[Event "Grand Chess Tour | Sinquefield Cup 2023"] [Site "St Louis"] [Date "2023.11.28"] [Round "7.4"] [White "Dominguez Perez, Leinier"] [Black "Rapport, Richard"] [Result "1-0"] [WhiteElo "2745"] [WhiteTeam "USA"] [BlackElo "2748"] [BlackTeam "ROU"] [Annotator "Lang,JJ"] [Variant "Standard"] [ECO "B12"] [Opening "Caro-Kann Defense: Advance Variation, Short Variation"] [Source "https://lichess.org/study/gIvXpdsS/VIQWXoWD"] [Orientation "white"] 1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. e5 Bf5 4. Nf3 e6 5. Be2 Nd7 6. O-O a5 7. Ne1 $146 { It is surprising to see that this move is a novelty in Mega Database 2023! The idea of Nf3-e1 is familiar in the Short variation of the advanced Caro-Kann, as the knight is often better placed on d3 and White wants to be able to meet . .. g7-g5 with f2-f4 in some lines. Here, Black has not played ...h7-h6 and instead prioritized the a-pawn rush, which is why 7. a4 is normally the move, or at least the more flexible 7. Nbd2. } 7... a4 8. c3 Qb6 9. Bd3 (9. Nd3 { is also plausible. } 9... c5 10. Na3!? { could give White a chance to play for an edge with Na3-b5 ideas, or netting the bishop pair if Black chops off on a3. } 10... cxd4 11. cxd4 Ne7 (11... Qxd4? 12. Be3 Qh4 13. Nb5) 12. g4 Bxd3 13. Qxd3 Nc6 14. Nb5 Be7 15. Bd2 $14) 9... Bg6!? { Rapport elects to keep the tension, surprising nobody. } (9... Bxd3 { is simpler, as now } 10. Nxd3 c5 11. Na3 cxd4 12. cxd4 Bxa3 { makes more sense here, as White no longer has the bishop pair and the lone dark-squared bishop might not be meaningful. } 13. bxa3 Ne7 14. Be3 O-O 15. Rb1 Qa6 16. Nb4 Qa5) 10. Nd2 Ne7 11. Ndf3 c5 12. Rb1 Bh5 { Black has avoided the trade on d3, and both sides play essentially perfectly from here until move 26. } 13. Be3 Nc6 14. a3 Be7 15. h3 Qc7 16. Be2 Bg6 17. Bd3 Bh5 18. Be2 Bg6 19. Bd3 b5 20. g3 cxd4 21. cxd4 Nb6 22. Bxg6 hxg6 23. h4 Nc4 24. Bg5 { The critical moment. With White castled kingside and Black not committed, the thematic French/Advanced Caro-Kann idea of ...f7-f6 and ...g6-g5 is clearly on the menu. But how to execute? } 24... f6 25. Bf4 g5 26. hxg5 fxe5? { A significant error in evaluation from Rapport. White's extra g-pawn will prove useful on g6, anchoring a knight on f7, while Black will be unable to use the d4-square or g1-a7 diagonal for much of anything. } (26... fxg5! 27. Be3!? { is probably better than the immediate captures. } (27. Nxg5?! Bxg5 28. Bxg5 Qf7! { gives Black the initiative. } 29. Qg4 (29. Nf3? Qh5 30. Bh4 Kd7!) 29... Qg6 $17) (27. Bxg5 { is the better capture, but Black holds onto an edge with } 27... Qd8 28. Bxe7 (28. Qd3 Bxg5 29. Qg6+ Kd7 30. Nxg5 Qe7 $15) 28... Qxe7 29. Kg2 g5 $15) 27... Bd8 { threatens ...Qc7-f7 and forces White to take action: } 28. Bxg5 { not } (28. Nd2?! Qf7 29. Qg4 Nxd2 30. Bxd2 Nxd4! { wins the pawn, since } 31. Qxd4?? Qh5 32. Kg2 g4! { is decisive. }) 28... Qf7 29. Bxd8 Nxd8 (29... Kxd8 30. Ng5 Qf5 31. f4! { is strong now, since } 31... Ne3 32. Qc1 { exploits the loose knight on c6, hence the choice of ...Nc6xd8 in the main line. }) 30. Ng2! { and now White should be able to survive. } (30. Ng5?! Qf5 31. f4 Ne3 32. g4! (32. Qd3? Nxf1) 32... Nxg4 (32... Qg6 33. Qd3 { is the point, as now the queen is unprotected, and the material imbalance will be less significant with queens off the board, as the knights absolutely love this locked center. } 33... Qxd3 34. Nxd3 Nxf1 35. Rxf1) 33. Qd3 $15 { kept White from losing the Exchange, instead only having to return the pawn. }) 30... Qg6 31. Nf4 Qh6 32. Kg2 g5 $13) 27. dxe5 Bc5 28. Nd3 Bb6 29. g6! { Clearing the g5-square for the knight, and limiting the effectiveness of Black's half-open f-file in the process. } 29... Ne7 30. Ng5 { The surgical exploitation of Black's weaknesses is classic Dominguez. } 30... Qd7 31. Nf7 Rf8 32. Qh5 d4 (32... Nf5 33. Kg2 { would allow White to calmly continue development. } 33... Rc8 34. Rh1 Qc6 35. Rbc1 $18 { White always has Nf7-d6+ followed by use of the e5-square (as well as g3-g4), but these lines are meant to show how patient White can be here. }) 33. Nd6+ Kd8 (33... Nxd6 34. exd6 Nd5 { and it is hard to overstate how crushing White's position is. The knight is short on squares, and castling long is hopeless. } 35. Rbc1 Rb8 (35... Nxf4 36. Nxf4 Qxd6 37. Rfe1! $18) 36. Rfe1 Nf6 37. Qf5!) 34. Rbc1 Qc6 { What else? } (34... Nd5 35. Nxc4 bxc4 36. Rxc4 Ne7 37. Bg5 Qd5 38. Rfc1 Kd7 39. Nc5+ Bxc5 40. Rxc5 $18) 35. Nb4 { Black resigned, as the b5-pawn falls and things are getting more hopeless by the second. } 1-0