FEBRUARY vs LAGNO – FIDE WOMENS WORLD CHESS CHAMPIONSHIP 2018 ROUND 1

This game is from round 1 of the 2018 FIDE Women’s World Chess Championship. It is between Jesse Nikki February with White against Kateryna Lagno with Black.

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

February,Jesse Nikki (1922) - Lagno,Kateryna (2556)

FIDE WCC 2018 Khanty-Mansiysk (1.1), 03.11.2018

1.e4 d6 2.d4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.f4 Nf6 5.e5 Nfd7 6.Nf3 c5 7.exd6 0–0 8.Be2 B09: Pirc Defence: Austrian Attack 

8...exd6 9.0–0 Nc6 

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10.Kh1N Black is slightly better. [10.Be3 Nf6 11.Kh1 b6 12.Bf2 Bb7 13.Bh4 Ne7 14.dxc5 bxc5 15.Qd3 Nf5 0–1 (29) Cigan,S (2386)-Skoberne,J (2501) Murska Sobota 2008] 

10...Nxd4 11.Nxd4 

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11...cxd4 [But not 11...Bxd4?! 12.Nb5=] 

12.Nb5 Qb6! 13.c3 dxc3 14.bxc3 a6 15.Nxd6 

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15...Bxc3? [15...Nc5µ and life is bright. 16.Ba3 Rd8] 

16.Nc4 [16.Ba3±] 

16...Qf6 17.Rb1! Rd8 

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18.Ba3 [18.Ne3³] 

18...Nc5!µ 19.Qc1 [19.Bxc5 Rxd1] 

19...Ne4 aiming for ...b5. 

20.Bf3 Bf5 

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21.Rb3 [¹21.Rxb7 Rab8 22.Rb3] 

21...Bd2ƒ Keeping White busy. 

22.Qb2 And now Bxe4 would win. 

22...Bc3 23.Qc1! Strongly threatening Bxe4. 

23...Bd2 

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24.Qb2! Bxe4 is the strong threat. 

24...Qxb2 25.Rxb2 Threatens to win with Bxe4. 

25...Rac8 

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26.Nb6? [26.Bxe4µ Rxc4 27.Bxf5 gxf5 28.Rxb7] 

26...Rc1–+ 27.Rxc1 Bxc1 28.Rb3 Bxa3 29.Rxa3 Rd6 30.g4 

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30...Bxg4 [Resist 30...Rxb6 31.gxf5 gxf5 32.Ra5–+] 

31.Bxe4 Rxb6 Endgame KRB-KRB 

32.Rd3 Rb4 33.Bd5 b5 34.Ra3 

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34...Rxf4 Black is clearly winning. 

35.Rxa6 [¹35.h3 Bc8 36.Re3] 

35...Bh3 36.Bg2 Bxg2+ 37.Kxg2 Ra4 0–1