The Gift of Time

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) – Baskaran Adhiban
80th Tata Steel Chess Tournament; Groningen, January 24, 2018
Philidor Defence C41

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d6 3. g3 g6 4. Bg2 Bg7 5. 0-0 0-0 6. Re1 Nbd7 7. e4 e5 8. Nc3 c6 9. a4 Re8 10. h3 Qc7 11. Be3 b6 12. Qd2. If 12. dxe5 then 12. ... dxe5 13. a5 b5 14. Nd2 Nf8 15. b4 Ne6 16. Na2 Ba6 17. Qb1 Red8 18. Nb3 Bf8= Tatai – Barendregt, 9th IBM International Chess Tournament, Amsterdam 1969. 12. ... Bb7 13. Rad1 Rad8 14. Bg5. 14. Bh6 a6 15. Bxg7 Kxg7 16. Qe3 b5 leads nowhere for White, Karpov – Tkachiev, World Blitz Chess Championship, Moscow 2009. 14. ... a6 15. h4!? A new move. In Galkin – Novikov, 60th Russian Chess Championship (Higher League), Krasnoyarsk 2007 was seen 15. d5 cxd5 16. Nxd5 Bxd5 17. exd5 Rc8 18. c3 Qb7 19. Nh2 Nc5 20. Qc2 b5 with comfortable play for Black. 15. ... b5 16. axb5 axb5 17. b3 Qb8 18. dxe5 dxe5 19. Bh3 Nf8 20. Qe3 Rxd1 21. Rxd1 Bc8 22. Bxc8 Rxc8 23. Bxf6 Bxf6 24. Na2 Ne6 25. Nb4 Be7 26. Nd3 f6 27. h5 g5 28. b4 Rd8 29. Ra1 Rd7 30. Nh2 Nd4 31. Ra2 Ra7 32. Rb2 Ra3 33. Qd2 Qa8 34. c3 Ne6? Time trouble starts to have its effect. After long maneuvering and consolidating, Adhiban suddenly seems to lose his sense of danger, overlooking his opponent’s disruptive next move. Black should have elected an indirect defence of the Knight by 34. ... c5! 35. Nxc5 (35. cxd4 c4 cannot be better) 35. ... Ra1+ 36. Kg2 Bxc5 37. bxc5 Qxe4+ 38. f3 Nxf3! 39. Nxf3 g4 40. Qd8+ with a likely perpetual check coming.

35. Ne1? Heavily pressed by time, White doesn’t feel like she can dare to play into the wind: 35. Nxe5! fxe5 36. Qd7 Kf7 37. Ng4!+− would have given her an overwhelming position, with too many threats to meet. 35. ... Ra1 36. Kf1? Again time trouble and again a mistake (which could cost dear!). 36. Kg2 was still good enough, since in this case White could have advantageously met 36. ... c5(?) with 37. Nc2 eventually followed by f2-f3. 36. ... c5! 37. f3 cxb4 38. cxb4 Nd4. White has fallen in a kind of strategic Zugzwang, and perhaps here Black misses his best chance of tightening the grip with the immediate 38. ... Qa3, so as to answer 39. Kf2 (39. Kg2? Rxe1!−+) by 39. ... Bd8! with powerful threats. 39. Kg2 Qa3 40. Nd3 Qa4. The last move of the time control, it’s probably also the time Black let his opponent escape. Black’s position was already ideal, so perhaps other waiting moves, such as 40. ... Kg7 (41. Ng4?? Rg1+!), should have been taken into consideration. 41. Nc1! Qa3. Now 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán), far from repeating the “wrong” position by 42. Nd3, spots her only one way out: 42. Ne2!! Bxb4 43. Qxb4 Qxb4 44. Rxb4 Ra2 45. Ng4 Kg7 46. Kf1! Nxe2 47. Rxb5 Nxg3+ 48. Kg1 Ne2+ 49. Kf1 Ng3+ 50. Kg1 Nxh5 51. Rb7+ Kg6 52. Rb6. Black’s two temporary extra Pawns (pretty soon he will have to give back one) are of no use. The ending is drawn. 52. ... Kg7 53. Rb7+ Kg6 54. Rb6 Ra5 55. Kf2 Kg7 56. Rb7+ Kg6 57. Rb6 Rc5 58. Ra6 Kg7 59. Ra7+ Kg6 60. Ra6 Rc2+ 61. Kg1 Kg7 62. Ra7+ Kg6 63. Ra6 Rc7 64. Nxe5+ Kg7 65. Ng4 Rf7 66. Ne3 Nf4 67. Nf5+ Kg6 68. Ra8 h5 69. Rg8+ Kh7 70. Rd8 h4 71. Rd6 Kg6 72. Ne3 Re7 73. Kf2 Nh3+ 74. Kf1 Nf4 75. Kf2 Re6 76. Rd7 Ra6 77. Nf5 Ra2+ 78. Kg1 Ne2+ 79. Kh1 Ng3+ 80. Nxg3 hxg3 81. Rd6 Kf7 82. Rd5 Re2 83. Kg1 Kg7 84. Rf5 Kg6 85. Kf1 Ra2 86. Kg1 Rf2 87. Kh1! Re2. 87. ... g4 88. fxg4 Rxf5 89. gxf5+ Kg5 90. Kg2 Kf4 91. e5 leads to a book draw. 88. Kg1 Kf7 89. f4 gxf4 90. Rxf4 Ke6 91. Rg4 Re3 92. Rf4 Ke5 93. Rf5+ Ke6 94. Rf4 Re2 95. Rg4 Ke5 96. Rxg3 Kxe4 97. Ra3 f5 98. Kf1 Re3 99. Ra5 Rb3 100. Kf2 Rb2+ 101. Kf1 f4 102. Ra3 Rc2 ½ : ½.

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) and Baskaran Adhiban playing at Academiegebouw of Groningen University. Photo © 2018 Jan Hendrik van der Veen/FocusGroningen.