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24. d4
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Losing the pawn on c4, but regaining at least a little center control in exchange. |
 
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24... Qxc4 25. Ne3 Qb3
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Winning another pawn for Black |
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26. Re1
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? Allowing not only the free pawn on a3, but also the rook on e4. Black's best strategy seems to be 26...Bxe4 27. fxe4 Qxa3, but black follows another plan. |
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26... Qxa3 27. Nc4 Qd3 28. Nb2 Qb5 29. Re4xe6
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winning back one of the two pawns for White. |
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29... Rxe6 30. Rxe6 Qxb2
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White's defense of e1 is just enough to prevent the back rank mate, at least for now. |
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31. Re7
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Threatening mate on g7 |
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31... Qxd4+ 32. Kh1
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White appears to be in dire straits now, but keeps fighting on. |
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32... f5
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Protecting the critical g7 square with the queen |
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33. h4
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White continues to scramble, hoping to storm the king at the expense of the last of his defenses |
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33... Rd7
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Down significantly in material, white should not even consider trading here |
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34. Qg5
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Black cannot accept the trade because of 35. Qe8 |
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34... Qd6 35. Re8+
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A desperation check, White is simply hoping to buy time and hopefully allow Black to make a mistake |
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35... Kf7 36. Re3 g6 37. Qh6 Kf6
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?...Giving White a free tempo is the wrong play from Black |
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38. Qg5+ Kg7 39. h5 a5
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? Another tempo for White |
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40. h6+ Kf8 41. Rc3
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White tries to use the open file to his advantage. |
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41... Rc7
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Black offers another trade. Traditional thinking implies that when you are significantly ahead in material, you should try to trade off all of the pieces still on the board in order to maximize the advantage. However, without proper analysis, trading material, even when you are ahead, can be disastrous. |
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42. Rxc7
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White accepts, seeing a few moves down the road a disastrous turn of events for black. |
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42... Qxc7 43. Qf6+
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!! The key move that the rook trade allowed for white, because... |
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43... Ke8
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???... A horrible mistake which will cost black the game. Playing Kg8 prevents mate, although white then has continuous checks for a draw. The rook trade, which was a sound move at first glance, has now cost Black the game. |
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44. Qh8+ Ke7 45. Qxh7+
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Skewering the Queen |
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