White: Peter Bereolos
Black: GM Alexander Shabalov
World Open, 1999
Round 3

1.d4 e6 2.c4 b6 3.e4 Bb7 4.Bd3 f5 5.exf5 Bb4+

[5... Bxg2 6.Qh5+ g6 7.fxg6 Bg7 8.gxh7+ Kf8 9.Bg5 Nf6 10.Qh4 gives White strong pressure for the rook.]

6.Kf1 Nf6 7.fxe6

I decided to avoid the main line 7.c5 leading to positions that I felt Shabalov would be much more familiar with.

7...0-0 8.Be3

8.exd7 would probably be pressing my luck. Black has some compensation for his pawn thanks to the tangled White kingside.

8...dxe6 9.a3 Bd6 10.Nc3 Nbd7 11.Nf3 Qe8 12.Ng5 h6 13.Nge4 Be7 14.Qe2 Rd8 15.Re1 Kh8 16.Ng3 c5 17.d5 exd5 18.cxd5 Nxd5 19.Nxd5 Bxd5 20.Bxh6

Maintaining the pawn advantage, but white now has queenside weaknesses to go along with Rh1.

20...gxh6 21.Qxe7 Qxe7 22.Rxe7 Nf6 23.Be2 a5 24.f3 Bb3 25.Ke1 Nd5 26.Re6 Rf6 27.Rxf6 Nxf6

28.Ne4

[28.Nf1!? but I wanted Rh1 to finally get to play]

28...Nxe4 29.fxe4 Rd4

better than 29...Re8 30.Bf3 Bc2 =

30.Rf1

[30.Bf3 Rc4]

30...Rxe4 31.Kd2 Kg7 32.Rf3 Bf7 1/2:1/2