Little by Little

Aleksandra Yuryevna Goryachkina – Vantika Agrawal

3rd Tata Steel India Women’s Rapid Tournament; time control: 25 minutes plus 10 seconds per move; Kolkata, November 14, 2024

French Defence C07

1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nd2 c5 4. exd5 Qxd5 5. Ngf3 cxd4 6. Bc4 Qd6 7. 0-0 Nf6 8. Nb3 Nc6 9. Nbxd4 Nxd4 10. Nxd4 Be7 11. c3 0-0 12. Qf3 e5 13. Nf5 Bxf5 14. Qxf5 Qc7 15. Bb3 a5 16. Bg5 g6 17. Qf3 Kg7 18. Rfe1 a4 19. Bc2 Ra6 20. Rad1 h6 21. Bh4 Re8 22. Bd3 Re6 23. Bb5 e4!? The Pawn will have a short life on a4, even though its fall should not prejudice the possibility for Black to draw. 23. ... Ra8 24. Qe2 a3 seems to be a simpler way to equality.
24. Qe2 Ra8 25. Qc4 Qxc4 26. Bxc4 Rb6 27. Re2 Rc8 28. b3 axb3 29. axb3 Rd6 30. Rde1 b5 31. Bxb5 Rxc3 32. Bc4 Rd7 33. Bxf6+ Bxf6 34. Rxe4. The e-Pawn has fallen, but Black’s initiative, helped by the presence of Bishops of opposite colour, sufficiently compensates for its loss.
34. ... Rc2 35. g3 Rdd2 36. R1e2 Rxe2 37. Bxe2 Bc3 38. Bc4 Bf6 39. Rf4 Rd2 40. Kg2 Rd4 41. Rf3 h5 42. h3 Re4 43. Kf1 Rd4 44. Re3 Bd8 45. Ke2 Rd6 46. f4 h4 47. g4 Rf6 48. Re4 Bc7 49. Kf3

49. ... Bd6? Here the Bishop hinders the Rook from settling itself in. 49. ... Kf8 50. g5 Rd6 should hold without too much difficulty.
50. g5 Rf5 51. Kg4 Kf8

52. Rd4? White had to take his chance now. 52. b4! was here the best (with the point that 52. ... Bxb4? loses to 53. Bxf7!), followed by the further advance of the Pawn to b5 and the taking of the h4-Pawn.

52. ... Ke7? Agrawal, too, misses her bus. After 52. ... Bc5 53. Rd7 Bf2 54. Bd3 Rc5 White seems to be at a standstill.
53. Bd3 Rc5 54. Kxh4 Rc3 55. Bc4 Bc5 56. Rd3 Rc2. If 56. ... Rxd3 57. Bxd3 f5 then 58. gxf6+ Kxf6 59. Kg4 Kg7 60. h4 with a hopeless ending for Black, in spite of the Bishops of opposite colour.
57. Kg4 Rg2+ 58. Kf3 Rf2+ 59. Kg3 Rb2 60. Rd5 Bd6 61. h4 Rc2 62. Rb5 Rc3+ 63. Kg4 f5+ 1–0. For after 64. gxf6+ Kxf6 65. Rb6 Ke7 66. Rb7+ Kf8 67. Rf7+ Ke8 68. Rf6 Black’s last Pawn falls, leaving Agrawal three Pawns down.

One cannot but marvel at the technique and patience of Goryachkina in getting the most from the little she had to work with. Photo: Kartik Krishnan.

Calling Time

Vantika Agrawal – Ekaterina Aleksandrovna Lagno

4th Online Women’s Speed Chess Championship Main Event; Round of 16 match game 8; time control: 5 minutes plus 1 second per move; chess.com, June 24, 2022

Grünfeld Defence D87

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. Qd2 Bb7 12. Rfd1 Rc8 13. Rac1 e6 14. Bg5 Qd7 15. h4 cxd4 16. cxd4 Na5 17. Bd3 Nc6. Another continuation is 17. ... Rxc1 18. Rxc1 Rc8 (maybe 17. ... Nc6 19. Bb5 a6 20. Bxc6 Bxc6 21. e5 Rc8 22. Bf6 Bf8 23. h5 Bb7 24. hxg6 Rxc1+ 25. Qxc1 fxg6 26. Qe3 ½ : ½ Melkumyan – Ragger, 6th Tournament of Peace, Zagreb 2019) 19. Rxc8+ Bxc8 20. h5 Nc6 21. h6 Bf8 22. Bb5 a6 23. Ba4 b5 24. Bb3 Bb7 25. d5 with the upper hand for White, Caruana – So, Clutch Chess Champions Showdown International, lichess.org, June 12, 2020, match game 8 (time control: 10 minutes plus 5 seconds per move). 18. Bb5 a6 19. Ba4 b5 20. Bb3 Ne7 21. d5 Rxc1 22. Qxc1 exd5 23. exd5 Nf5 24. h5 Re8 25. Qd2 Nd6 26. Ng3 Nc4 27. Bxc4 bxc4 28. h6

28. ... Bh8 (28. ... c3! 29. Qc2 Re5 30. Qxc3 Bh8 31. Qc1 Rxd5=) 29. Qf4? (⌓ 29. Ne2⩲) 29. ... c3! 29. ... f6!? 30. Bxf6 Rf8 is also very interesting, but much more complicated. 30. Bf6 c2 31. Rc1 Qxd5 32. f3

32. ... Qc5+? A half-slip that could cost Black the victory. Instead 32. ... g5! appears to win at once. 33. Kh2 Bxf6 34. Qxf6 Qf8 35. Qf4 Rc8

36. Nh5? In her turn, White misses her saving jump: 36. Nf5!= (heading for e3 or d4) 36. ... gxf5 37. Qg5+ draws by perpetual check. 36. ... f5 37. Ng3 Bd5 38. a4? As they say, one mistake leads to another. There was no alternative but to go, at least temporarily, into an endgame two Pawns down with 38. Ne2 Bxa2 39. Nd4 Bb1 — it was, indeed, anything but an appealing perspective, but at least it still gave White hope. 38. ... Rc4 39. Qd2 Rh4+ 40. Kg1 Qc5+ 41. Qf2 Qxf2+ 42. Kxf2 Bb3 43. a5 Ra4 44. Ne2 Rxa5 45. Nd4 Ba4 46. Ke3 Rc5 47. Kd3 g5 48. Ne2 Kf7 49. Nc3 Bb3 50. Kd2 Kg6 51. Ra1 a5 52. Ne2 a4 53. Kc1 Rd5 54. Nc3 Rd1+ 55. Kb2 Kxh6 0 : 1.

Journey Round the World

Vantika Agrawal – Annamária Marjanovics

4th Online Women’s Speed Chess Championship; Qualifier 1 Knockout; Final match game 17; time control: 1 minute plus 1 second per move; chess.com, May 25, 2022

r3rnk1/1p1bq1bn/p2p1pp1/2pPp3/P1P1P1PN/2N1B2Q/1P2BP2/R3K2R w KQ - 4 23

Position after 22. ... Bc8-d7

By virtue of her win against Hungarian Woman Grandmaster Annamária Marjanovics, Indian Woman Grandmaster Vantika Agrawal claimed first place in the Qualifier 1 as well as a spot in the forthcoming Main Event of the 4th Online Women’s Speed Chess Championship. The conclusion of the last game of the Final well summarises the story in a few lines: 23. Nxg6! Qf7 (23. ... Nxg6 24. Qxh7+ Kf7 25. Bh6 Qf8 26. g5!+−) 24. Nxf8 Nxf8 25. Kd2! Qg6 26. Rag1 b5 27. cxb5 axb5 28. axb5 Reb8

29. Qh5! Qxh5 30. gxh5 Kh7 31. h6 Bh8 32. Rg3 Ng6 33. Rhg1 Rg8 34. Bg4 Bxg4 35. Rxg4 Ne7 36. Rxg8 Nxg8 37. Kc2 Nxh6 38. Bxh6 Kxh6 39. Rg3 Bg7 40. Rh3+ Kg6 41. Rg3+ Kf7 42. Rh3 Rb8 43. Kd3 Bf8 44. Kc4 Ra8 45. b3 Rb8 46. Na4 Be7 47. b6 Bd8 48. Kb5 Ke8 49. Rh8+ Kd7 50. Rh7+ Kc8

51. Kc6. Black is in zugzwang. 51. ... Ra8 52. b7+ 1 : 0.