But Goryachkina wins tournament anyway!
Congrats to Mariya Muzychuk for crushing the tournament winner Goryachkina in yesterday’s final round of the Candidates Tournament in Kazan. In a risky variation of the advanced variation of the Caro Kann both players followed theory, but Goryachkina never seemed to equalize.
Perhaps the line is simply too risky!? Or maybe Goryachkina was just not her usual precise self. In any case, this was the Russian’s only loss of the tournament and in no way diminishes the brilliance she demonstrated enroute to the greatest success of her young life.
gm Muzychuk,M – gm Goryachkina,A
1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.e5 Bf5 4.Nf3 e6 5.Be2 c5 6.Be3 Qb6!?{[#]} 7.Nc3 Nc6
8.O-O Qxb2 9.Qe1 cxd4 10.Bxd4 Nxd4 11.Nxd4 Bb4 12.Rb1!{[#]}
( {<strong style="color:black;">Shirov has specialized in the sharper </strong> }12.Ndb5!?Ba5 13.Rb1 Qxc2 14.Rb3 Ne7 15.Nd6+ Kf8 {<strong style="color:black;">but never got convincing results with it. Probably for this reason, Mariya plays a more modest line leading to an ending. </strong> } ) Bxc3{[#]}
({<strong style="color:black;">Also seen is </strong> } 12...Qxc3 13.Rxb4 Qxe1 14.Rxe1 b6{<strong style="color:black;">which is identical to what happens in the game, except for the position of White’s Rook. One recent example is: </strong> } 15.h4 h5 16.Nxf5 exf5 17.Bb5+
Kf8 18.Rd1 Ne7 19.c4 d4 20.Rxd4 Rh6 21.Ra4 Nc6 22.Rd5 Re6 23.f4
g6 24.c5 bxc5 25.Rxc5 Nd8 26.Bc4 Re7 27.Bd5 Rb8 28.Rca5 Rb1+
29.Kf2 Rd7 30.Bf3 Ne6 31.Kg3 Rd3 32.Rd5 Rxd5 33.Bxd5 Nc7 34.Bb3
a6 35.Rc4 Nb5 36.Rc8+ Ke7 37.Ra8 Nc7 38.Rc8 Rc1 39.Kf2 Rc5 40.Ke2
Rc6 41.Kd3 Rc5 42.g3 Rc6 43.Bc4 Rc5 44.a4 Rc6 45.Kd4 a5 46.Kd3
Rc5 47.Rb8 f6 48.exf6+ Kxf6 49.Rb6+ {1-0, Saric,Iv 2691 – Zelcic,R 2520 , Bjelovar CRO 7/ 4/2019 ch-CRO 2019})
13.Rxb2 Bxe1 14.Rxe1 b6{[#] <strong style="color:red;">Black’s extra pawn is irrelevant in as much as it is very difficult to sort out Black’s pieces.</strong>} 15.h4!? Be4?! ({<strong style="color:black;">Black should have played the ‘theoretical’ </strong> } 15...h5!? )
16.Bb5+ Kf8 17.f3{[#] <strong style="color:red;">This turns out to be quite useful later when White brings her King into the centre.</strong>} Bg6
18.Re3{[#] <strong style="color:red;">Curiously, the White Rooks are very annoying for Black.</strong>} Ne7 19.Rc3 h5!? ({<strong style="color:black;">Also not very appealing is </strong> } 19...Rc8 20.Rxc8+ Nxc8 21.Rb3 Ne7 22.Rc3!
) 20.Rc7{[#]} a6 21.Bd7! b5 22.a4 ( 22.Kf2!? ) bxa4 ( 22...Nf5 23.Nxf5
Bxf5 24.Bc6 Rb8 25.Ra7$16 ) 23.Bxa4 Nf5 24.Ra7 Rd8 25.Nc6 Re8
( 25...Rc8?! 26.Rc7 Ra8 27.Nb8! ) 26.Ne7 Rd8 27.Nxg6+ fxg6 28.Bd7{[#] <strong style="color:red;">White has a winning game. Black must go back to the drawing board and re-check this line for Black.</strong>}
Kg8 ( 28...Nd4 29.Rbb7 Kg8 30.c3 ) 29.Bxe6+ Kh7 30.Rbb7!{[#] <strong style="color:red;">White has an impressive position</strong>} Nd4
( 30...Kh6 31.Rxa6 Nxh4 32.f4 ) 31.Bd7 Rb8 32.e6 Nf5 33.Ba4 Rbc8
34.e7 Nd6 35.Rb6 Ne8 36.Rbxa6 Kg8 37.Ra8 ( 37.Bd7 Rb8 38.Be6+
Kh7 39.Bxd5 ) Rxa8 38.Rxa8 Kf7 39.Kf2!{[#] <strong style="color:red;">Black throws in the towel. White simply moves his King up and then exchanges all of the pieces, giving an easily won King and Pawn ending. </strong>} 1-0
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All photos courtesy of the tournament organizers
