GM Magnus Carlsen - GM Hikaru Nakamura

Airthings Masters Grand Final, (1)

Queen’s Gambit Accepted

1.c4 Nf6 2.Nf3 e6 3.Nc3 d5 4.d4 dxc4 5.e4 This is one of the sharpest ways to respond to the Queen's Gambit Accepted - and credit to both players for keeping the game sharp and interesting with their no-holds-barred dynamic play. 5...b5 6.e5 Nd5 7.Nxb5 Nb6 This isn't exactly uncharted territory for these two titans - they had a clash with this sharp line in the original Magnus Carlsen Tour Final back in 2020. 8.a3 In that previous encounter in this line, Carlsen opted for 8.a4 and found an ingenious rook lift with a later Ra3 that swung over to the kingside to decide the game. This time, Carlsen finds another ingenious rook lift on the opposite wing that swings over to the queenside that decides the game! 8...Nc6 9.Be3 Qd7 10.Nc3 Bb7 11.Qc2 Na5?! [Even Nakamura self-critical of this move after the game: "I think in the first game I just put my knight on the wrong square, and it?s kind of crazy that putting the knight on the wrong square basically led to me getting a horrible position. I put this knight on a5 instead of e7 in Game 1, and then after that it was difficult. Maybe a computer could have found a better way to play it, but I thought that Magnus played very principled, and it was just a very clean win for him after that." Correct and more common is 11...Ne7 where the knight can more effectively come to f5 (or perhaps d5). But alas, by opting for a5, its just another re-inforcement of the old chess adage that a knight on the rim is dim. 12.Rd1 Rb8 13.Be2 Be7 14.h4 Gaining some real estate on the kingside - but only a prelude to a more devastating switch of direction on the queenside. 14...Bc6 15.h5 Ba4 16.Nxa4 Qxa4 17.Rc1 Nb3 18.Rb1 Qa5+?N As Bobby Fischer once wryly observed, "Patzer sees check, patzer gives check." It might disrupt White from castling, but it is not so much a novelty as a big blunder, as the random check has just served to nudge the king to safety on f1 anyway. Previously seen here has been 18...Na5 19.Qc1 Nd5 20.Bd2 c5 21.dxc5 0-0 22.0-0 c3 23.bxc3 Nc4 24.Bxc4 Rxb1 25.Qxb1 Qxc4 26.h6 where White was clearly better, but Black still with good survival chances due to the crippled queenside, as seen in Martirosyan-Anton, Terme Catez 2021.19.Kf1 c5 20.h6! Carlsen achieves the feat of seeing the "AlphaZero" pawn quickly racing up the board to h6! 20...g6 21.dxc5 Bxc5 22.Bxc5 Qxc5 23.Rh4! Who needs to castle anyway? The rook lift suddenly wrecks havoc on Black's queenside, as there's a tactical hit on the c4-pawn that can't be stopped. 23...0-0 The only possible option when it dawns on you that 23...Rc8 24.Bxc4! Nxc4 25.Qxb3 is simply winning for White anyway. 24.Bxc4 The game is effectively over at this stage - but Carlsen's technique in finishing off Nakamura from here in is nothing short of impressive. 24...Rfc8 25.Bxb3 Qb5+ 26.Qe2 Qxb3 27.Rb4! The rook swinging over to the queenside just adds to Nakamura's agony, as his queen is bundled out of the game. 27...Qa2 Objectively best is 27...Qd5 but after 28.Rd1 Qc5 29.Nh2! with the idea of Ng4-f6+ is easily winning, so rather than dying on that particular hill, Nakamura - as is his wont - tries to mix it up a little with an obscure queen move to try to salvage something from the wreckage. 28.Rd1 a5 29.Rb5 a4 30.Qe4! Carlsen's technique is very instructive here. He's clearly winning, but he finds a way to force Nakamura into a humbling trade of queens or face a quick mate with Qe4-f4-f6 etc. And with the queens safely off and the back-rank mating threats still on the board, Carlsen very effectively clears up in the endgame. 30...Qc4+ 31.Qxc4 Nxc4 32.Rxb8 Rxb8 33.Rd4 Rc8 The b-pawn is taboo. After 33...Nxb2? the simple win is 34.Ke2! Rc8 35.Rb4 Nc4 36.Rxa4 Nb6 37.Ra7 and the a-pawn is now also an added threat as well as the back-rank mating threats. 34.Rd7 Nxb2 35.Ng5 Rf8 This had to be nothing but pure agony for Nakamura, as Carlsen makes him suffer by having to defend an extremely passive position with his rook tied down to fending off the mating attacks. 36.Rd4! [see diagram] Carlsen twists the knife now by dominating the knight, which is now very short of squares. 36...Rc8 37.Rf4 Rc1+ There's no hope whatsoever for Nakamura. If 37...Rf8 the simple win is just 38.Ke2! and there's no stopping Ke2-d2-c2 and picking off the doomed knight. 38.Ke2 Rc2+ 39.Ke3 Rc3+ 40.Kd2 Rc7 After the little flurry of activity, Nakamura is resigned to the fact he has to defend the pawn. Now Carlsen squeezes the life out of his opponent's wreck of a position by creating a passed a-pawn. 41.Rb4 Nc4+ 42.Ke2 Rc8 Again Nakamura has to defend his back-rank. 43.Rxa4 Nxe5 44.Ra7 Total domination now from Carlsen - f7 is under attack, the back-rank mating threats still loom large, and now added to that heady mix now there's the a-pawn running up the board. 44...Ng4 If 44...Rf8 then simply 45.f3 denying the knight the g4 square is good enough to win. 45.Nxf7 Rb8 46.f3 Rb2+ 47.Kd3 Nf2+ 48.Kd4 Rd2+ A final flurry of activity for Nakamura - but it is short-lived. 49.Ke3 Ra2 50.Ng5 Nd1+ 1-0 And Nakamura resigns before Carlsen could play 51.Kd4 mating after 51...Kf8 52.Nxh7+ Ke8 53.Nf6+ Kd8 54.h7 etc.