[Event "FIDE World Championship"] [Site "Astana, Kazakhstan"] [Date "2023.04.07"] [Round "8.1"] [White "Liren, Ding"] [Black "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [WhiteElo "2788"] [BlackElo "2795"] [Annotator "Liang, Awonder"] [Variant "Standard"] [ECO "E28"] [Opening "Nimzo-Indian Defense: Sämisch Variation"] [Source "https://lichess.org/study/46lbOGuJ/6a7yKcC8"] [Orientation "white"] { Annotations by GM Awonder Liang If there is one game to summarize this match thus far, it must be this one. The mighty struggle of titans continues, exposing all their strengths and weaknesses. From Ding's preparation to Nepo's incredible practical decisions, I see this game as the pinnacle of what both players are able to bring to the table, for both good and for bad. } 1. d4 Nf6 { It is true the moves are far from perfect, but then, humans rarely are. } 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 d6 7. Ne2 c5 8. Ng3 Nc6 9. Ra2!? { An invention of the tricky GM Hakobyan. I first saw this idea live at the 2022 SPICE Cup, where he used it to tragic effect against my friend GM Balakrishnan. It is poisonous, but not something I thought merited a serious try at the top level. Clearly I was wrong! White delays both e3-e4 and Bf1-d3, playing a useful move to prepare e3-e4. The rook can swing to either d2 or (as in the game) h2. } (9. e4 d5! 10. e5 Ne4 $15 { and }) (9. Bd3 b6 10. e4? cxd4 $15 { . }) 9... b6 (9... Na5 10. e4 Nd7? { This is missing the point somewhat. Black loses too many tempi grabbing the c4-pawn, and loses another defender on the kingside. } 11. Bd3 Nb6 12. O-O Nbxc4 13. Qe2 d5 14. Nh5 (14. exd5! exd5 15. Qh5 f5 16. Nxf5 $18) 14... f5 15. exf5 exf5 16. dxc5 { For some reason this is attributed to Burke - Nyzhnyk in MegaBase, but I can assure our readers that this is in fact Hakobyan - Balakrishnan! (Note: TWIC has the correct attribution. ~ed.) After a much closer game than it should have been, Aram took home the full point. }) 10. e4 Ba6!? { A bit early, in my opinion. The move is objectively fine, but there was an easier way to shut down White's main idea. } (10... Na5! { I'm not saying this solves all of Black's problems (as surely there are more lines than I give below) but it would have simplified the defensive task. } 11. Bg5 (11. Bd3 { is ok, but now the idea connected with 9. Ra2 seems a little less effective: } 11... cxd4 12. cxd4 Ba6 13. Bg5 (13. Rc2 Rc8 14. Qe2 Nb3 15. Bb2 e5 { and Black is quite comfortable here, for instance: } 16. Nf5 Nxd4 17. Nxd4 exd4 18. Bxd4 Nd7 19. O-O Ne5 20. f4 Nxd3 21. Qxd3 f6) 13... h6 14. h4 Bxc4 { and here White should already bail out with a draw: } 15. Nh5 (15. Rd2 Bb3 16. Bc2 Bxc2 17. Rxc2 hxg5 18. hxg5 Rc8 19. Rxc8 Qxc8 20. gxf6 Qc3+ 21. Kf1 Rc8 $15 { and Black has a pleasant endgame ahead. }) 15... hxg5 16. hxg5 Nh7 17. Nf6+ Nxf6 18. gxf6 Qxf6 19. e5 Qg5 20. Bh7+ Kh8) 11... h6 12. h4 e5! { This is the key idea. Now, Black now threatens ... h6xg5 and ... Nf6-g4, picking up the whole piece. In general, the c8-bishop finds good work on this diagonal, keeping an eye on the h3-square as well. } 13. dxe5!? { A major concession, and it's a bad sign if this is White's best move. } (13. Rd2?? hxg5 14. hxg5 Ng4 $19) (13. Bd2 exd4 14. cxd4 Qe7 15. f3 cxd4 16. Bxa5 Qe5 17. Kf2 bxa5 $15) 13... dxe5 14. Rd2 Qe7 15. Qf3 Be6 { and here White doesn't really have all that much; in fact, he's a bit lucky not to be worse after } (15... hxg5 16. hxg5 Ng4 17. Nf5 Qxg5 18. Qxg4 $18 { is the point }) 16. Bxf6 (16. Nf5 Bxf5 17. Qxf5 Rfd8 18. Rd5 Qe6) (16. Nh5 hxg5 17. hxg5 Nh7 $19) 16... Qxf6 17. Qxf6 gxf6 18. Nh5 f5) (10... Qe7 11. Bg5 h6 12. h4 cxd4 13. cxd4 e5 14. d5 Na5 15. Bd2) 11. Bg5 h6 (11... cxd4 12. Nh5! $16) 12. h4 { Now the position becomes really unclear. Black has an abundance of choices, but none of them simplify the position. } 12... hxg5 { The most natural moves were this, or ... c5xd4 and then ... h6xg5, although Black did have some choice. With the text, Black removes all threats of Ng3-h5/e5, but White gets an open h-file to work with. } (12... cxd4 { was deemed preferable in many post-mortems, but I think it's still pretty unclear. After } 13. cxd4 hxg5 14. hxg5 g6 15. gxf6 Qxf6 16. Rd2 { The main difference is that Black has a more open position to work with, while White still maintains ideas of Rd2-d3, Rh1-h3, or Ng3-h5 to attack the black king. I think Black's best is } 16... Qg5! (16... e5 17. Rd3 exd4 (17... Nxd4 18. Nh5) 18. Nh5 Qe5 19. f4 Qxe4+ 20. Kf2 f5 21. Rg3 Qe6 22. Bd3 $13 { with a massive mess. }) 17. Rh3 (17. Nh5 gxh5 18. Rxh5 Qf4 19. Rd3) 17... e5 18. Nf5 { and the board is aflame. }) (12... Rc8? { was played in Ilyasli – Samani, Chess.com, 2021, but now } 13. e5 dxe5 14. Ne4! { and Black should give up the queen, albeit with decent compensation. }) (12... Re8!? { was somewhat interesting (if not very realistic) if Black wants to play a bit more ambitiously. Here let me cite the now-famous game between "FVitelli" and "opqrstuv" from earlier this year: } 13. Rd2 (13. e5? dxe5 14. Ne4 hxg5 $19) 13... Qe7 (13... cxd4 14. cxd4 e5 15. dxe5 hxg5 16. exf6 Qxf6 17. hxg5 Qxg5) 14. e5 dxe5 15. Ne4 Nxe4 16. Bxe7 Nxd2? 17. Bf6! Nxf1? 18. Qg4 g6 19. dxe5 Rad8 20. Qf4 { and Black resigned in FVitelli - opqrstuv, Lichess.org, 2023. }) 13. hxg5 g6 14. gxf6 Qxf6 15. e5!? { Ding spent a good amount of time on this move, so I'm not sure if this was still preparation or not. I believe that Aram was still in prep here, so I would be surprised if Ding was completely out of ideas. Even so, he began to spend a large amount of time on the following moves, which came back to haunt him later. } (15. Rd2 { would likely transpose back to the ... c5xd4 line, while after }) (15. Qg4 Qg7 { it's not super clear where the attack is. }) 15... dxe5 16. d5! (16. Ne4 Qf5 17. Nd6 Qf6) 16... Ne7 { A critical position. Black had perhaps five decent options, but Nepo chooses a very natural one, bringing the knight closer to the kingside. White's compensation is mainly connected with the powerful d-pawn as well as the nice e4-square for the knight. Here's a sketch of the other moves: } (16... Rfd8 17. Rd2 Na5 18. dxe6 Rxd2 19. exf7+ Kg7 20. Qxd2 Qf4 $44) (16... Rad8 17. Rd2 exd5 18. cxd5 Bxf1 19. Kxf1 Ne7 20. Rh3 $44) (16... exd5 17. cxd5 Bxf1 18. Kxf1 Na5 19. Kg1 $44) (16... Na5 17. Ne4 Qf5 18. f3 Kg7 19. g3 Rh8 20. Rah2 Rxh2 21. Rxh2 { When, again, White has good compensation, but not more. }) 17. d6 Nf5 18. Ne4 Qd8! (18... Qg7 19. g4 Bb7 20. Bg2 Rad8 { was another option, but what Nepo did was stronger. }) 19. Qd3 Kg7 20. g4 Bb7! 21. Rh3 Nh4 (21... Rh8! { was a nice way to get out of danger. Probably Nepo still thought his position was fine, and was not really considering bailouts here. Play continues } 22. Rxh8 Qxh8 23. gxf5 exf5 24. Ng5 Qh4 { and White will probably need to trade queens with } 25. Qg3 Qxg3 26. fxg3 Rd8 { . With White's damaged pawn structure, Black is not really as risk here, and will soon be picking up the d6-pawn. }) 22. g5 Bxe4? { A potentially decisive mistake, but one that went unpunished. } (22... Rh8! { was Black's only try, and here White has a few dangerous options: } 23. f4 (23. Qg3 Bxe4 24. Qxe5+ f6 25. Qxe4 fxg5 26. Rd3 Qf6 27. Re2 $13) 23... Bxe4 (23... exf4 24. Nf6 Nf3+ 25. Rxf3 Bxf3 26. d7 Bh5 27. Bg2 Qb8 28. Bxa8 Qxa8 29. Rh2 Rd8) 24. Qxe4 Qxd6 25. fxe5 Qc7 26. Rxh4 Rxh4 27. Qxh4 Qxe5+ $44 { with enough compensation for equality. }) 23. Qxe4 Nf5 24. Rd2! { Here Black suffers from lack of coordination - the a8-rook, the e5-pawn, and the white d-pawn are all a bit too much for Black to handle. } (24. Qxe5+ { fizzles out to a draw after } 24... f6 25. Qh2 Qxd6 26. Rh7+ Kg8 27. Rh8+ Kf7 { . }) 24... Rh8 { Best, forcing White to find the win. The alternatives are grim: } (24... f6 25. Qb7+ Rf7 26. Rh7+) (24... Qxg5 25. Qxe5+ f6 26. Qh2 Rh8 27. Rxh8 Rxh8 28. Qxh8+! Kxh8 29. d7 $18) (24... a5 { is the top engine choice, not inspiring too much confidence! }) 25. Rxh8 (25. d7!? Qc7 26. Qh1!! Nd4 (26... Rxh3 27. Qxa8) 27. Rh6! Qxd7 28. cxd4 exd4 29. Rd3 { was the inhuman way to win this game. }) 25... Qxh8 26. d7? (26. Rd3! { is not an easy move to find, but once you see it, the game is over. Black has no way to stop Rd3-h3. The big idea is } 26... Rd8 27. Rh3 Qf8 28. Qxe5+ f6 29. gxf6+ Kf7 30. Rh7+ Kg8 31. Re7 $18 { when Black will lose everything and then some more. I believe that Ding has been calculating at a slightly subpar level during this match, at least compared to his best days. In any case, this miss will surely haunt him if the match doesn't go his way. }) 26... Rd8 27. Qxe5+ Kh7 28. Qh2+ Kg7 29. Qe5+ Kh7 30. Qh2+ Kg7 31. Qc7 Qh4!! { An astonishing bluff, or a stroke of genius? In either case, Nepo's strength as an incredible practical player comes into full force as he brings about a fantastic save. } (31... Qf8 { was the normal way to play, but White is basically getting the game with an extra tempo: } 32. Kd1 Qe7 33. Kc2 Qxg5 (33... e5 34. Rd5 e4 35. Bh3) (33... Nh4 34. f4 e5 35. Bh3 exf4 36. Qxf4) 34. Qxa7 Qe7 35. Qc7 $18 { and White stops ... Nf5-d6, while Black is running short on ideas. }) 32. Kd1 { In the post-game interviews, Nepo revealed he didn't see } (32. Qxd8! { when playing his 31st move, so he definitely rode his luck in this game! As everyone knows by now, this wins for White, and the lines are not particularly difficult to calculate. If Ding had spent a minute to work it out, I'm sure he would have seen the way. Here are the main ideas: } 32... Qe4+ 33. Re2 Qb1+ 34. Kd2 Qb2+ 35. Kd3 Qb1+ 36. Rc2 Qd1+ (36... Qxf1+ 37. Kd2 Nd6 38. Qh8+ Kxh8 39. d8=Q+) 37. Ke4 Qxc2+ (37... Nd6+ 38. Ke5 Nb7 39. Qc7) 38. Bd3 Nd6+ 39. Ke3 Qc1+ (39... Nxc4+ 40. Bxc4 Qxc3+ 41. Bd3 Qd4+ 42. Ke2 Qe5+ 43. Kf1 Qa1+ 44. Kg2) 40. Ke2 Qb2+ 41. Kf3 { and White wins. }) 32... Qxg5 33. Kc2 Qe7 34. Bg2 { White prepares Bg2-c6 before taking on a7; otherwise, Black has ... Nf5-d6. } (34. Kb3 e5 35. Rd5 f6 36. Bg2 Nh6 37. Qxa7 Qe6 38. Be4 Nf7 39. Qc7 Qg4 40. f3 Qe6) (34. Qxa7 Nd6! 35. Qxb6 Ne4! { and Black wins the d7-pawn and a bit more. }) 34... e5 (34... Nd4+! { was fine, although with mutual time pressure, it's understandable that Nepo didn't want to take such decisions. After } 35. cxd4 Rxd7 36. Qe5+ f6 37. Qg3 Rxd4 { Black is alright, with three pawns for the piece. }) 35. Be4! { Precise, kicking away Black's knight before mopping up the queenside. } 35... Nh6 36. Qxa7 Ng4! { Straining to find counterplay. Other ideas are no better, i.e., } (36... Qe6 37. Qc7 Qe7 38. Bc6 { and }) (36... f6 37. Qxb6 Nf7 38. Bc6) 37. Bf3?? { A moment of carelessness, and an inexplicable blunder. Was it nerves or all the pressure? In contrast to the previous wins we've analyzed, here Ding needed to just check carefully for Black's ideas. Of course conversion wouldn't have been easy, but with Be4-c6, the game would have been all but over. } (37. Qxb6 Rxd7 38. Rxd7 Qxd7 39. Qxc5 Qa4+ 40. Kd2! Qb3 41. f3 $18) (37. Bc6 e4 38. Qxb6 Ne5 39. Bb5 Nd3 40. Qc7 Qg5 (40... f5 41. a4) 41. Qg3 Qh5 42. a4 Qh1 43. Rd1 $18) 37... Nxf2! { You don't need to ask Ian twice! } 38. Rxf2 e4! { The point: if White managed to secure the bishop on d5, the game would soon be over, but now the bishop is locked behind Black's phalanx of pawns. } 39. Re2 (39. Bg4 e3 $19) 39... f5 40. Qxb6 Rxd7 41. Qb8 Qd6 42. Qxd6 Rxd6 43. Bxe4 fxe4 44. Rxe4 Kf6 45. Re8 { A clear miss for Ding, and a game he'd like to have back. Still, from a spectator's point of view, this was a fantastic battle. If Ding had come back for the third game in a row, the online pundits would have had an absolute field day. Instead, Nepo keeps his slight buffer, but the way the match is going, it's not clear if it'll last. } 1/2-1/2