Kumar Suresh (2100) - Spanton (1954)
Maróczy Bind
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 g6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nc6 5.c4 Géza Maróczy
One of the main points of Black's Accelerated Dragon move-order is to try to get in the move ...d5 without, as in normal Dragons, spending a tempo on ...d6. The text, which prevents that, is the top choice of Stockfish17 and Dragon1, and scores 57% in ChessBase's 2025 Mega database, eight percentage points more than the commonest continuation 5.Nc3.
5...Bg7 6.Be3 Nf6 7.Nc3 d6 8.Be2 0-0 9.0-0 Bd7
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| This position seems to have first been reached in Rudolf Swiderski - Géza Maróczy, Monte Carlo 1904 |
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Maróczy won that game, but was impressed enough by White's structure to write in praise of it, although, according to Wikipedia, he never played the Bind as White (a cursory search of Mega25 alone shows this to be untrue - he used it just two years after Monte Carlo to beat the German-American master Hermann Voigt).10.Rc1
Swiderski - Maróczy went 10.h3 Nxd4 11.Bxd4 Bc6 12.Qd3 Nd7!? 13.Bxg7 Kxg7 14.b4!? b6, with the upper hand for White, according to the engines (but 0-1, 48 moves).The text is second in popularity in Mega25 to 10.Qd2.
10...Nxd4 11.Bxd4 Bc6 12.f3 a5!?
This gives up the b5 square, in that a white piece can no longer be prevented from landing on it, but of more importance, Black hopes, is securing of the c5 square for the black king's knight.
13.b3 Nd7!?
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| Mega25 has 346 examples of this position - how should White proceed? |
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14.Kh1
According to Russian-Dutch grandmaster Sergei Tiviakov, an exchange of dark-square bishops nearly always favours Black in the Maróczy Bind, despite weakening the position of black's king. The commonest move in Mega25 is 14.Be3, but 14.Bxg7 has been played by grandmasters, and is easily the second-most popular move.
14...Bxd4 15.Qxd4 Qb6!? 16.Qxb6!?
White's extra space, and the dark-square weaknesses around Black's king, might make avoiding a trade of queens seem attractive, but after 16.Qd2 the engines reckon 16...a4 is good for Black.
On making his move, KS pressed the clock and offered a draw.
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| How would you assess the position? |
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After ...
16...Nxb6
... Black's knight has been diverted from the c5 outpost, but with queens gone the weaknesses around Black's king are largely irrelevant, and Black has the better bishop, albeit one that does not have much scope on a board crowded with pawns. However, White still has a space advantage - Black does not seem near to breaking the Bind - and the engines reckon White has the better part of equality.
... Black's knight has been diverted from the c5 outpost, but with queens gone the weaknesses around Black's king are largely irrelevant, and Black has the better bishop, albeit one that does not have much scope on a board crowded with pawns. However, White still has a space advantage - Black does not seem near to breaking the Bind - and the engines reckon White has the better part of equality.
17.Nd5!? Bxd5 18.cxd5 Rfc8
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| The trade on d5 has left Black with a good knight against a bad bishop, but the bishop has a little more freedom than it had previously, and a bishop often cooperates with rooks better than a knight manages |
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19.Kg1 Rxc1!?
Bearing in mind the last note, it might seem desirable to force rooks off, but this case may be an exception as in the resulting position White's king will be more active, and White will find it relatively easy to get white pawns off light squares, freeing the bishop and gaining space.
20.Rxc1 Rc8 21.Rxc8+ Nxc8 22.Kf2 g5!?
This is Stockfish17's top choice; Dragon1 prefers pushing the e pawn (one square or two).
23.Ke3 Kg7 24.g3 e5?!
This encourages an opening of the position, favouring the bishop.
25.dxe6 fxe6 26.f4
Even stronger, according to the engines, is 26.Kd4 (as will become apparent).
26...gxf4+ 27.gxf4 Kf6?!
Allowing White to reach a position that could have arisen after 26.Kd4. Instead 27...e5!? equalises (Stockfish17) or leaves White with only a slight edge (Dragon1), one point being 28.f5 can be met by 28...d5!? 29.exd5 Nd6.
28.Kd4 b6 29.Kc4 Na7 30.a3 Nc6 ½–½
Naturally not 31.Kb6?? Nd4+ etc, but the engines reckon White is winning, one line running 31.a4 Na7 32.Bg4 h6 33.h3!? Ke7 34.f5 exf5 35.exf5 Nc6 36.Kb5 Nd4+ 37.Kxb5 Nxb3 38.Bd1 Nd4 39.Kxa5 Nxf5 40.Kb6, after which Black seems helpless to stop White's passed pawn.
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