U.S. Women’s Championship: Wang takes early lead

by ChessBase
10/22/2020 – IM Annie Wang grabbed the early lead in the 2020 U.S. Women’s Championship, scoring 2.5/3 points on the first day of play. Defending champion WGM Jennifer Yu earned 2.0/3, tied for second with top seed GM Irina Krush, WGM Tatev Abrahamyan, and WIM Emily Nguyen, with eight more rounds to go in this 12-player round-robin event. | Photo: Lennart Ootes / Saint Louis Chess Club

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Four players in the chasing group

Press release by the Saint Louis Chess Club
By IM Kostya Kavutskiy

IM Annie Wang grabbed the early lead in the 2020 U.S. Women’s Championship, scoring 2.5/3 points on the first day of play. Defending champion WGM Jennifer Yu earned 2.0/3, tied for second with top seed GM Irina Krush, WGM Tatev Abrahamyan, and WIM Emily Nguyen, with eight more rounds to go in this 12-player round-robin event. 

US Women's Championship 2020

Round 1

The first round started off with four decisive games, including IM Annie Wang’s win over WIM Emily Nguyen, where the U.S. #4 launched a devastating kingside attack using her h-pawn: 

 
Nguyen vs. Wang

After 25...h5!?, which allowed Wang to damage White’s kingside.

Meanwhile top seed GM Irina Krush was able to defend against WIM Ashritha Eswaran’s dangerous kingside attack, who was close to pulling off a big upset.

 
Eswaran vs. Krush
Position after 30...exf5

WIM Ashritha Eswaran missed a powerful chance here with 31.Qh6!

 
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1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.0-0 Nf6 5.d3 d6 6.c3 a5 C54: Giuoco Piano: 4 c3 Nf6, main lines with 5 d4 and 5 d3. 7.a4 h6 8.Nbd2 0-0 The position is equal. 9.Re1 Bb6 10.Nf1 Ne7 11.Ng3 Ng6 12.h3 c6 13.Bb3 Bc7
14.Be3N 14.d4 Predecessor: 14.d4 Re8 15.Be3 d5 16.dxe5 Nxe4 17.Nxe4 dxe4 18.Qxd8 Rxd8 19.Nd2 Nxe5 20.Nxe4 0-1 (55) Gunina,V (2507)-Stefanova,A (2481) Tbilisi 2018 14...d5! 15.Qd2 Kh7 16.Rad1 Be6
Hoping for ...d4. 17.Bc2 Qd7 17...Re8 seems wilder. 18.Qc1 Qc8 19.d4 exd4 20.Bxd4 Bxg3 21.exd5 Bxd5 22.Bxf6 Bxf3 23.Rxe8 Qxe8 24.gxf3 Bb8 18.d4 Nxe4 19.Nxe4 dxe4 20.Nxe5 20.dxe5!? Qxd2 21.Nxd2 20...Bxe5 20...Nxe5= 21.dxe5 Qxd2 22.Bxe4+ 22.Rxd2 Kg8= 22...Kg8 23.Rxd2 23.Bxd2 Bxe5 24.Be3 Bc7= 23...Bxe5 21.dxe5 Qxd2 22.Bxd2 Rfd8 22...Kg8= remains equal. 23.Bc1 Much weaker is 23.Bxe4 Bb3 23...Nxe5 24.Bxe4+ g6 White has some pressure. 25.Bc2 White has some pressure. Nc4 Black is on the road to losing. Black should play 25...Rxd1 26.Rxd1 Re8 26.b3± Nb6 27.c4 Nd7 28.Ba3 Be7 is the strong threat. c5 28...Nf6± 29.g4 Rxd1 30.Rxd1 Ne8 29.Rd6 Nf6 30.Bxc5 Ne8 31.Rxd8 Rxd8 32.Rd1 Ra8 33.Bb6 Nf6 34.Rd8 Ra6 35.Bd4 Kg7 35...Bf5 36.Be5 Rc6 36...Bf5 37.Rb8+- Rb6 38.Bc7 Rc6?
38...Nd7 was called for. 39.Bxb6 Nxb8 40.Bxa5 Kf8 39.Bxa5 White is clearly winning. Bc8 40.Bc3 b6 41.Be4 Re6 42.Bd5 Re8 43.Rxb6 Be6 44.Bxe6 Av CentiPawn Loss W=-21/B=-55. Weighted=-21/-47
1–0
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Abrahamyan,T2358Cervantes Landeiro,T23111–02020USA-ch Women 20201.1
Foisor,S2228Derakhshani,D22700–12020USA-ch Women 20201.2
Nguyen,E2280Wang,A23840–12020USA-ch Women 20201.3
Eswaran,A2244Krush,I24290–12020USA-ch Women 20201.4
Zatonskih,A2420Samadashvili,M2215½–½2020USA-ch Women 20201.5
Yip,C2421Yu,J2315½–½2020USA-ch Women 20201.6

Select an entry from the list to switch between games

Round 2

In the next round Wang won an early exchange against Eswaran and cruised to her second point of the day. Keeping pace, Abrahamyan took advantage of an early opening error by the 2018 U.S. Women’s Champion WGM Sabina Foisor to win a clean extra pawn that she was able to turn into a full point.

 
Abrahamyan vs. Foisor
Position after 12.Qg5

WGM Tatev Abrahamyan started off with a clean 2-0, but later expressed her mind was focused on the current events in Armenia.

Perennial favorites GM Irina Krush and IM Anna Zatonskih also faced off in this round, with their game ending in a draw after a complicated middlegame struggle.

 
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1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.e3 e6 5.b3 Ne4 6.Qc2 D30: Queen's Gambit Declined: Systems without Nc3. f5 7.Bd3 Bb4+ 8.Nbd2 White has an edge. Nd7 9.a3 Bd6 10.Bb2 Qf6 11.b4
11...g5N Predecessor: 11...0-0 12.Nb3 Qg6 13.0-0 Qh5 14.Ne5 Rf6 15.Qe2 Qh4 16.g3 Qh3 17.f3 Nxg3 18.hxg3 Qxg3+ 1/2-1/2 (76) Nguyen,N (2632)-Sengupta,D (2586) Chengdu 2017 12.b5 g4 13.bxc6 bxc6 14.cxd5 cxd5 15.Bxe4 fxe4 16.Ne5 16.Qc6= Rb8 17.Qxd6 16...0-0 17.0-0 Nxe5 Much less strong is 17...Bxe5 18.dxe5 Qf7 19.Qc6 18.dxe5 Bxe5 19.Bxe5 Qxe5 20.Qc6 Rb8 21.Rab1 Rxb1 22.Rxb1 Qf6 23.Rf1 White is under strong pressure. Qb2 White is under strong pressure. 24.Nb1 Qb6 25.Qxb6 Endgame KRB-KRN axb6 Endgame KRB-KRN 26.Nc3 26.Rc1 keeps fighting. 26...Ba6-+ 27.Rb1 Rc8 28.Na2 Bd3 29.Rb2 Ra8 30.h3 gxh3 Don't play 30...Rxa3 31.hxg4 Bc4 32.Nb4 31.Rxb6 Rxa3 32.Nb4 Ra1+ 33.Kh2 hxg2 34.Kxg2 Rb1 35.Kg3 Kf7 36.Kf4 h5 37.Kg5 intending Rb7+. Rg1+ Hoping for ...Kd7. 37...Ke7! Hoping for ...Kd7. 38.Nc6+ Kd6 39.Rxb1 Bxb1 38.Kxh5 Rg2 39.Nc6 Rxf2 39...Be2+ 40.Kh4 Kf6 40.Nd8+ 40.Ne5+= Ke7 41.Nc6+ Kd7 42.Ne5+ Ke7 43.Nc6+ Kd7 44.Ne5+ Ke7 40...Ke7! 41.Nxe6 Rf6
42.Nf4?
White must play 42.Nc7! Bc4 43.Rb7 42...Rxb6? Black should play 42...Rxf4!-+ 43.exf4 e3 43.Nxd5+= The position is equal. Kd6 44.Nxb6 KB-KN Kc5 45.Nd7+ Kc4 46.Nf6! Kc5 47.Nxe4+ Bxe4 48.Kg5 Kd5 49.Kf4 Bb1 50.e4+ Bxe4 Av CentiPawn Loss W=-19/B=-18. Weighted=-17/-15
½–½
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Cervantes Landeiro,T2311Yu,J2315½–½2020USA-ch Women 20202.1
Samadashvili,M2215Yip,C2421½–½2020USA-ch Women 20202.2
Krush,I2429Zatonskih,A2420½–½2020USA-ch Women 20202.3
Wang,A2384Eswaran,A22441–02020USA-ch Women 20202.4
Derakhshani,D2270Nguyen,E22800–12020USA-ch Women 20202.5
Abrahamyan,T2358Foisor,S22281–02020USA-ch Women 20202.6

Round 3

In the final round of the day Nguyen defeated Abrahamyan, after the latter blundered a pawn in a complex endgame. This allowed Wang to take the sole lead with a draw against Zatonskih, but all eyes were on the game between the top two ranked female players in the country, IM Carissa Yip and GM Irina Krush, who engaged in a sharp Sicilian battle:

 
Yip vs. Krush
Position after 16.Nfxg5

A complete mess took place in Yip - Krush, where the players traded advantages back and forth.

Although Yip’s position looked quite promising at the outset, she wasn’t able to capitalize on her initiative and soon it was Krush who was in control, with the game eventually ending in a draw by perpetual check. 

 
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1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 g6 3.Bg5 Ne4 4.Bh4 d5 5.e3 Bg7 6.Nbd2 Nf6 D03: 1 d4 d5 2 Nf3 Nf6 3 Bg5, including Torre Attack with early ...d5. 7.Bd3
7...b6N Predecessor: 7...0-0 8.c3 Nbd7 9.e4 dxe4 10.Nxe4 Nxe4 11.Bxe4 Nf6 12.Bxf6 Bxf6 13.Qd2 Bg7 14.h4 1-0 (45) Norooz,M (1605)-Palczert,B (1519) Budapest 2015 8.0-0 0-0 White is slightly better. 9.e4 dxe4 10.Nxe4 Nbd7 11.Re1 Bb7 12.Qe2 Nd5 13.Qd2 N5f6 14.Rad1 Nxe4 15.Bxe4 Bxe4 16.Rxe4 Nf6 17.Ree1 Re8 18.Ne5 c5 19.d5! Qc7 20.c4 Nh5 21.Nc6 e6 21...Nf6 22.g4 22.Ne7+!± Kh8 23.d6 23.dxe6 fxe6 24.Rxe6 Qf4± 22...Nf6 23.Bg3 Qb7 24.f3 Rac8 25.b3 h6 26.h3 Kh7 26...b5= 27.Kg2 b5 28.Bf2 exd5 29.Rxe8 Rxe8 30.cxd5 Rc8 31.Ne5 White should play 31.Rc1 31...Rd8 Black is under pressure. 31...c4!? 32.d6 c3 32.d6 Black is under pressure. But not 32.Bxc5 Nxd5 33.Re1 Qc7 32...Ne8 33.d7 Bxe5 34.dxe8Q Rxe8 35.Bxc5 Qc7 36.b4 Bf4 36...Bc3= 37.Qd3 37.Qxc3? Double Attack Re2+ Double Attack 38.Bf2 Qxc3-+ 37...Be1 37.Qd7! Re2+ 38.Kf1 Rxa2 39.Qxc7 Endgame KRB-KRB Bxc7 Double Attack 40.Rd7 Double Attack Bb6? 40...Be5± 41.Rxf7+? 41.Bxb6!+- and the rest is easy. axb6 42.Rxf7+ Kh8 43.Rf6 41...Kg8± 42.Rb7 Rb2? 42...Bxc5± was necessary. 43.bxc5 Kf8 43.Bxb6+- axb6 Double Attack 44.Rxb6 Double Attack Rxb4 Double Attack. KR-KR 45.Rxg6+ Double Attack. KR-KR Kh7 46.Rb6 Rb2 47.f4? 47.Rb7++- Kg6 48.h4 47...b4?
47...Rb4! 48.f5? 48.Kg1!+- 48...b3 48...Rh2 49.Rb7+± Kg8
50.h4 50.Kg1!± 50...Rh2!= And now ...b2 would win. The position is equal. 51.Rxb3 h5 is the strong threat. Rxh4 52.Rg3 Kf7 53.Kg2 Kf6 54.Kf3 Rh1 55.Rg2 Rf1+ 56.Kg3 h5 57.gxh5 Kxf5 58.Rh2 Ra1 59.h6 Ra8 60.h7 Hoping for Rh5+. Rh8 61.Kf3 Kg6 62.Kf4 Rxh7 63.Rg2+ Kf6 64.Ra2 Rh4+ 65.Kf3 Rb4 66.Ra6+ Kf5 67.Ra5+ Kf6 68.Ke3 Ke6 69.Kd3 Rh4 70.Kc3 Kd6 71.Ra6+ Kc5 72.Ra5+ Kb6 73.Rg5 Kc6 74.Kd3 Kd6 75.Ke3 Ke6 76.Kf3 Ra4 77.Rb5 Kf6 78.Ke3 Ke6 79.Kd3 Kd6 80.Rg5 Rh4 81.Ke3 Ke6 82.Kf3 Ra4 83.Rg4 Rxg4 84.Kxg4 Black escapes into a draw. Av CentiPawn Loss W=-15/B=-15. Weighted=-16/-19
½–½
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Foisor,S2228Cervantes Landeiro,T2311½–½2020USA-ch Women 20203.1
Nguyen,E2280Abrahamyan,T23581–02020USA-ch Women 20203.2
Eswaran,A2244Derakhshani,D2270½–½2020USA-ch Women 20203.3
Zatonskih,A2420Wang,A2384½–½2020USA-ch Women 20203.4
Yip,C2421Krush,I2429½–½2020USA-ch Women 20203.5
Yu,J2315Samadashvili,M22151–02020USA-ch Women 20203.6

Rounds 4-6 of the 2020 U.S. Women’s Championship will take place tomorrow, October 22, with live coverage from WGM Jennifer Shahade, GM Yasser Seirawan, and GM Maurice Ashley starting at 12:50 PM CDT on USChessChamps.com, YouTube, and Twitch.

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