Vishy Anand's Jerome-ish Game

Here is the latest game contribution by Yury V. Bukayev. He notes

Here is ex-WCC top GM Viswanathan Anand's Jerome-ish game of 2020 against top GM Wesley So:
https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1990228 . This game was played in January, 12 (before several popular videos on Jerome gambit by top GM Hikaru Nakamura & IM Levy Rozman, by GM Aman Hambleton, by other creators were published). It maybe, Mr. Anand reads this blog, although this probability is less, in my estimation, than the probability of Mr. Carlsen's reading of this blog!

So, Wesley - Anand, Viswanathan

Tata Steel Masters, Wijk aan Zee, 2020

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.c3 Nf6 5.d3 d6 

The closed Giuoco Piano, with some similarities to the Jerome Gambit.

6.Nbd2 O-O 7.h3 a6 8.Bb3 Be6 9.Bc2 d5 

10.Ng5 dxe4 

A later game, So, Wesley - Carlsen, Magnus, Magnus Carlsen Invitational (rapid) (0-1, 25), saw 10...Bc8.

11.Nxe6 fxe6 12.dxe4 Bxf2+ 

Livening things up! Black gets a lot of play, and against a lesser opponent he might have gotten a full point.

13.Kxf2 Ng4+ 14.Kg1 Ne3 15.Qe2 Nxc2 16.Rb1 

16...N6d4 17.cxd4 Qxd4+ 18.Kh2 Rf2 19.Qg4 Ne3 20.Qxe6+ Kh8 21.Rg1 Qd3 22.Qxe5 

22...Raf8

Commentators have suggested that Black would have had good drawing chances after 22...Nxg2, but Anand probably thought he could get more, as his pieces are much more active that his opponent's.

23.Qg3 Qe2

Komodo 12.1.1 suggests 23...R8f6 24.b4 Rg6, to keep things going.

24.b4 Rxg2+ 25.Rxg2 Nxg2 26.Qg4 Black resigned

Exchanging Queens - 26...Qxg4 or 26...Nf4+ 27.Qxe2 Nxe2 - would not help. Dodging with 26...Qf2 or 26...Qb5 would drop a piece to 27.Qxg2. Both 26...Qe3 and 26...Qd3 would invite the enemy Rook into play with 27.Rb3.

This time it is not true that audentis Fortuna iuvat.