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GM Viswanathan Anand defended his World Championship title last week in Bonn, by defeating GM and former champion Vladimir Kramnik, by 6.5-4.5. :):) A significant variation in GM Anand's match win was the Meran Defence in the Queen's Gambit Declined, Semi-Slav. In game 3, Anand came up with a new move, 14...Bb7!, in one of the main Meran lines, and won after a fierce tactical battle, which is likely the best game of the match. He repeated the idea in his next game as Black, game 5, and won again when Kramnik, at a disadvantage on the board and facing pressure from the clock, walked into a deep trap, which allowed Anand to sacrifice a piece to force a splendid conclusion. Both games saw Anand obtain excellent activity for his pieces in the early middlegame. Several of the websites covering the match pointed out that the new move had in fact been played in a few earlier games, at lower levels; the Bonn encounters saw its introduction to Grandmaster chess.
Playing over these games from Bonn, I had the feeling I had seen this idea before, and I was not mistaken! I dug into my own game archives, and this is what I came up with! Although I lost this game in scintillating fashion, I felt I should show it on this forum, it illustrates the variation's potential, and since my opponent played so well!
Frank Dixon (2000) -- Jean-Francois Wen (2170)
Queen's University Chess Club, G/30
Kingston, played August 17, 1991
Queen's Gambit, Semi-Slav Defence, Meran Variation
Notes by Frank Dixon
1.d4 d5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.c4 e6 4.Nc3 c6 5.e3 Nbd7 6.Bd3
[I was renting a suite in JF's house that summer, and he and I got lots of chess together. He reached a peak rating of 2260 sometime after this game, after hovering on the edge of 2200 for a few years beforehand. JF has been out of serious chess for several years, and now works as a professor of economics at the University of Calgary. I felt that had he continued with chess, the FM level was a distinct possibility for him. Very strong in positions on either side of 1.d4 d5, and known as a solid strategist and positional player, JF here showed that he also knows how to go after the King! Our games had a positive influence on my chess, in terms of broadening my opening repertoire, and instilling a more focused approach to chess study. I had been mainly a 1.e4 player before. After seeing Black's potential in this game, I switched to 6.Qc2 here, with some success.]
6...dxc4 7.Bxc4 b5
[The Meran Variation, likely first played at the Master event held in the northern Italian spa of Meran in 1924.]
8.Bd3 a6 9.e4 c5 10.e5 cxd4
[I was more familiar with 10...c4, so was on new ground from here.]
11.Nxb5 axb5 12.exf6 gxf6
[Clearly 12...Qxf6?? is out because of 13.Bg5 winning the Q.]
13.0-0 Qb6 14.Qe2 Bb7! 15.Bxb5 Bd6! 16.a4
[I felt I had to utilize my only trump, the connected Q-side passed pawns.]
16...Rg8! 17.Bd2 Ke7!
[Black has achieved a very active position, connecting his rooks, with his three diagonal pieces, two bishops and Queen, pointing at White's castled King. Black's King will prove to be very safe on e7. I was already starting to feel uncomfortable.]
18.Kh1 Rg4!? 19.h3
[Likely unnecessary and too slow; White needs to get on with his plan. Black is already better here.]
19...Rg7 20.Rfc1
[This may have been the last chance for White to stay in the game, by exchanging the dangerous knight with 20.Bxd7! Kxd7, keeping his disadvantage to manageable levels.]
20...Ne5! 21.b4 Rag8 22.a5
[And now for the speedy and spectacular finish.]
22...Bxf3 23.axb6 Bxg2+ 24.Kg1
[24.Kh2 runs into 24...Nf3#.]
24...Bxh3+
[Also mating is 24...Nf3+ 25.Qxf3 Bxf3+ 26.Kh1 (or 26.Kf1) Rg1#.)
25.Kh2 Nf3+ 26.Kxh3 Rg3+! 27.fxg3 Rxg3# 0-1.
[Bravo, JF!!]
Playing over these games from Bonn, I had the feeling I had seen this idea before, and I was not mistaken! I dug into my own game archives, and this is what I came up with! Although I lost this game in scintillating fashion, I felt I should show it on this forum, it illustrates the variation's potential, and since my opponent played so well!
Frank Dixon (2000) -- Jean-Francois Wen (2170)
Queen's University Chess Club, G/30
Kingston, played August 17, 1991
Queen's Gambit, Semi-Slav Defence, Meran Variation
Notes by Frank Dixon
1.d4 d5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.c4 e6 4.Nc3 c6 5.e3 Nbd7 6.Bd3
[I was renting a suite in JF's house that summer, and he and I got lots of chess together. He reached a peak rating of 2260 sometime after this game, after hovering on the edge of 2200 for a few years beforehand. JF has been out of serious chess for several years, and now works as a professor of economics at the University of Calgary. I felt that had he continued with chess, the FM level was a distinct possibility for him. Very strong in positions on either side of 1.d4 d5, and known as a solid strategist and positional player, JF here showed that he also knows how to go after the King! Our games had a positive influence on my chess, in terms of broadening my opening repertoire, and instilling a more focused approach to chess study. I had been mainly a 1.e4 player before. After seeing Black's potential in this game, I switched to 6.Qc2 here, with some success.]
6...dxc4 7.Bxc4 b5
[The Meran Variation, likely first played at the Master event held in the northern Italian spa of Meran in 1924.]
8.Bd3 a6 9.e4 c5 10.e5 cxd4
[I was more familiar with 10...c4, so was on new ground from here.]
11.Nxb5 axb5 12.exf6 gxf6
[Clearly 12...Qxf6?? is out because of 13.Bg5 winning the Q.]
13.0-0 Qb6 14.Qe2 Bb7! 15.Bxb5 Bd6! 16.a4
[I felt I had to utilize my only trump, the connected Q-side passed pawns.]
16...Rg8! 17.Bd2 Ke7!
[Black has achieved a very active position, connecting his rooks, with his three diagonal pieces, two bishops and Queen, pointing at White's castled King. Black's King will prove to be very safe on e7. I was already starting to feel uncomfortable.]
18.Kh1 Rg4!? 19.h3
[Likely unnecessary and too slow; White needs to get on with his plan. Black is already better here.]
19...Rg7 20.Rfc1
[This may have been the last chance for White to stay in the game, by exchanging the dangerous knight with 20.Bxd7! Kxd7, keeping his disadvantage to manageable levels.]
20...Ne5! 21.b4 Rag8 22.a5
[And now for the speedy and spectacular finish.]
22...Bxf3 23.axb6 Bxg2+ 24.Kg1
[24.Kh2 runs into 24...Nf3#.]
24...Bxh3+
[Also mating is 24...Nf3+ 25.Qxf3 Bxf3+ 26.Kh1 (or 26.Kf1) Rg1#.)
25.Kh2 Nf3+ 26.Kxh3 Rg3+! 27.fxg3 Rxg3# 0-1.
[Bravo, JF!!]