High hopes

Now that the dust has settled in the Professional Chess Association's world championship match between Gary Kasparov and Viswanathan Anand, a big question remains over the proposed reunification match between the champions of the PCA and the World Chess Federation (FIDE): will it take place?

When this question was posed to Kasparov at the World Trade Center in New York where the PCA match was played, he replied:

"I can't add anything concrete now but we shall stick with our word to make a financial contribution to help FIDE survive during this very difficult time."

But he claimed that the reunification match was being hindered by Anatoly Karpov and Gata Kamsky who would not sign an agreement to have this match. Karpov and Kamsky are due to play for the FIDE world championship title but the dates have not been finalised due to a lack of bids for the match.

Kasparov said the PCA had proven that it was the only organisation capable of staging a proper world championship match.

"This is the first privately-organised world championship event. We had huge media coverage and great success with the public. Today we can announce that the era of professional chess has started. This is the first time a match was really open to the public. It was also without any political agenda.

"In essence, it was a pure chess event."

At about the same time that Kasparov was speaking in New York, the British Broadcasting Corporation aired a panel discussion on the PCA match. The panelists included Karpov, FIDE president Florencio Campomanes and grandmaster Daniel King who was linked to the BBC studio via satellite from the States.

When Campomanes was asked how he was going to bring FIDE and the PCA together, the FIDE president claimed: "But we have already! In Moscow, the Congress had signed a declaration of unity with the PCA and we are now working out the agreement that will make possible the play between the winner of this match and the winner of the Karpov-Kamsky match. The two winners will get to play next year when we get to sign a reasonable agreement with the PCA."

But when Campomanes was pressed into indicating when the FIDE match itself could take place, he was unable to give a firm commitment. His replies were general to the point of being evasive.

Pronouncements like "if you ask me when it will be, only the event will tell us" or "we never have anything sure until the final moment when you have everything put down on paper" or "no amount of statements and announcements on your part or my part will make any difference to when the match actually takes place" do not convey the feeling that Campomanes is in full control of the situation at FIDE.

Indeed, despite the FIDE president saying that he had taken every possible measure to have a Karpov-Kamsky match, Karpov himself interjected that there were good chances to play the match in three Russian cities - St Petersburg being one of them - but these were blocked by Russian Chess Federation president Andrei Makarov who was also a member of the FIDE presidential board.

At this point, King said that the PCA had formulated a contract and sent it to Campomanes for FIDE and the two potential challengers - Kamsky and Karpov - to sign that they were in agreement with the PCA proposals.

He added that the PCA was prepared to organise the match next year, sponsors were already lined up, and the PCA is ready with a very generous offer to support FIDE financially.

In effect, this would mean the PCA buying off the world championship rights from FIDE and will be giving FIDE a very decent financial settlement in return.

However, Campomanes was very insistent that there would be a Karpov-Kamsky match. When pressed further by John Snow, the BBC presenter, Campomanes said curtly:

"Mr Snow, you have never been in FIDE. You don't know that things materialise only when they do materialise. The fact is, why should you be privy to what we do? The fact is that we will have the match and I have assured Mr Karpov and Mr Kamsky that we will have the match."

TURBULENT PAST

It was 10 years ago that controversy erupted over the stopping of the first world championship match between Anatoly Karpov and Gary Kasparov by the FIDE president, Florencio Campomanes, after the match had dragged on for four months.

For a very long time after that infamous incident, Kasparov remained very critical of Campomanes's decision and this was despite him having wrested the crown from Karpov in another match in 1986.

However by 1992, Campomanes and Kasparov seemed to have become the best of pals. At the closing ceremony of the Manila Chess Olympiad that year, Kasparov was almost singing the praises of FIDE and Campomanes.

But from behind that happy mask emerged Kasparov's true colours. The storm broke again when Kasparov and Nigel Short led a move to play their 1993 title match outside FIDE's jurisdiction. The two players formed the Professional Chess Association to organise the match in London for US$1.7 million (RM4.2 million.

Not to be outdone, FIDE announced their replacement world championship match between Karpov and Jan Timman in Holland and Oman, with an even bigger prize money. But Holland later could not raise their share of the money while Oman withdrew their sponsorship at the final minute.

It was left to Jakarta to save Campomanes' face by staging the FIDE world championship match but FIDE had to fork out the prize monies from its own coffer.

Then last year, FIDE was left in a quandry when the Greek Chess Federation aborted their attempt to hold the biennial Chess Olympiad. Then Andrei Makarov, president of the Russian Chess Federation, offered to host the Chess Olympiad in Moscow, an offer FIDE could not resist. However, Makarov was a Kasparov supporter and it became clear that the money for the Olympiad came from the PCA. In return, FIDE had to agree to allow Kasparov and Short, then under a FIDE blacklist, to play for their respective teams.

At the Chess Olympiad and Congress, Kasparov and Campomanes were suddenly the thickest of friends again. Kasparov campaigned vigorously for Campomanes' reelection when it became clear that the latter was facing a concerted effort to have him removed.

Procedures and rules for the FIDE elections were changed or interpreted at the Congress to Campomanes' favour and Makarov himself was seen to intimidate the delegates from the central Asian countries (the republics making up the former Soviet Union) to ensure they voted to Makarov's orders.

In return for this support, Makarov was elected as one of FIDE's deputy presidents. A declaration was then made at the Congress to reunify the FIDE and PCA world championship titles into one. It was a triumph for Kasparov and his supporters.

And where did this leave Karpov? Out in the cold. He could not even book himself into the Cosmos Hotel where the Chess Olympiad was being held and where all the players stayed. In short, he was persona non grata at the Olympiad.

According to the PCA-FIDE joint declaration to reunify the two chess titles, both organisations would play to complete their own championship cycles this year and the winners would then play a reunification match next year.

The PCA world championship match has now concluded but not the FIDE version. The problem was in finding a sponsor for the Karpov-Kamsky match which until today, no sponsor has been found.

But the latest heard from the grapevine was that Kamsky has been talking to some Argentine sponsors.

 

Young warriors

It is common knowledge that schools are the breeding ground for budding chess players, where chess receives the greatest support. Take for example, the SRK Sri Aman in Kampung Melayu, Penang. A visitor to the school would soon learn that chess playing is a very popular pastime among the school children.

Where else would you meet children who, before lessons begin in the morning, gather around chess boards in the school canteen? At the ring of the bell, they exchange their chess sets for their text books but invariably, the sets reappear during recess.

Thanks to this obsession with the game, Sri Aman has produced chess players successfully for the MSSPP chess team every year.

The school has also produced state champions in the boys' and girls' under-12 sections. Players like Kelvin Khoo, Eoh Thean Keat, Linda Low, Rubaizah Basir and Ching Ai Hooi have all gone on to encourage chess during their secondary school years.

According to the Sri Aman chess teacher, Eoh Hook Kim, chess playing is encouraged for the main reason that chess instills discipline of the mind. This, he said, is a quality which is worth emulating everywhere.

FORTHCOMING EVENTS

October and November are two of the quietest months for local chess players. Organisers are quite loathe to hold any tournament during this period because of the end-of-year school examinations.

Action will resume, so to speak, only at the end of next month.

National Closed

For seven days beginning Nov 27, the Malaysian Chess Federation will stage its annual national closed championships for men and women.

Like in previous years, the Kuala Lumpur Parkroyal is expected to be the sponsor for this event which shall be a nine-round Swiss. The various chess associations which are affiliates of the MCF will be eligible to send six players - four men and two women - each for the championship.

Previous national champions and certain selected players like the MSSM winners are likely to be granted automatic entry into the championship and if past precedences are anything to go by, the MCF will even allow wild card entries by players who directly write to the federation.

Although the monetary rewards for this event are modest, the intangible rewards such as the national master title and the chance for the top players to be selected for international events have been alluring.

USM Open

This year, however, at almost the same time as the national closed championship, the Universiti Sains Malaysia's Bridge and Chess Club will be organising its second USM national open tournament in Penang from Dec 1.

This is a three-day event. Ten prizes totalling RM3,250 are lined up for the participants and the winner will receive RM1,000. Second prize is RM750, third is RM500, fourth RM300 and fifth RM200. The sixth to 10th prizes will be RM100 each.

Entry fees are RM20 for students and RM30 for the public. To register, contact Ms Chew Siew Imm (04-657-7253) after 8pm. Closing date for entries has been extended to Nov 25 so readers interested in playing in this event can still register with the organisers without having to pay any late fees.

Asian team meet

From Dec 12 to 23, the Asian team championship will be played in Singapore.

As usual, selection of players to international events is the sole prerogative of the Malaysian Chess Federation and it is expected that the selection will be announced at the end of the national closed championship.

The last Asian team championship was held at Universiti Malaya two years ago and at that time, the entry of teams from the central Asian countries into the championship gave the event a new perspective.

It remains to be seen whether countries like Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan will still dominate this time or whether the East Asian countries like China, Philippines and Indonesia can regain their past grandeur.

Malaysia-Singapore

Finally, one other event planned for this year is the second leg of the annual Malaysia-Singapore match.

The first leg was played in Kuala Lumpur in July and the second leg will be in Singapore. The dates are Dec 29 and 30.

GAMES OF THE WEEK

The final two games of the Professional Chess Association World Championship match between Gary Kasparov and Viswanathan Anand in New York.

Anand - Kasparov, Game 17

1.e4 c5, 2.Nf3 d6, 3.d4 cxd4, 4.Nxd4 Nf6, 5.Nc3 g6, 6.Be3 Bg7, 7.f3 0-0, 8.Qd2 Nc6, 9.Bc4 Bd7, 10.h4 h5, 11.Bb3 Rc8, 12.0-0-0 Ne5, 13.Bg5 (This is the most aggressive plan in this line of the Sicilian Dragon) 13...Rc5, 14.Kb1 Re8, 15.Rhe1! Qa5, 16.a3 (More usually played at this point is 16 f4) 16...b5, 17.Bxf6 exf6, 18.Nde2 Rc6, 19.Nd5 Qxd2, 20.Rxd2 Nc4, 21.Bxc4 bxc4, 22.Red1 f5 23.exf5 (Black has no worries after 23 Nb4 Rb6 24 Rxd6 Rxd6 25 Rxd6 fxe4 26 fxe4 Bg4, etc) 23...Bxf5, 24.Nd4 Bxd4, 25.Rxd4 Re2, 26.R4d2 Rxd2, 27.Rxd2 Kf8, 28.Kc1? (28 Nb4! Rb6 29 Rd5 Bc8 30 Ra5 a6 31 Kc1 Rb5 32 Rxb5 axb5 33 Kd2 Ke7 34 Ke3 Ke6 35 Kd4 would have given White some winning chances) 28...Be6, 29.Rd4 Bxd5, 30.Rxd5 Ke7, 31.Rb5 Ke6, 32.Rb7 Rc5? (Instead of this move, Black should have played 32...a6 33 Kd2 c3+ 34.bxc3 Rd5+ followed by ...Rc5-a5 when the position is about equal) 33.Rxa7 g5, 34.Ra8 gxh4, 35.Re8+ Kd7, 36.Re4! (From this square, the rook is well placed to go to either side of the ! board) 36...c3 (The only move whi h allows Black to trade off a weakness. White will win after 36...Rg5 37 Rxc4 Rxg2 38 Rxh4, etc) 37.Rxh4? (Winning is 37 b4 Rg5 38 Rxh4 Rxg2 39 Kb1 when the connected passed pawns decide) 37...cxb2+, 38.Kxb2 Rg5, 39.a4 f5, 40.a5 (Preferred is 40 Kb3) 40...f4!,41.a6 Kc7,42.Rxf4 Rxg2,43.Rf7+ Kb8!, 44.Kc3 h4,45.Kd3 Rf2,46.c4 (This move was widely criticised by the grandmasters watching the match. Better was 46.c3 or 46.Ke4) 46...Ra2 47.Ke4 Rxa6 (The removal of this pawn means that the Black НКking can crawl back along the eighth rank to stop the f3-pawn.) 48.Rh7 Ra5, 49.f4 Kc8, 50.f5 Kd8, 51.Kf4 Rc5, 52.Kg5 Rxc4, 53.Kg6 Rg4+, 54.Kf7 d5, 55.f6 Kd7, 56.Kf8+ Ke6, 57.f7 Rf4, 58.Kg8 d4, 59.f8=Q Rxf8+, 60.Kxf8 Ke5, 61.Rxh4 d3, 62.Rh3 Ke4, 63.Rxd3 1/2-1/2 (This was a tough game for Kasparov. It was the longest game in the match and the draw did not come easy. But when it came, it enabled Kasparov to reach 10 points and retain his title.)

Kasparov - Anand, Game 18

1.e4 c5, 2.Nf3 d6, 3.d4 cxd4, 4.Nxd4 Nf6, 5.Nc3 a6, 6.Be2 e6, 7.O-O Be7, 8.a4 Nc6, 9.Be3 O-O, 10.f4 Qc7, 11.Kh1 Re8, 12.Bf3 1/2\1/2 (A very anti-climatic end to an engrossing match. For Kasparov, it meant winning the lion's share of the prize money, US$1 million (RM2.5 million), and for Anand, US$500,000 (RM1.25 million) has made him a very rich man in India.)

 

High tension chess

The Professional Chess Association's world championship match in New York, sponsored by Intel Corporation, is over. After more than four weeks of high tension chess, Gary Kasparov retains his title with a comfortable victory over Viswanathan Anand.

In the process, Kasparov became richer by US$1 million (RM2.5 million) while Anand's portion of the prize money was US$0.5 million (RM1.25 million).

The match was actually decided over a spate of six games: Anand won the ninth game but it was nothing compared to Kasparov's four wins in the 10th, 11th, 13th and 14th games.

The 13th game of the match was a letdown for Anand's fans; faced with a must-win situation, Anand turned in what must possibly be one of his most disastrous efforts. He played like a complete patzer and his king was caught in the centre of the board with Kasparov's queen and rooks bearing down on him.

Viswanathan Anand - Gary Kasparov, Game 13

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 g6 6.Be3 Bg7 7.Qd2 Nc6 8.f3 O-O 9.Bc4 Bd7 10.h4 h5 11.Bb3 Rc8 12.Nxc6

(Anand is by nature a sharp player who revels in attacking play, pressurising his opponent into time trouble. In this match, however, Anand seems to have kept his attacking abilities at home. What we have seen from him so far is a change to positional play. The Anand of the past would not have hesitated to go for a sharper line like 12 0-0-0 Ne5 13 Bg5 Rc5 14 g4, et cetera.)

12...bxc6 13.Bh6 c5 14.Bc4

(The alternative is 14 Bxg7 Kxg7 15 Qe2 Qc7 16 Bc4 Rb8 17 0-0-0 when it is debatable whether Black's queen is better on the c7-square or the b6-square, as in the game).

14... Qb6 15.Bxg7 Kxg7 16.b3?!

(The American grandmaster, Yasser Seirawan, was taken aback by this move. He was sufficiently moved to ask, rather rudely, "What kind of preparation is this?" After 16 0-0-0 Rb8 17 b3 Qa5 18 Kb2 Rb4!? 19 Nd5 Nxd5 20 exd5, he says White has an advantage.)

16... Be6!

(The initiative has passed to Black, eg 17 Bxe6 fxe6 18 0-0-0 c4 with a strong queenside attack, or 17 Na4 Qc6 18 Bxe6 fxe6 19 c4 Nxe4 20 fxe4 Qxe4+ 21 Qe2 Qf4 with advantage.)

17.Nd5 Bxd5 18.exd5 e5! 19.dxe6?

(Totally unexpected of Anand who now opens up the game for Kasparov's heavy pieces while his own king remains uncastled. Kasparov, in his post-mortem comments, said the position was roughly equal after 19 0-0-0 Qb4.)

19... d5 20.Be2

(Of course, 20 Bxd5 loses to 20...Rfd8 21 c4 fxe6.)

20... c4!

(A nice move, better than either 20...Qxe6 or 20...fxe6. According to Kasparov, this was the first time in his life he had prevented castling twice with one move (20...c4) because now it was impossible for White to castle on the kingside while queenside castling would be a very unattractive prospect for him.)

21.c3?

(Kasparov thought that Anand had to play 21 Rd1 but White would still have an uphill task in defending this position after 21...Re8 22 exf7+ Kxf7 or 21...c3 22 Qd4 fxe6. Anand played 21 c3 with the idea of 22 Qd4, but Kasparov called 21 c3 the decisive mistake.)

21... Rce8! 22.bxc4 Rxe6 23.Kf1

(Kasparov said he expected 23 cxd5 when he had planned 23...Re5 24 Kf1 Nxd5 25 Qd4 Qf6, limiting White's king to the back rank, eg 26 Kf2? Nxc3! 27 Qxc3? Rxe2+ which wins White's queen.)

23... Rfe8 24.Bd3 dxc4 25.Bxc4 Ne4 0-1

(Black wins after 25 fxe4 Rf6+ 26 Ke1 Rxe4+ 27 Be2 Qf2+ 28 Kd1 Rxe2 29 Qxe2 Rd6+.)

Later when Kasparov was asked what he would do if he had been down by two points in the match, he said there was already nothing to be done.

"No one can help when a player is down by two points. Probably it will be time to play chess. What else can you do?"

The following day, the 14th game saw a dramatic, full-bodied struggle which featured a swing of fortunes from one player to the other. Amid great tension, the game ended in hectic time-trouble in which Kasparov won.

In the game, Anand surprised Kasparov by wheeling out the Centre Counter Game. Although Kasparov had an initial advantage, a series of poor moves gave Anand the edge. At one stage, the spectators became so excited that the two players could hear the commotion through their supposedly sound-proof glass enclosure.

Gary Kasparov - Viswanathan Anand, Game 14

1.e4 d5

(A desperate choice of opening. Obviously, Anand had been unable to find an antidote to Kasparov's attacking play had he chosen 1...c5 again. Anyway, 1...d5 had never been played against Kasparov before.)

2.exd5 Qxd5 3.Nc3 Qa5 4.d4 Nf6 5.Nf3 c6 6.Ne5 Be6 7.Bd3 Nbd7 8.f4 g6 9.O-O Bg7 10.Kh1

(White has compensation for the sacrificed pawn after 10 f5 gxf5 11 Bxf5 Nxe5 12 Bxe6 fxe6 13 dxe5 Qxe5 14 Bf4 Qc5+ 15 Kh1.)

10... Bf5! 11.Bc4?

(The first of Kasparov's misguided Bishop moves. According to Seirawan, he had to change his strategy with 11 Bxf5 gxf5 12 Qd3 e6 13 b3, intending Ne5-c4 and Bc1-a3.)

11... e6 12.Be2 h5 13.Be3 Rd8 14.Bg1 O-O 15.Bf3 Nd5

(The commentators preferred 15...c5! to undermine the e5-knight's support. If 16 Bxb7? cxd4 17 Qxd4 Nxe5 18 Qxe5 Nd5 and Black has the advantage. After 15...c5, White's best continuation is 16 Qe2 cxd4 17 Bxd4 Qb4.)

16.Nxd5

(Kasparov offered a draw here, which Anand declined. Later, Kasparov said that his offer was made for purely psychological reasons. He wanted to see Anand's frame of mind; whether he would consider it. Kasparov felt that it was a test of Anand's desire to fight and that he had expected an instantaneous "no" but instead, Anand thought about it for some time.)

16...exd5 17.Bf2 Qc7 18.Rc1 f6 19.Nd3 Rfe8

(Dissatisfied with the position, Kasparov shook his head several times. A win for Anand in this game would give him some fighting chances in the match. Still, Kasparov played his next move quickly. By this time, both players were beginning to get short of time.)

20.b3 Nb6 21.a4 Nc8 22.c4 Qf7 23.a5 Bf8?

(Best is 23...Nd6! 24 a6 Ne4 25 axb7 Qxb7 with advantage to Black.)

24.cxd5 cxd5 25.Bh4

(At this point, Kasparov left the board after his 25th move and returned without his jacket for the first time in the match. The crowd roared, recognising that the Champion was feeling the intensity of the position.)

25... Nd6 26.a6!

(Despite his inferior position, Kasparov has successfully managed to generate queenside counterplay.)

26... b6 27.Ne5?!

(Even as both players were approaching the time control for the first session of play, Kasparov decided to go for complications. He later described this move as not inspired but it was still the best in the circumstances. He was referring not only to the position on the board but also the score in the match, the time pressure and his assessment that without 27 Ne5 he would just have to sit and wait for Anand.)

27... Qe6

(At this point, Anand should have played 27...fxe5 28 fxe5 Ne4 29 Bxd8 Rxd8 30 g4 hxg4 31 Bxg4 when he might have some winning chances. Kasparov called 27...Qe6 a serious mistake, even though it looked so natural.) 28.g4

(This move provoked another roar from the crowd, which realised that the battle was now at full pitch. The noise could be heard in the players' booth, and Kasparov later said, "The moment I played 28 g4, we both realised that there was a huge crowd and that we didn't have any protection (from the noise)." Observers said the crowd on Tuesday might have been the smallest in the match so far, but the excitement on the board helped make it the loudest.)

28... hxg4 29.Nxg4

(For the first time in the game, Kasparov had some counterplay for a change. Until then, he and Anand had been under the impression that White had a tough position and would have to struggle long to hold the draw but after 29 Nxg4, Kasparov and Anand looked at each other, both realising that it was a turning point in the game.)

29...Bg7 30.Rc7 Ne4 31.Ne3 Bh3

(If 31...Ng3+ 32 Bxg3 Qxe3 33 Re1 would have won several pawns.)

32.Rg1 g5

(The crowd roared again, thinking of 33 fxg5 fxg5 34 Bxg5? Nf2 mate. Kasparov dramatically rose from his chair and extended his arms from his sides, lifting them twice in succession to his shoulders. Tension filled the air and the commentators instantly asked the audience to be quiet, as it was now obvious the players could hear them and were disturbed by the noise. The audience showed its appreciation of the situation by its immediate silence.)

33.Bg4 Bxg4 34.Qxg4 Qxg4 35.Rxg4 Nd6?

(The final error. Black had to try 35...Rc8.)

36.Bf2 Nb5 37.Rb7 Re4 38.f5 Rxg4 39.Nxg4 Rc8 40.Rd7 Rc2 41.Rxd5

(With the time control reached, Anand now realised how hopeless his position was. If now 41...Nc3, 42 Rd8+ Kf7 43 Rd7+ Kf8 44 Rc7 wins.) 1-0

When Kasparov met the journalists after the game, he did not seem to be very happy for someone who had just achieved an almost insurmountable lead in the match. He said what had happened was a very sad accident. The crowd had not seemed to be aware that the booth was not perfectly sound-proof.

Kasparov thought that the noise was a bigger shock for Anand, because after having had a comfortable position, the challenger ended up having to defend many weaknesses and was short on time. After the game, Anand complained to Kasparov that it was unfair to play under such conditions, and Kasparov agreed.

Kasparov talked of how he had gone into the game with very strange feelings of wanting to win but also wanting to play quietly because he knew that a draw would have been to his advantage. He attributed his early lacklustre play partly to his conflicting feelings.

In contrast to the 13th and 14th games, the next two games were tame affairs. The two players were affected by a breakdown in the air-conditioning system at the match venue which delayed the start of the 15th game by two hours and they subsequently agreed to an early draw. Likewise, the 16th game ended peacefully only after about an hour's play.

Viswanathan Anand - Gary Kasparov, Game 15

1.e4 c5, 2.Nf3 d6, 3.d4 cxd4, 4.Nxd4 Nf6, 5.Nc3 g6, 6.Be3 Bg7, 7.f3 O-O, 8.Qd2 Nc6, 9.g4 Be6, 10.0-0-0 Nxd4, 11.Bxd4 Qa5, 12.Kb1 (Sharper is 13 a3 Rfc8 14 h4 Rab8 14 h5 b5 15 hxg6 hxg6 16 Qg5) 12...Rfc8, 13.a3 Rab8, 14.Nd5 Qxd2, 15.Rxd2 Nxd5, 16.Bxg7 Ne3 1/2-1/2 (The position is level after 17 Bd4 Nxf1 18 Rxf1 a5)

Gary Kasparov - Viswanathan Anand, Game 16

1.e4 c5, 2.Nf3 d6, 3.d4 cxd4, 4.Nxd4 Nf6, 5.Nc3 a6, 6.Be2 e6, 7.0-0 Be7, 8.a4 Nc6, 9.Be3 0-0, 10.f4 Qc7, 11.Kh1 Re8, 12.Bd3 Nb4, 13.a5 Bd7, 14.Nf3 Rac8, 15.Bb6 Qb8, 16.Bd4 Bc6, 17.Qd2 Nxd3, 18.cxd3 Nd7, 19.Bg1 Qc7, 20.Nd4 1/2-1/2

COMING EVENTS

The one-day Kepong juniors open chess tournament, organised by the Parent-Teacher Association of the SRJK(C) Kepong Dua in Kuala Lumpur will be played over six rounds on Oct 22 at the school.

There will be three categories in this tournament - under-10, under-12 and under-16 - and cash prizes will be awarded to the top three winners in each category.

Entry fees are RM5 for pupils of the school and RM8 for other players. Interested players can call Mrs F L Wong (03-636-4197) after 3pm or Total Chess (03-757-4606) during office hours.

Meanwhile, readers are reminded that the Universiti Sains Malaysia's Bridge & Chess Club will organise the second USM national open tournament in Penang from Dec 1 to 3.

This three-day event will be held over eight rounds using a time control of 1* hours each per player for each game. Ten prizes totalling RM3,250 are lined up for the participants and the winner will receive a RM1,000 cash prize.

Entry fees are RM20 for students and RM30 for the public. To register, contact Ms Chew Siew Imm (04-657-7253) after 8pm.

Entries will close officially on Oct 20, and anyone registering after this date can expect some late fees to be imposed.

 

High drama in New York

The latest news received through the Internet on Wednesday morning was that Gary Kasparov has won the 14th game of his US$1.5 million (RM3.75 million) world chess championship match with Viswanathan Anand in New York.

This result, coupled with a crushing 13th round victory one day earlier, means that Kasparov has taken a commanding 8.5-5.5 lead in the best-of-20-games match series and is set to retain his Professional Chess Association world title. He needs only two more points to take the winner's purse of US$1 million (RM2.5 million).

The Indian grandmaster's form seems to have collapsed and he is putting up little resistance this week. If Kasparov keeps piling up the pressure, who knows, the match may even set a premature conclusion this weekend!

What an dramatic change in the course of events. As reported last week, Viswanathan Anand was the first to draw blood when he won the ninth game of the match at New York's World Trade Center.

But the euphoria in his camp was short-lived. There was little time for him to savour the win. In the 10th game, Kasparov uncorked a gem and won an almost flawlessly played game to bring the match back to an even keel.

Worse was to come for Anand. Kasparov won the 11th game when Anand fell into a very obvious trap. For the first time, the defending champion had taken the lead in the match.

Viswanathan Anand - Gary Kasparov, Game 9

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be2 e6 7.O-O Be7 8.a4 Nc6 9.Be3 0-0 10.f4 Qc7 11.Kh1 Re8 12.Bf3

(In previous games, Anand had chosen 12 Bd3 but now, 12 Bf3 is played to direct his bishop at Black's queenside.)

12...Bd7 13.Nb3 Na5 14.Nxa5 Qxa5 15.Qd3! Rad8 16.Rfd1 Bc6 17.b4!

(Although it looks very strong and natural, this move is forced or else Black will play ...d6-d5 with strong counter play in the centre. The excitement level among the spectators rose instantly when this move was played.)

17...Qc7 18.b5 Bd7 19.Rab1 axb5 20.Nxb5 Bxb5 21.Qxb5 Ra8

(According to US grandmaster Yasser Seirawan, Kasparov's worried expression betrayed his lack of confidence in his position. White's active pieces are superb compensation for his slight structural weaknesses. If 21...Qxc2?, Black's queen is trapped after 22 Rfc1 Qa2 23 Ra1.)

22.c4 e5

(Or else White will play e4-e5 himself.)

23.Bb6 Qc8 24.fxe5 dxe5 25.a5 Bf8?

(Seirawan said Black has a good drawing chance after 25...Bd8! 26 Qxe8+ Nxe8 27 Rxd8 Qxd8 28 Bxd8 Rxd8 29 Rxb7 Ra8!, etc.)

26.h3 Qe6 27.Rd5!

(Offering the Exchange. Anand later said 27 Rd5 was necessary because the attack on the e5-pawn stopped Black's pieces from moving around. The move was more to prevent ...Rec8 and ...Qc6 if Anand pushes his pawn to c5.)

27...Nxd5??

(Instead of the better 27...g6, Kasparov grabs the rook. But it becomes immediately clear that he has badly miscalculated. White's bishops and central pawns now dominate the game.)

28.exd5 Qg6 29.c5 e4

(Afterwards, Anand told the 2000-odd audience at the World Trade Center: "After 29 c5, I knew I was going to win or he was was going to have to do something drastic. Maybe 28...Qf5 was better, but he would still be worse anyway. Perhaps he should have played 27...Rec8.")

30.Be2 Re5 31.Qd7!

(A crusher, combining both attack and defence. White's d5-pawn is defended while he also guards his kingside and attacks the b7-pawn.)

31...Rg5 32.Rg1 e3 33.d6 Rg3 34.Qb7 Qe6

(One last threat: 35...Rxh3+ followed by checkmate on the next move, but White parries it.)

35.Kh2 1-0

(After 35...Qe8, 36.Qxa8 leaves Black with nothing. The first victory of the match brought Anand a standing ovation.)

When Anand addressed the audience after the game, IM Maurice Ashley asked: "Was 27 Rd5 a dare?"

Anand laughed a little. "It was so pathetically obvious, it was hardly a dare, more of a beg."

A day after the ninth game, the 10th game was played. It was a triumph for home preparation. Kasparov played a stunning idea which launched a series of sacrifices. Anand was swept away in a tide of complications and his legendary speed of play, which had earned him the nickname "Speed King", deserted him completely.

On the other hand, Kasparov moved quickly and would then retire to his dressing room, leaving his opponent deep in thought. When Anand would finally move, Kasparov would briefly reappear and make his reply within seconds. Kasparov only used about five minutes for his first 24 moves!

The best Anand could do was simplify to a lost ending a pawn down. Kasparov then slowed his game and showed excellent endgame technique to win the point and equal the match.

Gary Kasparov - Viswanathan Anand, Game 10

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 Nxe4 6.d4 b5 7.Bb3 d5 8.dxe5 Be6 9.Nbd2 Nc5 10.c3 d4 11.Ng5 dxc3 12.Nxe6 fxe6 13.bxc3 Qd3

(Until this position, both the players have been following the first 13 moves of the eighth game of the match. Kasparov now reveals a fantastic novelty which comes from home preparation.)

14.Bc2!! Qxc3

(Seirawan: "Like a leaf in a strong wind, Anand will soon be carried off in a whirlwind of complications. He cannot decline the sacrifice as 14...Qd7 (14...Qd5? 15 Qh5+ g6 16 Bxg6+ wins) 15 Qh5+ Qf7 16 Qe2 is very strong for White." Observers said Kasparov went to his dressing room and returned only when Anand made his reply.)

15.Nb3!

(When Kasparov returned, he wrote Anand's move down on his scoresheet, instantly played 15 Nb3 and again went back to his room without delay. This was his second consecutive surprising move, and his second quick departure to the dressing room.)

15...Nxb3

(It is hard to see Black surviving for long, eg 15...Rd8 16 Bd2 Qxe5 (16...Rxd2 17 Nxd2 Nxe5 18 Ne4 Nxe4 19 Bxe4 Bd6 20 Rc1 which is good for White.) 17 Re1 Qd5 18 Qg4 etc. White has used only three minutes on his clock whereas Black, his difficulty showing on his face and clock, has used 69 minutes to think this far into the game.)

16...Nd4

(Or 16...Qxa1 17 Qh5+ g6 18 Qf3 Nd8 19 Qf6 Rg8 20 Bg5 Qb2 21 Bxe6 when White wins back material with a continuing attack.)

17.Qg4!

(When Kasparov returned, he recorded Anand's move, played his own, hit the clock, wrote down his move and immediately went back to his dressing room. There was no hesitation in any of his actions.)

17...Qxa1

(As Kasparov demonstrates in this game, capturing the rook on this move is wrong too but then, other tries are equally bad: 17...Nxb3 18 Qxe6+ Be7 19 Bg5 Qb4 20 axb3 winning, or 17...O-O-O 18 Bxe6+ Kb8 19 Bg5 Re8 20 Rac1 with a better development.)

18.Bxe6!

(Kasparov again emerged from his room, made his move quickly and disappeared. To the spectators, Kasparov's 18 Bxe6 was surprising (it traps the black king in the centre and threatens 19 Bd7+ Kf7 20 e6+ Kg8 21 Bh6 Qb2 22 e7, winning), for the same reason many of his moves in this game did. Each time, the audience would see a new position after Anand's move, but before they could think about it at any length, Kasparov would immediately make his reply. Anand was under an incredible psychological pressure: every time he made a decision, he was almost instantly confronted with another problem!)

18...Rd8 19.Bh6!

(Kasparov plonked this move down on the chessboard like a hammer blow. It is much better than 19 Bg5. After 19 Bh6, White threatens 20 Bxg7 Bxg7 21 Qh5+ and 22.Qf7 mate!)

19...Qc3 20.Bxg7 Qd3 21.Bxh8 Qg6 22.Bf6

(Up to here, Kasparov has still used only five minutes on his clock but Anand had used almost 90 minutes. Kasparov had anticipated Anand's line of defence and worked out the entire game until this position in his home analysis. In the post-mortem, GM Nick De Firmian quickly mentioned how little time Kasparov had taken to play his first 21 moves and he answered: "Yes, it took two minutes at the board but forty hours to analyse beforehand!")

22...Be7 23.Bxe7 Qxg4 24.Bxg4 Kxe7 25.Rc1 c6 26.f4! a5 27.Kf2 a4 28.Ke3 b4 29.Bd1 a3 30.g4 Rd5 31.Rc4 c5 32.Ke4 Rd8 33.Rxc5 Ne6 34.Rd5 Rc8

(If 34...Rxd5 35 Kxd5 Nxf4+ 36 Kc4 Ke6 37 Kxb4 Kxe5 38 Kxa3, White's two extra pawns will be enough to win.)

35.f5 Rc4+ 36.Ke3 Nc5 37.g5 Rc1 38.Rd6 1-0

Kasparov told his supporters that after the eighth game, the idea of 14 Bc2 came to him and it gripped him for the next 48 hours. The number of sacrificial options were staggering: a pawn, a rook, a bishop, in fact whatever was necessary to keep the attack rolling.

"Unfortunately, I cannot show you all the lines. The position after 15 Nb3 was immensely complicated and I am sure Anand will spend the next 48 hours analysing it. White is sacrificing a rook in so many variations. I checked it extremely carefully. It's difficult to sacrifice something without concrete threats, but when you start to analyse things, you see what is happening.

"Of course, the opponent has great difficulty analysing, too. In particular, 19 Bh6 was very easy to miss. Black's position was extremely dangerous.

"Still, if White did not play the right moves, he's dead. When you play a Rook down, you must play very precisely and after Bh6, Black cannot restore the cooperation of his pieces.

"One line which is easy to find is 15...Nxb3 16 Bxb3 Qxa1 17 Qh5+ Kd7 18 Bxe6+ Kxe6 19 Qg4+, and Black has nowhere to escape. He must keep his king on the light squares to avoid a check by White's c1-bishop which would win Black's queen. So, 19...Kf7 20 Qf3+ Ke6 21 Qxc6+ Bd6 22 exd6 Qe5.

"For a moment, it looks like Black has managed to do something but after Bd2, White's rook comes into the game. The game will be over soon, believe me.

"Having found this during the weekend influenced my poor performance (in the ninth game) yesterday. I played awfully in the opening and of course, Nxd5 was suicide. I couldn't wait to play with the white pieces and I forgot that he would be playing White first this week!"

For Anand who had been blown away by Kasparov's home preparation, the one-day break before the 11th game must have been spent soul-searching. But it offered little respite.

He returned to the chessboard on Friday, hoping to gain something with the white pieces, but Kasparov surprised Anand with the choice of the Sicilian Dragon - something he has never played before in his career.

Viswanathan Anand - Gary Kasparov, Game 11

1.e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 g6

(Seirawan: "Following his victory in the ninth game, Anand had hoped to force Kasparov to switch his defences and chase him into a well-laid ambush. Anand couldn't have dreamt that Kasparov's second-line defence would be the Dragon. "Kasparov's choice, however, is brilliant. The Dragon is an ultra-sharp defence with both players risking defeat in the most heavily analysed variations. Kasparov expected Anand to be unprepared and to adopt a quiet continuation. In that case, Black can usually achieve a balanced position and an easy draw - another opening success for Kasparov.")

6. Be3 Bg7 7. f3 O-O 8. Qd2 Nc6 9. Bc4 Bd7 10. O-O-O Ne5 11. Bb3 Rc8 12. h4 h5 13. Kb1

(Seirawan again: "A disappointment. Anand backs away from the most harrowing lines. 13 Bg5 Rc5 14 g4 hxg4 15 f4 Nc4 etc, leads to far more excitement. This quiet move leads to balanced play, therefore Kasparov's opening gamble pays off.")

13. ... Nc4 14. Bxc4 Rxc4 15. Nde2 b5 16. Bh6 Qa5 17. Bxg7 Kxg7 18. Nf4 Rfc8 19. Ncd5 Qxd2

(Kasparov now offers Anand a draw as White's advantage is so minimal that his chances of winning are negligible. Anand thought about it for four minutes and for the first time in the match, declined the offer.)

20. Rxd2 Nxd5 21. Nxd5 Kf8 22. Re1 Rb8 23. b3 Rc5 24. Nf4 Rbc8 25. Kb2 a5 26. a3 Kg7

(This is a critical moment. Anand now plays a combination that goes terribly wrong for him.)

27. Nd5 Be6 28. b4?

Later, Kasparov confided that while in his dressing room he was watching the monitors and could hardly breathe when he realised that Anand was reaching for his b-pawn. Kasparov expected 28 Nxe7 Re8 29 Nd5 Bxd5 30 b4 axb4 31 axb4 Rc4 32 Rxd5 Rxb4+ 33 Kc1 f5 which should be sufficient to draw the game. GM Margeir Petursson, analysing the game in the Internet Chess Club, discovered that if White attempted to win the exchange by 28 b4 axb4 29 axb4 Rc4 30 Nb6, he would instead lose the game. In the World Trade Center, GM Ilya Gurevich made the same observation and quickly added that Anand would, of course, not fall into such a trap. However, after surprisingly little thought, Anand did play into this line.)

28. ... axb4 29. axb4? Rc4 30. Nb6? Rxb4+ 31. Ka3

(Anand thought that because both of Black's rooks were under threat, he could win the exchange but he completely missed Kasparov's rejoinder.)

31...Rxc2!! 0-1

(After 32 Rxc2 Rb3+ 33 Ka2 Re3+ 34 Kb2 Rxe1, Black will get back his rook and with two extra pawns too. With a shake of his head Anand resigned immediately.)

At the press conference after the game, Kasparov was bubbling. He had been down a point just two games ago but had completely reversed the situation. He was critical of Anand's play, stating, "If you want to play to win as White, you have to play g2-g4 at some point, otherwise I think it's a dead draw."

Kasparov said he had never played the Dragon in serious competition. The only time the Dragon had been played in Championship matches was between Mikhail Botvinnik and Vassily Smyslov in the 50's, when the theory on it was still young.

He said his choice of the Dragon must have been unpleasant for Anand after the previous games. "This game was much different from the first five times that Anand had played as White. If he plays solidly in this variation, he cannot hope to have any winning chances."

Kasparov felt that the match would still be complicated but the results of the previous two games had changed not only the score and the course of events. He added that there were still nine games to go but he also joked, "Maybe the first nine games served a good purpose; he lost respect for me."

Gary Kasparov - Viswanathan Anand, Game 12

1. e4 e5, 2. Nf3 Nc6, 3. Bb5 a6, 4. Ba4 Nf6, 5. 0-0 b5, 6. Bb3 Bc5, 7. a4 Bb7, 8. d3 d6, 9. Nc3 b4, 10. Nd5 Na5, 11. Nxf6+ Qxf6, 12. Ba2 h6, 13. c3 bxc3, 14. bxc3 0-0, 15. Be3 Rad8, 16. Rb1 Bc8, 17. Qe2 Be6, 18. h3 Bxa2, 19. Qxa2 Bxe3, 20. fxe3 Qe6, 21. Qxe6 fxe6, 22. Rb4 Rb8, 23. Rfb1 Nc6, 24. Rb7 Rbc8, 25. Kf2 Rf7, 26. Ke2 Rcf8, 27. d4 g5, 28. Kd3 Rg7, 29. d5 exd5, 30. exd5 g4, 31. dxc6 e4+, 32. Kxe4 gxf3, 33. gxf3 Re7+, 34. Kd4 Rxf3, 35. e4 Rxh3, 36. Rxc7 Rxc7, 37. Rb8+ Kf7, 38. Rb7 Re7, 39. c7 Rxc7, 40. Rxc7+ Ke6, 41. Ra7 h5, 42. Rxa6 Rh1, 43. Ra8 h4 1/2-1/2

SIGN UP FOR SELAYANG JUNIORS

The Selayang Mall Shopping Centre will be the venue for the one-day Selayang juniors open chess tournament in Kuala Lumpur this Sunday.

This event, organised jointly by Selayang Mall Sdn Bhd and Total Chess, will be played in three sections: under-10, under-12 and under-16. Ten prizes will be given away for each section.

Whiz Kid Sdn Bhd is sponsoring the main prizes and these include a computer dictionary LC9200 worth about RM900, a computer disctionary LC250 worth about RM800 and a computer organiser worth about RM400 for each section. The other prizes are computer games software and discount vouchers.

Entry fee is RM12 per player, and lunch will be provided for all participants.

Entries close today at 5pm. Interested readers can call Cecilia or Rebecca at the Selayang Mall Shopping Centre (03-616-4588/03-616-9430) or Joseph (03-757-4606).

 

Anand in the lead

 

The great hope of Asian chess

THE GREAT HOPE OF ASIAN CHESS

For decades, world championship chess has been dominated by the West. Ever since the late Mikhail Botvinnik won the title in 1948, the world chess champion has always been a man from behind the Iron Curtain.

Well...almost always, actually. In 1972, the American Bobby Fischer challenged the Soviet hold on the title and he wrested the title from Boris Spassky in a match that mesmerised the world.

Will history be repeated? Right now in New York, at the observation deck of the World Trade Center, the Professional Chess Association's world champion, Gary Kasparov, is being challenged by Viswanathan Anand.

To many people from the West, Anand is the fourth non-Soviet/Russian player to challenge for the world crown. Apart from Fischer, regular readers of this column will remember that Kasparov played Nigel Short in London while the World Chess Federation's Anatoly Karpov played Jan Timman in Amsterdam and Jakarta three years ago.

However, to chess players from this region, "Vishy" Anand is the first Great Hope of Asian chess. Never before has Asia produced a player of such calibre and on Anand's shoulders rest the expectations of millions of Asian chess players.

In Anand's native India, chess interest is at an all-time high, and elsewhere across the Asian continent, there is fervour and excitement because of the bout.

Who is Vishy Anand? For the uninitiated, Anand was born in India on Dec 11 1969. His father is a retired rail station manager. In 1987, Anand became the world junior chess champion and people began taking notice of him when he began winning tournaments in Europe against established Western players.

When I first met Anand in Genting Highlands in 1989, he was an easy-going and mild-mannered player who proclaimed to me that he had little ambition for the world crown but yes, if given the opportunity he would want to play Kasparov one day.

When I next saw him, it was three years later in Manila. Anand's confidence had increased tremendously as by then he was already accepted by the leading grandmasters as one of the top players of his generation. He had already played Kasparov several times so his early ambitions had been realised many times over.

Anand is not only India's strongest-ever player but he is now ranked second in the world by the Professional Chess Association.

Adored by millions in India, Anand is still easy going, witty and warm. However, he still makes chess players nervous as they discover that Anand's friendly exterior hides a razor-sharp mind with the knack for setting cunning traps.

He is such a rapid chess player that he frequently unsettles his opponents and draws surprise and admiration from spectators. This rare ability means he is virtually never in time-trouble which is a big advantage in top-level chess when grandmasters play for high stakes against the clock.

In 1994, at the London leg of the Intel Grand Prix speed chess event, Anand gained notoriety for knocking out Chess Genius, the Pentium processor-based PC which had itself already eliminated Gary Kasparov in the first round of the contest. After beating t he machine, Anand said in relief: "I used to watch The Terminator and feel sorry for the machine -- but not any more."

Anand reached the pinnacle of the Intel World Chess Championship Final with ease by sweeping aside highly rated opposition including English grandmaster Michael Adams and Gata Kamsky of the United States.

Earlier this year he knocked Kasparov out of the Moscow leg of the Intel world chess Grand Prix. There are many people who believe that Anand is peaking at the right time and they believe he has a good chance to create an upset in New York.

The Intel world chess championships final at the World Trade Center has all the ingredients of being the most exciting chess match this decade.

CAN ANAND PULL IT OFF?

Can India's Viswananthan Anand create an upset victory over the Professional Chess Association's world champion, Gary Kasparov? Let me try to put a few observations in the right perspective. Firstly, the points to Anand's advantage.

When Anand lost a narrow match to Anatoly Karpov in the last World Chess Federation cycle, he began a run of tournament successes that suggested that he was ready to take the World Number One spot from Kasparov.

However, his confidence deserted him for a couple of years. But in spite of all this he remains comfortably placed as one of the top five players in the world. He has used this time to rebuild his style and rhythm of play in order to progress.

How good is Anand now? In the last year, he has played very little: just one high-level tournament in Riga where he finished second to Kasparov, even losing on the black side of an Evan's Gambit. Then he put in a sterling performance to beat Gata Kamsky i n the final of the Intel world championship qualifying matches and a couple of rapidplay events.

He looks strong, confident and extremely well prepared. If, as suggested, he is more naturally gifted than Kasparov, Anand might actually be a better player than Kasparov.

If Anand starts the match confidently and plays his best, then Kasparov might be in for a torrid time indeed. Howvever, his career record against Kasparov is spoilt by a surfeit of games with the black pieces. Speed, rhythm of play, good memory and excellent feel are the keys to Anand's play.

Now, when considering Anand's negative points, we have to look at his inexperience in playing world championship matches. If it is a big disadvantage to him, he will need to overcome this quickly and avoid the disasters that befell Vassily Smyslov in 1954 and Nigel Short in 1992. (Both these players made abysmal scores in the first games of their matches against Mikhail Botvinnik and Kasparov respectively.)

Questions have been asked of Anand's abilities in the endgame and his capacity to blunder. He was written off as a nervous player after his first loss to Kamsky in the FIDE cycle.

However, this is an over-simplification. Anand can be as ruthless as any other player. When the going gets tough Anand will have to be at his most competitive to see it through. World champions need to have this quality, and even if Anand believes he is t he best in the world he will have to tough out the inevitable setbacks in this match.

The final and obvious point is that conversely, we don't know what progress Anand has made in the last year. In the end, he may just turn out to be a worse player than Kasparov.

FOLLOWING THE GAME

For readers with Internet access who wish to follow the games live from New York, point your web browser (Netscape 1.1n or 1.2n are preferred for accessing the World Wide Web) to either http://www.xculture.de/sport/wcc95live or http://www.intel.com/intel/ chess/index.html.

The first URL (Uniform Resource Locator) is a sports web site in Germany which carries on-going analysis by the strong Fritz3 chess program, while the second URL belongs to microchip giant Intel who are using this opportunity to advertise their own web site.

The world championship games are played four times weekly. The only problem is that the games begin at 3pm New York time, so if you want to catch them live you will have to be awake at 3am on Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday mornings.

TIME FOR SECOND USM OPEN

Encouraged by the good response to last year's USM national open chess tournament, the Universiti Sains Malaysia's Bridge & Chess Club will organise a second tournament this year at their campus from Dec 1-3.

This event will be held over three days and eight rounds of 1.5 hours each per player for each game. Ten prizes have been lined up for the participants and the winner will receive a RM1,000 prize.

The second prize is worth RM750, the third prize RM500, the fourth prize RM300 and the fifth prize RM200. The sixth to 10th prizes will be RM100 each. In addition, trophies will be given to the three best players in the university.

The tournament is open to all school, university and college students as well as members of the public.

The fee for students is RM20 and RM30 for the public. Accommodation for outstation participants can also be arranged within the university campus at a rate of RM2.50 per day for students and RM5 per day for the public. Foreign participants can expect free accommodation from the organisers.

To register for the tournament, contact Ms Chew Siew Imm (tel: 04-657-7253 after 8pm), or write to the Organising Committee, 2nd USM national open chess tournament 1995, Kelab Bridge dan Catur, Pusat Mahasiswa, 11800 USM, Penang. Entries will close on Oct 20.

JUNIORS IN SELAYANG

The new Selayang Mall Shopping Centre in Kepong will be the venue for a one-day Selayang juniors open chess tournament scheduled for Oct 8.

This event, organised by Selayang Mall Sdn Bhd with technical support from Total Chess, will have three categories - under-10, under-12 and under-16. Ten prizes will be awarded in each category.

Whiz Kid Sdn Bhd is sponsoring the main prizes for the tournament which are computer dictionaries worth about RM900 and a computer organiser worth about RM400. The other prizes include computer games software and discount vouchers. The entry fee will be R M12 per player (inclusive of lunch).

The closing date for entries is Oct 6 at 5pm. All registration and enquiries can be directed to Cecilia or Rebecca at the Selayang Mall Shopping Centre (tel: 03-616-4588 and 03-616-9430) or Toh (tel: 03-757-4606).

GAMES OF THE WEEK: NECK AND NECK

The Professional Chess Association's world chess championship match between Gary Kasparov and Viswanathan Anand is in full swing and here are the first four games from the match. The first player to win 10* points in the 20-game match will be declared winner. In the event of a tie at 10-10, Kasparov will retain his title.

Just before 3pm on Sept 11, the two players walked towards their sound-proof playing booth on the Observation Deck of the World Trade Centre. New York Mayor Guliani stood between them and made a ceremonial first move 1 c4 for Anand. Later, Anand thought the better of it and chose 1 e4. After 27...h6, Kasparov offered the draw which was instantaneously accepted by Anand.

V Anand - G Kasparov, Game 1

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Be2 e6 7. a4 Nc6 8. O-O Be7 9. Be3 O-O 10. f4 Qc7 11. Kh1 Re8 12. Qd2 Bd7 13. Rad1 Rad8 14. Nb3 Bc8 15. Bf3 b6 16. Qf2 Nd7 17. Nd4 Bb7 18. Bh5 Rf8 19. Qg3 Nxd4 20. Bxd4 Bf6 21. Be2 e5 22. fxe5 Bxe5 23 . Qf2 Nc5 24. Bf3 Rfe8 25. h3 a5 26. b3 Bc6 27. Rfe1 h6 0.5-0.5

The second game of the match was drawn after 27 moves when Kasparov offered to split the point with Anand. The PCA champion had about eight minutes remaining on his clock compared to about 21 minutes for Anand when the draw was agreed.

G Kasparov - V Anand, Game 2

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. cxd5 Qxd5 6. e3 c5 7. Bd2 Bxc3 8. Bxc3 cxd4 9. Bxd4 Nc6 10. Bxf6 gxf6 11. Ne2 Bd7 12. a3 Qe5 13. Nc3 f5 14. O-O-O O-O-O 15. g3 Kb8 16. Be2 (This move was played after thinking for more than 40 minutes) 16...Ne7 1 7. Qd3 Qc7 18. Qd6 Bc6 19. Qxc7+ Kxc7 20. Rhe1 Rxd1+ 21. Rxd1 Rd8 22. Rxd8 Kxd8 23. Kd2 Nc8 24. Kd3 Nd6 25. Kd4 b6 26. b4 Ke7 27. f4 h6 28. a4 f6 29. a5 Bd7 0.5-0.5

The third game was the most exciting so far in the match. Again, the draw was offered by Kasparov.

V Anand - G Kasparov, Game 3

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Be2 e6 7. O-O Be7 8. a4 Nc6 9. Be3 O-O 10. f4 Qc7 11. Kh1 Re8 12. Bd3 Nb4 13. a5 Bd7 14. Nf3 Bc6 15. Bb6 Qc8

Kasparov varies from 15...Qd7 which was played between Eric Lobron and Kevin Spraggett 10 years ago. That game ended in a victory for White after complicated play. By playing 15... Qc8, Kasparov reserved the d7 square for his Knight.

16. Qe1 Nd7 17. Bd4 Nc5 18. Qg3

The threat is checkmate on g7, but this is easily parried by Black.

18. ... f6 19. e5

When Anand made this move, the excitement level on the Observation Deck rose instantly. During the post-mortem of the game, Kasparov admitted that the situation had been very dangerous for him. He had believed that 18...f6 was tenable, but he changed his opinion after 19 e5. The reply 19...dxe5 would have been inadequate because of 20 Bxh7+, leaving no defense for Black, eg 20...Kxh7 21 fxe5 f5 22 Bxc5 Bxc5 23 Ng5+ which gives White a vicious attack.

19. ... Rf8 20. Bxc5

Kasparov said 20 exf6 Bxf6 21 Bxh7+ was very dangerous for him (eg 21...Kxh7 22 Ng5+ Bxg5 23 fxg5 Kg6 24 Rf6+! gxf6 25 gxf6+ Kh5 26 Qh3+ Kg5 27 Rf1 e5 28 Be3+ Kg6 29 Qh6+ Kf7 30 Qg7+ Ke8 31 Qe7 mate), and that he felt great relief when Anand played 20 Bxc5.

20. ... dxc5 White gets the better position after 20...Nxd3 21 exd3 Nxc5 22 dxe4 Rf7 or 21 Bxd6 Bxd6 22 exd3 Nxb2. Although White has the better position, Black's drawing resources were sufficient.

21. Bc4 Bd5 22. Nxd5 exd5 23. Bb3 c4 24. Ba4 Nc6 25. c3 fxe5 26. Nxe5 Nxe5 27. fxe5 Qe6 28. Bc2 Rxf1+ 29. Rxf1 Rf8 30. Rxf8+ Bxf8 31. Qf4 g6 32. Bd1 Qf7 33. Qd4 Qf1+ 34. Qg1 Qxg1+ 35. Kxg1 Kf7 36. Bg4 b6

0.5-0.5

The fourth game was drawn after Anand accepted Kasparov's offer. The inability of Kasparov to take an early lead in the match must be seen as a small psychological victory for Anand.

G Kasparov - V Anand, Game 4

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 O-O 5. Bg2 d5 6. Qb3 c5 7. O-O Nc6 8. d3 h6 9. e3 Re8 10. a3 dxc4 11. dxc4 Bxc3 12. Qxc3 e5 13. b4 e4 14. Nd2 Qe7 15. b5 Ne5 16. Nxe4 Nf3+ 17. Bxf3 Nxe4 18. Bxe4 Qxe4 19. f3 Qe7 20. e4 Be6 21. Be3 0.5-0.5

Bandung wins in Hong Kong

Hongkong was an enjoyable experience. The typhoon weather and the hectic playing schedule notwithstanding, the Asian cities invitational team championship was very well organised.

Whether intentionally or not, the organisers from the Hongkong Chess Federation failed to disclose the ratings of the participants in the various teams. To an extent, it helped the quality of chess because unrated players, feeling unshackled during their games, played better by not caring whether their opponents were rated players or not.

But of course, even without ratings, grandmasters like Utut Adianto, Eddy Handoko and Rogelio Antonio and international masters like Rogelio Barcenilla, Ricky de Guzman, Luis Chiong and Wong Meng Kong were there in Hongkong, together with the likes of us.

By "us", I mean the Penang team which comprised Chuah Heng Meng, Khor Bean Hwa, Ng Weng Kong, Ooi Kiem Boo and myself.

We started off with a 0.5-point score against the Nagpur team, then improved with 1-3 scores against Bangkok and Yangon. The best results came during the second day's play when we scored 2.5-1.5 against Taipa and 3.5-0.5 against Macau before wrapping up with a 3-1 win against the BIC Club which represented the sponsors of the tournament.

But heady results are invariably met with a down-to-earth bump and on the third day we suffered a 0.5-3.5 loss to a pseudo Phuket team (really a second Bangkok team in disguise) and the ignominy of a 0-4 loss to Ho Chi Minh City in the final round.

Ho Chi Minh City were going great guns but in the seventh round they were brusquely brushed aside 3.5-0.5 by the eventual winners, Bandung. This pushed them artificially down the tournament standings and Penang was unfortunate enough to be paired with them.

We had hoped to have been paired with Kowloon as the two teams were the closest together in points but that was not to be.

Still, we could take some comfort in the fact that Singapore, with IM Wong Meng Kong in the team, were only two places higher than us while the three teams we beat all ended below us.

The final standings: Bandung (Indonesia) 24.5 points; Mandaluyung (Philippines) 21.5 points; Manila 20.5 points; Ho Chi Minh City 19.5 points; Hongkong Island, Bekasi (Indonesia) and Dubai 17.5 points each; Bangkok and Yangon (Myanmar) 17 points each; Neyveli (India) 16.5 points; Phuket 16 points; Nagpur (India) 15.5 points; Singapore and Kowloon 15 points each; Penang 12 points; BIC Club 11.5 points; Macau 9 points; and Taipa 5 points.

MERDEKA TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP

I must say this about Chuah Heng Meng: upon returning from the Asian cities invitational team championship in Hongkong, he found himself embroiled in the Merdeka team chess championship in Kuala Lumpur.

That's chess stamina and dedication for you!

Chuah joined the Penang team - defending the Deputy Prime Minister's trophy in the State section of the championship - in Kuala Lumpur but it was soon clear enough that the trophy would be beyond Penang's grasp this year.

Except for two 4-0 results in the first and final rounds, enough points were denied to the Penang team in the five rounds in between and on tie-break, the state could do no better than fourth.

The winner was Selangor, although it was in a controversial manner when they were accused of fixing the results of their last-round match against Kelantan. The big loser was Johor who was leading going into the final round only to see Selangor chalking a 4-0 win while they themselves fell 1-3 to Sarawak.

Terengganu was also justifiably unhappy because instead of their third placing, they could have ended up second or even first, depending on which way the games were decided.

In the youth section, the Merdeka Youth challenge trophy was won by the Penang youth team which carved out a narrow victory ahead of MSS Selangor. Only half a point separated the two teams at the end of the tournament. Third was Selangor.

Finally, the open section was won by Tan & Tan Sdn Bhd which fielded players like Jimmy Liew, Mok Tze Meng and Lee Soi Hock in the team. A very sporting Dato' Tan Chin Nam was one of the players from the team. Second was Singapore's Cairnhill Community Council and third was Chess Wanderers, also from the island republic.

The annual Merdeka team chess championship was organised by the Persatuan Catur Melayu Malaysia. The event was played at the Wisma Belia in Kuala Lumpur, which was also the venue of this year's Malaysian Chess Federation annual general meeting on Sept 1.

GAME OF THE WEEK

This week sees the start of the Professional Chess Association's version of the world chess championship match between defending champion Gary Kasparov and his challenger, Viswanathan Anand, in New York.

Four games will be played each week for five weeks.

Last weekend in London, the Intel world chess grand prix tournament was won by England's Michael Adams who beat Alexey Dreev in the finals.

Michael Adams - Alexey Dreev
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1. e4 e6, 2. d4 d5, 3. Nd2 c5, 4. exd5 Qxd5, 5. Ngf3 cxd4, 6. Bc4 Qd8, 7. O-O a6, 8. Nb3 Qc7, 9. Bd3 Nc6, 10. Nbxd4 Nxd4 11. Nxd4 Bd6, 12. h3 Ne7, 13. Re1 O-O, 14. Qh5 Ng6, 15. Nf3 b5, 16. Be3 Be7, 17. a4 b4, 18. a5 Bb7, 19. Ng5 Bxg5, 20. Qxg5 Qc6, 21. Bb6 f5, 22. f3 Rae8, 23. Rad1 Rf6, 24. b3 Nf8, 25. Qf4 Rg6, 26. Kh2 Nd7, 27. Bc4 Nxb6, 28. axb6 Qxb6, 29. Re2 Qc5, 30. Qd6 Qc8, 31. Rde1 Kf7, 32. Re5 Rf6, 33. Rc5 Qb8, 34. Bxe6+ Kg6, 35. Bxf5+ Kh6, 36. Qxb8 Rxb8, 37. Bd3 g6, 38. Re7 Bc6, 39. g4 1-0

 

Latest on the local scene

It has been a long fortnight for me. After being out of the country for a week, I returned to find a lot of local news waiting for me to catch up on.

My first report is on the MSSM individual and team chess championships which were held in Arau, Perlis from Aug 21 to 26.

The team section consisted of two tournaments for the under-20 and the under-12 age-groups. The under-20 team event was won by Penang which collected 35 points. Second was Selangor (32.5 points) and third Malacca (31.5 points). Fourth-placed among the 12 participating teams was Johor with 27 points.

The five board prizes for this team event went to Teng Wei Ping (Penang), Ng Siew Cheok (Negri Sembilan), Ng Lan Tyii (Malacca), Ng Ee Vern (Selangor) and Lau Kar Wooi (Penang).

In the under-12 event, Johor was the champion with 31 points while Penang was the runners-up with 29.5 points. Third was Selangor (29 points) and fourth Perak (21 points).

The winners of the board prizes in this section were Sow Tien Yu (Johor), Liong Wei Li (Johor), Kamaril Ariffin (Selangor), Shafiruddin (Negri Sembilan) and Mohd Dziyaul Hafidh (Perlis).

The individual section saw six events held simultaneously. The boys' under-20 title was retained by Ooi Chern Ee (Penang) who scored seven points from seven games. There was a three-way for the second to fourth places between Lee Wee Peng (Johor), Toh Seng Joe (Terengganu) and Mohd Fairin Zakaria (Negri Sembilan) who each scored five points.

The girls' under-20 event was also played over seven rounds and it was won by Eliza Hanim Ibrahim (Selangor) with maximum points. Mizan (Kelantan), Zeti Ajemi (Kedah) and Loh Poh Ping (FT) each scored six points to finish joint second to fourth.

The under-15 events were newly introduced this year to fill a pressing gap between the under-20 and under-12 age-groups. The boys' under-15 event was won by Mas Hafizulhelmi (Kelantan) who won all his eight games. Second was Wong Zi Jing (KL) with 6.5 points, third was Mohd Haizal (Selangor) with six points and fourth was Mak Weng Yee (Selangor) with 5.5 points.

The girls' under-15 event was won by Samantha Lee Heng Jun (Selangor) while second was Roslina Marmono (Selangor). Third was Farhana Husiny (Negri Sembilan) and fourth was Seri Merdlana (Johor).

The boys' under-12 event was won by Lim Chuin Hoong (Penang) who obtained maximum points from seven games. Ali Ajemi (Kedah) was second with 5.5 points, Mohd Syaiful Ali (Kelantan) and Rustam Ikmal (Pahang) were third with five points each.

For the girls' under-12 section, the joint winners were Siti Fadlitina (Kedah) and Loh Poh Choo (FT), each scoring 6* points. Behind them on six points were Lim Jean Nie (Penang) and Nor Shafawati (Kedah).

Meanwhile in Petaling Jaya, the six-round Total Chess under-12 quickplay rating tournament on Aug 13 attracted 34 players including seven girls. The youngest player in the field was Tan Zhi Yi who was five years 11 months' old.

The winner was 10-year-old Hazril Husain who, despite falling violently ill during the tournament, scored 5.5 points to win himself some magazines worth more than RM60.

Second was Hoo Chin Khang who obtained five points, and in joint third to sixth places were Wong Zi Chuang, Ng Kian Yee, Low Kok Wai and Low Kar Mun who finished the tournament with 4.5 points each.

Some other Total Chess quickplay tournaments coming soon in the Klang Valley are a under-12 event this Sunday at the Sekolah Rendah Jenis Kebangsaan China Kepong and an open tournament on Sept 17 at the Total Chess premises in Petaling Jaya.

For more details on these Total Chess events, contact Joseph Toh (tel: 03-757-4606).

GAMES OF THE WEEK

Last month, a Category 16 tournament in memory of one of the Netherland's most prominent grandmasters, Jan Heim Donner, who died several years ago was organised in Amsterdam.

The tournament ended with two grandmasters tied for the top honours: Dutchman Jan Timman and the Peruvian player Julio Granda Zuniga. On tie-break, however, Timman was declared winner.

This meant that Timman has managed to put a miserable year behind him. His other recent tournament results had been rather poor, for example, in July when he played in the annual grandmaster tournament in Biel, Switzerland, he finished 13th in a field of 14 players.

In Amsterdam, Timman bounced back with a vengeance and in the last round he beat Granda Zuniga who, if not for this loss, would have been the outright winner. Still, this event was one of the Peruvian's best tournament results.

Russian grandmaster Alexander Morozevich showed why he is regarded as one of the most exciting players in the world. He drew only two games throughout the tournament and his remaining nine games were always decisive. He impressed onlookers with his all-round tactical ability.

The final standings: Jan Timman (Netherlands) and Julio Granda Zuniga (Peru) 7.5 points each; Judit Polgar (Hungary) 7 points; Alexander Huzman (Ukraine), Yasser Seirawan (USA) and Alexei Shirov (Spain) 6 points each; Alexander Khalifman (Russia), Alexander Morozevich (Russia), John Nunn (England) and Valery Salov (Russia) 5 points each; Jeroen Piket (Netherlands) and Loek van Wely (Netherlands) 3 points each.

Here are crucial games from the event:

Jan Timman - Julio Granda Zuniga
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1. e4 e6, 2. d4 d5, 3. Nc3 dxe4, 4. Nxe4 Nd7, 5. Nf3 Be7, 6. Bd3 Ngf6, 7. Qe2 c5, 8. Nxf6+ Bxf6, 9. d5 Nb6, 10. Bb5+ Kf8, 11. dxe6 Bxe6, 12. a4 a6, 13. Bd3 Qc7, 14. O-O Re8, 15. a5 Nd7, 16. Re1 Re7, 17. Qe4 c4, 18. Bf1 Nc5, 19. Qf4 Qxf4, 20. Bxf4 Rd7, 21. Be3 Rc7, 22. Bf4 Rc8, 23. Bd6+ Kg8, 24. Ne5 h5, 25. Nxc4 Bxc4, 26. Bxc4 Bxb2, 27. Rad1 Rh6, 28. Bxc5 Rxc5, 29. Re8+ Kh7, 30. Bxf7 Rf6, 31. Bd5 Rxa5, 32. Be4+ g6, 33. Rd7+ Kh6, 34. h4 Ra1+, 35. Kh2 Rf4, 36. f3 Rxh4+, 37. Kg3 Rah1, 38. Re6 Rxe4, 39. Rxe4 Bc3, 40. Rxb7 Be1+, 41. Kf4 Bd2+, 42. Ke5 a5, 43. Kf6 Rh2, 44. Re2 Bc3+, 45. Kf7 Rh4, 46. Re4 Rxe4, 47. fxe4 Kg5, 48. Rc7 1-0

Judit Polgar - Alexei Shirov
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1. e4 g6, 2. d4 Bg7, 3. Nc3 c6, 4. Bc4 d6, 5. Qf3 e6, 6. Nge2 b5, 7. Bb3 a5, 8. a3 Ba6, 9. d5 cxd5, 10. exd5 e5, 11. Ne4 Qc7, 12. c4 bxc4, 13. Ba4+ Nd7, 14. N2c3 Ke7, 15. Nxd6 Qxd6, 16. Ne4 Qxd5, 17. Bg5+ Ndf6, 18. Rd1 Qb7, 19. Rd7+ Qxd7, 20. Bxd7 h6, 21. Qd1 1-0

Alexander Morozevich - Jeroen Piket
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1. e4 d6, 2. d4 Nf6, 3. Nc3 g6, 4. Nf3 Bg7, 5. h3 c6, 6. a4 O-O, 7. Be3 a5, 8. Nd2 Na6, 9. Be2 c5, 10. dxc5 Nxc5, 11. e5 Ne8, 12. exd6 Bxc3, 13. Bxc5 exd6, 14. Ba3 Bb4, 15. c3 Bxa3, 16. Rxa3 Nf6, 17. O-O d5, 18. Nf3 Re8, 19. Bd3 Bd7, 20. Bc2 Ra6, 21. Qd4 Rae6, 22. Bd3 Bc6, 23. Raa1 Ne4, 24. Rad1 Qe7, 25. Bc2 b5, 26. Qb6 bxa4, 27. Nd4 Qc5, 28. Qc7 Rf6, 29. f3 Re7, 30. Qc8+ Re8, 31. Qg4 Nd6, 32. Kh1 Nc4, 33. Qg5 Rd6, 34. Rde1 Rdd8, 35. f4 Qd6, 36. Nf5 f6, 37. Rxe8+ Bxe8, 38. Qg3 Qf8, 39. Re1 Kh8, 40. Qh4 gxf5, 41. Bxf5 Rd7, 42. Re6 Rg7, 43. Rxf6 Qe7, 44. Be6 Nd6, 45. Bxd5 Bc6, 46. Rxd6 0-1

Loek van Wely - Alexander Morozevich
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1. d4 d5, 2. c4 Nc6, 3. Nc3 dxc4, 4. Nf3 Nf6, 5. e4 Bg4, 6. Be3 e6, 7. Bxc4 Bb4, 8. Qc2 O-O, 9. Rd1 Ne7, 10. Be2 Bxc3+, 11. bxc3 c5, 12. O-O Qc7, 13. Qb1 b6, 14. h3 Bh5, 15. g4 Bg6, 16. Bd3 Rfd8, 17. Ne5 Qb7, 18. f3 cxd4, 19. cxd4 Rac8, 20. Rc1 Rxc1, 21. Rxc1 Nd7, 22. Nxd7 Qxd7, 23. Qb5 Qd6, 24. Kg2 h6, 25. h4 f5, 26. gxf5 exf5, 27. Qc4+ Kh7, 28. d5 Re8, 29. Re1 fxe4, 30. fxe4 Qd7, 31. Kg3 h5, 32. Kf2 Qh3, 33. Ke2 Nf5, 34. Kd2 Nd6, 35. Qc6 Nxe4+, 36. Bxe4 Rxe4, 37. d6 Qg2+, 38. Kc1 Qxa2, 39. Kd1 Rc4 0-1

Julio Granda Zuniga - John Nunn
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1. d4 Nf6, 2. c4 g6, 3. Nc3 Bg7, 4. e4 d6, 5. Be2 O-O, 6. Nf3 e5, 7. O-O Nc6, 8. d5 Ne7, 9. b4 Nh5, 10. c5 Nf4, 11. Bc4 Bg4, 12. h3 Bh5, 13. Re1 a5, 14. Rb1 Nc8, 15. a3 axb4, 16. axb4 Kh8, 17. Bf1 f5, 18. exf5 gxf5, 19. Bxf4 exf4, 20. Nb5 dxc5, 21. bxc5 c6, 22. Nbd4 Qxd5, 23. Rxb7 Ra7, 24. Rxa7 Nxa7, 25. Ne6 Bxf3, 26. gxf3 Rg8, 27. Qxd5 cxd5, 28. Rd1 Nc6, 29. Kh1 d4, 30. Bb5 Rc8, 31. Nxf4 Na7, 32. Bd7 Rxc5, 33. Re1 Re5, 34. Ra1 d3, 35. Rxa7 d2, 36. Ba4 Bh6, 37. Nh5 1-0

Judit Polgar - Loek van Wely
----------------------------
1. e4 c5, 2. Nf3 d6, 3. d4 cxd4, 4. Nxd4 Nf6, 5. Nc3 a6, 6. f4 e6, 7. Qf3 Qb6, 8. Nb3 Qc7, 9. g4 b5, 10. g5 b4, 11. Nb5 axb5, 12. gxf6 Nd7, 13. Bxb5 gxf6, 14. f5 Ke7, 15. Bxd7 Bxd7, 16. fxe6 fxe6, 17. Rf1 Bb5, 18. Qxf6+ Kd7, 19. Qxh8 Be7, 20. Qxa8 Qc4, 21. Qb7+ Ke8, 22. Rf2 Bh4, 23. Qf7+ Kd8, 24. Bg5+ 1-0