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Anand secures a draw against Ivanchuk to take sole first place. Morozevich completes an amazing comeback dragging himself from the bottom of the table to second place with a decisive rout of Svidler. Leko’s last position is consoled with a win against Carlsen.

Anand suffered only one defeat - against Aronian. His two smooth wins over Carlsen certainly helped remove the main threat to first place. Morozevich after starting with early two losses, came back strongly in the second half of the tournament. It would have been even better had he converted his tremendous French position against Topalov in Round 7. Carlsen impressed in his second major super GM tournament - leading the tournament for most of the way. His double reverse against Anand is the only blip on his achievement here.

Topalov’s typical second-half storming comeback failed to materialise, he struggled against Morozevich, blundered against Carlsen and Ivanchuk. Since his World Championship match against Kramnik last year, Topalov has been in the doldrums. Perhaps the rest of the field are starting to understand how to play against Topalov?

Ivanchuk - Anand

Both sides get free unhindered development from a Queen’s Indian, but Ivanchuk has a small edge. Ivanchuk focuses in on the d6-hole in Anand’s position. Anand manages to stave off a White knight landing on the weak square, and by completing the hedgehog set-up he has his position solidly under control, and both players agree to a draw.

Svidler - Morozevich

Morozevich’s energetic queenside expansion in the Classical French catches Svidler off guard. Svidler plays into Black’s hands by forcing an exchange of dark-squared bishops which activates Morozevich’s knights. Svidler’s retreat tangles up his pieces. Morozevich sacrifices a pawn to open the d-file and bring his rooks in. Svidler’s king is stuck in the centre. Svidler invests an exchange in an effort to garner some counterplay, but this merely allows Morozevich to demolish Svidler’s kingside. Svidler is busted.

Leko - Carlsen

Leko handles Carlsen’s Queen’s Indian sideline comfortably, and emerges from the opening with an advantage. Through a pin on the Black rooks Leko creates a passed d-pawn for himself. Carlsen creates a neat mating cheapo, but Leko deflects it easily. Leko forces his rook through to the seventh rank with a clever tactical manoeuvre, and simplifies into a winning endgame.

Topalov - Aronian

In a Queen’s Indian position, played by both players earlier in the tournament, Topalov deviates first with 16. cxb6. Players agree to a draw shortly thereafter.

Morozevich wins a tough endgame battle against Topalov which relegates the Bulgarian to the half a point from bottom of the tournament standings. Other games are hard-fought draws.

Morozevich - Topalov

Morozevich’s c3 Sicilian sidesteps any Topalov-prepared line. Morozevich plays an active positional game after Topalov allows a doubling of e-pawns. The position is reminiscent of a King’s Indian Attack or a quiet anti-Marshall Ruy Lopez. Instead of seeking activity on the kingside, Topalov seeks to neutralise Morozevich’s c-file pressure. As the queenside lines open, pieces get whittled off quickly leaving each side with two minor pieces. Morozevich’s outside passed pawn offers him a small chance of winning. He embarks on risky play on the kingside, sacrificing his e-pawn. Both sides have two passed pawns - Topalov’s is doubled on the e-file, Morozevich’s are on each wing. His a-pawn does a sterling job of holding up Black’s knight. After the exchange of knights the game spirals into a queen and pawns ending, where White’s second passed-pawn gives him a strong advantage. Morozevich shepards the pawn to promotion even after Topalov sacrifices his own.

Anand - Leko

Anand employs the 7. h3 Anti-Marshall system against Leko’s Ruy Lopez. Anand gains a tiny edge, and uses that to create some threats on the kingside. Leko defuses the threats, but is pushed onto the defensive. Anand allows a small combination which brings the game back to a balanced position, and a draw ensues.

Aronian - Ivanchuk

Aronian’s Classical approach to Ivanchuk’s Queen’s Indian Defence does contain a small drop of poison after an early central pawn advance. Aronian infuses tactical complications forcing Ivanchuk to find his way through the thicket of variations - Aronian misses a winning continuation but reaches a better endgame, Ivanchuk’s kingside pawn structure is shattered, but he defends the ending well earning a draw.

Carlsen - Svidler

Svidler adopts a super-solid Slav Grunfeld and establishes equality. Carlsen plays cautiously, until Svidler provokes him into sacrificing a pawn. After a flurry of exchanges, Carlsen embarks on a queenside advance prior to regaining his sacrificed pawn. This allows him to take control of the long white diagonal a8-h1, at the cost of allowing Svidler to develop his rooks. Svidler sparks off another tactical sequence, including Carlsen trading his queen for the two black rooks. The precarious position of Black’s knight allows Carlsen to force a draw by repetition.

Morozevich’s determined play overcomes Ivanchuk. Svidler registers his first win of the tournament with an elegant win over Leko.

Ivanchuk - Morozevich

Ivanchuk reprises the Scotch Game, the opening that almost secured him a win against Leko in the first round. Morozevich is the master of old openings, and its no surprise he emerges from the opening with an edge. Morozevich uses his edge to open queenside lines against the castled White king. Ivanchuk scrambles to secure the queenside. With a delicate knight manoeuvre, Morozevich aims his major pieces at the White king as the minor pieces disappear off the board. The pressure down the a-file gets transformed into a position where Black has strong passed pawns on the kingside. A small combination sees Black give up the two rooks for a queen, and Ivanchuk throws in the towel.

Leko - Svidler

In a standard Najdorf position Leko employs the unusual move 11. Qe1 vacating a square that can be used by a harassed White knight. Svidler has a tiny nagging edge thanks to the tangled position of White’s pieces. Leko’s manoeuvre to win a pawn opens his own position to great danger, and Svidler with the initiative builds strong pressure in the centre with his two bishops. Svidler’s combination of passed pawn and queenside pressure forces major weaknesses in Leko’s position, which collapses shortly thereafter.

Topalov - Carlsen

Topalov employs a symmetrical English - an interesting choice against the youngster. Carlsen gets an open and free position, and his minor pieces entice Topalov to retreat his queen far out on the kingside. The queen emerges deep in the heart of Black’s queenside, but Carlsen calmly forces a repetition of position and a draw.

Anand - Aronian

Anand prefers to avoid Aronian’s Marshall as the game heads into a typical anti-Marshall Ruy Lopez. Aronian’s queenside expansion ratchets open the a-file, and one set of rooks disappear. Aronian consolidates and the position is equal. A draw agreed.

Carlsen’s grip crushes Ivanchuk. Aronian and Leko engage in an exciting struggle, so to do Svidler and Topalov.

Carlsen - Ivanchuk

Carlsen employs the Classical Exchange against Ivanchuk’s Grunfeld. Carlsen emerges with a clear advantage, even when both pairs of rooks are swapped off. He locks down on the dark-squares around Ivanchuk’s king. Ivanchuk’s queen is too far away from the kingside, and he can only meekly fend off White’s threats only to walk into a nasty pin on the queenside. Carlsen exploits the pin by a central advance, and wins material, which he easily converts into a win.

Morozevich - Anand

Morozevich unveils an unusual twist in a Queen’s Indian, and its enough to emerge from the opening with a tiny edge in the resulting Catalan-like structure. After Anand defuses an emerging initiative from Morozevich the game settles down into a solid middlegame where neither side can make much progress, so by repetition of position both players are satisfied with a draw.

Aronian - Leko

Leko offers a Modern Benoni, but Aronian opts for a Symmetrical English set-up. The position slides into a Maroczy bind territory, with Aronian striking first with a 16. c5 thrust to seize an advantage. Leko defends and takes over the initiative on the queenside, forcing a series of retreats from Aronian. Leko builds up a dominating position with a clear advantage. Aronian’s tenacious defence reduces Leko’s edge and winning chances. The double rook endgame brings a draw.

Svidler - Topalov

Svidler avoids the miscue that landed him in trouble against the same opponent in Corus 2007. Topalov builds up an initiative on the queenside against Svidler’s king. Svidler defends cautiously and regains the initiative, forcing Topalov into a series of exchanges that hasten the endgame. Svidler sacrifices a knight to open up Topalov’s king and forces a perpetual to settle the draw.

Anand wins a masterful strategic game against Carlsen. Ivanchuk sacrifices a piece which is good enough to force a draw. Leko and Topalov emerge equal in a hard-fought draw.

Anand - Carlsen

Carlsen adopts the Chigorin Closed Ruy Lopez, and Anand plays the position perfectly. Carlsen runs into a little trouble on the c-file, forcing his knight into an awkward retreat to the corner. Just when Carlsen has the queenside under control, Anand switches to a kingside attack, throwing Carlsen off balance. With a weakened kingside, Carlsen can’t prevent Anand installing a knight on e6, dominating Black’s position. Anand builds his kingside attack by feinting a threat to occupy the c-file, and Carlsen is forced to concede a protected passed pawn in the centre, and after a few more deft moves by Anand, Carlsen surrenders.

Aronian - Morozevich

Aronian employs the aggressive 7… g4 against Morozevich’s Semi-Slav and creates a complicated position. After a flurry of tactics and exchanges, the position simplifies into a four piece ending, which neither side has a strong enough advantage to achieve more than a draw.

Ivanchuk - Svidler

Ivanchuk gives the 8. h3 anti-Marshall a spin and builds a solid quiet position. This gives Svidler time to recombine his pieces and gains some play sacrificing a pawn with a thematic … d5 thrust. Ivanchuk surprises his opponent by sacrificing a piece for an attack. The piece is good enough for a draw, but Ivanchuk presses on since he has potential winning chances. After a clever manoeuvre, Ivanchuk forces the win of a piece, and this allows Svidler a perpetual check.

Leko - Topalov

Leko’s pet 7. Nf3 system is again tested against Topalov’s Najdorf. Topalov plays a strange 11… Rc8?!, but gains some initiative on the kingside. Leko engineers a queenside pawn advance, which threatens to break through. Topalov gains an edge in the race of wing attacks, but Leko neutralises the advantage in a double rook and minor piece endgame, producing a hard-fought draw.

Topalov survives a scare against Ivanchuk. Morozevich smashes Leko with a brutal attack. A day off for Carlsen and Aronian. Anand has to fight for a draw.

Topalov - Ivanchuk

Topalov plays a little passively in a Sicilian Paulsen/Kan, but gradually builds up a kingside attack. Ivanchuk calmly neutralises the attack before it gains any momentum and comes away with a strong grip on the centre. That grip slowly weakens Topalov’s position, and his king is exposed. Topalov gets into an awkward pin with his knight which allows Ivanchuk to grab the initiative in the complicated endgame. Ivanchuk forces the win of a pawn, and Topalov is in desperate trouble. Topalov puts up a stubborn defence and eventually claws himself into a position where Ivanchuk has nothing better than a draw by repetition.

Morozevich - Leko

Morozevich unleashes a side-line of the Queen’s Indian Defence compelling Leko to head into a Benoni-like position. Leko tries to unbundle his cramped position, but incautiously allows and then accepts a typical h-file exchange sacrifice. The sacrifice smashes Leko’s kingside pawn structure, and Morozevich goes on the offensive. He calmly brings all his pieces into the attack, and gets his knight into e6 with a clever manoeuvre. Suddenly Leko’s position is demolishes with a series of blows. Leko lashes out hoping for a perpetual, but Morozevich clinically wipes away all resistance.

Carlsen - Aronian

Both players follow Topalov-Leko from round 3, and Carlsen deviates with 27. Bf1 which concludes a draw by repetition of position.

Svidler - Anand

Anand equalises out of a Petroff, and accepts a smashed queenside for the two bishops. Anand sacrifices a pawn to activate his pieces, and Svidler doesn’t seize the moment to increase his advantage. Anand comfortably holds the endgame.

Morozevich has a tough struggle to secure a draw against Carlsen. Leko and Ivanchuk show some fighting spirit. The rest of the field take the day off.

Morozevich - Carlsen

Morozevich adopts an ancient variation out of an Open Ruy Lopez, allowing Carlsen to remove White’s potent light-squared bishop for the cost of a pawn. Morozevich returns the pawn, and Carlsen gradually takes over the initiative. Carlsen makes a slip in a complicated position, and both sides settle for the draw.

Leko - Ivanchuk

Ivanchuk adopts a Rubinstein French which gives Leko a slight edge. Ivanchuk sacrifices a pawn to free his position and hasten the endgame. Ivanchuk regains his pawn and simplifies into a drawn pawn endgame.

Anand - Topalov

In a Najdorf Sicilian Topalov avoids the … Be6 that got him into deep trouble against Ivanchuk earlier in the tournament. Topalov equalises comfortably, and a draw is agreed.

Aronian - Svidler

Aronian plays an eclectic variation of the Grunfeld that prevents Svidler from pursuing the typical strategic objectives of the opening. And a draw is declared very early on.

Anand fends off a Leko initiative, and sacrifices an exchange to liquidate into a very promising endgame. Ivanchuk grounds down Aronian in a positional contest. Topalov has a slice of luck against Morozevich. Svidler’s little flurry of activity registers a draw.

Leko - Anand

Anand’s rapid queenside expansion against Leko’s Catalan looks risky as Leko builds up a comfortable advantage. Anand defends tenaciously, and gradually takes over the initiative with a strong centralisation of his pieces. In the double rooks and bishops middle game, Anand is on top. Anand sacrifices an exchange to hasten the endgame where his queenside pawns are very strong. Leko resigns knowing Anand’s queenside pawns are virtually unstoppable.

Ivanchuk - Aronian

Aronian gets a solid Queen’s Gambit position from his Ragozin defence. Ivanchuk lands Aronian with an isolated pawn and proceeds to build up pressure. Aronian jettisons the weak pawn in an attempt to gain compensation, but Ivanchuk remorselessly increases his advantage, and grounds Aronian’s position right down.

Topalov - Morozevich

Topalov is a little unsure on the white side of a Classical French. Morozevich plays a thematic pawn sacrifice with 9… g5?! to break up White’s kingside. Black’s initiative is bolstered with a typical (but risky) French knight-sacrifice to remove White’s pawn centre. Morozevich regains his sacrificed material with a forced knight manoeuvre, leaving him a pawn up, but allowing Topalov to take over the initiative late in the middle game. With Morozevich’s king stuck in the centre and his queenside undeveloped, Topalov has ample compensation for his pawn. Morozevich blunders just before time control.

Svidler - Carlsen

Carlsen adopts an Accelerated Dragon against Svidler’s unusual move-order. Carlsen accepts an isolated d-pawn and the two bishops. Svidler builds up an advantage on the queenside, but heads straight for a draw.

All draws today. Anand and Ivanchuk put in a proper days work while the rest of the players take a day off.

Anand - Ivanchuk

Anand plays a quiet 10. h3 against Ivanchuk’s Sicilian Najdorf leading to equality. Ivanchuk gets a slight advantage thanks to his e-pawn backed by a rook, and he builds that into a sizeable advantage. Ivanchuk rejects an opportunity to win a pawn, which allows Anand to consolidate his position and neutralise Ivanchuk’s advantage

Aronian - Topalov

Topalov quickly takes advantage of Aronian’s reticence in the centre to grab an advantage. After some tactical trickery both sides agree a draw.

Carlsen - Leko

Leko’s Semi-Slav follows Carlsen’s game against Topalov from the previous round, and Leko deviates with 10… Qe7, and both sides seem content to play out a draw by repetition right out of the opening.

Morozevich - Svidler

Both players call it evens still inside an English Four Knights opening.

Carlsen gains a point over Topalov after Topalov resigns in a drawn position - Carlsen had missed a winning line, but nevertheless played extremely well. Aronian’s piece play and sacrifices bewitches Anand. Svidler bails out to a draw in Leko’s Marshall. Ivanchuk’s Berlin stands up to Morozevich’s scrutiny.

Carlsen - Topalov

Carlsen nurses a slight advantage from a Semi-Slav. On the first time control Carlsen has a good handle of the position, Topalov missing a few equalising opportunities. Carlsen embarks on a kingside attack by opening the g-file and creating a battering ram with his h-pawn. This forces Topalov backwards and Carlsen sacrifices the d5-pawn gaining time for his attack. He misses a winning line, and Topalov resigns missing a drawing resource.

Aronian - Anand

Aronian takes a slight edge from a Queen’s Gambit Accepted / Catalan opening. Anand misses his chance at equality, and Aronian seizes the opportunity to create a threatening pawn centre, backed by both of his bishops. Anand looks close to equalising, but as the pieces come off, Aronian’s passed d-pawn becomes a monster, and the a-pawn is threatening. Aronian sacrifices a piece, followed by a rook to ensure both pawns can be shepherded through. Anand sacrifices back material leaving Aronian in a winning endgame with an extra exchange.

Svidler - Leko

Svidler allows a Marshall attack, and Leko opts for 17… f5 avoiding any prepared improvements over Svidler’s earlier game with Aronian. All of Leko’s pieces build up against the White king, and Svidler plays it carefully, and both sides take a draw by repetition.

Morozevich - Ivanchuk

Ivanchuk adopts the Berlin Defence against Morozevich’s Ruy Lopez and locks down White on both wings. Although Morozevich gets a knight posted on d5, Ivanchuk’s hold of the position is enough for equality. Morozevich can’t make any progress, and a repetition of position concludes the draw.