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With an excellent game. White already has two pawns for the exchange and the pawn on d6 cramps Black considerably. The presence of opposite-colored Bishops also favors Shabalov, and the dark-squared weaknesses around Fang's King give particular cause for concern. Any queenside attack is easily parried by b2-b3. Black's not lost, but over the board this is a horrible position to defend.

17...Rab8 18.Be5 Qa4 19.Kb1

b2 is safely covered so there's no rush.

19...Rb5 20.b3 Qb4 21.Rd1 a5 22.Bb2 a4

One cannot fault Fang for trying.

23.a3 Qh4 24.b4 Qxh2 25.Nxc6!

Another brilliant tactical shot. Black has no immediate counterplay and this gives White a chance to conclude the game.

25...Bxc6 26.Qe7! Rd5

26...Kg8 27.Qf6.

27.Rxd5 Qg1+ 28.Bc1 Bxd5 29.Qxf8 Qf1 30.d7 Qc4, 1-0. From 12 e5 onwards, Fang felt the pressure. A game that illustrates our theme of the central break very well indeed.

I knew Emory Tate well when he came to the UK some years back. We played a lot of blitz together and I became very friendly with him. I came to admire his brash, tactical style. He's used the Vitolins idea a lot over the years; I think it suits his manner well.

E Tate (2380) - R Sax [B70]
Illinois, 1996
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 g6 6.Bg5 Bg7 7.Bb5+ Bd7 8.Qe2 0-0 9.0-0-0 Nc6 10.Bxc6 bxc6 11.e5

NOT WHAT A DRAGON PLAYER WANTS TO SEE

BANG! To a Dragon player unfamiliar with the ideas of this system, a move such as this wins hands down psychologically.

11...dxe5

There's really nothing else.

12.Nxc6 Qc7

12...Qe8 13.Nxe5 Be6 14.Rhe1! Rc8 (14...Qb8 15.Nc6 Qxh2 16.Nxe7+ Kh8 17.Nxg6+! fxg6 18.Qxe6 Qxg2 19.Be3 and 14...Qc8 15.Qe3 Re8 16.f4 Rb8 17.Qf3 Qc5 18.Qc6 Qb4 19.Nd3 Qa5 20.Rxe6! Rb6 21.Rxf6 Rxc6 22.Rxc6, Ulybin-Rishkov Kazan 1983, both lead to obvious advantages for White) 15.Qa6 Rc7 16.Nb5 Rc5 17.Nd4 Bd5 18.Nb3 Bxb3 19.axb3 Qb8 20.Bxf6 Bxf6 21.Nd7 Qxb3 22.Nxf6+ exf6 23.Re2 Rfc8 24.Qxc8+ Rxc8 25.Rd8+ Rxd8 (25...Kg7 26.Rxc8 Qb7 27.Rd8 Qxg2 28.Rd1 Qxh2 29.c4 idea Rc2 is just good for White) 26.cxb3 Kf8

WHITE STANDS BETTER

So far a forcing sequence from Vitolins-Mortensen Riga 1981. Now 27.Kc2 is best, when White's queenside majority and the active King give him the better chances.

13.Nxe7+ Kh8 14.Bxf6 Bxf6 15.Ned5 Bg5+ 16.Kb1

Stronger is 16.f4!

A POWERFUL SHOT

after which Black is in very serious trouble: 16...Bxf4+ 17.Nxf4 exf4 18.Qe7 Rfd8 19.Nd5 Qb7 20.Qf6+ Kg8 21.Ne7+, 1-0, Geldyev-Atabaev, Ashgabat 2000, for if 21...Kf8 22.Rde1 is a killer.]

16...Qb8 17.h4 Bh6 18.h5

JUST WINNING

The attack runs on oiled wheels.

18...Kg7 19.hxg6 hxg6 20.Qf3 Bg5

20...f6 gives White the opportunity to turn the game into a brilliancy prize, something I personally wouldn't recommend: 21.Nxf6 Bf5 22.Ncd5 Qc8 23.Qe2 Qe6 24.g4 Rxf6 25.Nxf6 Qxf6 26.gxf5.

21.Ne4 Qd8 22.Ndf6 Bxf6 23.Nxf6 Qxf6 24.Rh7+, 1-0. What a terrible wipeout! Sax could only dream of the queenside at his mercy.

To conclude, a very recent game from the British Championships where even the ingenious Simon Williams could not shake off White's immediate central pressure.

Singh (2290) - Williams (2380) [B70]
Edinburgh, 2003
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 Nf6 4.Nc3 cxd4 5.Nxd4 g6 6.Bg5 Bg7 7.Bb5+ Bd7 8.Qe2 0-0 9.0-0-0 h6

GOOD OR BAD?

Either this gives Black extra options or it's simply weakening. As the game goes I prefer the latter judgment.

10.Bh4 Nc6 11.Bxc6 bxc6 12.e5 dxe5 13.Nxc6 Qe8 14.Nxe5 g5

CENTRAL PLAY vs. BISHOPS

This was the difference. White has good central play and Black the Two Bishops - which is more relevant?

15.Bg3 Bf5 16.Rhe1

CALMLY BUILDING

The classical build-up.

16...Rc8 17.Qa6

I think the main reason I prefer White here is a very basic one: his Rooks are connected!

17...e6 18.Re2 Nh5

Williams typically tries to slug his way out. Normal moves are useless - at some stage White would have taken on a7!

19.Nd7 Nxg3 20.hxg3 Kh7 21.Ne4!

Singh is quite equal to the tactical challenge. Basically 21.Ne4 refutes Black's idea. The threat of Nf6+ forces Black to surrender the Bishop pair, his only trump, and then White flicks in the capture on f8.

21...Bxe4 22.Nxf8+ Qxf8 23.Rxe4 Rb8 24.c3 Qc5 25.Qd6 Qc8 26.Rb4 Ra8 27.Kb1 a5 28.Rb6  

After this queenside shutdown, the game limps to a close:

28...a4 29.a3 Kg8 30.Qc6 Qf8 31.Rb7 Rc8 32.Rc7 Rb8 33.Qxa4 Be5 34.Rc4 Qg7 35.Ka2 Qf6 36.f4, 1-0.  According to the theory manuals 6.Bg5 and 7.Bb5+ isn't theoretically dangerous, but for me this is hardly the point. The ideas are easy to understand and carry out. White develops and hits quickly in the center. Black's main lines, all his time spent burning the midnight oil is laid to waste. Instead he has to engage in an early fight for survival! Beneath the very top level, this has to be an idea which will score point after point after point.

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