Basel Round Five

FACED my fifth junior this afternoon in round five of the Basel tournament. He is 11 or 12 years old and registered with Liechtenstein.

Steve Heron (1580) - Spanton (1814)

Sicilian Accelerated Dragon

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 g6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nc6 5.Nb3!?

Position after 5.Nb3!?

*****

*****

*****

*****

*****

The main idea of this move, as I understand it, is to restrain ...d5, which is Black's thematic equalising move in the Accelerated Dragon.

5...Bg7 6.Bd3?!

But this blocks the white queen's action along the d file.

6...Nf6 7.Nc3 d5 8.0-0 0-0 9.Re1 e5

The analysis engines Stockfish13 and Komodo12.1.1 like 9...d4.

10.Bg5 d4 11.Nd5 Be6 12.Nxf6+ Bxf6 13.Bxf6 Qxf6

Black has lost the fianchettoed bishop, but White is unlikely to be able to exploit the holes around the black king.

14.Nc5 Bc8

The engines like 14...Nd8!?

15.Be2 Qh4 16.Bb5 Qe7 17.Nd3 Bd7 18.Qf3 Rac8 19.Qg3 a6?

Black has a tiny edge, according to the engines, after 19...Nb8 20.Bxd7 Nxd7.

20.Bxc6 Rxc6 21.Qxe5

I had missed the strength of this move.

21...Re8?

Probably best, according to the engines, is 21...Qxe5 22.Nxe5 Rc7 23.Nxd7 Rxd7, although Black is a pawn down without compensation.

22.Qxd4 Rxc2?

And this makes Black's situation even worse.

23.Nb4 Rc5

What else? Nd5 is a huge threat.

24.Nd5 Rxd5 25.Qxd5 Bc6 26.Qb3 Qh4

Hoping to conjure up a swindle, but the odds are against it.

27.f3 Re5 28.Qd3 Rh5 29.h3 Qg5 30.Rad1! Kg7

Not 30...Rxh3? 31.Qd8+ Qxd8 32.Rxd8+ Kg7 33.gxh3.

31.Qd4+ f6 32.Qd8 Qe5 33.f4!? Qxb2?

This allows a mate in three, but 33...Qxf4 34.Qe7+ Kh6 35.Qf8+ Kg5 36.Rf1 Qe5 37.Qd8 creates the threat 38.Qd2+.

34.Qe7+ Kg8 35.Rd8+ 1-0