Fortunate Isles

Hikaru Nakamura – 熊奕韬 (Jeffery Xióng)
5th Isle of Man International Chess Tournament; Douglas, October 26, 2018
English Opening A34

A crucial game for 熊奕韬 (Jeffery Xióng) against Hikaru Nakamura. 1. c4 c5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e3 Nc6 6. Bb5 Nxc3 7. bxc3 Bd7 8. Rb1 e6 9. d4 Be7 10. 0-0 0-0 11. Be2. Likewise after 11. Re1 Qc7 12. e4 Rfd8 13. g3 Bf6 14. Bf4 Qa5 15. Bf1 cxd4 16. cxd4 b6 Black managed to equalise, Ganguly – 熊奕韬 (Jeffery Xióng), 2018 Spring Chess Classic (Group A), Saint Louis 2018. 11. ... Qc7 12. e4 Rfd8 13. Be3 Na5 14. Bd3 Rac8 15. h4!? Indeed, this somewhat strabic move is not out of theme, but maybe White could wait a little longer and play e4-e5 at once. 15. ... Be8! 16. e5 cxd4 17. cxd4 Nc4!? Nakamura’s got almost nothing from the opening, so 熊奕韬 (Jeffery Xióng) even dares to offer a Pawn on purely positional grounds. 18. Ng5. And maybe it could be worthwhile to cash it in. But no, apparently not Nakamura’s taste. 18. ... h6 19. Ne4 Bc6 (Δ ... Nc4xe5) 20. Qe2 b5 21. Rbc1 Bxe4 22. Bxe4 Bxh4 23. a4 a6 24. Bd3 Qb7 25. Bxc4 bxc4 26. Rxc4 Bg5 27. Rfc1 Rxc4 28. Rxc4 Bxe3 29. fxe3 Qb1+ 30. Kh2 Qb3 31. a5 Qb5 32. Qa2 Qd5 33. Ra4 Qe4 34. Qe2

34. ... Rc8. Perhaps it is not enough to claim a win, but the “dual” 34. ... Rb8! 35. Qf2 Rb3 gains a whole tempo (as compared to the actual game) and, at least on relative terms, the difference could be important. 35. Rc4 Rb8 36. Qf2 Rb3 37. Rc7 Kh7 38. Rxf7 Rxe3. Now the extra tempo saves Nakamura from working overtime: 39. Rxg7+! Kxg7 40. Qf6+ Kh7 ½ : ½. Draw by perpetual check.

Hikaru Nakamura (right) vs. 熊奕韬 (Jeffery Xióng) (left). Photo © John Saunders.

The Philosophy of the Unattainable

Richárd Rapport – 熊奕韬 (Jeffery Xióng)
5th Isle of Man International Chess Tournament; Douglas, October 24, 2018
Queen’s Pawn Game D02

1. d4 Nf6 2. c3 d5 3. Nf3 e6 4. Bg5 Nbd7 5. Nbd2 h6 6. Bh4 b6!? 7. e4!? Rapport doesn’t hesitate to sacrifice a Pawn for the sake of the initiative. 7. ... g5 8. Bg3 dxe4 9. Ne5 Bb7 10. Bb5 a6 11. Bc6 Bxc6 12. Nxc6 Qc8 13. Qe2 Qb7 14. Ne5 Bd6 15. Nxd7 Kxd7 16. 0-0 Bf4 17. f3!? Maybe just a little too much farraginous. 17. Rae1 was obvious and natural — with enough play for the Pawn. 17. ... e3 18. Nc4 Nd5 19. Bxf4 gxf4 20. Ne5+ Ke8 21. Qe1 c5 22. c4

22. ... cxd4!? Approximately a Laskerian inspiration. Objectively best was 22. ... Nb4∓ and if 23. Qc3 then 23. ... Rg8 firmly keeping the upper hand. 熊奕韬 (Jeffery Xióng), instead, probably overestimating the theoretical power of his central phalanx, aims for a much more unbalanced scenario, with three Pawns for the Knight and a Queening dream. 23. cxd5 Qxd5 24. Nd3 Qf5 25. Qd1 Ke7 26. Qb3 Rhd8 27. Rfc1 Rac8 28. Rc4. Engines obviously go for the Pawn by 28. Qa3+(!) Kf6 29. Qxa6 with similar strategic outcomes as those of the game after 29. ... Ra8 30. Qc4 Rac8 31. Qb3 Rg8, but a White’s material advantage. On the other hand, Rapport’s choice seems very natural and not wrong at all. 28. ... b5 29. Rc2 Kf8 30. Rac1 e5 31. h3 Rxc2 32. Rxc2 Kg7 33. Rc7 Re8 34. Qd5 Re6 35. Nxf4? With emotions and pressure running high, White commits his first serious error. 35. h4(!) would have put Black at risk not to enjoy enough compensation (if 35. ... Rf6 there might follow 36. Qe4). 35. ... Rf6! 36. Ne2 d3! 37. Nc3? White’s Knight heads for the wrong side of the board. 37. Ng3 still gave some vague hope to simplify into a drawish Rook endgame. 37. ... Rg6 38. Re7? 38. Rxf7+ Qxf7 39. Qxd3 Qc7 cannot hold in any case, but, if nothing else, it would take Black a little more work. 38. ... b4 39. Nb1 e2 40. Qxe5+ Qxe5 41. Rxe5 Rc6! 0 : 1.

Richárd Rapport (right) vs. 熊奕韬 (Jeffery Xióng) (left). Photo © John Saunders.

Treasure Isle

熊奕韬 (Jeffery Xióng) – Eesha Karavade
5th Isle of Man International Chess Tournament; Douglas, October 20, 2018
Caro-Kann Defence B12

1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. e5 c5 4. dxc5 e6 5. Nf3 Bxc5 6. a3 Ne7 7. Bd3 Ng6 8. 0-0 0-0. A recent reference is 8. ... Nc6 9. b4 Bb6 10. Bb2 Nf4 11. c4 Nxd3 12. Qxd3 dxc4 13. Qxc4 Ne7(?) 14. Nc3 Bd7 15. Qg4 Bc6 16. Rad1 Qc7 17. Ng5! with powerful initiative, Karjakin – Topalov, 4th Gashimov Memorial, Şəmkir 2017. 9. Ng5 Be7 10. Qh5 Bxg5 11. Bxg5 Qc7!? It is an improvement over 11. ... Qb6? 12. Be7? (much stronger was 12. Nd2! to be followed by Nd2-f3) 12. ... Re8 13. Bd6 Bd7 14. Nc3 f5 which yet did not lead to anything special for White (who, however, could have done better), Hoolt – Sargsyan, 19th European Women’s Individual Chess Championship, Vysoké Tatry 2018. 12. Nc3 Nc6? If 12. ... Qxe5 then 13. Rae1 eventually followed by Re1-e3-h3 with obvious compensation for the Pawn. From Back’s standpoint, however, that was probably the “best of all possible worlds”. 13. f4! Nd4. If 13. ... h6 then 14. Bxh6! gxh6 15. Nb5 Qb6+ 17. Kh1 Nce7 18. Nd6 with a crushing attack. 14. Rae1! h6

15. Bf6! White brilliantly demolishes his opponent’s card castle. 15. ... gxf6 16. exf6 Nf5. There ain’t no use in this, but 16. ... Qd8 loses as well because of 17. Bxg6 Qxf6 18. Bd3! followed by the Rook lift to e3 or e5. 17. Bxf5 exf5 18. Nxd5 Qc5+ 19. Re3. Finally! 19. ... Rd8 (20. ... Kh7 21. b4!+−) 20. Qxh6 Qf8 21. Ne7+! 1 : 0.

Randomly Ever After

John Saunders (@johnchess)

End-on-end

And thus ended also the 4th Isle of Man International Chess Tournament, which will be remembered as a triumphant solo of 16th World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen, finally alone with his fiancée Synne Christin Larsen, and finally in the mood to enjoy playing. And luckily for us, no one could do anything to eclipse his happy heart! It was said that he and his girlfriend might visit the Manx Museum and I do not despair that, among paintings and sculptures, they may succeed in finding what I haven’t yet found – Edna Mode’s double! Among other good news is the final Grandmaster norm of Nino Batsiashvili from Georgia, who fulfilled her aim despite a series of pairings that could seem prohibitive. And, finally, 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán). Four-time Women’s World Chess Champion won the first women’s prize after a little controversy occurred between her and the organisers, with respect to the randomness of Swiss pairings. In the end, fate stepped in and brought her back to the “women’s door”. “All’s well that ends well, still the fine’s the crown, / Whate’er the course, the end is the renown”.

The Manx Museum Exploratorium gallery in Douglas, Isle of Man features items and themes associated with entertainment and amusement during the peak tourism period of the early 20th century. Photo: gov.im.

Thunderman

Fabiano Caruana – Magnus Carlsen
4th Isle of Man International Chess Tournament; Douglas, September 30, 2017
Spanish Game C78

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. 0-0 b5 6. Bb3 Bc5 7. c3 d6 8. a4 Rb8 9. d4 Bb6 10. a5 Ba7 11. h3 0-0 12. Be3 Ra8 13. Re1 h6 14. Nbd2 Re8. Just yesterday, Caruana had ridiculed Jones after 14. ... exd4 15. cxd4 Nb4 16. e5! Nfd5 17. Ne4 with an overwhelming initiative, Caruana – Jones, 4th Isle of Man International Chess Tournament, Douglas 2017. Magnus’s reply, however, shows he is not afraid of anything. 15. g4!? Strangely, this seems to be a novelty. Carlsen’s clan appeared quite shaken, but not too clear why. It is not the same story, but Caruana’s 15. g4!? only reminds me of how easily Tigran Vartanovich Petrossiàn neutralised Garry Kimovich Kasparov’s 15. g4 at Banja Luka’s International Grandmaster Tournament in 1979.

15. ... Qe7 16. Nf1 Nd8! 17. Ng3 c5 18. Qd2 c4 19. Bc2 Nh7 20. b4 cxb3 21. Bxb3 Be6 22. Bc2? Caruana apparently didn’t achieve what he hoped for, and, almost panicked, calls his troops back to the Queenside. He would probably have done better to consistently play for the initiative on the other flank by 22. Nf5, and even if the attack is not what he aimed at, it would yet have been a hard fight. 22. ... Rc8 23. Bd3 Nb7 24. Rec1 Qd8 25. Qb2 Nxa5. “It’s fair to say Caruana didn’t get the most out of his opening: the attack is gone, his Kingside weakened and Magnus just took a Pawn on a5”, Grandmaster Jon Ludvig Nilssen Hammer tweeted. 26. Nd2 d5! Carlsen’s demolition of his opponent’s camp is impressive. 27. Re1 Bb8 28. exd5 Bxd5 29. Bf5 Rc6 30. Qa3 Nb7 31. Rad1 exd4 32. Bxd4 Ng5 33. c4 Rxe1+ 34. Rxe1 Be6 35. Qe3? Bf4! 0 : 1. “If you ever want to write an article about what ‘coordination’ means in chess, Magnus just gave the masterclass”, Grandmaster Jonathan Rowson said.

A Study in Scarlet

Fabiano Caruana – Gawain Christopher B. Jones
4th Isle of Man International Chess Tournament; Douglas, September 29, 2017
Spanish Game C78

Finally, most things in Douglas have been “normalized”, even without the help of Harry Potter’s magic. 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. 0-0 b5 6. Bb3 Bc5 7. c3 d6 8. a4 Rb8 9. d4 Bb6 10. a5 Ba7 11. h3 0-0 12. Be3 Ra8 13. Re1 h6 14. Nbd2 exd4 15. cxd4 Nb4 16. e5! Jones must have felt a powerful blow on his front teeth! Caruana’s novelty decisively improves on 16. d5 Bxe3 17. Rxe3 c5 18. dxc6 Nxc6 19. e5 Nxe5 20. Nxe5 dxe5 21. Rxe5 Ra7 and Black laboriously managed to consolidate, Grandelius – Jones, 61st Spanish Team Chess Championship (División de Honor), Linares 2017. 16. ... Nfd5 17. Ne4 Nxe3 18. Rxe3 Bb7 19. e6! Nd5 20. exf7+ Kh8 21. Re1 Rxf7 22. Rc1 Rc8

23. Nfg5! Another deadly blow! 23. ... Rf5? Clearly not 23. ... hxg5?? because of 24. Qh5+ Kg8 25. Nxg5 and wins. 23. ... Re7 seems to be the most critical defence, but Jones obviously ran into a prepared variation, and I think Caruana was well ready to give mate! Whatever it is, it seems to me that after 23. ... Re7 24. Qg4! White’s attack is awesome enough. 24. Ne6! Qd7 25. Qg4 Qf7 26. Rxc7! Rxc7 27. Nxd6 Rxf2 28. Nxc7! Qf6 29. Nxd5 Qxd4 30. Qxd4 Bxd4 31. Re4! Ba7 32. Nb6! 1 : 0. What a massacre.

Passionately Ever After

Fabiano Caruana – 熊奕韬 (Jeffery Xióng)
4th Isle of Man International Chess Tournament; Douglas, September 25, 2017
Semi-Tarrasch Defence D41

In the meantime, strange things keep happening on the Isle of Man, but don’t think too seriously about it. Who wins and who loses, who gives and who takes, who is teased and who the joker, in the end they are all friends of those who pay them. 1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 d5 4. d4 c5 5. cxd5 Nxd5. It takes much courage to play this against Caruana! 6. e4 Nxc3 7. bxc3 cxd4 8. cxd4 Bb4+ 9. Bd2 Bxd2+ 10. Qxd2 0-0 11. Bc4 b6 12. d5!? Caruana adopts an old idea of Viktor Lvovich Kortschnoi. 12. ... Ba6 13. Bxa6 Nxa6 14. d6!? Nc5 15. e5 Qd7!? Forty-five years ago Brazilian superstar Henrique da Costa Mecking – a legendary defender – preferred 15. ... f6 after which followed 16. 0-0 Rf7 17. Rad1 Rc8 18. Qe3 Rd7 19. exf6 gxf6 20. Nd4! Qe8 (20. ... Rxd6? 21. Nxe6!) 21. Rfe1 Qf7 22. h4 with a slight initiative for White, Kortschnoi – Mecking, 47th Hastings International Chess Congress, Hastings 1971/1972. 16. 0-0 Rad8 17. Rad1 Qa4 18. Rfe1 f6 19. Qe2 fxe5!? It seems a very risky affair, but maybe it is not so bad. 20. Nxe5 Rf4? This, instead, is a big mistake which loses the game almost immediately. Best was 20. ... Nd7! although after 21. Nf3! White stands much better.

21. d7! The End. 21. ... h6. 21. ... Re4 is useless because of 22. Qf3 (or also 22. Qh5) and the Black Rook must immediately return to f4. 22. g3! Rf5 23. Rd6! Rxe5. Black has nothing better than giving up the Exchange, just for the satisfaction of playing some more moves. 24. Qxe5 Rxd7 25. Rxd7 Qxd7 26. Qe2 Qd4 27. Rd1 Qf6 28. h4 Kh8 29. h5 Qg5 30. Qf3 Kh7 31. Rd4 Qe5 32. Rd8 (Δ Qf3-f7) 1 : 0.

Generational Intelligence

Magnus Carlsen – 熊奕韬 (Jeffery Xióng)
4th Isle of Man International Chess Tournament; Douglas, September 25, 2017
Torre Attack D02

The World Chess Champion against the World Junior Chess Champion. After all, only in an open can happen! 1. Nf3 c5 2. c3 Nf6 3. d4 e6 4. Bg5 d5 5. e3 h6 6. Bh4 Nc6 7. Nbd2 a6!? The alternative was 7. ... Bd6 8. Bd3 0-0 9. 0-0 e5 10. dxc5 Bxc5 11. e4 Be7 12. Qe2 dxe4 13. Nxe4 Nh5 with a comfortable game for Black, Freiman – Breyer, Kölner Schachkongreß, Cologne 1911. 8. Bd3 Be7 9. 0-0 Nd7 10. Bxe7 Nxe7 11. Ne5 cxd4 12. exd4 Nxe5 13. dxe5 Bd7 14. Re1 Rc8 15. Nf3 b5 16. h4 a5 17. a3 Qb6 18. Qd2. In spite of his unpretentious opening, Carlsen obtained a certain advantage in position. Then, his young opponent decides – quite questionably – to sacrifice a Pawn, in a nervous attempt of not being hard-boiled into the shark’s jaws. 18. ... b4 19. cxb4 axb4 20. a4. It’s not clear why White didn’t take the Pawn. 20. ... Ra8 21. b3 0-0 22. Rac1 Rfc8 23. h5. 23. Bb5 Bxb5 24. Qxb4 Rab8 25. axb5 (25. Qxe7 Bd3 looks good for Black) 25. ... Nc6 doesn’t seem to lead anywhere. 23. ... Kf8. This seems unnecessary and wrong. Black should have infiltrated the Rook to c3 at once: 23. ... Rc3! 24. Rxc3 bxc3 25. Qxc3 Rc8 winning back the Pawn with good play. 24. g4. Now 24. Bb5! seems much stronger than before, as after 24. ... Bxb5 25. Qxb4 the Black Knight is pinned. 24. ... Rc3 25. g5. Carlsen has 35 minutes and Xióng only 9. 25. ... hxg5 26. Rxc3 bxc3 27. Qxg5 Nf5! What a coolness! With a few minutes left, Black realizes that the tempting 27. ... Ng8? would be annihilated by 28. Kh1! with the deadly threat of Re1-g1. 28. Bxf5 exf5 29. e6! Carlsen slyly adds fuel on fire, speculating on his opponent’s time panic. 29. ... Bxe6 30. h6! gxh6 31. Qf6

31. ... Kg8? Xióng, much anguished by time pressure, literally falls apart. Instead, Black had a hidden defence: 31. ... Qd8! (Stockfish) 32. Rxe6 Qxf6 33. Rxf6 Rc8 winning back the Knight and liquidating into a drawish-looking endgame. So, maybe Carlsen would have preferred 32. Qxc3, not because it is better than 32. Rxe6, but just to put his opponent more dilemmas. 32. Qxh6 Qb4 33. Kh1! 1 : 0. Other opportunities will come Jeffery’s way.

Aliens in the Gift Shop

Andrew J. Ledger – 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn)
4th Isle of Man International Chess Tournament; Douglas, September 24, 2017
4r3/2p4k/pp4q1/2bB3p/8/PP2P1P1/1B2Q2P/6K1 w - - 1 29

Position after 28. ... Ra8-e8

Strange things are happening in Douglas, but, you know, they like to joke around. Among the many fascinating surreality shows of today, I couldn’t resist taking a look at what’s happened in the game Ledger – 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn), starting from the position illustrated in the diagram. White has sacrificed the Exchange for a Pawn and a lot of trouble, as his Bishop pair is still ineffective while Black is awesomely threatening both ... Re8xe3 and ... h5-h4. Consistently to the “Brandom guidelines”, Ledger decides to parry the less dangerous of the two: 29. Kg2? Rxe3 30. Qc4 Re1. So White is on the verge of mate. 31. Bd4 Bxd4 32. Qxd4. And here and now there was more than a feeling of King Hunt’s crescendo in the air: 32. ... Qc2+ 33. Kh3 (33. Kf3 Qe2+ 34. Kf4 Qg4 mate) 33. ... Re2 34. g4 Rxh2+ 35. Kg3 h4+ with a prompt destitution of White’s monarchy. But, quite incredibly, 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn), perhaps still regretting the insensitive party with which she celebrated her last birthday, manages to find the only way to escape from the win without having to give back – as an act of extreme constriction – all her birthday gifts. 32. ... Qg4?? 33. Qd3+! Qg6 34. Bg8+ Kg7 35. Qc3+ Kxg8 36. Qxe1. The Queen ending is drawn. 36. ... Qc2+ 37. Kg1 Qxb3 38. Qe8+ Kg7 39. Qe5+ Kg6 40. Qxc7 Qe3+ 41. Kg2 Qe2+ 42. Kg1 Qd1+ 43. Kf2 Qd2+ 44. Kf3 Qd5+ 45. Kf4 Qf5+ 46. Ke3 Qe6+ 47. Kd4 b5 48. Qc2+ Kf6 49. Qc7 Kg6 50. Qc2+ Kf6 51. Qc7 Qg4+ 52. Ke3 Qg5+ 53. Qf4+ Qxf4+ 54. Kxf4 a5 55. Ke4 b4 56. axb4 axb4 57. h3 b3 58. Kd3 Ke5 59. Kc3 Ke4 60. g4 hxg4 61. hxg4 Ke5 ½ : ½.

A View from the Bench

Sir Norman Joseph Wisdom’s statue at Sefton Hotel, Harris Promenade, Douglas, Isle of Man.

Magnum

July 23, 1938: Three donkeys at Douglas in the Isle of Man crowd round a boy to get a taste of his ice cream. Photo: George W. Hales/Fox Photos/Getty Images.

A Jolly Time at Gaiety Theatre

16th World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen announced just a couple of days ago that he’ll take part in the 4th Isle of Man International Chess Tournament, to be held in Douglas, Isle of Man from September 23 to October 1, 2017. It will be thus a very crowded tournament, with an unusually high prize fund: £133,000. The juxtaposition with the 7th Chess World Cup’s Final in Tbilisi (September 23-27) has been solved by most participants – and by Carlsen in particular – with due sense of timing.

Vintage postcard of Douglas, Isle of Man (circa 1920s). Image courtesy of Yesterdays-Paper.

Time Lapse

Four-time Women’s World Chess Champion 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) will partecipate in the 4th Isle of Man International Chess Tournament (which will feature a first prize of £50,000) to be held in Douglas, Isle of Man from September 23 to October 1, 2017, as well as in the 7th Chess World Cup to be held in Batumi and Tbilisi, Georgia from 1 to 25 September 2017. However, the unfair “juxtaposition” of the two great events, due most likely to the electoral campaign for FIDE Presidency, could eventually compel her to pass through the eye of a needle, so maybe it’s better to say that four-time Women’s World Chess Champion 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) will took part in the 4th Isle of Man International Chess Tournament, provided she manages to get eliminated (at least before September 21) from the 7th Chess World Cup. It’s kind of like Russian roulette with her (his) own toes. Greedy people may get crazy.

Artwork © EmaDread

It Rarely Happens

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) – Sabino Brunello
3rd Isle of Man International Chess Tournament; Douglas, October 9, 2016
Caro-Kann Defence B11

1. e4 c6 2. Nc3 d5 3. Nf3 Bg4 4. h3 Bxf3 5. Qxf3 e6 6. d4 dxe4 7. Qxe4 Nf6 8. Qd3 Nbd7 9. Bd2 Bd6 10. 0-0-0 Qc7 11. g3 0-0-0 12. Bg2 Kb8!?TN 13. Rhe1 Nb6 14. Ne4 Nxe4 15. Rxe4 e5 16. dxe5 Bxe5 17. Qb3 f6 18. a4 Nc8 19. f4 Bd4 20. a5 a6 21. Re6 Ka8 22. Rde1 Ba7 23. Bb4 Rd4 24. Kb1 Rhd8 25. Bf3 R4d7 26. Bg4 c5 27. Bc3 c4 28. Qb4 Bf2 29. Rf1 Bxg3 30. Re4 Nd6 31. Re3 f5 32. Be2 Bh4 33. Bd4 Qc6 34. Bb6 Rc8 35. Re5 Ne4 36. Bf3 Rd5 37. Rxe4? As always happens, mistakes come and go with the approaching of time control. After long holding the initiative, 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) has then sacrificed a Pawn in order to get something more tangible than a volatile advantage, for achieving no less than a good compensation. Now her pseudo-sac of the Exchange is gross tactical oversight which could have costed her the game immediately. Under normal circumstances White would have probably continued 37. Rxd5 Qxd5 38. Rd1 Qe6 39. Bxe4 fxe4 40. Be3 with good play on the dark squares. 37. ... fxe4 38. Bxe4 Bf6? (38. ... Qb5−+) 39. Bxd5 Qxd5 40. Be3 c3 41. Qb6 Kb8 42. Qa7+ Kc7 43. Qb6+ Kb8 44. Qa7+ Kc7 45. Qb6+ Kd7. Black refuses to repeat moves, although his chances of winning are more than remote. 46. b3 Ke7

47. Kc1? A very strange mistake. 47. Bc1! seems perfectly good for White. 47. ... Rd8 48. Qc5+? Another strange decision by 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán), as the exchange of Queens cannot but worsens White’s chances of survival in the endgame. 48. ... Qxc5 49. Bxc5+ Ke6 50. Bb6 Rd7 51. Rd1. After 12 minutes’ thought, 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) offers the exchange of Rooks, yet knowing that the ensuing King and Bishop ending gives White no hope due to her irreparable weaknesses on the Kingside. On the other hand, 51. f5+ Ke5 was likewise hopeless. 51. ... Rxd1+ 52. Kxd1 Kf5 53. Bc7 Ke4 54. Ke2 Bd4 55. Bd6 g6 56. b4 h5 57. Bc7 Bg7 58. Bd6 Bd4 59. Bc7 Be3 60. Be5 Bd2 61. h4 Bxf4 62. Bxc3 g5 63. hxg5 Bxg5 64. Bg7 Be7 65. Bc3 Kd5 66. Kd3 h4 67. Bd4 h3 68. c4+ Ke6 0 : 1.

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) played her game with Brunello as she was burdened by obligations and worries. Photo: Harry Gielen.

One Way Trip

Francesco Rambaldi – Arkadij Mikhailovich Naiditsch
2nd PokerStars Isle of Man International Chess Tournament; Douglas, October 6, 2015
Réti Opening A05

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. g3 g6 3. b3 d5 4. Bb2 c5 5. c4 d4 6. b4 Nc6!? 7. b5 Na5 8. d3 b6 9. Bg2 Bb7 10. 0-0 Bh6 11. Bc1 Bxc1 12. Qxc1 Qd6. Intending to answer 13. Qh6 by 13. ... Ng4 14. Qg7 Qf6. 13. Nbd2 a6 14. bxa6 Rxa6 15. Nb3 0-0 16. Nxa5 Rxa5 17. Qd2 Rfa8 18. Rfb1 R8a7 19. Rb2 Kg7 20. Qf4 Nd7 21. Qxd6 exd6 22. Ng5 Bxg2 23. Kxg2 Kf6 24. Nxh7+. “It took 13 moves to capture it, but the White Knight never made it back alive! :)”, the editor-in-chief of chess24.com said. 24. ... Kf5

25. e4+. If 25. h4 then 25. ... f6. 25. ... dxe3 26. fxe3 g5 27. h4 gxh4 28. gxh4 f6 29. h5 Ra8 30. Rf2+ Ke6 31. Raf1 Rxa2 32. Rxa2 Rxa2+ 33. Kh3 Ra8 34. Rg1 Kf7 35. h6 Rg8 36. Rxg8 Kxg8. Finally, Black can capture the Knight. 37. Nxf6+ Nxf6 38. Kg3 Kh7 39. Kf4 Kg6 40. d4 d5 41. cxd5 Nxd5+ 42. Ke4 c4 0 : 1.

Rambaldi vs. Naiditsch. Photo: Fiona Steil-Antoni.