1. e2e4  1... e7e5  2. g1f3  2... g8f6 One of the questions that made me curious before the start of the tournament (and I'm certainly not the only one) is what the players would try against Nepomniachtchi's unbeatable Petroff, which has served him so well since the last Candidates Tournament. This game is a good answer. 3. f3e5  3... d7d6  4. e5f3  4... f6e4  5. d2d4  5... d6d5  6. f1d3  6... f8d6 In modern popularity, the bishop development on d6 has surpassed the move 6...Nc6, which was the main weapon more or less 20 years ago. 7. e1g1  7... e8g8  8. c2c4  8... c7c6 So far, so good. All this has been played by Nepomniachtchi in many games. 9. b1c3 The most popular move, but many others are possible. 9... e4c3  10. b2c3  10... d5c4  11. d3c4  11... c8f5  12. c1g5  12... d8a5  13. f3h4  13... f5e6  14. c4e6  14... a5g5  15. h4f3  15... g5a5 Nothing new yet. All this has been played in many games by the world's best players, including one by Nepomniachtchi. Now it starts to get really interesting. 16. e6h3 In my database, I found just five games with this bishop retreat. 16... a5c3 A new move, but hardly a surprise, as it's the first choice of the computer. In all other games, Black decided to go back with the queen to c7. Black wins a pawn, but White has better development and chances to attack the king, as it's not surrounded by minor pieces and looks rather unprotected. 17. a1b1  17... b7b6  18. b1b3 [%c_effect b3;square;b3;type;GreatFind;persistent;true] As is typical in these situations where you need to attack the opponent's king, the white rook uses the third rank as a passage to the kingside. 18... c3a5  19. d4d5 [%c_effect d5;square;d5;type;GreatFind;persistent;true] Played instantly and still my computer's first choice. This time, however, it looks like Nepomniachtchi was caught by surprise, and for the first time in many games he started burning time. 19... c6d5 Played after 40 minutes of thought, this is clearly the most natural and best choice. Maybe Nepomniachtchi was considering 19...Rd8, but there's still no need for such subtle play. 20. f3g5 [%c_effect g5;square;g5;type;GreatFind;persistent;true] White's idea becomes clear. The second pawn sacrifice serves to cut off the queen's communication with the kingside, and now the pieces begin to accumulate in the vicinity of the black king. The position is very dangerous for a player caught off guard, despite the typical 0.00 computer evaluation. 20... h7h6 [%c_effect h6;square;h6;type;Inaccuracy;persistent;true] Scientifically this move is not a mistake, but it puts Black in a situation of having to find many difficult moves, so a dubious sign ( $6) doesn't seem out of place. There are three other worthy alternatives. 21. g5f7 Everybody knew this was coming, including Nepomniachtchi. 21... g8f7 Another interesting moment in the game. 22. b3d3 A good move that will bring dividends, since Black will miss the best way to defend. But there's another very interesting try as well. 22... b8d7 [%c_effect d7;square;d7;type;Interesting;persistent;true] 23. d3d5  23... d7c5 [%c_effect c5;square;c5;type;Mistake;persistent;true] This move loses by force, although it's not easy to demonstrate the win. 24. d5d6  24... f7g8 Desperately trying to bring the king back to safety. 25. d1d5 