Half of Tomorrow

Ekaterina Aleksandrovna Lagno – Aleksandra Yuryevna Goryachkina
Women’s Candidates Tournament; Kazan, June 12, 2019
Caro-Kann Defence B19

On a day when nothing much has happened, Goryachkina’s half a point against Lagno brings her a litte closer to her goal. 1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Bf5 5. Ng3 Bg6 6. h4 h6 7. Nf3 Nd7 8. Bd3 Bxd3 9. Qxd3 e6. Everything looks near normal, except for the White Pawn at h4 instead of h5. That means that White can play for a Kingside attack with g2-g4-g5, provided, of course, she castles Queenside. In that case, however, Black, too, will go on castling Queenside. 10. Bf4 Qa5+ 11. Bd2 Qc7 12. 0-0-0 Ngf6 13. Ne4 Nxe4 14. Qxe4 Nf6 15. Qe2 Bd6 16. Kb1. It may be interesting to note here that also Mikhail Ivanovich Chigorin, the father of modern Russian chess, has had his saying on this theoretical nuance: 15. Ne5 0-0-0 16. f4 Kb8 17. g3 c5 18. dxc5 Bxc5 19. Kb1 Rhf8 20. c4 Nd7 21. Ba5 b6 22. Bc3 f6 23. Nxd7+ Rxd7 24. Qxe6 Rfd8 25. Rxd7 Rxd7 26. Kc2 Qd8 27. Re1 Bf2 28. Re2 Bc5 29. Rd2 Rxd2+ 30. Bxd2 Bf2 31. Bb4 Kc7 32. Qg4 Qd7 33. Qf3 Qa4+ 34. Kd3 Bc5 35. Bxc5 bxc5 36. Qe3 Kd6 37. f5 Qxa2 38. Qe6+ Kc7 39. Qe7+ Kc6 40. Qe8+ Kc7 41. Qe7+ Kc6 42. Qe6+ Kc7 43. Qf7+ Kb6 44. Qe6+ Kc7 45. Qe7+ Kc6 46. Qe8+ Kc7 47. Kc3 Qa5+ 48. Kc2 Kb7 49. Qe4+ Kc8 50. Qe6+ Kb7 51. Qd5+ Ka6 52. Qc6+ Qb6 53. Qc8+ Ka5 54. Qd7 Qa6 55. Qd2+ Ka4 56. Qc3 1 : 0 Chigorin – Cohn, 13th DSB Kongress, Hannover 1902. 16. ... 0-0-0 17. c4 c5 18. Bc3 Rhe8 19. Rhe1 a6!? A novelty by Goryachkina — who notoriously knows very well her own theory. Both 19. ... cxd4 20. Nxd4 a6 21. Nb3 Qc6 22. g3 Kb8 23. Na5 Qc7 24. Qf3 Ka8 25. b4 Be7 26. Ka1 Rxd1+ 27. Rxd1 Rd8 28. Rxd8+ Bxd8 29. Qd3 Be7 30.a3 ½ : ½ A. R. B. Thomas – Golombek, 27th Hastings International Chess Congress, Hastings 1951/1952 and 19. ... Re7 20. dxc5 Qxc5 21. b4 Qf5+ 22. Kb2 Red7 23. c5 Bc7 24. Rxd7 Rxd7 (with a laborious draw agreed at 71st move), L. Steiner – Flohr, 6th Chess Olympiad, Warsaw 1935 had passed its test much time ago, but it’s quite likely that White’s play may be improved in both cases — and in more than one way. 20. a3 Qb6 21. Ka2 Bc7 22. Qc2 Qc6. 22. ... cxd4 23. Bxd4 Qc6 seems to be both safer and more balanced.

23. dxc5. Perhaps Lagno ought to have moved 23. Ne5! at once, for after 23. ... Bxe5 24. dxe5 Ng8 25. Rd6! any further exchange should take White more and more closer to a favourable ending. 23. ... Qxc5 24. Rxd8+ Rxd8 25. Ne5 Bxe5 26. Bxe5 Ne8 27. f3 Qc6 28. Qe2 f6 29. Bg3 e5 30. f4 Rd4. No doubt Black has succeeded in equalising. 31. fxe5 Qxc4+ 32. Qxc4+ Rxc4 33. exf6 Nxf6 34. Re7 Nh5 35. Be5 Re4 36. g4 Rxg4 37. Rc7+ Kd8 38. Rxb7 Rxh4. A draw is coming. 39. Bxg7 Nxg7 40. Rxg7 a5 41. Kb3 a4+ 42. Kc3 Rh3+ ½ : ½.

Facing Lagno’s positional strategy, Goryachkina defended with her customary patience and fortitude. Photo: Eteri Kublashvili.