[Event "Wch Blitz "] [White "Carlsen,Magnus"] [Black "Rapport,Richard"] [Site ""] [Round ""] [Annotator "Nielsen, Peter Heine"] [Result "1-0"] [Date "2022.12.30"] [WhiteElo "2830"] [BlackElo "2654"] [PlyCount "141"] 1. d4 e6 2. e4 d5 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e5 c5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 Qc7 7. h4 Ne7 8. h5 h6 9. Nf3 b6 10. Bb5+ Bd7 11. Bd3 c4 12. Be2 Ba4 13. Bf4 Na6 14. Qd2 O-O-O 15. Nh2 Kb7 16. Nf1 Qd7 17. Ne3 Nc7 18. Kf1 Nc6 19. g3 Qe8 20. Kg2 Qg8 21. Rab1 Qh7 22. Bf3 Kb8 23. Qe2 Rc8 24. Rb2 Nb5 {A typical Winawer middlegame with both players manouvering had led to little immediate action, but now Rapport provokes the following sacrifice and 24 moves with just 1 exchange, becomes a contrasting prelude to non-stop action!} 25. Nxd5 $5 exd5 26. e6+ $2 {A bad start, but this is a blitz-game in an immensively complicated position where mistakes are bound to happen. Correct was} (26. Rxb5 $1 Bxb5 27. Bxd5 {when white has only 2 pawns for the rook, but his strong pair of bishops, soon both pointing towardsthe black king combined with his broad centre, gives him the better chances.} )Kb7 27. exf7 Qf5 $1 {Suddenly Magnus is in big trouble. Rapport defends the d5-pawn and at the sae time attacks f7. Magnus is hard-pressed not to just have a hopeless position a piece down, and has to come up with something:} 28. Rb4 $5 Nxb4 {28...Qxf7 29 Rxa4 Nxc3 was perhaps simpler, but there is nothing wrong with Rapports choice.} (28... Qxf7 29. Rxa4 Nxc3 )29. Qe7+ Ka6 $6 {Hiding from the whte bishops looks logical, but simply} (29... Nc7 30. axb4 Rhf8 {would have left white without any chances, as f7 just falls when white is a full rook down without any reasonable compensation.} )30. Qxb4 $2 {With what happens later, the computer pointing to that} (30. axb4 $1 Nxc3 31. Ra1 Kb5 $1 {being the correct way to play for both sides, because a funny mirror image, where the king finds relative safety at the middle of the board.} )Bxc2 31. a4 Nc7 $2 {Getting the knight out of the way was neccesary, but as black can't anyway recapture on c7, it would have been much better taking with} (31... Nxc3 $1 {instead, as after} 32. Qxc3 Be4 $1 {should white then return with his queen to b4, we get the same position as in the game, however without a white pawn on c3!} )32. Bxc7 $1 Be4 33. Bf4 $1 { It is not that the last moves perhaps have been standard, but it is only now things starts becoming extraordinary. Magnus already having sacrificed/lost am exchange, offers an extra rook on top of that!} Bxf3+ 34. Kxf3 Qe4+ {It is easy to point to that exactly here was a good moment to flick in 34...g5 but this is a blitz game, your opponent blundered a rook, of course you take it!} 35. Kg4 Qxh1 $4 {As the control of the d7 square becomes a key theme, 35... Qe6+! was the way to win. After 36 Kf3 Kb7! ( not the immediate 36...g5 due to 37 Re1!) blacks king still finds safety.If 37 a5 then 37...g5! 38 hxg6 Qe4+ wins as after 39 Kg4 Qxg6+ 40 Kf3 Qe4+ 41 Kg4 Rcg8+! 42 fxg8=Q Rxg8+ mates next move with 43...Qxh1+ being the point.} (35... Qe6+ $1 36. Kf3 Kb7 $1 (36... g5 37. Re1 $1 )37. a5 g5 38. hxg6 Qe4+ 39. Kg4 Qxg6+ 40. Kf3 Qe4+ 41. Kg4 Rcg8+ 42. fxg8=Q Rxg8+ $19 )36. Qb5+ Kb7 37. a5 {Suddenly whites threat is very serious, he wants to do 38 a6+ Ka8 39 Qd7 with unstoppable mate on either b7 or c6. Rapport logically stops that, but as whites threat is not mating directly, this was the moment where black still can breathe a bit, and put up a counterattack. 37...g6! was the only way to draw! The point is as above that after 38 hxg6 ( 38...Qxh5+ mate was threatened) 38...Qe4 that now again gives . ..Qxg6+ options. White then plays 39 Qd7+ Ka6 and now 40 Kh5!? covering the passed pawn on g6. It looks as chaothic as it gets, but despite there being no immediate perpetual chess, the engines are neither impressed nor exited and gives the 0.00 verdict.} Rhd8 $2 (37... g6 $1 38. hxg6 Qe4 39. Qd7+ Ka6 40. Kh5 $5 )38. a6+ Ka8 {A position that understandably went around the globe via the internet as while Magnus played a logical forcing move, securing his queen entrance on the d7-square, the computer shows that the correct choice here is the stunning 39 f3!! Like thism the queens influence from h1 is cut, and white threatens 40 F8=Q Rxf8 41 Qxd5+ mating. Black then seeks counterplay with 39... g6! 40 hxg6 h5+ but then 41 Kf5 Qxf3 42 g7 Qe4+ 43 Kf6 leaves an incredible situation. The white king is safe at least to the extend that after e.g. 43... h4 44 g8=Q blacks defence collapses as shoud he take twice on g8, Qc6+ is mate. } 39. f8=Q $4 (39. f3 $3 g6 40. hxg6 h5+ 41. Kf5 Qxf3 42. g7 Qe4+ 43. Kf6 h4 44. g8=Q Rxg8 45. fxg8=Q Rxg8 46. Qc6# )Rxf8 40. Qd7 Rxf4+ $1 {Thats the problem, now blacks gets to the white king first.} 41. gxf4 Qg2+ 42. Kh4 { A neccesity as 42 Kf5 Qh3+! loses the queen on.} Qxf2+ 43. Kg4 Qg2+ 44. Kh4 g5+ $1 45. hxg6 Qh2+ 46. Kg4 h5+ $1 47. Kf3 {If 47 Kg5 then 47...Qg3+ wins trivially, 48 Kh6 Qxf4+ 49 Kh7 Rc7! being the principal line.} (47. Kg5 Qg3+ 48. Kh6 Qxf4+ 49. Kh7 Rc7 $1 )Qh1+ 48. Kf2 Qh4+ 49. Kf3 $1 {Magnus does a good job of not losing instantly by either dropping the f4 or c3 pawns via checks, but this does give Rapport the opportunity to remove Magnus queen, at least for a while.} Qg4+ $1 50. Qxg4 hxg4+ 51. Kxg4 b5 $1 {The only winning move, but trivial. Its a simple race and black is first.} 52. f5 b4 53. f6 bxc3 54. f7 c2 55. g7 c1=Q 56. f8=Q {Black is a rook up, which perhaps historically in this game is not a lot, but more importantly, the position seems almost clarified. The white king can not touch the f-line due to then a lateral check. } Qg1+ 57. Kh5 Qh2+ 58. Kg6 Qg3+ 59. Kh6 Qh4+ 60. Kg6 Qg4+ 61. Kh6 c3 {Rapport has done it well. Protected the rook on c8 and then pushed the unstoppable passed pawn.} 62. Qf7 $5 {Magnus put up the best resitance he could, and now indeed threatens mate in 1 on b7 as a last desperate attempt.} Qh4+ $6 { Not a bad move, at all, but simplest was 62...Rc6+ 63 Kh7 Qh3+ 64 Kg8 Rc8+ as after 65 Qf8 c2 the white queen is pinned and the black pawn just queens.} (62... Rc6+ 63. Kh7 Qh3+ 64. Kg8 Rc8+ 65. Qf8 c2 )63. Kg6 Qe4+ $2 {Down to just increment seconds, Rapport again misses the check via the 6th. 63...Rc6+! would finish the game instantly, as after 64 Kf5 Qf2+! black just wins the queen on f7.} (63... Rc6+ $1 64. Kf5 Qf2+ )64. Kg5 Qe3+ $2 {The win was still there, but only by 64...Rb8! protecting the b7 square, and after 65 g8=Q then 65...Qg2+! 66 Kf6 Qxg8! keeps the d5 pawn and the b7 square protected.} (64... Rb8 $1 65. g8=Q Qg2+ 66. Kf6 Qxg8 $1 )65. Kh5 {The win now is gone, as black only have a draw by perpetual left, but Rapport obviously spots that his has a move pinning the white queen, and thus "forcing" a trade of queens while mate on b7 is illegal due to the pin.} Qe8 $4 66. g8=Q $1 {An easy move to miss. Suddenly the queen on f7 is protected, and if 66...Qxg8 then the queen on f7 has been unpinned, and thus 67 Qb7+ mate is legal.} Qe2+ (66... Qxg8 67. Qb7# )67. Qg4 $1 Rh8+ 68. Kg5 $1 {Rapport is out of luck, like this Magnus keeps his 2. queen protected and with ...Rg8+ not being possible all black has left is a few checks.} Qe3+ 69. Kf6 Qh6+ 70. Ke7 Qc6 {Hoping to create confusion with the white king being somewhat in danger on e7, but:} 71. Qgg8+ $1 {Finishes the game immediately with a bottom rank mate. An amazing game, with up and down, that perhaps all do not hold up fully under a microscope but even had this been a classical game, it would have been seen as something spectacular. Managing this in a blitz-game is incredible, and while the game indeed had only 1 winner, it took 2 very special players to create it.} 1-0