ABDUMALIK vs ZAWADZKA – FIDE WOMENS WORLD CHESS CHAMPIONSHIP 2018 ROUND 3

Zhansaya Abdumalik

This game is from round 3 of the 2018 FIDE Women’s World Chess Championship, fully annotated. It is between Zhansaya Abdumalik with White against Jolanta Zawadzka with Black.

This game features a Ruy Lopez. To learn more about the Ruy Lopez, here is the best instruction book I could find on Amazon.

Abdumalik,Zhansaya (2473) - Zawadzka,Jolanta (2407)

FIDE WCC 2018 Khanty-Mansiysk (3.2), 10.11.2018

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 d6 5.d4 b5 6.Bb3 Nxd4 7.Nxd4 exd4 8.c3 C71: Ruy Lopez: Deferred Steinitz Variation, sidelines

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8...dxc3 Black has a new doubled pawn: c7 

9.0–0N White castles and improves king safety [9.Qh5 Qd7 (9...g6 10.Qd5 Be6 11.Qc6+ Bd7 12.Qxc3 Nf6 13.Bg5 Bg7 14.e5 Qe7 15.0–0 dxe5 16.Qxc7 0–0 17.Nc3 Rfc8 18.Qb7 Qd6 19.Bxf6 Rab8 20.Qd5 1–0 Mortensen,E (2450)-Christensen,C (2131)/Copenhagen 2002/CBM 089 ext) 10.Nxc3 Nf6 11.Qe2 Be7 12.0–0 (12.a4 b4 13.Nd5 Nxd5 14.exd5 0–0 15.0–0 (15.a5 Bf6 16.Be3 Qg4 17.f3 Qh4+ 18.Bf2 Qg5 19.0–0 Qe5 20.Qxe5 Bxe5 21.Rac1 Bxb2 22.Rxc7 Bf5 23.Rc6 Rfc8 24.Rxd6 Rc3 25.Ba4 Ra3 26.Bc6 Be5 27.Bg3 Bd4+ 28.Kh1 Rf8 29.Bh4 b3 Schmidt,S-Doll,S/Eppingen 1988/GER/0–1 (33)) 15...Bf6 16.Be3 a5 17.Rfc1 Ba6 18.Qd2 Rae8 19.Bd1 Re7 20.Bf3 Qf5 21.Rc6 Bb7 22.Rc4 Re5 23.Rd1 Bd8 24.Bf4 Re7 25.Bg5 f6 26.Be3 Qd7 Schweber,S-Guimard,C/Buenos Aires 1968/MCD/0–1 (54)) 12...0–0 13.Rd1 (13.h3 Bb7 14.Rd1 Rae8 15.Bf4 Nxe4 16.Nxe4 Qf5 17.Bxd6 Bxd6 18.Nxd6 cxd6 19.Qg4 Qf6 20.Qd7 Re7 21.Qg4 Qxb2 22.Rac1 Qf6 23.Bd5 Bxd5 24.Rxd5 Qb2 25.Rcd1 Qxa2 26.Rxd6 g6 27.R1d2 Qa1+ De Firmian,N (2590)-Huebner,R (2620)/San Francisco 1995/CBM 046/0–1 (44)) 13...Qe8 14.Bf4 Bg4 15.f3 Be6 16.Nd5 Nxd5 17.Bxd5 Bxd5 18.Rxd5 Qd7 19.Rad1 Rfd8 20.Qd2 Rac8 21.Rd3 h6 22.b3 Rb8 23.Rd5 Rb6 Szabo,L-Gligoric,S/Oberhausen 1961/EU-chT/1–0 (41)] 

9...Be7 

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10.Qh5 White threatens to win material: Qh5xf7 [Less advisable is 10.bxc3 Nf6µ] 

10...g6 Black threatens to win material: g6xh5 

11.Qd5 White threatens to win material: Qd5xa8 

11...Be6 12.Qc6+ Bd7 13.Qxc3 Bf6 14.Qf3 Be6 15.a4 Rb8 16.axb5 axb5 17.Rd1 Bg7 18.Bxe6 fxe6 19.Nc3 

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19...b4 Black threatens to win material: b4xc3 

20.Ne2 Qf6 [20...Qd7 21.Qh3=] 

21.Qb3 Ne7 22.Nf4 0–0 23.Qxe6+ Rf7 24.Ra7 White threatens to win material: Ra7xc7 

24...Rc8 25.Qc4 

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25...c5 [¹25...g5!? 26.Nh3 h6 27.Rxc7 Rxc7 28.Qxc7 Ng6±] 

26.Rd7+- d5 27.exd5 Qf5 28.Ra7 Bd4 [28...b3!?+-] 

29.Re1 Be5 30.Nd3 Bd6 31.Re6 Rd8 32.Ra6 

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32...Qh5?? but even a better move would not have saved the game [¹32...Nc8+-] 

33.h4 [33.Rexd6?! is a weaker possibility 33...Qd1+ 34.Ne1 Rxd6 35.Rxd6 Qxe1+ 36.Qf1 Qe5=] 

33...Nf5 [33...Bb8 34.Bg5 Rxd5 35.Bxe7+- (35.Rxe7?! Qd1+ 36.Re1 Qxd3 37.Qxd3 Rxd3²) ] 

34.Bg5 Nd4 

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35.Bxd8 [35.Rexd6?! is impossible 35...Qd1+ 36.Kh2 Rxd6 37.Ra8+ Kg7 38.Qxc5 Ne2±] 

35...Qg4 [35...Nxe6 does not win a prize 36.g4 Rf4 37.gxh5 Rxc4 38.dxe6+-] 

36.Kf1 

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[36.Raxd6 is a bad alternative 36...Nf3+ 37.Kh1 Qxc4µ] 

36...Bg3 

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[36...Qg3 hardly improves anything 37.Raxd6 Qh2 38.Ke1 Qxg2 39.Re8+ Kg7 40.Bf6+ (40.Nxc5?! is easily refuted 40...Qg1+ 41.Qf1 Nf3+ 42.Ke2 Nd4+ 43.Kd3 Qxf1+ 44.Kxd4 Rf4+ 45.Ke5 Rf5+ 46.Kd4 Rf4+ 47.Ke5 Rf5+ 48.Kd4 Rf4+=) 40...Rxf6 41.Rxf6 Kxf6 42.Nxc5 Qg1+ 43.Kd2 Nf3+ 44.Ke3 Qe1+ 45.Kxf3 Qxe8 46.d6+-] 

37.Ra1 [37.Re8+ Kg7 38.Rf6 Ra7 39.Qxc5 Ra1+ 40.Ne1 Rxe1+ 41.Rxe1 Kh6 42.Rf7 Bd6 43.Bg5+ Qxg5 44.hxg5+ Kh5 45.Qxd6 Ne6 46.Rxh7+ Kxg5 47.Qg3+ Kf6 48.Qe5#] 

37...Qf5 

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[37...Kg7 38.Bf6+! the end 38...Rxf6 39.Rxf6 Qxh4 40.Rxg6+ Kxg6 41.Qa6+ Kh5 42.fxg3 Qxg3+-] 

38.Rf6! Decoy: f6 

38...Rxf6 39.Bxf6 Qxf6 40.Qxc5 [40.d6+ Kg7 41.Ra7+ Kf8 42.Ra8+ Kg7 43.Qg8+ Kh6+-] 

40...Bd6 41.Qc8+ [41.Ra8+ might be the shorter path 41...Kg7 42.Ra7+ Kg8 43.Qc8+ Bf8+-] 

41...Kg7 [41...Qf8 is not the saving move 42.Qxf8+ Bxf8 43.Ra8+-] 

42.Ra7+ Kh6 [42...Be7 43.Qd8 Nf5+-] 

43.Qd7 [43.Qd7 Qxh4 44.Qxh7+ Kg5 45.f4+ Bxf4 46.Qxh4+ Kxh4 47.Nxf4+-]  1–0