[Event "FIDE Candidates 2026"] [Site "Pegeia CYP"] [Date "2026.03.31"] [Round "3"] [White "Bluebaum, Matthias"] [Black "Esipenko, Andrey"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [ECO "D37"] [WhiteElo "2698"] [BlackElo "2698"] [WhiteFideId "-1"] [BlackFideId "-1"] [PlyCount "81"] [GameId "2293791200929440"] [EventDate "2026.03.29"] {[%evp 0,81,21,18,21,15,26,32767,15,22,29,15,15,11,3,16,47,39,48,33,26,40,40,38,48,30,32,32767,32767,23,32,33,19,-12,-9,-21,-8,-7,32767,-16,-25,-6,-13,-17,-1,-18,-16,-25,-11,-4,-1,-34,-19,-42,-26,-61,-47,-69,-16,-43,-44,-27,-48,-35,-64,-55,-38,-34,32767,-38,-29,-31,-26,-27,-29,-29,-37,-31,-37,-33,-36,-37,-30,-39]} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 Be7 5. cxd5 exd5 6. Bf4 O-O 7. e3 c5 8. dxc5 (8. Bd3 {was Sindarov's choice against Esipenko in round 1. He won, but not because of the opening.}) 8... Bxc5 9. Be2 ({In light of White's 12th move you might wonder, why not} 9. Bd3 {here? It has been played before - many times - so let's see if we can figure out why Bluebaum does the two-step.} Nc6 10. O-O d4 {equalizes. It might seem not to when one spots} 11. Na4 {, intending to win Black's d-pawn due to Bxh7+ tricks. It seems however that Black is equal with} Bd6 $1 12. Bxd6 Qxd6 13. Nxd4 Nxd4 14. exd4 Bg4 15. Qd2 Rad8 $11 {, so 9.Bd3 is harmless - it's too slow.}) 9... Nc6 10. O-O Be6 {is the most popular approach against Esipenko's line, and mentioned in my notes to the game cited above.} 11. Rc1 Rc8 12. Bd3 $146 {Here Black cannot equalize with ...d4, so White puts the bishop on its best square - even at the cost of a tempo.} h6 (12... d4 $6 13. Ne4 $1 Nxe4 14. Bxe4 Bb6 15. Ng5 $1 {Thus the move in the game.} h6 16. Nxe6 fxe6 17. Qe2 $14) 13. h3 a6 ({Now} 13... d4 {is decent. White remains a touch better after} 14. Ne2 $1 Nb4 $1 15. exd4 Nxd3 16. Qxd3 Bb6 17. Rxc8 Qxc8 18. Rc1 Qd7 $1 19. Ne5 Qa4 20. a3 Nd5 $44 {but it's nothing special. It's one thing to find this with an engine and bask in the warm glow of its pleasing assessment before the game; another matter entirely to work it out and accurately assess the level of Black's compensation at the board.}) 14. Bb1 (14. Nb5 $5) 14... Qe7 (14... Re8) 15. Re1 {Aimed at discouraging ...d4. It doesn't work.} (15. Qd3) 15... Rfd8 16. Re2 (16. Nd4 $142 Nxd4 17. exd4 Bd6 {is a tiny bit better for White as his light-squared bishop is better than its counterpart. But it's not much.}) 16... d4 $1 {Now Black will have the very slight upper hand. Bluebaum keeps calm and neutralizes Black's micro-edge, and the game inexorably winds down to a draw.} 17. exd4 Nxd4 18. Rd2 Nxf3+ 19. Qxf3 Rxd2 20. Bxd2 Rd8 21. Be3 Bxe3 22. Qxe3 Kf8 23. a3 Bd7 {Essentially a draw offer. The rest is just about pleasing the arbiters - or at least it should have been.} 24. Qxe7+ Kxe7 25. Re1+ (25. Rd1) 25... Be6 26. Ne4 $6 (26. f4) 26... b6 27. Rc1 Rd4 28. Nc3 $2 (28. Ng3) 28... Bc4 $2 {Strange - perhaps the players had checked out mentally and were coasting towards the "inevitable" draw. White's last move was an error and while it's not losing it certainly gave Esipenko the opportunity to play for more.} (28... Nd5 $17 {turns out to be rather awkward for White. All of Black's pieces are better than their counterparts, and ...Rd2 is coming.}) 29. Rd1 $11 {Back to business (zzzzzzzzz) as usual.} Rxd1+ 30. Nxd1 Nd5 {Inviting another swap.} (30... Kd6 {is what Black would play if he had any ambitions or was open to ambitious play.}) 31. Ne3 Nxe3 32. fxe3 {With the material on the board White's e-pawn is in no danger of dropping off.} g5 33. g3 Kd6 34. Kf2 Ke5 35. h4 f6 36. Bc2 a5 37. Kf3 Be6 38. Bd3 Bd7 39. Bc2 Bc8 40. Bd3 Bd7 {The time control has been made and every pawn is on a dark square. So, time to make it official.} 41. Bc2 1/2-1/2 [Event "FIDE Candidates 2026"] [Site "Pegeia CYP"] [Date "2026.03.31"] [Round "3"] [White "Praggnanandhaa, Rameshbabu"] [Black "Sindarov, Javokhir"] [Result "0-1"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [ECO "D37"] [WhiteElo "2741"] [BlackElo "2745"] [WhiteFideId "-1"] [BlackFideId "-1"] [PlyCount "80"] [GameId "2293791200929441"] [EventDate "2026.03.29"] {[%evp 0,80,14,16,9,18,26,18,16,16,16,18,32767,23,28,29,35,10,25,24,36,16,43,37,32,12,13,0,29,29,22,43,32767,49,55,28,47,32767,46,-16,-57,-17,-54,-25,-19,-27,-41,32767,-11,-114,-111,-121,32767,-43,-38,-52,1,-13,20,-55,-65,-51,-43,-48,-74,-54,-67,32767,-28,-274,-250,-516,-510,-664,-672,-693,-665,-672,-687,-661,-679,-681,-657]} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Be7 4. Nf3 Nf6 5. Bf4 O-O 6. e3 c5 7. dxc5 Bxc5 {This is similar to the Bluebaum-Esipenko game from the same round (and Sindarov-Esipenko from round 1), but there the pawn swap on d5 had been included - cxd5, exd5.} 8. a3 ({Through this move order Black will play} 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Nxd5 exd5 {, when Black generally achieves the desired draw. Good thing for Sindarov White didn't play this way!}) 8... Nc6 9. Qc2 Re8 (9... Qa5 {is an important alternative.}) 10. Bg5 {Sindarov was apparently somewhat unprepared for this. It's not that he didn't know the move existed, but he didn't expect it.} d4 (10... Be7 {is usual (and probably better).}) 11. Bxf6 Qxf6 12. Ne4 $14 Qf5 $1 13. b4 (13. Bd3 dxe3 14. O-O {is interesting and probably in White's favor.} exf2+ 15. Kh1 Rd8 16. Nxc5 Qxc5 17. Bxh7+ Kh8 18. Be4 $14) 13... Nxb4 $5 ({The comp thinks that Black should resist temptation and retreat.} 13... Be7 14. b5 Ne5 15. Nxd4 Qg6 $44) 14. axb4 Bxb4+ 15. Kd1 dxe3 16. Bd3 (16. fxe3 $1 b5 $1 17. Bd3 bxc4 18. Qxc4 a5 {is ostensibly slightly better for White, but most humans would at the very least find Black's position easier to handle.}) 16... Qg6 $1 17. fxe3 f5 18. Ng3 Bc5 (18... a5 $142 $44) (18... Qf6 $142 $1 $44) 19. Qc3 $2 {An oversight on Pragg's part. The move makes perfectly good sense as a way to prevent ...e5. The only problem is...that it doesn't prevent it.} (19. e4 $1 $14) 19... e5 $1 $15 20. Bc2 (20. Nxe5 $4 Qf6 $19 {wins the knight.}) 20... e4 21. Nd2 Rd8 22. Kc1 Qg5 23. Re1 Qe7 24. Re2 $2 (24. Rd1 {is more natural - White can challenge the file after Nb3 next. The move in the game only makes sense if overprotecting e3 is a must--and it's not.}) 24... Bb4 $17 25. Qb2 a5 (25... Be6) 26. Nb3 Ra6 27. Nd4 Qg5 $2 {Sindarov's only significant error in the game, and it's forgiveable.} (27... g6 28. Rf2 Qg5 $17) 28. Kb1 $11 h5 29. Ka2 (29. Rf2 $1 g6 30. Qc1 Bc3 31. Ra3 Bxd4 32. exd4 Qxc1+ 33. Kxc1 Rxd4 34. Bb3 $11) 29... h4 $15 30. Nf1 Bd7 (30... Rb6) 31. Rd1 (31. g3) 31... Rc8 32. Nd2 (32. Rf2) 32... Rb6 33. c5 $2 {It looks panicky, but the idea isn't completely wrong (see the note), but it's mistimed here.} (33. g4 $1 Qxg4 34. Rf2 Qg6 35. c5 $1 Rxc5 36. Bb3+ Kh7 37. Nc4 $44) 33... Rxc5 $19 (33... Bxc5 $19) 34. Qb3+ ({Even here} 34. g4 {is best.}) 34... Kh8 35. Qf7 {Pragg may have placed his hopes in this move, which gives White at least equality against every move but one.} Rxc2+ $1 {This is the one exception. Sindarov was ready for Pragg's blunder and played his immediately.} 36. Kb1 (36. Nxc2 Be6+ $19 {wins the queen and the game.}) 36... Rxd2 37. Rdxd2 Bxd2+ 38. Ka2 Bxe3 39. Qxd7 Bxd4 40. Qxd4 Qf6 {The players have made the time control, so there's no reason for Pragg to play on down four pawns for absolutely nothing.} 0-1 [Event "FIDE Candidates 2026"] [Site "Pegeia CYP"] [Date "2026.03.31"] [Round "3"] [White "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Black "Wei Yi"] [Result "1-0"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [ECO "A15"] [WhiteElo "2795"] [BlackElo "2754"] [WhiteFideId "-1"] [BlackFideId "-1"] [PlyCount "37"] [GameId "2293791200929442"] [EventDate "2026.03.29"] {[%evp 0,37,17,21,22,15,17,20,10,3,1,9,18,-8,7,21,25,11,37,42,32,32767,18,30,41,45,62,70,56,-1,-1,32767,42,-5,43,42,229,237,253,243]} 1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. g3 g6 4. Nc3 d5 {This Grünfeld-style approach is one of Black's best options.} 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. Bg2 Bg7 7. Qa4+ ({The unforcing} 7. O-O {is the historic option, but less common today.}) (7. h4 {is how things work in the age of Alpha Zero.}) 7... Nc6 8. Ng5 Nb6 $146 {This nice gambit is a novelty. I don't know if it came as a surprise to Caruana, but whether he executed his preparation or figured things out at the board, he reacted in the best way.} (8... e6 9. Nge4 {is another option, and now 9...Nb6 is the usual move (in this unusual position) while the engine plumps for the untested} Qe7 {. While the idea of defending c5 is obvious, the line seems far from intuitive when considering this follow-up:} 10. Nxd5 exd5 11. Nc3 O-O 12. Nxd5 Qd8 {Black has lost a pawn and two tempi with the queen. And yet...Black's compensation is clear: pressure on the long diagonal to b2, pressure coming down the e-file (and if White plays e3 there are light-squared gaps to worry about), and free development. It seems to be worth it.}) 9. Bxc6+ bxc6 10. Qxc6+ Bd7 11. Qxc5 h6 12. Nf3 Rc8 13. Qa5 Bh3 14. Qb5+ Nd7 15. Rg1 {So far, everything since the novelty has accorded with the first line of the engine. The engine is fine with Wei Yi's next move as well, but it also proposes retreating the bishop with a weird repetition to follow.} O-O (15... Be6 {Black has excellent counterplay given his active pieces and the iffy state of White's king, so Caruana's best here (and after 15...Bg4) may be an invitation to a draw by repetition.} 16. Kf1 {Hoping to hide in the corner after Kg2.} (16. h4 O-O 17. d4 Bc4 18. Qa4 e5 $44) (16. d4 O-O $44) 16... Bh3+ 17. Ke1 Be6 $11 {Rinse and repeat.}) (15... Bg4 {is also possible; here too} 16. Kf1 {receives Stockfish's nihil obstat, with the same repetition to follow:} Bh3+ 17. Ke1 Bg4 18. Kf1 Bh3+ $11) 16. g4 {Putting Black and his adventurous bishop to the test.} Rc5 $2 (16... Nf6 {was natural and best.} 17. Qa4 Qc7 $1 $11 18. Rg3 {Not forced, but critical.} h5 $1 {This cool trick saves the day.} 19. Rxh3 (19. gxh5 Bd7 $15 {followed by ...Nxh5 is slightly better for Black.}) 19... hxg4 20. Rh4 gxf3 21. Qf4 $8 {and White has the fractionally worse half of equality.}) 17. Qb3 $16 Ne5 $4 {Now there won't be any fork in the ...h5 lines, so this costs Black a piece.} (17... Qc7 $1 18. d4 (18. Rg3 Rb8 19. Qd1 h5 {This trick saves Black from losing a piece, though he's still worse after} 20. d4 Rxc3 21. bxc3 Bxg4 22. Bd2 $16) 18... Rb8 19. Qd1 Ra5 20. e4 $16) 18. Nxe5 Rxe5 19. Nd1 $1 (19. Rg3 {is less accurate because of} Qa8 {, but even here White is winning:} 20. d4 (20. Rxh3 $4 Qh1#) 20... Qh1+ 21. Kd2 Re6 22. Rxh3 $18) (19. Nd1 $1 Bxg4 20. Rxg4 {leaves White with a piece and a pawn plus, with Black having no compensation. Life is good.}) 1-0 [Event "FIDE Candidates 2026"] [Site "Pegeia CYP"] [Date "2026.03.31"] [Round "3"] [White "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Black "Giri, Anish"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [ECO "A28"] [WhiteElo "2810"] [BlackElo "2753"] [WhiteFideId "-1"] [BlackFideId "-1"] [PlyCount "81"] [GameId "2293791200929443"] [EventDate "2026.03.29"] {[%evp 0,81,21,6,22,9,0,7,-4,-8,5,11,7,-4,0,0,-6,-5,9,20,0,21,1,6,-3,-7,32767,32767,32767,12,-8,-8,-9,-17,-10,-23,-23,-20,-10,-18,-20,-31,-3,-31,-16,-8,0,-8,-15,-22,0,-12,32767,32767,-11,-28,-26,-20,-16,-36,-1,-20,-30,-40,-17,-11,9,0,-2,-20,-5,-10,-10,32767,-5,-5,0,-10,-1,-17,0,-16,-10,-12]} 1. c4 Nf6 2. Nc3 e5 3. Nf3 Nc6 4. d3 {A little finesse that has become popular lately. One idea is that White can meet the reversed Rossolimo, 4...Bb4, with 5.Bd2 rather than worrying about doubled pawns.} d5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. e4 ({Reverting to a reversed Dragon is the most usual option.} 6. g3) 6... Nf6 (6... Nb6 {is equally popular.}) 7. Be2 Bg4 (7... Bc5 8. Be3 Bb6 {is more common. The drawback is that White prevents the favorable exchange we'll see in the game by playing} 9. h3 {. As with many Najdorfs and Classical Sicilians with 6.Be2, the battle is going to revolve around the weak square - d4 here, d5 in the colors-reversed cases in the Sicilian.}) 8. Be3 Qd7 9. O-O Bxf3 10. Bxf3 Nd4 $146 11. g3 Bc5 12. Rc1 Bb6 13. Bg2 O-O $11 {Sedate, but also sufficient for equality.} ({The engine wants to be aggressive, suggesting} 13... h5 14. Na4 O-O-O $11 {. That would seem more plausible if Black had a light squared bishop he could move to h3, as in the Dragon (with colors reversed), but how is Black's attack supposed to work in this case? I guess Black gets a bit of leeway given the spectacular knight on d4.}) 14. Na4 Rfd8 15. a3 h6 (15... Ne6 16. Nxb6 axb6 17. Rc3 c5 {gives Black what looks like a forever clamp on d4. Maybe not, though, as White can play either} 18. b4 ({or} 18. f4 {, with some counterplay.})) 16. Re1 ({Both} 16. Nxb6) ({and} 16. Nc5 {are possible; Nakamura waits in case something Giri does makes one way of effecting the swap superior to the other.}) 16... Rac8 17. h3 (17. Bf1) 17... Ne6 $15 18. Nxb6 axb6 19. Bf1 c5 20. Qe2 {For the third straight round, Nakamura is having to suffer in a two-results game.} Nd4 (20... Ne8 {has the long-winded idea of bringing the second knight to b5 on the way to d4. White should hurry with his counterplay, going for} 21. b4 ({and/or} 21. f4 {. Since Black has the same idea in the game he might as well go for it immediately, not wasting a tempo or two moving the queen.})) 21. Bxd4 Qxd4 22. Rc4 Qd7 23. b4 Ne8 {Starting the second knight's journey to d4.} 24. bxc5 bxc5 25. Qb2 Nd6 26. Rcc1 Re8 (26... Nb5 27. Be2 Qe8 (27... Nd4 {would be wonderful were it not for} 28. Bg4 {. This doesn't win, but suffices for equality after} Qc7 29. Bxc8 Nf3+ 30. Kg2 Nxe1+ 31. Rxe1 Qxc8 32. Rc1 Rxd3 33. Qb5 $11) 28. a4 Nd4 29. Qxb7 Rb8 30. Qa7 Ra8 31. Qc7 Rdc8 32. Qd6 Rxa4 33. Rxc5 Rxc5 34. Qxc5 $11 {Black has full compensation for the pawn, which isn't going anywhere, ever. But not more than that.}) 27. Rb1 b5 {White has prevented the ...Nb5-d4 idea, and while he's still a very little bit worse he should hold the position without much trouble due to his ability to "annoy" Black's b-, c-, and e-pawns.} 28. Rec1 Qe6 29. Qb3 c4 30. Qb4 Rc7 31. a4 bxa4 32. Qxa4 Qe7 33. Rc3 Rec8 34. Bg2 cxd3 35. Rxd3 Ne8 36. Qa3 Qxa3 37. Rxa3 Rc1+ 38. Rxc1 Rxc1+ 39. Bf1 Nf6 40. Kg2 g6 41. Ra5 {If White had to defend the e-pawn passively Black could obtain a practical edge. With the e-pawns disappearing, however, there's nothing for either side. Therefore, with the time control made and draw offers permitted, the game comes to an immediate end.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "FIDE Women Candidates"] [Site "Pegeia CYP"] [Date "2026.03.31"] [Round "3.1"] [White "Goryachkina, Aleksandra"] [Black "Divya, Deshmukh"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [ECO "B31"] [WhiteElo "2534"] [BlackElo "2497"] [WhiteFideId "4147103"] [BlackFideId "-1"] [PlyCount "161"] [GameId "2293900687132040"] [EventDate "2026.03.29"] {[%evp 0,161,18,9,16,27,30,6,15,7,12,32767,32767,5,26,9,36,41,27,34,22,32767,32767,32767,33,17,50,61,74,40,82,32767,32767,32767,90,75,77,71,86,76,85,57,32767,32767,56,50,83,64,56,59,65,79,32767,32767,60,54,54,52,62,54,99,62,32767,32767,97,68,86,86,72,81,86,73,98,32767,85,89,114,103,106,87,97,94,32767,32767,149,144,131,119,106,135,128,134,117,122,131,124,168,134,131,161,184,139,32767,32767,126,126,139,169,129,135,98,159,127,32767,131,120,127,142,112,98,89,32767,32767,32767,59,29,56,51,78,6,50,32767,32767,32767,-1,-1,1,1,-1,-6,-1,-5,-4,-8,-14,-7,-1,-1,-3,-3,-1,32767,32767,32767,0,0,-1,0,-1,0,0,0,0,0]} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 g6 4. Bxc6 bxc6 5. O-O Bg7 6. Re1 Qc7 7. d3 d6 8. e5 dxe5 9. Na3 Nf6 10. Nxe5 Nd5 11. Nac4 O-O 12. Qe2 f6 13. Nf3 e5 14. Be3 Bg4 15. h3 Nxe3 16. Qxe3 Bxf3 17. Qxf3 Rad8 18. Re2 h5 19. Rae1 Kh7 20. h4 Rd5 21. g3 Rf7 22. Qg2 Rd8 23. b3 Rd5 24. Qf3 Rf8 25. Re3 Bh6 26. Re4 Bg7 27. Qg2 Rf7 28. Kh1 Rd4 29. a4 Bf8 30. Nd2 Bh6 31. Nf3 Rxe4 32. Rxe4 Qd7 33. Kg1 Qd5 34. Rc4 Rb7 35. Nh2 Qd6 36. Qe4 Bf8 37. Qe3 Rd7 38. Nf3 Qd5 39. Kh2 Bh6 40. Qe2 Rd8 41. Nd2 Bxd2 42. Qxd2 e4 43. Qa5 exd3 44. cxd3 Rd7 45. Qxc5 Qxc5 46. Rxc5 Rxd3 47. Rxc6 f5 48. Rc7+ Kh6 {This ending is objectively winning for White, and as a practical matter should be won fairly easily thanks to the terrible position of Black's king. Somehow, Black escapes.} 49. Rb7 a5 50. Kg2 Rc3 51. Kf1 Rc1+ 52. Ke2 Rc3 53. f3 Rc2+ 54. Ke3 Rc3+ 55. Kf4 Rd3 56. Rb5 Rc3 57. Rxa5 Rxb3 58. Ra8 (58. Rb5 $1 Ra3 59. a5 Ra4+ (59... Kg7 60. Kg5 $18) 60. Ke5 Ra3 61. f4 Rxg3 62. a6 Ra3 63. Rb6 Kg7 64. Kd6 {is a straightforward win. Black has no time to pick up a second kingside pawn, and the breakthrough} g5 $1 {is handled by} 65. hxg5 $1 h4 66. Kc7 h3 67. Kb7 h2 68. Rh6 {--just in the nick of time.}) 58... Rb4+ 59. Ke5 Rb3 60. Kf6 Kh7 61. Ra7+ (61. Kg5 $1 {would have won, though whether it should be considered an easy win is up for debate.} Rxf3 62. Ra7+ Kg8 63. Kxg6 Rxg3+ 64. Kxf5 Rg4 65. a5 $1 Rxh4 66. a6 $1 Ra4 67. Kg6 $1 Kf8 68. Ra8+ Ke7 69. a7 $18 {and White will win with the well-known skewer trick Rh8 Rxa7 Rh7+ and Rxa7.}) 61... Kh6 62. Kf7 Kh7 63. Kf8+ Kh8 64. Ra6 $2 (64. Kf7 Kh7 65. Kf6+ Kh6 66. Ra8 Rb6+ (66... Kh7 {lets White return to what she could have had on move 61 with} 67. Kg5 $18) 67. Kf7 Rb7+ 68. Kf8 $18) 64... Kh7 $2 (64... Rxf3 $1 $11) 65. Kf7 $2 (65. Ra7+ $1) 65... Rxf3 $11 {Now it's a draw.} 66. Rxg6 f4 67. Rf6 Rxg3 68. Rxf4 Rg4 $1 {Winning a pawn unless White trades rooks. Either way it's an easy draw.} 69. Rf5 Rxh4 70. a5 Kh6 {The only move but an obvious one: Black must free her rook to chase the a-pawn.} 71. Kf6 Ra4 72. Rb5 h4 73. Kf5 h3 74. Rb3 Rxa5+ 75. Kg4 h2 76. Rh3+ Kg6 77. Rxh2 Ra4+ 78. Kg3 Ra3+ 79. Kg2 Ra2+ 80. Kg3 Rxh2 81. Kxh2 1/2-1/2 [Event "FIDE Women Candidates"] [Site "Pegeia CYP"] [Date "2026.03.31"] [Round "3.2"] [White "Vaishali, Rameshbabu"] [Black "Muzychuk, Anna"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C55"] [WhiteElo "2470"] [BlackElo "2522"] [WhiteFideId "-1"] [BlackFideId "14111330"] [PlyCount "81"] [GameId "2293900687132041"] [EventDate "2026.03.29"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. d3 Be7 5. Nc3 d6 6. a3 O-O 7. Ba2 Be6 8. Nd5 Nd4 9. Nxd4 exd4 10. Nxe7+ Qxe7 11. O-O Bxa2 12. Rxa2 d5 13. f3 Nd7 14. Ra1 c5 15. Bf4 dxe4 16. fxe4 f6 17. Bg3 Ne5 18. Qd2 Rac8 19. Rf5 Rc6 20. Raf1 Re6 21. h3 Rc8 22. Qa5 b6 23. Qb5 h6 24. a4 c4 25. Bxe5 Rxe5 26. Rxe5 Qxe5 27. Qd7 Qc7 28. Qd5+ Kh8 29. Qxd4 cxd3 30. cxd3 Qg3 31. e5 fxe5 32. Qe4 Rd8 33. Rf3 Qg5 34. Kh2 Qe7 35. Re3 Qc7 36. Qxe5 Qxe5+ 37. Rxe5 Rxd3 38. a5 bxa5 39. Rxa5 Rb3 40. Rxa7 Rxb2 41. Ra8+ 1/2-1/2 [Event "FIDE Women Candidates"] [Site "Pegeia CYP"] [Date "2026.03.31"] [Round "3.3"] [White "Zhu, Jiner"] [Black "Assaubayeva, Bibisara"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "B30"] [WhiteElo "2578"] [BlackElo "2516"] [WhiteFideId "-1"] [BlackFideId "-1"] [PlyCount "86"] [GameId "2293900687132042"] [EventDate "2026.03.29"] 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 d6 4. O-O Bd7 5. Re1 Nf6 6. h3 a6 7. Bf1 Rg8 8. d3 h6 9. b4 cxb4 10. a3 b3 11. Nbd2 g5 12. d4 g4 13. hxg4 Bxg4 14. Bb2 d5 15. c4 dxe4 16. Nxe4 Nxe4 17. Rxe4 Bf5 18. Re3 Bc2 19. Qc1 Rc8 20. d5 Na5 21. Nd2 Rg4 22. Be5 h5 23. Qb2 Bh6 24. Rae1 Bxe3 25. Rxe3 Nxc4 26. Nxc4 Rcxc4 27. Bxc4 Rxc4 28. d6 e6 29. Bh2 Qg5 30. Be5 Be4 31. f4 Rc1+ 32. Kh2 Qh4+ 33. Rh3 Rh1+ 34. Kxh1 Qxh3+ 35. Kg1 Qe3+ 36. Qf2 Qxf2+ 37. Kxf2 h4 38. g4 b5 39. Kg1 h3 40. Kh2 Bg2 41. Kg3 a5 42. Kh2 Kd7 43. Kg3 a4 0-1 [Event "FIDE Women Candidates"] [Site "Pegeia CYP"] [Date "2026.03.31"] [Round "3.4"] [White "Tan, Zhongyi"] [Black "Lagno, Kateryna"] [Result "0-1"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [ECO "C53"] [WhiteElo "2535"] [BlackElo "2508"] [WhiteFideId "-1"] [BlackFideId "-1"] [PlyCount "108"] [GameId "2293900687132043"] [EventDate "2026.03.29"] {[%evp 0,107,19,12,17,17,32767,32767,32767,4,52,50,35,78,49,32767,50,26,38,21,-8,32767,32767,25,59,23,11,5,32767,32767,39,18,113,84,110,32767,32767,48,78,88,108,32767,32767,32767,-70,-136,-70,-101,-98,32767,32767,-156,-167,-183,-165,32767,32767,32767,-209,-218,-108,-241,-213,-166,32767,-284,-199,-200,-255,-172,32767,32767,181,172,181,167,32767,32767,32767,228,239,234,362,265,32767,32767,-566,-587,-584,-589,-615,32767,32767,-573,-582,-587,-601,-607,32767,-604,-625,-619,-637,-639,32767,-659,-631,-640,-645,-710]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. c3 d6 5. d4 exd4 6. cxd4 Bb6 7. Nc3 Nf6 8. Qd3 O-O 9. Bg5 h6 10. Bh4 Nb4 11. Qd2 d5 12. exd5 Re8+ 13. Kf1 c6 14. dxc6 bxc6 15. Rd1 Ba6 16. Bxa6 Nxa6 17. g4 Nc7 18. Rg1 Ncd5 19. g5 Nh5 20. Rg4 Qd7 21. h3 Qf5 22. Qd3 Ne3+ 23. fxe3 Qxf3+ 24. Bf2 Qxh3+ 25. Rg2 hxg5 26. Kg1 Bc7 27. Ne4 f6 28. Rc1 Kh8 29. Nc5 Rad8 30. Qb3 Re7 31. Na6 Qf3 32. Nb4 Rd6 33. d5 cxd5 34. Nc6 Rf7 35. Nd4 Qe4 36. Rxc7 Rxc7 37. Qb8+ Kh7 38. Qxc7 Rb6 39. b3 Qb1+ 40. Kh2 f5 {In a back and forth game full of errors White is now *completely* winning. Better still, the players have just made the time control so she now enjoys more than half an hour to figure out how to bring home the full point. Instead, she makes back-to-back blunders, falling prey to a spectacular tactic.} 41. Qf7 $4 (41. Rxg5 Rh6 42. Nxf5 $18) (41. Qe5 $18) (41. Qd7 $18) (41. Qc2 $18) 41... Rf6 $1 42. Qxd5 $4 (42. Qxh5+ $1 Rh6 {wins the queen, but it's White's best all the same. After} 43. Rxg5 $1 g6 $1 44. Qxh6+ Kxh6 45. Bh4 Qxa2+ 46. Rg2 $16 {White's pieces work well together. It might be objectively drawn, but in real life White has excellent winning chances.}) 42... Nf4 $3 {Buying a critical tempo for the attack.} (42... Rh6 $4 43. Qxf5+ $18) 43. exf4 Rh6+ 44. Kg3 Qd3+ 45. Qf3 {And now?} g4 $3 {Ouch! It's hard to call this a swindle, as Tan had many good options on move 41. Whatever it is, it's a great find by Lagno, whose performance in this tournament makes me wonder if she can turn base metals into gold. From three lost positions she has gone an undefeated 2-1.} 46. Rh2 {This drags the game out by a few moves; more importantly - in some sense - it might reduce, slightly, the number of times Lagno's combination will be anthologized relative to the expected frequency if she permitted the mate.} (46. Qxd3 Rh3# {is the spectacular point: White is up a queen, a bishop, and a knight and yet is mated.}) 46... gxf3 47. Rxh6+ gxh6 48. Nxf3 a6 49. Bd4 Qc2 50. b4 Qxa2 51. Bc3 Qb3 52. Be1 Kg6 53. Kg2 Kf7 54. Nh4 Qe3 0-1