Delusions of Grandeur

The 2008 World Championship match between Anand and Kramnik was largely decided based on one opening - the Meran Variation of the Semi-Slav. Anand scored two victories in games 3 and 5, as black, that carried him to an insurmountable lead.

In the 7th round of the World Open, I ended up on the white side of this variation. While I pretended to be Kramnik, my opponent, GM Mesgen Amanov, was playing the part of Anand. However, without any preparation (it was the 2nd game of the day), we both had to work a bit on our own to figure things out at the board. Luckily for me, I didn't end up like Kramnik ...

Question 1: What would you play after 15...Bd6?

Question 2: What would you play after 17...Rg4?

Question 3: What would you play after 20...Qc5?

Question 4: What would you play after 23....Bh3?

Here's the full game in a single viewer: