Cyber-Allard (1714) vs SenseiDanya (1848)

1800Episode 21 · 0-1

During the gameIn the review

  1. King's Indian Defense: 3.Bg5, a Smyslov System without Nc3
  2. 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Bg5 Bg7 4.Nf3 O-O
  3. 5. e3 The knight belongs on c3 in this system Opening This is the Smyslov System, named after the former world champion, but played oddly: normally the knight comes out to c3 first. In the review: the knight to c3 is the best way to play this system. It covers e4, so the knight jump there is not available, and it blocks the long diagonal, so that if Black plays c5 White can answer with d5. Even after the knight to f3 and castling there was still time for it.
  4. 5... c5 The break the opponent's move invites Pawn structure Black has two central pawn breaks in the King's Indian, e5 - the more typical one - and c5. He usually prefers e5, and people ask when c5 is right. This is a good example: the bishop's trip to g5 has left b2 undefended, and c5 prepares the queen to b6 to hit it. He will not necessarily play the queen move at once; the mere possibility is unpleasant, because the bishop has left the pawn chain. c5 also keeps the long diagonal open for his own bishop.
  5. 6. d5 Ask what the pawn move opened General As always when a move like this is played, ask what it changes: it opens the long diagonal for the bishop. The review calls this the last chance for the knight to c3 - Black takes on d4, White recaptures and is completely fine. After d5 and the knight jump, the position is already nasty. In these positions the knight simply has to be developed.
  6. 6...Ne4
  7. 7. Bh4 In trouble, decide what to save General Something of an admission of defeat - the plan has worked. In the review: in trouble, decide what comes first. The top priority was the pawn, and saving the bishop was the wrong priority - White cannot do everything. The queen to c2 was best. After the trade on g5 Black can push e6 and open up an attack on the knight, a very good Benoni for Black, but White loses no material and can finish developing. Once the bishop takes on b2, the position is already quite bad.
  8. 7...Bxb2 8.Nbd2
  9. 8... Nc3 Before the automatic capture, look for better General One mistake he talks about often is the automatic move, playing on autopilot. Many would grab the rook and celebrate, but a few seconds' thought can turn up a big improvement on the obvious move. The queen is the worst defender on the board, because it is so easy to dislodge, and the knight to c3 does just that: the queen has no square along the first rank and must leave the rook. His pieces may get a little tangled, but it causes White more trouble. He thinks White does have a way to win the bishop back, but even so this is a better version for Black than taking the rook at once.
  10. 9.Qc2 Bxa1 10.Bd3
  11. 10... Nxd5 A desperado for a central pawn Tactics A respite, but it is still not easy: once White castles, the bishop on a1 will be under fire, and getting both pieces out is very hard. The right strategy is to accept that one minor piece will be lost, and decide which. Definitely the knight: keep the King's Indian bishop, because without it the kingside, with g6 already played, would be very weak. So open the bishop's diagonal proactively, by taking either the a2 pawn or the d5 pawn. If a piece is going anyway, get as much as you can for it - and a central pawn is worth more than a meaningless one on the edge. A classic desperado.
  12. 11.cxd5
  13. 11... d6 The exchange up, keep developing Strategy Care is needed. The diagonal is already open, so the bishop need not come back yet; first stop d6, which White was threatening using the pin. Black is up the exchange and close to winning. Even so, never forget to develop the rest of your pieces when you have won material - do not rest on your laurels, but find which pieces are still at home.
  14. 12.O-O Bg7 13.Rb1
  15. 13... Na6 A knight on the rim as a transit point Piece play An interesting move, heading for b4, very much in the King's Indian spirit because it does not block the bishop; the knight to d7 was possible too. It can also go to c7. Knights on the rim are dim, but this is like Frankfurt airport - a transit point on the way to a square where the knight does something. If you know where a piece is heading, do not get worked up about how it gets there; sometimes it has to pass through bad squares.
  16. 14.a3 Nc7 15.Ne4
  17. 15... Nxd5 Take a free pawn, risk nothing for one Strategy Be very attentive to what is hanging and what the opponent has left: the knight takes d5, another free pawn, and White's centre is gone. What remains for an easy win is developing the bishop to f5 or g4, though that is not urgent, and looking after b7. If the knight comes to d6, the queen can take it, since the pawn is not its only defender. The balance to keep in mind: a long way ahead, do not go out of your way or risk your position for more pawns - but a pawn that is simply free should still be taken.
  18. 16.Bc4 Nb6 17.Bb3
  19. 17... Bf5 A permanent pin, a pawn as the knife Tactics Between f5 and g4, f5 squeezes the most out of the bishop, assuming the other bishop leaves c4. It pins the knight to the queen and the rook behind it - if the rook moves the knight is pinned to the queen, and if the queen moves it is pinned to the rook. A permanent pin, and a horrible situation for White. To exploit a pin, attack the pinned piece, and the pawn to d5 does it. He calls this the knife and fork: the bishop holds the knight still like a fork, and the pawn cuts like a knife.
  20. 18.Rd1
  21. 18... c4 Development is cash, material is gold Strategy The c-pawn push is also a great move before d5, and he promises to show why after the game. A very high-level move. d5 at once does work, but then White's bishop pins that pawn to the queen and might find a sudden capture on d5; ideally his bishop should play no part in pressuring it. If the bishop takes on c4, it lands on the same file as the queen, and the rook to c8 creates a second pin - two pins against two different minor pieces. No calculation needed: intuition says White will not escape. The review confirms it: after the capture and the rook to c8, two pins from different angles are devastating. If the bishop takes f7 instead, Black recaptures and is up a rook; White has given a piece for a pawn and still cannot save the knight, because the queen must stay on its diagonal, and d5 wins it - the worst of all worlds. Asked whether White's lead in development counts for something: advantages have to be sorted into kinds. A material advantage is like gold, valuable in itself - being a queen up wins the game by its own existence. A lead in development is like cash, or Bitcoin: it has no intrinsic value and has to be traded in, converted into a mating attack or material. The same goes for space or a weak enemy pawn, which has to actually be won to mean anything. Only material and a mating attack are intrinsic; every other advantage means nothing if you cannot do anything with it. Here, ahead in material and with such a solid centre, Black leaves White nothing to transform the development into.
  22. 19.Ba2 d5 20.Nd4 Bxe4 21.Qe2 Na4 22.Qe1 c3 23.f3 Bf5 24.e4 dxe4 25.Nxf5 Qb6+ 26.Bf2 Qb2 27.Nxe7+ Kh8 28.Bd5 c2 29.Rc1 Nc3 30.Bc4 Rad8 31.Be2 Qxc1 32.Qxc1 Nxe2+
  23. White resigned
End of episode 21 · 0-1 ← 20. vs Kajand (1897)All games at 180022. vs johndavis_59 (1828) →