Hastings Round 9
Catalan
1.d4 d5 2.Nf3 e6 3.g3 Nf6 4.Bg2 Be7 5.0-0 0-0 6.c4 Nbd7 7.Qc2 c6 8.Nfd2?!
This has been played by a 2260, but is beyond my understanding - or is just plain bad. There are more than 3,000 examples of the main move, 8.Nbd2, in ChessBase's 2020 Mega database.
8...e5!?
Stockfish10 and Komodo10 like 8...b5!?, reckoning Black has equalised.
9.cxd5 Nxd5 10.dxe5 Nxe5 11.a3
This looks slow, but if White tries to gain space in the centre immediately with 11.e4?!, Black replies 11...Nb4, and drops a knight in on d3.
11...Nf6
Prophylaxis, the idea being that e4 can still be met by ...Nd3 or, probably even better, ...Qd3.
12.Nc3 Be6 13.Nde4 Nxe4 14.Nxe4 Bd5 15.Rd1 Qb6 16.Be3 Qb3 17.Qc1 Rfd8 18.Bd4 f6 19.Qf4 Ng6
Not 19...Bxe4? 20.Qxe4 c5, as White has 21.Qxb7, which seems to give an edge.
20.Qf5 Be6
This time 20...Bxe4? is met by 21.Bxe4, and if 21...c5?, then 22.Bc2 wins.
21.Qa5 b6 22.Qc3 Rac8
22...c5!? 23.Nd2 Qxc3 24.Bxc3 seems equal.
23.Qe1 c5 24.Bc3 Qa4 25.Nd2 Bd6
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| White came up with an ingenious way to relieve the pressure |
*****
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26.b3!? Qe8
Not 26...Bxb3?? 27.Nxb3 Qxb3?? 28.Bd5+.
27.Nc4 Bb8 28.a4 Qf7 29.Rxd8+ Rxd8 30.Rd1 Rxd1 31.Qxd1 Qd7 32.Qxd7 Bxd7 33.Bd5+ Kf8 34.e4 Ne7 35.Bb7 Bc6?!
A good rule-of-thumb, as I was lecturing a friend about earlier in the tournament, is that when you have a bad bishop (in this case the dark-square one), do not exchange your good bishop. Having said that, the text is Komodo10's choice. Stockfish10 comes up with 35...Bg4.
36.Bxc6 Nxc6 37.f4 Ke7
The engines suggest 37...g5!?, albeit with equality.
38.Kf2 Bc7 39.Kf3 h5!?
I did not want White gaining space with an unchallenged g4. The engines are fine with the move, but Black has to be careful the h5 pawn does not become a weakness.
40.Ne3 Ke6
Not 40...g6? 41.Nd5+ Kd6 42.Nxc7 Kxc7 43.Bxf6.
41.Nd5 Bd8?
Fine is 41...Bd6 (or 41...Bb8), the point being that if, as in the game, 42.f5+ Kf7 43.Nf4, Black has 43...Be5 44.Bxe5 fxe5 45.Nxh5 Nd4+, when it is White who has to think about how avoid losing.
42.f5+ Kf7 43.Nf4
This looks so natural, but the engines reckon centralisation with 43.Ke3!? gives Black close to a winning advantage.
43...h4?
Correct is 43...Bc7 44.Nxh5 Be5 45.Bxe5 fxe5 with ...Nd4 to come.
44.gxh4 Bc7 45.h3 Be5 46.Bxe5 Nxe5+ 47.Ke3 Nc6
The engines give the problem-like 47...Kg8!?, but much prefer White.
48.Kd3 Ne5+ 49.Kc3 Nf3 50.h5 Ng5 51.Kd3 Nf3 52.Ne6 Ne5+ 53.Kc3 Nc6 54.Nf4 Ne5 55.Nd3 Nxd3??
The number of times the materially-weaker side is better off exchanging into a pawn-ending is miniscule (I can think of only one occasion when I successfully did it - against an IM!), so it is no excuse here that Black is almost certainly lost anyway.
56.Kxd3 Ke7 57.Kc4 a6 58.Kd5 Kd7 59.a5 bxa5 60.Kxc5 a4 61.bxa4 1-0
My final score of +3=2-4 saw me gain two Fide elo. It was an ECF grading performance of 172.7.
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