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Maxim Sorokin vs Mikhail Ulybin
USSR Junior Championship (1986), Daugavpils URS
French Defense: Tarrasch. Closed Variation (C05)  ·  0-1

ANALYSIS [x]

FEN COPIED

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sac: 16...Rxf4 PGN: download | view | print Help: general | java-troubleshooting

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Kibitzer's Corner
< Earlier Kibitzing  · PAGE 3 OF 3 ·  Later Kibitzing>
May-16-10  TheBish: Funny, but in my post I just realized that in the last variation, after 25. Ke2, Black has the much shorter mate with 25...Qg2#! When you see a crushing move, you normally go ahead with it, unless it's a problem! But even here the maxim applies - if you see a good move, look for a better one!
May-16-10  tivrfoa: <patzer2> 21. Qd4 is good, but black can force the exchanges and white would not be able to stop the passed pawn.
May-16-10  RandomVisitor: After 21.Qd4 Bxf1 22.Qxf4 Rxf4 23.Rc8+ Kf7 24.Ng5+ Kg6 25.Nxe6 Rc4 26.Rxc4 dxc4 27.hxg4 c3! 28.bxc3 Bc4


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Black exerts pressure with an active bishop and king, and a potential queenside passed pawn give black winning chances.

May-16-10
Premium Chessgames Member
  LIFE Master AJ: The initial move I saw almost instantly, however, to work out all the tactics took 22 minutes. (Or more.) I got stuck after the Knight sack (for a little while) until I saw 22...d4!! This is a killer move. It threatens the WR on c3 (and takes away e3 from the White King); and if 23.Rb3, Qh2#. Rd3 is then forced. At first I wanted to grab the material, but then I saw that White really is helpless.

OUTSTANDING!!!! (My first correct Sunday in many weeks!)

May-16-10
Premium Chessgames Member
  LIFE Master AJ: I did the above post at around 10:30 PM my time.

My hunch was that White was clearly better at one point, but messed up somewhere down the line. Can anyone verify that with a computer?

May-17-10  patzer2: <Random Visitor> Good work! Your 21. Qd4!? appeared to hold, but now your latest line with 21.Qd4 Bxf1 22.Qxf4 Rxf4 23.Rc8+ Kf7 24.Ng5+ Kg6 25.Nxe6 Rc4 26.Rxc4 dxc4! 27.hxg4 c3! 28.bxc3 Bc4 seems to give Black revived winning chances.

Just curious. How deep ply did you have to go with Rybka to find 26...dxc4 and 27...c3!

May-17-10  RandomVisitor: <patzer2><Just curious. How deep ply did you have to go with Rybka to find 26...dxc4 and 27...c3!>Actually, I did not remember how deep it took to find c3.
Aug-26-10
Premium Chessgames Member
  LIFE Master AJ: This is a GREAT game in grasping the initiative. Once black takes the reins in this game, there is no stopping him.
Apr-25-11
Premium Chessgames Member
  LIFE Master AJ: The rating given here has to be wrong ... he was only rated 2430 a few years later.

http://www.google.com/#sclient=psy&...

FIDE has deleted his card!

Apr-26-11
Premium Chessgames Member
  LIFE Master AJ: <<May-16-2010 patzer2: I guess the reason I didn't consider 21. Qd4! is that when two pieces are en prise, one feels obligated to move one of them out of "danger." Of course in this case, the greater danger is allowing the Black Queen to remain on the board. >>

Good note!

Apr-26-11
Premium Chessgames Member
  LIFE Master AJ: I am working on a web page on this game ... it should be ready in a day or two.
Apr-28-11
Premium Chessgames Member
  LIFE Master AJ: My annotations of this game:

http://www.ajschess.com/lifemastera...

Apr-29-11
Premium Chessgames Member
  LIFE Master AJ: http://www.impalapublications.com/b...
Nov-06-21  Brenin: The sacrifice 16 ... Rxf4 17 gxf4 Qxf4, to be followed by 18 ... Rf8, is not hard to see, but after 18 Rc3 Rf8 19 h3 the follow-up 19 ... Nce5 is less obvious, and White's apparently best response 20 dxe5 Bxb5 21 Qd4 even harder, as many kibitzers found a decade ago.
Nov-06-21  devere: 16...Rxf4 is probably Black's best move, but White keeps a small advantage with 17,18,or 19 Bxc6.
Nov-06-21
Premium Chessgames Member
  al wazir: I found the first three moves but would have played 19...Rf6 instead of 19...Ne5.
Nov-06-21  mel gibson: I saw that move straight away.

However - Stockfish 14 -
(I am now using an 8 core 16 thread CPU) -
is calling this close to a draw:

16... Rxf4

(16. .. Rxf4 (♖f8xf4 g3xf4 ♕c7xf4 ♗b5xc6
♗d7xc6 ♖c1-c3 ♖a8-f8 ♕d1-d2 ♕f4-d6 ♔g1-g2 ♖f8xf3 ♔g2xf3 ♘g4xh2+ ♔f3-g2 ♘h2xf1 ♔g2xf1 e6-e5 ♕d2-g5 e5xd4 ♖c3-g3 g7-g6 ♔f1-g1 a7-a6 ♖g3-d3 ♕d6-e6 ♖d3-f3 d4-d3 ♕g5-f4 ♕e6-e8 ♖f3xd3 ♕e8-e4 ♕f4xe4 d5xe4 ♖d3-d8+ ♔g8-g7 ♔g1-h2 h7-h5 ♖d8-d6 a6-a5 b2-b3 a5-a4 b3xa4 ♗c6xa4 ♖d6-d4 ♗a4-c6 ♔h2-g3 ♔g7-f6 ♔g3-h4 ♔f6-e6 ♖d4-d8 ♔e6-f6 ♖d8-g8 ♗c6-d5 ♖g8-f8+ ♔f6-e7) -0.40/42 232)

score for Black -0.4 depth 42.

Nov-06-21  Brenin: <al wazir>: after 19 ... Rf6, 20 Qd2 seems to stifle Black's attack, and leave White with a small advantage.
Nov-06-21  phantasmagorium: Considering that White even bothered to play 15. Bb5, I could only wonder why he did not do 18. Bxc6 right away to eliminate the potentially dangerous dark horse. As <mel gibson> points out, it will indeed result in a much stiffer resistance than White offered in the actual game. Is it a case of White being too clever by half, thinking he had all the answer to any move by Nc6? Weird.
Nov-06-21  AlicesKnight: <Brenin> and <alwazir> summed up where I got to, earlier in the posts. 19... Nce5 was beyond me. The piling-in against f3 is striking.
Nov-06-21  agb2002: A quick scan yields lines like 16... Rxf4 17.gxf4 Qxf4 18.h6 Rf8 19.hxg4 Qxg4+ 20.Kh2 Rxf3 21.Qxf3 Qxf3.

Or 18.Rc3 e5 19.dxe5 Ncxe5 20.Qxd5+ Kh8 21.Rfc1 (21.Bxd7 Nxf3+ 22.Rxf3 Qxh2#) 21... Nxf3+ 22.Qxf3 Qxh2+ 23.Kf1 Bxb5+ 24.Ke1 Qxe5+ 25.Kd2 Rd8+ 26.Kc2 Nf6.

I think I'd play 16... Rxf4 and try to enjoy the game, even if it becomes another botched job.

Nov-06-21
Premium Chessgames Member
  pittpanther: Saw the first moves.
I have played the French for years so I am happy to see the black side of a French as the position of the day!
Nov-06-21  goodevans: <Brenin: <al wazir>: after 19 ... Rf6, 20 Qd2 seems to stifle Black's attack, and leave White with a small advantage.>

The same move is playable a move earlier but requires some bravery from White. After <19.Qd2 Qd6> Black is threatening ...Rxf3 followed by ...Qxh2# and the only reasonable defence is <20.Kg2>. Now Black can win another pawn with <20...Rxf3 21.Kxf3 Nxh2# 22.Kg2 Nxf1> which would give him 2 pawns for the exchange and a roughly equal position.

I'm not sure if either side has anything better than that.

Nov-06-21
Premium Chessgames Member
  chrisowen: Movers i uvray Rxf4 finish able its leeway a fog pug its movers i uvray few its vehicle gab bucks viva miser lava uvray rallies quaint i not put vis ye dj z its frown i uvray links v o heart biped its me gracy jezebel v moments o mums the word x o uvray found flicked it suffer defang focal aorta its gong uvray jah flick on hack gadzooks vader cocked its backed its gacked its red c i vedas uvray cleft c bed re foot its ignoble bod found gradient i uvray ie jif c v back ie o hood cedar hoof nab c delivery of fruit c ala vis uvray chad key gm nack it re gist v i rate cam x mead x i uvray dichotomy mend doctor key finger mack flight city bend off flap ok etc road roofed it fx keys found i uvray aid o its doge again gold vis er bullion i key rush dime a dozen kelly’s heroes c ad it hoc bury huv flog back fladgel nuggets of french crackling pig in the sky Rxf4 ebony;
Nov-06-21  Refused: 16...Rxf4 screams out to be played. However after the follow up 17.gxf4 Qxf4 however I am not sure white has that much after 18.Bxc6
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