Etienne Bacrot vs Teimour Radjabov (2008)

Members · Prefs · Laboratory · Collections · Openings · Endgames · Sacrifices · History · Search Kibitzing · Kibitzer's Café · Chessforums · Tournament Index · Players ·

Etienne Bacrot vs Teimour Radjabov
Elista Grand Prix (2008), Elista RUS, rd 2, Dec-15
English Opening: Great Snake Variation (A10) · 0-1

8

7

6

5

4

3

2

a

1

b

c

d

e

f

g

h

White to move.

ANALYSIS [x]

Notes by Stockfish 9 v010218 (minimum 6s/ply)4.e3 was played in C Boutteville vs Larsen, 1958 (1-0)5...Bd7 was played in M Fierro vs Nakamura, 2011 (0-1)7.d3 was played in Eljanov vs E Najer, 2014 (1-0)7...f5 was played in Anton Konaplev vs G Palchun, 2015 (0-1)better is 9...Nd4 10.e3 Ne6 11.Nge2 O-O 12.d3 Re8 13.O-O Nc5 14.e4 = +0.02 (24 ply) ⩲ +0.52 (20 ply)better is 15...Nf5 16.Bb2 Qb6 17.Na4 Qc7 18.e4 Ne7 19.Qb4 Nd7 = -0.01 (19 ply)better is 16.Rfc1 Qc7 17.Nd2 Ra8 18.e3 Qd7 19.Bb4 Bf5 20.Nde4 Nxe4 ⩲ +0.71 (20 ply)= +0.15 (21 ply)better is 17...Nf5 18.e3 Qc7 19.Qc2 Rb8 20.Nd2 Rxb1+ 21.Rxb1 Ra8 = +0.10 (22 ply) ⩲ +0.63 (19 ply)better is 19.Qc2 Nf5 20.Bc5 Ra8 21.Rxa8 Qxa8 22.Qd1 Qd8 23.Ra1 Bf8 ⩲ +0.72 (19 ply)better is 19...e4 20.dxe4 Nd7 21.Bb4 dxc4 22.Qc2 Rb8 23.Ra4 c5 = +0.10 (21 ply)better is 20.Qd1 Ra8 21.Rxa8 Qxa8 22.e4 dxe4 23.Ncxe4 Nd7 24.Bb4 ⩲ +0.73 (20 ply)= +0.20 (21 ply)better is 21.Ba7 Ra8 22.Ra5 Nd4 23.Qa2 Bg4 24.e3 Ne2+ 25.Nxe2 Bxe2 = +0.47 (19 ply)better is 21...Qxa3 22.Rxa3 Nd6 23.c5 Nf5 24.e4 Nd4 25.Ra7 Ra8 = -0.21 (21 ply)= +0.31 (24 ply) 28...Nd5 29.Nxd5 cxd5 30.Qb7 Rad8 31.Bf1 Be5 32.Bb5 Rb8 = -0.12 (24 ply) ⩲ +0.75 (23 ply)better is 29...Rxb4 30.Rxa8+ Kh7 31.Bxb4 h5 32.Ra4 h4 33.Rb1 Kh6 = +0.22 (23 ply) 30.Rxa8 Rxa8 31.Qb7 Ra5 32.Nxe4 Nfe7 33.Qb8+ Kh7 34.Bxe7 ⩲ +0.91 (25 ply) ⩱ -1.49 (25 ply)better is 32...Rd8 33.Rc1 Ra6 34.Qxe6 fxe6 35.Be4 g4 36.Nc4 Rda8 ⩱ -1.30 (24 ply) ⩱ -0.78 (22 ply)better is 38.Nd7 Rd8 39.Bh5+ Kg7 40.Bxe7 Rxd7 41.Bb4 Kf6 42.Bc3+ ⩱ -0.75 (24 ply) ⩱ -1.33 (27 ply) after 38...Kxe7 39.Nc4 Kf6 40.Be2 Rb3 41.h3 Rc3 42.Bf1 e5 43.e4 better is 60.Ne4+ Nxe4 61.Bxe4 Rb8 62.Ke2 Rb2+ 63.Kf3 Kg5 64.Bd3 ⩱ -0.74 (41 ply) ⩱ -1.28 (29 ply) after 60...Kg7 61.Bg4 Ra8 62.f4 Ra3+ 63.Ke2 e4 64.Be6 Kg6 65.Ke2 Rc8 66.Kd3 Nxe4 67.Nxe4 Kg6 68.Nf2 Kf5 69.Ke2 Rc1 ⩱ -1.23 (34 ply)-+ -7.01 (25 ply)74.Bg4 Kf4 75.Be6 Kg3 76.Bf5 Rh2 77.Kd4 Rxh3 78.Ke5 Rh2 -+ -132.76 (56 ply)0-1

rnbqkbnr/pppppppp/8/8/8/8/PPPPPPPP/RNBQKBNR w KQkq - 0 1

FEN COPIED

Annotations by Stockfish (Computer). [35437 more games annotated by Stockfish]

explore this opening	find similar games	17 more Bacrot/Radjabov games
	PGN: download \| view \| print	Help: general \| java-troubleshooting

TIP: Games that have been used in game collections will have a section at the bottom which shows collections which include it. For more information, see "What are Game Collections?" on our Help Page.

For help with this chess viewer, please see the Olga Chess Viewer Quickstart Guide.

PREMIUM MEMBERS CAN REQUEST COMPUTER ANALYSIS [more info]

THIS IS A COMPUTER ANNOTATED SCORE. [CLICK HERE] FOR ORIGINAL.

Dec-15-08		percyblakeney: Radjabov's 12th black win in 2008, two each against Bacrot, Aronian and Gelfand. The endgame looks like a draw up until 65. f4, but Bacrot was in time trouble and eventually the mistake came.

Dec-15-08		DRINELLE: radja will soon be world champ!!!!!!!!

Dec-15-08		shaikh123: DRINELLE: radja will soon be world champ!!!!!!!!I am agreed.

Dec-16-08		ajile: Maybe after Carlsen.

Dec-16-08		ajile: BTW this isn't a King's Indian Attack. It's an English opening.

Dec-16-08		jessicafischerqueen: <ajile> It is in fact a <King's Indian Attack>. As opposed to a <KID>. Arising out of a move order that does indeed suggest an <English formation>= <c5>, <...e5>, both King Bishops Fianchettoed--

Dec-17-08		ajile: In a King's Indian Attack White plays an early e4 just like the reverse position in a King's Indian Defense where Black plays ..e5. Since White never plays e4 this can't be a King's Indian Attack by definition. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King's...

Dec-17-08		jessicafischerqueen: <ajile> quite right. Well I knew it wasn't a <KID>, but so did you obviously. Why not post on <CG.com> page and ask them to clear up the mystery? I'm a little unclear on the method used to name the openings in our database. You'll notice the <reti> is listed as the most popular opening, but it transposes normally - and early- to an opening with another name. So how do they decide at what point in a transposition to change the name of an opening?

Dec-17-08		Mateo: 30.Nxd5 is an example of a sophisticated tactical move which isn't as good as a simple one. 30.Rxa8 was much better. After 30...Rxa8 31.Qb7! and 32.Nxe4 Bacrot would have a slight edge (better pawn structure).

Dec-17-08		Domdaniel: <Jess, ajile> This is an English, all right. As you say, the KIA requires e4 by white. I'd call this either a King's English, Closed Variation or an English-vs-KID. [A10] maybe. Current fashion seems to be to call 1.Nf3 a Zukertort Opening rather than a Reti. But it almost always transposes, maybe to several different openings in turn -- eg 1.Nf3 c5 2.c4 g6 etc, which starts as a Zukertort (Sicilian invitation), becomes a Symmetrical English, and can wind up as a Maroczy Bind Sicilian if white plays e4. It's impossible to be completely systematic. Usually I'd rather know the opening finally arrived at.

Dec-17-08		ajile: <jessicafischerqueen> I'm not sure why they make these mistakes in naming openings. Maybe there are just too many games coming in to verify them. Plus the fact that many openings transpose which means it would be necessary to play through the first 10 or so moves to really see what opening it ends up being. As Domdaniel said this basic opening is arrived at quite frequently with 1.Nf3. The idea being that White diguises his intentions as long as possible so he can take advantage of Black's setup. Since 1.Nf3 isn't a pawn move it retains quite a bit of flexibility for White. The strategy of this opening in a broad sense is similar to our current World Vs GMAN game where Arno has built a rock solid position but not very dynamic. The idea is for White to safely get to the middlegame and then hopefully outplay his opponent strategically. The other interesting White opening is the so called Queen's Gambit Declined Positional Exchange variation which was featured a few days ago. Again White plays solidly but somewhat slowly as in this game: Kherdekar Saurabh vs garg Divya, 2008 I couldn't find the game they used a few days ago but this one has the same basic setup for White. White has the half open c file and his dark squared bishop outside the pawn chain. It's basically a London System with c4 and cxd5 thrown in.

Dec-22-08		zatara: what's wrong with 29.Ra8 first?

NOTE: Create an account today to post replies and access other powerful features which are available only to registered users. Becoming a member is free, anonymous, and takes less than 1 minute! If you already have a username, then simply login login under your username now to join the discussion.

Please observe our posting guidelines:

No obscene, racist, sexist, or profane language.
No spamming, advertising, duplicate, or gibberish posts.
No vitriolic or systematic personal attacks against other members.
Nothing in violation of United States law.
No cyberstalking or malicious posting of negative or private information (doxing/doxxing) of members.
No trolling.
The use of "sock puppet" accounts to circumvent disciplinary action taken by moderators, create a false impression of consensus or support, or stage conversations, is prohibited.
Do not degrade Chessgames or any of it's staff/volunteers.

Please try to maintain a semblance of civility at all times.

See something that violates our rules? Blow the whistle and inform a moderator.

NOTE: Please keep all discussion on-topic. This forum is for this specific game only. To discuss chess or this site in general, visit the Kibitzer's Café.

Messages posted by Chessgames members do not necessarily represent the views of Chessgames.com, its employees, or sponsors.
All moderator actions taken are ultimately at the sole discretion of the administration.

This game is type: CLASSICAL. Please report incorrect or missing information by submitting a correction slip to help us improve the quality of our content.

Copyright 2001-2025, Chessgames Services LLC