Brilliant Wave

Brilliant Wave

Brilliant moves are exciting and difficult moves to find. Getting a single brilliant move is a rare moment and getting multiple brilliant moves in a single game is even rarer. However, recently, I would play one of the most exciting games that I've ever played, filled with twists and turns, blunders and strokes of brilliance. 

The Game

This game was a 10 minute rapid game. I was playing with the black pieces against a 1995 from Albania. 

White would start the game with e4, and I would play the Sicilian. The game would continue with fairly standard moves. White would develop their knights, while I would play d6 and Nc6. Soon, the position would continue to become an open position with d4, and the result was a Najdof Sicilian. 

White would continue development by bringing out their bishop to c4, to which I played e6, blocking off the bishop's line of vision. Here, white would bring back their knight. But this is something that should generally be avoided because white loses the momentum that could be used for development. I am able to especially take control of the momentum of the game with b5, hitting white's bishop and forcing white back. 

I would continue by castling short. But white would play h3, a slow move rather than castling short. This may be to keep the option of long castle on the board, but this allows me to continue my development. Especially when white moves their knight for a third time, playing moves that are not able to have any immediate pressure or advantage. But then, white reveals their plan by playing the aggressive g4. This prevents the idea of short castle and shows why he removed his knight from in front of his pawns. However, this attack does not quite have a lot of support to be a significant threat. 

I continue my momentum by striking in the center of the board with d5. There is an exchange in the center of the board. However, this exchange is somewhat disadvantageous for me since I lose control of the long diagonal.

White begins to capitalize on the long diagonal by reinforcing it with his queen. I play Ne5, hitting white's queen, looking for a bishop trade, which does happen. However, white could have actually taken a winning position if they had sacked, their bishop for a pawn, checking my king and revealing a discovered attack on my bishop. This would have resulted in white being up a pawn. 

The game continues with white castling long, and white now has large prospects of a pawn storm on my kingside. I try to rotate my queen to the queenside and push my pawns first, but white is faster. I try to get my queen to take control of a rank and escort my knight to safety, but the position is hanging on by a thread. 

However, white plays out his knight, giving me a way out of the tense position. I take on the knight, allowing white to take my bishop. But I hit his queen with my rook, taking control of a semi-open e file. White offers a queen trade but I decide to keep the queens on the board. 

White tries to launch an attack on my king with f6, knocking on the doors. But I won't take the pawn because it would damage my pawn structure. Instead, I threaten his queen again with my rook. White offers another queen trade, but I find a move that threatens his bishop and weak c pawn. White saves his bishop, but the c pawn falls and the king is pushed into the corner of the board. 

I continue by trying to bring more pieces to attack the king. I eventually rotate my knight to try and attack the king, but in doing so, I neglect the backrank. This gives white a huge opportunity to gain the advantage. However, white makes a wrong move by one square. Instead of threatening my rook with the queen on d7, it should be on e7 to allow white's rook to deliver a possible backrank mate.

I defend my rook to prevent mate, and white takes on my pawn, but this isn't a huge concern since I can use white's pawn as a shield since white can't go through their own pieces. Additionally, my next move gives me an advantage. Can you find the first brilliant move of the game?

Did you find the move? 

Nxa3 is brilliant because white can't take the knight or there is a mate. But the knight is also threatening to rotate to the c2 square and pose major problems in the white position. 

White tries to defend by offering a queen trade. But I give a check, and then I make a blunder by alleviating the pressure by bringing my queen back, hanging a pawn and the anchor for the knight. This results in me having to maneuver my knight back to safety and losing the advantage. 

White begins making movement on the kingside, but I continue applying pressure on the king. But I miss an opportunity when I play a5. I actually had a fork with Nc3+, as my rook pins the pawn to the king and the queen can't take the knight because this results in white losing their queen. But I miss the move and white uncorks a brilliant move. Can you find white's brilliant move?

Did you find the move?

Qd8+ is a brilliant move because it can't be taken by the rook or else white's rook delivers mate. I am forced to bring my queen to the backrank to defend against the move. White does blunder and lose the point of the brilliant move when he goes pawn hunting. But had he taken and traded queens, I would have a dead lost position because my rook would be forced to stay on the backrank, while white could continue making progress in the position.

I would hit white's queen with my rook, controlling the open a file and deliver a fork. But I didn't take the pawn and moved my queen back, thinking the back rank looked undefended. But if I had taken the pawn, my queen would have still been guarded the entry point on the backrank. But when I moved back, white would uncork another brilliant move!

White can still put his queen on the backrank because the trade would end with my queen being pinned to the king and an equal trade taking place, except that I would have a completely losing endgame such as:

I try my best to counter, but white has a winning advantage. I hit white's bishop, but the bishop can simply go back and keep protecting the pawn. But then, white blunders. 

White brings his rook to the backrank, seeing that it is defended by his bishop. But my knight removes the defender, and not only that, but becomes a defender of my rook. We have an exchange, and I am left with a winning endgame of knight with 2 pawns against three pawns. I still have to be a little careful though. 

White's pawn falls, and white's king is too far away to be much help. White does try to get his king into the action, but it is not capable of holding both its passed pawn and preventing my pawn from promoting. I am always ready to sack my knight for his passed pawn because white is too slow to prevent me from promotion. From here, the game was just clean up and not stalemate the game.

And on move 67, I would deliver checkmate. But what are your thoughts on this game? What are the most brilliant moves you've ever seen in a game? Let me know!