Games: Chess
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Your support makes all the difference.This year's Tilburg tournament is an intriguing contest between the very best players in the world and those who hope soon to take their place. Garry Kasparov faces his strongest challenge from Vladimir Kramnik, 24, the world number two, who is generally seen as the man most likely to be the next world champion. Then come Michael Adams, 26, and Judit Polgar, 21 - both players who gained their grandmaster titles at such a young age that they have already each had almost a decade of top-class experience, and Peter Leko, 19, who took away Polgar's record as the youngest grandmaster ever.
Add another seven of the world's best young players, and you have the ingredients for a fine tournament.
Kasparov's first-round game was a typically aggressive and imaginative performance. When he played 8...d5, he entered a sort of reversed Sicilian a move behind, but after 15...Nd4! everything in his position began to fit together. This idea must have been in his mind when he played f5, Qf7 and Be6. If White meets 16...exd4+ with 17.Kd1, then ...b6 wins the knight on c5 - it cannot move without allowing Bb3. As result, van Wely could find nothing better than giving up rook for bishop in order to get his king out of the centre. The result was an endgame which Kasparov seemed always likely to win.
White: Loek van Wely
Black: Garry Kasparov
1 c4 e5 27 Bxd4 a4
2 Nc3 Nc6 28 Bxg7 Kxg7
3 e3 Nf6 29 Nd2 Re5+
4 a3 g6 30 Be2 b5
5 b4 Bg7 31 Kd1 Rd5
6 Bb2 0-0 32 Kc2 c5
7 d3 Re8 33 Bf3 Rd6
8 Qc2 d5 34 h3 Kg6
9 cxd5 Nxd5 35 Nb1 h5
10 Nxd5 Qxd5 36 Nc3 g4
11 Ne2 f5 37 Bg2 Kf6
12 Nc3 Qf7 38 hxg4 hxg4
13 Na4 Be6 39 d4 Kg5
14 Nc5 Bd5 40 Kd3 Rh6
15 b5 Nd4 41 Ke2 f4
16 exd4 exd4+ 42 Be4 Rh3
17 Be2 Bxg2 43 Kd2 Rh2
18 0-0-0 Bxh1 44 Ke1 g3
19 Rxh1 Qd5 45 fxg3 fxg3
20 Re1 Re5 46 Kf1 Rf2+
21 Qb3 Qxb3 47 Kg1 b4
22 Nxb3 Rae8 48 axb4 a3
23 Kd1 Rxb5 49 d5 Kf4
24 Bf3 Rxe1+ 50 Bg6 cxd5
25 Kxe1 c6 51 Nxd5+ Kg5
26 Bd1 a5 White resigned
In the third round, Kasparov had an easy ride against the World Junior Champion, Tal Shaked of the US. White had a perfectly good game from the opening, but went badly astray with 18.d5? and 19.Bb1? After 19...Nc4 White was in a terrible mess. 20.Qd3 Ba6 is very uncomfortable, while 20.Qc2 f6 21.Bd2 e6 is also unpleasant. Neither, however was as bad as what happened in the game. At the end, White's queen was trapped in mid- board.
White: Tal Shaked
Black: Garry Kasparov
1 d4 Nf6 12 Bd3 Nd7
2 c4 g6 13 Ne2 Rd8
3 Nc3 d5 14 f3 0-0
4 cxd5 Nxd5 15 h4 h5
5 e4 Nxc3 16 Bg5 Rfe8
6 bxc3 Bg7 17 Rc1 Bb7
7 Be3 c5 18 d5 Ne5
8 Qd2 Qa5 19 Bb1 Nc4
9 Rb1 b6 20 Qf4 Be5
10 Bb5 Bd7 White resigns
11 Be2 Bc6
After four rounds, Kasparov leads with 31/2 points, ahead of Kramnik 3; Adams, Leko, Shirov and Svidler 21/2; Polgar 2; van Wely, Onischuk and Lautier 11/2; Piket 1; Shaked 0.
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