Marked man: New champ Gukesh back at the chessboard in strong Tata tournament

It’s something of a rite of passage in chess — the new champ is a marked man when he first returns to the board.

Indian teenager Dommaraju Gukesh, who became the youngest world champion ever when he dethroned Chinese GM Deng Liren in their December title match, is testing himself in his first classical tournament since then — the always-strong Tata Steel Masters Tournament in the storied Dutch seaside town of Wijk aan Zee.

Through Round 3, Gukesh has a respectable win and two draws, including a correct and cautious 24-move draw with American No. 1 GM Fabiano Caruana on Monday. There’s still plenty of chess to be played in the strong 14-player invitational that concludes Feb. 2.

Having a crown to defend hasn’t made the 18-year-old champ cautious, to judge from his very first classical battle since winning the title. In an Open Catalan against Dutch star GM Anish Giri, Gukesh opens up the center and then sacrifices a piece to upset the material balance with 13. Bg5 h6 14. Bh4!? (both 14. Be3 and 14. Bxf6 were perfectly safe, perfectly boring alternatives) g5 15. Nxg5 hxg5 16. Bxg5 e5 (17. e5 was threatened) 17. Qd2  Be7 18. Bh6 Kh7 (Black dare not try to save the exchange: 18…Re8?? 19. Qg5 + and mate next) 19. Bxf8 Bxf8 (Qxf8 may be even stronger here) — material is nominally equal, but Giri’s two bishops threaten to wreak havoc in such an open position.

White’s 20. f4?! shows some more positional insouciance, as White’s own king comes under fire as Black’s knights and rook advance menacingly. As both players face severe time pressure, Giri comes agonizingly close to knocking off the champ: 25. Qf4 Nxd5 26. Qf3 (exd5 Bxd5 27. Rf3 Rxg2 28. Qxg4 Rf2 29. Qh5+ Kg8 30. Qg4+ Bg7 31. Kg1 Rxf3 Qxf3 Qb6+ 33. Qf2 Qc6 and, again, Black’s bishop pair offers him a clear edge) Qb6!? (Rxg2! 27. Qxg2 Nge3 looks strong here, in lines like 28. Qf3 Nxf1 29. exd5 Ne3! 30. Qxe3 Bxd5+ 31. Kg1 Qa5 34. Qc1 [Kf2? Qf5+ 35. Qf4 Qxc8] Qxc1+ 35. Rxc1 Bg7), 27. exd5 Rf2 28. Qc3 Bb4?! (and here stronger was 28…Bf5 29. e6+ Bg7 30. exf7 Kh7 31. Qb3 Rxf1+ 32. Rxf1 Nf2+ 33. Rxf2 Qxf2 34. Qd1 Bf8), but White defends resourcefully with 29. Qc1! Bg5 30. Qg5, staying in the game.

In a wickedly complex position, it is Black who makes the fatal last mistake, just when he was on the cusp of victory: 32. Rde1 Qxb2 (the engines see only a draw on 32…Rxg2 33. Rxf5! [Kxg2? Qxb2+ 34. Kh1 Qd2 35. Rd1? Be4+ 36. Kg1 Qg2 mate] Rxh2+ 34. Qxh2 Nxh2 35. e6 fxe6 36. Rxe6 Qxb2 37. Rxh6+ Kg8 38. Rhf6 Qxa2 39. Rf8+ Kg7 40. R8f7+, and the Black king can’t escape the checks) 33. h3? (this should lose; White can just hold with 33. Rxf2 Nxf2+ 34. Kg1 Ng4 35. Rf1 Qd4+ 36. Kh1 Be4 37. Qd8+ Kg7 38. Rxf7+ Kxf7 39. Qd7+ Kf8 40. Qd8+ Kf7 41. Qd7+ with a draw, as Black dare not try 41…Kg6?? 42. Qxg4+ Kf7 43. e6+ Ke7 44. Bxe4, winning) Be4! (the only winning move, played with just seconds to spare on the clock) 34. Rxf2 (Bxe4 Rxf1+ 35. Rxf1 Qh2 mate) Nxf2+ 35. Kg1 (Kh2 Ng4+ 36. hxg4 Qxg2 mate), reaching today’s diagrammed position.

Pieces hang and threats abound, but Black just wins with 35…Ng4!, guarding the bishop on h6 and threatening mate in one on g2. On 36. Rxe4 (Bxe4 Qf2+ 37. Kh1 Qh2 mate), Black has 36…Qb6+ 37. Kh1 Qb1+ 38. Re1 Qxe1+ 39.Bf1 Qxf1 mate.

Instead, White rises from the grave after the game’s 35…Qb6?? 36. Qf6+! (forcing a queen trade, defanging the Black attack at a stroke) Qxf6 37. exf6 Bxg2 38. Kxg2 Nd3 39. Re8+ Kh7 40. d6, and now it is the rook and White’s advanced pawns that dominate Giri’s ineffectual minor pieces. It’s over right after time control on 41. Re5 Nd7 (Bf8 42. Rxc5 Bxd6 43. Rd5 Bb4 44. Rd7, with a winning ending) 42. Re7, and Black resigns. There’s no salvation in lines such as 42…Nxf6 43. Rxf7+ Kg6 44. d7 Nxd7 45. Rxd7 Bf8 46. Rxb7, and White is the exchange and two pawns to the good.

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Former world champ Magnus Carlsen is not competing in Tata this year. But the just-married Norwegian world No. 1 was in action earlier this month in the strong German Bundesliga competition, perhaps the world’s strong regular team competition. Carlsen, who last played in the Bundesliga competition 17 years ago, scored a respectable 1½-½ for his Hamburg-based St. Pauli team, but the round’s best attacking play came from Iranian GM Parham Maghsoodloo in his game against Hungarian GM Benjamin Gledura.

In a Rubinstein Nimzo-Indian, Maghsoodloo as White advertises his aggressive intentions with 10. f4 a5 11. g4!?, followed by castling queenside in an undisguised bid to attack the Black king.

Gledura doesn’t panic and counters with a queenside push of his own, but a moment’s inattention allows White to launch a sacrificial attack seemingly out of nowhere: 18. a4 Qc8 19. Nf5 (White has only one piece deployed anywhere near the Black king, but Gledura’s own pieces are also far away the Black monarch; it’s still very much a game after something like 19…Bxb5 20. axb5 d6 21. Nd4 a4, with chances for both sides) c6?, probably hoping for 20. Bxa6 Qxa6 21. Rhg1 g6, with decent defensive chances.

Instead, White uncorks the unexpected 20. Nh6+!! gxh6 (declining is no better after 20…Kh8 21. Nxf7+ Kg8 22. Bxa6 Rxa6 23. Ne5, winning two pawns) 21. gxh6 (with the g-file wide open, White already threatens 22. Rxg1+ Bg7 [Kh8 23. Qd4+ leads to a quick mate] 23. Qg2 Kf8 24. Qxg7+ Ke7 25. d6+ Kd8 26. Qf6+ Re7 27. Rg8 mate) Qd8 22. Qd4 f6 23. dxc6 Re6 (Qe7 24. Rhg1+ Kh8 25. cxd7 Red8 26. Nd5 Qe4+ 27. Qxe4 Nxe4 28. Nc7 Bxb5 29. axb5 Ra7 30. Ne6 Rdxd7 31. b6 Rab7 32. Rxd7 Rxd7 33. Nxf8, and White is winning) 24. f5 Re5 25. Bxa6 Nxa6  26. Qg4+, and White has three pawns for the piece and a still-raging attack.

Maghsoodloo finishes things in style: 27. Rxd7 Qe8 28. Rg7!, and Gledura resigned since 28…Bb4 (Bxg7 29. Qxg7 mate) 29.Rxh7+! Kxh7 30. Qg7 is mate.

(Click on the image above for a larger view of the chessboard.)

Gukesh-Giri, 87th Tata Steel Masters, Wijk aan Zee, Netherlands, January 2025

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. g3 d5 3. Bg2 c5 4. O-O Nc6 5. d4 e6 6. c4 dxc4 7. Qa4 Bd7 8. dxc5 Bxc5 9. Qxc4 Be7 10. Nc3 O-O 11. e4 Rc8 12. Qe2 Bc5 13. Bg5 h6 14. Bh4 g5 15. Nxg5 hxg5 16. Bxg5 e5 17. Qd2 Be7 18. Bh6 Kh7 19. Bxf8 Bxf8 20. f4 Be6 21. Nd5 Nb4 22. fxe5 Ng4 23. Rad1 Kh8 24. Kh1 Rc2 25. Qf4 Nxd5 26. Qf3 Qb6 27. exd5 Rf2 28. Qc3 Bb4 29. Qc1 Bf5 30. Qg5 Bf8 31. Qh4+ Bh6 32. Rde1 Qxb2 33. h3 Be4 34. Rxf2 Nxf2+ 35. Kg1 Qb6 36. Qf6+ Qxf6 37. exf6 Bxg2 38. Kxg2 Nd3 39. Re8+ Kh7 40. d6 Nc5 41. Re5 Nd7 42. Re7 Black resigns.

Maghsoodloo-Gledura, Bundesliga 2024-2025, Baden-Baden, Germany, January 2025

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 b6 5. Nge2 Ne4 6. Bd2 Nxd2 7. Qxd2 Bb7 8. a3 Be7 9. d5 O-O 10. f4 a5 11. g4 Na6 12. Ng3 Re8 13. O-O-O Nc5 14. Kb1 Bf8 15. g5 exd5 16. cxd5 b5 17. Bxb5 Ba6 18. a4 Qc8 19. Nf5 c6 20. Nh6+ gxh6 21. gxh6 Qd8 22. Qd4 f6 23. dxc6 Re6 24. f5 Re5 25. Bxa6 Nxa6 26. Qg4+ Kh8 27. Rxd7 Qe8 28. Rg7 Black resigns.

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