The match on this page, sponsored by Ravi Sanghi and the Sanghi Industries, was one of three (!) semifinals held in Sanghi Nagar, India, from 25/27 July to 5/7 August 1994. The other two matches were the Kamsky - Anand Candidates Semifinal (1994) and Salov - Timman Candidates Semifinal (1994). The draw for pairings was made in Wijk aan Zee in January 1994 at the closing ceremony of the quarterfinals. The matches were held in order to reach a final match in 1996 for the title of FIDE World Champion.
The event was opened by FIDE president Florencio Campomanes and the Prime Minister of India, Pamulaparthi Venkata Narasimha Rao. Gelfand had qualified for the match from the Gelfand - Adams Candidates Quarterfinal (1994), and Kramnik had qualified from the Kramnik - Yudasin Candidates Quarterfinal (1994). Gelfand was seconded by Alexander Huzman and Valery Atlas, while Kramnik was seconded by Joel Lautier. The match was best of eight games, or the first to achieve 4½ points. Price fund (per match): 70,000 Swiss francs (about $51,000). Chief arbiter: Bozidar Kazic.
Sanghi Nagar, India, 25 July - 5 August 1994
Age Elo 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Gelfand 26 2680 ½ ½ 0 1 ½ ½ ½ 1 4½
Kramnik 19 2725 ½ ½ 1 0 ½ ½ ½ 0 3½
Gelfand went on to the Karpov - Gelfand Candidates Final (1995). Kramnik, who participated in the cycle of the PCA (Professional Chess Association), had also been knocked out in June in the Kamsky - Kramnik PCA Quarterfinal (1994)."The match of my future opponent was of most interest to me personally. If we talk about forecasts, then it must be stated that many preferred the chances of the young star, Vladimir Kramnik. His victories over Kasparov were mentioned in this regard. But his opponent was also not the easiest to deal with. It is no accident that Boris Gelfand was clear first in the 1993 Interzonal, and tied for first with Ivanchuk in 1990. We can also recall other brilliant victories by the GM from Belarus, such as the Alekhine Memorial (Moscow 1992), and Dos Hermanas, Spain (1994). Both chessplayers know theory very well and possess excellent command of tactics as well as positional maneuvering. Kramnik's choice of opening strategy surprised everyone. He totally abandoned his favorite closed systems — perhaps he did not want to face Gelfand's pet Meran variations, or the Botvinnik variation, which Gelfand occasionally plays. Kramnik remembered his childhood years and returned to the open game with 1. e2-e4, but, one must say, without any significant opening novelties. On the other hand, Gelfand's opening preparation turned out to be much deeper, and he produced a number of interesting ideas." (Karpov)
Sources
Mark Weeks' website (https://www.mark-weeks.com/chess/94...)
FIDE rating list July 1994 (https://web.archive.org/web/2022100...)
Jaque 383, August 1994, p. 6 (https://www.olimpbase.org/leagueES/...)
Sakkélet, 10 June 1995, pp. 140-141 (https://adt.arcanum.com/en/view/Sak...)
Sakkélet, 10 July 1995, pp. 178-180 (https://adt.arcanum.com/en/view/Sak...)
Chess Life, December 1994, pp. 56-59 (https://uscf1-nyc1.aodhosting.com/C...)
The Indian Express, 30 July 1994, p. 20 (https://books.google.no/books?id=64...)
Tidskrift för Schack, September 1994, pp. 356-362 (https://tfsarkiv.schack.se/pdf/1994...)
Leontxo Garcia in Jaque 384, September 1994, pp. 8-18 (https://www.olimpbase.org/leagueES/...)
Boris Gelfand in Jaque 384, September 1994, pp. 41-43 (https://www.olimpbase.org/leagueES/...)
Anatoly Karpov in Chess Life, December 1994, pp. 12-14 (https://uscf1-nyc1.aodhosting.com/C...)
Original collection: Game Collection: Gelfand - Kramnik Candidates Semifinal by User: Tabanus. Games dates (July 25, 26, 28, 29, 31, August 1, 3, 5) are from Dutch newspapers at https://www.delpher.nl/.
Kibitzing
