Queen's Pawn Game
1.Nf3 d5 2.g3 Nc6 3.d4 Bf5 4.Bg2 Qd7!?
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| How should White respond? |
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5.Bf4
The mainline in ChessBase's 2023 Mega database runs 5.0-0 Bh3 6.c4 Bxg2 7.Kxg2 e6 8.Nc3 with a slight edge for White, according to Stockfish15.1 and Komodo14.1.
5...Nf6
The engines strongly dislike this natural-looking move.
6.Ne5!?
This seems to be a novelty and is Komodo14.1's top choice, at least for a while, although it comes to marginally prefer 6.0-0, which is also Stockfish15.1's recommendation.
6...Nxe5 7.dxe5 Ne4 8.Nd2 e6?
The engines like 8...Bh3!?
9.Nxe4
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| How should Black recapture? |
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9...dxe4
After 9...Bxe4?! 10.Bxe4 dxe4 11.Qxd7+ Kxd7 12.0-0-0+ Black cannot save the e4 pawn.
10.Qxd7+ Kxd7 11.0-0-0+ Kc6!?
Pushing the king ahead of its pawns in the late opening/early middlegame is rarely without risk, even with queens off the board, and here it involves a positional pawn sacrifice.
12.f3 Be7
Not 12...exf3?? 13.Bxf3+ Kb6 11.Be3+ (the immediate 11.Rd7 is also good) Bc5!? (this is best, according to the engines) 12.Bxd5+ Kxc5 13.Rd7 etc.
13.fxe4 Bg6
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| How would you assess this middlegame? |
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White is a pawn up but has tripled e pawns, and both players' bishops have limited scope with no good-looking pawn-breaks. Komodo14.1 for quite some time reckons White is winning, but comes to agree with Stockfish15.1 that White 'only' has the upper hand.
14.Rd3 b6 15.Rhd1 Rhd8 16.Bf3 Kb7 17.c4 Rac8
This is so ...c6 or ...c5 can be played, as right now 17...c6??, for example, loses to the simple 18.Rd7+.
18.Kc2 a5 19.a3 a4!?
This pawn could prove weak but it severely hampers White's chances of a successful queenside pawn-advance.
20.h4 h5 21.h6 Bh7 22.Rd7?!
This allows simplification that almost certainly favours Black. The engines suggest something like 22.g4 c6 23.Kc3 Kc7 24.Rg1 Bc5 25.Rg2 g5!? 26.hxg6 Bxg6 27.Rh2 b5!? 28.Rxh6, after which White is two pawns up. However following 28...Rb8 29.Rh1 b4+ 30.axb4 Rxb4 31.Rhd1 Rdb8!? 32.Rd7+ Kc8 33.Rd8+ Kb7 34.Rxb8 Kxb8 it is not clear White can make progress (Stockfish15.1 calls the position equal, and although Komodo14.1 gives White the upper hand, this assessment may be more-or-less on material considerations alone).
22...Rxd7 23.Rxd7 Re8 24.Kc3 Kc6 25.Rd1 Ra8 26.g4 Ra5 27.Rg1 Bg5?!
Probably better is 27...Kd7 28.g5 hxg5 29.Bxg5 g6, eg 30.Bxe7 Kxe7 31.Kd4 gxh5 32.Bxh5 Ra8 33.Rg7 c5+ 34.Ke3 Bg8, after which Black may well be holding.
28.Bxg5 hxg5
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| What should White play? |
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29.Kd4
The engines give 29.Rd1!, eg 29...Rxe5 30.Rd4 f6 31.Kd3 b5 (quiet moves allow 32.Rd8) 32.cxb5+ (32.Rd8?! allows counterplay with 32...Kc5) 32.cxb5+ Rxb5 33.Rxa4 Rb8 34.Ra6+ Kd7 35.b4, after which the white queenside pawns are very strong.
29...Ra8 30.h6?!
This allows complete equality, according to the engines. One line suggested by them runs 30.Rc1 Rd8+ 31.Kc3 Kc5 32.e3 Rd7, although White seems unable to make progress.
30...gxh6 31.Rh1 Rd8+ 32.Kc3 Bg6 33.Rxh6 Kc5 34.e3 c6 35.Rh2 b5 36.cxb5 cxb5 37.Rh1 Kb6 38.b3!?
A last try, but it leads to nothing.
38...axb3 39.Rb1 Rc8+ 40.Kd3 Rd8+ 41.Kc3 Rc8+ 42.Kd3 Rd8+ 43.Kc3 ½–½
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