Winter Wind

Maxime Vachier-Lagrave – Aleksandra Yuryevna Goryachkina
16th Tradewise Gibraltar Chess Festival; Catalan Bay, January 25, 2018
Neo-Grünfeld Defence D78

1. Nf3 d5 2. g3 g6 3. Bg2 Bg7 4. d4 Nf6 5. 0-0 0-0 6. c4 c6 7. Qb3 Qb6 8. Nc3 Rd8 9. Rd1 Qxb3 10. axb3 Bf5 11. Ne1 Na6 12. Bf4 Ne4. After 12. ... Be6 13. Ra4 h6 14. Be5 Ne8 15. Bxg7 Kxg7 16. cxd5 cxd5 17. Rda1 Bd7 18. Ra5 e6 19. Nd3 Nd6 20. e3 Nc8 Black somehow managed to consolidate herself, Goganov – Goryachkina, 12th Ugra Governor’s Cup, Khanty-Mansiysk 2016, but probably Goryachkina feared some improvement by her opponent. 13. Ra5!? Vachier-Lagrave goes for something more than 13. cxd5 cxd5 14. Ra5 Nb4 15. Rb5 Nxc3 16. bxc3 Na2 17. Bd2 Rac8 18. Rxb7 e6 19. e3 Nxc3 20. Ra1 e5 21. Raxa7 Be6 22. Nd3 exd4 23. Nf4 dxe3 24. fxe3 Bf6 25. Nxe6 fxe6 26. Bh3 Rc6 27. Rc7 Rxc7 28. Rxc7 Ne4 29. Bxe6+ Kh8 30. Bc1 Rd6 31. Bg4 Rb6 32. Bd1 Ra6 33. Bc2 Ra1 34. Bxe4 dxe4 35. Kg2 Rb1 36. Ba3 Rxb3 37. Bc5 ½ : ½ Tkachiev – 白金石 (Bái Jīnshí), 6th London Classic Open, London 2014. 13. ... e6 14. e3 h6 15. h3 g5 16. g4 gxf4 17. gxf5 Nd6 18. fxe6 fxe6 19. Bf1 fxe3 20. fxe3 Nc7 21. Ng2 Rf8 22. Be2 a6 23. Raa1 Nf5 24. Bg4 Rad8 25. Na4 h5!? Black embarks on a wild journey. 25. ... e5 26. dxe5 Ng3 27. Nc5 h5 (Stockfish) was also worth considering. 26. Bxh5 e5 27. dxe5 d4? Black sacrifices a second Pawn, but perhaps the same idea could be better worked out by 27. ... Bxe5 28. Nc5 b6! 29. Nxa6 Nxa6 30. Rxa6 d4! with apparently better drawing chances than what she got in the game. 28. exd4! Nxd4. If 28. ... Rxd4 then 29. Nc5! Bxe5 30. Nd7! Rxd1+ 31. Rxd1 Bd4+ 32. Rxd4 Nxd4 33. Nxf8 Kxf8 34. Bd1 with an extra Pawn and a winning endgame. 29. Nc5 Bxe5 30. Nxb7 Rb8 31. Nc5 Nxb3 32. Nd7 Nxa1 33. Nxe5 Nc2

34. Bg6! Rxb2 35. Rd7! White is an Exchange down, but the Black King got caught in a mating net. 35. ... Rc8 36. Nf4! With the threat of 37. Bh7+ Kf8 38. Nfg6+ Ke8 39. Re7+ Kd8 40. Nxc6#. 36. ... Rb1+ 37. Kf2 1 : 0.

Maxime Vachier-Lagrave vs. Aleksandra Yuryevna Goryachkina. Photo © John Saunders.