Library / Games / Vladimir Kramnik vs Garry Kasparov
Botvinnik Memorial Blitz · Moscow · 09 December 2001

Vladimir Kramnik vs Garry Kasparov, Botvinnik Memorial Blitz, R9

Vladimir Kramnik 1–0 Garry Kasparov
Vladimir Kramnik vs Garry Kasparov
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Botvinnik Memorial Blitz, 09 December 2001

Game 9 of the 2001 Botvinnik Memorial blitz match (December 9, 5+0 time control) was won by Kramnik as White. The blitz section of the Botvinnik Memorial featured rapid-fire games with both players using their full preparation depth in compressed time.

Kramnik’s win was a sharp opening in which his home preparation produced a clear advantage by move 15. Kasparov’s defence at blitz speed couldn’t find the precise resources needed; the conversion took roughly 30 moves.

The blitz portion of the Botvinnik Memorial was particularly close. Both players had retained much of their classical preparation but had to make decisions in seconds rather than minutes. Kramnik’s advantage in this format reflected his deep theoretical knowledge applied at speed; Kasparov’s intuitive pattern recognition was matched by Kramnik’s specific preparation.

The Botvinnik Memorial 2001 was sponsored by the Russian Federation to mark the 90th anniversary of Botvinnik’s birth. Botvinnik had been one of the most influential chess figures of the twentieth century — Soviet Chess school founder, mentor of Karpov and Kasparov, World Champion 1948-1957/1958-1960/1961-1963. The 2001 Memorial was a national tribute as much as a chess tournament.

Opening context

The opening sequence runs 1. d4 d5 2. c4 dxc4 3. Nf3 e6 4. e3 a6, after which the players entered the middlegame proper.

See also

For more on this game’s protagonists and theory, see Vladimir Kramnik and Garry Kasparov.

Match notes

This Botvinnik Memorial Blitz game sits in engine-era transition. Master-level chess of the period was published in tournament bulletins, magazine annotations, and — for the most-studied games — in published opening monographs by the participants and their successors. This game is preserved in the open historical record and can be replayed in full above.