[chessmind] Dennis Monokroussos: This Week's ChessBase Show: Kamsky-Karpov

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Posted by Dennis Monokroussos:
This Week's ChessBase Show: Kamsky-Karpov
http://chessmind.powerblogs.com/posts/1197411517.shtml


   I don't intend to jinx Gata Kamsky (for one thing, I don't believe in
   such things), who has made it to the finals of the World Cup, where
   he'll face Alexei Shirov, but in this week's ChessBase show we'll take
   a look at one of the games from his 1996 world championship match with
   Anatoly Karpov. Kamsky lost the game we'll examine - game 6 - and the
   match as well, but the contest remained in a very close, dynamic
   balance until just before the end.
   One of the marks of high-level chess that's generally absent from the
   game played by the rest of us is the competitors' ability to sustain
   the tension for a long period of time. In amateur chess, if one side
   finds a good idea or two, perhaps an attacking plan, a subtle tactical
   trick, or a strategic idea, the game is won. Their games generally
   aren't won by virtue of having super-GM-sized ideas, but by their
   ability to keep finding new ideas while stopping those of their
   opponents for hour after hour after hour.
   And few players have been stronger in this respect than Karpov and
   Kamsky. It has made their chess somewhat less accessible (or rather,
   less seemingly accessible) than players like Kasparov, Topalov and
   Anand, but if we're willing to apply a little elbow grease, we can
   appreciate and learn from their play, too.
   So that's what we'll do this week, Wednesday night at 9 p.m. ET. We'll
   take this game apart, move by move, piece by piece, until we
   understand every bit of it. We'll see how both players keep the game
   tense and dynamic, until finally Kamsky stumbles and Karpov pounces.
   Maybe Karpov was objectively stronger than Kamsky, but where he had
   his big edge was in his extra experience. For all Kamsky's experience,
   patience, and strong nerves, this was his first time playing for the
   title, while it was Karpov's nihth - tenth if you count the 1974 match
   with Korchnoi!
   In sum, the game was fascinating both for the chess and the
   psychology, so I hope to have encouraged you to attend tomorrow night.
   The show is free, as always, and you can find instructions for tuning
   in, [1]here.

References

   1. http://chessmind.powerblogs.com/posts/1114234449.shtml