A Touch Too Much

Sergey Alexandrovich Karjakin – Richárd Rapport

7th Gashimov Memorial; Rapid stage; match game 1; time control: 15 minutes plus 10 seconds per move; Baku, December 18, 2021

French Defence C18

1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e5 c5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 Nc6 7. Qg4 g6 8. Qd1 Bd7 9. Nf3 Qa5 10. Bd2 c4 11. h4 h6 12. a4 0-0-0 13. Qc1 f6!?TN (13. ... f5 14. Qa3 Nge7 15. g3 Rh7 16. Bg2 Kb8 17. Ke2 Nc8 18. Rhb1 Rg8 19. Rb5 Qd8 20. Rab1 Na5 21. Rc5 Ne7∞ van Werseel – I. Rajlich, 2nd Memorial of Krystyna Hołuj-Radzikowska, Warsaw 2012) 14. Qa3 Rh7 15. Bf4 fxe5 16. Nxe5 Nxd4 17. 0-0-0 Nc6

18. Nxg6. Perhaps White ought first to play 18. Bxc4!? Qc7 (18. ... dxc4?? 19. Nxc4+−) 19. Nxg6 with possibly better chances than in the game. 18. ... b5 19. Ne5 Nge7. Also good seems 19. ... Qxa4 20. Qd6 Nf6! 21. f3 (otherwise ... Nf6-e4 follows, threatening both Queen and mate) 21. ... Ne8= with at least equality. 20. Rh3. 20. Qc5!? has its merits also, although 20. ... Qxc3!? 21. axb5 Qa1+ 22. Kd2 Qd4+ 23. Qxd4 Nxd4 is probably nothing too special for White. 20. ... Nxe5 21. Bxe5 Nc6 22. Bh2 Rf7 23. Rf3 Rxf3 24. gxf3 Qxa4

25. Qd6? This trivial mate-in-one threat paves the way to Black’s powerful counterattack. The lesser evil was to go into the ending a Pawn down: 25. Qxa4 bxa4 26. Bd6 Kb7 where White may still hope for a draw. 25. ... Qa5 26. Bh3? Faithful to the principle that consistent and bad is better than good but inconsistent. Indeed White will never have time to take on e6, but it is arduous to suggest anything constructive — if 26. Kb2 there would equally follow 26. ... Kb7! with great advantage to Black.

26. ... Kb7! This is the key move of Black’s successful defence (and counterattack). If, instead, 26. ... d4? then 27. Bxe6+− dxc3?? 28. Qxc6+ followed by mate. 27. Kb2 d4! 28. Rxd4 Bc8 29. Qg3 Rxd4 0 : 1. For after 30. cxd4 c3+ 31. Kb1 Qb4+ 32. Kc1 Qb2+ 33. Kd1 Qb1+ 34. Ke2 Qxc2+ 35. Kf1 Qh7! the rest is silence.