Ashes and Arrows

Ritvik Krishnan – 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán)

100th Paris City Chess Championship; time control: 1 hour and 30 minutes plus 30 seconds per move at the finish; Paris, July 17, 2025

Sicilian Defence B45

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nc6 5. Nc3 d6 6. g4!? Nge7 7. Be3 a6 8. h4. The “mixed-up” approach 8. Nb3 b5 9. a3 Ng6 10. Qe2 Nge5 11. Bg2 Bd7 12. Rd1 Be7 13. 0-0 g5 14. Nd4 Nxd4 15. Bxd4 0-0 gave Black an easier game to play in T. A. Kosintseva – 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán), 2nd “鄞州杯” (“Yínzhōu Cup”) Women’s World Team Chess Championship, 宁波 (Níngbō) 2009.
8. ... b5 9. Nxc6?! Anticlimactic. 9. Nb3 b5 10. Rh3!?⩲↑ would transpose into a game Leitão – Sunye Neto, 3rd Manaus Chess Open, Manaus 2024, where White eventually managed to break through the defence of the Black King.
9. ... Nxc6 10. a3 Bb7 11. Qd2 Rc8 12. g5 Qa5 13. Rd1 Ne5 14. Rh3 Be7 15. h5 Nc4 16. Bxc4 Rxc4 17. Bd4 0-0

18. g6? White pushes the wrong Pawn and all his hopes for an attack against the enemy King fall to the ground. 18. Bf6!? Qd8!∞ (18. ... gxf6? 19. gxf6 Bxf6 20. Rg3+ Kh8 21. Qh6 Qd8 22. Rxd6! Qe7 23. Rd7!+−) and/or 18. h6 g6∞ would be more proper options.
18. ... h6! 19. Rg3?! b4! She hit back hard.
20. Ne2 Qxh5 21. Qd3 Rcc8 22. Nf4 Qh1+ 23. Ke2 Qxe4+ 24. Qxe4 Bxe4 25. gxf7+ Rxf7 26. Nxe6 g5! Dominating the Knight on e6.
27. Ke3?! Bd5 28. Rh3

A last little trap: if now 28. ... Bxe6 there would follow 29. Rxh6 with the double threat of Rh6-h8# and Rh6xe6. But no.
28. ... Rxc2! 29. Kd3. But now White cannot play 29. Rxh6 because of 29. ... Rf3#.
29. ... Bxe6 30. Rxh6 Bf5+ 31. Ke3 Rh7 0–1.