Independent Pursuits: Chess
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Your support makes all the difference.AFTER HIS dream start in Linares where he won well against Leko in
the first round and then moved to "plus two" with a lucky win against Ivanchuk on time, Michael Adams has unfortunately fallen back into the pack with successive defeats as White against Gary Kasparov and Black against Vladimir Kramnik.
Following the Sunday rest day, the scores were Kasparov 4/6, Kramnik and Anand 3.5, Svidler, Topalov and Adams 3, Leko 2.5 and Ivanchuk just 1.5. After a tentative start, this left Kasparov in excellent shape as they neared the end of the first cycle, though there's still a long way to go. This is how he took the lead.
To avoid a theoretical battle, Adams opted for the Closed Sicilian but still got hit by a novelty, the temporary pawn sacrifice 9 ...b5!? Adams built up a dangerous-looking kingside attack but Kasparov, buoyed up by the powerful e5 knight, ploughed ahead on the queenside.
Not 26 ...Bxh6? 27 Nd5 Bxd5 28 Bxh6. Adams might have tried 29 Rxf7!? Nxf7 and now either 30 Be6 Bf6 31 Bxf7+ Kh8 32 Rxb1 Rxb1+ 33 Kg2 with some play for the exchange or possibly 30 Rxf7 Qxf7 31 Nxf7 Rb1 32 Bc1 Bb2 33 Kh2 Rxc1 34 Qg4 when owing to the h6 pawn combined with the ineffectiveness of the a8 bishop his queen may give him enough play to get a draw.
Not 30 Bxe5? Qxe5 preventing 31 Rxf6 Qxg3+. 32 ...f5 looks risky but pursued the laudable aim of reactivating the white-squared bishop. Adams got play with 34 g4! but still ended up in an unpleasant endgame. He found some counterplay with 41.e5 but in the end the a pawn ran through.
White: Michael Adams
Black: Gary Kasparov
Closed Sicilian
1 e4 c5
2 Nc3 d6
3 g3 Nc6
4 Bg2 g6
5 d3 Bg7
6 Be3 Nf6
7 Nge2 0-0
8 h3 e5
9 0-0 b5!?
10 Nxb5 Rb8
11 a4 a6
12 Na3 Rxb2
13 Nc4 Rb8
14 f4 exf4
15 Nxf4 Na5
16 Nd2 Bd7
17 Ra2 Bc6
18 Nf3 Ba8
19 c4 Nd7
20 Raf2 Nb3
21 h4 Nd4
22 Bh3 Nxf3+
23 Qxf3 Ne5
24 Qd1 Qe7
25 h5 Rb4
26 h6 Bh8
27 Ne6 Rfb8
28 Ng5 Rb2
29 Bf4 Bf6
30 Nf3 Bc6
31 Nxe5 Bxe5
32 Qf3 f5!?
33 Bxe5 Qxe5
34 g4! Rxf2
35 Rxf2 Rb1+
36 Bf1 Rb2
37 Rxb2 Qxb2
38 gxf5 Qd4+
39 Kh1 Bxa4
40 fxg6 hxg6
41 e5 Qxe5
42 Qb7 Be8
43 Bg2 Qh5+
44 Kg1 Qxh6
45 Qe7 Qc1+
46 Bf1 Bf7
47 Qxd6 Qe3+
48 Kh1 a5
49 Qd8+ Be8
50 Bg2 Qe1+
51 Kh2 Qe5+
52 Kh3 Kg7
53 Bd5 a4
54 Qb6 Bd7+
55 Kg2 Qe2+
56 Kg1 a3
57 Qxc5 Qe1+
58 Kg2 a2
59 Qd4+ Kh7
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