First off, I apologize, because this blog is about me. I try to keep it about things that my small readership will find instructive and useful. Another reason is that it may help all of you play against me. Here is my reason for breaking my own rules: I played the worst chess I have in a long time, and I feel like I need the catharsis that having this (even sparsely read) soapbox will give me. My second reason is that perhaps, if not using these games to show you how I play good chess, I can ask you to not play like me.
I played four games, starting on 11/20/15, taking a bye in a three-day, five-round tournament. The time control was 90 minutes + a 30 second increment for the first 40 moves, with 60 minutes left to finish the game. This was by far the longest tournament I’d ever played in, and it was meant to be an experiment. It wasn’t a total disaster. There were good parts. But I hope this will help. This is my first game. I was White.
HikaruShindo–NN 11/20/15
1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. e5 c5 4. dxc5 {This is what I usually play, although it’s somewhat gimmicky. The idea is Bxc5 5. Qg4!, when Black is surprisingly off-kilter.} Nc6 {The correct response.} 5. Nf3 Bxc5 6. Nc3 {I simply develop.} Qb6 7. Qe2 {Why don’t I play the simpler Qd2? My though was to fianchetto the bishop. However, Qd5-Bd3 is simply better.} Nh6 8. h3 {Stopping Ng4, but 8. Bd2 Ng4 9. 0-0-0 is better, and renders the threat similarly impotent.} Nf5 9. g4 {To displace the knight, but this is misguided. White shouldn’t open himself up more.} Nfd4 10. Nxd4 Bxd4 11. f4 {Necessary, to protect the pawn.} 0-0 12. Bg2 f6 {Black challenges the center.} 13. exf6 Rxf6 {This position is defensible, but very hard to play for White. I think I see a tactic and play it.} 14. Nxd5 exd5 15. Qe8+ Rf8 16. Bxd5+ Be6 17. Bxe6+ {The position I envisioned. I am now up two pawns, but have an extremely shaky king position and undeveloped, scattered pieces. However, I thought this would be better than the previous state of play. I underestimated Black’s resources.} Kh8 18. Qh5 Rae8 19. f5 {At this point, I am simply trying to not lose anything.} Bf2+ 20. Kf1 Rxe6 {I cannot take because of, well, being mated.} 21. Bf4 Re4 22. Bd6 Qe3 23. Rh2 {I try and do anything to prolong the game. I should have resigned around here, if not earlier.} Qe2+ 24. Kg2 Bc5+ 25. Kh1 Qf3+ 26. Rg2 Re2 {0-1.}
NN–HikaruShindo 11/21/15
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. d4 {I decided here, for some unknown reason, to disregard the proper sequence, which I knew: exd4 5. 0-0 Nxe4 6. Re1 d5 7. Bxd5 Qxd5 8. Nc3, wherein White regains the piece with an even game.} Nxe4 5. dxe5 {This is worse because White has a cramping pawn and the Black knight is misplaced.} Nc5 6. 0-0 Be7 {I develop, conscious that this is a slightly uncomfortable position.} 7. Be3 0-0 8. Nc3 Ne6 {I return the knight to control the d4 square.} 9. a3 b6 {This may be moderately misguided. An equally good plan is to play d6 and possibly develop the bishop that way.} 10. b4 {This, to me, seems a bit loose, but there is no real way to take advantage.} Re8 {I became suddenly conscious that 11. Nd5 would lose me the bishop pair. Now, I can retreat to f8.}11. Bd5 Bb7 12. Ne2 Qb8 {I played this to protect the bishop and vacate the d8 square for a knight.} 13. c4 {White has a domineering space advantage, but can’t really do much with it yet.} Bf8 14. Rc1 d6 15. exd6 {I err on the next move: cxd6, though positionally bad, prevents 16. c5, which wins White material.} Bxd6 16. c5 Bf8 17. cxb6 {I am now losing about a piece.} Rd8 {This is the best try, pinning the bishop.}18. Qb3 {Nf4! kept the advantage.} Rd6 {No! Rxd5! is an easily findable exchange sacrifice: 19. Qxd5, then Ncd4 and Nxf3, breaking the king’s pawn shelter.} 19. bxc7 Nxc7 20. Bf4 {White loses the advantage once more: 4. Bxf7+ is the most obvious and crushing move.} Nxd5 {After this sequence, Black will escape with two pieces for a rook and pawn, an advantageous trade.} 21. Bxd6 Qxd6 22. Rfd1 Nce7 {I now go about untangling.} 23. Nc3 Qf4 {Hitting the rook to escape from the pin.} 24. Nxd5 Nxd5 25. Rc4 Qh6 {This seemed active, although there is not much of a difference between this and other squares.} 26. Rcd4 Nf6 27. Rd8 Rxd8 28. Rxd8 {The trade of rooks–White’s active for Black’s passive– helps Black, unlike a trade of queens, which would harm Black’s coordination and attacking potential.} Nd5 29. Re8 Nf6 {I inadvertently seem to offer a repetition–not so, readers. I am not so cowardly as to offer a draw in a good, perhaps winning, position. Nf4! was a better spot for the knight.} 30. Re1 Bd6 {The coordination of my minor pieces is now fully realized–White’s king begins to shiver slightly.} 31. Qd3 Qf4 32. h3 {White makes luft, so I do too,} g6 {I chose g6 over h6 because the queen already controlled h7. A rare moment of decent finesse from me.} 33. Rd1 Ne4 34. Qd4 Bb8 35. Qb2 Bc7 {Hopefully, I can get the bishop to attack f2.} 36. Qc2 Ng5 {I spot a nice opportunity! He is virtually forced to take, and I win a pawn and shatter his pawn structure.} 37. Nxg5 Qh2+ 38. Kf1 Bxg2+ 39. Ke1 Qe5+ 40. Qe2 Qxg5 41. Rd7 Qc1+ 42. Qd1 Qxd1+ 43. Kxd1 Bb6 {The endgame is easily winning for Black, as another pawn falls like a low-hanging fruit.} 44. Ke1 Bxh3 45. a4 {And White makes it easier by blundering.} Bxd7 46. a5 Bc7 47. f3 h5 48. Kf2 Bd6 49. b5 h4 50. b6 axb6 51. axb6 Bc5+ 52. Kg2 Bxb6 {1-0.}
HikaruShindo–NN 11/21/15
1. e4 c5 2. d4 cxd4 3. c3 Nf6 4. e5 Nd5 5. cxd4 e6 6. Nf3 d6 7. Bd3 b6 8. a3 {To prevent any Nb4 nonsense.} Bb7 9. Bg5 {This trade, I reasoned, is good for me, since it’s my bad bishop for his good one.} Be7 10. Bxe7 Qxe7 11. 0-0 0-0 12. Re1 {Perhaps even Re4-Rh4 is an idea, but probably not.} Rd8 13. Nbd2 Nd7 14. Nc4 {I seek to reinforce my center as Black pressures it.} dxe5 15. dxe5 Nf4 {This creates a spot of bother due to the pin from the rook on d8.} 16. Re3 Bxf3 17. Qxf3 {This makes sense only because Black also gets a bishop-for-knight trade.} Nxd3 18. Rxd3 b5 {I play my next move not realizing that 19. Rad1 doesn’t lose the exchange.} 19. Rxd7 Qxd7 20. Nd6 f6 21. Ne4 fxe5 {The loss of a pawn is unavoidable.} 22. b4 {I try to establish a base on c5.} Qd3 23. Qg4 {I try to work up play based on the doubled e-pawns and the position of Black’s king.} Kh8 24. Rf1 Rf8 25. Nc5 {I land my knight on c5.} Qf5 26. Qe2 a6 27. Nd7 Rfd8 28. Nxe5 Rd5 {Black takes advantage of this loss of time to coordinate her pieces.} 29. Nf3 Rd3 30. Qa2 Qd5 31. Qb2 Rd8 {The tripling ices the game.} 32. h3 {Luft is always good to have.} Rb3 33. Qa1 Qd3 34. Qe5 Qd5 35. Qa1 Rf8 36. Rd1 Rd3 37. Rxd3 Qxd3 {This trade benefits me, as the problems caused by Black’s heavies are easier to deal with.} 38. Qc1 Rd8 39. Qc7 {This is bad, allowing Black to trade queens into a winning endgame.} Qd1+ 40. Kh2 Qd6+ 41. Qxd6 Rxd6 42. Ng5 Kg8 {Several pawns come off the board, but I will lose regardless. The rook is powerful, and the passed pawn cannot be stopped.} 43. f3 h6 44. Ne4 Rd3 45. Nc5 Rxa3 46. Nxe6 Rb3 {Stopping the new passed pawn is futile. I still tried.} 47. Nc5 Rxb4 48. Nxa6 Rc4 49. Nb8 b4 50. Nd7 b3 51. Nb6 b2 52. Nxc4 b1=Q 53. Nd2 Qd3 54. Ne4 {There is no real fortress here. None at all. But I thought there might be.} Kf7 55. Kg1 Kg6 56. Kh2 Kf5 57. Kg1 Kf4 58. Kf2 Qe3+ 59. Kf1 h5 60. Nf2 Qc1+ 61. Ke2 Qc2+ 62. Kf1 Ke3 {0-1.}
NN–HikaruShindo 11/22/15
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Bb5 d6 {A bad continuation– it lets White have the center immediately. Best is Bb4, mimicking, but making it hard for White to gain any real ground.} 5. d4 exd4 6. Nxd4 Bd7 {Necessary to avoid a double-take on c6.} 7. 0-0 a6 8. Bc4 Qe7 {I was afraid of Be7 for being to cramped. Of course, I should have just done that and developed naturally.} 9. Re1 0-0-0 {This, of course, was all part of the plan.} 10. Qd3 Ne5 11. Qe2 Nxc4 12. Qxc4 {I now have the bishop pair, but my next move is a real clanker.} g6 {Of course, this was what I started with Qe7. But White’s next puts me in a pin I can’t get free from.} 13. Bg5 b5 {I push the queen back, so Nd5 isn't quite as bad a threat (It doesn’t threaten mate, at least.)} 14. Qd3 c6 {I defend against Nd5.} 15. a4 {Of course, White puts the finger on my problem–the king is now weak.} Bg7 {I decide to protect the knight.} 16. axb5 axb5 17. Ra7 {17. Ncxb5! reduced the structure to ash.} Qe5 {I bluff, and it works. Ncxb5! one again wins immediately.} 18. Bxf6 Bxf6 19. Nf3 Qc5 {Now am a little bit back in the game.} 20. Rea1 Kb8 21. Ra8+ Kb7 22. R1a7+ Qxa7 23. Rxa7+ Kxa7 {Now, though, I am still in for a world of hurt. The underdevelopment of my pieces is fatal.} 24. Qxd6 Bg7 25. h3 {25. Qc7+ took full advantage, not allowing me to consolidate.} Kb7 26. Ng5 {Invading with 26. Qe7 worked better. This just gets repulsed.} Bc8 27. Qg3 Rd7 28. Nf3 Rhd8 {Now everything is, for the moment, held down.} 29. Qg5 Rd6 30. Qe3 Be6 31. Qc5 {She now offered the first of three draws.} Bf8 32. Qe5 {Pause. See if you cannot be as idiotic as me. And she offered a draw again! As you can perhaps tell, I am extremely upset with myself for not winning here.} h6 {Argh! Rd1+ won on the spot, as if 33. Kh2, Bd6 wins.} 33. Kh2 R6d7 34. Qg3 Kb6 35. Qf4 {After this move, thankfully, the barrage of draw offers ends. Unfortunately, when I blunder, I do not receive a draw offer.}Bd6 36. e5 Bf8 {Some shuffling takes place.} 37. Qg3 Bf5 38. Qf4 Bxc2 39. Ne4 Bxe4 40. Qxe4 {Now, for the first time all game, I have an advantage.} Bg7 41. Qe3+ c5 42. b4 {This pin is no object as long as I am careful.} Rd5 43. bxc5+ Rxc5 44. e6 fxe6 45. Qxe6+ Rc6 46. Qe3+ {Try not to blunder Ka6 leads to perpetual check. But no.} Kb7 {Future me shakes his head sadly here. Ugh.} 47. Qe7+ Rc7 48. Qxd8 b4 49. Qd6 Bc3 50. Nd4 b3 51. Qd5+ {1-0.}
Altogether, I think I have mainly identified the factors leading to my poor ¼ performance.
1. Poor opening preparation: I practice what I preach, which is establishing the principles of an opening and having minimal memorization. However, it is clear that I need to simply develop my openings better. Each time I came out of the opening already with a substantial disadvantage, even as White.
2. Basic tactics: I simply missed them. Once, I missed what should have been the game-winner, and eventually lost, and other times, I was unaware of the blows coming my way. It is clear that I need more practice with tactics and deep calculation.
3. Trust and focus in my mental process detailed two posts ago: Once I started losing, I came apart. I need to learn to stay resilient, and also to not get lazy. Just to focus on my questions and be constantly vigilant.
Best of luck in your RHP and OTB play,
HikaruShindo
