Veselin Topalov vs. Ruslan Ponomariov

On the way to winning M-Tel Masters in 2005, Veselin Topalov defeated former FIDE world champion Ruslan Ponomariov with the white pieces in a Queen's Indian Defense. 

[Event "MTel Masters"]

[Site "Sofia BUL"]

[Date "2005.05.21"]

[EventDate "?"]

[Round "9"]

[Result "1-0"]

[White "Veselin Topalov"]

[Black "Ruslan Ponomariov"]

[ECO "E15"]

[WhiteElo "?"]

[BlackElo "?"]

[PlyCount "59"]

1.d4 Nf6

2.c4 e6

3.Nf3 b6

4.g3 Ba6

5.b3 Bb4+

6.Bd2 Be7

7.Nc3 O-O

8.Rc1 c6

9.e4 d5

10.e5 (N) Ne4

11.Bd3 Nxc3

12.Rxc3 c5

13.dxc5 bxc5

14.h4 h6

15.Bb1 f5?

16.exf6 Bxf6

17.Qc2! (After 17 moves, Topalov initiates a series of strong tactical blows with the sacrifice of a knight and a rook.) d4

18.Ng5!! hxg5

19.hxg5 dxc3

20.Bf4 Kf7

21.Qg6+ Ke7

22.gxf6+ Rxf6

23.Qxg7+ Rf7

24.Bg5+ Kd6

25.Qxf7 Qxg5

26.Rh7 Qe5+

27.Kf1 Kc6

28.Qe8+ Kb6

29.Qd8+ Kc6

30.Be4+! 1-0

Note: Unfortunately, due to network issues, I wasn't able to publish a blog post, originally about a comparison between Anatoly Karpov, Jan Timman, and Garry Kasparov. This post is just something to look at until the problems are fixed by next Saturday. The schedule will remain as the status quo. Additionally, I think Topalov is a seriously underrated player and his games could teach us a lot about combinations and tactical play.