Yesterday’s Tomorrows

丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén) – Lorenzo Lodici
33rd European Chess Club Cup; Göynük, October 8, 2017
Queen’s Gambit Declined D35

Italian International Master Lorenzo Lodici, 17, quite surprisingly, succeeded in holding his own against the finalist of the last World Cup 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén). 1. c4 e6 2. Nc3 d5 3. d4 Nf6 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Bg5 Bb4 6. e3 h6 7. Bh4 g5 8. Bg3 Ne4 9. Qb3 c5 10. Bd3!? 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén)’s novelty does not constitute any improvement on 10. dxc5 Qa5 11. Rc1 Nc6 12. a3 Bxc3+ 13. bxc3 Nxc5 14. Qb2 Bf5 15. Nf3 which at most gave White a very slight edge, Khenkin – Margraf, 86th German Chess Championship, Saarbrücken 2015. 10. ... Nc6 11. Bxe4 dxe4 12. d5 Na5 13. Qa4+ Qd7 14. Qxd7+ Bxd7 15. Ne2 Bb5! 16. 0-0-0. 16. h4 0-0-0 leads to similar consequences, if not to a direct transposition into the game. 16. ... Bd3 17. h4 0-0-0. White got nothing out of the opening, and Black’s position seems even a little easier to play. 18. Be5 Rhg8 19. hxg5 hxg5 20. Rh7 Rd7 21. Rdh1 Nc4 22. Bg3 Rgd8 23. b3. 丁立人 (Dīng Lìrén)’s move betrays a bit of apprehension, probably not unjustified. Stockfish gives 23. Rh5 with complex equality, and indeed, it might have been a wiser course.

23. ... Nb6. And here, perhaps, it might be worth trying to play for a win by 23. ... Na3! (with the powerful threat of ... Na3-b5). 24. d6 c4 25. R1h6 Ba3+ 26. Kd2 Bb4 27. Kc1 Ba3+ 28. Kd2 Bb4 29. Kc1 ½ : ½.