When I started this game, I hadn't realised that it would mark the start of a prolonged sabbatical from King's Pawn openings, but I was sure it was the right choice here. Bennett has a very wide opening repertoire, but the lines he was most likely to play against 1. e4 would lead to fireworks. Since the morning game had destroyed any remaining faith in my nervous system and tactical ability, this didn't seem like a good idea. The fact that he sacrificed 15 minutes on the clock to prepare for me made it all the sweeter, especially as so much of my own preparation in this event - and many others - had been futile.
Finally, this game threw up my kind of position - sharp clarity. I don't mind when both sides adopt very different strategies, and have to play with a degree of accuracy in view of substantial mutual winning chances, but I like the right moves to be natural and harmonious. In this English Opening, the game is sharp because white hastens to crash through on the Queenside before black can land a knockout punch against his King. But it is also clear, because both sides push their plans with simple and obvious moves that don't rely on tactical finesses. For pretty much the first time in the event then, a chance to show what I can do.
Before sticking the engine on this game, I was very happy with my play. Unsurprisingly, the machine does not praise me to the same degree, but I still think that on the whole I played a good game - until a tactical shot appeared on the board! I noticed it, but executed wrongly and a position that I felt was much better was now hard to judge. Fearing the loss of mental equilibrium, I bailed out with a quick draw:
And it was all going so well! It is often said of Capablanca and Smyslov's best games that the moves harmoniously flow in the style of a musical composition; although my showing here wasn't quite that silky smooth (16. e4 does look a bit ugly and out of place, looking back), all of white's moves make sense and none of them are hard to find. Black's play meanwhile seemed a bit scattered and inconsistent - he didn't seem quite sure what to do with his light-squared Bishop (and made the wrong decision), jumped from Kingside to Queenside and back again repeatedly, and then impatiently lashed out with 21... f5?. Hence it is hardly surprising that I established what seemed to me a clear positional advantage with very little effort. Fritz is quite happy to rain on my parade at this point, and gives equality right up to move 21, but in time-honoured fashion I'm going to blame this on the horizon effect!
Unfortunately, tactics can never be avoided altogether - they are the mechanism by which positional advantage is cashed in for concrete gains. The combination I set off on move 22 demonstrates that I haven't forgotten this, for if I'd played it properly I would have arrived in a pawn-up endgame. However, by missing the important zwischenzug on move 23, all the hard work of the preceding moves was undone in a flash. This tactic is not difficult to see! But I have always been a little blunder-prone, and I was simply never looking for it until it was too late. By the end it is difficult to say who, if anyone, is better, but both sides still have chances. One of the stronger University players perceptively said that "no-one over 200 would agree a draw from either side of this position," and normally I wouldn't either. But I was content to meet my pre-tournament target.
What to say of the tournament as a whole then? I believe this is the first time I have managed an even score in a multi-section Open, and I performed at 166. Usually I seem to perform around 10-15 points below strength in tournaments, so maybe we can translate that to 180? Normally I get tired quite easily (see my efforts at Easter) but even this was a part of my pre-event preparation and for once I held up fine - indeed, I seemed to get stronger as the event wore on. I had a winning position at some point in all 5 of my games, and with more consistent play could and should have reached a higher score. Most importantly, for the first time in a while I have a clear grasp of where my weaknesses are at the moment, and what to do about them.
I haven't been able to arrange a trip back to London for the King's Place Rapidplay Festival, which given its outrageous strength is a great shame. I come home for the summer holidays next week, and my next games will be at the CCF Rapidplay on the 29th June, which is a single-section open event and an ideal opportunity to test my new opening repertoire.
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