GameKnot: annotated chess game - Speculate to accumulate

▲ ▲

ANNOTATED GAME:

Speculate to accumulate
easy19 (2244) vs. jstevens1 (1756)
Annotated by: ionadowman

(2102)
Chess opening: Sicilian (B21), Grand Prix attack

[

Interactive

Show all comments

All annotated games

View as:

]

Pages: · 1 2 3 · next »
	Speculative sacrifices in the opening - gambits - often lead to exciting games. The gambiteer risks material for the sake of less tangible advantages, but the tension mounts as he tries to realise those advantages. When it is the queen that is being invested, then the tension is at fever pitch. How can the gambiteer so much as break even on his investment? Such examples are uncommon, but here's one such.

1. e4 c5 2. f4	Beginning the so-called Grand Prix Attack, popular for its inaugurating a K-side attack.
	1 comment marinvukusic (2155) on 16-Jan-09: More precise is 2.Nc3 and then 3.f4 - it avoids the game continuation (2...d5) -


2... d5	... Possibly this is the response that means that the Grand Prix will never supersede White's main lines of the Sicilian!
	-


3. Nf3	An unusual response that gambits White's e-pawn. But White has something more spectacular already in mind...
	-


3... dxe4	Why not?
	-


4. Ng5	According to plan. Also possible was 4.Ne5.
	-


4... Nf6 5. Bc4	A straightforward attack on f7. Black could simply block this with 5...e6, but there's nothing wrong with developing a piece to drive back the c4-bishop, is there?
	-


5... Bg4	Apparently White must play 6.Be2 if he doesn't want to give up more material...
	1 comment gmflash2008 (1423) on 16-Jan-09: Yeah, after Bxf7+ Kd7 whites only move is Qxg4. -


6. Qxg4	(!!?) Giving up the queen for the sake of keeping his attack on f7!? White's development has hardly begun. too! Incidentally, 6.Bxf7+ would have transposed into the game continuation. Either way, White is speculating very heavily!
	3 comments gmflash2008 (1423) on 16-Jan-09: Should have read on. Didnt consider this move before playing Bxf7. x-machine (1226) on 14-Sep-09: I've seen this in a couple of other annotations as well... did you start this, 'cause this is one of the most impressive chess strategies I've ever seenn! (if not, where did you find this?) ionadowman (2102) on 23-Sep-09: I was told about this game by one of the players. This was before the first MT exploring this opening. A second such MT -- The Annotation Project -- is going on right now, nearing its end. All the games in that MT are being annotated. Check out "The Annotation Project" under the Tournament and League forum. -


6... Nxg4	There's no real choice. Black has to test White's idea.
	-


7. Bxf7+ Kd7 8. Be6+	Forking K and N, which will ensure White at least gets a second minor piece for his queen. Still, he needs a third to restore the material balance!
	-


8... Kc7	(!?) One has to ask, what would White have played had the king returned to e8? Would White have settled for a perpetual (9.Bxf7 ) or taken the fork (9.Nf7?! Qd4!, say)? It seems the latter course would have been very risky - too risky perhaps? The game might have ended in a draw right here! However, Black was not wrong at this point in fancying her chances of surviving to win.
	2 comments gmflash2008 (1423) on 16-Jan-09: Rightly so i cant see how white can be anywhere close to equal in this position. 8... Kc6 may have been a stronger continuation to avoid possible knight forks. easy19 (2238) on 21-Jan-09: I have played a entire tournament with this opening and sacrifice.. (all 2000+) None attempted to draw the game. But it is defenatly a draw by treefold if the king moves back. Non of the high rated players likes to draw that early and have a queen for a headstart. In joanne,s case a draw would be prefered.. but it is hard to see and a waste of a great and interseting game. -


9. Bxg4	Time to assess the position. White has N B for the Q. Although a long way from completing his development, White has two pieces in action, with forking threats at e6 and f7. Black, meanwhile, pretty much has to begin all over again, just to activate her game. White has gained a great deal in time for his large material investment.
	-


9... Qe8	(!?) Dodging both forks at once - a sensible plan. But another idea was to allow one of the forks to happen: 9...Qd6!? 10.Nf7!? Qxf4 11.Nxh8 Qxg4 12.0-0 Nc6. Since much of White's temporal and spatial advantage would disappear with the win of the exchange, it would seem he might have had to come up with a different plan, 10.Ne6 , say.
	3 comments nuntar (1678) on 15-Jan-09: 11. 0-0 is illegal with the queen covering f1, and even if it were legal, 11... Nc6 gives the queen for nothing. Was some other move intended? easy19 (2238) on 21-Jan-09: 9.----Qe8 is by far the best move to make.. After 9.Qd6 11.Qg6 ?? Ne6+ i would move 9....Nc3 after that the game is almost equalized and that is al white wil need ionadowman (2102) on 18-Apr-09: Quite right, nuntar: I skipped a move. The note has been emended according. -


10. Ne6+ Kb6	Probably safest. Had she played 10...Kd6, this might have happened: 11.Nc3 Qg6 12.h3 Nd7 13.f5 ... 14.Nxe4 with a strong-looking attack.
	-


11. Na3	Aiming for c4 and check.
	-


11... a6	Creating a hidey-hole for himself...
	-


12. b4	(!?) Trying to open a file directed at the Black King. Maybe White felt that 12.Nc4 Ka7 13.Nc7 Qg6 14.Bh3 offered insufficient return.
	-


12... Ka7	Again, playing safe. But taking on b4 was worth a look: 12...cxb4 13.Nc4 Ka7 14.d3 Nc6 15.Be3 Kb8 16.Bb6 (threatens Bc7 ) ...a5 (an attempt to create room for the BK) 17.Bc7 Ka7 (17...Kc8 18.Nb6#) 18.Bb6 Kb8 (18...Ka6 19.Nc7#) and what seems to be a perpetual. Had White more than this if Black took the pawn? I haven't found anything so far!
	3 comments gmflash2008 (1423) on 16-Jan-09: Nice analysis. White definitely equalises there. Maybe the way to keep the advantage would be to play, in your continuation, 14...Nd7, in order to prevent 16. Bb6. ionadowman (2102) on 17-Jan-09: OK, let's look at that. One possibility is this line 12...cxb4 13.Nc4+ Ka7 14.d3 Nd7 (as suggested) 15.Nc7 Qd8 (say) 16.Nxa8 Kxa8 (of course taking with the Q leaves the d7-N 'en prise') 17.Bxd7 and Black can't retake on d7 on account of 17...Qxd7?? 18.Nb6+. Of course, this is just a crude "first pass". Black might have a better Q move, but White also has a bishop check at e3 to throw into the mix. easy19 (2238) on 21-Jan-09: After 12.....cxb4 I would play 13.d3 Ka7?? Be3+ 14. b6 ?? Nc4 15.Nd7?? Nc7 Black stil cramped and many options left for white to make other attacks and disrupt blacks devolpment -


13. b5	Charging onward! See how Black is being given no time to bring out her pieces. But White's game is developing almost as slowly: yet to castle, and still to bring out the Q-side pieces. Meanwhile, what might have been the consequences of opening the b-file? 13.bxc5 Qc6 (say) 14.Rb1 Nd7 15.Nc4 Qa4 and Black has some threats of her own.
	-


13... Qg6	This queen is just about Black's only active piece, and it looks difficult to bring the others into play. What is intriguing about all this is that it's hard to see how White can make good the loss of his queen; and equally difficult to fathom how Black can survive the bind on her game. Are both losing??
	1 comment easy19 (2238) on 10-Mar-09: My experience in this game is. That Blacks best option to win is to play slow and defensive, trade the minor pieces as quickly as possible specially the key bishops Then work to the point where you regain freedom of movment. and then trade down the heavy pieces. (never give up the black queen) -

Pages: · 1 2 3 · next »