Transylvania

Anna Muzychuk – Corina-Isabela Peptan
11th ROMGAZ Kings Rapid Tournament; Mediaș, November 26, 2017
Sicilian Defence B41

The 11th ROMGAZ Kings Tournament in memoriam of Elisabeta Polihroniade has started, with Sergey Alexandrovich Karjakin, Vassily Mykhaylovych Ivanchuk, 韦奕 (Wéi Yì), Bogdan-Daniel Deac starring as Kings, and Anna Muzychuk, Pia Cramling, Elisabeth Pähtz, Corina-Isabela Peptan starring as Queens. 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 a6 5. c4 Nf6 6. Nc3 Bb4 7. Qd3 Qc7. 7. ... d5!? is an interesting other way. 8. a3 Bxc3+ 9. Qxc3 Nxe4. Very risky. 9. ... 0-0 10. Bd3 d6 11. 0-0 e5 seems quite playable, Codenotti – Caruana, 71st Italian Chess Championship, Perugia 2011. 10. Nb5! That’s the reason why. 10. ... axb5 11. Qxg7 Rf8 12. Bh6 Qc5 13. f3! bxc4. 13. ... b4 doesn’t seem any better: 14. fxe4 Nc6 15. Qxf8+ Qxf8 16. Bxf8 Kxf8 17. Bd3 bxa3 18. Rxa3 Rxa3 19. bxa3 d6 20. Kd2 Ne5 21. Be2 Bd7 22. Ke3 Bc6 23. Rc1 Nd7 24. h4 h6 25. Bf3 e5 26. Bg4 Nc5 27. Bf5 Kg7 28. Rb1 Kf6 29. g4 Kg7 30. Rg1 f6 31. Rd1 1 : 0 Nepomniachtchi – Svidler, World Blitz Chess Championship, Dubai 2014. 14. Bxc4 Nf6. 14. ... d5? 15. Bb5+ Bd7? 16. Rc1 is just a disaster, A. Kovačević – Kontić, 2nd Memorial Danilo Dajo Batrićević, Cetinje 2009. 15. Qxf6 Rg8 16. Bd3 Qe7 17. Bg7 Qxf6 18. Bxf6 Rxg2 19. 0-0-0! This is a new, and much better move than 19. Rd1 Nc6 20. Kf1 Rg6 21. Bxg6 fxg6 22. Kf2 which gives White much less chances for success, Shi Diwen – Deac, World Youth U16 Chess Olympiad, Győr 2014. 19. ... Nc6 20. Rdg1 Rxg1+? Now, after 20. ... Rg6(!) 21. Rxg6 fxg6 White, thanks to her long castling, could have played for a more tangible advantage with 22. Rg4 followed by Rg4-h4 and Rh1-g1. 21. Rxg1 Ne7 22. Bxh7 Ra4 23. Bc2 Ra5

24. h4! b6 25. f4? Muzychuk apparently misses the much stronger 25. Bg5! followed by the advance of the h-Pawn. 25. ... Rh5! 26. Bd1 Rc5+ 27. Kd2 Bb7? 27. ... Rf5! seems much tougher to deal with. 28. Rg5 Rxg5? Black shouldn’t have done this for nothing in the world! 29. fxg5 Be4 30. h5 Nd5 31. h6 Bf5. 31. ... Kf8 would be met by the same move (32. Bc2!). 32. Bc2 Bxc2 33. Kxc2 1 : 0.