[Event "85th Tata Steel Masters"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee NED"] [Date "2023.01.24"] [Round "9"] [White "Keymer, Vincent"] [Black "Abdusattorov, Nodirbek"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "D34"] [WhiteElo "2696"] [BlackElo "2713"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "177"] [EventDate "2023.01.13"] 1. c4 c5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Nc3 Nc6 4. g3 e6 5. Bg2 d5 6. cxd5 exd5 7. d4 Be7 8. a3 c4 9. Bg5 O-O 10. e3 Bf5 11. Ne5 Nd7 12. Nxd7 Qxd7 13. h4 Be6 14. Bxe7 Nxe7 15. O-O Bh3 16. Bxh3 Qxh3 17. Re1 Qd7 18. h5 f5 19. a4 Rf6 20. b3 cxb3 21. Qxb3 Rh6 22. Qb5 Rd8 23. Qxd7 Rxd7 24. a5 Rxh5 25. Reb1 Rh6 26. Na4 Rc7 27. Rb5 Rhc6 28. Rab1 Rc1+ 29. Rxc1 Rxc1+ 30. Kg2 Rc7 31. Nc5 b6 32. axb6 axb6 33. Rxb6 Ra7 34. Rd6 g6 35. Nd3 Rb7 36. Kf3 Kf7 37. Ne5+ Kg7 38. Nd3 h6 39. Nf4 Rb5 40. Ne6+ Kf7 41. Nc5 Rb2 42. Nd3 Rb3 43. Ne5+ Kg7 44. Rd7 Kf6 45. Ra7 Rb2 46. g4 g5 {Let's start from here, as this is where I started watching the game seriously, trying to figure things out as if I were playing (no engine or seeing evaluations, no reading spectator comments or watching commentary, no moving pieces around, etc.). The analysis that follows is a mix of things I saw, worked out, and then afterwards checked and supplemented by the engine.} 47. Kg3 $2 (47. Ra6+ Kg7 48. gxf5 Nxf5 49. Rg6+ Kh7 50. Rf6 Nh4+ (50... Ng7 51. Ng4 h5 52. Rh6+ Kg8 53. Nf6+ Kf7 54. Nxh5 $18) 51. Kg4 Kg7 52. Rf7+ Kg8 53. Kh5 $18) 47... f4+ $1 48. exf4 gxf4+ 49. Kf3 $1 ({Trading pawns makes Black's life much easier.} 49. Kxf4 $2 Rxf2+ $11) 49... Rd2 $8 50. Ra6+ Kg7 51. Rb6 {I don't know if White thought this was a trap, or if he didn't see anything better.} (51. Ra7 $142 Kf6 52. Ra4 Kg7 53. Kg2 Kf6 54. Ra6+ Kg7 55. Re6 Ng8 56. Rg6+ Kf8 $8 57. Nf3 $16) 51... Rxd4 $1 {Like Ray Parker Jr., he ain't 'fraid o' no ghosts.} 52. Rb7 Kf6 53. Rxe7 Re4 $1 {Regaining the piece.} (53... Kxe7 $4 54. Nc6+ $18) 54. Rh7 Kxe5 55. Rxh6 Rb4 {This ending is drawn, but as we'll soon see, it's not automatic.} 56. Rh5+ Kd4 $2 (56... Ke6 {keeps the game objectively drawn.} 57. Rf5 d4 58. Rxf4 Ke5 59. Re4+ Kd5 60. Re1 d3 61. g5 Rb6 {The engine insists it's a draw, but as in the game, proving it in a practical context is challenging.}) 57. Rh8 $2 (57. Kxf4 $2 Kc3+ $1 58. Kg3 d4 59. Rc5+ Kd2 60. f4 d3 61. g5 Ke3 62. Re5+ Kd4 $1 63. Re1 Rb3 $3 64. Kg4 Rb2 65. Kf3 d2 $8 66. Rd1 Kd5 $3 $11 {I'm reminded of one of Khalifman's draws against Akopian from the World Championship final he won in 1999. I leave that as another research project for interested readers. (If you look it up, you'll know right away which game I mean.) As there, so too here: White's pawns can't make it all the way up without the rook's help, but the rook is otherwise occupied.}) (57. Rf5 $1 {, however, would do the job.} Kc4 ({Black would love to play} 57... Kc3 {, but this fumbles the football.} 58. Rxd5 $18) 58. g5 d4 59. g6 Rb8 (59... d3 60. g7 Rb8 61. Rf8 d2 62. g8=Q+ $18) 60. Kxf4 $1 d3 61. Ke3 $1 Re8+ 62. Kd2 Re2+ 63. Kd1 $18) 57... Ke5 58. Re8+ Kf6 59. Rf8+ Kg6 $2 (59... Ke5 60. Rf5+ Ke6 61. Rxf4 d4 $1 {may not look like a draw, but it is one. Here's one possible line:} 62. g5 Rb5 63. Kg4 (63. Rxd4 $6 Rxg5 {, by contrast, looks entirely like a draw (and is one).}) 63... d3 64. Rd4 Rf5 $1 (64... Rd5 $2 65. Rxd5 Kxd5 66. Kf3 Kd4 67. g6 Kc3 68. g7 d2 69. g8=Q d1=Q+ 70. Kg2 {and because the pawn is on f2, shielding White's king, there's no immediate draw. (In fact it's a tablebase win, which may or may not mean that White will win in a game between strong humans.)}) 65. f4 Rd5 $1 66. Rxd5 Kxd5 67. Kf3 Kd4 68. g6 Kc3 69. g7 d2 70. g8=Q d1=Q+ $11) 60. Rf5 $2 {This looks good, and indeed, it's an indispensable idea for White. But here, it doesn't work.} (60. Rd8 $1 Rd4 (60... d4 61. Kxf4 Kf6 62. f3 Ke7 63. Rd5 Ke6 64. Re5+ Kd6 65. Rf5 $18) 61. Re8 $1 Kg5 62. Re5+ Kf6 63. Rf5+ Ke6 (63... Kg6 64. Rxf4 $18) 64. Rxf4 Rd3+ 65. Ke2 Ra3 66. Rb4 $18 {Why is this a win while other, somewhat similar-looking positions were drawn? Let me know in the comments, because at this point I can't help you.}) 60... d4 61. Rd5 (61. Rxf4 Rb3+ 62. Ke4 (62. Kg2 Kg5 $1 63. Rxd4 Kh4 $1 $11 {This is an idea we'll see again later.}) 62... Kg5 $11 63. f3 $4 Re3+ $19) (61. Kxf4 d3+ 62. Ke3 (62. Kg3 $4 Rd4 $19) 62... Rxg4 63. Rd5 Ra4 $11 {is an elementary draw.}) 61... Kf6 $1 62. Ke4 $5 (62. Kxf4 Ke6 (62... d3+ $2 63. Kf3 $1 Rb3 64. Ke3 $18) 63. Rd8 Ke7 64. Rd5 Ke6 65. Re5+ Kd6 $1 66. Re4 Kd5 $1 67. f3 Rb8 68. g5 Rf8+ 69. Kg4 d3 $11) 62... d3+ $2 {While watching the game (without using an engine, obviously), I likewise thought this was Black's best try, but like Abdusattorov I was mistaken.} (62... f3 $1 63. g5+ {is what I was worried about. However, Black is still okay after} (63. Rxd4 Rxd4+ 64. Kxd4 Kg5 65. Ke4 Kxg4 66. Ke3 Kg5 67. Kxf3 Kf5 $11 {was an easy line - I saw that.}) (63. Kxf3 Ke6 $1 {I don't recall what I thought about this line, but I'm sure I had no idea whether this was a draw or not. (It is still drawn - thanks, computer.)}) 63... Kg6 $1 64. Kxf3 Rb2 $1 {Only this.} 65. Kg3 Kh5 $1 {And only that.} 66. f3 (66. f4 Rb3+ 67. Kf2 Kg4 68. Rxd4 Ra3 $11 {is a positional draw. I knew about this sort of draw, but sometimes these sorts of positions are drawn and sometimes they're not. (My recollection is that I first learned of these positions from Portisch and Sarkozy's *600 Endings*, an excellent book for its [pre-tablebase] day.)}) 66... d3 67. f4 d2 68. Kf3 Rb3+ 69. Ke2 Kg4 70. Rd4 Ra3 71. Kxd2 Rb3 $11 {See the comment at the end of the 66.f4 line, above.}) 63. Kf3 $1 (63. Kxd3 $2 f3 64. g5+ (64. Rd4 Rxd4+ 65. Kxd4 Kg5 66. Ke4 Kxg4 67. Ke3 Kg5 68. Kxf3 Kf5 $11) 64... Kg6 (64... Ke6 $2 65. Ra5 $18) 65. Ke3 Rb3+ $1 (65... Rg4 $2 66. Kxf3 Rxg5 67. Rxg5+ Kxg5 68. Ke4 Kf6 69. Kf4 $18) 66. Kf4 Kh5 $1 67. Kf5 Rb2 68. g6 (68. Rd3 Rb5+ $11 (68... Rxf2 69. Rd8 Kh4 70. Kf4 $1 Kh3 71. g6 $18)) 68... Kh6 69. Rd6 Ra2 $11) 63... Ke6 64. Rxd3 Ke5 65. Ra3 Rb5 66. Kg2 $1 Kf6 {Here I considered the move played, along with 67.Kh3 and 67.f3, all going for a similar setup. The best move - the only winning move - did not occur to me, though it probably should have.} 67. Ra8 $2 (67. Rh3 $3 {Stopping ...Kg5, and more than that, any idea of a subsequent ...Kh4, which is probably the real point.} Rb4 (67... Kg5 $4 68. Rh5+ Kxg4 69. Rxb5) 68. Kf3 Kg5 69. Rh5+ Kg6 70. Kg2 $1 (70. Rf5 Ra4 71. Rxf4 $2 Ra3+ 72. Kg2 Kg5 73. Rb4 Kh4 $11) 70... Rb3 71. Rf5 Rb4 72. f3 Ra4 73. Kh3 Rb4 74. Kh4 Ra4 75. Rg5+ $1 $18 {and we've reached a position we'll see later in the game, coincidentally also the position after 75.Rg5+.}) 67... Rb3 $2 (67... Kg5 $1 {drew. It doesn't seem so amazing though: can't White play f3, Kh3, and then push Black back?} 68. f3 Rb2+ 69. Kh3 Rb5 70. Rg8+ Kh6 $8 {White's problem is that he can't get the rook to f5, and without that (or without White's king breaking through to Black's half of the board) he can't win.} (70... Kf6 $2 71. Kh4 $18 Rb3 72. Rf8+ Ke5 73. Rf5+ $18) 71. Kh4 (71. Rf8 Kg5 $11) 71... Rb3 $1 $11) 68. Ra5 $1 {Taking immediate advantage of Black's error. At first glance the game seems to be over, as White wins the f-pawn, but as we've already seen there is one setup that gives Black good drawing chances (and can simply be drawn, and Black heads for it).} Kg6 $1 69. Rf5 Ra3 $1 70. f3 $1 (70. Rxf4 $2 Kg5 71. Rd4 Kh4 {is the idea, not allowing White to get his ideal setup with f3 and Kg3, after which converting the advantage is trivially easy. I'm not sure how easy it is for Black to maintain the draw, but that's what it is.} 72. f3 Ra2+ $8 73. Kf1 Kg3 $8 74. Rd3 Kf4 75. Ke1 Rh2 76. Rd2 Rh1+ 77. Ke2 Rh2+ 78. Kd3 Rh3 79. Rf2 Rh8 $11) 70... Ra4 71. Kh3 Rb4 72. Kh4 Ra4 {It's still hard to see how White wins, as moving the rook to the side (e.g. to b5, intending Rb6+ followed by Kg5, which would win) allows 73...Ra3, winning the f-pawn and drawing the game.} 73. Rf8 $5 {A clever move. If Black continues to wait with his rook, then 74.g5 followed by 75.Kg4 wins.} Kg7 $1 74. Rf5 Kg6 {Time for another idea.} 75. Rg5+ $1 {The only winning move.} Kh7 (75... Kf6 $2 {is far too cooperative:} 76. Kh5 {followed by 77.Rf5+ and 78.Kg5 (assuming Rxf4 isn't available) wins the f-pawn and the game.}) (75... Kh6 {seems more natural than the text, but it's probably just a transposition.}) 76. Rh5+ $1 Kg6 77. g5 {Now the plan is to play 78.Rh6+, 79.Rf6(+), and 80.Kg4 followed by gobbling the pawn.} Ra1 $8 78. Rh6+ $8 {This was the idea, of course, but it's worth noting that every other move would lose the rook.} Kf5 79. Rf6+ Ke5 80. Rb6 $2 (80. Rf8 $1 {looks like the right way to cut off Black's king, heading for a Lucena-type position. Black cannot stop this, and going for counterplay with the f-pawn is too slow.} Rg1 (80... Rf1 81. Kg4 $1 Rg1+ 82. Kh5 $18) 81. Kh5 Rh1+ (81... Rg3 82. Kg6 $1 (82. g6 $2 Rxf3 83. g7 Rh3+ $1 84. Kg6 Rg3+ 85. Kf7 f3 86. g8=Q Rxg8 87. Kxg8 Ke4 $11) 82... Rxf3 83. Re8+ $1 Kd4 84. Kf5 $1 $18 {intending 85.Re4(+). This wins.}) 82. Kg6 Rh4 (82... Rh3 {would be interesting, were it not for} 83. Rf5+) 83. Re8+ $1 {followed by Re4 makes it easy.}) 80... Rh1+ 81. Kg4 Rg1+ 82. Kh5 Rg3 $8 83. Rb3 Kf5 $8 {White is stuck: repeat moves (draw), surrender the f-pawn (draw), or get mated (probably not best).} 84. Rb5+ Ke6 85. g6 Rxf3 86. g7 Rg3 (86... Kf7 {also draws.}) ({For that matter, so does the smart-alecky} 86... Kf6 {:} 87. g8=Q Rh3+ 88. Kg4 Rg3+ 89. Kxf4 Rxg8 $11) 87. Kh6 (87. Rg5 Rxg5+ 88. Kxg5 Kf7 89. Kxf4 Kxg7 $11) 87... f3 88. Rb8 Rh3+ 89. Kg6 (89. Kg6 Rg3+ 90. Kh7 Rh3+ $11) 1/2-1/2 [Event "85th Tata Steel Masters"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee NED"] [Date "2023.01.24"] [Round "9"] [White "Ding Liren"] [Black "Giri, Anish"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "A14"] [WhiteElo "2811"] [BlackElo "2764"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "74"] [EventDate "2023.01.13"] {[%evp 0,74,27,16,29,-16,-2,-7,11,1,8,-5,7,-18,17,-10,1,-40,10,17,26,12,7,42,40,18,16,28,-10,23,67,54,103,54,63,36,76,68,72,53,158,34,50,15,27,27,22,55,97,-23,-8,-10,-4,-14,-21,-71,-51,-93,-78,-119,-130,-153,-131,-160,-169,-197,-218,-213,-227,-402,-432,-526,-487,-482,-500,-500,-500]} 1. Nf3 d5 2. g3 Nf6 3. Bg2 e6 4. O-O Be7 5. c4 O-O 6. b3 ({Normally Ding plays} 6. d4 {, entering the Catalan, but as there's a World Championship match coming up Ding is probably hiding most if not all of his preparation.}) 6... d4 7. e3 c5 8. Ne5 Qc7 9. f4 {While I maintain what I wrote in the note to move 6, Ding has played this way at least once before, against...Anish Giri back in 2019.} Nbd7 (9... Nfd7 10. Nf3 Nc6 11. Na3 a6 12. exd4 cxd4 13. d3 b5 14. Bb2 Qb6 15. Kh1 Bb7 16. Nc2 Bf6 17. Ba3 b4 18. Bb2 a5 19. g4 g6 20. Nd2 Nc5 21. Ne4 Nxe4 22. dxe4 e5 23. f5 Nb8 24. Ne1 Nd7 25. Nd3 Nc5 26. Nxc5 Qxc5 27. Bc1 g5 28. a4 Kg7 29. h4 h6 30. h5 Rfd8 {½-½ Ding,L (2809)-Giri,A (2797) Shenzhen Du Te Cup 3rd 2019 (3)}) 10. Nd3 e5 $1 ({Another Giri game:} 10... Bd6 $2 {Yes, he won the game, but it's a mistake. There's a reason he didn't repeat this in the present game.} 11. Na3 $16 a6 12. Nc2 e5 13. Bb2 Re8 14. Rc1 h5 15. b4 dxe3 16. Nxe3 e4 17. Nxc5 Bxc5 18. bxc5 Qxc5 19. Qb3 Rb8 20. Kh1 b6 21. Ba3 Qc7 22. Nd5 Nxd5 23. cxd5 Nc5 24. Qe3 Bf5 25. Bxc5 bxc5 26. Rxc5 Qd7 27. Rfc1 Rb5 28. h4 g6 29. Qd4 Reb8 30. Rxb5 axb5 31. Rc5 Re8 32. Kg1 Qa7 33. Bf1 b4 34. Bc4 Kh7 35. Qe3 Rd8 36. Bb3 Qb6 37. Kf2 Rd7 38. Rc6 Qb5 39. Qd4 Qxc6 40. dxc6 Rxd4 41. Ke1 Rd8 42. Bxf7 Rc8 43. Bd5 Kg7 44. Ke2 Kf6 45. Ke3 Ke7 46. Kd4 Kd6 {0-1 Fedoseev,V (2704)-Giri,A (2772) Wch Blitz Warsaw 2021 (13)}) 11. Na3 $146 (11. Bb2 Rd8 12. Na3 a6 13. Nc2 exf4 14. Nxf4 Ne5 15. exd4 cxd4 16. Kh1 Bg4 17. Qe1 Bc5 18. b4 Nxc4 19. bxc5 Nxb2 20. Rb1 Nc4 21. Rxb7 Qxc5 22. Nd3 Qd6 23. Rf4 Re8 24. Qg1 Nxd2 25. Rxd4 Qf8 26. Nde1 Nde4 27. Rb3 Rac8 28. Re3 Ng5 29. h4 Ne6 30. Ra4 Bf5 31. Nb4 Ng4 32. Re2 Nd4 33. Rxe8 Qxe8 34. Ra3 Ne2 35. Qf1 Rc1 36. Qxf5 Rxe1+ 37. Bf1 Qa8+ 38. Nd5 Rxf1+ 39. Qxf1 Qxd5+ 40. Qf3 Qd1+ 41. Kg2 Qg1+ 42. Kh3 Nf2+ {0-1 Anton Guijarro,D (2693)-Gukesh,D (2614) Wch Blitz Warsaw 2021 (4)}) 11... a6 $11 12. Bb2 Bd6 {Back to theory, by the wonders of transposition.} 13. g4 $6 $146 (13. Nc2) ({and} 13. Qc2 {were seen in earlier games.}) 13... exf4 $15 14. g5 $2 (14. exd4 $142) 14... Ne8 $2 (14... fxe3 $1 15. gxf6 Nxf6 16. Rxf6 gxf6 17. dxe3 Re8 $1 $17 {I doubt this position passed before either player's eyes during their preparation, but it does seem to bust White's idea.}) 15. Nxf4 dxe3 $6 (15... Bxf4 16. Rxf4 Ne5 17. Qe2 dxe3 18. Qxe3 Nd3 19. Re4 $1 Qd8 20. Bc3 Bf5 21. Rf1 $1 Bg6 $1 22. h4 $1 $14 {is another unrealistic line. Everything is fun here when analyzing with the computer.}) 16. dxe3 Be5 17. Qc2 (17. Qe2) 17... Nd6 18. Rad1 $16 Re8 (18... Rb8 $142) 19. Nb1 {Sensibly heading for d5.} a5 $2 20. a4 $2 $16 (20. Nc3 Nb6 21. Ncd5 Nxd5 22. Nxd5 $18) 20... Bxb2 21. Qxb2 Ne5 22. Nc3 (22. Qf2 $1 $16) 22... Bg4 23. Rd5 $14 {Not a bad move, but it makes the knights sad.} (23. Rd2 Qe7 24. h3 Be6 25. h4 $14) 23... Nf5 24. Rd2 $2 (24. Nb5 Qe7 25. Qf2 $1 Rad8 (25... Qxg5 $2 26. Nc7 $18) 26. h3 Qxg5 $1 27. hxg4 Nxg4 28. Qf3 Ngxe3 29. Nh3 Qg3 30. Qxg3 Nxg3 31. Rxd8 Rxd8 32. Re1 Nxg2 33. Kxg2 Nf5 34. Nf2 $14) 24... Nxe3 $2 (24... Nh4 $17) 25. Ncd5 Nxd5 26. Nxd5 $11 Qb8 27. h3 (27. Qc3 $142) 27... Be6 28. Nf4 $2 {There have been lots of mistakes, because the game has featured non-standard positions. This time it's a tactical error.} Bxc4 $1 $19 29. Rff2 (29. bxc4 Nxc4 30. Qc1 Nxd2 31. Qxd2 Qe5 $1 $19 {Minor pieces frequently dominate a rook and a pawn, and sometimes even a rook and two pawns. Here it's a rook and three pawns, and other than the b-pawn there's nothing for White's pieces to grab onto. (Maybe f7, but (a) Black can defend it and (b) playing Bd5 will expose White's king.)}) 29... Ba6 30. Nh5 Re7 $2 $17 (30... Qc7 $142) 31. Rd5 $6 (31. Rf5 {was the right way.}) 31... Qc7 $19 32. Rf5 $6 Rae8 33. Qc3 b6 34. Nf6+ $5 {There are no points for losing more slowly, so if a move that could lose more quickly also gives you a chance to save the game, play it.} gxf6 35. gxf6 Nf3+ $1 {The only move, and it wins.} (35... Re6 $4 36. Qg3+ $18 {mates or wins the queen.}) 36. Rxf3 (36. Qxf3 Re1+ 37. Kf2 R8e2+ $19) (36. Bxf3 Qg3+ 37. Bg2 Re1+ 38. Rf1 Rxf1#) 36... Re1+ 37. Bf1 (37. Kf2 R8e2#) 37... Kh8 $1 {Not the only winning move, but a nice one.} (37... Kh8 38. Rd2 Bxf1 39. Rxf1 Qf4 $1 40. Rxe1 Rxe1+ 41. Kg2 Qg5+ {The checking series takes a while to reach its conclusion, but the end result is going to be the win of White's queen or mate.} 42. Kf2 Qg1+ 43. Kf3 Rf1+ 44. Ke4 Qh1+ 45. Ke5 Re1+ 46. Kd6 Re6+ 47. Kc7 Qc6+ 48. Kb8 Re8+ 49. Ka7 Ra8#) 0-1 [Event "85th Tata Steel Masters"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee NED"] [Date "2023.01.24"] [Round "9"] [White "Maghsoodloo, Parham"] [Black "So, Wesley"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "E21"] [WhiteElo "2719"] [BlackElo "2760"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "61"] [EventDate "2023.01.13"] {[%evp 0,61,26,12,18,16,6,1,26,22,33,-10,-8,-3,25,12,26,-8,13,-4,-16,-45,1,-119,-47,-116,-70,-74,-97,-47,0,-36,-36,-25,-56,-53,-66,-90,-22,-88,-16,-99,-65,-65,-75,-78,-93,-50,-52,-34,0,-1,-16,-25,-9,-5,-9,-9,-9,-9,-9,-11,-11,-11]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 c5 7. g3 Qa5 8. Bg2 $146 {A novelty, but not a very good one.} cxd4 $15 9. Qxd4 (9. O-O $142) 9... Nc6 10. Qd3 b6 $15 {/?} 11. O-O Ba6 12. Bg5 Rac8 (12... Ne8) (12... Rad8 $5) 13. Bxf6 gxf6 14. Nd2 (14. Qxd7 $4 Rfd8 {is the tactical point underying Black's 12th move.}) 14... Ne5 15. Qd4 Kg7 (15... Nxc4 $15) 16. f4 Nc6 17. Bxc6 Rxc6 18. Ne4 Qf5 19. Rf3 $2 (19. g4 $1 e5 $1 (19... Qxg4+ 20. Kh1 Kh8 21. Nxf6 e5 $1 22. fxe5 Qxe2 23. Rf2 Qxc4 24. Rd1 $44) 20. gxf5 exd4 21. cxd4 Bxc4 22. Ng3 $11 {/?}) 19... h5 $6 (19... d5 20. Nd2 h5 $17) 20. h3 $2 (20. Nd6 $15 {This is why Black should have prefaced ...h5 with ...d5.}) 20... d5 $17 {/-+} 21. cxd5 exd5 $19 22. Nf2 {It doesn't look like a critical moment, but that's how it turned out.} Bxe2 $2 (22... Rc4 $1 23. Qd3 Qc8 24. g4 h4 {There's no immediate knockout here, but once Black plays ...Re8 and ...Bb7, White will have a hard time coping with ...d4 - to take just one idea. White has no counterplay, but suffers from lots of weaknesses. In the game, Black grabs a pawn, but allows White significant freedom in return.}) 23. Re3 Qc2 24. Re1 $15 Ba6 25. Qxd5 Rxc3 26. Qxh5 $1 Rxe3 (26... Bc8 {keeps the game going, at the cost of a three-results position.}) 27. Qg4+ (27. Rxe3 $2 Rd8 $1 $19 {White's perpetual is gone, and Black's attack will quickly force capitulation.}) 27... Kh6 28. Qh4+ Kg7 29. Qg4+ Kh6 30. Qh4+ Kg7 31. Qg4+ 1/2-1/2 [Event "85th Tata Steel Masters"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee NED"] [Date "2023.01.24"] [Round "9"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Gukesh, Dommaraju"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "D38"] [WhiteElo "2859"] [BlackElo "2725"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "91"] [EventDate "2023.01.13"] {[%evp 0,91,27,29,29,14,14,14,12,12,37,-14,-8,-19,-20,-90,27,12,50,46,30,27,30,11,40,21,30,-3,8,-6,33,36,32,25,30,23,35,27,31,27,33,-7,-10,0,0,-11,28,14,12,-26,-11,-22,-12,-27,-12,10,10,2,10,10,10,10,18,-32,-1,4,8,-28,14,6,41,16,17,-1,12,-16,-15,-16,8,0,23,-48,-58,-97,-103,-103,-103,-117,0,0,0,0,0,0]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 {The Ragozin is everywhere these days - see the very next game for another example.} 5. cxd5 exd5 6. Bf4 Ne4 7. Rc1 Nd7 8. Nd2 Nxc3 9. bxc3 Ba3 10. Rb1 Nb6 11. e3 $146 (11. Qc2 Bd7 12. e3 Qe7 13. Bb5 c6 14. Bd3 c5 15. dxc5 Bxc5 16. Nb3 Bd6 17. O-O Rc8 18. Nd4 g6 19. Nb5 Bxb5 20. Bxb5+ Kf8 21. Bxd6 Qxd6 22. a4 Kg7 23. Qd2 Rc7 24. a5 Nc8 25. Qd4+ Qf6 26. Be2 Rd8 27. Bg4 Rc4 28. Qxf6+ Kxf6 29. Bxc8 Rdxc8 30. Rxb7 R8c7 {½-½ Xiong,J (2684)-Swiercz,D (2667) Saint Louis Summer-A 2019 (10)}) 11... Bf5 12. Rb3 Bd6 13. Bg3 (13. Qf3 $142) 13... O-O 14. Nf3 c5 (14... Rb8 $15 {looks good, freeing the knight for active duty.}) 15. dxc5 Bxc5 16. Bd3 Be4 $1 17. O-O Qe7 18. Qb1 Rac8 19. Rd1 Rfd8 20. Bh4 f6 21. Bg3 Bxd3 (21... Qe8) 22. Rxd3 Qe4 (22... Rd7) 23. Nd2 (23. Nd4 $142 $11) 23... Qf5 (23... Qe8 $142) 24. h4 Re8 25. Rb5 Qg6 26. Bf4 Bf8 (26... h6 $11) (26... Qf5 $11) (26... Kh8 $11) 27. Ra5 a6 28. e4 Nc4 (28... Qg4) 29. Raxd5 Nxd2 30. Bxd2 Qxe4 31. R5d4 Qe6 32. Qxb7 Qxa2 33. h5 Qf7 34. Qf3 h6 35. Rd7 Qe6 36. Qg3 Qf5 37. Qg6 Qxg6 38. hxg6 Ra8 39. R3d4 f5 $1 {To go after the g6-pawn, if needed.} (39... a5 40. Ra4 Re5 41. c4 f5 $1 42. Kf1 Re6 43. Rxa5 Rxa5 44. Bxa5 Rxg6 {should also draw, however.}) 40. c4 a5 41. R4d5 a4 42. Bc3 a3 43. Rxf5 a2 {Winning? Nope; it just forces White to bring the game to a stylish conclusion.} (43... Re7 44. Rf7 Rxd7 45. Rxd7 a2 46. Rd1 Rc8 $11) 44. Rxf8+ $1 Kxf8 (44... Rxf8 $4 45. Rxg7+ Kh8 46. Rh7+ Kg8 47. Rh8#) 45. Rf7+ Kg8 46. Rxg7+ (46. Rxg7+ Kf8 (46... Kh8 $4 47. Rh7+ Kg8 48. Rh8#) 47. Rf7+ Kg8 48. Rg7+ Kf8 $11) 1/2-1/2 [Event "85th Tata Steel Masters"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee NED"] [Date "2023.01.24"] [Round "9"] [White "Praggnanandhaa, Rameshbabu"] [Black "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "D38"] [WhiteElo "2684"] [BlackElo "2766"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "117"] [EventDate "2023.01.13"] {[%evp 0,117,27,27,29,5,4,-5,6,14,37,-28,-15,-38,0,-39,-12,-20,15,7,24,-19,53,41,63,71,77,45,67,6,13,12,13,14,14,-27,7,7,-10,-23,-5,-9,8,-10,-3,0,0,0,32,27,25,2,17,12,11,11,11,3,12,16,11,4,10,8,16,15,20,15,22,15,26,26,38,31,45,18,0,0,14,40,24,0,3,12,32,32,35,39,61,61,50,62,78,47,50,63,62,62,47,49,48,49,57,48,37,39,38,43,40,54,33,40,40,17,6,10,4,0,4,31] White enjoyed a small-to-moderate advantage for a while, but by the time control at move 40 Black had equalized, and the rest was going through the motions.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. Qa4+ Nc6 6. e3 O-O 7. Qc2 b6 8. Bd2 Ne7 9. a3 Bd6 10. b4 c6 11. c5 bxc5 12. bxc5 Bc7 13. Bd3 Ng6 14. Ne2 e5 15. dxe5 Nxe5 16. Nxe5 Bxe5 17. Bc3 Bxc3+ 18. Qxc3 Ba6 19. O-O Bxd3 20. Qxd3 Ne4 21. Qa6 Qd7 22. Nd4 Rfc8 23. Qa5 Rab8 24. Rab1 g6 25. Rb4 Ng5 26. Qa6 Rxb4 27. axb4 Ne6 28. Nc2 Rb8 29. h3 Qc7 30. Ra1 Rb7 31. Qa4 Kg7 32. Rd1 Kg8 33. Qa3 Qe5 34. Qa6 Rc7 35. Qa1 Qe4 36. Qc3 h5 37. Ra1 Rd7 38. Rd1 Rb7 39. Ra1 Rd7 40. Nd4 Nxd4 41. Qxd4 Qxd4 42. exd4 Kg7 43. Kf1 Rb7 44. Ra4 Re7 45. f3 Re3 46. Rxa7 Rd3 47. Ra6 Rxd4 48. Rb6 Kf8 49. Ke2 Ke7 50. Ke3 Rc4 51. Rxc6 Rxb4 52. Rd6 Rb2 53. g4 Rb3+ 54. Kf4 hxg4 55. hxg4 Rd3 56. g5 d4 57. Ke4 Re3+ 58. Kf4 Rd3 59. Ke4 1/2-1/2 [Event "85th Tata Steel Masters"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee NED"] [Date "2023.01.24"] [Round "9"] [White "Aronian, Levon"] [Black "Van Foreest, Jorden"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "D45"] [WhiteElo "2735"] [BlackElo "2681"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "61"] [EventDate "2023.01.13"] {[%evp 0,61,28,35,27,0,26,11,44,33,51,49,53,30,27,5,22,45,65,56,48,48,38,37,37,9,51,32,32,41,47,-7,34,24,7,7,33,55,12,13,13,17,13,-19,-8,6,8,8,3,11,7,7,14,17,12,6,9,2,2,7,3,0,0,0]} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e3 e6 5. Nf3 Be7 (5... Nbd7 6. Qc2 Bd6 {is far more common.}) 6. Qc2 O-O 7. b3 dxc4 8. Bxc4 b5 9. Be2 (9. Bd3) 9... Bb7 10. O-O Nbd7 $146 (10... a6) 11. Bb2 Rc8 12. Rfd1 Qb6 13. Ne5 Rfd8 14. Nxd7 Rxd7 15. Bd3 a6 16. Ne4 Nxe4 17. Bxe4 f5 18. Bf3 c5 19. dxc5 Rxc5 20. Qe2 Bxf3 21. Qxf3 Qc6 22. Rxd7 Qxd7 23. Rd1 Rd5 24. Rxd5 Qxd5 25. Qxd5 exd5 26. Kf1 Kf7 27. Ke2 g6 28. h3 h5 29. Kd3 Ke6 30. f3 Bc5 31. Bc3 {A very quiet game, and an easy hold for Van Foreest.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "85th Tata Steel Masters"] [Site "Wijk aan Zee NED"] [Date "2023.01.24"] [Round "9"] [White "Erigaisi, Arjun"] [Black "Rapport, Richard"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "E44"] [WhiteElo "2722"] [BlackElo "2740"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "50"] [EventDate "2023.01.13"] {[%evp 0,50,18,20,23,-10,-10,0,33,29,41,22,10,-8,8,4,-11,-4,-4,-4,-4,-1,38,40,53,8,25,12,84,0,0,0,0,-26,-23,-44,-55,-63,-63,-40,-34,-83,-74,-76,-102,-115,-140,-140,-149,-219,-208,-1602,-1816]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 b6 5. Nge2 Ne4 6. Qc2 Bb7 7. a3 Bxc3+ 8. Nxc3 Nxc3 9. Qxc3 d6 10. b3 (10. h4 $1 $146 {? is a nice computer suggestion. What's the idea? Well, stick around to see Black's next move in the game.}) 10... Qh4 $146 {A novelty, but in fairness it transposes to six previous games - all before computers were absolute monsters, and there are other games where Black played ...Qh4 a move later. The idea was already in the air, even if this is technically a novelty. So why not stop it? - 10.h4!} 11. Bb2 Be4 $146 {A novelty, and no transpositions, either. So what should White do here? Think about what you'd like to do, were it not for the annoying queen on h4, and you'll get it.} (11... Nd7 {was played in four previous games (and five other games transposed to this position). Black's score is fantastic: six wins, two draws, and only one loss.}) 12. Qd2 (12. Ke2 $1 {Next up, f3.}) 12... g5 $1 {Once Black plays ...g4, f3 is likely to be off the table, Ke2 or not.} 13. h3 g4 14. O-O-O ({White can keep equality, but it requires bonkers computer-based lines like this to do it:} 14. c5 Nd7 15. d5 e5 16. cxd6 cxd6 17. Rc1 a5 18. Bb5 Bxg2 19. Rh2 gxh3 20. Rc7 Rd8 21. Qc2 Qg4 22. Rxd7 Rxd7 23. Qc8+ Ke7 24. Qxh8 Bxd5 25. Bxe5 $1 Qg1+ 26. Ke2 dxe5 27. Qxe5+ Be6 28. Bxd7 Kxd7 29. Qb5+ Kc7 30. Rxh3 Bxh3 31. Qc4+ {White has a perpetual, and I bet this perpetual was in Rapport's computer.}) 14... Rg8 (14... Nd7) 15. Qe2 (15. g3 $1 {followed by the not exactly glorious Rh2 was best.}) 15... Qh5 (15... Nd7 $142 $15) 16. Rg1 (16. Qd2 $142) 16... Nd7 $17 17. Qe1 gxh3 18. Be2 $8 Qh6 19. gxh3 O-O-O 20. Rg4 $2 f5 21. Rxg8 Rxg8 $19 {White has no play, so Black will simply pick up the h-pawn, penetrate on the kingside, and win the game while White watches.} 22. h4 ({Trying to hold on to the h-pawn like a life preserver will only make things worse:} 22. Bf1 Bf3 23. Rd2 Rg1 {and the coming ...Bg2 should prove lethal.}) 22... Rg2 23. h5 f4 24. f3 Qxh5 25. Bf1 $4 {A blunder in an already hopeless position.} (25. fxe4 Rxe2) 25... Rc2+ (25... Rc2+ 26. Kb1 {and now} Qh2 $1 {is much better than collecting the queen (though that also won). Taking the bishop allows mate in three, while} 27. Bc1 {, "hoping" to give up the queen for a rook and bishop, allows mate in two. (More importantly, it puts all of White's pieces on the bank rank, perfectly symbolizes the futility of the situation.)} Rxc1+ (27... Rb2+ 28. Ka1 Ra2# (28... Rb1#)) 28. Kxc1 Qc2#) 0-1