The Pink Panther Strikes Again

Former Soviet Union President Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev hands the winner’s trophy of the 35th Women’s World Chess Championship to China’s 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) at the awarding ceremony held November 30, 2011 in Tirana, Albania. Photos: Red Black Chess.

Give what you can, take what you need

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) – Humpy Koneru
Women’s World Chess Championsip match game 4; Tirana, November 18, 2011
Spanish Game C80

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. 0-0 Nxe4 6. d4 b5 7. Bb3 d5 8. dxe5 Be6 9. Nbd2 Nc5 10. c3 Be7 11. Bc2 d4 12. Nb3 d3 13. Nxc5 dxc2 14. Qxd8+ Rxd8 15. Nxe6 fxe6 16. Be3 Rd5 17. c4. Here the first Chinese woman to ever win a World Chess Championship continued 17. Rac1 Nxe5 18. Nxe5 Rxe5 19. Rxc2 Kf7 20. c4 b4 21. Rd1 Rd8 22. Rxd8 Bxd8 23. Kf1 Bg5 24. Ba7!⩲ 谢军 (Xiè Jūn) – Zsu. Polgár, Jaén 1996, Women’s World Chess Championship match game 10 — “This slightly worse ending may be Black’s best choice”, Nick de Firmian and Walter Korn wrote in “Modern Chess Openings”, 14th edition, New York, David McKay Company, 1999, p. 73. 17. ... bxc4 18. Rac1 Nb4. Another Chinese milestone is 18. ... Bc5 19. Rxc2 Bxe3 20. fxe3 Rc5 (⌓ 20. ... Nxe5 21. Nxe5 Rxe5 22. Rxc4⩲) 21. Ng5 Nd8 22. Rd2 Rd5 23. Rfd1 Rxd2 24. Rxd2 c3 25. bxc3 Ke7 26. Rd4 Nc6 27. Rf4 Nxe5 28. Re4 Kf6 29. Rxe5 Kxe5 30. Nf7+ Kf6 31. Nxh8 g5 32. Kf2 Kg7 33. e4 Kxh8 34. Ke3 Kg7 35. g4 Kf6 36. Kd4 Ke7 37. e5 Kd7 38. Kc5 a5 39. Kb5 a4 40. a3 h6 41. h3 1 : 0 谢军 (Xiè Jūn) – 秦侃滢 (Qín Kǎnyìng), Women’s World Chess Championship Knockout Tournament, New Delhi 2000, Final match game 1.
19. a3 Nd3 20. Rxc2 Kd7 21. Bd4 Rb8 22. Bc3 c5. Afterwards Koneru suggested 22. ... Bc5 23. g3 Rf8 as an easier way to aim toward equality. 22. ... Rf8 may imply similar rights.
23. Nd2 Nxe5 24. f4. Koneru: “After this move I think White is better in the endgame. I have weak Pawns. But the question is how to convert it into a win. It was a tough game, I had to defend a lot”.
24. ... Ng4 25. Nxc4 Bf6 26. Re1 Bd4+ 27. Bxd4 Rxd4 28. h3 Nf6 29. Ne5+ Kd6 30. Nf7+ Kd7 31. Ne5+ Kd6 32. Nf7+ Kd7 33. Rxc5 Rxb2 34. Ne5+ Ke8

35. Nf3. Koneru: “I think White could have tried 35. Rc7. This would have been better for White than the actual game”.
35. ... Re4 36. Rxe4 Nxe4 37. Re5 Nc3 38. Rxe6+ Kf8

39. Rxa6. 39. Kh2 Ne2 40. Re5 was probably White’s last chance to keep playing for a win.
39. ... Ne2+ 40. Kh2 Nxf4. Now it’s an easy draw. 41. Kg3 Nxg2 42. Re6 h6 43. Ne5 Ra2 44. a4 g5 45. Rxh6 Ne1 46. Rf6+ Kg7 47. Rg6+ Kh7 48. Rxg5 Rxa4 49. h4 Ra3+ 50. Kg4 Ng2 51. h5 Ne3+ 52. Kf4 Nd5+ 53. Kf5 Ra5 54. Rg1 Ra2 55. Ng4 Ra5 56. Ke4 Nc3+ 57. Kd3 Nd5 ½ : ½.

“Maybe I missed some good chances today”, 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) said afterwards. Photo: Anastasiya Valeryevna Karlovich.

A Cast for a Crown

• Jan Hendrik Timman, “侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán)’s progress”, New In Chess, 6/2011, pp. 98–102

Never Never Land

13th Women’s World Chess Champion 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) is being awarded “Best Non-Olympic Sportswoman of the Year Award” at 2011 China’s Top Ten Laureus World Sports Awards Ceremony in 宁波 (Níngbō), 浙江省 (Zhèjiāng province), China, October 11, 2011. Photo: 新华社 (Xīnhuá News Agency).

Material Girl

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) – Viktorija Čmilytė
FIDE Women’s Grand Prix 2011–12; 2nd stage; 深圳 (Shēnzhèn), September 15, 2011
Sicilian Defence B76

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 g6 6. Be3 Bg7 7. f3 0-0 8. Qd2 Nc6 9. g4 Be6 10. 0-0-0 Nxd4 11. Bxd4 Qa5 12. a3 b5? A misplay that loses a Pawn for no compensation. It’s likely that Čmilytė has mixed up one or more theoretical lines — 12. ... Rab8 13. h4 b5!? just comes to mind — to suddenly realise the quid pro quo. Yet 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) thinks, whether pretendedly or not, that “12. ... b5 is a really interesting idea and maybe Black can have some compensation. After we changed Queens I’m not sure if Black got enough compensation or not. Probably White have slightly better position. Of course 15. ... Rfc8 is a huge mistake”.

13. g5 Nd7 14. Nxb5 Qxd2+ 15. Rxd2 Rfc8? “Well I made a mistake in the opening and 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) didn’t really give me a chance to survive. After 12. ... b5 13. g5 I’m just a Pawn down but 15. ... Rfc8 loses three Pawns. Instead of 12. ... b5 there were many other normal moves, it’s a theoretical position”, Čmilytė said afterwards, somewhat disconsolately.

16. Nxa7 Bxd4 17. Nxc8 Be3 18. Nxe7+ Kf8 19. Nd5 Bxd5 20. exd5 Ne5 21. Be2 Ra4 22. c3 Bxg5 23. Kc2 Bxd2 24. Kxd2 Ke7 25. Ra1 Rh4 26. a4

26. ... Kd7. 26. ... Rxh2 27. a5 Nxf3+ restores material equality — but not for long as after 28. Ke3 Ne5 29. a6 the a-Pawn is unstoppable.
27. a5 Kc7 28. a6 Kb8 29. a7+ Ka8 30. b4 Rxh2 31. Ke3 f5 32. Bb5 f4+ 33. Kxf4 g5+ 34. Kg3 Rb2 35. Ra3 h5 36. Bc6+ Nxc6 37. dxc6 h4+ 38. Kh3 Rf2 39. b5 Rxf3+ 40. Kg4 1 : 0.

Just another Dragon gone wrong. Photo: FIDE Women’s Grand Prix 2011–12.

Rockstar

Viktor Láznička – 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán)
1st Airports Authority of India (AAI) Chess Tournament, New Delhi, June 28, 2011
Catalan Opening E06

1. d4 e6 2. c4 Nf6 3. g3 d5 4. Nf3 Be7 5. Bg2 0-0 6. 0-0 dxc4 7. Qc2 a6 8. Qxc4 b5 9. Qc2 Bb7 10. Bd2 Be4 11. Qc1 Bb7 12. Bf4 Nd5 13. Nc3 Nxf4 14. Qxf4 Nd7 15. Rfd1 Bd6

16. Qe3. Five months later 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán)’s theory was put to the test with 16. Qh4 Be7 17. Qf4 Bd6 18. Qh4 Be7 19. Qf4 Bd6 20. Qh4 Be7 ½ : ½ M. O. Muzychuk – 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán), 3rd Women’s World Team Chess Championship, Mardin 2011.
16. ... Nb6 17. Ne1 Bxg2 18. Kxg2 Qe7 19. Nd3 Nc4 20. Qf3 c5 21. dxc5 Bxc5

22. Nxc5. Grandmaster Viorel Antonovich Bologan, in his monograph on the Catalan, recommends 22. b3 Bd4 23. Rac1 Nb6 24. e3 Bxc3 25. Rxc3 Nd5 26. Rc2 Rac8 27. Rxd1 Rxc2 28. Rxc2⩲ (sic), but after 28. ... h6 Black shouldn’t have anything to worry about.
22. ... Qxc5 23. Ne4 Qe7 24. b3 Nb6 25. Rac1 Nd5 26. Nc5 Rac8 27. Nxa6 Rxc1 28. Rxc1 Qa3 29. Rc6 Ne7 30. Rc7 Nd5 31. Rc6 Ne7 32. Rc7 ½ : ½. “I must admit that I am disappointed. With White I was hoping for a better result, but she defended well. I could not find a way, I am not sure where I made a mistake, if any”, Láznička said afterwards.

Deep Thought