This game from the last round of the World Junior Championship, where two players were close on my heels, made me the World Junior Champion. The followers both drew, so I finished a point ahead of the competition, where Ivanchuk and Anand finished tied for fourth. During my match for the Interzonal spot with Fedorowicz a year earlier, I developed, together with my trainer Vitaly Zaltsman, an anti-Nc6 system beginning with the seemingly innocuous a3. There are plenty of pitfalls Black can fall in to get a completely losing position straight out of the opening. I am proud of this game, because I found the key moves 16.Ba7 and 19.Be7 in a very important tension-filled game.
The Saemisch King's Indian.
5... O-O 6. Be3 Nc6 7. Nge2 a6Black's idea is to immediately attack on the queen-side to prevent White from castling there.
8. Qd2 Rb8 9. a3 b5Black decides not to waste time, and attacks immediately.
Since White is controlling the c6 square, it is safe to say Black did not equalize. Now it is easier to see the strengths of 9...Bd7!? - Black would have the c6 square defended.
12... e5Almost forced, as White had a strong threat - b4! and Nc6.
13. Nc6! Nxc6 14. dxc6Black will have a lot of trouble removing the c6 pawn.
14... Be6!?Black decides to sacrifice the b5 pawn.
15. Nxb5If Black will not be able to make serious threats, he will be left down a pawn.
A great in-between move. First White forces the rook to a worse square.
16... Rc8 17. Bc5 dxe4The losing move.
18. Qxd8!Eliminating the potentially dangerous knight.
19... Re8 20. Bxf6 Bxf6 21. fxe4In this endgame, Black has no compensation for the pawn. But it is not at all easy to convert the pawn advantage into something bigger.
21... Bb3Black is trying to block White's queen-side pawns from advancing further.
22. Bd3 Rcd8 23. Ke2 Ba4 24. b3 24... Bxb3 25. a4 Be7 26. Rhc1 Bd6 27. Bc4It is important to exchange Black's good pieces.
27... Bxc4+ 28. Rxc4 Ra8 29. Rd1 Ra6 30. Nxd6 cxd6 31. c7This pawn will tie up both Black's rooks.
31... Rc8 32. Rb1 Raa8 33. Rb6 Kf8 34. Rxd6 Ke7 35. Rd5 f6 36. g4 Ra7 37. Rdc5 Kd7 38. Rc6? Ke7? 39. Kd3Now White calmly leads the game to victory.
39... Rb7 40. a5 Rb3+ 41. Kc2 Rb5 42. R6c5 Rb7 43. a6 Ra7 44. Rc6 Kf7 45. Kc3Black can't defend against the king's walk to the queen-side.
45... Ke7 46. Kb4 Kf7 47. Kb5 Ke7 48. Kb6 Raa8 49. Kb7 Kf7 50. Rd6 Ke7 51. Rcc6A great positional win by White. Black started an unprepared attack in the opening, and it had a bad effect on his position in the early middlegame.
1-0