Stage Door

Aleksandra Yuryevna Goryachkina – Khanim Balajayeva
20th European Individual Women’s Chess Championship; Antalya, April 16, 2019
Queen’s Gambit Declined D36

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Bg5 Nbd7 6. e3 Be7 7. Bd3 0-0 8. Nf3 c6 9. Qc2 Re8 10. 0-0 Nf8 11. h3 Ne4 12. Bf4 Nxc3 13. bxc3 Bd6 14. Bxd6 Qxd6 15. c4 dxc4 16. Bxc4 Be6 17. Bd3 h6 18. Rfe1 Rad8 19. a4 Bc8 20. Rab1 Re7 21. Rec1 Ne6 22. Bh7+ Kf8 23. Bf5 g6 24. Bd3 c5 25. Bc4 cxd4 26. Qb2 Ng5 27. Nxd4 Qf6 28. Nb5 Qxb2 29. Rxb2 a6 30. Nd4⩲ Ne6? 30. ... Rc7! followed by ... Kf8-e7 would have apparently saved Black from the nightmare she’d endured since. 31. Bxe6 Bxe6 32. Nxe6+ fxe6 33. Rcb1 Rdd7 34. Rb6 h5 35. R1b4. Perhaps White’s endgame is not a mathematical win yet, but it appears very hard for Black to cope with her three Pawn islands, all of them vunerable. 35. ... Kf7. 35. ... g5 36. h4! wouldn’t be of any avail. 36. Kh2 Kf6 37. Kg3 Rc7 38. h4 Kg7 39. Re4 Kf6 40. f3! Rc2 41. Rf4+ Kg7 42. Rfb4 Rcc7 43. Kf4 Kf6 44. g4! Kf7 45. g5! Red7 47. Re4 Re7 48. Kf3 Rc1 49. Reb4 Rcc7 50. Ke4. White has made continuous progress, and if Black does nothing, the end must come pretty soon. 50. ... a5 51. Rb1 Rc4+ 52. Ke5 Rxa4 53. e4 Rc4 54. R1b5 Rcc7 55. Rxa5 Rc1 56. Ra7 Rc5+ 57. Kd4 Rcc7 58. Rb5

58. ... Red7+? This is probably the losing move, allowing White to penetrate with overwhelming effect. Black ought rather to give up a Pawn by 58. ... e5+! 59. Rxe5 Rcd7+ 60. Rd5 Rc7! aiming at building a fortress. 59. Ke5 Ke7 60. Ra8 Kf7 61. Rh8 Kg7 62. Re8 Re7 63. Rxe7+ Rxe7 64. Kd6 Kf8 65. e5! Black ended up in zugzwang. 65. ... Ke8. 65. ... Kf7 66. Rb4 Ke8 67. Ra4 leads to the very same conclusion. 66. Ra5 Rh7 67. Kxe6 Kf8 68. Kf6 1 : 0.

Not an easy way for her, but today Goryachkina managed to squeeze out a win from quite a sterile-looking Exchange Variation of the Queen’s Gambit Declined by virtue of a masterly display of endgame technique. Photo: Turkish Chess Federation.