Dominguez and Xiong Advance to Tiebreaks; So Eliminated

Faced with must-win games, Leiner Dominguez and Jeffery Xiong rose to the challenge. Dominguez defeated Alexander Grischuk, while Jeffery Xiong downed Jan-Krzysztof Duda. Both players move on to Sunday’s Round 4 Tiebreak Round at the 2019 FIDE World Cup in Khanty-Mansiysk. Wesley So could only draw against Nikita Vitiugov, and with his loss yesterday, he is eliminated from the 128 person knockout event. IM John Watson sets the scene, and annotates two games for exclusively for CLO:

Wesley So did his best to create chances today, but was unable to get anything against Nikita Vitiugov’s accurate play. He was eliminated, and Vitiugov, playing inspired chess, moves on. For the other Americans, this round was an inspiring example of fighting against the odds and surviving. To put it in context, chess doesn’t offer the average professional many chances for a career-changing result, but the World Cup gives players like Leinier Dominguez Perez and Jeffrey Xiong the chance to join their peers in the Candidates Tournament, an achievement which only the select few players accomplish in their entire careers. Given those circumstances, the pressure of playing in a must-win situation against the world’s best is immense, and both came through with flying colors. Xiong played a technically flawless game against Jan-Krzysztof Duda.

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mQsXG3MKF2g

[pgn] [Event "FIDE World Cup 2019"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Date "2019.09.21"] [Round "4.2"] [White "Xiong, Jeffery"] [Black "Duda, Jan-Krzysztof"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C24"] [WhiteElo "2707"] [BlackElo "2730"] [Annotator "Watson, John"] [PlyCount "81"] [EventDate "2019.09.07"] [EventType "k.o."] [EventCountry "RUS"] 1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 Nf6 3. d3 c6 4. Nf3 d5 5. Bb3 Bb4+ 6. Bd2 Bxd2+ 7. Qxd2 Qd6 ({ Duda played this a few months before versus Svidler. Previously he had played} 7... a5 {:} 8. a4 O-O 9. exd5 Nxd5 (9... cxd5 10. Nxe5 Nc6 11. f4 $1 (11. Nxc6 $2 Re8+) 11... Re8 12. O-O Nxe5 13. fxe5 Rxe5 14. Nc3 h6 15. Rae1 Rg5 $13 { , eventually drawn, Topalov,V (2740)-Dominguez Perez,L (2739) Saint Louis 2019} ) 10. O-O f6 11. h3 Be6 (11... c5 12. d4 $1 cxd4 13. Nxd4 exd4 14. Qxd4 Be6 15. Rd1 $14) 12. d4 $1 e4 13. Re1 Bxh3 14. Rxe4 $1 Bf5 15. Re2 $16 {Radjabov,T (2757)-Duda,J (2738) Wijk aan Zee 2019}) 8. Qg5 Nbd7 9. exd5 cxd5 10. d4 { A safe move which offers plenty of chances. The alternatives are equally interesting:} (10. Qxg7 Rg8 11. Qh6 {is doube-edged:} a5 $5 (11... Rxg2 12. Nbd2) 12. Nc3 (12. a3 Rxg2) 12... a4 $1 13. Nxa4 Rxa4 14. Bxa4 Qb4+ 15. c3 Qxa4 16. Qe3 Ng4 17. Qe2 $14) (10. Nh4 {looks artificial, but threatens Nf5:} Nc5 ( 10... g6 11. O-O) 11. Qxg7 Rg8 12. Qh6 Qe7 (12... a5 13. O-O $1 a4 14. Bxd5 $1) 13. Nc3 Be6 {with a messy position that offers active chances for both sides.}) 10... e4 11. Ne5 ({Duda's earlier game had gone} 11. Nh4 Nb6 $5 (11... g6) 12. Qxg7 Qf4 $1 13. Qxh8+ Ke7 14. Nc3 Qxh4 15. Qg7 $1 {Svidler,P (2737)-Duda,J (2729) Riga 2019; and after} Bg4 {, White apparently should have tried} 16. Nxe4 $1 Nxe4 17. O-O $1 {, although this is hardly clear.}) 11... O-O 12. Nc3 Nb6 13. f3 {White used a fair amount of time here, perhaps checking home analysis.} Be6 14. O-O-O $1 ({A dynamic choice, trying to improve upon} 14. Qe3 exf3 (14... a5 $5 15. a4 exf3 16. gxf3 Nc4 $11) 15. gxf3 Nh5 {, which was eventually drawn in Vitiugov, N (2721)-Zubov,A (2612) Gjakova 2016.} ({Simpler was} 15... Nc4 16. Bxc4 dxc4 17. Rg1 g6 18. O-O-O Nd5 $11)) 14... Rac8 15. Qd2 ({Or} 15. Qe3 {. In the game, leaving the e-file unobstructed works out well for White.}) 15... a6 $2 {Passive.} (15... Nbd7 {seems better, since} 16. Nb5 ( 16. f4 Nb6 17. h3) 16... Qb6 {is harmless}) (15... exf3 16. gxf3 Nc4 {is playable, but allows White to attack via} 17. Bxc4 dxc4 18. Rhg1 {, e.g.,} g6 19. Qh6 (19. h4) 19... Rfd8 20. h4 Qf8 21. Qe3 $14) 16. Rhe1 exf3 17. gxf3 Nfd7 $6 (17... Rfe8 18. Rg1 Qf8 $14 {is slow, but defends better; ...Kh8 and ...Nc4 could follow.}) 18. h4 $1 f6 $2 {This turns out to be very weakening. However, it's not easy to come up with a plan; perhaps} (18... Kh8 19. h5 h6) 19. Nd3 $1 Bf7 20. Qf4 $1 Rc6 $6 (20... Qxf4+ 21. Nxf4 {loses the d-pawn, and}) (20... Qb8 $5 21. Rg1 Kh8 {is depressing, but what follows is worse:}) 21. Qxd6 Rxd6 22. Nc5 Rb8 23. Re7 Kf8 24. Rde1 {White dominates the position.} Nxc5 $6 {Despair.} (24... Bg6 25. h5 $1 (25. Ba4 Bf5 $16) 25... Bxh5 26. Ba4 $1 {wins material}) ( 24... f5 25. a4 Bg8 26. Ba2 $1 {prepares b4 and leaves Black with no reasonable moves.}) 25. dxc5 Rd7 26. Rxf7+ Kxf7 27. cxb6 {Apart from White's material advantage, the d-pawn is too weak.} Rbd8 28. Nxd5 $1 Kg6 ({Effective resignation, but White has a permanent pin after} 28... Rxd5 29. Rd1 Ke6 30. f4 f5 31. Rd4) 29. c4 Kh5 30. Re4 Rc8 31. Kd2 g5 32. Ke3 Rf7 33. hxg5 fxg5 34. Ba4 Kh6 35. Be8 Rf8 36. Bd7 Rb8 37. b4 Kg6 38. Nc7 Rfd8 39. Re7 Rh8 40. Be8+ Kf6 41. Nd5+ {White played a near-perfect game.} 1-0 [/pgn]

Watson on Dominguez-Grischuk:

Dominguez faced the daunting task of having to defeat the elite grandmaster Alexander Grischuk. To Grischuk’s credit, he didn’t back down from entering into a wild , double-edged position. In severe time trouble he uncorked the reasonable looking 28...Nxg2, but Dominguez reacted coolly, exposing the drawbacks to Grischuk's move and winning the game.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zgTNch3ffYk

[pgn] [Event "FIDE World Cup 2019"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"] [Date "2019.09.21"] [Round "4.2"] [White "Dominguez Perez, Leinier"] [Black "Grischuk, Alexander"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C54"] [WhiteElo "2763"] [BlackElo "2759"] [Annotator "John Watson"] [PlyCount "81"] [EventDate "2019.09.07"] [EventType "k.o."] [EventCountry "RUS"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. c3 Nf6 5. d3 d6 6. Bg5 h6 7. Bh4 a6 8. a4 Ba7 9. Nbd2 Qe7 10. O-O $5 {White often delays this move, not wanting to expose himself to a dangerous kingside attack. In a must-win situation, it's easier to take this risk, and Dominguez Perez trusts his preparation. A couple of high level games from this summer went} (10. b4 g5 11. Bg3 Nh5 12. b5 Nd8 13. bxa6 bxa6 14. Rb1 {Caruana,F (2819)-Anand,V (2767) Stavanger 2019; and}) (10. Qe2 Be6 11. b4 Bxc4 12. Nxc4 Qe6 13. Bxf6 Qxf6 14. O-O O-O 15. b5 Nd8 16. Rfb1 axb5 17. axb5 Ne6 18. g3 Bc5 {Yu,Y (2736)-Aronian,L (2756) Riga 2019.}) 10... g5 11. Bg3 Nd7 (11... h5 12. h4 {is a main line that has been scoring well for White, so attention has switched to 11...Nd7. The main idea is to utilize the f4 outpost after ...Nf8-g6.}) 12. b4 {Rare; White wants to steer the game away from forced book lines.} (12. Bd5 {has been played in several games this year, without great success.}) 12... Nf8 13. b5 Nd8 $5 (13... Na5 {was played in the only two games with 12 b4, e.g.,} 14. bxa6 (14. Bd5 $5) 14... bxa6 15. Bd5 Rb8 16. Rb1 Rxb1 (16... c6) 17. Qxb1 c6 18. Qb4 $1 cxd5 19. Qxa5 $14 {Oseledets,K (2473)-Maver,I (2389) ICCF 2017}) 14. d4 {White decides to play in the center versus Black's flank attack.} (14. h4 {was an option, and if} Ng6 {,} 15. h5 Nf4 16. Nh2) 14... Ng6 15. h3 {versus ...g4.} h5 $1 16. Bd5 $6 {This seems to lose too muh time.} (16. bxa6 g4 $5 (16... bxa6 $1 17. Re1 $5 (17. Be2 $5) 17... g4 18. hxg4 hxg4 19. Nh2 {with the idea} exd4 20. e5 $5 Nxe5 21. Bd5 c6 22. Nc4 $1 Rxh2 $1 23. Nxd6+ Qxd6 24. Rxe5+ Qxe5 25. Bxe5 Rh5 26. Qe2 d3 27. Bxc6+ Nxc6 28. Qe4 Bd7 29. Bd6+ Kd8 30. Rd1 {with an unclear position but further attacking chances for White}) 17. axb7 Bxb7 18. hxg4 hxg4 19. Nh2 exd4 20. cxd4 Bxd4 21. Rc1 {is messy, but the computer prefers White.}) 16... c6 17. Bb3 (17. Bc4 {is probably more accurate, for defensive purposes.}) 17... g4 18. hxg4 Bxg4 $5 {A key decision.} (18... h4 $1 19. Bh2 (19. b6 $5 Bxb6 20. Nc4 Bc7 21. Bh2 h3) 19... h3 {is also promising}) 19. Qb1 {White stands worse in any case, e.g.,} (19. Bh2 h4 20. Kh1 h3 21. Rg1 hxg2+ 22. Rxg2 Bh5) 19... Rc8 $6 { Unnecessarily slow.} (19... h4 20. Bh2 h3 21. g3 Qf6 $15 {keeps the pressure on.}) 20. bxa6 (20. Bd1 $1) 20... bxa6 {Grischuk was already in his customary time pressure.} 21. Qd3 h4 22. Bh2 Ne6 (22... h3 $1) 23. Bd1 (23. Bxe6 $1 { confuses matters:} Bxe6 (23... Qxe6 24. Ng5 $5) 24. dxe5 ({or} 24. Nc4 Bxc4 25. Qxc4 h3 26. dxe5 hxg2 27. Rfd1 $13) 24... dxe5 25. Nxe5 Rd8 26. Qxa6 Rxd2 27. Nxc6 $13) 23... Nef4 $6 (23... h3 $15) 24. Qxa6 O-O $5 {These Black moves are being made instantly.} (24... Rc7 {is an option, when} 25. Nxe5 dxe5 26. Bxg4 Qg5 27. f3 $1 (27. Bf3) 27... exd4 28. Kh1 dxc3 29. Nb3 {might follow.}) 25. Nxe5 $1 dxe5 26. Bxg4 Qg5 27. Bf3 Ra8 28. Qc4 (28. Kh1 $5) 28... Nxg2 $4 { It's almost not fair to criticize such a bold decision, but objectively this is where the game is lost. Even Grischuk needs more than a few seconds to correctly assess such a move!} ({Again,} 28... h3 {was the way to keep things unclear.}) 29. Kh1 $1 {The refutation.} (29. Bxg2 $2 h3 {favors Black.}) 29... Qxd2 (29... h3 30. Rad1 {followed by Rg1 gives White too strong an attack, e.g. ,} N6h4 31. Rg1 exd4 32. e5 $1 {. I suspect that this was what Grischuk originally intended for Black until he saw how bad it was.}) 30. Rad1 (30. Ra2 $1 Qh6 31. Bxg2 {is also strong.}) 30... Ne3 $5 ({After} 30... Qh6 31. Bxg2 { , White's bishops, center, and g-file are too strong.}) (30... Qb2 $5 31. Rg1 $1 h3 32. Bxg2 hxg2+ 33. Rxg2 Kh7 34. f4 $18) 31. fxe3 Qxe3 32. Rd3 Qh6 33. Bg4 Rae8 34. Rdf3 {Black could resign here.} Re7 35. Bf5 {Threatening Bxg6.} Nf4 36. Bxf4 exf4 37. Rxf4 Rb8 38. Rg4+ Kf8 39. Bg6 Rbb7 40. Qxc6 Qe3 41. Rxh4 1-0 [/pgn]

So’s 8.a4 in the Ruy Lopez took the game into more lightly trawled waters, but he could never generate the complications needed to defeat a 2700+ GM. The game was drawn in the minimum 30 moves, and So’s tournament is over.

[pgn] [Event "FIDE World Cup 2019"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk RUS"] [Date "2019.09.21"] [Round "4.2"] [White "So, Wesley"] [Black "Vitiugov, Nikita"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [ECO "C88"] [WhiteElo "2767"] [BlackElo "2732"] [PlyCount "60"] [EventDate "2019.09.10"] [EventType "k.o."] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. a4 Bd7 9. c3 O-O 10. d4 h6 11. Nbd2 exd4 12. cxd4 Nb4 13. Nf1 c5 14. e5 dxe5 15. dxe5 Nh7 16. e6 Bxe6 17. Bxe6 Qxd1 18. Bxf7+ Kxf7 19. Rxd1 Bf6 20. Bd2 Nd3 21. Bc3 c4 22. Bxf6 Nxf6 23. b3 Ne4 24. bxc4 bxc4 25. Ne3 Nexf2 26. Rf1 Ne4 27. Nxc4 Kg8 28. Nfe5 Rxf1+ 29. Rxf1 Nxe5 30. Nxe5 Nc5 1/2-1/2 [/pgn]

Ian Nepomniachtchi and Peter Svidler were also eliminated on Saturday. Svidler drew against Maxime-Vachier Lagrave, while Nepomniachtchi lost to Yu Yangyi in an interesting Grunfeld battle.

[pgn] [Event "FIDE World Cup 2019"] [Site "Khanty-Mansiysk RUS"] [Date "2019.09.21"] [Round "4.2"] [White "Yu, Yangyi"] [Black "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "D85"] [WhiteElo "2763"] [BlackElo "2776"] [PlyCount "85"] [EventDate "2019.09.10"] [EventType "k.o."] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Nf3 c5 8. Bb5+ Nc6 9. Rb1 O-O 10. d5 Ne5 11. Nxe5 Bxe5 12. O-O a6 13. Be2 Bxc3 14. Be3 Qa5 15. h4 Rb8 16. h5 Bd7 17. f4 Qxa2 18. hxg6 hxg6 19. Bg4 f5 20. Bh3 Qa4 21. Qxa4 Bxa4 22. Bxc5 Rf7 23. Rb6 Kh7 24. Rf3 Ba5 25. Re6 fxe4 26. Rg3 Rg8 27. f5 g5 28. Bxe7 Bc7 29. d6 Bb6+ 30. Kh2 Bd7 31. Rg6 e3 32. R3xg5 Rgg7 33. Rxg7+ Rxg7 34. Rh5+ Kg8 35. f6 Bg4 36. Rh8+ Kxh8 37. fxg7+ Kxg7 38. Bxg4 Bc5 39. Kg3 a5 40. Kf3 a4 41. Bd7 a3 42. Be6 b6 43. Bb3 1-0 [/pgn]

Tomorrow sees playoff games between: Ding Liren – Alekseenko Aronian – Le Quang Liem Mamedyarov – Radjabov Dominguez – Grischuk Duda – Xiong The winners of these playoffs join Vachier-Lagrave, Vitiugov, and Yu Yanghi in the "Round of 8." Play starts on Sunday at 6am EDT. Live coverage is available at the FIDE YouTube Channel.

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