ODT131210

=**Carlsen crowned World Champion**=




 * Problem:** White to play and mate in five.

Magnus Carlsen has fulfilled the promise he has shown since he was a teenager and become World Champion. The 22 year-old Norwegian grandmaster took on the reigning champion Viswanathan Anand, twice his age and in is home town of Chennai, India last month. As the highest rated player in chess history, Carlsen started as warm favourite in the best of 12 game match.

Interest centered on whether Anand could find way of neutralising Carlsen's strategy of steering the play toward long games where he could pose his opponent difficult problems to solve. Anand had his chances for advantage in games one and three, but was content to draw. In game four Carlsen won a pawn, but determined defence by Anand saved the draw. Then in game five the match swung in the Challenger's favour when he achieved the type of position he wanted and ground out a typical win. Anand could not recover mentally in time for the next game and lost his second in a row. After two more draws Anand's last chance came in the ninth game, when he switched openings and managed to get the type of razor-sharp attacking position he needed. Despite being within a whisker of mate, Carlsen's tenacious defence showed his cool head and awesome calculating ability. It was Anand who finally cracked under the pressure, blundering to a third loss. Carlsen pressed for a win in the tenth game, but eventually settled for a draw to finish the match, winning 6½-3½.

Today's game is the critical fifth game that turned the match. Carlsen is playing with the white pieces. media type="custom" key="24899276" Avoiding the super-sharp Marshall Gambit line against the Semi-Slav Defence starting with 6 Bd2. Carlsen's choice offers no more than equal chances, so his opponent is unlikely to have prepared deeply. A new move. White supports the knight on c3 and intends to bring a rook quickly to the d-file. Exchanging knight for the bishop while it is tied to d4. Another possibility was 11... Ne5 12 Qc2 Neg4 with the same idea. Too eager to resolve the tension, Anand allows Carlsen to get an ending where Black is passive, though he has the two bishops. Equal were either 13... Nxd4 keeping queens on, or 13... 0-0 with a tempo up on the game. An good alternative was 16... Bb6!? 17 Rd3 Ba6 activating the bishops. Giving up the bishop pair to activate his rooks. But 18... Bc7 19 Nc5 Be8 20 Na6 Be5 21 b4 f5 offers sufficient counterplay to draw. After the game Carlsen thought his advantages of better bishop and pawn structure were close to winning, if he had found the right plan. But for the next phase Anand defends well. A possible path to draw was 31... g4! 32 Kc3 Rc5+ 33 Kb2 g3! 34 hxg3 hxg3 and bringing the rook to h2. Playing actively, though criticised by Anand after the game. White must retain bishops or he will be worse. Sacrificing a pawn to try to reach a draw – but 39... g4 keeping the pawn was simpler. The key error after a long, hard defence. 45... Ra1! 46 Bg8+ Kc6 47 Bxb3 Rxa3 will draw. e.g. 48 Kc4 axb3 49 Rh6+ Kc7 50 Kc3 h3! 51 Rxh3 b2+ 52 Kxb2 Rxh3 53 gxh3 Kc6 winning the e-pawn and heading for h8. Carlsen's endgame technique now makes the win look easy. A finesse - keeping the king from d5. Cutting off the king from the seventh rank. Black's rook can't stop both passed pawns by itself.
 * 1.c4 e6**
 * 2.d4 d5**
 * 3.Nc3 c6**
 * 4.e4 dxe4**
 * 5.Nxe4 Bb4+**
 * 6.Nc3!? ---**
 * 6.--- c5**
 * 7.a3 Ba5**
 * 8.Nf3 Nf6**
 * 9.Be3 Nc6**
 * 10.Qd3!? ---**
 * 10.--- cxd4**
 * 11.Nxd4 Ng4**
 * 12.0-0-0 Nxe3**
 * 13.fxe3 Bc7?!**
 * 14.Nxc6 bxc6**
 * 15.Qxd8+ Bxd8**
 * 16.Be2 Ke7**
 * 17.Bf3 Bd7**
 * 18.Ne4 Bb6?!**
 * 19.c5 f5**
 * 20.cxb6 fxe4**
 * 21.b7! Rab8**
 * 22.Bxe4 Rxb7**
 * 23.Rhf1 Rb5!**
 * 24.Rf4 g5**
 * 25.Rf3 h5**
 * 26.Rdf1 Be8**
 * 27.Bc2 Rc5**
 * 28.Rf6 h4**
 * 29.e4 a5**
 * 30.Kd2 Rb5**
 * 31.b3 Bh5**
 * 32.Kc3 Rc5+**
 * 33.Kb2 Rd8**
 * 34.R1f2 Rd4!**
 * 35.Rh6 Bd1**
 * 36.Bb1 ---**
 * 36.--- Rb5**
 * 37.Kc3 c5**
 * 38.Rb2 e5**
 * 39.Rg6 a4!?**
 * 40.Rxg5 Rxb3+**
 * 41.Rxb3 Bxb3**
 * 42.Rxe5+ Kd6**
 * 43.Rh5 Rd1**
 * 44.e5+ Kd5**
 * 45.Bh7 Rc1+?**
 * 46.Kb2 Rg1**
 * 47.Bg8+ Kc6**
 * 48.Rh6+! ---**
 * 48.--- Kd7**
 * 49.Bxb3 axb3**
 * 50.Kxb3 Rxg2**
 * 51.Rxh4 Ke6**
 * 52.a4! Kxe5**
 * 53.a5 Kd6**
 * 54.Rh7! ---**
 * 54.--- Kd5**
 * 55.a6 c4+**
 * 56.Kc3 Ra2**
 * 57.a7 Kc5**
 * 58.h4 Resigns**


 * 1-0**


 * Solution:** 1 Rxg7+! Kxg7 2 Rg1+ Rg2 3 Rxg2+ Kf6 4 Qg6+ Ke5 5 Bd6#.