[Event "FIDE Candidates 2022"] [Site "Madrid ESP"] [Date "2022.06.29"] [Round "10.1"] [White "Rapport, Richard"] [Black "Ding Liren"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C77"] [WhiteElo "2764"] [BlackElo "2806"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "110"] [EventDate "2022.06.17"] {[%evp 0,103,20,25,13,17,18,16,18,13,3,3,8,8,15,-2,-13,-34,-29,-39,-14,-25,-20, -13,-14,-9,-11,-3,33,12,28,0,2,4,4,6,20,1,14,-27,-27,-15,12,8,6,-1,-5,-47,-18, -17,59,-35,0,4,15,-27,-13,-13,-2,-30,-10,2,0,21,112,21,-1,-59,-65,-65,-73,-77, -49,-30,-64,-60,-22,-56,-56,-41,-50,-30,-50,-59,-80,-81,-93,-74,-93,-96,-81, -73,-92,-101,-92,-88,-92,-94,-64,-57,-57,-65,-57,-102,-94,-92]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. d3 b5 6. Bb3 Bc5 7. Bg5 {Somewhat unusual.} (7. O-O ) (7. a4) (7. Nc3) (7. c3) 7... h6 8. Bh4 d6 (8... Be7 {is often chosen in similar positions, but here it seems unnecessary.}) (8... g5 9. Bg3 d6 { is also possible.}) 9. c3 Ba7 {Only played twice before.} (9... Bb6) (9... g5) 10. O-O (10. Nbd2 Rb8 11. Qe2 Qe7 12. Nf1 Na5 13. Bc2 g5 14. Bg3 b4 15. Ne3 Kf8 16. O-O Kg7 17. d4 exd4 18. Nxd4 Bxd4 19. cxd4 Nc6 20. e5 dxe5 21. dxe5 Nh7 22. Nd5 Qc5 23. Be4 Nd4 24. Qe3 Ne6 25. Qf3 Bb7 26. Rac1 Qd4 27. Nxc7 Qxe4 28. Nxe6+ Kg6 29. Qxe4+ Bxe4 30. Nc5 Bd5 31. e6 Rbc8 32. exf7 Bxf7 33. b3 Nf6 34. Nxa6 Nd5 35. Rc4 Rxc4 36. bxc4 Nc3 37. Nxb4 Rc8 38. a3 Bxc4 39. Re1 Ra8 40. Ra1 Nb5 41. a4 Nd4 42. h3 Nb3 43. Ra3 h5 44. Nc6 Bd5 45. Ne7+ {1-0 (45) Grischuk,A (2777)-Oparin,G (2652) Lichess.org INT 2020}) 10... Na5 11. Bc2 c5 $146 (11... g5 12. Bg3 Nh5 13. a4 Nxg3 14. hxg3 Nc6 15. axb5 axb5 16. Na3 Ba6 17. Bb3 Ne7 18. d4 exd4 19. Nxd4 b4 20. Nc4 Bxc4 21. Bxc4 O-O 22. cxb4 d5 23. exd5 Qd6 24. Nb5 Qxb4 25. b3 Qc5 26. Qf3 Kg7 27. Ra6 f6 28. Rfa1 Nc8 29. Kh2 {1-0 (29) Caruana,F (2800)-Burke,J (2554) Saint Louis 2021}) 12. Nbd2 g5 {At last.} 13. Bg3 Nh5 14. a3 (14. h3 $5) (14. Kh1 $5) 14... Rb8 15. Kh1 Rb7 16. b4 Nc6 17. Bb3 ({Blowing up the center looks interesting:} 17. bxc5 Bxc5 18. d4 exd4 19. e5 {creates a wonderful mess - at least it's wonderful for the spectators.} d3 20. Bxd3 dxe5 21. Be4 Nxg3+ 22. fxg3 Qd6 23. Qe2 O-O $8 $44 {should prove entertaining.}) 17... Rc7 (17... O-O) 18. Bd5 (18. bxc5 Bxc5 19. a4 O-O 20. axb5 axb5 21. h3 b4 22. cxb4 Nxb4 23. Nc4 Nxg3+ 24. fxg3 g4 $11 {is another messy option. White could take, retreat the knight, or play d4, in all three cases with rough equality.}) 18... g4 (18... O-O) 19. Bh4 $5 {Good for the bishop, not as good for the knight.} (19. Nh4) 19... Ne7 (19... Qd7) 20. Ng1 cxb4 21. axb4 Rxc3 $6 {The initiative - here, I'd even call it momentum - is more important than this pawn.} (21... Qd7 $15) 22. Ne2 Rc7 23. f4 $44 { The position looks scary for Black - and this for one pawn?} f6 (23... O-O) 24. fxe5 (24. Qe1 {is a good idea, anticipating the half-opening of the e-file when Black plays ...Nxd5.}) 24... dxe5 25. Ng3 Nxg3+ 26. hxg3 Rf8 27. Rxf6 ({ First} 27. Rc1 $142 $44 {, and only then collect the f-pawn.}) 27... Rxf6 28. Bxf6 Qd6 29. Qf1 $8 Bd4 (29... Ng6 $142 $1 $15) (29... Nxd5 30. exd5 Qxd5 { looks bad for Black's health, but it's playable.} 31. Ne4 Qe6 32. Bh4 Rf7 33. Nf6+ Kf8 34. Qe2 Bd4 $1 35. Rf1 e4 $1 36. Nxe4 Bb7 $11) 30. Bf7+ $1 Kd7 (30... Kxf7 $4 31. Bxe5+ $18 {wins the queen.}) 31. Rd1 Rc2 32. Bb3 Rc7 {Draw?} 33. Nc4 {!!? Nope! What a move.} bxc4 $1 (33... Qxb4 {can be played.} 34. Nxe5+ ( 34. Bxe5 Qxb3 $8 (34... bxc4 $2 35. dxc4 Qxb3 36. Rxd4+ Kc6 37. Qf6+ Kb7 38. Bxc7 $18) 35. Bxc7 Kxc7 (35... bxc4 36. dxc4 Kxc7 37. Qf4+ $8 Kb7 38. Rxd4 Nc6 39. Qf7+ Ka8 40. Qe8 Kb7 41. Qf7+ Kb8 42. Qf4+ $11) 36. Qf4+ Kd8 37. Qd6+ Ke8 38. Rc1 bxc4 39. Qxd4 Qxd3 40. Qe5 Kd7 $15) 34... Bxe5 35. Bxe5 Qxb3 36. Bxc7 Kxc7 37. Rc1+ Kb7 38. Qf8 Qe6 39. Rf1 $44) 34. dxc4 Rc6 35. Ba4 Kc7 36. Bxc6 Nxc6 37. b5 Nb4 (37... axb5 $1 38. cxb5 Na5 $15) 38. c5 $1 Qe6 (38... Qxc5 $2 39. Rc1 Bc3 40. Bxe5+ $3 Qxe5 41. Qc4+ Kb7 42. Rxc3 $18) 39. Bh4 $1 Bxc5 40. Rc1 Qd6 41. Qc4 (41. Rd1 Qe6 42. Rc1 $11) 41... Nd3 $8 (41... Kb6 $4 42. Bd8+ $18) 42. Rc3 $2 {Remarkably, this move loses.} (42. Be7 $3 {had to be played.} Qxe7 43. Qxd3 Kb6 44. bxa6 Bxa6 45. Qd5 $44 {Two bishops are two bishops, but they have to serve as fig leaves for Black's king.}) 42... axb5 $1 43. Qxd3 Qxd3 44. Rxd3 Bd4 $1 $19 45. Bf6 $2 {Initiating a logical plan, but White comes up a tempo short.} (45. Rd1) (45. Be7) 45... Kb6 46. Rxd4 exd4 47. Bxd4+ Ka5 $8 48. Kg1 b4 49. Kf2 Ka4 $8 50. Ke3 Kb3 $8 51. Kf4 (51. Kd2 Ka2 $8 52. e5 b3 53. Kc1 Be6 54. Bc3 h5 55. Bd4 Bd5 56. Bc3 Bxg2 57. e6 Bc6 58. Bf6 h4 $1 { wins.} 59. gxh4 g3 60. h5 g2 61. Bd4 b2+ $19 {and Black winds up with an extra queen.}) 51... Kc2 52. Ke5 b3 53. Kd6 (53. Kf6 b2 54. Bxb2 Kxb2 55. Kg6 (55. e5 Kc3 56. e6 Kd4 57. e7 Bd7 58. Kg6 Ke3 59. Kh5 Kf2 60. e8=Q Bxe8+ 61. Kxg4 Kxg2 62. Kh4 Kf3 63. g4 Kf4 ({The cute} 63... Kg2 $1 {is nicer:} 64. g5 h5 $19 { and White must surrender the pawn.}) 64. Kh3 Kg5 65. Kg3 Bd7 $19 {etc.}) 55... Kc3 56. Kxh6 Kd4 $19) 53... Kd3 54. Ba1 Kxe4 55. Kc5 Kd3 (55... Kd3 56. Kb4 Kc2 57. Ka3 h5 58. Bd4 Bb7 59. Bb2 Bxg2 60. Be5 h4 61. gxh4 g3 62. h5 Be4 {and as in the 51.Kd2 line above, Black will promote one of his pawns, remaining with an extra queen.}) 0-1 [Event "FIDE Candidates 2022"] [Site "Madrid ESP"] [Date "2022.06.29"] [Round "10.2"] [White "Duda, Jan-Krzysztof"] [Black "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C53"] [WhiteElo "2750"] [BlackElo "2783"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "113"] [EventDate "2022.06.17"] {[%evp 0,113,18,18,18,18,18,25,18,13,-7,7,12,26,47,26,38,-23,2,-9,-8,3,5,-16, -3,-12,37,-8,8,5,11,-6,23,7,8,4,72,38,18,33,24,16,16,8,-8,-24,-46,-5,-2,-15,9, 50,95,99,173,147,162,129,91,71,44,80,171,37,48,-3,53,10,53,0,0,0,0,0,19,53,56, 56,77,105,224,235,235,235,257,235,235,279,276,276,276,271,323,203,196,211,211, 234,234,188,188,202,248,261,267,267,274,284,308,293,301,302,314,314,323,334]} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. c3 Nf6 5. d3 d6 6. O-O a6 {Going with Team Nakamura.} (6... a5 {is how Carlsen and fellow-Candidate Radjabov prefer to handle this line.}) 7. a4 Ba7 8. Re1 O-O 9. h3 Be6 {But this is not the Nakamura approach. In his live commentary, Gustafsson expressed his displeasure with the combination of ...a6 and ...Be6 (when it's not supported by a rook on e8) because of White's plan of expanding with 10.Bxe6 followed by 11.b4. There's no objection to ...Be6 when Black has played ...a5 instead. Nevertheless, some great players (in addition to Caruana) have chosen this plan, including Grischuk, Jorden Van Foreest, and (at least back in 2019) Ding Liren.} 10. Bxe6 fxe6 11. b4 (11. Be3 $142 {looks very good, preferred by the engine and by the score in the database.}) 11... Nh5 {Black's results here have been very good.} 12. Nbd2 $146 (12. Ra2 Qe8 (12... Qf6 13. Na3 Ne7 14. Bg5 Qf7 15. Be3 Nf4 16. Kh2 Qg6 17. Nh4 Qh6 18. Nf3 Qg6 19. Nh4 Qh6 20. Nf3 Qg6 { 1/2-1/2 (20) Vachier Lagrave,M (2779)-Ding,L (2805) Stavanger 2019}) 13. Be3 ( 13. Na3 Nf4 14. Bxf4 Rxf4 15. Nc4 Qg6 16. b5 Raf8 17. Ncd2 Ne7 18. d4 Qf6 19. dxe5 dxe5 20. bxa6 bxa6 21. Qe2 a5 22. Rf1 g5 23. Nc4 Ng6 24. Nh2 Qg7 25. Qd3 Nh4 26. Ng4 h5 27. Ngxe5 g4 28. hxg4 hxg4 29. Qg3 Qg5 30. Re2 Kg7 31. Nd3 R4f6 32. Qxc7+ R8f7 33. Qe5 Qh6 34. Qg3 Kh8 35. Rb2 Nf3+ 36. gxf3 gxf3 37. Rfb1 Rg7 38. Qxg7+ Qxg7+ 39. Kf1 Rh6 40. Ke1 Qxc3+ {0-1 (40) Caruana,F (2819)-Grischuk, A (2766) Paris 2019}) 13... Nf4 14. Bxa7 Rxa7 15. Kh2 b5 16. g3 Nh5 17. Kg2 Qg6 18. Re3 bxa4 19. Nh4 Qe8 20. Qxa4 a5 21. b5 Nb8 22. d4 Nd7 23. dxe5 Nxe5 24. Qd4 Ra8 25. Na3 Qf7 26. Qd1 Nf6 27. Qe2 Nfd7 28. f4 Ng6 29. Nf3 Nc5 30. Nc4 a4 31. Ng5 Qe8 32. f5 Ne7 33. Nd2 Nc8 34. Ndf3 e5 35. Qc4+ Kh8 36. Rf2 Nb6 37. Qa2 h6 38. Nh4 hxg5 39. Ng6+ Kh7 40. Qe2 Nbd7 41. Nxf8+ Qxf8 42. Qh5+ Kg8 43. Qxg5 a3 44. Ree2 Nf6 45. Qc1 Nd3 46. Qb1 Nxf2 47. Rxf2 Qf7 48. b6 cxb6 {0-1 (48) Jones,G (2672)-Van Foreest,J (2714) chess24.com INT 2022}) 12... Nf4 (12... Qe8 $142 13. Nf1 Qg6 {Black threatens 14...Rxf3 15.Qxf3 Rf8 followed by a capture on f2, winning.} 14. Ra2 Nf4 15. Bxf4 Rxf4 16. b5 Raf8 {Stockfish 200622:} 17. N1h2 Nb8 18. bxa6 Nxa6 19. Kh1 Nc5 20. Re3 Ra8 21. a5 h6 22. g3 Rff8 23. Qb1 Rab8 24. d4 Nd7 25. Ree2 exd4 26. cxd4 b5 27. axb6 Bxb6 28. Qd3 c5 29. d5 Qf7 30. Kg2 exd5 31. exd5 Qf5 32. Qc4 Nf6 33. Ng4 Nxg4 34. Qxg4 c4 35. Qxf5 Rxf5 36. Rec2 Rc8 37. Ra6 Bc5 38. g4 Rxd5 39. Rxc4 Rf8 40. Rc2 {[%eval 23,49] [%wdl 31,962,7]}) 13. Nf1 Qf6 (13... Qe8 $142 14. N1h2 (14. b5 Nxh3+ 15. gxh3 Qg6+ 16. Bg5 $8 Ne7 17. Ng3 Rxf3 18. Qxf3 Qxg5 (18... Rf8 $2 19. Qg4 Bxf2+ 20. Kg2 Bxe1 21. Rxe1 $18) 19. Qg4 Qh6 20. Rf1 Rf8 21. bxa6 bxa6 22. Rab1 $11 {/+/=}) 14... Qg6 15. Bxf4 Rxf4 16. b5 Na5 17. Re2 Raf8 18. Kh1 $14) 14. Bxf4 Qxf4 15. Qb3 $14 Rf6 $6 {This looks efficient - why not defend e6 with a rook? This allows Black to double the rooks (and triple his heavy pieces) on the f-file. Better yet, the f6-rook might go to g6 or h6, creating immediate threats (... Qxf3 and ...Rxh3, respectively). But it turns out to be a mistake, and both the rook and Black's queen will be vulnerable to attack.} (15... Qf6 16. b5 Na5 17. Qb4 $1 Bc5 $1 18. Qb1 (18. Qxa5 $2 b6 $19) 18... Qg6 19. N1h2 Bb6 20. Ra2 Rf4 21. d4 exd4 22. cxd4 Raf8 23. Qd3 $14 {/+/-}) (15... Qh6 {Possibly best.} 16. N1h2 a5 17. b5 Nb8 18. d4 Nd7 19. g3 $1 {Very subtle. In general, White wants to "crawl up" in this way, with Kg2 to follow, to get off the Ba7's diagonal, and it's because of the 19...Qxh3 20.Ng5 trick that he can do so.} g5 $1 {Preventing h4.} 20. Kg2 Rf7 21. Re2 Raf8 22. Rd1 $11 {/+/= Black's progress on the kingside has been stopped, but it will also be difficult for White to achieve anything without allowing Black to do some serious damage.}) 16. b5 $16 Na5 17. Qa2 g5 $2 {This is the sort of move an exhausted player essays in blitz or bullet, just throwing everything at the White king without calculating and hoping something will work.} 18. N1h2 $18 {Oh, oops. White threatens d4 followed by g3, collecting Black's queen. Meanwhile, the rook on f6 can't back up without hanging e6, and ...g4 drops the pawn, and what does he do? For good measure, let's not forget about the horrid knight on a5, cut off from polite society. It's time for Black to go back, back, back.} Rg6 19. d4 h5 20. g3 Qf6 21. Rad1 Rg7 22. Kh1 $1 Rf8 $2 (22... g4 {is better, though Black's position is entirely unsatisfactory after} 23. dxe5 dxe5 24. hxg4 hxg4 25. Nh4 $18) 23. dxe5 dxe5 24. h4 $1 {The point of 22.Kh1. With the king on g1 Black would have both ...gxh4 Nxh4 Qxh4 and ...g4 Ng5 Bxf2+; here, he has neither.} gxh4 25. gxh4 Bc5 26. Rg1 Bd6 27. Ng5 Kh8 28. Qe2 $6 {/?} ({The obvious} 28. Nxe6 {was preferable.} Rxg1+ 29. Rxg1 Qxf2 30. Qd5 $1 Rg8 31. Ng5 $18) 28... Qg6 29. Rd3 axb5 30. Rdg3 $1 Qe8 31. axb5 $6 {/?} (31. Nxe6 $1 Rxg3 32. Rxg3 Rg8 (32... Qxe6 $4 33. Qxh5+ Qh6 34. Qxh6#) 33. Qf3 $1 Rxg3 34. Qf6+ $1 Kg8 35. fxg3 Qf7 36. Qd8+ Bf8 37. Ng5 Qe7 38. Qd5+ Kg7 39. axb5 $18) 31... Rf6 32. Qf1 $2 {White's previous inaccuracies/errors still left him plenty of room for error, but now Caruana is getting close to being alright.} (32. Qd3 Rxf2 $2 33. Nxe6 $1 $18) 32... b6 $2 (32... Nb3 $1) 33. Qg2 $2 (33. Qd3 Rxf2 $2 34. Nxe6 $1 $18) 33... Qf8 $2 {Some days, a player just doesn't have it. This is one of those days for Caruana.} (33... Qg8) 34. Qh3 $2 Qg8 35. R1g2 $6 Nb7 ( 35... Nc4) 36. Nh7 $1 {Finally, on the verge of giving away what had long been a winning advantage, Duda finds a way to make progress.} Rfg6 37. Rxg6 Rxg6 38. Ng5 Rf6 $2 (38... Qe8) 39. f4 $1 {Back on track.} Nc5 40. fxe5 Bxe5 41. Ngf3 { Winning a piece and the game. Caruana still manages to make a fight of this, but Duda stays strong.} Qa8 42. Nxe5 Nxe4 {Threatening to win the queen with 43...Nf2+ White has only one move to avoid a draw, and he makes it.} 43. Nhf3 $1 Qa1+ 44. Kh2 Qc1 45. Nd3 Qxc3 46. Ra2 $1 {A nice move, which is met by an even more visually attractive reply.} Nf2 $1 (46... Qxd3 47. Ra8+ Kg7 (47... Kh7 48. Ng5+ Nxg5 49. Qxd3+ $18) 48. Qg2+ Ng5 (48... Kf7 $4 49. Ne5+ $18 (49. Qg8+ $18)) (48... Rg6 49. Qxg6+ Kxg6 50. Ne5+ $18) 49. Qxg5+ Qg6 50. Qxg6+ Kxg6 51. Kg3 $18) 47. Rxf2 Qxd3 48. Qg3 Qd6 49. Qxd6 cxd6 {Rook and knight vs. rook (with no pawns on the board) is a draw (unless the king starts out in a mating net or the rook is lost to some immediate tactic), but White has one pawn too many for Black to cope with.} 50. Kg3 Rf5 51. Rd2 Rxb5 52. Rxd6 Kg7 53. Rxe6 Rb4 54. Re5 Kh6 55. Rd5 Rb1 56. Nd4 Rg1+ 57. Kf4 {White will have no trouble winning Black's pawns and then winning with his h-pawn.} 1-0 [Event "FIDE Candidates 2022"] [Site "Madrid ESP"] [Date "2022.06.29"] [Round "10.3"] [White "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"] [Black "Radjabov, Teimour"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "E06"] [WhiteElo "2766"] [BlackElo "2753"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "74"] [EventDate "2022.06.17"] {[%evp 0,74,18,20,25,2,-4,24,14,-19,-5,10,8,5,-4,-5,17,32,35,46,27,33,42,34,36, 36,36,46,64,48,41,52,53,48,53,24,48,23,31,36,40,60,65,56,66,72,63,52,23,11,25, 28,28,17,21,18,15,15,7,10,13,7,10,4,4,3,3,1,-2,-2,4,-1,0,-2,2,0,0]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Be7 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Qc2 b5 8. a4 Bb7 9. axb5 a6 10. Nc3 axb5 11. Rxa8 Bxa8 12. Nxb5 Bd5 13. Bf4 c5 14. dxc5 Qa5 15. Nc3 Qxc5 16. Be3 $146 {White is taking no risk here at all. His advantage is very small, and is quickly neutralized. Nepo is running out the clock on everyone else, and it's paying off.} (16. e4 {is sharper (and probably a little worse). The games that followed were all played with a short time control.} Bc6 (16... Bb7 17. b4 Qc8 18. b5 Nbd7 19. Rc1 Nc5 20. Ne5 Rd8 21. Nxc4 Nd3 22. Nb6 Qc5 23. Be3 Qa3 24. Rd1 Ne5 25. Rxd8+ Bxd8 26. h3 Qa1+ 27. Qd1 Qxd1+ 28. Nxd1 Bxe4 29. Nc3 Bxg2 30. Kxg2 Kf8 31. Bd4 Nfd7 32. Nxd7+ Nxd7 33. Kf3 e5 34. Be3 f5 35. g4 g6 36. Ke2 Kf7 37. Kd3 Ke6 38. Kc4 Kd6 39. gxf5 gxf5 40. Na4 f4 41. Bc5+ Ke6 42. b6 e4 43. b7 Bc7 44. Bd4 Kd6 45. Nc5 Nxc5 46. Bxc5+ Kc6 47. Bd4 Kxb7 48. Kd5 e3 49. fxe3 f3 50. e4 Bb6 {0-1 (50) Dubov,D (2711)-Nakamura,H (2750) Chess.com INT 2022}) 17. Be3 Qa5 18. Nd4 Rc8 19. h3 Be8 20. f4 Na6 21. e5 Nb4 22. Qd2 Nd7 23. Kh2 Qa6 24. Qe2 Nd3 25. f5 N7xe5 26. fxe6 fxe6 27. Nxe6 Bc6 28. Nd4 Bxg2 29. Qxg2 Rb8 30. Nf5 Bf6 31. Qd5+ Kh8 32. Ne4 Rxb2+ 33. Kh1 Rb5 34. Bc5 Qb7 35. Nxf6 Qxd5+ 36. Nxd5 Rxc5 37. Nd4 h6 38. Ne7 Rc7 39. Rf8+ Kh7 40. Re8 Ng6 { 0-1 (40) Dubov,D (2702)-Nakamura,H (2766) Chess.com INT 2022}) (16. Nxd5 Nxd5 17. Bd2 Nd7 18. Rc1 Rc8 19. e3 Bf6 20. Bf1 N7b6 21. Qb1 Be7 22. Ne5 c3 23. bxc3 Qc7 24. Nf3 Nc4 25. Be1 Ndb6 26. Nd4 g6 27. Qb5 e5 28. Nf3 Bf6 29. Rd1 Nd6 30. Qb3 Nbc4 31. Nd2 Rb8 32. Qc2 Nxd2 33. Bxd2 e4 34. c4 Qc5 35. Rb1 Rc8 36. Bb4 Qc6 37. Bxd6 Qxd6 38. Qxe4 Kg7 39. Rb7 Bc3 40. Qd5 Qxd5 41. cxd5 Be5 42. Bh3 Rc1+ 43. Kg2 Kf8 44. Bd7 Rd1 45. Bc6 Rd2 46. g4 g5 47. h3 h6 48. Kf3 Bh2 49. Kg2 Be5 50. Ba4 Bd6 51. Rd7 Bc5 52. Kf3 Bb4 53. Bb3 Rb2 54. Bc4 Rc2 55. Bd3 Rd2 56. Be2 Be7 57. e4 Bf6 58. Rd6 Kg7 59. Rc6 Be5 60. Rc4 Rb2 61. Rc6 Rd2 62. Bf1 Bd4 63. Be2 Be5 {1/2-1/2 (63) Vidit,S (2723)-Nakamura,H (2766) Chess.com INT 2022}) (16. Rc1 Nc6 17. Nxd5 exd5 18. b3 Nb4 19. Qd1 Na2 20. Rc2 Nb4 21. Rc1 Na2 22. Rc2 Nb4 23. Rc1 {1/2-1/2 (23) Ding,L (2799)-Nakamura,H (2736) Chess. com INT 2021}) 16... Qa5 17. Bd2 Ba8 18. Nd1 Qc5 19. Ne3 Rc8 20. Rc1 Bd5 21. Nxd5 Nxd5 22. Ne5 Nb6 23. Qe4 (23. Bb7 $5 Qxe5 24. Bxc8 Nxc8 25. Qxc4 Nb6 26. Qf4 Qxf4 27. Bxf4 N8d7 28. e4 $14) 23... Bf6 24. Bc3 (24. Nxc4 Nxc4 25. b3 Nxd2 26. Rxc5 Rxc5 27. Qb4 Rc1+ 28. Bf1 Rxf1+ 29. Kg2 Na6 30. Qxd2 Ra1 31. Qd6 g6 32. b4 Nxb4 33. Qxb4 h5 $11 {is a dead draw.}) (24. Bf4 {may keep a tiny edge.} ) 24... N8d7 25. Bd4 Qd6 {White's small advantage is gone, but that's fine with Nepo, who now vacuums up the board while Caruana self-destructs against Duda.} 26. Nxd7 Bxd4 27. Nxb6 Qxb6 28. e3 Bxb2 29. Rxc4 Qa6 30. Rxc8+ Qxc8 31. Qb7 Qxb7 32. Bxb7 g6 33. Kg2 Kg7 34. Ba8 Ba1 35. Bb7 Bb2 36. Ba8 Ba1 37. Bb7 Bb2 {The position appears to be equal.} 1/2-1/2 [Event "FIDE Candidates 2022"] [Site "Madrid ESP"] [Date "2022.06.29"] [Round "10.4"] [White "Nakamura, Hikaru"] [Black "Firouzja, Alireza"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "B90"] [WhiteElo "2760"] [BlackElo "2793"] [Annotator "Monokroussos,Dennis"] [PlyCount "63"] [EventDate "2022.06.17"] {[%evp 0,63,20,18,46,56,80,48,57,44,44,38,48,39,39,27,33,32,32,38,0,12,12,9,20, 4,37,37,20,44,38,13,11,16,14,6,35,39,44,66,54,54,95,-26,43,43,43,35,35,-56,-33, -33,-9,-9,8,8,67,136,1116,1040,29985,29986,29987,29988,29989,29990]} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Be3 e5 7. Nf3 {An underappreciated line.} Nc6 (7... Be7) 8. Bc4 Be6 9. Nd5 (9. Bb3 {is more typical of the 7.Nf3 line, but 9.Nd5 is interesting.}) 9... Rc8 {Apparently, this is Black's only decent move.} (9... Bxd5 10. Bxd5 Nxd5 11. Qxd5 Qa5+ 12. Qxa5 Nxa5 {1/2-1/2 (36) Karjakin,S (2775)-Nepomniachtchi,I (2707) Moscow 2012} 13. b3 $14 {/+/- is very pleasant for White thanks to Black's problems on the d-file and his bad bishop.}) 10. Nxf6+ gxf6 $6 $146 {This looks like a move motivated by Firouzja's tournament situation rather than the needs of the position.} (10... Qxf6 11. Bxe6 fxe6 (11... Qxe6 12. O-O Be7 13. Nd2 (13. c3 O-O 14. Qd3 Rfd8 15. Rfd1 Nb8 16. Qc2 Qc4 17. a4 d5 18. Rxd5 Rxd5 19. exd5 Qxd5 20. Rd1 Qe6 21. Ng5 Bxg5 22. Bxg5 Nc6 23. f3 h6 24. Be3 Rd8 25. Rxd8+ Nxd8 26. b3 Nc6 27. Kf2 {1/2-1/2 (27) Schulz,R (2315)-Biskopp,W (2000) Remote email 2013 }) 13... d5 14. exd5 Qxd5 15. Qg4 O-O 16. Bh6 Bf6 17. Ne4 Qe6 18. Qxe6 fxe6 19. Be3 Nb4 20. c3 Nd5 21. Rfe1 Rc6 22. a4 Rfc8 23. g3 Be7 24. Kg2 Nf6 25. Ng5 Rd8 26. Nf3 Rd5 27. Rac1 e4 28. Nd4 Rcd6 29. h3 Kf7 30. Nb3 Rc6 31. Nd2 h6 32. Re2 b5 33. axb5 axb5 34. Nb3 e5 35. Ra1 b4 36. cxb4 Bxb4 37. Ra7+ Rd7 38. Rxd7+ Nxd7 39. Nc1 Nf6 40. Na2 Bd6 41. Nc3 {1/2-1/2 (41) Vachier Lagrave,M (2703) -Morozevich,A (2751) Biel 2009}) 12. O-O Qg6 13. Nd2 Be7 14. c4 O-O 15. Rc1 Rc7 16. f3 Bg5 17. Bxg5 Qxg5 18. Rc3 a5 19. Rf2 Rfc8 20. g3 Nd4 21. Kg2 Qd8 22. f4 exf4 23. Rxf4 Nc6 24. a4 Ne5 25. Qe2 Qe8 26. b3 g5 27. Rf2 g4 28. Qe3 Qh5 29. Rc1 Ng6 30. Rcf1 Qe5 31. Qh6 Rg7 32. h3 gxh3+ 33. Qxh3 Rf8 34. Rxf8+ Nxf8 35. Qh4 Ng6 36. Qh3 Nf8 37. Qh4 Rf7 38. Rxf7 Kxf7 39. Nf3 Qb2+ {1/2-1/2 (39) Adams, M (2723)-Bologan,V (2732) Konya 2012}) 11. Bb3 (11. Bxe6 fxe6 12. c3 $16 {/+/=} ) 11... Ne7 (11... Qd7 $142) 12. O-O $16 Bxb3 13. axb3 d5 {Black eliminates the potentially weak pawn and eliminates his worries about the d5 square. On the other hand, opening the board when behind in development is dangerous.} 14. exd5 Qxd5 15. Qe2 $16 {The natural, human thing to do. Black's king has no obviously safe place to reside, so White keeps the queens on.} (15. c3 $1 { is surprisingly strong. The point is to protect the c-pawn against the threat of ...Qxd1 followed by ...Rxc2, and what's surprising is that White is fine with the queen trade.} Qxd1 16. Raxd1 Nf5 17. b4 $1 $16 {White will play Nd2-e4, and Black has a hard time doing anything.}) 15... Nf5 (15... Ng6 $142) 16. Rfd1 Qc6 (16... Qe6 $142) 17. c4 (17. c3 {is also very good.}) 17... Bg7 $6 (17... Rg8 $142) 18. Rd5 $18 O-O 19. Rad1 Rfe8 20. h3 b5 21. c5 $2 (21. Bc5 $1 $18 {keeps Black locked up. One way for White to make further progress is with g4, followed by Nh4 and Qe4.}) 21... Bf8 $2 (21... a5 $1 $16) 22. b4 $1 Nd4 { This is what Black was counting on with his last move. He wins the exchange - that's the good news - but White's kingside attack will crush him.} 23. Nxd4 $1 Qxd5 24. Nf5 Qe4 25. Qh5 Red8 26. Ra1 $1 Rc6 27. Bh6 Kh8 28. Ra3 $1 Qxb4 29. Bxf8 Rxf8 30. Qh6 Rg8 31. Rg3 Rxg3 32. fxg3 {And that is that: mate on g7 is unstoppable. A nice, smooth win by Nakamura, and even his one error set a nice trap that won the game.} 1-0