An Easter Egg Hunt

Ian Alexandrovich Nepomniachtchi – 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén)
World Chess Championship 2023; match game 1; Astana, April 9, 2023
Spanish Game C85

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. 0-0 Be7 6. Bxc6. Analogously to the Exchange Variation, here, too, White gives up his Bishop pair in order to double Black’s Pawns on the Queenside.
6. ... dxc6 7. Re1. The claim that this move would be something of a surprise — as asserted by some commentators — is, of course, pretty comic, to say the least.
7. ... Nd7 8. d4 exd4 9. Qxd4 0-0 10. Bf4 Nc5 11. Qe3. Old classics never go out of print: 11. Qxd8 Bxd8 12. Nc3 f5! 13. e5? (Smyslov then suggested 13. Bg5 Bxg5 14. Nxg5 h6 15. b4 Nxe4 16. Ngxe4 dxe4 17. Nxe4 Bf5 with approximate equality) 13. ... Ne6! 14. Bd2 g5!∓ Bondarevsky – Smyslov, 25th Championship of Moscow, Moscow 1946.
11. ... Bg4!? New but not improved, as one may feel that 11. ... Ne6 12. Be5 Bc5 13. Qc3 Qe7 makes it easier for Black to equalise, Ničevski – Smejkal, 2nd “Tirnavia” International Tournament, Trnava 1980.
12. Nd4 Qd7 13. Nc3 Rad8

14. Nf5! Many commentators recommended 14. h3 here, with the tactical pointe of 14. ... Qxd4? 15. Nd5!, but 14. ... Rfe8! seems an adequate reply.
14. ... Ne6. Simpler and safer is 14. ... Bxf5 15. exf5 Rfe8 with near equality.
15. Nxe7+. “15. Bh6!? would be a cool and confident move now”, Danish Grandmaster Peter Heine Nielsen — Magnus Carlsen’s coach — tweeted. There might follow: 15. ... Bh5! 16. Bxg7! (16. Qg3 Bg6) 16. ... Nxg7 17. Qh6 Nxf5 18. exf5 Bg6! 19. fxg6 hxg6 21. Ne4 Rfe8 with a defensible position.
15. ... Qxe7 16. Bg3 Bg5 17. f3 f6 18. h3 h6 19. Kh2. As argued by many commentators, White has a slight “structural” edge due to the Pawn majority on the Kingside, but it’s highly unlikely that he may get something out of it.
19. ... Bf7 20. Rad1 b6 21. a3 a5 22. Ne2 Rxd1 23. Rxd1 Rd8 24. Rd3 c5 25. Qd2

25. ... c6? This may be a non-venial inaccuracy, allowing White to infiltrate the Queenside. 25. ... Rxd3 26. Qxd3 c6 27. a4⩲ seems much safer.
26. Rxd8+ Nxd8. Due to his 21st move, Black cannot now play 26. ... Qxd8?? on account of 27. Qxd8+ Nxd8 28. Bc7 winning a “heavy” Pawn.
27. Qf4! Threatening both Qf4-b8 and Qf4-c7.
27. ... b5 28. Qb8. “丁 (Dīng) in serious trouble”, English Grandmaster Daniel King says. “Black’s Queenside Pawns are weak, and there is no counterplay. Time shortage an issue too”.
28. ... Kh7

29. Bd6?! After a quarter-hour of thinking, Nepomniachtchi takes a path that ends with nothing gained but a draw. If nothing else, 29. Bc7! Ne6 30. Bxa5 Qd7 31. Nf4± was a more effective way to win the Pawn.
29. ... Qd7 30. Ng3!? Now after 30. Bxc5 there would follow 30. ... Qd2! 31. Nd4 Ne6! with enough compensation.
30. ... Ne6 31. f4 h5 32. c3 c4! 33. h4 Qd8 34. Qb7 Be8 35. Nf5 Qd7 36. Qb8 Qd8 37. Qxd8 Nxd8 38. Nd4 Nb7 39. e5 Kg8 (39. ... Nxd6?? 40. exd6 Bd7 41. f5+−)
40. Kg3 Bd7. Time control was reached and White’s claimed advantage is now a far-away memory.
41. Bc7 Nc5 42. Bxa5 Kf7 (42. ... Nd3?? 43. e6 Bc8 44. f5+−)
43. Bb4 Nd3 44. e6+ Bxe6 45. Nxc6 Bd7 (45. ... Nxb2?? 46. Nd8++−)
46. Nd4 Nxb2 47. Kf3 Nd3 48. g3 Nc1 49. Ke3 ½ : ½.

“I’m not happy”, 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) said afterwards. “I feel a bit depressed. During the first parts of the game, before the middlegame, I didn’t think about chess so much. My mind was very strange. Many memories, feelings also. Strange things happened. I feel a little bit like there was something wrong with my mind. Maybe it was the pressure of the tournament, of the match”. Photo: Stev Bonhage/FIDE.