JU vs LAGNO – GAME 8 FIDE WOMENS WORLD CHESS CHAMPIONSHIP 2018 FINAL

Kateryna Lagno

This is game 8 from the Final of the 2018 FIDE Women’s World Chess Championship, fully annotated. It is between Wenjun Ju with White against Kateryna Lagno with Black.

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

Ju,Wenjun (2568) - Lagno,Kateryna (2556)

FIDE WCC 2018 Khanty-Mansiysk (6.8), 23.11.2018

1.d4 d6 2.Nf3 g6 3.e4 Bg7 4.Bc4 e6 5.0–0 Ne7 B06: Modern Defence

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6.a4 [6.Re1 0–0 7.Bf1 b6 8.c4 c5 9.Nc3 a6 10.Bg5 Nbc6 11.dxc5 bxc5 12.e5 dxe5 13.Qxd8 Rxd8 14.Ne4 f5 15.Nxc5 e4 16.Bxe7 Nxe7 17.Ng5 Bxb2 18.Rad1 Re8 19.Ngxe6 Ra7 20.Rb1 Be5 Perez Candelario,M (2515)-Krasenkow,M (2651)/Calatrava 2007/CBM 117 ext/0–1 (45)] 

6...0–0 [6...a6 7.a5 h6 8.Nc3 g5 9.Ne2 g4 10.Ne1 Nbc6 11.c3 h5 12.Nd3 Ng6 13.Nef4 Nce7 14.f3 d5 15.Bb3 Nxf4 16.Bxf4 dxe4 17.fxe4 Ng6 18.Qd2 Nxf4 19.Qxf4 Qe7 20.Ne5 0–0 21.h3 Tregubov,P (2632)-Bischoff,K (2564)/Istanbul 2003/CBM 096/1–0 (36)] 

7.c3 Nd7 8.a5 Rb8 9.Qe2 b6 10.axb6 axb6 11.Bf4 Bb7 12.Nbd2 

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12...h6 Covers g5 

13.h4 Nf6 14.Bg3 d5 15.exd5 

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15...Nfxd5 Black has a cramped position 

16.Be5 Nf5 17.Bxg7 Kxg7 

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18.g3 Consolidates f4 

18...Nf6 19.Ba6 Ba8 20.Bd3 Nd6 21.Rfd1 Nd7 

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22.Ne4 [22.h5 gxh5 23.Ra7 Bxf3 24.Qxf3 Nf6²] 

22...Nf5 [22...Nxe4 23.Bxe4 Nf6 24.Bxa8 Rxa8 25.Ne5²] 

23.Ned2 

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23...g5 [¹23...Nd6!?= is worthy of consideration] 

24.hxg5 hxg5 25.Be4 Qf6 26.Bxa8 Rxa8 27.Rxa8 Rxa8 

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28.Kg2 White king safety dropped 

28...Rh8 [28...Qe7 29.Ne4 f6 30.Rh1²] 

29.Rh1 [¹29.Ne4!? Qg6 30.Nfxg5±] 

29...Rxh1= 

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30.Kxh1 White king safety improved. Black king safety improved 

30...Nd6 

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31.Ne5 White threatens to win material: Ne5xd7 

31...Qh6+ 32.Kg2 Nf6 33.Ndf3 Nfe4 34.Nh2 

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34...Qg6?? [¹34...Qh7² the rescuing straw] 

35.Nxg6+- [35.Nxg6 Kxg6 36.Ng4+-]  1–0