Ivanchuk, Vassily – Bacrot, Etienne

2787 2007 · Black wins (resignation, time or agreement)

Philidor Defence, 2007: Ivanchuk (2787) with White, Bacrot (2695) with Black. The engine flags no turning point at all — no single blunder, no missed chance. The margin lives in the numbers: 97% of Black’s moves rated at least good against 91% for White, with twenty of Bacrot’s moves classed as best. Black grabbed material early with 7...Nxe4 8.Rxe4 d5, traded the bishops on e3 and e4, pushed f5-f4, and finished with 33...Rxg3 34.fxg3 Ne5 35.Nxe5 Qxe5. The lesson for club players: when your opponent never hands you a clear mistake, consistency is the only edge — and here it produced 0-1.