[Event "FIDE Candidates 2022"] [Site "Madrid"] [Date "2022.06.23"] [Round "6.1"] [White "Radjabov, Teimour"] [Black "Rapport, Richard"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "B46"] [Annotator "Crowther,Mark"] [PlyCount "80"] [EventDate "2022.06.17"] {[%evp 0,52,25,16,58,58,51,52,48,48,46,46,76,54,61,24,32,4,46,9,9,21,28,-53,4, -1,-1,-41,4,-33,16,15,18,-15,4,-50,21,-30,12,-42,6,-7,-6,-5,-3,0,-16,-14,-21, -21,-5,0,0,-16,-41]} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nc6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Nxc6 bxc6 7. Qd3 ({Relevant:} 7. Bd3 d5 8. O-O Nf6 9. Re1 Be7 10. Bf4 O-O 11. Qf3 a5 12. Na4 Ba6 13. b3 Bb5 14. c4 Bxa4 15. bxa4 Bb4 16. Red1 Qe7 17. Bg5 h6 18. Bxf6 Qxf6 19. Qxf6 gxf6 20. cxd5 cxd5 21. exd5 exd5 22. Bb5 Bc3 23. Rab1 d4 24. Rd3 Rfc8 25. Rg3+ Kf8 26. Rh3 Kg7 27. Rg3+ Kf8 28. Rh3 Kg7 29. Bd3 Bb4 30. Rh4 Rd8 31. Rg4+ Kf8 32. Rh4 Kg7 33. Rg4+ Kf8 34. Rh4 {1/2-1/2 (34) Vidit,S (2723)-Vallejo Pons,F (2703) Prague 2022}) 7... d5 8. Qg3 h5 9. h4 d4 10. Nb1 Nf6 11. e5 Ne4 12. Qf3 Qd5 13. Bd3 Bb4+ 14. Kf1 f5 15. exf6 Nxf6 {[#]} 16. Bg6+ $146 ({Predecessor:} 16. c3 Bc5 17. Bg6+ Kd8 18. Nd2 dxc3 19. bxc3 e5 20. c4 Qxf3 21. gxf3 Be6 22. Kg2 Rb8 23. Nb3 Bd6 24. Rd1 Ke7 25. Bd3 Kf7 26. Bg5 Bb4 27. Nd2 Rhd8 28. Ne4 Be7 29. Ng3 Bc5 30. Ne4 Nxe4 31. fxe4 Be7 32. Be3 Bxh4 33. c5 a5 34. Be2 g6 35. Rdb1 Rb4 36. Rxb4 axb4 37. a4 bxa3 38. Rxa3 Kf6 39. Ra6 Rc8 40. f4 exf4 41. Bxf4 g5 42. Bd6 g4 43. Ra7 Kg6 44. Ba6 Rh8 45. Rc7 Bd8 { Vachier Lagrave,M (2749)-Nepomniachtchi,I (2792) Zagreb 2021 1/2-1/2 (61)}) 16... Kd7 17. Bg5 {According to the computer after this black is at least equal.} (17. c3) 17... Rf8 18. c3 Bd6 19. cxd4 Qxd4 20. Qc3 Qd1+ 21. Qe1 Qxe1+ 22. Kxe1 Rb8 23. Nd2 Rxb2 24. Nc4 Bb4+ 25. Kf1 Ng4 26. f3 Rf2+ 27. Kg1 Bc5 28. fxg4 {Just in time.} R2f4+ 29. Ne3 (29. Kh2 Rxc4) 29... Bxe3+ 30. Kh2 Rxg4 31. Bxe3 Rxg6 32. Rhd1+ Kc7 33. Rab1 Bb7 34. Bc5 Re8 35. Bd6+ Kc8 36. Be5 Rg4 { The start of a wrong plan. Radjabov had about 5 minutes and Rapport half an hour.} (36... Rf8 {is slightly better for black.}) 37. Rf1 Rxh4+ $2 {If white had chance to calculate he'd be winning here.} 38. Kg1 Re4 39. Rf7 $2 $11 { Giving up the monster bishop for his opponents weakling is wrong.} (39. Bh2 $1 {The problems for black are weak dark squares, weak king, weak seventh rank and a bishop on b7 which is a huge target.} e5 40. Rf7) 39... Rxe5 40. Rbxb7 Rb5 1/2-1/2 [Event "FIDE Candidates 2022"] [Site "Madrid"] [Date "2022.06.23"] [Round "6.2"] [White "Firouzja, Alireza"] [Black "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "E06"] [Annotator "Crowther,Mark"] [PlyCount "83"] [EventDate "2022.06.17"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 Be7 5. Nf3 O-O 6. Qd3 {An extremely uncommon move.} ({Relevant:} 6. O-O dxc4 7. Qc2 b5 8. a4 Bb7 9. axb5 a6 10. bxa6 Nxa6 11. Qxc4 Bd5 12. Qc3 c5 13. Bf4 Ne4 14. Qc1 cxd4 15. Nxd4 Nec5 16. Bxd5 Qxd5 17. Be3 Qb7 18. Nd2 Rac8 19. Qb1 Nb4 20. N4f3 Qb5 21. Re1 Rfd8 22. Kf1 h6 23. Rc1 Bf8 24. Ne4 Nb3 25. Rxc8 Rxc8 26. Nc3 Qb7 27. Ra4 Nd5 28. Nxd5 Qxd5 29. Kg2 Qc6 30. Ra7 g5 31. Qd3 Nc5 32. Qc4 Qb6 33. Qa2 Qc6 34. b4 Nd7 35. b5 Qd6 {Carlsen,M (2864)-Radjabov,T (2753) Stavanger 2022 1-0}) 6... c5 7. O-O cxd4 8. Nxd4 Nc6 9. cxd5 {[#]} Nxd4 $146 ({Predecessor:} 9... exd5 10. Nc3 h6 11. Rd1 Re8 12. a3 a6 13. Be3 Be6 14. Rac1 Ne5 15. Qc2 Rc8 16. Bf4 Nc6 17. Nxe6 fxe6 18. e4 d4 19. e5 Nh5 20. Qg6 Nxf4 21. gxf4 Bh4 22. Ne4 Rf8 23. Nd6 Rc7 24. Be4 Bxf2+ 25. Kg2 Rff7 26. Qh7+ Kf8 27. Qh8+ Ke7 28. Nxf7 {1-0 (28) Wagner,D (2584)-Gokerkan,C (2445) Terme Catez 2022}) 10. Qxd4 Nxd5 11. Rd1 Bf6 12. Qg4 Bd7 13. Nd2 Qe7 14. Nf3 Rac8 15. e4 e5 16. Qh5 Nb4 17. Bg5 Bxg5 18. Nxg5 h6 19. Nf3 Nc6 20. Rxd7 $2 {Trying too hard.} Qxd7 21. Bh3 f5 22. exf5 $2 {Most likely Firouzja's big idea but it doesn't work.} (22. Bxf5 Qe8 23. Qg4 Rd8 { and black is much better.}) 22... Rce8 (22... Rcd8) 23. Nh4 e4 24. Rd1 Qf7 25. Qe2 Qxa2 26. Ng6 Rf7 (26... Rf6) 27. Nf4 Qb3 28. Bg4 e3 $1 29. Kg2 Rd8 30. Rxd8+ Nxd8 31. fxe3 Rc7 32. Kh3 Nf7 33. Bf3 Rc2 34. Qd1 Ng5+ 35. Kg4 {Might as well go all in here.} Nxf3 36. Qd8+ Kh7 37. Kxf3 Qxb2 38. Qe8 (38. Ng6 Rf2+ 39. Ke4 Qc2+ {forces queens off.}) 38... Qf6 39. e4 (39. Ng6 Qc6+) 39... Rxh2 40. Qd7 Qc3+ 41. Kg4 Qd2 42. Qa4 0-1 [Event "FIDE Candidates 2022"] [Site "Madrid"] [Date "2022.06.23"] [Round "6.3"] [White "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Black "Ding Liren"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C50"] [Annotator "Crowther,Mark"] [PlyCount "84"] [EventDate "2022.06.17"] {[%evp 0,32,19,29,30,21,25,18,14,14,9,-7,4,2,21,-32,11,-15,-7,-8,-9,-8,-13,1,0, 1,1,-7,-3,-37,5,-55,-56,-60,-42]} 1. e4 {Giri,A} e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. d3 Bc5 5. c3 d6 6. O-O O-O 7. Re1 a5 8. h3 h6 9. Nbd2 ({Relevant:} 9. d4 Ba7 10. Bb3 Re8 11. Bc2 Bd7 12. a3 Nh7 13. Be3 Qf6 14. Ba4 Ng5 15. Nxg5 hxg5 16. d5 Nb8 17. Bxa7 Rxa7 18. c4 Bxa4 19. Qxa4 Qe7 20. Nc3 Nd7 21. b4 Rea8 22. Nb5 Ra6 23. Qd1 Nf6 24. Rb1 axb4 25. axb4 Ra2 26. Re2 Rxe2 27. Qxe2 Qd7 28. Nc3 g4 29. h4 g6 30. g3 Kg7 31. c5 c6 32. Rd1 dxc5 33. bxc5 Qc7 34. Qb2 Nd7 35. Qb4 cxd5 36. exd5 Qxc5 37. Qxb7 Ra7 38. Qc6 Rc7 {Anand,V (2751)-Radjabov,T (2753) Stavanger 2022 1/2-1/2}) 9... Be6 10. Bb5 Qb8 11. Bxc6 bxc6 12. d4 exd4 13. cxd4 Bb6 14. a4 Re8 15. Ra3 {[#]} Qa7 $146 {This move improves on the rather well known game Giri-Anton.} ({Predecessor:} 15... Qb7 16. Rae3 Rab8 17. b3 Ba7 18. Bb2 d5 19. e5 Nd7 20. Nh4 c5 21. Rg3 Qa6 22. Qh5 Kh8 23. Bc1 Rg8 24. Ndf3 Nf8 25. Bxh6 g6 26. Nxg6+ fxg6 27. Qh4 Nh7 28. Ng5 {1-0 (28) Giri,A (2780)-Anton Guijarro,D (2674) Batumi 2019 CBM 193 [Giri,A]}) 16. Nf1 d5 17. e5 Ne4 18. N1d2 Bf5 19. Re2 Rad8 20. Nb3 c5 21. dxc5 Bxc5 22. Nxc5 Qxc5 23. Nd4 Bd7 24. Bf4 Qe7 25. Nb5 Bxb5 26. axb5 Ng5 27. Rxa5 Ne6 28. Bd2 d4 29. Ra3 Qc5 30. Rg3 d3 31. Re1 Qxb5 32. Qh5 Qxb2 33. Bxh6 d2 34. Rd1 {This all looks rather wild but tends towards a draw because white can get a perpetual check.} Rd5 35. Bxg7 Nxg7 36. Rxg7+ Kxg7 37. Qg5+ Kf8 38. Qh6+ Kg8 39. Qg5+ Kf8 40. Qh6+ Ke7 41. Qf6+ Kf8 42. Qh6+ Kg8 1/2-1/2 [Event "FIDE Candidates 2022"] [Site "Madrid"] [Date "2022.06.23"] [Round "6.4"] [White "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"] [Black "Duda, Jan-Krzysztof"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "A07"] [Annotator "Crowther,Mark"] [PlyCount "69"] [EventDate "2022.06.17"] {[%evp 0,29,30,35,27,-17,2,9,-1,7,13,15,38,12,24,23,27,28,15,-59,-39,-51,16, -15,0,-11,14,22,12,16,34,19]} 1. Nf3 d5 2. g3 Bg4 3. Bg2 e6 4. O-O Nd7 5. h3 Bh5 6. d4 Ngf6 7. c4 c6 8. cxd5 exd5 9. Ne5 $1 {[%mdl 4]} Nxe5 ({Relevant:} 9... Bg6 10. Nc3 Bb4 11. Qb3 a5 12. f4 h6 13. Nxg6 fxg6 14. e4 Qb6 15. exd5 Qxd4+ 16. Kh2 Nc5 17. Qc2 Qd3 18. Qxd3 Nxd3 19. dxc6 O-O-O 20. cxb7+ Kb8 21. Be3 Rhe8 22. Bb6 Rd6 23. Rad1 Bxc3 24. bxc3 Rxb6 25. Rxd3 Ka7 26. Rfd1 Re2 27. R1d2 Re7 28. Rd8 Rexb7 29. Bxb7 Kxb7 30. Re2 h5 31. a4 Rb3 32. Re7+ Kc6 33. Rxg7 Ne4 34. Rxg6+ Kc5 35. Kg2 Nxc3 36. Ra6 Ne4 37. Rxa5+ Kc4 38. Rg8 Kd4 39. Rb5 {Grandelius,N (2656)-Giri,A (2773) Chess.com INT 2022 1-0 (77)}) 10. dxe5 Ne4 11. Nd2 Nxd2 12. Bxd2 Bc5 13. Rc1 Qe7 14. Kh2 O-O 15. g4 Bg6 16. f4 {[#]} h6 $146 {Played after 10 minutes thought. This already looks very threatening and only with this move have we left theory.} ({Predecessor:} 16... f5 17. Qb3 Rad8 18. gxf5 Bxf5 19. Rxc5 Qxc5 20. e4 Bg6 21. Bb4 Qc4 22. f5 Bh5 23. Bxf8 Qxb3 24. axb3 Kxf8 25. exd5 cxd5 26. Kg3 d4 27. Bf3 Bxf3 28. Kxf3 d3 29. Rd1 d2 30. Ke3 Rd5 31. Ke4 Rd8 {1/2-1/2 (31) Svidler,P (2768)-Karjakin,S (2753) Wijk aan Zee 2018}) 17. Qe1 Rfe8 18. Qg3 Bh7 19. h4 Rad8 20. g5 hxg5 (20... Kh8) 21. hxg5 Bb4 22. Bxb4 Qxb4 23. f5 Qxb2 24. e6 fxe6 25. g6 exf5 26. gxh7+ Kh8 { A tempting idea but taking the pawn seems to offer better chances of survival.} (26... Kxh7 27. Rb1 Qe5 28. Bh3) 27. Rb1 Qf6 28. Rxb7 {This is over.} Rxe2 29. Rxf5 Qh6+ 30. Kg1 Rxa2 31. Rbf7 Ra1+ 32. Bf1 d4 33. Rg5 Qd6 34. Qf2 Qa3 35. Rg3 1-0 [Event "FIDE Candidates Tournament 2022"] [Site "Madrid"] [Date "2022.06.23"] [Round "6.2"] [White "Firouzja, Alireza"] [Black "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "E06"] [WhiteElo "2793"] [BlackElo "2783"] [PlyCount "83"] [EventDate "2022.06.17"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventCountry "ESP"] [SourceTitle "playchess.com"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceQuality "1"] {[%evp 0,23,31,31,31,-9,3,-24,-20,-40,-14,-14,14,-52,-4,-48,7,-37,9,12,36,29, 29,23,15,31]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 Be7 5. Nf3 O-O 6. Qd3 $5 c5 ( 6... b6 7. cxd5 Nxd5 8. O-O Ba6 9. Qc2 Nd7 10. Nc3 c5 11. Nxd5 exd5 12. Re1 Re8 13. Bf4 Bf6 14. e3 Bb7 15. h4 h6 16. h5 Nf8 17. dxc5 Rc8 18. Qa4 bxc5 19. Qxa7 Re7 20. Qa3 Ne6 21. Be5 Bxe5 22. Nxe5 d4 23. e4 Ng5 {0-1 (23) Ding Liren (2791) -Giri,A (2764) INT 2020}) 7. O-O cxd4 8. Nxd4 Nc6 (8... e5 9. Nf5 dxc4 10. Qxd8 Bxd8 11. Nd6 Nc6 12. Nc3 Be7 13. Nxc4 Be6 14. Bxc6 Bxc4 15. Bxb7 Rab8 16. Bf3 Bb4 17. Bd2 e4 18. Bg2 Bxe2 19. Rfe1 Bd3 20. Rad1 Bc5 21. Na4 Bd4 22. Bc3 Bxc3 23. Nxc3 Rxb2 24. Nxe4 Bxe4 25. Bxe4 Nxe4 26. Rxe4 Rxa2 27. Re7 g6 28. Rdd7 a5 29. Ra7 Kg7 30. Re5 Rd8 31. Rexa5 Rxa5 {1/2-1/2 (31) Gelfand,B (2674)-Ganguly, S (2633) Riga LAT 2021}) (8... Na6 9. cxd5 Nb4 10. Qb3 e5 11. Nb5 Nbxd5 12. Rd1 Qa5 13. Bxd5 Nxd5 14. Qxd5 Be6 15. Qxb7 Rad8 16. Bd2 Bb4 17. N5c3 Rd7 18. Qe4 Rfd8 19. Qc2 h6 20. a3 Be7 21. e4 Bg4 22. Re1 Rc8 23. Kg2 Qa6 24. h3 Be6 25. Be3 f5 26. exf5 Bd5+ 27. Kh2 Ba8 28. Nd2 {1-0 (28) Stefanova,A (2469)-Haria,R (2490) Gibraltar ENG 2022}) 9. cxd5 Nxd4 (9... exd5 10. Nc3 h6 11. Rd1 Re8 12. a3 a6 13. Be3 Be6 14. Rac1 Ne5 15. Qc2 Rc8 16. Bf4 Nc6 17. Nxe6 fxe6 18. e4 d4 19. e5 Nh5 20. Qg6 Nxf4 21. gxf4 Bh4 22. Ne4 Rf8 23. Nd6 Rc7 24. Be4 Bxf2+ 25. Kg2 Rff7 26. Qh7+ Kf8 27. Qh8+ Ke7 28. Nxf7 {1-0 (28) Wagner,D (2584)-Gokerkan, C (2445) Terme Catez SLO 2022}) 10. Qxd4 Nxd5 11. Rd1 Bf6 12. Qg4 $5 (12. Qd3 Qb6 13. Na3 Rd8 14. Nc4 Qc7 15. Qb3 Bd7 16. Bd2 Nb6 17. Rdc1 Ba4 18. Qb4 Rd4 19. Nxb6 Rxb4 20. Nxa8 Qb8 {1-0 (71) Gelfand,B (2680)-Cyborowski,L (2496) Czech Republic CZE 2022}) 12... Bd7 13. Nd2 Qe7 14. Nf3 Rac8 15. e4 $5 e5 16. Qh5 Nb4 17. Bg5 Bxg5 18. Nxg5 h6 19. Nf3 Nc6 20. Rxd7 $6 Qxd7 21. Bh3 f5 22. exf5 $6 Rce8 23. Nh4 e4 24. Rd1 Qf7 25. Qe2 Qxa2 26. Ng6 Rf7 27. Nf4 $5 Qb3 28. Bg4 e3 $1 29. Kg2 Rd8 $1 30. Rxd8+ Nxd8 31. fxe3 Rc7 32. Kh3 Nf7 $1 33. Bf3 Rc2 34. Qd1 Ng5+ 35. Kg4 Nxf3 36. Qd8+ Kh7 37. Kxf3 Qxb2 38. Qe8 Qf6 39. e4 Rxh2 40. Qd7 Qc3+ 41. Kg4 Qd2 $1 42. Qa4 0-1 [Event "FIDE Candidates Tournament 2022"] [Site "Madrid"] [Date "2022.06.23"] [Round "6.3"] [White "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Black "Ding, Liren"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C54"] [WhiteElo "2760"] [BlackElo "2806"] [PlyCount "84"] [EventDate "2022.06.17"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventCountry "ESP"] [SourceTitle "playchess.com"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceQuality "1"] {[%evp 0,23,19,31,34,19,13,17,4,11,24,1,27,19,22,-35,-5,-23,8,-13,-9,-26,-15, -23,-32,-17]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. d3 Bc5 5. c3 d6 6. O-O O-O 7. Re1 a5 8. h3 h6 9. Nbd2 Be6 10. Bb5 Qb8 11. Bxc6 bxc6 12. d4 exd4 13. cxd4 Bb6 14. a4 Re8 15. Ra3 Qa7 (15... Qb7 16. Rae3 Rab8 17. b3 Ba7 18. Bb2 d5 19. e5 Nd7 20. Nh4 c5 21. Rg3 Qa6 22. Qh5 Kh8 23. Bc1 Rg8 24. Ndf3 Nf8 25. Bxh6 g6 26. Nxg6+ fxg6 27. Qh4 Nh7 28. Ng5 {1-0 (28) Giri,A (2780)-Anton Guijarro,D (2674) Batumi GEO 2019}) 16. Nf1 d5 17. e5 Ne4 18. N1d2 Bf5 19. Re2 Rad8 20. Nb3 c5 21. dxc5 Bxc5 22. Nxc5 Qxc5 23. Nd4 Bd7 24. Bf4 Qe7 25. Nb5 Bxb5 26. axb5 Ng5 27. Rxa5 Ne6 28. Bd2 d4 29. Ra3 Qc5 30. Rg3 d3 31. Re1 Qxb5 32. Qh5 Qxb2 33. Bxh6 d2 34. Rd1 Rd5 35. Bxg7 Nxg7 36. Rxg7+ Kxg7 37. Qg5+ Kf8 38. Qh6+ Kg8 39. Qg5+ Kf8 40. Qh6+ Ke7 41. Qf6+ Kf8 42. Qh6+ Kg8 1/2-1/2 [Event "FIDE Candidates Tournament 2022"] [Site "Madrid"] [Date "2022.06.23"] [Round "6.1"] [White "Radjabov, Teimour"] [Black "Rapport, Richard"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "B46"] [WhiteElo "2753"] [BlackElo "2764"] [PlyCount "80"] [EventDate "2022.06.17"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventCountry "ESP"] [SourceTitle "playchess.com"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceQuality "1"] 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nc6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Nxc6 bxc6 7. Qd3 d5 8. Qg3 h5 9. h4 d4 10. Nb1 Nf6 11. e5 Ne4 12. Qf3 Qd5 13. Bd3 Bb4+ 14. Kf1 f5 15. exf6 Nxf6 16. Bg6+ (16. c3 Bc5 17. Bg6+ Kd8 18. Nd2 dxc3 19. bxc3 e5 20. c4 Qxf3 21. gxf3 Be6 22. Kg2 {1/2-1/2 (61) Vachier Lagrave,M (2749) -Nepomniachtchi,I (2792) Zagreb CRO 2021}) 16... Kd7 17. Bg5 $5 Rf8 18. c3 Bd6 19. cxd4 Qxd4 20. Qc3 $1 Qd1+ 21. Qe1 Qxe1+ 22. Kxe1 Rb8 23. Nd2 Rxb2 24. Nc4 Bb4+ 25. Kf1 Ng4 26. f3 Rf2+ 27. Kg1 Bc5 28. fxg4 R2f4+ 29. Ne3 Bxe3+ 30. Kh2 Rxg4 31. Bxe3 Rxg6 32. Rhd1+ Kc7 33. Rab1 Bb7 34. Bc5 Re8 35. Bd6+ Kc8 36. Be5 Rg4 $2 (36... Rf8 $1) 37. Rf1 Rxh4+ 38. Kg1 Re4 39. Rf7 $2 (39. Bh2 $1 $18) 39... Rxe5 40. Rbxb7 Rb5 1/2-1/2 [Event "FIDE Candidates Tournament 2022"] [Site "Madrid"] [Date "2022.06.23"] [Round "6.4"] [White "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"] [Black "Duda, Jan-Krzysztof"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "A07"] [WhiteElo "2766"] [BlackElo "2750"] [PlyCount "69"] [EventDate "2022.06.17"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventCountry "ESP"] [SourceTitle "playchess.com"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceQuality "1"] {[%evp 0,24,27,26,25,-17,3,-19,2,-2,8,6,37,37,24,16,35,25,21,-47,-46,-50,25,-8, 1,9,7]} 1. Nf3 d5 2. g3 Bg4 3. Bg2 e6 4. O-O Nd7 5. h3 Bh5 6. d4 Ngf6 7. c4 c6 8. cxd5 exd5 9. Ne5 Nxe5 10. dxe5 Ne4 11. Nd2 Nxd2 12. Bxd2 Bc5 13. Rc1 (13. Kh2 O-O 14. Rc1 Qe7 15. g4 Bg6 16. f4 f5 17. Qb3 Rad8 18. gxf5 Bxf5 19. Rxc5 Qxc5 20. e4 Bg6 21. Bb4 Qc4 22. f5 Bh5 23. Bxf8 Qxb3 24. axb3 Kxf8 25. exd5 cxd5 26. Kg3 d4 27. Bf3 Bxf3 28. Kxf3 d3 29. Rd1 d2 30. Ke3 Rd5 31. Ke4 Rd8 { 1/2-1/2 (31) Svidler,P (2768)-Karjakin,S (2753) Wijk aan Zee 2018}) 13... Qe7 14. Kh2 O-O 15. g4 Bg6 16. f4 h6 17. Qe1 Rfe8 18. Qg3 Bh7 19. h4 Rad8 20. g5 hxg5 $6 21. hxg5 Bb4 22. Bxb4 Qxb4 23. f5 Qxb2 24. e6 fxe6 25. g6 exf5 26. gxh7+ Kh8 27. Rb1 Qf6 28. Rxb7 Rxe2 29. Rxf5 $1 Qh6+ 30. Kg1 Rxa2 31. Rbf7 Ra1+ 32. Bf1 d4 33. Rg5 Qd6 34. Qf2 Qa3 35. Rg3 1-0 [Event "FIDE Candidates Chess Tournament 2022"] [Site "Chess.com"] [Date "2022.06.23"] [Round "6"] [White "Firouzja, Alireza"] [Black "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "E06"] [WhiteElo "2793"] [BlackElo "2783"] [Annotator "Rafael Leitao"] [PlyCount "83"] [EventDate "2022.??.??"] [TimeControl "5400+30"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 Be7 5. Nf3 O-O 6. Qd3 {A rare move, played a few times by Boris Gelfand.} c5 (6... b6 {is also possible.}) 7. O-O cxd4 8. Nxd4 Nc6 {Caught by surprise, Caruana reacts with natural and good moves and will achieve equality without any problems. I wonder what was missed by Firouzja in his preparation $2} 9. cxd5 Nxd4 {Black had other interesting moves.} (9... exd5 $6 {This is just a positional mistake.} 10. Nc3 {with an advantage. Wagner,-Gokerkan, Terme Catez 2022.}) (9... Nxd5 10. Nxc6 (10. Nc3 Nxd4 11. Qxd4 {We will see this line later.}) 10... bxc6 {It's not easy for White to prove an advantage here.}) (9... Nb4 $5 10. Qb3 e5 11. Nc2 Nbxd5 12. Nc3 (12. Rd1 $6 Be6) 12... Nxc3 13. bxc3 {with a small plus for White.}) 10. Qxd4 Nxd5 11. Rd1 (11. Nc3 Bf6 12. Qc4 Bxc3 $1 13. bxc3 Bd7 14. Bxd5 exd5 15. Qxd5 {Grischuk won this position, but Black is fine. Grischuk-Lysyj, Sochi 2016 }) 11... Bf6 12. Qg4 Bd7 (12... Qc7 {Black played this move in a correspondence game that ended in a draw. Cehajic-Chadwick, IECC email 2002.}) 13. Nd2 Qe7 14. Nf3 (14. Ne4 {is more accurate.} Be5 (14... Bc6 15. Nxf6+ Nxf6 16. Bg5 Bxg2 17. Kxg2 h6 18. Bxf6 Qxf6 $11) 15. Ng5 $1 f5 (15... h6 $2 16. Qe4 $1 hxg5 17. Qxe5 {is better for White.}) 16. Qh4 h6 17. Nxe6 $1 Qxh4 18. gxh4 Bxe6 19. Bxd5 Bxd5 20. Rxd5 Rfe8 {with a probable draw.}) 14... Rac8 15. e4 $6 (15. Bg5 {is safer.} Bxg5 16. Qxg5 Qxg5 17. Nxg5 Rc2 18. e4 Nb6 19. b3 { and White is close to equalizing.}) 15... e5 $1 16. Qh5 Nb4 17. Bg5 Bxg5 18. Nxg5 h6 19. Nf3 Nc6 {Now Black's position is clearly more comfortable. With active pieces and the better pawn structure, White must be careful. I think the right plan is to prepare Bg2-h3.} 20. Rxd7 $2 {A bad exchange sacrifice. Or maybe Firouzja missed 21...f5 $2} (20. a3 $1 {[%CAl Gg2h3] Avoiding Qb4 and preparing Bh3.}) (20. Bh3 $2 Bxh3 21. Qxh3 Qb4 $1 {wins a pawn.}) 20... Qxd7 21. Bh3 f5 $1 (21... Qd6 22. Bxc8 Rxc8 {This is slightly better for Black, but of course, the move played in the game is superior.}) 22. exf5 $2 {Now White is lost.} (22. Bxf5 Qe8 23. Qg4 Rd8 {White has some compensation, but not enough. Black wants Rd6 next, controlling the g6-square.}) 22... Rce8 23. Nh4 e4 24. Rd1 Qf7 25. Qe2 Qxa2 $1 {Not afraid of ghosts. I was amazed by Caruana's tecnhique converting this position.} 26. Ng6 Rf7 27. Nf4 Qb3 28. Bg4 e3 $1 {Computer precision. Caruana is just in time.} 29. Kg2 Rd8 30. Rxd8+ Nxd8 31. fxe3 Rc7 $1 {The rook joins the attack.} 32. Kh3 Nf7 {The knight too $1} 33. Bf3 Rc2 34. Qd1 Ng5+ 35. Kg4 Nxf3 36. Qd8+ Kh7 37. Kxf3 (37. Ng6 Qc4+ 38. Kxf3 Qe2+ 39. Kf4 Rc4+ {and Black mates.}) 37... Qxb2 38. Qe8 (38. Ng6 Rf2+ 39. Kg4 Qe2+ {wins.}) 38... Qf6 39. e4 Rxh2 40. Qd7 (40. Ng6 Qc3+ 41. Kg4 h5+ 42. Kf4 Rf2+ 43. Kg5 Qxg3+ {and mates.}) 40... Qc3+ 41. Kg4 Qd2 42. Qa4 {A deserved and important victory for Caruana. He is showing great chess so far.} 0-1 [Event "Chess.com"] [Site "Chess.com"] [Date "2022.06.23"] [Round "6"] [White "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Black "Ding, Liren"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C54"] [WhiteElo "2760"] [BlackElo "2806"] [Annotator "Rafael Leitao"] [PlyCount "84"] [EventDate "2022.??.??"] [TimeControl "5400+30"] {This is a wonderful game, one of the best in the tournament. We had everything: deep opening preparation by both players, a complex strategical middlegame fight, some fireworks, and precise calculation. Nakamura and Ding played like machines. Not all draws are uneventful. This one deserves the highest praise.} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. d3 Bc5 5. c3 d6 6. O-O O-O 7. Re1 a5 8. h3 h6 9. Nbd2 Be6 10. Bb5 Qb8 11. Bxc6 {Duda played 11.Nf1 against Ding in round two.} bxc6 12. d4 exd4 13. cxd4 Bb6 14. a4 $5 {A deep idea. White wants to bring the rook to the attack with Ra1-a3.} Re8 15. Ra3 Qa7 {A new move, but it didn't take Nakamura by surprise since he continued blitzing the next ten moves $1} (15... Qb7 {1-0 was played in Giri-Anton Guijarro, Batumi 2019.}) 16. Nf1 d5 {The natural reaction. Black must try to open the position for his bishops before getting mated.} 17. e5 (17. Ng3 { gives nothing:} dxe4 18. Nxe4 Nxe4 19. Rxe4 Rad8) 17... Ne4 18. N1d2 { Challenging the powerful knight.} Bf5 {A good reaction.} (18... Rad8 {was an interesting pawn sacrifice.} 19. Nxe4 dxe4 20. Rxe4 c5 {with complicated play.} ) 19. Re2 $1 {A strong prophylactic move. White protects the f2-pawn. This is useful because Black will soon play c5, opening the g1-a7 diagonal.} Rad8 ( 19... c5 $2 20. Nh4 $1 {and White is ready for his dream attack with Rg3.}) 20. Nb3 {Nearly forced. White must be ready for the c5-break.} c5 21. dxc5 Bxc5 22. Nxc5 Qxc5 23. Nd4 Bd7 $1 {The bishop must protect the queenside.} (23... Bh7 $2 24. Rc2 {and the knight can jump to the c6-square.}) 24. Bf4 Qe7 (24... Qb6 { is also good.}) 25. Nb5 $1 Bxb5 (25... c6 {After this natural move, I believe Nakamura wanted to sacrifice the exchange.} 26. Rxe4 $1 dxe4 (26... cxb5 27. Rd4 {with a dream position for White. The attack with opposite-colored bishops is too strong.}) 27. Nd6 {It seems Black can keep the game equal with some good computer moves, but the position is scary.}) 26. axb5 Ng5 $5 {It seems Nakamura was finally out of book after this move. Black has many possibilities. } (26... Qb4 {I would like to point out some lines with this natural move, attacking both b-pawns.} 27. Rd3 (27. e6 $5 Rxe6 28. Bxc7 Rde8 {and Black is fine. A nice line is:} 29. Qxd5 Ng3 $1 30. Rxe6 Qe1+ $1 31. Rxe1 Rxe1+ 32. Kh2 Nf1+ {with perpetual check.}) 27... Nc5 (27... Qxb5 $4 28. Rxe4) 28. Rxd5 Ne6 29. Be3 Rxd5 30. Qxd5 Rb8 {with a draw.}) 27. Rxa5 (27. Bxg5 {was the safer move, getting rid of this dangerous knight. But it gives nothing more than a draw after} Qxg5 28. Qd4 Qc1+ 29. Kh2 Qc4 $1 30. Qxc4 dxc4 31. Rxa5 Rd5 32. Rc2 Rexe5 33. Rxc4 Rxb5 34. Rxb5 Rxb5 35. Rxc7 Rxb2) (27. Rg3 $5 {Maybe this was the best move to fight for the advantage.}) 27... Ne6 28. Bd2 d4 {With such a good knight and the passed d-pawn, Black has great compensation. White has to be careful.} 29. Ra3 Qc5 30. Rg3 d3 31. Re1 Qxb5 32. Qh5 (32. Bxh6 $2 {This loses to} d2 $1 33. Bxd2 Qd5 34. Re2 Nf4 {winning material.}) 32... Qxb2 33. Bxh6 d2 34. Rd1 Rd5 (34... Qc2 35. Qe2 {is also equal.}) 35. Bxg7 $1 {Forcing a draw.} Nxg7 36. Rxg7+ Kxg7 37. Qg5+ Kf8 38. Qh6+ Kg8 39. Qg5+ Kf8 40. Qh6+ Ke7 41. Qf6+ Kf8 42. Qh6+ Kg8 1/2-1/2 [Event "Chess.com"] [Site "Chess.com"] [Date "2022.06.23"] [Round "6"] [White "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"] [Black "Duda, Jan-Krzysztof"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "A07"] [WhiteElo "2766"] [BlackElo "2750"] [Annotator "samsh"] [PlyCount "69"] [EventDate "2022.??.??"] 1. Nf3 d5 {Duda was probably caught by surprise in the opening. It seemed so natural to expect 1.e4, which is Ian's main move. Also, Nepo has been playing the Petroff a lot with Black as of late, so he probably has some sense of where to put the most pressure. Duda's other option is the Najdorf, which Ian has crushed once already this tournament. I myself was also not expecting anything else on move 1, but the surprise clearly paid off.} 2. g3 Bg4 3. Bg2 e6 4. O-O Nd7 5. h3 Bh5 6. d4 Ngf6 7. c4 c6 8. cxd5 exd5 {All of this is reasonably well known and has been played a bunch of times before. I never fully trusted these positions for Black though.} 9. Ne5 {Bold, and I like it $1 } (9. Nh4 {This is another decent option that I always thought gave White a slight edge. Ian's move is much more direct.}) 9... Nxe5 {A human response, but not a great one.} (9... Ne4 $1 {According to the machine, this move is by far Black's best chance at fighting for equality. I cannot imagine it even entering a person's mind as a candidate move if they did now already know it in advance.}) 10. dxe5 Ne4 11. Nd2 Nxd2 12. Bxd2 {Already, Black's position is very difficult. I like White's kingside and central space, and the h5-bishop is going to get harassed once the pawns get moving.} Bc5 13. Rc1 $1 {The first new move of the game, and a good one. I have to imagine Nepo was prepared at least up to this point.} Qe7 14. Kh2 O-O 15. g4 Bg6 16. f4 {White is threatening f5, and Black has no good options. Duda found the least bad one.} h6 (16... f6 17. f5 Be8 18. e6 $18 {The protected passed pawn on e6 should easily decide the game.}) (16... f5 17. Qb3 $16 {Black's position remains very difficult, though I don't think it is as terrible as the computer claims.}) ( 16... Be4 17. Bxe4 dxe4 18. Qa4 $1 e3 19. Bc3 {White's queen will centralize on e4 and then the kingside advance is coming.}) 17. Qe1 {Ian took a very long time on this move, which is not something he is known to do. The machine is not a fan, but I like it quite a lot. White has this nice and simple plan of bringing the queen to g3, and one could imagine b2-b4-b5 coming as well.} (17. Qa4 {So says the computer.}) 17... Rfe8 18. Qg3 Bh7 19. h4 $1 {Simple and incredibly effective. White has a big kingside pawn mass, so put it in motion $1 The attack is coming and is very hard to stop.} Rad8 (19... Bd4 $1 { Apparently, this was Black's best. I still seriously dislike his position after something like} 20. g5 h5 21. Bc3 Bxc3 22. Qxc3 {But the computer thinks he is okay.}) 20. g5 $1 {So simple. Black is already in trouble and has to find an only move to not die immediately.} hxg5 (20... Kh8 $1 {This was the only way. White does not have a direct win, but so what $2} 21. a3 {b4 and b5 might be coming next. Black can barely move, has no counterplay at all, and it's hard to imagine a human will hang on for too long.}) 21. hxg5 Bb4 22. Bxb4 Qxb4 23. f5 $1 {Of course the b2-pawn is of little consequence.} Qxb2 24. e6 { Not the most precise, but certainly good enough.} (24. Rc3 $1 {My machine gives +6. I won't argue with such an evaluation.}) (24. g6 $2 {It's important not to get too materialistic. Black already has one pawn for the piece, White's structure is in shambles, and Black can sacrifice some material to get a defensible position.} fxg6 25. fxg6 Bxg6 26. Qxg6 Qxe5+ $14 {Black should be okay now. The attack is over and white's extra piece does not look that much better than the three pawns.}) 24... fxe6 25. g6 $2 {This seems a bit careless. } (25. Rb1 $1 {This was a more accurate move order.} Qxe2 26. g6 {This would look something like the game, but Black would have lost out on options of Qb2-e5 or Qb2-f6.} exf5 27. gxh7+ Kxh7 28. Rxb7 {White should win.}) 25... exf5 26. gxh7+ Kh8 $2 (26... Kxh7 $1 {Good or bad, Black had to go for this. He is a piece down and should be taking as many pawns as possible.} 27. Rb1 Qe5 $1 28. Rxb7 Qxg3+ 29. Kxg3 Rxe2 {Black will suffer, but he has reasonable drawing chances.}) 27. Rb1 $1 {Now, since Black did not take the h7-pawn, he is unable to transition to an endgame with Qe5.} Qf6 (27... Qe5 {Now this move does not work because Black did not take on h7.} 28. Rxb7 Qxg3+ 29. Kxg3 Rxe2 30. Rxf5 { The threat of Rg5 is decisive. Black has to take on h7 anyway, but the lost tempo means that White will be in time to grab a7.} Kxh7 31. Rxa7 $1 {The a-pawn should eventually win.}) 28. Rxb7 $1 Rxe2 29. Rxf5 $1 {Not too difficult, but nice all the same. White's extra piece keeps his own king safe, while Black's is clearly done for with all the heavy pieces on an open board.} Qh6+ 30. Kg1 Rxa2 31. Rbf7 Ra1+ 32. Bf1 d4 33. Rg5 Qd6 34. Qf2 Qa3 35. Rg3 { Duda resigned rather than waiting for a capture on g7. Nepo surely deserved the win, but his play felt shakier than it did in his earlier games. The length of a tournament has always been his worst enemy, and it might just be starting to show—not enough to affect the result, but enough to notice from afar. We will see if he can keep up this form moving forward. If he can, I expect him to win the event easily. If not... things will get interesting.} 1-0 [Event "Chess.com"] [Site "Chess.com"] [Date "2022.06.23"] [Round "6"] [White "Radjabov, Teimour"] [Black "Rapport, Richard"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "B46"] [WhiteElo "2753"] [BlackElo "2764"] [Annotator "Rafael Leitao"] [PlyCount "80"] [EventDate "2022.??.??"] [TimeControl "5400+30"] 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nc6 5. Nc3 a6 {Rapport is faithful to the Sicilian he played against Caruana. Both players came prepared and the game follows an obscure line.} 6. Nxc6 bxc6 7. Qd3 d5 8. Qg3 h5 9. h4 d4 10. Nb1 Nf6 11. e5 Ne4 12. Qf3 Qd5 13. Bd3 Bb4+ 14. Kf1 f5 15. exf6 Nxf6 {I was in shock when all this was blitzed out $1} 16. Bg6+ {A new move.} (16. c3 Bc5 17. Bg6+ Kd8 {was Vachier-Lagrave-Nepomniachtchi, Zagreb 2021}) 16... Kd7 {Rapport decides to place the king on d7 instead of d8. In some lines Black can play a5-Ba6 and the rooks are connected.} 17. Bg5 (17. c3 {is a critical move.} Bc5 (17... dxc3 18. Nxc3 Qxf3 19. gxf3 {this looks somewhat better for White.}) 18. Nd2 $1 dxc3 19. Be4 $1 Nxe4 20. Nxe4 Rf8 {and this leads to some crazy computer lines. For example:} 21. Qe2 Rxf2+ $1 (21... a5 22. Kg1) 22. Nxf2 a5 { and it looks scary for White, although the computer, as usual, survives.}) 17... Rf8 18. c3 Bd6 (18... Bc5 $5 {looks good.} 19. cxd4 Qxd4 20. Be3 $1 Qc4+ (20... Qxb2 21. Qd1+ Nd5 22. Bxc5 Qb5+ 23. Kg1 Qxc5 24. Qd2 {with compensation. }) 21. Kg1 Ng4 {White looks to be in trouble, but he can escape.} 22. Na3 $1 ( 22. Nd2 Qb5 $1 23. Qg3 Bd6 {with attack.}) 22... Qb4 (22... Bxa3 23. Rd1+ Kc7 24. Qg3+ e5 25. bxa3) 23. Rd1+ Kc7 24. Qg3+ e5 {with a crazy position.}) 19. cxd4 (19. Qxd5 {and both pawn captures lead to a balanced endgame.} cxd5 (19... exd5 20. cxd4 Rb8 21. b3 Rb4 $1) 20. cxd4 Rb8 21. b3 Rb4 $11) 19... Qxd4 20. Qc3 Qd1+ (20... Bc5 21. Qxd4+ Bxd4 22. Nc3 Nd5 23. Nd1 $1 {and White holds the position.}) 21. Qe1 Qxe1+ 22. Kxe1 Rb8 23. Nd2 Rxb2 $1 {Rapport’s famous creativity is shown now $1} 24. Nc4 Bb4+ 25. Kf1 Ng4 $1 {A brilliant idea $1} 26. f3 (26. Nxb2 {looks incredibly dangerous. The computer, again, saves the day.} Rxf2+ 27. Kg1 Rxb2 28. Rc1 $1 c5 29. Rc2 Rb1+ 30. Rc1 Rb2 {with repetition.}) 26... Rf2+ 27. Kg1 Bc5 $1 28. fxg4 R2f4+ 29. Ne3 (29. Kh2 { was also possible:} Rxc4 30. Rhd1+ Bd6+ (30... Kc7 31. gxh5) 31. Rxd6+ $1 Kxd6 32. Rd1+ Kc7 33. Be7 $1 {and White has enough compensation for a balanced position.}) 29... Bxe3+ 30. Kh2 Rxg4 31. Bxe3 Rxg6 32. Rhd1+ Kc7 33. Rab1 { Black is two pawns up, but we have opposite-colored bishops on the board. This gives White attacking chances.} Bb7 34. Bc5 Re8 35. Bd6+ (35. Rb2 e5 36. Bb6+ Kc8 (36... Kb8 $2 37. Rd7 $18) 37. Rbd2 Ba8 38. a4 {with the idea of protecting the bishop with a4-a5. The game is equal.}) 35... Kc8 36. Be5 Rg4 $2 (36... Rf8 $1 {[%CAl Gf8f5] was the best chance.}) 37. Rf1 $1 {Now Black is in trouble. He has to find some strong moves not to lose immediately.} Rxh4+ $2 ( 37... c5 $1 38. Rf7 Rxg2+ 39. Kh3 Re2 {and Black is still surviving, but it's not pretty.} 40. Bd6 Re3+ (40... Rd2 $5 41. Rb6 Rxd6 42. Rxd6 {White is better, but there are drawing chances.}) 41. Bg3 Rxg3+ 42. Kxg3 Bd5 {and Black will fight for a draw.}) 38. Kg1 Re4 39. Rf7 $4 {Maybe Radjabov just didn't believe he could win and didn't search for it. Otherwise he would have found what is an easy move for his standards.} (39. Bh2 $1 $18 {White just wins a piece after Rf7.}) 39... Rxe5 40. Rbxb7 Rb5 1/2-1/2