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Jan Smeets vs Magnus Carlsen
Tata Steel Group A (2011), Wijk aan Zee NED, rd 6, Jan-21
Spanish Game: Berlin Defense. Berlin Wall J. Rogers Line (C67)  ·  0-1

ANALYSIS [x]

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Kibitzer's Corner
< Earlier Kibitzing  · PAGE 2 OF 2 ·  Later Kibitzing>
Jan-21-11  Marmot PFL: So white has a threat, Nc6. many moves to avoid that and win. Maybe Re4 Rxf7 Rxg4+ Kxg4 Ne5+ is best
Jan-21-11  Eyal: Shirov might actually escape with a draw against Kramnik - a tactically crazy game. A decisive result in this game, however, doesn't seem to be in much doubt.
Jan-21-11  4tmac: getting good. Smeets has nothing to lose
Jan-21-11
Premium Chessgames Member
  ketchuplover: nothing to lose but the game,rating points,and a little pride
Jan-21-11  LouLou: Magnus wins!
Jan-21-11  Chesschatology: Resignation or Loss on Time?
Jan-21-11  Rawprawn: Meanwhile back at the interesting game, Shirov's king might soon be the furthest piece up the board.
Jan-21-11  okba12: Smeet the coward-thats his real name
Jan-21-11  okba12: osteoporotic bones=the coward Smeet
Jan-21-11
Premium Chessgames Member
  moronovich: <Chesschatology: Resignation or Loss on Time?>

Lack of wood.

Jan-21-11  Ulhumbrus: <chessgames.com> Are you going to switch to the Shirov - Kramnik game?
Jan-21-11  Shams: My vote is for the Nakamura game; Shirov will is roast duck at this point.
Jan-21-11  Eyal: This game is like a dream fantasy of a Berlin player on the Black side. White gets absolutely nowhere on the K-side and center, while Black's play on the Q-side goes completely smoothly - getting rid of his doubled c-pawns (17...c4! just at the right moment, before White gets to play c4 himself) while saddling White with such pawns, and getting a passer on the a-file. Finally, White's center collapses and he loses e5. Throughout the game, Black's pieces seem perfectly coordinated and his bishop pair is extremely effective, while White's pieces are passive and get clumsily in each other's way. Maybe when Kramnik said that playing the Berlin against Carlsen is the worst possible choice, he meant with White:-)
Jan-21-11  Bobwhoosta: <Eyal>

Interesting thought, I would definitely expect Carlsen to be at home in the Berlin from either side, but have a tendency to hate it for Black because of its passivity. I look forward to going over the game to see how Smeets was outplayed...

Jan-21-11  VinnyRoo2002: You can win with the Berlin?
Jan-21-11  jmboutiere: VinnyRoo2002: You can win with the Berlin?
Yes
Topalov did that many times last years
Jan-21-11  Bobwhoosta: This game was a masterpiece!!! If there weren't at least two other masterpieces this round, I'd vote for this as Game of the Day!!!
Jan-21-11  jmboutiere: 17...c4 and 18...Bc5 are very strong
22.Kg2 better than 22.Rf1
33.Kf4 better than 33.Kg3
final position Rybka 3 - 2.7
Jan-21-11
Premium Chessgames Member
  Domdaniel: You can win with the Berlin, quite routinely, in 133 moves. It may even be a forced win for Black after the first 90, when gangrene sets in.

Doing it in just 33, however, is special.

Jan-22-11  el nanes: I thought the Berlin defence is a drawing weapon. Can't imagine Carlsen wanted a draw in this game. This game shows Carlsen deep understanding of Chess. Without Prep nobody could stand a chance against him. As soon as his prep reaches the level of Kramnik or Anand he will be impossible to beat.
Jan-22-11  ycbaywtb: <<<stand a chance against him. As soon as his prep reaches the level of Kramnik or Anand he will be impossible to beat.>>>

i remember a time when Kramnik was known for being nearly impossible to beat, and i think Anand has gone through the same experience

but Carlsen's future is in his own hands

Jan-28-11  Eyal: <But wasn't Kramnik that said this is the type of opening you do not want to play against Carlsen , due to his technique?>

Kramnik said that about playing the Berlin against Carlsen when he's <White>... that was after Dortmund 2009, where Carlsen won two games convincingly.

Btw, Carlsen said in an interview (following his later Berlin game vs. MVL), when asked about his choice of opening, that people tend to have a wrong impression about the Berlin as "boring", solid, and only drawish for Black. He said this may be true about the Ke8/h5 setup (the kind Kramnik likes to play - as in Anand vs Kramnik, 2010 or F Caruana vs Kramnik, 2010), but not the setup which he is playing. Interestingly, Aronian once said something similar after Kamsky vs Aronian, 2009 - that he goes for the Berlin when he's in the mood of playing for a win (as opposed to the Marshall, when playing for a draw).

Mar-16-11
Premium Chessgames Member
  Penguincw: Why did Smeets resign here? He's only down a pawn.Or maybe he realized that Carlsen will take advantage of his shattered queenside.
Aug-06-24
Premium Chessgames Member
  PawnSac: < Penguincw: Why did Smeets resign here? He's only down a pawn. >

actually 2 pawns after ..Nd6 & ..Nxc4

< Or maybe he realized that Carlsen will take advantage of his shattered queenside. >

If his Q-side is truly "shattered", there's at least part of the answer to your question. The bottom line is; White resigned because he knew they both knew he was busted.

The technical answer lies in accurately assessing the position. That's what we all struggle with. In other words, the goal is to study the position and figure out what brought him to that conclusion; because I assure you, they both knew he was lost.

Aug-07-24
Premium Chessgames Member
  6t4addict: interesting game
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