Chess Secrets: The Giants of Power Play

First published in 2009 by Gloucester Publishers plc (formerly Everyman Publishers plc), Northburgh House, 10 Northburgh Street, London EC1 V OAT Copyright © 2009 Neil McDonald The right of Neil McDonald to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyrights, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

The Giants of Power Play

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EVERYMAN CHESS SERIES Chief advisor: Byron Jacobs

Neil McDonald

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Contents

I

Introduction

I

Chess players might be divided into strategists and power players. The bat­

Introduction

5

tle for supremacy between these two styles of play has led to creative strug­ gles

1

The Dynamic Element

11

2

Catching the King in the Centre

35

3

Opening Old (and New) Wounds

56

4

The Life History of a Knight

83

5

The Goldilocks Queen

107

6

Energizing the Pawns

129

7

A Battering Ram on the f-file

153

8

Backward Pawns and Indian Bishops

172

9

The Psychology of Preparation

191

The Art of Surprise

215

10

such

as

Capablanca

versus

Alekhine, Botvinnik versus Bronstein, and Kramnik versus Topalov. The purpose of this book is to exam­ ine and celebrate the ideas of five fa­ mous players who have contributed to the

development

of the power

play

style. I hope you find the games exciting and enjoyable. With luck, a tiny bit of the genius and magic of these five gi­ ants might reappear in your own chess. But first, here is an example of the strategical sty Ie in action:

Gamel V.Kramnik-M.Carlsen

Index of Openings

235

Index of Players

237

iLg2 0-0 6 0-0 dxe4 7 'ih2 a6 S 'i¥'xe4 b5 9 'iVe2 iLb7 10 iLd2 tiJe6 11 e3 tiJb4 12 iLxb4 iLxb4 13 a3 iLe7 14 tiJbd2 MeS15 b4 as 16 tiJe5 ttJd5 17 ttJb3!

Dortmund 2007 Catalan Opening

17 ... axb4 lS::ja5 �aS 19 ct:Jae6 _�xe6 20 ,'";Jxe6 '�d7 21 itxd5 exd5 22 axb4 :'feS 23 �a5 i;�fS 24 &c.Je5 '�e6 25 clxb5 �bS 26 :'xbS �xbS 27 '�xe7 �d6 2S ·�·a5ii.xb4 29 :bl '�'d6 30 '�a4 1-0 Kramnik played

a

solid

opening

which reduced to a minimum the risk

1 tiJf3 tiJf6 2 e4 e6 3 g3 d5 4 d4 iLe7 5

of any unpleasant surprises. The battle

5

Introduction

Chess Secrets: The Giants of Power Play

was exclusively on the queens ide king safety was never an issue.

ceptance of risk. 2) A big attempt is made to win the

Of course, a strong player is capable

in 1858 for London and Paris to prove

of handling every situation that arises

himself the best player in the world.

The Russian Grandmaster focused

theoretical battle by surprising the op­

with

on the weakness on c6 and spent the

ponent with a new move or a new way

Kramnik

whole game manoeuvring against it.

of handling a sharp opening system.

With the help of a clever temporary

3) The stakes are set high, with the

a

high

level

of

competence.

can

play

great

Besides making a big plus score in unof­

attacking

ficial games against strong opponents,

chess, while Topalov is capable of win­

he won set matches against three lead­

ning smooth positional games.

ing lights of the game: Lowenthal (+9=2-

pawn sacrifice he finally managed to

enemy

target,

Nonetheless, the fact remains that

land a knight on the square, after which

rather than a weak pawn or square. A

every pla�'er has a preference for one

Black's pawn on b5 became defenceless.

pawn sacrifice is often used to acceler­

or other of these methods of play. For

persuade Staunton, regarded by many

Kramnik was careful to leave no weak­

ate the attacking process.

example,

as his chief rival, to enter the lists.

king

often being

the

when

confronted

with the

3),

Harrwitz (+5=1-2), and Anderssen

(+7=2-2). He was, however, unable to

nesses in his own pawn structure, so

4) Threats to the king are combined

chance to introduce favourable-looking

After his great exploits in 1858 and

that Black's attempt at counterplay to­

with threats to another piece or pieces

complications or go for a tiny advan­

1859, Morphy effectively retired from

wards the end was easily defeated.

in order to overstretch the defence.

tage \vith no risk, a player will habitu­

competitive chess. After a troubled life

I have always loved the apparent ef­

5) Rather than a drive towards clar­

ally choose one path or the other. A

he died in 1884.

fortlessness of such games, which are

ity, there is an active search for tactical

player's opening repertoire will also

perfect examples of the phrase' art that

blows hidden at the end of variations.

conceals art'. At their peak of perform­ ance,

Capablanca,

Karpov,

Kramnik

tell vou a lot about his aims when he

Alexander Alekhine (1892-1946)

sits dovvn at the board. step by

It is time for me to introduce you to

Alekhine was born the son of a rich

and all the other great strategists make

step process, power play might be di­

the heroes of this book. Have fun going

landowner in Moscow in 1892. He won

chess look easy. In reality it is terribly

vided into two distinct parts:

through their games and expanding

the first Soviet Championship in 1920,

vour own chess mind!

but during the 1920s moved abroad.

Whereas strategical play is

a

hard to keep control in such games, as a first-class opponent is always looking for ways to slip out of the bind. The power play style doesn't make chess look easy, but it is full of pro­ found, unexpected ideas and stresses

6) The first is a dynamic strategy that, if it outwits the opponent, creates situa­

Here are brief biographies of our

were broken in 1928 when he made a

Paul Morphy (1837-1884)

ers.

The American chess genius was born in

and Emanuel Lasker, Alekhine was one

speech denouncing its Communist rul­

tions where combinations are likely; 7) The second is the use of tactics to

Thereafter all ties with his homeland

heroes.

Along with Jose Raul Capablanca

exploit the edge that has been gained.

the human side of the game. We are

8) Playing the man as well as the

reminded that chess is a fight between

board. For example, an opponent who

New Orleans in 1837.

Whilst still a

of the 'big three' players who domi­

two creative minds

dislikes messy tactics is forced into a

child he shovved an astounding natural

nated the first half of 20th century

double-edged fight, even if objectively

feel for the game. On graduation from

chess. To the surprise of many he beat

they should turn out well for him.

the Universitv of Louisiana he focused

Capablanca in a gruelling match in

9) Time trouble isn't regarded as a

for a couple of years on chess. He took

Buenos Aires in 1927 (+6=25-3) to be­

rather than the

solving of a logical theorem.

Features of the power play style

nuisance but rather as the chance to

part in the first American chess Con­

come

The power play style can be summed

confront the opponent with problems

gress which was being held in New

Thereafter he successfully defended his

up in three words as a blend of prepa­ ration, psychology and dynamism. Here

he will struggle to solve.

York in 1857 and won the first three of

title against Bogoljubow in 1929 (+11=9-

10) Above all, the byword of power

his knockout matches, conceding only

5)

is a list of specific features:

play is ill/balmlec. A position with mu­

one draw, before beating Louis Paulsen

defeat in 1935 against Euwe (+8=13-9).

tual weaknesses and a disrupted pawn

in the final with a score of +5=2-1.

Alekhine regained his title from the

1) Playing aggressively with Black as well as White. This requires the ac-

6

structure contains room for creativity­ and blunders by the opponent.

Having established himself as the best player in the USA, Morphy set off

the

fourth

World

Champion.

and in 1934 (+8=15-3), before a shock

Dutchman in 1937 (+10=11-4), and held it until his death in 1946.

7

Chess Secrets: The Giants oj Power Play

Introduction

Alekhine's

another crack at the title. In Clndidates

racao \\'ould ha\'e gi\'en him an excel­

dominate \vorld-class events. A sign of

two best tournament results were at

tournaments he came equal 2nd-4th at

lent chance of achieving the highest

things to come was his win over Kas­

San Remo 1930 where he scored an

Zurich in 1953 (the winner Smyslm'

honour.

\·vith Nimzowitsch

went on to draw with Bot\'innik in a

Champion,

World

As

astonishing 14(15,

in second place on Hl; and Bled] 931, where he came

five

field with 20/26.

points ahead of the

(Nimzowitsch, who

came third this time, complained bit­

World

and

match),

Championship

equal third at Amsterdam 1956. During

his

peak

years

Bronstein

was a wonderful openings analyst. No­

terly 'he is playing with us as though

tably, his research with his friend and

with children'.)

tournament

Alekhine

was

a

fine

annotator

whose writings include two collections

rival

Bolesla\'skv

Isaac

proved to a sceptical world that the King's Indian Defence was playable.

parol' in the last round of Linares early

In 1965, when the Candidates tour­

that year. which allowed him to share

by

first place with the Russian chess gen­

had

naments

been

replaced

matches, Geller beat Smyslo\' but then

ius. This was Kasparov's final game

in

before his retirement from serious play,

lost

to

Spassky

their

semi-final

match. In the first round stage of the

and it was as if he had handed the ba­

1968 and 1971 series his progress \vas

ton of dynamic chess to his opponent.

halted

b�'

Korchnoi,

Spassky

(again)

and

respectively,

Geller was well known for being a of past,

future

Later in 2005, Topalov played in the FJDE

World

ment

in

San

Championship Luis,

tourna­ He

Argentina.

and former

stormed through the first half of the

of his own games and a study of the

Bronstein was also a fine writer. His

scourge

New York 1924 tournament. He was

account of the Zurich 1953 Candidates

World Champions.

For example, be­

double round event with 61/2/7 before

who

tournament is regarded as one of the

sides his record against Botvinnik, he

cruising to first place with draws in the

helped to popularize 1... t21f6 in reply to

best ever books on chess, perhaps the

had (excluding draws) an 11-9 plus

second

1 e4, an opening that now bears his

very best.

score against Smyslov, 5-3 against both

World Champion.

a

also

profound

theoretician

name.

Efim Geller (1925-1998) was

born

in

Odessa

in

This made

him

FIDE

The chess world,

Fischer and Petrosian, and was level at

however, was split vvith both a FIDE

6-6 with Tal.

and 'Classical Chess' World Champion,

Because of his fine qualities as an

so in 2006 Topalov played a reunifica­

the

opening analyst, Geller acted as the

tion match vvith Kramnik to resolve the

trainer of Boris Spassky in 1972 and

matter. The Russian Grandmaster won

David Bronstein (1924-2006) Geller

cycle.

Bronstein was born in Bila Tserkva in

Ukraine in 1925. He \von the USSR

the Ukraine in 1924 and learnt his chess

Championship in 1955

in Kiev. He was twice USSR Cham­

Smyslov in a play-off match, and then

after beating

Anatolv

Karpov

through

the

1975

(in rapid

tie-break games)

a match

marred by off the board incidents.

qualifying cycle.

pion, sharing the title with Kotov in

won it for a second time 24 years later

Geller annotated a fine collection of

In 2009 Topalov beat Gata Kamsky

1948 and with Smyslov in 1949. He fin­

in 1979. He also shared second or third

his own games entitled The AppliCiltioll

in a match to decide a challenger to

ished equal first in the Budapest 1950

place seven times.

or Chess TllCory.

Candidates tournament, and won the

Geller was among the top players in

to

the world for over 20 years without

the right to challenge Botvinnik

Vis\vanathan Anand, who in the mean time had wrested the world title from

Veselin Topalov (1975-)

Kramnik.

ever having the two or three year spell

At the time of writing, Topalov has

[\1r the World Championship. Their

of brilliance (and good fortune) that is

Topalov was born in Rousse, Bulgaria

achieved the second highest Elo rating

�'t?-t e1f 24 games' match finished tied

necessary to earn a World Champion­

in 1975. He became a Grandmaster in

ever after those of Kasparov, peaking

14-5 \\hich meant that Bronstein

ship match. The closest he came in

1992 and broke through to the world

at 2813. He is greatly respected (and

equal

elite in 1996. He reached the final of the

feared!) as an uncompromising fighter

second with Keres at Curacao 1962 - he

Candidates matches in 2002 to decide a

with fantastic opening knowledge.

was half a point behind Petrosian, who

challenger

play-off earn

.': -:;=

: ' ."� ::\..'.

'.'.,"

with

Cl�Ille

Boleslavsky

+3=9-2

\\'ithin an ace of winning the

It I\'as particularly galling as he leading with two games to go, be­

;,,1'(' k1 � in g the fateful 23rd game.

Candidates

tournaments

was

for

Vladimir

Kramnik's

went on to successfully challenge the

'Classical World Champion's' (that is,

Bronstein remained one of the top

veteran Botvinnik for the world title.

non-FIDE) title, but lost to Peter Leko.

pla\'ers in the world for the rest of the

As Geller had a +4=7-1 life-time record

It was onl\' in 2005 that Topalov

1950s without ever managing to get

against Botvinnik, another point at Cu-

started to show the power that would

8

Neil McDonald, Gravesend June 2009

9

I

C h a pter O n e

The Dyn a m ic E l e ment

As described in the Introduction, I re­ gard power play as a fusion of dyna­

Game 2 A.Pomar Salamanca­ A.Alekhine Mad rid 1945 French Defence

mism, psychology and forceful open­ ing preparation. To some extent this is an ideal, as by no means all the games in this book contain the second and third of these elements to a marked degree.

Almost

without

exception,

however, they witness a dynamic fight.

1 e4 e6 2 d4 d5 3 exd5 exd5 4 .ltd 3 lbc6

So what is dynamism?

"iid 7 9 1i.g5 f6 10 ..ih4 0 -0-0 11 lbbd2

Arturo Pomar was a famous chess

i. h 5 15 iVe2 ..if7 16 lbb3 l:tde8 17 lbc5

prodigy

lbd8 18 �C2 b6

5 c3 i.d6 6 lbf3 lbge7 7 0-0 ..ig4 8 l:te1 h5 12 i.g3 h4 13 .ixd6 �xd6 14 h 3 (and

future

Champion

of

Spain) who had achieved a winning position against Alekhine in their en­

(see following diagram)

counter at Gijon 1 944. That game had ended in a draw, which was a fabulous

Here Pomar retreated his knight

result for a 12-year-old boy against a

with . . .

reigning World Champion. In the fol­

19 lbb3

a year later,

... which led Alekhine in his annota­

Alekhine had felt obliged to take some

tions to give him a wonderful piece of

risks to create winning chances as

advice:

lowing

game,

played

Black in the French Exchange.

"There are positions in which a 11

The Dyn amic Elem e n t

Chess Secrets: Th e G i a n ts of P o w e r Play combination is obligatory. In order to evade the necessary mental effort the player lets slip his chances and little by

19 ...g 5 2 0 ttJh2 ttJe6 2 1 C4 Pomar

becomes

worried

about

Genuine dynamism versus one-move threats

Black's kingside advance and so seeks

thing. The celebrated German master could perform magical tricks with the pieces, calculate 15 moves deep, create

little finds himself reduced to the de­

activity in the centre, but now he is

an Evergreen Game and an Immortal

fensive and ends up by suffering a de­

saddled with a permanently weak d­

Game, but he couldn't play 15 ...b6 and

feat which, logically, is well merited."

pawn.

(107 Great Chess Battles, Edward Winter

21 ... dxc4 22 i..xC4 Wb8 23 ttacl ttJd8 24

1980)

i.xf7 ttJxf7 25 "iWc4 ttJd 5

Came 3 P.Morphy-A.Anderssen 7th matchga me, Pa ris 1858 Centre-Counter Defence

16 . . . i.b7, something that any average master can do these days. 16 ttJg5 1 Rather than being ensconced on b7, controlling the long diagonal from a

1 e4 d5 2 exd5 "iWxd5 3 ttJC3 �a 5 4 d4 e5

safe distance, the bishop finds itself

5 dxe5 'i!Vxe5+ 6 .te2 i.. b4 7 ttJf3 .txC3+

poorly placed on g4 and already the

8 bxc3 "iWxc3+ 9 i..d 2 "iWC5 10 ttbl ttJc6

subject of a tactical threat, namely 17

11 0-0 ttJf6 12 i..f4 0-0 13 i..xC7 ttJd4 14

ttJxh7! ttJxh7 18 'ii'xg4.

'ii'xd4 "iWxC7 15 iLd3

16 ... ttfd8? Here we have another useless at­ tacking move. The rook is brought into play with gain of time by hitting the white queen. But so what? The queen runs away

The

World

Champion

recom­

And now the World

Champion

to a better square than d4 and

then what does the rook do on d8?

mended 19 b4!, when 19 . . .bxc5 20 bxc5

gradually outplayed his young adver­

There's nothing to attack. And mean­

"iWc6 21 ttabl intending 22 i..b5 etc

sary:

while it has given up its defence of f7,

would give White a very dangerous

26 'ii'b 5 1.txel+ 27 ttxel c6 28 "iWe2 ttJh6

the most vulnerable square in the black

attack. Alekhine says he was going to

29 ttJd2 ttJf4 30 "iWe4 'ifd5 31 ttJhf3 ttJf5

camp.

decline the knight offer with 19 ... Wb8,

32 Whl ttd8 33 1.tcl Wb7 34 b3 "iWxe4 3 5

when after 20 ttebl Was 21 ttJa6 c6

ttJxe4 ttJd5 3 6 ttel WC7 3 7 ttJed2 ttJb4

An

interesting

alternative

was

16 . . . .td7 which aims to put the bishop on the long diagonal after all with

Black can defend okay but won't find it

38 .l:!.e6 ttd6 39 tte8 ttJxa2 40 ttJe4 ttd8

Here 15 ...b6 followed by 16 ... i..b7

so easy to carry out his attack on the

41 ttxd8 Wxd8 42 ttJxf6 ttJCl 43 b4 ttJd 3

would put the bishop on its optimal

17. . .i.. c6. This would secure both the

kingside.

44 d5 We7 45 ttJh7 cxd5 46 b5 g4 47

diagonal and, at the same time, solve

bishop itself and the b7-pawn from

hxg4 ttJxf2+ 48 Wgl ttJxg4 0-1

the problem of the loose pawn on b7.

attack.

way to preserve the energy of the

Knowing how to play in a dynamic

In that case, Black would have the bet­

17 'iVb41

white position. Once the opportunity is

style isn't a luxury. It is essential, as

ter game in view of the disfigurement

Here the white queen attacks b7,

lost,

making

situations like that after 18 ... b6 occur all

of the white pawn structure on the

supports the threat of 18 ttJxh7! ttJxh7

moves, some of them quite good, but

the time during chess games. If you

queenside.

there is no dynamism, no spark of life

think you understand strategy and see

We might say that 19 b4 is the only

Pomar

can

carry

on

Instead, there followed:

19 'iVxg4, and controls a possible inva­ sion square for a rook on e7. 17 ...i..c8

in his set-up. It is all dull, plodding

tactics pretty well, but still there seems

defence.

to be something missing from your

Adolf Anderssen couldn't escape

When we think of the fine combina­

chess, maybe it is this dynamic ele­

from the mentality that said develop­

tions that Anderssen has made, this is a

ment.

ing with gain of time must be a good

rather sad retreat.

The game actually continued as fol­ lows: 12

15 ...i.g4

13

Th e Dyn amic Eleme n t

Che ss S e c rets: Th e G i a n ts of P o w e r Play 18 l::tfel

master of the mating attack, doesn't

l:tee7?? or 24 J:i.e4?? in view of 24... l:td1+

see a good move, look for an even bet­

hesitate to exchange queens, as he sees

mating. This isn't going to be enough

ter one! 2S i.d3! 1-0

that the f7-pawn will become indefen­

to save Black despite the exchange of

sible.

queens.

19 ...'ibe7

242:.f4!

Of course if 19 ... i:ld7 20 'iieS+ will

enth rank, but is even better if it can go

20 llxe7ltJd S

to the h-file. Thus if 24 . . . a4 25 i.g6 con­

A clever attempt to create counter­ play,

as

you

would

expect

from

Anderssen. Hopeless is 20 . . .l:!.fS 21 i.c4,

Despite Black's loss of time with the bishop, if nothing happens fast he will

The rook is well placed on the sev­

mate.

tains the winning threat of 26 llh4+ 'it>g8 27 i.f7+ �fS 2S l:!.hS mate. If you have a piece that is well

when the f7-pawn is attacked three

placed,

times and must drop.

would it be better coordinated with the

nevertheless

ask

yourself:

21 i.xh7+ �h8 22 l1xf7 ltJC3 23 l:tel

rest of the pieces if transferred else­

ltJxa2

where? In chess there is no cult of the

develop his pieces and emerge with the

individual - the important thing is how

better game after all, as White has bro­

all the pieces work best together.

Now Black's most lethal problem is that the rook on d8 has to remain de­

ken queenside pawns. Therefore Mor­

fending the back rank, but has no safe

phy has to ensure that he overwhelms

squares. With the white bishop re­

the black defence and wins at least a

moved from h7, 26 ltJf7+ and 27 ltJxdS

pawn before his opponent is able to

threatens to win a whole rook.

mobilize. This means it is vital for

25 .. Jhd3, which deals with the threat

White to attack immediately without

of 26 ltJf7+ (or 26 i.xa6) in the most

wasting any time.

If

economical way, White can mate with

I'm sure you can see why the force

26 l:i.eS or 26 l:tfS. So the only safe

of Morphy's looming initiative is of a

square is gS, but 25 ... I:tgS 26 ltJf7 is also

magnitude several times greater than

mate.

Anderssen's one-move threats 15 ... �g4

This is Anderssen's idea. He has

and 16 ... l:!.fdS. The American has every

created

piece developed and beautifully coor­

which, if nothing happens on the king­

dinated, whereas his opponent has in­

side, could well win the game.

dulged in isolated attacks. 18 ...a s Insufficient, but h e can't just allow

a

queenside

Therefore

Morphy

passed

must

Tip: When your best moves allow

pawn

mate in one, it's time to resign. 24 .. Jla6 Once

again

we

can

see

that

Was

Anderssen

out-calculated

here? Did Morphy pulverize him with

quickly

Anderssen is a player who knows how

conclude the attack. And the omens are

to get the maximum out of every piece.

a brilliant sacrifice? No. The Ameri­

good, as he has two rooks, a bishop

He brings the rook into the fight in an

can's superiority was in coordinating

19 ne7. If instead lS ... .ttd7 it is mate in

and a knight assailing the black king,

unconventional way

to

his pieces and choosing the right mo­

three, with either 19 lleS+! ltJxeS 20

whereas

black

tempt his opponent into 25 ltJf7+ �xh7

ment to switch to an all-out attack.

i.xh7+ c;t>hS 21 'ii'fS mate, or 19 �xh7+

pieces that are even faintly concerned

26 ltJxdS, when he can fight on, though

Anderssen could perform feats of cal­

ltJxh7 20 lIeS+ etc.

with defence - the bishop on cS, which

White would surely have won even in

culation just as well or better, and find

19 'iVe7!

is covering some light squares, and the

that case. But Morphy knew by instinct

imaginative things to do with any in­

rook on d8, which is dissuading 24

one of the golden rules of chess: if you

dividual

Morphy, despite being an acclaimed 14

there

are

only

two

and

hopes

piece.

Morphy's

greatness 15

C h e s s S e c rets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play

The Dyn a mic Elem e n t

was that he knew how to combine all

i.e6 9 e3 i.e7 10 i.e2 0-0 11 'i!Ve2 f5 12

ing to have to find a queen check to

give a close-up check with your queen,

his pieces into a mighty juggernaut and

exf6 i.xf6 13 ctJbd2 i.f5 14 ctJxe4 i.xe4

hold the draw. Instead, there came:

no matter how crazy it looks. And once

then set it rolling at just the right mo­

15 i.xe4 dxe4 16 'i!Vxe4 'i!Vd7 17 i.f4

ment. His understanding of the ideas

li.ae8 18 'i!Ve2 ..ih4 19 i.g3 ..ixg3 20

look for a second check that might fol­

of force and the tempo of the struggle

hxg3 ctJe5 21 ctJxe5 li.xe5 22 li.fe1 li.d 5

low it. So 39 li.xh6+ is a crazy move, but

2 3 li.ad 1 e5 24 a4 li.d8 25 li.xd 5 'i!Vxd 5 26

it gives us 40 'i!Vg8+ and 41 'i!Vf8+, two

were way ahead of his era.

What is a combination?

you have found a way to give the check,

axb5 axb5 27 ife2 b4 28 exb4 exb4 29

close-up checks following each other, or

'iYg4 b3 30 �h2 'i!Vf7 31 'i!Vg5 li.d 7 32 f3

40 �8+ and 41 �5+ another two

h6 33 �e3 .l:!.d8 34 g4 �h8

close-up checks. Once we have seen that

The clue is in the word itself - it in­

the first two close-up checks win the

volves

combining the action of our

opponent's queen, we get excited and

pieces to change in a violent manner

notice the power of 42 g5+ after the sec­

the energy balance between the two

ond close-up check, which also wins the

armies. Alternatively, we might talk

opponent's queen. Bingo! Here the key

about a combination as exposing in

39 .l:!.xh6+!! 1-0

dramatic fashion the lack of coordina­ tion among the opponent's pieces.

to the position is the pawn on g4. White

Black loses his queen after 39 ... gxh6

wins because he is able to coordinate

40 'iYg8+ Wf6 41 "ii'f8+ '.tg6 42 'iYxf3, or

the action of his queen with this pawn it is a vital pivot for her.

Both definitions will help us in our

39 .. shh6 40 �8+ �g5 (or 40 . . .Wg6 41

task of discovering combinations. We

"iVh5+ �f6 42 g5+ followed by 43 "ii'xf3)

As we said above, Bronstein had to

need to notice when there is a lack of

41 �5+ '.tf4 (or 41.. .�f6 42 g5+) 42

see 39 li.xh6+ before 35 �6. That

�f5+ �e3 43 �xf3+.

might seem a long way ahead, but

harmony in the enemy camp,

and

where the energy level of our own

Korchnoi had been under pressure

pieces is particularly concentrated, and

a long time, not just a pawn down but

then ask: are there any ' crazy' moves or

with a weakness on b3 to defend. But

planned before playing 35 "iib6 or else

amine forcing moves with the queen

ideas that can exaggerate both of these

in time pressure he thought he saw his

he would have thrown away his ad­

and rook, nothing else. The real diffi­

factors, our own energy and the oppo­

salvation when Bronstein played:

vantage and also jeopardized the draw.

culty is in seeing that 39 .l:!.xh6+ exists

nent's lack of it?

35 'i!Vb6

The question is, how can we teach our­

as an option.

Combinations are an essential part of power play - an explosive way of exploiting dynamism, as it were.

Game 4 D.Bronstein-V.Korchnoi Mo scow vs Le n i ngrad match 1962 Ruy Lopez

The reply came in a flash:

don't forget that the position is pretty White's

combination

had

to

be

selves to see ideas such as 39 li.xh6+.

35 ... li.d 2

Here's a general rule that might be use­

Suddenly there is a double threat of

ful: if you are attacking the enemy king

36 . . .li.xb2 and 36 .. :iVxf3. Has our hero

with a queen and rook, and there are

blundered?

no defenders in sight, just a bit of pawn

36 "ii'b 8+ Wh7 37 li.e8!

cover, don't trust the pawn cover to

Letting Black carry out his threat. 3 7 ...'i!Vxf3 We

save the king. Look for 'crazy' moves to break through it!

shall

return

to

empty of pieces. White only had to ex­

consider

We might elaborate the rule by add­

37. . . li.xb2 later in the chapter.

ing that a king hates being checked

38 li.h8+ �g6

I

Promising-looking moves deserve to be calculated

GameS V.Topalov-V.Kramnik Li n a re s 1994 Sicilian Defence

close up' by the enemy queen. So if you

1 e4 e5 2 ctJf3 ctJe6 3 i.b5 a6 4 i.a4 ctJf6

With mate on g2 and the b2-pawn

are attacking the opponent's king with a

1 e4 e5 2 ctJf3 ctJe6 3 d4 exd4 4 ctJxd4

5 0-0 ctJxe4 6 d4 b5 7 i.b3 d5 8 dxe5

hanging, it seems that Bronstein is go-

queen and rook, try to find a way to

ctJf6 5 ctJe3 d6 6 f3 e5 7 ctJb3 i.. e7 8 ..te3

16

17

Che ss Secrets: Th e G i a n ts of Po wer Play

The Dy n a mic Eleme n t

..ie6 9 lLldS Ji.xds 10 exds lLlb4 11 e4 a s

On the other hand Black can still re­

and you can easily verify that after

1 2 lLld2 lLld7 1 3 lLle4 fS 14 lLle3 0-0 1 5

taliate with 29 . . . lLlxd5 and if White per­

33 . . . �xg6 34 'it'xe2 or 33 . . . lLlxg1 34 lLlxf8

32 .. .'iVxe7 33 gxf4 leaves White with an

..ie2 1i.gs 1 6 .i.f2 ii'f6 1 7 0-0 lLla6 is

sists with lLlxc8 he has ...lLlxf4+ and

lLlxf8 35 �xg1 White has an extra rook.

extra rook.

..id3 �h6 19 'iVe2 'u'aeS 20 ..ie2 lLlaes 2 1

. . .lLlxe2, grabbing the white queen.

Therefore Black has to come up with a

32 ...�hS 33 'it'd1!

g3 e 4 22 f4 .idS 23 a3 lLlf6 24 �g2 .i.b6

So far it is: for White, lLlxd6, lLlxc8,

25 ..ig1 lLled7 26 lLlbS ..ixg1 27 �xg1

lLle7+ and

'it'g6

. . . lLlxd5, ... lLlxf4+ and . . .lLlxe2.

lLlxg6; versus for Black,

Surely a good deal for White? He picks up in sequence a pawn, rook, and

with

vital

now

capacity to

be a very good move. It is therefore

queen, while Black only gains two

worth him devoting considerable en­

pawns and the queen. If we look even

ergy to working out whether it

further ahead, we'll see that the white

a good move. After all, the reward is

knight which ends up on g6 after lLlxg6

evident - if Black loses the vital d6-

really is

will be attacking the black rook on f8,

pawn without sufficient compensation,

while the black knight on e2 will be

his game is ruined. The Bulgarian will

attacking the white rook on g l . That

get to beat one of the most promising

more or less cancels itself out - both

young players in the world.

sides will have a knight hanging, and

So let's see what happened in the

The queen moves to safety and guards aI, leaving both black knights

game. For a few moves it followed the

hanging.

above analysis:

33 ... lLlh3

would like very much to take on d6,

met by 'it>f1, so that the black knight

but 28 lLlxd6? meets with the riposte

does indeed hang on e2 to 'it'xe2.

position

If

Having seen this much, Topalov knows that 29 lLlxd6 has the

We should add that ...lLlxf4+ should be

diagram

time.

lose.

both knights will be attacking a rook. the

of

nuance in this sequence, or else he will

White

In

gain

Nonetheless, the position remains tense as e7 and gl are both en prise.

28 . . .lLlxd5!, threatening 29 ... lLlxf4+ win­

Therefore, after the series of retalia­

ning the queen, when after 29 cxd5

tory blows, White will emerge with

The white knight completes its es­

'iVxd6 Black has a good position thanks

about an extra rook for a couple of

cape from enemy territory. Now Black

34 lLldS!

to the weakness of the d5-pawn and

pawns. Let's imagine this sequence: 29

has no time to capture on gl as his

the strength of his own

lLlxd6 lLlxdS 30 lLlxc8 lLlxf4+ 31 �f1

queen is hanging.

lLlxe2 32 lLle7+ �f7 33 lLlxg6

34 ...�b2 35 �g2 f4

protected

passed pawn on e4. So Topalov had to settle for gaining

Being a rook down, Kramnik's last

some space on the queenside.

throw of the dice is a direct attack on

2S b4 lieS

the rather exposed white king.

Once again offering the pawn on

36 gxf4 "iVes!? 37 l1a 2!

d6. Now a tactical theme appears, be­

29 lLlxd6! lLlxdS! 30 lLlxeS lLlxf4+ 31 'it>f1

cause after 29 lLlxd6, not only would

'it'f6

As we shall see, this prepares a highly resourceful defensive idea.

the rook on c8 be hanging, but beyond

Seeing that he loses as discussed af­

that a fork of the black queen and king

ter 31.. .lLlxe2 32 lLle7+ �f7 33 lLlxg6,

Black would get the attack he wants

on e7 would be on the cards: namely

Kramnik sidesteps this sequence by

after 38 lLlxb6? ii'xf4+, but White's re­

lLlxd6, lLlxc8 and lLle7+ and

counterattacking against a l .

ply kills his initiative.

32 lLle7+!

3S 'iVa1!

lLlxg6.

That's a lot of material White would be grabbing! 18

The knight saves itself from capture

3 7 ...lLlb6

The possibility of ii'xg7 mate means 19

The Dyn amic Elem e n t

Ch ess S e c re t s : The G ia n ts of Po wer Play that Black has no good way to avoid

lbf3 �g4 6 Ji.e2 cxd4 7 cxd4 e 6 8 lbC3

(there are no other safe squares for the

to deter i t further. And yet such i s the

the exchange of queens, after which all

Ji.b4 9 0-0 "iVas

queen) 16 "iVxaS lbxaS 17 lhe7 and

explosive power of Alekhine's combi­

White has won a piece.

nation

11 d S !

charges forward. He plans to cause

hope is at an end.

that

the

pawn

nevertheless

maximum trouble for the enemy mon­ arch, who is sitting uneasily on e8, and also for his 'close adviser' the queen, who is going to be obliged to make a hazardous journey to a l . Let's look a t some o f the variations the World Champion must have exam­ ined. If 1 1 . . .lId8 or 1 1 . . .0-0-0, 12 'iib3! is very

strong,

as

12 . . .Ji.xc3

13

dxc6!

leaves both c3 and b7 hanging. Noth­ If White now satisfies himself in de­

ing

too difficult to see so far.

38 .. J�xf4+ 39 �e1! 1-0

fending c3 with the quiet 10 Ji.d2, then Black would catch up in development

The military genius Alexander the

There are positions in which a com bination is obligatory

with 10 . . .lbf6 and 1 1 . ..0-0, whereupon

Great often chose to attack a hostile

points

White would not only have failed to

army at its strongest, rather than weak­

namely the trapping of the black queen

gain any opening advantage, he would

est, point on the battlefield. He rea­

on a l : 12 lbxdS exdS

even have the worst of it due to the

soned that the enemy general and his

Here is an example of Alekhine fol­ lowing his own advice in a game

isolated pawn on d4.

Harder to calculate is 1 1 . ..lbxdS

tioned themselves behind their sound­

fourth

sary mental effort' and, after a thor­

est defences. Therefore a rapid break­

Champion was still playing

ough analysis of the position, produced

through in that sector, even at huge

with flair and imagination just a couple

one of the best combinations of his life.

cost, might quickly decide matters by

of years before his death. If Alekhine

10 a 3 ! !

dentally, World

it

shows

that

the

had managed to survive beyond 1946

A t first i t seems bizarre t o attack the bishop, as the a3-pawn is pinned. But

We chess players are less blood­

Alekhine's keen tactical eye has seen a

thirsty than Macedonian warrior kings,

projected match for the World Cham­

chance to trap the black queen.

but we can still learn from their tech­

pionship.

10 lbf6

1 e4 cs 2 c3 dS 3 exds 'iix ds 4 d4 lbc6 S 20

combination,

cutting off the head of the enemy army

in reasonable health, he might have

Came 6 A.Alekhine-J.Podgorny Prague 1943 Sicilian Defence

Alekhine's

- both literally and figuratively.

given Botvinnik a hard time in their

•••

of

close advisers were likely to have sta­

And so Alekhine made the 'neces­

played near the end of his career. Inci­

when we discover one of the main

niques.

Here

Alexander

the

Chess

After 1O . . . Ji.xc3 1 1 bxc3 'iixc3 12 lIb 1

Player has chosen to strike his oppo­

13 axb4! "iVxal 14 'iib3! (getting his

0-0-0 either 13 'iia4 or 13 �e3 gives

nent on the most well-defended square

own queen out of the way so that a

White a very dangerous attack on the

in his centre. Black has three units - the

bishop

black king. Alternatively, if instead of

queen, knight on f6 and pawn on e6 -

pocket her opposite number) 14 ... i..xf3

directly

IS

ii.d2,

would

castling Black gives back the pawn

all

break­

IS Ji.gS! 'iixfl+ 16 ..txfl Ji.e4 17 f3, and

through, along with the latent possi­

the black king will be caught under

"iVa4! still leaves him in deep trouble.

bilities

One threat of many is IS Ji.b2 "iVaS

... ..txc3, removing the pawn's defender,

... lId8

(or

this

say

with 12 . . . lbge7, then 13 lIxb7 0-0 14

of

opposing

move,

... 0-0-0),

and

attack in the centre, with his pieces un­ able to provide an adequate defence. 21

C h e s s S e c re ts: T h e G i a n ts of Po w e r Play In the game Podgamy managed to

The Dyn amic Eleme n t are safe and compact and have some

avoid losing his queen and also got to

nice

central

squares,

especially d4,

castle, but he lost too much material in

whereas the black rooks don't have any

the process.

attractive open files, nor any strong

11... exd5 12 axb41 'iVxal 13 tbd2!

passed pawns to support.

Even without queens, you can 't rely on natural moves

the diagram position: 1) The bishop pair. 2) Pressure on the a7-pawn.

The following game appears, at first glance, to be of a positional rather than

3) Control of the d-file, which deters . .. tbc6 in view of l:td7.

a dynamic nature. But a little analysis

All these advantages seem on the

soon reveals that Geller would have

point of vanishing over the next couple

got nowhere if he had relied on 'natu­

of moves, but let's see how Geller pre­

ral', 'strategical' moves. On the con­

served them.

trary, he had to be ready to calculate

15 iLel!

and discover important tactical nu­ ances, or else his highly resourceful opponent

would

have

escaped

his

grasp.

Well, you might

think

that's

a

strange way to begin an attack! In fact Geller is

storing energy in his position

by preventing the exchange IS . . . tbxc3, which would also clear the way for a

Threatening both 14 .ixg4 and 14 tbb3! when the black queen has no safe

lS.. JbbS 19 b5 1 Not letting the knight on b3 be mo­

squares.

lested by the black rook.

13 ... .ixe2 14 �xe2+ tbe7

19 ... axb5 20 Iioxa7 b4 21 tbe2 �fcS 2 2

If instead 14 . . .�f8 White continues

f 3 n a s 2 3 ItxaS l:txaS 24 �f2 tb d 7 2 5

IS tbb3 �a6 16 bS and wins the knight,

tbf4 tb b 6 2 6 � e 3 l:tcS 27 � d 3 g5 2S

leading to a material balance similar to

tbh5 1-0

the game, but with the black king stuck in the centre. 15 lIel! 0-0 It turns out Black had no good way

Game 7 E.Gelier-P .Keres USSR C h a m pion s h i p, Moscow 1952 Nimzo-Indian Defence 1 d4 tbf6 2 c4 e6 3 tbC3 .ib4 4 e3 b6 5

15 ... �fS Of course if Black plays IS .. Jhc4??

dXc3 12 .ixc3 tbe4 13 'iVxdS ItxdS 14

the centre and makes the threat to the

�fdl gcS

white bishop real. 16 l:td4 The

Ukrainian

Grandmaster

de­

fends his bishop, attacks the knight on e4 and prepares to double rooks on the d-file.

16 tbb3! "i!Ya6

16 ... �e7

The only move, but now White can

In principle it is handy for Black to

safely grab the knight.

have the king bolster his defences

17 'iVxa6 bxa6 lS l:txe7

22

serve his own pieces for the forthcom­

he is mated. So Keres rushes his king to

has White's combination failed? No,

advantage. However, his minor pieces

them. Similarly, Geller needs to pre­

dXc4 9 .i.xC4 c5 10 a3 cxd4 11 axb4

Alekhine had seen a bit further:

doesn't sound like an overwhelming

board, as he can gain time by harassing

.id3 0-0 6 tbf3 d5 7 0-0 .i.b7 S .id2

IHe8 and Black is suddenly winning. So

two pieces for a rook and pawn, which

good for White to keep the black knight on e4 and bishop on b7 on the

ing attack.

to defend e7, but if now 16 �xe7??

The dust has settled. Alekhine has

second exchange with 16 . . . j"xf3. It's

along the d-file, but he always has to

Black despairs of defending his col­

watch out for a sudden b4-bS and

lection of weak pawns. A

fantastic

display

chess from Alekhine.

of

�b4+. At the moment this isn't dan­

dynamic

gerous as Black can reply ... tbcS, block­ White has three small advantages in

ing out the bishop; but if the knight 23

Chess S e c re ts: The Gia n ts of P o w e r Play leaves e4 or is eliminated, the check

Th e Dyn amic Eleme n t I f 19 . . . fxeS Geller intended t o exploit

has been able to work out that his king

might be very painful.

Black's lack of development with a

is in time to stop Black's passed pawn.

17 l:i.adl

couple of pins, diagonal and frontal: 20

A splendid effort.

The entrance of the black king hasn't

solved

the

problem

queenside development,

as

of

l:i.xe4 iLxe4 (not forced, but otherwise

his

he is just left with ugly e-pawns) 21

17 ... tLlc6

i..xe4 tLlc6 22 bS l:i.d8 23 l:i.c1 ! and White

Dynamism a nd psychology

would allow either 18 l:i.xe4 or 18 l:i.d7+.

will end up with two pieces for a rook.

In the following game, Alekhine man­

17 ...l:i.C7

19 ...tLld6

ages to introduce a dynamic element that is highly disagreeable to his oppo­ nent. Richard Reti was at least the equal of Alekhine in the field of strategy when So Black has completed his devel­

he was playing White and had the

opment and, despite everything, the

chance to adopt one of his beloved flank

players are equal on points: White has

openings. It needs only be recalled that

two pawns for the exchange. However,

he used the opening that now bears his

there isn't much that the black rook can

name to beat Capablanca at New York

attack, as b2 and b4 are securely de­

in 1924 - the Cuban's first loss in eight

fended. Meanwhile, White's bishop

years. If the Hungarian born Grandmas­

pair can exert enormous pressure on

ter had a weakness, it was in the field of

the fragile black kingside pawns. In

tactics. He seemed to underestimate the

Now, however, Black is on the point

Keres is ready to answer 20 ..txh7?

of playing 18 ... tLld7 with equality. It

fxeS 21 �xd6 with 2 1 . . .i.. d S! trapping

only a couple of moves the g7-pawn

importance of dynamism and calcula­

looks as if White can't prevent this

the white rook on d6 and winning the

drops off the board, whereupon White

tion. He did so well with the Reti and

with 18 tLleS?? because 18 . . . f6 19 tLlf3 eS

exchange. So Geller has to back off

has three connected passed pawns.

English Openings because they not only

wins material (moving the white rook

with 20 tLlc4 tLlxc4 21 i..xc4, when Black

With the position in front of us it

away from d4 drops the bishop on c4).

can equalize with 21.. .tLlc6. A pity that,

isn't too difficult to see that White has

strategic mastery, they also helped to

But Geller made a habit of playing 'im­

but it was a precise defence by the Es­

excellent chances. But don't forget that

mask his tactical deficiencies.

possible' moves throughout his career.

tonian

18 tLles!

agreed at this point.

Grandmaster.

A

draw

was

Geller had to persuade himself a long way in advance that this simplified

gave scope for him to demonstrate his

It has

often been asserted

that

Alekhine indulged in 'post-game ra­

The only way to keep his advan­

But no, that's not how the game

endgame would be good for him. He

tionalization' . That is to say, after win­

tage. If White had been a lazy fellow

ended. Geller once again played an

had to use both his powers of calcula­

ning a game with a complex attack that

and looked no further than 18 ... f6 be­

'impossible' move:

tion and his judgment.

involved judgment and intuition as

fore rejecting this move as a howler,

20 ..txh 7! fxes 21 l:i.xd6 ..tdS

Here is the conclusion of the game:

well as calculation, he would work out

Keres would have escaped. Instead, he

The rook is indeed trapped on d6,

28 ..tg8+ �d6 29 f4 exf4 30 exf4 tLle6

is stopped from playing 18 ... tLld7 and

but Geller has foreseen that it can be

31 iLes+ �dS 32 i..x g7 l:i.c8 33 iLxe6+

study and then claim to have seen eve­

remains bunged up. But the question

sacrificed

�xe6 34 Wf3 l:i.C4 35 iLC3 �d S 36 h4 a s

rything to a clear conclusion

remains - what

which White has excellent chances.

37 bxas l:i.xc3+ 38 bXc3 bxas 3 9 hS 'it'e6

plays to win material? The answer

22 �6xd S! exds 23 l:i.xdS l:i.cl 24 �f1

40 �e3 1-0

came in the game:

tLlc6 2 5 �e2 l:i.d8 26 l:i.xd8 tLlxd8 27 iLC3

18 ...f6 19 ..td 3 !

e6

24

does happen if Black

to

reach an endgame in

After his analytical feats earlier in the game, it's no surprise that Geller

all the variations in the quiet of his

during the game itself. Playing through his game against Reti, you might like to ask yourself: what did Black actually

need

to see at various points in his attack? 25

Th e Dyn amic Eleme n t

C h ess Se crets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play

Game 8 R. Reti-A.Alekhine Baden-Baden 1925 Reti Opening

crease the latent energy of the black

the g3-square which has been under­

pieces.

mined by both 20 iLhI and 23 . . .hxg3. A

21 b4 a6 22 .l::!.c1 h4 23 a4 hxg3 24 hxg3

crazy rook move to attack it is 26 . . ..l::!.e3, which opens the way for a close-up

�C7 2S bS Reti begins an immediate attack on

check after 27 fxe3 'iVxg3+. Once we

the queenside. Instead, the preliminary

start looking at this, we don't have to

25 e4 would drive the black knight

see beyond 28 Ji.g2 lbxe3 to realize that

1 g3 es 2 lbf3 e4 3 lbd4 dS 4 d3 exd3 S

from the centre and avoid all the un­

White is being mated on g2. The fact

'iVxd3 lbf6 6 ii.g2 i.. b4+ 7 i..d 2 i.xd2+ 8

welcome tactics that follow. On the

that the white queen is hanging after

lbxd2 0-0 9 c4 lba6 10 cxdS lbb4 11

other hand, Reti loved to hold back his

28 . . . lbxe3 is of no objective relevance,

"*,C4 lbbxdS 12 lb2b3 c6 13 0-0 .l::!.e8 14

centre pawns, and doesn't want to ob­

but it is a great confidence booster: 'If

IUd1 iLg4 lS .l::!.d 2 'iVc8 16 lbcs i.. h 3 17

struct his bishop's view of the c6-

I'm dreaming and it isn't forced mate

�f3 ..\tg4 18 ..\tg2 i.. h 3 19 i..f3 iLg4

square.

on g2, no matter as White won't have

2S ... axbs 26 axbs .l::!.e 3!

time to save his queen!' 27 lbf3? Reti loses his composure and im­

Here Alekhine wrongly claimed a draw by three-fold repetition. It has

Psychology

and

dynamism!

Alekhine doesn't give his opponent a

Alekhine aims first o f all t o conquer the pawn on e2. It is a perfect target for the following reasons:

mediately makes a serious blunder. It

1) It is on a tactically sensitive

is often the case that rushing defenders

square, being the distance of a knight's

towards an endangered king causes

fork from the rook on d and king on

more trouble than the original threat.

gl.

The knight was performing an impor­

2) It is performing a vital defensive

tant role on d4, guarding both the b5-

role in guarding f3 against the attack of

and e2-pawns. Even worse, retreating

the black rook and bishop.

it to f3 shuts in the bishop on hI, which

been suggested that this was a psycho­

28 ...lbc3 !

3) It can be attacked with gain of

loses influence over the centre. This

time by simultaneously hitting

reduction in the energy of the white

white queen.

pieces allows Alekhine to begin a series of tactical operations.

the

Black still has a rook hanging on e3, but he knows that, after White saves

logical ruse to persuade his opponent

second chance to dislodge the knight

The logical move was 27 ii.f3!, chal­

to put his bishop on an inferior square.

from d5 with 27 e4. Therefore Reti is

lenging the black bishop and strength­

... lbxe2+ attacking the white rook on d .

After all, having protested his right to

denied a quiet, 'neat' game where he

ening, rather than weakening, White's

continue the game, it was somehow

can demonstrate his talent for strategy.

hold over the e2-square.

Therefore n o variations needed to be calcu­ lated here. It was only necessary to no­

embarrassing for Reti to agree to a

How did Alekhine find this idea?

draw with 20 ..\tg2.

Well, remember what we said in the

20 i.. h 1 h S !

27 ... cxbS

his queen, he will get in first with

tice that after 29 'ifc4 b5! the white

White has lost control and is hit by

queen has to give up her defence of e2.

Bronstein extract above:

wave after wave of attacks, with never

29 it'xb7 it'xb7 30 lbxb7 lbxe2+ 31 Wh2

a moment to catch his breath.

the retreat of White's bishop to hI and

If you are attacking the opponent's king with a queen and rook, try to find a way to give a close-up check with your queen, no matter how crazy it looks.

the softening up of the g3-pawn in-

Here the black queen is staring at

Alekhine pre-empts White's queen­ side push with a pawn advance of his own on the kingside. As we shall see,

26

28 "it'xbs

Up

until

here

Alekhine

hasn't

needed to calculate much. He has al­

If Reti had kept his knight on d4 he

ways had the luxury of knowing that

could have replied 28 lbxb5, and so

31. ..lbxd will be at least okay for him.

avoided all the grief that follows.

In fact, this would give him a tiny, but 27

Th e Dyn amic Elem e n t

Chess S e c r e ts : The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play 33. . .l:I.d5! 34 l:I.c4 liJ2xg3. White not only

35 l:I.xe2 with good drawing chances.

could fight on in a losing position with

Therefore at this point Black needs

loses a pawn but will drop more mate­

Unfortunately for Reti, not only is he a

39 'itth4! .

to start looking at other moves. He gets

rial as his king is so badly placed; for

pawn down but his opponent can also

39 h2 liJxc2 40 �xf3 liJd4 4 1 l:I.f2 liJxf3+ 42 l:1.xf3 i.d 5! 0-1

meaningless, advantage after 32 fxe3.

nowhere special with 31...i.xf3 32 iLxf3

example, 35 i.g2 liJ£1 +! 36 �x£1 (if 36

target his king.

liJxc1 (or 32 ...l:I.xf3 33 l:1.xe2) 33 fxe3 etc.

Wg1 l:1.d1 37 �x£1 i.xf3 and wins with

3 3 ... �e6!

Instead, 31. ..l:I.xf3 32 l:1.xe2 l:I.xg3 33

38 . . . liJd2 due to the pin on £1 ) 36 . . .ii.xf3

'l.t>xg3 �xe2 leaves him with an extra

The white knight is lost. his

A brilliant display of power play by

and there is no good answer to the

pieces. He attacks the rook on c4 and

Alekhine. Once he had been given his

Beginning

a

regrouping

of

pawn. That's better, but still it is virtu­

threat of 37. . . .:.h5+ 38 .th3 liJg5 win­

wins time for his next move which

chance with 26 . . . l::!.e3! ! he kept Reti un­

ally impossible to win. So what other

ning a piece, as 38 Wg1 l:I.h1 is mate.

obliges the white king to walk into a

der relentless pressure.

moves are there? If you examine the

Alekhine didn't need to see all this - it

discovered attack.

position enough, you should be able to

was quite sufficient to get as far as

34 l:1.cc2

come across Alekhine's actual move.

34 . . .liJ2xg3 and conclude that Black is a

Reti attacks e2. If he tries 34 l:I.c5

pawn up with a strong initiative.

then 34 . . .l:I.aa3! is crushing.

3 2 l:1.C4!

34 ... liJg4+ 35 'itth 3 liJe5+ I suspect it was at this point that

William Hartston makes an interest­ ing comment on this game in

The Kings

af Chess: "From the 26th move ( . . . ) a se­ quence of mind-boggling combinations

Alekhine conceived his final combina­

take over the board, eventually involv­

tion. Everything could be worked out

ing all the pieces. Such chess, even at

due to the small number of pieces on

the highest level, is not calculable; it is

the board and the forcing nature of the

intuition backed up by the calculation

play - as you will see, White has

of the essential variations at each stage.

hardly any choice with his moves.

The human mind is capable of no

36 h2

more. Yet Alekhine's notes give no in­ dication of the unfathomable nature of such play, of the doubt that must have existed in his mind while playing the

3 1...liJe4!

game."

Black attacks both the rook on d2 and the pawn on f2. It is worth repeat­

Reti tries to confuse matters with

I would qualify this slightly by add­

ing that he is risking absolutely noth­

his clever rook move. If now 32 . . . �xf3

ing that, although Alekhine might have

ing in leaving the rook hanging on e3.

33 l:I.xe4! ! is a move worthy of one of

After 32 fxe3 liJxd2 material is equal,

his endgame studies. Then 33 . . . �xe4

but with both the white rook on c1 and

(after 33 . . .l:I.xe4 34 .txf3 equalizes) 34

the knight on f3 hanging. Therefore

fxe3 �xh1 35 xh1 liJxg3+ 36 Wg2

Black is bound to get in first when it

gives White a survivable endgame.

comes to grabbing material. And so it

32 ...liJxf2

doubted if his advantage would be enough to win, he was always in a po­ sition to bail out with a slight, if unreal­ izable, advantage. There was never a stage in the complications in which he didn't have an obvious way to remove

proves after 33 liJxd2 liJxc1 when he

Alekhine's rook has been hanging

36 ...l:I.xf3 ! 3 7 ':'xe2 liJg4+ 38 'itt h 3 liJe3+!

the tension and therefore all danger.

wins the exchange, or 33 l:I.c2 liJxf3+ 34

on e3 since move 26! But now he re­

38 ... l:I.f6!? was an interesting alterna­

What I find most enthralling about the

moves the threat, winning a pawn and

tive, threatening mate on h6. Then after

game is how close it came to burning

39 ':'xe6 fxe6 40 Wxg4 l:I.a4+ White is

out to a draw, but Alekhine always

mated by 41 'itth3 l:I.h6 or 41 g5 l:I.f5+

found a way to maintain the dynamic

42 g6 ':'g4 mate! However, White

element. As Hartston himself remarks,

i.xf3 i.xf3 winning a piece. Instead, 32 l:I.d8+ l:I.xd8 33 fxe3 has been suggested as the best chance for White, but this is entirely hopeless after 28

leaving g3 weaker. 33 i.g2 Hoping for 33 ... .txf3 34 i.xf3 ':'xf3

29

Th e Dyn amic Eleme n t

Ch ess S e crets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play "as a triumph of imagination and

that 40 "*"eS+ and 4 1 'ii'xb2 picks u p the

42 . . .�4+! when it is checkmate to the

judgment in conditions of obscure visi­

rook. So that means Black has to play

white king in three moves.

bility, it is quite magnificent." Alekhine

39 ..."*"f6!, when 40 'ii'd 3+ is the check­

Instead, the quiet 41 �h 3!!,

considered it to be one of his two most

ing reply.

A game saved by combinative power In the following game Alekhine is

brilliant tournament games, the other

positionally busted after 18 moves. But

being against Bogoljubow (see Chapter

rather than tamely submit to the loss of a pawn he makes an unsound, but

Four).

tricky knight sacrifice. This heaped a lot of psychological pressure on his

Sometimes you have to rely on intuition

opponent, who of course didn't know whether or not the World Champion was bluffing.

Here I wish to return to the Bronstein­ Korchnoi game given earlier in the

The result was the proverbial tri­

chapter. At move 37 let's see what

umph of spirit over matter - the force of Alekhine's personality breathed an

would have happened if Korchnoi had stopping

avoided the bait on f3 and instead cap­

... �4 ideas,

leaves Black

there

In his earlier calculations, I suspect

with no good answer to the threat of 42

might now follow 38 .l::t h 8+ �g6 39

that Bronstein stopped about here as

"*"dS+ �f4 43 I:!.e8. For example, after

1fid6+.

his intuition told him that there would

41 ... "*"es 42 .l::tf8 g6 (to stop the killer

almost certainly be a way to exploit the

check on fS), White has 43 f4+ winning

tured on b2.

After

37 ....l::txb2

exposed black king. In contrast to the

the queen or, better still, 43 'iWd8+ forc­

game,

ing mate.

in which Black was

always

unstoppable power into his pieces.

Game 9 K.Opocensky-A.Alekhine Prague 1942 Old Indian Defence

threatening ...'ii'xg2 mate, White can

I doubt very much - nay, it is im­

afford the luxury of a quiet move or

possible! - that Bronstein had seen 41

1 d4 tLJf6 2 c4 d6 3 tLJc3 tLJbd7 4 tLJf3 eS

two to pick off either the black rook,

'it>h3!! when he played 3S "iVb6. In the

5 g3 c6 6 i.g2 i.e7

queen, or king. And as a 'safety valve'

actual game,

after

Here we see Alekhine' s antipathy to

White always has a draw if he keeps on

37 .. :�·xf3 to have noticed 39 .l::txh6+!! in

the kingside fianchetto. Having played

checking the black king.

advance as Black was threatening mate

S . . . c6 he doesn't want to weaken the

it was essential

Analysis confirms that Bronstein's

in one. In contrast, Bronstein had to

d6-pawn any further and so keeps the

intuition was correct. Black loses his

trust his intuition that a move like 41

bishop defending it. No doubt Bron­

queen after 40 . . .'it>f7 41 'iVdS+ 'it>e7 (if

\t>h3!! would exist in the position after

stein would have played 6 . . . g6, when 7

If now 39 ... �gS? a nice computer

41...�g6 42 iHhS mate, or 41...'ii'e6 42

37 .. Jhb2. In any case, he wasn't taking

0-0 i..g7 8 e4 0-0 is similar to his games

might tell you it is mate in eight moves

l:tf8+ ! �e7 43 .l::te8+ etc) 42 'ilVd8+ �e6 43

a risk as he could take a draw as he

with Zita and Reshevsky - see Chapter

.l::te8+ �f7 44 11f8+ and wins.

pleased.

Eight.

beginning with 40 .l::tf8! . (If Black does the sensible thing and saves his queen with 40 .. :ikc4 it is a much quicker mate:

7 0-0 0-0 8 "iYc2 exd4?

Instead, 40 ...'it>gs is a harder nut to

Hence we have seen that when

crack. White would like to play 41

making a combination, some tactics

A modem player would trust in the c6/d6/eS pawn centre, and stand his ground with, say, 8 ... "ifc7 or 8 ... .l::te8. We

41 l:tfS+ and 42 l:thS, or 41 "*"eS+ and

"ifdS+?! �f4 (if 41...�g6 it's mate on hS)

must be seen in advance (39 .l::txh6+! ! ),

mate on fS or h4 as Black prefers.) But

42 .l::te 8(??) when the threat of 43 l:te4

whereas in other cases we have to rely

means it is checkmate to the black king

on our intuition and cross bridges as

shall also discuss this topic in Chapter

we come to them (41 �h3!!).

Eight.

Bronstein didn't have to see that in ad­ vance - it was quite enough to spot 30

in nine moves - unless Black plays

31

Chess Secrets: Th e G i a n ts of P o w e r Play Instead, Alekhine reasons that "the

Th e Dyn amic Eleme n t wracking it must be when the greatest

l:i.fl .tb5 2 3 �f5 ..Il.xfl (or 2 3... tLlf2+ 24

pawn on d6 is weak, I should get rid of

tactical genius of the age (perhaps of

.uxf2) 24 �xg4 and wins.

it with ... d6-d5 in the style of the Griin­

any age) sacrifices a piece to attack

feld. Hence taking on d4 followed by

your king!

.. .lLJb6 and . . . d6-d5 is the way to pro­

19 �xf2?

1 6 e31

ceed." Such false logic will lead him

Me5 in variation 'b' and also notice the

The win was to be had with 19

close to defeat.

As you can see, Opocensky had to find the unusual manoeuvre .uxdS and

�xd5! '

back rank trick with 'iixc8+. If Alekhine had chosen variation ' c' the Czech mas­

9 tLlxd4 tLlb6 10 b3 dS 11 :td1!

ter would have had to convince himself

Now Black would be busted after

that Black could achieve nothing after

11 ...dxc4 12 tLlxc6 fVe8 13 tLlb5! threat­

the discovered check on his king with

ening 14 tLlc7 trapping the queen.

20 . . . tLlg4+. This isn't at all easy with a

11 .. .'i!id7 ?

ticking clock and the World Champion

Even so, Alekhine should make d o

sitting opposite you.

with 1 1 . . .ii.d7, though h e remains i n an

If Black does nothing then the sim­

Even though objectively he should

uncomfortable position after 12 cxd5

ple plan of 17 tLle2 and 18 tLlf4 will win

have lost, Alekhine was entirely correct

lbfxd5 13 tLlxd5 tLlxd5 14 ii.b2.

the d5-pawn whilst keeping a crushing

to gamble in this fashion. If he had qui­

12 cxdS tLlbxds 13 tLlxds cxd S 14 .Jl.b2

positional

etly accepted the loss of a pawn he

'ue8 1S �ac1

Alekhine has to employ all his tactical

would most likely have been ground

ingenuity to set his opponent prob­

down in the endgame, if he had sur­

superiority.

Therefore

a ) After 19 ... �g4? the knight can be

lems. 16...tLle4! 17 tLle2 it.b6 18 tLlf4 tLlxf2 !

vived that long. Certainly he would

captured with the queen: 20 1lixf2 .Jl.xe3

have

21 �xe3 llxe3 22 :td8+ and mates.

Whereas after the sacrifice all three re­

b) If 19 . . .�e7 the e3-point can be

had

zero

winning

chances.

sults are possible: win, loss or draw.

shielded with 20 l:te5, followed again

Opocensky feels he has the win of a

by taking on f2, unless Black gives up

lifetime in his grasp, and believes he

his queen with 20 ...�xe5, which fails to

can achieve it with a positional queen

21 ii.xe5 l:txe5 22 1lixc8+! lte8 (taking

sacrifice.

the queen allows another back rank

19 ...Sl.xe3 20 �xe3 l:.xe3 21 tLlxds

mate) 23 'iixa8 (simplest) 23 . . .Mxa8 24 'i£ixf2 and Black must resign. c) Perhaps Alekhine was planning

White has a perfect development, a game

free

of weaknesses

and

to give up his queen at once with

the

19 ... .txe3 20 llxd7. If now 20 . . . .ixd7 21

chance to attack dS. Meanwhile the black queen on d7 and bishop on c8

One can imagine how Karel Opo­

..Il.xb7 is objectively best but, person­

make a horrid impression.

censky must have been feeling at this

ally, playing Alekhine I would simplify

1S ....Jl.d8

moment. He has all his pieces on excel­

with 21 �xf2 ..Il.xf2+ 22 'it>xf2 with an

The bishop stops an invasion on c7

lent squares, while Black's rook on a8

easily

and seeks activity on b6. Of course, it

and bishop on c8 are shut out of the

..Il.xb7! ). Alternatively Black might try

won

endgame

(22 . . .Mac8

23

would have been much simpler to have

game. So the complications

must work

20 . . .lbg4+ 21 'it>hl ii.xd7 (if 21 . . .lbf2+ 22

put the bishop on g7 in the opening ...

out in White's favour. But how nerve-

�xf2 simplifies and stays a piece up) 22

32

33

C h ess S e c rets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play The white rooks control open files

23 ... i.. h 3 ! !

and the knight threatens t o pick u p an enemy rook in one move (22 tbxe3) or two moves (22 tbc7 and 23 tbxa8).

C h a pt e r Two

Alekhine sees that the second threat can be ignored. 2 1...l:te2! As we shall see this is a counterat­ tack against both white bishops, not

I

Catching the Ki n g in the Centre

just the one or b2. White is obliged to go ahead with his combination as 22 tbf6+ gxf6 23 Itxd7 .i.xd7 just leaves him material down. The World Champion has achieved a beautiful coordination amongst his three remaining pieces. The miserable

22 tbc7 'ike7 23 tbxaS Opocensky has a rook, bishop and

bishop that spent almost half the game

Leaving the king too long in the centre

likely to have too much firepower for

shut in behind the queen delivers the

is an occupational hazard for chess

the defence to resist.

killer blow. If White replies 24 i..xh3 he

players. There are many reasons why

In the first games in this chapter,

is

we might gamble with the safety of our

Paul Morphy has a head start in acti­

24 ...'ike3+ 25 'it'hl 'ikf3+. If 24 i..e4 (a

most important piece, including in­

vating his rooks as there is no knight

desperate attempt to block the e-file),

competence, lack of a sense of danger,

on bl to get in the way of the rook on

rather than 24 . . Jhe4 25 iLa3!? "iWg5, my

and subtle miscalculation. Although it

al!

computer program wants to reply with

may appear a self-inflicted fault, power

mated in four moves beginning

the rather surreal 24 ... h5!. I'll leave you

players have employed various tech­

to work that out!

niques to persuade their opponents

24 11dS+ 'iixdS 2 5 i..x h3 "ii'x aS 0-1

into taking unnecessary risks with the

knight for the queen and a one-move

White wins the queen but loses the

threat in 24 .uxc8+. But he has lost con­

battle after 26 Itc8+ "ii'xc8 27 i..xc8

trol as Black can draw with 23 .. Jlxg2+

.l:1xb2.

24 'it'xg2 'iie2+, when the white king

The next time you mess up the

can't evade the checks. Alekhine finds

opening,

something even stronger.

come out fighting!

34

remember

this

game

and

king.

Rapid development crushes an inferior defence Players of the mid 19th century were

So let's imagine we have provoked

all too ready to indulge in pawn and

the opponent into leaving his king in

piece grabbing, even when judicious

the centre. What is the best way to pun­

development and the sober refusal to

ish him? A classic power play method

open lines was required.

is to bring the rooks with all possible

In contrast, Morphy first and fore­

speed into the attack. The opponent is

most aimed for a rapid and harmoni­

unlikely to be able to respond by call­

ous development of his pieces. He

ing up his own rooks into the defence,

wasn't interested in the overall size of

if only because his king is getting in the

his army, but rather how well it func­

way. Therefore, even if you make a

tioned as an attacking unit. His will­

heavy material sacrifice to involve your

ingness to make sacrifices to increase

rooks in the onslaught, you are still

the power and range of his pieces often

35

Chess S e c rets: The Gia n ts of P o w e r Play caught his inexperienced opponents out, who found their king slain before he had even put his boots on. We'll begin by looking at a couple

C a t c h i n g t h e King in t h e Cen tre 2 f4 exf4 3 tLlf3 g5 4 i.C4 g4?

of the white pieces. Imagine if White

Evidently Maurian has a different

hadn't given piece odds. In that case he

view of the situation: it's nice to be one

would still have a knight sitting un­

knight up, but even better to be two

moved on bI. This would have blocked

of the American's games played at

knights up!

in the rook on al and so prevented the

odds, in which a tiny, but well-drilled

5 d4!

Came 11 P.Morphy-T.Worra ll New Orlea ns 1857 Odds Came

game move, which prepares a decisive

force outwits a disorganized horde.

sacrifice on e7.

Certainly the opposition was weak, but

(remove the white knight from bl)

no one else has punished bad opening play with such elegance and panache

1 e4 e5 2 f4 exf4 3 tLlf3 g5 4 i.C4 g4 S

as Morphy.

d4 gxf3 6 0-01 .ii.. h6 7 Vi'xf3 tLlc6 Black is beginning to get the right idea in developing his pieces, so Mor­

Came 10 P.Morphy-C.Maurian New Orlea n s 1857 Odds Came

phy has to act fast. 8 �xf7+! Wxf7 9 'it'hS+ c,t;g7 10 i.xf4 �xf4 11 .l:Ixf4 tLlh6 Stopping

mate

on

f7

and

also

guarding the g4-square. Remember this is an odds game - so

Despite the smaller size of his army,

please remove the white knight from

Morphy doesn't hesitate to sacrifice a

Therefore Morphy would have had

bl!

minor piece. He realizes that he will

to develop the piece, say with 12 tLlc3,

have a superiority in numbers in the

thus giving the defence an important

only place where it matters, which is in

breathing space. In other words, the

the vicinity of the black king.

fact that there is a knight missing from

5 ... gxf3 6 'ii'xf3 d5 7 i.xd5 c6?

bl has proved to be to

Such pettiness when already two

White's advan­

tage, not Black's! It has given his attack

pieces up. He should develop with

a dynamism that outweighs the mate­

7. . . tLlf6!'

rial value of the knight.

8 Si.xf7+!

13 .. JWg6 14 .l:txe7+! c,t;f8

The black king is driven into the fir­

If 14 ...tLlxe7 15 �h6+! and mates.

ing line of the white queen and rooks.

15 Si.d6+ tLlf6 16 �xf6+ Vi'xf6 17 Vi'e8

8 ...Wxf7 9 Vi'h5+ cj;g7 10 ..txf4 .ii..e 7 11

mate

0-0 'it'xd4+ 12 Whl �xe4 l e4 e5

12 �afl!

An extremely attractive demolition

It seems Black is doing everything

of some outrageously greedy play.

Once again Morphy can rejoice that there is no knight on bl to get in the way of his rook's deployment to the

With an extra knight against Mor­

he can to help White's attack by wast­

phy, the priority is to survive long

ing moves with the queen and opening

enough to bring all your pieces into the

the e-file.

according to a preconceived system

Black has no good way to stop mate on

game. Therefore 1 . . .e6! would be a

13 �ael

against the odds-receiver is shown by

h5, as if 15 ... 'ii'e8 16 'iVg5 mate.

good way to start, shielding the f7square. 36

Reinforcements

arrive

from

the

queenside to complete the coordination

battlefield. The immediate threat is 13 The fact that Morphy was playing

.l:tg4+ tLlxg4 14 Vi'xg4+ cj;h6 15 .l:tf5! and

the following game, which is won in

12 .. JiVe8 13 Vi'h4 d6 14 �f6+ c,t;g8 15

almost identical style:

�xh6 37

C a t c h ing t h e K i n g in t h e Cen tre

Ch ess Secrets: Th e Gi a n ts of P o w e r Play Morphy is pleased not so much at

The fourth stage: pressure along the

game another pretty mate appears:

regaining a piece, but rather at remov­

20 l::i.fS+! 'iVxfS 21 l::i.xfS+ l::i.xfS 22 "ikxg6

e-file, culminating in e7 being attacked

ing an obstruction to his attack.

mate

four times. 15 .l:!.fe1 0,fd5 16 "ikg4 g6 17 "ikh4 as 1S

15 ... .1d7 16 l::i.1f3 0,e7

"iVxh7 .ixd4 19 0,xg6 C5 20 0,xfS 'it>xfS

The other black horse rushes over to

The fifth stage. Black has survived a

g6 to bolster the defence.

disaster on e7 with the manoeuvre

17 h4!

IS . . ..txd4 and 19 ... c5, but at the cost of

Even in the middle of an attack with heavy pieces Morphy doesn't forget

opening the d-file for the other rook.

that he needs the help of pawns to re­

21 l::i.a d1!

move obstacles. 17 ... 0,g6 1S h5! 5 ....1c5 6 0-0 0,f6 7 d4 exd4 S cxd4 3i.b6 9 .ia3 The

first

stage

of the

winning

The defeated king is blocked in by

scheme. One bishop goes to c4 to attack

two defenders on his flanks, giving us

£7, the other goes to a3 to cut off the

an

black king's escape.

epaulette mate.

9... d6 10 e5 Next we see the attacking scheme of

The second stage: White blasts open

the Evans Gambit in its purest form.

the centre with gain of time by attack­

Once again Morphy uses the absence of

ing the knight on f6.

the knight to good effect.

10... dxe5 11 "ikb3!

Once again Morphy can be happy that there is no knight on bl boxing in

Immediately

ousting

the

black

knight. 1S...�g4? For the first time in the game Wor­ rall refuses to grab material, and it is a

his queen's rook. What follows now is

Game 12 P.Morphy-T.Lichtenhein New York 1859 Odds Game

a tactical demolition. 21 ... 'it>eS 22 i.XC5! .ixC5 23 "iVgS+ 'it>d7 24 l::i.x d5+ 0,xd5 25 "iVxd 5+ .id6 26 "iVxb1+ �C7 27 'it'xaS 1-0

fatal mistake. If IS ... 0,xf4 19 l::i.g3+ 0,g6 20 hxg6 hxg6 21 l::i.xg6+ 'iVxg6 22 'iVxg6+

Here is

(remove the white knight from b1)

wants it, but having nabbed the queen

1 e4 e5 2 0,f3 0,c6 3 .1C4 3LC5 4 b4

he should be able to find a way to win

�xb4 5 c3

against a knight-odds player. 19 hxg6 hxg6

Morphy's most famous

game, played in an opera box in Paris

and Morphy has perpetual check if he

during a performance of

The Barber of Seville. Its most pleasing quality is the way Morphy blends the formal re­

Incidentally, one of the drawbacks The third stage, in which the white

of the Evans' Gambit is that this pawn

quirements of development with vig­

After 19 . . . �xf3 20 g7! .ie2 21 'iVf6!!

move takes away the c3-square from

queen joins in the battle. Already mate

orous

there is an unstoppable mate by queen­

the knight on b 1. Well, there are no

is threatened by 12 �xf7+ and 13 �e6.

achieve this feat needed some consid­

ing on hS. Have you ever seen a rook

complaints here as there ain't no knight

11

caught like this in the corner? In the

on b l !

14 0,xe5 l::i.fS

38

••.

.ie6 12 �xe6 fxe6 13 "it'xe6+ 0,e7

attacking play. Of course to

erable help from his (non-chess) titled opponents, the Duke and the Count. 39

C a t c h i n g t h e King in t h e Cen tre

C h e s s S e c re t s : The Gia n ts of P o w e r Play and ready for action, so the chance to

independence of decision and can only

The alternative was to grab the

sacrifice to open lines is heaven-sent.

react to White's moves.

pawn with 8 'iYxb7 and then slowly

On the other hand, there is no obvious

10 ... cxbS 11 .txbS+ CDbd7 12 O-O-O!!

grind out the win in the endgame after

way for Black to mobilize his pieces. If

8 ... �4+ 9 'iixb4 i.xb4+ 10 c3 etc. That

he plays 9 .. .'iVc7 then after 10 0-0-0 he

8 CDc3!

Game 13 P.Morphy-Duke of Brunswick a nd Count Isouard Paris 1858 Philidar Defence 1 e4 eS 2 CDf3 d6 3 d4 .tg4?! Morphy's

straightforward

devel­

opment has already provoked a less

would be the

classical way of handling

the position. Instead, Morphy realizes

still can't develop with 1O ... CDbd7 be­ cause f7 drops.

that keeping the tension leaves his op­

Of all Black's possible moves, 9 ... b6

ponents with a serious difficulties in

looks most solid; for example, 10 0-0-0

developing their game. This is the typi­

CDbd7. Now 11 CDb5 misses the mark

cal

than noble reaction from his illustrious

power play approach to a position.

because after 1 1 . . .cxb5 12 i.xb5 Black

These two approaches are by no

has the important defensive resource

opponents, who contrive to hand over

means

Morphy

12 ... 0-0-0!, whisking the king away

the bishop pair and let the white queen

could decide in a couple of moves time

mutually

exclusive:

from the pin on d7 and getting his

reach an active post.

to go pawn grabbing after all if it's the

queen's rook involved in the centre

4 dxes �xf3

only correct path. He simply believes

battle. Morphy would have had to set­

Development with concrete threats

that for the moment he can gain most

tle for 11 i.xf6!. If then 1 1 . . .CDxf6? 12

against f7. If now 12 . . . 0-0-0 13 Sl..a6+

Of course 4 ... dxe5 5 "iYxd8+ c;t>xd8 6 CDxe5 is unacceptable for Black.

benefit through patiently mobilizing

CDb5! breaks through in the style of the

and mate next move.

5 "iYxf3 dxes 6 .tc4

his pieces and leaving the Count and

game, e.g. 12 ... CDxe4 13 'iWf3! and the

12 ... .l:l.d8 13 �xd 7! I:l.xd7 14 �dl

Duke to stew in their predicament. Or

black king won't survive long. Mean­

Morphy completes the coordination

perhaps Morphy, an opera fan, wanted

while Black would lose a pawn after

of his pieces. It doesn't matter that he is

The bishop is developed and at the same time menaces f7. 6 ... CDf6 7 "iYb3! Attacking both b7 and f7. Here we see that Morphy was quite prepared to

to get the game over with as quickly as

1 1 . . .1i'xf6 12 i.xf7+ 1i'xf7 13 il'xf7+ �xf7

a rook down as Black is bound to suffer

possible so that he could enjoy the rest

14

a catastrophe on the d-file.

of the performance! ?

.txf7+ 'iixf7 13 "iYxf7+ c;t>xf7 1 4 l:Ixd7+.

�xd7+ or

similarly

11 ... gxf6

12

14.. :iYe6 15 Sl..x d7+

break the rule of rapid development if

I t i s also worth noting that Morphy

Instead, 15 i.xf6 'ir'xb3 16 Sl..xd7

he saw a tactical chance to cause his

had an immediate tactical opportunity

mate would be rather quaint, but Mor­

opponent problems.

with 8 .ixf7+, deflecting the black

phy finds an even more elegant finish.

7 .. :fie7

queen, so that after 8 .. :�Vxf7 9 'ir'xb7 the

lS ...CDXd7

rook on a8 perishes as there is no 9 . .'*'h4+ .

defence.

However,

Black

would then be able to build up pres­ sure on the kingside with 9 . . . .tc5 10 'iVxa8 0-0 when the f2-pawn is very vul­ nerable. Morphy always preferred to be the player offering material for the initiative. 10 CDxbS!

8... c6 9 .tgs bS? This move has been ridiculed for more

40

than

150

years.

Indeed,

A forcing phase now begins. Until

the

the end of the game Black is hit by one

American's pieces are all dressed up

threat after another - he has lost his 41

C a t c h i n g the K i n g in t h e Cen tre

C h es s S e c re ts: The Gia n ts of Po we r Play 16 'iWbS+! tt'lxbS 17 .l:.!.dS matel A wonderful, if lightweight game.

would

be

for

tactical,

rather

than

strategical, reasons.

Ii.d1 iLe7 10 exd4 tt'lb4 11 tt'le5 0-0

In such situations you can only take

White has promising pressure, but the

the material and hope for the best.

black position is still intact.

14 l:!.xd71 tt'lxd7 15 tt'le5 11a7 16 bXc31!

9 i.b3 b4?

At this point we'll get in our time machine and go forwards 80 years to see how Alekhine carried out a similar type of attack, though in a far more sophisticated manner.

A premature bid for counterplay refuted In the games so far we have seen a vastly inferior defence crushed by di­ rect, vigorous developing moves. In the

Here Black should play 6 . . . a6, aim­

next game the loser is a strong player

ing to gain space with 7... b5 and then

who received the 1M title when it was

put his bishop on b7. After 7 a4 or 7

Played with wonderful insouciance. The third pawn advance on the

A rook down, Alekhine calmly recap­

first conferred by FIDE in 1950. His

i.b3, showing respect for the ... b7-b5

queenside, and this time it is fatal.

tures the pawn, and asks his opponent:

errors are of such a subtle nature that it

advance,

White is allowed to blast open the cen­

how are you going to get out of your tangle?

Black

can

develop

with

requires his World Champion oppo­

7. . .tt'lc6 and 8. . . i.e7, as White has re­

tre before Black is able to evacuate his

nent to exert himself to the maximum.

nounced the idea of quick action in the

king.

Not many players would be prepared

centre. In contrast, if White tried to

10 d 5 1 tt'la5

It must be asserted that we are wit­ nessing no supreme feat of calculation

to remain a rook down for a long se­

break open the centre with 'iWe2 and

White regains his piece with a big

quence of moves!

l:1d1, the black knight is better de­

attack after 10 . . . exd5 11 tt'lxd5! tt'lxd5 12

solved like a mathematical theorem. It

ployed to d7, where it blocks the d-file

Mdl and then 13 e4 if necessary.

was impossible for him to work out all

and lends support to the c5-pawn. For

11 iLa4+ iLd7 12 dxe6!

the variations to an end. He had to ex­

Game 14 A.Alekhine-E.Book Ma rgate 1938 Queen 's Gambit

example, 7 'iWe2 b5 8 ..tb3 .tb7 9 li:tdl

Gaining a vital tempo to open the d­

by Alekhine, with the position being

amine a certain number of defensive

tt'lbd7 etc.

file.

tries by Black to make sure there was

7 'ii'e 2! a6

12 ...fxe6 13 .§.d1!

no obvious refutation of the sacrifice

It was safer to forget all about ex­

If White lost his nerve with 13

pansion on the queenside and just de­

.txd7+?, then after 13 . . :iWxd7 14 l:!.dl

1 d4 d5 2 c4 dxc4 3 tt'lf3 tt'lf6 4 e3 e6 5

velop the kingside with 7... cxd4 8 l:td1

'iWc6 he would have nothing better than

Not that it takes any fine strategical

iLxC4 c5 6 0-0 tt'lc6

i..e7 9 exd4 0-0, when White has only a

the dismal retreat 15 tt'lbl . In that case

sense to notice that there is a lack of

The reason why we have to study opening theory is that natural moves

and then trust his positional judgment to do the rest.

small advantage.

Black would have achieved a decent

harmony among Black's pieces. It will

S tt'lC3 b5

game despite all his chess sins in the

take a long time for the rook on h8 to

don't always work. You would imag­

The second step of the queenside

opening. Such an outcome would be

get into the game, and meanwhile one

ine that there could be no possible ob­

pawns is decidedly risky. He had to

entirely illogical. And so, having exam­

of the black knights is literally para­

jection to a move that develops and

take measures against White's pressure

ined the position carefully, Alekhine

lysed by the pin, while the other knight

centralizes a knight on its best square.

down

sets out to punish his opponent.

is sitting uselessly on the edge of the

Or at least if such a move failed it

8 .. :ikc7!? For instance, after 8 . . . cxd4 9

13 ... bxc3

board with no safe moves. The great-

42

the

d-file

with

8 ... cxd4

or

43

Catch ing the King in t h e Cen tre

Ch ess Secrets: The Gi a n ts of Po wer Play ness of Alekhine's achievement is not

wins) 22 1ZJd7 and Black remains under

a quick massacre in the style of Mor­

that he saw Black would be awkwardly

severe pressure.

phy versus the proverbial 'NN' or

placed, but rather that he realized it

If you give the position after 16 bxc3

was worth investing a whole rook to

to a computer program it will keep of­

shall see, such games are still possible,

cause this discomfort.

fering brilliant defences for Black. But

even in the modem age between strong

As we saw above, when Morphy

during a game a human player has to

Grandmasters.

gave odds of the knight on bl, he often

rely on judgments and assessments, as

succeeded in turning its absence to his

it is impossible to see everything in

advantage by swinging his rook from a l

precise terms. This means that key

into the attack with greater speed. Here

moves and defensive ideas are certain

'Amateur' all over again. And as we

Game 15 E.Gelier-A.Dreev New Yo rk Open 1990 French Defence

Alekhine might well wish that his bish­

to be missed. Book was never going to

op on el would accidentally be knocked

be able to resist the flair and attacking

off the board as then he would be able

energy of his opponent. Chess remains

to strengthen decisively the attack on d7

a battle between two minds, even in

Book is desperate to free his bishop,

1 e4 e6 2 d4 d5 3 lLld2 a6 4 lZJgf3 c5 5

with l::i:d l! But there

this computer age.

but he fatally undermine the knight on

exd5 exd5 6 iLe2 c4 7 0-0 i.d6 8 b3 b5 9

17 e4! lZJf6 18 i.g5 ,*"C7

f6. In fact he had no good move, in

a4 i.b7?

is a bishop on el,

and the need to move it out of the way

20 ... g6

gives Black a little time before disaster

view of the threat of 21 i.g5 and 22

(in the shape of l:tdl ) strikes. Besides the

�5 etc.

pin on d7, White has a second string to

21 iLg5 i.g7 22 1ZJd 7! Now Black has no good way to stop

his bow: the possibility of a queen check

If Black had kept his nerve with 9 ... c3! (another pawn move) the posi­ tion would remain unclear. It is ironic that as soon as Dreev gives into his

on h5, which would weaken the de­

23 e5.

guilty conscience about being a laggard

fences around the black king and win at

22 ... l::i:x d7 23 l::i:x d7+ cj;;f8 24 i.xf6 i.xf6

with his development he falls under a

least some material back.

25 e5 1-0

big attack.

For if 25 ... i.e7 26 "iYf3+ cj;; g8 27 l::i:xe7

16 ... cj;;e 7 breaks the pin on the knight, but it is

A brilliant display by Alekhine who

horrendous for the black king to be

elaborated and refined Morphy's at­ tacking conception.

blocking in his bishop. A better try is 16 . . . ..te7, but then 1 7 �5+ g 6 18 lZJxg6 hxg6 19 ,*"xh8+ ..tf8

10 bXc4 bXC4

wins.

Book rules out the check on h5 and

19 i.f4 Good enough to win, but 19 "iYh5!!

20 e4 gives White two pawns and a

was more spectacular:

19 . . . "iYxe5 20

continuing attack for the piece. After

"iYe8+ cj;;d6 21 l::i: d l+ cj;; c7 22 "iYd8+ b7

A sacrifice turns a blocked position into an open one

the game the Finnish 1M came up with

23 l::i:b l+ and mates, or 19 . . . g6 20 lLlxg6+

Black began the next game with six

the important variation 16 ... g6 (to rule

hxg6 21 "iYxh8 "iYe5 (otherwise f6 drops)

consecutive pawn moves - how often

out a check on h5) 17 ,*"d3! cj;;e7 (if

22 "iYh7+ cj;;d6 23 ,*"xa7 and wins.

does that happen? No one could play

17 ... "iYe7 18 i.a3 ,*"d6 19 ,*"e4 ,*"d5 20

19 ..."iYb6 20 l::i:d1

like that against Morphy after 1 e4 e5

"iYf4 intending 21 "iYf7+ keeps up the

White has achieved a harmonious

and live more than 15 moves, but such

onslaught) 18 e4 lZJf6 19 ,*"f3 iLg7 20

development which makes a striking

liberties with development are possible

It's often difficult t o judge which

iLg5 l::i:f8 21 l::i:d l

contrast with the inept state of Black's

in the closed game. Naturally Efim

piece to sacrifice in such scenarios.

kingside pieces.

Geller wants to open lines, dreaming of

Here Geller 'leads with the bishop' as

"iYa8 (better than

Book's 21.. ."iYc7? 22 lZJd7! and White 44

11 .\tXC4! !

45

C h e s s S e c re t s : T h e G ia n ts of P o w e r Play

Catch i n g the K i n g i n t h e Cen tre

he has seen the possibility of a knight

seventh rank.

fork which will add a vital impetus to

14 ...'twxc4 15 .l:i.xb7

the white attack. 11 dxc4 12 ltJxC4 iLe7 .••

After 12 .. .'�Je7 the white pieces join

0-0-0 20 .l:i.b3!

the black queen next move. At the age of 65 Geller displayed

It is often worth investing material

great energy to beat a bright young

to get your rooks into the game while

player in a topical variation. The moral:

those of the opponent are still curled

while it is perfectly acceptable to leave

the attack in Morphy style, creating

up fast asleep in the comers of the

your king in the centre if the position is

threats on every move: 13 ltJxd6+ 'tWxd6

board. We saw in the odds games

sufficiently blocked - if you have got it

14 iLa3 'tWc7 15 I:tel ltJbc6 16 d5!.

above how Morphy would overwhelm

wrong you will pay a heavy price.

13 .l:i.el 'tWC7

the enemy defence by getting the rook

Still, things don't appear that bad for Black. The white d-pawn is quies­

on al into the attack

tout de suite.

An a ppeal to good old-fashioned greed

15 ...ltJc6

cent and the knight on c4 is hanging.

The key to finishing off the attack is

Given time, Dreev is ready to play

to energize the centre pawns. Unfortu­

14 ... ltJc6 and then answer 15 d5 with

nately, if 16 d5? then 16 . . .0-0-0! attacks

A calm retreat which introduces

15 . . . 0-0-0, pinning the d-pawn. It looks

both b7 and d5. Geller finds a superb

threats such as 21 .l:i.c4 followed by 22

a little risky for the black king to be on

alternative.

pawn under the opponent's nose still

'tWf3.

the queenside, but an extra piece is a

16 ltJd2!

works wonders.

20 iLf6 21 "iVg4+

In case this is all getting too complex, let me remind you that dangling a

•••

lot of consolation for such hardship.

Geller regains his piece while keep­

Geller's next move destroys this day­

Game 1 6 E.Gel ler-M.Stean Teesside 1975 Sicilian Defence (by transposition)

ing a decisive attack.

dream.

21 ...C7 22 'iYf4+ �c8 23 iLxf6 ltJxf6 24

14 j:!bl!

'tWxf6 "iVxc2 It says something for the state of Black's position that a computer pro­ gram will tell you that blundering his queen in this fashion is by far his best

1 ltJf3 c5 2 c4 g6 3 d4 cxd4 4 ltJxd4 ltJc6

move.

5 e4 ltJf6 6 ltJc3 d6 7 iLe2 ltJxd4 8 "ii'xd4

25 'iYf5+! 1-0

iLg7 9 i.g5 iLe6 10 .l:i.cl "ii'a 5 11 'tWd2 .l:i.c8 12 f3

So that if 16 ... 'iYd5 1 7 c4 and the pawns conquer the d5-point, while af­ ter 16 ... 'tWxa4 17 d5 the pawn is rolling and, crucially, there is no pin on the d­ Here we see why 9 . . .i.b7 was a poor move: if 14 . . .ltJc6 - or any other developing move - Black is hit by the tactic 15 .l:.xb7! 'tWxb7 16 ltJd6+ winning

file to justify Black castling queenside. 16 ..."iVxd4 Dreev

decides

to

eliminate

the

pesky pawn, but now his queen is sub­

the queen. Dreev therefore has nothing

jected to a string of tempo-gaining

better than to take the white knight,

prods.

but this invites the white rook to the

17 iLb2 'tWxa4 18 .l:i.e4 'tWa2 19 i.xg7

46

A rook check on e8 or e7 will win 47

C a t c h i n g the King in t h e Cen tre

C h ess S e c rets: The Gia n ts of P o w e r Play Here Black could simply have cas­

This is the move Stean relied on,

tled, but he decided to swipe the pawn:

seeing that 15 exd5 O-O! 16 ..txe7 l:tfeS is

13 ....I¥.xc4?

excellent for Black. But not surprisingly

A player should always believe in his ideas and trust his powers of calcu­ lation. If he thinks a move is good, he

Geller has a trick up his sleeve. 1S l:txC4!! l:txc4 The

best

chance

was

15 . . . ttJb6,

erated by 6 h4. Rozentalis therefore

Game 1 7 V.Topalov-E.Rozentalis E u ro pea n Tea m Cham pionsh i p, Bat u m i 1999 English Opening

decides to leave his king in the centre and eliminate the 'Greek Gift' knight on f3 as quickly as possible. 7 dxc3 dXc4 8 �a4+! Naturally

Topalov

activates

his

queen rather than allowing it to be ex­

should make it without hesitation, ac­

though White has a big initiative for

cording to the advice of Capablanca

his pawn after 16 l:txcS+ ttJxcS 17 ..tb5+

(and true to his own words, didn't the

'itdS IS l:tc1 etc.

1 c4 e6 2 ttJC3 ttJf6 3 e4 ds 4 es ttJe4 5

8 . ..td7 9 �xC4 ..tc6 10 �g4 ..txf3 11

Cuban take the Marshall Gambit pawn

16 �xd s l:ta4 17 ..tbS+ 'itf8

ttJf3 ..te7 6 h4!

gxf3 !

when it was first offered, and win in

Black gets mated after 17 ... 'itdS IS

But even so, to grab a pawn from

. .. shades

of

the

Evergreen

one of the greatest analysts in the

Anderssen-Dufresne.

world,

18 l:tc1! 1-0

Soviet

..

�xd6+ 'itcs 19 ..td7+ 'itdS 20 ..txe7

brilliant style?).

a

changed.

Super-Grandmaster

Game

and the trainer of Spassky and Kar­ pov ... does such a player really blunder pawns after 12 moves? 13 ttJdS! �xa2 The pin on the c-file costs Black a piece after 13 ... �xd2+ 14 'itxd2 b5 15 b3. Topalov dissuades Black from cas­

14 0-0!

Much more dynamic than 1 1 �xf3

Seldom is castling of such fearful

tling, as after 6 ... 0-0? 7 ..td3! ttJxc3? (the

'keeping

the

strength. Black has no good reply, as

knight has to stand its ground with

1 1 . . .�d5!

offers

14 . . . 0-0 15 ttJxe7+ or 14 .. .l::k6 15 ttJb4 are

7. . . f5!, though White can still attack

change of queens (and unfortunately

because ex­

with S exf6 ttJxf6 9 ttJg5!?) S ..txh7+!

the even more dynamic 11 �xg7? al­

'itxh7 9 ttJg5+ we have the famous

lows mate on dl).

back rank disaster. A pity that Stean

Greek Gift Sacrifice. It is a quick mate

After the game move the attacking

didn't allow the pretty finish IS . . . ..td4+

upon 9 ... 'itgS with 10 "iih5 ..txg5 1 1

knight has vanished, but in return

19 �xd4! l:txd4 20 ..th6+ 'itgS 21 l:tcS

hxg5 f6 12 g 6 etc. I f 9 ... 'ith6 10 dxc3

White has the open g-file. Therefore

mate.

threatens a killer discovered check,

Black

while 9 . . .g6 10 dxc3 i.xg5 (Black

kingside: 1 1 . ..0-0? 12 ..th6 g6 and White

The strength of a threatened attack

cannot

contemplate

castling

loses the queen after 1O ... f5 11 h5+ 'ith6

wouldn't even bother taking the ex­

12 ttJxe6+) 11 hxg5 leaves Black with no

change - he could build up with 13

answer to the twin threats of 12 "iVh5+

l:tdl �cS 14 h5!; for example, 14 ... l:tdS

Another way to inveigle the opponent

and 12 'i!Vd3+, in either case with a deci­

15 l:txdS+ 'i!VxdS

into keeping his king in the centre is to

sive attack.

16 . . .fxg6 1 7 �xe6+) 17 �3 and Black is

make the prospect of castling appear more dangerous. 48

neat',

an unwelcome

There's no good way to prevent a

hopeless. 14 ...ttJxd S

pawns

You will see from these variations how much attacking energy was gen-

16 hxg6 hxg6 (or

soon mated down the h-file. Rozentalis is mesmerized by these 49

Ch ess Secrets: The Gia n ts of Po wer Play

C a t c h i n g the King in t h e Cen tre the

As the black king is going to be

thinks that they are the only danger

bishop has achieved maximum flexibil­

staying in the centre, the bishop turns

that he faces. As a result he notices the

ity, sitting astride two important di­

its attention to an attack on the f7-

open g-file

but he doesn't notice the white

agonals. It can go to h3 to terrorize the

square.

pawn on f3. He dismisses it as part of

black queen and knight, or it can

1S .. :iWe7

White's fractured pawn structure, and

choose to join the queen in assailing f7

Black's boxed-in bishop on f8 makes

doesn't realize it is going to become the

as occurs in the game after 18 .1i.c4.

a pitiful contrast to its powerful oppo­

possible attacks on the kingside, and

square.

1 3 .1i.e3 c6 14 0-0-0 �as

chief enemy of his king. Rozentalis is a very strong Grand­

Thus,

without stirring,

Rozentalis' defence is made all the

site number on c4.

harder as he doesn't know from which

19 l:the1

master and only this can explain his

direction the terrible bishop is going to

next move.

strike him.

White completes the mobilization of his pieces, after which the black queen

11 ...�fS?

faces being impaled against her king by

It's not a good idea to undevelop your only developed piece when you are playing Topalov!

the battering ram eS-e6. Despite our criticism play,

he

is

of Black's

only one move

He should play 1 l ... g6, aiming to

15 . . . 0-0-0 with a perfectly safe game. It

answer 12 hS with 12 .. :i*'dS!, counterat­

appears that his queen's attack on the

tacking against eS, when "Black is OK"

a2-pawn will win him the necessary

according to Rozentalis' own notes to

time for this. In reality the game has

the game. In fact Black certainly isn't

reached its most critical point. Black

out of the woods even then, as White

will either be fine or he will come un­

can gambit the eS-pawn with 13 hxg6

der a big attack depending on the en­

fxg6 14 i.e3!? or 14 .1i.c4, with Topa­

ergy of White's next move.

lov's customary two bishop pressure

15 fS!!

play. Nevertheless, this would be a real fight, as compared to the massacre in the game.

17 .. Jld S

Not a second is to be wasted!

If 17 .. :ilVxeS White's bishop chooses 18 i.h3!, when 18 .. :iWxf4 19 .1i.xd7+

1s .. :�xa2 If

12 f4!

19 ... hS 20 'iVg3 !

from

15 . . . 0-0-0

16

fxe6

tiJxeS

(or

16 .. .fxe6 17 �c4!, planning a pin on d7

wins

a

piece.

More

resistant

is

Simple

and

completely

decisive:

1 7 ... tiJxeS 18 �h3 �e7, but 19 "tWg3!

Topalov clears the way for 21 i.gS. The immediate 20 e6 was also possible; for

with 18 �xe6) 17 J::txd8+ 'ilHxd8 18 "ir'fS

clears the way for 20 f4 whereupon the

see,

and White wins a pawn whilst keeping

black knight is ousted from eS, and

example, 20 ...fxe6 21 'ii'e4! threatening

White's pawns have actually gained

his attack. Or IS .. :"xeS 16 fxe6 'ii'xe6 (if

i.d7+ etc becomes decisive. The game

22 �gS tiJf6 (what else?) 23 �g6+ �f7 24 l:Ixe6+.

The 'weak' pawn on f3 begins to flex

its

muscles.

As we shall

dynamism, rather than losing it, in be­

16 . . .fxe6 17 �c4) 17 �f4! planning i.h3

might

ing broken up. It's not how

or .1i.c4 in the style of the game.

�xd8 21

16 fxe6 "tWxe6 17 "ir'f4!

'ud7+!) 22 �xa7 and Black is defence­

pretty a

pawn structure looks, but how much

work it does.

Delicately played; the white queen

continue

19 ... .l:td8

20

llxd8+

ndl + c,t>e8 (if 21.. .�c7 22

20 ... tiJxes 21 -'!txdS+ �xdS 22 i.f4 tiJxC4 Or 22 ... f6 23 �heS fxeS 24 ..tgS and

less against 22 f4 or 22 �b6 etc. This

the black queen is lost for even less. 23 l:Ixe7 �xe7 24 "ir'd3 1-0

shuffles one square to create some

variation shows us how the queen

There's no time for 12 ... g6, guarding

deadly threats. The key to the white

sometimes has to play second fiddle to

Materially speaking, it's not all that

the fS-square, because of 13 h5 intend­

attack is the bishop biding its time on

the pawn - here she has to step out of

bad for Black: he has a rook, knight

ing 14 hxg6, when there is no safe way

f1 . It proves that a chess piece is some­

the way of the f-pawn.

and two pawns for the queen. Unfor­

for Black to recapture the pawn.

times best ' developed' on its starting

1S �C4

tunately two of his pieces are shut out

12 ...tiJd7

50

51

C a t c h i n g t h e King in t h e Cen tre

Ch ess Secrets: The G ia n ts of Po wer Play of the game. After 24. . .liJb6 (or 24. . .b5

Nonetheless, it's hard not to get emo­

tion element of power play has fulfilled

25 b3) 25 �d6+ 'it>e8 26 "iiib8+ White can

tional

the

its role. Bronstein has succeeded in

start by massacring the black queen­

swashbuckling King's Gambit against

catching his opponent's king in the

side pawns.

Tal. d5

centre and needs to find a forceful dy­ namic sequence to exploit the advan­

Already a small victory for White.

tage.

2

...

about

Bronstein

playing

14 lLig5!?

The critical reply is 2 . . .exf4, but Tal evi­ dently hadn't been spending much

Gambiting the d5-pawn. Instead, 14

time studying 19th century theory and

�el! f5 1 5 ltJg5 looks a simpler way to

so selected a 'safe' alternative.

punish Black.

3 exd 5 e4 4 d 3 liJf6 5 dxe4 lLixe4 6 lLif3

14...i..xd 5

..tC5 7 �e2 i..f5 8 lLic3 �e7 9 i.. e 3! Here Tal was about to castle queen­ side when he suddenly saw the devil­ ish

gleam

in

Bronstein's

eyes:

13 .. 0-0-0?? 14 l:I.d4! and Black loses a .

piece after either 14 ... lLih5 15 g4 or

A trap worthy of Tal

14 ...lLig6 15 g4. Over the last thirty We

have

seen

various

'explosive'

years at least nine players have fallen

methods of detaining the opponent's

for this insidious trap, with only one

king in the centre. In contrast David

surviving because the opponent missed

Bronstein sets a trap in such a treach­

the strength of 14 l:I.d4. It takes the tac­

erously peaceful-looking position that

tical radar of a Tal to avoid being

even arch-tactician Mikhail Tal (albeit

snared, although it began to bleep a All these moves are well known to

partially) falls into it.

Game 1 8 D.Bronstein-M. Ta l USSR Tea m C h a m pionsh i p 1968 King 's Gambit 1 e4 e5 2 f4 When Bronstein played the King's Gambit, it wasn't merely as a homage to the shades of Anderssen and Spiel­

If Black can't castle

15 g3!? A

pretty

amazing

move.

White

theory. Black has sacrificed a pawn to

queenside here, he is in serious trouble,

simply invites the black bishop to take

gain

his rook!

which

as White is about to play 14 !Iel+,

White quells with this precise bishop

a

temporary

initiative

catching his king in the centre, while

In fact an intermediate rook check

move.

also ensuring that the rook on a8 re­

on el looks much stronger: for exam­

9 lLixc3

mains shut out of the game.

ple, 15 1:i.el + 'it>d8 (also bad for Black is

...

A solid alternative is 9 . . .i..xe3 1 0

13

..•

iL.e4

15 . . .i..e6 16 g3 or 15 . . .lLie6 16 c4 as

�xe3 lLixc3 1 1 "iixe7+ 'it>xe7 12 bxc3

According to Paul Keres, an eye­

White will break through on e6) 16 g3! and Black dare not take on hI as

..txc2 that leaves Black only slightly

witness, Tal had become agitated and

worse.

spent an hour on the clock trying to

16 ... i.xhl 17 lLixf7+ 'ittc8 18 lLixh8 is fa­

10 i..xc5 lLixe2 11 �xe7 lLixf4 12 i..a 31

find a way out of the 'ambush' . The

tal. If instead 16 ... f6 17 gxf4 fxg5 18 .l:!.gl

lLid7? Having come this far he should

mann. It was also a carefully honed,

have

thoroughly studied weapon that he

12 . . . lLixd5 13 0-0-0 iL.e6 14 i..c4 c6.

used to win points in tournaments.

13 0-0-0

52

little too late.

tried

to

tough

it

out

with

move he selected is a good fighting

gxf4 19 lhg7 gives White a decisive

chance, since it saves the bishop from

initiative with moves like l:I.ee7 and

the trap and at the same time blocks

�h3 looming. Of course in this varia­

the check on the e-file.

tion 16 g3 has none of the artistic ap­

Here we might say that the

prepara-

peal of 15 g3 as White would be regain53

Chess Secrets: Th e G i a n ts of P o w e r Play ing his rook at once if Black had taken on hI.

C a t c h i n g t h e King in t h e Cen tre 16...cS! An excellent blocking move. The

After the game Keres asked our

energy

level of the white

position

hero why he didn't play 15 .l:i.el + first.

drops dramatically with the bishop on

He records that Bronstein "looked at

a3 shut out of the game. It took a lot of

me as if I could not understand any­

sangfroid as well as good judgment to

thing about the position, and said 'I

allow the other white bishop to con­

could not miss the opportunity to play

quer the f7-square.

a move like 15 g3 against Tal, which I

17 .i.C4 i..c6 18 tiJxf7

blooded 20 ... ii.xb5! 21 �xb5 .l:i.hd8 with

26 ... �g6

good survival chances. 21 tiJd4!

may not have again in my whole life.'" lS ...�xhl 16 gxf4

And so the battle continued, with both players getting into bad time White's knight, which was 'knocked off course' to b5, returns to the centre

It looks as if the white attack is go­ ing to triumph quickly as 18 .. JH8 loses In return for his sacrifice White has

to 19 .l:i.el+. But once again Tal rises to

two attacking bishops, a strong knight,

the occasion.

an active rook and the chance to target

18 ... bS!

both the black king and bishop on hI.

Continuing to harass the bishops

Bronstein hoped that the powerful co­

with a direct threat to one and a latent

ordination

would be

threat of trapping the other with ... b5-

enough to finish the game in the next

b4. If now 19 tiJxh8 bxc4 and the knight

five or so moves, as if 16 . . . 0-0-0 then 1 7

on h8 is trapped in the comer.

of his pieces

�h3 �c6 18 tiJxf7 and White will re­

You will notice how Bronstein is

gain his material leaving Black under

striving

severe pressure.

power of his pieces, while Tal is doing

Nevertheless,

White's

to

maintain

the

advantage

his utmost to wreck their coordination. He is willing to return his extra mate­

Brunswick & Isouard for one simple

rial for this purpose.

reason: the queens are no longer on the

19 tiJd6+ �e7 20 tiJxbS .l:i.hf8?

has a lot of defensive resources. 54

As

Keres

remarked,

we

shouldn't really scrutinize moves that

with gain of time on both this move

were being bashed out instantly. It's

and the next. The pressure soon be­

enough to see that Black is still under

comes irresistible.

severe pressure, and when the dust

21 ... �g2 22 tiJe6 .l:i.fS 23 .l:i.g1 .i.e4 24

settled Bronstein had done enough for

tiJC7?

the full point.

A pity, as Tal would probably have

27 l:te7 tiJf6 28 tiJe6 .l:i.c8 29 b3 .l:i.hS 30

resigned upon 24 .l:i.el tiJf6 25 tiJxc5, just

LDgs .i.ds 31 .i.d3+ �h6 32 .i.b2 c4 33

in time to make it a miniature game.

.i.fs c3 34 .i.xc8 cxb2+ 35 �xb2 .l:i.xh2

24 tiJC7 .l:i.d8 2 S l:txg7+ �6 26 .l:i.f7+ After the game Bronstein was can­ did enough to admit that in his earlier

36 .l:i.xa7 .l:i.f2 37 Ita4 �g6 38 .l:i.d4 hS 39 a4 h4 40 as .i.g2 41 a6 LDhS 42 ii.b7 tiJxf4 43 .l:i.xf4 1-0

calculations he had thought this was

An enthralling fight between two

not only check but also mate, as he had

players who brought so much tactical

overlooked Black's reply.

vigour into the chess world.

attacking

isn't as great as that in Morphy vs

board. As Tal now demonstrates, Black

pressure.

Missing the reply, after which Black is losing again. He had to play the cold-

55

Op e n ing Old (a nd N e w) Wo u n d s .id2 lbc2 26 .i.xf4 �hS 27 'ii' h s lbxel

C h a pte r T h ree

2S I!xel 'it'xa s 29 llal i::!. bdS 30 f6 gxf6

I

3 1 �h2 d S

Ope n i n g Old (a n d New) Wou nd s Alekhine thought that the concept of checkmate elevated chess above all other board games, in which victory The question of open/closed positions is one of the most difficult in chess strategy. It's very easy for a player to imagine that he is freeing his game by advancing a pawn, when in reality he is opening lines for the benefit of the

Game 19 P.Delekta-E.Gelier Ca ppelle la Gra nde 1992 Vienna Game

opponent's pieces. In this chapter we shall examine how the energy balance

1 e4 es 2 lbc3 lbf6 3 i..c4 lbc6 4 d3 lbas

between the two armies is affected by a

S lbge2 lbxC4 6 dXc4 �cs 7 0-0 d6 S .igs

sudden unblocking of the pawn forma­

�e6 9 lbdS .ixdS 10 iLxf6 ir'xf6 11

tion.

'ii'xds 0-0 12 l:[abl c6 13 iVd3 as 14 �hl I!feS 1S f3 �e6 16 lbg3 'ii'gs 17 lbfS

Two stun ning exa m ples of line clearance Sometimes it can be worth sacrific­

(see following diagram) Evidently

time

hadn't

dimmed

ing the queen to unblock a vital line of

Geller's tactical eye as the game fin­

attack. Here is a striking example from

ished:

one of Geller's later games.

17 ... g6! 18 lbg3 'ii'xg3 ! ! 0-1

In

the

Bronstein-Korchnoi

game

went to the player who captured the

The situation in the diagram above

opponent's men or gained the most

looks absolutely hopeless for White: he

terrain. In chess your opponent can

is the exchange and two pawns down,

have more time, space, material, but all

his knight is hanging and his bishop on

this means absolutely nothing if you

a2 is pinned against his rook. However,

have control of

one square, as long as

Topalov defied materialistic considera­

you can use that square to checkmate

tions in a manner that would have de­

his king! Alekhine saw the quest to

lighted Alekhine.

checkmate as a noble one, as it leads to

32 lbxf6!! .ixf6 33 d41!

a spirit of self-sacrifice among the at­ tacking army.

Game 20 V. Topalov-R.Ponomariov Sofia 2006 Ruy Lopez 1 e4 eS 2 lbf3 lbc6 3 i.. bS a6 4 .ia4 lbf6 S 0-0 .i.e7 6 liel bS 7 i.. b3 0-0 S h3 .ib7

White is mated after 19 hxg3 g5, fol­

9 d 3 d6 10 a4 lbas 11 .ia2 cS 12 lbbd2

(see Chapter One) a rook sacrificed

lowed by 20 .. .l1h6. I find the double

lbd7 13 lbfl lbb6 14 .i.d2 b4 15 c3 bxc3

You only need control of one square

itself to clear the way for the queen to

advance of the g-pawn a very attractive

16 .ixC3 lbc6 17 a s lbcs is lbe3 lbSa7

to win a game of chess, and here that

strike a deadly blow. Here the compli­

theme.

ment is returned: 56

19 lbfS .icS 20 lbd2 I!bS 21 f4 .ixfs 22

square is h7. White threatens 34 i..b1

exfs exf4 23 'ii'g4 lbd4 24 lbe4 lbabs 2S

with unstoppable mate. Black can de57

C h e s s S e c re ts: T h e G ia n ts of P o w e r Play

O p e n ing Old (a n d N e w) Wo u n ds

fend with 33 ... l:tg8 34 .i.bl llg7, but

If White didn't have an h-pawn the

opponent is only half the battle. The

then 35 Iha5 grabs the queen. The fact

game would be a draw as the black

other half is to have open lines that

that there is a discovered attack on the

rook could shuttle between e6 and g6,

they can exploit.

black queen with 34 ..ibl is integral to

keeping the white king at bay. Whereas

the combination.

if now 62 ... l:te6 63 'iVxe6 fxe6+ 64 'it>xe6

Well, so much for a spirit of self­

is a winning pawn endgame for White.

sacrifice when we end up nabbing the

62 ... l:tg5+ 63 'it>f6 �hS 64 �eS+ ngS 65

queen. In fact the conflict between ma­

t>h8?

doubtedly favours the power player

A routine move; the black king is

2) The f7-pawn is undefended by the black king. 3) The black rook on e8 is unde­

player

checked and it hides in the corner, as

Rubinstein. As you would expect, he

the centre is a big bad world. In fact,

4) Back rank mates are possible

quickly gains the upper hand in the

his majesty would be much safer after

with 'iVxc8! if the black bishop is forced

sharp tactical battle.

19 . . .'iitf8! . The reasons why are dis­

from cS.

14 dxc5 "ilC7 15 0-0 �xf4

cussed after the next move.

Alekhine

over

the

classical

Black removes the more dangerous

20 ..ie4 lia7?

fended.

now the black queen is forced to re­ treat, when her vital defensive power is removed from the kingside. 23 .. :iWb8

You will notice that none of these four themes would have applied if

pawn, the one that could ram him with

Black had played 19 ... '>t>f8! rather than

f4-fS or support 4:JeS. He also hopes to

the 'obvious' 19 ... �h8. Routine is the

gain time by attacking the c4-bishop.

enemy of every chess player, no matter

16 4:Je41

how strong. 21 b4! The bishop is forced to retreat, al­ lowing the white queen to infiltrate down the c-file. 21.....tf8

If 23 .. .'iYd6 Alekhine intended to combine threats to the black king and

The only move, as if 21.. . ..txb4 22

pieces with 24 'ilVc4!, planning 2S ..tc6

'ii'xc8! .l:!.xc8 23 .l:!.xc8+ and mate next

':c7 26 "ikh4+ followed by 27 ..txe8.

move. Another serious mistake. Instead,

Black is helpless; e.g. 24 ... �g8 2S ..tc6 11c7 26 :tfdl \i'e7 27 �d3! and the rook

20 . . . Ii.b8 would have made Alekhine

on e8 is trapped.

work much harder for his win. In his

24 4:Jg5!

own notes he claims it can be achieved

With all the black pieces wrong­

With this temporary pawn sacrifice

in the variation 20 .. JIb8 21 g3 �f6 22

footed

White meets the threat to the bishop

b4! Ji.d6 (or else 23 "fIc7 traps the rook

suddenly switches to a direct attack on

and maintains the initiative. Instead,

on b8, winning at least a piece) 23 �fdl

the kingside.

the

leaves

"ile7 24 ..tc6 �d8 2S I:I.d4, but here Ko­

24....l:!.ed8 25 Si.g6!

White without enough energy to com­

tov says that Black can still resist with

bat the weakness of his queenside

2S . . .'iitg8! .

pusillanimous

16

4:Je2?

pawns after 16 .. .'iWc7 17 b4 as! . 16 ...4:Jxc5

A t this point w e might talk about

of time.

'power play, part two' beginning. This

25 .. :iWe5

17 4:JegS .tf8! "with a fully defensible

Alekhine is given the chance to show

position", but it isn't that easy for Black

off his brilliant control of the initiative

hitting b6 and the rook on e8.

after 18 ..id3, with pressure similar to

and eye for tactics. He can build on

22 ....l:td7

that in the game.

four strands:

78

1) The black king can be attacked along the open h-file.

Alekhine

Exploiting the weakness of f7 to get

is the phase of the game in which

The discovered attack on cS ensures

queenside,

the white queen to the h-file with gain

Here Kotov recommends 16 ... ..txcS

17 4:Jxc5 .txc5 18 ..id3

on the

22 'iic 6! And now White wins more time by

There's no joy in 22 ... ..id7 23 'iixb6. 23 g3! Not of course 23 'iixb6? 'iixe4. But

The black queen returns to the cen­ tre, but only at the cost of an exchange and pawn. If instead 2S .. .fxg6 26 'ilVe4 threatens mate in two with 27 'ilVh4+, when 26 .. J::td4 27 iVxg6 wouldn't help Black. Or if 2S ... 'iitg8 26 �c4 �d4 27 ..txf7+ 79

Chess Se crets: The G ia n ts of P o w e r Play

O p e n i n g Old (a n d N e w) Wo u n d s

Wh8 28 �c2 �d3 29 1i'e2 and the mate

l2JC3 0-0 6 e 3 d 5 7 l2Jge2 c 6 S b 3 l2Je4 9

outpost square in the centre, while the

thinking in the following terms: "my

threat on h7 decides the game.

0-0 l2Jd 7 10 i.b2 l2Jdf6 11 'i!Vd3 g5 12

white bishop is doing nothing much at

bishop on d6 is more valuable than the

26 l2Jxf7+ �xf7 27 iLxf7 "i!ff5 2S lUdl!

cxd5 exd5 13 f3 l2JxC3 14 i.xc3 g4 15

the moment except defending b4. In­

white knight as it guards the dark

fxg4 l2Jxg4 16 .ih3 l2Jh6 17 l2Jf4 iLd6 is

deed, it looks as if it has been put on el

squares and attacks b4. And besides,

b4 a6 19 a4 'iie 7 20 �abl b5 21 oltg2

solely to avoid getting in the way of the

after

l2Jg4 22 oltd2 l2Jf6 23 :b2

work of the 'more important' pieces

g3xf4, his bishop might become active

down the a-file.

with .tM. Why should I allows that?

I think most of us would fall for

... .txf4

White

recaptures

Anyway, I can play . . . iLxf4 any time I

Bronstein's positional trap. Only later

want."

do we see the role that the 'harmless'

28 l2Jd3 !

bishop on el is going to play in mating

and

On the contrary, Bronstein under­

the black king.

stands that he shouldn't give his oppo­

25 .. JUeS 26 �b3 WhS 27 IIba2 li'f8?

nent a second chance to exchange on f4. Now he is all set for a 29 axb5 axb5 30 l1a7 breakthrough, so Botvinnik vol­

Scotching any hopes Black might

untarily concedes the fight for the a­

have had of picking up the f7-bishop.

file.

2S .. Jbdl+ 29 ':xdl it'xf7 30 �xcS '.t>h7 31 'ii'x a6 'i!Vf3 32 'iYd 3+ 1-0

2S ...l1ab8 29 axb5 axbs 30 11a7 With his last move Bronstein has signalled

Coordinating the pieces across the whole boa rd

Horrible things often happen to the

his intention of doubling

opponent's king when Bronstein's rook

rooks on the a-file with the sequence of

reaches the seventh rank.

moves l:tal, 'iWb3, to add a defender to

30 ...i::!.e 7 31 l2JeSI

b4, and then Uba2. In the following game, White's rooks

Botvinnik could counter this with

on the queenside are unexpectedly co­

23 ... l2Je4!, as after 24 i.el the plan of

ordinated with his other pieces in the

l:tal would be obstructed. Or if White

Botvinnik adds a defender to a8 as

centre and on the kingside in an attack­

presses ahead with 24 l1al he can ex­

he needs to be able to answer 28 axb5

ing finale. It shows that even the great­

change off with 24 ... l2Jxd2 25 'Yi'xd2 fol­

with 28 . . . axb5. But once again he makes

est players in the history of chess can

lowed by 25 ... .td7. In the absence of

a misjudgment in avoiding

go badly wrong if their judgment of a

White's dark square guardian, Black

change of pieces.

position is too far away from its reality.

can use his pressure against b4 and e3

27 ... iLxf4!' Then after 28 exf4 he has for

for counterplay.

counterplay the e-file and the chance to

Game 28 D.Bronstein-M.Botvinnik 2 2 n d matchga me, Moscow 1 9 5 1 Dutch Defence 1 d4 e6 2 c4 f5 3 g3 l2Jf6 4 iLg2 i..e7 5 80

The game actually continued: 23 ... iLd7? 24 nal l2Je4 25 i.el! It seems that the World Champion

an ex­

should

play

attack d4. Instead, 28 gxf4 looks the better recapture, but 28 ... 'iie6! ? intend­ ing 29 axb5 cxb5 and then 30 ... �g8

got the relative value of his knight on

looks

e4 and his opponent's bishop on el

Black.

completely wrong. It was an easy to

He

more or less

We can easily see why 31.. ..txe5 32

satisfactory for

dxe5 would leave Black in a much

Botvinnik has failed to see the dam­

f4 with 27 ... .ixf4 28 gxf4. The passed

worse way than if he had swapped on

make such a misassessment as the

age that the white knight is going to do

pawn White acquires on e5 is a danger

black horse is sitting on an impressive

to him once he spares its life. He is

in itself, or it could be sacrificed to 81

Chess Se cre ts: Th e G i a n ts of Po we r Play open up an attack on the black king

34.. .l:ha7: 35 lIxa7 �6 36 'iWc3! ii'xh4

with a sequence such as 'iVd3, 'iWd4,

(or similarly 36 . . . .txe5 37 dxe5 "ifxh4 38

.txe4, .tc3 and e5-e6, when the white

e6+) 37 tLJg6+! ..ixg6 38 d5+ �g8 39 'ifg7

queen and bishop are deadly on the

mate.

dark squares.

35 dxes i.xes 36 �f1 'iWg8 37 .tg3!

C h a pte r F o u r

31 .....ie8 32 g4!

I

A second great move, after which the black position begins to totter. The g-pawn undermines e4, breaks open

The Life H istory of a Kn ight

the f-file for the rook, and clears the way for the bishop on el to enter the attack. Note that if Black had played 27 . . ..txf4 then, after 28 gxf4, there wouldn't have been a white g-pawn on the board to cause havoc. 32 ...fxg4 33 .txe4 dxe4 34 ..ih4! If now 37 ... iLxg3

38 iic3+

and

mates, or 37 ...'ihb3 38 I!f8+ 'ifg8 39 .i.xe5, when the bishop that Botvinnik sneered at back at move 23 has check­ mated his king. 37 ... .i.g7 38 "ifxg8+ 1-0 The rook on b8 drops. This is per­ haps Bronstein's best game: he shows enormous strategic vision in combining pressure on the queenside with action in the centre and on the kingside. Not The dark-squared bishop joins the

many players succeeded in outwitting

attack to complete the coordination of

Botvinnik in a positional struggle. The

the white pieces.

World Champion's sins - namely the

34 ....l:i.xes

avoidance of key exchanges - were

Here's

a

possible

finish

after

dealt with in ruthless style.

In this chapter we'll take a look at the

Anderssen. Certainly when the Ameri­

vicissitudes of fortune that a knight

can was playing relatively weak oppo­

might endure on the chess board. We'll

nents in unofficial games he gave his

start with his happiest moments, when

astonishing tactical powers full expres­

he can add his unique power to that of

sion. Here is my favourite example of

the queen in a combination. Then we

his genius for a combination.

shall see him surveying the whole bat­ tlefield from an outpost square, de­ of the attack. After this, the mood darkens, when the knight finds himself caught up in an assault that fails. And finally to his utter shame the horse is hamstrung by the actions

of mere

1 e4 eS 2 tLJf3 d6 3 d4 fS 4 dxes fxe4 5 tLJgs dS 6 e6 ..icS 7 tLJf7 'iVf6 8 .te3 d4 9

pawns.

.i.gs "iVfs 10 tLJxh8 'iNxgs 11 iLC4 "iVxg2

Com binations with the knight

12 I:!.f1 lL'lc6 13 lL'lf7 lL'lf6 14 f3 lL'lb4 15 tLJa 3

As you will be aware from reading this

This position was reached after a

book, Morphy had a stronger grasp of

messy tactical fight. Both kings are

strategy than any of his contemporar­

trapped in the centre. You would imag­

ies. Nonetheless, he has gone down in

ine that Morphy has enough compen­

popular

sation for the exchange, but a tough,

legend

swashbuckling

82

Game 29 T.Barnes-P.Morphy London 1858 Philidor Defence

lighted not fearful to be in the front line

as

tactician,

a

brilliant, not

unlike

double-edged battle still seems to lie 83

C h e s s S e c rets: Th e G i a n ts of P o w e r P l ay

Th e L ife H i s t o ry of a Kn ig h t

ahead. Instead, Morphy's tactical vi­

the bishop check on b4 oblige White to

sion cut through all the complications

part with a knight as well.

and gave Black a decisive advantage in

18 ... .l1.xa3 19 i.b3

just two moves:

To stop mate on b3. 19 ...d2+! Not even letting the white rooks use the e-file. 20 �b1 iLC5 21 liJe5 �f8 22 liJd3 Ue8!

Our two giants evidently assessed

The power of a n outpost

the diagram position in contrasting fashions. Let's tune into their thoughts: 15 ....l1.xe6! 16 .l1.xe6 liJd3+!!

squares where they are supported by a

why Bronstein let his rook be shut out

friendly pawn and can't be evicted by

of the game on b7. He practically in­

an enemy pawn. If a horse can be se­

vited me to give up a piece for two cen­

curely established on such an outpost

tral passed pawns. It looks promising

deep in enemy territory then the game

for me as none of White's pieces are

is often strategically won. Paul Morphy

til the end of the game.

coordinated with each other - his rooks

understood this long before such ideas

23 liJxC5 �xf1 24 liJe6+

are widely separated, the bishop on c1

were codified into the laws of posi­

is passive, the knight is doing nothing

tional chess by the teachings of Steinitz

takes the queen.

much on f4 and, best of all, I'm attack­

and other great thinkers. Morphy knew

24 ...Uxe6 0-1

ing the white queen.

Morphy is tactically sharp right un­

He is mated on the back rank if he

Bronstein: I agree with my oppo­

It's all over, as White will be mated upon 17 cxd3 .ib4+. Unbelievable but true. White perishes because of the weakness

of the b4-square,

despite

Knights love being situated on centre

Geller: I really don't understand

Game 30 D.Bronstein-E.Gelier USSR C h a m pion s h i p, Moscow 1961 Nimzo-Indian Defence

Black only having two pieces - the

intuitively what others had to discover through hard work and deep analysis.

nent's assessment. But I have the most powerful weapon in chess: the next move! 20 �g6!! 1-0 Black had to resign as after 20 . . . fxg6 the reply 21 Uxg7+ and 22 liJxg6 mate

Game 31 P.Morphy-L.Paulsen New York 1 8 5 7 Sicilian Defence

follows.

queen and bishop - involved in the

1 d4 liJf6 2 c4 e6 3 liJC3 i.b4 4 a3 ..ixc3+

It turns out that the white queen

attack.

5 bxc3 0-0 6 f3 d5 7 cxd5 exd5 8 e3 .if5

and rook on b7, which appear to be cut

Morphy plays a prototype Morra

9 liJe2 liJbd7 10 liJf4 c5 11 .id3 .l1.xd3

off from each other, can join forces in

Gambit. After 3. . . e5 4 c3! (but not 4

beyond hope against Morphy.

12 �xd3 Ue8 13 0-0 Uc8 14 Ub1 �a 5

mating the black king, along with the

liJxe5? �a5+) White will gain an initia­

17 �xd3 exd3 18 0-0-0

15 Uxb7 liJb6 16 g4 h6 17 h4 cxd4 18 g5

pawn on f6 and our hero the knight on

tive for the pawn, so Paulsen leads

dxe3 19 gxf6 UXC3

f4.

play into the main line.

Barnes gives up his queen, but it's

The double threat of mate on e2 and 84

1 e4 c5 2 d4 cxd4 3 liJf3

85

Chess Secrets: Th e G ia n ts of Po we r Play 3 ...e6 4 ttJxd4 i.cs

Th e L ife H i s t o ry of a K n ig h t differently. Paulsen makes no effort to

A modem interpretation of this idea

free his queenside pieces, but instead

would be 4 ... a6 5 SLd3 SLc5 6 ttJb3 i.a7.

starts a kingside attack. This is doomed

With the white bishop on d3 blocking

to failure against a resourceful oppo­

the queen's view of the d6-square, i.f4

nent.

could be met by seizing centre ground

S ...fS 9 eS a6 10 �e2 ttJbc6 11 0-0 1:tf7

with ... d7-d6 and . . . e6-e5, assuming

12 h1 f4?

that Black didn't have an even better

with the knight, adding new power to

file and the attack on the black rook.

his kingside attack.

An aggressive gesture that very

tactical response.

kindly gives the white knight the e4-

S ttJb3 .ib6 6 ttJC3 ttJe7 7 SLf4 O-O?

square.

It was imperative to free his game

once due to the threat of mate on the h­

13 ttJe4 ttJfS 14 .ihS!

with 7. . . d5!, even though it meant be­ ing saddled with an isolated pawn. S SLd6! 19 .. :iVgs Being tied to the defence of a weak pawn is seldom a good role for a self­

an even better post for the white knight appears on f6. A very simple example of removing

14 ... g6 lS �g4 ttJg7 16 �f3 hS

the energy from the opponent's posi­

The 'attack' continues. It can have

tion. If you stop your opponent from

no positional justification when Black

moving his d-pawn, you stop him de­

has a rook and bishop entombed on the

veloping his bishop on cS, which in

queenside, but Morphy nevertheless

tum stops him developing his rook on

has to be vigilant.

a8. While Black is concerned with ex­

17 i.h3 �h4 18 ttJf6+ 'it>hS 19 'iYe4!

tricating these pieces from the bind, he

When you have achieved ascen­

is going to be outgunned in the strug­

dancy on the dark squares, you should

gle for control of the centre. Morphy

always

look

for

a winning break­

can use his extra power either to begin

through on a light square. Here White

a direct attack on the black king or to

has d6, e5 and f6 in his grasp, so Mor­

assail the backward pawn on d7. In the game things happen rather 86

phy tries to conquer g6. If he is allowed to play 20 'ilVxg6 the game would end at

tactics should support strategy. Only one white minor piece

respecting queen.

wasn't contributing to the harmony of

20 g31

the white position, and that was the

An excellent move. Morphy plans

Provoking Black's reply, after which

You won't ever see a better example of the adage that

knight on b3. So Morphy brings it into

to open the f-file for his rooks with

action

20 . . . fxg3 21 fxg3!. You can see that the

square, as after 21.. .'Wxd2 22 'iYxg6 ':xf6

through

the

'forbidden'

d2-

logic of the position is against Paulsen.

(what else?) 23 exf6 Black has to resign.

It is White, not Black, who is bound to

21 ... i.dS 22 ttJxf3 'ii'h6 23 .l::tg1

prosper from the German Master's ill

Planning 24 g4 when if 24 ... h4 25 g5

conceived plan of throwing forward

traps the queen. It makes sense for

his pawns on the kingside. How could

Black to keep the g-file blocked, but

it be otherwise when Black is minus the

24 . . .h4 is an example of strategy

services of a rook and bishop?

being supported by tactics!

20 ...f3

2 3 ...SLXf6

not

Paulsen tries to keep the kingside

Paulsen succeeds in eliminating the

closed. He hopes to deflect the white

white knight, but the opening of lines

queen so that 21 "iVxf3 ttJxe5 allows him

soon proves fatal.

to loosen some of the bind (though

24 exf6 ttJeS?

even here 22 �c3! is still excellent for White). 21 ttJd211 Brilliant. Instead of capturing on f3

He

should

fight

it

out

with

24 . . .�xf6, even though 25 ttJe5 looks entirely gruesome - he would soon be mated by l;Iafl etc if he took the pawn

with his queen, which would have lost

on f2.

energy, Morphy intends to take on f3

2S i.f4 CLlxf6 87

The L ife History of a Kn ig h t

C h e s s Se crets: The G ia n ts of P o w e r Play 2S... 'ii'h7 26 tiJgS etc is no better.

The power of a knight on fS

This is a standard move if White has committed himself to d2-d4, when

26 'iVxc6! Nowadays the desperado is a famil­

Black loses a piece. 17 i.b1 tiJxe4 Consistent with his previous moves,

what

Black can exert pressure along the c-file

iar tactical motif, but Paulsen appears

prompted him to start his investiga­

after ... cSxd4 etc. Here, however, Geller

but it leads to a lot of trouble.

to have overlooked it.

tions into the King's Indian Defence­

is able to manoeuvre quietly with the

18 .iLb2

26.. :iWxf4 27 'i!Vxc8+

was the powerful urge to deny the

aim of embarrassing the queen with a

I like the nonchalance of the moves

white knight the fS-square with a quick

future tiJdS. Instead, Black managed to

16 b3 and 18 i.b2: White calmly de­

... g7-g6. The next two games show us

hold on after 1 1 . . .tiJc6 12 tiJf1 Ite8 13 h3

ploys his bishop and leaves Black to

why, as an unchallenged horse hovers

h6 14 d4 cxd4 15 cxd4 exd4 16 tiJxd4

figure out how to meet the threat of 19

like one of the Valkyries over the bat­

tiJxd4 17 'ii'xd4 i.b7 in G.Kasparov­

a3 CDc6 20 tiJdS.

tlefield.

p.svidler, Linares 1999.

18 ... .iLb7

A vital zwischenzug. 27 ...J:.xc8 28 gxf4 .:!:XC2 29 Itac1

Bronstein

once

said

that

Kotov develops and prepares to an­

12 CDf1 tiJc6 13 tiJe3 Ire8?!

Game 32 E.Gelier-A.Kotov USSR Cha m pion s h i p, Moscow 1955 Ruy Lopez

The immediate 13 ... .te6 to control the dS-square looks

more

sensible,

swer 19 a3 with 19 .. .tZJdS. 19 d S ! !

though White can get a slight edge with 14 tiJgS!? intending IS 'it'f3, and then if permitted 16 CDxe6 fxe6 17 'it'h3! with some pressure on the e6-pawn. 14 d4 14 CDd5!? looks quite strong.

1 e4 es 2 lDf3 tiJc6 3 .tbS a6 4 iLa4 tiJf6 Black is a piece down and, in trying

S 0-0 !iL.e7 6 l::.e1 bS 7 i.b3 0-0 8 d 3

to get some more pawns as compensa­

Geller's restrained approach t o the

tion, he permits Morphy to finish the

opening has been used with success by

game with a mating attack.

both Fischer and Kasparov. Notably,

29 ...nxf2 30 Itc8+ tiJg8 31 tiJe5 !lg7 3 2

the Marshall Gambit theory fest after 8

tiJxg6+ � h 7 3 3 tiJf8+ �h6 3 4 tiJxd7!

c3 dS is avoided.

This is all very elegantly played. It

14 ... exd4 1S exd4 i.f8?!

8 ... d6 9 c3 tiJa5 10 .te2 c5 11 tiJbd2

made rather unpleasantly aware of the

A successful attack depends on ob­ structing the action of the defender's pieces as well as opening lines for your own pieces. Geller's move closes the diago­

weakness of his opponents.

nal of Black's bishop on b7 and pre­

is impossible not to love Morphy's en­

'it'c7?!

ergy, even when we are sometimes

34.. Jlxd7 35 rl.cxg8 lIxf4 36 !iL.xe6 l:!.e7

vents his knight returning to the centre

37 l:t8g6+ �h7 38 .tg8+ �h8 39 �h6+

with 19 . . . tiJdS. The consequences of 19 Kotov plays to win a pawn. He

dS will be felt right until the end of the

should prefer lS ... cxd4 16 tiJxd4 tiJxd4

game. The knight on b4 will never be

!lh7 If this was a game played in the

17

that Paulsen must have been in such

White.

king, either directly or indirectly, and

desperate time pressure that he didn't

16 b3! lDb4

when the bishop on b7 tries to help the

have the chance to resign. 40 liIxh7 mate 88

'it'xd4 with some

advantage

to

involved in the defence of the black

20th century I would be tempted to say

A necessary preliminary to pawn grabbing, as if 16 ... tiJxe4?? 17 CDd5 and

defence it ends up blocking the vital action of its own rook. 89

Chess Secrets: Th e G ia n ts of Po we r Play Geller's move also introduces the threat of 20 a3, trapping the black

The L ife H i s t o ry of a K n ig h t 24 ....l:r.xel+ 25 J:bel hxgs

Next up is a game between two of

If 2S ... .ixdS White is nevertheless

Kotov

the greatest forces in the history of

able to exploit the weakness of the f7-

doesn't have the chance to reinforce his

chess. Emanuel Lasker became W orId

square: 26 .ixg7! �xg7 27 'u'e7 'iiVc8 28

Champion

knight,

which

means

that

in

1894,

and

Alekhine's

with it in tournament games. 11 ...lZ'lsf6 The

correct

way

to

kingside defences before the storm

lZ'lxf7! with decisive threats, such as 29

breaks.

reign ended in 1946. Once again the

lZ'lg3 Black can't play 12 . . .eS.

lZ'l7xh6+ or the quiet 29 'iWg6! aiming to

19 ...e4

12 lZ'lg3 es 13 0-0 exd4 14 lZ'lfs

mate on g7.

knight on fS is a vital attacking force.

So 20 a3 c3! (better than 20 . . . lZ'ld3) 21

26 ne3!

.iel c2! is a nuisance for White. 20 bxe4 bxe4 21 .ixe4! White has to overcome a psycho­ logical barrier in making this move, as

White attacks the black queen at

Game 33 A.Alekhine-Em.Lasker Zurich 1934 Queen 's Gambit

the light-squared bishop is a wonderful exchange on e4 wins vital time to bring his queen and knights into the attack. Here 'power play, part two' has be­ the advantage that has been gained in the preparatory phase. From now on

14..JiVdB 15 lZ'l3xd4 ttJes 16 .ib3 .ixfs 17 lZ'lxfs that Alekhine avoided with 11 lZ'le4 has

.ltgs lZ'lbd7 6 e3 0-0 7 lIel e6 B .id3

occurred after all, but with the differ­

dxe4 9 .ixe4 lZ'lds

ence that White's knight has been swapped for the black

bishop rather knight. In situations such as this,

manoeuvre.

than

10 i.xe7 'ttxe7 11 lZ'le4

the white bishop on b3 is always going to be slightly

The white rook prepares to swing to h3 to finish matters.

endgame with 17 . . . 'iVxdl 18 .l:f.fxdl very appealing, especially as lZ'ld6 is loom­

If 26 . . . .ixdS 27 nh3 f6 28 'iVg6 with

ing.

the winning threat of 29 lZ'lh6+ 'it>h8 30

17 ...'iVb6?

lZ'lf7+ 'it>g8 31 .iIh8 mate. Instead, after

In avoiding the slightly worse end­

26 . . . f6 27 'iiVg6 i.c8 28 lDh6+ 'it>h8 Black

game Lasker unexpectedly falls under

has kept the rook out of h3, but it can

a direct attack. Alekhine's play from

strike lethally from another direction:

now on is superb. He knows that if he

29 .ixf6! lZ'lxdS 30 lIe8 and again White

is lazy for even one move his oppo­

wins. 27 .ixg7! One of Geller's favourite techniques is to combine a frontal attack down an open file with pressure along a key

superior to a black

knight. Hence Lasker doesn't find the

26....ieB

If Black had left his queen on d8

has the c7-square available to her - a better square than d8, as will be seen.

1 d4 ds 2 e4 e6 3 lZ'le3 lZ'lf6 4 lZ'lf3 .ie7 5

Lasker plays the Capablanca freeing

gun: the sharp, tactical exploitation of

21 .. J:txe4 22 lZ'lgs

once, as after 14 lZ'lxd4 lZ'leS IS lZ'lgfS she

So the exchange of minor pieces

attacking piece. On the other hand, the

Kotov is hit by one threat after another.

challenge

White's knight, as after 1 1 .. .lZ'l7f6 12

nent, perhaps the most resourceful de­ White retains the knight which is

fender in the history of chess, will slip

usually exchanged off after 11 0-0 lZ'lxc3

out. For example, if left in peace Black

12 1:txc3 eS.

completely equalizes with 18 .. J�ad8.

This was something of an Alekhine

Therefore White has to keep hitting the

back at move 11 this knight move

diagonal. Here the diversionary sacri­

would have been ruled out.

speciality. He used it eight times in his

black position with direct threats.

fice on g7 will win time for an invasion

22 ...l:te7 23 'iWhs h6 24 lZ'lfs ll

1927 match with Capablanca, but his

lB 'ifd6!

on e8.

score of eight draws wasn't entirely

27 ....ixg7 2B l:teB+ i.fB 29 l:!.xfB+! 1-0

satisfactory.

Black's pieces are allowed no res­ pite. 90

It's mate on h8 next move.

As we shall discuss in the next

On the other hand he

chapter, Alekhine was unsurpassed in

managed four wins and two draws

the art of finding attacking squares for 91

Th e L ife History of a K n ig h t

Chess Se crets: The G i a n ts of P o wer Play his queen. It isn't an easy skill to learn

rejoins the fight. Besides attacking the

- if the queen is kept a little too far

white knight she would be in a posi­

from the battle an attack often fails for

tion to swing over to e5, challenging

want of energy; if she is put a little too

the dominance of the white queen.

much into the melee she can be either

20 'ii'g 3 g6

23 e4!

towards the right of the board, rather than the centre. In any case, after say 24 .. :�c7 25 !lcd1, Black is under severe pressure and would have little chance of holding out against an Alekhine. 25 lLlf5+ 'it>h8 26 "iVxg611 1-0

exchanged off for the enemy queen or hounded by the other enemy pieces. Alekhine normally aimed to stick his queen somewhere on the third rank, where she could boss the battlefield whilst keeping out of range of the en­ emy's fire. Here he has seen that the g3-square will become available after There are two ideas behind this

Black's reply.

move. The first is to advance 24 e5, which would drive the knight back from f6 and introduce tactics, such as a Black is still only one move from be­ ing perfectly okay, as 21.. .lLlc5 would exchange off White's strong bishop and begin simplification down the d-file with .. Jlxd1 and ... J:!.d8 etc. In that case,

If 1 8 .. JIfe8? 19 lLle7+ or 18 ... lLlfd7?

queen in a direct attack on the king­

is fitting that Alekhine's fine manoeu­

side. Lasker is so preoccupied with tak­ ing measures against the first idea that

would be rather isolated on g3.

he completely misses the strength of

sures that the focus of events is on the kingside, so that it is his queen rather

19 f4 and Black drops material. Ideally

than Lasker's that is full of energy. 21 "it'g51

shield the g-file, but 18 ... lLlg6 allows 1 9

The black knight on d7 is paralysed

lLlh6+ gxh6 (the pressure o n f 7 from

by the need to keep f6 defended, and

White's bishop rules out 19 .. .'�h8?) 20

so the vital freeing move 21...lLlc5 is

"iVxf6 etc, when his pawns have been

prevented.

smashed up.

21 .. .';t;hS 22 lLld6 'it>g7 White has all his pieces on excellent

A routine move that loses the game.

attacking squares, but he still needs to

The last chance Black had to save him­

find extra power to overcome the de­

self was to correct his 17th move with

fence. As so often this is supplied by a

19 .. :�a5! or 19 ... "iVb5!, when his queen

humble foot soldier.

92

A beautiful end to the game, for if 26 ... hxg6 27 .t1h3+ lLlh6 28 J:!.xh6 mate. It

Lasker's queen would be in the thick of

he would like to use his knight to

19 11fd1 !lad8?

with e5-e6. The other idea is to clear the way for a white rook to join the

the action, while her white counterpart With his next move Alekhine en­ 1S ... lLled7

piece sacrifice on f7 followed by a fork

the second one.

vres with his queen were capped with her sacrifice.

Sometimes you have to retreat to go forwards

23 ...lLlgS 24 1:[d3 Alekhine is in no rush to play 24 e5. He prepares to double rooks on the d­ file, while also giving his opponent the chance to fall for a trap. 24...f61 The black knight has retreated to g8 to avoid being hit by e4-e5, and now a

Game 34 E.Gelier-S.Gligoric USSR vs Rest of the World match, Belgrade 1970 RUy Lopez

barrier is put up against the white pawn advance. Evidently Lasker felt he

1 e4 e5 2 lLlf3 lLle6 3 iLb5 a6 4 .ia4 lLlf6

had survived the worst, and would

5 0-0 i.e7 6 l:1e1 b5 7 iLb3 d6 8 e3 0-0 9

even be able to use the e5-point as a

h3 h6 10 d4 l:1e8 11 lLlbd2 id8 12 lLlf1

base for his knight with 25 . . .lLle5. Alas

.ib7 13 lLlg3 lLla5 14 iLe2 lLle4 15 b3

for him, he should have been looking

lLlb6 16 iLb2 lLlbd7 17 'iWd2 e5 18 J:!.ad1 93

The L ife History of a Knig h t

Chess Secrets: The Gia n ts of P o w e r Play 'iia 5 19 dxc5 dXc5 20 c4 b4 21 a4 fliC7 22 ttJf5

In return for two minor pieces, Geller has a rook and a mobile centre pawn. He has succeeded in pushing

Threatening 31 ttJe7+! iLxe7 32 'i'h7+ and mate next move. 30 ... �g6 31 �e2!

back the black knight from f6, but how is he to continue his initiative? If noth­ ing happens fast Gligoric will be able to organize his pieces and come out on top. Once again Geller found the way to give his pieces vital energy. 27 ttJh411 We all admire 'loud' moves such as 23 ttJxe5!, but it is often an unobtrusive,

The white pawns have succeeded in

quiet move of this kind which wins a

bagging the black queen.

game. Its paradoxical nature means Here Gligoric played: 22 ...ttJb8 He intends the manoeuvre ... ttJc6

that it catches the opponent off guard, as he has only been looking out for ob­ vious 'body blows'.

and ... ttJd4. This is a great positional

It seems that Philidor was right af­

idea, but for the space of one move it

ter all when he claimed that the pieces

puts the knight out of the game and

were the servants of the pawns. The

leaves Black's centre under-defended.

knight is ordered to retreat from its

In chess as well as life, you have to

dream outpost on f5, as the f-pawn

strike while the iron is hot. Geller has

wants to use the square.

one fleeting moment to carry out his

27 ...ttJc6

attack or it will be too late. He seized

If Geller had shown any indecision on the previous move, the Serbian

23 ttJxe 5 ! Itxe5 24 iLxe5 'i'xe5 25 f4

Grandmaster would be in a position to complete

his

development

with

2B ... lIdB. Instead, he is overwhelmed by a series of forcing moves. 28 'iWd3! The threat of mate on h7 compels Black to make a 'hook' on g6 for White's f4-f5 advance. Bronstein once said of a similar situation: "along with the witty and subtle finesses aimed at provoking weakenings of the king's pawn cover, one should not forget such things as one-move mate threats." 28 ...g6 29 f5 ! gxf5 30 ttJxf5 94

36 "iVf4 .ltxg7 37 'ikC71

be menaced by the knight check on e7.

As I remark elsewhere, players tend

In running away she falls into a more

to 'back off' once they have won mate­

insidious trap.

rial. Not so Geller: he keeps on harass­

31 .. :i'g5?

ing the black pieces and concludes the

Necessary was 31...'i:Ye6. Then Geller

game in the quickest way.

gives a variation which is characteristic

37 ... ltb8 38 ltd6 ttJg4 39 l:txc6 .ltd4+ 40

of his power play style: 32 'iWe4! (notice

�f1 1-0

the way he gets his queen from d3 to e4

his chance with: �e6 26 e5 ttJe8

33 ... flixe5 34 'ii'g4+ 'iig7 35 ttJxg7 ttJf6 Now it's the black queen's tum to

with gain of time so that his rook can use the open d-file) 32 .. :i'g6 33 �d7!

A battle between potential outposts

(one of the Ukrainian Grandmaster's favourite tactical devices is the combi­ nation of diagonal pressure against the enemy king with the utilization of an open file in the centre) 33 . . . iLcB 34 e6! (and here is another feature of his style: the pawn ram! - both c6 and £7 are now

Game 35 D.Bronstein.S.Gligoric Moscow 1967 RUy Lopez

attacked, so Black has no choice but to give White a passed pawn) 34 ... iLxd7

1 e4 e5 2 ttJf3 ttJc6 3 iLb5 a6 4 i..a4 ttJf6

35 exd7 ttJg7 36 ttJxg7 'it>xg7 37 'iixg6+

5 0-0 i.e7 6 iLxc6 dxc6 7 d3 ttJd7 8

fxg6 38 iLe4! and White regains his

ttJbd2 0-0 9 ttJc4 f6 10 ttJh4 ttJC5 11 ttJf5

piece with 39 .ixc6, when the d-pawn

i..xf5 12 exf5 l;Ie8 13 b3 'iVd5 14 iLb2 e4

wins the game for him.

15 ttJe3 �f7 16 d4 ttJd7 17 flig4 c5 18

32 h4 iif4 33 g3!

flixe4 cxd4 19 iLxd4 c6 20 lIad1 ttJC5 21 95

Chess S e c rets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play

The L ife H is t o ry of a Knig h t

An attack with knights doesn't always win!

�g4 ..tf8 22 tLlc4 lIad8 23 ..te3 bS 24

the pin on the d-file means that Bron­

lLld2 ndS 2S c4 'udd8 26 cxbS cxbS 2 7

stein can't reply lLle6. In fact the pres­

lLlf3 1.:tdS 28 lLld4 lIees 2 9 �d2 1Vd7 30

sure on d4 would be so great that he

lIcl b4

would have to try to save himself with

an outpost near the opponent's king is more valuable than an outpost on the other wing.

the exchange sacrifice 33 l:tdxc3.

Or as a great player once remarked:

sins, such as allowing a piece to be shut

32 lidc21 ':xd4

"when you put a knight on e6 you can

out of the game or gratuitously weak­

These variations demonstrate an important rule of dynamic strategy:

If the defender has avoided any chess

go to sleep - the game will win itself!"

ening his defences, there is no reason

33 :c7!

why he should fall victim to a pair of

Black has avoided the danger from

marauding knights. Here for the sake

the white knight, but at the cost of the

of

rooks infiltrating into his position.

sive/counterattacking effort by Veselin

33 ... 'ilVds

Topalov against an over-eager attack.

balance

is

a

fine

defen­

The outpost on c3 wouldn't save Black any longer, as after 33 ... lLlc3 34 lixd7 .uxd7 he lacks the one move needed for consolidating with . . . a6-a5, Here

Bronstein

might

have

re­

which gives White the chance to create

treated his knight with 31 lLlf3, when

a passed pawn with 35 �c4+ �f7 36

he has some edge after 31 . . .lIe4 32 'iVh3.

Gligoric is jubilant as he has elimi­

Game 36 A.Morozevich-V.Topalov Dortm u n d 2001 Petroff Defence

�xa6 l:txf5 37 a4!.

Admittedly his queen would be rather

nated the threat of lLle6 and expects to

out of things, but he could hope to

gain two pieces for a rook. Instead, he

The modern elite player with the

build up pressure against the rather

should have modestly taken control of

style closest to that of Adolf Anderssen

loose black queenside while his oppo­

his own outpost with 32 ...lLlc3, when

is Alexander Morozevich. He tries to

nent was preoccupied with regaining

the white rooks are shut out.

generate double-edged, obscure posi­

34 i..xd4 �xd4 3 s lIxg7+!!

1 e4 eS 2 lLlf3 lLlf6

his pawn. However, Bronstein saw a

Not that this would have given him

tions which suit his combinative flair

clever tactical trap that allows him to

an easy life, as White can then jump

and keen eye for tactical chances. Most

pursue a far more powerful strategy.

into e6. After 33 lLle6! Black has no time

players try to push their opponent over

31 h 3 !

to

with

the cliff's edge while avoiding the drop

dismantle

the

outpost

Making a hole o n h2 t o escape back

33 ... lIxf5? as White can return the com­

themselves. In contrast, Morozevich is

rank threats, but also giving his oppo­

pliment in the severest style with 34

willing to plummet earthwards whilst

nent the chance to err. If now 31.. .l:te4

lLlxf8 xf8 35 �xb4+, not only disman­

grappling with his opponent, confident

32 li'd1 ! and this time the white queen

tling the outpost but

stays in the thick of the action.

knight as well! If Black supported his

31 ...lLle4

outpost with 33 ... .td6

winning the (or similarly

that he will find an outlying branch to Bronstein had to foresee this mating move before he played 31 h3.

grab at the last moment. Against such a dangerous adver­

Both sides have advanced pawns

33 ... a5 34 a3! ) White can break open a

3S ...i..xg7 36 lic8+ cj;;f7 37 'iih S+ rtie7

sary, Topalov decides he should qui­

that provide outposts for their knights

new line for his rooks with 34 a3! as 35

38 'iWe8+ rtid6 39 lic6+

etly centralize his pieces. He wants

in enemy territory. White's pawn on f5

axb4 axb4 36 l:ta2 ! ! . If now 36 . . . lLlxa2 37

supports lLle6; the black pawn on b4

l:tc8+! and, thanks to the power of the

self too much to play 39 �d8 mate.

complications start. The dull Petroff is

supports . . .lLlc3. Gligoric hopes to seize

knight on e6, Black is mated by 37 ... i..f8

39...cj;;d S 40 "iVd7+ 1-0

the perfect way to provoke his restless

his own base after 32 l:td3? lLlc3, when

38 llxf8 or 37. . . �f7 38 �xg7 mate.

96

Evidently White was enjoying him­

It is mate in two moves.

solid ground under his feet when the

opponent into premature action. 97

Th e L ife H i s t o ry of a K n ig h t

Chess Se crets: The G ia n ts of P o w e r Play 3 liJxe5 d6 4 liJf3 liJxe4 5 ..td3

Aha! The bishop is already dream­ ing of mating the black king on h7 ... 5...liJf6 6 h3 ..te7 7 0-0 0-0 8 e3 e5 9

queen and bishop battery against h7 is

knight still on e4. But on the positive

centralization defeating a premature

triumphant.

to

side, unlike after 19 liJeg5, there is no

attack. Topalov pins the knight and so

calculate 20 . . . g6 21 liJxf7! i.. f5 (it's mate

pin on the e-file, so Topalov can acti­

threatens the simple 23 . . . ..txe4 24 ..txe4

in one if the knight is captured) 22

vate his bishop.

lIxg5.

liJxd8! i..xd3 23 Ihe8 1i.xc2? (he is los­

21 ... ..td 5 ! 22 "iVh 5?

forced.

Morozevich

ing too much material anyhow) 24

White is too ambitious. He should

l:txf8+! 'it>xf8 25 liJe6+ and the black

make do with the quirky 22 liJh7!. Then

queen is lost.

the

knight

is

taboo

because

if

Therefore

White's

reply

is

2 3 f4 !!f5 ! Intending t o get maximum value from having his rook on his fourth

b) 19 ... hxg5? 20 liJxg5 g6 (Black's

22 . . . 'it>xh7? 23 liJf6+ 'it>h8 24 l:lxe8! (even

rank. White's position would start to

king won't survive long after 20 . . . i.. d6

better than 24 liJxe8, winning the ex­

crumble if he allows the f4-pawn to fall

21 "Yi'h5) 21 i.xg6! fxg6 22 liJxe6 "Yi'f7 23

change) 24... gxf6? 25 'iNd3 and the at­

to the black queen.

liJxd8 1::!.xd8 and White has a rook and

tack on h7 comes up trumps. Instead,

24 g3 g6 25 "Yi'h4 e4!!

two pawns plus attacking chances for

after 22 . . . 1i.e7 23 liJxc5! the tactics work

two pieces.

out in White's favour, the simplest be­

19

ing 23 . . . 1i.xc5?? 24 !he8+ and mates,

•..

l:td61

Rebuffing White's attack with the

..te2 liJe6 10 d4 i.e6 11 I1el h6 12 .ie3

power of centralization.

l:te8 13 liJbd2 i.f8 14 liJe4 liJd 5

20 liJe4

Topalov sees the chance to grab his

needed

Back again - no harm has been

beloved bishop pair. Morozevich isn't

done in seeing if Black would falter.

too concerned as it allows his heavy

20 ...�dd8 21 liJfg5!

while the attack on h7 wins again after 23 ... 'it>h8 24 liJf6! gxf6 25 "iVd3 etc. So Black would have to respond with the simplifying 22 . . . ..txe4! 23 .l:Ixe4 J:!.e7! (not giving White the chance to set up the queen and bishop battery

pieces to take up an aggressive posture

with 23 .. .1he4? 24 "Yi'xe4) 24 liJxf8 (now

along the e-file.

after 24 liJf6+? gxf6 White has no good

15 dxe5 liJxe3 16 l:txe3 dxe5 17 "iVe2

follow-up to his attack, as Black can

"WIe7 18 l:tel ltad8 19 liJeg5!?

defend

with

. . . .tg7

as

necessary)

24 ... 'it>xf8 with about equal chances. 22 ...�e5!!

The value of this pawn push be­ comes clear at move 29. Black could already go for the line 2S . . .hxgS 26 liJxgS �xgS 27 "iVxgS, but with the white pieces in a tangle there is no need to rush. 26 'it>h2 Morozevich

can't

extricate

his

knight with 26 liJ£3, as after 26 ... .lte7! 27

The first probe. Black is given two chances to go wrong: a) If 19 . . . .id7? 20 'i'd3! when the 98

White tries again with his other

"ii'xh6 ..txe4! (but not 27 ... l:thS?? 28

knight. Now 21.. .hxg5 22 liJxgS would

liJf6+! when Black is mated in two

transpose to variation 'b' in the note to

moves - you can never be too careful!)

19 liJeg5.

28 .¥i.xe4 l:thS the white queen's reckless

You can see that Black doesn't have

adventure on the h-file has led to her

the ... J:1d6 defence that he used at move 19, as the rook would hang to the

being trapped. A classic example of the power of

26

•.•

Wg7 27 "Yi'g4 hxg5 99

Ch ess Secrets: The G ia n ts of P o w e r Play At last it is the right moment to

Th e L ife History of a K n ig h t resistance smacks of time trouble.

takes the material.

one of his earlier games ...

34 �xfS gxfs 35 tle8 tld 7 36 tld 2 �f6

28 lL'lxgS tlxgs 29 �xgs �b6!

13 ...b4! 14 tZJb1

37 �gl lL'les 38 �2 lL'ld 3+ 39 �e3 .i.c6

Topalov's defence against White's attack is made all the easier thanks to his 2Sth move which allows his queen

40 tlb8 tle7+ 0-1 White's final ignominy is that his king is mated after 41 �d4 tle4.

to engage in a counterattack. 30 fS

The weakness of a knight denied centre squares Having praised the knight for most of

ondly, Black has ruled out the pawn ram e4-eS without allowing any lL'lfS

After 14 lL'le2 the white queen is no longer defending e4, so Black can fairly

e4-eS, lL'lbS or lL'lxe6 all gone out of the

safely snaffle a pawn with 14 ... tZJxe4 IS

window, the white queen is looking

i.xe7 �xe7. Naturally, if Kamsky had

rather shut out of things on h3.

wanted to play a double-edged pawn

This brief assessment shows us how

sacrifice he would have given up the

14 ... eS! has sapped most of the energy

poisoned pawn on move eight!

out of the white position. Topalov's

14...eS!

queenside pawns are mobile, and can be supported in their advance by the

this chapter, we shall now attempt to

black pieces, whereas Kamsky's pieces

bury it. Its chief weakness, compared

and pawns are no longer cooperating

to the bishop, is that it can't control

together to generate active play. In

squares from a distance. Therefore it

other words, White's game is passive.

can be a feeble piece if it is denied a

lS lL'lld2 a s !

safe post in or near the centre.

This pawn thrust i s all the better for

Topalov had studied Gata Kam­

being delayed a move. Good moves

sky's games in the Poisoned Pawn

need to be played at the right moment!

Variation and seen a chance to disrupt White has many successes in this book through thrusting his f-pawn at

followed by .i.xg6! and 31 fxg6 are looming. But Topalov has prepared well for this move with 2S ... c4! and 29 . . :iVb6! '

pieces and pawns. With his last two pawn moves To­

complete

answer

to

White's

threats, for if 31 tlxe7 Black mates in one move! 31 �f4 �xb2 Topalov's attack gets in first as Morozevich lacks time to play 32 tlxe7 and 33 f6+. 32 tlxe7 "iVXC2+ 33 tl1e2 "iVxfs

World Cup, Khanty Mansiysk 200S,

1 e4 cS 2 lL'lf3 d6 3 d4 cxd4 4 lL'lxd4 lL'lf6

From this central square it introduced

5 lL'lC3 a6 6 .i.gs e6 7 f4 "iVb6 8 lL'lb3 White wants a more positional fight and so declines to offer the pawn. 8 ... ii.e7 9 "iVf3 tZJbd7 10 0-0-0 "iVC7 11 ii.d3 bS 12 tlhe1 .i.b7 13 �h 3? A poor move that allows his knight on c3 to be driven out of the game.

The disappearance of the f-pawn

More circumspect was 13 �bl, when if

robs White of any way to cause prob­

13 . . .b4 14 lL'le2 keeps the knight central­

lems for the black king. His continued

ized. But Kamsky was still following

1 00

palov wins the opening battle. In an

Game 37 G.Kamsky-V.Topalov Sofia 2006 Sicilian Defence

30....i.e7! A

16 �b1 a4 17 lL'lc1

the harmony between the American's

the black defences. Indeed, it looks highly menacing here as both 31 f6+

attack. And thirdly, with ideas such as

earlier game G.Kamsky-LSmirin, FIDE Black

had

played

the

immediate

14 ... aS?!, which had allowed White's knight to become active with IS lL'ld4!. ideas of both lL'lbS and the sacrifice tZJxe6. What's more, Black could no longer play . . .e6-eS without allowing

17 ...0-0!

the dangerous lL'lfS move, which meant

It is interesting that Topalov doesn't

that the pawn ram e4-eS was always a

rush into 17 ... a3, forcing 18 b3. If then

latent threat. White's game was there­

18 ... "iVc3? 19 lL'lc4 and the white knights

fore

have the last laugh after all with the

dynamic.

Now let's examine the situation af­

threat of 20 tZJe2 trapping the queen.

ter 14 . . . eS. Firstly, the white knight has

The black pawn thrust 17 ... a3 looks

been denied a central post on d4. Sec-

tremendously strong at first glance, but 101

Ch ess Secrets: The G ia n ts of Po wer Play

Th e L ife H i s t o ry of a K n ig h t

should be held back unless there is a

Therefore Kamsky is obliged to defend

convincing follow-up. After all, if Black

his knight on c4 with the game move,

is unable to exploit the hole on c3, all

which does Black's work for him by

he has done is renounce the potentially

opening the a-file.

more useful plan of opening lines with

Here we see the excellence of Topa­

... b4-b3.

lov's judgment in holding back the

18 tLle2 l:tfc8 19 tLlg3

. . . a4-a3 pawn thrust at move 1 7.

The white knight has taken three

21 ... axb3 22 cxb3 tLlcS

moves to get in range of the fS-square,

If now 23 �f1 �a7 etc is soon over­

whereas it could have got there in one

whelming. Therefore Kamsky tries to

move after

14 ... aS? !

15 tLld4.

Even

confuse matters by offering the e4-

worse, its journey proves a waste of

pawn.

time as it is once again thwarted by a

23 tLle2 tLlfxe41

pawn move. 19...g6!

The weakness of a kn ight against a passed pawn

Already Black is poised to seize a space advantage with . . .e6-eS. 9 �b3 'it>h8 10 'iVC3 esl

Compared to the bishop, the knight is

A simple example of tactics sup­

notoriously poor at dealing with an

porting

advancing passed pawn. We shall see

ceeded in holding back his opponent's

how Alekhine exploited this to score a

expansion in the centre, since if 11 dxeS

famous victory.

dxeS 12 tLlxeS? tLlxe5 13 �xe5 "*,xd2

strategy:

White hasn't suc­

and Black has won a piece.

Game 38 E.Bogoljubow-A.Alekhine Hasti ngs 1922 Dutch Defence

Topalov foresees that he will drop

11 e3 a s ! Not only restraining any counter­ play with b2-b4, but also preparing to take the initiative on the queenside. 12 b3 'iWe8!

the exchange but gain an irresistible The white queen is now a pitiful

attack.

sight, boxed in by her knight in the

24 �xe7 "Yi'xe7 25 ..txe4 tLlxe4 26 tLlb6

corner of the board. She can't cause the

'iWa7 ! 27 tLlxa8

1 d4 fS Like Morphy and the young Topa­ lov, Alekhine found the Dutch Defence a useful way to generate double-edged

black king any problems because her

If 27 tLlxc8 .td3+! 28 "iVxd3 "iVxa2+ 29

kingside pawns are passive. In con­

'it>c1 "iVal+! 30 fibl l:txc8+ and Black

trast, the black pawns are working

mates.

2 c4 tLlf6 3 g3 e6 4 ..tg2 .iLb4+ 5 .iLd2

hard with their pieces to assail the

27 .. J'ixa8 28 a4 .iLxe2 29 l:tc1

.txd2+ 6 tLlxd2?!

white king. 20 tLlC4 .ia6 21 b3 If 21 tLle3 a3 and White can no

positions with the black pieces.

Already an error. White should re­

Or 29 �xe2 tLlc3+ when Black will be a piece up.

capture 6 'ii'xd2 and then play 7 tLlc3.

29 ...'i!if21 0-1

The knight is passively placed on d2 and also lessens the white queen's in­

longer play 22 b3 because 22 ..."Yi'c3 wins

Two pieces and a pawn down for a

at once. It would also be hopeless to

rook and facing a decisive attack, Kam­

fluence over the centre.

allow a breakthrough with 22 ... axb2.

sky called it a day.

6 ..tLlc6 7 tLlgf3 0-0 8 0-0 d6

1 02

.

Normally we see Alekhine indulge in manoeuvres on the queenside as a 1 03

The L ife H is t o ry of a K n ig h t

Chess S e cre ts: The G i a n ts of Pow er Play cisely these lines that the white pieces

prelude to a direct attack on the enemy

blocked centre. Then it is distressing to

king. Here the situation is reversed.

see how the whole of strategy seems to

might have used for counterplay once

Black wants to fix the situation on the

be reduced to a mantra "If I'm White,

Alekhine's real assault begins on the

kingside in the most favourable man­

I'll play l:tgl and g2-g4; if I'm Black I'll

queenside.

ner before switching to action in the

play .l:!.g8 and ... g7-gS" .

19 ...d 5 !

For example, Morphy himself lost

centre. 13 a3 'iVh5

game 10 of his match with Anderssen

Once again tactical means are used

through making a . . . g7-g5 move that

to preserve the e5-pawn, for if 14 dxe5

Steinitz rightly deemed "a bad strategi­

dxe5 15 lDxe5? lDxeS 16 'fixeS lDg4 and

cal error" .

the threat of man on h2 costs White his

Unlike Morphy, Alekhine has had

queen.

the benefit of Steinitz's games and

14 M

teachings on how to play in closed po­

24 l:tg2 dxc4 2 5 bXc4

sitions. Therefore he comes up with a

White had the highly disagreeable

possible .. .fS-f4 advance followed by

superior strategy, which involves gain­

choice between giving up the a4-pawn

. . .�h3 and ... lDg4.

ing control of a light square complex of

or surrendering the light squares with

14... lDg4 15 lDg5 i.d7 16 f3 lDf6 17 f4

pawns. We never see such a sophisti­

2S 'fixc4, when 2s ... lDfdS followed by

e4 18 IHd1 h6 19 lDh3

cated approach in Morphy's games -

Evidently White was afraid of a

the closest we come are his games as Black

with

Harrwitz

(see

Chapter

Nine). You Alekhine

might went

be

wondering

to

the

why

trouble

of

26 ... bS! is horrible for him.

2 0 lDf1 I've no idea why this knight slinks away

from the queenside

With

three

minor

pieces

Alekhine wants the dS-square for

passively

his knight. Bogoljubow buys him off,

placed on the kingside, it's no wonder

but at a terrible cost.

things begin to fall apart for White on

28 lDd1 lDd3! 29 l'!.xa5 b4! 30 l:txa8

13 ... 'iVhS etc when he intends to switch

the other wing.

the weight of the struggle to the other

20 ...lDe7

wing. The point is that White has been

With the positional threat of 21...a4!,

provoked into the twin advances h2-h4

when if 22 b4 dxc4 and the d5-square

and f2-f4 which have drained all ex­

becomes a beautiful base for the black

pansive

knights.

power

from

his

kingside

pawns. This has deprived the knight

21 a4 White has no wish to play 21 cS as

Bogoljubow has responded to his

on h3 and bishop on g2 of any active

opponent's threats by blocking the

role. In contrast, their black opposite

21.. .iLbS brings the black bishop to life. 21 ...lDc6!

kingside. If this were one of Morphy's

numbers on f6 and d7 are much more

games, Black would no doubt aim to

flexibly placed for a battle on the

engineer

queenside and in the centre .

a

breakthrough

involving

... �g8 and ... g7-g5. A lot of misplaced ingenuity would be spent trying to

I

would

suggest

that

25 ... ii.xa4 26 lDf2 .i.d7 27 lDd2 b5!

struggle.

Flexible thinking: the knight goes back to c6 as the b4-square has become

13 . . . 'iihS!

goaded Bogoljubow into closing lines

Now the straightforward 30 .. :it'xa8

available. 22 l:td2 lDb4 23 ii.h1 "ii'e 8!

31

"iVb3

'iVaI,

threatening 32 ... .lfLa4,

The black queen returns to the cen­

would probably finish the game in a

make it work. In fact, playing through

on the kingside partly out of fear of his

Morphy's games is always a pleasure

adversary's reputation as an attacker

tre and increases the pressure on the

couple of moves - White's bishop on

par excellence. It is ironic that it is pre-

a4-square.

hI and rook on g2 are a sorry sight. But

until you reach an encounter with a 1 04

1 05

C h e s s S e c rets: The G ia n ts of P o w e r Play Alekhine was an artist, not just a collec­

White's pieces are in such a tangle

tor of points, and he couldn't resist a

that he has to give up the exchange,

once in a lifetime chance to sacrifice

after which he is losing on material as

two rooks and a queen for the sake of a

well as position.

pawn:

37 ':'xb5 1i'xb5 38 g4 lbf3+ 39 i.xf3

30

exf3 40 gxf5 "e2!

•.•

bxC3!! 3 1 l:!.xe8 c2

The plucky pawn sneaks past all the

Paralysing the white pieces, as if 41

defenders. This is one of the extremely

lbh3 lbg4! 42 �xe3 fxe2 and Black will

rare instances of a study-like theme

get another new queen.

appearing in a tournament game.

41 d5 '>t>g8 42 h5 �h7 43 e4 lbxe4 44

32 l1xf8+ '>t>h7 33 lbf2 cd*'+ 34 lbf1

lbxe4 'iixe4 45 d6 cxd6 46 f6 gxf6 47

lbe1 3 5 l:.h2 1i'xc4

l:td 2 'iVe2

C h a pte r F i ve

I

The Goldi locks Queen

He could have gone after e3 at once with 35 . . .lbc2! ? to create another passed pawn. 3 6 nb8 �b5

The queen is by far the strongest piece on the board, and so exceptional care has to be taken with her deployment. In the vast majority of power play games, it is the presence or absence of the queen that is the deciding factor in whether an attack breaks through or the defence triumphs. 48 1:txe2 fxe2 49 <M2 exf1'iV+ 50 '>t>xf1 �g7 51 �2 rtif7 52 '>t>e3 '.t>e6 53 '>t>e4 d5+ 0-1 A most original and creative game.

This creates a positional dilemma, as if she stands too far away from the action, the chances of a successful out­ come are reduced. On the other hand, if she strays too close to the frontline

The queen radiates energy on the third ra nk Alexander Alekhine was particularly adept at finding secure but powerful posts for his queen

011

the third rank.

From such a vantage point she could survey the whole board, and conduct an attack without being in any great danger. I have always been impressed by his subtle handling of the queen in the two games that follow. In both ex­ amples a simple manoeuvre led to a

the defenders will gain time by harass­

massive shift in the energy balance be­

ing her with threats from which she

tween the two armies.

must always flee (the only exceptions are those glorious, mind over matter moments called ' queen sacrifices' ). The solution is to find her a place amid the skirmish which, like the por­ ridge in Goldilocks, is neither too hot

Game 39 A.Alekhine-F .Marshall Baden-Baden 1925 Queen 's Gambit

nor too cold. This is by no means easy, and skill in the use of the queen remains one of the hallmarks of chess mastery.

1 06

1 d4 d5 2 c4 lbf6 3 cxd5 lbxd5 4 e4 lbf6 5 .1l.d3 e5 6 dxe5 lbg4 7 lbf3 lbc6 8 �g5 107

Th e Goldilo cks Q u e e n

Ch ess Secrets: The Gia n ts of P o we r Play iLe7 9 il.xe7 �xe7 10 lLlC3 lLlcxe5 11

dynamic play that created the fertile

It's almost too easy. The pawns

Alekhine says he avoided this line be­

lLlxe5 �xe5

ground from which Alekhine's combi­

sweep forwards without meeting any

cause of 24 ... l:tdS, but 2S i.xdS lLlxdS 26

nations flowered.

resistance at all.

e7 lLlxe7 (if the queen moves, it's 27

13 'it'd2 ! iLd7

19 .. :i!ke7 20 'ikg5 lLld 5 21 f6

'iVxg7 mate) 27 fxe7 wins very easily

An attractive recapture that Alek­ hine will punish very severely. Instead,

with the passed pawn. This was the

After 13 ... gS the reply 14 h4 looks

1 1 ...lLlxeS 12 0-0 0-0 is about equal. 12 h 3 lLlf6

very strong. For example, 14 ... g4 IS

way to win the game without giving

'tIVgS! evicts the queen from eS, as

the opponent any glimmer of counter­

Is .. :ikxgS 16 hxgS lLld7 17 .i.e2 lLleS 18

play, although it would still take a

lLldS is horrible for Black.

couple of moves to oust the black

14 �e3 !

queen from e8.

I t is better to deny the black queen

On the other hand, the move actu­

any dark squares in the centre before

ally chosen is the quickest and most

pushing her backwards. Hence the sec­

efficient way for a player with a com­

ond white queen move generates more

plete mastery of tactics to finish the

energy than 14 f4 at once which would

game. Alekhine isn't afraid to let Mar­

allow 14 . . . 'iVcS.

shall try for one of his famous swindles of

Notice how the white pawns ad­

Alekhine's manoeuvre is that Black is

vanced in unison. At every step of the

An

equally

important

point

Here the obvious move is 13 0-0

unable to castle queenside due to the

way forwards they keep abreast of

which develops with a view to 14 f4,

attack on a7. This persuades Marshall

each other, with one pawn advancing and then the other moving up along­

when the black queen is pushed from

to send his king to the kingside, where

her fine central post and White's centre

it is in range of White's mobile centre

side it. First of all they sat next to each

becomes mobile. However, Black has

pawns.

other on the fourth rank; then they

the excellent reply 13 . . . gS!, cementing

14 ...iLc6

as he sees the attempt can easily be de­ feated.

sprinted forward to the fifth rank; and

the queen on the eS-square. The white

If instead 14 . . . gS, the reply IS h4

now one pawn has reached the sixth

pawns would be deprived of expansive

still looks very strong. Or else White

rank. Positionally speaking, the next

energy, which in tum would

cast

could simply castle queens ide and ask

step

gloom over the white pieces. And if all

his opponent: where are you going to

Alekhine engineers it with his next

that wasn't bad enough, Black might

put

move.

castle queenside and then use the g­

IS ... 0-0-0? 16 �xa7, while IS ... 0-0 16 h4

pawn as a battering ram against the

isn't the sort of position you want

white king's position, which has been

against someone called A.Alekhine.

c7 and putting it on e6, and you'll see

Black is alive and kicking after 2S

weakened by h2-h3.

15 0-0-0 0-0 16 f4 'tIVe6 17 e5

that we have a real fight on our hands.

.i.xa2 �cS+ 26 ..tbl nd7! (and if 27 e6??

At this point I would like to remind

your king? Black can't stomach

White's central pawns are bursting

is

therefore

to

arrange

eS-e6.

21..:iikf8 22 iLc4! Try removing the black pawn from

24...lLlxa2+ 25 ..tb1!

Put the pawn back on c7 and there's

'iVxgS!).

with energy. Marshall tries to fight

nothing

25 ...�e8 26 e6 iLe4+

mann's famous comment that he could

against them using his

through with eS-e6 at the appropriate

have made any of Alekhine's combina­

out the restraining influence of any

moment.

what odds you would get on Alekhine

tions, but he couldn't get the positions

black

22 ... lLlxc3 23 .uxd8 l:.xd8 24 fxg7 !

falling for 27 ..txa2?? 'iVa4 mate.

from which the combinations started.

them back.

You are about to witness some of the

17 ... .l':i.fe8 18 .l:the1 l:Iad8 19 f5

you

1 08

of

Grandmaster

Rudolf

Spiel­

pieces, but with­

pawns there's no way he can hold

to

stop

White

powering

Instead, 24 e 6 threatens 2 S exf7+ g8 26 fxg7+ 'iVxg7 27 'iVxd8 mating.

Tricky to the last, but I wonder

27 �a1! 27 li.xe4 is also good enough, but it's 109

The Go ldilocks Q u e e n

Chess Secrets: The G i a n ts of Po wer Play Now we can see what Alekhine has

simpler to avoid the rook check on dl. 27...f5 28 e7+ Itd 5 29 �f6 Threatening a decisive check on f8. 29.. :YWf7 30 e8�+ 1-0 After 30 ...'ilVxe8 31 ii.xd5+ it's mate next move.

tactical

alertness

of

an

Alekhine. He immediately seizes on

the

the fact that Black's last move left the

pawn

break

that

his

position

needed has appeared on the board.

g5-square undefended.

23 ... c5

26..JWxf7

Black can't stop the forward ad­

Thanks to his fine queen manoeu­

The

achieved with his little queen move -

vance

of

White's

pawn,

because

If 26 ... Wh8 27 "iVf6 mate, or 26 ... Wxf7 27 "iVxh7+ winning the queen, or finally

vre, Alekhine was able to energize his

23 .. :�e7 would leave his knight en

26 .. Jhf7 27 �g5+ and 28 �xd8+ wins.

pawns, which in tum gave extra power

prise, while after 23 .. .'�jd7, hoping to

27 �xd8 lDa4

to his pieces. It is one of the rules of

block with 24 ...tLJf6, the white rook can

positional chess that

invade on the queenside with 24 l:ta7! .

pieces that are ac­ tively supported by their pawns will almost always triumph over pieces acting on their own.

In this variation we see how important 22 �e3 ! ! A quiet little move, but it gives Black a lot to think about. The queen radiates

Frightening the opponent

Game 40 A.Alekhine-KJu nge Po land 1942 Ruy Lopez

5 0-0 .te7 6 "iVe2 b5 7 .ib3 0-0 8 c3 d5 9

it was for White to find time for 18 a4, opening

the

a-file.

He

needed

The queen bosses the show on both wings

squeeze every piece of dynamism he The next game illustrates the tremen­

could out of his pieces, or else 23 ...tLJd7

On the queenside there is the immediate

would have been perfectly okay for

dous power of an unfettered queen.

threat of 23 tLJxd6 l:.xd6 24 �xd6 "it'xd6

Black.

First of all she prevents the enemy

25 �xb6 winning a piece; on the king­

24 f6!

queens ide

pieces

from

developing

side Black has to worry about sacrifices

A pawn throwing itself at the op­

properly. Then she quickly switches to the kingside to orchestrate an attack.

such as 23 tLJxg7 Wxg7 24 'ilVgS+ or 23

ponent's defences will be a familiar

�xd6 l:!.xd6 24 'ikgS. Junge is unnerved,

sight to readers of this book.

And finally she sacrifices herself in the

and decides to remove the knight that is

24 ...gxf6 25 �h6

centre to force checkmate.

22 ...tLJxf5? He should have played 22 ...tLJbc4!

Another benefit of 22 �e3 - the white queen jumps into the hole in the opponent's pawn wall.

Now White

d3 dxe4 10 dxe4 .tg4 11 h3 .th5 12

with chances of a successful defence.

threatens both 26 "iVxf6 and 26 �c2.

.tg5 tLJe8 13 i..xe7 .txf3 14 �xf3 tLJxe7

23 exf5

25 .. .f5 26 St.xf7+!

15 Udl tLJd6 16 tLJd2 c6 17 tLJfl 'fIHC7 18

to

power along two important diagonals.

tormenting him. 1 e4 e5 2 tLJf3 tLJc6 3 .tb5 a6 4 .ta4 tLJf6

Of course if 27 .. Jlxd8 28 �g5+ etc. 28 b3 1-0

Game 41 V.Topalov-A.Naiditsch Do rt m u nd 2005 Queen 's Gambit

a4 £lad8 19 tLJg3 tLJec8 20 axb5 axb5 21 tLJf5 tLJb6 Alekhine has all his pieces posted

l lDf3 lDf6 2 c4 e6 3 lDc3 d5 4 d4 dxc4 5 e4 ii.b4 6 .tg5 c5 7 e5 cxd4 8 lDxd4

on aggressive squares, but is suffering

.ixC3+ 9 bXc3 "iVa5 10 exf6 "iVxg5 11

from the fact that the fixed centre de­

fxg7 �xg7 12 'iVd2 0-0 13 .ixc4 a6 14

nies him any pawn breaks. As we

0-0 �d8?

know, almost any attack requires the

The immediate 14 ... b5 was correct,

use of pawns at some point. Alekhine

when 15 ..te2 .tb7 16 .tf3 .txf3 17 lDxf3

found a clever way to tighten the pres­

led to a quick draw in O.Almeida

sure on his opponent.

Quintana-A.Kolev, La Roda 2008. Of course Topalov would have found a

110

111

The G o ldilocks Q u e e n

Chess Secrets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play way to keep the tension, probably with

exf5 (if 1 7. ..'ii'xc3 1 8 .l:l.ac1 and then 19

liminary operations on the queenside,

the sharper 15 i..b3.

ctJe7+ wins the bishop on c8) 18 1i.d5,

Topalov's final attack wouldn't have

trapping the rook on a8 and emerging

succeeded, as it culminates in a sacri­

gone down this road. The attempt to

the exchange up.

fice on e6 and the exploitation of

profit from the pin along the d-file in­

17 i..d 3

In any case, Naiditsch should have

stantly leads him into trouble.

Now the terrible threat of 18 i.e4

is �f4!

forces Black to achieve ... i..b7 at all

Black's weak back rank. 19 .1:l.ael The rook threatens to decide mat­

costs.

ters with 20 .lle3 and 21 �g3+.

17 ...�d7 18 1i'f4 i.. b7

19 ... �g7 20 i..e4 Meeting the mate threat on g2. If now 20 ... e5 21 i.xb7 exf4 22 .l:l.e8+ 'fig8 23 .l:l.xg8+ �xg8 24 i.xa8 and White has won a rook. 20 .. .'.th8 21 .l:i.e3 i.xe4 22 'iYxe4 .l:l.dS

This magnificent display reminds me of a similar effort by Morphy's queen, who also obstructed the enemy pieces before sacrificing herself to de­ cide the battle.

The queen as blockader The alert Bulgarian Grandmaster in­ tends to exploit the undefended state of the rook on d8 to hinder Black's de­

It seems that White's plan has failed

velopment.

as his queen has been driven back from

lS ... bS

c7 and Black is ready for 19 . . . ctJc6. In

Instead, 16 ... e5 weakens Black's cen­

reality, Topalov has been using his

tral squares without winning any ma­

queenside pressure to entice the black

terial after

Game 42 L.Paulsen-P.Morphy New York 1857 Four Knights Opening

example,

pieces away from their defensive roles

Or 22 .. J�a7 23 'iWf4 (attacking b8)

17 . . ..:f8 18 ctJc2, when the plan of 19

on the kingside. Thus the black queen

23 ... .l:l.ac7 24 1'1g3 e5 25 'fif5 'ifu6 26

1 e4 es 2 ctJf3 ctJc6 3 ctJC3 ctJf6 4 i.. b s

Uael and 20 .l:l.e3 is awkward to meet.

is on f8 rather than g7, where she

'fixe5+ and White mates.

iLcs 5 0-0 0-0 6 ctJxes Jle8 7 ctJxc6 dxc6

guarded h7 and prevented any queen

23 ctJxe61

17

'iWh4!.

For

16 �C7! Stopping

Black

from

playing

checks on the g-file. The black bishop

Beginning a finish that is worthy of

8 i.C4 bS 9 i..e 2 ctJxe4 10 ctJxe4 i!xe4 11 �f3 1Ie6 12 C3?

16 ... i..b7, when the threat of mate on g2

has gone to b7, which is an impressive­

a game by Morphy. White can afford a

White could have played 12 d3, but

would buy him time for ... ctJc6 with

looking diagonal, but it has stopped

sacrifice as he will still have superior

instead he aims to expand in the centre

equality.

defending the e6-pawn against a possi­

firepower where it matters on the king­

with 12 d4. Morphy blocked this off with: 12 ..:ifid3 !

ble breakthrough sacrifice. And thirdly,

side.

The queen retreat is a significant

the black rook on d7 no longer protects

23 ...fxe6 24 �xe6 .l:l.d7

concession, as ... i..b 7 won't corne with

the back rank. It is also keeping the

a mate threat on g2, and ... e6-e5 is no

knight from being brought quickly to

the queen.

ful in herself, but is also affecting the

longer possible to evict the knight from

the defence of the kingside via d7.

2S l:tg3 'ii'f8 26 l:tel l!aa7 27 �f6+!! 1-0

energy level of other pieces. Thus she

It's mate after 27. . .'ii'xf6 28 l:te8+.

shuts in the white bishop on c1 and

16 ...iff8

d4. However, 16 .. JH8 allows 17 ctJf5! 112

As we shall see, without his pre-

If 24. . .�g5 25 'iVc8+ 'iWg8 26 .l:!.e8 wins

The black queen i s not only power­

113

Th e Goldilocks Q u e e n

Che ss S e c rets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play prevents d2-d4, which would curb the

at once with 1 7.. :iixf1+! 18 �xf1 .l:!.el

long as Morphy sees the winning move

to a winning conclusion. But back in

scope of the black bishop on c5. As will

mate. Therefore White's plan is de­

of course . . .

1857 the queen sacrifice seemed like

be seen, in a general sense all of Black's

feated as he must submit to 17 'ifdl,

1 7 ..."it'xf3 11

pieces are vitalized by her presence on

whereupon

a commanding square.

change.

17 ... .ia6!

wins the

magic, or at least the creation of a gen­ ius (or a madman, as Stanley quipped).

ex­

Morphy minutes

himself thought

before

taking

the

for

12

plunge,

which doesn't sound very long, but it was in fact the most time he spent on any move at the New York tourna­ ment. Paulsen thought for even longer before he captured the queen (now what on earth could he have been thinking about?). 18 gxf3 ilg6+ 19 'l.t>hl .th3 According to William Hartston in

The Kings of Chess, "Mr Stanley, one of An intriguing positional battle now

the bystanders, remarked of Morphy,

16 1:.a2 1

on making this seemingly rash move,

begins. Paulsen strives to evict the

White misses his chance for 16

black queen from her dominant posi­

�a6!' After 16 .. :iha6 17 nxa6 llae8 1 8

that he should be confined to a lunatic

tion, when he hopes to emerge with the

nal ! (avoiding any tricks based on

asylum."

better game thanks to his superior

... c6-c5 and ... .tb5), White has some

I'm sure that Morphy had no prob­

pawn structure. In contrast, Morphy

advantage. So Morphy might have re­

lem in discovering the queen sacrifice -

wants to use the energy of his queen to

plied 16 . . . "it'g6 17 d4 .l:!.ae8 maintaining

most likely he had seen the possibility

generate

the tension, though his bishop on b6 is

some moves earlier. The difficulty of the

decisive

tactical

threats

against the white king before she can

now boxed in.

move is that the resulting variations

be driven away.

16 ...l1ae8

can't be calculated to a forced win.

Threatening 20... .tg2+ 21 Wgl iL.xf3

I assume that Paulsen was planning

There are simply too many of them.

mate.

17 'iVc2, but saw 17 . . . "it'xfl+! at the last

Therefore, having looked at a limited

2o .l:!.dl

moment. Hence he puts his queen on

number of possibilities, and satisfied

his pawns.

a6, where she defends f1 'through' the

himself

14 ... bxa4 15 "iVxa4 .td7?

black queen.

chances, Morphy had to break off his

aiming to sacrifice the queen on g6 as

17 �a6

analysis. He had to trust his intuition

required. But 20 ... f5! rules this out, af­

that told him Black must have a good

ter which Black has a winning initia­

answer to all White's defensive tries.

tive. For example, 21 Mdl .ig2+ 22 �gl

13 b4 .tb6 14 a4 Threatening to trap the bishop with 15 as and so forcing Black to weaken

A surprising error for the supreme tactician played

Morphy.

He

should

have

15 ... 1i.b7!, keeping the white

queen out of a6. If then 16 ':a2, plan­

Tartakower once described chess as "the tragedy of one tempo". The queen has delayed for one move going to a6,

that

Nowadays,

they

offered

when

winning

combinations

If 20 l1g1 l:txgl+ 21 Wxgl .l:!.el+ and mates. A tougher defence is 20 �d3,

1i.xf3+ 23 'itf1 1i.xdl 24 .1:al (or 24 ii'c4+ Wf8 25 d4 .if3 when 26 ... .tg2+ is lethal)

ning to challenge the queen with 1 7

and

verdict

have become standardized and classi­

iVc2, there follows 1 6. . .l1ae8!. This de­

changes from "after 16 "it'a6 White is

fied in books, many players would

24 . . . .l:!.ge6

veloping move contains an important

slightly better" to "after 17 'iVa6 White

have the courage to make the sacrifice,

'it'g2 1i.e2 26 'iVh3 .l:!.g6+ 27 �hl iL.f3+ 28

tactical threat, for if 1 7 "iVc2? Black wins

will be crushed in beautiful style". As

despite being unable to see everything

"it'xf3 �el mate.

114

as

a

consequence

the

(threatening

25 . . . �e2+)

25

115

Th e G o l dilo cks Q u e e n

C h ess Se crets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r P l ay 20 ... .itg2+ 21 'it>gl .itxf3+ 22 �1 .tg2+

featured 12 lba3, when 1 2 ... a6 leaves

23 �gl .lth3+

the knight shut out of things. The

Good enough to win, but Morphy could have crowned his attack with mate in four moves: 23 . . . .te4+! 24 'it>f1 .tfS! (this quiet move, which threatens mate on h3, was

Game 43 P.Morphy-A.Anderssen 3 rd matchga me, Paris 1858 Ruy Lopez

and after the debacle in the present game, Anderssen never dared venture 1...eS against him again. 12 ... d5 13 cxd4 SLe6 14 lbC3 a6 15 Ite5

very difficult to

visualise in advance) 25 'iie2 .ith3+ 26

1 e4 e5 2 lbf3 lbc6 3 .ltb5 lbf6 4 d4

�e1 11g1 mate.

lbxd4 5 lbxd4 exd4 6 e5 c6 7 0-0 cxb5 8

24 �hl i.xf2

American certainly knew his theory,

.ttd 8

i.. g5 .ite7 9 exf6 .itxf6 10 �el+ �8 11 iLxf6 'iixf6 There followed a typical Morphy move:

I love the lack of prejudice shown

12 C3!

by this retreat - having made way for the rook to go to e1, the queen has no qualms about returning back home to d l . In an age when almost all his op­ ponents were trying to play 'loud', overtly aggressive moves, Morphy's genius whispered to him that some­ Morphy i s still a pawn down, and

times it is the quietest move on the

there is no mating attack or strong tac­

whole board that contains the most

Now Paulsen has to give back the

tical blow in sight. On the other hand

power.

queen to avoid mate on g2, leaving him

he has several positional advantages:

18..:�if6 19 l:f.le3 �g8??

three pawns down and still facing a

superiority over the dark squares, an

Anderssen can't stand the slow tor­

massive attack.

aggressive rook on the e-file, and the

ture any longer. He hopes next move to

25 'iifl i..xfl 26 l1xfl .lle 2 27 Ital .ll h 6 28 d4 i.e3 0-1 If 29 .ltxe3 Ithxh2+ and mate next move.

The art of the quiet queen move

An improvement on opening theory

black king badly placed on f8, where

put his rook on the third rank and start

at move 12. Rather than try to attack at

he interferes with the connection of the

to generate combinative play, but he

once with the direct 12 �e2, or aim to

rooks. Morphy now improves the co­

has made a grisly oversight.

regain the pawn with a laborious ma­

ordination of his pieces by bringing the

noeuvre 12 lbd2, 13 lbb3 and 14 t2Jxd4,

rook on a1 into the game:

the American master finds a middle

16 'iib 3 'fIie7

ground: not too fast and not too slow.

So that 17 lLlxdS can be met by

The consistent move was 19 . . . g4, which avoids the disaster that follows. In that case we might imagine that Morphy would have replied 20 g3!,

After having our senses stunned by a

If now 12 ... dxc3 13 lbxc3 White has a

17 . . . 'iid6, winning the knight.

intending 21 t2Je2 and 22 lbf4 to in­

couple of queen sacrifices, it's probably

very dangerous initiative so, unsurpris­

17 nael g5

crease the pressure on e6.

a good idea to look at something a bit

ingly, Anderssen returns the pawn at

more peaceful. I have to confess to the

once.

reader that I find Morphy's 18th move

In his own annotations to the game,

Anderssen intends to bring his rook on h8 into the game via g8. A safer ap­ proach was 17 ... g6 and 18 ...�g7, when

20 .llxe6 1-0 The game ends 20 .. .fxe6

21

�f3

abruptly

wins

the

as

if

queen.

below more attractive than any of the

Morphy mentions an earlier game by

the rook could be centralized .

Anderssen was kept boxed in through­

violent queen moves above.

the German master Max Lange which

18 "tIVdlll

out the whole game and wasn't given

116

117

Th e Goldilo cks Q u e e n

Chess Secrets: Th e G ia n ts of Po we r Play

queens ide, a s the game would end

the slightest chance to show his tactical

8 ... bxc6 9 ctJxc6 'itVe8 10 ctJxe7+ �xe7

the former World Champion, who isn't

genius.

11 'itVa4 es!?

renowned for slashing attacks with the

abruptly after 20 �d2 lhd2! with a

black

fork on f3.

Black is doomed to lose the c4-pawn

pieces,

wouldn't

be

entirely

20 Itdl h6 21 �d2 fS!

and so needs to generate counterplay

happy with having the role of aggres­

by breaking open lines in the centre.

sor thrust upon him. Sure enough,

As we have seen so often in this

The alternative was 1 1 . . .c5, aiming to

Karpov allowed simplification in re­

book, the pieces acting on their own

put the light-squared bishop on b7.

turn for getting his pawn back, but

can' t overwhelm a defence. At some

Geller prefers to create a role for it

eventually perished because of the

point the help of a pawn is

along its other diagonal.

weakness of the c7-pawn.

quired.

12 dxes \\i'xes 13 'itvxc4 ii.e6

14 ...i.. h 3

22 i.. e l 'itVc6 23 Itxd8 .l::txd8 24 'i.t>f2

always re­

The bishop attacks g2 from one di­ rection. . . ls Itel �d S . . . and the queen attacks it from an­

A cowardly queen

other. White is compelled to loosen the pawn cover around his king.

The energy level in our position will

16 f3 ctJg41

rise sharply if we can persuade our opponent's queen to flee the battle. In the

following

encounter

she

takes

fright at the first sign of trouble.

Game 44 N.Spiridonov-E.Gelier Novi Sad 1978 Catalan Opening

14 'itVa6?

Spiridonov

The white queen runs away from

appears

to

have

strengthened his defensive line, and

the fight. Instead, she might have re­

only needs one free move to bring up

treated to c2, to help defend her second

his reinforcements with 25 .l:td 1. The

rank. Another approach is 14 'iYd3!?

best that

lIad8 15 \\i'e3 'iVh5 1 6 f3. Then she has

draw with 24 ... ctJd3+ 25 'iit>g l ctJe5 etc.

l ctJf3 ctJf6 2 c4 e6 3 g3 ds 4 �g2 �e7 5

evicted her opposite number from the

0-0 0-0 6 d4 dxc4 7 ctJes ctJc6

centre, though she herself remains a

The next stage in Black's strategy is to force e2-e3 so that White's f3-pawn

piece play can offer Geller is a

But what about pawn

play?

24...f4!!

Good psychology against the type

possible target. A person who likes the

of player who favours the super-solid

initiative would prefer to be on the

becomes very weak. He needs to use

Catalan; Black is willing to suffer a

black side of the argument, whereas a

his queen and knight to carry out the

broken pawn structure in return for

player who prefers being a pawn up

task.

good answer to the threat of 26 ... 'iYg2

active play.

albeit

17 ctJC3 �c S+ 18 e3

mate, for if 27 e4 l:!.d3 (simplest) 28 �d2

8 i.xc6

choose White.

facing

some

'aggro'

would

The only move, but White can't re­

Spiridonov sees he can win a pawn

Incidentally, Georgiev used this line

and so goes the whole hog in giving up

as White to beat Karpov at the Dubai

protection.

his Catalan bishop. The alternative was

rapid tournament of 2002. The Bulgar­

18 ... ctJes 19 'it'e2 Itad 8

8 ctJxc6 bxc6 9 i.xc6 l:!.b8 is unclear.

ian Grandmaster rightly assumed that

118

joice at d3 and f3 both losing pawn

Stopping

A thunderbolt. Let's look at some variations: a) 25 gxf4 'iVg6 and White has no

'iVg2+ 29 'iit>e l \\i'gl+ and mate next move. b) 25 exf4 'iWc5+ 26 �e3 ctJd3+ 27

White

'it>e2 i..f l+! 28 'it>xfl (or 28 'it>d2 ctJxel+) developing

his

28 .. :iVxe3 and wins. 119

The G o l dilocks Q u e e n

Chess S e crets: The G ia n ts of Pow er Play c) 25 e4 'iHc5+ and mate next move.

position nearly always means ruining

ens 15 . . . tDc7, trapping the queen.

d) 25 .l::i.d l fxe3+ 26 'iNxe3 (there's no

Thus the black horse either mates

joy in 26 'it>xe3 'ifb6+) 26 ... lZ'lg4+! 27 fxg4

the white king or traps the queen. If

your game,"

observed David Bron­

stein. Following in the footsteps of

'iVg2 mate.

there was only a threat to the white

Emanuel

25 .td2 lZ'lxf3 ! 26 .l::td l

king, it could be defended against,

shrewd psychologist who often 'egged

while the white queen could be saved

on' his opponents into choosing over­

I f 2 6 �xf3 ltxd2+ 2 7 lZ'le2 fxe3+ 28 'iVxe3 (or 28 �xe3 .l:!.d3+!) 28 .. :ii'g2+ 29

if she were the only target. But the

�el nxb2 30 "iVe8+ 'it>h7 and wins.

billation of the two threats is fatal.

26 ...lZ'ld4! 0-1

In

the

game

Strikovic

com­

couldn't

avoid a massive loss of material:

Lasker,

Bronstein

was

a

ambitious plans. Here, for example, Stahlberg is cajoled into thinking that he stands better, which leads to a loss of objectivity and a sharp defeat.

15 .1i.e4 tDbd4 16 .txc6 lZ'lxc6 17 0-0 .la6 18 b4 "ivxc4 19 lZ'la3 After

Game 46 G.Stahlberg-D.Bronstein Candidates, Buda pest 1950 Dutch Defence

a sharp opening struggle,

Strikovic thought he could safely win the exchange with: 12 tDb5 lZ'lxb5 13 i.xc5 'iVxC5 14 'iVxa8 It appears that Black has no time to close the trap on the white queen with

1 c4 f5 2 tDf3 lZ'lf6 3 g3 e6 4 �g2 .ie7 5

. . .lZ'lc6 as his other knight on b5 is hang­

0-0 0-0 6 lZ'lC3 c6 7 d3 d6 8 e4 fxe4 9

ing. But Topalov nevertheless played:

dxe4 e5 10 C5 ttJa6 11 cxd6 i..xd6 12 ii..e 3 'i£th8 13 'ii'e2 ii..g4 14 h3 .1i.h5 15

14 lZ'lc6! •••

Spiridonov called it a day as it is

�fdl 'iVe7 16 g4 .tf7 17 lZ'lh4 ii..c5 18

checkmate after 27 exd4 �g2+ 28 'i£tel

lZ'lf5 "iVC7 19 .tfl g6 20 lZ'lg3 .ie6 21 Itacl 'iNe7 22 .ixC5 lZ'lxc5 2 3 b4 lZ'lcd7

�gl+. It's a dismal state of affairs when

A daredevil queen

the best you can hope for is 19 .. :�'xfl +

Sometimes the problem is that the

two

queen is too reckless rather than too

against Topalov. The young Bulgarian

timid.

chooses an even surer path to victory.

24 �d2 "iif7 25 .ilc2 a6 26 'iNg5 !!.ae8 27 �cd2 ne7 28 'ij'e3

20 .lhfl .l:!.xa8 21 b5 .1i.b7 22 bxc6 .txc6 -

19

Game 45 A.Strikovic-V.Topalov Forl i 1988 Sicilian Defence

•..

pawns

down

in

an

endgame

.l:Ixa8 20 tDxC4 .txC4 21 l:,fcl iLd5

22 a3 'it>f8 23 f3 �e8 24 �f2 'i£td7 25 'it>e3 as 26 b5 lZ'le7 27 l:!.c2 .l:!.c8 28 .l::i.acl If now 15 cxb5? it is mate in two: 15 . . . 'iVc1 + 16 �e2 lZ'ld4 mate! (Perhaps

!'!.xc2 29 l:i.xc2 tDf5+ 30 �d3 lZ'ld6 31 a4 t2Jb7 0-1

in his earlier calculations Strikovic had only seen 16 .. :ii'xh1? 17 'ji'xc6 when

Using psychology to make the enemy queen desert her post

1 e4 c5 2 c3 lZ'lf6 3 e5 lZ'ld5 4 d4 cxd4 5

White is winning.) This means that the

lZ'lf3 b6 6 lZ'lxd4 e6 7 c4 lZ'lC7 8 li"f3 .tC5

knight on b5 is inviolable, and to make

White has his queen excellently cen­

matters even worse for White it threat-

tralized on the 'Alekhine' square e3.

9 i..e3 0-0 10 .id3 d5 11 exd6 �xd6 120

"To lose one's objective attitude to a

121

The G o ldilocks Q u e e n

C h e s s S e crets: The G ia n ts of P o w e r Play She not only helps bolster the slightly

such as 33 ... .ixa2 and 33 ... h5!, which

that the flimsy white pawn cover on

I1xg8 43 �d2 �xg2+ 44 ltxg2 lbxg2 45

compromised kingside pawns but also

means that White would have nothing

the g-file collapses as soon as the first

Wxg2 �g7 46 Wg3 �f6 47 �h4 �xf5 48

better than to repeat moves with 33

blow is struck.

Wxh5 b6! 49 h4 c5 etc.

�c5 lbd7 etc.

33 gxh s gxh S 34 lbfS

puts pressure on the black queenside. Bronstein's next move shows that he is deeply alarmed by the threat of an

But now psychology comes into

The knight jumps before it is pinned

invasion with 29 "iVa7, or at least he

play: having been offered three chances

with 34 .. J1g8, when 35 ... h4 would be

wants to pretend as much to his oppo­

to agree a draw by repetition, Stahlberg

on the cards.

nent.

has become oblivious to any danger the

34...iLxfS 3S exfs �g8+ 36 .ig2 �g7

28 .. Jb8 29 lba4

position might contain.

Black's

passive

move has

made

Stahlberg optimistic about his chances on the queenside and so he launches an immediate attack. He has seen that af­ ter 29 ... i.xa2 he can simplify to a fa­ vourable endgame with 30 g5; for ex­ ample, 30 ... lbh5 (or 30 . . .lbe8 31 llxd7

White was also lured into an inap­

lixd7 32 �xd7 "iVxd7 33 lbb6 'iit'd8 34

propriate adventure with his queen in

lbxa8 Vi'xa8 35 'iVc5, when the mate

the following game.

threat on f8 means that White regains his pawn) 31 !txd7 l:txd7 32 1lxd7 'ii'x d7 33 lbb6 iVe8 34 lbxh5 gxh5 35 lbxa8 'ii'xa8 36 'iWc3 "iVe8 37 f4 �e7 38 h4 and White's mobile pawns far outweigh

The black queen takes advantage of 32 'iiC 2?

Knowing when to switch from defence to cou nterattack

her unchallenged dominance of the g­

This amounts to a vital loss of en­

file to compel White to shut in his

Bronstein was a versatile and danger­

Black's lifeless queenside majority.

ergy for White's position as the queen

bishop and further weaken his dark

ous counterattacker who was adept at

29 ..JU8!

loses contact with the dark squares in

squares.

choosing the right moment to abandon

Back again. If 30 �a7, the pawn

the centre and on the kingside. It is

37 f3 lbf6!

a weak point and carry the fight to an­

grab 30 . . . ..txa2! is now strong, as with

never a good sign when the strongest

the knight on a4 31 �xb7? runs into

piece is moved to a passive square

reaching its dream outpost on f4.

3 1 . . . .i.b3 32 Ita1 ..Itxa4 33 .l:!.xa4 lbc5

simply to meet a threat like 32 ... ..Itxa2.

38 �d8 lbdS 39 �xg8+ �xg8 40 �d2

when White loses material. Once again

As stated above, White should re­

White can't prevent the knight from

other sector of the board. Such a strat­ egy, or series of tactical operations, is particularly effective against an oppo­

The queen finally returns to the

nent with a cautious, ultra-logical style of play. In the example given here,

Stahlberg has the chance to repeat

peat moves to draw with 32 'iVa7 lbf6

dark squares that she so unpardonably

moves with 30 lbc3, but he presses

33 'iWc5 lbd7 34 "iVa7 etc. Of course

abandoned with 32 �c2.

Bronstein was facing the Hungarian

ahead with his attack.

Bronstein might have avoided this se­

40 ...lbf4 41 �h2?! 0-1

Grandmaster Barcza who was noted

30 lbcs lbxcs 31 'ii'xcs lbd7 !

quence, but then he would be the one

Defending the e5-pawn and kicking the white queen away from c5. If she retreats back to e3, Black can safely

(see diagram)

Here Stahlberg resigned in view of

for being a very solid, 'nervous' player,

taking the risk, not Stahlberg.

the strength of 41..J:td7!, when taking

with no appetite for tactical complica­

32 ... hS!

the rook is taboo because of mate on

tions. Barcza had many draws to his

g2, while if the queen moves away

name, but when given the chance to

42 ... �xd 1 wins.

improve his position in a strictly logical

If the white queen were still sitting

pick up a pawn with 32 ... i.xa2, while if

on e3, this pawn advance could be

she counterattacks against b7 with 32

countered by an invasion with 'iih6+.

If instead 41 'iWd8, White gets a lost

manner he was highly formidable. A

'ifa7, then 32 ... lbf6! contains threats

Instead, her self-inflicted exile means

pawn endgame after 41...1:1g7 42 �xg8+

good example is his win as White ver-

122

123

Th e Go ldilo cks Q u e e n

C h es s S e c rets: Th e G ia n ts of P o w e r Play sus Smyslov at the Moscow Olympiad

Here Black could target the b4-

in 1956, where he ground down a

pawn with 27 ... i..f8, but after 28 li:Jf3 f6

World

it would get draughty around his king.

Champion

by

utilizing

his

queenside pawn majority. Playing for a win as Black against

And so Bronstein played the simple . . . 2 7 ...� h 7 !

such an opponent requires a mixture of

... and challenged his opponent to go

patience and tactical alertness. Missiles

after the b5-pawn. The whole point of

thrown too early are going to bounce

the Reti Opening is to capture a weak

off his solid armour. Instead, Bronstein

pawn on the queenside so, morally

offers some 'bait' on the queenside,

speaking, Barcza can hardly refuse.

which lures his opponent out of his

28 'ifcs

solid defensive shell.

Indeed, this seems very powerful as Black has to watch out for not only 29

Game 4 7 G.Barcza-D.Bronstein Buda pest vs Moscow match 1949 English Opening

'ii'xb5, but also 29 1Id6, winning a piece. 28...li:Jf4! Dealing with both threats, as 29 'fWxb5? falls for the fork 29 ... li:Je2+ 30 'it>f1 ttJd4. And 29 .txf4? would be fool­ ish as it brings the bishop on g7 to life: 29 ... exf4 30 'ilt'xb5? l:la1 31 �f1 'iVe7 and

1 c4 eS 2 a3 li:Jf6 3 d3 as 4 li:Jc3 d6 s li:Jf3

the pin on e 1 is fatal.

li:Jbd7 6 e3 g6 7 ii.d2 Ji.g7 8 b4 axb4 9

29 .l:IC7 'iVfS !

the rook, which can cause problems for the white bishop or knight by swoop­ ing down to a2 or a1 respectively. Meanwhile, the bishop on g7 is per­ forming 'fire brigade duties' by shelter­ ing the king, and also deters White from removing the pesky knight with .ltxf4, as we saw in the previous note. 30 'i¥c6? The game might have ended in a draw after 30 'ilt'xb5! li:Je2+ 31 �f1 li:Jg3+ 32 �gl li:Je2+ with a repetition. Perhaps Barcza was afraid of 30 .. ..1:1a2, but he

So that if 32 ... gxf5 33 �f1, when

Black had better force the draw again

White will regain his pawn either on f7

with 31...li:Je2+ 32 �f1 li:Jg3+ etc, as

or by attacking b5 with .l:Ib7.

31.. . .l:Ixd2? allows 32 .l:Ixf7 attacking

3 2 ...li:Jxe111

both f5 and g7. Then the queen sacri­ fice 32 . . . 'ifxf7 fails after 33 'ifxf7 �d1 34 'ittf1 li:Jxd3 35 �e2!, when Black won't get more than a rook and bishop for his queen. As we have discussed above, Barcza

axb4 l:i.xa1 1o 'iixa 1 0-0 11 'iVa7 'iVe7 12

wasn't the type of player who liked

e4 c6 13 ..te2 d S 14 cxdS cxdS 15 'iia 4

being

b6 16 0-0 i.. b7 17 exds li:Jxds 18 li:Jxds

inveigled

into

complications .

Perhaps he saw 31 '1Wb7! but only calcu­

..ixds 19 fibS 'fWd6 20 I!.c1 h6 21 li:Je1

lated as far as 33 ... I!d1 and concluded

.l4.d8 22 i..f3 li:Jf6 23 ii.xdS li:Jxd s 24 1:tc6

that Black would get too much for the

'iVd7 25 'fWc4 1:ta8 26 'iVc1 bS 27 h3

queen. However, it is most likely that the Hungarian Grandmaster made the game

move

purely

on

intuitive

Much

better

than

the

passive

29 ... 'ife8. Bronstein has decided it is the right moment to give up the defence of b5 and seek to counterattack. In this task his queen is excellently supported by the well-posted knight and also by

Now Barcza has no time to save his queen as 33 'i¥xf7 li:Jf3 is discovered

grounds. His plan is to put the queen

check mate!

on e4 to quieten down the position and

33 �1

then try to pick off Black's pawn on b5

124

3 1 ...li:Jxd 3 ! 3 2 'i¥xfs

has the excellent reply 31 'i¥b7!, when

It still seems that all is not lost for

or f7.

White, as 33 ... gxf5 34 ii.xe1 is about

30 ... .:.a1 3 1 ir'e4

equal.

Barcza is hoping for 31...'iVxe4 32 dxe4 li:Jd3 33 �f1 with some advantage to White. Unfortunately Bronstein has other ideas.

But

Bronstein's

combination

hasn't finished yet. 33 ... li:Jc2+! 34 Ji.c1 If

34

�e2

there

is

a

final

zwischenzug to save the black knight 125

Th e Gold ilocks Q u e e n

Chess Secrets: Th e G i a n ts of Po we r Play queen:

queen to generate a fierce attack on her

34 .. .'�Jd4+! 3S '>td3 gxfS and Black keeps

king that ended the game after only 23

his extra piece.

moves. Let's see how it was done:

34.. J:tXC1+ 35 '>te2

14 dxes dxes?

before

capturing

the

white

As Alekhine once remarked, some­

The

lesser

evil

was

14 ... lt:ixeS,

times a player is too short of time to

though White nonetheless has the mak­

resign.

ings of a kingside attack after IS It:ixeS

3 S ...lt:id4+

dxeS 16 "ilff3, as threats like 17 i.xh6 are

Of course 3S ... gxfS is entirely win­ ning, despite the fact that White can get

already looming. 1s lt:ihS!

gamble with their king's safety. This

18 ..."ilfd7 19 l:!ad1!

forces the opponent to work harder,

Now Black's bishop has to go to d6

which means he has more chances of

to block the attack on the queen, after

going wrong. The problem for Portisch

which his kingside loses a vital de­

is that his opponent in this case is a

fender.

sublime master of power play.

19 ... .id6 20 .ixh6! gxh6 21 "ilfg6+ '>tf8

1s .. :iVe7 16 lt:ih4! It:ixhs

22 "ilff6

Portisch has no time for 16 . . . l:t.ad8,

Threatening 23 CDg6+ '>tg8 24 "i!fh8

as 17 It:ifS! is a crushing reply. If Black

mate.

then takes on dl, he loses the exchange,

22 ...'>tg8 23 l:t.e3 1-0

back one piece with 36 '>td2. But Bron­

while if he moves his queen to safety

The black king is about to be butch­

stein prefers to be two pieces up rather

18 It:ixf6+ begins a wipe-out. Therefore

ered; for example, 23 . . . '>t>h7 (to avoid

than one.

he has nothing better than the game

the check on g3) 24 i.xf7 l:t.g8 2S i.g6+

36 '>t>d2 It:ib3+ 0-1

move, which brings the white queen

l:t.xg6 26 "ilfxg6+ '>th8 27 l:!g3 etc.

into the attack. Geller's

17 i¥xhs lt:ias

Exploiting a misplaced queen with direct threats

relentless

punishment

of

The Hungarian Grandmaster is un­

13 ... "ilfd7 might seem out of all propor­

ease the

tion to the crime. Did Portisch really

So far we have looked at examples in

pressure on f7 with 18 . . . lt:ixb3, as even

deserve to be crushed just because he

which the enemy queen abandoned the

the natural move 17 .. :iVf6 leads to dis­

misplaced the queen? On the other

main scene of action either voluntarily

aster after 18 i.gS! hxgS (or 18 ... "ilfxgS

hand, the refutation had to be severe

19 i¥xf7+ and mate next move) 19 CDg6!,

and rapid or there would have been no

derstandably

or after some 'gentle prodding' . Geller treats her in a far more brutal manner.

Game 48 E.Gel ier-L.Portisch Moscow 1967 Ruy Lopez

desperate

to

when he must part with his queen to

refutation at all. A little quiet spell and

queen. One of the lesser known rules of

avoid mate on h8.

Black would have avoided danger with

chess strategy is: if you

18 .igS!

Harassing the defender of the black

want to win in 25 moves, act as if you are willing to play a game that lasts 100 moves. Here Black

tisch had escaped scot-free after a blun­ der, rather than be beaten in 23 moves?

could take play into an endgame with Is ... i¥xdl 16 tt:Jxf6+ gxf6 17 l:t.xd l . But

A beautiful loss for Alekhine

this doesn't happen as Portisch has no 1 e4 es 2 It:if3 It:ic6 3 i.bs a6 4 i.a4 lt:if6

wish to endure a gruelling defence

5 0-0 i.e7 6 l:t.e1 bS 7 i.b3 d6 8 c3 0-0 9

with broken pawns. He prefers to take

h3 h6 10 d4 l:t.e8 11 It:ibd2 .if8 12 It:if1

his chance in the middlegame.

i.b7 13 lt:ig3

Incidentally,

this

explains

world-class players often lose in sharp

Portisch got into after the innocent­

style on the rare occasions that things

looking move ...

go wrong for them in the opening.

Now Geller was able to take advan­ tage of the poor placement of the black 126

When David Bronstein visited England in the 1990s I asked him what was his favourite game. After a brief pause he

why

It is amazing how much hot water

13 ..:�d7?

... tt:JaS and ... CDxb3. And would 'chess justice' have been better served if Por­

They realize that, rather than endure an endgame which is a technical pro­ cedure for their opponent, it is better to

said he loved Euwe's queen manoeu­ vres at the end of the following game from the 1935 World Championship So that if 18 ... i¥xgS 19 "ilfxf7+ or

match. Apparently his hesitation in

18 . . . hxgS 19 It:ig6 and White wins as in

recommending the game was because

the previous note.

Euwe had had the luxury of finding the 127

Chess Secrets: The Gi a n ts of Po wer Play winning manoeuvre during the ad­ journment of the game, whereas Bron­ stein always championed spontaneous creativity at the board. My apologies to fans of Alekhine, but any combination good enough to impress Bronstein can't be ignored!

The sealed move was: 41 i.C4! Planning to check on f7 and then push through the passed pawn with c6-c7 and ..te6. 41 ...'it>h6

C h a pt e r S i x

The king looks very safe here, but

I

Euwe found a clever retreat:

Game 49 M.Euwe-A.Alekhine 2nd matchga me, Netherla nds 1935 Grunfeld Defence

42 'iWhl! Menacing a discovered check and

E n ergizing the Pawns

then I:tf7+. 42 ...l:tb2 Alekhine stalemates the white king to prevent the threat, but now his rook is no longer fighting the passed pawn.

1 d4 lbf6 2 c4 g6 3 lbc3 d5 4 'ifb3 dXc4 5 'ifxc4 �e6 6 'ifb5+ lbc6 7 lbf3 l:tb8 8

43 l:tf7 'ike8 44 c7 The intention is 45 'ikd5 and 46 'ike6,

A sure way to measure the energy level

iLe2 0-0 6 0-0 iLg4 7 i-e3

lbe5 �d7 9 lbxd7 �xd7 10 d5 lbd4 11

forcing the pawn home.

of a position is to ask: "how well do the

A restrained opening system that

'ifd3 e5 12 e3 tiJf5 13 e4 tiJd6 14 f4 "iVe7

45 ... i:tC2 45 'ifb71 1 1-0

pieces and pawns cooperate?" In this

became popular in the early 1980s after

15 i.e3 tiJg4 16 i.xa7 �a8 17 h3 .l:i.xa7

chapter our giants demonstrate that a

it was used many times by the reigning

18 hxg4 iLg7 19 'it'e3 �a5 20 f5 i-f6 21

pawn, or a group of pawns, can have

World Champion Karpov. Neverthe­

a4 i.h4+ 22 g3 i.g5 23 'ikf3 0-0 24 b4

an effect on the game that is out of all

less, we can't say that Geller was copy­

l:i.aa8 25 l1a2 tiJe8 26 �b2 tiJf6 27 ..te2

proportion to their nominal value.

ing fashion, as he probably taught

c6 28 dxc6 bxc6 29 0-0 !load8 30 c;,t>g2

Karpov the opening in the first place.

Ud4 31 b5 cxb5 32 axb5 llb8 33 fxg6

Creating a passed pawn in the centre

fxg6 34 b6 �b7 35 'it>h3 'ud6 36 tiJd5 'itg7 37 �c2 tiJxd5 38 exd5 lrxb6 39 �c6 Ilxc6 40 dxc6 �e7

7 lbc6 8 'ifd2 �e8 9 ftfel a6 10 1!adl .••

e5 11 dxe5 dxe5 12 �Cl "fIe7?

The following game is trademark Geller: a positional threat involving pawns - in this instance the passed pawn's "lust to expand" - is combined with tactical White

wins

after

45 .. Jhc4

46

threats against the enemy king.

Ihh7+! (but not 46 c8'iV, threatening mate on h7, as Black escapes with 46 ... 'it'xf7! 47 'it'xf7 ilxc8) 46 . . . 'it>xh7 47 c8'it'+ 'ike7 48 'ii'xe7+ iLxe7 49 'ifxc4. The paradoxical retreat 42 "iWh1 !, fol­ lowed by the ' ambush' 45 "ifu7!, would

Game 50 E.Gelier-J.Pribyl Soch i 1984 Pirc Defence The quiet course of the game seems

have greatly appealed to the 'maverick' chess mentality of Bronstein. 128

1 e4 d6 2 d4 tiJf6 3 ltJc3 g6 4 ltJf3 ..tg7 5

to have put Black to sleep. He should 129

Chess Secrets: Th e G i a n ts of P o w e r Play play 12 .. .'it'cB with good chances of equalizing, for if 13 llld5? in reply he could capture on e4. 13 llld S ! A t last Geller decides i t i s time to

En ergizing t h e P a w n s 19 11f'C71

9 llles lllfd7 1 0 lllxd7 lllx d7 11 llld 2 0-0

24 h3

Just in time before 19 .. .l::tacB. 19 ...nad8

More precise than 24 Ii.dB �fB 25 lllh4, when Black can linger on for a

12 0-0 lllf6 The

previous

year

Anand

had

After 19 ... 'i'xc7 20 dxc7 Black can't

while with 25 ... lllhB. Geller wants to

played 12 ... ncB against Topalov at the World Championship tournament in

challenge for control of the open d-file,

keep the pin on f7 a bit longer to avoid

stop playing all the 'Karpov' moves

whereas White can build

any ... lllhB defence; hence he arranges

San Luis, which led to a sharp struggle

and switch to direct aggression. One of

moves like l:td7 or i.c4 or �b6 etc.

to play lllh4 before l:tdB.

after 13 e4 c5 etc. Lev Aronian chooses

our giant's great strengths was his abil­

20 �C4 h6

24... �c8 2S lll h4! 1-0

up with

another method of challenging White's

ity to transform the game in an instant

Pribyl thinks he is safe as he has

space advantage. 13 e4 bS 14 exd S

from quiet manoeuvring to a dynamic

prevented both 21 lll g5 (attacking £7)

struggle. Here he sees that he can use

and 21 �g5, which by threatening dB

Upon 14 liel Black can achieve dy­

the unfortunate position of the black

would have caused the blockade of the

namic equality with a well-established

queen to gain time to create and utilize

passed pawn to fall apart. But Geller

positional piece sacrifice: 14 . . . dxe4 1 5

a central pawn ram.

has a surprise for him.

'iVc2 l:tcB 16 Itadl lll d5! ! . Now the game

13 ...lllx dS 14 exds lll d 8 is c4 fS 16 cS

21 �gS II

A.Karpov-J.Polgar, Buenos Aires 2000,

lllf7 17 d6!

went 17 �b2 (getting the bishop out of the way so that it isn't pinned, as oc­ curs after 17 cxd5 cxd5) 17 .. .£5 18 cxd5 cxd5 19 �1 b4. Geller wins a miniature game, as if 25 . . .hxg5 26 .l:i.dB �fB 27 lllxg6+ is deci­ sive.

Setting the centre pawns rolling Here is evidence that a mobile pawn Anyway! The Ukrainian Grandmaster always

21 ...'it'xc7

aimed to get full benefit from any error

The bishop offer can't be accepted,

he thought his opponent had perpe­

for if 2 1 . . .hxg5 22 lllxg5 l:tfB (also hope­

centre, supported by the pieces, can be worth a serious material investment, even when the enemy king isn't a di­ rect target.

trated in the opening. Sometimes this

less are 22 ... ..txdl 23 �xf7+ �hB 24

Judit Polgar has transformed her

led him to overpress, but almost al­

'i'xd7 l:.xd7 25 �xeB :'xd6 26 lllf7+ �h7

rather lumpy pawn structure into a

ways he was right in his judgment, as

27 lllxd6 and 22 .. .'iixc7 23 dxc7 !i.xdl 24

is the case here. Black has gone wrong

.txf7+ �fB 25 l:!.xdl .ixdl 26 iLxeB) 23

with 12 . . . ife7 and must be punished!

f3! �h5 24 �e6! 'ifxc7 25 dxc7 lIeB 26

17 ... cxd6 18 cxd6 'iVd7

l:id7 and White wins.

If IB ... lllxd6 19 �c5 l:t.adB 20 �c4+ �hB 21 l:txd6! l:txd6 22 lllg5 looks very awkward for Black. 1 30

Game 51 V.Topalov-L.Aronian Wijk aan Zee 2006 Queen 's Indian Defence

22 dXc7 :xdl 23 .l:[xdl f4 Upon 23 ... hxg5 24 l:tdB!, the passed pawn will queen.

solid central mass. The game continued in eventful fashion 20 lllfl �6 21 f3 �f6 22 llle3 1::tc3! (giving up more mate­ rial in order to get the centre pawns rolling) 23 �xc3 bxc3 24 lll c2 e5 25 llle3

1 d4 lllf6 2 C4 e6 3 lllf3 b6 4 g3 �a6 S

exd4 26 lllxd5 'iWc5 27 lllxf6+ l:i.xf6 28 b4

b3 �b4+ 6 �d2 .ie7 7 .tg2 c6 8 �C3 d s

"iVc4 29 "iVb3 d3 30 "iixc4+ iLxc4 (despite 131

En e rg iz i n g t h e P a w n s

Chess S e c rets : Th e G i a n ts of P o w e r Play extra

his

rook,

the

former

W orId

Champion has to battle to stem the

provement,

but

as

wrote,

Geller

flood of black pawns) 31 .tf1 l:Ic6 32

and the more of them a player has in his arsenal, the better."

'i.t>f2 J:'!a4 39 J:'!c2 l:'!aS 40 �e3 xfS V2-1/2.

plan is to draw the energy from the that have to be defended by the big pieces. Then, once Aronian's attempt at

row the idea of a sacrifice to create an

an initiative has been quelled, the

invincible centre and apply it to the

white pawns will march forward in the

White side of the position. Let's see

same style as Polgar's. It sounds sim­

how it's done:

ple, but nothing is easy when you are

13 ... bS 14 exds exds is l:'!el l:'!b8 16 cS

playing a modem elite Grandmaster.

.tc8 17 tLlf3 tLle4

19 ...�d S! A self-respecting queen never en­ joys the role of nursing a sick pawn. Nonetheless, Black mustn't give up the e4-pawn without

a

fight,

as

after

19 ... �c7 20 ii.xe4 he faces an endless defence of c6 with no counterplay. 20 �el! The white centre pawns are actually quite fragile, and so care is needed to prevent Black from breaking out with a counter sacrifice on cS. For example, the plausible 20 �c2 fS 21 f3? allows the

21...i.xcS! 22 dxcS �xcS+ 23 �h1 b4

white bishop, planning next move to

and White has lost his bishop due to

complete the manoeuvre of his bishop

the pin on the queen.

confidently

attacks

from a6 to the kingside. Instead, there

After the game move, 20 ... fS can be

came a shocker:

answered safely with 21 f3, when the

18 l:'!xe4!! dxe4 19 tLles

defence of c6 will become a horrible

Topalov had prepared this sacrifice for his game with Anand at the San

chore for the black pieces. 2o ... ii.fs 21 g4!

Indian

The black bishop is forced to retreat

Grandmaster diverged in time with

to g6, after which White can exchange

12 ... tLlf6).

with tLlxg6 at an appropriate moment -

Sometimes you have to wait for years

a useful option if the knight's base on

or even decades to use an opening im-

eS is undermined.

Luis

tournament,

12 . . .l:'!c8

132

but

the

(see the note to

take advantage of the rather flimsy pawn cover around the white king. White's two pieces would have the edge over a rook and a couple of

black pawns and make them targets

lov-Aronian. As we shall soon see, the

Aronian

the open files in the centre and try to

The preliminary stage in White's

Bulgarian Grandmaster intends to bor­

dxcS �xcS+ 2 4 'i.t>h1 b4. Thereafter he could aim to activate his rooks along

"sooner or later mines always explode,

fxe4 d2 33 bS l:'!cS 34 i.xc4+ l:'!xc4 3S exfS dxe1'iV+ 36 l:'!xe1 �f7 37 .i:tc1 'i.t>f6 3 8 We should return to the game Topa­

21 ... ii.g6 22 f3

pawns, but it would be a hard fight. 23 fxe4 �e6 24 .tb2 .tf6 Aronian is in for a big surprise if he thinks he has stabilized the centre. 2S tLlxc6! All these moves had been carefully analysed and tested using computers by Topalov and his trainers. For exam­ ple, the Bulgarian Grandmaster says that 21 g4 was found by Cheparinov. Meanwhile Aronian has been on his own, having to discover all the impor­ tant moves and ideas under the pres­ sure of a racing clock. If you add to this the unpleasant psychological burden of knowing that you have fallen into a prepared variation, it is no wonder that the Armenian finally cracks. 22 ... b4? If the c6-pawn drops it is a posi­

There goes the key pawn. 2S ...'iVxc6 26 eS 'iVa6 27 exf6 Now White's passed pawns will undoubtedly win the

tional catastrophe for Black, as his op­

something

ponent would have connected passed

kingside.

pawns. Therefore Aronian decides his

27 ...l:'!fe8

best chance is to allow a white pawn to

drastic

game,

happens

unless on

the

White still has to play carefully to Black's

counterplay.

Re­

occupy e4, as this will block the attack

neutralize

of the bishop on g2 against c6. How­

member one of the rules of dynamic

ever, as we shall soon see, this doesn't

play is:

means that the white centre has merely

if you are attacking with a queen and rook, it is better to have the rook in front, backed up by the queen. With a deft

been broadened and strengthened.

manoeuvre Topalov makes sure his

save the life of the c6-pawn, which

Instead, he should have broken up the white pawns with 22 . . . iLxcS! 23

opponent's pieces end up the wrong way round! 133

En ergizing t h e P a w n s

C h e s s S e c rets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play 28 'iVfl! 'iVe2

them has to watch out for the c7-pawn

Not 28 ... l:te2? 29 ii.f3 with a fatal

promoting.

Bringing a pawn mass back to life

f2-f4 advance, a s the preparatory move 1 1 g3? leaves too many holes in his kingside

pin. 29 'iVf2 !

after

1 1 . ..ii.h3.

Of

course,

In the game above, Topalov's centre

Black has no intention of castling king­

pawns were a sleeping giant that he

side himself.

awakened with an exchange sacrifice.

The upshot is that Bronstein can't

In the next example Bronstein's queen­

find a way to energize his game, and

side pawns are a giant sliced in half,

he is gradually outplayed by his for­

which he glues back together at the

midable opponent. We shall rejoin the

cost of a knight.

action 24 moves later: 11 ..ie2 lbf4 12 ..ia4 ..id7 13 lbg3 'iVf6

Game 52 D.Bronstein-V.Smyslov Cand idates, Buda pest 1950 Nimzo-Indian Defence

36 ... .l:!.xe4 37 d5 .l:!.ee8 38 d6 .l:!.el+ 39 'it>h2 'iVf5 Very finely played. If Topalov had

vented.

1 d4 lLlf6 2 e4 e6 3 lLle3 ii.b4 4 a3 �xe3+

28 'iVf2, the black rook would have in­

40 'iVg3!

5 bxe3 e5 6 e3 lLle6 7 ..id3 e5 8 lLle2 d6

28 . . . .l:!.e2.

Therefore

vaded

with

until the black

queen

he was

blocking the e2-square.

White is 9 0-0 and if 9 ... 0-0 10 e4, but

40 g6 41 'iVg5

Bronstein first played ...

•..

23 'iVdl lbf8 24 'iVf3 'iVg6 25 lbe2 lbd7 26 lba3 a6 27 �e3 'it>e7 28 .ltd2 b6 29 32 lbe2 f5 33 f3 f4 34 .l:!.a5 g4

Here the usual move order for

The threat of mate on g7 wins time to force the exchange of queens.

29 ...'iVxg4 30 h3 'iVg5 31 ..iel!

lbfg6 20 lbe3 'iVh8 21 a4 f6 22 as 'iVe8

axb6+ lbxb6 30 �d3 lbd7 31 .l:!.al .l:!.b6

Of course 40 d7 had to be pre­

put his queen on f2 straightaway with

waited

14 d5 lbe7 15 ..txd7+ 'it>xd7 16 .l:!.bl .l:!.hb8 17 'iVa4+ �d8 18 'iVe2 h5 19 lbf5

g e4

The bishop will reach the f4-square

... after which Smyslov took advan­

with gain of tempi by hitting the black

tage of his inadvertent transposition of

queen and rook on b8, after which it

moves:

can help shepherd home the passed

9 lLlh5!? 10 0-0 g5!! •••

pawns. 31

..•

'iVh5 32 ii.f4 .l:!.bd8 33 e6

Finally the pawns start to roll. Smyslov's mobile kingside pawns

33 .....ie4 34 e7 l:te8 35 .l:!.el 'iVg6 36

have been steadily advancing, while

.l:!.xe4!

Bronstein has nothing similar to throw

Topalov probably didn't need much calculation

to

persuade

himself

at the black king. Our hero's plight is all

to

make this sacrifice. If nothing dramatic happens, the passed pawns are going

the more unpleasant as, even if he man­

41 'iVxg5 •.•

ages to survive the direct attack on his

If 41.. .'iVe6 42 d7! 'iVxd7 43 1\Vh6 and

to steam-roller everything in their way.

mates on g7.

king, an endgame would be hopeless

And it would be very strange indeed if

42 ii.xg5 .l:!.dl 43 ..ie6 .l:!.e2+ 44 'it>g3 1-0

for him due to Black's passed pawn on

the black rooks should cause any trou­ ble for the white king when one of 134

a6, which is virtually an extra pawn due

The checks will run out and then the pawn promotes.

White has been denied his natural

to White's doubled c-pawns. 135

Chess Secrets: Th e G ia n ts of Po wer Play The stakes were very high in this game, since if Bronstein lost he would for all purposes be out of the running

En erg izing t h e P a w n s target of all: the black king. And all this at the cost of a mere knight! In short,

the

white

crippled by 10 . . . gS, and then Smyslov pieces

and

for first place in the tournament, which

pawns have fallen in love with each

would have meant no World Champi­

other again. The force of White's pawn

onship

Botvinnik.

health with 37 ... cxb4.

He

juggernaut soon compels Smyslov to return the piece, after which he can't

and came up with an imaginative idea:

survive with all the lines open on the

Bronstein isn't just willing to give up a

3 5 lLlb4!!

queenside.

knight for the sake of his pawns. In the

knight

with

allowed them to be restored to full

therefore dug deep into his creativity

This

match

get it wrong. Bronstein let his pawns be

move

contains

no

threats at all, but it upsets Smyslov. For

In

particular,

the

black

Bronstein magic

queen has been left stranded by the

next game he sacrifices a rook to keep

action on the other wing.

them intact.

a couple of moves he ignores it, but at

38 cxb4 :bb8 39 C5 lLlc8 40 �cl 'it;>d8 41

"Bronstein and Ljubojevic are rep­

last he can't resist the temptation of

c6 .nbS 42 h3 'iNg6 43 cxd7 'it;>xd7 44

resentatives of different generations,

The question i s whether the far ad­

being a piece up.

�e2 1txa5 45 bxa5 lLle7 46 iLel 'iWg5 47

but their styles have common elements:

vanced pawns can be held together

35 ...gxf3 36 �xf3 'i¥g4 37 'iWf2 cxb4??

l:tc3 l:tb8

sharp, rich in ideas, and with a ten­

against the pressure about to be ex­

dency

erted on them. The answer is yes - as

Morphy would have approved of Bronstein's piece offer, but it's strange

towards the bizarre."

Timman,

- Jan

long as White is prepared to give up a

The Art of Chess Analysis.

to see Smyslov react with the greed of

rook!

one of Morphy's opponents. There was

11 �d4!

Game 53 D.Bronstein-L.Lju bojevic Petro pol is I nterzonal 1973 Alekhine Defence

no compulsion to take the piece. But in the heat of battle strange decisions are made. 38 cxb4

Attacking one black bishop and preventing the other one from going to cS. 11 ...iLxf3 12 gxf3 .ib4 13 .ixc4 The only good way to meet the threat to dS.

1 e4 lLlf6 The Alekhine Defence. We shall see Black

doesn't

achieve

13 ... 0-0

how the fourth World Champion han­

White is a pawn up, but his centre is

adequate

dles his pet opening later in the chap­

looking vulnerable and his king is still

but if he just waited

ter. Bronstein responds with the Four

stuck in the centre. But never mind:

White could take the a6-pawn from

Pawns Attack which indicates he is

Bronstein is going to attack the black

counterplay,

him with 48 J:Ib3 and 49 l:tb6.

looking for a full-blooded struggle.

king.

48 'iNxa6 :bl 49 iVe2 lLlg6 50 'iNf2 �e8

2 e5 lLld 5 3 d4 d6 4 c4 lLlb6 5 f4 dxe5 6

14 l:tgl!

51 a6 f3 52 g3 �al 53 a7 �d7 54 'it;>h2

fxe5 c5

h4 55 lIxf3 hxg3+ 56 l:txg3 'iff4 57 "ifxf4 lLlxf4 58 ng8 1-0 The moribund white pawns are

Threatening both IS e6 and I S iLh6.

Taking

the

philosophy

of

the

Alekhine to an extreme: White is al­ lowed

an

imposing

mobile

centre

14...g6 Now Ljubojevic is poised to play ei­ ther IS ... lLlc6! 16 'ii'e4 lLlxeS, when the

suddenly full of life again. With the

We can see from this game that,

which Black aims to demolish with

white centre crumbles, or 15 . . .�c7 with

support of their pieces they are able to

when it comes to the subject of work­

blows from the wings.

the

ram their way through the black de­

ing and non-working pawn majorities,

7 d5 e6 8 lLlC3 exd5 9 cxd5 c4 10 lLlf3

16 ... iLcs, skewering the rook on gl .

fences and get at the most important

even the best players in the world can

iLg4

Therefore no time is to be lost by

136

double

threat

of

16 . . .lLlxc4

or

137

Ch ess Secrets: The Gia n ts of Po wer Play

En ergizing t h e P a w n s

White: he has to do or die with a king­

is far more important than the rook on

side. In fact 19 O-O-O!, planning to break

question marks - 1 8 . . .'iVc8? 1 9 bl ! and there is no good answer to 23

piece that gets in the way and uses up

�h6+.

defensive resources that could have

19 ...i.cS?

been spent on the attack. Artistically

Black would have the advantage af­

speaking, the move 19 h8

time and so he plays on to the time

9 bXc3 i.e4 10 liJd2 i.c6 11 i.d3 liJbd7

Rubinstein and Capablanca.

control at move 40.

12 �C2 h6 13 0-0 0-0 14 z:tae1 b6

liJg3+ 'ittg8 32 i.f6 and mates on h8.

Morphy prepares a direct attack

. . .and Anderssen copies him. After

Instead, we get a tactical confronta­

16 .. :ii'h7 Black would run out of ideas,

27 axb3 liJd S+ 28 �d4 liJe6+ 29 'ittxd S

A good move, though Anderssen

tion on the kingside typical of the style

as he can't get in . . . c7-cS attacking d4.

liJxgs 30 liJf6+ 'ittg 7 31 'iixgs �fd8 3 2 e 6 fxe6+ 3 3 'ittxe6 IU8 34 d 7 a s 3 5 liJg4

didn't play it with the correct plan in

of mid 19th century chess. Morphy

However, it was still possible to play

mind.

builds up with �h2, �gl, g2-g4 etc -

16 . . . �b7! and after 17 .I:lgl cS.

z:ta6+ 36 �es l:tfS+ 37 'i'xfs gxfS 38

15 h 3

and Anderssen responds in kind with

17 .I:lg1 :g8 18 g4 gs

d8� fxg4 39 'i'd7+ �h6 40 �xb7 ftg6

... 'itth8, . . . .l:tg8 and ... g7-gS. Both players

41 f4 1-0

try to attack and strike a knockout

highly regrettable.

blow against the enemy king.

19 f4

The only consistent move, though

If that's how both players agree to

A dynamic build-up versus an a nti-positional attack

contest the game, there is only going to be one winner, and that is White. In

In the following game, Morphy and

particular, Morphy has a bishop on e3

Anderssen make 'mirror image' ad­

that is going to become very menacing

vances on the kingside, but only one

once Black compromises his kingside

player was improving his piece/pawn

with ... g7-gS.

harmony.

Players such as Steinitz, with their advanced understanding of positional

Game 54 P.Morphy-A.Anderssen 5th matchga m e, Paris 1858 Centre-Counter Defence

1S ...�c8?

chess, would have caused Morphy a lot

Here the simple IS ... i.b7! would

of problems with ... i.b7 and ... c7-cS.

clear the way for a positional attack on

But Anderssen, the brilliant tactician,

the white centre; e.g. 16 'itth2 (not a

has no choice but to trust his own more

Both players have made aggressive

good move but the one Morphy chose

limited strategic ideas, even though

pawn advances on the kingside, but

in the game) 16 ... cS and Black is ready

they lead him to defeat.

Morphy has a tremendous trump in the

for 17 . . ..llc8 etc. In that case Black's

1 e4 d s

Note that I couldn't help describing

dark-squared bishop,

which

can be

Anderssen was so impressed by

pressure along the c-file would hamper

lS ... i.b7,

eluded

used to undermine the black pawns on

Morphy's knowledge of theory that he

any attempt by White to build up an

Anderssen, as "simple"! I guess by

gS and h6. Furthermore, White has al­

decided to play unconventional open­

initiative on the kingside. Leaving the

simple I mean "calm and positional,

ready been able to coordinate his rooks

ings. On the whole he achieved reason­

queen on d8 also sets a nasty trap

not trying to force matters". It's only

on the first rank, whereas Black needs

able positions in the early middle game,

(though Morphy would never have

simple to find such moves when you

to get his queen out of their way.

but

outplayed.

fallen for it!): IS ... .tb7 16 'itth2 cS 17 g4?

have seen the games of Petrosian and

19 .. :ti'f8

That's the problem with meeting a gen­

liJxg4+! when if 18 hxg4? iVh4+ mates

other chess artists, who were born

ius on territory that is unknown to both

next move.

many

was

subsequently

players: his inspiration will provide

It's

rather

harsh

to

criticize

the

years

move

after

that

the

death

of

Anderssen .

Anderssen finds a good post for the queen on d6. If he loses this game it isn't because of his lack of imagination:

him with safe passage through all the

Anderssen for failing to grasp the need

swamps and pitfalls, leaving his oppo­

to prepare ... c7-cS. A positional plan to

see how the battle unfolds.

the position is against him. He has dis­

nent, who lacks any strategic signposts,

undermine a pair of doubled pawns

16 'itt h 2

located his kingside pawn structure,

140

Now let's return to the game and

it is simply that the underlining logic of

141

En e rg izing t h e P a w n s

C h e s s S e c re ts : Th e G i a n ts of P o we r Play And so Anderssen seeks counterplay

advance of Black's

with a knight sacrifice.

which can be met with ..\td4 if neces­

zugzwang.

has the two bishops" and "don't move

24 fxg5

sary.

�xg7+ 'it>xg7 55 .i.d6 c4 56 ..\tb4 'it>h6 57

pawns on the side of the board where

passed

a-pawn,

advance his king, putting Black in

breaking rules of thumb such as "don't open the position when your opponent

For

example,

53 . . . c5

54

'it'g4 �h7 58 ..t>g5 'it'g7 59 h6+ '>t>h7 60

Not of course 24 gxh5? gxf4+ when

your opponent has the initiative". And

Black regains his piece.

'l£ih5 'it'g8 61 �g6 ..t>h8 62 i.c3+ and

above all, he has omitted the vital at­

24 ... hxgs 25 gxh5 g4 26 hxg4 11xg4+ 27

wins.

tack on d4 with ... c7-c5.

'&til f5 28 �f2

20 l:tg3 .l:!.d8 21 tiJf3 ..\txf3 Safeguarding the g5-point; and, be­ sides, the knight mustn't be allowed to go to e5. However, the white rooks gain freedom of action on the f-file, and unless something drastic happens, the weakness of f6 or f7 is sure to tell against Black. 38 ... as 39 '>i1ie2 l1xe4

22 .!1xf3 �d6 23 '>i1ig2 tiJhs

Rather than wait for 40 ..t>d3, when his rook would have no safe move, Anderssen concedes the e6-pawn and There is no

logical

reason why

makes one last attempt to save himself

White should lose to a combination, no

on the queenside.

matter how ingenious, when he has all

40 l:i.xe6 l::te 2+ 41 �f3 a4 42 l::tg6

his pieces, in particular the queen,

Morphy

makes

rather

heavy

supporting his king. Anderssen has

weather of the endgame. The simplest

one more try at upsetting his illustrious

way to win was to utilize the passed e­

opponent.

pawn with 42 �e8+ ..t>g7 43 e6. For ex­ ample, if 43 . . .a3 44 .i.d4+ '>i1ih6 45 e7, or

28 ... tiJe5 29 dxe5

A wing pawn adds vital energy to an attack

Came 55 T.Radjabov-V.Topalov Wij k aan Zee 2003 Catalan Opening

Perhaps the cleanest way for White

43 ... .l:rc4 44 e7 when 44 ... '>i1if7 allows the

to win is 29 ..if4!, when if 29 ... l:!.xf4 30

neat finish 45 h6! �xe8 46 h7 and the h­

mire the energy and inventiveness of

6txe5! or 29 ... tiJxd3 30 .i.xd6 tiJxf2 31

pawn queens, while 44 .. Jie4 45 iL.h4 a3

iLd2 i..e 7 6 ..\tg2 0-0 7 0-0 e6 8 �e2 b6 9

Anderssen's play, even if it is ulti­

..\te5+ ..t>h7 32 Wxf2 etc.

46 l:i.f8 a2?! 47 �f6+ '>i1ih6 48 .l:rh8 is

iLf4 SLa6 10 tiJbd2 tiJbd7 11 l:i.fdl �e8

mately doomed. He cannot wait, as

29 .. :iVxd3+ 30 'iie 2 �e4 31 ..\tf2 'ike6 3 2

mate.

12 l:i.ael tiJh5 13 e4 tiJxf4 14 gxf4 tiJf6

White will bulldozer down the f-file

.tt d l l:!.xdl+ 33 �xdl �xe4+ 34 �d3

42 ...l:i.e4 43 �gl a3 44 e6 a2 45 l:i.al lIe4

15 tiJes tiJh5 16 'i6a4 ..\txe4 17 tiJxe6 b5

with 24 l:!.efl and then 25 �f2, if neces­

'i¥xa2 3 5 l:i.g3 'i'e4

46 l:i.xa2 lbe6 47 <Jtf4 lld6 48 'it>xf5

18 'ti'a6 �xe6 19 �xe6 tiJxf4 20 tiJxe4

Once again we can't help but ad­

sary, when f4xg5 will either win the

With a heavy heart the tactical

knight on f6, or if it flees, the pawn on

maestro

f7. Note that playing . . . g5xf4 won't do

queens, as otherwise his king would

Black any good in this sequence, as the

come under a deadly attack.

weaknesses on the f-file will remain

36 'i!kxe4 i:lxe4 37 litg6 l:i.e6 38 e4!

and a new one will be created on h6. 142

is

compelled

to

swap off

Morphy takes measures against the

1 d4 tiJf6 2 e4 e6 3 tiJf3 d5 4 g3 .i.b4+ 5

.l;td S+ 49 ..t>g4 b5 50 lla8+ '>i1ih7 51 lia7

bxe4 21 exd 5 exd5 22 :te3 ..ih4 23 l'iIg3

�d7 52 ..\tg3 l:!.g7+ 53 '>i1ih3 1-0 (D)

.lIe8 24 l::tg4 Ite6 25 'i'e5 tiJxg2 26 l::txg2

controls the

a6 27 �a3 g6 28 �e3 'i'e7 29 b3 'ika3

queening square of the h-pawn, White

30 'ilVe2 �e7 31 �1 exb3 32 'i!kxb3 'ilVd6

Because

his

bishop

can happily exchange rooks, blockade

33 �d3 'i'f4 34 �d2 'i'f5 35 l\r'd3 1!e4

the passed queenside pawns and then

3 6 l\r'b3 ..t>g7 37 �d3 143

En erg iz i n g t h e P a w n s

Chess S e c rets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play 40 'iVe3 h 4 41 J:Ig2

and might make a crucial difference. 46 t!.d2 ..txd4 At last Topalov decides to nab the d4-pawn. 47 'iVd1 ..te5

Zugzwang i s the quickest way to

In the diagram position the Bulgar­ ian Grandmaster has sacrificed the ex­

Black's h-pawn, with the help of his

change for a pawn. He has succeeded

queen and rook on the f-file, has suc­

in tying down the white pieces to the

ceeded in pushing the white rook back

pawns on d4 and f2, but it isn't clear

onto its passive square. In other words,

how he can increase his initiative. For

it has taken over guard duty from the

example, if he plays ... ..Iif6 at some

black bishop, which is now free to at­

point, to put pressure on d4, White will

tack d4 without worrying about the

be able to reply liIg3!, followed by l:l.f3

white rook slipping out via g3. This

if necessary, to activate his rook. Be­

amounts to a significant change in the

sides, the a6-pawn is hanging.

energy balance between the two ar­

Topalov realized that manoeuvres by his

pieces on their own would get

mies: basically the black bishop has gained power of movement without

him nowhere. Therefore he needed to

allowing the white rook on g2 to gain

tap an unused source of energy in the

any reciprocal power of movement.

black position: his pawns.

41 ... .l:i.f3 42 �e2 a s ! 43 'it>gl J::tf4 44 'it>h1

37 ... h5! 38 'ikb3

l::te4 45 'iVf1 a4

It turns out that 38 'ii'xa6? allows

Black's a-pawn has edged forwards.

38 ... ..txf2! 39 l::txf2 'i'kh3+ 40 �gl (40 t!.g2

The further it advances, the more dan­

'iff3+ 41 'it>gl 'iVxd1+ is even worse for

gerous it will be as a potential passed

White) 40 . . .�g4+ 41 �h1 �xd1+ 42 11£1

pawn if White's a2-pawn drops. The

'it'xd4 and Black wins.

game never reaches such a scenario as

38 .....tf6 39 I:tg3 Itf41

the white position quickly fragments in

Better than 39 . . . ..txd4 40 :f3. Black

the centre and on the kingside. Never­

wants to keep the white rook boxed in

theless, you should always be looking

on g2, not allowed the freedom of the f­

out for ways to improve your position

file. There will be time later on to cap­

' for free' with pawn moves like 42 ... aS

ture the d4-pawn.

and 4S ... a4. They can't do any harm,

144

end the game, as if 60 'iVbl 'iVe2 threat­ ens mate on g2. 60 f4 'ife4+ 61 t!.f3 .tf21 0-1 Disaster follows on e 1 . 48 f3 Black's h-pawn is seen in a more

A s you can see, pawns are a vital part of the power play style.

aggressive role after 48 lhdS h3 49 .1:.g1 (or 49 .l:i.g3? 'it'xf2) 49 .. :ii'f4, when the best way for White to stop mate on h2

The 'berserker' pawn

is with SO llxeS, leaving him a pawn

Every once in a while one of Alekhine's

down and still menaced by the pawn

pawns is mad enough to challenge the

on h3 after SO .. J:lxeS. With the game

whole of the opponent's army. The

move Radjabov at last gets to bring his

reckless pawn met with sensational

rook from g2 into the centre.

success in his game with Bogoljubow

48 ... lIb4

in Chapter Four. In the following ex­

Threatening the queen with 49 ...11bl. 49 11d3 h3 50 l:te2 d4 The black pawns on a4, d4 and h3

ample it has its career sadly cut short, though not before it manages to terror­ ize the enemy pieces.

have the white pieces in a stranglehold. 51 t!.f2 i.f4 52 'iVe2 .:tb1+ 53 1Id1 The passed d-pawn has to be al­ lowed to advance, as thanks to its com­ rade on h3, the white back rank col­ lapses after S3 �fl 'ii'e6! S4 'ii'f2 'ii'x a2!. 53 ...d3 54 'ii'f1 t!.xd1 5 S 'ii'x d1 d2 56

Game 56 E.Znosko-Borovsky A.Alekhine Pa ris 192 5 Alekhine Defence

l:le2 'ii'd 3 57 llf2 i.e3 58 11f1 ..Iid4 59 a3 Wg8!

1 e4 ctJf6 145

Chess S e c re t s : The Gia n ts of P o w e r Play

En ergizing t h e P a w n s

A little over a hundred years after it

centre without any more ado. How­

was rejected as inferior by Allgaier (in

ever, the developing 9 ... i.e7 was to be

1 819),

the opening now known as

preferred, and only after 9 dS then

Alekhine's Defence had a resurgence at

9 ... ttJb4 with a sharp game.

the Budapest 1921 tournament. It was

10 .l:!.c1 cS 11 a3? A slow move which justifies Black's

and a draw by Alekhine himself as

ninth move adventure. Instead, the

Black versus Steiner and Samisch re­

quiet 1 1 ii.e2! is awkward for Black, as

spectively. Thereafter it was seen in the

after 1 1 . . .cxd4 12 ttJxd4 the centre is

games of chess notables such as Reti

becoming open,

poorly placed on b4.

was the famous artist and chess maniac

11

•••

answered by 19 ... ii.cS and 20 ... 0-0. By

by 20 ... ttJc3 trapping the white queen. his

material

Znosko-Borovsky

is

advantage,

being

sacrificing a pawn White frees his bishop and succeeds in disrupting his

pushed

opponent's build-up, as 19 . . . .ixcS? 20

around, as all the action is happening

.ibS+ 'it'f8 21 ttJb3! would embarrass

without any input from his rook on hI .

the black knight and bishop on cS.

14 'ii'b 3 cxb2 1S 'iix b2 ttJa4 16 1i'a1!

19 ...ttJxcS 20 ii.bS+ ttJd7 21 �C3!

knight

cxd4

Now chances after 12 ttJxd4 ttJc6 are

Marcel Duchamp.) Nowadays White usually responds

leaving his

A slower move would have been

include 19 . . . .id3 or 19 ... ttJa4 followed Despite

played in four games, including a win

and Emanuel Lasker. (Another big fan

0-0, White is being crushed: the threats

about equal. White tries for more and

with 2 eS ttJdS 3 d4 d6 4 ttJf3 .ig4 S

is hit by an Alekhine combination:

ii.e2, keeping a slight but solid edge. In

12 ii.gS? dXc31

contrast, Alekhine often got the upper hand in the opening, because his op­ ponents either declined the chance to build a pawn centre or, having done so, failed to consolidate their space advan­

Alekhine admitted after the game

tage properly. Znosko-Borovsky cer­ tainly isn't dazzled by 1 . . .ttJf6 in the current game. 2 eS ttJdS 3 c4 ttJb6 4 d4 d6 S f4 dxes 6 fxes ttJc6 7 i.. e3 i.fS 8 ttJf3 e6 9 ttJC3

1 3 ii.xd8 ':xd8? Alekhine should have recalled his masterpiece against Bogoljubow where the

rampant

defeated

the

pawn white

single-handedly pieces.

After

13 ... cxb2! 14 ii.xb6 bxc1'iW IS 'it'xc1 ttJc2+ 16 'i.t>f2 axb6, intending 17 ... ii.cS+ etc, Black has a decisive positional advan­ tage. Alekhine gives (instead of 14 .ixb6) 14 ii.g5 as a better chance, but 9 .. .tiJb4?! Alekhine wants to attack the white 146

even then, after 14 . . .bxc1 � IS ii.xc1 ttJc2+ 16 'i.t>f2 l:!.d8 17 �e2 i..cS+ 18 'i.t>g3

Preventing 21. ..ii.cS. Now the future

that he had missed this crafty retreat.

World

He is winning after other moves; for

about 22 �c7, increasing the pressure

Champion

became

anxious

example, 16 "iVb3? ttJcS! 17 1i'xb4 ttJd3+

on d7, but, as he demonstrated after

18 ii.xd3 ii.xb4+ 19 axb4 l:!.xd3 and

the game, it was harmless: 21...i..e7! 22

Black is a pawn up, or 16 �f2 ii.cs 17

'iic7 a6 23 ii.a4 ii.e4! (it's important to

�g3 ttJc2+ 18 lhc2 i..xc2 with a rook

rule out ttJc6 by White before playing

and bishop for the queen and a con­

his next move) 24 0-0 bS 2S i..c2 ii.cs

tinuing attack.

"and Black easily disentangles himself'

16 ... ttJC2+?

- Alekhine.

Another slip. Here 16 ... ttJd3+! 17

Going two moves further, after 26

ii.xd3 �xd3, threatening to trap the

i.xe4 .lii.xd4+ 27 �hl 0-0 Black still has

white queen with 18 .. Jha3, is much

only a rook and knight for the queen,

stronger - Alekhine.

but he is going to capture a third pawn

17 nxc2 ii.xc2 18 ttJd4!

on eS, giving him a significant material

The beginning of a spirited fight­

advantage. Meanwhile White is lacking

back. The Russian master exploits the

one of the saving graces when the op­

hanging black bishop to improve the

ponent makes a positional sacrifice of

coordination of his pieces.

the queen: either a passed pawn or an

18 ... ii.g6 19 c S !

attack on an unsafe king. Even if White 147

Ch ess S e c rets: T h e G i a n ts of P o w e r Play

En ergizing t h e P a w n s

picks up Black's two queenside pawns

3 0 .l:i.xe7+ i.xe7 3 1 'i¥cS+ i..d S 3 2 'i¥e6+

in return for his own pawns on e5 and

iLe7 33 �cS+ i.dS 34 �e6+ Yz-Yz

a3, he is probably going to lose the endgame due to Black's passed pawn

Eugene Znosko-Borovsky (1884-1954)

Lev Polugaevsky relates how he had used this variation with success in an earlier game against Furman, which had continued 7. . .b6 8 iLg2 iLe6 9 �c3

on the e-file.

must have been a very popular player.

21 ... a6? 22 i.xd7+ .l:i.xd7 23 'ifcS+ .l:td S

Despite being annoyed at failing to win,

game and was waiting to ambush Polu

Alekhine was generous enough to say

with an amazing improvement:

24 �xb7! The

piece

sacrifice

guarantees

that his opponent had "faultlessly ex­ ploited all possibilities for saving the

White at least a draw. Threatening to win at once with 27

tical acuity". Similarly, when Capablan­

.l:i.dl, so Alekhine has to tread very

ca lost to Znosko-Borovsky from a win­

carefully.

ning position and so failed to receive a

26...i.d3

gold cup, the Cuban wrote that he de­ losing

served "great credit for the way he con­

chances for himself if he moved his

ducted his exceedingly difficult defence" .

would

only

create

7 ...iLg7!?

game and demonstrated admirable tac­

24... .l:i.xd4 25 'i¥c6+ .l:i.d7 26 O-O!

Black

f6 10 a3 etc. Bronstein had studied that

king, as White could at worst force a

Znosko-Borovsky was only a minor

draw by perpetual or repeating moves

chess master, but he had qualities that

after 26 . . .�e7 27 �c5+ etc.

impressed two of the giants of the

Now Black i s minus a centre pawn, with no lead in development or attack in sight. It seems that Bronstein has been crazy to try to smash the solid armour of the English Opening. But here is a paradox: the white ar­ mour is so solid that, apart from along

game. Whereas most players of his era

27 .l:i.xf7 i.C5+ 2S �h1 i.b5!

would cave in under pressure, Znosko understood how to tum a defence into a counterattack. This gives the above game a very 'modem' feel, with both players striving their hardest to gain the initiative.

the c-file, which will soon fall into Black ignores the attack on c5. He

the white pieces to manoeuvre behind

white

it. And the white queen, who is caught

queen and threatens 8 ... i.e6,

gaining more time, so White has no

outside the armour, can't find a way to

choice but to accept the offer.

get back inside it!

S li'lxC5 'iVa 5 9 a3 li'l4c6 If 9 ... li'l8c6 10 �c4! threatens n li'lb3

Destroying piece/pawn coordination

The only move, as Black loses a piece after 28 ... �xf7? 29 'i¥xd7+ and 30 �xd3. 29 �xe6+ .l:i.e7 Alekhine has to acquiesce

to a

Game 5 7 L.Pol ugaevsky-D.Bronstein USSR C h a m pio n s h i p, Len in grad 1971 English Opening

draw, as after 29 ... �d8 30 .l:i.xd7+ i.xd7

Black's hands, there is little room for

takes away the c3-square from the

In other words, we have an extreme example of pawns

and

pieces not

and then 12 axb4. The reply 10 ... b5

working together. Black's pawn on b4

would fail to 11 "ife4 iLf5 12 axb4! -

will contain more dynamic energy than

Polugaevsky. Therefore Bronstein feels

the whole white pawn structure. We

obliged to retreat his knight.

might add that the open c-file is made

10 �C4 b5!

all the more valuable to the black

Forcing the white queen to run

pieces because the 'beautiful' white

away along the fourth rank, as after 1 1

pawn structure doesn't contain any

'ifc2 she might become a target t o one

outlets for its own pieces.

of three ideas: . . ..l:tc8; or . . . iLg4 and

It took the genius of Bronstein to

... .l1.xf3 followed by . . . li'ld4; or ... .l1.f5,

comprehend that, after 7 ... iLg7, the im­

1 c4 c5 2 li'lf3 li'lf6 3 li'lC3 d5 4 cxd 5

when White has no wish to loosen

31 �d5 the double threat of 32 �xc5

perviousness of the white pawns is no

himself with e2-e4 in reply.

and 32 e6 wins for White.

li'lxd5 5 g3 g6 6 �b3 li'lb4 7 li'le4

joy but rather a hindrance to the white

11 �h4

pieces.

148

149

En ergizing t h e P a w n s

C h e s s S e c rets: The G ia n ts of P o w e r P l ay 11 ... b4 12 ttJd3 ttJa6 13 ii.g2 ii.d7 14 0-0 nc8 15 ttJde1 ttJcS! The black knight has discovered a

soon as possible, so that the rooks can coor­ dinate their action and mutually defend one another.

28 l:[a1 e4 29 ttJC4 �d7 30 iLb2 ii.xC4 31 iLxd4 ii.xd4 32 bXc4 ii.xa1 33 �xa1 l:txc4 34 ii.f1 .l:i.d4 35 !'i.a6 'it>g7 36 bS

great square on b3.

:txd2 37 1:!.xa7 �xa7 38 'iYxd2 �b6 39

16 ttJC2 ttJb3 17 .l:Ib1 'iVcS 18 ttJe3

"iVc3+ 'i'f6 40 'iVcs �d8 41 b6 �d6 42

White has so little space that he

'iVc3+ 'ii'd 4 43 "iVc6 �d6 44 'iiC7+ l'J.d7 45

drops the rook on bl after 18 ttJxb4

"iNc6 �d6 46 'ti'c3+ �f6 47 'iVcs 1:!.b7 48

ttJxb4 19 axb4 'ir'c2.

�bS 'iVxb6 49 �es+ 'ir'f6 0-1

18 ttJcd4 .•.

Preventing a freeing pawn move

Given this disharmony it's no won­ der a combination suddenly occurs: 26 ... iLxe 2 ! 27 iLg2 If 27 %he2 ttJf3+ wins the queen, while 27 iLxe2 ttJxe2+ 28 Mxe2 �d3 A pawn structure that loses its mo­

1 7 .ixd6 1 8 'it'xd6 ••.

Game 58 v.Topalov-C.Lutz Cand idates To u rn a ment, Dortm u n d 2002 Sicilian Defence

And now in the style of Paulsen­ Morphy in Chapter Five, the queen takes up the role of blockader. 18 ... cxb3 19 axb3 as 20 1:!.d4! Disarming the pawn ram 20 . . . a4. 20 J�ta6 21 'if'a 3 dS .•

1 e4 cS 2 ttJf3 e6 3 d4 cxd4 4 ttJxd4 ttJc6

forks two rooks.

5 ttJc3 "iiC7 6 .ie3 a6 7 "iVd2 ttJf6 8 0-0-0

27 ii.d3

ii.b4 9 f3 ttJes 10 ttJb3 bS 11 'it>b1 ttJC4

.••

12 ii.xC4 bXc4 13 ttJC1 'ifb7

bility stifles its own pieces, which in tum become less able to defend it from

Black is understandably keen to at­

attack. Here Bronstein focuses his as­

tack down the b-file, but it was better

sault on the e2-square.

to try the alternative 13 ...nb8, when the

19 ttJxd4 ttJxd4 20 1:!.e1 ii.bs 21 axb4

continuation 14 ..if4 e5 15 ii.g5 leads to

'ii'd 6

interesting play. Moving the queen to

Black is in no hurry to recapture on

b7 weakens his hold on the dark

b4, as if 22 d3 then 22 . . . 'iVxb4 comes

squares in the centre, a fact that Topa­

with greater force as it attacks el.

lov soon pounces upon.

22 ii.f1 0-0 2 3 'iVe4 e6 24 b3 fS 25 'iVf4

14 ttJ1e2 I:tb8 15 b3 0-0 16 ii.f41

es 26 'ir'gs White's queen is confinement

on

corner.

being pushed

around, without any means to escape her

the

kingside.

Meanwhile the bishop is still stuck on

The loss of the e2 has wrecked White's centre, leaving him with big holes on d3 and f3. Polugaevsky makes

el, breaking one of the golden rules of

a valiant bid to free his game by sacri­

development:

ficing the exchange, but it proved fu­

the minor pieces should remove themselves from the first rank as

150

So Lutz has succeeded in breaking

Driving the black rook back into the

tile. The remaining moves were:

16

.•.

leave him with a deathly sick pawn on d5.

:a8 17 ii.d6

A

the hold on d6, but the episode will

blocking

technique

also

em­

22 exds exds 23 ttJf4 ii.e6 24 �hd1 h6

ployed by Morphy in his game with

Black decides to give up the pawn,

Schulten in Chapter Ten. The bishop

as 24 .. J:td8 25 ttJe4! ttJxe4 36 fxe4 is

plugs the d6-square before Black can

highly unpleasant.

free his game with . . . d7-d5.

25 ttJcxdS ttJxdS 26 ttJxdS �b8? 151

Che ss S e c rets: Th e G i a n ts of P o w e r Play The simplifying 26 . . . .txd5 27 l:txd5 a4 was the last chance. After the game

38 'iWf4+ We2 39 l:td2+ 'itJe1 40 'ilkf2 mate. 31 li'gS+ 'it>hs 32 'ilVg7!

move it looks like Black has the mak­ ings of a strong attack with 26 ... a4, but

C h a pt e r S eve n

Topalov gets in first with an unex­ pected combination:

I

A Batte ri ng Ra m on the f-fi le

This quiet move is a very neat way to end the game. If now 32 .. JIa8 33 g4+ �h4 34 li'xh6 mate. 32 ... fS 33 11d4! 2 7 l2Jf6+!! gxf6 2S l:!dS+ �xdS 29 1:txdS+ Wh7 30 'tiffS �g6 It takes longer but Black is also

Intending 34 l:I.h4+! �xh4 35 'iWxh6 mate. 33 ... .tcS 34 g31 1-0

mated after 30 ... h5: i.e. 31 g4! hxg4 32

The only way to stop mate on h4 is

fxg4 Wg6 (or 32 . . ..txg4 33 li'g8+ 'it>h6 34

by giving up the queen, so Black pre­

li'xg4 na8 35 .l:!.d3 intending 36 l:th3

ferred to resign.

mate) 33 'tifg8+ 'it>h6 34 li'h8+ 'It>g5 35 'i'g7+ �f4 36 'iVxf6+ 'it>e4 37 .l:td4+ �e3

Topalov played like Morphy in both a positional and tactical way!

On the way to his World Champion­

1950 Candidates tournament having

ship match in 1951, Bronstein excelled

studied sharp lines in the 4 a3 Nimzo­

his opponents in all three components

Indian in great detail.

of power play: psychology, opening

2)

Understanding of dynamics. Na­

preparation and the understanding of

jdorf is undone by the power of the f4-

dynamics. As a result, he won impor­

f5 pawn ram. It would seem it took a

tant games against Najdorf and Keres

long time for the chess world to wake

by infusing his f-pawn with attacking

up to the power of this advance.

energy. In this chapter we shall exam­

3)

Psychology. Najdorf had been

ine these games and also look at how

watching Bronstein's game with Szabo

our other four giants have used the f­

in the Nimzo-Indian earlier in the

pawn as a ' magician's wand'.

tournament and had said to Bronstein's trainer and mentor, Boris Weinstein,

Bronstein ' s mastery of power play

"Your David is bluffing." Not surpris­ ingly, Weinstein didn't try to change his mind. After the Szabo game, which

In the following game, Miguel Na­

Bronstein won, Najdorf had begun

jdorf, one of the very best players out­

suggesting improvements for Black.

side the USSR at the time, is going to

Evidently the Argentine Grandmaster

be crushed in 21 moves. Here are the

regarded himself as a great Nimzo­

power play factors that make this in­

Indian expert.

evitable: 1)

Opening preparation of forcing variations. Bronstein had come to the 152

Feeling over-confident and facing a new opening idea from Bronstein is not the healthiest combination! 153

A B a tt e r i n g Ram o n t h e f-fi le

Chess Secrets: The Gia n ts of P o w e r Play He thought for an hour without find­

Game 59 D.Bronstein-M.Najdorf Candidates Tou rn a ment, Buda pest 1950 Nimzo-Indian Defence

ing a way to escape. And no wonder: the threat is 13 f6 and the attempt to block it with .. .f7-f6 leads to catastro­ phe after 12 ... exfS 13 exfS f6 14 .ie4! 'it'd7 15 ii.dS+ '.t>h8 16 ttJf4, when White will have the pleasant choice between the positional 17 ttJe6, or 17 'ii'hS threat­

1 d4 ttJf6 2 C4 e6 3 ttJC3 ii.b4 4 a3 i.xc3+ Szabo had played 5 . . . 0-0 in the aforementioned game. 6 e3 ttJc6 7 ii.d3 0-0 8 ttJe2 d6 9 e4 ttJe8 Alternatively he could grab space in

did Najdorf, one of the best players in

vance of White's f-pawn. It seems he

As

over­

just didn't appreciate the strength of

confidence, lack of opening research,

the threat he faced. Otherwise, no mat­

we

discussed

above,

and no ' feel' for the strength of the f­

ter how short of time or otherwise dis­

pawn ram all contributed their part.

tracted, his chess instinct wouldn't

12 ...e5 13 f6! '.t>h8

to mate on h7.

If 13 ... ttJxf6 14 i.gS puts Black in a

have permitted the abysmal 26th move

So simple: the white queen intends

i.h6 he loses the exchange whilst keep­

10 0-0 b6 11 f4 i.a6??

ing a rotten position.

that decides the game. 3)

Psychology. Keres wasn't the sort

17 ...�xf5 18 exf5 �g8 19 llf3 lIg7 20

of player to collapse before a double­

i.h6 �g8 21 .l:th3 1-0

edged pawn sacrifice. Nevertheless, the opening surprise could be expected to

looming. Alternatively, after 13 ... g6 14

the centre with 9 . . . eS! ?

Understanding of dynamics. Like

Najdorf, Keres falters before the ad­

the world, miss that 12 £5 is so lethal?

16 ... ii.c8 17 'ilVh s

horrible pin, with 15 ttJg3 and 16 ttJhS

2)

Black is absolutely lost. Why then

ening 18 ttJg6 mate, or even 17 ttJg6+!'

5 bxc3 c5

against Keres' habitual Ruy Lopez.

white pieces.

get him short of time, which is exactly what happened. Furthermore, it was the last round of the tournament, and

14 d5 ttJa5 15 ttJg3 gxf6 16 ttJf5

the

Estonian

Grandmaster

had

no

chance of qualifying to play Botvinnik. Therefore in a hard fight he wouldn't have the same incentive as Bronstein, for whom this was the most important game

of

his

life.

If

pushed

hard

enough, Keres might just crack. . . If 2 1 . ..ttJg7 22 'ifu4 ttJe8 (otherwise 23 .ltgS wins) 23 ii.f8 and wins. Bronstein's

The losing move. Black is convinced that his opponent's kingside advance is

So what has White gained with the

"all bluff" and goes straight after the

f-pawn battering ram? Well, his dark­

pawn on c4. The only move was

squared bishop has an open diagonal,

1 1 .. .£S!, blocking the white f-pawn.

the knight has the fS-square, and his

12 fS I

queen and rook on f1 can quickly be

Perhaps Najdorf had only consid­

brought into the attack. And on the

ered 12 eS, opening the diagonal for the

Black side, the prevention of his own

bishop on d3, which is fairly harmless.

.. .f7-f6 move means that the queen and

In any case, at this point the Argentine

rooks are unable to defend their king

Grandmaster realized the danger he

along the second rank. Furthermore,

was in, but it was one move too late.

the pawn on h7 is a ready target for the

1 54

trusty

f-pawn

per­

formed the same trick in the last round of the tournament against Keres. Bron­

Game 60 D.Bronstein-P.Keres Cand idates To u rnament, Buda pest 19 50 Ruy Lopez

stein needed to win this game to catch up with Boleslavsky and force a play­

1 e4 eS 2 ttJf3 ttJc6 3 ii.b5 a6 4 i.a4 ttJf6

off match to decide who faced Botvin­

5 0-0 Ji.e7 6 lie1 b5 7 i.b3 0-0 8 d4 d6 9

nik. No easy task when you are playing

c3 ii.g4

one of the all-time chess greats! Once

On principle Keres had to pin the

again power play came to his rescue:

knight, as otherwise White has got d2-

1) Opening preparation of forcing variations. Bronstein was armed with

d4 in without wasting a move on h2-

an

strate his preparation.

interesting

new

pawn

sacrifice

h3. But now Bronstein gets to demon­

155

C h e s s S e c rets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play 10 h3!? .ixf3 11 'ifxf3 exd4 12 'ifdl! A

paradoxical

move

typical

A B a tt e r i n g Ram on t h e f-fi le round, he is tired and fed up, and he

The 'inexplicable' collapse occurs.

22 .i.a4

of

wants to go home! And Bronstein sacri­

In order to prevent the black knight

In reality, Keres has been befuddled by

Bronstein's chess art. The white queen

fices a pawn against him ... there's no

returning to the centre via c6. At the

his opponent's deadly brew of dyna­

retreats to her starting square in order

chance to have a snooze, not even in

same time the rook on e8 is driven to a

mism, psychology and preparation. In

to further the white attack. Or perhaps

the opening!

more passive square.

encroaching time pressure, the Esto­

22 .. JH8 23 .l:!.abl

nian Grandmaster sees a ghost, panics,

our hero was remembering the Mor­

In what follows, White makes no at­

phy-Anderssen game with 'ikd 1 ! from

tempt to launch a quick attack on the

A calm defensive move of the type

Chapter Five ...

black king. Instead, he keeps the ten­

that pushes the opponent closer to time

12 ...dxe3 13 liJxe3

sion, so that Keres has problems to

trouble.

solve on every move, and is pushed

23 .. :iii'b6

further and further into time trouble.

and makes a ruinous blunder. The only move consistent with his queenside build-up was the exchange sacrifice 26 ... liJxb2!, when after 27 .ixf8

Keres' queen joins his queenside at­

lhf8 Black is unlikely to be mated and

We should jump ahead to move 20:

tack, but now she is no longer oppos­

meanwhile can advance with ... cS-c4

13 ...liJa5 14 ..te2 ne8 15 f4 b4 16 liJd 5

ing the advance of White's f-pawn. Our

etc. I'm sure that Bronstein would have

liJxd5 17 'iVxd5 e6 18 'iWd3 g6 19 c;t>hl

giant decides he should wait no longer:

found various ways to irritate his op­

.if8 20 11fl ..tg7

24 f5 ..td4

The first sign of uncertainty from

Naturally

ponent in time trouble. Still, I can't he

doesn't

want

the

help thinking that after 26 . . .liJxb2! there

Black. Here the centralizing 20 ... d5!? 21

bishop entombed by 25 f6.

would

e5 liJc4 was a better way of handling

25 'iVg3 liJe4

Boleslavsky

the position. 21 ..td2 e5

Here Pachman suggests 2S ... c4 26 iLh6 liJb7! as an efficient way to offer the exchange to break White's attack.

In return for his pawn, White has

26 ..th6

have

been or

no

Bronstein­

Bronstein-Botvinnik

matches. How narrow is the difference between success and failure in chess! We may talk about the heartbreak of losing game 23 of the Botvinnik

more freedom of action than his oppo­

match, but at various points in the 1950

nent: that is, the two bishops and the

Candidates Bronstein might have been

chance to gain space with an eventual

denied the life-long glory of playing a

f2-f4. On the other hand, Black has all

World Championship match, albeit one

his pieces developed, a safe king and

he could 'only' draw.

no serious structural weaknesses to

On the other hand, our hero created

worry about. Objectively we have to

his own luck by preparing the imagina­

state that White doesn't have enough

tive pawn sacrifice before the game,

for the pawn.

and then having the courage to actu­

But when we consider the psycho­

ally play it. Bronstein deserved a tilt at

logical circumstances White's chances

Nonetheless, things are starting to

are much enhanced. There is an old

look ominous for Bronstein, as his op­

saying that no matter how dubious

ponent is beginning to utilize his pawn

Objectively it was better to keep the

they look in the laboratory or post mor­

majority on the queenside. However,

tension with 26 .tel !, preparing 27 ..tb3

It is sometimes said that tactical

tem, "all gambits are sound in practical

he refuses to panic and finds a ma­

etc, to increase the pressure on f7. But

imagination can't be taught, that it is "a

play".

noeuvre to reduce the effectiveness of

did Bronstein sense his opponent was

gift from the gods" . On the contrary, its

the black pieces in countering the ad­

beginning to feel hazy?

effects can be studied and systematized

vance f4-f5 .

26 .....tg7??

in the same way as positional ideas.

Furthermore, Keres has failed in his aim in the tournament, it is the last 156

Botvinnik's crown more than anyone else in the world in 195 1 . 27 .ixg7 c;t>xg7 2 8 f6+ c;t> h 8 29 'iVg5

157

A B a t tering Ram o n t h e f-fi le

Chess S e crets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play

has coordinated his pieces in exem­

Thus the general mating pattern that

In the following game we see that

follows is very familiar to all strong

Geller is also a master of this strategy.

tion to charge at the enemy kingside!

plary style. Both his rooks are de­

players. The 'formula' is: pawn on f6 +

He is willing to play slow, unpreten­

14 .. .lba5

ployed on central files, while both

Geller never needs a second invita­

queen on h6 + rook that can go to the h­

tious moves while letting his opponent

Smyslov drives the white bishop

bishops enjoy open diagonals, with one

file

enjoy a temporary activity, sure in the

away from its post on c4, so that he can

supporting the queen in an attack on White's tender spot on g2 and the other

=

'it'xh7+! and mates.

knowledge that Truth and Righteous­

put his own bishop on the highly at­

ness (a player whose opponent has a

tractive b7-square without worrying

staring at the remnants of the white

knight shut out on as) will triumph in

about the e6- or f7-pawn dropping off.

centre on d4. Meanwhile Geller has

the end.

It is obvious that the former World

Game 61 E.Gelier-V.Smyslov 5th matchga me, Moscow 196 5 Griinfeld Defence

played

some

slow-looking

moves:

Champion is thinking optimistically in

namely i..d3 retreating one bishop,

terms of "what can I do to improve the

ifd2 guarding the other bishop, and

energy of my pieces?", rather than

nf2 to reinforce the vulnerable g2-

"what can I do to restrain the energy of

square.

the white pieces?" According to the

Nevertheless, if we think in terms of

logic which he believes governs the

potential energy, some serious doubts

position, he is playing correctly, but as

begin to creep in about Smyslov's set­

we shall see the logic itself is faulty.

up. Will the knight on as be able to re­

29 ... b3 30 axb3 'it'b4 31 bXc4 "iixa4 32

1 d4 lLlf6 2 c4 g6 3 lLlC3 d5 4 cxd5 lLlxd 5

That is why 13 . . . lLla5, intending . . . £7-£5

turn to the centre? And if not, won't

Itf4 �C2 33 �h6 1-0

5 e4 lLlxC3 6 bXc3 i.. g7 7 i..c4 c5 8 lLle2

as part of a preventive strategy, was

the black army be outnumbered when

0-0 9 0-0 lLlc6 10 i.. e 3 'iVC7 11 �Cl l:td8

good, whereas one move later exactly

the tactical battle begins?

12 f4 e6 13 'it'hl b6?

the

If 33 .. :�xb1+ 34 '>th2 �g8 35 'it'xh7+! and mate next move.

A safe way to handle the position

A slow burning attack beats a temporary initiative

same

knight

move,

intending

In contrast, the white position has

... i..b7, is a positional error.

plenty of scope for improvement. Step

was 13 . . . lLla5 14 i..d3 f5!, blocking the

15 i..d 3 exf5 16 exf5 i.. b7 17 1Wd2 Ite8

by step Geller will be able to deploy his

white f-pawn. Instead, Smyslov wel­

18 lLlg3 'iVc6

comes the further advance of the en­

Black is first with a tactical threat:

forces against the black kingside, and in the long term he is always going to

It is a hallmark of Topalov's games that

emy pawn, hoping to profit from the

19 .. Ja.xe3! 20 "i'xe3 "iixg2 mate.

have superior firepower for the simple

his pieces often seem to have less en­

resulting open lines for his pieces.

19 l:tf2 1Iad8

reason that his knight on g3 can join in

ergy than those of the opponent in the

14 f5 !

the battle, while Black's knight on as is

early middlegame, but move by move they

steadily

out on a limb.

increase their power.

We are entering the second phase of

Meanwhile the opponent can't do any­

power play, with direct threats replac­

thing 'real' with his visually impressive

ing dynamic strategy.

position and eventually finds himself

20 i.h61

flattened by a steam-roller. The same

The first sign of an energy build-up

might be said about Morphy's games.

is that the white bishop, which was

The American genius would develop

previously a target on e3, threatens to

his pieces in a calm and patient manner

exchange itself for the vital defender of

and then punish his opponents for in­

Black's dark squares.

dulging in time-wasting and uncoordi­ nated excursions with the pieces. 158

20 ... .lth8 21 'iVf41 At first glance it seems that Smyslov

And now the queen comes to life 159

A B a t t e ring Ram o n t h e f-fi le

Chess Se crets: The Gia n ts of P o w e r Play with unmistakable intentions down the

facing destruction on f7 after 25 fxg6

�g7 34 �h3, but would still have to

f-file after 22 fxg6. Less obvious is the

hxg6 (or 25 ... fxg6 26 'iff8+! and mates)

resign, as he has no answer to a killing

29 gxh7+ Wh8 30 i.xg7+ 'iVxg7 31

support she is giving to White's next

26 ttJd6 etc.

check on h7: 34 ... 'it>g8 35 'iVa8+ wins the

'iixg4! 1-0

check after �f2.

bishop and then the house.

move.

26 ... 'ifd7 It is mate in two with the familiar 27 l1f8+ if Black touches the queen. 27 'it>gll

24 ...l:i.xe4 25 fxg61 21 .. J:td7 22 ttJe4! If now 22 .. Jhe4 23 �xe4 'it'xe4 24 "ii'b8+ and Black is suddenly mated on the back rank!

White will get the double delight of

The first point behind the sacrifice is

a new queen

that if 25 .. Jhf4 26 gxh7 is mate! 2 5 ... f6

A fine display by Geller. It took

The only move, as after 25 ... 'iVxg6 26

courage, tactical calculation and subtle

The fact that he can no longer keep

i.xe4 i.xe4 27 'iVxf7+ �xf7 28 l:!xf7

Geller says he moved his king as he

the white knight out of the e4-square

Black has no good defence against 29

saw that, after the tempting 27 .l::I.xf6

shows that the energy is fast draining

1:I.f8+ l:!.xf8 30 l'1xf8 mate.

i.xf6 28 'iYxf6 hxg6 (28 ... 'iYe7 29 �f7+!)

away from his game.

26 'iVg5!?

29 't!Vxg6+ �h8 30 i.g5 .:t4e6 31 i.f6+

22 ... c4

and an instant mate after

31...'iixg4 32 l:!.f8+ Itxf8 33 l:!.xf8+ etc.

Geller can't resist a second queen

l:!.xf6 32 l:!.xf6, Black's king is defence­

Smyslov kicks the bishop back so

offer. Armed with a computer engine it

less and would be mated by 33 ifu6+

that White won't have i..f1 as an option

is easy to criticize a player for making

and 34 �g6+, but unfortunately the

to defend his back rank.

inaccuracies in what is a highly com­

white

king

gets

mated

first

judgment to triumph in the attack.

No time is to be lost preparing the pawn ram!

Game 62 E.Geller-V.Korchnoi H ava n a 1963 Ruy Lopez

after

plex position. Suffice to say that 26

32 .. J::tel+!. Therefore Geller put his king

It appears that Black's pressure

'iVg3! looks simpler, with the same

on gl to avoid this scenario, as he had

down the e-file might save him after

threat of 27 g7, wiping out the bishop

calculated that Black couldn't do any­

all, as the impetuous 24 ttJd6? runs into

on h8. If then 26 ... 'iYd7 (there is no real

thing meaningful with his extra tempo.

24 . . .l:!.e1+ and White will be mated on

choice) 27 gxh7+ �xh7 (27 ... �f7 28

27 ...il..g7

the g2-square.

.Ij,xf6+! �xf6 29 'iYg7+ 'it>e6 30 �xf6+ is

After 27 .. J18e6 one strong reply

5 0-0 i.e7 6 l:tel b5 7 i.b3 0-0 8 a4 i.b7

24 l:tdl ! !

too ghastly for words) 28 l1f4! gives

would be 28 .l:!.f3!? simply planning 29

9 d3 d6 10 i.d2 it'd7 11 ttJC3 ttJd4 12 ttJxd4 exd4 13 ttJe2 c5 14 ttJg3 g6 15 c3

23 �c2 l:!.de7

Geller gets maximum benefit from

White a decisive attack, as 28 . . . �xh6

l'tg3 with decisive threats.

his 'extra' knight by offering it as a sac­

allows mate in two with 29 .l::I.h4+! l:!.xh4

28 l:txf6 .l:!.g4

rifice. Black has little choice but to ac­

30 'iYg6. Black lingers on longer after

cept, as with . . . lie1 + no longer an op­

28 ... .l::I.g8 29 'it'h4 �ge8 30 i.xe4+ i.xe4

played as in the note to 27 'iotgl, when

tion if the white knight moves, he is

31 l:txe4 .l:'Ixe4 32 'iixe4+ 'iotxh6 33 .l:f.f3!

. . . Ilel+ would now be a mere spite

160

Upon 28 . . . i.xf6 Geller would have

1 e4 e5 2 ttJf3 ttJc6 3 i.b5 a6 4 i.a4 ttJf6

dxc3 16 bxc3 d5 17 e5 ttJe8 18 axb5 axb5 19 �xa8 i.xa8 20 i.h6 ttJg7 21 d4 I;Ic8 Now White sounded the charge: 1 61

A Ba ttering Ram o n t h e f-fi le

C h ess Secrets: The Gi a n ts of P o w e r Play 22 f4!

white pawns are as menacing as in the game. Why are things so thoroughly bad for Black in all variations? The simple answer is that he is playing minus any help from the bishop on aB. This piece hardly registers in any of the variations listed above - it might as well be back in the box for all the help it gives Black in fending off the kingside attack. 22 ...cxd4 Korchnoi realizes his only chance is to create a counter demonstration on

If Black could close the position

the queenside, but Geller completely

with 22 .. .£S and 23 ... liJe6 he would have

ignores it.

an excellent game: White's 4-3 pawn

23 i..xg7 'it>xg7 24 f5 !!

majority on the kingside would be fro­

the f-file, White could answer 24 ... gxfS with the simple 2S cxd4, followed by 26

27 ....ta5 28 l:tf1 'i'd7 29 liJf4 �g8 Korchnoi is a great defender and has done all he can to brace for impact.

iYf3 etc, with a huge attack.

But you only have to take one look at

25 cxd4 'iVc6 The f-pawn can't be eliminated, as

the bishop on aB to know who is going

after 2S . . . gxfS 26 �S or 26 i.c2 White's

to win the central struggle.

knight lands on fS heralding a mating

30 e6!

attack. 26 f6+ A committal move of this nature should only be made if there is a clear follow-up. The pawn looks very impos­ ing on f6, but it also blocks the f-file, and this can reduce the energy of the other white pieces. Normally, putting the pawn on £6 can be justified, as with the black king on gB it leads to a mat­ ing attack of the 'fid2 and 'i!Vh6 kind, as

zen by the blockading knight on e6,

we saw in Bronstein-Keres above. Here

and meanwhile the 3-2 black majority

30 ...fxe6 31 'ii'g4 'i'f7 32 liJxe6

Geller has another plan in mind.

on the queenside can easily be con­

Threatening 33 liJgS.

26 ...'it>f8 27 liJe2! !

verted into a passed pawn.

32 ... h5 33 'iVf4! .td2

Alas, for Black he doesn't have time

If 33 ... 'it'xe6 34 f7+ 'it>fB 3S �6+ and

for this manoeuvre. After 22 ... liJe6? he

the pawn goes through.

is hit by 23 fS; while if 22 ... fS White ex­

34 'fixd2 'iVxe6 35 i.c2 'it>h7 36 'figS!

ploits a tactical opportunity to break open all the lines around the black king: 23 exf6 i.xf6 24 liJe4! (a powerful entrance by the white knight) 24 ... .te7 2S .Jtxg7 �xg7 26 liJxcs and Black is

You must strike while the iron is

busted as 26 . . . .txcS? (he had better just

hot. Just one moment of hesitation can

accept the loss of a pawn) 27 dxcS

be fatal against a resourceful opponent.

Nor does

If Geller had played the 'lazy' 24 cxd4,

22 . . .liJfS hold back the tide of white

then 24 .. .£S! would remove most of the

l1xcS? 28 �d4+ is fatal.

pawns after 23 liJxfS 'iVxfS 24 ..tc2 �d7

attacking energy from his kingside

2S fS! etc. Finally, an attempt to lessen

pawns. In that case Black's queenside

the impact of a breakthrough by ex­

passed pawn and strong dark-squared

changing off pieces fails after 22 ... .th4

bishop would give him at least equal

23 ..txg7 �xg7 24 fS! ..txg3 (24 ... gxfS 2S

chances.

'iif3 ..txg3 26 'iVxg3+ is also pretty

24 ....id8

ghastly) 2S f6+ �h8 26 hxg3 and the 1 62

With the damage already done on

I

don't

know

what

the

reader

thinks, but I'm always impressed by regrouping moves of this kind. Perhaps it's because they reflect a patience I lack as a player! Geller intends a break­

Black no longer has any defence, as

through with liJf4 and eS-e6 and there

the queen is threatening the hS-pawn

is nothing that Black can do about it.

as well as the g6-pawn. 1 63

A Ba ttering Ram on t h e f-fi le

C h e s s S e c re t s : The Gia n ts of P o w e r Play 3 6.. Jbe2 3 7 f7 lIe8 38 f8'ii' ':'xf8 3 9

Here Black made an obvious ex­ change:

�xf8 iLe6 The bishop has joined the party

19 ... exd4? But he had overlooked that his c­

rather late, don't you think?

pawn was needed to block a white at­

40 h4 'it>g7 41 .ti.f3 1-0

tempt to storm his kingside. Instead, he

A double pawn ram

should

have played

19 ... g6!, which

curbs the power of the white bishop on

After his opponent failed to keep the

c2 and deters a f4-f5 pawn ram. If then

position closed, Alekhine was able to

20 i.b3, with combinational possibili­

combine pawn breaks on d5 and f5.

ties of the 21 liJxf7 ':xf7 22 .l:!.xe6 type,

isn't time: 22 'i¥d3! (a typical Alekhine queen move: the lady unpretentiously

After 23 ... exd5 24 iLxd5 the un­

steps forward one square and intro­

blocking of the e-file and the bishop'S

duces threats on both sides of the

approach to f7 mean that Black is ter­

board) 22 ... a6 (or else b5 drops) 23

rorized by 24 i.xf7+ or 24 ltJxf7, not to

ltJxg6! ! hxg6 24 l::lxe6! fxe6 25 �xg6+

mention the prosaic 24 ltJc6, hitting

'it>h8. In his notes Alekhine says "26

both d8 and e7.

..tc2 and mates in a few moves", but

24 ltJe6! Alekhine sees that, in order to in­

the defence somehow holds together.

crease the energy of his attack, he has

Instead, 26 �6+ 'it>g8 27 iLxe6+ gives

to eliminate the piece that is guarding

excellent winning chances, as Black

the dark squares around the black

I n contrast, after 19. . .cxd4 White's

must part with his queen, seeing that

king.

bishop becomes a monster, even sup­

27 .. .1::.£7 28 .l:!.d3! would soon make him

24... !tde8 2S ltJxe7+ .uxe7 26 fS!!

porting a queen sacrifice.

part with his king.

20 exd4 g6 21 iLb31

22 �e2!

face with 20 ... c4! .

Not 22 d5? exd5 23 iLxd5 i.e6! when

1 d4 ds 2 ltJf3 ltJf6 3 e4 e6 4 ltJe3 iLe7 s

White has fallen into a pin. As in the

iLgs ltJbd7 6 e3 0-0 7 .l:'ie1 e6 8 iLd3

variation at move 21, the quiet realign­ ment of the white queen is the prelude

dxe4 9 iLxe4 ltJds 10 iLf4 central

to a violent attack. Black must deal with

treatment we saw in Alekhine's game

the threat to b5, whereupon the pawn

with Rubinstein in Chapter Three.

ram comes with great impact.

Another

version

of

No rest for the opponent's pieces! 23 ...�b6

this allows the riposte 26 . . .1:!.f5!, when

Black can slam the door in the bishop's

Game 63 A.Alekhine-A.Selezniev Bad Pistya n 1922 Queen 's Gambit

2 1 ...�b7 and then 22 . . . iLd5, but there

the

22 ...a 6

10 ...ltJxf4 11 exf4 ltJb6 12 iLb3 ltJds 1 3

Even so, Selezniev should get his

'iVd2 li'd6 1 4 ltJes ltJxe3 1 S bxe3 e S 16

queen out of danger with 22 .. :�lfu6.

0-0 bS 17 .te2 iLa6 18 .l:'ife1 �ad8 19

23 d S !

.l:!.ed1

The second prong of the pawn ram. If Black accepts the offer with 27 ... gxf5

Of course he wasn't going to miss

his king becomes fatally exposed: the

the chance to put pressure on the e6-

white queen and rooks can launch a

and f7-pawns. Power play, part two

quick attack while the black queen is

has begun. Until the end of the game

shut off on the queenside. For example,

Alekhine will make one forcing move

27 �5 (threatening to pick up a rook

after another, hitting the black pieces

with a check on g5) 27 ... 'it>h8 (or 27 ... f6

with a series of attacking waves.

28 dxe6 iLxe6 when White has the

21 ... iLe8 Selezniev is reduced to passive de­ fensive moves. He would love to be able to challenge White's bishop with 1 64

same pretty winning move as occurs in the game: 29 l::ld7! ! .l:!.xd7 30 �xe6 fol­ lowed by a killer discovered check) 28 �6 'ufe8 29 �f6+ 'it>g8 30 .l:'id3 f4 31 1 65

C h e s s Secrets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play 1:te5 and Black is defenceless along the

A Ba ttering R a m on t h e f-fi le Black is hoping for 31 �f6? lIfS! 32

g-file.

�xe7?? (32 'i!ib2!) 32 .. :�xf2+ and mates.

26 ....l:tb7

31 'it'f7+!

Or 26 .. JHeS 27 d6 �b7 2S 'tWe5! with massive pressure.

A spectacular way to get the queen

rook on eS.

'persuasion' . Some squares become weak as a matter of course when both players carry out their plans.

13 13 !

17 ...ttJd5

for the black knight, which can be sup­ ported by both the pawn on d4 and a

to f6 with gain of time. If she is cap­

27 dxe6 fxe6 28 fxe6 lle7

tured then the most precise way to win

If Black had hoped to blockade and

is 31.. .l:txf7 32 exf7+ ..t>g7 33 fS'it'+! �xfS

finally win the passed pawn he is in­

34 llf7+ �gS 35 l:txeS+ and mates.

stantly disillusioned.

31 ...�h8 32 'i!if6+ �g8 33 h4! 1-0

29 tt.d7!

So that after 33 . . .ltfS White can safely take on e7; i.e. 34 �xe7 'i!ixf2+ 35 ..t>h2 'it'f4+ 36 �h1 and wins. Seeing his last hope gone, Selezniev surrendered. If 33 ... a5, White could conclude the game with 34 lied1 a4 35 .i:!.dS axb3 36 .l:i.xeS+ !heS 37 'ikf7+ ..t>hS 3S "ilixeS+ ..t>g7 39 e7, threatening mate on fS to add to all Black's other miseries. A

very

Alekhine,

impressive

who

hounded

attack the

by

black

pieces mercilessly after his opponent gave him the chance with 19 ... cxd4? 29 ..JUe8 Alternatively, 29 . . . ..ixd7 30 exd7+ �hS (after 30 . . . .l::tef7 31 ..ixf7+ .l:!.xf7 32 "ilid2 l:tfS 33 �eS the passed pawn rolls

The pawn ra m outweighs a 'perfect ' knight

through) and White could lose most embarrassingly with 31 'i!ixe7?? it'xf2+ when his king is mated in two moves! However, the neat alternative 31 dS'iV! would deflect one of the black pieces from the attack on f2,

whereupon

Game 64 V. Topalov-V.lva nch uk Nanj i ng 2008 Sicilian Defence

White could safely capture on e7, re­ maining with an extra piece.

1 e4 c5 2 tt'lf3 ttJc6 3 d4 cxd4 4 tt'lxd4 e6

30 "iWf3!

5 tt'lC3 ttJf6 6 ttJdb5 i.. b4 7 a3 ..txc3+ 8

Infiltrating with the queen down the f-file in order to attack the rook on e7 is the final part of White's winning

tt'lxC3 d5 9 exd5 exd5 10 .id3 0-0 11 0-0 d4 12 ttJe2 ..tg4 Ivanchuk provokes White's reply,

strategy.

after which a hole appears on the e3-

30 ...�C5

square. This will be an excellent base

166

Topalov accepts the challenge. The

As predicted, the knight goes off to

black horse gets its dream square, but

seek its fortune and the h7-pawn be­

in return White will gain the two bish­

comes a target.

ops and the chance to attack with f4-f5 .

18 �h3 g6?

13 ... ..th5 14 tt'lf4 1Ie8

Weakening his dark squares and

The Ukrainian Grandmaster carries

presenting a hook after all for the ad­

on with his plan. He prefers to hand

vance of White's f-pawn. He should

over the bishop on the h5-square rather

play IS . . .h6! . If then 19 'i!if5 ttJf6! keeps

than with 14 ... i.. g6 15 tt'lxg6 hxg6, as he

everything solid. Black has apparently

doesn't �ant to have a pawn on g6

wasted time with his knight, but the

providing a 'hook' for an f4-f5 advance

white queen isn't so hot either on f5,

by White.

where she gets in the way of the ad­

15 ttJxh 5 tt'lxh5 16 f4 ttJf6 17 "it'f3!

vance of the f-pawn. So the game

The queen heads to h3 to attack h7. Why is this, when the pawn is soundly

might end as a bizarre draw by repeti­ tion after 20 'iWh3 ttJd5 21 'iVf5 ttJf6 etc!

defended by the knight on f6? One of

As we said above, Ivanchuk is a

the secrets of chess strategy is to antici­

very creative Grandmaster who always

pate the plan of the opponent. Ivan­

tries to gain the maximum from any

chuk believes in his ideas and always

position.

plays to win, and so it is reasonable to

knight he will land on e3 will cover a

assume that he is intending ... ttJd5 and

multitude of sins on the kingside. Un­

He trusts that the strong

... tt'le3. Therefore the pawn on h7 is

fortunately for him he is being over

going to lose its defender, without

optimistic, though it takes a player of

White needing to apply the slightest

Topalov's skill to prove it. 167

Che ss Secrets: Th e G i a n ts of Po wer Play 19 f51 All power players love a pawn ram, especially when aimed at the enemy

A Ba ttering Ram o n t h e f-fi le the black knight on e3, when the white

needs the intervention of a pawn to

mate next move) 40 .te5+ 'i¥tf8 41 'ii'g7+

rook can join in the attack on the black

add the extra bit of power to break

rj;e8 42 'ii'g8+ and wins.

king.

through the defence.

king. It opens up lines of attack for

However, I expect that Topalov

their own pieces and loosens the pawn

would have kept the tension with 21

defences.

.tg5!, when if 21.. .f6? 22 i.c4+ 'i¥th8 23

19 ...ttJe3

29 h4! ttJe7 30 lIe5 'ii'd 7 31 h5 lIg7 32 �g5 Having dislodged the black rook

Ivanchuk therefore has to part with the f5-pawn, after which he is soon forced to enter a hopeless endgame in order to avoid losing to a direct attack.

fxg6 forces mate in a couple of moves,

from g6, the threat is 33 I!xg7+ �xg7 34

It seems that the attack on f1 will

disaster striking on f6 or h7. So Black

h6+ �g8 35 'ii'g5+ ttJg6 36 'iVf6 and mate

38 cxd3 'i¥th8 39 gxf5 "iVxd3 40 'i¥tg2

give Black a vital move to consolidate

must reply with 21.. :ikd6, when the

next move.

"iWd 5+ 41 "iVf3 ttJe7 42 "iVxd 5 ttJxd5 43

his kingside defences.

simple 22 .l:txfl maintains strong pres­

32 ...f5!

l:rc2 .l:i.C7 44 lIxc7 ttJxC7 45 xd7 After 14 .. :it'xal 15 ttJxb6 axb6 White he could simply trap the queen with 16 ttJc3 ttJe7 17 'it'b3 and 1 8 i.a3.

of his own, but at best it can be sup­

highly interesting fight after 25 .. J�h6. 2 5 ...f6? a4 etc, and so was in a hurry to return

23 f4 h4 24 f5 �h5 2 5 l:!.f4!

his queen to the centre via f7. If so this is a classic example of a positionally well-motivated move failing for a tacti­

The bid to upset White's build-up attacking

al

has

failed,

Perhaps Bird saw the danger in 26

support the f-pawn.

15 'iVg4+ '>ite8 16 i.g5! liig6 by

dered, as there would have been a

ported by the queen and rook on h8, while all White's pieces are at hand to

has a crushing attack with 16 "ili'xc7, or

kingside could be seen as a holding

as

cal reason.

if

26 ttJxf6+! gxf6 27 l:.g4+ ir'xg4

16 .. :ii'x al 17 :el+ ttJe7! (after 17 ...'it>f8

If the black king staggers away then

18 'itb4+ ttJe7 19 'ii'xe7+ Black will be mated on the back rank), and now

Morphy has completed the devel­

White should remember the dynamic

opment of his pieces, while Bird has

rule that when you attack with a queen

problems both with his king and get­

and rook, the queen should lead from

ting his rook on h8 into the game. On

the front. Thus 18 I::txe7+? would leave

the other hand, it looks as if the white

a mate hanging on bl, whereas 18 'it'b4!

initiative has come to a dead end - no

is decisive; e.g. 18 . . .'it>d8 (remember

combinations are possible down the e­

that Black has already moved his king

file and there are no weaknesses in the

a queen check on e7 will mate him in at most three moves. 28 'it'xg4+ 'it>f8 29 l:!.e6 llh6 30 'it'f4 '>itg7 31 :e7+ 1-0

If now 25 ... h3 White has 26 ttJf6+! gxf6 27 ng4+ 'it>h7 28 :h4, winning the

so he can't castle!, and 18 . . . c5 19 dxc6 is

black king's pawn cover. Given a cou­

hopeless) 19 'i'xe7+ 'it>c8 20 ir'xf7, and

ple of moves Bird will be able to con­

Black has no good way to meet the

solidate and think about how to exploit

threat of 21 :e8+ with a back rank

25 ... l:!.h6!, bringing his rook forwards to

his extra pawn.

bolster the third rank. In that case

mate. After the game move Bird is ready to answer 17 :el+ 'it>f8 18 'ib4+ with the blocking 18 .. :it'd6. 17 ttJC3!

So

has

our

giant played

it all

black queen. Instead,

Black's

best

defence

is

Morphy could have exploited the fact

wrong?

that his opponent's queen is 'stale­

22 'it>h1!!

mated' on h5 by widening the struggle

This quiet move is the way to add

with a second pawn ram on the queen­

fresh impetus to the white attack. It

One of the tragedies for fans of

side: 26 a4! threatens 27 as trapping the

Morphy is that his opponents fre­ quently collapsed before his tactical

Once again the American maestro

breaks the pin on f2, after which a fear­

bishop. Then 26 ... a5 27 'ib5 intends a

pointedly ignores any attempt by the

some new weapon is added to White's

third pawn stab with 28 d6! to under­

black queen to disrupt his build-up.

arsenal: the line-breaking f-pawn. Inci­

powers, thereby denying us the chance

mine the bishop and keeps up the ini­

Thus after 17 ... h6, pinning the bishop,

dentally, we see here why Morphy pre­

to see the full expression of his genius

tiative. Here, White's pawn ram on the

for strategy.

he could play 18 l:Iael + 'it>f8 19 'it'b4+

ferred 18 l:!.ael+ to 18 :fel+. Keeping

1 70

1 71

B a c k w a rds P a w n s a n d In d i a n B i s h o p s might recall the 40 draws from the first

C h a pt e r E i g h t

I

dxc6 9 ttJxd4 �e7 1 0 ttJc3 0-0 1 1 i.e3 f6

match in 1984/85,

12 exf6 lIxf6 13 "ife2 lIg6 14 'it>hl i..d6

where neither player could make much

is J::ta d1 "iYh4 16 f4 �g4 17 ttJf3 �hS 18

Karpov-Kasparov

headway in classical games starting 1

i..xcS i.xcs 19 ttJe4 �b6 20 ttJegs h6 21

d4 d5. In fact it could be argued that

�C4+ �h8 22 ttJf7+ �h7 2 3 ttJ7es l:tf6

'draw death' triumphed in that match,

24 ttJxg4 ifxg4 2S ttJes �e6 26 �e4+

as it was called off after 48 games

'iNfs 27 �xfS+ llxfS 28 g4 l:.f6 29 fS I1e8

without a result (the score being at the

Backwa rd Pawns a n d I n d i a n Bish ops

time 5-3 to Karpov with 40 draws in a "first to win six games" match). But what really banished the spec­ tre of draw death was the discovery that non-classical openings were play­ able for Black. For this we have to thank Nimzowitsch and the other so­ called Hyperrnoderns, who proved to

Back i n the 1920s both Lasker and Ca-

tions reached from even the most

the chess world in the 1920s and 1930s

pablanca feared that the best players in

symmetrical or classical openings -

that Black doesn't need to answer 1 d4

the world would soon perfect their

that is, games beginning 1 d4 d5 or 1 e4

with 1 . ..d5 and 1 e4 with 1 . ..e5. As soon

opening and strategic knowledge. All

e5. This means that not everything can

as symmetry is avoided, we have an

Black has the inferior pawn structure

the games among players with this

be worked out by logic and common

imbalanced position, with the promise

due to his doubled pawns. Therefore

of a double-edged struggle.

White should neutralize any possible

Introd ucing the Indian bishop

30 ... .l:i.d8 (not 30 ... i..d4? 31 ttJd7! winning

knowledge would inevitably end in

sense alone. It is necessary to calculate

draws and as a result competitive chess

variations and make decisions based

at the highest level would come to an

on intuition, which allows space for

end. This was described as

human creativity, poor judgment and

/I

draw

counterplay with 30 .l:f.de1; for example, the exchange) 31 ttJf3! etc, keeping the

death".

good old-fashioned luck - and there­

One of the greatest generators of dy­

black rook out of the seventh rank. Then

It should be mentioned that Capab­

fore wins and losses. How did Capa go

namism is the 'Indian' bishop - that is,

he could try to exploit his 3-2 majority

lanca expressed his concerns while he

eight years without losing? Well, he

a bishop fianchettoed in the opening on

of pawns on the kingside. If Morphy

was still World Champion, so they

was a genius. His astonishing intuition

g7. We can see the power it might exert

had been playing White this is the

were by no means the grumblings of a

guided him in obscure positions which

on the a1 -h8 diagonal in the conclusion

course the game might well have taken.

defeated man. Furthermore, the Cuban

defied exact calculation. It didn't fol­

to a game by Morphy.

But Thomas Wilson Barnes is a 'Roman­

himself managed to avoid losing be­

low that 'ordinary' elite players were

tween February 10, 1916 and March 21,

going to follow in his footsteps.

1924 so it was reasonable for him to

Nevertheless, imagine if 150 years

assume that other players among the

of testing had demonstrated that the

elite would in time develop a similar

only openings that were okay for Black

invincibility. This

were the Queen's Gambit Declined and was,

Game 66 T.Barnes-P.Morphy Lo ndon 1858 RUy Lopez

thankfully,

the Ruy Lopez. In that case the proph­

never fulfilled for two reasons. Firstly,

ecy of draw death might have come

1 e4 eS 2 ttJf3 ttJc6 3 .ibs ttJf6 4 d4 exd4

there is an inherent dynamism in posi-

much closer to hitting the mark. You

S eS ttJe4 6 0-0 a6 7 .ia4 ttJcS 8 �xc6

1 72

prophecy

tic' player - he isn't interested in all this nonsense about preventive play and exploiting a pawn majority in the end­ game. Instead, he goes straight for the jugular and falls prey to an excellent exchange sac by the American: 30 ttJg6 lie21 Barnes thought he had deterred this move. 1 73

B a c k w a rds P a w n s a n d I n d i a n B is h ops

C h e s s Secrets: The G ia n ts of P o w e r P l ay 31 .l:1d8 11xg6 The only way to stop mate. 32 fxg6+ �xg6 33 nd7 He could have tried to save some of

against) the Griinfeld might be aware that a black passed a-pawn, supported by the dark-squared bishop on g7, can be a particularly potent force. For ex­

his queenside pawns, but the English

ample, 1 d4 tLlf6 2 c4 g6 3 tLlc3 dS 4 tLlf3

master is wrapped up in his attack.

i..g 7 S cxd5 tLlxdS 6 e4 tLlxc3 7 bxc3 c5 8

33 ... nxC2 34 11ff7

lIbl 0-0 9 i.e2 cxd4 10 cxd4 'ii'a5+ 1 1 ..td2 'iVxa2 1 2 0-0 iLg4 1 3 iLgS h 6 14 i.e3 tLlc6 IS d5 ..txf3 16 i.xf3 tLleS 17 ktxb7 and here, rather than defend e7, Black can play 1 7. . . aS!, putting his trust in the passed pawn to give him enough counterplay. It is often well worth the sacrifice of the exchange to acquire the bishop plus passed pawn scenario. Naturally nei­ ther Barnes nor

Morphy had

ever

heard of the Griinfeld, so they couldn't use this comparison as a 'strategical Now White seems close to victory

signpost' . But most of the time Morphy

as 35 l1xg7+ looks unstoppable, when

was able to fill the gaps in his knowl­

his kingside pawns outweigh Black's

edge with accurate calculation and

queenside mass.

built-in positional genius.

34 ...i.d4!

37 h4

It would be a terrible mistake to try

i n the opening. Their successes were

to shelter the king with 38 . . . c;t>h7??, as

mainly with the Griinfeld, as they

that allows White to decide the game

didn't know how to handle the King's

with mating threats: 39 i:.f8 a4 40 Itbb8

Indian set-up properly.

g6 41 .l:1f7+ i.g7 42 l1bb7, winning the bishop. In any case, the king needs to

Came 67 A.Alekhine-F .Samisch 1st matchga me, Berl in 1921 English Opening

be activated in the endgame. 39 l::txg7+ He can't just wait for his opponent to advance his pawns. 39...c;t>h4 Morphy spurns the capture on g7 as his king is planning a rendezvous with

1 c4 eS 2 tLlC3 tLlf6 3 g3 g6 4 ..tg2 iLg7 S

his opposite number. . .

tLlf3 d6 6 d4 exd4?

40 l:tge7? The way to resist was 40 .l:!.gd7 c5 41

Already Samisch shows his lack of surety with the opening by prema­

gS!, trying to use his own pawns.

turely conceding the centre. Instead, he

40 ... a41 0-1

should wait until White has created a

An unexpectedly sudden ending.

potential target by playing e2-e4 him­

There is no good defence to ... c;t>g3 or

self before carrying out this exchange.

...c;t>h3 and then mate on either h2 or a1.

Therefore holding his ground with 6 ... tLlbd7 was required. 7 tLlxd4 0-0 8 0-0 tLlbd7 9 b 3 ! Note

that

Alekhine

is

shrewd

enough not to rush to play 9 e4, when

An excellent move that turns the ta­ bles, as 35 l1xd4? allows 35 ... c;t>xf7. The

Black

bishop defends g7 and can be sup­

... tLlc5 and . . .ne8 etc.

could

attack the pawn with

ported by ... c6-c5 if necessary. Hence

9 ... tLlcS 10 i.b2 �e8 11 'ii'c2

the black pieces and pawns are helping each other - a healthy state of affairs for any position. 3S l:txC7 Too obvious. If Barnes had realized

The perils of pawnless play

the danger he wouldn't have allowed Black a passed pawn on the a-file. A

The Morphy game above demonstrates

safer approach was 35 b3; for example, 35 . . . ..te5 36 llfe7 kIxh2+ 37 �gl l:!e2 38

Barnes has awoken to the danger

.l:1xc7 etc.

and activates his own pawns in the

3S ... .l:!.xb2 36 11xb7 l::.x a2

search for counterplay.

The reader who plays (or plays 1 74

37 ... as 38 hS+ c;t>gS!

the power of the Indian bishop, and so it is no surprise that Hypermodern players in the 1920s and 1930s experi­ mented with putting the bishop on g7 1 75

B a c k wa rds Pawns a n d In d i a n B i s h o p s

C h es s S e c rets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play 11 lZJe6?

8 . . .lZJf8. Alekhine broke open the c-file

•••

1S .. .tZJd7 16 ..ta3!

20... .i.f6 21 lZJxf6+

Samisch is unable to find a good

with 9 lZJdS! lZJxdS 10 cxdS and had an

The exchange of his dark-squared

plan. Jumping ahead more than thirty

excellent game after 1O ... lZJd7 11 ..igS f6

bishop is the death knell for the black

years, the Bronstein/Boleslavsky ap­

12 ..ie3 etc.

position.

proach to the position would be 1 1 . ..aS, stopping the knight being evicted from

21 ..."iVxf6 22 iLb2 "iie7 23 "iiC 3

Returning to Alekhine-Samisch . . .

The

12 l1ad1 "iie 7 13 :tfe1 .tt b8

threat of checkmate on h8

c5. Then after 12 l:tadl, which threatens

forces the German master to give up a

to establish a bind on the queenside

pawn.

with 13 lZJdb5, followed in time by

23 .. .f6 24 'fixf6 'iVxf6 25 iLxf6 bS 26

lZJdS, Black should guard the bS- and

cxbS .l:!.xbS 27 es dxes 28 iLxes

dS-squares with 12 . . . c6! ! . Black then has a tough solid, position. Should White play 13 e4 (a move he should hold back in favour of probing along the d-file)

With two threats: the strategic 17 eS,

we would be well into the territory of

exploiting the pin on d6, and the tacti­

the Bronstein and Geller games given

cal 17 lZJb5 a6 18 lZJxc7! lZJxc7 19 .i.xd6

later in the chapter.

1:te7 20 ii.xc7, when White has won two pawns. Here we see that the black

It is hard for modem players to ap­

knight should never have left its post

preciate just how anti-positional the

Alekhine is building up his game as

move 12 ... c6 would have appeared to

much as possible before committing

players in 1921 . White plays 12 l::ta dl

himself to the e4-eS push in the centre.

16 ... lZJes 1 7 lZJxes .i.xes 18 f4! iLd4+ 19

and how does Black respond? Why, by

Meanwhile, Black's pieces are thrash­

\t>h1 "iVg7 20 lZJd s

giving himself a backward pawn on d6

ing around

with 12 . . . c6. It seems a ridiculous, ab­

aren't getting any help

surd decision. In contrast, nowadays it seems that Black went to absurd lengths to ... c7-c6

in

some

Bronstein/Boleslavsky

of

these

King's

aimlessly

because

on cS.

But not 28 iLc6? ..tb7. The rest is

they

from their

very easy for an Alekhine.

pawns. You should compare this situa­

28 ... iLb7 29 i.xb7 :txb7 30 l:td7 hS 3 1

tion with Bronstein's aforementioned

�ed1 �8 3 2 l::tf1 'iJ.e7 3 3 fSI

avoid

games with Zita and Pachman, where

A neat use of the pawn ram to win a

pre­

Black has pawn breaks available to him

second pawn. If 33 .. Jhd7 34 fxe6+ wins a piece.

Indian

on both sides of the board. One of the

games. Here, for example, is the open­

rules of dynamic chess is that a loose

33 ... gxfs 34 l:1.xfS+ \t>e8 35 llxe7+ <J;xe7

ing of A.Alekhine-E.5pencer from a

pawn

36 .ttx hS 1-0

structure

that

energizes

the

simultaneous display in Great Britain,

pieces is always to be preferred to a

1923: 1 d4 lZJf6 2 c4 d6 3 lZJc3 lZJbd7 4 e4

neat and lifeless one.

eS (" a strategic error" says Alekhine -

14 lZJf3

16 consecutive moves with his pieces

proved catastrophic. The threat is 21 fS

without once using his pawns. This is a

so Alekhine retreats his knight.

when, if the knight retreats, 22 lZJxc7

sure sign of a lack of harmony in his

14 ..."tif8 15 e4

wins a pawn, or even better 22 Mxd4

camp. As Bronstein once remarked,

'fixd4 23 i.b2 and then 24 lZJf6+ etc

"how can you win games if you never

with a decisive attack.

advance any pawns?"

An exchange of pieces is welcome

..tg7 7 .i.e3 "tie7 8 "iVc2. Now what

to a player with a cramped game, and

could be more natural than 8 ... c6, doesn't want to give himself the back­ ward pawn on d6, and so played 1 76

move seven onwards Samisch makes has

quite wrongly, of course) S lZJf3 g6 6 h3

guarding the dS-square? But Spencer

It's no wonder that in the 1930s the King's Indian had a bad press. From

At last it is time for decisive action in the centre.

Samisch's

pawnless

play

1 77

C h e s s S e c re ts: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play

Enter Bronstein and Boleslavsky

B a c k wa rds P a w n s a n d In d i a n B i s h o p s The first step towards a dynamic game is to choose a counterattacking

By the end of the 1930s, the Nirnzo­

opening. It helps if the opponent has

Indian and Griinfeld were well estab­

no idea how to play against it.

lished against 1 d4. Versus 1 e4 the Sicil­

8 b3 �e8 9 i.b2?

ian was just starting to get into gear (Capablanca

even

tried

the

Sicilian

the entirely plausible plan of putting

Dragon - just imagine!). The Caro-Kann

the bishop on b2. In fact this is a fun­

was seen more frequently and Alekhine

damental mistake. The bishop should

was playing a lot of French Defences as

be placed on e3 where it bolsters d4,

Black, as well as lending his name to 1

strengthens

e4 lLlf6. Alekhine was quick to stress

pawn will become a target) and deters

that he wasn't a Hypermodern player,

Black's queen from going to the b6-

but in reality any world-class player of

square.

that era who was receptive to new, suc­

f2-pawn

(yes,

this

Therefore White should play 9 e4 c6

cessful ideas couldn't help but become

10 h3, when 10 .. :�lVb6? can be countered

in part a Hypermodern.

by 1 1 i.e3.

Bronstein and his close friend, com­

stroying the only rival to the Indian bishop .

the black queen to take up an active

18 �xa1 liJxf2!!

post on the queenside. Instead of wan­

It is no surprise that Zita reacts with

the

Here we see the second purpose of .. . c7 -c6: the way has been opened for

9 ... c6!!

petitor, and training partner Isaac Bole­

A vital contrast to the Samisch

slavsky (1919-1977) added a significant

game. Bronstein fearlessly weakens his

new weapon to the arsenal of dynamic

pawns in order to increase the energy

chess by proving in the 1940s that the

level of his pieces. Furthermore, the

King's Indian Defence was playable for

white knight is kept out of the b5- and

Black. Once this had been achieved, all

d5-squares, which means there will be

the ground work for modem chess was

no lLld5 disaster of the kind suffered by

in place - a vibrant game which was in

Black in the two Alekhine games dis­

no danger of suffering a draw death.

cussed above.

dering around aimlessly, we might say she is settled on an 'Alekhine' square as we have seen in Chapter Five and elsewhere

in this book,

the fourth

World Champion often found a way to place his queen on a safe and powerful square on the third rank. 12 �d2 lLlcs 13 �fe1 a s ! 14 �ab1 a4 Beginning a frontal attack against White's

queenside

pawn

structure.

This is the prelude to a combination that exploits the diagonal pressure ex­

Active play on one wing followed

erted by both the black queen and

by a surprise attack on the other wing

bishop on g7.

is one of the hallmarks of Bronstein's

15 i.a1

style. And haven't the games of Mor­

Black would regain his pawn hav­

phy shown us that White's f2, along

ing broken up the white queenside af­

with Black's f7, is the weakest square

ter 15 lLlxa4 lLlxa4 16 bxa4 �a6. But as

on the board?

we shall see, the bishop will prove a

19 �e3

target on a l . l S... axb3 1 6 axb3 lLlg4 17 h 3

After either 19 �xf2 lLld3 or 19 '.itxf2 lLlxb3, White's position collapses: first of all his knight on d4 drops, leaving the one on c3 hanging as well, and

10 e4 exd4 11 lLlxd4 �b6!!

meanwhile a rook is attacked on either al or e l .

Game 68 F.Zita-O.Bronstein Moscow vs Prague match 1946 King 's Indian Defence

1 9. . .lLlxh3+ 2 0 '.ith2 Upon 20 iLxh3 �xh3 White's dark squares are left far too flimsy - not that he can boast much about his light squares either. 20 ... lLlf2 ! 21 �f3

1 c4 eS 2 lLlC3 lLlf6 3 lLlf3 d6 4 d4 lLlbd7 !

Or 21 �xf2 �xd4.

Bronstein has n o intention o f con­ ceding the centre until White has loos­ ened his own position with e2-e4. 5 g3 g6 6 iLg2 i.g7 7 0-0 0-0 1 78

21 ...lLlcxe4 22 'iVf4 lLlg4+ 23 '.ith1 fS! 17...!:!.xa 1 ! !

Threatening to trap the queen with

A n exchange sacrifice to remove the

24 ... i.h6. Meanwhile d4 is still hanging.

energy from the white position by de-

This relentless harassing of two or 1 79

Chess S e c rets: The Gia n ts of Po we r Play

B a c k w a rds P a w n s a n d In d i a n B i s h o p s

more enemy pieces was a distinct fea­

White had replied carefully, would he

avoids this move then he falls into a

d o the trick: l::td2 followed by l::t e dl and

ture of Morphy's style.

have suffered because of the weakness

bind after 14 . . . h6 15 tZ'ldb5!, when ... c7-

then J::i.xd6.

on d6? A backward pawn on an open

c6 is ruled out) 15 b4 and the black

13 ...tZ'lfd7 14 J::i.a d1 a4 15 tZ'lde2?

file is surely a serious structural defect.

knight is driven back.

It was this consideration that was be­ hind Samisch's pathological refusal to

on the queenside. It wasn't too late to

play . . . c7-c6 in the game above.

prevent his queens ide becoming dead

In fact Bronstein and Boleslavsky had

discovered

through

wood

concrete

with

15

b4!;

for

example,

15 ... axb3 16 axb3 'iWa5 17 J::i.b l tZ'la6 18

analysis that White doesn't have the

J::i.a 1 'iWc7 19 'iWd2 tLJdc5 20 J::i.ebl �d7 21

luxury of focusing on the d6-pawn -

b4 as in A.Greenfeld-J.Hjartarson, Lu­

such is the force of Black's potential

cerne Olympiad 1982.

queenside initiative.

15

In the next game a world-class 24 tZ'lxe4 l::txe4 25 'iWxd6 ':'xd4

Reshevsky seems obsessed with the d-file and remains oblivious to events

•.•

'iWa5!

player disrupts the coordination of his

The knight has finally fallen, leav­

pieces in order to get at the backward

ing White a lot of material down and

pawn. The Swedish Grandmaster Ul£

still facing an attack.

Andersson memorably described it as

This is G.Kasparov-RGerber from a simultaneous display in Cannes 1988.

26 'iWb8 l::td 8 27 l::ta 8 �e5 28 'iWa7 'iWb4

"a duel between two equal giants, but

You will notice that: a) Black doesn't

29 'iWa2 'iWf8 30 .ih3 'iWh6 0-1

the one standing on rock and the other

get a strong pawn on a3; b) he doesn't

on quicksand."

get an active and safe square for his queen on a5; and c) he doesn't get bril­

Game 69 S.Reshevsky-D.Bronstein Candid ates Tou rna ment, Zurich 1953 King 's Indian Defence

An explosive way for the modern King's Indian to arrive on the scene.

are living, mobile, and not just props on which Black can rest his pieces. 12 ... c6!

This activity is all very well, but has the d6-pawn been abandoned to its

All according to plan. With his pre­

fate? No, because 16 J::i.xd6 meets with a

vious move the American Grandmaster

'global' combination that harasses the

1 d4 tZ'lf6 2 c4 g6 3 g3 �g7 4 �g2 0-0 5

had set a little trap: 12 ... tZ'lfxe4? 13 tZ'lxe4

tZ'lc3 d6 6 tZ'lf3 tZ'lbd7 7 0-0 e5 8 e4 l::te8 9

white pieces on the queenside, centre

�xd4 14 �g5 'iWd7 (14 ... f6? loses at

h3 exd4 10 tZ'lxd4 tZ'lC5 11 ':'e1 as 12

and kingside: 16 ... tZ'le5! 17 b3 (to defend

once to 15 �xf6!) 15 tZ'lf6+ �xf6 1 6 .ixf6

'iWC2

c4) 17 . . . axb3 18 axb3 �xh3! 19 �xh3

and the disappearance of the dark­

tZ'lf3+ 20 �f1 tZ'lxel 21 'it>xel tZ'lxe4 22

If Reshevsky had been aware of the strength

What about the backward pawn on d6?

liant outposts for his knights on b4 and c5 either. The white queenside pawns

of Black's

counterplay, he

squared bishop is grievous for Black.

J::i.d3 tZ'lxc3! 23 tZ'lxc3 'iWal + 24 tZ'ldl J::i.a2

13 �e3

with a huge initiative to Black.

might have played 12 l::tb 1 ! . The idea

Reshevsky prepares to round up the

would be to 'tidy up' things on the

'criminal' on d6 as quickly as possible

queenside before commencing opera­

A poor square for the bishop. Actu­

with the plan of l::ta dl, tZ'lde2 and l::txd6.

ally, having gone this far, Reshevsky

16 i.f1

Bronstein got away with his queenside

tions in the centre. Play might go

If Black chooses to defend the pawn

adventure in the game above, but if

12 ... a4 13 b4! axb3 14 axb3 c6 (if Black

should probably have tried 16 J::i.xd6

with ... 'iWc7, a little more pressure will

anyway but, after 16 . . . tZ'le5, returned

180

181

B a c k w a rds P a w n s a n d I n d i a n B i s h o p s

C h es s S e c rets: The Gia n ts of P o w e r Play the pawn with 1 7 �dd l ! 'Llxc4 1 8 i..d 4!,

tion, and so Reshevsky tries a central

as played by Smyslov. White can't re­

breakthrough:

joice at having exchanged his c-pawn

23 e5!? dxe5 24 fxe5 'u'ad8 25 g4! A fine move that clears the way for

for the d6-pawn, but at least he gets rid of Black's strong dark-squared bishop.

the dark-squared bishop to enter the

16... 'Lle5 17 'Lld4

fray via h4.

The fact that the knight returns to

25

•..

d4 shows that the plan to attack d6 has

trap 33 .uxf5! gxf5 (or 33 ...'Wxf6 34 'Llf6+

41 'tWg2 i.c5 leaves White in zugzwang;

gxf6+ and wins) 34 'Llf6+ ..txf6 35 gxf6!!

for example, 42 .te2 'Llf4 43 'tWg4 'Llxe2

(he doesn't want the black queen!)

44 'tWxe2 'i'xh3+ 45 1lfh2 'tWfl + and

35 .. :�xe3 36 iVg2+ h8 37 iVg7 mate.

mates.

33 l:lfxe4 'Lla6!

41 'tWxg5 42 �xe6 'Wxg3 43 'tWc8+ d8 45 'tWa8+ tg2

ports 'iWh3, so the reply .. :iVh6+ forces

sive role by overprotecting d4 and f3.

(even worse is 20 'ithl ttJf2+ 21 'it'gl

mate.

Now after 15 ... a4 16 ttJce2 ttJe5 17 ttJf4

ttJdl + picking up c3, or here 21 'it'g2

White would manage to keep every­

i.h3+ etc) 20 . . . ttJe3+ 21 'ithl i.g4 22 �f2

An epic battle. After his poor open­ ing the American Grandmaster played with great verve, but he couldn't over­ come the superior coordination of the

thing solid.

1l.xc3 23 �xe3 i..xal and Black wins 'on

15 ...ttJe5 16 iLfl

points'.

Keeping the black knights out of d3,

black pieces and pawns.

but now f3 has lost one of its defend-

Gel ler joins in the act 13 ... a51

17 ... a4! Black's pieces are on active squares,

ers.

but his attack won't get anywhere

16 ...'Wif6!

without the help of pawns. Finding a dynamic harmony between the pieces

Following the example of Bronstein,

As we have already seen, the a­

and pawns is the ideal of power play.

Geller became a great fan of the King's

pawn not only prevents the knight

When the pawns and pieces refuse to

Indian Defence. He loved the opportu­

from being evicted by b3-b4 but also

work together, the energy drains out of

nity it gave him to play dynamic chess

prepares to ram White's queenside

even the most promising-looking posi­

with the black pieces. As you would

structure.

tion.

expect, he gives the set-up a creative

14 i..a 3 ?

18 b4

twist by deploying his queen to the kingside.

Game 70 M.Germek-E.Gelier B led 1961 King 's Indian Defence

Having already compromised his

Now the bishop on a3 is boxed in

dark squares with 13 f3, Germek moves

and the c4-pawn becomes vulnerable.

their natural defender to the edge of

18 ...ttJe6 19 ttJce2 h51

the board. To make matters worse, the bishop will become a target after ... a5a4. A logical alternative was 14 i..b2,

One of the characteristics of Geller's

planning 15 l::Id2 and 16 l:tadl to try to

style is that he is always looking for

prove that the pawn on d6-pawn is

ways

weak after all. Incidentally, that is how

against a pawn structure with diagonal

to

combine

frontal

pressure

1 d4 ttJf6 2 c4 g6 3 g3 i-g7 4 i..g2 0-0 5

Korchnoi handled the white position in

pressure against a vulnerable piece

ttJf3 d6 6 0-0 ttJbd7 7 'iYc2 e5 8 �dl l:te8

a later game.

(preferably the king!). Here his queen

9 e4 c6 10 ttJc3 exd4 11 ttJxd4 'Wie7

14...ttJfd7!

performs both tasks: she attacks f3 in

White has played a quick .l:!.dl, so

By now the reader will be fully

combination with the knight on e5, and

Geller removes his queen from the

aware that one of the keys to conduct­

at the same time makes things uncom­

danger file, at the same time adding a

ing a dynamic game is finding a strong

fortable for the white pieces along the

defender to d6 and counterattacking

and safe square for the queen. Here

al-h8 diagonal.

against e4.

Geller has seen that he can significantly

17 11acl

12 b3 ttJC5 13 f3

increase the pressure on the white

Once a pawn structure loses its mo­

white kingside even more with a pawn

pawn structure by vacating f6 for her;

bility it tends to become a target. We

exchange on g3. Jumping a long way

Germek bolsters his e4-pawn, but 1 84

Geller is playing on both sides of the board. He intends to loosen the

1 85

B a c k w a rds Pa wns a n d I n d i a n Bis h o ps

C h ess Se crets: The G ia n ts of P o w e r Play ahead, the opening of the h-file will allow a direct attack on the white king. 20 tZ'lxe6 .txe6 21 tZ'ld4

You can see in this variation that 24... d5 wouldn't have had the same energy without the preliminary soften­

One of the techniques of dynamic

ing up of c4 with the ... a5-a4 pawn ram:

chess is indirect defence of a weak

a white pawn on b3 would have kept

point. The white rook finally has the

the black knight out of c4.

pawn on d6 in his sights, but he can't

27 "iVxe6 27 exd 5 .1:txd5 28 f4?

take it as f3 hangs.

..•

White

has a miserable

position,

21 ... h4 22 .te2 hxg3 23 hxg3 .1:tad8 24

with one bishop shut out of the game

g2

on a3 and the other a target on e2.

Germek appears to have covered

Nevertheless, giving away all the light

his pawn weaknesses quite well, but a

squares isn't the way to save himself.

third pawn ram uncovers all the defi­

He should try 28 .1:txd5 "iVxd5 29 .1:tc2, as

ciencies in his position.

29 ... tZ'lg4 doesn't yet hit the mark due to

24 ... d 5 ! 25 exd5 exd5

30 .tc4!. 28....1:txd1 29 .1:txd1 tZ'le4 30 .txe4 "iVxe4 31 .1:td2 .te3! It appears that Geller is playing to win the b4-pawn, but in fact he is pre­ paring an unexpected finish on the other wing. 32 .1:te2 "iVe4+ 33 h2 g7!

Thus a defence that Alekhine re­

fines of the King's Indian Defence. The

jected as unsound became fully estab­

idea that a structural or static weakness

lished in the ranks of modem chess

is acceptable in return for active play

openings. Still, we have no right to

has a bearing on openings with no In­

criticize the fourth World Champion.

dian bishop in sight. For example,

One of Alekhine's greatest qualities

nowadays no one blinks an eye if a

was his unremitting search for im­

player accepts a backward pawn in the

provements in opening theory. When

Sveshnikov Sicilian.

he annotates one of his games he often explains his choice of move by a phrase of the kind "I wanted to test this rec­ ommendation by X" or "I wanted to confirm my opinion of variation Y". His curiosity and urge to understand

Game 71 S.Karjakin-V.Topalov Wij k aan Zee 2006 Sicilian Defence

meant he was willing to try out most openings, except those as Black involv­

1 e4 e5 2 tZ'lf3 tZ'le6 3 d4 exd4 4 tZ'lxd4

ing a fianchetto on g7.

CDf6 5 CDe3 e5 6 CDdb5 d6 7 .tg5 a6 8

It is simply the case that Alekhine

tZ'la 3 b5 9 ct:Jds .te7 10 .txf6 .txf6 11 e3

was born too early to appreciate the

.tgs 12 CDe2 0-0 13 a4 bxa4 14 .1:txa4 as

merits of the King's Indian Defence. In

15 .te4 .1:tb8 16 .1:ta2 h8 17 CDee3 i.xe3

tournaments he always played for a win

18 ct:Jxe3 CDe7 19 b3 f5 20 exf5 CDxf5 21

with Black, unless a draw was required

ct:Jd5 .tb7 22 0-0 .1:te8 23 "iVd3 ct:Jh4 24

to achieve the sporting aim. This meant

.1:td 1 h6 25 "iVg3 ct:Jf5 26 "iVg4 .1:te5 27

he sometimes pushed too hard to un­

l:i.ad 2 .te8 28 "iVe4 .tb7

balance the position. If he had played his chess in a later age he would un­ doubtedly have followed Fischer and the young Kasparov in making the

26 tZ'lxe6

King's Indian Defence fundamental to

Upon 26 c5 we see a striking exam­

his repertoire. It is the perfect way to

ple of the conversion of advantages:

achieve winning chances with Black

the weak pawn on c4 has vanished but

without taking unacceptable risks. All

is replaced by a strong outpost for the

lovers of fighting chess owe a debt of

black knight with 26 . . . tZ'lc4, which in

gratitude to Bronstein and Boleslavsky

tum becomes a strong passed pawn after 27 .txc4 dxc4 28 CDxe6 "iVxe6 etc.

Here is the concealed idea. If White

It's important to see how one advan­

takes the bishop he is mated in two

tage 'flows' into another - in the con­

moves with 33 ... .1:th8+.

text of power play we could say that

34 g4 .1:th8+ 0-1

one form of (attacking) energy is con­ verted into another. 186

White loses his queen after 35 g3 "iVd3+ 36 "iVf3 l:i.h3+.

for their pioneering work.

Living with a backward pawn

White's pieces are overprotecting the knight on d5 in a manner that

Bronstein and Boleslavsky's research

would have made Nimzowitsch shed

also had an influence beyond the con-

tears of gratitude. On the other hand, 187

B a c k w a rds P a w n s a n d I n d i a n B i s h o p s

Chess Secrets: The G i a n ts of Po wer Play what Karjakin would really like to do

The Bulgarian Grandmaster needs

enemy queen. I n fact all three o f Black's

32 'iWg4

is apply direct pressure with his rooks

no second invitation to initiate dy­

heavy pieces are now en prise!

and queen against the backward d6-

namic play.

34 ...MXf4!

pawn. An exchange of knights would clear the way for an eventual �xd6 breakthrough. There are a lot of obstacles in the way of such a plan: one of the most im­ portant is the fact that White's knight is pinned by the black bishop, and if he moves his queen to g4, the bishop fol­ lows with ... i.c8!

(this happened at

move 27). And even if Karjakin's queen escapes the attentions of the bishop, and

Now it looks as if Black is in trou­

he manages to exchange off knights,

ble, as after 32 . . . Mg5? 33 tbxc3 (but not

there is still the danger of a combinative

34 ... 'iVxM)

But this bankrupts White's position,

Of course Karjakin doesn't imagine

33 .. ..l:txg4 34 hxg4 Karjakin is about to

as taking either rook allows his king to

Black may have a backward pawn on

that he will succeed in mating the black

achieve his aim of crashing through the

corne

d6, but his queen, rooks and bishops are

king with 31 'ifh7, but he is using the

d-file with 35 l:!xd6. Note that a subse­

tbxc3? tbf3+ 36 'iith l 'iVg3 37 gxf3 (or mate on h2) 37. . ...txf3+ and wins, or 35

blow against his vulnerable g2-square.

all ready for action.

30 .id3?!

33

'iWxM?

.l:!.xg2+

and

under

a

crushing

attack:

35

threat to try to get the black pieces into

quent Itd8+ is always going to be a

You may have noticed how similar

a tangle. In reality every step White

mating threat, as the white bishop on

tbxf4 tbf3+ 36 'iitf2 tbxd2 37 �xd2 �g3+

the dynamic considerations here are to

takes with his plan does more damage

bl denies the black king the h7-square.

38 �f1 exf4 when White is mated in

those in Bronstein's King's Indian set­

to the coordination of his

However. . .

two moves if he takes the pawn on d6.

up. In both cases there is a white

Thus it would have been better to have

3 2 ... h5!!

You will notice that after White plays

knight sitting in front of a backward

left the bishop on c4.

pawn on d6. It would seem a simple

30...l'1f5 !

business to move the knight away and

Shades

of Topalov's

own pieces.

This pawn move ruins his oppo­ game

with

35 tbxc3 or 35 tbxf4 he is tantalizingly

nent's strategy. The white queen is

close to carrying out his aim of Mxd6,

forced to retreat to a markedly inferior

threatening to mate the black king.

get at the pawn, but the horse can't

Morozevich in Chapter Four, where

square, after which it is the black queen

Alas for him, he never has the free

abandon

our hero beat off White's impetuous

who becomes the dominant attacking

move he needs. It's no wonder that

Black to make an important dynamic

attack with 23 ... nf5! etc.

force on the kingside.

Tartakower described chess as "the

gain in another sector of the board.

31 .ibl?

its

post without

allowing

and

tragedy of one tempo".

The young Grandmaster offers the

threats by the big pieces, what decides

3 5 �hl tbxg2 36 'iWxg2

c3-pawn as the next stage in his cam­

the game is the energy given to the

game up as a draw with 29 �g4 i.c8

paign

black position - or you could say drain­

trouble

etc, so he decides to goad the black

pieces. Instead, he had to play 31 c4 or

ed from the white position - by a pawn.

thought to 36 tbxc3, which exposes his

pieces into an attack on the kingside, in

31 i.c4, though his position has already

33 'iWe2 'iWg5 34 f4

king to a discovered check. In fact GM

the hope that he will have the last

deteriorated.

laugh with a Mxd6 breakthrough in the

3 1 .. J!xC3

29 h3?1 Karjakin doesn't want to give the

centre. 29

•••

188

tbh4!

of

Despite all

discomforting

the

black

Topalov demonstrates that he can safely grab the pawn.

Karjakin

the

keeps

manoeuvres

on

fighting

and

I imagine that if he was in time White

Rogozenko

didn't

gives

the

give

much

non-checking

might still have tricked a lesser player

36 . . .�4 as the strongest response: 37

than Topalov. He stops the mate on g2

�h2 tbe3 38 'iVxe3 Mf3 39 �xf3 i..xf3

with a pawn attack of his own on the

and Black wins. 1 89

C h e s s Secrets : Th e G i a n ts of P o w e r Play 36 ..Jig3 According to Rogozenko, 36 ... 'ii'h4 is still the quickest way to win. 37 tLlxf4 ..txg2+ 38 tLlxg2 nxh3+ 39 �gl :g3

but it has been an absolute hero in Black's cause. 42 :c6 'iVg4 It wasn't too late to lose with 42 . . .h3 43 l:ic8+. After White's reply Topalov is able to force a decisive simplification.

C h a pte r N i n e

43 1d5

I

The Psychol ogy of Prepa ration

White has only a shade worse of it if we count the material on the board: a

Our five giants have had mixed for­

come the resident chess professional at

tunes in the quest to be recognized as

the Cafe de la Regence in Paris follow­

the best player in the world. Morphy

ing the death of Kieseritzky. He was

rook and two minor pieces versus a

43 ... .l:!.xg2+! 44 .l:!.xg2 iVxf5 45 l1cg6 iVf7

was born before the World Champion­

therefore one of the most formidable

queen and four pawns. Unfortunately

46 tt6g4 �f6 47 �h2 �7 48 'i£th3 e4 49

ship was invented; Alekhine died as

opponents that Morphy had to face

for him, his king has no pawn cover

1:tg5 e3 50 �xh4

World

during his conquest of Europe in 1858.

and so the advance of Black's h-pawn

Champion; Bronstein proved

It seems that Karjakin wasn't pre­

himself equal to the reigning World

A match was arranged with the rules

is going to cost him dear.

pared to resign until he had revenge on

Champion but never gained the acco­

stating that the victor would be the first

40 l:if2 �g8

the pawn that ruined all his hopes.

lade;

player to reach seven wins.

50 ... g6 0-1

Champions

It would be a shame to fall for a mate on f8. 41 11xd6 h4! This pawn only makes two moves

After 51 J::i.a2 Black could play to the

Geller

beat

umpteen

World

in tournaments without

The omens weren't good for the

achieving a match for the title; and To­

American. In their pre-match warm-up

gallery with 5 1 . . :i¥f2+! 52 lhf2+ exf2

palov won the World Championship in

game, Harrwitz had won when Mor­

and queens.

a tournament and at the time of writing

phy sacrificed too much material. Evi­

may yet win it in a match. In this chapter I wish to examine

dently Harrwitz had no wish to dis­ close his opening ideas in a 'friendly'

psychological preparation, which

encounter, opening 1 e4, whereas he

includes a deep appraisal of the oppo­

played 1 d4 in the official match games.

nent's style of play, has played a role in

In the first of these, Morphy was im­

our five players achieving an optimal

pressively outplayed as Black in a

how

performance.

Queen's Gambit. The static position that arose from the opening gave him

The Morphy-Ha rrwitz match

no chance to show either his positional or his tactical creativity. He was soon

Daniel Harrwitz (1823-1 884) had be190

forced into an unpleasant endgame: 191

C h ess Secrets: The Gia n ts of P o w e r Play

Game 72 D.Harrwitz-P.Morphy 1st matchga me, Pa ris 1858 Queen 's Gambit

The Psyc h o l ogy of Prep a ra t i o n phy was thirsting for revenge. He built

3 1 ....l:tb8?

up strong pressure but gradually lost

The score: 2-0 to Harrwitz in the

31. ..!!a8! 32 ii.b7 'ub8 33 J::tc7 g5! fol­

the thread - and a knight! - in the face

match, 3-0 overall if you include the

lowed by 34 ... �g6.

of his opponent's tough defence.

friendly game.

could

save

himself

If White's king

heads to the queenside, the black king can

counterattack

with

... �f5

1 d4 d5 2 c4 e6 3 ttJC3 ttJf6 4 ii.f4 a6 5 e3

. . . �e4 etc.

c5 6 ttJf3 ttJc6 7 a3 cxd4 8 exd4 dxc4 9

32 �b5! .l:Id8 33 .l:!.b6 1:!.a8 34 �d2

ii.xC4 b5 10 i.. d 3 �b7 11 0-0 �e7 12

'iYc6 0-1

with

Black

and

Game 73 P.Morphy-D.Ha rrwitz 2nd matchga me, Paris 1858 Philidar Defence

The threatened intervention by the

.lies 0-0 13 'iYe2 ttJd5 14 ii.g3 'it>h8 15

white king on the queenside persuades

Itfe1 i..f6 16 'iYe4 g6 1 7 ttJxd5 �xd 5 18

Morphy to give up a pawn at once.

At this pOint the American must have paused to reflect on the situation. As we saw above, he had been com­ prehensively outplayed with Black in the

Queen's

Gambit.

Evidently

Harrwitz's strength was the ability to

'iYxd5 exd5 19 ttJe5 ,l:1ad8 20 ttJxc6 i..xc6

34 ... ii.c8 35 i.xc8 I:i.xc8 36 l:!.b5 �a8 3 7

1 e4 e5 2 ttJf3 d6 3 d4 exd4 4 �xd4 ttJc6

grind an opponent down in simple,

21 �ac1 .l:tc8 22 i..d6 .l:tg8 23 i..e5 �g7

.6txd5 a3 38 bxa3 .uxa3 3 9 .l:tC5!

5 �b5 ii.d7 6 .ixc6 i.xc6 7 �g5 ttJf6 8

'dull' 1 d4 d5 type positions. At the

Here Harrwitz centralizes his king

ttJc3 Ji..e7 9 0-0-0 0-0 10 l:the1 h6 11

same time, Morphy's attempt to attack

and increases his grip on the dark

i.h4 ttJe8 12 i..x e7 'iYxe7 13 e5 ii.xf3 14

had ended in fiasco in game two, as

squares:

gxf3 Wig5+ 15 'it>b1 dxe5 16 .l:!.xe5 'iVg2

well as the warm-up game. You might

24 f4! i..d 7 25 'it>f2 h6 26 �e3 l:txc1 27

17 ttJd5 'iVxh2 18 .l:tee1 'iVd6 19 Ilg1

call it luck, but how many other play­

�xc1 .14.c8 28 .l:tC5! .ltxe5 29 fxe5 .lte6 30

�h7 20 'iVe3 fS 21 ttJf4 'iYb6 22 'iVe2 l1f7

ers were fortunate enough to beat off

a4?!

23 'iVC4 �f6 24 ttJh5 'iYe7 25 ftde1 'ikd7

two consecutive Morphy onslaughts?

Typical 19th century impatience in the endgame. More exact was 30 .te2,

26 a3 ttJd6 27 'iYd4 1Ig8 28 ,Ug2 ttJe8 29

No, there is no doubt that Harrwitz

'iVc3 f4

was a good defender against a direct

intending 31 i.f3 to force 31..Jld8.

attack.

Then the black rook is tied down to d5,

One of the defining features of

leaving the white rook free to probe the

Morphy's genius was how quickly he

queenside. And if after 30 i..e2 Black tries 30 ... f6, 31 a4! is all the stronger. 30 ... bxa4 3 1 .ixa6

learnt from experience. He was a very So that if 39... .l:ta2+ 40 .l:tc2. Morphy

clear-headed, shrewd judge of his op­

is now slowly ground down, the re­

ponents. So

maining moves being:

might have thought to himself when he

39 ...�8 40 'it>e2 �e7 41 d5 'it>d7 42 :c6

retired to his Parisian lodgings the

h5 43 l1f6 We7 44 d6+ 'it>e8 45 e6 fxe6

night after the second game.

imagine

what he

46 J::!.xe6+ �f7 47 d7 .l:ta8 48 ll:.d6 'it>e7

"As Black, it's obvious I should

49 l:txg6 �xd7 50 I1g5 .l:th8 51 �f3 �e6

avoid a fixed centre pawn structure

52 �g3 h4+ 53 Wg4 h3 54 g3 �f6 55

like Here Morphy went wrong with:

�h5 1-0

30 l:th1? 30 Itg4! is the best chance.

Despite his impetuous 30th move, this was a fine positional display by Harrwitz. It shows that not all of Mor­

192

let's

30

••.

g6 3 1 klhg1 'iYd 5!

The knight has been cornered.

that

in

the

Queen's

Gambit.

Harrwitz mustn't be allowed a clear plan. He should be engaged in a com­ plex battle over the whole board, which means combining threats to his king and his pawns.

phy's opponent's were dedicated tacti­

32 �e1 �xh5 33 .l:tg5 "ir'xf3 34 �e6 .l:!.f6

"As White, I should build up in the

cians. In game two of the match, Mor-

35 'iVe7+ J::!. g7 36 'iYxe8 hxg5 3 7 \\\Ve 1

centre in my usual style. But once I 193

The Psyc h o l ogy of Prep a ra t i o n

Ch ess S e c rets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play have gained a positional advantage, I need to target more than just his king. The struggle must be as wide as possi­ ble, to wrong-foot his pieces. I should only sacrifice when the outcome is en­ tirely clear." In the remaining games of the match, we see Morphy employ the per­ fect 'anti-Harrwitz' strategy. Let's look at what happened in game three.

Game 74 D.Harrwitz-P.Morphy 3 rd matchga me, Paris 1858 Dutch Defence

This was the moment when the course of the match suddenly turned in Morphy's favour. The German master should play 18 i..c 6! .l!i.ab8 19 J:!abl, just maintaining the tension. But Harrwitz

1 d4 f5! So

needs a dear plan, and the best he there

will

be

no

'classical'

could come up with was to open the b­

Queen's Gambit. How does Harrwitz

file at once:

like the imbalanced pawn structure

18 i.xd7? "iix d7 19 bXc5 bxc5 20 f4 e4

that arises from the Dutch? Not very

21 ,Mabl?

much, as we shall see. 2 c4 e6 3 ttJC3 Unluckily for White the kingside fi­

He should have kept the black queen out of a4 with 21 a4! . 21 ... iLa6 22 llfcl "iVa4!

anchetto was little known in the 19th

The upshot of Harrwitz's incorrect

century, so the response generally con­

strategy is that he has a queen and one

sidered best by modern theory - 3 ttJf3

rook tied down to the c4-pawn, while

and 4 g3, or 3 g3 at once - couldn't be

the other rook can't do a jot down the

part of his technique.

open b-file.

3 ttJf6

23 ttJg3 h4!

..•

Naturally he avoids 3 . . . d5, as this

White is deprived of any counter­

would give his opponent a more famil­

play on the kingside, so that Morphy

iar type of pawn centre. We shall jump

can focus on building up his queenside

ahead to the key position at move 18:

pressure.

4 iLg5 iLb4 5 'iVb3 c5 6 d5 e5 7 e3 0-0 8

24 ttJfl l:ab8 25 ttJd2

i.d3 d6 9 ttJge2 h6 10 i.xf6 1ifxf6 11 a3

Now what is the move that adds the

i.xc3+ 12 'iVxC3 ttJd7 13 0-0 "iWg6 14 b4

most power to the black position?

b6 15 f3 h5 16 i.. c2 i-b7 17 iLa4 'iVf7

2 5 ...l:tb6!!

1 94

I would also award this move two exclamation

marks

if

it

had

been

3 6 'itof2 c 3 37 �e2 l:xa3 38 ttJc6+ i..xc6 39 dxc6 c2 40 'itJd2 1Ic3 !

played by Topalov against Kramnik.

A neat touch that ensures very dif­

White is given a frightful choice: either

ferent fortunes for the passed c-pawns.

he must concede control of the b-file or

The rest is easy for Morphy.

else exchange on b6, when Black is

41 �c1 11xc6 42 l::t b3 �6 43 J::!. a 3 g5 44

given a lever with which to prise open

g3 hxg3 45 hxg3 gxf4 46 gxf4 'itog6 47

the white centre pawn structure.

i:Ia5 J::!. C5 48 l:a6 l:tc3 49 J::!.xd6+ 'itoh5 50

26 litxb6 axb6 27 'iVb3

J::!.d 2 'itg4 51 �g2+ �f3 52 J::!.g 5 J::!.C 5 53

The exchange of queens doesn't

J::!. h 5 'itoxe3 54 11h4 �3 0-1

help much, but if Harrwitz had just waited he could be assailed with . . . na8

Morphy's genius was able to supply

and . . .b6-b5, when the a3-pawn would

him with a complete understanding of

be a target for the black queen.

the

27 ... 'iWxb3 28 ttJxb3 b5 29 cxb5 iLxb5 30

whereas Harrwitz had no such aid to

ttJa5 The

little-known

pawn

structure,

call upon. As soon as he was removed attempt

to

counterattack

against d6 is defeated by the arrival of the black king.

from his Queen's Gambit comfort zone, he was helpless. If the above attack on c4 had been

30 Jb8 31 ttJb7 J::!.a 6 32 .i:.c3 'itJf8! 33

carried out in similar circumstances by

ttJd8 i.d7

Alekhine, I would probably have clas­

.•

as 34 ttJe6+ iLxe6 35 dxe6 We7 is hope­

sified it as of a positional, rather than power play, nature. The gap of 50 or so

less for White.

years between the careers of these two

34 l:Ib3 �e7 35 J::!. b8 c4!

giants meant that the Russian learnt his

The knight is denied an exit via e6,

Harrwitz's pieces are in disorder

chess in an age that had models of

and cannot prevent the loss of a couple

technique,

of pawns.

Morphy, already available to it.

including

Harrwitz­

195

The Psyc h o l ogy of Prep a ra t i o n

Ch ess Secrets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play In contrast, when Morphy put his

against Morphy, the German master

No modem master would play such

attack i n game two o f the match. But as

queen on a4 and the bishop on a6, he

had profited from the rather loose at­

a move. He would submit to the knight

we discussed above, the American was

was being guided by his genius, with

tacking play of his opponent.

being pushed back from e5 with a con­

always quick to learn from his mis­

no prior model on which to base his

solidating move such as 15 .. Jle8, and

takes. He was a great psychologist and

technique. The idea of entering into

then if

premature)

knew how to lead the game into paths

this unknown territory was a decision

16 ... ct:Jg6, try to put pressure on the e4-

uncongenial to his opponent. And so,

made before the game, with the aim of

pawn after . . .i.f8 etc.

rather than launch a quick attack, Mor­

energizing the struggle - that is, escap­

16 .tg3 .i:!.g7 17 ct:JfS .l::!.g6 18 f4 gxf4 19

phy switched his attention to the other

ing from the Queen's Gambit centre.

Itxf4 Wh8 20 l:th4!

side of the board:

16

£4

(possibly

23 ct:JbS ! !

Hence it involved preparation, psy­ chology and dynamism, making it a power play game. We have already seen Morphy's drab performance in his first game as White against Harrwitz. In the second such encounter he produced one of the best games of his life.

And so he hopes to cajole his oppo­ nent into more premature action with 13 e5?, which on the face of it looks

Game 75 P.Morphy-D.Harrwitz 4th matchga me, Pa ris 1858 Philidar Defence 1 e4 es 2 ct:Jf3 d6 3 d4 exd4 4 "ir'xd4 ct:Jc6 S .tbS

good, as 14 e6 is a threat and 13 . . . fxe5? loses the exchange to 14 ct:Jxe5. But after 13 . . . Wt'g4! 14 'ii'xg4 (or 14 .l::t d4 'ifg6 and f3 is hanging) 14 . . . ct:Jxg4 15 e6, White

black

as

A n unpleasant surprise for Harr­

initiative beyond a rather vulnerable

20 ... l:1ag8, which looks a logical and

witz. If he returns his queen to d7 to

pawn on e6. But Morphy has learnt that you

Giving up the bishop pair but en­

shouldn't rush things against Harrwitz,

suring that his queen gets to stay on its

and instead continues his positional

strong central post. S ... .td7 6 �xc6 ..Itxc6 7 .tgs f6 Harrwitz varies from 7... ct:Jf6 as he

Just in time to thwart any hopes of a

wouldn't have much to show for his

attack

down

the

g-file,

strong move, allows 21 .l:i.xh7+! Wxh7 22

guard c7, then 24 'i¥h5! threatening 25

'ii'h5+ and mates.

'iVxg6 is strong. Besides, no one likes to change a plan halfway through.

20....tf8 21 i.xes! An

astute

exchange.

The

semi­

Meanwhile if 23 . . ..txb5 24 'iVxb5 b6,

build-up.

blocked nature of the position favours

Black is deprived of the natural guard­

13 ct:Jd4! ct:Jg4 14 h 3 ct:Jes 15 'iVe2 gS?

White's knights, as there aren't any

ian of his light squares. The remaining

A truly dreadful move which is the

good pawn breaks that Black can util­

bishop on f8 is a useful defensive piece in the event of an all-out kingside at­

played in the second game of the

only indication in the whole game that

ize to enliven his bishop pair - if he

match (see above), but Morphy will

it was played a couple of centuries ago.

tries to arrange ... d6-d5 his position

tack by White, but it can't do much else

make him pay for the weakness created

Black wants to cement his horse on the

would soon fall apart. Another good

as it is shut in by its pawns. Morphy

on e6.

e5-square, but in doing so he hands

point of the exchange is that White's

would no doubt have probed away on

8 .th4 ct:Jh6 9 ct:Jc3 'ii'd 7 10 0-0 �e7 11

over an even more powerful centre

rook gets the open f-file.

the queenside, in time advancing his

l:1adl 0-0 12 'iVC4+ �f7

post on f5 to the white knight. At the

21 .. .fxes 22 �fl 'iVe6

The simple 12 ... �h8 was more solid.

same time he exposes his pawn struc­

Harrwitz is ready to answer 23 'iVh5

However, Harrwitz is also trying to use

ture to being fractured by f2-f4, which

with 23 . . . iVg8, with the type of solid

psychology. In his first game as Black

opens lines for the white rooks.

defensive line that smashed Morphy's

196

pawns there, to emphasize the feeble­ ness of the bishop. 23 ... 'iVg8 Harrwitz sees he can put his queen 197

Ch ess Secrets: The G ia n ts of Po wer Play

The Psyc h o l ogy of Prep a r a t i o n

on g8 after all, and relaxes. For if 24

�xh7+! 'it>xh7 29 "Yi'h5+ .ih6 (or 29 . . .�h6

4Jxc7? �c8 25 4Jd5, Black has the devil­

30 4Jxh6 i.xh6 31 I:!.f7+ 'it>g8 32 "Yi'g6+

ish trap 25 ... .ib5!! which wins the ex­

and mates) 30 4Je7! "Yi'e6 31 4Jxg6 and

change, as White would be mated on

Black is defenceless, as 31..:i-i'xg6 32

g2 after 26 "Yi'xb5?? !:txg2+ 27 'it>h1 �h2+!

�f7+ costs him the queen, while the

28 'it>xh2 �xc2+ etc.

attempts at consolidating with 31. ..�e8

24 �f2!

or 31...�g8 drop the exchange to 32

Morphy sees through his oppo­

4Jf8+.

nent's combination and adds a de­

28 c4

33 ... "Yi'xe7 34 "Yi'xg6+ is easy

for

Why Alekhine beat Capablanca

White. In 1927 Alekhine finally got the chance

34 4Jf5+ 'it>g8 35 4Jxd6! 1-0

to play a World Championship match. Despite his brilliant play and out­ standing results, few experts thought that he could unseat the champion, Jose

fender to g2. Now Black has no good

It's already game over, as Black is a

way of meeting the attack on c7, as

pawn down and hopelessly weak on

24 . . . ii.xb5 25 "Yi'xb5 is a worse version of

the light squares, but the method of

23 . . . i.xb5 - the black queen is less able

execution is still delightful.

to aid her queenside on g8 than on e6.

28 ... i.e7 29 �h5 "Yi'e8 30 C5!!

Raul

Capablanca

(1888-1942).

There was an aura of invincibility around the Cuban, who had lost only a handful of games in the previous ten years. Moreover Capa had just won the New York 1927 tournament in crush­ ing style, no less than 2% points ahead

Harrwitz decides to sacrifice the c­

of the second-placed Alekhine.

pawn in order to activate his queen's rook, but he fails to get any compensa­ tion. 24 ...a6 25 4JxC7 �c8 26 4Jd5

A pretty finish. Of course, after

Capablanca's genius allowed him to

35 . . .�xg2+!? we can safely assume that

play pawn structures that his contem­

Morphy would have taken on g2 with

poraries had yet to master. In an age

the right piece...

dominated by 1 d4 d5 and 1 e4 e5, here are three examples of the Cuban's posi­

Rarely is there such a

Crowning his positional and psy­ chological achievement. Morphy knew that Harrwitz couldn't be beaten by launching a direct attack on his king right from the opening. Therefore the 26 ...i.xd 5

struggle had to be on both sides of the

It is a positional catastrophe for

board. A pawn ram on the queenside

Black whether he lets the knight enjoy

that lays the groundwork for a mating

a great outpost on d5 or removes it at

combination is the perfect emblem of

the cost of his vital bishop.

this successful strategy.

27 exd5 �C7

30 ...�xc5

It seems likely that, in his earlier

Or 30 ... dxe5 31 "Yi'xe5+.

calculations, Harrwitz had missed that

31 �xh7+! 'it>xh7

27 . . . "Yi'xd5 loses to the combination 28

CDxe7+ 'it>g7

198

32 'iWh5+ 'it>g8 33

fantastic

tional creativity: against Corzo at Ha­

blend of tactics and strategy in one

vana in 1913 he opened as Black with 1

game. It's hard to see how a modern

d4 4Jf6 2 c4 d6 3 CDc3 4Jbd7 4 e4 e5, and

great such as Topalov or Kasparov

went on to win the best game prize;

could have improved on Morphy's

against Nimzowitsch at 5t Petersburg

play.

in 1914 he played a strategic pawn sac­

The match had completely turned

rifice that anticipated by many decades

around. Morphy had won two games

the ideas of the Benko Gambit; and

in a row, playing the best positional

versus Alekhine himself at the afore­

chess that had ever been seen up to

mentioned New York tournament he

that time. Our giant then added games

won crushingly as Black in a Benoni

five and six to his tally, drew game

pawn structure.

seven after being very close to a win,

When things went wrong for the

and won game eight. The score was

Cuban, both his admirers and his de­

thus 5-2 with one draw. Although the

tractors put it down to carelessness and

rules prescribed that the victor would

a lack of application at the board. He

be the first player to gain seven wins,

seemed to treat chess as a hobby, and

Harrwitz resigned the match as he

sometimes appeared a little restless

knew he had no answer to the Ameri­

during games.

can's sublime play.

It was hard to imagine that in a 199

Th e Psyc ho logy of Prep a ra t i o n

C h ess Secrets: The G ia n ts of P o w e r Play World Championship match Capab­

and wait for my opponent to grow

lanca would show the same careless­

careless. I mustn't awaken the lion in­

ness. But Alekhine was given cause for

side him!

hope by a game they played at New

In other words he had to restrain

York in 1924. His majestic opponent

Capablanca's positional genius,

was desperate for a win as he was trail­

the way to do that was to play classical

ing Lasker in the fight for first place.

openings which Alekhine had analysed

Capa outplayed Alekhine and reached

in great detail. How can you show

and

a winning endgame, but then made

your special understanding of pawn

some imprecise moves and only drew.

structures in endless games starting

This was a revelation to Alekhine, who

with the Queen's Gambit?

recorded his thoughts in his book °1 had finally detected a

Capablanca's laziness meant that he

On

hadn't broadened his opening reper­

the road to the World Championship: slight

toire to give scope to his genius. If his

weakness in my future opponent: in­

opponent made an interesting attempt

creasing uncertainty when confronted

to win he could exploit it in brilliant

with a stubborn resistance! Of course I

style. But he lacked the ability to be the

had already noticed Capablanca com­

instigator of a strategically complex

mitting occasional slight inaccuracies,

battle.

but I should not have thought he would be unable to rid himself of this failing even when he tried his utmost."

The match was a long, hard strug­ gle, with many colourless draws. It's difficult not to agree with Golombek

So let's imagine Alekhine lounging

that, on playing through the games,

on the deck of the liner taking him to

1/

Buenos Aires in 1927 and scribbling

Defence to the Queen's Gambit had

down his match strategy on the ship's

never been invented". But being pre­

note paper:

one tends to wish that the Orthodox

pared for a long, boring match was an

1) Capa plays unusual pawn struc­

essential part of Alekhine's strategy.

tures brilliantly, but his opening reper­

He also had to overcome one of his

toire doesn't explicitly aim for such

own character faults, which was the

positions.

tendency to overpress with the black

2) He gets weary and careless in a protracted fight; but...

pieces. In the end Alekhine's restraint of

3) His battle lust and genius is

his opponent's genius and exploitation

aroused if his opponent 'insults' him

of his small errors proved triumphant.

by trying a direct, not entirely sound,

He won the match 6-3 with 25 draws.

attack right from the opening.

Alekhine wanted the world title as

Conclusion: I must keep the open­

the aim of his life, and we can only ap­

ings as narrow and solid as possible,

plaud his achievement. It is still con-

200

side red to be one of the greatest ever upsets in the history of the World Championship, as Capablanca was far from being a spent force in 1927. As an example of Alekhine's match strategy and the careless errors it pro­ voked in his opponent, here is the 21st game.

Game 76 J.R.Capablanca-A.Alekhine 21st matchga me, Bu enos Ai res 1927 Queen 's Gambit

13 dxcS ct'lxcS 1 4 ct'ld4?! The first sign that Capablanca is restless. He could exchange off with 14 1Ii'xd8 lHxd8 15 !:lfdl, thereby avoiding

1 d4 d S 2 c4 e6 3 ct'lc3 ct'lf6 4 i.gs ct'lbd 7 S e3 iLe7 6 ct'lf3 0-0 7 ncl a6 8 a3? As in Alekhine's game with Rubin­ stein (see Chapter Three) White tries to

any danger. But it seems he didn't want to admit so early on in the game that he had lost his opening advantage. 14...ki.c8 is b4?

benefit from delaying i.d3. Instead, he

Another careless move, and this

could have kept a small advantage

time it is of a serious nature. It need­

with 8 cxd5 exd5 9 iLd3.

lessly creates

8 ... h6 9 i.h4 dXC4! 10 i.xc4 bS 11 i..e2

Alekhine will exploit in perfect style.

iLb7

He should have offered the exchange

Here we see that ... a7-a6 has proved

a hole on c4 which

of bishops with 15 i.. f3.

much more useful than a2-a3, as it has

lS ... ct'lcd71 16 iLg3 ct'lb6 17 1Ii'b3 ct'lfd S

allowed the b7-square to be cleared

18 .\tf3 .uc4!

with gain of time. Black might already be said to have a slight advantage as his light-squared bishop on b7 is better placed than its opposite number on the e2-square. 12 0-0 cS Thanks to his superior handling of the opening,

Alekhine

achieves the

standard freeing move without any risk whatsoever. Indeed, it is Capab­ lanca who has to be wary of the active black pieces. 201

The Psyc h o logy of Prep a r a t i o n

C h ess S e crets: The Gia n ts of P o w e r Play The white queenside pawns are on

After 27 �d1 bxa4! 28 �xa4 lbb6 29

hail Botvinnik (1911-1995), but h e came

light squares in the centre.

dark squares, and so can be targeted by

.l:.xd5 lbxa4 30 .l::!.d 1 i.a3!, White has no

mightily close. He was leading by a

19 lbe4 'it'c8 20 ':xc4?

Black's bishop. In contrast, the white

good way of saving his b-pawn in view

point after 22 of the 24 stipulated

The third careless move, after which

bishop is staring into space - it can nei­

of his weak back rank, as if 31 .l:.b1

games, but lost in game 23 and drew in

White's game heads inexorably down­

ther attack the black pawns nor defend

i.xb4 or 31 i.d6 .l:.d8 with a fatal pin.

game 24 to 'only' tie the series 12-12. A

hill. Alekhine points out that he should

its own pawns. Black's knight is also

27 ... l1d8 28 axbS axbs 29 h3 est

little more belief in his positional skills

play 20 'it'b1 ! with the aim of easing his

far superior to its opposite number. It

and a little less fear of his opponent's

game by exchanging with 21 lbd6 or 21

is invincible on c4, whereas the white

adjournment analysis might well have

i.d6. Then

horse can be driven back from its cen­

made Bronstein the seventh World

tre post, as we shall see next move.

Champion.

Black begins to get a grip on the

after 20 ...ftd8 21

lbd2!

(evicting the rook from the outpost square) 2 1 . . . .l:.xc1 22 l:txc1 1¥a8 23 iJ.c7,

As his minor pieces aren't up to the

further simplification keeps the bal­

job, White's queen and rook are tied to

ance.

the defence of the queenside pawns.

20 ... lbxC4 21 .l:tcl 1¥a8!

This means that the black queen and

Alekhine breaks the pin on c4 and

rook have more freedom of action. In

increases his dominance of the light

other words, the superiority of Black's

squares.

minor pieces confers extra power on all

22 lbc3 nc8 23 lbxdS i.xds 24 i.xd s

his pieces. And not just the pieces - the

'ifxd s

black

pawns have been energized, and

As in Alekhine's game with his

1 d4 lbf6 2 c4 e6 3 lbC3 i.b4 4 e3 0-0 5

this will be the proverbial straw that

other great rival Lasker (see Chapter

i.d3 c5 6 lbf3 b6 7 0-0 i.b7 8 lba4 cxd4

breaks the camel's (or Capa's) back.

Four), the advance of a central pawn to

9 a3 i.e7 10 exd4 'it'C7 11 b4 lbg4 12 g3

25 a4

drive back a knight proves too much

f5 13 lbc3 a6 14 �el lbc6 15 .tfl lbd8

This makes Alekhine's task easier. Generally speaking, getting rid of a pair

At first sight it looks pretty equal, as

Game 77 M.Botvi nnik-D.Bronstein 5th matchga me, Moscow 1951 Nimzo-Indian Defence

of

pawns

should

give

for an already shaky defence.

16 i.f4 i.d6 17 iJ.xd6 'it'xd6 18 i.g2

30 .ubl e4 3 1 lbd4?!

lbf7 19 c5 �C7 20 !lcl .l::!.a e8 21 lba4 b5

more

Tactical blunders come easily in bad

22 lbC3 f4 23 d5 fxg3 24 fxg3 exd5 25

chances of escape, but Black's b5-pawn

positions. This move and his next just

'it'd4 lbf6 26 lbh4 �e5 2 7 ':xe5 �xe5 28

never becomes a target, whereas the

save White a lot of unnecessary suffer­

'iVxe5 lbxe5 29 lbf5 lbc4

white b4-pawn remains constantly un­

ing, as 31 lbe1 �d2! leaves him in a

der pressure from the black bishop.

hopeless mess; for example, 32 �c2

Therefore it was better to endure pa­

�xc2 33 lbxc2 'u'd2 34 lbe1 lba3 and the

tiently the weak pawn on a3.

white rook has suffocated.

2S ... i.f6 26 lbf3 i.b2!

31 ... i.xd4 32 lldl?! lbxe3! 0-1

there is a symmetrical pawn structure,

Alekhine explains that he was in­

both sides have all their pieces devel­

tending the ... e6-e5 pawn push, and so

White's

rook drops off after 33

'iVxd5 1:txd5 34 fxe3 i.xe3+.

oped, and neither king is facing an at­

wanted to avoid any danger that his

tack. So we should pause and consider

bishop might be cut off from the

the nature of Black's advantage. It will

queenside by the reply e3-e4. The move

tell us a lot about the concept of energy

also has the virtue of forcing the white

which is central to a power play strat­

rook to a more passive square.

1951

egy.

27 'uel

manage to unseat the incumbent Mik-

202

The Bronstein-Botvinnik match In the World Championship match of David

Bronstein

didn't quite Botvinnik liked to play according to 203

The Psy c h o logy of Prep a r a t i o n

Chess Secrets: The G ia n ts of Po wer Play a clear strategic model. He would pre­

30 1:td1 �h8!!

score against Botvinnik and S-3 against

32 ... i.c6 33 .:ta1 lbc2 34 Iba6 d4!

Fischer.

pare an opening system that gave his

Alas for the Ukrainian Grandmas­

opponent a weak pawn or a weak square,

and

then keep

ter, he never managed to get over all

hammering

the hurdles to playing a match for the

away at it until his opponent's position

highest title. One of the toughest of

fell to pieces. He won many brilliant

these barriers was Boris Spassky, who

technical games in this fashion. In

their

World

twice beat him in qualifying matches.

Championship

match, Bronstein did his best to avoid

How to beat Bobby Fischer

the positional 'bear hug' of his oppo­ nent. One psychological method was to

There has never been a perfect chess

play Botvinnik's own openings against

player. Perhaps the very idea is a logi­

him. In the very first game after his opponent's

1

d4,

Bronstein replied

A nasty surprise for White. It turns

1 . . .e6. He showed he was willing to

out that after he takes on dS he wins

play either the French after 2 e4 dS or

the positional battle but loses the game:

the Dutch after 2 c4 fS, both of which

31 lbxdS? lbxd5 32 .l1.xd5 il.xdS 33 .l:i.xdS

were at the time Botvinnik's favourite

g6! 34 lbd6 lbe3! and the threat of

defences.

3S .. .l:Hl mate wins a rook.

The World Champion believed in

Whereas the World Champion was

the strategic soundness of his defences

thinking in general terms about pawn

Black, so it was an un­

weaknesses and open files, Bronstein's

pleasant task for him to have to prove

when playing

mind was focused on the specific tacti­

they

cal features of the position.

were

unsound

when

playing

White. The ploy worked as Botvinnik

Botvinnik still has several chances

lost no less than four times with the

to save himself, but he is confused by

white pieces, and didn't produce a sin­

the 'bizarre' failure of his plan and

gle smooth game of the '1 d4 and wins'

soon ruins his position. So it could be

type.

said that the quietest imaginable move

In the above diagram Botvinnik has

on a chessboard, namely . . . �h8, won

managed to catch his wily opponent in

the game for Black. I'm sure that Bron­

a technical game. He could regain his

stein would have enjoyed the paradox.

pawn at once with 30 lbe7+ and 31

31 l:te1

lbexdS, with a slight plus due to the isolated pawn on d7. But the 'Iron Lo­

Safer was 31 ktd3. 21 ... lbxa3 32 lbd6?

gician' wants to do things properly.

Botvinnik still thinks he is attack­

First of all the rook should be put on

ing, and so puts his knight on the 'ex­

dl, so that after the pawn has been re­

cellent' d6-square. Instead, he should

captured it will be attacking d7.

have been satisfied with blockading the

The game continued: 204

dS-pawn with 32 lbd4.

Much more promising than the ma­

cal absurdity: after all, if you adapt

terialistic 34. . . lbxb4. With the white

your style to make it harder for your

rook and the knight on d6 no longer

opponents to beat you, the harder it

restraining its advance, the weak, dou­

becomes for you to win against

bled, contemptible d-pawn is full of

So whatever you gain in 'armour' and

them.

energy. It sets White problems that are

solidity, the same amount is being lost

very difficult to meet, especially in time

in flair and vitality. In fact, as soon as someone can be

trouble. 3s lbcxbS .l1.xg2 36 �xg2 lbg4 37 lbfS

said to have a 'style', you can also be sure that they have weaknesses.

The best chance was 37 lbe4. 37 ... d3 38 �d6 �xfS 39 �xd3 lbge3+

During the years 1969-1972 Bobby Fischer was streets ahead of all opposi­

0-1 The white king will be mated by the

tion. But he also had his weaknesses or perhaps we should say "less brilliant

rook on fl or hS.

aspects of his game when compared to

Geller, slayer of World Cha mpions

other world-class players". Notably he

Efim Geller was justly proud of his fine

to say about this:

didn't always shine in obscure, 'ran­ dom' positions. Here's what Geller had

record against World Champions. In

" .. .it was clear to me that the vul­

The Application of Chess Theory

nerable pOint of the American Grand­

he gives every game bar one in which

master was in double-edged, 'hanging',

his book

he won against them (the game omit­

irrational positions. When the play was

ted was against Tal, round 20 at Cura­

of this nature, Fischer often failed to

cao 1962, which was marred by errors

find a win even in a won position."

in time pressure). Excluding draws,

(Geller,

Geller's record includes a 4-1

plus

the Application of Chess Theory).

Geller managed to win twice as 205

The Psyc h o logy of Prep a ra t i o n

Chess Secrets: Th e G i a n ts of Po wer Play Black against the mature Fischer from

this book. Suffice to say that 1 5 .td3!?

lost positions. In both cases he played a

dxe5 16 0-0 is the modern approach to

sharp, counterattacking Sicilian varia­

the position, which was used by the

tion, and in both cases Fischer became

young

confused at the point of victory.

crushing victory in 2004.

Magnus

tical and strategical mastery without ever being able to confuse the position. The correct move was 20 �c2!, as played by Tal a couple of months after

Carlsen to score a

the present game. Upon 20 ... e4, to meet the threat of invasion by the white

One of the two games, Fischer­

queen on h7, the move 21 Ji.g4! is sud­

Geller, Skopje 1967, is given as Game 58 in Fischer's

denly decisive. The difference with 20

My Sixty Memorable

Ji.g4? one move earlier is that Black

Games. Here is the other game.

can't use his queen in the centre to hinder the white attack as . . . "iVd3 would

Game 78 RJ.Fischer-E.Gelier Monte Carlo 1967 Sicilian Defence

allow White the killer check "iVa4+! . Despite thinking for

5 ctJC3 a6 6 i.gs e6 7 f4 �b6!?

15 ... dxe5 16 0-0 3£.C5+?

They always tell you in books not to poisoned

pawns,

but

It is ironic that Geller played this

Fischer,

wild opening line to upset Fischer, but

Geller, Kasparov, Anand and Topalov

he himself is the first to lose his nerve.

are just some of the idiots who don't

He has made a lot of 'crazy' moves and

heed this advice!

feels that it is time for a couple of ' sane'

8 �d2 �xb2

developing moves: namely bringing

Black is obviously taking risks, but

out the bishop with check, and then

removing the b2-pawn prevents White

putting the rook on f8. But normal

from achieving a smooth attacking de­

moves don't work in crazy positions.

velopment with 9 0-0-0. It is therefore

And so he should play the 'odd' but

the best way for Geller to disrupt the

strong 16 . . . l:!,a7!, which keeps the c5-

logical flow of the game.

square free for the black queen to re­

9 l:!,bl �a3 10 fS ctJc6 11 fxe6 fxe6 12

turn to the defence. The tempo she

ctJxc6 bxc6 13 eS ctJds?!

might have gained by checking the

This is consistent with the Ukrain­

white king from c5 is the difference

ian Grandmaster's plan to choose the

between life and death in such situa­

most risky moves, but 13 ... dxe5 was

tions.

objectively safer and better, as later

17 �hl l:!,f8 18 c4!

played by Kasparov and Anand. 14 ctJxdS cxdS 15 i.e2?! An in-depth investigation of the Poisoned Pawn is beyond the scope of 206

more

than

twenty minutes, Fischer misses the win

1 e4 cs 2 ctJf3 d6 3 d4 cxd4 4 ctJxd4 ctJf6

grab

Fischer missed this subtlety and so

20 i.g4?

Not only attacking d5, but also opening up the c2-square to the white queen. 18 ... l:!,xfl+ 19 l:!,xfl i.b7

ends up losing in 25 moves with White. 20 ...dxc4 21 .txe6

and as a consequence loses the game.

At first glance it looks as if White's

Not that the winning line was at all

attack is about to succeed, as mate on

easy to find - after the game there was

d7 is threatened.

an hour long post mortem in the tour­

21... �d 3!

nament hall involving Geller, Fischer and other intrigued competitors with­ out the decisive continuation being discovered. The

American

genius

had

ex­

claimed angrily that "it was a crushing position!"

and

he

was

right.

But

whereas Fischer would win almost every time with a

tiny advantage and a

clear plan to improve his position, here he falters as he has a

huge advantage

but no strategic signposts to guide him. And it was a lack of inspiration in such

However, Geller is able to block the

situations that was Fischer's Achilles'

d-file and threaten a mate of his own

heel. It should be added that only a

on f1 . As we discussed above, this

handful of players were equipped with

counterattack

the necessary qualities to take advan­

would have been impossible if White

tage of it, and none of them managed

had taken the chance to play 21 �c2. In

to successfully compete with Fischer

that case after 21.. .e4 22 Ji.g4 �d3 23

during his peak years. They were al­

"iVa4+ forces mate.

most always defeated by Fischer's tac-

22 �el 3£.e4!!

by

the

black

queen

207

Che ss S e c rets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play

The Psyc h o logy of Prep a ra t i o n

A tremendous move. The bishop

achievement. Just imagine: Black plays

fence in the style of Petrosian. But now

shuts out the white queen's attack on

1 . ..e6, and what does Geller do? He

he puts the bishop on a square where it

Steinitz,

e5 and clears the way for 23 .. J�tb8, fol­

takes the pawn with "iix e6!!, even when

Fischer, Kasparov and many others

lowed either by 24 . . . OUb1 with a win­

blocks in the knight on g8. Just how is

it is still defended by the f7-pawn . . .

the poor horse meant to get into the

would be showing his opponent how

game, seeing that ... ct:Jh6 can always be

to outwit him in the opening and mid­

answered by .txh6 breaking up Black's

dlegame.

ning simplification, or 24 ... l:!.b2 with a lethal counterattack against g2.

Game 79 E.Gelier-A.Karpov USSR, Moscow 1976 French Defence

23 .tg4 l!b8 24 .td1 White's last hope is a bishop check on a4. Geller scotches this with a fine king manoeuvre. 24 ... 'it>d7! It turns out that the safest place for

1 e4 e6 2 d4 dS 3 ct:JC3 !

the black king is on the third rank. 2 S l1f7+ e6 0-1

genii from later ages: the ideas of Rubinstein,

Capablanca,

kingside pawns? Experienced French

On the other hand, Morphy had a

players realize that in this type of sce­

fantastic capacity for assimilating the

nario you either have to go right back

ideas of players he met and using them

with the bishop to f8, which is risky

to refine his own understanding of the

here as White is poised for a quick lld

game. If Morphy were given a year to

and

study modern theory he would un­

c2-c4,

or

else

exchange

with

Karpov rarely plays the French and

9 . . . i.xd2, which looks like the best idea.

doubtedly emerge as one of the best

so must have prepared something spe­

Karpov tries to keep his 'good' bishop

players in the world. 10 l:tc1 bS

cial against his opponent's usual 3 tLld2

without undeveloping it - but he wants

move. Therefore Geller decide to get

more than the position is willing to

Karpov does his best to mute the

his surprise in first. This was an astute

give him. As a result, he will end up

decision, as the young World Cham­

power of the c2-c4 breakthrough, but it

being horribly mangled.

pion is distinctly uncomfortable in the

If you have ever wondered how a

can't be prevented forever. 11 ct:Jf4

unfamiliar pawn structure.

player like Morphy would fare in a

3 ...1i.b4 4 es 'ikd7 5 tLlf3 b6 6 .td2 iLa6

modern chess tournament, with no

unable

knowledge of the development of the

1 1 . ..ct:Jh6 runs into 12 tLlhS ct:JfS 13 g4!.

7 .txa6 tLlxa6 8 0-0 ct:Jb8 9 ct:Je2 1

With ideas of 12 ct:JhS. Black is still to

develop

his

knight,

as

game since his own time, then Kar­

11 ... hS 12 b3 i.a3 13 ':b1 as 14 c4 c6

pov's play in the present game makes

15 cS!

for a pessimistic forecast. Karpov was the reigning World Champion, young, After 26 .l::i.f1 !:tb2 27 i.g4+ 'It>d5 the

fresh, gifted with a fine grasp of strat­

black king is delighted on d5, and the

egy, in short on top of his game. Yet

white king is in despair on hI.

when he is forced into a pawn struc­ ture that is unfamiliar to him, with no

How to beat Anatoly Karpov

theoretical knowledge to fill in the gaps in his understanding, he is completely

Once again we see Geller employing all

at sea. If Morphy faced a modern

three facets of power play: he wins the

player, he would be confronted with

psychological battle as early as the third preparation battle at move nine, and caps his dynamic middlegame

opened against the c7-pawn.

The American was undoubtedly a gen­

Geller shows his excellent judg­

victory with a marvellous queen sacri­

9 . .te7?

ius in the field of chess. But if he were

ment. It seems paradoxical that he

move, the

Clearing the way for the plan of l:td

pawn structures and technical riddles

and c2-c4, when a line of attack is

that he couldn't solve over the board.

.

.

fice. As a fan of the French Defence,

Up until here Karpov has played a

playing a modern elite player, his gen­

closes the queenside, but he is about to

I've always been impressed by Geller's

competent, if rather uninspired, de-

ius would be overwhelmed by a host of

give his opponent an ultimatum: if you

208

2 09

Chess S e c rets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play don't open lines for me I'm going to trap your bishop.

2 1.. :iVxb8 2 2 "iVxc6+ '>t>f8 2 3 lbf4 .l:!.a7 Black defends his bishop again so

15 ... i.. b4

that his queen is free to challenge her

A World Champion quickly learns from experience.

The Psyc h o logy of Prep a ra t i o n

Six

moves

earlier

opposite number. Therefore White has to act fast or all his advantage will dis­

Karpov spumed an exchange on d2,

appear.

but now he is desperate for it to hap­

24 lbh4! 'it'e8 25 'it'xe6! !

bad, but he fights on grimly in the

positional trap. Black seemed t o stand

endgame. Geller has to play carefully

well, but he couldn't improve his posi­

to subdue him, but eventually adds

tion or force any simplification. Mean­

another name to the list of World

while, from a slow beginning Topalov

Champions he has beaten.

was able to build up an attack by utiliz­ ing the

pen.

cealed in a position is one of the keys to

16 j,C1! Opportunity

only

knocks

the success of the Bulgarian Grandmas­

once.

ter.

Now 17 a3 SLc3 18 b4 is looming, when the bishop is encased in a coffin of

go down because their computer pro­ grams tell them that they are doing fine.

16 ... a4

Maybe they have attacking chances, or a

White achieves his aim of opening

lead in development, or more space. But

lines, as Karpov is obliged to make a

Topalov has noticed that his position

retreat square for his hapless cleric,

contains a latent energy that the com­

even though it costs him a pawn. 17 lbd3 j,a5 18 bxa4 bxa4 19 'it'xa4 'fia7 20 SLg5 i..C7

The most brilliant move Geller ever played. In his games we often see the subtle undermining of a pawn struc­ ture followed by an imaginative attack, but here in one move we have a tactical explosion that uproots a pawn struc­ ture. It turns out that the only part the rook on h8 is going to play in the game is as victim of the marauding white knights. 2 5 ...fxe6 Or similarly 2S. . .'fixe6 26 lbxe6+

21 ':xb8+! Pure Geller. Our hero has won the positional battle on the queenside, but

fxe6 27 lbg6+ f8 28

tightly to his extra pawn. Instead, he

lbfg6+.

aims at a direct assault on the enemy

27 lbxg6+ '>t>e8 28 lbxh8 .l:!.a4

king who has been caught in the centre.

He prepares opening variations

which his opponents are very happy to

white pawns.

210

latent dynamism of his pieces.

This fine feel for the energy con­

Karpov is a host of pawns to the

29 .ud1 0,e7 30 j,xe7 <Ji;xe7 31 0,g6+

puter program has failed to grasp, de­

'>t>f7 32 lbf4 i..x e5 33 dxe5 .l:!.xf4 34 .uc1

spite its absolute mastery of tactics. The

'>t>e8 35 c6 'it>d8 36 c7+ '>t>c8 37 g3 .l:!.a4

opponent thinks he is doing well, but he

38 .l:!.c6 .l:!.xa2 39 .l:!.xe6 g5 40 .l:!.d6 J:Id2 41

can't achieve anything definite, and so

e6 '>t>xc7 42 e7 1-0

the game gradually turns against him. And the main reason for this is that his pawns don't contribute enough to the

Steel versus armour

actions of his pieces. The World Championship match be­ tween Kramnik and Topalov in 2006 pitched a profound strategist of the Botvinnik school against a very well­ prepared, imaginative player of the Bronstein mould. We got to see some fascinating clashes.

Game BO V.Topalov-V.Kramn ik 15th match ga m e, E l i sta 2006 Slav Defence

With the black pieces, Kramnik adopted very sound match tactics: he

1 d4 d5 2 c4 c6 3 lbf3 lbf6 4 e3 i..f5 5

aimed to develop sensibly and solidly,

lbc3 e6 6 0,h4 i.. g6 7 .te2 lbbd7 8 0-0

keeping on the watch for counter­

i.d6 9 g3

chances if his opponent over-pressed, but content to simplify and draw. In

the

following

game

Here Kramnik made the momen­ tous decision to concede the pawn cen­

Topalov

tre. He hopes that a well-timed ... e6-eS

managed to catch his opponent in a

will give him compensating piece play. 211

Chess S e c rets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play

The Psych ology of Prep a r a t i o n

With hindsight we can conclude that

White will be able to exploit his latent

he should hold his ground, say with

advantage of the two bishops and mo­

Black's pressure on the d-file is

f5 can be undermined both directly

9 . . .0-0.

bile kingside pawns. Hence Kramnik

9 ...dxC4? 10 ..ixC4 lbb6 11 �e2 0-0 12

looking serious. Has Topalov lost con­

with a well-timed g3-g4, and indirectly

realizes he has to act as forcefully as

with h4-h5 to remove its pawn support

lbxg6 hxg6

possible down the d-file. He begins

trol of the position? 24 �d3!

from g6.

White has the two bishops and a

21 bXc3 ..icS 22 .l1.d2 .l::!.d 7 23 .l::!.e 1 .l::!.fd8

with an indirect attack on e4 which

slight space advantage, but the black

wins his knights the d5-square.

position looks very compact. Topalov

18 ... .l1.d4 19 es lbfds

utilized his kingside majority at once. 13 e4 e S

There is something rather ungainly about the bishop flinging its body in

breaking open the d-file. You would imagine that this would give his oppo­

saw with 20 .l::!.f3, the white pieces are

26 ...�f8 White's

light-squared

bishop, Kramnik puts his king onto a

24 ...iVe6

dark square.

25 ..iC1!

14 f4!

Fearing

keep the enemy shut out.

the heroic 24 .. .'*,c4!? in some cases.

presses on.

Topalov refuses to be hurried. His queen move rules out 26 ... lbc4.

Intending 24 . . .lbc4 or perhaps even

nent pause for thought, but Topalov

26 �e2

front of its comrade on d2. But as we prepared to sacrifice their dignity to

Blocking the white advance and

tional concession, a s the black pawn on

27 .l::!.d 1 Another patient move. The bishop on d3 is overprotected so that the white queen is freed for action. 27 ... iVe7 28 h4!

Intending 20 . . .lbe3+ 21 .l1.xe3 ..txe3, when White's bishop pair has vanished and the threat of an invasion with 22 ... .l::!. d2 means that Topalov has to agree to a double exchange of rooks with 22 .l::!.a d1 .l::!.x d1 23 .l::!.x d1 .l::!.d8 etc. This massive simplification would take all the energy out of any advance by It takes a very fine feeling for the dynamics of a position to realize that White can live with Black's initiative

White's kingside pawns. 20 �f3! An awkward-looking move, but it

After all his retreating moves, Topa­ lov is ready to strike with 26 f5! . Then the

carefully

At long last the Bulgarian Grand­

hoarded - the bishop pair and mobile

advantages

he

has

master begins to utilize his kingside

down the d-file.

does the business. Topalov doesn't

centre pawns - will rip away the black

mind having to make a series of defen­

pawns. The idea is to break through

14 ... exd4 1S �xd4 �e7

kingside pawns and leave his king de­

with l1h1 and M-h5, followed by con­

Saving the bishop from the 16 e5

sive moves if they maintain the dy­

fork by threatening 16 ... �c5.

namic potential of his set-up.

16 �g2 .l1.CS 17 �d3 .l::!. a d8 18 iVc2

20...lbxC3

fenceless.

quering the f5-pawn.

25 ...fS

would hold back the white rooks and

Kramnik takes the chance afforded

bishops from their assault on the black

Black has gained two tempi by har­

Thwarted in his attempt to simplify,

to him by White's last move to block, at

king. 28 ... .l::!.d S 29 "tlVC2

assing the white queen. The question is

Kramnik switches to Plan B: he clears

least temporarily, the advance of the

whether he can make anything out of

the way for his rooks to strike down

f4-pawn, as 26 exf6? would leave e1

this burst of activity. If he can't, then

the d-file.

hanging. Still, this is a massive posi-

212

Then nothing

Now

that the black

queen has

abandoned e6, Topalov is less afraid of 213

C h ess S e crets: The G ia n ts of Po wer Play ...lLlc4 ideas and so puts his queen on

pawns is released against the belea­

her optimum square, where she backs

guered black king.

up the bishop's attack on the f5-pawn.

37 .. :iVd6 38 �xf5 ! .l:i.xd1 39 �g6+ 'it>f8

29 ... lLlc4 30 .l:i.h1

40 e7+ 'ii'xe7 41 �xe7+ i£.xe7 42 �d3

The white attack is about to crash

Giving up the queen won't save

through with 31 h5, but Kramnik de­

Black, as his king is still at the mercy of

lays the victory celebration by drag­

White's light-squared bishop.

ging the rook back to the defence of dl.

42 ... .l:i.a1 43 'iVb2 .l:i.d1 44 'iVe2 l:ta1 45

It should be recalled that this was one

'iVxg4 .l:i.xa2+ 46 'it>h3 i..f6 47 "iVe6 .l:i.d2

of the rapid tiebreak games played at

48 ..ig6 .l:i.2d7 49 l:i.f3 b4 50 h5! 1-0

C h a pte r Te n

I

The Art of Su rprise

the end of the Topalov-Kramnik match, and under these circumstances you can't always expect the most precise moves. 30 ... lLla3 31 �e2 "iYd7 32 .l:i.d1 b5 33 g4!!

variation i s a (long) sequence

the same way, the power player is rec­

of moves in the opening that involves a

reating his style game by game, always

sharp collision between the two armies.

staying a step ahead of the blows of his

Even in Morphy's day many forcing

opponents, and has his own secret

A forcing

It is fitting that White's one remain­ ing kingside pawn gets to have the last word. Black is helpless against 51 h6 and then either 52 hxg7+ or 52 h7. White's major pieces are tied down

This was a remarkable struggle be­

to the defence of d3, but it turns out

tween the power of a temporary initia­

that his pawns are able to stage a

tive and a defence that contained latent

breakthrough anyway.

dynamism. Why did Kramnik lose? It

33 ...fxg4 34 .l:i.g3

was because his pieces on their own

Intending 35 e6 'ike7 36 .l:i.xg4, or if

didn't have enough power to break

35 . . . "iYd6 36 �xg4!, when 36 ... l:txd3 37

White's defensive line on the d-file.

.l:i.gxd3 �xd3 38 l:txd3 .l:i.xd3 39 "iVxg6

They were given no help from their

threatens both the rook and mate on f7.

pawns. In contrast, as soon as Topalov

34 .. .'iii>e 7 35 f5! gxf5 36 ..ig5+ 'it>e8 37

was able to consolidate against his op­

e6!

ponent's threats, his lively kingside All the latent energy that was stored

in the white bishops and kingside 214

pawns and the bishop pair meant that he came out trumps.

variations were well established as part

'laboratory' where his opening novel­

of theory, though mainly after 1 e4 e5.

ties are created and tested.

A power player enjoys the chal­

In his later years Bobby Fischer

lenge of finding new moves either dur­

came to regard forcing variations as a

ing or at the end of a forcing variation.

blight upon chess, which is why he

Needless to say, the expression "all's

wanted to shuffle the pieces at the start

new that is forgotten" applies here. The

of the game. This dislike of established

discovery doesn't necessarily have to

opening lines is no modem phenome­

be a

non. As we have seen, after some un­

good move, but it must set the op­

ponent enough problems that, on the

pleasant

balance of probability, it will yield a

against Morphy, Anderssen decided to

experiences

in

his

match

better result than the usual move.

avoid forcing variations with openings

In some ways a power player re­

such as 1 e4 d5 and 1 e4 c5 as Black - in

minds me of the monster in the film

those days the Scandinavian and Sicil­

Forbidden Planet. This fearsome creature

ian were far less studied - and the ex­

is impossible to destroy as it is being

treme 1 a3 as White. The German tacti­

recreated millisecond by millisecond

cal genius generally emerged from

by the evil dreams of Dr Morbius and

these openings with promising posi­

powered by an underground nuclear

tions, but Morphy was still too good

plant of unimaginable dimensions. In

for him in the middlegame. 215

Chess Secrets: Th e G i a n ts of Po wer Play

Morphy plays a novelty Here is an example of the opening preparation that the German master was keen to avoid.

The A rt of S u rpr ise free himself with 1 O. . .ii.c7 1 1 iVd3 dS!,

One of the characteristics of Mor­

phy has saved himself the trouble of a

which also gets rid of the weak pawn

phy's play is that he doesn't just shut

laborious endgame. Black resigned as

on d7. Morphy's move not only devel­

his opponent's pieces out of the game,

the threat is 31 l:f.g8+ (or even more ef­

ops but also keeps his opponent's

he

ficiently

pieces bunged up.

21.. .'it'xf6 22 l:f.d6+ 'it'g7 23 .l:Ixb6 is hope­

31.. . .:xg8+ 32 l:f.xg8+ �e7 33 l:f.e8 mate,

10 i.c7?

less for Black.

and if 30 . . .'it'e7 31 ctJbdS+ is lethal.

•••

Game 81 P.Morphy-J.Schulten New Yo rk 1857 Ruy Lopez 1 e4 es 2 ctJf3 ctJc6 3 i.bs ii.cs 4 c3 ctJge7 5 0-0 o-o? Black should retreat his bishop with S ... i.b6, so that 6 d4 cxd4 7 cxd4 can be answered by 7... dS, keeping a pawn foothold in the centre. 6 d4 exd4 7 cxd4 ii.b6 8 ds ctJb8 9 d6 cxd6 10 ii.f4!

Opening novelties have always at­ tracted bad replies. Black should play the

freeing

move

10 ... dS

anyway,

21

actively

•.•

targets

them.

If

now

32

ctJbdS!

and

33

l:f.g8+)

ii.c6 22 es as 23 l:f.d3 l:f.h8 24 ctJcds

ctJc4

Su rprise outweighs sound ness

He should have exchanged off a

though after 1 1 exdS d6 White has

couple of pieces on dS. The attempt to

more advantage than he would have

gain

gained with 10 iVxd6.

leads to another weak pawn on c4.

counterplay on the queenside

Alekhine had been planning his re­ venge on Euwe for two years after los­ ing his world title to him in 1935. Here

11 ctJC3 a6 12 ii.C4 bs 13 ii.b3 i.b7 14

25 i.xC4 bxc4 26 l:f.g3+ 'it'f8 27 ctJb6 l:f.a7

is the sixth game from the return

i.xd6 ii.xd6 15 �xd6

28 l:f.dl

match, in which our hero had a little

Schulten has managed to develop

In his non-match games, we often

his bishop from c8, but his knight re­

see Morphy looking for a mating attack

mains sadly stuck on b8, for if lS . . . ctJc6

long after a modern master would be

16 l:f.ad1 gangs up on the d7-pawn.

content to win slowly and surely with

ls ... h6 16 l:f.adl ctJc8 17 iVf4 ctJb6 18

his extra pawns. The American knew

ctJe s !

that, against amateur opponents, this

surprise waiting for the Dutchman on move six.

Game 82 A.Alekhine-M.Euwe 6th matchga me, Netherla nds 1937 Slav Defence

was the fastest and therefore most effi­ cient way to end the game. Schulten wasn't suddenly going to start defend­ ing his king like Korchnoi! 28 ... i.bs 29 l:!d4 l:f.C7? He should try 39 ... 'it'e7. 30 l:f.dg4 1-0

1 d4 ds 2 c4 c6 3 ctJC3 dXc4 4 e4 es 5 i.xc4 Actually Dr Euwe's confusion must have begun here. Why had he been allowed to take on d4? He didn't have to wait long for an answer. s ... exd4

Morphy himself described his 1 0th move as

U

an improvement on that

given in the leading treatises of the day". According to Sergeant he was referring to Hanstein-Von der Lasa, given in Staunton's

Handbook, in which

White made the obvious capture on d6. However, after 1 0 iVxd6 Black can 216

After S ... iVxd4 6 iVb3 iVd7 7 ii.gS!, All Black's minor pieces are a long

threatening 8 ':dl, we have an attack

way from his king, sitting passively on

reminiscent of Morphy vs Brunswick &

the b-file. So it is no surprise that the

Isouard in Chapter Two.

attack on f7 wins material, no matter

6 ctJf3 !? A startling reply. Eighty years (and

how Black plays, for if 18 ... �e8 or

eight chapters) earlier, Paul Morphy

18 ... iVe7 then 19 ctJg6!.

had shown the world that he could

18 .. :iiVf6 19 �xf6 gxf6 20 ctJg4 'it'g7 21 ctJxf6!

And here we have the proof: Mor-

give his opponents knight odds, and 217

Th e A rt of S u rp r ise

Ch ess Se crets: Th e G ia n ts of Power Play Alekhine wants to do the same. . .

could he possibly have seen that a fur­ ther five moves after that his queen should go to h5? I guess there was a very small chance that Euwe might have stumbled on these moves, so to speak, 'by acci­ dent' . But it was always far more likely that he would go wrong, as in fact oc­ curred in the game. Euwe looks around for a move that his opponent might have analysed less and comes up with something pretty awful.

repeated 6 ..tc4 against Euwe the next

11 ..tc4 lLlbd7 12 lLlxd4 Euwe is utterly lost and could quite

time he played White, he would have

reasonably throw in the towel here. But

been lucky to get away with a draw.

I guess he wants to get to a respectful

Naturally, if a move is objectively good

number of moves before resigning.

or at least a decent 'try', it can be re­

"World Champion loses in 12 moves"

peated quite safely, but it won't have

wouldn't be a very nice headline to

the same effect as when it was played

read at breakfast the next day, espe­

for the first time. It ceases to be a nov­

cially if you had to go out and play

elty, but is still a useful addition to our

Alekhine again...

knowledge of the game.

12...li!b8 1 3 'iVc2 'ilfcs 14 lLlfS lLles 15

as evidence that there is always some­

7 lLlxbS! 6 ... b S ?

White

A year after this game was played,

regains

his

pawn,

as

thing new to learn in chess, since Dr

if

Euwe, a great openings expert, had a

7... cxbS 8 ..tdS traps the rook on a8.

analysis by Goncharov showed the cor­

That means there is equal material,

rect path for Black: 6 ... dxc3 7 il..xf7+

with White a long way ahead in devel­

We7 8 �3 (the only way to keep up

opment and Black saddled with a very

the attack) 8 ... cxb2! ! (it seems bizarre to

weak pawn on d4.

develop White's bishop for him, but in

7 ... ..ta6 8 'i¥b3 !

lost position after only six moves. The recording has been preserved and is available on internet sites such as You­ Tube. When I first heard Alekhine's rather reedy voice it reminded me that his contemporaries described him as a

fact it is being deflected from giving a

nervous man, whereas his aggressive

powerful check on gS and will be a tar­

chess style and the colourful path of his

get on b2 after Black's next move) 9

life made me expect to hear someone

..txb2 �6 10 il.. a3+ cS 1 1 ..txg8 llxg8 12

Picking up a second pawn and forc­

..txcS+? (or 12 i¥xg8 'iVaS+ 13 lLld2 �xa3

16 ...c,¥;>xf7 17 'ilfxcs �xcS 18 ..txeS J1bS

this is the way White should play it)

19 ..td6 ..tb6 20 b4 .l:!.d8 21 .tladl cS 22

12 . . .'ihcs 13 0-0 (if 13 'iVxgS 'iVc3+ 14

bxcS ..txcS 23 kIdS 1-0

c,¥;>e2 ..te6 IS 'ilfxh7 ..tc4+ and Black wins) 13 .. :iVhS!! (another fine move; it

As we said above, a novelty doesn't

sidesteps 14 .l:!.ac1 and helps to trap the

have

white queen on h8) 14 "ii'xg8 il..e6 IS Black as the white queen is shut in. 50

we

must

conclude

8 ...'i¥e7 Or 8 ... ..txbS? 9 il..xf7+ 'iit d7 10 lLlxd4!

that

with a winning attack for White (but

Alekhine's sacrifice isn't sound. But

not 10 ..txgS? lIxg8! 1 1 'ilfxg8? J.. b4+

then with his clock ticking, how on

when he loses his queen).

earth could Euwe ever have found a

9 o-o! ..txbS 10 ..txbS lLlf6

move like 8 ... cxb2! !, which is com­ pletely 218

counter-intuitive?

And

how

more like Marlon Brando in the Godfa­ ther.

ing decisive simplification.

with better chances for Black, though

'ins lLlc6 with a clear advantage for

Alekhine gave a radio interview to the BBC in 1938 and quotes this game

J..f4 lLlhS 16 ..txf7+!

He still can't play 1 0 ... cxbS, as the rook perishes after 1 1 'ilfdS.

to

be

objectively

sound.

If

Su rprising the opponent with a bra nd new (old) opening Dr 5iegbert Tarrasch (1862-1934) had an excellent grasp of positional chess,

Alekhine hit Euwe with ten different

perhaps the best in the world during

novelties of this type, I would expect

his peak years in the early 1 890s, but

him to win seven or eight, draw one or

was somewhat lacking in tactical abil­

two, and totally mess up and lose the

ity and tended to underestimate the

other one. In other words he would

importance of dynamism. Lasker had

make a very big plus score by playing

taken advantage of these slight defi­

ten interesting and complex, but 'bad'

ciencies to defeat Tarrasch in their

moves! On the other hand, if he had

World Championship match of 1905. 219

The A rt of S u rpr ise

Chess S e c rets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Pl ay and what does the good Doctor make

But Tarrasch learnt his chess in an age

game, you will learn virtually all you

played, the German master was al­

of all this?

when the fianchetto was a rarity so, on

need to know about the dynamic use of

ready in his 60th year. It is evident that

5 dxe6

When

the

following

game

was

Alekhine wanted to engage him in a

Instead

of

accepting

the

pawn,

being surprised, his intuition or com­

pawns in chess. As we saw in Chapter

mon sense wasn't going to tell him to

Six, a game is often decided by the dif­

put the bishop on g2.

ference in energy between a working

hard tactical fight, whilst avoiding a

White could have gambited as pawn

'classical' pawn structure, as Tarrasch

himself with 5 il.g5!?, when if 5 . . .bxc4

Here's what might happen after 7

grew up in an age when 1 d4 d5 and 1

(5 . . . exd5 6 cxd5 d6 is safer) 6 ttJc3, he is

g3: 7. . . i.d6 8 1l.g2 0-0 9 0-0 ttJbd7 (the

7 ... Ji.d6 8 ttJc3 0-0 9 i.e2 ii.b7 10 b3

e4 e5 were de rigueur. A modem

ready to expand in the centre with 7 e4.

b5-pawn is a nuisance to Black as it

ttJbd7 11 i.b2 iVe7 12 0-0

player might reach for the King's In­

In other words, White's pawns would

rules out the natural 9 ...ttJc6) 10 ttJbd2.

dian, but this defence was little known

be working

Should

in 1922, and even less respected. In­

pawns. In the game the situation is

stead, Alekhine decided to introduce

soon reversed.

11 e4! . After 1 1 . . .dxe4? 12 ttJg5 White

into top-level chess an idea of the Rus­

5 ...fxe6 6 cxb5 d5

will regain his pawn on e4 having

harder

than the black

Black

try

to

expand

pawn structure and an inert one.

with

1O ... e5?, he can be hit by the pawn ram

sian master Blumenfeld. It is the just

smashed up the black centre. If instead

the type of 'modem', counterattacking

1 1 . . .d4 the black centre has congealed

opening to upset Tarrasch.

on the dark squares, losing all its ex­ pansive energy and leaving massive light square

Game 83 S. Tarrasch-A.Alekhine Bad Pistya n 1922 Blumenfeld Counter-Gambit

holes.

So

rather

than

1O ... e5? Black should continue to de­ velop with 1O ... 1l.b7, when the game

1 d4 ttJf6 2 c4 e6 3 ttJf3 C5 4 d5 b5!? The Blumenfeld Counter-Gambit is a forerunner of the Benko Gambit: 2 c4

By deflecting the white pawn from

c5 3 d5 bS. A key difference in the

might continue 11 b3 "t!Ve7 12 il.b2. Now

The bishop on e2 is on a passive

12 . . . e5 still meets with 13 e4!, while an

square where it can't support an e3-e4

attempt to attack with the pieces allows

counterattack in the centre. There is

White

centre

also a serious defensive drawback to

pawns: 12 ... ttJg4 13 h3 ttJge5 14 ttJxe5

White's avoidance of a fianchetto: he is

to

advance

his

own

ttJxe5 15 £4 ttJf7 16 e4! and White's

deprived of the g2-g3

c4, Black has succeeded in building a

pawns

game

which would block the action of the

Benko is that, rather than try to seize

broad pawn centre. Morphy would

P.Nikolic-F.Izeta

Oviedo

black bishop on d6 against the h2-

the centre with pawns, Black is satis­

have been fully conversant with the

(rapid) 1993.

fied to fianchetto on g7 and maintain a

idea from playing the King's Gambit,

Seeing these variations, which flow

against a future attack by the black

had

initiative

in

Txabarri,

the

square,

and

shield

pawn move

the

g2-square

solid position while exerting pressure

where White deflects the pawn from e5

naturally out of the position after 7 g3,

queen.

from the wings; for example, 4 axb5 a6

with 1 e4 e5 2 f4 exf4, so that after 3

it is easy to understand why the Blu­

anchetto

5 bxa6 g6 6 ttJc3 .1i.xa6 7 ttJf3 .1i.g7 8 g3

ttJf3 (to rule out 3 . . .�4+) he is ready to

menfeld was superseded by the Benko

weaken too many of the light squares

d6 etc.

seize the centre with 4 d4.

Gambit. In the latter opening Black also

around the white king.

7 e3?

gambits a pawn with ...b7-bS to disrupt

12 ... .l:tad8 13 iVC2 e5 14 l:tfe1?

Even in the modern age the Blu­ menfeld has its Grandmaster support­

Alekhine's choice of opening is vin­

ers, but probably isn't quite sound. I

dicated . You can imagine that Capab­

the white centre, but he doesn't then expose his centre pawns to attack.

Naturally, the

without

move

g2-g3

the

fi­

would

For better or worse White must make a stand in the centre with 14 e4;

suspect Alekhine might have thought

lanca would have shrugged his shoul­

If you look at the variations given

for example, 14 ... d4 15 .ic4+ '.t>h8 16

so at the time. But remember we are

ders and then fianchettoed with 7 g3!

above and compare them with what

ttJdS creating some counterplay. Once

playing the man as well as the board;

without giving it too much thought.

happens

he allows Alekhine's next move the

220

in

the

Tarrasch-Alekhine

221

Ch ess Se crets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r P l ay black centre is untouchable, and all hope is gone.

The A rt of S u rp rise 21 liJh2

14... e4

l:.g1

opponents had ever dared play 7. . . e4

29 b6

So that 21 .. .liJh4 can be met by 22 without

weakening his

pawn

If 29 liJf1 i..e 6!, intending 30 . . . i.xh3!

when he was White. The usual reply is

31 gxh3 �g1 mate, is entirely hopeless

8 'iVe2, but it suddenly struck Bron­

The fourth World Champion opens

front. On the other hand, White's con­

for White.

stein: had Morphy intended 8 dxe4,

the diagonal for his bishop, clears the

trol of the g3-square is lessened which

29 ... liJg3+ 30 Wg1 axb6 31 'ii'xb6 d2 3 2

giving up a piece for a mobile pawn

e5-square for his knight, and drives the

allows Black to engineer a knight sacri­

1:l:f1 liJxf1

centre?

white horse away from f3, after which

fice there.

the f2- and h2-squares are open to at­

21...d4!

Compare the situation here with that

at move

25.

Only now

does

Bronstein was due to play the Nor­ wegian

Master Rojahn at the 1956

tack.

Alekhine take the exchange, having in

Olympiad being held in Moscow, and

14 ... e4 15 liJd 2 liJe5 16 liJd1 liJfg4 17

the meantime driven the white queen

decided to test 8 dxe4 against him. But

i.xg4 liJxg4 18 liJf1

further from the defence and played

first of all, in his own words, "1 got

useful attacking moves such as ... i.d5

permission from my team colleagues".

and . . . h7-h5.

I would like you to try and imagine

33 liJxf1 i.e6 34 �h1 i.xh3!

Kasparov, Anand or Topalov having to get permission from their Olympiad

Beginning the final onslaught.

team-mates to play a sacrifice. I guess

35 gxh3 Itf3 36 liJg3 h4 Now we see the value of 28 ... h5. If

this shows how carefully a Soviet

the knight runs away, his king is mated

player in the 1950s had to guard his

on the h-file.

reputation against any accusation that he wasn't taking seriously the task of

37 i..f 6!? li'xf6 38 liJxe4 .uxh3+ 0-1 Alekhine's

Tarrasch

plays

according

pawns

are

rushing

After 39 �g1 iLh2+ White loses his

through the centre, taking away vital

queen, while after 39 �g2 "iVf3+ he

squares from the white pieces. Mean­

loses his king.

to

while White has a 3-1 pawn majority

Steinitz' s defensive model, which re­

on the two outer files of the queenside

quires the knights to be placed where

that is entirely irrelevant.

they can't easily be assailed by enemy

22 .Yl.c1

In any case, Bronstein got permis­ sion and this is the result: 8... lz:Jxc4 9 "ikd4 liJb6? An obvious retreat, but 9 . . . lZ:Jd6!

In the footsteps of Morphy

looks better, despite the fact that it seems to invite a pawn fork. However,

pieces. He succeeds in covering the f2-

Taking on d4 would allow the

and h2-squares, but the g2-square re­

bishop on b7 to join in the attack after

mains vulnerable. If only White had

. . . e4-e3 .

fianchettoed!

22 ... d3 23 "iVC4+ �h8 24 iLb2 liJg3+! 25

18 .. .'ii'g 5 !

Wg1

Alekhine knows that you should

representing his country.

White has no wish to see his centre dis­

Game 84 D.Bronstein-E.Rojahn Moscow Olym piad 1956 Two Knights ' Defence

solve away after 10 e5? liJf5, when both his queen and d5 are hanging. For his sacrifice to work, Bronstein needs to broaden and maintain his

If 25 fxg3 'i'xg3 26 lZ:Jfl l:.xfl + and

pawns as a solid wedge in the centre

always attack the weakest point in the

27 .. :+i'h2 mate.

1 e4 e5 2 liJf3 lZ:Jc6 3 i.C4 liJf6 4 liJg5 d5

until he has brought up all his pieces to

enemy camp.

25 ... .Yl.d5!

5 exd5 liJa 5 6 d3 h6 7 lZ:Jf3 e4 8 dxe4!?

support them. This is something he

19 h3 liJh6 20 �h1 liJf5

Black could cash in at once with

An excellent redeployment of the

25 ... d2

winning

the

exchange,

but

Bronstein relates that he had always

can't do after 9 . . . liJd6, as the natural

wondered how Morphy intended to

reply 10 liJc3 robs him of the chance to play c2-c4. Hence, by making a con­

knight. It both supports a pawn ad­

Alekhine prefers to keep up his initia­

answer

vance in the centre and

tive. He is right, of course!

played the black side of this variation

certed attack on e4, Rojahn could have

26 'iVa4 liJe2+ 27 �h1 l:.f7 28 "it'a6 h5!

on several occasions, but none of his

denied

21.. .liJh4. 222

threatens

7 ... e4.

The

American

had

his

opponent

the

time

he 223

The A rt oj S u rp rise

Chess Secrets: Th e Gia n ts oj P o w e r Play needed to make his idea work. On the other hand, it's no surprise

nected passed pawns to the opponent. 11 ... iLg4 12 liJbd2 i..e 7 13 0-0 O-O?

the Norwegian played the 'natural'

As his bishop is going to end up en­

placed, with no gaps in their pawn cen­

following game against Timman illus­

tre, whereas the black pieces have no­

trates.

where to settle and are being continu­

But first of all, take a quick look at

he thought that Bronstein had simply blundered a piece with 8 dxe4.

tombed on h7, Black should have taken

ally harassed.

this game from the most famous match

the chance to exchange it off with

2s .. :iVg6 26 fS �b6 27 �g3 f6

of all time:

This gave our hero a huge psychologi­

1 3 . . . iLxf3.

cal advantage, as Rojahn wasn't look­

14 liJes iLhS 15 b31 liJbd7 16 .ltb2

move 9 .. .'�Jb6:

Rojahn is desperate. He gains the e5-square for his knight, but at the cost

ing for nuances like 9 . .liJd6; he was

This is very smooth play: the bishop

expecting to win the game with some

gets to b2 just in time to support the

centre pawns.

straightforward developing moves.

knight.

2S e6 liJes 29 h4!

10 e4!

16 ... liJxes 17 iLxes liJd7 is .lte3 iLf6 19

.

Bronstein takes the chance to in­

�ae1 iLxe3 20 'i¥xe3

crease the size and power of his centre.

Game 85 R.Fischer-B.Spassky 6th matchga me, Reykjavi k 1972 Queen 's Gambit

of removing any restraint on the white

Yet more pawns join in the charge. 29 ... 'it'hS 30 gs llbeS 31 'it'h1 �dS 32 g6

The exchange of a couple of pieces

iLxg6 33 fxg6 bS 34 d6 "ii' b6 35 d7

hasn't helped Black, as there are now

liJxd 7 36 exd7 lledS 37 liJxf6 'iWe6+ 3S

1 e4 e6 2 liJf3 dS 3 d4 liJf6 4 liJe3 i..e7 5

Not a good decision, as Black will

fewer defenders who can be called

�g2 1-0

i.gs 0-0 6 e3 h6 7 iLh4 b6 S exds liJxds

10 ...eS? no longer have any means to challenge

upon to give up their lives to break the

The advance of White's pawns re­

9 i.xe7 "iWxe7 10 liJxds exds 11 11e1

the white centre with his pawns. In­

power of the white pawns. As we saw

minds me of a Roman legion using

.lte6 12 'i'a4 eS 13 'iWa3 .l:i.eS 14 .ltbS a6

stead, 1O ... c6 has been recommended.

above, the piece Rojahn really needed

their shields not just

15 dxes bxes 16 0-0 �a7 17 .te2 liJd7

11 �d3

to get rid of is still sitting on h5.

weapons, but as bludgeons to smash

is liJd4 'ii'fS 19 tbxe6 fxe6 20 e4 d4 21

20 .. :�f6 21 eS 'ii'fs 22 f4

their way through the enemy lines.

f4 'fIe7 22 eS l:bS 23 iLe4 c;t>hS 24 'fIh3

as

defensive

liJfS 25 b3 a s

A novelty that tra nsforms a positional squeeze into a power play fight It might seem surpnsmg that Geller, who was always looking for active play with the black pieces, should be a great fan of the 'solid' Queen's Gambit. In fact it suited his style very well. At the start of the game he was always look­ Now Bronstein is able to develop all his

pieces

and

then

ing for ways of softening up the oppo­

steam-roller

White's pawns are now magnifi­

nent's pawn structure, and he liked to

through the centre. Rojahn still has his

cent.

do this from a sound base. Further­

2 6 f S exfs 27 l:txfS liJh7 2S 11d1 'fIdS 29

extra knight, but his pieces aren't going

22 ... iLg6 23 liJe4 l:!.abS 24 �f3 i.. h 7 25

more, Geller loved to utilize a pawn as

'fIg3 .l::i.e 7 30 h4 l:!.bb7 31 e6 llbe7 32

to get any help from their pawns.

g4!

a battering ram if he felt his opponent's

'fIes 'fIeS 3 3 a4 'i¥dS 34 111f2 'fIeS 35

Black's queenside pawns remain pas­

Widening the pawn front even fur­

had transgressed the 'laws' of good

�2f3 �d8 36 iLd3 'ti'eS 37 'iVe4 liJf6 3S

sive until the end of the game, while

ther. The relentless pressure exerted on

strategy. The Queen's Gambit affords

llxf6 gxf6 39 ILxf6 'it'gS 40 i..e4 'ii;;> hS 41

the ones on the kingside only manage

the black pieces is very Morphy-like.

Black the chance to use his so-called

'fIf4 1-0

the move 27 .. .£6, which concedes con-

The white pieces are all comfortably

'hanging pawns' in this fashion, as his

224

Black was absolutely crushed in 225

T h e A rt of S u rp rise

C h e s s Secrets: Th e Gi a n ts of P o w e r Play have a completely winning position: an

strict positional style. His pawns on cS

So far, so Fischer. After all, what

and d4 became dead wood in the cen­

reason could the Dutchman possibly

extra pawn, a grip on the dark squares

tre, with no expansive energy at all.

have for not following in the great

and a safe king. We might say that all

Meanwhile Fischer could use his mo­

man's footsteps? (Hindsight is more

the energy would have drained from

bile kingside pawns to smash through

powerful than genius, and so modern

the black position.

the black position with 26 fS.

chess prefers 14 ..te2 here.)

Fischer was playing the best chess

It is instructive to see how Geller maintains his essential dynamism.

14 ... 'iNb71

20.. :iVg4! 21 �gl d4!

ever seen on planet earth between 1970 and 1972, but Spassky didn't put up much resistance in the game above. He just let all the energy drain away from the black centre.

A computer might tell you that this

Now let's see how, in the same variation

opening

Geller

not

is the losing blunder, but in reality it

only

has long been a hopeless struggle for

maintains the dynamism of Black's set­

White. It is scarcely possible to defend

up, but even uses its energy to smash

with 100% accuracy when your king is

up the white position.

floating around in the centre. If every

All three facets of power play are revealed. Firstly, there is

preparation

move you have to make is an 'only'

-

im­

This is Geller's improvement. There

provement in the opening for Black.

is a positional threat of lS ... c4, cutting

Geller has found

an

excellent

move, sooner or later there will be a The second pawn sacrifice prevents

fatal slip. For this reason it is easier to

The

off the retreat of White's bishop, after

any ctJd4 shut out.

attack than to defend.

young Timman has been dazzled by

which it can be used as a target to mo­

22 ctJxd4 �h4!

30...'iVe1+ 3 1 !te2 'iVg1+ 32 �d3 'ud8+

Fischer's effortless achievement in the

bilize the black queenside pawns with

Secondly,

there

is

psychology.

An attack on the enemy pawn struc­

33 �e3 'tid1 34 'iVb5 �d4+ 3 5 �e2

16 . . . a6 17 �a4 bS.

ture is a key feature of Geller's style. It

But now what? Remember that the

American's opening can possibly con­

15 dxe5 bxe5 16 .l:.xe5 .l:i.xe5 17 'ii'xe5

persuades his opponent to give up the

pieces acting on their own can't over­

tain any flaws. And thirdly, there is

tDa6

f2-pawn, as 23 .l:i.fl allows 23 ... ..tc4,

whelm a defence. At some point the

The point of the pawn sacrifice.

while after 23 'iite1 both 23 .. :iVxh2 or

help of a pawn is always required!

White's queen can't stay defending the

23 . . . .l:i.c8 leave White wondering how

35 ... a6!

bishop, and after the capture on a6, his

he is going to extricate his king from

king finds himself trapped in the cen­

the centre.

fending both her rook and the cS­

tre.

23 l::te 1 'iixf2+ 24 .l:i.e2 'iYf1

square.

game above, and can't believe that the

dynamism. The 'solid' Queen's Gambit reveals a wonderful latent energy.

Game 86 J.Timma n-E.Gelier H i lversu m 1973 Queen 's Gambit

Now the black bishop threatens to

18 ..txa6 'iVxa6 19 'iVa3 Getting his queen out of the way of

2S ... �g4. It therefore has to be elimi­

19 ... .l:tc8 with gain of time. .

Now

after the obvious

36 'iVxa6 'iNe5+ 0-1 It is mate upon 37 Wb1 !!d1 or 37 'iitb3 lIb8+ 38 'iita4 'iib4.

nated, even though the disappearance

19 .:iie4 20 'iitd 2 1 d4 d5 2 e4 e6 3 tDe3 iLe7 4 tDf3 tDf6 5

strike in two directions: 25 ... �c4 or

Now the white queen can't stay de­

20 .. J:Ic8

of White's knight leaves his king terri­

Preparation in the 21st century

�g5 0-0 6 e3 h6 7 ..th4 b6 8 exds tDxd5

White would be able to consolidate

bly exposed.

9 ..txe7 �xe7 10 tDxd5 exds 11 Ue1

with 21 ctJd4, shutting the black queen

25 ctJxe6 fxe6 26 'iVd6 Wh8 27 e4 ne8

Nowadays players such as Kramnik

�e6 12 'iNa4 e5 13 'iNa3 Me8 14 iLbS

out of the c2-square. Timman would

28 �e3 11f8 29 z:td2 es! 30 �xes

and Aronian frequently, but by no

226

22 7

Th e A r t of S u rp r i s e

C h e s s S e c rets: Th e G i a n ts of P o w e r Play means always, try to avoid forcing

Game 8 7 V.Topa lov-I.Chepa rinov Sofia 2008 Grunfeld Defence

variations. They are satisfied with a restrained development of their pieces and chances to outmanoeuvre their opponent. There is nothing wrong with this approach, which often leads to beautiful, creative chess. For a power player, the necessity of

1 d4 lbf6 2 c4 g6 3 lbC3 dS 4 cxds lbxdS S �d 2

Expecting to equalize after 9 JLe2 eS, but he meets with an unpleasant sur­

Cheparinov has to challenge the

misplaced on d7. Correct was 8 . . . lbc6,

white centre, and the other pawn stab

when after 9 .ltbS i.d7 Black can pre­

with 10 ... c5 leaves a very ugly hole on

pare . . . e7-eS with reasonable play.

bS after 1 1 dS.

Topalov's

strategy

opening

has

The knight on b6 10ses its remaining pawn support, but he had to deal with the threat of 12 lbbS, pocketing the c7-

The first sign that Topalov i s eager

opening is more acute than ever. In an

to avoid a theoretical battle against his

nent would have been his equal. By

age of instant information, Topalov's

young trainer.

diverging

rivals know about a new opening idea

s ... lbb6 6 lbf3 i.g7 7 e3

mainline

revealing it on the board. Indeed, they

b6, White might activate his bishop

11 dS c6

worked perfectly. If he had played down a long theoretical line, his oppo­

Since the black knight has retired to

10... eS

prise. As will be seen, the knight is

finding new, interesting moves in the

he has concocted within hours of him

so that h e can establish a pawn on dS.

at

an

theory,

early he

point

gave

him

from the

chance to make a strategical mistake. 9 a4!

pawn. 12 JLg S! The next step in White's plan is to put the bishop on e3 to apply direct pressure

on the

beleaguered

black

may start preparing against it the very

with 7 i.f4 or 7 .l:tc1 0-0 8 ..ItgS. Instead,

Threatening to win a piece with 10

second he moves a piece or pawn to a

he shuts it in with a move that seems

as and so provoking Black's reply. Of

knight. But first of all Topalov pro­

new square, if they happen to be fol­

too quiet to have attracted much atten­

course, if Black had played 8 ... lbc6 this

vokes his opponent into either weaken­

lowing the game live on an internet

tion from the theorists - which is ex­

move would be pointless.

ing his kingside pawns with 12 . . . f6 or

transmission!

actly why Topalov played it.

9 ... aS

else misplacing his bishop on f6.

For this reason the novelty may

7

.••

0-0 8 1Ic1

This may not appear to be a major

12 ... .tf6 13 i.e3 �e7 The need to defend b6 ties down the

only be good for one game, but a win

concession but, as we shall see, Topa­

in a world-class tournament is so ex­

lov plans to target both the as-pawn

knight on d7,

traordinarily difficult to achieve that

itself and the knight on b6. The fact

bishop on c8, who in tum shuts in the

Topalov is satisfied if he gets one pre­

that Black can no longer play . . . a7-a6 to

rook on a8. With so many black pieces

cious point in return for his analytical

cover the b5-square is also significant.

paralysed on the queenside, Topalov

labours.

10 e4!

which blocks in the

decides to fix the central situation and then start an attack on the kingside.

In the following game the Bulgarian

14 d6

Grandmaster applies the three facets of power play: preparation, psychology and

dynamism.

He was facing his

long-time trainer and fellow Bulgarian Ivan Cheparinov, a very strong and imaginative player in his own right. As

It should be recalled that, although

an 'insider' Cheparinov not only knew

a brilliant analyst, Cheparinov was

all Topalov's secret opening ideas, he

only 21 years old. He hadn't played

had even suggested a lot of them in the

enough games to fully develop his po­

first place! It's interesting to see how

sitional awareness, as becomes clear

our hero overcame this awkward situa­

with his next move.

tion.

8 lb8d7? •••

White expands in the centre before his opponent has time to play ... e7-e5,

228

229

C h e s s Secrets: Th e Gi a n ts of P o w e r Play Killing off any hopes that Chepari­ nov might have entertained of activat­

The A rt of S u rp r ise 18.. .f4 18 ... axb4 19 'iWb3+ �h8 20 'i*'xb4 c5

white queen's first move of the game

tween Topalov and one of the greatest

not only helps the white pieces gang

strategists of his era. The Bulgarian

ing his game with 14 . . . cxd5 or 14 .. :ikh4.

21 �S! is also horrid for Black.

up on £7, but also introduces combina­

Grandmaster managed to impose a

Normally this advance would be risky,

19 .txb6 ttJxb6 20 bxa5 ttJd7

tional motifs against a8 and eS.

dynamic struggle on his opponent with

30 ... h6 3 1 lIf7!

a remarkable piece sacrifice.

as the pawn is cut off from its support, but here the black pieces are too tied

Saving the knight from 21 �3+. 21 a6!

If you are wondering why Black is

up to trouble it.

Not wanting to give Black any

so outgunned in the melee, take a look

14 ..Ji'e6 15 b3!

counterplay after 21 .tc4+ '>ith8 22 ttJe6

at how hard White's rook is working

Game 88 V.Topalov-V.Kramnik Wij k aan Zee 2008 Semi-Slav Defence

And now he rules out any chance

lIxa5! 23 ttJxf8 .txf8 etc. Cheparinov's

on the seventh rank. His rook on hI

that Black might get rid of his bad

reply avoids losing the exchange, but

also played an important role by sup­

knight with 15 ... ttJc4.

he ends up a sound passed pawn down

15 ... .tg7 16 h4!

porting 28 ttJgS!. In contrast, the black

and still facing an attack.

rooks only made half of one move in

21 ... h8 22 ttJbl!

the whole game, when Black castled.

1 d4 d5 2 e4 e6 3 ttJf3 ttJf6 4 lbe3 e6 5

3 1.. J!Ve8

i..g 5 h6 6 .th4 dxe4 7 e4 g5 8 i.g3 b5 9

His opponent has two knights, a rook and bishop hemmed in on the

The knight retreat to b 1 boosts the

other wing, so an attack on the extreme

energy of the white position - a para­

edge of the kingside is eminently logi­

dox which would have delighted Bron­

cal.

ing.

stein.

16 ...f5

22 ... .th6 23 ttJf3 bxa6 24 �xe6 .tb7 25

32 l:txg7! 1-0

Normally this is a good counterat­

If 31..JIxf7 32 ttJxf7+ and a8 is hang­

�e2 .tb7 10 0-0 lbbd7 11 ttJe5 �g7 12 ttJxf7! !

Ite7 .txe4 26 l:txd7 "iWf5

tacking move, but here it leads to a speedy collapse. On the other hand, he couldn't just wait for the white attack to steam-roller him. 17 ttJg5 'i*'f6 18 b41

A massive shock for Kramnik. It Black is mated after 32 ... �xg7 33

Grandmaster had already started to

�xeS+ l:H6 34 'iVe7+ etc. Black hits both bl and d7. It appears

A wonderful power play game. To­

write the 'normal' move 12 lbxd7 on

that Cheparinov might be getting some

palov handled all three elements of

his score sheet when Topalov picked up

counterplay,

psychology,

his knight. In that case 12 ... lbxd7 13

but

Topalov

quickly

crushes the 'revolt'.

preparation

and

dyna­

mism with great skill.

i.. d 6 1eads to a double-edged but 'well­

A clash of chess styles

had played with both White and Black.

A good place to end our study of

f7 and he removed the black pawn

power play is with a sharp battle be-

from the board - the Bulgarian had

rehearsed' variation which Kramnik

27 'U.e7 .ixbl 28 ttJg5! i..g7 Highly flexible thinking. Topalov switches

his attention back to the

queenside and threatens 1 9 bxa5 Ilxa5 20 �3+, winning a piece. 230

wouldn't surprise me if the Russian

After 26 ... �xg5 27 hxgS the rook on hI attacks h7 with lethal effect. 29 .te4 i.. c2 30 'i'd 5 ! A

powerful

centralization.

The

Instead, Topalov's knight landed on

231

C h e s s Secrets: The G i a n ts of Po we r Play

The A r t of S u rp rise

caught his long-term rival in a pre­

because they become alarmed a t the

pared variation!

riously investigating the sacrifice on £7.

slightest sign of danger to his majesty's

12 ...'it>xf7 13 e5 ttJd5 14 ttJe4

Until, that is, Topalov and his team set

eventual draw after 17 iLxh5 l:'1afB 1B

health.

to work.

iVg4 iLh6 etc.

Threatening a knight fork on d6.

Kramnik has come through the first

The last two moves have been forced

So what did they notice about the

'test', but I wonder how much time on

for Black, but now he has to make an

position that had been missed by other

the clock and mental energy this cost?

important decision: should the king go

theorists? Crucially, that the sacrifice

15 ttJd6 'ii'b6

to e7 or gB?

The

on e6, which led to a hard fight and

17 �C2

12 ttJxf7 has not only displaced the

queen defends

the bishop,

clears the way for the rook on aB to come to fB to bolster the defence, and frees the retreat square on dB for her king.

black king, it has also removed the support of the e6-pawn. It is a curious feature that, despite Black having so many pieces in the centre, the e6square is hard to defend . Thus the king on e7 gets in the way of ... :eB, the knight on d7 blocks ... iLcB, and the en­ emy knight on d6 stops the queen de­ fending along the third rank after ... c6c5. The pawn can be bolstered with

14 ...'it>e7! The black king stays in the centre, as he hopes in time to be able to slip away to the queenside, where he will find shelter behind the large clump of

This position has arisen as a natural

17 'iNxd4? ...

... ttJc7, but Black doesn't want to retreat

Kramnik aims to disrupt White's

his well-placed knight; while the alter­

build-up by hitting the bishop on g4.

native ...ttJfB has the drawback that it

He also undermines the defence of e5,

rules out the move

and should that pawn be captured as

.. J::taf8 and so

makes a white breakthrough with f2-f4

well, the white knight will lose its cen­

all the stronger.

tre base. Unfortunately for him, the fact

Of course, a weakness is only a

that he has left b7 undefended means

weakness if it can be attacked, and

that, after White's reply, he is going to drop both of his bishops.

black pawns. Besides, after 14 .. .'iitgB the

consequence of the sacrifice on move

rook on hB is shut in. White would be

here, too, 12 ttJx£7 shows its value. The

12. We should therefore pause and

able to prepare an f2-f4 breakthrough

removal of the f7-pawn has opened the

The critical move was 17 .. .lIhgB!,

consider what Topalov has gained for

g6-square for the white queen, where

defending g7. If then 1B "ii'g6, keeping

in the style of the Morphy knight-odds

his piece. A quick look tells us that he

games we have seen in Chapter Two.

has won time to get his knight to d6

One of the hardest calls to make in

and the black king is stuck in the cen­

she can join forces with her light­

to his original plan, after 1B . . .ttJc7 the

squared bishop on g4 to assail the e6-

threat

point.

19 ... iLxe5 means that the white queen

of

a

discovered

attack

by

chess is how much the safety of the

tre.

seems

king should be jeopardized in order to

Therefore Topalov has a clear plan

has to run away. Thereafter White

enough compensation. In contrast to a

achieve a strategic aim, such as the win

to improve the coordination of his

managed to outwit his opponent with

Morphy

the

of a pawn or a more fluid develop­

pieces - namely an assault on e6 - and

19

black pieces are engaged, or ready to

enough energy to compensate for the

B.Gundavaa, Moscow 200B. Another sharp line begins IB l:'1ad1 c5!?

However,

this

knight-odds

hardly game,

all

'ilt'e4

.taB

20

f4

in

V.Kiselev­

ment. Very strong players sometimes

be engaged, in the fight. Furthermore,

suffer a sharp defeat because they take

missing knight.

the centre is still blocked, making it

slightly too great a risk with their king

16 iLg4! l:'1af8

difficult for the white pieces to get at

- whereas inexperienced players miss

the king. It is considerations of this

opportunities to improve their game

forearmed Karjakin played

16 ... h5!?,

logical pressure and the sheer complex­

kind which prevented players ever se-

deflecting the bishop from the attack

ity of the problems he faced made it

232

But Kramnik couldn't investigate all

In a later game against Shirov, the

this with a ticking clock! The psycho­

233

Chess Sec rets: Th e G i a n ts of Pow er Play for the former

2 8. . .ttJf4 29 .txf4 Ilxf4 30 ltJb5+! cxb5 31

World Champion to find a good de­

virtually impossible

cxb5+ �d8 32 lHd I! and Black has no

fence over the board. Topalov would

good way to defend d7, as 32 .. J�h7

have been bitterly disappointed if he

loses at once to 33 'it'g8+.

had failed to win after 'using up' his

27 ... IIxf7 28 :xc6+ 'iitb8 29 ltJxf7 l:!.e8

novelty.

According to Scherbakov 29 . . .ltJb6!

18 'ii'g6!

30 ltJxh8 ltJxd5 would give Black good

The main threat is 19 'ii'xe6+. 18 ... 'ii'xg4 19 �xg7+ �d8 20 ttJxb7+ �c8 2 1 a4!

I n d e x of O p e n i n g s

I

chances to survive, due to the strength of the passed pawn. 30 ltJd6 :h8 31 11c4 'iWe2 32 dxe6 ltJb6 3 3 l:tb4 'iita 8

Figures refer to page numbers.

If now 21.. .c�xb7 22 'ii'x d7+ wins. So Topalov has got all his material back

Now Topalov is able to exchange

bar one pawn, which means he has a

his front e-pawn for Black's passed

strong attack on the black king almost

pawn. Thereafter his beautiful piece

'for free'.

coordination, safe king and remaining

21 ...b4 22 l:tacl c3 23 bxc3 b3

passed pawn all add up to a win.

Kramnik strives to keep lines closed

34 e7 ltJdS 3S nxb3 ltJxe7 36 Itfbl ltJdS

on the queenside and also hopes for

37 h3 hS 38 ltJf7 :c8 3 9 e6 a6 40 ltJxgs

counterplay with his passed pawn.

h4 41 .td6 :g8 42 lt3b2 �d3 43 e7 ltJf6

24 c4 1Ug8 2S ttJd6+ <j;C7 26 'ii'f7 lIf8 27

44 .tes ltJd7 4s ltJe6 1-0

cxd S? In the heat of battle it's difficult for

The battle between power play and

even the strongest players to keep a

positional chess continues into the fu­

cool head. After 27 h3! the queen ex­

ture, but it's time to say goodbye to the

change 27 . Jhf7 28 hxg4 leaves Black's

reader. Let me wish you the best of

knight and rook on f7 both hanging,

luck and enjoyment of your chess,

while if 27 .. :�!ie2 28 'ii'xe6 the white at­

whatever your preferred manner of

tack in soon decisive; for example,

play!

.

234

Alekhine Defence

137, 145

Blumenfeld Counter-Gambit

220

Catalan Opening

5, 1 18, 143

Centre-Counter Defence

13, 140

Du tch Defence

80, 103, 121, 194

English Opening

49, 124, 148, 1 75

Evans' Gambit

58, 169

Four Knights Opening

1 13

French Defence

1 1, 45, 63, 208

Griinfeld Defence

128, 158, 228

King's Gambit

52, 61

King's Indian Defence

69, 1 78, 180, 184

Nimzo-Indian Defence

23, 84, 135, 154, 203

Odds Game

36, 37, 38

Old Indian Defence

31

Petroff Defence

97

Philidor Defence

40, 83, 193, 196

Pirc Defence

129

Queen's Gambit

42, 76, 91, 1 07, 1 1 1, 164, 192, 201, 225, 226

Queen's Indian Defence

71, 131

Reti Opening

26

Ruy Lopez

16, 57, 88, 93, 95, 1 1 0, 1 1 6, 126, 155, 161, 1 73, 216

Semi-Slav Defence

231

235

C h e s s Secrets: The G ia n ts of Po wer Play Sicilian Defence

1 7, 20, 47, 85, 100, 120, 151, 166, 187, 206

Sla v Defence

65, 2 1 1, 217

Two Knights' Defence

223

Vienna Game

56

I n d ex of P l aye rs

I

Figures refer to page numbers. Bold type indicates that a player had the black pieces. Alekhine

11, 20, 26, 31, 42, 76, 91, 103, 1 07, 1 1 0, 128, 145, 164, 1 75, 201, 217, 220

Amateur

58

Anderssen

13, 116, 140

Aronian

131

Barcza

124

Barnes

83, 1 73

Bird

169

Bogoljubow

103

Book

42

Botvinnik

80, 203

Bronstein

16, 52, 80, 84, 95, 121, 124, 135, 137, 148, 154, 155, 178, 180, 203, 223

Brunswick & Isouard

40

Capablanca

201

Carlsen

5

Cheparinov

228

Delekta

56

Dreev

45

Euwe

1 28, 217

Fischer

206, 225

Geller

23, 45, 47, 56, 63, 69, 84, 88, 93, 118, 126, 129, 158, 1 61, 184, 206, 208, 226

236

23 7

In dex of Play e rs

C h e s s Secrets : The Gia n ts of Po wer Play Germek

184

Gligoric

93, 95

Harrwitz

192, 193, 194, 196

Ivanchuk

166

Junge

110

Kamsky

65, 1 00

Karjakin

187

Karpov

208

Keres

23, 155

Korchnoi

16, 161

Schulten

61, 216

Selezniev

164

Smyslov

135, 158

Spassky

225

Spiridonov

118

Stahlberg

121

Stean

47

Strikovic

120

Tal

52

Tarrasch

220

Timman Topalov

226 1 7, 49, 57, 65, 71, 97, 100, 1 1 1, 120, 131, 143, 151, 166,

Velimirovic

69 37

Kotov

88

Kramnik

5, 17, 211, 2 3 1

Lasker

91

Lichtenhein

38

Ljubojevic

137

Worrall

Lutz

151

Zita

1 78

Marshall

107

Znosko-Borovsky

145

Maurian

36

Morozevich

97

Morphy

13, 36, 37, 38, 40, 58, 61, 83, 85, 113, 1 1 6, 140, 169, 173,

Naiditsch

111

Najdorf

154

Opocensky

31

187, 2 1 1, 228, 231

192, 193, 194, 196, 216

Paulsen

85, 1 1 3

Petrosian

63

Podgorny

20

Polugaevsky

148

Pomar Salamanca

11

Ponomariov

5 7, 71

Portisch

126

Pribyl

129

Radjabov

143

Reshevsky

180

Reti

26

Rojahn

223

Rozentalis

49

Rubinstein

76

Samisch

175

238

239