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18... c6
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The obvious response to White's previous move - and it is a mistake. Better was ...Bc6. |
 
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19. a3
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To some extent, returning the compliment. 19.g4! was still good - possibly even better now than in the previous move. Black has opened a fine square for a White Knight on d6. A good alternative idea would have been 19.Bb1, with the idea of bringing the queen onto c2 or d3. |
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19... Ne3
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A clever looking relocation move, but, as mentioned in an earlier, analogous situation, ...Be8 deserved consideration. |
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20. Rf3
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(!) A great square for the rook - and soon all sorts of possibilities will open up on the third rank. |
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20... Nd5
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One has to admit: this is a fine outpost square for the knight. |
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21. Qd2 Qb6
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Right now, Black might have been well advised to constrain White's centre and K-side, with 21...f5! White might have been ill-advised enough to take 'en passant', but Black would have had to count on the far stronger 22.Nd6 in reply. Practically impossible to shift, that knight would have been a bone in Black's throat. As it is, White again establishes an ascendancy. |
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22. Bc4
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(!) White has a great game. The rook is ready to slide over to g3, or even b3, the bishop looks ready to exchange itself for Black's only really active piece, and the White knight is eyeing that wonderful d6-square. |
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22... Rfc8 23. Ng3
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(?) Not the happiest of knight moves. On e4 it had the d6 square in front of it - attacking the rook, if capturing it looked worthwhile (in the circumstances, not a 'gimme'). But White also had 23.Rg3 and 23.Rb3 available, both strong moves. As there is nothing upon God's black-and-white chessboard that can stop Ne4-d6, that can wait upon one or other of the rook moves. Although White retains an advantage, it is no longer the winning edge of a move ago.
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23... Qd8 24. f5
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Thematic, but the knight ought to have gone back to e4. |
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24... exf5
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(!) Black had to react quickly, before White recovered from his last couple of moves. |
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25. Nxf5 Bxf5 26. Rxf5 Qf8
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For all Black's recovery over the last couple of moves, White still retains fine attacking possibilities, and the initiative to keep them alive. |
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27. e6
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(?) The problem here is that Black's f-pawn had not been immobilised, as Black's reply shows. Better would have been 27.Rcf1! |
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27... f6
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(!) What a chess annotator would call 'the only move'. |
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28. Re1
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Now would have been a fine time to knock over the knight: 28.Bxd5 cxd5 29.Rxd5 Rxc1+ 30.Qxc1, with a big advantage in the major piece endgame. But then we would have missed the fun bit... |
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28... Ne7
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(!) Blockading the passer and attacking the rook. Can't be bad! |
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29. Ref1
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(!?) Rather clever, as Black dare not take the rook on f5!
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29... Kh8
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Moving off the dangerous light-square diagonal. But he could equally well have reorganised his loafing rooks, beginning with 29...Re8. Black is very nearly back on level terms now. |
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30. Rf5f3 Rcd8
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Bringing pressure to bear on White's centre. |
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31. Qf4
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Somehow White seems to have lost the thread of the game. Black could after this safely bring the knight back to d5. White would not have dared to exchange minor pieces, as after ...Rxd5, both White's centre pawns would have been hard to defend. Meanwhile, Black's defences look sufficiently secure... |
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31... Rac8
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Much better would have been 31.Nd5! |
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(2355)