五分鐘短劇 (Five-Minute Plays)

Magnus Carlsen – 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén)
7th Sinquefield Cup; tie-break game 4 (5+3); Saint Louis, August 29, 2019
Spanish Game C84

After two draws in the first two rapid tie-break games, 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) has neatly won both the two blitz games — at a time cadence in which Carlsen is generally considered unbeatable — thus becoming the first Chinese player to ever win the élite super-rich Sinquefield Cup, and also mooting his challenge to the Norwegian king for a World Chess Championship match. 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. 0-0 Be7 6. d3 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 Na5 9. Bc2 c5 10. d4 cxd4 11. cxd4 0-0 12. h3 Re8 13. d5 Bd7 14. Nc3 Qb8 15. Bd3 Rc8 16. Ne2 Nb7 17. g4!? Nc5 18. Ng3 Nxd3 19. Qxd3 b4 20. Re1 Qb5 21. Qd1 Rc7 22. Be3 Rac8 23. Nd2 g6 24. b3 Qb7 25. Nc4 Bb5 26. Na5 Qb8 27. Qd2 Rc3 28. a3 bxa3 29. Nc6 Bxc6 30. Qxc3 Bxd5 31. Qa5 Bxe4

After losing the 3rd blitz game, Carlsen, in a “must-win” situation, flings himself against the wall: 32. g5? This could lead to a draw by force, which for Carlsen is equivalent to a defeat. Hence White had to prefer something like 32. Nxe4 Nxe4 33. Qxa3 just to “keep on playing”. 32. ... Ba8! 33. Qxa6? In his understandable desperation Carlsen cannot afford to content himself with 33. gxf6 that after 33. ... Qb7 34. Kf1 Qg2+ 35. Ke2 Qf3+ allows Black perpetual check. 33. ... Nd5 34. Ba7 Qc7 35. Rec1 Qxc1+ 36. Rxc1 Rxc1+ 37. Kh2 Bc6 38. Qxa3 Bxg5 39. Qxd6? Bf4 40. Bc5 Ne7! 0 : 1. “Yesterday I was playing a tournament. Today I played a match” 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) eventually said.

“I gotta say, he was a lot better than I was today”, Carlsen finally said. Photo © Lennart Ootes/Grand Chess Tour.

There’s Always a Tomorrow

Maxime Vachier-Lagrave – Magnus Carlsen
7th Sinquefield Cup; Saint Louis, August 28, 2019
Sicilian Defence B31

Carlsen was playing (against Vachier-Lagrave) for only one result — a win. 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) was playing (against Mamedyarov) for only one result — a draw. And last but not least, Karjakin was playing (against Caruana) for only one result — a win. With a little help from their opponents, only Carlsen and 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) got what they wanted, and thus a two-way tie-breaker is required to determine the winner of this year’s Sinquefield Cup. Tomorrow is the date. 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 g6 4. Bxc6 bxc6 5. d4 cxd4. In his round-two game with Anand, Carlsen preferred 5. ... Bg7 6. dxc5 Qa5+ 7. Nbd2 Qxc5 8. 0-0 d6 9. Re1 f6 10. a3!? Nh6 11. b4 Qh5 12. c4 0-0 13. Qa4 Bd7 14. Nf1 Nf7 15. Ng3 Qg4 16. c5!? e5! 17. cxd6 c5 18. Qb3 cxb4 19. axb4 Qe6 20. Qxe6 Bxe6 21. Be3 a6 22. Rec1 Rfd8 23. Nd2 Bf8 24. Nc4 Rac8! 25. f3 Nb5 29. Bxf8 Rxc1+ 30. Rxc1 Kxf8= with a draw agreed on move 45, Anand – Carlsen, 7th Sinquefield Cup, Saint Louis 2019. 6. Qxd4 f6 7. 0-0 d6 8. c4 c5 9. Qd3 Bg7 10. b3. Or likewise 10. Nc3 Nh6 11. Nh4 Rb8 12. b3 0-0 13. Re1 Nf7 14. f4 f5 with a draw agreed on move 64, Kovalev – Praggnanandhaa, 81st Tata Steel Challengers Chess Tournament, Wijk aan Zee 2019. 10. ... Nh6 11. Nc3 Rb8 12. Bd2 0-0 13. Rae1 Nf7 14. h4!? Rb7! 15. h5 g5 16. Nh2 Ne5 17. Qg3!? Kh8! 18. f4!? gxf4 19. Bxf4 Rg8 20. Re3 Nc6. Clearly not 20. ... Bh6? because of 21. Bxh6! Rxg3 22. Rxg3 with a crushing preponderance for White, but 20 ... Qf8!? (intending actually ... Bg7-h6) was well worth considering. 21. Qf2 f5!?

22. Nf3?? This destructive mistake was played by Vachier-Lagrave almost instantly, and without any reason. 22. exf5 Bxf5 (22. ... Bd4 23. Nb5!) 23. Rg3 was perfectly playable and even good for White. 22. ... Bxc3! 23. Rxc3 e5! 24. Rd3. Desperation, but otherwise ... f5-f4 would follow with decisive effect. 24. ... exf4 25. Qb2+ Rbg7 26. h6 fxe4. The rest is easy. 27. Rd2 exf3 28. hxg7+ Rxg7 29. Rxf3 Qg5 30. Rdf2 Nd4 31. Rxf4 Bf5 32. b4 Be6 33. Rf8+ Bg8 34. bxc5 dxc5 35. Qb8 Qe3 36. Qd6 Qc1+ 37. Kh2 Qg5 38. Qd5 Qh4+ 39. Kg1 Qe7 40. Qh5 Qe3 41. Qh4 Ne2+ 42. Kh1 Qc1+ 43. Rf1 Ng3+ 44. Kg1 Qe3+ 0 : 1. “It’s a bit surreal but now I have to get back to earth cause there’s more chess to play tomorrow”, Carlsen finally said.

A huge oversight on Vachier-Lagrave’s part gave Carlsen an unhoped-for opportunity to get to the tie-break. Photo © Lennart Ootes/Grand Chess Tour.

Tomorrow Never Knows

Levon Grigori Aronian – 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén)
7th Sinquefield Cup; Saint Louis, August 27, 2019
Two Knights Defence C58

Thanks to today’s draw, 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) enters the final round of the 7th Sinquefield Cup ahead by half point over Anand, Carlsen (who finally scored his first win), Karjakin, and Nepomniachtchi (who melodramatically threw away a draw), not to mention that Caruana, Mamedyarov, and Vachier-Lagrave follow one point behind. In short, it’s not all yet, but it’s enough to guess that everything can still change. 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. Ng5 d5 5. exd5 Na5 6. Bb5+ c6 7. dxc6 bxc6 8. Bd3!? Nd5 9. Nf3. Seven-time Italian Chess Champion Vincenzo Castaldi got literally zugzwanged by Paul Petrovich Keres after 9. Ne4 f5 10. Ng3 Nf4 11. Bf1 Bc5 12. c3 Bb6 13. d4 Ng6 14. Bd3 0-0 15. b4 Nb7 16. Bc4+ Kh8 17. d5 (“after this the storm breaks unexpectedly”, Julius du Mont and Savielly Tartakower wrote in their book “500 Master Games of Chess”, New York, Dover Publications, 1975, p. 48) 17. ... Nd6 18. Bb3 f4 19. Nf1 Ne4 0 : 1 Castaldi – Keres, 7th Chess Olympiad, Stockholm 1937. 9. ... Bd6 10. 0-0 Nf4 11. Nc3. Though only five-minute chess, the following game is worth a close look: 11. Re1 Nxd3 12. cxd3 0-0 13. Nc3 Re8 14. h3 c5 15. b3 Ba6 16. Ba3 Bxd3 17. Ne4 Bxe4 18. Rxe4 f5 19. Ra4 e4 20. Nh2 Nc6 21. Rc1 Ne5 22. d4 Nd3 23. dxc5 Bf4 24. Rc2 e3 25. f3 Bg3 26. Nf1 Bf2+ 27. Kh1 Nf4 28. Qxd8 Raxd8 29. Rxf4 Rd1 30. Re2 Bg3 31. Kg1 Bxf4 32. g4 Red8 33. Bb4 R8d4 34. Ba5 Rd5 35. Bb4 a5 36. Bxa5 Rxc5 37. Bb6 Rcc1 38. Bxe3 Rxf1+ 39. Kg2 Bxe3 40. Rxe3 Rfe1 41. Rd3 f4 0 : 1 Short – Kasparov, “Your Next Move” Blitz Chess Match, Leuven 2011, match game 8. 11. ... Nxd3 12. cxd3 0-0 13. b3 c5 14. Ba3 Nc6 15. Ne4 Nb4 16. Bxb4 cxb4 17. Re1 Bb8!? A novelty in place of 17. ... Bb7 18. Nxd6 Qxd6 19. Nxe5 Rfe8 20. Nc4 Qxd3 (after 20. ... Qg6?! 21. Rxe8+ Rxe8 22. Qf1± Black does not have enough compensation for the two Pawns, Zhigalko – Inarkiev, 4th World Rapid Chess Championship, Berlin 2015) 21. Re3 Qg6 22. f3⩲ with White heading for an endgame a Pawn up, Zhigalko – Ragger, 41st Chess Olympiad, Tromsø 2014. 18. Ng3 Qxd3 19. Nxe5 Bxe5 20. Rxe5 Be6 21. Re3 Qd4 22. Ne2 Qd6 23. d4 a5 24. h4 Rfd8 25. Qd2 a4 26. Rd1 axb3 27. axb3 Ra5. Unlike the aforementioned games (by Zhigalko), here 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) succeeded in bargaining for enough counterplay to get his minus Pawn sufficiently compensated, so the game drifts towards an inevitable draw.

28. Rg3 Rf5 29. Ra1 Bd5 30. Qe3 h6 31. Rg4 Rf6 32. Ng3 Qe6 33. Qxe6 Bxe6 34. Re4 Bxb3 35. d5 Rb6 36. Rb1 Bxd5 37. Rexb4 Rxb4 38. Rxb4 Be6 39. f3 Ra8 40. Kh1 Rd8 41. Kg1 Ra8 42. Kh1 Rd8 43. Kg1 ½ : ½.

丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) showed himself ready even to take on Aronian’s “Romantic” challenge. Photo © Crystal Fuller/Grand Chess Tour.

A Deal Before the Altar

丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) – Fabiano Caruana
7th Sinquefield Cup; Saint Louis, August 26, 2019
Queen’s Gambit Declined D37

In the end, Ian Alexandrovich Nepomniachtchi and 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) took the sole lead of the 7th Sinquefield Cup by winning respectively with Wesley So and Fabiano Caruana. Particularly impressive was the victory won by the Chinese Grandmaster over Miami’s Grandmaster in what might as well have been billed as a showdown between two “human calculators”. 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bf4 0-0 6. e3 b6 7. Bd3 dxc4 8. Bxc4 Ba6 9. Bxa6 Nxa6 10. Qe2 Qc8 11. 0-0 Qb7 12. a3 c5 13. Nb5 Rac8!? A novelty that does not change much with respect to 13. ... Ne4 14. Rac1 Rac8 15. Ne5 Nd6 16. Nxd6 Bxd6 17. Qg4 cxd4 18. Rxc8 Rxc8 19. Nxf7 Bxf4 20. Qxe6 Nc5 21. Nh6+ Kh8 22. Nf7+ Kg8 23. Nh6+ Kh8 ½ : ½ Carlsen – Nakamura, 7th World Blitz Chess Championship, Saint Petersburg 2018. 14. b4 Nd5 15. bxc5 bxc5 16. Rab1 Rc6 17. Be5 Rb6. The game is a draw near, but not yet a draw, as Black is subjected to a gentle but continuous pressure which forces him to play very carefully and precisely. 18. a4 Nac7 19. dxc5 Bxc5 20. Rbc1 Nxb5 21. Rxc5 Nd6 22. a5 Rc6 23. Bxd6 Rxd6 24. Rfc1 h6 25. h3 Rfd8 26. Ne5 Nf6 27. Nc6. 27. Rc7 Rd1+ 28. Kh2 Qe4 29. Qb2 may still leave White with some initiative. 27. ... R8d7 28. a6 Qb6 29. Ne5 Rd8 30. Rc8 Qa5 31. f4 Rd2. There is probably nothing wrong with this move, although 31. ... Nd7 seems safer. 32. Qf3. The engines’ zwischenzug 32. Qf1! Qa3 33. Qf3 could be an improvement. 32. ... Rd5 33. R1c7 Kh7. 33. ... Qxa6 was perhaps simpler, for if 34. Rxd8+ Rxd8 35. Rxf7 there may follow 35. ... Qa1+ 36. Kh2 Qe1 37. Qb7 Nh5 38. Qf3 Nf6 repeating moves. 34. Kh2. Mirror moves: 33. ... Kh7/34. Kh2. 34. ... Rxc8 35. Rxc8 Qxa6 36. Ra8(!) Qb7 37. Rf8 Rb5? In playing his “natural” move, Caruana completely overlooked White’s refutation. Correct was 37. ... Qb4! 38. Rxf7 Qb1! with a draw in sight (if 39. Rxa7 Black can reply with 39. ... Rd1).

38. Qf1!± Qd5 39. Nxf7 Nd7 40. Rd8 Rb8 41. Rxb8 Nxb8 42. Qb1+ Qf5 43. Qb7 Nc6! 44. Nd6 Qc5 45. Ne4 Qc2?? The last and decisive mistake. 45. ... Qxe3! 46. Qxc6 Qxf4+ would have offered the toughest resistance. 46. Nf6+ Kg6 47. Ne8 Qc3 48. e4 a5 49. Qd7 a4 50. Qxe6+ Kh7 51. e5 Nd4 52. Qd7 Kg6 53. Qxg7+ Kf5 54. Nd6+ Kxf4 55. Qf6+ Ke3 56. e6 Kd3 57. e7 1 : 0.

丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) and Caruana exchange their points of view right after the end of the game. Photo: Lennart Ootes/Grand Chess Tour.

The Wild Bunch

Sergey Alexandrovich Karjakin – Maxime Vachier-Lagrave
7th Sinquefield Cup; Saint Louis, August 25, 2019
Grünfeld Defence D86

Thanks to their victories this evening, both Sergey Alexandrovich Karjakin and Ian Alexandrovich Nepomniachtchi joined Viswanathan Anand, Fabiano Caruana and 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) at the lead of the 7th Sinquefield Cup. Magnus Carlsen, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov and Wesley So are following just a half point behind. 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Bc4 c5 8. Ne2 Nc6 9. Be3 0-0 10. 0-0 b6 11. dxc5 Qc7 12. Nd4 Ne5 13. Nb5 Qb8 14. Bd5 Ng4 15. g3 Nxe3 16. fxe3 a6 17. Nd4. Vachier-Lagrave, playing White against Boris Abramovich Gelfand six years ago, continued with 17. Bxf7+ Kh8 18. Nd4 bxc5 19. Bd5 Rxf1+ 20. Qxf1 cxd4 21. Rb1 Qa7 22. Qf7 Be6 23. Qxe6 dxc3 24. Bxa8 Qxe3+ 25. Kg2 Qe2+ 26. Kh3 Qh5+ 27. Kg2 Qe2+ ½ : ½ Vachier-Lagrave – Gelfand, 5th Chess World Cup, Tromsø 2013, match game 1. The memory of that game must have made him a little confused: 17. ... bxc5? (17. ... Bh3!∞) 18. Rb1 Qa7? (18. ... Qc7!? 19. Bxa8 cxd4 20. cxd4 Bh3 21. Bd5 Bxf1 22. Kxf1!?± seems a little better) 19. Nc6 Qc7 20. Nxe7+ Qxe7 21. Bxa8 Bh3 22. Bd5 Bxf1 23. Qxf1 Bxc3 24. Qxa6. White is a Pawn ahead (furthermore, a passed one!) and enjoys a powerful initiative which is made devastating by the presence of opposite-coloured Bishops. Black is by now doomed.

24. ... Qg5 25. Qe2 Kh8 26. Kg2 f5 27. Qd3 Be5 28. Rf1 Kg7 29. exf5 Rxf5 30. a4 Rxf1 31. Kxf1 Bd4 32. Bc4! Bxe3 33. Qd7+ Kh6 34. Qh3+ Kg7 35. Qe6 Bd4 36. Qf7+ Kh6 37. a5 Bf6 38. Kg2! Qd2+ 39. Kh3 Qg5 40. Qf8+ Bg7 41. Qf3 Bd4 42. a6 Qe7 43. Qa8 Bf6 44. a7 Qd7+ 45. g4 Qe7 46. Qf3 Qxa7 47. Qxf6 Qa3+ 48. Bd3! Not 48. Kh4?? Qh3+! (idem to say 48. ... Qg3+!) and stalemate follows. The “dual” is 48. Bb3 instead. 48. ... Qxd3+ 49. Kh4 Qd4 50. Qf8+ Qg7 51. g5 mate.

“It always happens with me because I normally mix up moves when I play. This time when I was preparing to the game I repeated the line one hundred times”, Karjakin finally said. Photo © Justin Kellar/Grand Chess Tour.

Countdown to Midnight

Magnus Carlsen – 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén)
7th Sinquefield Cup; Saint Louis, August 25, 2019
Nimzo-Indian Defence E21

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 0-0 5. Bg5 c5 6. Rc1 h6 7. Bh4 cxd4 8. Nxd4 d5 9. cxd5 g5 10. Bg3 Qxd5 11. e3 Qxa2!? 12. Qc2. Quite recently 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) managed to get a laborious draw after 12. Bd3 Qxb2 13. 0-0 Bxc3 14. Rc2 Qb4 15. Nb5 e5 16. Rxc3 Nc6 17. f4 Bg4 18. Qc2 exf4 19. exf4 Rac8 20. Bc4 Qc5+ 21. Kh1 Qf5 22. Bd3 Qd7 23. fxg5 Nb4 24. Qf2 Nxd3 25. Qxf6 Qxb5 26. gxh6 Nf2+ 27. Rxf2 Qb1+ 28. Rf1 Qg6 29. Rxc8 Rxc8 30. Qe7 Be6 31. Qxb7 Qxh6 32. Qxa7 Rc1 33. Rg1 Rxg1+ 34. Qxg1 Bd5 35. Qd1 Qe6 36. Qd2 Qf5 37. Kg1 Qb1+ 38. Be1 Db6+ 39. Kh1 Qf6 40. h3 Qf5 41. Kh2 f6 42. Bf2 Kf7 43. Bd4 Ke6 44. Qe3+ Qe4 45. Qf2 Qf5 46. Qg3 Qe4 47. Bc3 Kf5 48. Qf2+ Qf4+ 49. Qxf4+ Kxf4 50. Bxf6 Kf5 51. Bc3 Kg6 52. g4 Be6 53. Kg3 Bd7 54. h4 Be6 55. h5+ Kh7 56. Kf4 Bd7 57. g5 Be8 58. Kg4 Bf7 59. g6+ Bxg6 60. hxg6+ Kxg6 ½ : ½ Topalov – 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén), 4th “心桥杯” (“Xīnqiáo Cup”), 温州 (Wēnzhōu) 2018, match game 3. 12. ... Nd5 13. h4 Nxc3 14. bxc3!? Carlsen introduces his novelty, which, by itself, doesn’t seem better than 14. hxg5!? as after 14. ... Na4+! 15. Kd1 Qxb2! 16. Qxb2 Nxb2+ 17. Kc2! hxg5 18. Kxb2 White’s initiative apparently fully compensates for the two Pawns minus, Brunner – Lékó, 2nd Bundesliga Sud 2016/2017, Deizisau 2017. 14. ... Qxc2 15. Rxc2 Be7 16. hxg5 hxg5 17. f4 Nc6 18. fxg5 Bxg5 19. Rh5 f6

20. Nf3! Even here White gives up two Pawns for a powerful attack. 20. ... Bxe3 21. Re2 Bc1 22. Re4 e5 23. Bc4+ Kg7 24. Reh4. Carlsen can at least be content with the fact that Black’s staying alive requires a quasi-continuous series of “only” moves. 24. ... Kg6 25. Rh7 Bg4. Not the only move, but the most natural. Now, 25. ... e4!? 26. Nd2 Ne5! was the engines’ alternative. 26. Bd3+ f5. Clearly not 27. ... Bf5?? on account of 24. R4h5! (Δ Nf3-h4 mate) 24. ... Bg5 25. Nh4+ Bxh4 26. Bxf5 mate. 27. Nxe5+ Nxe5 28. Bxe5 Kg5! 29. g3 Rg8! 30. Rxb7. Enough is enough, and a draw is now enough for Carlsen too. 30. ... Rae8 31. Rb5 Rg6 32. Kf2 Rb6 33. Rxb6 axb6 34. Rh1 Rxe5 35. Rxc1 f4 36. gxf4+ Kxf4 37. Rb1 Rc5 38. Rb4+ Kg5 39. Rxb6 Rxc3 40. Ke3 Bf5 41. Rd6 Rxd3+ 42. Rxd3 Bxd3 ½ : ½. “The disadvantage of playing a forced opening, if your opponent calculates well, he’s gonna be fine but people don’t usually do that every time”, Carlsen eventually said.

Appearances to the contrary, Carlsen’s and 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén)’s lively opening can be considered a drawing line. Photo © Lennart Ootes/Grand Chess Tour.

Mementos and Memories

丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) – Viswanathan Anand
7th Sinquefield Cup; Saint Louis, August 24, 2019
Bogo-Indian Defence E11

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 Bb4+ 4. Bd2 Be7 5. Bg2 d5 6. Nf3 0-0 7. 0-0 Nbd7 8. Qc2 c6 9. a4 a5 10. Na3 Bd6 11. Ne1 Re8!?TN 12. Nd3 e5 13. cxd5 e4 14. Nf4 cxd5 15. Nb5 Bb8 16. Rac1 Ra6! 17. Bh3? 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) would have certainly gone for 17. Nc7 Rc6 18. Nxe8 Rxc2 19. Nxf6+ Nxf6 20. Rxc2 with a two Rooks vs. Queen battle, had he imagined what was coming. 17. ... Rc6! 18. Qb3. On other Queen moves there follows ... g7-g5-g4 winning a piece. 18. ... Nb6! 19. Bxa5. It goes down straight, but 19. Bxc8 Nc4! is also very bad. 19. ... Bxh3! 20. Nxh3 Qc8! 21. Kg2 Rxc1. 21. ... Nc4! is the engines’ “best move”, but Anand’s continuation is also perfectly good. 22. Rxc1 Qxc1 23. Bxb6 e3! 24. f3

24. ... h5!!−+ 25. Ba5 h4 26. gxh4. A sign of desperation. 26. ... Qc6?! It takes just a few seconds for the engines to spot 26. ... Ne4!! which wins in all variations (27. fxe4 Rxe4 may well run into a mating attack). 27. Be1 Nh5? Her Majesty was still in time to infiltrate White’s realm by 27. ... Qc1! with still lots of possible attack scenarios. Now 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) gets out of the nightmare: 28. Bg3! Qc4. Of course, Anand might still win the endgame, but after throwing away so much “mementos” of his glorious past, he was probably lucky not to end up losing the game. 29. Qxc4 dxc4∓ 30. Ng5 Nf6 31. Na3 Bxg3 32. hxg3 Ra8 33. Nxc4 Rxa4 34. Nxe3 Rxd4 35. Kf2 Nd5 36. Nf5 Rb4 37. h5 Rxb2 38. h6 f6 39. Ne4 gxh6 40. Nxh6+ Kf8 41. Nf5 b5 42. Ne3 Nb6 43. Ke1 b4 44. Kd1 Na4 45. Nd5 f5 46. Nd2 b3 47. e4 fxe4 48. fxe4 Kf7 49. g4 Nc5 50. Nb4 Ke6 51. Kc1 Na4 52. g5 Ke7 53. Nc6+ Kf7 54. Nd4 Kg6 55. N4xb3 Ra2 56. Nf3 Nc3 57. Nbd2 Rxd2 58. Kxd2 Nxe4+ 59. Ke3 Nxg5 60. Nxg5 ½ : ½. And yet, that must have been a hard lesson for 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) to learn.

Only Anand’s anagraphic age prevented him from taking the sole lead in the 7th Sinquefield Cup. Photo © Austin Fuller/Grand Chess Tour.

Twin Peaks

Fabiano Caruana – Maxime Vachier-Lagrave
7th Sinquefield Cup; Saint Louis, August 23, 2019
Sicilian Defence B90

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. h3 e5 7. Nb3 Be6 8. f4 g6. A recent game continued: 8. ... exf4 9. Bxf4 Nc6 10. Qe2 Be7 11. 0-0-0 Qc7 12. g4 0-0 13. g5 Nd7 14. Qe3 Rac8 15. Kb1 Rfe8 16. h4 b5 17. Qg3 Nce5 18. Nd4 Nb6 19. Bh3 Bxh3 20. Qxh3 Nec4 21. Nd5 Nxd5 22. exd5 Nb6 23. Bc1 Nxd5 24. h5 Bf8 25. g6 h6 26. Qg2 Nf6? (26. ... Ne3 27. Bxe3 Rxe3 28. Nf5 Re6 seems tenable) 27. Bxh6! fxg6 28. Rdf1 Qc4 29. Rxf6 Qxd4 30. Rxg6 Kh7 31. Bc1 Qe4 32. h6! Qxg6 33. hxg7+ Kxg7 34. Bh6+ Kf7 35. Rf1+ Qf6 36. Qd5+ Ke7 37. Bg5 and White finally won on move 60, van Foreest – Nepomniachtchi, 81st Tata Steel Chess Tournament, Leiden 2019. 9. Be2 Nbd7 10. g4 Rc8. More usual is 10. ... exf4 that not long ago brought Black very good luck: 11. g5 Nh5 12. Bxh5 Qxg5 13. Bf3?? (13. Bg4 was obviously called for) 13. ... Qg3+ 14. Kd2 Ne5 15. Rf1 Bxh3−+ van Foreest – Ivić, 20th European Individual Chess Championship, Skopje 2019. 11. f5 Bxb3 12. axb3 Rxc3! 13. bxc3 Nxe4 14. 0-0 Qh4 15. Bf3! gxf5 16. Bxe4 fxe4 17. Kh2 Rg8! Vachier-Lagrave’s new novelty radically changes the evaluation of the line, which was grounded so far upon 17. ... Be7 18. Rf5 Rg8 19. Be3 Nf6 20. g5 h5 21. Bf2 Ng4+ 22. Qxg4 Qxf2+ 23. Rxf2 hxg4 24. h4 f6 25. Kg3 fxg5 26. h5 Kd7 27. Kxg4 Ke6 28. c4 b5 29. cxb5 axb5 30. h6 Rh8 31. Rh2 e3 32. h7 d5 33. Ra6+ Kf7 34. Kf5 d4 35. Kxe5 g4 36. Kf4 Bf6 37. Kxg4 Be5 38. Rh5 Bg7 39. Kf3 Rc8 40. Rf5+ Ke7 41. Ra7+ Ke6 42. Rxg7 1 : 0 Forcén Esteban – Riff, 35th Andorra Open, Les Escaldes 2017. 18. Ra4 Nf6 19. g5

19. ... Rxg5! And that’s the point: Black sacrifices the second Exchange, increasing to three Pawns his material compensation, and obtaining, from a positional standpoint, a formidable Pawn centre. 20. Bxg5 Qxg5 21. c4! Qh4 22. Qe1! Thus White forces an asymmetrical endgame two Exchanges ahead, but just to realise that Black can (relatively easily) set a “fortress” draw. 22. ... Qxe1 23. Rxe1 Bh6 24. Rd1 Kd7! 25. c5 d5 26. Rb4 Kc7 27. Rb6 Bf4+ 28. Kg2 Nd7 29. Rxd5! More for the audience than himself. 29. ... Nxb6 30. cxb6+ Kxb6 31. Rd7 a5 32. Rxf7 h6 33. Kf2 Kc6 34. Ke2 b5 35. Rf6+ Kc5 36. c3 a4 37. bxa4 bxa4 38. Ra6 Kb5 39. Ra7 Bg5 40. Ra8 Be7 41. Kd2 a3 42. Ke3 Kc4 43. Kxe4 Kxc3 44. Kxe5 Kb3 45. Ke4 a2 46. Rxa2 Kxa2 47. Kf3 Kb3 48. h4 Kc4 49. h5 Kd3 50. Kg2 Ke2 51. Kh1 Kf2 52. Kh2 Bd6+ 53. Kh1 Be5 stalemate.

Many eyes, including those of Ian Alexandrovich Nepomniachtchi (standing in blue T-shirt), are watching at the game between Caruana and Vachier-Lagrave. Photo © Lennart Ootes/Grand Chess Tour.

Bid for a Bride

丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) – Anish Giri
7th Sinquefield Cup; Saint Louis, August 21, 2019
Queen’s Gambit Declined D38

With a fine strategic win over Anish Giri, 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) from China has decidedly put his claim — both financial and non-financial — to both the 7th Sinquefield Cup and Magnus Carlsen’s reign, thus indirectly rivaling the American “challengeship” carried on by Fabiano Caruana. 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bxf6 Qxf6 7. Qa4+ Nc6 8. e3 0-0 9. Rc1 Rd8 10. Be2 dxc4 11. Bxc4 Bxc3+!? Giri tries in vain to change the story: 11. ... Bd7 12. Qc2 Bd6 13. 0-0 a6 14. Rfd1 Qe7 15. a3 Rac8 16. Ba2 Nb8 17. e4 Bf4 18. Ra1 Bc6 19. h4 h5 20. Ne2 Bh6 21. Ng3 g6 22. d5 exd5 23. exd5 Be8 24. Re1 Qf8 25. Ng5 Kh8 26. Rad1 Nd7 27. Qb3 Nb6 28. Qf3 Kg8 29. N3e4 Nd7 30. d6 Bg7 31. Nxf7 Bxf7 32. Qxf7+ Qxf7 33. Bxf7+ Kxf7 34. Ng5+ Kf6 35. Re7 Ne5 36. Rd5 Kf5 37. Rxg7 Rxd6 38. Rf7+ Rf6 39. Re7 1 : 0 Navara – Lékó, 50th Biel Grandmaster Chess Tournament, Biel/Bienne 2017. 12. bxc3 Bd7 13. Be2 e5 14. Qc2 Bf5 15. Qb2 e4 16. Nd2 Na5 17. 0-0 c5 18. Rfd1 Rac8 19. Nf1 Bg6 20. Ng3 Qg5 21. Qb1 f5 22. dxc5 Rxc5 23. Rd4 Bf7 24. Rcd1 Rdc8 25. Bb5 g6. Only deep analysis can actually show when and where Giri went wrong (for it being anything but obvious), but perhaps here 25. ... R8c7 was a sounder way to both prevent White’s “threat” of Bb5-d7 and at the same time consolidate the position. 26. Ne2 Qf6 27. Ba4 Qe5 28. Bb3 Nxb3 29. axb3 R5c7 30. c4 a6 31. Nf4 b5 32. Nd5 Rc6 33. c5! The elegant key to the final breakthrough: the Pawn is obviously taboo due to 34. Nb6 winning the Exchange. 33. ... a5

34. b4! axb4 35. Qxb4 Rb8 36. Nb6 Be6 37. Nd7! Bxd7 38. Rd5 Qe7 39. Rxd7 Qxc5 40. Qb3+ Qc4 41. Qb2 Qc3 42. Qa2+ Rc4 43. g3 Rc8 44. R1d6 Kf8 45. Rxg6 b4 46. Rxh6 f4 47. gxf4 1 : 0.

丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) gave an impressive display of his own understanding of the position as well as exhibiting his technical elegance. Photo: Crystal Fuller/Grand Chess Tour.

On the sidelines

Wesley So – Fabiano Caruana
7th Sinquefield Cup; Saint Louis, August 21, 2019
English Opening A20

1. c4 e5 2. g3 Nf6 3. Bg2 c6 4. Nf3 e4 5. Nd4 Qb6 6. Nb3 a5 7. d3 a4 8. N3d2 Bc5. Caruana more often played 8. ... d5; for instance: 9. cxd5 exd3 10. 0-0 cxd5 11. exd3 Be7 12. Nc3 Qa5 13. Re1 Nc6 14. b4 axb3 15. Bb2 Qd8 16. Qxb3 (Svidler – Caruana, 5th Sinquefield Cup, Saint Louis 2017) and now 16. ... Nd4 17. Qd1 Bg4 seems perfectly playable for Black. 9. 0-0! This is a new move, and probably an improvement over 9. e3 exd3 10. Nc3 Qa6 which looks very satisfactory for Black, G. Meier – Baklan, 49th Biel Master Open, Biel/Bienne 2016. 9. ... e3! 10. fxe3 Bxe3+ 11. Kh1 Ng4 12. Ne4 0-0 13. Nbc3 d5 14. cxd5 Bxc1 15. Qxc1 Ne3 16. Rf3 Nxg2 17. Kxg2 Qd8 18. Qg5. White’s position looks promising, but almost surely they both are still in their own theory. 18. ... f6! This looks like playing with fire, but obviously Caruana didn’t like 18. ... Qxg5 19. Nxg5 h6 20. Nge4 leaving White with a much comfortable edge. 19. Nxf6+ Rxf6 20. Ne4 Nd7 21. Raf1

21. ... Kh8! This only move keeps everything together, and one could well guess it was not improvisation. So now switches to another dynamic balance, just to reveal the final pointe of a well-prepared opening line: 22. Nxf6 Nxf6 23. e4 Bd7 24. Rxf6 gxf6 25. Rxf6 Qe7 26. Qf4 Kg8 27. d6 Qg7 28. e5 Re8 29. Qc4+ Kh8 30. Rf7 Qxe5 31. Rxd7 Qe2+ 32. Kh3 Qf1+ 33. Kh4 (33. Kg4?? h5+!−+) 33. ... Qf6+ 34. Kh3 Qf1+ 35. Kh4 Qf6+ 36. Kh3 Qf1+ ½ : ½.

So’s and Caruana’s fireworks eventually bursted into a draw. Photo: Crystal Fuller/Grand Chess Tour.

Strolley

Fabiano Caruana – Levon Grigori Aronian
7th Sinquefield Cup; Saint Louis, August 20, 2019
Spanish Game C65

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. d3 Bc5 5. c3 0-0 6. 0-0 Re8 7. d4 Bb6 8. d5 Ne7. 8. ... Nb8 9. Bd3 d6 turned out to be quite fine for Black in Tokhirjonova – Laxman, 25th International Chess Festival, Abu Dhabi 2018 — but maybe White could play differently at his 9th move. 9. Nxe5 Nxe4 10. Qf3 Nf6 11. d6! Caruana pulls out from his suit a positional Pawn sacrifice which may well remind of something that his fellow countryman Paul Charles Morphy created many years ago: 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Bc5 4. c3 Nge7 5. 0-0 0-0 6. d4 exd4 7. cxd4 Bb6 8. d5 Nb8 9. d6! cxd6 10. Bf4 with a powerful bind, P. C. Morphy – Schulten, New York 1857. 11. ... cxd6 12. Nc4 d5 13. Nd6 Rf8 14. Bg5 Ne4. Black has to return the Pawn at once in order to avoid the worst. 15. Nxe4 dxe4 16. Qxe4 f6 17. Be3 d5 18. Qf3 Ng6 19. Na3 Bc7 20. Rad1 Ne5 21. Qe2 a6 22. Ba4 Bg4 23. f3 Be6 24. Bb3 Re8 25. f4 Nc6 26. Qf3 Bb6 27. Nc2 Na5 28. Bxd5 Bxd5 29. Rxd5 Bxe3+ 30. Nxe3 Qb6 31. Rd3 Nc4. Aronian is rightly seeking dynamic compensation rather than mere material equality, for after 31. ... Qxb2 32. Qd5+! Kh8 33. Nf5 Black would fall into some trouble (instead 33. Qxa5? Qe2 leads nowhere). 32. Qd5+ Kf8 33. Qxc4 Rxe3 34. Rxe3 Qxe3+ 35. Kh1 Rd8 36. h3 b5 37. Qc6 Qe2 38. Rf3 Qxb2. The engines prefer the immediate ... h7-h5-h4, but, whatever it is, it should be noted that Aronian was defending a difficult position in severe time pressure. 39. Qxa6 h5 40. Kh2 h4 41. Qa7 Kg8 42. Qe7 Qd2 43. Re3 Qd6 44. Qe4 Qd5 45. Qb4 Rc8 46. a4!

Having defended very well so far, Aronian now cracks due to his crisis of time: 46. ... Qc5?? With 46. ... bxa4 Black still have a tough fight ahead. 47. Re8++− Kh7 48. Rxc8 Qxc8 49. axb5 Qf5 50. b6 Qd3 51. c4 Qg3+ 52. Kh1 Qd3 53. c5 1 : 0.

Eventually, Caruana won his battle against Aronian. Photo © Tori (@golddusttori).

To Be Continued

Magnus Carlsen – Fabiano Caruana
7th Sinquefield Cup; Saint Louis, August 19, 2019
Queen’s Gambit Declined D37

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. Ne5 Bd6!? Apparently Caruana is just clearing out his few last but not least odds and ends from his London suitcases. Both he and Carlsen, however, had good reasons to believe that their story would have taken a different turn from 9. ... Rb8 10. Rd1 [or 10. d5 exd5 11. Nxd5 Nxd5 12. Nxc6 bxc6 13. Qxc6+ Qd7 14. Qxd5 (14. Bxd5 0-0 15. Qxd7 Bxd7 16. Be3 Bd6 17. b3 a5 18. Rfd1 a4 19. Rac1 axb3 20. axb3 Rfe8 21. h3 Be6 22. Bxe6 Rxe6 23. Bc5 Bxc5 24. Rxc5 g6 25. Rxc7 Rxb3 26. Rcd7 Rb8 27. Rd8+ Rxd8 28. Rxd8+ Kg7 ½ : ½ Aronian – Caruana, 6th Altibox Norway Chess, Stavanger 2018) 14. ... 0-0 15. Qxd7 Bxd7 16. Rd1 Bg4 17. f3 Bc5+ 18. Kf1 Be6 19. Bxe6 fxe6 20. b3 Bd6 21. h3 Rf5 22. Bd2 Rd5 23. Be1 Bf4 24. g3 Bd6 25. f4 h5 26. h4 Kf7 27. Ke2 Rbb5 28. Kf3 Rf5 29. Rac1 e5 30. Rc4 exf4 31. gxf4 ½ : ½ Mamedyarov – Caruana, 38th SchachBundesliga, Berlin 2019] 10. ... 0-0 11. Nxc6 bxc6 12. Qxa7 Bd7 13. Qa4 c5 14. Qc2 cxd4 15. Rxd4 Bc5 16. Rh4 h6 17. Bxh6 gxh6 18. Qd2 Nh7 19. Qxh6 Bxf2+ 20. Kxf2 Qf6+ 21. Qxf6 Rxb2+ 22. Kg1 Nxf6 23. Rf1 Kg7 24. Rf3 Rg8 25. Rhf4 Bc6 (25. ... Kh8 26. Rxf6 Rgxg2+ 27. Kf1 Rxh2 28. Ke1±) 26. Rxf6 Bxf3 27. Rxf3± Carlsen – Duda, 81st Tata Steel Chess Tournament, Wijk aan Zee 2019. 10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. Qxc6+ Bd7 12. Qf3 0-0 13. Bg5 h6 14. Bh4 Rb8 15. b3 Rb6

16. Ne4. Carlsen resolves to content himself with a very slight structural advantage, thus channelling the game’s outcome towards a likely draw. The immediate 16. d5 was probably the sharpest alternative, with many complex variations (for instance, after 16. ... g5) — and possibly already computer-analysed by Caruana. 16. ... Be7 17. Nxf6+ Bxf6 18. Bxf6 Qxf6 19. Qxf6 gxf6 20. d5 e5 21. Rfc1 a5 22. Be2 c6 23. dxc6 Rxc6 24. Rxc6 Bxc6 25. Rc1 Bd7 26. Rc5 Ra8 27. f4 exf4 28. Bf3 Ra6 29. Kf2 Be6 30. Be2 Ra8 31. Bf3 Ra6 32. Bb7 Ra7 33. Be4 Kg7 34. Kf3 a4 35. Bc2 axb3 36. Bxb3 Rb7 37. Kxf4 Bxb3 38. axb3 Rxb3 39. g3 Rb4+ 40. Kf3 Rb3+ 41. Kf4 Rb4+ 42. Kf3 Rb3+ 43. Kf4 ½ : ½.

Today’s draw thus raises to 17 the number of consecutive draws between Carlsen and Caruana. Photo © Tori (@golddusttori).

Today and a Half

Viswanathan Anand – Magnus Carlsen
7th Sinquefield Cup; Saint Louis, August 18, 2019
Sicilian Defence B31

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5. If nothing else, this minimalist approach has the virtue of avoiding — at least illusorily — the most theorised tabiyas. 3. ... g6 4. Bxc6 bxc6 5. d4 Bg7 6. dxc5 Qa5+ 7. Nbd2 Qxc5 8. 0-0 d6 9. Re1 f6 10. a3!? A recent game ended with a pyrotechnic draw after 10. c4 Nh6 11. Qa4 Ng4 12. Re2 Bd7 13. h3 Ne5 14. Nxe5 Qxe5 15. Nf3 Qh5 16. Qb3 Kf7 17. e5 dxe5 18. g4 Bxg4 19. hxg4 Qxg4+ 20. Kf1 Qh3+ 21. Kg1 ½ : ½ Antal – Markoš, 27th Slovak Chess Extraliga, Bratislava 2019. 10. ... Nh6 11. b4 Qh5 12. c4 0-0 13. Qa4 Bd7 14. Nf1 Nf7 15. Ng3 Qg4

16. c5. This releases the tension and allows Black a comfortable equality, so 16. h3!? Qe6 17. Qb3 seemed to be at least worth considering, but then after 17. ... Nd8! Black should likewise hold without too much difficulty. 16. ... e5! 17. cxd6 c5 18. Qb3 cxb4 19. axb4 Qe6 20. Qxe6 Bxe6 21. Be3 a6 22. Rec1 Rfd8 23. Nd2 Bf8 24. Nc4 Rac8! Naturally, as after 24. ... Nxd6? 25. Nb6 Black could even risk losing the game. 25. f3 Nb5 29. Bxf8 Rxc1+ 30. Rxc1 Kxf8. Now it is an obvious draw, so no wonder that the official agreement comes within a few moves. 31. Nf1 Nd4 32. Rc4 Ke7 33. Ne3 Kd6 34. Rc5! Nc6 35. Rd5+ Ke7 36. b5 axb5 37. Rxb5 Rb8 38. Rxb8 Nxb8 39. Kf2 Ke6 40. g3 Nd7 41. Nc4 Nc5 42. Ke3 Nd7 43. Kf2 Nc5 44. Ke3 Nd7 45. Kf2 ½ : ½.

Waiting for Midnight

Hikaru Nakamura – Fabiano Caruana
7th Sinquefield Cup; Saint Louis, August 17, 2019
Spanish Game C84

The Sinquefield(s) yearly invite-only chess Cup started yesterday with the same lineup as the 2nd stage of the 5th Grand Chess Tour in Zagreb, Croatia (June 26, 2019 – July 8, 2019). As Fabiano Caruana told Chris Smith in an interview in Forbes just a day earlier, he wishes nothing more but to be once again Magnus Carlsen’s challenger for the World Chess Championship 2020, but, after all, much (if not everything) depends on the ability to pick up new sponsors and win the adulation of new audiences. It’s not too original, but pretty capitalist: a few’s wealth does not come for free — it always costs many others very too dear. 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. 0-0 Nxe4 6. d4 Be7 7. Re1 b5 8. Rxe4 d5 9. Nxe5 Nxe5 10. Rxe5 bxa4 11. b3!? This is hardly an improvement on 11. Nc3 0-0 12. Re1 Bd6 13. Qh5 a3 14. Nxd5 axb2 15. Bxb2 Rb8 16. Rab1 Re8 17. Ne3 Bf4 18. d5 Rb4 19. c4 Bxe3 20. Rxe3 Rxe3 21. fxe3 Rxc4 22. Bd4 c5 23. Ba1 f6 24. h3 Qe7 25. Qf3 h6 26. Re1 Re4 27. Kf2 Bd7 with a draw soon following, Caruana – Carlsen, 5th Grand Chess Tour, 2nd stage, Zagreb 2019. 11. ... Be6!? And here is the novelty, though it’s not too new with respect to 11. ... 0-0 12. Ba3 Bxa3 13. Nxa3 Re8 14. Rxe8+ Qxe8 15. Nb1 axb3 16. axb3 Bf5 17. Nc3 Qc6 18. Qd2 Re8 19. Rc1 Qe6 20. f3 h5 21. Kf2 Qd6 22. g3 h4 23. Ne2 Qf6 24. Re1 hxg3+ 25. hxg3 g5 26. Nc3 Rxe1 27. Kxe1 Bg6 28. Nxd5 Qxf3 29. Qxg5 Qe4+ 30. Ne3 Qxd4 31. Qf4 c5 32. Ke2 Bh5+ 33. Ke1 Bg6 34. Ke2 Bh5+ 35. Ke1 Bg6 36. Ke2 ½ : ½ Balogh – Radjabov, 19th European Team Chess Championship, Warsaw 2013. 12. Ba3 Bxa3 13. Nxa3 0-0 14. Nb1 Qd6 15. Nc3 axb3 16. axb3 c5 17. Ne2 f6 18. Re3

This position is slightly more uncomfortable for Black, but Caruana is prepared enough to be able to hold on his own: 18. ... c4! 19. Ng3 cxb3 20. cxb3 g6 21. Qf3 Bf7 22. h3 Rfe8 23. Rxe8+ Rxe8 24. Qd3 Re6 25. Nf1 Qb6 26. Ne3 Rc6 27. h4 Kg7 28. h5 Qb4 29. Ng4 Be6 30. h6+ Kf7 31. Ne3 a5 32. Qd1 Rc3 33. Ra4 Qxb3 34. Qxb3 Rxb3 35. Rxa5 g5 36. Ra7+ Kg6 37. Ra6 Kf7 38. g4 Rb4 39. Ra7+ Kg6 40. Ra6 Kf7 41. Ra7+ Kg6 42. Ra6 Kf7 43. Ra7+ ½ : ½.

Hikaru Nakamura (standing) vs. Fabiano Caruana (seated). Photo: Grand Chess Tour (@GrandChessTour).

ASCII-Text

丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) – Wesley So
7th Sinquefield Cup; Saint Louis, August 17, 2019
Catalan Opening E05

1. c4 Nf6 2. g3 e6 3. Bg2 d5 4. Nf3 Be7 5. 0-0 0-0 6. d4 dxc4 7. Qc2 a6 8. a4 c5 9. dxc5 Bxc5 10. Qxc4 b6 11. Ne5 Ra7 12. Nd3 Be7 13. Bf4 Bb7 14. Bxb7 Rxb7 15. Rc1. After 15. Nd2 b5 16. axb5 axb5 17. Qc2 Nd5 18. Be5 Nd7 19. Bd4 Qb8 20. Nf3 h6 21. Rfc1 Rc7 22. Qb3 Rfc8 Black equalised quite easily: 23. Rxc7 Rxc7 24. Nfe5 Bf6 25. e4 Bxe5 26. Nxe5 N5f6 27. Qe3 Qd8 28. Nd3 Rc4 29. f3 Qb8 30. b3 Rc8 31. Qd2 e5 32. Be3 Qd6 33. Nb4 Qe6 34. Qd3 Nc5 35. Bxc5 Rxc5 36. Kg2 Kh7 37. Ra7 Rc1 38. Nd5 Nxd5 39. exd5+ Qg6 40. Qxg6+ ½ : ½ Piorun – 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán), 7th Chess World Cup, Tbilisi 2017, match game 1. 15. ... Nd5 16. Be5!? This appears to be a new move in a well-known variation. After 16. Bxb8 in a recent game, Black convincingly held her own with 16. ... b5! 17. axb5 axb5 18. Qb3 Qxb8 19. Nd2 Rc8 20. Nf3 g6 21. Nd4 Rxc1+ 22. Rxc1 Bf6 23. Nc6 Qa8 24. Ncb4 Nxb4 25. Qxb4 Kg7 26. Qe4 Qa7 27. Qc6 Rb6 28. Qc5 Be7 29. Qe3 Qb7 30. Ne5 Ra6 31. h3 Bf6 32. Kh2 h5! 33. Nd3 Ra8 34. Qc5 Ra4! 35. b3 Ra2 36. Rc2 Ra1 37. Rc1 Ra2 38. Rc2 Ra1 39. Rc1 Ra2 ½ : ½ Aronian – 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán), 5th GRENKE Chess Classic, Baden-Baden 2018. 16. ... Bd6 17. Nd2 Bxe5 18. Nxe5 b5. This thematic but slightly impatient move will end up weakening Black’s a-Pawn — which in fact is doomed to fall in most variations — but, however strange it may appear, the whole thing can still be part of So’s “homemade theory”. 19. Qd4 bxa4 20. Rxa4 Qb6 21. Nd3 Rd8 22. Ne4 Nd7 23. Nec5 Nxc5 24. Rxc5

24. ... Nf4! A providential resource. A heavy piece endgame is the best of possible endgames to make Black survive his Pawn deficit. 25. Qxf4 Rxd3 26. Rc8+? From an objective standpoint, White ought to continue with 26. exd3 Qxc5 27. Rxa6 g6 28. Qf6, even though after 28. ... Rb8! (the only move) it’s highly unlikely that White’s extra Pawn may be turned into a win. Whatever it is, the text leads to a draw almost immediately. 26. ... Rd8 27. Rac4 h6! Just so. Black is careful enough to avoid 27. ... Rb8?? on account of 28. R4c7 winning on the spot. 28. R4c6 Rxc8 29. Rxc8+ Kh7 30. Qe4+ f5 31. Qc4 Qb3 32. Qxb3 Rxb3 33. Rc6 Rxb2 34. Rxe6 a5 35. Ra6 Rxe2 36. Rxa5 Kg6 37. Ra6+ Kh7 38. Ra5 Kg6 39. Ra6+ Kh7 40. Ra5 ½ : ½.

丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) vs. Wesley So. Photo: Grand Chess Tour (@GrandChessTour).

The Ignatian Way

On August 28, 2018 Saint Louis University (SLU) announced that Saint Louis philanthropists Dr. Jeanne and Rex Sinquefield (pictured above) — the latter being also the only sponsor and organiser of the Sinquefield Cup — donated $50 million — the largest gift in the institution’s 200-year history – to the University to accelerate its rise as a world-class research university. Photo: Steve Dolan.

Isbrytar (Icebreaker)

Magnus Carlsen – Levon Grigori Aronian
5th Sinquefield Cup; Saint Louis, August 11, 2017
Spanish Game C88

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. 0-0 Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 0-0 8. a4 b4 9. a5 d6 10. d3 Be6 11. Bxe6 fxe6 12. Nbd2 Rb8 13. c3 Qe8 14. Nc4! Much stronger than 14. d4 bxc3 15. bxc3 exd4 16. cxd4 Rb5 17. Nc4 Qg6 18. Qe2 Nd7 19. Bd2 Bf6 20. Bc3 Rb3 21. Qc2 Rb5 22. Na3 Rb7 23. Qe2 Ra8 24. Rac1 Nd8 25. Nc4 Rb5 26. e5 Be7 27. exd6 cxd6 28. Bd2 Qf7 29. g3 Rab8 30. Bf4 Qf8 31. h4 h6 32. Kg2 Nf6 33. Bd2 Nd5 34. Ne3 Nxe3+ 35. fxe3 Qe8 36. e4 Nb7 37. Qc4 Bd8 38. Qc6 Bxa5 39. Bxa5 Rxa5 40. Re2 Qxc6 41. Rxc6 Rf8 42. Rb6 Ra3 ½ : ½ Topalov – M. Adams, 4th Gashimov Memorial, Şəmkir 2017. 14. ... Qg6 15. h3 Nd7 16. Be3 d5. With this and the next two moves Aronian shows his aggressive intentions, but Carlsen keeps the situation firmly under control. 17. Ncd2 bxc3 18. bxc3 Nc5 19. Bxc5 Bxc5

20. Qa4! Now Black’s Queenside is doomed to fall apart, unless Aronian does not make up something. 20. ... Rb2 21. Rf1! Clearly not 21. Qxc6?? on account of 21. ... Bxf2+! turning the tables. 21. ... Na7. Aronian’s temporary Pawn sac will not prove good enough for discouraging Carlsen from tightening his grip. In any event, after Stockfish’s 21. ... Qe8 22. Rab1 Rxb1 23. Rxb1 Qd7 24. d4 White stands better. 22. Nxe5 Qh6 23. Ndf3 Nb5 24. Rae1! This as well as White’s 26th and 30th moves are as merciless as an icebreaker. Completely wrong would have been 24. Rac1? because of 24. ... Rxf2! with Black turning the tables again. 24. ... Nxc3 25. Qc6 Bb4 26. Kh1! dxe4 27. dxe4 Ne2 28. Rb1 Rxb1 29. Rxb1 Bd6 30. Qxa6! Nf4 31. Qb5. Carlsen’s (basic) aim is manifestly to promote his a-Pawn, and Aronian must find a way to avoid it. 31. ... c5. Stockfish dislikes it, but 31. ... c6 32. Qc4(!) does not seem particularly better. 32. a6 Bxe5 33. Nxe5 Qg5 34. Ng4 h5 35. Ne3 Nxg2. One last desperate mirage, but Carlsen doesn’t go astray. 36. Nxg2 Rxf2 37. Rg1 Kh7 38. Qd3. 38. Qe8 Qg3 39. Qxh5+ Kg8 40. Qe8+ Kh7 41. Qxe6 (Stockfish) was also very strong. 38. ... Qe5 39. Qe3 Ra2 40. Qf4 Qc3 41. Ne3 Qf6 42. Qxf6! We’d have expected something like 42. Qg3! Rxa6 43. e5, but Carlsen chooses the most elegant technical way, looking really study-like. 42. ... gxf6 43. Rc1! Rxa6 44. Kg2! Ra2+ 45. Rc2! Black is in Zugzwang. 45. ... Ra5. 45. ... Ra4 46. Kf3 Ra5 47. h4 transposes into the game. 46. Kf3 Kg6 47. h4 Rb5 48. Ra2 Rb1 49. Rc2. I thought White’s Rook was heading for c6 via a6, but no... 49. ... Rb5 50. Rc3! And that’s the epitaph, preparing for Ne3-g2-f4+. 50. ... f5 51. exf5+ exf5 52. Rd3! 1 : 0. What a formidable game!

The Ever After Effect

Viswanathan Anand – Fabiano Caruana
5th Sinquefield Cup; Saint Louis, August 6, 2017
English Opening A29

1. c4 e5 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. Nf3 Nc6 4. g3 d5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. Bg2 Bc5 7. 0-0 0-0 8. d3 Bb6!? Caruana apparently prepared for a new, interesting move. Life was not easier before the World War II: 8. ... Be6 9. Ng5 Nxc3 10. bxc3 Bd5 11. e4 Be6 12. d4 Be7 13. Nxe6 fxe6 14. Be3 Qd6 15. Qa4 a6 16. f4! and White obtained a splendid position, Carls – Richter, 1st German Chess Championship, Bad Pyrmont 1933. 9. Bd2 Bg4 10. Rc1 Nxc3 11. Bxc3 Re8 12. b4 Qd6 13. Nd2 Qh6 14. Nc4 Qh5 15. Rc2 Rad8 16. Nxb6 cxb6 17. f3 Be6 18. Qd2 b5! Caruana played very well so far and indeed Black stands healthy, so maybe he became a bit too optimistic. After the game, both players argued that 18. ... Nd4 might have been better and more consistent for Black, but there is nothing wrong with the text move either. 19. f4 Bg4? Now it will become immediately clear why Black should have preferred 19. ... Bh3 in order to eliminate – or block – White’s fianchetto Bishop. 20. Bxc6! It’s an easy move to overlook because there is nothing more valuable than a Bishop pair! 20. ... bxc6 21. fxe5 f6? Black’s position is very difficult already, but the text joyfully runs into a pretty refutation. Black should have probably considered something like 21. ... Qg6 22. Rf4 h5, even if 23. Ba1! produces a kind of position which Howard Staunton might have been able to play with sublime positional sensitivity.

22. exf6! The Lilienthal After-Effect. 22. ... Rxe2 23. f7+ Kf8 24. Bxg7+! And that’s Anand’s beautiful pointe. 24. ... Kxg7 25. Qc3+ Re5? Caruana completely overlooks his opponent’s next majestic sacrifice, thus missing the most tenacious defence 25. ... Qe5 26. Rxe2! Qxc3 27. Re8 Qd4+ 28. Rf2 Qxb4 29. f8=Q+ Qxf8 30. Rfxf8 Rxd3 31. Rg8+ Kf7 32. Ref8+ Ke7 33. Ra8 which, however, would have left him the Exchange down with virtually no compensation prospects. 26. Qd4! Qg5 27. Rc5 Rxd4 28. f8=Q+ Kg6 29. Qf7+ 1 : 0.

If God created the world in seven days, it was foreseeable that sooner or later Garry would have claimed that he is able to do much better and quicker than any metaphysical firm

Olimpiu G. Urcan (@OlimpuUrcan)

Tiger in a Cage

Breaking news: 13th World Chess Champion Garry Kimovich Kasparov will play the third leg of the 2017 Grand Chess Tour in Saint Louis, Missouri, United States, even though only the Rapid & Blitz event (from 13 to 19 August), and not — quite understandibly — the 5th Sinquefield Cup (July 31 – August 12). Kasparov’s big move undoubtedly shakes the too stereotyped and classist format of the Grand Chess Tour and will likely give new life to the Western cartel party in view of the next presidential elections in FIDE, as so far it has not been able to represent itself as an actual alternative to the reigning mainstream. As for chess, instead, one may guess that Kasparov were thinking of a comeback from quite a while. It will be very interesting to see him playing rapid chess, and it will be well his super-rated opponents should not make the mistake of badly underestimating him, as they can be sure he’s still studying chess very seriously every day, even if he says he’s not. Never believe someone who hates losing.

Kasparov sat there deeply meditating. Photo: Lennart Ootes