Chess.com 2024, 3rd round, E13 - Under the heatwave
4th of July
Hello Independence Day! The heat wave continues unabated and the advisory keeps getting extended. Yesterday, I couldn’t step out of the house. In the news, there are reports that Death Valley might hit a new global temperature record – somewhere beyond 55 degrees. Crazy. 8 years ago, in Borrego Springs, my car thermometer showed 51, but that was after spending some time in the sun.
I expected him to take en passant here. I think Rh7 is the only option to untangle, though I guess his plan is to install the knight on f6. Perhaps the rook can move to g7, bishop to e7 and knight to c4?
The idea wasn’t too bad, but I didn’t see 27. Qc2. Hence, should have played a4 first.
No surprises here. The situation is firmly in black’s hands as I can’t think of any counterplay. Perhaps Rab1 to do something on the b-file? Since black can easily counter it with Rea8, this is an option that could be saved for a rainier day. For now, I’m thinking of just balling up and letting black try to break through. So, h4, Ne1 (assuming black does not continue Nf4), f3 – close the kingside and then think again.
The ideas are fine, though a bit late. It’s like drinking healthy yogurts after two days of binge drinking. The eval is -1.69.
White continues to put up fine resistance. At least now I can advance with Ke6. The question is whether that helps me make progress. I see ideas here that lead to double pins:
White has many defensive ideas that I didn’t explore – for example, counterattacking the g7 pawn after Rc1-c7. Or he can just hold by moving the rook on the 1st rank.
The VFK white game keeps dragging on.
I need to figure out a way to counteract his malevolent intentions of breaking down the d-file. Perhaps Qe1 and c4? It’s getting a bit complicated, but I’m quite sure Qe1 has to be the first move. This way he can’t exchange bishops with Bc4.
Rd1 was another option. The eval is already -0.9.
Can I get the king to the b-file? I don’t think he can hold me off on the c-file since I can contest it with Rc7. I also have Bc4 option to block off the file:
So, he’s more likely to install a barrier at the b-file. If so, I’ll need to re-route my rook to the 4th rank. Not sure if I should set my pawns on f7-g6-h5 before doing that, but I’d rather do my magic before his king gets too close, so time is at a premium. I see a nice idea with a discovered check:
Not perfect, but I got the main ideas. The eval is already -2.2.
Furiously-fast in the meantime scores another win. Again, playing at 2200+.
By the way, I just realized that I’m a full month into round 3 now. An absolute record in terms of time in a single round, while I’m sure there’s at least a couple of weeks left.
A move ago, 38. Kg3 was a mistake, as I simply didn’t see that the pawn on g4 doesn’t have to be defended.
I have a binary choice here. Die standing with Kh4 or take a defensive stance (i.e. cower) with Nd2 and Nb1.
The decision is calculated. Cower with Nd2 is the call, as I can push the h-pawn should black go after the g4 pawn. The other road leads to demise.
Kd2 was another mistake – the other road did not lead to demise.
White gets a much better deal here than what I headed into. In short, I really misplayed the endgame here, missing a few basic ideas.
5th of July
There is a result in the table – Artem got a win. Soon, even he’ll pass me.
Saw a large fire yesterday spreading after the fireworks up the hill. Never seen such a large fire up close and it was worrisome to say the least.
Black developed counterplay out of nowhere. Qg6 is a present and immediate threat. I could double back with Nc4-e3, but that seems cowardly and is tantamount to a draw agreement. Kh2 will fight on, but I need to watch out for moves like Ne2+/Nh5 and Qg3. A sample line:
Not sure what I was thinking there since that line is nonsensical. Black gives a mate in one after 30. Qd6. My decision was correct, but I obviously didn’t see a winning plan – because there isn’t one.
I’m better off shooting for a knight endgame with Qf2 and Rd7. He might continue putting up threats and at some point, I’ll have to decide whether to go all in with g4 or not. For now, it’s too early to wrap things up, so I’ll go Kh2.
Another nasty surprise in this long-suffering game. I didn’t even check this move, but it dashes my plans of unwinding. Rg7 runs into Ng4.
As expected, now that black has sealed the kingside, he’s moving to operate on the queenside. By the way, I just noticed that he won against VFK, though the play there was far from faultless. I’m even considering sacrifices on h5, but it’s too little too late. I’ll have to ball up.
The rook should have stayed at g1 to protect against f7-f6 attacks. The eval dips further down to -2.5.
Looking at a couple more moves during the Germany-Spain halftime break.
Interesting idea. I didn’t realize that Kd4 is possible since Ba4 is now met by Re1+. However, what if I play Rb2? I think he has both Kc3 and Ne4 ideas. I’ll come back to this game later today.
I was planning Rc7, however I should double-check that the bishop endgame can be won.
I think it’s winnable. I need to get the pawn on a4, wrestle away the a2-g8 diagonal and we should be fine.
Again, all correct. Mental note – try and go to endgames; I’m doing far better there.
The main question is whether Rd1 (planned) has major issues if black plays Qb6. I don’t trust my calculations for the last week, but I think the rook ending should be holdable.
Coming back to the Draqlek black game:
Instead of trying to calculate, let’s try to think logically. White is threatening Nc4, grabbing my only chance to win on d3. So, my dilemma is between Rb2 and Rc2. The latter option does not have any threats, but perhaps it buys me time to move the king to d7 and then renew threats like Ra2 or Rb2.
I’ll keep it as my backup option in case Rb2 doesn’t work. So, coming to Rb2, if white goes Kc3, I respond with Rc2+ which just buys me a tempo. Kc5 for white loses. Same for Re1+. I think he planned Ne4 here. Looks like with best play, this leads into a drawing bishop against knight ending. If so, he’ll have earned this draw fair and square.
6th of July
I was surprised to see him go back to b3. Seems more of a psychological game, but I find it unlikely he’ll repeat moves in a position like that. If I play Rh7, he’ll like just go Ng4. So, since I’m getting a second chance, what are my options? Can Nc4 work? Alternatively, I can try slow regrouping with Bg7, Rd8, Rd7. Quick calculation show that Bg7 will be mandatory even if I start with Nc4:
Is there any issue with delaying Nc4 then? White’s only retort is playing c4 immediately; does it work? I don’t think it does – there are nice ideas for black to get out of the knight pin:
The eval is already +2.2, so I don’t have good options one way or another. Bg7 wasn’t a bad move (yet), but I already wasn’t paying attention to white’s tactical options.
England again squeezed into the next stage – this time by penalties. It’s counter-intuitive: when they play well, they don’t get far; and vice versa.
In the VFK game, he rightfully decides that exchanging rooks is a bad idea and makes a stand on the b-file:
I was expecting this, with Bc4+, Kc5, Re7, Re2 being my plan. Let’s see how he can counteract it:
This is most likely going to be his defensive stance. I find a subtle way to break through the gates. Let’s hope it works…
The comp sees a faster option with Rc4, Re4+ and a move to a rook endgame. Perhaps. I still would prefer avoiding rook endgames if I can help it – as this tournament proved, I’m struggling with them.
After watching the Netherlands beat Turkey, back to the VFK white game:
I calculated Bb3 yesterday and it didn’t look like the end of the world to me, but obviously I can and will miss stuff. Time to re-check slowly and patiently.
Firstly, I don’t see a reason not to exchange rooks. If I move, he’ll just play Rd1, force to exchange – and black will be a tempo up compared to Rxd7. Rxe4 is also forced on the next move. Then, he has a choice of Qb6+ and Rd1. Anything else and I’ll play Rd4 myself, backed up by Qd2. Qb6+ is negated by Qf2 from white, so Rd1 looks forced. I calculated thus far yesterday, earmarking Qe2.
Black’s options are:
- Go after the a-pawn with Ra1 (and threaten Bc4).
- Use the weakened a7-g1 diagonal with Qb6+. Can be combined with the previous idea.
- Threaten Bc4 with Qd5.
The first idea looks the most dangerous one, so let’s start there. The only defense from the Bc4 idea is Rd4. However, I see now that this fails since after black plays g6, white will have to sacrifice an exchange.
So, we end up here, which I think is lost for white. However, then I see an interesting idea for white; 35. Rd4 instead of Qe2. This leads to a much better situation:
Good stuff. I methodically arrived at the best line that completely equalizes for white. Or should I say, would have equalized. There were more surprises ahead…
The heat is unrelenting. Went now for a quick mission for cat food, groceries and takeaway and I felt like we were in a sauna with 38 degrees outside.
Made a few pre-planned moves against TrustCarefully (who’s dragging his two lost games on move per day installments) and jaljr, where things are going between questionable and bad.
Continued here: https://www.chess.com/blog/RomanKleiner/chess-com-2024-3rd-round-e14-moving-across-the-pond