(8) Kramnik,V (2751) - Kasparov,G (2830) [E32]
BGN World Chess Championship (8), 21.10.2000
[Team Kasparov]

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 The Nimzo-Indian Defense! Not one of Kasparov's usual defenses, but one he plays remarkably well with both colors. 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.Qc2 0-0 5.a3 Bxc3+ 6.Qxc3 b6 7.Bg5 Bb7 8.f3 h6 9.Bh4 d5 10.e3 Nbd7 11.cxd5 Nxd5 12.Bxd8 Nxc3 13.Bh4 Nd5 14.Bf2 c5 15.Bb5 Rfd8 16.e4 Nc7N Believe it r not, the first new move, and the first move to diverge from a Kasparov-Kramnik game! But in that one Kasparov was white, and won the game in the 1998 blitz match held in Moscow. In that game, and in another between Anand and Karpov last year, Black played 16...Ne7. Kasparov found this powerful new move atnightbeforethisgame! 17.Bxd7 Rxd7 18.dxc5 f5! The key move. 19.cxb6 [19.Rc1 bxc5 20.exf5 exf5 21.Bxc5 Re8+ 22.Ne2 Ba6 Black is winning.] 19...axb6 Kasparov was clearly still in homework territory, having only used five minutes! Kramnik on the other hand had used most of an hour. This was a role-reversal after Kasparov had been on the defensive in the openings in almost every game against the well-prepared Kramnik. 20.Ne2 [20.Bxb6 fxe4 21.fxe4 Bxe4 22.Nf3 Nd5 With good compensation for the pawn.] 20...fxe4 21.fxe4 Bxe4 22.0-0 Rd2 23.Nc3 Bb7 24.b4 Rf8 Kasparov goes for maximum pressure and soon wins a pawn. But the presence of opposite-colored bishops makes the win very difficult to find for Black. And as always, Kramnik defends marvelously. 25.Ra2 Rxa2 26.Nxa2 Nd5 27.Bd4 Ra8 28.Nc3! Kasparov: clearly the best move. 28...Nxc3 29.Bxc3 Rxa3 30.Bd4 b5 Now what?! White is a pawn down, and in a minute he'll voluntarily go two pawns down, but it's still a draw! In the press conference Kasparov thought he might have missed a win in this endgame or right before it, but we haven't found one yet. The Rapid Recap will defer to GM Shipov and the players themselves, who will soon provide us with exclusive analysis as always! 31.Rf4 Rd3 Perhaps this is where winning chances left the building. Team Kasparov analysts, GMs Kobalya and Kharlov, later found the interesting 31...h4 32.g4 Bf3! [31...h5 Kobalya 32.g4 Bf3! Kharlov] 32.Rg4 g5 33.h4 Kf7 34.hxg5 hxg5 35.Kf2 Rd2+ [35...Kg6 Khodarkovsky 36.Ke2 (36.Be3 Kf6) 36...Rb3 37.Be3 Kf6 The g5 pawn is off-limits to both white pieces! With rooks still on the board black maintains his extra pawn and still some winning chances.] 36.Ke3 Rxg2 37.Rxg2 Bxg2 38.Be5 Yes, this is a draw. White can easily blockade the black pawns thanks to the incompatible bishops. A cool save from Kramnik, and the best position Kasparov has had yet in the match so far. After this easy draw with black, Kasparov should come out swinging in game 9 tomorrow. Vladimir Kramnik deserves all compliments for leading the match at the halfway point. He has clearly dictated play and been the superior player at the key moments. We noticed that the endgame here is very similar to that in game 2, with colors reversed. And of course the most important difference is that Kasparov didn't win here, while Kramnik got the full point! 1/2-1/2