TonyRo wrote on 01/13/14 at 21:15:18:
When I was studying this line (for both sides), I thought White had better chances when Black started the migration of his knight to c7 after ...a6 and ...Rb8 and White had played a4.
If my memory serves me correctly, I thought that something like 9...Ne8 10.Be3 Nd4! was the easiest way to equalize as Black, but maybe I'm mistaken.
Yes, drink a glass of champagne....because your memory is good!
9...Ne8 10.Be3 Nd4! is the line for black, not the above played 9...Rb8.
Correspondence chess games results prove it, too.. As an example, here the first player had to play a2-a4 in order to exchange his c3-knight on b5, just to achieve....a draw. Other guys had difficulties in this exact position, too.. Imho, the position is equal and playable for both sides, so the first player doesn't have to worry about white's chances.
Here is the game I chose to show you in response to your words (great game, by the way - no doubt about it):
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A36: Sources for symmetrical botvinnik english (Read 6027 times)
