Semifinal clash awaits Duda
THE Speed Chess Championship (SSC) 2018 is currently under way on Chess.com, featuring many of the strongest blitz players in the world. The matches comprise three segments of 90/60/30min length, with successively quicker game time controls: 5+1/3+1/1+1 respectively — where 5+1 means 5min per player for the game, with 1sec added per move.
Today’s game is the final game from the quarterfinal match between Russian GM Alexander Grischuk (2825) and Polish GM JanKrzysztof Duda (2694). Going into the final 1+1 bullet game the match score was 13.013.0. This was all or nothing, yet neither player knew it! Neither player was aware that within the first 20sec of the game, the match clock had reached zero, so that they were now operating in overtime!
1 e4 c5
2 Nf3 e6
3 d4 cxd4
4 Nxd4 a6
Duda goes for the Kan variation (B41) of the Sicilian defence.
5 Nc3 d6
6 Be3 Ne7
7 Qd2 Nec6
8 OOO Be7
9 Kb1 b5
Now we see the point of the interesting Ne7 to c6 manoeuvre. 10 g4 Bb7
11 f3 OO
The battle lines are drawn, the kings are on opposite sides of the board.
12 h4 Nd7
13 Nxc6 Bxc6
14 Ne2 d5
15 Nd4 Bb7
16 Bg2 Ne5
Eyeing the c4 square with the knight and getting a solid grip over the centre by allowing the pawns to advance with e5 and d4.
17 Qe2 Nc4
18 Bc1 e5
19 Nf5 d4
20 g5 Bc8?!
A good idea, repositioning the bishop on e6 to eye the white king and threatening to remove the f5 knight if necessary.
21 f4 Be6
22 fxe5 Bc5
23 Rd3?! —
The idea of pushing c3 is very good here to exploit the black queen position.
23 — Qa5!
The immediate threat is to move the c4 knight and checkmate on a2. 24 b3 Rfd8
25 h5 Ba3
26 g6 Bxc1
27 Rxc1 Rab8
28 gxf7+ Kh8
29 Ka1? —
In the heat of the moment, with just 15sec remaining, White throws away his huge +5 advantage, 29 h6! threatening mate was winning
(e.g.: 29 — g6, 30 Nxd4 Qa3,
31 c3 Bxf7 and Black can’t get through).
29 — Nxe5
30 Rg3?—
The idea of 30 h6 was still winning.
30 — Bxf7
31 Nxg7 Rbc8
32 Nf5?? —
With 7sec remaining, in a dynamic position, hardly any calculation could be done. Duda wraps things up quickly.
32 — d3!
33 Qe3 Qc3+
Grischuk resigned in view of the forced mate in 4.
01
The players started their 28th game only to have it aborted soon afterwards and Duda was declared the victor, clinching the match 14.013.0. Duda progresses to the semifinal stage, where he will meet the winner of the match between Wesley So (2771) and Vidit Gujarathi (2727).
After White’s only move, 34 Kb1, we have the board position for today’s problem.
Solution: 34 — dxc2+!,
35 Rxc2 Qxc2+ (or 35 — Rd1+, 36 Qc1 [or 36 Rc1 Rxc1+,
37 Qxc1 Qxc1#] Rxc1+, 37 Rxc1 [or 37 Kxc1 Qxc2#] Qxc1#),
36 Ka1 Rd1+, 37 Qc1 Rxc1# is an instructive checkmating pattern.