Black Ink

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) – Ruslan Olegovich Ponomariov

Rapid & Blitz World Chess Champions Showdown; match game 2 (15+10); 深圳 (Shēnzhèn), July 4, 2018

Four Knights Game C48

After the first four rapid games Ponomariov took the lead in the match for 2½–1½ (he won the first game and drew the other three). However, from a creative viewpoint, the game of the day is probably the second one: 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Bb5 Bd6!? 5. d3 a6 6. Ba4 b5 7. Bb3 Na5 8. d4 exd4 9. Qxd4 0-0. 9. ... Nc6 first might have been better. Black will soon find himself with quite a cramped game. 10. Bg5 Be7. 10. ... Nc6 was still possibly Black’s best bet. 11. e5 Ne8 12. Bxe7 Qxe7 13. Nd5 Qd8 14. Qb4. Threatening Nd5-e7+-g6+. 14. ... Nc6 15. Qc5 Bb7 16. 0-0-0 d6 17. exd6 cxd6 18. Qe3 Na5 19. Rhe1 Nxb3+ 20. axb3 Bxd5 21. Rxd5 Nf6 22. Rdd1 Re8 23. Qd3 Rxe1 24. Rxe1 Rc8 25. Kb1 d5 26. Nd4 g6 27. f3 Qd6 28. g3 Kg7 29. Qd2 h6 30. Re3 b4 31. Qe2 Rc7 32. Qd3 Rc8 33. Re2 a5. It’s never easy to find good moves in a difficult position, but certainly the text offers White a “way in” into the Queenside. 34. Qb5 Rc5. Black plunges straight into his opponent’s elegant embroidery, but also 34. ... Qc7 runs into 35. Re6! and White’s Rook penetrates with effect.

35. Re6! Qc7. If 35. ... fxe6 then 36. Qxc5!+− forcing a won ending a Pawn up. And, in spite of material equality, 35. ... Rxb5 36. Rxd6 likewise leads to an ending which White ought to win. 36. Qa6 Qd8. After 36. ... Rxc2 37. Nxc2 (not 37. Rxf6? because of 37. ... Rxb2+! 38. Kxb2 Qc3+ with perpetual check) 37. ... fxe6 28. Nd4 White wins back her Pawn with a dominating position. 37. Qa7 Rc7 38. Qxa5 Qd7 39. Re2 Rb7 40. Qc5 h5 41. Qc6 Qxc6 42. Nxc6 h4 43. gxh4. Objectively speaking, it is very difficult to believe that White didn’t win. The live broadcast ended at this point, and, of course, it’s not unlikely that what follows, so as broadcasted later by the ChessBase web site, has been maked up for the sake of contradiction. 43. ... Nh5 44. Rd2 Rb6 45. Ne5 f6 46. Nd3 Kf7 47. Re2 Rb5 48. Kc1 Ng7 49. Rg2 Nf5 50. Rg4 d4 51. Kd2 Rb8 52. Rf4 Rh8 53. Nxb4 Nxh4 54. Nc6? “I felt I should have won, but the more the time passed, the more I was getting nervous. I actually missed my opponent’s 54. ... g5”, 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) said afterwards. 54. ... g5 55. Re4 Nxf3+ 56. Ke2 Rc8 57. Re7+ Kg6 58. Re6 Kf7 59. Rd6 d3+ 60. Rxd3 Rxc6 61. Kxf3 Rxc2 62. h3 Rxb2 63. h4 ½ : ½.

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) vs. Ruslan Olegovich Ponomariov. Four-time Women’s World Chess Champion showed off a black veiled cape that added the finishing touch to her stunning outfit. Photos: sina.com.cn.