Will something happen...? Will Gelfand 'surprise' Anand with e4 himself...? Will Garry's presence inspire one or the other player...? Or will it all end up in a damper squib...?

OK 1.d4 happened!

If 20.Qb3 then 20...Rfe8! 21.Qxb6 Rxc3!
If 20.Rad1 then Rfd8 and go for trade??

But Gelfand plays 20.Qf5 computer suggestion. Anand counters with 20...Qe6 another computer move!

I'm not sure Qe6 was a computer move. It seems more like a human move to me, to have the judgment to know that that isolated pawn wouldn't be a serious long term weakness in that kind of ending.

Looks like a complete draw to me (move 26). The only chance White might have is taking advantage of Black's queenside isolated pawns. Imagining the position without the bishops, and it has to be a dead draw though. Another well-played, though short game. I can't wait for Kamsky-Nakamura!

My feeling is getting stronger that Gelfand has left out white games from his play altogether. He has prepared only for black, and intends to win only with black. He's counting on the fact that Anand won't play semi-optimally with black, like say, Nakamura or Morozevich, and theory would be enough to hold him off for strong moves and setups. May be it's time for Anand to be cautious with white and a bit more adventurous with black.

Maybe. But even if you're right, Mitzvah wanting to win with Black doesn't mean that he'll succeed.

And I still think he should have kept going a bit longer in Game 1. So what if it would have been a draw? Get your opponent into the mindset of feeling that he's the one on the defensive.

Somebody on Chessbomb: "Sunday we have Gelfand and Anand playing, with Leko commenting. This is bliss."

I'd think Gelfand is betting a bit too much on the "casino factor" as Kasparov described the phenomenon. (He didn't imply Gelfand is aiming for it, but was just saying that it'll come into play were all games to be drawn. In that situation Gelfand would probably have a better chance of pulling it off, because Anand would be under greater pressure.) He hasn't tried to expose or discover any weakness in Anand's game. Anand at least has tried to probe a bit more, and has more answers about Gelfand's plan for the match so far. I don't know if Gelfand knows anything more about Anand today, than he did before the match started. Gelfand is kind of adopting the strategy as Leko did against Kramnik. That didn't work for Leko in the end, but may be the laws of probability don't refute it as a method. Gelfand anyway has nothing to lose, and everything to win. Perhaps this may be a case for giving the champion a draw-odds in a match -- at least it'll force the challenger to switch off cruise-control.

Yeah, if it is tied with a game or two to go, the casino factor could come into play. Anybody can win one individual game. If Two Sheds is appreciably better than Mitzvah then he may be doing himself a disservice by not trying to build a cushion in these earlier games.

Steve Giddins' comment from Game 4:



He says this with a straight face, as though that would be a bad thing. As if it's somehow unreasonable to ask the players to actually play chess. Yes, play those contentless 40 move games. It's not enough just to say that the game would be drawn with best play. Actually give us that best play. That should be what they're being paid for.

No, the point he's trying to make is that what exactly is going to be achieved were Anand and Gelfand to play on for another ten moves in today's ending position...? Mind you, they could always repeat and draw if they didn't want to continue. That would be a different form of offering a draw, that's all.