Lumaktaw sa pangunahing content

Epic Struggle!


                           2nd Negros Closed Invitational Chess Championship 2012

                           Rd.9    NM Acaling vs. CM Montoyo    Sicilian Defense (B27)

I would rather not mention in detail the controversy that happened before and during the game since everything turned out to be alright after it.


1.e4 c5
2.Nf3 e6
3.d4 cxd4
4.Nxd4 Nf6
5.Nc3 d5!

Honestly, this is the first time I encountered this move, which means my opening reference is very old, but probably not yet obsolete :) There are many moves in this position 5..Nc6, 5..Qb6, 5..Qc7, 5..Bc5 but perhaps the most popular continuation here is 5..Bb4 while 5..d6 will transpose to Scheveningen type of position. A few days after the game I found out that the "stem game" according to a DB that I consulted (which contains only 2.5M games) was first played in 1996. The whole concept of the set-up -Nf6, -e6, and -d5 is nothing new, the idea was just lifted from other Sicilian variations. In fact, I myself as Black, played this set-up successfully against Tapulgo's 3.Bb5 (2nd Negros Rapid Chess Ch. 2012) and against Ting's 6.h3 (the so-called Fischer line) during the 2009 Negrense Pro Tour, both Sicilian Openings. I just find this very surprising that no one have discovered 5..d5! on this specific line prior to the 1990s.

6.Bb5 Bd7
7.exd5 Bxb5
8.Ndxb5 a6
9.Nd4 Nxd5
10.Nxd5 Qd5=

Montoyo easily and without much difficulty obtained an equal position right after the opening, thanks to his unofficial second.

11.0-0 Be7
12.Be3 Bf6N

12..0-0 and 12..Nc6 was played before according to a DB that I consulted a few days after the game... 

13.c4! Qd7

Of course bad is 13..Qc4? 14.Rc1! Qd5 15.Rc8 Bd8 16.Nf5! 0-0 16.Qd5 ed 17.Bc5 with decisive advantage for White. 

14.Qf3! 0-0
15.Rad1?!

Made with only a second of thought. After a splendid one-two punch, I immediately faltered. 15.Rfd1 with the idea of 16.Rac1 is of course much better.

15..Qc7
16.b3 Rfd8
17.h3 Nd7
18.Rd2 Ne5
19.Qe2?!

Another lousy move. Simply 19.Qe4 centralizing the queen is a no brainier. It was a very tiring event and since this is the last round, fatigue had obviously set-in for both players.

19..Ng6
20.Rfd1 h6
21.Qg4 Qe7
22.a4?!

Another second rate move.

22..Qb4!



23.Rb1 Ne5
24.Qe2 Rac8
25.Rc2 Nxc4!
26.Rxc4 Rxc4
27.Qxc4 Qxc4
28.bxc4 Bxd4
29.Rxb7 Bxe3
30.fxe3 Rd1
31.Kf2 Ra1
32.Rb8! Kh7
33.Rb2

33.Ra8 Rc4 34.Ra6 is probably a theoretical draw, but Black has also practical chances to win.

33..Rxa4

After a mass exchange, when the smoke had cleared Black is a pawn up! But only an exhaustive analysis will determine if both players missed a win at one point during the game. But I don't have the time or the inclination to spend countless hours on this game. Another reason is that I don't have Houdini to help me back-up my analysis. So, I will now give the rest of the moves with only light commentaries.

34.Rc2 Rb4
35.Kf3! Kg6
36.Ke4 Kf6
37.Kd4 Ra4
38.Kc5 Ke7
39.Kc6 Kd8
40.c5 Kc8
41.Rd2 Ra5
42.e4 e5
43.g4 f6
44.Rb2 Ra4
45.Rb7 Re4
46.Rg7 Kb8
47.Kb6

47.Rb7!? Ka8 48. Rh7 is maybe worth a try...

47..Rb4
48.Ka6 e4
49.Re7

49..Rg6!?  

49..Kc8
50.Re6 Kd7
51.Rf6 e3
52.Rd6 Ke7
53.Rd1 e2
54.Re1 Rb2
55.h4 Kd7
56.g5 Kc6!
57.Ka7 h5
58.g6 Rb7
59.Ka8 Re7
60.g7 Rg7
61.Re2 Rg8?!

61..Rg4 straightaway is better, this saves a tempo, and at the same time leaves the White King in a poor square susceptible to some mating attack. 

62.Ka7 Rg4
63.Rh2

Made with only one second to spare! 63.Re6 Kd7 64.Rd6 Kc7 65.Ka6 Rh4 66.Kb5 is also a draw, but I was understandably worried that my King will be exposed to a sudden check and the h pawn queening... 

63..Kxc5

Black should try to exploit the poor placement of White's King by playing -Rb4, although with best play White should hold.

64.Kb7 Kd5
65.Kc7 Ke5
66.Kd7 Kf4
67.Ke6 Kg3
68.Ra2 Kxh4
69.Kf5 Rg3
70.Rh2 Rh3
71.Rxh3 Kxh3
72.Kf4 h4
73.Kf3

Draw

<iframe width="680" frameborder="0" height="450" src="http://chess.tuxtown.net/game-replayer.php?id=50fa0242c37da795d9bbf2e568cbd1332255747de5ac6eed6c861" > </iframe>

Mga Komento

Mag-post ng isang Komento

Mga sikat na post sa blog na ito

Remembering the 1990 Manila Inter-Zonal Chess Championship...

F ew young players knew how strong GM Boris Gelfand was and still is. In 1989 he won the GMA Open in Palma de Mallorca which was participated by more than 160 grandmasters! An amazing record!! He left Ivanchuk, Anand, Shirov, Karpov, Leko, Adams, Short, Korchnoi, Timman, Kamsky, Svidler etc. behind him eating dust. He won with a clear half point edge. Untied and un-equaled. He won the 1990 Manila Inter-Zonal (Ivanchuk was the co-champion but he lost in the tie-break) ahead of 63 elite grandmasters. In the 13th and final round Ivanchuk (who was the solo leader with a half point advantage against Gelfand) quickly drew with Anand in only 12 moves of Petroff Defense. While Gelfand, relieved somewhat of the pressure, was in a win to order mode. Determined to crush his own compatriot GM Alexander Khalifman (Khalifman became World Champion in the late 90's when Fide decided to hold the WCC in a ridiculous KO format.), he fought with all his might and accompl
2 komento
Magbasa nang higit pa

The Cold War Gladiator and his Soviet Nemesis

MIKHAIL TAL’S STARE was infamous, and to some ominous. With his deep brown, almost black eyes, he’d glare so intently at his opponents that some said he was attempting to hypnotize them into making a vapid move. The Hungarian-American player Pal Benko actually donned sunglasses once when he played Tal, just to avoid the penetrating stare. Tal's burning stare... Bobby had tolerated Tal’s stare when they first met over the board in Portorož, Yugoslavia. That game had ended in a draw. At his first game against Tal, in Bled, Bobby was already at the board when the twenty-three-year-old Mischa arrived just in time to commence play. Bobby stood and Tal offered his right hand to shake. Tal’s hand was severely deformed, with only three large fingers appended, and since his wrist was so thin, the malformation resembled a claw. Bobby, to his credit, didn’t seem to care. He returned the gesture with a two-stroke handshake, and play began. Within a
Mag-post ng isang Komento
Magbasa nang higit pa

Remembering the 2001 Philippine Open Chess Championships

The 2001 Philippine Open (Semi-Finals) was one of the most interesting chess events of the early 21'st Century. And not only because of the excellent start and sensational collapse of NM Rodrigo Atutubo, it is also the very first high caliber tournament sanctioned by the newly formed National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP). NCFP was fresh from it's victory over the floundering chess organization Philippine Chess Federation (PCF). The media coverage of the tournament was huge. I remember that almost all the sports journalist/writer (not only chess journalist) was there to cover the event. And not only that, ABS-CBN also sent it's own representative to cover the event. The tournament was held at the 2nd floor of Greenhills Shopping Mall. The total prize fund of the tournament was huge, in the semi-final alone the total prize fund was close to P500,000. Atutubo started the tournament like a h
Mag-post ng isang Komento
Magbasa nang higit pa