Reloaded

Alireza Firouzja – Ian Alexandrovich Nepomniachtchi
Candidates Tournament 2022; Madrid, June 30, 2022
Russian Defence C42

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Nxe5 d6 4. Nf3 Nxe4 5. c4 Nc6 6. d3 Nf6 7. d4 Be7 8. d5. Through a different order of moves (1. c4 e5 2. e3 Nf6 3. Nc3 Nc6 4. Nf3 Be7 5. d4 exd4 6. exd4 d5), the position after 8. Nc3 d5 arose in Paulsen – Englisch, Anderssen Jubilee, Leipzig 1877. 8. ... Ne5 9. Nd4. The other half of the sky says 9. Be2 Nxf3+ 10. Bxf3 h5 11. h3 Bf5 12. Nc3 Qd7 13. Be3 a6 14. a4 c5 15. dxc6 bxc6 16. a5 Rb8 17. 0-0 0-0 18. Na4 and White stands better, Kosteniuk – 谭中怡 (Tán Zhōngyí), 1st Women’s Chess World Cup, Krasnaya Polyana 2021, match game 2. 9. ... 0-0 10. Nc3 Bg4 11. f3 Bd7 12. Be2 c6 13. 0-0 cxd5 14. cxd5 Qb6 15. Kh1 Rac8

16. g4?! Evidently White got nothing out of the opening, but maybe he might still hope to hold the balance (16. f4 Nc4 17. b3 Ne3 is roughly even). Instead, Firouzja decides to launch an unsubstantiated Pawn attack on the Kingside — something that resembles much — with reversed colours — of yesterday’s game between Duda and Caruana. 16. ... h6 17. h4?! White’s last two moves took up about an hour, but not everyone was impressed. “Is this the ‘How can I help Nepo qualify’ Candidates?”, Swiss Grandmaster Noël Studer caustically asks. “16.g4? 17.h4? are two of the most absurd moves I’ve ever seen in top-level chess”. 17. ... Rfe8 18. g5. If you have said A and B, you must also say C. 18. ... hxg5 19. hxg5 Nh5 20. Kg2

20. ... Ng6! 21. f4 Nhxf4+! 22. Bxf4 Qxb2 23. Ne4 Rc4 24. Be3 Bxg5! 25. Rb1 Qxa2 26. Ra1

26. ... Rxd4! 27. Rxa2 (18. Bxd4 Qxd5−+) 27. ... Rxd1 28. Bxd1 Bxe3 29. Nxd6 Re7 30. Bb3 Bc5 31. Nxb7 Bb6 32. Bc4 Re3 33. Kh1 Bh3 34. Rc1 Bf5 35. Bf1 Be4+ 0 : 1.

Nepomniachtchi is doing it again. Photo: Stev Bonhage/FIDE.