GM Hort analysis of the 1st game of the match Hou Yifan vs. Davis Navara

Fast Czech champion seen from the fast train

[12.06.2013 00:00:00] - „It´s hastily run up, seen by a kibitzer from express train,“ told legendary Czech grandmaster Vlastimil Hort when he was passing me this analysis.
Nevertheless you will enjoy his comments (he is too experience chess player and too good teller to be otherwise). So take a free time and enjoy the 1st game of the match between the best Czech chess player and the former woman´s world champion. And I promise you: you will also learn something important from this game and from the GM Hort´s annotation.

Hou Yifan – David Navara
Sicilian – Scheveningen variation
11. 6. 2013 – Prague – Michna Palace
ČEZ CHESS TROPHY 2013
the 1st game of the match
Annotation: GM Vlastimil Hort

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be2 e6 Game passes from Najdorf variation to Scheveningen variation and the order of the moves is very demanding and important. Also possible is 6...e5.
7.0-0 Be7 8.f4 Qc7 9.Kh1 0-0 10.a4 Nc6



11.Be3 Re8 12.Bf3 Rb8 „Black plays the first part of the game in a flash and he sets the moves on the chessboard faster than a peasant potatoes in the ground. He is well prepared,“ whispers the audience. The game has many famous interpreters – predecessors. Moreover, the tournament in Dutch Scheveningen (suburb of Haag) was played in 1923 already and a Dutch becomes offended, if you pronounce a variation with Czech Š – Ševeningen.
Please, pronounce Scheveningen as them with clear „Skhe“, where „kh“ is being clearly heard. 13.Qd2 Bd7 14.Nb3 b6 15.Bf2!? The commentator GM Robert Cvek and the whole hall of kibitzers expected and wished more likely 15. g4. Also Prague butcher Bobisek (fames blitz and poker player from the chess cafe in the Palace U Nováků), who was sitting next to me, would like and declared, that 15.g4 would have been bigger slaughter. All joking aside; I would mark 15. g4 as a major variation and 15.Bf2?! as a minor one and the database has more than enough patterns. Both participants were satisfied. „Don´t worry, be happy,“ is a famous song.
15...Bc8. Black playes still very quickly, even unbelievably quickly..
16.Bg3 And white starts dally with progress e4 – e5 and black regroups the figurines and pays attention, that they are standing on the right positions.
16...Nd7! The move pleased and found understanding beneath the whole audience in the commentary hall.
17.Rae1 Na5 18.e5 Hou Yifan certainly tuned out the home position. Butcher Říha (Bobisek) told: „She brows some poisons, she does...“ The other alternative may have been positional 18.Nxa5 bxa5 19.b3 Bb7 20.Nd1 with effort and clear intention Nd1 - e3 – c4.



Accountancy has two sides always: debit and given. White weakness c2 is huge, black pawns a6 – a5 will reccuperate quite hardly. Will be black successful in unleashing a sufficient counterplay against e4? White has also Re1-e2. This variation appealed to the GM Cvek, the audience was less convinced. We are all curious and our wish is clear: „If only the variation repeated in the third game!“
18...Nxb3 Pawn b2 was greatly poisoned: 18...Nc4 19.Qe2 Nxb2 20.Ne4, but black played very quickly as if he wouldn´t count as if he would know everything.
19.cxb3 dxe5 20.fxe5 Bb7 21.Ne4 Bxe4 22.Bxa4 a5! Black acts as a perfect Sicilian gentleman or Mafioso. Fortified square c5 is extremely important and it is not easy for white attack to get moving.
23.Qf4 Rf8 24.Rf3! Well played. White involves the last reserves and slowly, very slowly, will come the threat.
24...b5! Exclamation mark for courage. Alternative: 25...bxa4 and 26...Rb8–b4. But the commentary hall saw only 24...Nc5 with another reshuffle Rbd8 and Qc7-d7 and possible assault of black queen after taken over d-file. Credits go to GM Cvek and I would give him an exclamation mark also.
25. Bh4? Probably the first mistake in interesting position, which I would label as critical and which requires thorough analysis. What would do in such position celebrated Michal Tal? There was a possibility of 25.Rc3!? or 25.Rc1 and black queen would have to search escape squares. 25...Nc5! Commentary hall brightened, because it was clear, that white attack noosed and stutters.
26.Rg3! g6! White threatens 27.Rxg7+Kxg7 28.Bf6+ etc. Czech champion is uncompromisingly playing for the win and refuses effective ending of the game in draw after 26...f5 27.exf6 Qxf4 28.Rxg7+ Kh8 29.Rxh7+ Kg8 30.Rg7 + etc.
27.Bxe7 Qxe7 28.axb5 Rxb5 29.Bc2! White organises defense after third rank.
29... Rb4 Black pieces start to play and white has to accept the role of the defender.
30.Qh6 Rh4 31.Qd2 Qd8! 32.Qc3! „The only move,“ agreed the chief commentator Cvek and butcher Bobisek. „The game had a pretty good level until that critical moment,“ ment the hasty one. Yes, I would reproach her only the move 25.Nh4?
32...Na6?! Trying to improve the Knight is logical, but will it succeed? The other possibility was 32...Qb6, but that would be slightly different.
33.Rd3! White hasn't got much time anymore, but plays the best moves.
33...Qb8 34.Rd6! Certainly better than 34.Qxa5 Nb4 35.Rd2 Nxc2 36.Rxc2 Qxb3 and one and only, who's playing for the win, is the black one.
34...Rc8? Great inaccuracy. After 34...Nb4 35.Be4 Qa7 36.Qe3 Qe7 could black ripple the water. The transfer of the Knight wasn't successful.
35.Qxa5 Black missed his advantage and he's wrong. Coordination of his pieces flags.
35...Kg7



36.Rb6? Mistake, after which everything returns to the just order and white will have to fight for the draw again. After right and immediate 36.Qxa6 Rxc2 37.Qf1! White enters to the black position and black would quite worried of the move 38.Qf1- f6+. Emanuel Lasker:“Chess are mental fencing.“ Beautiful sentence, which I'll use in Thursday's quizz.
36...Qc7 37.Qxa6 Qxc2 38.Qf1. Marry in haste, repent in leisure.
38...Qf5! Everyone must have seen it. We are in the Rook ending.
39.Qxf5 gxf5 40.h3! Possibly better than 40.g3 where white pawns would be very vulnerable.
40...Rc2. 41.Rb7 Rh6! Very witty move. A threat of Rh6-g6 of course and white has to find the right defence. Madame Hou Yifan had truly exciting afternoon on Kampa;.
42.Rd1 Rg6 43.g4!? None of the kibitzers managed to agree on the common file, many wanted to see 43.Rd7, but former World Champion knew, that f7 is also a weakness.
43...fxg4 44.Rf1 gxh3. GM Cvek would like to see 44. g3 with certain black chance of the whole point. Well, the massage is also part of the chess game. It is a play on the opponent's half in soccer, where no one scores. Moreover po 44...g3 45. Rbxf7+ Kh6 46. Kg1 white would be probably keeping afloat.
45.Rfxf7 Kh6 46.Rxh7+ Kg5 47.Rxh3 Kf4 48.Rb4 Kxe5 49.Re3+ Kd6 50.Rd3+ Ke7 51.Re4 Rxb2 52.Rde3

The chessboard has become empty, the commentary hall has become depopulated.
Happened also: 52...Re2 53.Rc2 Rc5 54.b4 Rh5+ 55.Rh2 Rhg5 56.Rhe2 Kd6 57.Rd2+ Kc6 58.Ree2 Kb5 59.Re4 e5 60.Rd5+ Kc6 61.Rc5+ Kd6 62.Rh4 Rg1+ 63.Kh2 R1g2+ 64.Kh1 Rb2 65.Ra5 Rb1+ Draw. Who has seen it, definitely wouldn't consider that afternoon as wasted. A combative game, indeed.

Epilogue:

Kibitzer from express consideres as need to appologize. The truth was on the players (his and her) sides. After proposed and ostensibly strong 36.Dxa6 Vxc2 37.Df1! Black should ace up his sleeve for the fifth time and after 37...Db4!! 38.Df6+ Kh6 he would have strong attack himself. The four rank control and weak first row speak clearly in black's advantage. If GM David Navara had seen this opportunity on the move 32...Ja6, I'm taking my hat off.



White's move.

Question for Hou Yifan. Have you seen so far and refused the position? 36. Vb6 would be certainly better then ostensibly seductive 36. Dxa6? Also 40. g3 would draw more comfortably than 40.h3
The game has much higher level and value, of course, and it is worth of detailed and exhausting analysis. Rybka and Houdini know everything better than a commentator of flesh and bones. To err is human.

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