[Event "World Open"] [Site "Philadelphia"] [Date "2024.07.11"] [Round "2.3"] [White "McShane, Luke J"] [Black "Atwell, Rose"] [Result "1-0"] [WhiteElo "2617"] [WhiteTitle "GM"] [WhiteFideId "404853"] [BlackElo "2277"] [BlackTitle "FM"] [BlackFideId "30951011"] [Annotator "Matt Clibanoff"] [Variant "Standard"] [ECO "B10"] [Opening "Caro-Kann Defense: Two Knights Attack"] [StudyName "2024 World Open"] [ChapterName "McShane, Luke J - Atwell, Rose"] [ChapterURL "https://lichess.org/study/hLNeBtws/BUdpmVDj"] [UTCDate "2024.07.11"] [UTCTime "15:33:48"] [Orientation "white"] { In round two, Luke McShane faced off against the young FM Rose Atwell, one of those dangerous children I was talking about in the preface. Atwell put up a tough fight, but in the end was unable to hold off the British GM. } 1. e4 { [%clk 1:21:15] } 1... c6 { [%clk 1:30:00] } 2. Nf3 { [%clk 1:18:00] } 2... d5 { [%clk 1:30:00] } 3. Nc3 { [%clk 1:18:00] } 3... dxe4 { [%clk 1:30:00] } 4. Nxe4 { [%clk 1:18:00] } 4... Nf6 { Up to this point, this has been a fairly standard Caro-Kann. } { [%clk 1:30:00] } 5. Qe2!? { This is probably the second most popular move in this position. } { [%clk 1:18:00] } (5. Nxf6+ exf6 { This is the more traditional line. Black gets the bishop pair as compensation for her doubled pawns. }) 5... Nxe4 { [%clk 1:30:00] } 6. Qxe4 { [%clk 1:18:00] } 6... Qa5 { An interesting developing move. Instead of } { [%cal Ba5e1,Bc8f5,Ba5f5] [%clk 1:30:00] } (6... Nd7 7. Bc4 Nf6 8. Ne5! e6 (8... Nxe4?? 9. Bxf7#) 9. Qe2 b5 { as seen in over 100 games in the database. }) 7. c3 { Blocking the pin on d2 and preparing to push the center with d2-d4. } { [%cal Ra5e1] [%clk 1:13:34] } 7... Bf5 { [%clk 1:19:01] } 8. Qe2?! { I'm not a huge fan of this move, though perhaps McShane wanted to deviate from mainstream theory. The issue is White will likely have to play g2-g3 and Bf1-g2, but with a pawn on c6, the light-squared bishop won't have the best scope. Typically, kingside fianchettoing is a weakening move. The compensation comes from the strength of the bishop. If the bishop is a dud, it sort of defeats the purpose. } { [%clk 1:13:24] } (8. Qf4 e6 9. Be2 Nd7 10. d4 { This is a bit more orthodox. }) (8. Qe3!? e6 9. d4 Nd7 10. Bd3! { I think this is an intersting continuation, as it gets rid of Black's strong London-like bishop and gives White's queen a potential target on h7 should Black castle kingside. }) 8... Nd7 { [%clk 1:15:32] } 9. d4 { [%clk 1:13:24] } 9... h6?! { To quote Antonio Radić, "at this point, we have an entirely new game." That said, I think this is a bit slow. It also gives White long-term sacrificial ideas on h6. } { [%clk 1:12:13] } (9... g6! 10. g3 Bg7 11. Bg2 e5! { Cracking open the center and potentially liquidating into equality. Perhaps this is the old man in me speaking, but I'd take a drawish position against Luke McShane. } 12. dxe5 Nxe5 (12... O-O-O!? 13. O-O Nxe5 14. Nxe5 Bxe5! { If Atwell wanted to play sharply here, this is an interesting continuation. Black's bishops target the kingside and an ... h7-h5-h4 thrust may be coming! } { [%cal Bh7h5] }) 13. Nxe5 Qxe5 14. Qxe5+ Bxe5 { Nice and simple. }) 10. g3 { [%clk 1:12:47] } 10... e6 { [%clk 1:11:39] } 11. Bg2 { [%clk 1:12:47] } 11... Bd6 { [%clk 1:09:51] } 12. O-O { [%clk 1:12:47] } 12... O-O { [%clk 1:09:33] } 13. Nd2 { Targeting the fork on c4. } { [%cal Bd2c4,Bc4d6,Bc4a5] [%clk 0:59:21] } (13. c4!? { Attempting to play Bc1-d2 with tempo. } { [%cal Bc1d2,Bd2a5] }) 13... Qd8 { [%clk 1:02:59] } 14. Nc4 { Attempting to grab the bishop pair. } { [%clk 0:57:08] } 14... Bc7! { Keeping the bishop. } { [%clk 1:02:28] } (14... Nf6?! { A possible move, but giving up the bishop pair is unwise in this position. } 15. Nxd6 Qxd6 16. Bf4! { White has fully developed and has gained a tempo. The rooks will head toward the center of the board and White can get to work opening the position. }) 15. a4 { Grabbing queenside space. } { [%clk 0:56:02] } 15... a5! { Preventing White from pushing a4-a5. } { [%clk 0:57:56] } (15... Re8?! 16. a5 a6 (16... e5 17. d5! cxd5 18. Bxd5 { And all of a sudden White's light-squared bishop is alive. }) 17. b4 { And White is starting to clamp on the queenside a bit. }) 16. Re1 { [%clk 0:52:29] } 16... Re8 { Targeting the queen and opening the possibility of ... e6-e5. } { [%cal Be6e5] [%clk 0:55:11] } 17. Qf3 { [%clk 0:52:29] } 17... Nb6 { An okay move, but this will allow White to develop his dark-squared bishop. } { [%clk 0:51:38] } (17... Bc2!? { An interesting try. The point is that the bishop will reroute to d5 via b3. } 18. Be3 (18. Bf4 Bb3 19. Bxc7 Qxc7 20. Qe2 Nb6 21. Nxb6 Qxb6 { The bishop heads to d5 in this case as well. } { [%cal Bb3d5] }) 18... Bb3 19. Qe2 Nf6 { And Black will plant either a knight or the light-squared bishop onto d5. } { [%cal Bb3d5,Bf6d5] }) 18. Nxb6 { [%clk 0:44:42] } 18... Bxb6 { [%clk 0:51:38] } 19. Bf4! { Developing. } { [%clk 0:44:42] } 19... Bc7 { [%clk 0:47:12] } 20. Be5! { And now the position is starting to breathe a little bit for White. A trade of bishops on e5 will allow White to get some serious power on the e-file. } { [%clk 0:44:33] } 20... Bxe5 { [%clk 0:44:12] } 21. Rxe5 { [%clk 0:44:33] } 21... Qb6 { [%clk 0:43:55] } 22. Qe2! { Defending b2 and doubling behind the rook. } { [%clk 0:43:47] } 22... Qa6 { [%clk 0:36:17] } 23. Qd1 { [%clk 0:42:12] } 23... Qb6 { [%clk 0:34:13] } 24. Qc1 { Covering b2. } { [%clk 0:37:20] } (24. g4! { An interesting try. } 24... f6 25. Rc5 Bh7 26. b4 axb4 27. a5 { And White should have really sharp play on both ends of the board. This line is probably a bit impractical in tournament play, however, as even with a computer it's difficult to say who's winning. }) 24... Qb3 { [%clk 0:29:23] } 25. Bf1! { A difficult move to spot. White realizes he has no practical opportunities to open up the h1-a8 diagonal any further and reroutes his bishop. } { [%clk 0:37:20] } 25... Qc2 { [%clk 0:23:19] } 26. h4 { Grabbing space. } { [%clk 0:32:36] } 26... Red8 { [%clk 0:21:13] } (26... Qxc1!? 27. Rxc1 f6 28. Re3 Kf7 { If Atwell wanted an endgame, this was an easy way to get one, but what strong youngster is willing to liquidate into equality? }) 27. Bc4 { [%clk 0:27:35] } 27... Qxc1+ { [%clk 0:18:14] } 28. Rxc1 { [%clk 0:27:35] } 28... Kf8 { [%clk 0:17:21] } 29. f3! { Grabbing light squares. A really nice move. } { [%clk 0:25:33] } 29... Ke7 { [%clk 0:16:32] } 30. g4 { [%clk 0:25:04] } 30... Bh7 { [%clk 0:15:37] } 31. Kf2 { [%clk 0:25:04] } 31... Kd6 { [%clk 0:15:02] } 32. f4 { [%clk 0:24:11] } (32. h5! { Also possible. Completely shutting Black's bishop out. } 32... g6 33. hxg6 Bxg6 34. f4 Rg8 35. Bb3 { Defending the a4-pawn. } 35... Bd3 36. Ke3 Ba6 37. Bd1 { Eventually Black's weak kingside pawns will become targets. }) 32... Bg8 { [%clk 0:13:06] } 33. Rce1 { [%clk 0:24:06] } 33... b6 { [%clk 0:11:16] } 34. g5?! { There's no rush here. } { [%clk 0:19:46] } (34. b3 Rab8 35. f5! { Is a possible continuation! }) 34... hxg5? { Black is going to have some problems here. The g-pawn is weak and if Black plays ... g7-g6, the light-squared bishop will be trapped in purgatory. } { [%clk 0:09:09] } (34... Bh7 35. g6 Bxg6 36. Bxe6 f6! 37. R5e3 Re8 { Black's rook on e8 is covered by the light-squared bishop, so Black may be able to liquidate here. } { [%cal Be8e1,Bg6e8] } 38. f5! { The best continuation. } 38... Bh5 39. c4 Bg4 40. d5 c5 41. Kg3 h5 42. Kf4 Ra7 43. Rg3 Rae7 { At first glance this looks unpleasant, but it's not clear where the breakthrough is. }) 35. Rxg5 { [%clk 0:19:46] } 35... g6 { [%clk 0:09:09] } 36. Bd3 { [%clk 0:19:29] } (36. h5! { Breaks through immediately. The rooks will feast on the g and h files. }) 36... Ke7 { [%clk 0:07:18] } 37. Ke3 { [%clk 0:19:29] } 37... Rd5 { [%clk 0:04:32] } 38. Be4 { [%clk 0:18:09] } 38... Rxg5? { And this likely loses the game. White's rook is going to be much stronger than Black's. Endgames are all about allocation of resources, and if Black's rook is stuck defending the c pawn and Black's bishop is doing nothing on the back rank, White should be able to dominate the position. } { [%clk 0:03:54] } (38... Rd6! { This is Black's best chance to hold, though h4-h5 is still in the air. }) 39. fxg5 { [%clk 0:16:46] } 39... Rc8 { [%clk 0:03:54] } 40. Rf1 { [%clk 0:16:28] } (40. b4!? { Another possibility. } 40... f6 41. gxf6+ Kxf6 42. Rf1+ Kg7 43. Rg1 axb4 44. cxb4 { This looks terrible for Black. }) 40... Kd6 { [%clk 0:01:15] } 41. Rf6 { [%clk 0:15:16] } 41... Rc7 { [%clk 0:29:23] } 42. c4 { [%clk 0:41:49] } 42... Re7 { [%clk 0:25:36] } 43. d5! { Exploiting the pin on e6. } { [%clk 0:34:51] } 43... cxd5 { [%clk 0:21:18] } 44. cxd5 { [%clk 0:34:51] } 44... Ke5 { [%clk 0:20:15] } 45. dxe6 { [%clk 0:34:11] } 45... Rxe6 { [%clk 0:19:08] } 46. Rxe6+ { [%clk 0:34:11] } 46... Kxe6 { [%clk 0:19:08] } 47. Kd4 { And the game is finished. Black's light-squared bishop will never escape, and the White king is faster to the b6-pawn. } { [%clk 0:34:11] } 47... Kd6 { [%clk 0:17:47] } 48. Bd5 { [%clk 0:34:11] } 48... Ke7 { [%clk 0:17:47] } 49. Ke5 { [%clk 0:34:11] } 49... Bh7 { [%clk 0:17:47] } 50. Bb3 { [%clk 0:33:11] } 50... Bg8 { [%clk 0:17:47] } 51. Bd1 { [%clk 0:33:11] } 51... Bh7 { [%clk 0:17:21] } 52. Kd5 { [%clk 0:33:11] } 52... f5 { [%clk 0:16:22] } 53. gxf6+ { [%clk 0:32:40] } 53... Kxf6 { [%clk 0:16:22] } 54. Kc6 { [%clk 0:32:40] } 54... g5 { [%clk 0:16:12] } 55. hxg5+ { [%clk 0:32:40] } 55... Kxg5 { [%clk 0:16:12] } 56. Kxb6 { [%clk 0:32:40] } 56... Kf4 { [%clk 0:16:00] } 57. Kxa5 { [%clk 0:32:40] } 57... Be4 { [%clk 0:16:00] } 58. Kb6 { [%clk 0:32:40] } 58... Ke5 { [%clk 0:15:27] } 59. a5 { [%clk 0:32:40] } 59... Kd6 { [%clk 0:15:27] } 60. Bg4 { [%clk 0:32:40] } 60... Kd5 { 1-0 White wins. } 1-0