A fine ending! - IOM 2016

At times, the seeds for a fine game is sown long before the game has begun....or just commenced! And it involves both the parties!

Modern day Chess, has undergone a "change" as they say.....an inevitable change...where the endeavour is to take one's opponent far away from his database....into wilderness....

But....at times, this ends up losing the track for the player who indulged in this kidnap!

Meanwhile, the game of chess remains the same....beyond this phase called "opening"....and travels on the well laid track provided by our past masters...which they discovered through their well intended experiments and love for the game.

So, the aim of a player is to reach this stage unscathed....in the process of circumventing opponent's preparation and landmines....and get a position which is playable...!

Dronavalli Harika - Michael Adams, IOM, 2016

The latest fad...."Giuoco Piano"....

.....the move 3.Bb5 meets with the 'nightmarish' Berlin-Wall....or so the human mind thinks....

"It is not the mountain out there that we conquer....but our own mind" said Edmund Hillary.

May be....the Berlin wall is in the mind.....

Well....

9.Bb3 Re8 10.Nbd2 Be6 11.Ba4?!

Two moves back, this Bishop was on c4 and now on a4...meanwhile Black put his Bishop on e6 and Rook on e8.   

Oh....did I miss that White Knight on d2 can be forgiven.....he will be taken back to shed shortly!

Very intriguing to note how human mind works......if we have a black-box which can record all human thought waves...it will make an interesting reading.

For, we cannot account for most of our thought process which 'happens' during the game....a player might give a vivid description and details....but how much of it would be concocted subsequently.... even the player may not be aware!  Such is the deceptive power of human mind! 

No, I am not talking about this game alone....this happens on most occasions and even top masters are not exception to this.

11.....Qb8!!

I wish to glorify this move....as it reminded me of the famous Queen sortie by the great Akiba....

But, here Adams has other intention....or plainly a move to support his push ....b5!  Perhaps, the Rook sitting on a8 could have also done this job....but the Queen move to such an obscure square....would consume some effort for the opponent to 'understand' what she is intending....at least, it will sow seeds of doubt...and ofcourse consume a bit of time!

12.d4

Ok! now we know why the Bishop went there....and possible Adams expected it and seen something beyond!

12.....ed4 13.cd4 b5! 14.dc5 ba4 15.cd6 cd6 16.Nb1?!

Why not simple 16.Qa4!?  That little fellow....whom Harika may have ignored as he is doubled.....is going to create ruckus.

16.....d5 17.ed5 Bd5 18.Re8 Qe8 

The White Queen side, along with the Queen remain....whilst Black pieces are ready for some action!

19.Be3 Rc8 20.Nc3 Bf3! 21.Qf3 a3 22.Qe2?!

22.ba3! Nd4 23.Qf5! Rc3 24.Bd4 maintains equilibrium...White would have relieved herself of all worries and absolved herself of the little sins!

From now on, Adams conducts a class on geometry!

22......Qe5!

How beautiful and commanding she looks in centre of the board!

23.Rd1 Ne7 24.Qd2 Nf5 25.Bf4 Qc5 26.Rc1

The machine might prefer putting the Knight on a4....but it is never palatable to human mind!  There is no right move or wrong move in chess....only appropriate moves....that which human mind perceives as appropriate every time it is one's turn to move.

26.....ab2 27.Qb2 Qd4!

Another beautiful centralising move!

28.Qd2 Ne4 29.Ne4 Rc1 30.Qc1 Qe4 31.Bg3 a4!

Such endings are deceptive in their simplicity.....especially this combination of Queen & Knight vs Queen & Bishop....especially when the Bishop does not have targets and the Knight is very mobile and galloping!

Never underestimate such endings!

32.Kh2 Kh7 33.a3 Nd4 34.Qf4?

There was no urgency to press the panic button...perhaps White should also place her Queen actively and fake threats.  Just keep away from forking distance and the a-pawn is easily defendable.

The Bishop vs Knight ending will only pose more threats especially when the Bishop lacks targets....and in pursuit of the distant targets...it only complicates the issue.

34.....Qf4 35.Bf4 Kg6 36.g4 Kf6 37.Bd6 h5!

38.f4?

Perhaps, Harika finds the Rook pawns unpalatable.  A grab earlier on the other half of the board would have at least reduced her anxiety. And here, it would have deflected Black King momentarily from its silk route!

Every pawn move is shrouded with mystery....and to restrain the urge to move the pawn in Chess is akin to resist the urge to poke at the ball outside the off-stump in Cricket!

38.....Ke6! 39.Bf8 hg4 40.hg4 g6 41.Kg3 Kd5!

Now it is King's turn to centralise...and adore the squares which his consort had adored....before her departure!

42.g5 Kc4 43.Kg4 Kb3 

The King travels to the other side to simple gobble the a-pawn and win....but...

44.f5 gf5 45.Kg3 f4!

The pawn is indemnified....as the f8 Bishop is on forking distance!

46.Kg4 f3 47.Kg3 Kc4! 

With the appearance of f-passer, the King can get back to nurse it to f1-square!

48.Kf2 Kd3 49.Bc5 Ne6 50.Be3 Ke4 51.Bc1 Nf4 52.Bd2 Nh3 53.Kg3 f2 

White Resigned