4NCL - The Four Nations League - www.4ncl.co.uk/pre2010

Daily Telegraph

Malcolm Pein's daily chess column is available at the Telegraph's web site. You need to register, which is free. The daily chess column can be found by clicking the "Chess Club" link in the Arts section.

This article is used on the 4NCL web site with permission.

The Mtel Masters Super tournament begins today in Sofia with local hero, world number one and Fide champion Veselin Topalov hoping to repeat his stunning success last year when he dominated a world class field with brilliant attacking play and defeated Vishy Anand, Vladimir Kramnik, Michael Adams and Ruslan Ponomariov.

Adams does not play this year. The line up, which includes four of the world’s top 10 is: Veselin Topalov (Bulgaria) -1, Vishy Anand (India) -2, Peter Svidler (Russia) -4, Ruslan Ponomariov (Ukraine) – 6, Etienne Bacrot (France) -15, Gata Kamsky (USA) -33.

Emil Sutovsky is one of the world’s most creative and combative players. His recent successes include winning the Aeroflot Open in 2005 which secured him an invite to the 2005 Dortmund tournament where he defeated Vladimir Kramnik in a wonderful sacrificial game. Sutovsky is a regular for Guildford ADC in their annual showdown with Wood Green in the final round of the 4NCL. The Israeli GM has a remarkable record of 3/3 in this fixture. His first two victims were Alexander Morozevich and Ivan Sokolov. Most recently he defeated a former winner of the Hastings tournament in some style. The long term positional sacrifice in the endgame is incredibly hard to judge but the key here is that Black finds it impossible to open files for his rook.

E Sutovsky – PH Nielsen
4NCL Birmingham (11)

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.d4 Nxe4 4.Bd3 d5 5.Nxe5 Nd7 6.Nxd7 Bxd7 7.0–0 Bd6 8.Qh5 Nf6 9.Re1+ Be7 (The Petroff is the most solid defence to e4. Black has no weaknesses and just tries to deaden White's advantage of the first move.) 10.Qf3 0–0 11.h3 Re8 12.Bf4 Bd6 13.Nd2 (13.Bxd6 cxd6 14.Nc3 Rxe1+ 15.Rxe1 Be6 16.Qf4 is a bit better for White but Black protects e5) 13...Bxf4 14.Qxf4 Nh5 15.Rxe8+ Bxe8 16.Qe5 Nf6 17.Re1 Bd7 18.Nf3 c6 (Still staying solid. Qe7 will not achieve much) 19.Qd6 Be6 (With a quick draw ?) 20.Rxe6 (No!) 20...fxe6 21.Qxe6+ Kf8 22.Bxh7! (22.Ng5 Qe7 23.Qxe7+ Kxe7 24.Nxh7 Nxh7 25.Bxh7 is probably better for Black) 22...Qe7 (22...Nxh7 23.Ne5 and Black must give up the queen to stave off mate) 23.Qf5 Qe4 (Black must get the queens off to protect his king) 24.Ne5! (Sutosky's judgement is marvellous. With knights on the black rook can be shut out of the game and the kingside pawns are potentially mobile) 24...Ke7 25.g4 Kd6 26.g5 Qxf5 27.Bxf5 Ne4 28.f4 Rf8 29.Bxe4! dxe4 30.Ng6 Rf5 31.Kf2 Rb5 32.b3 Ra5 33.a4 b5 34.Ne5 (Try as he might Black cannot open a file for his rook if 34...bxa4 34.Nc4+) 34...Ra6 35.axb5 cxb5 36.Ke3 (Winning a third pawn) 36...Ra2 (36...Kd5 37.c4+ Ke6 38.Kxe4) 37.c4 a5 38.cxb5 Rh2 39.Kxe4 Rxh3 40.Nc4+ Kc7 41.Nxa5 Kb6 42.Nc4+ Kxb5 43.Nd6+ Kc6 44.Nf5 1-0 (A final fork. If 44...g6 45.Ne7+ or 44.Nf5 Rxb3 45.Nxg7 Rb1 46.f5 Re1+ 47.Kf4 Kd5 48.g6 Kxd4 49.f6)

Nielsen

board

Sutovsky

Position after 44.Nf5

Insult is added to injury. After losing the exchange Black loses another piece.

K Arakhamia-Grant – M Lyell
4NCL Birmingham (11)

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.d3 Bc5 6.0–0 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.a4 Bg4 9.c3 0–0 10.h3 Bh5 11.Bg5 h6 12.Bxf6 Qxf6 13.Bd5 Na7 14.Bxa8 Rxa8 15.b4 1–0