1. e2e4  1... e7e5  2. g1f3  2... b8c6  3. f1b5  3... g8f6  4. e1g1  4... f6e4  5. d2d4  5... e4d6  6. b5c6  6... d7c6  7. d4e5  7... d6f5  8. d1d8  8... e8d8  9. h2h3 Vachier-Lagrave remains one of the few players  willing to crack the Berlin endgame. Almost every other top player  switched to a complex middlegame battle with 4.d3. 9... d8e8  10. b1c3  10... h7h5  11. c1f4  11... f8e7  12. a1d1  12... c8e6  13. f3g5  13... h8h6  14. f1e1  14... e7b4  15. a2a3  15... b4c3  16. b2c3  16... h5h4  17. g2g4  17... h4g3  18. f2g3  18... f5e7 Played after 53 (!!) minutes of reflection.  Nobody really understood what was happening in Grischuk's mind, especially knowing that Vachier-Lagrave had already played like this. Maybe the  Russian GM just forgot about it? "Again, like with Alekseenko, I made a  very stupid thing, thinking for one hour almost about 18...Ne7," he said  afterward. "I was 100 percent, not 99 but 100 percent sure Maxime was  going to play 19.g4 and then he went 19.h4, and, minus one hour. But at  the end maybe it didn't matter too much because anyway I would spend this  one hour somehow!" 19. h3h4 Vachier-Lagrave improves upon his own  game. 19... e7d5 The most aggressive reply, which costed Grischuk another 21  minutes! Yes, there are a ot of things to fear going for a pawn,  especially when your opponent is blitzing his moves after a novelty  delivery. 20. f4c1  20... d5c3  21. d1d3  21... c3a4 The decentralization of the knight seems like  the best choice for Black. 22. d3f3 The first moment when Vachier-Lagrave took some time on the  clock. But after Grischuk's next move: 22... e6d5 The difference came  close to an hour-and-a-half... 23. f3f4  23... a4b6  24. e1f1  24... h6g6 Prophylaxis  against the capture on f7. 25. f4f5 Preparing the capture once again. 25... d5c4  26. f1e1  26... e8e7  27. h4h5  27... g6h6  28. g3g4  28... h6h8  29. a3a4 Sharpens the game to the maximum which is definitely difficult  for Black to handle in the severe time trouble he is facing. 29... b6a4 Not an obvious blunder. 30. c1a3 And Vachier-Lagrave misses a huge chance! 30... c6c5  31. e5e6  31... f7f6  32. a3c5  32... a4c5  33. f5c5  33... f6g5  34. c5c7  34... e7d6  35. c7c4  35... a7a5 