CARLSEN vs CARUANA – GAME 2 WORLD CHESS CHAMPIONSHIP 2018

This is game 2 of the World Chess Championship Match 2018, fully annotated. It is between Magnus Carlsen with White against Fabiano Caruana with Black.

This game features a Queen’s Gambit Declined. To learn more about the Queen’s Gambit Declined, here is the best instruction book I could find on Amazon.

Carlsen,Magnus (2835) - Caruana,Fabiano (2832)

World Chess Championship 2018 London (2), 10.11.2018

1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 d5 3.c4 e6 4.Nc3 Be7 5.Bf4 0–0 6.e3 c5 7.dxc5 Bxc5 8.Qc2 Nc6 9.a3 Qa5 10.Rd1 D37: Queen's Gambit Declined: 5 Bf4

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10...Rd8 [10...Re8 11.Nd2 e5 12.Bg5 Nd4 13.Qb1 Bf5 14.Bd3 e4 15.Bc2 Nxc2+ 16.Qxc2 Qa6 17.Bxf6 Qxf6 18.Nb3 Bd6 19.Rxd5 Re5 20.Nd4 Rc8 21.Rxe5 Qxe5 22.Nxf5 Qxf5 23.0–0 Rxc4 24.Rd1 Qe5 25.g3 Kortschnoj,V (2665)-Karpov,A (2725)/Baguio City 1978/MainBase/1–0 (60)] 

11.Be2N [11.Nd2 d4 (11...dxc4 12.Nxc4 Rxd1+ 13.Qxd1 Qd8 14.Qxd8+ Nxd8 15.Be2 Nc6 16.Bf3 Bd7 17.Ne5 Be8 18.Nxc6 Bxc6 19.Bxc6 bxc6 20.Bg3 Nd5 21.Ne4 Be7 22.Ke2 f5 23.Nd2 Bf6 24.Nc4 Nb6 25.Ne5 Na4 26.Rc1 Serper,G (2507)-Bruno,R (2219)/Las Vegas 2007/CBM 118 ext/1–0 (53)) 12.Nb3 Qb6 13.Na4 Bb4+ 14.axb4 (14.Ke2 Qa6 15.Nxd4 Be7 16.Nxc6 Qxc6 17.Rxd8+ Bxd8 18.Kd1 b6 19.Nc3 Ba6 20.Qa4 Qxa4+ 21.Nxa4 Rc8 22.Nc3 ½–½ Petrosian,T-Lutikov,A/Moscow 1966/MCD) 14...Qxb4+ 15.Nd2 Qa5 16.b3 Nb4 17.Qb1 b5 (17...d3 18.f3 Nh5 19.Bg3 Qg5 20.Kf2 f5 21.f4 Qe7 22.Nf3 Qd6 23.Bh4 Nf6 24.Bxf6 gxf6 25.Nb2 b6 26.Bxd3 Qc7 27.Be2 Bb7 28.Rxd8+ Rxd8 29.Rd1 Be4 30.Rxd8+ Qxd8 31.Qd1 Qe7 32.Nd3 Gheorghiu,F-Ostojic,P/Monte Carlo 1969/MCD/1–0 (32)) 18.Nb2 Bb7 19.f3 e5 20.Bg5 dxe3 21.Bxe3 e4 22.Be2 exf3 23.Bxf3 Bxf3 24.gxf3 Re8 25.Kf2 Rxe3 Doroshkievich,V-Gipslis,A/Tbilisi 1966/URS-ch/1–0 (57); 11.Nd2 dxc4 12.Nxc4 Rxd1+ 13.Qxd1 Qd8²] 

11...Ne4 12.0–0 Nxc3 13.bxc3 

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13...h6 Consolidates g5 [Instead of 13...Bxa3 14.Ra1 e5 15.Nxe5 Nxe5 16.Bxe5+-] 

14.a4 Ne7 15.Ne5 Bd6 16.cxd5 

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16...Nxd5 The backward pawn on c3 becomes a target 

17.Bf3 

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17...Nxf4 [Worse is 17...Qxc3 18.Qxc3 Nxc3 19.Nxf7 Kxf7 20.Rxd6 Rxd6 21.Bxd6 Nxa4 22.Rc1²] 

18.exf4 Bxe5 19.Rxd8+ Qxd8 20.fxe5 Qc7 Black threatens to win material: Qc7xe5 

21.Rb1 Rb8 22.Qd3 Bd7 23.a5 Bc6 24.Qd6 Qxd6 25.exd6 Bxf3 

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26.gxf3 A rook endgame occurred 

26...Kf8 27.c4 Ke8 

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28.a6 Deflection: b7 

28...b6 [28...bxa6 29.Rxb8+ Pinning(29.Rxb8+ Deflection) ] 

29.c5 White has a new protected passed pawn: d6 

29...Kd7 30.cxb6 axb6 31.a7 White threatens to win material: a7xb8Q.  

31...Ra8 Black threatens to win material: Ra8xa7 

32.Rxb6 Rxa7 33.Kg2 e5 34.Rb4 f5 35.Rb6 Ke6 36.d7+ Kxd7 37.Rb5 Ke6 38.Rb6+ Kf7 39.Rb5 Kf6 40.Rb6+ Kg5 41.Rb5 Kf4 Black prepares e4 

42.Rb4+ e4 43.fxe4 fxe4 44.h3 Ra5 45.Rb7 Rg5+ 46.Kf1 Rg6 47.Rb4 Rg5 48.Rb7 Twofold repetition 

48...Rg6 49.Rb4 ½–½