[Event "GM Gareyev's Blindfold Simul"] [Site "Reform Club, London"] [Date "2017.04.12"] [White "Saldanha, Richard"] [Black "Gareyev, Timur"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "B30"] [Opening "Sicilian: 2...Nc6 3.Nc3 Nf6"] {Notes by by Prof. Martin Hazelton, former President of the Oxford University Chess Club - as relayed to Rihard Saldanha.} 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Be2 {Rather passive. I don’t know much about the Sicilian 4 knights, but I suspect that 4. e5 is critical. 4. Bb5 and 4. d4 are also more active alternatives.} e6 5.O-O Qc7 6.h3 a6 7.d4 {Transposing into an open Sicilian. However, this move allows Black to play the freeing move b5. Perhaps 7. a4 first?} cxd4 8.Nxd4 b5 9.a3 Bb7 10.Be3 Ne5 {By a slightly round about route we have reached a pretty stnadard kind of open Sicilian position. Chances are equal. In fact the odd move order is probably a good thing for blindfold chess - there is more chance of the GM getting confused.} 11.f4 Nc4 12.Bxc4 Qxc4 13.e5 Nd5 14.Qd2?! {Better is the simply 14. Nxd5 Qxd5 15. Qd1-d2 with equality. Now Black has some attractive options like 14. ... Nxc3 and 14. ... Nxe3. However...} Rc8 {Black plays a rather inacurrate move. White should now play 15. Nxd5 when the game remains balanced.} 15.Ne4 {Objectively not as strong as 15. Nxd5, but not a bad choice against a blindfold opponent. Those knights will be playing on this mind.} Be7 16.b3?! {I don’t like this move. It leaves the a3 pawn weak, and means that c2-c3 will be difficult to achieve for White because the advance lacks the support of the b2 pawn. I would like to have the option of c2-c3 in order to bolster the knight on d4. However, right now I suggest 16. Ra1-e1 to provide latent protection for the e4 knight.} Qc7 17.Ng3 {I’m not convinvced by this. Why decentralize the knight?} O-O 18.f5? {Ouch. The e5 pawn is very important. I notice that Stockfish wants White to play Ne4.} Qxe5 {Black is now winning, although White can continue to fight} 19.Qf2?? {19. Bf2 is an only move.} Nxe3 20.Rfe1 Qxd4 21.Qxe3 Qxe3+ 22.Rxe3 Bc5 23.Nf1 exf5 24.Kh1 Bxe3 25.Nxe3 f4 26.Nf5 Rxc2 27.Ne7+ Kh8 28.Rg1 Re8 29.Nf5 Rxg2 30.Rxg2 Re2 31.Nh4 f3 {A nice finish from Black.} 32.Rxe2 fxe2+ 0-1