July 1999 The 1999 Australian Masters by Gary Lane (Part I) The 12th Australian Masters tournament is currently being held in Melbourne. The venue is the plush surroundings of the foyer of the Reserve Bank of Australia. The image of chess-players and demo board operators silently moving the pieces in tandem seems to have caught the imagination of the workers in the office block who have regularly occupied all the spectator seats. However, playing in a public building does have one drawback as outlined by a rather concerned and solemn arbiter who warned the players that "hordes of young women leaving work at 5pm each day wearing stilettos will make a lot of noise on the wooden floor". For some strange reason this seemed to perk up a number of participants. Chess in Australia suffers from geographical isolation which means it is difficult to attract foreigners to travel huge distances for a tournament unless they can combine it with a holiday. Consequently, ambitious plans for a grandmaster tournament had to be watered down but the tournament still gives Australians a rare chance to compete at a high level. The brainchild behind the invitation only event, the amiable Eddy Levi managed to persuade local GM Darryl Johansen to act as social organiser. This meant that I cheekily enquired what he had planned for the excursion on the rest day and which Thai restaurants he could recommend. It seemed to do the trick as Darryl was soon busy consulting local guides for day tours and reading restaurant reviews for our meals. On the first night I was highly impressed by his social skills as he led the conversation at a well attended dinner and he was particularly good at ordering bottles of red wine. In fact, the night was such a success that the next day he could not remember the event and has been conspicuous by his absence ever since. The tournament has reached the fifth round. The early leader is Mirko Rujevic who first played his chess in Novi Sad, Yugoslavia. Apparently, he was a promising junior but drifted in and out of chess having settled for a new life in Australia. His Elo is apparently rather low due to the fact that he stopped playing for 20 years and only recently decided to make a comeback now he is in his 50s. I am following closely behind and hope to give him a run for his money. Australia's board one at the Elista Olympiad, Stephen Solomon has so far failed to make a major impact but is expected to finish strongly. The media interest has focused on Zong Yuan Zhao who only celebrated his 13th birthday two days before the tournament started. Originally from China, his impressive list of achievements include 4th place at the World under 12 championships, the FM title at the Australian Zonal and an Elo on the July list which is expected to be in the region of 2300. Unfortunately, as a last minute entrant he has not quite settled down yet but has shown signs of maturity beyond his years. S.Solomon-M.Rujevic Australian Masters 1999 1 e4 d5 2 exd5 Nf6 3 d4 Bg4 (See Diagram) This trendy opening is known in the United States by the name of the Portuguese Opening after John Donaldson wrote an article on the subject and happened to notice a lot of players in Portugal played it. To give credit where it belongs the name the Jadoul Variation seems more appropriate. Michel Jadoul, is the Belgian International Master who revived the entire line in the 1980s. He realised that the old variation 4 Bb5+ c6 5 dxc6! Nxc6 6 Nf3 should be avoided with 4 Nbd7 and introduced various gambit lines to support his theory. The whole variation became better known after the 1987 European under 18 championships when his pupil Pascal Vandervoort employed it with great success. Having won a quick game with it, Pascal told me he had an anxious wait until the next game where he played Black as his opponent and coach would be trying find a new way to combat it. The Jadoul Variation triumphed as he was winning after just 14 moves and his hapless opponent complained that he had never seen the idea before. And where was his opponent from? Portugal! 4 f3 Bf5 5 Bb5+ Nbd7 6 Nc3 In the game A.Richard-P.Vandevoort, France ChT 1989, White lashed out with 6 g4 but the extended pawn structure proved to be a weakness after 6 Bg6 7 c4 a6 8 Ba4 b5 9 cxb5 Nxd5 10 Nc3 Nb4 11 Ne4 axb5 12 Bxb5 c6 13 Qb3 e5 14 Bd2 Bxe4 15 Bxb4 Qh4+ 16 Kf1 Bxb4 17 fxe4 cxb5 18 Qxb4 Qxg4 19 Kf2 Qh4+ 20 Kg2 Qxe4+ 21 Nf3 Qe2+ 22 Kg3 Ra6 23 dxe5 Nxe5 0-1. 6...a6 7 Ba4 b5 8 Bb3 Nb6 9 Nge2 Nbxd5 10 Nxd5 Nxd5 11 Ng3 (See Diagram) Bc8 Black has a fairly comfortable position as long as he can develop quickly. 11...Bg6 is also possible and after 12 f4 White maintained a slight initiative in V.Belikov-O.Nikolenko, Spasskoe 1996 which continued 12 e6 13 Qf3 c6 14 f5 exf5 15 0-0 Bd6 16 Re1+ Kf8 17 Bxd5 cxd5 18 Bf4 Bxf4 19 Qxf4 Qd7 20 Re2 h5 21 Rf1 Rd8 22 Nxf5 Bxf5 23 Qxf5+=. 12 0-0 e6 13 a4 b4 14 Ne4 Be7 15 c4!? Solomon is trying to make progress by using his slight space advantage but the chances should be equal. 15 Nf6 16 Be3 Bb7 17 Qd3 0-0 18 a5 Bxe4 19 fxe4 e5 20 d5 If 20 Rad1?! exd4 21 Bxd4 c5 is good for Black. 20 Nd7 21 Ba4 Nc5 22 Qc2 Qd6 23 Rf3 Rab8 24 Bc6 b3 25 Qe2 Nxe4!? 26 Ba7 Nc5 Not 26 Ng5? When it is time to go home after 27 Re3 Bf6 28 h4. 27 Bxb8 Rxb8 28 Raf1White has won the exchange but still faces some considerable technical difficulties before he can think about victory. For a start the bishop on c6 is difficult to extract and now with time-trouble approaching he fails to find a decent plan. 28 Rf8 29 Re3 Bf6 30 Ref3 Bg5 31 Rf5 f6 32 Qg4 Be3+! In a matter of moves the bishop which was languishing on e7 has been transformed by a manoeuvre to find a superior square on d4. 33 Kh1 Bd4 34 Qe2 g6 35 R5f3 e4 This passed pawn is a monster and the key to Rujevic's advantage. 36 Rh3 Qe5 37 d6 cxd6 38 Bd5+ Kg7 39 Qg4 h5 40 Qd1 e3 41 Qe2 f5 42 Rff3 Re8 43 Rxh5 Ne4 44 Rh4 Nf6 45 Bc6 Re7 46 Ba4 Bc5 47 Rhf4 Ne4 48 Rxe4 In the face of grave problems White desperately hands back the exchange but it is too late. 48 Qxe4 49 Bxb3 Qd4 50 Bd1 Rb7 51 b3 Qd2 52 Qxd2 exd2 53 g4 Re7 54 Kg2 fxg4 55 Rd3 Re1 56 Bxg4 Rg1+ 57 Kh3 Bb4 58 Rd5 Kf6 59 Bf3 Ke7 60 Bg4 Ra1 61 Kh4 Kf6 62 h3? The position is lost anyway but this slip allows Black to construct a mating net. 62 Rg1 63 Bf3 Kg7 64 Bg4 Kh6 65 c5 d1Q 66 Rxd1 g5 checkmate 0-1 E.Levi-T.Reilly Australian Masters 1999 1 e4 d6 2 d4 Nf6 3 Nc3 g6 4 f4 The Austrian Attack is a respected opening which gives White the traditional space advantage associated with the Pirc and Black spends the rest of the time trying to undermine the centre. 4 Bg7 5 Nf3 0-0 6 Bd3 Na6 7 0-0 c5 8 d5 Bg4 9 Bc4 Nc7 10 h3 Bxf3 11 Qxf3 So far, all this is preparation. Eddy is a great blitz player and routinely plays openings where he gambits a pawn but in this instance he takes time out to play something more well known. 11 Nd7 A number of moves have been played here with the game A.Matros-I.Odesskij, Moscow 1994 continuing 11...Rb8 12 a4 a6 13 a5 b5 14 axb6 Rxb6 15 Qd3 Nb5 16 Bd2 Nc7 17 b3 e6 18 Ra5 Re8 19 Kh1 Qe7 20 Na4 Rbb8 21 Nxc5 exd5 22 exd5 dxc5 23 d6 with a clear advantage to White. 12 a4 a6 13 a5 13 Qd3 is also worth investigating. After 13 Nb6 E.Sutovsky-Kantsler,Tel Aviv 1999 eventually ended in a draw after 14 Bb3 Nd7 15 Bd2 Rb8 16 a5 b5 17 axb6 Nxb6 18 Nd1 Qd7 19 f5 Nb5 20 Rxa6 Nd4 21 Ne3 Qb7 22 Ra3 Ra8 23 Ng4 c4 24 Bxc4 Nxc4 25 Rxa8 Rxa8 26 Qxc4 Rc8 27 Qd3 Qxb2 28 c3 Qb5 29 Qe3 Nb3 30 f6 exf6 31 Nxf6+ Bxf6 32 Rxf6 Nxd2 33 Qxd2 Qb1+ 1/2-1/2. 13...b5 14 axb6 Nxb6 15 Be2 f5 16 Be3 Qd7 17 Rad1 Na4 This makes life easy for White to rattle out the next few moves and eases the central tension. I prefer the practical choice 17 Nb5 aiming for the d4 square. 18 Nxa4 Qxa4 19 exf5 Rxf5 20 b3 Qb4 21 Bd3 Rf7 22 Bd2 Qb6 23 Qe4 Raf8 24 h4 At the first sign of an attack Levi is ready and waiting. 24 Ne8 25 Kh1 Nf6 26 Qe6 Nh5 27 Kh2 Kh8 28 g3 Bd4 29 Rde1 c4?! It look more sensible to play 29 Ng7 to kick the queen away as 30 Qe4 offers White only a slight advantage. 30 bxc4 Bf2 31 Bc3+ Kg8 32 Rb1 Bxg3+ 33 Kh3? (See Diagram) In mutual time-trouble it seems that anything wins for White but the text gives Black a window of opportunity. 33 Kh1 is a clear winner. 33 Qa7? Salvation is in sight after 33 Qxb1! 34 Rxb1 Nxf4+ 35 Kxg3 Nxe6 36 dxe6 Rf2=. 34 Bxg6 Nxf4+ 35 Rxf4 Bxf4 36 Bxf7+ Rxf7 37 Qg4+ Kf8 38 Qc8# 1-0 Australian Masters 1999 by Gary Lane (Part II) The Australian Masters has ended in Melbourne and the locals have been beaten by a tourist, er, me! I raced to a score of 81/2/9 before drawing the last couple of games to coast to victory. It was certainly no easy affair with second place being taken by Mirko Rujevic who demonstrated that a long absence from the game has not dented his natural flair for it. Third place was a keenly fought affair and only in the last round did Australia's third highest rated player, Stephen Solomon, emerge to take the sole place. All the players had games which could be highlighted and their scores do not necessary reflect their play. This is certainly the case with Chris Depasquale whose shared last place hides the fact that he spent most of the time organising the event in an exemplary manner, while he regularly played obscure, entertaining openings but could not quite secure victory. The thirteen-year-old Zong-Yuan Zhao recovered from a nervous start to give a glimpse of things to come by finishing strongly. His strength is a will to win to the extent where he does not contemplate drawing any game if there is a chance for a decisive finish. In general, chess has a low profile in Australia, although the image of the players is gradually changing as more and more youngsters learn the game in schools. Therefore, the Masters event is a great advert for future sponsors. The conditions for the tournament were excellent, with free drinks for the participants, enthusiastic demo board operators and a general ambience of professionalism. Indeed, the number of curious spectators increased with each round. One of the most committed viewers was an elderly lady who having studied the opening moves would then read her book for a couple of hours before leaving after the time scrambles. At one point someone politely asked if she was a keen player, a relation of one of the participants or merely entranced by the royal game? In a grand, educated voice she replied "it is quieter than the library". Final scores: Score out of 11 Gary Lane IM (ENG) 9.5 1st Mirko Rujevic 8 2nd Stephen Solomon IM 6.5 3rd Nick Speck 6 =4/5th Geoff Saw 6 =4/5th Michael Ginat (USA) 5.5 6th Andrew Allen 5 7th Zong-Yuan Zhao 4.5 8th Eddy Levi FM 4 =9/10th David Hacche 4 =9/10th Chris Depasquale FM 3.5 =11/12th Tim Reilly 3.5 =11/12th G.Lane M.Ginat Australian Masters 1999 1 e4 e6 In a closed tournament, openings come under close scrutiny and any gaps in knowledge can be exposed in double- quick fashion. In this case, Ginant tries to thwart any preparation for his usual opening of choice, the Sicilian Defence. 2 d4 d5 3 Nd2 Nf6 4 e5 Nfd7 5 c3 c5 6 f4 6 Bd3 is the major alternative. 6...Nc6 7 Ndf3 cxd4 8 cxd4 (See Diagram) 8...Nb6 Some people are still surprised that after 8...Bb4+ White can get away with 9 Kf2 when the king is well protected by a wall of pawns. For instance: 9 ... h6 10 Bd3 Nb6 11 Ne2 Be7 12 Rf1 0-0 13 Kg1 Bd7 14 Bb1 f5 15 exf6 Bxf6 16 Qd3 Kf7 17 Ne5+ Bxe5 18 fxe5+ Ke7 19 Qa3+ 1-0 Y.Balashov- Nakatoni, Teeside 1974. 9 Ne2 Bd7 10 g4 An aggressive move which reflects my attitude to all the games where I tried to apply pressure at the earliest opportunity. This approach can reap dividends especially against those who are not familiar with the nuances of certain opening lines. 10...Be7 11 Ng3 Rc8 12 a3 a5 13 Bd3 a4 14 f5 There is no point in trying to stop Black from making progress on the queenside as it is a difficult job. Instead, I start to make inroads towards the goal of creating weaknesses in the heart of Black's defence. 14...Na5 15 Nh5 Bf8 16 f6 g6 17 Ng7+ Bxg7 18 fxg7 Rg8 19 Bg5 (See Diagram) White is clearly on top. The pawn on g7 is a monster and given time I will play Bh6, Ng5xh7 and Nf6. A simple idea but in the long-term difficult for Black to cope with. 19...Qc7 20 Bh6 Nbc4 21 Rb1 Qb6 22 Qe2 Nb3 23 Qf2 Qa5+ 24 Kf1 Qd8 25 Ng5 1-0 Black resigned in view of 25...Rxg7 which is met by 26 h4 when White wins easily. G.Lane-T.Reilly Australian Masters 1999 1 e4 d6 2 d4 Nf6 3 Nc3 g6 4 Bg5 Bg7 5 Qd2 0-0 6 0-0-0 c6 (See Diagram) In positions of opposite-side castling the battle for victory hinges on who is the first to grab the initiative by attacking. Once again, this strategy is part of my formula for success in this tournament because Black is now obliged to seek active counterplay. 7 f3 In the game V.Saigin-E.Gufeld, Moscow 1963, Black demonstrated that expert defence coupled with lightening play on the queenside can be a recipe for success. The game continued: 7 Nf3 b5 8 Bd3 Bg4 9 Qf4 Bxf3 10 Qxf3 Qa5 11 h4 b4 12 Ne2 Nbd7 13 Kb1 h5 14 Qg3 Rac8 15 Bxf6 Nxf6 16 f3 c5 17 e5 dxe5 18 dxe5 c4 19 Bxg6 fxg6 20 exf6 Rxf6 21 Rd7 b3 0-1. 7...Qa5 8 Bh6 Nbd7 9 h4 b5 10 h5 b4 After the game another player enquired whether 10...Nxh5 was possible but after I demonstrated 11 Rxh5! gxh5 12 Qg5 nothing more was said. 11 Nb1 Qxa2 12 hxg6 fxg6 13 Bxg7 Kxg7 14 Qh6+ Kg8 15 Nh3 This whole game seems so logical for me that it is obvious that Black must do something about defending his king before going all out for an attack. 15...Nb6 16 Ng5 Na4 17 Bc4+ Reilly had completely missed this move which is a killer. He had been resting his hopes on the line 17 Nxh7 Qxb2+ 18 Kd2 Qxd4+ 19 Ke1 Qf2+ 20 Kxf2 Ng4+ 21 Kg3 Nxh6 22 Nxf8 Kg7 although White has a clear material advantage. 17...Qxc4 18 b3 1-0 (See Diagram) S.Solomon-N.Speck Australian Masters 1999 1 e4 c5 2 Nf3 e6 3 d3 Nc6 4 g3 Nge7 5 Bg2 g6 6 Be3 A quiet line such as this can be lethal against the Sicilian. The plan for White is to steadily build-up his forces before usually crashing through on the kingside with a pawn advance. For instance: 6 Nbd2 Bg7 7 h4 h6 8 0-0 d6 9 c3 e5 10 a3 0-0 11 b4 Be6 12 b5 Na5 13 Bb2 Qd7 14 a4 a6 15 c4 b6 16 Bc3 Nb7 17 Nh2 Nd8 18 f4+= M.Pein-J.Emms, Southend 1999. 6...Bg7 7 c3 b6 8 d4?! 8 0-0 is more prudent. 8...cxd4 9 Nxd4 Ba6! (See Diagram) Black spots his chance to stop White from castling kingside which immediately gives him the better chances. 10 f4 0-0 11 Na3 Nxd4 12 Bxd4 e5! 13 fxe5 White should probably admit things are difficult and play 13 Bxe5 and after 13...Bxe5 14 fxe5 Nc6 try to bale out with 15 Bf1. 13...Nc6 14 Qa4 Qc8 15 0-0-0 Be2 16 Rde1 If 16 Rd2 then 16...Bh6 is better for Black 16...b5! (See Diagram) White ambitious approach has been shown to be a mistake and now there is no sensible way out. Of course, the pawn is taboo since 17 Nxb5 falls victim to 17...Bxb5 18 Qxb5 Nxd4 when Black wins a piece. 17 Qc2 Nxd4 18 cxd4 Bd3 A great way to finish by ushering White towards checkmate. 19 Qc5 Upon 19 Qxc8 then 19...Bh6+ 20 Kd1 Raxc8 is pretty. 19...d6 20 Qc3 Bh6+ 0-1 There is no point waiting to witness 21 Kd1 Qg4+ with mate to follow.