Mas draw against Wesley So!

IM Mashafizul boost his confidence back by drawing his round 10 game in the Tarakan 1st Leg ASEAN Chess Circuit against world youngest GM- Filipino Wesley So. Wesley So (right) achieved his Grandmaster title at age 14 years and 1 month and 28 days, which puts him as the 7th youngest to achieve the Grandmaster title in the history of chess.

In the last round he will meet the veteran IM Nasib Ginting. I think he have a good chance to win or at least draw but he should not take it easy because Nasib is a very experience IM. I'm not sure whether he did have a chance to get a GM norm in this tournament but at least he will definitely collect many points after winning and drawing with several higher rated player in this tournaments.

Analyse by Hairulov and Fritz


GM Wesley So (2526) - IM. Mashafizul (2382)
1^st ASEAN Masters Chess Circuit, Round 10, 18.01.2008

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 Mas play his favorite Sicilian Najdorf variation. In round 6, he lost to the top seed GM Zhang Zhong with the Dragon variation. 6.Bg5 e6 7.f4 Qb6 Is Mas paying a tribute to the great Bobby Fischer who died a day before? 8.Qd2 Nc6 Not so. Bobby popularized and play the main line of the Poison Pawn Variation with 8...Qxb2 in 1972 World Championship Match against Boris Spassky. 9.Bxf6 gxf6 10.Nb3 Bd7 11.0–0–0 0–0–0 12.Kb1 h5 13.Be2 Kb8 14.Rhf1 Be7 15.Rf3 Rdg8 16.Bf1 Rc8 17.Qe2 Fritz opening book suggest 17.Rh3 Na5 18.Be2 h4 19.Qe1 17...Na5 18.Rh3 h4 19.Qe1 Nxb3 20.axb3 Qc5 21.Rxh4 Mas get an active play as a compensation for the sacrifice pawn 21...f5 22.Rxh8 Rxh8 23.Bd3 23.h3 Bc6 23...fxe4 23...Rxh2 is less advisable because black will have a difficult game after 24.exf5 Rxg2 25.fxe6 fxe6 26.f5 Qc8 27.Nd5! Threatening bishop on e7 and Nb6! 24.Nxe4 Qh5 25.Be2 Qxh2 26.Nxd6 Bxd6 Less advisable is 26...Qxf4 27.Nxf7 Discovered attack: d6, d1–d7 27...Bb4 28.g3 Qxf7 29.Qxb4+- Bc6 30.Bxa6! 27.Rxd6 Qxg2 Mas get his pawn back ! 28.Qc3 Of course Wesley saw that 28.Rxd7?? Rh1 28...Rc8 29.Qe5

White threatening a discover check with 30.Rxd7+! 29...f6 30.Qe3 Rc7 31.Bc4 The pressure on e6 grows. 31...Qh1+ 32.Ka2 Qh7 33.c3 33.Bxe6 Bxe6 34.Rxe6 Qxc2 35.Rxf6 Qc5 36.Qxc5 Rxc5 37.Rf7 Rc2 38.b4 Ka7 39.Kb3 Rf2 33...Qe7 34.Qb6 Rc6 35.Rxc6 Bxc6 36.Bxa6 e5 37.fxe5 Qxe5 Although Mas is a pawn down, he got a very dangerous passed pawn on f file as a compensation where as Wesley pawns on the queen side have difficulties to advance because it will only expose his own king! 38.Bc4 f5 39.b4 f4?! This move worsen black position. Mas should play the safer 39...Kc8 40.Qc5 (40.b5 Bd7 And white don't have the disturbing 41.Qd8+ check.) 40...Qxc5 41.bxc5 40.b5 Bd7 41.Qd8+ Bc8 Now his c8 bishop is passive. 42.Bd5 Qc7 43.Qxc7+ Probably better is 43.Qf6!? Qa5+ 44.Kb1 Qxb5 45.Qxf4+ Ka7 46.Qd4+ b6 47.Qg7+ Ka6± And white will have better play. 43...Kxc7 An endgame with bishop of the same color have occur . In this type of endings, the bishop often fight for the same square. The stronger side usually offer a bishop exchange to control over certain diagonal. The fight for 32 uncontrolled square is left to the kings and pawns. The famous Capablanca rules in this type of endings is fix the pawns on the opposite color to your bishop. 44.Bf3?! I think this move is not accurate. White don't have to block the pawn yet. He should instead activate his king with 44.Kb3 although the position with best play must lead to a draw 44...Bg4 45.Kc2 Be2 (45...b6 46.Kd3; 45...f3 46.Kd2 f2 47.Bg2 Kb6 48.Bf1 Bd7 49.Ke3 Bxb5 50.Kxf2 Bd7) 46.c4 Kd6 47.Kd2 Bf1 48.Ke1 Bd3 44...Kb6= 45.c4 White passive king and his pawns located at the same color of his bishop have give black chance to use his king to enter white uncontrolled black square upfront. 45...Kc5 46.b3 The problem with 46.Kb3 is 46...Be6 47.Be2 f3 48.Bxf3 Bxc4+ 49.Kc3 Bxb5 50.Bxb7= draw. 46...Kd4 Black king is more active helping his passed f pawn compare to white king that is too passive. 47.Ka3 Ke3 48.Bd5 f3 49.Kb4 f2 50.Bg2 Bg4 51.c5 Kd4 51...Bf3 52.Bf1 Kd4 52.c6 bxc6 53.bxc6 Bf3 54.c7 Of course a GM will not made a blunder with 54.Bxf3?? f1Q-+ 54...Bxg2 ½–½ Both player agreed to split the points because the game will be dead draw after 55.c8Q f1Q 56.Qc4+ Qxc4+ 57.bxc4

source : wikipedia