Annotated chess game

One doesn't see the Old Benoni very often!

Always good for an exciting game!

I quite like Black's game already.

Maybe there was something to be said for 10...Bd7, permitting the exchange. Black's game subsequently looks the more active right across the board. Having said that, there seems nothing much wrong with this rook move. What will the bishop do now?

No worries. Black can now 'steal a march' on the Q side.

I would almost certainly have played 12...b5, here, firmly establishing Black's Q-side majority. I'd really fancy Black's game after that! Not that 12...Nbd7 hurts Black's game, mark you!

Wrong rook-pawn, in my view. White ought to have got in 13.a4! placing some constraint upon Black's Q-side pawns.

... or even 14.f3-f4 Nxd3! 15.Qxd3 b5, and Black would be having most of the fun.

I wonder how much attack Black would have got with the exchange sacrifice, 14...Nh5!? White so far seems to have been footling around a bit, risking handing the K-side initiative over to Black. This, mark you, in the face of the latent ascendancy Black already has on the other wing.

Now, 15...Nxh5 16.Bxe7!? Qxe7 actually looks playable, with ...Ng3 and ...h5 to follow. The pawn recapture seems to weaken Black on the K-side, offering White an avenue back into the game, to wit: 16.Qf4. Black will lose the exchange (after 16...Ne8) on terms more favourable (less unfavourable) to White.

Better would have been 16.Qf4. All the same, White seems to have recovered some ground from this K-side skirmish.

17.f4 would have been a good alternative.

Now would have been a good time for White to castle.