Hikaru Nakamura vs. Vladimir Kramnik, World Blitz Chess Championship, Moscow, 16 Nov 2010

[Armedmanx]

how can i get this chess set? is there any way i can get it?

[winstonthechiu]

@Armedmanx they're using DGT chess clocks and although this board looks slightly different, there are many other videos where i am confident they are using the DGT chess e-boards. i suspect the reason the board looks thinner is probably because they appear to be playing on a chss-table (the cutout hole&wire for the clock) which probably means the board is sitting inside of a cut-out as well

[Armedmanx]

@winstonthechiu thank you very much =)

[antoinezygfryd]

à 3:47 Kramnik fait une fourchette et pourquoi ne prend-il pas la tour?

[AnomiEj]

@antoinezygfryd la tour en a1 est complètement inactive et l'attaque contre le roi de l'autre coté est tellement forte que si le cheval noir ne revient pas, ya probablement mat ou perte de matériel importante. Tu remarqueras que ce cheval joue justement un rôle capital dans la défense du roi noir dans les coups joués...il supprimera la tour la plus active (=dangereuse) d'ailleurs 5:45

[antoinezygfryd]

@AnomiEj merci

[Guk1981]

3w.diegoriedemann.cl

[rubyriot]

I'm new to chess, and I have a question. Around 18 seconds in, Kramnik moves his kingside rook to C1 by jumping over his king with it...isn't that illegal?

[Saladbowl]

@rubyriot that is called "to castle". Its done to protect the king. You can castle on either side. See a full explanation here: learnchessrules . com / castling.htm

[rooksman64]

@spiritgifted fuck off loser

[spiritgifted]

@rooksman64 ...I feel your pain . Checkers is easier,I agree .



[nixthenamed]

at 1:10, why does Kramnik take with his h pawn? Doesn't that make the rook far more powerful against his king?

[nejtilsvampe]

@nixthenamed was thinking the same thing. Either way though, it was a brilliant move by Nakamura.. the situation sucks regardless of how he deals with that pawn.

[spiritgifted]

@nixthenamed ..In this case "no".In chess, you capture towards the center unless there is a clear mandate not to.A rare exception might be to capture towards a wing to create a passed pawn ending. The h7 square is still attacked whether there is a pawn on it or not.So capturing hxg is best . Also, the black diagonal g8-a2 is shown to be critical just a few moves later..so it is kept closed and e6 remains protected this way .

[00MeriendaCena00]

I don't undertand the move h5 in 0:40, someone can explain it? Thank you.

[shadk89]

@00MeriendaCena00 I think it's just to weaken the king side a bit and get an open fille...

[00MeriendaCena00]

@shadk89

Yes it's possible, Nakamura in blitz plays pretty agressive ;) Thank you!

[Schessmaster]

Kramnik uses the Pirc

[Lardet65]

What opening does Kramnik use?

[sercanzulfikar]

at 05.16 after Kramnik play Bg7f6; if Nakamura played Bg5f6 there is a checkmate for Nakamura after thaT. It can be prevented but even Kramnik prevented it, Nakamura could get certain advantage at pieces.

[Milbur]

@sercanzulfikar if Bxf6-Kxh4; Bxh4-Qxc4+...

[Milbur]

@Milbur sorry Bxf6-Nxh4; Bxh4-Qxc4+

[VegasPro11Tutorials]

5:50 i would have taken the pawn on the white square with my bishop after taking with pawn I take with queen forced into btm left corner bring the rook over and thats pretty much checkmate, no?

[xiangyik]

@VegasPro11Tutorials No. For a fairly simple reason.

[TheScatterBlaster]

@VegasPro11Tutorials No cause after you take the pawn with your bishop and he captures back your in check with his rook on f8 but even if you werent in check he could still block your queen check with bg7 and youve thrown away a bishop for nothing.

[jorik0907]

Love Kramnik when he points out that Nakamura's time is up :D

[BlackSN8K]

The cameraman is really liking Kramnik's watch.

[mlasker2]

If I did not miss something, both of them misses ...Ne3+ at some point (But Kramnik sees it after Nakamura plays Bd3).

[Gavondale]

If you look at the board at 3:29 couldnt whites queen take the B7 pawn, moving the knight would protect the rook, but where ever the knight lands it can then be caught by the white queen as well

[MDSP777]

@Gavondale If Qxb7, then Kramnik would probably have responded N8c6, protecting both knights and pretty much trapping the white queen there. Naka wanted his queen on the kingside, and it would've been uselessly trapped on the queenside if Qxb7 was played.

[analyticannoyance]

Nakamura is easily the most exciting blitz player in the world to watch. Every time he plays some crazy attack, or some risky strategy that most would be too afraid to use. This one might not of worked, but when it does it just makes it even better.

[Chesspwns298]

may I ask why they zoomed in on Kramnik's watch?

[bumblebee1607]

@Chesspwns298 I just liked Kramnik's watch :)

[Kasuh3]

I love watching Asian players ^_^

[AMDARRICAENLO]

ohh ya veo... ahi un lindo jaquemate en 2 jugadas... no la habia visto xD.

PD: no era mas facil defenderse con la dama?? aunque asi hay piezas de menos valor defendiendo d3 cierto?? y por eso es mejor?

[AMDARRICAENLO]

3:06 por qué le comio el peon en lugar de capturar la torre de h8??

[mgkarpov85]

Ps - sleepyeyeguy - the chess set is - DGT Sensory Board (USB) with Timeless Pieces £495.00 -

and thefrancuteleac - the set size is (3.75 inch) king and the board 50mm squares 0 have a great day :) 

[mgkarpov85]

(continued) 3 Nakumura could win back the rook by force Ex - Nxa1 e6 Qe8 Qxb7 fxe6+ Kg1 Qd7 Qxd7 Nxd7 Bxe6+ Rf7 - so he would have only been temporally a rook down. Kramniks knight taking the d pawn instead was the strongest move - rybka agrees. I hope that answers all the questions about the strange knight move.

[mgkarpov85]

Hi everyone - ive notice there has been a bit of arguing about why Kramnik did not take the rook on a1 with his Knight. I believe that there are a couple of reasons. 1. Nakamura is a legendary blitz player - he is also a very attacking player and one of the worlds top 10 ranked players, he would not give up a rook without reason. . 2.Nakunura spent 1min 6sec on the move - so kramnik can safely assume that Nakumra would have calculated out this variation quite deeply.

[drumcircler]

Crazy h-pawn push by Naka! He likes to rumble and he rumbles with the best players in the world like Kramnik. Yarbles.

[StronGerMixesTV2]

the ending is sad

[spiritgifted]

UMMM...DMED>>>The Queen is worth 9 points...not 10 points.Next, the bishop's value is not 3.25.In an open position it has more influence.In a closed position,knights are a "knightmare" to deal with.Some players...like many time US Champ Lev Alburt WANTED knights over bishops because he won the title using the Alekine's Defense so much.While it may be that bishops in theory have a greater reach,a persons' opening arsenal as both colors really tells the tale.D-4,D-5...C-4.N-6 !! and knights rule!!

[spiritgifted]

I am 2600 plus /taught chess over 40 years.Please do not call those who use the point system "patzers" .It is a logical way for new players or average players to keep track of the material balance OTB.Sub-masters usually look at moves while those over 2200 FIDE look at IDEAS to often tell them what the right move is.In any event,let us try not to put down players less successful at the game by name-calling and insulting them.We shall be judged by the moves we made in life-not on the chess board

[Jayakiran1]

@spiritgifted STFU

[Mritsonlyaname]

@spiritgifted shut up you stupid noob.

[rooksman64]

@Mritsonlyaname I know right? this guy is a fucking idiot

[rooksman64]

@spiritgifted I am 2600 plus too you fucking faggot...oh you feel so cool that 24 idiots fell for that

[tuoljg]

@spiritgifted rofl i doubt ur "rating"

[ZachTehRoflReaper]

@tuoljg rofl... ^.^



[tuoljg]

@spiritgifted i think u misstyped , u meant 1600 rating, spiritgifted..

[hrivethead]

@spiritgifted And please don't bring religion or judgment into it, either. You have no basis for that determination. Follow your own advice and stick to chess. Thanks.

[TEDOVSKY]

A big scalp missed by nakamura. After kramnik is forced to give up his Queen for 2 minor pieces and a pawn, naka should have won easily. At that moment kramniks rook and knight on the Q-side were NOT developed and thus he didn't have enough activity to compensate for his material inferiority. Nice to see that even the giants can balls it up just like us amateurs with the clock ticking in a blitz time-limit . . . .

[jepoycvallestero]

why didn't kramnik eat the rook ?

[jameDmeLody2998]

great sac

[14159random]

0:49 why not Bxh5?

[drzeitnot]

@14159random Rxh5 would have come like a shot. Clearly a good attack for white. If you're going to grab the pawn then gxh5 would be better, but even that weakens the black kingside dramatically.

[nataschmidtt]

lol nakamura sacrifice fail

[angelvu]

i wish the camera would stay still...otherwise good vid, nice quality. and good game too

[browncloset]

can someone explain why kramnik didn't take the rook at 3:50?

[Comosiem]

@browncloset

because, Qxh4 and then Qxh4.

[TheDanapala]

le stress :p

[scoot698]

why at 3:50 black he did't take the rook

[kakashi76767]

@scoot698 the black knight was needed to defend the king. it had to be moved back. otherwise, it would have been stuck in the corner and white's attack would have worked. I think thats the exact move Nakamura overlooked.

[fullrad]

@scoot698 potential kingside attack if black got too greedy the king would be under a big attack for example Rh7 and trying to sack the rook for the Bishop and the dark b on white comes alive and becomes a good attacking piece because of blacks dark squared weaknesses

[ThePeoplesuk]

These guys suck! instead of Bc4 Bh6 is the best way to attack the fianchettoed King.

[Kupferhans]

@ThePeoplesuk lol than it should be no problem for you to become the next blitz world champion ;)

[kotchanat01]

I know why kranmik didnt take the rook

Because If he take it it gone to be checkmate or maybe he think that rook is 3

so ... sorry kranmik i think you is stupid

[mumin9]

what is the name of the opening kramnik is playing..?????

[Miiw007]

@mumin9 Pirc Defence. I play it myself too :]

[nicoeste8765]

OMG? KRAMIK COULD OF TAKEN THE ROOK! IN MINUTE 3:48 HE COULD OF TAKEN THE ROOK, YET HE DID NOT INSTED HE TOOK A PAWN, A ROOK IS 5 A PAN IS ONE, OMG!

[Aang4Katara]

@ 5:34 Kramnik could have played Ne3+ winning the rook in exchange of the knight. I wonder why he didn't played it?

[TheSuperScaryMonster]

The Only Thing These Guys Need Is...........A FUCKING LIFE

[holl01]

@TheSuperScaryMonster That is the worst comment I have ever read in my life, a top tier professional chess player has a very enjoyable life.

[loco4vicodin1]

@TheSuperScaryMonster These guys probably been all over the world for tournaments, which makes them have more of a life than you.

[janweltevreden]

Kramniks a cool cookie. A raging naka mura on an open h-file would rattle anybody, but obviously kramnik is not just anybody . . . .

[SeedsofJoy]

at 5:50 Kramnik could have forked the bishop and queen with his knight E5?

[gitz6666]

@SeedsofJoy

you are right, Kramnik could have forked queen and bishop, but after the queen moves taking the bishop is not a good idea: 25 ... Nxd3+, 26 Kg1 and now Black cannot prevent 27 Qxh6 with strong attack

[connektion]

Bh7 gg?

[megaton12]

this is the austrian attack in the pirc not kings indian

[gentilguy]

I dont know much about openings but chesstempo says it was a Pirc defense,

someone commented about a king's indian.

And no C pawn used, wich I think is common in king's indian variations

[janweltevreden]

For me its amazing to see naka lose. Against "normal" grandmasters he churns out win after win in blitz and bullet games but here in these stronger tournaments he appears almost human and loses, tho that said he IS a talent and is FEARLESS against anyone he plays regardless of their ranking. I spoke to ivanchuk after a tournament about blitz and he said the way to improve my blitz play was to play 10.000 blitz games against a strong chess computer.When u reach 30% score ur ready for humans!!

[ShiranzITA]

I dont understand why Nakamura didnt protect c2 from the black knight. 3:35

[Thenextworldc]

@ShiranzITA hes not worried about that pawn or the exchange..Bc4 was to cut off the f7 escape square so he can set up a mate with bh6 etc..the objective is to win not worry about pawns and crap that dont really matter or effect whats going on..If you notice Nakas pressure on the king side was getting stronger and stronger..If he was playing against even me which is only 1900 id probably slip up and get mated..these two are both top 10 players in the world.Nakas down to number 6..they see it all

[ShiranzITA]

@Thenextworldc Thanks for your explanation. I didnt see the pressure in E6 after after the Kramnik move. :-)

[charlesfloyb]

Nakamura had to find an answer to Knight h6, which would've put a second hit on his g4 pawn and one hit on his queen. I think the threat of capturing the g4 pawn with check definately would favor Kramnik's side at this point.

[TheDanRauch]

Loved the Kings Indian took Nakamura for a loop in the mid to end game

[OnlineChessLessons]

well pushing the pawn to h5 cramps black's position and sometimes white tries to follow this up by gaining even more space with moves like f4 and g4. naka is just too good at blitz

[IBOUGHTYAMOM]

i totally disagree the h pawn push is awesome... otherwise wouldnt the entire caro can mainline be based on it, npt to mention the dragon and fisher...

[thegame52291]

what was with Nakamura's pawn to H5?

[TrompowskyAttaker]

Great videos.

[gabe10021]

It is funny to see how Naka broke his teeth on Kramnik like a child.

This a pawn push early in the opening is rather crude but in blitz it can be highly effective, I think his attack was OK until he tried to forced the mate, after gaining a material advantage (2 pieces for the Q) he should have consolidated his position to get into a winning endgame, but instead he played arrogantly sacrificing everything to mate and lost on time and then cried like a baby...

[charlesfloyb]

@gabe10021 Yes, I agree with your analysis. Consolidation was the key after gaining the queen for 2 pieces.

[Mighty1Bob]

at around 0:50, why doesn't Kramnik take the hanging pawn? it seems counter productive to let that pawn destroy Kramnik's pawn structure in front of the king.

[Fupper16]

@Mighty1Bob In that case, Nakamura would be able to utilize an exchange sac: Rxh5! ...gxh5. And now White has weakened Black's king considerably and has many open files with which to attack.

[xJMAN07x]

I had ZERO understanding about pretty all of the moves that were made... nakamura lets kramnik split his king and rook, yet kramnik goes for the PAWN? That just scratches the surface LOL.

[Mighty1Bob]

@xJMAN07x I can't say I understand all of the nice moves, but in that case, moving his knight to the corner of the board would have been suicide with almost all of Nakamura's pieces congregating at Kramnik's kingside.

[Fupper16]

@xJMAN07x Kramnik needed that knight to advance to the kingside to protect his king via ...Nd4-f5. What use it taking an offside rook for a material advantage if you are going to get mated on the kingside?

[Fand421]

wow crazy game!

[MrRuik]

Почему там КРАМНИК ошибься в дебюте 1)потерял коня, 2) не срубил пешку слоном.... ЧТо то Крамник делает слишком глубокую ошибку и вот сломал свою первую шахматную позицию. и почему Накамура там тоже со своими фигурами если крамник поставил "КоньF5" Это вообще не похоже что они чемпионы Если они анализируют глубокую ошибку!!! вот опять не срубив ладью но я бы хоть и так срубил того ладью, ну ладно Крамник правильно зделал... Но так в эншпиле все норма

[bailinnumberguy]

Only patzers think in terms of points. The more advanced the player, the more weight is put on initiative, positional weaknesses and coordination of pieces. Strong players sac the exchange and pawns all the time to create an attack. Watch players under 1500 or so and you'll fall asleep as they're hanging pieces all over the board in a race to see who makes the last blunder.

[fillosofert]

@bailinnumberguy Right my elo is currently 3500, and i create winning positions by sacking. It can be trading a queen for a bishop, but in return i get active pieces and mates within a few moves.

[TheSaturday1]

@bailinnumberguy u have a good point there

[Kasuh3]

@bailinnumberguy Haha so true I do that all the time now to think of it, thanks for the tip

[KleinmeisterPang]

Kramnik is not the Guy which you mate just out of the opening=)

[Nickalispicalis]

I haven't run this game though a computer, but couldn't have Kramnick safely have taken the rook earlier ? I didn't see anything immediate for white.

[candidfellow]

@Nickalispicalis no point in taking the rook earlier as the rook is trapped in movement, he moved the knight to prepare his tactics in the center of the board.

[aoigvjfg6]

@Nickalispicalis I was thinking the same thing but it's not the case. Rybka says Nc6 is best, followed by Kramnik's Nxd4.

[gabe10021]

@Nickalispicalis Taking the rook would have been suicidal with all the white pieces screaming at the black King. He decided to bring back his Knight to defense on f5 which wasn't even enough since he lost material to avoid mate...

[1987DeLarge]

Stop arguing,Kramnik won because he is better than that arrogant fuck.

Accept that all you Nakamura fans once and for all.He is more talented,he is more deep and doesn;'t play cheap old blitz tricks.He is higher rated,he was world champ and if he would work harder he maybe again.Unfortunately he is lazy but his tremendous talent helps him play without that much work.Imagine if he was half as hardworking as Anand,he would tear appart gm;s like Naka and others.

[1987DeLarge]

Stop arguing,Kramnik won because he is better than that arrogant fuck.

Accept that all you Nakamura fans once and for all.He is more talented,he is more deep and doesn;'t play cheap old blitz tricks.He is higher rated,he was world champ and if he would work harder he maybe again.Unfortunately he is lazy but his tremendous talent helps him play without that much work.Imagine if he was half as hardworking as Anand,he would tear appart gm;s like Naka and others.

[sleepyeyeguy]

Man I love that chess set.. anyone know where I might buy that exact one?

[kevlarunderwear22]

at 5:40 nak has a full pawn advantage, plus hes more developed. the queen is closer to 10 points than the traditionally thought 9.

[thefrancuteleac]

Does anyone know what is the size of the chess pieces and board?

[PocketJaces]

Amazing, Kramnik was down a queen for a piece and he still beats Naka.

[dmed312]

@PocketJaces no, he had moderate compensation for the queen. He deliberately hung his queen. Naka was a little overconfident I think, and didn't expect some of the wild unpredictable moves Kramnik threw at him.

[PocketJaces]

@dmed312 I doubt that if played well the queen is compensated for, but in blitz perhaps anything goes.

[dmed312]

@PocketJaces You and many other players give the queen too much credit. If you look closely, you'll see that after Naka saves his rook, Kramnik had two knights and two pawns for the queen. That's 8 points vs the queens 9 points, which isn't that much of a difference, so like I said, Kramnik had adequate compensation for the exchange. It definitely wasn't a mistake.

[PocketJaces]

@dmed312 I don't give the queen too much credit, I give it what it deserves. Whilst it wasn't yet lost for Kramnik, Naka would have had the open d-file had he not allowed the knight fork by playing Re4 instead and then Rd1. In a longer time limit there's a good chance that Naka would have been able to grind out a win. Also it looked like there may have been some perpetual checks available through Bxg6 then Qxg6 at some stage.

[dmed312]

@PocketJaces I agree with you completely that Naka was winning after the queen sacrifice from Kramnik, but these two men are just that good to know exactly how to psych out their opponent by playing wild unpredictable moves, and in Blitz (as opposed to slow) being wild and unpredictable can make or break your game. Its very similar to poker. Sometimes you just got to put pressure on your opponent, and thats what makes Kramnik's play so great here. He played the person, not the board.

[kevlarunderwear22]

@dmed312 a queen is more than 9 points

[dmed312]

@kevlarunderwear22 Hahaha!! What?!! No. I have this impression that you're not a chess player, and if you are, must not be a very good one.

[kevlarunderwear22]

@dmed312 impressions can be very misleading

[surfermx]

@dmed312 stop wanking and learn some chess, the queen worths 10 points.

at 5:43 ...Bd3 was the blunder who lost the game

[dmed312]

@surfermx OMG, I can't believe I just read that. The queen.. 10 points? Yeah, right. I hope you're being sarcastic. 

[surfermx]

@dmed312 yes wanker, Queen = 10 points, rock = 5 , bishop = 3.25, knight = 3 , is that clear??? besides : kramnik just got a knight and a bishop for his Queen, he got 2 pwans earlier in the game no in the exchange as u pretend, so, stupid dumb learn some chess and stop wanking.

[dmed312]

@surfermx You're really startin to piss me off. do you have a handle or something on some chess website, cause I think I could beat you blindfolded.

[surfermx]

@dmed312 im 2150 ELO (FIDE)

u said kramnik got 2 pawns + knight + bishop for his Queen, is that the way u pretend to beat a high rating player?? haha, as i said : STOP WANKING FUCKING STUPID DUMB WANKER

[16min5k]

@surfermx wow you are a tool... i find this mini rant of yours amusing. queen is 9 points idiot and if you're 2150 ELO then i'm a fucking GM

[Toxie207]

@surfermx It's called a Rook - not a Rock! You silly billy!

[moviecritic6]

@surfermx Queen= 9 points... Just saying.. Also, rook, not rock.

[1987DeLarge]

@PocketJaces Yeah...he is a former WCH/...tremendous talent...Naka is great too,but still no match for old Kram:D

[LogikEngine]

Can someone pls tell me: what is the function of the connection between the board and the clock?

[demiurg25]

@LogikEngine It's to translate the game to live-tv for the spectators.

[LogikEngine]

@demiurg25 Thanks!

[VanTerken]

Was 9 g6xh5 or 9. Bxh5 seriuoiusly possible for black? Without deeper analysis i would say no.... I don't know Pirc Theory though, because i Play 1. d4 and sometimes 1.c4.

[etekt]

according to rybka kramnik was better until 15.Nxd4, when cxd4 (and then Ne3+)looks good for black, then after 16Ne4 the position seems to be slightly better for white, the decisive mistake is 20 Bd3 allowing Ne3+ which could have been prevented by 20 Re1, later Bxg6 is indeed incorrect too.

[ChessChat]

I lve how it seem that Kramnik is the one taking the time over his moves yet he end up a minute up on the clock.

[1987DeLarge]

This is the Kramnik i know and love!:D On a good day he can smash anybody outthere

[kakashi76767]

whoops, i forgot i was playing blitz!!

[FaecalEncephalopathy]

Whew. It takes guts to play the Pirc against someone like Nakamura.

[xande43]

Why Kramnik didn't play 9. ...Bxh5? It seems he would grab a pawn for free...

[schusterlehrling]

@xande43

I think the line taken was also not bad.

The h4 idea looks not so good against pawn takes on e5 followed by knight d5.

It is good agaionst the Knight f6 to dt7 line, but here is looks anti-positional.

[TheStebbinz]

@xande43 opens the h file for the rook

[aixelsyd82]

Naka was the victim of like 4 Queen sacs/Q vs. minor trades yesterday. Fun stuff.

[xiangyik]

When Kramnik can play a match with the greatest attacker of all time and not lose a game (and hold a positive score against him overall, too) you know he's got brilliant defensive skills. I can understand why Naka was hard pressed to win this one.

[jakecarlos]

I cannot believe that Nakamura lost on time against Kramnik!

[LuxusOhr]

wow what a game Kramnik really kept a cool head somehow bc4 looks wrong

[offrampt]

This is just fantastic! Thanks very much!

[x6801]

Got destroyed by Kramnik. Sorry Naka...