Adams seals Kramnik’s fate

LAS VEGAS, AUG 15: It was the turn of top seed, Grandmaster Vladimir Kramnik, to bow out of the World Chess Championship matches today. I...

LAS VEGAS, AUG 15: It was the turn of top seed, Grandmaster Vladimir Kramnik, to bow out of the World Chess Championship matches today. In the quarterfinals played at Hotel Caesars Palace here, the Russian was knocked out by Englishman Michael Adams who won by a convincing 3-1 margin. Adams will meet tough Armenian GM Vladimir Akopian in a four-game semifinal match starting tomorrow.

The Russian supremacy over the world championship has taken a severe beating with one Russian GM biting the dust in each of the ongoing rounds. The last Russian hope will be GM Alexander Khalifman who will take on giant killer Liviu Dieter Nisipeanu of Romania for a seat in the final and assurance of $ 396,000.

The Kramnik-Adams encounter was keenly fought in each game. They drew the first game arising out of closed Sicilian defence where Kramnik with black pieces was pawn up in a technically drawish endgame. In the second game, Michael Adams took the initiative right from the beginning and launched a whirlwind attack on thewhite King in English opening.

When the game was interestingly poised with Kramnik having an extra pawn and an advantage of seven minutes on the clock, he surprised everybody by offering a draw after 28 moves. The match now entered further set of tiebreakers of 15 minutes.

In the very first game of Moscow attack launched by the Englishman from the white pieces, Kramnik weakened his King side unnecessarily and had to lose his queen side pawns. He gave up his rook for Adams’ bishop on 31st move but could not prevent the inevitable. Kramnik surrendered finally after 44 moves.Kramnik used the rest period of 15 minutes before the next game by consulting his trainer GM Sergei Dolmatov while Adams was concentrating outside by pacing the corridors.

Kramnik adopted a reversed Sicilian defence from the white pieces. Adams was at his devastating best from the black side. His attack on the white King was gaining momentum till he played a pawn to h6 square instead of putting his queen there.

Suddenly Kramnikbounced back into the game. His pieces attacked the queen side and threatened invasion. However he played his bishop to an unguarded square on the 40th move. Adams broke through the white castle and when Kramnik was busy repairing the damage, he picked the stray piece. Kramnik resigned immediately.

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Vladimir Akopian was rather lucky to win the first game in the tiebreakers. Playing the Torre attack from the white pieces, he could get hardly any initiative against Movsezian. On the other hand, Movsezian’s strong bishops threatened to invade the white King’s wing. At this moment Movsezian played a move which will haunt him till the end of his career.

He played an apparently attacking game but a weakening pawn move on his 32nd turn saw him going down after Akopian conducted a superb mating attack.The second game was a typical Akopian masterpiece. He got a tiny edge from the black side of bishop’s opening. Akopian’s exact deployment of his army left the white pieces ineffective. The Armenian, on the verge ofvictory agreed for a courtesy draw to signal his entry into the semifinals by 1.5-0.5 margins.

After the match, Akopian said that his mental toughness saw him through till now.

The semifinal lineup: Adams (England) vs Akopian (Armenia), Nisipeanu (Romania) vs Khalifman (Russia).