Upstream

丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) – Teimour Boris oghlu Radjabov
8th Chess World Cup; tie-break game 5 (5+3); Khanty-Mansiysk, October 4, 2019
4B3/4n3/5kp1/p1K4p/8/6PP/4P3/8 w - - 2 52

Position after 51. ... Ke5-f6

Against all odds, Azerbaijani Grandmaster Teimour Radjabov has won the Chess World Cup 2019, by defeating the top seed, 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) from China, in both the last two tie-break blitz games. The first one undoubtedly paved the way towards match victory: 52. Kb5? It does not lose itself, but it goes very near it. Correct was 52. Bd7 Nf5 53. g4 hxg4 54. hxg4 Ne3 55. Kb5 Kg5 56. Be8 with a draw by exhaustion of material inevitable. 52. ... Nf5. The double threat of ... Nf5-d6+ and ... Nf5xg3 may well have its psychological effect. 53. Kxa5 Nxg3 54. Bb5? Best (but not easy to spot) was 54. e3! Nf5 55. Kb4! Nxe3 56. Kc5 with a draw in sight. 54. ... g5!? An inversion of moves. 54. ... Ke5!−+ was now easy and facile (and if 55. Kb4 then 55. ... Kd4). 55. Kb4 Ke5? (55. ... Ne4! 56. e3 Ke5−+) 56. Kc3 Kf4 57. Kd2? The losing move! Both 57. Kd4 Nf5+ 58. Kd3 Kg3 59. Bd7 and (even more elegantly) 57. Kd3 Nf5 58. e3+! Nxe3 59. Be8! h4 60. Ke2 would have secured a draw. Now it’s over: 57. ... Ne4+ 58. Ke1 Kg3 59. Bd7 h4−+ 60. e3 Nf2 61. Kf1 Nxh3 62. e4 Nf4 63. e5 h3 64. Bc6 h2 65. Bb7 g4 66. Bc6 Kh3 67. Bb7 g3 68. Bc8+ Kh4 69. Bb7 Kg5 70. Be4 Kg4 71. e6 Nxe6 72. Kg2 Nf4+ 73. Kh1 Nh3 74. Bf3+ Kf4 75. Kg2 Nf2 76. Kf1 Kxf3 0 : 1.

Today Caïssa wanted to return something of her holiness to Radjabov, as “what is dear to the gods” cannot be discouraged. Photo: FIDE World Cup 2019.

Captive Hearts

丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) – Teimour Boris oghlu Radjabov
8th Chess World Cup; match game 4; Khanty-Mansiysk, October 3, 2019
English Opening A29

1. c4 Nf6 2. Nc3 e5 3. Nf3 Nc6 4. g3 d5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. Bg2 Bc5 7. Nxe5!? 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) shows no ambition in his classical “finale” and declares himself content and satisfied to go to tie-breaks. However, also after 7. 0-0 0-0 8. d3 Bb6 9. Nxd5 Qxd5 10. Bd2 Qd6 11. Bc3 Re8 12. Nd2 Qh6 13. b4 Bh3 14. b5 Bxg2 15. Kxg2 Bd4! Black somehow managed to hold his own, 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) – Navara, 43rd Chess Olympiad, Batumi 2018. 7. ... Nxc3 8. Bxc6+!? Of course, from Black’s viewpoint, the Bishop pair may well compensate for a Pawn down! 8. Nxc6?? Qf6!−+ would be an immediate catastrophe, while after 8. bxc3 Nxe5 9. d4 Bd6 the game can be assessed as quite comfortable for Black. 8. ... bxc6 9. bxc3. If 9. dxc3 there may follow 9. ... Qxd1+ (9. ... Qe7!?) 10. Kxd1 Bxf2 11. Rf1 Bc5 12. Rxf7 Bd6 13. Rf3 Bxe5 14. Re3 0-0 15. Rxe5 Rf1+ 16. Kd2 Bg4 with a dynamic balance. 9. ... Qd5 10. Nf3 Bh3 11. Qb3 Bg2 12. Qxd5 cxd5 13. Rg1 Bxf3 14. exf3 d4! Even so Black has more than enough compensation for the Pawn. 15. Rb1 0-0-0 16. Rb5 Rhe8+ 17. Kd1 Bb6 18. cxd4 Bxd4 19. Rf1

19. ... Re6! 20. Bb2 Ra6 21. Bxd4 Rxd4 22. Rb2 Rda4. The regaining of the Pawn makes a draw inevitable. 23. Re1 Kd7 24. Rb8 Rxa2 25. Ree8 Ra1+ 26. Ke2 Re6+ 27. Rxe6 Kxe6 28. Re8+ Kf6 29. Rc8 Rc1 30. Ra8 Ra1 31. Rc8 ½ : ½.

That’s the climax of a gambling casino: the taking-all winner will be determined by tie-breaks. Photo: FIDE World Cup 2019.

One More Day

Teimour Boris oghlu Radjabov – 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén)
8th Chess World Cup; match game 3; Khanty-Mansiysk, October 2, 2019
Spanish Game C89

Not unsurprisingly, Caïssa wrought the miracle of “Saving Private Radjabov”, and with him the bettors, too. 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. 0-0 Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 0-0 8. c3 d5 9. exd5 Nxd5 10. Nxe5 Nxe5 11. Rxe5 c6 12. d3 Bd6 13. Re1 Bf5 14. Qf3 Qh4 15. g3 Qh3 16. Be3. Varying from 16. Nd2 Rae8 17. Ne4 Bg4 18. Qg2 Qxg2+ 19. Kxg2 f5 20. h3 Bh5 21. Bf4 Bxf4 22. gxf4 fxe4 23. dxe4 Bf3+ 24. Kxf3 Rxf4+ 25. Kg3 Rfxe4 with a draw agreed soon after, Radjabov – 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén), 8th Chess World Cup, Khanty-Mansiysk 2019, match game 1. 16. ... Bxd3 17. Nd2 Qf5 18. Bd4 Rfd8 19. a4 h6 20. h4 Rac8 21. Qxf5!? Radjabov’s novelty in place of 21. axb5 axb5 22. Bxd5 cxd5 23. Qxf5 [or 23. Ra5 Qxf3 24. Nxf3 Re8 25. b4 f6 26. Ra6 Bf8 27. Ra7 Ra8 28. Rxe8 Rxe8 29. h5 Be2 30. Kg2 Bd6 31. Rd7 Re6 32. Bc5 Be5 33. Bd4 Bd6 34. Bc5 Be5 35. Bd4 Bd6 ½ : ½ Karjakin – 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén), 7th Sinquefield Cup, Saint Louis 2019] 23. ... Bxf5 24. Ra5 b4 25. Rxd5 Be6 26. Ra5 bxc3 27. Bxc3 Rb8 28. Nf1 Bb4 29. Raa1 Bc5 30. Ne3 Rd3 31. Red1 Rbd8 32. Rxd3 Rxd3 33. Rd1 Rxd1+ 34. Nxd1 Bb3 35. Ne3 Bxe3 36. fxe3 Kf8 37. Kf2 ½ : ½ So – 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén), Candidates Tournament, Berlin 2018. 21. ... Bxf5 22. Ne4 Bf8. After the game, Radjabov recommended here 22. ... c5!? with a likely draw, but the text is probably all right too. 23. Nc5 Nb4!? An acrobatic defence. 24. Re5 g6 25. axb5 cxb5

26. Ne6!? A spectacular petite combinaison, even if of no use. 26. ... Bxe6. Clearly not 26. ... fxe6?? on account of 27. Rxf5! gxf5 28. Bxe6+ Kh7 29. Bxf5+ Kg8 30. Bxc8 Rxc8 31. cxb4 with a won ending for White. 27. Rxe6 fxe6 28. Bxe6+ Kh7 29. Bxc8 Rxc8!? This seems like a very strange decision by 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén), as after 29. ... Nc2 30. Rc1 Nxd4 31. cxd4 Rxd4 32. Bxa6 Rb4 the Rook and opposite-coloured Bishop ending should be easily drawable. 30. cxb4 Rc4 31. Bf6! Bg7 32. Be7 Rc6. 32. ... Bxb2 33. Rxa6 Bc3 34. Rb6 Bxb4 35. Bf6!⩲↑ leaves White with the initiative, but hardly any winning chances. 33. Ra2 Kg8 34. Bc5 Kf7? 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén)’s possibly last mistake. Exchanging Bishops with 34. ... Bf8(!) would have brought Black very near to a draw. 35. Kg2 Ke6 36. b3! h5 37. Kf3 Kf5 38. Rd2 Be5 39. Rd5 Ke6? A little tougher was 39. ... Kf6 in order to reply to 40. Ke4 with 40. ... Re6 — but 40. Rd3 is good enough to “retain the win”. 40. Ke4 Bf6 41. f4! Bc3 42. f5+ Kf7 43. Rd7+ Kg8 44. Bd6! gxf5+ 45. Kxf5 Bg7 46. Kg5 1 : 0.

Even today Radjabov did his best to “draw by force”, perhaps sensing that 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) needed just one more day on stage. Photo: FIDE World Cup 2019.

Hierarchy in International Relations

丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) – 余泱漪 (Yú Yāngyī)
8th Chess World Cup; tie-break game 2 (25+10); Khanty-Mansiysk, September 28, 2019
English Opening A21

First seed 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén), ranked number three in the world, beat fellow Chinese 余泱漪 (Yú Yāngyī) in the second tie-break game to win the semifinal and go through to the final of the Chess World Cup 2019. 1. c4 e5 2. Nc3 Bb4 3. Nd5 a5 4. Nf3 d6 5. a3 Bc5 6. e3 Nf6 7. d4 Nxd5 8. cxd5 exd4 9. exd4 Bb6 10. Bg5 f6 11. Be3 0-0 12. Bd3 f5 13. Qc2 Nd7!? 余泱漪 (Yú Yāngyī) throws down his cards with a novelty that does imply an interesting Exchange sacrifice. A relatively recent game continued: 13. ... h6 14. 0-0 f4 15. Bd2 Bg4 with complex play and chances for both colours, Cheparinov – 李师龙 (Lǐ Shīlóng), 14th “映美杯” (“Yìngměi Cup”) Chinese Chess League, 深圳 (Shēnzhèn) 2018. 14. Bxf5 Nf6 15. Bd3 h6 16. Nh4 Nxd5 17. Bh7+ Kh8 18. Ng6+ Kxh7 19. Nxf8+ Kg8 20. Ng6 Qf6. Black’s volatile initiative compensates enough for the sacrificed Exchange. 21. Qe4 Be6 22. 0-0 Re8 23. Nh4 Bf7 24. Qg4

24. ... h5! 余泱漪 (Yú Yāngyī) is not interested in offering a draw by repetition with 24. ... Be6 (25. Qh5 Bf7=). 25. Qg3 Re4!↑ 26. Bg5!? 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén), even though feeling uncomfortable under Black’s initiative, boldly chooses not to hide himself. 26. ... Qe6. Who knows, maybe the crude 26. ... Qxd4 would have been better. 27. h3 Bxd4 28. Nf3 Bxb2 29. Rab1 Re2 30. Bd2 Qf6 31. Bxa5 Nf4! Black keeps attacking as much as possible. 32. Bxc7 Rc2∞ 33. Kh2 h4? 余泱漪 (Yú Yāngyī) finally puts himself too much forward. After the zwischenzug 33. ... Nxg2! 34. Kxg2 Rxc7 the game would have been pretty equal. 34. Qg5± Rxc7?? “Who says A must say B”. 35. Rxb2+− Qxg5 (35. ... Qxb2 36. Qd8++−) 36. Nxg5 Bc4 37. Re1 g6 38. Re4 Nd3 39. Rc2 Rc5 40. Rcxc4 Rxg5 41. Re7 Nc5 42. Rxh4 Rf5 43. f3 1 : 0.

余泱漪 (Yú Yāngyī) made all the play, but in the end, quite unluckily, lost the “derby” with 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén), thus avoiding any responsibility for a diplomatic “accident” in the Chinese camp. Photo: FIDE World Cup 2019.

Lives and Letters

Teimour Boris oghlu Radjabov – Maxime Vachier-Lagrave
8th Chess World Cup; match game 2; Khanty-Mansiysk, September 27, 2019
English Opening A34

Azerbaijani Grandmaster Teimour Boris oghlu Radjabov is the first finalist of the Chess World Cup 2019, thanks to another superb display of tactical skill in his today’s game against Maxime Vachier-Lagrave. 1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e3 Nxc3 6. dxc3 Qc7 7. e4 e6. The alternative is 7. ... Nc6 8. Be3 (or 8. Bd3 Bg4 9. h3 Bh5 10. Be2 e6 11. Be3 Be7 12. 0-0 0-0 13. Nd2 Bxe2 14. Qxe2 Rad8 15. f4 Qd7 16. Nb3 b6 17. Rfd1 Qb7 18. Qb5 Nb8 19. Bxc5 Bxc5+ 20. Nxc5 Qa8 21. Nd7 Rxd7 22. Rxd7 a6 23. Qd3 Nxd7 24. Qxd7 Qxe4 ½ : ½ Lenderman – Vachier-Lagrave, 7th Chess World Cup, Tbilisi 2017, match game 1) 8. ... e6 9. Nd2 Bd6 10. Nc4 Be7 11. Qg4 0-0 12. Qg3 Qxg3 13. hxg3 b5 14. Nd2 Rb8 15. Be2 Rd8 16. f4 f6 17. 0-0-0 c4 18. Nf3 Rxd1+ 19. Rxd1 Bb7 20. g4 Rd8 21. Rxd8+ Bxd8 22. g5 fxg5 23. Nxg5 Bxg5 24. fxg5 a6 25. Kd2 Ne5 26. Bf4 Nf7 27. Ke3 e5 28. Bg3 Bc8 29. b4 g6 30. a4 Kf8 31. a5 ½ : ½ Giri – Vachier-Lagrave, 2nd 深圳龙岗 (Shēnzhèn Lónggǎng) Masters “读特杯” (“Dú Tè Cup”), 深圳 (Shēnzhèn) 2018. 8. Bd3!? So that’s Radjabov’s surprise. So far Vachier-Lagrave had met only 8. Be3 Bd7 [or 8. ... Be7 9. Nd2 (9. Be2 0-0 10. 0-0 Bd7 11. Qd2 Bc6 is just a little better version of the actual game, So – Vachier-Lagrave, 5th Grand Chess Tour, 1st stage, Côte d’Ivoire Blitz, Abidjan 2019) 9. ... 0-0 10. Qf3 Rd8 11. Qg3 Bd6 12. f4 b6 13. Qf2 Bf8 14. Be2 Ba6 15. 0-0 Bxe2 16. Qxe2 Nc6 17. f5 exf5 18. exf5 Re8 19. Rae1 Rad8 20. Nf3 f6= So – Vachier-Lagrave, 7th Altibox Norway Chess, Stavanger 2019] 9. Nd2 Bc6 10. Qg4 Nd7 11. Qg3 0-0-0 12. Bf4 e5 13. Bg5 f6 14. Be3 g6 15. Qh3 Kb8 16. Be2 Nb6 17. b3 h5 18. 0-0 Bh6 19. Bxh6 Rxh6 20. Qe3 Rh7 21. Rfd1 Rhd7 22. Nf1 Rxd1 23. Rxd1 Rxd1 24. Bxd1 Nc8 25. f3 Qd6 26. Be2 Ne7 27. Qh6 f5 28. Ne3 fxe4 29. Nc4 Qf6 30. fxe4 Kc7 31. g3 Ng8 32. Qh7+ Ne7 33. Qh6 Ng8 34. Qh7+ Ne7 35. Qh6 ½ : ½ Svidler – Vachier-Lagrave, 6th GRENKE Chess Classic Baden-Baden 2019. 8. ... Be7 9. Qe2 Bd7 10. 0-0 0-0? A careless move, as it gives White the opportunity to mount a lasting and powerful Kingside attack. 10. ... Bc6 followed by ... Nb8-d7 was perfectly playable. 11. e5!↑/→ Bc6 12. Ng5 h6. 12. ... g6 13. Re1(!) doesn’t seem make a difference. 13. Bh7+! Kh8 14. Bc2 c4. 14. ... g6 15. Nh3 may lead to something somewhat similar to that of the game. 15. Re1! Qd8 16. Nh3 Qd5 17. Nf4 Qc5 18. Bb1 Bg5

19. Nxe6! fxe6 20. Bxg5 Qd5 21. Qg4 Nd7. The ending ensuing from 21. ... Qxg2+ 22. Qxg2 Kxg2 23. Kxg2 hxg5 24. Bg6!±/+− was Black’s “best worst”, however unpleasant it might be. 22. Be4 Nxe5 23. Qh5 Qb5 24. Bxh6! Bxe4 25. Bf4+ Kg8 26. Qxe5. And after the fireworks end, White comes back home with a Pawn to the good and a crushing advantage. The rest is quite easy. 26. ... Bd5 27. Re2 Rf5 28. Qe3 Qe8 29. f3 Qg6 30. h4 Raf8 31. Bg5 a6 32. Rd1 Qe8 33. Rd4 Qc6 34. Rg4 Kh7 35. Bf4 R8f7 36. Be5 b5 37. Qf2 Qd7 38. Qg3 Rh5 39. Bd4 Qc7 40. Re5 Rhf5 41. Rg5 Kg8 42. h5 Rxg5 43. Qxg5 Qe7 44. Qg4 Rf5. A way as another to resign. 45. Qxf5 1 : 0.

Today’s win gave Radjabov not only the final of the Chess World Cup, but also the qualification for next year’s Candidates’ Tournament. Photo: FIDE World Cup 2019.

Fandom

丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) – Alexander Igorevich Grischuk
8th Chess World Cup; match game 2; Khanty-Mansiysk, September 24, 2019
English Opening A20

One can say that there is too much gambling in the Chess World Cup 2019 when two of the four semifinalists have been determined by tie-breaks (rather than a fan vote), but as you know the Temple of Caïssa is not a moral institution. All jokes aside, the “Fantastic Four” of the “Marvel Cup” are, namely (in alphabetical order): 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén), Teimour Radjabov, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, and 余泱漪 (Yú Yāngyī). 1. c4 e5 2. g3 Nf6 3. Bg2 Bc5 4. d3 d5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. Nc3 Nb6 7. Nf3 Nc6 8. 0-0 0-0 9. a3 a5 10. Na4 Nxa4 11. Qxa4 Nd4 12. Nxd4 Bxd4 13. Bd2 c6 14. e3 Bb6 15. Bc3 Re8 16. Rfd1 Bd7 17. Rac1 h6 18. h3 Rb8 19. Rd2 Bc7 20. d4! Grischuk burned too much time as usual, and 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) pretty soon enjoyed a pleasant, if slight, edge. 20. ... c5 21. Qc2 exd4 22. exd4 c4 23. a4 Bd6 24. Rdd1 b6 25. Re1 Rxe1+ 26. Rxe1 Qc7 27. h4 Re8 28. Bd5 Rxe1+. Contrarily to what Grischuk seems to think, Black is not automatically simplifying to a draw, but instead he is imperceptibly slipping into a somewhat more uncomfortable position. Here 28. ... Rd8(!) followed by ... Bd6-f8 seems a very robust defence. 29. Bxe1

Now, however, the time hands crack down on Black’s shoulder: 29. ... Be6? Thus Black maintains material equality, but the price of it is too high. Probably best was 29. ... Qc8 30. Bxc4 Qe8 31. Bd2 Bxa4 32. Qg6 Qd7 (less convincing is 32. ... Qe7? on account of 33. Bxh6 Qe1+ 34. Kg2 Bc6+ 35. f3 Qxg3+ 36. Qxg3 Bxg3 37. Kxg3 gxh6 38. Kf4 Kf8 39. d5 Be8 40. Ke5 with a nearly won ending) 33. Bxh6 Bf8 34. Be3 with a complex game where White’s extra Pawn is not very easily exploitable. 30. Bxe6 fxe6 31. Qe4! There are too many weaknesses in Black’s field for Grischuk to resist long. 31. ... Kf7. Now 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) concludes energetically: 32. Bc3 (Δ d4-d5) 32. ... Bf8 33. d5! Qd6 34. dxe6+ Qxe6 35. Qb7+ Kg8 36. Bd4 Qf5 37. Kh2 Qc2 38. Qd5+ Kh7 39. Qf7 Qd3 40. Bc3 Qd6 41. Qxc4 Qg6 42. Bd4 1 : 0. Grischuk is not in the mood to suffer further losses as the b6-Pawn will soon fall.

It took only the two classical games for 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén), who is also the top seed of the World Cup, to go through to the semifinal. Photo: FIDE World Cup 2019.

Duel in the Sun

Teimour Boris oghlu Radjabov – 熊奕韬 (Jeffery Xióng)
8th Chess World Cup; match game 2; Khanty-Mansiysk, September 24, 2019
Grünfeld Defence D85

And thus the young American star 熊奕韬 (Jeffery Xióng) bowed out of the Chess World Cup 2019 after losing a wild tactical showdown to Azerbaijani Grandmaster Teimour Radjabov. He can regret that despite having survived a very insidious theoretical novelty from his opponent, he didn’t manage to save enough lucidity to defend successfully till the end. 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Bb5+ c6 8. Ba4 0-0 9. Ne2 e5 10. 0-0 Nd7 11. Be3 Qe7 12. Bc2 Nb6 13. f4! A powerful novelty in place of 13. Qc1 Re8 14. Bg5 Qf8 15. Rb1 h6 16. Be3 Nc4 17. f4 exd4 18. Bxd4 Na3 19. f5 Nxc2 20. Qxc2 Bxd4+ 21. Nxd4 g5 22. Qd3 Qd6 23. Qf3 Qf6 24. Kh1 b6 25. Qg4 Bb7 26. Rbe1 c5 ½ : ½ Sorokin – Jansa, 16th World Senior Chess Championship, Arvier 2006. 13. ... exd4 14. Bxd4 Rd8? Black is oblivious to the coming storm.

15. f5! Bxd4+. 15. ... c5 16. f6! must be the climax of Radjabov’s carefully home-cooked day’s dish. 16. cxd4 c5 17. Qd2!? As the follow-up will show, the immediate 17. Qd3 was much more to the point; for instance: 17. ... gxf5 18. Rf4! cxd4 19. Raf1 with a powerful initiative. 17. ... Nc4 18. Qd3. Maybe 18. Qh6 Bxf5! is something Radjabov could have noticed only now. 18. ... Ne5? (18. ... b5!?∞) 19. Qa3. 19. Qg3! cxd4 20. Nf4! seems to give White a very strong attack. 19. ... Nc4 20. Qc3. White was still in time for 20. Qg3! (20. ... cxd4 21. Nf4!→). 20. ... b5! 21. f6!? Qd6 22. d5 Re8? 22. ... Bd7!? might be simpler and better, but by now Black’s accepted the gauntlet. 23. Bd3 Ne3!? 24. Bxb5 Rxe4 25. Ng3 Ng4! The only move, but quite strong. 26. Rac1! 26. h3 Re3 would be a mess. 26. ... c4 27. h3 Bb7 28. hxg4 Rxg4? Comparatively best was 28. ... Qc5+ 29. Rf2 Rf4 30. Rf1 Rxf2 31. Rxf2 Qxb5 32. Qe3 Kh8, although after 33. Ne4 White should retain his advantage. 29. Bc6!+− Rxg3. Or 29. ... Bxc6 30. dxc6 Rxg3 31. Qxc4 Rd3 32. Qf4 and White must win. 30. Qxc4 Ba6 31. Qf4. After 31. Qxa6 Rh3! Black may still bluff himself into the illusion of a perpetual check. 31. ... Rd8 32. Rce1 Qc5+ 33. Rf2 Rc3 34. Re7 Rc1+. Black falls straight into mate. 34. ... Rc2 is the most stubborn defence, but then both 35. Qe3 and 35. Re3 should win quite easily. 35. Kh2 Rc3 36. Qh6 1 : 0.

Regardless of today’s result, 熊奕韬 (Jeffery Xióng) has every reason to be encouraged, for other chances will surely come along in the near future. Photo: FIDE World Cup 2019.

Mirror Blocks

Alexander Igorevich Grischuk – 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén)
8th Chess World Cup; match game 1; Khanty-Mansiysk, September 23, 2019
Catalan Opening E04

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 dxc4 5. Bg2 a6 6. 0-0 Nc6 7. e3 Rb8 8. Nfd2 e5 9. Bxc6+ bxc6 10. dxe5 Ng4 11. Nxc4 Be6 12. Qe2. It’s interesting to note that Grischuk played a 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén)’s specialty with White. In two relatively recent games with Shakhriyar Mamedyarov, the Chinese Grandmaster actually experienced two different moods. Rapid cadence did not bring him good luck: 12. Qxd8+ Rxd8 13. Nbd2 Bb4 14. b3 h5!↑ 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) – Mamedyarov, 2nd IMSA Élite Mind Games Rapid, 淮安 (Huái’ān) 2017. Instead, blitz time controls turned out to be far more inspiring: 12. Nbd2(!) h5 13. f3(!) Rb4 14. fxg4 Bxc4 15. Nxc4 Qxd1 16. Rxd1 Rxc4 17. Bd2 Rxg4 18. Ba5 Bc5 19. Kf2 Bb6 20. Bc3⩲ 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) – Mamedyarov, 2nd IMSA Élite Mind Games Blitz, 淮安 (Huái’ān) 2017. 12. ... h5! 13. Rd1 Qc8! 14. Qf3!? Of course Grischuk does better than 14. Nbd2(?) h4!→ which gave Black an easy and immediate attack, Vorobiov – Goudriaan, 6th Leiden Chess Tournament GpA, Leiden 2012, but it’s questionable whether 14. h3!? h4! may work better than the text.

14. ... Rb6? Here’s where 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) misses his chance with 14. ... Bd5! 15. Rxd5! cxd5 16. Qxd5 Qf5 17. f3 Qc2! 18. Qc6+ Kd8 19. Nbd2 Qd1+ 20. Nf1 Nxh2! 21. Kxh2 Rh6!!−+ (the move overlooked by Black, who probably calculated 21. ... Qxf1 22. e6! Qf2+ drawing by perpetual check). 15. Nxb6 cxb6 16. h4 Nxe5 17. Qf4 Ng6 18. Qe4 Be7 19. Nc3 Bf5 20. Qh1 Ne5 21. f3 Bc2 22. Rd2 Bg6 23. Qg2 0-0 24. Rd1 Qf5 25. Rf1 Qe6 26. Ne2 Nd3 27. Kh2 Rd8 28. e4 f5 29. exf5 Qxf5 30. Nf4 Bf7 31. Nxd3 Rxd3 32. Bf4 Bxh4 33. Rad1 Rxd1 34. Rxd1 Bf6 35. b3 g5 36. Bc7 Bd5 37. Qe2 g4 38. Qd3 Qxd3 39. Rxd3 gxf3 40. Bxb6 Be5 41. Bd4 Be4 ½ : ½. For 42. Rd1 Bxd4 43. Rxd4 f2 44. Rd1 Bd3! 45. Kg2 f1=Q+! leads to a drawn King and Pawn ending.

Grischuk’s psychological approach ended up appeasing 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén)’s ambitions in their first quarterfinal game. Photo: Kirill Merkuryev/FIDE World Cup 2019.

Game Changer

熊奕韬 (Jeffery Xióng) – Jan-Krzysztof Duda
8th Chess World Cup; tie-break game 6 (5+3); Khanty-Mansiysk, September 22, 2019
Alekhine Defence B03

It took eight games (two classical, two 25+10, two 10+10, and two 5+3), but the young American star, 熊奕韬 (Jeffery Xióng), finally got into the quarterfinals of the Chess World Cup 2019 on his last useful tie-break game before Armageddon. 1. e4 Nf6 2. e5 Nd5 3. c4 Nb6 4. d4 d6 5. f4 Bf5 6. Nc3 e6 7. Nf3 Be7 8. Be3 0-0 9. Be2 dxe5 10. fxe5 Nc6 11. 0-0 f6 12. exf6 Bxf6 13. b3!? White plays a chip to escape an overload of theory after 13. Qd2 Qe7 14. Rad1 Rad8 15. Qc1⩲ — in fact a tabiya of the Four Pawns Attack. 13. ... Qe7 14. Qe1 Rad8!? A novelty in place of 14. ... e5 15. Nxe5 Nxd4 16. Bxd4 Bxe5 17. Bxe5 Qxe5 18. Bf3⩲ Jones – Tahbaz, 20th Dubai Open Chess Tournament, Dubai 2018. 15. Rd1 Bg4?? (15. ... Nb4!? 16. Qg3 c6∞) 16. Ne4!+− h6 17. Qg3 Bf5 18. Nxf6+ Rxf6 19. Nh4 Bc2 20. Rxf6? 20. Rd2+− was simpler and very strong. 20. ... Bxd1? Black misses his volatile tactical resource: 20. ... Qxf6! 21. Rf1 Nxd4! (and if 22. Bh5 then 22. ... Nf5).

21. Rg6? Still a faux pas, though quite justified by the circumstances. 21. Rxh6! (Δ Rh6-h8+) instead would have won quite easily. 21. ... Nxd4! 22. Bd3 Ne2+ 23. Bxe2 Bxe2 24. Bxh6 Rd1+?? Duda’s big-time blunder puts an end to the longest five minutes of 熊奕韬 (Jeffery Xióng)’s afternoon. After the intermediate Queen check 24. ... Qc5+! 25. Be3 Rd1+ 26. Kf2 Qf8+ 27. Nf3 Bd3 everything was okay for Black. 25. Kf2+− Qf8+ 26. Nf3 Rd7 27. Kxe2 Kh7 28. Ng5+ Kh8 29. Nxe6 Qf5 30. Bxg7+ Kg8 31. Bd4+ Kf7 32. Rf6+ 1 : 0.

U.S. Grandmaster 熊奕韬 (Jeffery Xióng), 18, got into the quarterfinals by upsetting Anish Giri and Jan-Krzysztof Duda, in spite of his being only the 31st seed in the rankings. Photo: Kirill Merkuryev/FIDE World Cup 2019.

Strangelove

Liviu-Dieter Nisipeanu – Hikaru Nakamura
8th Chess World Cup; match game 1; Khanty-Mansiysk, September 13, 2019
Catalan Opening E06

The elimination of Hikaru Nakamura from the Chess World Cup 2019 is one of the big surprises of Round Two, as it matured in the first game already, when he was upset by Liviu-Dieter Nisipeanu’s flashy (but far from winning) Queen sacrifice, which may vaguely resemble “Pawn e5 takes f6” by Andor Arnoldovich Lilienthal. 1. Nf3 Nf6 2. d4 e6 3. c4 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. g3 0-0 6. Bg2 dxc4 7. Ne5 Qd6 8. 0-0 Qa6 9. a4 Nc6. If 9. ... Rd8 there may follow 10. Nb5 Ne8 11. Qc2 Nc6 12. Qxc4 Nxd4 13. Be3 Nf5 14. Bc5 Bxc5 15. Qxc5 Qb6 16. Qxb6 axb6 17. Rfd1⩲ G. Meier – Nisipeanu, 46th Sparkassen Chess Meeting, Dortmund 2018. 10. Nb5 Nxe5 11. dxe5 Rd8 12. exf6!? If nothing else, Nisipeanu’s computer–prepared novelty — objectively more ambitious than 12. Qc2 Nd5 13. Qxc4 c6 14. Nd6 Qxc4 15. Nxc4 b6 16. Bd2 Ba6 17. Rfc1 ½ : ½ Efimenko – Kravtsiv, 84th Ukrainian Chess Championship, Lviv 2015 — will have a destabilising effect on Nakamura’s judgement. 12. ... Rxd1 13. Rxd1 Bd6 14. Bf4

14. ... e5? The losing move. 14. ... Qa5! 15. Bd2 (15. Nxd6 cxd6 16. Bxd6 Bd7!? 17. Bxb7 Re8 18. Be7 Qc7∞) 15. ... Qb6 may well lead to a draw by repetition of moves. 15. Nxd6! cxd6. The pointe is 15. ... exf4 16. Ne8! with the double threat of Rd1-d8 and Ne8xc7. 16. Bxe5 Qa5 17. Rxd6+− Bg4 18. Bc3 Qc7 19. Rad1 g6 20. Bxb7 Rf8 21. Bf3 Bxf3 22. exf3 h5 23. Kg2 Re8 24. h4 Qc8 25. a5 a6 26. Rd7 Qa8 27. R1d6 Rc8 28. Bd4 c3 29. bxc3 Re8 30. Bb6 1 : 0.

Game On

Nihal Sarin – Eltaj Safarli
8th Chess World Cup; match game 1; Khanty-Mansiysk, September 13, 2019
Spanish Game C95

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. 0-0 Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 0-0 9. h3 Nb8 10. d4 Nbd7 11. Nbd2 Bb7 12. Bc2 Re8 13. Nf1 Bf8 14. Ng3 g6 15. a4 Bg7 16. Bd3 c6 17. Bg5 h6 18. Be3. 18. Bd2 Kh7 19. Qc2 is the “vintage reissue series”, which after 19. ... d5? (19. ... exd4!? 20. cxd4 c5) 20. exd5 Nxd5 21. h4! exd4 22. h5→ gave White a tremendous attack, Karpov – Kavalek, 3rd Interpolis Chess Tournament, Tilburg 1979. 18. ... Qc7 19. Qd2 Kh7 20. b4 Nb6? Black somehow hold his own after 20. ... d5 21. dxe5 Nxe4 22. Nxe4 dxe4 23. Bxe4 Nxe5 24. Nxe5 Qxe5 25. Bd4 Qd6 26. axb5 axb5 27. Bf3 Rxa1 28. Rxa1 Bxd4 39. cxd4 Bc8 30. Rc1 Bd7 31. h4 h5 32. g3 Qf6 33. Bg2 Re6 34. Rc5 Rd6 35. d5 cxd5 36. Rxd5 Rxd5 37. Qxd5 Qe6 38. Qxe6 Bxe6 39. f4 Kg7 40. Kf2 Kf6 41. Bf1 Bd7 42. Ke3 Ke7 43. Kd4 Kd6 44. Be2 f5 45. Bf3 Be6 46. Be2 ½ : ½ Zhigalko – Doležal, 16th Czech Open GMA, Pardubice 2007, but it’s highly likely that White may do better with other moves somewhere here and there. So maybe it’s better to prepare for ... c6-c5 by 20. ... Rac8(!) with reasonable chances of defending. 21. dxe5 dxe5 22. a5 Nbd7? At least from a practical perspective, Black ought to have preferred 22. ... Na4 23. Bc2 Red8, however good or however bad it might be. Now it’s all very easy for White. 23. c4 Rad8 24. Qa2 Kg8 25. Bc2 Qd6 26. Bb3 Qe7 27. Rad1 Rc8 28. Nh4 Kf8 29. c5 Nb8 30. Rd6 Red8

31. Ngf5! gxf5 32. Nxf5 Qc7 33. Nxg7 Kxg7 34. Bxh6+! Kxh6 35. Rxf6+ Kg5 36. Rf5+ Kh6 37. Qe2 1 : 0.

The legend says that, at three years of age, Nihal Sarin could recognise the capitals and the flags of all the world’s 190-odd countries. Photo: Kirill Merkuryev/FIDE World Cup 2019.

A Place in the Sun

Sugar Gan-Erdene – Ian Alexandrovich Nepomniachtchi
8th Chess World Cup; match game 1; Khanty-Mansiysk, September 10, 2019
Sicilian Defence B90

The Chess World Cup 2019 has started today (September 10) in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia with very few surprises. Wow, lots of theory going on! 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Be3 e5 7. Nb3 Be7 8. h3 Be6 9. Qf3 0-0 10. 0-0-0 b5 11. g4 b4 12. Nd5 Nxd5 13. exd5 Bc8 14. Bd3 Nd7 15. Rhg1 a5 16. Nd2!?TN (16. Kb1 Ba6 17. Bxa6 Rxa6 18. Qe2 Ra8 19. Nd2 Qc7 20. Ne4 Rfc8 21. g5 a4 22. Rd3 Kh8 23. Rg4 Rab8 24. Ng3 g6 25. Ne4 f5 26. gxf6 Nxf6 27. Nxf6 Bxf6 28. Re4 Rb7 29. h4 Qd7 30. Qg4 Qc7 ½ : ½ Gulamali – Gopal, 14th Tradewise Gibraltar Chess Festival, Catalan Bay 2016) 16. ... Qc7 17. Bb5 Ba6 18. Bc6 Rac8 19. Kb1 Bb7 20. Nc4 Bxc6 21. dxc6 Nb8 22. Qd5 Nxc6 23. Nxd6? This is White’s first serious mistake — and the very one that made Black’s initiative almost irresistible. 23. b3!∞ was nearly mandatory. 23. ... b3!→ 24. c3 bxa2+ 25. Kxa2? And, after this, White is lost, though also after 25. Ka1 Rcd8 26. Bc5 a4! no better outcome is to be expected. 25. ... Bxd6 26. Qxd6

26. ... Nb4+! This devastating blow may have come unexpected to Gan-Erdene. 27. cxb4. 27. Ka1 Qc4 28. cxb4 axb4 merely transposes into the game. 27. ... Qc4+ 28. Ka1 axb4 29. Qd5 Qc2! 30. Qa5 Ra8 31. Ba7 b3! Black “nails” the enemy King into a mating net. 32. Qa3 Rfc8 33. Rge1 h6 34. f3 Rc7 35. Bc5 Rxa3+ 36. Bxa3 Ra7 37. Rd8+ Kh7 0 : 1.