[Event "Correspondence game"] [Site "lichess.org"] [Date "2020.09.09"] [Round "?"] [White "Richards"] [Black "Rachmuth"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "A21"] [WhiteElo "1400"] [BlackElo "2000"] [Annotator "silas"] [PlyCount "54"] [EventDate "2020.??.??"] [SourceVersionDate "2020.07.04"] {Richards (about 1400) – Rachmuth (about 1900), 2020, Game 2 (Correspondence game. Two days per move. No use of computer engine allowed. Use of books is allowed.)} 1. c4 e5 2. Nc3 Bb4 {This is the second time that I play e5 against the English (I used to play e6) and the first time that I encounter 2.Nc3. In the coming moves I follow the recommendation of Viktor Mikhalevski in his book of repertoire for Black against the flank and irregular openings.} 3. Nd5 Bc5 4. e3 Nf6 5. b4 Be7 6. Nxe7 Qxe7 7. Bb2 Nc6 {[#]} ({Mikhalevski gives} 7... O-O {but I hoped it would be nice to provoke b4-b5 and later put the knight on c5 or e5 and attack the b5 pawn with a c7-c6 or a7- a6. Maybe it was not a good plan.}) 8. b5 Nb8 9. Bd3 d6 10. Ne2 Nbd7 11. Bc2 e4 12. Ng3 Ne5 13. Qb1 Nxc4 14. Bxf6 Qxf6 15. Nxe4 Qe7 16. Bb3 Bf5 17. f3 {Here I started to figure out the plan based on the Lund book that I mention after move 19.} d5 18. Bxc4 dxc4 19. Qc2 Be6 {[#]As I was playing this game, I was reading Silas Lund’s The Secret Lives of Bad Bishops. Before reading the book I would hate to see the Bishop on e6 limited to defending the c4 pawn. But as I was reading it I thought that this was not a bad bishop but a defensive bishop that does an important job defending the pawn who limits the movement of the d2 one.} 20. Nc3 f5 {This is a move I would never have made before reading Lund’s book. The bishop, limited by both the c4 pawn and the f5 pawn, would have disgusted me. But as I read the book I could see that the f5 pawn was also taking an important role – preventing White’s forces from using the e4 square.} 21. Rc1 O-O 22. O-O Rad8 {Lund: I may add that the fight between the knight and DEB (Double-Edged Bishop) on e6 is only one factor in this position. The bishop might be restricted by its owns pawn for now, but c4 and f5 constitutes a space advantage and the bishop is a useful defender of these potentially vulnerable points. Meanwhile, Black's 2 rooks and queen can attack the dark-squared targets in White's camp, for instance d2. As long as Black's position overall does not become passive, it is OK to have a slightly passive bishop for a while. The bishop does in general tend to rely on the cooperation of other pieces, color-blind as it is.} 23. a4 Rd6 {I played this because I was worried about the maneuver Nc3-e2-d4. Now I plan to answer 23.Ne2 with c5.} 24. e4 (24. Ne2 c5 {White has two main options here: A. 24.bxc6 and B. 24.Nf4.} 25. bxc6 ({B.} 25. Nf4 b6 {and I think Black is also OK in this line.}) 25... Rxc6 26. Nd4 Rcc8 {and Black is OK.}) 24... Qf6 {White’s move threatens e4-e5 plus f3-f4. Black’s move prevents this and eyes d4.} 25. Nd5 Qd4+ 26. Rf2 $2 {I think this move loses.} fxe4 27. Qxe4 $4 ({Game over. I was enjoying the line} 27. Nxc7 Bf7 28. b6 Qxb6 29. Nb5 Rxd2 30. Qxd2 e3 31. Qd6 $5 exf2+ 32. Kf1 Qe3 33. Rd1 c3 34. Qc7 Bb3 35. Ra1 Bc2 {and Black wins. [#] Note how the DEB gives the final blow in the last line, Silas! Thank you for a wonderful book.}) (27. Ne7+ Kh8 28. Qxe4 Qf6 29. Qxb7 Qxe7 30. Qxa7 Bd5) (27. Nc3 exf3) (27. Ne3 exf3) 27... Qxd5 0-1