Analysis of Parparov #1 in PGN Notation
Knob Nose
[Event "Parparov Game #1"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "????.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "White"]
[Black "Black"]
[Result "*"]
[ECO "B23"]
[Annotator "Fritz 7 (240s)"]
[PlyCount "77"]
[EventDate "2001.12.07"]
{B23: Closed Sicilian: Lines without g3
} 1. e4 c5 2. Nc3 {An interesting idea.
We discussed this move recently here at RGCA but only after 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3
e6.
The difference is that here Black is not obliged to play e6. By far, 2.Nf3
is
the most popular move. Incidentally, there are more than 30,000 games in
Megabase 2001 with the position after this move.} 2... Nc6 {
is almost always played.} 3. Nge2 {is a good move and could easily be the
best
move, too. Most popular is 3.g3 but 3.Nf3 seems to have had the best
performance. Also played with success is 3.f4.} 3... e6 {is another OK
move.
Also popular and perhaps better are 3...d6 and 3...g6. Interesting moves
are
3...Qb6, 3...a6 and 3...Nd4 although they are relatively untested. Notice
that the game position differs from the one we discussed here at RGCA
recently
in that White's knight is on e2 instead of f3.} 4. g3 {is another good move.
Equally popular is 4.d4. Interested relatively untested moves are 4.Ng3 and
4.
f4.} 4... d5 {is likely the best move. Also played a lot is 4...Nf6
although
it may not be as good as the move played. The third most popular move is
4...
d6 although rarely played. Interesting relatively untested moves include
4...
h5, 4...Be7, and 4...d6. At this point in the game, the character of the
ensuing positional struggle for control of the centre is taking shape.
White
will use his fianchettoed bishop in an attempt to control e4 and d5. How
White intends to compete for control of d4 and e5 is not completely clear
yet.}
5. exd5 {is almost always played. This adds scope for White's KB by
vacating
the e4 square, but it also results in a position where White does not occupy
the centre with a pawn. This adds a hypermodern flavor to White's plan. The
relatively untested 5.Bg2 may be the best move. It would leave a white pawn
in the centre.} 5... exd5 6. Bg2 {is, by far, the most popular move.
However,
6.d3 has performed better in practice but is relatively untested.} 6... d4 {
may be the strongest move. 6...Nf6 is also quite popular. The move played
puts White's plan to the test immediately.} 7. Nd5 {must be playable or
White's entire plan may be a failure. The plan with repositioning the QN
via
Nb1, d3 and Nd2 or Na3 seems much too slow.} 7... Nge7 {could be the best
move.
The relatively untested move, 7...Nce7, occurred in one game and may, or may
not, be better than the move played. Also worth consideration are 7...Nf6
and
7...Bd6.} 8. Nef4 {is also the usual move. So far, we are just repeating an
opening already in the literature.} 8... Nxd5 9. Nxd5 Bd6 {
is the usual move. Also played occasionally is 9...Be6.} 10. d3 {is White's
rst possibly questionable move, although the game is still equal after this
move. More commonly played is 10.O-O. {{Need to study this to see if
10.O-O
is really better}}} 10... O-O 11. O-O Ne7 {is either a "subtle innovation"
or
a mistake. Although this move has been played before in master practice, it
performed badly. Far more popular and much better are 11...Re8 (preferred)
and 11...Be6. Again, however, the game remains equal after the move
played.} (
11... Be6 12. Qh5 f6 13. Re1 Bf7 14. Qh3 Qc8 15. Qh4 Ne5 16. Bf4 Qd8 17. Be4
Ng6 18. Bxg6 Bxg6 19. Bxd6 Qxd6 20. Ne7+ Kf7 21. Re2 Rfe8 22. Rae1 Qd7 23.
b3
b5 24. f4 Bf5 25. Qh5+ Bg6 26. Qf3 {
Zhidkov,V-Furman,S/Baku 1972/URS-ch/0-1 (37)}) (11... Re8 12. Bf4 Bxf4 13.
Nxf4
Qd6 14. Qh5 Re5 15. Rae1 Rxh5 16. Re8+ Qf8 17. Rxf8+ Kxf8 18. Nxh5 Bd7 19.
Re1
Re8 20. Rxe8+ Bxe8 21. a3 f6 22. Nf4 Ke7 23. Bxc6 Bxc6 24. Kf1 Bf3 25. Ke1
Kd6
26. Ne2 g5 27. Ng1 Bg4 28. Kd2 Ke5 29. Ke1 f5 30. f3 Bh5 31. Nh3 h6 32. f4+
Kf6
33. Nf2 Bf3 34. Kd2 b6 {1/2-1/2 Mueller,G-Braun,C/Passau 2000/CBM 76 ext
(34)})
12. Bg5 $146 {and finally we have exited opening theory. A move worth close
study here is 12.Qh5. Also interesting is 12.Nf4. 12.Nxe7 has also been
played.} (12. Nxe7+ Qxe7 13. Re1 Qc7 14. Bd5 Bd7 15. Qf3 Bc6 16. Bxc6 bxc6
17.
Bd2 Qd7 18. Re4 Rae8 19. Rae1 Rxe4 20. Qxe4 Rc8 21. Bf4 Bf8 22. b3 f5 23.
Qe2
g6 24. Qd2 Re8 25. Rxe8 Qxe8 26. Qa5 Qe7 27. Bb8 g5 28. Qxa7 Qxa7 29. Bxa7
Bd6
30. a4 Kf7 31. a5 Ke6 32. a6 Kd7 33. Bb6 Kc8 34. h3 g4 35. hxg4 fxg4 36. Kf1
Bf8 37. Ke2 Bd6 38. Kd2 h5 39. c3 Bxg3 40. fxg3 h4 41. gxh4 {
1-0 Krasenkow,M-Arias Rodriguez,S/Oviedo 1993/CBM 38 ext (41)}) (12. Qh5
Nxd5
13. Bxd5 Qc7 (13... Rb8 14. Re1 Qc7 15. Re4 Qd7 16. Bf4 Bxf4 17. Rxf4 Qe7
18.
Kf1 b6 19. Re1 Be6 20. Rxf7 Rxf7 21. Bxe6 Rbf8 22. Re4 h6 23. Bb3 Qb7 24.
Bd5
Qc7 25. Rf4 {1-0 Iskov,G-Engqvist,T/Lyngby 1988/TD (25)}) 14. Re1 Kh8 15.
Re4
f6 16. Bd2 g5 17. Re8 Bd7 18. Rxa8 Rxa8 19. h4 Bxg3 20. hxg5 Be5 21. f4 Bd6
22.
g6 Be8 23. Bf7 Kg7 24. Qxh7+ Kf8 25. g7+ {
1-0 Vallejo Pons,F-Paramos Dominguez,R/Oropesa del Mar 1996/EXT 98 (25)})
12...
h6 {At this point, White has a choice to make. He can keep his knight at
d5,
causing Black some troubles at least temporarily, or he can trade off his
knight but keep his two bishops. Apparently either option is viable.} 13.
Nxe7+ {is the option to keep the bishops.} (13. Bxe7 {
would be the option to keep the knight at d5.} 13... Bxe7 14. Qh5 Bd6 $11)
13... Bxe7 14. Bxe7 Qxe7 15. Re1 {Here, Black has to make a choice as to how
he wants to position his pieces for the coming battle. Essentially, Black
has
to chose between two viable battle plans. Each plan requires a different
positioning of Black's queen (and other pieces).} 15... Qd6 {
this move seems to presage an advance of Black's queenside pawns.} ({
On the other hand,} 15... Be6 {would allow Black to delay the decision as to
how to best deploy his pieces until seeing what White intends to do.} {
For example, the game might proceed} 16. Qh5 Rac8 {to defend the c5 pawn.}
17.
Bh3 $11 {taking advantage of the fact that the e6 bishop is pinned.}) 16. b3
{
takes advantage of the fact that the b7 pawn is pinned. White plans to
control the white squares on the queenside to eliminate any possibility of
Black queening a pawn on the queenside. White will try to control c4.} (16.
Qh5 {is an alternative development concept for White. In this case, the
Black
queen at d6 defends the c5 pawn.} 16... Be6 $11 {Fritz 7:} 17. Re2 $11 ({
Note that capture of the b7 pawn would be answered by Black's capture of the
b2 pawn with advantage to Black due to the resulting activity of Black's b2
rook.} 17. Bxb7 $2 Rab8 $15 {The game might proceed} 18. Qf3 Qc7 19. Bd5
Bxd5
20. Qxd5 Rxb2 $15) 17... Rae8 18. Rae1 b6 19. Bd5 Qd7 20. Bxe6 Rxe6 21. Rxe6
fxe6 22. Qg4 Rf6 23. Re5 a6 {0.00/18}) 16... Rb8 17. Qe2 Be6 18. Qe5 {
With this and White's last move, White demonstrates his desire to get the
queens off the board. White hopes to trade down to what he hopes will be a
superior rook and minor piece endgame. Unfortunately, as the following
analyses show, exchanging queens was a bad idea forWhite!} 18... Rfd8 {
essentially gives White a chance to change his mind about trading queens.
Giving White this opportunity is, indeed, a poor idea. While the queens are
on the board, Black cannot seriously hope to win the game. But as the
following analyses show, with the queens off, Black gets a definite
advantage.}
({The correct move for Black is to play} 18... Qxe5 {which keeps White
forevermore unable to change his mind. With this move, the queens are gone
and White is in trouble!} 19. Rxe5 b6 20. f4 (20. a4 Rfe8 $15) (20. Bc6 Rfc8
21. Bb5 Ra8 22. a4 a6 23. Bc4 Bxc4 24. dxc4 Rab8 25. a5 b5 26. cxb5 Rxb5 27.
h3
g6 $15) 20... Rfd8 21. Rae1 (21. f5 Bd7 22. Rae1 Kf8 23. g4 Re8 $15) 21...
Bd7
22. Kf2 (22. Re7 Kf8 $15 23. Bd5 $2 Be6 $17) 22... Kf8 23. Re7 (23. h3 Re8
24.
g4 Rxe5 25. fxe5 (25. Rxe5 Re8 26. Bd5 (26. Re4 b5 $15) (26. Rxe8+ Kxe8 $15)
26... Rxe5 27. fxe5 Ke7 $15) 25... Ke7 26. Be4 Rf8 $15) 23... a5 24. h3 h5
25.
a4 g6 26. R1e5 Be6 27. Rc7 Rd7 28. Rc6 Ke7 $15) 19. a4 {White sees no hurry
to
exchange queens. White's centralized queen is exercising a restraining
effect
on Black's game. Since Black did not exchange queens at the first
opportunity,
White seems to have decided to improve his position some until the queen
exchange either occurs or someone declines it.} (19. Qxd6 {
does not turn out well.} 19... Rxd6 20. Re5 b6 21. Rae1 Bd7 22. Re7 (22. f4
Re6
$15) 22... Kf8 $15) (19. Qe2 {
is not the correct way for White to change his mind about exchanging
queens.}
19... b5 $15) (19. Qh5 {is the correct way for White to change his mind
about
exchanging queens. In fact, White can obtain approximate equality with this
move, with Black only having a very slight advantage.} {Fritz 7:} 19... b6
20.
Re4 Bd5 21. Re5 Bxg2 22. Kxg2 Re8 23. Rae1 Rxe5 24. Rxe5 Qd7 25. a3
{-0.29/16}
{Fritz 7:} 25... a5 26. a4 Kf8 27. Kg1 Qd6 28. Qe2 Qc6 29. Qh5 Re8 30. Rxe8+
{
-0.19/20}) 19... a5 (19... Qxe5 {is no longer as good because White's last
move does contain a threat which was not present a move ago. White has
improved his position.} 20. Rxe5 b6 21. a5) 20. f4 (20. Qxd6 Rxd6 $15) 20...
b6
21. Re2 {seems have been played to encourage Black to exchange queens. This
turns out to have been a bad plan.} (21. f5 {may have been more consistent
with White's plan to continue improving his position.} {The game might
continue
} 21... Qxe5 22. Rxe5 Bd7 23. Rd5 g6 24. fxg6 fxg6 25. Re1 Bf5 26. Rde5 Kf8
27.
Bc6 Rd6 28. Bd5 Bh3 29. Bg2 $15) ({Still not good is} 21. Qxd6 Rxd6 $15)
21...
Qxe5 {best for the same reason as before. As long as White's queen is on
the
board, Black will have no chance of winning.} (21... Qd7 $11 {is an
interesting
alternative plan for Black which, however, is not as good as the one chosen.
Now that the queenside threats are gone, the open e-file becomes the most
dominant positional feature in the position. Unfortunately for White, the
move played cuts off the retreat of White's queen. Black can use this fact
to
successfully contest control of the e-file by gaining time at the White
queen's expense.} 22. Bf3 Re8 23. Qh5 Bf5 24. Rae1 Bg6 25. Rxe8+ Rxe8 26.
Rxe8+
Qxe8 27. Qd5 $11) 22. Rxe5 Kf8 {inaccurate.} (22... Bd7 {leading to lines
already considered, except for the slightly changed queenside pawn
structure.}
23. Rae1 $15) 23. Bc6 {has the merit of controlling the e8 square.} (23. f5
Bd7
$15) 23... Bd7 {may have been a hasty move. After the exchange on d7, it
will
take too much time for Black to contest the e-file.} (23... Rd6 {
would keep White playing to Black's tune.} 24. Bf3 $15 (24. Bb5 f6 $15) {
The game might continue} 24... Bd7 25. Rae1 Re8 $15) 24. Bxd7 $11 Rxd7 25.
Rae1
Rdd8 26. Kf2 Re8 27. Kf3 Rxe5 28. Rxe5 Rd8 29. Ke4 {This centralized king is
starting to look threatening! Black has failed to centralize his king. The
critical question is: "Can White penetrate into Black's position?"} 29...
Rd6
30. f5 g6 ({Another idea for Black would begin with} 30... g5 $11 {
The game might continue} 31. Kf3 ({White might also play} 31. h3 h5 32. f6
Rxf6
33. Rxg5 Rh6 34. Re5 Kg7 35. Kf4 Rf6+ $11) 31... h5 32. h3 (32. h4 f6 $11)
32... Rc6 33. Ke4 Rd6 $1 $11) 31. g4 ({Another try for White is} 31. Rd5 {
which apparently allows Black to just barely hold on and draw. But Black's
endgame is difficult.} 31... gxf5+ 32. Rxf5 Rg6 33. Re5 Kg7 (33... Rf6 34.
Kd5
Rf2 $11) (33... Rd6 $11) 34. Kd5 Kf8 (34... Kf6 $4 35. Kd6 $16) 35. Kc4 Rf6
36.
g4 Rd6 37. h3 Rf6 38. Kb5 Rd6 $11) 31... gxf5+ {
does not look appealing, but it may suffice.} ({Possibly better may be}
31...
g5 32. h3 Rd7 33. f6 Rd6 34. Kf5 Rd7 35. Re1 Rd5+ 36. Ke4 Rd6 $11) 32. gxf5
Kg7
$2 {appears to be the losing move. Allowing White's rook to become active
surely must be a mistake.} (32... Rc6 $5 {might hold the position.} {
The game might continue} 33. Kf4 (33. Rd5 Ke7 $11) (33. Kd5 Rf6 $11) 33...
Rd6
34. h3 Rf6 35. Re4 Rc6 36. Ke5 Kg7 37. h4 Kh7 38. h5 Kg7 39. f6+ Kf8 40. Kf5
Rc7 $11) 33. Re8 {and White's rook is active! Black's rook is tied to
defense.
} ({Allowing the move played and} 33. Rd5 {is what was wrong with Black's
last
move. If the Black king were on f8, it could move up to e7 to defend
Black's
rook and to keep White's rook restrained as the king on e7 would cover the
d7
and d8 squares.} 33... Rc6 $16) 33... Kf6 34. Rb8 (34. Rh8 Ke7 $16) 34...
Kg7
35. Ke5 Rc6 36. h3 h5 37. h4 Kh7 38. Kf4 (38. Rd8 Kg7 $16) 38... Kh6 (38...
Kg7
39. Kg5 $18) 39. Rb7 (39. Rd8 Kh7 $18) *
Roman M. Parparov
A bit of information:
The game was played in the 5th and last round of a weekend tourney.
Me and my opponent had 2.5/4 both, so the draw would not damage anyone.
During the game he thought everything is going for the draw, and finally
found himself in a stalemate, with about 5 minutes on his clock to
the end of the game (control was 90/30 + 30 till the end).
This game impressed my opponent even more than me, unfortunately
we haven't had a chance since then to meet each other.
My comments are under RP: remarks and were composed without aid
of a chess engine.
B23: Closed Sicilian: Lines without g3
[Event "Parparov Game #1"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "????.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "White"]
[Black "Black"]
[Result "*"]
[ECO "B23"]
[Annotator "Fritz 7 (240s)"]
[PlyCount "77"]
1.e4 c5 2.Nc3 {An interesting idea. We discussed this move recently here at
RGCA but only after 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6. The difference is that here Black is not
obliged to play e6. By far, 2.Nf3 is the most popular move. Incidentally, there
are more than 30,000 games in Megabase 2001 with the position after this move.
RP: The move usually indicates the desire of the opponent to
play closed Sicilian, or less popularily - the Grand Prix attack.
My choice is something else though, and it was discussed in
this newsgroup some time ago.} 2...Nc6 {is almost always played.} 3.Nge2 {is a
good move and could easily be the best move, too. Most popular is 3.g3 but
3.Nf3 seems to have had the best performance. Also played with success is 3.f4.
RP: This is a very superficial explanation. The move 3.Nge2
indicates the Chameleon Sicilian, the most flexible way to play against this
aggressive opening. I came to its ideas entirely by myself, after seeing a
Keres game, where white delayed d2-d4 in Sicilian by several moves. I was
alternating between 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.Nge2 and 2.Ne2 Nc6(d6) 3.Nbc3 for a while,
until
once black achieved a very good position after 2.Ne2 d5!?
Then I switched to the order that I played in this game completely. The
disadvantage of it is in blocking of c2 pawn,
so both Maroczy and 5.c4 Paulsen are no longer available.
But, as flexible as it is, black's hands are also completely untied and his
possibilities healthy and good, because white's pressure on the centre is
delayed. The move 3.Nf3 is out of my favor because of 3....e5, first of all -
and here 3....e5 is met with either 4.Ng3!? or 4.Nd5! with advantage over white
squares,
and also because the possible transposition into closed Sicilian is no longer
good for white.} 3...e6 {is another OK move. Also popular and perhaps better
are 3...d6 and 3...g6. Interesting moves are 3...Qb6, 3...a6 and 3...Nd4
although they are relatively untested. Notice that the game position differs
from the one we discussed here at RGCA recently in that White's knight is on e2
instead of f3.
RP: 3....g6 practically forces the accelerated dragon or convenient closed
Sicilian (white played Nge2 too early)
3....d6 forces regular Sicilian, since after 4.g3 4....e5! is well-timed.
3....a6 is expected to transfer to fianchetto Paulsen which is
good for White, IMHO.
3....Qb6 is off the pace, as white enters the closed Sicilian
immediately by 4.g3 and 5.Bg2,a dn Black Queen is misplaced.
3....Nf6 again suggests 4.d4 back to normal Sicilian rails, but
I play 4.g3 again, and if black goes for d7-d6 then it is in inferior Closed
Sicilian (Nc6+Nf6 are not the best scheme)
and 4....d5 leads to interesting game with very slight advantage from white.
I consider 3....e6 the best.
} 4.g3 {is another good move. Equally popular is 4.d4. Interested relatively
untested moves are 4.Ng3 and 4. f4.
RP: A bit of a missed point. I don't see an idea behind both
"untested moves"... 4.f4 contradicts the context of 3.Nge2.
4.Ng3 is well-met with 4....g6 pr 4....d5, or even with regular
Sicilian game - what are Ng3's perspectives?} 4...d5 {is likely the best move.
Also played a lot is 4...Nf6 although it may not be as good as the move played.
The third most popular move is 4... d6 although rarely played. Interesting
relatively untested moves include 4... h5, 4...Be7, and 4...d6. At this point
in the game, the character of the ensuing positional struggle for control of
the centre is taking shape. White will use his fianchettoed bishop in an
attempt to control e4 and d5. How White intends to compete for control of d4
and e5 is not completely clear yet.
RP: Ok, here is the very cornerstone of Chameleon Sicilian:
just like in Marshall French (1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 c5) the
structure d4 vs d5+c5 is FAVORABLE for white.
On this critical, purely tactical moment, white is unable to
counter with 5.exd5 cxd5 6.d4?! because of 6....Bg4 and
black overtakes the initiative, but in case of 4....Nf6, white does
have the ability to play 5.Bg2 d5 6.exd5 cxd5 7.d4! with
small advantage.
Problems of 4....Be7, 4....a6 and 4....d6 are the same unfit closed
Sicilian black gets into, and 4....h5 is brave, but as my ICC games proved -
unsound.
Many players have been trapped into 4....g6?, considering white is playing
Closed Sicilian, but the Chameleon changed colors with 5.d4! and white has a
steady advantage. After 5....cxd4 6.Nxd4 some people got into a worse trap by
playing an impulsive 6....Bg7 into 7.Ndb5 +/-
} 5.exd5 {is almost always played. This adds scope for White's KB by vacating
the e4 square, but it also results in a position where White does not occupy
the centre with a pawn. This adds a hypermodern flavor to White's plan. The
relatively untested 5.Bg2 may be the best move. It would leave a white pawn in
the centre.
RP: 5.Bg2 might face 5....d4! and I am not sure this kind of
QIA is good for white!} 5...exd5 6.Bg2 {is, by far, the most popular move.
However, 6.d3 has performed better in practice but is relatively untested.
RP: We shouldn't abstract ourselves to pure numbers which
some "untested" moves might've achieved.
White's plus right now is in development, and thus he should try to achieve
some long-term positional advantages by pressuring black's yet unripe center.
I tried a 6.Nf4?! as well, with an idea to get a 2-bishops advantage with aid
of 7.Qe2+, but the results were unsatisfactory, and I reverted to a more
natural move order} 6...d4 {may be the strongest move. 6...Nf6 is also quite
popular. The move played puts White's plan to the test immediately.
RP: 6....Nf6 is not as good, since it allows 7.d4! [see above]
and white is slightly better.} 7.Nd5 {must be playable or White's entire plan
may be a failure. The plan with repositioning the QN via Nb1, d3 and Nd2 or Na3
seems much too slow.
RP: Likewise positions were played yet by Tchigorin, but the
great Russian master played was moving to e4. This is what would happen if
white played 6.d3, since here 7.Ne4 is met with 7....f5} 7...Nge7 {could be the
best move. The relatively untested move, 7...Nce7, occurred in one game and
may, or may not, be better than the move played. Also worth consideration are
7...Nf6 and 7...Bd6.
RP: All three moves lead to likewise positions, as the game in context.} 8.Nef4
{is also the usual move. So far, we are just repeating an opening already in
the literature.
RP: I want to underline, that until very recently I was completely unaware of
ANY kind of history in this variation and only playing by my own analysis.}
8...Nxd5 9.Nxd5 Bd6 {is the usual move. Also played occasionally is 9...Be6.
RP: 9....Be6 has an interesting tactics - 10.Nf4 B~ 11.Qe2+ and
12.Nd5
9....d3!? is interesting, although, I think, unsound. The move in the context
is most natural.
} 10.d3 {is White's rst possibly questionable move, although the game is still
equal after this move. More commonly played is 10.O-O. {{Need to study this to
see if 10.O-O is really better
RP: I beg your pardon, isn't it a simple transposition?
I really didn't want to allow d4-d3 tricks.} 10...O-O 11.O-O Ne7 {is either a
"subtle innovation" or a mistake. Although this move has been played before in
master practice, it performed badly. Far more popular and much better are
11...Re8 (preferred) and 11...Be6. Again, however, the game remains equal after
the move played.
Of course, Black has sufficient counterplay, but he does face problems to
decide.
RP: Ok, here more or less opening ends. White, specifically, achieved his
target - he's familiar with the position much better than Black and also has
quite a plan of combining the pressures on pawn c5, diagonal h1-a8 and file 'e'
trying at the
end to develop the pressure on the black king that is _relatively_ undefended}
( 11...Be6 12.Qh5 f6 13.Re1 Bf7 14.Qh3 Qc8 15.Qh4 Ne5 16.Bf4 Qd8 17.Be4 Ng6
18.Bxg6 Bxg6 19.Bxd6 Qxd6 20.Ne7+ Kf7 21.Re2 Rfe8 22.Rae1 Qd7 23.b3 b5 24.
f4 Bf5 25.Qh5+ Bg6 26.Qf3 {Zhidkov,V-Furman,S/Baku 1972/URS-ch/0-1 (37)} )
( 11...Re8 12.Bf4 Bxf4 13.Nxf4 Qd6 14.Qh5 Re5 15.Rae1 Rxh5 16.Re8+ Qf8 17.
Rxf8+ Kxf8 18.Nxh5 Bd7 19.Re1 Re8 20.Rxe8+ Bxe8 21.a3 f6 22.Nf4 Ke7 23.Bxc6
Bxc6 24.Kf1 Bf3 25.Ke1 Kd6 26.Ne2 g5 27.Ng1 Bg4 28.Kd2 Ke5 29.Ke1 f5 30.f3
Bh5 31.Nh3 h6 32.f4+ Kf6 33.Nf2 Bf3 34.Kd2 b6 {1/2-1/2
Mueller,G-Braun,C/Passau 2000/CBM 76 ext (34)} )
12.Bg5 N {and finally we have exited opening theory. A move worth close study
here is 12.Qh5. Also interesting is 12.Nf4. 12.Nxe7 has also been played.
RP: This was the first move I really thought about in this game.
I wanted to exchange the minor pieces besides the white-squared bishops, and
using the pin on b7, gain some development advantage, capture the 'e' file and
thus achieve the initiative. I considered that Black has very little
counterplay.}
( 12.Nxe7+ Qxe7 13.Re1 Qc7 14.Bd5 Bd7 15.Qf3 Bc6 16.Bxc6 bxc6 17.Bd2 Qd7
18.Re4 Rae8 19.Rae1 Rxe4 20.Qxe4 Rc8 21.Bf4 Bf8 22.b3 f5 23.Qe2 g6 24.Qd2
Re8 25.Rxe8 Qxe8 26.Qa5 Qe7 27.Bb8 g5 28.Qxa7 Qxa7 29.Bxa7 Bd6 30.a4 Kf7
31.a5 Ke6 32.a6 Kd7 33.Bb6 Kc8 34.h3 g4 35.hxg4 fxg4 36.Kf1 Bf8 37.Ke2 Bd6
38.Kd2 h5 39.c3 Bxg3 40.fxg3 h4 41.gxh4 {1-0 Krasenkow,M-Arias
Rodriguez,S/Oviedo 1993/CBM 38 ext (41)} )
( 12.Qh5 Nxd5 13.Bxd5 Qc7
( 13...Rb8 14.Re1 Qc7 15.Re4 Qd7 16.Bf4 Bxf4 17.Rxf4 Qe7 18.Kf1 b6 19.
Re1 Be6 20.Rxf7 Rxf7 21.Bxe6 Rf8 22.Re4 h6 23.Bb3 Qb7 24.Bd5 Qc7 25.Rf4
{1-0 Iskov,G-Engqvist,T/Lyngby 1988/TD (25)} )
14.Re1 Kh8 15.Re4 f6 16.Bd2 g5 17.Re8 Bd7 18.Rxa8 Rxa8 19.h4 Bxg3 20.hxg5
Be5 21.f4 Bd6 22.g6 Be8 23.Bf7 Kg7 24.Qxh7+ Kf8 25.g7+ {1-0 Vallejo
Pons,F-Paramos Dominguez,R/Oropesa del Mar 1996/EXT 98 (25)} )
12...h6 {At this point, White has a choice to make. He can keep his knight at
d5, causing Black some troubles at least temporarily, or he can trade off his
knight but keep his two bishops. Apparently either option is viable.} 13.Nxe7+
{is the option to keep the bishops.}
( 13.Bxe7 {would be the option to keep the knight at d5.} 13...Bxe7 14.Qh5
Bd6 = )
13...Bxe7 14.Bxe7 Qxe7 15.Re1 {Here, Black has to make a choice as to how he
wants to position his pieces for the coming battle. Essentially, Black has to
chose between two viable battle plans. Each plan requires a different
positioning of Black's queen (and other pieces).
RP: I think, after 15....Be6 white is still slightly better.} 15...Qd6 {this
move seems to presage an advance of Black's queenside pawns.}
( {On the other hand,} 15...Be6 {For example, the game might proceed} 16.
Qh5 Rac8 {to defend the c5 pawn.} 17.Bh3 = {taking advantage of the fact
that the e6 bishop is pinned.} )
16.b3 {takes advantage of the fact that the b7 pawn is pinned. White plans to
control the white squares on the queenside to eliminate any possibility of
Black queening a pawn on the queenside. White will try to control c4.
RP: This is mildly put. From the move 13.Bxe7, white has
put to first priority to eliminate any kind of counterplay from black. I
considered that playing b3 and a4 will paralyze the Queen side of black, and
possibly open the a-file, where the
g2 bishop would be a very good assistant.
}
( 16.Qh5 {is an alternative development concept for White. In this case,
the Black queen at d6 defends the c5 pawn.} 16...Be6 = {Fritz 7:} 17.Re2 =
( {Note that capture of the b7 pawn would be answered by Black's
capture of the b2 pawn with advantage to Black due to the resulting
activity of Black's b2 rook.} 17.Bxb7? Rab8 =+ {The game might proceed}
18.Qf3 Qc7 19.Bd5 Bxd5 20.Qxd5 Rxb2 =+ )
17...Rae8 18.Rae1 b6 19.Bd5 Qd7 20.Bxe6 Rxe6 21.Rxe6 fxe6 22.Qg4 Rf6 23.Re5
a6 {0.00/18
RP: hmmm, After 24.Qe4 and 25.f4! isn't white definitely better?
} )
16...Rb8 17.Qe2 Be6 18.Qe5 {With this and White's last move, White demonstrates
his desire to get the queens off the board. White hopes to trade down to what
he hopes will be a superior rook and minor piece endgame. Unfortunately, as the
following analyses show, exchanging queens was a bad idea forWhite!
RP: I think you, like my opponent, underestimate the potential
difficulties in the ending... I added some variations.} 18...Rfd8 {essentially
gives White a chance to change his mind about trading queens. Giving White this
opportunity is, indeed, a poor idea. While the queens are on the board, Black
cannot seriously hope to win the game. But as the following analyses show, with
the queens off, Black gets a definite advantage.}
( {The correct move for Black is to play} 18...Qxe5 {which keeps White
forevermore unable to change his mind. With this move, the queens are gone
and White is in trouble!} 19.Rxe5 b6 20.f4
( 20.a4 Rfe8 =+ )
( 20.Bc6 Rfc8 21.Bb5 Ra8 22.a4 a6 23.Bc4 Bxc4 24.dxc4 Rab8 25.a5 b5 26.
cxb5 Rxb5 27.h3 g6 =+ )
20...Rfd8 21.Rae1
( 21.f5 Bd7 22.Rae1 Kf8 23.g4 Re8 =+ )
21...Bd7 22.Kf2
( 22.Re7 Kf8 =+ 23.Bd5? Be6 -/+ )
22...Kf8 23.Re7
( 23.h3 Re8 24.g4 Rxe5 25.fxe5
( 25.Rxe5 Re8 26.Bd5
( 26.Re4 b5 =+ )
( 26.Rxe8+ Kxe8 =+ )
26...Rxe5 27.fxe5 Ke7 =+ )
25...Ke7 26.Be4 Rf8 =+ )
23...a5 24.h3 {This move is completely inconsistent!
Black's move a7-a5 is an error, as a very deep weakness on b6 is now
created. White should immediately
play a2-a4.}
( 24.a4 Be6
( 24...b5 25.axb5 Bxb5
( 25...Rxb5 26.Bd5 Be8 27.Bc4 Rbb8 28.Ra7 Ra8 29.Ree7 )
26.Ra7 )
25.Ra7 )
24...h5 25.a4 g6 26.R1e5 Be6 27.Rc7 Rd7 28.Rc6 Ke7 =+ {RP: I didn't select
this game arbitrarily.
IMHO it is very much beyond computer's understanding,
and this variation demonstrates it.} )
19.a4 {White sees no hurry to exchange queens. White's centralized queen is
exercising a restraining effect on Black's game. Since Black did not exchange
queens at the first opportunity, White seems to have decided to improve his
position some until the queen exchange either occurs or someone declines it.
}
( 19.Qxd6 {does not turn out well.} 19...Rxd6 20.Re5 b6 21.Rae1 Bd7 22.Re7
( 22.f4 Re6 =+ )
22...Kf8 =+ )
( 19.Qe2 {is not the correct way for White to change his mind about
exchanging queens.} 19...b5 =+ )
( 19.Qh5 {Fritz 7:} 19...b6 20.Re4 Bd5 21.Re5 Bxg2 22.Kxg2 Re8 23.Rae1 Rxe5
24.Rxe5 Qd7 25.a3 {Fritz 7:} 25...a5 26.a4 Kf8 27.Kg1 Qd6 28.Qe2 Qc6 29.Qh5
Re8 30.Rxe8+ {-0.19/20} )
19...a5 {RP: This move is without comment, but this is a very bad mistake! So
far main white's problem is that Black doesn't
have any weaknesses, and now black creates some for him
himself.}
( 19...Qxe5 {is no longer as good because White's last move does contain a
threat which was not present a move ago. White has improved his position.}
20.Rxe5 b6 21.a5 )
20.f4
( 20.Qxd6 Rxd6 =+ )
20...b6 21.Re2 {seems have been played to encourage Black to exchange queens.
This turns out to have been a bad plan.
RP: The idea behind this move is to continue improvement
of the pieces' positions while disallowing Be6-d5 in convenient
situation for black. It is possible, though, that 21.Qxd6 would be a better,
since forcing, move}
( 21.f5 {The game might continue} 21...Qxe5 22.Rxe5 Bd7 23.Rd5 g6 {RP: Why?
In terms of bishop theory, space and time, 24.f6 is worth consideration.}
24.fxg6
( 24.f6 Bf5
( 24...Be6 25.Rxd8+ Rxd8 26.Re1 Bd5 27.Bxd5 Rxd5 28.Re8+ Kh7 29.Re7
)
25.Re1 {White will grab the 7th and will be better.} )
24...fxg6 25.Re1 Bf5 26.Rde5 Kf8 27.Bc6 Rd6 28.Bd5 Bh3 29.Bg2 =+ )
( {Still not good is} 21.Qxd6 Rxd6 =+ 22.Re5 g6 23.Be4 f6 24.Rxe6 Rxe6 25.
Bd5 Re8 26.Re1 Kf7 27.f5 gxf5 28.Kf2 f4 29.gxf4 f5 30.Re5 Kf6 31.Bxe6 Rxe6
32.Rd5 {RP: And white has the advantage (b6 pawn!)} )
21...Qxe5 {best for the same reason as before. As long as White's queen is on
the board, Black will have no chance of winning.}
( 21...Qd7 = {is an interesting alternative plan for Black which, however,
is not as good as the one chosen. Now that the queenside threats are gone,
the open e-file becomes the most dominant positional feature in the
position. Unfortunately for White, the move played cuts off the retreat of
White's queen. Black can use this fact to successfully contest control of
the e-file by gaining time at the White queen's expense.} 22.Bf3 Re8 23.Qh5
Bf5 24.Rae1 Bg6 25.Rxe8+ Rxe8 26.Rxe8+ Qxe8 27.Qd5 = )
22.Rxe5 Kf8 {inaccurate.}
( 22...Bd7 {leading to lines already considered, except for the slightly
changed queenside pawn structure.
RP: How can you consider this position BETTER FOR BLACK?
White controls the open file and has an easier approach for its
king to the center. Tactically, though, black has good chances
of total rook exchange, and in bishop ending it is slightly better.
In rook's ending (what I was striving for - White is better.
So, seems that Re2 indeed was inaccuracy and a loss of tempo, and white
might be better away with the draw Rd5 Be6 Re5 since white king is not yet
close enough to the center
But, the move Kf8 didn't seem to change anything for my opponent... It
might've been the decisive error.} 23.Rae1 =+ Re8 24.Kf2 Rxe5 25.Rxe5 Re8
26.Rd5 Bc6 27.Rd6 Bxg2 28.Kxg2 Re2+ -/+ )
23.Bc6 {has the merit of controlling the e8 square.
RP: Practically delays black's counterplay and forces
bishop's exchange}
( 23.f5 Bd7 =+ )
23...Bd7 {may have been a hasty move. After the exchange on d7, it will take
too much time for Black to contest the e-file.
RP: But the black doesn't have many moves available!}
( 23...Rd6 {would keep White playing to Black's tune.} 24.Bf3 =+ {The game
might continue}
( 24.Bb5 f6 =+ )
24...Bd7 25.Rae1 Re8 =+ )
24.Bxd7 = Rxd7 25.Rae1 Rdd8 26.Kf2 Re8 27.Kf3 {RP: And now my opponent to his
horror realized that
the pawn ending after 27....Rxe5 28.Rxe5 Re8 29. Ke4 is lost
and so is all his game} 27...Rxe5 28.Rxe5 Rd8 29.Ke4 {This centralized king is
starting to look threatening! Black has failed to centralize his king. The
critical question is: "Can White penetrate into Black's position?"
RP: This is the culmination of the entire strategy started with
the Bg5xe7 move!} 29...Rd6 30.f5 g6
( {Another idea for Black would begin with} 30...g5 = {The game might
continue} 31.Kf3 {What's the purpose of this move, or did computer do it??
}
( {White might also play} 31.h3 h5 32.f6 Rxf6 33.Rxg5 Rh6 34.Re5 Kg7
35.Kf4 Rf6+ = )
( {The game might continue} 31.h4 {Black will end with another weakness
and will lose the game
For example, this funny variation} 31...f6 32.Re6 Rxe6+ 33.fxe6 Ke7 34.
Kf5 gxh4 35.gxh4 h5 36.Kg6 Kxe6 37.Kxh5 f5 38.Kg5 Ke5 39.h5 +- )
31...h5 32.h3
( 32.h4 f6 = )
32...Rc6 33.Ke4 Rd6! = )
31.g4
( {Another try for White is} 31.Rd5 {which apparently allows Black to just
barely hold on and draw. But Black's endgame is difficult.} 31...gxf5+ 32.
Rxf5 Rg6 33.Re5 Kg7
( 33...Rf6 34.Kd5 Rf2 = )
( 33...Rd6 = )
34.Kd5 Kf8
( 34...Kf6?? 35.Kd6 +/- )
35.Kc4 Rf6 36.g4 Rd6 37.h3 Rf6 38.Kb5 Rd6 = )
31...gxf5+ {does not look appealing, but it may suffice.}
( {Possibly better may be
Black is completely without counterplay and with
extra weakness on h6. I don't believe he can hold on.
} 31...g5 32.h3 Rd7 33.f6 Rd6 34.Kf5 Rd7 35.Re1 Rd5+ 36.Ke4 Rd6 = )
32.gxf5 Kg7? {appears to be the losing move. Allowing White's rook to become
active surely must be a mistake.}
( 32...Rc6!? {The game might continue} 33.Kf4
( 33.Rd5 Ke7 = )
( 33.Kd5 Rf6 = )
33...Rd6 34.h3 Rf6 35.Re4 Rc6 36.Ke5 Kg7 37.h4 Kh7 {RP: Rg4 looks better to
me, cutting the king off the
board.
The endgame might be drawn, but by sweating defense only...
} 38.h5
( 38.Rg4 )
38...Kg7 39.f6+ Kf8 40.Kf5 Rc7 = )
33.Re8 {and White's rook is active! Black's rook is tied to defense.}
( {Allowing the move played and} 33.Rd5 {is what was wrong with Black's
last move. If the Black king were on f8, it could move up to e7 to defend
Black's rook and to keep White's rook restrained as the king on e7 would
cover the d7 and d8 squares.} 33...Rc6 +/- )
33...Kf6 34.Rb8
( 34.Rh8 Ke7 +/- )
34...Kg7 35.Ke5 Rc6 36.h3 h5 37.h4 Kh7 38.Kf4
( 38.Rd8 Kg7 +/- )
38...Kh6
( 38...Kg7 39.Kg5 +- )
39.Rb7 {RP: A nice job, but I think you should better leave Fritz
alone, and concentrate on the following points:
1) What were the plans of the opening that occurred
(and not which move scored better)
[In this case - Chameleon Sicilian ideas]
2) What plans were employed in the middlegame
[The plan for white to aim for the ending with space
and development advantage]
3) Where was the decisive error in case one side lost,
or what were the moves that held defense in a sharp position.
[IMHO - the Kf8 move instead of Bd7]
4) NEVER analyze the ending with the computer.
4) }
( 39.Rd8 Kh7 +- )
*
--
Roman M. Parparov - NASA EOSDIS project node at TAU technical manager.
Email: ro...@empire.tau.ac.il
Phone/Fax: +972-(0)3-6405205 (work), +972-(0)54-629-884 (home)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
The economy depends about as much on economists as the weather does on
weather forecasters.
-- Jean-Paul Kauffmann
Knob Nose
It will take awhile to digest this. Hope others here at RGCA discuss this
too.
Tomorrow I will be working hard to finish the Torrecillas game. Then on to
Parparov G2.
P.S. Hopefully waiting for Hathaway comments, too.
Knob Nose
________________________________________________
"Roman M. Parparov" <ro...@giganda.komkon.org> wrote in message
news:4uTQ7.7215$Ac2.2...@news1.rdc1.va.home.com...
Knob Nose
favorably impressed! It will take days for me to fully digest it [and come
up with any followup notes which I might provide here].
It was VERY nice of him to provide these comments! I would like everybody
to know that.
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
"Roman M. Parparov" <ro...@giganda.komkon.org> wrote in message
news:4uTQ7.7215$Ac2.2...@news1.rdc1.va.home.com...
Roman M. Parparov
"How to beat Bobby Fischer" book as an example, especially for the
opening, ending and decisive error points.
Knob Nose
will not be able to do a detailed analysis the commentary until I return.
[Same for the other games.]
However, there are two questions about this game which I hope will be
discussed soon here at RGCA:
(1) The weakness on b6, created by the "bad" move 19...a5, is a "weakness,"
at least in conventional terms. But is it exploitable? That is the REAL
issue! So-called "weaknesses" which are not exploitable [assuming correct
play], are insignificant at best. It is hard to call something "weak" if
there is no way to exploit it.
When Black played the move 19...a5, he must have done so with the
realization that the b6 pawn would be subject to capture if White were able
to penetrate to the queenside. But the only route [in the near-term] was
via the only open file, the e-file. The queenside was completely blocked.
If Black truly believed, "in his heart," that he could prevent that
penetration, then his acceptance of that weakness would have seemed to be a
justifiable risk. In fact, after the move 19...a5, the outcome of the game
depended on the outcome of the battle where White was trying to penetrate
and Black was trying to prevent it. My current impression is that Black
could have prevailed in that battle. In the game he simply played an
inferior line. Black's inaccurate 22...Kf8, instead of the correct 22...Bd7
is a case in point. Black had to get rid of the rooks on the e-file so that
they would not restrict the movement of Black's king to the centre. I
suspect that 22...Bd7, with correct play after that, would have been
sufficient.
When I return from my Christmas Vacation, I hope to study this issue, of
whether or not Black could have prevented White's penetration into Black's
side of the board, exhaustively in the hopes of arriving at a definitive
answer to this issue.
Incidentally, my failure to discuss 19...a5 had nothing to do with the
computer. Fritz intensely disliked the move. I had intended to discuss it,
but was distracted by an extraneous event. When I returned to the
computer, I had completely forgotten about it. Don't blame the computer!
(2) The unplayed move 21...Qd7 should be discussed. If the final word on
21...Qxe5 is that 21...Qxe5 was bad, then the issue of whether or not White
had a better game is still undecided until the merits/demerits of 21...Qd7
have been resolved.
For example, had Black played 21...Qd7 and chosen to keep his queen, could
White have exploited the "weakness" on b6? In other words, could White have
penetrated into the queenside anyway? Surely White's king would not have
done so by itself, simply because Black's queen would have eaten it up!
Knob Nose
________________________________________________
"Roman M. Parparov" <ro...@giganda.komkon.org> wrote in message
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