Hello Chess Lovers
I have decided to indulge myself a bit and discuss a game of mine.I have had some success with a line of the Dutch and I believe some lighthearted chess is also so here is my game played tonight against Richmond Chess Club.
Kuhn vs Tobisch
1.d4e6 2.c4f5 3.Nc3Nf6 4.Nf3Bb4 5.Qc2b6 6.e3Bb7 7.Be20-0 8.0-0Bc3 9.Qc3Ne4 10.Qd3Qe8!?
Ever since I saw Botvinnik use this idea in a game I have come to like it. My opponent started to look worried here as he played 8.0-0
11.Nd2Nd2 12.Bd2Qg6 - I decided to make opponent feel a bit defensive. 13.f3d6 14.g4?h5 15.h3Nbd7
16.Kh2hg4 17.Rg1Qh7 18.fg4Be4! I think my opponent did not see this. 19.Qc3fg4 20.Bg4 forced Rf2
It took me some time to calculate sacrificing the e6 pawn and the d7 knight for a mating attack.
21.Kg3Raf8! Rooks are doubled. Now 21.Be6Kh8 22.Bd7Rf3 23.Kg4Qg6 24.Kh4Qh6 and Qh3+ is curtains for white.
22.Raf1?Rf1 23.Rf1Rf1 24.Be6Kf8 25.Bd7g5! And Qh4+ cannot be stopped so 0-1
Thursday, 31 March 2011
Monday, 28 March 2011
Taoism and the Art of Playing Black: Karpov the Feng Shui artist
Hello Chess lovers,
In the the third part of this series it gives me deep satisfaction to present a game of the highest quality
by Karpov who I liken to a feng shui artist because he places pieces the way a feng shui expert would arrange furniture: in search of the ultimate harmony. Karpov faced Shirov, the ultimate "yang style" player and simply waited patiently for the game to evolve.Shirov has shown a tendency to make very committal pawn moves in this variation.
Karpov beautifully optimized his pieces and then proceeded to stretch white between the defense of pawns on the queen side and the kingside. Lets see this exhibition of Taoism on the board.
Shirov v Karpov Las Palmas 1994
1.e4c6 2.d4d5 3.e5Bf5 4.Nf3e6 5.Be2c5 6.0-0Nc6 7.c3cd4 8.cd4Nge7 9.a3?! A yang move intending b2-b4. 9...Nc8! This solves the problem of the e7 square in this variation. The knight and the bishop like the square.Also if white plays b2-b4 black will then embark on a light square strategy with the well timed moves Nb6-c4.
10.Nbd2Be7 11.b3?! This involves a slight weakening of a3.Its this type of move which gives black the information he needs to implement an appropriate and workable plan.
11...a5! Simple. The a7 square is freed for the knight which will head to b5 and leave c8 for a rook.Also the white b-pawn is restrained.So Karpov has let the game evolve and mostly moved his pieces on his first two ranks. He adjusts himself according to his opponent's plans and so it appears as if Shirov is doing the work and Karpov shows it up!
12.Bb2Na7 13.Re10-0 14.Nf1Rc8 -Simple useful moves. 15.Ng3Bg6 16.Qd2Qb6! -A reminder to white.
17.Bd1 this move must have been annoying to Shirov. 17..Rc7 18.h4?! Another committal pawn move by Shirov.This pawn will later become a target. 18...h6 19.Re2Rfc8 20.Qf4Nb8! now for the next stage. Black wants his queen at f8 where it will pressure a3.The c7 rook will go to c6 the queen to f8 via d8.This is an amazing demonstration of using pieces in limited space.
21...Re3Nb5! 22.Ne2Nd7 23.Nh2 -Four knight moves in a row. Regrouping is the name of the game now.
23...Rc6 24.Ng4Qd8 25.Rh3Qf8! Mission accomplished. A3 is under serious threat.
26.a4Na3! 27.Ba3 Shirov wants to divert the e7 bishop. 27...Ba3 28.Rg3h5 29.Ne3Bb2 30.Ra2Bc1 ! Now the bishop slows down white's momentum on the king side-Just in time.
31.Qf4Qb4 32.Nf4Be3 33.fe3Rc1 penetration in a way similiar to Nimzovitch v Capablanca. Karpov
is now to counter attack on the back rank.
34.Ng6Rd1 35.Kh2fg6 36.Qg6Qe7 -hitting h4. 37.Rf2Qh4 38.Rh3?Qf2 and Shirov had enough 0-1
So what can we take from this game.
1) Karpov developed while Shirov played committal pawn moves.
2)Shirov strove for "yang" type moves where he sought to build momentum on the Kingside.
3) Karpov switched attacks from b3 to a3 to h4 in the game.Each time Shirov had to misplace his pieces.
4)Karpov played within the confines of his position by skillfully moving on the first three ranks.
5) In most of Karpov's games regrouping occurs as he seeks the optimal places for the pieces.This is not a matter of linear calculation but schematic thinking.
Hopefully you found this blog entertaining.
John
In the the third part of this series it gives me deep satisfaction to present a game of the highest quality
by Karpov who I liken to a feng shui artist because he places pieces the way a feng shui expert would arrange furniture: in search of the ultimate harmony. Karpov faced Shirov, the ultimate "yang style" player and simply waited patiently for the game to evolve.Shirov has shown a tendency to make very committal pawn moves in this variation.
Karpov beautifully optimized his pieces and then proceeded to stretch white between the defense of pawns on the queen side and the kingside. Lets see this exhibition of Taoism on the board.
Shirov v Karpov Las Palmas 1994
1.e4c6 2.d4d5 3.e5Bf5 4.Nf3e6 5.Be2c5 6.0-0Nc6 7.c3cd4 8.cd4Nge7 9.a3?! A yang move intending b2-b4. 9...Nc8! This solves the problem of the e7 square in this variation. The knight and the bishop like the square.Also if white plays b2-b4 black will then embark on a light square strategy with the well timed moves Nb6-c4.
10.Nbd2Be7 11.b3?! This involves a slight weakening of a3.Its this type of move which gives black the information he needs to implement an appropriate and workable plan.
11...a5! Simple. The a7 square is freed for the knight which will head to b5 and leave c8 for a rook.Also the white b-pawn is restrained.So Karpov has let the game evolve and mostly moved his pieces on his first two ranks. He adjusts himself according to his opponent's plans and so it appears as if Shirov is doing the work and Karpov shows it up!
12.Bb2Na7 13.Re10-0 14.Nf1Rc8 -Simple useful moves. 15.Ng3Bg6 16.Qd2Qb6! -A reminder to white.
17.Bd1 this move must have been annoying to Shirov. 17..Rc7 18.h4?! Another committal pawn move by Shirov.This pawn will later become a target. 18...h6 19.Re2Rfc8 20.Qf4Nb8! now for the next stage. Black wants his queen at f8 where it will pressure a3.The c7 rook will go to c6 the queen to f8 via d8.This is an amazing demonstration of using pieces in limited space.
21...Re3Nb5! 22.Ne2Nd7 23.Nh2 -Four knight moves in a row. Regrouping is the name of the game now.
23...Rc6 24.Ng4Qd8 25.Rh3Qf8! Mission accomplished. A3 is under serious threat.
26.a4Na3! 27.Ba3 Shirov wants to divert the e7 bishop. 27...Ba3 28.Rg3h5 29.Ne3Bb2 30.Ra2Bc1 ! Now the bishop slows down white's momentum on the king side-Just in time.
31.Qf4Qb4 32.Nf4Be3 33.fe3Rc1 penetration in a way similiar to Nimzovitch v Capablanca. Karpov
is now to counter attack on the back rank.
34.Ng6Rd1 35.Kh2fg6 36.Qg6Qe7 -hitting h4. 37.Rf2Qh4 38.Rh3?Qf2 and Shirov had enough 0-1
So what can we take from this game.
1) Karpov developed while Shirov played committal pawn moves.
2)Shirov strove for "yang" type moves where he sought to build momentum on the Kingside.
3) Karpov switched attacks from b3 to a3 to h4 in the game.Each time Shirov had to misplace his pieces.
4)Karpov played within the confines of his position by skillfully moving on the first three ranks.
5) In most of Karpov's games regrouping occurs as he seeks the optimal places for the pieces.This is not a matter of linear calculation but schematic thinking.
Hopefully you found this blog entertaining.
John
Taosim and the Art of Playing Black: Smyslov the Smoothie...
Hello Chess Lovers
It gives me great joy to present this game as an example of playing in accordance with the principles
of Tao and Wu Wei. Smyslov was known for his gift in handling the pieces. I get the impression that Karpov studied this style deeply. In what follows Smyslov plays very much like Capablanca, simple but profound moves where absorbs white's initial thrusts and then gradually dominates switching from "ying" to "yang".
Gligoric vs Smyslov Amsterdam 1971
Tchigorin Defence
1.d4d5 2.c4Nc6 3.Nc3dc4 4.d5! A very active "yang" move. 4...Ne5 5.Bf4Ng6 so black has absorbed
the initial pressure of having to relocate his knight. 6.Bg3e5!? Claiming some space.
7.de6 Gligoric opens the game and will want some room for the f1 bishop. 7...Be6 8.Nf3Nf6 9.Nd4Bd7
Again black parrys these attacks on his pieces.He does not seek complications. 10.e3Bb4 One of the virtues
of the Tschigorin is that the black pieces come out to active squares. Smyslov seeks dominion over the e4 square.
11.Bc40-0 12.Qc2c6 13.h3 creating an escape for the g3 bishop. Its important to note how the GMs play useful moves prior to initiating some plan.
13...Qe7 harmonising the rooks. Smyslov's pieces are all protected and serve a function. 14.0-0Bc3!
The first crucial moment of the game. A key defender of e4 is removed. An imbalance is created 15.Qc3Ne4 followed by Ng3 bad for white.
15.bc3Ne4 16.Bh2c5! 17.Nf3Bc6 more control over e4. 18.Bd3f5! in three natural and simple moves
black has assumed control over a vital square and can increase pressure on c3.
19.Rad1Rad8 -Minimal effort and simple useful moves.Facing off on the d-file.
20.Be2Qf6! Compelling white to exchange. White is tied to c3. 21.Rd8Rd8 22.Rc1h6 one of those useful
moves a GM makes when improving the pieces is difficult.
23.Bd3Kh8 another useful, prophylactic move. Kramnik and others learnt from these types of games.
24.Ne1 -white has had enough. So he prepares f2-f3. 24...c4! Now black takes over!
25.Be4 (25.Bc4Rd2 26.Qb1Qh4 27.f3Ng5 28.Bb5Nf3) 25....fe4 26.Qe2b5 27.Bg3Ne7! Black improves his worst piece.The knight will go to d5.Notice how natural and almost effortless these moves seem.
28.Qb2Nd5 29.Qa3a5 30.Kh2h5! with the threat of ...h4. First we saw ..a5 then ...h4.The black pieces are optimized.Smyslov follows Rubinstein by playing wing moves when the pieces are optimal.
31.h4Qf8! Smyslov wants to exchange white's best piece. 32.Qb2Nf6! 33.Kg1Ng4 34.Qe2Qf6!
With a simple plan: Rd7 and then Qd8. 35.f3ef3 36.gf3Ne5 37.e4Nd3! 38.Rc2Ne1 39.Be1Rd3 with pressure on f3 and c3.The principle of the two weaknesses in action.
40.Kg2Qg6 41.Bg3Kh7 !! Zugzwang. The big threat is Qf6 hitting f3 and c3. 42.Rc1Qf6 43.Be1Qf4 0-1
In view of 44.Rc2Rf3
So what can we take from this exhibition of Taoism.
1) In the early stages black simply moved out of the way of white's lunges. The knight moved from c6 to g6, the Bishop moved from e6 to d7 to c6.
2) After the extremely crucial Bb4 black began to exert "yang" energy with minimal effort.
3) After f2-f3 by white black stretched white between two pressure points : c3 and f3.
4) Black exchanged off defenders but had enough pieces to make the final blow.
5) It must be noted that the presence of bishops of opposite colors in the middlegame swung in black's favour.The dark squared bishop of white simply hit empty squares....
I hope this was instructive and enjoyable.
John
It gives me great joy to present this game as an example of playing in accordance with the principles
of Tao and Wu Wei. Smyslov was known for his gift in handling the pieces. I get the impression that Karpov studied this style deeply. In what follows Smyslov plays very much like Capablanca, simple but profound moves where absorbs white's initial thrusts and then gradually dominates switching from "ying" to "yang".
Gligoric vs Smyslov Amsterdam 1971
Tchigorin Defence
1.d4d5 2.c4Nc6 3.Nc3dc4 4.d5! A very active "yang" move. 4...Ne5 5.Bf4Ng6 so black has absorbed
the initial pressure of having to relocate his knight. 6.Bg3e5!? Claiming some space.
7.de6 Gligoric opens the game and will want some room for the f1 bishop. 7...Be6 8.Nf3Nf6 9.Nd4Bd7
Again black parrys these attacks on his pieces.He does not seek complications. 10.e3Bb4 One of the virtues
of the Tschigorin is that the black pieces come out to active squares. Smyslov seeks dominion over the e4 square.
11.Bc40-0 12.Qc2c6 13.h3 creating an escape for the g3 bishop. Its important to note how the GMs play useful moves prior to initiating some plan.
13...Qe7 harmonising the rooks. Smyslov's pieces are all protected and serve a function. 14.0-0Bc3!
The first crucial moment of the game. A key defender of e4 is removed. An imbalance is created 15.Qc3Ne4 followed by Ng3 bad for white.
15.bc3Ne4 16.Bh2c5! 17.Nf3Bc6 more control over e4. 18.Bd3f5! in three natural and simple moves
black has assumed control over a vital square and can increase pressure on c3.
19.Rad1Rad8 -Minimal effort and simple useful moves.Facing off on the d-file.
20.Be2Qf6! Compelling white to exchange. White is tied to c3. 21.Rd8Rd8 22.Rc1h6 one of those useful
moves a GM makes when improving the pieces is difficult.
23.Bd3Kh8 another useful, prophylactic move. Kramnik and others learnt from these types of games.
24.Ne1 -white has had enough. So he prepares f2-f3. 24...c4! Now black takes over!
25.Be4 (25.Bc4Rd2 26.Qb1Qh4 27.f3Ng5 28.Bb5Nf3) 25....fe4 26.Qe2b5 27.Bg3Ne7! Black improves his worst piece.The knight will go to d5.Notice how natural and almost effortless these moves seem.
28.Qb2Nd5 29.Qa3a5 30.Kh2h5! with the threat of ...h4. First we saw ..a5 then ...h4.The black pieces are optimized.Smyslov follows Rubinstein by playing wing moves when the pieces are optimal.
31.h4Qf8! Smyslov wants to exchange white's best piece. 32.Qb2Nf6! 33.Kg1Ng4 34.Qe2Qf6!
With a simple plan: Rd7 and then Qd8. 35.f3ef3 36.gf3Ne5 37.e4Nd3! 38.Rc2Ne1 39.Be1Rd3 with pressure on f3 and c3.The principle of the two weaknesses in action.
40.Kg2Qg6 41.Bg3Kh7 !! Zugzwang. The big threat is Qf6 hitting f3 and c3. 42.Rc1Qf6 43.Be1Qf4 0-1
In view of 44.Rc2Rf3
So what can we take from this exhibition of Taoism.
1) In the early stages black simply moved out of the way of white's lunges. The knight moved from c6 to g6, the Bishop moved from e6 to d7 to c6.
2) After the extremely crucial Bb4 black began to exert "yang" energy with minimal effort.
3) After f2-f3 by white black stretched white between two pressure points : c3 and f3.
4) Black exchanged off defenders but had enough pieces to make the final blow.
5) It must be noted that the presence of bishops of opposite colors in the middlegame swung in black's favour.The dark squared bishop of white simply hit empty squares....
I hope this was instructive and enjoyable.
John
Sunday, 27 March 2011
Taosim and the Art of Playing Black: Capablanca
Hello Chess Lovers,
Today I want to explore a bit of philosophy with you in order to make a certain approach to
playing black more accessible and easily understood. Firstly I will explain how I reached this point.
From the mid nineties to now, I was always in search of lateral thought as far as finding new insights into
the game were concerned. Just as military commanders read the Art of War I wanted to find something else that would help me with this ancient war game. When I encountered Mark Bowen, an extremely well read young man in 1995 I realised he had a breadth of knowledge which encompassed ninjitsu and an exploration of tai chi.
I realised that different chess players manifested a certain energy on the chess board.
Fast forward to 2006 England. GM Rowson wrote the wonderful book Chess for Zebras.In that book
at page 141 he digressed unto the subject of chess and taosim.Taoism is a philosophy and religion built around the teachings of Lao Tzu in the 6th century and it advocated a harmonious coexistence with nature and natural events. Two forms of energy were in a constant state of flux- Yang (male) energy which is active and
often initiates projects and missions and then there was ying (female) energy which was a receptive energy which in real life could be interpreted to absorb, adapt and to let things happen without sweating too much.
So how does this all relate to chess. Well as GM Rowson has put it, many players believe they should be active all the time, hence the pseudo active moves which end up nowhere after the opponent defends himself.
In chess we often switch between the active "yang" mode and the receptive "ying" mode. Then there is the concept of "Wu-Wei" which involves minimizing energy at the board and absorbing events and letting things happen. This requires a wholly different type of thinking. It is the kind of thinking that anticipates.
Now, how does this apply to playing black. Well I read some of the new literature by Rowson and Watson
and one black advantage is information gathering advantage. By virtue of awaiting the moves white black anticipates white's ideas. White has to show his move first.
Now I wish to give an example of this starting with one of the greatest "Taoists" in chess history: Capablanca. I believe that Capablanca invented the "chillled out" style of playing black. A style which simply involved anticipation and absorption of the energy of the player using the white pieces then gradually taking over.
Nimzovtich vs Capablanca New York 1927
1.e4c6 2.d4d5 3.e5Bf5 - I believe Karpov was heavily influenced by this game. 4.Bd3?! this move allows black an easier time in th opening. Short began the intense movement to 4.Nf3 and 5.Be2.The point is that the bishop should be left on the "active" square in order to be attacked later on.
4....Bd3 5.Qd3e6 6.Nc3Qb6 7.Ne2c5 8.dc5 because Nimzovitch played Nc3 he preferred to surrender the
pawn centre.
8..Bc5 9.0-0Ne7 10.Na4Qc6 11.Nc5Qc5 12.Be3Qc7 13.f4?! The start of white trying to exert "yang" energy.The problem with this is that the dark squares are weakened and the f4 square becomes vulnerable to attack later on.
13...Nf5 14.c3Nc6 15.Rd1g6 and now a f4-f5 push will be harder. 16.g4!? more yang energy white believes he has to "do something" Ne3 17.Qe3h5! Capablanca is poised to open the h-file.
18.g5- A critical moment. This change in the pawn structure means that the f5 square is a nice piece of real estate for black. It also means that in an ending the f4 point will become a pressure point. Note that all Capablanca has done so far is develop and respond to each of these f and g pawn pushes by white.
18....0-0 19.Nd4Qb6 20.Rf2Rfc8 21.a3?! This is the first sign that Nimzovitch is running out of things to do.
He wants to ensure that there is no attack on a2 and of course he need to "do something".
21....Rc7 22.Rd3Na5 and now black pursues a light square strategy. 23.Re2Re8!? A mysterious move
which I believe is simply an information gathering move before it goes to c8.
24.Kg2Nc6 25.R2d2 (Not the Star Wars robot) Rc8 26.Re2Ne7 27.R2d2 this is the sign that white has now run out of ideas. Now the yang energy is used by black.
27...Rc4 28.Qh3Kg7 29.Rf2a5!? Black is poised to take ownership of b3 and to exchange on b4 should white push the b-pawn. That is an example of thinking in anticipation of something.
30.Re2Nf5 31.Nf5gf5This exchange leads to the change in the dynamic of the struggle.
It is now black that exerts "yang" energy. 32.Qf3Kg6! the King gets involved. 33.R2d2Re4
34.R3d4Rc4 35.Qf2Qb5 36.Kg3Rcd4 37.cd4Qc4 and now black has two targets : the pawns on d4 and f4 and the white King.
38.Kg2b5 39.Kg1b4 now white cannot obstruct the c-file with a rook on c3. 40.ab4ab4 41.Kg2Qc1
And Capablanca prepares an attack on f4 and on the white king.
42.Kg3Qh1 43.Rd3Re1! 44.Rf3Rd1 ...probing. 45.b3Rc1 46.Re3?Rf1 and white resigned in view of ...Rg2.
0-1
I believe that this game had a massive impact on players like Karpov and Seirawan and later Kramnik and
Jobava as well Arkell. Now to the crucial moments of the game :
4.Bd3 -made life easier for black. a potentially lethal white piece was exchanged.
13.f4 and 16.g4 were commital moves which openned up the white king position greatly.
After white pushed g4-g5, white could push no more.This is where the ying yang polarity in the game changed so black was gradually taking over. The last exchange of minor pieces meant that the heavy pieces had no problem infiltrating white's position. Capablanca did not over exert himself in the opening. However that
is not to say that he was alert to the changes in the pawn structure. I recommend going over this game in some detail.The top GMs all learned from this "Taoist" of the black pieces.
Blessings
John
..
Today I want to explore a bit of philosophy with you in order to make a certain approach to
playing black more accessible and easily understood. Firstly I will explain how I reached this point.
From the mid nineties to now, I was always in search of lateral thought as far as finding new insights into
the game were concerned. Just as military commanders read the Art of War I wanted to find something else that would help me with this ancient war game. When I encountered Mark Bowen, an extremely well read young man in 1995 I realised he had a breadth of knowledge which encompassed ninjitsu and an exploration of tai chi.
I realised that different chess players manifested a certain energy on the chess board.
Fast forward to 2006 England. GM Rowson wrote the wonderful book Chess for Zebras.In that book
at page 141 he digressed unto the subject of chess and taosim.Taoism is a philosophy and religion built around the teachings of Lao Tzu in the 6th century and it advocated a harmonious coexistence with nature and natural events. Two forms of energy were in a constant state of flux- Yang (male) energy which is active and
often initiates projects and missions and then there was ying (female) energy which was a receptive energy which in real life could be interpreted to absorb, adapt and to let things happen without sweating too much.
So how does this all relate to chess. Well as GM Rowson has put it, many players believe they should be active all the time, hence the pseudo active moves which end up nowhere after the opponent defends himself.
In chess we often switch between the active "yang" mode and the receptive "ying" mode. Then there is the concept of "Wu-Wei" which involves minimizing energy at the board and absorbing events and letting things happen. This requires a wholly different type of thinking. It is the kind of thinking that anticipates.
Now, how does this apply to playing black. Well I read some of the new literature by Rowson and Watson
and one black advantage is information gathering advantage. By virtue of awaiting the moves white black anticipates white's ideas. White has to show his move first.
Now I wish to give an example of this starting with one of the greatest "Taoists" in chess history: Capablanca. I believe that Capablanca invented the "chillled out" style of playing black. A style which simply involved anticipation and absorption of the energy of the player using the white pieces then gradually taking over.
Nimzovtich vs Capablanca New York 1927
1.e4c6 2.d4d5 3.e5Bf5 - I believe Karpov was heavily influenced by this game. 4.Bd3?! this move allows black an easier time in th opening. Short began the intense movement to 4.Nf3 and 5.Be2.The point is that the bishop should be left on the "active" square in order to be attacked later on.
4....Bd3 5.Qd3e6 6.Nc3Qb6 7.Ne2c5 8.dc5 because Nimzovitch played Nc3 he preferred to surrender the
pawn centre.
8..Bc5 9.0-0Ne7 10.Na4Qc6 11.Nc5Qc5 12.Be3Qc7 13.f4?! The start of white trying to exert "yang" energy.The problem with this is that the dark squares are weakened and the f4 square becomes vulnerable to attack later on.
13...Nf5 14.c3Nc6 15.Rd1g6 and now a f4-f5 push will be harder. 16.g4!? more yang energy white believes he has to "do something" Ne3 17.Qe3h5! Capablanca is poised to open the h-file.
18.g5- A critical moment. This change in the pawn structure means that the f5 square is a nice piece of real estate for black. It also means that in an ending the f4 point will become a pressure point. Note that all Capablanca has done so far is develop and respond to each of these f and g pawn pushes by white.
18....0-0 19.Nd4Qb6 20.Rf2Rfc8 21.a3?! This is the first sign that Nimzovitch is running out of things to do.
He wants to ensure that there is no attack on a2 and of course he need to "do something".
21....Rc7 22.Rd3Na5 and now black pursues a light square strategy. 23.Re2Re8!? A mysterious move
which I believe is simply an information gathering move before it goes to c8.
24.Kg2Nc6 25.R2d2 (Not the Star Wars robot) Rc8 26.Re2Ne7 27.R2d2 this is the sign that white has now run out of ideas. Now the yang energy is used by black.
27...Rc4 28.Qh3Kg7 29.Rf2a5!? Black is poised to take ownership of b3 and to exchange on b4 should white push the b-pawn. That is an example of thinking in anticipation of something.
30.Re2Nf5 31.Nf5gf5This exchange leads to the change in the dynamic of the struggle.
It is now black that exerts "yang" energy. 32.Qf3Kg6! the King gets involved. 33.R2d2Re4
34.R3d4Rc4 35.Qf2Qb5 36.Kg3Rcd4 37.cd4Qc4 and now black has two targets : the pawns on d4 and f4 and the white King.
38.Kg2b5 39.Kg1b4 now white cannot obstruct the c-file with a rook on c3. 40.ab4ab4 41.Kg2Qc1
And Capablanca prepares an attack on f4 and on the white king.
42.Kg3Qh1 43.Rd3Re1! 44.Rf3Rd1 ...probing. 45.b3Rc1 46.Re3?Rf1 and white resigned in view of ...Rg2.
0-1
I believe that this game had a massive impact on players like Karpov and Seirawan and later Kramnik and
Jobava as well Arkell. Now to the crucial moments of the game :
4.Bd3 -made life easier for black. a potentially lethal white piece was exchanged.
13.f4 and 16.g4 were commital moves which openned up the white king position greatly.
After white pushed g4-g5, white could push no more.This is where the ying yang polarity in the game changed so black was gradually taking over. The last exchange of minor pieces meant that the heavy pieces had no problem infiltrating white's position. Capablanca did not over exert himself in the opening. However that
is not to say that he was alert to the changes in the pawn structure. I recommend going over this game in some detail.The top GMs all learned from this "Taoist" of the black pieces.
Blessings
John
..
Saturday, 26 March 2011
Chasing bishops in the opening Part Three: The Slav
Hello Chess lovers,
We will look at the theme of chasing bishops in the Slav defence where the consequences are more long term.
In the following game Dreev demonstrates truly original opening play and uses his pawns to generate a king side attack which then lead to an ending where he won by a small margin. This leads to a brief exploration of what
Jonathan Rowson likes to call practical subjectivity.During a game of chess at any level, various emotions are experienced. Stress levels can fluctuate. Often dealing with the pressure of an attack and then bailing out of the attack can really be a stressful experience. I had to endure that in a recent tournament. I managed to bail out and then I found that the calculation of the ending was another mental barrier to be broken. One has to prepare physically for this especially when playing black.
Now unto Dreev v Huebner Essen 2000
1.d4d5 2.c4c6 3.Nf3Nf6 4.e3Bf5 5.Nc3e6 6.Nh4 That move again.Bg4 7.Qb3Qb6 8.h3Bh5 9.g4Bg6
10.c5!?Qc7 11.g5Ng8 12.Ng6hg6 White has got a space advantage and the two bishops. Lets see how Dreev builds on this. 13.e4Rh4 (13...Be7 14.Bf4!Qf4 15.Qb7;13...b6!?) 14.ed5ed5 15.Ne2! With the idea of Qg3.
15...Na6 16.Qg3Rh8 17.Bf4Qa5 18.Bd2Qc7 19.h4Ne7 20.Bh3Nf5 21.Bf5gf5 22.Bf4Qa5+? 23.Kf1
Dreev does not really explain why his position is better but there are a few indicators.The white pieces are very harmonious,the e-file is ready for a rook and the f4 square can also be used for a knight.Black has difficulties with his king. If for example 23...0-0-0 24.g6!.
23...Be7 24.g6Qd8 25.h5Qd7 26.gf7 The g-pawn has reached the end of its journey.Kf7 27.Qg6+Kg8 28.h6 The h-pawn goes as far as it can.Rh7 29.Be5Qe8 29...Bf8?30.Qh7
30.Qf5Qf7 31.Qf7Kf7 32.Bg7Bf6 33.Bf6Kf6 34.Re1Rah8 35.Rh3?!Rh6 36.Rf3+Kg5 37.Ng3Rf6
38.Re5Kg6 39.Rb3Rh2 40.Re2Rf7
White has an extra pawn but black has active defensive possibilities. As the ending goes beyond the scope of the article I will make some general comments from this point onwards.
41.Kg1Rh4 42.Re6Kh7 43.Ne2Rg7 44.Rg3Rf7 45.Ree3b6 46.cb6abc6 47.Re6Rh6 48.Rh6Kh6 49.Kg2c5 50.Rb3Rf6 51.Nc3Nb4? The one serious misstep by black. 52.Na4Rg6 53.Kf3Na2 54.dc5bc5
55.Nc5Rc6 56.Nd3Nc1 57.Nc1Rc1 58.Ke3 and here black missed the active ...Rc2 and played instead
58...Rc4? 59.Rb5Re4 60.Kd3Rf4 61.Rd5Rf2 62.b4Kg6 63.Re5Kf6 64.Re1 1-0
It would be interesting to divide the game into 3 phases:
The opening phase involved waiting for 5...e6 to pounce with 6.Nh4. White then chased the bishop till he got it on g6.The next phase involved manoevring the queen to g3 after after 15.Ne2. Once the queen got to g3, Dreev set in motion the pawns on g5 and h4 and then targeted g7.Its interesting to note he un doubled the pawns on the g-file in order to get another advantage.The final phase occurred after getting the extra pawn.
I may be speculating on Dr Huebner's condition here but he faltered in the ending after a long period of defense.Its very important to bear this in mind when playing and also when selecting a defense to play.
Hopefully this was instructive and of value.
Cheers, John
We will look at the theme of chasing bishops in the Slav defence where the consequences are more long term.
In the following game Dreev demonstrates truly original opening play and uses his pawns to generate a king side attack which then lead to an ending where he won by a small margin. This leads to a brief exploration of what
Jonathan Rowson likes to call practical subjectivity.During a game of chess at any level, various emotions are experienced. Stress levels can fluctuate. Often dealing with the pressure of an attack and then bailing out of the attack can really be a stressful experience. I had to endure that in a recent tournament. I managed to bail out and then I found that the calculation of the ending was another mental barrier to be broken. One has to prepare physically for this especially when playing black.
Now unto Dreev v Huebner Essen 2000
1.d4d5 2.c4c6 3.Nf3Nf6 4.e3Bf5 5.Nc3e6 6.Nh4 That move again.Bg4 7.Qb3Qb6 8.h3Bh5 9.g4Bg6
10.c5!?Qc7 11.g5Ng8 12.Ng6hg6 White has got a space advantage and the two bishops. Lets see how Dreev builds on this. 13.e4Rh4 (13...Be7 14.Bf4!Qf4 15.Qb7;13...b6!?) 14.ed5ed5 15.Ne2! With the idea of Qg3.
15...Na6 16.Qg3Rh8 17.Bf4Qa5 18.Bd2Qc7 19.h4Ne7 20.Bh3Nf5 21.Bf5gf5 22.Bf4Qa5+? 23.Kf1
Dreev does not really explain why his position is better but there are a few indicators.The white pieces are very harmonious,the e-file is ready for a rook and the f4 square can also be used for a knight.Black has difficulties with his king. If for example 23...0-0-0 24.g6!.
23...Be7 24.g6Qd8 25.h5Qd7 26.gf7 The g-pawn has reached the end of its journey.Kf7 27.Qg6+Kg8 28.h6 The h-pawn goes as far as it can.Rh7 29.Be5Qe8 29...Bf8?30.Qh7
30.Qf5Qf7 31.Qf7Kf7 32.Bg7Bf6 33.Bf6Kf6 34.Re1Rah8 35.Rh3?!Rh6 36.Rf3+Kg5 37.Ng3Rf6
38.Re5Kg6 39.Rb3Rh2 40.Re2Rf7
White has an extra pawn but black has active defensive possibilities. As the ending goes beyond the scope of the article I will make some general comments from this point onwards.
41.Kg1Rh4 42.Re6Kh7 43.Ne2Rg7 44.Rg3Rf7 45.Ree3b6 46.cb6abc6 47.Re6Rh6 48.Rh6Kh6 49.Kg2c5 50.Rb3Rf6 51.Nc3Nb4? The one serious misstep by black. 52.Na4Rg6 53.Kf3Na2 54.dc5bc5
55.Nc5Rc6 56.Nd3Nc1 57.Nc1Rc1 58.Ke3 and here black missed the active ...Rc2 and played instead
58...Rc4? 59.Rb5Re4 60.Kd3Rf4 61.Rd5Rf2 62.b4Kg6 63.Re5Kf6 64.Re1 1-0
It would be interesting to divide the game into 3 phases:
The opening phase involved waiting for 5...e6 to pounce with 6.Nh4. White then chased the bishop till he got it on g6.The next phase involved manoevring the queen to g3 after after 15.Ne2. Once the queen got to g3, Dreev set in motion the pawns on g5 and h4 and then targeted g7.Its interesting to note he un doubled the pawns on the g-file in order to get another advantage.The final phase occurred after getting the extra pawn.
I may be speculating on Dr Huebner's condition here but he faltered in the ending after a long period of defense.Its very important to bear this in mind when playing and also when selecting a defense to play.
Hopefully this was instructive and of value.
Cheers, John
Chasing bishops in the opening Part Two-The Trompovsky
Hello Chess lovers,
In this part, I will explore one opening which has proven to be rich and fertile for imaginative players
who wish to pose opponents and themselves with new challenges. The exotic school of chess includes
Julian Hodgson, Luke McShane,Igor Miladinovic and Stefanova as well as Chernyshov and Moskalenko.
Today we will look at one of McShane's games and see how he grabs space boardwide
while chasing a bishop.
McShane v Jansa Bundesliga 2003
1.d4Nf6 2.Bg5Ne4 3.Bf4d5 4.e3Bf5 5.f3Nf6 6.c4e6 Black is trying to be as solid as possible and get the
pieces out.White realises that the black pieces are in the way of a tsunami of pawns. So he grabs space all over.It should be noted that all the great GMs grabbed space.
7.Qb3b6 8.Nc3c6 9.g4Bg6 10.h4h5 11.g5Ng8
Now we can assess what has been achived by this. Black has played his king knight to f6,e4,f6,g8 in the first 11 moves.The black bishop went from c8 to f5 and then to g6. So two black pieces moved a total of 6 moves within the first 11 moves.Incredibly the rest are pawn moves.White is poised to castle, and has moved out his queen,c1 bishop and knight to c3.
12.cd5ed5 13.e4 grabbing more space and denying f5 to black. 13...Bd6 14.Nh4Nge7 15.0-0-0 0-0
finally black has made some progress but only as far as getting the pieces out his concerned. Mcshane continues to engage in what I like to call square-denial.
16.Bd3a5 17.Rhe1Na6 18.a3 Square denial. The great Karpov always insisted on removing active possibilities from the opposition.
18...b5 19.ed5b4 20.Bd6Qd6 21.Ne4Be4 22.fe4 and a great transformation has occurred.White has centralised rooks and a highly mobile centre.
22...a4 Black is worried about being squeezed in the centre so he tries to be active.
23.e5! Mcshane comes up with the equal or stronger threat following the great Fischer who was a master at that. 23...ab3 24.ed6 and black is not out of the woods. White has an e-file and an entry point on e7.
24...Nd5 25.a4g6 26.Nf2 with the idea of Ne4. 26...Nb8 27.Bc4Ra4 28.Bb3Ra5 29.Kd2! The amazing aspect of this game is how simple the following moves are. 29...Nd7 30.Ra1Ra1 31.Ra1 in 4 simple moves,
white has improved his position tremendously. Every piece is active and poised for action.
31...f6 -Almost inevitable. Black has had enough of passive defense and whats to activate something-anything! 32.Ne4fg5 33.Ng5Rf6 34.Ra8Kg7 35.Ra7Rd6 36.Ne4 1-0 And there is a simple ending. Black will lose a piece.
The deeper point of showing this game is that the chasing of the bishop led to more squares being denied to black.This is what can happen when pieces are in the way of the pawns.I hope this part will be of value and inspire you.
In this part, I will explore one opening which has proven to be rich and fertile for imaginative players
who wish to pose opponents and themselves with new challenges. The exotic school of chess includes
Julian Hodgson, Luke McShane,Igor Miladinovic and Stefanova as well as Chernyshov and Moskalenko.
Today we will look at one of McShane's games and see how he grabs space boardwide
while chasing a bishop.
McShane v Jansa Bundesliga 2003
1.d4Nf6 2.Bg5Ne4 3.Bf4d5 4.e3Bf5 5.f3Nf6 6.c4e6 Black is trying to be as solid as possible and get the
pieces out.White realises that the black pieces are in the way of a tsunami of pawns. So he grabs space all over.It should be noted that all the great GMs grabbed space.
7.Qb3b6 8.Nc3c6 9.g4Bg6 10.h4h5 11.g5Ng8
Now we can assess what has been achived by this. Black has played his king knight to f6,e4,f6,g8 in the first 11 moves.The black bishop went from c8 to f5 and then to g6. So two black pieces moved a total of 6 moves within the first 11 moves.Incredibly the rest are pawn moves.White is poised to castle, and has moved out his queen,c1 bishop and knight to c3.
12.cd5ed5 13.e4 grabbing more space and denying f5 to black. 13...Bd6 14.Nh4Nge7 15.0-0-0 0-0
finally black has made some progress but only as far as getting the pieces out his concerned. Mcshane continues to engage in what I like to call square-denial.
16.Bd3a5 17.Rhe1Na6 18.a3 Square denial. The great Karpov always insisted on removing active possibilities from the opposition.
18...b5 19.ed5b4 20.Bd6Qd6 21.Ne4Be4 22.fe4 and a great transformation has occurred.White has centralised rooks and a highly mobile centre.
22...a4 Black is worried about being squeezed in the centre so he tries to be active.
23.e5! Mcshane comes up with the equal or stronger threat following the great Fischer who was a master at that. 23...ab3 24.ed6 and black is not out of the woods. White has an e-file and an entry point on e7.
24...Nd5 25.a4g6 26.Nf2 with the idea of Ne4. 26...Nb8 27.Bc4Ra4 28.Bb3Ra5 29.Kd2! The amazing aspect of this game is how simple the following moves are. 29...Nd7 30.Ra1Ra1 31.Ra1 in 4 simple moves,
white has improved his position tremendously. Every piece is active and poised for action.
31...f6 -Almost inevitable. Black has had enough of passive defense and whats to activate something-anything! 32.Ne4fg5 33.Ng5Rf6 34.Ra8Kg7 35.Ra7Rd6 36.Ne4 1-0 And there is a simple ending. Black will lose a piece.
The deeper point of showing this game is that the chasing of the bishop led to more squares being denied to black.This is what can happen when pieces are in the way of the pawns.I hope this part will be of value and inspire you.
Chasing bishops in the opening Part One
Hello Chess Lovers
I want to continue the theme built up with g-force: chasing bishops in opening theory. Bishops can be chased
from active positions by both sides and my aim is to demonstrate how this is done with gains of space and time or complex positions. Rather than go through entire games in part one, I will present excerpts from different openings. Lets get into the meat of the matter:
Egger vs Papaioannou
1.e4d5 2.ed5Qd5 3.Nc3Qa5 4.d4c6 5.Nf3Nf6 6.Bc4Bf5 7.Bd2e6
8.Nd5Qd8 9.Nf6gf6 10.Qe2 - A standard position. White is aiming at the e6 point.
Its always nice to develop bishops to active squares like f5, however they come under attack quite quickly.
10....Nd7 (Black had 10...Bc2!?) 11.0-0-0Qc7?! 12.Nh4 here white does not use a g-pawn.
This type of knight move is common in the Slav as well.
12....Bg6 13.Be6!fe6 14.Qe6Kd8 (14...Be7? 15.Rhe10-0-0 16.Qe7Qh2 17.Rh1) 15.Ng6hg6 16.Rhe1Bd6
17.d5c5 18.Bh6 with the idea of Bg7. 18...Bf4? Understandably black is concerned about Bg7.
19.Bf4Qf4 20.Kb1Kc8 21.d6Rd8 22.Qf7Qg4 23.f3Qa4 24.Re8Qa5 white went on to win here.
However he played 25.Rd8? instead of 25.f4 which would have definitely posed black serious issues in terms of surviving in a passive position. The point of this article however, is to highlight the dangers involved in posting bishops where they can be attacked and that players need to take account of this in preparation. This means that over the board the surprise factor is diminished.
The next example is concerned with the Semi Slav systems where very commital pawn moves are made chasing bishops by both sides:
Atalik vs Dreev Sarajevo 2001
1.d4d5 2.c4c6 3.Nf3Nf6 4.Nc3e6 5.Bg5h6 Black puts the question to the bishop. 6.Bh4dc4 7.e4g5Once black chooses this course the game enters a highly commital phase where the pawn structure changes radically. 8.Bg3 b59.Be2Bb7 10.h4b4 11.hg5bc3! Notice that black goes for the equal or stronger threat.12.gf6cb2 13.Rb1Qa5 14.Nd2c3 15.0-0Ba6 16.Nb3Qa2 17.Nc5Bb5 18.Qc2Qa3 19.Rfd1Rg8!
An amazing unbalanced position arises.Dreev admitted to feeling uneasy about keeping his king in the centre.
However a d4-d5 thrust is really tactically wrong now because of the knight on c5.
20.Bb5cb5 21.Qe2..the point of Qe2.Qb4 22.Ne6Qc4!! 23.Nc7Kd8 24.Qh5 the only active move.
24....Rg5 25.Qh3Rg3 26.Qg3Qc7 and black went on to win. A truly thrill-a-minute game. One important guide is to calculate and assess the consequences of making commital moves like ..g5 and ...b5.The emphasis here was on finding active moves like...Rg8, ....Qa5,....Ba6,Qc4!!
The next example is quite famous.
Shirov v Nisipeanu 1999
1.e4c6 2.d4d5 3.e5Bf5 4.Nc3e6 5.g4Bg6 6.Nge2 in this line of the Caro-Kann Advance the idea is to gain both time and space with attacks on the g6 bishop.Shirov takes it to extremes:
6...c5 7.h4 (7.Be3Nc6 was featured in Grischuk v Shirov) 7....h6 8.f4!Be7 9.Bg2!clearing f1 for the King.
9...Bh4 10.Kf1 Shirov has made a very big commitment. What this means is that his concept has to work with very sharp lines coming up. 10..Be711.f5! no turning back now....Bh7 (11...ef5? 12.Nf4Nc6 13.Ng6fg6 14.gf5) 12.Nf4Qd7 13.Nh5!?Bf8 14.dc5Nc6 15.Nb5Bc5 (15...Ne5 16.Qe2) 16.c4!!
A brave choice in view of the fact that he had Ng7. Shirov is preparing for the moment black castles Queenside but he also shows how he values momentum over material.John Watson is quite effusive
in his praise of Shirov because it is clear he has gone way beyond calculation and into the realm of
intuition.He grasps that opening the position is of great importance here and open lines are needed.
16...Ne5! Active defence which hits at the c4 the pawn that supports the knight on b5. 17.Qe2Nc4 18.Bd5!Qb5 19.Bc4Qb6 20.fe6?! after this move black fought hard and went on to win with
20...0-0-0 21.ef7Ne7 - Had Shirov played 20.Ng7Kf8 21.Nh5 with the idea of Qe5 -d5 and Nf5 the game
would be totally different. However its one of the most marvellous examples of fantasy at the highest levels.
Finally I will present an example from one of my games:
Tobisch v O'Gorman
Christmas Congress 06
1.d4d5 2.Nf3Nf6 3.g3Bg4 4.Bg2e6 5.0-0Be7 6.c4c6 7.b3Nbd7 8.Bb20-0
9.Nbd2h6 10.Ne5Ne5 11.de5Nfd7 12.Kh1 This a slow version of the Catalan.
12...Nb6 13.f3Bh5 14.Rc1dc4 15.Nc4Nc4 16.Rc4Qd1 17.Rd1Rfd8 18.Rcd4Kf8
19.Ba3!! This possibility occurs because of the back rank weakness.
19...Rd4 20.Be7+ the check makes it work. 20...Ke7 21.Rd4Rd8 22.Rd8Kd8
23.Kg2Kc7 24.Kf2c5 25.e4Kb6 26.Ke3Kc5 27.g4 here I found that I could entomb the
bishop. 27...Bg6 28.a3b5 29.Bf1Kb6 30.f4a5 31.f5Bh7 and the bishop was entombed.
White won in 20 moves.
So, from all of these examples we can see how chasing bishops with pieces or pawns
by either black or white creates space and gains time. However there are very commital aspects
to such moves. The side which moves a lot of pawns to do this loses time. The side which retreats the bishops
has to understand how to exploit the long term weaknesses inherent in such pawn moves. I hope the examples given were enjoyable.
Cheers, John
I want to continue the theme built up with g-force: chasing bishops in opening theory. Bishops can be chased
from active positions by both sides and my aim is to demonstrate how this is done with gains of space and time or complex positions. Rather than go through entire games in part one, I will present excerpts from different openings. Lets get into the meat of the matter:
Egger vs Papaioannou
1.e4d5 2.ed5Qd5 3.Nc3Qa5 4.d4c6 5.Nf3Nf6 6.Bc4Bf5 7.Bd2e6
8.Nd5Qd8 9.Nf6gf6 10.Qe2 - A standard position. White is aiming at the e6 point.
Its always nice to develop bishops to active squares like f5, however they come under attack quite quickly.
10....Nd7 (Black had 10...Bc2!?) 11.0-0-0Qc7?! 12.Nh4 here white does not use a g-pawn.
This type of knight move is common in the Slav as well.
12....Bg6 13.Be6!fe6 14.Qe6Kd8 (14...Be7? 15.Rhe10-0-0 16.Qe7Qh2 17.Rh1) 15.Ng6hg6 16.Rhe1Bd6
17.d5c5 18.Bh6 with the idea of Bg7. 18...Bf4? Understandably black is concerned about Bg7.
19.Bf4Qf4 20.Kb1Kc8 21.d6Rd8 22.Qf7Qg4 23.f3Qa4 24.Re8Qa5 white went on to win here.
However he played 25.Rd8? instead of 25.f4 which would have definitely posed black serious issues in terms of surviving in a passive position. The point of this article however, is to highlight the dangers involved in posting bishops where they can be attacked and that players need to take account of this in preparation. This means that over the board the surprise factor is diminished.
The next example is concerned with the Semi Slav systems where very commital pawn moves are made chasing bishops by both sides:
Atalik vs Dreev Sarajevo 2001
1.d4d5 2.c4c6 3.Nf3Nf6 4.Nc3e6 5.Bg5h6 Black puts the question to the bishop. 6.Bh4dc4 7.e4g5Once black chooses this course the game enters a highly commital phase where the pawn structure changes radically. 8.Bg3 b59.Be2Bb7 10.h4b4 11.hg5bc3! Notice that black goes for the equal or stronger threat.12.gf6cb2 13.Rb1Qa5 14.Nd2c3 15.0-0Ba6 16.Nb3Qa2 17.Nc5Bb5 18.Qc2Qa3 19.Rfd1Rg8!
An amazing unbalanced position arises.Dreev admitted to feeling uneasy about keeping his king in the centre.
However a d4-d5 thrust is really tactically wrong now because of the knight on c5.
20.Bb5cb5 21.Qe2..the point of Qe2.Qb4 22.Ne6Qc4!! 23.Nc7Kd8 24.Qh5 the only active move.
24....Rg5 25.Qh3Rg3 26.Qg3Qc7 and black went on to win. A truly thrill-a-minute game. One important guide is to calculate and assess the consequences of making commital moves like ..g5 and ...b5.The emphasis here was on finding active moves like...Rg8, ....Qa5,....Ba6,Qc4!!
The next example is quite famous.
Shirov v Nisipeanu 1999
1.e4c6 2.d4d5 3.e5Bf5 4.Nc3e6 5.g4Bg6 6.Nge2 in this line of the Caro-Kann Advance the idea is to gain both time and space with attacks on the g6 bishop.Shirov takes it to extremes:
6...c5 7.h4 (7.Be3Nc6 was featured in Grischuk v Shirov) 7....h6 8.f4!Be7 9.Bg2!clearing f1 for the King.
9...Bh4 10.Kf1 Shirov has made a very big commitment. What this means is that his concept has to work with very sharp lines coming up. 10..Be711.f5! no turning back now....Bh7 (11...ef5? 12.Nf4Nc6 13.Ng6fg6 14.gf5) 12.Nf4Qd7 13.Nh5!?Bf8 14.dc5Nc6 15.Nb5Bc5 (15...Ne5 16.Qe2) 16.c4!!
A brave choice in view of the fact that he had Ng7. Shirov is preparing for the moment black castles Queenside but he also shows how he values momentum over material.John Watson is quite effusive
in his praise of Shirov because it is clear he has gone way beyond calculation and into the realm of
intuition.He grasps that opening the position is of great importance here and open lines are needed.
16...Ne5! Active defence which hits at the c4 the pawn that supports the knight on b5. 17.Qe2Nc4 18.Bd5!Qb5 19.Bc4Qb6 20.fe6?! after this move black fought hard and went on to win with
20...0-0-0 21.ef7Ne7 - Had Shirov played 20.Ng7Kf8 21.Nh5 with the idea of Qe5 -d5 and Nf5 the game
would be totally different. However its one of the most marvellous examples of fantasy at the highest levels.
Finally I will present an example from one of my games:
Tobisch v O'Gorman
Christmas Congress 06
1.d4d5 2.Nf3Nf6 3.g3Bg4 4.Bg2e6 5.0-0Be7 6.c4c6 7.b3Nbd7 8.Bb20-0
9.Nbd2h6 10.Ne5Ne5 11.de5Nfd7 12.Kh1 This a slow version of the Catalan.
12...Nb6 13.f3Bh5 14.Rc1dc4 15.Nc4Nc4 16.Rc4Qd1 17.Rd1Rfd8 18.Rcd4Kf8
19.Ba3!! This possibility occurs because of the back rank weakness.
19...Rd4 20.Be7+ the check makes it work. 20...Ke7 21.Rd4Rd8 22.Rd8Kd8
23.Kg2Kc7 24.Kf2c5 25.e4Kb6 26.Ke3Kc5 27.g4 here I found that I could entomb the
bishop. 27...Bg6 28.a3b5 29.Bf1Kb6 30.f4a5 31.f5Bh7 and the bishop was entombed.
White won in 20 moves.
So, from all of these examples we can see how chasing bishops with pieces or pawns
by either black or white creates space and gains time. However there are very commital aspects
to such moves. The side which moves a lot of pawns to do this loses time. The side which retreats the bishops
has to understand how to exploit the long term weaknesses inherent in such pawn moves. I hope the examples given were enjoyable.
Cheers, John
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