The 16th?

Magnus Carlsen is seeking to become the 16th world chess champion in a line that includes such giants as Bobby Fischer, Boris Spassky and Garry Kasparov. The $5 million World Chess Championship will be a clash between the reigning Indian world champion Viswanathan Anand (defending champion from the World Chess Championship 2012 and twice winner of the coveted Sportsman of the Year title in India) and the young Norwegian challenger. It will be held under the auspices of Fidé, the World Chess Federation, from 9 to 28 November in Chennai. There will be 12 games — one per day, with days off for rest — plus a 13th and final shoot-out day on 28 November if the championship is tied after 12 games.
 
Anand first won the world title in 2007 and has defended it three times since then against the world’s leading grandmasters, Kramnik, Topalov and Gelfand. He now faces his most severe challenge, since Carlsen is the highest rated player of all time.
 
This week’s game is a blindfold clash between the two rivals from the Monaco series.
 
Anand-Carlsen: Blindfold Game, Nice 2009; Sicilian Defence
 
1 e4 c5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 Bb5 d6 4 0-0 Bd7 5 Re1 Nf6 6 c3 a6 7 Bf1 Bg4 8 d3 This is a relatively quiet line against the Sicilian but quite popular. 8 … e6 9 Nbd2 Be7 10 h3 Bh5 11 g4 Bg6 12 Nh4 Nd7 13 Ng2 h5 14 f4 hxg4 15 hxg4 (see diagram 1) In this position the moves 15 … Bh4 and 15 … Bh7 (as in Larsen-Hansen, Esbjerg 1997) have been tried previously. To me, moves that block the open h-file seem illogical. Black’s rook on h8 is poised to threaten the white king, so why impede its action? Carlsen very sensibly — and according to the principles laid down by the first official world champion, Wilhelm Steinitz — prefers to prepare queenside castling. In this case Black’s queen’s rook will be able to join its colleague in the general assault against the white king. 15 … Qc7 16 Nf3 0-0-0 17 Ne3 Nb6 18 Nc4 Nxc4 19 dxc4 f5 20 exf5 exf5 21 g5 Bf7 22 Qc2 g6 23 Qf2 d5 24 cxd5 Bxd5 (see diagram 2) Here White should play 25 Bg2. 25 Be3 Bxg5 Now 26 fxg5 is met by 26 … Bxf3 27 Qxf3 Qh2 mate while 26 Nxg5 allows 26 … Rh1 mate. 26 Qg3 Be7 27 Bg2 g5 28 Nxg5 Bxg5 29 Bxd5 Rxd5 30 Qxg5 Qf7 White has no defence against the invasion of his position by the combined action of the black major pieces. 31 Kf2 Rh2+ 32 Kf1 Rd8 33 Qg3 Qc4+ 34 Kg1 Rxb2 White resigns
 
Grandmaster Peter Svidler duly won the Russian Championship last week, but only after overcoming Ian Nepomniatchi in a play-off for first place. This week’s puzzle shows a crucial variation from the game which decided the title in Svidler’s favou