‘MV-L’ the MVP at powerful Sinquefield Cup chess clash

Fittingly, it was an encore for the Frenchman.

GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave became the first two-time outright winner of the prestigious Sinquefield Cup, topping a world-class field earlier this month at the St. Louis Chess Club. Vachier-Lagrave is France’s strongest player of the modern era and just missed out to Russian GM Ian Neopomniachtchi for a chance to challenge world champion Magnus Carlsen of Norway this fall.

Shaking off a loss to U.S. GM Leinier Dominguez Perez, “MV-L” finished at 6-3, with Dominguez Perez joining fellow Americans Wesley So and Fabiano Caruana in a three-way tie for second a half-point back. The winner separated himself from the field with a crucial Round 7 win over rising American star GM Jeffery Xiong, who had upset Caruana earlier in the event.

The solid but subtle Ruy Lopez Berlin (3…Nf6) may not have been the best choice against a sly veteran like Vachier-Lagrave, in a queenless positional battle where Black’s two bishops have to compensate for his busted queenside pawn majority. Xiong’s 11. Nc3 Ke8?! (Kc8, stowing the Black king on the queenside, is more common and more sensible) proves a fateful decision, as White will gin up a strong central attack even with the queens off the board.

Black’s plight goes from uncomfortable to unpleasant on 16. Be3 a5 17. f4 (already the White central pawn mass is dominating play and suffocating Black’s bishops) h5 18. f5 hxg4? (it turns out Black’s cramped game means he won’t be able to challenge White on the h-file; almost mandatory here was 18…g6!, when 19. f6 Bb4 20. Kg3 Bxc3 21. bxc3 b6 offers decent drawing chances given the opposite-colored bishops) 19. hxg4 g6 20. Rh1!, when 20…Rxh1? 21. Rxh1 Bc8 (Kf8 22. f6, threatening 23. Rh8 mate) 22. e6! fxe6 23. fxg6 Kf8 24. Rh8+ Kg7 25. Rh7+ Kf6 26. Rf7+ Kxg6 27. Rxe7 is one winning line.  

White’s massive space advantage results in material gain after 21. f6 Bb4 22. Ne4 Be6 (b6 23. c3 Bc5 24. Bxc5 bxc5 25. Kg3 c4 26. Rh7 Be6 27. Nc5, with a crushing bind) 23. c3, trapping the bishop, but Vachier-Lagrave prefers a mating attack to material: 25. c4! (exd6, of course, was strong too) Bxe4+ 26. Kxe4 Bb4 27. a3 Bd2 28. Bc5! Rg8 29. e6, and Black has seen enough. It’s hopeless after 29…fxe6 (Rd6, conceding the exchange, also fails to 30. Bxd6 cxd6 31. Rh7 Rf8 32. e7 Rg8 33. Rg7 Rh8 34. Rh1! Rxh1 35. Rg8+ Kd7 36. e8=Q+ Kc7 37. Qd8 mate) 30. Rh7 Rd7 31. Rxd7 Kxd7, and White can choose between 32. f7 and 32. Rd1 for the win.

—-

Latvian-born Spanish GM Alexei Shirov is not the top-five world title contender he was back in the 1990s and early 2000s, but at 49 he remains a dangerous opponent with an attacking flair that ranks with the best the game has ever known. (His magnificent collection of games — “Fire on Board” — has perhaps the coolest title in the long history of chess literature.)

Those attacking chops were on display at the recent Spanish national championship tournament, when Shirov took on an unwisely provocative FM Guerau Masague Artero in the Linares event.

White starts out modestly in this Rossolimo Sicilian, but his young opponent’s 13. Rad1 f5!?, opening up the position with Black’s king still in the center, is — to use another European cliche — like waving the red cape in front of an angry bull.

That his bishop is about to be trapped means far less to Shirov than the fact that he can open lines to attack the Black king: 14. exf5 gxf5 15. d4! f4 16. Nxe5!? (the computer doesn’t approve, but this is a very hard sacrifice to solve over the board) fxe3 17. fxe3 (now the f-file comes open) Bxe5 18. Qc2!! (18. dxe5? Qxd2 19. Rxd2 Rg8 20. Rf6 Ng5 21. Kh2 Ne4 solves all Black’s problems), threatening a deadly check at g6.

As happens so often, a single mistake by a harried defender is all that’s needed to tip the scales: 18…Qg5 19. dxe5 Rg8? (here 20…Bd7 had to be played, as on 20. Qe4 0-0-0 21. Rd6 Rhe8 22. h4 Qe7 23. Ng3 Nc7, Black is close to building a fortress that White cannot breach) 20. Qe4! Bd7 (see diagram; now it’s too late — too many Black pieces are overloaded and the rest is child’s play for a tactician of Shirov’s caliber) 21. Rxd7! Kxd7 22. Rf7+ Ke8 23. Rf5!, hitting the queen and threatening 24. Qxc6+ at the same time.

The finish is classy: 23…Qd8 (Qxg2+!? 24. Qxg2 Rxg2+ 25. Kxg2 Ke7 offered some survival chances, but Shirov’s endgame technique is also legendary) 24. Qxc6+ Ke7 25. Nf4 Nc7 (Nxf4 26. Qb7+ Qd7 [Ke6 27. Qf7 mate] 27. Rf7+! Kxf7 28. Qxd7+ Kg6 26. exf4, and the White central pawn mass will decide) 26. e6! (one last line-clearing) Rg7 27. Ng6+! (one last deflection) Rxg6 28. Rf7 mate.

Vachier-Lagrave — Xiong, 8th Sinquefield Cup, St. Louis, August 2021

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. h3 Bd7 10. Rd1 Be7 11. Nc3 Ke8 12. g4 Nh4 13. Nxh4 Bxh4 14. Bf4 Rd8 15. Kg2 Be7 16. Be3 a5 17. f4 h5 18. f5 hxg4 19. hxg4 g6 20. Rh1 Rf8 21. f6 Bb4 22. Ne4 Be6 23. c3 Bd5 24. Kf3 Bd6 25. c4 Bxe4+ 26. Kxe4 Bb4 27. a3 Bd2 28. Bc5 Rg8 29. e6 Black resigns.

Shirov-Masague Artero, 86th Spanish National Championships, Linares, Spain, August 2021

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 g6 4. Bxc6 dxc6 5. d3 Bg7 6. h3 Nf6 7. Nc3 Nd7 8. Be3 e5 9. Qd2 h6 10. O-O b6 11. Ne2 Nf8 12. c3 Ne6 13. Rad1 f5 14. exf5 gxf5 15. d4 f4 16. Nxe5 fxe3 17. fxe3 Bxe5 18. Qc2 Qg5 19. dxe5 Rg8 20. Qe4 Bd7 21. Rxd7 Kxd7 22. Rf7+ Ke8 23. Rf5 Qd8 24. Qxc6+ Ke7 25. Nf4 Nc7 26. e6 Rg7 27. Ng6+ Rxg6 28. Rf7 mate.

• David R. Sands can be reached at 202/636-3178 or by email at dsands@washingtontimes.com.