In August, the two top German women players GM Elisabeth Pähtz and IM Dinara Wagner will duel in a 6-game match in Dortmund. In the run-up, we take a look at the previous tournament matches between the German number 1 and 2 in women's chess.
Pähtz had been the clear German number 1 for a long time in 2022, while Wagner moved to the German federation in May 2022. In September, the two met for the first time in the first round of the FIDE Grand Prix in Astana.
Elisabeth Pähtz came out of the opening well with an interesting variation in the King's Indian and was in control throughout the game. Before the fortieth move, she finally won the game. Nevertheless, there was an exciting opportunity for Wagner in the course of the game:
White on the move can gain a big advantage:
Solution:
26.Ba7!! with an attack against the queen on e5 and the black rook. After the obvious 26...Ned4 27.Bxd4 Nxd4 28.Rxe5 Nxb3 29.Re7! is the key move. The knight on b3 and the pawn on c7 are attacked, so White will enter on c7 and be clearly better.
So 26...Nc5!? was maybe planned. After 27.Qa3! the plan was possibly 27...Qxe2 28.Bxe2 Rxa7, after which Black has some material and control for the sacrificed queen. But White has the advantage.
Instead, Wagner turned onto the losing road with 26.Kf1? Pähtz took control with 26...Qh2! and played the game nicely to a full point.
Despite the win, Pähtz did not play a good tournament in Astana, as it remained her only winning game. Wagner's game improved from the third round onwards and she achieved her first norm on the way to the title of "International Champion" in the strong round-robin tournament.
You can find the complete game here:
Entry picture:
Germany at the European Team Championships in November 2023, by DSB, Paul Meyer-Dunker