Daniil Dubov’s games rank as must-see chess

He didn’t win the tournament, but Russian GM Daniil Dubov’s performance at the just-concluded Airthings Masters online tournament may have cemented his reputation as the one grandmaster whose games are must-watch viewing.

Like a young Mikhail Tal, the 24-year-old Muscovite favors a risk-taking, envelope-pushing style that one would not think would work in this age of hyperprepared, computer-aided elite play. It may not please the purists, and — like Tal — may not always prove sound in the postmortem analysis, but it can be awfully effective and entertaining against nervous human opponents at the chessboard as the clock is running.

Even hypersolid world champion Magnus Carlsen, who wisely recruited Dubov as a second in his 2018 world title match with American GM Fabiano Caruana, looks uncharacteristically flustered by the young Russian’s style. Dubov dismissed the champ in the quarterfinals of the rapid knockout event 2½-½, leaving the Norwegian expressing his frustration over the “deep funk” affecting his game.

The truth is, Dubov seems to enjoy chaotic, double-edged positions that other players tend to avoid. In the first games of their Airthings quarterfinal match, which we pick up from today’s diagram, Dubov was winning, then close to losing, then winning again when Carlsen couldn’t find his way through a tactical minefield.

Dubov as White has just played 20. Nc6-e5, and Black tried to change the dynamic with 20…Rxe5!? 21. Bxe5 Ne4 22. Bxd4 Rc8, sacrificing the exchange in search of an attack. Carlsen’s enterprise is rewarded after 23. Qd3 Nac5 24. Qe3 Kh7 25. Bxc5 Nxc5 26. Qf3 d4! 27. Rxd4!? (better may be 27. Qg4! Qc6 28. f3 Qe8 29. Nxd4) Qe8 28. Qe3 Qc6 29. f3 Re8 30. Qf2 g3 31. Ne3 Qf5, when Black’s relentless threats force a White mistake: 32. Ng4? (Rcd1! Ne6 33. Bxe6 Qxe6 34. Nc4 Bc5 35. Nd6 Re7 36. e5, with a comfortable edge for White) Qg7 33. Rcd1 h5 34. Ne3 Nb3!, and Black has fully equalized.

But just when the champ has climbed back into the game, he blunders again with 35. R4d3 Qxb2 36. Rd7 Bc5 37. Rxf7+ Kh6 38. Rdd7! Qa1+?? (Qh8! 39. Kg2 Bxe3 40. Qe1 Bc6, with equality) 39. Kg2, and now 39…Qh8 no longer works because of 40. Nf5+!! gxf5 41. Bxf5 Bxf2 — no longer check because of Black’s 37th move — 42. Rd6+ Kg5 43. h4 mate.

It’s over after 39…Bxe3 40. Rh7+ Kg5 41. Rxb7! Rf8 (Bxf2 42. f4+ Kf6 43. Rhf7 is mate) 42. Qxe3+, and Carlsen resigned not needing to see 42…Kf6 43. Rxb6 mate.

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Azerbaijani GM Teimour Radjabov, who went on to win the final of Armenian star GM Levon Aronian, acknowledged that he tried to play as “boringly as possible” in his semifinal match with Dubov. He managed to win, but “boring” by no means describes the play in the match.

Dubov is in his element just five moves into the Queen’s Gambit, with 5. g4!? 0-0 6. g5 already taking the game down lightly trodden paths. Radjabov reacts well, and after 15. gxf6? (Ba3 e4 16. Bxf8 Qxf8 17. Rb5 keeps the position double-edged) Qxf6 16. e3 Be6 17. Be4 Qh6 18. Ba3 Rf7 19. Qe2 Rd8, Black is a pawn up with the better placed pieces.

But Dubov’s comfort in complexity nearly pays off on 23. Ng5 Qf5?! (e4! 24. Nxf7 Qxf7 25. h5 g6 26. Rd1 [Qxc4? Rd1+] Ne5 27. Rxd5 Qxd5 28. Kf1 Nf3 29. Rh1 Qd3, with great compensation for the exchange), when 24. Rxb6! all but forces 24…Rfd7 (axb6 25. e4, and now the Black bishop doesn’t hit f2), and the fight goes on in lines like 25. Rb2 Rd1+ 26. Qxd1 Rxd1+ 27. Kxd1 h6 — the point: the knight has no escape) 28. e4 Qf6 29. Ne6 Qxe6 30. Rxb7.

Instead, on White’s 24. Rc1?, Radjabov finds 24…Rf6 25. Rg2 Rd3 26. Qg4 Rxe3+! 27. Kf1 (fxe3 Qf1+ 28. Kd2 Qd3+ 29. Ke1 Rf1 mate) Qxg4 Rxg4, winning a crucial second pawn. White continues to battle — Black misses 50…Ne5! 51. a4 g5+, winning, and White misses a great drawing chance with 56. Kh3! — but Radjabov’s knight and passed pawns finally flush out the White king: 63. Kh1 Nd1!, and White resigns as 64. Kg2 (Ng4+ Kf5; 64…Nd3 Nf2+ 65. Nxf2 gxf2 66. Kg2 h1=Q+) Ne3+ 65. Kh1 Kf5 66. Nf3 Kxf4 67. Ne1 Kg4 68. Nd3 Kf3 69. Ne5+ Kf2 70. Nd3+ Kf1 wins.

Dubov-Radjabov, Airthings Masters, January 2021

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 d5 4. d4 Be7 5. g4 O-O 6. g5 Ne4 7. Bg2 c5 8. dxc5 Nxc3 9. bxc3 Bxc5 10. h4 Nc6 11. h5 dxc4 12. Qc2 e5 13. Rb1 Bb6 14. Nh4 f5 15. gxf6 Qxf6 16. e3 Be6 17. Be4 Qh6 18. Ba3 Rf7 19. Qe2 Rd8 20. Rg1 Qf6 21. Nf3 Bd5 22. Bxd5 Rxd5 23. Ng5 Qf5 24. Rc1 Rf6 25. Rg2 Rd3 26. Qg4 Rxe3+ 27. Kf1 Qxg4 28. Rxg4 Rd3 29. Rc2 h6 30. Ne4 Rf4 31. Rxf4 exf4 32. Kg2 Rd5 33. Bd6 Rxh5 34. Bxf4 Rd5 35. Re2 Kh7 36. Nd2 Ba5 37. Nxc4 Bxc3 38. Nd6 b6 39. Rc2 Nd4 40. Rxc3 Ne2 41. Rc6 Nxf4+ 42. Kf3 Nd3 43. Ke4 Nb4 44. a3 Rd4+ 45. Kxd4 Nxc6+ 46. Kd5 Na5 47. Nc8 h5 48. Nxa7 h4 49. Ke4 Nc4 50. Kf4 g5+ 51. Kg4 Ne5+ 52. Kh3 Kg6 53. Nc8 Nc4 54. Kg4 b5 55. f4 Ne3+ 56. Kf3 h3 57. Kg3 g4 58. Ne7+ Kf6 59. Nc6 Nf1+ 60. Kf2 h2 61. Kg2 g3 62. Ne5 Ne3+ 63. Kh1 Nd1 White resigns.

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