Second Screen

Ernesto Kazbekovich Inarkiev – 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán)
Grand Prix 2017; second stage; Moscow, May 21, 2017
Giuoco Piano C54

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. 0-0 Nf6 5. d3 d6 6. c3 a6 7. Re1 0-0 8. Bb3 h6 9. Nbd2 Ng4 10. Re2 Kh8. Intending ... f7-f5. 11. h3!? f5! This is probably not improvisation. The unbalanced outcome that will emerge from the following skirmishes is quite an unclear game. 12. exf5. Not 12. hxg4 fxg4 13. Nh2 g3 with a very dangerous initiative for Black. 12. ... Nxf2 13. Rxf2 Bxf2+ 14. Kxf2 Bxf5 15. Qe2 d5 16. Kg1 Qd6 17. Bc2 Rf7 18. b4 a5 19. Bb2 axb4 20. cxb4 Nxb4 21. Nxe5 Re7 22. Ndf3 Kg8 23. Qd2 Nxc2 24. Qxc2 c5 25. Qb3 Kh7 26. Kh1? As it will be soon clear, this is a bad mistake. Best was 26. d4 which would have probably been answered by 26. ... c4 eventually followed by ... b7-b5 with roughly equal chances. 26. ... d4 27. Bc1 Rxe5! 28. Bf4. Inarkiev stubbornly pursues his fatal Fata Morgana, but also after 28. Nxe5 Qxe5 29. Qxb7 Rf8 White’s position – in spite of the temporary material balance – is indefensible.

28. ... Qd5! Inarkiev apparently overlooked this pseudo-zwischenzug. 29. Rb1 Qxb3 30. Rxb3 Rd5 31. Ne5 Rxa2 32. Rxb7 Re2 33. g4 Be6 34. Nc4 Rd8 0 : 1.

“I’m happy with my play in Moscow as I did better than at Grand Prix’s first stage in Sharjah”, 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) told R-Sport. “Although I was defeated twice with White, I may notice that my overall results against men improved. I’m finally playing more steadily”. Photo © Vladimir Fedorenko/RIA Novosti.

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) (left) posing with Viktoria Korol (right), President of the charity fund “Наше наследие” (“Our Heritage”). Photo: chess-in-schools.org.