twinlark: Here's a mystery.
At first blush it looks like one of those games when the much lower rated player has one of those "Aha!" moments when he forked White's knights with 26...f5:  click for larger viewWhite's employs a tactical flourish that looks like a text book instruction for the young player of how to draw away one defender and take advantage of the second defender being overloaded viz: 27. Bxd5+ Nxd5 (draws away one defender):
 click for larger viewfollowed by 28. Rxf5:
 click for larger viewtaking advantage of the Rf8 having to defend both f5 and e8. However, all is not what is seems. let's rewind the game a few moves to 24. exd5:  click for larger viewBlack's last couple of moves haven't been ideal, but it's decent enough and here was his last chance to play f5, but instead he delayed with the plausible looking recapture 24...Bxd5:  click for larger viewwhich loses! as White can now play 25. Ne4 threatening mayhem at f6:  click for larger viewAt this point the apparent <Aha!> moment arrives with 25...Qb6+ Kh2 26...f5, but it turns out that it now enables the rook at f8 to protect f6 and is by now the best defence in a lost position. Repeating the first diagram for this position:  click for larger viewIronically, 27. Rxf5 immediately also wins but White takes the simpler approach with 27. Bxd5+ Nxd5 28. Rxf5:  click for larger viewBlack now plays 28...Qe6, and after 29. Ref1 Rxf5 30. Rxf5 Rf8:  click for larger viewWhite plays 31. Ngf6+ and Black resigns.
Or does he?
Either the score is wrong, or Black lost on time, because if he resigned it would be one of the stupidest moves he's ever played, or not played, as he can now win a piece simply by taking the Knight, eg: 31...Nxf6 32. Nxf6+ Rxf6 33. Rxf6 Qxf6 34. Qe8+ Kh7 and White is down a bishop and dead in the water:  click for larger viewOne is left to wonder if Black resigned or lost on time? |