Kramnik Misses A Good Chance
By Arvind Aaron
Champion Garry Kasparov was close to being two down. Under pressure in the match already, Kasparov's mistake on move 38 (38...Nf4!=) appeared too serious: he lost a piece in time pressure. Then it was Kramnik's turn to miss (59.Rg8!+-), in the second control he missed a rook move which would have won. Then, Kasparov played well in this half, hoped for a miracle and it did happen. It was a game for the spectators.
Significantly, Kasparov accepted the queen's gambit as black, shying away from the Grunfeld he relied heavily in recent games. He came up against a quiet system, Kramnik's favourite as white. Black has easy equality and it was being discarded as the first lacklustre draw. Then, Kramnik showed that fighting spirit is inside him irrespective of the position on the board. He wanted to prevail. His 20.g4 set off an aggressive tone. Kasparov injected his rook into attack first but Kramnik's rook had more bite, the black king being pegged in a tight corner in comparison to white's which had more escape squares.
Some spectators in chat sites put up lines which Kasparov and his team would never like to see. "Kasparov can resign this game and the match." ... "He is a thing of the past." "Kramnik is the new king of the world." This is what most people said when he was trailing when he was 0-5 to Karpov in 1984. He overcame that odds, else we would need to introduce who is Kasparov here in the first place. No injury intended to Kramnik. He has to wait longer.
Kasparov's fightback showed his mental toughness and make up of his character in such back to the wall situations. You seldom see top players continuing a piece down. The notable justification for his continuance was that there was few pawns on the board. Finally, he achieved what he intended. Miracles happen when you try. Trying is the best part in any field to excel. Researchers know it. Sportsmen know it. Chess players should learn from this famous example. Because in most cases you lose nothing by not trying.
Kramnik finally got a rook and knight against rook ending. It is a technical position with very few won positions for the stronger side. Kasparov did not allow that. He kept his king in the seventh rank and placed his rook actively to draw in the longest game after 74 moves and over six hours.
Kramnik tried too. In a classical tournament a year ago, it is the position he would not have continued playing for a win after the opening. We have two genuine triers and that has made the match an exciting one. Each game is getting better than the previous one. What's the last game like? I wish I could see the games of this match backwards.
Speaking after the game, Kramnik said black could have defended better. And Kasparov seated beside him could not disagree.