Three Games from Nashville

IM Kostya Kavutskiy annotates three games played by some of the winners of the 2019 National Elementary Championship. For more information on the National Elementary, please see David Hater's "It Takes a Village to Run a National."

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[Event "2019 National K-3 Championship"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2019.05.12"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Rao, Anjaneya"]
[Black "Vidyarthi, Omya"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "C54"]
[WhiteElo "1831"]
[BlackElo "1813"]
[Annotator "Kostya"]
[PlyCount "136"]
[EventDate "2019.??.??"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. O-O Nf6 5. d3 h6 6. c3 d6 7. b4 Bb6 8. a4 a6
9. a5 Ba7 10. Be3 Bxe3 11. fxe3 O-O 12. Nbd2 Kh7 13. d4 Ng4 14. Qe2 Bd7 15. h3
Nf6 16. Rf2 exd4 17. exd4 Qe7 18. Qd3 Kh8 19. Qc2 Nh5 20. Re1 Nf4 21. Kh2 Rae8
22. e5 g5 {White is clearly better here thanks to the strong center but it is
not so easy to capitalize on the advantage.} 23. Bd3 (23. g3 $1 {as pointed
out by Stockfish is a thematic but still surprising pawn sacrifice. The point
is that after} Nxh3 24. Rff1 {Black's knight on h3 would be stranded and
White's follow-up of Ne4-f6 would be quite hard to meet. For instance} g4 25.
Nh4 Ng5 {would run into} 26. e6 $1 $18) 23... d5 {Now Black is somewhat more
stable.} 24. Bf5 Be6 25. Bxe6 Qxe6 26. Rff1 (26. Nb3 $1 $16 {would have still
guranteed a nice edge for White, heading to the c5-square.}) 26... Rg8 27. Ng1
Ne7 28. g3 Nh5 29. g4 $2 {A move that's hard to explain. White worked so hard
to evict the knight from f4, why allow it back!?} (29. Ne2 $16 {and the
position would still be much better for White.}) 29... Nf4 30. Ngf3 Rg7 31. Rh1
h5 $1 {Launching the counterattack, and Black is now better.} 32. Kg3 f5 33.
exf6 Qxf6 34. Ne5 Qd6 35. Ndf3 Rf8 {The engine believes the position is still
close to equal, but it is quite difficult for White to hold on here, as the
king is potentially quite vulnerable. Omya continues maneuvering until she
finds the right configuration to break through.} 36. Qd2 Nc6 37. Qe3 Kg8 38.
Rhf1 Ne7 39. Qd2 Qh6 $1 {Eyeing the h3-square.} 40. Rh1 c6 41. Qe3 Nc8 $1 {
A strong maneuver, bringing the knight to d6 and then either e4 or c4. Now
White's defenses simply get stretched too far.} 42. Ref1 (42. Kf2 Nd6 43. Kg1 {
was the only way to hold on for now but after} Re7 $17 {Black is on the verge
of breaking through.}) 42... Nd6 43. Nd2 Re7 44. Qe1 Rfe8 45. Rh2 {A final
mistake, but it was already an extremely difficult position for White.} (45.
Qe3 {would be more stubborn but now it's only a matter of time before Black's
pieces can find a way in. One idea is to play} Qg7 $19 {Followed by taking on
e5 with a powerful exchange sacrifice in mind.}) 45... h4+ $1 {Spotting the
winning tactic. This is the benefit of keeping the tension with the pawn on h5,
Black could always threaten to open the h-file but kept her options open, as
here the pawn is used to push White's king into a devastating fork.} 46. Kf2 (
46. Kf3 Qg7 $19 {followed by Nf7 if needed, and soon White's position would
very likely collapse.}) 46... Rxe5 $1 {A classic 'removing the defender'
tactic. It's all over now. As usual, the game was played out until mate!} 47.
dxe5 Nd3+ 48. Kg1 Nxe1 49. Rxe1 Nb5 50. Rf2 Nxc3 51. Kf1 Qg7 52. Rf6 Rf8 53.
Rxf8+ Qxf8+ 54. Kg2 Qxb4 55. e6 Ne4 56. Nxe4 Qxe1 57. Nf6+ Kf8 58. Nh7+ Ke7 59.
Nxg5 Qd2+ 60. Kf3 Qxg5 61. Ke2 Kxe6 62. Kd3 Ke5 63. Kc3 Qe3+ 64. Kc2 Kd4 65. g5
Qc3+ 66. Kb1 Qd2 67. g6 Kc3 68. g7 Qb2# 0-1

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ITALIAN GAME C54 Anjaneya Rao (1831) Omya Vidyarthi (1813) 2019 National K-3 Championship (7), 12.05.2019 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.0–0 Nf6 5.d3 h6 6.c3 d6 7.b4 Bb6 8.a4 a6 9.a5 Ba7 10.Be3 Bxe3 11.fxe3 0–0 12.Nbd2 Kh7 13.d4 Ng4 14.Qe2 Bd7 15.h3 Nf6 16.Rf2 exd4 17.exd4 Qe7 18.Qd3 Kh8 19.Qc2 Nh5 20.Re1 Nf4 21.Kh2 Rae8 22.e5 g5 White is clearly better here thanks to the strong center but it is not so easy to capitalize on the advantage. 23.Bd3 23.g3! as pointed out by Stockfish is a thematic but still surprising pawn sacrifice. The point is that after 23. ... Nxh3 24.Rff1 Black's knight on h3 would be stranded and White's follow-up of Ne4–f6 would be quite hard to meet. For instance 24. ... g4 25.Nh4 Ng5 would run into 26.e6! and White is winning. 23. ... d5 Now Black is somewhat more stable. 24.Bf5 Be6 25.Bxe6 Qxe6 26.Rff1 26.Nb3! would have still guaranteed a nice edge for White, heading to the c5–square. 26. ... Rg8 27.Ng1 Ne7 28.g3 Nh5 29.g4? A move that's hard to explain. White worked so hard to evict the knight from f4, why allow it back!? 29.Ne2 and the position would still be much better for White. 29. ... Nf4 30.Ngf3 Rg7 31.Rh1 h5! Launching the counterattack, and Black is now better. 32.Kg3 f5 33.exf6 Qxf6 34.Ne5 Qd6 35.Ndf3 Rf8 The engine believes the position is still close to equal, but it is quite difficult for White to hold on here, as the king is potentially quite vulnerable. Omya continues maneuvering until she finds the right configuration to break through. 36.Qd2 Nc6 37.Qe3 Kg8 38.Rhf1 Ne7 39.Qd2 Qh6! Eyeing the h3–square. 40.Rh1 c6 41.Qe3 Nc8! A strong maneuver, bringing the knight to d6 and then either e4 or c4. Now White's defenses simply get stretched too far. 42.Ref1 42.Kf2 Nd6 43.Kg1 was the only way to hold on for now but after 43. ... Re7 Black is on the verge of breaking through. 42. ... Nd6 43.Nd2 Re7 44.Qe1 Rfe8 45.Rh2 A final mistake, but it was already an extremely difficult position for White. 45.Qe3 would be more stubborn but now it's only a matter of time before Black's pieces can find a way in. One idea is to play 45. ... Qg7 followed by taking on e5 with a powerful exchange sacrifice in mind. 45. ... h4+! Spotting the winning tactic. This is the benefit of keeping the tension with the pawn on h5, Black could always threaten to open the h-file but kept her options open, as here the pawn is used to push White's king into a devastating fork. 46.Kf2 46.Kf3 Qg7 followed by … Nf7 if needed, and soon White's position would very likely collapse. 45. ... Rxe5! A classic 'removing the defender' tactic. It's all over now. As usual, the game was played out until mate! 47.dxe5 Nd3+ 48.Kg1 Nxe1 49.Rxe1 Nb5 50.Rf2 Nxc3 51.Kf1 Qg7 52.Rf6 Rf8 53.Rxf8+ Qxf8+ 54.Kg2 Qxb4 55.e6 Ne4 56.Nxe4 Qxe1 57.Nf6+ Kf8 58.Nh7+ Ke7 59.Nxg5 Qd2+ 60.Kf3 Qxg5 61.Ke2 Kxe6 62.Kd3 Ke5 63.Kc3 Qe3+ 64.Kc2 Kd4 65.g5 Qc3+ 66.Kb1 Qd2 67.g6 Kc3 68.g7 Qb2# 0–1

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[Event "2019 National K-6 Championship"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2019.05.12"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Murgescu, Adi"]
[Black "Lu, Ming"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C14"]
[WhiteElo "2132"]
[BlackElo "2266"]
[Annotator "Kostya"]
[PlyCount "63"]
[EventDate "2019.??.??"]

1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Bg5 Be7 5. e5 Nfd7 6. Bxe7 Qxe7 7. f4 Nc6 8.
Nf3 Nb6 9. b3 Bd7 10. Bd3 $2 {A bit of a careless move, not considering the
opponent's tactical resources.} ({White should start with} 10. Qd2 O-O-O 11.
Bd3 {as now} Qb4 {would simply be met with} 12. a3 $16) 10... Qb4 $1 {Whoops,
White must drop a pawn, but kudos to Adi for not giving up and looking to make
a fight out of it.} 11. Qd2 Nxd4 12. Nxd4 Qxd4 13. Rd1 Qc5 14. Ne2 O-O-O 15. a4
a5 16. c3 $1 {White is down a pawn, but has a plan - Nd4, 0-0, and then look
for play on the queenside.} Qe7 (16... f6 $1 {was even more to the point.} 17.
b4 (17. Nd4 fxe5 18. fxe5 Rhf8 $17 {and White won't be able to castle.}) 17...
Qe7 18. bxa5 Nxa4 $17 {looks messy but should still be quite good for Black,
who can use the c5-square.}) 17. Nd4 f6 18. O-O h6 {A bit slow, but things are
still all right for Black.} 19. Ra1 fxe5 20. fxe5 Rhf8 21. Rfb1 {Keeping the
rook for the attack.} Kb8 $2 {Too casual, Black needed to take measures
against White's incoming attack.} (21... c5 $1 22. Nb5 Bxb5 23. axb5 {looks
dangerous in view of the a-file, but Black's knight on b6 will cover the
a8-square and more importantly, after} c4 $1 24. Bc2 Qc5+ {Black would get
huge counterplay--White must allow a queen trade with Qd4, otherwise Rf2 would
cause too many problems.} 25. Qd4 Qxd4+ 26. cxd4 Rf4 $17 {with a big endgame
advantage.}) 22. b4 {Now the missing pawn is hardly relevant, White's pieces
can create a serious attack on the queenside.} axb4 (22... Nc4 $1 23. Bxc4 dxc4
24. bxa5 Qc5 $13 {was Black's only way to stay in the game.}) 23. a5 Nc8 $2 (
23... Nc4 $1 {was again needed.} 24. Bxc4 dxc4 25. Rxb4 c5 26. Rxb7+ $1 Kxb7
27. Qb2+ Ka8 28. Qb6 {where Black can only defend with} Ba4 $3 {stopping Qa6+,
and the complications seem to peter out into a draw after} 29. Nxe6 $13) 24.
cxb4 $2 {This leads to a quick win, but is an objective mistake. Why not take
with the rook and triple up on the b-file?} (24. Rxb4 $1 $18 {was much
stronger, followed by Qb2 and Rab1 with a decisive attack.}) 24... Na7 $2 (
24... Qg5 $1 $132 {would keep Black well in the game, challenging White's
queen and looking to play Qf4 with counterplay.}) 25. b5 {Now White is
breaking through by force.} c5 {This speeds things up, but there was not much
else for Black to try, as b5-b6 was coming to open lines anyway.} (25... Qg5
26. Qc3 Qf4 27. b6 $18) 26. bxc6 Nxc6 27. Qb2 Be8 28. a6 (28. Nxe6 $18 {
was equally crushing as well.}) 28... Nxe5 29. axb7 Ba4 30. Rxa4 Kc7 31. Qb6+
Kd7 32. Bb5+ {In this game it felt like Black played a bit too casually after
winning a pawn. An important lesson for all players -- winning a pawn in the
opening does not mean the game is over, both sides should continue to fight
and look for active counterplay.} 1-0

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FRENCH DEFENSE C14 Adi Murgescu (2132) Ming Lu (2266) 2019 National K-6 Championship (7), 12.05.2019 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 Be7 5.e5 Nfd7 6.Bxe7 Qxe7 7.f4 Nc6 8.Nf3 Nb6 9.b3 Bd7 10.Bd3? A bit of a careless move, not considering the opponent's tactical resources. White should start with 10.Qd2 0–0–0 11.Bd3 as now 11. ... Qb4 would simply be met with 12.a3 and White has an advantage. 10. ... Qb4! Whoops, White must drop a pawn, but kudos to Adi for not giving up and looking to make a fight out of it. 11.Qd2 Nxd4 12.Nxd4 Qxd4 13.Rd1 Qc5 14.Ne2 0–0–0 15.a4 a5 16.c3! White is down a pawn, but has a plan - Nd4, 0–0, and then look for play on the queenside. 16. ... Qe7 16. ... f6! was even more to the point. 17.b4 (17.Nd4 fxe5 18.fxe5 Rhf8 and White won't be able to castle.) 17. ... Qe7 18.bxa5 Nxa4 looks messy but should still be quite good for Black, who can use the c5–square. 17.Nd4 f6 18.0–0 h6 A bit slow, but things are still all right for Black. 19.Ra1 fxe5 20.fxe5 Rhf8 21.Rfb1 Keeping the rook for the attack. 21. ... Kb8? Too casual, Black needed to take measures against White's incoming attack. 21. ... c5! 22.Nb5 Bxb5 23.axb5 looks dangerous in view of the a-file, but Black's knight on b6 will cover the a8–square and more importantly, after 23. ... c4! 24.Bc2 Qc5+ Black would get huge counterplay--White must allow a queen trade with Qd4, otherwise Rf2 would cause too many problems. 25.Qd4 Qxd4+ 26.cxd4 Rf4 with a big endgame advantage. 22.b4 Now the missing pawn is hardly relevant, White's pieces can create a serious attack on the queenside. 22. ... axb4 22. ... Nc4! 23.Bxc4 dxc4 24.bxa5 Qc5 is unclear, and Black's only way to stay in the game. 23.a5 Nc8? 23. ... Nc4! was again needed. 24.Bxc4 dxc4 25.Rxb4 c5 26.Rxb7+! Kxb7 27.Qb2+ Ka8 28.Qb6 where Black can only defend with 28. ... Ba4!! stopping Qa6+, and the complications seem to peter out into a draw after 29.Nxe6. 24.cxb4? This leads to a quick win, but is an objective mistake. Why not take with the rook and triple up on the b-file? 24.Rxb4! was much stronger, followed by Qb2 and Rab1 with a decisive attack. 24. ... Na7? 24. ... Qg5! would keep Black well in the game, challenging White's queen and looking to play Qf4 with counterplay. 25.b5 Now White is breaking through by force. 25. ... c5 This speeds things up, but there was not much else for Black to try, as b5–b6 was coming to open lines anyway. If 25. ... Qg5 26.Qc3 Qf4 27.b6 and White is winning. 26.bxc6 Nxc6 27.Qb2 Be8 28.a6 28.Nxe6 was equally crushing as well. 28. ... Nxe5 29.axb7 Ba4 30.Rxa4 Kc7 31.Qb6+ Kd7 32.Bb5+ 1–0 In this game it felt like Black played a bit too casually after winning a pawn. An important lesson for all players -- winning a pawn in the opening does not mean the game is over, both sides should continue to fight and look for active counterplay.

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[Event "2019 National K-5 Championship"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2019.05.12"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Ho, Cooper"]
[Black "Yang, Jack Nathaniel"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "B48"]
[WhiteElo "1835"]
[BlackElo "1908"]
[Annotator "Kostya"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[EventDate "2019.??.??"]

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 e6 5. Nc3 Qc7 6. Be3 a6 7. Qd2 Nf6 8. f3
Bb4 9. a3 Ba5 $6 {Misplacing the bishop.} (9... Be7 {may seem like a loss of
tempo, but since White is going to be castling queenside anyway, the a3-pawn
will prove as a useful hook for Black's later b7-b5-b4 push.}) 10. Nb3 $1 {
A good reaction, pushing the bishop back.} Bb6 11. Bxb6 Qxb6 12. O-O-O O-O 13.
g4 $16 {White has won the opening battle - his attack on the kingside is slow
but steady, whereas Black has a hard time creating any counterplay.} Rd8 14. g5
Ne8 (14... Nh5 {would be met with} 15. f4 $18 {followed by Be2.}) 15. f4 Ne7
16. Bg2 ({The immediate} 16. h4 {was perfectly strong.}) 16... Qc7 ({I'm
curious why Black didn't just play} 16... d5 $5 {immediately.} 17. exd5 (17.
Rhe1 $16 {keeps a stable advantage for White.}) 17... exd5 18. Nxd5 $2 {
would be met with} Nxd5 19. Bxd5 Bg4 $1 $132) 17. h4 (17. f5 {would be more to
the point, as} exf5 18. exf5 Nxf5 19. Nd5 Qb8 20. Rhf1 $18 {is tremendous for
White.}) 17... Rb8 18. h5 b5 19. Bh3 $2 {This and the following moves are too
slow. In the Open Sicilian, every tempo counts!} (19. f5 $1 $18 {was again
very strong, getting ready to break through with either f6 or g6 next.}) 19...
Bb7 20. Rhg1 d5 $1 {Black has finally caught up in development and launches
this thematic break.} 21. g6 {Now White finally goes for the break but it is
already late, Black has enough counterplay in the center.} (21. e5 $5 {might
have been an interesting approach, forcing Black to find} d4 $1 22. Nxd4 Bf3 $1
{in order to keep the balance, and after} 23. g6 $1 hxg6 24. hxg6 Nxg6 $13 {
the position would be quite messy.}) 21... dxe4 22. gxf7+ Kxf7 23. Nd4 Nf5 $1 {
A strong move, forcing White to give up the bishop and fix Black's structure.}
24. Bxf5 exf5 25. Qe3 Bc8 {This looks passive, but Black is now a pawn up and
if they can keep everything under control, White's initiative will completely
burn out.} 26. Qg3 Rb6 $1 {Another good move, defending along the 6th rank and
preparing Rbd6 with lots of pressure on the d-file.} 27. Nxf5 $5 {Somewhat
desperate, but understandable. When the trend isn't going your way, it can be
wise to change the character of the game. But Black is able to keep their cool
and accept White's material sacrifice.} ({Now} 27. Qg5 {can be met with} h6 $19
{where White will have to go back.}) 27... Rxd1+ (27... Bxf5 28. Nd5 {is
similar to the game.}) 28. Rxd1 Bxf5 29. Nd5 Qc6 30. Nxb6 Qxb6 {White's idea
was to open things up and try to play against Black's king, but there turns
out to be not enough play, as Black's two pieces should be able to coordinate
and defend everything, after which Black should have a winning position. But
of course, with the clock ticking, things are rarely so simple.} 31. Rd5 g6 32.
hxg6+ hxg6 33. Re5 Qc6 (33... Nf6 $19 {seems much simpler, bringing the worst
piece into play.}) 34. Qb3+ Kf8 (34... Be6 35. Qb4 Nf6 $19 {and White would
have nothing.}) 35. Qb4+ Qd6 $4 {A highly unfortunate blunder. The desire to
trade queens is understandable, but tactics are everything!} (35... Nd6 {
would have kept Black in control.} 36. Rc5 Qb6 37. Qd4 Kg8 $15 {and it is far
from easy to convert this, though Black would still have good chances.}) 36.
Rxe8+ $1 {And just like that it was over. Cooper went on to draw his final
game to clinch first place in the K-5 Championship.} 1-0

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SICILIAN TAIMANOV B48 Cooper Ho (1835) Jack Nathaniel Yang (1908) 2019 National K-5 Championship (6), 12.05.2019 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 e6 5.Nc3 Qc7 6.Be3 a6 7.Qd2 Nf6 8.f3 Bb4 9.a3 Ba5?! Misplacing the bishop. 9. ... Be7 may seem like a loss of tempo, but since White is going to be castling queenside anyway, the a3–pawn will prove as a useful hook for Black's later b7–b5–b4 push. 10.Nb3! A good reaction, pushing the bishop back. 10. ... Bb6 11.Bxb6 Qxb6 12.0–0–0 0–0 13.g4 White has won the opening battle - his attack on the kingside is slow but steady, whereas Black has a hard time creating any counterplay. 13. ... Rd8 14.g5 Ne8 14. ... Nh5 would be met with 15.f4 followed by Be2. White has a solid advantage. 15.f4 Ne7 16.Bg2 The immediate 16.h4 was perfectly strong. 16. ... Qc7 I'm curious why Black didn't just play 16. ... d5!? immediately. 17.exd5 (17.Rhe1 keeps a stable advantage for White.) 17. ... exd5 18.Nxd5? would be met with 18. ... Nxd5 19.Bxd5 Bg4! with counterplay. 17.h4 17.f5 would be more to the point, as 17. ... exf5 18.exf5 Nxf5 19.Nd5 Qb8 20.Rhf1 is tremendous for White. 17. ... Rb8 18.h5 b5 19.Bh3? This and the following moves are too slow. In the Open Sicilian, every tempo counts! 19.f5! was again very strong, getting ready to break through with either f6 or g6 next. 19. ... Bb7 20.Rhg1 d5! Black has finally caught up in development and launches this thematic break. 21.g6 Now White finally goes for the break but it is already late, Black has enough counterplay in the center. 21.e5!? might have been an interesting approach, forcing Black to find 21. ... d4! 22.Nxd4 Bf3! in order to keep the balance, and after 23.g6! hxg6 24.hxg6 Nxg6 the position would be quite messy. 21. ... dxe4 22.gxf7+ Kxf7 23.Nd4 Nf5! A strong move, forcing White to give up the bishop and fix Black's structure. 24.Bxf5 exf5 25.Qe3 Bc8 This looks passive, but Black is now a pawn up and if they can keep everything under control, White's initiative will completely burn out. 26.Qg3 Rb6! Another good move, defending along the 6th rank and preparing Rbd6 with lots of pressure on the d-file. 27.Nxf5!? Somewhat desperate, but understandable. When the trend isn't going your way, it can be wise to change the character of the game. But Black is able to keep their cool and accept White's material sacrifice. Now 27.Qg5 can be met with 27. ... h6 where White will have to go back. 27. ... Rxd1+ 27. ... Bxf5 28.Nd5 is similar to the game. 28.Rxd1 Bxf5 29.Nd5 Qc6 30.Nxb6 Qxb6 White's idea was to open things up and try to play against Black's king, but there turns out to be not enough play, as Black's two pieces should be able to coordinate and defend everything, after which Black should have a winning position. But of course, with the clock ticking, things are rarely so simple. 31.Rd5 g6 32.hxg6+ hxg6 33.Re5 Qc6 33. ... Nf6 seems much simpler, bringing the worst piece into play. 34.Qb3+ Kf8 34. ... Be6 35.Qb4 Nf6 and White would have nothing. 35.Qb4+ Qd6?? A highly unfortunate blunder. The desire to trade queens is understandable, but tactics are everything! 35. ... Nd6 would have kept Black in control. 36.Rc5 Qb6 37.Qd4 Kg8 and it is far from easy to convert this, though Black would still have good chances. 36.Rxe8+! 1–0 And just like that it was over. Cooper went on to draw his final game to clinch first place in the K-5 Championship.