And then there were eight …

by Jonathan Tisdall (Twitter: @GMjtis)

That sounds a lot less dramatic than the title Agatha Christie gave us, but when you start with 128 players and too many games to follow in a 24-hour day, there is a certain amount of action and accomplishment in just reaching the quarterfinals. The 2017 edition of the FIDE World Cup has been the strongest and arguably the most dramatic ever. There has been tremendous coverage from the ‘mainstream chess media’, with a wide choice of excellent live commentary, photojournalism and fresh interviews. With an event this big, there are angles everywhere. I’ll try to come at the familiar ones from a different angle, and hopefully make a few odd discoveries along the way as well.

Falling giants

There were upsets as early as round one of course, the biggest being the exit of the sensation of the previous edition, Pavel Eljanov. In 2015 Eljanov tore through the event, beating people at real, sorry, classical chess at a rate rarely seen in the KO format, where players constantly trade rating points to rest with draws, and bank on tiebreak day to see them through against lower rated opponents. Eljanov blanked Jumabayev, Ipatov, and Grischuk(!), eliminated Jakovenko in rapids, saw off Nakamura in classical and then finally succumbed to Karjakin’s patented combination of escapology and efficiency in the semis. Pavel’s 2017 KO was maximum nightmare, blundering a full point away with white on day one vs. calm American Aleks Lenderman, and then getting blanked trying to fix this with black on day two.

SEE ALSO: The Calm between the Cups

Major shocks started arriving in round two, with Sergey Karjakin being eliminated by Daniil Dubov and Viswanathan Anand going out to Canadian-Ukrainian Anton Kovalyov. For Karjakin, this was not the biggest of deals, as he is seeded into the Candidates as the previous title challenger. For Anand, it meant rather more, since this was his only route to the Candidates barring a wild card spot. Most likely it means the end of an era, with the Indian titan probably sidelined from the title circus for the first time in ages. Both of these matches made a strong impression on me, for very different reasons. I’ll muse about Vishy’s exit when tackling the topic of crashing champions. Karjakin’s elimination again raised the complex and ‘frightening’ topic of modern opening preparation.

I used Karjakin’s adventures to illustrate some of the questions around the increasingly cyborg state of man-machine work in the openings in my previous article and the comments from the players after Dubov felled Sergey were very interesting indeed. Karjakin has repeatedly, and admittedly, been caught out forgetting the reams of prepared analysis he needs to know, and in Tbilisi he detailed this again.

I knew that 18…Ra5 is a draw, but over the board got confused and played 18…Ba7. I even repeated this line today, but it did not help… — Sergey Karjakin (@SergeyKaryakin) September 7, 2017

Dubov had a similar tale to tell after the game, but with one intriguing difference. He cited the exact same moment, and claimed that his 18th move guaranteed him an advantage, but he could not remember the details when playing it over the board. If they are both being honest – and of course there are reasons for them not to be overly so – it reveals an interesting nuance to the high-tech battle of engines and hardware that goes on behind the scenes at the top level. Two players/teams/machines/cyborgs can crunch the same variation and arrive at different conclusions. This might not seem like a major revelation to some, but it hints at fascinating levels of complexity – the engines don’t always work things out, as they did in the game discussed here – and not only that, they don’t necessarily even agree.

[Event "FIDE World Cup"] [Site "Tbilisi "] [Date "2017.09.07"] [Round "2.2"] [White "Dubov, Daniil"] [Black "Karjakin, Sergey"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "A29"] [WhiteElo "2666"] [BlackElo "2780"] [Annotator "jt"] [PlyCount "61"] 1. c4 Nf6 2. Nc3 e5 3. Nf3 Nc6 4. g3 d5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. Bg2 Bc5 7. O-O O-O 8. d3 Bb6 9. Nxd5 Qxd5 10. b4 e4 11. Ng5 Qd4 12. Ba3 e3 13. b5 exf2+ 14. Kh1 Ne5 15. Bxf8 Kxf8 16. a4 a5 17. bxa6 Rxa6 18. a5 {Apparently the critical moment. Despite what looks like sharp and inventive chess, this position has been under the engine spotlight by both players, and presumably to quite some depth further. Nevertheless, the game starts here, since both players confess to not remembering what they had decided to do afterwards.} Ba7 (18... Rxa5 {was either a draw – or better for white – depending on whose machinery you trust. Then again, maybe both statements are true, just different translations of the ‘perfect’ variations.}) 19. Qc1 $1 {This looks very attractive, threatening to activate the Q via c7 and f4.} Qd8 (19... c6 {is more popular with engines, but looks very unnatural – I don’t see why black isn’t suffering after} 20. Ne4 ({or} 20. Nxh7+ Kg8 21. Ng5) 20... Ng4 21. Qf4 ({or} 21. Bh3 $5 {Karjakin’s choice keeps the option of swinging the Ra6 into play, which attracts us humans. Unfortunately, it just doesn’t seem viable to use the Ra6 actively.})) 20. Qf4 h6 21. Ne4 Qe7 22. Nc3 g5 (22... c6 23. Ne4 Ng4 {is probably more stubborn, but Karjakin is understandably keen to keep his Ra6 happier.} (23... Bd4 $5 {to get the a5 pawn for the f2 pawn and just fight on is an alternative. })) 23. Qc1 Ng4 $2 (23... c6 24. Ne4 Ng4 25. h3 $5 Ne3 26. Qc3 $5 {favors white but is far messier than the game.}) 24. Nd5 Qxe2 25. Qxc7 Rc6 26. Qd8+ Qe8 (26... Kg7 27. Ne7) 27. Qxe8+ Kxe8 28. d4 (28. Nb6 {at once looks simpler.} ) 28... Kd8 (28... Bxd4 29. Ra4 Bc5 30. Nb6 Be6 31. a6 $1) 29. h3 Nf6 30. Nb6 Rc2 31. Nxc8 1-0 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

Falling champions

By round three all the world champions were gone – former titleholder Vladimir Kramnik dispatched by simply dogged high class chess from the always dangerous Vassily Ivanchuk. In some ways it is hard to ever call an Ivanchuk victory an upset. In Tbilisi Kramnik never quite looked comfortable. A much bigger shock was Carlsen’s exit in the third round, especially since the reigning champion had shown supreme form in his 2-0 assassination of Alexei Dreev. The Norwegian lost with White in the first game of his match against Bu Xiangzhi, and no matter who you are, winning to order with black to survive is not always on the menu.

Bu’s win was not just a sparkling example of enterprising attacking play, it was a masterpiece of sporting psychology, that provided plenty of food for thought. Bu offered a piece for some classical long-term compensation. It was what the old-timers called a ‘real’ sacrifice; not some sham offer that was just part of a decisive combination, but a murky punt that just led to danger and complications, with no clear outcome. Under the circumstances, it came in a diabolical package.

Psychological dilemmas

Taking risks with white in the 2-game KO format, especially as favorite, is probably the best way to increase your chances of elimination. The recipe for success in general is to avoid danger, press safely with your white, and show off your strength differential in the tie-breaks, when the error rate rises for the lower rated player. (Psychology is a tricky business. There is also a school of thought that the lower rated player should seek tiebreaks because the faster the control, the more random the result. I suppose you believe deeply in the choice you make. Or perhaps tiebreaks favor … everyone?)

There are clearly a few giants who use their whites more violently (Aronian comes quickly to mind), but the smart money is on safety first, and grinding away with higher class accuracy. Magnus is well known for needing an edge just this side of invisible to cause terrible suffering for his opponent, so this champ in good form should be deadly when safe. Bu presented Carlsen with a terrible dilemma: burn your white right out of the opening, or risk direct attack.

Lose face, or risk face

Carlsen’s style may not appeal to everyone, but he is the grimmest of fighters, in the Fischer mold of belligerence. I can only remember him dropping the fight with white in very extreme circumstances – Game one in Chennai vs Anand, when he was learning how to play a title match and was very aware of the sense of occasion; and Game 12 vs Karjakin in NY, when he had planned to burn this game in order to gain the advantage of several days rest. But anything less than title matches, and occasionally even in them, Magnus is willing to lead with his head in order to pursue a full point.

When this is coupled with truly tempting bait (Giri assessed the sacrifice as objectively doubtful, for example), I think the choice is clear. World champions don’t back down, it’s not in their DNA. Magnus has to go all in, and when he’s white as well, the pot they are playing for is practically for the match as well as the game. Sharpening play to breaking point as black has interesting ramifications in the KO format, considering the high price of a misstep for white.

Of course this is a lot easier said than done. Bu had to not only muster the nerve to toss a piece at the champion – it would be very interesting to know if he ever thought Carlsen would chicken out – he also had to make the most of his chances. In practice, it was far harder to defend, and the bold Chinese GM produced an evergreen dismantling of a world champion. In the end, neither Magnus nor his last challenger caused any damage to potential candidates in Tbilisi.

[Event "FIDE World Cup"] [Site "Tbilisi "] [Date "2017.09.09"] [Round "3.1"] [White "Carlsen, Magnus"] [Black "Bu, Xiangzhi"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "C55"] [WhiteElo "2827"] [BlackElo "2714"] [PlyCount "72"] 1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 Nf6 3. d3 Nc6 4. Nf3 Be7 5. O-O O-O 6. Bb3 d6 7. c3 Be6 8. Re1 Qd7 9. Nbd2 Rab8 10. Bc2 d5 11. h3 h6 12. exd5 Nxd5 13. Nxe5 Nxe5 14. Rxe5 Bd6 15. Re1 Bxh3 $5 16. gxh3 Qxh3 17. Nf1 {Carlsen, of course, accepts the challenge. The alternative was to cash in his white cheaply:} (17. Qf3 Bh2+ 18. Kh1 Bg3+ 19. Kg1 Bh2+ $11) 17... Rbe8 {Black has a couple of very simple ideas – advancing his kingside pawns and lifting rooks into the attack. The position is extremely unclear and even engines vacillate here. The key factor is probably that it is much harder for white to play.} 18. d4 (18. Bd2 $5) 18... f5 19. Bb3 c6 20. f4 Kh7 21. Bxd5 $6 (21. Re2 $5) 21... cxd5 {White’s position has become very unpleasant. The general line-opening that will follow …g5 will leave White’s king exposed.} 22. Re3 Rxe3 23. Bxe3 g5 24. Kf2 (24. fxg5 { might be a better try, but black’s attack should win:} f4 25. Qc2+ Rf5 26. Bxf4 (26. Bf2 f3 27. Be3 Kh8) 26... Bxf4 27. Re1 Bd2 $3) 24... gxf4 25. Qf3 fxe3+ 26. Nxe3 Qh2+ 27. Kf1 Rg8 (27... Qxb2 {looks simpler.}) 28. Qxf5+ Rg6 29. Ke1 h5 30. Kd1 (30. Rd1 {is tougher, but white had no time, on top of his other woes.}) 30... Kh6 31. Nc2 h4 32. Ne1 h3 33. Nf3 Qg2 34. Ne1 Qg4+ 35. Qxg4 Rxg4 36. Nf3 Rg1+ $1 0-1 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

The price of youthfulness

To me, the exit of ex-champ Vishy Anand was similarly weighty with psychological baggage. I might be reading way too much into it, but for me the decisive moment of the veteran’s duel with Canadian-Ukrainian Anton Kovalyov was a brave, and eventually tragic, insistence on seeking former glory.

The strain of advancing years on the serious chess competitor has familiar forms. The accumulation of blows and disappointments over the years, the gradually slowing machinery, and a steadily increasing distaste for suffering result in familiar symptoms. Growing aversion to risk and complication, lowered fighting spirit, and a real hatred for ‘torture’, which often convinces the aging player to resign a bit earlier, and not waste any of their ever more precious time.

And while Anand has managed to remain a titan after losing his title, he is only human, and he is also gradually showing some wear and tear. To combat this, and to stay at the top of the game, active measures must be taken to strengthen the youthful aspects of the competitive mind – confidence, aggression, speed. A good example of this renewal came from Anand recently, this glorious bit of ‘kid stuff’ against a leading youngster.

[Event "5th Sinquefield Cup 2017"] [Site "Saint Louis USA"] [Date "2017.08.06"] [Round "5.2"] [White "Anand, V."] [Black "Caruana, F."] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "A29"] [WhiteElo "2783"] [BlackElo "2807"] [PlyCount "57"] [EventDate "2017.08.02"] 1. c4 e5 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. Nf3 Nc6 4. g3 d5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. Bg2 Bc5 7. O-O O-O 8. d3 Bb6 9. Bd2 Bg4 10. Rc1 Nxc3 11. Bxc3 Re8 12. b4 Qd6 13. Nd2 Qh6 14. Nc4 Qh5 15. Rc2 Rad8 16. Nxb6 cxb6 17. f3 Be6 18. Qd2 b5 19. f4 Bg4 20. Bxc6 bxc6 21. fxe5 f6 $2 22. exf6 $3 Rxe2 23. f7+ Kf8 24. Bxg7+ $1 Kxg7 25. Qc3+ Re5 26. Qd4 $3 Qg5 27. Rc5 Rxd4 28. f8=Q+ Kg6 29. Qf7+ 1-0 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

But this kind of rejuvenation, and searching for the fountain of youth, has its risks and its price.

[Event "FIDE World Cup"] [Site "Tbilisi "] [Date "2017.09.06"] [Round "2.1"] [White "Anand, Viswanathan"] [Black "Kovalyov, Anton"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "B90"] [WhiteElo "2794"] [BlackElo "2649"] [PlyCount "86"] 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. h3 e5 7. Nb3 Be6 8. Be3 h5 9. Be2 Nbd7 10. O-O Rc8 11. Qd2 b5 12. Rfd1 Nb6 13. Bxb6 Qxb6 14. a4 b4 15. Nd5 Nxd5 16. exd5 Bd7 17. a5 Qb7 18. Qe3 Be7 19. Qb6 Qxb6 20. axb6 Rb8 21. Rxa6 Bd8 22. b7 Ke7 23. Nc5 $6 (23. Rda1 Rxb7 24. Ra7 Rc7 25. Rxc7 Bxc7 26. Ra7 { with Rb7 to follow, gives white a small safe advantage. Just what you want in this event…}) 23... dxc5 24. d6+ Kf6 25. Bf3 {White’s passed pawns look reasonably terrifying, but it is an illusion.} Kf5 26. Bd5 e4 27. Re1 Bf6 28. Bxe4+ Kg5 29. Ra5 Bxb2 30. Rxc5+ Kf6 31. Re3 g6 32. Rf3+ Ke6 $1 33. Rd3 Rhd8 34. Ra5 f5 35. Bf3 Bc3 36. h4 Kf6 37. g3 f4 38. Be4 Bf5 39. Bxf5 gxf5 40. Rb5 ( 40. Rdd5 $6 b3 $1) 40... Ke6 41. Kf1 Rd7 42. gxf4 Rbxb7 43. Re3+ Kf6 0-1 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

So when seeing this dashing, unnecessary display of youthful exuberance – and the great cost it had for a player doing the kind of thing that always used to work before – I see something quite moving, at least to this old-timer. A great champion fighting against time. It might be futile, but it is in grand style. And I hope it means we’ll still be seeing great stuff from Anand for years to come.

Oddly, the exit of the world champion was not the top story of the day from Tbilisi…

Power trips and hot heads

Well, it wouldn’t be a major chess event without an international scandal. Rather astoundingly, Kovalyov stole all the attention in round three by withdrawing from the event after an argument with Zurab Azmaiparashvili. Enough has been written about this, and I think it can be condensed into very simple terms. Things like this never need to happen.

While the arbiter appeared to be in the process of solving things quietly (though he should clearly have brought the matter up after the game, preferably game 1, round 1) Azmai went on an unnecessary and completely over the top rant that convinced Kovalyov to withdraw.

It’s very understandable that he felt too upset to play, and that he would be unfairly handicapped or harassed if he did so, but actually leaving seems like overkill. Or surrender. Anton’s version of the incident appeared on Facebook. Other crazy incidentals are that there is no clear dress code, and there does not appear to have been any attempt to enforce one except for this brief moment.

While there is still no dress code, I will continue to argue for fashion rebels to make the most of this web site, which I think adds an important dimension to future discussion about regulations, including shorts.

In conclusion, if Kovalyov’s version is precise, the thing that worries me the most about this is not the timing, the offensiveness, the randomness or the pointlessness of the incident. It is the attitude that what the rules or other officials have said does not matter, only what the boss on the spot says matters. This is the real root of the problem. There is a petition of protest from the Association of Chess Professionals, which is a start.

Back to the chess

Meanwhile, the great feast continues, with drama coming in classical, rapid and faster portion sizes. For me, especially in this engine age, the human elements are what really fascinate. Despite the clear incentive to play the careful odds, there are interesting struggles by players, to adapt, or rebel. A few of the standouts are the entertainers: Levon Aronian, Baadur Jobava, Richard Rapport, and Vladimir Fedoseev.

Without a doubt, home favorite Jobava and Rapport really leashed their inner beast for this event, and the benefits of conformity, while not as breathtaking to watch, were impressive. Rapport’s combativeness has not dampened much, but he has dropped seeking weird adventure from move 1, and shown more sensible openings and some very sophisticated technique. His approach to the round 4 match against Najer was a bit closer to his ‘old’ self, if the 21-year-old and youngest quarterfinalist can be said to have anything aged – a non-stop slugfest with sharp, though not surreal, openings.

On the other hand, Jobava played so solidly that if you didn’t know he was here, you wouldn’t have spotted his games. His tiebreak victory over Yu Yangyi was extremely impressive – first a typical flurry of sacrificial tactics in game 3, then a controlled positional crush to sweep the 10-minute rapids. Hugely popular due to his combination of personal warmth and lightning attacking skills, Baadur’s exit in round four saddened his fans, but Wesley So proved too solid, too smooth.

[Event "FIDE World Cup"] [Site "Tbilisi"] [Date "2017.09.08"] [Round "2.5"] [White "Jobava, Baadur"] [Black "Yu, Yangyi"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "A01"] [WhiteElo "2702"] [BlackElo "2750"] [PlyCount "83"] 1. b3 d5 2. Bb2 Nf6 3. e3 g6 4. c4 dxc4 5. Bxc4 Bg7 6. Nf3 O-O 7. O-O c5 8. Be2 b6 9. d3 Bb7 10. Nbd2 Nc6 11. a3 Nd5 12. Bxg7 Kxg7 13. Qc2 Qd7 14. Qb2+ f6 15. Rfd1 Rfd8 16. Rac1 Rac8 17. h3 e5 18. Ne4 Qe7 19. Re1 Rd7 20. Bf1 Qd8 21. Rcd1 Nde7 22. b4 cxb4 23. axb4 Nf5 24. Rc1 Qe7 25. b5 Na5 26. Rxc8 Bxc8 27. d4 { Loading the cannon.} Bb7 28. Nxf6 $3 Kxf6 29. dxe5+ Kf7 30. e6+ $1 Kxe6 (30... Qxe6 $4 31. Ng5+) 31. e4 Ng7 32. Qa2+ Kd6 33. Rc1 $1 {Despite the speed, Jobava attacks with incredible precision.} Bxe4 34. Qd2+ Ke6 35. Ng5+ Kf5 36. g4+ Kf6 37. Nxe4+ Qxe4 38. Qxd7 Ne6 39. Bg2 Qd4 40. Qxh7 Nf4 41. Qh8+ Ke6 42. Re1+ $1 1-0 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

True to your inner rebel

Meanwhile, Aronian and Fedoseev endured round 4 drama that seemed at least partly due to trying to rein in their risk-loving spirits at critical junctures. Both then elected to play decisive tiebreak games with black in nailbiting fashion after earlier attempts at solidity let them down. The games below show two wild guys that just let rip. Their recurring boldness and aggression has been great to watch, and the final eight has the potential for some sparkling encounters. We just have to hope that nerves and fatigue don’t spoil things. I’d like to see a petition for more rest days in this slaughterhouse of an event…

I’d also repeat my conjecture about Levon’s cyborg preparations from my previous article – his openings continue to show that unique streak of personal styling that few others seem to match.

The great divide

The final eight is a contrast in brackets; familiar ‘legends’ on one side, surprising youngsters on the other.

#FIDEWorldCup ¼ Finals:

Left Bracket:

Svidler vs. MVL

Ivanchuk vs. Aronian

Right Bracket:

So vs. Fedoseev

Rapport vs. Ding Liren — Chris Bird (@ChrisBirdIA) September 14, 2017

The split is best illustrated by noting that Ding Liren – aged 24 – is the veteran of the right bracket!

Smoothly

Half of the quarterfinalists have given the appearance of control so far; So, Vassily Ivanchuk, Peter Svidler and, Maxim Vachier-Lagrave – though with MVL you have to forget the shaky start in the very first game – a pawn down for nothing much vs tongue-twister Muhammad Khusenkhojaev. But since then MVL has been arguably majestic. Eliminating Grischuk is a tough job for anyone, and must be a reassuring indicator of form.

I wondered online if Svidler-MVL was the only maximum pairing. If I meant that as the only one involving two players who advanced by just beating people below them, I was right. But of course none of the quarterfinal matches are between two players seeded to be there. Svidler is standing in for Carlsen, Ivanchuk for Kramnik, Fedoseev for Nakamura, Rapport for Caruana, Ding Liren for Mamedyarov.

Vassily Ivanchuk only hunts the most dangerous game. He cares not for sub-2700s #FIDEWorldCup2017 pic.twitter.com/6adAROHOJD — Jaideep Unudurti (@Unudurti) September 12, 2017

Ivanchuk has massive experience, but whether he has a controlled strategy is another matter. He continues to be fully immersed in his games, evidenced by his remarkable decision to decline a draw against Giri as black in game two when that would have secured his spot in the quarterfinals. He did indeed have a massive advantage, but …

Stats

MVL played a ‘maximum’ opponent in round 4. Ivanchuk defeated both top seeds in his section to reach the quarterfinals. There are more favorites left than there were in 2015, when only 2 of the top 8 seeds made it to the quarterfinal (Nakamura and Giri). In Tbilisi, So, MVL and Aronian have survived to this stage.

One of the things which caught my eye about the seeding, and irked me as well, was seeing so many of the Chinese players in the same section. Rapport’s wonderful event has included wins over Wei Yi and Li Chao, and so it is only natural(?) that the man blocking his path to the semis is Ding Liren. Can the Hungarian kid keep his streak going? He has disclosed his secret:

Richard Rapport [on knocking out the Chinese players]: "It's mostly luck, I presume." #FIDEWorldCup — Olimpiu G. Urcan (@OlimpiuUrcan) September 11, 2017

And finally, a fine quote:

«One of the bonus points of the KO format – we see matchups that nobody ever wanted, but turn out to be fascinating.» – Jaideep Unudurti @Unudurti

[Event "FIDE World Cup"] [Site "Tbilisi "] [Date "2017.09.11"] [Round "3.7"] [White "Matlakov, Maxim"] [Black "Aronian, Levon"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "E90"] [WhiteElo "2728"] [BlackElo "2802"] [PlyCount "86"] [EventDate "2017.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "Russia"] [BlackTeam "Armenia"] [WhiteTeamCountry "RUS"] [BlackTeamCountry "ARM"] [WhiteClock "0:00:13"] [BlackClock "0:00:11"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 g6 4. Nc3 Bg7 5. e4 d6 6. Nf3 O-O 7. h3 Nbd7 8. Bd3 a6 9. a4 b6 10. O-O e5 11. a5 bxa5 12. Qa4 Rb8 13. Qxa5 Qe7 14. Rb1 Nh5 15. Bg5 f6 16. Bd2 Nf4 17. Bc2 f5 18. Bxf4 exf4 19. exf5 Ne5 20. Nxe5 Bxe5 21. f3 Qg7 22. f6 Qxf6 23. Ne4 Qh4 24. Qe1 g5 25. Kh2 Bf5 26. b3 Qh6 27. Bd3 g4 28. fxg4 Bxg4 29. Nf2 f3+ 30. Kg1 fxg2 31. Nxg4 gxf1=Q+ 32. Bxf1 Qg6 33. Kh1 Rbe8 34. Rd1 h5 35. Bd3 Qg7 36. Nxe5 Rxe5 37. Qh4 Rg5 38. Qe4 Rg3 39. Qe6+ Kh8 40. Be4 Rf6 41. Qc8+ Qf8 42. Qd7 Rf1+ 43. Kh2 Qf2+ 0-1 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

[Event "FIDE World Cup"] [Site "Tbilisi "] [Date "2017.09.14"] [Round "4.4"] [White "Rodshtein, Maxim"] [Black "Fedoseev, Vladimir"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "E04"] [WhiteElo "2695"] [BlackElo "2731"] [PlyCount "86"] {You only have to know one thing about this game. Black needed a draw to secure advancement to the quarterfinals.} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. g3 Bb4+ 5. Nbd2 dxc4 6. Bg2 b5 7. O-O a5 8. a4 c6 9. Ne1 Nd5 10. e4 Nb6 11. Nc2 bxa4 12. e5 Be7 13. Qg4 g6 14. Ne4 h5 15. Qf3 h4 16. Rd1 Ba6 17. Ne3 Rh5 18. g4 Rh7 19. g5 N8d7 20. Ng4 Bb5 21. Bh3 Rh8 22. Nh6 Rf8 23. Qg4 Qc7 24. Qxh4 O-O-O 25. Bd2 Nd5 26. Qg3 Qb6 27. Bc3 c5 28. Bg2 Nxc3 29. bxc3 cxd4 30. cxd4 Nb8 31. Nc3 Bb4 32. d5 a3 33. Rdc1 Ba6 34. Rab1 Nd7 35. Bf1 Nc5 36. Qf3 exd5 37. Nxd5 Rxd5 38. Qxd5 Bb7 39. Qxc4 Qc6 40. Qg4+ Kb8 41. f3 Qd5 42. Bg2 Nb3 43. Rd1 a2 0-1 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.

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