Blow for blow

Round 4 pitted me against Amardip Ahluwalia (178/1962) again - one month and two days after our last game. I'd rather have forgotten that debacle, and since the outcome was influenced by the clock I couldn't help noticing that this game would use the same time control. But I had learnt from the first game: in quiet strategic positions I was confident that I could outplay him, and I just had to play a bit faster!

With the white pieces this time, I also had the chance to dictate the opening, although it wasn't a line I wanted to face. I'm not sure how to even try for an advantage in this system, so I opted for the best practical try: set him some tasks to figure out on his own, whilst keeping the draw in hand. Ahluwalia was up to the challenge, so a draw it was:

With the possible exception of missing 18. h3!, I don't have any serious regrets about this game; if both sides play very accurately then what do you think the result is going to be? True, it's not very economical to put in so much effort squeezing blood from a stone during preparation time when the main value - surprise - is lost after one game, but then I enjoy the challenge enough to put the time in. And what's old is new...

In conclusion, a bit of a non-event but it kept the scoreboard ticking over. In the afternoon I faced the pacesetter in our section, who had stormed to 4/4 and was apparently on fire. It proved to be a critical game for both of us.