[Event "27th Space Coast Open"] [White "Shama Yisrael"] [Black "Makaio Krienke"] [Site "Melbourne, FL"] [Round "4"] [Annotator ""] [Result "1-0"] [Date "2022.04.24"] [WhiteElo "1962"] [BlackElo "2216"] [PlyCount "63"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 d5 { Black here, transposes to the Queen's Gambit Declined. } (3... Bb4 { would've kept us in Nimzo-Indian territory. } )4. cxd5 exd5 5. Bg5 Be7 6. e3 h6 7. Bh4 c6 8. Bd3 Nbd7 9. Qc2 { We arrive at a very standard position } b5 { Far from the standard move in this position, however a "normal" looking move nonetheless. But let's look deeper into this move... First let's get the obvious things out of the way; PROs - Black gains space on the queenside, and it prevents Na4 from White... CONs - b5 weakens the c6 pawn and square, Black can hardly claim to have secured the c4 square, as White can still play b3. Now for what might not be so obvious about this move and admittedly is pure speculation on my part... Generally White comes to a crossroad in this QGD line one move later after playing Nf3; in which the first player has to decide which side to castle and that will dictate the flow of the game. Thus it's my opinion that Black may have played b5 in this position to dissuade White from castling queenside. } 10. Nf3 O-O 11. O-O Re8 { While watching this game live, I was absolutely convinced that this position was crucial and that White MUST play a4! here to maintain any advantage. My reasoning was that if Black gets just one more move to play a5 or Bb7, then on a4, b4 could be played to chase the Knight and Black would be in time to play a5 to not only protect a possibly weak b4 pawn, but more importantly to prevent White from playing a5 themself which would cut off the b-pawn from civilization and take away the b6 square. All this would not be possible if Black gets time to play a5 or protect the c6 pawn (Bb7) so when the c3 Knight moves it's not with tempo. } 12. a4 { White has other moves here, however I find this move to be extremely accurate (see above) and although not necessarily an elite move in this position; it's the kind of move that makes the "follow up" moves easier to find due to the forcing nature of the plan itself. It's also hard for most players to distinguish a4 from other good moves here. (Just because it's a good move, doesn't mean you should play it) } (12. Rac1 Bb7 13. a4 b4 14. Ne2 a5 { White can claim a slight edge, but nothing more. } )b4 {[%csl Ga4][%cal Gc3a4] } 13. Ne2 { c6 is attacked } Bb7 14. a5 $36 $1 { The point! White's a-pawn now becomes that annoying fly at the backyard BBQ on Black's queenside. It lands on the Knight's burger first (taking away the b6 square). } Rc8 { The Rook sidesteps the fly, avoiding getting stuck on a8 after a further advance from the pawn. } 15. a6 { Now this pesky little troll lands on the Bishop's hotdog, forcing it to the dreaded a8 square. } Ba8 16. Bf5 c5 { Black needs to play actively here and does! } 17. dxc5 Rxc5 18. Qd3 Ra5 { Looking at this move as a player and without the aid of an engine, it is difficult to criticize this move. Black wants to put some pressure on the a6 pawn, but more importantly free up the c5 square for his pieces. } 19. Bxf6 { White doesn't play the best move here, but the instinct to remove one of the knights before one lands on e4 was correct and still retains a better position for now. } (19. Bxd7 Rxa1 20. Rxa1 Qxd7 21. Ned4 Rc8 22. Qf5 $16 { and White is better, but it's still a game. } )Nxf6 20. Rac1 $2 { This natural looking move is actually bad and now breathes life into Black's counter chances. When I saw this move live I knew immediately why it was played. White was so focused on preventing Ne4 that it's easy to miss other ideas Black may have. } Qb6 (20... Ne4 21. Rc8 Qxc8 22. Bxc8 Rxc8 23. h3 $18 )21. Ra1 $3 { A psychological hurdle few players possess the mental fortitude to overcome! Moving a piece back to where it just came from in such a position where there is no shortage of moves that don't lose on the spot (and it not being some kind of okie doke trick). } Bf8 22. Ned4 Ne4 23. Rxa5 Qxa5 24. Rc1 { If you were to introduce this game to a chess engine for the first time, it would take up to depth 26 or 27 for it to realize that Black's next move is a blunder. And is the catalyst for why this game won the brilliancy prize. } Nc5 $4 { This move even looks strong... Yet this blunder is what set off a chain reaction that led to why you are looking at this game. From here, I will let the moves do most of the talking! } 25. Bh7+ $1 Kh8 26. Qf5 $1 Qd8 27. Ng5 $3 { It's indeed a rare moment for most players, yet the hope of playing such a combination in a classical tournament game against a good opponent is what drives many players in chess!... Euge! Shama! Euge! } (27. Qxf7 Kxh7 )Qxg5 (27... hxg5 28. Qh3 g4 (28... g6 29. Bxg6+ Kg7 30. Qh7+ Kf6 31. Qxf7+ Ke5 32. Nb5 Qf6 (32... Qc8 33. f4+ gxf4 34. exf4# )33. f4+ gxf4 34. exf4+ Qxf4 35. Qxe8+ Ne6 36. Re1+ )29. Qh5 {[%csl Gh7] } g6 (29... Bd6 30. Be4+ Kg8 31. Qh7+ Kf8 32. Nf5 $1 { Magnificent! } )30. Bxg6+ Kg7 31. Qh7+ Kf6 32. Qxf7+ Kg5 33. f4+ gxf3 34. Nxf3+ Kg4 35. Bf5# )28. Qxf7 Kxh7 (28... Rc8 29. Qg8# )29. Qxe8 Nd3 30. Ne6 Qf6 31. Nxf8+ Kg8 32. Nd7+ 1-0