One Thing Or Another

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) – Irina Borisivna Krush

1st Tech Mahindra Global Chess League; Ganges Grandmasters – SG Alpine Warriors; time control: 15 minutes plus 10 seconds per move; Dubai, June 28, 2023

Sicilian Defence B67

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 Nc6 6. Bg5 e6 7. Qd2 a6 8. 0-0-0 Bd7 9. Kb1 Be7 10. Nxc6 Bxc6 11. f3 0-0 12. h4 b5 13. Ne2 d5? This thematic advance is now very dubious. The most usual is 13. ... Rc8 14. Nd4 Bb7 15. g4 Nd7 16. Bxe7 Qxe7 17. Qe3⩲ whereupon if 17. ... b4?! (Black’s counterattack is not quick enough) then 18. g5 Nc5 19. h5 a5 20. g6!? fxg6? (20. ... h6 21. Rg1±) 21. hxg6 h6 22. Bc4 Qf6 (Lékó – Kožul, 16th European Individual Blitz Chess Championship, Tallin 2016) and now 23. Nf5! d5 24. exd5 Qxf5 25. dxe6 Ba6 26. Rxh6! would have won by force.
14. Nd4 Bb7. No better is 14. ... Rc8 15. e5 Nd7 16. f4 Nc5 17. Bd3 Qd7? (⌓ 17. ... f6) 18. f5! Nxd3 19. Qxd3 exf5 20. Nxf5 Bd8 21. Bf6! with a crushing attack, Delchev – Bartakke, 8th Ideon Andron Open, Anogia 2019.
15. e5 Nd7 16. f4! Nc5

17. g4 Ne4 18. Qe3 Qc7 19. Bxe7 Qxe7 20. g5 b4 21. h5 a5 22. Bd3 a4 23. Bxe4 dxe4 24. h6 g6

25. Nb5! b3 26. Rh2? Letting the initiative slip out of her hands. 26. Nd6! at once was stronger.
26. ... Ba6 27. Nd6 bxc2+ 28. Rxc2!? 28. Kxc2 Bd3+ 29. Kd2 is hardly a winning long-term bet, but the Exchange sacrifice is not more promising either.
28. ... Bd3 29. Rxd3 exd3 30. Qxd3 Qa7 31. a3 Rfb8 32. Qc4 Qg1+ 33. Ka2 Qb6 34. Qc7

34. ... Qb3+?? A catastrophic blunder, probably due to shortness of time, by which Black self-mates. She ought simply to play 34. ... Qxc7 35. Rxc7 Rb3= in view of 36. Rxf7 Rab8 37. Rg7+ Kf8 38. Rf7+ Kg8 39. Rg7+ with a draw by perpetual check.
35. Kb1 Rf8 36. Qe7 Qd3 37. Qf6 Qd1+ 38. Rc1 Qd3+ 39. Ka1 1 : 0.

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) eventually won, but hardly happily, as her victory was not sufficient to balance her teammates’ losses on the first and sixth boards. Photo: Maria Alekseevna Emelianova/Global Chess League.