Jon Speelman: Sensible decision making

by Jonathan Speelman
1/21/2024 – Since we can’t hope to emulate the calculating ability of modern engines, what we must do is to plough a sensible course, in which we calculate as much as possible within the constraints of the time limit, aiming for positions to play in which we feel reasonably comfortable. There’s little advantage in going for some horrifically complicated line in which the machine is very happy but we feel seasick! | Photo: Lennart Ootes / Tata Steel Chess

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Ploughing a sensible course

[Note that Jon Speelman also looks at the content of the article in video format, here embedded at the end of the article.]

Robert HübnerThree decades ago, when I was one of Nigel Short’s seconds for his 1993 World Championship match with Garry Kasparov, my main sparring partner was Robert Hübner (pictured).

Nigel was taking Garry on in some incredibly sharp Najdorfs after 6.Bc4, and following our fundamental chess natures, Robert took on the role of matter, accepting material as Black and then defending himself while I represented energy, trying to blow him away. This was all before serious computer analysis took over — and the wonderful defender that he is, Robert very often confounded me.

When really strong computers did develop (and soon became available to all), the initial effect was to reduce our human belief in the power of attack, as they seemed to be able to hold almost any position. Much later, Alpha Zero and its cousins came along, and suddenly long-term attacks were all the rage. Though more recently still the pendulum has swung a little way back to defence as the best engines — which now combine both “classical” computer chess approaches and the AlphaZero “Monte Carlo” method — have reasserted themselves.

From a human perspective, we can’t hope to emulate the machine’s calculating ability (though the young titans do a much more thorough job of calculation than in my day). And what we must do is to plough a sensible course, in which we calculate as much as possible within the constraints of the time limit and our own energy levels and aim for positions to play in which we feel reasonably comfortable — there’s little advantage in going for some horrifically complicated line in which the machine is very happy but we feel seasick!

This means that I would much rather have a pleasant positional advantage with a safe king than be a piece up and completely winning according to our silicon lords and masters, but have to find some difficult only moves. But it’s only a personal preference, and if I were still a ferocious young player, confident in my calculating ability under pressure, then I might take the latter.

The important thing is to make decisions based both on the position on the board and your own preferences, and I’m looking today at a couple of examples of this from Wijk and my own very slight but still interesting game last Sunday at the 4NCL.

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MoveNResultEloPlayers
1.e41,166,62354%2421---
1.d4947,29855%2434---
1.Nf3281,60256%2441---
1.c4182,10256%2442---
1.g319,70256%2427---
1.b314,26554%2427---
1.f45,89748%2377---
1.Nc33,80151%2384---
1.b41,75648%2380---
1.a31,20654%2404---
1.e31,06848%2408---
1.d395450%2378---
1.g466446%2360---
1.h444653%2374---
1.c343351%2426---
1.h328056%2418---
1.a411060%2466---
1.f39246%2436---
1.Nh38966%2508---
1.Na34262%2482---
1.c4       I presume that readers may very likely have seen this game elsewhere, but I am going to rehash it concentrating on some of the decision making. e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.Nf3 e4!? 4.Ng5 c6 A nice way to wind the position up very early on. There was a short fad many years ago for b5 but then it was discovered that d3 is a strong riposte. 4...b5 5.d3! bxc4 5...exd3 6.cxb5 6.dxe4 5.Qa4 To prevent ...d5 and recapturing with the c-pawn. 5.Ngxe4 Nxe4 6.Nxe4 d5 7.cxd5 cxd5 gives Black lots of compensation for the pawn and has scored perfectly well in practice 8.Ng3 is met by 8.Nc3 d4 9.Ne4 8...h5 5...Qe7 6.f3 6.Qc2 b5 7.cxb5 d5 8.e3 8.bxc6 h6 9.Qa4 has to be critical but Stockfish isn't impressed: Qc7 10.Nb5 Qxc6 11.Nc7+ Ke7 12.Qxc6 Nxc6 13.Nxe4 dxe4 14.Nxa8 8...h6 9.Nh3 Bxh3 10.gxh3 6...exf3 7.Nxf3 g6 8.d4 Bg7 8...d6 9.Bf4 Nbd7 was safer 9.c5 0-0 10.Bf4
10...Na6 10...Re8 was playable because if 11.Bxb8 b5! 11...Rxb8 12.Qxa7 Ng4 13.Qxb8 Ne3 14.Rd1 12.cxb6 Rxb8 13.bxa7 Ra8 White's position is foul. 11.Bd6 Qe3 12.Nd1 Qe6 White has to decide here whether to take the exchange, and my instinct is that if he does so then the black squares will be too weak in practice - though Stockfish is happy to do so. 13.Nf2?! 13.Bxf8 Bxf8 14.e3 b5 15.Qc2 d6 16.cxd6 Nb4 17.Qd2 Bxd6 I'd be pretty happy as Black here I think, but Stockfish gives White nearly a pawn advantage. 13...Re8 14.h4 b6 15.Ng5 Qf5?! 15...Qd5 16.0-0-0 Qf5 is the engine's recipe. 16.g4 Qd5 17.0-0-0 bxc5 18.dxc5 Nxc5
Of course this was Abdusattorov's intention when going into this line, and it set Maghsoodloo a knotty problem - though as it happens, most unusually, White could have his cake and eat it here. 19.Qc2? 19.Qa3‼ Qc4+ 20.Kb1 looks like it should be okay for Black, but when you stop for a moment, you start to look for squares for the black queen and it turns out that e4 is a deadly threat because she will be trapped in mid board! Nce4 20...a5? 21.e4 Qb4 22.Qxb4 axb4 23.Bxc5 20...h6 21.e3 Qa4 22.Qxc5 hxg5 23.Rd4 21.e3 Nxd6 22.Rxd6!+- and simply wins! 19.Rxd5 Nxa4 20.Ra5 Nxb2 21.e4 h6 22.Nf3 Nxe4 23.Nxe4 Rxe4 24.g5 h5 25.Rh2 Nc4 19...Qxa2! Now Black gets a serious attack for the piece and in fact engines already give it as winning for him, though in a game you - or at least I - couldn't be too sure. 20.Bxc5 Rb8 20...Nd5 was even better because it prevents the defence b4 21.e4 21.b4! Qa3+ 22.Kd2 Bc3+ 21...Rb8! 22.exd5 Rxb2 23.Bd3 Rxc2+ 24.Bxc2 Re2 25.Rd2 Rxd2 25...Bc3! is even better 26.Rxe2 Qb2+ 27.Kd1 Qa1+ 28.Bb1 Qxb1# 26.Kxd2 Qxd5+ winning the house 21.b4 21.b3 Qa1+ 22.Kd2 Qa5+ 23.b4 Rxb4 24.Bxb4 Qxb4+ 25.Kc1 25.Qc3 Ne4+ 26.Ngxe4 Bxc3+ 27.Nxc3 Qb2+ 28.Kd3 Ba6+ 29.Kd4 Qb4# 25...Nd5 26.Rxd5 26.Rh3 Qf4+ 26...cxd5 27.Nd3 Qa5 and White will soon be blown away. 21.Bd4 c5 22.Bc3 d5 21.Nd3 Nd5 22.Rh3 Ba6 23.Ba3 Re3 21...Qa3+ 22.Kd2 Based on the idea of defending with Rh3. He could also have tried Qb2 when Black gains a big advantage by exchanging queens, but this looks like a better practical defence given that Black has Re3! in a couple of moves' time. 22.Qb2 Qxb2+ 22...Qa4 23.Qc2 Rxb4 24.Qxa4 Rxa4 25.e4 23.Kxb2 Ne4+ 24.Kc2 Nxf2 25.Bxf2 Rxb4 26.Rb1 Rf4 With at least three pawns for the piece and a continuing initiaitive, Black is certainly better, but it still looks like a fight. 27.Bxa7 Ra4 28.Bf2 d5 29.Rc1 Bxg4 30.Kd1 h6 31.Nf3 h5 32.Rxc6 d4 This still loks messy but SD gives it as -5! 33.Kc2 d3+ 34.Kxd3 Bf5+ 35.Kd2 Ra2+ 36.Ke1 Ra1+ 37.Kd2 Be4 37...Rd8+ 38.Ke3 Bh6+ 39.Ng5 Re8+ 40.Kf4 Be4 38.Rc5 Bh6+ 39.Kc3 Rc1+ 40.Kb4 Rb8+ 22...Nd5 23.Rh3
23...Re3! The only move but very strong. 24.Nfe4 Magsoodloo's insticnt is clearly to fight fire with fire even when his is appreciably cooler and this makes some sense in practical terms, though here it arguably rebounds on him. 24.Ke1? Bc3+ 25.Rd2 Nxb4 24.Rxe3 Nxe3 25.Qd3 Qxd3+ 26.exd3 Nxd1 27.Nxd1 d5 is a bit grim for White, but again still a battle. 24...Rxh3 25.Bxh3 h6
26.Nf3? Trying to keep the position together. But 26.Nxf7! would have continued the previous policy of seeking maximal confusion and would have apparently also been decent: Qxh3 Black would like to play 26...Nxb4 but 27.Nxh6+! Bxh6+ 28.g5 is apparently OK for White. 26...Kxf7 27.Rf1+ Kg8 28.Nf6+ Nxf6 29.Rxf6 Bxf6 30.Qxg6+ Bg7 31.Qe8+ Kh7 32.Qe4+= 27.Nfd6 Ba6 28.Qa2 Bxe2 29.Kxe2 Qxg4+ 30.Ke1 Qxh4+ 31.Qf2 Qe7 is apparently better for Black. 26...Nxb4 27.Qc1 Qa5 27...Bb2 28.Qb1 d5 was another way to win. 28.Ke3 d5 Now White's defences crumble 29.Ned2
29...h5! Finding another way to attack White's disporganised forces. 30.Kf2 hxg4 31.Nb3 Qc7 32.Qd2 gxf3 33.Bxc8 fxe2 34.Kxe2 Qxc8
A fantastic game in which both players had to make many very dififcult decisions. Maghsoodloo's instinct was to keep on fighting rather than accept a choice of various prospectless late middlegames / endings, but at the final critical moment he retreated 26 Ng5-f3 rather than try Nxf7!.
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Maghsoodloo,P2740Abdusattorov,N27270–12024A2286th Tata Steel Masters3.7
Giri,A2749Gukesh,D27251–02024A2886th Tata Steel Masters4.4
Speelman,J2487Nasuta,G2579½–½2024A124NCL Division 1 2023-20244.17

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Jonathan Speelman, born in 1956, studied mathematics but became a professional chess player in 1977. He was a member of the English Olympic team from 1980–2006 and three times British Champion. He played twice in Candidates Tournaments, reaching the semi-final in 1989. He twice seconded a World Championship challenger: Nigel Short and then Viswanathan Anand against Garry Kasparov in London 1993 and New York 1995.

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