Peaches of Immortality

Mariya Olehivna Muzychuk – 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán)
Women’s World Chess Championship 2016; match game 6; Lviv, March 9, 2016
Giuoco Piano C54

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. 0-0 Nf6 5. d3 d6 6. c3 0-0 7. Bg5. Varying from the first game, where Muzychuk played 7. h3, after which there followed 7. ... h6 8. Re1 a6 9. a4 Ba7 10. Nbd2 Re8 11. Nf1 Be6 12. Bxe6 Rxe6 13. Be3 Bxe3 14. Nxe3 d5 15. Qc2 Qd7 16. Rad1 Rd8= with equality.
7. ... h6 8. Bh4 g5 9. Bg3. The sac 9. Nxg5 hxg5 10. Bxg5 Kg7 is not considered to be dangerous for Black: 11. Qf3 Be6 12. Nd2 Rh8 13. h4 Qe7 14. Bd5 Nxd5 15. Bxe7 Ndxe7 16. b4 Bb6 17. b5 Na5 18. g3 Rag8 19. d4 Kf8 20. Kg2 Ng6 21. Rh1 Nxh4+ 22. Rxh4 Rxh4 23. Qf6 Bh3+ 24. Kf3 Rh5 25. Ke3 Rg6 26. Qd8+ Kg7 27. Rh1 c5 28. Qe7 cxd4+ 29. Kd3 dxc3 30. Nf3 Bxf2 31. Kc2 Bxg3 32. Kxc3 Bf2 33. Kb4 b6 34. Ka4 Rg3 35. Nd2 Bc5 36. Nb3 Nc4 37. Rh2 Bg2 38. Nxc5 Nb2+ 0–1 Vajda – Sutovsky, 37th Chess Olympiad, Turin 2006.
9. ... g4 10. Nh4 Nh5 11. a4. Intending Nb1-a3-c2-e3.
11. ... a6 12. Na3 Qg5 13. Nc2 Ba7 14. Ne3!?TN (14. d4 Bd7 15. Qd3 Rae8 16. b4 Ne7 17. f3 Ng6 18. Nxg6 Qxg6 19. fxg4 Nxg3 20. Qxg3 exd4 21. Nxd4 Qxe4 22. Rf4 Qe3+ 23. Kh1 Qxg3 24. hxg3 Re3 25. Raf1 Rxc3 26. Bxf7+ Kg7 27. Ne6+ Bxe6 28. Bxe6 Rxf4 29. gxf4 b5 30. axb5 axb5 31. Bd7 Rc4 32. Bxb5 ½–½ Jakovenko – Bok, 13th Tradewise Gibraltar Chess Festival, Catalan Bay 2015)
14. ... Ne7. Obviously, after 14. ... Nxg3 15. hxg3 Bxe3 15. fxe3 Qxe3+ 17. Kh2 the open f-file is well worth the Pawn.
15. d4 Qg7 16. dxe5 dxe5 17. Nef5. Looks a bit committal, but who knows? 17. Qb3 seems more natural.
17. ... Bxf5 18. exf5

18. ... Bc5?! The Bishop heads for the d6-square, caught by the mirage by the mirage of a combination of defence and counter-attack. But more prudent was 18. ... Nxg3 19. hxg3 Nc8 with sufficient defensive resources.
19. Re1?! Stronger seems 19. f6! Qxf6 (19. ... Nxf6 is even worse because of 20. Bxe5) 20. Qxg4+ Qg5 21. Qf3! with great play for White. Curiously enough, White will miss pushing her f-Pawn over and over again, until she can’t anymore.
19. ... Nxg3 20. hxg3 Kh8 21. Qe2 Bd6 22. Qe4. Again, 22. f6! was here well worth considering, as after 22. ... Qxf6 23. Qxg4 Qg7 24. Qxg7+ Kxg7 25. Nf3 White stands better.
22. ... Rab8 23. Be2? In an incomprehensible move, White’s Bishop surrender the critical diagonal a2-g8. The best move was still 23. f6! on the lines of the previous note.
23. ... h5 24. Rad1. As Muzychuk herself admitted afterwards, it was only now that she realised that 24. f3 would have failed to 24. ... Ng8! — which made her take further valuable time on the clock to recover from the shock.
24. ... Ng8

25. Kh2? That was White’s last mistake. As then Muzychuk noted, 25. f6! Nxf6 (25. ... Qxf6? 26. Bd3) 26. Qe3 was still perfectly playable.
25. ... Qg5 26. Bc4. “It is psychologically very difficult to start playing for a draw with the Pawn sacrifice 26. f6 Qxf6 27. Qf5”, writes Mikhalchishin.
26. ... Nf6. “Once I brought out my Knight to f6 and managed to isolate the Knight on h4 it is definitely only Black who can play for a win”, said 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán).
27. Qe3. No better is 27. Qc2 e4 with too many threats.
27. ... Qxe3 28. Rxe3 e4 29. Re2 Rbd8 30. Bb3 Rd7 31. f3 Re8 32. Rde1 Rde7 33. Bc2

33. ... exf3! Elegant to the very end.
34. Rxe7 Rxe7 35. Rxe7 f2! The pointe. If now 36. Bxd3 Bxe7 and it’s like White is playing with two pieces less than her opponent.
36. Rxf7. Desperation.
36. ... f1=Q 37. Ng6+ Kg8

38. Rxf6. Or 38. Bb3 Bxg3+! 39. Kxg3 Ne4+ 40. Kh2 g3+ 41. Kh3 Qh1#.
38. ... Bc5! 0–1. For after 39. Rf8+ Kg7 40. f6+ Kh6 41. Rh8+ Kg5 mate will soon follow.

And in the end, one might well say, as Dr. Siegbert Tarrasch once said, “Knight on the rim is dim”. Photo: Vitaliy Hrabar.