¡Hasta la Victoria Siempre!

Yaniet Marrero López – Elina Danielian
Women’s World Chess Championship; Krasnaya Polyana, March 18, 2015
Caro-Kann Defence B12

1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. e5. The Advance Variation. 3. ... Bf5 4. Nd2 e6 5. Nb3 Nd7 6. Nf3 Ne7 7. Be2. White has chosen positional play, in slow, slow motion. 7. ... Nc8 8. 0-0 Be7 9. a4 0-0 10. a5 a6 11. Be3 Na7 12. Ne1 c5 13. Nxc5 Bxc5. We should have preferred 13. ... Nxc5 14. dxc5 Nc6 as in the game Galkin – Ivanchuk, World Chess Cup, Khanty-Mansiysk 2007. 14. dxc5 Nxe5 15. g4 Bg6 16. f4 Nc4 17. Bxc4 dxc4 18. f5 exf5 19. gxf5 Qxd1 20. Rxd1 Bh5 21. Rd7 Rfe8 22. Ng2 Nc6 23. Rxb7 Ne5 24. Bf4 Nf3+ 25. Kf2 g5 26. fxg6 hxg6 27. h4 Nd4 28. Ne3 Re4 29. Rb8+ Rxb8 30. Bxb8 Rxh4 31. Nd5 Nc6 32. Bf4 Kg7 33. Re1 Rg4? On the wrong track! Black should have played 33. ... Bg4 34. Kg3 Rh5 35. Nc7 Bd7 36. Nxa6 Nxa5 37. Nb8 Bb5 38. Ra1 Nc6 with considerable survival prospects. 34. Re8 g5 35. Bd2 f6 36. Re6 Rd4 37. Bc3 Rxd5 38. Rxc6 Rf5+ 39. Kg3 Kg6 40. Rxa6. A Black Pawn has fallen, therefore Elina is condemned to a desperate-looking endgame. 40. ... Rf3+. If 40. ... Rxc5 then 41. Rxf6+ Kh7 42. a6 and Black is hopeless. 41. Kg2 Rf5 42. c6 Bf3+ 43. Kg1 Rc5 44. c7 g4 45. Rxf6+. An elegant “dual” is 45. Be5! Kf5 46. Bd6 and Black must give up her Rook. 45. ... Kg5

46. Rf7? Yaniet slipped into an apprehensive half-slip. After 46. Be5! Black is virtually in Zugzwang. 46. ... Bb7 47. Kf2? A grave error. 47. Kh2 was called for. 47. ... Kg6? Black misses her chance of forcing a Bishops of opposite colours endgame by 47. ... Rf5+ 48. Rxf5+ Kxf5 which would greatly increase the prospects of a draw. The rest is easy. 48. Rf6+ Kg5 49. a6 Bd5 50. Rd6 Be4 51. Re6 Kf4 52. Bd2+ Kf5 53. Re7 c3 54. Bxc3 Rc4 55. Rxe4 1 : 0.

Yaniet Marrero López vs. Elina Danielian
Photo: Vladimir Barsky

Dubler Vázquez (@DublerV)