The diagram above is the final position of the Kamsky – Svidler game
Gata Kamsky just thrashed Svidler in 24 moves. He is now 3.5 / 4 with a performance rating well over 3000! Congrats to Gata!
On move 15. Svidler made a horrible blunder and Gata took full advantage of it! Kamsky – Svidler: 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nc6 5. Nc3 d6 6. Be2 Nf6 7. O-O Be7 8. Be3 O-O 9. f4 e5 10. Nxc6 bxc6 11.Kh1 exf4 12. Bxf4 Be6 13. Bf3 Qb6 14. b3 Rfd8 15. Qe1 Nd7?? 16. Nd5!! (diagram below) cxd5 17. exd5 Bg4 18. Qxe7 Bxf3 19. Rxf3 Nf6 20. Be3 Qa5 21. Rxf6! gxf6 22. Qxf6Re8 23. Qg5+ Kf8 24. Bd2 and Black resigned!
Chess Daily News from Susan Polgar
i am an amateur – but nd7 – (i won’t give nd5 TWO exclamation marks …) was really incredible – peter is a shadow of himself in those days – but he will come back – i’m sure!
Peter Svidler fan – Vohaul
It’s almost unbelievable that a player like Svidler could miss something like that. Still an equally unbelievable performance by Kamsky =)
Gata Kamsky is making America proud. And don’t talk to me about his country of birth – he is an AMERICAN now.
Is Gata his name or nickname? Sounds short a bit.
Can you make a diagram after “15. Qe1 Nd7??” I don’t have any software for this viewing, nor do I have a chess board in my room. I will try to get one.
I don’t understand why Svidler resigned?? He had more material!! And I don’t see a checkmate in one move or something? Why do they play chess like this? This is not chess for the public. I won’t visit their site any more. Boooo.
Гата Рустемович Камский
the birth name of the great us-grandmaster
“GATA KAMSKY” …
(as an example …)
sincerly – Vohaul (some of our famous german grandmasters of chess share similar names … hehe …)
This tournament is too tough for me to follow the games. I don’t understand = I need chess lessons. Are there some lessons for understanding super-grandmaster games such as these? I only want to understand something, nothing more, but more than nothing.
I very much doubt that Svidler resigned for no reason Anon, in what way exactly would chess for the public be different?
Play until checkmate, what’s the problem with that? Who resigns in football, basketball, soccer, when in a “losing” position??
Or in individual sports, like table tennis, archery, boxing? Even in boxing, they fight until the knockout.
You lose a queen, ok, play a few more moves, a few more minutes, make the public happy, make all understand.
“I very much doubt that Svidler resigned for no reason”.
I am sure that Svidler resigned only because of fear of being checkmated. Why are chess players frightened of getting a checkmate, that almost all resign, usually, one or two, or maximum 10 moves before checkmate
Premature resignation is a disease that has to be cured. I recall Susan commenting on Judit resigning too soon in one game in San Luis, where Topalov won.
Wasn’t it in Bulgaria, where they forbid making quick draws? Why not forbid quick losses, too? Move that King, run, even if you cannot hide! No one ever drew a game by resigning!
“Premature resignation is a disease that has to be cured. I recall Susan commenting on Judit resigning too soon in one game in San Luis, where Topalov won.”
Please, there is ABSOLUTELY NO relation between “resigning disease” and “Judit”, I thought someone might have bad interpetations. I understand chess players like to resign when in a losing position, I just don’t like it, that’s all.
Congrats to Kamsky! I still don’t get what’s the big deal with Nd5, except ‘winning’ a Bishop for a Knight?
Every sport has its own customs. In professional chess, it is customary to resign once it is clear that the outcome is inevitable. This is an ancient tradition and isn’t going to change, so get used to it! On very rare occasions, a player will resign prematurely, and indeed Susan questioned her sister Judit in one such case. But in general, these players know what they are doing. If you are curious as to the reason why, you can download Chessbase Light for free and enter the moves into the engine. You’ll very quickly see why Black’s case was hopeless.
The reason Svidler resigned is that it is mate in a few moves. For instance, if 24…Qb6 and most other queen moves, then White plays:
25.Qf6 (threatening Bh6+ and Qg7 mate) Re2 (if 25…Rec8 then 26.Bh6+ Ke8 27.Re1+ Kd7 28.Re7+ Kd8 29.Rxf7+ and mate next move) 26.Bh6+ Ke8 27.Qh8+ kd7 28.Qxa8 and white is up a piece.
And if 24…Qd8 then 25.Qh6+ Kg8 (if 25…Ke7 then 26.Bg5+ wins the queen) 26.Bg5 f6 27.Bxf6 Qd7 28.Qg5+ Kf8 29.Rf1 Qf7 30.Bg7+! Kg8 31.Bc3+ Kf8 32.Qg7+ Ke7 33.Rxf7+ and mate in a few moves
GATA is the name
CHESS is the game.
Hahahaha
This is so great. nothing like it.
15 … Nd7 was a mistake but the point is that Kamsky jumped on it with the only response that punished the move. and it was a move that appeared to give up his own knight. so gata was sharpe. on the ball. earned the win.
I would not have seen the correct move
16 Nd5 but then I am not a real good chess player.
GO GATA GO
I am now thinking the impossible just a few days ago. I am dreaming of Gata winning the tournament. wowowowow.
LOOK OUT CANDIDATES MATCHES.
The games ends with a mate threat on g7.
24 … Qd8 all else is much worse.
25 Qh6+ Kg8
26 Bc3
now he has
26 … Re5
27 Bxe5 dxe5
28 c4 is awesome pawns.
he can try
26 … f6
27 Bxf6 Qc7
28 Qg5+ Rf1 does not look good.
Black resigned because he is lost in the position.
Anonymous said…
This tournament is too tough for me to follow the games. I don’t understand = I need chess lessons. Are there some lessons for understanding super-grandmaster games such as these? I only want to understand something, nothing more, but more than nothing.
Sunday, May 14, 2006 11:14:03 AM
I think the best thing is to buy a chess playing program like Fritz. you can get the older Fritz8 real cheap. and that will answer most of your questions.
it has been the ability for everyone to have a program like fritz that has helped people to understand chess so deeply today. the grandmasters use it to understand the moves when they go home to analyze. you can too.
the newest edition is Fritz9 about $43 on amazon.com
you can probably get fritz8 for under $10.
It appears that the 4th and 5th rounds were switched. (Numerous comments after Kamsky won in round 3 about his facing Topalov next. The official web site shows him facing Topalov in round 9 and Svidler in round 10, and other than the apparent switch of 4th and 5th rounds, rounds 6 – 10 are in the same order, but reversed colors, as rounds 1 – 5.)
If so, does anyone know WHY the 4th and 5th rounds were switched? Better publicity by having the home town hero (Topalov) and the hot hand (Kamsky) face each other on a Monday rather than Sunday? Something else? I haven’t seen anything about this elsewhere; perhaps someone here knows?
Just curious.
My Fritz (8) recommends 17 … Bxd5 with white up 2.2 pawns and gives Svidler’s Bg4 as white up 3 pawns.
It also doesnnt like Svidler’s 19 … Nf6 and suggests Qa5 so far in its analysis.
Thank you for all the great comments explaining so much, and the suggestions! And thank you for the new diagram! The position looks really astonishing!
I read during San Luis that they always switch rounds on double roun tournaments, because of some white and black color adjustment, so that someone would not be three times black or white. Hope I didn’t confuse you more.
“Is Gata his name or nickname? Sounds short a bit.”
I read somewhere on the web [disclaimer: chessbase.com IIRC, which is not an extremely reliable source] that Gata is short for Gataulla (name of his Tatar grandfather).
How does an average guy play a simul against 9 people, several GM, IM and FM level players and come out with a positive score? Check out this video I found on the internet about chess:
http://www.hemmy.net/2006/05/07/
derren-brown-chess-moves/
chessbase.com will probably post the article on why Svidler resigned. However this website beat chessbase to it:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/14/AR2006051400748.html?nav=rss_print/style
What about
26 … f6
27 Bxf6 Qd7
28 Qg5+ Kf8
29 Rf1 Qf7
30 Bg7+ Kg8
31 Be5+ Qg6
(not 31 Rxf7??? Re1+ mate next)
32 Qxg6+ hxg6
33 Bd6 Re2
34 c4 Rxa2
is certainly playable for black