Viswanathan Anand of India drew his last round game against Peter Leko of Hungary to win the world championship tournament in Mexico City. He was the only player who was undefeated in the 14-round event. Vladimir Kramnik of Russia, the defending and now former champion, won his last round game against Levon Aronian to finish in a tie for second with Boris Gelfand of Israel who could only manage a draw against Alexander Morozevich of Russia. More information about the tournament and the final standings can be found at the official Web site of the championship.

Anand, who had White, was very careful against Leko. He did not want a repeat of the hair-raising experience he had in Round 13 when he nearly lost to Alexander Grischuk of Russia. Anand allowed the Marshall Attack in the Ruy Lopez, an opening which is heavily analyzed and in which White has a number of ways to neutralize Black’s initiative. The players followed known theory through 17 moves before Anand chose a new move that forced simplification of the position. They agreed to a draw two moves later. The game, with analysis, can be replayed http://ChessMagnetSchool.com/gambit/nytchess.php?mode=game&dataset=1&first=63','nytchess','height=620,width=860,resizable'); return false">here.

Anand, the world’s No. 1 player, met expectations, especially those of Garry Kasparov, the former world champion, who had predicted that Anand would win. Leko finished fourth with an even score, about where most observers thought he would end up. He is almost always rock-solid, but he seems to lack the ability to play enterprisingly enough to win a championship like this.

In a well-known line of the Queen’s Indian, Kramnik unveiled a new continuation on move 17 and then followed it up with a strong positional sacrifice on move 19. Aronian found himself in an inferior position and was quickly overwhelmed. The game, with analysis, can be replayed http://ChessMagnetSchool.com/gambit/nytchess.php?mode=game&dataset=1&first=64','nytchess','height=620,width=860,resizable'); return false">here.

Several of his games, including the last one, illustrated Kramnik’s strengths as a player and his deep understanding of the game. Aronian, who was ill at the beginning of the tournament, got off to a bad start in the championship and never recovered. His result — he finished in a tie for sixth — was a big disappointment, but he is only 25 (as of this coming Saturday) and based on past performances he will probably get other chances to win the title.

Morozevich-Gelfand was a Petrov (or Petroff) Defense, the fourth that Gelfand played in the championship. The game went into a slightly unusual, but highly theoretical line that is roughly equal. Morozevich found a way to win a pawn, but at the cost of an exchange. In the resulting position, White had strong advanced pawns on the queenside but Black was able to muster an attack against White’s king. The game ended in a draw by perpetual check. The game, with analysis, can be replayed http://ChessMagnetSchool.com/gambit/nytchess.php?mode=game&dataset=1&first=65','nytchess','height=620,width=860,resizable'); return false">here.

For Gelfand, the oldest competitor in the tournament, the result exceeded expectations, at least based on his world ranking going into the event. He displayed his usual solidness (or maybe that should be stolidness) but he also showed that when given the opportunity, he can produce fireworks. Morozevich had his typical ups and downs. While he definitely played the most interesting chess, as always, his unevenness cost him a lot of points. His tie for sixth cannot be said to have been unexpected. He can probably can never do much better unless he changes his style, but he is also unlikely to do so. And maybe for chess fans, that is just as well.

The other game of Round 14 was between Peter Svidler and Alexander Grischuk, both of Russia. The opening was a sharp variation of the Najdorf in which Grischuk repeated a line that he played against Svidler before and lost. His proposed improvement was not very good and he quickly got a lost position. Svidler mopped up efficiently. The game, with analysis, can be replayed http://ChessMagnetSchool.com/gambit/nytchess.php?mode=game&dataset=1&first=62','nytchess','height=620,width=860,resizable'); return false">here.

Svidler finished in a tie for fifth, a comedown from the 2005 championship in San Luis, where he tied for second with Anand. While he had some good moments, he seems to lack the fire-power that he had when he was younger (he is 31) and he just may not have what it takes anymore to be champion. Grischuk, 23, the youngest player in the tournament and the lowest ranked, finished in last, but he actually played very well, including handing Gelfand his only loss and his narrow miss against Anand in Round 13. His biggest problem seems to be his repertoire as Black. Given that he has been rumored to be playing a lot of poker over the last couple of years, it is conceivable that if he devoted more time to study, he could yet improve and make a serious run at the title.

If it was 20 years ago, Anand would get to enjoy being champion for three years. But, the current rules call for him to now play a match against Kramnik early next year. And, should he win that match, he would then still have to play another match against the winner of a match between Veselin Topalov of Bulgaria, the former champion, and the winner of the World Cup tournament that will take place later this year in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia. At least, he gets to enjoy being the sole world champion, something he could not do in 2001 when he had won the World Chess Federation’s championship, but the title was disputed and split.

That’s all for Mexico City. Good night and good luck.