The following game was played at a G/90 time control. It's a pity that nowadays we so frequently have to sacrifice the quality of play in order to squeeze in enough rounds, but perhaps this is organizationally necessary. Thank God for two saving graces: the digital clock and the 5-second time delay, utilized here.
This game probably doesn't show either player at his absolute best (Hutchinson is a dangerous tactical player, as I have been reminded in several blitz tournaments), but the positions reached in the endgame are so rich, interesting, and full of beautiful tactical surprises that I think readers would find analysis of the game to be both instructive and entertaining. It is a good illustration of the depth and endless fascination of chess.
1.c4
Nf6
2.Nc3
c6
The general popularity of the Slav and Semi-Slav complexes at high levels of play is quite easy to understand. Their overall theoretical status is quite good, and Black has chances either to play solidly or to stir up trouble. I was hoping that my move order would have discouraged it (1. ..c6 is the usual way to transpose to the Slav, but this allows the possibility 2.e4), but he went on undaunted. I would have seriously contemplated the critical move 3.e4, but given the time control I couldn't resist the possibility of blitzing out 10 or 12 opening moves.
3.d4
[ White may have an edge after 3.e4!?
d5
4.e5
d4
5.exf6
dxc3
6.fxg7
cxd2+
7.Bxd2
Bxg7
8.Qc2
Nd7
( 8...Qb6!?
) 9.Ne2
Nf6
10.Ng3+/=
(ECO) because of the pawn structure.]
3...d5
4.e3
e6
5.Nf3
Nbd7
6.Bd3
Bd6
I think everyone would agree that the Meran variation 6...dxc4 7.Bxc4 b5 is the most attractive option for Black, but even this ancient Semi-Slav variation appears in topflight play from time to time, and it is not so easy to prove an advantage against it.
7.0-0
0-0
8.e4
dxc4
8. ..dxe4 is also playable and still shows up occasionally. It was played in the famous game Capablanca-Jaffe, New York 1910.
9.Bxc4
e5
A typical structure in the Slav and QGD, and some lines in the Nimzoindian. It can also be reached with colors reversed in some Sicilians and Frenches. White may look forward to achieving the e4-f4 pawn center (after the d4 and e5 pawns are exchanged) or he may even contemplate d4-d5 in some circumstances. Black will seek chances on the e-file and the a7-h2 diagonal, and his queenside pawn majority may become important after the likely pawn exchange.
10.Bg5
The main move, and certainly an improvement over the overly finesseful 10.a3?! from our last game (10.Bb3!? is a better way to preempt ..b5-b4). [In that game, Black had good play after 10.a3?!
exd4
11.Qxd4
Qe7
but he grabbed a pawn sacrifice after 12.h3
Ne5
13.Nxe5
Bxe5
( 13...Qxe5!=
according to the post-mortem.) 14.Qe3
Bxc3
15.Qxc3
Qxe4?!
( 15...Nxe4!
16.Qf3!
and White has enough compensation, but no more.) and White's attack proved too strong after 16.Re1
Qg6
17.Re5!
etc.]
10...exd4
10. ..Qe7 11.d5 was already played in Janowski-Chigorin, Budapest 1896! 11.Re1 is also playable, and 10. ..h6 is the mainline in ECO. 10. ..Qc7 11.h3 is also a little more comfortable for White. These positions were rather popular in the 30's. Hutchinson's move has been played a number of times but is strikes me as illogical to release the tension in the center and free White's hands.
11.Qxd4
11.Nxd4 is also playable, eyeing f5. But my move keeps the knight on the excellent f3-square, fights for e5, and prepares to show strength on the d-file before Black can connect his rooks.
11...Qe7
12.Rad1
Bc7!?N
Quite a reasonable looking novelty. 12...Bc5 has been played before, but after 13.Qd2 Ne5 14.Nxe5 Qxe5 15.Bf4, Black has lost control of e5. On the other hand, 12...Ne5?! 13.Qxd6 Qxd6 14.Rxd6 Nxc4 15.Rd4 is definitely good for White.
13.Rfe1?!
Weakening f2. 13.h3!? would be better, since after the coming f2-f4, Black will have annoying possibilities for counterplay on the a7-g1 diagonal combined with ..Ng4 ideas.
13...Ne5
14.Nxe5
Qxe5?!
Too meek. After the bishop capture, Black's game looks fully playable to me: 14...Bxe5!? 15.Qd2 Bg4! 16.Be2 [16.f3? Qc5+] Rad8 gives good counterplay, and after 15.Qe3 Fritz shows the annoying 15...Qb4! Perhaps Hutchinson was proceeding from the "vibes" of our previous analysis? Anyway, the remainder of the game will be good for people who imagine that chess becomes boring after the exchange of queens.
15.Qxe5
Bxe5
16.Bb3
A prophylactic move, perhaps inspired by my Dvoretsky readings. "What does the opponent want to do?" Well, ..b5 and ..b4 or ..a5-a4 looks annoying. My move discourages ..b5, and waits for some sort of commitment from Black. Instead, 16.f4 Bc7 looks premature, whereas 16.f3 b5 17.Bb3 a5 gives Black good counterplay.
16...h6
16. ..b6? 17.f4 Bc7 18.e5 is obviously good for White.
17.Bc1
Now that the bishop is back home, f2-f4 is much more appealing.
17...Nh5!?
Fully in Hutchinson's active, double-edged style. However Black has reasonable chances to equalize with ..Be6. The pawns may be weakened but they will be hard to attack. [17...Bxc3?
18.bxc3
Be6
19.Bxe6
fxe6
20.Rd6
Rfe8
21.e5
Nd5
22.c4
Nb6
23.c5, with a big plus;
17...Be6
is the normal move, when White still has very little. 18.Bxe6
fxe6
19.f3
with only a microscopic edge.]
18.Ne2
The reflex response (remember the time control!), but perhaps not the strongest. I think it may have been better to continue the cat-and-mouse game with the bishop: 18.Be3!? Nf4 19.Ne2, and White is better.
18...a5
Black seeks counterplay with the utmost energy. This move looked fishy to me over the board, and I got the impression that he was playing without a consistent plan, but rather a little threat here, a little threat there. (The radical 18. ..g5!? came into consideration.) However, his previous moves have dragged my knight away from the queenside, so that the a-pawn thrust might dislodge my bishop and enable ..Be6.
19.f4
I decided not to be "distracted" by his demonstration and to continue consistently. 19.a4!? would have stopped the following demonstration, but at the cost of weakening the queenside. Now, I think that may have been a better choice, since it leaves Black without a clear idea. Of course, at this time control it was not easy to imagine what was about to happen. By all appearances, after the text move Black's two developed pieces should be running for cover, away from White's rapidly expanding phalanx of pawns.
19...Bc7
20.Be3
Bg4!
Nicely played. Otherwise, the bishop is extremely hard to develop. However, 20. ..Nf6 also gives good counterplay (see note to White's 13th).
21.e5
a4
22.Bc2
It was, and still is, difficult to choose between this move and the provocative 22.Bc4!?, tempting the weakening ..b5. However, in that variation the white bishop will stand very awkwardly, and in the face of Black's developing initiative this doesn't seem such a prudent idea.
22...g6
[22...Ba5
23.h3!
is favorable for White.]
23.h3
Unfortunately, 23.Rd2? is bad because of ..Ba5! 24.Nc3 a3. However, Black's bishop and knight are very clumsy already on the kingside and 23.Kf2!? would calmly improve White's position. For some time now, I have been trying to play catchup with Antoine on the clock, and through this part of the game my moves have been second-rate.
23...Be6
24.a3?
Now it is White's turn to be truly inconsistent. This is my one serious mistake in this game, giving Black some incredible possibilities. The knight should have been driven away at once: 24.g4 Ng7 25.Nc3, and White is still better. I figured I could drive it away at my leisure, and it is still hard to believe, just looking at the position, that this is not the case! Black's play in this part of the game is very energetic indeed.
24...Ba5!
Black's piece play gives him the initiative.
25.Rf1
[25.Bd2
Bb6+
26.Kh2
Rfd8=
was perhaps safer, but I wasn't ready to admit that Black had a decent position.]
25...Bc4!
26.Rf2
In this move and my last, my opponent thought I was trying too hard to "keep play in the game" but in fact I was just trying to play the correct moves: 26.Bd3 Bb3 27.Rc1 Rad8 is just good for Black. But now, one might assume that Black will have to do something about the a-pawn, and that his knight is going to be driven back by g2-g4 (since the sequence ..Bxe2 Rxe2 Ng3 Rg2 can't be much of an option for him).
26...Rfd8
27.g4
27.Rxd8+ Rxd8 28.g4!? (28.Bxa4 is the game) allows 28...Nf6!. But now, the knight is surely doomed for a passive existence on g7, isn't it?
27...Rxd1+
28.Bxd1
Rd8
29.Bxa4
Rd3
Hutchinson presses on, and we are both headed for time trouble. [Not 29...Bd2
30.Bxd2
Rxd2
31.gxh5
Bxe2
32.hxg6
fxg6
33.b4+/-.]
30.Rf3!?
A difficult decision, made on faith and intuition (there was hardly any time to calculate). Although I managed to emerge victorious from this position, I don't know how much to attribute to a difference in skill (my opponent's mistakes) and how much to luck (the almost random complexity and critical nature of many of the variations). Certainly, I profited from some of both. Anyway, analysis shows that my move and the alternative are of equal objective value, but this one is much more complicated. In fact I hadn't fully appreciated the precariousness of my position after this move, and I also rather underestimated my chances after the other move. [After 30.Bc5
Ng7
Black threatens ..Ne6, so White has no time to defend the h-pawn: 31.Bc2
Rxh3
32.Kg2
Rh4
33.Kg3
Rh1=
]
30...Rxe3?!
An attractive option, but not the strongest. My opponent had seen the other possibility, but it isn't clear why he rejected it. (Of course, with 11 minutes left it's hard to think straight.) [30...Bb6!
31.Kf2
Rd2
32.Bxb6
Rxe2+
33.Kg1
Bd5
( 33...Rxb2
34.gxh5
( 34.Bd4
Rb1+
35.Kf2
b5=
) 34...Rxb6
35.hxg6
fxg6
36.Bc2
with a slight positional advantage.) 34.Rf2
Re1+
35.Rf1
Re2=
]
31.Rxe3
Bb6
32.Kf2
Bxe2
33.Kxe2!
Possibly the best move of the game. White prefers a minor piece ending where he will probably lose material but his superior minor piece and chances to play with the thematic R-pawn vs. N ending at least compensate. Objectively, both moves probably lead to a draw; however, after my move Black must fight hard for the draw, whereas after the alternative, I would have to scrape for the draw.
I avoided
33.gxh5?
Bxh5
34.Bc2
Kf8
35.Bd3
Ke7
Or A. 36.Be2? illustrates point "1" above: 36...Bxe3+ 37.Kxe3 Bxe2 38.Kxe2 Ke6! ( 38...f6 39.exf6+! Kxf6 40.Ke3! Kf5 41.Kf3= ) 39.Kf3 ( 39.Ke3 Kf5 40.b4 ( 40.Kf3 g5-+ ) 40...g5 41.fxg5 hxg5 42.Kd4 Kf4-+ ) 39...Kf5 40.h4 h5-+;
B. 36.Bc4 f6 (Certainly not 36. ..g5? 37.f5!) ( 36...Bd4 is a testing move: 37.h4!= (37.Bb3? f5! -+ is again point 1.)) 37.h4 ( 37.exf6+ Kxf6 38.Be2 g5 (38. ..Bxe3+ 39.Kxe3 Bxe2 40.Kxe2 Kf5 41.Kf3 is a drawn pawn ending.) 39.Bxh5 gxf4= ) 37...g5 (37. ..Bd4 only postpones the inevitable simplification.) 38.exf6+ Kxf6 39.hxg5+ hxg5 40.fxg5+ Kxg5 41.Be2= looks awkward but it draws;
36...Ke6
37.Bc2
f5
(what else?) 38.exf6+
Kxf6
39.Bd3
g5
40.hxg5+
hxg5
41.fxg5+
Kxg5
42.Be2=
33...Nxf4+
And there you have it. The knight is alive and well.
34.Kd2
Bxe3+
35.Kxe3
35...Nxh3?
But now Black's valiant steed gets a little bit too cocky. As punishment, it will suffer much embarrassment in the variations that follow. This move was played quickly; I admit that I had rather expected it too, though I wasn't sure if I would have had the gumption to try it with Black, since I hadn't the slightest idea what was going to happen after it. He now had only 8 minutes to my 12; you can imagine the tension in the tournament room!
From an analytical perspective, this seemingly natural move puts Black's position in critical condition. He must defend well to reach a queen ending (see next game diagram) which is extremely treacherous to defend in practice. He should have been more cautious about my queenside threats by leaving his knight closer to the queenside, but once again holding on to the threat to take the h-pawn proves to be very important (even at the cost of damaging the pawn structure!). So, we have another application of Nimzovich's principle. Two options are I. 35...Ne6?! and II. 35...g5!:
I. 35...Ne6?! This move seems logical because the knight controls a lot of Black squares here; however, it is too passive. Black allows White to forget about h3 (by letting go of the threat to take!), and now the knight can be easily harassed. 36.Bb3! Nc5 ( 36...Kf8?! 37.Bxe6 fxe6 38.Kd4 b6 ( 38...Ke7 39.Kc5 Kd7 40.Kb6 Kc8 41.a4+- ) 39.a4 Ke7 40.a5! wins nicely: ( 40.b4? Kd7 41.a5 Kc7 42.h4 Kb7 43.axb6 Kxb6 44.Kc4 g5 45.h5 Kb7= ) 40...bxa5 41.Kc5 Kd7 42.Kb6 a4 43.h4+- ) 37.Bc4 ( 37.Bc2 Kf8 38.b4 Ne6 ) 37...Kf8 38.Kd4 Nd7 39.e6 fxe6 ( Certainly not 39...c5+? 40.Kd5 Nb6+ 41.Kxc5 Nxc4 42.Kxc4 fxe6 43.Kd4 Ke7 44.Ke5+- ) 40.Bxe6 and White's space advantage is decisive: 40...Ke7 ( 40...Nb6 41.b3 Ke7 42.Kc5 winning because even 42...Na4+ 43.bxa4 Kxe6 44.a5!+- doesn't help Black.; 40...Nf6 41.Kc5+- ) 41.Bxd7 Kxd7 42.Ke5+-;
II. 35...g5! A staunch defense, leading to a minor piece endgame of extraordinary richness. White's bishop is very clumsily placed, yet it performs the important function of threatening to sacrifice on c6. Black must carefully weigh the prospects of aggressive play on the kingside and prudent defense with his king and knight in the center and queenside. The balance is extremely fine and even the most subtle winds of change will suffice to tilt the scales in one direction or the other. The use of computers is an extremely helpful timesaver when trying to plumb the depths of such a position. In some particularly messy positions requiring concrete analysis I enlisted the help of my friend Terry Ripple, a computer chess enthusiast who enjoys using HIARCS and CRAFTY on these kinds of positions. However, a computer printout wouldn't be very interesting or educational for the reader, so I have tried to keep the analysis as "human" as possible; the variations spring from my own ideas, and I will comment them using commonsense notions. I hope the analysis is at least close to accurate, but it should not be regarded as definitive. Perhaps an ambitious reader (or his computer) will be able to improve on it. We will make a big split, with moves arranged in increasing order of theoretical and practical merit: A. 36.h4? B. 36.Bc2?! C. 36.Bb3 D. 36.b4 and E. 36.Kd4.
36.Kd4 Directly attacking the queenside is obviously critical, and I will take this as the main line.
A. 36.h4? A rather crude trap. 36...Nd5+! with an edge for Black. (Not 36...Ng2+? 37.Kd4 with very dangerous threats.) ;
B. 36.Bc2?!
A positional move, preparing Be4 or Bf5. However, this move doesn't put any pressure on Black.
36...Kf8!
is solid and consistent:
B1. 36...Nxh3?!
Interesting, but there is no need to speculate like this.
37.Bf5!?
B11. 37.Be4
Nf4
38.b4
( 38.a4
Kf8
39.a5
Ne6
40.b4
Ke7
41.b5
Kd7
42.a6
bxa6
43.Bxc6+
( 43.bxa6
Kc7
44.a7
Kb7
45.Bxc6+
Kxa7
46.Be8
Nd8
is okay.) 43...Kc7
44.Be8
axb5
45.Bxb5=
) 38...Kf8
39.b5
cxb5
40.Bxb7
Ne6
41.Bc6
Nc7
42.Kd4
Ke7
43.Kc5
Ke6
is OK for Black.)
37...Nf4
38.Bc8
b6
( 38...b5?
39.Bd7
Nd5+
40.Kd4
Ne7
41.b3+-
) 39.b4
Kf8
40.Bb7
c5
41.bxc5
bxc5
42.a4
Ke7
43.a5
Kd7
44.Ke4+/=
)
37.Bf5 Ke7= and Black has chances to defend the queenside and to nibble on h3; I can't see why he should lose.
C. 36.Bb3
A dangerous move, preventing the return of the Black knight to the queenside, and creating the possibility of e5-e6 after ..Nxh3. However, for the moment the bishop doesn't have good access to squares on this diagonal.
36...Nxh3!
In this case, taking the pawn is actually the safest! Black exploits the awkwardness of 36.Bb3.
C1. 36...Kf8?!
37.Kd4
Ke7
38.Kc5
Nxh3
39.Bd1!
( 39.Bc2?
Nf2!
( 39...Kd7
40.Kb6
Kc8
41.Bb3!+/-
; 39...Ke6
40.Kb6
Kxe5
41.Kxb7
is messy.) 40.Bf5
h5
41.gxh5
g4-+
unexpectedly proves to be disastrous for White.; 39.Kb6
Nf2
40.Kxb7
Nxg4
is an extremely messy position in which Black has very good chances on the kingside: 41.Kxc6
( 41.a4?
Nxe5
42.a5
g4-+
) 41...Nxe5+
42.Kc7
and presumably Black is in good shape.) 39...Ke6
( 39...Kd7?
40.Kb6
Kc8
41.Bb3+-
) 40.Kb6
Nf2
41.Be2
Kxe5
42.Kxb7
and we can suspect real trouble for Black. HIARCS thinks White is winning in the following exciting manner: 42...f5
43.a4!
fxg4
44.Bxg4
Nd3
45.Kxc6
Nxb2
46.a5
Nd3
47.Be2
Nb4+
48.Kc5
Nd5
49.a6
Nc7
50.a7+-
and after White devours the knight on a8, the Kc7-c8 blockade can be broken by Bg4 and zugzwang.)
37.e6 (Or C21. 37.Kd4? Nf2 38.e6 ( 38.Kc5 Nxg4-+ ) 38...Kf8! 39.exf7 Nxg4-+; or C22. 37.a4 Kf8 38.a5 Ke7=) 37...fxe6 38.Bxe6+ Kf8= and Black can defend without much trouble.
D. 36.b4
A flexible move, trying to make headway on the queenside while keeping the possibility of Bxc6 and all the other bishop moves open.
36...Kf8!
Solid and consistent.
D1. 36...Nxh3?!
Playing with fire! This line can be profitably compared to the game continuation. 37.Kd4
( 37.Bxc6?
bxc6
38.a4
Nf4
39.a5
Nd5+
) 37...Nf4
Or D11. 37...Nf2?
38.Bxc6
bxc6
39.a4
Nh3
Only move. 40.a5
Nf4
41.a6
Ne6+
42.Kc4
h5
43.a7
Nc7
44.Kc5
h4
( 44...hxg4
45.Kxc6
Na8!
46.b5!
g3
47.b6+-
) 45.Kxc6
Na8
46.Kb7
h3
47.Kxa8
h2
48.Kb8
h1Q
49.a8Q+-
and White should win the queen ending.) 38.Kc5
Nd5
with a critical position: ( 38...h5
39.Kb6
hxg4
40.Kxb7
g3
41.Bxc6
g2
42.Bxg2
Nxg2
43.a4+-
) 39.b5!
39...Nc3 40.Bc2 Nxb5! ( 40...cxb5?! 41.Kb4 Nd5+ 42.Kxb5 and after the b-pawn drops, Black is dead. 42...Ne3 43.Be4 b6 44.Kxb6! Nxg4 ( 44...Nc4+ 45.Kc5 Nxa3 46.Bd3+- ) 45.a4 Nxe5 46.Kb5 Nd7 47.Bf5 Nb8 48.Kb6+- ) 41.a4 Nc3 42.Kb6 is a mindboggling position in which I deferred to the superior analytical skills of HIARCS. It suggested the following fascinating but plausible line, in which Black is able to scrape to the draw: 42...h5! 43.a5 hxg4 44.Bd3 g3 45.Bf1 Nd5+ 46.Kxb7 Nb4 47.Kb6 Kf8 48.Kc5 Na6+ 49.Kxc6 Ke7 50.Kb6 Nb4= etc.)
37.Kd4 ( 37.Bc2?! Ke7! 38.Bf5 Kd8!=/+ is good for Black.) 37...Ne6+ 38.Ke4 Ke7 and Black's defensive resources look adequate. ( 38...b5 39.Bb3 Ke7 40.a4+/= ) )
(E. 36.Kd4) Ne6+!
E1. 36...Nxh3?
37.Bd1!
( 37.Kc5
Nf2
38.Kb6
Nxg4
39.Kxb7
Nxe5 unclear
; 37.Bxc6?
bxc6
38.a4
Nf4
39.a5
Ne6+
40.Kc4
h5-+
) 37...Nf4
38.Kc5
Nd5
39.Bf3
Kf8
( 39...f6
40.Bxd5+
cxd5
41.Kxd5+-
) 40.Bxd5
cxd5
41.Kxd5
Ke7
42.a4+-
)
37.Kc4
b5+!
E21. 37...Kf8?!
seems carefully played, but now White pours on the pressure: 38.Kb4
Ke7!
(E21a. 38...b5?!
39.Bc2
(39.Bxb5?! cxb5 40.Kxb5 is fairly harmless for Black in comparison to the mainline of variation E2.) ( E21a1. 39.Bb3
Ke7
40.Bxe6
Kxe6
41.b3
Kxe5
( 41...Kd5
42.a4
bxa4
43.bxa4
c5+
44.Kc3+-
) 42.a4
bxa4
43.bxa4
f5!
( 43...Kd4
44.a5
c5+
45.Ka3
Kd5
46.Kb3
c4+
( 46...Kd6
47.Kc4
Kc6
48.a6
Kb6
49.a7
Kxa7
50.Kxc5+-
) 47.Kc3
Kc5
48.a6
Kb6
49.Kxc4
Kxa6
50.Kc5+-
) 44.gxf5
h5
45.a5
g4
46.hxg4
hxg4=
) 39...Ke7
40.b3
Kd7
41.a4
bxa4
42.bxa4
Kc7
43.a5
and White obviously has a significant positional advantage. I knew I wouldn't want Black's game here, but nevertheless we put Crafty to work, and it showed a win for White. The danger for Black is illustrated in the line 43...Nf4
44.Kc5
Nxh3
forced, ( 44...Ne6+
45.Kc4
Kb7
46.Bb3!
Ka6
47.Kb4
Nd8
48.Ba2
with zugzwang: 48...Kb7
49.Kc5
Ka6
50.Kd6+-
) and now the computer analysis is very entertaining indeed: 45.Bb3
h5!
46.e6!
fxe6
47.gxh5!
g4
48.Bxe6
Nf2
49.h6
g3
50.h7
Nd3+!
Strange but true! 51.Kc4
Ne5+
52.Kc3
Ng6
53.Bh3+-
and White stands to win Black's pawns and then gobble up the knight. This position is an excellent example of the advantages of a bishop over a knight.)
39.Ka5
Nc5
( 39...Kd7
40.Kb6+/-
) 40.Bc2
Nd7
41.Bf5
Nxe5
42.Kb6
Nc4+
43.Kxb7
Kd6
( 43...Nd6+
44.Kxc6
Nxf5
45.gxf5
h5
46.Kd5+-
) 44.a4
and Black's position seems precarious but active defense saves the day according to HIARCS: 44...Kc5
45.Bd7
Kb4
46.Kxc6
Nxb2
47.Kd6
Nd3
48.Ke7
Nf2=)
38.Bxb5 cxb5+ 39.Kxb5 Kf8 40.a4 Ke7 41.a5 Kd7 42.Kb6 Kc8 43.a6 Kb8= is a curious position that would seem more fun to play for White, but in fact if you try it out you'll see that Black can hold with accurate moves.
Now let's get back to the game, which is quite sharp enough!
36.Kd4
[The only try. Certainly not 36.Bxc6?
bxc6
37.a4
Ng5
38.a5
Ne6
39.a6
Nc7
40.a7
Kf8-+
]
36...Nf2
The most natural and best move. Other possibilities:
A. 36...g5? 37.Bd1!+- and White cleans up the queenside against no counterplay.
B. 36...Ng5?! 37.Kc5 Nf3 38.Kb6! ( 38.Bxc6? bxc6 39.a4 h5! 40.gxh5 gxh5 41.a5 h4 42.a6 h3 43.a7 h2 44.a8Q+ Kg7-+ is a comical trap that deserves comparison to the game continuation.; 38.Bd1 Nxe5 unclear.) 38...Nxe5 39.Kxb7 h5 40.gxh5 gxh5 41.Bc2 Nc4 42.a4 h4 43.b4 h3 44.Kxc6+-;
C. 36...h5
37.gxh5
gxh5
38.Kc5
Nf4
( 38...Ng5
39.Kb6
Nf3
40.Kxb7
Nxe5
41.Bc2
see 36. ..Ng5) 39.Kb6
Nd3
40.b4
h4
41.Kxb7
Nxe5
42.Bc2+-
and as always, the knight is helpless against the a-pawn.
37.Bxc6
Clearly forced. I was astonished that my opponent was actually impressed by this move, when the hard work of intuitively appreciating its value happened back on move 33.
37...bxc6
38.a4
h5
Again this logical move turns out to be the best. In order understand positions of this kind, it is helpful to bear in mind the following point: for the knight to hold the a-pawn and king, it must control a "diamond" of four squares drawn from the blockade square of the pawn. So, for example, if White's e-pawn lives, he only draws with the pawn on a5 (because White's king can only perpetually chase the knight around the "diamond" a6-c7-d5-b4) but he wins if his pawn gets to a6, because the knight cannot gain access to the d6-square on the a7-c8-d6-b5 route. (Try it out)
A. 38...Nxg4? 39.a5 c5+ 40.Kxc5 Nxe5 41.a6 Nd7+ ( 41...Nd3+ 42.Kb5+- ) 42.Kb5+- ;
B. 38...c5+
The best of the alternatives to the game, but ultimately even very accurate defense gives only a worse version of the game's queen ending for Black. 39.Kxc5
Nd3+
( 39...Ne4+?
40.Kd5!+-
; 39...Nxg4?
40.a5
Nxe5
41.a6+-
) 40.Kb5
Nf4
( 40...Nxb2?
41.a5
Nd1
42.a6
Nc3+
43.Kc6+-
; 40...Nxe5?
41.a5+-
) 41.a5!
( 41.Kc5!?
Nd3+
( 41...Ne6+?
42.Kb6+-
) 42.Kb5
Nf4!
only repeats moves. ( 42...Nxe5?
43.a5+-
) ) 41...Nd5!
42.Kc5
( 42.Kc6
Nb4+
43.Kb5
Nd5=
) 42...Nc7
43.b4!!
Bringing in the reserves! This is one of the most astonishing and beautiful ideas in all this analysis. ( 43.Kb6
Nd5+
44.Kc5=
; 43.Kc6
Na6
44.Kb6
Nb8=
) 43...h5
44.gxh5
gxh5
45.b5
( 45.Kc6
h4
46.Kxc7
h3
47.a6
h2
48.a7
h1Q
49.Kb8
Qe4=
) 45...h4
46.b6
Na6+
( 46...Ne6+
47.Kd6+-
) 47.Kb5
h3
48.Kxa6
h2
49.b7
h1Q
50.b8Q++-
39.gxh5
It proves to be very important to take first! [39.a5?
h4
40.a6
h3
41.a7
h2
42.a8Q+
Kg7
43.Qxc6
h1Q
44.Qf6+
Kg8
45.Qxf2
Qd1+=
]
39...gxh5
40.a5
h4
41.a6
h3
42.a7
h2
43.a8Q+
Kg7!
[I cannot encourage the reader strongly enough to try and work out the delightful refutation of 43...Kh7?
bearing in mind our "diamond principle": 44.Qxc6
( 44.Qf8?
h1Q
45.Qxf7+
Kh6!=
) 44...h1Q
45.Qxh1+!!
This has to be calculated precisely. White exploits the fact that the king has left the square of the b-pawn. ( 45.Qc2+
is roughly equivalent to the game.) 45...Nxh1
46.b4
Ng3
47.b5
Nf5+
looks promising at first, getting onto the diamond: ( 47...Ne2+
and the White king can zigzag elegantly, outmaneuvering the knight: 48.Kc4
Nf4
49.b6
Ng6
50.Kd5
Ne7+
51.Kc5
Ng6
52.Kd6+-
) 48.Kc5
Ng7
49.b6
Ne6+
50.Kd6
Nd8
and now comes the fantastic point: 51.e6!+-
From such variations, the true chess lover should derive a thrill like a musician experience a real virtuoso performance, or a gourmand savoring a tasty dish.]
44.Qxc6
h1Q
45.Qf6+
Kg8
46.Qxf2
White has finally emerged with a pawn-up technical endgame, which appears to be winning. Unfortunately, both of us were short of time here, and the moves weren't optimal. White's plan consists of:
(1) bringing the queen to a central square where she has broad influence and protects both pawns (i.e. on d4 or c3),
(2) pushing the b-pawn to b4, and
(3) putting the queen on c5 and penetrating with the king.
Once the latter objective is achieved, the game is decided, because the Black queen will not have enough checking space. At one point I was determined to find out conclusively whether this position was a win or a draw. However, the usual theoretical generalizations ("a pawn up wins" or "it's more likely a draw with few pawns on the board") don't seem to help out much here, and the move-by-move analysis is way too much for me to do on my own. The presence of the e5 and f7 pawns shields the Black king from dangerous cross-checks. Before long, I gave up on obtaining the absolute truth, because the position seemed simultaneously too abstract for Fritz, because understanding of the above plan is important, and too concrete for it at the same time (on my setup anyway), because perpetual check lines are so long. The hash tables filled up very quickly, and the monster lost its speed. However, my analysis - with Fritz as an equal partner - gave me a good indication of the character of the endgame. Regardless of the theoretical "truth" of the situation, I think that in practice, even in a normal time situation, Black's chances of saving the game are slim.
46...Qd1+
It is likely that the non-checking 46...Qb7!? is better, threatening to skewer the queen, and setting up frontal checks. I don't know for sure, but I think Black would keep reasonable drawing chances in this way.
47.Ke4?!
With the idea of playing Qd4, but this isn't very direct. Practically speaking, such moves often give the opponent more opportunities to go awry than the direct attacking moves (cf. Fischer's remarks about Petrosian). Theoretically speaking, however, I suspect that this misstep throws away the win against best defense. The following analysis is best understood with reference to White's plan outlined in the previous note, and is not intended to be comprehensive, but rather to indicate the character of play. I hope, but do not fully trust, that the conclusions are accurate.
[47.Kc4?!
is certainly less good than Kc5: 47...Qc1+
48.Kb3?!
(The only independent try) 48...Qc6
49.Qd4
Qb5+
is the game (move 51).
47.Kc5! is best, and after 47...Qc1+ White has a broad choice. (Note that 47...Qb3 48.Qd4 is winning for White, as is 47...Qd3 48.Qd4, though 47...Qg4!? is interesting. 48.Kd6! This active kingside raid is best.
48.Kb5?!
This seems the wrong way to go: 48...Qc7
49.Qg1+!
A typical finesse: White wants to drive the king to an unfavorable square. 49...Kh8!
( 49...Kh7?
50.Qd4
Qb7+
51.Kc4
Qc6+
52.Kd3
Qf3+
53.Kc2
Qe2+
54.Kc3+-
and Qd3 comes with check now!) 50.Qd4
Qb7+
51.Kc4
Qc6+
52.Kd3
Qf3+
53.Kc2
Qg2++/=
and White has great difficulty getting out of check;
48.Kb4?!
Qc6
49.Qg1+!
Kh8!
50.Qc5
Qe4++/=
and White will have a lot of trouble escaping the flurry of checks;
48.Kb6?!
Qc8!
( 48...Qc4
49.Qc5
Qb3+
50.Qb5
Qe6+
51.Kb7+/-
) 49.Qg1+
Kh8
50.Qd4
Qb8+
and the position is basically equivalent to the 48.Kb5 line.
At this point we may conclude that king moves to the b-file are inadequate because White never has time to execute stages 1 and 2 of his plan, because Black's queen has too much mobility for frontal and central checks. However, by moving to the d-file White can find success!;
48.Kd5!?
Qh1+
( 48...Qd1+
49.Qd4
doesn't seem too logical.) 49.Kd6
Qh6+
( 49...Qd1+
50.Ke7
wins (see 48.Kd6); 49...Qb7
50.Qd4
also wins because Black's queen is too cramped.) 50.Kc7!
( 50.Qf6
Qd2+
51.Ke7
Qb4+
( 51...Qd5?
52.Qg5+
Kh7
53.Kf8+-
) 52.Qd6
Qb7+!
( 52...Qxb2
53.Qd8+
Kh7
( 53...Kg7
54.Qf8+
Kg6
55.Qg8+
Kf5
56.Qxf7+
Kxe5
57.Qf6++-
) 54.Kxf7+-
) 53.Qd7
( 53.Ke8
Qb5+=
) 53...Qb4+=
) 50...Qc1+
( 50...Qe6
51.Qd4+-
) 51.Kd7
Qh1
( 51...Qc4
52.Qg3+!
Kf8
53.Qa3+
Kg8
54.Qc3
Qe6+
( 54...Qa4+
55.Kd8
Qa8+
56.Qc8+-
) 55.Kc7+-
) 52.Qg3+
Kf8
53.Kc7
Qd5
54.Qc3+-
48...Qd1+
( A. 48...Qc8!?
49.Qg1+!
( A1. 49.Qd4?!
Qd8+
50.Kc5
Qc8+
51.Kb5
( 51.Kb4
Qb7+
) 51...Qb7+
) 49...Kf8
(or else White goes through the standard kingside attack, for which see the mainline.) 50.Qc5+-
because b2-b4 can't be prevented, and White has therefore accomplished his objective.)
49.Ke7!
This kingside attack proves to be decisive.
49...Qb3
( 49...Qd5
allows White to attack the king in the following elegant manner: 50.Qg3+
Kh7
51.Qh4+
Kg8
52.Qg5+
Kh7
53.Kf8+-
) 50.Qg2+!
is the cleanest and most direct way to win: ( 50.Qc5?
Qe6+
51.Kd8
f6=
; B1. 50.Qd4
Qb7+
( 50...Qe6+
51.Kd8
Qb3
52.Kc7
seems equivalent.) 51.Kd6
( 51.Qd7
Qb4+!=
is a very important idea: 52.Qd6
( 52.Kf6??
Qh4+-+
; 52.Ke8??
Qf8#
; 52.Kd8
Qb8+=
) 52...Qb7+
53.Kd8
( 53.Kf6
Qf3+
; 53.Ke8
Qb5+
) 53...Qxb2=
) 51...Qb3
52.Kc7
Qc2+
(If Black doesn't play actively then Qc3 and b4 etc. will squash him) 53.Qc3
Qf2
54.b4
Qa7+
and I haven't analyzed the position exhaustively, but it seems to me that sooner or later White will be able to interpose his queen somewhere and then move it to c5. Then the king will penetrate and the game will be decided. The main variation is intended as a sample. 55.Kc6
Qa6+
56.Kd5
Qe6+
57.Kc5
Qc8+
58.Kd4
Qg4+
59.Kd3
Qf3+
60.Kc2
Qg2+
61.Kb3
Qd5+
62.Kb2!
Qg2+
63.Qc2+-
) 50...Kh8
( 50...Kh7
51.Qg5!+-
( 51.Kf8
Qb8+
52.Kxf7
Qc7+
is unnecessarily complicated - I'm not even sure it wins.) )
51.Qg5!
Qxb2
52.Kxf7+-
]
47...Qa4+
47. ..Qg4+ 48.Kd3 Qd1+ looks like a more effective checking pattern; however, it may have only had the effect of forcing White into one of the favorable lines in the previous note.
48.Qd4
Qc6+
49.Kd3
[ 49.Kf4!?
is an original take on the position: 49...Qc1+
50.Kg4
Qa1!+/-
and White's road to progress is unclear.]
49...Qb5+
50.Kc3
Qc6+
51.Kb3
[ A. 51.Kb4
Qb7+
52.Ka5
Qc7+
53.Kb5
Qb7+
is a very critical position: 54.Kc4
( 54.Kc5
Qc7+
55.Kd5
Qd7+
( 55...Qb7+?
56.Kd6+-
) 56.Kc5
Qc7+
57.Kb5
Qb7+
) 54...Qa6+
55.Kd5
( 55.Kc3
Qc6+
) 55...Qe6+
56.Kc5
Qc8+
and it doesn't seem that White is getting anywhere real.; B. 51.Qc4
Qf3+
52.Kb4
Qb7+
53.Qb5
Qe4+
54.Ka3
Qa8+!
and White has big problems getting out of check. These variations have the same character as the "b-file" king moves in the note to White's move 47, and suggest that Black is OK because of his queen activity.]
51...Qb5+
52.Kc2
52.Kc3 Qc6+ 53.Qc4 Qf3+ 54.Kb4 transposes into the previous note.
52...Qe2+
52. ..Qc6+?! 53.Qc3!? gives White additional possibilities.
53.Kc3
Qe1+?
After this bad check Black is definitely lost. 53. ..Qf3+ would have forced White to try one of the previous lines.
54.Kc4
Qc1+
[ 54...Qe2+
55.Kc5
Qc2+
56.Kb6
Qb3+
57.Kc7+-
doesn't look much better.]
55.Kb5
At last the king has found safety, and the rest is simple.
55...Qf1+
56.Kb6
Qf5
57.b4
Qc8
58.Qd6
Qc4
59.b5
Qe4
60.Kc7
Qc4+
61.Qc6
Qd4
62.Qe8+
Kg7
63.b6
Qc5+
64.Kb7
Qd5+
65.Kb8
and I was under five minutes and stopped taking score, but clearly White went on to win. I had him mated in another 25 moves or so. 1-0
