Reports | May 19, 2012 11:02

Gelfand-Anand G6, another Chebanenko Semi-Slav, drawn after 29 moves (VIDEO with Kasparov)

Gelfand-Anand G6, another Chebanenko Semi-Slav, drawn after 29 moves (VIDEO)

Game 6 in the World Championship match between Boris Gelfand and Viswanathan Anand ended in a draw as well. Anand repeated his Chebanenko Semi-Slav and Gelfand tried something different on move 6. He won a pawn, but didn't see a way to finish his development without giving it back quickly. After a few accurate moves by Anand a drawn rook ending came on the board.

Saturday is a rest day. The score is 3-3 at half time; six more games are scheduled in the Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow.

Event World Championship Match | PGN via TWIC
Dates May 11th-30th, 2012
Location Moscow, Russia
System Match
Players

Viswanathan Anand & Boris Gelfand
Rate of play 120 minutes for 40 moves, then 60 minutes for 20 moves and then 15 minutes to finish the game with 30 seconds increment from move 61
Prize fund 2.55 million US $ (60% for the winner)
More information Read all info here
Videos ChessVibes on YouTube

The trend hasn't changed yet, and the draws just keep coming! Also in the 6th match game we didn't see fireworks, but two well prepared gentlemen playing moves on a high level and Black (Anand) putting up another good defence to hold the balance. Whether you like it or not, this is the chess that's being played between Gelfand and Anand, two players who continue to be very cautious. The nightmare scenario of twelve draws followed by a tiebreak is getting more realistic by the day...

Again a Chebanenko/Semi-Slav came on the board, and Gelfand deviated from his first two white games, by switching to 6.Qc2 instead of 6.b3. Anand sacrificed a pawn, which was most probably still part of his preparation, and then Gelfand quickly returned the favour.

I calculated some lines but I didn't see a way to bring out my pieces [and keep the pawn].

The 6th day in Moscow, however, was dominated by the presence of Garry Kasparov. It's quite telling to see that, seven years after his retirement, the 13th World Champion still attracts more attention from spectators and journalists than Anand and Gelfand. Just after the game started, Kasparov gave a 50-minute press conference and more media were present than ever before.

He started by repeating what he had said before the match: that for the first time in a long period, the World Championship match had nothing to do with a fight for the title of best player in the world. Confronted with this statement, Anand said he "didn't have time" to deal with these things. Gelfand felt that Kasparov merely wanted to remind people how good he was. You can see all this in the video below.

After the press conference, Kasparov joined the commentary team to share his thoughts on the official website. He was especially critical – or rather disappointed – of Anand.

It is not the number of tournament wins — I can't remember when Vishy last won a tournament — but the sparkle in his eyes. Even in 2010 in some games you could see the spark of genius but in most games he was struggling.

Then, Kasparov gave a simul to about twenty talented kids, very talented in fact. They had actually qualified for the simul by winning different youth events. Normally Kasparov doesn't play opponents rated above about 2000 Elo, but it was clear that several kids were actually stronger than that, and Garry Kimovich was clearly struggling.

Saturday is a rest day; on Sunday Gelfand will have White again because the colors are reversed at half-time.

PGN string

Match score

 

 

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Peter Doggers's picture
Author: Peter Doggers

Founder and editor-in-chief of ChessVibes.com, Peter is responsible for most of the chess news and tournament reports. Often visiting top events, he also provides photos and videos for the site. He's a 1.e4 player himself, likes Thai food and the Stones.

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Comments

S3's picture

S3

1 year 1 week ago

Considering Kaspy's friends like Azmaiparishvilli and other abusers I would not be surprised if this were true.

Frits Fritschy's picture

Frits Fritschy

1 year 1 week ago

Val, sources, please.

Septimus's picture

Septimus

1 year 1 week ago

I think Gandalf will be the first one to break out with a win. Anand looks a bit too circumspect.

Romualdo's picture

Romualdo

1 year 1 week ago

frankly speaking these players shoul go direct to play blitz alone with no audience, no tv, nothing.We can memorize a book and play easily with them with this named classical chess !

val's picture

val

1 year 1 week ago

@ slonik, Fritschy others.sport-express.ru/reviews/21749 The man is Valeriy Krylov, Kramnik`s psychologist. The text is in Russian.

Johnny's picture

Johnny

1 year 1 week ago

Wake me up if something happens. Thanks, I appreciate it.

Anonymous's picture

Anonymous

1 year 1 week ago

I think all you chess experts commenting negatively here take your F*ing money leave this WCh and go and watch Soccer.
You are all so much better experts than these two players in the World Championship.
While going, you can take Topolov and Garry Kasparov with you and go. Having made a postive difference with the Russian democracy and Vladmir Putin, having changed changed chess for the better in 1993, he is now playing armchair chess in the World Championship against legitimate World Champion Anand.

rdecredico's picture

rdecredico

1 year 6 days ago

Funny how so many people say memorization is a bad way to learn chess yet here at the highest levels it is all about who memorizes prepared lines the best.

There just seems to be no fighting spirit in these games.

And for people like 'anonymous' that take personal umbrage at folks like me being unhappy with this match: get over yourself ... maybe seek therapy.

nis's picture

nis

1 year 6 days ago

1>all this talk about dull draws in world champion ships is not any exception

2>though i am big kasparov fan , this man has such double standards, 1995 match started with 9 draws...
he excepted short draws with kramnik while trailing in the match! Anand will not stoop to kasparov's level. Kasparov complained of anand having a mirror jaw. He himself fell apart against kramnik.

3>@zeblakob, we want winners of candidates to playt the world champion , not loosees....

RealityCheck's picture

RealityCheck

1 year 6 days ago

@nis that was EIGHT DRAwS and a 9TH round loss for Kasparov against the rookie Anand in 1995.

Pablo's picture

Pablo

1 year 6 days ago

Guys, can you imagine Gelfand as the new world champion? It would be kind of a strange thing. You know, Gelfand playing tourneys, never winning, being at the half of the table.

I'm thinking about it and it just sounds weird. I'm not saying nothing more than that. I'm not saying he doesn't deserve to play this match because he prove that it was, indeed, deserved. But i'm just saying that it is weird, for me, to think as Gelfand as the next Word Champion of chess during an entire year or more.

What do you think? I know it's not deep thoughts, here. But it's sounds curious for me. Nothing more than that.

redivivo's picture

redivivo

1 year 6 days ago

Indeed, can you imagine a World Champion for whom results like these are rather normal when facing the top players?

http://www.chessbase.com/news/2007/dortmund21.gif

http://www.chessbase.com/news/2008/wijk/table13a.gif

http://www.chessbase.com/news/2008/sochi/table13.gif

http://www.chessbase.com/news/2009/events/biel46-tab10.gif

http://www.chessbase.com/news/2010/linares/tab10.gif

http://www.chessbase.com/news/2010/events/astrakhan46.gif

http://www.chessbase.com/news/2010/misc/talmem09.gif

http://www.chessbase.com/news/2011/talmem/talmem11-09.gif

http://www.chessbase.com/news/2012/wijk/wijka12-13.gif

JM's picture

JM

1 year 6 days ago

Good point!

mdamien's picture

mdamien

1 year 6 days ago

If he wins, they'll remember his name 100 years from now. They won't remember as well, other players whose claim to fame at the moment is being higher on the rating list.

It will be disappointing if anyone loses their crown in a rapid tiebreak. It's the nature of the world championship that a challenger has to actually beat the sitting champion, so the ability to hold draws is the mettle of a strong champion. It would have seemed odd had Schlechter won in 1910, but I imagine that he would have been hard to topple afterward.

vaibhav's picture

vaibhav

1 year 6 days ago

Anand would have destroyed Carlsen.

Anand Vs Aronian would have been ultimate....I am sure it will come in future WCs.

TomTom's picture

TomTom

1 year 6 days ago

wake up

muralidhara gk's picture

muralidhara gk

1 year 6 days ago

Chess is unique and different from other sports. One cannot compare it to ball games where movement of the ball catches the concentration of the spectators. Chess is a game of players not spectators. A player good at playing chess will automatically becomes a good spectator. Chess is a game of palyers and by god's grace let it remain so. People with culture and heritage will take it forward. let us not make it a free style wrestling.
Coming to draws, my opinion is that its ok. What' wrong? Any way tie brake is there.

Bored's picture

Bored

1 year 6 days ago

Boris is boring...
So is Anand this time...

Bored's picture

Bored

1 year 6 days ago

Boris is boring...
So is Anand this time...

toltiz4x's picture

toltiz4x

1 year 6 days ago

BORIS VS ANAND MATCH SO EXTRA BORING....

darkergreen1327's picture

darkergreen1327

1 year 6 days ago

It seems that the most interesting moment of the yesterday's game was Kasparov commenting! That even shows that we are still looking for that "good old days":)

Thomas's picture

Thomas

1 year 6 days ago

From Peter Doggers' report:
"It's quite telling to see that, seven years after his retirement, the 13th World Champion still attracts more attention from spectators and journalists than Anand and Gelfand. ... more media were present than ever before."
This might be a bit misleading - journalists came that day to see Anand and Gelfand AND Kasparov. If they choose one day to visit, it will be that one; but how many will attend another 'random' press conference of Kasparov?
We might see the same again on another day when semi-retired Karpov is guest of honor. And for example, last year I deliberately travelled to Wijk aan Zee on the day when Timman gave live commentary. It didn't mean that I am more interested in him than in the current world top players, just that I preferred his live commentary over the one by IMs on other days ... .

adriano's picture

adriano

1 year 6 days ago

Kasparov said that for the first time in the history ever, the World Championship match had nothing to do with a fight for the title of best player in the world.
Gelfand said that Kasparov wanted to remind people who may have forgotten, that he was the strongest chess player in the world.
Obviously there is a problem with the translation from Russian to English.
However for any unprejudiced spectator it is clear that Kasparov is completely and absolutely right. His opinion reflects the true situation at the moment.

RealityCheck's picture

RealityCheck

1 year 5 days ago

No problem with the translation!! GM Gelfand basically told X Wch Kasparov that he's a 'has been' and ratings don't mean sheet and he shd keep his mouth shut, mind his own business.

In the Filatov interview the same tone is when the discussion touched the anti gov't rants via Mr. Kasparov.

redivivo's picture

redivivo

1 year 6 days ago

The refreshing thing with Kasparov is that he tells it like it is, so many other annotators repeat "facts" about title matches usually looking like this, that the stronger the players the more it looks like Anand vs Gelfand, praise draws, etc, all to try to convince themselves and others that things are more exciting than they are.

As Kasparov points out Anand isn't playing on anything even remotely resembling his level from 4-5 years ago. Just think about the match against Kramnik where he won three of the first six games and could have been even further ahead, this against a much stronger opponent than he is playing here.

As for Gelfand, his chance is to draw all twelve and aim for the tiebreak, a la Grischuk in the Candidates. Nothing wrong with that, but still none of the games played this far will be remembered, most of them were well forgotten minutes after they finished.

Anyway, for the people thinking that the stronger the players and the more engine preparation the more drawish this could be well worth a look:

http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chess.pl?page=7&pid=100439

Szoker's picture

Szoker

1 year 6 days ago

What a disgrace...

Btw. I love Kasparow

such an awesome guy

Anonymous's picture

Anonymous

1 year 6 days ago

@Szoker If you really love him, get him a new Dental Plan. Does he smoke?

Septimus's picture

Septimus

1 year 6 days ago

12 games are too short. The WC should at least be 18 games. The first few games are probably going to be used to flesh out the opening preparations of each other.

adriano's picture

adriano

1 year 6 days ago

Kasparov said that for the first time in the history ever, the World Championship match had nothing to do with a fight for the title of best player in the world.
Gelfand said that Kasparov wanted to remind people who may have forgotten, that he was the strongest chess player in the world.
Obviously there is a problem with the translation from Russian to English.
However for any unprejudiced spectator it is clear that Kasparov is completely and absolutely right. His opinion reflects the true situation at the moment.

RealityCheck's picture

RealityCheck

1 year 5 days ago

@adriano You may want to slap yourself in the face for making the dumb comment
"His (Kasparovs') opinon reflects the true situation at the moment."
Here's something a sharp eye at TWIC pointed out:

Position after 30.Rd2. Kasparov thought Anand should have thought for 20 minutes here. Not his best suggestion, Anand had only 10 minutes left.

JP's picture

JP

1 year 6 days ago

---deleted---
http://www.chessvibes.com/terms

Cor Dekker's picture

Cor Dekker

1 year 5 days ago

The only way the players could make this match more interesting is by playing different openings. With computers at hand it is not difficult for them to prepare in great depth, certainly not in these static openings. But then again: Has Anand ever played the Kings Indian, the Benko, the Ben-Oni with black? So why would he do that now? Yes, Gelfland could play Bg5 variations, but only if he feels confident enough to play it against Anand, because tactically Anand is, I think, the strongest of the two. We can't expect Gelfand to gamble just to please us. There is too much at stake. I just hope that they will follow the Carlsen/Aronian approach, by playing systems that leave more scope for creativity.

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