[Event "GMA, Wijk aan Zee NED"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2003.??.??"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Anand,V"]
[Black "Karpov,An"]
[Result "1-0"]
[Annotator "Hathaway"]
[BlackElo "2685"]
[ECO "B12"]
[PlyCount "87"]
[WhiteElo "2750"]

1. e4 { Anand's fight with Karpov has gone back further than that of Polgar & Karpov. And, as he has gotten stronger while Karpov faded a bit, he is now expected to win their matchups pretty often. That doesn't mean Karpov is terribly weak or easy to beat. } 1... c6 { Karpov varies between this (Caro-Kann) and the Petrov's Defense these days. In his younger days he played the Black side of the Ruy Lopez (quite well) and even played some Sicilian Defense variations. } 2. d4 d5 3. e5 { Curiously, it's the more closed positions with solidly blocked pawn structures which have given Karpov some trouble. That's been true in other openings as well. } 3... Bf5 ( 3... c5 { is out of fashion, but was once favored by Botwinnik } ) 4. Nc3 e6 5. g4 { This aggressive variation aims to "punish" Black for exposing his bishop without having anything immediate for it to do. Black depends upon his "solid" pawn structure to protect his king and to slow White's onslaught. } 5... Bg6 6. Nge2 { White might follow-up with f2-f4-f5 or h2-h4-h5, but all lines require good piece activity and that's what gives Black a little time to develop and create some counter-play. } ( 6. h4 h5 { and how is White to continue if not to play a knight to f4? } ( 6... h6 7. Bd3 Bxd3 8. Qxd3 { might have been played in the past, but today the  aim is to gain more time kicking Black's Bg6 around. } ) ) 6... Ne7 { This protects Bg6 and guards against f2-f4-f5, so White's offense will require a little more build-up and piece support. } 7. f4 c5 { There is a risk that dxc5 can be supported or that Nc3-b5-d6 would occur quickly. White now has a fight all across the board. To add more force at the center White might consider Bf1-g2 before f4-f5, but there are some instances when Nc3-b5 needs the support from Bf1. } ( 7... h5 { Fritz7; This is a typical move to slow the offense. } ) 8. Ng3 { guarding e4 and preparing f4-f5 or dxc5 or Nc3-b5. This ought to create a small crisis for Black to solve. } 8... cxd4 { Something else to give Bg6 room to move might be necessary; perhaps ...f6. } ( 8... f6 9. exf6 gxf6 10. dxc5 { Fritz7 } ) 9. Nb5 { There was a time when only Qxd4 would be considered. The idea of going around the central pawns with Nc3-b5 isn't new, but I think it's still fun to see. Nb5-d6+ would also support f4-f5 to win a piece. } 9... Nec6 { Black allows f4-f5 and gains several pawns in exchange. It's a practical decision which one makes when the clock is running, but it's also one he might not play again. } ( 9... f6 10. exf6 gxf6 11. f5 exf5 12. Bf4 $16 { Fritz7 } ) 10. f5 $16 Bc5 11. Nd6+ { White is going to lose Pe5 and Nb5 can't retreat, so this forces Black to give his bishop for a knight to get it. } ( 11. fxg6 hxg6 12. a3 Nxe5 13. Bf4 Nbc6 $14 { Fritz7; It's strange how Fritz7 sees a position, gives it one evaluation and then following it's own suggestions a few moves down the line it switches the evaluation to something more tepid. } ) 11... Bxd6 12. exd6 Qxd6 13. Bg2 f6 ( 13... Nd7 $14 { Fritz7 } ) 14. fxg6 hxg6 { Now is time to re-evaluate: White has an extra bishop, but Black has three pawns, all in the center of the board, clogging up lines. White's plan has to get rid of a few of those pawns to make way for the White pieces. } 15. O-O ( 15. Qd3 Ne5 16. Qxd4 Nbc6 17. Qa4 Qb4+ 18. Qxb4 Nxb4 19. Kd2 Nxg4 20. c3 Nc6 21. h3 Nge5 $11 { Fritz7; It takes a fine position and forces an odd series of moves which ends as "equal"; truly bizarre. } ) 15... Nd7 16. Rf2 { preparing c2-c3 by avoiding a ...Qd6-c5+ } 16... O-O-O 17. c3 dxc3 18. bxc3 Nb6 { c3-c4 won't be so easy to accomplish as Black prevents it directly and in the event it's played Black also has ...d5-d4. So, White probably has to go farther afield to force lines open. He might also consider doubling rooks on the b-file to put a little pressure on before playing a2-a4-a5 or c3-c4. } 19. Nf1 Rd7 $11 { Fritz7; Karpov recognizes that Pb7 is a weakness and he defends it first thing. } 20. h3 { Evidently he wasn't so comfortable with his king's safety and decided to reorganize. At least this frees Nf1 to move about, though giving the opponent several free moves isn't usually a great thing. } 20... f5 { This looks a little awkward, but it keeps a small threat in the vicinity of Kg1 and that will keep White tied-up a bit. } ( 20... g5 ) 21. Rb1 Rf8 { I'm not certain whether this is to prepare ...fxg4 and to trade rooks or to prepare ...f5-f4 and a general pawn advance across the center. } 22. Qb3 { threatening Bc1-a3 as well as perhaps a2-a4-a5 } 22... Rff7 { The two Black rooks surrounded by pawns don't have much space. } 23. Qc2 { keeping an eye on Pf5 and Pg6 to keep Black from becoming aggressive } 23... Rc7 ( 23... Nc4 { Fritz7 } ) 24. Qd3 Na4 { This is an aggressive move, aimed probably at ...Na4-c5-e4. Karpov is quite Classical and likes centralizing pieces. } ( 24... fxg4 25. Rxf7 Rxf7 26. hxg4 Nc4 $11 { Fritz7 } ) 25. Bf4 { I can't tell whether he feels the bishop is needed to keep Kg1 safe or if he is just prodding Black into weakening his pawns by advancing them. In any event, this alignment of Bf4 with Qd6 and Rc7 can't be bad. } ( 25. c4 d4 ( 25... Nc5 26. Qd1 Ne4 27. Bxe4 fxe4 28. Rxf7 Rxf7 { Fritz7; This seems to me to  be closer to what Black wants, rather than the plan Anand is following. } ) 26. Ba3 Qd7 $16 { Fritz7 and Mark agree this is good for White! } ( 26... Nc5 27. Bxc5 Qxc5 28. Rb5 Qd6 29. c5 Qd7 $14 { Fritz7 } ) 27. Rd2 e5 28. Bd5 Rf6 29. g5 ) 25... e5 26. Bh2 { White threatens Pf5 and Pd5 and he can apply more pressure with Rf2-d2 and/or Nf1-e3. } 26... f4 27. Qxd5 Qxd5 28. Bxd5 Rfe7 ( 28... Nxc3 $142 29. Be6+ ( 29. Bxf7 Nxb1 30. Bxg6 Nc3 31. Kg2 Ne7 32. Bh7 $11 { Fritz7 } ) 29... Kb8 30. Rc1 Nd4 31. Rxc3 Nxe6 32. Rd3 $15 { Fritz7; It gives this as a slight advantage to Black, though the material balance is still about equal. } ) 29. c4 { White has won a pawn and doesn't have as much difficulty gaining piece activity and doesn't have to fear an avalanche of pawns on both light and dark squares. } 29... Nd4 $11 { according to Fritz7; I doubt Anand would have agreed. } 30. Nd2 { White has to hold back Pe5 to gain time for maneuvering to free Bh2 (Kg1-g2, Bh2-g1, Rf2-f1) . } 30... Nc3 31. Re1 { It's not important to defend Pa2 as long as White is happy to trade Pa2 for Pa7 by Re1-a1xa7. } 31... b5 ( 31... Nc2 $11 32. Bxb7+ Rxb7 33. Rc1 Ne3 34. Rxc3 Nd1 35. Rc2 Nxf2 36. Kxf2 $14 { Fritz7; This evaluator seems entirely unreliable. First it says one thing then another. } ) 32. Ne4 { Now Rf2 defends Pa2 and Ne4 indirectly defends Pc4 by Ne4-d6+xc4. } 32... Nxe4 33. Rxe4 g5 ( 33... bxc4 34. Bxf4 exf4 35. Rxd4 c3 36. Bb3 $16 ) 34. cxb5 Nxb5 { I think it's time to re-evaluate again: Black's dark-square pawns are holding Bh2 at bay, but that won't last forever and White's light-square pieces can be challenged by ...Nb5-d6 or ...Nb5-c3. so, White has to continue acting fast to challenge Black's pawn mass at Pe5 or Pg5 (h3-h4 comes to mind) . } 35. Re1 Nc3 36. Bb3 { Anand seems patient, but it could be he's avoiding more complicated lines, knowing full well that Black's pawns can't last long or that White will simply maneuver Bh2 out of the corner. In the event of ...e5-e4 he also has the simpler simplifying Bh2xf4, getting two pawns for the bishop and maintaining a slight endgame advantage. } 36... a5 37. Kf1 a4 38. Bc2 { He keeps Pa4 under attack and Pa2 is defended by Rf2 when Bc2-f5+ is played. } 38... Kb7 39. Bf5 a3 40. Rc2 $18 { There, now Bh2-g1 is possible (Fritz7 finally sees that piece!) and there is a favorable alignment on the c-file, so that White might force a simplifying rook trade to reach a very easy piece-plus ending. } 40... Rc6 ( 40... e4 41. h4 { and Black's pawns quickly collapse } ) 41. Bg1 Rc4 ( 41... e4 42. Bd4 Nb5 43. Bxe4 Nxd4 ( 43... Rxe4 44. Rxc6 Rxd4 45. Rg6 Rd7 46. Rb1 Rd5 47. Rxg7+ Ka6 48. Rb3 $16 ) 44. Bxc6+ Nxc6 45. Rxe7+ Nxe7 46. Rc3 $18 ) 42. Bf2 e4 { This is easy to criticize as the game continuation isn't hard to find, but there are few other moves for Black. } 43. Rec1 Rec7 44. Be1 { After 44...Nd5 45. Rxc4 Ne3+ 46. Kf2 Nxc4 47. Bxd5+ and Black's house of cards collapses. } 1-0