| Dec-30-10 | | Eyal: That's what happens to Short when he forgets to get his king in trouble. |
|
Dec-30-10
 | | kingfu: I think Black is inferior by accepting the isolated Queen Pawn with 3... c5. Korchnoi is -5 on the black side. |
|
Dec-30-10
 | | Domdaniel: <kingfu> Korchnoi drew every game with this line in his 1974 match with Karpov, but lost with other defences to e4 (a Sicilian and a Petrov, if I remember right). In any case, Black can recapture with the Queen in the line 3.Nd2 c5 4.exd5 Qxd5. |
|
| Dec-30-10 | | Eyal: <Nigel Short: The Tarrasch is a limp variation. 3.Nc3 is for men and 3.e5 also contains high testosterone. 3...c5! is the correct way to counter it.> (Topalov vs Kamsky, 2009) <Nigel Short: Remember that Karpov - that consummate technician - did not defeat Korchnoi once in this opening in the Candidates Final, despite sometimes having far more favourable positions than this one. I tend to agree with Viktor Lvovich that it is basically a drawing variation.> (Topalov vs Kamsky, 2009) <kingfu: I think Black is inferior by accepting the isolated Queen Pawn with 3... c5. Korchnoi is -5 on the black side.> How did you come up with this number? If there's anyone who knew how to play this line with Black, it's Korchnoi, and he won many more games with it than he lost -
http://www.chessgames.com/perl/ches.... In fact, during nearly 30 years at the top - from the late 50s to the late 80s - he lost only 6 classical games with it. Besides, it was one of his most trusted drawing weapons, specifically (as Short mentioned in the above quote) against Karpov (http://www.chessgames.com/perl/ches...
) - in their 1974 candidates final it was played no less than 7 times and Korchnoi didn't lose a single game (his losses with Black came only when he experimented with Dragon and Petrov). |
|
| Dec-30-10 | | Eyal: Actually, I've noticed that most of the games lost by Korchnoi in the 3...c5 line were such where it didn't go to isolani formations (e.g., Black playing c4)... In the 30-year period that I mentioned, he lost only 3 games with an isolani on d5 (to Karpov in 1971, to Kuzmin in 1973, and to Hubner in 1981). |
|
Dec-30-10
| | Domdaniel: <Eyal> Fine research, as always. Odd, isn't it, that they made Karpov World Champion? He didn't even know that you're supposed to draw against the Petrov and beat the French. |
|
| Dec-31-10 | | Dr. Funkenstein: 22. Rae1! is nice as black can't win the g4 pawn without giving up the more important one on d5 (22. Rae1 Bxg4 23. Rxe8+ Rxe8 24. Qxd5+) |
|
| Dec-31-10 | | Eyal: Some notes from chessbase on key moments in this game: <29.Qxd4 The position is quite equal, though White could be considered to have a very small edge due to the good bishop/bad bishop but there is no real way to force an entrance so a passive effort to just hold the fort should be enough. 29...Qg3 This attempt to play something active and lead his young opponent astray is a mistake and what gets Nigel into trouble. 30.Re5 d5 can no longer be protected. Was he planning some form of mass exchange on d5 followed by a perpetual with Qe1-h4? 33...bxc3?? 34.bxc3 Argh! Perhaps not yet re-oriented to play for the win after having played a quiet game for so long, White misses an actual mating opportunity. Both players seemed to have been oblivious to this possibility. [34.Bxf7+! led to mate after 34...Kxf7 35.Qc4+ Kf8 36.Qf1+ Kg8 37.Re7 Rf8 38.Qc4+ Kh8 39.Qd4+] 37.Qd2 Though mate was missed the endgame is terrible for Black. The pawn supported by queen advances very easily, and Black's only chance lies in a perpetual of some kind. 43.Qf4+? [Fabiano misses a chance to shorten the conflict with 43.c7! Qc8 (43...Qd1+ 44.Qf1+) 44.Qb4+ Ke8 (44...Kf7 45.Qb8) 45.Qd6! and now 45...Qd7 is not possible because of the cute line: 46.Qe5+ Kf7 (46...Kf8 47.c8=Q+ Qxc8 48.Qh8+) 47.Qc3 Qc8 48.Qh3! Qxc7 49.Qxh7+  ]> (http://www.chessbase.com/news/2010/...) Note that after 43.Qf4+? Kg8, 44.c7 isn't so effective anymore because Black can bring his queen to an active position with 44...Qd1+ 45.Kh2 (or 45.Kf2 Qc2+ and Qc5) 45...Qh5+ and Qc5. In the long run White is probably still winning anyway, but Short made Caruana's life easier with 53...Qxg2?, allowing the immediate c7 push and a clear forced win, since the checks run out rather quickly - if instead of 58...Qa7 Black tries 58...Qa3+, then 59.Ke8 Qa4+ 60.Qd7+ forces a queen exchange. |
|
| Dec-31-10 | | patzer2: The Queen ending is instructive. The move 51 Kf3! planning to abandon the defense of the pawn on g2 and march the King to c7 to escort the lone White passed pawn is worthy of a Saturday puzzle. |
|
| Dec-31-10 | | Ulhumbrus: Instead of 23...Bf7, on 23...Bxg4 24 Rxe8+ Rxe8 25 Qxd5+ Be6 Black may have the better of it. |
|
Dec-31-10
| | kingfu: Of course, VK might play a little better with 3...c5 than me! I still believe that the French should somehow be named after Korchnoi. How about the BKM? The c3 defense is the Caro-Kann. It should actually be The Caro-Karpov-Kann. Catchy, huh? The BKM is the Botvinnik-Korchnoi-Morozevich. That sounds like Moscow in the Winter. Come get it, Adolf! I prefer 3...Be7. It keeps options open. Or maybe even 3...h6 ,a clearly crazy move that deserves further testing. I think my mother was scared by isolated pawns before I was born. Does acceptance of isolated pawns violate Opening Principles? |
|
Jan-01-11
| | kingfu: Of course, I meant the ...c6 defense. Too much N-QB3 as a child. |
|
Kibitzing
