The hunger returns

After success in Llandudno over the summer, my original plan had been to spend the new year in another seaside town - Hastings, for the closest thing to a dry run ahead of the British Championship proper come July. In the end that proved impossible, so I had to make do with a sixth (!) consecutive trip to the London Junior Open in Harrow. It was some consolation that my recent results there have been very good; last year I had a 186 performance even with a cold, and the year before I really should have qualified for the British ahead of schedule. Historians are taught to refuse to give a monocausal explanation for anything, so I'll point to a combination of factors: I'm rested after Christmas and eager to play after spectating at Olympia, there's a very slow time control and you can get a chunky breakfast at the venue!

I started with white in the first round against a junior, Nikhil Kadambadi (168/1668). Despite the hype I don't actually think junior ratings are so terrible, but apparently someone was out to prove me wrong. Having done no pre-tournament work at all, I was feeling uncertain ahead of this game, but I got into a theoretical scrap and soon found my groove:

[Event "LJCC Christmas Open"] [Site "?"] [Date "2017.12.28"] [Round "1.8"] [White "Young, Daniel J"] [Black "Kadambadi, Nikhil"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "B12"] [WhiteElo "180"] [BlackElo "168"] [PlyCount "75"] [EventDate "2017.??.??"] {In the last few years, I've reliably done quite well at this tournament - even with the cold that follows the London Chess Classic as surely as night follows day. This time I'd managed to recover beforehand and was hungry to do more than spectate. Playing a near-170 rated under 1700 wasn't what I wanted, but it did force me to go all-out for a win again... Time control: 2 hours for all moves + 30 seconds per move.} 1. e4 {(2:00)} c6 {(2:00)} 2. d4 d5 3. e5 Bf5 4. Nf3 {To judge by this tournament, the only move with any street cred at all right now is 4. h4 - no doubt because John Shaw recommended it in a recent book. I try to have my own opinions about the openings.} e6 5. Be2 c5 {A major theoretical battleground. If this move works then it's best, since Black often gets squeezed if he defends patiently. But whether it does work with Black behind in development is currently an open question.} 6. Be3 Qb6 {Black won't get his pawn back after 6... Nc6? 7. dxc5, so this is what they do. It would clearly be inconsistent for White to spend time defending b2, so his hand is forced.} 7. Nc3 Nc6 {Later in the game I noticed that Kadambadi was annotating his scoresheet (luckily for him I wasn't wearing my arbiter hat) and had noted ...Qxb2 to himself. The text is book, and at the time my impression was that the pawn grab had been all but refuted. So I was surprised to discover that there are still a few die-hards out there, and theory has moved on since I last checked it.} (7... Qxb2 {I have to revise the very first move here! White's only chance of an advantage now looks to be the paradoxical} 8. Qb1 $1 {, carrying the initiative into a pawn-down queenless middlegame.} (8. Nb5 $143 $6 c4 9. Rb1 Qxc2 10. Qxc2 Bxc2 11. Rb2 Ba4 12. Nc7+ Kd7 13. Nxa8 Kc8 14. Ng5 {was my old suggestion, but} Nh6 {appears to offer White no advantage; Black will have a strong centre and two pawns for the exchange once he rounds up the knight.}) 8... Qxb1+ (8... Qxc3+ $4 9. Bd2 {is the point of White's play}) (8... Qb4 {Black was making his last stand here until} 9. a3 Qa5 10. dxc5 a6 11. O-O Qc7 12. Nd4 $1 {(Huschenbeth-V. Onischuk, Corsica 2017) - both of White's central pawns are immune because of Qxb7, and after} Bg6 13. Qb4 Nd7 14. Na4 Ne7 15. Nb6 Nxb6 16. cxb6 $14 {White repairs his structure with an obvious plus - not} Qxe5 $4 17. Qa4+ Kd8 18. Bf4 $1 Qxf4 19. Nxe6+) 9. Rxb1 c4 (9... b6 10. dxc5 bxc5 11. Rb7 $14 {it's tough for Black to unknot himself now. White is intending} d4 12. Ng5 Bg6 13. Bb5+ Kd8 14. Rxf7 $1 {when some forcing tactical lines work in his favour.}) 10. Rxb7 Nc6 {Karjakin found a strong idea for White in} 11. Nb5 Nd8 12. Rc7 Rb8 13. Nd6+ {Giving away the c-pawn might not make sense now, but it will...} Bxd6 14. exd6 Rb1+ 15. Bd1 Bxc2 16. Kd2 Bxd1 17. Rxd1 Rb6 18. Bf4 $14 {This was Karjakin-Eljanov, Khanty-Mansiysk (ol) 2010, which White eventually won. Black is a pawn up but has to make do without most of his kingside - a daunting prospect even in a simplified position.}) 8. O-O c4 $6 {If memory serves, my opponent went so far as to give this a '?'. It's not that bad, but it does take the pressure off White. Preparing these notes gave me another shock here - taking the poisoned pawn is even more critical now!} (8... Qxb2 $142 {9. Nb5 looks strong, but once again . ..c4 is a worthy counter, so White's only move is} 9. Qe1 cxd4 10. Bxd4 Nxd4 11. Nxd4 Bb4 {. Most high-level traffic has seen} 12. Ndb5 (12. Rb1 {neutralises to a level ending, which might be worth knowing but is useless for our purposes -} Bxc3 13. Rxb2 Bxe1 14. Rxe1 b6 $11 {Black has had no trouble holding this at GM level, although obviously that's not the same as amateur practice.}) 12... Ba5 13. Rb1 Qxc2 14. Rc1 Qb2 {Here Caruana introduced the remarkable} 15. g4 $5 Bg6 16. f4 Be4 17. Rf2 {against Vachier-Lagrave at the 2014 Sinquefield Cup (his 7/7 tournament) - Black is two pawns up but his queen is out of it and his light-squared bishop is unstable. It seems that he can survive with precise play though, so 14. Rb3 is now in vogue - but not with any great success. At the time of writing the ball seems to be in White's court.}) 9. Rb1 {With the centre closed, it's time for White to defend b2. Let Black show how he will get his pieces out of the box! Kadambadi did the usual thing and went for a Winawer-style position, but I think this is a good version for White since Black has released the central tension prematurely and the f5 bishop proves exposed.} Bb4 10. Nh4 {(1:54) As the computer notes - and I didn't - White can get a small, safe advantage with 10. Bxc4!? dxc4 11. d5, mashing up Black's queenside. The move played is more ambitious.} Nge7 $6 {(1:43) Although this is the most popular move for Black, it's a definite mistake, giving White a massive initiative. I took some time over my next move (a luxury afforded by the 5-hour session) but knowing the evaluation made it obvious in a way.} (10... Bg6 {is relatively best, for what it's worth.} 11. Nxg6 hxg6 12. Na4 Qa5 13. c3 Be7 {This is where Black gets punished for playing ...c4 too quickly: White has} 14. b3 b5 15. bxc4 $1 bxc4 (15... bxa4 $2 {is destroyed by} 16. Rb5 Qc7 17. cxd5 exd5 18. Qxa4 $18 {, when White has two pawns and a devastating bind for his pieces; 19. c4 will follow and Black won't last for long after that.}) 16. f4 $14 {and Black is really suffering on both sides of the board - as well as the b-file, he has to take the g4/f5 plan seriously.}) 11. g4 $1 {This stab is only possible because the centre is closed; if Black could get past the wall of pawns then my king would be in jeopardy but - to adapt Tarrasch - before the middlegame the gods have placed the opening.} Bg6 12. f4 f5 {This got another '?' on Black's scoresheet, but the alternatives don't improve:} (12... h5 {Black can be forgiven for fighting fire with fire, but this backfires after} 13. f5 Bh7 14. fxe6 fxe6 15. a3 Bxc3 16. bxc3 Qa5 17. Qd2 O-O-O {The c3 and b7 pawns had to be saved, but when the music stops} 18. gxh5 $16 {is a pawn and not much else.}) (12... h6 13. f5 Bh7 {Black tries to stay solid, and threatens ...Nxe5. Now White played 14. a3 in Grewal-Makepeace, Major Open 2006, but I think he can do better with} 14. Na4 Qa5 15. c3 {to hunt down the dark-squared bishop.} b5 16. a3 $1 Bxa3 17. bxa3 bxa4 18. Qd2 $16 {Black's king has a choice of poisons, and he won't be able to defend his extra pawn on a4 forever.}) 13. exf6 gxf6 14. f5 Bf7 $2 {Black spent almost 10 minutes on this, and I'm sure he was no under illusion that such a move is pretty much game over. Presumably he thought 14... exf5 was outright unplayable for some reason, but it's the best of a bad job.} (14... exf5 $142 15. gxf5 Bf7 16. Bh5 {This is what I intended, denying Black's king safe lodging. The best the computer can do is} Bxh5 (16... Rf8 $6 {has been tried in the handful of games to reach this position, but} 17. Bxf7+ Rxf7 18. Qh5 $16 {immobilises Black}) 17. Qxh5+ Kd7 18. a3 Bd6 19. Kh1 $16 {, hoping that Black's king can find shelter behind his pieces. Alas for him, the light squares are weak (d5 and e6 are particularly glaring) and White's king is perfectly secure on h1.}) 15. fxe6 {(1:32)} Bxe6 {(1:30)} 16. Rxf6 $18 Bd7 17. Bf3 $6 {Over the next phase of the game I missed plenty of shorter routes to the goal - not for the first time, of course. With a pawn in the bank I was happy to take a time-out to tidy up my position, which isn't entirely necessary.} (17. g5 $142 {Continuing the charge is another way to play, threatening Bh5+. Inevitably Black goes for} O-O-O {but then} 18. Na4 Qa5 19. c3 {forces a move Black definitely doesn't want to play.} b5 $8 (19... Nxd4 $4 {I had seen the Na4/c3 idea, but I imagined that this discovered attack on a4 was a problem. It might be if the b4 bishop wasn't still en prise!} 20. Qxd4 Qxa4 21. cxb4 $18) 20. a3 Bxa3 21. bxa3 Qxa4 22. Qxa4 bxa4 23. Bf4 Rhf8 24. Ng2 $18 {I must admit I was hoping for something more drastic - Black has managed to trade queens and get his pawn back! However his problems are as great as ever, since the a4-pawn has to go and the Rb8+ idea hangs over his head.}) 17... Bxc3 $6 {As expected, Black meets the threat to d5 by removing one of the attackers, so I haven't had to invest a tempo in a3 to prise the bishop pair out of him. Both sides missed that ...Qa5 does the job without this extra concession.} 18. bxc3 Qa6 19. Nf5 Bxf5 {Black has to play with an eye to d5 all the time. The computer hates this move but what else is there? The other capture might be objectively stronger but it doesn't challenge White at all.} (19... Nxf5 $144 20. gxf5 O-O-O 21. Bxd5 {Black's centre dissolves, and} Rhf8 22. Rxf8 Rxf8 23. Qe2 Rxf5 24. Bxc4 $18 {doesn't offer anything for the two pawns. After all, White has two bishops in an open position!}) 20. gxf5 {(1:09)} O-O-O {(1:25)} 21. Qc1 $6 {A lazy move, played so that I never had to calculate ...Qxa2.} (21. Bf4 $142 {is obvious and good. Rxc6+ can definitely happen on a good day, but the Achilles' Heel of Black's position is actually e6. Black may as well play} Qxa2 {in the absence of anything else to do, when} 22. Qe1 Qa4 (22... Qa3 $4 {is the aforementioned good day:} 23. Rxc6+ $1 Nxc6 24. Qe6+ Rd7 25. Qxc6+ {It's easy to laugh, but I have been on the receiving end of this shot! (Sadler-Young, British Bangla Rapid Nov. 2016)} Kd8 26. Rxb7 $18) 23. Rd6 Rxd6 24. Bxd6 Qxc2 25. Qe6+ Kd8 26. Re1 $18 {brings Black's house crashing down in short order.}) 21... Rdf8 22. Bg5 $6 {And again!} (22. Rxf8+ $142 {My blustery kingside demands some care, but I was still being squeamish about calculating -} Rxf8 23. Bg5 {was more efficient since} Nxf5 {is as bad as it looks:} 24. Qf4 Nce7 25. Bg4 Qg6 26. Re1 Nc6 27. Rf1 $18 {wins at a canter.}) 22... Rxf6 23. Bxf6 Rg8+ 24. Kh1 Rf8 {It's hard to admit that his last move just drove my king into safety, but even harder to find anything else to do.} 25. Qh6 {(45)} Rf7 {(26) Now comes the worst mistake of the lot. I'd been hoping to play 26. Bh5? with a flourish before I saw 26... Ng8, and even my backup move 26. Re1? is bad because of 26... Nd8. Therefore I decided to pre-empt any tactical disasters and rush into an endgame, missing a much more convincing way to do so.} 26. Bxe7 $2 (26. Bg5 $142 {A quiet move will do it! White threatens Qe6+ but more importantly frees his f-pawn. Black doesn't have a good way to cover e6 and can only concede defeat with} Nd8 (26... Nxf5 $4 27. Qe6+ {and}) (26... Rxf5 $4 27. Bg4 {are obvious enough}) (26... Kb8 {is what I think stumped me at the time, but maybe not since it's easy to see that Black's kingside pieces are cornered by} 27. Qe6 Rg7 28. f6 $18) 27. Qxa6 bxa6 {- the same ending as the game, but this time White has} 28. f6 Ng6 29. Bxd5 $18 {and it's all over.}) 26... Nxe7 27. Qxa6 bxa6 28. Bg4 $6 $16 {Thankfully my endgame play gets better after this inauspicious start - active pieces are what matters most!} (28. Re1 $142 {The e5 square belongs to White, and} Kd7 (28... Nxf5 29. Bxd5 $18 {wins a second pawn at least because of the forks on e6}) 29. Re5 Rf6 30. Bxd5 Nxd5 31. Rxd5+ $18 {will be trivial.}) 28... Kc7 29. Rf1 Ng8 {I hadn't noticed this idea, turfing out my bishop from g4. Oh well - after putting all of my pieces on terrible squares, now it's time to start moving them to where they should have been in the first place...} 30. Kg2 {(32)} Nf6 {(26)} 31. Bf3 {I realised that this would cost me my extra pawn, and knew that I'd already made a pig's ear of things. But it's better for me to cut my losses than opt for die-in-a-ditch defence of f5, which would require me to play 32. Kh1?, for example.} Rg7+ 32. Kf2 Rg5 33. Re1 {Having remembered what I forgot on move 28, I'm now on the right track again - Black still has problems to solve.} Rxf5 {(Black draw offer)} 34. Re7+ Kb6 $6 (34... Kd6 $142 {Centralising the king was more stubborn, but White still has excellent chances with} 35. Rg7 Ne4+ 36. Ke3 Nxc3 37. Rxa7 Kc6 38. Rxa6+ Kb5 39. Ra7 h6 40. a4+ $1 $16 {, putting the extra pawn in motion thanks to a small tactic - it can't be taken because of 41. Bg4 and 42. Bd7+.}) 35. Ke3 {(24)} a5 $2 {(19) Now it all ends quickly, but Black was already lost.} (35... Ne4 {was the only way to prevent my next move, but White goes into an easy rook ending with the accurate} 36. Re6+ Kc7 (36... Kb5 $4 {Advancing lets White reach an even easier type of ending:} 37. Bxe4 dxe4 38. Re5+ $18) 37. Bxe4 dxe4 38. Kxe4 Rf2 39. Kd5 Rxc2 40. Kxc4 Rxa2 41. Re7+ Kb6 42. Rxh7 $18 {, with too many passed pawns.}) 36. Re5 {Forcing a won minor piece ending - Black's king is too far away to help.} Rxe5+ 37. dxe5 Ne8 38. Kd4 {I was surprised that Black decided to resign here, but he will lose both of his central pawns so there can only be one result. Although my conversion was characteristically unsteady, I was pleased to win so forcefully having hardly looked at a board since the London Chess Classic.} 1-0 Only 38 moves and we still got in a three-course meal of opening, middlegame and ending. I found all of it interesting; this system of the Caro-Kann has moved on without me, it would seem, but the last word has definitely not yet been had and my opponent was unfortunate enough to go into a line I knew how to play. 11. g4! is as good as a refutation, and not easy for me to play since my confidence is at its lowest after a break - but I trusted my instinct.

The middlegame was largely a story of missed opportunities, since I insisted on winning without any effort. The logical conclusion was 26. Bxe7?, forcing matters into an ending I could have significantly improved with some routine calculation. We were at least rewarded with an endgame which I managed to rescue from the brink of disaster by changing tack before it was too late: my extra pawn was as nothing compared to getting the pieces going.

On the whole then, not too bad - I was calling the tune throughout, which is usually a good sign. One down, five to go...