Saturday, June 26, 2021

Around the World in 60 Seconds

Bibisara Erkhanovna Assaubayeva – 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán)
2nd Online Women’s Speed Chess Championship Main Event; Quarterfinal match game 15; time control: 1 minute plus 1 second per move; chess.com, June 25, 2021
English Defence A40

1. d4 e6 2. c4 b6 3. e4 Bb7 4. Bd3 Bb4+ 5. Kf1!? Be7. Another possibility is 5. ... c5 6. a3 Ba5 7. Nf3 Ne7 8. Bf4 and now not 8. ... Na6? (⌓ 8. ... d5) on account of 9. d5 0-0 10. Bd6 Re8 11. h4! Nc8 12. Bg3 exd5 13. exd5 Qf6 14. Qc2 h6 15. Nbd2! Nd6 16. h5 Bxd2 17. Nxd2 b5 18. cxb5 Nc7 19. Qc3!+− 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn) – Short, 123rd New Zealand Open, Devonport 2016. 6. Nc3 d6 7. Nf3 Nd7 8. g3 Bf6 9. Kg2 Ne7 10. Be3 c5 11. d5 Bxc3 12. bxc3 0-0!? By an inversion of moves Black deviates from the course of a relatively recent game: 12. ... Ng6 13. Nd2 0-0 14. f4 exd5 15. cxd5 f5 16. c4 b5⇄ Wagner – Iturrizaga Bonelli, 13th Tradewise Gibraltar Chess Festival, Catalan Bay 2015. 13. Qd2 h6!? Quite provocatively, 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) is inviting her opponent to take a walk on the sharp edges, perhaps specultating that she will not have the courage to take such a course. The alternative was, of course, 13. ... Ng6 with a comfortable equality.


14. h4? And thus it goes. Assaubayeva refrains from the almost called for Bishop sacrifice 14. Bxh6! gxh6 15. Qxh6 f6! 16. e5 Rf7 17. exd6 Nf5 18. Bxf5 exf5 19. Rhe1 b5!∞ with great complications. 14. ... f5! Black takes the upper hand to get at the end of the rainbow: 15. Rae1 (15. Bxh6 fxe4!) 15. ... fxe4 16. Bxe4 Nf6 17. Bxh6!? Nxe4 18. Rxe4 exd5 19. Rg4 Nf5 20. Bg5 Qd7 21. cxd5


21. ... Ne3+! 22. Qxe3 (22. fxe3 Qxg4) 22. ... Qxg4 23. Rd1 Rae8 24. Qd3 c4 25. Nh2 Qxg5 0 : 1.

Just think how many wonderful things can happen in a minute. Screenshot from the live stream.

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