22nd Hogeschool Zeeland Tournament
Vlissingen, the Netherlands
August 4-11, 2018
Final Top Standings
1-3. GM Sandro Mareco ARG 2643, GM Eduard Iturrizaga Bonelli VEN 2640, GM Roeland Pruijssers NED 2606, 7.5/9
4-10. GM Wan Yunguo CHN 2500, GM Vyacheslav Ikonnikov RUS 2546, GM Zeng Chongsheng CHN 2539, IM T homas Beerdsen NED 2469, GM Daniel Hausrath GER 2502, GM Sandipan Chanda IND 2553, IM Liam Vrolijk NED 2430, 7.0/9
11-20. IM Antonio Dcunha Viani IND 2414, IM John Marvin Miciano PHI 2381, GM Jorden Van Foreest NED 2636, GM Jayson Gonzales PHI 2383, IM Max Warmerdam NED 2421, IM Casper Schoppen NED 2394, IM Migchiel De Jong NED 2339, GM Oleg Romanishin UKR 2441, FM Sief Rijnaarts NED 2339, IM Mark Timmermans NED 2383, 6.5/9
Total Participants: 242
Time Control: 90 minutes for 40 moves followed by 30 minutes to the end of the game with 30 seconds added to your time after every move starting move 1.
Our European campaigners took part in the 22nd Hogeschool Zeeland Tournament in Holland and both IM John Marvin Miciano and GM Jayson Gonzales finished with 6.5/9, tied for 11th to 20th places. IM John Marvin Miciano was the revelation of the tournament as he held the solo lead at the halfway point of the tournament with five wins out of five games. Unfortunately, his strength gave out and he lost in the next two rounds. He recovered with a win and a draw to finish the tournament with 6.5/9.
His victims during the 5-game win streak included two of the top seeds,
GM Zeng Chongsheng from Guangdong (Canton), China (he has a connection with the Philippines, having gained his first GM norm at the 9th Asian Continental Men’s Chess Championship held at the Subic Bay Exhibition and Convention Center in Zambales), and GM Viacheslav Ikonnikov (born March 15, 1966), a well-known player and author who is a regular contributor to the New in Chess Yearbook — a quarterly publication (yes, I know — why does a Yearbook come out quarterly? Go figure) on the latest opening trends.
GM Ikonnikov has written extensively on the King’s Indian Defence which is exactly what Miciano uses against him.
Ikonnikov, Vyacheslav (2546) — Miciano, John Marvin (2381) [E92]
22nd Hogeschool Zeeland 2018 Vlissingen (5), 07.08.2018
1.d4 g6 2.c4 Bg7 3.e4 d6 4.Nf3 Nf6 5.Nc3 0 — 0 6.Be2 e5 7.d5 a5 8.h3 Na6 9.Bg5 h6 10.Be3 Nh5 11.Nd2 Nf4 12.Bf1
[12.Bxf4 exf4 surrenders the c5, d4 and e5 squares to Black.]
12…Nc5 13.Nb3 Nxb3
This followed by …c7 — c5 is Miciano’s new idea. Previously Black has been content with his knight’s outpost on c5 and sought to maintain it with 13…b6. Maybe Ikonnikov will write about it in his next Yearbook Survey on the King’s Indian?
14.axb3 c5
The queenside has been locked up and action shifts to the kingside.
15.g3 Nh5 16.h4
Have you ever seen Tigran V. Petrosian’s game vs the German Wolfgang Unzicker from Hamburg 1960? Before starting an attack on his opponent’s kingside the 9th world champion tucked his king away in his queenside first (game given below). I think that is what Ikonnikov should ahve done here, starting with 16.Kd2!
16…Nf6 17.Bh3 Bxh3 18.Rxh3 Qd7 19.Rh1 Ng4! 20.Na4 Ra6
The Filipino ace from FEU has won the opening battle. White has not been able to accomplish anything on the kingside and Black now starts on his own attack in the kingside.
21.h5 f5! 22.hxg6 f4
Another way is 22…fxe4 23.Nc3 it looks like Black will be hard-pressed to hold the e4 — pawn, but … 23…Rf3! and now 24.Nxe4? is bad because of 24…Qf5 25.Qd3 (25.Nc3? Rxe3+ with a mate threat on f2) 25…Nxf2! 26.Nxf2 Qxd3 27.Nxd3 Rxe3+ 28.Kd2 Rxg3 Black is clearly better.
23.Rh4
Ikonnikov avoided 23.gxf4 because of 23…exf4 24.Bd2 (24.Bxc5 does not seem to work because of 24…dxc5 25.Nxc5 Qe7! Black is winning 26.Qxg4 (26.Nxa6? Qxe4+ 27.Kd2 (27.Qe2 Qxh1+) 27…Qd4+ 28.Ke2 f3+ 29.Kf1 Qxf2#) 26…Qxc5 27.Kf1 Qd4 Black will start winning back his pawns and in the meantime he is still a piece up) 24…Bd4 25.Rf1 f3 26.Bc3 Qe7! and I am not sure if White can hold this.
23…fxe3 24.Qxg4 Qxg4 25.Rxg4 Rxf2
Black has a big advantage which he can convert to a win if he plays well. This is where the men are separated from the boys. John Marvin thought for a bit here and decides to bring his bishop to g5 both to support his far advanced e-pawn but also to seal-off the kingside and isolated white’s g6 — pawn
26.Rh4 Ra8 27.0 — 0 — 0 Bf6 28.Rhh1 Bg5
Next step, double rooks on the 2nd rank.
29.Rde1 Raf8 30.Nc3 Rg2 31.Ne2 Rff2 32.Kd1
White’s pieces are all tied up and Black’s king casually goes up to gobble the g6 — pawn.
32…Kg7 33.Rhf1 Kxg6 34.Rxf2 exf2 35.Rf1 h5
This move does not give anything away, but it makes the win harder. A simpler way can be had by bringing his king to f3, for example: 35…Kh5! 36.Nc3 Kg4 37.Ne2 (what else? if 37.Ke2 then 37…Kxg3) 37…Kf3 38.Rh1 Rh2! 39.Rf1 Kg2 beautiful win isn’t it?
36.Nc3 Rxg3?
Needlessly giving away his powerful f2 — pawn. Correct is 36…Be3 37.Ke2 Rxg3 followed by …Rg1.
37.Rxf2 h4 38.Ke2 h3 39.Rh2 Bf4 40.Rh1 Kg5 41.Nb5 Kg4 42.Nxd6 Rg2+ 43.Kd3 h2 44.Nxb7 Rxb2?
[44…Rg1 wins with no problems. Miciano probably thought that by bringing his king to g2 he would win just as easily, but that is not so.]
45.Nxc5 Kf3 46.Kc3?
Believe it or not White has a problem-like draw with 46.Ne6! Rxb3+ 47.Kc2 Rb4 48.Nxf4 Rxc4+ (48…exf4 49.Rxh2=) 49.Kb3 Rxe4 50.Nd3 Kg2 51.Ra1! Rd4 (51…h1Q? 52.Rxh1 Kxh1 53.Nf2+ it is White who is winning) 52.Nxe5 h1Q (52…Rxd5? 53.Ng4 h1Q 54.Ne3+ Kf2 55.Rxh1 Kxe3 56.Ka4 this is a book draw) 53.Rxh1 Kxh1 54.Nc4 draw.
46…Rg2
Intending …Bf4 — d2+ — b4 holding back the white pawns.
47.Ne6 Bd2+?
Once again Miciano misses 47…Rg1.
48.Kd3 Bb4 49.c5! Rd2+ 50.Kc4 Kg2 51.Rxh2+
[51.Rc1 is a tougher defense as it forces the Black king further from the center, but Black seems to win as well: 51…h1Q 52.Rxh1 Kxh1 53.c6 Kg2 54.Kb5 Rc2 55.Kb6 Kf3 the Black king gets back just in time]
51…Kxh2 52.d6 Kg3 53.Kb5 Kf3 54.Kc6 Kxe4 55.d7 <D>
POSITION AFTER 55.D7
It looks like Ikonnikov will now force Miciano to give up his rook for the pawn, right? ]
55…a4!
No! This time Miciano does not miss the win. In fact, he had to see this several moves back.
56.bxa4 Ba5 57.Ng5+ Kf5 58.Nf7 Ke6 59.Nd6 Rxd6+ 60.cxd6 e4 61.Kb5 e3 62.Kxa5 Kxd7 0 — 1
A terrific battle. After this win Miciano is leading the field with a score of 5 out of 5. Pity this game wore him out and he lost the next 2 games.
Here is the Petrosian game I mentioned earlier.
Petrosian, Tigran V — Unzicker, Wolfgang [D61]
Match/Nation GER-URS 13 — 51 Hamburg (7), 04.08.1960
1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 e6 3.Bg5 d5 4.c4 c6 5.Qc2 Be7 6.e3 0 — 0 7.Nc3 h6 8.Bf4 Nbd7 9.cxd5 cxd5 10.Bd3 a6 11.0 — 0 b5 12.a4! b4 13.Na2 Ne8 14.Nc1 a5 15.Nb3 Ba6 16.Bxa6 Rxa6 17.Qd3 Ra7 18.Rfc1 Nd6 19.Bxd6! Bxd6 20.Rc6 Nb8 21.Rc2 Nd7 22.Rac1 Nb6 23.Qb5 Nc4 24.Nfd2 Nxd2 25.Rxd2 Qa8 26.Rdc2 Rd8 27.Rc6 g6 28.g3 Kg7
Let’s evaluate the position here. White dominates the c-file but Black keeps an eye on the entry points c7 and c8 but if you look further you will notice that all of Black’s pieces are tired up in the queenside. Petrosian decides to open up the kingside but that would mean exposing his King, so he brings it over to a2/b1 where it is well-defended. ]
29.Kf1! Kg8
[29…Rb8 30.Rb6 Rd8 31.Rcc6]
30.h4 h5 31.R1c2 Kh7 32.Ke1 Kg8 33.Kd1 Kh7 34.Kc1 Kg8 35.Kb1 Kh7 36.Qe2 Qb7 37.Rc1 Kg7 38.Qb5! Qa8
Exchanging queens leads to a forced loss: 38…Qxb5 39.axb5 a4 (39…Rb7?? 40.b6 followed by Nxa5) 40.b6 Rad7 (40…Raa8 41.b7 Rab8 42.Na5) 41.Na5 Ra8 42.Rxd6! Rxd6 43.b7 Rb8 44.Rc8 Rd8 45.Rxd8 Rxd8 46.Nc6.
39.f4 Kh7 40.Qe2 Qb7 41.g4! hxg4 42.Qxg4 Qe7 43.h5 Qf6 44.Ka2 Kg7 45.hxg6 Qxg6 46.Qh4 Be7 47.Qf2 Kf8 48.Nd2 Rb7 49.Nb3 Ra7 50.Qh2! Bf6
In Petrosian’s games the tactics usually lie in the variations. For example 50…Bd6 51.Rxd6! Rxd6 52.f5 exf5 53.Rc8+ Ke7 54.Qh8 with a winning attack
51.Rc8! Rad7
[51…Rxc8 52.Rxc8+ Ke7 53.f5 Qxf5 54.Qb8 where will the rook on a7 go? 54…Rd7 55.Re8#]
52.Nc5! b3+
[52…Rxc8 53.Nxd7+ Ke7 54.Rxc8; 52…Rd6 53.f5 Qxf5 54.Qxd6+]
53.Kxb3 Rd6 54.f5! Rb6+ 55.Ka2 1 — 0
Bobby Ang is a founding member of the National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) and its first Executive Director. A Certified Public Accountant (CPA), he taught accounting in the University of Santo Tomas for 25 years and is currently Chief Audit Executive of the Equicom Group of Companies.
bobby@cpamd.net
