[Event "FIDE candidates 2024"] [Site "Toronto CAN"] [Date "2024.04.13"] [Round "8.2"] [White "Vidit, Gujrathi"] [Black "Gukesh, D..."] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C55"] [WhiteElo "2727"] [BlackElo "2743"] [PlyCount "78"] [EventDate "2024.04.04"] {[%evp 0,76,19,38,25,16,14,14,15,10,22,19,29,15,36,17,31,7,33,1,24,17,25,20,10, 15,-5,2,0,-4,0,-18,-14,-28,-38,-42,-38,-39,-63,-65,-71,-70,-74,-65,-53,-53,-57, -55,-63,-54,-24,-21,0,-53,-23,-50,-17,-65,-65,-193,-207,-432,-417,-512,-601, -603,-1118,-1118,-1289,-1674,-464,-464,-78,-29993,-29994,-29995,-29996,-29997, -29998]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. d3 a6 5. O-O h6 6. a4 Bc5 7. Be3 d6 {When I was a young kid, positions like this were considered extremely dull. White plays Be3, Black plays Be6, exchange, exchange, symmetry and draw. Nowadays there is a much more sophisticated judgment and people know that a difficult positional struggle may lie ahead.} 8. Nbd2 O-O 9. c3 Re8 10. b4 Bxe3 11. fxe3 Be6 12. b5 {This move will lead lead to the eventual opening of the a-file which will be in Black's favor, but of course that was very difficult to see here.} Nb8 13. Bxe6 Rxe6 14. Qc2 Nbd7 15. d4 Qe8 {Black is feigning a threat against White's e4-pawn, which is however not an immediate issue.} 16. Rae1 {White gives up the a-file, which will cost him dearly.} ({My Stockfish recommends} 16. d5 Re7 17. c4 {which protects e4 at the cost of ossifying his pawn structure.}) (16. Z0 {White's pawn was not immediately threatened, as} exd4 17. cxd4 Nxe4 18. Nxe4 Rxe4 19. Qxc7 {would be playable for White.}) 16... axb5 17. axb5 Ra5 18. c4 Qa8 19. h3 Re8 20. Kh2 b6 21. Rf2 Ra2 22. Qd3 Ra3 23. Qb1 Qa4 24. Nh4 Ra8 25. Nf5 Kf8 ({The situation is very unpleasant for White, but he was threatening to obtain counterplay with} 25... Z0 26. Ne7+ Kf8 27. Nd5) 26. Ref1 Ra1 27. Qd3 Qb4 28. Rxa1 Rxa1 {With several weaknesses White is doomed to passivity.} 29. c5 {This seems a desperate attempt to break free.} bxc5 30. Nc4 {And this move, the logical consequence of his previous one, makes it even worse.} ({Relatively better was} 30. Nf3 {though in that case White would also be lost.}) 30... Qe1 {Now Black has a mating attack.} 31. Re2 Qg1+ 32. Kg3 Nh5+ 33. Kh4 Ndf6 34. Nxh6 (34. Z0 {Black was threatening} g5# { mate.}) 34... Qh2 {An interesting decision. After this move it is mate in six more moves.} ({There was nothing against} 34... gxh6 {except the fact that the mate would follow one move later. In the heat of the fight almost every player would think, "Six or seven moves, who cares. l'll take the knight to be extra sure." But Gukesh seems to be a perfectionist for whom mate in six or seven moves makes a difference.}) 35. Nf5 Rf1 36. g4 Rxf5 37. exf5 Qg3+ 38. Kg5 Nh7+ {White resigned, as after} 39. Kxh5 Qxh3# {it is mate.} 0-1