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| Move | N | Result | Elo | Players |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Replay and check the LiveBook here |
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A24: English Opening vs King's Indian: Lines without ...Nc6 1.c4 Nf6 2.Nc3 g6 3.g3 Bg7 4.Bg2 d6 5.Nf3 0-0 6.0-0 e5 7.d3 Na6 the knight is normally
better off on c6 or d7. The difference her is that it can go to c5 and then
on to e6 after it's kicked by b2-b4. 8.Rb1 Be6N 8...c6 is suggested
by Houdini, focusing on the fight for the d5 square. 9.Bg5= 8...Nc5!? 9.b4 White moves ahead with his queenside expansion plan. Qd7 the threat
here is to exchange off the Bg2, which is doing much more for White than its
counterpart is for Black. I decide to pre-empt this possibility with the next
knight move. 10.Ng5± this opens up an attack on the b7 pawn and
threatens to exchange on e6. Houdini already assesses the position as a pawn
up equivalent for White. Rab8 11.Qc2 11.Nxe6 fxe6 12.Qb3 is Houdini's
preference. 11...Bg4 12.b5 12.h3!? I thought a good deal about this
possibility, but in the end decided it didn't give White enough. The engine
favors it, however. Be6 12...h6 was what I thought my opponent would
likely play. 13.hxg4 13.Nxf7 I did not consider but is evaluted favorably
by Houdini. Bxh3 14.Nxh6+ Kh7 15.Qd2± 13...hxg5 14.Bxg5 Nxg4 at the
time didn't seem to promise much, but it compares favorably with the game
continuation, as White obtains the two bishops and keeps the initiative. 13.Qb3± keeping a lock on d5. 12...Nc5 13.Be3 h6 14.Nge4 although
exchanging on c5 as recommended by the engine makes positional sense, I was
hoping to target h6 later on. 14.Bxc5 dxc5 15.Nge4 Qe7 14...Ncxe4 15.Nxe4 b6? the obvious way of protecting the a7 pawn, but now White takes
advantage of the overloaded Bg7 and picks up the h-pawn. 15...Nxe4 played
first would prevent the tactic and lead to equality. 16.dxe4 b6= 16.Nxf6+± Bxf6 17.Bxh6 Rfe8 missing the skewer. 17...Rfd8± 18.Bc6+- Qe6 here I thought for a while in order to make sure Black did not have any
tricks involving the hanging Bh6. 19.Bxe8 Rxe8 20.Qd2 20.Be3 Bh3 21.Rfc1 would have been a simpler way to continue. 20...Qf5 Black intends e4,
notes Houdini. The e2 pawn is weak and White ends up bringing his bishop back
to e3 in any case. 21.Be3 e4 22.dxe4 Qe6? this provides a free pawn for
White and with that a stronger position in the center. 22...Qxe4 23.Rb3 23.f3 Bh3 24.Rfc1 Kg7 the idea being to eventually be able to protect the
Bh3 by moving the rook to h8. However, this allows White to force a bishop
trade and move closer to realizing what should have been a victory. 25.Bd4 Bxd4+ 26.Qxd4+ Kh7 27.Re1 this is not a bad move in itself, but it
represents the failure to find the correct winning plan and the start of
White's problems. I was unsure how to finish Black off, so decided to shore up
e2 in case the e-file was later opened (following ...f5, for example). 27.Rb3 is the easiest way for White to make progress. The rook can then go to a3
and Black cannot prevent the queenside breakthrough, while g4 is also
threatened. One possible continuation is Qe7 28.g4 f5 29.exf5 gxf5 30.Qf4 27...f6 Black renews his plan to bring the rook to h8. 28.Rbc1 28.Kf2
was something I actively considered and probably should have played here. It
defends e2 again, is a safer square for the king, and renews the threat to the
bishop after g4. 28...Kg7 29.a4 29.Rc3 again would work, bringing the
rook to the third rank in order to swing it to the a-file. I unfortunately
failed to find this idea, instead focusing on how the file could be opened
with the a-pawn. Qc8+- 29...Rh8 30.Qf2 I continue to play defensively
and again while not bad in itself, it represents how White is losing the
thread of the game. I need to activate my rooks and make threats against Black,
not allow him to reorganize his pieces. g5 31.g4 I'm forced to make the
best move here, finally. Rh4 this was a clever way of ensuring the bishop's
protection, but of course has the drawback of walling the pieces off on the
h-file. I start taking Black's kingside threats (sacrifice on g4) too
seriously and make a weak queen move, when sidestepping with the king would
have been best. 32.Qg3? I had thought this was a solid defensive move,
but then realized that it offers a free pawn to Black and an out for this
bishop. This marked a major turning point, as White is still winning
afterwards, but Black has many more practical chances. 32.Kh1+- and
White wins, says Houdini. 32...Bxg4 33.Kf2 33.fxg4? Rxg4 33...Bh5 34.Rg1 Rh3 35.Qg2 Be8 36.f4 36.Ke1 Bh5 37.Qf2+- 36...Kf8?
I was too focused on defense, thinking this would force a queen exchange, to
pick up on the obvious tactic. 36...Rh4 37.fxg5 f5 38.Qf3 Rxe4 39.Rg2+- 37.Qg4? throws away the win. 37.f5 Qe5 38.Qxh3 Qf4+ 39.Qf3 Qh4+ 40.Ke3+- 37...Rxh2+± an excellent in-between move spotted by my opponent,
and very disheartening for me. We now head into an endgame where move choices
are not at all obvious and my time on the clock is limited. 38.Ke1?!
there's no need to give up the pawn. 38.Ke3 Qxg4 39.Rxg4± 38...Qxe4= 39.fxg5 Qe3 also a surprise move for me. My calculating and thinking
process had broken down under pressure. However, I find the only defensive
move. 40.Rc2 Qf2+ 41.Kd2? the king has two squares, I was unable to
calculate well at this point and just picked this one on general principles.
Black now has a win. 41.Kd1 Bh5 42.Qg3 Qd4+ 43.Rd2 Bxe2+ 44.Kc1 Qa1+ 45.Kc2 Bd1+ 46.Rgxd1 Qa2+ 47.Kc1 Qa1+ 48.Kc2 Qa2+ 49.Kc1 Qa1+ 50.Kc2= 41...Rh4? I breathed a sigh of relief after this, since it allowed me to
get the queens off the board with a small tactic. 41...f5 is winning for
Black, as the queen can no longer protect e2. 42.Rg2+- Houdini evaluates
this as winning for White again. Rxg4 43.Rxf2 Rxg5 44.Rxf6+ Ke7 45.Rf1
again I'm unsure of exactly where to go, but this should be OK. Bg6 46.Rc3
the correct idea, activating the rook on the third rank, but now I fail to
follow up on it. Rg4 47.Re1?! passive. 47.Re3+ Be4 48.Kc3+- 47...Rd4+± 48.Ke3 Re4+ 49.Kf3 Rh4 50.Kg3 at this point I have 5 minutes on
my clock to my opponent's 20 and am not interested in taking any risks in
playing out a difficult endgame, so I go for the draw by repetition. Ways
White could have played on: 50.Rcc1 50.Rg1 50...Re4 51.Kf3 Rh4 52.Kg3 Twofold repetition Re4 53.Kf3 ½–½
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| White | EloW | Black | EloB | Res | ECO | Rnd |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ChessAdmin_01 | 1250 | MathBandit | 1450 | ½–½ | A24 | 1 |
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I think part of your problem here is using the computer to assess your position without understanding the reason a computer plays it's moves. You quoted the computer a lot but had little real chess strategy.
ReplyDeleteFor example: You said taking on c5 as recommended by Houdini made positional sense. Then you fail to explain why? When you see something you think has positional sense, you should be able to explain it in words.
Then you decline h3, because you claim it doesn't give white enough? Enough of what?! What do you think it doesn't give enough of that your text move gave? Why is b5 better in your mind? I personally think h3 is better for many reasons I won't put on here.
There is a lot of obvious missing of strategical aims here. You are thinking tactically and you are looking at engines to sort out everything. Remember.. Humans don't think like computers, we have to have strategical rules in order to assess positions close to the strength that computers can. And learning strategy for real helps. Don't separate tactics and strategy, they are one in the same. Strategy governs tactics.
Good job on the analysis though. Can you say where this was played? I am guessing since it was a 45 45, it's likely it was a team league game played in either FICS or ICC? In case you want my creds, I am approximately 2000 everywhere. Hope you keep posting these and I will hope to find them.
Hello Jesse,
ReplyDeleteThese analyses are intended in part to capture my thinking at the time. If it was a little muddled, I say so. I also give computer evaluations in places in part to be both honest and as a placeholder to go back to for further analysis ideas.
You seem to have spent some time looking at the game, but perhaps missed a few things. I declined 12. h3 at the time because of the line I considered likely with 12...h6 given in the variation, which didn't look like anything special, although as I mentioned upon further reflection it keeps the two bishops and the initiative. b5 was more forcing and was coming anyway, so rather than go with the unclear 12. h3 alternative that's what I played as a practical choice.
You also asked where this was played, there's a link to the Slow Chess League info in the post.
I welcome constructive comments. Maybe if you decide to comment in the future, you include things like why you think 12. h3 would be better, instead of saying that you won't say why, that would be helpful. You also said a lot about strategy, but didn't offer any concrete comments. The winning strategy seems clearly reflected in the notes, i.e. the rook lift to the third rank around moves 27-29 and then over to the a-file. Given the material differential, the win should have been trivial, but unfortunately it wasn't. Regardless, I learned some concrete things from the game and the analysis.
Regards,
ChessAdmin