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ANNOTATED GAME
A Barroom Brawl
archduke_piccolo (2122) vs. janakaliyanaara (1846)
Annotated by: archduke_piccolo
(2337)
Chess opening: Reti (A08), King's Indian attack
archduke_piccolo (2122) vs. janakaliyanaara (1846)
Annotated by: archduke_piccolo
(2337)
Chess opening: Reti (A08), King's Indian attack
 Interactive |
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This is the first of the three most interesting games of mine from Charles Higgie's Commonwealth Games Mini-T for 2018. As of this moment, with nearly all of the games completed, I am in line for a gold or silver medal... This game features castling on opposite wings, and a huge sacrificial attack to open lines and get at the Black King, But it doesn't quite go to plan. Not ... quite... | |||||
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1. Nf3 d5 2. g3 c5 3. Bg2 Bf5 |
Already, something of a departure from 'normal lines' by Black. A knight development or ...e6 seems more 'likely'. I figured that Black wanted to have his bishop outside the pawn chain with ...e6 to follow shortly. I was right about that... | ||||
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4. O-O |
No reaon not to carry on as normal. | ||||
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4... e6 5. c4 |
Issuing the first challenge against Black's centre. That White has allowed Black so far to build a big centre is in keeping with a general plan of counter-attacking and placing Black's centre under pressure. Let us see how that develops. | ||||
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5... d4 |
Plausible and reasonable - releasing the tension between c4 and d5, and claiming an even bigger slice of the centre, and placing a very slight crimp on White's Q-side. But there are downsides to this advance, Black's central position is apt to become fixed and rigid, having to be supported from the rear. Black could equally well have played a knight move, to keep the tension. A judgement call. | ||||
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6. Nh4 |
This in my view was the major downside of Black's previous move. Recalling that one should avoid moving a piece twice in the opening, and the knight on the rim is dim - here we have more immediate considerations overtaking general principles. White plans to exchange knight for bishop on f5, disrupting Black's pawn structure. Black can not respond to that plan on account of White's threat to play Bxb7, winning a rook. At the end of the sequence, you will find that any time White loses is trivial. | ||||
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6... Nc6 7. Nxf5 exf5 8. d3 |
It might have been tempting to play Bxc6, now that I look at it, but it didn't really cross my mind. I did think of 8.Qa4, though, with a similar idea in mind to effect that exchange. The purpose of such a move would be to scramble Black's pawns, justified by the disappearance of Black's light-square bishop. 40-50 yeras ago, I probably would have played it. Today, I decided to keep the bishop. | ||||
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8... Nf6 9. e4 |
(!) Now White issues a more direct challenge for central control. The GK engine prefers 9.Qa4, but beg leave to disagree! | ||||
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9... fxe4 |
Probably best, though Black did have an alternative in 9...dxe3 e.p. with these possibilities: [A] 10.Bxe3 Bd6 11.Nc3 0-0 12.Bxc6! bxc6 13.Qf3, with a fine game; or [B] 10.fxe3!? Qd7 11.Nc3, unclear. | ||||
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10. dxe4 |
Black's central control - and even his control of the central and Q-side dark squares - are of little concern to White, as he has reason to expect something of his mobile K-side pawn majority. | ||||
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10... Be7 11. f4 Qd7 |
I did think Black would have castled (K-side) instead. True, after 11...0-0, 12.e5 would have been an inconvenience to Black, but so it will be anyway. But perhaps Black was already apprehensive of a White K-side assault and was preparing to duck over to the other wing. But,,, check out which way White's pawns are pointing! A harbinger? | ||||
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12. e5 Ng8 |
Only move. | ||||
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13. Nd2 O-O-O |
At first sight, castling Q-side makes a lot of sense: Black has more space on the K-side; the heavy pieces are lined up behind Black's central passed pawn. How much prospect is there for White to build up an attack? | ||||
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14. a3 |
I thought that White's prospects on this wing weren't too bad at all! From this modest move, White prepares a major attack, directed at the Black King. | ||||
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14... Nh6 |
Remobilising the knight. It has reasonable prospects on f5 or g4... | ||||
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15. b4 |
During this game I near as a toucher played 15.Bd5 (...Qh3 16.Nf3 Ng4 17.b4 ... with an attack building). It is a very strong move - endorsed by the Gameknot engine, which regards it as superior to the move I actually chose. But this was one of those instances in which, having found a good move, I wasn't fully satisfied with it and looked around for a better. Well, I didn't really 'look around' for it: this pawn thrust is what I really wanted to play. Finally I persuaded myself that objectively speaking this pawn sacrifice to open lines was at least as effective as the bishop move, and went for it. | ||||
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15... cxb4 16. axb4 |
The GK engine suggested 16.Qa4, but I wanted to open files first, even at the cost of a pawn. Qa4 is on the schedule, sure! And soon. | ||||
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16... Bxb4 |
Of course, 16...Nxb4 17.Rxa7 would have been unpleasant for Black. | ||||
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17. Qa4 |
So quickly has White developed a menacing position. The immediate threat is to win a piece by 18.Bxc6 ... 19.Qxb4. Hence Black's reply. | ||||
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17... Bc3 |
Counter-attacking the rook in this way looks very plausible, as it saves the piece with an apparent gain of time. But there was an alternative in 17...d3! This gave Black the bale-out after 18.Bxc6 of 18...Bd4ch, saving the piece. But White could have improved by 17...d3 18.Nb3! ... (Preventing ...Bc5ch) 18...a5 (adding protection for the bishop against Bxc6 Qxc6; Qxb4) 19.Be3 Nf5 20.Bb6 d2 fen="2kr3r/1p1q1ppp/1Bn5/p3Pn2/QbP2P2/1N4P1/3p2BP/R4RK1 w" White has the edge in a highly complicated position, after 21.Rfd1. | ||||
| 3 comments | |||||
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18. Ne4 |
(!). Of course, 18.Rb1 was quite playable, and in fact was my original intention. But having found this sacrificial continuation, just as strong, I couldn't resist. White is having most of the fun, here, but, complicated as the position is, Black is not completely bereft of resources. White has to go all out for attack. Interestingly, the GK engine calls this a mistake. I don't think so. We'll come back to this. | ||||
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