[Event "5th Shenzhen Longgang"] [Site "Shenzhen CHN"] [Date "2024.03.06"] [Round "6.1"] [White "Xu, Xiangyu"] [Black "Dubov, Daniil"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "D70"] [WhiteElo "2623"] [BlackElo "2708"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "91"] [EventDate "2024.02.29"] {[%evp 0,91,22,20,23,4,44,4,9,30,46,40,31,13,26,27,38,39,48,70,63,63,120,86,100,104,110,90,110,153,89,77,56,2,8,7,7,7,11,-3,17,-17,-17,-16,-28,-28,43,39,72,72,75,75,71,79,38,60,139,125,136,150,133,159,168,170,169,157,157,141,153,142,141,150,142,142,163,194,202,197,183,156,162,160,162,171,323,171,255,234,276,289,377,437,437,269] Xu started poorly, losing in the first two rounds. He turned the ship around though, drawing the next three before winning this game and the next one to finish at 50%.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. f3 d5 {The most Grünfeld-y approach. Black has many options, though, so if you don't like playing ...d5 when you won't have ...Nxc3 after 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.e4 and don't want to go into a King's Indian either, you're not out of luck.} 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nb6 6. Nc3 Bg7 7. Be3 Nc6 (7... O-O {is far more common, but many contemporary lines that are now common are so because Dubov put them on the map.}) 8. d5 (8. Bb5 {is also known here, as was played by Firouzja against none other than the very same Dubov - who won that game.}) 8... Ne5 9. f4 Ng4 10. Bb5+ c6 (10... Bd7 {has been usual, played by Vachier-Lagrave and...Xu! But the engine prefers Dubov's move, which is almost certainly not a (mere) coincidence.}) 11. dxc6 O-O $1 12. Qxd8 Rxd8 13. c7 Rf8 14. Bc5 Bxc3+ 15. bxc3 Bd7 16. Bxd7 Nxd7 17. Bxe7 Rfe8 18. Bd8 Rxe4+ 19. Ne2 Ne3 $2 $146 {+- No one's memory is perfect, not even Dubov's. The move played in the predecessor game is the right one, as one can confirm with the engine, and I'm certain that Dubov had it in his prep files. Errare humanum est.} (19... Nc5 $1 20. h3 Nh6 (20... Ne3 {seems playable here - maybe this is what Dubov remembered, but forgot that ...Nc5 came first?}) 21. Rb1 Rc8 22. Kf2 f5 23. Rb5 b6 24. Rxc5 bxc5 25. Rb1 Nf7 26. Rb8 Nd6 27. Ng3 Re8 28. Nf1 Kf7 29. Nd2 Ke6 30. Nf3 Rg8 31. c4 Rg7 32. Ke2 Rgxc7 33. Ng5+ Kd7 34. Bxc7 Rxc7 35. Rh8 h5 36. Kd3 Rb7 37. Rh7+ Kc6 38. Rxb7 {½-½ Polishchuk,A (2317)-Poulos,G (2245) W-ch WS/M/838 email ICCF email 2022}) 20. Kd2 $2 {Xu errs in turn.} (20. Kf2 Ng4+ 21. Kg3 $1 (21. Kf3 $4 f5 {wins, as White can't stop 22...Re3# without losing the knight.}) 21... Rxe2 22. Kxg4 $18 {As we'll see in the 22...Rf2 lines below, White's king gives Black all sorts of resources for free tempi and counterattacks when it's on the queenside, impeding his attempts to make something of his c-pawn. Here the king is out of trouble and out of the way, so White's pluses can bear fruit.}) 20... Nc4+ 21. Kc2 (21. Kd3 $4 Nc5+ $19) 21... Rxe2+ 22. Kd3 Re6 (22... Rf2 $142 23. Kxc4 Rxf4+ 24. Kd5 (24. Kb3 Nc5+ 25. Kb2 Ne6 26. Rhd1 Rc8 27. Rd7 Rc4 28. Rf1 Nxc7 29. Rfxf7 Ne6 30. Rfe7 (30. Bf6 Rf4 31. Rxb7 a5 $15) 30... Rxd8 31. Rxd8+ Nxd8 32. Re8+ Kf7 33. Rxd8 Ke6 $11) 24... Rf5+ 25. Kd6 Nb6 {Threatening ...Rd5#.} 26. Rad1 Nc8+ 27. Kd7 Nb6+ 28. Kd6 Nc8+ $11) 23. Kxc4 $14 Rc6+ 24. Kd5 Nb6+ 25. Kd4 Rc8 26. Rab1 $1 Rd6+ 27. Ke4 Na4 ({Only} 27... f5+ $1 28. Kf3 Rd3+ 29. Kf2 Rxc3 $14 {keeps Black alive.}) 28. Kf3 $1 $18 Nc5 29. Rhe1 Re6 30. Rxe6 Nxe6 31. Rxb7 Nxd8 32. cxd8=Q+ Rxd8 33. Ke2 {Some rook endings with 3 vs. 3 on the kingside and an extra pawn on the queenside are drawn, but there are several major differences between this ending and those. First, Black's rook isn't active. Second, the extra pawn is often a solitary a-pawn, which is often more difficult for the king to assist; here, it's a c-pawn. Third, White may go up two pawns on the queenside, and while the total difference may just be a pawn the quantity of the queenside majority will help White. Fourth, White's king is active. These four points are, collectively, easily enough to win.} Rc8 34. Kd3 Rd8+ 35. Kc2 Re8 36. c4 Kf8 37. Rxa7 Re2+ 38. Kb3 Rxg2 39. a4 Rxh2 40. a5 Rh1 41. a6 Kg7 42. Rd7 Rb1+ 43. Ka2 Rb8 44. a7 Ra8 45. Kb3 h5 46. Kb4 (46. Kb4 h4 47. Kb5 h3 48. Kb6 h2 49. Rd1 $18 {Only by one tempo, you might say to yourself. Was my final remark in the note after White's 33rd move a bit of bluster? Not at all: White could have chosen a different winning approach had this line come up a tempo short for White. Just to mention two: 39.c5 is good, not allowing Black to take on h2, and another idea is 39.Rd7 Rxh2 40.Rd1, covering the back rank and preparing to put the rook behind one of the passed pawns.}) 1-0 [Event "5th Shenzhen Longgang"] [Site "Shenzhen CHN"] [Date "2024.03.06"] [Round "6.2"] [White "Erigaisi, Arjun"] [Black "Artemiev, Vladislav"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C78"] [WhiteElo "2738"] [BlackElo "2711"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "60"] [EventDate "2024.02.29"] {[%evp 0,60,22,16,16,19,17,17,28,4,5,-9,5,-7,6,26,21,6,23,-16,-7,-28,17,17,13,10,53,-6,8,13,24,18,39,51,53,53,49,26,89,89,30,39,23,21,0,37,18,-8,-1,-7,1,-5,-5,1,-3,1,1,-1,0,0,0,0,0]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O b5 6. Bb3 Bb7 7. d3 Bc5 8. a4 O-O 9. Bg5 h6 10. Bh4 Be7 {This ...h6 Bh4 Be7 idea vs. Bg5 is also well-known from a Giuoco line.} 11. axb5 axb5 12. Rxa8 Bxa8 13. Na3 Bxa3 ({Black has generally continued} 13... Na5 14. Ba2 (14. Nxb5 $5) 14... b4 15. Nc4 Nxc4 16. Bxc4 d6 $11 {/?}) 14. bxa3 $14 Qe7 15. Qd2 Qd6 16. a4 b4 $146 (16... bxa4 17. Bxa4 Nh5 18. Bb3 Kh7 19. Ra1 f6 20. c3 Ne7 21. Bc2 Rb8 22. d4 Ng6 23. Qe3 Qb6 24. h3 Re8 25. Ra2 Bb7 26. d5 c5 27. Bg3 Nxg3 28. fxg3 Ra8 29. Rxa8 Bxa8 30. Ba4 Nf8 31. Qe2 Qa5 32. Qc2 Bb7 33. Nh4 Ba6 34. Nf5 g6 35. Ne3 Kg7 36. g4 Kf7 37. Kf2 d6 38. Qb3 Kg8 39. Kf3 Qd8 40. Bb5 Qb6 41. c4 Bc8 42. Qa4 Qc7 43. Qa8 Kf7 44. Ba6 Bd7 45. h4 Qb6 46. Bb5 Bxb5 47. cxb5 Qxb5 48. Qc8 Qd7 49. Qb8 Ke7 50. h5 Qd8 51. Qb7+ Qd7 52. Qb1 Qd8 53. hxg6 Nxg6 54. Qb7+ Kf8 55. Qh7 Ne7 56. Qh8+ Ng8 57. Nf5 Qc7 58. Nxh6 {1-0 Bernal Varela,N (2266)-Sanner,Z (2296) WC-2016-Q-00006 LSS email}) 17. Rb1 (17. Bxf6 $142 Qxf6 18. Rb1 $14) 17... Nh5 18. Bd5 Nf4 $11 19. Bxc6 Bxc6 20. Bg3 Bxa4 21. Nxe5 Qxe5 22. Bxf4 Qc3 23. Rxb4 Qa1+ 24. Qc1 Qxc1+ 25. Bxc1 Bxc2 26. Rc4 Bxd3 27. Rxc7 Bxe4 28. Rxd7 Bf5 29. Rc7 Rc8 30. Rxc8+ Bxc8 {Well done: the position has become a stone-dead draw on exactly move 30. These guys are super-GMs for a reason.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "5th Shenzhen Longgang"] [Site "Shenzhen CHN"] [Date "2024.03.06"] [Round "6.3"] [White "Bu, Xiangzhi"] [Black "Yu, Yangyi"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "D05"] [WhiteElo "2671"] [BlackElo "2720"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "64"] [EventDate "2024.02.29"] {[%evp 0,64,22,14,58,16,3,4,4,-13,12,4,1,-2,9,-17,-2,-13,3,-4,-4,-4,14,2,15,2,5,3,8,-23,-23,4,4,-1,-3,-13,39,31,95,44,44,30,30,42,57,18,18,19,0,4,0,1,1,3,22,5,25,6,6,0,3,0,6,9,10,5,5]} 1. Nf3 c5 2. c3 Nf6 3. d4 e6 4. e3 {Bu also played the Colle against Dubov in round 1, and didn't get anything there either. (Shocking, right?)} b6 5. Nbd2 Bb7 6. Bd3 d5 7. O-O Be7 8. Qe2 (8. Ne5) 8... Nc6 (8... O-O) 9. b3 O-O 10. Bb2 a5 11. a4 Rc8 $146 12. Rac1 Bd6 {If White keeps delaying, Black may achieve ...e5 before White gets in e4.} 13. Rfd1 Qe7 14. e4 {Finally springing into "action". Prepare for exchanges.} dxe4 (14... Bf4 $5) 15. Nxe4 cxd4 (15... Nxe4 $142 16. Qxe4 g6 $11) 16. Nxd6 Qxd6 17. Bb5 e5 (17... Qd5 $142) 18. Bxc6 (18. cxd4 $142 e4 19. Ne5 $14) 18... Qxc6 (18... Rxc6 $142 $11) 19. cxd4 $14 Qe6 20. Rxc8 Rxc8 21. dxe5 Nd5 22. Qd2 (22. h3 $14) 22... h6 $11 23. Nd4 {Liquidating to a draw.} Qxe5 24. Nc6 Qe6 25. Qxd5 Qxc6 26. Qxc6 Bxc6 27. f3 b5 28. Rc1 bxa4 29. bxa4 Bd7 30. Rxc8+ Bxc8 31. Bc3 Bd7 32. Bxa5 Bxa4 {Almost as efficient as the previous game, but as Bu is a sub-2700 player it took them two moves longer to reach an almost identically dead drawn position.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "5th Shenzhen Longgang"] [Site "Shenzhen CHN"] [Date "2024.03.06"] [Round "6.4"] [White "Giri, Anish"] [Black "Ma, Qun"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C54"] [WhiteElo "2762"] [BlackElo "2651"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "66"] [EventDate "2024.02.29"] {[%evp 0,66,22,17,17,17,15,26,26,14,10,10,6,19,21,2,38,-44,-1,1,4,4,36,18,11,18,22,-32,-10,-29,-17,-20,-4,-17,-10,0,0,-5,-22,-11,7,1,9,-20,-28,-5,-8,-16,-4,-3,23,13,23,21,22,29,0,-35,-16,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 {The Policy is in effect, but I'll offer a couple of brief comments near the end of the game.} 4. O-O Nf6 5. d3 d6 6. c3 a6 7. a4 Ba7 8. Re1 O-O 9. h3 h6 10. Nbd2 Re8 11. Nf1 Be6 12. Bxe6 Rxe6 13. c4 Nd4 14. a5 Nd7 15. Ng3 Nxf3+ 16. Qxf3 Nc5 17. Qd1 Rf6 18. Rf1 Ne6 19. b4 Kh7 20. Nf5 Nd4 21. Ne3 Qd7 22. Kh1 Rf8 23. Ra2 c6 24. Bd2 Ne6 25. Nf5 g6 (25... d5) 26. Nxh6 Rxf2 27. Rxf2 Bxf2 28. Qg4 Bd4 29. Nf5 {Best, and forcing an immediate perpetual.} gxf5 30. Qxf5+ Kg7 (30... Kg8 31. Qg4+ {is a version of LPDO - loose pieces drop off. If Black's queen were protected, then ...Ng7 would escape the perpetual. So pay attention to unprotected pieces: they can often be exploited, even if you can't win them.}) 31. Qg4+ Kh7 32. Qh5+ Kg8 33. Qg4+ Kh7 1/2-1/2 [Event "5th Shenzhen Longgang"] [Site "Shenzhen CHN"] [Date "2024.03.07"] [Round "7.1"] [White "Ma, Qun"] [Black "Xu, Xiangyu"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "B99"] [WhiteElo "2651"] [BlackElo "2623"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "94"] [EventDate "2024.02.29"] {[%evp 0,94,22,15,50,33,82,65,65,23,28,32,44,69,77,58,45,55,50,50,25,19,47,4,31,32,60,78,78,82,59,59,49,49,49,49,97,77,101,75,175,172,152,123,103,41,109,80,83,57,40,11,0,22,-15,-25,0,0,0,-5,0,-22,-18,-8,-10,-10,-10,-3,-3,-75,-84,-84,-81,-86,-57,-96,-105,-160,-160,-182,-195,-235,-203,-219,-219,-391,-398,-393,-403,-934,-1084,-1098,-1141,-1137,-1148,-917,-893]} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Bg5 e6 7. Qf3 Nbd7 8. O-O-O Qc7 9. Qg3 b5 10. Bd3 (10. Bxb5 axb5 11. Ndxb5 {is another entertaining-looking line that, as usual when it comes to forcing lines in the Najdorf, has been worked out to a 0.00 finish.} Qb7 12. Rxd6 Rxa2 13. Nc7+ Kd8 14. Nxe6+ fxe6 15. Nxa2 Bxd6 16. Qxd6 Qxe4 17. Bxf6+ gxf6 18. Nb4 Ke8 19. Nc6 Kf7 20. Rd1 Re8 21. Qc7 Kg8 {and now just to give one possibility, we have} 22. Nd8 Qa8 23. Qg3+ Kf8 24. Qd6+ Kg8 25. Qg3+ $11) 10... Be7 11. Rhe1 O-O $2 (11... h6) 12. f4 $16 {Black is supposed to be in some trouble here.} Nc5 (12... b4 $142 13. Nd5 exd5 14. Nf5 Bd8 15. Nxg7 $1 Kh8 $8 16. Qh4 $146 Rg8 17. Nf5 dxe4 18. Bxe4 Nxe4 19. Rxe4 Bb7 20. Bxd8 Raxd8 21. Re2 b3 $1 22. axb3 Qa5 23. Nh6 Qa1+ 24. Kd2 Qa5+ 25. b4 Qa2 26. b3 Rdf8 27. Qh3 Qb2 28. Nxg8 Rxg8 29. Qc3+ Qxc3+ 30. Kxc3 Nf6 31. Rde1 Bxg2 32. Kb2 $14 {/? This is the best Black can do: a long series of perfect, occasionally brilliant moves just to reach a bad but probably tenable ending.}) 13. e5 dxe5 14. fxe5 Nh5 $2 15. Qh4 Bxg5+ 16. Qxg5 $18 g6 17. g4 f6 18. exf6 $2 (18. Qe3 $1) 18... Nxf6 $6 (18... Nxd3+ $1 19. Rxd3 Qf4+ $1 20. Qxf4 Nxf4 21. Rdd1 Rxf6 $16 {/+-}) 19. Rf1 $2 (19. a3 $1 {Score one for the little guy. IM Salov (not to be confused with the inactive super-GM Valery Salov) chose the correct move and went on to win comfortably.} Rb8 20. b4 (20. Bxg6) 20... Nxd3+ 21. Rxd3 Qxh2 $2 (21... e5 $142) 22. Rf1 Kg7 23. Rdf3 h6 24. Qc5 Rb7 25. Rxf6 Rxf6 26. Rxf6 Kxf6 27. Qxc8 Rf7 28. Ne4+ Kg7 29. Nxe6+ Kh7 30. Nf6+ $1 {1-0 Salov,S (2297)-Kantinti,S (2200) Olympiad-35 Bled 2002 (13.2)} Rxf6 31. Qd7+ Kg8 32. Qg7#) 19... Kg7 $14 20. Qh4 (20. Qd2) 20... Bd7 21. Be2 Qe5 $1 22. Bf3 Rae8 $2 (22... Nd5) 23. g5 $18 Nd5 24. Bxd5 $2 (24. Rfe1 $1 Qf4+ 25. Qxf4 Nxf4 26. b4 Na4 27. Nxa4 bxa4 28. a3 $18) 24... exd5 (24... Rxf1 $142 25. Rxf1 exd5 $11) 25. Rxf8 (25. Nf3) 25... Rxf8 26. Nb3 $6 (26. Nxd5 $1 Qxd5 27. Nb3 Nxb3+ 28. axb3 Qc6 29. Qd4+ Kg8 30. Qxd7 Qxd7 31. Rxd7 Rf5 $11) 26... Ne6 $15 27. Nxd5 (27. Rxd5 $142) 27... Qxg5+ 28. Qxg5 Nxg5 29. Nc5 Bc8 (29... Bg4 $142 30. Rg1 h5 $15 {/?}) 30. b4 $11 Rf2 31. Rd2 Rxd2 32. Kxd2 Nf3+ 33. Ke2 Nxh2 34. Ne7 $2 (34. Nc7 $11) 34... Bg4+ $17 35. Kf2 h5 36. Nxa6 h4 $2 (36... Be6 $1 $17) 37. Nc5 $2 (37. Nc6 $1 $11) 37... Bf3 $19 38. Nc8 Bd5 $1 39. Nb6 Ng4+ 40. Kg1 Bf3 {With the bishop controlling g2 and h1 and the knight controlling h2, Black is one move away from winning. White does his best to harass Black's bishop before ...h3 shows up.} 41. Ne6+ Kf6 42. Nd4 Be4 43. Nd7+ Ke7 44. Nc5 Ba8 45. Ne2 h3 46. Ng3 {White did well to get this far, but it's not good enough.} h2+ 47. Kf1 Ne3+ $1 ({After} 47... Ne3+ $1 48. Kf2 Nf5 {White's knight cannot maintain its defense of the queening square, and Black will safely promote.}) 0-1 [Event "5th Shenzhen Longgang"] [Site "Shenzhen CHN"] [Date "2024.03.07"] [Round "7.2"] [White "Yu, Yangyi"] [Black "Giri, Anish"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "A14"] [WhiteElo "2720"] [BlackElo "2762"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "54"] [EventDate "2024.02.29"] {[%evp 0,54,20,-3,4,-40,-4,-19,-16,-16,10,-25,-8,-20,4,-17,-10,-34,55,0,9,-23,37,60,43,49,49,54,24,28,6,27,0,0,27,0,33,33,9,14,18,3,0,-37,35,31,31,13,22,10,7,4,12,4,1,0,12]} 1. c4 Nf6 2. g3 e6 3. Bg2 d5 4. Nf3 Be7 5. O-O O-O 6. d3 c5 7. Ne5 Qc7 8. f4 {This is a very rare position, but five of the six prior games to reach this position involved GMs - and even the exception, the first game back in 2010, involved an IM.} Rd8 (8... Nbd7 9. Nxd7 Bxd7 10. e4 dxe4 11. dxe4 Bc6 12. Nc3 a6 13. Qe2 Rfd8 14. g4 h6 15. h4 h5 16. gxh5 b5 17. h6 b4 18. Nd1 g6 19. Bf3 Kh7 20. Nf2 Nh5 21. Bxh5 gxh5 22. Qxh5 Rg8+ 23. Kh2 Rg6 24. Be3 Rf8 25. Qf3 f5 26. h5 Rxh6 27. Rg1 Be8 28. Rg3 Bxh5 {0-1 Caruana,F (2766)-Aronian,L (2745) American Cup Elim Saint Louis rapid 2023 (2.7)}) 9. Nc3 $146 (9. Qe1 Nbd7 10. Nc3 d4 11. Nb5 Qb8 12. e4 Nxe5 13. fxe5 Nd7 14. Bf4 Nxe5 15. Qd2 a6 16. Na3 Bd6 17. Nc2 Qc7 18. a3 b6 19. b4 Bd7 20. Rab1 Ba4 21. Ne1 Rab8 22. Bxe5 Bxe5 23. Nf3 Bf6 24. Qe2 e5 25. g4 Bd7 26. g5 Be7 27. h4 b5 28. cxb5 cxb4 29. axb4 Rxb5 30. Rbc1 Qd6 31. Qf2 Be6 32. Qg3 Qxb4 33. Bh3 Qd6 34. h5 Bxh3 35. Qxh3 Rb3 36. Rfd1 g6 37. h6 Rbb8 38. Qg4 f6 39. gxf6 Bxf6 40. Rc4 Rf8 41. Rdc1 Rbe8 42. Rc6 Qd8 43. Rc7 Qd6 44. R1c6 Qa3 45. Qd7 Qe7 46. Qd5+ Kh8 47. Rxe7 Rxe7 48. Rxf6 {1-0 Makarian,R (2562)-Lazavik,D (2541) Titled Tuesday intern op 14th Feb Early Chess.com INT blitz 2023 (8)}) 9... a6 10. Qe1 b5 $5 (10... d4 11. Nd1 Nfd7 $11 {/? is the comp's suggestion, and it looks good.}) 11. cxb5 (11. g4 $1 b4 12. Na4 $14) 11... axb5 12. Nxb5 Qb6 13. a4 Ba6 $44 (13... Nc6 $142 $11) 14. Bd2 (14. Nc3) 14... Bxb5 15. axb5 Rxa1 16. Qxa1 Qxb5 17. Qa7 Nc6 18. Nxc6 Qxc6 19. Ra1 (19. Qxe7 $4 Rd7 $19) 19... Bf8 20. Qa6 Qd7 21. Bc3 Ng4 22. Bf3 Ne3 23. Qa4 Qe7 24. Qa7 Rd7 25. Qb8 Rd8 26. Qa7 Rd7 27. Qb8 Rd8 {Repeating moves to get the draw ahead of schedule. When you're an erstwhile 2800 like Giri, you've got these sorts of super-powers (compare Erigaisi-Artemiev and Bu-Yu from the previous round).} 1/2-1/2 [Event "5th Shenzhen Longgang"] [Site "Shenzhen CHN"] [Date "2024.03.07"] [Round "7.3"] [White "Artemiev, Vladislav"] [Black "Bu, Xiangzhi"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "D94"] [WhiteElo "2711"] [BlackElo "2671"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "60"] [EventDate "2024.02.29"] {[%evp 0,60,20,-6,30,30,37,31,44,49,54,59,58,39,32,36,62,40,41,7,22,0,6,-18,-6,-6,-6,-5,8,8,13,4,16,20,43,38,49,40,50,33,38,34,18,-15,-1,-15,-15,-29,-52,-28,-25,-11,1,5,-2,-43,-40,-38,-7,-15,-13,-14,-17]} 1. c4 c6 2. Nf3 d5 3. e3 Nf6 4. Nc3 g6 5. d4 Bg7 6. Be2 O-O 7. O-O b6 {Not the usual Schlechter Slav move, but it seems to be popular among Chinese players. Li Chao in particular played it a bunch of times, but Zhao Jun, Wang Hao, Wang Yue, Ni Hao, Wen Yang, Jinshi Bai et al have all played it (and all or almost all of them have used it multiple times).} 8. a4 Bb7 (8... Ne4) (8... a5 {used to be played regularly, but has fallen out of favor.}) 9. cxd5 $146 cxd5 10. Qb3 a6 11. Ne5 Nc6 12. Nxc6 Bxc6 13. Bd2 Qd7 (13... Qc7 $142) 14. Rfc1 (14. a5 $142 $14) 14... Rfb8 $11 15. Be1 e6 16. f3 Ne8 17. Bg3 Nd6 18. Nd1 h5 19. Rc3 Bf8 20. Nf2 b5 21. Qc2 Rc8 22. Bxd6 Bxd6 23. Rc1 Bb7 24. axb5 axb5 25. Nd3 b4 26. Rxc8+ Rxc8 27. Qd2 Rxc1+ 28. Qxc1 Ba6 29. Nc5 Bxc5 30. Bxa6 Bd6 {Bu has learned from the previous round, and managed to get the job done in 30 moves rather than 32. These guys are good.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "5th Shenzhen Longgang"] [Site "Shenzhen CHN"] [Date "2024.03.07"] [Round "7.4"] [White "Dubov, Daniil"] [Black "Erigaisi, Arjun"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "D11"] [WhiteElo "2708"] [BlackElo "2738"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "61"] [EventDate "2024.02.29"] {[%evp 0,61,20,20,30,-11,33,36,37,19,19,20,32,13,24,-27,9,-11,-11,-7,-9,-9,8,-22,-9,-9,-20,-17,-21,-16,-27,-22,-29,-25,-14,-39,12,17,10,20,16,-10,16,21,21,21,19,37,49,51,43,54,54,54,68,56,77,75,88,51,55,23,75,57]} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Qb3 e6 5. g3 c5 $11 {Rare, but it looks good. Expect to see more of this. Funny enough, it turns the game into a sort of Tarrasch, against a player who helped put the Tarrasch back on the map.} 6. cxd5 exd5 7. Bg2 $146 (7. dxc5) 7... c4 8. Qc2 Nc6 9. O-O Be7 $146 (9... h6) 10. Nc3 O-O $146 {A novelty, but transposing to seven games...} 11. Bg5 {...and now 18 games. Still, we're not exactly in mainstream theory, though the structure is familiar from the 9...c4 variation of the traditional main line Tarrasch.} Be6 12. Rad1 h6 13. Bxf6 Bxf6 14. a3 $146 (14. e4) 14... Qb6 15. e3 Rad8 16. Nd2 $146 {The final novelty!} (16. Na4 Qc7 17. b4 b6 18. Nc3 Be7 19. e4 dxe4 20. Nxe4 Qc8 21. Qc3 b5 22. Ne5 Nxe5 23. dxe5 Bg4 24. f3 Bf5 25. Nf2 f6 26. Rxd8 Rxd8 27. f4 Qc7 28. Re1 Qb6 29. Bf1 Bd3 30. Kg2 Qb7+ 31. Kg1 Bxf1 32. Kxf1 fxe5 33. fxe5 Rf8 34. Kg1 Rf3 35. Re3 Rxe3 36. Qxe3 Bg5 37. Qd4 Qf3 38. Qe4 Qxe4 39. Nxe4 Bc1 40. Nc3 Bxa3 41. Kf1 a6 42. Na2 Kf7 {0-1 Sudhop,H-Gerhards,W Merano Gold Cup 25th 1996 (1)}) 16... Qa6 17. b3 cxb3 18. Qxb3 Na5 (18... Rd7 $142 19. Bxd5 Bxd5 20. Nxd5 Bxd4 $1 21. Nf3 $1 (21. exd4 $6 Nxd4 22. Qa2 Qe6 23. Nb4 Qxa2 24. Nxa2 Ne2+ 25. Kg2 Rfd8 $15 {/?}) 21... Rfd8 $1 22. e4 Bc5 $11) 19. Qa2 $14 Qd6 20. Rb1 a6 (20... b6 $142) 21. Nb3 $16 Nxb3 22. Qxb3 Rd7 23. Na4 b5 24. Nc5 Rc7 25. a4 Rb8 26. Qd3 (26. Rfc1 $142 $16 {/+-}) 26... Bd7 27. Rfc1 Rbc8 28. axb5 Bxb5 29. Qd2 $6 (29. Qf5 $142 $16) 29... Be7 30. Qa2 (30. Bh3 $142 $14) 30... Qf6 31. Qxd5 (31. Qxd5 Bxc5 32. dxc5 Qe7 $11 33. Rxb5 $5 axb5 34. c6 Rb8 $11 {would keep the game going if White wants it, but should he? A missed opportunity for Dubov, who could easily have scored two extra half-points in his last two games to join the tie for first.}) 1/2-1/2 [Event "6th Prague Masters 2024"] [Site "Prague CZE"] [Date "2024.03.06"] [Round "8.1"] [White "Vidit, Santosh Gujrathi"] [Black "Rapport, Richard"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "E93"] [WhiteElo "2747"] [BlackElo "2717"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "60"] [EventDate "2024.02.27"] {[%evp 0,60,20,20,70,47,70,30,30,32,38,46,46,43,38,15,14,8,55,37,56,26,24,15,14,24,19,24,52,36,27,11,30,19,17,23,17,20,20,19,25,13,27,20,34,-30,-15,2,20,5,7,0,10,16,23,31,30,33,38,24,47,24,50]} 1. d4 d6 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. c4 g6 4. Nc3 Bg7 5. e4 O-O 6. Be2 e5 7. d5 Nbd7 8. Be3 Ng4 9. Bg5 f6 10. Bh4 Nh6 11. Nd2 g5 12. Bg3 f5 13. f3 Nf6 14. h3 f4 15. Bf2 c5 16. Qc2 Nf7 17. a3 Bd7 18. b4 b6 19. O-O-O h5 20. Kb2 Qc7 21. b5 a5 22. bxa6 Rxa6 23. Nb5 Qb7 24. a4 Rfa8 25. Ra1 Qb8 26. Nb1 Nd8 27. N1c3 h4 28. Rhb1 Nb7 29. Kc1 Bf8 30. Be1 Be7 {This is one congested position.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "6th Prague Masters 2024"] [Site "Prague CZE"] [Date "2024.03.06"] [Round "8.2"] [White "Gukesh, D."] [Black "Keymer, Vincent"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "E21"] [WhiteElo "2743"] [BlackElo "2738"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "53"] [EventDate "2024.02.27"] {[%evp 0,53,20,20,23,4,-4,4,30,13,25,-4,11,-5,22,-5,-27,-3,-1,2,1,-5,14,19,-6,-58,20,-20,15,-16,5,9,34,11,126,123,30,30,51,112,155,167,161,164,166,131,354,288,288,361,489,471,495,547,573,628] After a disastrous stretch, Gukesh turns things around with a very nice attacking game against one of his fellow prodigies.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 d6 5. Qc2 O-O 6. Bg5 Nc6 7. a3 Bxc3+ 8. Qxc3 h6 9. Bh4 Re8 10. O-O-O $146 {Suggesting, be it ever so subtly, that he might be interested in going for a kingside attack.} Bd7 11. e3 e5 12. Qc2 a6 $6 (12... Bg4 $11 {is a good move, not only putting indirect pressure on White's center but with the possible defensive idea of ...Bh5-g6.}) 13. Bd3 $6 (13. d5 $142) 13... g5 $6 (13... Rb8) (13... b5) 14. dxe5 $1 Nxe5 (14... gxh4 $142 15. exf6 Qxf6 $14) 15. Nxe5 Rxe5 $2 (15... dxe5 $142 $14 {/?}) 16. f4 $1 $18 {That Keymer missed this suggests that he wasn't in very good form in this tournament, either (and indeed, he finished half a point from the bottom).} Rc5 17. b4 Rc6 18. fxg5 Ng4 19. Bh7+ $1 Kf8 20. Rhf1 $1 Qe7 (20... hxg5 21. Rxf7+ $1 Kxf7 22. Qg6+ Kf8 23. Rf1+ {forces a speedy mate.} ({For the purists:} 23. Qg8+ {will mate one move faster:} Ke7 24. Qxg5+ Kf7 (24... Ke6 25. Qd5#) 25. Qg6+ Kf8 26. Qg8#)) 21. g6 $1 f6 (21... Qxh4 22. Rxf7+ Ke8 23. Qe4+ $18 {finishes the job, mating or winning the queen.}) 22. h3 $1 {A relatively quiet move, but given the destruction that ensues if White can safely capture on f6 it's a serious threat.} d5 (22... Nxe3 23. Bxf6 $1 Nxc2 (23... Rxc4 24. Bxe7+ Kxe7 25. Qxc4 Nxc4 26. Rf7+ Ke6 27. Rdf1 $18 {and the g-pawn will secure further material gains.}) 24. Bxe7+ Kxe7 25. Kxc2 Rxc4+ 26. Kd3 d5 27. g7 Be6 28. Rde1 $18) 23. hxg4 $1 Rxc4 24. Rxf6+ Ke8 25. g7 $1 {All tactics, all the time.} Rxc2+ 26. Bxc2 Qxg7 {White is hardly down in material and his pieces are so active (and Black's king can't castle) that even without a knockout blow he'd be winning. There is a knockout blow, however:} 27. Bg6+ (27. Bg6+ Ke7 (27... Kd8 28. Rf8#) (27... Qxg6 28. Rxg6 $18) 28. Rxa6+ Kf8 29. Rxa8+ Be8 30. Rxe8#) 1-0 [Event "6th Prague Masters 2024"] [Site "Prague CZE"] [Date "2024.03.06"] [Round "8.3"] [White "Navara, David"] [Black "Nguyen, Thai Dai Van"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "D78"] [WhiteElo "2667"] [BlackElo "2630"] [PlyCount "72"] [EventDate "2024.02.27"] 1. Nf3 d5 2. g3 g6 3. Bg2 Bg7 4. d4 Nf6 5. c4 c6 6. O-O O-O 7. b3 dxc4 8. bxc4 c5 9. Bb2 cxd4 10. Nxd4 Qb6 11. Qc1 Bd7 12. Nd2 Bc6 13. Nxc6 Nxc6 14. Rb1 Qc7 15. Bc3 Rfd8 16. Qb2 Rab8 17. Rfd1 Ne8 18. Ne4 Rxd1+ 19. Rxd1 Rd8 20. Rb1 b6 21. Bxg7 Nxg7 22. c5 bxc5 23. Nxc5 Rb8 24. Nb3 Na5 25. Rc1 Qd8 26. Qd4 Nxb3 27. Qxd8+ Rxd8 28. axb3 Ne6 29. e3 Kf8 30. b4 Rb8 31. Rc4 Ng7 32. Rc7 Ne6 33. Rb7 Rxb7 34. Bxb7 Nd8 35. Ba8 Ke8 36. Kf1 Kd7 1/2-1/2 [Event "6th Prague Masters 2024"] [Site "Prague CZE"] [Date "2024.03.06"] [Round "8.4"] [White "Bartel, Mateusz"] [Black "Praggnanandhaa, R."] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "B30"] [WhiteElo "2660"] [BlackElo "2747"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "60"] [EventDate "2024.02.27"] {[%evp 0,60,20,15,56,62,44,32,48,70,64,46,51,55,44,43,36,33,36,12,-3,-3,68,-11,-9,-12,-1,18,18,-47,-25,-47,2,-92,-54,-44,-94,-70,-64,-209,0,0,0,0,0,-12,-18,-11,-8,-21,-15,-20,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0]} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. Nc3 d6 5. d4 cxd4 6. Qxd4 Bd7 7. Bxc6 Bxc6 8. Bg5 e6 9. O-O-O Be7 10. Rhe1 Qa5 (10... O-O) 11. Nd5 $1 {Flashy and good, though White's advantage is minimal if Black knows what he's doing.} Bxd5 12. exd5 Qxa2 $6 (12... h6 $1) 13. Rd3 $14 O-O (13... Qa1+ 14. Kd2 Qa5+ 15. Kd1 O-O {is a slightly better version from Black's point of view.}) 14. dxe6 d5 $6 $146 15. exf7+ $6 (15. c3 $1 $16 {/+- This blunts most of Black's counterplay, after which White's initiative regains its momentum.}) 15... Rxf7 $14 {/?} 16. Rxe7 $6 (16. c3 {was again the right way to go.}) 16... Rxe7 17. Bxf6 gxf6 18. Qxf6 $11 Rg7 19. Ng5 Qa1+ 20. Kd2 Qa5+ 21. c3 Qb6 22. Qxb6 axb6 23. Rxd5 h6 24. Ne4 Rxg2 25. Rd7 Rc8 (25... Rg7 {prevents the perpetual, but it's still a likely draw after} 26. Rd6) 26. Nf6+ Kf8 27. Nh7+ Kg8 28. Nf6+ Kf8 29. Nh7+ Kg8 30. Nf6+ Kf8 1/2-1/2 [Event "6th Prague Masters 2024"] [Site "Prague CZE"] [Date "2024.03.06"] [Round "8.5"] [White "Abdusattorov, Nodirbek"] [Black "Maghsoodloo, Parham"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "B90"] [WhiteElo "2744"] [BlackElo "2715"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "135"] [EventDate "2024.02.27"] 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. h3 e5 7. Nb3 Be7 (7... Be6 {is more common, prioritizing useful queenside moves before bothering with ...Be7.}) 8. Be3 Be6 9. Qf3 {Still, there's no shortage of games here - well over 1000.} Nbd7 10. g4 h6 11. O-O-O Rc8 12. Nd5 Nf8 13. Bd3 ({The prophylactic move} 13. Kb1 {is usual.}) 13... Ng6 14. Rhe1 $146 Nd7 15. Kb1 Bg5 16. c4 O-O $11 17. Bf1 Nh4 18. Bxg5 hxg5 19. Qd3 Ng6 20. Ne3 Rc6 21. Qd2 b6 (21... Nh4 $142 $11) 22. Nd5 (22. Nf5 $142 $14) 22... a5 23. a4 Nf4 24. Re3 g6 $15 25. Nc3 Nf6 (25... Nb8 {was a good idea, keeping the option of swinging the knight to c5 after the d-pawn has been secured.}) 26. f3 Kh7 (26... Kg7 27. Nb5 Bxc4 28. Bxc4 Rxc4 29. Nxd6 Rxa4 30. Nf5+ {is probably why Maghsoodloo preferred 26...Kh7. Very deep, though even this is fine for Black after} gxf5 31. Qxd8 Rxd8 32. Rxd8 fxe4 33. fxe4 {and it's equal after either recapture on e4.}) 27. Nd5 {Now that the tactical point in the last note is irrelevant, it's time to put the king where it should be, leaving the h-file to the rook.} Kg7 28. h4 {Unless White gets there first!} Bxd5 (28... Nd7 $1) 29. cxd5 Rc8 (29... Rc7 $142) 30. hxg5 Nh7 $2 (30... Nd7) 31. Ba6 $1 $16 {Now Black is in trouble thanks to his porous queenside.} Rc7 32. Rc1 (32. Rh1 $1 Nxg5 33. Qf2 $1 Ngh3 34. Qf1 $1 {is nice, pressuring Black on both flanks. Black will have a hard time keeping both sides under control.} Rh8 35. Nd2 $16) 32... Rxc1+ 33. Qxc1 Nxg5 34. Qc6 $2 {Jumping in is tempting, but there are two problems. First, it would have been more effective to penetrate with the rook first, Alekhine's Gun/Pistol-style; second, Abdusattorov has underestimated Maghsoodloo's kingside counterplay.} (34. Rc3 $142 $16) (34. Ka2 $142 $1 Rh8 35. Rc3 $16) 34... Ng2 $11 35. Rc3 $8 Ne1 36. Nd2 Rh8 37. Re3 Rh2 {Not bad, but perhaps Maghsoodloo missed or underestimated White's 40th move.} (37... Ng2 $142 $11) 38. Nf1 $14 Nc2 39. Rc3 Nb4 40. Nxh2 $1 {Both forced and strong.} (40. Qc8 $2 Qxc8 41. Bxc8 Rh1 42. Rc1 Nxf3 $19 {The threat is ...Rxf1 followed by ...Nd2+, and the immediate 43.Ka1 loses to 43...Nd2.}) 40... Nxc6 41. dxc6 $14 Ne6 42. Bc4 Nc7 (42... Nc5 $1) 43. Nf1 Qe8 44. Bd5 (44. Bb3 $142 $14) 44... b5 $1 $11 45. Ne3 (45. axb5 $142 Nxb5 46. Rb3 Nd4 47. Rb6 (47. Rc3 Nb5 $11) 47... Qd8 $1 48. Rb7 $1 Qh4 $1 49. c7 Qe1+ 50. Ka2 Nc2 $1 51. Kb3 $8 (51. c8=Q $2 Qa1+ 52. Kb3 Nd4+ 53. Kc3 Qc1+ 54. Kd3 Qxf1+ $1 (54... Qxc8 $19) 55. Kc3 Qxf3+ 56. Kd2 Qe2+ 57. Kc3 (57. Kc1 Qe1#) 57... Qc2#) 51... Nd4+ $8 52. Ka2 $8 Nc2 $8 $11) 45... bxa4 $15 46. Rc2 $2 (46. Ka2) 46... Qb8 $2 $11 (46... Qh8 $1 47. Ka2 Qb8 $1 $17 {/-+}) 47. Bc4 $1 a3 48. Nd5 Ne6 49. b3 $2 {This natural move creates too many gaps around White's king.} (49. g5 $1 $11 Qa7 50. bxa3 Nd4 $2 (50... Qc5 $11) (50... Qg1+ 51. Kb2 Qxg5 $11) 51. c7 $1 $16 {Compare the note to Black's 49th move.}) 49... Nd4 $2 {Here Maghsoodloo missed his big(gest) chance. Had he found the right move, he would almost certainly have won and thereby entered the last round in clear first.} (49... Qa7 $1 50. Ka2 Nd4 51. c7 (51. Rd2 Nxc6 $19) 51... Nxc2 $1 52. c8=Q Qd4 $19 {and it's mate after the spite checks.}) 50. c7 $1 $11 Qh8 $1 {Both players are walking on the precipice.} 51. Rd2 $1 {Again an only-move.} Qh1+ 52. Ka2 Qc1 $1 53. Rh2 a4 $1 54. g5 $1 Nxf3 $1 55. Rf2 axb3+ 56. Bxb3 Nd2 57. Rxd2 Qxd2+ 58. Kxa3 Qa5+ $2 (58... Qc1+ $1 $11 {followed by ...Qc5 had to be played.}) 59. Ba4 $18 Qa6 60. Kb4 Qb7+ 61. Bb5 $2 (61. Kc3 Qa6 62. Bd7 Qa1+ 63. Kb4 Qb1+ 64. Ka5 $18 {The king will escape the checks and the pawn will promote.}) 61... Kh7 $2 (61... Kf8 $1 $11) 62. Kc4 $18 Kg7 (62... Qc8 63. Bd7 $1 $18 {(63...Qxd7? 64.Nf6+) is the point, and the principal reason Black's 61st move was an error.}) 63. Bd7 Qa6+ 64. Kb3 Qb7+ 65. Kc2 Qa6 66. c8=Q Qe2+ 67. Kb3 Qxe4 68. Qg8+ $1 {Not necessary, but the most efficient way to do it. It's also a nice echo of the line given in the note to move 62, and *maybe* rubbing it in a little as it was Maghsoodloo's error on move 61 that made these fork tricks possible.} 1-0 [Event "6th Prague Masters 2024"] [Site "Prague CZE"] [Date "2024.03.07"] [Round "9.1"] [White "Keymer, Vincent"] [Black "Bartel, Mateusz"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "D37"] [WhiteElo "2738"] [BlackElo "2660"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "82"] [EventDate "2024.02.27"] {[%evp 0,82,20,20,30,0,-5,1,13,12,20,21,22,-6,31,22,27,-13,30,-14,-5,-105,-81,-61,-61,-61,-64,-64,-45,-34,-34,-32,-32,-57,-47,-52,15,-62,-69,-69,-76,-76,-93,-87,-83,-109,-113,-111,-105,-111,-93,-110,-98,-72,-29,-23,-25,-25,-25,-27,-22,-22,-22,-11,0,-38,-54,-51,-53,-40,0,0,-5,-5,-14,-16,-11,-22,0,0,0,0,0,-16,-3] The opening was the most fascinating thing about this game to me, so let's have a look.} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 Be7 5. cxd5 exd5 6. h3 {Extremely rare, but interesting. It's not unusual, as Tom Jones might say, for White to play h3 in the Exchange QGD a bit later - not so much to keep Black's pieces off of g4 (though that's sometimes the case) but to give the bishop a retreat square. That can apply here as well, but there's the further idea we'll see in the game.} Bf5 {Developing the bishop to an active square, while it's still possible.} 7. g4 $5 Be6 8. Ng5 Bc8 (8... O-O $5) 9. Bf4 h5 $5 10. Rg1 (10. Qd3 $1 hxg4 (10... c6) 11. O-O-O $14 {isn't your dad's Exchange QGD, to put it mildly.}) 10... hxg4 11. hxg4 Nxg4 12. Qd2 f6 13. Nf3 Bf5 14. e3 Qd7 15. Bd3 Na6 16. Qe2 g5 17. Bg3 Nh6 18. O-O-O Bxd3 19. Qxd3 Nf5 20. a3 O-O-O 21. Ne2 Bd6 22. Nd2 c6 23. Nb3 Rh3 24. Kb1 Re8 25. Ka2 Qh7 26. Rh1 Rxh1 27. Rxh1 Qd7 28. Bxd6 Nxd6 29. Rh7 Qf5 30. Qxf5+ Nxf5 31. Rf7 Re6 32. Nc5 Nxc5 33. dxc5 b6 34. b4 bxc5 35. bxc5 d4 36. Nxd4 Nxd4 37. exd4 Re2+ 38. Kb3 Rxf2 39. Rxa7 g4 40. Rg7 f5 41. Kb4 Rb2+ 1/2-1/2 [Event "6th Prague Masters 2024"] [Site "Prague CZE"] [Date "2024.03.07"] [Round "9.2"] [White "Maghsoodloo, Parham"] [Black "Gukesh, D."] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "E09"] [WhiteElo "2715"] [BlackElo "2743"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "126"] [EventDate "2024.02.27"] {[%evp 0,126,20,20,23,4,13,12,20,-16,3,10,8,-14,-2,1,23,14,15,0,5,12,20,18,16,6,29,35,22,1,5,5,31,9,36,38,37,7,84,106,112,65,75,99,99,90,73,44,89,64,74,10,0,22,22,18,10,-4,12,13,46,74,85,79,85,85,85,55,110,85,85,80,112,103,113,113,138,156,306,277,289,286,329,1,0,0,200,100,100,106,103,95,81,129,110,98,105,100,122,126,128,125,137,127,122,126,139,127,139,117,136,135,156,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Be7 6. Bg2 O-O 7. O-O c6 8. b3 b6 9. Bc1 Nbd7 10. Bb2 a5 11. Qc2 Ba6 12. Nbd2 c5 13. Rac1 Rc8 14. Qb1 dxc4 15. Nxc4 b5 16. Nce5 Nxe5 17. Nxe5 Qb6 18. Rc2 Rc7 19. dxc5 Bxc5 20. Nd3 Bd6 21. Rxc7 Qxc7 22. Rc1 Qe7 23. Ne5 Bb7 24. Bxb7 Bxe5 25. Bc6 Bxb2 26. Qxb2 b4 27. Qe5 Qd8 28. Rc4 h6 29. Kg2 Qb6 30. Bf3 Qd8 31. Rd4 Qb6 32. Rc4 Qd8 33. Rc6 Re8 34. Ra6 Nd5 35. e3 Re7 36. Qd4 Rd7 37. Qc5 Rc7 38. Qxa5 Nxe3+ 39. fxe3 Rc2+ 40. Kh3 Qd3 {First place was out of reach for Maghsoodloo, but he could have taken clear second with a win in this game. It's within reach, and as it's move 41 he has plenty of time to find it. Alas: we're reminded here of the difference between Puzzle Rush and real life. In the former, Maghsoodloo (and many of us) would spot the idea almost immediately; in real life, the answer won't immediately come to mind as it's not one of those patterns we've seen hundreds or even thousands of times.} 41. Ra7 $2 (41. Ra8+ Kh7 42. Rh8+ $1 Kg6 (42... Kxh8 43. Qa8+ Kh7 44. Be4+ $18 {is the "Puzzle Rush" idea.}) 43. Qh5+ Kf6 44. Qh4+ g5 $8 45. Rxh6+ Ke5 46. Qxg5+ {and the queens come off unless Black wants to get mated. (Frankly, even without such a convenient follow-up, White's already completely winning in this position.)}) 41... Qf1+ $1 $11 42. Kg4 Rf2 43. Qd8+ Kh7 44. Rxf7 h5+ 45. Kxh5 Rxf3 46. Rf4 e5 47. Rxf3 Qxf3+ 48. Kg5 Qxe3+ 49. Kf5 Qf3+ 50. Kxe5 Qe2+ 51. Kf5 Qf2+ 52. Ke6 Qe2+ 53. Kf5 Qf2+ 54. Ke6 Qe2+ 55. Kd7 Qxh2 56. Qh4+ Qxh4 57. gxh4 Kg6 58. Ke6 Kh5 59. Kf7 Kxh4 60. Kxg7 Kg5 61. Kf7 Kf5 62. Ke7 Ke5 63. Kd7 Kd5 1/2-1/2 [Event "6th Prague Masters 2024"] [Site "Prague CZE"] [Date "2024.03.07"] [Round "9.3"] [White "Praggnanandhaa, R."] [Black "Navara, David"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "A29"] [WhiteElo "2747"] [BlackElo "2667"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "118"] [EventDate "2024.02.27"] {[%evp 0,118,20,-5,6,-24,-8,-2,-27,-21,-17,-54,-39,-42,26,-10,-19,-16,-16,-11,-9,-18,0,9,2,14,8,-3,4,-11,-17,-26,-9,-11,5,-38,-33,-31,16,31,31,62,62,37,40,43,44,54,90,102,115,93,110,70,64,69,57,46,49,43,48,55,61,67,66,49,71,66,75,94,87,74,106,80,87,80,97,101,102,107,126,126,116,82,82,84,107,95,137,140,138,133,153,129,133,133,115,117,117,117,117,59,117,117,117,117,117,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,1,1,1,1,1,0,0] Pragg had some chances in the game (not huge ones), but Navara escaped.} 1. c4 Nf6 2. Nc3 e5 3. Nf3 Nc6 4. g3 d5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. Bg2 Bc5 7. d3 O-O 8. Bd2 Nxc3 9. Bxc3 Qe7 10. Nd2 Nd4 11. e3 Nb5 12. O-O Rd8 13. Qc2 Bf5 14. Ne4 Bb6 15. a4 Nxc3 16. bxc3 Ba5 17. d4 exd4 18. exd4 Bxe4 19. Bxe4 Bxc3 20. Bxh7+ Kh8 21. Qxc3 Kxh7 22. Rfe1 Qd6 23. Re4 Re8 24. Rh4+ Kg8 25. Qf3 Rad8 26. Qxb7 Qb6 27. Qxb6 cxb6 28. Rf4 g6 29. h4 Kg7 30. Kg2 Rd5 31. Rc1 Red8 32. Rc4 f5 33. Kf3 R8d7 34. g4 a6 35. Ke3 b5 36. Rc6 a5 37. gxf5 gxf5 38. axb5 Rxb5 39. Kd3 a4 40. Ra6 Rb3+ 41. Ke2 Rb4 42. Rxf5 Rbxd4 43. f4 Rf7 44. Rxf7+ Kxf7 45. Kf3 Rd3+ 46. Kg4 a3 47. h5 Kg7 48. f5 Rb3 49. Kf4 Rh3 50. Ke5 Re3+ 51. Kf4 Rh3 52. Kg4 Rb3 53. f6+ Kf7 54. h6 Rb4+ 55. Kf5 Rb5+ 56. Ke4 Rh5 57. Rxa3 Rxh6 58. Ra6 Rxf6 59. Rxf6+ Kxf6 1/2-1/2 [Event "6th Prague Masters 2024"] [Site "Prague CZE"] [Date "2024.03.07"] [Round "9.4"] [White "Rapport, Richard"] [Black "Abdusattorov, Nodirbek"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C42"] [WhiteElo "2717"] [BlackElo "2744"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "76"] [EventDate "2024.02.27"] {[%evp 0,76,20,15,15,15,35,29,41,26,39,21,18,24,30,25,29,18,17,16,17,21,33,15,14,15,12,5,20,-15,-14,-16,-16,-45,-23,6,22,-21,-3,-6,40,-4,23,32,32,25,37,8,27,40,45,9,22,17,54,51,33,-11,0,18,22,20,28,22,0,0,19,0,-8,-8,28,23,22,0,0,-47,-14,-3,0]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Nxe5 d6 4. Nf3 Nxe4 5. d3 {Not the refutation of the Petroff, but then again there probably isn't one. Rapport decides to just "play a game".} Nf6 6. d4 d5 7. Bd3 Bd6 8. O-O O-O 9. h3 Re8 10. Bg5 c6 11. c4 dxc4 12. Bxc4 Be6 13. Bxe6 Rxe6 14. Nc3 Nbd7 15. d5 cxd5 16. Nd4 Re8 17. Nxd5 Re5 18. Nxf6+ Nxf6 19. Nf3 Re6 20. Qb3 Bc5 21. Rfe1 Qb6 22. Qxb6 axb6 23. Rxe6 fxe6 24. a3 Ne4 25. Be3 Bxe3 26. fxe3 Kf7 27. Rc1 Nc5 28. b4 Ne4 29. Rc7+ Kf6 30. Rxb7 Rxa3 31. Rxb6 Rxe3 32. b5 Rb3 33. Nd4 Rb1+ 34. Kh2 Ke5 35. Nxe6 g5 36. Ng7 Nd6 37. Rb8 Rxb5 38. Rxb5+ Nxb5 1/2-1/2 [Event "6th Prague Masters 2024"] [Site "Prague CZE"] [Date "2024.03.07"] [Round "9.5"] [White "Nguyen, Thai Dai Van"] [Black "Vidit, Santosh Gujrathi"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "B31"] [WhiteElo "2630"] [BlackElo "2747"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "61"] [EventDate "2024.02.27"] {You would not have been surprised at the start of the tournament to know that the following proposition was true: one of the players in the Nguyen-Vidit game would be fighting for clear second, the other to avoid clear last place. You would have been extremely surprised to learn that it was Nguyen who would have taken clear second with a win, though, and that by failing to win Vidit finished alone in last place. That's no way to prepare for the Candidates.} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 g6 4. O-O Bg7 5. c3 Nf6 6. Re1 O-O 7. h3 e5 8. d4 cxd4 9. cxd4 Nxd4 10. Nxd4 exd4 11. Qxd4 d6 (11... d5 12. e5 Ne4 13. Nc3 Nxc3 14. bxc3 Qa5 15. a4 $11 {/?}) 12. Nc3 Be6 13. Qb4 d5 $146 (13... a5 14. Qa3 d5 15. Bg5 Qb6 16. e5 Ne4 17. Be3 Qc7 18. f4 Nxc3 19. Qxc3 Qxc3 20. bxc3 Rfc8 21. Bd4 Bh6 22. Rf1 Bf5 23. g4 Be4 24. Rad1 Rc7 25. f5 Bf8 26. e6 gxf5 27. gxf5 Bc5 28. Kh2 Bd6+ 29. Kg1 Bc5 30. Kh2 Bd6+ 31. Kg1 Bc5 32. Rf4 Kf8 33. Bxc5+ Rxc5 34. Bd3 Bxd3 35. Rxd3 Rac8 36. Rh4 Rxc3 37. Rxd5 Rc1+ 38. Kf2 R1c2+ 39. Ke3 R8c3+ 40. Rd3 fxe6 41. fxe6 Ke7 42. Rxc3 Rxc3+ 43. Kd4 Ra3 44. Ke5 Re3+ 45. Kd5 Rd3+ 46. Ke5 Re3+ 47. Kd5 Rd3+ 48. Ke5 Re3+ {½-½ Predke,A (2481)-Bukavshin,I (2522) RUS-ch U20 Loo 2013 (5)}) 14. e5 Nd7 15. Bf4 Rc8 16. Rad1 Nc5 $2 (16... a6 17. Bxd7 (17. Bf1) 17... Qxd7 18. Ne2 Rc4 19. Qd2 Rfc8 20. Nd4 Bf8 $1 $14) 17. Be3 $16 {/+-} (17. Bf1 $16 {/+-}) 17... b6 (17... Na6) 18. Qd4 $6 $16 (18. f4 $142 $18) 18... Qc7 19. Bg5 Ne4 $6 (19... h6 20. Bf6 Bxf6 21. exf6 Ne4 $16) 20. Nxe4 dxe4 21. Qxe4 h6 $1 22. Bf6 $6 (22. Bh4 a6 $1 23. Bd3 Bf5 24. Qe2 Bxd3 25. Rxd3 $16 {/+-}) 22... Bxf6 23. exf6 Bxa2 $2 (23... Rfd8 $16) 24. Qe3 $1 $18 Kh7 {Here Nguyen missed his big chance.} 25. Qa3 $4 {The bishop can't move (25...Be6 26.Rxe6 followed by 27.Rd7+) and it can't be defended, but Black *can* make a threat of his own.} (25. Bd7 $1 {was best, but not the only move to preserve a decisive advantage.} Rcd8 26. Rd4 {Threatening 27.Rh4, which would force mate: 27...h5 28.Rxh5+! gxh5 29.Bf5+ followed by 30.Qg5 or 30.Qh6 - whichever is a check - and 31.Qg7#.} Qc5 (26... h5 27. Rc1 Qb7 28. Qg5 Rg8 (28... Rh8 29. Rh4 Kg8 30. Bc6 $1 Qb8 31. Be4 $18) 29. Bf5 $1 {Threatening 30.Qxh5#, which would also follow 29...gxf5.} Qxg2+ 30. Qxg2 gxf5 31. Rxd8 Rxg2+ 32. Kxg2 $18) 27. b4 $1 {Driving the queen away from the d4-rook so that White's queen can do something else.} Qg5 28. Qe7 $18 {Black is paralyzed here, and White will break through sooner or later.}) (25. Rc1 $18) (25. Qe7 $18) 25... Qc5 $1 $11 {Sadly for White, his entire advantage is gone.} 26. Qxa2 Qxb5 27. Re7 Kg8 28. Rxa7 Qf5 {The f6-pawn is a goner, and White's hopes for a win and clear second place are departing with it.} 29. Qb3 Qxf6 30. Rad7 Rfd8 31. Rxd8+ 1/2-1/2