Малярный валик (Paint roller)

Alexandra Konstantinovna Kosteniuk – Valentina Evgenyevna Gunina
66th Russian Women’s Chess Championship; Novosibirsk, October 17, 2016
Caro-Kann Defence B18

1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nd2 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Bf5 5. Ng3 Bg6 6. h4 h6 7. Nf3 e6 8. Ne5 Bh7 9. Bd3 Bxd3 10. Qxd3 Nd7 11. Bf4 Nxe5 12. Bxe5 Qa5+ 13. c3 0-0-0. His Majesty takes a walk on the wild side. For 13. ... Nf6 14. 0-0 Ng4 15. Bf4 g5 16. b4 Qd8 17. hxg5 hxg5 18. Bd2 Bd6 see Safarli – Eljanov, Turkish Team Chess Championship, Kocaeli 2014. 14. Qe2 Nf6 15. 0-0 Bd6 16. h5. Another try was 16. a4 h5 17. b4 Qc7 18. Bxd6 Qxd6 19. Ne4 Qf4 20. Nxf6 gxf6 21. g3 Qc7 22. b5 Rhg8 23. bxc6 Rg4 24. cxb7+ Kb8 25. Rfd1 Rdg8 26. Kf1 Rxg3 27. fxg3 Qxg3 28. Qf2 Qh3+ 29. Ke2 Rg2 30. Rab1 Rxf2+ 31. Kxf2 Qxh4+ 32. Ke2 Qe4+ 33. Kd2 Qg2+ 34. Kd3 Qf3+ 35. Kd2 Qf4+ 36. Kd3 Qf5+ 37. Kc4 Qd5+ 38. Kd3 h4 39. c4 Qf3+ 40. Kc2 h3 41. d5 Qe2+ 42. Kc3 Qe5+ 43. Kc2 Qe4+ 44. Kc3 Qe3+ 45. Kc2 Qf2+ 46. Kc3 Qe3+ ½ : ½ Rogić – Zelčić, 8th Croatian Chess Championship, Pula 2000. 16. ... Bxe5 17. dxe5 Nd5 18. Qg4 Rhg8 19. Rfd1 g6 20. Rd4 Qb6. With in mind the idea of opening a questionable hunt. Sounder was 20. ... c5 eventually followed by ... Qa5-c7. 21. Rad1 Qxb2. As often happens, taking the b2-Pawn may bring very bad luck! 22. Qf3 gxh5? Gunina evidently overestimates her prospects on the open g-file and gives her opponent the necessary tempo for mounting the assault on the Black King. 22. ... Nxc3! was called for, still leaving White with the task to prove her compensation.

23. Ne4! Qa3 24. Nd6+ Rxd6. Gunina sacrifices the Exchange in a desperate and vain hope of delaying the unavoidable. However, after 24. ... Kb8 25. Qxf7 Qa6 26. Rb1 Black is doomed anyway (26. ... b6? 27. Ra4!+-). 25. exd6 f5 26. Qxh5 Qxd6 27. c4 Nf6 28. Qf7 Rf8. All has gone as Valentina Evgenyevna wished, but in her calculation she must have overlooked White’s next move: 29. Qxf6 1 : 0.

Alexandra Konstantinovna Kosteniuk vs. Valentina Evgenyevna Gunina
Photo: Eteri Kublashvili