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ANNOTATED GAME
A draw worth noting.
lyshatin (1625) vs. anotherminorpawn (1731)
Annotated by: gleeful
(1970)
Chess opening: Sicilian (B72), dragon, classical attack
lyshatin (1625) vs. anotherminorpawn (1731)
Annotated by: gleeful
(1970)
Chess opening: Sicilian (B72), dragon, classical attack
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In this game, I play black in a team tournament. The game stays very even with black gaining a slight advantage, then losing it through miscalculation. It ends in an opposition race which black also loses through miscalculation.
Even though the final result is a draw, there are several tactics mentioned and play on both sides that are definitely deserve a second look.
Questions and comments appreciated, especially if you find mistakes. :) | |||||
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1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 g6 |
Sicilian Dragon, one of my favorite openings (for those of you doing research on my play style). :) The name comes from the similarity of black's kingside pawn structure to the constellation Draco. The fianchettoed bishop is sometimes called the "dragon's flame" because of the threat down the long diagonal. | ||||
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6. Be3 Bg7 7. Bc4 |
7. f3 is the usual move, preventing Ng4. It's often followed by 8. Qd2 and 9. Bc4. I don't always follow the "correct" order when playing an opening, but sometimes that order exists to avoid traps. Neglecting f3 allows 7...Ng4, threatening to exchange for the bishop. On the other hand, I've fallen into a counter-trap with 7. Bc4 Ng4 8. Bb5 Bd7 9. Qxg4, so it pays to be careful from both sides. | ||||
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7... O-O 8. Qd2 Ng4 |
I wanted to castle before starting an attack. I didn't really know what to expect here and was a little leery about throwing my knight out to be harassed by a possible pawn storm. | ||||
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9. Bg5 Nc6 |
More development instead of retreating. Double threat on white's d4 knight. | ||||
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10. f3 |
White elects to trade knights, though the reasoning behind it may have been to continue building towards the pawn structure seen in the Yugoslav attack. | ||||
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10... Nxd4 |
I accept the trade, which wins a pawn. It does open half-open the f-file, which can be dangerous when directed toward a castled position, but there are always tradeoffs and I think it's manageable, especially since my bishop will complicate castling for white. The exchange also helps continue development, which never hurts. | ||||
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11. fxg4 Bxg4 12. h3 |
White wants to keep her castling options open. :) | ||||
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12... Be6 |
Contesting the a2-g8 diagonal, since I hate to have my f-pawn pinned. | ||||
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13. Bxe6 Nxe6 14. Bh6 |
White also wants to trade off my strong bishop. This is a common exchange since it removes black's control of the a1-h8 diagonal. | ||||
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14... Rc8 |
"Rooks belong on open files." | ||||
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15. Bxg7 |
I refuse to exchange, forcing white to do so. Having my king on the 7th rank may save a move as we near the endgame and I wish to move him to the center. Odd that I mention the endgame when we've barely left the opening. I don't think there's any clear demarcation between phases, but as pieces are traded off, threats against the king are reduced and play begins to revolve around pawn promotions instead of direct mates. In this case, white is out of threats against black and black's king can start eyeing the path to the center of the board. | ||||
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15... Kxg7 16. O-O-O |
I try to follow the general rule that the first 10 moves should see all minor pieces developed, one or both center pawns occupying the center, and the king castled (to either side). This castle is well outside that, but since I've had no attacks on the king, it hasn't hurt anything. | ||||
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16... Qa5 17. Kb1 Rc5 |
?! - Questionable Move. I don't remember the specifics of this decision, but Rc6 would have served much better. This is the first move I've "rated", since all other moves are completely reasonable depending on the ideas behind them. This one may also have a solid reason, but it escapes me at the moment. :) | ||||
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18. a3 Rfc8 |
? - Poor move. Overlooking the obvious. | ||||
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19. b4 Qxa3 |
I believe I originally intended Qb6, pinning the b-pawn, but overlooked 20. Na4. | ||||
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20. bxc5 Rxc5 21. Qc1 |
! - Good move. White can't hold onto the knight safely and this prevent any mate threats I might have entertained. | ||||
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21... Qxc3 22. Qb2 Qe5 23. Qxe5+ |
With an exposed king, trading queens is a good move for white. | ||||
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23... Rxe5 |
I forced the queen exchange here to set up an attack on white's e-pawn. | ||||
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24. Rhe1 Nc5 25. Rd5 |
Rd4 can't hold the pawn after 25...f5 and the pin would create other problems. This way, white forces a rook exchange, which further benefits her. "If you have a pair of Rooks and your opponent only has one, it is usually correct to trade Rooks." | ||||
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25... Rxe4 26. Rxe4 Nxe4 27. Kb2 |
It's hard to classify the next few moves. White can't win any pawns at the moment, since Ra5 is met with a6 and Rb5 is met with Nc5. I plan on playing Nc5 at some point, because it also blockades white's c-pawn, but want to wait for her to force me to do so, hopefully winning a tempo. My plan is to escort my kingside to queen while freezing play on the queenside. | ||||
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