Nibble

Aleksandra Yuryevna Goryachkina – Alexandr Sergeevich Triapishko
27th Russian Team Chess Championship; Sochi, November 27, 2020
Queen’s Gambit Declined D38

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 d5 4. d4 Bb4 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bxf6 Qxf6 7. Qb3 c5 8. cxd5 exd5 9. e3 0-0 10. dxc5 Bxc3+ 11. Qxc3 Qxc3+ 12. bxc3 Nd7. Pray, do not invoke the name of Goddess in vain: 12. ... Be6 13. Bb5 Rc8 14. Nd4 Rxc5 15. Kd2 a6 16. Be2 Nd7 17. Rhb1 Rc7 18. a4 Kf8 19. a5 Rac8 20. Ra3 Nc5 21. Bd3 Bd7 22. Rb4 g6 23. Bc2 Ke7 24. Rb6 h5 25. h4 Be8 26. Rb4 Bd7 27. Rb6 Rd8 28. Ra1 Be8 29. Rab1 Rd6 30. Rxd6 Kxd6 31. Rb6+ Ke7 32. Rb4 Bd7 33. Ne2 Bb5 34. Nf4 Rd7 35. f3 Kd6 36. Ke1 Kc6 37. Kd2 Rd8 38. Rb1 b6 39. axb6 Kxb6 40. Ne2 Kc7 41. Nd4 Bc4 42. g4 Rh8 43. g5 Ra8 44. f4 Re8 45. Ra1 Rb8 46. Rb1 Rb6 47. Rxb6 Kxb6 48. f5 Ne4+ 49. Kc1 Bb5 50. fxg6 fxg6 51. Ne6 Be8 52. Nf4 Kc5 53. Kb2 a5 54. c4 Kxc4 55. Bb3+ Kc5 56. Bxd5 Nd6 57. e4 Kd4 58. Ba2 Nxe4 59. Bb1 Ke5 60. Nd3+ Kf5 61. Nc5 Bc6 62. Nb3 Kg4 63. Nxa5 Bd5 64. Nb3 Bxb3 65. Kxb3 Nd2+ 66. Kc3 Nxb1+ 0 : 1 P. Cramling – 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán), 1st SportAccord World Mind Games, Women’s Blindfold Tournament, 北京 (Běijīng) 2011. 13. Rd1 Nxc5 14. Rxd5 b6 15. c4 Be6 16. Rd2!?TN (16. Rd4 Rfc8 17. g4 Rc7 18. g5 hxg5 19. Nxg5 Bf5 20. Bg2 Rac8 21. 0-0 Ne6 22. Nxe6 fxe6 23. Rc1 b5 24. Bf1 e5 25. Rd6 Rc5 26. e4 Bxe4 27. Re1 Bf3 28. cxb5 e4 29. h4 Rh5 30. Kh2 Rxh4+ 31. Bh3 Rh5 32. Rd5 Rxd5 33. Be6+ Kf8 34. Bxd5 Rc5 35. Bc6 Rc2 36. Kg3 Rxa2 37. Bxe4 Re2 38. Rxe2 Bxe2 39. Bc6 g5 ½ : ½ Onischuk – Lenderman, 56th U.S. Chess Championship, Saint Louis 2012) 16. ... Rac8. Black has thought long about it — and that is the only unbalance in an otherwise balanced game. 17. Nd4. This is the strategic corollary of White’s previous move: her Knight gains the d4-square. 17. ... Ne4 18. Rc2 Nd6

19. Bd3. Goryachkina decides it is time to return the extra Pawn and transpose into a drawn endgame. 19. Nxe6 fxe6 20. Bd3 was, at least theoretically, a more logical choice, even though after, say, 20. ... Rc5 followed by the doubling of Rooks on the c-file and the centralisation of the King, White’s extra Pawn would turn out to be quite meaningless. 19. ... Bxc4 20. Bxc4 Nxc4 21. Ke2 Na3 22. Rxc8 (22. Rc6 Nb5=) 22. ... Rxc8 23. Rd1 g6 24. Rd3 Nb1 25. Rb3 Nc3+ 26. Kd3 Nxa2 27. Kd2 (Δ Rb3-a3) 27. ... Rc7 28. Nb5 Rd7+ 29. Nd4 (Δ Rb3-b2) 29. ... Rc7 30. Nb5 Rd7+ 31. Nd4 Rc7 32. Nb5 ½ : ½.

Once again, Goryachkina confirmed herself in her stolidity and solidity without succeeding in fusing them into something more creative. Photo: Vladimir Leonidovich Barsky/Russian Chess Federation.