Dutch Defense - a positional demolition

Jay Bonin - Daniel Shapiro [A40] 1.d4 e6 2.Nf3 f5 3.g3 Nf6 4.Bg2 d5 5.0?0 Bd6 6.c4 c6 7.b3 Qe7 8.Bb2 Interesting is Kasparov’s 8 a4!, played against Nigel Short in a quickplay game in London 1987, which enables White to get in Ba3 (with the positionally desirable trade of dark-squared bishops) quicker, but may cede the b4 square. Short ignored him with 8 … O-O 9 Ba3 Bxa3 10 Nxa3 Nbd7 11 a5 and then challenged with 11 … b6. Instead, Akopian --Ulibin, 1991 continued (after 8 a4!) with 8 … a5 9 Ba3 Bxa3 10 Nxa3 b6?! (better was 10 … Na6; the idea of … b7-b6 is to get in … c6-c5, but here that will weaken the b5 square) 11 Ne5, with a pleasant game for White. b6 9.Qc1 Bonin insists on getting the bishop to a3; not everybody in this situation has done so.

For example, Olafsson - Yusupov, Winnipeg 1986 transposed to 9 Nc3 Nbd7 10 Rc1 O-O 11 e3 Ba6 and Black has equalized. Bb7 10.Ba3 Nbd7 In Olafsson - Agdestein, Reykjavik 1987, Black issued the strong plan 10 … O-O 11 Bxd6 Qxd6 12 Qa3 (White does not have to follow up the bishop exchange with this offer of a queen exchange) c5! And White’s queen was not that well placed. 11.Bxd6 Qxd6 12.Qa3 Qxa3 It appears that 12 … c5 would not be as strong as in the note above as here Black is committed to the square d7 with his knight. 13.Nxa3 Ke7 14.Rfc1 Rhc8 15.Rc2 dxc4? Understandable in view of Black's next, opening the long diagonal, but really the source of the problems, as the terrible knight on a3 becomes activated. After this misjudgment, a minimal disadvantage (for example, with the calm 15 ... Ne4) becomes a real problem. 16.Nxc4 c5 17.dxc5 Nxc5 18.Nd4 Getting to the heart of the matter, Bonin exchanges bishops, and now his slight edge in development plus Black's somewhat loose formation gives White a distinct pull. Be4 19.Bxe4 Ncxe4 20.Rac1 DIAGRAM Nd5 Understandably active, trying to deal with creeping threats like 21 f3 or 21 Nb5, but much better was 20 … Nd7!, and Black looks to build up starting with … a7-a6. 21.Ne3! An effective shot, transforming his quicker mobilization into concrete tactics. Rxc2 22.Nxd5+ Kd6 Better than 22 … exd5 23 Rxc2 with numerous threats, e.g., 23 … Nd6 24 Rc7+ Kf6 25 Rd7. 23.Rxc2 Kxd5 24.Nb5 Ke5 25.f3 Nc5 26.b4 Na4 The relentless pressure has driven the Black knight offsides, as 26 … Nd7 would drop a pawn to 27 Rc7. 27.f4+ Kf6 28.Rc7 a5 29.a3 axb4 30.axb4 Rd8 31.Na7! A nice maneuver: the White knight clambers back into the attack via c6 and e5 with crushing effect. Rd4 32.b5 h6 33.Nc6 Rd1+ 34.Kf2 Kg6 35.Ne5+ Kh7 36.Nd7 Rb1 37.h4 Kg8 38.Ne5 h5 39.Rc8+ Kh7 40.Nd7 Rxb5 41.Nf8+ Kh6 42.Nxe6 Nc5 43.Nd4 Ne4+ 44.Ke3 Rb4 45.Nxf5+ Kg6 46.Ne7+ Kh7 47.Nd5 Nd6 48.Nxb4 Nxc8 49.Kd4 Kg6 50.e4 Nd6 51.Kd5 Nf5 52.exf5+ Kxf5 53.Nd3 Kg4 54.Ke6 Kxg3 55.Kf7 Kxh4 56.Kxg7 Kg3 57.f5 h4 58.f6 h3 59.f7 h2 60.f8Q h1Q 61.Qf4+ Kg2 62.Qe4+ Kg1 63.Qe1+ Kh2 64.Qh4+ Kg2 65.Nf4+ Kg1 66.Qe1+

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