Anand claws back for draw, inches closer to title

Russian Vladimir Kramnik seemed to have finally woken up from his slumber to realise that he was just a loss away from losing the World Chess Championship title match.
The ninth game of the contest saw the Russian, playing with black pieces, not just take advantage for the first time here; he was almost on the verge of a dramatic win, before things took a turn and Viswanathan Anand clawed his way back with some stubborn defence. Kramnik began the match with a Slav defence and then attempted several variations, which appeared to be paying off. But Anand continued to go for sharp continuations and managed to earn a draw and take himself closer to the title.

From Anand’s perspective, the draw was not a bad result since he now has three games remaining to earn the half point and retain his title.

It was in the 19th move, Anand, suddenly realising that he was in a far inferior position with Kramnik’s bishops pairing giving the Russian an advantage, tried to manoeuvre his way out.