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Hikaru Nakamura vs Maxime Vachier-Lagrave
London Chess Classic (2015), London ENG, rd 2, Dec-05
Indian Game: Kingside Fianchetto (A48)  ·  1/2-1/2

ANALYSIS [x]

FEN COPIED

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Kibitzer's Corner
Dec-05-15  thegoodanarchist: A drawn game, but certainly entertaining IMO.
Dec-05-15  kamagong24: and MVL got away with a draw!

i felt Naka jumped the gun too early with 18. e5, i prefer 18. Re1 first then 19. e5, then it was MVL's turn with 21... Rxf3

i wonder what Fischer would be saying to MVL right now, maybe, damn you MVL!!! you ruined my Benoni!!! :p

Dec-05-15  Mehem: Naka could have been in big trouble if MVL had found 32... gxf3!! And then 33.Bh6 Ne4+ 34.Ke3 kh7 35.Bxg7 f2


click for larger view

An incredibly complex position where White is a rook up but it's going to face the very difficult endgame. According to Stockfish, the best choice is now 36.Nb6 evaluated as -1.95 (@36).

Dec-05-15  stst: < Mehem: Naka could have been in big trouble if MVL had found 32... gxf3!! And then 33.Bh6 Ne4+ 34.Ke3 kh7 35.Bxg7 f2

click for larger view
An incredibly complex position where White is a rook up but it's going to face the very difficult endgame. According to Stockfish, the best choice is now 36.Nb6 evaluated as -1.95 (@36)>

BRAVO!
Nice follow-up.. let me try it on then...get it as exciting as possible...

36.Nb6 fxg1=Q+ (what else's more exciting? not afraid of losing the B... see later) 37.Rxg1 (OK) Nd4+ (following the fighting spirit)
38.Kd3 (other option possible) Nf2+ (two horses dancing around the monarch!) 39.Ke3 Nf5+ (keep the pressure!)
40.Kxf2 (ouch, one brother lost!) Nxg7 (get some compensation) 41.Nxd5 (B to sacrifice, but then...) Rxe5 (balance out...)

Now each got R+N, but Black clearly got 2 more pawns into a convincing end game.

hope to see more exciting lines as from Mem's suggestions (+Stockfish... not me though!)

Dec-05-15  Ulhumbrus: One alternative to transposing into a Benoni by 11 e4 is 11 Re1 preparing f4
Dec-05-15  shintaro go: A very entertaining draw indeed.
Dec-06-15  Atking: This game is such complex that ChessBase has still only an express report...
Dec-06-15  Imran Iskandar: It takes a real genius to see 32...gxf3 in limited time.
Dec-06-15  eyalbd: I don't know if players knew this game of tal almost 50 years ago. Ufimtsev vs Tal, 1967

Similar ideas in an almost identical position, An impressive attack by MVL.

Dec-06-15  Atking: Even with a "detailed" analysis ChessBase offers only few moves to what one page will be necessary. To see all the consequences of 32...gxf3 you do not have to be a genius only but also in top form. Winning that MVL will have won also the best price if not of the tournament, obviously of the day.
Aug-21-16
Premium Chessgames Member
  perfidious: <kamagong24....i felt Naka jumped the gun too early with 18. e5, i prefer 18. Re1 first then 19. e5, then it was MVL's turn with 21... Rxf3>

The snag is that White's plan, typically employed in the Modern Benoni or after 8.Nf3 in the King's Indian, Four Pawns, is geared entirely towards this thrust; if he cannot force it through, he will stand worse, the more so here as Vachier's threats of ....Nd4 or ....Nxc3 are strong positional motifs if Black has time to execute them.

The game cited above by <eyalbd> is a fine example of counterattack by a great master of these positions from a subvariation of the old main line.

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