The Modern Game of Zugzwang

In Reykjavik everything is expected. More and more excellent games are produced, like the following one:

[Event "Open European Team Championship"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2015.11.16"]
[Round "4.1"]
[White "Jobava, Baadur"]
[Black "Saric, Ivan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[WhiteElo "2668"]
[BlackElo "2652"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "115"]
[EventDate "2015.??.??"]
[WhiteClock "0:38:47"]
[BlackClock "0:29:55"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. c3 {Diagram [#] You did not expect Jobava to play the
Ruy Lopez, did you? Ponziani is so much more fun than 20-25 moves of theory...}
Nf6 {The main move. According to my Megabase Saric had never played against
this opening in official game. But he live-witnessed Carlsen's win against Hou
Yifan in Wijk.} 4. d4 Nxe4 ({Actually, Jobava had a game in Ponziani this year
already, but opponent deviated from the main paths with} 4... d6 5. Bd3 Be7 6.
O-O O-O 7. Re1 Bg4 8. d5 Nb8 9. Nbd2 a5 10. h3 Bh5 11. Nf1 Na6 12. Ng3 Bg6 13.
Nh4 $14 {Diagram [#] Jobava,B (2683)-Benidze,D (2491) Ureki 2015}) ({Carlsen
chose} 4... exd4 5. e5 Nd5 {Hou-Carlsen, Wijk an Zee 2013.}) 5. d5 Ne7 6. Nxe5
Ng6 7. Qe2 Qe7 8. Qxe4 Qxe5 9. Qxe5+ Nxe5 10. Bf4 {This particular line has
the reputation of an ultra solid weapon where White can hardly ever lose (or
win). Jobava has his own way instead of the conventional development:} (10. Be2
Bc5 11. Nd2 d6 12. Nb3 Bb6 13. a4 a6 14. a5 Ba7 15. Nd4 Bxd4 16. cxd4 Nd7 {
with slight advantage for White in Lu,S (2606)-Wang,H (2710) Xinghua 2015})
10... Bd6 11. Bg3 f5 12. Nd2 O-O 13. f4 $146 {[%csl Yf4] Diagram [#] Boom, the
novelty! White sacrifices a pawn! Not a move that the computer will suggest.} (
{All the twelve predecessors saw} 13. f3 {when after} b6 14. O-O-O Bb7 15. Nc4
Nxc4 16. Bxc4 f4 17. Bf2 Rae8 {trades are about to happen along the e file,
and a handshake.}) 13... Ng6 14. O-O-O Bxf4 (14... b6 $1 {was probably better.
The pawn on f4 has nowhere to go. After} 15. Nc4 Bxf4+ 16. Bxf4 Nxf4 17. d6 {
White has compensation for the pawn, but hardly more.}) (14... Nxf4 $2 {
is bad due to the simple} 15. Nc4 {when White regains the pawn and keeps
pressure for free.}) 15. d6 $1 {[%csl Ya8,Yc8] Diagram [#] The point behind
the sacrifice. Jobava tries to seal the bishop on c8.} cxd6 ({Another way to
defend is} 15... Bxg3 $5 16. hxg3 (16. Bc4+ Kh8 17. hxg3 cxd6 18. Nf3 Ne5 19.
Bd5 {makes sense as well.}) 16... cxd6 17. Nf3 Ne5 18. Rxd6 Rf6 19. Rd4 Nxf3
20. gxf3 ({Black can give back the pawn in case of a need-} 20. Bc4+ d5 21.
Bxd5+ Be6 {with approximate equality.}) 20... d6 {Just like the line above,
White has compensation, but hardly advantage.}) 16. Bxf4 Nxf4 17. g3 Nh5 {
The other retreat seemed more natural} (17... Ne6 18. Nc4 d5 19. Rxd5 f4 20.
Nd6 b6 {although it is not clear how will Black develop his bishop from b7.})
18. Nc4 $1 d5 $1 {A freeing attempt.} (18... b6 19. Nxd6 Rb8 20. Bc4+ Kh8 21.
Rhf1 {is horrendous, while}) (18... Nf6 19. Nxd6 Ne4 20. Bc4+ Kh8 21. Nxe4 fxe4
22. Bd5 $16 {is a solid advantage for White.}) 19. Nd6 $1 {[%csl Gd6] Diagram
[#]} ({Or else Saric will come out of the trouble} 19. Rxd5 Nf6 $1 (19... d6 $5
) 20. Rd6 b5) 19... Nf6 20. Bg2 {Jobava is not interested in the f5 pawn. The
blocked queenside is his mantra.} Ne4 21. Rxd5 Nxd6 22. Rxd6 {A very pleasant
situation for White arose. His four pieces are free in their motion and have
the fun part beating the black king and rook.} Re8 {If Black trades his last
active piece} (22... Rf6 23. Rxf6 gxf6 {his position will get critical after
either} 24. Rd1 (24. Rf1 {is not bad neither.})) 23. Rf1 g6 24. Bd5+ {Diagram
[#]} Kh8 {Or else White will win two pawns after} (24... Kg7 25. Bxb7 Bxb7 26.
Rxd7+ Kh6 27. Rxb7 $16) 25. Kd2 a5 26. Rf4 {Prepares the next maneuver and
discourages the queenside rook sortie.} Re5 (26... Ra6 27. Rxa6 bxa6 28. Ra4 {
regains the pawn for White and keeps stable advantage.}) 27. Rc4 Rb8 28. Rc7 {
Now the bishop is out of the picture for good and White is looking for the
decisive improvement.} b6 29. c4 {[%csl Gd5,Rd6][%cal Gc4d5,Rd6f6,Rf6f7,Rf7f8]
Diagram [#] To free the other rook.} Kg7 30. a4 ({There is absolutely no need
to force matters} 30. Bb7 Rxb7 31. Rxb7 Bxb7 32. Rxd7+ Kh6 33. Rxb7 Re6 {
when White is definitely better but Black has chances to survive.}) (30. Bc6 $6
Rc5) 30... Kf8 (30... Re7 $5 {might have been more stubborn.}) 31. Rf6+ Ke8 32.
Ra7 {[%csl Yb8,Yc8,Re5,Ye8] Diagram [#] Zugzwang # 1! Only the e5 rook can
move.} Re7 (32... Ke7 33. Rf7+ Kd6 34. Rxh7 $18) 33. h4 $1 {Once that the
White pieces have been activated to the maximum, the pawns march forward in
order to create weakneses.} Rg7 ({Or} 33... Re5 34. h5 gxh5 35. Rh6 Re7 36.
Rxh5) 34. Ke3 Ke7 35. Re6+ Kd8 36. Re5 h6 ({Otherwise the king may get in}
36... h5 37. Kf4 {followed by Kf4-g5.}) 37. Kd4 {[%csl Yb8,Yc8,Yd8,Rg7][%cal
Gh4h5] Diagram [#] Zugzwang #2! The white pawn cannot be stopped from breaking
the kingside pawn structure.} Rh7 (37... g5 38. h5 $1 f4 39. gxf4 gxf4 40. Rf5
$18) 38. h5 $1 {The kingside collapses and the white pieces invade the
opponent's camp.} Rg7 39. hxg6 Rxg6 40. Re3 {The last move before the
additional time made the win a bit complicated. The simplest solution was} (40.
Rxf5 $1 Rxg3 41. Rf7 {[%csl Rc8][%cal Gf7h7,Gh7h8,Ga7c7,Gc7c8] Diagram [#]
followed by Rf7-h7-h8+ and Ra7-c7xc8.}) 40... Rg7 41. Rf3 Rg6 42. Rxf5 Rxg3 43.
Rf8+ Ke7 44. Rf7+ Kd6 {Or else the game might transpose to the winning line
from above with} (44... Kd8 45. Rh7 Rh3 46. Rh8+ Ke7 47. Rc7 {trapping the
bishop.}) 45. Rf6+ Ke7 46. Rxh6 {Pawns are even, but four white pieces are
still beating two...} Rg4+ 47. Ke5 Rg5+ 48. Kf4 Rg1 49. Be4 Re1 50. b3 $1 {
Diagram [#] The final touch. The hasty} (50. Ke5 Bb7 $1 {would have ruined a
true masterpiece} 51. Rh7+ Kd8 52. Kd6 Rxe4 53. Rxd7+ Ke8 54. Raxb7 Rxb7 55.
Rxb7 Rxc4 56. Rxb6 Rxa4 $11) 50... Re2 51. Ke5 {Now White can.} Kf7 (51... Bb7
{does not help this time as in the line} 52. Rh7+ Kd8 (52... Kf8 53. Rh8+ Ke7
54. Rxb8 Rxe4+ 55. Kf5 Bc6 56. Rxb6 $18) 53. Kd6 Rxe4 54. Rxd7+ Ke8 55. Raxb7 {
the c4 pawn is defended and White wins.}) 52. Kd6 $1 Rxe4 53. Kc7 {[%csl Yb8,
Yc8] Diagram [#] A wonderful finish of a great game!} Rb7+ 54. Rxb7 Bxb7 55.
Kxb7 Re6 56. Rxe6 dxe6 57. Kxb6 e5 58. Kxa5 1-0

Svidler and the Bluff

The last round of the Khanty-Mansiysk Grand Prix defined the winners of the event. But perhaps the most interesting game was the one between Peter Svidler and Baadur Jobava. Especially the comments of teh Russian GM:

[Event "FIDE Grand Prix - Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2015.05.26"]
[Round "11.5"]
[White "Svidler, Peter"]
[Black "Jobava, Baadur"]
[Result "1-0"]
[WhiteElo "2734"]
[BlackElo "2699"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "131"]
[EventDate "2015.??.??"]
[WhiteClock "0:21:34"]
[BlackClock "0:29:09"]

1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4 {Jobava switched back to the Rubinstein French.}
4. Nxe4 Bd7 5. Nf3 Bc6 6. Bd3 Nd7 7. Qe2 Be7 8. Neg5 {[%csl Ye6,Yf7,Yh7]
Diagram [#] This move is connected with a blunder as Svidler explained at the
press-conference. One of the key ideas for White in these set-ups to sacrifice
the knight on either e6 or f7. Svidler saw that in the line} (8. c4 {(to get
control of the d5 square)} Ngf6 9. Neg5 h6 10. Nxe6 fxe6 11. Bg6+ Kf8 12. Qxe6
{Black does not have the move Bc6-d5, but has anotehr way to save himself} Bb4+
{followed by Qd8-e7 and wins.}) 8... Bxg5 {But while thinking, the Russian GM
realized that in the line} (8... h6 $1 9. Nxe6 ({He also desperately considered
} 9. Qxe6 hxg5 10. Nxg5 Nh6 11. Bg6 {which however is refuted by the simple}
O-O) ({Therefore, he should have opted for the sad} 9. Ne4 {and as he mocked
himself after the game "I would sit here and explain to you how important is
to have the b1-h5 diagonal weakend and how deep my idea is to deliver
checkmate later". Svidler is an amazing annotator!}) (9. Nh3 {is horrible
after} g5) 9... fxe6 10. Bg6+ Kf8 11. Qxe6 {Black for some reason still has
the move} Bb4+ {:)}) 9. Nxg5 h6 $146 ({Previosly only} 9... Ngf6 10. c4 O-O 11.
O-O {has been played in Fluvia Poyatos,J (2450)-Lopez Martinez,J (2440) Spain
2004}) 10. Nf3 ({Bad is} 10. Qh5 Qe7 11. O-O Ngf6 12. Qh3 O-O-O 13. Nf3 g5 {
with pleasant attack for Black (Svidler).}) 10... Qf6 11. Ne5 $5 {[%csl Rg2]
Diagram [#] The only way to fight for the advantage. Black is very comfortable
after} (11. Be4 Bxe4 12. Qxe4 O-O-O $11) 11... Nxe5 ({White has ample
compensation for a pawn after} 11... Bxg2 12. Rg1 Bc6 13. Bd2) 12. Qxe5 ({
White did not like} 12. dxe5 Qh4 {[%cal Gg8e7,Ge7f5] with the idea Ng8-e7-f5
and very nice position for Black.}) 12... O-O-O {Jobava plays for more than
equality which he has after} (12... Qxe5+ 13. dxe5 Ne7 $11 {[%csl Gd5,Gf5]
Diagram [#]}) 13. Be3 Qe7 $6 {Again the trade of the queens is objectively best
} (13... Qxe5 14. dxe5 Ne7 $11) 14. O-O-O Nf6 15. f3 $14 {Now the bishop pair
provides some advantage to White.} g5 ({Black cannot equalize with} 15... Nd5
16. Bd2 Nb4 17. Bxb4 Qxb4 18. Qxg7 $16 {(Svidler)}) 16. c4 b6 17. Bd2 ({Some
more preparation was possible} 17. Rhe1 Nd7 18. Qg3 f5 19. Qf2 f4 20. Bd2 Nc5
21. Bc2 {with advantage for White (Svidler)}) 17... Nh5 {[%csl Yg5,Rh5,Yh6]
Diagram [#] The problem for Black is that he has to sit and wait while his
opponent is preparing the central break d4-d5.} 18. d5 f6 19. Qe2 {White's
advantage grew and Jobava tries to muddy the waters with} Ba4 20. b3 Bd7 ({The
piece sacrifice} 20... Qa3+ 21. Kb1 Bxb3 {fails to} 22. Bc1 $1 Bxd1 23. Qxe6+ {
(Svidler, Jobava).}) 21. g4 Ng7 {Now the knight is stranded. Svidler believed
that Black should have sacrificed a pawn instead} (21... Nf4 22. Bxf4 gxf4 23.
dxe6 Bxe6 24. Qe4 Kb8 25. Qxf4 a5 {with chancesto survive.}) 22. Kb1 ({Better
is} 22. Bc3 Kb8 23. h4 {with pressure on the dark squares. White will very
much like to conduct the play on the color of the bishop that the opponent
does not have.}) 22... h5 {Generates useful pressure along the h file.} 23. h3
Qf7 24. Bc3 Kb8 25. Be4 (25. Qb2 $5) 25... Bc8 26. Rhe1 {Diagram [#]} ({In
case of} 26. Qb2 {White did not like} Ne8 (26... e5 27. b4 Bb7 28. Qb3 {
followed by c4-c5 is excellent for White.}) 27. dxe6 Rxd1+ 28. Rxd1 Qxe6 29.
Rd8 $6 (29. Bd5 {keeps an edge for White instead.}) 29... hxg4 $1 30. hxg4 $2
Rh1+ {and wins.}) 26... hxg4 27. hxg4 Bb7 28. dxe6 Bxe4+ 29. Qxe4 Rxd1+ 30.
Rxd1 Nxe6 31. Qf5 {Black managed to trade one of the bishops, but his brother
still dominates the knight. Badly.} Rh6 ({Jobava saw the line} 31... Rf8 32.
Re1 Ng7 33. Qh7 $1 {[%cal Gf3f4,Gg4g5] followed by f3-f4 and g4-g5!}) 32. Rd2
Qg6 33. Qxg6 Rxg6 {[%csl Yf6][%cal Gd2d5,Gd5f5,Gf5f6] Diagram [#] In order to
relieve the pressure Black has to exchange the queens, but now he inevitably
loses the pawn on f6.} 34. Rd5 Rh6 35. Rf5 Rh1+ 36. Kb2 Rh2+ 37. Kb1 Rh1+ 38.
Kb2 Rh2+ 39. Ka3 a5 (39... Rf2 {would be similar to the game} 40. Bxf6 {This
is better than} (40. Rxf6 Nf4 41. Rf8+ Kb7 42. Bf6 Nd3 43. Bxg5 a5 44. Rd8 Rxf3
) 40... a5 $16) 40. Rxf6 Re2 41. Rf5 Rf2 42. Re5 Nf4 ({Worse is} 42... Rxf3 43.
Bxa5 $1 bxa5 44. Rxe6 Rf4 45. Re5 {where the three connected pawns easily
prevail.}) 43. Rxg5 Rxf3 44. Kb2 ({In case of} 44. Bd4 Nd3 45. Rg8+ Kb7 46. g5
{Jobava suggested} Rg3 (46... c5 $5 {Svidler}) 47. g6 Rg2 {when Black indeed
has a lot of counterplay after} 48. g7 Nb4 {Mate is threatened!} 49. Bb2 {and
here instead of the Georgian's sugegstion} Nc2+ ({Black can do} 49... c6 $1 {
[%csl Ya3][%cal Rb6b5,Rb4c2] Diagram [#]} 50. Rf8 b5 {when White has to find
the draw} 51. Rf7+ (51. cxb5 $2 {loses after} cxb5 52. Rf7+ Kc6 53. Rf6+ Kd7
54. Rf7+ Kd6 55. Rf6+ Ke7) (51. g8=Q $4 Nc2#) 51... Ka6 52. cxb5+ cxb5 53. Rc7
$11) 50. Ka4 Nd4) ({Svidler also considered the amusing} 44. Bxa5 bxa5 45. Rf5
{but quickly figured it a draw after} Kb7 46. g5 Rg3 47. Rxf4 Rxg5 $11) 44...
Nd3+ 45. Kc2 Nb4+ 46. Bxb4 axb4 47. Rf5 Rg3 48. g5 {The rook endgame is very
unplesant for Black. The passer on g5 is extremely good. But as we know "all
rook endgames are draw", are not they?} Kc8 $1 {Black cannot hold with the
rook only, he needs to bring on all the reserves.} (48... Rg2+ 49. Kd3 Rxa2 50.
Ke4 Re2+ 51. Kf4 $1 {followed by Re5-e3 wins for White.}) 49. Kd2 Kd7 50. Ke2
Ke6 51. Rb5 Rg2+ 52. Kf3 Rxa2 53. Rxb4 Ra1 $6 {Diagram [#] Up to now Black had
defended very well, but this is a serious step in the wrong direction.} ({
Jobava should have activated the rook as soon as possible} 53... Rd2 $1 54. Rb5
Rd4 {with reasonable drawing chances.}) 54. Rb5 Kf7 55. Ke4 Rd1 $6 {Another
inaccurucy. Better was} (55... Re1+ 56. Kd5 (56. Kd4 Rd1+ 57. Ke5 Re1+) 56...
Re6 $1 57. Kd4 c5+ 58. Kd5 Ke7 {and Black should hold.}) 56. b4 Re1+ 57. Kd5
Re6 58. Kd4 {Without the c7-c5 resourse Black is in trouble.} Re1 59. c5 Rd1+
60. Ke4 Re1+ 61. Kd5 $1 Re6 62. Kd4 $1 {Diagram [#] Zugzwang!} Rg6 (62... Ke7
63. cxb6 cxb6 64. Re5) (62... Kg6 63. cxb6 cxb6 64. Re5 Rd6+ 65. Kc4) 63. cxb6
cxb6 64. Re5 Rc6 65. Kd5 Rc1 66. Kd6 {The b6 pawn drops and tehnblack king can
do nothing to stop the b4 one.} ({The official recording says that White
played here} 66. Ke4 {but is not likely to be the truth. Probably the king was
placed on e4 at the moment of Black's resignation.}) 1-0

Report.

In the Spirit of the Old Masters

Georgia's capital Tbilisi is hosting the third tournament from the FIDE Grand Prix series. Half of the event have already passed and the best player so far is the former European champion Evgeny Tomashevsky from Russia. However, we cannot miss a game between two of the most artistic performers. It took place in round five:

[Event "FIDE Grand Prix - Tbilisi"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2015.02.20"]
[Round "5.6"]
[White "Jobava, Baadur"]
[Black "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Result "1-0"]
[WhiteElo "2696"]
[BlackElo "2759"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "54"]
[EventDate "2015.??.??"]
[WhiteClock "0:02:21"]
[BlackClock "0:51:07"]

1. b3 {The Nimzowitch-Larsen opening can nowadays be named after Baadur who is
commonly using it and keeps on finding fresh ideas.} Nf6 2. Bb2 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7
4. d4 {[%csl Yb2][%cal Gb2d4] Diagram [#] Georgian's favorite move. It seems
illogical to close the bishop that had just occupied the long diagonal, but
Jobava has an opinion of his own.} c5 5. e3 cxd4 6. exd4 d5 7. Qd2 Nc6 8. O-O-O
({One very fresh example of Baadur's saw} 8. f3 h5 {Perhaps this is what
inspired Shakh for what he did later in the game.} 9. Bb5 Qd6 10. Nge2 Bh6 11.
Qd1 Bf5 {and Black already very comfortable in Jobava,B (2727)-Carlsen,M (2862)
Wijk aan Zee 2015}) 8... Qa5 $146 ({A novelty upon a game these two played
earlier. That game saw} 8... O-O 9. f3 h5 10. Kb1 Bf5 11. a3 Rc8 {with
double-edged game in Jobava,B (2711)-Mamedyarov,S (2764) Beijing 2012}) 9. f3
h5 10. Kb1 Bf5 11. Bd3 $1 {[%csl Yd4][%cal Re1e8,Rd1d8] Diagram [#] This
enterprising pawn sacrifice is practically forced.} ({The normal development}
11. Nge2 $2 {is just bad as Black has concrete threats} Nb4 12. Rc1 Nxa2 $1) ({
While a waiting move like} 11. a3 {allows all the joy for Black after either}
Rc8 ({Or} 11... a6)) 11... Nxd4 $1 {Shakh goes for it! He could have easily
kept the balance after} (11... Bxd3 12. Qxd3 e6 {but he decided that the risk
is worth it.}) 12. Nge2 Nxe2 ({Worse is} 12... Bxd3 13. Nxd4 Ba6 14. Rhe1 {
when Black cannot easily evacuate the king from the center. For example} e6 15.
Nxe6 $1 fxe6 16. Rxe6+ Kf7 17. Nxd5 Qxd2 18. Re7+ Kf8 19. Rxd2 {and the attack
continues in the endgame.}) 13. Qxe2 Bd7 $1 {Correct decision. Generally,
Black would be happy to trade pieces. The problem with the move} (13... Bxd3 {
however is that it brings the white attackers too quick} 14. Rxd3 Rd8 (14... e6
$2 15. Nxd5 $1 {is a nice tactical shot.}) 15. Rhd1 {when Black is once again
losing the central pawn} e6 16. Nxd5 Rxd5 17. Rxd5 Nxd5 18. Bxg7 {with clear
advantage for White} Nc3+ 19. Bxc3 Qxc3 20. Qb5+ Qc6 21. Qxc6+ bxc6 22. Rd6)
14. Rhe1 e6 {For the pawn Baadur managed to bring his rooks in the center, but
what comes next? One more move and the black king will escape from the
dangerous zone and Shakh will start converting the extra pawn.} 15. Bxg6 $5 {
[%csl Ye8] Diagram [#] ! Nope, the king will stay in the center. Jobava
follows the classical rule. If the opponent's king is in the center, open
files to reach it.} fxg6 16. Nxd5 Nxd5 ({There is no time to escape} 16... O-O
17. Nxf6+ Bxf6 18. Rxd7) 17. Bxg7 Rg8 $5 {Mamedyarov rejects the draw after} (
17... Nc3+ 18. Bxc3 Qxc3 19. Rxd7 $1 Kxd7 20. Qxe6+ Kc7 21. Qf7+ Kc8 {The king
has to stay on the back rank as going up may lead to a big fall down} (21...
Kc6 $2 22. Re6+ Kc5 23. Qc7+ {and mate after} Kb4 24. Qxb7+ Kc5 25. Qc6+ Kb4
26. a3+ Kxa3 27. Qa4#) 22. Re8+ Rxe8 23. Qxe8+ Kc7 24. Qxa8 {White regains the
piece and is even a piece up, but the presense of their Majesties on the board
with the kings wide open will sooner or later lead to a perpetual after} Qe1+
25. Kb2 Qe5+ 26. c3 Qxh2 27. Qxa7 Qxg2+ $11) ({However, it seems as that the
best defense was the subtle} 17... Rh7 $1 18. Qe5 (18. Bb2 $5 Nc3+ 19. Bxc3
Qxc3 20. Rd6 O-O-O {brings the king into safety.}) 18... Kf7 19. c4 ({The
difference with the game continuation becomes apparent after} 19. Rxd5 Qxd5 20.
Qf6+ Kg8 $1) 19... Rxg7 20. cxd5 Kg8 21. dxe6 Qxe5 22. Rxe5 {White has two
pawns for the piece, but this is not enough here.}) 18. Qe5 Rxg7 $6 {[%csl Yd5]
Diagram [#] Tempting! When under attack it makes sense to annihilate as many
many active pieces as possible, even if we give back part of the material.
This however has a nice refutation.} ({White's attack is very strong in case of
} 18... Kf7 19. Rxd5 Qxd5 20. Qf6+ Ke8 21. Qxg6+ Kd8 22. Qf7 Kc7 23. Re3) ({But
} 18... Qc7 {looked like the best defense with the idea} 19. Qxd5 (19. Qb2
O-O-O) 19... Rxg7 20. Rxe6+ $6 ({Instead} 20. Qd4 $1 Kf8 21. g4 {keeps the
game unclear as the king is still vulnerable.}) 20... Bxe6 21. Qxe6+ Qe7 {and
Black holds and wins.}) 19. Rxd5 $1 {The knight is a very important defender.
Now the attack on the open files is furious!} Qb4 20. Rd6 Kf8 ({Once more
there is no time to saveguard the king} 20... O-O-O $2 21. Re4 Qa3 22. Rc4+ Bc6
23. Rxd8+ Kxd8 24. Qxg7) 21. Red1 Bc6 $2 {This loses instantly, but
objectively speaking Black was already in bad shape. True, after the most
resilent} (21... Be8 22. Rxe6 Bf7 23. Rd7 Kg8 {[%csl Rg8] Diagram [#] Baadur
had to find the following amazing resource} 24. Rxf7 $3 Kxf7 (24... Rxf7 {is
easier for White after} 25. Rxg6+ Kf8 26. Rh6) 25. Qd5 $3 {Ambush.} Kf8 26. Re4
$3 {A truly remarkable position! The two white heavy pieces dominate the three
black. Spirit rules material. White wins the queen at least. For example} Qa3 (
26... Qc3 27. Rf4+ Ke8 28. Qb5+ Kd8 29. Re4 Rc8 30. Qe8+ Kc7 31. Rc4+ Qxc4 32.
Qe5+) 27. Rf4+ Ke8 28. Ra4 Qf8 29. Re4+ Re7 30. Qb5+ Kf7 31. Rf4+) 22. R1d4 {
Not bad, but there was an instant win.} ({It seems as both the players missed
the important deflection after} 22. Rd8+ Rxd8 23. Rxd8+ Kf7 (23... Be8 24. Qf6+
Rf7 25. Qh8+) (23... Ke7 24. Rd4) 24. a3 $3 {when the queen has to abandon the
f4 square and thus lose the game} (24. c3 {should also do}) 24... Qe7 ({Or
mate after} 24... Qxa3 25. Qf4+ Ke7 26. Qf8#) 25. Qf4+ Qf6 26. Rf8+ $1 Kxf8 27.
Qxf6+ {and White wins.}) 22... Qb5 23. Rd8+ $2 {Lets the win slip away.} (23.
Qxe6 $1 {kept tremendous attack, say} Qg5 24. h4 Qe7 25. Qc4) 23... Rxd8 24.
Rxd8+ Ke7 25. Qd6+ Kf6 26. Qd4+ {Diagram [#]} Kf7 $4 {The culmination of the
battle and the last mistake. Shakh became once more overambitious and
blundered checkmate.} (26... Ke7 $1 {was mandatory when White can repeat the
moves} 27. Qd6+ ({Or try} 27. a4 {which should also lead to some perpetual
after} Qf5 28. Qd6+ Kf6 29. Rf8+ Rf7 30. Qd8+ Kg7 31. Rg8+ Kh6 32. Rh8+ Kg7 ({
But not} 32... Rh7 33. h4 $3 {when the black king is once again surrounded} Qf7
34. Rg8 $1 Rg7 35. Rf8 {Oh wait, was that the queen?}) 33. Rg8+ $11)) 27. Qf4+
Ke7 {An epic battle of two of the most creative players of our time!} ({And
not waiting to see the mate, Shakh resigned.} 27... Ke7 28. Qf8#) 1-0

Report.

Exciting Draw as a Desert

The Tashkent Grand Prix brought a lot of joy and excitement for the chess fans all over the world.
This game from the last round was a sweet finish of the event:

[Event "FIDE Grand Prix Tashkent 2014-15"]
[Site "Tashkent"]
[Date "2014.11.02"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Jobava, Baadur"]
[Black "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A70"]
[WhiteElo "2717"]
[BlackElo "2764"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "74"]
[EventDate "2014.??.??"]
[EventCountry "UZB"]

{For the first and last time in this tournament we are going to break the
tradition and analyze a draw game instead of a decisive one.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4
c5 3. d5 e6 4. Nc3 exd5 5. cxd5 d6 {In the decisive round Mamedyarov pays a
tribute to his great compatriot Vugar Gashimov. The Benoni took key part in
Vugar's opening repertoire and it is quite likely the two Azeri Super-GMs have
studied the opening together.} ({Still, the choice of the opening should have
been a surprise for Baadur, as I have found only one game in the database
where Shakhriyar chose the Snake Benoni} 5... Bd6) 6. e4 ({Rather surprisingly,
the Benoni is a rare guest in Jobava's games. He had tried here the rare lines
after} 6. Nf3 g6 7. Bg5 ({And also} 7. Qa4+)) 6... g6 7. Nf3 Bg7 8. h3 {This
time the sharp modern line was chosen by Jobava.} O-O 9. Bd3 b5 10. Nxb5 Nxe4
$5 {Many sources consider this option tempting, but inferior. This evaluation
might reconsidered after the game.} ({Vugar Gashimov preferred instead the
main line} 10... Re8 11. O-O Nxe4 12. Re1 a6 13. Na3 Nf6 14. Rxe8+ Nxe8 $11 {
Karjakin,S (2721)-Gashimov,V (2730) Baku 2009}) 11. Bxe4 Re8 12. Ng5 Qa5+ 13.
Nc3 Ba6 {Black sacrificed a whole piece but managed to keep the opponent's
king in the center. The white pieces are rather lose as well and various
threats, like teh simple pawn pushes h7-h6 and f7-f5 are in the air.} 14. Bd2
Nd7 $1 {Development above all! Bad is:} (14... h6 15. Ne6 $1 fxe6 16. dxe6 Rxe6
17. Qg4 $16) ({and} 14... f5 15. Ne6 fxe4 16. Nxe4 $16) 15. Qc2 Rab8 $1 {Once
again Shakh neglects the material in favour of the pure energy.} ({A tempting
alternative is} 15... Ne5 16. O-O-O f5 17. f4 Nc4 18. Bd3 Nxb2 $1 19. Kxb2 {
Diagram [#] in conjunction with the computer blow} Re3 $3 $146 {[%csl Rb2,Yc3,
Yd3][%cal Rg7a1,Ra5c3,Rb8b1,Re3d3] None has ever tested this in over the board
game and it is definitely worth analyzes!} ({Instead} 19... Bxd3 20. Qxd3 $18 {
left Black with no counterplay in Murali Krishnan,B (2412)-Turov,M (2624)
Mumbai 2010}) {The key idea of the line is} 20. Bxe3 Rb8+ 21. Kc1 Qa3+ 22. Kd2
Rb2) ({Once again regaining the piece seems insufficient} 15... f5 16. Ne6 fxe4
17. Nxe4 Qb6 18. Bc3 Bh6 19. Bd2 Ne5 20. Bxh6 Qb4+ 21. Bd2 {1-0 (21) Ulibin,M
(2523)-Munoz Pantoja,M (2459) Montcada 2013}) 16. O-O-O Ne5 {This whole line
was mentioned in a recent book on the Benoni by GM Petrov. The eveluation is
clear plus for White on the account of the game below.} 17. Rhe1 $146 {[%csl
Ye8][%cal Ge1e8] Diagram [#] The most natural move is a novelty. "I understood
that Shakhriyar is very well prepared and decided to play safe"- Jobava.} ({
The only predecessor saw:} 17. Na4 Qd8 18. Rde1 f5 19. f4 fxe4 20. fxe5 Bd3 21.
Qd1 Bxe5 {and eventhough White managed to win later it is quite obvious that
Black has at least clear compensation for the piece, Bern,I (2590)-Olafsson,H
(2545) Sweden 1994}) 17... Rec8 $1 {The idea is to meet the threat Nc3-a4 with
the next move.} ({The main problem for Black now is that he cannot play
actively with the knight} 17... Nc4 18. Bd3 Rxe1 19. Rxe1 Rxb2 20. Re8+ Bf8 21.
Qxb2 (21. Qa4 $1 {looks also very strong.}) 21... Nxb2 22. Bxa6 {and both the
players agreed that White has too much material for the queen.}) 18. Na4 Rb4 $1
{"I was chocked when you played this as I thought I was winning" said Baadur
to his opponent at the press conference. "Yes, but after..."} 19. f4 {"The
only move"-Shakh.} Nc4 20. Bf5 $1 {[%csl Rf7,Rh7][%cal Rf5c8,Yc2f5,Rf5f7,Rf5h7]
Diagram [#] "I remembered somehing- my analyzes", said Shakh. "Now White is
either winning, or losing."} ({One of the lines where White is losing arises
after the natural capture-} 20. Bxb4 $2 cxb4 21. Bd3 b3 $1 22. axb3 Bxb2+ $1
23. Nxb2 Qa1+ 24. Qb1 Na3+ $19) 20... Rcb8 {This time this is an only move for
Black.} ({Bad is} 20... gxf5 21. Qxf5 Qxa4 22. Qxf7+ Kh8 23. Bc3 {as it is
White who is mating.}) ({And also} 20... Nxd2 21. Bxc8 $18 {wins simply for
White.}) 21. Bxb4 Qxb4 22. a3 (22. Qb3 $5 gxf5 (22... Bb5 23. Qxb4 cxb4 24. Bc2
$18) 23. Qxb4 (23. Re7 Bb5 24. Nc3 Nxb2 25. Qxb4 cxb4 26. Nxb5 Nxd1 27. Nxd6
Bf8 28. Rxa7 Bxd6 29. Kxd1 Bxf4 30. Nxf7) 23... cxb4 {[%cal Ga6b5] followed by
Ba6-b5. "I did not like this as the bishop on g7 is very strong"- Jobava.} 24.
Re7 Bb5 25. Rxa7 Bxa4 26. Rxa4 Nxb2 27. Ra6 (27. Ra7)) 22... Nxa3 $1 {Missed
by Jobava.} ({White was hoping for} 22... Qa5 {although it seems as the
players were seeing ghosts in the post mortem-} 23. Bd3 $2 ({Probably White
should go for the wild complications after} 23. b3 Nxa3 24. Qd2 Qb5 25. Qe3
gxf5 26. Nxf7 Qxa4 $5 27. Nh6+ (27. bxa4 Rb1+ 28. Kd2 Rb2+ 29. Kc1 Rc2#) 27...
Bxh6 28. Qg3+ Kf7 29. Re7+ Kxe7 30. Qh4+ Kd7 31. bxa4 {when nothing is clear
as usual in this game.}) 23... Nxb2 24. Nxb2 Qxa3 ({None of them mentioned the
simple move} 24... Bxb2+ {after which it is Black who is winning} 25. Qxb2 Rxb2
26. Kxb2 Bxd3 27. Re8+ {or else the rook on e1 is hanging} Kg7 28. Rxd3 Qb5+ $1
{[%csl Rd3,Re8][%cal Rb5d3,Rb5e8]}) 25. Bxa6 Bc3 26. Rd3 {and even in this
line White is not winning, say} Qa1+ 27. Qb1 Bxb2+ 28. Kc2 Qa4+ 29. Kd2 Bc3+
30. Kxc3 Rxb1 31. Rxb1 Qxa6 {the active queen is capable of miracles when the
opponent's king is not safe.}) 23. bxa3 Qxa3+ ({Better than} 23... Qxf4+ 24.
Rd2 (24. Qd2 $2 Qxa4) 24... Qxg5 25. Bd3 c4 26. Bxc4 Rc8 (26... Qg3 $5 {is
still unclear!}) 27. Bxa6 Rxc2+ 28. Kxc2 {with the idea} Qh4 $2 29. Re8+ $18)
24. Kd2 Qg3 $1 {"Once that I found this move I thought it is great for me. I
have no rook, no knight, but that is OK!"- Mamedyarov.} 25. Rb1 $1 {Baadur
trades the active black rook and saves the game.} (25. Re4 gxf5 $19) 25...
Qxf4+ 26. Kd1 Rxb1+ 27. Qxb1 Qd4+ 28. Kc1 Qf4+ 29. Kd1 gxf5 {Shakh tries his
last chance for a win.} ({The Azeri GM did not like the endgame after} 29...
Qxa4+ 30. Qc2 Qd4+ 31. Qd2 Qxd2+ $6 ({Here too Black can force a draw if he
likes} 31... Qa1+ 32. Qc1 Qd4+ $11) 32. Kxd2 gxf5 33. Re8+ Bf8 34. Nxh7 $16)
30. Re8+ Bf8 {Diagram [#]} 31. Nxc5 $1 {Once more a very precise decision.} ({
The position remains equal after} 31. Rxf8+ Kxf8 32. Ne6+ fxe6 33. Qb8+ Kg7 34.
Qxa7+ Kf6 35. Qxa6 Qd4+ 36. Ke1 Qxd5 37. Nc3 $11 {but it is definitely much
easier to play here as Black!}) 31... Qd4+ 32. Kc1 Qxc5+ 33. Qc2 Qg1+ 34. Qd1
Qc5+ 35. Qc2 Qg1+ 36. Qd1 Qxg2 {The last try.} 37. Qh5 (37. Nxh7 Kxh7 38. Rxf8
Qxh3 39. Rxf7+ Kg6 {would be once more easier to play as Black albeit drawish.}
) 37... Qg1+ {And due to the mating threats Black is forced to give the
perpetual. One of those draws we would be happy to see more often!} 1/2-1/2

Congratulations to Dmitry Andreikin for the clear win of the event!

Time Trouble

The ninth round of the Tashkent Grand Prix saw more exciting chess with two black wins. Shakhriyar Mamedyarov was quite lucky to turn the tables in his favour against Dmitry Jakovenko:

[Event "Tashkent FIDE GP"]
[Site "Tashkent UZB"]
[Date "2014.10.31"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Jakovenko, D."]
[Black "Mamedyarov, S."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A04"]
[WhiteElo "2747"]
[BlackElo "2764"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "72"]
[EventDate "2014.10.20"]

1. Nf3 {In this game Mamedyarov surprised his opponent with the Dutch defense.
One should be looking forward to those surprises at a top level. Especially
after the free days!} f5 {"It is the second time in my life that I play 1...f5.
I just wanted to play chess." Mamedyarov} 2. c4 Nf6 3. g3 g6 4. b4 d6 5. d4 Bg7
6. Bb2 {However, it seems as something went wrong with Shakh's preparation as
after the game he called his next move a mistake} e5 $6 7. dxe5 Nfd7 8. Bg2
dxe5 ({Probably the lesser eveil for the second player is} 8... Nc6 9. Qb3
Ndxe5 10. Nxe5 dxe5 $14 {Kovalyov,A (2599)-Mastrovasilis,A (2539) Leros 2010})
9. O-O Qe7 {Diagram [#]} 10. e4 $1 $146 {A powerful novelty which Jakovenko
found over the board.} ({Black hoped he will have time to play e5-e4 himself,
for example} 10. Nc3 c6 11. b5 e4 $132 {Gagliardi,V (2034)-Fister,B (2235)
ICCF email 2008}) 10... O-O ({Black suggested the following line at the press
conference as advantageous for White} 10... f4 11. gxf4 (11. Ba3 $1 {also
looks fine as} O-O 12. b5 Nc5 13. Qd5+ {loses a piece for Black.}) 11... exf4
12. Bxg7 Qxg7 13. e5 $16) (10... Qxb4 $2 {would be horrible and will give a
chance to Shakh to become part of the miniature textbooks} 11. Ba3 Qxc4 12.
exf5 {and if Black is still greedy the game might rapidly finish} gxf5 13. Ng5
$1 Nf6 ({There is also the fancy line} 13... h5 14. Bd5 Qa6 15. Bf7+ Kd8 16.
Ne6+) 14. Re1 $18 {with decisive attack in the center, say} e4 15. Nd2 Qa6 16.
Ndxe4 $1 fxe4 17. Bxe4 {[%csl Ge4,Re8][%cal Ge1e8,Gd1d8,Ga3f8,Gg5f7,Ge4g6,
Ge4c6] Diagram [#]}) 11. b5 $1 {Energetic play! Jakovenko will tie up the
black pieces before they wake up from the slumber.} Nc5 12. Nc3 Be6 13. Nd5 Qd6
14. Ng5 $16 {"It is very bad", repeated Mamedyarov, shaking his head.} Nbd7 15.
Ba3 Bf7 {A critical moment.} ({Black wanted to play} 15... Rae8 {but did not
like the lines after} 16. exf5 gxf5 {is even worse} (16... Bxf5 17. g4 $1 Bd3 (
17... Be6 18. Ne4 $1 {[%csl Rd6] Diagram [#] curiously traps the queen in the
middle of the board.}) 18. Qxd3 Nxd3 19. Bxd6 cxd6 {with big advantage for
White as he wins at least a pawn after} 20. Ne4 Re6 21. Rad1 Nb2 22. Nc7 $16)
17. Qh5 h6 18. Nxe6 Rxe6 (18... Qxe6 19. Nxc7) 19. Rad1 $18) 16. Qc2 {A good
move with the idea Ra1-d1, but it gives some time to Black to catch his breath
up.} (16. exf5 $1 {would have increased White's advantage. The timely capture
on f5 is a common theme in both the KID and the Dutch. It is curious to know
what did the former European champion Jakovenko miss in this line. White is
most likely winning after} gxf5 17. Ne3 $1 {Mamedyarov} Qxd1 18. Raxd1 {with
the threats Ne3xf5, Bg2xb7, Ng5-e6, Bg2-d5 and maybe five more that I am
missing.} e4 19. Nxf5 Bxc4 20. Nxg7 Bxf1 21. Rxf1 Kxg7 22. Nxe4 b6 (22... Nxe4
23. Bxf8+) 23. Nxc5 Nxc5 24. Bxa8 Rxa8 25. Bxc5 bxc5 26. Rc1 $18) 16... c6 17.
Nb4 a5 {Now the games follows a forced line.} 18. Rad1 ({The computer suggests
} 18. Na6 $5 bxa6 19. Rad1 Qf6 20. bxc6 Qxc6 (20... Qxg5 21. cxd7 Qe7 22. exf5
$16) 21. exf5 e4 22. Nxe4 Nxe4 23. Bxe4 Qc7 24. Bd6 Qa7 25. Bxf8 Rxf8 26. fxg6
hxg6 27. Bxg6 $16 {and if this was played during the game I suggest that we
replace the human players with computers for the next cycle.}) 18... Qf6 19.
Nd3 Qxg5 ({Clearly worse is} 19... Nxd3 20. Rxd3 Qxg5 21. Rxd7 $18) 20. Nxc5
Nxc5 21. Bxc5 {Black managed to trade the horses but his position remains
unpleasant. White can push for the win without any risk. Unfortunately for the
Russian player, he got into time trouble.} Rfd8 $5 {Lures the bishop on the
less active b6 square.} ({After} 21... Rfc8 22. Rd7 $1 cxb5 23. Be7 Qh5 24. c5
$16 {White's clearly better due to the miscoordinated black pieces.}) 22. Bb6
Rdc8 23. exf5 $6 {Seven moves ago this was winning, now it lets the advantage
slip away. Chess that is...} (23. Rd7 $1 {Diagram [#] suggested by Shakhriyar
was best. He also showed the principled line} cxb5 24. c5 $1 Be8 {this is what
he wanted to play but Black is not doing great at all} (24... f4 25. Rxb7 Bc4
26. Rd1 Rab8 27. Rxb8 Rxb8 28. a4 $1 {wins for White.}) ({As does also} 24...
Bc4 25. exf5 Bxf1 26. Kxf1 $18 {and Black is helpless.}) 25. Rxb7 Bc6 {Here
Mamedyarov was not sure about the line} 26. Qb3+ ({But instead} 26. exf5 $1
Bxg2 27. Kxg2 Qxf5 28. Qb3+ Kh8 29. Qd5 {is huge advatage for White}) 26... Kh8
27. Rf7) 23... Qxf5 24. Be4 {Surprisingly the most natural move is inaccuracy.
It is interesting to see how differently the two players were evaluating the
position. Jakovenko thoought that he might be already worse, while Mamedyarov
stated that after his next move he is OK.} (24. Qxf5 gxf5 25. bxc6 bxc6 26. Rc1
Ra6 27. Bc5 Bf8 {with chances for a draw was suggested at the press conference.
}) (24. Rd2 $5 {was still leaving White somewhat better} Qxc2 25. Rxc2) 24...
Qe6 $11 25. bxc6 bxc6 26. c5 {In the time trouble Jakovenko tries to force a
draw, but this is very hard task against the mischievous Mamedyarov.} (26. Rc1
{was safer} Bh6 27. Be3 Bxe3 28. fxe3 $11) 26... Qxa2 27. Qxa2 Bxa2 28. Rd6 Bc4
29. Rb1 $2 {This is the actual mistake!} (29. Ra1 Bb5 30. Rxa5 Rxa5 31. Bxa5
Bf8 32. Re6 {was sugegsted by Mamedyarov at the press conference and he added
that the rook is not trapped after} ({White can aslo defend with} 32. Rd2 Bxc5
33. Bc3 Re8 34. Bc2) 32... Kf7 33. Rxe5 Bg7 ({In this line the Azeri GM missed
the geometrical motif} 33... Ra8 $1 {when the white bishop will have to stand
on the same diagonal with the bishop sooner or later} 34. Bd2 (34. Bb4 Ra4 35.
Bc3 Rc4 36. Bb2 Bg7 $19) (34. Bc3 Bg7) (34. Be1 Ra1 35. Bf3 Bg7 36. Re3 Bd4 37.
Re4 Bc3 $19) 34... Bg7 35. Rg5 Bh6 {still, it is hard to say if Black can win
this after the counter trick} 36. Rxg6 $5 Bxd2 37. Rd6 Bb4 38. Bxc6 Ra1+ 39.
Kg2 Bf1+ 40. Kf3 Bxc5 41. Bd5+ $17) 34. Rg5 {but if we continue the line with
the move} Be2 {we shall see that White's problems are still there. The rook is
not feeling comfortable at all, pour some zeitnot to that and you know how it
feels.}) 29... a4 $19 {Now the a passer is obviously much stronger than the c
one.} 30. Rxc6 a3 31. Rxc8+ (31. Rd6 {was suggested by Shakh as a last chance
for his adversary, but Black should win that too} a2 32. Ra1 Ra4 {with teh
idea to clear the diagonal for the dark-squared bishop.}) 31... Rxc8 32. c6 a2
33. Ra1 Bf8 34. c7 Bd6 35. Bb7 {Diagram [#]} Bxc7 $1 {The last finesse.} ({
Jakovenko was hoping for} 35... Rxc7 36. Bxc7 Bxc7 37. Be4 {followed by
Be4-b1! and chances for a draw.}) 36. Bxc8 Bxb6 {White loses the rook and
resigned. Jakovenko got big advantage out of the opening. He missed to
increase it by opening the position and then let it all slip away in the time
trouble.} 0-1

Shakhriyar is now sharing the second place with Nakamura. A sole leader is Dmitry Andreikin who won also with the black pieces to the former co-leader Baadur Jobava. Standings.

Was the Initiative Enough?

Round three in Tashkent saw three decisive games. In the following one White sacrificed a pawn early in the opening. Was the sacrifice good enough for an advantage? Or at least for a level game?
Check out for yourselves:

[Event "Tashkent FIDE GP"]
[Site "Tashkent UZB"]
[Date "2014.10.23"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Kasimdzhanov, R."]
[Black "Jobava, Ba"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "C10"]
[WhiteElo "2706"]
[BlackElo "2717"]
[Annotator "Bojkov, Dejan"]
[PlyCount "66"]
[EventDate "2014.10.20"]

1. e4 e6 {Baadur Jobava came to Tashkent immediately after the Unive
tournament in Netherlands. He replaced the Iranian GM Ghaem Maghami as the
Tehran withdraw from hosting one of the events at the very last moment. The
Iranian capital was replaced by the Georgian one as a host city and this
certainly added flavour to the current Grand Prix. Jobava is an extremely
original player.} 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Bd7 5. Nf3 Bc6 6. Bd3 Nd7 7. O-O
Ngf6 8. Ng3 g6 {[%cal Gf8g7] Diagram [#] A very interesting idea of the
Swedish GM Hillarp Persson. It should not come as a surprise for Kasimdzhanov
as his opponent had already used it twice this year.} (8... Be7 {is the common
choice for the second player. Later he will capture on f3 and build a solid
wall with the move c7-c6. That position will be solid, but passive though and
it is not to everyone's liking.}) 9. c4 {White starts an immediate attack in
the center.} ({Probably the calmer development offers more-} 9. b3 Bg7 10. Ba3
Bxf3 11. Qxf3 c6 12. c4 {with some advantage for White in Solak,D (2632)
-Jobava,B (2713) Tromsoe 2014}) ({The stem game saw} 9. Qe2 Bg7 10. Ne5 Nxe5
11. dxe5 Qd5 12. f4 Ng4 13. h3 Qd4+ 14. Kh1 h5 15. c3 {1/2 (15) Hellers,F
(2652)-Hillarp Persson,T (2562) Sweden 2001}) 9... Bg7 10. d5 {The point.
White opens up the center and spoils the castling of the black king.} exd5 11.
Re1+ Kf8 {[%csl Yf8] Diagram [#]} 12. cxd5 $146 {This move is a novelty.
Jobava have previously faced:} (12. Nd4 Kg8 13. Qc2 Nf8 14. Nxc6 bxc6 15. Qa4 {
White has a pair of bishops and light-square compensation for the pawn in
Karjakin,S (2772)-Jobava,B (2706) Loo 2014}) 12... Bxd5 ({Better than} 12...
Nxd5 13. Bg5 Bf6 14. Bh6+ Bg7 15. Qd2 {and the black pieces are stuck.}) 13.
Qc2 $5 {An interesting decision. Rustam is not afraid to spoil his pawn
structure in return for the mighty black bishop.} c6 $1 ({In case of} 13...
Bxf3 14. gxf3 c6 {White can start advancing the pawn on the king's side} 15. f4
Kg8 16. f5 $36) 14. Ng5 {Kasimdzhanov revealed at the press conference that he
thought at first that his position is easier to play but somewhere around this
point he understood that it might be the other way round. Indeed, Black
simply wants to finish the development, hide the king on h7 after h7-h6 and
Kf8-g8-h7 and then convert the extra pawn.} Kg8 {Sooner or later Jobava has to
play this. It makes no sense to target the knight on g5 which does not attack
anything anyway.} (14... h6 15. Nh3 {only pushes it to a better position, for
example} Kg8 16. Nf4 {and White is ready to sacrifice on g6} h5 17. Bxg6 $5
fxg6 18. Nxg6 Rh7 {with a pleasant to choice for White to force a draw with}
19. Ne7+ ({Or continue the attack} 19. Nf5 $5) 19... Kh8 (19... Kf7 $2 {loses
to} 20. Qg6+ Kf8 21. Nxd5 cxd5 22. Nf5 $18 {[%csl Re7,Rg7][%cal Re1e7,Rf5g7]
with the dual threat of Nf5xg7 and Re1-e7.}) 20. Ng6+ $11) 15. Bf4 (15. Bd2 {
was also an idea but Black was afraid of} Ng4 $5 16. h3 Nxf2 $1 17. Kxf2 Bd4+
18. Kf1 Qf6+ {with powerful attack.}) 15... Nf8 16. Rad1 Qa5 {Black wisely
finishes the development first. The rook is coming on d8 and this reinforces
the center.} ({Jobava did not like} 16... h6 17. N5e4 Ne6 18. Be5 Nxe4 19. Bxe4
Bxe5 20. Bxd5 cxd5 21. Rxe5 $11) 17. a3 $6 {[%csl Yb3] Only here did White
commit a mistake. The b3 square is very important in some lines.} ({Correct was
} 17. N3e4 $1 {[%csl Yf6][%cal Ge1e8,Gd1d8] Diagram [#] This knight is the
only white piece that can do better and it makes sense to trade it. White
also needed some air for his pieces to prove the compensation. After} Nxe4 ({
Jobava also considered the sudden retreat} 17... Ne8 {but then White is just
better after taking the bishop} 18. Nc3 $1 h6 19. Nxd5) 18. Bxe4 {and now} {
Which leaves the move} Rd8 {when White can force a draw with} (18... Bxe4 $2 {
is a mistake which leaves all the open files for White} 19. Qxe4 Qf5 20. Qf3
$16 ({and even the endgame is better for White} 20. Qxf5 gxf5 21. Re7)) (18...
h6 $6 {allows White to convert development advantage into something tangible}
19. Bxd5 cxd5 20. Nf3 $14) 19. Bc7 $5 Qxc7 20. Bxd5 Bf6 21. Bxf7+ Kg7 22. Ne6+
Nxe6 23. Bxe6 $11) ({Also} 17. b3 Rd8 18. Be5 {was better than the move in the
game.}) 17... Rd8 18. Bd2 (18. Re7 Rd7 {is good for Black.}) ({But} 18. N3e4 $5
{was still possible} Nxe4 19. Nxe4 (19. Bxe4 {is weaker this time as Black has
enough central control} h6) 19... Ne6 20. Bg3 $44 {[%cal Ge4d6]}) 18... Qb6 $1
({Jobava does not allow the bishop a chance to occupy the long diagonal.} 18...
Qc7 19. Bc3 h6 20. N5e4 {is good for White.}) 19. Be3 ({White loses the
exchange after} 19. Bc3 Bb3 {and this is where we see why a2-a3 was inaccurate!
}) 19... Qc7 ({Rustam mentioned the pretty tactics} 19... Qb3 20. Bxg6 $1) 20.
h3 ({Unfortunately for White} 20. Bd4 Ne6 $1 21. Nxe6 Bxe6 22. Bc3 Nd5 {does
not bring the desired effect on the long diagonal as the black knight controls
the c3 square.}) 20... h6 21. N5e4 Ne6 22. Nxf6+ Bxf6 23. Be4 Kg7 $17 {Jobava
managed to consolidate his position and can now start converting his extra
pawn.} 24. Bxa7 $2 {A tactical oversight which eases Black's task. Rustam
thought that he forces a draw but missed a very strong in-between move.} ({Both
} 24. b4) ({or} 24. Rd2 {would have prolonged the game.}) 24... b6 25. Bxd5 ({
The engames after} 25. Rxd5 cxd5 26. Qxc7 Nxc7 {are hopeless for White} 27.
Bxb6 Rd7 ({or also} 27... dxe4 28. Bxc7 Rd7 29. Ba5 Bxb2) 28. Bxc7 Rxc7 29.
Bxd5 Bxb2 $19) 25... Nd4 $1 ({One draw is achieved after} 25... Rxd5 26. Rxd5
cxd5 27. Qxc7 Nxc7 28. Bxb6 $11) 26. Qa4 (26. Rxd4 Bxd4 27. Bb3 Qxg3 $19) 26...
Rxd5 27. Qa6 {[%csl Ya7][%cal Ra7b6,Ra6b6] Diagram [#]} Qd7 $3 {This is what
teh Uzbek GM missed! The threat Nd3-f3 forces a win for Black.} ({Kasimdzhanov
calculated the beautiful lines} 27... Ra8 28. Bxb6 Qb8 ({and the sweet draw
after} 28... Qxg3 29. Qxa8 Nf3+ 30. Kf1 Nh2+ $11) 29. Bc7 $1 {where White
escapes with a draw.}) 28. Rxd4 {The alternatives lose more material} (28. Bxb6
Nf3+ $19) (28. Kh1 Ra8 $19) 28... Bxd4 29. Bxb6 c5 30. Ba5 Bxb2 31. Qc4 Bd4 32.
Bc3 Ra8 33. Re3 Rxa3 {White started an early attack of the enemy king which
stayed in the center a bit longer than usual. This was worth the central pawn
but then Kasimdzhanov missed to open more room for his active pieces.
Whenever you have development advantage do try to open as many files and
diagonals as you can.} ({White resigned due to the line} 33... Rxa3 34. Bxd4+
Rxd4 35. Qxc5 Rxe3 36. fxe3 Rd1+ 37. Kh2 Qd6) 0-1

Playing at home is not an advantage for the chess players. There are plenty of distractions and the audience cannot cheer you up. However I hope that Kasimdzhanov will be back in the tournament and show better play.