[Event "FIDE Chess Grand Prix 2 2022 | Knockout"] [Site "Chess.com"] [Date "2022.03.11"] [Round "10"] [White "Giri, Anish"] [Black "Andreikin, Dmitry"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "B46"] [WhiteElo "2771"] [BlackElo "2724"] [Annotator "Bojkov,Dejan"] [PlyCount "126"] [EventDate "2022.??.??"] 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nc6 {The Taimanov Sicilian is Andreikin's main weapon; therefore it was easy to predict its appearance, especially in rapid and blitz.} 5. Nc3 a6 6. Nxc6 bxc6 7. Bd3 d5 8. O-O Nf6 9. Qf3 ({The other main move is:} 9. Re1 Be7 10. e5 Nd7 11. Qg4 g6 12. Na4 h5 13. Qe2 c5 14. c4 d4 15. b3 {as in Anand,V (2753)-Nepomniachtchi,I (2792) Zagreb 2021}) 9... Bb7 10. Re1 Be7 11. Qg3 h5 $1 $146 {[%mdl 8] A top-notch novelty. This is the reason why the top players play \"their openings\" in short time controls. They know them perfectly well, with all the nuances, and have enormous experience in the arising structures.} ({The predecessor was the recent GM game:} 11... O-O 12. Bh6 Ne8 13. Bf4 g6 14. Rad1 Rc8 15. Na4 Nf6 16. Bh6 Re8 17. e5 Nh5 18. Qg4 c5 19. c4 d4 20. b3 Ng7 21. Be4 Qc7 22. Bxb7 Qxb7 23. Rd3 Nf5 24. Bg5 {½-½ (24) Zwirs,$146 (2461)-Fedorchuk,S (2605) Cappelle la Grande 2022}) 12. h3 {Giri is not taken by surprise and reacts quickly. After all, there is a Dutch connection present from the predecessor.} ({ It is risky to accept the pawn sacrifice} 12. Qxg7 {would be likely met with} Rg8 13. Qh6 Qb6 {The threat is Nf6-g4 and after} 14. e5 ({Black also has plenty of compensation in case of} 14. Qf4 O-O-O) 14... Ng4 15. Qf4 c5 { White's position looks scary, to say at least}) 12... Kf8 {Once the g4-square has been taken under control, White already threatened to capture the pawn, thus the move in the game.} ({For instance} 12... h4 13. Qxg7 Rg8 14. Qh6 Qb6 15. e5 $1 {here looks good as Nf6-g4 does not exist anymore.}) 13. Bf4 { Giri can be happy with the opening outcome. Andreikin's king will have to suffer for a while.} (13. Bg5 $5) 13... h4 14. Qf3 Kg8 15. Rad1 $1 {White is preparing the maneuver Nc3-a4 followed by c2-c4, and playing in the center makes perfect sense with the idle black kingside.} Nh5 16. Bh2 Bd6 ({Or} 16... Rh6 17. Na4 {as planned.}) 17. Bxd6 Qxd6 18. e5 $1 {Giri wants to keep the queens alive.} ({Another interesting possibility was} 18. Na4 $5 {but then White might have disliked} Qf4 {However, White seems better here as well with} ({It is also difficult to assess if the center will be an asset or liability in the line} 18... e5 19. exd5 cxd5 20. c4 {However, it seems as White is in control, say} Bc6 21. Nc3 d4 22. Be4 {and the pawns become targets.}) 19. Be2 $5 (19. Qe2 $5 {to keep the queens is an option.}) 19... Qxf3 20. Bxf3 Nf4 21. Nc5) 18... Qb4 19. Ne2 g6 20. c3 {Giri switches to a blockading play.} ({ Even stronger seemed} 20. c4 $1 Kg7 (20... dxc4 21. Be4) 21. cxd5 cxd5 22. Qe3 {planting a super-knight on the d4-outpost.}) 20... Qe7 21. b4 a5 $1 { Andreikin is alert and quickly gets rid of a potential weakness, and a relatively bad bishop.} 22. a3 Ba6 23. Nd4 Bxd3 24. Qxd3 ({The machine claims an edge for White in the line} 24. Rxd3 axb4 25. axb4 c5 26. bxc5 Qxc5 27. g3 { but I personally cannot digest this evaluation.}) 24... Qb7 {This allows White a chance to finally open a file for his rooks and launch a serious attack against the opponent's king.} ({Safer was to finish his plan with} 24... axb4 25. axb4 ({Weaker is} 25. Nxc6 Qc7 26. Nxb4 Rxa3) 25... c5 26. bxc5 Qxc5 { with approximate equality.}) 25. Rb1 Qa6 26. b5 (26. Qf3 $5 {eyeballing the black king might have been equally good.}) 26... cxb5 27. Rxb5 Ng7 ({Here} 27... Kg7 $5 {seems more to the point.}) 28. Reb1 Qc8 ({If} 28... Nf5 29. Nxf5 gxf5 30. Qd2 {and the black king is in major danger.}) 29. Rb6 Qc5 ({However, now} 29... Nf5 {was possible and needed and after} 30. Nxf5 gxf5 31. Qd2 Rh5 { Black has good chances to repel the attack.}) 30. Qf3 $1 {A powerful move $1 Giri is ready to sacrifice two pawns but get to the enemy king.} Rf8 {A wise decision $1 Somewhere around here, both players entered the under-five-minute zone.} ({Andreikin correctly rejects} 30... Qxa3 31. Qf6 $1 Qxc3 32. Nf3 $1 { when White attacks practically with an extra rook and dominates completely, e. g.} Rf8 33. Rb8 Ne8 34. Qe7 {and Black's position in on the verge of the collapse.}) 31. Rb8 Qxa3 32. Rxf8+ {A pity $1 Up to here Giri's play was inspiring and almost perfect. The Dutchman felt that he needed to bring his knight closer to the opponent's king, but did not have the time to figure out the correct route.} ({Instead} 32. Nb5 $3 Qc5 33. Nd6 $1 {would have transferred the knight on the optimal square and that would have been all that White could have hoped for. White is winning, for example} Rxb8 ({Or} 33... Nf5 34. Rxf8+ Kxf8 35. Rb7 {and Black is in trouble.}) 34. Rxb8+ Kh7 35. Rb5 Qc6 36. Qxf7 {and it is basically over.}) 32... Qxf8 33. Nc6 ({It was not too late for} 33. Qf6 $1 {keeping some edge.}) 33... Qc5 34. Rb7 Nf5 $1 {Now Black is out of trouble and it is White who needs to prove the draw.} 35. Ne7+ Kg7 { Giri saw a seemingly forcing draw line and went for it} 36. Nxg6 ({The draw would have been achieved with} 36. Nxf5+ $1 gxf5 (36... exf5 37. e6 Rf8 38. Rd7 ) 37. Qf4 Rh5 38. g4 hxg3 39. Qxg3+ {It is even Black who needs to find the correct idea here} Kh6 $1 40. Rb8 Rg5 41. Rh8+ Kg7 42. Qxg5+ Kxh8 43. Qh6+ { with a perpetual check.}) 36... Qc6 $1 {A cold shower $1 In-between moves like these are the best blitzers’ bread-and-butter.} ({Giri likely only expected} 36... Kxg6 37. Qg4+ Kh6 38. Qf4+ {with inevitable perpetual.} Kg6 ({Black cannot deviate} 38... Kh7 $4 39. Rxf7+ Kg8 40. Rd7 {as it is White who mates here.}) 39. Qg4+) ({Also great would have been} 36... Qc8 $1) 37. Rxf7+ ({Or} 37. Ra7 Qb6 38. Rd7 Qb5 39. Ra7 Qb8 40. Rd7 Qe8 $1 {and once the f7-point is defended Black can finally pick up the knight} 41. Ra7 Kxg6 42. Qg4+ Kh6 43. Qf4+ Kh7) 37... Kxf7 38. Nxh8+ Kg7 {While freeing his knight, White will have to part with a bunch of pawns.} 39. Qh5 Qxc3 40. Nf7 ({No perpetual after} 40. Qf7+ Kxh8 41. Qf8+ Kh7 42. Qf7+ Ng7) 40... Qe1+ 41. Kh2 Qxf2 42. Ng5 ({Once more, the black knight is a perfect defender against the checks in the line} 42. Qh8+ Kxf7 43. Qf6+ Ke8 44. Qxe6+ Ne7) 42... Qg3+ 43. Kg1 Qe1+ 44. Kh2 Qxe5+ 45. Kg1 Qe3+ 46. Kh2 Qg3+ 47. Kg1 Qe1+ $1 {The most practical decision.} ({ Black would have also won with} 47... Ne3 {but why allow the many checks after} 48. Qf7+ Kh6 49. Qxe6+ Kxg5 50. Qe7+ Kf5) 48. Kh2 Qh1+ $1 {The point $1 The knight endgame is easily won.} 49. Kxh1 Ng3+ 50. Kg1 Nxh5 51. Nxe6+ Kf6 52. Nc5 Ke5 53. Kf2 d4 54. Ke2 Nf4+ 55. Kf3 Kd5 $1 56. Na4 (56. Nb3 a4) 56... Ne6 57. g3 hxg3 58. h4 (58. Kxg3 Kc4) 58... d3 59. Kxg3 Kc4 60. h5 Kb3 61. h6 Nf8 62. Nc5+ Kc2 63. Ne6 d2 {PLAY CHESS, NOT WAR.} 0-1 [Event "Belgrade SRB"] [Site "Belgrade SRB"] [Date "2022.03.11"] [Round "1.3"] [White "Andreikin, Dmitry"] [Black "Giri, Anish"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C28"] [Annotator "cahan"] [PlyCount "41"] [EventDate "2022.03.09"] {[%evp 0,41,19,38,25,41,14,-5,16,-4,16,23,16,34,34,10,2,-3,-3,-4,53,82,54,26, 25,28,81,39,52,7,14,-12,-18,20,-3,-5,-41,-32,-3,-19,-36,-48,-19,-48]} 1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 {A surprise.} Nf6 3. d3 Nc6 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. Nge2 ({Giri has also faced} 5. Nf3 {, for instance,} d5 (5... d6 6. O-O Bxc3 7. bxc3 Na5 $6 {(the main line, but this is, in my opinion, not particularly good, allowing White a comfortable edge.)} 8. Bb3 h6 9. h3 (9. Nd2 $5) 9... Qe7 10. Nh2 $6 (10. Ba4+ $5) 10... Nxb3 $2 (10... g5 $1 {was much better}) 11. axb3 {(White has a clear advantage as the overall pawn structure favors White, having the ability to play on both wings.)} g5 12. Re1 Rg8 13. Nf1 g4 14. h4 g3 15. fxg3 Rg6 16. b4 Nh5 17. Qxh5 Bg4 18. Qxg6 fxg6 19. Bxh6 Kd7 20. Ne3 Be6 21. Rf1 Qh7 22. Bg5 Qg8 23. Rf6 a6 24. Raf1 Re8 25. c4 b6 26. Nd5 Kc6 27. R6f2 Qg7 28. Kh2 Kb7 29. Nc3 Ra8 30. Rf6 Qg8 31. c5 Qe8 32. Nd5 dxc5 33. bxc5 bxc5 34. Rb1+ Kc8 35. Bh6 Kd7 36. Rb7 Bxd5 37. exd5 Kc8 38. Rb1 Kd7 39. Rbf1 Rd8 40. Rf8 Qe7 {1-0 (40) Nepomniachtchi,I (2784)-Giri,A (2764) chess24.com INT 2020}) 6. exd5 Nxd5 7. O-O Bxc3 8. bxc3 O-O 9. Qe1 Re8 10. Ng5 Bf5 11. f3 $6 (11. Rb1 $5) 11... Na5 12. Bb3 Nxb3 13. axb3 Bg6 {(Black has comfortably equalized.)} 14. Kh1 a5 15. Bd2 b6 16. Qg3 f6 17. Nh3 Qd7 18. Nf2 a4 19. c4 Ne7 20. bxa4 Rxa4 21. Ne4 Rea8 22. Rac1 Rd8 23. h3 Nf5 24. Qf2 Nd4 25. Be3 Ne6 26. Nc3 Ra3 27. Nb5 Ra2 28. Nc3 Ra3 29. Nb5 Ra2 30. Nc3 Ra3 {1/2-1/2 (30) Grischuk,A (2777)-Giri,A (2764) chess24.com INT 2020}) 5... d5 $1 ({In his first adventure in this variation, Giri played the clearl inferior} 5... Na5 $2 6. a3 Bxc3+ 7. Nxc3 Nxc4 8. dxc4 h6 9. Be3 d6 10. f3 Be6 11. Qe2 Qe7 12. O-O-O a6 13. b3 c6 14. Bb6 O-O 15. Kb2 c5 16. Qd2 {(White is already strategically winning at this point.)} Ne8 17. a4 Rc8 18. a5 Rc6 19. g4 Qh4 20. Qg2 Nf6 21. Rd3 Nd7 22. Na4 Nxb6 23. Nxb6 Rd8 24. Rhd1 Kf8 25. h3 h5 26. Rg1 Ke7 27. Qd2 g5 28. Rd1 f6 29. b4 cxb4 30. c5 Qxh3 31. cxd6+ Kf7 32. gxh5 b3 33. cxb3 Qxh5 34. d7 Qh8 35. Rc3 Rxc3 36. Qxc3 Qh2+ 37. Rd2 Qf4 38. Rd6 Qh2+ 39. Ka3 Qg1 40. Kb4 Qf1 41. Ka3 Qg1 42. Rd3 Ke7 43. Qb4+ Kf7 44. Qd2 Qa1+ 45. Kb4 Kg6 46. Kc5 Qh1 47. Kd6 Kf7 48. Kc7 Qh8 49. Qb4 Qg8 50. Rd2 Qh8 51. Rh2 Qxh2 52. Kxd8 Kg6 53. Kc7 Bxd7 54. Nxd7 Qe2 55. Qb6 Kh5 56. Qxf6 Qc2+ 57. Kb8 Kh4 58. Nxe5 Qxb3 59. Qh6+ Kg3 60. Qxg5+ Kf2 61. Qd2+ Kg3 62. f4 Qg8+ 63. Ka7 Kh3 64. Qe3+ Kh4 65. Qe1+ {1-0 (65) Ivanchuk,V (2775)-Giri, A (2714) Beijing 2011}) 6. exd5 Nxd5 7. O-O Be6 8. Bxd5 ({White did not achieve anything from} 8. a3 Bxc3 9. bxc3 O-O 10. Bxd5 Qxd5 11. Be3 b6 12. Qd2 Rad8 13. Ng3 f5 {(Black has a clear advantage at this point.)} 14. f4 e4 15. c4 Qa5 16. Rfd1 Qxd2 17. Rxd2 Na5 18. Rad1 c5 19. dxe4 Rxd2 20. Bxd2 Nxc4 21. exf5 Bc8 22. Bc1 h6 23. Kf2 Kh7 24. h3 a5 25. c3 a4 26. h4 Kg8 27. h5 Rf7 28. Rd8+ Rf8 29. Rd5 Rf7 30. Rd8+ Rf8 31. Rd3 Rf7 32. Kf3 Rd7 33. Rxd7 Bxd7 34. f6 gxf6 35. Nf1 f5 36. Ne3 Nd6 37. c4 Be6 38. Bb2 Nxc4 39. Nxc4 Bxc4 40. Be5 Bd5+ 41. Kf2 Bf7 42. Bc7 b5 43. Bd6 c4 44. Ke3 Bxh5 45. Kd4 Kf7 46. g3 Bf3 47. Bb4 Kg6 48. Kc3 Kh5 49. Bf8 Bc6 50. Kb4 Be8 51. Kc3 Kg6 52. Kd4 h5 53. Kc3 Kf7 54. Bb4 Ke6 55. Kd4 {1/2-1/2 (55) Nakamura,H (2736)-Giri,A (2768) Chess.com INT 2020}) 8... Bxd5 9. f4 f6 10. fxe5 Nxe5 11. Nxd5 Qxd5 12. Nf4 $6 ({The first new move, but it is hardly a move that takes your breath away. An earlier Giri game saw White try} 12. c3 Bd6 13. Nf4 Qf7 14. d4 O-O-O 15. Qa4 a6 16. Qb3 Qxb3 17. axb3 Ng6 18. Nxg6 $2 (18. Nh5 $5 {would have kept the position balanced; after the text move, Black gained a significant initiative.}) 18... hxg6 19. Bf4 Bxf4 20. Rxf4 Rde8 21. h3 g5 22. Rf5 Re2 23. Rf2 Rhe8 {(Black has a clear advantage in the rook ending thanks to his control over the e-file, but taking advantage of it is another issue altogether)} 24. Raf1 Kd7 25. Rxe2 Rxe2 26. Rf2 Re1+ 27. Rf1 Re2 28. Rf2 Re1+ 29. Rf1 Rxf1+ 30. Kxf1 Ke6 31. Ke2 Kf5 32. Kf3 a5 33. c4 b6 34. Ke3 Ke6 {1/2-1/2 (34) Adhiban,B (2653)-Giri,A (2773) Wijk aan Zee 2017}) 12... Qd7 13. c3 Bd6 14. d4 O-O-O 15. Qb3 $6 Ng6 $1 {Like in the Adhiban game above, this is the right square for the knight. White, of course, should not exchange in this position either, as the attack against White's king could easily prove irresistible.} 16. Ne6 $2 ({Ultimately, this move proves to be a good decision, but objectively, it is a rather poor move. A better option for keeping the position balanced would have been} 16. Qc2 Rhe8 17. h3 Qb5 18. a4 Qc4 19. b3 {when White is only slightly worse.}) 16... Rde8 17. d5 Nf8 18. Nd4 Ng6 $6 {A very odd decision: Giri invites a repetition of moves despite having a clear advantage on the board.} ({Both} 18... Qg4) ({and} 18... Bc5 {offered Black a clear advantage.}) 19. Ne6 Nf8 20. Nd4 Ng6 $2 21. Ne6 {Andreikin happily accepted the repetition.} 1/2-1/2