One Last Thing Before I Go

Yaroslav Volodymyrovych Zherebukh – Fabiano Caruana
62th U.S. Chess Championship; Saint Louis, April 28, 2018
Sicilian Defence B40

1. e4 c5 2. Nc3 e6 3. Nf3 a6 4. g3 b5 5. Bg2 Bb7 6. d3 Nc6 7. 0-0 d6 8. Ng5!? h6 9. Nh3 Nf6 10. f4 Be7 11. f5 b4! After 11. ... e5 12. Nf2 Nd4 13. Nb1! Nd7 14. c3 Nc6 15. a4 Bg5 16. Bxg5 Qxg5 17. axb5 axb5 18. Rxa8+ Bxa8 19. Na3 Na7 20. d4! White would have all reasons to be satisfied at his opening choice, Simagin – L. Portisch, Moscow 1959. 12. Ne2!? It seems an improvement over 12. Nb1 exf5 13. Rxf5 0-0 14. c4 Nd7 where Black stands better already, Tripoteau – Bricard, 3rd Open, Plancoet 2003. 12. ... exf5 13. Rxf5 0-0 14. c4 bxc3 15. bxc3 Ne5 16. c4 Bc8 17. Rf1 Rb8. Black’s game appears easier than White’s one, but probably not much more. White’s next mistake – both strategic and tactical – almost immediately precipitates him into a serious misadventure. 18. Nhf4? Probably best was 18. Qc2 with a holdable game. 18. ... g5 19. Nd5. The getting back was not so easy either, for if 19. Nh3 then 19. ... Nfg4! 20. Qc2 f5! with powerful advantage to Black. 19. ... Nxd5 20. cxd5 Bf6. Black wins the Exchange. 21. d4 cxd4 22. Nxd4 Bg4. “It’s strategic mastery for Black”, Grandmaster Yasser Seirawan commented. 23. Qa4

23. ... Nd3! With the threat of ... Rb8-b4. 24. Qc4 Rb4 25. Qxd3 Bxd4+ 26. Be3 Bxa1 27. Rxa1 Qf6 28. Re1 Rc8 29. h3 Bd7 30. Qxa6 Rc2 31. Rf1 0 : 1. And White resigned, without waiting for his opponent’s reply since 31. ... Qb2 32. Rf2 Qb1+ 33. Kh2 (33. Rf1 Rxg2+! 34. Kxg2 Qxe4+−+) 33. ... Rbb2 is a catastrophe.

Beat the Clock

Yaroslav Volodymyrovych Zherebukh – 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn)
1st Fall Chess Classic; Saint Louis, September 14, 2017
Russian Defence C42

Bravo 居文君 (Jū Wénjūn), who, after her burning defeat of yesterday, has today succeded in drawing her last game against Ukrainian-American Grandmaster Yaroslav Volodymyrovych Zherebukh, and who knows, she might even been lucky enough to draw a little attention to herself as well as to her “lost cause” (the Women’s World Chess Championship match). 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Nxe5 d6 4. Nf3 Nxe4 5. Qe2 Qe7 6. d3 Nf6 7. Bg5. “Played by Morphy, and a very fine move. The point is that should Black exchange Queens he will be a move behind in development and consequently will get a cramped game if White plays accurately”, writes José Raúl Capablanca in his book “Chess Fundamentals”, BoD, 2015, p. 55. Capablanca alludes to a game played by Morphy when he was 13-year-old: 7. Nc3 Be6 8. Bg5 h6? (8. ... Nbd7 9. 0-0-0 h6) 9. Bxf6 Qxf6 10. d4 c6 11. 0-0-0? (11. d5! cxd5 12. 0-0-0) 11. ... d5 12. Ne5 Bb4? (12. ... Nd7 13. Nxd7 Kxd7) 13. Nxd5! Bxd5 14. Ng6+ with complications favourable to White, P. C. Morphy – Löwenthal, New Orleans 1850.

7. ... Qxe2+ 8. Bxe2 Be7 9. Nc3 h6 10. Bd2 Nc6 11. 0-0. The co-winner of the 2017 Fall Chess Classic – but first prixe was won by German Grandmaster Georg Meier due to his Sonneborn-Berger score – seems to be content with a peaceful outcome. If 11. 0-0-0 there might follow 11. ... Bf5 12. Nb5 0-0-0 13. Nfd4 Nxd4 14. Nxd4 Bd7 15. h3 Rhe8 16. Rhe1 Bf8 17. Bf3 Rxe1 18. Rxe1 Re8 19. Rxe8+ ½ : ½ Radulov – Kochyev, October Revolution 60th Anniversary Chess Tournament, Leningrad 1977. 11. ... 0-0 12. h3 Bd7 13. a3 Rfe8 14. Rfe1 Bf8 15. Bf1 a6 16. Rxe8 Rxe8 17. Re1 Rxe1 18. Bxe1 Ne5. After massive simplifications a draw is finally in sight. 19. Be2 Nxf3+ 20. Bxf3 c6 21. Ne4 Nxe4 22. dxe4 f5 23. Bd2 Kf7 24. Kf1 Be7 25. Ke1 fxe4 26. Bxe4 h5 27. Bf3 g6 28. g4 hxg4 29. hxg4 d5 30. a4 Bd6 31. b3 ½ : ½.

Photo: Austin Fuller/Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis.