I'd rather have a Pawn than a finger.
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[Event "CAT Tournament"]
[Site "www.itsyourturn.com"]
[Date "2004.02.08"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Shadow_The_Hedgehog"]
[Black "DesertJoe52"]
[Result "0-1"]
[Annotator "Hayes, David"]
[BlackElo "unknown"]
[ECO "A56"]
[TimeControl "0"]
[WhiteElo "unknown"]
{ Black strikes fast and hard, delivering a lethal combination which catches
his opponent by surprise, like a Stealth bomber delivering a 500-lb.
bunker-busting bomb exactly on target. } 1. d4 { A56: Czech Benoni } 1... Nf6 2. c4 c5 { The Benoni Defence often occurs with this particular move sequence, but
it can also arise when black chooses 1...c5 as well. } 3. d5 e5 { This move,
led with the development of black's KB to e7, rather than fianchetto it to
g7, constitute what is known as the Czech Benoni, reputed to be more passive
than the Modern Benoni (1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 e6 4. Nc3 d6 5. e4 exd5 6.
cxd5 g6.), but a very solid defence. } 4. Nc3 d6 5. e4 { Two other
continuations worth noting are 5. Bg5 and 5. e3. } 5... Be7 6. Nf3 { White could
play a king's-side fianchetto instead, which seems to be popular with the
majority of players on the White side of the Benoni. Other possibilities
exist, however, such as 6. Bd3, 6. h3, 6. Be2, and 6. Nge2. Rarely do you see
6. f4, 6. f3, 6. Qd3 or 6. a3. } 6... Nbd7 { More commonly played is 6...O-O, but
black would like to maneuver his QN to g6 via f8, in an effort to bring more
pieces to the kingside should it appear an attack on that wing is feasible. } 7. Bd3 Nf8 { A move entailing some risk, as it delays black's castling, but at
least it clears the h3-c8 diagonal for black's bishop. } 8. O-O Ng6 { This
position occurred in I. Naumkin vs. I. Miladinovic, Montecatini Terme,
November 2004, which Miladinovic won. } 9. Ne2 { In the above-mentioned game,
Naumkin opted for 9. g3. } 9... O-O 10. a3 { Furthering development with 10. Be3
seems preferable. } 10... Bg4 { Black gains a tempo here, since white doesn't care to
end up with doubled f-pawns, and thus moves his knight off the d1-h5 diagonal
so his queen can maintain the knight at f3. } 11. Nc3 Nh5 { Preparing for
...f5, which will enable black to open up the f-file and increase his
pressure on both the center and white's kingside. } 12. g3 { Dubious, as it
relinquishes control of h3 to black. White's king can't make use of the g2
square right away, because of black's next move, which supports the pawn
advance, ...f5, and also forms a queen+bishop battery along the h3-c8
diagonal. } 12... Qc8 13. Re1 f5 { A thematic advance, with the threat of not just
opening the f-file, but of entrenching pieces deeper into White's weakened
King's-side. } 14. exf5 Rxf5 { Enticing white to take with his bishop, enabling
black's queen to recapture, making it easier to develop the rook from a8 to
f8. } 15. Be2 { White doesn't like the looks of the aforementioned scenario,
and declines the exchange sacrifice. Now black will have to mobilize his Q
and QR through an alternate route. } 15... Qe8 16. Kg2 { Attempting to make a stand
with regard to the mounting pressure on f3. It would have been wiser to go
about this with 16. Ne4 followed by 17. Ned2. } 16... Qf7 { Black's development is
nearly complete, while white still has three pieces on their home squares.
This positional advantage mitigates against white's finding an adequate
defence. } 17. Be3 Rf8 { With all of black's forces bearing down on the
kingside, white realizes his knight can no longer stay at f3, but if he moves
it, f2 will be vulnerable. } 18. Ng1 $4 { White should have tried for 18. Nd2
Bxe2?! 19. Nxe2 Nf6 20. h3 Nd7 21. Kg1 Nb6 22. b4 cxb4 23. axb4, but Black
has a tactical improvement in 18...Rxf2+! 19. Kh1 (if instead 19. Bxf2 Qxf2+
20. Kh1 Nxg3+ 21. hxg3 Qxg3 22. Rf1 Nf4 23. Rxf4 Qh3+ 24. Kg1 Rxf4 25. Nde4
Bxe2 26. Qxe2 Rg4+ 27. Qxg4 Qxg4+ 28. Kf1 Qf3+ 29. Kg1 Qe3+ 30. Kh1 Qh3+ 31.
Kg1 Kf8)19...Rxe2! 20. Nxe2 Nh4 (Ripping open lines. If now 21. gxh4 then
21...Bf3+ is decisive.) 21. Qc1 Nf5 22. Bf2 Nd4 23. Bxd4 cxd4 24. Rf1 Qxf1+
25. Nxf1 Bxe2. } 18... Rxf2+ 19. Bxf2 Qxf2+ 20. Kh1 Qxh2+ $3 { Demolition of pawn
structure. } 21. Kxh2 { A decoy to h2. } 21... Rf2+ { The nicest combinations are those
leading to mate. There would follow 22. Kh1 Nxg3#. } 0-1