From: Reijer Grimbergen ETL GO JP> Date: 13 nov 1997 Subject: This week in Shukan Shogi (no.712, November 12th 1997) Again Sanada came close to beating Tanigawa in the Ryu-O match, but again he came up short, giving Tanigawa a 3-0 lead in this best of seven match. Here is what happened in game 3. This can also can be found at: http://www.etl.go.jp:8080/etl/suiron/~grimberg/SHOGI/kifu.html Black: Sanada, Challenger White: Tanigawa, Ryu-O 10th Ryu-O sen, Game 3, November 6th and 7th 1997 1.P7g-7f 1/1 0/0 2.P3c-3d 0/1 4/4 3.P2g-2f 1/2 0/4 4.P4c-4d 0/2 0/4 5.S3i-4h 19/21 0/4 This is a bit unusual in modern professional practice. The move P2f is considered a minus point when playing the Yagura opening by black. So, black players play P2e here to force B3c, after which white has almost no choice but to play Furibisha (Ranging Rook). This was what Tanigawa had planned for this game. The differences are very subtle, and it is hard to say if they have any influence on the outcome of the game. Sanada ignores this reasoning and plays the opening differently. 6.S3a-4b 0/21 14/18 7.P5g-5f 6/27 0/18 8.P5c-5d 0/27 9/27 9.P3g-3f 9/36 0/27 10.G4a-3b 0/36 20/47 After considerable thought, Tanigawa decides to play the Yagura opening instead of Furibisha. 11.G4i-5h 11/47 0/47 12.S7a-6b 0/47 2/49 13.S7i-6h 8/55 0/49 14.G6a-5b 0/55 2/51 15.P6g-6f 47/102 0/51 16.K5a-4a 0/102 7/58 17.S6h-7g 1/103 0/58 18.S4b-3c 0/103 9/67 19.B8h-7i 2/105 0/67 20.B2b-3a 0/105 0/67 21.K5i-6h 34/139 0/67 Black plays the Yagura Quick castle. This wins him a move, if he can keep the bishop on 7i, since this bishop does not have to go anywhere to let the king enter the castle. The opening strategy of both players is now a debate between white not having pushed the rook pawn while black has moved this pawn (one move loss for black perhaps) and the quick black castle against the normal white castle (one move win for black). 22.P7c-7d 0/139 27/94 23.K6h-7h 7/146 0/94 24.P7d-7e 0/146 30/124 Difficult to judge. White plays this to get a pawn in hand, and also gets the black bishop to move, winning back the move that black gets when building the quick yagura castle. Disadvantage: white has to move the rook to the edge. 25.B7i-4f 7/153 0/124 Best response against the pawn exchange on 7e. 26.R8b-9b 0/153 6/130 Of course 26.S7c? loses after P*7d S6d P6e. 27.P7fx7e 6/159 0/130 28.B3ax7e 0/159 0/130 29.G5h-6g 1/160 0/130 30.K4a-3a 0/160 25/155 31.P2f-2e 16/176 0/155 32.K3a-2b 0/176 6/161 33.S4h-5g 23/199 0/161 34.G5b-4c 0/199 17/178 35.K7h-8h 7/206 0/178 36.P9c-9d 0/206 11/189 37.P1g-1f?! 37/243 0/189 A very interesting moment in the game. The game is close to the end of the first day, but not close enough for Sanada to seal the move. Sanada intends to play the surprising S8f followed by R7h, but he does not want to show this to Tanigawa just before the close of play. If he would play it right away, he would give Tanigawa the opportunity to contemplate a counterstrategy all night. Sanada decides to play a waiting move, but this gives Tanigawa the opportunity to improve his position. 38.P9d-9e 0/243 28/217 This move (which was also the sealed move) will make an important difference later. 39.S7g-8f 15/258 0/217 40.B7e-5c 0/258 52/269 41.R2h-7h 12/270 0/269 42.P4d-4e 0/270 7/276 43.B4f-2h 7/277 0/276 44.P3d-3e 0/277 13/289 45.P5f-5e 49/326 0/289 46.P5dx5e 0/326 7/296 47.P3fx3e 8/334 0/296 48.P8c-8d 0/334 20/316 49.B2hx5e 19/353 0/316 50.P8d-8e 0/353 12/328 51.S8fx8e 9/362 0/328 52.B5c-6d 0/362 13/341 53.B5ex6d 5/367 0/341 54.P6cx6d 0/367 0/341 55.P2e-2d 11/378 0/341 56.S3cx2d 0/378 7/348 57.S8e-7d 23/401 0/348 58.B*9d! 0/401 30/378 A painful drop, made possible by the exchange of 37.P1f P9e. 59.G6g-7f 7/408 0/378 Shobute. Black has no choice, since all other alternatives are bad. 59.G6i-6h loses the silver after 60.P*7c. 59.B*8e amounts to giving up a move after 60.Bx8e Sx8e and black can not allow that. 60.R9b-8b 0/408 22/400 61.G7f-8e 9/417 0/400 62.B9dx8e 0/417 15/415 63.S7dx8e 0/417 0/415 64.G*6g 0/417 0/415 65.R7h-7e 21/438 0/415 66.G6gx5g? 0/438 1/416 White has clearly the better position, but this is a big mistake that gives Sanada the opportunity to turn around the game. After 66.P*7d Sx7d P*7c S8e and only then Gx5g, white has no chance to promote the rook and get counterplay for losing two generals to the bishop. 67.B*6a! 0/438 0/416 Strong counter. 68.P*5d 0/438 35/451 Looks weak, but is actually white's best chance. Tanigawa thought long and hard about attacking possibilities like 68.P*8f Px8f Rx8e Px8e S*8f, but after B*7f! white loses because of the double threat on 4c. To kill this and a possible bishopdrop on 5e, Tanigawa defends. 69.B6ax4c+ 6/444 0/451 70.G3bx4c 0/444 0/451 71.B*6a 0/444 0/451 72.S*3b 0/444 4/455 73.B6ax4c+? 9/453 0/455 Sanada for a moment switches roles with "Lightning Speed Endgame" Tanigawa, but fails. 73.G*8c kills the rook and is the way to go in this position. Black will win after this, but still has to play a long and careful game. Sanada thinks he has found a forced win, but he has overlooked a move. 74.S3bx4c 0/453 0/455 75.G*4b 0/453 0/455 76.K2b-3c 0/453 1/456 77.G4bx4c 0/453 0/456 78.K3cx4c 0/453 0/456 79.S*3d 1/454 0/456 80.K4c-5b 0/454 1/457 81.P*5c 5/459 0/457 82.K5bx5c 0/459 0/457 83.G*4c 1/460 0/457 84.K5c-6c 0/460 0/457 85.S8e-7d 0/460 0/457 86.K6c-7b 0/460 0/457 87.G4c-5b 16/476 0/457 So far a forced sequence. Sanada intended to play 87.P*7c, which seems winning after 88.Nx7c G5b and 88.Sx7c Sx7c+ Nx7c P*7d. However, Sanada here realised that in the last variation after P*7d, white has the brilliant rook sacrifice Rx8g+. Then, after Kx8g P*8f Kx8f P*8e Rx8e G*7f Kx7f B*6g K8g Bx8e+ black loses the rook, his mating threat and the game. After 87.G5b black's attack is not strong enough. 88.B*8d 0/476 3/460 89.G5bx6b 0/476 0/460 90.K7bx6b 0/476 0/460 91.S*7c 3/479 0/460 92.B8dx7c 0/479 2/462 93.S7dx7c+ 0/479 0/462 94.N8ax7c 0/479 0/462 95.B*5a 0/479 0/462 96.K6bx5a 0/479 1/463 97.R7ex7c+ 0/479 0/463 98.G*7b 0/479 2/465 99.+R7cx8b 0/479 0/465 100.G7bx8b 0/479 0/465 101.R*7a 0/479 0/465 102.K5a-6b 0/479 1/466 103.R7ax9a+ 0/479 0/466 104.G*8a 0/479 0/466 105.+R9a-9d 0/479 0/466 106.B*6g 0/479 0/466 With some good defending, Tanigawa has killed black's attacking chances and now goes for the black king himself. There is no defense... 107.+R9dx6d 0/479 0/466 108.P*6c 0/479 0/466 109.N*7d 0/479 0/466 110.K6b-7b 0/479 0/466 111.N7dx8b+ 0/479 0/466 112.G8ax8b 0/479 0/466 113.L*7i 0/479 0/466 114.P*7c 0/479 0/466 Resigns 0/479 0/466 Time: 07:59:00 07:46:00 A brave effort by Sanada, but he now faces the huge task of winning all remaining games. Next game on November 18th and 19th. In other Shogi news: 1) Morishita beat Inoue in the A-class Junisen to take the lead with a 4-1 score. The game was decided in typical Morishita style. Inoue looked to have a good attack, but when he dropped the rook on the wrong square he gave Morishita the chance to kill his attack, after which Morishita won by a strong counterattack. 2) In B1 round 8 was played and it seems like the battle for first place is already over, five rounds before the end. Maruyama beat Mori to get a perfect 7-0 score. Since the only player with two losses is Minami (who beat Tanaka), so Maruyama needs only three wins from the remaining five games to promote to the top class. For the second spot there will be a hard fight though. Following Minami are Murayama, Fukuzaki, Kobayashi, Tamaru and Nakamura all have three losses (Kobayashi and Nakamura are 4-3, the others are 5-3). One of these six will accompany Maruyama next spring. 3) In the Kio the semifinalists have been decided. Maruyama topped off a good week by beating Nakahara and joins Minami, Goda and Izuka in the semifinals. Maruyama and Izuka are looking for their first title match, Goda would like to stop his bad run of failing at the last possible moment in the challenger tournament and Minami would like to return to the big stage after a couple of years of absence. 4) New 4-dans Sato and Masuda played their first game as a professional in the Shinjino tournament. Both had to play 3-dan Shoreikai players, which might not have been the start they wanted. Sato used too much time and lost to Ira, but Masuda fared better and won against Yamamoto, even though he needed a blunder in the endgame to do so. More next week, Reijer -- Reijer Grimbergen Electrotechnical Laboratory 1-1-4 Umezono Tsukuba-shi, Ibaraki-ken 305 JAPAN E-mail: grimberg etl go jp WWW: http://www.etl.go.jp:8080/etl/suiron/~grimberg Tel: +81-(0)298-54-3316 Fax: +81-(0)298-54-5918