Aron Nimzowitsch vs Milan Vidmar (1927)

Aron Nimzowitsch vs Milan Vidmar
New York (1927) · Sicilian Defense: Delayed Alapin Variation (B22) · 1/2-1/2

[Event "New York"]
[Site "New York City, NY USA"]
[Date "1927.03.23"]
[EventDate "1927.02.19"]
[Round "20"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[White "Aron Nimzowitsch"]
[Black "Milan Vidmar"]
[ECO "B22"]
[WhiteElo "?"]
[BlackElo "?"]
[PlyCount "66"]

1. e4 {Notes by Nimzowitsch} c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. c3 {A draw was
sufficient for White, whilst Black had to play for a win.} Nf6
4. e5 Nd5 5. d4 cxd4 6. cxd4 Be7 {Here 6...b6 would please us
more.} 7. Nc3 Nxc3 8. bxc3 d5 {Here also we should have
preferred ...b6.} 9. exd6 {A possible continuation was 9 Bd3
O-O 10 Qc2 g6 11 h4.} Qxd6 10. Be2 {With hanging pawns the
bishop must be played to Be2 and not to d3.} O-O 11. O-O Nd7
12. a4 {The "limited" initiative directed against the pawn,
which will presently be posted at b6.} Qc7 13. Qb3 b6 14. c4
Bb7 15. a5 Bf6 {On 15...bxa5 the sequel would have been, 16
Bf4 Qb6 17 Qa4 with a double attack on a5 and d7.} 16. axb6
axb6 17. Be3 h6 18. h3 Rfc8 19. Rfc1 {This move, in effect,
gains a whole tempo. Black cannot accept the pawn sacrifice
which this move involves without foregoing all his chances,
e.g. : 19...Rxa1 20 Rxa1 Bxf3 21 Bxf3 Qxc4 22 Qxc4 Rxc4 23
Ra8+ Nf8 24 d5 and White has full command of the game.} Rcb8
20. Rxa8 Rxa8 {The two moves by the rook (...Rcb8 and ...Rxa1)
gave white the tempo mentioned above.} 21. Nd2 Be7 22. Bf3 Ra3
23. Qb2 Bxf3 24. Nxf3 Ra5 25. Qd2 Ba3 26. Rc2 Bd6 27. Rc1 Ba3
28. Rc2 Bd6 29. Rc1 Qa7 30. Qd3 Ra3 31. Qe4 {The central
hegemony established herewith is in full logical agreement
with the course of the game. It will not have escaped the
thoughtful reader that the wing attack initiated by White (a4,
a5, axb6) has only resulted in Black assuming the offensive
himself in that quarter. The attack thus passing over to the
enemy could be explained only by mistakes on the part of
White, or else by the fact that White's attack had no
justification. But in reality neither is the case and White
played the attack correctly and had good reasons for
attacking. Only in this way could the stability of the White
hanging pawns be preserved. Therefore Black -'sit venia verbo'
- must have usurped the attack on the extreme wing, which
would only be done by giving up other important territory,
namely, the center. On this basis, White's hegemony in the
center can be understood. The conclusion is logically
convincing.} Nf6 32. Qc6 Rxe3 33. Qxd6 {Black's operation on
the Q wing were conducted with the outmost energy but were
parried by cool-headed play in the center : wing operations
and central manouvers kept the balance. Concerning the
acceptance of the sacrifice, the following variation is
informative : 33fxe3 Qa3 34 Re1 Bg3 35 Rf1 Qxe3+ 36 Kh1 Ne4
with the main threat of ...Bf4. A game very soundly played by
both sides.} 1/2-1/2

To move:

Last move:

Annotations by Aron Nimzowitsch. [48 more games annotated by Nimzowitsch]

explore this opening	find similar games	13 more Nimzowitsch/Vidmar games
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Jan-01-10		Cushion: I find it slightly amusing that Nimzowitsch assumes that the best anti sicilian is only good enough to play for a draw with.

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