Magnus Carlsen played a magnificent game against Vladimir Kramnik, beating the former World Champion with the black pieces. Levon Aronian could not overcome Ivanchuk's defence and only drew, so that now, before the final round, Aronian and Carlsen are in the lead. Judit Polgar outplayed Michael Adams on the black side of a Petroff. And sensationally Veselin Topalov went down against Pavel Eljanov in a Modern Benoni.
In last round Carlsen has white against Radjabov, who would desperately like to move into the top, but will probably be fairly cautious against the obviously in-form Norwegian. Aronian is Black against Judit Polgar, who is probably in an optimistic mood and will be seeking to improve her position on the final table. Naturally the big match is Anand vs Kramnik, where anything might happen. Anand might try to set the tone for the September World Championship match with a fine victory; Kramnik might strike out for once with the black pieces to climb to a less embarrassing position on the table.
Games round 12