Archive for October, 2005

Problem Of The Day

White to play and win

Annotated Game

N.N. – Lassila,T. (E32 – Nimzo-Indian, Classical)

1.d4 Nf6
2.c4 e6
3.Nc3 Bb4
4.Qc2 O-O
5.a3 Bxc3+
6.Qxc3 b6
7.Bg5 Bb7
8.e3 d6
9.Nf3 Nbd7

More usual is 9.f3. Now Black gets some pressure on the f3-square.

10.Bd3 h6
11.Bh4 c5

Also possible was 11…e5 12. Bf5 (12. dxe5 Nxe5 13. Nxe5 dxe5 14. O-O +/=) exd4 13. Qxd4 Bxf3 14. gxf3 Ne5 15. Qf4 +/=.

12.O-O Rc8

Interesting is 12. b4 cxd4 13. exd4 e5 14. dxe5 dxe5 15. Bf5.

13.Nd2 cxd4
14.exd4 d5

Using the pin to give White an IQP.

15.Qb4 e5

This is going too far. 15…dxc4 16. Nxc4 Ba6 17. Rfd1 Nd5 18. Bxd8 Nxb4 19. axb4 Bxc4 20. Bxc4 Rxc4 was better.

16.Bf5 exd4?

It was still possible to play 16…Rc7 17. cxd5 Bxd5 18. dxe5 Nxe5 +/=. Now White has good winning chances.

Position after 16…exd4

17.Bxf6! Nxf6

Black will avoid mate after 17…gxf6 18. Qb3 Rc7 19. Qg3+ Kh8 20. Qh4 Kg7 21. Qg4+ Kh8 22. Qxd4 Ne5 23. Qf4 Kg7 24. Qg3+ Ng6 25. cxd5, but will have a miserable position. I considered it better to give the exchange and try to gain counterplay in the center.

18.Bxc8 Qxc8
19.Rfc1 dxc4
20.Rxc4 Qg4

When down material, attack!

21.f3 Qe6
22.Rxd4 Nd5

The white queen is low on squares and the white rooks are uncoordinated.

Position after 22…Nd5

23.Qa4 Qe3+
24.Kh1 Bc6?

A critical position. Almost every piece is hanging at some point. It turns out that with 24…b5! 25. Qxa7 Nf4 26. Ra4! (26. Ne4 Bxe4 27. fxe4 Qf2 28. Rg1 Nh3 29. gxh3 Qf3+ 30. Rg2 Qf1+ =) 26…Qxd2 27. Rxf4 Qxf4 28. Qxb7 Black could still have good chances to draw. The remainder of the game is a cleanup operation despite the wild tactics that follow.

25.Qc4 b5

One move too late.

26.Qc5 Re8

Or Nf4 27. Rc4 Qxd2 28. Rc2 Qd5 29. Qxc6 Qxc6 30. Rxc6 +-. The rest is a pure attempt to swindle.

27.Qxc6 Qe1+
28.Nf1 1-0

How is one to defeat an opponent who refuses the offer of a free queen?

Position after 28.Nf1

Annotated Game

N.N. – Lassila,T. (B33 – Sicilian, Sveshnikov)

1.e4 c5
2.Nf3 Nc6
3.d4 cxd4
4.Nxd4 Nf6
5.Nc3 e5
6.Ndb5 d6

The Sveshnikov is my current main defense against king’s pawn openings. It has a deserved reputation for being theory intensive, but this is acceptable in correspondence games. It also has the quality of allowing Black to play for a win, albeit not without taking some risks. Still, playing for the win from the start is a refreshing change to all those openings where Black simply aims for equality. As any Sveshnikov player can tell you, the key move in playing for a win is the early push f7-f5. Here we enter a sideline early on.

7.Nd5 Nxd5
8.exd5 Nb8

In my opinion this retreat is stronger than the option 8…Ne7. For one, it avoids the well-known trap 8…Ne7 9. c4 a6? 10. Qa4! +-. If now 9. c4 a6 10. Qa4, then simply 9…Nd7 and White had only some advantage in Westerinen-Kramnik, Gausdal 1992: 11.c5 Rb8 (11…dxc5!? 12. d6 axb5 13. Qxa8 would be riskier) 12.Nxd6+ Bxd6 13.cxd6 0-0 14.Be3 Nf6 15.Ba7 Ra8 16.Bc5 b6 17.Ba3 Bb7 18.Rd1 b5 19.Qb3 Qb6 20.Be2 Bxd5 21.Qe3 Qb7 22.Bc5 Nd7 23.b4 f5 24.f3 Bxa2 25.0-0 Be6 26.f4 e4 27.Bd4 Rac8 28.Qg3 Nf6 29.Rd2 Rc6 30.Be5 Qf7 31.Rfd1 Rd8 32.Ra1 Rdc8 33.h3 Nd7 34.Bb2 Bc4 35.Bh5 Qf8 36.Re1 Nf6 37.d7 Rd8 38.Be8 Qxb4 39.Red1 Qe7 40.Be5 Bd3 41.Qg5 Re6 42.Qxf5 Nxe8 43.dxe8=Q+ Rxe8 44.Rc1 Qf7 45.Qg4 a5 46.Bb2 Rg6 47.Qh4 Qd5 48.Rc7 h6 49.g4 e3 50.Rg2 e2 51.Bc3 Qd6 52.Be5 Qxc7 53.Rxe2 Qc5+ 54.Rf2 Rge6 55.Qg3 Qc1+ 56.Kh2 Be4 0-1

9.Qf3 a6

This is a sideline that’s not often seen. White usually continues 10.Qa3 and tries to work over the d-pawn, but I don’t really see the point of this when a straightforward king attack is building up after 10.Nc3. I can’t believe it’s a novelty, but could not find any games where this obvious retreat had been played.

10.Nc3! Be7
11.Bd3 O-O

Castling into it? Certainly, but here we observe one of the basics of counterplay in the Sveshnikov. Due to the center pawns being locked, Black can play f7-f5 quite freely and use the d7 square to re-route his pieces into play on the kingside. What looks like a strong attack for White will quickly turn into an attack by Black should the operator of the white pieces not beware. I opted not to delay castling in favor of 11…Nd7 due to 12.Qg3 O-O 13.Bh6 Bf6 14.Ne4, when for example 14…Kh8 15. Nxf6 gxh6 16. Nxh7 Rg8 17. Qh3 is most unpleasant. But it turns out both 16…Re8! with idea 17…e4 as well as 14…Nc5 stymie the attack with good counterplay.

12.Qh5 g6

Or directly 12…f5. I was planning to play it on the next move in any case.

13.Qh6 f5

Position after 13…f5

14.g4!? f4

Better is 14…e4, when 15. gxf5 Bxf5 16. Bxe4 Bf6 gives Black a comfortable edge. White now has a perpetual should he want it, but not much more. I took a gamble and figured my opponent would rather press on with his “attack” than take the draw, which allowed me to gain some advantage.

15.f3 Bh4+

Foregoing the aforementioned line 15. Bxg6 hxg6 16. Qxg6+ =. Now the black bishops activate and start to control the kingside. The next point on the agenda is to drive away the white queen.

16.Ke2 Bg5

Or 16…Nd7 17. Bxg6 hxg6 18. Qxg6+ Kh8 19. Qh6+ Kg8 20. g5 Qxg5 21. Qxg5+ Bxg5 22. Rg1 Kf7 23. Rxg5 Rh8 =.

17.Qh3 Nd7
18.Ne4 Be7

18…Nc5 19. Nxc5 dxc5 20. c4 would leave the e-pawn weak.

19.b4 Nf6

Here I did consider 19…Nb6 20. c4 Qc7 21. Nd2, but decided the kingside was where the action should be.

20.Ng5 Kg7

Black is not impressed by 21. Ne6+ Bxe6 22. dxe6, since after 22…Nd5 he stands OK.

21.c4 h6

Again 22. Ne6+ Bxe6 23. dxe6 Nh7 would be good for Black.

22.Ne4 Nxg4!?

This sacrifice is probably not required to obtain an edge and is most likely objectively refutable. However, stopping the mass of pawns and a powerful pair of bishops is not much fun and in retrospect this move was correct in the sense that it caused my opponent so much trouble that he later succumbed under the pressure.

Position after 22…Nxg4

23.fxg4 h5
24.Nf2 Bh4

No good is 24…Qb6 25. Rb1 Qd4 (25…f3+ 26. Kf1 Qd4 27.Rg1 +-) 26. Bb2! hxg4 27.Bxd4 gxh3 28. Bb6 +/-.

25.Ba3? Bxf2?

A blunderful moment in the game. Immediately winning was 25…f3+ 26.Ke1 e4. White had to play 25. Qf3, when after 25…Bxf2 26. Qxf2 Bxg4+
27. Kf1 Bf5 28. Bxf5 Rxf5 29. Bd2 the position is unclear at best.

26.Kxf2 hxg4

Better is 26…Bxg4 27. Qg2 Qh4+ 28. Kg1 Bf5 29. Bxf5 Rxf5 -/+.

27.Qg2 Qh4+
28.Kg1 Bf5
29.Bxf5 gxf5

I did not recapture with the rook to improve my pawn structure. If White is to survive the pawns coming down the board, he must immediately play the break c4-c5.

30.c5 Rac8
31.Rc1 Rc7

White is ahead in material, but in a very difficult position. Perhaps he could have played 32. c6 f3 33. Qf2 Qe7 34. h3 with some counterplay.

Position after 31…Rc7

32.Rc4?? Qe1+

Winning on the spot.

33.Qf1 Qe3+
34.Qf2 Qxa3
35.c6 bxc6
36.Kg2 Qh3+
37.Kg1 Qe3
38.Qxe3 fxe3
39.Kf1 Rfc8 0-1

Sorry for the long delay, I’m caught in the middle of revising my approach.
(Not the tools that I use, just some of my opening selections that I had chosen to play.
I will expand some more on the features that Jim mentioned us using while reviewing some of his games.)
BTW This is a work in progress.
I reserve the right to modify or make adjustments anytime I find something faster and more efficient. This holds true for things I discover on my own, or stuff that is pointed out to me by those who happen to know.

I have started taking lessons from IM Predrag Trajkovic. I wasn’t in the market for a chess teacher it just kind of happened.
One day while watching the FIDE World Championship matches on ICC. [I actually think FIDE got it right this time, with the double-round robin format. Now whether or not they follow through with anything remains to be seen. P.S. Congratulations to GM Topalov on his outstanding performance, the word amazing is an understatement. 6 wins, 0 losses, 10/14 points]
There was an announcement made about an open lesson from an IM, and all interested parties were welcome to watch. I had a few moments to spend before I had to head out for dinner with my wife so I decided to drop by and check out the lesson.
It turned out to be one of the most instructive events that I have witnessed. IM Trajkovic had a seemingly equal position setup on the board. He then asked for opinions on how to proceed from the given position. He then played through the suggestions move by move covering the pros and cons of each of the suggested ideas. You learned why the idea might not be as good as some of the kibitzers had hoped, by his solid explanations. He didn’t slam the door on any of the audience’s ideas, or act like any suggestion wasn’t worth covering. (Like I have seen some Titled players do in the past.) He then proceeded to explain the best method to exploit the slightest of all weakness. It was something that a tactically minded individual such as yours truly would have never found in a million years. Had I encountered that position OTB, I would still be there trying to use dynamite when something as simple as pouring water would be enough to win. Unfortunately I had to take off for dinner before the lesson ended but I had seen enough from Predrag to be impressed with him as a teacher.

So much in fact that I decided to do my own research and check into the feedback reports left by his students, apparently the lesson I witnessed was just his standard approach to teaching, informative and straight to the point. So I decided to ask him about providing lessons for me. He had me email him some of my games to get a feel of where I was strength wise a few days prior to the lesson. During the lesson we started with some endgame basics which I thought I knew cold, but didn’t. He then explained the key themes in such a manner that I do know them now. More importantly I know them at a glance without have to waste anytime calculating line after line of move orders. He simplified the positions into their absolute basic elements. It feels like a load has been lifted when I think about those types of positions.

Now that I’m back from my mini-vacation I can hardly wait for the next lesson to begin!

All of those interested in finding a really great teacher should ask him about lessons.

His handle on ICC is PTrajkovic.

PS You can’t beat his rates!

Problem Of The Day

White to play and win

Problem Of The Day

White to play and win

Sorry about the delay, been kind of busy as of late, still steadily working on my opening book though.

Source materials for the compilation, I’m not following any one person’s opening book. I’m using several sources, it could be from opening books on a particular line that I play or using any or all of the following, ECO (Encyclopedia of Chess Openings), MCO (Modern Chess Openings), NCO (Nunn’s Chess Openings), BCO (Batsford Chess Openings), and last and certainly not least. The item I feel is the single most important component in the arsenal of any aspiring chess player, a database program. I own, love, and swear by my Chessbase 9. (Matter of fact here recently it is what I have been using the most.)

To me it is worth its weight in gold. If I had to pick between having access to a library that had every chess book ever printed or using Chessbase, I would choose Chessbase.

Most of the opening books that you see on the market are nothing more than a collection of games with very little if any original ideas, with just some text thrown in for good measure.

The “Opening Report” feature in Chessbase will do the same thing those books do and more.

Enter in a series of moves from a particular opening that you are interested in learning, “Right-Click” on the board, select “Opening Report” then stand back because it will give you more information than you can imagine.

Chessbase spits out the following, all of course reflecting the database selected. (You can use anything you want as a reference database, from correspondence games, entire games collections, your own particular games, Internet (Log file) games, whatever you happen to have or decide to create.)

It gives me the following information, along with the number of games found.

1) A brief history of when it was first played, by whom, latest GM game, and latest game. It also shows a graph Number of games/Years played.

2) A list of “Strong GMs and Notable Players” that used this line, and their win/loss records.

3) The Statistics, performance levels, percentage of White wins, draws, Black wins and the average length of each.

4) Moves and plans.

That was just one small example. (Chessbase does tons more, do a web search for Steve Lopez’s Chessbase articles to get a way better example.)

The amount of time it saves me is incredible, not to mention you can easily pop open Fritz or some other GM strength chess engine and review positions, games, etc.

I couldn’t afford to purchase, let alone store the amount of opening books Chessbase replaces. It would take me months of time, a full time research team and a stack of “Chess Informants” to cover all of the games CB finds with a few quick clicks of the mouse.

End of Part 2.

(Next installment I will actually get to my silly approach.)