2017 3 Tables - August Round 2 CM Justin Arnold, 2073 - Anton Taylor, 1999 Nimzo-Indian: Kmoch (E20)

2017 3 Tables - August Round 2
CM Justin Arnold, 2073 - Anton Taylor, 1999
Nimzo-Indian: Kmoch (E20)

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 O-O More common is d5 immediately contesting that big white stake in the center but this move is perfectly playable. 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 c5 A lot of different moves have been tried here with all kinds of ideas. d5, d6, b6, Nh5, and even Ne8. 7. e3? At some point white has to play e4 to justify f3. It even seems much stronger here than his lackluster choice. In fact as I look at the menace of e4 I'm reconsidering the c5 line in favor of the solid d5. Black seems a bit busted after e4 to the point of getting strnagled. 7. ... Nc6 A minor miscalculation. Better is d6 preparing e5 and not tempting d5. 8. Bd3 e5 This is my deviation from the database. I am curious why this move has never been tried before. It seems to be an unexplored option. There are a lot of transpositions from here though into more common territory (if a sideline can be said to be common at all) 9. Ne2 d6 10. O-O b6 11. d5 Na5 12. Ng3 Ba6 13. Qe2 Qd7 14. e4? Surely Black must be better if only slightly against the terrible white light-squared bishop. 14. ... Nb3 15. Bg5 Nxa1 16. Bxf6 gxf6 17. Nh5 Qd8? The evaluation is roughly equal until thhis point. Kh8 accelerates the rook getting into action and if black takes his "free pawn" he simply loses a rook. He cant forget that he's a rook down in this position. 18. Qf2 Kh8 19. Qh4 Rg8 20. Nxf6 Rg7 21. Rxa1 Qe7? b5 is a clever move order: 21... b5 22. cxb5 c4 23. Bxc4 Rc8 24. Bf1 Bxb5 25. Bxb5 Qb6+ Had I seen this it is a much preferable active continuation to the one I chose in the game. 22. Rb1 Rag8 Floundering going nowhere while white can improve his rook and the queenside in general. 23. g4 Bc8 24. Kf2 Bd7 No ideas are coming to me here so the analysis of this whole sequence of the last few moves gives me interesting new ideas to study. 25. Qh6 Rb8 26. h4? More direct is Rg1. The win gets further away from white though he is still in the drivers seat and should win. 26. ... a6 27. h5 b5 28. Nxd7?? White has been blundering his way through this ending only slightly less poor than black. This, however, releases some pressure off of white. 28. ...Qxd7 29. Qf6 Qd8 30. Qxd8+ Rxd8 31. cxb5 axb5 32. Bxb5 Rb8 33. a4 f6 34. h6 Ra7 35. Rh1 Kg8 36. Rh5 Kf7 37. Ke3 Rg8 38. Kd3 Rga8 39. Rh2 Rxa4?? In the rush to end this game I dive headlong into a lost ending. Keeping things as they are is the best chance to hold the draw in the complications and time trouble. 40. Bxa4 Rxa4 41. Rb2 Kg6 42. Rb6 c4+ 43. Kc2 Ra2+ 44. Kd1 Rf2 45. Rxd6 Rxf3 46. Kd2 Rf4?? throwing away the draw. Rf2+ thrown in here either nabs the c-pawn or puts the king one square further away from defending the e-pawn after Rf4. 47. Rc6 Rxe4 48. d6 Kf7 49. d7?? Rc7! wins immediately. 49. ... Ke7 50. Rd6 Kd8 1-0 The final recorded position should be drawn but in the scramble I lose it.