.
He saved it. Actually, Liv Tyler saved it when she walked by and distracted Kramnik.
Now, this reinforces my opinion. Well, Aronian does well with it, but how does anyone expect to win with 1. c4? Even 1. f4 is more logical, though players who could win with it do not dare. It would be better to start with 1. Nc3 to get the issue out of the way than 1. c4, says me.
1.c4 is a good system for making a draw or having a += endgame where you can push you opponent to the mistake .
I suspect Magnus was looking for this (he didn’t want to lose , and probably wanted to win without taking many risks against Kramnik ) .
Maybe Carlsen thought Kramnik’s preparation against 1-d4 or 1-e4 was more dangerous , so he perhaps thought playing 1-c4 was safer since Magnus is out of form whereas Kramnik is in good form and in the lead .
Kasparow made a weapon of 1.c4 in the late early ’90’s. Replay some of his games and you get to know the venom.
The ChessBase analyst here echoes my impression at Move 50, which is that “Lionel” could stand to win by playing 50…f5(!). But after thinking about it a while more, it seems that after 51.exf5+ White does not fall into Zugzwangs after all…
I do not doubt 1.c4 has venom, and that Kasparov could win with it. Though I think 1. b4 also shares these features…