Kamsky vs. Topalov (Sofia, Bulgaria)

Gata Kamsky recording Veselin Topalov’s move in game #2. Topalov won.
Photo by wccc2009.com.

Topalov wins the second game of the match with superior preparation out of a Berlin Ruy Lopez. Kamsky went into a long think, made some inaccuracies and saw Topalov plow into his position. This was certainly one of the expectations… Team Topalov would be well-prepared and look look for the chink in Kamsky’s armour, his openings. Kamsky will have to rebound and it is very possible that Topalov can crop a game with six remaining.

Score: Topalov 1½ – Kamsky ½

Apparently 5.Nxe5 was played after thinking 20 minutes. I heard that Kamsky got in severe time trouble after Topalov’s 5th move, 5…Nxe4!? and spent another 25 minutes. He actually flagged on move 32!

Yes… he flagged before making his 33rd. Sources say he was as much as an hour behind on time. You can’t give that kind of time odds at this level.

Gata Kamsky leveled the score with a long-grindng win. This game perhaps shows Kamsky’s strength when facing a dangerous opponent. Kamsky sacked a pawn for some initiative and then proceeded to squeeze black’s position like a boa constrictor. Topalov tried to create some counterplay, but Kamsky slowly converted his central advantage with a strong passed pawn. Nice performance!

Score: Topalov 2 – Kamsky 2

The trend nowadays seems to be reviving old openings since databases have leveled the field. I have always found Kamsky’s play intriguing since his 2nd game against Vladimir Kramnik in the PCA quarterfinal match 1994. He sacrificed his queen for a mating attack and showed incredible depth. With his winning yesterday, it becomes a classical battle of nerves and will. Topalov could very well lose this if Kamsky is able to hold together his openings.

If you look at the increasing improvement of players from other regions (India, China, Vietnam, Philippines), their young players have caught up quickly and are amongst the world elite in all the age groups. Any unknown player can easily last 20 or more moves with a GM-level player and even win! Anand losing to French player Touzane (2368) was one example. Even players from Latin America… Iturrizaga (VEN), Ramirez (CRC), Hoyos (MEX)… have broken through.

The average age for making GM is still dropping. The age record is still 12 years and 7 months, but it is a matter of time before that record falls. However, my point is that Kamsky is playing off-beat lines because of the intense database preparation of the Topalov team. Kamsky took several years off and realized that he could not catch up with all the theory in databases.

Well… I think he is strong enough, but whether he will succeed is another matter. I guarantee you one thing… Topalov thinks Kamsky is strong enough to beat him!

Kimani,

You’re right. Kamsky lost today after hanging a clear pawn on a simple tactic. Tension is so high in this match.

Glenn,

Here’s Anand take on the impact of information technology and databases have had on IT.

Question: If we can draw this analogy: a country’s economy has several stages in its development. India was a largely agricultural country. Because of the emphasis on IT, India has skipped the manufacturing stage. Today we have a massive service, back-office and IT industry, but we don’t have the manufacturing base of China. In the same way in the 80s the Soviets had a massive lead in chess knowledge and expertise. Were you able to bypass that using IT?

Answer: Yes, definitely. I think the parallel is exactly right. In the same way India just bypassed several technologies, missed the boat on so many technologies and suddenly found the software industry. It almost seemed the only thing we could do with all the restrictions imposed on us, by ourselves – okay, fair enough. It was the same thing with chess. The Soviet Union had a big lead. If you lived in Moscow you had access to unbelievable expertise. But the lead in information was slowly cut, so it became instead of getting a book every three months you could get a diskette mailed to you every month. Then if you were traveling you could pick up that diskette from a friend. Or if you were simply happened to be in the same place he could make a copy for you. So that became instantaneous. A few years later the Internet arrived and even that vanished. You could live in India and have access. Then the first (online) chess clubs started coming along. You could often practice with a Russian player who was also on the chess club. So there was this big levelling happening. In the same way I would guess you would leapfrog landlines – you don’t bother installing landlines because suddenly mobile phones have come in. That sort of thing, just bypassing a technology.

I think that happened with chess. I think that is exactly right. Not only in India but there has been a sort of leveling in the world. The rest of the world has been able to catch up with Russia much faster than it would have had these things not come into play. And now I would say even the expertise is being leveled because you have computers that are so strong. I mean most programs on a PC would beat almost any grandmaster. Even when I play, or any top GM, we have to really concentrate to have a chance. If you are casual, the machine is too strong. So you have such a strong computer with which you can work, all your doubts can be cleared much easier. That is why the sport has become much younger. The time needed to accumulate a certain amount of experience and understanding has dropped. So yes, first the lag in information, then the lag in expertise or knowledge and geographical boundaries through the Internet. Each of these things we have bypassed. We are still as far away as we used to be, but we have bypassed them.

Source: https://www.chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=5234

Gata Kamsky had one more opportunity to extend his match against Veselin Topalov. As this complicated game evolved, it appeared as if he would do it. He tried the French once again and was able to conjure up play on the queenside with dangerous passed pawns. Amidst complications, Kamsky fell into time pressure and missed chances to bring home the point. His connected passed pawns could not roll up the board fast enough to elude Topalov’s extra rook. Thus, Topalov wins the match and the right to challenge Viswanathan Anand for the World Championship later this year. GM Mihail Marin gives some very detailed analysis.

Score: Topalov 4½ – Kamsky 2½