Cornelian dilemma

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) – Alexander Igorevich Grischuk
Grand Prix 2017; 2nd stage; Moscow, May 16, 2017
Sicilian Defence B91

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. g3. The Zagreb Variation – not a hit. 6. ... e5 7. Nb3. A rare sideline which gained a little popularity in the 80s. 7. ... Be7 8. Bg2 0-0 9. 0-0 b5 10. a4 b4 11. Nd5 Nxd5 12. Qxd5 Ra7 13. Be3 Be6 14. Qd3 Ra8. Less fortunate was the Qatari Grandmaster Mohamad Naser Al Sayed two years ago: 14. ... Rb7 15. f4 Qc8 16. Na5 Rc7 17. f5 Bc4 18. Nxc4 Rxc4 19. Rfc1 d5?! 20. exd5 e4 21. Qb3 Bc5 22. f6! gxf6 23. Kh1 Bxe3 24. Qxe3 Re8 25. Re1 Kg7 26. Rad1 Rxc2 27. Rf1 Qg4 28. Rde1 Nd7 29. Rf4 Qh5 30. h3 Kh8 31. Rxe4 Rxe4 (31. ... Re5!∞) 32. Qxe4 Qe5 33. Qxb4 Qxg3 34. Rg1 Qc7?? 35. Qe7! Kg7 1 : 0 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) – Al Sayed, 13th Tradewise Gibraltar Chess Festival, Catalan Bay 2015. 15. f4 Qc7 16. Nd2 a5 17. Rf2 f6!? Grischuk’s novelty. Theory gave 17. ... exf4 18. gxf4 Nd7 19. Bd4 Bh4 20. Re2 Rac8 21. Nf3 Bf6 22. Rd2 Bc4 23. Qe3 Rfe8 24. Rad1 Bd5 25. Bxf6 Nxf6 26. Rxd5 Nxd5 27. Rxd5 Qxc2 28. Rd2 Qxe4 29. Qxe4 Rxe4 30. Kf2 b3 31. Nd4 Rxf4+ 32. Ke3 g5 33. Bd5 Rb8 34. Kd3 Rb4 35. Kc3 Rxa4 36. Nxb3 Kg7 37. Re2 Rab4 38. Re7 Rb5 39. Bc4 Rf3+ 40. Kc2 Rb4 41. Nxa5 Ra4 42. Be2 Rf2 43. Nb3 Rxh2 44. Nd2 Rf4 0 : 1 Smirin – Belov, 41st Master Open Tournament, Biel/Bienne 2008. 18. f5. 18. Bh3!? is also answered by 18. ... Bf7 with comfortable equality. 18. ... Bf7 19. Rc1 Na6 20. c4!? bxc3. 20. ... Nc5! 21. Qc2 b3! 22. Nxb3 Nxa4 seems more promising for Black. 21. Qxc3? The alternative 21. Rxc3 Qb7 22. Qb5 Rfb8 also gives Black a comfortable game, but it’s certainly more tenable for White. In her post-game interview with Anastasiya Valeryevna Karlovich, 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) admitted that her Queen’s penetration to the seventh rank didn’t work out. 21. ... Qb8 22. Rff1. Not 22. Qxa5? on account of 22. ... Nb4! and White falls in serious trouble, but 22. Nc4 followed by b2-b3 was probably a little better than the text. 22. ... Nb4 23. Qc7 Qe8! 24. Qb7 Rb8 25. Qa7 Ra8 26. Qb7 Rb8. Black gained time on the clock at zero price. 27. Qa7

27. ... d5! Grischuk won the strategic battle and took the initiative, but indeed, the war is not over and his opponent may still hope to save what she cares about most. 28. exd5. Not 28. Qxa5?? because of 28. ... d4 29. Bf2 Nd3 30. Rc2 Bd8 31. Qa6 Nb4 32. Qd6 Be7 and White loses decisive material. 28. ... Nxd5 29. Bc5? This is a very strange mistake, as allows the exchange of White’s most important defender without any tangible compensation. Best was 29. Bf2 Rd8 30. Rfd1 Bb4 with only Black being better. 29. ... Ra8 30. Qb7 Rb8 31. Qa7 Ra8. To some extent we could say that Grischuk won the game by repeating moves. 32. Qb7 Bxc5+! 33. Rxc5 Rb8 34. Qxf7+!? After 34. Qa7 Ne3 White’s position is obviously catastrophic, so 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) gives up her Queen and catches the stage at least in extremis, surrendering with honour. 34. ... Rxf7 35. Bxd5 Kh8 36. Rfc1 Rd7 37. Bc6 Qd8 38. Bxd7 Qxd7 39. Ne4 h5 0 : 1.

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) vs. Alexander Igorevich Grischuk. Photo © Vladimir Fedorenko/RIA Novosti

Mayflies and Stoneflies

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) – 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén)
Grand Prix 2017; 2nd stage; Moscow, May 14, 2017
Giuoco Piano C54

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. d3 Bc5 5. 0-0 0-0 6. a4 d6 7. c3 a5 8. Bg5 h6. For 8. ... Ne7!? 9. Nh4 d5! 10. Bb3? (sounder was 10. exd5 followed by Nb1-d2) 10. ... dxe4 11. Bxf6 gxf6 12. Nd2 Ng6 13. Nxe4 Be7 14. Nxg6 hxg6 see 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) – Ivanchuk, “尚街杯” (“MEWE Cup”) 2017 World Champion Summit Chess Match, 深圳 (Shēnzhèn) 2017, match game 4. 9. Bh4 g5 10. Bg3 Kg7!? 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) goes on his own track. In Nijboer – Janssen, Dutch Championship Qualifier Chess Tournament, Delft 2017 was seen 10. ... g4 11. Nh4 Nh5 12. Na3 Qg5 13. Nb5 Bb6 14. d4 exd4 15. cxd4 Qg7 16. Nf5 Bxf5 17. exf5 Nxd4 18. f6 Qxf6 19. Qxg4+ Qg5 20. Qe4 Rae8 21. Qxb7 Nf5 22. Ra3 Nhxg3 23. hxg3 Ne3 24. fxe3 Rxe3 25. Rxe3 Bxe3+ 26. Rf2 Bxf2+ 0 : 1. 11. Re1 g4 12. Bh4!? White offers a very interesting Knight sacrifice which, if accepted, would provide her enough play to achieve at least a draw, so 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) goes for more. 12. ... Ne7 13. Bxf6+ Kxf6 14. d4 Bb6 15. Nh4 Kg7 16. Na3 exd4 17. cxd4 Nc6 18. Nf5+ Bxf5 19. exf5 h5 20. Nc2 Qf6. White must cede a Pawn, but luckily for her, she’s gonna get something for it. 21. Re4 Qxf5 22. Bd3 Qg5. With the deadly threat of ... d6-d5. White, however, finds an ingenious way – maybe the only one – to put her Rook in a limb. 23. g3 f5 24. Rf4. Curiously enough, White’s Rook ended up stalemated, but 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán), through the sacrifice of a second Pawn, will succeed in finding interesting counterchances. 24. ... Rae8. If Black could bring his Knight to d5 (... Nc6-e7-d5) the game would be over, but unluckily for him 24. ... Ne7 would be met by 25. Ne3. 25. h4 gxh3 26. Qf3 d5. Already having the positional Exchange sacrifice in mind. 27. Rd1. Not 27. Qxd5? because of 27. ... Ne5! (28. dxe5?? Qxg3+), but 27. Rh4 might have been better (27. ... Re4 28. Rxh5 Qg6∞).

27. ... Re4! Perhaps the exclamation mark shouldn’t appear on your screen, because such a sacrifice was very easy to play and did not require any particular calculation, and nevertheless such things are never obvious. 28. Bxe4 fxe4 29. Qe3 Rxf4 30. Qxf4 Qxf4 31. gxf4 Ne7 32. Kh2 Ng6 33. f5. 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) is tremendously short of time and now cannot but rely upon little more than her own intuition. The alternative 33. f3 Nxf4 34. fxe4 dxe4 35. Re1 Nd3 36. Rxe4 Nxb2 also would have given Black exuberant compensation and good winning chances, but not necessarily a win. 33. ... Nf4 34. f3? Stockfish’s emergency line 34. b4 axb4 35. Nxb4 Kf6 36. Nc2 Kxf5 was probably White’s last chance to reach time control without having to contemplate a disaster. 34. ... c6! 35. fxe4 dxe4 36. Re1? With no more time to think about what to do, White goes down following a chimera (the e-Pawn), even though it’s not easy to suggest how to spend better the lost time – 36. Rg1+ Kf7 saves time, but probably not the game. 36. ... Bc7! 37. Rg1+. Not 37. Rxe4?? Nd3+ followed by a double check to King and Rook. 37. ... Kf7 38. Rf1 Kf6 39. Kg3 Kxf5 40. Ne3+ Kg5 41. Nc4 h4+ 42. Kf2 Nd3+ 43. Ke2 Bf4 44. Nxa5 h2 45. Nxb7 Nc1+. 45. ... Nxb2?? 46. Nc5 was too unreal to happen. 46. Kf2 e3+ 47. Kg2 e2 48. Re1 Bd2 49. Rh1 Nb3 50. Kxh2 e1=Q 51. Rxe1 Bxe1 0 : 1.

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán). Photo © Valery Sharifulin/TASS.

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) and 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén). Photo: Mikhail Vasin.

The Few, the Many... and the TASS

Ian Aleksandrovich Nepomniachtchi – 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán)
Grand Prix 2017; 2nd stage; Moscow, May 12, 2017
Queen’s Gambit Declined D35

1. c4 e6 2. Nc3 d5 3. d4 Nf6 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 c5 7. Rb1 Be7 8. Bb5+ Bd7 9. Bxd7+ Nxd7!? A novelty instead of 9. ... Qxd7 10. d5 exd5 11. exd5 0-0 12. Nf3 Bf6 13. 0-0 b5 14. Bf4 Bxc3 15. Qd3 b4 16. Ng5 g6 17. Ne4 Qf5 18. Qf3 Nd7 19. Nxc3 bxc3 20. Rbc1 Ne5 21. Bxe5 Qxe5 22. Rxc3 Rac8 23. Rc4 Rfe8 24. h4 Qd6 25. Rd1 Re5 26. Qg3 Rce8 27. Kh2 R8e7 28. Rc3 f6 29. Re3 Kg7 30. Kg1 Rd7 31. Rxe5 Qxe5 32. Qd3 Qd6 33. g3 Rc7 34. Qc4 Rd7 35. a4 Rb7 36. a5 Rb4 37. Qc3 a6 38. Kg2 Rb5 39. Rd2 c4 40. Qxc4 Rxa5 41. g4 Rb5 42. g5 Rb4 43. Qc6 Qxc6 44. dxc6 fxg5 45. hxg5 Kf7 46. c7 Rc4 47. Rd7+ Ke6 48. Rxh7 Ke5 ½ : ½ Aronian – Vallejo Pons, Grand Prix 2017, 1st stage, Sharjah 2017.

10. Rxb7? A controversial decision by Nepomniachtchi. White will soon have to give up the Exchange to apologise for his greediness, and no real compensation will be obtained. 10. ... cxd4 11. cxd4 Nb6 12. Qd2 Qc8 13. Rxe7+ Kxe7 14. Nf3 f6 15. 0-0 Kf7! Elegantly preparing artificial castling. 16. e5 f5 17. g4!? Rd8 18. Qg5 Kg8 19. Qh5 Rf8 20. Ba3

20. ... Qc6! Giving back the Exchange for assuming a commanding role on stage. 21. Ng5. 21. Bxf8 Rxf8 makes no substantial difference. Black’s initiative, in spite of being a Pawn down, is crushing. 21. ... h6 22. Rc1 Qd7 23. Bxf8 Rxf8 24. Nh3 Qxd4 25. gxf5 Qxe5 26. Qg6 Rf6 27. Qg4 Rxf5 28. Qg3 Qd4! White’s game is worth resigning, but he can still rely upon upon his opponent’s very serious time trouble. 29. Re1 Rf6 30. Qg2 Nd5 31. Kh1 Qd3 32. Rg1 Qf3 33. Rb1 Qf5 34. Rg1 Rf7 35. Re1 Rf6 36. Rg1 Qf3 37. Rb1 Qh5 38. Rg1 Rf7 39. Re1 Qf5 40. Qg3 Rc7. 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) somehow managed to reach time control, and the situation hasn’t changed: Black is winning. 41. Ng1 Nf4 42. Rd1 Kh7 43. Qf3 Rc2 44. a3 e5 45. Re1 Qg6 46. h3 Nd3 47. Rf1 Rc3. Threatening ... Nd3-f4. 48. Qg4 Qxg4 49. hxg4 Rxa3. Finally remaining two Pawns ahead and an easily won game. 50. Nf3 Ra4 51. g5 h5 52. Kg2 Rg4+ 53. Kh2 a5 54. Ra1 a4 55. Ra2 e4 56. Nd4 Rxg5 57. Rxa4 Nxf2 58. Ra7 Ng4+ 59. Kh3 Re5 60. Nc6 Rd5 0 : 1.

Nepomniachtchi and 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) on the red carpet of the opening ceremony of Moscow’s Grand Prix on May 11, 2017. Photo © Valery Sharifulin/TASS.

Needless to say, 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) did not forget to softly whisper her “j’adoube”. Photo: Dmitry Korotaev/Kommersant.

Queen in Blue

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) – Richárd Rapport
Grand Prix 2017; 1st stage; Sharjah, February 26, 2017
Caro-Kann Defence B19

Notes by Andrew David Martin, “First Steps: The Caro-Kann”, Gloucester Publishers, London, 2018, pp. 58-61.

1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Bf5 5. Ng3 Bg6 6. h4 h6 7. Nf3 Nd7 8. h5 Bh7 9. Bd3 Bxd3 10. Qxd3 e6 11. Bd2 a5 Various ideas have been tried by Black to spice this line up and 11. ... a5 has not been scoring badly in recent times. Larsen liked to push his flank Pawns all the way, but the modern treatment is to prepare ... Bf8-b4. 12. 0-0-0 Bb4. Trying to force a concession on the Queenside. The notion is that if White moves the c-Pawn forward he (or she) is weakening his (or her) King position. Political correctness is a must in any modern chess book. 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) agrees. 13. Ne4 Ngf6 14. c3. 14. Bxb4, aiming for Ne4-d6+, can be met in two successful ways: 1) 14. ... axb4! 15. Nd6+ Ke7 16. Nxb7 Qb6 17. Nc5 Nxc5 18. dxc5 Qxc5 19. Qb3 Rhd8 and the very weak Pawn on h5 gives Black an undisputed advantage. 2) 14. ... Nxe4 is also good; e.g. 15. Be1 (15. Qxe4? axb4 16. Kb1 Qa5) 15. ... Nef6 16. Kb1 0-0 is equal. 14. ... Nxe4 15. Qxe4 Nf6 16. Qe2 Be7 17. g4. Perhaps White should prevent ... Qd8-d5 with the traditional 17. c4, but Black is comfortable after 17. ... a4 18. Kb1 a3 19. b3 Qc7. 17. ... Qd5! Inconvenient, as the Queen attacks a2 and threatens ... Qd5-e4. 18. c4 Qe4 19. Qxe4 Nxe4 20. Be3

20. ... f5! Rapport is known as an original and creative player and we see this with his choice of 20. ... f5. With the game already heading for a draw, Black finds a way to spice it up. 21. gxf5 0-0! 22. Nh4 exf5. White gets a little more active than she does in the game if Black trades on h4; e.g. 22. ... Bxh4 23. Rxh4 exf5 24. d5 cxd5 25. Rxd5 Rac8 26. b3 a4 27. Kc2 axb3+ 28. axb3 and White has an edge, with more active pieces and a better King. 23. Ng6 Rfe8 24. Nxe7+. The trump card can be played with 24. d5 but Black is safe enough after 24. ... Bg5. Therefore 侯 (Hóu) chops the Bishop off. 24. ... Rxe7 25. Rh4 Nf6 26. Rf4 Nxh5 27. Rxf5 Ng3 28. Rf3 Ne4 29. d5 cxd5 30. Rxd5. This way around, Black doesn&squo;t have a vulnerable Pawn on f5 to worry about. 30. ... a4 31. Kc2 Rc8 32. b3 axb3+ ½ : ½. I think we can safely say that 10. ... e6 is a tough nut to crack.

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán), the Queen of draws. Photo: Maria Alekseevna Emelianova.