Hello Chess Lovers,
I hoped you liked the I Sokolov vs Dreev game. Now I want to present a game which features a sustained initiative which lasts beyond a queen exchange and still ends up with a mating attack against the king.Again the game is not played by the elite but nevertheless the 2 GMs are outstanding:
Khalifman vs Van Wely Wijk aan Zee 2002
1.e4c5 2.Nf3d6 3.d4cd4 4.Nd4Nf6 5.Nc3a6 6.f3e6 7.Be3h5?!
-This was a favourite of Topalov's.Black anticipates whites g2-g4 thrust and insists on trying to dominate on the queen side.The problem with this is the address of the black king.Its a fixed address on e8 for quite some time.This allows white to draw on his major firepower and aim for a breakthrough with pawns.
8.Qd2Nbd7 9.Bc4!? This natural move was new at the time.Khalifmann simply pursues a policy of centralisation followed up by some very concrete tactics. The move Nbd7 temporarily interferes with the c8 bishop and its ability to protect e6.
9...Ne5 A good choice bad was 9...b5? 10.Be6fe6 11.Ne6Qa5 12.b4Qb4 13.Nc7+-
9...d5 10.ed5Nb6 11.Bb3Nfd5 12.Nd5Nd5 13.0-0-0 with a promising position that looks like Sozin line.
In the English attack the bishop stays at home on f1 for some time before deploying to h3 or g2 sometimes.
10.Bb3b5 11.0-0-0 Here Khalifman gives himself a small advantage. His centralised pieces gave him the force necessary for a breakthrough in the centre.Most attacking players centralise.
11....Bb7 12.Bg5Qa5?! This move was to be the cause of a lot of problems for black.The problem is the lack of adequate cover for the d7 square in some variations. Van Wely should not be blamed for facing a novelty like 9.Bc4 with some active moves.
13.Kb1 -Like most attacking players, Khalifman makes his prophylactic move.
13...Nc4?! Once again Van Wely shows a desire to be active but now there is a positional concession.
14.Bc4 Khalifman follows the general principle of removing the opponent's active pieces. 14....bc4
15.Rhe1 centralisation before all hell breaks loose.Of course many players would ask how Van Wely was to come under such pressure at this stage. Most of black's queen side pieces have been mobilized. Its clear black wants to hold up as much as possible in the center and on the right side of the board.
15...Rb8? This is a step too far on the left of the board. If 15...Be7 16.f4 is good with the idea of a breakthrough with e4-e5 and Bf6 then hitting black on d7.
16.Nf5ef5 (16...Rd8 17.Bf6gf6 18.Nd5Qd2 19.Nf6#- A beautiful mate with two knights)
17.e5!! Breakthrough. At this point it is important to go through black's choices.
A) 17...de5? 18.Bf6 and Qd7 follows.
B) 17...Nd5 18.ed6Kd7 19.Nd5Qd5 20.Qd5Bd5 21.Rd5+-
C)17...Kd7 18.ef6g6 19.Bf4Qc5 20.Bd6Bd6 21.Re7Kc8 22.Na4+-
D) 17..Nh7 18.ed6Kd7 19.Re7Be7 20.de7Bd5 21.Qf4!
17....Bc8 This is an admission of the need to defend d7. 18.ef6Be6 19.fg7Bg7 20.Qd6!Rb2
Black lashes out.Van Wely is known to be an optimist.
21.Kb2Qc3 22.Kc1Kb2 23.Kd2Qd4 24.Qd4Bd4 -Van Wely has done well to reach this stage of this game.Khalifman simply turns up the pressure.
25.Ke2Bb6 26.Rb1Bc7 27.Rb7!!Bh2 28.f40-0 The black king appears to have eluded his pursuers.
Khalifman showed this to be an optical illusion:
29.Rh1Bg3 30.Rh5Kg7 31.Bh6Kg6 32.Rg5!
In view of the moves Rg3 and Rb1-h1 mate Van Wely resigned. So what were the key points in this game?
A) 7...h5?! Keeps the King on e8 a bit longer.
B) 9.Bc4 kept up pressure on e6 and also removed a good active black knight.
C) 15.Rhe1 completed centralisation.
D) 17.e5! Was the key to the breakthrough.
E) 27.Rb7 was the key move removing a defender.
I hope this was enjoyable and instructive.
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