CVT_43.pdf

training

43 | February 25 n 2012

let’s improve your chess

More from the Bundesliga

After my exciting battle with Vachier-Lagrave (which we looked at in the

previous two issues) I had to play another dangerous young player -

Parimarjan Negi. And again, it was fun!

giri’s grab bag

By GM Anish Giri

Giri,A (2722) - Negi,P (2631)

Bundesliga (Emsdetten) 05.02.2012

10.0–0

I spent an enormous amount of time here

trying to find the most exact way of meeting

f5. In the end I was happy with my choice,

as simple moves are usually the good ones.

14.£d2!? feels too subtle, while 14.¥d2 is too

primitive.

14...f5 15.¥b2

XIIIIIIIIY

9-TR-+-TRK+0

9+-ZPQSN-VLP0

9P+NZPL+P+0

9+P+NZPP+-0

9-ZPP+-+-+0

9ZP-+PZP-ZPP0

9-VL-+NZPLMK0

9+R+Q+R+-0

XIIIIIIIIY

15...a5!

During the game I wasn ’ t sure whether opening

the a-file was in somebody ’ s favour, but now

it seems to me that it ’ s a good way for Black

to get rid of his (slightly and hypothetically, but

still) weak pawn on a6.

16.¥c3!?

I didn ’ t see another comfortable way of

protecting the b4–pawn. 16.£d2 looks better,

but unfortunately Black has the simple solution

- 16...axb4 17.axb4 bxc4 18.dxc4 ¥xd5!? and

now in order not to lose the b4–pawn I have to

recapture on d5 with a piece (18...e4 19.¥xg7

¢xg7 20.f3) 19.¥xd5+ ¤xd5 20.£xd5+ ¢h8

and Black is fine.

16...axb4 17.axb4 ¤c8!?

An interesting idea that came as an unpleasant

surprise to me. For a short while I even

panicked as ¤d8 c6 seemed like a big threat.

After some time, though, I convinced myself

that White just can ’ t be worse.

[To be continued next week!]

XIIIIIIIIY

9-TRLWQ-TRK+0

9+PZP-SNPVLP0

9P+NZP-+P+0

9+-+-ZP-+-0

9-ZPP+-+-+0

9+-SNPZP-ZP-0

9P+-+NZPLZP0

9+RVLQ+RMK-0

XIIIIIIIIY

10...¥g4?!

This struck me as a bad move, however you

look at it. Not only does it allow the tactics

with b5!, but I was also happy to get in h3

¢h2, especially now Black has lost a tempo.

10...¥e6 was simpler and better. 11.¤d5 £d7

and I don ’ t think White has achieved much,

though the game ’ s only just beginning. An

important nuance is that ¥h3 isn ’ t a threat, as

the c7–pawn will be hanging.

11.h3?!

A normal move, but the tempting b5 was

obviously stronger. 11.b5! was a nice resource.

I ’ d seen it, of course, but I misevaluated the

ensuing position - 11...axb5 12.cxb5 ¤a5

13.£a4! This simple double attack is the point

of the otherwise apositional b5. 13...¥xe2

14.¤xe2. Now I was thinking that after 14...¦a8

15.¥d2 d5! Black should be fine thanks to his

centre, but in fact I have nice pressure and the

knight on a5 is out of the game. 16.£c2 b6

17.¦fc1 ¦a7 18.a4.

11...¥e6 12.¤d5 £d7 13.¢h2 b5!

It ’ s nice to interact with White ’ s pawn structure

a bit. Now Black is always kind of threatening

f5 followed by bxc4 and e4, shutting out the

g2–bishop.

14.a3

1.c4

Parimarjan and I know each other very well,

but within two moves we ’ d managed to step

away from any preparation whatsoever.

1...e5 2.g3 ¤c6

Deciding to go for the real English Opening,

the one where all the pieces stay on the board

for the first 20 moves.

3.¥g2 g6 4.¤c3 ¥g7 5.d3 ¤ge7 6.¦b1

There are too many opening move-order

nuances, and I must say we were both

choosing pretty randomly. But, in general, I

wanted to keep some options for my kingside

knight.

6...0–0 7.b4 a6!?

An interesting way of stopping the pawn

advance. If I now try to continue with the logical

a4 I may have to make certain positional

concessions after a6–a5!

8.e3

8.a4 a5! 9.b5 ¤b4 10.¥a3 c5! with the point that

now after 11.bxc6 bxc6 I can ’ t really take the

pawn. 12.¥xb4 axb4 13.¦xb4 £a5 14.¦b3 d5.

8...¦b8

I didn ’ t think this move was needed yet. But

then again, it gives Black some options with

b7–b5!?.

9.¤ge2 d6

Not the most principled move. 9...b5!? worried

me somewhat. Now I was scared of bxc4 dxc4

f5! followed by e4, shutting in my bishop, so I

was intending the somewhat strange 10.cxb5

(10.a3 bxc4 11.dxc4 f5 12.0–0 e4) 10...axb5

11.a4 but it ’ s clear that White can ’ t have much

- 11...bxa4 12.b5 ¤a7 13.£xa4 ¥b7! 14.¥xb7

¦xb7 15.0–0 ¤ac8 16.¥a3 and it feels alright

for Black, as his structure is excellent.



1 of 8

training let’s improve your chess

43 | February 25 n 2012

Sipke’s steel king

Sipke Ernst played in an extremely risky manner at Tata. He had to pay

for that with a bunch of losses, but he did manage to beat the tournament

winner in grand style. Right from the start both kings were in danger.

guess the move

By IM Merijn van Delft

Ernst,S (2606) - Harikrishna,P (2665)

Tata Steel (Wijk aan Zee), 27.01.2012

slow and allows Black to counter through the

middle: 14...hxg5 15.hxg5 ¤xc3 16.bxc3 e5!

with powerful play, therefore no points. After

12.£c2 Black ignores the pressure against e4

with 12...¤c6! creating strong counterpressure

on d4, therefore no points.

12...¤c6

Opening the h-file with 12...hxg5 13.hxg5

¤xg5 14.¤e5 is pretty suicidal. Black should,

however, consider including 12...cxd4 13.exd4.

13.gxh6 £f6!

XIIIIIIIIY

9R+LTR-+K+0

9ZPP+-+PZP-0

9-+N+PWQ-ZP0

9+-ZPP+-+-0

9-+PZPN+-ZP0

9+-SN-ZPN+-0

9PZP-+-ZP-+0

9+-TRQMKL+R0

XIIIIIIIIY

16...e5 runs into 17.£h5! and the presence of

the g-pawn can be felt.

XIIIIIIIIY

9R+LTR-+K+0

9ZPP+-+PZP-0

9-+N+P+-WQ0

9+-+-+-+-0

9-+PSNP+-ZP0

9+-+-ZP-+-0

9PZP-+-ZP-+0

9+-TRQMKL+R0

XIIIIIIIIY

Question 3

Would you play:

A) 17.£a4 to unpin the white ¤ and attack the

black ¤;

B) 17.£c2 to unpin the white ¤ while attacking

e4;

C) 17.¦g1 to energise the far-advanced pawn

on g7.

1.d4 ¤f6 2.c4 e6 3.¤f3 d5 4.¤c3 ¥e7 5.¥g5

h6 6.¥h4 0–0 7.e3 ¤e4 8.¥xe7 £xe7 9.¦c1

c6 10.h4!?

Aronian ’ s attacking idea in the Queen's Gambit.

10...¦d8

10...¤d7 11.g4 e5 12.cxd5 ¤xc3 13.¦xc3 cxd5

14.g5 h5 15.¥b5 gave White the upper hand in

the stem game Aronian-Harikrishna, Ningbo

2011.

11.g4 c5!

Black answers the wing attack in classical

fashion by countering in the centre.

XIIIIIIIIY

9RSNLTR-+K+0

9ZPP+-WQPZP-0

9-+-+P+-ZP0

9+-ZPP+-+-0

9-+PZPN+PZP0

9+-SN-ZPN+-0

9PZP-+-ZP-+0

9+-TRQMKL+R0

XIIIIIIIIY

Question 1

Would you play:

A) 12.£c2 to step away from the d-file and

question the black ¤;

B) 12.¦g1 to prepare to advance the g-pawn

further;

C) 12.g5 to keep pushing the attack forward

without loss of time.

17.¦g1!

Black ’ s counterplay was becoming quite

serious, so it was time to remind him of the

pawn on g7, 5 points. 17.£c2 ¤xd4 18.exd4

¦xd4 provides Black with enough counterplay,

therefore no points. 17.£a4?? fails to

17...¤xd4 since c1 is hanging, so no points.

17...¤xd4

This time 17...e5 is refuted by 18.¤xc6! ¦xd1+

19.¦xd1 and the dangerous g-pawn will prove

decisive.

18.exd4 e3

18...¦xd4 19.£xd4 £xc1+ 20.¢e2 and soon

Black will run out of checks.

Question 2

Would you play:

A) 14.¥d3 to start bringing more pieces into

play;

B) 14.¦g1 to start mobilising the forces along

the g-file;

C) 14.hxg7 to remove another black pawn.

14.hxg7!

Even though Black ’ s ¢ is safely hiding behind

the white g-pawn, it ’ ll never feel entirely

safe again, 5 points. 14.¦g1 £xh6 doesn ’ t

really worry Black, so no points. 14.¥d3 cxd4

15.exd4 £xh6 gives Black strong counterplay,

therefore no points.

14...cxd4 15.¤xe4 dxe4 16.¤xd4 £h6

12.g5!

Since the situation in the centre isn ’ t stable at

all it ’ s essential to keep attacking at full speed,

5 points. 12.¦g1 cxd4 13.exd4 ¤c6 14.g5 is too

(diagram)



In this game quiz you can get a maximum of 40 points by answering the eight questions that follow the eight diagram

positions. More important than points though, is that you enjoy playing over the game and learn a few new ideas. If you

feel that the quiz questions are generally too difficult for you, don ’ t be discouraged by the point system. You can simply

make a quick guess at the diagram positions and enjoy the beauty of the game.

2 of 8

2 of 3

training let’s improve your chess

43 | February 25 n 2012

guess the move

By IM Merijn van Delft

XIIIIIIIIY

9R+LTR-+K+0

9ZPP+-+PZP-0

9-+-+P+-WQ0

9+-+-+-+-0

9-+PZP-+-ZP0

9+-+-ZP-+-0

9PZP-+-ZP-+0

9+-TRQMKLTR-0

XIIIIIIIIY

21.£f3!

The most convincing way to fight for the

initiative, 5 points. 21.cxd5 exf2+ still allows

the perpetual, therefore no points. 21.¢f1 exf2

22.¦g5 is creative, but following 22...£xh4

23.£h5 £xh5 24.¦xh5 ¢xg7 the endgame is

approximately equal, therefore no points.

21...¥e6

21...exf2+ 22.¢xf2 £xh4+ 23.£g3 £d4+

24.¢f1 and White soon takes over.

22.£xe3 f4 23.£e5 ¦e8

23...dxc4 24.¦g6! wins.

XIIIIIIIIY

9R+-+R+K+0

9ZPP+-+-ZP-0

9-+-+L+-WQ0

9+-+PWQ-+-0

9-+P+-ZP-ZP0

9+-+L+-+-0

9PZP-+-ZP-+0

9+-TR-MK-TR-0

XIIIIIIIIY

Question 6

Would you play:

A) 24.¢d2 to step off the dangerous e-file;

B) 24.£g5 to take the queens off;

C) 24.¦g6 to fight all-out for the initiative.

C) 26.£f5 to leave both pawns hanging and

instead attack.

26.£f5!

Attacking is the only option in this position,

5 points. 26.c5 £xb2+ 27.¦c2 £b4+ 28.¢c1

¦e1+ leads to a perpetual. 26.¢c2 dxc4 is

actually winning for Black, so no points.

26...£xb2+

26...£xf2+ 27.¢c3 d4+ 28.¢b3 leaves Black

out of checks.

27.¢d1 ¦e4!

The only way to confuse the issue and keep

the game going.

28.cxd5 ¦ae8 29.¥xe4 £d4+ 30.¥d3 ¥h5+

31.¢c2 £a4+

31...£c5+ 32.¢b3 £b6+ 33.¢a4! £d4+

34.¢a3! and Black has run out of checks.

32.¢b2

Repeating moves, which White will do two

more times.

32...£b4+ 33.¢c2 £a4+ 34.¢d2 £a5+

35.¦c3 £xa2+ 36.¦c2 £a5+ 37.¦c3 £a2+

38.¥c2 ¦e2+ 39.¢d3 £a6+ 40.¦c4 £a3+

41.¦c3 £a6+ 42.¢d4 42...¦d2+

42...£b6+ 43.¢c4 £a6+ (43...£c7+ 44.¢d3!)

44.¢b3 £b5+ 45.¢a3 £a5+ 46.¢b2 £b4+

47.¢c1! and it ’ s all over.

43.¢e5!

The most convincing way is up!

43...£e2+

XIIIIIIIIY

9-+-+-+K+0

9ZPP+-+-ZP-0

9-+-+-+-+0

9+-+PMKQ+L0

9-+-+-ZP-ZP0

9+-TR-+-+-0

9-+LTRQZP-+0

9+-+-+-TR-0

XIIIIIIIIY

Question 8

Would you play:

A) 44.¦e3 to block the check;

B) 44.¥e4 to block the check;

C) 44.¢f6 to keep running up the board.

Question 4

Would you play:

A) 19.¦c3 to take control over e3 and activate

the second ¦;

B) 19.¥d3 to finally bring the last minor piece

into play;

C) 19.¦g3 to take control over e3 and block a

potential check from h4.

19.¥d3!

Adding the interesting tactic ¥h7 into the

equation, 5 points. 19.¦g3 and 19.¦c3 are both

decent options as well, both 3 points.

19...f5

19...exf2+ 20.¢xf2 £f + 21.£f3 £xd4+ 22.¢e2

leaves the black ¢ in grave danger.

20.d5!

An energetic follow-up, trying to open up

Black ’ s ¢ position.

20...exd5?

This may be the first and only mistake in this

adventurous game. Now it was time to open up

the white ¢ as well: 20...exf2+ 21.¢xf2 £xh4+

and since 22.¦g3? now simply loses to 22...

f4 Black seems to have a perpetual check in

hand.

24.¢d2!

This brave move aims to achieve the maximum,

5 points. 24.¦g6 forces an exchange of queens,

leaving White on top in the endgame, 3 points.

24.£g5 £xg5 25.¦xg5 dxc4 and Black is still in

the game, so no points.

24...¥f7

24...dxc4 25.¦xc4! is very strong and 24...f3+

25.£g5! gives White a winning ending.

25.£g5 £b6

XIIIIIIIIY

9R+-+R+K+0

9ZPP+-+LZP-0

9-WQ-+-+-+0

9+-+P+-WQ-0

9-+P+-ZP-ZP0

9+-+L+-+-0

9PZP-MK-ZP-+0

9+-TR-+-TR-0

XIIIIIIIIY

Question 7

Would you play:

A) 26.¢c2 to defend the b-pawn;

B) 26.c5 to defend the f-pawn;

XIIIIIIIIY

9R+LTR-+K+0

9ZPP+-+-ZP-0

9-+-+-+-WQ0

9+-+P+P+-0

9-+P+-+-ZP0

9+-+LZP-+-0

9PZP-+-ZP-+0

9+-TRQMK-TR-0

XIIIIIIIIY

Question 5

Would you play:

A) 21.cxd5 to further open up the position;

B) 21.¢f1 to create a safer spot for the ¢;

C) 21.£f3 to bring the £ into play.

44.¢f6!

5 points for finishing the game in style. 44.¥e4

and 44.¦e3 of course also win (4 points). 1–0

Conclusion: It doesn't happen very often, but

running your king up the board is certainly a

heroic way to win the game.



3 of 8

training let’s improve your chess

43 | February 25 n 2012

Dealing with g4–g5 in the Caro Kann (2): Take

Pushing the g-pawn is a very important strategy for White in the main line of

the Caro-Kann. In response, Black can either ignore, take or block the pawn.

Let’s see what happens if Black takes the pawn.

improve your play

By IM Thomas Willemze

Lundin,J (2314) - Arjun,B (2178)

Rilton Cup (Stockholm), 01.01.2012

21...¦e8

21...¦d8 22.¦dg1 ¥f8 followed by ¦d5 would

have been the most active defense.

22.£e3 ¥f8 23.£g3 £c7 24.¦g1

Threatening ¦xh6!

24...£f7 25.¥b4

Black is defenseless.

25...¦e7 26.¥xe7 £xe7 27.¦xh6+ 1–0

find the rest of the game in the PGN file.

Van Beek,A (2343) - Rasmussen,K (2486)

EU-ch (Plovdiv), 30.04.2008

XIIIIIIIIY

9R+-+-TRK+0

9ZPP+N+PZP-0

9-WQ-+PVL-ZP0

9+-ZP-+-+P0

9-+-ZP-+-+0

9+-VLQ+N+-0

9PZPP+-ZPP+0

9+K+R+-+R0

XIIIIIIIIY

Going for ¤xg4 isn ’ t the only way to eliminate

the g-pawn. Black can also wait until it reaches

g5 and take it with the h-pawn. That does,

however, clear the path for the white h-pawn,

promising White a dangerous attack. These

positions display a lot of similarities to the ones

we dealt with in CVT 42. Black will be crushed

if he doesn ’ t develop enough counterplay.

17.g4 ¦fd8 18.g5 cxd4!

18...hxg5 19.h6 cxd4 20.¤xg5! wouldn ’ t have

been an improvement for Black.

19.¥xd4 ¥xd4 20.£xd4 hxg5 21.£g4! ¤f6

A very risky move, since Black is clearly

outnumbered on the kingside. Involving

the £ in the defense with 21...£a5

22.¤xg5 ¤f6 23.£h4 ¦xd1+ 24.¦xd1 ¦d8

25.¦g1 £f5 would have been the correct way

to equalise.

22.£xg5 ¤e4 23.£e5 ¤xf2

We saw a similar sacrifice in the previous issue

of CVT. White simply ignores the double attack

on his ¦s and goes directly for the black ¢.

24.h6! f6 25.£g3 g5 26.¤xg5!

White has to act quickly, before he runs out of

pieces.

26...¤xh1 27.h7+ ¢g7 28.¤xe6+ ¢f7

29.¤xd8+ ¦xd8 30.¦xh1

The material balance has been restored and

Black is clearly lost.

30...£d4 31.a3 f5 32.£c7+ ¢g6 33.£xd8 1–0

1.d4 d5 2.¤c3 c6 3.e4 dxe4 4.¤xe4 ¥f5 5.¤g3

¥g6 6.h4 h6 7.¤f3 ¤d7 8.h5 ¥h7 9.¥d3

¥xd3 10.£xd3 e6 11.¥d2 ¤gf6 12. 0–0–0 ¥e7

13.¤e4 ¤xe4 14.£xe4 ¤f6 15.£d3 0–0

XIIIIIIIIY

9R+-WQ-TRK+0

9ZPP+-VLPZP-0

9-+P+PSN-ZP0

9+-+-+-+P0

9-+-ZP-+-+0

9+-+Q+N+-0

9PZPPVL-ZPP+0

9+-MKR+-+R0

XIIIIIIIIY

Ignoring the g-pawn is a dangerous strategy,

as we could see in CVT 42. As a result, White

often decides to take the § right away and try

to block the g-file. That isn ’ t, however, without

risk, and very precise play is required.

16.g4 ¤xg4 17.¦hg1 f5 18.£e2 £c8

Defending the extra § is a very risky strategy

in this kind of position, since Black can easily

end up in a very passive situation. Black

should be willing at any time to return the

extra § and head for a liquidation into a slightly

better ending in which he might be able to take

advantage of the potential weakness of h5. The

critical continuation would therefore have been

18...¢h7!, after which White usually refrains

from 19.£xe6, since 19...£d6 20.¦de1 £xe6

21.¦xe6 ¥f6 only leads to a level game. The

critical continuation is 19.¤e5!, with enough

activity to compensate for the §.

19.¤e5! ¤xe5 20.dxe5 ¢h7

Black is a tempo down compared to the 18...¢h7

19.¤e5 line and is already in serious trouble.

21.¦g6!

White ’ s strategy is clear. Once he ’ s put all his

heavy pieces on the g-file, his opponent will

have too little space to defend himself against

all kinds of winning combinations.

Nordin,E (1876) - Pedersen,H (2146)

Politiken Cup (Helsingor), 01.08.2011

XIIIIIIIIY

9R+-+-TRK+0

9+-WQNVLPZP-0

9-+P+PSN-ZP0

9ZPPZP-+-+P0

9-+-ZPN+-+0

9+-+Q+N+-0

9PZP-VL-ZPP+0

9+K+R+-+R0

XIIIIIIIIY

19.g4 ¤xg4

Black has no choice. Allowing g5 with a closed

centre is suicide.

20.¤h4

20.£e2 would have been the thematic way to

continue, just as we saw in the previous game.

20...f5 now runs into 21.¤d6 and (20...¤gf6

21.¦hg1 ¢h8 22.¤e5 gives White enough

compensation for the §.)

20...f5 21.¦dg1

21.¤g6! fxe4 22.¤xe7+ ¢f7 23.£e2 ¤xf2

24.£xf2+ ¢xe7 25.£g2 ¦f7 26.£xe4 and

again White has enough compensation due to

the unsafe black ¢.

21...¤df6 22.¤xf6+ ¥xf6 23.£e2 ¥xd4 24.f3

It wasn ’ t too late to keep the game balanced

with 24.£xe6+ £f7 25.£xf7+ ¦xf7 26.¤xf5

¦xf5 27.¦xg4 ¥xf2 28.¥xh6 ¦a7 29.¥c1.

24...£e5 25.¦g2 £xe2 26.¦xe2 ¤e5

26...¤f2! 27.¦h2 ¤d3 28.¦xe6 ¦f6! would

have led to a large advantage for Black. In the

game, Black reached an equal ending which

he managed to win quite convincingly. You can

4 of 8

training let’s improve your chess

43 | February 25 n 2012

further examples

By IM Thomas Willemze

Bitalzadeh - Khenkin

Cogas Energie (Almelo), 2004

XIIIIIIIIY

9R+-WQ-TRK+0

9ZPP+NVLPZP-0

9-+P+PSN-ZP0

9+-+-+-+P0

9-+-ZPN+-+0

9+-+Q+N+-0

9PZPPVL-ZPP+0

9+-MKR+-+R0

XIIIIIIIIY

We ’ ll start this section with two instructive examples of the ¤xg4 strategy. 14.g4 ¤xg4 15.¦hg1 f5 16.£b3.

16.£c4 was seen in Negi - Prakash, New Delhi 2009. The game continued 16...fxe4 (16...¦f7! 17.¤c3 ¤f8

18.¤e5 ¤xe5 19.dxe5 £c7 as in Sanal -Grigore, Ankara 2010 would have been an improvement for Black.)

17.£xe6+ ¦f7 18.¦xg4 exf3 (18...¥f8 19.¤e5 ¤xe5 20.dxe5 would also have led to a large advantage for White,

but the text move simply loses.) 19.¦xg7+! ¢xg7 20.£xh6+ ¢g8 21.¦g1+ and White is winning. 21...¥g5 22.¥xg5

(22.¦xg5+!) 22...¦g7 23.£xg7+ ¢xg7 24.¥xd8+ ¢h6 25.¥g5+ ¢xh5 26.¥e3, with a winning advantage. 16...¦f7

An important prophylactic move and one well worth remembering. The ¦ covers the 7th rank, making sure £xe6

no longer comes with check and, most importantly, clears the f8–square for the ¤. 17.¤g3 17.¤c3 , keeping

the g-file for the ¦, would have been a better square for the ¤. 17.£xe6 loses a piece after 17...¤f8 18.£b3

fxe4. 17...¤f8 18.¤e5 ¤xe5 19.dxe5 £d5! 20.c4 £xe5 21.¢b1 Going all-in. However, Black has little to fear

due to his centralised pieces and firm grip on the centre. 21...¦d8 22.¦de1 £c7 23.¥xh6 gxh6 24.¤xf5+ ¢h7

25.¤xe7 £xe7 26.£g3 £g5 0–1

V.Gurevich - Niklasch

BL2–Süd (Germany), 2011

XIIIIIIIIY

9R+-+R+K+0

9ZPP+NWQPZP-0

9-+-+PSN-ZP0

9+-ZP-+-+P0

9-+-ZP-+-+0

9+-+-+N+-0

9PZPPVLQZPP+0

9+-MKRTR-+-0

XIIIIIIIIY

17.g4 ¤xg4! The right continuation! Blocking the pawn with 17...¤h7 was the alternative. That concept will

be the subject of CVT 44. However, it doesn ’ t work very well in this position since Black will be unable to

recapture with a piece. For instance 18.¦g1 ¤g5 19.¤xg5 hxg5 20.dxc5 ¤xc5 21.f4 would give White a strong

initiative. 18.¦g1 f5 The standard continuation, and this time simply the only move. 19.¤e5! We ’ ve seen this

concept before. Black will keep his extra §, but the open g-file and the strong g6–square promise White sufficient

compensation. 19...¤gxe5 20.dxe5 ¢h7 21.¦g3 ¦f8 22.¦dg1 White ’ s play is very straightforward and strong.

An interesting alternative would have been 22.¥a5 b6 , preventing ¥c7–d6, 23.¥c3 , followed by ¦gd3. 22...¦f7

23.¦g6 ¦e8 24.f3 £f8 Black can ’ t move a muscle, but is still hanging on since there isn ’ t yet a concrete threat.

25.¥f4 ¤b6 26.c4 ¦d7 27.b3! The poor ¤ is completely dominated. 27...¤c8 28.£e3! a6 These positions are

very hard to defend for Black. One small inaccuracy and his whole position collapses. 28...¦f7! was required,

after which White still has to find a way in. 29.¥xh6! gxh6 30.¦f6! ¦f7 31.¦gg6 ¦xf6 32.exf6 ¤e7 33.¦g7+ 1–0

In the two final examples Black waits an extra move before he takes the g-pawn. 14...¦e8 Defending e7 and

preventing ¤f5. 14...a5 is a popular alternative, but it takes a lot of courage since White might go for the double-

edged 15.¤f5 ¥b4 16.¤xh6+. 15.¤e5 ¥d6 16.¤e4 ¤xe4 17.£xe4 £e7 18.g4 There it is. 18...¦ad8 19.g5 hxg5

20.¥xg5 A strange move. I can ’ t really see the problem if Black simply takes the ¥. 20.£g4 would have been a

normal continuation, giving White enough compensation for the §. 20...f6 Again, I don ’ t really see what could be

wrong with 20...£xg5+ 21.f4 £f5, but let ’ s just move on to the game, which is quite instructive. 21.¤xd7 £xd7

22.¥e3 The open g-file and the dangerous h-pawn provide White with enough compensation for the §. 22...£f7

23.h6 g6 24.h7+ 24.¦g1! ¢h7 25.f4 followed by ¦d2–g2 would have been more precise. 24...¢h8 25.¦g1 g5

26.¢b1 ¥e7 27.¥c1 f5 Now Black manages to set his pawn mass in motion, which will make it easier for him

to defend. 28.£e2 f4 29.f3 £f5 30.b3 ¥f6 31.¥b2 ¦d7 32.¦h1 ¦xh7 33.¦xh7+ ¢xh7 34.¦h1+ ¢g6 35.¦e1

¢f7 36.£c4 £b5 37.£c3 ¦d8 38.£d2 £d5 Black is in complete control. 39.¦h1 £xf3 40.¦h7+ ¢g6 41.¦xb7

£h1+ 42.¥c1 ¦xd4 0–1

Sareen - Mchedlishvili

United Insurance (Dhaka), 2009

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This is the exact same position we saw in the first main game, which didn ’ t end very well for Black. However,

he also has a different strategy at his disposal. 16...£d5 17.g5 £xa2 17...hxg5 is less precise, since it doesn ’ t

force White to play c3 and gives him an extra tempo. In the game Chernobai - Vokarev, Dagomys 2009, White

established a very dangerous initiative after 18.¥xg5 £xa2 19.h6 g6 20.¦dg1. 18.c3 hxg5 Ignoring the § with

18...¤g4 was very dangerous in Spasov - Debray, Cappelle op 2011. I discussed this game in the previous issue

of CVT and I pointed out 18...hxg5 as a more promising alternative. Let ’ s take a closer look at it. 19.¥xg5 a5

20.h6 g6 21.¤e5 21.h7+! would have been an improvement, giving the black ¢ less breathing space compared

to the game. 21...¢h7! 22.¦dg1 a4 23.¥xf6 a3 24.bxa3 24.£b1 would have kept the game level after 24...

axb2+ 25.¢c2 ¥xf6 26.£xa2 ¦xa2 27.¤d7 ¥e7 28.¤xf8+ ¥xf8 29.¦b1. 24...¥xf6 25.¤xf7 This sacrifice doesn ’ t

work. Black would, however, also be better after 25.¤d7 ¥e7! 26.¤xf8+ ¥xf8. 25...¦g8 26.f4 ¦xa3 27.£c2

£d5 28.£b2 ¦b3 29.£c2 b5 30.¦h5 £c4 31.¦c5 £a4 32.¢d2 b4 33.¦a1 £xa1 34.£xb3 ¦a8 35.cxb4 ¦a3

36.£xe6 £xd4+ 37.¢e2 £d3+ 0–1

Kobalia - Popov

EU-ch (Rijeka), 2010

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