One Last Time

Alexander Igorevich Grischuk – Maxime Vachier-Lagrave
Candidates Tournament 2020–21; Yekaterinburg, April 23, 2021
3r1bk1/1p3p2/3q1P2/p3p1PR/P7/1P6/KBP1Q3/3r4 b - - 0 31

Position after 31. Rh1xh5

After surviving the vehement attack of Grischuk, who as usual handled his clock time very unprudently, Vachier-Lagrave must have felt, for the first time in the game, like nothing bad could happen anymore: 31. ... Rd4! 32. Rh1 (32. Bxd4 Qa3+ 33. Kb1 Rxd4=) 32. ... Rxa4+ 33. Kb1 Qd5. The mighty engines make it the same through a pyrotechnic variation: 33. ... Rh4! 34. Rxh4 Qd1+ 35. Qxd1 Rxd1+ 36. Ka2 Rd2 with a likely draw by repetition. 34. Qh5 Qxh1+ 35. Qxh1 Rg4 36. Bxe5

36. ... Rxg5? A grave oversight, probably due to nervous tension. Correct was 36. ... Re8! 37. Bc7 (or 37. Bc3 b6) 36. ... Bc5 with a perfectly playable game. 37. Qxb7! Rd2. Black suddenly realises that the Bishop is taboo, for if 37. ... Rxe5?? then 38. Qg2+ Kh7 39. Qh2+ winning the Rook. 38. Bc3 Re2 39. Qc8 Rg1+ 40. Kb2 Rgg2 41. Bxa5 Rxc2+ 42. Qxc2 Rxc2+. No better is 42. ... Ba3+ 43. Kb1 Rxc2 44. Kxc2 with a tablebase win, as Black’s King isn’t able to reach the b7-square; for instance: 44. ... Kf8 45. Kc3 Ke8 46. Bb4 Bc1 47. Kc4 Kd7 48. Kb5 Kc7 49. Ka6 and finis. 43. Kxc2 Kh7 44. Kd3 Kg6 45. Bc3 Kf5 46. Kc4 Ke6 47. b4 Bd6 48. b5 1 : 0.

After today’s setback Vachier-Lagrave will have to play all out in the next three games. Photo © Lennart Ootes.