[Event "GMA"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee NED"]
[Date "2004.01.10"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Akopian,Vl"]
[Black "Kramnik,V"]
[Result "1-0"]
[Annotator "Henderson"]
[BlackElo "2777"]
[ECO "B90"]
[EventDate "2004.01.10"]
[WhiteElo "2693"]

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 { Akopian explained that the last time he played a main line Najdorf was against Nigel Short at the Lucerne FIDE World Championship 1997. Normally he would play something like a Moscow Variation with Bb5+ or even a Kopec System with 3 c3 followed by Bd3. However, he suspected that this is perhaps what Kramnik thought he would play, so instead opted for the main line Najdorf - coincidentally the first time Kramnik has played this as Black. } 6. Be3 Ng4 ( { The Kasparov System; pioneered by the man himself to avoid all the complications of the double-edged Perenyi System with } 6... e6 7. g4 e5 8. Nf5 $5 g6 9. g5 ) 7. Bg5 h6 8. Bh4 g5 9. Bg3 Bg7 10. h3 Ne5 11. f3 Nbc6 12. Bf2 Be6 13. Qd2 Nxd4 14. Bxd4 Qa5 15. a3 O-O 16. h4 Ng6 17. hxg5 hxg5 18. b4 Qc7 19. Ne2 $5 $146 ( { Now after some 40 minutes thought, Kramnik opts to prevent the exchange of bishops as this would leave his king in a vulnerable position. 
Up to now the stem game we have been following is Anand-Ponomariov from their Mainz match last year. However Akopian comes up an interesting novelty, aimed at re-routing the knight to d4 from where it can exploit f5. } 19. Bxg7 Kxg7 20. O-O-O Rh8 21. Rxh8 Rxh8 22. Kb2 f6 23. g3 Ne5 24. f4 gxf4 25. gxf4 Nc4+ 26. Bxc4 Qxc4 27. e5 dxe5 28. fxe5 f5 29. Qg2+ Kf7 30. Rd3 Qf4 31. Qxb7 Rh2 32. Qf3 Qxe5 33. Re3 Qd4 34. Re2 Rh8 35. Re4 Qf6 36. Re3 Qd4 37. Qe2 Qc4 38. Qg2 Qd4 39. Qe2 Qc4 40. Qg2 Qd4 { 1/2-1/2 Anand,V-Ponomariov,R/Mainz GER 2002/The Week in Chess 406 (40) } ) 19... f6 20. Bb2 $1 Bf7 21. Nd4 d5 22. exd5 Qe5+ ( { Kramnik by now didn't feel very comfortable with his position - and obviously felt his king was more at risk with the alternatives: } 22... Qg3+ 23. Kd1 $1 { followed by a Nf5 is good for white. } ) ( 22... Bxd5 23. Bd3 Nf4 24. Bh7+ Kf7 25. g3 Ne6 26. O-O-O $1 Nxd4 27. Qxd4 Rfd8 ( 27... Bxf3 $2 28. Qd3 $1 ) 28. Qg4 $1 ) 23. Be2 Qxd5 ( { Exchanging queens wasn't any better for Kramnik, as the ending also favoured white: } 23... Bxd5 24. O-O-O $1 Qf4 25. Bd3 Qxd2+ 26. Kxd2 $1 Ne5 ( 26... Nf4 27. c4 Nxd3 28. Kxd3 Bf7 29. c5 $1 ) 27. Nf5 Nxd3 28. Kxd3 e6 29. Ne7+ Kf7 30. Nxd5 exd5 ) 24. O-O-O Rfc8 $6 { Akopian felt that this is where Kramnik really lost the thread of the game - much better, he thought, was the natural 24 ..Rfd8 } 25. Bd3 Ne5 26. Be4 Qa2 27. Nf5 ( { The safe option. However, on reflection, Akopian discovered after the game that he could have just taken on b7 having missed a finesse in a tricky position: } 27. Bxb7 Nc4 28. Qc3 Nb6 29. Nc6 ( 29. Bxc8 Na4 $1 ) 29... Rxc6 30. Bxc6 Rc8 31. Qd4 $1 ) 27... Nc4 28. Qc3 Rc7 $4 ( { A big blunder from the World Champion. Kramnik told Akopian after the game that he didn't fancy the endgame after the exchange of queens. Akopian believed the ending wasn't all that decisive for white: } 28... Qxb2+ 29. Qxb2 Nxb2 30. Kxb2 Rc7 { Instead, Kramnik fails to spot the stunning riposte coming up. } ) 29. Rh7 $1 Qxb2+ ( { Take my word for it: there's a forced mate if you take the rook } 29... Kxh7 30. Nxe7+ Kh6 31. Rh1+ Bh5 32. g4 Qxb2+ 33. Qxb2 Nxb2 34. Rxh5# ) ( { Also no better is } 29... Nxb2 30. Rxg7+ Kf8 31. Qxb2 Qxb2+ 32. Kxb2 e6 33. Rxf7+ Kxf7 34. Bxb7 { with an easily won ending. } ) 30. Qxb2 Nxb2 31. Rxg7+ Kf8 32. Rh1 $1 { Much stronger than "simply" going material ahead after Kxb2 } 1-0