[Event "WCh 2023"] [Site "Astana KAZ"] [Date "2023.04.10"] [Round "2.1"] [White "Ding, Liren"] [Black "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "E10"] [WhiteElo "2788"] [BlackElo "2795"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "58"] [EventDate "2023.04.09"] {[%evp 0,58,14,19,19,-10,4,6,6,-21,-12,8,37,40,16,-18,24,6,-2,-3,4,48,48,28,41,2,-24,-30,-14,-9,-26,-13,-15,0,48,44,44,-87,-66,-133,-70,-43,-25,-56,8,8,0,-114,-201,-200,-200,-293,-287,-413,-418,-411,-421,-448,-451,-562,-557]} 1. d4 Nf6 (1... d5 2. c4 dxc4 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 e6 5. Bxc4 c5 6. O-O a6 7. Re1 Nc6 8. Nc3 b5 9. Bd3 Bb7 10. a4 b4 11. Ne4 Na5 12. Nxc5 Bxc5 13. dxc5 Nd7 14. c6 Nxc6 15. b3 Qf6 16. Ra2 Nce5 17. Nxe5 Nxe5 18. Be2 O-O 19. Rd2 Rac8 20. f3 h5 21. e4 h4 22. h3 a5 23. Bb2 Qg5 24. Kh1 Ng6 25. Bf1 Nf4 26. Bd4 f5 27. exf5 Qxf5 28. Re5 Qg6 29. Rxa5 Nxh3 30. Ra7 Rf7 31. Rxb7 Rxb7 32. gxh3 Rd7 33. a5 {1-0 Ding,L (2799)-Aronian,L (2782) Speed Chess Chess.com INT blitz 2021 (2.11)}) 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. h3 $5 {Well...I don't know what to say about this move. Ding loves the Catalan, so maybe he just "missed", grabbing the wrong pawn? (That's a joke, but the stress of a world championship match is almost great enough to produce the craziest of errors.) Let's offer some thoughts, stream of consciousness style. First, I hope it doesn't influence kids, who having been burned by pins one time too many to start playing h3/a3/...h6/...a6 as a reflex. Second, while it's often useful to have h3 on the board, is this really the time for it? Third, the usual reasons to play h3 - a fear of a pin, ...Ng4 in response to Be3, to take care of the back rank, to clear h2 for a London(-ish) bishop on f4's getting hit by ...Nh5, or to prepare for g4 - all seem inapplicable. So, fourth, it seems likeliest that it's a waiting move of sorts, trying to wrong-foot Black. Richard Rapport is presumed to be one of Ding's seconds, and as he's a lover of offbeat ideas I've seen it conjectured that this is one of his suggestions. Could be. Ding doesn't seem to be that kind of player, but whether it's reasonably to give any credit for the loss to that seems like a mistake at this point. Anyway, let's proceed and see if we can figure out the big idea.} dxc4 {Certainly not the only reasonable option, but as h3 doesn't seem particularly useful in the QGA it makes sense.} 5. e3 $146 c5 (5... b5 6. a4 c6 7. axb5 cxb5 8. b3 a5 9. bxc4 bxc4 10. Bxc4 Bb7 $11 {looks like a decent alternative.}) 6. Bxc4 a6 7. O-O Nc6 8. Nc3 b5 9. Bd3 Bb7 (9... cxd4 10. exd4 Nb4 {is also worth considering. Now White has an important decision to make: retreat to e2, intending a4 with queenside play, or Bb1 with kingside ambitions.}) 10. a4 $146 b4 11. Ne4 Na5 {Interestingly, the players have reached a position very similar to one Ding had against Aronian a couple of years ago, but there White had played Re1 rather than h3. The current position isn't bad for White, but the earlier version is obviously better.} 12. Nxf6+ (12. Nxc5 {is unambitious and (fairly) safe.} Bxc5 13. dxc5 Be4 $1 14. Bxe4 (14. Be2 Qxd1 15. Bxd1 (15. Rxd1 Nb3 {is almost winning. White is fortunate to have} 16. Bd2 $1 a5 17. Nd4 $1 Nxa1 18. Rxa1 e5 $1 19. Nb5 {, with an equal position after} Ke7 $11) 15... O-O-O 16. Ne5 Rhf8 17. f3 Rd5 $1 $11) 14... Qxd1 15. Rxd1 Nxe4 $11) 12... gxf6 (12... Qxf6 $143 13. e4 $1 cxd4 $2 14. Bg5 Qg6 15. Bh4 $18 {is already quite bad for Black.}) 13. e4 $6 (13. dxc5 $142 {was better, with a complicated game afoot after, say,} Qd7 14. c6 $1 Bxc6 15. Nd4 Bb7 16. Qe2 Rg8 17. f3 $11) 13... c4 $15 {With the rook on e1 (as in the Ding-Aronian game) White could play Bf1 and the rook would keep the e4-pawn protected. Here that's impossible, and White's bishop will be unhappily placed wherever it goes.} 14. Bc2 Qc7 {Not primarily to castle long - though he will - but to prevent Bf4.} ({That said, Black could play ...Rg8 straight away:} 14... Rg8 $1 15. Bf4 e5 $3 16. dxe5 b3 17. Bb1 Qxd1 18. Rxd1 fxe5 19. Bxe5 (19. Nxe5 $143 Bg7 20. g4 Rc8 $17 {/-+}) 19... Bb4 20. Kf1 Rg6 $15) 15. Bd2 Rg8 (15... O-O-O) 16. Rc1 (16. Qe1 $142 f5 17. Rd1 O-O-O 18. Qe2 $11 {This is going to be a mess. For example:} Kb8 19. exf5 exf5 20. Rfe1 Bd6 21. Bxf5 Bd5 22. Bxh7 $6 Qd7 $1 23. Ng5 f6 $1 24. Be4 (24. Bxg8 $2 Rxg8 $19) 24... Rxg5 25. Bxg5 Bxe4 26. Qxe4 fxg5 27. Qg6 Qxa4 28. Qxg5 Nb7 $15 {/?}) 16... O-O-O $1 {It's dangerous for Black to have his queen and king lined up opposite White's rook, but Nepo has rightly determined that White cannot exploit it.} 17. Bd3 $2 (17. Qe1 $1 {was better, going after the weakest point in Black's position.} f5 $1 18. Kh1 $1 Nc6 19. Qe2 Nxd4 20. Nxd4 Rxd4 21. f3 $44) 17... Kb8 $1 $17 18. Re1 $6 ({White should have copied Black by moving his king off the half-open file, away from the rook's glare.} 18. Kh1 $142 f5 19. Qe1 Qb6 $17) 18... f5 $1 19. Bc2 (19. exf5 $2 {gets crushed in style:} Rxd4 $1 20. Nxd4 (20. Bf1 Bxf3 21. Qxf3 Rxd2 $19) (20. Be2 Bc5 $1 21. Kh1 Qd6 $19) 20... Rxg2+ 21. Kf1 Rxf2+ $1 22. Kxf2 Qh2+ 23. Ke3 (23. Kf1 Qg2#) 23... Bh6#) 19... Nc6 $19 {Not only is White in trouble on the kingside, he's also in trouble in the center. Worse still, he's making no progress on the queenside. He is losing, and Nepo shows fine form in finishing his foe.} 20. Bg5 (20. d5 {is tempting, offering the pawn to wreck Black's structure while hoping to block the d-file with a Black pawn. Even though Black is winning after 20...exd5, he has something more stylish at his disposal:} Bc5 $1 21. Be3 (21. dxc6 Qg3 22. Bf4+ {Best.} Qxf4 23. Qe2 Qg3 24. Qf1 Qxf3 25. Bd1 (25. cxb7 Rd2 $19) 25... Qxh3 26. cxb7 Rd2 27. Re2 Rxe2 28. Bxe2 Bd6 29. g3 Rxg3+ $1 30. fxg3 Bc5+ 31. Qf2 Qxg3+ $19)) (20. Bb1 fxe4 21. Bxe4 f5 22. Bxc6 $8 (22. Rxc4 fxe4 23. Rxe4 Bd6 $19) (22. Ng5 fxe4 23. Nxe6 Qf7 24. Nxd8 Nxd8 25. d5 (25. Be3 Bd5 $19 {shuts White down, and from here Black will build wherever he wants to, e.g. with ...b3 and ...Bb4 on the queenside.}) (25. Re3 Bd6 $19) 25... Bxd5 26. Bf4+ Kb7 27. Qd4 Nc6 28. Qe3 Rg6 $19) 22... Qxc6 23. Bf4+ Ka8 24. Kh1 Rd7 25. Be5 Bh6 26. Rc2 Rdd8 27. Bg3 Rg6 $19 {followed by ...Rdg8.}) 20... Rxg5 $1 21. Nxg5 Nxd4 {In return for a slight material investment, Black has...practically everything: threats, great bishops, more space, options on every part of the board, etc. White has no real chance to survive.} 22. Qh5 f6 (22... Bc5 $1 {is even better.}) 23. Nf3 (23. Nxh7 Bc5 24. Bd1 (24. Nxf6 Qf4 25. Rf1 Bd6 26. g3 Qe5 27. Nh7 Rg8 28. Ng5 Rxg5 29. Qxg5 Nf3+ $19) 24... Bd6 25. Nxf6 Bh2+ 26. Kh1 Bf4 27. Rb1 Bd2 28. Rf1 Qg7 29. Ne8 Qe7 $19) 23... Nxc2 24. Rxc2 Bxe4 {This is resignable. Ding staggers on a few more moves.} 25. Rd2 Bd6 $1 {Threatening to take on f3, then play ...Bh2+ and ...Rxd2.} 26. Kh1 c3 27. bxc3 bxc3 28. Rd4 c2 29. Qh6 e5 $1 {A nice final touch. The only safe square for the rook is d2, but then Black promotes as White's queen no longer covers c1. A very good game by Nepo, but a complete disaster for Ding.} 0-1