<29…d5> seems like a key error by Black (maybe he should have played it back on move 20 or 21); he wins the pawn back, but with his rooks getting meanwhile into very awkward squares, so that the opening of the position is definitely in White’s favor. Instead, a better idea would probably have been 29…Nd4 (a square which Carlsen was actually eyeing for the knight already from move 21…) 30.Nxd4 cxd4 31.a4 (31.Rxd4 Rxa2) Bf6. Shipov claims in his commentary (http://www.chessintranslation.com/2...) that after 32.Ng4 Bg7 33.Nh2! and 34.Nf3 White has a “solid edge”, but I don’t know if it’s so bad for Black after 33…e5, certainly in comparison to the game. Another possibility was to play 28…d5 without first exchanging on f4, which would have deprived White of some of the tactical possibilities he later gets from the open g file.

I like playing the White side of the QID with this Queen sortie. Even with the exchange of Queens, White's position is too mobile and piece maneuverings are a-plenty!

Carlsen's woes continue.

<Carlsen loses AGAIN.

Wow. It's not even news anymore.>

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 b6 4.g3 Ba6 5.Qa4 Bb7 6.Bg2 c5 7.dxc5 bxc5 8.0–0 Be7 9.Nc3 0–0 10.Rd1 Qb6 11.Bf4 Rd8 12.Rab1 h6 13.Qb5 <Novelty 13 a3 Kramnik v Bacrot Dortmund 2009> Bc6 14.Qxb6 axb6 15.b3 g5 16.Bxb8 Raxb8 17.Ne5 Bxg2 18.Kxg2 Rbc8< Black want's to play 19...d6 so has to stop 19 Nc6 forking the rooks.> 19.e4 d6 20.Nd3 Kf8 21.h3 <Typical Kramnik, not in a rush to divulge his plans in this type of position just yet.> 21...Nd7 22.f4 Nb8< A lot of time is being invested in re-routing the knight from f6.> 23.Na4 Nd7< and it can't even get to its intended c6 square.> 24.Nf2 Ra8 <Magnus sets off on a plan to rid himself of this b6 pawn.> 25.Rd2 Ra5< With the idea 26...b5 and exchanging the problem pawn.> 26.Nc3< But Kramnik wont allow it.> 26...Nb8 <This knights determined to get to c6.> 27.Rbd1 <This threatens 28 fxg5 hxg5 29 e5, > 27...Nc6< At last it got there.> 28.Nb5 gxf4 29.gxf4 d5?< Kramnik's pressure now increases dramatically. 29...Nd4 seems to be a better way of easing his position with exchanges 29...Nd4 30.Nxd4 cxd4 31.Rxd4 Rxa2 32.e5 Bh4 33.R4d2 Rxd2 34.Rxd2 dxe5 35.Rxd8+ Bxd8 36.fxe5 and probably a draw.] >30.exd5 exd5 31.cxd5 Rxb5< [31...Nd4 32.Nxd4 cxd4 33.Rxd4 Rxa2 34.d6 Bh4 35.R4d2 Rxd2 36.Rxd2 Bxf2 37.Kxf2 Ke8 38.Kf3 Kd7 39.Kg4 Rg8+ 40.Kh5 Rg3 41.h4 Rg6 42.f5 Rf6 43.Rd5 Kc8 44.b4 b5 45.Kg4 Kd7 46.Rxb5 Rxd6 47.Rb7+ Ke8 48.Kf4 f6 49.Kg4 A sample line of how tough this is to defend for black.]> 32.dxc6 Rc8 33.Ng4 Rxc6 34.Ne5 Re6 35.Kf3 Ra5 36.Rg2 <Threatening 37 Nd7+ Ke8 38 Rg8+ Bf8 39 Nxf8 winning a piece> 36...f6 37.Nc4 Ra7< [37...Ra8 38.f5 Rc6 39.a4 Rd8 40.Rdg1 Ke8 41.Rg8+ Bf8 42.R1g7 Once again black's completely tied down.] >38.f5 Rc6 39.a4 Rb7 40.Rg6 h5 41.Rdg1 Ke8 42.Ne5 Rc8 43.Rg8+ Bf8 44.Ng6 Rf7 45.Rd1 1–0 < After 46 Rd6 black has no moves, and is totally tied in knots. Very impressive by Kramnik.>

Impressive by Kramnik, the master of slow manouevering positions. When you've had a recent bad run of results, the last person you want to face (with black) is Kramnik. Kramnik played with almost pin point accuracy in this game, and tied Magnus up in knots.

Kramnik's chess understanding is so immense I really believe he can win the world title back.

Magnus seemed to get his timing wrong with 29...d5? after which Kramnik went on the rampage and played to perfection.

Right, Mr.Thomas! :)

There is heavy analysis in the opening moves of course, but I can't help but like Kramnik's 5.Qa4, which immediately pins black's d-pawn, and dislike Carlsen's loss of tempo by retreating 5...Bb7.

After the opening of the d-file the battle for d5 is on: 8...Be7 9.Nc3 O-O 10.Rd1

Then the battle for d6: 10...Qb6 11.Bf4 Rd8

With 13.Qb5 and 14.Qxb6 axb6 15.b3 Kramnik creates a hole on b5, a weak pawn on b6 and consolidates his queen side structure. Efficient.

After the commital 15...g5, the trade of white's DSB for black's QK with 16.Bxb8 Rxb8 may be a result of seeing the knight's potential support of d5 by Na6-c7 and recognizing that white's DSB's influence on d6 is less important than black's QK's influence on d5.

With 17.Ne5 Kramnik engineers the trade of black's best minor piece, his LSB, while 19.e4 further cements control of d5.

Having consolidated the queen side by creating holes on b5 and d5, 21.h3, which guards g4, followed by 22.f4, expands the kingside.

23.Na4 embarrasses black's QK back to d7 to protect the weak pawn on b6.

25...Ra8, 26...Ra5 is a plan to push the b pawn to b5, but this is countered by retracting the knight back to c3, which again eyes the nice hole on b5.

26...Nb8 and 27...Nc6 finally extablish some pressure for Carlsen on d4, but the momentum is a bit late. After doubling up rooks on the d-file and plopping a knight on b5, the pressure is too much and Carlsen cracks with 29...d5.

White's dormant knight springs to life with 33.Ng4, 34.Ne5 and 37.Nc4, and then after the inexact 35...Ra5 his rooks quick-switch over to the g-file with 36.Rg2 and 41.Rdg1 and it's pretty much over. The knight bounds to g6 via e5, while the rook pins black's poor DSB, and zugzwang ensues, game over.

I wish I could do that to the 10,000th ranked player in the world :-)

The absolute age does not matter as much as number of games played in international tournaments. GM Carlsen is not just a kid; he is a veteran super GM with at least 5 years worth of intensive international tournament experience tucked under his belt. As explained in another way, the Carlsen of today has probably played as many or even more international chess games than the Capablanca of 1919, the Alekhine of 1924, the Botvinnik of 1946, the Karpov of 1972, the Kasparov of 1983, the Anand of 1991. He is their superior in terms of chess experience, even if all of them were older than him.

Every human being has a limit to his chess talent. The question for younger GMs and for the GMs newly-arrived-at-the-international scene is:

Has Carlsen reached the peak that his natural chess talent will allow him to reach (after the necessary strengthening international experience) and has now plateaued off, or is he still on the rise? After they themselves have gained the same chess experience as Carlsen, would their subsequent peak and plateau be sufficient to afford him close competition? This could well determine the next World Champion after the Anand-Kramnik era (which considering the way Anand played in this year's WC match and the way Kramnik is trying to motivate himself might still last for quite some time if they keep it up). If they cannot reach Carlsen's peak, he would most probably become the next World Champion.