Magnus leads 5.5 – 4.5 with 2 to go

The Tenth Game of the World Championship Match Ended in a Draw. Magnus Carlsen Leads the Match 5.5-4.5

November 21, 2014 – The tenth game of the World Chess Championship match between Magnus Carlsen (Norway) and Viswanathan Anand (India) was played on November 21st in the Main Media Center in Sochi. The Indian grandmaster had White.

As usual in his white games, Vishy Anand started with the d-pawn advance. Magnus Carlsen responded by returning to the roots – he already employed the Gruenfeld defense in the first game on November 8th. A distinguishing feature of this double-edged opening is that White has a variety of promising choices, but if he gets carried away and plays inaccurately, he may face problems. In order to play the Gruenfeld successfully as Black one needs to remember many complicated and lengthy variations against each White’s plan.

Vishy Anand did not repeat the quiet maneuver Bc1-d2, as in the first game, and went for 5.Qb3 – a plan invented by the Soviet grandmaster Viacheslav Ragozin in the 30s of the previous century. The opening theory of this variation is now very broad and deep. The players followed a game played by Anand’s coach grandmaster Wojtaszek until Carlsen demonstrated a novelty on the move 15.

In a complex ending that arose in a few moves White had an advantage due to the bishop pair and a strong passed pawn on d6. However, Carlsen solidified the center with his bishop, then seized an open file with his rook, and subsequently traded off the opponent’s passer. The position became equal, and a draw was agreed on the move 32.

Vishy Anand said 19…Bd4 was very precise. He also mentioned that 24.Rfe1 instead of 24.Rd2 could be better, but he didn’t like that black knight land on c6.

Magnus Carlsen: “With two bishops White had some pressure, but I am not certain if it was enough for anything more than a draw.”

The match score is now 5.5-4.5 in Carlsen’s favor. The eleventh game is played on Sunday, November 23rd at 15:00 local time. Magnus Carlsen plays White. Admission is free of charge. The official website of the championship www.sochi2014.fide.com broadcasts live grandmaster commentary in Russian and English.

The World Chess Championship match consists of 12 games with a classical time control: 120 minutes for 40 moves, then 60 minutes for 20 moves, and then 15 minutes plus 30 second per move until the end of the game. If the match is tied, a tiebreak will be played on November 27th.

The 2014 Chess Championship match between incumbent champion Magnus Carlsen and challenger Vishy Anand will take place between November 7 and 28 in Sochi, Russia. The World Chess Championship is the most followed event in the world of chess. There are about 600 million chess players all over the world, with such well-known enthusiasts as Sergey Brin, George Soros, Bill Gates and Mikhail Gorbachev.

Tickets for the match can be booked at sochi2014.fide.com.

For more information:
Masha Kunica
Media, World Chess Championship
media@agonlimited.com