1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. d3 b5 6. Bb3 Bc5 7. Nc3 d6 8. Nd5 h6 9. c3 Be6 10. Nxf6+ Nepomniachtchi has been working with Morozevich and often plays the same opening lines as the current world's no. 2. 10. Be3 O-O 11. O-O Bxd5 12. exd5 Bxe3 13. fxe3 Ne7 14. e4 Ng6 15. Qd2 Nd7 16. Kh1 Qb8 17. Bc2 Qb6 18. a4 bxa4 19. Rxa4 a5 20. d4 Rfe8 21. b3 Nf6 22. dxe5 Nxe5 23. Nd4 Nfd7 24. Nf5 1-0, Morozevich-Kasimdzhanov, Tomsk 2006 10... Qxf6 11. Be3 11. O-O O-O 12. Be3 Bxe3 13. fxe3 Qe7 14. Qe1 Rae8 15. Nh4 Qd7 16. Qg3 Kh7 17. Nf5 g6 18. Nh4 Ne7 19. Rf6 Ng8 20. Bxe6 Rxe6 21. Nxg6 Rfe8 22. Rxe6 fxe6 23. Nh4 Rf8 24. Qg6+ Kh8 25. Rf1 Rxf1+ 26. Kxf1 c5 27. g3 a5 28. b3 b4 29. c4 d5 30. Qh5 dxc4 31. Ng6+ 1-0, Asrian-Svetushkin, Moskou 2007 11... Bxb3 12. axb3 Bxe3 13. fxe3 O-O 14. O-O Qe6 15. Nh4 Ne7 16. Nf5 Kh7 17. b4 This is what White had been playing for: two semi-open files, a nice f5 square and a backward a-pawn in the opponent's camp. But it sounds better than it actually is. 17... Ng8 18. Qc2 g6 19. Ng3 c5 20. bxc5 dxc5 21. d4 c4 22. Rf3 Both players could have ended shared first, if they had won, but it would have meant a second place on tiebreak anyway. And since the tournament has no prize money, there was not much to play for. 1/2-1/2

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. c3 d5 9. exd5 Nxd5 10. Nxe5 Nxe5 11. Rxe5 c6 12. d3 Bd6 13. Re1 Bf5 14. Qf3 Qh4 15. g3 Qh3 16. Bxd5 cxd5 17. Qxd5 Rad8 18. Qg2 Qxg2+ 19. Kxg2 Bxd3 20. Be3 Be4+ 21. f3 Bc6 22. Nd2 Rfe8 23. Bd4 This line was sort of a specialy of aggressive players whose names start with an 's', such as Shirov, Smeets and Stellwagen. However, Leko has started playing at as well, already a month ago at the Karen Asrian Memorial rapid tournament in Yerevan. 23. Nb3 f6 24. Kf2 Bc7 25. Nd4 Bd7 26. Rad1 Kf7 27. Rd2 Bc8 28. Red1 h5 29. Ne2 Rxd2 30. Rxd2 Be6 31. b3 g5 and after 47 moves, Leko-Sargissian, Yerevan 2008 ended in a draw. 23... Rxe1 23... h5 24. Kf2 f6 25. Rxe8+ Rxe8 26. Nf1 Kf7 27. Ne3 Rd8 28. a3 Bc7 29. Re1 Rd7 Leko-Aronian, Yerevan 2008 - draw in 41. 24. Rxe1 f6 25. Kf2 Finally a new move. 25. Nf1 h5 26. Bb6 Re8 27. Ne3 Kf7 28. Kf2 h4 29. Rd1 Bb8 30. Nc2 g5 31. gxh4 gxh4 32. Rd4 Rh8 33. Nb4 Ba8 34. f4 a5 35. Na6 Ke6 36. Nxb8 Rxb8 37. Bxa5 and in Bacrot-Sargissian, French Team Ch (Evry) 2008 White managed to win this ending. 25... h5 26. Ne4 Bf8 Black's bishop pair is enough compensation in such positions since White's main plan is to start pushing the queenside pawns, which simultaneously makes them a target. 27. Re2 Kf7 28. Nc5 Bxc5 29. Bxc5 Rd7 30. Bd4 a5 31. b3 With the rooks, this ending is less drawish than without them, but still it's very difficult to make progress with White. And Leko just needed a draw anyway. 1/2-1/2

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 d5 4. d4 Bb4 5. cxd5 exd5 6. Bg5 Nbd7 7. Qc2 h6 8. Bh4 O-O 8... g5 9. Bg3 Ne4 10. Nd2 Nxg3 11. hxg3 Nb6 12. a3 Bf8 13. e3 Bg7 14. Bd3 Qe7 15. Nb3 O-O 16. Bh7+ Kh8 17. Bf5 c6 18. O-O-O Van Wely-Eljanov, Foros 2007 9. e3 c5 10. Bd3 c4 11. Bf5 Nb6 12. g4!? Typically Van Wely. He's playing a terrible tournament, with two draws and four losses, and many players would have been satisfied with a quick draw, to get it over with. But not the Dutchman, who always plays for a win. However still wonders why he's still invited to major tournaments: this is one of the answers! 12. Bxc8 Rxc8 13. O-O Re8 14. Ne5 Bxc3 15. bxc3 Qd6 16. Rfb1 Nfd7 17. Nxd7 Qxd7 18. a4 Rc6 19. Rb5 Nc8 20. Qd1 a6 21. Rb2 Ree6 22. Qg4 Rb6 23. Rxb6 Nxb6 24. Qd1 Nc8 25. Qg4 Nb6= Kelly-Schandorff, Goeteborg 2005 12... g5 Black can't really do without this move. 13. Bg3 Bxf5 14. gxf5 14. Qxf5? Ne4 14... Ne4 15. Nd2 Qe7 15... Qd7 16. Ndxe4 Qxf5 is not a good idea because White can simply play 17. O-O-O kan doen. 16. Ke2 Here the king is quite safe. Steinitz would have been proud of White's play! Niet 16. O-O-O? Bxc3 17. bxc3 Qa3+ 16... Nxd2 17. Kxd2 Qe4 Black tries his luck in the ending. An interesting plan was 17... Nd7 to manoeuver the knight to e4. 18. h4 g4 18... Kg7!? 19. Qxe4 dxe4 20. h5! Now White is slightly better. 20... Kh7 21. Rh4 Rg8 22. Rg1 Nd5 23. Be5 f6 24. Bh2 Rac8 25. Rhxg4 A surprising possibility was 25. Bd6!? 25... Rxg4 26. Rxg4 Rc6 27. Rxe4 Ra6 28. a3 Bxc3+ 29. bxc3 Rxa3 30. Re6 b5 31. e4 Ra2+ 32. Ke1 Nxc3 33. e5 Ra1+ 34. Kd2 Nd5 35. exf6 c3+ 36. Kd3? In timetrouble White still tries to win. After the game, Van Wely said he didn't have enough time here to evaluate the upcoming complications correctly. "I could have drawn it if I wanted to." The following analysis confirms this: 36. Kc2 Kg8 37. Rd6 Ra2+ 38. Kd3 Rd2+ 39. Ke4 c2 40. Rc6 Rxf2 41. Be5 Nb6 42. Bg3 Nc4 43. Rc8+ Kf7 44. Rc7+ Ke8 45. Rc8+ Kf7 (45... Kd7? loses 46. f7 Re2+ (46... c1=Q 47. Rc7+ Kd8 48. f8=Q#) 47. Kf3 Re3+ 48. Kf2 Kxc8 49. f8=Q+ Kb7 50. Qf7+ Kc6 51. d5+ Kb6 52. Bb8 Ka5 53. Qxa7+ Kb4 54. Qa1) 46. Rc7+ Ke8 47. Rc8+ 36... Rd1+? Surprisingly, this move throws away the win! 36... Kg8 37. Re8+ Kf7 38. Rc8 Rd1+ 39. Ke4 Nxf6+ 40. Kf3 b4 should be winning for Black. 37. Ke2? 37. Ke4!! would have been a brilliant escape: 37... c2 38. Kxd5 c1=Q 39. Re7+ Kg8 40. Rg7+! Kh8 (40... Kf8?? 41. Bd6+) 41. Rc7! Qb2 42. Rc8+ Kh7 43. Rc7+ and the black king has to return to h8, because 43... Kg8? allows mate in four! 37... c2 38. f7 Kg7 39. Rxh6 Kxf7 0-1

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Nxe5 d6 4. Nf3 Nxe4 5. d4 d5 6. Bd3 Nc6 7. O-O Be7 8. Re1 Bg4 9. c4 Nf6 10. Nc3 Bxf3 11. Qxf3 Nxd4 12. Qd1 Ne6 13. cxd5 Nxd5 14. Bb5+ c6 15. Nxd5 cxb5 16. Qh5 Ivanchuk doesn't repeat 16. Bf4 Nxf4 17. Rxe7+ Kf8 18. Re5 Qd6 19. Qd2! with which Naiditsch beat Kramnik in the third round. The Ukrainian trusts his opponent to have analysed the critical move 19... Qxe5 deeply. 16... O-O 17. Nxe7+ Qxe7 18. Qxb5 Rfd8 19. Be3 a6 20. Qb3 Rac8 21. h3 21. Rac1 h6 22. h3 Nd4 1/2-1/2, Kasparov-Karpov, Moscow 1985 21... h6 22. Rad1 Rxd1 23. Rxd1 b5 23... Rd8 24. Rc1 Nd4 25. Bxd4 Rxd4 26. Rc8+ Kh7 27. Rc2 Tsuboi-Almada, Sao Paulo 1989 24. Rd3 Rc6 25. Qd5 White has the smallest possible mistake of a bishop against a knight, which isn't worth much as long as the heavy pieces are on the board. But you can always try, can't you? 25... Qe8 26. Rd2 Qc8 27. b3 Rc3 28. h4 a5 29. Rd1 Rc2 30. Qxb5 Rxa2 31. h5 Nf8 32. Rd4 Qc7 33. Rd1 Rb2 34. Rc1 Qd7 35. Qb8 Rc2 36. Ra1 36. Rxc2?! Qd1+ 37. Kh2 Qxh5+! 38. Kg3 Qg6+= 36... Qf5 37. Qd8 Qxh5 38. Rxa5 Qg4 39. Ra4 Qd7 40. Rd4 Qb7 41. b4 Rb2 42. Bd2 Rb1+ 43. Kh2 Qb5 44. Qd5 Qe2 45. Be3 Ng6 46. Qf5 Qf1 47. Kg3 Rb3 48. Re4 Nf8? No, this really isn't Kramnik's tournament. In a position that's probably still drawn, he commits a blunder. Necessary was 48... Qh1 49. b5 (49. Re8+ Kh7 50. Qxf7 Qh4+) 49... Kh7 50. Rd4! (to cover the d1 square so that the king can go to f3)(50. b6 h5!) 50... Qc1 51. Rd5 and White can still try, but it's probably a draw. 49. Rf4 1-0