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13. c4
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Preparing to allow my DSB to go to b2 for a long diagonal from which I can harass Black's king. It also protects against |
 
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13... Qc8
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Preparing to push for Bg4, to give an escape path for the knight. I applaud Black for his forward thinking. When considering which move to make, look at your array of pieces and see if any would be vulnerable to an attack. If so, give it an escape plan. f6 is also worth a look. |
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14. d3
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I now smell some blood in the water in relation to Black's knight. There's still time with f6. |
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14... Bg4
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And now we have our first real mistake from Black. Everything turns out great IF I exchange bishops. However, when considering your moves (and I fail at this advice far too often myself) consider what happens if they choose not to take. |
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15. f5
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f5 is very problematic for Black. I am exchanging a pawn for a piece no matter what Black does. When you move a knight to the edge of the board, limiting its places to go, you must create a way for it to get back into the game. Fail to do so, and you will get forced into bad exchanges. |
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15... Bxf3
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Sensing that the jig is up, Black exchanges bishops and hopes to get 2 pawns for the piece instead of 1. |
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16. Qxf3 Nxf5 17. exf5 Qxf5
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I might have not chosen to exchange queens here, trading pawns instead. As a general rule of thumb, when you are down, trade pawns, not pieces (unless you can trade up). |
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18. Qxf5 gxf5 19. Bh6
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Rather than retake the pawn, I opted to go for pinning the King down instead. An early priority for Black should be to break the pin, perhaps through f6. |
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19... Rfe8 20. Rxf5 e6
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f6 was the better move, as it not only gave the king space to maneuver, but this move gave White's bishop far too much positional power. When presented with opportunities like this one, seize the positional leverage that the situation presents. Note that Black only has rooks (albeit two of them, so my bishop can potentially perch on f6 and get a favorable exchange to relieve pressure. |
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21. Rg5+ Kh8 22. Bg7+ Kg8 23. Bf6+
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Another option, which I did not consider until post game, would have been Be5+, followed by Bxd6+, forcing Black to trade a rook and a pawn for my bishop. However, I do not believe I lost anything by playing the pressure game instead. |
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23... Kf8 24. Rg7
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Threatening to mate if I can get my rook to h8. |
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24... Rec8
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The only move to save mate was to create an escape plan for his king. |
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25. Rxh7 Ke8 26. Rb1
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I am in no rush to exchange rooks. In order to mate, you often need multiple pieces to work in concert. I am hoping to get a free rook in the deal, or potentially get mate, should Black fail to see the danger. Right now, going to the half-open file, I am getting my other rook in the game. Black has to push or defend. If I can get my rook in his back ranks, it is going to get ugly fast. |
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26... Rab8
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A better sequence could have been
26. Rb1 b5
27. cxb5 axb5
28. Rxb5 Rxa2
29. h4
That said, Black is in a dire situation. |
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27. Rb6
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When given the opportunity, get in there. My bishop on f6 is savagely oppressive to Black's hopes for a competent defense. |
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27... d5
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d5 became a critical square to protect, and even if Black played Rd8 or Rc6, he is giving up both rooks for one of White's. |
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28. Rd6
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Now mate after Black's next move, regardless of what it is. A solid early game by Black with some strong counterplay. Really very little to fault until he let me trade a pawn for his knight, opening up his kingside.
I hope that the discussion helped you think through how to analyze a game and make some winning plays. Until our next chess adventure. |
3 comments
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