Minor Investment

Faced with an offbeat line of the Sveshnikov variation, Black comes up with a pawn sacrifice. The game reaches a strange balance, Black is a pawn down, but in way of compensation has a protected passed pawn and an uncastled White King hinders the coordination of White’s rooks. Black ensures that White will not be able to castle and slowly wrests the game from White. In the end, with the clocks advancing, Black prevents perpetual check as he guides his remaining pawns to the 1st rank.

White – Rasheen de Silva Black – Naditha
Inter Club Super League 2005 Colombo 24th March 2006
B33: Sicilian: Lasker-Pelikan and Sveshnikov Variations

This game was played in the first round and at that time we did not know much about the young team from Galle, Ruhunu Chess Academy except that they had some quite fearless attackers. I was to play Rasheen de Silva, who within the year won the inaugural Galle Majors and played reasonably at the National B. The game was one of the few that went right for me in 2006.

Since our main rivals Passed Pawns and Kandy CC were playing each other we felt an early lead would be useful, as the lack of teams meant that they would play the weaker teams later, when we played the stronger ones. I had seen Rasheen play once before, conducting a good attack against Romesh, so I knew I will have a tough game ahead of me.

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 e5 6. Ndb5 d6 7. Nd5 Nxd5 8. exd5 Nb8 9. Be3 Be7 10. Qd2 a6 11. Na3

In my games Database I found 4 games that have previously reached this position, with all of them ending in victories for white.

Over the Board I was uncomfortable with the White Knight coming to c4 and played 11… b5N ?!

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