1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 g6 6.Be3 Bg7 7.f3 Nc6 8.Qd2 0-0 9.0-0-0 d5 A well-known pawn sacrifice, and the reason that White often plays the lines 9 Bc4 or 9 g4 rather than 9 O-O-O. Now the main line runs 10 exd5 Nxd5 11 Nxc6 bxc6 12 Nxd5 (or 12 Bd4 e5 13 Bc5) cxd5 13 Qxd5 Qc7. 10.Kb1

Shabalov has made a specialty of this tricky move of late. 10...Rb8 Again offering a pawn sacrifice through 11 Nxc6 bxc6 12 exd5. More frequently seen than 10 ... Rb8 is 10 ... Nxd4 (not 10 ... dxe4?? 11 Nxc6 and White wins) 11 e5 (the point) and then one treatment is 11 ... Nxf3 12 gxf3 Nh5 13 Qxd5 although White should have the edge in this endgame. 11.Nb3 Forcing the following exchanges. 11...dxe4 12.Qxd8 Rxd8 13.Rxd8+ Nxd8 14.Bxa7 Ra8 15.Bb6 Bf5
16.Be2

Not 16 g4 Be6 17 g5 Nd5 and White has horribly weakened his own position. 16...Nc6 17.Rd1 exf3 18.gxf3 A recapture designed to slow down the advance of Black's kingside majority. 18 Bxf3 would have been met by 18 ... e5. 18...Nd7 19.Be3 Rc8 20.Ne4 Be5 21.Ng3 Be6 22.f4 Bb8 23.Bd3 f5 24.Ne2

A complex strategical and tactical battle in the endgame has emerged. 24...Nb4 25.Bb5 Nf6 26.c4 Na6 27.Na5 Nc7 28.Ba4 Nce8 29.c5 Bd5 30.Nc3
Bf3

31.Bb3+ Kf8 32.Be6 Bxd1 33.Bxc8 Bf3 34.h3 Nh5 35.Bxb7 Bxb7 36.Nxb7 Nxf4 37.Bxf4 Bxf4 38.b4 g5 39.Nd5 Be5 40.Ne3 e6 41.b5

41...Bf4 42.Ng2 Bg3 43.b6 Nf6 44.a4 Nd7 45.Kc2 h5 46.Kd2 h4 47.a5 Nb8 48.Ne3 Ke7 49.c6 Na6 50.Ke2 Bf4
51.Kf3

51...Bg3 52.Nc2 e5 53.Ne3 e4+ 54.Ke2 Ke6 55.Nc2 Be5 56.Ne3 Bf4 57.Nc2 Be5 58.Ke3 Bf4+ 59.Kd4 Be5+ 60.Kc4 g4 61.Kb5 g3 62.Kxa6 g2 63.Nd8+ Ke7