[Event "FIDE Candidates 2020"] [Site "Yekaterinburg RUS"] [Date "2021.04.20"] [Round "9.1"] [White "Alekseenko, Kirill"] [Black "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C50"] [WhiteElo "2696"] [BlackElo "2820"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "118"] [EventDate "2020.03.17"] [SourceVersionDate "2020.07.21"] {[%evp 0,118,21,23,11,25,13,18,21,11,1,6,29,-2,26,1,11,-4,6,16,25,12,17,-15,25, -14,-14,-16,-19,-19,-28,-16,-25,-25,0,8,0,6,31,27,45,13,53,-8,-9,-45,-76,-70, -19,-80,-62,-71,-30,-101,-47,-24,-12,-25,-27,-76,-38,-77,-46,-66,-63,-75,-63, -59,-65,-65,-65,-65,-57,-51,-44,-79,-40,-30,-18,-18,-26,-19,-23,-29,-42,-33, -33,-66,-99,-96,-89,-90,-32,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0, 0,0,0]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. d3 Bc5 5. c3 h6 (5... d6) (5... O-O) 6. O-O d6 7. Re1 O-O 8. h3 (8. Nbd2) 8... Bb6 9. Nbd2 (9. a4) 9... Ne7 10. d4 ( 10. Nf1) 10... Nc6 $1 11. a4 $146 (11. dxe5 Nxe5 12. Nxe5 dxe5 13. Qf3 Be6 14. Qg3 Nh5 15. Qxe5 Qh4 16. Rf1 Bxc4 17. Nxc4 Rae8 18. Qb5 c6 19. Qb3 Ng3 20. Nxb6 Nxf1 21. Nd7 Rxe4 22. Bg5 Qxg5 23. Nxf8 Nd2 24. Qc2 Kxf8 25. Qd3 Qd5 26. Qg3 Qd8 27. Rd1 Kg8 28. Kh1 c5 29. b3 Kh7 30. Kg1 b5 31. Kh1 c4 32. bxc4 bxc4 33. Kh2 f6 34. Kh1 a5 35. Kh2 a4 36. Kg1 Re2 37. Kh1 Qd3 38. Qf4 Nf3 39. Qc1 Nd2 40. Kg1 Qf5 41. f3 Nxf3+ 42. Kf1 Ng1+ {0-1 (42) Audi,A (2360)-Atalik,S (2505) Novi Sad 2019}) 11... a5 12. Ba2 $5 $146 (12. dxe5 Nxe5 13. Nxe5 dxe5 14. Qe2 Qe7 15. Bb3 c6 16. Nc4 Bc7 17. Bc2 Be6 18. b3 Rfd8 19. Ba3 Qe8 20. Red1 Rxd1+ 21. Rxd1 Bxc4 22. Qxc4 Rd8 23. Rd3 Rxd3 24. Qxd3 Qd7 25. Qe3 Qd8 26. g3 Bb6 27. Qe2 h5 28. Bc1 g6 29. Kg2 h4 30. Qd3 Qe7 31. Bg5 hxg3 32. Qf3 Kg7 33. fxg3 Qd6 34. Qxf6+ Qxf6 35. Bxf6+ Kxf6 {1/2-1/2 (35) Xu,Y (2536)-Xiang,Z (2409) Xingtai 2018}) 12... exd4 13. Nc4 dxc3 14. Nxb6 c2 {Unless Black had already worked out the idea given in the note to White's 19th move, below, this is the last practical option. Objectively, all three are more or less on a par.} ({The greedy} 14... cxb2 {appears playable, but White has full compensation after} 15. Bxb2 cxb6 16. Nd4 Nxd4 17. Qxd4 Be6 18. Bxe6 fxe6 19. e5 dxe5 20. Qxe5 $11) (14... cxb6 {is a third good choice. After} 15. bxc3 {White's c-pawn is sickly, but the b-file has been opened against Black's doubled pawns. This too is about equal.} Re8 16. Bf4 Be6 $11) 15. Qxc2 cxb6 16. Bd2 Be6 17. Bxe6 fxe6 18. Qb3 Qe8 19. Qxb6 (19. Rad1 Nd7 20. Be3 Rxf3 $1 21. gxf3 Nc5 $1 22. Qxb6 Ne5 23. Bxc5 Nxf3+ 24. Kf1 Nxe1 25. Rxd6 Nf3 26. Qxb7 Rb8 27. Qd7 (27. Qc7 Rc8 $1 28. Qxa5 Kh7 $11) 27... Qxd7 28. Rxd7 Rxb2 $11) 19... Nd7 20. Qe3 e5 $11 21. Qd3 Qe6 22. Nh4 $6 {The f5 square is enticing, but White should have resisted the temptation.} (22. Rac1 $11) 22... Nc5 $15 23. Qg3 Kh7 (23... Rf6 $15) 24. Rad1 (24. Nf5 $142 Rf7 25. Qh4 Nd4 (25... Nxe4 $2 26. Nxh6 gxh6 27. Rxe4 $14) 26. Be3 $1 Nc2 (26... Nxf5 27. exf5 Qxf5 28. Bxc5 dxc5 29. Ra3 $44) 27. Rad1 Rd7 ( 27... Nxe1 28. Rxd6 Qc4 29. Rxh6+ gxh6 30. Qxh6+ Kg8 31. Qg6+ Kh8 $8 (31... Kf8 $4 32. Bh6+ Ke8 33. Nd6+ $18) 32. Qh6+ Kg8 $11) 28. Re2 Nxe3 29. Nxe3 Nxa4 30. Nf5 Rad8 31. Rd5 Nc5 $15) 24... g5 (24... Rf7 $142 25. Bc3 Nxa4 26. Nf5 Rd8 $15 ) 25. Nf3 (25. Nf5 Nxe4 26. Rxe4 Rxf5 27. h4 $44) 25... Rf7 26. Bc1 $2 (26. Nh2 Nxa4 27. Qa3 Nc5 28. b4 $44 {is a very nice, subtle idea from the computer.}) ( {By contrast,} 26. Bxg5 $4 {is neither nice nor subtle; it's a blunder.} Rg8 $19) 26... Raf8 $2 ({Sometimes it's too greedy to grab pawns like this, bringing the capturing piece almost as far away as possible from one own's king. It seems to be okay here - which means that it's good, as it's an extra pawn for Black. If White's attack can't strike gold, and it doesn't seem that it can, Black is on his way to an eventual win.} 26... Nxa4 $1 $17 {/-+}) 27. Qg4 Qxg4 28. hxg4 $11 {Now White is fine, and while there are still some problems to solve it's all manageable. Caruana does a good job of pushing, and Alekseenko is up to the challenge.} Rf6 29. Be3 Nxa4 30. Rd5 (30. Re2 $142 $11) 30... Nxb2 31. Rc1 R8f7 $15 32. Rc2 Na4 33. Rc4 Nb2 34. Rc2 Na4 35. Rc4 Nc5 36. Bxc5 dxc5 37. Rcxc5 (37. Rdxc5 $142) 37... Re7 (37... Re6 $142) 38. Nxe5 $11 Nxe5 39. Rxe5 Rxe5 40. Rxe5 Ra6 41. Re7+ Kg6 42. Rxb7 a4 43. f3 a3 44. Rb1 a2 45. Ra1 Kf6 46. Kf2 Ke5 47. Ke3 Ra8 48. Kd3 Kf4 49. Kc4 Kg3 50. e5 Kxg2 51. e6 Kxf3 52. Kd5 Kxg4 53. e7 Kf3 54. Rxa2 Re8 55. Ke6 g4 56. Kf7 Rxe7+ 57. Kxe7 g3 58. Kf6 g2 59. Rxg2 Kxg2 1/2-1/2 [Event "FIDE Candidates 2020"] [Site "Yekaterinburg RUS"] [Date "2021.04.20"] [Round "9.2"] [White "Grischuk, Alexander"] [Black "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "D85"] [WhiteElo "2777"] [BlackElo "2789"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "80"] [EventDate "2020.03.17"] [SourceVersionDate "2020.07.21"] {[%evp 0,80,23,20,30,-11,42,38,51,61,45,42,42,42,51,45,53,53,43,31,59,28,9,9,9, 17,82,67,58,10,1,6,39,38,55,20,7,7,36,29,43,49,63,43,44,-1,0,-35,33,-20,0,0,0, -62,-21,-15,-14,-78,-79,-82,-77,-75,-20,-28,28,0,19,23,17,7,0,0,0,0,13,0,0,0,0, 0,0,0,7]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Nf3 c5 8. Rb1 (8. h3 {on this move has grown in popularity in recent years, but the combination in the game of Rb1 and then h3 is very rare.}) 8... O-O 9. h3 $5 {Until now, no one rated above the 2100s had tried the move here, and there were only nine prior outings.} (9. Be2 {(played, by contrast, more than 11,000 times in the database) continues the extremely well-analyzed main line of the 8.Rb1 system.}) 9... Nc6 10. d5 Bxc3+ (10... Ne5 $146 {may be playable. This is similar to another, much older Gruenfeld line where White would meet this with Nxe5, Qd2, f4 and a kingside attack. Maybe that plan will be effective here as well, but it's worth checking.}) 11. Bd2 Bxd2+ 12. Qxd2 Nd4 ( 12... Na5 {is playable, if riskier.}) 13. Nxd4 cxd4 14. Bc4 (14. Qxd4 e6 $1 ( 14... Qa5+ $143 15. Qd2 $14) 15. Bc4 exd5 16. Bxd5 Be6 $1 $11) 14... e5 $1 15. O-O Qd6 (15... Qc7 $5 {is a nice finesse. Black encourages White to put a rook on the c-file, but that will only benefit Black. (If the b-rook goes, then Black can develop his bishop without a preliminary move like ...b6; if the f-rook goes, then White will have less force amassed on the f-file when he plays f4 - or he will end up down a tempo if he moves the rook back to f1.)} 16. Rfc1 (16. Rbc1 Qd6 17. f4 Bd7 $11) 16... Qd6) 16. f4 Rb8 17. fxe5 Qxe5 18. Qf4 Qxf4 19. Rxf4 Re8 (19... Bd7 20. e5 b5 21. Bd3 (21. Bb3 a5 22. a3 Bf5 $11) 21... Rfe8 22. Re1 a5 $11) 20. Bb5 Rd8 21. Rbf1 (21. Rb4 Bd7 22. Bxd7 Rxd7 23. Rxd4 Rc8 $1 {should be satisfactory for Black. The direct} 24. e5 {is not dangerous:} Rc5 25. e6 fxe6 26. dxe6 Re7 $11) 21... Bd7 22. Bc4 Rbc8 23. Bb3 Bb5 (23... a5 24. d6 Be6 25. e5 Bxb3 26. axb3 Rc5 27. Rxf7 Rxe5 28. Rxb7 d3 $11 {was a fully satisfactory alternative.}) 24. R1f2 a5 25. d6 Bc4 26. Rxf7 $6 { A very interesting and committal decision, made in serious time trouble. Unfortunately for Nepomniachtchi, he didn't take the rook; had he done so, he might have pushed his lead over the field back to a full point.} (26. Bxc4 Rxc4 27. Rxf7 d3 $11 (27... Rxd6 $11)) 26... Bxb3 $6 {Playing it safe, after which the game rapidly peters out to a draw.} (26... Bxf7 27. Rxf7 a4 $1 28. Bd5 d3 29. Kf2 $8 Rf8 $1 (29... Kh8 30. d7 Rc7 31. Be6 Rc6 32. Bg4 h5 33. Re7 Rf6+ 34. Ke3 hxg4 35. e5 Rff8 36. Kxd3 $11) 30. Rf3+ $8 Kg7 31. Ke3 $8 Rf6 32. e5 Re8 33. d7 Rxf3+ 34. gxf3 Rb8 35. Kxd3 Kf8 36. e6 Ke7 $17 {This may be dangerous for White.}) 27. axb3 Rxd6 28. e5 Rb6 29. Rd7 Rf8 30. Ra2 Rxb3 31. Rxa5 Re3 32. Rb5 Re1+ 33. Kh2 Rf7 34. Rbxb7 Rxd7 35. Rxd7 Rxe5 36. Rxd4 Re7 37. Kg1 Kg7 38. Kh2 Rf7 39. Kg1 Re7 40. Kh2 Rf7 1/2-1/2 [Event "FIDE Candidates 2020"] [Site "Yekaterinburg RUS"] [Date "2021.04.20"] [Round "9.3"] [White "Giri, Anish"] [Black "Wang Hao"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "E06"] [WhiteElo "2776"] [BlackElo "2763"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "77"] [EventDate "2020.03.17"] [SourceVersionDate "2020.07.21"] {[%evp 0,77,30,27,30,-4,-4,4,18,-23,8,8,19,10,12,-16,3,-4,3,-14,3,4,15,12,12, 12,25,12,15,17,17,7,17,-2,21,14,29,28,28,28,57,54,39,31,36,25,42,42,47,25,25, 13,10,30,37,37,43,81,81,56,58,42,66,66,54,39,106,93,99,95,234,242,242,242,242, 238,501,520,708,708]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Be7 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Qc2 a6 8. a4 Bd7 9. Qxc4 Bc6 10. Bf4 Bd6 11. Nc3 ({Wang Hao would have been well-prepared for the Catalan - at least last year - as it is Ding Liren's favorite weapon with White. In this position, Ding's favorite move is, or at least was,} 11. Qc1 {(which is also the most commonly chosen move overall), so he may not have been as ready for the text.}) 11... Bxf4 12. gxf4 {Those of you who have been told by an endless stream of chess teachers, whether formally or not, that one should not open up the position in front of one's king, that is good advice. But Giri is taking only a very mild risk here. Someday, yes, it could come back to haunt him, but for the foreseeable future there is little danger. The g-file is not open, Black's pieces lack access to any important square near the white king, and White has more space. There's really no reason for White to be worried, and indeed, plenty of GMs have played this way with White, including Wesley So, Levon Aronian, Vasily Ivanchuk, and Boris Gelfand.} a5 13. e3 Na6 14. Ne5 (14. Kh1 Nb4 15. Qe2 b6 16. Rg1 Qc8 17. Ne5 Bxg2+ 18. Rxg2 c5 19. Rag1 g6 20. Nb5 Qb7 21. h4 cxd4 22. Nxd4 Kh8 23. Ndf3 Rac8 24. Nd4 Rfd8 25. Kh2 Rxd4 26. exd4 Rc2 27. Qe3 Qc7 28. f5 exf5 29. Qh6 Ng8 30. Qf8 f6 31. Rxg6 hxg6 32. Rxg6 Rxf2+ 33. Kh3 Rf3+ 34. Nxf3 Qh7 35. Rxf6 Nd5 36. Rxf5 Ne3 37. Rg5 Qd7+ {1-0 (37) So,W (2765)-Navara,D (2738) Saint Louis 2019 (blitz)}) 14... Bxg2 15. Kxg2 c6 (15... Nb4 {has been the more popular move, though there haven't been so many predecessors.}) 16. h3 $146 (16. Rg1 $146) 16... Qb6 (16... Nb4 $142 $11) (16... Ne8 $142 $11 { followed by ...Nd6 is also equal.}) 17. Qe2 c5 $6 {In principle, Black wants to do this, but White will prove better prepared for the position as it opens up.} (17... Rfd8) (17... Rad8) (17... Nc7) (17... Nb4) 18. Rfd1 $14 cxd4 $6 ( 18... Rfd8 $142 19. Qb5 Qc7 $1 20. Rac1 $14) 19. Rxd4 {Given the amount of structural symmetry on the board, it's easy to yawn and think the game is about to end in a draw (say, after all the rooks are exchanged on the open files). But it's not so simple, as White's pieces are far more active.} Rad8 20. Rxd8 $1 Qxd8 (20... Rxd8 21. Qb5 $1 Qc7 $8 (21... Qxb5 $2 22. axb5 $18 { lets White capture on a5 next.}) 22. Nc4 $16 {wins the a-pawn.}) 21. Rd1 (21. Qb5 Qa8 $8 22. Nc4 b6+ $1 23. Kh2 Qf3 {Recall the discussion above, about gxf4 and danger to White's king? There still isn't any real danger here, but because it is exposed Black gains opportunities for counterplay that should allow him to hold the game.} 24. Rf1 Nc5 25. Nxb6 (25. Qxb6 Nxa4 $1 26. Qxa5 ( 26. Nxa4 Qe2 $11) 26... Nxc3 27. Qxc3 h6 $11 {/+/=}) 25... Nfe4 26. Qc6 Nd2 27. Qxf3 Nxf3+ 28. Kg3 Nd2 29. Rd1 Ncb3 $14 {White is better, but Black has excellent chances to survive.}) 21... Qa8 (21... Qc7 $14) 22. Kg1 $14 (22. Kh2 $14 {also makes sense, clearing the g-file for the rook.}) 22... Nb4 (22... h6) 23. Qb5 Nbd5 24. Nxd5 Nxd5 25. Rc1 (25. Rd4) 25... h6 (25... Rd8) 26. Qd7 Nf6 ( 26... Nb6 $142) 27. Qd6 g6 $2 (27... Qe8 28. b3 b5 29. Rc6 bxa4 30. bxa4 Qa8 $14 {keeps White's advantage at minimal proportions.}) 28. b3 $18 h5 29. Kh2 Kg7 30. Qd4 (30. Qb6 $18) 30... Rd8 (30... Rc8 31. Rc4 $1 Nd5 $1 32. Nd7+ Kg8 33. e4 Rd8 34. exd5 Rxd7 {and here Black would be alright, were it not for} 35. Qc3 $1 $18) 31. Qb2 Qb8 (31... Rc8 $1 32. Rc4 $1 Rxc4 33. bxc4 Qc8 34. Qb6 Nd7 35. Nxd7 Qxd7 36. Qxa5 {is apparently still winning, though Black should be able to put up serious resistance.}) 32. b4 $2 {Spoiling his technical masterpiece.} (32. Qc3 $142 $1 {is simple, greedy, and effective. The queen can't defend the pawn because of Rc7, 32...b6 loses to 33.Nc6, and 32...Rd5 fails to 33.Qc7.}) 32... axb4 33. Rc4 $2 {A further error, but Black now returns the favor.} (33. Qxb4 $16) 33... b3 $2 (33... Rd1 $1 34. Rxb4 Qd8 $1 35. Rxb7 Qd5 36. Rxf7+ Kh6 37. Kg3 Rh1 $1 38. Rxf6 Rxh3+ $1 39. Kxh3 Qh1+ 40. Kg3 h4+ $1 41. Kg4 Qg2+ 42. Kxh4 Qh2+ 43. Kg4 Qg2+ $11 {To say that Giri made an error doesn't mean that it was an obvious error--I don't know what Wang Hao's situation was on the clock, but unless he had some time to spare it would have been extremely difficult for him to uncork this line.}) 34. Rb4 $1 $16 {It's a funny series of moves - White's rook plays ring-around-the-rosies to collect the pawn. It makes excellent sense though: by staying on b2 the queen maintains the pressure along the diagonal to Black's king, and the rook's being in front of the queen means that Rxb7 will soon be a serious and very unpleasant threat for Black.} Qa7 $2 {After this major error, the game is gone.} (34... Qd6 $8 {was a must, and *just* keeps Black in the game.} 35. Qxb3 (35. Rxb3 Qd1 $1 36. Rxb7 Rd2 37. Rxf7+ Kh6 {Now White is almost in trouble, except that there's} 38. Rd7 $3 Rxb2 (38... Nxd7 $4 39. Nf7+ Kh7 40. Qh8#) 39. Rxd1 Rxf2+ 40. Kg1 Ra2 41. Nf7+ Kg7 42. Ng5 Rxa4 43. Nxe6+ Kf7 44. Ng5+ Kg7 $16 {I'm not sure what the official evaluation is, but if it is a draw it won't be easy for Black to prove it.}) 35... Qd2 36. Kg2 Qe2 37. Qc4 $1 Qxc4 38. Nxc4 Rd7 39. Na5 Rd2 40. Nxb7 Nd5 41. Rb3 Ra2 42. a5 Kf8 $16 {keeps Black alive.}) 35. Rxb3 Qxa4 36. Rxb7 Qe8 (36... Rf8 37. Nd7 {wins on the spot.}) 37. Ra7 (37. Rc7 {was even better, with a sort of horizontal Alekhine's Gun after Qb7.}) 37... Rd5 38. Qb7 Ne4 39. Nxf7 1-0 [Event "FIDE Candidates 2020"] [Site "Yekaterinburg RUS"] [Date "2021.04.20"] [Round "9.4"] [White "Ding Liren"] [Black "Vachier-Lagrave, Maxime"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "E60"] [WhiteElo "2791"] [BlackElo "2758"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "175"] [EventDate "2020.03.17"] [SourceVersionDate "2020.07.21"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. h4 $5 {This looks more suitable for blitz than a slow game, let alone a game in the Candidates tournament. But while the move is relatively rare, its (occasional) exponents include some of the world's best players: Magnus Carlsen, Alexander Grischuk, and...MVL himself, who has been on both sides of the position.} Bg7 4. Nc3 c5 (4... O-O 5. e4 d6 6. Be2 c5 ( 6... e5 7. dxe5 dxe5 8. Qxd8 Rxd8 9. h5 c6 10. Bg5 Na6 11. Nf3 Nc5 12. hxg6 hxg6 13. Rh4 Ne6 14. Be3 Nd4 15. Nxd4 exd4 16. O-O-O Ng4 17. Bxg4 Bxg4 18. Rxg4 dxe3 19. fxe3 Bxc3 20. bxc3 Rxd1+ 21. Kxd1 Re8 22. Kc2 Re5 23. Rf4 Ra5 24. Kb3 Kf8 25. Rh4 Kg7 26. Rf4 Rg5 27. Rf2 Kf8 28. Kc2 Ke7 29. Kd3 b6 30. Kd4 Ke6 31. Kd3 f6 32. Rd2 Ra5 33. Rf2 Rh5 34. Rb2 Ra5 35. Rf2 Ra4 36. g4 Ra5 37. Rh2 g5 38. Rf2 a6 39. Rh2 b5 40. c5 Ra4 41. Rh7 Rc4 42. Ra7 Rxc5 43. Rxa6 Kd6 44. a4 bxa4 45. c4 Re5 46. Kd4 a3 47. Rxa3 c5+ 48. Kd3 Re8 49. Ra6+ Ke5 50. Rc6 Rd8+ 51. Ke2 Rh8 52. Rxc5+ Kxe4 53. Rf5 Rh2+ 54. Rf2 Rh3 55. Kd2 Rxe3 56. Rxf6 Rg3 57. c5 Rxg4 58. c6 Kd5 59. c7 Rc4 60. Rf5+ Ke4 61. Rxg5 Rxc7 {½-½ (61) Vachier Lagrave,M (2778)-Carlsen,M (2863) chess24.com INT 2020 (rapid)}) 7. d5 e6 8. h5 exd5 9. exd5 Re8 10. h6 Bh8 11. Bg5 Qb6 12. b3 Qa5 13. Bd2 Qd8 14. Kf1 Ne4 15. Nxe4 Rxe4 16. Rc1 Rh4 17. Rxh4 Qxh4 18. g3 Qd8 19. Kg2 Nd7 20. Nf3 Ne5 21. Nxe5 Bxe5 22. Bd3 Bd7 23. Qf3 f5 24. Re1 Qf6 25. b4 cxb4 26. Bxb4 b6 27. Bd2 Re8 28. Qd1 f4 29. Qf3 fxg3 30. Qxf6 Bxf6 31. Rxe8+ Bxe8 32. fxg3 Kf8 33. g4 Ke7 34. g5 Bd4 35. Kf3 Bd7 36. Be3 Bc3 37. Bc2 Kf7 38. Be4 Bb4 39. Bd4 Bc5 { ½-½ (39) Grischuk,A (2766)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2775) Paris 2019 (rapid)}) ( 4... d6 5. e4 Nc6 6. Nge2 Nh5 7. Bg5 O-O 8. Qd2 f6 9. Be3 f5 10. exf5 Bxf5 11. f3 e5 12. d5 Nd4 13. O-O-O Nxe2+ 14. Nxe2 e4 15. g4 exf3 16. gxf5 fxe2 17. Bxe2 Ng3 18. fxg6 Nxh1 19. Rxh1 Qf6 20. h5 Rae8 21. h6 Qxb2+ 22. Qxb2 Bxb2+ 23. Kd2 hxg6 24. Bg4 b6 25. Be6+ Kh7 26. a4 a5 27. Ke2 Be5 28. Rh4 Bc3 29. Rh3 Bb4 30. Bd4 Bc5 31. Bg7 Rf2+ 32. Kd3 Re7 33. Rg3 Bb4 34. Ke3 Bc5+ 35. Kd3 c6 36. Kc3 cxd5 37. cxd5 Bb4+ 38. Kc4 Bd2 39. Rh3 Rf4+ 40. Kb5 Rb4+ 41. Kc6 Bf4 42. Bg8+ Kxg8 43. h7+ Kf7 44. h8=Q Rc4+ 45. Kb5 Rc5+ 46. Ka6 Re8 47. Qh7 Ke7 48. Be5+ Kd8 49. Bxf4 {1-0 (49) Grischuk,A (2766)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2775) Paris 2019 (blitz)}) (4... d5 5. h5 Nxh5 6. cxd5 e6 7. g4 Nf6 8. dxe6 Bxe6 9. e4 Bxg4 10. f3 Be6 11. Bg5 h6 12. Be3 c6 13. Nge2 Bc4 14. Qc2 Qa5 15. Nf4 Bxf1 16. Kxf1 Na6 17. a3 Nc7 18. Kf2 g5 19. b4 Qa6 20. Nd3 Qc4 21. Rac1 Nd7 22. Nb2 Qe6 23. Ne2 Nb5 24. a4 Nd6 25. Ng3 f5 26. exf5 Qd5 27. Nc4 Nxc4 28. Qxc4 Qxc4 29. Rxc4 Nb6 30. Rc5 O-O 31. a5 Nd5 32. a6 {1/2-1/2 (32) Vachier Lagrave,M (2780) -Nepomniachtchi,I (2767) Jerusalem 2019}) 5. d5 d6 (5... e6 6. e4 exd5 7. exd5 O-O 8. Be2 Re8 9. Kf1 a6 10. a4 d6 11. h5 Ne4 12. Nxe4 Rxe4 13. hxg6 hxg6 14. Nf3 Bg4 15. Bg5 Bf6 16. Be3 Nd7 17. Nd2 Rxe3 18. fxe3 Bxe2+ 19. Qxe2 Qe7 20. Rh3 Re8 21. Rb1 Bg5 22. Re1 Qf6+ 23. Qf2 Qxb2 24. Nf3 Qxf2+ 25. Kxf2 Bf6 26. Rb1 b6 27. Ke2 Re4 28. Kd3 Rg4 29. g3 Kf8 30. a5 bxa5 31. Rb7 Ke7 32. Ra7 a4 33. Rxa6 Ne5+ 34. Nxe5 Bxe5 35. Ra7+ Kf6 36. Rh7 Rxg3 37. Rhxf7+ Kg5 38. Rxa4 Rg1 39. Ra2 Kg4 40. Re7 Bg3 41. Re6 g5 42. Ra6 Rd1+ 43. Ke4 Rc1 44. Raxd6 Bxd6 45. Rxd6 Rxc4+ 46. Kd3 Rc1 47. Rf6 c4+ 48. Kd2 Ra1 49. d6 Ra3 50. e4 Rd3+ 51. Kc2 Kh3 52. e5 g4 53. Rh6+ Kg2 54. Rh7 g3 55. d7 Kf2 56. e6 g2 57. Rf7+ Ke2 58. Rg7 Kf2 59. Rxg2+ Kxg2 60. e7 Rxd7 61. e8=Q Rd3 62. Qe4+ Kf2 63. Qxc4 Rf3 64. Kd2 Kg3 65. Qe4 Rf4 66. Qg6+ Kf2 67. Qg5 Rf3 68. Qg4 Ra3 69. Qd4+ Kf1 70. Qf6+ Kg2 71. Ke2 Rg3 72. Qf5 Kh2 73. Qh5+ Kg1 74. Qh4 Kg2 75. Qe4+ Kg1 76. Qd5 Rg6 77. Qd4+ Kh2 78. Qh4+ Kg1 79. Kf3 Rg2 80. Qe1+ Kh2 81. Qe5+ Kh1 82. Qh8+ Kg1 83. Qh4 Rg8 84. Qd4+ Kh1 85. Qh4+ Kg1 86. Qe1+ Kh2 87. Qd2+ Kh1 88. Qc1+ Kh2 89. Qc2+ Kh1 90. Qh7+ {1-0 (90) Carlsen,M (2882)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2778) Saint Louis 2019 (blitz)}) 6. e4 e6 7. Be2 exd5 8. exd5 Nbd7 9. Nf3 $146 Ng4 10. h5 Qe7 (10... O-O) 11. Bg5 Bxc3+ 12. bxc3 f6 13. Bd2 g5 14. O-O Nge5 { If the opening didn't grab your attention, Ding's next move will.} (14... Nde5 $142) 15. Nd4 $3 {If Black doesn't take the knight, it will eventually find its way to some beautiful square or other, most obviously f5 or e6. So, Black rightly chops it off.} cxd4 16. cxd4 O-O $2 {Understandable, though it may have been better to take the greedy approach.} (16... Nf7 17. Re1 O-O 18. Bd3 Qd8 {is playable for Black. But White's central pawn mass, and the d4-pawn in particular, do such a nice job of restricting Black's pieces (especially the knights) that White has an advantage and doesn't need to do anything special to prove it.} 19. a4 $14 {/+/-}) 17. dxe5 fxe5 18. Be3 $18 {White's bishop pair and Black's porous structure give White a winning advantage.} b6 19. a4 Nc5 20. a5 Rb8 21. Ra3 h6 22. Qd2 (22. axb6 $142 axb6 23. g4 $18) 22... Bf5 23. axb6 axb6 24. Rfa1 Rb7 $16 {/+-} 25. Qd1 Kg7 26. R1a2 Ne4 $6 ({Black should have maintained the status quo, e.g. with} 26... Qf7) ({or} 26... Qd7 {.}) 27. Bd3 $18 Qf7 28. Rb2 Nc5 $6 29. Bxf5 Qxf5 30. Bxc5 dxc5 31. Qe2 (31. Rf3 $142 Qe4 32. Rxf8 Kxf8 33. Qa1 $18) 31... e4 32. Re3 Re8 33. Rb5 Qe5 34. g3 Qd4 35. Rb1 $6 (35. Qc2 $142) (35. Reb3 $142) 35... Rf7 $2 (35... b5 $1) 36. Rd1 $6 { Preparing a big error.} ({Black has nothing after the obvious and strong} 36. Rxb6 {.}) 36... Qf6 37. d6 $4 Re6 $1 $14 {Ding admitted to missing this move, but even after other, less incisive moves his advantage would have been smaller than it would have been after the banal and completely crushing 36. Rxb6.} 38. d7 Rd6 39. Rxd6 Qxd6 40. Rxe4 Rxd7 {White's advantage is minimal. He fights to the end, looking for every possible chance, but MVL gives him no further opportunities to win the game.} 41. Kg2 Qc6 42. Kh2 Qf6 43. Kh3 Qf5+ 44. g4 Qf6 45. Re5 Qd6 46. Kg2 Qc6+ 47. f3 Qd6 48. Qe4 Ra7 49. Qe2 Rd7 50. Qe4 Ra7 51. Kh3 Rf7 52. Re8 Qf6 53. Kg2 Qb2+ 54. Kh3 Qf6 55. Kg2 Qb2+ 56. Kg3 Qf6 57. Qd3 Qf4+ 58. Kg2 Qf6 59. Kg3 Qf4+ 60. Kg2 Qf6 61. Qe2 Rd7 62. Qe4 Rd2+ 63. Kh3 Qd6 64. Re5 Kf6 65. Rf5+ Kg7 66. Re5 Kf6 67. Rf5+ Kg7 68. Qb7+ Kh8 69. Qa8+ Kg7 70. Qa7+ Kh8 71. Qa1+ Kg8 72. Qa8+ Kg7 73. Qa1+ Kg8 74. Re5 Qf8 75. Qa3 Rf2 76. Kg3 Qf4+ 77. Kxf2 Qxe5 78. Qa8+ Kf7 79. Qb7+ Kf8 80. Qc8+ Ke7 81. Qb7+ Kf8 82. Qxb6 Qh2+ 83. Kf1 Qh1+ 84. Ke2 Qg2+ 85. Ke3 Qg1+ 86. Ke2 Qg2+ 87. Ke3 Qg1+ 88. Ke2 (88. Ke4 Qd4+ 89. Kf5 Qf4+ 90. Ke6 (90. Kg6 $4 Qf7+ 91. Kxh6 Qg7# ({ Of course it's better to give mate in one, but even if it weren't there White's 90th move wouldn't be a serious winning try on account of} 91... Qe6+ 92. Qxe6 {and stalemate.})) 90... Qxc4+ 91. Kd6 Qf4+ 92. Kxc5 Qe3+ $11) 1/2-1/2