[Event "40th Zalakaros Open 2021"] [Site "Zalakaros"] [Date "2021.09.08"] [Round "3.1"] [White "Marosi, Levente"] [Black "Aczel, Gergely"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "B96"] [WhiteElo "2264"] [BlackElo "2552"] [Annotator "Krasenkow,M"] [PlyCount "56"] [EventDate "2021.09.02"] [EventType "swiss"] [EventCountry "HUN"] [Tiebreak "Progressive score"] [SourceTitle "playchess.com"] [Source "ChessBase"] [SourceQuality "1"] {[%evp 16,56,10,9,25,23,15,9,30,41,37,39,41,0,0,0,0,0,-5,-42,-14,-234,-236, -313,-316,-402,-384,-470,-438,-565,-556,-566,-518,-531,-516,-547,-439,-424, -441,-438,-440,-433,-430] While the tournament leader, Wesley So, was scoring another victory against out-of-form Veselin Topalov, two of his chasers, said to be the most probable challengers for the world title in 2018, clashed in a principled battle.} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 { Nakamura played the Najdorf System against Caruana in their last decisive classic game (US Championship, Saint Louis, April 2016)... and lost! Since then Fabiano and Hikaru only met in rapid (or semi-rapid, as in the "Champions Showdown" last month) and blitz events, and Nakamura always replied 1...e5 to 1.e4. Does he think that the Najdorf is a "more serious" opening than 1...e5 : -)?} 6. Bg5 {This "main" move is a rare guest in Caruana's practice. He plays various systems against the Najdorf but lately his main weapon has been the English Attack, starting with 6.f3 (that's what he played against Nakamura in Saint Louis). However, it looks like Hikaru was not surprised.} e6 7. f4 h6 { Apparently, Nakamura had never played this line before the present game. However, Caruana didn't miss it out when preparing to play 6.Bg5.} 8. Bh4 Qb6 { This aggressive continuation is probably more popular on move 7 but it is by no means new in this position, too.} 9. a3 {[%csl Rb2,Gb7,Gc2,Rc3,Gd3,Rd4,Rd7, Re3,Ge4,Rf2,Gf3,Rf7,Gg2,Gh7][%CAl Ge4d5,Gc6b7,Gc6b5,Gd5c4,Ge4f5,Gg6h7,Gg6h5, Gf5g4,Rf5e6,Re6f7,Rd5e6,Re6d7,Rd4e5,Rf6g7,Rf6g5,Re5f4,Rh4f6] One of the main theoretical moves. White indirectly protects his b2-pawn and prepares to oust Black's queen by means of Bh4-f2.} (9. Qd2 {, sacrificing the b2-pawn, is the main alternative.}) 9... Nbd7 $1 {[%mdl 4] now scores much better than the old 9...Be7. B96: Sicilian Najdorf: 6 Bg5 e6 7 f4, lines other than 7. ..Qb6 and 7. ..Be7.} ({Of course,} 9... Qxb2 $2 {loses the queen due to} 10. Na4 $18) (9... Be7 10. Bf2 (10. Qd3 Nbd7 11. O-O-O g5 12. fxg5 Ne5 13. Qd2 Nh7 14. Nf3 hxg5 15. Bf2 Qc7 16. Be2 Bd7 17. h4 Rg8 18. h5 g4 19. Nxe5 dxe5 20. Bh4 Bc6 21. Qe3 Bxh4 22. Rxh4 Qe7 23. Rxg4 Rxg4 24. Bxg4 Qg5 25. Qxg5 Nxg5 26. Bf3 Ke7 27. Kd2 Rh8 28. Rh1 f5 29. Ke3 Kf6 30. b4 b5 {1/2-1/2 (30) Caruana,F (2807)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2791) Saint Louis 2017 CBM 180 [Quintiliano,R]}) 10... Qc7 11. Qf3 ( 11. Bd3 Nbd7 12. Qe2 b5 13. O-O-O Bb7 14. g4 g6 15. f5 e5 16. Nb3 g5 17. h4 Rg8 18. hxg5 hxg5 19. Kb1 Nc5 20. Rh6 O-O-O 21. Nd5 Bxd5 22. exd5 Rh8 23. Nxc5 dxc5 24. d6 Bxd6 25. Rxf6 Qe7 26. Qe4 Qxf6 27. Qc6+ Kb8 28. Be4 {1-0 (28) Vallejo Pons,F (2700)-Palac,M (2577) Gjakova 2016 CBM 173 [Ftacnik,L]}) (11. g4 Nc6 12. Nxc6 bxc6 13. h4 Rb8 14. g5 hxg5 15. fxg5 Nd7 16. Qc1 d5 17. Rh3 Bd6 18. b3 Ne5 19. Qd2 Ng4 20. Rd3 Nxf2 21. Qxf2 Qb6 22. Rh3 g6 23. Qf6 Rf8 24. e5 Be7 25. Qf4 Qa5 26. Kf2 Bd7 27. Kg2 c5 28. Nd1 Bc6 29. Nf2 Rd8 30. Ng4 Kd7 31. Be2 Kc7 32. Nf6 Rh8 33. Kf1 Rb8 34. Rd3 Rb4 35. c4 dxc4 36. bxc4 Rhb8 37. Rad1 Rb1 38. Nd5+ exd5 39. e6+ Bd6 40. Qxf7+ Kd8 41. e7+ Bxe7 42. Rxd5+ Bxd5 43. Qxd5+ Ke8 44. Qg8+ Bf8 45. Qxg6+ Ke7 46. Qf6+ {1-0 (46) Savchenko,B (2553)-Chigaev,M (2630) Tuapse 2021}) 11... Nbd7 (11... b5 12. O-O-O Bb7 13. g4 Nc6 14. g5 (14. h4 d5 15. e5 Ne4 16. Nxe4 dxe4 17. Qc3 Rc8 18. Rh3 b4 19. axb4 Nxb4 20. Qxc7 Rxc7 21. f5 O-O 22. Be1 Bd5 23. g5 Rfc8 24. Bxb4 Bxb4 25. f6 Kh7 26. c3 gxf6 27. gxf6 Rg8 28. Bxa6 Bc5 29. Nb5 Rc6 30. Bb7 Rb6 31. Bxd5 exd5 32. Nd4 Bxd4 33. cxd4 Rg2 34. Rd2 Rxd2 35. Kxd2 Kg6 36. b3 Kf5 37. Rg3 Kf4 38. Rg1 e3+ 39. Kd3 Rxb3+ 40. Kc2 Rb6 41. Kd3 Rb3+ 42. Kc2 Rb6 43. Kd3 {1/2-1/2 (43) Grischuk,A (2750) -Vachier Lagrave,M (2765) London 2015 CBM 170 [Szabo,Kr]}) 14... hxg5 15. fxg5 Ne5 16. Qg2 (16. Qe2 Nh5 17. Be3 g6 18. h4 Ng3 19. Qg2 Nxh1 20. Qxh1 Ng4 21. Bg1 Bxg5+ {0-1 (21) Mrudul,D (2256)-Vantika,A (2286) Chess.com INT 2021}) 16... Nfg4 17. g6 Bg5+ 18. Kb1 Nxf2 19. Qxf2 Nxg6 20. Bxb5+ Ke7 21. Ba4 Bf6 22. Rhg1 Ne5 23. Bb3 Rh5 24. Rg3 Rah8 25. Nf3 Qc5 26. Qe1 Nxf3 27. Rxf3 Rxh2 28. Na4 Qc7 29. Rf1 R8h4 30. Rd3 Rxe4 31. Qg3 Reh4 32. Ka2 R2h3 33. Qe1 Rxd3 34. cxd3 Rh2 35. Rf4 Rh1 36. Qb4 Rc1 37. d4 Rg1 38. d5 exd5 39. Rf2 Rc1 40. Re2+ Kd8 41. Rh2 d4 42. Rh8+ Ke7 43. Qd2 Be4 44. Qe2 Ra1+ {0-1 (44) Corrales Jimenez,F (2511) -Vazquez,G (2443) Chicago 2017 CBM 179 [Vazquez,G]}) 12. O-O-O b5 13. g4 { Both sides have made typical attacking knight pawn moves; however, their impet is slowed down by the rook pawns, which have already moved to a3 and h6...} g5 {...and besides, Black has a possibility to strike a sudden counterblow, with an obvious idea to gain the e5-square for his knight.} (13... Bb7 14. Bg2 (14. h4 d5 (14... Nc5 15. Bd3 h5 (15... d5 16. e5 Nfe4 17. Be1 Nxc3 18. Bxc3 Ne4 19. Bxe4 dxe4 20. Qe3 Rc8 21. Bb4 Bxb4 22. axb4 Qc4 23. Kb1 Bd5 24. Qa3 O-O 25. f5 a5 26. bxa5 b4 27. Qa4 Rfd8 28. Rhe1 Ba8 29. c3 bxc3 30. Qxc4 Rxc4 31. Nc2 Rb8 32. b4 Bc6 33. fxe6 fxe6 34. Kc1 Ba4 35. Re3 Bxc2 36. Kxc2 Rbxb4 37. Rxc3 Rxc3+ 38. Kxc3 Ra4 39. Rd8+ Kf7 40. Rd7+ Kf8 41. Ra7 e3 42. Kd3 Re4 43. Ke2 Rxe5 44. a6 Re4 45. Rb7 Kg8 46. a7 Ra4 47. Rb8+ Kh7 48. a8=Q Rxa8 49. Rxa8 {1-0 (49) Sevian,S (2660)-Fernandez,D (2458) Chess.com INT 2021}) 16. g5 Ng4 17. Rhg1 g6 18. Rxg4 hxg4 19. Qxg4 e5 20. Nf3 Rc8 (20... exf4 21. Qxf4 Rc8 22. Kb1 Nxd3 23. Rxd3 a5 24. Bd4 Rf8 25. Qd2 b4 26. Nd5 Bxd5 27. exd5 Qb7 28. axb4 axb4 29. Qe2 Kd7 30. Nd2 Qxd5 31. Ne4 Rc4 32. Nf6+ Bxf6 33. Bxf6 Qh1+ 34. Rd1 Qe4 35. Qd2 Rc6 36. Re1 Rxc2 37. Qxd6+ Kxd6 38. Rxe4 Rfc8 39. Rxb4 R2c4 40. Rb7 R8c7 41. Rb6+ Kc5 42. Rb3 Rxh4 43. Rf3 Rd7 44. Rc3+ Rc4 45. Ra3 Kb5 46. Rb3+ Rb4 47. Re3 Rf4 48. Rb3+ Kc4 49. Ra3 Rf5 50. Rc3+ Kb4 51. Ra3 Rfd5 52. Ka2 Kb5 53. Ra8 Rd3 54. Rb8+ Kc6 55. Ra8 Kb6 56. Rb8+ Rb7 57. Re8 Ra7+ 58. Kb1 Kc6 59. Kc2 Rf3 60. Re4 Rd7 61. Ra4 Kb5 62. Re4 Rd6 63. Re5+ Kb6 64. Be7 Rc6+ 65. Kb1 Re6 66. Bd8+ Kc6 67. Ra5 Kd7 {0-1 (67) Bellahcene,B (2488)-Sebag,M (2486) Brest 2018}) 21. fxe5 dxe5 22. Kb1 Rd8 23. Nd5 Bxd5 24. exd5 Nxd3 25. Rxd3 O-O 26. h5 Qc4 27. Qh3 Qc8 28. Qxc8 Rxc8 29. Nxe5 Bxg5 30. d6 Bf4 31. d7 {1/2-1/2 (31) Giri,A (2762)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2796) Palma de Mallorca 2017 CBM 182 [Yermolinsky,A]} ) 15. e5 Ne4 16. Rh3 (16. Be1 Rc8 17. Rh3 Qb6 18. Kb1 Ndc5 19. f5 Na4 20. Na2 b4 21. axb4 Bxb4 22. Bxb4 a5 23. Bb5+ Kd8 24. Bxa4 axb4 25. fxe6 f6 26. exf6 gxf6 27. g5 Rc4 28. Nf5 Nf2 29. e7+ Kc8 30. gxf6 Nxd1 31. f7 Nc3+ 32. bxc3 Qg1+ 33. Nc1 d4 34. e8=Q+ Rxe8 35. fxe8=Q+ {1-0 (35) Jakubowski,K (2497)-Chabris,C (2125) Chess.com INT 2021}) 16... Nxf2 17. Qxf2 b4 18. axb4 Bxb4 19. f5 Nxe5 20. fxe6 O-O 21. Qg1 Rae8 22. g5 h5 23. Be2 g6 24. exf7+ Qxf7 25. Nb3 Nc4 26. Rf3 Qg7 27. Rxf8+ Rxf8 28. Qd4 Qxd4 29. Rxd4 Rc8 30. Bd3 Nxb2 31. Rxb4 Nxd3+ 32. cxd3 Rxc3+ 33. Kd2 Rc7 34. Ke3 Bc8 35. Kd4 Kf7 36. Nc5 Ra7 37. Kxd5 a5 38. Rf4+ Bf5 39. Kc6 Ke7 40. Rd4 a4 41. Kb6 Ra8 42. Nxa4 Bxd3 43. Nc5 {1/2-1/2 (43) Caruana,F (2817)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2803) Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden 2017 CBM 178 [Ftacnik,L]}) 14... g5 (14... Rc8 15. Kb1 g5 16. Qh3 Nc5 17. Rhe1 h5 18. Nf5 Ncxe4 19. Bxe4 Nxe4 20. Bd4 Rg8 21. Nxe7 Kxe7 22. gxh5 gxf4 23. Qh4+ Kf8 24. Ka1 b4 25. Nxe4 Bxe4 26. Rxe4 Qxc2 27. Ree1 bxa3 28. Qxf4 axb2+ 29. Bxb2 Rg5 30. Qxd6+ Kg8 31. Rg1 Qa4+ 32. Ba3 Rxg1 33. Rxg1+ Kh7 34. Qd3+ Kh6 35. Rg6+ Kxh5 36. Rg1 f5 37. Qf3+ {1-0 (37) Nakamura,H (2779)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2804) London 2016 CBM 176 [Meier,Georg]}) 15. h4 gxf4 16. g5 Ne5 17. Qxf4 hxg5 18. hxg5 Rxh1 19. Rxh1 Nfd7 20. Kb1 O-O-O 21. Rh3 Kb8 22. Be3 Rg8 23. Rg3 Rg7 24. Bh3 Rh7 25. Qf2 Nc5 26. Bg2 Qc8 27. Bc1 Bd8 28. Nf3 Ng6 29. Nd4 Ne5 30. Nf3 Ng6 31. Nd4 Bb6 32. Be3 Ne5 33. b3 Rh4 34. Nde2 Qc7 35. Bd4 Ncd7 36. Bxb6 Qxb6 37. Qxb6 Nxb6 38. Nd4 Ng6 39. Kc1 Nd7 40. Kd2 Nf4 41. Ke3 Nxg2+ 42. Rxg2 Rh3+ 43. Kd2 Ne5 44. Nde2 Nf3+ 45. Kc1 Nh4 46. Rg1 Ng6 47. Kd2 Kc7 48. Nd4 Kd7 49. Rf1 Ke7 50. Rg1 Ne5 51. Rg2 Ba8 52. Nde2 Nf3+ 53. Kc1 Rh1+ 54. Kb2 Nh4 55. Rg4 Ng6 56. Nf4 Nxf4 57. Rxf4 Rg1 58. Rh4 Rxg5 59. Kc1 d5 {0-1 (59) Karjakin,S (2760) -Vachier Lagrave,M (2789) London 2017 CBM 182 [Quintiliano,R]}) 14. h4 $5 gxf4 15. Be2 {This apparently strange sequence of moves was seen for the first time in a correspondence game and later, at the super-GM level, in Giri - Vachier-Lagrave (Stavanger 2016). White creates the g4-g5 threat and protects the g4-pawn in case of ...Nd7-e5 Qf3xf4.} b4 $5 {Played instantly, which means that this move was prepared at home. In his annotations for ChessBase Magazine, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave examines a lot of moves but not this one! However, it was obviously no secret for yesterday's opponents.} ({The French grandmaster played} 15... Rg8 {in the above-mentioned game, to which, according to his analysis, White could have sacrificed a pawn:} 16. g5 $1 {with a powerful attack} ({instead of} 16. Rdg1 {, played by Anish Giri} d5 17. exd5 Ne5 18. Qh3 exd5 19. Re1 Kf8 20. Nf5 Bxf5 21. gxf5 Bc5 22. Qf1 d4 23. Nb1 Ne4 24. Bf3 Nxf2 25. Bxa8 Ned3+ 26. Kd2 Nxe1 27. Qxf2 d3 28. Qxe1 Be3+ {0-1 (28) Giri,A (2790) -Vachier Lagrave,M (2788) Stavanger 2016 CBM 172 [Vachier Lagrave,M]})) ({ To understand the idea of 15...b4, we must take a look at the following line:} 15... Ne5 16. Qxf4 Nexg4 $1 17. Bxg4 e5 {(looks very strong but White has an adequate riposte)} 18. Nd5 $1 Nxd5 19. Qf3 {- White avoids serious material losses and keeps up a strong attack on Black's uncastled king, e.g.} Bxg4 20. Qxg4 Nf6 21. Qf3 exd4 22. Bxd4 {regaining the piece since} Qd8 $2 {is clearly bad due to} 23. e5 {(Indicated by Vachier-Lagrave).}) (15... h5 16. g5 Ne5 17. Qxf4 Nfg4 18. Bxg4 Nxg4 19. Nf5 Nxf2 20. Qxf2 exf5 21. exf5 Qc5 22. Qf3 Ra7 23. Nd5 Bb7 24. Rhe1 Bxd5 25. Rxd5 Qc4 26. f6 Qxh4 27. Re4 Qh2 28. Qe3 O-O 29. fxe7 Re8 30. Rd2 Qh1+ 31. Rd1 Qh2 32. Qxa7 {1-0 (32) Ter Sahakyan,S (2644)-Mullick, R (2386) Veliko Gradiste 2021}) 16. axb4 Ne5 17. Qxf4 Nexg4 18. Bxg4 e5 { Now we see the difference.} ({In the event of} 18... e5 19. Nd5 Nxd5 20. Qf3 { Black can simply play} Nxb4 {. White's d4 knight can't retreat, the only way for him to avoid losing a piece is} 21. Be1 a5 22. Bxb4 axb4 {, opening the a-file for Black, after which the latter obtains excellent counterplay. However, White has another option...}) 19. Qxf6 $1 {This queen sacrifice is not difficult, in fact, but what followed next was really amazing.} Bxf6 {.} 20. Nd5 Qd8 21. Nf5 $3 {After this move Hikaru fell into deep thought for the first time in this game!} ({In his analysis he obviously expected} 21. Nc6 Bxg4 22. Nxd8 Bxd8 {This endgame is unclear, both sides have their advantages and drawbacks. Black has more weaknesses but his bishop pair should not be underestimated. Instead, Fabiano renounces restoring the material balance! I must say that such "real" queen sacrifices are an Achilles' heel of analysis engines. They almost always evaluate positions with, say, two minor pieces for a queen in favour of the strongest piece, while in reality, in human play, there may be a more than sufficient compensation for the material. Therefore such positions should be analysed and evaluated "manually", and kudos to Caruana and his team for doing that! P.S. Readers of the Chessbase website rightly indicated that engines start appreciating 21.Nf5 at some depth so my above comment is probably not quite relevant in this case; however, it remains valid in many similar situations!}) 21... Rb8 $6 {Black prevents 22.Bb6 but allows 22.Nxf6+ Qxf6 23.Nxd6+ (or 23.Rxd6), which proves to be fatal for him.} ({He could have parried both threats by just trading White's dangerous knight: } 21... Bxf5 22. Bxf5 Rb8 {but then the weakness of light squares around his king could have become decisive. Computer engines show equality here, which means that Black's position is almost hopeless :-). White could have played} 23. Rd3 {with idea Ra3 or Rc3} ({or simply} 23. c4)) 22. Nxf6+ Qxf6 23. Rxd6 $6 {Alas, White fails to find the strongest but very difficult continuation, which means that either Caruana did not analyse 21...Rb8 at all or forgot his analysis. I bet for the former suggestion since the variations are really amazing and must stick out in one's memory:} (23. Nxd6+ $1 Ke7 ({to} 23... Kf8 {White has an amazing move} 24. Bf5 $3 {followed by Bf2-c5, and Black's king, "pressed against the ropes", is completely helpless}) (23... Qxd6 {is hopeless due to} 24. Rxd6 Bxg4 25. Rxa6 {with a decisive material advantage for White}) 24. Bc5 $3 Qf4+ {(forced)} (24... Bxg4 25. Nb5+ {followed by mate on c7}) 25. Kb1 Qxg4 (25... Bxg4 {again leads to a mate after} 26. Nf5+) 26. Nxc8+ Ke8 ( 26... Kf6 27. Rhf1+ Kg7 28. Rg1 $18 {with decisive material gains for White}) 27. Nd6+ Kd7 {(again the only move)} (27... Ke7 28. Nf5+ Ke8 29. Rhg1 $18 { - Black's queen can't retreat in view of Nf5-g7#}) 28. Nxf7+ Kc7 {(other retreats are worse)} ({e.g.} 28... Ke6 29. Nxh8 Rxh8 30. Rhf1 {with an inevitable deadly check on d6}) 29. Bd6+ Kb7 {(once again, there are no better king moves)} 30. Bxb8 Rxb8 31. Nxe5 {, and White keeps a rook, knight and three pawns for the queen, which is quite enough to win, since} Qxe4 $6 32. Nd7 {loses an exchange, after which two rooks easily deal with Black's lone queen.} ) 23... Be6 {Black is ready to castle. However, his position is still poor.} 24. Rhd1 ({Another way to meet Black's castling was} 24. Be3 Rxb4 $1 ({if} 24... O-O {then} 25. Nxh6+ Kh8 (25... Kg7 26. Rg1) 26. Nxf7+ $1 Qxf7 27. Rxe6 { , and Black's king is helpless.}) ({an attempt to free Black's queen:} 24... Qg6 {fails to} 25. Rxe6+ $3 fxe6 26. Bh5 $1 Qxh5 27. Ng7+) 25. Rxa6 O-O ({ In the event of} 25... Bxf5 26. Rxf6 Bxg4 27. Bxh6 Rxe4 {White keeps an extra pawn and good winning chances}) 26. Nxh6+ Kh8 27. Bf5 $1 (27. Nxf7+ Qxf7 28. Rxe6 {is now premature due to} Rxe4 {; White must prepare that blow}) 27... Qd8 28. Nxf7+ $1 Rxf7 29. Rxe6 Rxf5 $1 {(Black must get rid of White's terrifying bishop)} 30. Rh6+ (30. exf5 Rg4 $1 {is less clear}) 30... Kg8 31. Rg1+ Kf7 32. Rh7+ Ke6 33. exf5+ Kxf5 $16 {Despite an approximate material parity, White has a clear advantage: a passed h4-pawn, and Black's "centralised" king is in danger; still, the outcome of the game is not quite certain.}) 24... O-O 25. h5 $1 {(threatening 26.Bh4)} Qg5+ ({Black couldn't bring himself to put his queen into the corner by} 25... Rfe8 26. Bh4 Qh8 {but that was the most stubborn defence. White should probably continue positionally:} 27. Ne3 $1 (27. Ne7+ { is not enough due to} Rxe7 28. Bxe7 Bxg4 29. Rd8+ Rxd8 30. Rxd8+ Kh7 31. Rxh8+ Kxh8 {, and Black should not lose this endgame with opposite-coloured bishops}) 27... Qg7 28. Rg1 Kf8 29. Rdd1 $16 {Black's position is very difficult to defend, of course.}) 26. Be3 Qf6 ({Of course, not} 26... Qxg4 27. Nxh6+) 27. Nxh6+ Kh8 28. Bf5 {Caruana spent some time calculating the blow on f7 but finally prefered a strong positional continuation, making Nxf7+ a more powerful threat.} (28. Nxf7+ {was possible but Black had the following defence: } Rxf7 29. Rxe6 Qh4 $1 30. Bf5 {(threatening 31.Rh6+ since Black will be unable to reply 31...Rh7)} Rxf5 $1 {(here, too, Black must eliminate this bishop) leads to a position arising after 28.Nxf7+} 31. exf5 (31. Rh6+ { was a good alternative:} Kg8 32. Rg1+ Kf7 33. Rh7+ Ke6 34. exf5+ Kxf5 35. Rf1+ Ke6 36. Rh6+ Kd5 37. Bd2 $16 {with a favourable position, similar to the one examined in the 24.Be3 line}) 31... Qxb4 {, and the forced line} 32. Rh6+ Kg8 33. Rg1+ Kf7 34. Rh7+ Kf6 35. Rg6+ Kxf5 36. Rf7+ Ke4 37. Rg4+ Kxe3 38. Rxb4 Rxb4 {leads to a rook endgame with an extra pawn for White, which, I believe, should be winning for him despite Black's passed e-pawn. But, of course, calculating this line and evaluating the final position is a very difficult task over the board.}) 28... Qe7 $2 {Nakamura succumbs to the pressure. His move doesn't parry the Nxf7+ threat.} (28... Rxb4 $2 29. Nxf7+ Qxf7 30. Rxe6 { was obviously hopeless}) (28... Rbd8 {doesn't work due to the simple} 29. Rxd8 Rxd8 30. Rxd8+ Qxd8 31. Bxe6 {, and White gets a third piece for the queen;} Qh4 {doesn't help here due to} 32. Nxf7+ Kg7 ({or} 32... Kh7 33. Kb1) 33. Bh6+ $1 Kh7 34. b3 {: Black can't take the e4-pawn in view of the knight fork; well, he can take the h5-pawn but White keeps a decisive material advantage anyway}) ({to} 28... Qh4 {White can reply} 29. Rg1 $1 {threatening 30.Bg5} (29. Nxf7+ Rxf7 30. Rxe6 Rxf5 {leads to a position arising after 28.Nxf7+}) 29... Qxh5 { (what else?)} 30. Nxf7+ $1 Rxf7 (30... Bxf7 {is also hopeless due to} 31. Rh6+ Qxh6 32. Bxh6 Rg8 33. Rh1) 31. Rxe6 Rg7 32. Rd1 {- Black will never survive with such a poor king!}) (28... Rfe8 {was the most stubborn defence. White can continue} 29. Rg1 ({or} 29. c3) ({but not} 29. Rxa6 $2 Ra8 {, and Black obtains counterplay}) 29... Rxb4 30. Rxa6 {with a huge advantage.}) 29. b5 $6 { The idea of this move is either to close the b-file or to deflect Black's rook from the 8th rank. However, such "niceties" were excessive!} ({Black prepared to meet} 29. Nxf7+ Rxf7 30. Rxe6 {with} Qxb4 {followed by} 31. Rh6+ Kg8 32. Rg1+ Rg7 ({but not} 32... Kf8 33. Rh8+ Ke7 34. Rxb8 Qxb8 35. Bc5+ $18) 33. Be6+ Kf8 {. Here both players missed the excellent move} 34. Bc5+ $3 ({instead of the obvious} 34. Rh8+ Ke7 35. Rxg7+ Kd6 $1 36. Rd7+ Kxe6 37. Rxb8 Qxb8 $16 { , which both definitely calculated and concluded that Black could successfully continue resistance}) 34... Qxc5 35. Rh8+ Ke7 36. Rxg7+ Kd6 37. Rxb8 Qe3+ ( 37... Kxe6 38. Rb6+ $1 Qxb6 39. Rg6+ {- a simple skewer combination}) 38. Kb1 Qe1+ 39. Ka2 Qa5+ 40. Kb3 Kxe6 {(the bishop can be taken now but White simply queens his h-pawn)} 41. h6 $18) 29... Qe8 $2 {Here are the lines demonstrating White's idea:} (29... axb5 30. Nxf7+ Rxf7 31. Rxe6 {, and in the event of} Qb4 32. Rh6+ Kg8 {White can simply play} 33. c3 {parrying all future threats}) ( 29... Rxb5 30. Nxf7+ Rxf7 31. Rxe6 Qb4 32. Rd8+ {(the point! The invasion of this rook breaks Black's defences)} Rf8 33. Rh6+ Kg7 ({or} 33... Kg8 34. Be6+ Kg7 35. Rd7+) 34. Rd7+ Rf7 35. Rg6+ Kh8 (35... Kf8 36. Rd8+ Ke7 37. Bg5+) 36. Rd8+ Rf8 (36... Kh7 37. Rc6+ Rxf5 38. Rc7+ {and mate}) 37. Rxf8+ Qxf8 38. Bg5 { with an inevitable deadly check on f6.}) ({Black could have parried the Nxf7+ threat by means of} 29... Rbe8 {but with the passed a-pawn after} 30. bxa6 { , White should win.}) 30. Nxf7+ Rxf7 31. Rxe6 Qxb5 {The same defence as after the immediate 29.Nxf7+ but here Black's queen is placed worse than on b4.} 32. Rh6+ {1-0 (32) Caruana,F (2823)-Nakamura,H (2779) London 2016 CBM 176 [Krasenkow,M] BLACK RESIGNED foreseeing the following line. Nakamura's opening surprise (15...b4) was met with an excellent counter-surprise (21.Nf5!!). Black's queen was absolutely powerless against White's minor pieces. Of course, the unsafe position of Black's king made the greatest contribution to his defeat. Unfortunately, Caruana didn't find the simplest paths to a win on several occasions but he never let his advantage slip and finally brought it home.} ({After} 32. Rh6+ Kg8 33. Rg1+ Rg7 34. Be6+ Kf8 35. Rh8+ ({of course, the beautiful} 35. Bc5+ {wins here, too, but it is unnecessary now}) 35... Ke7 36. Rxg7+ Kd6 {Black is not threatening mate on e1, and ...Qxb2+ will be completely harmless; therefore, White can simply continue} 37. Rh6 $18 { with decisive threats.})) (9... Nc6 {and even} 10. Bf2 Qc7 11. Qf3 Be7 12. Bd3 Nxd4 13. Bxd4 e5 14. Be3 exf4 15. Qxf4 Be6 16. O-O-O Nd7 17. h4 Bf6 18. Nd5 Bxd5 19. exd5 Be5 20. Qf2 Nf6 21. Bb6 Ng4 22. Qg1 Qe7 23. Kb1 O-O 24. Bf5 h5 25. Bxg4 hxg4 26. Qe3 Rae8 27. g3 f5 {1/2-1/2 (27) Huschenbeth,N (2513)-Klein, D (2339) Nuremberg 2011 CBM 144 Extra [Gutman,L]}) (9... Bd7 {are the other moves frequently seen in practice.}) 10. Bf2 (10. Bc4 g5 (10... e5 11. fxe5 dxe5 12. Nf5 g6 13. Nd5 Nxd5 14. Qxd5 Rh7 15. O-O-O gxf5 16. exf5 Be7 17. Bxe7 Kxe7 18. Rhf1 Qf6 19. Bb3 Rh8 20. Rf3 Re8 21. Ba4 Rd8 22. Rg3 b5 23. Qxa8 bxa4 24. Rc3 Nb6 25. Qa7+ Rd7 26. Rc7 Kd8 27. Rdxd7+ Nxd7 28. Rc3 Qd6 29. Qa8 Nc5 30. Qa7 Nd7 31. Rg3 Ke7 32. Rd3 Qc6 33. Rc3 Qxg2 34. Rxc8 Qh1+ 35. Kd2 Qxh2+ 36. Kc3 Qh3+ 37. Kb4 Qxf5 38. Qc7 e4 39. Qd8+ Kd6 40. Qc7+ Ke7 41. c4 e3 42. Qd8+ Kd6 43. Qc7+ Ke7 44. Qd8+ Kd6 45. Qc7+ {1/2-1/2 (45) Adhiban,B (2653) -Nepomniachtchi,I (2767) Wijk aan Zee 2017}) 11. Bf2 Nc5 12. Nb3 gxf4 13. e5 Nfd7 14. Qh5 d5 15. Bxd5 exd5 16. Nxd5 Qc6 17. e6 Nxe6 18. Nd4 Nxd4 19. Bxd4 Rg8 20. O-O-O Rg5 21. Qe2+ Kd8 22. Bb6+ Nxb6 23. Nxb6+ Kc7 24. Nxa8+ Kb8 25. Qf3 Rc5 26. Rd8 Be7 27. Qxc6 Rxc6 28. Re8 Bc5 29. Rd1 Kxa8 30. Rd7 Ka7 31. Rxf7 Be6 32. Rg7 Be3+ 33. Kd1 Bf5 34. Ree7 Bxc2+ 35. Ke2 Rb6 36. b4 Bc1 37. g3 f3+ 38. Kxf3 Bxa3 39. Rc7 Bd1+ {0-1 (39) Friedel,J (2531)-Zakhartsov,V (2578) Dresden 2011 CBM 143 Extra [Zakhartsov,Vi]}) (10. f5 e5 11. Nb3 Qc7 12. Qf3 b5 13. O-O-O Bb7 14. g4 Rc8 15. Bd3 Qb8 16. Be1 Nc5 17. Nxc5 dxc5 18. h4 b4 19. axb4 cxb4 20. Ne2 Qc7 21. Ng3 Nd7 22. b3 Bc5 23. f6 g6 24. h5 Qa5 25. Kd2 g5 26. Nf5 Rc6 27. Ke2 Rxf6 28. Rf1 Kd8 29. Bc4 Kc8 30. Bg3 Qc7 31. Bd5 Re8 32. c4 bxc3 33. Qxc3 Bc6 34. Rc1 Bb5+ 35. Bc4 Qb7 36. Qd3 Kb8 37. Bxb5 axb5 38. Rfd1 Ba3 39. Ra1 Nc5 40. Qd5 Nxe4 41. Bxe5+ Nd6 42. Rxa3 Rxe5+ 43. Qxe5 Re6 44. Qxe6 Qg2+ 45. Kd3 fxe6 46. Nxd6 Qf3+ 47. Kc2 b4 48. Ra5 Qc3+ 49. Kb1 Qxb3+ 50. Kc1 Qc3+ 51. Kb1 b3 52. Rb5+ Ka8 53. Rc1 Qd3+ 54. Ka1 Qd4+ 55. Kb1 Qd3+ 56. Ka1 Qd4+ {1/2-1/2 (56) Kasimdzhanov,R (2663)-Xiong,J (2663) Saint Louis 2019 CBM 189 [Yermolinsky,A]}) (10. Be2 e5 11. Nf5 g6 12. Bf2 Nc5 13. b4 gxf5 14. O-O Nfxe4 15. Nxe4 fxe4 16. bxc5 dxc5 17. fxe5 Be6 18. Rb1 Qc6 19. Bg4 b5 20. Bh4 Rg8 21. Bxe6 Qxe6 22. Rf6 Qg4 23. Qd2 Be7 24. Rf4 Qd7 25. Qxd7+ Kxd7 26. e6+ fxe6 27. Rf7 Rg5 28. Rd1+ Ke8 29. Rh7 b4 30. a4 c4 31. Bxg5 hxg5 32. Rh8+ Bf8 33. Rf1 Ke7 34. Rh7+ Kd6 35. Rh8 Ke7 36. Rh7+ Kd6 37. Rhf7 Bh6 38. Rd1+ Ke5 39. Rc7 c3 40. Kf2 g4 41. Rc5+ Kf6 42. Ke2 Rb8 43. Rb1 Rd8 44. Rf1+ Ke7 45. Rc7+ Kd6 46. Rc4 Ke7 47. Rd1 Rb8 48. Rdd4 b3 49. cxb3 Rxb3 50. Rc7+ Kf6 51. Rxe4 Rb2+ 52. Kd3 Rd2+ 53. Kxc3 Kf5 54. Re1 Rxg2 55. Rc5+ Kf6 56. Re4 Rxh2 57. Rxg4 a5 58. Kd3 Rd2+ 59. Ke4 Re2+ 60. Kf3 Re3+ 61. Kf2 Re5 62. Rg6+ Kxg6 63. Rxe5 Bd2 64. Rxe6+ Kf7 65. Re4 Kf6 66. Ke2 Bc3 67. Rc4 Be5 68. Rc5 Ke6 69. Rxa5 Bc7 70. Rb5 Kd6 71. Kd3 Kc6 72. Kc4 Bb6 73. a5 Ba7 74. a6 Bb6 75. Rb3 {1-0 (75) Wei,Y (2706)-Nepomniachtchi,I (2767) Wijk aan Zee 2017 CBM 177 [Hillarp Persson,T]}) 10... Qc7 (10... Qxb2 $2 11. Na4 $18) 11. Qe2 (11. Qf3 e5 12. Nf5 b5 13. O-O-O g6 14. Ne3 Bb7 15. Bh4 Be7 16. g3 Rc8 17. Bxf6 Nxf6 18. Bh3 Rd8 19. Ned5 Nxd5 20. Nxd5 Bxd5 21. Rxd5 exf4 22. gxf4 Bf6 23. Rhd1 O-O 24. Qd3 Qb6 25. Kb1 Qf2 26. Rf1 Qb6 27. c3 Rfe8 28. Bg2 Kg7 29. Bf3 h5 30. Qe2 Rh8 31. Rfd1 Be7 32. Qd2 Rc8 33. f5 Rcd8 34. Qf4 Qf2 35. R5d2 Qc5 36. Rg2 Qe5 37. Qe3 Rh6 38. Rd5 Qf6 39. Qa7 Qh4 40. Ka2 Kf8 41. fxg6 Rxg6 42. Re2 Qh3 43. Rf5 Rg5 44. Qd4 Ke8 45. Qd5 f6 46. c4 bxc4 47. Rxg5 fxg5 48. e5 Kf8 49. exd6 Bxd6 50. Qxg5 Qd7 51. Qf6+ {1-0 (51) Berg,E (2627)-Zhu,C (2495) Caleta 2011 CBM 141 [Berg,E]} ) 11... Be7 {The position is equal.} (11... b5 12. O-O-O Bb7 13. h4 Nc5 14. e5 dxe5 15. Ndxb5 axb5 16. Nxb5 Qc6 17. Qxe5 Ncd7 18. Nc7+ Ke7 19. Bb5 Qxg2 20. Bc5+ Kd8 21. Bb6 Bxa3 22. bxa3 Kc8 23. Qc3 Qf3 24. Rh3 Qxc3 25. Rxc3 Rxa3 26. Bxd7+ Nxd7 27. Rxa3 Nxb6 28. Nb5 Kb8 29. Nd6 Rf8 30. Rb3 Kc7 31. Nxb7 {1-0 (31) Nastase,R (2217)-Istratescu,A (2604) Miercurea Ciuc 2017 EXT 2020 [Biro,S]}) 12. O-O-O {[#]} g6 $146 ({Predecessor:} 12... b5 13. g4 Bb7 14. Bg2 g5 15. h4 Rg8 16. hxg5 hxg5 17. f5 e5 18. Nb3 Rb8 {1/2-1/2 (29) Panesso Rivera,H (2395) -Morales,J (2404) Ibague 2018}) 13. g3 b5 14. Bh3 Bb7 15. Rhe1 Nc5 $1 16. e5 dxe5 17. fxe5 (17. Qxe5 {seems wilder.} Qxe5 18. fxe5 Nd5 19. Nxd5 Bxd5 20. Bg4 ) 17... Nd5 18. Nxe6 $2 {This move loses the game for White.} fxe6 $19 19. Bxc5 {[#]} Nxc3 (19... Qxc5 20. Ne4 $11) (19... Bxc5 20. Bxe6 Nxc3 21. Qg4 $14) 20. bxc3 Qxc5 (20... Bxc5 21. Qg4 $17) 21. Qd3 Kf7 {Black is clearly winning.} 22. Qd7 Bc8 23. Rf1+ Kg7 24. Bxe6 {[#] Rf7+ would kill now.} Rf8 ({Weaker is} 24... Bxd7 25. Rf7+ Kg8 26. Rxd7 $11) 25. Qd5 Qxd5 26. Bxd5 {aiming for Rxf8.} Bxa3+ 27. Kb1 {Rxf8 is the strong threat.} Ra7 28. Rxf8 Bxf8 {Weighted Error Value: White=0.47/ Black=0.06} ({But not} 28... Kxf8 29. c4 $19) 0-1