[Event "5th Kings Tournament"]
[Site "Medias ROU"]
[Date "2011.06.15"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Ivanchuk, V."]
[Black "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "C54"]
[WhiteElo "2776"]
[BlackElo "2776"]
[Annotator "John Emms"]
[PlyCount "74"]
[EventDate "2011.06.11"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "ROM"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[Source "Mark Crowther"]
[SourceDate "2011.06.20"]

{For this second update of "Beating 1 e4 e5" I've continued to look for new
developments and interesting games in the Italian Game over the last few
months. We begin with a great game by Sergey Karjakin (but not such a good one
by Ivanchuk!).} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. c3 Nf6 5. d3 O-O 6. O-O d6 ({
Karjakin decides to avoid the trendy} 6... d5 {. It would have been
interesting to see what Ivanchuk had planned against this.}) 7. h3 (7. Nbd2 {
(see the next game) defends e4 and so discourages} Ne7 {to some extent. Here}
8. d4 {forces Black to play} exd4) (7. Bb3 Ne7 8. d4 $5 Bb6 9. dxe5 Nxe4 10.
Ng5 Nxg5 11. Bxg5 h6 12. Bxe7 Qxe7 13. exd6 cxd6 14. Nd2 d5 15. Nf3 Rd8 16. Nd4
Qf6 17. Re1 Be6 18. Qd3 Bxd4 19. cxd4 Rac8 20. Re5 g6 21. Rae1 Kg7 22. Qd2 Rc7
{was very slightly better for White in Z.Jovanovic-D.Rogic, Zupanja 2011.}) (7.
Re1 {defends e4 but} Ne7 {is still possible:} 8. d4 Bb6 9. dxe5 Ng4 $1) 7...
Ne7 $5 {Switching the knight to the kingside is of course a typical plan for
Black, but doing it so quickly is quite unusual. In practice Black has
normally played 7...a6 or 7...h6, but here Karjakin tries to do without any
kind of preparation. The only way I can see for White to try to exploit an
early ...Ne7 is with a quick d3-d4 before ...Ng6, and the strength of this
idea really depends on White's 7th move (see the variations above and below).}
8. Re1 {Ivanchuk carries on with the normal plan.} (8. d4 Bb6 9. dxe5 (9. Re1
Ng6 10. Nbd2 h6 {is okay for Black}) 9... Nxe4 {looks like a slightly more
favourable version (for Black) of the 7 Bb3 variation above. If} 10. Ng5 Nxg5
11. Bxg5 h6 12. Bxe7 Qxe7 13. exd6 cxd6 {Black is fine and White's pawn on h3
could be vulnerable to tactics.}) 8... Ng6 9. Nbd2 c6 {By this stage it's
clear that Black can play more actively than ...a6 and ...Ba7, and Karjakin
lines up a quick ...d5.} ({If} 9... a6 10. Nf1 Ba7 11. Ng3 h6 12. Bb3 Be6 13.
d4 {we would transpose to Korneev-Campora, which is covered in the book.}) 10.
Nf1 d5 $5 {Karjakin decides to be the one to take action in the centre.} ({If
Black delays then eventually White will push with d3-d4 and have chances of an
edge, e.g.} 10... Re8 11. Ng3 h6 12. Bb3 Bb6 13. d4 Qc7 14. Bc2 Be6 15. Be3
Rad8 {and we have transposed to Radjabov-Harikrishna (see next game).}) 11.
exd5 Nxd5 (11... cxd5 12. Bb3 {"appeals to me less, as the d5 and e5 pawns
become targets for the white pieces." - Karjakin in 'New In Chess'.}) 12. Ng3
h6 13. Bb3 $6 {I get the feeling that Ivanchuk - quite uncharacteristically -
plays the next few moves on a kind of auto-pilot, selecting moves which he
would probably choose in a simul display. Before he knows it, he's in position
which might be beyond saving.} (13. Nxe5 $2 {fails to a typical tactic:} Nxe5
14. Rxe5 Bxf2+ $1 15. Kxf2 Qf6+) ({When Black plays a quick ...d5, White must
always try to play as actively as possible with his pieces; this is the only
way to put pressure on Black.} 13. Nh5 $1 {as suggested by GM Viorel
Iordachescu, looks the most challenging move. The key point is that against
the natural} Re8 $2 {White can exploit the ...h6 move:} ({something like} 13...
Qc7 {is better, but White has interesting ideas like} 14. Nxe5 Nxe5 15. Bxd5
cxd5 16. d4) 14. d4 $1 exd4 15. Rxe8+ Qxe8 16. Bxd5 cxd5 17. Bxh6 $1 {winning
at least a pawn and leaving Black in big trouble.}) 13... Re8 14. Bd2 ({
Karjakin was expecting} 14. d4 exd4 15. Rxe8+ Qxe8 16. Bxd5 cxd5 17. Nxd4 {
"with a roughly equal position". This was actually played in H. Elwert-O.Rause,
ICCF email 2002, and was soon drawn.}) 14... Bb6 15. Qc2 $6 {Another "simul"
move.} ({Had he spotted the danger, Ivanchuk would have definitely played} 15.
d4 exd4 16. Rxe8+ Qxe8 17. Nxd4 {with an equal position.}) 15... Be6 16. Rad1
$2 ({White's should still play} 16. d4 exd4 17. Nxd4 {although by this stage
Black can probably claim a slight edge after} Bxd4 18. cxd4 Ndf4 {as indicated
by Karjakin.}) 16... Bxh3 $1 {A tactical shot out of seemingly nowhere, giving
Black an advantage even against best defence by White (which Ivanchuk fails to
find).} 17. c4 $2 ({After} 17. gxh3 Qf6 {suddenly White has cause to regret 15
Qc2 and then 16 Rad1 to block the queen's path back to d1. Black is winning
after} 18. Kg2 Nh4+ 19. Nxh4 Qxf2+ 20. Kh1 Qxg3) ({Karjakin gives} 17. d4 Bg4
18. c4 {as White's path of strongest resistance, and suggests} Rc8 $1 {as the
way to keep an advantage for Black. For example,} 19. cxd5 cxd5 20. Qd3 e4 21.
Nxe4 Bf5 22. Ne5 Nxe5 23. Qg3 dxe4 24. dxe5 {when Black has an extra pawn but
there is still a lot of play left in the position.}) 17... Ndf4 18. c5 Nxg2 19.
cxb6 Qf6 $1 20. Nh2 Nxe1 21. Rxe1 axb6 {Black has a material advantage,
White's king is still exposed and he has weaknesses everywhere - a decisive
advantage for Black at this level and Karjakin is precise to the end.} 22. Bc3
Be6 23. Re3 Nf4 24. Rf3 Qh4 25. Bd2 Bg4 26. Qc4 Be6 27. Qc2 Bxb3 28. Qxb3 Re6
29. a3 Rae8 30. Qb4 Rf6 31. Qe4 Ree6 32. Ne2 Nxe2+ 33. Qxe2 Rxf3 34. Qxf3 Rg6+
35. Kh1 Rf6 36. Qg3 Qxg3 37. fxg3 Rd6 {An excellent game by Karjakin. White
should certainly play Iordachescu's suggestion on 13 Nh5!.} 0-1

[Event "8th World Teams"]
[Site "Ningbo CHN"]
[Date "2011.07.18"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Radjabov, T."]
[Black "Harikrishna, P."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C54"]
[WhiteElo "2744"]
[BlackElo "2669"]
[Annotator "John Emms"]
[PlyCount "75"]
[EventDate "2011.07.17"]
[Source "Mark Crowther"]
[SourceDate "2011.06.20"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. O-O Nf6 5. d3 O-O 6. Nbd2 {Radjabov's
anti-d5 move (see Radjabov-Bacrot, next game).} d6 7. c3 Bb6 ({Just like
Karjakin, Harikrishna wants to employ the ...Ne7-g6 plan, but first he
retreats the bishop in order to avoid} 7... Ne7 8. d4) (7... a6 {is the main
line.}) 8. Bb3 Ne7 9. h3 ({The main alternative for White is} 9. Nc4 {
exploiting Black's omission of ...a6 to force the exchange of knight for
bishop.}) 9... c6 10. Re1 Ng6 11. d4 $1 {Compare this with Ivanchuk-Karjakin,
where it was Black who was ready first to strike in the centre.} h6 12. Bc2 ({
White can also play} 12. Nf1 {first, and if} Re8 13. Ng3 Be6 14. Bc2 {a
transposition to the game is certainly possible:} Qc7 15. Be3 Rad8 16. Qc1)
12... Be6 13. Nf1 Qc7 14. Be3 Rad8 15. Qc1 Rfe8 ({Mikhalevski on
ChessPublishing.com suggests both} 15... c5 $5) ({and} 15... Nh5 $5 {
,discouraging 16 Ng3, as possible slight improvements for Black. I agree with
him, and going back a few moves this suggests that 12 Nf1 is a more accurate
move order for White.}) 16. Ng3 {We've now transposed to a position covered in
the book (Shaposhnikov-Lastin), although that was a Bishop's Opening move
order and Black got his knight to g6 via d7 and f8!} Qd7 $6 {This passive move
does very little and allows White to slowly but surely improve his position
and gain control.} (16... a6 $2 17. Nf5 Bxf5 18. exf5 Nf8 19. Bxh6 $1 {was the
continuation of Shaposhnikov-Lastin.}) ({See also the notes to that game for
coverage of Kramnik's} 16... Bc8) ({and also} 16... Kh7) ({Mikhalevski
suggests counterattacking in the centre with} 16... exd4 $5 17. cxd4 c5 {which
quickly makes the position critical and may lead to big complications. A
summary of his analysis:} 18. Ba4 (18. d5 Bc8 {"with the idea of 19...Ba5
looks ok"}) 18... Bd7 19. Bxh6 $3 cxd4 $1 ({both} 19... Bxa4 $2 20. Bxg7 $1) ({
and} 19... gxh6 $2 20. Qxh6 {are winning for White}) 20. Qd2 (20. Qxc7 Bxc7 21.
Bxd7 Nxd7 22. Bg5 f6 23. Bd2 Bb6 {"with roughly equal chances"}) 20... Bxa4 21.
Bxg7 Nh7 $1 22. Qh6 f6 $1 23. Nf5 Ne7 24. N3xd4 Nxf5 25. Nxf5 Qf7 {"and Black
seems to be able to hold".}) 17. a4 $1 {Radjabov gains space on the queenside
and slowly pushes Black backwards.} Bc7 18. a5 $1 a6 19. Ra4 $1 {Preparing c4
and then d5, seizing more space and cramping Black.} Qe7 20. c4 Qf8 21. d5 Bd7
22. Ra3 {White enjoys a definite advantage now and Black just has to defend
passively.} Rc8 23. Qd2 Ne7 $2 24. Bb1 ({Apparently Radjabov missed a tactical
possibility here:} 24. Rb3 $1 cxd5 (24... Rb8 25. Ba7 $1) 25. exd5 Ba4 26. Rxb7
Bxc2 27. Qxc2 Nexd5 {(otherwise White is just a pawn up)} 28. Bxh6 $1 (28. cxd5
Bxa5 {was Black's idea}) 28... gxh6 29. cxd5 Bxa5 30. Qf5 Bxe1 $2 31. Qxf6 $1 {
with a winning position, as indicated by Mikhalevski.}) 24... Rb8 25. Rb3 Rec8
26. Nh4 ({If} 26. Ba7 {Black has the resource} Qd8 $1) 26... Qd8 27. Ra3 Nh7
28. Nhf5 {Radjabov goes for the attack on the kingside and is ultimately
successful, but objectively this and his following move aren't the best, and
with accurate defence Black could have considerably reduced White's advantage.}
(28. c5 $1 {is much stronger, as pointed out by Mikhalevski. Black is
struggling to find a good move here.}) 28... Nxf5 29. exf5 $6 Qf8 $2 {
Harikrishna misses his chance.} ({It was vital to get the knight back to its
favourite f6-square as quickly as possible. After} 29... cxd5 30. cxd5 Nf6 $1 {
(Mikhalevski) Black is still a bit worse but he's also pretty solid.}) 30. Nh5
$1 {Too late for ...Nf6!} Bd8 ({Black's only chance was to block White's next
move with the admittedly ugly} 30... f6) 31. f6 {Now suddenly Black is facing
a formidable attack of queen, three minor pieces and a possible rook swinger,
and the defence is hopelessly outnumbered. There's only one possible outcome:}
Bxf6 32. Bxh6 $1 Qe7 33. Bxg7 $1 Bg5 34. f4 Bh4 35. g3 Nf6 36. fxe5 Nxh5 37.
Qh6 f5 38. Qh8+ 1-0

[Event "FIDE World Cup 2011"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk RUS"]
[Date "2011.09.04"]
[Round "3.2"]
[White "Radjabov, T."]
[Black "Bacrot, E."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C50"]
[WhiteElo "2744"]
[BlackElo "2710"]
[Annotator "John Emms "]
[PlyCount "95"]
[EventDate "2011.08.28"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[Source "Mark Crowther"]
[SourceDate "2011.06.20"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. d3 Nf6 5. O-O O-O 6. Nbd2 {This move is
another development in White's attempts to combat 6 c3 d5!?, which has proved
to be a tough nut to crack.} ({Not much has changed recently in} 6. c3 d5 7.
exd5 Nxd5 {, with Black fairly easily holding his own:} 8. Re1 ({for} 8. b4 Be7
9. b5 Na5 10. Bxd5 Qxd5 11. c4 Qd7 $1 {see the notes to
Andriasian-Mastrovasilis in the first update}) 8... Bg4 9. h3 Bh5 10. Nbd2 Nb6
11. Bb5 Bd6 12. Ne4 Re8 ({or} 12... f5) 13. a4 a6 14. Bxc6 bxc6 15. a5 Nd7 16.
Ra4 Rb8 17. Rc4 c5 {was equal in S.Kalugin-E.Alekseev, Olginka 2011.}) (6. Bb3
d5 7. exd5 Nxd5 8. h3 {is covered in Movsesian-Naiditsch in the first update.})
({White can also discourage ...d5 with} 6. h3 d5 7. exd5 Nxd5 8. Re1 {
(Emms-Wittman in the book)}) ({or of course} 6. Re1) 6... d5 {Bacrot accepts
the challenge, but to me White is well placed to meet ...d5 after 6 Nbd2.} ({
It might be better to return to normal lines with} 6... d6 7. c3 a6 8. Bb3 {
when Black can at least argue that White has committed his queen's knight
earlier than he might have wanted to (see the book, and especially Chapter 3,
for a discussion on the merits of delaying Nbd2).}) 7. exd5 Nxd5 8. Re1 Nf6 ({
I can't find many examples of this position on my database, but one amply
demonstrates the potential pitfalls in Black's position:} 8... Re8 9. Ne4 Bb6
10. d4 $5 Nxd4 $2 11. Nxd4 exd4 (11... Bxd4 12. c3 $1) 12. Bxd5 {and White won
in K.Mar-V.Seruga, Ptuj 2005, on account of} Qxd5 13. Nf6+) 9. h3 ({The pawn
is mined:} 9. Nxe5 $6 Nxe5 10. Rxe5 Bxf2+ $1) 9... Bd6 (9... Re8 10. Ng5 $1 {
is annoying for Black.} Rf8 11. Nde4 Nxe4 12. Nxe4 Be7 13. Qh5 {with advantage
for White. For example,} g6 ({the immediate} 13... Nd4 {is better, but} 14. Bg5
$1 {still causes Black problems; if} Nxc2 $2 {then} 15. Bxe7 Qxe7 16. Ng5 h6
17. Nxf7 Rxf7 18. Rxe5 $1) 14. Qh6 Nd4 15. Ng5 Bxg5 16. Bxg5 Qd6 17. Qh4 $1 Re8
$2 (17... Nxc2 18. Be7 $1) (17... Nf5 18. Qe4 {with a clear advantage}) 18.
Bxf7+ Kxf7 19. Qxh7+ Ke6 20. Qxg6+ Kd7 21. Qf7+ Re7 22. Bxe7 Qxe7 23. Qd5+ Qd6
24. Rxe5 Nxc2 25. Qf7+ {and Black resigned, V.Spasov-K.Chalus, Sunny Beach
2011.}) 10. a3 $1 {No c2-c3 from Radjabov, and we'll see why in a minute.} a6
11. Ba2 Bf5 12. b4 $1 {Radjabov is certainly exploiting his omission of c2-c3.
Not only is the d3-pawn secure against attack, the bishop can go to b2 and
directly attack e5. The pressure against e5 makes Black's position quite
uncomfortable and there is no easy way to equalise.} Re8 13. Bb2 h6 14. Ne4 Be6
15. Bxe6 Rxe6 16. c4 $1 {A key move, gaining space on the queenside. Black is
in no position to exploit the backward d-pawn. Indeed, Bacrot could find
nothing better than to eliminate it straightaway.} Nxe4 17. dxe4 (17. Rxe4 {is
also better for White.}) 17... a5 18. c5 Bf8 19. Qb3 axb4 20. axb4 Rxa1 21.
Rxa1 b6 {Otherwise Black is getting squashed with Rd1, Qc4, b5 etc.} 22. b5 Nd4
(22... Na5 23. Qd5 $1) 23. Nxd4 exd4 24. Qd5 $1 Qxd5 $2 {Bacrot errs at a
difficult moment.} ({It seems strange, but after the computer's calm} 24... Qg5
$1 {it's not obvious how White gains a meaningful advantage.} 25. c6 {looks
like the best bet, when Black is still under some pressure.}) 25. exd5 Re5 26.
d6 $1 {A typical pawn breakthrough, and a very strong one on this occasion.
Black cannot avoid material loss.} Rxc5 ({If} 26... cxd6 27. c6 {White's
monster passed pawn will win easily:} Rxb5 28. c7 Rc5 29. Rc1) ({Or} 26... bxc5
27. dxc7 Re8 28. b6 {again winning.}) 27. Bxd4 Bxd6 ({There's no real chance
to save the game either after} 27... Rc4 28. dxc7 Rxc7 29. Bxb6 Rb7 30. Ra6 {
and White marches his king up to c4.}) 28. Bxc5 Bxc5 29. Ra8+ Kh7 30. Kf1 Kg6
31. Re8 h5 32. Ke2 Kf5 33. g3 g6 34. Kf3 g5 35. g4+ hxg4+ 36. hxg4+ Kf6 37. Rg8
Be7 38. Ke4 Ke6 39. Rh8 Bc5 40. Rh6+ f6 41. f4 gxf4 42. g5 Be7 43. Kxf4 Bd6+
44. Kg4 Be5 45. Kh5 Bd4 46. g6 f5 47. Rh7 f4 48. Rf7 {A very smooth game from
Radjabov. 6...d5 looks quite risky against 6 Nbd2.} 1-0

[Event "12th ch-EUR"]
[Site "Aix-les-Bains FRA"]
[Date "2011.03.31"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Smirin, I."]
[Black "Pelletier, Y."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C54"]
[WhiteElo "2658"]
[BlackElo "2593"]
[Annotator "John Emms"]
[PlyCount "63"]
[EventDate "2011.03.22"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "FRA"]
[Source "Mark Crowther"]
[SourceDate "2011.06.20"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. d3 Bc5 5. O-O O-O 6. Nbd2 {Just like
Radjabov, Smirin chooses an anti-d5 move-order.} d6 {Pelletier doesn't bite
and returns to the main lines.} (6... d5 {is covered in Radjabov-Bacrot.}) 7.
c3 a6 8. Bb3 Ba7 9. h3 Be6 {This remains a solid option for Black, especially
when White has committed to an early Nbd2.} (9... h6 10. Re1 Be6 11. Bc2 Re8 {
is another commonly played move order.}) 10. Bc2 (10. Re1 {remains the most
played move, but the straightforward} Bxb3 $1 {has proved to be okay for Black
- see the notes to Svetushkin-Haslinger in the book. A more recent example:}
11. Qxb3 Qd7 12. Nf1 (12. Qxb7 $4 {loses to the queen to} Rfb8) 12... h6 13.
Be3 Rfe8 14. Bxa7 Rxa7 15. Ng3 Qe6 16. Qc2 d5 17. d4 Raa8 18. dxe5 Nxe5 19. Nd4
Qb6 20. Rad1 {1/2-1/2, O.Korneev-R.Swinkels, Torres Vedras 2011.}) 10... h6 {
Black probably doesn't need to play 10....h6 with this move order.} ({He can
probably go right ahead with} 10... d5 {and there are certainly situations
where Black benefits from not having spent a move on ...h6. For example,} 11.
exd5 (11. Re1 dxe4 12. dxe4 Nh5 $1 {is fine for Black - see
Svetushkin-Haslinger in the book}) ({or after} 11. Ng5 {it's unclear whether
White wants to even take on e6}) 11... Bxd5 12. Re1 Re8 13. Nf1 {and now
instead of 13...h6, which transposes to our main game, Black can equalise with}
e4 $1 {(R. Strohhaeker-T.Hirneise, Prievidza 2008)} 14. dxe4 Bxe4) 11. Re1 Re8
12. Nf1 d5 13. exd5 $5 {This pawn capture is often far less innocuous than it
looks.} ({The main alternative is keeping the tension with} 13. Qe2 {- see
Areshchenko-Aleksandrov in the book.}) 13... Bxd5 {Alternatively:} ({a)} 13...
Nxd5 14. Ng3 Qd6 15. Nh4 Rad8 16. Qf3 Qf8 17. Nh5 $5 Rd6 18. Bxh6 $5 (18. d4 $5
) 18... gxh6 19. d4 Kh8 20. dxe5 Rdd8 21. Rad1 {and White has a very strong
attack for the piece, B.Predojevic-R.Hess, Moscow 2011. This is an example
example of the attacking potential hidden in White's position.}) ({b)} 13...
Qxd5 {looks solid:} 14. Ng3 Rad8 15. Bd2 (15. Be3 Bxe3 16. Rxe3 {is equal, D.
Fitzsimons-S.Collins, Dublin 2011.}) 15... Qd6 ({or} 15... Bc5 $5 {planning ...
Bf8}) 16. Qe2 {with an equal position in A.Areshchenko-F.Holzke, Dresden 2007,
although not for long:} Bxh3 $2 17. gxh3 e4 18. Nf5 $1 exf3 19. Qxe8+ Nxe8 20.
Nxd6 Nxd6 21. d4 {and White won.}) 14. Ng3 Qd7 15. Nh4 $5 {Smirin gets going
with his knights on the kingside. As soon as one of the knights reaches f5,
Black always has to be wary of possible sacrifices on g7 or h6.} (15. Be3 {is
also tricky, but okay for Black if he plays accurately:} Bxe3 16. Rxe3 Rad8 $1
(16... Re7 $6 17. Nh4 $1 Be6 18. Nh5 $1 Nxh5 19. Qxh5 Qd6 20. Rg3 $1 Kf8 21.
Re1 {and suddenly White has drummed up a fierce attack from seemingly nowhere.
H.Hamdouchi-P.Van Hoolandt, Nice 2002, concluded} Bd7 22. Ree3 e4 23. dxe4 Qd2
24. Bb3 Qxb2 25. Ref3 Ne5 26. Ng6+ Nxg6 27. Qxg6 {and 1-0}) 17. Qe2 Bxf3 18.
Qxf3 Nd5 19. Ree1 Re6 20. Rad1 {with a roughly level position, J.Degraeve-J.
Votava, Erfurt 2009.}) 15... Rad8 ({Black should also consider preventing Nf5
with} 15... Be6 {. After} 16. Qf3 Qd5 17. Ne4 (17. Qe2) 17... Nxe4 18. Rxe4 (
18. dxe4 $5) 18... Qd7 {Black was okay in Z.Nagy-E.Csom, Budapest 1998.}) 16.
Nhf5 Ne7 $5 {Pelletier decides to gambit his e5-pawn, Marshall Attack-style,
in order to get rid of the knight on f5.} ({If Black ignores the attack then
White could certainly think about a sac on h6 or g7. For example,} 16... b5 17.
Bxh6 $5 gxh6 18. Qd2 Re6 19. d4 Nh7 20. Nxh6+ Kh8 21. Ng4 {with a dangerous
attack for White, similar to the one in Predojevic-Hess, above, in A.Olsson-A.
Ornstein, Sweden 2006. The game concluded} Rg8 22. dxe5 Rxg4 23. hxg4 Nxe5 24.
Bf5 Qd6 25. Nh5 Nc4 26. Rxe6 fxe6 27. Qh6 Qe7 28. Bxh7 Qxh7 29. Qf8+ Qg8 30.
Qf6+ Kh7 31. g5 {1-0.}) ({In view of these problems for Black, I suggest
rushing the bishop back to the kingside with} 16... Bc5 $1 {preparing ...Bf8.
In many cases the defensive bishop on f8 is stronger than the superficially
active one on a7.}) 17. Rxe5 $1 {Smirin accepts the challenge, and the
evidence suggests that this was the right decision.} Nxf5 18. Rxf5 Qc6 19. d4
$1 {It's more important to block out Black's dark-squared bishop - a key
strategic goal for White in the Italian Game - than it is to defend the
g2-pawn. In fact I'm being too simplistic - the truth is that White has got
time to play d3-d4 because the g2-pawn is mined, as we see next move.} Bxg2 $2
{This isn't Black's best move, but if he doesn't take this pawn he still has
to justify his pawn sacrifice.} ({For example,} 19... Rd6 20. Kh2 $1 {and now}
Bxg2 (20... Rde6 $1 {is best, with some compensation}) 21. f3 $1 {traps the
bishop.}) 20. Rxf6 $1 {If it wasn't for this shot, White would be in some
trouble. As it is, he gains two pieces for a rook, and a clear advantage.} Qxf6
({Forced, as} 20... gxf6 {loses to} 21. Qg4+ Kh8 (21... Kf8 22. Bxh6+) 22. Bxh6
Rg8 23. Qh4) 21. Kxg2 c5 {Black must try to get his bishop back into the game,
but with his next move Smirin grabs the initiative and he never lets go.} 22.
Qd3 $1 cxd4 23. Qh7+ Kf8 24. b3 $1 {Threatening a devastating check on a3.} Re5
25. Ba3+ Ke8 ({Or} 25... Bc5 26. cxd4 Rxd4 27. Bxc5+ Rxc5 28. Re1 $1 {winning.}
) 26. Bf5 Bc5 27. Bxc5 Rxc5 28. Bg4 d3 29. Re1+ Re5 30. Rxe5+ Qxe5 31. Qg8+ Ke7
32. Nf5+ {Black has to play quite carefully after 10...h6, but with this move
order I don't see a reason to avoid the straightforward 10...d5.} 1-0

[Event "TCh-RUS Premier"]
[Site "Olginka RUS"]
[Date "2011.04.17"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Bologan, V."]
[Black "Smirnov, P."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "C54"]
[WhiteElo "2671"]
[BlackElo "2539"]
[Annotator "John Emms"]
[PlyCount "54"]
[EventDate "2011.04.12"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[Source "Mark Crowther"]
[SourceDate "2011.06.20"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. O-O Nf6 5. d3 d6 6. c3 a6 7. Bb3 O-O 8. h3 {
Smirnov delays playing ...Ba7, which, as the game shows, proves to be to his
advantage.} ({A key question is whether White can exploit Black's move order
by playing} 8. Bg5 $5 {- see Tiviakov-Pavasovic in the book for coverage of
this move.}) ({If} 8. Re1 h6 9. Nbd2 Be6 {White must avoid} 10. Bc2 $2 (10. h3
Re8 {transposes to the main game}) 10... Ng4 $1 11. Re2 {because of the tactic}
Bxf2+ $1 12. Rxf2 Ne3 13. Qe2 Nxc2 14. Rb1 Bxa2 {and here} 15. b3 Bxb1 16. Nxb1
N2b4 17. cxb4 Nxb4 {favours Black.}) 8... h6 9. Re1 Re8 10. Nbd2 Be6 11. Bc2 {
In view of Black's reply, this might be one position where White should allow
an exchange of light-squared bishops.} (11. Nh2 {is covered in the notes to
Tiviakov-Pavasovic in the book.}) (11. Nc4 Ba7 12. a4 {is another way for
White to play it.}) 11... d5 $1 {Black certainly gains something from delaying
...Ba7 in this particular line. This is all the more evident when we consider
that one of Black's defensive options with the bishop on a7 is ...B(a7)-c5-f8!}
(11... Ba7 12. Nf1 d5 {would transpose to the previous game, Smirin-Pelletier.}
) 12. b4 {Bologan chooses a kind of reversed Philidor set-up, which looks
logical.} (12. Qe2 Bf8 13. exd5 ({or} 13. Nf1 b5 14. Ng3 g6 15. Rd1 Bg7 16. Be3
Qe7 {with an equal position, S.Ganguly-L.Fressinet, Dresden 2008.}) 13... Qxd5
14. Ne4 Nxe4 15. dxe4 Qb5 16. Bd3 Qa4 17. Bc2 Qb5 18. Bd3 Qa4 19. Bc2 Qb5 {1/
2-1/2 B.Gelfand-L.Aronian, Moscow 2009.}) 12... Bf8 13. a3 Qd7 14. c4 $6 {This
doesn't work out very well for White.} ({After} 14. Bb2 $1 {there are ideas of
exd5 followed by c4, and plenty of tension remains in the position.}) 14...
dxe4 15. dxe4 Nh5 $1 16. Nxe5 {What else? Otherwise the knight is coming to f4.
} Nxe5 17. Qxh5 Qd4 18. Rb1 Nxc4 {Black regains his pawn with at least
equality, and his position soon improves further.} 19. Nxc4 Qxc4 20. Re2 a5 $1
21. b5 $2 {It was time for White to think about bailing out and simplifying as
much as possible.} ({Black can meet} 21. bxa5 {with} Rxa5 $1 22. Qxa5 Qxe2 23.
Qd2 {Black is better here because the a3-pawn is very weak, but White has good
drawing chances because of the exchanges.}) 21... a4 $1 {Now both queenside
pawns are weak.} 22. Qf3 Red8 23. Bf4 $2 {Perhaps time trouble already, or did
the team situation require desperate measures?} Bxa3 $1 24. e5 Bf8 {Calmly
back to base, and now the a-pawn's a runner. The rest is ridiculously easy for
Smirnov.} 25. h4 a3 26. h5 a2 27. Ra1 Ra3 {Delaying ...Ba7 in favour of 7...
0-0 works quite well if White continues normally, although White certainly
could have improved with 14 Bb2!. As alternatives, White should consider 11
Nh2 and, earlier, 8 Bg5 which might be the most challenging move.} 0-1

