FIDE Trainers’ Commission

FIDE World Championship

Candidates Tournament 2018
Berlin 2018

Efstratios Grivas
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 1
First Edition in Pdf - 2018
English Copyright © FIDE 2018 (office@fide.com - www.fide.com)
Copyright © Efstratios Grivas 2018 (GrivasEfs@yahoo.co.uk - www.GrivasChess.com)

FIDE Trainers’ Commission - Council

Chairman Secretary Councillor Councillor Councillor

Mikhalchishin Grivas Khader Petronic Petrosian

Adrian Efstratios Sami Jovan Arshak
(Slovenia) (Greece) (Jordan) (Serbia) (Armenia)

The rights of Efstratios Grivas to be identified as the author of this work have been asserted in
accordance with the International Copyright, Designs and Patents Act.

All rights reserved. This book is distributed for free to the FIDE certified and licenced trainers,
subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, sold, hired out or
otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and
without a similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent owner.

Limit of Liability and Disclaimer of Warranty: FIDE makes no representation or warranties with
respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this book and specifically disclaims any
implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for any particular purpose and shall in no event be
liable for any loss of profit or any other commercial damage, including but not limited to special,
incidental, consequential, or other damages.

I would like to make clear here that the games were analysed just after their complement and in
time-trouble, as the book should be ready in no time. So I would like to apologise for any mistake
in the analysis and I am sure that soon there will be more books in the market on this tournament,
with more accurate and deep comments. Please accept this book as a good start and food for
thought… Efstratios Grivas - Athens - 30.03.2018

ISBN-13: FIDE WC - 000-000-000-0009

ISSN-13: FIDE WC - 000-000-000-0009

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Commissioning Editor: Efstratios Grivas (www.GrivasChess.com)

Photos by Anastasia Karlovich (FIDE Press-Officer) - FIDE.com
Cover by Efi Saltamara
Proofer: Jovan Petronic
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 2
Contents
Title-Description …………………………………………………………………………………… 1
Colophon …………………..……………………………………………………………………….. 2
Contents ……………………………………..…………………………………………….............. 3
Foreword - FIDE PB …….……..…………………………...……………………………………. 4
Symbols ………………………………………………………………………..…………............... 4
Fédération Internationale des Échecs ………………………………………………………….. 5
Why Should I Play Chess? ..……………………………………………………………………… 6
FIDE World Championship ……………………………………………………………………… 6
FIDE World Champions ..………………………………………………………………………… 7
FIDE Women World Champions ..……………….……………………………………………… 8
Tournament’s Venue ..….....……………………………………………………………………… 9
Rules & Regulations ….....………………………………………………………………………… 10
Player’s Contract …….....………………………………………………………………………… 20
FIDE Principals …………………………………………………………………………………… 21
Press Announcement (September 11th, 2017) ………………………………………………… 22
Schedule .. ..…………… ………………….……………….……………………………….……… 23
Official Partners …………………….. …………..……….……………………………….……… 24
Pre-tournament Statistical Overview …………..……….……………………………….……… 26
The Players ….………....…………….…………………….……………………………….……… 28
Tournament’s Official Hotel ……….…………………….……………………………….……… 29
FIDE Candidates Tournaments - History ………….…………………….…………….……… 30
The Opening Ceremony & the Press-Conference …….……………………………….……… 31
Round 1……………………………………………………………………………………………… 33
Round 2……………………………………………………………………………………………… 44
Round 3……………………………………………………………………………………………… 54
Round 4……………………………………………………………………………………………… 62
Round 5……………………………………………………………………………………………… 75
Round 6……………………………………………………………………………………………… 84
Round 7……………………………………………………………………………………………… 96
Half-way .…………………………………………………………………………………………… 108
Round 8……………………………………………………………………………………………… 109
Round 9……………………………………………………………………………………………… 121
Round 10 …………………………………………………………………………………………… 132
Round 11 …………………………………………………………………………………………… 142
Round 12 …………………………………………………………………………………………… 153
Round 13 …………………………………………………………………………………………… 163
Round 14 …………………………………………………………………………………………… 174
The Closing Ceremony ..…..……………………………………………………………………… 185
Portrait Sketches of the Candidates …………………..………………………………………… 186
Recap of the Tournament ................................…………….…………………………………… 187
The View of the FIDE Press-Officer .…………………………………………………………… 190
Score Tables ………….……..……………………………………………………………………… 192
FIDE Live Moves Broadcasting Policy ...………………………………………………………. 194
Games Index …..……….. …………………………………………………………………………. 196
Opening Index ...……….. …………………………………………………………………………. 197
Author’s CV - Efstratios Grivas ……..…...……………………………………………………… 197
FIDE Trainers’ Commission (TRG) ..…...……………………………………………………… 201
FIDE Trainers’ Awards 2017 ………..…...……………………………………………………… 204
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 3
Foreword
FIDE Presidential Board
Chess has existed as a sport played at a competitive level for centuries. The common code gov-
erning the Laws of Chess is relatively recent, and the foundation of Fédération Internationale des
Échecs (FIDE), in Paris in 1924, is even more modern. FIDE currently has 189 member federa-
tions spread across all continents. Titles for players were introduced by FIDE in 1950, and titles
for Arbiters and Organisers followed. From 2005 we are moving to a new phase, with titles for
Trainers.
Chess is on the increase in schools across the world. It is part of the mainstream curriculum in
many countries. It is a goal of FIDE to make chess an educational tool, and generate worldwide
popularity for the game. Examples of the many educational advantages of chess are: shows the
need to make people realise the importance of advance planning; develops analytic and accurate
thinking; shows the necessity for a combative spirit; teaches fair play and emphasises the need for
preparation and hard work for success. However, with the increasing population of chess players,
comes the need for trainers to assist with their development.
This is a new concept of the ever-active FIDE Trainers’ Commission. This series is dedicated to
the important events, consisting of approximately 50-90 pages books. We do hope that we will be
able to deliver in every championship and top-event, increasing the level and the education of our
trainers worldwide. This series will provide excellent manuals for trainers and fulfils a consider-
able need in modern chess literature, concentrating on the technical side of the game, but also cov-
ering various other topics and providing information.
The best trainers will contribute to this series, which will be an essential tool in the preparation
of trainers at all levels for the future. It will ensure that the next generation of players will be at a
great advantage over those that have gone before.

Symbols
+ check = equal position
++ double check oo unclear position
# checkmate oo/= with compensation
!! brilliant move =+ Black is slightly better
! good move -/+ Black has a large advantage
!? interesting move -+ Black is winning
?! dubious move 1-0 the game ends in a win for White
? bad move ½-½ the game ends in a draw
?? blunder 0-1 the game ends in a win for Black
+- White is winning (D) see next diagram
+/- White has a large advantage ○ White to play
+= White is slightly better ● Black to play
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 4
Fédération Internationale des Échecs
History
FIDE is the World Chess Federation. It is in charge of chess all around the world. There are 188
national chess federations in the FIDE family, which makes FIDE one of the biggest sports organi-
sations in the world.
FIDE was born in Paris in 1924 on 20 July, adopting the acronym FIDE in 1925, both based on
the French ‘Fédération Internationale des Échecs’ (Federation International of Chess).
The main office is now in Athens, Greece. Other offices are maintained in Moscow and Elista
(Russia). The main web site is www.fide.com with other sites for the most important commissions,
such as the Trainers (trainers.fide.com).
FIDE, in its guise of an International Sports Federation and its role as world governing body of
our sport, was recognised by the International Olympic Committee in 1999.
Chess was a demonstration sport at the Sydney Olympics in 2000 and is a candidate, strongly
supported by a growing number of National Olympic Committees, for inclusion in the programme
of the Winter Olympics.
Competitions and Objectives
FIDE organises many chess competitions and is the sole body authorised to organise world
championships for chess.
The most important ones are the World Championships, especially the ‘Men’s’ (it is open to
both men and women) and the Women’s. FIDE is very proud of over forty official championships
for youngsters, men, women and seniors. The Chess Olympiad is also a very special event.
The current World Champion is Magnus Carlsen of Norway. The current Women’s World
Champion is Tan Zhongyi of China. Matches for the World Championships are played quite regu-
larly.
In addition to the two main competitions, open to players of any age; FIDE organises separate
World Championships for boys and girls under the age of 20, 18, 16, 14, 12, 10 and 8.
FIDE works to promote chess throughout the world. We are working towards having
1.000.000.000 chess players on the planet. FIDE works with rich and poor alike, but especially in
schools. Our ultimate objective is that every child should learn to play chess.
It is the Commissions for Trainers and for Chess in Schools, and their web sites, that are the
spearhead of FIDE’s work popularising and promoting chess around the globe.
FIDE Presidents
In the near 94 year history of FIDE, there have been only six Presidents of the organisation:
● Dr Alexander Rueb 1924-1949
● Folke Rogard 1949-1970
● Dr Machgielis (Max) Euwe 1970-1978
● Fridrik Olafsson 1978-1982
● Florencio Campomanes 1982-1995
● Kirsan Ilyumzhinov 1995-2018

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 5

Why Should I Play Chess?
FIDE promotes chess at any level and believes in the following principles:
● Chess is reasonably considered to be the king of games. Hundreds of thousands of amateurs
around the world enjoy this deeply strategic and complicated game.
Just a chessboard and pieces are enough for two friends to begin a game of chess. It is a pleasant
spiritual activity where each player tries to apply the necessary strategy in order to ‘checkmate’ his
opponent.
● Chess is science and art. In order for someone to rise to champion level in chess, he needs, apart
from his native ‘talent’, to be a systematic researcher of the subject. Chess, although it has been
played for hundreds of years, has proven to be extremely difficult, inexhaustible in ideas and even
modern top chess players cannot avoid mistakes in their games.
● The top players' better games are defined by reason, creative thinking, originality and move
precision and, quite reasonably, they are considered by the audience to be works of art.
● Chess is civilisation. This game's greatest beauty is that it addresses all ages, men and women,
no matter the conformation, while bringing together people from every financial or social class. In
the world of the chessboard, justice prevails.
Luck has no place in this game. The two players begin with the same forces and the final result is
totally dependent on their spiritual effort.
● Chess is particularly beneficial for young children, as through playing, they cultivate abilities
they will need in order to succeed in modern competitive society, like discipline in thinking, con-
centration, seriousness, analytical thinking, taking personal responsibility, objectivity in judge-
ment, while they also learn to always respect and consider the opponent.
● While in other sports, besides very serious injuries, the use of drugs has unfortunately been ob-
served by young people aiming at better achievements, chess is a ‘clean’ sport, in which parents
can trust their children without fear.

FIDE World Championship

The FIDE World Championship is open to everyone, men and women, boys and girls.
During the first years, the World Championship was a private affair of the World Champion at
the time, who set his terms. In 1947, FIDE took over, taking advantage of Alexander Alekhine's
death, who then was the World Champion. This was mainly achieved thanks to the former World
Champion and former FIDE President Dr. Max Euwe.
Who is or was the greater/best player of all? A constant debate with many different views, but
Lasker, Capablanca, Alekhine, Botvinnik and Fischer (from the deceased) are all mentioned in
such discussions. Among the living, former World Champions, Karpov and Kasparov have a spe-
cial place - they played 144 World Championship match games against each other!
It is true that every World Champion was the best of his time, through democratic and competi-
tive conditions and this is how he should be treated. Comparison is useless as each person and era
is different.
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 6
FIDE World Champions
It is time to meet the FIDE World Champions. We will meet them by order, name in English,
period when they were World Champions, nationality, place and date of birth (b) and finally, place
and date of death (d). Moreover, a small face photo will remind them to us…
1 William Steinitz 1886-1894 7 Vasily Smyslov 1957-1958 -
- Austria Soviet Union
b. Prague 17 May 1836 b. Moscow 24 March 1921
d. New York 12 August 1900 d. Moscow 27 March 2010

2 Dr Emanuel Lasker 1894- 8 Mikhail Tal 1960-1961 -

1921 - Germany Soviet Union
b. Barlinek 24 December 1868 b. Riga 9 November 1936
d. New York 11 January 1941 d. Moscow 28 June 1992

3 Jose Raul Capablanca 9 Tigran Petrosian 1963-

1921-1927 - Cuba 1969 - Soviet Union
b. Havana 19 November 1888 b. Tbilisi 17 June 1929
d. New York 8 March 1942 d. Moscow 13 August 1984

4 Alexander Alekhine 1927- 10 Boris Spassky 1969-1972 -

1935, 1937-1946 - Russia Soviet Union
b. Moscow 31 October 1892 b. Leningrad 30 January 1937
d. Estoril 24 March 1946

5 Dr Machgielis (Max) Euwe 11 Robert Fischer 1972-1975

1935-1937 - Netherlands - USA
b. Amsterdam 20 May 1901 b. Chicago 9 March 1943
d. Amsterdam 26 November d. Reykjavik 17 January 2008
1981

1946-1948 No World Champion

12 Anatoly Karpov 1975-
6 Mikhail Botvinnik 1948- 1985, 1993-1999 - Soviet Un-
1957, 1958-1960, 1961-1963 - ion & Russia
Soviet Union b. Zlatoust 23 May 1951
b. Repino 17 August 1911
d. Moscow 5 May 1995

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 7

13 Garry Kasparov 1985- 17 Rustam Kasimdzhanov
1993 - Soviet Union & Rus- 2004-2005 - Uzbekistan
sia b. Tashkent 5 December 1979
b. Baku 13 April 1963

14 Alexander Khalifman 18 Veselin Topalov 2005-

1999-2000 - Russia 2006 - Bulgaria
b. Leningrad 18 January 1966 b. Ruse 15 March 1975

15 Viswanathan Anand 19 Vladimir Kramnik 2006-

2000-2002, 2007-2013 - In- 2007 - Russia
dia b. Tuapse 25 June 1975
b. Tamil Nadu, 11 December
1969

16 Ruslan Ponomariov 2002- 20 Magnus Carlsen 2013-

2004 - Ukraine today - Norway
b. Horlivka 11 October 1983 b. Tonsberg 30 November
1990

FIDE Women World Champions

This particular championship officially began in 1927. The respective list is the following:
1 Vera Menchik 1927-1944 - 3 Elizabeta Bykova 1953-1956, 1958-1962 -
Russia-Czechoslovakia- Soviet Union
England b. Bogolyubovo 4 November 1913
b. Moscow 16 February 1906 d. Moscow 8 March 1989
d. London 27 June 1944

1944-1950 No Women World Champion

2 Lyudmila Rudenko 1950-
1953 - Soviet Union
b. Lubny 27 July 1904
d. Leningrad 26 February 4 Olga Rubtsova 1956-1958 -
1986 Soviet Union
b. Moscow 20 August 1909
d. Moscow 13 December
1994

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 8

5 Nona Gaprindashvili 1962- 11 Xu Yuhua 2006-2008 -
1978 - Soviet Union China
b. Zugdidi 3 May 1941 b. Jinhua 29 October 1976

6 Maya Chiburdanidze 1978- 12 Alexandra Kosteniuk

1991 - Soviet Union 2008-2010 - Russia
b. Kutaisi 17 January 1961 b. Perm 23 April 1984

7 Xie Jun 1991-1996, 1999- 13 Hou Yifan 2010-2012,

2001- China 2013-2015, 2016-2017 -
b. Baoding 30 October 1970 China
b. Xinghua 27 February 1994

8 Susan Polgar 1996-1999 - 14 Anna Ushenina 2012-

Hungary 2013 - Ukraine
b. Budapest 19 April 1969 b. Kharkiv 30 August 1985

9 Zhu Chen 2001-2004 - 15 Maria Muzychuk 2015-

China 2016 - Ukraine
b. Wenzhou 16 March 1976 b. Lviv 21 September 1992

10 Antoaneta Stefanova 16 Tan Zhongyi 2017-today

2004-2006 - Bulgaria - China
b. Sofia 19 April 1979 b. Ghongqing 29 May 1991

Tournament’s Venue - Kühlhaus

Berlin - The tournament took
place at Kühlhaus, a German
historical building located in-
between several of the most vi-
brant districts of Berlin, which
created a unique dynamic atmos-
phere. Simple, yet modern cubic
architecture of Kühlhaus pro-
vided guests with a space of more
than 5,000 sq.m to enjoy the
dramatic chess competition.

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 9

Rules & Regulations
Candidates Tournament of the FIDE World
Championship Cycle 2016-2018
1. Organisation
1.1. The Candidates Tournament to deter-
mine the challenger for the 2018 World
Chess Championship Match shall be organ-
ised in the first quarter of 2018 and repre-
sents an integral part of the World Chess
Championship regulations for the cycle
2016-2018. Eight (8) players will participate
in the Candidates Tournament and the win-
ner qualifies for the World Chess Champi-
onship Match in the last quarter of 2018.
1.2. Governing Body: the World Chess
Federation (FIDE). For the purpose of creat-
ing the regulations, communicating with the
players and negotiating with the Organisers,
the FIDE President has nominated a com-
mittee, hereby called the FIDE Commission
for World Championships and Olympiads
(hereinafter referred to as WCOC).
1.3. FIDE, or its appointed commercial
agency, retains all commercial and media
rights of the Candidates Tournament, includ-
ing internet rights. These rights can be trans- 2016-2017. For the purpose of deciding the
ferred to the Organiser upon agreement.
1.4. Upon recommendation by the WCOC,
the body responsible for any changes to
these Regulations is the FIDE Presidential
Board.
1.5. At any time in the course of the appli-
cation of these Regulations, any circum-
stances that are not covered or any unfore-
seen event shall be referred to the President
of FIDE for final decision.
2. Qualification for the 2018 Candidates
Tournament
The players who qualify for the Candi-
dates Tournament (excluding the World
Champion who qualifies directly to the
World Championship Match) are determined
according to the following criteria, in order
of priority:
2.1. World Championship Match 2016 -
The player who lost the 2016 World Cham-
pionship Match qualifies.
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018
2.2. World Cup 2017 - The two (2) top
winners of the World Cup 2017 qualify. In
case any of the two top winners of the World
Cup qualifies from 2.1. above or is the
World Champion, then the qualification spot
goes to 3rd place of the World Cup.
2.3. FIDE Grand-Prix 2016/2017 - The
two (2) top players from the FIDE Grand-
Prix 2016/2017 qualify to participate. In
case any of the two top winners of the FIDE
Grand-Prix qualify from 2.1. or 2.2. above
or is the World Champion, then the qualifi-
cation spot(s) are given to the next player(s)
in the final standings of the Grand-Prix.
2.4. Average FIDE Rating List of the 12
monthly lists starting from 1st January 2017
to 1st December 2017 - Two (2) players
qualify to participate by rating (excluding
the players who qualify from articles 2.1.,
2.2. and 2.3. above). A player can qualify by
rating only if he/she participates in the
World Cup 2017 or the FIDE Grand Prix
2 rated player qualifiers, the average from
the following twelve FIDE rating lists will
be used: the sum of all 12 monthly lists start-
ing from 1st January 2017 to 1st December
2017 divided by 12. A minimum of thirty
(30) rated games in total is required for each
player in the 12 monthly rating periods. In
case of equality, two decimals will be taken
into consideration. If the numbers are still
equal then the total number of games in all
12 rating periods shall be decisive. That
means the player with the greater number of
games shall qualify.
2.5. One nominated player by the Organ-
iser - A player, nominated by the Organiser,
with a rating of at least 2725 in any FIDE
standard rating list of 2017.
2.6. Replacements - If any replacement is
needed due to withdrawal or refusal of par-
ticipation, the first reserve player from the
final standings of the FIDE Grand-Prix
10
2016/2017 will be invited. Any further re- contract and send it to the FIDE Secretariat
placement needed will be fulfilled from the within two weeks after they receive their
average rating list described in article 2.4. copy from FIDE. It is each player’s respon-
above. sibility to download a copy and send it
3. Candidates Tournament Regulations signed to the FIDE Secretariat by fax and
3.1. Tournament Format & System registered mail. A player who does not sub-
The 8 players shall play a double round mit his contract within the deadline will be
robin tournament (14 rounds). The players replaced according to article 2.6. FIDE may
who are from the same federation will play accept late contracts received after the dead-
each other in rounds 1 and 8 (if only two) line, within a period of 10 days and only for
and if up to four players are from the same serious reasons. Players not previously
federation in rounds 1, 2, 3 and 8, 9, 10. qualified but who qualify as replacements
If a player withdraws after completing shall be notified through the FIDE website
50% or more of the games, the rest of his and will have one further week to send their
games are lost by default. In case a player signed contracts.
completes less than 50%, all his results are 3.3.2. A player who returns his signed con-
annulled. tract but withdraws at least one month be-
3.2. Schedule of the Candidates Tourna- fore the event's 1st round shall be replaced
ment by a player as described in article 2.6.
Arrivals: 1 day 3.3.3. Any player who withdraws at a date
Opening Ceremony & Players Meeting: 1 when less than one month is left for the
day event's 1st round, shall not be replaced.
Round 1: 1 day 3.3.4. Players that fail to provide a satis-
Round 2: 1 day factory reason for withdrawal, after they
Round 3: 1 day have signed the player's contract, will be
Free day: 1 day excluded from the next World Champion-
Round 4: 1 day ship cycle.
Round 5: 1 day 3.3.5. For security and administrative rea-
Round 6: 1 day sons, all participants are expected to stay in
Free day: 1 day the officially designated hotel(s).
Round 7: 1 day 3.3.6. Each player will receive at least two
Round 8: 1 day free single rooms for their hotel accommo-
Round 9: 1 day dation, including full board, for the whole
Free day: 1 day duration of the event.
Round 10: 1 day 3.3.7. No postponement of any game shall
Round 11: 1 day be allowed.
Round 12: 1 day 3.3.8. Separate contracts between the Or-
Free day: 1 day ganiser(s) and the players may also be
Round 13: 1 day signed.
Round 14: 1 day 3. 4. Pairings and draw of colours
Tiebreaks / Closing ceremony: 1 day 3.4.1. The draw for pairings and colours
Departures: 1 day will be conducted in the FIDE office in Ath-
Total: 22 days ens, one (1) month before the start of the
The playing schedule can be changed only event.
upon the approval of the FIDE President. 3.4.2. For tie-break games, there shall be a
3.3. Confirmation of Participation / Con- separate drawing of lots conducted by the
duct of Players Chief Arbiter.
3.3.1. The list of qualified players and the 3. 5. Time control.
reserves will be published on the FIDE web- 3.5.1. The time control for each game shall
site together with the player’s contract. All be: 100 minutes for the first 40 moves, 50
qualified players should sign their respective minutes for the next 20 moves and then 15
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 11
minutes for the rest of the game plus an ad-
ditional 30 seconds per move starting from
move 1.
3.5.2. The games shall be played using the
electronic clocks and boards approved by
FIDE.
3.6. Conditions of victory
3.6.1. The player with the most points (1
point for each win, half a point for each
draw, 0 for each loss) will be the winner of
the tournament and qualifies for the World
Championship Match 2018. A tie shall be
broken according to article 3.7. below.
3.7. Tie-breaks
If the top two or more players score the
same points, the tie will be decided by the
following criteria, in order of priority:
a) The results of the games between the
players involved in the tie.
If they are still tied:
b) The total number of wins in the tourna-
ment of every player involved in the tie.
If they are still tied:
c) Sonneborn - Berger System.
3.7.1.a. If there is no clear winner with the after a new drawing of colours, these players
above 3 criteria, there will be a special com-
petition between the players who still remain
tied after using the 3rd criteria (Sonneborn -
Berger): after a new drawing of colors, each
tied player will play two (2) tie-break games
with the other tied opponent(s). The games
shall be played using the electronic clock
starting with 25 minutes for each player with
an increment of 10 seconds after each move.
3.7.1.b. All tie-break games shall be
played according to the following:
1. Play is governed by the World Champi-
onship Technical Regulations (annex 1),
which apply with the exceptions mentioned
below in (2), (3) and (4).
2. The players do not need to record the
moves. An arbiter shall record the moves.
3. The player who has the move may stop
the clocks and consult the Arbiter’s score
sheet and if his next move will produce a
threefold repetition of position (according to
Article 9.2a of the Technical Regulations),
or the 50 moves rule (according to Article
9.3a of the Technical Regulations), he him-
self must write the intended move on the
score sheet and claim the draw if he wants.
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018
A player can also claim a draw according to
Articles 9.2b and 9.3b of the Technical
Regulations. If the claim is found to be cor-
rect, the game is immediately ended as a
draw. If the claim is found to be incorrect,
the Arbiter shall add three (3) minutes to the
opponent’s remaining time and the game
continues with the intended move in accor-
dance with Article 4 of the Technical Regu-
lations. A maximum of two (2) incorrect
claims for a draw can be made by each
player. If a player makes a third (3rd) incor-
rect claim, the arbiter shall declare the game
lost for this player.
4. If a game has ended by resignation,
checkmate, time loss, stalemate, triple repe-
tition or any other of the ways described in
Article 5 of the Technical Regulations, no
claim for irregularities shall be accepted
(irregularities include clock settings and all
other described in Article 7 of the Technical
Regulations).
3.7.2. If after the games in Article 3.7.1.a.
there are still players tied for 1st place then,
will play blitz games. Each tied player will
play two games with the other opponent(s).
Each player will receive 5 minutes on his
clock + 3 seconds for each move starting
from move 1. If there is a tie again, this
process will be repeated for the tied players,
for a maximum of two (2) more times.
3.7.3.a After the games in paragraph
3.7.2., and if we have only two players still
tied, sudden death games will be played. The
player who wins the drawing of lots, may
choose the colour. White shall receive 5
minutes on the clock and Black shall receive
4 minutes whereupon, after the 60th move,
both players shall receive an increment of 3
seconds starting from move 61. In case of a
draw the player with the black pieces is de-
clared the winner.
3.7.3.b. After the games in paragraph
3.7.2., and if we have three players still tied,
sudden death games will be played too. The
three players will be initially ranked accord-
ing to their average FIDE rating described in
article 2.4. above. The players initially
ranked No.2 and No.3 will play first and the
winner will face the player initially ranked
12
No.1. The sudden death games will be ted as follows (minimum in euros):
played as described in article 3.7.3.a. above. 1st place: 95.000
The winner of this procedure is No.1 in the 2nd place: 88.000
final standings and the loser of the final 3rd place: 75.000
match is No.2 in the final standings. 4th place: 55.000
3.7.3.c. After the games in paragraph 5th place: 40.000
3.7.2., and if we have four players still tied, 6th place: 28.000
sudden death games will be played too. The 7th place: 22.000
four players will be initially ranked accord- 8th place: 17.000
ing to their average FIDE rating described in All prize money will be divided equally
article 2.4. above. Then No.1 plays No.4 and where players have the same score in the
No.2 plays No.3 and the two winners play tournament (after 14 rounds).
the final match. All the sudden death games 3.8.2. If a player withdraws after he has
will be played as described in article 3.7.3.a. signed his contract or after the start of the
above. The winner of this procedure is No.1 tournament, he shall receive no prize money
in the final standings and the loser of the and this money will be retained by FIDE.
final match is No.2 in the final standings. 3.9. Playing Conditions
3.7.3.d. After the games in paragraph 3.9.1. Only the players, principals and
3.7.2., and if we have five players still tied, steward (-ess)s shall be allowed in the actual
sudden death games will be played too. The playing area except with the permission of
five players will be initially ranked accord- the Chief Arbiter. A player may communi-
ing to their average FIDE rating described in cate with an arbiter or a steward.
article 2.4 above. The players initially 3.9.2. During the playing session the fol-
ranked No.4 and No.5 will play first and the lowing additional regulations shall be in
winner will face the three remaining players force:
as in 3.7.3.c. above. All the sudden death a) The players are not permitted to bring
games will be played as described in article into the playing area telephone, technical
3.7.3.a. above. The winner of this procedure and other equipment extraneous to play,
is No.1 in the final standings and the loser of which may in any way disturb or upset the
the final match is No.2 in the final standings. opponent. The Chief Arbiter shall decide
3.7.3.e. After the games in paragraph what constitutes extraneous equipment liable
3.7.2., and if we have 6 players or more still to offend the opponent.
tied, sudden death games will also be played b) The players cannot draw a game by
in accordance with the spirit of articles agreement before black’s 30th move. A claim
3.7.3.b., 3.7.3.c., 3.7.3.d. and 3.7.3.e. above. for a draw before black’s 30th move is per-
Further details will be announced by the mitted only through the Chief Arbiter (or his
Chief Arbiter. Deputy) in the cases of perpetual check or
3.7.4. If tie-breaks are needed to determine threefold repetition.
any other possible qualification spots for the c) During the playing session, a player
next World Championship cycle, then the may leave the playing area only with the
procedure described in article 3.7. will be permission of the Chief Arbiter and only if
applied as well, including 3.7.1.a., 3.7.1.b., he is accompanied by one of the arbiters.
3.7.2., 3.7.3.a., 3.7.3.b., 3.7.3.c., 3.7.3.d. and 3.10. Score sheets.
3.7.3.e. There shall be a pause of 10 minutes 3.10.1. The Organisers shall provide score
between all tie-break games, unless the sheets according to the specifications pro-
Chief Arbiter decides otherwise. vided by FIDE.
3.8. Prizes for the Candidates Tournament a) At the end of each game the players'
3.8.1. The total minimum prize fund of the original score sheets shall be given to the
Candidates Tournament amounts to 420.000 Chief Arbiter, who shall hand them to FIDE.
euros. The amount is net and cleared of any b) Refusal of either player to sign the score
local taxes. The money prizes shall be alloca- sheets shall be penalised according to Arti-
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 13
cle 13.4. of the Laws of Chess. After the
players have signed the score sheets, the
Arbiter shall countersign to confirm the re-
sults.
c) In tie-break games, the players and the
Arbiter shall sign a result sheet.
3.11. Players' Meeting
3.11.1. Players are required to attend the
Players' Meeting on the day of the Opening
Ceremony at a time to be decided by the
Chief Arbiter and the Organisers. If neces-
sary, the Chief Arbiter may call other Play-
ers' Meetings.
3.11.2. If a player fails to appear at the
Players' Meeting, the Opening or Closing
Ceremony or any approved function of the
Championship such as official receptions,
press conferences or interviews, or conducts
himself in a manner contrary to the spirit of
sportsmanship or the FIDE Code of Ethics,
then he shall suffer the following penalty:
5% of his prize money shall be forfeited to
the Organisers and a further 5% to FIDE for
each breach. In cases of serious misconduct
the player may be disqualified from the
event and the World Chess Championship
cycle.
3.12. Interviews, functions and mode of
dressing.
3.12.1. The players are expected to co-
operate reasonably with the media. General
interviews with them have to be arranged
through the FIDE Press-Officer, the same
day or the next day after the end of the
event.
3.12.2. All players are required to make
themselves available for post-game press
conferences, of not more than 20 minutes
duration, immediately after the game. All
winners and medalists are obliged to attend
the final press conference after the event has
ended and to provide an exclusive interview
for the FIDE website, if requested by the
FIDE Press-Officer. Players violating these
rules will be subjected to the penalties men-
tioned in the event regulations.
3.12.3. Players are required to be present
at all official functions approved by the
FIDE President or his Deputy during the
event including official receptions, the open-
ing ceremony and the closing ceremony.
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018
3.12.4. Players are requested to note the
requirements of FIDE Regulations C.01 (Ar-
ticle 8.1) in respect of their dignified ap-
pearance at all times during the event.
3.13. Payment of Prize Money
3.13.1. The prize fund shall be paid by
direct banker’s order drawn in euros.
3.13.2. Upon completion of the event,
FIDE shall pay these sums collectible in the
player’s home country where requested by
him within 10 days.
3.14. Local Tax
3.14.1. Although FIDE will endeavour to
sign an agreement with the Organiser stating
that the prize funds are net and free of all
local taxes, FIDE will not be responsible for
any national local tax deducted from the
prize money. FIDE will give all necessary
assistance to the players if the Organiser acts
to the contrary.
3. 15. Principals
3.15.1. The Principals are:
a) President and Deputy President.
b) Members of the Appeals Committee.
c) Arbiters.
d) Press-Officer.
e) Representative of FIDE Medical Com-
mission.
f) 2 WCOC members.
3.16. Arbiters.
3.16.1. The arbiters of the Candidates
Tournament will be nominated by FIDE. No
arbiter may belong to the same federation as
any of the players.
3.16.2. During play either the Chief Arbi-
ter or his Deputy must be present in the
playing area.
3.16.3. Immediately after the end of the
event, the Chief Arbiter shall write a report
and send it without delay to the FIDE office.
3.16.4. The report shall be written in one
of the official FIDE languages.
3.16.5. The report shall contain the result
of each individual game as well as the final
standings. In addition, the report shall con-
tain a general description of the course of
the event. If there were any difficulties, con-
flicts or incidents, they shall be described
together with the measures taken to deal
with them.
14
 3.16.6. The report shall be supplemented
by adding two copies of the bulletins and the
score sheets of the games.
3.16.7. The Chief Arbiter may, in consul-
tation with the WCOC, and with the ap-
proval of the FIDE President, issue addi-
tional written regulations to inform the exact
playing hours and take care of other details
not covered by these regulations.
3.17. Appeals Committee
3.17.1. The FIDE President shall nomi-
nate, from within the FIDE Presidential
Board on priority, the Chairman and the
other 2 members of the Appeals Committee,
all from different Federations. None of the 3
members of the Appeals Committee shall sit
in judgement in a dispute involving a player
or party from his Federation except where
the dispute is between two players or two
parties from his Federation.
All protests must be submitted in writing
to the Appeals Committee not more than two
(2) hours after the relevant playing session,
or the particular infringement complained
against.
The Committee may decide on the follow-
ing matters:
a) An appeal against a decision by an arbi-
ter.
b) A protest against a player's behaviour.
c) A complaint alleging false interpretation
of the regulations.
d) A request for the interpretation of spe-
cific regulations.
e) A protest or complaint against any par-
ticipant.
f) All other matters which the Committee
considers important.
If possible, the Committee shall reach a
decision not more than two (2) hours after
the submission of a protest. The appeals
process shall include written representations
and a written decision. The Committee shall
endeavour to find binding solutions that are
within the true spirit of the FIDE motto,
Gens Una Sumus. Each protest must be ac-
companied by a deposit fee of EUR 500
(five hundred euros) or the equivalent in
local currency. If the protest is accepted, the
fee shall be returned. If the protest is re-
jected, the fee may be forfeited to FIDE.
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018
3.17.2. The written decision of the Ap-
peals Committee arising from any dispute in
respect of these regulations shall be final.
3.17.3. Immediately after the end of the
event, the Chairman of the Appeals Commit-
tee shall write a report in one of the official
FIDE languages and send it without delay to
the FIDE office.
4. Commercial and Financial issues
4.1. The WCOC shall ensure the playing
hall and its environs meet at least the re-
quirements of the FIDE Regulations for the
Organisation of Top Level Tournaments
(FIDE Handbook C.01).
4.2. The playing venue shall be decorated
with the FIDE flag, IOC flag, the flags of the
host nation and the participating countries.
4.3. After the World Chess Championship
Committee agrees with the Organisers on
the arrangements in respect of the tourna-
ment hall, facilities, accommodation and
meals, transportation, telecommunication,
ceremonies, etc., no objections from the par-
ticipants shall be acceptable.
4.4. Organisers shall provide, free of
charge, coffee, tea and soft drinks for the
players and principals. It is advisable that
the same offer shall apply for press mem-
bers.
4.5. Photography and Television
4.5.1. Only photographers and camera
crew expressly authorised by the Press-
Officer may work in the playing venue.
a) Flash may be used only during the first
five (5) minutes.
b) In tie-break games, flash may only be
used in the first three (3) minutes. In case of
5 minutes + sudden death games, flash is not
permitted, the use of cameras without flash
may be permitted if the Arbiter in charge
deems their use to be unobtrusive.
c) Television cameras must be unobtrusive
and may only be used if the Arbiter in
charge deems their use to be unobtrusive.
d) An official photographer, designated by
the Organisers with the approval of the
Chief Arbiter shall be allowed to take photos
at any time during the round without flash.
4.6. Ceremonies
4.6.1. The Opening Ceremony shall take
place the day prior to the first round and all
15
participants are required to take part. Excep-
tion can be made by a written permission of
the FIDE President.
4.6.2. The program of the Opening Cere-
mony shall be approved by FIDE. Cultural
program and speeches totalling up to 60
minutes are usually welcome. FIDE Anthem
and the Anthem of the hosting country shall
be played.
4.6.3. The Closing Ceremony shall take
place not later than one day after the end of
the event. The Organisers shall provide a
trophy for the winner and medals (gold, sil-
ver, bronze) for the top three winners. The
FIDE Anthem, the Anthem of the winner’s
country and the Anthem of the hosting coun-
try shall be played.
4.7. FIDE Rights and Obligations of the
Organisers
4.7.1. Finance
4.7.1.1. Before the end of the event, FIDE
shall be reimbursed for its direct expenses
incurred in the organisation of the Candi-
dates Tournament. This shall be a fixed sum
agreed in the contract between the Organ-
iser(s) and the World Chess Championship
Committee (WCOC). This sum shall include
stipends, pre-expenses (inspections) and
tournament expenses (travelling and board-
ing) for the principals. The WCOC shall
advise and help the Organiser(s) on protocol,
budget, infrastructure, media, commentary,
bulletin and other technical problems.
4.7.1.2. FIDE has the exclusive commer-
cial rights of the Candidates Tournament
and is free to exploit them commercially,
including entering into advertisement
agreements either with the Organiser(s) or
Sponsors of the event requiring players to
wear clothes with the branding of sponsors.
Players shall not wear, use or display any
apparel, footwear, accessory or other item,
including but not limited to any piece of
attire or any article that is of an accessory
nature (e.g. bag, eyewear, arm bands,
gloves, socks, charms, beverage bottles etc.),
bearing an identification of or advertising or
otherwise promoting the players' sponsors,
without prior written permission by FIDE or
FIDE’s commercial agency.
4.7.1.3. The income provided by the Can-
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018
didates Tournament through admission
charges shall go to the Organiser(s). The
radio and television rights, including photo,
video and film rights, shall belong to FIDE
or its appointed agency. The right as de-
scribed here and in the previous paragraph
can be granted by FIDE to the Organiser(s).
4.7.1.4. FIDE or its appointed agency shall
have the exclusive rights for live games
transmission on Internet and shall provide
the necessary equipment such as electronic
boards and clocks to cover the event. FIDE
shall provide to the Organiser(s) the signal
for online game display in the different func-
tion rooms as agreed between the parties.
These rights as described here can be
granted by FIDE to the Organiser(s).
4.7.1.5. The Organiser(s) shall draw up a
budget as detailed as possible, including
provision for the anti-doping procedure costs
and contingencies. This shall be subject to
the approval of WCOC and the FIDE Presi-
dent.
4.7.2. Stipends
4.7.2.1. The stipends to be paid to the Prin-
cipals of the WCC Candidates Tournament
are (in EUR):
Chairman of Appeals Committee: 7.000
Two members of Appeals Committee:
10.000
Chief Arbiter: 6.000
Deputy Chief Arbiter: 4.500
Arbiter: 3.000
Press-Officer: 3.500
Representative of FIDE Medical Commis-
sion 2.000
4.7.3. Travelling and Accommodation
4.7.3.1. Travel. The FIDE President has
the right to first class travel by air, sea or
rail, at the Organisers` expense. The FIDE
Deputy President has the right to business
class travel by air, sea or rail, at the Organis-
ers expense. All other Principals shall be
provided with transport by air, sea or rail or,
if they prefer, any other mode of transport
that is not more costly to the Organisers than
economy air travel or business class if trav-
elling from another continent. Any Principal
making his own travel arrangements without
the agreement of the Organisers does so en-
tirely at his own risk.
16
 4.7.3.2. Board and Lodging. For the FIDE
President a suite in a first class hotel should
be provided and for the Deputy President
one junior suite in the same first class hotel.
For each Principal or WCOC member - a
double room in the same first class hotel.
Extra expenses will be covered by the Or-
ganisers only for the FIDE President.
4.7.3.3. Food and drinks. Provision for
food and drinks shall be provided for all the The FIDE logo is represented above and
Principals. This shall be provided by a speci- will be displayed in a dark blue colour on a
fied allowance in local currency per day or white background. The text describing any
by the provision of all meals in the restau- event must not be larger than twice the size
rant of the hotel. The nature and amount of the word FIDE reproduced in the logo.
shall be agreed between the Organisers and 4.7.3.6.3.2.
WCOC.
4.7.3.4. Local transportation. Transfer
from and to the airport will be provided by
the Organisers, if necessary. For FIDE Presi-
dent, a chauffeur-driven car. For the other
Principals, a number of cars shall be made
available; their use will depend on the posi-
tion of the hotels, playing hall and media
centre, and on the leisure activities of the
Principals. Alternatively, a daily allowance
in local currency may be provided, the
amount to be agreed between the Organisers
and WCOC. Local transport shall also be WORLD CANDIDATES
provided for players to official functions if TOURNAMENT 2018
necessary. The event title of the tournament is repre-
4.7.3.5. Personnel. The Organisers should sented above. The corporate logo should
provide sufficient personnel to assist in the include the above on top and the text in any
playing hall, press room, VIP room, and at kind of printed or electronic media must not
ceremonies according to the agreement be larger than twice the size of the word
made with the WCOC. FIDE reproduced in the logo.
4.7.3.6. Procedures concerning commer- 4.7.3.6.4. FIDE Press-Officer
cial aspects 4.7.3.6.4.1. The Organiser will be respon-
4.7.3.6.1. FIDE, or its appointed commer- sible for managing, updating and reviewing
cial agency, retains all commercial and me- the official web domain which will be used
dia rights of the Candidates Tournament for the event: xxxx2018.fide.com where
2018, including internet. These rights can be xxxx refers to the city where the event is
transferred to the Organiser upon agreement. being held. All content will be reviewed and
4.7.3.6.2. No proposed sponsor shall be in approved by the FIDE Press-Officer. All live
conflict with the regulations of the Interna- images, live broadcasting (Internet TV) pic-
tional Olympic Committee. tures and all the other content for the full
4.7.3.6.3. The FIDE logo and the head of event details will be carried on the official
the corporate logo are displayed below: domain. The Organiser shall not develop any
4.7.3.6.3.1. other website.
4.7.3.6.4.2. All activities of both FIDE and
the Organiser shall identify FIDE being the
Governing Body of the World Chess Cham-
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 17
pionship and the Organiser being the Organ-
iser of the event in close co-operation with
FIDE. The Organiser shall warrant that the
official domain for the event will be man-
aged in a professional way and furthermore
that it will be capable of handling the traffic
and publicity that is required for such
events. Statistics of traffic and full reports
on web performance will be provided to
both FIDE and the Organiser.
4.7.3.6.4.3. The Organiser shall co-operate
with the Press-Officer concerning the ac-
creditation and hospitality of foreign jour-
nalists and the media and the facilities avail-
able at the Press Centre. The Press-Officer
shall be a member of the panel at Press Con-
ferences conducted during the event. In
cases of conflicting information and press
statements, the views expressed by the
Press-Officer shall be the authentic version.
4.8. Selection of the Organisers.
AGON Ltd is the marketing agency en-
trusted by FIDE to organise the Candidates
Tournament 2018. If for any reason the
agreement with AGON Ltd is cancelled or
not valid, the following procedure will be
applied to select the Organiser:
4.8.1. Any federation that is a member of
FIDE or any sponsor may bid for the right to
organise the Candidates Tournament. FIDE
shall consult the federation where the spon-
sor proposes to hold the event. In case the
federation refuses or is unable to co-operate,
FIDE may still accept a proposal from a
potential sponsor. No proposed sponsor for
the Candidates Tournament shall be in con-
flict with the regulations of the International ject any bid application if the financial
Olympic Committee.
4.8.2. If needed, FIDE shall open a bid-
ding procedure for the Candidates Tourna-
ment preferably before 31 March 2017.
4.8.3. Each applicant shall pay a non-
refundable fee of 1.000 euros to obtain the
obligatory bidding form and the necessary
information from the FIDE Secretariat. At
any time, where the bidding procedure fails,
the Presidential Board shall decide, where,
when and how the Candidates Tournament
will be organised.
4.8.4. In the event that FIDE receives a
satisfactory open offer that covers all the
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018
necessary financial requirements, then FIDE
may immediately terminate the bidding pro-
cedure.
4.8.5. Each proposal shall contain the fol-
lowing particulars:
a) Proposed exact dates of the event.
b) Proposed tournament venue.
c) Proposed prize fund for the players
(minimum 420.000 euros & should be of-
fered net of any applicable local taxes).
d) The contribution to FIDE (net of any
applicable local taxes and not less than 20%
of the prize money).
e) Commitment to cover all financial obli-
gations to FIDE.
f) Commitment to cover all organisational
costs, in accordance with the regulations of
the event.
g) Category of official hotel (minimum 4
stars), and name if possible, with special
room rates including meals.
h) A statement that the applicant accepts
the regulations of the event without any res-
ervations.
i) An invitation for at least two members
of the WCOC to inspect the proposed venue
and examine the other conditions, with all
travel/hotel expenses paid by the bidder.
j) Any bank guarantees as described in the
bidding procedure.
k) The applicant's name, signatures and
authentication.
4.8.6. FIDE may exercise the right to re-
ject any bid application if the conditions as
stated in 4.8.8. below are not met.
4.8.7. FIDE may exercise the right to re-
standing of the bid is unsatisfactory.
4.8.8. The FIDE Presidential Board shall
decide which applicant shall be chosen. The
decision reached shall be based on the fol-
lowing criteria, which are to be viewed as a
whole:
a) Prize fund.
b) Covering of organisational costs.
c) Playing conditions.
d) Providing visas to all players, trainers
and officials.
e) Security assistance for all players and
officials.
f) Chess activity both actual and potential in
18
the country hosting the event.
g) Media possibilities.
h) Potential development of chess world-
wide.
i) Climate conditions during the period of
the tournament.
j) Taxation conditions in the hosting coun-
try in respect of the prize fund.
If a Presidential Board meeting cannot be
held, the FIDE President takes the decision
in consultations with the WCOC.
4.8.9. After the Presidential Board (or the
FIDE President) has decided who shall be
selected to organise the event, a contract will
be signed between FIDE and the Organiser
regarding all financial and commercial as-
pects of the event. Unless the contract states
otherwise, the Organiser shall deposit, not
later than nine months before the start of the
event, in escrow, net and free of all taxes,
with the FIDE bankers the full sums of
money covering the prize fund and all costs
related to FIDE as stipends, travel, full board
and lodge and other administrative costs for
communications etc in accordance with a
budget agreed between FIDE and the Organ-
isers.
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018
4.8.10. In case of a failure to deposit the
money sums under 4.8.9., the guarantees
specified in 4.8.5.(j) are forfeited in favour
of FIDE.
4.8.11. At any time, after the sums speci-
fied under 4.8.9., have been deposited in
escrow, if the Organiser fails to organise the
event or is in breach of the contract with
FIDE, then FIDE may withdraw the right to
organise the event and at the same time the
Organisers shall forfeit all of the sums of
money under 4.8.5(j) and 4.8.9.4.8.12. The
Organisers shall invite a member of the
WCOC to inspect and give consultation on
the preparations. The WCOC shall decide on
the need for further inspections. Travelling
and accommodation costs are to be borne by
the Organisers.
Annex 1
World Championship Technical Regulations
(FIDE Laws of Chess)
The FIDE Laws of Chess are Annex 1, as
valid since 1 July 2017 and published on the
FIDE website:
www.fide.com/fide/handbook.html?id=207
&view=article
19
Player’s Contract
The World Chess Federation (FIDE) is the
governing body of the World Chess Cham-
pionship cycle 2016-2018 and the Candi-
dates Tournament 2018 is an integral part of
it (hereinafter referred to as the Candidates
Tournament).
The Administrator of the 2018 Candidates
Tournament is FIDE, in collaboration with
the Organiser World Chess Events Limited.
In order to ensure that the Candidates Tour-
nament is played in accordance with the
approved regulations and the statutes of
FIDE, the following provisions shall apply:
1. Dates and Venue
1.1. The Candidates Tournament will be
held from 8 March (arrivals on 8 March and
opening ceremony on 9 March) to 29 March
2018 (departures) in Berlin, Germany.
1.2. All the participants in the Candidates
Tournament, and their delegation, must use
the official hotel(s) of the event suggested
by the Organisers.
2. Right of Participation
2.1. A list of qualified players and re-
serves, approved so far by FIDE, is pub-
lished online on the FIDE website as well as
the publication of any other important in-
formation regarding the event. The present
contract shall be sent signed by the players
to the FIDE Secretariat within the deadline
specified below.
2.2. Qualified participants are entitled to
play in the Candidates Tournament. This
right may only be set aside if the player does
not meet the deadlines specified in the ap-
proved regulations or otherwise behaves in a
way and manner that is in violation of the
provisions of this contract, when a reserve
may replace him.
3. Confirmation deadlines
3.1. Qualified players and reserves are
expected to fax a copy of the original docu-
ment of their signed contract, reaching the
FIDE Secretariat no later than 26 January
2018, GMT 13:00.
3.2. The player must inform the FIDE of-
fice in written form, together with the signed
contract, of his bank account details, ie:
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018
Bank, SWIFT code, IBAN, account holder
name and registered address.
3.3. Qualified players shall register at the
Candidates Tournament secretariat in Berlin,
in person no later than the time set for the
opening ceremony, failing which their right
of participation may be forfeited. The FIDE
President has the right to allow participation
in exceptional circumstances.
4. The Player’s Obligations
4.1. On signing this contract, the player
commits himself to completing the various
stages of the Championship in accordance
with the regulations of the Candidates Tour-
nament, World Championship Match, FIDE
Code of Ethics, FIDE Anti-Doping Discipli-
nary Rules, FIDE Statutes and FIDE Laws
of Chess which form an integral part of this
contract, except in the case of illness evi-
denced by a medical certificate.
4.2. By signing this contract, the player
also confirms that for a period of 4 years
after the end of the Candidates Tournament,
he will not participate in any other event
called as a ‘World Championship’ event
which is not recognised by FIDE.
4.3. Players will have to give interviews
and make appearances as described in article
3.12.2. of the Candidates Tournament Regu-
lations.
4.4. Players may be required to wear
clothes or apparel with special branding
from sponsors in accordance with article
4.7.1.2. of the Candidates Tournament
Regulations.
4.5. Participants shall be required to ap-
pear punctually for the commencement of
play in each game of every round. Any
player who arrives at the chessboard after
the start of the session shall lose the game.
Thus the default time is zero (0) minutes.
4.6. Participants in the Candidates Tour-
nament shall be required to attend the Open-
ing Ceremony, Closing Ceremony or any
official reception specifically approved by
the FIDE President, failing which a fine as
detailed in the regulations, may be imposed
and deducted from the prize money for each
20
violation.
4.7. The Administrator shall be permitted
to use the picture, likeness, image, name and
biographical details of the Participants in
connection with the advertisement, public-
ity, exhibition and commercial exploitation
of the FIDE World Chess Championship
events, provided that Administrator does not
portray the players in an unfavorable man-
ner.
5. Financial conditions
5.1. The Candidates Tournament 2018 will
have a total prize fund of 420.000 euros
(four hundred twenty thousand euros) as per
FIDE regulations. The amount of 420.000
euros will be distributed as follows: 1st place
95.000 euros; 2nd place 88.000 euros; 3rd
place 75.000 euros; 4th place 55.000 euros;
5th place 40.000 euros; 6th place 28.000 eu-
ros; 7th place 22.000 euros; 8th place 17.000
euros. The winner of the Candidates Tour-
nament also qualifies for the World Cham-
pionship Match 2018.
5.2. Subject to the provisions of this con-
tract, the amount to which each player is
entitled, will be paid by direct bank transfer
in euros on UBS Lausanne, no later than two
weeks after the event is completed.
5.3. Although FIDE has an agreement with
the Organiser that the prize fund is net and
free of all local tax, FIDE will not be re-
sponsible for any national or local tax de-
ducted from the prize money. FIDE will
give all necessary assistance to the players if
the Organiser acts to the contrary.
5.4. FIDE or the Organising Committee
will not be responsible for any application of
political or financial sanctions from the or-
ganising country against the players of the
tournament. At the same time, FIDE has no
prior knowledge of such sanctions.
5.5. Without prejudice to the provisions of
this contract, the game scores and score-
sheets are the property of FIDE.
5.6. Each player will receive two (2) free
single rooms in the official hotel for their
accommodation, including full board, for the
whole duration of the event.
6. Arbitration
6.1. Any dispute arising from or related to
the present contract will be submitted exclu-
sively to the Courts of Vaud, Switzerland.
The court proceedings shall take place in
English.
___________________________________
By signing this contract, I hereby confirm
that I will participate in the Candidates
Tournament of the 2016-2018 World Chess
Championship cycle and have in consulta-
tion with my national federation acquainted
myself with the applicable FIDE Statutes,
FIDE Code of Ethics, FIDE Anti-Doping
Disciplinary Regulations, FIDE Laws of
Chess and FIDE Candidates Tournament
regulations and I accept the conditions relat-
ing to my participation.
Place and date:
Signature of the Player:
Full Name:
Signature of FIDE Deputy President Geor-
gios Makropoulos:

FIDE Principals
Chief Arbiter Deventer Klaus Germany
Deputy Chief Arbiter Bond Hal Canada
Chairman of Appeal’s Committee (1st half) Gelfer Israel Israel
nd
Chairman of Appeal’s Committee (2 half) Mazouz Lakhdar Algeria
Appeal’s Committee Member Ochoa de Echaguen Javier Spain
Appeal’s Committee Member Sundar Damal Villivalam India
Press-Officer Karlovich Anastasia Ukraine
FIDE Medical Commission Bellin Jana England

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 21

Press Announcement (September 11th, 2017)
World Chess Candidates, a dramatic tour-
nament that determines the challenger for
the World Chess Championship Match, will
take place in Berlin, Germany on March 10-
28, 2018. Despite Berlin’s chess history and
passion for the sport, it is the very first time German chess federation is one of the largest
that the Candidates Tournament takes place
in the German capital.
Eight of the world's top grandmasters trav-
elled to Berlin to play in the tournament that
was held as a double round-robin over 14
games. The winner will contest the title cur-
rently held by Magnus Carlsen, the reigning
World Champion, in November 2018.
The eight Candidates Tournament partici-
pants include Sergey Karjakin of Russia,
who automatically qualified for the Candi-
dates Tournament by playing in the 2016
World Chess Championship Match.
He will be joined by the top two finishers
in the World Chess Grand Prix Series; the
winner and runner-up of the 2017 World
Cup taking place in Tbilisi; two more play-
ers who qualify by rating; and a wild card
choice.
The prize fund will total €420.000, or an
estimated $460.000 at the current exchange
rate. In addition to €420.000, the prize will
also include 10% of the pay-per-view reve-
nues from the event.
The Tournament will take place in Central
Berlin, with tickets and digital subscriptions
starting to sell on October 4, 2017. Pay-per-
view tickets will include German and Eng-
lish commentary, advanced analytics, be-
hind-the-scenes footage, options to choose
camera angles, and more, costing $15 alto-
gether.
‘Over 23% of Germans play chess regu-
larly; the sport is immensely popular in this
country, and we are very pleased to hold the
Tournament in Berlin and offer German fans
a chance to witness this Tournament live for
the first time!
We are also developing custom commen-
tary and experiences in German for local
audience,’ says Ilya Merenzon, CEO of
World Chess, the Organiser of the Champi-
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018
onship cycle events and FIDE’s commercial
partner. ‘We are looking forward to the
event of the year in Berlin!’ adds Merenzon.
‘We are pleased to continue staging spec-
tacular chess events in the world’s capitals.
in the world, and we are happy to support it
by holding this exciting event in Germany,’
says Georgios Makropoulos, FIDE Deputy
President.
‘We are happy to host the Candidates
Tournament in Germany and will work with
FIDE and World Chess to offer special ex-
perience to our members and to all chess
fans in our country!’ says Ullrich Krause,
President of the German Chess Federation.
Leading brands continue to support the
Championship cycle and will be represented
in the Candidates Tournament: EG Capital
Advisors, an international asset management
company, as Official Partner; Kaspersky
Lab as World Chess and FIDE Official Cy-
bersecurity Partner; S.T. Dupont as Official
Writing Instrument; and Isklar as Official
Water.
Eugene Kaspersky, Chairman and CEO of
Kaspersky Lab, says, ‘I am really looking
forward to the Candidates Tournament in
Berlin. The culmination of the cycle is get-
ting closer, and I’m sure it'll be a very excit-
ing competition of top-rank chess minds.
Good luck to both the grandmasters and
chess fans!’
The Tournament will be broadcasted ex-
clusively on worldchess.com and on media
partners’ sites.
Official hashtags of the Tournament are
#candidates2018 and #berlinplayschess.
About FIDE: The World Chess Federation
or Fédération Internationale des Échecs,
(FIDE), is recognised by its members and
the International Olympic Committee as the
international federation in the domain of
chess, the supreme body responsible for the
sport of chess and its Championships. FIDE
has the sole rights to organise the World
Chess Championships and the Chess Olym-
piads.
22
 About World Chess: World Chess is for exceptional individuals. This legendary
owned by Agon Limited, the official partner and unique know-how, combined with an
of the World Chess Federation (FIDE) and entrepreneurial spirit true to founder Simon
commercial rights holder to the World Chess Tissot Dupont, contribute to perpetuating the
Championship cycle. World Chess aims to international aura and recognition of a
develop and commercialise chess, create House that embodies Fine French Crafts-
favorable environment for partners, players, manship.
and brands, and to significantly expand the It is with great pride that S.T.Dupont pre-
broadcast coverage of the sport. serves the know-how of its master crafts-
World Chess became the owner of the men, who are heirs to skills passed down
commercial rights in 2012. The company from generation to generation. The choice of
successfully managed the 2012-2013 Grand connoisseurs from visionaries and artists to
Prix cycle, the 2014 World Championship world leaders and royalty: Exceptional
Match, and the 2015 Rapid and Blitz World products for exceptional people since 1872.
Championships. The company operates the In the 21st century, the legend lives on, in
worldchess.com website, the official broad- perfect harmony with its roots and a future
casting platform of the Championship cycle. of promise.
About EG Capital Advisors: EG Capital
Advisors is an international holding provid-
ing retail and institutional clients with in-
vestment capabilities that span multiple as-
sets classes including publicly listed equity
securities, private equity, fixed income and
real estate. With assets under management
of over USD 3 bn, EG Capital Advisors of-
fers fixed and customised investment solu-
tions worldwide and deep expertise in Schedule
emerging markets. Website: March 09 Friday Technical Meeting
www.egcapitaladvisors.com Press/Media
About Kaspersky Lab: Kaspersky Lab is a Opening Ceremony
global cybersecurity company celebrating its March 10 Saturday Round 1
20 year anniversary in 2017. Kaspersky March 11 Sunday Round 2
Lab’s deep threat intelligence and security March 12 Monday Round 3
expertise is constantly transforming into March 13 Tuesday Rest Day
security solutions and services to protect March 14 Wednesday Round 4
businesses, critical infrastructure, govern- March 15 Thursday Round 5
ments and consumers around the globe. The March 16 Friday Round 6
company’s comprehensive security portfolio March 17 Saturday Rest Day
includes leading endpoint protection and a March 18 Sunday Round 7
number of specialised security solutions and March 19 Monday Round 8
services to fight sophisticated and evolving March 20 Tuesday Round 9
digital threats. Over 400 million users are March 21 Wednesday Rest Day
protected by Kaspersky Lab technologies March 22 Thursday Round 10
and we help 270.000 corporate clients pro- March 23 Friday Round 11
tect what matters most to them. Learn more March 24 Saturday Round 12
at www.kaspersky.com. March 25 Sunday Rest Day
About S.T Dupont: For nearly 145 years,
March 26 Monday Round 13
S.T.Dupont master goldsmiths and silver-
March 27 Tuesday Round 14
smiths, lacquerers and trunk-makers have
March 28 Wednesday Tie Breaks
created unique and durable objects that are
entirely crafted by hand and made in France Closing Ceremony

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 23

Official Partners
EG Capital Advisors - Official Partner
EG Capital Advisors is an international holding
providing retail and institutional clients with in-
vestment capabilities that span multiple assets
classes including publicly listed equity securities,
private equity, fixed income and real estate.
With assets under management of over USD 3 bn,
EG Capital Advisors offers fixed and customised
investment solutions worldwide and deep expertise
in emerging markets.
www.egcapitaladvisors.com
S.T. Dupont - Official Writing Instrument
For nearly 145 years, S.T.Dupont master gold-
smiths and silversmiths, lacquerers and trunk-
makers have created unique and durable objects
that are entirely crafted by hand and made in
France for exceptional individuals.
This legendary and unique know-how, combined
with an entrepreneurial spirit true to founder Simon
Tissot Dupont, contribute to perpetuating the inter-
national aura and recognition of a House that em-
bodies Fine French Craftsmanship. It is with great
pride that S.T.Dupont preserves the know-how of
its master craftsmen, who are heirs to skills passed
down from generation to generation. The choice of
connoisseurs from visionaries and artists to world
leaders and royalty: Exceptional products for ex-
ceptional people since 1872. In the 21st century, the
legend lives on, in perfect harmony with its roots
and a future of promise. www.st-dupont.com
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018
Isklar - Official Mineral Water
Isklar™ is native to the Hardanger region of
Norway, a breathtaking place where massive
mountains plunge into deep mysterious
fjords.
The artesian sources are located a few hun-
dred meters under the glacier, close to the
Folgefonna national park. The water is natu-
rally filtered through the layers of ice and
mountain mass.
www.isklar.no
Kaspersky Lab
Official Cybersecurity Partner
Kaspersky Lab is a global cybersecurity
company founded in 1997. Kaspersky Lab’s
deep threat intelligence and security exper-
tise is constantly transforming into security
solutions and services to protect businesses,
critical infrastructure, governments and con-
sumers around the globe.
The company’s comprehensive security port-
folio includes leading endpoint protection
and a number of specialised security solu-
tions and services to fight sophisticated and
evolving digital threats.
Over 400 million users are protected by
Kaspersky Lab technologies and we help
270.000 corporate clients protect what mat-
ters most to them.
www.kaspersky.com
24
 PhosAgro
PhosAgro is a Russian vertically integrated
company and one of the world’s leading
producers of phosphate-based fertilisers. Its
core line of business is the production of
phosphate-based fertilisers, high-grade
phosphate rock (P2O5>39%), and also feed
phosphates, nitrogen fertilisers and ammo-
nia.
PhosAgro’s primary assets include Apatit
(Cherepovets, Vologda region), Kirovsk
branch of Apatit, Balakovo branch of Apa-
tit, Metachem, PhosAgro-Trans, PhosAgro-
Region and NIUIF.
The Company is Europe’s largest producer
of phosphate-based fertilisers, the world’s
largest producer of high-grade phosphate
rock and the world’s second largest pro-
ducer (excluding China) of MAP and DAP
(according to Fertecon), Russia’s only pro-
ducer of feed monocalcium phosphate
(MCP), and also the sole producer of
nepheline concentrate in Russia.
www.phosagro.com

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 25

Pre-tournament Statistical Overview
Statistics cannot replace actual results and it is just a tool of potential predictions, although can-
not predict the future with accuracy! Still something can be proven if studied in depth with various
other parameters! Well, here we will not ‘dig’ enough to find the ‘entire truth’ but we will more or
less observe the history behind the encounters between the participants of the event:
Table as per Percentages

Mamedyarov

Grischuk

Kramnik
Karjakin

Caruana
Aronian

Total
Ding
N Data

So
Mamedyarov Games 52 37 9 67 15 25 39 244
52.25 %

Sakhriyar Score 23 19½ 5½ 34 9 14½ 22 127½

1 GM Wins 12 11 2 17 5 9 14 70
Azerbaijan Draws 22 17 7 34 8 11 16 115
2809 Loses 18 9 0 16 2 5 9 59
Grischuk Games 52 82 5 71 13 52 43 318
51.73 %

Alexander Score 29 41½ 1½ 34 8½ 25 25 164½

2 GM Wins 18 19 0 21 5 14 14 91
Russia Draws 22 45 3 26 7 22 22 147
2767 Loses 12 18 2 24 1 16 7 80
Aronian Games 37 82 20 62 14 45 85 345
51.59 %

Levon Score 17½ 40½ 11 35½ 6½ 27 40 178

3 GM Wins 9 18 5 21 2 17 16 88
Armenia Draws 17 45 12 29 9 20 48 180
2794 Loses 11 19 3 12 3 8 21 77
So Games 9 5 20 19 22 38 16 129
50.39 %

Wesley Score 3½ 3½ 9 8 10½ 22 8½ 65

4 GM Wins 0 2 3 2 2 12 4 25
US America Draws 7 3 12 12 17 20 9 80
2799 Loses 2 0 5 5 3 6 3 24
Karjakin Games 67 71 62 19 8 45 44 316
50.32 %

Sergey Score 33 37 26½ 11 3½ 22½ 25½ 159

5 GM Wins 16 24 12 5 2 10 16 85
Russia Draws 34 26 29 12 3 25 19 148
2763 Loses 17 21 21 2 3 10 9 83
Ding Games 15 13 14 22 8 5 4 81
47.53 %

Liren Score 6 4½ 7½ 11½ 4½ 2½ 2 38½

6 GM Wins 2 1 3 3 3 2 0 14
China Draws 8 7 9 17 3 1 4 49
2769 Loses 5 5 2 2 2 2 0 18
Caruana Games 25 52 45 38 45 5 37 247
46.96 %

Fabiano Score 10½ 27 18 16 22½ 2½ 19½ 116

7 GM Wins 5 16 8 6 10 2 13 60
US America Draws 11 22 20 20 25 1 13 112
2784 Loses 9 14 17 12 10 2 11 75
Kramnik Games 39 43 85 16 44 4 37 268
46.83 %

Vladimir Score 17 18 45 7½ 18½ 2 17½ 125½

8 GM Wins 9 7 21 3 9 0 11 60
Russia Draws 16 22 48 9 19 4 13 131
2800 Loses 14 14 16 4 16 0 13 77

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 26

 So, the collected data shows that the eight participants had played in-between them (in any form
of chess) a total of 974 games. 493 games had a winner (50.62%), while the rest 481 ended in
draws (49.38%). Taking into consideration the strength of the players, having a decisive result of 1
out of 2 games, looks rather good and proves that the cream of the chess world is fighting!
Although there was no clear domination, Sakhriyar Mamedyarov seemed to be well on the top of
these encounters, something that could be easily proven from the next table, where I took into
consideration the personal matches’ results:
Table as per Personal Matches (%)
N Name 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Total
1 Mamedyarov S. % 44.23 60.00 50.75 52.70 58.00 61.11 56.41 6
2 Grischuk A. 55.77 % 65.38 47.89 50.61 48.08 30.00 58.14 4
3 Ding L. 40.00 34.62 % 56.25 53.57 50.00 52.27 50.00 4
4 Karjakin S. 49.25 52.11 43.75 % 42.74 50.00 57.89 57.95 3½
5 Aronian L. 47.30 49.39 46.43 57.26 % 60.00 55.00 47.06 3
6 Caruana F. 42.00 51.92 50.00 50.00 40.00 % 42.11 52.70 3
7 So W. 38.89 70.00 47.73 42.11 45.00 57.89 % 53.13 3
8 Kramnik V. 43.59 41.86 50.00 42.05 52.94 47.30 46.87 % 1½

With six out of seven personal matches’ won, Mamedyarov was undoubtently the king and
Vladimir Kramnik the clear underdog, while the other six players stayed in a ‘safe’ distance!
So, who should ‘trouble mostly’ the FIDE World Champion Magnus Carlsen? Well, we need
another table as the following one:
Table as per Percentages
Mamedyarov

Grischuk

Kramnik
Karjakin

Caruana
Aronian

Total
Ding
N Data
So

Carlsen Games 35 90 102 60 74 33 52 63 509

Magnus Score 25½ 53 54½ 43 44 24 31 35½ 310½
Wins 19 39 27 32 25 17 21 20 200
1 GM
Draws 13 28 55 22 38 14 20 31 221
Norway
Loses 3 23 20 6 11 2 11 12 88
2843
% 72.86 58.89 53.43 71.67 59.46 72.73 59.62 56.35 61.00

Prior to this event, Carlsen has faced the eight Candidates in a total of 509 games, resulting in
288 decisive games (56.58%), while 221 games ended in a draw (43.42%). Carlsen’s domination
is high, especially with youngsters as Mamedyarov, So and Ding (72.27%), while the ‘older’
generation is doing much ‘better’ (57.22%).
It is clear by the above table that the most ‘difficult’ opponent is Levon Aronian and the ‘easier’
Sakhriyar Mamedyarov, who dominate the field of Statistics! Well, nothing to be gained by the
study of the above tables - just some curious and interesting statistical data!
Note that the games’ data was taken from the ‘ChessBase MegaBase 2018’.
Finally, it would be also interesting to take a look on the 1-4 Aronian 5.50
Betting Companies’ ‘predictions’. On the right side there is a Karjakin 5.50
relative table as per approximately odds in Betting Companies. Kramnik 5.50
It was understandable that Aronian & Mamedyarov should be Mamedyarov 5.50
high, while Karjakin & Kramnik shouldn’t as per the above 5-6 Caruana 6.50
tables. But of course, as said, we do not know the exact way of
So 6.50
odds giving and by no means anybody should underestimate
7-8 Ding 13.00
such strong chess figures as Kramnik and Karjakin. Caruana &
Grischuk 13.00
So comes in close distance, while Ding & Grischuk are the clear
underdogs! All in all it seems that predictions were in favour of just six players…
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 27
The Players
Full Name: Aronian Grigori Levon
Country/Origin: Armenia FIDE Rating Chart
Federation: Armenia
Born: 6 October 1982 - Yerevan
Title: Grandmaster (GM) - 13300474
FIDE Rating: 2794
Peak Rating: 2830 (March 2014)
Ranking March 2018: No 5
Peak Ranking: No 2 (January 2012)
Full Name: Caruana Luigi Fabiano
Country/Origin: Italy FIDE Rating Chart
Federation: United States of America
Born: 30 July 1992 - Miami
Title: Grandmaster (GM) - 2020009
FIDE Rating: 2784
Peak Rating: 2844 (October 2014)
Ranking March 2018: No 8
Peak Ranking: No 2 (October 2014)
Full Name: Ding Liren
Country/Origin: China FIDE Rating Chart
Federation: China
Born: 24 October 1992 - Wenzhou
Title: Grandmaster (GM) - 8603677
FIDE Rating: 2769
Peak Rating: 2783 (June 2017)
Ranking March 2018: No 11
Peak Ranking: No 7 (September 2015)
Full Name: Grischuk Igorevich Alexander
Country/Origin: Russia FIDE Rating Chart
Federation: Russia
Born: 31 October 1983 - Moscow
Title: Grandmaster (GM) - 4126025
FIDE Rating: 2767
Peak Rating: 2810 (December 2014)
Ranking March 2018: No 12
Peak Ranking: No 3 (May 2014)
Full Name: Karjakin Alexandrovich Sergey
Country/Origin: Ukraine FIDE Rating Chart
Federation: Russia
Born: 12 January 1990 - Simferopol
Title: Grandmaster (GM) - 14109603
FIDE Rating: 2763
Peak Rating: 2788 (July 2011)
Ranking March 2018: 13
Peak Ranking: No 4 (July 2011)

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 28

 Full Name: Kramnik Borisovich Vladimir
Country/Origin: Russia FIDE Rating Chart
Federation: Russia Ex FIDE WC
Born: 25 June 1975 - Tuapse
Title: Grandmaster (GM) - 4101588
FIDE Rating: 2800
Peak Rating: 2817 (October 2016)
Ranking March 2018: No 3
Peak Ranking: No 1 (January 1996)
Full Name: Mamedyarov Hamid Sakhriyar
Country/Origin: Azerbaijan FIDE Rating Chart
Federation: Azerbaijan
Born: 12 April 1985 - Sumgait
Title: Grandmaster (GM) - 13401319
FIDE Rating: 2809
Peak Rating: 2814 (February 2018)
Ranking March 2018: No 2
Peak Ranking: No 2 (February 2018)
Full Name: So Barbasa Wesley
Country/Origin: Philippines FIDE Rating Chart
Federation: United States of America
Born: 9 October 1993 - Bacoor - Cavite
Title: Grandmaster (GM) - 5202213
FIDE Rating: 2799
Peak Rating: 2822 (March 2017)
Ranking March 2018: No 4
Peak Ranking: No 2 (March 2017)

The tournament’s official hotel

was the Scandic Berlin Pots-
damer Platz. The hotel is fur-
nished in Scandinavian style
and creates a relaxed atmos-
phere on Potsdamer Platz. The
modern surroundings offer an
outstanding selection of shop-
ping opportunities, restaurants
and entertainment.
Address - Gabriele-Tergit-
Promenade, 19 (free Wi-Fi,
gym, sauna)
www.scandichotels.com/hotels/ An overview of the entrance of the
germany/berlin/scandic-berlin- Scandic Berlin Potsdamer Platz
potsdamer-platz

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 29

FIDE Candidates Tournaments - History
FIDE organises the official World Championship since 1948, but recognises a number of previ-
ous chess players as World Champions (see pages 6-9). In this long period various types of
matches, tournaments and qualification systems were tried. The Candidates System is a rather new
one, having a quite short history.
It was firstly introduced in the London, England 2013 tournament, as per the following table:
London 2013 (14.03-02.04.2013) - Category 22 (2786)
N Name Rat 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 P
1 Carlsen M. 2872 ½ ½ 1 0 ½ ½ 1 1 1 ½ ½ 0 ½ 1 8½
2 Kramnik V. 2810 ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ 0 ½ 1 8½
3 Svidler P. 2747 0 1 ½ 0 ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 1 ½ 8
4 Aronian L. 2809 ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ 0 1 0 ½ ½ 1 1 1 1 8
5 Gelfand B. 2740 0 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ 0 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 6½
6 Grischuk A. 2764 0 ½ ½ 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ 6½
7 Ivanchuk V. 2757 ½ 1 ½ 1 ½ 0 0 0 ½ ½ ½ 0 0 1 6
8 Radjabov T. 2793 ½ 0 ½ 0 0 ½ 0 0 ½ 0 ½ ½ 1 0 4

Although Carlsen was the favourite, his poor finish created a drama! Both Carlsen and Kramnik
lost in the last round (!!) and then the Norwegian moved-on to beat the then WC Vishy Anand in
the final by 6½-3½, becoming the 20th FIDE World Champion!
Khnaty-Mansiysk 2014 (12.03-31.03.2014) - Category 21 (2770)
N Name Rat 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 P
1 Anand V. 2770 ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 8½
2 Karjakin S. 2766 ½ ½ 0 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ 0 1 ½ 1 ½ ½ 7½
3 Kramnik V. 2787 ½ ½ 1 0 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 0 0 1 7
4 Mamedyarov S. 2757 0 ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ 1 ½ 0 1 1 ½ ½ ½ 7
5 Andreikin D. 2709 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ ½ 1 0 ½ 1 ½ 7
6 Aronian L. 2830 0 ½ 1 0 ½ ½ 1 0 ½ 0 1 ½ ½ ½ 6½
7 Svidler P. 2758 ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ 1 0 ½ 1 ½ 0 ½ 1 0 6½
8 Topalov V. 2785 ½ 0 ½ ½ 1 0 ½ ½ 0 ½ ½ ½ 0 1 6

Next year we had the tournament in the Siberian town of Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia, which was a
triumph for the ex-FIDE WC Vishy Anand. He played the best chess and easily won the event.
Then, in the same year, he played a kind of revenge-match with Carlsen, but he lost again, this
time with 6½-3½.
Moscow 2016 (10.03-30.03.2014) - Category 22 (2777)
N Name Rat 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 P
1 Karjakin S. 2760 ½ 1 1 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ 1 8½
2 Caruana F. 2794 ½ 0 ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ 7½
3 Anand V. 2762 0 1 ½ 0 1 ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ 0 1 ½ 7½
4 Svidler P. 2757 ½ ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 7
5 Aronian L. 2786 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ 0 ½ ½ 1 ½ 1 ½ 7
6 Giri A. 2793 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 7
7 Nakamura H. 2790 0 ½ ½ 0 ½ 1 ½ ½ 0 ½ ½ ½ 1 1 7
8 Topalov V. 2780 ½ 0 ½ ½ 0 ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ ½ ½ 0 0 4½

Finally, the last event was played in Moscow, Russia, two years ago and it was a quite close af-
fair between Karjakin and Caruana, who met in the last round, being equal on points! Caruana had
to play for a win, as his tie-break was worst and as often happens in these cases, he lost and
handed the right for the WC match to Sergey Karjakin. The later faced Carlsen in New York and
lost in the tie-breaks with a total score of 7-9. So, Carlsen retained his WC title, waiting for once
more the winner of the Candidates!
An interesting fact is that in every of these three events, the winner made just a +3 result
(8½/14), which simply proves how strong and ‘nervous’ are the conditions for the players!
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 30
The Opening Ceremony & Press Conference
(09.03.2018)
As us customary in every important world-
wide sport event, the Opening Ceremony
should be and it was a luxurious affair!
At the opening Press-Conference, World
Chess CEO Ilya Merenzon said that the
eight players in this Candidates tournament
‘will definitely feel like rock stars’.
One of the reasons for holding the event in
the Kuehlhaus was to make chess visually
appealing for journalists to film chess and
present it in a new way.
And for a brief moment, as they were
beckoned onstage at the opening cere-
mony/party later in the evening, they proba-
bly did.
As the music swelled, a thick cloud of
artificial smoke shot up all around with the
lighting designed to fully conceal the players
from view, until they were all assembled in a
neat line. On cue, the lighting changed and
they were the centre of attention in the
multi-floor Berlin Kuehlhaus.
At the outset, the most prominent guest,
Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan, kicked
off the proceedings, with remarks in Arme-
nian, translated into English.
He made the ceremonial first move of the
first round. Sargsyan noted that despite hav-
ing a tiny population (Armenia as a whole
has about half a million people fewer than
the city of Berlin); Armenia is a ‘chess su-
perpower’.
He highlighted the positive effect of chess
on children and touted the introduction of
chess into the school curriculum, and par-
ticularly called out the benefit of instilling
‘respect for the opponent’. He also quoted
Emanuel Lasker: ‘When you see a good
move, look for a better one’.
The centrepiece of the opening party was
an ice sculpture containing two pieces of the
Berlin Wall from the studio of Thierry Noir,
the French artist who is said to be the first
street artist to paint the Berlin Wall in 1984. world in this show, and we are glad that this
He also gave brief remarks which concluded
by urging the audience: ‘do not repeat the
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018
mistakes of your parents’.
Speaking of ‘artificial intelligence’, Mer-
enzon said he would welcome someone
from Google to friend him on Facebook
‘immediately’. ‘What we would like to do is
to develop, let’s say, an AI mechanism
which teaches chess individually (‘on your
Smartphone’).
He proposed that there should be a ‘virtual
Vladimir’ or ‘virtual Fischer’ who can talk
to you personally and teach you the game.
Once again citied the specious YouGov
survey data from 2012, as a basis for setting
expectations of viewership, Merenzon said
that the goal is to reach 20-30 million people
who will follow the Candidates in Berlin
regularly.
He asserted that 10 million people fol-
lowed ‘almost every game online’ during the
2016 New York World Championship
match.
Georgios Makropoulous suggested that
there remains a chance of chess to be ac-
cepted into the Olympic Games, an outcome
which is generally regarded as unlikely.
The speakers of the Press-Conference in-
cluded FIDE Deputy President Georgios
Makropoulos, CEO of World Chess Ilya
Merenzon, President of the German Chess
Federation Ulrich Krause, Grandmaster
Vladimir Kramnik and Russian Chess Fed-
eration Vice-President, CEO PJSC
PhosAgro Andrey Guryev.
FIDE Deputy President Georgios Makro-
poulos said: ‘Germany is a very developed
chess country, with a lot of players, a lot of
chess fans, so for us it’s the right place for
the Candidates Tournament’.
CEO of World Chess Ilya Merenzon said:
‘The World Chess Championship cycle is a
fight for the title of the smartest person on
the planet. The main challenge for us is to
interest tens of millions of people around the
is happening. Countries are rooting for their
chess players.
31
 We know that in Russia, Armenia, Nor-
way, Azerbaijan, China and even in the
United States millions of people will care for
the outcome of the tournament. It will be not
only exciting, but also modern and beautiful.
Welcome to Berlin or to
www.worldchess.com’.
Russian Chess Federation Vice-President
and Board of Trustees Member, CEO PJSC
PhosAgro Andrey Guryev said: ‘The deci-
sion to support chess was made seven years
ago.
Not only is it an intellectual sport, but also
an excellent way to develop strategic think-
ing. PhosAgro’s participation in world-class
chess championships allows the company to
remain competitive at the world stage and
count its actions on several moves forward.
Western Europe is one of the priority mar-
kets for us and we are delighted that today
we are opening the Tournament precisely in
Germany, the country in which chess is one
of the most popular sports.
It will definitely attract the attention of our
partners and customers, both at the corporate
level and at the retail level’. And then it was
time for the traditional social hanging-
around, as the fights were yet to start!

Grandmaster Vladimir Kramnik - FIDE Deputy President Georgios Makropoulos

CEO of World Chess Ilya Merenzon - President of the German Chess Federation Ulrich Krause

The Opening Ceremony Berlin Wall from the studio of Thierry Noir
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 32
Round 1 (10.03.2018)
Round 1 XABCDEFGHY
10.03.2018 - 15:00
1 Kramnik - Grischuk 1:0 8rsn-+-trk+(
2 Karjakin - Mamedyarov 0:1 7zplwq-zppvlp'
3 Aronian - Ding ½:½
4 Caruana - So 1:0 6-zp-zp-snp+&
An interesting and fighting first round, 5+-+-+-+-%
where all participants tried to be creative and 4-+P+-+-+$
above all to put a fight, honouring the great
history of the FIDE World Championship, 3+P+-zPN+-#
dated back in 1886!
2PvL-sNLzPPzP"
1.1. Vladimir Kramnik played another one
positional masterpiece, where he squeezed 1+-tRQ+RmK-!
his opponent from a nothing-to-do position! xabcdefghy
Grischuk would have preferred a more
12.Nb1!
complicated position, suiting his style, but
A good manoeuvre, as in the game above.
Kramnik never gave hi any chance of such
The knight should have been relocated to a
short-of.
more central square, controlling b5- and d5-
□ Kramnik Vladimir (2800) squares as well.
■ Grischuk Alexander (2767) 12...Nbd7 13.Nc3 Rac8 14.Rc2!
A48 Berlin 2018 Again a typical manoeuvre for such pawn
1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 g6 3.b3 c5 4.dxc5 Qa5+ structures, relocating the heavy pieces.
5.Nbd2 Qxc5 6.Bb2 Bg7 7.e3 0-0 8.c4 (D) Kramnik is a great master in this kind of
XABCDEFGHY positions where mortals find it difficult to
plan.
8rsnl+-trk+( 14...Qb8 15.Qa1 a6 16.Rd2 Rfe8 17.Rfd1
Ba8 (D)
7zpp+pzppvlp'
XABCDEFGHY
6-+-+-snp+&
8lwqr+r+k+(
5+-wq-+-+-%
7+-+nzppvlp'
4-+P+-+-+$
6pzp-zp-snp+&
3+P+-zPN+-#
5+-+-+-+-%
2PvL-sN-zPPzP"
4-+P+-+-+$
1tR-+QmKL+R!
3+PsN-zPN+-#
xabcdefghy
8...b6
2PvL-tRLzPPzP"
Technically a novelty, although Black fi- 1wQ-+R+-mK-!
anchettoed his bishop as well in the game
8...d6 9.Be2 Nbd7 10.0-0 b6 11.Rc1 Bb7 xabcdefghy
12.Nb1!, in Grachev,B-Chatalbashev,B As- Well, White has got somewhat more space,
tana 2017. otherwise he couldn't claim anything else.
9.Be2 Bb7 10.0-0 Qc7 11.Rc1 d6 (D) Still it seemed that it was easier for White to

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 33

do something compared to Black... XABCDEFGHY
18.Ng5!
Planning to post a knight on d5 (Ng5-h3- 8lwq-+r+k+(
d5), as Black couldn't really afford to play
...e6, making his d-pawn a target.
7+-+-zppvlp'
18...Rc5 19.Nh3 b5 6p+-zp-+p+&
This was Black's only 'counterplay' and he
had to play it sooner or later. 5+-snNsn-tr-%
20.Nf4 4-+-tR-sN-+$
20.cxb5 axb5 21.b4 Rf5, was a bit compli-
cated and obviously not in Kramnik's play- 3+P+-zP-+-#
ing style! 2PvL-+LzPPzP"
20...bxc4 21.Bxc4 Rg5
21...Ne5! 22.Bf1 Bc6 23.Nfd5 Qb7, was 1wQ-+R+-mK-!
probably Black's best.
22.Ncd5! (D)
xabcdefghy
25.h4! Rf5 26.e4?!
XABCDEFGHY Even better was 26.g4 Rxf4 27.exf4 +/-. But
8lwq-+r+k+( Kramnik's classical style 'doesn't allow' him
to weaken the king...
7+-+nzppvlp' 26...Rxf4
6p+-zp-snp+& 26...Nxe4? 27.Rxe4 Bh6 28.Rb4 +-.
27.Nxf4 Nxe4 28.Nd5 Nc5
5+-+N+-tr-% Maybe Black had to try 28...f5, where he
4-+L+-sN-+$ could preserve some compensation.
29.Rb4 Qa7 30.Ne3 a5 31.Rb5 Ne6 (D)
3+P+-zP-+-# XABCDEFGHY
2PvL-tR-zPPzP" 8l+-+r+k+(
1wQ-+R+-mK-! 7wq-+-zppvlp'
xabcdefghy 6-+-zpn+p+&
Aron Nimzowitsch would be proud of the
over-protection of the d5-square - five white 5zpR+-sn-+-%
pieces on the control! 4-+-+-+-zP$
22...Ne5?
A bad move. 22...Nxd5 23.Bxd5 Bxb2 3+P+-sN-+-#
24.Qxb2 Nf6 25.Bxa8 Qxa8 26.h3, was pre- 2PvL-+LzPP+"
serving the balance.
23.Be2 Ne4 1wQ-+R+-mK-!
Black was in real trouble here - no move
was satisfactory. 23...Ned7 24.Nxf6+ Nxf6
xabcdefghy
25.Bxa6, was a good pawn-up for White. 32.Rxe5!
24.Rd4 Nc5?! (D) A nice way to transform the advantage from
And an exchange was lost. But how to win exchange-up to a much better endgame -
it? White had two ways to do the job and in quite typical for top-players but not for mor-
such practical cases it is never an easy deci- tals who hung-up to their material pluses...
sion! A lot is based n the personal style and 32...dxe5 33.Bxe5 Qc5 34.Bxg7 Nxg7
the ‘appetite’ to calculate a lot. Age also has 35.Qd4!?
a saying! By the way, the alternative was 35.Rc1! Qd6 36.Qc3 +/-, was rightly better
24...Nf6 25.e4 +/-. according to analysis engines, but still the

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 34

human way of Kramnik's was impressive - 44.Kg1!
he simply wanted to deprive his opponent of Accurate! 44.Kg3? Ra4 45.Bc4 Nf5+
any counter-chances! 46.Nxf5 Rxc4 47.Nxe7 Ra4 +=, would only
35...Qxd4 36.Rxd4 Bc6 (D) play in Black's hands.
XABCDEFGHY 44...Ra4 45.Bc4 Bc6
45...Ne6 46.Bb3 Rd4 47.a6 +-.
8-+-+r+k+( 46.Rc7! Be8 47.a6 Nh5 48.Nd5
And as the a6-pawn was too strong (Nb6
7+-+-zppsnp' and a7), Black resigned.
6-+l+-+p+& Clocks: W: 2:19:17 - B: 2:48:05
1-0
5zp-+-+-+-%
1.2. Karjakin didn’t show his best. He got
4-+-tR-+-zP$ nothing out of the opening and then failed to
3+P+-sN-+-# defend at various stages.
Mamedyarov made his mistakes as well
2P+-+LzPP+" but his position was far easier to play than
1+-+-+-mK-! his opponent.
□ Karjakin Sergey (2763)
xabcdefghy ■ Mamedyarov Shakhriyar (2809)
In this ending White's pieces were more C60 Berlin 2018
active and his structure/majority on the 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 g6 4.c3 a6 5.Bxc6
queenside strong. dxc6 6.d4 exd4 7.cxd4 Bg4 8.Qb3 Bxf3
37.Rd2 Rb8? 9.gxf3 Bg7 (D)
But that was a blunder. Black had to opt for
37...Ne6 38.Nc4 Ra8 39.Ne5 +=.
XABCDEFGHY
38.Rc2! Be8 39.Rc7 8r+-wqk+ntr(
Seven is heaven for the rook!
39...Kf8 40.Ra7 7+pzp-+pvlp'
Material was won and this time for the 6p+p+-+p+&
good!
40...a4 41.bxa4 Rb1+ 42.Kh2 Rb4 5+-+-+-+-%
Black had to try 42...Rb2 43.Bc4 Rxf2, al- 4-+-zPP+-+$
though White wins after 44.a5.
43.a5 Rxh4+ (D) 3+Q+-+P+-#
XABCDEFGHY 2PzP-+-zP-zP"
8-+-+lmk-+( 1tRNvL-mK-+R!
7tR-+-zppsnp' xabcdefghy
6-+-+-+p+& 10.Be3
A logical novelty. Previously 10.Nc3 Ne7
5zP-+-+-+-% 11.Ne2 0-0 12.h4 oo, has been played, as in
4-+-+-+-tr$ Tobler,P-Egner,M ICCF email 2016.
10...Ne7 11.Nc3 Bxd4! 12.Bxd4?!
3+-+-sN-+-# After the text White could claim nothing out
2P+-+LzPPmK" of the opening. A better try was 12.Rd1 c5
13.Qxb7 0-0 14.Ne2 Rb8 15.Qxa6 Rb6
1+-+-+-+-! 16.Qc4 Nc6 17.Nxd4 cxd4 18.Bxd4 Nxd4
19.Rxd4 Qf6 20.Qc3 c5 21.Rd1 Qxc3+
xabcdefghy 22.bxc3 Ra8, when the position would still
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 35
remain drawish, but White could 'press' with obviously is considered a better one than of
a pawn-up. one of White's doubled f-pawns.
12...Qxd4 13.Qxb7 0-0 14.Qxc7 (D) 18.Rad1 Rxa2 19.Rc1 Rc2 20.Rxc2 Qxc2
XABCDEFGHY 21.Ra1 Qc4 22.Qb7 Qb5 23.Qxa6 (D)

8r+-+-trk+( XABCDEFGHY
7+-wQ-snp+p' 8-+-+-trk+(
6p+p+-+p+& 7+-+-+p+p'
5+-+-+-+-% 6Q+p+-+p+&
4-+-wqP+-+$ 5+q+-+-+-%
3+-sN-+P+-# 4-+-+P+-+$
2PzP-+-zP-zP" 3+-+-+P+-#
1tR-+-mK-+R! 2-+-+-zPKzP"
xabcdefghy 1tR-+-+-+-!
14...Rab8 xabcdefghy
Also possible was 14...Nd5 15.Nxd5 23...Qg5+!
(15.exd5? Qd3! 16.Ne2 Rae8 17.0-0 Rxe2 That's a typical motif. If Black wanted to
-/+) 15...cxd5 16.Qc3 Qxc3+ 17.bxc3 dxe4 have some winning chances he had to pre-
18.fxe4 Rae8 19.f3 f5 =. serve the queens on board, with a double-
15.0-0 aim: to advance his c-pawn and create
Better than 15.Qxe7 Rxb2 16.0-0 (16.Nd1? threats against the white king. 23...Qxa6?!
Rc2 17.Rb1 Qd3 -+) 16...Qxc3 =+. 24.Rxa6 Rc8 25.f4, was a clear draw.
15...Rxb2 (D) 24.Kf1 Qf6 25.Kg2 Rb8 26.Ra5?!
XABCDEFGHY 26.Ra3 Qg5+ 27.Kh3, should have been a
better defence.
8-+-+-trk+( 26...Rb3! 27.Qc8+?!
Again White missed the point. He should
7+-wQ-snp+p' have opted for 27.Qe2 Kg7 28.Rc5 and try
6p+p+-+p+& to hold.
27...Kg7 28.Qg4 (D)
5+-+-+-+-% XABCDEFGHY
4-+-wqP+-+$ 8-+-+-+-+(
3+-sN-+P+-# 7+-+-+pmkp'
2Ptr-+-zP-zP" 6-+p+-wqp+&
1tR-+-+RmK-! 5tR-+-+-+-%
xabcdefghy 4-+-+P+Q+$
16.Qxe7?!
This exchange gave Black a free hand, as his 3+r+-+P+-#
e7-knight had really nowhere to go. Natural
was 16.Nd1 Rb5 17.Ne3 Qe5 18.Qxe5 Rxe5 2-+-+-zPKzP"
=. 1+-+-+-+-!
16...Qxc3 17.Kg2 Rc2
Black got a bit better position, as his c-pawn xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 36
28...Rb5! 37.Kg3 Qd5 38.f4 Kh7 39.Qb8 Qc4 40.f3!
In the queen ending White would be in real Qc3 41.Qf8 Qc4 42.Qb8 Kg7 43.Qb6 Qd5
trouble, as the black b-pawn would be rather (D)
strong. That's why White had to keep control XABCDEFGHY
on the b5-square.
29.Rxb5 8-+-+-+-+(
29.Ra6? Rg5 -+.
29...cxb5 30.Qd7 Qg5+ 31.Kf1 Qe5?!
7+-+-+pmk-'
Much better was 31...Qc5 32.Kg2 b4 -/+. 6-wQ-+-+pzp&
32.h4 b4 33.Qb7!
The queen was ideally placed behind the 5+-+qzP-+-%
passed pawn, attacking f7 as well. 4-+-+-zP-zP$
33...Qc3 34.e5!
The only way that White can survive is to 3+p+-+PmK-#
strip the enemy king, looking for perpetual 2-+-+-+-+"
check. For this he correctly advanced his
pawns. 1+-+-+-+-!
34...b3 35.Kg2
35.e6? was losing to 35...Qc4+ 36.Kg2
xabcdefghy
Qxe6. But now e6 it's a threat. 44.Qb8
35...Qc4 (D) Also good was 44.Qb4 Qd1 45.Qc3 Qc2
46.Qd4.
XABCDEFGHY 44...Qd1!? 45.Qb7 Qg1+ 46.Kh3 Qe3
8-+-+-+-+( 46...Qb1 47.Kg3 wasn't really much.
47.Kg2!
7+Q+-+pmkp' 47.Kg3?, would lose to 47...g5! 48.hxg5
6-+-+-+p+& hxg5 49.fxg5 Qxe5+ 50.f4 Qe3+ 51.Kg4
Qe2+ 52.Kg3 b2.
5+-+-zP-+-% 47...Qe2+ 48.Kg3 Qe1+ (D)
4-+q+-+-zP$ XABCDEFGHY
3+p+-+P+-# 8-+-+-+-+(
2-+-+-zPK+" 7+Q+-+pmk-'
1+-+-+-+-! 6-+-+-+pzp&
xabcdefghy 5+-+-zP-+-%
It is obvious that this was a very difficult 4-+-+-zP-zP$
ending to be handled by both players, but of
course being Black was quite preferable! 3+p+-+PmK-#
36.Qb6? 2-+-+-+-+"
36.Kg3 looked better. Here Black should try
to create a second passed pawn with 1+-+-wq-+-!
36...Kh6 37.Qe7 Qe6 38.Qf8+ Kh5 39.Qc5
g5 40.hxg5 Kxg5 41.f4+ Kg6, preserving
xabcdefghy
excellent winning chances. 49.Kg2?
36...h6? 49.Kh3!, was correct, when probably Black
Returning the favour. Black could have gone had nothing better that the 'best side of a
for 36...Qxh4 37.Qxb3 Qg5+ 38.Kf1 Qxe5 draw' after 49...Qe3 50.Kg2 Qxf4 51.e6 Qf6
and by advancing his king and his h-pawn 52.Qxb3 Qxe6. Well, I have seen many end-
he would have cashed the point. ings won by Black in similar structures...

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 37

49...Qe3! 54.f4! Qd5 55.Kg4 Qd3 56.f5, was holding.
And now White got into in zugzwang, as So, here we can observe in general the main
here was the same position as on the 47th defensive plan: staying with the king on the
move, but it was now his turn to move! And kingside and advancing the pawns, to strip
that's a great problem, as all his pieces were the black king, aiming for perpetual check!
ideally posted... 54...Qh2+! 55.Ke3 Qg1+?
50.Qb4 (D) 55...Qc2! 56.Qd4+ Kg8 57.Qd8+ (57.Qd3
Or 50.Kf1 Qxf4 51.Qxb3 Qxh4 52.Qe3 Qc5+ 58.Ke2 Qb6 -+) 57...Kh7 58.Qf6 Qg6
Qh3+ 53.Kf2 g5 -+. 59.Qf4 Qb6+ 60.Kd2 Kg7 61.Kc1 Qa6,
XABCDEFGHY Black would have included his king to attack
the enemy pawns, cashing the point in the
8-+-+-+-+( long run.
56.Kf4 Qc1+ 57.Kg4 Qe3 (D)
7+-+-+pmk-' 57...b2? 58.Qd4+ Kh7 59.Qd3+, was an
6-+-+-+pzp& immediate draw.
5+-+-zP-+-% XABCDEFGHY
4-wQ-+-zP-zP$ 8-+-+-+-+(
3+p+-wqP+-# 7+-+-+pmk-'
2-+-+-+K+" 6-+-+-+-+&
1+-+-+-+-! 5+-+-+-zP-%
xabcdefghy 4-wQ-+-+K+$
50...g5! 51.hxg5 hxg5 52.fxg5 Qe2+! 3+p+-wqP+-#
The winning idea. 52...Qxg5+? 53.Kf2, was
a draw. 2-+-+-+-+"
53.Kg3 (D) 1+-+-+-+-!
XABCDEFGHY xabcdefghy
8-+-+-+-+( 58.Kg3?
A lethal blunder! 58.f4!, was still holding:
7+-+-+pmk-' 58...Qg1+ 59.Kh4.
6-+-+-+-+& 58...Qxg5+ 59.Kf2 (D)
5+-+-zP-zP-% XABCDEFGHY
4-wQ-+-+-+$ 8-+-+-+-+(
3+p+-+PmK-# 7+-+-+pmk-'
2-+-+q+-+" 6-+-+-+-+&
1+-+-+-+-! 5+-+-+-wq-%
xabcdefghy 4-wQ-+-+-+$
53...Qxe5+? 3+p+-+P+-#
Greedy! Winning was 53...b2! 54.e6 Qe5+
55.Kg2 fxe6 -+. 2-+-+-mK-+"
54.Kf2? 1+-+-+-+-!
It is true that there were many mistakes in
this difficult ending for such a high level. xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 38
59...Qd5! XABCDEFGHY
Centralisation! Here Black's plan was clear:
moving the king to assist the b-pawn and try 8rsnl+kvl-tr(
to make a queen exchange possible.
60.Ke3 Kg6 61.Ke2 Kf6 62.Ke3 Ke6
7zp-zp-+pzpp'
63.Qb6+ Kd7 64.Qa7+ Kc6 65.Qa6+ Kc5 6-zp-+pwq-+&
66.Qa4 (D)
XABCDEFGHY 5+-+-+-+-%
8-+-+-+-+( 4-+PzP-+-+$
7+-+-+p+-' 3+-zP-+-+-#
6-+-+-+-+& 2P+-+-zPPzP"
5+-mkq+-+-% 1tR-vLQmKLsNR!
4Q+-+-+-+$ xabcdefghy
8.h4
3+p+-mKP+-# Ding had played this position beforehand:
8.Be2 Bb7 9.Bf3 Bxf3 10.Nxf3 Bd6
2-+-+-+-+" 11.Qa4+ c6 12.0-0 0-0 13.Rb1 Bc7 14.Re1
1+-+-+-+-! Rc8 15.Kh1 Qf5 16.Be3 h6 17.h3 a6 18.d5
exd5 19.Bxb6 Bxb6 20.Rxb6 Nd7 21.Rxc6
xabcdefghy Nc5 22.Rxc8+ Rxc8 23.Qa5 dxc4 24.Kg1
66...Qc4 67.Qa5+ Kc6 68.Qa1 Kb5 69.Qb2 Qf6 25.Nd4 Nd3 26.Qf5 Qxf5 ½-½ Svid-
Kb4 70.Kd2 Qf4+ 71.Ke1 Qh4+! ler,P-Ding,L Palma de Mallorca 2017.
And White resigned: 72.Kd1 Qh1+ 73.Kd2 8...Bb7 9.Bg5 Qf5 (D)
Qg2+ 74.Kc1 Qg1+ 75.Kd2 Qf2+ 76.Kc1 XABCDEFGHY
Qe1 #.
Clocks: W: 3:14:38 - B: 2:52:38 8rsn-+kvl-tr(
0-1
7zplzp-+pzpp'
6-zp-+p+-+&
5+-+-+qvL-%
4-+PzP-+-zP$
3+-zP-+-+-#
2P+-+-zPP+"
1.3. Aronian and Ding split the point in the 1tR-+QmKLsNR!
only draw of the round. Nevertheless it was xabcdefghy
a very fighting game with a number of mis-
takes. 10.Bd3
Aronian missed his chances in the end and A novelty. Known was 10.Rh3 h6 11.Bd3
he decided to go a repetition of moves… Qa5 12.Bd2 Nd7 13.Nf3 0-0-0 oo
Budczies,J-Vogt,L Bochum 1990.
□ Aronian Levon (2794) 10...Qa5 11.Kf1!
■ Ding Liren (2769) Good and strong! And also prepared I would
A18 Berlin 2018 say...
1.c4 Nf6 2.Nc3 e6 3.e4 d5 4.e5 d4 5.exf6 11...Nc6?!
dxc3 6.bxc3 Qxf6 7.d4 b6 (D) White would get good compensation after

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 39

11...Qxc3?! 12.Ne2 Qa5 13.c5! oo/=, so 15.c5?
rightly Black avoids it. But nevertheless, Losing the advantage, which it could be ob-
11...Nd7, looked like a better choice. tained by 15.Rh3! exd4 16.cxd4 Bb4 17.d5
12.Rb1 f6! Bxd2 18.Rb5 Qa6 19.dxc6 Bxc6 20.Qxd2
It wouldn't be wise not to be greedy with +/-.
12...Qxa2?, due to 13.Ra1 Qb2 14.Ra4! +/-. 15...Bxc5!
13.Bd2 (D) The only way to survive!
XABCDEFGHY 16.Rb5 Qa6 17.Rh3 (D)

8r+-+kvl-tr( XABCDEFGHY
7zplzp-+-zpp' 8-+ktr-+-tr(
6-zpn+pzp-+& 7zplzp-+-zpp'
5wq-+-+-+-% 6qzpn+-zp-+&
4-+PzP-+-zP$ 5+Rvl-zp-+-%
3+-zPL+-+-# 4P+-zP-+-zP$
2P+-vL-zPP+" 3+-zPL+-+R#
1+R+Q+KsNR! 2-+-vL-zPP+"
xabcdefghy 1+-+Q+KsN-!
13...0-0-0?! xabcdefghy
Black has gone into a troubled position, Everything was hanging here but it seemed
which become worst with the text. He like White would somehow prevail...
should have opted for 13...Qa3! 14.Qh5+ 17...Bxd4!
Kd7 15.Rh3 +=. An excellent and only resource!
14.a4! 18.Be2! (D)
Suddenly the black queen has been limited White played carefully. Wrong would be
of escaping squares. 18.cxd4? Rxd4 19.Ne2 Qxa4, where Black
14...e5 (D) would have got four pawns for the piece.
14...Ne5 15.Be2 Nd7 16.Rb5 Qa6 17.c5 XABCDEFGHY
bxc5 18.Rxc5 Qd6 19.Rb5, looked great for
White, although nothing was still clear-cut. 8-+ktr-+-tr(
XABCDEFGHY 7zplzp-+-zpp'
8-+ktr-vl-tr( 6qzpn+-zp-+&
7zplzp-+-zpp' 5+R+-zp-+-%
6-zpn+-zp-+& 4P+-vl-+-zP$
5wq-+-zp-+-% 3+-zP-+-+R#
4P+PzP-+-zP$ 2-+-vLLzPP+"
3+-zPL+-+-# 1+-+Q+KsN-!
2-+-vL-zPP+" xabcdefghy
1+R+Q+KsNR! 18...Rd6?
Black blundered at this point, after playing
xabcdefghy the only moves to stay alive. He should have

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 40

opted for 18...Ba8! 19.Nf3 Qb7 20.cxd4 23.Rxd1 Bb4 -/+ ; 21.Rxc3? Qxc3 22.Bxc3
Nxd4 21.Rb2 Nxe2 22.Qxe2 Qe4, with Rxd1+ 23.Bxd1 Ba6 -/+) 21...Rxd3 22.Bxd3
equal chances to prevail or lose - or even Bxd2 23.Rxa5 Bxa5 24.Qg4+ Kb8 25.Qxg7
split the point! Rd8 26.Qxh7, White would stand better. But
19.Rb1? maybe Black should have gone for it...
Aronian missed the strong 19.Rb2! (D) 21.Rb1?
XABCDEFGHY White had already decided to take a draw,
missing his chances...
8-+k+-+-tr( 21...Qa5 22.Rb5
After 22...Qa6, we would have three times
7zplzp-+-zpp' the same position, so Black could claim the
6qzpntr-zp-+& draw anyway.
Clocks: W: 1:40:26 - B: 1:34:06
5+-+-zp-+-% ½-½
4P+-vl-+-zP$ 1.4. The battle of the Americans ended in a
3+-zP-+-+R# triumph for Caruana. In general the later was
much helped by his opponent, who failed to
2-tR-vLLzPP+" defend properly and made it look easy…
1+-+Q+KsN-! □ Caruana Fabiano (2784)
■ So Wesley (2799)
xabcdefghy E07 Berlin 2018
Protecting the d2-bishop: 19...Qa5 20.cxd4 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 Bb4+ 4.Bd2 Be7
Qd5 21.dxe5 Nxe5 22.Nf3 +/-. Note that not 5.Bg2 d5 6.Nf3 0-0 7.0-0 c6 8.Qb3 Nbd7
good was 19.cxd4? Nxd4 20.Rb2 Nxe2 9.Bf4 a5 (D)
21.Nxe2 Rhd8, where Black would have
three pawns and an active position for the
XABCDEFGHY
sacrificed piece. 8r+lwq-trk+(
19...Qa5 20.Rb5
20.cxd4 Qd5 21.Rb5 Qa2 22.Rc3 exd4 7+p+nvlpzpp'
23.Rd3 was rather unclear - a matter of 6-+p+psn-+&
taste!
20...Qa6 (D) 5zp-+p+-+-%
XABCDEFGHY 4-+PzP-vL-+$
8-+k+-+-tr( 3+Q+-+NzP-#
7zplzp-+-zpp' 2PzP-+PzPLzP"
6qzpntr-zp-+& 1tRN+-+RmK-!
5+R+-zp-+-% xabcdefghy
4P+-vl-+-zP$ 10.Rd1
The other main option here was 10.Rc1 Ne4
3+-zP-+-+R# 11.Nc3 g5 12.Be3 Nd6 13.c5 Nc4 14.Na4
2-+-vLLzPP+" Nxe3 15.Qxe3 g4 16.Nd2 Bg5 17.Qc3 e5
18.dxe5 Qe7 19.Rd1 Qxe5 = Matsenko,S-
1+-+Q+KsN-! Swiercz,D Columbus 2017.
10...Nh5
xabcdefghy A good novelty to 10...b5 11.c5 Ba6 12.Qc2
20...Bxc3, looked interesting, but after b4 13.Bf1 Ne4 14.Nbd2 f5 15.Ne5 Nxe5
21.Rd3! (21.Rxa5? Rxd2 22.Rd5 Rxd1+ 16.Bxe5 Nxd2 17.Qxd2 Bg5 18.f4 Bf6
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 41
19.Bxf6 gxf6 20.a3 +=, Mamedyarov,S- 15...e5!?
Kovalenko,I Riga 2013. Trying to get active, as passivity will not
11.Bc1 Nhf6 help Black when White will play e4.
Black wasn't minded for a draw, but obvi- 16.Nxe5 Nxe5 17.dxe5 Nd7
ously White was not! Black regained his pawn.
12.Nbd2 b5! (D) 18.Nf3 Bxc5 (D)
XABCDEFGHY XABCDEFGHY
8r+lwq-trk+( 8r+lwq-trk+(
7+-+nvlpzpp' 7+-+n+pzpp'
6-+p+psn-+& 6-+p+-+-+&
5zpp+p+-+-% 5+-vlpzP-+-%
4-+PzP-+-+$ 4pzp-+-+-+$
3+Q+-+NzP-# 3+-+-+NzP-#
2PzP-sNPzPLzP" 2PzPQ+PzPLzP"
1tR-vLR+-mK-! 1tR-vL-tR-mK-!
xabcdefghy xabcdefghy
13.c5! 19.Ng5! g6 20.Bf4 Qb6 21.e4
13.cxb5?! cxb5 14.Qxb5? Ba6 15.Qb3 Bxe2, White had gathered many pieces on the
could only be good for Black. kingside and an attack could be on the cards.
13...b4 So, the e4-thrust was a first step to it.
More flexible was 13...Qc7!, where Black 21...b3!
would have minimal opening problems. Active and the only way to counter-play.
14.Qc2 22.axb3 axb3 23.Qe2 (D)
White could think of 14.e4 Nxe4 15.Nxe4 XABCDEFGHY
dxe4 16.Ne5 Nxe5 17.dxe5 Qc7 18.Bxe4
Qxe5 19.Bxc6 Ra6 20.Bf4 Qxc5 21.Rac1 8r+l+-trk+(
Qh5 22.Qc4 oo/=, but it would be a really
difficult choice without home preparation.
7+-+n+p+p'
14...a4 15.Re1 (D) 6-wqp+-+p+&
XABCDEFGHY 5+-vlpzP-sN-%
8r+lwq-trk+( 4-+-+PvL-+$
7+-+nvlpzpp' 3+p+-+-zP-#
6-+p+psn-+& 2-zP-+QzPLzP"
5+-zPp+-+-% 1tR-+-tR-mK-!
4pzp-zP-+-+$ xabcdefghy
3+-+-+NzP-# 23...Ba6?
A bad idea. Black had to opt for 23...Rxa1
2PzPQsNPzPLzP" 24.Rxa1 Nxe5 25.Bxe5 f6 26.exd5 fxe5
1tR-vL-tR-mK-! 27.Qxe5 Bxf2+ 28.Kh1 += or 23...Ra2!?,
which was another interesting alternative:
xabcdefghy 24.Rab1 h6 25.Nxf7! Rxf7 26.exd5 Nf8

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 42

27.e6 +=. 28...Bd4?
24.Qf3! Another bad move in a short period, which
Now White's domination on the kingside sealed Black's fate. The only way to con-
would tell. tinue the fight was with 28...Re8 29.h4
24...Bc4 25.Rxa8 Rxa8 (D) (29.Rd1 Bd5 30.Qg4 Be6 31.Qe2 Bd5
XABCDEFGHY 32.Qd3 +/-) 29...Bd5 30.Qd1 Bd4 31.Re2
+/-.
8r+-+-+k+( 29.Nd6! Bd5?!
29...Nf6, was more stubborn, but still a lost
7+-+n+p+p' case: 30.Nxf7 Kxf7 31.Bf1! Ra4 32.h3
6-wqp+-+p+& (32.Be3 Rb4 33.Bh3 +-) 32...Bxb2 33.Bd6
+-.
5+-vlpzP-sN-% 30.Qe2! Nf8 31.Bxd5+! cxd5 (D)
4-+l+PvL-+$ XABCDEFGHY
3+p+-+QzP-# 8r+-+-snk+(
2-zP-+-zPLzP" 7+-+-+-+p'
1+-+-tR-mK-! 6-wq-sN-+p+&
xabcdefghy 5+-+p+-+-%
26.e6! dxe4 4-+-vl-vL-+$
26...fxe6? 27.Bb8!, would win on the spot!
27.exf7+ Bxf7 28.Nxe4 (D) 3+p+-+-zP-#
XABCDEFGHY 2-zP-+QzP-zP"
8r+-+-+k+( 1+-+-tR-mK-!
7+-+n+l+p' xabcdefghy
6-wqp+-+p+& 32.Qf3! Qa5
Or 32...Qc6 33.Rc1 Bc5 34.Rxc5! Qxc5
5+-vl-+-+-% 35.Be5 and Black would be helpless to the
4-+-+NvL-+$ threat 36.Qf6.
33.Re7
3+p+-+QzP-# Black resigned, as he couldn't annihilate
2-zP-+-zPLzP" White's threats on his king: 33...Ne6 34.Be3
(34.Rxe6 +-) 34...Rf8 35.Re8.
1+-+-tR-mK-! Clocks: W: 1:50:54 - B: 1:46:22
1-0
xabcdefghy

Levon Aronian vs Ding Liren Overview of the Playing Hall

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 43
Round 2 (11.03.2018)
Round 2 An aggressive but dangerous novelty.
11.03.2018 - 15:00 Known was 12...h6 13.Ngf3 Re8 14.Nf1 Bf8
1 Grischuk - So 1:0 15.Ng3 g6, with the usual opening tiny ad-
2 Ding - Caruana ½:½ vantage, as in Vu,P-Nguyen,V Hue 2012.
3 Mamedyarov - Aronian ½:½ 13.exd5 Nxd5 14.Ndf3!
4 Kramnik - Karjakin ½:½ The white pieces looked more active, while
the e5-pawn is not safe as well.
The second round produced one win and 14...Qd7 (D)
three draws, so we have come to a ‘normal’
outlook for such strong events! Wesley So
XABCDEFGHY
has started with 0)2, playing rather badly by 8r+-+-trk+(
now…
So far we had only one main ‘scandal’; the 7+lzpqvlpzpp'
toilet scandal as players keep on complain- 6p+n+-+-+&
ing about toilet conditions in the venue.
There were no water on the first day and 5+p+nzp-sN-%
there is only one toilet for 8 players. Aronian 4-+-+-+-+$
said in today’s Press-Conference that ‘I still
hope we will have such a luxury as second 3+LzPP+N+P#
toilet in the playing hall’!
2PzP-+-zPP+"
2.1. Grischuk scored the only decisive
result of the day. It must be admitted that for 1tR-vLQtR-mK-!
the second game in a row So played rather xabcdefghy
badly and gave another one easy point away.
15.d4!?
□ Grischuk Alexander (2767) An interesting way. 15.Ne4 Rfe8 16.a4 +=,
■ So Wesley (2799) was also nice for White.
C84 Berlin 2018 15...exd4 16.cxd4 h6 17.Ne4
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 White has been left with an isolated pawn,
5.0-0 Be7 6.d3 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 0-0 9.h3 but Black was facing problems in the centre
Bb7 10.Nbd2 Re8 11.Ng5 Rf8 12.Re1 (D) and on the semi-open c-file.
XABCDEFGHY 17...Rfe8 18.Bd2 (D)

8r+-wq-trk+( XABCDEFGHY
7+lzp-vlpzpp' 8r+-+r+k+(
6p+nzp-sn-+& 7+lzpqvlpzp-'
5+p+-zp-sN-% 6p+n+-+-zp&
4-+-+P+-+$ 5+p+n+-+-%
3+LzPP+-+P# 4-+-zPN+-+$
2PzP-sN-zPP+" 3+L+-+N+P#
1tR-vLQtR-mK-! 2PzP-vL-zPP+"
xabcdefghy 1tR-+QtR-mK-!
12...d5 xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 44
18...Nf6?! 22.Rc5!
Black didn't like his position after 18...Rad8 And the second white rook joined the attack!
19.Rc1 Bf8 20.Nc5 Bxc5 21.Rxc5 +=, but Grischuk said that he played 22.Rc5 without
he had to opt for it. calculation and thinking: ‘if there is no mate
19.Rc1 Nxe4 20.Rxe4 (D) here, I will quit chess’.
XABCDEFGHY 22...Rad8?! (D)
Black had to try 22...Ne7, although after
8r+-+r+k+( 23.Rh5 Ng8 24.Qc1 g6 25.Ne5 Bxe5
26.Rxe5, he wouldn't survive anyway.
7+lzpqvlpzp-'
6p+n+-+-zp& XABCDEFGHY
5+p+-+-+-% 8-+-trr+-mk(
4-+-zPR+-+$ 7+lzpq+pzp-'
3+L+-+N+P# 6p+n+-vl-zp&
2PzP-vL-zPP+" 5+ptR-+-+-%
1+-tRQ+-mK-! 4-+-zP-+R+$
xabcdefghy 3+L+-+N+P#
The e4-rook joined the attack, while the b3- 2PzP-vL-zPP+"
bishop got more 'power' - Black has got into 1+-+Q+-mK-!
troubles...
20...Bf6 21.Rg4 xabcdefghy
21.Rf4!, was even stronger: 21...Rad8 23.Qc1!
22.Rc5! Qe7 23.Rcf5 +/-. A unique place- White's attack had no 'opponent' - Black was
ment of rooks in the attack! helpless...
21...Kh8?! (D) 23...Nxd4 24.Nxd4 Re4
Not easy to be accepted, but Black had to go Desperation! 24...Bxd4 25.Bxh6 Qxg4
for an ending a pawn down with 21...Nxd4 26.hxg4 Bxc5 27.Qxc5 gxh6 28.Bxf7 +-.
22.Nxd4 Bxd4 23.Be3 c5 (23...Rxe3 25.Rxc7 Qxd4 26.Be3
24.Rxd4 Re1+ 25.Qxe1 Qxd4 26.Rxc7 +/-) Or 26.Bc3 Rxg4 27.hxg4 +-.
24.Bxd4 cxd4 25.Rxd4 Re1+ 26.Qxe1 Qxd4 26...Rxg4 27.hxg4 Qe4 28.f3 Qb4 29.Rxb7
27.Rc7 +/- and pray. (D)
XABCDEFGHY XABCDEFGHY
8r+-+r+-mk( 8-+-tr-+-mk(
7+lzpq+pzp-' 7+R+-+pzp-'
6p+n+-vl-zp& 6p+-+-vl-zp&
5+p+-+-+-% 5+p+-+-+-%
4-+-zP-+R+$ 4-wq-+-+P+$
3+L+-+N+P# 3+L+-vLP+-#
2PzP-vL-zPP+" 2PzP-+-+P+"
1+-tRQ+-mK-! 1+-wQ-+-mK-!
xabcdefghy xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 45
White won a piece and the rest was just a for both sides and after some mutual miss-
formality. Of course So could have resigned slips, the draw was the natural outcome!
at this point...
□ Ding Liren (2769)
29...Bxb2 30.Qf1
■ Caruana Fabiano (2784)
30.Qxb2? Qe1+ 31.Kh2 Qh4+ =.
E05 Berlin 2018
30...f6 31.Qf2 Be5 32.f4 Bd6 33.g5! Qe4
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.g3 Be7 5.Bg2
34.Qf3
0-0 6.0-0 dxc4 7.Qc2 (D)
Played safe! 34.gxf6 g6 (34...Qxb7 35.fxg7+
Qxg7 36.Bd4 +-) 35.Ra7 +-. XABCDEFGHY
34...Qb1+ 35.Qf1 Qe4 36.Qf3 Qb1+ 8rsnlwq-trk+(
37.Kf2 Bb4 38.Qe2 Qe4 39.Qf3 Qb1 (D)
XABCDEFGHY 7zppzp-vlpzpp'
8-+-tr-+-mk( 6-+-+psn-+&
7+R+-+-zp-' 5+-+-+-+-%
6p+-+-zp-zp& 4-+pzP-+-+$
5+p+-+-zP-% 3+-+-+NzP-#
4-vl-+-zP-+$ 2PzPQ+PzPLzP"
3+L+-vLQ+-# 1tRNvL-+RmK-!
2P+-+-mKP+" xabcdefghy
7...b6!?
1+q+-+-+-! A not so often played move, at least com-
xabcdefghy pared to the 'usual' 7...a6.
8.Ne5! Qxd4
40.Kg3! fxg5 41.Kh2
An interesting idea which contains the sac of
41.fxg5 Bd6+ 42.Kg4 Rf8 43.Rf7 +-.
the exchange, obviously prepared before-
41...Qf5 42.Rf7 Qg6 43.fxg5 Bd6+ 44.Kh3
hand by Caruana.
Clocks: W: 2:39:02 - B: 2:25:41
9.Bxa8 Qxe5 10.Bf3 Nd5 11.Qxc4 Ba6 (D)
1-0
XABCDEFGHY
8-sn-+-trk+(
7zp-zp-vlpzpp'
6lzp-+p+-+&
5+-+nwq-+-%
4-+Q+-+-+$
3+-+-+LzP-#
2PzP-+PzP-zP"
1tRNvL-+RmK-!
FIDE Deputy President xabcdefghy
Georgios Makropoulos
12.Qb3
2.2. Caruana followed a new and interest- A novelty to 12.Qa4 c5 13.Re1 b5 14.Qe4
ing sacrifice of the exchange and got enough Nc6 15.Nc3 Rd8 16.Rd1 Qxe4 17.Bxe4 Nd4
compensation. But things were far from easy 18.Rxd4! (18.Bxd5?! = Aronian,L-Hou,Y
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 46
Tbilisi 2017) 18...cxd4 19.Nxd5 exd5 +=] 21.Rxd4 Qxd4 22.Qd7 Kf8 23.Rd1 +=)
20.Bd3 +=. 19.Kf1 Bxc3 20.bxc3 Ne6 21.Bxc7 +=. But
12...Nc6 13.Qa4 Bb7 14.Nc3 Nd4 (D) of course all the above were complicated
XABCDEFGHY and on the boundaries of an 'easy mistake'
by either side.
8-+-+-trk+( 17...c5 18.Be3 (D)
7zplzp-vlpzpp' XABCDEFGHY
6-zp-+p+-+& 8-+-+-trk+(
5+-+nwq-+-% 7zpl+-vlpzpp'
4Q+-sn-+-+$ 6-zp-+-wq-+&
3+-sN-+LzP-# 5+-zpp+-+-%
2PzP-+PzP-zP" 4Q+-sn-+-+$
1tR-vL-+RmK-! 3+-sN-vL-zP-#
xabcdefghy 2PzP-+PzP-zP"
Black's compensation for the exchange sac 1+-+R+RmK-!
was based on a pawn and central
pieces/activity. xabcdefghy
15.Bxd5! exd5 16.Bf4 Qf6 (D) 18...Nf3+!
XABCDEFGHY A small combination, which kept Black into
the game. Anything else would be pleasant
8-+-+-trk+( for White.
19.exf3 d4 20.f4
7zplzp-vlpzpp' The only way to avoid get mated by a black
6-zp-+-wq-+& queen landing on f3!
20...dxc3 21.bxc3 (D)
5+-+p+-+-% XABCDEFGHY
4Q+-sn-vL-+$ 8-+-+-trk+(
3+-sN-+-zP-# 7zpl+-vlpzpp'
2PzP-+PzP-zP" 6-zp-+-wq-+&
1tR-+-+RmK-! 5+-zp-+-+-%
xabcdefghy 4Q+-+-zP-+$
17.Rad1
White had an alternative interesting line at 3+-zP-vL-zP-#
his disposal: 17.Qd7 Ba8 18.Rfd1!
(18.Qxc7? Ne6 19.Qe5 Qg6 -/+ ; 18.Bxc7? 2P+-+-zP-zP"
Bc6 19.Qg4 Ne6 20.Bf4 d4 -/+) 18...Bb4 1+-+R+RmK-!
(18...c5 19.Qxa7 [19.Rxd4 cxd4 20.Nxd5
Bxd5 21.Qxd5 Rd8 22.Qe4 =] 19...b5 20.a3 xabcdefghy
[20.Rxd4 cxd4 21.Nxb5 d3 22.Nd4 dxe2 Finally the smoke had cleared-up. Obviously
23.Re1 Bd8! 24.Qa4 Bb6 25.Be3 Bxd4 Black had compensation for the exchange,
26.Bxd4 Qf3 27.Qb3 Qxb3 28.axb3 Re8 =] mainly based on the bishop pair power and
20...Re8 [20...Nb3 21.Rxd5 Nxa1 22.Bg5 of course his better pawn structure.
Qxg5 23.Rxg5 Bxg5 24.Qxc5 Bf6 25.Qxb5 21...Bf3

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 47

21...Qe6!? was interesting, when White 25.Rc3! Qh5 26.Bc1 looked like a better
should be careful: 22.f5! Qxf5 23.f3 Bxf3 continuation.
24.Qxa7 Bf6. Here both sides should be OK 25...Qh5
and a sample draw line could go as 25.Qxb6 25...Qg4 26.Bd4! cxd4 27.f3 Bxf3 28.Qxf3
Qe4 26.Bxc5 Qe2 27.Rxf3 Qxf3 28.Rf1 +=.
Qxc3 29.Rxf6 gxf6 30.Bxf8 Qa1+ 31.Kg2 26.f3 Bxf3 (D)
Qxa2+ 32.Kh3 Kxf8 33.Qxf6 =. XABCDEFGHY
22.Rd3 Bc6 23.Qb3 (D)
XABCDEFGHY 8-+-+-trk+(
8-+-+-trk+( 7zp-+-vlpzpp'
7zp-+-vlpzpp' 6-zp-+-+-+&
6-zpl+-wq-+& 5+-zp-+-+q%
5+-zp-+-+-% 4-+P+-zP-+$
4-+-+-zP-+$ 3+Q+-vLlzP-#
3+QzPRvL-zP-# 2P+-tR-+-zP"
2P+-+-zP-zP" 1+-+-+RmK-!
1+-+-+RmK-! xabcdefghy
27.f5?!
xabcdefghy White failed to observe the idea of 27.Bd4!:
23...Qf5?! 27...Bc6 28.Re1 Re8 29.Bb2 +=.
23...Be4! 24.Rd2 Qc6 should be Black's 27...Bc6 28.Qd1 Qh3 29.Rff2 h6 30.Qf1
choice. Qg4!
24.c4! Exchanging queens would have only helped
Now White seemed to be on the right track. White, as then there would be no threats
If he could consolidate and exchange 1-2 towards the white king.
pieces, he could win without much trouble. 31.Rf4 Qg5 32.Rd3 Qf6 33.Bd2 (D)
Good for Black was the fact that there were XABCDEFGHY
no weaknesses at his camp.
24...Be4 (D) 8-+-+-trk+(
XABCDEFGHY 7zp-+-vlpzp-'
8-+-+-trk+( 6-zpl+-wq-zp&
7zp-+-vlpzpp' 5+-zp-+P+-%
6-zp-+-+-+& 4-+P+-tR-+$
5+-zp-+q+-% 3+-+R+-zP-#
4-+P+lzP-+$ 2P+-vL-+-zP"
3+Q+RvL-zP-# 1+-+-+QmK-!
2P+-+-zP-zP" xabcdefghy
1+-+-+RmK-! 33...Ba8! 34.h4
This is a typical motif in such positions to
xabcdefghy avoid get mated. The white king would be
25.Rd2 placed to h2, when the critical mating

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 48

squares (h1 and g2) would be fully pro- 40...Re4!
tected. Black was back in the right track!
34...Qc6 35.Kh2 Bd6 41.Rfe2 Qe6? (D)
35...Rd8 36.Rxd8+ Bxd8 37.Rf2 Bf6 =. But here he failed again to find 41...Qd6!
36.Rf2 Be5 37.Bc3 42.Rxe4 Bxe4 43.Re2 Bc6 =.
White couldn't afford to see a black bishop XABCDEFGHY
landing on d4, so this was a more or less
forced exchange. 8l+-+-+k+(
37...Bxc3 38.Rxc3 Re8 39.f6! (D)
7zp-+-+p+-'
XABCDEFGHY 6-zp-+qzPpzp&
8l+-+r+k+( 5+-zp-+-+-%
7zp-+-+pzp-' 4-+P+r+-zP$
6-zpq+-zP-zp& 3+-+-+-zP-#
5+-zp-+-+-% 2P+R+R+-mK"
4-+P+-+-zP$ 1+-+-+Q+-!
3+-tR-+-zP-# xabcdefghy
2P+-+-tR-mK" 42.Rxe4?
1+-+-+Q+-! After the text there was no hope left for any
advantage. White should have opted for
xabcdefghy 42.Qe1! Qg4 43.Rcd2 Kh7 44.a3 +/-.
39...g6? 42...Bxe4 43.Rf2 Bf5 44.Qc1 Kh7 45.Qc3
A bad move in time trouble, compared to h5 46.a3
39...Re4! 40.fxg7 Qd6 41.Kg1 Qe7 42.Rd3! No side could make any progress, so the
Bc6 (42...Re1? 43.Rd8+ Qxd8 [43...Kxg7? opponents agreed to a draw.
44.Rxf7+ Qxf7 45.Qxe1 +-] 44.Qxe1 +/-) Clocks: W: 2:40:02 - B: 2:26:49
43.Kh2 Rxc4 oo/=. ½-½
40.Rcc2? (D)
40.Rd3!, would be critical: 40...Qe6
41.Rdd2, when White could question by far
Black's 39th move.
XABCDEFGHY
8l+-+r+k+(
7zp-+-+p+-'
6-zpq+-zPpzp&
5+-zp-+-+-% 2.3. Mamedyarov played without inspira-
tion and got nothing out of the opening. He
4-+P+-+-zP$ decided not to take any risks and quickly
3+-+-+-zP-# drove the game into the safety of the draw.
Aronian had nothing to object for…
2P+R+-tR-mK" □ Mamedyarov Shakhriyar (2809)
1+-+-+Q+-! ■ Aronian Levon (2794)
E36 Berlin 2018
xabcdefghy 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.Qc2 0-0 5.a3
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 49
Bxc3+ 6.Qxc3 d5 7.Bg5 h6 8.Bxf6 Qxf6 XABCDEFGHY
9.Nf3 c6 (D)
XABCDEFGHY 8-trl+-trk+(
8rsnl+-trk+( 7zp-+n+pzp-'
7zpp+-+pzp-' 6-zpQ+pwq-zp&
6-+p+pwq-zp& 5+-+p+-+-%
5+-+p+-+-% 4-+-zP-+-+$
4-+PzP-+-+$ 3zP-+-+NzPL#
3zP-wQ-+N+-# 2-zP-+PzP-zP"
2-zP-+PzPPzP" 1tR-+-mK-+R!
1tR-+-mKL+R! xabcdefghy
14.0-0
xabcdefghy White could try 14.Qc7 a5 15.0-0 Qe7
10.g3 16.Ne5 Rb7 17.Nc6 Qg5 18.Qf4 Qxf4
An interesting novelty to 10.e3 Nd7 11.Be2 19.gxf4 Nf6 = or 14.Qd6 Qd8! 15.Ne5 Nxe5
dxc4 12.Qxc4 e5 13.0-0 exd4 14.Qxd4 Qxd4 16.Qxb8 Nc6 17.Qf4 e5 18.Qc1 Nxd4
15.Nxd4 Nf6 16.Rfd1 Rd8 17.Rac1 += 19.Bxc8 Qxc8 20.Qxc8 Rxc8 oo/=. In both
Yu,Y-Ding,L Riadh 2017. cases Black would have enough resources to
10...Nd7 11.Bh3 preserve the balance.
11.Bg2 was possible, but White wanted to 14...Rd8! 15.Rfc1 Ba6 16.Bf1 (D)
stop a future ...e5: 11...dxc4 12.Qxc4 e5 XABCDEFGHY
13.0-0.
11...b6! (D) 8-tr-tr-+k+(
A good alternative way to develop. If ...e5
wasn't possible, then ...b6 and ...Bb7/a6
7zp-+n+pzp-'
would be OK! 6lzpQ+pwq-zp&
XABCDEFGHY 5+-+p+-+-%
8r+l+-trk+( 4-+-zP-+-+$
7zp-+n+pzp-' 3zP-+-+NzP-#
6-zpp+pwq-zp& 2-zP-+PzP-zP"
5+-+p+-+-% 1tR-tR-+LmK-!
4-+PzP-+-+$ xabcdefghy
3zP-wQ-+NzPL# 16...Bc4!
Black equalised with the text and avoided
2-zP-+PzP-zP" something like 16...Rbc8 17.Qa4 Nb8 18.b4
1tR-+-mK-+R! +=.
17.Qa4 a5 18.b3 b5! 19.Qxa5 Bxb3 20.Rc7
xabcdefghy Rook should be well placed on the 7th in
12.cxd5 general, but here there were no targets.
12.0-0 Ba6 13.cxd5 cxd5, shouldn't be a 20...Bc4 21.Qa7
problem for Black. White understood that he had no option for
12...cxd5 13.Qc6 Rb8 (D) an advantage, so he went for a draw with

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 50

move repetition. Black had nothing better Be7 12.Rad1 Be6 13.Ng5 Rh6 14.Rfe1 Bb4
than to accept his opponent's intentions... 15.a3 Bxc3 16.bxc3 Ne7 17.Nf3 Rh8 (D)
21...Ra8 22.Qb7 Rab8 23.Qa7 Ra8 24.Qb7 XABCDEFGHY
Rab8
A short game, without a real fight. 8r+-+k+-tr(
Clocks: W: 0:45:00 - B: 0:40:00
½-½
7zppzp-snpzp-'
2.4. It turned out that Kramnik has re-
6-+p+l+-+&
peated his ‘Berlin Defence’ notes just one 5+-+-zP-+p%
hour before the game, so he was kind of
expecting it from Karjakin. 4-+-+-vL-+$
He said that normally he plays it with 3zP-zP-+N+P#
black pieces, so today he was looking at the
position from the other side and thought how 2-+P+-zPP+"
good it looks from the white side. 1+-+RtR-mK-!
He was looking for the right moment to
play e6 and probably the moment he chose xabcdefghy
to play it was not the best - according to 18.Bg5
him. The Press-Conference actually was full A novelty to 18.Nd4 a6 19.Bg5 c5 20.Nxe6
of nice lines from Kramnik. fxe6 21.c4 Rd8 22.Rxd8+ Kxd8 23.a4 b6
Kramnik also said that he deserves to be 24.f4 Ke8 =, as in Yu,Y-Malakhov,V China
playing in Berlin because he was the one 2015. Black seemed to have a better pawn
who popularised the ‘Berlin Defence’ in the structure but White's pieces were active and
chess world the most! Black had some problems to connect his
□ Kramnik Vladimir (2800) rooks as well. All in all it looked like a bal-
■ Karjakin Sergey (2763) anced position, as most of the 'Berlin De-
C67 Berlin 2018 fence' games today!
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6 4.0-0 (D) 18...c5 19.Nd2 Kf8 20.Nf1 Nf5 21.g3
The white knight relocated in a better way,
XABCDEFGHY while the idea of advancing the kingside
8r+lwqkvl-tr( majority would bring White success if full-
field.
7zppzpp+pzpp' 21...Ne7 22.Kg2 Nd5 (D)
6-+n+-sn-+& XABCDEFGHY
5+L+-zp-+-% 8r+-+-mk-tr(
4-+-+P+-+$ 7zppzp-+pzp-'
3+-+-+N+-# 6-+-+l+-+&
2PzPPzP-zPPzP" 5+-zpnzP-vLp%
1tRNvLQmK-+R! 4-+-+-+-+$
xabcdefghy 3zP-zP-+-zPP#
FIDE has just announced than no one is al- 2-+P+-zPK+"
lowed to play the Anti-Berlin System in the
Candidates 2018, so not to offend the locals! 1+-+RtRN+-!
That's why Kramnik rightly avoided 4.d3!
4...Nxe4 5.d4 Nd6 6.Bxc6 dxc6 7.dxe5 Nf5
xabcdefghy
8.Qxd8+ Kxd8 9.h3 Ke8 10.Nc3 h5 11.Bf4 23.c4!

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 51

An interesting way to keep the initiative. site-coloured bishops White would have
23...Nb6 24.Ne3 Nxc4 25.Nxc4 nearly zero chances to lose, even if some-
Although White retained good compensation thing would have gone a bit wrong. The
and activity after the text sacrifice (piece pawn deficit here was playing no significant
activity and active pawn kingside majority), role, at least not yet.
he should seriously consider 25.Nd5!? Nb2 30.f5
26.Nxc7 Nxd1 (26...Rc8? 27.Nxe6+ fxe6 Maybe a bit too early! Good was 30.Bd8
28.Rb1 +-) 27.Nxa8 Nc3 28.Nc7 Bd7 29.f3 Ba4 31.Bxc7 Rc8 32.Bd6+ Kg8 33.Rd2 +=.
Bc6 30.g4 +=. 30...Ba4 (D)
25...Bxc4 26.g4 XABCDEFGHY
26.Rd7 Rc8 27.Red1 Kg8 28.g4 oo/=, was
another possibility. 8-+-+rmk-tr(
26...hxg4 27.hxg4 Bb5 28.Kg3 (D)
7zp-zp-+pzp-'
XABCDEFGHY 6-zp-+-+-+&
8r+-+-mk-tr( 5+-zp-zPPvL-%
7zppzp-+pzp-' 4l+-+-+P+$
6-+-+-+-+& 3zP-+-+-mK-#
5+lzp-zP-vL-% 2-+P+-+-+"
4-+-+-+P+$ 1+-+RtR-+-!
3zP-+-+-mK-# xabcdefghy
2-+P+-zP-+" 31.Rc1
1+-+RtR-+-! 31.f6!?, would be quite dangerous:
31...Bxc2 (31...g6? 32.Rh1 Kg8 33.Rxh8+
xabcdefghy Kxh8 34.Rh1+ Kg8 35.Bh6! +- ; 31...gxf6?
28...Re8?! 32.Bxf6 Rh7 33.Re2 Bb5 34.Rf2 Bc6
28...Ba4 29.Re2 Kg8, was probably more 35.Rdd2! +/-) 32.fxg7+ Kxg7 33.Bf6+ Kg6
accurate, but White still would have excel- 34.Bxh8 Bxd1 35.Bf6 Bb3 (D)
lent compensation after 30.Bd8 Rc8 31.f4. XABCDEFGHY
29.f4 b6 (D)
XABCDEFGHY 8-+-+r+-+(
8-+-+rmk-tr( 7zp-zp-+p+-'
7zp-zp-+pzp-' 6-zp-+-vLk+&
6-zp-+-+-+& 5+-zp-zP-+-%
5+lzp-zP-vL-% 4-+-+-+P+$
4-+-+-zPP+$ 3zPl+-+-mK-#
3zP-+-+-mK-# 2-+-+-+-+"
2-+P+-+-+" 1+-+-tR-+-!
1+-+RtR-+-! xabcdefghy
36.Kf4! (a mating net to come with Rh1 and
xabcdefghy g5) 36...Bd5 37.Re2 Rg8! 38.Rh2 Rg7
Active pieces and by the presence of oppo- 39.Rh8 c4 40.Rd8 c6 41.Bxg7 Kxg7 42.Ra8

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 52

a5 43.Ra6 b5 44.Rxa5. White would have 43.Bg5 Rh7 44.Rxe6 Rxe6 45.Rxe6 Rh1 =.
won the exchange but I presume that Black 43...Rh8 44.Rxe6 Rf8! 45.R6e5
should hold, although not without difficulty. Black should also hold after 45.Re7 Rxf5
31...Kg8 32.c4 Bc6 33.Rcd1 Ba4 34.Rc1 46.Rxc7 Rf7.
Bc6 35.Bh4 Ba4 36.Rc3 Bc6 45...Bc2! 46.f6
36...f6! 37.Rce3 (37.e6? Rd8 -/+) 37...fxe5 46.g6 Rh5! 47.Be7 Rfxf5 48.R5e2 Rh6
38.Rxe5 Rxe5 39.Rxe5 Rh6 and Black 49.Rxc2 Rxg6+ 50.Kh4 Rf4+ =.
should hold. 46...gxf6 47.gxf6 (D)
37.Rce3 Rh6 38.Bg5 Rh7 39.R3e2 (D) XABCDEFGHY
XABCDEFGHY 8-+-+-trktr(
8-+-+r+k+( 7zp-zp-+-+-'
7zp-zp-+pzpr' 6-zp-+-zP-+&
6-zpl+-+-+& 5+-zp-tR-+-%
5+-zp-zPPvL-% 4-+P+-+-vL$
4-+P+-+P+$ 3zP-+-+-mK-#
3zP-+-+-mK-# 2-+l+-+-+"
2-+-+R+-+" 1+-+-tR-+-!
1+-+-tR-+-! xabcdefghy
xabcdefghy 47...Rh7!
39...Ba4 Finally the black rooks got 'active' and Black
Natural was 39...Rh1 40.Rxh1 Bxh1 41.f6 should have faced no problems.
Rd8 42.e6 gxf6 43.e7 Rd3+! (43...Re8? 48.Rg5+ Kh8 49.Re7 Rg8!
44.Bxf6 +-) 44.Kf2 Bc6 45.e8Q+ Bxe8 All rooks would be exchanged now, so the
46.Rxe8+ Kg7 47.Bf4 Rxa3 =. draw would be near, despite the pawn deficit
40.Re3 Rh8 41.Bh4 Rh6 (D) for White - the magic of the opposite-
XABCDEFGHY coloured bishops!
50.Rxh7+ Kxh7 51.Rxg8 Kxg8 52.Kf2 Bb3
8-+-+r+k+( 53.Bg3 Bxc4 54.Bxc7 Bd5 55.Bb8
Draw agreed: 55...a6 56.Ba7 b5 57.Bxc5 a5
7zp-zp-+pzp-' 58.Bb6 b4 59.axb4 axb4 60.Bd4.
6-zp-+-+-tr& Clocks: W: 2:55:17 - B: 2:22:24
½-½
5+-zp-zPP+-%
4l+P+-+PvL$
3zP-+-tR-mK-#
2-+-+-+-+"
1+-+-tR-+-!
xabcdefghy
Both opponents repeated moves and got
more time on the clock, but the position still
remained in the barriers of the draw.
42.e6 fxe6 43.g5

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 53

Round 3 (12.03.2018)
Round 3 White's only chance for an advantage.
12.03.2018 - 15:00 11...c6! 12.Nxb6 axb6 13.Bb3 Re8
1 Karjakin - Grischuk ½:½ A fine alternative was 13...d5 14.Re1 Re8 =.
2 Aronian - Kramnik 0:1 14.Re1 Be6 15.Bc2 (D)
3 Caruana - Mamedyarov ½:½ A logical retreat. When having the bishop
4 So - Ding ½:½ pair you shouldn't exchange any bishop
without a strong reason! But here 15.Bxe6
The third round was more or less like the Rxe6 16.c4 =, was more logical.
previous one, with one decisive game and
three draws. The highlight of the round was
XABCDEFGHY
the massacre of Aronian by Kramnik. 8r+-wqr+k+(
It was an impressive game, reminding the
lethal attacks of the previous centuries! And 7+p+-+pzp-'
maybe the most important might be the fact 6-zppzplsnnzp&
that this win gave Kramnik an early clear
lead. 5+-+-zp-+-%
3.1. Karjakin and Grischuk played a cor- 4-zP-+P+-+$
rect but rather dull game, without anything
particular to wake-up!
3zP-zPP+N+P#
□ Karjakin Sergey (2763)
2-+L+-zPP+"
■ Grischuk Alexander (2767) 1tR-vLQtR-mK-!
C50 Berlin 2018
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.d3 Nf6 xabcdefghy
5.Nc3 h6 6.h3 d6 7.Na4 Bb6 8.a3 Ne7 (D) 15...d5! 16.exd5
XABCDEFGHY White got nothing out of the opening but it
was also important to preserve the balance.
8r+lwqk+-tr( For this, he could opt for 16.d4! Nxe4
17.Nxe5 Bf5 (17...Nxe5 18.dxe5 Bf5 =)
7zppzp-snpzp-' 18.Nxg6 Bxg6 19.Bxe4 Rxe4 20.Rxe4 Bxe4
6-vl-zp-sn-zp& =.
16...Nxd5 17.Bd2 Bf5! (D)
5+-+-zp-+-% XABCDEFGHY
4N+L+P+-+$ 8r+-wqr+k+(
3zP-+P+N+P# 7+p+-+pzp-'
2-zPP+-zPP+" 6-zpp+-+nzp&
1tR-vLQmK-+R! 5+-+nzpl+-%
xabcdefghy 4-zP-+-+-+$
9.b4
White didn't achieve much after 9.Nxb6 3zP-zPP+N+P#
axb6 10.0-0 0-0 =, in the game Neiksans,A-
Ivanchuk,V Warsaw 2010, so he tried the
2-+LvL-zPP+"
text novelty. 1tR-+QtR-mK-!
9...Ng6 10.0-0 0-0 11.c3
11.Nxb6 axb6 12.Re1 Bd7 13.d4, might was xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 54
18.d4! good option in Carlsen,M-Karjakin,S Riadh
Best. White was in need to exchange some 2017.
pieces and breath, before it was too late. 6...Qe7 (D)
18...Bxc2 19.Qxc2 exd4 20.Rxe8+ Qxe8 XABCDEFGHY
21.Nxd4 b5! 22.a4!
Forced, before Black could play ...Nb6, with 8r+l+k+-tr(
control over important queenside squares (c4
and a4).
7zppzp-wqpzpp'
22...bxa4 23.Rxa4 Rxa4 24.Qxa4 Ngf4 6-+p+-sn-+&
25.Qd1 Qe4 26.Qf1 (D)
XABCDEFGHY 5+-vl-zp-+-%
8-+-+-+k+( 4-+-+P+-+$
7+p+-+pzp-' 3+-+P+N+-#
6-+p+-+-zp& 2PzPP+-zPPzP"
5+-+n+-+-% 1tRNvLQ+RmK-!
4-zP-sNqsn-+$ xabcdefghy
7.h3?!
3+-zP-+-+P# In my opinion preferable was 7.Nbd2 Bg4
8.Nc4 Nd7 9.a3 a5 10.Be3 f6 11.Bxc5 Nxc5
2-+-vL-zPP+" = Anand,V-Carlsen,M Leuven 2017.
1+-+-+QmK-! 7...Rg8!
Not the most common move for 'regular
xabcdefghy players', nevertheless it was an interesting
26...Ne6 27.f3 Qg6 28.Nxe6 Qxe6 29.Qd3 and 'aggressive' one! Black simply planned
b5 30.c4 bxc4 to push his kingside pawns, looking for an
After 31.Qxc4, there would be nothing to assault on the white king...
play for both sides. 8.Kh1 (D)
Clocks: W: 1:28:21 - B: 1:39:06 XABCDEFGHY
½-½
3.2. Kramnik played the game of the round
8r+l+k+r+(
and maybe the game of the tournament, kill- 7zppzp-wqpzpp'
ing Aronian with the black pieces. Well,
Aronian played poorly, reminding m his
6-+p+-sn-+&
game against Anand in Wijk aan Zee 2013. 5+-vl-zp-+-%
And I do not think that it was wise for
Aronian to play the ‘Anti-Berlin System’ in 4-+-+P+-+$
Berlin… 3+-+P+N+P#
□ Aronian Levon (2794) 2PzPP+-zPP+"
■ Kramnik Vladimir (2800)
C65 Berlin 2018 1tRNvLQ+R+K!
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6 4.d3
Aronian wasn't in the mood for a 'Berlin
xabcdefghy
Defence'... I am 'convinced' that chess is a fair game.
4...Bc5 5.Bxc6 dxc6 6.0-0 So, what exactly White was expecting by
Delaying castle with 6.Nc3 0-0 7.Be3 Bd6 giving-up the bishop pair and weaken his
8.Bg5 Re8 9.h3 c5 10.Nd5 Be7 11.Nxe7+ king in the first 10 moves?
Qxe7 12.0-0 h6 13.Be3 Nd7 14.Nd2, was a 8...Nh5

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 55

A novelty to 8...h6! 9.Nbd2 g5 =+, as in 14...Qe7
Kazoks,A-Calio,M ICCF email 2015. 14...Qxd4 15.cxd4 gxh3 16.Kh2 Be6 17.Nc3
9.c3?! 0-0-0 18.Rd1 f5, would be also good for
Too slow... Black would stand fine after Black, but Kramnik preferred to preserve the
9.Nc3 g5 10.Nxe5 g4 11.d4 Bd6 12.g3 Bxe5 queens on board, looking for blood!
13.dxe5 Qxe5 14.h4 Bd7, but this looked 15.h4 c5 (D)
like White's best option. XABCDEFGHY
9...g5! 10.Nxe5 (D)
Choices were limited: 10.d4 exd4 11.cxd4 8r+l+k+r+(
Bb6 12.Nh2 Nf6 13.e5 Nd5 14.Nc3 Be6 -/+.
7zppzp-wqp+p'
XABCDEFGHY 6-+-+-+-+&
8r+l+k+r+( 5+-zp-+-+n%
7zppzp-wqp+p' 4-+-wQP+pzP$
6-+p+-+-+& 3+-zP-+-zP-#
5+-vl-sN-zpn% 2PzP-+-zP-+"
4-+-+P+-+$ 1tRNvL-+R+K!
3+-zPP+-+P# xabcdefghy
2PzP-+-zPP+" 16.Qc4?!
1tRNvLQ+R+K! 16.Qd3 Bd7 17.c4 0-0-0 18.Nc3, was a good
way to fight on. Black would stand better
xabcdefghy but nothing would be clear-cut, at least yet!
10...g4! 11.d4 16...Be6 17.Qb5+ c6 18.Qa4? (D)
11.hxg4? Qh4+ 12.Kg1 Ng3! and 11.Nxg4? But that was a blunder. White had to opt for
Bxg4 12.hxg4 Qh4+ 13.Kg1 Ng3!, with 18.Qd3 Rd8 19.Qe3 Bc4 20.Rg1 Rg6 -/+.
mate on h1 next! XABCDEFGHY
11...Bd6 12.g3!
White turned on the defensive mode to avoid 8r+-+k+r+(
further immediate troubles. 12.Nd3?, would
lose to 12...gxh3 13.Qxh5 hxg2+.
7zpp+-wqp+p'
12...Bxe5 13.dxe5 Qxe5 14.Qd4 (D) 6-+p+l+-+&
XABCDEFGHY 5+-zp-+-+n%
8r+l+k+r+( 4Q+-+P+pzP$
7zppzp-+p+p' 3+-zP-+-zP-#
6-+p+-+-+& 2PzP-+-zP-+"
5+-+-wq-+n% 1tRNvL-+R+K!
4-+-wQP+p+$ xabcdefghy
3+-zP-+-zPP# 18...f5!
Getting control of the light squares soon!
2PzP-+-zP-+" 19.Bg5
1tRNvL-+R+K! Although the text was a lost case, there was-
n't much that White could do. 19.exf5? was
xabcdefghy losing to 19...Nxg3+! 20.fxg3 Bd5+ 21.Kg1

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 56

Qe2, with mate to follow! And 19.Nd2 f4! Strategical domination contains seeds of
-+, wasn't fun either! tactical shots...
19...Rxg5! 24...Bd5!
An expected sacrifice - the important is to A small combination that crowned Black's
strip the white king! attack.
20.hxg5 (D) 25.f3
XABCDEFGHY Not much to be done: 25.exd5 Qe4+ 26.Kg1
gxf2+ 27.Kxf2 Rh3 -+ ; 25.Rxd3 Qxe4+
8r+-+k+-+( 26.f3 gxf3 -+ ; 25.Kg1 gxf2+ 26.Kxf2 Rf3+
27.Kg1 Rg3+ 28.Kf1 Qf7+ -+.
7zpp+-wq-+p' 25...gxf3! 26.exd5 Qe2 27.Re1 (D)
6-+p+l+-+& XABCDEFGHY
5+-zp-+pzPn% 8-+-+k+-+(
4Q+-+P+p+$ 7zpp+-+-+p'
3+-zP-+-zP-# 6-+p+-+-+&
2PzP-+-zP-+" 5+-zpP+-zPn%
1tRN+-+R+K! 4-+-+-+-+$
xabcdefghy 3sN-zPr+pzp-#
20...f4! 21.Qd1
Trying to control square f4, but White's po- 2PzP-+q+-+"
sition is already miserable, as after the main 1tR-wQ-tR-+K!
alternative 21.gxf4, follows 21...Nxf4
22.Na3 Qxg5 23.Qc2 0-0-0 24.Rad1 Rxd1 xabcdefghy
25.Rxd1 Qh4+ 26.Kg1 Qh3, with mate soon. White won material and now he even 'won'
21...Rd8 22.Qc1 fxg3 23.Na3 the queen. Well, not entirely, as it was
23.fxg3 Nxg3+ 24.Kg2 Nxf1 25.Qxf1 Qxg5, Black's turn to move!
was two good pawns-up and a lethal attack 27...g2+
for Black. White resigned: 28.Kg1 f2+ 29.Kh2 g1Q+
23...Rd3! 30.Rxg1 f1Q+ 31.Kh1 Ng3 # or 28.Kh2
Another black piece joined the attack! g1Q+ 29.Kxg1 f2+ 30.Kh1 Rh3+ 31.Kg2
24.Rd1 (D) f1Q #.
XABCDEFGHY Clocks: W: 1:19:40 - B: 1:35:27
0-1
8-+-+k+-+( 3.3. A rather difficult game was played
7zpp+-wq-+p' between Caruana and Mamedyarov. It
seemed that the first player missed some
6-+p+l+-+& good chances to cash the point, although the
5+-zp-+-zPn% position always contained ‘poison’.
4-+-+P+p+$ □ Caruana Fabiano (2784)
■ Mamedyarov Shakhriyar (2809)
3sN-zPr+-zp-# B90 Berlin 2018
2PzP-+-zP-+" 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6
5.Nc3 a6 6.f3 e5 7.Nb3 Be6 8.Be3 Be7
1tR-wQR+-+K! 9.Qd2 Nbd7 10.g4 0-0 11.g5 Nh5 12.0-0-0
b5 13.Nd5 Bxd5 14.exd5 f6 15.gxf6 Bxf6
xabcdefghy (D)
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 57
 XABCDEFGHY XABCDEFGHY
8r+-wq-trk+( 8r+-+-+-mk(
7+-+n+-zpp' 7+-+n+-zpp'
6p+-zp-vl-+& 6p+Nzp-tr-+&
5+p+Pzp-+n% 5+p+Pzp-+-%
4-+-+-+-+$ 4PwQ-+Lvl-+$
3+N+-vLP+-# 3+-+-+P+-#
2PzPPwQ-+-zP" 2-zPP+q+-+"
1+-mKR+L+R! 1+K+R+-tR-!
xabcdefghy xabcdefghy
16.Kb1 25.Qa5!
White has also chosen 16.Na5 Qc7 17.Nc6 Revealing Black's problems - mainly the 7th
Nf4 18.c4 bxc4 19.Bxc4 a5 20.a3 Nb6 rank; the white queen will enter, and create
21.Bb3 Nc8 22.Kb1 a4 23.Ba2 Ne7 24.Rc1 multiple threats.
Qd7 25.Rc2 Neg6 26.Bc4 Qh3 27.Rf1 Kh8 25...Nc5?!
28.Ka2 Bg5 29.Bb5 Nh4 30.Qf2 h6 31.Nb4 Black seemed not to understand the needs of
Rf6 ½-½ Hracek,Z-Dziuba,M Czech Repub- his position. 25...Be3 26.Rge1 Qf2 +=,
lic 2017. would be a better defence.
16...Nf4 17.Rg1 Kh8 18.Bd3 Bg5 19.Na5 26.Qc7! Bh6 (D)
Bh6 (D) XABCDEFGHY
XABCDEFGHY 8r+-+-+-mk(
8r+-wq-tr-mk( 7+-wQ-+-zpp'
7+-+n+-zpp' 6p+Nzp-tr-vl&
6p+-zp-+-vl& 5+psnPzp-+-%
5sNp+Pzp-+-% 4P+-+L+-+$
4-+-+-sn-+$ 3+-+-+P+-#
3+-+LvLP+-# 2-zPP+q+-+"
2PzPPwQ-+-zP" 1+K+R+-tR-!
1+K+R+-tR-! xabcdefghy
xabcdefghy 27.Nd8!
20.Nc6 And White will win material, as the threats
Caruana played a novelty, avoiding the Qe7 and Nf7+ are difficult to meet.
known 20.Be4 Qh4 21.Nb7 Qe7 oo Karg,H- 27...Nxe4 28.fxe4 Rf8
Kuosa,N ICCF Email 2009. 28...Kg8?!, was even worse: 29.Qe7 Rf2
20...Qh4 21.Qb4 Rf6 22.a4 Qxh2? (29...Rf8 30.Rde1 Qc4 31.b3 Qc5 32.Ne6
A bit greedy! Black should stand fine after +-) 30.Qe6+ Kf8 31.Qxd6+ Kg8 32.Qc7! +/-.
22...Qh5!. The black queen should stay in 29.Nf7+?!
touch with its 2nd rank. Automatic! White had to insert 29.Rde1!
23.Be4! Qe2 24.Bxf4 Bxf4 (D) and only after 29...Qc4 (29...Qh5?! 30.Ne6

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 58

+-) to win the exchange: 30.Nf7+ Rxf7 Black couldn't afford to lose his d6-pawn, as
31.Qxf7 +/-. then White would emerge with an unstoppa-
29...Rxf7 30.Qxf7 Rc8 31.Rc1 Qxe4 (D) ble d-pawn.
XABCDEFGHY 37.Rf8 Bg5! 38.Rxg8+ Kxg8 39.Qd7 h5!
(D)
8-+r+-+-mk( XABCDEFGHY
7+-+-+Qzpp' 8-+-+-+k+(
6p+-zp-+-vl& 7+-+Q+-zp-'
5+p+Pzp-+-% 6p+-zp-+q+&
4P+-+q+-+$ 5+-+Pzp-vlp%
3+-+-+-+-# 4p+-+-+-+$
2-zPP+-+-+" 3+-+-+-+-#
1+KtR-+-tR-! 2-zPP+-+-+"
xabcdefghy 1+K+R+-+-!
The difference was obvious - the white e4-
pawn was lost. xabcdefghy
32.Rgf1?! Passed pawns should be pushed. Black's
The text looked dangerous, as mating threats compensation for the exchange looked good
came into, but 32.Rg3!, was better, preserv- (two passed pawns), although still the posi-
ing White's advantage. tion remained dangerous.
32...Bf4 33.Rg1 Bh6 34.Rgf1 (D) 40.Rg1 e4! 41.Qxa4 e3 42.Qxa6 Qf5
XABCDEFGHY 43.Qa8+!
The greedy 43.Qxd6?, would cause prob-
8-+r+-+-mk( lems after the simple 43...e2 -/+.
43...Kh7 44.Qe8 Bf4 45.Qe6! (D)
7+-+-+Qzpp'
6p+-zp-+-vl& XABCDEFGHY
5+p+Pzp-+-% 8-+-+-+-+(
4P+-+q+-+$ 7+-+-+-zpk'
3+-+-+-+-# 6-+-zpQ+-+&
2-zPP+-+-+" 5+-+P+q+p%
1+KtR-+R+-! 4-+-+-vl-+$
xabcdefghy 3+-+-zp-+-#
34...Rg8!? 2-zPP+-+-+"
It seemed that Black tried to avoid the draw! 1+K+-+-tR-!
Not sure if after 34...Bf4 35.Rg1 Bh6 =
would follow with a three-fold repetition or xabcdefghy
White would have tried for something more 45...g6
with 35.Qe6 +=. Note now that the c1-rook Good enough, but also OK was 45...Qxe6
was under attack, as the bishop would be 46.dxe6 Kg8 47.c4 Kf8 48.b4 Ke7 49.b5
free to move away from g7. Kxe6 50.b6 d5 51.cxd5+ Kxd5 52.Kc2 g5
35.Rcd1 bxa4! 36.Qe7 Qg6 53.b7 =.

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 59

46.Rf1 Kg7! XABCDEFGHY
Great tactical skills for Black in the last two
moves! 8r+lwq-trk+(
47.Qxf5 gxf5 48.c4!
Of course not 48.Rxf4? e2 -+.
7+-zp-vlpzpp'
48...Bg3 49.Rg1 h4 (D) 6p+n+-sn-+&
XABCDEFGHY 5+p+pzp-+-%
8-+-+-+-+( 4-+-+P+-+$
7+-+-+-mk-' 3+LzP-+N+-#
6-+-zp-+-+& 2PzP-zP-zPPzP"
5+-+P+p+-% 1tRNvLQtR-mK-!
4-+P+-+-zp$ xabcdefghy
3+-+-zp-vl-# The 'Marshall Gambit' in the 'Ruy Lopez'.
9.exd5 Nxd5 10.Nxe5 Nxe5 11.Rxe5 c6
2-zP-+-+-+" 12.Re1 Bd6 13.d3 Bf5 14.Qf3 Qh4 15.g3
1+K+-+-tR-! Qh3 16.Be3 Bxd3 17.Nd2 Qf5 18.Bd4
Rfd8
xabcdefghy Another way was 18...Rfe8 19.a4 h6
Draw agreed, as after 50.Kc2 e2 51.Kd2 20.Qxf5 Bxf5 21.Nf3 Be6 22.Be5 Bc5
e1Q+ 52.Rxe1 Bxe1+ 53.Kxe1 h3 54.Kf2 f4 23.Nd4 Bxd4 24.Bxd4 Nf4 25.Bxe6 Nxe6
55.b4 Kf6 56.c5 dxc5 57.bxc5 Ke7, no side 26.Be3 Nc7 27.Kg2 Nd5 28.Kf3 Nxe3
could improve. 29.Rxe3 Kf8 30.h4 ½-½ Caruana,F-
Clocks: W: 2:50:20 - B: 1:42:32 Svidler,P Wijk aan Zee 2018.
½-½ 19.a4 h6 (D)
XABCDEFGHY
8r+-tr-+k+(
7+-+-+pzp-'
6p+pvl-+-zp&
5+p+n+q+-%
4P+-vL-+-+$
3+LzPl+QzP-#
2-zP-sN-zP-zP"
3.4. So wasn’t feeling in the mood to take
risks after his bad start, so he played not too
1tR-+-tR-mK-!
ambitious variation facing the ‘Marshall xabcdefghy
Gambit. Ding had little to take care of and 20.h4
he gained a fairy easy draw. A novelty. Black was fine after 20.Kg2 Bf8
□ So Wesley (2799) 21.Re5 Qxf3+ 22.Kxf3 b4 23.Rd1 bxc3
■ Ding Liren (2769) 24.bxc3 Rab8, in Alekseenko,K-
C89 Berlin 2018 Matlakov,M Moscow 2018.
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0- 20...Rac8?!
0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 0-0 8.c3 d5 (D) Not the most accurate. After the simple

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 60

20...Bf8 21.axb5 axb5 22.Rxa8 Rxa8, Black 34...Bb3! 35.Ne3 Bxe3 36.fxe3 Kf8 37.Kf2
should feel fine - White will have to opt for The opposite-coloured bishops nullified
other continuations in the 'Marshall Gambit', White's extra pawn, so a draw was agreed at
as this variation is near to nothing... this point.
21.axb5 axb5 22.Bxd5 cxd5 23.Qxf5 Bxf5 Clocks: W: 1:16:12 - B: 1:21:17
24.Ra5 (D) ½-½
XABCDEFGHY Recipes from Round 3:
8-+rtr-+k+( 1. A special guest Francesco Tristano, a
7+-+-+pzp-' piano player and composer from Luxem-
bourg, made the symbolic first move for
6-+-vl-+-zp& Aronian and pushed the king's pawn two
5tRp+p+l+-% squares. They didn’t discuss the first move
with Aronian, so Kramnik thought Aronian
4-+-vL-+-zP$ will take the move back and play something
3+-zP-+-zP-# else. Kramnik said at the press conference:
‘I was expecting the pawn to go back to e2
2-zP-sN-zP-+" and then something normal to come’.
1+-+-tR-mK-! 2. Vladimir Kramnik: ‘I always considered
7.h3 as a very serious move and I actually
xabcdefghy spent a lot of time analysing it, and it was
24...b4! not so easy. But then, a couple of years ago,
Sacrificing a pawn for coordination and ac- I found this very strong resource 7...Rg8. I
tive play. After the passive 24...Rb8 25.b4, think it's just a killer. Black is just better
White could built-up some pressure, espe- now. I was waiting for the moment to use it
cially on the queenside. and of course it came at the most unexpected
25.Rxd5 Be6 26.Ra5 bxc3 27.Bxc3 Rb8 moment, in the Candidates', against Levon,
The black bishop pair and the black active who doesn't play 1.e4. I think I was lucky’.
pieces should be enough compensation for
the pawn. 3. Wesley So: ‘After my first two losses
28.Nf1 Bb4! 29.Raa1 it's quite difficult to have the mindset for an
29.Bxb4 Rxb4 30.Re2 Rdb8 =. all-out game. I have to take what I can. I am
29...Bc5 30.Ne3 Rd3 31.Red1 Rbd8 prepared to be more ambitious, but as is
32.Rxd3 Rxd3 33.Rd1 Rxd1+ 34.Nxd1 (D) clear from my first two games, having great
ambitions can also backfire’.
XABCDEFGHY
8-+-+-+k+(
7+-+-+pzp-'
6-+-+l+-zp&
5+-vl-+-+-%
4-+-+-+-zP$
3+-vL-+-zP-#
2-zP-+-zP-+"
1+-+N+-mK-!
xabcdefghy Official Commentator GM-FST Judit Polgar
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 61
Round 4 (14.03.2018)
Round 4 17.Ne4 Nxe4 18.Bc7+ Kg8 19.Bxd8 Rxf1+
14.03.2018 - 15:00 20.Bxf1 Rxd8 21.Qg4 c5 22.Re1 Rxd4
1 Grischuk - Ding ½:½ 23.Qxe6+ 1-0 Grischuk,A-Korobov,A Doha
2 Mamedyarov - So ½:½ 2016.
3 Kramnik - Caruana 0:1 12.Nxf7 (D)
4 Karjakin - Aronian 0:1 XABCDEFGHY
A round where Blacks could score quite 8r+-wqk+-tr(
heavily! Caruana and Aronian won with the
black pieces and Ding was near too! 7zpl+n+Nvl-'
4.1. Grischuk and Ding played a messy, 6-+p+psn-zp&
sharp variation, where White sacrifices a 5+p+-+-zp-%
piece for activity and attack. It was far from
a perfect game, with inaccurate moves and 4-+pzPP+-+$
blunders around, but there is nothing else to
expect without the help of an engine! Finally
3+-sN-+-vL-#
the outcome was a draw, when there was 2PzP-+LzPPzP"
nothing left to play.
1tR-+Q+RmK-!
□ Grischuk Alexander (2767)
■ Ding Liren (2769) xabcdefghy
D43 Berlin 2018 A sacrifice firstly introduced in the game
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.Nc3 c6 5.Bg5 Topalov,V-Kramnik,V Wijk aan Zee 2008. I
h6 6.Bh4 dxc4 7.e4 g5 8.Bg3 b5 9.Be2 Bb7 remember that I was having breakfast with
10.0-0 Nbd7 11.Ne5 (D) Topalov at the day of this game and he
XABCDEFGHY 'warned' me: 'Look what will happen in the
afternoon - I will blow him off!'. Topalov
8r+-wqkvl-tr( won a nice game by the way, but of course
later on, many things were revealed for both
7zpl+n+p+-' sides.
6-+p+psn-zp& 12...Kxf7 13.e5 Nd5 14.Ne4 Qb6 15.Nd6+
Ke7 (D)
5+p+-sN-zp-% XABCDEFGHY
4-+pzPP+-+$ 8r+-+-+-tr(
3+-sN-+-vL-# 7zpl+nmk-vl-'
2PzP-+LzPPzP" 6-wqpsNp+-zp&
1tR-+Q+RmK-! 5+p+nzP-zp-%
xabcdefghy 4-+pzP-+-+$
A quite sharp variation (QGD - Botvinnik
Variation), which always demands good 3+-+-+-vL-#
home preparation.
11...Bg7
2PzP-+LzPPzP"
One of the main alternatives, 11...a6?!, suf- 1tR-+Q+RmK-!
fered a heavy blow: 12.f4 gxf4 13.Bxf4 Bg7
14.Nxf7 Kxf7 15.e5 Rf8 16.exf6 Nxf6 xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 62
So, White sacrificed a piece to keep the fail to 20...gxf4 21.Bh4+ Bf6 22.Bxf6+
black king in the centre and under some Nxf6 23.Nxb7 Nd7 24.Nc5 Nxc5 25.dxc5
dangerous attack. A double-edged position, Qxc5+ 26.Kh1 f3! 27.Rxf3 Ra8! -/+.
which you can play only after hours of en- 20...Bc6 21.f4 (D)
gine analysis and might not be good enough XABCDEFGHY
still...
16.a4!? 8-+-+-tr-tr(
A novelty. Grischuk wanted to avoid the
known 16.Bg4 h5 (16...Raf8 17.Qc2 Qxd4
7+-+nmk-vl-'
18.Qg6 Qxg4 19.Qxg7+ Kd8 20.Nxb7+ Kc8 6-wqlsNp+-zp&
21.a4 b4 22.Rac1 c3 23.bxc3 b3 24.c4 Rfg8
25.Nd6+ Kc7 26.Qf7 Rf8 27.cxd5 Rxf7 5+p+pzP-zp-%
28.Rxc6+ Kb8 29.Nxf7 Re8 30.Nd6 Rh8 4-+pzP-zP-+$
31.Rc4 Qe2 32.dxe6 Nb6 33.Rb4 Ka8 34.e7
Nd5 35.Rxb3 Nxe7 36.Rfb1 Nd5 37.h3 h5 3+-+-+-vL-#
38.Nf7 Rc8 39.e6 a6 40.Nxg5 h4 41.Bd6 2-zP-+-+PzP"
Rg8 42.R3b2 Qd3 43.e7 Nf6 44.Be5 Nd7
45.Ne6 1-0 Topalov,V-Kramnik,V Wijk aan 1tR-+Q+R+K!
Zee 2008) 17.Bxh5 Raf8 18.Qg4 Bh6 19.h4
Rhg8 20.hxg5 Bxg5 21.Ne4 Ne3 22.Qxg5+
xabcdefghy
Rxg5 23.Bh4 Kd8 24.fxe3 Rh8 25.Bxg5+ 21...gxf4?
Kc7 26.Bg4 c5 27.dxc5 Nxc5 28.Rf7+ Kb8 Black's blundered! He had to opt for
29.Nd6 Rg8 30.Raf1 Rxg5 31.Rf8+ Kc7 21...h5!, with an unclear, messy position. A
32.R1f7+ Nd7 33.Rxd7+ Kxd7 34.Rf7+ Kd8 possible line could be 22.Be1 b4 23.Qc2
35.Rf8+ Kd7 36.Rf7+ ½-½ Shirov,A- Rh6 24.Qd2 Rhh8 25.Qc2, with a draw!
Karjakin,S Foros 2008. 22.Rxf4?
16...Raf8! 17.Bf3! Returning the favour! Winning on the spot
A new idea, which could give new paths to a was 22.Bh4+ Bf6 23.Qg4 +-.
very deeply analysed sacrifice. 22...Rxf4 23.Bxf4 (D)
17...a6 18.Bxd5 cxd5 XABCDEFGHY
18...exd5? 19.Re1 Bc8 20.Qh5 +-, would be
curtains. 8-+-+-+-tr(
19.axb5 axb5 (D) 7+-+nmk-vl-'
XABCDEFGHY 6-wqlsNp+-zp&
8-+-+-tr-tr( 5+p+pzP-+-%
7+l+nmk-vl-' 4-+pzP-vL-+$
6-wq-sNp+-zp& 3+-+-+-+-#
5+p+pzP-zp-% 2-zP-+-+PzP"
4-+pzP-+-+$ 1tR-+Q+-+K!
3+-+-+-vL-# xabcdefghy
2-zP-+-zPPzP" 23...Kd8?
1tR-+Q+RmK-! Mistakes were flying around, proving how
difficult position both players had to handle!
xabcdefghy Black could be in the driver's seat after
20.Kh1! 23...Rf8! 24.h3 Bxe5! (24...Rxf4? 25.Nc8+
Another home-made cookie! 20.f4?, would +-) 25.Bxe5 (25.dxe5 Qf2 26.Bxh6 Rg8 -/+)

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 63

25...Nxe5 26.dxe5 Qe3 -/+. 30...c3!
24.Qg4?! Not falling into the trap with 30...Qxe5?
I feel that White should have opted for 31.Rb1+ Ka7 32.Qxe5 Nxe5 33.Bc7 +-, as
24.Nf7+ Kc8 25.Nxh8 Bxh8, when he would the coming Ra1 would be lethal.
have the better chances, although nothing 31.Qe7 c2 32.Bd2 Qxe5 33.Bxh6?!
would be clear-cut. It was very difficult to evaluate such posi-
24...Rf8! 25.Bd2 (D) tion. I would say that Black had slightly the
XABCDEFGHY better chances, although always in danger
due to his striped king. An good alternative
8-+-mk-tr-+( could be here 33.Nf7 Rxf7 34.Qxf7 Qe4 =+.
33...Rg8 34.Nf7 (D)
7+-+n+-vl-'
6-wqlsNp+-zp& XABCDEFGHY
5+p+pzP-+-% 8-mk-+-+r+(
4-+pzP-+Q+$ 7+-+nwQN+-'
3+-+-+-+-# 6-+l+p+-vL&
2-zP-vL-+PzP" 5+-+pwq-+-%
1tR-+-+-+K! 4-+-+-+-+$
xabcdefghy 3+-+-+-+P#
25...Kc7! 26.h3 2-+p+-+P+"
Interesting was 26.Ne8+!? Rxe8 27.Ba5 1+-+-+-tRK!
Qxa5 28.Rxa5 Kb6 29.Ra1 Bf8 oo, but
26.Qxg7? Qxd4 27.Ba5+ Kb8 -+, or xabcdefghy
26.Ba5? Qxa5 -+, would be out of the ques- 34...Qc3?!
tion! Centralisation is always a key factor! After
26...b4! 34...Qe4! 35.Nd8 Rxd8 36.Qxd8+ Kb7 37.
Returning the piece for activity and the cen- Ra1 d4 38.Qg8 Bd5, Black would be on the
tral white pawns. Black could easily come top, but in very fragile position, when even
on the top... the slightest mistake could be proven fatal.
27.Qxg7 Qxd4 28.Bxb4 Qxb2 29.Ba5+ 35.Qd6+ Kb7 36.Qxe6 d4 37.Nd6+ Kb6
Kb8 30.Rg1 (D) 38.Ne4 (D)
XABCDEFGHY XABCDEFGHY
8-mk-+-tr-+( 8-+-+-+r+(
7+-+n+-wQ-' 7+-+n+-+-'
6-+lsNp+-zp& 6-mkl+Q+-vL&
5vL-+pzP-+-% 5+-+-+-+-%
4-+p+-+-+$ 4-+-zpN+-+$
3+-+-+-+P# 3+-wq-+-+P#
2-wq-+-+P+" 2-+p+-+P+"
1+-+-+-tRK! 1+-+-+-tRK!
xabcdefghy xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 64
38...Nc5! Clocks: W: 2:33:36 - B: 2:29:46
Active and nice! ½-½
39.Qxg8
4.2. Mamedyarov didn’t really got any-
What else? If 39.Nxc5? Kxc5 -/+ 40.Qxg8?
thing out of the opening and he decided not
Qxh3 #.
to take risks, although it was hard anyway to
39...Nxe4 40.Kh2 d3
find any! A quick and more or less colour-
The black pawns looked dominative but on
less draw.
the other hand Black's king is weak - a kind
of balance... □ Mamedyarov Shakhriyar (2809)
41.Be3+ Kb5 42.Qb8+ Kc4 43.Qc7 Qf6 ■ So Wesley (2799)
(D) E37 Berlin 2018
XABCDEFGHY 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.Qc2 d5 5.a3
Bxc3+ 6.Qxc3 Ne4 7.Qc2 (D)
8-+-+-+-+( XABCDEFGHY
7+-wQ-+-+-' 8rsnlwqk+-tr(
6-+l+-wq-+& 7zppzp-+pzpp'
5+-+-+-+-% 6-+-+p+-+&
4-+k+n+-+$ 5+-+p+-+-%
3+-+pvL-+P# 4-+PzPn+-+$
2-+p+-+PmK" 3zP-+-+-+-#
1+-+-+-tR-! 2-zPQ+PzPPzP"
xabcdefghy 1tR-vL-mKLsNR!
44.Rf1! Qd6+!
44...Qxf1? 45.Qxc6+ Kb3 46.Qxe4 +-. xabcdefghy
45.Qxd6 Nxd6 46.Rf6 Kd5 (D) Black has a lot of continuations at this point
XABCDEFGHY but he preferred to go for an active one, sac-
rificing a pawn.
8-+-+-+-+( 7...c5 8.dxc5 Nc6 9.cxd5 exd5 (D)
7+-+-+-+-' XABCDEFGHY
6-+lsn-tR-+& 8r+lwqk+-tr(
5+-+k+-+-% 7zpp+-+pzpp'
4-+-+-+-+$ 6-+n+-+-+&
3+-+pvL-+P# 5+-zPp+-+-%
2-+p+-+PmK" 4-+-+n+-+$
1+-+-+-+-! 3zP-+-+-+-#
xabcdefghy 2-zPQ+PzPPzP"
47.Rxd6+! 1tR-vL-mKLsNR!
Best (47.g4? Nc4 -+ ) - the draw now was on
the cards. xabcdefghy
47...Kxd6 48.Kg3 Kd5 49.Kf2 Kc4 50.Bd2 10.Nf3
Kb3 51.Ke3 Bxg2 Another way to go could be 10.e3 Qf6 11.f3

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 65

Qh4+ 12.g3 Nxg3 13.Qf2 Nf5 14.Qxh4 A novelty to 16.Qxd2 Rad8 17.Qc1 d3
Nxh4 15.b4 a5 16.b5 Ne5 17.Kf2 0-0 18.Rxd3 Rxd3 19.Bxd3 Bxf3 20.gxf3 Ne5
18.Bb2 f6 19.Rd1 Be6 = Morozevich,A- 21.Be4 Nxf3+ 22.Bxf3 Qxf3 23.Qd1 Qf5
Harikrishna,P Biel 2017. oo/= Bareev,E-Ivanchuk,V Havana 2006.
10...Qf6 11.e3 Bg4 12.Be2 0-0 13.0-0 Rfe8 16...dxe3 17.Rd6! Re6 18.fxe3
(D) 18.Rxe6 exf2+ 19.Rxf2 Bxe6 = didn't really
XABCDEFGHY offered White much.
18...Rxd6 19.cxd6 Bxf3!
8r+-+r+k+( A forced exchange, as 19...Qxd6?, would
fail to 20.Ng5 Qh6 21.Qb3! +/-.
7zpp+-+pzpp' 20.Bxf3 Qxd6 (D)
6-+n+-wq-+& XABCDEFGHY
5+-zPp+-+-% 8r+-+-+k+(
4-+-+n+l+$ 7zpp+-+pzpp'
3zP-+-zPN+-# 6-+nwq-+-+&
2-zPQ+LzPPzP" 5+-+-+-+-%
1tR-vL-+RmK-! 4-+-+-+-+$
xabcdefghy 3zP-+-zPL+-#
Black has remained with a pawn deficit and
an isolated d-pawn but piece activity fully 2-zPQ+-+PzP"
compensated these factors. 1+-+-+RmK-!
14.Bd2
White has also tried here 14.h3 Bf5 15.Qd1 xabcdefghy
Rad8 16.Nd4 oo Koneru,H-Sethuraman,S White was aiming for this position, where
Abu Dhabi 2007. his better light piece could be worthy more
14...d4! than his weakness on e3.
Active and good. The alternative was 21.Qb3 Qe7 22.Bd5 Nd8!
14...Ne5 15.Nd4 Bxe2 16.Nxe2 Qg6 17.Nd4 A good relocation of the knight to e6, solv-
+=. ing more or less Black's problems.
15.Rad1 Nxd2 (D) 23.Rc1 Qd7 24.Qc4 Ne6 (D)
XABCDEFGHY XABCDEFGHY
8r+-+r+k+( 8r+-+-+k+(
7zpp+-+pzpp' 7zpp+q+pzpp'
6-+n+-wq-+& 6-+-+n+-+&
5+-zP-+-+-% 5+-+L+-+-%
4-+-zp-+l+$ 4-+Q+-+-+$
3zP-+-zPN+-# 3zP-+-zP-+-#
2-zPQsnLzPPzP" 2-zP-+-+PzP"
1+-+R+RmK-! 1+-tR-+-mK-!
xabcdefghy xabcdefghy
16.Rxd2 White admitted here that he had no advan-
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 66
tage, so he decided to exchange some pieces, XABCDEFGHY
heading for the draw.
25.Bxe6 fxe6 8r+l+-trk+(
But not 25...Qxe6? 26.Qxe6 fxe6 27.Rc7 +/-.
26.Qd4
7zppzp-vlpzpp'
26.Qc7 Rd8, didn't change the evaluation. 6-+nzp-+-+&
26...Qxd4 27.exd4 Rf8 28.Rc7 Rf7 (D)
XABCDEFGHY 5+-+-+-+-%
8-+-+-+k+( 4-+-+-+-+$
7zpptR-+rzpp' 3+-zP-vLN+-#
6-+-+p+-+& 2PzPP+LzPPzP"
5+-+-+-+-% 1+-mKR+-+R!
4-+-zP-+-+$ xabcdefghy
It is funny, but Kramnik had to face with the
3zP-+-+-+-# white pieces openings like the 'Ruy Lopez -
Berlin Defence' and the 'Petroff Defence',
2-zP-+-+PzP" that he played many years with the black
1+-+-+-mK-! pieces! Maybe he should have avoided 1.e4
at all?!
xabcdefghy 11.Rhe1
29.Rc8+ White was tiny better after 11.Rhg1 a6 12.g4
29.Rxf7 Kxf7 is a simply equal pawn end- Re8 13.h4 Artemiev,V-Khalifman,A Mos-
game. cow 2018, as well.
29...Rf8 30.Rc7 Rf7 31.Rc8+ Rf8 11...Bf6
Clocks: W: 0:36:30 - B: 0:50:30 A novelty, which hardly changes anything.
½-½ The known was 11...Bd7 12.Nd4 Bf6 13.f4
Rfe8 Lehtinen,P-Halme,O ICCF email 2005.
12.Nd2
I fail to see any problem for Black after
12.Nd4 Bd7.
12...Re8 13.Bf3 Ne5 14.Bf4 Kf8 15.Bd5 c6
16.Bb3 Bf5 (D)
XABCDEFGHY
4.3. The game between Kramnik and Ca-
8r+-+rmk-+(
ruana could already be candidate for the 7zpp+-+pzpp'
worst game of the tournament! Well, it is
probably not too nice to put it in such way,
6-+pzp-vl-+&
but the mistakes of both players and the 5+-+-snl+-%
changes in the evaluation of the position
were too many for such top players. 4-+-+-vL-+$
□ Kramnik Vladimir (2800) 3+LzP-+-+-#
■ Caruana Fabiano (2784) 2PzPPsN-zPPzP"
C42 Berlin 2018
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nxe5 d6 4.Nf3 Nxe4 1+-mKRtR-+-!
5.Qe2 Qe7 6.Nc3 Nxc3 7.dxc3 Qxe2+
8.Bxe2 Nc6 9.Be3 Be7 10.0-0-0 0-0 (D)
xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 67
Black fully equalised, but it is difficult to Stronger and better than 23...hxg2 24.cxd6
think for more, due to the symmetrical and Nf3 25.Rg4.
'dull' pawn structure! 24.Rb4 hxg2 25.Rxb7+ Kh8! 26.cxd6 Nf3
17.h3 g5 18.Bh2 Kg7 19.c4?! (D)
Missing Black's next move. Natural was XABCDEFGHY
19.f4 gxf4 20.Bxf4 d5 =.
19...g4! 20.Ne4? (D) 8r+-+r+-mk(
20.hxg4 Nxg4 21.Bg3 Bg5 =+, looked great
for Black, but still was preferable than the
7zpR+-+-+p'
text. 6-+pzP-+-+&
XABCDEFGHY 5+-+-+pvl-%
8r+-+r+-+( 4-+-+-+-+$
7zpp+-+pmkp' 3+L+-+n+-#
6-+pzp-vl-+& 2PzPP+-zPpvL"
5+-+-snl+-% 1+K+R+-+-!
4-+P+N+p+$ xabcdefghy
3+L+-+-+P# So, here Black should be winning already...
27.Ba4 Nxh2 28.Bxc6 Rad8! 29.d7
2PzPP+-zPPvL" Avoiding the easy trap 29.Bxe8? Rxd6
1+-mKRtR-+-! 30.Rd7 Rxd1+ 31.Rxd1 Nf1 -+.
29...Re2 30.Bxg2 Rxf2 31.Bc6 (D)
xabcdefghy XABCDEFGHY
20...Bxe4! 21.Rxe4 Bg5+ 22.Kb1 gxh3
23.c5 (D) 8-+-tr-+-mk(
White rejected 23.gxh3, due to 23...f5
24.Ree1 (24.Bxe5+ dxe5 25.Rd7+ Kf6
7zpR+P+-+p'
26.Re1 e4 27.Rxb7 Bh4 -/+) 24...Nf3 6-+L+-+-+&
25.Rxe8 (25.Rh1 Rad8 -/+) 25...Rxe8
26.Bxd6 Nd2+ 27.Ka1 Ne4 -/+. But also the 5+-+-+pvl-%
text wasn't satisfactory either... 4-+-+-+-+$
XABCDEFGHY 3+-+-+-+-#
8r+-+r+-+( 2PzPP+-tr-sn"
7zpp+-+pmkp' 1+K+R+-+-!
6-+pzp-+-+& xabcdefghy
5+-zP-sn-vl-% Black has won a piece, but still White can
4-+-+R+-+$ preserve some play, due to his active pieces
and the passer on d7.
3+L+-+-+p# 31...Ng4?
The first step to disaster! Good was
2PzPP+-zPPvL" 31...Nf1! 32.Rxa7 (32.a3 Ne3 33.Rc1 Nc4
1+K+R+-+-! -+) 32...Ne3 -+.
32.Rxa7?
xabcdefghy And White immediately returns the favour.
23...f5! He could built-up a decent fight after 32.c4

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 68

Ne3 33.Rg1 h6 34.c5 Rc2 35.Rc7. 39.Rf1 Kg6 40.Rg8+ =.
32...Ne3 33.Rg1 (D) 36.Bb5 Ke7
XABCDEFGHY 36...Rd2 was good and had to be preferred.
37.a5 Rf4 38.c3 (D)
8-+-tr-+-mk( XABCDEFGHY
7tR-+P+-+p' 8-+-tr-+-+(
6-+L+-+-+& 7+-tRPmk-+-'
5+-+-+pvl-% 6-+-+-+-zp&
4-+-+-+-+$ 5zPL+-+pvl-%
3+-+-sn-+-# 4-+-+-tr-+$
2PzPP+-tr-+" 3+-zP-sn-+-#
1+K+-+-tR-! 2-zP-+-+-+"
xabcdefghy 1+K+-+-tR-!
33...h6?
Black again missed a lethal continuation: xabcdefghy
33...Rxc2! 34.Ba4 Rf2, would be curtains. 38...Kd6?
34.Rc7 Kg7 Only by deep calculation and an analysis
Now Black had to be very careful and avoid engine, somebody could reject the text and
34...Rxc2? 35.Rxg5! Rxd7 36.Rc8+ Kh7 opt for 38...Nd5 39.Rb7 Rg4 =.
37.Bxd7 Rxc8 38.Rxf5 +/-, but maybe he 39.Rb7?!
could opt for 34...Kh7. It wasn't Kramnik's day! He could now win
35.a4 (D) with 39.Rc6+! Ke7 (39...Kxd7 40.Rxh6+
XABCDEFGHY Kc7 41.Rxg5 +-) 40.a6 Rxd7 41.Rc8 Ra7
42.Re8+ Kf6 43.Rxe3.
8-+-tr-+-+( 39...Rg4 40.Re1 f4 41.a6 h5?!
Maybe Black could try to muddy waters
7+-tRP+-mk-' with 41...f3. But of course White could still
6-+L+-+-zp& win with 42.a7 f2 43.Rxe3 Bxe3 44.Rb8
Rg1+ 45.Kc2.
5+-+-+pvl-% 42.a7 Ra8 (D)
4P+-+-+-+$ XABCDEFGHY
3+-+-sn-+-# 8r+-+-+-+(
2-zPP+-tr-+" 7zPR+P+-+-'
1+K+-+-tR-! 6-+-mk-+-+&
xabcdefghy 5+L+-+-vlp%
The position has been clarified and both
sides have their own chances to prevail.
4-+-+-zpr+$
What was important here was that White 3+-zP-sn-+-#
was fully back.
35...Kf7 2-zP-+-+-+"
Precise. Bad would be 35...Nxc2? 36.Rc8 1+K+-tR-+-!
+/-, but Black could also go for 35...Rxc2
36.Rc8 Rxc6 37.Rxd8 Rd6 38.Re8 Ng4 xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 69
43.b4?! 47...Bf6!
43.c4! was curtains: 43...Rg2 44.c5+ Kxc5 Probably missed by Kramnik! Now Black
45.Rc1+ +-. can hold, due to the mating net on a1!
43...h4 44.c4? 48.d8Q!
44.d8Q+! Bxd8 45.Rd7+ Ke5 46.Bc6 Rxa7 At least White kept a cool head. The main
47.Rxa7 +-. idea would be revealed after 48.Rxg4? Kf5
44...h3 45.c5+? 49.Rxe3 (49.Rg8? Ra1 #) 49...fxe3 -+.
Kramnik had thrown away any chance he was 48...Bxd8 49.Rxg4 Bf6 (D)
given! He didn't even go for 45.d8Q+ Bxd8 XABCDEFGHY
46.Rd7+ Ke5 47.Bc6 Rxa7 48.Rxa7 +/-.
45...Ke5 (D) 8-+-+-+-+(
XABCDEFGHY 7tr-+-+-+-'
8r+-+-+-+( 6-+-+-vl-+&
7zPR+P+-+-' 5+LzP-mk-+-%
6-+-+-+-+& 4-zP-+-zpR+$
5+LzP-mk-vl-% 3+-+-sn-+p#
4-zP-+-zpr+$ 2-+-+-+-+"
3+-+-sn-+p# 1+K+-tR-+-!
2-+-+-+-+" xabcdefghy
1+K+-tR-+-! White won the exchange, but Black's activ-
ity should be enough to preserve the bal-
xabcdefghy ance.
46.Rb8 50.Rg6! Rb7 51.Be2 Rxb4+ 52.Ka2 Nc2?
46.Bc6 could have been tried, but neverthe- Was Black trying to win or he miscalcu-
less Black could hold: 46...h2 47.Rh1 Rg1+ lated? Good was 52...Be7 53.Rb6 Bxc5 54.
48.Ka2 Nd5 49.Rxh2 Rxa7+ 50.Rxa7 Rxb4 Bxb4 55.Rh1 =. Here Caruana offered
Nxb4+ 51.Kb2 Nxc6 52.Ra6 f3 53.Rxc6 a draw and Kramnik (rightly) refused…
Rg2+ 54.Rxg2 fxg2 55.d8Q Bxd8 56.Rg6 53.Rc1!
Kd5 57.c6 g1Q 58.Rxg1 Kxc6 =. White was again back in business.
46...Rxa7 47.Rg8 (D) 53...Nd4 (D)
XABCDEFGHY XABCDEFGHY
8-+-+-+R+( 8-+-+-+-+(
7tr-+P+-+-' 7+-+-+-+-'
6-+-+-+-+& 6-+-+-vlR+&
5+LzP-mk-vl-% 5+-zP-mk-+-%
4-zP-+-zpr+$ 4-tr-sn-zp-+$
3+-+-sn-+p# 3+-+-+-+p#
2-+-+-+-+" 2K+-+L+-+"
1+K+-tR-+-! 1+-tR-+-+-!
xabcdefghy xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 70
54.Bd3? 61.Kxd1 h2 62.Rh6 Bh4 -+, or 61.Rxf6 h2
The last winning chance was hidden in 62.Rf5+ Ne5 63.Ba6 Kc6 -+.
54.Bg4! Ra4+ 55.Kb2 +/-. 61...Rd2+ 62.Kc1 Bb2+ 63.Kb1 Kxc5
54...Ra4+ 55.Kb1 Nb3! 64.Bb7 Ne5 65.Rf6 f3 66.Rf5 f2
Or 55...Rb4+ 56.Ka2 Ra4+ 57.Kb2 Ke6 Clocks: W: 3:14:53 - B: 2:58:40
58.Rh1 Nc6+ 59.Kb3 Ra5 60.Rxh3 Ne5 0-1
61.Bc4+ Kf5 62.Rgh6 Rxc5 =.
56.Re1+ Kd5 57.Kc2 Nd4+ (D)
XABCDEFGHY
8-+-+-+-+(
7+-+-+-+-'
6-+-+-vlR+& 4.4. Aronian won an easy game vs Kar-
5+-zPk+-+-% jakin, when the later played a poor opening,
giving every chance to his opponent to be
4r+-sn-zp-+$ happy. Quite rare case for the usually well
prepared Russian and a ‘recovery present’
3+-+L+-+p# for Aronian!
2-+K+-+-+" □ Karjakin Sergey (2763)
1+-+-tR-+-! ■ Aronian Levon (2794)
D39 Berlin 2018
xabcdefghy 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.Nc3 Bb4 5.Bg5
58.Kb1?! dxc4 6.e4 c5 7.Bxc4 cxd4 8.Nxd4 Bxc3+
Long tactical battles are not in favour of the 9.bxc3 Qa5 10.Bb5+ Nbd7 11.Bxf6 Qxc3+
older players... 58.Kc1 Be5 59.Rh6 =. 12.Kf1 gxf6 13.h4 Qb4 (D)
58...Nf3! XABCDEFGHY
A good try, avoiding 58...Ra1+?! 59.Kxa1
Nc2+ 60.Kb1 Nxe1 61.Ba6 =. 8r+l+k+-tr(
59.Rd1? (D)
White cracked, doing the last decisive mis-
7zpp+n+p+p'
take of a blunderfull game... 59.Rxf6 Nxe1 6-+-+pzp-+&
60.Bf1 h2 61.Rh6 Kxc5 62.Rxh2 =+.
XABCDEFGHY 5+L+-+-+-%
8-+-+-+-+( 4-wq-sNP+-zP$
7+-+-+-+-' 3+-+-+-+-#
6-+-+-vlR+& 2P+-+-zPP+"
5+-zPk+-+-% 1tR-+Q+K+R!
4r+-+-zp-+$ xabcdefghy
14.Rb1?!
3+-+L+n+p# A suspicious continuation - something went
wrong in Karjakin general excellent opening
2-+-+-+-+" preparation... Another recent game went as
1+K+R+-+-! 14.Rh3 a6 15.Be2 Ne5 16.Rb1 Qd6 17.Rc3
0-0 18.h5 Rd8 oo Giri,A-Harikrishna,P
xabcdefghy Shenzhen 2017.
59...Ra1+ 60.Kc2 Rxd1 61.Ba6 14...Qd6 15.Rh3 a6 16.Be2 (D)

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 71

 XABCDEFGHY 19...Qh2! looked even better: 20.Bf3 Qh1+
21.Ke2 Qxh4 (21...Qxc1 22.Rxc1 f5 -/+)
8r+l+k+-tr( 22.g3 Nxg3+ 23.fxg3 Qh2+ 24.Ke1 e5 -/+.
20.Bf3 f5 21.Qh6? (D)
7+p+n+p+p' White could claim compensation after
6p+-wqpzp-+& 21.Kg1 Kh8 22.Qe3, due to his better devel-
opment and pressure in the centre, but he
5+-+-+-+-% failed to notice it.
4-+-sNP+-zP$ XABCDEFGHY
3+-+-+-+R# 8r+l+-trk+(
2P+-+LzPP+" 7+p+-+p+p'
1+R+Q+K+-! 6p+-+p+-wQ&
xabcdefghy 5+-+-wqp+-%
16...Nc5! 4-+-sNn+-zP$
Aronian had made his homework and this
was a good novelty over 16...Ne5?! 17.h5 b5 3+-+R+L+-#
18.Rc3 Bd7 19.Nb3 Qxd1+ 20.Rxd1 Ke7
21.f4 Nc4 22.Nc5 Bc6 23.Bxc4 bxc4 24.a4 2P+-+-zPP+"
Rhc8 25.Rd4 ½-½ Lalith,B-Bindrich,F 1+R+-+K+-!
Chotowa 2010.
17.Rc3 xabcdefghy
As 17.Nb3 Qxd1+ 18.Rxd1 Nxe4 19.Rhd3 21...Qf6!
0-0, was simply bad for White, he might Black returned back one of his two extra
have tried 17.Re3 Bd7 18.Rc1, trying to fish pawns and his endgame would be, more or
around... The text was a try to muddy wa- less, decisive. Returning a part of material
ters, as anything normal wasn't appealing to gains is a good advice to convert the rest,
him. without too much risk…
17...Nxe4 18.Rd3 (D) 22.Qxf6 Nxf6 23.Bxb7 Bxb7
XABCDEFGHY Also possible was 23...Rb8 24.Rdb3 Rxb7
25.Rxb7 Bxb7 26.Rxb7 Rd8 27.Nf3 Rd1+
8r+l+k+-tr( 28.Ke2 Ra1 -/+.
24.Rxb7 Rac8 25.Rg3+ Kh8 (D)
7+p+-+p+p'
6p+-wqpzp-+& XABCDEFGHY
5+-+-+-+-% 8-+r+-tr-mk(
4-+-sNn+-zP$ 7+R+-+p+p'
3+-+R+-+-# 6p+-+psn-+&
2P+-+LzPP+" 5+-+-+p+-%
1+R+Q+K+-! 4-+-sN-+-zP$
xabcdefghy 3+-+-+-tR-#
18...0-0 2P+-+-zPP+"
There was no knight move to make Black 1+-+-+K+-!
afraid, so castling was a good option!
19.Qc1 Qe5?! xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 72
26.Rgb3?! sive.
There was no time for passivity. White had 39.Nf3
to opt for 26.Ra3 Ne4 27.Rd7 Rc1+ 28.Ke2 39.fxe3?! was losing to 39...Rc2 40.Rd8 Nc4
Rg1 -/+. -+.
26...Ne4! 27.Rb2 Rfd8 28.Nb3 Rd1+ 39...Rc2!
29.Ke2 Nc3+ 30.Ke3 Kg7 31.g3 Kf6 The white kingside pawn structure should be
31...Rg1! 32.Kf3 e5 -+. taken - the white a-pawn was going no-
32.Ra7 Rc6 33.Kf3 Nb5 34.Ra8 (D) where...
XABCDEFGHY 40.Rxa6+ Kg7 41.Nd4 Rxf2+ 42.Kg1 Nc2!
The rook ending would be clear for Black,
8R+-+-+-+( so he went for it.
43.Nxc2 Rxc2 (D)
7+-+-+p+p'
6p+r+pmk-+& XABCDEFGHY
5+n+-+p+-% 8-+-+-+-+(
4-+-+-+-zP$ 7+-+-+pmkp'
3+N+-+KzP-# 6R+-+-+-+&
2PtR-+-zP-+" 5+-+-+p+-%
1+-+r+-+-! 4P+-+-+-zP$
xabcdefghy 3+-+-zp-zP-#
34...e5?! 2-+r+-+-+"
The white king in the centre couldn't feel 1+-+-+-mK-!
safe, so good was 34...Rg1! 35.Ke2 and only
now 35...e5! -+. xabcdefghy
35.Kg2! e4 36.a4?! 44.Kf1
White's last hope to fight was laying on to 44.a5?! Rc1+ 45.Kg2 e2 -+.
36.Rd2 Rxd2 37.Nxd2 Nc3 -/+ or 37...e3 44...Rf2+ 45.Ke1
38.fxe3 Rc2 39.Rd8 Ke7 40.Rd3 Rxa2 -/+. 45.Kg1 Rf3 46.Kg2 e2 -+.
36...Na3 37.Rd2 Rxd2 38.Nxd2 (D) 45...Rg2 46.Rb6 Rxg3 47.Rb4 Rg2! 48.Rf4
XABCDEFGHY Kg6 49.Rf3 Rg4 50.Rxe3 Rxa4 51.Kf2
Rxh4 (D)
8R+-+-+-+( XABCDEFGHY
7+-+-+p+p' 8-+-+-+-+(
6p+r+-mk-+& 7+-+-+p+p'
5+-+-+p+-% 6-+-+-+k+&
4P+-+p+-zP$ 5+-+-+p+-%
3sn-+-+-zP-# 4-+-+-+-tr$
2-+-sN-zPK+" 3+-+-tR-+-#
1+-+-+-+-! 2-+-+-mK-+"
xabcdefghy 1+-+-+-+-!
38...e3!
Now this advance proved strong and deci- xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 73
If one of the f-pawns was out, White could
save himself (the notorious f & h rook end-
ing), but now three pawns are too many…
52.Re8 Rg4 53.Kf3 Kg7 54.Re5 Kf6
55.Re8 h5 56.Rh8 Kg6 57.Kf2 Rg5 58.Kf3
Kg7 59.Ra8 h4 60.Kf2 h3 61.Ra3 Rh5
Alexander Grischuk vs Wesley So
Wesley So vs Ding Liren
Levon Aronian
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018
62.Kg1 Kg6 63.Kh2 f4 64.Ra7 f3 65.Ra1
f2 66.Rf1 Rf5 67.Kxh3 Kg5 68.Kg3 Rf4
White resigned: 69.Rxf2 Rxf2 70.Kxf2 Kf4
-+.
Clocks: W: 2:33:30 - B: 1:53:00
0-1
Vladimir Kramnik
Fabiano Caruana vs Sakhriyar Mamedyarov
FIDE WC 2018 Logo
Showing five overlapping arms above
chessboard holding or moving chess pieces.
74
Round 5 (15.03.2018)
Round 5 12.Bd3 0-0 13.0-0 f5 14.exf5 Ne5 15.Bc2
15.03.2018 - 15:00 Bxf5 16.Bxf5 Rxf5 17.Ne4 c4 18.Qc2 Qb6+
1 Aronian - Grischuk ½:½ 19.Kh1 Rff8 20.Ng5 Nd3 21.Ne6 Rae8
2 Caruana - Karjakin ½:½ 22.Nxg7 Nf2+ 23.Kg1 Nd3+ 24.Kh1 Nf2+
3 So - Kramnik ½:½ ½-½ Aronian,L-Svidler,P Palma de Mallor-
4 Ding - Mamedyarov ½:½ ca 2017.
9.Ng3 h5 10.Be2 Nh7 (D)
The fifth round produced four draws, so
statistically was the dullest one! Well, three
XABCDEFGHY
out these four draws were the ‘natural’ out- 8r+lwqk+-tr(
come of balanced and ‘correctly’ played
positions, but the game Aronian-Grischuk 7zpp+n+pvln'
‘should’ have a winner! Easier said than 6-+-zp-+p+&
done! Caruana retained his ½ point lead, but
nearly everybody was still with chances - 14 5+-zpP+-+p%
rounds is a quite long tournament to go! 4-+-+P+-+$
5.1. After this game (remembering the ga-
me vs Kramnik as well), many people online
3+-sN-+PsN-#
started to give nicknames to the Armenian 2PzP-+L+PzP"
like ‘Erronian’ or ‘Aroniangeddon’! It was a
blunderfull game, where both opponents 1tR-vLQmK-+R!
made their bad steps! No hard feelings - xabcdefghy
chess is played by humans…
11.Bf4
□ Aronian Levon (2794) A novelty to 11.Be3 h4 12.Nf1 0-0 13.Qd2
■ Grischuk Alexander (2767) Re8 14.Bh6 Bd4 15.Ne3 a6 16.Nc2 Be5
A65 Berlin 2018 17.Bf4 b5 18.0-0 Bxf4 19.Qxf4 Ne5 20.Qh6
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.f3 c5 4.d5 d6 5.e4 e6 g5 21.g3 hxg3 22.hxg3 Qf6 23.Qh2 Ng6
6.Nc3 exd5 7.cxd5 Bg7 8.Nge2 (D) 24.Ne3 Bd7 25.Kg2 Kg7 26.Rh1 Rh8
XABCDEFGHY 27.Qg1 Qe5 28.Qf2 Nf6 29.Raf1 Nh5
30.Rfg1 Nhf4+ 31.gxf4 Bh3+ 32.Rxh3
8rsnlwqk+-tr( Nxf4+ 33.Kf1 Nxh3 34.Qg3 Nxg1
35.Qxe5+ dxe5 36.Kxg1 c4 37.Nf5+ Kf6
7zpp+-+pvlp' 38.d6 Ke6 39.a4 Kd7 40.axb5 axb5 Aron-
6-+-zp-snp+& ian,L-Li,C Geneva 2017 ½-½.
11...Qe7
5+-zpP+-+-% 11...Qf6 12.Qc1 h4 13.Nf1 a6 14.a4, was
4-+-+P+-+$ possible as well. Obviously Aronian had
analysed this position and he felt happy
3+-sN-+P+-# about it!
2PzP-+N+PzP" 12.Qd2 h4 13.Nf1 g5!?
Weakening the light squares, but dominating
1tR-vLQmKL+R! over the dark - every coin has two sides...
14.Be3 Ne5 15.g3 Bd7 16.gxh4
xabcdefghy 16.f4 Ng6, was quite messy, but worthy to
8...Nbd7 try.
Another popular line goes on with 8...a6 16...gxh4?
9.a4 Nbd7 10.Ng3 Nh5 11.Nxh5 gxh5 A bit automatic! Black should have seri-
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 75
ously considered 16...g4! 17.f4 Nf3+ XABCDEFGHY
18.Bxf3 gxf3 19.0-0-0 0-0-0, with an un-
clear, full of possibilities position. 8-+-+k+-tr(
17.Rg1! f5?! (D)
Black had lost his way during the two last
7zppzPl+-vln'
moves. 17...Ng6 18.f4 Kf8 19.0-0-0, was 6-+-+q+-+&
better for White, but still far from decisive.
XABCDEFGHY 5+-zp-+p+-%
8r+-+k+-tr( 4-+-+-zpnzp$
7zpp+lwq-vln' 3+-+-vL-+-#
6-+-zp-+-+& 2PzP-wQL+-zP"
5+-zpPsnp+-% 1tR-+-mKNtR-!
4-+-+P+-zp$ xabcdefghy
24.Rd1?
3+-sN-vLP+-# A bad move, which lost all the advantage -
probably more! Good and strong was 24.0-
2PzP-wQL+-zP" 0-0! fxe3 25.Nxe3 Bh6 (25...Qxe3 26.Qxe3+
1tR-+-mKNtR-! Nxe3 27.Rxg7 +- ; 25...Nxe3 26.c8Q+ Bxc8
27.Qd8+ Kf7 28.Bh5+ +-) 26.Bb5! 0-0
xabcdefghy 27.Qxd7 +-. Note that 24.Bxf4, wasn't bad
18.f4! Ng4 19.e5! dxe5 either: 24...Bd4 25.0-0-0 Qxa2 26.Bd3 +/-.
Black tried to mess things-up, as White 24...Ng5!
should win after 19...Nxe3?! 20.Nxe3 dxe5 Missed by White, who was only expecting
21.d6 Qf7 22.Bc4 Qf8 23.Qd5 +-. 24...fxe3? 25.Qxd7+ Qxd7 26.Bb5 Qxb5
20.d6 Qe6 (D) 27.c8Q+ Kf7 28.Qxf5+ Nhf6 29.Rxg4 +-.
XABCDEFGHY Black was fully back into the game!
25.c8Q+!
8r+-+k+-tr( Aronian pulled himself back and found the
only way to proceed. 25.Qxd7+? Qxd7
7zpp+l+-vln' 26.Bb5 Nf3+ 27.Ke2 Nxg1+ 28.Bxg1
6-+-zPq+-+& Qxb5+ -+, would be out of the question.
25...Bxc8 26.Qd8+ Kf7 (D)
5+-zp-zpp+-% XABCDEFGHY
4-+-+-zPnzp$ 8-+lwQ-+-tr(
3+-sN-vL-+-# 7zpp+-+kvl-'
2PzP-wQL+-zP" 6-+-+q+-+&
1tR-+-mKNtR-! 5+-zp-+psn-%
xabcdefghy 4-+-+-zpnzp$
21.Nb5! Rc8?
Black decided to sac the exchange, but this 3+-+-vL-+-#
should lose, so he should have opted for
21...Bxb5 22.Bxb5+ Kd8 +/- or 21...0-0 2PzP-+L+-zP"
22.Nc7 Qf6 23.Nxa8 Rxa8 24.h3 Nxe3 1+-+RmKNtR-!
25.Nxe3 Kh8 26.0-0-0 +/-.
22.Nc7+ Rxc7 23.dxc7 exf4 (D) xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 76
27.Qc7+ XABCDEFGHY
The other option was 27.Qxg5 fxe3 28.Bxg4
fxg4 29.Nxe3 (29.Qf4+?! Ke8 30.Rd6 Qe7 8-+l+-+-vl(
-/+) 29...Re8 30.Rf1+ Kg8 31.Rd8 Rxd8
32.Qxd8+ Kh7 33.Ke2 b6 =+.
7zpp+-+-+k'
27...Kg8? 6-+-+n+-+&
Again a terrible blunder by Grischuk, who
could preserve a small advantage by 5+-zp-+p+-%
27...Qe7! 28.Qxe7+ (28.Bc4+ Kf6 29.Qxe7+ 4-+L+-vLnzp$
[29.Qxf4 Nh3 30.Qd6+ Qxd6 31.Rxd6+ Ke5
32.Rxg4 fxg4 33.Rd5+ Ke4 34.Bxc5 Re8 3+-+-+-+-#
-/+] 29...Kxe7 30.Bxc5+ Ke8 =+) 28...Kxe7 2PzP-+-+-zP"
29.Bxf4 Nh3 30.Bd6+ Kf7 31.Rg2 b6 =+.
28.Rd6! 1+-+-mKNtR-!
Was this killer missed by Black?
28...Qf7 (D)
xabcdefghy
So, after all, White won the exchange for
XABCDEFGHY two pawns. Black's active pieces are danger-
8-+l+-+ktr( ous - it was White who had to be careful...
34.Bd6 Ng5 35.Rg2 Ne4 36.Bb8 Bd4
7zppwQ-+qvl-' 37.h3?!
6-+-tR-+-+& No need to. Fine was 37.Re2 Bd7 38.Nd2
Bf2+ 39.Kd1 Bd4 40.Ke1 =.
5+-zp-+psn-% 37...Ne5! 38.Bd5 Nd3+ 39.Ke2 (D)
4-+-+-zpnzp$ XABCDEFGHY
3+-+-vL-+-# 8-vLl+-+-+(
2PzP-+L+-zP" 7zpp+-+-+k'
1+-+-mKNtR-! 6-+-+-+-+&
xabcdefghy 5+-zpL+p+-%
29.Qd8+? 4-+-vln+-zp$
It was White's turn to fall! Winning was
29.Qxc8+ Kh7 30.Qxc5 Ne4 (30...b6 31.Qc2 3+-+n+-+P#
+-) 31.Rxg4! Nxc5 32.Rxh4+ +-. 2PzP-+K+R+"
29...Qf8!
Defending on the check and attacking the 1+-+-+N+-!
d6-rook! It wasn’t clear if White missed that
too!
xabcdefghy
30.Bxf4 39...Nc1+
30.Qxg5, wasn't entirely clear after Black could continue without too much risk,
30...Qxd6 31.Bc4+ Be6 32.Bxf4 Qc6 with 39...Nxb2 40.Ne3 Nc3+ 41.Kd2 Nxd5
33.Bxe6+ (33.Ne3 Bxc4 34.Nxf5 Qe4+ 42.Nxd5 Be6 43.Nf4 Nc4+ 44.Ke1 Bf7 =+.
35.Be3 Rh7 36.Rxg4 Qb1+ 37.Bc1 Qd3 40.Kd1 Nd3 41.Nd2 Nf6 42.Bf3
38.Nh6+ Kh8 39.Rxc4 Rxh6 40.Qg4 oo) Chances were approximately even here, but
33...Qxe6+ 34.Ne3 oo. But it was under- both opponents decided to split the point
standable that White wanted to have a after all these blunders... A ‘logical’ ap-
calmer game after all the above hip-hops! proach!
30...Ne6! 31.Bc4 Qxd8 32.Rxd8+ Kh7 Clocks: W: 1:50:00 - B: 2:26:35
33.Rxh8+ Bxh8 (D) ½-½

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 77

 is well-known.
11.dxc5 Na6 12.Nb3 Be4 13.Qc3 Rc8 (D)
XABCDEFGHY
8-+rwq-trk+(
7zp-+-vlpzpp'
6n+-+psn-+&
5.2. Karjakin had small problems to fully 5+pzP-+-+-%
equalise against the leader Caruana. He
played quickly and efficiently to reach a 4-+-+l+-+$
dead-drawn position in less than the required
30 moves! It was expected that the tourna-
3+NwQ-+NzP-#
ment leader would push his last-placed op- 2PzP-+PzPLzP"
ponent, but in such a strong tournament this
is not really the case; anybody can beat any- 1tR-vL-+RmK-!
body! xabcdefghy
□ Caruana Fabiano (2784) 14.Be3
■ Karjakin Sergey (2763) A novelty, that didn’t alter the position’s
D30 Berlin 2018 evaluation. Nothing was gained as well by
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.Bg2 Be7 5.Nf3 14.Qd4 Nxc5 15.Be3 Qxd4 16.Bxd4 Rfd8
0-0 6.Qb3 c6 7.0-0 dxc4 8.Qxc4 b5 9.Qc2 17.Bxc5 Bxc5 18.Rac1 Bb6 19.Nfd4 Bxd4
Bb7 (D) 20.Nxd4 Kf8 21.Bxe4 Nxe4 22.Rxc8 Rxc8
XABCDEFGHY 23.Rd1 a6 = Narkun,M-Nicolenco,S LSS
email 2010.
8rsn-wq-trk+( 14...Nd5! 15.Qd2 Bxf3 16.Bxf3 Nxe3
17.Qxe3 Nxc5 18.Nxc5 Bxc5 (D)
7zpl+-vlpzpp'
XABCDEFGHY
6-+p+psn-+&
8-+rwq-trk+(
5+p+-+-+-%
7zp-+-+pzpp'
4-+-zP-+-+$
6-+-+p+-+&
3+-+-+NzP-#
5+pvl-+-+-%
2PzPQ+PzPLzP"
4-+-+-+-+$
1tRNvL-+RmK-!
3+-+-wQLzP-#
xabcdefghy
10.Nbd2
2PzP-+PzP-zP"
10.Bg5 was also possible: 10...Nbd7 1tR-+-+RmK-!
11.Nbd2 c5 12.Bxf6 gxf6 13.Rac1 Qb6
14.dxc5 Nxc5 15.Nb3 Be4 16.Qc3 Nxb3 xabcdefghy
17.Qxb3 Rac8 18.Nh4 Bg6 19.e3 Rfd8 By a series of exchanges, Black recovered
20.Nxg6 hxg6 21.Rfd1 Rxd1+ 22.Qxd1 his pawn. Also here very important was the
Rxc1 23.Qxc1 Kg7 24.a3 b4 25.axb4 Bxb4 presence of opposite-coloured bishops,
26.Bf1 Qc5 27.Qxc5 Bxc5 ½-½ Vitiugov,N- which was a step closer to the draw.
Riazantsev,A St Petersburg 2017. 19.Qb3 Qb6 20.e3 Be7 21.Rfd1 Rc7
10...c5 22.Rac1 Rfc8 23.Rxc7 Rxc7 24.Kg2 g6
A temporary pawn sacrifice, which of course 25.Rd2 Kg7 26.Rc2 Rxc2 27.Qxc2 Qc5

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 78

28.Qxc5 Bxc5 29.b3 f5 30.a4 bxa4 31.bxa4 9...Bxd2+
(D) Well-known here was 9...Qa5?! 10.Rb1
XABCDEFGHY Bxd2+ 11.Qxd2 Qxd2+ 12.Kxd2 0-0
13.Bb5! +/- Rubinstein,A-Schlechter,C San
8-+-+-+-+( Sebastian 1912.
10.Qxd2 0-0 11.Bc4 Nd7
7zp-+-+-mkp' 11...Nc6 12.0-0 b6 is another great chapter
6-+-+p+p+& in this variation and a matter of taste any-
way!
5+-vl-+p+-% 12.0-0 b6 (D)
4P+-+-+-+$ XABCDEFGHY
3+-+-zPLzP-# 8r+lwq-trk+(
2-+-+-zPKzP" 7zp-+n+pzpp'
1+-+-+-+-! 6-zp-+p+-+&
xabcdefghy 5+-+-+-+-%
There was nothing left to play... 4-+LzPP+-+$
Clocks: W: 0:51:30 - B: 0:29:00
½-½ 3+-+-+N+-#
5.3. The game So vs Kramnik, although it 2P+-wQ-zPPzP"
lasted long enough, remained inside the
draw barriers, as there was no mistake noted. 1tR-+-+RmK-!
Compared to the previous game of Kramnik xabcdefghy
this was already a great improvement! Well,
13.Rad1
the latter tried to have a more or less normal
It looked more logical to place the rook on
game and forget about his last experience.
the open c-file with 13.Rac1, but practice
□ So Wesley (2799) has proven that this file is just a path for
■ Kramnik Vladimir (2800) exchanging heavy pieces. White strengths
D41 Berlin 2018 his centre by placing his rooks behind it. In
1.c4 e6 2.Nf3 d5 3.d4 Nf6 4.Nc3 c5 5.cxd5 general Black welcomes an endgame, espe-
Nxd5 6.e4 Nxc3 7.bxc3 cxd4 8.cxd4 Bb4+ cially without heavy pieces, where his
9.Bd2 (D) queenside pawn majority might tell.
XABCDEFGHY 13...Bb7 14.Rfe1 Rc8 15.Bb3
Logical, but also 'logical' was 15.Bd3 h6
8rsnlwqk+-tr( 16.Qf4 Qc7 17.Qh4 Nf6 oo Grivas,E-
Mastrovasilis,A Thessaloniki 2010.
7zpp+-+pzpp' 15...Re8 16.h3
6-+-+p+-+& Wesley So had played this position before-
hand, but without success as well: 16.Re3
5+-+-+-+-% Nf6 17.Qd3 b5 18.d5 exd5 19.e5 Ne4
4-vl-zPP+-+$ 20.Qxb5 Qb6 21.Qxb6 axb6 22.h4 h6
23.Bxd5 Bxd5 24.Rxd5 Rc1+ 25.Ne1 Nc3
3+-+-+N+-# 26.Rd6 Nxa2 27.Rxb6 Nc3 28.Rd6 Rb8
2P+-vL-zPPzP" 29.Kh2 Nd1 30.Rf3 Nxf2 31.Rxf2 Rxe1
32.Rd7 Rf8 33.Re7 Re3 34.Rf3 Rxf3
1tR-+QmKL+R! 35.gxf3 Rd8 ½-½ So,W-Dominguez Perez,L
Saint Louis 2017.
xabcdefghy 16...Nf6 17.Qf4 (D)
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 79
 XABCDEFGHY 21...exd5 22.exd5 Rxe1+
Or 22...Nf6 23.Rxe8+ (23.Re3) 23...Nxe8
8-+rwqr+k+( 24.Qe5 Nd6 25.Nd4, with a tiny white ad-
vantage.
7zpl+-+pzpp' 23.Nxe1 Qf6 24.Nd3 (D)
6-zp-+psn-+& XABCDEFGHY
5+-+-+-+-% 8-+r+-+k+(
4-+-zPPwQ-+$ 7zpl+-+pzp-'
3+L+-+N+P# 6-zp-+-wq-zp&
2P+-+-zPP+" 5+-+P+-+n%
1+-+RtR-mK-! 4-+-+-+-+$
xabcdefghy 3+L+N+-+P#
17...Nh5
I am not sure that this novelty was better 2P+-+-zPPwQ"
than the known 17...Qc7 18.Qh4 h6 19.Re3 1+-+R+-mK-!
b5 oo Epishin,V-Del Rio de Angelis,S Cal-
via 2005. xabcdefghy
18.Qe5 Nf6 19.Qf4 Black's position looked critical, as the threat
19.g4 Qc7, should be OK for Black. It is g4 was serious...
rather important for White to preserve the 24...Ba6! 25.Qe5! Bxd3
queens on board; otherwise his centre and Criminal would be 25...Qxe5? 26.Nxe5 +/-.
the future d5-advance wouldn't have the 26.Qxh5
same power. 26.Qxf6?! Nxf6 27.Rxd3 Kf8 =+.
19...Nh5 20.Qh2! 26...Bc2?!
Avoiding the draw, at least for the time be- 26...Qf5, looked like a good alternative:
ing. 27.Qxf5 (27.Qh4 Bc2 28.Rc1 Bxb3
20...h6 (D) 29.Rxc8+ Qxc8 30.axb3 Qc1+ 31.Kh2 Qc5
XABCDEFGHY =) 27...Bxf5 28.d6 Rd8 =.
27.Rc1 Bf5 (D)
8-+rwqr+k+( XABCDEFGHY
7zpl+-+pzp-' 8-+r+-+k+(
6-zp-+p+-zp& 7zp-+-+pzp-'
5+-+-+-+n% 6-zp-+-wq-zp&
4-+-zPP+-+$ 5+-+P+l+Q%
3+L+-+N+P# 4-+-+-+-+$
2P+-+-zPPwQ" 3+L+-+-+P#
1+-+RtR-mK-! 2P+-+-zPP+"
xabcdefghy 1+-tR-+-mK-!
21.d5
Finally. Even if White didn't get anything xabcdefghy
special, this advance is the backbone of 28.Rxc8+?!
White's strategy in this particular variation. 28.Rc6! Rxc6 29.dxc6 +=, could have cre-

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 80

ated some problems to Black. Netherless, 0-0 6.0-0 dxc4 7.Qc2 a6 (D)
this was White's last real chance. XABCDEFGHY
28...Bxc8 29.d6 g5 30.Qd1 Bd7 31.Qd5
Kg7 32.Qb7 Qa1+ 33.Kh2 Qe5+ 34.Kg1 8rsnlwq-trk+(
Qxd6 35.Qxa7 h5 (D)
7+pzp-vlpzpp'
XABCDEFGHY 6p+-+psn-+&
8-+-+-+-+( 5+-+-+-+-%
7wQ-+l+pmk-' 4-+pzP-+-+$
6-zp-wq-+-+& 3+-+-+NzP-#
5+-+-+-zpp% 2PzPQ+PzPLzP"
4-+-+-+-+$ 1tRNvL-+RmK-!
3+L+-+-+P# xabcdefghy
2P+-+-zPP+" 8.a4
1+-+-+-mK-! Of course White can also choose 8.Qxc4,
which is the other big part of the 'Catalan'.
xabcdefghy 8...Bd7 9.Qxc4 Bc6 10.Bf4 Bd6 11.Bg5
The position was equal here and the oppo- Nbd7 12.Nc3 h6 (D)
nents could call it a day. But they continued XABCDEFGHY
playing a dull position for many useless
moves. 8r+-wq-trk+(
36.Qb7 h4 37.Qf3 Qe7 38.Qc3+ f6 39.Qc4
Qe8 40.Qb4 b5 41.a3 Qe5 42.Bd1 Bc6
7+pzpn+pzp-'
43.Bf3 Be8 6p+lvlpsn-zp&
43...Bxf3 44.gxf3 Kg6 45.Kg2 =.
44.Kf1 Bf7 45.Be2 Be8 5+-+-+-vL-%
45...Qa1+ 46.Qe1 Qxa3 47.Bxb5 =. 4P+QzP-+-+$
46.Bf3 f5 47.Kg1 Bf7 48.Qd2 Kg6 49.Qc1
Be6 50.Qc6 Kf6 51.Qe8 Qa1+ 52.Kh2 3+-sN-+NzP-#
Qxa3 53.Qd8+ 2-zP-+PzPLzP"
53.Qh8+ Ke7 54.Qg7+ Kd8 55.Qxg5+ Qe7
=. 1tR-+-+RmK-!
53...Qe7 54.Qh8+ Qg7 55.Qd8+ Kg6
56.Qe8+ Qf7 57.Qxb5 Qc7+
xabcdefghy
Clocks: W: 2:24:31 - B: 2:44:39 13.Bc1!?
½-½ A 'strange' novelty to 13.Bxf6 Nxf6 14.Nd2
Bxg2 15.Kxg2 a5 16.Rfd1 c6 17.Nde4 Nxe4
5.4. We had a colourless draw in the Ding- 18.Nxe4 Bb4 = Banusz,T-Harikrishna,P
Mamedyarov as well. White released a Monzon 2016.
‘poor’ novelty, which didn’t pose any prob- 13...a5
lems to Black, who equalised rather easily. Fixing the dark squares on the queenside is a
In the end it wasn’t easy for any side to im- good sign for Black in such structures.
prove… 14.b3 Qe7
□ Ding Liren (2769) Preparing the future advance ...e5, as well as
■ Mamedyarov Shakhriyar (2809) the darksquared bishops’ exchange.
E05 Berlin 2018 15.Bb2 Rfd8 16.Rac1 Ba3! 17.Bxa3 Qxa3
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.g3 Be7 5.Bg2 (D)

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 81

 XABCDEFGHY XABCDEFGHY
8r+-tr-+k+( 8r+-+-+-+(
7+pzpn+pzp-' 7+p+-+pmk-'
6-+l+psn-zp& 6-+p+nsnp+&
5zp-+-+-+-% 5zp-+-wq-+p%
4P+QzP-+-+$ 4P+-+-+-zP$
3wqPsN-+NzP-# 3+PsN-zPLzP-#
2-+-+PzPLzP" 2-+Q+-zPK+"
1+-tR-+RmK-! 1+-+R+-+-!
xabcdefghy xabcdefghy
18.Nb5 Approximately equal, with little play
18.Nb1 Qe7 19.Nbd2, could be a better try, around. Well, of course any side could con-
but the position would still remain on the tinue...
boundaries of equality. Clocks: W: 1:07:20 - B: 1:13:10
18...Qe7 19.Qc2 ½-½
The greedy 19.Nxc7?, would lose to
19...Rac8.
19...Bxf3! 20.Bxf3 c6 21.Nc3 Nb6
It was too early for 21...e5?! 22.d5! cxd5
23.Nxd5 Nxd5 24.Bxd5 +=. Recipes from Round 4:
22.e3 (D)
1. Grischuk-Ding: One of the reasons why
XABCDEFGHY Grischuk missed 23.Qg4 in the line 22.Bh4
8r+-tr-+k+( Bf6 was that he thought 22.Rxf4 was win-
ning as well: ‘I didn't see a defence for
7+p+-wqpzp-' Black... But after what he played, I could not
find a solution’. Grischuk felt he missed
6-snp+psn-zp& winning chances but the game was so inter-
5zp-+-+-+-% esting that he was completely focused on
following moves.
4P+-zP-+-+$
2. Karjakin-Aronian: ‘I forgot that I had to
3+PsN-zPLzP-# play 14.Rh3 immediately. And I played
2-+Q+-zP-zP" 14.Rb1 first. After 16...Nc5 I felt like Levon
in the game against Vladimir after 7...Rg8.
1+-tR-+RmK-! Instead of fighting for advantage you are
clearly worse with White in 10 minutes. It's
xabcdefghy just a terrible feeling’.
Black prepared his position with care and
now he released his last step to equality. 3. Kramnik-Caruana: Kramnik missed the
22...e5! 23.dxe5 Qxe5 24.Rfd1 g6 25.Rd2 strong 47...Bf6 - it was shocking for him.
Something like 25.Ne4 Nxe4 26.Bxe4 Nd7, Also he said today that Caruana offered him
couldn't be a problem for Black either. a draw on 52...Nc2 but Kramnik thought it
25...Rd7 26.Rxd7 Nbxd7 27.Rd1 h5 was a bad move and refused. He said: ‘I
28.Rd4 Nc5 29.h4 Kg7 30.Kg2 Ne6 31.Rd1 would probably agree on a draw if he made
(D) any other move’.

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 82

Recipes from Round 5:
1. So-Kramnik: Kramnik had a similar
ending against Maxim Matlakov (Qatar
2015) which he won. So remembered that
game too.
Panoramic View of the Playing Hall
Levon Aronian vs Alexander Grischuk
Vladimir Kramnik
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018
2. Aronian-Grischuk: Both players missed
a beautiful line: 29.Qxc8+ (instead of
29.Qd8+) 29...Kh7 30.Qxc5 Ne4 31.Rxg4!!,
etc. In the final position Grischuk felt Black
should be better but he didn’t see a clear
way and accepted a draw.
Fabiano Caruana vs Sergey Karjakin
Israel Gelfer on the move!
Fabiano Caruana
Vladimir Kramnik vs Fabiano Caruana
83
Round 6 (16.03.2018)
Round 6 XABCDEFGHY
16.03.2018 - 15:00
1 Caruana - Grischuk ½:½ 8-+-wqr+k+(
2 So - Aronian 1:0 7+-sn-+pvlp'
3 Ding - Karjakin ½:½
4 Mamedyarov - Kramnik 1:0 6ptr-zp-snp+&
After an excellent start with 2½)3, Kram- 5+-zpP+-vL-%
nik went back to 50% after the 6th round! 4-+L+P+-+$
Mamedyarov played good enough to cash
the point and join Caruana in the lead. Aro- 3+-sN-+P+-#
nian played a horrible game…
2-zP-+-+PzP"
6.1. Caruana seemed to get the better of it,
especially after Grischuk missed a very in- 1tR-+Q+RmK-!
teresting piece sac. But soon he sac a pawn, xabcdefghy
getting good compensation and as Caruana
This variation with f3 against the 'Benoni
was running out of time, he went for a repe-
Defence' generally is not a common visitor
tition of moves. A more or less ‘correct
to top level but neither this opening is!
game’ with a ‘natural’ outcome.
19.Na4
□ Caruana Fabiano (2784) A good novelty to 19.Qc2 h6 (19...Qb8!?
■ Grischuk Alexander (2767) 20.Ra2 Nb5 21.Kh1 Nd7 oo) 20.Bh4 g5
E60 Berlin 2018 21.Bf2 Nd7 22.Ra2 +=, as in Hamitevici,V-
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nf3 Bg7 4.e3 0-0 5.Be2 Jumabayev,R London 2015.
c5 6.d5 e6 7.Nc3 (D) 19...Rb4 20.b3 Qc8 21.Bf4! Qd7
XABCDEFGHY After 21...Nd7 22.Bxd6! Bxa1 23.Qxa1,
White would have excellent compensation
8rsnlwq-trk+( for the sacrificed exchange: a pawn, bishop
pair and strong centre.
7zpp+p+pvlp' 22.Ra2 Nh5 23.Be3 Rbb8 24.Qd2 (D)
6-+-+psnp+& XABCDEFGHY
5+-zpP+-+-% 8-tr-+r+k+(
4-+P+-+-+$ 7+-snq+pvlp'
3+-sN-zPN+-# 6p+-zp-+p+&
2PzP-+LzPPzP" 5+-zpP+-+n%
1tR-vLQmK-+R! 4N+L+P+-+$
xabcdefghy 3+P+-vLP+-#
7...exd5
7...b6 8.0-0 exd5 9.cxd5 Re8 10.Nd2 Ba6
2R+-wQ-+PzP"
11.Re1 d6, was played recently in Naka- 1+-+-+RmK-!
mura,H-Nepomniachtchi,I Moscow 2018.
8.cxd5 d6 9.Nd2 Na6 10.0-0 Nc7 11.e4 Re8 xabcdefghy
12.a4 Rb8 13.f3 a6 14.a5 Bd7 15.Nc4 Bb5 24...Nb5
16.Bg5 Bxc4 17.Bxc4 b5 18.axb6 Rxb6 (D) 24...f5?!, looked aggressive, in the Benoni

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 84

spirit and good at first sight. The problem Black could have played 27...Nd4 28.Qd1
was that White could go on with 25.Nxc5! Rd8 29.Kg2 +=, but he decided to sac a
dxc5 26.d6+ Ne6 27.exf5 gxf5 28.Bxc5 Kh8 pawn for activity - his passed c-pawn should
29.Bf2 and obtain a position of strength. be enough compensation. White had nothing
25.g4?! better than to accept it.
The prophylactic 25.Kh1, was better: 28.Bxb5 axb5 29.Bxd6 Rb6 30.Bg3 c4
25...Bd4 26.g4 Nf6 (26...Bxe3 27.Qxe3 +/-) 31.bxc4 bxc4 32.Qe2 (D)
27.Nb2 Bxe3 28.Qxe3 Qe7 29.Nd3 +=. XABCDEFGHY
25...Nf6 26.Nb2 (D)
XABCDEFGHY 8-+q+r+k+(
8-tr-+r+k+( 7+-+n+pvlp'
7+-+q+pvlp' 6-tr-+-+p+&
6p+-zp-snp+& 5+-+P+-+-%
5+nzpP+-+-% 4-+p+P+P+$
4-+L+P+P+$ 3+-+-+PvL-#
3+P+-vLP+-# 2RsN-+Q+-zP"
2RsN-wQ-+-zP" 1+-+-+RmK-!
1+-+-+RmK-! xabcdefghy
32...Rb4
xabcdefghy The direct 32...c3 33.Nd3 Qc4 34.Qc2 Rb3
26...Qc8?! oo/=, was also interesting. To benefit from
In the 'Benoni Defence' you are obliged to the extra pawn, need to exchange some
show activity above all, so it was time for pieces or activate the pawn centre - easier
Black to prove this chess saying! 26...h5!, said than done...
was creating extreme complications after 33.Bd6
27.g5 (27.Rxa6? hxg4 -+) 27...Nxe4! 33.Rc1!? c3 34.Nd3 Rd4 oo/=.
(27...Nh7?! 28.Rxa6 +=) 28.fxe4 Nc3! 33...Rb6! (D)
29.Rxa6 Rxe4 oo/=. XABCDEFGHY
27.Bf4! (D)
XABCDEFGHY 8-+q+r+k+(
8-trq+r+k+( 7+-+n+pvlp'
7+-+-+pvlp' 6-tr-vL-+p+&
6p+-zp-snp+& 5+-+P+-+-%
5+nzpP+-+-% 4-+p+P+P+$
4-+L+PvLP+$ 3+-+-+P+-#
3+P+-+P+-# 2RsN-+Q+-zP"
2RsN-wQ-+-zP" 1+-+-+RmK-!
1+-+-+RmK-! xabcdefghy
34.Bg3
xabcdefghy White decided to accept the draw via move
27...Nd7!? repetition. If he felt like continuing, he could

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 85

think of the following alternatives: 34.Bf4 XABCDEFGHY
c3 35.Nd3 Qc4 36.Qc2 Rb3 oo/=, or
34.Nxc4 Rxd6! 35.Nxd6 Qc5+ 36.Kg2 8-trq+-trk+(
Qxd6 =, or, finally 34.Ba3 Ne5 oo/=. But
neither seemed to satisfy him...
7+-zp-vl-zpp'
34...Rb4 35.Bd6 Rb6 36.Bg3 6p+nzppsn-+&
Clocks: W: 1:57:18 - B: 1:50:04
½-½ 5zP-+-zp-+-%
4-zp-+P+-+$
3+N+P+N+-#
2-zPP+-zPPzP"
1tR-vLQtR-mK-!
xabcdefghy
6.2. So scored his first full point against
The position offers more or less equal
Aronian. It could be easily called a master-
chances. White felt that the doubled black e-
piece of strategy, mixed with small nice tac-
pawns could be an asset for the future but
tics. A difficult game to understand and ana-
this could be a rather long story...
lyse as well; all about initiative, coordination
14.h3
and piece placement!
A novelty to 14.Qe2 Nd8 15.d4 exd4
□ So Wesley (2799) 16.Nbxd4 c5 17.Nb3 e5 18.Nbd2 Ne6
■ Aronian Levon (2794) 19.Nc4 Nd4 20.Nxd4 cxd4 21.Nb6 Qc6
C88 Berlin 2018 22.Bg5 Bd8 23.Bxf6 Bxb6 24.axb6 Rxf6
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 25.Rxa6 h6 26.Qd3 Rxb6 27.Rea1 Rxa6
5.0-0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 0-0 8.a4 b4 9.a5 28.Rxa6 Qc5 29.Ra8+ Kh7 30.h3 b3
d6 10.d3 Be6 11.Bxe6 fxe6 12.Nbd2 Rb8 31.Qxb3 d3 32.cxd3 Qxf2+ 33.Kh2 Qf4+
(D) 34.Kh1 Qc1+ 35.Kh2 Qf4+ 36.Kh1 Qg3
XABCDEFGHY 37.Qg8+ Kg6 38.Rf8 Qxd3 39.Rxf6+ Kxf6
40.Qf8+ Ke6 41.Qe8+ Kf6 42.Qf8+ Ke6
8-tr-wq-trk+( 43.Qe8+ ½-½ Caruana,F-Carlsen,M Saint
Louis 2017.
7+-zp-vl-zpp' 14...Nd8 15.Be3 c5 16.Nbd2 Nc6 17.c3
6p+nzppsn-+& Rb5 (D)
5zP-+-zp-+-% XABCDEFGHY
4-zp-+P+-+$ 8-+q+-trk+(
3+-+P+N+-# 7+-+-vl-zpp'
2-zPPsN-zPPzP" 6p+nzppsn-+&
1tR-vLQtR-mK-! 5zPrzp-zp-+-%
xabcdefghy 4-zp-+P+-+$
13.Nb3 3+-zPPvLN+P#
Aronian knows this opening inside-out and
he has a vast experience with it! 13.c3 Qe8
2-zP-sN-zPP+"
14.Nc4 Qg6 15.h3 Nd7 16.Be3 d5 was Carl- 1tR-+QtR-mK-!
sen,M-Aronian,L Saint Louis 2017.
13...Qc8 (D) xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 86
18.d4!? The only way to save the extra pawn.
18.Nc4, was also possible, but White 27.Rd1 (D)
'solved' his a5-problem by tactical resources. XABCDEFGHY
Black will win a pawn but White will have
compensation, as the black b5-rook and the 8-+-+-tr-mk(
a5-knight will be out of play for some
moves... This is what we call modern chess!
7+q+n+-zpp'
18...exd4 19.cxd4 Nxa5 20.dxc5 dxc5 6p+-+pvl-+&
21.Ra2
Moves like 21.Rc1 or 21.Qe2, were good 5+rzp-+-+-%
alternatives. White could maintain some 4-zpQ+P+-+$
pressure, but Black could hold.
21...Qb7?! 3+P+-vLN+P#
The text allowed White to build a somewhat 2R+-+-zPP+"
better position, due to his coordinated
pieces. Good and rather unclear was 1+-+R+-mK-!
21...Nd7! 22.Qe2 b3 23.Ra4 Bf6 24.Rea1
Bxb2 25.Rxa5 Bxa1 26.Rxa1.
xabcdefghy
22.b3! Kh8?! (D) 27...Qc6!
Again, Aronian didn't went for the 'best'... Black's alternatives seemed worst: 27...Ne5
22...Nxe4 23.Nxe4 Qxe4 24.Bxc5 Qb7 28.Nxe5 Bxe5 29.Bxc5 Rc8 30.Be3! Bf6
25.Bxe7 Qxe7 26.Re3 oo/= or 22...Nd7 31.Qxe6 Re5 32.Qxa6 Qxa6 33.Rxa6 Rxe4
23.Qe2 oo/=, should have been chosen in- 34.Rad6 +/- or 27...e5 28.Qd5! +/-.
stead. 28.Rad2 Nb6 29.Qc2 Qc7?! (D)
After the text Black was in trouble. He
XABCDEFGHY should have opted for 29...Qc8! 30.Bg5
8-+-+-tr-mk( Bd4! 31.Bh4 (31.Nxd4 cxd4 32.Qxc8 Nxc8
33.e5 Rxe5 34.Bh4 Rd5 35.Rxd4 Nb6
7+q+-vl-zpp' 36.Be7 Rb8 37.Bd6 Rxd4 38.Rxd4 Rd8
6p+-+psn-+& 39.Rd2 Kg8 40.Bxb4 Nd5 41.Bc5 Rb8=)
31...Rxf3! 32.gxf3 e5 33.Kg2 Qf8 oo/=. He
5snrzp-+-+-% would have compensation for the exchange,
but of course White would have the material
4-zp-+P+-+$ advantage!
3+P+-vLN+P# XABCDEFGHY
2R+-sN-zPP+" 8-+-+-tr-mk(
1+-+QtR-mK-! 7+-wq-+-zpp'
xabcdefghy 6psn-+pvl-+&
23.Qc2!
Now threats like Ng5 and e5 could be lethal. 5+rzp-+-+-%
23...Nd7 4-zp-+P+-+$
After 23...Nc6?! 24.Nc4 +/-, all white pieces
seemed to be better placed! 3+P+-vLN+P#
24.Rea1 Bd8 25.Nc4! 2-+QtR-zPP+"
A good way to put pressure on the e6-pawn
and the black queenside. On the other hand 1+-+R+-mK-!
the price to pay was to exchange the bad a5-
knight...
xabcdefghy
25...Nxc4 26.Qxc4 Bf6 30.e5! Be7

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 87

30...Bxe5?, was losing on the spot after 38.e6 Bf6! (38...b2? 39.Rh5 b1Q+ 40.Qxb1
31.Ng5! +-. Qc1+ 41.Qxc1 Rxc1+ 42.Kh2 +/-) 39.e7
31.Nd4! Qc1+ 40.Kh2 Qc7+ 41.g3 Qxe7 42.Qxe7
Double attack! Bxe7 43.Rxb5 Kg8 44.Rxb3 +=.
31...Rc8 (D) 32...Qxe5 (D)
The main alternative was 31...Qxe5 32.Nxb5 XABCDEFGHY
axb5 33.Re2 Qc3 34.Qe4 Qxb3 35.Ree1!
Na4 36.Qb7 Bf6 37.Qxb5 Bc3 38.Rf1 +/-. 8-+r+-+-mk(
By material count Black should be fine, but
again a case of bad coordination would be
7+-+-vl-zpp'
on the cards. Black's pieces are hanging on 6psn-+N+-+&
the queenside and the black king is unpro-
tected. White will enter the black camp with 5+rzp-wq-+-%
his queen and rook, creating strong threats. 4-zp-+-+-+$
XABCDEFGHY 3+P+-vL-+P#
8-+r+-+-mk( 2-+QtR-zPP+"
7+-wq-vl-zpp' 1+-+R+-mK-!
6psn-+p+-+& xabcdefghy
5+rzp-zP-+-% 33.Nf4?
4-zp-sN-+-+$ White had played a nearly excellent game by
this point, but here failed to crown it with a
3+P+-vL-+P# nice tactic: 33.Rd6! c4 (33...Bxd6? 34.Ng5
+-) 34.Bd4 Qxd6 35.Bxg7+ Kg8 36.Rxd6
2-+QtR-zPP+" Bxd6 37.Qd1! Rd5 38.Bd4 Kf7 39.Ng5+
1+-+R+-mK-! Rxg5 40.Bxb6 +/-.
33...Rf8?
xabcdefghy Returning the favour in no time! Black could
32.Nxe6! opt for 33...Kg8! 34.Nd5 Nxd5 35.Rxd5 Qe6
The right way, as the greedy 32.Nxb5?!, 36.Qc4 Rb6 oo and be happy, as nothing
wouldn't give White much: 32...axb5 33.Qe4 would be clear-cut - a good improvement of
Nd5 34.Rxd5! exd5 35.Rxd5 c4 36.bxc4 (D) his latest position evaluation!
XABCDEFGHY 34.Re2! (D)

8-+r+-+-mk( XABCDEFGHY
7+-wq-vl-zpp' 8-+-+-tr-mk(
6-+-+-+-+& 7+-+-vl-zpp'
5+p+RzP-+-% 6psn-+-+-+&
4-zpP+Q+-+$ 5+rzp-wq-+-%
3+-+-vL-+P# 4-zp-+-sN-+$
2-+-+-zPP+" 3+P+-vL-+P#
1+-+-+-mK-! 2-+Q+RzPP+"
xabcdefghy 1+-+R+-mK-!
36...Qxc4! (36...bxc4? 37.e6 +-) 37.Bd4 b3 xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 88
34...Qc3?! XABCDEFGHY
Good or bad, Black had to choose 34...Bf6
35.g3 +/-. Why White would be better here? 8-+-+-tr-mk(
Again would be all about coordination and
better pieces - look at the black queenside
7+-+-vl-zpp'
pieces and the black back rank problem... 6p+-+R+-+&
35.Qb1
35.Qa2!, was even stronger: 35...Ra8 36.Ne6 5+r+-+-wq-%
c4 37.Bd4 Qxb3 38.Qxb3 cxb3 39.Nc7 +-. 4-zpn+-sN-+$
35...Qf6 (D)
35...Rg8 36.Qa2!, could work again fine! 3+-+-+-+P#
XABCDEFGHY 2-+-+-zPP+"
8-+-+-tr-mk( 1+QvLR+-mK-!
7+-+-vl-zpp' xabcdefghy
6psn-+-wq-+& 39.Ng6+ Qxg6
39...hxg6 40.Bxg5 Bxg5 41.Qxg6 +-.
5+rzp-+-+-% 40.Rxg6 hxg6 41.Qe4 Bf6 42.Qxc4 (D)
4-zp-+-sN-+$ XABCDEFGHY
3+P+-vL-+P# 8-+-+-tr-mk(
2-+-+RzPP+" 7+-+-+-zp-'
1+Q+R+-mK-! 6p+-+-vlp+&
xabcdefghy 5+r+-+-+-%
36.Bc1 4-zpQ+-+-+$
Time trouble was not letting both players
show their best. Centralisation with 36.Qe4!, 3+-+-+-+P#
would be lethal, as next would come the 2-+-+-zPP+"
relocation of the bishop on b2.
1+-vLR+-mK-!
xabcdefghy
White won Black's queen for a rook and a
pawn in total. Well, Black can still put-up a
kind of fight, due to his b-passer on the
queenside.
42...b3 43.Ba3 Rfb8 44.Rb1 b2 45.h4 Ra5
46.Qd3 Rd8 47.Qb3 Rc8 48.Qb7
36...c4? 48.Bxb2 Rb5 49.Qg3 Rxb2 50.Rxb2 Bxb2
Black's position was beyond repairing but 51.Qxg6, was still winning, but it wasn't yet
netherless, he should have chosen 36...Qf7 necessary.
37.Bb2 Bf6 38.Bxf6 Qxf6 39.Ne6 Rg8 48...Rd8 49.Qb3 Rc8 50.Qb4 Rb5 51.Qg4
40.Qa2! Na8 41.Qxa6 Rb6 42.Qc4 +/-. Rc3 52.Bxb2! Rxb2 53.Rxb2 Rc1+ 54.Kh2
37.bxc4 Nxc4 38.Re6! Qg5 (D) Bxb2 55.Qxg6
Looked like a blunder, but Black’s options The black passer was strong, so White de-
were limited: 38...Qf7 39.Rd7 Re8 40.Qe4 cided to clarify things by returning some
Re5 41.Qxc4 +-, or 38...Qf5 39.Qxf5 Rbxf5 material back. Of course he was still easily
40.Rxe7 b3 41.Rdd7 +-. winning.

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 89

55...Ra1 (D) Clocks: W: 3:09:30 - B: 2:47:06
XABCDEFGHY 1-0

8-+-+-+-mk( 6.3. Ding vs Karjakin was a short but in-

teresting theoretical battle, in which the first
7+-+-+-zp-' player failed to find the most critical con-
tinuation and he had to be satisfied with a
6p+-+-+Q+& draw.
5+-+-+-+-% □ Ding Liren (2769)
4-+-+-+-zP$ ■ Karjakin Sergey (2763)
E05 Berlin 2018
3+-+-+-+-# 1.Nf3 d5 2.g3 g6 3.d4 Bg7 4.Bg2 Nf6 5.c4
2-vl-+-zPPmK" dxc4 6.0-0 0-0 7.Na3 (D)

1tr-+-+-+-! XABCDEFGHY
xabcdefghy 8rsnlwq-trk+(
56.g4! 7zppzp-zppvlp'
And this was how it should be done. The 6-+-+-snp+&
queen and her kingside pawns will deprive
Black of important squares, creating mating 5+-+-+-+-%
nets at the same time. 4-+pzP-+-+$
56...a5 57.Qh5+ Kg8 58.Qb5 Ba3
58...Bf6 59.Qe8+ Kh7 60.g5 Bb2 61.Qe4+ 3sN-+-+NzP-#
Kg8 (61...g6 62.h5 +-) 62.g6 Kf8 63.Qe6 +-.
59.Qe5 Rd1 60.Qe6+ 2PzP-+PzPLzP"
60.Qxa5 Be7 61.g5 +-. 1tR-vLQ+RmK-!
60...Kh7 61.Qe4+ Kh8 62.Qa8+ Kh7
63.Qxa5 Bd6+ 64.Kg2 Rd4 65.Qf5+ Kh8 xabcdefghy
66.Qh5+ Kg8 67.g5 Kf8 68.Qg6 Be7 7...c5
69.Qf5+ Ke8 70.Kh3 Rd6 71.Qh7 Kf7 (D) The other main choice is 7...c3, for example:
XABCDEFGHY 8.bxc3 c5 9.e3 Nc6 10.Qe2 Qa5 11.Bb2 Nd5
12.Rfc1, with a tiny white advantage, as in
8-+-+-+-+( Kasparov,G-Svidler,P Internet 1998.
8.dxc5
7+-+-vlkzpQ' A more or less recent fashion. The 'old line'
6-+-tr-+-+& was 8.Nxc4 Be6 9.Nce5 cxd4 10.Qxd4 ½-½
Yu,Y-Ding,L Riadh 2017.
5+-+-+-zP-% 8...c3!
4-+-+-+-zP$ 8...Qa5 9.Nxc4 Qxc5 10.Nfe5 +=, would be
nice for White.
3+-+-+-+K# 9.Nb5! Na6
2-+-+-zP-+" Probably the most famous game with
9...cxb2, was the following: 10.Bxb2 Bd7
1+-+-+-+-! 11.Qb3 Bc6 12.Rfd1 Qc8 13.Rac1 Nbd7
14.Nbd4 Bd5 15.Qa3 Re8 16.c6 Nb6 17.c7
xabcdefghy Nc4 18.Qb4 Nxb2 19.Qxb2 b6 20.Qa3 e6
72.f4! 21.Nb5 Bf8 22.Qb2 Bg7 23.Qd2 Qd7 24.a4
All white pawns are rolling to heaven! Ne4 25.Qf4 a6 26.Qxe4 axb5 27.Qd3 f5
72...Rd4 73.Qf5+ Ke8 74.Qe5 Rb4 75.Kg4 28.Ng5 1-0 Kramnik,V-Topalov,V London
Kf8 76.Qf5+ Ke8 77.Qe6 Rd4 78.Qe5 2016.
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 90
10.Nxc3 Nxc5 (D) XABCDEFGHY
XABCDEFGHY 8r+l+-trk+(
8r+lwq-trk+( 7zpp+-zppvlp'
7zpp+-zppvlp' 6-+-+-snp+&
6-+-+-snp+& 5+-sn-+-+-%
5+-sn-+-+-% 4-+-sN-+-+$
4-+-+-+-+$ 3+-sN-vL-zP-#
3+-sN-+NzP-# 2Pwq-+PzPLzP"
2PzP-+PzPLzP" 1tR-+Q+RmK-!
1tR-vLQ+RmK-! xabcdefghy
xabcdefghy 13.Ncb5?!
11.Nd4 It seemed that 13.Qe1!, was quite strong:
A novelty over the recent success of Kram- 13...Ne6 14.Rb1 Qa3 15.Ndb5, when
nik: 11.Be3 Nfe4 12.Nxe4 Nxe4 13.Bd4 White's compensation should be nice and
Bxd4 14.Qxd4 Qxd4 15.Nxd4 Nd6 16.Rac1 can be proven effective as well!
(16.Rfc1 Rd8 17.Rc7 Kf8 18.Rac1 Ne8 13...Ne6! 14.Rb1
19.R7c4 Nd6 20.Rc5 Bd7 21.f4 Rac8 There wasn't much to the alternative 14.Qa4
22.Kf2 Rxc5 23.Rxc5 Rc8 24.b4 f5 25.Bd5 Nxd4 15.Nxd4 Bd7 16.Qa5 Qb6 =.
Kg7 26.Nf3 e6 27.Rxc8 Bxc8 28.Bb3 Kf6 14...Qxa2 (D)
29.Ke3 Bd7 30.a4 Nf7 31.Kd4 h6 32.a5 b6 XABCDEFGHY
33.axb6 axb6 34.e4 fxe4 35.Nd2 e5+
36.fxe5+ Nxe5 37.Nxe4+ Kf5 38.Nd6+ Kf6 8r+l+-trk+(
39.Bd5 g5 40.Ne4+ Kf5 41.Nd6+ Kf6
42.Ne4+ ½-½ Ding,L-Giri,A Palma de Mal-
7zpp+-zppvlp'
lorca 2017) 16...Rd8 17.f4 Kf8 18.Kf2 Bg4 6-+-+nsnp+&
19.h3 Bd7 20.e4 Rac8 21.Rxc8 Rxc8
22.Rd1 Ke8 23.e5 Nf5 24.Nb3 Bc6 25.Rc1 5+N+-+-+-%
Kd7 26.Nc5+ Ke8 27.Nd3 Kd7 28.g4 Nd4 4-+-sN-+-+$
29.Rc4 Ne6 30.f5 gxf5 31.gxf5 Ng7
32.Bxc6+ bxc6 33.Nc5+ Kc7 34.Rh4 h5 3+-+-vL-zP-#
35.f6 exf6 36.exf6 Ne8 37.Rxh5 Nxf6 2q+-+PzPLzP"
38.Rf5 Nd5 39.Rxf7+ Kd6 40.Ne4+ 1-0
Kramnik,V-Wei,Y Wijk aan Zee 2018 1-0. 1+R+Q+RmK-!
11...Qb6! 12.Be3
The main alternative should be 12.Qc2!?
xabcdefghy
Bd7 13.Rd1. 15.Ra1
12...Qxb2?! (D) White decided to take a draw by repetition,
A little too risky. Black should have opted as he couldn't find anything better - well,
for 12...Ng4 13.Bg5 Ne6 (13...Qxb2?! now it was too late!
14.Ndb5! Bf5 15.Bxe7 a6 16.Qc1 Qxc1 15...Qb2 16.Rb1 Qa2 17.Ra1 Qb2 18.Rb1
17.Raxc1 axb5 18.Bxc5 +=) 14.Nxe6 Bxe6 Clocks: W: 1:12:33 - B: 1:03:00
15.Nd5 Bxd5 16.Qxd5 e6 17.Qe4 (17.Qxb7 ½-½
Qxb7 18.Bxb7 Rab8 =) 17...Nf6 18.Qh4 +=. 6.4. It was clear that Kramnik suicide in
But of course it was quite difficult to ‘see’ his game vs Mamedyarov. He played a good
every detail during actual play… opening and equalised without many prob-
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 91
lems, but then he carelessly started playing 11.Be2!?
for an unjustified win… After a blunder, A prepared novelty to the natural 11.Nf3
Mamedyarov won an important pawn and Nb4! =, as in Naroditsky,D-Shimanov,A
the game, sharing first place. Kramnik, from Saint Louis 2017.
sole leader after the 3rd round, felled to 50% 11...Rc8 12.Nf3
in just the next three rounds! Naive would be 12.Rxb7? Nxd4! -/+.
12...Qa5+ 13.Bd2 Bb4 (D)
□ Mamedyarov Shakhriyar (2809)
■ Kramnik Vladimir (2800) XABCDEFGHY
D35 Berlin 2018 8-+r+k+-tr(
1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.cxd5 Nxd5
5.e4 Nxc3 6.bxc3 c5 (D) 7zpp+l+pzpp'
XABCDEFGHY 6-+n+p+-+&
8rsnlwqkvl-tr( 5wq-+-+-+-%
7zpp+-+pzpp' 4-vl-zPP+-+$
6-+-+p+-+& 3+-+-+N+-#
5+-zp-+-+-% 2P+-vLLzPPzP"
4-+-zPP+-+$ 1+R+QmK-+R!
3+-zP-+-+-# xabcdefghy
2P+-+-zPPzP" Finally Black succeeded to exchange the
darksquared bishops! Why Black love ex-
1tR-vLQmKLsNR! changes in this variation? Because with each
xabcdefghy exchange the strong white centre become
less strong, as the endgame approaches and
7.Rb1
then the black queenside majority could
A fairly new idea; White didn’t want to al-
tell...
low a bishop check (and exchange) on b4.
14.Rb2 Bxd2+ 15.Qxd2
7...Be7 8.Bb5+
After 15.Rxd2 0-0 16.0-0 Ne7!, Black
This didn't seem to offer much. 8.Nf3 0-0
wouldn't have face any problems.
9.Bc4 Qc7 10.Qe2 a6 11.0-0 b5 12.Bd3 Bb7
15...Qxd2+ 16.Kxd2 Na5 17.Rbb1 Ke7
13.a4 += Carlsen,M-So,W Internet 2017.
18.Rhc1 f6 (D)
8...Bd7 9.Bd3 cxd4 10.cxd4 Nc6! (D)
XABCDEFGHY XABCDEFGHY
8r+-wqk+-tr( 8-+r+-+-tr(
7zpp+lvlpzpp' 7zpp+lmk-zpp'
6-+n+p+-+& 6-+-+pzp-+&
5+-+-+-+-% 5sn-+-+-+-%
4-+-zPP+-+$ 4-+-zPP+-+$
3+-+L+-+-# 3+-+-+N+-#
2P+-+-zPPzP" 2P+-mKLzPPzP"
1+RvLQmK-sNR! 1+RtR-+-+-!
xabcdefghy xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 92
The endgame offered equal chances, which
could be considered more satisfactory for
Kramnik, who had easily equalised out of
the opening.
19.h4 Rhd8 20.Bd3 a6 21.Ke3 b5 22.g4 (D)
XABCDEFGHY
some small but delicate tactics: 25.f4! Rdd8
(25...Rcd8?! 26.Rc5! Nxd4 27.Rc7+ Kf8
28.e5 Rd5 29.Be4 Nxe2 30.Bxd5 Nxf4
31.Kxf4 Rxd5 32.Re1 +/-) 26.e5 +=.
25...Rcd8 26.Bc2 Na5! 27.Bd3 Nc6 28.Bc2
(D)

8-+rtr-+-+( XABCDEFGHY
7+-+lmk-zpp' 8-+-trl+-+(
6p+-+pzp-+& 7+-+-mk-zpp'
5snp+-+-+-% 6p+ntrpzp-+&
4-+-zPP+PzP$ 5+p+-+-+-%
3+-+LmKN+-# 4-+-zPP+PzP$
2P+-+-zP-+" 3+-+-mK-+-#
1+RtR-+-+-! 2P+L+NzP-+"
xabcdefghy 1+R+R+-+-!
22...Be8 xabcdefghy
It was more or less expected 22...Rxc1 28...h5
23.Rxc1 Rc8 24.Rxc8 Bxc8 = and a draw There was no reason for Black to avoid
agreement... But Kramnik obviously wanted 28...Na5, with a draw at once. Well, with the
to try for something more... text he didn't get any troubles, but the prob-
23.Ng1 Nc6?! lem was that he overestimated his position -
Black's plan helped White to build a some- a good step to lose a game...
what better position, so he had to opt for 29.g5! fxg5 30.e5 R6d7 31.hxg5 (D)
something like 23...e5 24.dxe5 (24.d5 Bd7 XABCDEFGHY
25.g5 Rxc1 26.Rxc1 Rc8 =) 24...fxe5
25.Nf3 Kf6 =. 8-+-trl+-+(
24.Ne2 Rd6 (D)
7+-+rmk-zp-'
XABCDEFGHY 6p+n+p+-+&
8-+r+l+-+( 5+p+-zP-zPp%
7+-+-mk-zpp' 4-+-zP-+-+$
6p+ntrpzp-+& 3+-+-mK-+-#
5+p+-+-+-% 2P+L+NzP-+"
4-+-zPP+PzP$ 1+R+R+-+-!
3+-+LmK-+-# xabcdefghy
2P+-+NzP-+" 31...h4?
1+RtR-+-+-! But that was simply bad. Black had to play
carefully and with 31...Na5, to head for the
xabcdefghy draw, although White now might rejected it
25.Rd1?! and continue with 32.f3!? Nc4+ 33.Kf2.
White could question Black's plan with 32.g6?

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 93

Favours are for to be returned! Quite good on his earlier fighting decisions...
was 32.Rbc1 +/-. 42...Rc8 43.Ke3 Bb5 44.f4 Bc4 45.Rh7!
32...Na5! 33.Rbc1 Rc7 34.Bd3 Rdc8? Rg8 46.a3 a5 47.Bc2 Kd7 (D)
A blunder that lost a pawn. Black had to XABCDEFGHY
simply play 34...Rxc1 35.Rxc1 Bc6, with
equal chances. 8-+-+-+r+(
35.Rxc7+ Rxc7 (D)
7+-+k+-zpR'
XABCDEFGHY 6-+-+p+P+&
8-+-+l+-+( 5zp-+-zP-+-%
7+-tr-mk-zp-' 4-+lzP-zP-+$
6p+-+p+P+& 3zP-zp-mK-+-#
5snp+-zP-+-% 2-+L+-+-+"
4-+-zP-+-zp$ 1+-+-+-+-!
3+-+LmK-+-# xabcdefghy
2P+-+NzP-+" 48.d5
1+-+R+-+-! A typical way to improve the position; ex-
changing the passed black c-pawn for his d-
xabcdefghy pawn. In this way any counterplay will be
36.Rh1 deleted!
Of course - the black h4-pawn felled! 48...Bxd5 49.Kd4 Ba2 50.Kxc3 Kc6
36...Nc4+ 37.Kf4 Nb2 51.Rh2 (D)
Maybe 37...Kf8 38.Rxh4 Kg8, would be a XABCDEFGHY
better defensive plan, but still Black should
be lost. 8-+-+-+r+(
38.Be4 b4 39.Rxh4 Nd1 40.f3
Stronger was 40.Rh7 Kd8 41.Kf3! Nc3
7+-+-+-zp-'
42.Nf4 +-. 6-+k+p+P+&
40...Nc3 41.Nxc3 bxc3 42.Rh2 (D)
XABCDEFGHY 5zp-+-zP-+-%
8-+-+l+-+( 4-+-+-zP-+$
7+-tr-mk-zp-' 3zP-mK-+-+-#
6p+-+p+P+& 2l+L+-+-tR"
5+-+-zP-+-% 1+-+-+-+-!
4-+-zPLmK-+$ xabcdefghy
51...Kc5
3+-zp-+P+-# Maybe Black should have tried 51...Rc8
52.Rd2 Bd5 53.Kd4 Kb6, although after
2P+-+-+-tR" 54.f5!, White would prevail.
1+-+-+-+-! 52.Rd2! Rh8
52...Bd5, keeping the rook out of his 7th
xabcdefghy rank, wasn't a defence: 53.f5! exf5 (53...Rc8
The endgame offered no chance of salvation 54.f6 +-) 54.Rxd5+! Kxd5 55.Bb3+ +-.
to Black, who had already second thoughts 53.Rd7 Rh3+

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 94

53...Rg8 54.Be4 a4 55.Rc7+ Kb6 56.Rc6+
Kb5 57.Kd4 +-.
54.Kb2 Bd5 55.Rxg7 Kd4 56.Rh7 Rg3 (D)
XABCDEFGHY
8-+-+-+-+(
7+-+-+-+R'
6-+-+p+P+&
5zp-+lzP-+-%
4-+-mk-zP-+$
3zP-+-+-tr-#
2-mKL+-+-+"
1+-+-+-+-!
xabcdefghy
57.Rh5!
The quickest way, planning Rg5.
57...Rg2 58.Rg5 Rf2 59.g7 Be4 60.g8Q
Rxc2+ 61.Kb3 Rc3+ 62.Ka4 Rc5 63.Rg2!
White could have made harakiri with
63.Qd8+?, when after 63...Kc4 -+, Black
mates via c6 or c2!!
63...Bf3 64.Qd8+
And finally Black resigned: 64...Bd5
(64...Kc4 65.Rc2 #) 65.Rd2+ Ke4 66.Rxd5
Rxd5 67.Qg8 +-. 25 years ago he won a
similar pawn structure game vs Lajos Por-
tisch (Biel 1993) in an important game for
his qualification from the Interzonal to the
Candidates. Years are passing by and no-
body can escape the decisions of the fate…
Clocks: W: 2:49:08 - B: 3:10:37
1-0
Recipes from Round 5:
1. So-Aronian: Wesley confirmed that
he’d been prepared all the way up to 21.Ra2.
Levon didn’t look seriously 33.Nf4 and
thought that he should be fine but immedi-
ately after lost his track and made a mistake
Rf8.
He said during the Press-Conference that
he should have played 33...Kg8. Levon de-
scribed 33.Rd6! as ‘very interesting’, with
the threat of Bf4.
2. Mamedyarov-Kramnik: Kramnik about
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018
34...Rdc8: ‘In this position I just had a hal-
lucination. I thought my rook is on c8… I
just gave a pawn for free - it’s absolutely
ridiculous!’.
Both players saw the trap which Kramnik
created in the end; 63.Qd8+? would be a
losing move, as after 63...Kc4!, White can’t
stop the threats of both ...Bc6+ and ...Bc2+
with mate.
3. Caruana-Grischuk: Grischuk about the
opening: ‘Actually it was a bit strange to
fight against what I consider to be one of my
best opening inventions, because it’s me
who started to play e3, Be2. First I played it
twice in some rapid and blitz against Ne-
pomniachtchi, then the first classical game I
was White against Caruana…’.
Grischuk spoke on his opening choice:
‘Benoni means son of sorrows, and I like
everything that is connected with sorrow… I
cannot say I played that greatly, but I en-
joyed it. Even yesterday, I could resign im-
mediately but I was enjoying the game very
much!’.
Both 26...Nxe4!? and 26...Nxg4!? were
possible, with 27...Nc3! and Grischuk
checked those ideas, but wasn’t satisfied
with the positions he was getting.
Caruana explained his decision to repeat
moves in the final position: ‘Sasha had 7
minutes, I had like a minute. It would be
pretty optimistic to think that in such a
messy position I would somehow manage to
outplay him. I wasn’t even sure if I was bet-
ter. If I was sure I was better I would play
on’.
Sakhriyar Mamedyarov vs Vladimir Kramnik
95
Round 7 (18.03.2018)
Round 7 XABCDEFGHY
18.03.2018 - 15:00
1 Grischuk - Mamedyarov ½:½ 8r+l+k+-tr(
2 Kramnik - Ding ½:½ 7zppzp-+p+-'
3 Karjakin - So 1:0
4 Aronian - Caruana 0:1 6-+nwqp+-+&
As usual, there were fighting games (well, 5+-+p+-zpp%
not all of them!) and a lot of blunders; some- 4-+PzP-+-+$
thing strange for such a strong event. But
strong tension and will to win create ‘un- 3+-zP-zPNzPP#
pleasant’ situations. Caruana become the
sole leader, as Aronian suicide…
2P+Q+-+P+"
7.1. A very quick draw was agreed in the 1tR-+-mKL+R!
game Mamedyarov-Grischuk. Although the xabcdefghy
later thought for long, he decided not to take
13.Qf2
any ‘risks’. Mamedyarov had no reasons to
A novelty in a well-known position. Usually
argue…
White here went for 13.Kf2 h4 14.g4 Bd7
□ Grischuk Alexander (2767) 15.Bd3 Qg3+ 16.Kf1 dxc4 17.Bxc4 Rg8
■ Mamedyarov Shakhriyar (2809) 18.Qf2 Qd6 19.e4 oo Azmaiparashvili,Z-
D38 Berlin 2018 Nikolaidis,I Pula 1997.
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.Nc3 Bb4 5.Bg5 13...Qa3!
h6 6.Bh4 g5 7.Bg3 Ne4 8.Qc2 h5 9.h3 (D) The white queenside was left unprotected
XABCDEFGHY and Black spotted the problem!
14.Qc2
8rsnlwqk+-tr( White had nothing better...
14...Qd6 15.Qf2
7zppzp-+p+-' It was White's last chance to go for 15.Kf2
6-+-+p+-+& and fight. Instead he preferred a quick draw
with move repetition, as Black had nothing
5+-+p+-zpp% better than to go for it as well.
4-vlPzPn+-+$ 15...Qa3 16.Qc2
Clocks: W: 1:07:33 - B: 0:12:30
3+-sN-+NvLP# ½-½
2PzPQ+PzPP+" 7.2. For the fourth game in a row Kramnik
played badly and he could consider himself
1tR-+-mKL+R! lucky not to lose another one! He got one of
xabcdefghy the positions he excels, but inaccuracies
9...Nc6 passed the advantage to Ding. The later
The other main line is with 9...c6. As sample missed his chances, allowing ‘Big Vlad’ to
game went as 10.e3 Qa5 11.Nd2 Nxg3 save the endgame.
(11...Nxc3 12.bxc3 Bxc3 13.Rd1 oo/=) □ Kramnik Vladimir (2800)
12.fxg3 Qc7 13.0-0-0 Qxg3 14.e4 oo/= Mat- ■ Ding Liren (2769)
lakov,M-Yu,Y Moscow 2016. A26 Berlin 2018
10.e3 Bxc3+ 11.bxc3 Nxg3 12.fxg3 Qd6 1.c4 Nf6 2.Nc3 e5 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.d3 g6 5.g3
(D) Bg7 6.Bg2 0-0 7.0-0 d6 (D)
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 96
 XABCDEFGHY 15...Bd7 (D)

8r+lwq-trk+( XABCDEFGHY
7zppzp-+pvlp' 8r+-wqr+k+(
6-+nzp-snp+& 7+p+l+pvlp'
5+-+-zp-+-% 6-+pzp-snp+&
4-+P+-+-+$ 5zp-sn-zp-+-%
3+-sNP+NzP-# 4-+P+P+-+$
2PzP-+PzPLzP" 3+PsNP+-zPP#
1tR-vLQ+RmK-! 2PvLQsN-zPL+"
xabcdefghy 1+-+-tRRmK-!
8.b3 xabcdefghy
Another popular way would be with 8.Rb1 16.Ne2!
a5 9.a3 Re8 10.Nd2 Be6 11.Nd5 oo Iturri- A nice move, preparing d4 or f4. 16.f4? exf4
zaga Bonelli,E-Mamedyarov,S Internet 17.gxf4 Nh5, would be simply clearly better
2018. for Black.
8...Nd4 9.Nd2 c6 10.e3 Ne6 (D) 16...b5
XABCDEFGHY Black could also go for 16...a4 17.d4 exd4
18.Bxd4 Ne6 19.Bc3 +=.
8r+lwq-trk+( 17.d4
The alternative way here was 17.f4, which
7zpp+-+pvlp' suited better these structures, but of course it
6-+pzpnsnp+& was a matter of preference.
17...exd4 18.Nxd4?!
5+-+-zp-+-% A Kramnik in form would surely have gone
4-+P+-+-+$ for 18.Bxd4 +=.
18...Rc8 19.N4f3?! (D)
3+PsNPzP-zP-# Somehow Kramnik lost his way! 19.Re3
2P+-sN-zPLzP" Qb6 20.Rd1, would be more 'harmonical'.

1tR-vLQ+RmK-! XABCDEFGHY
xabcdefghy 8-+rwqr+k+(
11.Bb2 7+-+l+pvlp'
Strange enough, this natural move is a nov- 6-+pzp-snp+&
elty to 11.Ba3 Re8 12.Nde4 Nxe4 13.dxe4
Qa5 14.Bb2 Qc7 15.Qd2 Nc5 16.h4 a5 5zppsn-+-+-%
17.Ba3 Bf8 18.Kh2 Nd7 19.Rac1 += 4-+P+P+-+$
Malakhov,V-Ding,L China 2014.
11...Nc5 12.Qc2 a5 13.Rae1 Re8 14.h3 3+P+-+NzPP#
Kramnik chose to play a quite line of the
'English Opening', which is quite similar to a 2PvLQsN-zPL+"
'Sicilian Defence' with reversed colours. 1+-+-tRRmK-!
14...Bf5 15.e4
15.Nde4 Nfxe4 16.dxe4 Be6, would be fine xabcdefghy
for Black, as White's plans would be limited. 19...d5!

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 97

Excellent! Now the weakness on d3 will be some compensation, due to passer on the b-
exploited by Black. file.
20.exd5 Rxe1 (D) 25.Qxc1
XABCDEFGHY White was forced to sac his queen, as the
alternative 25.Qe2? Nxe1 26.Nxe1, would
8-+rwq-+k+( lose on the spot to 26...Qe8! -+.
25...Nxc1 26.Rxc1 Ne4 27.Nf1 (D)
7+-+l+pvlp'
6-+p+-snp+& XABCDEFGHY
5zppsnP+-+-% 8-+-wq-+k+(
4-+P+-+-+$ 7+-+-+pvlp'
3+P+-+NzPP# 6-+-+-+p+&
2PvLQsN-zPL+" 5zpP+p+l+-%
1+-+-trRmK-! 4-+-vLn+-+$
xabcdefghy 3+P+-+NzPP#
21.Rxe1?! 2P+-+-zPL+"
21.Nxe1 was forced: 21...cxd5 22.Bxf6 1+-tR-+NmK-!
Qxf6 23.cxd5 Bf5 24.Qd1 Qd4 =+.
21...cxd5? xabcdefghy
A careless move, which lost all the advan- 27...Bxd4?
tage that Black could preserve with the sim- Careless. It was important here to find
ple 21...Bf5! 22.Qd1 Nd3 23.Bxf6 Bxf6 27...Bd7! 28.Bxg7 Kxg7 -/+. White should-
24.dxc6 Nxe1 25.Nxe1 bxc4 26.bxc4 Be6 n't last...
-/+. 28.Nxd4 Qb6 (D)
22.cxb5? (D) XABCDEFGHY
And White returned the favour on the spot.
Good was 22.Ne5! dxc4 23.bxc4 Bf5 8-+-+-+k+(
24.Qd1 Nd3 25.Nxd3 Bxd3 26.cxb5 Bxb5 =.
7+-+-+p+p'
XABCDEFGHY 6-wq-+-+p+&
8-+rwq-+k+( 5zpP+p+l+-%
7+-+l+pvlp' 4-+-sNn+-+$
6-+-+-snp+& 3+P+-+-zPP#
5zpPsnp+-+-% 2P+-+-zPL+"
4-+-+-+-+$ 1+-tR-+NmK-!
3+P+-+NzPP# xabcdefghy
2PvLQsN-zPL+" 29.Bxe4!
1+-+-tR-mK-! This was probably what Black missed; it is
not easy to surrender your lightsquared
xabcdefghy bishop in such structures...
22...Bf5! 23.Qd1 Nd3 24.Bd4 Rc1 29...dxe4?!
Winning the exchange with 24...Nxe1 29...Bxe4 30.Rd1 h5 31.Ne3 Qc5 32.h4 a4,
25.Qxe1 Rc2 26.b6 oo/=, would give White was Black's last try to prevail.

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 98

30.Nxf5 gxf5 31.a4 (D) Qa2 50.Rb4 Qa5 51.Rb8 Qa2 52.Rd8 Qa5
XABCDEFGHY 53.Rd5 Qa2 54.Rf5 Qe6 55.Rd5
55.Kg1 Qxf5 56.Nxf5 Kxf5 57.Kf1, was still
8-+-+-+k+( a draw.
55...Qa6 (D)
7+-+-+p+p'
6-wq-+-+-+& XABCDEFGHY
5zpP+-+p+-% 8-+-+-+-+(
4P+-+p+-+$ 7+-+-+-+-'
3+P+-+-zPP# 6q+-+-zpk+&
2-+-+-zP-+" 5+-+R+-+p%
1+-tR-+NmK-! 4-+-+p+-zP$
xabcdefghy 3+-+-sN-zP-#
And now it seemed that White can hold, 2-+-+-zPK+"
despite his material deficit. Black's weak- 1+-+-+-+-!
nesses, in conjunction with the b5-passer
and the harmonious white pieces should xabcdefghy
make enough compensation. 56.g4!?
31...Qe6 32.Ne3 Kramnik could 'wait' with the known
32.Rc3 =, was good enough. 56.Rf5, but he went for more 'clear' stuff, as
32...Qxb3 33.Rc4 h5 34.h4 Kh7 35.Kg2 f6 he knew how to reach theoretically drawn
36.Rd4 Kg6 37.Rc4 Kf7 38.Kh2 Kg6 positions. This is the kind of endings he
39.Kg1 Qb1+ 40.Kg2 Qb3 41.Rd4 Kf7 (D) learned when he was extremely young...
XABCDEFGHY 56...hxg4 57.h5+ Kf7 58.Rd7+ Ke6 59.Rg7
Qe2 60.h6 Qf3+ 61.Kg1 g3
8-+-+-+-+( 61...f5 62.h7 Qh3 63.Ng2 Kf6 64.Rb7 =.
62.Rxg3 Qh5 63.Rg7! (D)
7+-+-+k+-' A tactical shot which preserves the impor-
6-+-+-zp-+& tant h-pawn.
5zpP+-+p+p% XABCDEFGHY
4P+-tRp+-zP$ 8-+-+-+-+(
3+q+-sN-zP-# 7+-+-+-tR-'
2-+-+-zPK+" 6-+-+kzp-zP&
1+-+-+-+-! 5+-+-+-+q%
xabcdefghy 4-+-+p+-+$
42.Rd5 3+-+-sN-+-#
Clearing the house!
42...Qxa4 43.Rxf5 Kg6 44.b6! Qb3 2-+-+-zP-+"
44...Qb4 45.Rxf6+! Kg7 46.Rc6 =. 1+-+-+-mK-!
45.Rxa5 Qxb6 46.Rd5
The position was a dead draw already, but xabcdefghy
Black continued to try... 63...f5
46...Qb2 47.Rf5 Qa2 48.Rc5 Qe2 49.Rc4 Even the 'blunder' with 63...Qxh6 64.Re7+

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 99

Kxe7 65.Nf5+ Ke6 66.Nxh6 f5, was still XABCDEFGHY
drawn, as per the tablebases!
64.h7 f4 65.Ng4 Qh3 8rsnlwq-trk+(
65...Kf5 66.Kg2 and Black couldn't im-
prove.
7zpp+-+pzpp'
66.Rg6+! Kf5 67.Rg7 Ke6 6-+-+psn-+&
67...e3 68.fxe3 fxe3 69.h8Q Qxh8 70.Nxe3+
=. 5+-zpp+-+-%
68.Rg6+ Kf5 (D) 4-vlPzP-+-+$
XABCDEFGHY 3zP-sN-zPN+-#
8-+-+-+-+( 2-zP-vL-zPPzP"
7+-+-+-+P' 1tR-+QmKL+R!
6-+-+-+R+& xabcdefghy
5+-+-+k+-% 7...cxd4
4-+-+pzpN+$ The main alternative is 7...Bxc3 8.Bxc3 Ne4
9.Rc1 Nxc3 10.Rxc3 cxd4 11.Nxd4 dxc4
3+-+-+-+q# 12.Bxc4 Bd7 13.0-0 += Riazantsev,A-
Inarkiev,E Doha 2016.
2-+-+-zP-+" 8.axb4 dxc3 9.Bxc3 dxc4 10.Bxc4 Qxd1+
1+-+-+-mK-! (D)
xabcdefghy XABCDEFGHY
69.Nh6+! 8rsnl+-trk+(
69.Rg7 =.
69...Kxg6 70.h8Q Qxh6 71.Qe8+ Kf5
7zpp+-+pzpp'
72.Qb5+ Kg4 73.Qe2+ Kf5 74.Qb5+ 6-+-+psn-+&
Clocks: W: 3:15:27 - B: 3:08:54
½-½ 5+-+-+-+-%
4-zPL+-+-+$
3+-vL-zPN+-#
2-zP-+-zPPzP"
1tR-+qmK-+R!
xabcdefghy
7.3. Karjakin could preserve some tiny
11.Kxd1
opening advantage, but he failed to cope
A novelty to 11.Rxd1 Bd7 12.Ne5 +=
with the needs of the position, allowing So a
Sandipan,C-Visakh,N Kolkata 2015. Obvi-
more or less easy game. It looked like an
ously White was thinking to preserve
easy draw, but still some accuracy was in
squares d1/c1 for the h1-rook.
need, due to White’s active king. So, failed
11...Bd7 12.Ke2 Rc8 13.Bd3?!
to do so and he lost in no time.
A careless move, which lost the advantage.
□ Karjakin Sergey (2763) Good was 13.Ne5 Be8 14.f3 +=.
■ So Wesley (2799) 13...Nd5! 14.Ne5 Be8 (D)
E51 Berlin 2018 14...Nxc3+?! 15.bxc3 Rxc3 16.Rhc1, would
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.e3 0-0 5.Nf3 allow White to get better: 16...Rc8
d5 6.Bd2 c5 7.a3 (D) (16...Rxc1 17.Rxc1 f6 18.Nxd7 Nxd7

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 100

19.Rc7 Ne5 20.Be4 +=) 17.Nxd7 Rxc1 26.b3 Ne5 =.
18.Rxc1 Nxd7 19.Rc7 Ne5 20.Rxb7 Nxd3 22.Na5! Nd3 23.Rd1 Nxb2 24.Rxd7 Bxd7
21.Kxd3 a6 22.Kc4 +=. Rook on the 7th and 25.Bc6 Bxc6 26.Nxc6 (D)
active king! XABCDEFGHY
XABCDEFGHY 8-tr-+-+k+(
8rsnr+l+k+( 7tR-+-+-zpp'
7zpp+-+pzpp' 6-+N+pzp-+&
6-+-+p+-+& 5+-+-+-+-%
5+-+nsN-+-% 4-+-+-+-+$
4-zP-+-+-+$ 3+-+-zP-+-#
3+-vLLzP-+-# 2-sn-+KzPPzP"
2-zP-+KzPPzP" 1+-+-+-+-!
1tR-+-+-+R! xabcdefghy
xabcdefghy A drawish endgame, although White can
15.Bd2?! press a bit, due to his 7th rank rook and in
Another inaccuracy. White had to opt for general his more mobile pieces. But still the
15.Rhc1 =. outcome should be a draw.
15...f6?! 26...Re8 27.e4 Nc4 28.Kd3 Nd6
After 15...Na6!, White would have to 'invest' After 28...Ne5+? 29.Nxe5 fxe5 30.h4, the
pawn b4, or go for 16.Bxa6 bxa6 17.Rhc1 e5-pawn will fall (Ra5xe5).
Bb5+ 18.Ke1 f6 19.Nf3 e5 20.Ng1! =. 29.f4 Kf8 30.e5 fxe5 31.fxe5
16.Nc4 Rd8 17.Rhc1 Nc6 (D) Or 31.Nxe5 Re7 32.Ra6 Nf7 =.
XABCDEFGHY 31...Nf5 32.g4 Nh4 33.Kc4 Nf3 34.Ra2
White had no realistic winning chances after
8r+-trl+k+( 34.h3 Ng5 35.h4 Nf3 36.h5 Nh2 37.g5 Nf3
38.h6 Nxg5 39.Rxg7 Nf7 40.Rxh7 Kg8
7zpp+-+-zpp' 41.Rg7+ Kf8 =. Neither had he with the text
6-+n+pzp-+& of course!
34...Rc8 35.Kb5 (D)
5+-+n+-+-% XABCDEFGHY
4-zPN+-+-+$ 8-+r+-mk-+(
3+-+LzP-+-# 7+-+-+-zpp'
2-zP-vLKzPPzP" 6-+N+p+-+&
1tR-tR-+-+-! 5+K+-zP-+-%
xabcdefghy 4-+-+-+P+$
18.Be4!
Forcing exchanges, which both keep the 3+-+-+n+-#
balance and allow White to enter the 7th.
18...Ndxb4 19.Bxb4 Nxb4 20.Bxb7 Rab8 2R+-+-+-zP"
21.Rxa7 Rd7 1+-+-+-+-!
Maybe more 'accurate' was 21...Bb5 22.Be4
f5 23.Bb1 Nc6 24.Ra2 Rd5 25.Ke1 Rc5 xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 101
A critical position. It looked like a dead □ Aronian Levon (2794)
draw, but Black had to find some accurate ■ Caruana Fabiano (2784)
moves yet... D39 Berlin 2018
35...Ke8? 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.Nc3 dxc4 5.e4
A losing blunder! Black had to find Bb4 6.Bg5 h6 7.Bxf6 Qxf6 8.Bxc4 c5 9.0-0
35...Rc7! 36.h3 (36.Rf2 Rf7 =) 36...Rd7 =, cxd4 10.e5 Qd8 (D)
activating the rook. XABCDEFGHY
36.Kb6!
And suddenly the black rook is in trouble! 8rsnlwqk+-tr(
36...g5
White would win as well after 36...g6 37.g5!
7zpp+-+pzp-'
(37.Kb7? Kd7 38.Nb8+ Rxb8+ 39.Kxb8 6-+-+p+-zp&
Nxe5 =) 37...Nxg5 38.Kb7 Rxc6 39.Kxc6 +-.
37.h3! (D) 5+-+-zP-+-%
XABCDEFGHY 4-vlLzp-+-+$
8-+r+k+-+( 3+-sN-+N+-#
7+-+-+-+p' 2PzP-+-zPPzP"
6-mKN+p+-+& 1tR-+Q+RmK-!
5+-+-zP-zp-% xabcdefghy
4-+-+-+P+$ 11.Ne4
11.Nxd4 didn't give White much: 11...0-0
3+-+-+n+P# 12.Rc1 Bd7 13.Qb3 Qb6 14.Rfd1 Bc5
15.Qxb6 Bxb6 16.Ndb5 a6 17.Nd6 Bc6 =
2R+-+-+-+" Khegay,D-Lysyj,I Cheliabinsk 2017.
1+-+-+-+-! 11...0-0 12.Qe2 Be7 13.Rad1
Unclear as well would be 13.Rfd1 Qa5
xabcdefghy 14.Ng3 Rd8 15.Qe4 Nd7 oo Grandelius,N-
37...Nxe5 Bluebaum,M Germany 2018.
37...h6 38.Ra1! and the coming Kb7 kills. 13...Qc7 (D)
38.Nxe5 Rc3 39.Rh2 XABCDEFGHY
39.Ra7 h6 40.Rh7 Rxh3 41.Kc6 +-.
39...Ke7 40.Kb5 Re3 8rsnl+-trk+(
And Black lost on time in a lost position:
41.Nc4 Rf3 42.Kc5 Rd3 43.Nd2 Kf6 44.Kc4
7zppwq-vlpzp-'
+-. A good example in where the active king 6-+-+p+-zp&
prevailed!
Clocks: 1:58:59 - B: 1:58:00 5+-+-zP-+-%
1-0 4-+LzpN+-+$
7.4. Aronian came into a fresh and attack- 3+-+-+N+-#
ing mood, releasing an interesting line,
which involved early pawn sacrifices - obvi- 2PzP-+QzPPzP"
ously prepared beforehand. The game was 1+-+R+RmK-!
quite messy and a nightmare for any com-
mentator (!). Caruana reacted well and al- xabcdefghy
though many mistakes were made by both 14.Bd3
sides, it was one of the most spectacular This natural move was a novelty here, as
games of the event. white players used to go for 14.Ng3 Rd8

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 102

15.Nh5 g6 16.Nf4 Nc6 17.Qe4 Bf8 18.h4 and attacking pieces on the kingside. Was
Bg7 19.Rfe1 Bd7 20.Bd3 Be8 21.Bb1 d3 the investment good? I can't really tell with
22.Nxd3 Ne7 23.h5 g5 24.Rc1 Bc6 25.Nb4 100% accuracy, but during a practical game,
Bxe4 26.Rxc7 Bxf3 27.gxf3 Nc6 28.Nxc6 when your opponent is not fully prepared, it
bxc6 29.Rxc6 Rac8 30.Rxc8 Rxc8 31.Kg2 can be proven a lethal option! To sum-up,
½-½ Moiseenko,A-Meier,G Jerusalem 2017. Aronian's idea should work to the full
14...Nd7 15.Rc1 (point!) but should be enough for a draw -
Maybe White should have thought of nobody in this level plays something just to
15.Ng3 Rd8 16.Nh5 oo. lose!
15...Qa5 (D) 18.f4! Qa5
XABCDEFGHY 18...Qd5, was the main alternative queen
move, but it seemed that the black queen
8r+l+-trk+( wasn't entirely 'perfect' on d5: 19.g5 Bd7
20.gxh6 Rfc8 (20...g6 21.Rc5! Qxa2 22.Bc4
7zpp+nvlpzp-' d3 23.Qxd3 Qxb2 24.Rc7 [24.Rb1 Qh8
6-+-+p+-zp& 25.Rc7 Qxh6 26.Rxd7 Rfd8 oo] 24...Qb6+
25.Rf2 Rad8 [25...Qxc7? 26.Qc3 f6
5wq-+-zP-+-% 27.Bxe6+ Bxe6 28.Qxc7 +/-] 26.Rxd7 Rxd7
4-+-zpN+-+$ 27.Qxd7 Bh4 28.Ng3 oo) 21.Qg2 g6
22.Rxc8+ Rxc8 23.f5! oo/=.
3+-+L+N+-# 19.g5 (D)
2PzP-+QzPPzP" XABCDEFGHY
1+-tR-+RmK-! 8r+l+-trk+(
xabcdefghy 7zpp+-vlpzp-'
16.g4!?
I am sure that the entire continuation came
6-+-+p+-zp&
out from the 'Levon Lab' and it looked quite 5wq-+-+-zP-%
dangerous for both sides! 16.Ng3 Nc5
(16...Qxa2? 17.Nh5 +/-) 17.Bb1 d3 18.Qe3
4-+-zpNzP-+$
oo, was the 'human' way... 3+-+L+-+-#
16...Nxe5 17.Nxe5 Qxe5 (D)
XABCDEFGHY 2PzP-+Q+-zP"
8r+l+-trk+( 1+-tR-+RmK-!
7zpp+-vlpzp-' xabcdefghy
19...Qd8 (D)
6-+-+p+-zp& Being greedy is a sin and Caruana could
have fell for this sin with 19...hxg5?. Then
5+-+-wq-+-% after 20.Qh5 f5 (20...g6 21.Qh6 g4 22.Rc5!
4-+-zpN+P+$ +- ; 20...Qf5 21.fxg5 g6 22.Qh4 Qe5 23.Rf6!
+-) 21.fxg5 fxe4 22.Rxf8+ Kxf8 (22...Bxf8
3+-+L+-+-# 23.Bxe4 Be7 24.Qe8+ Bf8 25.Rf1 +-)
2PzP-+QzP-zP" 23.Qh8+ Kf7 24.Rf1+ +-, Aronian would
have cashed the point! Critical was 19...Bd7
1+-tR-+RmK-! 20.gxh6 (20.h4? Rac8 -+) 20...g6 21.Nc5
Bxc5 22.Qe5 f6 23.Qxc5 Qxc5 24.Rxc5,
xabcdefghy where although the engines prefer Black, I
Black was now two pawns-up but White feel that White would share the point in the
could claim a slightly better development end. Finally, 19...g6 20.gxh6 Kh7
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 103
(20...Qd8!? 21.Qg4 Bd7 22.Nc5 oo/=) 21.h4 White tried for something more but objec-
Kxh6 22.Ng5 oo/=, had to be noted. tively 23.hxg6 fxg6 24.Nc5 Rc8 25.Nxd7
XABCDEFGHY (25.Qe5+ Bf6 26.Qe2 Be7 =) 25...Qxd7
26.Qe5+ Bf6 27.Qe4, was equal.
8r+lwq-trk+( 23...Bc6 (D)
7zpp+-vlpzp-' XABCDEFGHY
6-+-+p+-zp& 8r+-wq-tr-mk(
5+-+-+-zP-% 7zpp+-vlp+-'
4-+-zpNzP-+$ 6-+l+p+pzP&
3+-+L+-+-# 5+-+-+-+P%
2PzP-+Q+-zP" 4-+-zpNzP-+$
1+-tR-+RmK-! 3+-+L+-+-#
xabcdefghy 2PzP-+Q+-mK"
20.h4!? 1+-tR-+R+-!
20.gxh6 g6 21.Qg4 oo/=, was noted above
as well.
xabcdefghy
20...Bd7 From now on a series of bad moves by both
Natural development, which had to be players took place. Well, the position was
played sooner or later. rather difficult to play and we shouldn't be
21.gxh6 (D) too critical, as to err is human...
24.Rf3?
XABCDEFGHY 24.Rf2 was more or less forced: 24...Qd5
8r+-wq-trk+( 25.hxg6 fxg6 26.Rg1 Be8 27.Qg4 oo/=.
24...Bd6?
7zpp+lvlpzp-' Black missed 24...Qa5 25.Rh3 Bxe4
6-+-+p+-zP& 26.Bxe4 g5 -/+, or either 24...Qd5 25.hxg6
(25.Rh3 Rg8 -/+) 25...Qh5+ 26.Kg1 fxg6
5+-+-+-+-% -/+.
4-+-zpNzP-zP$ 25.Qf2? (D)
25.Kh3!, stopping ...Qh4+, was necessary.
3+-+L+-+-# XABCDEFGHY
2PzP-+Q+-+" 8r+-wq-tr-mk(
1+-tR-+RmK-! 7zpp+-+p+-'
xabcdefghy 6-+lvlp+pzP&
21...g6
21...f5 22.hxg7 Rf7 23.Ng5 Rxg7 24.Kh2 5+-+-+-+P%
oo/=, was simply messy... 4-+-zpNzP-+$
22.h5 Kh8!
Black should be careful and this was his best 3+-+L+R+-#
move. Bad was 22...g5? 23.fxg5 Bxg5 2PzP-+-wQ-mK"
24.Qg2 f6 25.Nxf6+ +- and inferior the
22...Rc8?! 23.Rxc8 Qxc8 24.hxg6 fxg6 1+-tR-+-+-!
25.Ng5 +=.
23.Kh2
xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 104
25...Bc7? e5 29.Re1 Qd7+ 30.f5 e4 -+.
Black again missed his best chance: 28.Rxc6!
25...Bxe4! 26.Qxd4+ e5 27.Qxe4 Qh4+ With a series of two sacrifices, White stayed
28.Rh3 Qxf4+ 29.Qxf4 exf4 30.hxg6 into the game! 28.Nxf7+ Rxf7 29.hxg6,
(30.Rg1 Rae8 -/+) 30...fxg6 31.Bxg6 f3+ transposes.
32.Kh1 f2 33.Rf1 Rf6 34.Be4 Rg8 -/+. 28...bxc6 (D)
26.Kh3! Qe7 (D) XABCDEFGHY
XABCDEFGHY 8r+-+-tr-mk(
8r+-+-tr-mk( 7zp-vl-wqp+-'
7zppvl-wqp+-' 6-+p+-+pzP&
6-+l+p+pzP& 5+-+-zp-sNP%
5+-+-+-+P% 4-+-zp-zP-+$
4-+-zpNzP-+$ 3+-+L+R+K#
3+-+L+R+K# 2PzP-+-wQ-+"
2PzP-+-wQ-+" 1+-+-+-+-!
1+-tR-+-+-! xabcdefghy
xabcdefghy 29.Nxf7+! Rxf7 30.hxg6
27.Ng5? White had missed a rook in total, but he was
27.Rg1!, was preserving equal chances. A compensated with a strong pawn duo.
sample variation could be 27...Rg8 28.Rfg3 30...Rf6
Bd7 29.Rxg6! fxg6 30.hxg6 Rxg6 31.Rxg6 Black tried for something more, as the alter-
Bxf4! 32.Nf6! (32.Qxf4? e5+ -+) 32...e5+ native 30...Rxf4 31.Rxf4 exf4 32.Qxd4+
33.Nxd7 Qxd7+ 34.Kg2 Qh7 35.Qf3 Rg8 Qe5 (32...Be5 33.g7+ Bxg7 34.hxg7+ Qxg7
36.Rxg8+ Qxg8+ 37.Kf1 Bxh6 38.Qf6+ 35.Qxf4 =) 33.g7+ Kg8 34.Bc4+ Kh7
Qg7 (38...Bg7? 39.Qh4+ +-) 39.Qe6! = (D) 35.Qd3+ Kxh6 36.g8Q Rxg8 37.Bxg8,
XABCDEFGHY should end in a draw.
31.g7+ Kg8 (D)
8-+-+-+-mk( XABCDEFGHY
7zpp+-+-wq-' 8r+-+-+k+(
6-+-+Q+-vl& 7zp-vl-wq-zP-'
5+-+-zp-+-% 6-+p+-tr-zP&
4-+-zp-+-+$ 5+-+-zp-+-%
3+-+L+-+-# 4-+-zp-zP-+$
2PzP-+-+-+" 3+-+L+R+K#
1+-+-+K+-! 2PzP-+-wQ-+"
xabcdefghy 1+-+-+-+-!
In many continuations the opposite-coloured
bishops help White to preserve the draw. xabcdefghy
27...e5? 32.Bc4+?
27...gxh5!, was winning on the spot: 28.Rg3 It's a blunderfull life. Aronian missed his last

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 105

chance to draw: 32.Qh4! e4 (32...exf4
33.Bc4+ Kh7 34.Bd3+ = ; 32...Qe6+? 33.f5
Qd6 34.Kg4 +-) 33.h7+ Kxg7 34.Rg3+ Kh8
35.Rg8+ Rxg8 36.hxg8Q+ Kxg8 37.Bc4+
Kg7 38.Qg5+ Kh7 39.Qg8+ Kh6 40.Qg5+
=.
32...Kh7 33.Qh4 e4
And as the diagonal b1-h7 was closed, Black
was winning.
34.Rg3 Bxf4 35.g8Q+ Rxg8 36.Bxg8+ Kh8
(D)
XABCDEFGHY
8-+-+-+Lmk(
7zp-+-wq-+-'
6-+p+-tr-zP&
5+-+-+-+-%
4-+-zppvl-wQ$
3+-+-+-tRK#
2PzP-+-+-+"
1+-+-+-+-!
xabcdefghy
37.Rg7
37.Rg6 Qd7+ 38.Qg4 Qxg4+ 39.Rxg4 d3 -+.
37...Qf8
White resigned, as h6 was falling... A sad
game for Aronian and an important step for
Caruana in his efforts to win the tournament
and the desired right to face Magnus Carlsen
for the title of the World Champion! Of
course it is just half-way, but it is always a
good feeling to look at all the others from
the high floors! And such points make the
feeling better and stronger!
Clocks: W: 1:57:07 - B: 1:56:54
0-1
Recipes from Round 7:
1. Kramnik-Ding: After 24...Rc1 and giv-
ing up his queen, Kramnik was sure he is
much better and even close to winning
sometimes in this game. He said that after
32.Rc3 he was the only one who could fight
for victory. Ding Liren was not so sure and
thought the position was about equal. Anas-
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018
tasia Karlovich asked Kramnik to compare
his feelings after half tournament in London
and in Berlin and he said he much preferred
to have 3½)7 this way than in London five
years ago, when he started with seven
draws: ‘Nice wins, painful losses, its life.
Emotions!’.
2. Karjakin-So: So lost on time because he
forgot about move 40; he said this at the
Press-Conference. He thought he could try
some chances to survive after if he crossed
time control.
FIDE World Chess Championship 2018
London * England - Event’s Logo
3. Aronian-Caruana: Caruana didn’t know
the idea 16.g4 and was really surprised but
he believed in defending resources of his
position. Aronian thought that after
30...Rxf4 he was lost: ‘It's not really affect-
ing me. I'm not 12 years old; I've been losing
games before, and having disastrous tour-
naments. I just try to play, try to fight. OK,
I'm probably not in the best shape to do so
because the results probably suggest that,
but OK, I can't really change my nature, I'm
going to try and win a game, despite not
really playing my best chess. I hope to bring
the luck back’.
4. Grischuk-Mamedyarov: Grischuk didn’t
want to comment what went wrong in the
opening. Shahriyar said that he has never
played 5...h6 in this line before. Grischuk
was asked: how long did you prepare for this
game? And he answered: ‘My whole life!’.
106
 Commentators Alexander Grischuk vs Sakhriyar Mamedyarov
Laurence Trent & Judit Polgar

Sergey Karjakin Levon Aronian vs Fabiano Caruana

Vladimir Kramnik vs Ding Liren Alexander Grischuk

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 107

 Sergey Karjakin vs Wesley So

Half-way
The tournament has been already played Vladimir Kramnik started with 2½)3, but
half-way, with a good 11 wins and 17 draws. in the next 4 rounds he failed to impress. He
Fabiano Caruana has been emerged the sole shared 3rd position, together with Alexander
leader, unbeaten with 5)7, which is an excel- Grischuk and Ding Liren, on 50%.
lent score for such an event. Sergey Karjakin recovered from his bad
He is closely followed by Sakhriyar Ma- start, while the tail-leaders are Levon Aro-
medyarov, who has failed to impress but he nian and Wesley So! Both of them have lost
has been quite practical and took all given 3 games each, standing on a disastrous -2
chances. and seem to be out of chances…
Standings Half-way
N Name Rat 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 P Perf
1 Caruana Fabiano 2784 ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ 1 1 5 2944
2 Mamedyarov Sakhriyar 2809 ½ 1 ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ 4½ 2884
3 Kramnik Vladimir 2800 0 0 1 ½ ½ 1 ½ 3½ 2784
4 Grischuk Alexander 2767 ½ ½ 0 ½ ½ ½ 1 3½ 2788
5 Ding Liren 2769 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 3½ 2788
6 Karjakin Sergey 2763 ½ 0 ½ ½ ½ 0 1 3 2739
7 Aronian Levon 2794 0 ½ 0 ½ ½ 1 0 2½ 2682
8 So Wesley 2799 0 ½ ½ 0 ½ 0 1 2½ 2682
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 108
Round 8 (19.03.2018)
Round 8 12.bxc3 dxc3 13.Qxd8+ Kxd8 14.Rd1+ Bd7
19.03.2018 - 15:00 15.Ba4 Rc8 16.Bg5 +/-.
1 Grischuk - Kramnik 1:0 9.Nxd4 Bb7 (D)
2 Mamedyarov - Karjakin ½:½ Again 9...b4?, would be too greedy, as after
3 Ding - Aronian ½:½ 10.Na4 Nxe4 11.Be3 +/-, White would have
4 So - Caruana ½:½ a great lead in development, adding Black's
weaknesses on the queenside.
The round was marked by another Kram-
nik lose, which should have put an end to his
XABCDEFGHY
ambitions. For another one round Ma- 8rsn-wqkvl-tr(
medyarov didn’t try much and didn’t take
any risks. The other two games ended in 7+l+-+pzpp'
fighting draws. 6p+-+psn-+&
8.1. For another one game Kramnik sui- 5+p+-+-+-%
cide! Grischuk got an opening advantage but
he didn’t played best, allowing Kramnik to 4-+-sNP+-+$
hold. Then numerous mistakes by both sides
were followed and in the end the last was
3+LsN-+-+-#
made by Kramnik… 2PzP-+-zPPzP"
□ Grischuk Alexander (2767) 1tR-vLQmK-+R!
■ Kramnik Vladimir (2800)
D26 Berlin 2018 xabcdefghy
1.c4 e6 2.Nc3 d5 3.d4 Nf6 4.Nf3 c5 5.e3 10.e5!
dxc4 6.Bxc4 a6 (D) A good novelty to 10.0-0 Nc6 11.Be3 Bd6
XABCDEFGHY 12.Nxc6 Bxc6 13.Bd4 Qc7 = Maljush,A-
Kupreichik,V Minsk 2004.
8rsnlwqkvl-tr( 10...Ne4! (D)
10...Nfd7?! would fail to 11.Bxe6! Nxe5
7+p+-+pzpp' (11...fxe6 12.Nxe6 Qc8 13.0-0 +/-) 12.0-0
6p+-+psn-+& fxe6 13.Qh5+ Ng6 14.Nxe6 Qc8 15.Qf5
Ne7 16.Qh3 +/-.
5+-zp-+-+-% XABCDEFGHY
4-+LzP-+-+$ 8rsn-wqkvl-tr(
3+-sN-zPN+-# 7+l+-+pzpp'
2PzP-+-zPPzP" 6p+-+p+-+&
1tR-vLQmK-+R! 5+p+-zP-+-%
xabcdefghy 4-+-sNn+-+$
7.Bb3
7.0-0 b5 8.Be2 Bb7 9.dxc5 Bxc5 10.Qxd8+ 3+LsN-+-+-#
Kxd8 11.Nd2 Ke7 12.Nb3 Bb6 13.a4 +=
Carlsen,M-So,W Internet 2017.
2PzP-+-zPPzP"
7...b5 8.e4 cxd4 1tR-vLQmK-+R!
8...b4?, would give the advantage to White
after 9.e5! bxc3 10.exf6 cxd4 11.0-0 Nc6 xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 109
11.0-0 14...axb5
11.Nxe4 Bxe4 12.0-0 Nc6 13.Nxc6 Qxd1 14...Nxd4?, was quite dangerous, as the
14.Rxd1 Bxc6 15.Be3 Be7 16.Rac1 Rc8, it black king was still uncastled: 15.cxd4 Bxd4
wasn't clear how White would benefit from (15...Qxd4 16.bxa6 Bc6 17.Ba4 Bxa4
his spatial advantage and development. 18.Qxd4 Bxd4 19.Rxa4 Bxe5 20.Ba3 +/-)
11...Nxc3 12.bxc3 Nc6 (D) 16.Ra4 (16.bxa6 Bxa6 17.Ra4 Bc5 18.Rxa6
XABCDEFGHY Rxa6 19.Ba4+ Ke7 20.Bg5+ f6 21.Qf3 +/-)
16...Bxe5 17.Qh5 +/-.
8r+-wqkvl-tr( 15.Rxa8 Bxa8 16.Nxb5 (D)
7+l+-+pzpp' XABCDEFGHY
6p+n+p+-+& 8l+-wqk+-tr(
5+p+-zP-+-% 7+-+-+pzpp'
4-+-sN-+-+$ 6-+n+p+-+&
3+LzP-+-+-# 5+Nvl-zP-+-%
2P+-+-zPPzP" 4-+-+-+-+$
1tR-vLQ+RmK-! 3+LzP-+-+-#
xabcdefghy 2-+-+-zPPzP"
13.a4?! 1+-vLQ+RmK-!
Although interesting, the text allowed Black
to feel good. White should have opted for xabcdefghy
13.Be3 Nxd4 (13...Nxe5 14.Qh5 Ng6 15.a4 16...0-0
oo/=) 14.cxd4 +=. Now Black would 'suffer', being a pawn
13...Bc5! down. Fine was 16...Nxe5, preserving the
13...Nxd4?!, could have been tried: 14.cxd4 balance.
b4 15.a5 Be7 16.Qg4 Kf8 17.Be3 +=, while 17.Qxd8 Rxd8 18.Bf4 h6! 19.h4 Ne7
13...b4 14.a5! Nxd4 (14...bxc3? 15.Ba4 Rc8 20.Rd1 Rb8 21.Bc4 Bc6 22.Nd4 (D)
16.Rb1 Ba8 17.Nxc6 Bxc6 18.Bxc6+ Rxc6 22.Nd6 Rb2 23.Bg3 Rc2 24.Rd3 Nd5 =.
19.Qa4 +-) 15.cxd4, it would be just a trans- XABCDEFGHY
position.
14.axb5 (D) 8-tr-+-+k+(
XABCDEFGHY 7+-+-snpzp-'
8r+-wqk+-tr( 6-+l+p+-zp&
7+l+-+pzpp' 5+-vl-zP-+-%
6p+n+p+-+& 4-+LsN-vL-zP$
5+Pvl-zP-+-% 3+-zP-+-+-#
4-+-sN-+-+$ 2-+-+-zPP+"
3+LzP-+-+-# 1+-+R+-mK-!
2-+-+-zPPzP" xabcdefghy
1tR-vLQ+RmK-! 22...Be4
22...Bxd4! 23.Rxd4 (23.cxd4 Bd5 =)
xabcdefghy 23...Nf5 24.Rd1 Nxh4 =, was quite simple.

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 110

23.h5 Nd5 24.Bxd5 36...Bxg3 37.Kxg3 g6 =.
There was no other way to ease Black's 37.Kf3 Bd3 38.Re1 Bb2 39.Ke3 Bc2
pressure, but handing the bishop pair could- 40.Kd2 Bb3 41.Rb1 Ra2 42.Kd3 (D)
n't really improve White's position... XABCDEFGHY
24...Bxd5 25.Be3 Rc8 26.Re1 (D)
XABCDEFGHY 8-+-+-+k+(
8-+r+-+k+( 7+-+-+pzp-'
7+-+-+pzp-' 6-+-+p+-zp&
6-+-+p+-zp& 5+-+-zP-+P%
5+-vllzP-+P% 4-+-vL-+-+$
4-+-sN-+-+$ 3+lzPK+-sN-#
3+-zP-vL-+-# 2rvl-+-zPP+"
2-+-+-zPP+" 1+R+-+-+-!
1+-+-tR-mK-! xabcdefghy
Now Black was in trouble, as White had also
xabcdefghy activated his king.
26...Bc4 42...Ba4 43.Ne4 Ba3 44.Ke3 Bc2 45.Re1?!
Simplest here was 26...Bxd4 27.Bxd4 Kh7 Active and good was 45.Rb8+! Kh7 46.g4
=. This possibility of exchanging the dark- and White would prevail.
squared bishop for the knight, getting a 45...Bb3 46.g4 Bd5 47.Kd3 Be7 48.Rb1
drawn opposite-coloured bishops ending, Ra8 49.f4 Bh4 50.Rh1 Bd8 51.Rb1
exists in many positions from now. 51.Rg1, planning g5, was a good plan to
27.Nf3! Ba3 28.Bd4 Bd3 29.Nd2 Bb2 increase the advantage.
30.Nf1 Rc4 (D) 51...Bc7 52.Ke3 Kh7 53.Nd6 Kg8 54.Rb5
30...Bxc3? 31.Rc1 +-, would be too naive... Bc6 55.Rb4 Bd8
XABCDEFGHY Black cannot afford anymore to exchange
his darksquared bishop: 55...Bxd6?! 56.exd6
8-+-+-+k+( Kf8 57.Rb6 +-.
56.Bb6 Bh4! 57.Bd4 Bg2 58.Rb2 Bc6
7+-+-+pzp-' 59.Rb6 Bg2 60.Rb2 Bc6 (D)
6-+-+p+-zp& XABCDEFGHY
5+-+-zP-+P% 8r+-+-+k+(
4-+rvL-+-+$ 7+-+-+pzp-'
3+-zPl+-+-# 6-+lsNp+-zp&
2-vl-+-zPP+" 5+-+-zP-+P%
1+-+-tRNmK-! 4-+-vL-zPPvl$
xabcdefghy 3+-zP-mK-+-#
31.Re3 Bf5 32.Ng3 Bh7 33.Kh2 Bc1
34.Re2 Bf4 35.Kh3 Ra4 2-tR-+-+-+"
Why not 35...Bxg3 36.Kxg3 g6 37.hxg6 1+-+-+-+-!
Bxg6 =.
36.Kg4 Bc1? xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 111
61.Rb3 Clearer was 65...Bg1+! 66.Ke2 Ra2 =.
White wanted to win time on the clock, 66.Nd6 Re7 67.Rb8 f6
reaching the 60th move, when extra time was Why not 67...Bxe5! 68.Bxe5 Rxe5+ 69.Kd4
added. A smart procedure in such cases. Re7 70.Rb3 Rc7 =.
61...Bg3 68.Rc8 (D)
61...Bg2 62.c4 +/-. XABCDEFGHY
62.c4
62.Rb6 Bg2 63.Rb1 Bc6 64.g5 +/-. 8-+R+-+-+(
62...Bh2 (D)
7+-+-tr-zpk'
XABCDEFGHY 6-+lsN-zp-zp&
8r+-+-+k+( 5+-+-zP-+P%
7+-+-+pzp-' 4-+P+-+P+$
6-+lsNp+-zp& 3+-+-mK-+-#
5+-+-zP-+P% 2-vL-+-+-vl"
4-+PvL-zPP+$ 1+-+-+-+-!
3+R+-mK-+-# xabcdefghy
2-+-+-+-vl" 68...Bh1?
1+-+-+-+-! 68...Bd7!, would still draw: 69.Rc7 fxe5
70.c5 e4 =.
xabcdefghy 69.Nf5! Rb7 (D)
White had to do something active, so he 69...Re6, was an interesting try, forcing
went for his advances, as it was important to White to find the mating net with 70.Nh4!
create new targets on Black's camp. fxe5 (70...Ra6 71.Ng6 Ra8 72.Rxa8 Bxa8
63.f5! exf5 73.exf6 +-) 71.Ng6 Rxg6 72.hxg6+ Kxg6
Black had a difficult decision to make. If he 73.c5 Kg5 74.c6 g6 75.c7 e4 76.Bc3 Bf3
would stay put with 63...Bg3, then a sample 77.Ba5 Bf4+ 78.Kd4 Kxg4 79.Rf8 +-.
variation could be 64.Ne4 Bh4 65.Rb6 Ra3+ XABCDEFGHY
66.Nc3 Bg2 67.c5 (67.fxe6? fxe6 68.Rxe6
Be1 69.Kd3 Bf1+ 70.Kc2 Bxc4 =) 67...Ra8 8-+R+-+-+(
68.fxe6 fxe6 69.Rxe6 Bh3 70.c6 Bxg4
71.Rd6 Bxh5 72.c7 Bg4 73.e6 Re8 74.Kf4
7+r+-+-zpk'
h5 75.Be5 +-. 6-+-+-zp-zp&
64.Nxf5?
A bad move, which kicked the win away. 5+-+-zPN+P%
After 64.gxf5! f6!, Black could pose some 4-+P+-+P+$
problems, but still White could prevail:
65.Rb6 Ra3+ 66.Kd2 Bf3! (66...fxe5? 3+-+-mK-+-#
67.Bb2 Ra2 68.Rxc6 Rxb2+ 69.Kc3 +-) 2-vL-+-+-vl"
67.Rb8+! (67.exf6? Bf4+ 68.Kc2 gxf6 69.c5
Bxd6 70.Rxd6 Be4+ 71.Kb2 Rd3 =) 1+-+-+-+l!
67...Kh7 68.Nf7 Ra8 69.Rxa8 Bxa8 70.e6!
(70.exf6? gxf6 71.Bxf6 Bf3 +/-) 70...Kg8
xabcdefghy
71.Nd8 Bd6 (71...Bf3 72.e7 Bxh5 73.c5 Be8 70.exf6?
74.c6 +-) 72.c5 Be7 73.Nf7 Kf8 74.Ke3 Bc6 Incredible! 70.e6! Rb3+ 71.Bc3! +-, was
75.Nd6 +-. curtains!
64...Kh7 65.Bb2 Re8?! 70...Rb3+ 71.Bc3 gxf6!

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 112

Simple and good and not of course White was winning fairly easy now.
71...Rxc3+? 72.Kd2 +-. 85.Kf3! Kf7 86.Bf4 Bd4 87.c6 Ke7 88.c7
72.Kd2 Bf4+ 73.Kc2 Rb8! 74.Rxb8 Bxb8 Kd7 89.h7 Kc8 90.Ke2 Kd7 91.Kd3
75.Ne7 Black resigned, as White would bring his
Or 75.Bxf6 Bf3 76.Ne3 Ba7 =. king to d5 and play Be5.
75...Be4+ 76.Kd2 (D) Clocks: W: 3:27:42 - B: 3:28:59
XABCDEFGHY 1-0

8-vl-+-+-+(
7+-+-sN-+k'
6-+-+-zp-zp&
5+-+-+-+P%
4-+P+l+P+$
3+-vL-+-+-#
2-+-mK-+-+" 8.2. Mamedyarov got nearly nothing out of
1+-+-+-+-! his opening stage vs Karjakin, so he opted
for a draw by move repetition. It didn’t look
xabcdefghy like a great fight, but at least Mamedyarov
76...Bf4+? tried…
Favours were given without shame! Black □ Mamedyarov Shakhriyar (2809)
could draw here with 76...Bf3 77.Nd5 Kg7 ■ Karjakin Sergey (2763)
78.Nxf6 Bf4+ 79.Ke1 Kf7 80.Kf2 Bd1 E05 Berlin 2018
81.Kg2 Be2 82.c5 Ke6 =. 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.g3 Be7 5.Bg2
77.Ke2 Kg7 78.Nf5+! Kf7 79.Bd2 Be5 0-0 6.0-0 dxc4 7.Qc2 (D)
80.Bxh6 Ke6 81.Be3
81.Ke3 Bxf5 82.gxf5+ Kxf5 83.Bf8 +-.
XABCDEFGHY
81...Bxf5?! 8rsnlwq-trk+(
White's task was easier now. Black would be
still lost after 81...Kf7 82.Bd2 Kg8 83.Ba5, 7zppzp-vlpzpp'
but he should have tried it. 6-+-+psn-+&
82.gxf5+ Kxf5 83.h6 Kg6 84.c5 f5 (D)
XABCDEFGHY 5+-+-+-+-%
8-+-+-+-+( 4-+pzP-+-+$
7+-+-+-+-' 3+-+-+NzP-#
6-+-+-+kzP& 2PzPQ+PzPLzP"
5+-zP-vlp+-% 1tRNvL-+RmK-!
4-+-+-+-+$ xabcdefghy
7...c6
3+-+-vL-+-# Recently it has become fashionable to try to
2-+-+K+-+" avoid the million-time played 7...a6, for ex-
ample: 8.a4 Bd7 9.Qxc4 Bc6 10.Bg5 h6
1+-+-+-+-! 11.Bxf6 Bxf6 12.Nc3 += Mamedyarov,S-
Wei,Y Wijk aan Zee 2018.
xabcdefghy 8.a4 b6 9.Nbd2 Bb7 10.Nxc4 (D)
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 113
 XABCDEFGHY There is hardly anything else White could
do, as he was 'obliged' to protect square e4.
8rsn-wq-trk+( 14...Bxg2 15.Kxg2 Qc7 16.Nxd7 Nxd7
Or 16...Qc6+ 17.f3 Nxd7 18.Bb2 Rfd8
7zpl+-vlpzpp' 19.Rd3 +=.
6-zpp+psn-+& 17.Qe4!
Centralisation and taking over the light
5+-+-+-+-% squares on the long diagonal.
4P+NzP-+-+$ 17...Nf6 18.Qf3 (D)

3+-+-+NzP-# XABCDEFGHY
2-zPQ+PzPLzP" 8-+r+-trk+(
1tR-vL-+RmK-! 7zp-wq-+pzpp'
xabcdefghy 6-zp-+psn-+&
10...c5 5+-vl-+-+-%
A natural and good novelty to 10...Nbd7 4P+N+-+-+$
11.Rd1 Rc8 12.Nfe5 Nd5 13.Qb3 += Pou-
lopoulos,I-Erenberg,A Pardubice 2016. 3+P+-+QzP-#
11.Rd1
11.dxc5, seemed to be a principal try to get a 2-+-+PzPKzP"
tiny advantage: 11...Bxc5 12.Rd1 Qe7 1tR-vLR+-+-!
13.Nfe5 Bxg2 14.Kxg2.
11...Nbd7 12.b3 xabcdefghy
12.Nfe5 didn't offer much now: 12...Bxg2 The identical pawn structure didn't help
13.Kxg2 Qc7 14.Nxd7 Nxd7 15.dxc5 Qxc5! White on his road to an opening advantage.
(15...Nxc5 16.f3 Rfc8 17.Be3 += ; 15...Bxc5 Black just had to exchange some pieces,
16.Bd2 +=) 16.Be3 Qc6+ 17.f3 Ne5 18.Rac1 neutralising White's first move 'advantage'.
Rac8 19.b3 Nxc4 20.Qxc4 Qxc4 21.Rxc4 18...Qc6
Rxc4 22.bxc4 Rd8 23.Rxd8+ Bxd8 24.c5 And a good way to do that was to exchange
Kf8 =, but White should avoid 12.dxc5?! queens, as then his king will be 'allowed' to
Be4! 13.Qc3 Nd5 14.Qe1 Nxc5 =+. join the centre. 18...Rfd8 19.Bb2 +=, was
12...Rc8 13.dxc5 Bxc5 (D) another option.
XABCDEFGHY 19.Qxc6 Rxc6 (D)

8-+rwq-trk+( XABCDEFGHY
7zpl+n+pzpp' 8-+-+-trk+(
6-zp-+psn-+& 7zp-+-+pzpp'
5+-vl-+-+-% 6-zpr+psn-+&
4P+N+-+-+$ 5+-vl-+-+-%
3+P+-+NzP-# 4P+N+-+-+$
2-+Q+PzPLzP" 3+P+-+-zP-#
1tR-vLR+-mK-! 2-+-+PzPKzP"
xabcdefghy 1tR-vLR+-+-!
14.Nfe5 xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 114
20.f3 XABCDEFGHY
I feel that White's last try for a tiny advan-
tage would lay on 20.Bb2 Rfc8 21.Rd3 +=. 8r+-wqkvl-tr(
20...Rfc8
20...Rcc8!? 21.Bb2 Rfd8 =.
7zpp+n+pzpp'
21.e4 Kf8 22.Bf4 Be7 23.Rd3 Rd8 6-+-+psn-+&
23...a6, planning ...b5, was also fine.
24.Rxd8+ Bxd8 25.Rd1 Be7 (D) 5+-zP-+-+-%
XABCDEFGHY 4-+-+l+-+$
8-+-+-mk-+( 3+-+-vLNzP-#
7zp-+-vlpzpp' 2PzP-+PzPLzP"
6-zpr+psn-+& 1tRNwQ-mK-+R!
5+-+-+-+-% xabcdefghy
4P+N+PvL-+$ 11...Ng4
A probably prepared novelty to 11...Bxc5
3+P+-+PzP-# 12.Bxc5 Rc8 13.b4 b6 14.Nc3 bxc5 15.Nxe4
Nxe4 16.Qc4 Nef6 17.0-0 0-0 18.b5 Qa5
2-+-+-+KzP" 19.a4 Nd5 20.Rfc1 Rfd8 21.Qa2 h6 22.Nd2
1+-+R+-+-! N7b6 23.Nc4 Nxc4 24.Qxc4 Nb6 25.Qb3
Rd4 26.Bc6 ½-½ Zhou,J-Adams,M Khanty-
xabcdefghy Mansiysk 2007.
Here White felt that he could no longer push 12.b4
for an advantage, as the position became too Ding went for a complicated opening, while
simplified, so he opted for a draw with move he could built a nice advantage with simple
repetition. means of 12.0-0 Bxf3 13.Bxf3 Nxe3
26.Ne5 Rc2+ 27.Rd2 Rc3 28.Rd3 Rc2+ 14.Qxe3 Bxc5 15.Qb3 Rb8 16.Nc3 0-0
29.Rd2 Rc3 30.Rd3 Rc2+ 17.Rfd1 Qe7 18.Na4 +=.
Clocks: W: 1:12:03 - B: 0:47:47 12...a5! 13.Bg5 f6 14.Bd2 axb4 15.Bxb4
½-½ Nxc5 (D)
The alternative was 15...Bxc5 16.Bxc5 Rc8
17.0-0 Nxc5 18.Nbd2 Bd5 19.Qb2 0-0
20.Rac1 +=.
XABCDEFGHY
8r+-wqkvl-tr(
8.3. Ding vs Aronian was a wild game,
where complications started early and both
7+p+-+-zpp'
kings lost their castling rights. White 6-+-+pzp-+&
emerged with a pawn plus but his handling
was a bit poor, allowing the Armenian to 5+-sn-+-+-%
escape with a draw. 4-vL-+l+n+$
□ Ding Liren (2769)
■ Aronian Levon (2794)
3+-+-+NzP-#
E04 Berlin 2018 2P+-+PzPLzP"
1.c4 Nf6 2.g3 e6 3.Bg2 d5 4.Nf3 dxc4 1tRNwQ-mK-+R!
5.Qa4+ Bd7 6.Qxc4 c5 7.d4 Bc6 8.dxc5
Nbd7 9.Be3 Bd5 10.Qc2 Be4 11.Qc1 (D) xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 115
16.Bxc5?! chance.
The text would give White nothing. Good 20.Nbd2 Bxd2+
was 16.0-0 Qb6 17.Bd2 Bd6 18.Nc3 +=. 20...Bxf3? 21.Qxb4+ +-.
16...Rc8? (D) 21.Nxd2
Black would stand at least fine after Forced, as Black would have great compen-
16...Qa5+ 17.Nbd2 Bxc5 18.0-0 Bd5 =. sation after 21.Kf1?! f5 22.Qh4 Qd5 oo/=.
XABCDEFGHY 21...Bxg2 22.Rg1 Bd5 23.Rd1 (D)

8-+rwqkvl-tr( XABCDEFGHY
7+p+-+-zpp' 8-+rwq-mk-tr(
6-+-+pzp-+& 7+p+-+-zpp'
5+-vL-+-+-% 6-+-+-zp-+&
4-+-+l+n+$ 5+-+l+-+-%
3+-+-+NzP-# 4-+-+-+Q+$
2P+-+PzPLzP" 3+-+-+-zP-#
1tRNwQ-mK-+R! 2P+-sNPzP-zP"
xabcdefghy 1+-+RmK-tR-!
17.Qc4! Bxc5 xabcdefghy
Nothing better - Black had to hand a pawn. White won a pawn, but as both kings have to
18.Qxe6+ be 'developed' and the rooks to be con-
But not 18.Qxe4? Bxf2+ 19.Kf1 Rc1+ nected, there was much tactical play to care
20.Ne1 Rxe1 #. for both sides.
18...Kf8 19.Qxg4 (D) 23...Qc7?! (D)
XABCDEFGHY Black should think of 23...Kf7 24.Nb3 g6
25.Qb4 Re8, when he ought to have good
8-+rwq-mk-tr( compensation, for example: 26.Qb5 Bc4
27.Rd7+ Kg8 28.Rxd8 Bxb5 29.Rd2 Bc4
7+p+-+-zpp' 30.f4 Bxb3 31.axb3 Rc3 32.Rb2 Ree3 =.
6-+-+-zp-+& XABCDEFGHY
5+-vl-+-+-% 8-+r+-mk-tr(
4-+-+l+Q+$ 7+pwq-+-zpp'
3+-+-+NzP-# 6-+-+-zp-+&
2P+-+PzPLzP" 5+-+l+-+-%
1tRN+-mK-+R! 4-+-+-+Q+$
xabcdefghy 3+-+-+-zP-#
19...Bb4+?!
Critical was 19...Bxf3 20.Bxf3 Bd4 21.0-0 2P+-sNPzP-zP"
Bxa1 22.Bxb7 Rc7 23.Bf3. Black would 1+-+RmK-tR-!
have won the exchange, but White's two
pawns, harmonical position and Black's xabcdefghy
'weak' king, would allow him to play for two 24.Ne4?!
results. Still this seemed to be Black's best 24.f3, was more or less 'obligatory'. If White
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 116
develop his king and connect his rooks, his b7 and allowing the rook to get active on its
extra pawn should tell. 4th rank. Black has got a harmonical position
24...Rd8 25.f3 Qe5?! (D) and he should have enough activity to com-
A good fighting alternative was 25...Qb6!? pensate his deficit.
26.Kf1 Kf7 27.Nc3 Be6 28.Qh5+ g6 29.Qh6 33.Ne4
Rxd1+ 30.Nxd1 Bc4 31.Ne3 Bxa2 =. 33.Rb1 Rc4 34.e3 Ke6 oo/=.
XABCDEFGHY 33...Kf8 34.f5?!
The pawn got weak on f5, so White should
8-+-tr-mk-tr( refrain from this advance and instead go for
34.Ra1 +=.
7+p+-+-zpp' 34...Rd8+
6-+-+-zp-+& 34...Rc4 35.Ra1 Ke7 oo/=, wasn't bad either.
35.Ke3 Rd5! (D)
5+-+lwq-+-% XABCDEFGHY
4-+-+N+Q+$ 8-+-+-mk-+(
3+-+-+PzP-# 7+p+-+-zpp'
2P+-+P+-zP" 6l+-+-zp-+&
1+-+RmK-tR-! 5+-+r+P+-%
xabcdefghy 4P+-+N+-+$
26.Qf4! Qxf4 27.gxf4 Kf7 28.Nc3
Also good was 28.Kf2 Bxa2 (28...Bxe4 3+-+-mKP+-#
29.fxe4 Rxd1 30.Rxd1 Ra8 31.Rd2 +/-)
29.Nd6+ Kf8 30.Nxb7 Rxd1 31.Rxd1 Ke7 2-+-+P+-zP"
32.Nc5 +/-. 1+-+-+-tR-!
28...Bc4 (D)
XABCDEFGHY xabcdefghy
36.Rc1?!
8-+-tr-+-tr( Now it became an easy draw. White had to
try 36.Ng3 Ra5 37.Rc1 Rxa4 38.Rc8+ Kf7
7+p+-+kzpp' 39.Rc7+, where Black would have to find
6-+-+-zp-+& 39...Kg8! (39...Kf8? 40.Nh5 Rh4 [40...Ra2
41.Nf4 +/-) 41.Nxg7 Rxh2 42.Ne6+ Ke8
5+-+-+-+-% 43.Nf4 +/-) 40.Nh5 Rh4 41.Nxg7 Rxh2
4-+l+-zP-+$ 42.Kf4 Bxe2 =.
36...Rxf5 37.Rc8+ Ke7 38.Rc7+ Kf8
3+-sN-+P+-# 39.Rc8+
2P+-+P+-zP" 39.Rc5 Rxc5 40.Nxc5 Ke7, was a drawn
pawn ending.
1+-+RmK-tR-! 39...Ke7 40.Rc7+ Kf8 41.Rc8+
White had nothing better than to repeat
xabcdefghy moves - his chances were lost earlier...
29.a4?! Clocks: W: 2:07:54 - B: 1:56:36
The pawn got weaker on a4. A better try was ½-½
29.Kf2 b5 30.Rb1 Rd7 31.Rgc1 Ra8 32.Rc2
+/-.
29...Rxd1+ 30.Kxd1 Rd8+ 31.Kc2 Rc8
32.Kd2 Ba6!
A great move, protecting the weakness on

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 117

 8.4. It is really difficult to think that White XABCDEFGHY
can gain something in this dull ‘Russian
Defence’ variation where the queens are 8rsnl+k+-tr(
exchanged in such an early stage. And so it
was, as Black had some pressure and White
7zppzp-+pvlp'
had to defend accurately to get the half- 6-+-zp-snp+&
point. Well, Caruana has already scored
1½)2 as Black in this and he should be feel- 5+-+-+-vL-%
ing more than happy, but still he lost a good 4-+-+-+-+$
chance for 2)2…
3+-sNP+N+-#
□ So Wesley (2799)
■ Caruana Fabiano (2784) 2PzPP+LzPPzP"
C42 Berlin 2018 1+-mKR+-+R!
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nxe5 d6 4.Nf3 Nxe4
5.Qe2 Qe7 6.d3 Nf6 7.Nc3 Qxe2+ 8.Bxe2 xabcdefghy
g6 (D) 10...0-0
XABCDEFGHY A novelty to 10...h6 11.Bd2 Bd7 12.Rde1
0-0 13.Bd1 a6 14.Ne4 Nxe4 15.Rxe4 Nc6
8rsnl+kvl-tr( 16.h3 Rae8 17.Rhe1 Rxe4 18.Rxe4 Re8
7zppzp-+p+p' 19.c3 Rxe4 20.dxe4 Ne5 21.Nxe5 dxe5
22.Bb3 Bf8 23.Be3 Kg7 24.Kd2 f5 25.exf5
6-+-zp-snp+& gxf5 26.f4 Bd6 27.g3 Bc6 28.fxe5 Bxe5
5+-+-+-+-% 29.Bd4 Kf6 30.Ke3 Bg2 31.h4 Bc6 32.Bd1
Ke6 33.Bxe5 Kxe5 34.Bf3 ½-½ Foisor,C-
4-+-+-+-+$ Foisor,M Warsaw 2011.
11.Rhe1 h6 12.Bh4 Nc6 13.d4 a6 14.a3
3+-sNP+N+-# Bd7 (D)
2PzPP+LzPPzP" XABCDEFGHY
1tR-vL-mK-+R! 8r+-+-trk+(
xabcdefghy 7+pzpl+pvl-'
White chose a variation with an extremely
drawish reputation, hoping to 'skip' any
6p+nzp-snpzp&
opening preparation and opt for a dull but 5+-+-+-+-%
playable middlegame, as most of the pieces
are in the board. 4-+-zP-+-vL$
9.Bg5 3zP-sN-+N+-#
White had tried a different plan here, start-
ing with 9.Nd4 a6 10.Bf4 Bg7 11.h3 Bd7 2-zPP+LzPPzP"
12.Bf3 Nc6 13.Nxc6 Bxc6 14.Bxc6+ bxc6 1+-mKRtR-+-!
15.0-0-0 Kd7 16.Rhe1 Rhe8 17.Ne4 Nd5
18.Bd2 f5 19.Ng5 h6 20.Nf3 g5 21.c3 c5 xabcdefghy
22.Kc2 Bf6 23.Rxe8 Rxe8 24.Re1 Rf8 15.d5
25.Rh1 Re8 26.g3 g4 27.Ng1 Bg5 28.Kd1 Analysis engines strongly recommended
a5 29.Ne2 a4 30.Bxg5 hxg5 31.hxg4 fxg4 here 15.Bxf6 Bxf6 16.Nd5 Bd8, but I fail to
32.Rh5 Re5 33.Rh7+ Ke6 34.a3 Rf5 35.c4 see why... With text White tried to do some-
Nf6 36.Rh2 Rf3 37.Kc2 Nd7 38.d4 Nb6 ½- thing, but objectively 15.h3 g5 16.Bg3 Rae8
½ Carlsen,M-Caruana,F Wijk aan Zee 2018. =, was OK, as the d5-pawn could be a target.
9...Bg7 10.0-0-0 (D) 15...Na7! 16.Nd4 Nc8 17.Nb3 g5 18.Bg3

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 118

Re8 19.Na5 b5 (D)
Interesting was 19...Nb6!? 20.Nxb7 (20.h3
=) 20...a5, when Black will win a piece for
three pawns, creating a double-edged posi-
tion.
XABCDEFGHY
25...Bxc3, seemed again dangerous, but
White could keep the balance: 26.bxc3 Re5
27.c4 bxc4 28.Nxd6 b5 29.g3! Nxd5
30.Bxc4 bxc4 31.Nxc4 Rf5 32.Nd6 Rxf3
33.Rxd5 =.
26.Ne4 Rb8 27.Nexd6 Ng6! 28.g3 (D)

8r+n+r+k+( XABCDEFGHY
7+-zpl+pvl-' 8-tr-+-+k+(
6p+-zp-sn-zp& 7+N+lsnp+-'
5sNp+P+-zp-% 6pzp-sN-+-zp&
4-+-+-+-+$ 5+p+Pvl-zp-%
3zP-sN-+-vL-# 4-+-+-+-+$
2-zPP+LzPPzP" 3zP-+-+PzP-#
1+-mKRtR-+-! 2-zPP+-+-zP"
xabcdefghy 1+-mKR+L+-!
20.f3?! xabcdefghy
20.Na2 Nb6 21.Nb4 Ne4, would hand the 28...Ne7
bishop pair to Black, while 20.f4 Nb6 Threatening to win with ...Nf5 or ...Nc8, so
21.fxg5 hxg5 22.h3, looked better but still I White had to do something quickly.
tent to like more Black's position! 29.a4! Nf5
20...Nh5! 21.Bf2?! The alternative 29...Nc8, was more difficult
21.Bf1 Nxg3 22.Rxe8+ Bxe8 23.hxg3 f5 =+, to handle: 30.Nxc8 Rxc8 (30...Bxc8?
was objectively better. 31.Nd8 +/-) 31.axb5 axb5 32.Re1 (32.Bd3?
21...Nf4 22.Bf1 (D) Rb8 33.Re1 f6 34.Rxe5 fxe5 35.Nd6 Rf8
XABCDEFGHY -/+) 32...f6 33.Re4 Bf5 (33...Rb8? 34.f4 +/-)
34.Bxb5 Bxe4 35.fxe4 oo/=.
8r+n+r+k+( 30.Nxf5 Bxf5 31.Re1 f6 (D)
7+-zpl+pvl-' XABCDEFGHY
6p+-zp-+-zp& 8-tr-+-+k+(
5sNp+P+-zp-% 7+N+-+-+-'
4-+-+-sn-+$ 6pzp-+-zp-zp&
3zP-sN-+P+-# 5+p+Pvllzp-%
2-zPP+-vLPzP" 4P+-+-+-+$
1+-mKRtRL+-! 3+-+-+PzP-#
xabcdefghy 2-zPP+-+-zP"
22...Nb6? 1+-mK-tRL+-!
Black missed something obvious, as quite
simple was 22...Rxe1! 23.Bxe1 Ne7 24.g3 xabcdefghy
Bxc3 25.Bxc3 Nfxd5 -/+. It seemed that White was in trouble here...
23.Rxe8+ Rxe8 24.Bxb6 cxb6 25.Nb7! Be5 32.Rxe5!

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 119

A forced and good exchange sacrifice. 47.c4! bxc4
32...fxe5 33.Nd6 Bd7 34.axb5 axb5 47...b4, could have been tried, but still
35.Bxb5 Bxb5 36.Nxb5 Rf8! White would draw with 48.c5 Rg1 49.c6 g3
By this resource Black was able to be in the 50.d6 g2 51.Kf2 Rc1 52.Kxg2 Rxc6 53.d7
game and even create some winning Rd6 54.Nc4 Rd4 55.Kf3 Ke6 56.Nb6 Kf5
chances. 57.Ke3 Rd6 58.b3 Ke6 59.Ke4 Rd1 60.Na4
37.Kd2 Rxf3 38.Ke2 g4 (D) Kxd7 (60...Ke7 61.Nc5 Kd8 62.Nd3 =)
XABCDEFGHY 61.Nb2 Rb1 62.Nd3 Rxb3 63.Nc5+.
48.d6
8-+-+-+k+( Also fine was 48.Nxc4 Kf6 49.d6 Rb3 50.d7
Ke7 51.Kf1 g3 (51...Rb4 52.Ne5 Re4
7+-+-+-+-' 53.Nd3 Re3 54.Nf2 g3 55.Nh1 Kxd7
6-zp-+-+-zp& 56.Kg2 =) 52.Nd2 Rb4 53.Kg1 Kxd7 54.Nf1
=.
5+N+Pzp-+-% 48...Ke6 49.Nxc4 Rf3! 50.d7! Rf8
4-+-+-+p+$ 50...Kxd7 51.Ne5+ Kc7 52.Nxf3 gxf3+
53.Kxf3 Kb6 =.
3+-+-+rzP-# 51.Ne3 g3 (D)
2-zPP+K+-zP" XABCDEFGHY
1+-+-+-+-! 8-+-+-tr-+(
xabcdefghy 7+-+P+-+-'
White would hardly be in danger, but still he 6-+-+k+-+&
had to be accurate. He will have to exchange
the pawns and reach a drawn ending of 5+-+-+-+-%
knight vs rook.
39.Nd6! h5 40.Nc4 b5 41.Nxe5 Rf5
4-+-+-+-+$
42.Ng6! Kf7 43.Nf4 h4 44.Ng2! hxg3 3+-+-sN-zp-#
44...h3 45.Ne3 Rg5 46.c3 Ke7 47.b3 =.
45.hxg3 Rf3 2-zP-+K+-+"
Nothing was gained as well by 45...Rxd5 1+-+-+-+-!
46.Ne3 Rd4 (46...Rg5 47.Kd3 Ke6 48.Ke4
=) 47.c3 Ra4 48.Kd3 Ke6 49.c4 =. xabcdefghy
46.Ne3 Rxg3 (D) 52.d8Q!
XABCDEFGHY Cleared the road of the white king to the
black pawn.
8-+-+-+-+( 52...Rxd8 53.Kf3 Rd3 54.Kf4 Rb3 55.Ng2
Kd5 56.Nh4 Kc4 57.Kg4 Rd3 58.b4 Rb3
7+-+-+k+-' After 58...Kxb4 59.Kh3, we would have a
6-+-+-+-+& drawn ending, as in the games Lasker,E-
Lasker,E New York 1924 and Moro-
5+p+P+-+-% zevich,A-Van Kampen,R Warsaw 2013.
4-+-+-+p+$ 59.b5
The draw was obvious and near...
3+-+-sN-tr-# 59...Kd5 60.b6 Ke4 61.b7 Rxb7 62.Kxg3
2-zPP+K+-+" Rg7+ 63.Kf2 Rg4 64.Ng2 Rxg2+ 65.Kxg2
A fascinating struggle, out of a dull opening
1+-+-+-+-! variation!
Clocks: W: 2:09:30 - B: 2:41:33
xabcdefghy ½-½
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 120
Round 9 (20.03.2018)
Round 9 ing the main lines usually - maybe because
20.03.2018 - 15:00 of the absent of a qualified trainer/coach/
1 So - Grischuk ½:½ second?
2 Caruana - Ding ½:½ 5...Nd6 6.Nxe5 Be7 7.Bf1 Nxe5 8.Rxe5 0-0
3 Aronian - Mamedyarov ½:½ 9.d4 Bf6 10.Re1 Re8 (D)
4 Karjakin - Kramnik 1:0 XABCDEFGHY
Caruana missed good chances to increase 8r+lwqr+k+(
his lead to a full point and so he kept the
fight for the qualification fairly open! 7zppzpp+pzpp'
Kramnik continued playing wild games and 6-+-sn-vl-+&
losing them - Karjakin was back on 50%.
The other two games were ‘quite’ enough to 5+-+-+-+-%
produce two more or less easy draws. 4-+-zP-+-+$
9.1. So played quite safely and colourless
vs Grischuk and the later had no problem to
3+-+-+-+-#
achieve an easy draw. I can understand 2PzPP+-zPPzP"
White trying this variation in a rapid or blitz
game; cannot understand its use in a stan- 1tRNvLQtRLmK-!
dard time game and especially in high xabcdefghy
level…
11.Bf4
□ So Wesley (2799) White has also tried 11.Rxe8+ Nxe8 12.c3
■ Grischuk Alexander (2767) d5 13.Bf4 c6 14.Nd2 g6 = Anand,V-
C67 Berlin 2018 Grischuk,A Moscow 2018.
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6 4.0-0 Nxe4 (D) 11...Rxe1 12.Qxe1 Ne8 13.c3
XABCDEFGHY Carlsen played here 13.Bd3 d5 14.Be5 g6
15.Bxf6 Nxf6 16.Nd2 Qe8 17.Qc1 Bg4
8r+lwqkvl-tr( 18.Qe1 Qxe1+ 19.Rxe1 Re8 20.Kf1 Kf8 =,
without achieving anything, Carlsen,M-
7zppzpp+pzpp' Wang,H Riadh 2017.
6-+n+-+-+& 13...d5 (D)
5+L+-zp-+-% XABCDEFGHY
4-+-+n+-+$ 8r+lwqn+k+(
3+-+-+N+-# 7zppzp-+pzpp'
2PzPPzP-zPPzP" 6-+-+-vl-+&
1tRNvLQ+RmK-! 5+-+p+-+-%
xabcdefghy 4-+-zP-vL-+$
The 'Ruy Lopez - Berlin Defence', once 3+-zP-+-+-#
more!
5.Re1
2PzP-+-zPPzP"
Not the most common answer, as the main 1tRN+-wQLmK-!
line goes as 5.d4 Nd6 6.Bxc6 dxc6 7.dxe5
Nf5 8.Qxd8+ Kxd8. But So is not welcom- xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 121
14.Bd3 □ Caruana Fabiano (2784)
Or 14.Nd2 g6 15.Nf3 Ng7 16.Qe3 c6 17.Re1 ■ Ding Liren (2769)
Be6 18.Ne5 Qa5 19.a3 Re8 20.Nd3 Qd8 E11 Berlin 2018
21.Qd2 Bf5 22.Rxe8+ Qxe8 23.Qe3 Qxe3 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 Bb4+ 4.Bd2 Be7
½-½ Vachier Lagrave,M-Grischuk,A Shar- 5.Bg2 d5 6.Nf3 0-0 7.0-0 c6 8.Qb3 b6
jah 2017. 8...Nbd7, was Caruana,F-So,W Berlin 2018,
14...g6 15.Qe2 c6 16.Nd2 Ng7 17.Re1 Bf5 from round 1.
18.Bxf5 Nxf5 19.Nf3 Ng7 20.Be5 Ne6 9.Nc3 Ba6 10.cxd5 cxd5 11.Ne5 Bb7 (D)
21.Bxf6 Qxf6 22.Ne5 Re8 (D) XABCDEFGHY
XABCDEFGHY 8rsn-wq-trk+(
8-+-+r+k+( 7zpl+-vlpzpp'
7zpp+-+p+p' 6-zp-+psn-+&
6-+p+nwqp+& 5+-+psN-+-%
5+-+psN-+-% 4-+-zP-+-+$
4-+-zP-+-+$ 3+QsN-+-zP-#
3+-zP-+-+-# 2PzP-vLPzPLzP"
2PzP-+QzPPzP" 1tR-+-+RmK-!
1+-+-tR-mK-! xabcdefghy
xabcdefghy 12.Rfc1
23.g3 Black was OK after 12.Qa4 a6 13.Qb3 Nfd7
Technically a late novelty to 23.Ng4 Qd8 14.Nxd7 Nxd7 15.Rfc1 b5 = Ortega,M-
24.Qe5 Ng7 25.Qxe8+ Nxe8 26.Rxe8+ Jakubowski,K Figueira da Foz 2017.
Qxe8 27.Nf6+ Kf8 28.Nxe8 Kxe8 29.Kf1 12...Nc6 13.Nxd5 Nxd4 14.Nxe7+ Qxe7
Ke7 30.Ke2 Ke6 31.Ke3 Kf5 ½-½ Mo- 15.Qc4 Bxg2 16.Qxd4!
tylev,A-Potkin,V Fufeng 2017. But the na- 16.Kxg2 Rfd8 =.
ture of the game didn't change - the draw 16...Rfd8 (D)
was obvious and near... XABCDEFGHY
23...Ng7 24.Kg2 Re6 25.Qd1 Qe7 26.Nd3
Rxe1 27.Qxe1 Qxe1 28.Nxe1 Nf5 29.Nd3 8r+-tr-+k+(
Kf8 30.g4 Nd6 31.h4 h6 32.f3 Ke7 33.Kf2
g5 34.hxg5 hxg5
7zp-+-wqpzpp'
A dull game, where nothing 'happened'. And 6-zp-+psn-+&
the worst is that White didn't even try...
Clocks: W: 0:39:00 - B: 1:34:23 5+-+-sN-+-%
½-½ 4-+-wQ-+-+$
9.2. Caruana chose to play a line where his
chances of winning were small, but his
3+-+-+-zP-#
chances of losing were zero! He was press- 2PzP-vLPzPlzP"
ing the entire game and he could cash the
point several times, when his opponent 1tR-tR-+-mK-!
failed to meet the position’s demands! Neth-
erless, he didn’t take his opportunities and
xabcdefghy
17.Qf4!?
the game ended in a draw. A pity for the
A novelty to 17.Qb4 Qxb4 18.Bxb4 Bb7
Italo-American, as he could head with a
19.Rc7 Ba6 20.Nxf7 Nd5 21.Nxd8 Nxc7
point more!
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 122
22.Nc6 ½-½ Gleizerov,E-Farago,I Oberwart 31.h5!
1996. Now Black got into more troubles... Still his
17...Bb7 18.Bb4 Qe8 19.Rc7 position should be defendable.
White revealed the idea behind his 17th 31...Ra8 32.Kg3 Kf8 33.Nf3 Bd7 34.Rc4
move. Kg8 35.Ne5 Bb5 36.Rc5 Be8 37.Nc4 Bd7
19...Nd5! 20.Qxf7+ Qxf7 21.Rxf7 Ba6! 38.Ne5 Be8 39.Bd4 Kf8 40.f3 Ke7 (D)
22.Ba3 Bxe2 (D) XABCDEFGHY
XABCDEFGHY 8r+-+l+-+(
8r+-tr-+k+( 7+-+-mk-zpp'
7zp-+-+Rzpp' 6-+-+p+-+&
6-zp-+p+-+& 5+-tRnsN-+P%
5+-+nsN-+-% 4pzp-vL-+P+$
4-+-+-+-+$ 3+P+-+PmK-#
3vL-+-+-zP-# 2P+-+-+-+"
2PzP-+lzP-zP" 1+-+-+-+-!
1tR-+-+-mK-! xabcdefghy
xabcdefghy Not much was done during the last moves,
So, here we had an endgame, where White as both opponents played it safe, obviously
should be somewhat better due to his supe- waiting for the new time control and extra
rior pawn structure. On the other hand the minutes.
presence of opposite-coloured bishops 41.Kh4 Kf8 42.Kg5 h6+ 43.Kh4 Kg8
should give Black fair chances to hold. I 44.Kg3 Kh7 45.Nd3 Kg8 46.Rc1 axb3
would say that White was playing for two 47.axb3 Kh7 48.Nc5 Bf7 49.Re1 (D)
results (1 or ½), while Black for one (½). XABCDEFGHY
23.Rc1 Bh5 24.Rb7 Be8 25.Kg2 a5 26.h4
Rdb8 27.Rxb8 Rxb8 28.g4 b5 29.b3 b4 8r+-+-+-+(
30.Bb2 (D)
7+-+-+lzpk'
XABCDEFGHY 6-+-+p+-zp&
8-tr-+l+k+( 5+-sNn+-+P%
7+-+-+-zpp' 4-zp-vL-+P+$
6-+-+p+-+& 3+P+-+PmK-#
5zp-+nsN-+-% 2-+-+-+-+"
4-zp-+-+PzP$ 1+-+-tR-+-!
3+P+-+-+-# xabcdefghy
2PvL-+-zPK+" 49...Ne7!
1+-tR-+-+-! An excellent way to defend the e6-pawn. If
49...Re8?, then 50.Ra1 and White would
xabcdefghy invade.
30...a4?! 50.Bb2
30...h5 was worthy: 31.f3 Rd8 32.Kg3 +=. 50.Nxe6 could have won a pawn but not the

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 123

game after 50...Nc6 51.Bc5 Re8 52.Nf8+ 57.Re3! Bc4 58.Rf3, would win on the spot,
Kg8 53.Rxe8 Bxe8 54.Ne6 Bf7 55.Nd4 as 'usual'.
Nxd4 56.Bxd4 Bxb3 57.Bc5 =. 57...Kg8 58.Ng6 (D)
50...Nc6 51.f4 Ra2 52.Nd3 (D) XABCDEFGHY
XABCDEFGHY 8-+-+-+k+(
8-+-+-+-+( 7tr-+-+-zp-'
7+-+-+lzpk' 6-+n+P+Nzp&
6-+n+p+-zp& 5+l+-+-+P%
5+-+-+-+P% 4-zp-+-+P+$
4-zp-+-zPP+$ 3+-+-+-mK-#
3+P+N+-mK-# 2-vL-+-+-+"
2rvL-+-+-+" 1+-+-tR-+-!
1+-+-tR-+-! xabcdefghy
xabcdefghy 58...Ne7?
52...e5! 53.fxe5 Bxb3 54.e6 Ra7? Another bad move and Black was again lost!
Up to here Black had defend extremely well, 58...Ra8! 59.Rd1 Rd8 =.
but here he went berserk! He should opt for 59.Ra1! Nc6
54...Ne7! 55.Bc1 Rc2 56.Nxb4 Rc4 57.Ba3 It would be a simple lost case after
Rc3+ =. 59...Rxa1?! 60.Nxe7+ Kf8 61.Ng6+ Ke8
55.Nc5! Bc4 (D) 62.Bxa1 +-.
No salvation for Black with either 55...Ba2 60.Rd1! Kh7
56.Nd7 Ra8 57.Rf1! (a manoeuvre that we Or 60...Bc4 61.e7 Nxe7 (61...Kf7 62.Rd8!
will meet often as the winning one) 57...Nd8 Rxe7 63.Rf8+ +-) 62.Rd8+ Kf7 63.Ne5+ +-.
(57...Bxe6 58.Nf8+ +-) 58.e7 Ne6 59.Rf8 +-. 61.Rd5 Ba4 (D)
XABCDEFGHY XABCDEFGHY
8-+-+-+-+( 8-+-+-+-+(
7tr-+-+-zpk' 7tr-+-+-zpk'
6-+n+P+-zp& 6-+n+P+Nzp&
5+-sN-+-+P% 5+-+R+-+P%
4-zpl+-+P+$ 4lzp-+-+P+$
3+-+-+-mK-# 3+-+-+-mK-#
2-vL-+-+-+" 2-vL-+-+-+"
1+-+-tR-+-! 1+-+-+-+-!
xabcdefghy xabcdefghy
56.Nd7! Bb5 62.Kf4?
56...b3 57.Re4 Bb5 58.Re3 Bc4 59.Rf3 +-. Blocking the f-file! Winning was the
57.Nf8+? 'known' 62.Rd2! Bb3 63.Rf2 +-.
Returning the favour - this square does not 62...Bc2! 63.Rc5 Ba4 64.g5
belong to the knight, at least not yet! A last try...

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 124

64...hxg5+? XABCDEFGHY
Which Black bite! Good was 64...Ra8
65.Rf5 hxg5+ 66.Rxg5 Bc2, when he could 8rsnlwq-trk+(
hold.
65.Rxg5 Nd8 (D)
7zppzp-vlpzpp'
Or 65...Bb5 66.Nf8+ Kg8 67.Nd7 +-. 6-+-+psn-+&
XABCDEFGHY 5+-+-+-+-%
8-+-sn-+-+( 4-+pzP-+-+$
7tr-+-+-zpk' 3+-+-+NzP-#
6-+-+P+N+& 2PzPQ+PzPLzP"
5+-+-+-tRP% 1tRNvL-+RmK-!
4lzp-+-mK-+$ xabcdefghy
3+-+-+-+-# 7...b6
Now it was Mamedyarov on the black side
2-vL-+-+-+" of the 8...b6 variation!
1+-+-+-+-! 8.Qxc4 Bb7 9.Nc3 c5 10.Rd1 Nbd7
11.Ne5!
xabcdefghy Not much was 11.dxc5 Bxc5 12.Bf4
66.Re5? (12.b4?! Bxf2+! 13.Kxf2 Rc8, was good for
It wasn't Caruana's day - he could again win Black in Bu,X-Bacrot,E Tbilisi 2017)
with 66.Nf8+ Kg8 67.h6 +-. 12...Rc8 13.Qd3 =.
66...Be8! 67.e7 11...Bxg2 12.Kxg2 Qc8
Now it's a draw: 67...Nc6 68.Nf8+ Kg8. 12...cxd4?! 13.Nc6 Rc8 14.Rxd4 +=, would
Clocks: W: 3:15:14 - B: 3:09:17 be quite pleasant for White.
½-½ 13.Nxd7 Qxd7 14.dxc5 Qc6+ (D)
XABCDEFGHY
8r+-+-trk+(
7zp-+-vlpzpp'
6-zpq+psn-+&
5+-zP-+-+-%
4-+Q+-+-+$
3+-sN-+-zP-#
9.3. Mamedyarov tried a fashionable 2PzP-+PzPKzP"
variation against the ‘Catalan’, neutralising
Aronian’s opening ‘advantage’ without too 1tR-vLR+-+-!
many efforts. It is also clear that Black’s xabcdefghy
maximum in this variation is the draw…
15.f3
□ Aronian Levon (2794) A novelty, probably a bit inferior to 15.e4 a6
■ Mamedyarov Shakhriyar (2809) 16.Qe2 Bxc5 17.Bg5 Be7 18.Rac1 += Frid-
E03 Berlin 2018 man,D-Rambaldi,F Bergamo 2016.
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.g3 Be7 5.Bg2 15...Qxc5 16.Qxc5 Bxc5 17.Bf4 Rfd8 18.e4
0-0 6.0-0 dxc4 7.Qc2 (D) (D)

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 125

 XABCDEFGHY =) 26...Nxf6 27.Bd6+ +=.
24...Bd6! 25.Be3
8r+-tr-+k+( If 25.e5, then 25...Bb4 26.Na2 Rxc1
27.Rxc1 Ba5 =, would be OK for Black.
7zp-+-+pzpp' 25...Rab8?!
6-zp-+psn-+& 25...Be5 26.axb5 axb5, looked like a bit bet-
ter.
5+-vl-+-+-% 26.axb5 axb5 (D)
4-+-+PvL-+$ XABCDEFGHY
3+-sN-+PzP-# 8-trr+n+-+(
2PzP-+-+KzP" 7+-+-mkpzpp'
1tR-+R+-+-! 6-+-vlp+-+&
xabcdefghy 5+p+-+-+-%
It seems that White enjoyed a somewhat 4-+-+P+-+$
better position, but obviously this wasn't
enough for something real. Slowly Black 3+-sN-vLPzP-#
will bring his king to the centre and would
exchange some more pieces. Then, helped 2-zP-+K+-zP"
by the identical pawn structure, the draw 1+-tRR+-+-!
would be on the cards.
18...Ne8! 19.Kf1 Kf8 20.Ke2 Ke7 21.Nb5 xabcdefghy
Rdc8 27.Ba7
More 'accurate' was 21...Rxd1 22.Rxd1 a6 I would mainly prefer 27.f4 f6 28.Kf3 +=.
23.Nd4 Rc8 24.Nb3 Bd6 =. At least here White could have tried to bene-
22.Rac1 a6 23.Nc3 b5 (D) fit from his slight spatial advantage and his
XABCDEFGHY mobile centre.
27...Rb7 28.Bd4 Rc4 29.e5 Bc5 (D)
8r+r+n+-+( XABCDEFGHY
7+-+-mkpzpp' 8-+-+n+-+(
6p+-+p+-+& 7+r+-mkpzpp'
5+pvl-+-+-% 6-+-+p+-+&
4-+-+PvL-+$ 5+pvl-zP-+-%
3+-sN-+PzP-# 4-+rvL-+-+$
2PzP-+K+-zP" 3+-sN-+PzP-#
1+-tRR+-+-! 2-zP-+K+-zP"
xabcdefghy 1+-tRR+-+-!
24.a4
White had an interesting way to try for xabcdefghy
something more than a draw, by putting his 30.Nd5+
e-pawn into a dark square: 24.e5!? Bb6 A small 'combination', which really couldn't
25.Ne4 f5 (25...Rxc1 26.Rxc1 Bd4 27.b3 h6 change the nature of the position.
28.g4 +=) 26.exf6+ (26.Nd6 Rxc1 27.Bxc1 30...exd5 31.Bxc5+ Ke6 32.b3
h6 28.b3 Rd8 29.Ba3 Nxd6 30.Bxd6+ Ke8 An interesting try. Equal was 32.Bd4 Rbc7

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 126

33.Ra1 Ra4 =. A nice black manoeuvre, which will kick the
32...Rxc1 33.Rxc1 Kxe5 34.Kd3 (D) white king away.
XABCDEFGHY 39.b4
Or 39.Bc3 Ra2 40.h4 Rg2 41.Ra1 Rxg3
8-+-+n+-+( 42.Ra7+ Ke8, when White would have noth-
ing better than 43.Ra8+ Kd7 44.Ra7+ =.
7+r+-+pzpp' 39...Ra6 40.f4 Rd6+ 41.Ke4 Rd4+
6-+-+-+-+& Draw agreed: 42.Ke3 Rd5 43.Bb6 g6 44.Ba7
h5 =.
5+pvLpmk-+-% Clocks: W: 1:50:30 - B: 1:51:49
4-+-+-+-+$ ½-½

3+P+K+PzP-# 9.4. Kramnik lost for the second round in a

row with black pieces to a Russian compa-
2-+-+-+-zP" triot! Well, the game was wild and it seemed
1+-tR-+-+-! that both opponents had their chances, de-
spite the rook deficit for Black, as some cru-
xabcdefghy cial mistakes took place in the procedure.
34...Ke6! Obviously, Kramnik sporting form was poor
Black has won a pawn or rather White had and he again failed to notice his best
sacrificed one, for activity. Best here was to chances.
return the pawn like in the game continua- □ Karjakin Sergey (2763)
tion, as 34...Rc7 35.Re1+ Kf5 36.Bd4 Nf6 ■ Kramnik Vladimir (2800)
37.Re5+ Kg6 38.h4 +=, or 34...Nc7 35.Bd4+ D35 Berlin 2018
Kd6 36.Bxg7 +=, would be pleasant for 1.c4 e6 2.Nc3 d5 3.d4 Nf6 4.cxd5 Nxd5
White. 5.e4 Nxc3 6.bxc3 c5 7.Rb1 Be7 8.Nf3
35.Bb4 8.Bb5+ was Mamedyarov,S-Kramnik,V
Nothing was achieved as well by 35.Re1+ Berlin 2018, from round 6.
Kd7 36.Bf8 (36.Re7+?! Kc6! =+) 36...Kd8 8...0-0 (D)
37.Kd4 Nc7 38.Bd6 Kd7 =.
35...Kd7 36.Kd4 Nc7 37.Ba5 (D) XABCDEFGHY
XABCDEFGHY 8rsnlwq-trk+(
8-+-+-+-+( 7zpp+-vlpzpp'
7+rsnk+pzpp' 6-+-+p+-+&
6-+-+-+-+& 5+-zp-+-+-%
5vLp+p+-+-% 4-+-zPP+-+$
4-+-mK-+-+$ 3+-zP-+N+-#
3+P+-+PzP-# 2P+-+-zPPzP"
2-+-+-+-zP" 1+RvLQmKL+R!
1+-tR-+-+-! xabcdefghy
9.h4!?
xabcdefghy An interesting novelty, trying to create an
37...Ne6+! early attack vs the black king. The 'normal'
Anything else would be simply much better continuation was with 9.Bc4 Qc7 (9...Nc6
for White. 10.0-0 b6 11.d5 Na5 12.Bd3 c4 13.Bc2 exd5
38.Kxd5 Ra7! 14.exd5 Bg4 15.Re1 ½-½ Svidler,P-Wang,H
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 127
Riadh 2017) 10.Qe2 a6 11.0-0 b5 12.Bd3 15.Bd3 Qg4 16.Kf1! e5 (D)
Bb7 13.a4 += Carlsen,M-So,W Internet Black could also think of 16...Bf6 17.Rh3
2017. Ne7 18.Bb4 +/-.
9...cxd4 10.cxd4 Nc6 11.h5 (D) XABCDEFGHY
XABCDEFGHY 8r+l+-trk+(
8r+lwq-trk+( 7zpp+-vl-zp-'
7zpp+-vlpzpp' 6-+n+-+-zp&
6-+n+p+-+& 5+-+-zp-+P%
5+-+-+-+P% 4-+-zP-+q+$
4-+-zPP+-+$ 3+-vLL+N+-#
3+-+-+N+-# 2P+-+-zPP+"
2P+-+-zPP+" 1+R+Q+K+R!
1+RvLQmKL+R! xabcdefghy
xabcdefghy 17.d5!
11...f5!? Excellent! 17.Nxe5? Nxe5 18.dxe5 Bc5,
Black got optimistic! Natural was 11...Bb4+ would be already preferable for Black!,
12.Bd2 Bxd2+ 13.Qxd2 h6, with more or while 17.dxe5? Be6 oo/=, would be just
less an even game. messy.
12.exf5 Qa5+ 17...e4
This was Black's idea, as 12...exf5? 13.Bc4+ 17...Nd8, couldn't help: 18.Bxe5 Bf5 19.Rh3
Kh8 14.h6 g6 15.0-0 +/-, would be a disaster +/-.
for the second player. 18.dxc6 exf3 19.gxf3 Rxf3? (D)
13.Bd2 Qxf5 (D) This loses, so Black should have opted for
19...Qxf3 20.Qxf3 Rxf3 21.Ke2 Rxd3
XABCDEFGHY 22.Kxd3 Bf5+ 23.Ke2 bxc6 (23...Bxb1?
8r+l+-trk+( 24.cxb7 +-) 24.Rb7 Re8 25.Kf3 +/-, trying
to hold the exchange down endgame.
7zpp+-vl-zpp' XABCDEFGHY
6-+n+p+-+& 8r+l+-+k+(
5+-+-+q+P% 7zpp+-vl-zp-'
4-+-zP-+-+$ 6-+P+-+-zp&
3+-+-+N+-# 5+-+-+-+P%
2P+-vL-zPP+" 4-+-+-+q+$
1+R+QmKL+R! 3+-vLL+r+-#
xabcdefghy 2P+-+-zP-+"
14.Bc3! h6?
This handed the advantage to White. A con- 1+R+Q+K+R!
tinuation like 14...b6! 15.Bd3 Qg4 16.Kf1
(16.Rh3 Qxg2 17.Rg3 Qh1+ 18.Ke2 Qxd1+
xabcdefghy
19.Rxd1 oo/=) 16...Bb7 17.Rh3 oo, was 20.Be2?
natural. White got 'afraid' to go for the winning

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 128

20.cxb7! Rxf2+ (20...Bxb7 21.Qb3+! Kh8 Qe4 33.Rxf3+ Kg8 34.a3 g6 35.hxg6 Qxg6
[21...Rf7 22.Qxb7 Raf8 23.Qe4! Rxf2+ 36.Re3 +/- ; 24.Rxb7? Bc4+ 25.Kg2 Qg5+
24.Ke1 +-] 22.Qxb7 Raf8 23.Qxe7 Rxf2+ 26.Bg4 Bd5+ 27.Kg3 Qe3+ 28.Bf3 Qg5+ =)
24.Ke1 +-) 21.Kxf2 Bh4+ 22.Rxh4 Qxh4+ 24...Rf8 25.Rb3 Qg4 26.Ke2 (D)
23.Ke3 Qg5+ 24.Kd4 +- (D) XABCDEFGHY
XABCDEFGHY 8-+-+-trk+(
8r+l+-+k+( 7zpp+-+-zp-'
7zpP+-+-zp-' 6-+P+l+-zp&
6-+-+-+-zp& 5+-vl-+-+P%
5+-+-+-wqP% 4-+-+-+q+$
4-+-mK-+-+$ 3+R+-+L+-#
3+-vLL+-+-# 2P+-+K+-+"
2P+-+-+-+" 1+-+QvL-+R!
1+R+Q+-+-! xabcdefghy
xabcdefghy White would be a rook-up as usual, but his
As the black queen wouldn’t be supported king would be unsafe and there is no human
by no other black piece, there would be no to perfectly defend this position. Computers
danger for the centralised white king! Nev- might win it but humans mostly might even
ertheless, I must confess that it wasn’t easy lose it! What really matters it was that the
to decide on this in a practical game… game would go on with mutual practical
20...Rxf2+! chances.
Forced and good. 24.Be1!
21.Kxf2 Bc5+ 22.Kf1 Qf4+ 23.Bf3 (D) The only way - the black queen should be
XABCDEFGHY kept away from g5.
24...Be6 (D)
8r+l+-+k+( The alternative was 24...Qg5 (threatening
...Ba6+) 25.Qb3+ Kh8 26.Qc4 a5 27.a4 Bf5
7zpp+-+-zp-' (27...Ba6? 28.Qxa6! Rxa6 29.Rb8+ Kh7
6-+P+-+-zp& 30.Be4+ +-) 28.Rb3 Rf8 29.Bf2 +-.
5+-vl-+-+P% XABCDEFGHY
4-+-+-wq-+$ 8r+-+-+k+(
3+-vL-+L+-# 7zp-+-+-zp-'
2P+-+-+-+" 6-+p+l+-zp&
1+R+Q+K+R! 5+-vl-+-+P%
xabcdefghy 4-+-+-wq-+$
23...bxc6? 3+-+-+L+-#
It was Black's turn to fall! The only way to
continue the fight was laying in 23...Be6! 2P+-+-+-+"
24.Be1 (24.cxb7 Bc4+ 25.Kg2 Qg5+ 26.Bg4 1+R+QvLK+R!
Bd5+ 27.Kh3 Qe3+ 28.Qf3 Bxf3 29.b8Q+
Rxb8 30.Rxb8+ Bf8 31.Rxf8+ Kxf8 32.Rf1 xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 129
25.Bh4 27...Rf5 (D)
25.Kg2! Qg5+ 26.Bg3 +-, was just curtains. XABCDEFGHY
25...Rf8 26.Kg2 (D)
XABCDEFGHY 8-+-+-+-mk(
8-+-+-trk+( 7zp-+-+-zp-'
7zp-+-+-zp-' 6-+p+l+-zp&
6-+p+l+-zp& 5+-vl-+r+P%
5+-vl-+-+P% 4-+-+-wq-vL$
4-+-+-wq-vL$ 3+-+-+L+-#
3+-+-+L+-# 2P+-+-+K+"
2P+-+-+K+" 1+-tRQ+-+R!
1+R+Q+-+R! xabcdefghy
28.Rc3! Rd5 29.Bxd5!
xabcdefghy Not afraid of ghosts, although 29.Rd3 was
26...Kh8?! winning as well: 29...Rg5+ 30.Bxg5 Qxg5+
The text made White's life easier. As there 31.Bg4! Bxg4 32.Rg3 Bxd1 33.Rxg5 hxg5
was no time to lose, Black should directly 34.Rxd1 +-.
have opted for 26...Bd6. Then White would 29...Bxd5+ 30.Rf3 Qg4+ 31.Bg3 Bd6
have to find some difficult moves to prevail: 32.Rh3 (D)
27.Rc1! Qe5 28.Rxc6 Rxf3 29.Rxd6 Rf5 XABCDEFGHY
30.Rd8+ Kh7 31.Qd3 (D)
XABCDEFGHY 8-+-+-+-mk(
8-+-tR-+-+( 7zp-+-+-zp-'
7zp-+-+-zpk' 6-+pvl-+-zp&
6-+-+l+-zp& 5+-+l+-+P%
5+-+-wqr+P% 4-+-+-+q+$
4-+-+-+-vL$ 3+-+-+RvLR#
3+-+Q+-+-# 2P+-+-+K+"
2P+-+-+K+" 1+-+Q+-+-!
1+-+-+-+R! xabcdefghy
White fully protected his king and all his
xabcdefghy pieces effectively!
31...Bd5+ (31...Bxa2 32.Re1 +- ; 31...Qb2+ 32...Be7 33.Qe2 Be4 34.Qf2 a5 35.a4 c5
32.Kg3 Qe5+ 33.Kh3 g6 34.hxg6+ Kg7 36.Rh1
35.Kg2 +-) 32.Rxd5 Qxd5+ 33.Qxd5 Rxd5 And as White consolidated, his extra rook
34.Be1! +-. Also note that 26...Rf5 was los- would tell.
ing to 27.Rb3! Bxb3 28.axb3 +-. 36...Bf6 37.Re1 Bc6 38.Ree3 c4 39.Qe2
27.Rc1 Qxh5 40.Qxc4 Bd7 41.Rd3
Again 27.Bg3! would be easier: 27...Qg5 And Black had enough…
(27...Qf5 28.Rb8 +-) 28.Re1 Qf5 29.Rxe6 Clocks: W: 1:55:11 - B: 1:59:14
Qxe6 30.Qe2 +-. 1-0

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 130

Recipes from Round 9:
1. Karjakin-Kramnik: Kramnik didn’t ap-
pear for the Press-Conference after his game
with Karjakin. It may not be that important
but still showed something about his mood.
According to the regulations he will be fined
by 10% from his tournament prize.
Anastasia Karlovich asked his second An-
ish Giri to inform Kramnik to come back
any time until the round is over and give his
comment but he refused.
There were some e-mails exchanged be-
tween Kramnik and the organisers on the
subject. A quite abnormal situation for such
an event, by the way…
Another ‘version’ was that the game
Levon Aronian vs Shakhriyar Mamedyarov
had finished just before the game Karjakin-
Sakhriyar Mamedyarov vs Sergey Karjakin
Levon Aronian
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018
Kramnik and when Kramnik came to press
room and saw that their Press-Conference
was first, he decided to leave the building.
9.h4 was an idea discovered by Karjakin’s
second Alexander Riazantsev. They didn’t
analyse Kramnik’s reply 11...f5 because this
move didn’t cross their mind!
24.Be1! was a very difficult move for Kar-
jakin but he understood that having a rook-
up it was time to defend!
2. Caruana-Ding: Caruana commented on
his missed chance in the line 66.Nf8+ Kg8
67.h6: ‘It's kind of silly because I was look-
ing at this. Somehow 68.h7 completely
slipped my attention. Once you see it, it's
pretty obvious; it's a pretty simple tactic if I
had a few minutes. So I should have found
it’.
Alexander Grischuk
Fabiano Caruana vs Ding Liren
Lakhdar Mazouz on the move!
131
Round 10 (22.03.2018)
Round 10 offered White nothing in Karjakin,S-Wei,Y
22.03.2018 - 15:00 Wijk aan Zee 2018.
1 Grischuk - Karjakin ½:½ XABCDEFGHY
2 Kramnik - Aronian 1:0
3 Mamedyarov - Caruana ½:½ 8r+lwq-trk+(
4 Ding - So ½:½ 7zp-+nvlpzpp'
For another one round it was Kramnik’s 6-zpp+psn-+&
game that didn't end in a draw! But this time
Kramnik scored a point over the event’s 5+-+p+-+-%
disappointment, Aronian! 4P+PzP-+-+$
The long-awaited game between the two
leaders ended in a fighting draw but the 3+-+-+NzP-#
other two draws were a bit dull, although
interesting moments did exist…
2-zPQvLPzPLzP"
10.1. Grischuk vs Karjakin was a ‘quite’ 1tRNtR-+-mK-!
game, where both opponents hardly played xabcdefghy
with taking any risk! And of course the natu-
10...Ne4
ral outcome of a dull game is the draw, al-
A novelty. 10...Ba6 11.b3 c5 12.a5 Bb7, was
though sometimes blunders come - but not
unclear in Pustovoitova,D-Gunina,V Mos-
today!
cow 2018.
□ Grischuk Alexander (2767) 11.Be1
■ Karjakin Sergey (2763) Probably preferable was 11.Nc3! Nxd2
E11 Berlin 2018 (11...Nxc3 12.Bxc3 a5 13.b3 += 11...f5
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 Bb4+ 4.Bd2 Be7 12.cxd5 exd5 13.a5 +=) 12.Nxd2 +=.
5.Bg2 d5 6.Nf3 0-0 7.0-0 Nbd7 8.Qc2 c6 11...a5 12.Nbd2 Nxd2 13.Nxd2 (D)
9.Rc1 b6 (D) XABCDEFGHY
XABCDEFGHY 8r+lwq-trk+(
8r+lwq-trk+( 7+-+nvlpzpp'
7zp-+nvlpzpp' 6-zpp+p+-+&
6-zpp+psn-+& 5zp-+p+-+-%
5+-+p+-+-% 4P+PzP-+-+$
4-+PzP-+-+$ 3+-+-+-zP-#
3+-+-+NzP-# 2-zPQsNPzPLzP"
2PzPQvLPzPLzP" 1tR-tR-vL-mK-!
1tRNtR-+-mK-! xabcdefghy
xabcdefghy 13...Bf6
10.a4 (D) 13...Ba6!? 14.e4 Rc8, was a more interesting
10.cxd5 cxd5 11.Bf4 Bb7 12.Qb3 Rc8 and a more fighting way to continue.
13.Rxc8 Qxc8 14.Nc3 Nh5 15.Bg5 Bxg5 14.cxd5
16.Nxg5 Qb8 17.e3 Nhf6 18.Bf1 h6 19.Nf3, 14.e4 Bxd4 would transpose. But as many

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 132

exchanges took place after the text, White 5.d3 a6 6.Nd5
should consider the alternative 14.e3, with a 6.a3 h6 7.h3 Qe7 8.Ne2 d6 9.c3 Ba7 10.Ng3
tiny plus. Godena,M-Carlstedt,J Berlin 2015, was an-
14...cxd5 15.e4 Bxd4 other way to continue.
The text wasn't forced; Black could also opt 6...Nxd5 7.Bxd5 (D)
for 15...dxe4 16.Bxe4 Ra7 17.Nf3 XABCDEFGHY
(17.Bxh7+ Kh8 18.Be4 Bxd4 19.Nf3 Bf6
20.Bc3 oo) 17...g6 18.b4 axb4 19.Bxb4 Re8 8r+lwqk+-tr(
oo.
16.Nb3 Bf6 17.exd5 exd5 18.Bxd5 Ra7 (D)
7+pzpp+pzpp'
XABCDEFGHY 6p+n+-+-+&
8-+lwq-trk+( 5+-vlLzp-+-%
7tr-+n+pzpp' 4-+-+P+-+$
6-zp-+-vl-+& 3+-+P+N+-#
5zp-+L+-+-% 2PzPP+-zPPzP"
4P+-+-+-+$ 1tR-vLQmK-+R!
3+N+-+-zP-# xabcdefghy
7...d6
2-zPQ+-zP-zP" A natural novelty to 7...0-0 8.Bg5 Be7 9.h4
1tR-tR-vL-mK-! d6 10.Qd2 Bg4 11.c3 Qd7 oo Benda,H-
Kilgus,G Austria 2007.
xabcdefghy 8.Be3!
Black was about to fully equalise here, so A nice idea; White's open f-file would be
White played carefully.... used as a base for a potential attack to the
19.Bg2 h6 20.Bc3 Rc7 21.Bxf6 Rxc2 black king. At the same time White con-
22.Bxd8 Rxc1+ 23.Rxc1 Rxd8 24.Rd1 Kf8 trolled important central squares.
25.f4 Ke7 8...Bxe3 9.fxe3 0-0 10.0-0 (D)
There was really nothing to play for, so XABCDEFGHY
White decided to force a draw by move
repetition. 8r+lwq-trk+(
26.Re1+ Kf8 27.Rd1 Ke7 28.Re1+ Kf8
Clocks: W: 1:31:50 - B: 1:26:09
7+pzp-+pzpp'
½-½ 6p+nzp-+-+&
10.2. Kramnik oriented his plans along a 5+-+Lzp-+-%
kingside side, mainly via the semi-open f-
file. But strangely it was like he was having 4-+-+P+-+$
the better side of a draw for a long series of 3+-+PzPN+-#
moves, until Aronian cracked down and with
not enough time left, he blundered in one! 2PzPP+-+PzP"
Not an easy game to play at all, as the com- 1tR-+Q+RmK-!
plications were tremendous, while both op-
ponents lived-up to their status… xabcdefghy
□ Kramnik Vladimir (2800) 10...Nb8!
■ Aronian Levon (2794) A good regrouping. 10...Be6?!, couldn't
C50 Berlin 2018 equalise after 11.Bxe6 fxe6 12.c3 Qe7
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Nc3 Nf6 13.Qb3 Rab8 14.d4 +=.

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 133

11.b4 Nd7 12.Qd2 c6 13.Bb3 a5 14.a3 Nf6 19...Rfe8
14...axb4 15.axb4 Rxa1 16.Rxa1 Nf6, Not bad, but after 19...Rfc8 20.Nd2 c5!,
should be considered now or in the next Black should be in the driver's seat, ques-
couple of moves, easing the pressure on the tioning White's previous choices...
f-file. 20.Nh4 c5?!
15.h3 h6 (D) Again, 20...a4, should be more than fine for
XABCDEFGHY Black. A sample line could go as 21.Ba2
Be6 22.Bxe6 Rxe6 23.Ref1 Kh7! (23...d5
8r+lwq-trk+( 24.Rxf6 Rxf6 25.Rxf6 gxf6 26.Nf5 Kh7
27.Qe1 oo/=) 24.Qe1 d5 =+.
7+p+-+pzp-' 21.Ref1 cxb4 22.Qe1! (D)
6-+pzp-sn-zp& XABCDEFGHY
5zp-+-zp-+-% 8r+-+r+k+(
4-zP-+P+-+$ 7+-+l+pzp-'
3zPL+PzPN+P# 6-wq-zp-sn-zp&
2-+PwQ-+P+" 5zpp+-zp-+-%
1tR-+-+RmK-! 4-zp-+P+-sN$
xabcdefghy 3zPL+PzP-+P#
16.Rab1!?
Simply avoiding the rook exchange. White 2-+P+-tRP+"
couldn't claim any opening advantage; on 1+-+-wQRmK-!
the other hand nothing was easy... 16.a4
axb4 17.Qxb4 =. xabcdefghy
16...b5! 17.Qc3?! 22...d5!
Kramnik tried to play for a win in every 22...bxa3?, was losing to 23.Rxf6! gxf6
game by now and this was honourable for 24.Rxf6 Be6 25.Qg3+ Kf8 26.Nf5 +-.
him, but objectively here he should have 22...a4?, had its problems too: 23.Rxf6!
opted for 17.a4! bxa4 18.Bxa4 Qc7 19.bxa5 axb3 (23...gxf6? 24.Rxf6 axb3 25.Qg3+ +-)
Rxa5 20.Bb3 (20.Bxc6 Ra2 21.Bb5 Be6 24.Qg3 Re7 25.Rxh6 bxc2 26.Kh2! c1Q
oo/=) 20...Bd7 =. (26...bxa3? 27.Ng6! +-) 27.Rxc1 bxa3
17...Bd7! 18.Rf2 Qb6 19.Re1 (D) 28.Rf1 Be6 29.Rh5 Rea7 30.Qg6! +-.
XABCDEFGHY 23.axb4 dxe4 24.bxa5 Rxa5!
24...Qxa5?, looked natural, but after 25.Qd1!
8r+-+-trk+( Qa7 (25...Rf8 26.Ng6) 26.Rxf6! gxf6
27.Qh5 Qxe3+ 28.Kh2 +/-, Black would be
7+-+l+pzp-' in trouble.
6-wqpzp-sn-zp& 25.Ng6
I would rather go for 25.dxe4 Ra7 26.Rxf6
5zpp+-zp-+-% gxf6 27.Qg3+ Kf8 28.Kh2 oo/=. This line
4-zP-+P+-+$ would be more complicated and further-
more, I would certainly prefer to be White...
3zPLwQPzPN+P# 25...Be6 26.Nxe5 exd3! (D)
2-+P+-tRP+" Black defended well by now, seeking the
most aggressive and ‘annoying’ moves and
1+-+-tR-mK-! the text was simply another one! Note that
bad was 26...Bxb3? 27.Rxf6! Be6 (27...gxf6
xabcdefghy 28.Nd7 +-) 28.Qg3 +-.
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 134
 XABCDEFGHY diagonal b1-h7 would be decisive. If
30...Ra1+ 31.Kh2 d1Q 32.Bxd1 Rxd1, then
8-+-+r+k+( White would mate with 33.Nxf7 +-.
7+-+-+pzp-' XABCDEFGHY
6-wq-+lsn-zp& 8-+-+rmk-+(
5trp+-sN-+-% 7+-+-+p+-'
4-+-+-+-+$ 6-wq-+ltR-zp&
3+L+pzP-+P# 5trp+-sN-+-%
2-+P+-tRP+" 4-+-+-+-+$
1+-+-wQRmK-! 3+L+-zP-wQP#
xabcdefghy 2-+Pzp-+P+"
27.Rxf6! 1+-+-+-mK-!
Good or bad, there was simply no other
move! xabcdefghy
27...gxf6 28.Rxf6! (D) 30.Rf1!
Brave! 28.Qg3+, was a nearly immediate 30.Nd7+?!, was risky, but this could be
draw: 28...Kf8 29.Ng6+ Kg7 (29...fxg6?! proven only after some great complications:
30.Rxf6+ Ke7 31.Rxe6+ Qxe6 32.Bxe6 30...Ke7 31.Nxb6 Ra1+! (31...d1Q+? 32.Rf1
dxc2 33.Qc7+ Kxe6 34.Qxc2 +=) 30.Ne5+ +-) 32.Kh2 Rh1+! 33.Kxh1 d1Q+ 34.Kh2
Kf8 =. Kxf6 35.Qf4+ Kg7 36.Qe5+ Kf8 (36...Kg6?!
XABCDEFGHY 37.Bd5! Bxd5 38.Qxe8 Be6 39.Qxb5 Qd6+
40.Kg1 Qd1+ 41.Kf2 Qxc2+ 42.Kg3 +=)
8-+-+r+k+( 37.Qc5+ Kg8 38.Bxe6 Rxe6 39.Nd5 Qd2
=+.
7+-+-+p+-' 30...Ra7! (D)
6-wq-+ltR-zp& XABCDEFGHY
5trp+-sN-+-% 8-+-+rmk-+(
4-+-+-+-+$ 7tr-+-+p+-'
3+L+pzP-+P# 6-wq-+l+-zp&
2-+P+-+P+" 5+p+-sN-+-%
1+-+-wQ-mK-! 4-+-+-+-+$
xabcdefghy 3+L+-zP-wQP#
28...d2!
Excellent and aggressive defence! 2-+Pzp-+P+"
28...dxc2?, was falling to 29.Bxc2 Kg7 1+-+-+RmK-!
30.Qf2 Ra1+ 31.Kh2 Qa7 32.Qf4 +-.
29.Qg3+! xabcdefghy
Not of course the naive 29.Qxd2? Ra1+ 31.Ng6+! Kg7 32.Nf4+!
30.Kf2 (30.Kh2? Qb8 -+) 30...Qa5 -/+. 32.Ne5+? Kh7 -+.
29...Kf8 (D) 32...Kh8!
The only move again, as 29...Kh7?, was Not falling for 32...Kf8? 33.Nxe6+ Rxe6
losing to 30.c4! and the bishop-check on the 34.Bxe6 Qxe6 35.Qb8+ +-, or 32...Kh7?

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 135

33.Nh5 +-. 37.Nxh7 d1Q, transposed) 36.Qf4! Rh7
33.Nh5 (D) 37.Nxh7 Qxe6 38.Nf6 Qxf1+ 39.Kxf1 Qc4+
XABCDEFGHY 40.Qxc4 bxc4 41.Ke2 =.
35.Qf4 (D)
8-+-+r+-mk( XABCDEFGHY
7tr-+-+p+-' 8-+-+-tr-mk(
6-wq-+l+-zp& 7tr-+-+-+-'
5+p+-+-+N% 6-wq-+lsN-zp&
4-+-+-+-+$ 5+p+-+-+-%
3+L+-zP-wQP# 4-+-+-wQ-+$
2-+Pzp-+P+" 3+L+-zP-+P#
1+-+-+RmK-! 2-+Pzp-+P+"
xabcdefghy 1+-+-+RmK-!
33...f6
Natural, but quite interesting would be xabcdefghy
33...Bg4!? 34.Qxg4 Qxe3+ 35.Kh1 Rg8 35...Rh7! 36.Qe5! Qc7? (D)
36.Qh4, where Black seemed to be fine: A blunder with no time left... A pity for
36...Rg5 (36...Ra6!?) 37.Nf4 Kh7 38.Nd5 Aronian, as he defended greatly by now, but
Qe2 39.Qe4+ Qxe4 40.Nf6+ Kh8 41.Nxe4 that's life and chess as well! 36...Rg7, would
Re7 42.Nxd2 Re2 43.Nf3 Rgxg2 =. do the job: 37.Bxe6 Rg5 38.Nd5+ Rxe5
34.Nxf6 (D) 39.Rxf8+ Kg7 40.Rf7+ Kh8 41.Rf8+ Kg7
The careless 34.Qg6?, would lose to 42.Rf7+ Kg6 43.Nf4+ Kg5 44.Rg7+ =.
34...Qxe3+ 35.Kh1 Rf7 -+. XABCDEFGHY
XABCDEFGHY 8-+-+-tr-mk(
8-+-+r+-mk( 7+-wq-+-+r'
7tr-+-+-+-' 6-+-+lsN-zp&
6-wq-+lsN-zp& 5+p+-wQ-+-%
5+p+-+-+-% 4-+-+-+-+$
4-+-+-+-+$ 3+L+-zP-+P#
3+L+-zP-wQP# 2-+Pzp-+P+"
2-+Pzp-+P+" 1+-+-+RmK-!
1+-+-+RmK-! xabcdefghy
xabcdefghy 37.Ne8+!
34...Rf8 And Black resigned, due to 37...Qxe5
34...Rd8!?, was another one of the numerous 38.Rxf8+ Bg8 39.Rxg8 #. A great game,
possibilities in the last ten moves: 35.Bxe6 which simply proved the assets of initiative
(35.Qf4 Bf5! 36.Qxf5 d1Q 37.Qf4 Rh7 and attack. And great players know what to
38.Rxd1 Rxd1+ 39.Kh2 Qd6 40.Nxh7 do with those assets!
Qxf4+ 41.exf4 Kxh7 42.c4 Rd4 43.cxb5 Clocks: W: 1:56:03 - B: 1:57:13
Rxf4 =) 35...d1Q (35...Qxe6 36.Qf4 Rh7 1-0

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 136

 10.3. A long awaited battle - both tried to White prevented ...b5, but the text allowed
prevail but the draw changed nothing on top! Black to assault in the centre.
8...e5! 9.Bxc6+
□ Mamedyarov Shakhriyar (2809)
More or less forced. 9.Nxc4 exd4 10.exd4
■ Caruana Fabiano (2784)
Bg4, should be fine for Black.
E04 Berlin 2018
9...bxc6 10.dxe5 Ng4 11.Nxc4 Be6 (D)
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.g3 dxc4 5.Bg2
Nc6 (D) XABCDEFGHY
XABCDEFGHY 8-tr-wqk+-tr(
8r+lwqkvl-tr( 7zp-zp-vlpzpp'
7zppzp-+pzpp' 6-+p+l+-+&
6-+n+psn-+& 5+-+-zP-+-%
5+-+-+-+-% 4-+N+-+n+$
4-+pzP-+-+$ 3+-+-zP-zP-#
3+-+-+NzP-# 2PzP-+-zP-zP"
2PzP-+PzPLzP" 1tRNvLQ+RmK-!
1tRNvLQmK-+R! xabcdefghy
xabcdefghy 12.Nbd2
A novelty to 12.Qxd8+ Rxd8 13.Nbd2 Bb4
6.0-0
14.e4 Bxd2 15.Nxd2 Nxe5 = Van der
Mamedyarov was ready to take risks! 6.Qa4
Stricht,G-Hausrath,D Belgium 2008.
leaded to calmly endgames: 6...Bb4+ 7.Bd2
12...h5! 13.f3 Qd3
Nd5 8.Bxb4 Ndxb4 9.0-0 Rb8 10.Na3 0-0
Played quickly, but Black could also think
11.Qb5 b6 12.Qxc4 += Kramnik,V-
of 13...h4 14.fxg4 hxg3 15.Qf3 (15.hxg3
Nakamura,H London 2011.
Qd3 16.Qf3 Bd5 17.e4 Bc5+ 18.Kg2 Bxc4
6...Rb8 7.e3 Be7
19.Nxc4 Qxc4 20.Re1 Bd4=) 15...Rxh2!
Another popular way was with 7...b5 8.b3
16.Qxg3 Rh4 17.Rf4 Qd3, which should
cxb3 9.axb3 Be7 10.Qe2 0-0 11.Bd2 Bb7
have been a mess, although many variations
12.Rc1 a6 13.Ne1 oo/= Radjabov,T-
would lead to equality!
Cheparinov,I Monzon 2016.
14.fxg4 Bxc4 15.Nxc4 Qxc4 16.gxh5 (D)
8.Nfd2 (D)
XABCDEFGHY XABCDEFGHY
8-trlwqk+-tr( 8-tr-+k+-tr(
7zppzp-vlpzpp' 7zp-zp-vlpzp-'
6-+n+psn-+& 6-+p+-+-+&
5+-+-+-+-% 5+-+-zP-+P%
4-+pzP-+-+$ 4-+q+-+-+$
3+-+-zP-zP-# 3+-+-zP-zP-#
2PzP-sN-zPLzP" 2PzP-+-+-zP"
1tRNvLQ+RmK-! 1tR-vLQ+RmK-!
xabcdefghy xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 137
Up to here both players moved quickly, pensation would be.
proving that they have made good home XABCDEFGHY
preparation! White has taken two pawns, but
Black had the compensation of better devel- 8-+-+k+-tr(
opment and weak white king. Well, both
seemed to be happy here...
7zp-zp-vlp+-'
16...Qe6 6-+p+-+p+&
Caruana had here his first big thought, a sign
that home preparation was over... 5+-+-+R+P%
17.Qf3 4-+-+-+-+$
It's clear that White would have to return a
pawn. 17.Bd2 Rxb2 18.Bc3 Rb5, was an- 3+P+-zP-zP-#
other way to develop, but who wants to 2P+-+-+KzP"
give-up the healthy b-pawn.
17...Rb5 18.Qf5 1tR-vLr+-+-!
The main idea of White's last moves - to
exchange queens, as to 'improve' his king,
xabcdefghy
returning one of the two extra pawns. 23.Re5?!
18...Rxe5 19.Qxe6 Rxe6 20.Rf5! (D) 23.hxg6! fxg6 24.Re5, would transpose to
No other way to protect the extra pawn, as the game, but it would be accurate.
20.g4?, would fall to 20...g6! 21.hxg6 Rxg6 23...c5
22.Rf4 Bd6 -/+. Black here could have opted for 23...Rxh5!
24.Rxe7+ Kxe7 25.Ba3+ Rd6 26.Rc1 Ra5
XABCDEFGHY 27.Bxd6+ cxd6 28.Rc2 =, as well.
8-+-+k+-tr( 24.hxg6 fxg6 25.e4
With the deadly threat 26.Rxe7+! Kxe7
7zp-zp-vlpzp-' 27.Bg5+.
6-+p+r+-+& 25...Rh7! 26.h4 (D)

5+-+-+R+P% XABCDEFGHY
4-+-+-+-+$ 8-+-+k+-+(
3+-+-zP-zP-# 7zp-zp-vl-+r'
2PzP-+-+-zP" 6-+-+-+p+&
1tR-vL-+-mK-! 5+-zp-tR-+-%
xabcdefghy 4-+-+P+-zP$
20...Rd6! 3+P+-+-zP-#
Activity and initiative are important in this 2P+-+-+K+"
position. After 20...Reh6?! 21.Bd2! Rxh5
22.Rxh5 Rxh5 23.Rc1 Kd7 24.Kg2 +=, ma- 1tR-vLr+-+-!
terial would be equal but Black's pawn struc-
ture would suffer and White should be
xabcdefghy
pleased. White was still a pawn-up and Black had to
21.Kg2 Rd1 22.b3 find a way to be active.
22.e4 Re1 23.h4 Bd6 24.b3 f6 25.h6 gxh6 26...Rf7!
26.Rxf6 Rf8! oo/=. Preparing the doubling on the first rank,
22...g6 (D) which could have proven fatal for White!
After 22...Bf6 23.Rb1, with ideas as h4 and 26...Kf8? 27.Bh6+ +- and 26...Kd7?
Rf1, it wouldn’t be clear where Black's com- 27.Rd5+ Rxd5 28.exd5 +/-, would just play

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 138

in White's hands. White won time on the clock and continued
27.Kh3 his efforts, although he already knew that he
There was nothing better for White than to simply couldn't do it anymore...
sacrifice the exchange. 40...Rdd3! 41.Kg4! Rxg3+ 42.Kf4 Rgf3+
27...Rff1 28.Bg5 Rxa1 29.Rxe7+ Kf8 43.Ke4 Rfe3+ 44.Kf4 Rf3+ 45.Kg5 Rf7!
Worst would be the 29...Kd8? 30.Re6+ Kd7 46.e6 (D)
31.Rxg6 +/-, due to the white passer duo. What else? 46.Kxg6 Rg3+ 47.Kh6 Rxe7
30.Rxc7 Rxa2 (D) 48.Bxe7 Kf7 49.Bd6, would be a clear draw.
XABCDEFGHY XABCDEFGHY
8-+-+-mk-+( 8-+-+-+k+(
7zp-tR-+-+-' 7zp-+-tRr+-'
6-+-+-+p+& 6-+-vLP+p+&
5+-zp-+-vL-% 5+-+-+-mK-%
4-+-+P+-zP$ 4-zP-+-+-zP$
3+P+-+-zPK# 3+-+r+-+-#
2r+-+-+-+" 2-+-+-+-+"
1+-+-+r+-! 1+-+-+-+-!
xabcdefghy xabcdefghy
31.Be7+?! 46...Rd5+!
The bishop was needed to protect the vul- 46...Rxe7 47.Bxe7 Kh7, was a draw as well,
nerable g3-pawn/square, so White should but the text was clearer.
have opted for 31.e5 Ra6 32.Rxc5, with 47.Kxg6 Rxd6 48.Rxf7 Rxe6+ 49.Rf6 Re4!
some chances. 50.b5 Rxh4 51.Ra6 Rh7
31...Kg8 32.Rc8+ Kg7 33.Bxc5 Re2 34.e5 51...Rd4 52.Rxa7 Rd6+ (52...Kf8 =) 53.Kf5
(D) Rd5+ 54.Ke6 Rxb5 =.
XABCDEFGHY 52.b6 Rg7+ 53.Kh6 Rh7+ 54.Kg5 Rg7+
55.Kf5 axb6 56.Rxb6 Rf7+ 57.Rf6 Rxf6+
8-+R+-+-+( 58.Kxf6
Clocks: W: 2:16:47 - B: 2:30:51
7zp-+-+-mk-' ½-½
6-+-+-+p+&
5+-vL-zP-+-%
4-+-+-+-zP$
3+P+-+-zPK#
2-+-+r+-+"
10.4. So sacrificed a pawn vs Ding in the
1+-+-+r+-! opening for active play and quick develop-
xabcdefghy ment. Both opponents tried to play safe and
the draw was soon the only option!
34...Rd1! 35.Re8 Rd5 36.Bd6 Re3!
Black got ready for an assault on g3. □ Ding Liren (2769)
37.Re7+ Kg8 38.Re8+ Kf7 39.Re7+ Kg8 ■ So Wesley (2799)
40.b4 D37 Berlin 2018

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 139

1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Be7 4.Nf3 Nf6 5.Bf4 11.Kf1 Nd7 12.h4
0-0 6.e3 b6 7.cxd5 Nxd5 8.Nxd5 (D) 12.h3 Rac8 13.Bf4 Rfd8 14.Kg1, might have
XABCDEFGHY been an alternative line, although here Black
would have his compensation as well, due to
8rsnlwq-trk+( his superior development.
12...Rac8 13.Bf4 Rfd8 14.Kg1 (D)
7zp-zp-vlpzpp'
6-zp-+p+-+& XABCDEFGHY
5+-+N+-+-% 8-+rtr-+k+(
4-+-zP-vL-+$ 7zpl+nvlpzpp'
3+-+-zPN+-# 6-zp-+p+-+&
2PzP-+-zPPzP" 5wq-+-+-+-%
1tR-+QmKL+R! 4-+-zP-vL-zP$
xabcdefghy 3+-+-zPN+-#
8...Qxd5 2PzP-+LzPP+"
8...exd5, was a more fighting way: 9.Bd3 c5 1tR-+Q+-mKR!
10.0-0 c4 11.Bb1 Nc6 12.b3 Be6 oo Fe-
doseev,V-Friedel,J Internet 2018. With the xabcdefghy
text Black could ‘aim just’ for a draw... 14...Bxf3!
9.Be2 Bb7 Time for a centre assault - this is the way to
9...Bb4+, was interesting: 10.Nd2 Bxd2+ benefit from a superior development!
(10...Qxg2?! 11.Bf3 Bxd2+ 12.Kxd2 Qxf2+ 15.Bxf3 e5 16.Bg5
13.Kc3 +/-) 11.Qxd2 Qxg2 12.0-0-0 oo/=. A bit risky. Black should also equalise after
10.Bxc7 (D) the alternative 16.Bg3 exd4 17.exd4 Bf6
XABCDEFGHY 18.Qe2 Bxd4 19.Kh2 Be5 =.
16...Bxg5!
8rsn-+-trk+( 16...f6?!, looked a winning move, as it was
trapping the bishop. But after 17.Qb3+ Kh8
7zplvL-vlpzpp' (17...Kf8? 18.Bh5! g6 19.Bh6+ Ke8
6-zp-+p+-+& 20.Qg8+ Nf8 21.Bf3 +-) 18.Qf7 Qb4
(18...Bf8? 19.Bd5 +-) 19.Be4! (D)
5+-+q+-+-% XABCDEFGHY
4-+-zP-+-+$ 8-+rtr-+-mk(
3+-+-zPN+-# 7zp-+nvlQzpp'
2PzP-+LzPPzP" 6-zp-+-zp-+&
1tR-+QmK-+R! 5+-+-zp-vL-%
xabcdefghy 4-wq-zPL+-zP$
10...Qa5+
Black had sacrificed a pawn and now he had 3+-+-zP-+-#
to decide how to destroy White's castling
rights, as get compensation. His novelty 2PzP-+-zPP+"
looked a bit better at least than 10...Bb4+ 1tR-+-+-mKR!
11.Kf1 Nc6 12.Qa4 Rfc8 13.Bg3 a6 14.h3
+= Injac,T-Goczo,M Novi Sad 2017. xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 140
Black must be very careful: 19...exd4! 22.Bd5 Nc6! 23.Rdd1
(19...Nf8? 20.Bh6! [20.h5? fxg5 21.h6 Bf6 23.Rd2 Nb4 24.Rad1 Rxd5 25.Rxd5 Nxd5
22.Bxh7 Nxh7 23.hxg7+ Bxg7 24.Qf5 Kg8 26.Rxd5 =.
25.Qxh7+ Kf8 oo] 20...gxh6 21.Rh3 f5 23...Kf8 (D)
22.Bxf5 Rc6 23.a3! Qd6 24.Rg3 Ng6 25.h5 XABCDEFGHY
Rf8 26.hxg6! Rxf7 27.gxf7 Bg5 28.dxe5
Qe7 29.e6 +/-) 20.exd4 Qxd4 21.Bh6! f5 8-+rtr-mk-+(
22.Bxf5 Qe5 23.Bg5 +=.
17.hxg5 exd4 18.Qxd4 (D)
7zp-+-+pzpp'
XABCDEFGHY 6-zpn+-+-+&
8-+rtr-+k+( 5+-+L+-+-%
7zp-+n+pzpp' 4-+-+-+-+$
6-zp-+-+-+& 3+-+-zP-+-#
5wq-+-+-zP-% 2PzP-+-zPP+"
4-+-wQ-+-+$ 1tR-+R+-mK-!
3+-+-zPL+-# xabcdefghy
24.Bxc6
2PzP-+-zPP+" White decided to force a draw. He could
1tR-+-+-mKR! continue as he was hardly in a position to
lose after 24.Kf1 and his bishop vs knight in
xabcdefghy the endgame might have been annoying.
18...Qxg5 24...Rxd1+ 25.Rxd1 Rxc6 26.Rd7 Rc2!
Simple, but here Black could have tried 27.Rxa7 Rxb2 28.a4 Ra2 29.Rb7 Ra1+
18...Nf8! 19.Qe4! (19.Qh4 Rd2 20.b4 Qe5 30.Kh2 Rxa4 31.Rxb6
21.Re1 Rxa2 =+ ; 19.b4 Qxg5 20.Qb2 g6! Clocks: W: 1:17:01 - B: 1:04:58
oo) 19...Qxg5 20.Rh5 Qf6 oo. ½-½
19.Rh5! Qf6 20.Rd5 Qxd4 21.Rxd4 Ne5
Recipes from Round 10:
1. Kramnik-Aronian: Kramnik on his opening: ‘As you saw from the opening I was a bit tired of
sharp games and I wanted to play a normal, safe, equal position. It seems that whatever I do lately,
it starts to get crazy’. Aronian saw the possibility to sacrifice on f6 few times but he felt he should
have enough resources not only to defend but to play for win: ‘It was interesting to try and get
some chances’.

Sakhriyar Mamedyarov vs Fabiano Caruana Sakhriyar Mamedyarov vs Fabiano Caruana

Footballer Felix Magath on the move!
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 141
Round 11 (23.03.2018)
Round 11 Cosma,E Iasi 2015.
23.03.2018 - 15:00 11.Bd2 (D)
1 Ding - Grischuk ½:½ XABCDEFGHY
2 So - Mamedyarov ½:½
3 Caruana - Kramnik ½:½ 8r+-+kvl-tr(
4 Aronian - Karjakin 0:1 7+lwq-+pzpp'
Just one decisive game in the 11th round 6p+n+psn-+&
and that one wasn’t concerning the fight for
the first place. We could have a second deci- 5+pzp-+-+-%
sive game, but Ding played rather awfully, 4-+-zP-+-+$
after he ‘crushed’ Grischuk! The two leaders
didn’t risk much, maintaining their positions 3zP-sN-zPN+-#
and preparing for the final meters…
2LzP-vLQzPPzP"
11.1. Simply an incredible game. I barely
remember a so won game in my life! Ding 1tR-+-+RmK-!
played well but later he ‘refused’ for a num- xabcdefghy
ber of moves to cash the point, allowing
11...Be7
Grischuk to escape from Alcatraz!
A novelty. Usually Black players would go
□ Ding Liren (2769) for 11...Rd8 12.dxc5 (12.Rfc1 cxd4 13.exd4
■ Grischuk Alexander (2767) Be7 14.d5 exd5 15.Bg5 0-0 16.Bxf6 Bxf6 17.
D40 Berlin 2018 Nxd5 Qd6 18.Re1 Nd4 = Nepomniachtchi,I-
1.c4 c5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nc3 Nc6 4.e3 e6 5.d4 Gelfand,B Moscow 2018) 12...Bxc5 13.Rac1,
d5 6.a3 dxc4 (D) with a tiny white advantage, as in Iturrizaga
XABCDEFGHY Bonelli,E-Fedorovsky,M Basel 2015.
12.Rac1 c4!?
8r+lwqkvl-tr( Black understood that White would build a
strong centre after the text, but felled that it
7zpp+-+pzpp' wasn't that important - his queenside major-
6-+n+psn-+& ity would be strong enough.
13.e4 Rd8 14.Be3! Ng4 15.e5 (D)
5+-zp-+-+-% XABCDEFGHY
4-+pzP-+-+$ 8-+-trk+-tr(
3zP-sN-zPN+-# 7+lwq-vlpzpp'
2-zP-+-zPPzP" 6p+n+p+-+&
1tR-vLQmKL+R! 5+p+-zP-+-%
xabcdefghy 4-+pzP-+n+$
Now a 'Queen's Gambit Accepted' opening
came out. 3zP-sN-vLN+-#
7.Bxc4 a6 8.0-0 b5 9.Ba2 Bb7 10.Qe2 Qc7
An early 10...cxd4, would nearly always be
2LzP-+QzPPzP"
more pleasant to White: 11.Rd1 Be7 1+-tR-+RmK-!
12.exd4 Nd5 (12...0-0 13.d5 exd5 14.Nxd5
Nxd5 15.Bxd5 +=) 13.Ne4 += Miron,L- xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 142
15...Na5? 24...Qc8!? 25.Qxh5 Bxg5 26.Bxg5 Nf7
15...0-0! 16.h3 Nxe3 17.fxe3 f5 oo, would 27.Qg4 Re8 28.Ne2! +/-.
be what Black had wished for! 25.Bg6! Bf6
16.Bf4! Qb6 17.Rcd1 h5 25...Rc8 26.Qf3+ Bf6 27.Nce4 dxe4
Black didn't like 17...0-0 18.h3, but preserv- 28.Rxd7 exf3 29.Nxe6+ Kg8 30.Rxb7 +-.
ing the king in the centre was hardly better... 26.Bb6! Rc8
18.h3 Nh6 19.Bb1 Nb3 20.Be3 Qc7 26...Bxg5 27.Bxd8 Bxd8 28.Qxe6 Qxe6
21.Rfe1 Kf8 (D) 29.Rxe6 Be7 30.Nxd5 Bxd5 31.Rxd5 Nf7
XABCDEFGHY 32.Rd7 +-.
27.Nxe6+ Kg8 28.Nxd5! Bxd5 (D)
8-+-tr-mk-tr( XABCDEFGHY
7+lwq-vlpzp-' 8-+r+-+ktr(
6p+-+p+-sn& 7+-+q+-zp-'
5+p+-zP-+p% 6pvL-+NvlLsn&
4-+pzP-+-+$ 5+p+l+-+p%
3zPnsN-vLN+P# 4-+p+-+-+$
2-zP-+QzPP+" 3zPn+-+-+P#
1+L+RtR-mK-! 2-zP-+QzPP+"
xabcdefghy 1+-+RtR-mK-!
22.d5!
22.Bc2, was good as well, but White correctly xabcdefghy
understood that the position should get open. 29.Nf4?!
22...exd5 23.e6?! How a near to 2800 GM could miss some-
Not bad, but 'clearer' was 23.Bc2! Nc5 thing as simple as 29.Nd8!... Chess is
24.Bxc5 Bxc5 25.e6 +/-. Note that Grischuk strange and hard to understand... The good
was in grave time trouble already! news for White was that he was still winning
23...fxe6 24.Ng5 (D) - the bad news that he continued losing di-
XABCDEFGHY rect shots!
29...Nc1 30.Qxh5 (D)
8-+-tr-mk-tr( 30.Qe3! Nd3 31.Nxd5 +-.
7+lwq-vl-zp-' XABCDEFGHY
6p+-+p+-sn& 8-+r+-+ktr(
5+p+p+-sNp% 7+-+q+-zp-'
4-+p+-+-+$ 6pvL-+-vlLsn&
3zPnsN-vL-+P# 5+p+l+-+Q%
2-zP-+QzPP+" 4-+p+-sN-+$
1+L+RtR-mK-! 3zP-+-+-+P#
xabcdefghy 2-zP-+-zPP+"
24...Qd7? 1+-snRtR-mK-!
Anything was lost here, but Black should try
to put up some kind of resistance, with xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 143
30...Nd3 37.Qe4 Qc6 (D)
30...Nf7 31.Rxd5 Rxh5 32.Rxd7 Ne5 XABCDEFGHY
33.Nxh5 Nxd7 34.Nxf6+ gxf6 35.Bf5 Nxb6
36.Bxc8 +-. 8-+r+-+-mk(
31.Nxd5 Nf7 (D)
7+-+-+-zpL'
XABCDEFGHY 6pvLq+-vl-+&
8-+r+-+ktr( 5+p+-sn-+-%
7+-+q+nzp-' 4-+p+Qsn-+$
6pvL-+-vlL+& 3zP-+-+-+P#
5+p+N+-+Q% 2-zP-+-+P+"
4-+p+-+-+$ 1+-+RtR-mK-!
3zP-+n+-+P# xabcdefghy
2-zP-+-zPP+" 38.Bd4?
1+-+RtR-mK-! After a series of could-win-moves, White
finally blundered for the good and lost all
xabcdefghy his advantage. His last chance was with
32.Qe2?! 38.Qxf4 Kxh7 (38...Qxb6+ 39.Kh1 Kxh7
32.Nxf6+ gxf6 33.Bxf7+ Qxf7 34.Qg4+ 40.Qf5+ +-) 39.Bd4 Nd3 40.Qf5+ Kg8
Kh7 35.Qf5+ Kg7 36.Re4 +-, was curtains... 41.Bxf6 Nxe1 42.Rxe1 gxf6 43.Kf1! +-.
32...Nfe5 33.Be4 Rh4 34.f4 38.Be3 Nxh3+ 39.Kh1 +-, was winning as
34.Qe3 Qf7 35.Nxf6+ Qxf6 36.Bd4 +-. well!
34...Rxf4 35.Nxf4 38...Nxh3+?
35.Bxd3? cxd3 36.Nxf6+ Rxf6 37.Qxe5 d2! Black had no time left, so he didn't find the
-/+. resource 38...Ned3! 39.Be3 Qxe4 40.Bxe4
35...Nxf4 (D) Nxe1 41.Bxf4 Nd3 42.Bxd3 cxd3 43.Rxd3
XABCDEFGHY Bxb2 =.
39.Kh2 Ng5 40.Qxc6 Rxc6 41.Bc2 Ngf7
8-+r+-+k+( (D)
7+-+q+-zp-' XABCDEFGHY
6pvL-+-vl-+& 8-+-+-+-mk(
5+p+-sn-+-% 7+-+-+nzp-'
4-+p+Lsn-+$ 6p+r+-vl-+&
3zP-+-+-+P# 5+p+-sn-+-%
2-zP-+Q+P+" 4-+pvL-+-+$
1+-+RtR-mK-! 3zP-+-+-+-#
xabcdefghy 2-zPL+-+PmK"
36.Bh7+! 1+-+RtR-+-!
36.Rxd7? Nxe2+ 37.Rxe2 Nxd7 38.Bb7 Rb8
39.Bd5+ Kh7 =. xabcdefghy
36...Kh8 So, White emerged with an exchange-up for
36...Kxh7 37.Qe4+ +-. a pawn and he should win, despite all the

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 144

‘suicides’ of the previous moves! 75...Bxg7? 76.Kxg7 Nd2 77.Kf6 +-.
42.Bxe5?! 76.Re7 Bd4 77.Rd7 Be5 78.Kh6 Kc2
No need to surrender the bishop pair! 79.Kg5 Kb3 80.Kf5 Bh8! 81.Rb7+ Kc2
42.Bc3, would be soon curtains! 82.Rh7 Bd4 83.Ke6 Kb3 84.Rd7 Bh8
42...Nxe5 43.Rd5 Re6 44.Kh3 Kg8 45.b3? 85.Rd8 Bg7 86.Kf7 Be5 87.Re8 Bd4
It wasn't Ding's day - just as simple as that! 88.Rb8+ Kc2 89.Rb7 Be5 90.Rb6 Bd4 (D)
45.g4 g5 46.Bf5 Re7 47.Rd6 +-. XABCDEFGHY
45...Kf7 46.bxc4 Nxc4 47.Rd7+ Be7
48.Rxe6 Kxe6 49.Ra7 Nxa3 50.Rxa6+ Kd5 8-+-+-+-+(
(D)
7+-+-+K+-'
XABCDEFGHY 6-tR-+-+P+&
8-+-+-+-+( 5+-+-+-+-%
7+-+-vl-zp-' 4-+-vl-+-+$
6R+-+-+-+& 3+-sn-+-+-#
5+p+k+-+-% 2-+k+-+-+"
4-+-+-+-+$ 1+-+-+-+-!
3sn-+-+-+K# xabcdefghy
2-+L+-+P+" White had tried everything by now, so he
1+-+-+-+-! played his last card.
91.Rf6 Bxf6
xabcdefghy 91...Ne4, was good as well.
Now it should be a draw. 92.Kxf6 Nd5+! 93.Kf7 Ne3! 94.Kf6 Nd5+
51.Bh7 Nc4 52.Kg4 Bf6 53.Ra7 Kd4 95.Kf7 Ne3 96.g7 Nf5
54.Bg8 Nd6 55.Kf3 Kc5 56.Ra8 b4 57.Ke2 Draw: 97.g8Q Nh6+ 98.Kg7 Nxg8 99.Kxg8.
Bc3 58.Kd3 Kb6 59.Ke3 Kc6 60.Kf4 Nb7 Clocks: W: 3:31:36 - B: 3:26:53
61.Kf5 Nc5 62.g4 Kb5 63.g5 b3 64.Kg6 ½-½
Kb4 65.Bd5 Bd4 66.Kh7 Kc3 67.g6 b2
68.Ba2 Kc2 69.Rb8 Ne4 70.Rb4 Nc3
71.Be6 Kc1 72.Bf5 Be5 73.Rb7 (D)
XABCDEFGHY
8-+-+-+-+(
7+R+-+-zpK'
6-+-+-+P+& 11.2. Mamedyarov spent a good amount of
5+-+-vlL+-% time in the early faces of his game vs So,
trying to do something out of nothing. In the
4-+-+-+-+$ end he decided that he had to be satisfied
with a draw and So agreed!
3+-sn-+-+-#
□ So Wesley (2799)
2-zp-+-+-+" ■ Mamedyarov Shakhriyar (2809)
1+-mk-+-+-! D30 Berlin 2018
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.g3 Be7 5.Bg2
xabcdefghy 0-0 6.0-0 dxc4 7.Qc2 c6 8.Qxc4 b5 9.Qc2
73...b1Q 74.Bxb1 Nxb1 75.Rxg7 Nc3! Bb7 (D)

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 145

 XABCDEFGHY 18.Bxc5 Rxc5 =.
16...b4! 17.Rxc8 Bxc8 18.Qc2 (D)
8rsn-wq-trk+( XABCDEFGHY
7zpl+-vlpzpp' 8-+ltr-+k+(
6-+p+psn-+& 7zp-+nvlpzpp'
5+p+-+-+-% 6-wq-+p+-+&
4-+-zP-+-+$ 5+-+psN-+-%
3+-+-+NzP-# 4-zp-zP-+-+$
2PzPQ+PzPLzP" 3+-+-vL-zP-#
1tRNvL-+RmK-! 2PzPQ+PzPLzP"
xabcdefghy 1+-+R+-mK-!
10.Nc3
Also possible was 10.Bg5 Nbd7 11.Nbd2 c5 xabcdefghy
12.Bxf6 gxf6 13.Rac1 Qb6 14.dxc5 Nxc5 18...Nxe5
15.Nb3 Be4 16.Qc3 Nxb3 17.Qxb3 Rac8 Sooner or later Black would have to go for
18.Nh4 Bg6 19.e3 Rfd8 20.Nxg6 hxg6 this exchange.
21.Rfd1 Rxd1+ 22.Qxd1 Rxc1 23.Qxc1 Kg7 19.dxe5 d4
24.a3 b4 25.axb4 Bxb4 26.Bf1 Qc5 27.Qxc5 In a way the text 'offered' a draw. Well,
Bxc5 ½-½ Vitiugov,N-Riazantsev,A St Pe- White's didn't make any mistake, so it was
tersburg 2017. quite difficult for Black to create any win-
10...Nbd7 11.Rd1 Qb6 12.Ne5 Rfd8 (D) ning chances...
XABCDEFGHY 20.Bxd4
20.Bf4 Ba6, could only be good for Black,
8r+-tr-+k+( so White was 'obliged' to go for simplifica-
tions.
7zpl+nvlpzpp' 20...Rxd4 21.Qxc8+ Rd8 22.Rxd8+ Qxd8
6-wqp+psn-+& (D)
5+p+-sN-+-% XABCDEFGHY
4-+-zP-+-+$ 8-+Qwq-+k+(
3+-sN-+-zP-# 7zp-+-vlpzpp'
2PzPQ+PzPLzP" 6-+-+p+-+&
1tR-vLR+-mK-! 5+-+-zP-+-%
xabcdefghy 4-zp-+-+-+$
13.Be3 3+-+-+-zP-#
A novelty to 13.Nxd7 Rxd7 14.a4 a5! oo
Bazeev,G-Koryakin,E Peterhof 2009. But 2PzP-+PzPLzP"
maybe 13.Bg5!?, was the best. 1+-+-+-mK-!
13...Nd5! 14.Nxd5 cxd5 15.Rac1 Rac8
16.Qd3 xabcdefghy
Nothing was gained by 16.Qb3 Nxe5 23.Qxd8+
(16...Rxc1?! 17.Rxc1 Nxe5 18.dxe5 d4 Exchanging the queens lead to an opposite-
19.Bd2 Bxg2 20.Kxg2 +=) 17.dxe5 Bc5 coloured bishops drawn ending, despite

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 146

White's extra pawn. 23.Qb7, could be the
only try or something more, but Black
should be active enough after 23...Bc5, to
preserve the balance.
23...Bxd8
The position was now dead-drawn. Some
extra moves followed anyway...
24.b3 Bc7 25.f4 Bb6+ 26.Kf1 Be3 27.h4 h5
28.Bh3 Kf8 29.Kg2 Ke7 30.Kf3 Bd2 31.e3
Be1 32.f5 exf5 33.Bxf5 g6 34.Bd3 Bc3
35.Kf4 Be1 36.Bc4 Bf2 37.Bd5 Be1 38.g4
hxg4 39.Kxg4 Bc3 40.Kf4 Be1 41.Kg4
Clocks: W: 1:01:30 - B: 2:06:57
½-½
11.3. Kramnik-lab produced some original
play in a quite early face of the opening.
Obviously Caruana was caught by surprise
and he wisely decided to take it easy. Black
faced no problems to equalise, but it was
difficult to achieve something more without
the precious help of his opponent.
□ Caruana Fabiano (2784)
■ Kramnik Vladimir (2800)
D31 Berlin 2018
1.c4 e6 2.Nc3 d5 3.d4 c6 4.e4 dxe4 5.Nxe4
(D)
XABCDEFGHY
8rsnlwqkvlntr(
7zpp+-+pzpp'
6-+p+p+-+&
5+-+-+-+-%
4-+PzPN+-+$
3+-+-+-+-#
2PzP-+-zPPzP"
1tR-vLQmKLsNR!
xabcdefghy
5...c5
An unusual approach by Black. Numerous
games have been played with 5...Bb4+
6.Bd2 Qxd4 7.Bxb4 Qxe4+ 8.Be2, for ex-
ample: 8...Na6 9.Bd6 b6 10.Nf3 Bb7 11.0-0
oo/= Jobava,B-Lu,S Doha 2016.
6.Nxc5 (D)
A principal move. Another way to play was
6.Nf3 cxd4 (6...Nc6? 7.dxc5 [7.d5! +/-]
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018
7...Qxd1+ 8.Kxd1 Nf6 [8...Bd7? 9.Nd6+
Bxd6 10.cxd6 +/- Borkenhagen,A-
Gottschalk,M Germany 1996] 9.Nxf6+ gxf6
10.Be3 e5 11.Kc2 +=) 7.Qxd4 Bb4+ 8.Bd2
Qxd4 9.Nxd4 Bxd2+ 10.Kxd2 Nf6
11.Nxf6+ gxf6 12.Nb5 Na6 13.Be2 Bd7
14.Bf3 Bxb5 15.cxb5 0-0-0+ 16.Ke2 Nb4
17.Rhd1 += Maderna,C-Olivera,A Mar del
Plata 1948, or 6.d5 exd5 7.cxd5 Bf5 8.Nc3
Nf6 9.Qa4+ (9.Nf3 Bd6 10.Bb5+ Nbd7
11.0-0 0-0 12.Nh4 Bg6 13.Nxg6 hxg6
14.Re1 +=) 9...Qd7? 10.Bb5 Nc6 11.dxc6
Qe6+ 12.Nge2 b6 13.0-0 Bh3 14.Nf4 Qe5
15.Nxh3 Ng4 16.Qxg4 1-0 Kaliuzhny,P-
Nagorny,D Nikolaev 2007.
XABCDEFGHY
8rsnlwqkvlntr(
7zpp+-+pzpp'
6-+-+p+-+&
5+-sN-+-+-%
4-+PzP-+-+$
3+-+-+-+-#
2PzP-+-zPPzP"
1tR-vLQmKLsNR!
xabcdefghy
6...Nc6
A 'Kramnik-lab' novelty to 6...Bxc5 7.dxc5
Qxd1+ (7...Qa5+ 8.Bd2 Qxc5 9.Qg4 +/-)
8.Kxd1 Nf6?! (8...Nc6 9.Nf3 e5 10.Be3 +=)
9.Be2 Bd7 10.b4 +/- Hutt,A-Moas,H Villa
Carlos Paz 2003.
7.Nf3
7.Nb3 could be called the 'critical' move, but
it seemed that Black could achieve his share
with 7...a5! 8.a4 Bb4+ 9.Bd2 Nxd4 10.Bxb4
(10.Nxd4 Qxd4 11.Bxb4 Qxd1+ 12.Rxd1
axb4 13.b3 Nf6 oo) 10...Nxb3 11.Qxd8+
(11.Qxb3 Qb6 12.Nf3 axb4 oo) 11...Kxd8
12.Rd1+ (12.Bf8 Nxa1 13.Bxg7 Bd7
14.Bxh8 Bxa4 15.Bc3 Ke7 oo) 12...Ke8
13.Bd6 Bd7 oo. Of course I am sure that this
variation will become viral soon and we will
see many games, so better conclusions could
be drawn after some logical time passes.
7...Nxd4 8.Qxd4 Qxd4 9.Nxd4 Bxc5 (D)
147
 XABCDEFGHY 17.Rac1 Nd5 18.a3 Be5 19.Rc6 +=. Black
was aiming on putting a knight on d4.
8r+l+k+ntr( 17.Rac1 Nf5 18.Bc3 (D)
7zpp+-+pzpp' XABCDEFGHY
6-+-+p+-+& 8-+r+-+-tr(
5+-vl-+-+-% 7zp-+-mkpzpp'
4-+PsN-+-+$ 6-zp-vlp+-+&
3+-+-+-+-# 5+P+-+n+-%
2PzP-+-zPPzP" 4-zP-+-+-+$
1tR-vL-mKL+R! 3+-vL-+-zP-#
xabcdefghy 2P+-+KzPLzP"
10.Nb5 1+-tR-+-+R!
White should try to be active if he was will-
ing on an opening advantage. 10.Be3 Nf6 xabcdefghy
11.Be2 Bd7 12.Rd1 Rc8, was fine for Black. 18...f6!
10...Ke7! 11.Bd2 The 'threat' ...e5 was renewed - White had to
11.Nc7!?, looked quite dangerous: 11...Rb8 be careful now to preserve the balance.
12.Bf4, but it seemed that here Black had 19.f4 h5 20.Bc6 Rcd8 21.a4!
made his homework as well: 12...Bb4+ This would give White constant counterplay
13.Ke2 Bd6 14.Bxd6+ Kxd6 15.Nb5+ Kc5 to the square/pawn b6, with ideas like a5 and
16.Nxa7 Bd7 oo/=. putting the darksquared bishop on the g1-a7
11...Bd7 12.b4 diagonal. a7 could also become a target.
Forced, as after 12.Nc3 Bc6, Black would 21...h4! 22.Kf3
stand simply great. 22.g4 Bxf4 23.gxf5 Bxc1 24.Rxc1 exf5
12...Bxb5 13.cxb5 Bd6 (D) 25.a5 g5 26.Ra1 Rd6 27.axb6 axb6, would
XABCDEFGHY be rather unclear, due to the weakness on b6,
but Black’s rooks should be active enough to
8r+-+-+ntr( preserve the balance. Netherless, it would be
an interesting fight from here on…
7zpp+-mkpzpp' 22...hxg3 23.hxg3 Rxh1 24.Rxh1 (D)
6-+-vlp+-+& XABCDEFGHY
5+P+-+-+-% 8-+-tr-+-+(
4-zP-+-+-+$ 7zp-+-mk-zp-'
3+-+-+-+-# 6-zpLvlpzp-+&
2P+-vL-zPPzP" 5+P+-+n+-%
1tR-+-mKL+R! 4PzP-+-zP-+$
xabcdefghy 3+-vL-+KzP-#
The position seemed balanced. White got the
bishop pair and Black the healthier pawn 2-+-+-+-+"
structure. 1+-+-+-+R!
14.g3 Rc8 15.Bg2 b6 16.Ke2 Nh6!
An excellent idea and better than 16...Nf6 xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 148
24...Bb8 36.Bxd5!
24...Be5!?, wasn't bad, but good enough Also good for the draw was 36.g4 Bxb4
only for a draw after 25.Bxe5 (25.fxe5?! (36...fxg4+ 37.Kxg4 Bxb4 38.Bxd5 Bxd2
Rd3+ 26.Kf2 Rxc3 27.Rd1 Rc2+ 28.Kf3 39.Bb3 =) 37.gxf5 Bxd2 38.fxe6+ Kxe6
fxe5 =+) 25...fxe5 26.fxe5 Rd3+ 27.Kf2 39.Ke4 Bxf4 40.Bxd5+ Kd6 =, as the oppo-
Rd2+ (27...Nxg3? 28.Rh8 +- ; 27...Rxg3 site-coloured bishops' endings are drawish.
28.Rd1 +-) 28.Kf3 Rd3+ =. 36...exd5 37.Bc3 Be7
25.Be4 Kf7 26.Rc1 Ne7 27.Be1 f5 28.Bb1 The ending offered no chances to either side.
(D) 37...Kg6 38.g4 =.
XABCDEFGHY 38.a5 Bf6 39.Bxf6 Kxf6 40.Ke3
Draw agreed: 40...Ke6 41.Kd3 Kd6 42.axb6
8-vl-tr-+-+( axb6 43.Kd4 g6 44.Kd3 =.
Clocks: W: 1:58:04 - B: 1:54:48
7zp-+-snkzp-' ½-½
6-zp-+p+-+& 11.4. Another ‘ugly’ game by Aronian,
5+P+-+p+-% who has lost track by now… Karjakin went
to hell (-2) and returned to heaven (+1), after
4PzP-+-zP-+$ eleven rounds!
3+-+-+KzP-# □ Aronian Levon (2794)
2-+-+-+-+" ■ Karjakin Sergey (2763)
A13 Berlin 2018
1+LtR-vL-+-! 1.c4 Nf6 2.Nf3 e6 3.g3 d5 4.Bg2 dxc4
5.Qa4+ c6 6.Qxc4 b5 (D)
xabcdefghy
28...Rd4
XABCDEFGHY
Probably it was a good time for 28...e5 8rsnlwqkvl-tr(
29.fxe5 Bxe5 30.Bf2 g5 31.g4 Bf4 32.Rf1
fxg4+ 33.Kxg4 Rd2, although here also the 7zp-+-+pzpp'
position would be balanced - nobody could 6-+p+psn-+&
underestimate the bishop pair!
29.Bc3 Rc4 30.Ba2 Rc8 31.Bb2 Rd8 5+p+-+-+-%
32.Bc4 Rc8 33.Bb3 Rxc1 4-+Q+-+-+$
Nothing better than to exchange rooks.
34.Bxc1 Bd6 35.Bd2 Nd5 (D) 3+-+-+NzP-#
XABCDEFGHY 2PzP-zPPzPLzP"
8-+-+-+-+( 1tRNvL-mK-+R!
7zp-+-+kzp-' xabcdefghy
6-zp-vlp+-+& 7.Qb3
A matter of taste would be 7.Qc2 Bb7 8.a4
5+P+n+p+-% a6 9.Nc3 Nbd7 10.0-0 Be7 11.d3 0-0 12.e4
4PzP-+-zP-+$ h6 13.h3 Rc8 14.Rd1 Qb6 15.Be3 c5
16.axb5 axb5 17.b4 Qc6 18.Qb1 cxb4
3+L+-+KzP-# 19.Na2 e5 20.Nxb4 Qe6 21.Ra7 Rb8 22.Qb2
2-+-vL-+-+" Qd6 23.Rb1 Rfc8 24.d4 Bxe4 25.dxe5 Qxb4
26.Qxb4 Bxb4 27.Rxb4 Bxf3 28.exf6 ½-½
1+-+-+-+-! Sargissian,G-Xu,Y Moscow 2018.
7...Bb7 8.0-0 Be7 9.d4 0-0 10.Rd1 Nbd7
xabcdefghy (D)
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 149
 XABCDEFGHY XABCDEFGHY
8r+-wq-trk+( 8r+-tr-+k+(
7zpl+nvlpzpp' 7+q+nvlpzpp'
6-+p+psn-+& 6p+-+p+-+&
5+p+-+-+-% 5+p+-zP-+-%
4-+-zP-+-+$ 4-+p+NvL-+$
3+Q+-+NzP-# 3+-+-wQ-zP-#
2PzP-+PzPLzP" 2PzP-+PzP-zP"
1tRNvLR+-mK-! 1+-tRR+-mK-!
xabcdefghy xabcdefghy
11.Ne5 After some more or less force consequence
Not much proved to be 11.Bg5 Qb6 12.Nc3 of moves, we got a position were Black had
h6 13.Bxf6 Nxf6 14.Rac1 Rfd8 15.e3 Rac8 a majority on the queenside, while White'
16.Ne5 Nd7 17.Nd3 a5 18.Ne4 a4 19.Qc2 c5 pawns were mostly in the centre. So, mid-
20.Ndxc5 Qa7 21.Qe2 Nxc5 22.Nxc5 Bxg2 dlegame should be better for White and end-
23.Kxg2 Bxc5 ½-½ Simon,P-Vala,F Zdar game better for Black!
nad Sazavou 2009. 19.h4
11...Nxe5 Natural was 19.Nd6 Bxd6 20.Rxd6 Nf8
More or less, forced. 11...Qb6?! 12.Nxd7 21.Rcd1 +=.
Nxd7 13.Nc3 +=, would be what White was 19...h6 20.Rd4 Nf8 (D)
'expecting' for... XABCDEFGHY
12.dxe5 Nd7 13.Bf4 Qc7 (D)
XABCDEFGHY 8r+-tr-snk+(
8r+-+-trk+( 7+q+-vlpzp-'
7zplwqnvlpzpp' 6p+-+p+-zp&
6-+p+p+-+& 5+p+-zP-+-%
5+p+-zP-+-% 4-+ptRNvL-zP$
4-+-+-vL-+$ 3+-+-wQ-zP-#
3+Q+-+-zP-# 2PzP-+PzP-+"
2PzP-+PzPLzP" 1+-tR-+-mK-!
1tRN+R+-mK-! xabcdefghy
21.b3?
xabcdefghy But that was a bad move. Instead White
14.Nd2 should have opted for 21.Nd6 Bxd6 22.Rxd6
A novelty to 14.Nc3 Rfd8 15.Qc2 Qb6?! (22.exd6? f6! -/+) 22...Rxd6 23.exd6 oo.
(15...a6!) 16.Ne4 += Sargissian,G-Houska,J 21...Rxd4 22.Qxd4 Rd8?
Douglas 2015. It can’t be evaluated so easily Favour returned! Quite good was 22...Qd5!
as better, but surely interesting! 23.Qxd5?! (23.Qe3! Rc8 =+) 23...exd5
14...Rfd8 15.Rac1 a6 16.Qe3 c5 17.Bxb7 24.Nd6 Ng6 25.Nf5 Rc8 26.Rd1 Kf8 27.Ne3
Qxb7 18.Ne4 c4 (D) (27.Rxd5 Nxf4 28.gxf4 c3 29.Rd1 c2

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 150

30.Rc1 Ba3 -+) 27...Nxf4 28.gxf4 d4 44.Qxc4 Qxc4 45.Rxc4 Rb2 46.Bc3 Rxe2+
29.Rxd4 c3 30.Nc2 Bxh4 -/+. 47.Kf1 Rh2 48.Kg1 Ra2 49.Bb4+ Kd5
23.Nd6! Bxd6 24.exd6 f6 25.Be3 e5 50.Rc7 oo/=. Now White lost his most im-
26.Qb2 Qc6 27.bxc4 bxc4 28.Qb4 Rc8 portant pawn and as counterplay was diffi-
29.f3 h5 30.Kf2 Kf7 31.Rd1 Nd7 (D) cult anyway, Black was on the right track.
XABCDEFGHY 42...Qxa4 43.Ra1 Qc6 44.Ra5 Rb5?!
44...e4, looked even better: 45.Qd2 Qxd6
8-+r+-+-+( 46.fxe4 Qc6! -/+.
45.Qa4?!
7+-+n+kzp-' 45.Ra4! Kxd6 46.Qa2 and White could fight.
6p+qzP-zp-+& 45...Nb6 46.Qa1
46.d7 Kxd7 47.Qd1+ Qd5 48.Qa1 Rxa5
5+-+-zp-+p% 49.Bxa5 Kc6 -/+.
4-wQp+-+-zP$ 46...Rxa5
46...Qxd6? 47.Rxa6 Qc6 48.Be1 =.
3+-+-vLPzP-# 47.Qxa5 Qb5
2P+-+PmK-+" Of course not 47...Qxd6? 48.Qxa6 e4
49.Ba5 =, but even stronger was 47...Nd5!
1+-+R+-+-! 48.Qd8 Qd7 49.Qg8+ Kxd6 50.Qf8+ Qe7
51.Qb8+ Kc5 -+.
xabcdefghy 48.d7 Kxd7 49.Qa3 Nd5 50.Bxe5 Qc6
The position should offer approximately 51.Qf8 Qe6 52.Qb8 c3 53.Qb7+ Ke8
equal chances, but somehow the feeling was 54.Qb8+ Kf7 55.Qb7+ Ne7! (D)
spread around that Black could have had
more. This was because he could involve his
XABCDEFGHY
king in the battle, while White couldn't! 8-+-+-+-+(
32.Qb1 g6 33.g4 Rh8 34.g5?!
Although the text looked natural, White 7+Q+-snk+-'
should keep options of counterplay open, so 6p+-+q+p+&
he should have gone with 34.Kg3.
34...f5 35.Qc2 Rc8 36.Qc3 Ke6 37.Kg2 5+-+-vLpzPp%
Qa4 38.Qd2 Qb5 39.a4 Qc6 40.Qc2 Rb8 4-+-+-+-zP$
41.Bd2 Rb3 (D)
XABCDEFGHY 3+-zp-+P+-#
8-+-+-+-+( 2-+-+P+K+"
7+-+n+-+-' 1+-+-+-+-!
6p+qzPk+p+& xabcdefghy
56.Bxc3
5+-+-zppzPp% There was no salvation anymore: 56.Bf6
4P+p+-+-zP$ Qxe2+ 57.Kh3 f4 -+.
56...Qxe2+ 57.Kh3 Qb5! 58.Qc7 Qc6
3+r+-+P+-# 59.Qe5 Qxf3+ 60.Kh2 Qf2+ 61.Kh1
2-+QvLP+K+" Qxh4+ 62.Kg1 Qxg5+ 63.Kh2 Qh4+
64.Kg1 Qe4 65.Qg7+ Ke6 66.Bf6 Nd5
1+-+R+-+-! 67.Bb2 f4 68.Kh2 Kf5 69.Qf8+ Kg5
70.Qd8+ Kg4 71.Qc8+ Kh4 72.Bg7 Qe2+
xabcdefghy 73.Kh1 Qf3+ 74.Kh2 Qg3+
42.Bc3? Clocks: W: 2:52:28 - B: 2:59:48
42.a5, was a must: 42...Kxd6 43.Rc1 Qb5 0-1
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 151
 Sakhriyar Mamedyarov vs Fabiano Caruana Fabiano Caruana

Alexander Grischuk vs Sergey Karjakin Ilya Zaragatsky & Elisabeth Paehtz

Fabiano Caruana vs Vladimir Kramnik Ding Liren vs Alexander Grischuk

Wesley So Sergey Karjakin

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 152
Round 12 (24.03.2018)
Round 12 XABCDEFGHY
24.03.2018 - 15:00
1 Grischuk - Aronian ½:½ 8r+lwq-trk+(
2 Karjakin - Caruana 1:0 7+-zp-vlpzpp'
3 Kramnik - So ½:½
4 Mamedyarov - Ding 0:1 6p+nzp-sn-+&
What a round! Both leaders lost their first 5+p+-zp-+-%
game in the same round and allowed a num- 4-+-+P+-+$
ber of possibilities open, concerning the fi-
nal winner! Karjakin, from last position after 3+L+P+N+-#
the 4th round, rise as one of the hottest fa-
vourites for qualification!
2PzPPvL-zPPzP"
Nobody could believe in such a turn of 1tRN+QtR-mK-!
fortune; even Kramnik had a theoretical
chance of qualification, if he could score a xabcdefghy
full point today! 9...Kh8
An early novelty to 9...Bg4 10.h3 Bxf3
12.1. A rather correct game without any
11.Qxf3 Nd4 12.Qd1 a5 13.c3 Nxb3
serious up and down, except the mutual mis-
14.axb3 Nd7 = Calzetta Ruiz,M-Atalik,E
takes around the 21st-23rd moves. A game
Turin 2006.
that could end in a draw quite earlier…
10.h3 Nd7 11.Nc3 Na5 12.Nd5 Nxb3
□ Grischuk Alexander (2767) 13.axb3 Bb7
■ Aronian Levon (2794) Black would love to play 13...c6?, but now it
C88 Berlin 2018 would fall to 14.Ba5 +-.
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 14.c4 (D)
5.0-0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 0-0 8.d3 d6 (D) XABCDEFGHY
XABCDEFGHY 8r+-wq-tr-mk(
8r+lwq-trk+( 7+lzpnvlpzpp'
7+-zp-vlpzpp' 6p+-zp-+-+&
6p+nzp-sn-+& 5+p+Nzp-+-%
5+p+-zp-+-% 4-+P+P+-+$
4-+-+P+-+$ 3+P+P+N+P#
3+L+P+N+-# 2-zP-vL-zPP+"
2PzPP+-zPPzP" 1tR-+QtR-mK-!
1tRNvLQtR-mK-! xabcdefghy
xabcdefghy 14...f5
9.Bd2 (D) Aggressive. Black didn't feel like falling in
More common was 9.c3 Na5 10.Bc2 c5 passivity with 14...Nf6 15.d4 Nxd5 16.cxd5
11.h3 Re8 12.d4 Nd7 13.d5 Bf8 14.Nbd2 g6 +=.
15.Nf1 += Alekseev,E-Kovalev,V Tallinn 15.Ba5 Rc8 16.Rc1
2018. 16.cxb5?! Bxd5 17.exd5 axb5 =+.

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 153

16...bxc4 17.bxc4 fxe4 18.dxe4 Nc5 Now White's advantage was purely aca-
After a series of exchanges, Black could feel demic.
fine about his position. 28.Ne3 Rc6 29.Qa4 Rfc8 30.Rb1 h6
19.Bc3 31.Rb8 Rxc4! 32.Rxc8+ Rxc8 33.Qxa6
19.b4 Ne6 20.Rc3, was an alternative and Qc7 34.Rd1 Rd8
interesting way to proceed. Black can defend on his d6-pawn weakness,
19...Qe8 20.b4 Ne6 21.Bd2 (D) as the knight hadn't access to squares c4 or
XABCDEFGHY f5, from where it could attack/win this pawn.
35.Qd3 Qc5 36.Kh2 Qc7 37.Kg1 Qc5
8-+r+qtr-mk( 38.Rd2 Qc7 39.Qa3 Qe7 40.Rd1 Kh7 (D)
7+lzp-vl-zpp' XABCDEFGHY
6p+-zpn+-+& 8-+-tr-+-+(
5+-+Nzp-+-% 7+-+-wq-zpk'
4-zPP+P+-+$ 6-+-zpl+-zp&
3+-+-+N+P# 5+-+-zp-+-%
2-+-vL-zPP+" 4-+-+P+-+$
1+-tRQtR-mK-! 3wQ-+-sN-+P#
xabcdefghy 2-+-+-zPP+"
21...c6? 1+-+R+-mK-!
That could have caused Black problems.
21...Bd8 22.c5 Rb8, was probably his best. xabcdefghy
22.Nxe7 Qxe7 23.Be3? The game could have been called a draw
White had to opt for 23.c5! Rcd8 24.Re3 here or even some time ago, but the oppo-
(24.cxd6 Rxd6 25.Rc3! Qd8 26.Qb3 +/-) nents continued for a bit more...
24...dxc5 25.bxc5 Nxc5 26.Qe2 Ne6 27.Ba5 41.Qb4 Qc7 42.Rd3 Kg8 43.Qd2 Qe7
Rc8 28.Bc3 +/-. 44.Kh2 Qf8 45.Kg1 Qe7 46.Qd1 Kh7
23...c5! 47.Rd2 Qf8 48.Rd3 Qe7 49.Rd2 Qf8
On the right track again! 50.Nf1 Rd7 51.Ng3 Qb8 52.Kh2 Qf8
24.bxc5 Nxc5 25.Bxc5 Rxc5 26.Nd2 Bc8 53.Kg1 Qb8 54.Kh2 Qf8
27.Nf1 Be6 (D) Clocks: W: 2:41:50 - B: 1:33:00
XABCDEFGHY ½-½

8-+-+-tr-mk( 12.2. A game of great sporting value. With

his nice strategical masterpiece, based on an
7+-+-wq-zpp' exchange sacrifice, Karjakin was able to
climb into the lead, something he couldn’t
6p+-zpl+-+& even imagine some rounds earlier!
5+-tr-zp-+-% □ Karjakin Sergey (2767)
4-+P+P+-+$ ■ Caruana Fabiano (2794)
C42 Berlin 2018
3+-+-+-+P# 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nxe5 d6 4.Nf3 Nxe4
2-+-+-zPP+" 5.Nc3 Nxc3 6.dxc3
Karjakin had vast success in this line, which
1+-tRQtRNmK-! he had played since a long time ago. Among
others, he had defeated Kramnik and Gel-
xabcdefghy fand, but he had lost three games vs Ma-
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 154
medyarov! 11.Nd4
6...Nc6 7.Be3 Be7 8.Qd2 Be6 9.0-0-0 (D) A more aggressive novelty to 11.Kb1 Rg8
XABCDEFGHY 12.Bd3 0-0-0 13.Qe2 Bf6 14.Bb5 Kb8 oo
Kasimdzhanov,R-Li,D Chengdu 2017.
8r+-wqk+-tr( 11...Nxd4
A forced exchange. 11...0-0-0?! 12.Nxe6
7zppzp-vlpzpp' fxe6 13.g3 d5 14.Bh3, didn't look attractive
6-+nzpl+-+& for Black.
12.Bxd4 Rg8 13.Be2 (D)
5+-+-+-+-% XABCDEFGHY
4-+-+-+-+$ 8r+-+k+r+(
3+-zP-vLN+-# 7zppzpqvlpzp-'
2PzPPwQ-zPPzP" 6-+-zpl+-zp&
1+-mKR+L+R! 5+-+-+-+-%
xabcdefghy 4-+-vL-+-+$
9...Qd7
Also playable was 9...a6 10.b3 h6 11.Be2 3zP-zP-+-+-#
Qd7 12.Kb1 Bf6 13.Nd4 Nxd4 14.Bxd4
Bxd4 15.Qxd4 0-0 oo Anand,V- 2-zPPwQLzPPzP"
Mamedyarov,S Moscow 2018. 1+-mKR+-+R!
10.a3!?
A nice move. Caruana had faced this posi- xabcdefghy
tion beforehand: 10.b3 0-0-0 11.Nd4 a6!? 13...c5!
12.Nxe6 fxe6 oo Vachier Lagrave,M- Practically forced, as the alternative 13...b6
Caruana,F London 2016. The immediate 14.c4 0-0-0 15.Rhe1, would offer White
10.Nd4, didn't offer White much after some edge due to black king’s weaknesses.
10...Nxd4 11.Bxd4 Qa4! 12.a3 0-0 =. 14.Be3 d5 15.f4 0-0-0 16.Bf3 Bg4?! (D)
10...h6 (D) Caruana was looking to relieve pressure by
It was too early for 10...0-0-0?! 11.Nd4 a6 trading bishops. Black had as the main alter-
(11...Nxd4? 12.Bxd4 +/-) 12.Nxe6, where native 16...f5, but that would mean accept-
White would enjoy the bishop pair advan- ing a slightly worse position for many
tage. moves to come after 17.Rhe1.
XABCDEFGHY XABCDEFGHY
8r+-+k+-tr( 8-+ktr-+r+(
7zppzpqvlpzp-' 7zpp+qvlpzp-'
6-+nzpl+-zp& 6-+-+-+-zp&
5+-+-+-+-% 5+-zpp+-+-%
4-+-+-+-+$ 4-+-+-zPl+$
3zP-zP-vLN+-# 3zP-zP-vLL+-#
2-zPPwQ-zPPzP" 2-zPPwQ-+PzP"
1+-mKR+L+R! 1+-mKR+-+R!
xabcdefghy xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 155
17.Bxd5! XABCDEFGHY
This exchange sacrifice for a pawn was an
excellent decision from Karjakin. The value 8-+k+r+-+(
of his idea lied in creating an extremely un-
pleasant situation for Black, who objectively
7zp-wqr+pzp-'
he might not be much worse, but it would be 6-zp-+-vl-zp&
difficult to plan and play! Of course, not
17.Qxd5?! Qxd5 18.Rxd5 Bxf3 19.Rxd8+ 5+-zpL+-+-%
Rxd8 20.gxf3 Rd5 =. 4-+P+-zPP+$
17...Bxd1 18.Rxd1 Qc7 19.c4
Securing the monster on d5! 3zP-+-vL-+-#
19...Rge8 20.Qf2 b6?! (D) 2-zPP+-wQ-zP"
As rooks need open files to operate, Black
should seriously think of 20...Bd6 21.Kb1 1+K+R+-+-!
Re7, doubling on the open e-file. 20...f5!?,
was also better than the text.
xabcdefghy
23.Rd3!
XABCDEFGHY The 3rd rank could be proven strong for the
8-+ktrr+-+( white rook, as ideas as b4, Rb3 and h4, g5,
would preserve White's ‘compensation’.
7zp-wq-vlpzp-' 23...g5?
6-zp-+-+-zp& An ugly move, which just created weak-
nesses, but Black felt that he had to do
5+-zpL+-+-% something...
4-+P+-zP-+$ 24.Ka2 Ree7 25.Qf3 Kd8 26.Bd2 Kc8
27.Qf1!
3zP-+-vL-+-# With the idea Rh3.
27...Rd6
2-zPP+-wQPzP" Now White won a second pawn, and, more
1+-mKR+-+-! importantly, got a passer on the h-file.
27...Kd8 28.Rh3 would break down Black's
xabcdefghy defences.
21.g4! 28.fxg5 Bxg5
Good activity on the kingside. 21.Bxf7? Or 28...hxg5 29.Bxg5 Bxg5 30.Qf5+.
would fall into a trap: 21...Rxd1+ 22.Kxd1 29.Bxg5 hxg5 30.Qf5+ Rdd7 31.Qxg5 (D)
Bh4! -/+. XABCDEFGHY
21...Bf6
21...Bd6 22.Kb1 Rxe3 23.Qxe3 Bxf4 8-+k+-+-+(
24.Qd3! Kb8 (24...Bxh2? 25.Bb7+ +-) 25.h3
+=, would offer White long-term attacking
7zp-wqrtrp+-'
chances. With opposite-colored bishops 6-zp-+-+-+&
safety of the kings is paramount and obvi-
ously Black's king would be weaker... 5+-zpL+-wQ-%
22.Kb1 Rd7 (D) 4-+P+-+P+$
22...Qe7 23.Rd3 Bd4? 24.Bxd4 Qe1+ 25.Ka2
+-. The problem here for Black was mainly 3zP-+R+-+-#
the lack of a good plan - he had to stay put 2KzPP+-+-zP"
and wait, while White could build-up initia-
tive on both sides of the board, pushing his 1+-+-+-+-!
pawns. An unpleasant situation - humans are
not computers and break under pressure!
xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 156
Two good pawns for the exchange and still □ Kramnik Vladimir (2800)
passivity for the black rooks - Black will ■ So Wesley (2799)
soon fall... D31 Berlin 2018
31...Qe5 32.Qh6 Kd8 1.c4 e6 2.Nc3 d5 3.d4 Be7 4.cxd5 exd5
After 32...f6 33.h4 Kc7 34.g5 Rh7 35.Qg6 5.Bf4 c6 6.e3 Bf5 7.g4 Be6 (D)
Rdg7 36.Qxf6 Qxf6 37.gxf6 Rd7 38.f7 Rd8 XABCDEFGHY
39.Rf3 Rf8 40.Rf4 +-, the black rooks would
be doomed to passivity. 8rsn-wqk+ntr(
33.g5! Qd6 34.Qh8+ Re8 35.Qh4 Qg6
36.Qg4 Re5 37.h4 Ke7 38.Rd2
7zpp+-vlpzpp'
Not a bad move, but either 38.Qg3 Qf5 6-+p+l+-+&
39.Rf3 +-, or and the immediate 38.Bxf7!
Qf5 39.Rxd7+ Kxd7 40.Qd1+ +-, would be 5+-+p+-+-%
simply curtains. 4-+-zP-vLP+$
38...b5 (D)
XABCDEFGHY 3+-sN-zP-+-#
8-+-+-+-+( 2PzP-+-zP-zP"
7zp-+rmkp+-' 1tR-+QmKLsNR!
6-+-+-+q+& xabcdefghy
8.Qb3
5+pzpLtr-zP-% An early but not impressive novelty. Many
games have been played with 8.h4, for ex-
4-+P+-+QzP$ ample: 8...Bxh4 9.Qb3 g5 10.Be5 f6 11.Bh2
3zP-+-+-+-# Giri,A-So,W Internet 2017.
8...Qb6 9.f3 g5
2KzPPtR-+-+" A good idea, with ...h5 to follow.
1+-+-+-+-! 10.Be5 f6 11.Bg3 Qxb3 12.axb3 h5!
13.gxh5 Rxh5 14.Bd3 Kf7 (D)
xabcdefghy XABCDEFGHY
Strategical domination is crowned by tacti-
cal measures... 8rsn-+-+n+(
39.Bxf7! Qf5
39...Qxf7 40.Rxd7+.
7zpp+-vlk+-'
40.Rxd7+ Kxd7 41.Qxf5+ Rxf5 42.g6 Ke7 6-+p+lzp-+&
43.cxb5 Rh5
Seemed like Black could hold here... 5+-+p+-zpr%
44.c4! Rxh4 45.a4 Rg4 46.a5 Kd6 47.a6! 4-+-zP-+-+$
Kc7 48.Kb3
And Black resigned, as the white king sim- 3+PsNLzPPvL-#
ply marches on to the kingside, winning the 2-zP-+-+-zP"
rook.
Clocks: W: 2:09:29 - B: 2:05:01 1tR-+-mK-sNR!
1-0
xabcdefghy
12.3. Kramnik was quite well prepared and White seemed to have achieved nothing, but
produced some incredible positions. For this Kramnik was still in his preparation...
he had to sacrifice a piece for a pawn mass! 15.h4! f5?!
After some mutual inaccuracies, he could Good was 15...Nd7 16.Nge2 f5 17.Kd2 gxh4
gain the advantage, but he failed to cope… 18.Nf4 Rh6 19.Bf2 oo/=.

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 157

16.Nh3! f4 21...Bd8
Black tried to be ‘active’, as he did really How else would the black g8-knight come to
liked 16...gxh4 17.Nf4 Rh6 18.Bf2 Nd7 life?
19.Nce2! +=. And most importantly, he didn’t 22.Be5 Ne7 23.Nf4
pay attention to White’s sacrificial mood! 23.Rxa6?, would fall to 23...Ng6 -/+.
17.exf4 Bxh3? (D) 23...Rh7 24.h5 Kg8 25.Rag1
This run into an incredible response. The white passers on the kingside looked
17...gxh4! 18.Ng5+ Rxg5 19.fxg5 hxg3 strong and Black was under pressure...
20.f4 +=. 25...Nf5 26.h6! Be8?! (D)
XABCDEFGHY 26...Be7, might have been a better try:
27.Nd3 Re8 28.Bf4 +=.
8rsn-+-+n+( XABCDEFGHY
7zpp+-vlk+-' 8r+-vll+k+(
6-+p+l+-+& 7zp-+-+-+r'
5+-+p+-zpr% 6p+p+-+-zP&
4-+-zP-zP-zP$ 5+-+pvLnzP-%
3+PsNL+PvLN# 4-+-zP-sN-+$
2-zP-+-+-+" 3+P+-+P+-#
1tR-+-mK-+R! 2-zP-+-mK-+"
xabcdefghy 1+-+-+-tRR!
18.fxg5!
A piece sacrifice for a pawn mass! Kramnik- xabcdefghy
lab continued to entertain, despite his bad 27.g6!
tournament situation... A nice and simple combination.
18...Bd7 27...Rxh6 28.Rxh6 Nxh6 29.Rh1 Bg5
Not 18...Bg2? 19.Rh2 Bxf3 20.Rf2 +-. Forced: 29...Nf5? 30.Rh8 #.
19.Kf2 Na6 20.Bxa6?! 30.Ne6 Bxg6
Controlling f5 was essential, so 20.Rae1 Black was obliged to return the piece, as
Nb4 21.Bb1 +/-, was good enough. 30...Bd2 31.f4 +-, wasn’t advisable!
20...bxa6 21.Ne2 (D) 31.Nxg5 Nf7 (D)
XABCDEFGHY XABCDEFGHY
8r+-+-+n+( 8r+-+-+k+(
7zp-+lvlk+-' 7zp-+-+n+-'
6p+p+-+-+& 6p+p+-+l+&
5+-+p+-zPr% 5+-+pvL-sN-%
4-+-zP-+-zP$ 4-+-zP-+-+$
3+P+-+PvL-# 3+P+-+P+-#
2-zP-+NmK-+" 2-zP-+-mK-+"
1tR-+-+-+R! 1+-+-+-+R!
xabcdefghy xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 158
32.Ne6? XABCDEFGHY
Analysis engines propose that White should
have opted for 32.f4 +/-, or 32.Nxf7 Kxf7 8-+rwqr+k+(
33.Ke3 Bf5 34.Ra1 +/-.
32...Nxe5 33.dxe5 Re8 34.Nf4 Bc2!
7zpl+-+pzpp'
Missed by White! 6-zp-+p+-+&
35.Rg1+ Kf7 36.e6+ Kf6 37.Nh5+ Ke5!
37...Kxe6? 38.Ng7+ +-. 5+-+-+-+n%
38.f4+ Kd6 39.Ng7 Rf8 40.Ke3 (D) 4-+-zPPwQ-+$
XABCDEFGHY 3+L+-+N+P#
8-+-+-tr-+( 2P+-+-zPP+"
7zp-+-+-sN-' 1+-+RtR-mK-!
6p+pmkP+-+& xabcdefghy
5+-+p+-+-% 18.Qh2
4-+-+-zP-+$ Technically a novelty, but it's the same idea
used in the game So,W-Kramnik,V Berlin
3+P+-mK-+-# 2018, from round 5. There it was played
18.Qe5 Nf6 19.Qf4 Nh5 20.Qh2.
2-zPl+-+-+" 18...h6 19.Ne5
1+-+-+-tR-! But this was the actual novelty! So was un-
able to get anything going after 19.d5 exd5
xabcdefghy 20.exd5 Rxe1+ 21.Nxe1 Qf6 22.Nd3 Ba6!.
40...d4+! 19...Nf6 20.Qf4 b5 (D)
Clearing the situation. XABCDEFGHY
41.Kf3
41.Kxd4 Rxf4+ 42.Kc3 Be4 43.Ra1 Rg4 =. 8-+rwqr+k+(
41...Ke7 42.b4 Kf6!
Draw agreed: 43.f5 Bxf5! 44.Nxf5 Kxe6
7zpl+-+pzp-'
45.Ke4 Rxf5 46.Rg6+ Rf6 47.Rxf6+ Kxf6 6-+-+psn-zp&
48.Kxd4 Ke6 49.Kc4 Kd6 50.Kd4 =.
Clocks: W: 2:28:46 - B: 2:08:40 5+p+-sN-+-%
½-½ 4-+-zPPwQ-+$
12.4. Ding broke his series of consecutive 3+L+-+-+P#
draws (he missed to do a ‘Giri’ with 14) and
won vs Mamedyarov, with the black pieces! 2P+-+-zPP+"
Well, mostly Mamedyarov lost himself, as 1+-+RtR-mK-!
he overestimated his position and he ran out
of good ideas, making the tournament fully xabcdefghy
open again for five players! 21.Re3
□ Mamedyarov Shakhriyar (2809) White had an interesting possibility here:
■ Ding Liren (2769) 21.Nxf7 Kxf7 22.e5, but Black could equal-
D41 Berlin 2018 ise after 22...a5! (22...Qc7? 23.Rc1! Qb8
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.Nc3 c5 5.cxd5 24.Rxc8 Bxc8 [24...Rxc8 25.Bxe6+! Kxe6
Nxd5 6.e4 Nxc3 7.bxc3 cxd4 8.cxd4 Bb4+ 26.exf6+ Kf7 27.Re7+ Kf8 28.Qe3 +-]
9.Bd2 Bxd2+ 10.Qxd2 0-0 11.Bc4 Nd7 25.Qf5! Kf8 26.exf6! exf5 27.Rxe8+ Kxe8
12.0-0 b6 13.Rad1 Bb7 14.Rfe1 Rc8 28.fxg7 +-) 23.exf6 Qxf6 24.Qd6 Rc6
15.Bb3 Re8 16.h3 Nf6 17.Qf4 Nh5 (D) 25.Qa3 a4 26.d5 Ra6 27.dxe6+ Kg8 28.Bd5

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 159

(28.Bc2 Raxe6 =) 28...Bxd5 29.Rxd5 Raxe6 24...Qe7 25.e5 Nd5 26.Bxd5 Bxd5 27.a3,
=. Another plan was the standard advance with a tiny plus.
21.d5!? exd5 22.exd5 Qd6 23.Qd4 a5 24.a4 24...Bc6 25.Rc1 Qb6! 26.f3 Rd8 27.Kf2 a5
b4 25.Re3 oo. (D)
21...Rc7?! XABCDEFGHY
21...Qc7 22.d5 Rcd8 oo, was the correct
follow-up. 8-+-tr-+k+(
22.Nd3?! (D)
It was good time for the usual centre thrust:
7+-+-+pzp-'
22.d5! exd5 23.exd5 Qd6 24.Qg3 Rd8 6-wql+psn-zp&
25.Ng4 Qxg3 26.Nxf6+ gxf6 27.Rxg3+ Kf8
28.d6 Rc6 29.Rgd3 a5 30.R1d2! +=. 5zppsN-+-+-%
XABCDEFGHY 4-+-zPP+-+$
8-+-wqr+k+( 3+L+-wQP+P#
7zpltr-+pzp-' 2P+-+-mKP+"
6-+-+psn-zp& 1+-tR-+-+-!
5+p+-+-+-% xabcdefghy
4-+-zPPwQ-+$ 28.g4
The last chance to change the course of the
3+L+NtR-+P# game was represented by 28.Nxe6!? fxe6
29.Bxe6+ Kf8 30.d5 Qxe3+ 31.Kxe3 Bd7
2P+-+-zPP+" (31...Bxd5 32.Rd1 [32.Bxd5 Nxd5+ 33.exd5
1+-+R+-mK-! Rxd5 =] 32...Bxe6 33.Rxd8+ Ke7 34.Ra8 a4
35.a3 g5 36.Ra7+ Bd7 37.g3!, would be
xabcdefghy rather unclear, but White should be happy)
22...Rc3! 32.Bxd7 Nxd7! (32...Rxd7 33.Rc5 Rb7
Any exchange should be favourable for 34.Kd4 +=) 33.Rc7 Ke8 34.Kd4 b4 35.Ra7,
Black, so a rook trade would come as big when White don't seem to have achieve
relief for Black's position! much in either line, but this was more like
23.Nc5 Rxe3 (D) Mamedyarov's chess than the sit-and-wait
XABCDEFGHY policy he had adopt in the game.
28...a4 29.Bc2 Nd7! (D)
8-+-wqr+k+( XABCDEFGHY
7zpl+-+pzp-' 8-+-tr-+k+(
6-+-+psn-zp& 7+-+n+pzp-'
5+psN-+-+-% 6-wql+p+-zp&
4-+-zPPwQ-+$ 5+psN-+-+-%
3+L+-tr-+P# 4p+-zPP+P+$
2P+-+-zPP+" 3+-+-wQP+P#
1+-+R+-mK-! 2P+L+-mK-+"
xabcdefghy 1+-tR-+-+-!
24.Qxe3
24.fxe3, could come into consideration: xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 160
30.Bd3?! 33.g5?!
Mamedyarov overestimated his position. He 33.e5, probably was a better try to defend:
should opt to preserve the balance with 33...b3? (33...Be8 -/+) 34.axb3 a3 35.Qd2
30.Nd3 Nf6 31.Bb1 =, or 31.Nc5 =. Ra8 36.b4! =.
30...Nxc5! 31.Rxc5 33...hxg5 34.Qxg5 Be8! (D)
31.dxc5 Qc7 -/+, was good only for Black. XABCDEFGHY
31...b4 (D)
XABCDEFGHY 8-+-trl+k+(
8-+-tr-+k+( 7+-+-+pzp-'
7+-+-+pzp-' 6-wq-+p+-+&
6-wql+p+-zp& 5+-tR-+-wQ-%
5+-tR-+-+-% 4pzpLzPP+-+$
4pzp-zPP+P+$ 3+-+-+P+P#
3+-+LwQP+P# 2P+-+-mK-+"
2P+-+-mK-+" 1+-+-+-+-!
1+-+-+-+-! xabcdefghy
35.Qe7?!
xabcdefghy The text was losing rather simply. White had
32.Bc4? to try to put-up a fight with something like
This 'active' attempt only put White on the 35.Qe3 Ra8! 36.d5 b3 37.dxe6 fxe6 38.Re5
brink of disaster! The general feeling was Qxe3+ 39.Kxe3 Bd7 40.Rc5 b2 41.Bd3 a3
that it was here around that White came to -+, or 35.Kg2 Ra8 36.Qh4 (D)
realise that his position was gradually get- XABCDEFGHY
ting worse. So, he should have tried to hold
on with 32.h4! b3 33.axb3 axb3 34.Bb1 Be8 8r+-+l+k+(
35.Qc3 b2 36.e5 Rb8 37.h5 =+, as it's wasn't
clear how Black would make progress.
7+-+-+pzp-'
32...Bd7 (D) 6-wq-+p+-+&
32...Be8!, looked stronger: 33.Bd3 Qd6
34.e5 Qxd4 35.Qxd4 Rxd4 36.Ke3 Rd8 -/+. 5+-tR-+-+-%
XABCDEFGHY 4pzpLzPP+-wQ$
8-+-tr-+k+( 3+-+-+P+P#
7+-+l+pzp-' 2P+-+-+K+"
6-wq-+p+-zp& 1+-+-+-+-!
5+-tR-+-+-% xabcdefghy
36...g6! (36...b3? 37.Rh5 f6 38.Rh8+ Kf7
4pzpLzPP+P+$ 39.e5 fxe5 40.Qg5! +-) 37.Qf2 b3 38.Qb2
3+-+-wQP+P# Qb8! 39.h4 bxa2 40.Qxa2 a3 -+. He would
anyway lose with accurate play by Black,
2P+-+-mK-+" but it wasn't in his hands anymore.
1+-+-+-+-! 35...b3!
Ding had let his chances slip away in some
xabcdefghy previous games, especially in his second

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 161

game vs Grischuk, but this time he stayed 38...a2 39.dxe6
focused and brought home his first victory! Instead of resignation! No salvation could be
36.axb3 a3! found in 39.Bxa2 Rxa2+ 40.Kg3 Qxb4!
The typical way to advance the pawn to its 41.Qxe8+ Kh7 42.Qxf7 (42.Rc8 Qd2! -+)
heaven! 42...Qxc5! 43.Qh5+ Kg8 44.Qe8+ Qf8
37.b4 (D) 45.Qxe6+ Kh7 -+.
37.Qc7 was losing to 37...Qxc7 38.Rxc7 39...a1Q 40.exf7+ Bxf7 41.Bxf7+ Kh7
Ra8 -+. 42.Qh4+ Qh6 43.Rh5 (D)
XABCDEFGHY XABCDEFGHY
8-+-trl+k+( 8r+-+-+-+(
7+-+-wQpzp-' 7+-+-+Lzpk'
6-wq-+p+-+& 6-+-+-+-wq&
5+-tR-+-+-% 5+-+-+-+R%
4-zPLzPP+-+$ 4-zP-+P+-wQ$
3zp-+-+P+P# 3+-+-+P+P#
2-+-+-mK-+" 2-+-+-mK-+"
1+-+-+-+-! 1wq-+-+-+-!
xabcdefghy xabcdefghy
37...Ra8! 43...Qa7+!
Rook behind the passed pawn! And as White lost the house, he resigned…
38.d5 Clocks: W: 2:02:17 - B: 1:39:30
38.Ba2 Qxb4 -+. 0-1

Sergey Karjakin vs Fabiano Caruana Alexander Grischuk

Recipes from Round 12:

1. Karjakin-Caruana: Karjakin commented on the key moment of the game when he played
17.Bxd5! with an exchange sacrifice. He agreed that the tournament situation played a role in his
decision here: ‘If I would be on plus two, then I would think twice to play it. But I can say that I
believed in White's position so it wasn't like was pushing hard and then I was lucky or something
like that but basically I felt like it's a very interesting sacrifice and it will be hard for him to play’.
Caruana commented on 16...Bg4 and 17.Bxd5: ‘It was only after a few moves that I realised that I
really can't do anything. I don't know, I was under the illusion that I would have some counterplay,
or some way to trade bishops, or some way to get my king safe, but I just couldn't find the way’.
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 162
Round 13 (26.03.2018)
Round 13 The text was a matter of taste. If you fancy
26.03.2018 - 15:00 'King's Indian Defence' systems, then 5...d6
1 Mamedyarov - Grischuk 1:0 should have been chosen.
2 Ding - Kramnik ½:½ 6.c4 dxc4
3 So - Karjakin ½:½ The other main alternative here was 6...c6,
4 Caruana - Aronian 1:0 which reminds more a 'Slav-Gruenfeld De-
fence'.
A round which clarified a lot but not eve- 7.Na3 c3!
rything! I felt that So was trying to give a Best by test!
‘helping’ hand to his American compatriot, 8.bxc3 c5 9.Re1 (D)
halting Karjakin to a draw, something he The new approach. I still remember an ex-
achieved easily. Ding got out of the first cellent ‘killing’ with 9.Ne5 Nc6 10.Nxc6
place competition - 12 draws in 13 games bxc6 11.Qd3 Nd5 12.Rd1 Qa5 13.Bb2 Rb8
are simply too much for that! Mamedyarov 14.Qc2 Rxb2 15.Qxb2 Nxc3 16.Rd3 cxd4
returned back to victories, helped by his 17.Bxc6 Ba6 18.Nb1 Bxd3 19.exd3 Qa6
opponent time trouble (who got ‘eliminated’ 20.Nxc3 dxc3 21.Qb5 Qxb5 22.Bxb5 Rb8
by the way) but the real winner of the round 23.Ba4 c2 24.Rf1 Rb2 0-1 Granda Zuniga,J-
was Caruana, who by winning against tail- Kasparov,G Dubai 1986, as I was present in
ender Aronian, regained the lead and kept Dubai and watch it live!
the fate of the tournament in his hands!
XABCDEFGHY
13.1. Mamedyarov vs Grischuk was a
normal game for many moves, without any 8rsnlwq-trk+(
ups or downs. But it came to an unexpected 7zpp+-zppvlp'
end when Grischuk blundered in his heavy
time trouble. 6-+-+-snp+&
□ Mamedyarov Shakhriyar (2809) 5+-zp-+-+-%
■ Grischuk Alexander (2767) 4-+-zP-+-+$
D77 Berlin 2018
1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 g6 3.g3 Bg7 4.Bg2 0-0 5.0-0 3sN-zP-+NzP-#
(D)
2P+-+PzPLzP"
XABCDEFGHY
1tR-vLQtR-mK-!
8rsnlwq-trk+(
xabcdefghy
7zppzppzppvlp' 9...Nc6
6-+-+-snp+& 9...Qa5, was another story: 10.Bb2 Rd8
11.e4 cxd4 12.cxd4 Nc6 13.Qb3 Be6 14.d5
5+-+-+-+-% Nxd5 15.Nc4 Ndb4 16.Nxa5 Bxb3 17.Nxc6
4-+-zP-+-+$ bxc6 18.Bxg7 Kxg7 19.axb3 Nc2 20.Bf1 a5
21.Bc4 Nxe1 22.Rxe1 ½-½ Giri,A-Salem,A
3+-+-+NzP-# Tromso 2013.
2PzPP+PzPLzP" 10.Bb2
Of course it was a matter of taste here, but I
1tRNvLQ+RmK-! tend to like 10.e4, for example: 10...Bg4
11.Bb2 e5 12.d5 Na5 13.c4 += Yu,Y-
xabcdefghy Savchenko,B Riadh 2017.
5...d5 10...Nd5 11.Qc2 (D)
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 163
Again 11.e4 should have been taken into 13.Nxc6
consideration: 11...Nb6 12.Rb1 Bg4 13.Rad1 Qc7 14.Nab5 Nxd4 15.Nxd4 a6
(12...cxd4 13.cxd4 Bg4 14.d5 Bxb2 15.Rxb2 16.c4 Bd7 =, seemed to be fine for Black.
Ne5 16.Qb3 Bxf3 17.Bxf3 Nxf3+ 18.Qxf3 13...bxc6 (D)
+= Giri,A-Grandelius,N Doha 2014) 13.d5 XABCDEFGHY
Ne5 14.c4 e6 15.Qb3 Bxf3 16.Bxf3 exd5
17.exd5 += Meier,G-Van Wely,L Internet 8r+lwq-trk+(
2018.
7zp-+-zppvlp'
XABCDEFGHY 6-+p+-snp+&
8r+lwq-trk+( 5+-+-+-+-%
7zpp+-zppvlp' 4-+-+-+-+$
6-+n+-+p+& 3sN-zP-+-zP-#
5+-zpn+-+-% 2PvLQ+PzPLzP"
4-+-zP-+-+$ 1tR-+-tR-mK-!
3sN-zP-+NzP-# xabcdefghy
2PvLQ+PzPLzP" 14.c4!
1tR-+-tR-mK-! Accepting the pawn sacrifice with 14.Bxc6,
could be dangerous: 14...Rb8! (14...Bf5?
xabcdefghy 15.e4 Rc8 16.exf5 Rxc6 17.Rad1 Qa5 18.c4
11...cxd4 +/-) 15.Bg2 Ng4! 16.Rab1 Qa5 oo/=, with
A novelty to 11...Nb6 12.Rad1 Bf5 13.e4 threats as ...Qh5, ...Bf5/e6, etc.
Bg4 14.h3 Bxf3 15.Bxf3 Qc8 16.Bg2 += 14...Bf5 15.Qc1 Qc7 16.Nc2 Rab8 17.Bc3
Dreev,A-Puranik,A Bastia 2017. Bxc2!
12.Nxd4! (D) More or less forced - the white knight
12.cxd4 Bg4 13.Qd2 Rc8, would allow shouldn’t be allowed to land on d4 or e3.
Black to develop naturally and get an easy 18.Qxc2 Ne8 (D)
game. XABCDEFGHY
XABCDEFGHY 8-tr-+ntrk+(
8r+lwq-trk+( 7zp-wq-zppvlp'
7zpp+-zppvlp' 6-+p+-+p+&
6-+n+-+p+& 5+-+-+-+-%
5+-+n+-+-% 4-+P+-+-+$
4-+-sN-+-+$ 3+-vL-+-zP-#
3sN-zP-+-zP-# 2P+Q+PzPLzP"
2PvLQ+PzPLzP" 1tR-+-tR-mK-!
1tR-+-tR-mK-! xabcdefghy
xabcdefghy When your opponent possesses the bishop
12...Nf6! pair, change one! Black achieved a success-
A good piece coordination move, offering a ful opening result and he should feel happy.
pawn to White… 19.h4 c5 20.Red1 Bxc3 21.Qxc3 Nf6

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 164

22.Bf3 h5! 23.Rab1 Rxb1 24.Rxb1 Rb8 (34.b7 c2 35.Bd5 Qb2 =) 34...Qc4! (34...c2?
25.Rb5 (D) 35.exd6 exd6 36.Qg5! Qb2 [36...Qxb6
25.Rb3 Rb6 26.Kg2 Nd7 =. 37.Bd5 +-] 37.b7 +-) 35.Qxc4 Nxc4 36.b7
XABCDEFGHY c2 37.b8Q+ Kg7 =.
33.axb5 Kh7 34.e5 (D)
8-tr-+-+k+( XABCDEFGHY
7zp-wq-zpp+-' 8-+-+-+-+(
6-+-+-snp+& 7+-+-zpp+k'
5+Rzp-+-+p% 6-+Lsn-+p+&
4-+P+-+-zP$ 5wqPwQ-zP-+p%
3+-wQ-+LzP-# 4-+-+-+-zP$
2P+-+PzP-+" 3+-zp-+-zP-#
1+-+-+-mK-! 2-+-+-zPK+"
xabcdefghy 1+-+-+-+-!
25...Ne8
25...a6? would be bad, due to 26.Qa5! +/- xabcdefghy
25...Rb6 26.Qa5 Nd7 27.Kg2 e6 =, was OK 34...Nxb5?
as well. A lethal blunder in time trouble - usual for
26.Qe3 Rxb5! Grischuk... Black would be quite safe after
26...Rc8? 27.Rb7 +-. the natural 34...Nf5 35.Be4 e6 =.
27.cxb5 Nd6 28.a4 c4 (D) 35.e6!
XABCDEFGHY A killer, probably missed by Black, who was
expecting only 35.Bxb5? c2 36.e6 c1Q
8-+-+-+k+( 37.Qxc1 Qxb5 38.exf7 Qd5+ =.
35...Qa3 (D)
7zp-wq-zpp+-' 35...fxe6, was losing to 36.Qxe7+ Kh6
6-+-sn-+p+& 37.Qf8+ Kh7 38.Qf7+ Kh6 39.Be4 +-.
5+P+-+-+p% XABCDEFGHY
4P+p+-+-zP$ 8-+-+-+-+(
3+-+-wQLzP-# 7+-+-zpp+k'
2-+-+PzP-+" 6-+L+P+p+&
1+-+-+-mK-! 5+nwQ-+-+p%
xabcdefghy 4-+-+-+-zP$
Both sides would achieve a passed pawn 3wq-zp-+-zP-#
soon, but the position remained dynamically
equal. 2-+-+-zPK+"
29.Kg2 c3 30.Bc6! Qa5! 31.Qc5 a6! 1+-+-+-+-!
Perfect and no need for 31...Qxa4?! 32.Qxc3
Nxb5 33.Qc5 a6 34.Qxe7 +=. xabcdefghy
32.e4 axb5 36.Qxb5! c2 37.exf7 Kg7
32...Qxa4, was also possible here: 33.b6 37...c1Q 38.f8Q +-.
(33.bxa6 Qxa6 34.Qxc3 =) 33...Qb3 34.e5 38.Be4

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 165

38.Qe5+ Kxf7 39.Bd5+ +-, was quicker. XABCDEFGHY
38...c1Q 39.Qe8
And Black resigned, as he couldn't prevent 8r+-wq-trk+(
White to queening as well, remaining a
piece up.
7+l+n+pvlp'
Clocks: W: 1:54:06 - B: 1:58:23 6pzp-zppsnp+&
1-0
5+-+-+-+-%
13.2. It could have been a quite nice game
by Vladimir Kramnik - a positional master- 4-+PsNP+-+$
piece, mixed with tactical strokes; the dream 3+PsN-+-zP-#
of every player! But somehow, he managed
again to turn his near-winning position to an 2P+-+-zPLzP"
equal one, within a short range of moves! 1tR-vLQtR-mK-!
Well, obviously this wasn’t his tourna-
ment, despite his great fighting spirit and his xabcdefghy
great efforts. Ding escaped once more! 13.Ba3
□ Ding Liren (2769) A novelty to 13.Bb2 Qc7 14.Re2 Rad8
■ Kramnik Vladimir (2800) 15.Qe1 Qb8 16.Rd1 Nc5 17.f3 Rfe8 18.Kh1
A17 Berlin 2018 ½-½ Portisch,L-Spassky,B Mexico City
1.c4 e6 2.Nc3 c5 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.g3 b6 5.e4 1980. 13.e5?, would be simply a blunder:
Bb7 6.d3 d6 7.Bg2 g6 8.0-0 Bg7 9.Re1 (D) 13...Bxg2 14.exf6 Qxf6 15.Kxg2 Qxd4 -/+.
13...Nc5 14.b4
XABCDEFGHY Aggressive and interesting. Natural was
8rsn-wqk+-tr( 14.h3.
14...Ncd7 15.b5 (D)
7zpl+-+pvlp' XABCDEFGHY
6-zp-zppsnp+& 8r+-wq-trk+(
5+-zp-+-+-% 7+l+n+pvlp'
4-+P+P+-+$ 6pzp-zppsnp+&
3+-sNP+NzP-# 5+P+-+-+-%
2PzP-+-zPLzP" 4-+PsNP+-+$
1tR-vLQtR-mK-! 3vL-sN-+-zP-#
xabcdefghy 2P+-+-zPLzP"
Kramnik was a completely ‘new’ player in
this tournament. Usually we have found him 1tR-+QtR-mK-!
playing the white side of these 'Hedgehogs'.
9...0-0
xabcdefghy
9...e5, was possible, but of course com- 15...Ne8
pletely another strategy: 10.d4 Nc6 11.dxe5 Not sure why Kramnik rejected 15...Nc5.
dxe5 12.Nd5 Nd7 13.Bh3 Nf8 14.Qa4 Ne6 Maybe he felt that White could go on with
15.Bxe6 fxe6 16.Bg5 Qd7 17.Bf6 0-0 16.e5!? Bxg2 17.Kxg2 dxe5 18.Nc6 Qc7
18.Ne7+ Kh8 19.Rad1 Qe8 20.Bxg7+ Kxg7 19.Bxc5 bxc5 20.Ne4 Nd7 21.Qd6 oo/=. On
21.Nxc6 Rxf3 22.Rd6 Rf7 23.Qb5 Bxc6 the other hand, with the text he planned to
24.Qxc6 Qxc6 25.Rxc6 Rd8 26.Re2 ½-½ put pressure on c4-pawn with ...Ne5, ...Rc8.
Cordova,E-Terry,R Lima 2018. 16.Rc1 Ne5 17.Qe2 axb5
10.d4 cxd4 11.Nxd4 a6 12.b3 Nbd7 (D) 17...Rc8?! 18.bxa6 Bxa6 19.Ncb5 +=.

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 166

18.Ndxb5 21...Rxa3! 22.Nxa3 Qa8+ 23.Qe4 Qxa3
White tried to concentrate his forces around So, Black won two pieces for a rook, but
the weak d6-pawn, but Black's counterplay things were far from easy.
could be strong, as the white queenside 24.fxe6 Nf6! (D)
pawn structure was also rather weak. XABCDEFGHY
18...g5!?
A typical idea in these ‘Hedgehog’ structures. 8-+-+-trk+(
19.h3?! (D)
White missed Black's full idea. He should
7+-+-+-vlp'
refrain from 19.f4?!, which would only im- 6-zp-zpPsn-+&
prove Black's position after 19...gxf4
20.gxf4 Ng6, but fine was 19.Rcd1 g4! 5+-+-sn-zp-%
20.h3 (20.Nxd6? Rxa3 21.Nxb7 Qa8 -+ ; 4-+P+Q+-+$
20.Bxd6 Nxd6 oo/=) 20...h5 21.Bb4 Qg5 oo.
XABCDEFGHY 3wq-sN-+-zPP#
8r+-wqntrk+( 2P+-+-zPK+"
7+l+-+pvlp' 1+-tR-tR-+-!
6-zp-zpp+-+& xabcdefghy
25.Qe2?!
5+N+-sn-zp-% White had to stay active on the long diago-
4-+P+P+-+$ nal with 25.Qb7. A long sample variation
from now on could be: 25...Nd3 26.e7 Re8
3vL-sN-+-zPP# 27.Nb5! Qc5 28.Re3 Nxc1 29.Nc7 Qxc4
30.Nxe8 Nxe8 31.Qd7 Qf7 32.Rf3 Bf6
2P+-+QzPL+" 33.Qc8! Qxe7 (33...Nxa2? 34.Rxf6 +-)
1+-tR-tR-mK-! 34.Re3 Be5 35.f4 gxf4 36.gxf4 Nd3
37.Qc4+ Qf7 38.Qxf7+ Kxf7 39.Rxd3 Bg7!,
xabcdefghy when Black stands better but nothing deci-
19...f5! 20.exf5 sive yet.
White was in trouble, as obviously 20.Bb4 25...Qa8+! 26.f3 (D)
f4 21.Nd4 Qf6, was great for Black. But the XABCDEFGHY
text wasn't entirely satisfactory as well.
20...Bxg2 21.Kxg2 8q+-+-trk+(
XABCDEFGHY 7+-+-+-vlp'
8r+-wqntrk+( 6-zp-zpPsn-+&
7+-+-+-vlp' 5+-+-sn-zp-%
6-zp-zpp+-+& 4-+P+-+-+$
5+N+-snPzp-% 3+-sN-+PzPP#
4-+P+-+-+$ 2P+-+Q+K+"
3vL-sN-+-zPP# 1+-tR-tR-+-!
2P+-+QzPK+" xabcdefghy
1+-tR-tR-+-! 26...h5!
The threat ...g4 could be lethal...
xabcdefghy 27.e7 Re8 28.Ne4

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 167

Not much to choose from. If 28.Nd5, then 36.Kh3 Nge5 37.Nxd6!
28...Nxd5 29.cxd5 Rxe7 -/+. An important pawn was gone...
28...g4! 29.hxg4 hxg4 30.fxg4 (D) 37...Nxd6 38.Rxe5 Bg7 39.Rg5 Ne4
XABCDEFGHY 40.Rc8+ Kh7 41.Rh5+ Kg6 (D)

8q+-+r+k+( XABCDEFGHY
7+-+-zP-vl-' 8-+R+-+-+(
6-zp-zp-sn-+& 7tr-+-+-vl-'
5+-+-sn-+-% 6-zp-+-+k+&
4-+P+N+P+$ 5+-+P+-+R%
3+-+-+-zP-# 4-+-+n+-+$
2P+-+Q+K+" 3+-+-+-zPK#
1+-tR-tR-+-! 2P+-+-+-+"
xabcdefghy 1+-+-+-+-!
30...Nfxg4?! xabcdefghy
The first slip. Good was 30...Rxe7 31.g5 42.Rh4 Ng5+ 43.Kg2 Rxa2+ 44.Kf1 Ra1+
Nfd7 32.Kh1 Nc5 33.Qg2 Qe8! and White Here Kramnik decided that he had had e-
wouldn't survive for long... nough and forced a draw with repetition.
31.Qd1 Bh6! 32.Rc3 Rxe7? 44...Be5 45.Rg8+ Kf6 46.Rg4 (46.Rh6+ Kf5
Black had to retain the queens on board, so 47.Rf8+ Kg4 48.Rxb6 =) 46...Nf7 47.R4g6+
he should have opted for 32...Kg7! 33.Re2 Kf5 48.Rxb6 =.
(33.Qxd6? Qxa2+ -+ ; 33.Qd5? Qxa2+ -+) 45.Ke2 Ra2+ 46.Kf1 Ra1+ 47.Ke2 Ra2+
33...Rxe7 34.Qd5 Qe8 -/+. Clocks: W: 2:01:54 - B: 2:26:40
33.Qd5+! Qxd5 34.cxd5 Ra7 35.Re2 (D) ½-½
XABCDEFGHY
8-+-+-+k+(
7tr-+-+-+-'
6-zp-zp-+-vl&
5+-+Psn-+-%
4-+-+N+n+$
3+-tR-+-zP-#
2P+-+R+K+"
13.3. So vs Karjakin could easily win the
1+-+-+-+-! title of the most dull game of the event! So
xabcdefghy was obviously interested only to make a
draw and Karjakin was obliged!
Now White's position has been considerably
improved. □ So Wesley (2799)
35...Nf7?! ■ Karjakin Sergey (2763)
Black could try for something more, but E37 Berlin 2018
only with 35...Bf8 36.Rc8 Kg7 37.Nc3 Be7 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.Qc2 d5 5.a3
38.a4 Nf6. Bxc3+ 6.Qxc3 Ne4 7.Qc2 (D)

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 168

 XABCDEFGHY In general this variation chosen by So
seemed to give nothing to White and some-
8rsnlwqk+-tr( thing more than nothing to Black!
13...Qf5 14.Qxf5 exf5 15.Bxc4 Ke7 16.Nf3
7zppzp-+pzpp' Be6!
6-+-+p+-+& Black had fully equalised and there was
more or less nothing to play for. The two
5+-+p+-+-% opponents could agree a draw here...
4-+PzPn+-+$ 17.Bxe6 fxe6 18.Ke2 Rhc8 19.Rhc1 Nd8
20.Ne5 Nf7 21.Nxf7 Kxf7 (D)
3zP-+-+-+-# XABCDEFGHY
2-zPQ+PzPPzP" 8r+r+-+-+(
1tR-vL-mKLsNR! 7zpp+-+kzpp'
xabcdefghy 6-+-+p+-+&
One the main positions of the 4.Qc2
'Nimzoindian Defence'. 5+-+-+p+-%
7...c5 4-zP-+-+-+$
Another popular way would be with 7...0-0
8.Nf3 b6 9.e3 Bb7 10.Bd3 Nd7 11.cxd5 3zP-+-zP-+-#
exd5 12.0-0 c5 13.dxc5 Ndxc5 14.b4 Nxd3
15.Qxd3 = Urkedal,F-Anand,V Internet 2-+-+KzPPzP"
2018. 1tR-tR-+-+-!
8.dxc5 Nc6 9.Nf3
Or 9.cxd5 exd5 10.e3 Qf6 11.f3 Qh4+ 12.g3 xabcdefghy
Nxg3 13.Qf2 Nf5 14.Qxh4 Nxh4 15.b4 oo 22.e4 Kf6 23.Ke3 g5 24.g3 h5 25.h3 g4
Morozevich,A-Harikrishna,P Biel 2017. 26.hxg4 hxg4 27.f3 gxf3 28.Kxf3 Ke5
9...Qa5+ 10.Bd2 Qxc5 11.e3 Nxd2 29.exf5 exf5 30.Re1+ Kf6 31.Rac1 Rxc1
12.Nxd2 dxc4 (D) 32.Rxc1 Rd8 33.Rc7 Rd3+ 34.Kf4 Rxa3
XABCDEFGHY 35.Rxb7 Ra4 36.Rb5 a5
36...Kg6 37.Ke5 Ra1 =.
8r+l+k+-tr( 37.Rxf5+ Kg7 38.Rg5+ Kf6 39.Rf5+
Draw agreed: 39...Kg7 40.Rxa5 Rxb4+
7zpp+-+pzpp' 41.Kg5 Rb6, with a theoretical draw posi-
6-+n+p+-+& tion.
Clocks: W: 0:47:00 - B: 0:52:00
5+-wq-+-+-% ½-½
4-+p+-+-+$ 13.4. Caruana opted for a ‘quiet’ game,
3zP-+-zP-+-# where strategical ideas and manoeuvring
would be in charge. That’s a good idea when
2-zPQsN-zPPzP" you play an opponent out of form as was here
1tR-+-mKL+R! Aronian. It worked well, until a blunder whi-
ch could have destroyed everything but Aro-
xabcdefghy nian simply missed his last good chance…
13.b4 □ Caruana Fabiano (2784)
A novelty to 13.Bxc4 0-0 14.b4 Qe7 15.Bd3 ■ Aronian Levon (2794)
h6 16.Qc3 a6 17.0-0 Bd7 18.Nc4 Rab8 C88 Berlin 2018
19.Nb6 Rfd8 20.Rac1 Be8 21.Be4 Na7 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6
22.a4 Qd6 = Giri,A-Adams,M London 2015. 5.0-0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 0-0 8.d3 d6 (D)
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 169
 XABCDEFGHY XABCDEFGHY
8r+lwq-trk+( 8-tr-wq-trk+(
7+-zp-vlpzpp' 7+-zp-vlpzp-'
6p+nzp-sn-+& 6p+n+-sn-zp&
5+p+-zp-+-% 5+p+-zp-vLl%
4-+-+P+-+$ 4-+-+P+-+$
3+L+P+N+-# 3+LzP-+N+P#
2PzPP+-zPPzP" 2PzP-+QzPP+"
1tRNvLQtR-mK-! 1tRN+-tR-mK-!
xabcdefghy xabcdefghy
9.Bd2 15.Bc1!
A move that started to become the main dish Bishop's best square for the moment! White
not so long ago. was in no hurry, as the centre was stabilised
9...Bg4 and long manoeuvres were at stake. Black's
9...Kh8, was Grischuk,A-Aronian,L Berlin lightsquared bishop cannot be a good piece
2018, round 12. in the end, and if exchanged on f3, then he
10.c3 d5 11.h3 Bh5 (D) would have surrendered the bishop pair to its
XABCDEFGHY opponent.
15...Bg6 16.Nbd2 Nh5
8r+-wq-trk+( 16...Bc5 17.Nh4 Bh7 18.Nf5 +=, looked
nice for White.
7+-zp-vlpzpp' 17.Nf1 Bc5 (D)
6p+n+-sn-+& XABCDEFGHY
5+p+pzp-+l% 8-tr-wq-trk+(
4-+-+P+-+$ 7+-zp-+pzp-'
3+LzPP+N+P# 6p+n+-+lzp&
2PzP-vL-zPP+" 5+pvl-zp-+n%
1tRN+QtR-mK-! 4-+-+P+-+$
xabcdefghy 3+LzP-+N+P#
12.Qe2
A natural novelty to 12.exd5 Nxd5 13.g4 2PzP-+QzPP+"
Bg6 14.Nxe5 Nxe5 15.Rxe5 Nb6 oo/= Jack- 1tR-vL-tRNmK-!
son,S-Littlewood,P London 1984. White
shouldn't be greedy, at least not yet! xabcdefghy
12...Rb8 13.Bg5! 18.g3!
Forcing Black to clear-up the tension in the White had a plan; to improve his pieces on
centre. the kingside by means of Kg2, Nh4, etc.
13...dxe4 14.dxe4 h6 (D) Black's problem here was that he really
14...Nd7 15.Be3 Bc5 16.Nbd2 Qf6, was a lacked a proper plan and had to wait for the
good alternative, which Black could have things to come... 18.Bd5 Ne7 19.Rd1 Bd6
taken seriously into consideration. 20.Bb3 Nc6 21.g3 Nf6 22.Bc2, could have

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 170

been played as well. 25.Bd3 +/-. Then Black wouldn’t have even
18...Kh7?! the slightest counterplay!
It would have been better for Black to admit 24...Bh5!? (D)
that his knight on h5 completed its 'mission' Nothing satisfactory could be found, so
and opt for 18...Nf6 19.Bc2 Qd7 20.Kg2 a5. Black thought of a piece sac. If 24...Qd7,
19.Kg2 Qe7 20.Bc2 Rfd8 (D) then 25.Rd1 bxa4 26.Nxg6 fxg6 27.Bc2 +/-.
XABCDEFGHY XABCDEFGHY
8-tr-tr-+-+( 8-tr-tr-+-+(
7+-zp-wqpzpk' 7+-zp-+pzpk'
6p+n+-+lzp& 6pvln+qsn-zp&
5+pvl-zp-+n% 5+p+-zp-+l%
4-+-+P+-+$ 4PzP-+P+-sN$
3+-zP-+NzPP# 3+-zPL+-zPP#
2PzPL+QzPK+" 2-+-+QzPK+"
1tR-vL-tRN+-! 1tR-vL-tRN+-!
xabcdefghy xabcdefghy
21.b4! Bb6 22.a4 Nf6?! (D) 25.g4! Bxg4!
Not the right time! Black was obliged to go Black fully understood that after 25...Bg6?!
for 22...Qe6 23.Ne3 Ne7 24.Nf5! c6 26.Nxg6 (26.Ng3 +/-) 26...fxg6 27.axb5
(24...Nxf5? 25.exf5 Bxf5 26.g4 +-) 25.Be3 axb5 28.Bxb5 +-, he would be simply lost,
+=. so he took the decision to try to muddy the
XABCDEFGHY waters, by 'sacrificing' a piece for three
pawns. Generally this is good advice when
8-tr-tr-+-+( your position is going to dire straights...
26.hxg4 Nxg4 27.Nf5!
7+-zp-wqpzpk' Best and only move! And of course not
6pvln+-snlzp& something like 27.f3? Nf2! -+.
27...Nxf2 28.Bc2 g6 (D)
5+p+-zp-+-% XABCDEFGHY
4PzP-+P+-+$ 8-tr-tr-+-+(
3+-zP-+NzPP# 7+-zp-+p+k'
2-+L+QzPK+" 6pvln+q+pzp&
1tR-vL-tRN+-! 5+p+-zpN+-%
xabcdefghy 4PzP-+P+-+$
23.Nh4
White didn't want to take risks, but taking 3+-zP-+-+-#
the pawn was fine: 23.axb5 axb5 24.Qxb5
Nd4 (24...Bxf2 25.Qxc6 Bxe1 26.Nxe1 +/-) 2-+L+QsnK+"
25.cxd4 Bxd4 26.Qa5 Bxa1 27.Qxa1 Qxb4 1tR-vL-tRN+-!
28.Ba3 Qb7 29.Be7 +/-.
23...Qe6 24.Bd3 xabcdefghy
More accurate here was 24.Nxg6! fxg6 Black got three pawns for the piece, but of

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 171

course still his position was in troubles. But Qh5+ 36.Kg2 Rg8+ 37.Qg3 oo) 34.Nd5!
at least it looked better than some moves Rxd5 35. Be3 Qg5! 36.f6+ Kh8 37.Bxg5
ago... Bxf2 38.Rf1 e4 39.Rxf2 Rdxg5 40.Kh4
29.N1e3? Rg4+ 41.Kh3 =.
This could have cost the half-point. Strong 32.Rh1
was 29.a5! Ba7 30.N5e3! (30.Be3?! Nxe4 Or 32.Bxe4 Ne5 33.Rh1 +-. Black was plain
31.Bxa7 Qxf5 32.Qxe4 Qg5+ 33.Kf2 Nxa7 lost anyway...
34.Qxe5 += ; 30.N1e3? gxf5 31.exf5 Qf6 32...Rd6 33.Bxe4 Rg8+ 34.Kf1 Ne5 (D)
32.Qxf2 Nxb4! =) 30...Nh3 31.Nd5 +/-. 34...Rg5 35.axb5 Qxc3 36.Qb2! +-.
29...gxf5 30.exf5 Qf6 31.Qxf2 (D) XABCDEFGHY
XABCDEFGHY 8-+-+-+r+(
8-tr-tr-+-+( 7+-zp-+p+k'
7+-zp-+p+k' 6pvl-tr-wq-zp&
6pvln+-wq-zp& 5+p+-snP+-%
5+p+-zpP+-% 4PzP-+L+-+$
4PzP-+-+-+$ 3+-zP-sN-+-#
3+-zP-sN-+-# 2-+-+-wQ-+"
2-+L+-wQK+" 1tR-vL-+K+R!
1tR-vL-tR-+-! xabcdefghy
xabcdefghy 35.Qf4! c6 36.axb5 Rg5
31...e4? 36...axb5 37.Qxh6+ Qxh6 38.f6+ Ng6
Aronian’s bad form was obvious. Black had (38...Rg6 39.Rxh6+ Kxh6 40.Nc4+ Kh5
a nice way here to stay in the game, starting 41.Bxg6+ Kxg6 42.Nxd6 +-) 39.Rxh6+
with 31...Nxb4! 32.cxb4 Rd4!. Now White Kxh6 40.Nf5+ +-.
would have to be quite careful, as the com- 37.bxa6 Qd8 38.f6+ Ng6 39.Rxh6+!
bined power of black rooks (open g-file, Black resigned: 39...Kxh6 40.Ng4+ Kh7
open 4th rank), bishop and of course queen, 41.Qxg5 +-.
couldn't be underestimated. So, he should go Clocks: 1:58:26 - B: 1:58:03
33.Kh3 Rg8 (33...Qg5!? 34.f6+ Kh8 35.Nf5 1-0

FIDE Press-Officer Anastasia Karlovich FIDE Press-Officer Anastasia Karlovich

Vladimir Kramnik & Fabiano Caruana Fabiano Caruana & Wesley So
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 172
 Vladimir Kramnik vs Wesley So Sakhriyar Mamedyarov vs Ding Liren

Sakhriyar Mamedyarov vs Alexander Grischuk Fabiano Caruana vs Levon Aronian

Wesley So vs Sergey Karjakin Photographers on Duty

Judit Polgar & Miguel Illescas Ilya Zaragatsky & Artur Jussupow
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 173
Round 14 (27.03.2018)
Round 14 5...Nxd2 6.Bxd2 Be7 7.Bd3
27.03.2018 - 15:00 7.Be2, looked a bit passive: 7...0-0 8.0-0 c5
1 Grischuk - Caruana 0:1 9.Bf4 Nc6 10.Qd2 Be6 = Nepomniachtchi,I-
2 Aronian - So ½:½ Mamedyarov,S Moscow 2018.
3 Karjakin - Ding ½:½ 7...c5 8.c3 Nc6 9.0-0 Bg4 10.Re1 Qd7
4 Kramnik - Mamedyarov ½:½ 11.h3 (D)

As nothing was clear yet and theoretically

XABCDEFGHY
four players could win the qualification spot, 8r+-+k+-tr(
a great last round battle was at stake. In the
end the leader was the only one to win, but 7zpp+qvlpzpp'
both the other two games were fighting and 6-+n+-+-+&
interesting. Well, only Aronian-So was a
quick draw - understandably… 5+-zppzP-+-%
14.1. Caruana played an excellent game 4-+-+-+l+$
and he was never in trouble. Slowly he built
a nice position and by taking advantage of
3+-zPL+N+P#
the usual time trouble problem of his oppo- 2PzP-vL-zPP+"
nent, he converted.
1tR-+QtR-mK-!
□ Grischuk Alexander (2767)
■ Caruana Fabiano (2784) xabcdefghy
C43 Berlin 2018 11...Bh5
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.d4 A novelty to 11...Bf5 12.Qc2 Bxd3 13.Qxd3
Finally, something 'new' in the 'Rus- 0-0 14.Rad1 Qe6 = Vallejo Pons,F-Perez
sian/Petroff Defence'. Garcia,R Lugo 2009.
3...Nxe4 4.dxe5 d5 (D) 12.Bf4 Qe6 (D)
XABCDEFGHY Black's idea of avoiding the ‘immediate’
11...Bf5, wasn’t that difficult to understand:
8rsnlwqkvl-tr( he wanted to force White to go for g4 first
(weakening his king) or retreat with Be2.
7zppzp-+pzpp'
XABCDEFGHY
6-+-+-+-+&
8r+-+k+-tr(
5+-+pzP-+-%
4-+-+n+-+$ 7zpp+-vlpzpp'
3+-+-+N+-# 6-+n+q+-+&
2PzPP+-zPPzP" 5+-zppzP-+l%
1tRNvLQmKL+R! 4-+-+-vL-+$
xabcdefghy 3+-zPL+N+P#
5.Nbd2 2PzP-+-zPP+"
If White wanted just to make a draw 'help-
ing' his compatriot (Karjakin), he could opt
1tR-+QtR-mK-!
for 5.exd6 Nxd6 6.Nc3 Nc6 7.Bf4 = Mik- xabcdefghy
halchishin,A-Anikaev,Y Volgodonsk 1981. 13.a3!? 0-0 14.b4 h6!
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 174
Square g5 must be protected, so the e7- could be drawn, but I would rather fancy
bishop wouldn't be overloaded to c5- and Black's position - these three passed pawns
g5-squares. must be proven stronger than the extra white
15.Bg3 b6 (D) bishop...
XABCDEFGHY 21.f3 (D)

8r+-+-trk+( XABCDEFGHY
7zp-+-vlpzp-' 8r+-+-trk+(
6-zpn+q+-zp& 7+-+-vl-zp-'
5+-zppzP-+l% 6p+n+p+-zp&
4-zP-+-+-+$ 5+p+pzP-+-%
3zP-zPL+NvLP# 4PzPp+-+-+$
2-+-+-zPP+" 3+-zP-+PvLP#
1tR-+QtR-mK-! 2-+L+-+P+"
xabcdefghy 1+-+RtR-mK-!
16.Nd4?! xabcdefghy
At first sight the text looked like a good try, 21...Bg5
but it clarified the position to slightly Black's Again Black could have sacrificed the
favour. Preferable was 16.Be2, with an even knight for three passed connected pawns:
game. 21...Nxb4!? 22.cxb4 Bxb4 23.Re2 Be7. I
16...Bxd1 17.Nxe6 fxe6 18.Raxd1 c4! would again fancy Black's chances... But, as
White got the bishop pair and Black good Black didn't have to go for it, having the
pawn structure and the semi-open f-file. more pleasant position, nobody could argue...
19.Bc2 b5! 20.a4 (D) 22.Bf2
Otherwise Black will go for ...a5 and invade Black would stand better after 22.h4 Bf4
via the a-file. 23.Bxf4 Rxf4 24.Bg6 Ne7!.
XABCDEFGHY 22...Bf4 23.Bc5 Rfd8 24.Bd6 Bg3!
So, the white bishops were not doing much -
8r+-+-trk+( only passively trying to protect…
25.Re2 g5 26.Kf1 Kf7 (D)
7zp-+-vl-zp-'
6-+n+p+-zp& XABCDEFGHY
5+p+pzP-+-% 8r+-tr-+-+(
4PzPp+-+-+$ 7+-+-+k+-'
3+-zP-+-vLP# 6p+nvLp+-zp&
2-+L+-zPP+" 5+p+pzP-zp-%
1+-+RtR-mK-! 4PzPp+-+-+$
xabcdefghy 3+-zP-+PvlP#
20...a6 2-+L+R+P+"
20...a5!?, was a serious alternative. After 1+-+R+K+-!
21.axb5 (21.bxa5? b4 -+) 21...Nxb4 22.cxb4
axb4 23.Ra1 Bc5, not easy conclusions xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 175
27.Bc7?! was 35.Re3 Rcd8 36.Bc2 Rxd6! 37.exd6
White lost some tempi without a reason; Nxb4, when Black will prevail.
except that he was in time trouble! Probably 35...Bxe5! 36.Bxc6
better was the immediate 27.Ra1. 36.Bxe5, couldn't change the facts after
27...Re8 28.Bd6 Rac8 29.Ra1 Red8 30.Bb1 36...Nxe5 37.Ra5 Rb8 38.Ra7 Kf6 39.Rxd7
Rd7 (D) Nxd7 40.Ra7 Nb6 -+.
XABCDEFGHY 36...Rxd6 37.Bxb5 Rd1+ 38.Ke2 Rg1
39.Ke3 (D)
8-+r+-+-+( XABCDEFGHY
7+-+r+k+-' 8-+r+-+-+(
6p+nvLp+-zp& 7+-+-+k+-'
5+p+pzP-zp-% 6-+-+p+-zp&
4PzPp+-+-+$ 5+L+-vl-zp-%
3+-zP-+PvlP# 4-zPp+-+-+$
2-+-+R+P+" 3tR-+-mKP+P#
1tRL+-+K+-! 2R+-+-+P+"
xabcdefghy 1+-+-+-tr-!
31.Ra3?
A critical mistake, allowing Black a passed xabcdefghy
pawn. White had to go for the immediate 39...Rb1?
31.axb5 axb5 32.Ra6 h5 =+ (32...d4? 33.Be4 Time trouble can be for all! Caruana missed
=). the simple 39...c3 40.Rc2 Rb8 41.Ra5 Kf6
31...d4! 32.axb5 axb5 33.cxd4 Nxd4 -+.
Now Black added to his advantage the 40.Ra7+?
passed c-pawn - White's position was criti- With seconds left for his 40th move, Gris-
cal... chuk missed 40.Ra8! Rxa8 41.Rxa8 Rxb4
34.Rea2 Nc6! (D) 42.Be8+ Ke7 (42...Kf6 43.Ra7) 43.Bg6 -/+,
XABCDEFGHY when his chances to hold the opposite-
coloured bishop ending would be high.
8-+r+-+-+( 40...Kf6 41.Bd7 Bf4+ 42.Ke2 Rd8 (D)
7+-+r+k+-' XABCDEFGHY
6-+nvLp+-zp& 8-+-tr-+-+(
5+p+-zP-zp-% 7tR-+L+-+-'
4-zPp+-+-+$ 6-+-+pmk-zp&
3tR-+-+PvlP# 5+-+-+-zp-%
2R+-+-+P+" 4-zPp+-vl-+$
1+L+-+K+-! 3+-+-+P+P#
xabcdefghy 2R+-+K+P+"
35.Be4 1+r+-+-+-!
Nothing better, as 35.Re2?, was losing di-
rectly to 35...Nxe5 -+. Also not satisfactory xabcdefghy
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 176
43.Rc2 pawn into a target.
No salvation could be found in 43.R2a6 47.Kd3 Rb2 48.Ke2 h4 49.Rd1 Ke5
Rb2+ 44.Kf1 Rxd7! 45.Rxd7 c3 46.Rd1 c2 50.Ra1 Rd8 51.Rd1 Rdb8 52.Ra1 Bd2
47.Re1 c1Q 48.Raxe6+ Kf7 49.Re7+ Kg6 White was really helpless and tied down
50.R7e6+ Kh5 -+. here. If it wasn't so won already, I presume
43...Rxb4 that Caruana would have proposed a draw-
43...Rg1, was quicker: 44.Kf2 Rd1 45.Ba4 qualification, as all other games had com-
R8d2+ 46.Rxd2 Rxd2+ 47.Kf1 Ra2 48.Ra5 pleted.
c3 49.Bb3 c2 -+. Well, in general Caruana 53.Ra6 Rd8 54.Rc6 Rb1 55.Kf2 Ra1
didn't go for the ‘best’ computer way, but for 56.Rc4 Rd4 (D)
the human one, which fortunately was XABCDEFGHY
enough to win!
44.Bc6 (D) 8-+-+-+-+(
XABCDEFGHY 7+-+-+-+-'
8-+-tr-+-+( 6-+-+p+-+&
7tR-+-+-+-' 5+-+-mk-zp-%
6-+L+pmk-zp& 4-+RtrL+-zp$
5+-+-+-zp-% 3+-zp-+P+P#
4-trp+-vl-+$ 2-+Rvl-mKP+"
3+-+-+P+P# 1tr-+-+-+-!
2-+R+K+P+" xabcdefghy
1+-+-+-+-! 57.Rc8
A nice mating net could be revealed after
xabcdefghy 57.Rxd4 Kxd4 58.Ke2 Be1 59.Bg6 Bg3!.
44...c3! 45.Rd7 57...Rb4 58.Ke2 Kf4 59.Kf2 Rbb1 60.Rf8+
Black will mate after 45.Rxc3? Rd2+. Ke5 61.Bd3 Rb2 62.Ke2 Re1+ 63.Kf2 Rc1
45...Rc8 46.Be4 (D) 64.Rxb2
XABCDEFGHY 64.Rxc1 Bxc1+ 65.Kf1 Be3 -+.
64...cxb2 65.Rb8 Bc3 66.Be4 Bd4+ 67.Ke2
8-+r+-+-+( Kf4 68.Rb4 e5 69.Rb7 Kg3
And here Grischuk finally resigned, making
7+-+R+-+-' Caruana one of the happiest persons in the
6-+-+pmk-zp& world!
Clocks: W: 3:06:50 - B: 3:05:15
5+-+-+-zp-% 0-1
4-tr-+Lvl-+$ 14.2. The two players in the two last
3+-zp-+P+P# places met in the last round and under-
standably they were not in the mood of play-
2-+R+K+P+" ing. So an expected quick draw concluded
1+-+-+-+-! their tournament.
□ Aronian Levon (2794)
xabcdefghy ■ So Wesley (2799)
46...h5! A35 Berlin 2018
A clever plan, typical for such endings - to 1.c4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 g6 4.e3 Nf6 5.d4
fix the white kingside with ...h4, turning g2- cxd4 6.exd4 d5 7.cxd5 Nxd5 (D)
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 177
 XABCDEFGHY If White wanted to play for a win, he should
have thought of 14.Bxf8 Kxf8 15.0-0 Kg7
8r+lwqkvl-tr( 16.c4.
14...Bg7 15.Ba3 Bf8 16.Bb2
7zpp+-zpp+p' But obviously he was happy with a draw and
6-+n+-+p+& forget about the entire event...
16...Bg7 17.Ba3
5+-+n+-+-% Draw agreed with move repetition.
4-+-zP-+-+$ Clocks: W: 0:08:30 - B: 0:08:00
½-½
3+-sN-+N+-#
14.3. Karjakin had to win by (nearly) all
2PzP-+-zPPzP" costs if he wanted to have some real qualifi-
1tR-vLQmKL+R! cation chances. Ding could theoretically
have some chances by winning as well! Both
xabcdefghy decided to go for a long strategical game,
By transposition we had a 'Caro-Kann De- applying a waiting and see policy.
fence - Panov Variation' on the board. Karjakin made some inaccuracies and had
8.Qb3 to be satisfied with the draw, which he
The other main chapter goes as 8.Bc4 Nb6 achieved despite his two pawns deficit - his
9.Bb3 Bg7 10.0-0 0-0 11.d5 Na5 12.h3 = knight was a suburb piece!
Navara,D-Wei,Y Yancheng 2018. □ Karjakin Sergey (2763)
8...Nxc3 9.Bc4 e6 10.bxc3 Bd7 ■ Ding Liren (2769)
With the idea 11...Na5. C84 Berlin 2018
11.Be2 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6
The alternative was 11.Bd3 Na5 12.Qc2 Bg7 5.0-0 Be7 6.d3 b5 7.Bb3 d6 (D)
13.0-0 0-0 14.Bf4 = Fridman,D-Dubov,D
Tbilisi 2017.
XABCDEFGHY
11...Na5 12.Qc2 (D) 8r+lwqk+-tr(
XABCDEFGHY 7+-zp-vlpzpp'
8r+-wqkvl-tr( 6p+nzp-sn-+&
7zpp+l+p+p' 5+p+-zp-+-%
6-+-+p+p+& 4-+-+P+-+$
5sn-+-+-+-% 3+L+P+N+-#
4-+-zP-+-+$ 2PzPP+-zPPzP"
3+-zP-+N+-# 1tRNvLQ+RmK-!
2P+Q+LzPPzP" xabcdefghy
1tR-vL-mK-+R! 8.a3
The 3rd most popular move here.
xabcdefghy 8...0-0 9.Nc3 Bg4 10.Be3 Nd4 11.Bxd4
12...Bg7 exd4 12.Nd5 c5
A quite natural novelty to 12...Bd6 13.Bh6 Black was happy after 12...Nxd5 13.Bxd5
Rc8 14.0-0 += Kalinin,A-Tate,E Boston Rc8 14.Bc6 Bf6 15.a4 Rb8 16.h3 Be6
2001, or to 12...Qc7 13.Ne5 += Grinberg,N- 17.axb5 axb5 18.Qd2 Rb6 19.Bd5 Bxd5
Pedersen,E Groningen 1978. 20.exd5 b4 =, in the game Caruana,F-
13.Ba3 Bf8! 14.Bb2 Aronian,L London 2017.
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 178
13.a4 Be6 14.Nxf6+ Bxf6 15.Bxe6 fxe6 21...g5!
16.Qe2 Qd7 17.b3 (D) 21...Re6 22.f4 exf4 23.Rxf4 Rxf4 24.gxf4
XABCDEFGHY d5 25.Rf1 oo.
22.Nc4 Re6 23.a5!?
8r+-+-trk+( White needed to keep his options for a win
open, so he tried to create a future Nb6-d5
7+-+q+-zpp' threat, if possible, but the a5-pawn became a
6p+-zppvl-+& weakness as well.
23...Ref6 24.f3 h5 (D)
5+pzp-+-+-% XABCDEFGHY
4P+-zpP+-+$ 8-+-vl-trk+(
3+P+P+N+-# 7+-+q+-+-'
2-+P+QzPPzP" 6p+-zp-tr-+&
1tR-+-+RmK-! 5zP-zp-zp-zpp%
xabcdefghy 4-zpNzpP+-+$
White has chosen to play a quiet and long
manoeuvring game, which has proved to be 3+P+P+PzP-#
a good strategy when critical last round
games are involved. Note that the knight 2-+P+Q+-zP"
here must be a better piece than the bishop, 1tR-+-+RmK-!
due to the closed centre, but things are far
from easy, as Black didn't have any weak- xabcdefghy
ness to go for. 25.Nb6
17...e5 White had to try 25.f4. After 25...gxf4
A novelty to 17...Qc7 18.Rfe1 Be5 19.g3 += 26.gxf4 exf4 (26...Rxf4?! 27.Rxf4 Rxf4
Motylev,A-Eljanov,P Poikovsky 2014. 28.Qxh5 Rh4 29.Qg6+ Kh8 30.Kh1 +=)
18.Ra2 b4! 27.Qxh5 Qg7+ 28.Kh1 Rh6 29.Qd5+ Kh8,
Surrendering the c4-square to White, but maybe it wouldn't be enough, but it could
blocking for ever the queenside. Black had complicate things. A sample variation could
correctly evaluated that he could create be 30.Rf2 (30.Nxd6? Qg3 -+) 30...Bh4
enough counterplay on the kingside. 31.Rg1 (31.Rg2? Bg3! -+) 31...Bxf2
19.Nd2 Rae8 20.Raa1 Bd8 21.g3 (D) (31...Bg3? 32.Nxd6 +/-) 32.Rxg7 Kxg7
XABCDEFGHY 33.Kg2 f3+ 34.Kxf2 Rxh2+ 35.Kf1 Rh1+ =.
25...Qf7!
8-+-vlrtrk+( 25...Bxb6?, seemed to be good for Black
after 26.axb6 Qb7. But White could get the
7+-+q+-zpp' advantage with 'expanding' on the kingside:
6p+-zp-+-+& 27.f4! gxf4 (27...g4 28.fxe5 dxe5 29.Rxf6
Rxf6 30.Qd2 +/-) 28.gxf4 Rxf4 (28...exf4
5+-zp-zp-+-% 29.Qxh5 Qxb6 30.Kh1 +/-) 29.Rxf4 Rxf4
4Pzp-zpP+-+$ 30.Qxh5 Kf8 31.Kh1! Rf7 32.Rg1 Ke7
33.Qh3! +/-.
3+P+P+-zP-# 26.Kg2 h4! 27.Nd5 (D)
2-+PsNQzP-zP" Well, White will probably have an easy time
preserving the balance after 27.g4 Bxb6
1tR-+-+RmK-! 28.axb6 Qb7 29.h3 Qxb6 30.Ra4, but his
winning chances would be more than zero...
xabcdefghy Still, this was the correct follow-up.
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 179
 XABCDEFGHY 34...Kf6 35.Nf5 Ke6
Now Black could strongly think of a timely
8-+-vl-trk+( ...d5.
36.Ng3 Bd8
7+-+-+q+-' If 36...d5, here, then 37.exd5+ Kxd5 38.Ne4
6p+-zp-tr-+& Bd8 39.Kf2 a5 (39...c4 40.bxc4+ Kc6
41.Ke2 a5 42.Kd2 a4 43.Kc1 =) 40.Kf3 a4
5zP-zpNzp-zp-% 41.bxa4 c4 42.Ke2 c3 43.Kd1 =.
4-zp-zpP+-zp$ 37.Nh1 a5 38.Ke2 d5 39.Nf2 Kd6 40.exd5
Kxd5 41.Ne4 (D)
3+P+P+PzP-# XABCDEFGHY
2-+P+Q+KzP" 8-+-vl-+-+(
1tR-+-+R+-! 7+-+-+-+-'
xabcdefghy 6-+-+-+-+&
27...h3+! 28.Kg1
A forced retreat, as after 28.Kxh3? g4+! 5zp-zpkzp-zp-%
29.Kxg4 Qe6+ -+, it would be curtains! 4-zp-zpN+P+$
28...Rxf3
And Black won a pawn, which wasn't im- 3+P+P+-+p#
portant in the end... The knight dominated
the bishop, so it was always a very good 2-+P+K+-zP"
compensating factor. 1+-+-+-+-!
29.g4! Kg7 30.Rxf3 Qxf3 31.Qxf3 Rxf3
32.Rf1 Rxf1+ 33.Kxf1 Bxa5 (D) xabcdefghy
XABCDEFGHY 41...Kc6
Or 41...c4 42.bxc4+ Ke6 43.Kd2 Be7
8-+-+-+-+( 44.Kc1 a4 45.Kb2 Kd7, with a draw.
42.Kd2 Be7 43.Kc1 Kb5 44.Kb2 a4
7+-+-+-mk-' 45.Ka2
6p+-zp-+-+& 45.bxa4+ Kxa4 46.Ka2 =.
45...a3
5vl-zpNzp-zp-% Draw agreed, as now White could just go for
4-zp-zpP+P+$ 46.Ka1 and then Ka2-a1, when Black could-
n't improve.
3+P+P+-+p# Clocks: W: 1:59:47 - B: 2:10:32
2-+P+-+-zP" ½-½

1+-+-+K+-! 14.4. Mamedyarov needed a win and as

xabcdefghy
Black won (temporarily) a second pawn, but
his bishop was a 'terrible' piece and there
was no way to exploit these earnings. Note
the pawn structure for both sides - can tell a
lot!
34.Ne7?!
With the text White got into some 'academic'
troubles. 34.Kf2 Bd8 35.Kg3 =, was the
accurate method.
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018
Black vs Kramnik it couldn’t be the easiest
thing in the world! Well, he tried hard taking
early risks, as Kramnik did, but after some
mutual inaccuracies there was nothing left to
hope for and play, so Mamedyarov was
eliminated despite having all tie-breaks in
his favour!
□ Kramnik Vladimir (2800)
■ Mamedyarov Shakhriyar (2809)
E05 Berlin 2018
1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 e6 3.c4 d5 4.g3 Be7 5.Bg2
180
0-0 6.0-0 dxc4 7.Ne5 (D) 10.Qc2
XABCDEFGHY A novelty to 10.Qb3 Rxd4 11.Bf4 (11.Be3
Rd8 12.Rad1 Nd5 13.Bc1 Nd7 14.e4 oo/=
8rsnlwq-trk+( Palatnik,S-Kuzmin,G Rostov 1980)
11...Nbd7 12.Rac1 c6 13.Rfd1 Rxd1+
7zppzp-vlpzpp' 14.Rxd1 oo/= So,W-Ljubojevic,L Amster-
6-+-+psn-+& dam 2010, or to 10.b3 c5 11.e3 (11.Bb2
cxd4 12.Bxd4 Bd7 ½-½ Kozirev,A-
5+-+-sN-+-% Fedorov,V Yerevan 1983) 11...cxd4 12.exd4
4-+pzP-+-+$ Bd7 13.Bb2 Bc6 = Csom,I-Speelman,J Lon-
don 1981. White sacrifices a pawn, but his
3+-+-+-zP-# compensation would be good, mainly based
2PzP-+PzPLzP" on better and more harmonical development.
10...Rxd4 11.Bg5 Nbd7 12.Rfd1 Rxd1+
1tRNvLQ+RmK-! 13.Rxd1 Nxe5 14.Nxe5 (D)
xabcdefghy XABCDEFGHY
7...Qd6 8r+l+-+k+(
In the main line after 7...Nc6 8.Bxc6 bxc6
9.Nxc6 Qe8 10.Nxe7+ Qxe7 11.Qa4 (Kram- 7zppzp-vlpzpp'
nik,V-Aronian,L Paris 2016), White will 6q+-+psn-+&
win a pawn and although Black should have
sufficient compensation, this wouldn't be 5+-+-sN-vL-%
enough for more than a draw. Because of the
standings situation, Mamedyarov was
4-+-+-+-+$
'obliged' to take some risks and preserve a 3+-+-+-zP-#
more complex position on the board.
8.Na3 Rd8 2PzPQ+PzPLzP"
8...Nbd7 9.Naxc4 Qa6 10.b3 += Khismatul- 1+-+R+-mK-!
lin,D-Alekseenko,K Sochi 2016.
9.Naxc4 Qa6 (D) xabcdefghy
Quite dangerous would have been the Exchanges were more or less supposed to be
greedy 9...Qxd4? 10.Qb3 Nd5 11.Rd1 Qc5 good for the defender, but still White had his
12.e4 +/- Sabuk,P-Puczylowski,M Jastrzebia compensation.
Gora 2016. 14...Qa5!
XABCDEFGHY The best way to defend the extra pawn. Af-
ter the 'natural' 14...c6?, White will win:
8rsnltr-+k+( 15.Be4! h6 (15...g6 16.Bxg6! hxg6 17.Nxg6
+-) 16.Bxf6 Bxf6 17.Bh7+ Kf8 18.Qc5+
7zppzp-vlpzpp' Ke8 (18...Be7? 19.Rd8 #) 19.Ng6! +-.
6q+-+psn-+& 15.Bf4
The human way, but there was also the
5+-+-sN-+-% computer way with 15.Nc6!? bxc6 16.Bxf6
4-+NzP-+-+$ gxf6 (16...Bxf6 17.Qxc6 Bb7 18.Qxb7 Rf8
=) 17.Qxc6 Rb8 18.Qe8+ Bf8 19.Rd8 Qc5
3+-+-+-zP-# 20.b3 =.
2PzP-+PzPLzP" 15...Nd5! 16.Be4 g6 17.Bh6 Qc5!
Black would be happy to exchange queens,
1tR-vLQ+RmK-! easing his position. 17...Qxa2?, would be a
disaster after 18.Bxd5 exd5 19.Qxc7 +-.
xabcdefghy 18.Qd2!
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 181
18.Qxc5?! Bxc5 19.Bxd5 exd5 20.Rxd5 Bd6 oo/=, White can continue pressing. 22...Nf6,
=. was also interesting: 23.Bxb7 Rb8 24.Bxc8
18...Qb4! 19.Qc2 Qc5 (D) Qxc4 25.b3 Qb5 26.Bd7 Nxd7 27.a4 Ne5
XABCDEFGHY 28.axb5 Nxf3+ 29.exf3 Bd6 30.Ra1 Rxb5
31.Rxa7 Rb8 32.b4 f6 33.Bd2 =.
8r+l+-+k+( 23.Bd3 Nf6 24.e4 (D)
7zppzp-vlp+p' XABCDEFGHY
6-+-+p+pvL& 8r+l+-+k+(
5+-wqnsN-+-% 7zpp+-vlp+p'
4-+-+L+-+$ 6-+p+psnpvL&
3+-+-+-zP-# 5+-wq-+-+-%
2PzPQ+PzP-zP" 4-+N+P+-+$
1+-+R+-mK-! 3+-+L+QzP-#
xabcdefghy 2PzP-+-zP-zP"
20.Qd3 1+-+R+-mK-!
Kramnik decided to play for a win, avoiding
the repetition of moves with 20.Qd2. It xabcdefghy
would be interesting to see if Mamedyarov 24...e5!
would follow with 20...Qb4, or go for some- Going for extreme complications - the im-
thing else, keeping the game on. mediate threat was ...Bg4. Well, Ma-
20...Qd6 21.Nc4 Qc5 22.Qf3 (D) medyarov had to try!
White should concentrate to kick away the 25.Be3! Qb4 26.Nxe5?!
black knight from the centre and the open d- 26.Qe2 Be6 27.a3 Qb3 28.Nxe5 Rd8 =, was
file. For this he had to go for 22.Bf3! Bd7 probably more accurate.
23.e4 Nf6 24.Be3 Qb5 25.b3 oo/=. 26...Qxb2 27.Bf4 (D)
XABCDEFGHY XABCDEFGHY
8r+l+-+k+( 8r+l+-+k+(
7zppzp-vlp+p' 7zpp+-vlp+p'
6-+-+p+pvL& 6-+p+-snp+&
5+-wqn+-+-% 5+-+-sN-+-%
4-+N+L+-+$ 4-+-+PvL-+$
3+-+-+QzP-# 3+-+L+QzP-#
2PzP-+PzP-zP" 2Pwq-+-zP-zP"
1+-+R+-mK-! 1+-+R+-mK-!
xabcdefghy xabcdefghy
22...c6 27...Be6?!
A clever way to continue the fight. Black should have gone for the wild
22...Qxc4, looked natural, but after 23.Rxd5! 27...g5!? 28.Nc4 Bg4! 29.Qxg4 Nxg4
Qb4 (23...Qxa2? 24.Rd8+ Bxd8 25.Qc3 f6 30.Nxb2 gxf4 31.Be2 Nf6 32.gxf4 Nxe4
26.Qc5 +- ; 23...exd5? 24.Bxd5 +-) 24.Rd2 33.Rd7 Bf6 34.Rxb7 Nc5 35.Rb4 Rd8 =+.

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 182

28.Rb1! Qxa2 29.Rxb7 Bc5! XABCDEFGHY
Threatening 30...Ng4! 31.Nxg4 Bxg4, win-
ning! 8-+-+-+k+(
30.Kg2! (D)
7zpR+-+p+p'
XABCDEFGHY 6-+p+-+p+&
8r+-+-+k+( 5+-+-sn-+-%
7zpR+-+p+p' 4-+-+P+-+$
6-+p+lsnp+& 3+-+L+-zPl#
5+-vl-sN-+-% 2-+-+-+-+"
4-+-+PvL-+$ 1+-+-+-mK-!
3+-+L+QzP-# xabcdefghy
2q+-+-zPKzP" Black sacrificed the exchange, but in return
1+-+-+-+-! he took two pawns (a7-pawn will fall) and a
steady position. He was not in a position to
xabcdefghy lose but probably not in a position to win as
30...Re8? well...
A bad move, which could cost the game. 37.Be2 Kg7
Black should have refrained from 30...Ng4? Black could not retain his good outside
31.Nxg4 Bxg4 32.Qxg4 Qxf2+ 33.Kh3 +-, passed pawn: 37...a5 38.Ra7.
as well, but 30...Bd4!, was perfectly good, 38.Rxa7 Kf6 39.Ra5 Bd7 40.Kf2 Ke6
maintaining the balance. 41.Ke3 Kd6 42.Ra1 h5 43.Rd1+ Ke7
31.h3? (D) 44.Kd4 f6 (D)
Returning the favour. The simple 31.Bg5! XABCDEFGHY
Nh5 32.Nxc6 +/-, was clearly better for
White. 8-+-+-+-+(
XABCDEFGHY 7+-+lmk-+-'
8-+-+r+k+( 6-+p+-zpp+&
7zpR+-+p+p' 5+-+-sn-+p%
6-+p+lsnp+& 4-+-mKP+-+$
5+-vl-sN-+-% 3+-+-+-zP-#
4-+-+PvL-+$ 2-+-+L+-+"
3+-+L+QzPP# 1+-+R+-+-!
2q+-+-zPK+" xabcdefghy
1+-+-+-+-! 45.Kc5 Bh3 46.Ra1 Bg2 47.Ra4 Ke6
48.Rd4 Nf3 49.Rd8 Ng5 50.Bc4+!
xabcdefghy After 50.Kxc6? Nxe4 51.Bc4+ Kf5 52.Bd5
31...Bxf2! Kg4, White could be in trouble.
Black seemed to be in trouble here, but he 50...Ke7 51.Rg8! Nxe4+ 52.Kxc6 (D)
found a nice combination! It seemed that something went wrong for
32.Qxf2 Bxh3+! 33.Kg1 Qxf2+ 34.Kxf2 White and Black was ready to win a third
Rxe5! 35.Bxe5 Ng4+ 36.Kg1 Nxe5 (D) pawn and the game…

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 183

 XABCDEFGHY 52...Nd6+
Clever play by Kramnik! 52...Nxg3+ 53.Kc7
8-+-+-+R+( g5 54.Rg7+ Ke8 55.Rg8+, was a perpetual
check draw.
7+-+-mk-+-' 53.Kc5 Nxc4 54.Kxc4 Kf7
6-+K+-zpp+& And the opponents agreed to a draw in this
theoretically drawn ending. Mamedyarov
5+-+-+-+p% knew that elimination was near (Caruana
4-+L+n+-+$ had to lose a pawn-up ending…), but he was
satisfied for making his best and fought to
3+-+-+-zP-# the end. Sometimes simply things are not
2-+-+-+l+" going your way and unfortunately there is
nothing you can do about it!
1+-+-+-+-! Clocks: W: 2:39:12 - B: 2:25:40
½-½
xabcdefghy
Standings Second-half
N Name Rat 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 P Perf
1 Karjakin Sergey 2763 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 1 5 2948
2 Caruana Fabiano 2784 0 ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ 1 4 2835
3 Ding Liren 2769 ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ 4 2837
4 Mamedyarov Sakhriyar 2809 ½ ½ 0 ½ 1 ½ ½ 3½ 2783
5 So Wesley 2799 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 3½ 2784
6 Grischuk Alexander 2767 ½ 0 ½ 0 ½ 1 ½ 3 2739
7 Kramnik Vladimir 2800 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ 0 1 3 2734
8 Aronian Levon 2794 0 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ 0 2 2626

Alexander Grischuk Sergey Karjakin

Chief Arbiter Klaus Deventer Agon CEO Ilya Merenzon

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 184
The Closing Ceremony (27.03.2018)
The Closing Ceremony was first scheduled for March 28th, while the possibility of tie-breaks
was still luring, as in every top-event. But as everything was clarified and it was made sure that
there will be no tie-breaks whatever the results of the last round, the ceremony took place in the
same night of the 14th round.
Well, everybody was happy to go home after so many tiring days and nobody objected! So, a
nice small party followed the prize giving and the presents of the sponsors, with the usual talking
and thanking, which are customary for any sport event.
Of course, the happiest person around was Fabiano Caruana, who will be the first American to
play in a final of the FIDE World Championship (facing Magnus Carlsen), after Gata Kamsky in
1996 and Robert Fischer in 1972!

FIDE VP Damal Villivalam Sundar Alexander Grischuk & Klaus Deventer

Ding Liren & Klaus Deventer Fabiano Caruana & DV Sundar

I.Merenzon - F.Caruana - DV Sundar Fabiano Caruana

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 185
Portrait Sketches of the Candidates
Some quite nice portrait sketches of the many chess players who are lousy painters!
eight Candidates were published first in Mariya seems to be a good chess player and
www.chessbase.com. The artist is a chess a good painter at the same time, so this
player, named Mariya Yugina, from St Pe- combined fact makes her work unique and
tersburg, Russia. impressive!
The drawings are reproduced in this book FIDE-TRG would like to thank her for her
with her’s and ChesBase’s kind permissions. contribution to the chess world and her kind
Note that this is a kind offer of the artist. permission of reproducing her art in our
I feel that in our world we have too many book for the Candidates of the FIDE World
painters who are lousy chess players and too Championship.
Mariya Yugina is a Woman FIDE Master born in Leningrad, Soviet
Union, on June 8th, 1988. In 2005 she won the individual silver medal
in the Russian first League under 18 and has a long experience as a
chess trainer. In 2011 she graduated from the Political Sciences Insti-
tute in Saint Petersburg.
Along the years she has combined her chess activities and studies
with painting, gaining the St Petersburg artists' respect. She also pos-
sesses the green belt in Capoeira.
Mariya is married to the Romanian Grandmaster Mihail Marin with
whom she lives in Bucharest and travels to tournaments around the
world.

Fabiano Caruana & Ding Liren Shakhriyar Mamedyarov & Vlad Kramnik

Alexander Grischuk & Sergey Karjakin Wesley So & Levon Aronian

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 186

Recap of the Tournament
Before we try to analyse the participants’
performance, it would be good to know
some important data:
There was a ‘Dress Code’ - black suit and
white shirt. No sponsors’ logos were al-
lowed (unless there was a written agreement
with the organisers).
And of course there was a ‘Doping Test’
as well. According to the Candidate’s Rules,
players may be asked to undergo a doping
test.
The FIDE World Championship final
match will take place in London, England,
9-29 November 2018.
FIDE World Chess Championship 2018
London * England - Event’s Logo
The tournament was a FIDE Category 22,
with an Average Rating of 2786. Of course
it wasn’t the strongest tournament in history,
rd
as ‘Zurich 2014’ was on 2801 (23 Cate-
gory) and ‘Sinquefield Cup 2014’ was on
2802!
Certain rating inflation pushed ratings
higher, so it is not easy to say which was the
strongest tournament in history, but a good
choice good be the famous ‘AVRO 1938’,
where the world’s eight first rated players
participated. Anyway, it doesn't look that
important!
There were five different qualification
paths to the Candidates Tournament. In or-
der of priority, these were: runner-up of the
World Chess Championship 2016 match
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018
(Sergey Karjakin), the top two finishers in
the Chess World Cup 2017 (Levon Aronian
& Ding Liren), the top two finishers in the
FIDE Grand Prix 2017 (Sakhriyar Ma-
medyarov & Alexander Grischuk), next two
highest rated players (average FIDE rating
on the 12 monthly lists from January to De-
cember 2017, with at least 30 games played)
who played in Chess World Cup 2017 or
FIDE Grand Prix 2017 (Fabiano Caruana &
Wesley So), and one player nominated by
the organisers Agon (Vladimir Kramnik).
As written above, two players qualified by
average rating of 2017. By September, it
was clear that this was a three-man race be-
tween Fabiano Caruana, Wesley So and
Vladimir Kramnik. But by mid October,
Caruana and So had a near-decisive lead and
this was finally resolved on October 30th
when Kramnik was named as the wild card
candidate, assuring Caruana and So of quali-
fying by rating.
The first reserve was the next highest
placed player in the Grand Prix, Teimour
Radjabov (Azerbaijan). Any further reserves
were the next highest players by their aver-
age of the 2017 ratings lists, starting with
Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (France).
Several players appeared in the event with
their seconds. Mamedyarov was accompa-
nied by Russian GM Alexey Dreev, Kar-
jakin's seconds were GMs Vladimir Potkin
and Alexander Riazantsev, Grischuk's sec-
ond was GM Vlad Tkachiev and Ding Liren
had GM Wei Yi by his side throughout.
Kramnik's seconds were GMs Anish Giri
and Evgeny Tomashevsky and Caruana's
second GM Rustam Kasimdzhanov.
Wesley So was currently without a second,
having split with Vladimir Tukmakov sev-
eral months ago, and was joined by his
adoptive mother Lotis Key. Levon Aronian
was with his wife Arianne Caoili and his
father. He maintains a house in Berlin where
his parents live about 30 minutes east of
central Berlin, but stays in the official play-
ers' hotel, the Scandic Berlin Potsdamer
Platz, for the sake of convenience.
187
 Ex FIDE Women World Champion, GM
& FST Susan Polgar, wrote: The absolute
worst thing for Kramnik at the Berlin Can-
didates is the brilliant win with black against
Aronian in round 3 to go +2 and tied for the
lead.
He became overconfident & overestimated
his position constantly. He simply lost all
objectivity. In the next 5 games, he went -3!!
It shows that even for the best players in the
world, chess is objective, and no one can
deny that fact.
This is why I kept saying that players need
good seconds/coaches to keep them
grounded in such an important event. And I
say this from my own personal experience of
playing in Candidates Tournaments,
Matches, and World Championships.
She also commented on Aronian: ‘I
tweeted this on day 1 that there was too
much pressure on Aronian. Having Arme-
nia's President making 1st move & the hopes
of a nation are simply too much! He's now in
last place after 10 rounds. What a pity for
such a nice guy and great player!’
Official Commentators: for the English
version, most of the times Judit Polgar and
Lawrence Trent, but in first two rounds it
was also Yannick Pelettier with Polgar and
rounds 6-7 Trent was with Alexandra Kos-
teniuk.
For the German transmission Agon had
Ilya Zaragatsky but he was accompanied in
different days by five different not much
known, people. He sometimes commented
together with WGM Elisabeth Paehtz.
Some attached files (ChessBase format)
concerning games connected with the FIDE
World Championship and the Candidates are
attached to this book.

Candidates’ Performances
Caruana Caruana lost his chances to face Carlsen in the last
Fabiano round of the previous Candidates tournament. This time
he made no mistakes and by taking the lead from the
9 points
early stages, he looked confident enough to win the
Position 1st event. Disaster struck him in the 12th round but then he
recovered and won his last two games! He had his lucky
Performance
moments but in general he had more unlucky ones! His
2887
play was mature and surely above expected. It will be an
Rating + 20.4 interesting match with Magnus Carlsen - London is up!
Mamedyarov Mamedyarov was one of the main favourites, as he had
Sakhriyar played quite impressively lately. He lived up to the ex-
pectations and he was near the top from the very begin-
8 points
ning. He tried to take things easy and not over pressed -
Position 2nd when he did so he lost his only game vs Ding! His play
in general didn’t match Caruana’s and he probably got
Performance
more points than he deserved due to opponents’ blun-
2832
ders, but this is part of the game too. He will have his
Rating + 5.0 chances in the next cycle, as he is young enough.
Karjakin Karjakin in general plays well in an important tourna-
Sergey ment and this one wasn’t an exception. He started rather
badly, being in the last position after the 4th round. And
8 points
he continued impressively, as he shared the lead after the
Position 3rd 12th round, having the better tie-breaks! He was about to
create the biggest sensation I have experienced but he
Performance
ran out of energy, only drawing his last two games. Keep
2838
in mind that he was the lowest rated Candidate and
Rating + 15.0 nearly no one believed in his chances…
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 188
 Ding Ding played a strange tournament. He was the only
Liren unbeaten player and he ‘tried’ to make a ‘Giri’ (14 out of
14 draws), but he failed as Mamedyarov blundered
7½ points
badly. So, in the end he had 1 win and 13 draws, a result
Position 4th not good enough to qualify. He had his chances, as he
missed some points (Kramnik & Grischuk at least),
Performance
while he escaped some other. True, he is a hard to beat
2812
player but in general he had proved that he is a quite
Rating + 8.6 aggressive one as well, but here he played rather safely.
Kramnik Kramnik had probably his last chance to meet Carlsen
Vladimir in a match for the FIDE World Championship. He was
well prepared and he had great fighting spirit, maybe
6½ points
more that it should be for the oldest participant! He
Position 5th didn’t think of his energy ‘economy’ and he was a ‘bit’
optimistic in evaluating his chances. He should have mo-
Performance
re points but the main disaster for him was his 4th round
2759
game, when he didn't convert an easily winning position.
Rating - 8.2 Once more he proved why his nickname is ‘Big Vlad’!
Grischuk Grischuk was never considered one of the favourites,
Alexander but he came close enough, more than his positions
should allow him! He escaped some very suspicious
6½ points
positions and some incredible time troubles; typical for
Position 6th him! Unfortunately, he was expected to play a ‘secon-
dary role’ and for the vast majority of the rounds he did
Performance
so. His opening preparation was a bit poor but his fight-
2764
ing spirit was high and he was not refraining from long
Rating - 1.0 games and even longer thinking sessions!
So So didn’t live-up to the expectations of his recent past
Wesley and on 4th place in the ranking lists. Lack of a qualified
second was obvious (is it a coincidence that the two
6 points
without official seconds got the two last positions?) and
Position 7th his opening preparation more or less medium. He started
badly with 0)2 and in the remaining rounds he scored
Performance
50%, staying always in the minus zone and never even in
2734
a hypothetical position to create qualifying chances. A
Rating - 13.0 young and ambitious player - we will see more of him.
Aronian Aronian was one of the main pre-tournament favour-
Levon ites, but he didn’t live up to the expectations. He came to
the event without any official second but probably many
4½ points
were trying to give him a hand, confusing the matter
Position 8th further… He seemed to be drained, without good open-
ing preparation, without fresh ideas and poor calculating
Performance
abilities. He was obviously over-pressed by the expecta-
2655
tions of the Armenian Nation and he created a sensation
Rating - 26.6 by ending, without too much effort, in the last place!

CANDIDATES 2018
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 189
The View of the FIDE Press-Officer
‘Entering this building might substantially
increase your IQ. Chess does that to hu-
mans,’ was written on the huge billboard of
the playing venue - the Kühlhaus, an indus-
trial building in central Berlin that was built could have been seen there too.
in the early 20th century as a cold-storage
facility for fresh produce.
Surprisingly, half of the participants of the 2018 became one of the most spectacular
Candidates tournament didn’t even notice
the giant sign few days after the start of the
event, so much they were concentrated on
their tournament.
A mixture of industrial interiors with
‘World Chess’ design created a special the-
atrical atmosphere, where everything was
plunged into the darkness except four
games.
The playing area was located on the first
floor and numerous spectators could watch
their favorite players from the second floor,
while VIP guests and journalists were al-
lowed to come near to the boards.
The third floor, which also had a view on
the games, was available for VIP guests as
well as family members and seconds of the
players.
There were several complaints about the
noise during the first round but the organis-
ers tried their best to solve the problem and
the noise was minimal in the next days.
On the fourth floor spectators could listen
to the German language commentators, buy
souvenirs, snacks and drinks, listen to the
post-game press conferences and get signed
autographs.
On the fifth floor there was a media center
and a VIP area, for those who paid a 120
euro daily ticket. In the VIP area spectators
and guests could watch and listen to the
English language commentators (most of the
time Judit Polgar and Lawrence Trent) and
enjoy special chess cocktails called Fischer,
Capablanca and Smyslov in the open bar.
Family members of players and their sec-
onds were normally coming to this area
watching the games and waiting for players.
Among the visitors one could see former
FIDE World Champion Anatoly Karpov,
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018
GMs Alexei Shirov, Miguel Illescas, Alexey
Dreev, Loek van Wely, Anish Giri, Alexan-
der Riazantsev and others. FIDE officials,
the GCF officials and sponsors of the event
There is no doubt for any chess fan in the
world that the FIDE Candidates tournament
chess events. A very attractive goal to earn
the right to play Magnus Carlsen in a title
match in London created an enormous ten-
sion and every round we had thrilling fights.
Before the last round it was hard to guess
who is going to win the tournament and thus
there was an intrigue 'till the very end.
The Chess Cast Company created a very
ambitious broadcast and was trying to find a
new approach to cinematography of such an
important chess tournament. 17 cameras
were working to show the playing venue,
English and German commentators, press
conferences and of course the chess players
themselves.
They showed how players were coping
with tension, especially in time trouble, as
all chess players were terribly nervous in
this tournament.
The Press-Conferences were also full of
emotions. During FIDE events it is normally
the only chance to see players sharing their
thoughts, feelings and evaluations of the
games and tournament situations.
According to the regulations even the loser
of the game had to appear. Some of the press
conferences gathered more than one hundred
thousands views on the YouTube channel as
well as more than two hundred spectators
and journalists in the press room every day.
270 journalists visited the venue during the
tournament.
There were funny and sad moments during
these days. It was heartbreaking to see one
of the favourites Levon Aronian suffering
after each loss. It was a joy for many fans to
hear sharp-witted answers from Alexander
Grischuk.
Many spectators were coming only to lis-
ten to his press conferences and were sug-
190
gesting to him to start a career of a comedian
if he decides to stop playing chess one day.
It was very interesting to follow detailed
comments of Vladimir Kramnik as well as
his evaluation of positions and self-ironic
remarks.
One of the funniest moments happened
during the post-tournament Press-
Conference when I asked the winner Fabi-
ano Caruana how he thought Magnus Carl-
sen might feel now after his victory and he
responded: ‘I don’t know, maybe he’s wor-
ried?’ and when I asked if he wanted to send
FIDE WC 2018 Logo
Showing five overlapping arms above a
chessboard holding or moving chess pieces
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018
a message to Magnus he added: ‘We’re go-
ing to actually play in a few days, so hope-
fully I’ll send a message there!’.
There was no a research if the level of IQ
increased after entering the venue but every-
one who had a chance to visit the ‘cool
house’ in March 2018 could definitely not
stay calm.
The FIDE Candidates tournament in Ber-
lin will have a very special place in chess
history and I’m looking forward to seeing
another exciting FIDE World Championship
Match in London!
FIDE WC 2018 Alternative Logo
Showing two figures with overlapping
legs holding a chessboard in between with
overlapping arms holding chess pieces
191
Score Tables
Round 1 Round 8
10.03.2018 - 15:00 19.03.2018 - 15:00
1 Kramnik - Grischuk 1:0 1 Grischuk - Kramnik 1:0
2 Karjakin - Mamedyarov 0:1 2 Mamedyarov - Karjakin ½:½
3 Aronian - Ding ½:½ 3 Ding - Aronian ½:½
4 Caruana - So 1:0 4 So - Caruana ½:½
Round 2 Round 9
11.03.2018 - 15:00 20.03.2018 - 15:00
1 Grischuk - So 1:0 1 So - Grischuk ½:½
2 Ding - Caruana ½:½ 2 Caruana - Ding ½:½
3 Mamedyarov - Aronian ½:½ 3 Aronian - Mamedyarov ½:½
4 Kramnik - Karjakin ½:½ 4 Karjakin - Kramnik 1:0
Round 3 Round 10
12.03.2018 - 15:00 22.03.2018 - 15:00
1 Karjakin - Grischuk ½:½ 1 Grischuk - Karjakin ½:½
2 Aronian - Kramnik 0:1 2 Kramnik - Aronian 1:0
3 Caruana - Mamedyarov ½:½ 3 Mamedyarov - Caruana ½:½
4 So - Ding ½:½ 4 Ding - So ½:½
Round 4 Round 11
14.03.2018 - 15:00 23.03.2018 - 15:00
1 Grischuk - Ding ½:½ 1 Ding - Grischuk ½:½
2 Mamedyarov - So ½:½ 2 So - Mamedyarov ½:½
3 Kramnik - Caruana 0:1 3 Caruana - Kramnik ½:½
4 Karjakin - Aronian 0:1 4 Aronian - Karjakin 0:1
Round 5 Round 12
15.03.2018 - 15:00 24.03.2018 - 15:00
1 Aronian - Grischuk ½:½ 1 Grischuk - Aronian ½:½
2 Caruana - Karjakin ½:½ 2 Karjakin - Caruana 1:0
3 So - Kramnik ½:½ 3 Kramnik - So ½:½
4 Ding - Mamedyarov ½:½ 4 Mamedyarov - Ding 0:1
Round 6 Round 13
16.03.2018 - 15:00 26.03.2018 - 15:00
1 Caruana - Grischuk ½:½ 1 Mamedyarov - Grischuk 1:0
2 So - Aronian 1:0 2 Ding - Kramnik ½:½
3 Ding - Karjakin ½:½ 3 So - Karjakin ½:½
4 Mamedyarov - Kramnik 1:0 4 Caruana - Aronian 1:0
Round 7 Round 14
18.03.2018 - 15:00 27.03.2018 - 15:00
1 Grischuk - Mamedyarov ½:½ 1 Grischuk - Caruana 0:1
2 Kramnik - Ding ½:½ 2 Aronian - So ½:½
3 Karjakin - So 1:0 3 Karjakin - Ding ½:½
4 Aronian - Caruana 0:1 4 Kramnik - Mamedyarov ½:½

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 192

 Final Standings
N Name Perf 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 P
1 Caruana F. 2877 ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ 1 1 ½ 1 1 9
2 Mamedyarov S. 2832 ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ 0 1 ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ 8
3 Karjakin S. 2838 ½ 1 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ 1 ½ 0 1 8
4 Ding L. 2812 ½ ½ ½ 1 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 7½
5 Kramnik V. 2759 0 ½ 0 ½ ½ 0 ½ ½ 1 0 ½ ½ 1 1 6½
6 Grischuk A. 2764 ½ 0 ½ 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ 0 1 1 ½ ½ ½ 6½
7 So W. 2734 0 ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ ½ ½ ½ ½ 0 ½ 1 ½ 6
8 Aronian L. 2655 0 0 ½ ½ 1 0 ½ ½ 0 0 ½ ½ 0 ½ 4½

Progressive Scores
N Name Rat 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 P
1 Caruana F. 2784 1 1½ 2 3 3½ 4 5 5½ 6 6½ 7 7 8 9 9
2 Mamedyarov S. 2809 1 1½ 2 2½ 3 4 4½ 5 5½ 6 6½ 6½ 7½ 8 8
3 Karjakin S. 2763 0 ½ 1 1 1½ 2 3 3½ 4½ 5 6 7 7½ 8 8
4 Ding L. 2769 ½ 1 1½ 2 2½ 3 3½ 4 4½ 5 5½ 6½ 7 7½ 7½
5 Kramnik V. 2800 1 1½ 2½ 2½ 3 3 3½ 3½ 3½ 4½ 5 5½ 6 6½ 6½
6 Grischuk A. 2767 0 1 1½ 2 2½ 3 3½ 4½ 5 5½ 6 6½ 6½ 6½ 6½
7 So W. 2799 0 0 ½ 1 1½ 2½ 2½ 3 3½ 4 4½ 5 5½ 6 6
8 Aronian L. 2794 ½ 1 1 2 2½ 2½ 2½ 3 3½ 3½ 3½ 4 4 4½ 4½
Table as per Moves Played
N Name 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 T
1 Kramnik V. 66 39 48 90 74 47 55 40 27 37 63 54 57 42 739
2 Caruana F. 66 40 36 69 45 67 31 47 37 39 49 57 33 64 680
3 Grischuk A. 47 91 35 69 51 96 30 28 41 54 16 38 44 34 674
4 Ding L. 73 47 46 66 51 96 18 45 21 41 31 43 36 31 645
5 Karjakin S. 54 41 30 48 30 28 17 45 68 74 71 30 40 38 614
6 Aronian L. 27 36 37 38 42 54 22 40 68 74 24 41 77 16 596
7 Mamedyarov S. 64 54 49 58 15 39 30 43 71 30 24 41 31 40 589
8 So W. 57 42 32 65 43 34 37 30 40 39 78 17 31 41 586

Table as per Time Consumed (Rounded Minutes)

N Name 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 T
1 Kramnik V. 139 209 195 115 195 147 175 119 191 159 95 116 165 149 2169
2 Grischuk A. 168 208 110 187 154 207 99 92 68 118 147 162 159 94 1973
3 Caruana F. 179 118 117 185 147 195 51 125 170 151 117 118 111 162 1946
4 Ding L. 189 122 150 212 160 189 73 131 67 99 94 128 81 77 1772
5 Karjakin S. 142 115 88 86 29 129 63 120 195 48 153 180 119 52 1519
6 Mamedyarov S. 169 146 12 114 163 137 73 122 173 72 45 112 36 127 1501
7 Aronian L. 80 117 110 93 117 118 100 117 113 172 40 110 167 8 1462
8 So W. 145 129 146 39 106 129 76 65 118 47 50 61 189 8 1308

FIDE WC 2016-2018 - Events’ Logos

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 193
FIDE Live Moves Broadcasting Policy
1. Introduction
1.1. This section describes the Live Moves
Broadcasting Policy of FIDE (‘Policy’).
1.2. This Policy shall govern what actions
may be taken against any person (meaning
either an individual or a legal en-
tity/organisation) that deliberately or
through gross negligence violates the exclu-
sive right to organise live move-by-move
broadcasting of FIDE events.
1.3. The FIDE Secretariat and Presidential
Board are responsible for administration of
this Policy.
2. Right to organise live moves broadcast-
ing
2.1. FIDE shall have the exclusive right to
organise the live move-by-move broadcast-
ing of FIDE events (the ‘Broadcasting
Right’). FIDE may at its sole discretion as-
sign this right to third parties, including the of each Person’s involvement and the con-
organisers of FIDE events and/or its ap-
pointed commercial agents.
2.2. The exclusivity of the Broadcasting
right shall only extend for the duration of the complaint send the text of the complaint
broadcasted game. After the end of the game
the notation can be used without any restric-
tions.
2.3. Use of up to ten (10) consecutive
moves in one piece of communication (e.g.
on one web-page; in one video piece) shall
be regarded as fair use that does not interfere submitted. The FIDE Secretariat shall also
with the Broadcasting right.
3. Violation of the Broadcasting right
3.1. The following actions shall be re-
garded as violations of the Broadcasting
right:
3.1.1. Unauthorised live move-by-move
broadcast of FIDE events via any means of
communication including, but not limited to
Internet, Radio and Television.
3.1.2. Contributing to organisation of un-
authorized live move-by-move broadcast.
3.1.3. Advertising and/or promoting unau-
thorised live move-by-move broadcast.
4. Violators
4.1. Violators include any person that per-
formed any of the actions listed in item 3.1
hereinabove including, but not limited to, the
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018
following:
4.1.1 Member federations, delegates and
counselors.
4.1.2. Affiliated organisations.
4.1.3. Organisers.
4.1.4. Tournament directors.
4.1.5. Arbiters.
4.1.6. Any officials and office holders in
any FIDE office or national federation of-
fice.
5. Procedure
5.1. A complaint about any violation of the
Broadcasting right may be submitted to
FIDE Secretariat by the representative of
FIDE event’s organiser, FIDE official or
holder of the Broadcasting right. The com-
plaint must describe the details of violation,
screenshot or other form of the recording,
list of persons involved (‘Persons’), nature
tact details of each Person (where possible).
5.2. FIDE Secretariat shall within three
working days from the date of receipt of the
with all the attached files to the Persons (if
their contacts are available) and publish the
following information on the FIDE website:
short description of the Complaint, name of
the event, name of the complainant, name of
the person against whom the complaint was
inform the Persons about their right to sub-
mit a reply to the complaint within 14 days
following the publication of the complaint
on FIDE website.
5.3. A list of Persons (‘LoP’) involved in
an unauthorised broadcast shall be presented
at the next FIDE Presidential Board meeting.
The list shall contain the following informa-
tion on each Person: full name; country;
short description of the offence; number of
the offence (whether it is first time, second
time, etc.); whether the Person complied
with the request to cease the non-authorised
activity. The list should be accompanied
with the copies of the complaints and the
replies of the Persons (if any).
5.4. After consideration of the documents
194
the Presidential Board establishes the fact of part in a chess competition, or in any chess-
the violation or its absence. A Person may related activity for 3 months and prohibition
be excluded from the list if the Presidential to hold official positions at FIDE and its
Board considers that no violation of the member organisations for 3 months shall be
Broadcasting rights by this Person had taken imposed.
place. 6.1.3. Third-time and further violations.
5.5. The Presidential Board may create a For the third-time violation, as well as for
special working group to prepare the report any subsequent violation, a prohibition from
on the documents received and present it to taking part in a chess competition, or in any
the Presidential Board. chess-related activity for 1 year and a prohi-
6. Measures to be taken vis-à-vis Violators bition to hold official positions at FIDE and
6.1. The following measures shall auto- its member organisations for 1 year shall be
matically apply to Violators added to the imposed.
LoP following the approval of the LoP by 6.1.4. In case the above measures are taken
the Presidential Board: against an organisation/legal entity, the pro-
6.1.1. First-time violation. For the first hibition from participation in official tour-
time violation a fine in the amount of 1 Euro naments and holding of official positions
is imposed. applies to the heads of such organisation
6.1.2. Second-time violation. For the sec- and/or the members of its respective deci-
ond-time violation a prohibition on taking sion-making body.
List of Seconds
N Candidates Second 1 Second 2
1 Aronian Levon Not Registered
2 Caruana Fabiano Kasimdzhanov Rustem - GM
3 Ding Liren Wei Yi - GM
4 Grischuk Alexander Tkachiev Vladimir - GM
5 Karjakin Sergey Potkin Vladimir - GM Riazantsev Alexander - GM
6 Kramnik Vladimir Giri Anish - GM Tomashevsky Evgeny - GM
7 Mamedyarov Sakhriyar Dreev Alexey - GM
8 So Wesley Not Registered
Official Commentators
Polgar Judit - GM Trent Laurence - IM
English Language
Pelletier Yannick - GM Kosteniuk Alexandra - GM
German Language Zaragatsky Ilya - IM Paehtz Elisabeth - IM-WGM

Café Einstein Stammhaus, located at Kurfürstenstrasse 58, Berlin, Germany,

became the official cafe, where chess lovers could enjoy the game,
watch the broadcast Candidates Tournament and meet the Grandmasters!
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 195
Index of Games
Where a player’s name appears in bold, that player had White. Otherwise the first-named player
had White. A total of 56 games are analysed and presented in this book.

Aronian Levon - Caruana 102 Grischuk Alexander - Kramnik 109

- Caruana 169 - Kramnik 33
- Ding 39 - Mamedyarov 96
- Ding 115 - Mamedyarov 163
- Grischuk 75 - So 44
- Grischuk 153 - So 121
- Karjakin 149 Karjakin Sergey - Aronian 71
- Karjakin 71 - Aronian 149
- Kramnik 55 - Caruana 154
- Kramnik 133 - Caruana 78
- Mamedyarov 125 - Ding 178
- Mamedyarov 49 - Ding 90
- So 177 - Grischuk 54
- So 86 - Grischuk 132
Caruana Fabiano - Aronian 169 - Kramnik 127
- Aronian 102 - Kramnik 51
- Ding 122 - Mamedyarov 35
- Ding 46 - Mamedyarov 113
- Grischuk 84 - So 100
- Grischuk 174 - So 168
- Karjakin 78 Kramnik Vladimir - Aronian 133
- Karjakin 154 - Aronian 55
- Kramnik 147 - Caruana 67
- Kramnik 67 - Caruana 147
- Mamedyarov 57 - Ding 96
- Mamedyarov 137 - Ding 166
- So 41 - Grischuk 33
- So 118 - Grischuk 109
Ding Liren - Aronian 115 - Karjakin 51
- Aronian 39 - Karjakin 127
- Caruana 46 - Mamedyarov 180
- Caruana 122 - Mamedyarov 91
- Grischuk 142 - So 157
- Grischuk 62 - So 79
- Karjakin 90 Mamedyarov Sakhriyar - Aronian 49
- Karjakin 178 - Aronian 125
- Kramnik 166 - Caruana 137
- Kramnik 96 - Caruana 57
- Mamedyarov 81 - Ding 159
- Mamedyarov 159 - Ding 81
- So 139 - Grischuk 163
- So 60 - Grischuk 96
Grischuk Alexander - Aronian 153 - Karjakin 113
- Aronian 75 - Karjakin 35
- Caruana 174 - Kramnik 91
- Caruana 84 - Kramnik 180
- Ding 62 - So 65
- Ding 142 - So 145
- Karjakin 132 So Wesley - Aronian 86
- Karjakin 54 - Aronian 177
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 196
So Wesley - Caruana 118 So Wesley - Karjakin 168
- Caruana 41 - Karjakin 100
- Ding 60 - Kramnik 79
- Ding 139 - Kramnik 157
- Grischuk 121 - Mamedyarov 145
- Grischuk 44 - Mamedyarov 65

Index of Openings (ECO Classification)

A13 149 D26 109
A17 166 D30 78 - 145
A18 39 D31 147 - 157
A26 96 D35 91 - 127
A35 177 D37 139
A48 33 D38 96
A65 75 D39 71 - 102
D40 142
B90 60 D41 79 - 159
D43 62
C42 67 - 118 - 154 D77 163
C43 174
C50 57 - 133 E03 125
C60 35 E04 115 - 137
C65 54 E05 46 - 81 - 90 - 113 - 180
C67 51 - 121 E07 41
C84 44 - 178 E11 122 - 132
C88 86 - 153 - 169 E36 49
C89 55 E37 65 - 168
E51 100
E60 84

Curriculum Vitae - Efstratios Grivas

Efstratios
Grivas
Efstratios Grivas (30.03.1966)
is a highly experienced chess trainer and chess author
Has been awarded by the International Chess Federation (FIDE) the titles of:

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 197

 ▪ International Chess Grandmaster
▪ FIDE Senior Trainer
▪ International Chess Arbiter
▪ International Chess Organiser
His main successes over the board were:
▪ Silver Medal Olympiad 1998 (3rd Board)
▪ Gold Medal European Team Championship 1989 (3rd Board)
▪ 4th Position World Junior Championship U.20 1985
▪ 5 Balkan Medals (2 Gold - 1 Silver - 2 Bronze)
▪ 3 times Winner of the International ‘Acropolis’ Tournament
▪ 28 times Winner of Greek Individual & Team Championships
▪ Winner of Various International Tournaments
▪ Among the 120 best players of the World in 1993
▪ Rating Record in 1999 *2528* (equal to today 2630 ~)
▪ Best Individual Results: Z.Almasi ½ ½ - V.Anand ½ - Z.Azmaiparashvili 1 - J.Benjamin 1 -
F.Caruana ½ - M.Chiburdanidze ½ ½ ½ - L.Christiansen ½ - Z.Efimenko ½ - J.Ehlvest ½ -
B.Gelfand ½ - Kir.Georgiev 1 - R.Huebner ½ - V.Kramnik 0 - P.Leko ½ ½ ½ - S.Lputian 1 -
S.Movsesian ½ - J.Nunn 1 ½ ½ ½ - J.Polgar ½ ½ - S.Polgar ½ - A.Shirov ½ - N.Short ½ - I.Smirin
½ - V.Smyslov ½ ½ ½ - P.Svidler ½ - V.Topalov ½ - R.Vaganian ½ - L.Van Wely ½
▪ An opening variation has been named after him. The ‘Grivas Sicilian’ is characterised by the
moves 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Qb6
What he does/did:
▪ Secretary of the FIDE Trainers’ Commission
▪ Director of the FIDE Grivas Chess International Academy (Athens)
▪ Director of the UAE Chess Federation FIDE Academy (Abu Dhabi - Ex)
▪ Technical Director of the Greek Chess Federation (1996-1999)
▪ Technical Director of the United Arab Emirates Chess Federation (2014-2016)
▪ Head Trainer of the Turkish Men’s National Team (2006-2012)
▪ Head Coach of the Greek Men’s National Team (2013)
▪ Head Coach of the Sri Lanka Men’s National Team (2014)
▪ Head Coach of the United Arab Emirates Men’s National Team (2016)
▪ Workshops with National Teams of Austria (Women), Jordan (Women), Mauritius (Men) and Sri
Lanka (Men & Women)
▪ Winner of the FIDE Boleslavsky Medal 2009 & 2015 (best author)
▪ Winner of the FIDE Euwe Medal 2011 & 2012 (best junior trainer)
▪ Winner of the FIDE Razuvaev Medal 2014 (Trainers’ education)
▪ Captain/Winner of the World Team - USA vs. The World U.17-14 2017
▪ Trainer of Various GMs & IMs - In 2009-2011 alone, he formed 7 GMs!
▪ Trainer of the FIDE World Women Champion Antoaneta Stefanova
▪ Trainer of the FIDE World Junior Champion U.20 2012 Alex Ipatov
▪ Trainer of the Gold Medal Winner (Group D’) Team of Sri Lanka in the 41st Chess Olympiad
▪ Worked over 12.000 hours on training!
▪ Official Commentator of the FIDE World Rapid & Blitz Ch 2013
▪ Organiser of the European Youth Championships 1999, FIDE Congress 2015 & Asian Nations
Cup 2015
▪ Lecturer at FIDE Seminars for Training & Certifying Trainers
▪ Author of 99 Books in Arabic, English, Greek, Italian, Spanish & Turkish languages
▪ Cooperating with the World’s Most Important Magazines
Efstratios Grivas tutorial program contains:

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 198

▪ Build an Opening Repertoire
▪ Broaden your Tactical Abilities
▪ Become an Expert in Middlegame Handling
▪ Understand Endgame Techniques
▪ Deeply Analyse your Games
Efstratios Grivas has cooperated/cooperating as a contributor with the
following print and electronic magazines (Title-Country-Internet Site):
 Black & White - India (www.blackandwhiteindia.com)
 British Chess Magazine - England (www.bcmchess.co.uk)
 Chess Chronicle - Pakistan (shatirhyd@yahoo.com)
 ChessBase Magazine - Germany (www.chessbase.com)
 ChessCafe - United States of America (www.chesscafe.com)
 Chess-Today - Ireland (www.chesstoday.net)
 Euroscacchi Periodiko - Italy (www.accademiainternazionalediscacchi.com)
 Greek Chess - Greece (www.chessfed.gr)
 L’Italia Scacchistica - Italy (www.italiascacchistica.com)
 MaviKale - Turkey (www.tsf.org.tr)
 New in Chess Magazine - The Netherlands (www.newinchess.com)
 New In Chess Yearbook - The Netherlands (www.newinchess.com)
 Schach Magazine - Germany (www.schuenemann-verlag.de/schach-magazin)
 Twic Theory - England (www.chesscenter.com/twictheory)
Efstratios Grivas bibliography (non-Greek) consists
of the following books & DVDs (Title-Publisher/Year-Language):
 A Complete Guide to the Grivas Sicilian (Gambit 2005-English)
 Beating the Fianchetto Defences (Gambit 2006-English)
 Chess College 1: Strategy (Gambit 2006-English)
 Chess College 2: Pawn Play (Gambit 2006-English)
 Chess College 3: Technique (Gambit 2006-English)
 Modern Chess Planning (Gambit 2007-English)
 Practical Endgame Play - Mastering the Basics (Everyman 2008-English)
 Planification en el Ajedrez Moderno (La Casa del Ajedrez 2008-Spanish)
 Oyunortasında Ustalık Dersleri / Temeller ve Uygulamalar (TSF 2010-Turkish)
 Oyunsonunda Ustalık Dersleri / Temeller ve Uygulamalar (TSF 2010-Turkish)
 FIDE TRG Syllabus (FIDE 2010-English)
 Kalite Fedası & Konumsal Feda (TSF 2010-Turkish)
 Kötü Ata Karşı İyi Fil, Kötü File Karşı İyi At (TSF 2010-Turkish)
 Konumun Değerlendirilmesi & Fillerin ve Atların Etkinliği (TSF 2010-Turkish)
 Chess Expertise Step by Step Vol 1 - Unexpected Tactics (ChessBase 2011-English)
 Chess Expertise Step by Step Vol 2 - Mastering Strategy (ChessBase 2011-English)
 Chess Expertise Step by Step Vol 3 - Rook Handling (ChessBase 2011-English)
 Chess Expertise Step by Step Vol 4 - Endgame Magic (ChessBase 2012-English)
 FIDE TRG Yearbook 2011 (FIDE 2012-English)
 Fil Oyunsonlari ve At Oyunsonlari (TSF 2012-Turkish)
 Fil Çifti ve Taş Seğişim Sanati (TSF 2012-Turkish)
 Piyon Çoğunluğu/Azinliği ve Kenardaki Taşlar (TSF 2012-Turkish)
 Bingeç Piyon ve Geri Kalmiş Piyon (TSF 2012-Turkish)
 FIDE TRG Trainer Foundation Guide (FIDE 2012-English)
 Chess Analytics - Training with a Grandmaster (Russell Ent. 2012-English)
 Trivial Endings - Revealing the Secrets (FIDE 2013-English)
 FIDE TRG Yearbook 2012 (FIDE 2013-English)
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 199
 Chess Steps - Volume A’ (FIDE 2014-English)
 Chess Steps - Volume B’ (FIDE 2014-English)
 Procediemnti Analitici (Prisma 2014-Italian)
 FIDE TRG Yearbook 2013 (FIDE 2014-English)
 Advanced Chess School - Volume 1 - The Bishop Pair (FIDE 2014-English)
 Advanced Chess School - Volume 2 - The Exchange Sacrifice (FIDE 2014-English)
 Advanced Chess School - Volume 3 - Doubled & Backward Pawns (FIDE 2014-English)
 The Grandmaster Program (Grivas Chess International Academy 2014-English)
 Advanced Chess School - Volume 4 - Imbalances of Bishops & Knights (FIDE 2014-
English)
 Advanced Chess School - Volume 5 - Majority-Minority & Edged Pieces (FIDE 2014-
English)
 FIDE TRG Yearbook 2014 (FIDE 2015-English)
 Advanced Chess School - Volume 6 - The Art of Exchanges (FIDE 2015-English)
 Entrene Ajedrez I (La Casa del Ajedrez 2015-Spanish)
 Entrene Ajedrez II (La Casa del Ajedrez 2015-Spanish)
 The Grandmaster Program (FIDE 2015-English)
 Chess Steps - Volume A’ (UAE CF 2015-Arabic)
 Chess Steps - Volume B’ (UAE CF 2015-Arabic)
 FIDE World Championship 2016 (FIDE 2017-English)
 Endgame Manual - Queen & Bishop vs Pieces (Chess Evolution 2017-English)
 Endgame Manual - Rook & Knight vs Pieces (Chess Evolution 2017-English)
 FIDE Grand-Prix - Sharjah 2017 (FIDE 2017-English)
 Advanced Chess School - Volume 7 - The Passed Pawn (FIDE 2017-English)
 Match of the Millennials (FIDE 2017-English & French)
 Georgios Makropoulos - A Profile (FIDE 2017-English)
 Bishop Endings: An Innovative Course (Thinkers Publishing 2017-English)
 Grivas Method: Middlegame Strategies (Chess Evolution 2017-English)
 Advanced Chess School (IChess 2018-English)
 Linares Super Tournament Series (FIDE 2018-English)
 Bermuda Tournament Series (FIDE 2018-English)
 Sinquefield Cup 2013 - FIDE Women WC 2013 (FIDE 2018-English)
 FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 (FIDE 2018-English)
For more information visit Efstratios Grivas’s personal internet site:
www.GrivasChess.com - http://trainers.fide.com
Contact Info: E-mail: GrivasEfs@yahoo.co.uk
Skype: GrivasEfs
What do teachers know anyway? Michael Jordan, the greatest basketball
player in the history of the game, was told by his High School coach that
basketball was not a good fit for him. He cut Jordan from the High
School basketball team and told him to take up baseball…
The good trainer is not dogmatic; he is trying to become better day by day…
Contact Efstratios Grivas for
▪ Chess Instruction
▪ Training/Coaching
▪ Simultaneous Exhibitions
▪ Tournament & Team Competitions
▪ Magazine Columns
Individual - Group - Club Training
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 200
FIDE Trainers’ Commission (TRG)
The FIDE Trainers’ Commission (TRG) is the official body of the World Chess Federation
(FIDE) that deals with trainers worldwide. We’re all born with a natural sense of curiosity. It’s
what drives us to create new things and develop new ideas. At TRG, we’re committed to nurturing
our members’ pursuit of advanced scientific and ‘technological’ knowledge through many research
initiatives. TRG is ‘partnering’ with global leader trainers in a variety of fields including seminars,
training methods, publishing and research. The results of this cooperation can be applied in ways
that benefit TRG intellectually and culturally by transforming the region into cutting-edge leader
in the creation of human chess-knowledge. But most of all, TRG’s research aspirations aim to in-
spire the trainers, and the chess world, to discover new ways of unlocking their potential.
The FIDE Trainers’ Committee, predecessor of the FIDE Trainers’ Commission (which - in a
way - was formed in the start of 2009) was formed in 2000 during the Istanbul Olympiad and was
chaired by GM Yuri Razuvaev (+), now Honorary Chairman. The Committee ‘created’ a real and
decent training environment and established the guidance for its functioning for about eight years;
its role is impossible to undervalue. Now, on our ‘second period’, we have to re-examine our posi-
tion at the moment and to create new tasks for the future.
The most important task of TRG was the introduction of a system of titles and licenses as it was
demanded by IOC. The main idea was that the titles will boost the importance of trainers’ posi-
tions in the chess world. Licenses are necessary for keeping the level of the trainers, but up to
Sofia 2010 FIDE Presidential Board, these licenses were not approved to be used worldwide.
Now we have instruments to improve the level of trainers but we need cooperation of the Conti-
nental and National FIDE affiliated federations to implement the system correctly and effectively.
Our important role is to protect Trainers and to help them to conduct their duties effectively and
with dignity. For further info see http://trainers.fide.com/trg-council.html.
TRG is responsible for and operates the following subjects:
1) Deals with any subject concerning trainers (http://trainers.fide.com).
2) Keeps the record of the list of trainers (http://trainers.fide.com/fide-trainers-system.html).
3) Keeps the record of the financial status of the trainers (as above).
4) Awards the highest training title worldwide; the FIDE Senior Trainer (FST).
5) Endorses and record FIDE Academies (http://trainers.fide.com/fide-academies.html).
6) Prepares and follows its annual Budget (http://trainers.fide.com/minutes.html).
7) Runs the annual FIDE Trainers’ Awards (http://trainers.fide.com/awards-hall-of-fame.html).
8) Draws the necessary Guidelines and Rules and proposes to FIDE PB, EB and GA.
9) Organises the worldwide Educational Seminars for FIDE titles.
10) Organises and supports various Youth Camps (http://trainers.fide.com/seminars.html).
11) Organises Informative Meetings in various events (http://trainers.fide.com/minutes.html).
12) Listed its Recommended Books (http://trainers.fide.com/recommended-books.html).
13) Supports trainers with monthly, free of charge Surveys (http://trainers.fide.com/surveys.html).
14) Cooperates with DEV (FIDE Development Commission), ECU (European Chess Union) and
IOC/ARISF (International Olympic Committee / Association of Recognised International Sports
Federations), assuring sponsored FIDE Trainers’ Seminars (for DEV federations - 2009-2018).
15) Supports trainers with general valuable info (http://trainers.fide.com).
TRG’s 2018 activity is quite notable:
1. FIDE-TRG Seminars/Trainers: By today TRG has conducted 266 seminars worldwide and
5.820 trainers have been certified.
2. FIDE-TRG Online Training Program: TRG has started a six-months (since February 1st) train-
ing online program twice per week with 27 selected federations with 8 well-known trainers.
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 201
 3. FIDE-DEV-TRG Olympiad Captains Program: The program is sponsored by DEV and TRG
is doing the handling. 20 Team Captains will be sponsored for the coming Olympiad in Batumi.
4. FIDE-TRG Free Books Program: As per approved Budget, TRG is constantly preparing free
pdf books for our certified and licenced trainers. This year it started with four new books, and in
total TRG has produced 34 educational free books (full covers included to all).
5. FIDE-TRG Free Surveys Program: TRG is preparing a new Survey in the end of each month,
by a well-known trainer. The Survey is uploaded on TRG’s site, for free downloading. The project
is on its 9th consecutive year!
6. FIDE-TRG Trainers Awards 2017: As per year since 2009, TRG is conducting the annually
FIDE-TRG Trainers Awards, this time for year 2017. The process will end by middle of June and
the results/awards will be presented/approved/awarded in the coming FIDE Congress.
7. FIDE-TRG Academies: TRG has registered by today 69 Academies.

FIDE Trainers’ Commission (TRG)

FIDE-TRG Trainer Awards 2017
Information - Regulations
The FIDE Trainers’’ Commission (TRG) is pleased to announce the tenth FIDE Trainer Awards
2017, continuing honouring the achievements of the most successful coaches/trainers/captains of
the year.
Medal Categories
Nominations for the following six (6) Medal categories can be made:
1. Botvinnik Mikhail Medal for men’s coach/trainer/captain, for best results in men competi-
tions where World Championships and Olympiads are valued foremost. To be considered too, are
long standing high results.
2. Furman Symeon Medal for women’s coach/trainer/captain, similar to Botvinnik medal but
applicable to women’s competitions.
3. Euwe Max Medal for junior’s coach/trainer/captain, for best results in junior competitions. To
be considered are World and Continental championships and founders of famous chess schools,
training programs, and academies.
4. Boleslavsky Isaac Medal for best book/author which instructional values are remarkable. To
be considered are also series of articles, instructional computer software, and programs for devel-
opment of players.
5. Petrosian Tigran Medal for special achievements over the last years.
6. Razuvaev Yuri Medal for education of trainers.
Hall of Fame
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 202
 The FIDE Trainers’ Commission will also continue to fill-up the Trainer Hall of Fame. TRG’s
intention is that every year together with the six (6) Medal coach/trainer/captain of the year
awards, will also continue to honour three of the esteemed coaches/trainers/captains with member-
ship of the Trainer Hall of Fame, and besides creating a special place on TRG website
(http://trainers.fide.com) to honour them, will also try to find a permanent home for the Hall of
Fame in one or more FIDE Academies worldwide. For the Hall of Fame, the three first
coaches/trainers/captains will be accepted.
Eligibility
Coaches/trainers/captains owners of the FIDE titles (licenced) of FIDE Senior Trainer (FST) and
FIDE Trainer (FT) can be nominated. In exceptional cases other FIDE titles (FI-NI-DI - licenced)
can be considered and nominated, by TRG’s decision. For the Hall of Fame any FIDE-TRG Title
is accepted. Furthermore, older coaches/trainers/captains without FIDE title can be accepted.
Experts’ Panel
An Experts’ Panel consisting of seven (7) members, with reputation and knowledge in the field
of training, will decide the results. TRG reserves the right to replace a member due to force ma-
jeure reasons. The Experts’ Panel will be as following:
Experts’ Panel of the FIDE Trainer Awards 2017
1. Nigel Freeman (Bermuda) - FIDE Executive Director (Chairman)
2. Israel Gelfer (Israel) - FIDE Vice-President
3. Kurt Jungwirth (Austria) - FIDE Honorary Vice-President
4. Uwe Boensch (Germany) - GM/FST * TRG Councillor
5. Jovan Petronic (Serbia) - IM/FST * TRG Councillor
6. Arshak Petrosian (Armenia) - GM/FST * TRG Councillor
7. Smbat Lputian (Armenia) - GM/FST * TRG Member
Voting Procedures
Each member of the Experts’ Panel will vote for each of the six Medal categories and the Hall of
Fame separately. He/she will have the right to vote for three persons, giving three (3), two (2) and
one (1) point respectively. In case of a points’ tie, the tie-break will be the most personal votes (0-
7). In case again of a tie for the first place, two or more winners will be announced equal first.
The voting procedure will take place between May 6th to June 15th, 2018 and the results will be
officially announced immediately. Ratification by the coming FIDE Congress will verify.
Nominations
Nominations can be made by FIDE officials, TRG and Federations. For the Boleslavsky Medal,
book publishers and chess software developers as well, are invited to make nominations in this
specific Medal category. Prizes will be announced together with the results. Chess Publishers or
any sponsor, who is interest on the subject, can offer his views and sponsoring to TRG.
,

TRG will chose the most important five (5) nominations for the six (6) Medal categories and up
to ten (10) for the Hall of Fame to be considered by the Experts’ Panel.
Procedures
A special form has to be filled (attached). The nominations should be sent via email with biogra-
phy (CV) attached to TRG’s Secretary Efstratios Grivas (grivasefs@yahoo.co.uk) for considera-
tion, by May 5th, 2018.
Awards
The Awards’ Ceremony will take place during the 2018 FIDE Congress. A ‘Tree of Chess’
sculpture (http://trainers.fide.com/awards-hall-of-fame.html) and a diploma will be given to each
of the six (6) winners. A FIDE-TRG diploma will be given to the next four (4) of each medal cate-
gory. A FIDE-TRG diploma will be given to all nominated Hall of Fame participants.
FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 203
 FIDE Trainers’ Commission (TRG)
FIDE-TRG Trainer Awards 2017
Nomination Form
FIDE TRAINERS’ COMMISSION (TRG)
FIDE Trainer Awards 2017
Nomination Form
Nomination by

Address/E-mail
Please, fill out with the full name, the federation of the
Nominated Coach/Trainer/Captain and the Justification:

Botvinnik Mikhail

Furman Symeon

Euwe Max
Medal
Boleslavsky Isaac

Petrosian Tigran

Razuvaev Yuri

Hall of Fame

Please, return the Nomination Form to

grivasefs@yahoo.co.uk, by May 5th, 2018.
Signature Date Stamp

FIDE WC - Candidates 2018 ® Efstratios Grivas 2018 204