Li, who is 24, got off to a fast start, winning his first five games, including the following effort against 27-year-old Indian GM Akash Ganesan.*
Di Li (2567) - Akash Ganesan (2411)
Sicilian ...e6
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.Nc3!?
One idea behind this is leave open the option, depending on Black's response, of transposing to 'normal' lines with a quick d4, or continuing with an anti-Sicilian treatment.
3...Nc6 4.a3!?
This was played last year by Li at Abu Dhabi in a draw against a 2385.
4...Nf6
Li (2561) - Sanket Chakravarty (2385), Abu Dhabi 2023, saw 4...Be7, at which the game went into Open Sicilian lines with 5.d4 cxd4 6.Nxd4 d6, reaching a Scheveningen-related position in which the usefulness of a3 is not clear.
5.Bb5
The position now resembles a Rossolimo.
5...Nd4!?
Dropping the queen's knight into d4 in the Rossolimo is usually considered unfavourable for Black, unless White has played Nc3, when the sequence Nxd4 cxd4 scores a hit on the white queen's knight. However, in this particular case Stockfish16 and Komodo14.1 dislike the text, preferring, among other moves, 5...Qc7!? There is just one example of 5...Qc7!? in ChessBase's 2024 Mega database - played by a 1418 in a win over a 1423.
6.e5 Nxb5 7.Nxb5 a6 8.Nc3 Ng8
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| How would you assess this position? |
*****
*****
*****
*****
Black has the bishop-pair, but it is uncertain whether the bishops will get open diagonals as there have been no pawn-exchanges. Meanwhile White has the only developed pieces. The engines give White a slight edge.
9.d4!?
This lets Black open lines with ...cxd4, but that will increase White's lead in development. Black often behaves in the same double-edged way in the Chigorin Defence to the Queen's Gambit.
9...d5!? 10.0-0 cxd4 11.Nxd4
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| The position now resembles a French Defence in which White has a large lead in development and more space in the centre, but has exchanged his good white bishop for a knight |
*****
*****
*****
*****
11...Ne7 12.Be3 Nc6!?
The engines do not like this, preferring 12...Ng6 or 12...Bd7.
13.f4
Even stronger, according to the engines, is 13.Nxc6!? bxc6 14.Na4.
13...Be7 14.Qd2
The engines still prefer the Nxc6/Na4 idea.
14...Bd7 15.Nxc6!?
This looks strange now Black can recapture with the light-square bishop. But swoping off the black knight removes pressure from e5, meaning it will be easier to get in the pawn push f5, and ...f6 will exert less pressure on the white centre.
15...Bxc6 16.Bd4 0-0 17.Rf3 Qc7 18.Re1 b5
The engines prefer moving the queen's rook, either to e8 or c8.
19.Ne2 a5?!
The engines strongly dislike this, suggesting 19...Bd7!?, which fights for the f5 square and opens pressure down the c file. It seems Black's queenside pawn-play is too slow.
20.Ng3
Even stronger is 20.f5, according to the engines, Komodo14.1 having also liked this thrust at moves 16 and 17.
20...Bd7 21.Nh5 Rfc8!?
This move is quite liked by Komodo14.1, but denuding the kingside in the face of White's imminent attack seems strange.
22.Rc3 Qd8 23.Rg3 g6
 |
| How should White proceed? |
*****
*****
*****
*****
24.f5!
Just when it seems White has left this thrust too late, it comes with powerful effect.
24...exf5
Or 24...Qf8 25.fxg6 and 26.Rf1.
25.e6! Bxe6 26.Rxe6! fxe6 27.Qh6
White's three hammer blows - back-to-back pawn sacrifices, followed by an exchange sacrifice - have left Black helpless.
27...Kf7
If 27...Qf8?, then 28.Rxg6+ Kf7 (28...hxg6 29.Qxg6+ Qg7 30.Qxg7#) 29.Rg7+ Ke8 30.Qxe6 with mate to follow, eg 30...Rc7 31.Nf6+ Kd8 32.Qxd5+ Bd6 33.Qxa8+ Rc8 34.Rd7#.
The following moves may have been played on the increment. If so, the standard is impressively high
28.Qxh7+ Kf8 29.Rxg6 Kd7 30.Qf7 Ra6 31.Rh8 Qc7 32.Nf6+ Kd6 33.Re8!? Ra7!? 34.Rxc8 Qxc8 35.Bxa7 Qxc2 36.Bb8+ Kc6 37.Qxe6+ Kb7 38.Qxe7+ Kxb8 39.Qe5+ Kc8 40.h4 Qc5+
With the 40-move time control reached, Black could have thrown in the towel without fear of recrimination, and indeed soon does so.
The game finished:
41.Kh2 a4 42.Qxf5+ 1-0
*What's in a name? ChessBase's 2024 Mega database lists the Indian grandmaster's "Last name" as Akash and his "First Name" (note the inconsistent spelling of N/name) as simply the letter G. However Wikipedia points out that Akash is his given name, while his other name is Ganesan, which is a patronymic, ie a name derived, in this case, from his father's given name. Meanwhile, in Chinese culture it is usual to put the surname, or family name, first, which in the case of the Bad Wörishofen winner is Li. My policy on this blog, hopefully lessening confusion, is to always put a person's given name first.
*What's in a name? ChessBase's 2024 Mega database lists the Indian grandmaster's "Last name" as Akash and his "First Name" (note the inconsistent spelling of N/name) as simply the letter G. However Wikipedia points out that Akash is his given name, while his other name is Ganesan, which is a patronymic, ie a name derived, in this case, from his father's given name. Meanwhile, in Chinese culture it is usual to put the surname, or family name, first, which in the case of the Bad Wörishofen winner is Li. My policy on this blog, hopefully lessening confusion, is to always put a person's given name first.
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