[Event "FIDE Candidates Chess Tournaments 2024"] [Site "Toronto"] [Date "2024.04.21"] [Round "14"] [White "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Black "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [WhiteElo "2803"] [BlackElo "2758"] [Annotator "WGM Gulrukhbegim Tokhirjonova"] [Variant "Standard"] [ECO "D35"] [Opening "Queen's Gambit Declined: Exchange Variation, Positional Variation"] [StudyName "2024 FIDE Candidates and Women's Candidates Annotations Part II"] [ChapterName "Caruana, Fabiano - Nepomniachtchi, Ian"] [ChapterURL "https://lichess.org/study/1tCLzmR6/0bVjBohY"] [Orientation "white"] { Annotations by WGM Gulrukhbegim Tokhirjonova } 1. d4 { A very curious decision already from the first move. The two Americans (Nakamura and Caruana) have thus far both employed solely 1. e4 in this year's Candidates. However, in the final decisive round, with both needing wins, they change their strategies to 1. d4, perhaps fearing that their opponents may have had too much material from their previous games to work with in the case of 1. e4. } 1... Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Bg5 Bb4 { Considering Ian's situation going into this last round, this opening choice makes a lot of sense, immediately aiming for a big fight in order to get chances for a win. But for Fabi too, this wasn't an unwelcome sight since he gets his fair share of opportunities in the ensuing positions. It's an interesting question to ponder what Nepo would have chosen had Fabi chosen 1. e4; maybe some sort of Sicilian rather than his mainstay Petroff? } 6. e3 h6 7. Bh4 g5 8. Bg3 Ne4 9. Qc2 (9. Ne2 h5 10. h4 Nxg3 11. Nxg3 gxh4 12. Nxh5 { is another theoretical line that has been heavily discussed. }) 9... h5 10. f3 Nxg3 11. hxg3 Be6!? { Likely the first surprise for Caruana, while Nepo seemed to still be in preparation. } 12. Bd3 { Quite sensible to develop your pieces naturally in an unfamiliar position. } (12. e4 { was probably the main meat of Nepo's preparation: } 12... dxe4 (12... c6 { is possible too }) 13. O-O-O c6 14. fxe4 Qa5 { and Black should be able to equalize. }) (12. Qa4+ Nc6 13. Ba6!? { is an interesting, concrete approach, but it is impractical given that Nepo likely still had knowledge about the position. } 13... bxa6 (13... Bc8!?) 14. Qxc6+ Kf8) (12. a3 { looks natural as well, however Caruana may not have wanted to get involved with the position after } 12... Bxc3+ 13. Qxc3 Qd6 14. g4 (14. Ne2 Nc6 { with chances for both sides }) 14... Nd7 { with a check looming on g3. } (14... Qg3+?! 15. Kd2 Nd7? 16. Ne2 Qd6 17. gxh5 { would be a disaster for Black. })) 12... c6!? { Played quite quickly by Ian. It is always a difficult task to get inside the head of a chess player, but in this instance, Nepo may have been playing quickly as a slight bluff. There's nothing wrong with this move, but this may have been the moment where Ian was out of preparation or didn't recall the specifics. His move 12. ... c6 is a bit slow, but he likely played it because he remembered ... c7-c6 being a key move had Fabi chosen the lines with 12. e4 instead of 12. Bd3. } (12... Nd7! { was more flexible, keeping options of ... c7-c5 open, as well as keeping the bishop's retreat with ... Bb4-d6 possible in some cases. Black can always play ... c7-c6 later if they want to. } 13. a3 Bd6 (13... Bxc3+ 14. Qxc3 c6 { would transpose to a possible line after 12. ... c6, but keeping the bishop seems to be even better. }) 14. Nge2 (14. f4 gxf4 15. exf4 (15. gxf4 Nf6 { this is the difference, as Black is in time to complete his development }) 15... Qe7 { only helps Black. }) 14... c6 15. O-O-O Qa5 { Black definitely can't complain with how the opening has gone. }) 13. O-O-O { Again, a natural developing move, but Fabi could've forced Black's hand and taken advantage of the slightly slow 12. ... c6. Now Ian is back on track and has enough time to develop his queenside. } (13. a3! { would have forced Black to give up the bishop: } 13... Bxc3+ (13... Bd6? 14. f4! { is bad. This version with the pawn on c6 instead of the knight already on d7 proves disastrous, as Black doesn't have enough time to complete his development. } 14... Nd7? { drops a piece now to } 15. f5) 14. Qxc3 { and White has the clear edge with myriad possibilities to apply pressure, including expansion with b2-b4 and a2-a4, and Ra1-c1 and even using the a5-square for the queen, or striking on the kingside with g3-g4. } (14. bxc3!? { , preparing Ng1-e2, tucking the king on f2, and an eventual c3-c4, looks good too. })) 13... Nd7 { The knight has made it to d7, so now Nepo is ready for f3-f4 since the knight can always vacate to the f6-square and defend against the threat of f4-f5 (attempting to trap the bishop) if needed. } 14. f4 { A good practical decision to get some active play. In the long run, if Black develops and gets his king to safety, Black will likely take over with the two bishops and space on the kingside. White's hope lies in breaking open the position while Black is not yet fully coordinated. } (14. Nge2 Nb6 { would have promised Black a comfortable position. } (14... Qa5)) (14. e4 dxe4 15. fxe4 Qa5 { was not too appealing. } (15... Qf6)) 14... Bg4 { A natural reaction. But as we learned earlier, a good response to this f3-f4 idea is capturing on f4 so that the pawn on g5 isn't hanging, which in turn frees up Black for various ideas. } (14... gxf4 15. exf4 (15. gxf4?! Nf6 { Black stands better since White lacks any ways to open up the position favorably. }) 15... Bg4 (15... Nf6? 16. Nf3 { is awful since the black king still stands on e8. } 16... Qa5 17. f5 Bd7 18. Qe2+) 16. Re1+ { With the trade on f4, now the desirable trade of bishops } (16. Be2 { is thwarted by } 16... Qf6! { and the Black queen defends h8 and will not be distracted by f4xg5. }) 16... Kf8 { it's understandable why Ian did not opt for this, but the Black king is safer than it looks on f8 and Black's position has plenty of advantages too with the two bishops and a target on d4 that will come under fire after ... Qd8-f6. }) 15. Nf3 { Continuing in an active manner. However, since Ian did not exchange on f4, Fabi had the chance to favorably exchange the light-squared bishops: } (15. Be2 Bxe2 { Black has no time for } (15... gxf4? 16. Bxg4 { but }) (15... Qf6?! 16. Bxg4 hxg4 17. fxg5 { drops a pawn. This is the difference that Black could have avoided had he taken on f4 first before playing 14. ... Bg4. }) 16. Ngxe2 gxf4 (16... Qe7 17. e4 dxe4 18. d5! { and Black's king has nowhere good to hide. }) 17. e4 { and once again White has managed to open the position. } (17. gxf4)) 15... Qe7?! { The start of Nepo's problems. Once again, he had the chance to remove White's possibility of e3-e4 by taking on f4. } (15... gxf4! 16. exf4 (16. gxf4 Qe7 { is not the same: } 17. e4 dxe4 18. Bxe4 O-O-O { and Black has time for all this because the pawn on g5 isn't hanging. }) 16... Bxf3 { removing the threat of Nf3-e5 or Nf3-g5. } 17. gxf3 Qf6 { Black has a preferable position due to his better structure. White has weaknesses on d4 as well as a tender kingside that can collapse at any time when g3 is targeted or ... h5-h4 occurs. }) 16. e4 { Now, Black is in a tough spot since the center is opened and White threatens the pawn on g5 as well as threats down the e-file. } 16... Bxc3?! { It's hard to fault Black for losing his way in a position with many problems. But this hands the initiative and all the chances in the world to White. Nepo had to find a concrete solution to his problems. } (16... dxe4 17. Bxe4 gxf4! { Black takes care of his first problem: the hanging pawn on g5. However this looks extremely scary with the pin down the e-file on the horizon. } 18. Bxc6! (18. Rhe1 O-O-O! { is a gutsy call } 19. Bxc6 Qf8! { Black tucks all his pieces out of harm's way and White's left high and dry with nothing but a perpetual. } 20. Nd5! (20. Nb5?! Kb8 21. Bxb7 Ba5! { protecting c7 } 22. Be4 { Not } (22. Ba6? Rh6! { when the bishop is trapped. }) 22... Rc8 23. Nc3 f5 { and the tables have turned with Black calling the shots. }) (20. Be4?! Kb8 21. gxf4 Nf6 { White is temporarily a pawn up but will come under serious pressure with ... Qf8-d6, ... Rd8-c8, and ... Rh8-e8 all coming. }) (20. Bxd7+?! Rxd7 { leads to no useful discoveries. }) 20... Bxe1 21. Bxb7+ (21. Bxd7+ Kb8! 22. Qc7+ Ka8 23. Bc6 Bc8! { Black has successfully defended all the threats. Not } (23... Rb8?? 24. Nb6+! axb6 25. Qxb6 { and resignation is forced due to the mate on a6. })) 21... Kxb7 22. Qc7+ Ka8 23. Qc6+ Kb8 24. Qc7+ Ka8) 18... Bxc3! { Fire is met with fire! } (18... bxc6?! 19. Rhe1 Be6 20. gxf4 { is not appetizing with both f4-f5 and d4-d5 on White's radar. }) 19. Bxb7 (19. bxc3? Qa3+ 20. Kb1 bxc6 $19) (19. Qxc3? Rc8 20. Rhe1 (20. d5 Qe3+! 21. Qxe3+ fxe3 { Black swaps the queens and White's bishop is still a kebab. }) 20... Rxc6! $19 { both queens drop but White loses a bishop in the process. }) (19. Bxd7+?! Qxd7 20. bxc3 O-O-O! 21. gxf4 Rh6 { White is a pawn up but stands worse since his king is weaker and Black also can take on f3 whenever he wants, giving himself a passed h-pawn and neutralizing White's pawn advantage by doubling up the f-pawns. }) 19... Rb8 (19... Bxb2+!? 20. Kxb2 Qb4+ 21. Qb3 Qxb3+ 22. axb3 Rb8 23. Bc6 fxg3 24. Ra1 O-O 25. Bxd7 Bxd7 26. Rxh5 f6 27. Rxa7 Rf7 { White has an extra pawn but Black should hold due to the limited material and the long range of his bishop. }) 20. Qxc3 O-O! (20... Rxb7?? { of course drops the rook to } 21. Qc8+) 21. Bc6 Rbc8 22. d5 Nb8 { and the struggle continues with equal chances. }) 17. Qxc3 Bxf3 { There were no pleasant alternatives. } (17... dxe4 18. Bxe4 { Black has problems with the g5-pawn and threats down the e-file, and he can't solve both at once. } 18... O-O-O (18... gxf4?! 19. Rde1! { leaves Black with no bailout this time. If } 19... O-O-O?! { then } 20. Bxc6 Qd6 21. Bxd7+ Kb8 (21... Kxd7 22. Ne5+ $18) 22. Bxg4 hxg4 23. Rxh8 { , and this is why 19. Rde1! was chosen, so that a pair of rooks are swapped and Black's counterplay down the c-file is diffused. } 23... Rxh8 24. Ne5 Rc8 25. Nc4 Qa6 26. b3 b5 27. Kb2 bxc4 28. gxf4 { White should win with an extra pawn and better king safety. }) 19. Rde1! { Again, this rook is chosen so that in variations where White takes on c6, d7, and g4, a pair of rooks will be exchanged along the h-file. } 19... Qd6 (19... gxf4?! { transposes to 18. ... gxf4 above. } 20. Bxc6 Qd6 21. Bxd7+ Kb8 22. Bxg4 hxg4 23. Rxh8 Rxh8 24. Ne5 Rc8 25. Nc4 Qa6 26. b3 b5 27. Kb2 bxc4 28. gxf4 $18) 20. Nxg5 { Black survived the onslaught, but the pawn on g5 dropped along the way. }) 18. gxf3 dxe4 (18... gxf4? 19. exd5 { loses immediately. }) (18... O-O-O? 19. exd5) (18... Nb6?! 19. e5 { would be positional suicide, as the White pawns roll down the center. } (19. g4!? { is killing too })) 19. Bxe4 gxf4 { Ian bravely leaves his king in the center for one more move, but he had no other choice. } (19... O-O-O?! 20. d5 { and Black is getting hunted on the queenside now: } 20... c5?! 21. d6 Qe6 22. Qa5 { wins. }) 20. g4! { Alert calculation by Caruana. He eschews other tempting options because he realizes he can delay them by first rectifying the situation on the kingside and forcing Black to respond to it. } (20. Bxc6?? Rc8 21. Rhe1 Rxc6 $19 { turns the tables. }) (20. d5 { looks tempting with an attack on the rook on h8 but Black survives with } 20... Qc5! 21. dxc6 Qxc3+ 22. bxc3 bxc6 23. Bxc6 O-O-O!) (20. Rde1 O-O-O 21. Bxc6 Qd6 { doesn't lead anywhere. }) (20. Rhe1 O-O-O 21. Bxc6 Qd6 { is not any different. }) 20... O-O-O?! { White always wants to play d4-d5 in the case of 0-0-0, so Nepo could've fixed his issues on the kingside first before castling. But the tactical justification to support that decision was extremely difficult to spot. } (20... h4! { solving the problem of the hanging h5-pawn and bravely leaving the king in the center for one more move. Ian likely rejected this due to } 21. Rhe1 (21. Kb1! { was the best option to sidestep queen trades after d4-d5 and ... Qe7-c5, and also prevent the defensive idea shown in the case of 21. Rhe1. } 21... O-O-O 22. d5 Ne5! 23. Rde1 (23. dxc6 Nxc6 24. Bxc6 bxc6 25. Qxc6+ Kb8) 23... Kb8 24. dxc6 Qc7! { Black has scratched and clawed his way into the game and is still very much alive. }) (21. d5 Qc5! 22. dxc6 Qxc3+ 23. bxc3 bxc6 24. Bxc6 O-O-O! { is the same defensive resource. }) (21. Rde1 { is similar to 21. Rhe1. }) 21... O-O-O 22. Bxc6 Qf6 (22... Qd6 { allows White an additional option of } 23. Bd5+ Kb8 24. Qb3 Nb6 25. Bxf7) 23. Bxd7+ Kb8!! { This move was probably not on Nepo's radar and it wouldn't be fair to blame him. Black temporarily foregoes recapturing the piece, but in return has ... Rd8-c8 coming. } (23... Kxd7? 24. Kb1! { and Black's king in the center will likely not survive the onslaught. }) 24. d5 (24. g5 Qd6! 25. Bb5 Rc8 26. Bc4 b5 27. b3 Qa3+ 28. Qb2 Qxb2+ 29. Kxb2 bxc4) (24. Bf5 Rc8 25. Bxc8 Rxc8) 24... Qxc3+ 25. bxc3 Rxd7 { with a drawn rook endgame. }) 21. d5 { Note how this move accomplishes many purposes, including x-raying the rook on h8 so that the pawn on g4 is still taboo. } 21... h4?! { Mistakes usually come in bunches in difficult positions, however we have to understand Nepo's situation. He keeps the h-pawn so that if he loses, he loses, but keeps some semblance of hope of swindling and winning. } (21... Kb8! { was Black's last hope. } 22. dxc6 (22. d6? Qe5) 22... Nc5 23. Rd7! { was probably why Ian rejected 21. ... Kb8. Keep in mind that he still wanted to (and had to!) win at this point despite the bad position, so he wanted to keep chances alive. } (23. Bc2?! h4 { is a better version compared to the game. }) 23... Rxd7 (23... Nxd7?! 24. c7+ Ka8 25. Rxh5! Rhe8 26. Qc6!! { would be a beautiful finish: } 26... Qb4 (26... Qxe4 27. cxd8=Q+ Rxd8 28. Qxe4 $18) (26... Rb8 27. Rb5! Nc5 (27... Qxe4 28. cxb8=Q+ Nxb8 29. Qxe4 Rxe4 30. fxe4) 28. Qxc5 Qxc5+ 29. Rxc5 Rbc8 30. Bf5 b6 31. Bxc8 Rxc8 32. Rc2 Kb7 33. Kd2 Rxc7 34. Rxc7+ Kxc7 35. Kd3 Kd6 36. Ke4 $18) 27. cxd8=Q+ Rxd8 28. Qxd7 (28. Rb5 { also wins }) 28... Qe1+ 29. Kc2 Qe2+ 30. Kb3 Qe3+ 31. Ka4 $18) 24. cxd7 Rd8 25. gxh5 Nxe4 26. fxe4 Qxe4 (26... Qxd7 27. h6! Rc8?! 28. h7 Rxc3+ 29. bxc3 $18) 27. Rd1 { This would have been a sad reality for Black, with the pawn on d7 and White's h-pawn coming next, so Nepo instead chose something else. }) (21... Qc5?! 22. Rxh5 { is the key difference } 22... Qxc3+ 23. bxc3 Nf6 24. Bf5+ Kc7 (24... Kb8 25. Rxh8 Rxh8 26. dxc6 bxc6 27. Rd6 Nd5 28. Rxc6 $18) 25. d6+ Kb6 26. Rxh8 Rxh8 27. Kc2! { White prepares the deadly Rd1-b1 to displace Black's king. } 27... Nd5 28. Rb1+ Ka6 29. Bd3+ b5 30. c4! Rh2+ (30... Ne3+ 31. Kc3 Kb6 32. Kd4 c5+ 33. Ke5 { wins the house. }) 31. Kc1 Rh1+ 32. Kd2 Rh2+ (32... Rxb1 33. cxd5 $18) 33. Ke1 Rh1+ 34. Kf2 Rh2+ 35. Kg1 { and the checks run out. }) 22. dxc6 (22. Rxh4!? { funnily enough might have been sufficient as well: } 22... Rxh4 (22... Qxh4 23. dxc6 Qe7 24. cxd7+ Kb8 25. Bf5 { transposes to 22. . .. Rxh4. }) 23. dxc6 Rhh8 (23... Nb6 24. cxb7+ Kb8 25. Qe5+! Qc7+ 26. Qxc7+ Kxc7 27. Rxd8 $18) 24. cxd7+ Kb8 25. Bf5 Qe3+ 26. Qxe3 fxe3 27. Re1 { White has all the chances but Black may have a glimmer of hope. }) 22... Nc5 23. Bf5+! { Great precision by Fabi. He discards the tempting capture because he realized that the pawn is much more dangerous on c6. } (23. cxb7+ Kb8 24. Bd5 { probably wins too but work remains to be done after } 24... h3) 23... Kb8 24. Kb1! { Sidestepping any checks on e3, and White looks to be well on his way to a victory. } 24... b6 { Nepo tries his best to keep some intrigue for himself considering that he needed to win. } (24... bxc6 25. Qb4+ Ka8 (25... Kc7 26. Qxf4+) 26. Rc1 Rd5 27. Be4 Rb8 (27... Re5 28. Bxc6+ Nb7 29. Qxf4) 28. Qa3! { was the point. }) 25. Rd7 { A forcing decision, but all the ramifications were not easy to anticipate. } (25. Bd7! { was the machine's choice, locking in the rook on d8. The h-pawn is going nowhere and soon White will pick up the f4-pawn as well. }) 25... Rxd7 26. cxd7 Rd8 27. Qd4 Nxd7 28. Rd1 { Caruana had forseen this. Black is temporarily a pawn up, but just compare the difference in White's and Black's forces, as well as the difference in king safety. } 28... Qc5 { At this point, Nepo likely believed he was lost and was putting pressure on Fabi's clock. But he could have posed serious practical problems and forced Caruana to find a remarkable sequence: } (28... Kc7 29. Qxf4+ (29. Qc3+ Kb8 30. Qd2 Kc7 31. Qc1+! Nc5 32. Re1! Qf6 33. b4 Rd4 34. a3! { would not have been easy either. }) 29... Ne5 30. Re1 Rd5 31. Qa4! { threatening the a7-pawn as well as f3-f4 to exploit the pin. } 31... Qd6 32. Qxa7+ Kd8 33. Qa8+ Ke7 34. Bc2! { This move guards the check on d1, to free up the rook. } 34... Qb4 35. Re4 Qd2 36. a3! { Making luft for the king because ... Rd5-c5 was on deck. } 36... Rc5 37. Bb3 { Now there's no mate on c1! } 37... h3 38. f4! h2 39. Rxe5+ Rxe5 40. fxe5 Qe1+ 41. Ka2 h1=Q { Black does get another queen but the king is in a mating net. } 42. Qa7+ Kd8 (42... Ke8 43. Qb8+) 43. Qb8+ Kd7 (43... Ke7 44. Qd6+ Ke8 45. Ba4+) 44. Ba4+ Qc6 (44... Ke6 45. Qd6#) 45. Qd6+ $18 { Again, this would not have been easy for White to find! }) 29. Qxf4+ Qc7 30. Qd2 (30. Qd4 { is similar but White probably chose 30. Qd2 to avoid any contact with Black's queen (after ... Qc7-e5 or ... Qc7-c5) later on. }) 30... h3 { All looks not so simple at first glance, since Black's knight is pinned, but the h-pawn is rolling down the board. However, Fabi brilliantly switches gears: } 31. Be4! { The target is now Black's king, setting up a battery with Qd2-d5. An additional benefit is that now the bishop will cover the h1-square (where Black looks to promote) after f3-f4. } (31. f4 h2 (31... a5 32. Qd5 (32. Be4)) 32. Be4 { was winning as well. }) 31... a5 { If } (31... Qc5 { , White can proceed in a number of ways, including the simple } 32. a3 { . If instead }) (31... Qe5 { , then the simplest is } 32. Qh6 { and the threat of Qh6-c6 wins Black's h-pawn. }) 32. Qd5 (32. f4 { wins too. }) 32... Ka7 33. Qxf7 h2 { At this point, White can almost taste the victory. But the only ailment was his clock; remember, no increment until move 40 is reached. White has just over a minute per move for the next seven moves. } 34. Qh7 (34. f4 { making use of the bishop's long range. Then } 34... Ka6 35. Qe7! { would have been clinical. Black is utterly out of moves: } 35... Qxf4 36. Bd3+ Kb7 37. Qxd8 { wins. }) 34... Kb8 35. a3 { Making room for the king and getting closer to move 40, as Caruana's clock is now under four minutes. } (35. Rd2 $18 { picked up the pawn immediately. }) (35. Rh1?! Nc5 36. Qxc7+ Kxc7 37. Rxh2 Nxe4 38. fxe4 Rd1+ 39. Kc2 Rg1 { was what Nepo was hoping for. It is still lost for Black, but Fabi wanted to find something more clean. }) 35... Qe5 36. Qh6 { The threat of Qh6-c6 forces Black to go back. White has just over two minutes now. } (36. g5 { Black can do nothing to stop this. }) 36... Qc7 37. g5 (37. Rd2 { collects the pawn and wins immediately. }) 37... Rg8 38. Rh1 { White is down to 54 seconds total for the next two moves. } (38. f4 { Again, using the bishop's scope was good. }) 38... Nc5 39. Bh7? { Caruana, who had been doing so well up until now, had about a minute left to make two moves, and here his nerves reared their ugly head. Fabi looked for a forcing sequence, but actually let Nepo back in the game. } (39. Bc2 Ka7 40. g6 $18 { cements the g-pawn and h2 will drop. }) 39... Rxg5! { Missed by Caruana, but he makes it to the time control. } 40. Qxg5 Qxh7+ 41. Ka1? { Likely reeling from missing 39. ... Rxg5, Fabi realized that his conversion task was going to be a lot more difficult than expected. As a psychological effect, he made this move quickly probably out of "tilt." It's extremely challenging to re-center and re-focus after the win looked so guaranteed before. } (41. Ka2! { A bit of precise calculation would have still led to a win. While Black can give a lot of checks, none of them lead to anything substantial. } 41... Qf7+ (41... Ka7 42. Qg2! Qf7+ 43. Kb1 Qf5+ 44. Qc2 Qxf3 45. Qxh2 Qe4+ 46. Ka1 Nb3+ 47. Ka2 { The checks end and White will coordinate his queen and rook to either make decisive threats to Black's king or trade queens into a winning endgame. }) 42. Ka1 Nb3+ (42... Qh7 43. Qg2 Ka7 44. Ka2 (44. Qxh2?? Nb3+ 45. Ka2 Nc1+) 44... Qf7+ 45. Kb1 Qf5+ 46. Qc2 Qxf3 47. Qxh2 Qe4+ 48. Ka1 Nb3+ 49. Ka2 $18) 43. Kb1 Qxf3 (43... Qh7+ 44. Ka2) 44. Qe5+ Ka7 45. Qxh2 $18) 41... Qc2! { The resource likely missed by Caruana. Nepo is back in the game. } (41... Nb3+ 42. Ka2 $18) 42. Qg8+! (42. Qg3+ Ka7 43. Qxh2? Nb3+ 44. Ka2 Nc1+ 45. Ka1 Nb3+) 42... Ka7 43. Ka2 { The queen from g8 protects the checking diagonal, and Black is still under pressure. White's goal is to win the h2-pawn without allowing a perpetual, or push the f-pawn up the board to distract Black's forces and trade his f-pawn for Black's h-pawn to win the ensuing endgame. } 43... a4! { It is absolutely necessary to cement a square on b3 for the knight. } (43... Ka6? 44. Qa8+ Kb5 45. Qd5! $18 { And now the drawback of not playing ... a5-a4 is revealed after } 45... Qg2?! (45... a4 46. Qd1 Qc4+ 47. Kb1 $18) 46. a4+! Ka6 (46... Kb4 47. Qd4#) (46... Kxa4 47. Qc4#) 47. Qa8#) 44. f4 { White continues the plan of distracting Black's forces with the f-pawn. } (44. Qg7+ Ka6 45. Qh8 Qc4+ 46. Kb1 Qd3+ 47. Ka1 Qc2! 48. Qa8+ Kb5 49. Qd5 (49. Qe8+ Ka6 50. Qe1 Qg2! 51. Qf1+ Qxf1+ 52. Rxf1 Nb3+ 53. Ka2 Nd2 54. Rh1 Nxf3) 49... Qg2 { Now this is possible, since White doesn't have the a3-a4 mating pattern. } 50. Qd1 Ka6 51. Qf1+ Qxf1+ 52. Rxf1 Nb3+ 53. Ka2 Nd2 54. Rh1 Nxf3) (44. Qh8? Qc4+ 45. Kb1 Qd3+ 46. Ka1 Qc2! { would lead nowhere as the pawn on h2 is still untouchable due to the drawing mechanism of ... Nc5-b3-c1. }) 44... Nb3? { Nepo goes for a tempting move, but this allows White's queen to coordinate with the rook. } (44... Ka6! { was the only move to hold the balance. Black leaves the seventh rank in order to avoid White's resource of bringing back the queen with Qg8-g7+ and Qg7-c3. } 45. Qa8+ Kb5 46. Qd5 { This natural queen centralization freezes Black's knight and likely worried Nepo. } (46. Qe8+ Ka6 47. Qe1 { Coordinating the queen this way was also possible, and here Black again has to walk the tightrope. } (47. f5 Nd3) 47... Kb7! { Black needs to play ... Nc5-d3, but first prepares it by preemptively tucking the king away from checks. } (47... Nd3? 48. Qc3 Qg2 49. Qxd3+ { comes with a check! this is why 47. ... Kb7 was necessary. }) (47... Ka7? { with the same idea fails to } 48. f5 Nd3 49. Qc3 Qg2 50. Qc7+! Ka6 51. Qxh2) 48. Qd1 (48. f5 Nd3! 49. Qc3 (49. Qb1 Qc4+! { leaving the b3-square for the knight. } 50. Ka1 Nc5) 49... Qg2 50. Rxh2 Qg8+! 51. Kb1 Qg1+ 52. Kc2 (52. Ka2?? Nc1+ $19) 52... Ne1+ 53. Kd2 Qxh2+ 54. Kxe1 Qh4+! 55. Ke2 Qe4+ { and Black picks up the pawn. }) 48... Qc4+ 49. Kb1 (49. Ka1 Nb3+ 50. Kb1 Nd2+! 51. Ka1 (51. Qxd2 Qe4+) 51... Nb3+) 49... Qe4+ 50. Ka1 Nb3+ 51. Ka2 Nd2! { and surprisingly White has no good way to proceed. } 52. Re1 (52. Rxh2?? Qd5+ 53. Ka1 Nb3+ $19) (52. f5 Qc4+ 53. Ka1 Nb3+ 54. Kb1 Nd2+ 55. Ka1 (55. Qxd2 Qe4+) 55... Nb3+) 52... Qd5+ 53. Ka1 Nb3+ 54. Kb1 Nd4 { White can't coordinate well enough to make progress. } 55. Re7+ Kb8 56. Re8+ Kb7) 46... Ka6! { The answer! Now, Black is preparing ... Nc5-d3 (instead of eyeing the b3-square as earlier). } 47. Rd1 (47. f5 Nd3 48. Qa8+ Kb5 49. Qd5+ Ka6) (47. Qc6 Qc4+ 48. Kb1 Qd3+ 49. Ka1 Qc4! { Black is still threatening ... Nc5-b3. } 50. Qa8+ Kb5 51. Rd1 Qxf4 { and Black still hasn't lost his h-pawn. }) (47. Qd4 Ka7! { Once again, the same idea of getting the king out of checks; for example if the knight goes to d3 the capture on d3 won't be with check. } 48. f5 Qxf5 49. Rxh2 Qf7+ 50. Kb1 Qf1+ 51. Kc2 Qf5+ 52. Kd1 Qf1+ 53. Kc2 Qf5+ 54. Kc3 Qf3+) 47... Ka7! { Safeguarding the king again so that the knight can move. Note that now Qd5-a8 isn't possible. } (47... Ne4? 48. Qa8+ Kb5 49. Rd5+ Nc5 50. Rd4! { Threatening mate on b4! } 50... Qb3+ 51. Kb1 Nd3 52. Rd5+ Nc5 53. Qe8+ Kc4 (53... Ka6 54. Qe2+ Ka7 55. Rh5 $18) (53... Ka5 54. Qe1+ Ka6 55. Qe2+ Ka7 56. Rh5 $18) 54. Qg8!! Kb5 (54... Qf3 55. Rd2+ Kb5 56. Rxh2 $18) (54... h1=Q+ 55. Rd1+ $18) (54... Qg3 55. Rg5+! Kb5 56. Qe8+ Kc4 57. Rxg3 h1=Q+ 58. Ka2 $18) 55. Qg2! Qg3 56. Qe2+ Ka5 57. Rd1 Qxf4 58. Rh1 Qf5+ 59. Qc2 $18 { and White finally rounds up the pawn. }) 48. f5 Ne4! 49. Ka1 (49. Qd7+ Ka6 50. Re1 Nf2!) 49... Nf2! 50. Rf1 h1=Q 51. Rxh1 Nxh1 52. f6 (52. Qxh1 Qxf5) 52... Nf2 53. f7 Nd3 54. Qxd3 Qxd3 55. f8=Q) 45. Qg7+! Ka6 46. Qc3 { White has successfully brought his queen back to stop the checks, and now the black king is exposed to checks. } 46... Qg2 47. Qc4+ { Caruana opts to prevent Black's option of ... Ka6-a5, but he gives Black the option of ... Ka6-b7 instead. } (47. Qd3+! { forces Black to give in to a concession: } 47... b5 (47... Ka7?! 48. Qh7+ $18) (47... Ka5 48. Qf1! Qd5 49. Qe1+! Nd2+ 50. Ka1 Qg2 (50... Ka6 51. Rxh2 Nb3+ 52. Kb1 Qf5+ 53. Ka2 $18) 51. f5 { and the White pawn will decide matters. } 51... Ka6 52. f6 Nb3+ 53. Ka2 Nd2 54. f7 Qd5+ 55. Ka1 Nb3+ 56. Kb1 Qf5+ 57. Ka2 Qxf7 58. Rxh2 Nd2+ (58... Nc1+ 59. Kb1 Qa2+ 60. Kc2! Qc4+ 61. Qc3 $18) 59. Ka1 Nb3+ 60. Kb1 Qf5+ 61. Ka2 $18) 48. Qd6+! Ka7 (48... Kb7 49. Re1 $18) (48... Ka5 49. Rd1! { Threatening Qd6-c7 followed by Rd1-d6, winning. } (49. Qc7+ Ka6 50. Rd1 Nd2 51. Qd6+ Kb7 52. Qd7+! Kb6 53. Rxd2 Qxd2 (53... Qg8+ 54. Rd5 h1=Q 55. Qxb5+ Ka7 (55... Kc7 56. Qc4+) 56. Qxa4+ Kb7 57. Qb3+ $18) 54. Qxd2 h1=Q 55. Qd6+ $18 { also wins. }) 49... Qb7 50. Qd8+! Ka6 51. Qf6+ Ka7 52. Qh8 Nd2 53. Qd4+ Ka6 54. Qd6+ Ka7 55. Qxd2 h1=Q 56. Qa5+ $18) 49. Qc7+ Ka6 50. Rd1! { leads to the same win given above. } 50... Nd2 (50... Nd4 51. Qc8+! Qb7 (51... Kb6 52. Qd8+) 52. Qxb7+ Kxb7 53. Rh1 Nf3 54. Kb1 Kc6 55. Kc2 Kd5 56. Kd3 $18) 51. Qd6+ Kb7 52. Qd7+! Kb6 53. Rxd2 Qxd2 (53... Qg8+ 54. Rd5 h1=Q 55. Qxb5+ $18 { and White will free the rook via a check on c4, or via taking on a4 and following it up with Qa4-b3+. }) 54. Qxd2 h1=Q 55. Qd6+ Kb7 56. Qe6 $18 { with f4-f5 to follow. }) 47... Kb7 (47... Ka5 { allows } 48. Qb4+ (48. Qf1 Qd5 49. Qe1+! { wins too, transposing to the analysis above after 47. Qd3+ Ka5 48.Qf1. } 49... Nd2+ 50. Ka1 Qg2 51. f5 $18) 48... Ka6 49. Qxa4+ Na5 50. Qd1 Nc4 51. Qc1 Nxb2 52. Qf1+ Qxf1 53. Rxf1 $18) (47... Ka7 48. Qxa4+ Na5 49. Qd7+ Ka6 50. Qd1 $18) (47... b5 { would lead to the same win as analyzed after 47. Qd3+ b5. White just needs to get the queen to c7. } 48. Qc8+ Kb6 (48... Ka5 49. Qc7+ Ka6 50. Rd1 $18) 49. Qb8+ Ka6 50. Qd6+ Ka7 51. Qc7+ Ka6 52. Rd1 $18) 48. Re1 { This was Fabi's idea, creating mating threats against Black's king. } 48... Nc5 { The only move to protect the king. } 49. Qf1! Qd5+ 50. Kb1 Qf5+ 51. Ka1 { White has finally managed to coordinate his queen and rook, and now the f-pawn is ready to be pushed if the queen moves. } 51... Qc2 { Nepo tries to create some threats, but to no avail. } 52. f5 Nd3 53. Rb1 Nc5 54. f6 Nb3+ 55. Ka2 Nd2 56. Qh1+ (56. Qg2+ Ka7 57. Re1! Qc4+ 58. Ka1 Nb3+ 59. Kb1 Qd3+ 60. Ka2 Qc4 61. Rd1! $18 { would have won, too. }) 56... Ka7 57. Rc1 (57. Rd1 $18 { wins as well, since Black has no useful checks. The king dodges them all in the same pattern. }) 57... Qb3+ 58. Ka1 Qe6 59. Rc7+? { Caruana was down to his last minutes, and while he had the 30-second increment now, nerves again would play a factor. This move is extremely tempting, but allows Black a forced draw due to the misplaced position of the rook. Instead, one more cold-blooded precise move was needed to finish the job: } (59. Rd1! { When a check is available on c7, keeping the rook back on d1 is counterintuitive, but the rook is perfectly placed here since the knight can never touch it. } 59... Nb3+ 60. Kb1 Qf5+ 61. Ka2 $18 { White will win the h2-pawn and the game. }) (59. Re1 Nb3+ 60. Ka2 Qc4 61. Rd1! $18 { Again returning to the same idea. }) 59... Ka6 60. f7 { Very natural, but it doesn't work! } 60... Nb3+ 61. Kb1 Qf5+? { With plenty of time on his clock, Nepo makes a hasty move that gives White the win again. It was not easy to think out of the box (literally!) and realize this is the moment to let White's king out of its cage. } (61... Nd2+! { gives Black a forced draw: } 62. Kc2 (62. Ka1 Nb3+) (62. Kc1 Nb3+) 62... Qf5+! (62... Qg6+ 63. Kxd2 Qd6+ { also works. }) 63. Kxd2 (63. Kc3 Nf3 { could potentially put White at risk }) 63... Qf4+ 64. Ke2 Qe5+ 65. Kf2 Qf4+ 66. Kg2 Qd2+ 67. Kh3 Qh6+ 68. Kg3 Qd6+ 69. Kg4 Qg6+ { and, unfortunately for Fabi, there is no way to escape the barrage of checks. }) 62. Ka2 Nc5 { The very last hurdle for Caruana that, at this point, he knew would put him in a tiebreak match against Gukesh. } 63. Qa8+ Kb5 64. Qc6+ { Nothing is spoiled yet, but nerves are creeping in as it appears White doesn't see the win yet, as he had already let his clock wind down to one minute on 63. Qa8+, only to repeat here. } (64. Qe8+ Ka6 (64... Ka5 { the simplest is } 65. Qe1+ (65. Ra7+ Na6 66. Qc6 Qd3 67. Rd7! $18) 65... Ka6 (65... Kb5 66. Qe2+) 66. Qe2+ $18 { This reaches the same position as after 64. ... Ka6 65. Qe2+. }) (64... Kc4 65. Qxa4+ $18) 65. Qe2+ b5 (65... Nd3 66. Qxh2 (66. f8=Q Qd5+ 67. Ka1 h1=Q+ 68. Qff1 $18 { was winning too. }) 66... Qe6+ 67. Kb1 Qe1+ 68. Kc2 $18 { and the checks run out. }) 66. Rc6+ Ka7 67. Qe7+ Nb7 (67... Nd7 68. Rc7+ Ka6 69. Rxd7 $18) 68. Qe3+ Kb8 { and the easiest is } 69. Qe6! $18) 64... Ka6 65. Qa8+ Kb5 66. Qc6+?? { Absolute heartbreak. In the heat of the moment, with all the pressure on him, Caruana stumbles on the last task. An inexplicable miss in normal circumstances, but understandable here given all the stress, pressure, and flat-out exhaustion. } (66. Qe8+ { led to a fairly simple win analyzed above. } 66... Ka5 67. Qe1+ Ka6 68. Qe2+ $18 { While there was also the hilarious }) (66. f8=N { , controlling the checking square on e6, here Black would hold after } 66... Qf1! 67. Qe8+ Ka6 68. Qc8+ Kb5 69. Rxc5+ bxc5 70. Qb7+ Ka5) 66... Ka6 { The issue is now that if 67. Qa8+, it is a three-fold repetition. } 67. Re7 (67. Qa8+!? { This would have been an interesting moment and dilemma for Ian. On the one hand, he would still ideally like to win, so claiming a draw at this point would not have been pleasant, but I believe he would have still reluctantly done it, since it's clear Black has zero winning chances and that he came so far to miraculously save this game. }) 67... Qf1 { Now the problem is the check on c4. } (67... Qd3!? { would also have held, but there's no need when the f1-square is available. }) 68. Qa8+ (68. Re1 Qxf7+ 69. Kb1 { would have prolonged the game but given, Black some glimmer of hope of winning rather than White. }) 68... Kb5 69. Qe8+ (69. f8=Q Qc4+ 70. Kb1 Qd3+ 71. Ka1 Nb3+ 72. Ka2 Nc1+) 69... Ka6 70. Qa8+ (70. Qc8+ Kb5) 70... Kb5 71. Qe8+ Ka6 72. Re4! { Good awareness from Caruana to find every last resource, but it will not be enough. } 72... Nxe4 (72... h1=Q?? 73. Qa8+ Kb5 74. Rb4#) 73. Qxa4+ Kb7 74. Qxe4+ Ka7 75. Qa4+ Kb7 76. Qd7+ Ka6 77. Qc8+ Ka7 78. f8=Q Qxf8 79. Qxf8 h1=Q { White has achieved a queen-and-two-pawn versus queen-and-pawn endgame, but in this version White can't hope for much since the a- and b- pawns provide little shelter for his king. It's worth noting that even without the b6-pawn for Black, this position would still be a theoretical draw — despite White being two pawns up — due to the exposed king and Black's annoying checks. } 80. a4 Qd5+ 81. Ka3 Qd3+ 82. b3 Qd4 83. Qf7+ Kb8 84. Qe8+ Ka7 85. Qe7+ Kb8 86. Qe1 Qd6+ 87. Qb4 Qf6 88. Qd2 Qe7+ 89. b4 Qe6 90. Qd3 Ka7 91. Qc3 Kb8 92. Qb3 Qf6 93. Qe3 Qd6 94. Kb3 Qd5+ 95. Kb2 Qd6 { No chances given by Nepo } 96. Qe8+ Ka7 97. Qf7+ Kb8 98. Kc3 Qe5+ 99. Kd3 Qd6+ 100. Kc4 Qc6+ 101. Kb3 Qd6 102. Qf3 Qd4 103. Qe2 Qd5+ 104. Ka3 Qd6 105. Qb5 Qd4 106. Kb3 Ka7 107. Qe2 Qd5+ 108. Ka3 Qd4 109. Kb3 { And here Fabi begrudgingly offered a draw. Nepo took a minute to take in all the emotions, and a draw was agreed. The pain was etched across both players' faces in one of the most heartbreaking moments in recent memory. Endless fight and determination was displayed by both players, but alas, that's just how the game ends sometimes. But on the other side, pure jubilation for Gukesh and his fans as he pulls off the tournament victory to become the youngest ever challenger! } 1/2-1/2