Lyutika

Antoaneta Stefanova – Lela Javakhishvili
Women’s Grand Prix; 4th stage; 成都 (Chéngdū), July 8, 2016
Réti Opening A04

1. Nf3 c5 2. b3 d6 3. e3 e5 4. d4 cxd4 5. exd4 e4 6. Bb5+ Bd7 7. Bxd7+ Nxd7 8. Qe2 d5 9. Ne5. For 9. c4 Ngf6 10. cxd5 Bb4+ 11. Bd2 0-0 12. Ne5 Bd6 13. Nc4 Nb6 14. Nc3 Nbxd5 15. Nxd5 Nxd5 16. 0-0 Re8 17. Rad1 Bc7 see Venkatesh – Vallejo Pons, 14th Bangkok Chess Club Open, Bangkok 2014. 9. ... Bd6 10. f4 Ne7 11. Qb5 Qc7 12. c4 a6 13. Qxd7+ Qxd7 14. Nxd7 Kxd7 15. Ke2 f5 16. Nc3 Ke6 17. Be3 Rac8 18. c5 Bc7 19. g3 h6 20. b4 Rcg8 21. Kf2 g5 22. Ne2 Nc6 23. a3 Kd7 24. h4 g4 25. Rhb1 Ra8 26. a4 Rhb8 27. Bd2. It’s not always easy to understand Stefanova’s opening play. When she can, she avoids “book” lines; she likes “bad” Bishops (especially the White dark-squared Bishop); she doesn’t disdain to change her light-squared Bishop for a Knight; very often she chooses to castle artificially. Her positions are often as statical as dynamic and always on the edge of unclarity. Yet if she survives the confusion of her disharmonic theory, you may well understand why she is who she is. 27. ... b5 28. Nc3 Nxd4 29. Nxd5 Kc6 30. Ne3 bxa4 31. Rxa4 a5 32. Bc3 Nb5 33. Be1 axb4 34. Raxb4 Ra2+ 35. Kf1 Ba5 36. R4b3 Bxe1 37. Kxe1

37. ... Rh2? With three moves to play before time control, Javakhishvili does not feel the courage to go through the Exchange sacrifice 37. ... Nc3! 38. Rxb8 Re2+ 39. Kf1 Rxe3 that gives Black at least a draw. Now Stefanova will gradually improve her own position until she gained the hill. 38. Nxf5 Kxc5 39. Rc1+ Kd5 40. Ne3+ Kd6 41. Rd1+ Kc6 42. Rd5 Rh1+ 43. Kf2 Rh2+ 44. Kg1 Re2 45. Rd1 Ra8 46. Nxg4. The first Black Pawn has fallen. 46. ... Raa2 47. Rc1+ Rec2 48. Rxc2+ Rxc2 49. Nxh6. And so White has gained a second Pawn. 49. ... Nd4 50. Re3 Nf3+ 51. Kf1 Kd5 52. Re2 Nh2+ 53. Kf2 Rc6 54. Nf5 Ng4+ 55. Kg2 Rc3 56. Kh3 Nf6 57. Re3 Rc1 58. Ra3 Rh1+ 59. Kg2 Rb1 60. Ne3+ Kd4 61. g4 Nd5 62. Nxd5 Kxd5 63. h5 Kd4 64. h6 Rb2+ 65. Kg3 Rb1 66. g5 e3 67. Ra2 Rg1+ 68. Kf3 Rf1+ 69. Kg2 Rxf4 70. Ra4+ 1 : 0.

Antoaneta Stefanova
Photo: qipai.org.cn

Lela Javakhishvili
Photo: qipai.org.cn

Boondi

Lela Javakhishvili – Humpy Koneru
Women’s Grand Prix; 4th stage; 成都 (Chéngdū), July 7, 2016
Queen’s Gambit Declined D58

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 0-0 7. e3 b6 8. g4!? Nbd7. For 8. ... Nxg4 9. Bxe7 Qxe7 10. cxd5 exd5 11. Nxd5 Qd6 12. Nc3 c5 13. Rg1 Nf6 14. Bg2 Bg4 15. Qd2 Nbd7 16. Ne5 Nxe5 17. dxe5 Qxe5 18. Bxa8 Rxa8 see Grischuk – Lékó, Petrossiàn Memorial, Moscow 2014. 9. Rg1 Bb7 10. g5 Ne4 11. cxd5 exd5

12. Bh3! An improvement on 12. Bb5?! g6?! (12. ... c6!∓) 13. Bxd7 Qxd7 14. gxh6 Bxh4 15. Nxh4 Qh3?? 16. Qh5 Nxf2 17. Rxg6+ Kh8 18. Rg3 Nd3+ 19. Kd2 1 : 0 Shabalov – Amanov, 20th North American Open, Las Vegas 2010. 12. ... Nxg5 13. Nxg5 hxg5 14. Qh5 g6. The Bishop is taboo, for if 14. ... gxh4? then 15. Bf5 Nf6 16. Qg6 and mate in three moves. 15. Qh6 Re8. Not 15. ... gxh4? 16. Be6! and wins. 16. Bxg5 Bxg5 17. Rxg5 Nf8. “The position has levelled out, the quiet is reigning, and the players agreed on a draw at move 31. An excellent display of mastery by Koneru”, Grandmaster Bachar Kouatly said in his commentary for Europe Échecs. 18. 0-0-0 Qf6 19. Rg3 c5 20. Qg5 Qxg5 21. Rxg5 Nh7 22. Re5 cxd4 23. Rxe8+ Rxe8 24. Rxd4 Re5 25. Bg4 Nf6 26. h3 Kf8 27. Ra4 a5 28. Rd4 Bc6 29. b4 Ke7 30. bxa5 bxa5 31. Kd2 ½ : ½.

Lela Javakhishvili vs. Humpy Koneru
Photo: qipai.org.cn

Zip ’N Snort

居文君 (Jū Wénjūn) – Anna Muzychuk
Women’s Grand Prix; 4th stage; 成都 (Chéngdū), July 7, 2016
Queen’s Gambit Declined D02

1. c4 c6 2. Nf3 d5 3. g3 g6 4. d4 Bg7 5. Nbd2 Nh6 6. Bg2 Nf5 7. e3 0-0 8. 0-0 Nd7 9. Rb1 a5 10. b3 b5 11. Qc2 Ba6 12. Rd1 Rc8 13. c5 Re8 14. Bb2 Qc7 15. Bh3 e6 16. e4 Ne7 17. e5 b4 18. Nf1 Nf5 19. Re1 Rf8 20. Bc1 Rce8 21. Bf4 Bh6 22. Bxh6 Nxh6 23. Ng5 Bxf1 24. Kxf1 Kg7 25. Kg1 Nf5 26. Bxf5 gxf5 27. Re3 Qd8 28. Nh3 Rg8 29. a3 bxa3 30. b4 Kh8 31. Rxa3 Qh4 32. Kg2 Qxd4 33. bxa5 Nxe5 34. a6 Nc4 35. Ra2 Qxc5 36. Rb7

36. ... d4? Muzychuk is in terrible time trouble and, in spite of her material advantage, White’s passed a-Pawn is a problem she won’t manage to solve. I doubt 36. ... Qf8 37. a7 Ra8 was the “universal panacea” (38. Qb1, in fact, seems to keep the upper hand, in spite of White’s two Pawn minus), but at least it allowed Black to fight for survival. 37. Nf4 Qe5 38. Qxc4 Qxf4 39. Qxc6 Qe4+ 40. Qxe4 fxe4 41. Rxf7 Rgf8 42. Rb7 Rd8 43. Rc2 e3 44. fxe3 dxe3 45. a7 Kg8 46. Kh3 Ra8 47. Rcc7 Rf6 48. Rg7+ Kh8 49. Rxh7+ Kg8 50. Rhg7+ Kh8 51. Rg4 Rh6+ 52. Kg2 Rf6 53. Re4 1 : 0.

居文君 (Jū Wénjūn)
Photo: qipai.org.cn

Guntur chilli

Harika Dronavalli – Lela Javakhishvili
Women’s Grand Prix; 4th stage; 成都 (Chéngdū), July 3, 2016
Sicilian Defence B83

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 e6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Be2 d6 7. 0-0 Nf6 8. Be3 Be7 9. f4 0-0 10. a4 Bd7 11. Nb3 Na5 12. e5 Ne8 13. Nxa5 Qxa5 14. Ne4 Qc7 15. a5 d5 16. Bb6 Qc6 17. Ng5 Bc5+. For 17. ... f5 18. c4 Bc5+ 19. Kh1 Bxb6 20. cxd5 Qxd5 21. Qxd5 exd5 22. axb6 h6 23. Nf3 Rf7 24. Nd4 see King – Blaskowski, Duitsland 1990. 18. Bxc5 Qxc5+ 19. Kh1 f6 20. Nf3 Qb4. Maybe a bit adventurous sortie. Deservng consideration was 20. ... fxe5 followed by ... Bd7-b5. 21. Qc1 b6? Javakhishvili was still in time for 21. ... fxe5 22. Nxe5 Bb5. Now Harika easily obtains a far superior position, which is enough for her to exploit until she’s winning. 22. c3 Qc5 23. b4 Qc7 24. Qe3 b5 25. Nd4

25. ... g6 26. Rac1 Ng7 27. g4 Rf7 28. Kg1 Raf8 29. Rf3 g5 30. exf6 gxf4 31. Qxf4 Qxf4 32. Rxf4 Rxf6 33. Rxf6 Rxf6 34. Bf3 Rg6 35. Kf2 Kf7 36. Re1 Kf6 37. Nb3 Bc8 38. Nc5 h6 39. Nd3 h5? In a clear sign of impatience, Black now commits the decisive mistake, allowing her opponent to enter a whole line. 40. gxh5 Rh6 41. Rg1 Nf5. Equally after 41. ... Nxh5 42. Rg8 White’s Rook penetrates with devastating effect. 42. Rg8 Ne7 43. Rf8+ Kg7 44. Re8 Kf6 45. Nf4 Bb7 46. Rb8 Bc6 47. Rb6 Kf5 48. Ng6 Nxg6 49. hxg6 Be8 50. g7 Bf7 51. Rxa6 Rxh2+ 52. Bg2 Rh7 53. Rb6 Rxg7 54. a6 Rg8 55. Bf1 Rc8 56. Bxb5 Be8 57. a7 Ra8 58. Bxe8 Rxa7 59. Ke3 e5 60. Bg6+ Kg5 61. Bc2 Rc7 62. Kd2 d4 63. cxd4 exd4 64. Bd3 Kf4 65. Re6 1 : 0.

Harika Dronavalli vs. Lela Javakhishvili
Photo: qipai.org.cn

Flywheel

Lela Javakhishvili – 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn)
Women’s Grand Prix; 4th stage; 成都 (Chéngdū), July 2, 2016
Queen’s Gambit Accepted D24

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. e4 Bb4 6. Bxc4 Nxe4 7. 0-0 Nf6 8. Qa4+ Nc6 9. Bg5 Be7 10. Bxf6 Bxf6 11. d5 exd5 12. Rfe1+ Be6

13. Ba6! A straight novelty by Javakhishvili, even though it’s hard to find something better than 13. Bxd5! 0-0 14. Bxe6 fxe6 15. Rad1 Qe8 16. Ne4 Qe7 17. Qb3 Rab8 (17. ... Rad8!? 18. Qxb7 Nd4 deserved consideration) 18. Nxf6+ Rxf6 19. Ng5 Qb4? (19. ... Kh8 was called for) 20. Qc2 Rg6 21. Re4! Qa5 22. h4 Re8 23. Rd7 h6 24. b4 Qf5 (or 24. ... Qb5 25. a4 Nxb4 26. Qxc7 Qxa4 27. Qd8! Rf8 28. Rf4! Rgf6 29. Rxg7+! Kxg7 30. Nxe6+ and wins) 25. Rxe6! 1 : 0 Aronian – Anand, 4th Final Masters São Paulo/Bilbao 2011. 13. ... bxa6 14. Qxc6+ Kf8 15. Rad1 Rb8 16. Nxd5 Qd6 17. Qxd6+ cxd6 18. Nxf6 gxf6 19. b3 Ke7 20. Nd4 Kd7 21. Re4. White secured a slight advantage, in spite of her temporary Pawn minus, but it appears hard to implement. 21. ... Rbc8 22. Rf4 Ke7 23. Re1 a5 24. Rf5. After this Black achieves a draw without any difficulty. Aiming to win back the e-Pawn by 24. Rfe4! rather than the a-Pawn could have possibly given White a little more ground for continuing play. 24. ... Rc5! 25. Rxc5 dxc5 26. Nc6+ Kd6 27. Nxa5 Kc7 28. Kf1 Rd8 29. Nc4 Rd4 30. Nb2 Kc6 31. f3 Kb5 32. Ke2 a5 33. Rc1 ½ : ½.

Lela Javakhishvili
Photo: qipai.org.cn

居文君 (Jū Wénjūn)
Photo: sports.sina.com.cn

International Workers’ Day

Lela Javakhishvili – Mariya Muzychuk
Women’s Grand Prix; third stage; Batumi, May 1, 2016
Queen’s Gambit Declined D12

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 Bg4 5. h3 Bh5 6. g4 Bg6 7. Ne5 Nbd7 8. Nxg6 hxg6 9. Bg2. Black’s position is sound and solid, but White has the Bishop pair, which can mean a slight plus. 9. ... g5!? It looks like a novelty, but, indeed, the copyright is by Viswanathan Anand: 9. ... e6 10. Nd2 g5 11. 0-0 Be7 12. Re1 Nf8 13. e4 Nxe4 14. Nxe4 dxe4 15. Rxe4 Ng6 16. Be3 0-0 17. d5 cxd5 18. cxd5 e5 (on 18. ... Qxd5 19. Qxd5 exd5 20. Ra4! White will win back the Pawn with an edge) 19. Qd2 a5 20. d6 (20. a3 Qd6 is unclear) 20. ... Qxd6 21. Qxd6 Bxd6 22. Bxg5 (22. Rd1 Be7 23. Rc4! was worth considering) 23. ... b5 (23. ... b6! is an even clearer claim for equality) 24. Rxe7 Nxe7 25. Rxe5 Rac8 23. Re2 b6 24. Rd1 Bc5 25. Be4 Nf4 26. Bxf4 exf4 27. Kg2 Rfd8 28. Red2 Rxd2 29. Rxd2 g5 30. Rd7 Re8 31. Kf3 Re7 32. Rxe7 ½ : ½ Giri – Anand, 3rd Sinquefield Cup, Saint Louis 2015. 10. 0-0 e6 11. Nd2 Bd6. This is the substantial difference in respect of Anand’s game. Muzychuk allows her opponent to change the Knight for the Bishop. We wouldn’t call it a crazy idea, even though the whole world assumes that two Bishops are stronger than two Knights. But Mikhail Ivanovich Chigorin no. 12. Re1 Nf8 13. cxd5 Nxd5 14. Nc4 Ng6 15. Qb3 Rb8 16. Nxd6+ Qxd6 17. Qa3

17. ... Qc7! This is a very interesting Pawn sacrifice which, however, will not be properly followed. 18. Qxa7 Kd7? It shows that Black was still envisioning a counter-attack based on the open h-file, with doubled Rooks and jumping Knights. It will turn out to be an error of bad judgement which could have costed Mariya Muzychuk very dearly. Now, despite any appearances to the contrary, 18. ... 0-0! is most likely the right idea, with ... f7-f5 soon coming. I cannot swear about it, but Black would seem to have adequate compensation for the Pawn. 19. Bd2! Rh6 20. Rac1! Rbh8 21. Ba5. White stands much better. Anyway in the following Lela Javakhishvili, just a bit in apprehension, preferred not risk losing and contented herself (and her opponent as well) with a draw by repetition. All’s well that ends well.

Lela Javakhishvili
Photo: Eteri Kublashvili

Mariya Muzychuk
Photo: Eteri Kublashvili

ბედნიერი დაბადების დღე/С днём рождения

Both Lela Javakhishvili (L.) and Alexandra Konstantinovna Kosteniuk (R.) were born the same day (April 23), and the organizers of the Women’s Grand Prix in Batumi, Georgia, have been so careful to hand them flowers. Photo: Anastasiya Valeryevna Karlovich.

They Shoot Horses, Don’t They?

Anna Olehivna Muzychuk – Lela Javakhishvili
Women’s Grand Prix 2015–2016; 3rd stage; Batumi, April 22, 2016
French Defence C18

Today Anna Olehivna Muzychuk had to play with two heads on her shoulders! In fact, her lesser sister doesn’t seem to have recovered at all from defeat in the Women’s World Chess Championship match. It’s not easy to give advice, but maybe she shouldn’t take it too seriously. Not anymore, at least. 1. e4 e6. This came as a surprise to Muzychuk, as in “99% of her games Lela played 1. ... c5”, then she said. 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e5 c5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 Ne7 7. Qg4 Qc7 8. Qxg7 Rg8 9. Qxh7 cxd4 10. Ne2 Nbc6 11. f4 dxc3 12. Nxc3 Nd4 13. Bb2 Bd7 14. 0-0-0 Ndf5 15. Nb5. 15. Qh3 Qc5 16. Rd2 0-0-0 17. g4 Ne3 doesn’t seem easy to play with White (even if Karjakin managed to draw at move 73!), Karjakin – Nepomniachtchi, 12th Aeroflot Open, Moscow 2013. 15. ... Qc5 16. Nd6+ Nxd6 17. exd6 Qxd6 18. g3 Qc5. 18. ... Rc8 19. Bd3 Ba4 20. Rhe1 Qc5 21. Re2 Bb5 22. f5 Bxd3 23. Rxd3 Rg4 was previous theory (at least as much as a blitz game can be regarded as theoretical), T. Kosintseva – Dzagnidze, 4th SportAccord World Mind Games, Women’s Blitz Tournament, 北京 (Beijīng) 2014. 19. Bd3 b5. Afterwards, both players thought that this was last chance for Black to defend with 19. ... Rf8.

20. f5! A powerful coup. 20. ... exf5? This seems folly as she exposes the King to direct assault. 20. ... 0-0-0 was called for, since after 21. f6 Nc6 22. Qxf7 Rh8 Black can at least hope to compensate for the minus Pawn. 21. Rhe1 Be6 22. Bxf5 Qd6 23. Rxe6! Simple, but devastating in its effect. 23. ... fxe6 24. Re1 Rf8 25. Rxe6 Qc5 26. Qg6+ Rf7 27. Re1 Rd8 28. Qg8+ Rf8 29. Bg6+ Kd7 30. Qe6+ Kc7 31. Qxe7+ Qxe7 32. Rxe7+ Kd6 33. Re1 Rg8 34. Bf6 Rc8 35. Bf7 Rg4 36. Be7+ 1 : 0. A very beautiful game.

Anna Olehivna Muzychuk vs. Lela Javakhishvili. Photo: Anastasiya Valeryevna Karlovich.

Far Far Away

Lela Javakhishvili – Alexandra Konstantinovna Kosteniuk
Women’s Grand Prix; third stage; Batumi, April 20, 2016
Catalan Opening E04

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Nf3 dxc4 5. Bg2 Nc6 6. Qa4 Bb4+ 7. Bd2 Bd6 8. Na3 Ne4 9. Nxc4 Nxd2 10. Nfxd2 Bd7 11. 0-0. Another try is 11. Nxd6+ cxd6 12. Ne4 0-0 13. Nxd6 Qc7 14. Ne4 Rfd8 15. Qc4 Qb6 16. e3 Rac8 17. Qb3 Qa5+ 18. Nc3 e5 19. d5 Nd4 20. exd4 exd4 21. 0-0 dxc3 22. bxc3 Rxc3 23. Qxb7 Qc5 24. Rab1 g6 25. Qb4 Qxb4 26. Rxb4 Kf8 27. Ra1 Rdc8 28. Bf1 Ke7 29. Kg2 Kd6 30. Rh4 h5 31. Rf4 ½ : ½ Beliavsky – Anand, 26th Sparkassen Chess Meeting, Dortmund 1998. 11. ... Be7 12. Na5 Nxa5 13. Qxa5 c6 14. Qc3 0-0 15. Nc4 a5 16. Rfd1 Qc7 17. a3 a4 18. Ne5 Rfd8 19. Be4 Be8 20. e3 Bf6 21. Nd3 Ra5 22. Rac1 Rc8 23. Qc2 g6 24. Nc5 Rca8 25. Nd3 Rc8 26. Bg2 b6? A very impatient move, which gravely weakens Black’s position. 26. ... Bg7 certainly deserved consideration.

27. Nb4! c5 28. d5! Bd7? This allows White to infiltrate the Knight. However, if 28. ... Kg7 then 29. f4 eventually followed by e3-e4 keeping a powerful grip on Black’s isle. 29. Nc6! Bxc6. Forced, as any Rook move would be decisively met by 30. d6. 30. dxc6. White’s c-Pawn will prove to be enormously powerful. 30. ... Qe5 31. Rb1 Rb5? An overambitious move which definitely deprives Black of any defensive resource. A lesser evil was 31. ... Rc7, although after 32. Qe2 b5 33. f4 White stands clearly better. 32. Qxa4 Rxb2 33. Rxb2 Qxb2 34. Rd7. Now it is all over. So Alexandra Konstantinovna blunders away the game. 34. ... Bg5 35. h4 Qa1+ 36. Rd1 1 : 0.

Lela Javakhishvili vs. Alexandra Konstantinovna Kosteniuk
Photo: Anastasiya Karlovich

Monday or Tuesday

Lela Javakhishvili – Tea Gueci
20th Women’s European Chess Club Cup; Skopje, October 18, 2015
Modern Benoni A61

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 e6 4. Nc3 exd5 5. cxd5 d6 6. Nf3 g6 7. Bf4 Bg7. In my not always good old times someone explained to me that Black should play here 7. ... a6 in order to force 8. a4, thus avoiding the Queen check at a4. Needless to say, it’s likely that something has changed in the meanwhile (:. 8. Qa4+ Bd7 9. Qb3 Qc7 10. e4 0-0 11. Nd2 Re8. Another try is 11. ... Nh5 12. Be3 f5 13. exf5 gxf5 14. Be2 Nf6 (after 14. ... f4 15. Bxc5 f3 16. Bxf3 Rxf3 17. gxf3! Qxc5 18. Qxb7 Black’s attack fails: 18. ... Bxc3 19. bxc3 Nf4 20. Rg1+ Kf7 21. Ne4 Qxd5 22. Qxd5+ Nxd5 23. Rd1 Bc6 24. c4 Ne7 25. Nxd6+ Ke6 26. Ne4 Bxe4 27. fxe4 Nd7 28. f4 Nf6 29. e5 Ne4 30. Rd4 Kf5 31. Rg7 Nc6 32. Rf7+ Ke6 33. Rdd7 Rb8 34. Ke2 Rb4 35. Rxh7 Rxc4 36. Kd3 Ra4 37. Ke3 Kf5 38. Rdf7+ Ke6 39. Rc7 Kd5 40. Rhd7+ Kc5 41. Rd8 1 : 0 Kortschnoi – Nunn, 3rd Phillips & Drew Kings Chess Tournament, London 1984) 15. h3 Na6 16. a3 Qf7 17. Rd1 Nc7 18. Nc4 Rad8 as occurred in the game Loiseau – Abasov, 54th World Junior Chess Championship, Khanty-Mansiysk 2015. 12. Be2 Na6. The double-edged alternative 12. ... b5!? 13. Bxb5 Nxe4 14. Ncxe4 f5 15. Be2 fxe4 16. Nc4 appears very unclear and substantially favourable to White, Uhlmann – Milić, Zonal Tournament, Mariánské Lázně 1961. We feel, however, it’s worth exploring in a little more detail. 13. 0-0 Rad8. Also 13. ... Rab8 14. Rfe1 clearly favours White: 14. ... Re7 15. Bb5 Nh5 16. Bg5 f6 17. Be3 Rbe8 18. Be2 Bh8 19. Bxh5 gxh5 20. Bf4 Rd8 21. e5 fxe5 22. Bg5 Rg7 23. Bxd8 Qxd8 24. Nce4 b5 25. Re3 c4 26. Qa3 Bc8 27. Qxd6 Rd7 28. Rg3+ 1 : 0 Uhlmann – Dely, Erfurt 1955. 14. Rfe1 Bc8? This is a bad mistake after which Black’s position disintegrates. Tea ought to have tried harder to improve on 14. ... Nb8 15. h3 a6 16. a4 Bc8 17. a5 Nfd7 18. Nc4 Ne5 19. Ne3 Nbd7 20. Bg5 f6 21. Bf4 g5 22. Bg3 Ng6 23. Bg4 Nde5 24. Bxc8 Rxc8 25. Nf5 Bf8 26. Re3 h5 27. Ne2 Ne7 28. Bxe5 Nxf5 29. exf5 c4 30. Qd1 dxe5 31. Nc3 Bc5 32. Ne4 Qf7 33. Rc3 Red8 34. Rac1 Bb4 35. Rxc4 Rxc4 36. Rxc4 Bxa5 37. Qb3 Kg7 38. Rc5 b6 39. Rc6 Rxd5 40. Rxf6 Qd7 41. Rg6+ Kf8 42. Qa3+ 1 : 0 Kovalenko – Venevtsev, King’s Gambit B, Lipetsk 2008. 15. Nb5 Qe7 16. Nxa7 Nb8

17. Bb5! Bd7 18. Nc4! Bxb5. If 18. ... Nxd5 then 19. Bxd6 and Black’s position falls apart. 19. Nxb5 Nxe4. Again, if 19. ... Nxd5 there follows 20. Bxd6 with devastating effect. 20. Nbxd6 Qf6 21. Nxe8 Rxe8. This is tantamount to resignation, but 21. ... Qxf4 is equally met by 22. Qf3 with an easy win for White. 22. Qf3 1 : 0.

Lela Javakhishvili in 2012
Photo: Stefan64

Living in the Material World

Mariya Muzychuk – Lela Javakhishvili
5th Women’s World Chess Team Championship; 成都市 (Chéngdū), April 23, 2015
Sicilian Defence B34

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 g6 5. Nc3 Bg7 6. Be3 Nf6 7. Nxc6 bxc6 8. e5 Nd5 9. Nxd5 cxd5 10. Qxd5 Rb8 11. Bc4 0-0 12. 0-0 Qc7 13. f4. For 13. Bb3 Bxe5 14. Qc5 a5 15. Rd5 Qxc5 16. Rxc5 d6 17. Rxa5 Bf5 see R. Bagirov – Cebalo, 30th MTO Open, Biel 1997. 13. ... d6. Obviously, if 13. ... Rxb2 then 14. Bb3 trapping the Rook. 14. exd6 exd6 15. Bb3 Re8

16. Qd2 Bxb2 17. Rab1 Bc3 18. Qf2 a5 19. Bd4 Be6 20. Rbd1 Bxd4 21. Rxd4 Rb4 22. Re1 Re7 23. Rxb4 axb4 24. Qe3 Qa7 25. Qxa7 Rxa7 26. Rd1 Bxb3 27. axb3 Rc7. Much Ado About Nothing. It is just a dead drawn endgame. 28. Rxd6 Rxc2 29. Rd4 Rc1+ 30. Kf2 Rc2+ 31. Kf1 Rc1+ 32. Kf2 Rc2+ 33. Kf1 ½ : ½.

Mariya & Anna Muzychuk
Photo: Anastasiya Karlovich

Ora et labora

Jolanta Zawadzka – Lela Javakhishvili
5th Women’s World Chess Team Championship; 成都市 (Chéngdū), April 21, 2015
Sicilian Defence B47

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Qc7 5. Nc3 e6 6. f4 a6 7. Nxc6 Qxc6 8. Bd3 b5 9. Qe2 Bb7 10. Bd2 Bc5 11. 0-0-0 Ne7 12. a3 0-0-0 13. Rhe1 h5. Was this improvised? For 13. ... Kb8 14. Kb1 Nc8 15. Qg4 g6 16. Na2 see Kilpatrick – Barbosa, 51st World Juniors, Athens 2012, whilst for 13. ... g6 14. g3 f5 see Arun – Konguvel, 9th Parsvnath Open, New Delhi 2011. 14. g3 d5. The right move at the wrong time! 15. exd5 exd5 16. Be3 Bd6. From bad to worse. 17. Bd4 f6 18. Bxb5! axb5 19. Nxb5 Bc5 20. b4 Bb6 21. Qxe7 Qxb5

22. Qxg7? Jolanta misses a very neat tactical point: 22. Qe6+ Kc7 23. Qxb6+! Qxb6 24. Re7+ Kd6 25. Rde1! Kc6 (if 25. ... Qxd4 then 26. R1e6 mate) 26. R7e6+ Rd6 27. Rxd6+ Kxd6 28. Bxb6 which would lead to a decisive advantage for White. Later on it was Lela who could have tried to play for a win, but after all roller coasters in the middle game she was content with a draw. 22. ... Bxd4 23. Rxd4 Qb6 24. Rd3 d4 25. Re7 Rhe8 26. Rxe8 Rxe8 27. Qf7 Rd8 28. Qxh5 Be4 29. Rd2 f5 30. Qf7 Kb8 31. Qe7 Rc8 32. Qe5+ Kb7 33. g4 Qa6 34. Qxd4 Qxa3+ 35. Kd1 Qf3+. Alternatively, Black might have considered 35. ... Bf3+ 36. Ke1 Re8+ 37. Kf2 Bc6 retaining some winning possibilities. 36. Kc1 Qa3+ 37. Kd1 Qf3+ 38. Kc1 ½ : ½.

Jolanta Zawadzka
Photo: Liu Yunpeng

Beauty and a Beat

Lela Javakhishvili – Romain Édouard
Tradewise Gibraltar Chess Festival; Catalan Bay, February 5, 2015
Queen’s Gambit Accepted D20

1. d4 d5 2. c4 dxc4 3. e4 b5 4. a4 c6 5. axb5 cxb5 6. Nc3 a6 7. Nxb5 axb5 8. Rxa8 Bb7 9. Ra1 e6 10. f3. No better is 10. Ne2 Bxe4 11. b3 Nc6 12. Nc3 Bb4 13. Bd2 Bxc3 14. Bxc3 b4 15. d5 bxc3 16. dxc6 Qxd1+ 17. Kxd1 cxb3 18. c7 Kd7 19. Ra3 b2 20. c8=Q+ Kxc8 21. Rxc3+ Kd7 22. Bd3 b1=Q+ 23. Bxb1 Bxb1 24. Rb3 Be4 25. Rb8 g5 26. Ke2 Ke7 27. h4 gxh4 28. Rxh4 Bc6 29. Rc4 Be8 30. Rc7+ Kd6 31. Ra7 Ne7 32. Rd8+ Ke5 33. Rb7 Kf6 34. Rdb8 Ng6 35. Rb6 h5 36. f3 Ba4 37. Rxh8 Nxh8 38. Ke3 Ng6 39. Ra6 Bb3 40. Ra5 Bd5 41. Ra7 e5 42. Ra5 Be6 43. Rb5 h4 44. Rb1 Kg5 45. Rb5 f6 46. Rb7 Nf4 47. Kf2 Nh5 48. Rb6 Bf5 49. Rb8 Bg6 50. Rb4 Nf4 51. Ra4 Bf7 52. Ra7 Kg6 53. Ra1 Bd5 54. Rd1 Kg5 55. Rd2 f5 0 : 1 Adhiban – Nakamura, Tradewise Gibraltar Chess Festival; Catalan Bay, January 27, 2015. 10. ... Nc6 11. Ne2 Bb4+. A novelty. For 11. ... Na5 12. Nc3 Qb6 see Goganov – Tabatabaei, Moscow 2015. 12. Bd2 Nge7 13. b3 0-0 14. bxc4 bxc4 15. Kf2 f5 16. Nf4? The crisis. Correct was 16. Bxb4 Nxb4 17. Nf4 Qb6 18. Bxc4 fxe4, provided Black has some compensation for the Exchange. 16. ... Qxd4+ 17. Be3 Qb2+ 18. Be2. And not 18. Kg1? because of 18. ... Qe5 19. Bxc4 Bc5 and Black wins 18. ... fxe4 19. Nxe6 exf3 20. gxf3. Allowing Black to unleash a deadly attack. The lesser evil was 20. Nxf8, although after 20. ... fxg2 21. Re1 Bxe1+ 22. Qxe1 Nd4 23. Rd1 g1=Q+! 24. Kxg1 Nxe2+ 25. Kf1 Bf3 Black ought to have a win.

20. ... Rxf3+! The spectacular beginning of a wild King-hunt! 21. Kxf3 Ne5+ 22. Kg3. Both 22. Kf4 Nd3+ 23. Bxd3 cxd3 24. Qxd3 Ng6+ and 22. Kf2 Nd3+ 23. Kg1 Qe5! are hopeless. 22. ... Nf5+ 23. Kf2. Not surprisingly this game won the first Beauty Prize. Other piquant variations are 23. Kh3 Bg2+! and 23. Kf4 Ng6+ 24. Kxf5 Qf6+ 25. Kg4 Qh4+ 26. Kf5 Be4 mate. 23. ... Nd3+ 24. Kg1 Nxe3 25. Qa4 Bf8 26. Rf1. White has no time for 26. Qe8 on account of 26. ... Qxa1+ and mate next move. 26. ... Nxf1 27. Qxc4 Nd2 28. Qxd3 Qb6+ 29. Nd4 Bc5 30. Qxd2 Bxd4+ 31. Kf1 Qf6+ 32. Ke1 Bc3 0 : 1.