[Event "Julius Baer GenCup KO 2022"] [Site "chess24.com INT"] [Date "2022.09.25"] [Round "3.21"] [White "Erigaisi, Arjun"] [Black "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "B07"] [WhiteElo "2725"] [BlackElo "2861"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "96"] [EventDate "2022.07.14"] [EventType "k.o."] {[%evp 0,96,24,23,83,65,88,76,84,87,77,45,52,44,51,2,31,12,20,-1,12,16,32,32, 32,23,46,53,44,-16,-11,-21,-26,-33,-33,-35,-39,-37,-25,-34,-20,-16,-18,-20,5, -3,29,-85,-85,-89,-83,-113,-102,-114,-136,-110,-140,-83,-103,-83,-76,-84,-93, -87,-86,-90,-97,-83,-82,-122,-89,-104,-106,-102,-100,-100,-101,-146,-142,-164, -170,-237,-229,-265,-265,-323,-397,-406,-414,-414,-423,-430,-426,-423,-423, -432,-393,-29995,-29996]} 1. d4 d6 2. e4 Nf6 3. Nc3 g6 4. Be3 c6 {As Pirc players knew even in 1999 when Topalov played 4...Bg7 against Kasparov in the latter's "immortal" game, Black should *not* develop the f8-bishop when White goes for the setup with Be3 and Qd2. White intends Bh6, so it would be silly to play ...Bg7 and then ...Bxh6 if one doesn't have to.} 5. Qd2 Nbd7 6. O-O-O $6 ({If you believe the engine and the database, it's better to play} 6. Nf3 { , not necessarily forsaking queenside castling but waiting to see what Black does before choosing his king's destination. If you don't believe the engine and the results in the database, then...be careful and studious.}) 6... b5 7. f3 Nb6 8. h4 (8. Bd3 {makes sense, to meet} b4 {with} (8... Qc7 $142) 9. Nce2 { without thereby allowing ...Nc4. The position is nice and sharp after} a5 10. h4 (10. g4) ({and the prophylactic} 10. Kb1 {also merit consideration, as they say.})) 8... b4 9. Nb1 a5 10. Nh3 (10. c4 $5) 10... d5 $2 {Fighting for light squares like c4 and f5, at the cost of some space and dark square problems. It worked out, but it shouldn't have.} ({The charmingly innocent} 10... Be6 { is best. Maybe Carlsen disliked} 11. d5 cxd5 12. Nf4 {, but} Nc4 $1 13. Bxc4 dxc4 14. Nxe6 fxe6 $17 {looks like a relatively safe extra pawn. Sure, Black has his problems, but White's queenside isn't exactly Fort Knox.}) 11. e5 Nh5 12. Qe1 $6 $16 (12. Qf2 $16 {/+- was better, supporting the f-pawn's advance in some positions. For example, if play continued as in the game (which it shouldn't), White has a pleasant advantage after} Bxh3 13. Rxh3 Ng7 14. Bh6 Ne6 15. Bxf8 Rxf8 16. f4 $14 {/+/-}) 12... Bxh3 13. Rxh3 Ng7 $1 14. Bh6 $2 { This time-consuming swap helps Black. White spends a couple of moves trading off his so-so dark-squared bishop for its bad, undeveloped counterpart.} (14. h5 $1 {was natural and good, and probably what Erigaisi would have played against anyone not named "Magnus Carlsen".} Nxh5 15. g4 Ng7 16. Nd2 $16) 14... Ne6 15. Bxf8 Rxf8 $11 {Black is fine here, but note that if White's queen were on f2 (see move 12) 16.f4 would give him a nice advantage.} 16. Rh2 $6 { Presumably intending to play h5 without worrying about a ...Nf4 fork.} (16. Qe3 $142 $11) (16. h5 $142 $5 {may not be best, but if there is a problem with the move it's not the knight fork.} Nf4 $2 17. Rh2 Nxh5 18. Qe3 {followed by g4, with an advantage. This is essentially a roundabout version of the pawn sac mentioned on move 14.}) 16... Qc7 17. h5 c5 $17 {White's kingside play lacks a clear target (especially since Black could castle queenside in case of emergency), while Black's attack will soon see him making threats.} 18. dxc5 Qxc5 19. hxg6 hxg6 20. g3 {Taking f4 under control and clearing the second rank so the h2-rook will help in the defense.} Rc8 (20... O-O-O $1 {is good, taking care of the king's safety. As for the c-file, Black can still use it, e. g. with ...Kb8 and ...Rc8.}) 21. f4 Nd4 $2 {Threatening mate in two (...Qxc2+ followed by ...Rxc2#). It is a mistake, though the problem is unobvious and was missed in the game.} (21... Kd7 $1) 22. Qf2 b3 {This looks terrifying, but White has a surprising way to survive.} 23. a4 $2 {Now White is lost. He defends well, though, and Carlsen gradually lets him back into the game.} (23. axb3 $4 Nxb3# {isn't the path to survival, of course.}) (23. Nc3 $1 {is the move, not fearing the captures on a2 and c2.} Nxc2 (23... bxa2 $143 24. Nxa2 $1 Nb3+ 25. Kb1 Qxf2 26. Bb5+ Kd8 27. Rxf2 Nc5 $11 {/+/=}) 24. Qxc5 Rxc5 25. Bb5+ Kd8 26. axb3 Ne3 27. Rd4 {is only marginally worse for White.}) 23... Qxc2+ $6 $19 (23... Nxc2 {is stronger.}) 24. Qxc2 Nxc2 25. Bb5+ Kd8 26. Nc3 e6 27. Kb1 Ke7 $6 (27... Nc4 $142) 28. Ne2 Rh8 29. Rxh8 Rxh8 30. Nc1 Ne3 31. Re1 Nec4 $2 ( 31... Nbc4 $142) 32. Nxb3 Rh2 33. Kc1 Kf8 $6 {Erigaisi's disadvantage has shrunk almost to zero - but only if he finds a very precise move here. Understandably but unfortunately, given his fine defense since his 23rd move, he fails to find it, and as a result Carlsen takes over once again.} (33... Kd8 $142) (33... Nxb2 $142) 34. Rf1 $2 (34. Rd1 $1 Nxb2 (34... Rxb2 35. Bxc4 Nxc4 36. Nxa5 Rb4 37. Nxc4 Rxc4+ 38. Kd2 Rxa4 39. Ke3 Ra3+ 40. Kf2 $15) (34... Rg2 35. Rd3 $15) 35. Rd2 $15) 34... Nxb2 $19 35. Nxa5 N2xa4 36. Rf3 Nc5 37. Rc3 Ra2 $6 (37... Ne4 $142) 38. Nc6 $2 (38. Nb3) 38... Ne4 39. Rb3 Rg2 40. Ba6 Na4 41. Rb8+ Kg7 42. Ne7 Nac5 43. Rg8+ Kh7 44. Rf8 {Hoping desperately to create some sort of perpetual check.} Nxa6 45. Rxf7+ Kh8 $1 ({After} 45... Kh6 $4 46. g4 $1 {Black is fortunate to have a draw.} g5 47. f5 Rg1+ (47... Rxg4 $4 48. Ng8+ Kh5 49. Rh7#) 48. Kb2 Rg2+ 49. Ka3 Rg3+ 50. Ka4 Nac5+ 51. Kb5 Rb3+ 52. Kc6 Rb8 53. fxe6 Nxe6 54. Kxd5 N4c5 55. Nf5+ Kg6 56. Rf6+ Kh7 57. Rh6+ Kg8 58. Rxe6 Nxe6 59. Kxe6 $11) 46. Nxg6+ Kg8 47. Ra7 Nac5 48. f5 Nd3+ (48... Nd3+ 49. Kb1 (49. Kd1 Rd2# (49... Nc3#)) 49... Nc3+ 50. Ka1 Rg1#) 0-1 [Event "Julius Baer GenCup KO 2022"] [Site "chess24.com INT"] [Date "2022.09.25"] [Round "3.22"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Erigaisi, Arjun"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "E81"] [WhiteElo "2861"] [BlackElo "2725"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "103"] [EventDate "2022.07.14"] [EventType "k.o."] {[%evp 0,103,24,-20,4,-14,44,34,37,38,43,-1,1,9,8,10,11,10,50,30,37,27,27,53, 50,43,40,40,67,47,92,80,85,82,82,83,110,110,113,93,134,78,78,97,97,97,116,28, 147,138,138,135,156,164,164,144,167,95,196,239,217,244,244,219,219,206,212,164, 148,148,148,148,165,164,164,178,172,101,132,140,128,128,138,119,132,132,160, 130,403,403,396,368,350,359,353,353,353,353,516,550,562,618,618,618,618,648]} 1. c4 Nf6 2. Nc3 g6 3. e4 d6 4. d4 Bg7 5. f3 O-O 6. Bg5 c5 7. d5 h6 8. Be3 e6 9. Qd2 exd5 10. cxd5 {Now we're in what's best classified as a Modern Benoni.} Nbd7 11. Nh3 (11. Bxh6 $2 Nxe4 12. Nxe4 Qh4+ 13. g3 Qxh6 $15 {is a standard King's Indian/Modern Benoni trick.}) 11... a6 12. Nf2 {Now that Black's queen won't come to h4 with check, Black must take care of the h-pawn.} (12. a4 { is often played almost as a reflex reaction in positions like this, and it's a perfectly good move here as well.}) 12... h5 {And now it's time for a4.} 13. a4 Rb8 14. Be2 $16 {This position has arisen a few times. The computer loves it, and Carlsen makes it look like a dream come true. Oddly, though, Black's score in the database is five wins, two draws, and no losses. Be careful when evaluating a line by its results when there aren't many examples. (Addendum: if Black plays 14...Ne5 it transposes to a position that has seen White win his usual share of the games. Even the line in this game ends up transposing into a game won by White. Being wary of transpositional possibilities is another important element of opening research.)} Ne8 15. O-O Nc7 16. Bg5 Qe8 $146 ({This did occur once before, and White won that game using an idea we'll see later in this game.} 16... Bf6 17. Bxf6 Qxf6 18. f4 Qg7 19. Ra3 Re8 20. e5 dxe5 21. f5 b5 22. axb5 e4 23. Ncxe4 Nxb5 24. Bxb5 axb5 25. Ra7 Rb6 26. Ra8 gxf5 27. Ng3 Ne5 28. Qf4 Ng4 29. Nxf5 Qf6 30. Nxg4 hxg4 31. Qc7 Rb7 32. Qxc5 Qd8 33. d6 {1-0 (33) Miton,K (2606)-Orzechowski,J (2204) Poland 2015}) 17. Bh6 Bxh6 18. Qxh6 b5 $2 {Black is generally delighted to achieve this move in the Modern Benoni. On this occasion, unfortunately for Erigaisi, it makes things worse, as White's a1-rook becomes dangerously active.} 19. axb5 axb5 20. Ra7 $18 (20. f4 $1 $18 {was even better, looking to hammer Black with e5 dxe5 Nfe4 as quickly as possible.}) 20... b4 21. Rxc7 bxc3 22. bxc3 Rb2 23. Re1 (23. Qe3) 23... Qe5 (23... Qd8 24. Ra7 Qb6 {was better, shooing away White's rook.} 25. Raa1 $8 $18 (25. Ra3 $4 Rxe2 $1 26. Rxe2 Qb1+ $19)) 24. Qc1 {White in turn does what Black should have done: he chases away his opponent's active rook.} ( 24. Nd3 $4 Qxc3 25. Nxb2 $4 Qxe1+ 26. Bf1 Ba6 $19) 24... Rb3 25. Nd1 h4 (25... g5 {was better, pre-empting f3-f4 ideas.}) 26. Bc4 Rb8 27. f4 Qf6 28. Nf2 Re8 { Black has a horrible position to go with his pawn deficit, but White still needs to win the game. If you've studied the Modern Benoni for either side, you'll know what's happening next.} 29. e5 $1 {(Anti-) Modern Benoni 101: White clears e4 for a knight while creating the possibility of d5-d6 and maybe f4-f5, simultaneously closing down Black's activity on and passing through the e5 square. (E.g. the Modern Benoni bishop on g7 [gone to his reward in this game, but it's often still around in otherwise similar positions], the rook on e8, and the knight on d7.)} Qd8 (29... dxe5 30. Ng4 {even better than Ne4, which was also winning with room to spare.} Qb6 (30... Qg7 31. d6 e4 32. f5 g5 {and now White's prettiest win is} (32... gxf5 33. Nh6+ $18) 33. Be6 $1 fxe6 34. f6 Qg6 35. f7+ $1 {and Black can choose which knight fork he wants to allow.} Kxf7 (35... Qxf7 36. Nh6+ $18) 36. Ne5+ $18) 31. f5 $1 Qxc7 32. fxg6 $18 {Black can't recapture on g6 due to 33.d6+, winning the queen. On the other hand, not taking isn't feasible either, with threats like 33.gxf7+ Kxf7 34.d6+ or 33.Qh6.}) 30. Rc6 dxe5 31. f5 $1 gxf5 32. Qh6 Nf8 33. Rf6 (33. Rd6 $1 {is even better, with the idea that after} Qe7 {White now plays} 34. Rf6 { , and here he's threatening 35.d6 with tempo.} Nh7 35. Rg6+ fxg6 36. d6+ $18) 33... Rb7 34. d6 Be6 35. Qg5+ Kh8 36. Rh6+ (36. Ng4 $3 {was a beautiful way to round things off. The threat (or rather, a threat; White has many ways to win if it's his turn) is 37.Rh6+ Kh7 38.Nf6, and while Black can stop that particular threat he can't do so without falling prey to other nice tactical ideas.} fxg4 (36... Nh7 37. Qh5 Rg8 (37... fxg4 38. Bd3 $18) 38. Rh6 Rg7 39. Nf6 Qxf6 40. Rxf6 Bxc4 41. Rxf5 $18 {leaves Black with insufficient material compensation for the queen.}) (36... Ng6 37. Qh6+ Kg8 38. Rxg6+ fxg6 39. Qxg6+ Rg7 40. Bxe6+ Kh8 41. Qh5+ Rh7 42. Qxf5 $18) 37. Bd3 {Threatening mate in two starting with 38.Rh6+.} Ng6 (37... Nh7 38. Qxh4 e4 39. Bxe4 Bf5 40. Bxf5 Rxe1+ 41. Kf2 {mates or forces Black to give up his entire army to increase the move count to beyond move 50.}) 38. Qh6+ Kg8 39. Bxg6 Qxf6 40. Bh7+ Kh8 41. Qxf6+ Kxh7 42. Rxe5 $18) 36... Nh7 37. Qh5 f6 38. Bxe6 Rxe6 39. Qxf5 Rxd6 40. Rxh4 Rg7 41. h3 Qd7 42. Qf3 Qd8 (42... f5 {was better, intending ...Rdg6.} 43. Rxe5 Rdg6 {Here White has a small challenge. What would you do?} 44. Kf1 $1 { Best, with the neat idea to meet} Rxg2 {with} 45. Rxh7+ $1 Kxh7 (45... Rxh7 46. Kxg2 $18) 46. Qh5+ Kg8 47. Re8+ $18) 43. Ne4 f5 44. Nxd6 (44. Rxh7+ {is also convincing.}) 44... Qxh4 45. Rxe5 Ng5 {Counterplay?} 46. Re8+ $1 {No, only a mirage.} Rg8 47. Rxg8+ Kxg8 48. Qd5+ Kh8 49. Qe5+ Kg8 50. Nxf5 Nxh3+ (50... Qh7 {has a drawback, though it does stop the threatened mate on g7.} 51. Qe8#) 51. gxh3 Qg5+ 52. Qg3 {A very good win by Carlsen, who made it look easy.} 1-0