The Wild East

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) – Baris Esen
2nd Qatar Masters Open; Doha, December 23, 2015
Sicilian Defence B90

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. h3 e6 7. g4 Nfd7 8. g5 b5 9. a3 Bb7 10. Be3 Nc6 11. h4 Be7 12. Qd2 0-0 13. 0-0-0 Rc8. Another continuation is 13. ... Nxd4 14. Bxd4 Bc6 as in Demchenko – Gabrielian, 2nd International Chess Festival, Iasi 2015. 14. Kb1 Nde5 15. Nxc6 Nxc6 16. h5. As they say, dark clouds gathering. 16. ... b4 17. axb4 Nxb4 18. h6 gxh6 19. Rxh6 Qa5 20. Bd3 Rc7 21. Rdh1. It’s not obvious why White didn’t play the spontaneous 21. e5 — apparently very strong. 21. ... Rfc8

22. Bb6! A pretty deviation sacrifice, even though it may not win. If, instead, 22. Rxh7 then 22. ... Rxc3! and White has nothing better than perpetual check. 22. ... Qxb6 23. Rxh7 Nxd3 24. Qxd3 Rxc3 25. Rh8+ Kg7 26. R8h7+ Kg8 27. Rh8+ Kg7 28. R1h7+ Kg6 29. Qd1 Bxe4. Turkish Grandmaster misses 29. ... Rxc2+! 30. Kxb2 Rxc2+ 31. Qxc2 Rxc2+ 32. Kxc2 Bxe4+ 33. Kd1 Bxg5 and, although being two Exchanges ahead, White can only lose such a position. 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) could have avoided such variation by 31. Kb3 R8c3+ 32. Kb4 d5+ 33. Ka5 Ra2+ 34. Kb6 Rb2+ 35. Ka7 Bc5+ 36. Kb8 Bc8+! 37. Ka8! Bb7+ with an amazing perpetual check. 30. Qh5+ Kf5 31. g6+!? After 31. Rxf7+ Ke5 32. f4+ Kd5 33. Qd1+ Qd4 34. Qxd4+ Kxd4 35. bxc3+ Rxc3 36. Rxe7 Bxc2+ White’s plus would also be virtually impossible to convert into a win. 31. ... Bg5? Esen misses his last saving possibility: 31. ... Kf4! 32. Qh2+ Kf3 and, quite incredibly, White must content herself with a perpetual. 32. Rxf7+. Now it’s over. The game concludes with a merciless King hunt: 32. ... Ke5 33. Qxg5+ Bf5 34. f4+ Ke4 35. Qg2+ Kxf4 36. Rh4+ Ke5 37. Qh2+! (37. Qe2+ Qe3) 37. ... Kd5 38. Qd2+! Bd3!? Pretty but useless. By the way, both 38. ... Ke5 39. Qf4+ Kd5 40. Rxf5+ exf5 41. Qxf5+ Kc6 42. Qxc8++− and 38. ... Kc6 39. Qxc3++− would lose at once. 39. Qg2+! Ke5 40. Qg3+ Kd5 41. Qf3+ Kc5 (41. ... Ke5 42. Rh5+ Kd4 43. Rf4++−) 42. cxd3 Qb5 43. Qe3+ Kc6 44. Qe4+ 1 : 0.

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) vs. Baris Esen. Photo: Alla Oborina.