[Event "FIDE World Cup 2023"]
[Site "Baku"]
[Date "2023.08.22"]
[Round "8.1"]
[White "Abasov, Nijat"]
[Black "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Result "1-0"]
[WhiteElo "2646"]
[BlackElo "2782"]
[Annotator "Lang,JJ"]
[Variant "Standard"]
[ECO "E05"]
[Opening "Catalan Opening: Open Defense, Classical Line"]
[Source "https://lichess.org/study/QLPThvQV/rxI3Ecjq"]
[Orientation "white"]
1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. c4 e6 4. g3 Be7 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Qc2 a6 8. a4 Bd7 9. Qxc4 Bc6 10. Bg5 Nbd7 11. Nc3 h6 12. Bf4!? { A rare alternative to 12.
Bxf6 in one of the main lines of the Catalan. White argues that provoking ...
h7-h6 was worth the tempo. But Abasov's novelty is yet to come. } 12... Bd6 13. Qd3 $146 (13. Bxd6 { This position has been reached six times, and there's
something to be said for the structural transformation (and trade of bishops
rather than bishop-for-knight) injecting fresh life into an otherwise
well-known position. }) 13... Bxf4 14. gxf4 { Throughout the World Cup, Abasov's
openings have been remarkably precise and full of fresh ideas. This is no
exception. Allowing the bishops to trade on f4 is a familiar idea to London
System players, albeit with e3xf4 rather than g3xf4. Here, White's plan is
rather straightforward: cramp the center and use the g-file. } 14... a5 15. Kh1 Bxf3 { Black worries that the light-square bishop will be short on squares, given
that ... e6-e5 is not happening any time soon, and concludes it might be more
of a liability in the way of the c-pawn. } (15... Nd5 { might make more sense,
however. } 16. e3 Qe7 17. Rg1 Kh8 { and I'd be curious to see how White
continues. Notice that it's not as easy to double-up on the g-file.
Additionally, with the f4-pawn weak in the event of e3-e4, I'm not sure how
White makes progress in the center. Given this, it's not imperative that Black
executes a ... c7-c5 break, meaning that the bishop is not a "piece of wood"
in the way of the rest of its army. }) 16. Bxf3 c6 17. Rg1 Kh8 18. e4 Qe7 19. Rg3 (19. e5 Ng8 { is Black's best bet, as ... g7-g6 will most likely be played
at some point and the knight's defenses on the then-weak h6-pawn will be
important. Consider that White will have weak pawns on d4 and f4 to be tied
down to, so the g8-knight being otherwise "out of play" is not the "mark of
death" it might have appeared to me. I like 19. e5, then, simply because I
could see Black finding it difficult to commit to this move, and even if Black
does, the position is still comfortable for White. There is something to be
said for Abasov's decision to keep things flexible, however. Oh, to have such
pleasant choices against Caruana! } (19... Ne8 20. f5 { and the engine is
optimistic: } 20... f6 (20... exf5 21. Qxf5 Rg8 22. Be4! g6 23. Qh3 $16 { The way
White has provoked a series of weaknesses on Black's kingside feels like
something out of Chernev's "Logical Chess: Move by Move." }) 21. fxe6 Qxe6 22. Qg6 $16) 20. Rg2 Rad8 21. Rag1 g6 22. Ne2 Nb6 23. Be4 Nd5 24. Qf3 { when White
is for choice, but Black at least has some counterplay on the weak f4-pawn and
ideas of ... c6-c5. }) 19... Rad8 20. Rag1 Rg8 21. e5 Nh7 22. Qe3!? { The first
inaccuracy (and only a couple of moves out of prep). } 22... Nb6 (22... f5! { Black absolutely had to be looking for the right time to play this move. White
has no breaks on the kingside or in the center anymore, and the static pawns
on d4 and f4 can prove to be fodder for Black's knight-pair as the game
progresses. } 23. d5!? { Might actually be White's best bet, challenging the
assumption that White had no breaks, but giving up a pawn. } 23... cxd5 24. Nb5 { White must have compensation for the pawn in the form of the weak dark squares,
but not more than that. } 24... Nc5 $13) 23. Be4 Qb4?? { A true blunder. White now
has a winning attack by force. } (23... f5 { Again! }) 24. Bxh7 Kxh7 25. Ne4 $18 { Once the knight occupies this square, there are too many mating attacks in the
form of f4-f5 and sacrifices on the f6-square. } 25... Qe7 26. f5 { Black resigned. If
26. ... exf5, White mates in an instructive way: } 26... exf5 27. Nf6+! Kh8 (27... gxf6 28. Qxh6+ Kxh6 29. Rh3#) (27... Qxf6 { is "best," but, come on. } 28. exf6 g5 { As a fun note, the engine informs us White still has mate after } 29. Rxg5!) 28. Qxh6+ gxh6 29. Rxg8+ Rxg8 30. Rxg8# { 1-0 White wins. } 1-0