Now and Another Time

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) – Dana Reizniece-Ozola

1st FIDE World Rapid Team Chess Championship; WR Chess – FIDE Management Board; time control: 15 minutes plus 10 seconds per move; Düsseldorf, August 26, 2023

Modern Defence B06

1. e4 g6 2. d4 Bg7 3. Nc3 d6 4. Be3 a6 5. h4 h5 6. Nh3. Just two years ago, she pursued her way with 6. f3 b5 7. Qd2 Bb7 8. a4 b4 9. Nd1 a5 10. c3 bxc3 11. bxc3 Nf6 12. Nh3 Nbd7 13. Rb1 Nb6 14. Bb5+ Nfd7?! 15. Ng5 e6 16. 0-0 0-0 17. Nf2 Ba6 18. Bxa6 Rxa6 19. Qd3 Ra8 20. c4? (20. f4! d5 21. e5) 20. ... d5? (20. ... e5!) 21. cxd5 exd5 22. e5 Nc4 23. e6! and White broke through, 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) – Mammadova, 3rd Online Women’s Speed Chess Championship Main Event, chess.com, June 20, 2021, round of 16 match game 14 (time control: 3 minutes plus 1 second per move).
6. ... b5 7. Ng5 Bb7 8. g4 hxg4 9. Qxg4 Nf6 10. Qg1!? Only a nuance away from 10. Qg2 e5?! 11. 0-0-0 (11. dxe5 dxe5 12. Nxf7! Kxf7 13. Rg1→) 11. ... Qe7 12. dxe5 dxe5 13. Be2 Nbd7 14. Nd5 Nxd5 15. exd5 Nf6 16. Bf3 0-0-0?? (16. ... e4!) 17. d6!+− Kollars – Sokolovsky, Titled-Tuesday-Blitz-October-12-2021, chess.com, October 12, 2021 (time control: 3 minutes plus 1 second per move).
10. ... e6 11. 0-0-0 Qe7?! (⌓ 11. ... Nbd7)

12. e5! Nd5 (12. ... Nh5 13. Bd3! Bxh1 14. Nxf7! Kxf7 15. Bxg6+ Kg8 16. Qxh1 c6 17. Ne4→)
13. Nxd5 Bxd5 14. Bg2 Bxg2 15. Qxg2 d5 16. h5 gxh5 17. Rdg1 Bf8?! (⌓ 17. ... Nc6 18. Qf3 h4)
18. Qf3 Nc6 19. Rxh5 Rxh5 20. Qxh5 0-0-0. Castling costs Black a Pawn, but not castling might cost much more.
21. Nxf7 Rd7 22. Ng5 Nd8 23. f4 Qb4. Black desperately seeks counterplay, but it is White who continues to lead the dance.
24. Qe8 Qe7 25. Qg6 Kb7 26. Rh1 Qg7

27. Qd3. It’s quite understandable that given such a fast time control, White doesn’t want to exchange Queens, but indeed it would have been the best plan for her to take (27. Qf6!).
27. ... Qg8 28. f5 exf5 29. Qxf5 Rg7

30. e6? A little too hasty. White ought rather to consolidate with 30. Nh7 Qf7 31. Nf6 Rg3 32. Kb1!± (32. ... Rxe3? 33. Qf2+−).
30. ... Kc6? No time to reflect, but enough time for panic. After the correct 30. ... Be7! 31. Qxd5+ Kb8 the e6-Pawn will fall, leaving White with hardly a valorisable extra Pawn.
31. Rf1 Bd6 32. Nf7 Nxf7? Equivalent to surrender, but Black has no good moves anymore.
33. exf7 Qh8 34. f8=Q Bxf8 35. Qxf8 Qh3 36. Qc5+ Kb7 37. Qxd5+ c6 38. Qf3 1 : 0.

Almost seven years have passed since the then Latvian Minister of Finance Dana Reizniece-Ozola’s attack caught 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) by surprise in the 42nd Women’s Chess Olympiad, and apparently they have not passed in vain. Photo: Lennart Ootes/WR Chess.