[Event "WCh Women 2025"] [Site "Shanghai Chongqing CHN"] [Date "2025.04.06"] [Round "3.1"] [White "Ju, Wenjun"] [Black "Tan, Zhongyi"] [Result "1-0"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [ECO "B44"] [WhiteElo "2561"] [BlackElo "2555"] [PlyCount "173"] [GameId "2163856853581980"] [EventDate "2025.04.03"] [SourceVersionDate "2025.01.05"] {[%evp 0,173,21,25,19,23,21,13,8,7,20,21,16,9,40,33,47,33,29,29,37,37,34,36,39,34,-152,8,-161,-6,0,-10,-47,12,12,4,-127,23,31,41,-21,36,46,49,35,49,58,62,61,15,53,65,40,37,44,51,46,43,47,48,65,-40,35,37,42,56,-68,51,47,30,40,6,52,63,27,57,50,57,61,63,71,-30,63,-40,60,92,72,53,63,34,70,67,76,78,77,69,119,82,78,81,129,79,154,84,86,84,89,90,72,80,77,83,83,100,90,104,104,105,85,101,106,118,126,115,126,117,52,124,130,144,134,125,149,145,28,157,30,144,159,98,156,145,106,170,114,189,158,221,223,282,262,262,418,447,770,221,262,263,242,292,266,309,290,217,371,345,529,542,524,606,562,607,609,679,1433,1319]} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. c4 {Aiming for a Maroczy Bind (MB) structure. Not all MBs are created equal, though, and the freedom Black's dark-squared bishop will enjoy makes this a relatively pleasant one for Tan.} Nc6 4. d4 cxd4 5. Nxd4 Bb4+ (5... Bc5 {is another good approach. Black usually starts with}) (5... Nf6 {though, and only after} 6. Nc3 {does Black choose between 6...Bb4 and 6...Bc5.} (6. Nxc6 bxc6 7. Nc3 {is fine for Black after 7...d5, 7...e5, or 7...Bb4.})) 6. Nc3 Nge7 {This rare move is probably a bit worse than 6...Nf6, but it's not bad and probably had some surprise value.} (6... Nf6 {would transpose to a position from the previous note.}) 7. Be2 (7. Ndb5 $14 {is direct and probably best, too.}) 7... d5 8. exd5 $146 exd5 9. Nxc6 bxc6 10. O-O O-O 11. cxd5 cxd5 {Just as in game 1, Tan quickly finds herself with an isolated pawn. Is it a coincidence, or is this something deliberate by Ju? And if it is intentional, is it because Ju enjoys facing the isolated pawn or because she thinks Tan is less adept at handling such structures?} 12. Bf3 (12. Bf4 $142) 12... Be6 $11 13. Bg5 (13. Ne2 $142 {was better, to install the knight on its traditional blockading square in front of the pawn.}) 13... Bxc3 14. bxc3 Rc8 15. Qa4 (15. Bxe7 Qxe7 16. Bxd5 Bxd5 17. Qxd5 Rxc3 {would almost certainly result in a short draw.}) 15... h6 (15... Rxc3 16. Qxa7 {gives White soething to hope for with her passed a-pawn - especially if Black advances the d-pawn, as White's light-squared bishop would control the queening square (and could anchor the pawn on a6 from b7).}) 16. Bd2 a5 17. Rfe1 Rc4 18. Qa3 Nf5 (18... d4 19. cxd4 Nf5 20. Bxa5 Qxd4 $11 {is equal, but one must notice the strength of ...Ra4 to go for it. This seems as if it will pretty well kill the game.}) 19. Be2 Rc8 20. Rad1 Qd6 21. Qxa5 Ra8 22. Qb4 Rxa2 23. Bf4 Qc6 (23... Qxb4 $6 24. cxb4 $14 {/? is not a trade Black wants - not because she needs to keep the queens on but because White's newly created passed b-pawn is a dangerous asset.}) 24. Bb5 Qb6 (24... Qa8) 25. Re2 Rfa8 26. Bd3 Ra1 $1 27. Ree1 Rxd1 28. Rxd1 Qd8 (28... Qc6 {looks good, keeping an eye on c3.}) 29. h3 Qf6 30. Re1 Rc8 31. Be5 Qg5 32. Ba6 Ra8 33. Bf4 Qf6 34. Bb7 Rd8 (34... Ra2) 35. Bc7 Rf8 {This looks like a pawn sacrifice. As I mentioned in my notes to game 2, it's easy to be misled by the engine evaluations into thinking that a player is equal, equal, equal, and then falls off a cliff and suddenly loses a drawn position. Rather, what happens is that a game goes from extremely equal to equal with a few accurate moves to equal after extremely precise play to lost after a final inaccuracy proves to be one too many. Here's where the game starts to slip from (fairly) easily drawn to requiring a reasonably high degree of accuracy (though not yet heroic play).} (35... Rd7) 36. Rd1 Qg5 37. Bxd5 Ne3 $1 {This spectacular move is what Tan has been replying on. It's ingenious and keeps the balance - sort of.} 38. h4 $1 Qg4 (38... Nxd5 $1 39. hxg5 (39. Qxf8+ Kxf8 40. hxg5 Nxc7 41. gxh6 gxh6 $11) 39... Nxb4 40. cxb4 (40. Bd6 Rd8 (40... Nc6 41. Bxf8 Kxf8 42. gxh6 gxh6 $11) 41. cxb4 hxg5 $11) 40... Rc8 41. Rd8+ Rxd8 42. Bxd8 hxg5 43. Bxg5 Bc4 {was perhaps a better way to secure the draw.}) 39. Qxg4 Bxg4 40. Rd3 Nxd5 41. Rxd5 {This should be drawn, given the sort of perfect or near-perfect play we expect from computers. As we'll see, it's not automatic for flesh-and-blood players, even when they are good grandmasters.} Ra8 42. Bb6 Be6 43. Rd6 Kf8 44. Bd4 Ke7 45. Rb6 g6 (45... f6 {is another setup. It has its obvious drawbacks - the bishop won't be anchored and the pawns can in principle be attacked by White's bishop - but it has a plus, too: the pawns complement the bishop rather than duplicating it and leaving all the dark squares unattended.}) 46. Kh2 h5 {If the rooks come off Black will draw with ease. With rooks, it's not automatic, as Black has three worries she'll have to address. First, obviously, the c-pawn. Second, there's the possibility of f3 followed by g4 (with other preparatory moves, of course), and after ...hxg4 fxg4 White will play h5 and create a passed pawn. Third, White can try to bring the king to g7 (or some other square attacking Black's f-pawn) and then look to sac the exchange there.} 47. Kg3 Ra5 {If the rook can maintain this position it will prevent the third plan and to a degree neutralize the second, as Black won't have to play ...hxg4.} 48. Kf4 Kd7 49. g3 Rf5+ 50. Ke3 Ra5 51. Rb4 Bd5 {Not bad, perhaps, but it allows White to chase Black's rook off the 5th rank.} 52. Bb6 Ra3 53. Kd4 Be6 54. Bc5 Ra2 (54... Ra5) 55. Kd3 Bf5+ 56. Ke3 Be6 57. Bd4 Kc6 (57... Ra5 58. c4 Kc8 59. c5 Ra6 $1 60. Kf4 Bd7 61. Rb2 (61. f3 Ra4 $1) 61... Ra4 62. Rd2 f6 63. Ke3 Ra3+ $11 {keeps White at bay.}) 58. c4 Kc7 59. c5 Bd5 $6 (59... Bd7 $1 {won't stop White from trying, but does prevent} 60. Kf4 {for the meantime as} Ra4 $11 {forces the queens off and makes a draw.}) 60. Kf4 Bc6 $2 (60... Ra6 $1 61. Kg5 Kc6 62. Kh6 (62. Kf6 Be6 63. f3 Bd5 64. g4 Bxf3 65. Kxf7 Bxg4 66. Kxg6 $11) 62... Be6 63. Kg7 Kd5 $11) (60... Re2 61. Kg5 Re4 {also seems to hold for the meantime.}) 61. Kg5 {White can now execute idea #3.} Ra4 (61... Bd5 62. Rb6 $18) 62. Be5+ $1 {White cannot yet afford to trade rooks. It's possible that Tan missed this a few moves back; unlikely, but not impossible if she was in time pressure.} Kd7 63. Rb2 $18 Ke6 64. Bf4 Rc4 65. Be3 Ke5 66. Rb8 Bd7 67. Rd8 Be6 68. Rd6 Rc2 69. Kh6 Kf6 70. Rd1 Rc4 71. Rd6 Rc2 72. Bd4+ Kf5 73. f3 Rc4 74. c6 Rc2 75. Kg7 {The king finally attacks f7.} g5 76. hxg5 Kxg5 77. Bb6 Kf5 78. c7 {Now Black has no margin for error or of freedom on the queenside, as a rook move off the c-file allows Rxe6 followed by c8Q.} Rc3 79. Ba5 Rc5 80. Ra6 Rc4 81. Kf8 Bd5 82. Ke7 h4 83. Rf6+ Ke5 84. gxh4 {Now Black must worry about White's h-pawn as well. The game is essentially over.} Be6 85. h5 Rc5 86. h6 Bc8 87. h7 1-0