Taking on Giants

熊奕韬 (Jeffery Xióng) – Fabiano Caruana
62th U.S. Chess Championship; Saint Louis, April 20, 2018
Modern Benoni A61

Another Chinese-American teen prodigy, 熊奕韬 (Jeffery Xióng), comes on Caruna’s way. It will not be an easy matter for the challenger. 1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. c4 c5. Caruana insists on Bobby Fischer’s opening repertoire. 4. d5 d6 5. Nc3 exd5 6. cxd5 g6 7. Bf4 Bg7 8. e3 0-0 9. h3 Qe7 10. Nd2. White’s last three moves indicates a “not good enough” opening preparation. 10. ... Nh5! A very natural move, even though apparently it is a novelty. On the other hand, also 10. ... Nbd7 11. Be2 Ne8 12. 0-0 f5 13. Re1 Ne5 14. Bh2 g5 15. f4 Ng6 16. Bd3 gxf4 17. exf4 Qf6 worked well enough for equality in the game Salomon – Yurtseven, 28th World Youth Chess Championship Under-18, Durban 2014. 11. Bh2 f5 12. Be2 f4! 13. 0-0. 13. Bxh5 is also answered by the zwischenzug 13. ... fxe3 with good play, very similarly to the game. 13. ... fxe3. Probably it’s just an impression, but I don’t like White’s position so much. 14. Nde4! Jeffery goes for an ambitious path, joyfully sacrificing a Pawn in order to hold his opponent locked in a kind of dynamic powerlessness, and he might be even right! 14. ... exf2+ 15. Kh1. If nothing else, the temporary sacrifice of the second Pawn compels Black to make an important concession, giving up the Bishop pair. 15. ... Bxc3 16. Nxc3 Ng7 17. Bf3 Nd7 18. Rxf2 Ne5 19. Re2 Nf5 20. Bxe5 dxe5

21. d6! Once again White doesn’t fear to play two Pawns down! 21. ... Nxd6 22. Qd5+? 22. Nd5(!) Qg7 23. Nc3(!) seems a more reliable way of playing for a draw. At least in a formal sense, Caruana should have to decide whether to give back a Pawn (and then eventually another one) or concede a draw by repetition. 22. ... Nf7 23. Ne4 Rb8! Jeffery might have overlooked – or underestimated – this “short” move (in Fischer style), by which Black finally completes the development of the Queenside, giving his extra Pawn a much higher value. 24. Qxc5 Qxc5 25. Nxc5 b6 26. Ne4 Bf5 27. Nc3 Rbd8 28. a4 a5 29. Bd5 Rfe8 30. Bxf7+ Kxf7 31. Rf1 Ke6 32. Rfe1 Kf6 33. Rf1 Ke6 34. Rfe1 Kd6 35. Re3 Kc6 36. Nb5 Re7 37. g4 Bd3 38. Nc3 Bc4. Black has made significant progress, and now White’s rescue mission appears quite impossible. 39. Rc1. 39. Rxe5 Rxe5 40. Rxe5 Rd2 loses immediately. 39. ... Kb7 40. Re4 Rd4 41. Kg1 Bb3 42. Kf2 Rd2+ 43. Re2 Rf7+ 44. Ke3 Rd4 45. Nb5 Rdd7 46. Nc3 Rf4 47. Rd2 Rfd4 48. Rf2 Bxa4 49. Rf6 Bc6 0 : 1. It’s difficult to play with Caruana on these days, but 熊奕韬 (Jeffery Xióng) played quite brilliantly, except for the opening.

熊奕韬 (Jeffery Xióng) (left) vs. Fabiano Caruana (right). Photo: Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis (@STLChessClub).