Best by Test

沈阳 (Shěn Yáng) – Aleksandra Yuryevna Goryachkina
43rd Women’s Chess Olympiad; Batumi, October 5, 2018
1r4k1/1qb3p1/2p1nn2/p1Pp4/P2Pp3/1NQ1Pp1P/2KB1P2/5B1R b - - 1 33

Position after 33. Be2-f1

A consoling feature for the Russian women’s team may lay, however, in the great form shown by Aleksandra Yuryevna Goryachkina in her last Olympics games. Here is how she closed matters with 沈阳 (Shěn Yáng): 33. ... Nxc5! 34. dxc5 Be5! 35. Ba6 (35. Qxe5 Qxb3+ 36. Kc1 Qb1 mate) 35. ... Qxa6 36. Qxe5 Qd3+ 37. Kc1 Qxb3 38. Qa1 d4! 39. exd4 e3! 40. Bxe3 (40. fxe3 Ne4−+) 40. ... Rb4 41. Rg1 Rc4+ 0 : 1.

Aleksandra Yuryevna Goryachkina (seated, left) has all reasons to feel lucky as the newly elected FIDE President Arkady Vladimirovich Dvorkovich (standing, centre), beneath the deferential gaze of the Russian Chess Federation President Andrey Vasilievich Filatov (standing, right), makes the first move on Alexandra Konstantinovna Kosteniuk’s board. Photo: batumi2018.fide.com.

日正当中 (High Noon)

Alexandra Konstantinovna Kosteniuk – 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn)
43rd Women’s Chess Olympiad; Batumi, October 5, 2018
Russian Defence C42

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Nxe5 d6 4. Nf3 Nxe4 5. d4 d5 6. Bd3 Bf5 7. 0-0 Be7 8. Nbd2 Nd6. Déjà vu: 8. ... Nxd2 9. Qxd2 Bxd3 10. Qxd3 0-0 11. Re1 c6 12. Re2 Nd7 13. Bf4 Nf6 14. Rae1 Ne4 15. Ne5 f6 16. Nc4 Rf7 17. f3 dxc4 18. Qxe4 Bf8 19. c3 g6 20. b3 cxb3 21. axb3 Kg7 22. Qd3 Qd7 23. Re6 Re7 24. Rxe7+ Bxe7 25. Qe2 Kf7 26. h4 Re8 27. Qa2 a6 28. Re4 f5 29. b4+ Qd5 30. c4 Qd7 31. c5+ Kg7 32. Be5+ Bf6 33. Bxf6+ Kxf6 34. Rxe8 Qxe8 35. Qd2 Qd7 36. Kf2 Ke6 37. Qe3+ Kf7 38. Qe5 Qd8 39. g3 a5 40. bxa5 Qxa5 41. g4 fxg4 42. fxg4 Qd2+ 43. Kf3 Qd3+ 44. Kf4 Qd2+ 45. Kf3 Qd3+ 46. Kf4 Qd2+ 47. Kf3 Qd1+ 48. Kf4 Qd2+ 49. Kf3 Qd1+ ½ : ½ Kosteniuk – 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn), 6th Women’s World Rapid Chess Championship, ar-Riyāḍ (Riyadh) 2017. 9. Nb3!? 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn)’s mentor was the last (Chinese) man on earth to explore this stream: 9. Bxf5 Nxf5 10. Re1 0-0 11. Nf1 c6 12. Qd3 g6 13. Ng3 Nxg3 14. hxg3 Nd7 15. Bf4 Re8 16. Re3 Bf6 17. Rae1 Rxe3 18. Rxe3 Nf8 19. Be5 Be7 20. Qe2 Ne6 21. Nh2 h5 22. g4 h4 23. f4 f6 24. Bc7 Nxd4 25. Qd3 Qxc7 26. Qxg6+ Kf8 27. Qh6+ Ke8 28. Qxf6 Nxc2 29. Qg6+ Kd7 30. Qe6+ Kd8 31. Qg8+ Kd7 32. Qe6+ Kd8 33. Qg8+ Kd7 ½ : ½ Dervishi – 倪华 (Ní Huá), 6th World Rapid Chess Championship, ar-Riyāḍ (Riyadh) 2017. 9. ... 0-0 10. Bf4 Bxd3 11. Qxd3 Nd7 12. Rfe1 Ne4 13. c4 Bd6 14. Be5 dxc4 15. Qxe4 cxb3 16. Qxb7 bxa2 17. Bxd6 cxd6 18. Rxa2 a5 19. h3 h6 20. Re3 Nf6 21. Rea3 Re8 22. Qb5 Qc7 23. Rc3 Qb8 24. Rb3 Qc8 25. Rc3 Qe6 26. Rxa5 Rxa5 27. Qxa5 Qe2 28. Qa4 Qxb2 29. Qc2 Qa1+ 30. Qc1 Qa8 31. Rc6 Ne4 32. Qc2 Qb7 33. Rc7 Qd5 34. Rc8 Rxc8 35. Qxc8+ Kh7 36. Qc2 g6 37. Nd2 Ng5 38. Qc4 Qf5 39. Qe2 Kg7 40. Qe3 Qd5 41. h4 Ne6 42. Nf3 g5 43. hxg5 hxg5 44. Kh2 Kg6 45. Qd3+ Qf5 46. Qc3 Qe4 47. Qc8 Kf6 48. Qh8+ Ke7 49. Qh5 Qf5 50. Kg1 Qb1+ 51. Kh2 Qe4 52. Kg1 f6 53. Qh8 g4 54. Nh2 f5 55. Qh7+ Kd8 56. Nf1 Nxd4 57. Ne3 Kc8 58. Qg8+ Kd7 59. Qf7+ Qe7 60. Qd5 Qe5 61. Qb7+ Ke6 62. Qc8+ Kf7 63. Qc4+ Ne6 64. g3 Kg6 65. Qc8 Nd4 66. Qg8+ Qg7 67. Qe8+ Qf7 68. Qc8 Nf3+ 69. Kg2 Ng5 70. Kf1 Qe6 71. Qd8 Nf3

So far, amid ups and downs, the game had maintained itself on quite balanced terms, but Kosteniuk’s next move is a very serious error, probably due to her time shortage. 72. Qb8? This puts Black’s passed d-Pawn in motion, much increasing her chances. 72. Qa8 was probably the correct way to do what White intended to do. 72. ... d5 73. Kg2 d4 74. Nc2 d3 75. Ne3 d2 76. Qd8 Kf7 77. Qc7+ Kf6 78. Qd8+ Kf7 79. Qc7+ Ke8 80. Qb8+ Kd7 81. Qb7+ Kd6 82. Qb6+ Ke7. Now Kosteniuk claimed a draw by threefold repetition, which very soon turned into a chaos of arbiters checking moves. In the end, Kosteniuk’s claim turned out to be ungrounded and, as a penalty, 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn) was given two extra minutes on her clock. 83. Qc7+ Kf6 84. Qd8+ Kg6 85. Nd5? Kosteniuk quickly falls apart. After 85. Kf1 Qa6+ 86. Kg2 Qf6∓ Black would have remained a Pawn ahead with unlikely probability of converting it into a win, which might have meant gold for Ukraine. 85. ... Qf7? Drama permeates the last chapter of the saga. 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn) misses 85. ... Ne1+! 86. Kh2 (both 86. Kf1 Qa6+ and 86. Kg1 Nd3! lead to catastrophe) 86. ... Kg7! leaving White without a future. 86. Qd6+ Kg7 87. Nf4? And Kosteniuk is the one who makes the last mistake, in fact taking the gold off Ukrainian’s necks. 87. Ne3 would have prevented Black from making any further progress. 87. ... Kh7! 88. Ne6 d1=Q 89. Nf8+!? Kg8. 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn) escapes Kosteniuk’s last perfidious trick: 89. ... Qxf8?? 90. Qg6+!! Kh8 91. Qg7+!! with stalemate to follow. 90. Qxd1 Kxf8 91. Qa1 Kg8 92. Qa8+ Kh7 93. Qa5 Ng5 94. Qb5 Kg6 95. Qc6+ Qe6 0 : 1.

High Noon in Batumi: Alexandra Konstantinovna Kosteniuk (left) vs. 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn) (right). Photo: batumi2018.fide.com.

Double Gold

China wins both team titles at the 43rd Chess Olympiad in Batumi, Georgia. In particular, credit goes to 17th Women’s World Chess Champion 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn), who, winning a dramatic last round game against Alexandra Konstantinovna Kosteniuk of Russia, succeeded in defending her team’s title from 2016 despite the absence of four-time Women’s World Chess Champion 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) and 16th Women’s World Chess Champion 谭中怡 (Tán Zhōngyí). Pictured, from left to right, are: 余少腾 (Yú Shǎoténg), 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn), 田红卫 (Tián Hóngwèi), 雷挺婕 (Léi Tǐngjié), and 徐俊 (Xú Jùn). Photo: Zsuzsa Polgár (@SusanPolgar).

Stalemate

Khanim Asad Qizi Balajayeva – Anna Maria Sargsyan
43rd Women’s Chess Olympiad; Batumi, October 4, 2018
8/5p2/6k1/4nq2/8/8/1Q4P1/6K1 b - - 1 58

Position after 58. Qc2-b2

Who’ll win the Olympics? Only tomorrow will tell. For today the only emotion came out from the drawn clash between Armenia and Azerbaijan, in which the Armenian Anna Maria Sargsyan impetuously, if didactically, threw away both her own and her team’s win: 58. ... Ng4! 59. g3 Qf3?? The classic “riches to rags” drama! After 59. ... Qd3! White is stuck in zugzwang, and can’t avoid a quick mate. 60. Qb1+?? 60. Qg7+! Kf5 61. Qg6+!! with perpetual check or stalemate. 60. ... Kh6?? Both 60. ... f5 and 60. ... Qf5 bring back the time, with mate coming soon. 61. Qg6+!! Black is not given a second chance! 61. ... Kxg6 stalemate.

Not yet home

Marina Brunello – Tania Sachdev
43rd Women’s Chess Olympiad; Batumi, October 3, 2018
Giuoco Piano C50

Good news came yesterday from Marina Brunello, who scored the equaliser for Italy in the drawn match against India. 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. 0-0 Nf6 5. d3 0-0 6. a4 a5 7. Bg5 Be7!? Or else 7. ... h6 8. Bh4 Be7 9. c3 d6 with similar play to the actual game, Petrov – Sachdev, 43rd Sunway Open, Sitges 2017. 8. h3 h6 9. Bh4 d6 10. Bg3 Be6. From a theoretical standpoint, that’s quite a critical position. For instance, in a recent game it made good sense for Black to sacrifice a Pawn by 10. ... Kh8!? 11. c3 Nh7 12. Qb3 f5 13. exf5 Bf6 14. Be6 Ne7 15. Nh4 Qe8 16. Bxc8 Rxc8 17. Ng6+ Nxg6 18. fxg6 Qxg6 19. Qxb7 Ng5 20. h4 Ne6 21. Qe4 Qh5 22. Nd2 Nf4 with fantastic compensation, Karjakin – Aronian, 5th Norway Chess, Stavanger 2017. And perhaps, even 9. ... g5!? may well be worth considering. The text simply leaves White with a smooth and lasting edge. 11. Na3 Nd7 12. c3 Nb6 13. Bxe6 fxe6 14. Qb3 Qd7 15. Nb5 Rae8 16. Rac1 Bd8 17. Rfd1 Kh7 18. c4 Nc8. White stands much better already, so perhaps Black had to try her luck with the Exchange sacrifice 18. ... Rxf3!? 19. gxf3 Rf8 with some chance for complications.

19. c5! Now White opens up the position to great effect, and Brunello does not meet particular difficulties in turning her huge advantage into a win. 19. ... Bf6 20. cxd6 cxd6 21. d4! exd4 22. Nfxd4 Nxd4 23. Nxd4 Qf7 24. Nb5 Be5 25. Rc7 Re7 26. Rdc1 Rxc7 27. Rxc7 Qg6 28. Bxe5 dxe5 29. Qe3 Rd8 30. Rxb7 Qh5 31. Qg3 Rg8 32. Kh2 Qe2 33. Qxe5 Qxf2 34. Nd4 Qf8 35. Nxe6 Qd6 36. Qxd6 Nxd6 37. Ra7 Nxe4 38. Rxa5 Re8 39. Re5 Nd6 40. b4 Kg8 41. Re2 Kf7 42. Nf4 Rxe2 43. Nxe2 Ke6 44. Nc3 Ke5 45. a5 Kd4 46. a6 Nc8 47. Nb5+ Kd5 48. a7 Nb6 49. Nc7+ 1 : 0.

The Wild Bunch

居文君 (Jū Wénjūn) – 彭肇勤 (Péng Zhàoqín)
43rd Women’s Chess Olympiad; Batumi, October 1, 2018
Sicilian Defence B51

Not only China and Ukraine, but also Armenia, Romania, United States, India, Azerbaijan, and even Italy — not to mention many others — can still win gold at the 43rd Women’s Olympiads. The Chinese had things quite easy yesterday against the Netherlands, but very likely the easiness won’t last long. 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 d6 4. 0-0 Bd7 5. Re1 a6 6. Bf1 Bg4 7. h3 Bxf3 8. Qxf3 Nf6 9. d3 g6 10. c3 Bg7 11. Be3 0-0 12. Nd2 Nd7 13. Qd1. It may be interesting to note that 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn) herself, playing with Black against a well known theoretician, did not succeed in achieving more than a laborious draw by perpetual check after 13. Qe2 b5 14. a3 e5 15. f4 f5 16. g3 Qc7 17. Bg2 Rae8 18. Rf1 Kh8 19. Qf3 Ne7 20. a4 fxe4 21. dxe4 exf4 22. gxf4 d5 23. exd5 Nxd5 24. Qxd5 Rxe3 25. axb5 axb5 26. Ne4 Re2 27. Rad1 Nf6 28. Qxc5 Qb7 29. Nf2 Qb8 30. Nd3 Nh5 31. Bf3 Nxf4 32. Nxf4 Qxf4 33. Bxe2 Qg3+ 34. Kh1 Qxh3+ 35. Kg1 Qg3+ ½ : ½ Lane – 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn), 8th Malaysian Open, Kuala Lumpur 2011. 13. ... b5 14. Nf3 Nb6 15. d4 cxd4. This might well be the cause of all Black’s trouble. More convincing seems to be 15. ... Na4 16. Re2 Qa5 17. Rc1 Rad8 18. Rec2 Qc7 19. b3 Nb6 20. a4 bxa4 21. bxa4 c4 22. a5 Nxa5 23. Ra1 Nb3 24. Rxa6 d5 25. exd5 Nxd5 26. Qe2 Na5 27. Bd2 Ra8 28. Rxa8 Rxa8 29. Ra2 Rc8 30. Ng5 Nb3= 31. Qxc4! Nxd2? (after 31. ... Qb7! Black is at least equal) 32. Qxd5 Nxf1 33. Nxf7 e6 34. Qxe6 Rf8 35. Ne5+ Kh8 36. Kxf1 1 : 0 Ponomariov – Caruana, 40th Sparkassen Chess Meeting, Dortmund 2012. 16. cxd4 d5. No better is 16. ... Rc8 17. b3 Nb4 18. Rc1 Nxa2 19. Rxc8 Qxc8 20. Qa1 Nc3 21. Qa5 Na8 22. Bd2 with great advantage to White, Zubarev – Kuzubov, 83rd Ukrainian Chess Championship, Lviv 2014. 17. e5 Qd7 18. b3 Rfc8. An uninfluential novelty. The three-time Chinese Women’s Champion and fourteen-time Dutch Women’s Champion got entangled into a serialised data stream which ends badly for Black: 18. ... Nd8 19. Qd2 a5 20. h4 Ne6 21. h5 Rfc8 22. g3 b4 23. Rec1 Rxc1 24. Rxc1 Rc8 25. Bh3 Rxc1+ 26. Qxc1 Qc7 27. Bxe6 Qxc1+ 28. Bxc1 fxe6 29. hxg6 hxg6 30. Kf1 Na8 31. a3 Nc7 32. axb4 axb4 33. Bd2 Na6 34. Ke2 Bf8 35. Kd3 Nc7 36. Bxb4 Kf7 37. Ba5 1 : 0 A. Kovačević – Vujačić, International Chess Open, Cetinje 2016. These are things that often happen in classical chess. 19. Qd2 Nd8 20. Rec1 Rxc1 21. Rxc1 Rc8 22. h4 Rxc1 23. Qxc1 Qc6 24. Qd2 Na8 25. h5 Nc7 26. g3 Nce6 27. Bg2 f6 28. exf6 exf6 29. Nh4 Kf7 30. Qd3 Nf8 31. Qd1 Nde6 32. Qf3 Nc7 33. Bf1 Nfe6? Black didn’t manage to get out of the “written script”, and 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn)’s finish comes energetically and naturally:

34. hxg6+ hxg6 35. Bd3 Nf8 36. Nxg6! Nxg6 37. Qh5 f5 38. Qxf5+ 1 : 0.

居文君 (Jū Wénjūn). Photo: batumi2018.fide.com.

马拉松 (Marathon)

Anna Yuriyivna Ushenina – 黄茜 (Huáng Qiàn)
43rd Women’s Chess Olympiad; Batumi, September 30, 2018
8/8/5k2/1R3p2/6p1/4K1P1/r7/8 w - - 22 118

Position after 117. ... Ke5-f6

Woman Grandmaster 黄茜 (Huáng Qiàn), also known for being the wife of Grandmaster 卜祥志 (Bǔ Xiángzhì), did miracles today by winning a drawn Rook and Pawn ending against Anna Yuriyivna Ushenina, thus scoring a vital equaliser in China’s crucial match with Ukraine. 118. Rb6+. Another way towards a draw could be 118. Rc5! Rg2 119. Rc3! Rxg3+ 120. Kf4= Rxc3 stalemate. 118. ... Kg5 119. Rb8?? And here is Ushenina’s drama. The White Rook had to stay (and eventually oscillate) on the third rank: 119. Rb3 and if 119. ... Rg2 then 120. Kd4 making Black’s progress virtually impossible. 119. ... Rg2 120. Rg8+ Kf6 121. Rf8+ Kg6. Now the g3-Pawn falls with fatal consequences for White. 122. Kf4 Rf2+ 123. Ke5 Re2+ 124. Kd4 (124. Kf4 Re4 mate) 124. ... Rg2 125. Ke5 Rxg3 126. Rxf5 Rf3! The rest is easy. 127. Rf4 Kg5 128. Ra4 g3 129. Ra8 Re3+ 130. Kd4 Re1 131. Kd3 Kg4 132. Kd2 Re7 133. Rg8+ Kh3 134. Rh8+ Kg2 135. Rg8 Re5 136. Rg7 Kh2 137. Rh7+ Kg1 138. Rg7 g2 139. Rg8 Rh5 140. Ke2 Kh2 141. Kf2 Rf5+ 142. Ke2 g1=Q 143. Rh8+ Kg2 144. Rg8+ Kh1 0 : 1. So angry was Ushenina that walked away denying her opponent the ritual handshake.

Seated, from left to right, are 雷挺婕 (Léi Tǐngjié), 黄茜 (Huáng Qiàn), 沈阳 (Shěn Yáng), and 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn); standing, from left to right, are 田红卫 (Tián Hóngwèi), Chinese Chess Association’s Delegate & Vice General Secretary, and 余少腾 (Yú Shǎoténg), head coach of Chinese women’s chess team. Photo: batumi2018.fide.com.

The Long Run

Fabiano Caruana – Boris Abramovich Gelfand
43rd Chess Olympiad; Batumi, September 28, 2018
Sicilian Defence B31

Fabiano Caruana is playing non-stop super chess, apparently showing no need of hiding himself before the big clash with Magnus Carlsen in London next fall. Not to be superstitious here, but his determination may well resemble that of Alekhine before the World Championship match against Capablanca. 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 g6 4. Bxc6 dxc6 5. d3 Bg7 6. h3 Nf6 7. Nc3 0-0 8. 0-0 Ne8 9. Be3 b6 10. e5 f6 11. Re1 Nc7 12. Qd2!? New, but not too different from 12. exf6 exf6 13. Qd2 g5!∞ Mkrtchian – Ushenina, 1st Women’s World Team Chess Championship, Yekaterinburg 2007. 12. ... fxe5? 13. ... g5! was still the best move, eventually transposing into the above mentioned game. 13. Bh6! Rxf3!? Black is virtually forced to give up the Exchange for if 13. ... Bxh3 then 14. Nxe5 with great advantage to White. 14. Bxg7. Not 14. gxf3? because of 14. ... Bf6! and Black’s play on the dark squares would more than compensate for the Exchange. 14. ... Kxg7 15. gxf3 Bxh3 16. Rxe5 e6 17. Rg5! Now, White’s not only the Exchange ahead, but he is also attacking the enemy King with brio and might. 17. ... Qf6 18. Rg3 Bf5 19. Kg2 h5 20. Rh1 Rh8

21. Ne4! Qxb2 22. Qf4! Nd5 23. Qd6 e5? 23. ... h4! seems to be Black’s best chance, though after 24. Rg4! Bxg4 25. fxg4 g5! 26. Qd7+ Kg6 27. c3! White’s initiative continues. 24. Rh4! The two White Rooks are worth a kingdom! 24. ... Qd4. Or else 24. ... Nf4+ 25. Kh1 Rf8 26. c3! with an easy win. 25. Kg1 Rf8 26. Rxh5 Bxe4 27. Qd7+. Finally going for mate. 27. ... Kf6 28. Qxc6+ Kg7 29. Qd7+ Kf6 30. fxe4 Nf4 31. Rf5+ gxf5 32. Qxf5+ Ke7 33. Rg7+ 1 : 0.

Fabiano Caruana. Photo: batumi2018.fide.com.

Generations & Geographies

• Kirill Zangalis, Майя Чибурданидзе: “Готова сыграть матч с Хоу Ифань” | Maia Grigorievna Chiburdanidze: “I’m ready to play a match with 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán)”, Sport-Express, September 28, 2018

Sergey Alexandrovich Karjakin’s manager and Sport-Express correspondent Kirill Zangalis interviewed at length 6th Women’s World Chess Champion Maia Grigorievna Chiburdanidze in Batumi, Georgia on various matters, ranging from the 43rd Chess Olympiad to her glorious past and her ascetic present. Asked about the possibility of a comeback, she replied: “Sincerely speaking, I’m quite unlikely to travel much. I feel better — and stronger — at home. I just need to practice a little more”. “What if a sponsor were available to fund and organise a match between you and 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán)?”, Zangalis asked. “Why not?”, Chiburdanidze answered. “Yes, especially at rapid and blitz chess. I think I would give her a fight”. [Read more].

Maia Grigorievna Chiburdanidze (forefront) watching the opening ceremony of the 43rd Chess Olympiad in Batumi on September 23, 2018. Photo: batumi2018.fide.com.

Thoughts Behind the Thoughts

Jacek Tomczak – Vladimir Borisovich Kramnik
43rd Chess Olympiad; Batumi, September 27, 2018
Scotch Game C45

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 exd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nxc6 bxc6 6. e5 Qe7 7. Qe2 Nd5 8. h4 Qe6 9. g3 Nb4. The alternative 9. ... d6 10. c4 Nb6 also gives Black a satisfactory game, Nepomniachtchi – Kramnik, 3rd Grand Chess Tour, 2nd stage (“Your Next Move” Blitz), Leuven 2017. 10. c4!? This is an understandable attempt to improve on 10. a3 Qd5 11. Rg1 Ba6 which gives Black a very comfortable game, Díaz – Arencibia Rodríguez, 58th Cuban Chess Championship, Las Tunas 1996. 10. ... Ba6 11. Bf4. 11. b3 Qg6! is not too exciting either, but the text is probably even worse. 11. ... d5! 12. a3!? (12. exd6 Nd3+) 12. ... Bxc4 13. Qd1 Bxf1. 13. ... Qf5 (or also 13. ... Qg6!?) 14. Bxc4 dxc4 15. 0-0 Nd3∓ is regarded by most engines as a very appealing destination for Black. 14. Kxf1 Na6 15. Nc3 Nc5 16. b4 d4 17. bxc5 dxc3 18. Qd4 Rd8? It’s quite amazing that Kramnik did not go now for 18. ... Qd5! forcing the exchange of Queens and a very favourable ending a Pawn up. 19. Qxc3 Qd5 20. Kg1 Bxc5 21. Rc1 Bb6 22. h5!? 0-0 23. h6 Rfe8 24. hxg7 Re6! 25. Bg5 Qa2? Apparently overestimating his attacking chances. Best seems 25. ... Bd4! 26. Qc2 Rg6! 27. Qf5 Re8 which leaves Black with the upper hand. 26. Rh2 Rd5? Consistently oblivious to the disaster. A much lesser evil was 26. ... Rd4! in order to reply 27. Qf3 with 27. ... Qd5 28. Qh5 Qe4 29. Bf6 Rd5 eventually followed by an Exchange sacrifice on e5.

27. Qb4! It’s strange — but of course possible — that Kramnik may have overlooked this strabic move which threatens both Qb4-f8 mate and Qb4-h4. Instead, after 27. Bf6 Qd2 Black would have avoided the worst. 27. ... c5. Of course, both 27. ... Re8 and 27. ... Kxg7 are met by 28. Qh4 with mate coming soon. 28. Qh4. The End. Kramnik chivalrously allows his opponent to deliver mate: 28. ... h6 29. Bxh6 Qb3 30. Bd2! Kxg7 31. Qh8+ Kg6 32. Qh7 mate.

Vladimir Borisovich Kramnik. Photo: batumi2018.fide.com.

Short Stories from the Twenty-First Century

Désirée Di Benedetto – Anna Maria Sargsyan
43rd Women’s Chess Olympiad; Batumi, September 27, 2018
Slav Defence D17

If nothing else, at least the Italian women’s team is keeping safe the country’s honour at the 43rd Chess Olympiad. 1. d4 d5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. c4 c6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. a4 Bf5 6. Ne5 Nbd7 7. Nxc4 Qc7 8. g3 e5 9. dxe5 Nxe5 10. Bf4 Nfd7 11. Bg2 g5 12. Ne3 gxf4 13. Nxf5 0-0-0 14. Qc2 Kb8 15. 0-0 fxg3 16. hxg3 a5 17. Rfd1 h5 18. Rac1 Nc5. Italian men too set their footsteps upon this long and theoretical line: 18. ... Bc5 19. Ne4 Bb4 20. Rd4 Nb6 21. Rxd8+ Rxd8 22. Rd1 Rxd1+ 23. Qxd1 Qd7 24. Qxd7 Nbxd7 25. b3 Kc7 26. Nd4 Nc5 27. Kf1 Ned7 28. e3 Ne5 29. Ke2 Ng6 30. f4 Ne7 31. Bf3 Nxe4 32. Bxe4 Bc3 33. Kd3 Be1 34. Bf3 h4 35. gxh4 Bxh4 36. Bh5 f6 37. e4 Kd6 38. Kc4 Bf2 39. Nf5+ Nxf5 40. exf5 Be3 41. Bf7 Bxf4 42. Be6 b5+ ½ : ½ David – S. Brunello, 77th Italian Chess Championship, Cosenza 2017. 19. Rxd8+. Or else 19. Ne4 Rxd1+ 20. Rxd1 Nxe4 21. Qxe4 Bb4 22. Bh3 f6 23. Kg2 Qf7 24. Nd4 Ka8 25. Bf5 Rd8 26. Rh1 Rd6 27. Nf3 Nd7 ½ : ½ Smirnov – Al Sayed, 7th Aeroflot Open, Moscow 2008. 19. ... Qxd8 20. Ne4 Nxe4 21. Qxe4 f6. Another modus vivendi could be 21. ... Qf6 22. Nd4 Bg7 but then after 23. b4! White should still have prospects for initiative. 22. Nd4 Qe8? This mistake suddenly precipitates Black into hopeless ruin. Best was 22. ... h4! 23. f4 Ng4∞ 24. Bf3 f5! 25. Nxf5 Bc5+ 26. Kf1 Re8 with enough compensation for the Pawn. 23. f4 Bh6. A pin upon which Black obviously relied when playing 22. ... Qe8, but a prompt disappointment will be there for her. 24. Rc3! Ng4

25. Nxc6+! White sacrifices her Knight and launches a mating attack. 25. ... bxc6 26. Rb3+ Kc7 27. Qd4 Qc8 28. Rb6. Even stronger was 28. Bxc6! for if 28. ... Kxc6 then 29. Rb6+ Kc7 30. Qd6 mate. Almost incredulous, White held her breath and went for a safe, sure and prosaic victory. 28. ... Qe6 29. Rxc6+ Qxc6 30. Qa7+ Kd6 31. Bxc6 Kxc6 32. Qa6+ Kd7 33. Qb5+ Ke6 34. Qc4+ Ke7 35. Qc5+ Ke6 36. Qxh5 Rg8 37. e4 Ke7 38. Qc5+ Kf7 39. Qc7+ Kf8 40. Qc8+ Kf7 41. Qc7+ Ke8 42. Qxa5 Bf8 43. Qb5+ Kf7 44. Qh5+ Ke7 45. a5 Nh6 46. Qc5+ Kd7 47. Qd5+ Kc7 48. a6 1 : 0.

Désirée Di Benedetto. Photo © Chess Daily News.

Time to Tell

Lisandra Teresa Ordaz Valdés – 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn)
43rd Women’s Chess Olympiad; Batumi, September 26, 2018
Nimzo-Indian Defence E36

And finally, 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn) debuted on the stage of the 43rd Chess Olympiad, with all the burden of responsibility that rests on her shoulders. Will she be able to wear the crown? And will she be able to save the “face” of the family? Only time will tell. 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 b6. Deviating from her early favourite 6. ... Ne4 7. Qc2 c5 8. dxc5 Nc6 9. Nf3 Qa5+ 10. Bd2 Nxd2 11. Qxd2 dxc4 12. Qxa5 Nxa5 13. e3 b5 14. cxb6 axb6 15. Nd2 b5 16. a4 Nb7 17. Ra3 Rxa4 18. Rxa4 bxa4 19. Bxc4 Bd7= 谭中怡 (Tán Zhōngyí) – 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn), 重庆 (Chóngqìng) 2018, Women’s World Chess Championship match game 9. 7. Nf3 dxc4. The alternative is 7. ... 0-0 9. Bg5 Ba6 10. Qa4 Qd7 11. Qc2 Qc6 12. Qxc6 Nxc6 13. Rc1 Bb7 14. Bxf6 gxf6 15. e3 Rac8 16. Bb5 Nb8 17. Ke2 c6 18. Bd3 a5 19. Rc3 Nd7 20. Rhc1 c5 21. Bb5 cxd4 22. Nxd4 Nc5 23. f3 a4 24. g4 Rfd8 25. Rb1 Kf8 26. b4 axb3 27. Nxb3 Nxb3 28. Rbxb3 Bd5 29. Rxc8 Rxc8 30. Rb2 Rc3 31. a4 Bc4+ ½ : ½ Ushenina – 谭中怡 (Tán Zhōngyí), 12th “映美杯” (“Yìng Měi Cup”) Chinese Chess League, 深圳 (Shēnzhèn) 2016. 8. Qxc4 Ba6 9. Qa4+ Qd7 10. Qc2 h6 11. Bf4 0-0 12. Be5. Another example of how to proceed comes from a recent rehearsal: 12. Rd1 Rc8 13. Ne5 Qe8 14. b4 c5 15. dxc5 bxc5 16. bxc5 Qb5 17. g3 Bb7 18. f3 Qa5+ 19. Kf2 Nd5 20. Bd2 Qxa3 21. e4 Ne7 22. Rb1 Bc6 23. Be3 Qa5 24. Be2 Be8 25. Rb7 Nec6 26. Nc4 Qd8 27. Rd1 Qf6 28. f4 Qg6 29. Nd6 Rd8 30. Qc3 Bd7 31. g4 e5 32. f5 Qf6 33. Kg3 Nd4 34. Rxd4 exd4 35. Bxd4 Qe7 36. Bxg7 Nc6 37. Bf6 Qf8 38. Bc4 ½ : ½ Gustafsson – Braun, 37th SchachBundesliga, Berlin 2018. 12. ... Ng4! 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn)’s novelty seems a bit more ambitious than 12. ... Qe7 13. Rc1 Rc8 14. e3 Bxf1 15. Kxf1 c5 16. Bxf6 Qxf6 17. Ke2 Nd7 ½ : ½ Brown – Thavandiran, 4th UT Dallas Fall Open, Dallas 2017. 13. e3 Bxf1 14. Kxf1 Nc6 15. Bg3 Rac8 16. Qa4 Qd5 17. Rc1 Na5 18. h3 Nf6 19. b4 Nc4 20. Qb3 b5! 21. Kg1 Ne4! Black’s got somewhat the better game. 22. Kh2 f6 23. Rhe1 Rf7 24. Ng1 e5 25. Ne2 Nxg3 26. Nxg3 e4 27. Kg1 f5 28. Ne2 c6 29. Nf4 Qd6 30. Rcd1 Kh7. Who knows, perhaps 30. ... g5(!) might have been more functional to enhance Black’s subliminal initiative. 31. d5! a6 32. dxc6 Qxc6 33. Qc3 Rd7. And here 33. ... g5!? still deserved serious consideration. 34. Ne2 Rcd8 35. Rxd7 Rxd7 36. Nd4 Qd5 37. Rd1 Qe5 38. g3 Qe8 39. Kg2 Qh5 40. Rf1 Qf7 41. Rc1 Rc7 42. Nb3 Rd7 43. Nd4 Ne5 44. Qc8 Nd3

45. Rc6! With the powerful threat of Nd4-e6. 45. ... Ne1+ (45. ... f4? 46. Ne6!+−) 46. Kh2?? A step too far! Both 46. Kg1 and 46. Kf1 would have probably kept His Majesty within the bounds of survival; for instance: 46. Kf1 Nf3 47. Kg2 f4!? (47. ... Nxd4 48. exd4 Rxd4 49. Qe6 Qh5 50. g4 fxg4 51. hxg4 Qg5 52. Rxa6 e3 53. f3 h5 54. Ra8 Rd2+ 55. Kg3 h4+ 56. Kh3 Rh2+! 57. Kxh2 Qf4+ leaves Black with the choice between a draw by perpetual check and a very drawish Queen ending) 48. gxf4 Rxd4! 49. exd4 Qxf4 50. Kf1 Nxd4 51. Rc3! Qh2 52. Rg3 e3! 53. Rxg7+! Kxg7 54. Qd7+ with a draw by perpetual check. The Cuban International Master, however, was too short of time for analysing with lucidity. 46. ... Rxd4! 47. exd4 e3! 48. fxe3. Tantamount to self-mate, but indeed 48. Rc2 f4! gave no hopes at all for White. 48. ... Qa2+ 49. Kg1 Qg2 mate.

居文君 (Jū Wénjūn) and Nana Georgievna Alexandria. Photo: batumi2018.fide.com.

Quarter-Page Ad

Maria Elena Rodríguez Arrieta – Aleksandra Yuryevna Goryachkina
43rd Women’s Chess Olympiad; Batumi, September 24, 2018
King’s Indian Attack C00

As always happens at Olympiads, outsiders make headlines, with Sabina-Francesca Foişor from United States losing to Andreina Quevedo from Uruguay in the women’s arena, and 李超 (Lǐ Chāo) from China losing to Mohamed-Mehdi Aithmidou from Morocco in the unisex camp — luckily for them both without damages for their teams. Two-time Russian Women’s Chess Champion Aleksandra Yuryevna Goryachkina also ran big risks against Costa Rica’s Maria Elena Rodríguez Arrieta: 1. e4 e6 2. d3 d5 3. Nd2 Nf6 4. Ngf3 c5 5. g3 g6 6. Bg2 Bg7 7. 0-0 0-0 8. c3 Nc6 9. Re1 b6 10. e5 Nd7 11. d4 a5. It’s never too late to take a look at Leonid Zakharovich Stein’s games: 11. ... f6 12. exf6 Qxf6 13. Nb3! Ba6? 14. Be3 Bc4? 15. dxc5 Bxb3 16. axb3 Nxc5 17. Ng5 Rfe8 18. b4 Nb7 19. Bxd5! Rad8 20. Bxc6! Rxd1 21. Rexd1 Rb8 22. Rxa7 Nd8 23. Bg2+− L. Z. Stein – Sokolsky, Semifinal of 27th Championship of USSR, Odessa 1960 — it is remarkable the resemblance to the actual script! Furthermore, another of his game is not too dissimilar either: 11. ... Qc7 12. Nf1 Ba6 13. Bf4 Rac8 14. Ne3 Qb7 15. Qd2 Rfe8? 16. Ng4 cxd4 17. cxd4 f6 18. exf6 Nxf6 19. Nxf6+ Bxf6 20. Bh3 Nd8 21. Ne5± L. Z. Stein – Zhukhovitsky, 37th USSR Chess Championship, Moscow 1969. 12. Nf1 Ba6 13. Bg5 Qc7. If, instead, 13. ... Qb8 there might follow 14. Ne3 cxd4 15. cxd4 h6 16. Bf4 g5 (Rotstein – A. Rombaldoni, 3rd International Open, Forni di Sopra 2012) and now after 17. Nxg5! hxg5 18. Bxg5 f6 19. Rc1! White should keep a powerful initiative. 14. Qd2 Rfe8 15. Bh6 Bh8? Goryachkina might have paid dear for her reluctance to get rid of the fianchettoed Bishop. The immediate 15. ... Rac8 was quite called for. 16. h4 Rac8 17. Rac1 Qb7 18. a3 b5 19. N1h2 b4 20. axb4 axb4 21. Qf4 Bd3 22. Ng5 Re7 23. Ng4. Most engines argue that White could have played even more strongly somewhere, but what she’s got so far is just impressive enough: Black has fallen deep into a nightmare.

23. ... Qb8 24. Nf3. The Costa Rican player concentrates herself on aiming and getting an imposing ending a Pawn up, but... will she have sufficient technique to win by it? 24. ... f5 25. exf6 Qxf4 26. Bxf4 Nxf6 27. Nge5 Nxe5 28. Nxe5 Bb5 29. cxb4 c4 30. Bh3 Ree8 31. Kg2 Nd7 32. Nf3! Rc6 33. Ra1 Nf8 34. Ra5 Rb6 35. Bc7! Rb7 36. Bd6 Bd7 37. Rea1 Bf6 38. Ra8. 38. Ra7 seems even more merciless. 38. ... Be7 39. Rxe8 Bxe8 40. Bxe7 Rxe7 41. Ra6. 41. Ne5! followed by Ra1-a8 would have put an end to any further resistance. 41. ... Rb7 42. Bxe6+? Rodríguez Arrieta feels only too happy to win a draw. 42. Ne5! followed by Ra1-a8 was still quite conclusive — the b4-Pawn being obviously taboo. What instead follows is quite consistent with White’s ultimate goal: 42. ... Nxe6 43. Rxe6 Bd7 44. Re5 Rxb4 45. Rxd5 Bc6 46. Rc5 Bb7 47. d5 Rxb2 48. Rxc4 Bxd5 49. Rc3 h5 50. Rd3 ½ : ½.

黑寡婦 (Black Widow)

The Chinese teams arrived in Batumi, Georgia a couple of days ago with great expectations for the coming 43rd Chess Olympiad. Whereas, indeed, the Chinese unisex team formed by 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén), 余泱漪 (Yú Yāngyī), 韦奕 (Wéi Yì), 李超 (Lǐ Chāo), and 卜祥志 (Bǔ Xiángzhì) can legitimately strive for gold, the women’s team formed by 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn), 雷挺婕 (Léi Tǐngjié), 沈阳 (Shěn Yáng), 黄茜 (Huáng Qiàn) and 翟墨 (Zhái Mò) shall have instead to be able to do better than Russia and Ukraine, the two top seeded teams. That means that the consummated experience of 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn) and 沈阳 (Shěn Yáng) will have to serve their younger and more inexpert teammates, so as to save themselves from having to make an excuse for the absence of four-time Women’s World Chess Champion 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) — who officially gave priority to her Rhodes Scholarship at Oxford — and 16th Women’s World Chess Champion 谭中怡 (Tán Zhōngyí) — due to untold reasons. The Chinese government preferred not to stage such a motivational endorsement as that of the Russian teams, but, loyal to its style, deployed a handsome lady, 左洪波 (Zuǒ Hóngbō), Political Counselor of the Chinese Embassy in Georgia, who cordially welcomed the delegations, chatting and posing with them for group pictures. Photos: qipai.org.cn.

In a Nutshell

Levon Grigori Aronian – 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén)
7th Chess World Cup; tie-break game 1 (25+10); Tbilisi, September 27, 2017
Queen’s Gambit Declined D30

Levon Grigori Aronian proved to be too strong for 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) and deservedly won the World Cup. As usual 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) showed his defensive stubbornness, but he wasn’t able to amend in extremis his stereotyped openings, and moreover, he also arrived here quite tired after his long march. This time Aronian showed as much creativity as temper, and maybe the fact that he is actually a happy man made the difference. 1. c4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. Nc3 d5 4. d4 c6 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bxf6 Qxf6 7. Qb3. In the footsteps of Alexander Alexandrovich Alekhine. 7. ... Nd7 8. e4 dxe4 9. Nxe4 Qf4 10. Bd3 e5. The immaculate matrix was 10. ... Be7 11. 0-0 0-0 12. Rfe1 Rd8 13. Rad1 Qc7 14. Ng3 Nf8 15. Qc3 a5 16. a3 a4 17. Ne5 Qa5 18. Qc1 Bd7 19. c5! b5 20. Be4 Qc7 21. Qc3 Be8 22. Ne2! Ra6 23. Nc1 Nd7?! 24. Nxd7 Rxd7 25. Nd3 Rd8 26. Ne5 Bf8 27. h4! Raa8 28. Bb1 h5 29. Qf3 g6 30. g4! hxg4 31. Qxg4 Bg7 32. Ba2! b4 33. Bc4! bxa3 34. bxa3 Qa5 35. Qe4 Qc7 36. Qf4 Rab8 37. h5 gxh5 38. Kh1 Rb7 39. Rg1 Qe7 40. Rxg7+! Kxg7 41. Rg1+ Kh7 42. Nxf7! 1 : 0 Alekhine – Asztalos, Kecskemét 1927. 11. 0-0 Be7 12. Rae1!? A romantic spot for a wedding. 12. Rfe1 is almost invariably played. 12. ... exd4 13. Bb1 0-0 14. Ng3 Bd8!? It is a novelty which costed 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) much of his time: perhaps a sign that he got entangled in Aronian’s computer chess theory. 14. ... Nc5 15. Qa3 Qc7 16. Nxd4 Rd8 17. Ndf5 Bxf5 18. Nxf5 Bf8 19. Qh3 Re8 20. Nxh6+ gxh6 21. Qf5 Bg7 22. g3 Rad8 23. Rxe8+ Rxe8 24. Rd1 Rd8 25. Rxd8+ Qxd8 26. Kg2 a6 27. Be4 Qc7 28. f4 Qd8 29. Kh3 Qc7 ½ : ½ Ivanišević – Schenk, French Team Championship Top 16, Gonfreville 2006. 15. Qd3 g6 16. h4! Nf6 17. h5 g5 18. Ne5! Aronian took the upper hand and pushes hard on Black’s nutshell. 18. ... Ba5 19. Ng6!

19. ... Qd2! 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) has yet the strength to defend his own with desperate stubbornness despite the very few time left. 20. Ne7+ Kg7. 20. ...Kh8 21. Qf3! Qf4 22. Qa3! Bxe1 23. Nd5! doesn’t look any better. 21. Qb3! Qf4 22. Rd1!? Almost all chess engines give 22. Ngf5+ Bxf5 23. Nxf5+ Kh8 24. Re7 with a decisive White’s preponderance, but, of course, Aronian’s way is not bad... 22. ... Bb6 23. Ngf5+ Bxf5 24. Nxf5+ Kh8 25. g3 Qg4 26. Nxh6 Qxh5? Black finally disappears under the avalanche. 27. Kg2! d3 28. Qc3 Kg7 29. Nf5+ Kg6 30. Rh1 1 : 0.

Garden Without Flowers

Levon Grigori Aronian – 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén)
7th Chess World Cup; match game 1; Tbilisi, September 23, 2017
English Opening A18

1. c4 Nf6 2. Nc3 e6 3. e4 d5 4. cxd5 exd5 5. e5 Ne4 6. Nf3 Bf5 7. Be2 d4!? 8. Nxe4 Bxe4 9. Bc4!? Shimanov’s move, instead of 9. d3 Bd5 10. 0-0 Nc6 11. a3 a5 12. Bf4 a4 13. Nd2 Be7 14. Bg3 0-0 15. Rc1 which gave White a minimal edge, Topalov – Nakamura, Grand Chess Tour Blitz Paris 2017, Paris 2017. 9. ... Bd5!? 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén)’s novelty – but not a substantial one. For 9. ... Be7 10. 0-0 Nc6 11. Re1 Bd5 12. Qb3 Bxc4 13. Qxc4 Qd7 14. d3 Qe6 take a look at Shimanov – 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn), 1st Fall Chess Classic, Saint Louis 2017. 10. Qb3 Bxc4 11. Qxc4 Nc6 12. 0-0 Qd7 13. d3 Qe6 14. Qxe6+ fxe6 15. Ng5 Kd7 16. f4 Be7 17. Ne4 Raf8 18. Bd2 g5 19. g3 Rhg8 20. Kh1 gxf4 21. gxf4 Rg6 22. Rac1 Rfg8 23. a3 a5 24. Rf3 b6 25. Rh3 R8g7 26. Ng3 Nd8 27. b4! axb4 28. axb4 b5!

29. Kg2. Aronian felt not ready to dare the most critical and consistent 29. f5! exf5 30. Nxf5 Rf7 31. Nxd4 as he apparently saw no convincing way to capitalize his material advantage after 31. ... Ne6! 32. Nxb5 (32. Nxe6? Kxe6 33. d4 Kd5 couldn’t worry Black anymore) 32. ... Rg4! with powerful dynamic compensation for the two Pawns. Whatever it was, it would have been a hard fight! 29. ... Nc6 30. Rb1 Rf7 31. Rh5 Rg8 32. Rh6 Bf8 33. Rh3 Be7 34. Rh6 Bf8 35. Rh3 Be7 ½ : ½.

Lonely Are the Brave

Wesley So – 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén)
7th Chess World Cup; tie-break game 1 (25+10); Tbilisi, September 21, 2017
2r5/4k1pp/p3pp2/P7/3PP3/N1rb1PP1/1Rp2K1P/2R5 w - - 3 36

Position after 35. ... Rc7-c3

In the other semifinal tie-break, 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) beat Wesley So in the superrapid games (10+10), and maybe the result could be regarded as a surprise, even if not by me. So in fact played lazily all the tie-break games as if he didn’t care too much about it. On the other hand, 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) showed significant progress in his play, thanks to a more flexible approach to his goals. Wesley’s nightmare is well illustrated by the position of the diagram, which immortalizes the first rapid tie-break game. White finds himself in a deadly Zugzwang and he can no longer move anything, and yet 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) will succeed in his impossible mission of not winning. After such a disaster, he could well have collapsed in the second rapid tie-break game, but he was clever enough to offer his opponent a draw after only nine moves, taking all the time necessary to recover his strength and serenity. 36. Ra2 f5 37. e5 g5 38. Ke1 f4 39. Kd2 Bf5 40. gxf4 gxf4 41. Nxc2 R8c4 (41. ... Rxf3 42. Nb4 Rg8−+) 42. Rb2 Rxf3 (42. ... Kf7 would have kept White short of moves: 43. Kd1 Kg6−+) 43. Rb7+ Ke8 44. Nb4 Rxd4+ 45. Ke2 Re3+ 46. Kf1 Be4 47. Rg7! (Houdini’s escape!) 47. ... Kf8 48. Ra7 Rd8 49. Nxa6 Bd3+ 50. Kg1 Rxe5 51. Rd1 Rxa5 52. Nc7 Rxa7 53. Nxe6+ Ke7 54. Nxd8 Bb5 55. Rb1 Bd7 56. Nb7 Ra2 57. Nc5 Bc6 58. Nd3 Rg2+ 59. Kf1 f3 60. Rb6 Bd5 61. Rb4 Rxh2 62. Ne1 Ke6 63. Rf4 Rh1+ 64. Kf2 Rh2+ 65. Kg3 Re2 66. Nxf3 Re3 67. Kf2 Rxf3+ 68. Rxf3 Ke5 ½ : ½.

The Screenplay Anniversary

Levon Grigori Aronian – Maxime Vachier-Lagrave
7th Chess World Cup; tie-break game 2 (25+10); Tbilisi, September 21, 2017
King’s Indian Defence E81

In the end, Levon Grigori Aronian won, even if only in the ultimate Armageddon. Moreover, the Armenian Grandmaster never could have lost such a campal fight on the Independence Day of Armenia. 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. f3 c5 4. d5 d6 5. Nc3 e6 6. e4 Bg7 7. Nge2 0-0 8. Ng3 a6 9. a4 h5 10. Bg5 Qc7 11. Qd2 exd5 12. cxd5 Nh7. For 12. ... Nbd7 13. Be2 Rb8 14. 0-0 c4 see Giri – Bacrot, 30th European Chess Club Cup, Bilbao 2014. 13. Bh6 h4 14. Bxg7 Kxg7 15. Bc4!? A novelty and a very interesting Knight sacrifice. The older try was 15. Nge2 Qe7 16. Nf4 Nd7 17. Be2 Ne5 18. 0-0 f5 19. Rad1 Nf6 20. Ne6+ Bxe6 21. dxe6 Qxe6 22. Qxd6 Qxd6 23. Rxd6 fxe4 24. fxe4 Nfg4 25. Rb6 Rxf1+ 26. Bxf1 Ra7 27. Nd5 Nd7 28. Rd6 Nge5 29. a5 Ra8 30. Nf4 Rc8 31. Nxg6 Rc6 32. Nxh4 Kf8 33. Nf5 Nf6 34. Rd8+ Kf7 35. Rb8 Nxe4 36. Rxb7+ Ke6 37. Ne3 Nd6 38. Rb6 Rxb6 39. axb6 a5 40. h4 Kd7 41. h5 Kc6 42. h6 Kxb6 43. Nc4+ Ndxc4 44. Bxc4 Kc6 45. h7 Ng6 46. Kf2 Kd6 47. Ke3 Ke5 48. Bf7 Nh8 49. Be8 1 : 0 Dreev – Gladyszev, 25th Open, Metz 2007. 15. ... hxg3 16. hxg3 Rh8 17. e5 Qe7 18. 0-0-0 Nd7. After winning the first tie-break game, Vachier-Lagrave probably relied upon his ability to keep the complications under control, and objectively the situation is quite unclear. I think, however, that here he could have dared something more with 18. ... b5(!), aiming, he, too, for a win-win solution. 19. exd6 Qxd6 20. Ne4 Qe5 21. d6!

21. ... g5? Black suddenly becomes too ambitious and goes too far in weakening his King’s position. Best was 21. ... Ndf8 (intending ... Bc8-e6), after which it could have followed 22. d7 Bxd7 23. Qh6+ Kg8 24. Rxd7 Nxd7 25. Qxg6+ Qg7 26. Bxf7+ Kf8 27. Qd6+ Kxf7 28. Qxd7+ with perpetual check (Stockfish’s analysis). 22. Rhe1! b5 23. Bd5 Rb8 24. f4! Qd4?? Black collapses, but after 24. ... Qf5 25. Qc3+ Ndf6 26. d7! his situation was also bad enough. 25. Qe2 Qb4 26. Qh5! 1: 0.

Jingle Bells

丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) – Wesley So
7th Chess World Cup; match game 2; Tbilisi, September 20, 2017
Queen’s Indian Defence E17

Today, it was 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén)’s turn to not cash in on his luck. 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 Be7 5. Nf3 0-0 6. b3 b6 7. 0-0 Bb7 8. Nc3 Nbd7 9. Bb2 c5 10. Ne1!? An interesting novelty. 10. cxd5 may well transpose into 10. ... Nxd5 11. Nxd5 Bxd5 12. Qd2 Rc8 13. dxc5 ½ : ½ T. V. Petrossiàn – Spassky, 3rd International Chess Tournament, Bugojno 1982. 10. ... cxd4. 10. ... Ne4 was worth considering. 11. Qxd4 Bc5 12. Qf4 Bb4 13. Nd3 Bxc3 14. Bxc3. Black succeeded in simplifying the position, but at the cost of moving his Bishop three times, thus conceding White a slight but enduring edge that might have its influence in the ensuing ending. 14. ... Qc8 15. Rfc1 dxc4 16. Bxf6 Nxf6 17. Rxc4 Qb8 18. Qxb8 Rfxb8 19. Ne5 Bxg2 20. Kxg2 Ne8 21. Nc6 Rb7 22. Rd1 Kf8 23. e4 Nf6 24. f4 b5 25. Rcd4 g6 26. Ne5 h6 27. Rc1 Ke8 28. Kf3 Nd7 29. Nd3. White isn’t interested in changing pieces, of course. 29. ... a5 30. Rc6 Ke7 31. a3 Raa7 32. Ke3 Nb8 33. Rc8 Nd7 34. Rc6 Nb8 35. Rc8 Nd7 36. Nc5 Nb6. This could be the only mistake Black actually made, and it might have been fatal. 36. ... Rc7(!) would have led to a liquidation to a Rook ending in which the drawing prospects were quite high.

37. Rc6. With only a few minutes to the time control, 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) does not appreciate duly the strength of the enveloping maneuver 37. Rh8! Rc7 38. Rdd8! Rxc5 39. e5! (Δ Rh8-e8 mate) 39. ... f5 40. Rb8 (Δ Rh8-h7 mate) 40. ... Rc8 41. Rbxc8 Nxc8 42. Rxc8 which would have ensured White a very favourable endgame. 37. ... Rc7 38. Rxb6 Rxc5 39. e5 g5! 40. Rd3 gxf4+ 41. gxf4 Rc2 42. h3 Ra2 43. b4 axb4 44. axb4 Rh2 45. Ke4 Rc7 46. Rxb5 Rc4+ 47. Rd4 Rc7 48. Rc5 Rxc5 49. bxc5 Rc2 50. f5 exf5+ 51. Kxf5 Rxc5 52. Rd6 Rc1 53. Rxh6 Rf1+ 54. Ke4 f6 55. exf6+ Rxf6 56. Rxf6 Kxf6 57. h4 Kg6 58. h5+ Kxh5 ½ : ½.

Faith and Fade

Wesley So – 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén)
7th Chess World Cup; match game 1; Tbilisi, September 19, 2017
Giuoco Piano C54

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. d3 Bc5 5. c3 d6 6. 0-0 0-0 7. Re1 a5 8. Nbd2 Be6 9. Bb5!? Qb8!? 10. Nf1 Qa7 11. Be3 Bxe3 12. Nxe3 Ne7 13. a4 Ng6 14. Bc4 Bxc4. Here 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) offered a draw, which So refused. 15. Nxc4 Qa6 16. g3 Rfe8 17. Qb3 Nf8 18. Qb5 Qxb5 19. axb5 b6 20. Ra3 Ne6 21. Ne3 Nc5 22. c4 a4. This is not an easy decision, but Black had to do something against his opponent’s aim to double Rooks on the a-file and then advancing b2-b4. 23. Rea1 Nb3 24. Rd1. After 24. Ra2 Black would have been only too happy to repeat the position by 24. ... Nc1. 24. ... Rec8 25. Nd2 Nxd2 26. Rxd2 Nd7 27. Rd1 Nc5 28. Nd5 Kf8 29. f4 Ra5 30. Nb4 Raa8 31. Kf2 Ke8 32. Ke3 f6 33. f5! Kd7 34. g4! White’s got a manifest advantage in space and position, but its exploitation depends on the possibility to break through into Black’s blockhouse. 34. ... Rh8 35. h4 h6 36. Nd5 Ra5 37. Rg1 Kc8 38. g5 hxg5 39. hxg5 Rh3+ 40. Kd2 Nb3+. I don’t understand too much why 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) did not play to maintain the status quo by 40. ... Rh2+ 41. Kc3 Rh3, leaving his opponent the task of demonstrating an eventual win.

41. Kc3. So thought for less than 3 minutes, apparently skeptical about White’s chances after the eventual Exchange sacrifice. If Emanuel Lasker had reasoned thus in his game against Capablanca at Saint Petersburg in 1914, he would have been wrong, so maybe So is not right – and surely not from a practical viewpoint. After 41. Rxb3! axb3 42. gxf6 gxf6 43. Rg8+(!) Kd7 (43. ... Kb7 44. Rg7 looks even worse) 44. Nb4! Rh2+ 45. Kc3 Ke7 (not 45. ... Ra2?? because of 46. Nc6! catching His Majesty in a mating net) 46. Rc8! Black might even come up with a miraculous way to draw (even though it’s hard to believe), but in any event he should have earned it dearly. Now, instead, 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) finds an elegant and quick way out: 41. ... Nd4! 42. gxf6 Rh2! 43. Nxb6+. Clearly not 43. fxg7?? on account of 43. ... Rc2+ 44. Kb4 c5+ 45. bxc6 Nxc6 mate. 43. ... cxb6 44. fxg7 Rc2+ 45. Kb4 Rxb2+ 46. Kc3 Rc2+ 47. Kb4 Rb2+ ½ : ½.