[Event "FIDE Grand Prix 3 Pool A"] [Site "Berlin GER"] [Date "2022.03.28"] [Round "6.2"] [White "Esipenko, Andrey"] [Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C24"] [WhiteElo "2723"] [BlackElo "2750"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "76"] [EventDate "2022.03.22"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "6"] [EventCountry "GER"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "The Week in Chess 1429"] [Source "Mark Crowther"] [SourceDate "2022.03.28"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2022.03.28"] [SourceQuality "2"] {[%evp 0,76,19,38,25,41,14,-12,9,1,1,-33,-33,-22,-8,-12,-12,-13,-12,-12,2,-6,3, -4,-1,3,0,4,4,-1,-2,-4,4,1,25,8,-6,7,13,-6,0,0,0,0,0,-46,-39,-51,-65,-62,-22, -49,-49,-73,0,52,57,49,3,0,0,-13,-29,-25,-34,-48,-19,-47,-32,-33,-70,-81,-87, -129,-119,-229,-209,-262,-263]} 1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 Nf6 3. d3 Nc6 4. Nc3 ({White can "repent" of the Bishop's Opening with} 4. Nf3 {, returning to the modern Italian Game variations whose excitemezzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz}) 4... Na5 {Not the only good move, but the most principled option, grabbing the bishop pair.} 5. Qf3 (5. Nge2) (5. Bb3) 5... Nxc4 {Black often delays this capture, though it is the most common move.} 6. dxc4 d6 {In an ideal world Black would prefer to develop the bishop to c5 or b4 (which he sometimes does on move 5), but then Bg5 becomes a headache.} 7. Nge2 Be6 8. b3 Be7 {So what's going on here? Let's frame this as a little argument, back and forth. Black: I have the bishop pair! White: That's true, but your light-squared bishop is dominated by my pawns. I may even play h3 and a4, when your bishop is locked up and I'm going to throw away the key! Black: By all means, keep putting your pawns on light squares. In that case, I'm going to start infiltrating on the dark squares. White: With what? At best, your bishop gets to g5, which will only lead to a swap. And then what? My two knights can easily handle your one knight when it comes to dark square control. Black: Your ability to keep all these squares under control - on both colors - is predicated on the structure remaining as it is. But I've got a bunch of pawn breaks at my disposal: ...c6 and ...d5, ... g6 and ...f5 (after the knight moves), and ...a6 (with ...c6) and ...b5. Your position is alright as long as things remain static, but dynamism favors me. White: I have my own pawn breaks: f4 and c5. In any case, I have more space, so your opening the board will favor me. Black: If you play f4, you're weakening some squares (like e4 and e5), while c5 is not easy to achieve. As for opening the board, I will need to be patient, but it's coming. This argument could go on, but that, as they say, is why they play the game. Both the computer and practice suggest that the chances are about equal, with a good number of wins for each side - "equal" hasn't meant "drawish".} 9. O-O (9. h3 {has been usual, not only restricting Black's bishop (as noted above) but sometimes continuing with g4.}) 9... O-O 10. a4 Nd7 (10... a5 {makes sense, but it makes the position more static, which is what White generally wants.}) 11. a5 a6 12. Ng3 (12. Nd5) 12... Bg5 13. Nf5 (13. Ba3 $5) (13. Be3) 13... Bxc1 14. Raxc1 g6 15. Ne3 c6 16. Ra1 (16. Nf5 $5 {It isn't a piece sac, though it is a temporary pawn sac in case of} Bxf5 17. exf5 Qxa5 {Emphasis on temporary:} 18. Rcd1 {leaves Black unable to keep his extra pawn. The position is equal-ish, but maybe a little better for White, whose pieces are more active.}) 16... Qe7 17. Qd1 {Intending to pile up on the d-file, but it's a little slow.} (17. Qg3 $142) 17... Rad8 (17... Nf6) 18. Qd2 Nf6 19. f4 {Active, but down the road it could prove weakening.} (19. Rad1 $11) 19... exf4 20. Rxf4 $11 Nh5 21. Rf3 Qg5 22. Raf1 ({The pawn sac in the game was fine, but not obligatory. White also retains equality after a more tepid move like} 22. Nf1 {.}) 22... Qxa5 23. g4 (23. Nf5) 23... Ng7 24. Nf5 Qe5 (24... gxf5 25. exf5 Bxf5 26. gxf5 f6 27. Rh3 Rf7 28. Kh1 $44) 25. Nh6+ Kh8 26. Nd5 $1 {The action has heated up, and White is going all-in. He has sacrificed a pawn and is offering a knight as well as he tries to bring his entire army as near Black's king as possible. It's a critical moment for Black, and he errs.} g5 $2 (26... cxd5 $1 27. exd5 Bxd5 (27... Bc8 $2 {The bishop cannot be saved:} 28. Rxf7 Rfe8 (28... Bf5 { is marginally better, but there's no sense in keeping the piece on move 1 and returning it on move 2.} 29. gxf5 $18) 29. Qf2 {and thanks to the amusingly bad position of the knight on g7, Black has no way of avoiding mate on f8 short of returning (at least) his extra piece, and soon a good deal more.} Ne6 (29... Nf5 30. Rxf5 $1 gxf5 31. Nf7+ $18) 30. Re1 Qd4 31. dxe6 Qxf2+ 32. Rxf2 Kg7 33. Nf7 Rd7 34. Rfe2 Rxe6 (34... Rde7 35. Nxd6 $18) 35. Rxe6 Rxf7 36. R6e4 $18) 28. cxd5 f5 $11 {White has enough for the pawn, but not more.}) 27. Qf2 $2 (27. Nf6 $2 {almost wins, but there's a problematic little detail that saves Black.} Ne8 28. Nxh7 Kxh7 29. Rh3 Kg6 30. Rf5 Qa1+ {This is why 27.c3 was so strong.} 31. Rf1 Qe5 32. Rf5 Qa1+ $11) ({The quiet, subtle} 27. c3 $3 {was best.} Rc8 ({The point is seen if we make a "pass" move for Black:} 27... a5 28. Nf6 Ne8 29. Nxh7 Kxh7 30. Rh3 Kg6 31. Rf5 {Black doesn't have ...Qa1+ here (compare the 27.Nf6 variation), and so White smashes through.} Bxf5 32. gxf5+ Kf6 (32... Kg7 33. Qxg5+ Kh8 34. Nxf7#) 33. Ng4+ Ke7 34. Nxe5 dxe5 35. Qe3 $18) (27... cxd5 28. exd5 f5 29. dxe6 Qxe6 30. Qxg5 $18) 28. R1f2 $1 Ne8 29. h4 gxh4 30. Nf4 Rc7 31. Nd3 Qg7 32. g5 $18 {There's no immediate knockout, but Black is stuck in his box. White will keep going forward, a bit at a time (Kh2, Qf4, c5, etc.) and Black lacks the activity he needs to survive.}) 27... f5 $1 $14 28. gxf5 Bxd5 29. exd5 (29. cxd5 $142 Nh5 30. dxc6 bxc6 31. Qe3 $11 {/+/=}) 29... Nh5 $11 30. Re1 Qg7 31. Ng4 Nf4 32. f6 Qd7 33. Rxf4 gxf4 34. Qxf4 Rde8 { The material situation notwithstanding, the chances remain equal. White must find the right move here, though, or he will be losing.} 35. Rf1 $2 (35. Rxe8 $1 Qxe8 (35... Rxe8 $4 36. f7 Rf8 37. Qf6#) 36. Qxd6 Rg8 37. h3 h5 {is almost certainly something Esipenko saw and (understandably) ran away from. But there was a saving move here, and with more time I'm sure he would have found it.} 38. Qe6 $3 hxg4 39. f7 Qxe6 40. dxe6 {is the idea. White's far advanced, connected passers regain the rook, and Black is fortunate that} gxh3+ {comes with check, or he'd be lost.} 41. Kh2 {Also forced.} Kg7 {Likewise forced, and because Black had to do this White's last move gained a critical tempo.} 42. fxg8=Q+ Kxg8 43. Kxh3 Kg7 44. Kg4 Kf6 45. Kf4 Kxe6 46. Ke4 $11) 35... Qf7 $1 $19 {White's attack is finished. Black's material advantage will win the game, giving Nakamura victory in his group and guaranteeing himself a spot in the Candidates.} 36. Kh1 (36. Qxd6 Qg6 37. h3 h5 $19 {This time there's no saving White.}) 36... Qg6 $6 (36... cxd5 $142) 37. Rg1 $2 (37. c5 $1 {creates another passed pawn and keeps some hope alive.}) 37... h5 38. Ne3 Rxf6 $1 {The queen trade is hopeless for White, but so is moving the queen - 39...Qh4+ will be fatal as well.} 0-1 [Event "FIDE Grand Prix 3 Pool A"] [Site "Berlin GER"] [Date "2022.03.28"] [Round "6.1"] [White "Oparin, Grigoriy"] [Black "Aronian, Levon"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "E04"] [WhiteElo "2674"] [BlackElo "2785"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "61"] [EventDate "2022.03.22"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "6"] [EventCountry "GER"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "The Week in Chess 1429"] [Source "Mark Crowther"] [SourceDate "2022.03.28"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2022.03.28"] [SourceQuality "2"] {[%evp 0,61,28,42,32,-3,6,6,11,-12,-6,0,1,-3,12,-44,13,2,-3,19,19,37,-6,29,19, 28,26,-15,21,3,28,28,53,40,61,55,71,71,107,105,258,205,266,230,276,321,321,279, 279,344,365,369,365,205,296,177,231,268,298,335,517,760,1758,29986]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 dxc4 5. Bg2 c5 6. O-O Nc6 7. Qa4 Bd7 8. Qxc4 b5 9. Qd3 ({In case you're wondering,} 9. Qxb5 $2 Nxd4 $19 {and now any queen move that keeps e2 defended will be met by 10...Bb5.}) 9... c4 10. Qd1 Rc8 {All well-known theory.} 11. Bf4 {Very rare. This is the first time it has been played by a GM, and only once before was it played by an IM - and that was back in 2011. And yet it's only barely worse if at all than the more usual moves, so at least there's some surprise value.} (11. Bg5) ({and} 11. Ne5 { are more popular, and in fact Oparin has played this latter move several times, including once this February.}) 11... h6 $146 {Very aggressive - or at least its intent is aggressive, as we will see.} (11... Nd5 {is sensible. White may leave the bishop there to be taken, or retreat it knowing that the tempo will be regained with a subsequent e4.}) (11... Be7 {has been the most common choice.}) 12. a3 g5 $6 {It's good for his pieces, which gain some activity as a result, but the old saw about pawns not moving backward comes into play here. Sooner or later White is going to open the board with f4, and then it will get dangerous for Black.} (12... Na5 {looks good, clearing c6 for the bishop while the knight looks to jump into b3.}) 13. Bd2 $14 Bg7 (13... Qb6 $142) 14. Nc3 a6 15. e3 ({Oparin presumably avoided} 15. e4 {because of} g4 {. Understandable, but it turns out that} 16. Nh4 $1 {is good for White; winning if Black takes the d-pawn.} e5 $8 (16... Nxd4 $2 17. e5 Nh7 18. Bf4 Nf5 19. Nxf5 exf5 20. Qd6 Ng5 21. Rad1 Qe7 (21... Nh3+ 22. Bxh3 gxh3 23. Qxa6 O-O 24. Bxh6 Rc6 25. Qb7 $18) 22. Qxa6 O-O 23. Qa7 Rfd8 24. Nd5 Qe8 25. Nb6 $18) 17. dxe5 Nxe5 18. Bf4 Nd3 19. Qd2 $14 {/+/-}) 15... O-O (15... Na5 $142) 16. Ne5 $16 {With f2-f4 coming next, Black is already in trouble.} Nxe5 (16... Na5 $142) (16... Be8 $142) 17. dxe5 Ne8 18. f4 $16 {/+-} f6 $2 (18... f5 {was better, avoiding White's next. White is still in great shape after} 19. Ne2 {, looking to improve both the knight (generally headed for d4) and the bishop (on its way to b4).}) 19. Ne4 $1 $18 fxe5 $2 (19... Bc6 {is lousy for Black after} 20. Bb4 $1 Qxd1 21. Raxd1 Rf7 22. f5 $1 exf5 23. e6 Rb7 24. Rxf5 {, but in the game he's dead.}) 20. Ba5 $1 Qxa5 {The best of a bad lot.} (20... Qe7 $2 21. Bb4 $18 ) (20... Nc7 21. fxg5 Rxf1+ 22. Qxf1 hxg5 23. Rd1 Qe7 24. Bb4 Qd8 25. Nd6 $18) 21. Qxd7 Nc7 22. fxg5 hxg5 (22... Qb6 23. gxh6 Qxe3+ 24. Kh1 Qxh6 25. Rxf8+ Rxf8 26. Qxc7 $18) 23. Nxg5 Qb6 24. h4 Rcd8 (24... Qxe3+ 25. Kh2 Qd3 26. Rxf8+ Rxf8 27. Qxc7 $18) 25. Rxf8+ Rxf8 26. Kh2 {Black's position may not seem so bad, and it probably wouldn't be if White didn't have Rf1 on tap. Black needs to keep the f7 square under control, but can't.} e4 27. Rd1 (27. Rf1 {was also strong, as advertised in the previous comment. After} Rxf1 28. Bxf1 {White plays Qf7+, then Bg2xe4. Black is paralyzed, and White will win even if Black somehow succeeds in not hastening the loss.}) 27... Kh8 28. Rd6 Qb8 29. Rc6 Ne8 30. Nxe6 Rg8 31. Ng5 {Threatening mate in two with 32.Rh6+ Bxh6 33.Qh7#. Black can slightly delay the mate, but cannot avoid a speedy finish.} 1-0 [Event "FIDE Grand Prix 3 Pool B"] [Site "Berlin GER"] [Date "2022.03.28"] [Round "6.2"] [White "Keymer, Vincent"] [Black "Dominguez Perez, Leinier"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "D27"] [WhiteElo "2655"] [BlackElo "2756"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "91"] [EventDate "2022.03.22"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "6"] [EventCountry "GER"] [EventCategory "19"] [SourceTitle "The Week in Chess 1429"] [Source "Mark Crowther"] [SourceDate "2022.03.28"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2022.03.28"] [SourceQuality "2"] 1. d4 d5 2. c4 dxc4 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 e6 5. Bxc4 a6 6. O-O c5 7. Be2 cxd4 8. Nxd4 Bd7 9. Nd2 Nc6 10. N4f3 Be7 11. b3 O-O 12. Bb2 b5 13. Qb1 h6 14. Rd1 Qb6 15. Ne4 Nd5 16. Ng3 Rfd8 17. Nh5 Bf8 18. Qe4 Nce7 (18... f5 $142) 19. Qg4 Ng6 20. Ne5 Nxe5 $4 {Losing - Dominguez missed White's 22nd move.} (20... Be8 $16 { was forced, with an obviously bad, but not yet lost, position after the trade on g6.}) 21. Bxe5 Nxe3 22. Bd4 $1 (22. Nf6+ Kh8 23. Qe4 $18 {is also winning, but the text is even more convincing.}) 22... Nxg4 23. Bxb6 Ne5 24. Bxd8 Rxd8 { Sometimes it's not too bad to be down the exchange for a pawn, but this is not one of those times, as White's rooks have far too much freedom.} 25. Rac1 Rc8 26. Rxc8 Bxc8 27. f4 Nc6 28. Kf1 Nb4 29. Bf3 e5 30. Rd8 Be6 31. fxe5 Nxa2 32. Nf4 Bxb3 33. Bd5 Bxd5 34. Nxd5 g6 35. Nc7 Nb4 36. e6 Nc6 37. Rc8 Ne7 38. Ra8 h5 39. Ke2 Nf5 40. Kd3 b4 41. h3 Kg7 42. Ne8+ Kg8 43. g4 hxg4 44. hxg4 Nh6 45. g5 Nf5 46. e7 ({A nice finish. After} 46. e7 Nxe7 47. Nf6+ Kg7 48. Nd7 {the bishop is lost, so Dominguez resigned.}) 1-0 [Event "FIDE Grand Prix 3 Pool C"] [Site "Berlin GER"] [Date "2022.03.28"] [Round "6.2"] [White "Shankland, Sam"] [Black "Vachier Lagrave, Maxime"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "D97"] [WhiteElo "2704"] [BlackElo "2761"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "57"] [EventDate "2022.03.22"] [EventType "tourn"] [EventRounds "6"] [EventCountry "GER"] [EventCategory "20"] [SourceTitle "The Week in Chess 1429"] [Source "Mark Crowther"] [SourceDate "2022.03.28"] [SourceVersion "1"] [SourceVersionDate "2022.03.28"] [SourceQuality "2"] {[%evp 0,57,27,27,23,6,39,32,83,65,69,52,28,22,28,30,43,-3,60,55,54,-3,38,-3,1, 0,0,-28,-29,-16,-27,-27,86,64,74,52,35,35,57,-6,58,112,22,-57,15,-165,147,112, 124,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Nf3 Bg7 5. Qb3 dxc4 6. Qxc4 O-O 7. e4 a6 8. e5 b5 9. Qb3 Nfd7 10. e6 fxe6 11. Qxe6+ Kh8 12. Qe4 Nb6 13. Be3 {A novelty for GM play (for that matter, even for > 2100 play), but it was MVL who was perfectly prepared, not making a single move of his own in the game.} (13. Qh4 {is the usual move.}) 13... Bf5 14. Qh4 Nc6 15. g4 e5 16. Ng5 h6 17. gxf5 exd4 18. O-O-O Qe7 19. Bg2 dxe3 {As MVL probably knew, all this had happened before, and a draw was agreed here in a 2020 email game D. Stewart - M. Dudley. (The position wasn't new, as noted before, but whether he was aware that he had a predecessor is another matter.) It was new to Shankland, however, and to his great credit in this messy, easy-to-lose position he figured out how to make a draw.} 20. Bxc6 Rab8 21. Nf3 Qc5 22. Rhg1 exf2 23. Rxg6 Rbd8 24. Qxh6+ {Simplest and therefore best, though not the only move to keep equality.} Bxh6+ 25. Rxh6+ Kg7 26. Rg6+ Kh8 (26... Kf7 $4 27. Ng5+ Ke7 28. Re6#) (26... Kh7 27. Ng5+ Kh8 28. Rh6+ Kg7 29. Rg6+ Kh8 30. Rh6+ $11) 27. Rh6+ Kg7 28. Rg6+ Kh8 29. Rh6+ 1/2-1/2