A recent game at this website between jaapjelle and TheBigKat Game 14826892 was of interest to me partly because neither player castled. But its main appeal was that several of its moves made sense to me only after I'd thought about them for a while.
The game began as depicted in the following chess movie.
No, because 8.e3 or 8.Be3 could be answered by 8...Nxd4 followed by 9...Qxd4 10.Qxd4 Nc2+, regaining the queen and emerging with a material advantage.
What about 8.Nb5, so that if Black exchanges queens to displace White's king, the threat of Nc7+... would do likewise to Black's king?
8.Nb5 isn't good either, for it can be met by 8...Qa5, hitting the knight and threatening 9...Nc2 double check. Then Black could follow with ...Bf5 and ...Rd8, with a strong initiative.
How would 8.Nxc6 be answered?
If 8.Nxc6, Black would interpolate 8...Qxd1+ before recapturing at c6.
To see how White chose among these apparently poor choices, see the following chess movie.
FEN
r1bqkb1r/pp2pppp/2n5/8/1n1N4/6P1/PP2PPBP/RNBQK2R w - - - -
[fen "r1bqkb1r/pp2pppp/2n5/8/1n1N4/6P1/PP2PPBP/RNBQK2R w - - - -"] 8.Nxc6 Qxd1+ 9.Kxd1 {If now 9...bxc6, then 10.a3 Nd5 11.Nc3 [Threatening not only 12.Nxd5 but 12.Ne4, aiming at the hole at c5.] 11...Nxc3+ 12.bxc3, and any defense of the c-pawn is awkward.} Nxc6 10.Nc3
In the position after 10.Nc3,
would it be better for Black to develop the c8-bishop or to move the e- or g-pawn to enable developing the f8-bishop?
It's not yet clear (to me at least), whether the f8-bishop should be developed to g7 or along the a3/f8 diagonal. This suggests postponing that decision if Black has a useful move that's less committal, and Black does: developing the c8-bishop. Playing 10...Bf5 would control c2 and thereby inhibit White's king from leaving the first rank (so as to connect White's rooks).
Yet, Black played 10...Bd7. Why?
I believe it's because 10...Bf5 might have been answered by 11.Bxc6+ bxc6 12.f3 followed shortly by e4... This would saddle Black with two queenside pawn islands while presenting few targets for Black's two bishops. The text gave Black the ability to recapture at c6 with a piece.
After 10...Bd7, Black aimed to force the opposing king into the open, while White tried to continue developing, as depicted in the next movie.
FEN
r3kb1r/pp1bpppp/2n5/8/8/2N3P1/PP2PPBP/R1BK3R w kq - - -
[fen "r3kb1r/pp1bpppp/2n5/8/8/2N3P1/PP2PPBP/R1BK3R w kq - - -"] 11.Be3 g6 12.Kc2 {White's king voluntarily ventures into the open, despite there being many pieces left. Can Black exploit this?} Bf5+ {After White's next, Black need no longer be concerned about Bxc6+..., for the half-open b-file would facilitate attacking White's king.} 13.Kb3 e5 {The intended fianchetto of the f8-bishop is abandoned so that this piece can instead control squares in the vicinity of White's king.} 14.Rac1 {Anticipating Black's imminent knight maneuver.} Na5+ 15.Ka4 Nc4 {Now the position gets sharp.} 16.Nb5 {The threats of 17.Nc7+ and 17.Rxc4 compel Black's reply.} Nxe3 {Intending to meet 17.Nc7+ and 18.Nxa8 by 18...Nxg2. Although Black's knight would seem the more difficult to extricate, White prefers a continuation that isn't so wild.} 17.fxe3 {Reckoning that Black, whose development lags, will find it difficult to exploit White's doubled, isolated e-pawns.}
In the position reached by 17.fxe3 in the above movie,
how can Black avoid loss of material?
By 17...Rb8, which protects b7, avoids the fork, and indirectly protects the a-pawn owing to the pin 18...Ra8 (after 18.Nxa7). The next phase of the game involves White's attacking various pawns and threatening to penetrate with the rooks, while Black activates the two bishops and advances the h-pawn to open a file for that rook. See the next chess movie for the continuation starting with 17.fxe3.
FEN
r3kb1r/pp3p1p/6p1/1N2pb2/K7/4n1P1/PP2PPBP/2R4R w - - - -
[fen "r3kb1r/pp3p1p/6p1/1N2pb2/K7/4n1P1/PP2PPBP/2R4R w - - - -"] 17.fxe3 Rb8 18.Rhd1 {Now, one idea for White is 19.Rc7 e4 20.g4! Bxg4 21.Bxe4, and the bishop joins the attack.} h5 {This prevents g4... and prepares the later advance of the h-pawn so as to activate the h-rook. Now, 19.Nc7+ Ke7 20.Nd5+ apparently doesn't achieve anything concrete.} 19.Rc7 e4 20.b4 {Anticipating the advance of Black's b-pawn and preparing to halt its progress at b5, so that Black's queenside pawns could be attacked by White's bishop.} Be7 21.Rd4 h4 22.Bxe4 {Threatening to exchange bishops and double rooks on the seventh rank.} a6 {The knight must now retreat to c3 so as to protect White's bishop.} 23.Nc3 Bf6 {Now 24.Rdc4 would lose to 24...b5+.} 24.Rd3 hxg3 25.hxg3 {If now 25...Bxc3 26.Bxf5 Bxb4, then 27.Bxg6 fxg6 28.Kxb4, with an extra pawn and the threat of doubling rooks on the seventh rank.} Bd8 {The harassment of White's rooks continues.} 26.Rc5 {If now 26...Be7, then 27.Bxf5 Bxc5 28.Bd7+ followed by 29.bxc5.} Bg4 27.Bf3 Bf5 28.Ne4 {Threatening to win a pawn by 28.Nd6+ and 29.Nxf5. If Black trades 28...Bxf5, White's bishop would then be "unopposed" and would soon become anchored at d5.} Kf8
After 28...Kf8
How might White try to make progress?
See next chess movie for the game continuation.
FEN
1r1b1k1r/1p3p2/p5p1/2R2b2/KP2N3/3RPBP1/P3P3/8 w - - - -
[fen "1r1b1k1r/1p3p2/p5p1/2R2b2/KP2N3/3RPBP1/P3P3/8 w - - - -"] 29.Rxf5 {For the exchange, White eliminates Black's chief defender of the light squares and will soon pick up a second pawn.} gxf5 30.Nc5 {Threatening 30.Nd7+ or 30.Nxb7.} b5+ {If Black had let this pawn be captured, White's king might have become an attacker of Black's remaining queenside pawn. The text precludes this by forcing White's king back.} 31.Kb3 Kg7 32.Nxa6 Rb6 33.Nc5 Bc7 {Threatening the g-pawn.} 34.e4 {Eliminating the doubled pawn and intending 34...Bxg3 35.exf5.} fxe4 35.Bxe4 {Clearing the third rank for the rook to protect g3, and preparing to post the bishop at d3, where it will anchor the e-pawn and attack b5.} Rh2 {If White now defends the e-pawn by 36.Re3, then 36...Rh3 wins the g-pawn because advancing it would hang White's rook.} 36.Rd7 {This attack on the bishop concedes the g-pawn but gives White time to defend the e-pawn while placing the bishop on the previously envisioned post.} Bxg3 37.Bd3 Rh5 {Were Black to permit White's rook to occupy this rank, Black's b-pawn might soon fall. The text also prepares to occupy the hole at e5.} 38.Ne4 Bf4 39.Rd8 Bc7 40.Rc8 Bd6 41.Rd8 Be7 42.Rd7 Re5
After 42...Re5
If White were to now play 43.Nc3 (threatening 44.Rd5 followed by ganging up on the b-pawn), would Black have an adequate reply?
If White played 43.Nc3 followed by 44.Rd5 Rxd5 45.Nxd5, Black would need to control the c3 and c7 squares, from which the knight could attack b5. This could be done by posting the rook at b7 (controlling c7 while protecting the b-pawn) and the bishop on the a1/h8 diagonal (to control c3). Since 43...Rb7 would hang the rook, Black would need to move the bishop first: 43...Bf6 44.Rd5 Rxd5 45.Nxd5 Rb7 46.Be4 Rb8 47.Nc7 Be5 (kicking the knight so that White lacks time for 48.Bd3). If after 43.Nc3 Bf6, White instead plays 44.Nd5 Rb8 45.Nc7, then 45...Rb6 seems to hold.
So, White instead maneuvered the knight to f5. See the next chess movie for the game's finale.
FEN
8/3Rbpk1/1r6/1p2r3/1P2N3/1K1B4/P3P3/8 w - - - -
[fen "8/3Rbpk1/1r6/1p2r3/1P2N3/1K1B4/P3P3/8 w - - - -"] 43.a3 Rb8 44.Ng3 Kf8 45.Nf5 Bf6 46.Rd6 Be7 47.Rh6 Ke8 {So that 48.Rh8+ can be answered by 48...Bf8.} 48.Kc3 Rd8 {Threatening 49...Rxd3+ and 50...Rxf5.} 49.Nd4 {Threatening 50.Bxb5+ or 50.Nc6.} Bf8 {Constraining White's rook not to permit ...Bg7, which would create nasty threats on the long diagonal.} 50.Rh7 Rb8 {Now 51.Nc6 would fall prey to the pin 51...Rc8.} 51.Nf3 {White cannot find a way to make progress, and a draw is soon agreed.} Rd5 52.Be4 Rd6 53.Kb3 Be7 54.Rh8+ Bf8 55.Bd3 Rd5 56.Be4 {Draw.}
(A list of the threads I've initiated at this forum is available at http://www.davidlevinchess.com/chess/RHP_my_threads.htm .)
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