Annotated Chess Game 15733629

Black cannot castle here, as the Be7 is double attacked. Positional assessment: the White K is in safety, a material advantage of 1 pawn, no marked weakness. Black: K not in safety, isolated d-pawn which will be difficult to defend. Game plan for White: surround and win Black's d-pawn, then advance the Q-side pawn majority. Game plan for Black: marshal all forces against White's Q-side to disrupt the pawn structure; if possible, push d4-d3 to cramp White's position or trigger disruptive exchanges. Stockfish rates the position +1.5 in favor of White.

White wishes to skip over the middle-game and jump directly into an end-game.

Preventing the disruptive push ... d4-d3.

A slight inaccuracy; with Qs off the board, the Black K should move towards the center, not away: ... Kf6 was recommended.

Pushing the Black K farther away from the field of action.

Black commences heavy artillery fire against the White Q-side.

The N is superior to the B in this position, as it covers both colors.

Preparing to post the B to f2 and a R to e4 to pressure the loose Black d-pawn.

Black wisely does not trouble himself with passively defending the loose d-pawn, but goes on the offensive against White's Q-side. The R move provokes pawn advances, which open holes which he could later occupy with N or R.

Threatening ... Nb3 forking the Rs.

A slight inaccuracy; ... Rb3 is recommended, with equality.

Intending to attack the White K-side pawns. The plan, however, is flawed as the Black K is out of play here; better was ... Kf7. Stockfish: +1.5 in favor of White.

Disrupting the White pawn mass is better than passively trying to hold the loose d-pawn with ... Rd6.

White misses a trick here. Better was Rxd4! NxRd4; 38. BxNd4 and the Black Rc5 is trapped, leading to a simplified single R vs. single R endgame. The text move allows Black to retain both Rs and better defensive options.

A slight inaccuracy; Black should hold on to both Rs, as this would increase his defensive options.

A serious mistake; imperative was Rf4.

As so often happens in chess, one bad move triggers another. Better was ... Rxf5+ followed by ... a4, with an easy draw.

I have been studying *Rook Endings* by Averbach and Smyslov lately, so this simplified K+R+Ps end-game fits right in. White's game plan: obtain a passer on the Q-side, support the passer with K and R; keep Black's K and/or R passive insofar as possible. Black's game plan: get K and R to active positions. For the K, this means: centralized, g8-f7 etc. For the R: harass the White K with checks and/or hinder the advance of the Q-side pawn majority.

Oops, wrong way !

Black has won a pawn (which wasn't going anywhere anyway) at the expense of allowing his K to be entombed on the edge.

Black's formerly active R is now merely passively tending a loose pawn.

The R on g4 further restricts Black's K and supports b2-b4 to obtain a passer on the Q-side.

A serious mistake, which gives White a protected passer. Better was ... axb4 to be followed by ... Rb5 blockading the b-passer. Stockfish: +2.00 for White.

A slight inaccuracy, which, however, is not critical. If Black responds ... Rd7, then White must expend several K and R moves to be able to advance the K nearer to support the b-passer. Better was Ke3, so that if ... Rd7, then the White R interposes to cover the K's advance.

The flaw in Black's plan to win the White K-side pawns is that the Black K-side pawns are too slow to become a counter-threat.

One of the white Q-side pawns will promote. An end-game of instructive errors. Lesson from Averbach and Smyslov: active K and R are the keys to success. Black resigned. 1 - 0