Chess
Pterodactyl
Raymond Keene
Many readers may have been puzzled by my reference some weeks ago to this extinct airborne saurian in the chess menagerie. The usage derives from Cana- dian Masters, such as Lawrence Day, who justify the naming of Black's variation as follows — 'big beak, enormous wings, swoops down from the edges'. The reptilian element is a kind of homage to Black's in- famous fianchettoed KB from the Dragon variation, a hallmark of both lines. I have been using the Pterodactyl on and off in my own games for the past year and a half, and it turned out to be a particular success in the Goolwa Cup at Adelaide, which followed on the Commonwealth Championship. Bill Hartston won this event two years ago, and the Pterodactyl helped me to emulate his achievement. Here is the decisive game from the last round.
Rogers — Keene: Adelaide, January 1983. 1 e4 c5 2 Nf3 g6 3 c4 Probably the most testing line, striving to reach a Maroczy Bind, which often leaves Black with a lifeless game. Alter- natives are 3 d4 Bg7 4 Nc3 Qa5, or 3 c3 Bg7 4 d4 cxd4 5 cxd4 d5 6 exd5 Nf6 7 Bb5 + Nbd7 8 d6 exd6 9 Bf4 Qe7 + 10 Qe2 Qxe2 + 11 Kxe2 Ke7! (Levi-Keene, also from Adelaide) when Black's position is at least level. 3 ... Bg7 4 d4 d6 If 4 ... cxd4 5 Nxd4 Nc6 6 Be3 and Black is drif- ting towards the passivity which too often afflicts Maroczy victims. 5 Nc3 Of course, 5 d5 transposes to a Benoni, not always a desirable goal for those who open 1 e4. After 5 d5 Nf6 6 Nc3 0-0 7 Be2 Black can play adventurously with 7 ... b5 8 cxb5 a6, or solidly via 7 ... e6 or 7 ... e5. 5 ... Qa5! The key move of this varia- tion, one I found myself and which appears in no theoretical text apart from BCO. There I quote Murei-Keene, Benedictine 1981, which continued 6 Be2 Bg4 7 0-0 Bxf3 8 Bxf3 cxd4 9 b4 Qd8 when White's compensation is nebulous. 6 d5 Another way of giving up a pawn, and one I have en- countered on three occasions. 6 ... Bxc3 + 7 Bxc3 N16! 7.. Qxc3 + 8 Bd2 is really too dangerous. S Nd2 Gheorghiu tried 8 Qc2 against me (Lloyds Bank, 1981) proceeding 8... Nxe4 9 Bd3 (9 Qxe4? Qxc3 +) 9 .. f5, giving back the pawn and intending a later ... 0-0-0, when White's Q-side pawns remain weak. 8 ... Qxc3 9 Rbl Nxe4! Black's convergent swoop has netted him two pawns. In a social match last year (Sowray-Keene, Phillips and Drew v King's Head Pub) I avoided capturing the second pawn and White gained far too much compensation with his B pair and mobile centre. 10 Bb2? Rogers played this move instantly, obviously believing that I had blundered by allowing a skewer on my Q and R. Forced is 10 Rb3 Qd4 11 Nxe4 Qxe4 + 12 Re3 Qd4 13 Qe2 0-0 14 Bb2 Qf4 15 Rxe7 Nd7 with obscure complications. White seems to have good play for his pawn, but his K-side is still undeveloped, and Black constantly threatens to throw a spanner in the works with moves like ... Ne5 or ... Qf5. 10 ... Qxd2 + 11 Qxd2 Nxd2 Attacking the Ron bl. After 12 Bxh8 Nxbl Blacks's N may be trapped, but it is an ex- tra N! 12 Kxd2 f6 13 Bd3 Nd7 14 f4 Nb6 15 Rhel Kf7 16 Bc3 Na4 17 Bal Rb8 18 h3 h5 19 Re3 Bd7 20 Rbel RbeS 21 Rn Nb6 22 Kc3 Masking a sub- tle trap into which Black willingly falls 22 . • • e! 23 dxe6 + Bxe6 24 Bxg6 + Kxg6 25 Rxe6 or 25 f5 + Kf7 (25 ... Bxf5 26 Rg3 + ) 26 fxe6 + Rxe6. 25 ... Rxe6 26 f5+ Kf7 27 fxe6 + lixe6 28 Rxf6 + Kxf6 29 Kd3 + Kf5 30 Bxh8 Kf4 Black has lost one of his pawns but the mass simplifica- tion has eased his task of converting the other one. 31 Bf6 Kg3 32 Be7 Nc8 33 Bd8 Kxg2 34 h4 Kf3 35 a4 Nb6 36 a5 Nd7 37 Be7 Ne5 + 38 10 Nf7 39 Kd3 a6 40 Bf8 Ne5 + 41 Kc3 Ng6 42 Bxd6 Nxh4 43 Bxc5 Nf5 While resigns. The h Pawn cannot be halted.
After eight games (out of ten) in their Candidates' quarter-final Kasparov led Beliaysky 5-3, winning the fifth garlic
(moves below), drawing the sixth garne (Tarrasch Defence) in 31 moves and the seventh in 21 moves, and winning the eighth. He now needed only half a point for
victory.
Kasparov — Beliavky: Candidates' quarter- final, Game 5. 1 d4 d5 2 c4 e6 3 Nf3 Nf6 4 cxd exd 5 Bg5 Be7 6 e3 h6 7 Bh4 0-0 8 Bd3 b6 9 Nf3 Bbl 10 0-0 c5 /1 Ne5 Nbd7 12 bf5 NxeS 13 dxe Ne8 14 Bg3 Nc7 15 Qg4 Qe8 16 Bd7 Qd8 17 Radl h5 18 Qh3 h4 _.,19 Bf4 Bg5 20 Bf5 g6 21 Ne4 Bxf4 22 exf gxf QxfS dxe 24 Qg4 + Kh7 25 Rxd8 Rfxd8 26 Qxh4 + Kg8 27 Qe7 e3 28 Rel exf + 29 Kx/2 Rd2 + 30 Reg Rxe2 + 31 Kxe2 Ba6 + 32 Kf2 Ne6 33 f5 Nd4 34 e6 Rf8 35 Qg5 + Kh7 36 e7 Re8 37
f6 Ne6 38 Qh5 + Kg8 Black resigns.
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