Seirawan vs Timman, Hilversum (NED) 1990

{ Annotations by John Lee Shaw for www.hotoffthechess.com. } 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 b6 4.Nc3 Bb4 5.Qb3 { One way to go, but Bg5 is more common. } 5…c5 6.a3 Ba5 7.Bg5 Nc6 8.O-O-O Bxc3 { Ridding himself of the piece on the rim, which is not going to improve its quality any time soon. } 9.d5 { ! Better than the immediate 9.Qxc3, when after 9…cxd4 10.Nxd4 Ne4, Black will not be at all unhappy. } 9…exd5 10.cxd5 Be5 { ? Based on what happens from here, this seems unwise. The problem is that the bishop is rather exposed on e5. Jan seems best served by …Bxb2+ instead, giving the bishop up on his own terms. The c6-knight then goes to a5, which normally would not be ideal — “a knight on the rim is dim”. However, with White’s King position, an interesting idea would be …Ba6 and …Rc8, looking for …c5-c4. } 11.dxc6 { The opening is very much going White’s way and we see, here, that the Be5 is a bit of a liability. It is going to become even more of one. } 11…Qe7 12.cxd7+ { An illustration of just how awkward things are for Black already, (in my opinion anyway), is that he has four pieces on the d7 square and only one can realistically deal with this pawn. } 12…Bxd7 13.e3 { A simple and natural move and at first glance, things don’t look too bad for Black, here. However, after a second or two, the fact that Timman is struggling hits home. Firstly, his pieces are horrid — they are ‘out’ but not what could be called active. His King also remains in the centre. Furthermore, there is the immediate threat of Rxd7 followed by Bb5. } 13…Rd8 { A fair try I suppose, but this does not defend d7 as Timman is about to find out. It is hard to suggest alternatives to be fair — it is actually a matter of opinion as to if there are any. Perhaps …Bc6 was worth a try, but while saving the bishop, even this leads to a favourable position for White. The huge problem is the Black King, which is fixed in place. This is because castling long loses to Ba6 followed by Nxe5 (if …Qxe5, Bf4 and Black can resign) and castling short also brings the game to a swift end, allowing Nxe5 and Bxf6, with Black’s Bd7 hanging. } ( 13…Bc6 14.Bb5 { The Bc6 is Black’s most active (arguably only active) piece. Therefore, it makes sense to jump on it as soon as possible. This move prevents it from being an influence. } 14…Bxb5 { The only respectable move, here. } 15.Qxb5+ { And Black must move his King, which he needs like a hole in the head. } 15…Kf8 16.Rd5 { A very nice tempo! } 16…Bc7 17.Bxf6 { This is the best way to use this bishop. Interestingly, it makes sense to exchange down, here, because Black is all but material down — his rook on h8 may as well not be on the board. } 17…Qxf6 { Obviously, …gxf6 loses to Rd7. } 18.Rhd1 { and White owns this position. } ) 14.Rxd7 { ! Confident. Yasser has a very good handle on the position. His superior activity, coupled with his opponent’s poor piece placement, is what makes this action possible. } 14…Rxd7 15.Bb5 Bd6 { This takes the bishop out of the Knight’s line-of-sight. Also, when a piece is pinned, the approach is to attack it with as many pieces as possible. The bishop being on d6, takes the sting out of Rd1 a little. } ( 15…c4 { Changes very little: } 16.Qa4 { Qc2 would also be fine, but this seems more in context to me. } 16…O-O { The King should hide, but this leaves the following very natural continuation for White. } 17.Bxd7 Qxd7 18.Qxd7 Nxd7 19.Rd1 { and this should be enough for the point. } ) 16.Rd1 O-O { Finally castling. If Seirawan wants the rook, now is the time. } 17.Bxd7 { The correct way to go — taking on f6 first would be misguided and it is not hard to see why over the next few moves. } 17…Qxd7 18.Bf4 { Fine illustration of the principle that we attack a pinned piece. } 18…c4 { ! An important move, saving the bishop for now and also stopping Qd5 after …Ne8 or …Ne4. However, this makes little difference in the grand scale of things. } 19.Qc2 { Of course, not Qxc4, which would get an infinite amount of question marks and likely see Seirawan causing himself harm after Timman’s gleeful …Rc8. } 19…Ne8 { I have learned rather a lot of Dutch swear words during my time in the Netherlands and I can imagine a few going through Jan Timman’s head right now. This is a horrid move to play, making a mockery of the Rf8. } 20.Ng5 { Seirawan calmly switches his attention to threaten mate on h7. This kind of dominance is very often the reward for superior positional play and strategy. } 20…f5 { Crucial. Not only defending against the mate, but also preventing Ne4! } 21.Qxc4+ { And now this pawn is safe pickings. } 21…Kh8 22.Bxd6 { This is adequate, but Be5(!) was even better, pinning the g7 pawn to the King, with the idea of Qh4, threatening mate on h7. After …h6 Ne6, it would be questionable as to if Black would be playing on. } 22…Nxd6 { While it is true that the Knight is able to recapture on d6, the piece is now itself pinned — so … } 23.Qd5 Rd8 24.Ne6 { Again, switching attention. } 24…Qc8+ 25.Kb1 Rd7 { Once again, this appears to defend d6, but appearances can be deceptive. } 26.Qxd6 { !! Jan Timman resigned here. If …Rxd6, then White simply plays Rxd6. after which the threat of Rd8+ is decisive. A really nice game indeed by Yasser Seirawan. } 1-0

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