Games
[Event "FIDE Women's World Championship"] [Site "chess24.com"] [Date "2018.11.03"] [Round "1.9"] [White "Aliaga Fernandez, Ingrid Y"] [Black "Gunina, Valentina"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "B10"] [WhiteElo "2194"] [BlackElo "2497"] [Annotator "DF"] [PlyCount "88"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "Peru"] [BlackTeam "Russia"] [WhiteTeamCountry "PER"] [BlackTeamCountry "RUS"] 1. e4 c6 2. c4 d5 3. exd5 cxd5 4. cxd5 Nf6 5. Nc3 Nxd5 6. Nf3 Nc6 7. Bb5 g6 8. Qa4 Nb6 9. Bxc6+ bxc6 10. Qxc6+ Bd7 11. Qe4 (11. Qc5 Bg7 12. O-O O-O 13. Re1 Re8 14. d4 Rc8 15. Qg5 Bc6 $15 {Melero Morales,J-Cenal Gutierrez,R Asturias 1995}) 11... Bg7 $5 ({Black can also try and repeat moves with} 11... Bf5) 12. O-O Rc8 13. d4 (13. Re1 Bc6 14. Qe2 O-O 15. Ne5 Ba8 16. d3 Nd5 17. Bd2 Nb4 { Black has fantastic play for the pawn in Li Chao2 (2732)-Laznicka,V (2647) Riyadh KSA 2017}) 13... Bc6 14. Qe2 Bxf3 $5 {Here comes Gunina's improvement} ( {In a previous game Gunina had played the natural} 14... O-O 15. Rd1 Qc7 (15... Nd5 16. Nxd5 Bxd5 17. Ne5 Ba8 18. b3 Qd5 19. f3 Rfd8 20. Be3 $11 {1/2-1/2 (31) Artemiev,V (2459)-Maletin,P (2596) Tyumen RUS 2012}) 16. Ne5 Qb7 17. Nxc6 Rxc6 18. Bf4 {And the game later ended in a draw between Skripchenko,A (2453) -Gunina,V (2497) Batumi GEO 2016}) 15. Qxf3 Qxd4 16. Be3 Qb4 17. Rab1 O-O 18. Qb7 e6 19. Qxa7 Nc4 20. a3 Qb3 21. Qa4 Qb7 22. Qb5 Qxb5 23. Nxb5 Nxb2 24. Rfc1 Rxc1+ 25. Rxc1 Rb8 26. Rc2 h5 27. Nd4 Bf8 (27... Nd1 $1 {Forces a beneficial trade of minor pieces.} 28. Rc1 Nxe3 29. fxe3 Rb2 30. a4 $1 (30. Ra1 Bh6 31. Re1 Bf8 32. Ra1 Bc5 {With the threat of e6-e5- it is easy to see that the black minor pieces dominate the position.}) 30... Ra2 31. Rc4 g5 {White does not have an easy task ahead of her.}) 28. Nc6 Rb3 29. g3 Nd3 30. Kf1 Rxa3 { Although Gunina has won a pawn, things are still not so easy. White's pieces are nicely co-ordinated and all the pawns are on the same wing which makes the creation of an effective passed pawn very difficult.} 31. Ke2 e5 32. f3 f5 33. Bg5 Kf7 34. Nd8+ Ke8 35. Ne6 Bd6 36. Nc7+ Kd7 37. Nb5 Rb3 38. Nxd6 Kxd6 39. Rc8 Nc5 $2 (39... Nb4 $1 40. Rd8+ Kc7 {The path to victory is subtle.} ({Not} 40... Kc5 41. Be3+ {The black king cannot pass.}) 41. Rg8 Nc2 42. Rg7+ Kd6 43. Rxg6+ Kd5) 40. Rd8+ Nd7 (40... Kc7 41. Re8 Nd3 42. Re6) 41. Rg8 Rb2+ 42. Ke3 Nb6 $5 { A devilish move.} 43. Rxg6+ $6 ({Ironically it was even easier to play the safe } 43. Kd3 Kd5 44. Rd8+ Kc5 45. Be3+ Kc6 46. Bxb6 Rxb6 47. Kc4 Rb2 48. Rg8 { With a danger free rook and pawn ending.}) 43... Kd5 {White has recovered the pawn and now the half point is within her sights} 44. Rg8 $4 ({The only way to save the game is} 44. Rf6 {but its good enough} Kc4 (44... Nc4+ 45. Kd3 Nd6 46. Rf8 Rxh2 47. Be7 $1 Nb5 48. Rxf5 Ke6 49. Rg5 {A draw is on the cards.}) 45. Rc6+ $1) 44... Kc4 {Suddenly the white king has no way to escape - what a devilish trap!} 0-1 [Event "chess24.com"] [Site "chess24.com"] [Date "2018.11.04"] [Round "2.4"] [White "Hamid, Rani"] [Black "Muzychuk, Anna"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "1935"] [BlackElo "2564"] [Annotator "Jovi"] [PlyCount "50"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "Bangladesh"] [BlackTeam "Ukraine"] [WhiteTeamCountry "BAN"] [BlackTeamCountry "UKR"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. h3 Bb7 9. c3 $6 (9. d3 $1 {Is a more typical move-order.}) 9... d5 $1 10. exd5 Nxd5 11. d3 ({White swiftly gets into trouble after} 11. Nxe5 Nxe5 12. Rxe5 Nf4 $1) 11... Bf6 12. Bc2 b4 $1 13. c4 Nde7 14. Nbd2 Nf5 15. Nf1 Ncd4 16. Nxd4 Nxd4 17. Be3 Re8 18. Ng3 Bg5 19. Qd2 Bxe3 20. fxe3 Qg5 21. Kh2 Re6 22. Rad1 $2 Rg6 23. Ne4 Bxe4 24. dxe4 Nf3+ 25. gxf3 Qg3+ 0-1 [Event "chess24.com"] [Site "chess24.com"] [Date "2018.11.05"] [Round "4.1"] [White "Khukhashvili, Sopiko"] [Black "Harika, Dronavalli"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C42"] [WhiteElo "2316"] [BlackElo "2498"] [Annotator "Jovi"] [PlyCount "143"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "Georgia"] [BlackTeam "India"] [WhiteTeamCountry "GEO"] [BlackTeamCountry "IND"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Nxe5 d6 4. Nf3 Nxe4 5. Qe2 Qe7 6. d3 Nf6 7. Nc3 Qxe2+ 8. Bxe2 g6 9. Nb5 Na6 10. Be3 Bd7 11. d4 c6 12. Na3 Nc7 13. O-O Ncd5 14. Bd2 Ne4 15. Rfe1 Nxd2 16. Bc4+ Be6 17. Bxd5 Nxf3+ 18. Bxf3 d5 19. Nb1 Kd7 20. Nd2 Bg7 21. c3 Rae8 22. b4 Kd6 23. Nf1 Re7 24. Ne3 Rhe8 25. Re2 Bh6 26. Rae1 Bg5 27. a4 h5 28. h3 Kd7 29. Kf1 Kd8 30. Nd1 Bf5 31. Rxe7 Rxe7 32. Rxe7 Kxe7 33. Ne3 Be6 34. Ke2 Kd7 35. Nc2 Kd6 36. Ne1 b6 37. Nd3 f6 38. g4 hxg4 39. Bxg4 f5 40. Bf3 Bf6 41. Bg2 g5 42. f4 Bc8 43. Ke3 Ke6 44. Bf3 Be7 45. Ne5 c5 46. b5 cxd4+ 47. cxd4 a6 48. Be2 axb5 49. Bxb5 Ba3 50. Nd3 Kf6 51. Kf3 Bd6 52. Bc6 Be6 53. Ne5 gxf4 54. Kxf4 Ba3 55. Bd7 Bc1+ 56. Kf3 Bb2 57. Ke3 Bc1+ 58. Kd3 Bg8 59. Bc8 f4 60. Ke2 Bh7 61. Nd7+ Ke7 {Things looked like they were settling in for a peaceful draw and both players would be headed to the blitz tie-breaks.} 62. Nxb6 Kd6 $2 ({Everyone expected the natural} 62... Be4 63. Bg4 Kd6 64. a5 Kc6 65. Nc8 Be3 66. a6 Bxd4 67. a7 Kb7 68. h4 {when the game is likely to fizzle out into a draw.}) 63. a5 $1 Bb2 $4 {Simply unbelievable!} (63... Kc7 64. Be6 Bb2 65. Nxd5+ Kb7 {The bishop pair should still secure the draw.}) 64. Bb7 $4 { A terrible oversight!} (64. a6 $1 {The pawn will simply walk through to its coronation square.}) 64... Bxd4 65. Nc8+ $2 (65. Bxd5 $1 {The bishop is untouchable} Bxb6 66. axb6 Kxd5 67. b7) 65... Kc7 66. a6 $4 {She, who blunders last loses the game.} (66. Bxd5 Kxc8 67. Kf3 Be5 68. h4 Bg6 69. Kg4 Kc7 70. h5 {Is also completely drawn.}) 66... Be4 67. Ne7 f3+ 68. Kd2 f2 69. a7 Bxa7 70. Ba6 Bg2 71. h4 Bc5 72. Ng6 0-1 [Event "chess24.com"] [Site "chess24.com"] [Date "2018.11.03"] [Round "1.10"] [White "Paehtz, Elisabeth"] [Black "Alinasab, Mobina"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "D23"] [WhiteElo "2495"] [BlackElo "2236"] [Annotator "Jovi"] [PlyCount "161"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "Germany"] [BlackTeam "Iran"] [WhiteTeamCountry "GER"] [BlackTeamCountry "IRI"] 1. d4 d5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. c4 dxc4 4. Qa4+ Nc6 5. e3 Nd5 6. Qxc4 Bf5 7. a3 Qd6 8. Nbd2 Nb6 9. Qc3 e6 10. Be2 Be7 11. O-O O-O 12. b3 Bf6 13. Bb2 Rfd8 14. Rad1 Bg6 15. h3 Qe7 16. Bb5 Rd6 17. Nc4 Nxc4 18. bxc4 a6 19. Ba4 Rdd8 20. Bc2 Bxc2 21. Qxc2 {The opening has worked out exceedingly well for Paehtz who enjoys an easier position with free movement for her pieces.} Nb8 $2 {The start of black's woes -moving backwards with the pieces is not the solution - now white can advance the pawns in comfort.} ({It is most tempting to break out with} 21... e5 22. d5 Na5 23. a4 $1 (23. Nd2 {allows Black to break with} b5 $1) 23... b6 24. Nd2 b5 25. cxb5 axb5 26. axb5 Rxd5 {White is still a little better.}) 22. e4 Qe8 23. e5 Be7 24. d5 $1 h6 25. Nd4 $1 {A brilliant move} exd5 26. cxd5 $1 {The most accurate continuation.} (26. e6 c5) 26... Rxd5 27. Qb3 $2 (27. e6 $1 {In all likelihood, this move would have netted the point for Paehtz } Rc5 $1 (27... fxe6 28. Nxe6) (27... f6 {Is unsatisfactory on account of} 28. Nf5 $1 Rxd1 29. Rxd1 c5 (29... Nc6 30. Rd7 $1)) 28. Qb3 Nc6 29. Nxc6 bxc6 30. Rd7 {With a tremendous compensation for the pawn.}) 27... Rc5 28. Nf5 ({ Perhaps Paehtz was counting on a simple advantage with} 28. Qxb7 {However White has nothing after the simple} Nc6 $1) 28... Bf8 29. a4 $2 {Too slow!} ( 29. Qg3 Kh7 30. Nxh6 {Leads to a pretty repetiion after} gxh6 31. Qd3+ Kg8 32. Qg3+) 29... Nc6 30. f4 $2 Qe6 $1 31. Qxe6 fxe6 32. Ng3 Rc2 33. Ba1 Rd8 34. f5 exf5 35. Nxf5 Rxd1 36. Rxd1 Re2 37. Kf1 Re4 38. g4 Rxa4 39. e6 Re4 40. Rd7 Rxe6 (40... g6 $1 41. Ng7 Bb4 $1) 41. Bxg7 Ne7 42. Bxf8 Kxf8 43. Rxc7 Nxf5 44. gxf5 Re7 45. Rc8+ Kg7 46. Kg2 Kf6 47. Rh8 Kg5 $2 (47... Kxf5 $1 48. Rxh6 Ke5 49. h4 Kd4 50. h5 a5 51. Rg6 b5 {The two pawns are superior.}) 48. Kf3 Re5 49. h4+ Kxf5 50. Rxh6 Re6 51. Rh7 b5 52. Rb7 Kg6 $4 {An instructive mistake} (52... Rc6 53. Rh7 Rc3+ 54. Kf2 Kg6 55. Ra7 Ra3) 53. Kf4 $2 {Paehtz blunders in return.} ( {White could have saved the game} 53. Kg4 Re4+ 54. Kg3 Ra4 55. Rb8 $1 {The black king must not be allowed to get to h5}) 53... Kh5 $1 54. Rb8 Rc6 55. Rh8+ Rh6 56. Rb8 $4 (56. Rg8 $1 {All is still not lost, cutting off the king would still save the game.} Kxh4 57. Rg1 Rf6+ 58. Ke5 Rb6 59. Kd5 Rf6 (59... Kh3) 60. Kc5 Kh3 {With good drawing chances.}) 56... Kxh4 57. Ke5 Kg3 58. Kd5 Kf3 59. Re8 Rh4 60. Re6 Ra4 61. Kc5 Rc4+ 62. Kd5 Ra4 63. Kc5 b4 64. Kc4 a5 65. Kb3 Ra3+ 66. Kb2 Re3 67. Ra6 Re5 68. Kb3 Ke3 69. Rd6 Rc5 70. Ka4 Ke4 71. Rd1 Rh5 72. Rg1 Rf5 73. Rd1 Re5 74. Rd2 Rd5 75. Rh2 Ke3 76. Rg2 Rc5 77. Rh2 Kd3 78. Rh3+ Kc2 79. Rh5 Rc4 80. Rc5 Rc3 81. Rc8 0-1 [Event "chess24.com"] [Site "chess24.com"] [Date "2018.11.03"] [Round "1.25"] [White "Tokhirjonova, Gulrukhbegim"] [Black "Kashlinskaya, Alina"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C42"] [WhiteElo "2435"] [BlackElo "2477"] [Annotator "Jovi"] [PlyCount "81"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "Uzbekistan"] [BlackTeam "Russia"] [WhiteTeamCountry "UZB"] [BlackTeamCountry "RUS"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Nxe5 d6 4. Nf3 Nxe4 5. Nc3 Nxc3 6. dxc3 Be7 7. Be3 Nc6 8. Bc4 $5 {An unusual placement of the bishop.} (8. Qd2 Be6 9. O-O-O Qd7 10. Kb1 a6 11. Nd4 Bf6 $2 (11... Nxd4 $1) 12. Nxe6 fxe6 13. g4 h6 14. f4 {gave white a great position in Borisek,J (2578)-Dive,R (2297) chess24.com 2018}) (8. Bd3 Be6 9. Qe2 Bf6 10. O-O-O Qe7 11. Kb1 a6 12. h3 O-O-O 13. Rhe1 h5 14. Nd2 Ne5 15. Bxa6 bxa6 16. f4 Nc6 17. Qxa6+ Kd7 {and now} 18. f5 {0-1 (39) Nijboer, F (2510)-Kashlinskaya,A (2459) Amsterdam NED 2018} (18. Ne4 $1 {would have given White a dangerous intiative})) 8... O-O 9. Qe2 Ne5 10. Nxe5 dxe5 11. Bd3 $6 {This feels wrong} Be6 12. O-O-O Qe8 13. Kb1 f5 14. Bc4 Qf7 15. Bxe6 Qxe6 16. Qb5 b6 17. Rd5 Bd6 18. Re1 Rae8 19. Qc6 Qg6 20. Bc1 Qh5 21. Qc4 Kh8 22. h3 Qg6 23. g3 Qh5 24. Qf1 Qf3 25. Rd3 Qc6 26. Rdd1 a5 27. h4 a4 28. a3 h6 29. c4 Bc5 30. Rd5 Qf6 31. Be3 Bxe3 32. fxe3 Qg6 33. Rd7 Qxg3 {Black has slowly taken control over the position and stands much better.} 34. Rxc7 f4 $2 { Unbelievably this tempting move is completely wrong.} ({Kashlinskaya needed to be greedy and calmly grab that material.} 34... Qxh4 35. Qg1 Qf6 36. Rd1 Rd8 { Repudiating the white attack.}) 35. Qg1 $1 {Excellent defence by Tokhirjonova.} Rd8 $1 ({Its not ideal to play} 35... Qxg1 36. Rxg1 {as Black must use some time to defending the g7 pawn.} Rg8 37. exf4 exf4 38. Rf7 Re4 39. h5 Rxc4 40. Rg4 {and only White stands better.}) 36. exf4 exf4 37. Rce7 $1 Rd2 38. h5 $2 { Bold but technically incorrect.} ({White's best bet was to play} 38. Re8 $1 Rxe8 39. Rxe8+ Kh7 40. Qxb6 {With Qe6 in the air, the position is incredibly scrappy.}) 38... Rg2 $2 (38... Qxg1 39. Rxg1 f3) 39. Qxb6 f3 $4 {Kashlinskaya continues forward oblivious to the danger in her home camp.} (39... Kh7 $1 40. Re8 Rxe8 41. Rxe8 Qh3 42. Qb8 Rg1+ 43. Ka2 Ra1+ 44. Kxa1 Qf1+ 45. Ka2 Qxc4+) 40. Re8 Qf4 $4 ({Unbelievaly black can carry on the fight with} 40... Kh7 $1 { Although after the accurate} 41. Qd4 Qf4 42. R1e4 $1 Qf5 43. Rxf8 Qxf8 44. Rf4 {the position is pretty hopeless.}) 41. Qd8 {Game over.} 1-0 [Event "chess24.com"] [Site "chess24.com"] [Date "2018.11.03"] [Round "1.19"] [White "Zhu, Jiner"] [Black "Javakhishvili, Lela"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "B36"] [WhiteElo "2379"] [BlackElo "2477"] [Annotator "Jovi"] [PlyCount "76"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "China"] [BlackTeam "Georgia"] [WhiteTeamCountry "CHN"] [BlackTeamCountry "GEO"] 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 g6 5. c4 Nf6 6. Nc3 d6 7. Be2 Nxd4 8. Qxd4 Bg7 9. Be3 O-O 10. Qd2 Be6 ({Another thematic idea is to march the a-pawn as far as it will go.} 10... a5 11. O-O a4 12. Bd4 Be6 13. f4 $1 {Although black still had some opening problems to solve after} Qa5 14. Rad1 Rac8 15. b3 axb3 16. axb3 b5 17. Bxf6 Bxf6 18. Nxb5 Qxd2 19. Rxd2 {White was a pawn up in Yu Yangyi (2759)-Bu Xiangzhi (2718) Hangzhou CHN 2018}) 11. Rc1 a5 12. f3 a4 13. Kf2 $5 {An interesting choice even if its not entirely clear how the king is better on f2 than on g1.} Nd7 14. Rhd1 Nc5 ({Perhaps the more principled} 14... Qa5 {is preferable.} 15. Nd5 Rfe8 16. b4 axb3 17. axb3 Qxd2 18. Rxd2 Ra3 19. b4 b6 $14 20. g3 (20. Nxb6 $2 {Loses to} Nxb6 21. Bxb6 Bh6 $19) 20... Kf8 21. Rd3 (21. Nxb6 Nxb6 22. Bxb6 Bc3 23. Rd3 Bxb4 $11) 21... Ra4 $11 {1/2-1/2 (35) Martinez Alcantara,J (2545)-Guseinov,G (2654) Barcelona ESP 2018}) 15. Nd5 Kh8 $6 {The start of a misguided plan.} 16. Kg1 f5 $2 {This is a standard pawn break in this structure but here it is probably a tad premature.} ({Playing more slowly is passive but less risky} 16... Re8 {With the idea of Qa5.}) 17. exf5 gxf5 $6 18. Nf4 Bf7 ({Black cannot afford to play} 18... Bg8 {on account of} 19. Nh5 $1) 19. Qc2 $5 Qb6 $5 {On general principles this feels wrong, when one has an exposed king its always a good idea to have the queen within touching distance.} 20. Qxf5 $5 ({Trying to dominate the black queen is another positional approach.} 20. Rd2 $5 e6 21. Qd1 Rad8 22. Rb1 {Planning to kick the knight away from c5.}) 20... Bg8 21. Qg4 Rxf4 $2 {Javakhishvili panics and sacrifices the exchange but for better or worse she needed to play} (21... Qxb2 $1 22. Nh5 $1 Be5 23. f4 Be6 24. Qf3 {The position is still very complicated, play might continue} a3 25. Kh1 $1 {and both sides have things to worry about.}) 22. Qxf4 Qxb2 23. Bxc5 $1 dxc5 24. Qe4 $1 Qxa2 25. Rb1 a3 $4 ({ Black can still fight by bringing her final piece into the fray.} 25... Ra6 26. Rd8 Bd4+ 27. Kh1 a3 ({Not} 27... Re6 28. Rxg8+ $1) 28. Bd3 Rg6 29. Bc2 Qxc4 30. Bb3 Qa6 {Black still has a few tricks up her sleeve.}) 26. Rxb7 Re8 {White is firmly in the driving seat.} 27. Kh1 Bf6 28. Qd3 {What a picture! Funnily enough the black queen is completely paralysed.} Bf7 29. Ra7 Bb2 30. Bf1 Bg6 31. Qe3 e6 32. h4 $1 {There is still no way out for that queen.} Rg8 33. h5 Bf5 (33... Bxh5 34. Qxe6) 34. Rad7 e5 35. Rd8 Be6 36. Qg5 e4 37. Rxg8+ Bxg8 38. Rd8 e3 1-0 [Event "chess24.com"] [Site "chess24.com"] [Date "2018.11.05"] [Round "5.1"] [White "Zhukova, Natalia"] [Black "Ni, Shiqun"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "A11"] [WhiteElo "2375"] [BlackElo "2436"] [Annotator "Jovi"] [PlyCount "130"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "Ukraine"] [BlackTeam "China"] [WhiteTeamCountry "UKR"] [BlackTeamCountry "CHN"] 1. c4 c6 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. e3 d5 4. Qc2 g6 5. Be2 Bg7 6. O-O O-O 7. d4 b6 8. b3 Bb7 9. Bb2 Nbd7 10. cxd5 cxd5 11. Nc3 Rc8 12. Rfc1 Ne4 13. Qd1 Nxc3 14. Bxc3 e6 15. a4 Qe7 16. a5 Rc7 17. a6 Ba8 18. Qd2 Rfc8 19. Ne1 Bf8 20. Rc2 Qd8 21. b4 Nf6 22. f3 Bc6 23. b5 Be8 24. Bb2 Bd7 25. Rac1 Ne8 26. Bd3 Nd6 27. Qe2 Rxc2 28. Rxc2 Rxc2 29. Nxc2 Qc8 30. Na3 Bh6 31. Kf2 Qd8 32. g3 Qc8 33. Kg2 Bf8 34. e4 dxe4 35. fxe4 Bg7 36. e5 Ne8 37. Qe4 Bf8 38. Qb7 Qc7 39. Nb1 Bc8 40. Qxc7 Nxc7 41. Ba3 Bxa3 42. Nxa3 Bd7 43. Kf2 Kg7 44. Ke2 {The position looks very safe for Zhukova, in fact its difficult to believe anything can go wrong.} f5 45. Kd2 {The king abandons its post and heads on an ill-fated journey.} g5 46. Kc3 $2 h5 47. Kb4 $2 Nd5+ 48. Kb3 Nc7 49. Bc4 ({It was not too late to admit the mistake and head back to the kingside.} 49. Kc3 $1) 49... h4 50. Kb4 hxg3 ( 50... g4 $1 51. Kc3 hxg3 52. hxg3 f4 {Would lead to a straightforward win.}) 51. hxg3 f4 52. gxf4 gxf4 53. Kc3 $2 (53. Be2 Kg6 54. Nb1 Kf5 55. Nc3 {Would keep the game going.}) 53... Kg6 54. Kd3 Kg5 55. Ke4 $1 (55. Ke2 Kg4 56. Kf2 f3 {Looks like a disaster.} 57. Bf1 Kf4 58. Bd3 Be8 {Leaves white in zugzwang.}) 55... Kg4 56. Be2+ Kg3 57. Bf1 f3 58. Ke3 f2 59. Be2 Kg2 60. Kf4 f1=Q+ 61. Bxf1+ Kxf1 62. Kg5 Nxb5 63. Nc2 Ke2 64. Kf6 Kd2 65. Nb4 Kc3 0-1 [Event "Khanty-Mansiysk RUS"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk RUS"] [Date "2018.11.08"] [Round "2.1"] [White "Galliamova, Alisa"] [Black "Goryachkina, Aleksandra"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "D47"] [WhiteElo "2432"] [BlackElo "2534"] [Annotator "Shahid Ahmed"] [SetUp "1"] [FEN "rr4k1/p1qn1pp1/2B2n1p/2p1bN2/1p2P2B/8/PPQ2PPP/1K1R1R2 b - - 0 22"] [PlyCount "12"] [EventDate "2018.11.03"] {[#]} 22... c4 (22... b3 23. axb3 Rxb3 24. Qxb3 Rb8 25. Bb5 a6 26. Ne7+ Kf8 ( 26... Kh7 27. Rxd7 Qxd7 (27... Nxd7 28. Qxf7 $18) 28. Bxd7 Rxb3 29. Bf5+ $18) ( 26... Kh8 27. Bxf6 Rxb5 (27... Nxf6 28. Qxf7 $18) 28. Bxe5 $18) 27. Nd5 Qa5 28. Nxf6 Nxf6 29. Bxf6 Bxf6 30. Rd7 Be7 31. Qa4 $18) 23. Bxa8 Rxa8 24. f4 Bxf4 25. Rxd7 Nxd7 26. Ne7+ Kh8 27. Nd5 Qc5 28. Nxf4 1-0 [Event "Khanty-Mansiysk RUS"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk RUS"] [Date "2018.11.03"] [Round "1.1"] [White "Koneru, Humpy"] [Black "Toubal, Hayat"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "D31"] [WhiteElo "2548"] [BlackElo "1870"] [Annotator "Shahid Ahmed"] [PlyCount "91"] [EventDate "2018.11.03"] 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 c6 4. e3 f5 5. Bd3 Nf6 6. Nge2 Bd6 7. f3 b6 8. O-O O-O 9. b3 Ba6 10. Bb2 Qe7 11. Qd2 Bb7 12. a3 a5 13. Na4 Nbd7 14. Rfc1 Rfc8 15. Nxb6 Nxb6 16. c5 Bxh2+ $2 {is definitely a mistake. Black should have kept the bishop alive.} (16... Bc7 17. cxb6 Bxb6 $11 {although white has an edge here, this is much better than the game.}) 17. Kxh2 Qc7+ 18. Kg1 Nbd7 19. Bc3 h6 20. Nf4 ({Another option was} 20. b4 axb4 21. axb4 $16 {White is angling for a b5 break in this position when the c5 passed pawn would be much more superior than missing h2 pawn}) 20... Nf8 21. Bc2 g5 22. Nd3 Ng6 23. Ne5 Ne7 $2 { is certainly the fatal mistake of the game. Now the e5 knight becomes a monster knight.} (23... Nxe5 24. dxe5 Nd7 25. Qd4 $16) 24. Kf2 Kg7 25. a4 { before launching an attack on the Kingside, Humpy locks down the Queenside to prevent any chance at a counterplay} Rf8 26. Rh1 {now it's just a matter of technique and timing which we know it to be Humpy's acumen because of her well placed knight at e5, double bishop and the rook on h1.} Neg8 27. Rag1 Ne7 28. Ke1 Rh8 29. Kd1 Bc8 30. g4 fxg4 31. Nxg4 Nxg4 32. Rxg4 e5 33. Rg2 Be6 34. dxe5 Rhf8 35. Rxg5+ hxg5 36. Rh7+ Kg8 37. Qh2 Qd8 38. Rh8+ Kf7 39. Qh5+ Ng6 40. Rh7+ Ke8 41. Bxg6+ Bf7 42. Bxf7+ Kd7 43. Be6+ Kxe6 44. Qg6+ Rf6 45. exf6 Qf8 46. Re7+ 1-0 [Event "Khanty-Mansiysk RUS"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk RUS"] [Date "2018.11.04"] [Round "1.2"] [White "Toubal, Hayat"] [Black "Koneru, Humpy"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "D02"] [WhiteElo "1870"] [BlackElo "2548"] [Annotator "Shahid Ahmed"] [PlyCount "92"] [EventDate "2018.11.03"] {This was the second game in the first round match. Humpy had won her game with white pieces. She just needed a draw in this match to advance.} 1. d4 d5 2. Nf3 c5 3. e3 Nf6 4. Nbd2 Nbd7 5. b3 g6 {the usual way to play here is e6 and Be7. However Humpy decides to fianchetto her bishop which is much more ambitious.} 6. Bd3 Bg7 7. Bb2 O-O 8. O-O b6 9. Qe2 Bb7 10. c4 Rc8 11. Rac1 e6 12. Rfd1 Qe7 13. h3 {the position is symmetrical in nature and filled with quite a lot of tension. It really depends on who plays well from this position to get advantage. This is an ideal strategy in such a must-win situation. Considering the fact that Humpy is 670 points rated above ahead of her opponent, it is highly probable that she will come out on top.} cxd4 14. exd4 Bh6 15. Rc3 (15. Rc2 {was a better way to get out of the pin.}) 15... Rfd8 16. Ne5 $2 {is a mistake, because after an exchange on e5, Black can easily have her knight at e4 and the pawn cannot be taken because the rook on d1 will be hanging.} (16. Rc2 {even though this should have been played on the previous move, this is still playable. Thus White rectifies her mistake.}) 16... Nxe5 17. dxe5 Ne4 18. Bxe4 dxe4 19. Nf1 Bf4 (19... Rxd1 20. Qxd1 Rd8 21. Qe2 Bf8 $17 {to make sure white does not get an easy c5 break}) 20. Rc2 Qc5 21. Re1 (21. Ne3 {the knight needed to be brought into action and White must not give up the d3 square easily.} Rxd1+ 22. Qxd1 Bxe3 23. fxe3 Qxe3+ 24. Rf2 {much better than what transpired in the game for White.}) 21... Rd3 $17 22. Qg4 Bxe5 23. Bxe5 Qxe5 24. Ng3 Rcd8 {Notice how Humpy did not rush to play f5. First she brings all her pieces into action before going for f5.} 25. Rce2 f5 26. Qg5 Qg7 27. Rc2 h6 28. Qc1 R8d7 29. Qa3 Rd1 30. Rc1 Rxe1+ 31. Rxe1 Qc3 32. Rc1 Qd2 33. Nf1 Qg5 34. c5 bxc5 35. Qxc5 f4 36. Qc4 (36. Qxg5 {would not have made any major difference.} hxg5 37. Kh2 Kf7 $19) 36... Qd5 (36... e3 {leads to a quicker finish.} 37. f3 Bxf3 38. Qxe6+ Rf7 39. Rc2 e2 $19) 37. Qc2 Kh7 (37... e3 {is still working.} 38. f3 Qd3 $19) 38. Qe2 h5 39. Qb2 Qg5 (39... e3 40. fxe3 f3 $19) 40. Kh2 Ba6 41. Qa3 Bxf1 42. Rxf1 f3 43. gxf3 Qf4+ 44. Kg2 exf3+ 45. Kh1 Qg5 46. Rg1 Rd1 0-1 [Event "Khanty-Mansiysk RUS"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk RUS"] [Date "2018.11.08"] [Round "2.1"] [White "Zhu, Jiner"] [Black "Pogonina, Natalija"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C26"] [WhiteElo "2379"] [BlackElo "2465"] [Annotator "Shahid Ahmed"] [SetUp "1"] [FEN "b2b2k1/1q3pp1/3p4/1r1PpPP1/2p1B3/2P2QK1/1P6/2BR4 w - - 0 30"] [PlyCount "13"] [EventDate "2018.11.03"] {[#]} 30. Qh5 {is definitely winning however} ({A quicker win was} 30. f6 Rxd5 (30... gxf6 31. Qf5 Rxd5 32. Qh7+ Kf8 33. g6 Ke8 34. g7 $18) (30... g6 31. Qh1 Be7 32. Qh3 $18) 31. Bxd5 $18) 30... Rxb2 31. f6 gxf6 32. Qh7+ Kf8 33. g6 Rb3 34. g7+ Ke7 35. g8=Q Rxc3+ 36. Kh2 1-0 [Event "Khanty-Mansiysk RUS"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk RUS"] [Date "2018.11.07"] [Round "2.2"] [White "Atalik, Ekaterina"] [Black "Muzychuk, Mariya"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "A57"] [WhiteElo "2445"] [BlackElo "2545"] [Annotator "Shahid Ahmed"] [SetUp "1"] [FEN "1rr3k1/p3pN1p/bn1nPbpB/3p4/6Q1/P1q3NP/B4PP1/1R1R2K1 b - - 0 27"] [PlyCount "4"] [EventDate "2018.11.03"] {[#]} 27... Qxa3 28. Nh5 (28. Nxd6 Qxd6 (28... Qxa2 29. Nh5 Be5 30. Nf5 $18) ( 28... exd6 29. e7 $18) 29. Bf4 Qd8 30. Bxb8 Rxb8 31. Bxd5 $18) 28... Ne4 29. Nf4 $19 (29. Bb3 {was a better continuation.}) 0-1 [Event "Khanty-Mansiysk RUS"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk RUS"] [Date "2018.11.07"] [Round "2.2"] [White "Koneru, Humpy"] [Black "Zawadzka, Jolanta"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "D37"] [WhiteElo "2548"] [BlackElo "2407"] [Annotator "Shahid Ahmed"] [PlyCount "156"] [EventDate "2018.11.03"] {Since Humpy drew round 2.1 game, a win was required to advance to round 3. A draw meant tie-break matches to be played.} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. e3 a6 6. Bxc4 b5 7. Bd3 Bb7 8. O-O c5 9. Qe2 Nbd7 10. Rd1 Qb8 11. b3 Be7 12. Bb2 O-O 13. Rac1 Rc8 14. Bb1 Nb6 15. dxc5 Rxc5 16. Nd2 Qe8 17. Nce4 Nxe4 18. Nxe4 Rxc1 19. Rxc1 Rc8 20. Rxc8 Qxc8 21. Qd3 Nd5 22. Ng3 g6 23. Ne4 Qc6 24. f3 f6 25. h4 {is an overambitious attempt by Humpy who should have tried to keep the status quo in this equal position.} Qb6 26. Bd4 Qa5 27. Kf2 e5 28. Bc5 (28. Bb2 {was still okay and playable.} Qb6 29. Ke2 f5 30. Nc3 $15) 28... Bxc5 ({Better was} 28... f5 29. Nd6 (29. Bxe7 fxe4 30. fxe4 Nxe7 31. Qd7 Kf7 32. Qxb7 Qd2+ $19) 29... Bc6 30. b4 Qd8 31. e4 Bxd6 32. Bxd6 Qxd6 33. exd5 Bxd5 $17) 29. Nxc5 Bc6 30. h5 f5 31. hxg6 hxg6 32. g4 ({Alternative was} 32. e4 Nf4 33. Qe3 Qd8 34. g3 Nh3+ 35. Kg2 Qd1 36. exf5 Qxb1 37. Qxe5 gxf5 38. Qb8+ Kh7 39. Qc7+ Kg8 40. Qd8+ $11) 32... Qd8 33. Ne6 $2 (33. gxf5 Qh4+ 34. Ke2 b4 ( 34... Qh2+ 35. Kd1 gxf5 36. Kc1 Qg1+ 37. Kb2 Qxe3 38. Qxe3 Nxe3 39. Nd3 $11) 35. Kd2 Qf2+ 36. Qe2 Qxe2+ 37. Kxe2 Nc3+ 38. Kf2 Nxb1 39. Nxa6 gxf5 40. Nxb4 $15 {keeps some hope alive}) 33... Qh4+ 34. Ke2 Qh2+ (34... e4 {could have finished things early} 35. Qd4 exf3+ 36. Kd1 (36. Kd2 Qf2+) 36... Qh8 $19) 35. Kf1 Qh1+ 36. Kf2 Qh2+ 37. Kf1 b4 38. Nc7 Qh1+ 39. Kf2 Qh2+ (39... e4 40. fxe4 Qh2+ 41. Kf1 Qxc7 $19) 40. Ke1 Qg1+ 41. Kd2 Qf2+ 42. Kc1 Qe1+ 43. Kc2 Nxc7 ( 43... Nxe3+ 44. Kb2 e4 45. fxe4 (45. Qd8+ Kf7 $19) 45... fxe4 46. Qd8+ Kf7 $19) 44. Qc4+ Nd5 45. Qxc6 Qe2+ (45... Qc3+ 46. Qxc3 Nxc3 $19) 46. Kc1 Qxe3+ 47. Kb2 Qd4+ 48. Kc1 Qc3+ 49. Qxc3 Nxc3 50. Bd3 e4 51. Bc4+ Kg7 52. gxf5 gxf5 53. fxe4 fxe4 54. Bxa6 Nxa2+ 55. Kd2 Kf6 56. Ke3 Ke5 57. Bf1 Nc3 58. Bc4 Nd5+ 59. Kd2 Kd4 60. Ke2 Nf4+ 61. Kf2 Ng6 62. Ke2 Ne5 63. Bb5 Nf7 64. Kd2 Nd6 65. Bf1 Ke5 66. Ba6 Kf4 67. Ke2 Nf5 68. Bc4 Ng3+ 69. Kf2 e3+ 70. Ke1 Ke4 71. Ba6 Kd4 72. Bc4 Ne4 73. Ke2 Nc5 74. Bg8 Nd3 75. Bc4 Nf4+ 76. Ke1 Kc3 77. Kd1 e2+ 78. Ke1 Kc2 0-1 [Event "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Date "2018.11.06"] [Round "10.14"] [White "Zhu, Jiner"] [Black "Pogonina, Natalija"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C26"] [WhiteElo "2379"] [BlackElo "2465"] [Annotator "Jovi"] [PlyCount "71"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "China"] [BlackTeam "Russia"] [WhiteTeamCountry "CHN"] [BlackTeamCountry "RUS"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nc3 $5 {A surprise for Pogonina.} Nf6 3. g3 Be7 (3... d5 $5 { Is recommended by the textbooks as the way forward for black.} 4. exd5 Nxd5 5. Bg2 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bc5 7. Ne2 O-O 8. O-O Nc6 9. d3 Bg4 10. h3 Be6 11. c4 Qd7 12. Kh2 Rad8 13. Be3 Bxe3 14. fxe3 Ne7 15. Nc3 f5 $11) 4. Bg2 O-O 5. Nge2 c5 $6 { An unusual choice} 6. d3 d6 7. h3 Nc6 8. f4 $1 {There is no subtletly with this opening here --white just wants to pawn storm the black king.} Rb8 9. a4 a6 10. f5 h6 $6 {This seems a bit odd, giving White a "hook" to open lines via the g5 square.} ({Better was to save that tempo and play actively with} 10... b5 11. axb5 axb5 12. O-O b4 13. Nd5 Nxd5 14. exd5 Nd4 $11) 11. O-O b5 12. axb5 axb5 13. Nd5 Nxd5 14. exd5 Nd4 15. c3 $5 {A creative move by young 15 year old Zhu} Nxe2+ ({It would not have been so foolhardy to play} 15... Nxf5 16. Be4 g6 17. g4 Ng7 $1 18. Bxh6 {Although Black has returned the extra material, she will have some tremendous co-ordination after} f5 $1 {Black's counter attack has arrived with powerful effect.}) 16. Qxe2 Bb7 $6 {Pogonina underestimates the bind that Zhu is brewing.} (16... Bg5 $5 17. h4 (17. Bxg5 Qxg5 18. Qf2 b4 19. c4 g6 20. f6 Bf5 21. h4 Qg4) 17... Bxc1 18. Raxc1 f6) 17. Be4 Bf6 18. h4 $1 Re8 19. Qh5 Ra8 20. Rxa8 Bxa8 21. Kh2 $1 c4 22. dxc4 bxc4 23. Kh3 ({Zhu could have also played the stunning} 23. g4 $1 {Open the door} Bxh4 24. f6 $1 { Open another door!} Bxf6 {One more!} 25. g5 $1 hxg5 26. Bxg5 $1 {White keeps throwing material for black to take.} Kf8 (26... Bxg5 27. Qxf7+ Kh8 28. Qg6 Bf4+ 29. Rxf4) 27. Qh8+ Ke7 28. Qxg7 {with mate in 27 according to the machine. }) 23... Qa5 24. Qf3 Rb8 $2 (24... Qd8 $1 {Would have prolonged the battle for longer.} 25. Be3 (25. Qh5 Qa5 {Leads to a merry dance.} 26. Rd1 Qa4 27. Rh1 Qa5 28. Qf3 Qd8 29. Be3 Bb7 {Despite black's craftiness, she is simply waiting for the attack to happen.})) 25. g4 Rb5 26. g5 hxg5 27. hxg5 Bd8 28. Rd1 Qa7 29. Kg3 $5 {A very nice touch.} Qb7 30. Qh5 Rxb2 31. f6 gxf6 32. Qh7+ Kf8 33. g6 Rb3 34. g7+ Ke7 35. g8=Q Rxc3+ 36. Kh2 1-0 [Event "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Date "2018.11.07"] [Round "11.7"] [White "Atalik, Ekaterina"] [Black "Muzychuk, Mariya"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "A57"] [WhiteElo "2445"] [BlackElo "2545"] [Annotator "Jovi"] [PlyCount "80"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "Turkey"] [BlackTeam "Ukraine"] [WhiteTeamCountry "TUR"] [BlackTeamCountry "UKR"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 b5 4. Qc2 Na6 5. a3 bxc4 6. e4 g6 7. Bxc4 Nc7 8. Nf3 Bg7 9. O-O d6 10. h3 O-O 11. Nc3 Rb8 12. Rb1 Nd7 13. Bf4 Nb6 14. Ba2 Ba6 15. Rfd1 Qd7 16. e5 Nb5 17. Ne2 Rfc8 18. e6 fxe6 19. dxe6 Qb7 20. Qd2 c4 21. Bh6 Bf6 22. Ng5 d5 23. Qf4 Nd6 24. Ng3 Qc7 25. Qg4 c3 26. bxc3 Qxc3 {White is on the verge of reeling in the point and moving on to the third round -- all that is needed is some precision!} 27. Nf7 $1 Qxa3 28. Nh5 (28. Nxd6 {Would have settled matters rather quickly.} Qxa2 (28... exd6 29. e7 $1) (28... Qxd6 29. Bf4 Be5 30. Nf5 Qc7 31. Bxe5 Qxe5 32. Nxe7+ {gives white a great material advantage.}) 29. Nxc8 (29. Nh5 {Is also crushing but reserved for people with Tal-like attacking powers.}) 29... Rxc8 30. Nh5 Be5 31. Qg5 Bd6 32. Nf6+ Kh8 33. Ra1 Qe2 34. Nxd5 {is winning.}) 28... Ne4 29. Nf4 $4 {A terrible blunder} Qxa2 30. Nxg6 Qxf2+ 31. Kh1 Qe1+ $3 {Kishi Kaisei- "Wake from the death and return to life". After this beautiful blow its all over for Atalik.} 32. Rxe1 Nf2+ 33. Kh2 Nxg4+ 34. hxg4 hxg6 35. g5 Bc3 36. Re3 d4 37. Rh3 d3 38. Rf1 d2 39. Rf6 exf6 40. gxf6 Bxf6 0-1 [Event "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Date "2018.11.06"] [Round "10.6"] [White "Galliamova, Alisa"] [Black "Goryachkina, Aleksandra"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "D47"] [WhiteElo "2432"] [BlackElo "2534"] [Annotator "Jovi"] [PlyCount "121"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "Russia"] [BlackTeam "Russia"] [WhiteTeamCountry "RUS"] [BlackTeamCountry "RUS"] 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e3 e6 5. Nf3 Nbd7 6. Bd3 dxc4 7. Bxc4 b5 8. Bd3 Bd6 9. Qc2 Bb7 10. e4 e5 11. Bg5 h6 12. Bh4 O-O 13. O-O-O {A novel idea by Indian grandmaster Baskaran Adhiban, white focuses on striking quickly in the centre, with a well-timed capture on e5, followed by Nf3/d4 and f2-f4. Its a bold idea and a surprised Goryachkina had to navigate the opening minefield on her own.} Qb8 $6 {The wrong square - the queen is clumsily placed here.} ({ In the only game in this variation} 13... Qe7 $1 14. Kb1 a6 15. dxe5 Nxe5 16. Nd4 $5 g6 17. f4 Nxd3 18. Rxd3 Bxf4 19. e5 $1 Bxe5 20. Re1 Rae8 $2 21. Nf3 Qb4 22. a3 $1 (22. Rxe5 $2 {1/2-1/2 (41) Adhiban,B (2671)-Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son (2618) Hamedan IRI 2018}) 22... Qg4 23. h3 Qf4 24. g3 Qf5 25. g4 Qf4 26. Nxe5 Rxe5 27. Ne2 {Black must sacrifice the exchange to avoid losing material.}) 14. Kb1 b4 15. Na4 (15. dxe5 $1 Nxe5 16. Bxf6 gxf6 17. Nxe5 fxe5 18. Ne2 $16) 15... Re8 16. Nc5 $2 (16. dxe5 Bxe5 17. Rhe1 c5 18. Nxe5 Qxe5 19. Bg3 Qe7 20. f3 { White has good attacking chances.}) 16... exd4 17. Nxb7 Qxb7 18. Nxd4 c5 19. Nf5 Be5 $2 {Superficially active the bishop is merely a target on e5, vulnerable to f2-f4 attacks.} 20. Rhf1 $1 Qc7 21. Bb5 $1 {Black is in tremendous trouble} Reb8 $2 (21... Rab8 {Is not possible either because of} 22. Bxf6 $1) ({The natural} 21... a6 {does not work on account of.} 22. Bxd7 Nxd7 23. f4 Bxf4 24. Qf2 $1) 22. Bc6 ({Wihte can also finish the game with} 22. Bxd7 $1 Nxd7 23. f4 {Now white can play} Bf6 (23... Bxf4 24. Ne7+) 24. Rxd7 Qxd7 25. Bxf6 gxf6 26. Rd1 Qe6 27. Qe2 Kh7 28. Qh5 $1 Qxe4+ 29. Ka1 Qxf4 30. Qxf7+ Kh8 31. Qg7#) 22... c4 23. Bxa8 Rxa8 24. f4 Bxf4 25. Rxd7 $3 {This spectacular blow puts the game in the bag.} Nxd7 26. Ne7+ Kh8 27. Nd5 Qc5 28. Nxf4 Qb5 29. Qe2 Nb6 30. Bf2 b3 31. a3 Rd8 32. Bxb6 axb6 33. Nd5 Qc6 34. Qf2 Qe6 35. Nc3 f6 36. g3 Rd3 37. Qf5 Qe8 38. e5 fxe5 39. Qf8+ Qxf8 40. Rxf8+ Kh7 41. Kc1 Kg6 42. Rb8 Rf3 43. Rxb6+ Kf5 44. a4 Rf2 45. a5 Rc2+ 46. Kb1 e4 47. Rd6 Rf2 48. Rd1 e3 49. Re1 Rxh2 50. a6 Rd2 51. a7 Rd8 52. Rxe3 Kg4 53. Kc1 g5 54. Nd5 Ra8 55. Re7 Kxg3 56. Nb6 Rf8 57. a8=Q Rxa8 58. Nxa8 h5 59. Nb6 h4 60. Nxc4 h3 61. Rh7 1-0 [Event "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Date "2018.11.08"] [Round "12.1"] [White "Hoang, Thanh Trang"] [Black "Lagno, Kateryna"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "A48"] [WhiteElo "2448"] [BlackElo "2556"] [Annotator "Jovi"] [PlyCount "126"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "Hungary"] [BlackTeam "Russia"] [WhiteTeamCountry "HUN"] [BlackTeamCountry "RUS"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. Bf4 Bg7 4. e3 O-O 5. h3 c5 6. c3 d6 7. Nbd2 Nc6 8. dxc5 dxc5 9. Qc2 Be6 10. Be2 h6 11. O-O Qc8 12. Rfd1 Rd8 13. Bh2 g5 14. Ne5 Bf5 15. Qb3 Nxe5 16. Bxe5 Qe6 17. Qxe6 Bxe6 18. Bf3 Bd5 19. c4 Bxf3 20. Nxf3 Ne4 21. Bxg7 Kxg7 22. Kf1 Kf6 23. Ke2 e6 24. Nd2 Nxd2 25. Rxd2 Rxd2+ 26. Kxd2 Rd8+ 27. Kc3 h5 28. a3 a5 29. Rb1 b6 30. b4 axb4+ 31. axb4 Ra8 32. bxc5 bxc5 33. Rb5 Ra2 34. Rb2 Ra3+ 35. Rb3 Ra2 36. Rb2 Ra1 37. Kd3 Ra3+ 38. Kc2 g4 39. hxg4 hxg4 40. Rb3 Ra2+ 41. Rb2 Ra1 42. Kd3 Ra3+ 43. Kd2 Ke5 44. f3 g3 45. Rb7 Ra2+ 46. Kd3 f5 47. Rb5 Rxg2 48. Rxc5+ Kd6 49. Rc8 Rg1 50. Rg8 e5 51. Rg6+ $2 {A panicky move that not only loses time but encourages black to play the correct idea!} (51. Rg5 Kc5 52. Ke2) 51... Kc5 52. Rg5 $4 ({White can save the game by abandoning the weak c4 pawn and instead concentrating on winning the g2 pawn.} 52. Ke2 Kxc4 53. f4 e4 54. Rc6+ $1 Kb3 55. Rb6+ {And the rook will drive the king away. }) 52... g2 $1 53. Ke2 Ra1 {A very instructive endgame.} 54. Rxg2 Ra2+ 55. Kf1 Rxg2 56. Kxg2 Kxc4 57. e4 f4 {There is nothing to be done, white is lost.} 58. Kh3 Kd3 59. Kg4 Ke3 60. Kf5 Kxf3 61. Kxe5 Kg3 62. Kd6 f3 63. e5 f2 0-1 [Event "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Date "2018.11.06"] [Round "10.1"] [White "Ju, Wenjun"] [Black "Krush, Irina"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "D20"] [WhiteElo "2568"] [BlackElo "2434"] [Annotator "Jovi"] [PlyCount "99"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "China"] [BlackTeam "United States"] [WhiteTeamCountry "CHN"] [BlackTeamCountry "USA"] 1. d4 d5 2. c4 dxc4 3. e4 e5 {Historically black's most popular choice} 4. Nf3 Bb4+ 5. Nc3 exd4 6. Qxd4 $5 {A very conservative choice.} (6. Nxd4 {Is more principled}) 6... Qxd4 7. Nxd4 Nf6 8. f3 Bc5 ({Black has also tried} 8... Bd7 9. Bxc4 Nc6 10. Nxc6 Bxc6 11. Be3 Nd7 12. O-O-O Bxc3 13. bxc3 f6 {With a pair of bishops and flexible pawn majority white stood slightly better in Beliavsky, A (2660)-Charbonneau,P (2490) Mallorca (Spain) 2004}) (8... a6 {Might be a better way to start mobilise the queenside} 9. Bxc4 O-O 10. Be3 b5 11. Be2 { but the black bishop is not particularly well placed on b4, for example} c5 { is well met with} 12. Nc2) 9. Be3 Nc6 10. Nc2 Bxe3 11. Nxe3 Be6 ({Black would love to hold onto the pawn with} 11... Ne5 {but} 12. Nb5 {is a good answer!}) 12. Bxc4 $1 ({Inaccurate is} 12. O-O-O Ne5 $1 13. Nb5 Ke7 $1 14. Nxc7 Rac8 $11 {1/2-1/2 (41) Robson,R (2680)-Priyadharshan,K (2462) Saint Louis USA 2015}) 12... Bxc4 ({It is also interesting to allow the trade of bishops on e6 with the logic that it will be much easier to prevent the advance of the kingside pawns. However making such strategical concessions is not optimal!} 12... O-O-O ) 13. Nxc4 O-O-O 14. Rd1 Nd7 15. Ke2 Nde5 $2 {White has one plan and it is a very simple one to advance the kingside pawns and this gives moves gives white a free hand to begin her pawn advances.} ({Controlliing the pawn advance f3-f4 } 15... Nc5 $1 {was preferable.} 16. Nd5 Rhe8 17. g4 $1 (17. h4 f5 $1) 17... Ne6 18. h4 b5 19. Nce3 Kb7 {Black's activity will start to make trouble.}) 16. Nxe5 Nxe5 17. f4 Nc6 $6 {Again, the black knight keeps getting in the way of its pawns.} 18. Ke3 f6 (18... h5 19. h4) 19. h4 Rxd1 $2 {With every piece exchange it becomes and easier and easier for Ju to advance those passed pawns. } (19... Nb4 $1) 20. Rxd1 Rd8 21. Rc1 Rd7 $2 {Simply too passive. Krush waits for her fate, once again active measures were necessary.} (21... Nb4 22. a3 Nd3 23. Rc2 c6 24. g4 Ne1 $14) 22. g4 h6 23. Nd5 Ne7 $2 {Another error.} 24. Nxe7+ $1 Rxe7 25. f5 $1 {Ju Wenjun plays the rook ending perfectly.} Kd8 26. g5 hxg5 27. hxg5 fxg5 28. Rg1 Ke8 29. Rxg5 Kf7 30. Rg2 $1 Rd7 31. e5 Rd1 32. Kf4 Rf1+ 33. Kg5 Ke7 34. e6 c6 35. Kg6 Rf3 36. b4 $6 {The only inaccuracy. Best was} ( 36. Rd2 $1 Rg3+ 37. Kh7 Rg5 38. Rd7+ Ke8 39. Rxb7 Rxf5 40. Kxg7 {Black's pawn structure is ruined.}) 36... a6 $4 {The nail in the coffin.} ({The last chance was} 36... b6 37. Rd2 (37. Rg1 Rf2) 37... Rg3+ 38. Kh7 Rg5 39. Rd7+ Ke8 $1 ( 39... Kf6 40. Rf7+ Ke5 41. e7) 40. Rxa7 {This is the problem, Black gets to maintain a better structure} Rxf5 41. Kxg7 Rf4 {White is still winning but black may have some chances to fight on.}) 37. Rd2 Rg3+ 38. Kh7 Rg5 39. Rd7+ Ke8 40. Rxb7 Rxf5 41. Kxg7 Rf4 42. Kg6 Kd8 43. Kg5 Rf2 44. a4 Rf1 45. a5 Rf2 46. Rd7+ Ke8 47. Rc7 Kd8 48. Rxc6 Rb2 49. Rb6 Ke7 50. Kf5 1-0 [Event "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Date "2018.11.07"] [Round "11.2"] [White "Koneru, Humpy"] [Black "Zawadzka, Jolanta"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "D48"] [WhiteElo "2548"] [BlackElo "2407"] [Annotator "Jovi"] [PlyCount "156"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "India"] [BlackTeam "Poland"] [WhiteTeamCountry "IND"] [BlackTeamCountry "POL"] 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. e3 a6 6. Bxc4 (6. a4 c5 { Transposes to more standard Queens gambit accepted lines.}) 6... b5 7. Bd3 Bb7 8. O-O c5 9. Qe2 Nbd7 10. Rd1 Qb8 11. b3 Be7 (11... Bd6 12. h3 O-O 13. Bb2 Rc8 14. Rac1 cxd4 15. Nxd4 h6 16. Nf3 {Black has good development.}) 12. Bb2 O-O 13. Rac1 Rc8 14. Bb1 Nb6 15. dxc5 Rxc5 16. Nd2 Qe8 17. Nce4 Nxe4 18. Nxe4 Rxc1 19. Rxc1 Rc8 20. Rxc8 Qxc8 21. Qd3 Nd5 22. Ng3 g6 23. Ne4 Qc6 24. f3 $6 ({ It would have been safer to play} 24. a3) 24... f6 25. h4 $2 {This looks like an insignificant error but in fact White is rather carelessly weakening her own king. Black has better piece co-ordination on account of the excellent knight on d5 and white's poor bishop on b1.} Qb6 26. Bd4 Qa5 27. Kf2 e5 ({ Better was the sneaky} 27... Qc7 28. Kg1 e5 29. Bb2 Qb6 30. Bc1 {White is forced to put the minor pieces on awkward squares.}) 28. Bc5 $2 (28. Bb2) 28... Bxc5 (28... f5 $1 29. Nd6 Ba8 30. a3 (30. g3 Qc7) 30... Qd8 31. e4 Bxd6 32. Bxd6 Qxd6 33. exd5 Bxd5 {Picks up some material}) 29. Nxc5 Bc6 30. h5 f5 $1 31. hxg6 hxg6 32. g4 $2 {Koneru pushes forward oblivious to the dangers that lies ahead.} Qd8 $3 {An excellent backward queen move.} 33. Ne6 $2 (33. Kg3 { Unfortunately fails to} Qd6) (33. Kg2 Qe7 {The knight is trapped.}) ({The only way to save the game is to play} 33. gxf5 $1 Qh4+ 34. Ke2 Qh2+ 35. Kd1 gxf5 $1 36. Kc1 Qg1+ 37. Kb2 $1 (37. Kd2 {Would be a mistake because of} Qf2+ 38. Qe2 $4 Qxe2+ 39. Kxe2 Nc3+ $1 {winning a piece}) 37... Qxe3 38. Qxe3 Nxe3 39. Nd3 { With good drawing chances.}) 33... Qh4+ 34. Ke2 Qh2+ 35. Kf1 Qh1+ 36. Kf2 Qh2+ 37. Kf1 b4 $1 {The winning shot.} 38. Nc7 (38. Ke1 Bb5 $1) 38... Qh1+ 39. Kf2 Qh2+ 40. Ke1 Qg1+ ({Black had a killer blow in} 40... e4 41. fxe4 Nc3 $3 42. Qd8+ {and now the king can run away from the checks with} (42. Qc4+ Kh8 43. Qd4+ Kh7 $1) 42... Kf7 {hiding in plain sight!}) 41. Kd2 Qf2+ 42. Kc1 Qe1+ 43. Kc2 Nxc7 $6 (43... Nxe3+ $1 44. Kb2 {Now black can win the game with the very quiet} Kh7 $1 {The problem is that white is in some form of zugzwang, she cannot maintain her perfect defence.} 45. gxf5 (45. Ne6 Bb5) 45... gxf5 46. a4 e4 47. fxe4 fxe4 48. Qd6 Nc4+ 49. bxc4 Qc3+ 50. Ka2 Qa3#) 44. Qc4+ Nd5 45. Qxc6 Qe2+ 46. Kc1 Qxe3+ 47. Kb2 Qd4+ 48. Kc1 Qc3+ 49. Qxc3 Nxc3 50. Bd3 e4 $2 51. Bc4+ (51. Bxa6 $1 {Might be white's best shot.} fxg4 52. fxg4 Kf7 53. Kb2 Nd1+ 54. Kc1 Nf2 55. Be2 e3 56. Kb2 Kf6 57. a3 bxa3+ 58. Kxa3 {The passed b-pawn may give white some chances to hold.}) 51... Kg7 52. gxf5 gxf5 53. fxe4 fxe4 54. Bxa6 Nxa2+ 55. Kd2 Kf6 56. Ke3 Ke5 57. Bf1 Nc3 58. Bc4 Nd5+ 59. Kd2 Kd4 60. Ke2 Nf4+ 61. Kf2 Ng6 (61... e3+ $1 62. Ke1 Nd3+ 63. Ke2 Nf4+ 64. Ke1 Kc3 65. Bg8 e2 66. Bc4 Kc2 {Was a quicker way to end to the game!}) 62. Ke2 Ne5 63. Bb5 Nf7 64. Kd2 Nd6 65. Bf1 Ke5 66. Ba6 Kf4 67. Ke2 Nf5 68. Bc4 Ng3+ 69. Kf2 e3+ 70. Ke1 Ke4 71. Ba6 Kd4 72. Bc4 Ne4 73. Ke2 Nc5 74. Bg8 Nd3 75. Bc4 Nf4+ 76. Ke1 Kc3 77. Kd1 e2+ 78. Ke1 Kc2 (78... Kc2 {White resigned because after} 79. Bg8 Kd3 80. Bc4+ Ke3 {White must either abandon her bishop or succumb to checkmate.}) 0-1 [Event "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Date "2018.11.07"] [Round "11.4"] [White "Muzychuk, Anna"] [Black "Bodnaruk, Anastasia"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "B31"] [WhiteElo "2564"] [BlackElo "2426"] [Annotator "Me"] [PlyCount "67"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "Ukraine"] [BlackTeam "Russia"] [WhiteTeamCountry "UKR"] [BlackTeamCountry "RUS"] 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 g6 4. O-O {After winning the first game of the match, Muzychuk chooses the solid Rossolimo system.} Bg7 5. c3 Nf6 6. Re1 O-O 7. d4 d5 8. e5 Ne4 9. Bxc6 bxc6 10. Nbd2 Nxd2 ({Black also has an interesting line at her disposal} 10... Bf5 $5 11. Nh4 e6 12. Nxf5 exf5 13. Nf1) (10... cxd4 11. cxd4 c5 12. dxc5 Nxc5 13. Nb3 Nxb3 14. Qxb3 {with equality.}) 11. Nxd2 f6 (11... cxd4 12. cxd4 c5 13. dxc5 Qc7 14. Nf3 Qxc5 {Is very well known theory.}) 12. e6 $1 {The most principled try. Muzychuk assesses that even if the e6 pawn were to be lost it has such a cramping effect on the two bishops it is worth the potential risk.} cxd4 13. cxd4 Qd6 14. Nb3 f5 (14... Bxe6 15. Bf4 $1 Qxf4 16. Rxe6 f5 17. Qe2 {Does not promise black too many winning chances.}) 15. Bd2 f4 16. Rc1 Rb8 ({Bodnaruk needed to take that gamble and play the greedy} 16... Bxe6 17. Qe2 (17. a3 f3 $1) 17... Bd7 18. Qxe7 Qc7 19. Ba5 Qc8 {Black is holding on for grim life but where is there is life there is hope.}) 17. Qc2 $1 Rb6 $2 18. Ba5 Ra6 19. Qd2 f3 20. g3 Rf6 21. Bb4 Qd8 22. a3 Qf8 ({Black should have perhaps tried} 22... Bxe6 23. Nc5 Bc8 24. Nxa6 Bxa6 25. Bxe7 Qd7 26. Kh1 Rf7 27. Bg5 {But the position remains extremely difficult.}) 23. Rc3 Bh6 24. Qd1 Rb6 25. Nc5 a5 26. Bxa5 Rxb2 27. Nd7 {A flawless display!} Bxd7 28. exd7 Rd6 29. d8=Q Rxd8 30. Rxf3 Qe8 31. Bxd8 Qxd8 32. Rb3 Rd2 33. Qg4 Bf8 34. Qf4 1-0 [Event "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Date "2018.11.07"] [Round "11.5"] [White "Ni, Shiqun"] [Black "Kosteniuk, Alexandra"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C93"] [WhiteElo "2436"] [BlackElo "2543"] [Annotator "Jovi"] [PlyCount "107"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "China"] [BlackTeam "Russia"] [WhiteTeamCountry "CHN"] [BlackTeamCountry "RUS"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 h6 10. d4 Re8 11. Nbd2 Bf8 12. Bc2 Bb7 13. a3 Nb8 14. b3 c6 15. Bb2 Nbd7 16. a4 Qc7 17. Bd3 g6 18. Qc2 Bg7 19. c4 bxc4 20. Bxc4 exd4 21. Bxd4 Re7 22. Re2 Rae8 23. Rae1 Kh7 24. Qb2 c5 25. Bc3 Nh5 26. Bxg7 Nxg7 27. Qc2 Nh5 28. Re3 Nhf6 29. Qd3 Nb8 30. Bd5 Nc6 31. Bxc6 Bxc6 32. Qxa6 Nxe4 33. Nxe4 Rxe4 34. Rxe4 Rxe4 35. Rxe4 Bxe4 36. Nd2 Bb7 37. Qb5 Bc6 38. Qc4 Qe7 39. b4 d5 40. Qxc5 Qxc5 41. bxc5 Bxa4 42. f4 g5 43. Kf2 Kg6 44. Ke3 Kf6 45. Nf3 Bd7 46. Nd4 Ke7 47. g4 Bc8 48. Nc6+ (48. f5 $1 {Black is powerless to stop the white king arriving on d4.}) 48... Ke8 49. Nb4 f5 $1 {When you are material down, you swap pawns not pieces...It might be a cliche but its good advice!} 50. Nxd5 Kd8 51. Nf6 Kc7 52. Nd5+ Kd8 53. Nf6 Kc7 54. Nd5+ 1/2-1/2 [Event "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Date "2018.11.07"] [Round "11.14"] [White "Pogonina, Natalija"] [Black "Zhu, Jiner"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "A80"] [WhiteElo "2465"] [BlackElo "2379"] [Annotator "Jovi"] [PlyCount "89"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "Russia"] [BlackTeam "China"] [WhiteTeamCountry "RUS"] [BlackTeamCountry "CHN"] 1. d4 f5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Bf4 g6 4. e3 Bg7 5. Bc4 e6 6. O-O O-O 7. a4 h6 8. a5 d6 9. h3 Qe7 10. Nc3 Kh7 11. Bh2 a6 12. Qe2 Nbd7 13. Ba2 e5 14. dxe5 Nxe5 15. Nxe5 dxe5 16. Rfd1 Bd7 17. Bd5 Bb5 18. Nxb5 Nxd5 19. Na3 Rad8 20. Rd2 e4 21. c3 g5 $2 ({When there is one open line in the position, the first thing one must do is control that file. Chess can sometimes be that simple!} 21... Rd7 22. Nc2 Rfd8 23. Nd4 Nf6 24. Rad1 Ne8 {White will have a hard time winning this position.}) 22. Nc2 Be5 $4 {A terrible blunder} ({It was still not too late to start making a challenge on the open file.} 22... Rd7) 23. Bxe5 Qxe5 24. Rad1 Rd6 25. Qc4 $1 Rfd8 26. Qb3 $1 b5 27. axb6 Rxb6 28. Nb4 c6 29. Nxc6 $1 { White soon won without much trouble.} Rxc6 30. Rxd5 Rxd5 31. Rxd5 Qe6 32. c4 f4 33. Qb7+ Kg6 34. b3 fxe3 35. fxe3 Rb6 36. Qc7 Qf6 37. Kh2 Re6 38. Qd7 g4 39. Qc8 h5 40. Qg8+ Kh6 41. c5 Rc6 42. Qe8 g3+ 43. Kxg3 h4+ 44. Kh2 Kg7 45. Qd7+ 1-0 [Event "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Date "2018.11.08"] [Round "12.6"] [White "Saduakassova, Dinara"] [Black "Stefanova, Antoaneta"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C55"] [WhiteElo "2474"] [BlackElo "2490"] [Annotator "Jovi"] [PlyCount "60"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "Kazakhstan"] [BlackTeam "Bulgaria"] [WhiteTeamCountry "KAZ"] [BlackTeamCountry "BUL"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. d3 h6 5. O-O d6 6. c3 g5 7. Be3 $6 {It feels a little bit early to commit the bishop to this square.} ({The most critical is of course to play} 7. d4 $1 g4 {now an interesting attempt is} 8. Ne1 $5 (8. Nfd2 exd4 9. cxd4 Nxd4 10. Re1 Bg7 11. Nf1 Nc6 12. Nc3 Ne5 13. Bb3 O-O 14. Ng3 Re8 15. Bf4 Nh7 16. Qd2 Ng5 17. Kh1 Be6 $14 {1-0 (72) Karjakin,S (2782) -Mamedyarov,S (2808) Leuven BEL 2018}) 8... Nxe4 9. f3 d5 10. Bb5 gxf3 11. Nxf3 Bg7 12. Nxe5 Bxe5 13. dxe5 Be6 14. Nd2 Nxd2 15. Bxd2 Qd7 16. Be3 a6 17. Qa4 Rb8 18. Be2 Nxe5 19. Qd4 Ng6 20. Bh5 Rh7 21. Rae1 Qc6 22. Bd2 Kd7 23. Rxe6 fxe6 24. Bxg6 Re7 25. Bxh6 Rg8 26. Bf7 e5 27. Qf2 {1-0 (27) Fitzsimons,D (2325)-Collins, S (2452) Dublin IRL 2018}) 7... Bg7 8. Nbd2 O-O 9. d4 Qe7 10. Qc2 Kh8 11. dxe5 dxe5 12. b4 b6 13. a4 a5 14. b5 Nd8 {Perhaps surprised by the opening, Saduakassova begins taking passive choices.} 15. Nb3 $2 (15. Ba2 $1 Bb7 ({ The point is that after the aggressive} 15... Ng4 {White can simply answer with } 16. Nc4 $1) 16. Rfe1 Ng4 (16... Nh5 17. Nc4 $1 Kg8 18. h3 Nf4 19. Rad1 { Black will have problems activating the queenside pieces.}) 17. Nc4 $1) 15... Bb7 16. Bd3 Nh5 17. c4 $2 f5 18. Bc1 c5 $1 {From here on now, Stefanova conducts her attack flawlessly.} 19. Re1 g4 20. Nfd2 f4 21. Nf1 Ne6 22. Bb2 Qh4 23. Rad1 g3 24. fxg3 fxg3 25. hxg3 Nxg3 26. Nxg3 Qxg3 27. Bc1 Nf4 28. Bxf4 Rxf4 29. Bf1 Raf8 30. Rd3 (30. Nc1 Rh4 {and mate is unavoidable.}) 30... Qxe1 0-1 [Event "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Date "2018.11.06"] [Round "10.10"] [White "Socko, Monika"] [Black "Alinasab, Mobina"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "D29"] [WhiteElo "2463"] [BlackElo "2236"] [Annotator "Jovi"] [PlyCount "68"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "Poland"] [BlackTeam "Iran"] [WhiteTeamCountry "POL"] [BlackTeamCountry "IRI"] 1. d4 d5 2. c4 dxc4 3. e3 Nf6 4. Nf3 {A speciality of Italian grandmaster Michele Godena} a6 $5 5. Bxc4 b5 6. Bb3 {Whilst there is nothing wrong with this retreat, moving the bishop back to b3 does makes it very difficult to advance the e3 pawn to e4.} (6. Bd3 {Is another possibility.} Bb7 7. a4 b4 8. Nbd2 Nbd7 9. O-O e6 {Now the most principled try is} 10. e4 $5 {planning to meet the principled pawn break} c5 {with} 11. e5 $1 Nd5 12. Nc4 {and now} Be7 ( {Should black play} 12... cxd4 13. Bg5 Qc7 14. Rc1 {with a sharp position.}) 13. Bg5 $5) 6... Bb7 7. O-O (7. a4 Nbd7 8. O-O e6 9. Qe2 Be7 10. Nbd2 O-O 11. Rd1 Qb8 12. e4 c5 13. e5 Nd5 14. Ne4 cxd4 15. Bg5 Bxg5 16. Nexg5 h6 (16... Nf4 $1 {0-1 (54) Jumabayev,R (2547)-Godena,M (2551) Khanty-Mansiysk RUS 2010})) 7... e6 8. a4 b4 9. Nbd2 Nbd7 10. Qe2 $6 ({Perhaps the energetic} 10. e4 { was in order as black does not have time to be greedy.} Nxe4 $2 (10... Be7 11. e5 Nd5 12. Ne4 O-O (12... c5 13. Bg5 $1)) 11. Nxe4 Bxe4 12. Re1 Nf6 13. Rxe4 { This is the point!} Nxe4 14. Qc2 Nd6 15. Qc6+ Ke7 16. Bg5+ f6 17. Re1 {White's attack is just devastating.}) 10... c5 11. Rd1 Be7 12. e4 cxd4 13. e5 Nd5 14. Ne4 $2 {White gets in a real pickle after this move.} ({White needed to not overthink things and play} 14. Nxd4 O-O (14... Nf4 $2 15. Qg4 $1 Nxg2 16. Qxg7 Rf8 17. Nc4 {Would win for white.}) 15. Nc4 {With equality.}) 14... Qb8 ({ Black can also play very calmly with} 14... O-O 15. Rxd4 a5 $1) 15. Ng3 d3 16. Qe1 $2 {Losing time} ({Socko was afraid that after} 16. Rxd3 {Black could play} Nc5 {but white can hold the balance with a well-timed exchange sacrifice.} 17. Bxd5 Bxd5 18. Rxd5 exd5 19. Nd4 O-O 20. Ngf5 Qc7 21. Bh6 $1 gxh6 22. Qg4+ Bg5 23. Nxh6+ Kh8 24. Qxg5 {With a complicated positon.}) ({Unfortunately} 16. Qxd3 {loses a pawn to} Nxe5) 16... O-O 17. Bc4 Nc5 18. Bxd3 {Once white loses the bishop pair, things start lurching from bad to worse.} Nxd3 19. Rxd3 Rc8 20. Ne4 a5 {Alinasab is in complete control and white's position quickly falls apart.} 21. Bg5 Bf8 22. Rc1 h6 23. Bd2 (23. Bh4 Nf4 24. Re3 Ba6 25. Rxc8 Qxc8 { White's position is utterly miserable.}) 23... Ba6 24. Rd4 Qb6 25. g4 $4 Rxc1 26. Bxc1 Be7 (26... Rc8 27. g5 hxg5 28. Bxg5 Rc2 {Black is in full control.}) 27. g5 h5 28. Ng3 g6 29. Ne4 Rc8 30. Rd1 Bb7 31. h3 Rc2 32. Rd2 Qc7 33. Rxc2 Qxc2 34. Qd2 $4 Qxe4 0-1 [Event "Khanty Mansiysk"] [Site "Khanty Mansiysk"] [Date "2018.11.09"] [Round "19.2"] [White "Muzychuk, Anna"] [Black "Stefanova, Antoaneta"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C42"] [WhiteElo "2564"] [BlackElo "2490"] [Annotator "Jovi"] [PlyCount "51"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "Ukraine"] [BlackTeam "Bulgaria"] [WhiteTeamCountry "UKR"] [BlackTeamCountry "BUL"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 {Stefanova varies from her standard repertoire.} 3. Nxe5 d6 4. Nf3 Nxe4 5. d4 (5. Nc3 {Is Muzychuk's usual weapon of choice.}) 5... d5 6. Bd3 Bd6 7. O-O O-O 8. c4 c6 9. Qc2 Nf6 {Stefanova shows her unfamiliarity with the opening and commits an inaccuracy.} ({One of black's main ideas is to throw in} 9... Na6 10. a3 {The most theoretical is} (10. Bxe4 dxe4 11. Qxe4 Re8 12. Qc2 Nb4 13. Qc3 Bf5 {gives black undoubted compensation.}) 10... Bg4 ({ Those wanting to play the position aggressively can try} 10... f5 $5) 11. Ne5 Bf5 12. b4 {Theoreticians can also emulate Fabiano Caruana's footsteps with} Nc7 13. f3 Bg6 $1 {with a complicated position in Anand,V (2767)-Caruana,F (2811) Wijk aan Zee NED 2018}) 10. c5 $5 Be7 (10... Bc7 $5) 11. Bf4 h6 12. h3 b6 13. Nbd2 bxc5 14. dxc5 Qa5 $2 {The queen is off-side here.} ({It would have been preferable to try and eliminate the danger with} 14... Ba6 15. Rac1 Bxd3 16. Qxd3 Nfd7) 15. Rac1 Nfd7 $4 {Black's minor pieces get incredibly tangled up after this move. With three pieces "sleeping" it is no surprise that Stefanova's position collapses very quickly.} (15... Ba6 {was again preferable. }) 16. Nb3 Qa4 ({Admitting that the queen sortie was a mistake brings no joy either.} 16... Qd8 17. Rfe1 Ba6 18. Bh7+ Kh8 19. Bf5 Bf6 20. Nbd4 {The knight on b8 will not get out any time soon.}) 17. Rfe1 $1 {Taking control over one of the open lines.} Qxf4 18. Rxe7 Rd8 19. Rce1 Nf8 20. Re8 ({Another beautiful line runs} 20. Bh7+ Nxh7 21. Re8+ Rxe8 22. Rxe8+ Nf8 23. Rxc8 g6 24. Nbd4 a5 25. g3 Qe4 26. Qd2 {Black can barely move.}) 20... Qc7 21. R1e7 Bd7 22. Bh7+ Kh8 23. Ne5 Bxe8 24. Rxc7 Nxh7 25. Rxf7 Kg8 26. Qg6 1-0 [Event "Khanty Mansiysk"] [Site "Khanty Mansiysk"] [Date "2018.11.09"] [Round "19.1"] [White "Zhai, Mo"] [Black "Ju, Wenjun"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "A20"] [WhiteElo "2352"] [BlackElo "2568"] [Annotator "Jovi"] [PlyCount "100"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "China"] [BlackTeam "China"] [WhiteTeamCountry "CHN"] [BlackTeamCountry "CHN"] 1. c4 e5 2. g3 c6 3. Nf3 {White is treating the position as a reversed Alapin and using the move g2-g3 as an extra tempo. The idea is to lure the pawn to e4 and then attack it with Nc3 and Bg2.} e4 4. Nd4 Qb6 $5 {Steering the game away from well-known territory} ({After the more traditional} 4... d5 5. cxd5 $1 Qxd5 6. Nc2 $1 {is considered the most challenging.} Nf6 7. Nc3 Qe5 8. Bg2 Bc5 9. b4 $1 Bd6 10. Bb2 Qe7 11. O-O Bf5 12. d3 $1 exd3 13. exd3 O-O 14. Re1 Qd8 15. Ne4 Be7 16. Qf3 Bg6 17. Nxf6+ Bxf6 18. Bxf6 Qxf6 19. Qxf6 gxf6 20. Re7 $16 {1-0 (45) Adams,M (2709)-Christiansen,J (2492) chess24.com 2018} Bxd3 21. Ne3 Na6) 5. Nb3 ({Another alternative is} 5. e3 Nf6 6. Nc3 d5 7. Qc2 Bd7 8. a3 Be7 9. b4 O-O 10. Bg2 a5 11. c5 Qc7 12. Na4 axb4 13. axb4 Bg4 {Black has no problems in Hammer,J (2701)-Tari,A (2553) Altibox Norway Chess Qualifier 2016}) 5... Nf6 6. Bg2 d5 7. cxd5 a5 $5 (7... cxd5 8. O-O Nc6 9. d3 $1 {White must begin to open up lines to exploit black's lack of development.} Bf5 10. Be3 ( 10. Bg5 {1-0 (27) Negro,R (2167)-Lena,L (1634) Arco ITA 2017}) 10... Qd8 11. Nd4 Nxd4 12. Bxd4 Be7 13. Qa4+ Qd7 14. Qb3 O-O 15. Nc3 $16) 8. a4 $6 {This move is positionally suspect, granting black long term-control over the b4 square. With her lack of space, Zhai needs to start treading very carefully.} ( {White can not be greedy and play} 8. dxc6 $4 {as} a4 {wins a piece.}) (8. d3 $5 {Would pose some tricky questions} a4 9. N3d2 exd3 10. O-O cxd5 $1 (10... Be7 11. Nc4 $1 Qc5 12. d6 {Makes life difficult for black.}) 11. exd3 Be7 12. Nc3 $1 Qa5 13. Re1 Nc6 14. b4 axb3 15. Bb2 Qd8 16. Nxb3 O-O 17. Nb5 $14) 8... cxd5 9. O-O Na6 (9... d4 $6 10. Na3 $1) 10. d3 (10. Nc3) 10... Nc5 11. Nxc5 $2 {This exchange favours black} (11. Nd4) 11... Bxc5 12. dxe4 dxe4 13. Nc3 ({ Shutting in the bishop doesn't promise white an advantage either.} 13. e3 Bf5 14. Na3 O-O 15. Bd2 $1 Rfd8 16. Qc2 Rac8 17. Bc3 Rd3 $11) 13... e3 $1 14. fxe3 Bxe3+ 15. Kh1 ({Ironically it was probably better to play} 15. Bxe3 $1 Qxe3+ { The queen is misplaced on e3.} 16. Kh1 O-O 17. Rf4 $1 Be6 (17... Qb6 18. Qd4 $1 {This is the key to white maintaining the balance.}) 18. Qd4 Qxd4 19. Rxd4 $11) 15... Bxc1 16. Rxc1 O-O 17. Nd5 (17. e4 {Is another way for white to deal with the threat of Ng4.} Be6 18. Nd5 Bxd5 19. exd5 Rfc8 20. Rxc8+ Rxc8 21. Qd2 Ne8 { Black's knight will play Nd6 and blockade the d6 square.}) 17... Nxd5 18. Qxd5 Qxb2 19. Rxf7 $5 {A great attempt at mixing things up but the mark falls a little short of its target.} Rxf7 20. Rf1 Bf5 $1 21. Rxf5 Qc1+ 22. Rf1 Qc7 23. Qb3 Kf8 24. Qa3+ Qe7 25. Rxf7+ Kxf7 26. Bd5+ Kf8 27. Qf3+ Qf6 28. Qa3+ Ke8 29. Kg2 Rc8 30. Qd3 $2 ({White should maximise her chances as much as possible.} 30. Bxb7 $5 Rc3 31. Qa2 Kf8 32. Qd2 Rc5 33. Bd5 Qe5 34. Bf3 Qf6 35. Qd7 { Black has still a tonne of work in front of her.}) 30... Qe5 31. Bf3 $2 ({ Once again the b-pawn must not survive.} 31. Bxb7 $1 Rc3 32. Qa6) 31... g6 32. h4 $4 {Ju begins to consolidate her pieces in a very impressive manner.} (32. Bxb7 Rc7 33. Bf3 Rc3 34. Qd2 h5 35. h4) 32... Rc7 $1 33. Qb3 Kf8 34. Qd3 Kg7 35. Qd8 Rf7 36. Qb6 Re7 37. Qd8 Qc5 38. Qb8 Qd4 39. Qc8 Qe5 40. Qd8 Qc5 41. Qb8 Qc7 42. Qa8 h6 43. Bd5 $4 {White is seeing ghosts,there is no checkmate.} Rxe2+ 44. Kf3 Re7 $1 45. Qg8+ Kf6 46. Qh8+ Rg7 47. Qf8+ ({White is completely lost even after} 47. Qxh6 Qc3+ 48. Kg4 Qc8+ 49. Kf3 Qf5+ {nets black the point.}) 47... Ke5 48. Ba2 Qc6+ 49. Ke2 Qe4+ 50. Kd1 Rd7+ 0-1 [Event "WCh Women 2018"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk RUS"] [Date "2018.11.19"] [Round "6.1"] [White "Ju, Wenjun"] [Black "Lagno, Kateryna"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [WhiteElo "2568"] [BlackElo "2556"] [Annotator "Johannes Fischer"] [PlyCount "71"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. g3 c6 5. e4 d5 6. cxd5 cxd5 7. e5 Ne4 8. Nge2 Nc6 9. Bg2 Bg4 10. f3 Nxc3 11. Nxc3 {A novelty in a rare line. 11.bxc3 weakens the white pawn position, but supports the white centre. After this exchange we arrive at an interesting position with mutual chances.} Be6 12. f4 Qb6 13. Bxd5 Rd8 14. Bxe6 fxe6 {An unusual position: the black bishop is almost locked out of the game, but White's king is exposed and d4 is weak.} 15. Be3 Qxb2 16. Ne2 Bh6 {With the threat of 17...Nxe5.} 17. Bf2 g5 {Black wants to free the bishop, but now her king is also exposed.} 18. Rb1 Qa3 ({Black probably didn't want to get involved with} 18... Qxa2 19. Nc3 Qc4 20. Qh5+ Kd7 {but after} 21. Ne2 gxf4 22. Qxh6 f3 {the position looks balanced.}) 19. Qb3 Qa5+ 20. Kf1 gxf4 21. gxf4 Rf8 22. Qf3 $6 {This position is fantastically complicated and White opts for the "safe" way, covering the f4 pawn.} ({More energetic was} 22. Qxe6 Bxf4 23. Rxb7 {but the white king does not look to happy after} Qa4 {Even so, White keeps a small edge, according to engines, with} 24. Kg2) 22... Qxa2 23. Kg2 Qd5 $6 {Now Black falls back on safety and swaps queens.} ({More aggressive and better was} 23... Rg8+ {E.g.} 24. Kh3 Qc2 25. Qh5+ Rg6 26. Rhg1 Qd3+ 27. Kh4 Kd7 28. Rxb7+ Kc8 29. Rb2 {In this unusual position, engines give Black only a small advantage, but the exposed white king and Black's passed a-pawn are very concrete trumps.}) 24. Qxd5 Rxd5 25. Rxb7 Bxf4 26. Rc7 Nd8 27. Rxa7 Rd7 28. Ra8 Rb7 29. Rha1 Bh6 30. R1a2 Kf7 31. Rc2 Kg6 32. Ra3 Kg7 33. Rg3+ Kf7 34. Rf3+ Ke8 35. Rh3 {And again White plays it safe.} ({After} 35. Rxf8+ Kxf8 36. Ng3 Rb3 37. Ne4 Ke8 38. Rc8 {Ju had one final chance, e.g.} Kd7 39. Ra8 Rb5 40. Nc5+ Kc7 41. Ra7+ Kc6 42. Kf3 {and White is nearly winning}) 35... Rg8+ 36. Rg3 1/2-1/2 [Event "FIDE Women's World Championship"] [Site "Khanty Mansiysk"] [Date "2018.11.19"] [Round "46.1"] [White "Ju, Wenjun"] [Black "Lagno, Kateryna"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "E61"] [WhiteElo "2568"] [BlackElo "2556"] [Annotator "Houska"] [PlyCount "71"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "China"] [BlackTeam "Russia"] [WhiteTeamCountry "CHN"] [BlackTeamCountry "RUS"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. g3 $5 {A crafty move-order to avoid the Grunfeld Slav, it is, after all very difficult to hit a moving target.} c6 ({ Black can take the game into theoretical Grunfeld waters with} 4... d5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. Bg2 Nb6 7. Nf3 Nc6 ({Or} 7... O-O) 8. e3 {with a very position familiar to nearly everyone.}) 5. e4 $5 {This is the whole point to White's sneaky move-order} (5. Nf3 d5 $5 {would take the game into the solid Grunfeld slav, something Ju is keen to avoid.}) 5... d5 $5 6. cxd5 ({White could also maintain the tension with} 6. e5 Ne4 7. Nge2 {would lead to a pawn sacrifice after} (7. cxd5 $5) 7... Bg4 8. Bg2 Nxc3 9. bxc3 dxc4 10. h3 Bf5 $5 11. g4 $5 Bc8 12. O-O h5 13. Nf4 hxg4 14. hxg4 e6 15. Nh3 Nd7 16. Ng5 {White is manoueving the knight towards the weak d6 square.}) 6... cxd5 7. e5 Ne4 8. Nge2 $5 Nc6 9. Bg2 Bg4 10. f3 $6 ({It was objectively better to accept the ensuing exchanges and follow in the footsteps of GM Mamedyarov with} 10. h3 Nxc3 11. bxc3 Bxe2 ({Otherwise the bishop will need to retreat all the way home to} 11... Bc8 12. Rb1 Na5 13. Nf4 e6 14. h4 Nc4 15. h5 {With a dynamic position.}) 12. Qxe2 e6 13. Rb1 b6 14. h4 h5 15. Bg5 Qc7 {Now white should play} 16. O-O ({ The blunt} 16. g4 $2 hxg4 17. Qxg4 Nxe5 18. dxe5 Qxc3+ {1/2-1/2 (27) Mamedyarov,S (2733)-Libiszewski,F (2500) San Sebastian ESP 2011}) 16... Na5 17. Rfc1 Nc4 {and now White can improve her position with the sophisticated} 18. Qf3 Rc8 19. Bf1 Qb7 20. Kg2 {White is working on the basis that it is not easy for black's king to find a safe spot.} O-O 21. Qf4 $1 (21. Bd3 f5 $1) 21... f5 {is not possible now that the white queen is protected on f4.}) 10... Nxc3 11. Nxc3 {A novelty} ({An earlier game had continued} 11. bxc3 Bd7 12. Qb3 Bc8 13. h4 h5 14. O-O O-O 15. f4 e6 16. f5 $1 {with an advantage for white in Skomorokhin,R (2436)-Kotenko,P (2396) Izhevsk RUS 2010}) 11... Be6 12. f4 Qb6 $1 {Lagno starts to force matters.} 13. Bxd5 (13. O-O Qxd4+ 14. Qxd4 Nxd4 15. Nxd5 O-O-O 16. Nc3 Bf5 17. Be3) ({After} 13. Be3 {Lagno can afford to be greedy with} Qxb2) 13... Rd8 $2 {A true maximalist move inviting complications. } ({It would have been safe and better} 13... Bxd5 14. Nxd5 Qd8 $1) 14. Bxe6 fxe6 {The position is very chaotic, the momentum is with black but the bishop on g7 is locked out of the game.} 15. Be3 $1 Qxb2 16. Ne2 Bh6 17. Bf2 $2 { White is overthinking things.} ({Of course not} 17. O-O {when Black has the cheap tactic} Nxe5 $1) (17. Qb1 $1 {It is now time to control the chaos and take the game into the endgame where the absence of the black bishop will start to take its toll.} Qa3 18. Qb3 (18. Kf2 {is possible but not so simple.}) 18... Qxb3 19. axb3 Bg7 20. h4 $1 {Lagno will be condemned to passive defence for the rest of the game.}) 17... g5 $1 {But of course! The bishop has been given the keys to its own cell.} 18. Rb1 Qa3 19. Qb3 {Too late!} Qa5+ 20. Kf1 gxf4 21. gxf4 Rf8 $6 ({Black can roll with the punches and play} 21... Bxf4 22. Nxf4 Nxd4 23. Qe3 $1 Qxa2 24. Rd1 {With a mess on the board}) 22. Qf3 $4 { Sensing the danger white rushes the queen to protect her vulnerable king but this is a big mistake allowing black a nice tactical blow.} ({Intstead, Ju had to let go of the fear and embark on her own counter-attack} 22. Qxe6 $1 Bxf4 23. Rxb7 Qa4 {The computer recommends the subtle} 24. Kg2 Bxe5 $3 (24... Qc2 25. Kh3 $1) 25. Rhb1 $1 (25. dxe5 $4 Qe4+ $1) 25... Bd6 {The position is just MAD!}) 22... Qxa2 $2 ({Missing} 22... Bxf4 $3 23. Nxf4 $2 (23. Rxb7 Rc8 $1) 23... Rxd4 $1 24. Bxd4 Nxd4 25. Qe3 Qxa2 26. Re1 Qc4+ 27. Kg2 Nc2 {Black is winning.}) 23. Kg2 Qd5 $2 {It is wrong time to neutralise the dynamic in the position} (23... Rg8+ 24. Kh3 Qc2 25. Ng3 Nxd4 26. Bxd4 Rxd4 27. Qh5+ Qg6 28. Rxb7 {Black is simply winning.}) 24. Qxd5 $1 {Now crisis has been averted and both sides are safely equal.} Rxd5 25. Rxb7 Bxf4 26. Rc7 Nd8 27. Rxa7 Rd7 28. Ra8 Rb7 29. Rha1 Bh6 30. R1a2 Kf7 31. Rc2 Kg6 32. Ra3 Kg7 33. Rg3+ Kf7 34. Rf3+ Ke8 35. Rh3 Rg8+ 36. Rg3 1/2-1/2 [Event "Khanty Mansiysk"] [Site "Khanty Mansiysk"] [Date "2018.11.21"] [Round "48.1"] [White "Ju, Wenjun"] [Black "Lagno, Kateryna"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "E70"] [WhiteElo "2568"] [BlackElo "2556"] [Annotator "Jovi"] [PlyCount "136"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "China"] [BlackTeam "Russia"] [WhiteTeamCountry "CHN"] [BlackTeamCountry "RUS"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Bd3 O-O 6. Nge2 c5 7. d5 e6 8. Bg5 $5 {An unsual line.} h6 9. Bh4 exd5 10. Nxd5 $5 {This time it is Ju that controls the pace.} ({The most natural recapture would be} 10. exd5) 10... g5 $6 { In light of how quickly Lagno gets into difficulties, its probably a good idea to delay this advance until white has castled.} (10... Nc6 $5) 11. Bg3 Nxd5 $6 {This makes Lagno's queenside development difficult.} (11... Nc6 12. h4 $1) 12. cxd5 Bxb2 13. h4 $5 (13. Rb1 Bg7 14. h4 {gives Black an extra option of playing.} f6) 13... g4 ({It is brave soul (or a computer) that would dare to hand over all their dark squares.} 13... Bxa1 14. Qxa1 f6 15. hxg5 hxg5 16. Kd2 {and sure enough after} Kg7 {White can play the devastating} (16... c4 17. Bc2 $1) (16... Qe7 17. Rh6 Qg7 18. Qh1) 17. Bxd6 Qxd6 18. Rh7+ Kg8 19. Qh1 f5 20. Qh5 {with a brilliancy award.}) 14. Rb1 Bg7 15. O-O Re8 16. Nf4 {The prospect of a knight landing on h5 causes Lagno to understandably panic.} c4 $2 ({ Black could have played} 16... Nd7 17. Nh5 Nf6 18. Nxg7 Kxg7 19. Re1 {The position still doesn't look very pleasant for black.}) 17. Bxc4 Rxe4 18. Bd3 ({ Ju could have attacked the rook in a different manner.} 18. Qc2 $1 {After the defensive} Re5 {White has the blow} (18... Re8 19. Nh5) 19. Ne6 fxe6 20. Bxe5 Bxe5 21. Qg6+ Bg7 22. dxe6 Qe7 23. Rb5 Nc6 24. Rd1 {Black cannot stop the rooks from penetrating into the position with decisive effect.}) 18... Re5 19. f3 h5 20. Be2 Qd7 21. Rb4 ({Lagno's position looks incredibly shaky and unsurprisingly there is a breakthrough in the form of} 21. fxg4 hxg4 22. Ne6 $1 fxe6 23. Bxe5 dxe5 24. Bxg4 Qe7 25. Rc1 Bd7 26. Rc7 {White is simply crushing it.}) 21... Na6 22. Re4 Rxe4 23. fxe4 Nc5 $1 24. e5 $5 (24. Bd3 {is possible as the black position will fall apart after} Nxd3 25. Qxd3 $1 Qe7 26. Nxh5) 24... dxe5 (24... Bxe5 25. Nxh5 $1) 25. Nxh5 Ne4 $1 26. Be1 (26. d6 $1) 26... f5 27. Nxg7 Qxg7 28. Bd3 Bd7 29. Bxe4 fxe4 30. Bg3 Rf8 31. Re1 Bb5 32. Qb3 Bd3 33. d6+ Qf7 34. Qc3 Qe6 35. Qxe5 $2 {Throwing away the win.} ({Ju should have simply played the calm} 35. Qc7 Rf7 $1 (35... Qf7 {Black's problem is that the white king is dead safe and the d6 pawn is just too strong.} 36. Rc1 e3 37. d7 Qf6 38. Qxb7 Bf5 39. Rc8) 36. Qd8+ Kh7 37. Rc1 Bc4 38. Qg5 Rf5 39. Qe3 Bd5 40. Rc7+ Rf7 41. Qf2 Rg7 42. Kh2) 35... Qxe5 36. Bxe5 Kf7 37. g3 Ke6 38. Bf4 b5 $2 (38... Rf5 $1 {The h-pawn must not be allowed to advance.} 39. Rc1 e3 40. Bxe3 Kxd6 41. Bxa7 {Once again in a rook and opposite coloured endgame, black has good chances to draw.}) 39. h5 a5 40. h6 b4 41. Rc1 a4 42. Rc7 $1 b3 43. axb3 axb3 44. Re7+ Kd5 45. Rb7 e3 46. Rxb3 $1 Ke4 47. Kg2 e2 48. Rb4+ ({Ju misses the study-like win} 48. Rb7 e1=N+ $1 49. Kf2 Nf3 {Black's extra piece is useless but only if white steps accurately.} 50. Re7+ $1 {The rook needs to get to e8 with tempo.} Kf5 (50... Kd5 51. d7) 51. h7 (51. d7 Ra8 52. Bd2 $3 ( 52. h7 Bb5 {White's king is caught in a terrible mating net.} 53. Ke3 Ra3+) 52... Ra2 53. Re2 $3 {More beauty.}) 51... Kg6 (51... Ra8 52. Bc1 Bc4 53. Bb2 { This tie the bishop is protected on b2 by the future queen on h8.}) 52. d7 $1) 48... Kd5 49. Kf2 Re8 $1 {Lagno has been given her final respite and she does not let the draw slip.} 50. Bd2 Rf8+ 51. Bf4 Re8 52. Bd2 Rf8+ 53. Rf4 Rxf4+ 54. Bxf4 Ke6 55. Ke1 Kd7 56. Be5 Ke6 57. Kd2 Kd7 58. Bc3 e1=Q+ 59. Kxe1 Kxd6 60. Kd2 Bh7 61. Ke3 Ke6 62. Kf4 Kf7 63. Kxg4 Bc2 64. Kf4 Bb1 65. g4 Bc2 66. g5 Bb1 67. Ke5 Bc2 68. Kd6 Bb1 1/2-1/2 [Event "Khanty Mansiysk"] [Site "Khanty Mansiysk"] [Date "2018.11.23"] [Round "50.1"] [White "Ju, Wenjun"] [Black "Lagno, Kateryna"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "D20"] [WhiteElo "2568"] [BlackElo "2556"] [Annotator "Jovi"] [PlyCount "135"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "China"] [BlackTeam "Russia"] [WhiteTeamCountry "CHN"] [BlackTeamCountry "RUS"] 1. d4 d5 2. c4 dxc4 {A surprise, Kateryna Lagno has never played the Queens Gambit accepted except to use it to make a quick draw with a friend. Despite the surprise, Ju was unfazed and continued as if it were all in her preparation.} 3. e4 Nf6 4. e5 Nd5 5. Bxc4 Nb6 6. Bd3 ({There is a famous repetition aftr} 6. Bb3 Nc6 7. Nf3 Bg4 8. Ng5 Bxd1 9. Bxf7+ Kd7 10. Be6+ Ke8 11. Bf7+ {1/2-1/2 (13) Mkrtchian,L (2450)-Lagno,K (2537) Jermuk 2012} Kd7 12. Be6+ Ke8 13. Bf7+ {1/2-1/2 (13) Mkrtchian,L (2450)-Lagno,K (2537) Jermuk 2012}) 6... Nc6 7. Ne2 Bg4 $5 {Not such a popular move but Lagno is taking a calculated risk that Ju will not punish her out of the opening.} 8. f3 Bh5 9. Nbc3 (9. e6 $5 {Shutting in the f8 bishop would be the most critical move but Ju has not been playing in such an aggressive manner.}) 9... e6 10. Be3 Bg6 11. Bb5 (11. Be4 Bxe4 12. fxe4 Be7 13. O-O {White has a pleasant position.}) 11... Be7 12. Bxc6+ bxc6 13. Nf4 Bf5 ({Black can play actively with} 13... Nc4 { Play may continue with} 14. Qe2 {After all the black bishop on g6 is going nowhere.} Nxe3 15. Qxe3 Qb8 $1 16. Nxg6 hxg6 17. O-O-O Qb6 18. f4 Rb8 (18... O-O 19. h4 $1 {Suddenly there is a big fight on the board.}) 19. Rd2 O-O 20. h4 Bb4 21. a3 $5 Bxa3 22. bxa3 Qb3 23. Ra2 {White should be able to survive}) 14. Qe2 ({It was also possible to play with the dynamic} 14. g4 Bh4+ 15. Kf1 Bg6 16. Kg2 {White keeps a nice bind.}) 14... O-O 15. O-O h6 16. Rac1 {Ju plays all the happy moves very quickly.} Qd7 17. Rfd1 a5 18. Ne4 Nd5 19. Nc5 { A very natural manouevre} ({It was also possible to simplify the position with } 19. Nxd5 cxd5 20. Nc5 Bxc5 21. Rxc5 {White counts on the pressure against the c7 pawn to secure an advantage.} Rfb8 22. g4 Bh7 23. Bf2 Rb7 24. Be1 $1 { Killing the black counterplay on the b2 pawn.} a4 25. h4 Rab8 26. Bc3) 19... Bxc5 20. Rxc5 Nxf4 21. Bxf4 Rfb8 22. Qd2 Rb5 23. Rxb5 cxb5 24. Rc1 a4 25. a3 c6 26. Rc5 Rc8 27. h3 ({After} 27. g4 {Black can play the quirky} Bb1 28. Qf2 Ba2 {The bishop will head to either c4 or d5.}) 27... Bg6 28. Be3 Bf5 29. Qc1 Bd3 30. Rc3 Bg6 31. Kf2 Bf5 32. h4 (32. g4 Bg6 33. Kg2 Kh7 34. Bf2) 32... h5 33. Qd2 Qd5 34. Rc5 Qb3 35. Qc3 {Ju gambles that the rook and bishop ending will be better for her as Lagno will be condemned to passivity} Qxc3 ({Black can leave the pawn to its fate with} 35... Qd1 36. Rxc6 Rxc6 37. Qxc6 Bd3 38. Kg3 Qe1+ 39. Bf2 Qh1 40. Qe8+ $2 Kh7 41. Qxf7 Bf1 {White maybe forced to take a perpetual check.}) 36. Rxc3 Kf8 37. Kg3 Ke8 38. Kf4 Kd7 39. g4 Bg6 40. Rc1 Rb8 41. Rg1 $5 {A very clever move} Rh8 ({The tempting} 41... b4 $2 42. gxh5 Bxh5 43. Rxg7 bxa3 44. bxa3 Rb3 $2 45. Rg5 $1) (41... hxg4 {Gives white some hope after} 42. fxg4 b4 43. h5 Bd3 44. Bd2 bxa3 45. bxa3 Rb3 46. Bb4 Be2 {White may have some chances on the basis of the outside passed pawn.}) 42. Bf2 Rg8 43. Be1 Rh8 44. Rg2 Rg8 45. gxh5 Bxh5 {Black's problem is that the bishop is now shut in a cage on h5.} 46. Rg5 g6 $2 {Once again Lagno locks her bishop out of the game! Not a good choice.} (46... Bg6 47. h5 Bd3 48. Rg2 Ke8 49. Rg1 Rh8 50. Rxg7 Rxh5 51. Rg8+ Kd7 {With a likely draw.}) 47. Bb4 Rh8 48. Bc5 Ke8 49. Rg3 Rh7 50. Rg1 Kd7 51. Bb4 Rh8 52. Re1 Rg8 53. Re3 $2 {Lagno breaks free with the dastardly} ({White needed to keep control} 53. Kg5 $1 Ke8 54. Re3 Rh8 55. Rc3 Kd7 56. Kf6 Ra8 {Unfortunately the black pawn is poisoned as after} 57. Kxf7 ({ However white will still be able to torture black for a long time with} 57. Kg7 ) 57... g5+ $1) 53... g5+ $1 54. hxg5 Bg6 55. Re1 Rh8 $1 {White's extra pawn counts for nothing.} 56. Kg3 Bf5 57. Bd2 Rh3+ 58. Kg2 Rh4 59. Be3 Rh8 60. Rc1 Bh3+ 61. Kg3 Bf5 62. Bf2 Rh3+ 63. Kg2 Rh5 64. Be3 Bh3+ 65. Kg3 Bf5 66. Kg2 Bh3+ 67. Kg3 Bf5 68. Kg2 1/2-1/2 [Event "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Date "2018.11.20"] [Round "47.1"] [White "Lagno, Kateryna"] [Black "Ju, Wenjun"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "E04"] [WhiteElo "2556"] [BlackElo "2568"] [Annotator "Jovi"] [PlyCount "117"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "Russia"] [BlackTeam "China"] [WhiteTeamCountry "RUS"] [BlackTeamCountry "CHN"] 1. Nf3 Nf6 2. g3 d5 3. Bg2 c5 4. O-O Nc6 5. d4 e6 6. c4 dxc4 {Transposing into a Catalan which can arise after 1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.g3 dxc4 5.Bg2 c5 6. 0-0 Nc6} 7. dxc5 Qxd1 8. Rxd1 Bxc5 9. Nfd2 $5 {A sideline that was first played by Ju Wenjun herself, whether this was done deliberately is a mystery.} (9. Nbd2 c3) 9... Na5 $5 {Holding on to the pawn.} 10. Na3 Bxa3 11. bxa3 O-O ({ More to the point is} 11... Bd7 $1 {Developing the problem piece on c8.} 12. Bb2 Rc8 13. Bc3 b6 14. Rdc1 Rc7 $5 (14... O-O 15. Bxa5 bxa5 16. Nxc4 Bb5 17. Nxa5 Bxe2 {Ju Wenjun (2559)-Guo Qi (2447) Yangzhou CHN 2016 now white could have played} 18. Nc6 {with a slight advantage.}) 15. Bxa5 (15. Bb4 Kd8 $1) (15. Rab1 O-O 16. Bxa5 bxa5 17. Nxc4 g6 18. Nxa5 Rfc8 {And the extra pawn is not worth too much.}) 15... bxa5 16. Rxc4 Rxc4 17. Nxc4 Ke7 18. Nxa5 Rc8 19. Nb3 Ne8 (19... Rc2 $5) 20. Rc1 Rxc1+ 21. Nxc1 Nd6 22. Kf1 Nc4 {1/2-1/2 (22) Dominguez Perez,L (2739)-Anand,V (2768) Saint Louis USA 2018}) ({Another fighting option is} 11... Nd5 12. Ne4 O-O 13. Bd2 b6 (13... Nc6 $5 14. Nc3 Rd8 15. Rab1 b6 (15... f6 {Fressinet,L (2645)-Edouard,R (2638) Nimes FRA 2018})) 14. Rac1 Rb8 $1 15. Nd6 Rd8 16. e4 Rxd6 17. exd5 f6 {was fine in Bluebaum,M (2643)-Buhmann,R (2567) Austria AUT 2017}) 12. Ne4 e5 {After a long think Lagno played} 13. Bd2 Nxe4 14. Bxe4 Nc6 15. Bc3 Be6 16. Bxc6 bxc6 17. Bxe5 Rfd8 18. Bc3 f6 ({Perhaps} 18... Rd5 $1 19. Rab1 (19. Rxd5 cxd5 20. Rb1 Rd8 21. e3 f6 22. Kg2 {Black will suffer but should hold.}) 19... f6 20. Rxd5 cxd5 21. Rb7 Rd8 22. e3 h5 $1 {as} 23. Rxa7 {concedes the b-file.} Rb8 $1) 19. f3 Kf7 20. Kf2 Rxd1 21. Rxd1 Rb8 {Visually the position looks fine for both sides. Black has a double passed c-pawn but it is nicely blockaded. The big problem is that black's bishop on e6 is very poorly placed it has neither a target nor a comfortable place to go. The situation is still a draw but black has to tread very carefully.} 22. g4 {Wind it up and watch it go!} c5 23. h4 h6 24. a4 Ke7 25. a5 Rb7 ({Black should play} 25... Rd8 26. Rb1 Bc8 27. Kg3 Kd7 28. g5 ({ The calm} 28. Rh1 Kc6 $1 29. g5 hxg5 30. hxg5 fxg5 31. Rh7 {Looks very promising for white but black has the resource} Re8 32. e4 g4 $1) 28... hxg5 29. hxg5 fxg5 30. Kg4 Kc6+ 31. Kxg5 Rd5+ 32. Kf4 g5+ 33. Kg3 g4 $1 {A great move, now} 34. f4 {is bad because of} Rh5 $1) 26. Rg1 Rd7 27. g5 hxg5 28. hxg5 Kf7 29. gxf6 gxf6 30. Rh1 {Lagno's play is exemplary.} Kg7 31. Rb1 Kf7 32. Rb5 Rc7 33. Rb8 Re7 34. Rh8 $1 {Excellent play, Lagno's switch from one side of the board to another manages to confuse Ju.} Kg6 35. Rf8 Rf7 36. Rg8+ Kh7 $2 ({ The only way to save the game is to play} 36... Rg7 37. Rd8 Rd7 38. Rf8 (38. Rc8 Rd3 $1) 38... Rf7 39. Rg8+ Rg7 40. Re8 Bd7 41. Re4 {With excellent chances for a draw.}) 37. Rd8 Kg6 38. Rd6 Re7 39. Rc6 Kf7 40. Rxc5 Rd7 41. Rc6 f5 $2 { Allowing the white monarch a path into the position.} ({Passive defence could have offered more resistance.} 41... Re7 42. Kg3 Rd7 43. Kf4 Rd1 44. Ra6 Rd7 45. Rc6 Re7 46. Ra6 Rd7 {Perhaps black will hold.}) 42. Ke3 Re7 43. Kf4 { White's king entering the position can only spell one thing - trouble.} Rd7 44. Rc5 Rd8 45. Rb5 Rd7 46. a6 Kg6 $2 {Hastening the end.} (46... Re7 47. Bb4 Rd7 48. Kg5 {Black is in zugzwang.}) 47. Ke5 Re7 48. Rb7 Re8 49. Rxa7 Bf7+ 50. Kd4 Rxe2 51. a4 Re6 52. Kc5 Be8 53. Rg7+ Kh6 54. a7 Ra6 55. Re7 Rc6+ 56. Kb4 Rc8 57. Rb7 Ra8 58. Rb8 Bc6 59. Rb6 1-0 [Event "Khanty Mansiysk"] [Site "Khanty Mansiysk"] [Date "2018.11.22"] [Round "49.1"] [White "Lagno, Kateryna"] [Black "Ju, Wenjun"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "B31"] [WhiteElo "2556"] [BlackElo "2568"] [Annotator "Jovi"] [PlyCount "64"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "Russia"] [BlackTeam "China"] [WhiteTeamCountry "RUS"] [BlackTeamCountry "CHN"] 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 g6 4. O-O Bg7 5. Re1 e5 $5 {we will see the speculative wing gambit essayed by Fabiano Caruana in London...?} 6. a3 { Not quite!} (6. b4 Nxb4 7. Bb2 a6 8. a3 {was how the play in London played out Caruana,F (2832)-Carlsen,M (2835) London ENG 2018}) 6... Nge7 7. Nc3 $5 ({ Backing out of} 7. b4) 7... O-O 8. Bc4 d6 9. d3 ({It might be simpler for Lagno to emulate her opponent's style and play in a more straightforward manner.} 9. Nd5 $5 Nxd5 10. Bxd5 h6 11. d3 Kh7 12. c3 f5 13. exf5 $1 gxf5 14. b4 $1 {Now is the time to strike on the wing.} cxb4 15. axb4 Qf6 16. h4 f4 17. d4 exd4 18. b5 {The mess is in white's favour.}) 9... h6 10. Nd5 Kh7 11. c3 f5 12. exf5 $1 ({No-one is going to like playing} 12. b4 f4 {Even if the computer thinks its going to be okay!}) 12... gxf5 13. b4 ({If you pledge, don't hedge! White's position has been building up to this move and when the time comes, Lagno loses bottle and backs out.} 13. Ng5+ $5 Kg6 14. Nf3 {Ju would need to play with the king on g6 in order to avoid a repetition.} Nxd5 15. Bxd5 Qf6 16. b4 Ne7 17. Bb3 b6) 13... Ng6 14. b5 $2 {Removing all the central tension from the position, now Black's centre is secure.} Na5 15. Ba2 Be6 16. Qa4 b6 17. Bd2 Rg8 18. Rad1 Qd7 {Objectively this position is very difficult for Lagno, there is no clear plan.} 19. Nh4 $2 ({Perhaps the best thing to do is wait and see with} 19. Kh1 {until Ju decides to initiate active operations.}) 19... Bh8 $5 ( {Black could have finished the game off with the disruptive} 19... c4 $1 20. Nxg6 Bxd5 {wins}) 20. Nxg6 Rxg6 21. Qh4 Rag8 22. g3 Qf7 23. c4 Bf6 24. Nxf6+ Rxf6 25. f4 Rg4 26. Qh3 Rfg6 27. Rf1 Qg7 28. Kh1 $4 ({The only move to save the game is} 28. Qh5 Bc8 29. Rf2 (29. Kf2 exf4 30. Bxf4)) 28... Bc8 29. Qh5 Bb7+ 30. Kg1 Rxg3+ 31. hxg3 Rxg3+ 32. Kf2 Rg2+ 0-1 [Event "Khanty Mansiysk"] [Site "Khanty Mansiysk"] [Date "2018.11.23"] [Round "51.1"] [White "Lagno, Kateryna"] [Black "Ju, Wenjun"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "E04"] [WhiteElo "2556"] [BlackElo "2568"] [Annotator "Jovi"] [PlyCount "102"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "Russia"] [BlackTeam "China"] [WhiteTeamCountry "RUS"] [BlackTeamCountry "CHN"] 1. Nf3 d5 2. g3 Nf6 3. Bg2 c5 4. O-O Nc6 5. d4 e6 6. c4 dxc4 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 7. dxc5 {170} Qxd1 {7 Repeating the opening from game two} 8. Rxd1 {[%emt 0:00: 01]} Bxc5 {[%emt 0:00:09]} 9. Nbd2 {11 Lagno sticks to the main-line this time. } (9. Nfd2 {happened in their game 2 encounter.}) 9... c3 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 10. bxc3 {[%emt 0:00:03]} O-O {[%emt 0:00:28]} 11. Nb3 {134} Be7 {Ju sticks to the tried and tested lines.} (11... Bb6 12. Ba3 Re8 13. Nfd2 $1) 12. c4 Bd7 13. Bb2 Rfd8 14. Nfd4 Rac8 15. Nb5 {White is playing to obtain the bishop pair.} ({ White doesn't gain too much after} 15. Nxc6 Bxc6 16. Rxd8+ Bxd8 17. Rd1 Bxg2 18. Kxg2 Kf8 19. Bd4 Rxc4 20. Bxa7 Be7 21. Bd4 Ne8 22. Rc1 Rxc1 23. Nxc1 Bf6 24. Bc5+ Be7 25. Bd4 Bf6 26. Bc5+ Be7 27. Bd4 {½-½ (27) Saduakassova,D (2474) -Ju,W (2561) Batumi OL 2018}) 15... b6 16. Nd6 Bxd6 $6 ({It was more accurate to play} 16... Rc7 17. Rac1 Nb4 18. Nb5 Bxb5 19. Rxd8+ Bxd8 20. cxb5 Nxa2 21. Ra1 Nc3 {and the position soon fizzled out to a draw in Bogner,S (2586)-Can,E (2605) Rome ITA 2017}) 17. Rxd6 Be8 18. Rd3 Nb4 19. Rxd8 Rxd8 20. Bc3 a5 $5 $146 ({Both} 20... Nc6 {and 20...Na6 had been tried in earlier games.}) 21. Nd2 Bc6 {Played after long thought.} (21... Na6 $1 {Had a nice point that after} 22. Rb1 Nc5 {is possible} 23. Nb3 ({Now} 23. Rxb6 {would be a blunder on account of} Na4 24. Bxa5 Nxb6 25. c5 Rxd2 {Black wins material.}) 23... Na4 24. Ba1 Rc8 25. Rc1 Bc6 $1 {Black should be equal.}) 22. a3 $1 {An excellent move opening the a-line.} (22. Bxc6 Nxc6 23. Rb1 $1 Nd7 {Black is passive but solid. } 24. Ne4 Kf8 25. f3 Rc8 $1) (22. Bxb4 axb4 $1) 22... Bxg2 23. axb4 axb4 24. Bxb4 Bb7 25. f3 $2 ({More incisive was} 25. Ra7 $1 {maintaining the pressure.} Rd7 26. f3 h6 27. Kf2 {and black is struggling to find a plan.}) 25... Ra8 $1 26. Rxa8+ Bxa8 27. Kf2 Nd7 28. Ke3 f6 29. Ne4 Kf7 30. Nd6+ Ke7 $1 31. Nc8+ Kd8 $1 {Well calculated, the opposite colour bishop is simply a draw, Lagno tries but it's not possible to magic something out of nothing.} 32. Nxb6 Nxb6 33. Ba5 Kc7 34. c5 Kc6 35. Bxb6 Kd7 36. g4 e5 37. f4 exf4+ 38. Kxf4 Ke6 39. h4 g6 40. g5 f5 41. Bc7 Bb7 42. Bd6 Bc6 43. Kg3 Bb7 44. h5 Ba6 45. hxg6 hxg6 46. Kf3 Bb7+ 47. Ke3 Bc6 48. Kd4 Bb7 49. Kc3 Bc6 50. Kb4 Kd7 51. Ka5 Bd5 1/2-1/2 [Event "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Date "2018.11.23"] [Round "53.1"] [White "Ju, Wenjun"] [Black "Lagno, Kateryna"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "B06"] [WhiteElo "2568"] [BlackElo "2556"] [Annotator "Jovi"] [PlyCount "69"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "China"] [BlackTeam "Russia"] [WhiteTeamCountry "CHN"] [BlackTeamCountry "RUS"] 1. d4 d6 2. Nf3 g6 3. e4 Bg7 4. Bc4 e6 5. O-O Ne7 6. a4 {Ju resorts back to a line she employed in her 2018 World championship match against Tan Zhongyi.} O-O ({In that championship match Ju faced} 6... Nd7 7. c3 a5 8. Re1 b6 9. Na3 h6 10. Bd3 Bb7 11. Nc4 O-O 12. Qe2 {with a level position in Ju Wenjun (2571) -Tan Zhongyi (2522) Chongqing/Shanghai CHN 2018}) 7. c3 Nd7 8. a5 Rb8 {Lagno begins to play as quickly as possiible in order to stress Ju Wenjun out. It's a common technique in blitz chess. Chess is after all war!} 9. Qe2 {Ju continues to play solidly.} b6 $5 {A curious decision, curious in the sense that opening the a-line might give white some chance to exchange pieces on that line.} 10. axb6 axb6 11. Bf4 Bb7 12. Nbd2 h6 13. h4 $6 {Ironically in preventing the advance g6-g5, White begins to take some risk. Its risky because white not only creates a target in the h4 pawn but it also concedes the g4 square.} Nf6 14. Bg3 {Ju plays ultra-solidly, refusing to make a comittment.} d5 15. exd5 Nfxd5 {White's position is stable but the pawn on h4 has created weaknesses.} 16. Be5 Nf5 17. Bxg7 Kxg7 18. g3 {The repair work is in operation.} Nf6 {Opening the diagonal and stopping the checks.} (18... c5 19. dxc5 bxc5 20. Qe5+ Nf6 21. Rfd1 Qe7 22. Bf1 {With g3-g4 in the air.}) 19. Ba6 Ba8 20. Bd3 {The way Ju begins to neutralise any potential danger is especially instructive.} Nd6 $6 {Lagno cannot see a clear path forward and opts to prevent exchanges that will follow after a piece arrives on e4.} (20... c5 $1 {was the way to go} 21. dxc5 bxc5 22. Nc4 (22. Ne4 $4 {fails to} Rxb2) 22... Nd6 23. Nce5 Qc7 {It will not be easy for white to neutralise the weakness of the a8-h1 long diagonal.}) 21. Rfd1 Nd7 22. Ne4 Nf5 $5 23. Ned2 g5 $6 {Ju's rock solid strategy begins to pay dividends.} (23... c5 24. dxc5 bxc5 25. Be4) 24. hxg5 hxg5 25. Be4 $1 {Now white can make the desired trades and it will be the black king that suffers. The repair work is completed.} Qf6 26. Bxa8 Rxa8 27. Rxa8 Rxa8 28. Kg2 $1 {When a draw is sufficient it is sensible to play to control the dynamics of the position.} (28. Ne4 {would net a pawn but allow Lagno some threats along the h-file. No need for that kind of drama when a draw is sufficient to bring home the title.} Qh6 29. Nexg5 Rh8 30. Kg2 Nd6) 28... Rh8 29. Rh1 Rxh1 30. Kxh1 Nd6 31. Ne5 Qh6+ 32. Kg2 Nf6 33. Ndf3 Nfe4 34. Nh2 Qg6 $4 {With not much time on the clock Lagno makes a tragic error in a level position.} (34... Nf6 $1 35. Nhg4 Qh5 {would of course be very much equal.}) 35. Nxg6 1-0 [Event "Khanty Mansiysk"] [Site "Khanty Mansiysk"] [Date "2018.11.23"] [Round "52.1"] [White "Lagno, Kateryna"] [Black "Ju, Wenjun"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "A08"] [WhiteElo "2556"] [BlackElo "2568"] [Annotator "Jovi"] [PlyCount "98"] [EventDate "2018.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "Russia"] [BlackTeam "China"] [WhiteTeamCountry "RUS"] [BlackTeamCountry "CHN"] 1. Nf3 d5 2. g3 Nf6 3. Bg2 c5 4. O-O Nc6 5. d3 {A change of tack, Lagno switches to playing the King's Indian with colours reversed.} g6 6. Nc3 Bg7 7. e4 dxe4 8. dxe4 Bg4 ({It's also possible to trade queen with} 8... Qxd1 9. Rxd1 Bg4 10. Be3 Nd7 $1 11. h3 Bxf3 12. Bxf3 Nd4 13. Bxd4 Bxd4 14. Nd5 (14. Be2 $2 Bxc3 $15 {0-1 Lie,K (2265)-Gershon,A (2255) Menorca 1996}) 14... Rd8 15. c3 $10 Be5 {the position is equal.}) 9. Be3 (9. h3 Qxd1 10. Rxd1 Bxf3 11. Bxf3 Nd4 { Is the tactical point of black's play but after} 12. Bg2 {it is risky to be greedy with} Nxc2 13. e5 Nd7 14. Bxb7 Rd8 15. e6 fxe6 16. Rb1 {With compensation.}) 9... Nd7 10. h3 Bxf3 11. Bxf3 O-O 12. Bg2 Nb6 13. Bxc5 Nc4 14. Nd5 Nxb2 15. Nxe7+ Nxe7 $1 {The simplest.} ({Lagno can also play the stylish} 15... Qxe7 16. Bxe7 Nxd1 17. Bxf8 Bxa1 18. Rxd1 Kxf8 19. Rxa1 Rd8 20. e5 $1 { Black will still have problems to solve.}) 16. Qxd8 Rfxd8 17. Bxe7 Rd2 18. Rac1 ({Missing the surprising} 18. e5 $1 Rxc2 19. Bxb7 Re8 20. Bf6 Bxf6 21. exf6 Re6 (21... Rd2 22. Rac1) 22. Rac1 Rxc1 23. Rxc1 Rxf6 24. Rc7 {White can have some advantage based on the long range power of the bishop.}) 18... Rc8 19. Bg5 Rdxc2 20. Rxc2 Rxc2 21. Rc1 Rxc1+ 22. Bxc1 Bd4 23. Bf1 $4 {Tiredness sets in Lagno forgets there are two people playing chess, missing the snake in the grass. Sometimes we are blind to the obvious.} ({White can also play} 23. Kf1 $5 {but will have an easier game after} Na4 24. e5 Nc3 25. a3 b5 26. f4 a5 27. Ke1 b4 $1) (23. Bxb2 {was the safest and the simplest. A "Sliding doors" moment.}) 23... Nd1 $1 {An excellent pawn to win!} 24. Kg2 Nxf2 25. Kf3 Nd1 26. Bc4 Nc3 27. Bd2 ({It was possible to double-bluff black with} 27. Bb2 Nxe4 $6 { Aha I have tricked you! Cries black in delight but I have} 28. Bxf7+ $1 { responds white. Chess can be extremely fun when you talk to your pieces :)} Kxf7 29. Bxd4 Ng5+ 30. Kg4 Ne6 31. Bxa7 {White will once again have a slightly better ending.}) 27... Na4 28. Bd5 b6 29. Bf4 Nc3 30. Bb3 Kg7 31. e5 a5 32. e6 fxe6 33. Bxe6 b5 34. Bc7 ({White can try and bail out with} 34. Bd2 Kf6 35. Bxc3 Bxc3 36. Bd7 b4 37. g4 Be1 38. Kf4 $1 {White must not let Black to easily get to the fourth rank.} Bd2+ 39. Ke4 Kg5 40. Kf3 Kh4 41. Kg2 $1) 34... Kf6 { With not much time, Lagno begins to panic and play on instinct.} 35. Bd7 a4 36. Ba5 $4 {Now the game is lost.} (36. Bd6 $1 {Stopping the advancing pawns was necessary.}) 36... Nxa2 37. Bxb5 a3 38. Ke4 Bb2 39. Bc4 Nc1 40. Bd2 a2 41. Bxa2 Nxa2 42. Kd3 Bc1 43. Ba5 Ba3 44. Kc2 Bb4 45. Bd8+ Be7 46. Ba5 Nb4+ 47. Kd2 Bd6 48. g4 Nc6 49. Bb6 Ke5 0-1