Sometimes one small mistake can sink your recreation. And generally you’ll be able to survive a bunch of oversights and blunders and nonetheless take the purpose.
Today’s two very completely different video games illustrate the distinction and function testimony to the big variety of delights our recreation affords.
First up, we’ve a essential recreation from the ladies’s world championship match now underway in Chongqing, China. In a tightly performed contest between two well-matched opponents, defending champ GM Ju Wenjun lastly broke by way of with a victory over challenger GM Lei Tingjie in Sunday’s Game 8, knotting the scheduled 12-game match at 4-4. It’s a delicate positional battle from the get-go on this Zukertort Opening, with the champ simply in a position to nurse her small however persistent benefit by way of to the top.
Facing uncomfortable strain out of the opening, Black shifts the play with a pawn sacrifice on 21. Nc4 a4!? 22. Qxa4 b5! 23. cxb6 Nxb6 24. Nxb6 Qxb6, getting extra freedom for her items. Ju misses a shot — 32. Ne1! Bd1 33. Rd3 pressures Black’s clotted piece in traces like 33…Rc1 34. Rd8+ Kf7 35. Nd3 Rb1 36. Kh2, with a transparent edge) — and on the Move 40 time management, the opposite-colored bishops tremendously complicate Ju’s capacity to take advantage of her further pawn. Even so, the strain was clearly all on Lei, who needed to sit and undergo as White probed for a win.
Even acquiring a second pawn after 42. h4 Rb3!? (Lei stated extended protection would have left her items too “passive”) 43. Rxe6 doesn’t assure White the win, and actually Black misses one final trick that might have saved the draw: 56. Kf2?? (Rc7 or 56. Ra7 is indicated, as Black now misses a shocking tactic) Rd2+ 57. Ke3 Rd6??, giving again the present. With 57. Rd3+ 58. Ke2 Rd4!, White both has to permit the draw with 59. Bxd4 Kxe7 or surrender the f-pawn and see her benefit all however disappear.
Sidestepping the hazard, White slowly pushes her opponent again, clinching the affair with 70. Kg4 Rd1 61. Rxg6! hxg6 72. h7, and the pawn will price Black her rook; Lei resigned.
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They’re enjoying the identical recreation, however the first-round recreation between younger U.S. stars IM Justin Wang and GM Brandon Jacobson on the present U.S. Junior Championship match in St. Louis feels a world away from the Ju-Lei grind.
In a basic Ruy Lopez battle, Jacobson as Black offers with White’s early kingside strain by sacrificing a pawn — 19. h4 Ng6!? 20. hxg5 hxg5 21. Nxg5 Rh8 — in hopes of launching his personal kingside assault alongside the open file. The basic thought works out — Black’s assault will determine the sport — however there are numerous bumps and flawed turns alongside the way in which from each gamers, making for a wild, unbalanced contest.
After 23 Qd2 (higher could also be 23. Nxf7 Qe7 24. d4 Rf8 25. a4 Rxf7 27. Bxf7 Kxf7 27. axb5, with probabilities for either side) Qh8 (already threatening a mate in a single) 24. Kf1 d5! (Black should play energetically to justify his sacrifice) 25. exd5 Nxd5 26. f3 Re8; Black’s well-placed items and kingside strain give him ample compensation, however now time strain impacts the play on either side because the place complicates.
Thus: 28. Ng1 Nf5 29. Bf2 Rh2?! (stronger was 29. Rh1!, with the nasty risk of 30…Nf4 31. Rxe5 Qh2 32. d4 Qxg2+ 33. Ke1 Rxg1+ 34. Bxg1 Qxg1 mate) 30. Qg5!? (and right here White can maintain the steadiness with 30. d4 e4 31. d5; e.g. 31…exf3 32. Bd4+ f6 33. Nxf3 Ng3+ 34. Kf2 Ne4+ 35. Rxe4 Rxe4 36. Nxh2 Qxh2 37. Rg1) Bc8 31. d4 f6?! (and, once more right here, 31…Rh5 32. Qd2 Rh1! places big strain on the protection) 32. Qd2 (see diagram).
Now Black can maintain the sting with 32…Rd8 33. Re4 Rh1, however fortune favors the daring (and the attacker) as Jacobson as an alternative provides an iffy sacrifice: 32…Rxg2!? 33. Kxg2 Nf4+ 34. Kf1 Qh2, and now White holds with the pc’s cold-blooded 35. Re2! in traces equivalent to 35…e4 [Qg2+ 36. Ke1 Nxe2 37. Qxe2 Ng3 38. Qe3 Nf5 39. Qe2] 36. Be1 Nxe2 37. Qxe2 Ne3+ 38. Qxe3 Bh3+ 39. Nxh3 Qxh3+ 40. Kg1 [Ke2?? exf3+] exf3 41. Qf2 Qg4+ 42. Kf1 Qh3+, with a perpetual.
Both sides really feel the strain: 35. Re4? Ng3+? (successful was 35…Qg2+! 36. Ke1 Ng3 37. Qe3 [Bxg3?? Qxg1 mate] Qf1+ 38. Kd2 Nxe4+ 39. Qxe4 Qxa1 40. Bc2 f5) 36. Ke1? (Bxg3!, returning materials was the way in which to go: 36…Qxd2 37. Bxf4 Qxb2 38. Rd1 Be6 39. dxe5 Qxc3 40. Rc1, and White has way over sufficient for the misplaced queen) Qg2!, and now, lastly, Black’s assault clicks neatly into place.
For all of the earlier messiness, Jacobson’s king hunt is a factor of magnificence, ending the sport with 37. Kd1 Nxe4 38. fxe4 Bg4+ 39. Kc1 (Kc2 Qxe4+ 40. Kc1 Nd3+ 41. Kb1 Nxf2+ wins) Qf1+ 40. Be1 exd4 41. Bd1 (Bd5 Rh8!) Nd3+ 42. Kb1 (White’s items huddled alongside the again row make for a tragic tableau) Rxe4, and it’s over on 43. Bxg4 Rxe1+ 44. Kc2 Nb4+! 45. Kb3 (cxb4 Qc4+ 46. Qc3 dxc3 47. Rxe1 cxb2+ 48. Kxb2 Qxb4+ 49. Kc2 Qxe1 and wins) Qc4+ 46. Ka3 Rxa1 47. b3 Qxc3, and Liang calls it quits attributable to 48. Qxc3 dxc3 49. Kxb4 Rxg1 50. Bf5 Rg3, with a gained ending.
Not good, however so much to take pleasure in right here, and the preventing spirit of the 2 gamers is admirable.
The U.S. Junior, U.S. Junior Girls and U.S. Senior Championships all obtained underway over the weekend on the Chess Club of St. Louis. We’ll have a recap of the motion within the coming columns.
(Click on the picture above for a bigger view of the chessboard.)
Ju-Lei, FIDE Women’s World Championship Match, Game 8, Chongqing, China, July 2023
1. Nf3 d5 2. e3 c5 3. b3 Nc6 4. Bb2 a6 5. g3 Qc7 6. d4 cxd4 7. exd4 Bg4 8. Bg2 e6 9. O-O Nf6 10. Nbd2 Bd6 11. c4 O-O 12. a3 a5 13. h3 Bh5 14. Qe2 Rfd8 15. Rac1 dxc4 16. bxc4 Be7 17. Qe3 Rac8 18. Rfe1 Bg6 19. Qb3 Qb8 20. c5 Nd5 21. Nc4 a4 22. Qxa4 b5 23. cxb6 Nxb6 24. Nxb6 Qxb6 25. Ba1 Qa5 26. Qxa5 Nxa5 27. Rxc8 Rxc8 28. d5 Nb3 29. dxe6 fxe6 30. Be5 Bxa3 31. Re3 Bc2 32. Nd4 Nxd4 33. Rxa3 Nc6 34. Bxc6 Rxc6 35. Ra8+ Kf7 36. Ra7+ Ke8 37. Rxg7 Kf8 38. g4 Rc5 39. Bf6 Be4 40. Kh2 Rb5 41. Re7 Rb6 42. h4 Rb3 43. Rxe6 Bf3 44. g5 Bg4 45. Re7 Bf5 46. Kg2 Bh3+ 47. Kg1 Bf5 48. h5 Rh3 49. h6 Rd3 50. Kh2 Rh3+ 51. Kg2 Rd3 52. f3 Rd7 53. Re5 Bc2 54. f4 Rd5 55. Re7 Bf5 56. Kf2 Rd2+ 57. Ke3 Rd6 58. Rc7 Rd3+ 59. Ke2 Rd5 60. Bc3 Ke8 61. Kf2 Kf8 62. Bb4+ Ke8 63. Re7+ Kd8 64. Rf7 Ke8 65. Rf8+ Kd7 66. Bc3 Bg6 67. Rg8 Rd6 68. Be5 Rd2+ 69. Kf3 Rd3+ 70. Kg4 Rd1 71. Rxg6 hxg6 72. h7 Black resigns.
Liang-Jacobson, 2023 U.S. Junior Championship, St. Louis, July 2023
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. d3 d6 7. c3 O-O 8. Re1 Re8 9. h3 Bf8 10. Bg5 h6 11. Bh4 g5 12. Bg3 Bg7 13. Nbd2 b5 14. Bc2 Bb7 15. Nf1 Ne7 16. Ne3 Ng6 17. Nf5 Ne7 18. Nxg7 Kxg7 19. h4 Ng6 20. hxg5 hxg5 21. Nxg5 Rh8 22. Bb3 Rh5 23. Qd2 Qh8 24. Kf1 d5 25. exd5 Nxd5 26. f3 Re8 27. Nh3 Nde7 28. Ng1 Nf5 29. Bf2 Rh2 30. Qg5 Bc8 31. d4 f6 32. Qd2 Rxg2 33. Kxg2 Nf4+ 34. Kf1 Qh2 35. Re4 Ng3+ 36. Ke1 Qg2 37. Kd1 Nxe4 38. fxe4 Bg4+ 39. Kc1 Qf1+ 40. Be1 exd4 41. Bd1 Nd3+ 42. Kb1 Rxe4 43. Bxg4 Rxe1+ 44. Kc2 Nb4+ 45. Kb3 Qc4+ 46. Ka3 Rxa1 47. b3 Qxc3 White resigns.
• David R. Sands will be reached at 202/636-3178 or by e mail at dsands@washingtontimes.com.
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