[chessmind] Dennis Monokroussos: Game 5: Kramnik-Anand: Live blogging with regular updates

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Posted by Dennis Monokroussos:
Game 5: Kramnik-Anand: Live blogging with regular updates
http://chessmind.powerblogs.com/posts/1224509271.shtml


   It's speed chess so far - in the first five minutes, the players
   repeated the first 15 moves from game 3. Or rather, the first 14 and a
   half moves: 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 e6 5.e3 Nbd7 6.Bd3 dxc4
   7.Bxc4 b5 8.Bd3 a6 9.e4 c5 10.e5 cxd4 11.Nxb5 axb5 12.exf6 gxf6 13.O-O
   Qb6 14.Qe2 Bb7 15.Bxb5. Last time Anand played 15...Bd6, but he varied
   before allowing Kramnik to show whatever improvement he had in mind;
   this time, he played 15...Rg8.
   [kramnik_anand_2008_5_move15.jpg]
   As mentioned when covering game 3, the "old" move 15...Bd6 prevented
   Bf4, when the bishop performs double duty. It can be active there, and
   it can also drop back to g3 to neutralize Black's pressure along the
   g-file. So after a minute's thought, Kramnik indeed chose 16.Bf4,
   after a minute's thought in reply, Anand played 16...Bd6, and now
   Kramnik has started to think. His body language hasn't exactly exuded
   confidence, that Anand's choice was something he and his team had
   investigated over the past three days. Anand, on the other hand, looks
   reasonably relaxed, though the more I look at him the more antsy he
   seems to be.
   Kramnik took about 14 minutes here, perhaps considering variations
   starting from 17.Bxd6 Qxd6 18.Rfd1, but finally chose the obvious,
   safe (or at least safe-looking) 17.Bg3. Perhaps at some point Black
   will try to prise open the g-file with ...f6-f5-f4 or h5-h4, but for
   now White has bought his king a little time for other projects.
   Sure enough, Anand has played 17...f5, and now it's time to upload
   this post.