Second Youth

Anna Olegivna Muzychuk – Pia Cramling

Women’s World Chess Championship; playoff game 1; Krasnaya Polyana, March 28, 2015

Sicilian Defence B46

“In the first game I was very worried. My opponent had better after the opening. She could make strike directly but she played 21. c4, and I made 21. ... Be6 move, probably I should have taken Bf5 and go ... Nf8-e6 directly. I let her get the chance to triple on ‘f’ file. Then afterwards, when I let her take on f7, I think I had a little compensation. I played 28. ... Red8, and push my d-Pawn and I had a good Knight. But of course I was very lucky that I could win. Of course she had a Pawn up. But somehow my King was in a game, and I had more time. The game has changed completely”, then Pia Cramling said. 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nc6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Nxc6 bxc6 7. Bd3 d5 8. 0-0 Nf6 9. Qe2 Be7 10. b3 0-0 11. Bb2 Bb7 12. Rae1 Qc7 13. f4. For 13. e5 Nd7 14. f4 Nc5 15. f5 see Sutovsky – Movsesian, 11th European Individual Championships, Rijeka 2010. 13. ... Rfe8 14. e5 Nd7 15. f5 exf5 16. Bxf5 Bc5+ 17. Kh1 Nf8 18. Na4 Bb4 19. c3 Be7 20. Qg4 Bc8 21. c4 Be6 22. Rf3 Bxf5 23. Qxf5 Bb4 24. Ref1 Ne6 25. cxd5 cxd5 26. Qxf7+ Qxf7 27. Rxf7 Rac8 28. Rd7 Red8 29. Rxd8+ Rxd8 30. Rd1 d4 31. Nb6 Kf7 32. g3 Kg6 33. Kg2 Kf5 34. Kf3 Ng5+ 35. Ke2 Ke4

36. Rd3? Nh3! 37. Rd1 d3+ 38. Kf1 Rf8+ 39. Kg2 Nf2 40. Rf1 d2 41. a3 d1=Q 42. Rxd1 Nxd1 43. axb4 Nxb2 44. e6 Re8 45. Nd7 Nd3 0 : 1. “I was never hoping that I could survive. I was just playing. But then I put up my King. And all of a sudden, she played this 36. Rd3, and I got this 36. ... Nh3. Everything was finished, I think. It was not so easy, but I had more time and she went wrong. Of course this game was very difficult for me”, Cramling said.

Anna Olegivna Muzychuk vs. Pia Cramling
Photo: Anastasiya Karlovich