Hendrik Esman (1541) - Spanton (1942)
English Symmetrical
1.c4 c5 2.g3 Nc6 3.Bg2 g6 4.Nc3 Bg7 5.b3!?
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| 5.b3 is seventh-most popular in ChessBase's 2026 Mega database, the main move being 5.Nf3 |
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5...d6 6.Bb2 e5
This is Dragon1's top choice, albeit marginally, but is not liked by Stockfish18, presumably because of the hole created at d5.
7.d3 Nge7 8.Qd2!?
This is the engines' top choice, at least for a while, although they fluctuate with other moves, Stockfish18 liking 8.h4!?, and Dragon1 suggesting 8.e3!?
8...0-0 9.Nf3
Lev Psakhis (2480) - Yevgeniy Vladimirov (2445), USSR Championship (Vilnius) 1978, went 9.0-0-0 Be6 10.f4!? d5 11.cxd5 Nxd5 12.Nh3 Nb4 13.Bxd5 Bxd5 14.Nxd5 Qxd5 1539.Kb1 a5, with the upper hand for Black, according to the engines (0-1, 39 moves).
9...Rb8 10.0-0
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| Now both sides have castled, how would you assess the position? |
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White has a slight lead in development; Black has more space in the centre. The engines call the position equal, satisfied, it seems, that Black can deal with the consequences of having a hole at d5.
10...a6 11.Ne1!?
The start of a common manoeuvre when Black, as here, has adopted a Botvinnik formation. The white king's knight heads via c2 and e3 for d5. When White uses the same Botvinnik setup, Black often has a manoeuvre in which the king's knight goes via e8, c7 and e6 to d4.
11...b5 12.Nc2 b4 13.Nd5 Nxd5 14.Bxd5 Nd4
The engines slightly prefer 14...Ne7, attacking White's light-square bishop.
15.Nxd4 exd4 16.a3 a5 17.a4?!
On 17.axb4 I intended 17...Rxb4, although I confess I had not considered the engines' top reply, 18.Bc1!? The text is problematic in that, with the queenside locked, all attention switches to the kingside, where, admittedly, White has a well-placed bishop, but Black has more space.
17...Bg4 18.e4?!
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| 18.e4?! is not as bad as it may at first appear, but it puts the onus on White to find strong moves |
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18...Bf3 19.h3?
White more-or-less had to play 19.Qf4!?, when the engines reckon 19...Be2 20.f3!? Bxf1 21.Rxf1 is completely equal, the point presumably being that White's light-square bishop is as good as either black rook, and anyway it is not easy for Black to open lines for the rooks. The engines suggest Black meets 19.Qf4!? with 19...Qf6!?, when they reckon 20.Qxf6 Bxf6 favours Black, and so suggest 20.Rae1 (Stockfish18) or 20.Bc1!? (Dragon1), but again reckon Black is better.
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| Black to play and gain what the engines agree is a winning position |
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19...g5!
This takes the f4 square away from White's queen (and also stops the queen going to h6 after Black plays ...Be5), as well as inhibiting h4, and preparing a possible ...g4. Having said that, Stockfish18 reckons the immediate 19...Be5 is also very strong, and Dragon1, after for a long time ranking 19...Qd7 as its second-best move, comes to at least partly concur with its fellow engine.
20.Rae1
It seems White has no defence, eg 20.Kh2 Be5 21.Rg1 Kh8 22.Bc1 h6 23.Qe1 Qd7 24.Ra2 Rg8 leaves White without any useful move (the engines' top two choices are 25.Rg2!? and 25.Re2!?, in each case offering the exchange), allowing Black to build up and prepare a decisive breakthrough at leisure.
20...Be5 21.Bc1 h6 22.h4?
Better is 22.Kh2, but play would proceed in a similar way to the previous note.
22...Qd7! 23.Kh2 Qg4 0-1
My Battersea Season 2026-7
DATE.....EVENT...........................COL..RATING..OPP'S RATING..SCORE..SEASON PERF
29/9/26 Club Championship W 1953 1411 1 *
1/10/26 Central London League W 1942 2094 = 2094
5/10/26 London League B 1942 2042 = 2068
6/10/26 Club Championship B 1942 1541 1 +
*I am ignoring my win against a 1411 as it counts as an 1811 performance, which, unless I have a very bad season, would lower my season's rating performance, despite me winning.
+I am ignoring my win against a 1541 as it counts as a 1941 performance, which, at least for now, would lower my season's rating performance, despite me winning.
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