Lessons From North Shields V

Virgil Szekely (2103 ECF/no Fide) - Spanton (1965 ECF/1747 Fide)

Northumberland Open Round 5

Sicilian Hyper-Accelerated Dragon

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 g6 3.c3 Bg7 4.d4 cxd4 5.cxd4 d5 6.e5

The main alternative is 6.exd5, while the analysis engines Stockfish14 and Komodo12.1.1 quite like 6.Bb5+!? (it is the latter's top choice for a while, and comes to be Stockfish14's second choice), but in the end both engines opt for the text.

6...Bg4 7.Bb5+ Nd7

7...Nc6 8.Bxc6+!? bxc6 9.Nbd2 gives White the upper hand, according to the engines.

8.0-0 a6 9.Bd3 e6 10.Nbd2!?

The idea of this move in lines like this is to follow up with h3, obliging Black to capture the king's knight on f3 at a time when White can recapture with the queen's knight. However the move-order in this game ...

10...Ne7 11.h3

... means Black is not forced to take.
11...Bf5

How should White proceed?

*****
*****
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*****

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12.Nb3

Mladen Palac (2591) - Ljubomir Orak (2308), Zlatni Rat (Croatia) Rapid 2011, saw 12.Bxf5 Nxf5 13.Nb3 0-0 14.Bg5 with advantage to White, according to the engines (1-0, 46 moves).

White could keep light-square bishops on the board with 12.Be2, but 12...Rc8 13.Ne1!? is equal, according to Komodo12.1.1, although Stockfsih14 prefers White.

12...Rc8

Miklós Németh (2469) - Igor Vladimirovich Glek (2537), EU Cup (Ohrid, North Macedonia) 2009, continued 12...Qb6 13.Bg5 Bxd3 14.Qxd3 h6 15.Bd2 Nc6, when the engines reckon White has a slight edge but the game was drawn in 65 moves.

13.Bg5 Bxd3 14.Qxd3 h6 15.Bxe7!?

The engines prefer retreating the bishop to d2 or e3.

15...Qxe7 16.Rac1 0-0 17.Rc3 Nb6 18.Nc5 Nc4

How should White proceed?

*****
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19.b3?

White should play 19.Qe2 or 19.Qc2, when the position is equal, according to the engines.

*****

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19...Nxe5! 20.Nxe5 Bxe5 21.Rfc1!?

Better, according to the engines, is 21.Nxe6 Qxe6 22.dxe5 Qxe5 23.Rxc8 Rxc8 24.Rd1 Rd8 25.Qe3!? Qxe3 26.fxe3, when Black is a pawn up but White has good practical drawing chances in a rook-and-pawn ending.

VS's choice keeps more play in the game, and was probably the better 'human decision'.

21...Bg7 22.Na4 Rxc3 23.Qxc3 b5!?

This turns the c5 square into an outpost for the white knight from where it cannot be evicted. Nevertheless the engines agree Black remains much better.

24.Nc5 Rc8 25.b4 h5 26.Qd2 Rc6 27.Rc3 Qh4 28.Rd3 Kh7 29.Kh2 Bh6 30.Qe2 Qf4+ 31.g3 Qd6 32.h4 Bf8 33.Ra3 Bg7 34.Rd3 Bf6 35.Kg2 Kg7 36.Kh3 Qc7 37.f4

There has been a lot of manoeuvring with little apparently accomplished by either player. I now decided to break on the queenside.

37...a5 38.a3 a4?

Closing the queenside is the wrong plan, and is perhaps an example of rating-itis. True, the closure greatly reduces Black's chances of losing, but it also greatly reduces Black's chances of winning. After 38...axb4 39.axb4 the engines reckon 39...Qc8 40.Kg2 Qa8 gives very good winning chances.

39.Rd2 Qb6 40.Nd7 Qb7 41.Nc5 ½–½

The engines reckon Black is still a fair bit better in the final position, but are unable to come up with a plan for making progress.