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The agony of defeat…
By Junior Tay
After 70 CC games, I was finally pulverised by Nikolai Kizimenko of Russia who did not give me half a chance to get back in the game after my weak 18th move. The lesson to learn here is not to follow theory blindly as I did, headlong into a position, which Black had no chances to win and had to fight for a draw. However, the way Nik conducted the endgame was simply sublime…
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 e6 6.Be3 Nc6 7.Qd2 Be7 8.f3 0-0 9.g4 d5 10.g5 Nxd4 11.Qxd4 Nd7 12.exd5 Bxg5 13.0-0-0 exd5 14.Bxg5 Qxg5+ 15.f4 Qh6 16.Nxd5 Nb6 17.Ne3 Be6 18.Kb1!N
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[18.Rd2 g6 19.Bg2 Rad8 20.Qxd8 Rxd8 21.Rxd8+ Kg7 22.Rd4 Qh4 23.Bxb7 Bxa2 24.Bg2 Qf2 25.Re4 Nc4 26.Nxc4 Qxg2 27.Rhe1 Bxc4 28.Rxc4 Qxh2 29.Rce4 h5 30.Rf1 h4 31.Ree1 f6 32.Kb1 Qh3 Hector,J-Sax,G/Aarhus 1993/EXT 97/˝-˝ (50)]
18...Qh4?
an automatic but weak move. I failed to anticipate how White's initiative endures into the endgame. [18...f5! clearing the second rank for Rf7, fulfilling the defensive task of holding b7 and g7 simultaneously. 19.Bg2 (19.Rg1 Rf7=) 19...Rf7 20.b3! with advantage to White]
19.Rg1 g6 20.f5 Qxd4 21.Rxd4 Bd7 22.Bg2± Bc6
[22...Rab8 is more resilient. At least Black gets the b file after an eventual bishop trade on c6.]
23.Bxc6 bxc6 24.Rd6 Rac8 [24...c5 25.Rgd1 Rab8 26.b3±] 25.Rgd1 Rfe8 26.Ng4 Kg7 27.f6+ Kf8 28.Nh6!
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Reminding Black not to give up the d7 square as Rd7xf7 is mate!
28...Re4 29.a4! Ke8
[29...Rxa4?? 30.Rd8+ Rxd8 31.Rxd8#]
30.a5 Na4 31.Kc1 Nc5 32.b3 Re6 33.Rxe6+ Nxe6 34.Ng4
Black is virtually in zugzwang as his King is stuck on e8 whilst White can march his King up the board.
34...Rd8 35.Rxd8+ Nxd8 36.Ne5 c5 37.Kd2 Nb7 38.Ke3!
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That's all folks! White can always recapture the pawns later as Black's king is in permanent limbo.
38...Nxa5 39.Ke4 Nb7 40.Kd5 h5 41.Nf3 Nd8 42.Kxc5 Ne6+ 43.Kd6 g5!
The best try...not enough, but worth a shot.
44.c4 g4 45.Ne5
[45.Nh4! Ng5 46.Nf5+-]
45...Ng5 46.c5 Ne4+ 47.Kc6 Nxf6 48.Kb7 Nd5 49.c6 Ke7 50.b4!
[50.c7?? Nxc7 51.Kxc7 Ke6 52.Nd3 h4 53.Kb7 g3 54.hxg3 hxg3 55.Nf4+ Ke5 56.Ne2 g2 57.Kxa7 Ke4-+]
50...Ke6 51.Nd3 Ne7 52.Nf4+ Kd6 53.c7 h4 54.Ng2 g3 55.h3 Ke5
[55...Kd7 56.Nxh4 Nc8 57.Ng2+- and the h pawn shuffles home.]
56.Nxh4 Ke4 57.Kxa7 f5 58.Kb8 f4 59.Ng6 g2 60.Nxe7 g1Q
a slight glimmer of hope which is still insufficient against accurate play.
61.c8Q
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61...Qb6+ 62.Ka8 Qxb4 63.Qc6+ Ke5 64.Ng6+ Kd4 65.Qf6+ Ke3 66.h4 Qe4+ 67.Kb8 f3 68.Qg5+ Ke2
[68...Kd3 69.Ne5+ Ke2 70.Qh5! and after an eventual Qxf3, the h pawn runs home again]
69.Nf4+ Kd1 [69...Ke3 70.Nh3+ Ke2 71.h5! f2 72.Nxf2 Kxf2 73.h6
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according to Ken Thompson's endgame database, this position is mate in 64! for White after Black runs out of checks.]
70.Qg3 Qe3 71.Nh3 Qe2 72.Kc7 1-0
