Ian Nepomniachtchi vs Anish Giri (2024)

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Ian Nepomniachtchi vs Anish Giri
Sinquefield Cup (2024), Saint Louis, MO USA, rd 3, Aug-21
Nimzo-Indian Defense: Saemisch Variation (E28) · 1-0

ANALYSIS [x]

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Aug-22-24		keypusher: Lots of long range attacks and defenses in this one. For example White is threatening Rh8+ here. click for larger view Really a wonderful, entertaining game.

Aug-22-24		HeMateMe: Sharp, sharp! A great find the next move game.

Aug-22-24		Sally Simpson: Yes. K.P. Revitalising, refreshing and a reminder these guys enjoy playing the game and it's not just a day job. Normally all the fun lines are relegated to the notes. Every now and then a game between top level players explodes into a tactical melee. I've seen 100's of Queen checks on e4 or e5 followed taking a h1 or a1 Rook but I cannot recall seeing a Qh1+ v a King on e1 followed by taking a Rook on a8. Something is niggling me about a Marshall game. I'll see later if can found out what it is that is bugging me. Great Game.

Aug-22-24		saffuna: A good example of the maxim, "Develop your rook before knights or bishops."

Aug-22-24		saffuna: Looking at the database, it looks like Giri was thrown off by 7. f3, which has only been played seven times in cg games. 7...Nc6 was a first in the cg database.

Aug-22-24		keypusher: <saffuna: Looking at the database, it looks like Giri was thrown off by 7. f3, which has only been played seven times in cg games. 7...Nc6 was a first in the cg database.> By transposition there's also E Neri vs M Gaggiottini, 1995, another entertaining game. I'm sure chess.com has more examples in their database. Another thing I love about this game: at move 12 White has this awesome hulking pawn array: click for larger view But a little while later (see diagram in post below below after 25.Qc1) only three pawns are left! The KP is a giant, though.

Aug-22-24		saffuna: <Another thing I love about this game: at move 12 White has this awesome hulking pawn array:> And a near-total lack of development of his pieces. FWIW, a relatively brief Stockfish evaluation at move 12 has black ahead at -2. (Cue Tal quote.)

Aug-22-24		keypusher: I should stop making stupid posts about this game, but...a tale of two knights. click for larger view Black's knight so liked the view from a5 that he's stayed there ever since move 11. I imagine Giri would have loved to have him a little closer to the kingside action. There would definitely have been some upsides if the knight, rather than the queen, had landed on c4. Meanwhile White's knight has been faithfully guarding his monarch from the modest e2 square since move 15. But now he leaps to f4, aiming for e6 and winning the game.

Aug-22-24		saffuna: <I should stop making stupid posts about this game, but...> ...it's such a fascinating game. Beginning to end.

Aug-22-24		saffuna: It's fun searching for the move or moves where Giri went wrong, threw away an apparent advantage. So far suspect #1 is 18...Rxf3. Uses a move to pick up a pawn, as white lines up his forces against the isolated black king.

Aug-22-24		Sally Simpson: Hi K.P. Do continue making post. This is a fun game. I noted it up in my own way. (no computer analysis, note it as you see it just as the players did...cept they saw a bit more. ) https://www.redhotpawn.com/chess-bl... I pegged a hindsight mistake which you spotted. click for larger view 16...Nb3 instead of 16...Nd7 Hunting the c1 Bishop which plays a big part in the coming game. 17 Be3 looks like the best reply. (of coure I do not mention that in case I'm wrong) But at least the Knight is closer to the action. But the real excuse for the blog is to tell the world I picked up three Bilko DVD's for 50p each. And one of the 16 episodes is 'The Twitch!' I've watched it twice already.

Aug-22-24		Check It Out: Love the game and comments. Whites position as KP diagrammed it looks like how kids play, throwing all the pawns forward with gusto. I humorously imagine the players getting out of breath from the physicality of all the long moves.

Aug-22-24		saffuna: <But the real excuse for the blog is to tell the world I picked up three Bilko DVD's for 50p each.> One of the best shows ever. So predictable, but still perfect.

Aug-22-24		saffuna: Daniel.King to the rescue: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Nclz_... ("Are You Serious?")

Aug-22-24		keypusher: I'm sure everyone has thought of Ding Liren vs Nepomniachtchi, 2023. Here's the position from that game after 12.h4!?!? for comparison: click for larger view The funny thing is in that game it was Nepo who was cool rationality while Ding Liren was the wild man. Also in that game as in this one the wild man got the upper hand, though Ding couldn't finish off his opponent. I'm very engine-dependent, but I've stayed away from engines in looking at this game so far. I just want to enjoy it. Position after 17.g6: click for larger view 17....fxe6 is clearly the losing move, because it leaves e6 uncovered, and we know how this game ends.

Aug-22-24		keypusher: <So far suspect #1 is 18...Rxf3. Uses a move to pick up a pawn, as white lines up his forces against the isolated black king.> If the computers don't like that move I'm sure they're right. But ...Rxf3 isn't just a pawn grab. Doesn't it look like ...Qd3 or ...Rd3 will be very strong? Doesn't White deserve to get punished for playing the opening like a 9-year-old? I'm sure the computers are also right when they (apparently) say Black should have played ...h6 around move 17 and then the king should have fled to the queenside after the inevitable bishop sacrifice. But I don't blame Giri for not playing that way.

Aug-23-24		Check It Out: Chess is so advanced these days. Imagine the billions of games played since the 19th and 20th centuries. Every one of these opening moves has a rich history behind them. And yet, how quickly it leaves theory faster than the human mind can predict. That's why chess is so awesome; it keeps us on our toes regardless of our skill level.

Aug-23-24		Caparlsen: A brilliant, fantastic game, like something from another era, from the world runner-up!

Aug-23-24		keypusher: Position after 23.Rxa8. click for larger view White is the exchange ahead but Black has two pawns for it. The engine defense is ...Qc6, which gets a 0.00 evaluation after the odd 24.Rc8 Qb7 25.Rgg8 (surely White is winning here??) 25....Qxe4! and 26.Rh8+ Kg6 27.Rg8+ is a draw. Instead Giri plays the sensible ...Nf6 (activate your worst piece!) which turns out to be a mistake. 24.dxe5 and now if 24....dxe5 25.Qd8 Black is getting mated. So Giri played 24....Nxe4 and was on his heels after Nepo's wonderful 25.Qc1!!. But how about 24...Qxe4? click for larger view Now 25.exf6! Qxa8 and it looks like 26.Qd3+ Kh8 27.Qg6 will win as in the game. But after 27....Qf8 no win is apparent -- in fact Black will have the upper hand after ...Nc4-e5. Instead the winning move turns out to be the completely paradoxical 26.Qa4!!, which looks like a waste of time. click for larger view Black turns out to be in a weird sort of semi-zugzwang, and the white queen has access to some wonderful squares. If 26....Qd5 ("centralizing the queen") 27.Qc2+ (now a check on this diagonal works) Kh8 28.Qg6 and Black just gets mated. 26....Rxf6 27.Qd7+ is another quick mate. If 26....Qd8 then 27.Qe4+ Kh8 28.Nf4 and there is no good defense against Ng6+ (note that this doesn't work after 26.Qd3+ Kh8 27.Nf4 because Black has ...Qe8+ 28.Kd2 Rxf6! 29.Ng6+ Rxg6 30.Rxg6 Nc4+! 31.Kc1 Qe1+ with an eventual perpetual check). Similarly, 26....Qf8 loses after 27.Qe4+ Kh8 28.Nf4 Rxf6 29.Ng6+ Rxg6 30.Rxg6 and White wins, e.g. 30....Nb3 31.Qe6 Kh7 32.Rf6 winning the queen. The computer defense 26....Nc6 (what human would play this?) also loses after the standard 27.Qe4+ Kh8 27.Nf4 and if 27....Rxf6 then 28.Ng6+ Kg7 (28....Rxg6 loses after either 29.Rxg6 Qf8 30.Qxc6 or 29.Qxg6 Qf8 30.Rh1) and now 29.Qg4! Qe8+ 30.Ne5+ wins, among other things. Nepo would find 26.Qa4 if anyone would, but I wonder if he ever addressed the possibility.

Aug-23-24		DaltriDiluvi: I just want to note that from move 18 onwards, all of Nepo's moves match the recommendations of my computer. He was basically a machine for 20 moves.

Aug-23-24		Sally Simpson: ..or your computer was Nepomniachtchi for 20 moves. Hi K.P. That lad at Red Hot Pawn. He does it all the time, if he can get away with it he will move all 8 pawns before moving a piece. He has over 600 games where nothing but pawn moves for the first 12 moves. His masterpiece is that game I used. Position after 8 moves. All pawns moved. click for larger view And 5 moves later the first piece moved was a his Queen. click for larger view White played 13.Qh5 and mate is unavoidable. full game. 1. e4 e5 2. h4 Nc6 3. a4 a5 4. c3 Nf6 5. d3 Be7 6. g4 h6 7. f3 d6 8. b3 O-O 9. g5 hxg5 10. hxg5 Nh7 11. f4 g6 12. f5 gxf5 13. Qh5 Nxg5 14. Qh8# * I've played him 26 times and won 26 but that is because I'm boring and did not get into the swing of things. Next time we meet I'll not move any pawns get him with my Knights.

Aug-24-24		Voice without Words: The differences between drawish player vs agressive attacking player. Bravo Ian

Aug-25-24		HeMateMe: Are you good folks referring to <Sgt. Bilko>, 1960s military sitcom? Geez, I had no idea anyone in Europe would even know of such a thing. any Gomer Pyle or CPO Sharkey fans out there?

Aug-26-24		keypusher: click for larger view At this point Giri played 35....Qf8 and resigned a couple moves later. He also could have tried 35....Qh4+, which turns out to be a bit tricky. The easiest answer to the checks is simply 36.Ng3, after which 36....Qe7+ 37.Kf2 and the checks are over. But White needs to find one more spectacular move: 37....Qf8 38.Ne4 Qg7 39.Nf6! and whatever Black does he will get mated shortly. White can also play 36.Kd1, and if e.g. 36....Qa4+ 37.Kd2 Nb3+ (37....Nc4+ 38.Ke1!) 38.Ke3, or 36....Qh1+ 37.Kc2 the king is out of danger. But I'd hate to have to figure that out over the board.

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