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Alireza Firouzja vs Matthias Bluebaum
"Over the horizon" (game of the day Oct-05-2023)
Aeroflot Open (2017), Moscow RUS, rd 7, Feb-27
Caro-Kann Defense: Advance. Short Variation (B12)  ·  1-0

ANALYSIS [x]

FEN COPIED

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Kibitzer's Corner
< Earlier Kibitzing  · PAGE 2 OF 2 ·  Later Kibitzing>
Aug-31-19  Whitehat1963: I say again, this is truly an excellent game. The fun begins after 14...Qg6.
Nov-07-19  Walter Glattke: 29.Qd7+ Ka6 30.Rd3?? Re1+ 31.Kh2 Rh1# 30.Be3?? Rxe3 31.fxe3 Rxg3+ 32.Kh2 Qg2# 29.Qd7+ Ka6 30.Rc1 Rc8 31.Be3 /29.Qd7+ Ka8! 30.Rc1 Qd5 31.Qc7 Rc8 32.Qa5 unclear
Nov-07-19  patzer2: Missed the clever discovered attack with check combination 28. Qf5+! Kb7 29. Rd7+ Ka8 30. Rxa7+ Kxa7 31. Bb8+ +- (+4.30 @ 37 ply, Stockfish 10) solving today's Thursday puzzle.

After just completing a long walk this evening, I was tired and blundered with 28. Rd3?? allowing 28...Re1+ 29. Kh2 Rh1#.

P.S.: Black's losing move was 27...Qf3?, allowing 28. Qf5+! +- (+4.30 @ 37 ply, Stockfish 10).

Instead, 27...Qe4 = (0.00 @ 36 ply, Stockfish 10) would've held the position fully level.

Nov-07-19  malt: Seen 28.Qf5+ Kb7 29.Rd7+ Ka6
(29...Kb6 30.Bc7+ )

30.R:a7+ K:a7 31.Bb8+

27...Qe4 was better.

Nov-07-19  Lambda: Saw up to Qxf3 and then stopped, wasn't convinced it was a win but it does gain material, so would have played it for want of any better ideas.
Nov-07-19  clement41: Just not 31 Be3+?? Rxe3 -+ oopps
Nov-07-19  goodevans: <keypusher: [...] the whole game is worth your time. I leave it to stronger players to say whether all the sacrifices are sound.>

I agree entirely. I spent a while trying to work out who had the upper hand after 17...Qg4


click for larger view

... but it was beyond me.

Would be worthy of GOTD.

Nov-07-19  mel gibson: I saw the first move but I thought
there was an immediate mate somewhere
and that was wrong.

Stockfish 10 says:

28. Qf5+

(28. Qf5+ (♕c2-f5+ ♔c8-b7 ♖d1-d7+ ♔b7-a6
♖d7xa7+ ♔a6xa7 ♗f4-b8+ ♖e8xb8 ♕f5xf3 ♔a7-b6 ♕f3xh5 ♖g8-h8 ♕h5-f3 ♖h8-f8 ♕f3-f5 b5-b4 h4-h5 c6-c5 ♕f5-e6+ ♔b6-c7 ♔g1-g2 ♖b8-e8 ♕e6-c4 ♔c7-b6 h5-h6 f6-f5 ♕c4-d5 ♖e8-c8 ♕d5-d6+ ♔b6-b5 ♕d6-d7+ ♔b5-b6 b2-b3 ♖f8-h8 ♕d7-g7 ♖h8-f8 ♔g2-f3 ♖c8-e8 ♕g7-d7 ♖e8-d8 ♕d7-e6+ ♔b6-b5 ♔f3-g2 ♖d8-c8 ♕e6-d7+ ♔b5-b6 h6-h7 ♖c8-d8 ♕d7-e6+ ♔b6-b5 ♕e6-e7 ♔b5-c6 ♔g2-f3) +5.33/38 226)

score for White +5.33 depth 38

Nov-07-19  saturn2: Black threatens Qxf4 and Re2

I saw it till move 32.Qxf3 but Q vs two R seemed a tie to me.

Nov-07-19
Premium Chessgames Member
  OhioChessFan: First move was obvious, as well as Black desperately trying to keep his King off dark squares.
Nov-07-19  AlicesKnight: I saw the opening sequence leading to Q for 2 Rs but was unsure how definite the win was from there; the return of the Q for 2 passed Ps on the 6th was eyecatching.
Nov-07-19  agb2002: White has a bishop for a rook.

Black threatens Qxf4 and Re2.

The black queen is defenseless. Therefore, 28.Qf5+ Kb7 29.Rd7+:

A) 29... Ka6 30.Rxa7+ Kxa7 (30... Kb6 31.Bc7+ Kxa7 32.Qxf3 + - [Q+B+P vs 2r]) 31.Bb8+ K(R)xb8 32.Qxf3 followed by Qxc6, Qxf6 or Qh5.

B) 29... Ka8 30.Rxa7+ transposes to A.

C) 29... Kb6 30.Bc7+ wins.

Nov-07-19  drollere: the exclamation point on the combination is 33. Q:h5, which cements the advantage of Q vs. 2 Rs and foresees the linked 2 p's that the solitary R cannot stop.
Nov-07-19  Cheapo by the Dozen: Easy parts to see:

-- White's a little behind in material.
-- Anything White does probably needs to happen at a brisk tempo, as Black has various potential threats of his own. -- The first move is Qf5+, and the second is a check at d7. (This is easy to see because none of the alternatives are at all promising.)

From there it's a matter of seeing:
-- White has strong attacking lines but no prospects of quick forced mate. -- There's a potential discovered attack on the queen. -- Be3+ is the wrong way to do the discovery. :)

It doesn't matter exactly how good the resulting endgame turns out to be; this is obviously the best approach for White to try.

Nov-07-19  laskereshevsky: 28.♕f5+ ♔b7 29.♖d7+ is an easy sight..

after a while i found ♔a6 (or a8) 30. ♖xa7+ ♔xa7 31.♗b8+ ♔xb8 32.♕xf3

and the weak pawns on c6 f6 h5 should should give a better play for white

Nov-07-19  landshark: I rejected the game continuation because a Q vs 2 R's is rarely a win, much less a convincing one.
Nov-08-19
Premium Chessgames Member
  OhioChessFan: <landshark> a Queen typically dominates 2 Rooks with loose Pawns on the board. After 28. Qf5+, the two loose Black Pawns on the Kingside are not long for this world. I bet both sides knew it at that point.


click for larger view

After 39. gf5, it's mission accomplished.


click for larger view

So, with Pawns on the board, a Queen is much stronger than 2 Rooks.

Sep-03-21  Whitehat1963: This game is a model of fearlessness and efficiency! I think this kid will be world champion within 10 years!
Sep-14-23  Saniyat24: The novelty of this game should be 13.c4 instead of 8.Ng5...!
Oct-05-23  Brenin: Not a bad game for a 13-year-old.
Oct-05-23
Premium Chessgames Member
  fredthebear: Always good to beat a GM! Alireza went 6/9 in Moscow.
Oct-05-23
Premium Chessgames Member
  PeterLalic: I am embarrassed to ask: please can someone explain the pun?


click for larger view

White to move. Last: 18...Bb4

The exchange sacrifice 19.Bxe6+!! is amazing. It is purely positional, because White has no immediate tactics on move 22, when the dust settles.


click for larger view

White to move. Last: 21...Na6

Oct-05-23
Premium Chessgames Member
  Sally Simpson: Hi Peter,

'Guess The Reasoning Behind The Pun' is almost as good as solving puzzles. It perhaps has something to do with The Wizard of OZ (the wizard of Firouzja) but that is a guess. It could also be on Bluebaum (Blue being a colour in the rainbow).

Oct-05-23  BxChess: The pun is not really a play on words, but rather an observation that to evaluate the worth of a queen versus two rooks you had to look over the horizon, rather than perform a specific calculation. I tried to fit aeroflot into the theme, but I couldn't make it work. I'm the first to admit that the game is way better than the pun.
Oct-06-23
Premium Chessgames Member
  Sally Simpson: Hi BxChess,

I hope you realise and appreciate the man hours I spent trying to fathom out the reasoning behind the pun.

I first thought it must be one of Miss Scarlett's special puns and because she is as crazy as a box frogs I'd never get it. But I stuck with and to be honest I like my explanation better than yours but thinking about what you wrote and looking over the horizon. I get it.

A Queen v Two Rook Ending and '...I've a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore.” (see the Wizard of Oz movie)

This phrase has come to mean that we have stepped outside of what is considered normal; we have entered a place or circumstance that is unfamiliar.' So I'll let you off....this time....but I'll be keeping an eye on you.

The Game?
An instructive lesson how the two munchkin pawns on the 6th beat a Rook. (and getting it right 41.g7! 41h7??)

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