The Power Chess Program: Book 2

The Power Chess Program Book 2

Nigel Davies

B.T. Batsford Ltd, London.

First published in 1999 © Nigel Davies 1 999

Contents

ISBN 0 7 1 34 8420 9 British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data. A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, by any means, without prior permission of the publisher. Printed in Great Britain by Creative Print and Design (Wales), Ebbw Vale for the publ[shers D.T. Batsford Ltd 9 B lenheim Court Brewery Road London N7 9NT

lIP' A member of the Ch�J'saJis Group pic

A B ATSFORD CHESS BOOK

5

Introduction

7

The Art of Attack 2 The Initiative

23

3 The Art of Defence

39

4 Winning 'Won Position s

'

56

5 Endgame Themes

71

6 Endgame Battles

87

7 Masters of Attack

103

8 The Strategists

120

9 The Technicians

136

10 The Tacticillns

152

11 The Opening

167

12 The Elements of Mastery

183

Key Moyes Solutions

201

Anal ysis Positions Solutions

215

Symbols

Introduction Welcome to year two of the

Power Chess Program which can be

+

# x !! '? ?! ? ?? 1-0 0- 1 '/1-'/1

Ct Cm Ch WCh Cht

tt 01 Izt

Zt corr m

check mate captures a brill iant move a good move an interesting move a dubious move a bad move a blunder White wins Black wins draw Candidates tournament Candidates match Championship World championship Team championship Team tournament Olympiad Interzonal tournament Zonal tournament Correspondenc.e game Match

studied either together with or inde­ pendently from Book I. What is it that makes a strong chess player? Is it a knowledge of opening theory Cas many people seem to believe) or perhaps being able to calculate more moves ahead than the opponent? A quick eye per­ haps, fierce will to win or just patience? Through my work as a chess trainer I have come across all sorts of theories as to what it is that makes someone good at chess, not all of them very sound. As a result it is quite difficult for an amateur player with a limited amount of time to know exactly how to improve. With these thoughts in mind I set about developing a training program which would target the two main areas in which stronger pl ayers dis­ tinguish themselves. The first is their ability to see ahead clearly and deeply and be able to make disci­ p lined calculations. The second is in recognising a large number of stra­ tegic patterns and being able to apply this to similar positions with good j udgement and creativity. The Power Chess Program is a two year course in which month by month I p resent different strategic themes and issues and then back this up with thematic test positions to

get the reader actively invol ved. It is only through jhis active involve­ ment that the strategic ideas really hit home, simply reading about them is not enough! I have arranged the chapters in terms of 'weeks' and 'months' with the aim of encouraging a regu lar weekly study session of about 3-5 hours. For each week's lesson you should firstly read through the ootes and then set about the test positions. These positions are divided into two types. The 'key move' positions C KM 1 311: to KM24/4 are fairly l ightweight and you might allow yourself around 1 0 minutes each to find the next move. The analysis positions CAl3/I: to A24/4) are much more difficult and I suggest you spend around 30 minutes on these. r recommend that you do not take more than the al lotted time so as to avoid frustration and en ...our­ age quick, disciplined decisions. I also suggest that you try not to move the pieces as this will help de­ velop visualisation skills. You should also note that these positions are not necessarily tactical forced wins. Sometimes it is a good positional move that is required, sometimes you may be called on to find the best chance in a losing posi­ tion. This conforms much more to the reality of chess than the standard two-movers we see a l l the time in

newspapers. These lack any kind of challenge because you know there is something there! I will not try to kid you that this course is an easy option and that merely opening this book will im­ prove your chess. Several of my stu­ dents have fahen by the wayside after a few months. What I can say is that everyone. who has persevered and worked systematically through it has exper­ ienced an upswing in their results, sometimes a quite dramatic improvement.

,

The Power Chess Program can also be studied in conjuntion with a personal tuition package. For more details you can contact me at my web site (www.checkerwise.co.uk). It remains for me to wish you well with the Power-Chess Program and leave you with the words of John F. Kennedy: "There are costs and risks to a program of action, but they are far less than the long-range risks and costs of comfortable inaction."

GM Nigel Davies, Manches ter, June 1999.

1

The Art of Attack

In Book 1, month one, we looked at various aspects of king safety and attack. This month we will look in more detail at the art of attack using the games of some of its greatest exponents. In week one we will see the attack on the king in the most basic form in which the hapless monarch is being pursued by a number of the opponent's pieces. In week two we will see examples of direct attacks upon a king's fortress, in week three we see how a preliminary softening up process can be effective. Last but not least I will give a rather more philosophical view of the attack by comparing chess strat­ egy with the views on warfare ex­ pounded by the Chinese general Sun Tzu in his book The Art a/War. The greatest genius of the attack was, in my opinion, Alexander Alekhine who amazed his contem­ poraries with his ability to generate attacking positions. He seemed to have a unique ability to bring about attacking positions against the strongest of opposition and from all kinds of positions. For this reason I have featured Alekhine's games this month more than those of any other player.

Month l3/Week I : The King Hunt There is nothing more dramatic or easily comprehensible in chess than the sight of a king running across the board whilst trying to evade blows by the opposing pieces. This is romantic chess in its purest form though in today's scientific era it is rather more difficult to bring about such scenarios than it was in the past. The reason is that players are much more careful about the safety of their king and would prefer to make almost any concession rather than suffer the indignity of having their king hunted down. All the same thIS does sometimes happen ... The. first game this week sees at­ tack ar.d defence in balance with White having enough for a draw by perpetual check but not more than this. In the second game there is the rather more common scenario of the hunted king getting cut down in the cross-fire.

O'Kelly - Penrose Varna Olympiad 1 962 1 e4 c5 2 lbf3 lDc6 3 d4 cxd4 4 lDxt14 e6 5 lbc3 'itc7 6 iLe2 a6 7

8 The Art ofAttack

The Art ofAttack 9

0-0 ltJr6 8 �e3 .ltb4 9 ltJxc6 bxc6 1 0 .ltd3 d5 I I exd5 cxd5 12 .ltd4 �e7 1 3 .!:[el 0-0 With White's pieces pointing menacingly towards the kingside this could be described as 'brave'. 14 'iff3 �b7 1 5 l:le3 .!:[re8 1 6 l:r.ae1 .!:[ad8 1 7 'Wh3 liJe4! If 17 ... g6 there is 18 l:r.O ltJe4 1 9 'i'xh7+ Wxh7 2 0 l:lh3+ �g8 21 l:r.h8#.

1 8 'ifh5! There are several tempting possi­ bilities, none of which brings home the bacon. 18 �xg7 fails after 18 . . . 'it>xg7 19 l:r.g3+ �h8 2 0 'tth6 .!:[g8, 18 ltJxe4 allows 18 ... dxe4 19 .ltxe4 �xe4 20 .!:[xe4 'i'xc2 and 18 o is met by 1 S ... 1'5! 19 txe4 dxe4. 18 ... .ltf6! The only dt:ft:Il(;t:. Tilt: plausible 18 ... g6 loses to 1 9 jfxh7+ �7 20 l:r.h3+ �g8 21 .!:[h8# and 18 ... f5 is met by 19 .!:[h3 h6 20 �xg7 ltJg5 21 jfg6. 1 9 ltJxe4 Both sides are finding their best moves. After 1 9 .!:[x e4 Black can de­ fend himself with 19 .. dxe4 20 i.xf6 gxf6 21 .lixe4 f5. 1 9 ... �xd4 .

20 'ifxh7+! Not only spectacular but at this stage rather necessary. 20 ltJg5 al­ lows Black to take the initiative with 20 ... h6 21 .!:[h3 'ilr'f4 etc. This sacrifice is reminiscent of a famous game between Edward Lasker and Sir George Thomas played in London in 1910 which went 1 d4 f5 2 ltJc3 ltJf6 3 ltJO e6 4 �g5 �e7 5 �xf6 .ltxf6 6 e4 fxe4 7 lOxe4 b6 8 �d3 .lib7 9 ltle5 00 10 'ifh5 'ike7 11 'Wxh7+! 'it>xh7 12 ltJxf6+ 'it>h6 13 liJeg4+ �g5 14 h4+ 'it>f4 15 g3+ 'it>O 16 .lte2+ 'it>g2 17 .!:[h2+ 'it>g1 18 'it>d2# In the present case it only leads to a draw. 20 ... Wxh7! Black has to sail into the eye of the storm. ;''J ... Wf8 21 liJg3 .ltxe3 22 .!:[xe3 We7 23 fixg7 gives White a ferocious attack. 2 1 lOf6+ 'it>h6 22 l:lh3+ �gS 23 ltlh7+ �g4 And not 23 ... 'it>f4? because of 24 l:r.h4#. 24 �e2+ f4 27 .ltd3

27 ... 'it>g4 Black has little choice but to re­ peat moves, 27 ... i.xfl+ 28 Wxfl 'ilr'c5+ 29 Wf1 fie7 30 .!:[O+ <Ji>g4 gives White the chance to search for a win. White too has to accede to the draw as 28 Wf1 is met by 28 ... .ltxfl! 29 'it>xfl "f4+.

with a winning attack. The best try was 15 ... 0-0-01 but then White has a very dangerous attack after 16 ltJb5 'i!fb8 17 lOe4. If Black con· tinues with 17 ... lOxe4 18 'ilr'xe4 a6 there follows 19 �f4 e5 20 .!:[xd7 llxd7 21 �xe5 'Was 22 lOc7 llxc7 23 'ilr'f5+ 'ittb 8 (Or 23 ... nd7 24 .!:[d 1+-) 24 'Wxf7 or if 18 ... lOf6 there is 19 if'e3 a6 20 lOa 7+ Wc7 21 .lta5+ b6 22 lhd8+-. 1 6 ltJxe6!

IIl:l!l

Evans - Berger Amsterdam Izt 1 964 I e4 c6 2 d4 d5 3 1Oc3 d xe4 4 ltlxe4 �f5 5 lOg3 �g6 6 ltlf3 ltld7 7 h4 h6 8 h5 i.h7 9 �d 3 .ltxd3 1 0 'Wxd3 'We7 1 1 i.d2 ltlgf6 1 2 0-0-0 e6 13 <Ji>bl e5 1 4 c4 cxd4?! This proves to be very dangerous for Black with his king still hanging around in the middle of the board. It would be wiser to castle queens ide at this point. I Sltlxd4 a6 This allows White a winning sacrificial breakthrough but the position is already very difficult for Black. He had originally intended 15 ... ltJe5 but then White can play 16 'ilfe2 ltlxc4 17 liJxe6! liJxd2+ 18 llxd2 fxe6 1 9 'ilr'xe6+ fie7 (Or 19 ... .lte7 20 lOf5 'iti'f8 21 .!:[C1+-) 20 'ilr'c4

16 fxe6 1 7 'ilr'g6+ Wd8 18 nhel ""c8 White's attack keeps coming in all lines. If 18 .. e5 there is 19 i.c3 'ittc8 20 f4! and 1 8 ... 'ilr'xc4 is met by 19 i.c3. 1 9 l:r.xe6 b6 20 'WfS! Quiet but deadly. The threat is 2 1 .ltf4. 20 �b7 2 1 � f4 'ilfc5 Black no longer has any prospect of defence. After 21 ... 'iVc8 there is 22 ltJe4 ""a7 (Or 22 ... ltJxe4 23 'ifxe4+ 9;a7 24 .!:[c6! etc) 23 liJxf6 liJxf6 2411xf6 gxf6 2511d7+. 22 .!:[xf6 1 :0 Upon 22 ... lOxf6 there follows 23 nd7+ Wc6 24 l:r.c7#. ..•

.

..•

J 0 The Art

ofAttack

KM 13/1: I) White to play

,: : .",

KM 1 3 1 1 : 3) Black to play

The Art ofAttack 11 KM l 3/I: 2) White to play

KM 1 3/l: 4) Black to play

Month 1 3/Week 2: Direct Assaults With the great rise in the standard of technique, players of all stan­ dards are only too aware of the. danger, of an exposed king. Accord­ ingly they will attempt to construct some sort of fortress and then bolster it at the slightest sign of trouble. It is relatively rare for a direct at­ tack to succeed when the defender concentrates all his efforts on beat­ ing back the attack. Successful di­ rect attacks may come about m situations in which the players castle on opposite wings and are engaged in violent mutual attacks. Or they might occur when one side has a considerable lead in mobility or de­ velopment, as for example in the following encounter.

Ahikhine - Eliskases Podebrady 1 936 1 e4

AD/I: a) White to play.

A l.v l : h) RI�r.1r to play.

Alekhine was equally adept at playing both 1 e4 and 1 d4. Now­ adays most players are able to adopt a wide range of openings, in Alek­ hine ' s time it was more usual to specialize.

1 ... eS 2 lDf3 lDc6 3 �b5 a6 4 �a4 lDf6 5 0-0 �e7 6 l:le l b5 7 �b3 d6 8 c3 lDa5 9 �c2 c5 1 0 d3

The most usual move is 10 d4 but the modest text also has its points. Perhaps Alekhine, with a subtle in­ sight into his opponent's psychol­ ogy, knew that Eliskases would react in the way that he does. 10 . . . lDc6 11 lDbd2 0-0 12 lDn

l:le8 13 lDe3 dS?

This 'liberating' move gives White's pieces more scope than

those of his opponent. The patient 13 . . . �f8 was in order.

1 4 exdSli)xdS I s lDxd5 'tWxdS 16 d4!

The refutation of Black's impa­ tient thirteenth move. The position is opened up before Black has co�­ p leted his devel?pment and whIle . his pieces, especIal ly the knIght on c6, are on vulnerable squares. 16 ... exd4 17 �e4 'ii'd7 Black's knight on c6 is giving him major problems. After 17 . . . 'ii'd6? there is 1 8 � f4 . 1 8 cxd4 �f6 After 1 8 .. , �b7 White would create a powerfully supported passed pawn with 19 d5 lDd8 20 lDe5 'tWd6 21 �f4 . But now light­ ning strikes from another direction.

19 �g5!

12 The Art

ofAttack The Art ofAllack 13

A very unpleasant move for Black Fischer - Stein to meet as it threatens to remove a Sou sse Interzonal 1 967 key defender whilst further advanc­ ing White's development. 1 e4 eS 2 lLln lLlc6 3.ibS a6 4 After 19 ... .ixd4 there is 20 .if5! .ia4 lOf6 5 0-0 .ie7 6 nel b5 7 l:txe I + 21 'i'xe 1 'i'd6 22 'i'e8+ 'i'fS .ib3 d6 8 c3 0-0 9 h3 .ib7 10 d4 23 .ixh7+ w inning the queen wh ile lLla5 11 .ic2 iLlc4 1 2 b3 iLlb6 1 3 19 ... .ixg5 20 lOxg5 g6 2 1 dxc5 lLlbd2 lObd7 1 4 b4 exd4 1 5 cxd4 leads to a hopeless endgame for a5 1 6 bxa5 c5 1 7 eS Black. So the following exchange White's attack starts to take sacrifice is forced. shape, the first step being to drive 19 ... Itxe4 20 l:txe4 .ixd4 2 1 Black's knight from f6 lOxd4lOxd4 2 2 'i'h5!.ib7 23 l::th4 1 7 '" dxeS 18 dxe5 iLldS 19 lLle4 lLlb4! Fischer gave 19 ... Itxa5 20 lLleg5! h6 21 'tid3 g6 22 iLle6! as an example of the danger Black faces in this position. Stein's move drives White's bishop to bl which helps to keep his queen's rook out of play. 20.ibl nxa5 2 1 'tie2 iLl b6? Black should safeguard his k ing with 21 ... l:te8 fol lowed by ... iLlfB. 22lOfgS

23 ... 'ii'f5 23 ... h6? loses immed iately to 24 .ixh6 lOf5 25 .ixg7 �xg7 26 'ilJ'g5+ etc. 24 .ie3! Itd8? Losing on the spot but by now the position is hopeless. After 24 ... 'tixh5 25 Itxh5 lOc2 26 Itd1 lOxe3 27 fxe3 c4 28 llc5 the endgame is quite hopeless for Black. 2S l:txd4 1:0

In the following game we see Bobby Fischer on the attack against the Soviet Champion of the time, Leonid Stein. Stein made the mis­ take of pursuing h is queenside counter-play rather than falling back into defence.

22 ... .txe4 After 22 ... h6 there is 23 lOh7 l::t e 8 24 lOhf6+! .ixf6 25 iLlxf6+ 'tixf6 26 exf6 w inning the exchange and 22 ... g6 23 e6 f5 24 lOf7 24 lOf7 followed by 25 .ib2 gives White a crushing attack. 23 'iWxe4 g6 24 'iWh4 hS 25 'i'g3 iLlc4 26 liJ n

Accord ing to Fischer h imself it was more precise to play 26 e6 f5 and only then drop the knight back to O. The point is that this would side-step the tougher defence that Black should have adopted on his 28th move. Keres gave 26 lLlxf7 l::t xf7 27 .ixg6 but 27 ... Itg7 is not very clear. 26 ... Wg7 Keres recommended 26 ... lLld3 27 .ixd3 'tr'xd3 but after Fischer's 28 .igS' White comes in on the dark squares. 27 'tif4 l:th8 28 e6! fS According to Fischer Black should have tr ied 28 ... .lif6! after which 29 exf6 .lixa 1 30 fB=�+ 'iWxfB 3 1 'i'c7+ Wg8 32 .ixg6 lLld5 33 'ib7 lLlf6 34 .if4 Ith7' 35 .ixh7+ lLlxh7 36 'tid5+ �f7 37 'i'xf7+ �xf7 3 8 Itxa 1 leads to a position in which Black could still put up tough resistance. Now White uncorks a cracking move. 29.idS!

29 . 'i'fB The bishop is immune as after 29 ... gxf5 there follows 30 'i'g3+ 'it'h7 ..

(Or 30 . . . 'it'fB 31 'iVg6 'iWe8 32 .ih6+-) 3 1 lOg5+! .txg5 32 .lixg5 �d3 3 3 �c7+ �g6 34 'iW f7+' Wxg5 3 5 'i'g7+ 'it'f4 36l:tad 1 +-. 30.lie4? White should have clinched matters w ith 30 iLlh4! .lixh4 31 'i'xh4 �xf5 32 'iWe7+ Wg8 33 'i'd 8+ �g7 34 'i'c7+ 'it'g8 35 e7 . 30 ... 'iWxf4 3 1 .lixf4 Ite8? Missing his chance, 31 . . . l::txa2 was much better. Now White w ins materia l . 32 Itadl J:!.a6 3 3 J:!.d7 l::t x e6 34 iLlgS J:!.f6 If 34 J:!.a6 there is 35 .lib I f6 36lLle4+ 'it'f7 37 lOxc5. 35 .in J:!.xf4 36 lLle6+ f6 37 lLlxf4 tbe5 38 Itb7.lid6 39 f1

39 ... lLlc2 39 ... lOxO is met by 40 l::t x e8 lOd2+ 4 1 e2 .lixf4 42 UfB+ Wg5 43 l::t xf4 Wxf4 44 'it'xd2 etc. 40 Ite4 lLld4 4 1 J:!.b6 l::td 8 42 liJd5+ �f5 43 lLle3+ �e6 44 .te2 'rt>d7 45 .ixb5+ lOxb5 46 .Ihb5 c;t;c6 47 a4 .ic7 48 �e2 g5 49 g3 Ita8 50 llb2 J:!.fB 5 1 f4 gf 52 gflLlf7 53 l:le6+ liJd6 54 f5 J:!.a8 55 J:!.d2 Itxa4 56 f6 1 : 0

14 The Art ofAttack

KM13/2: I) Black to play

KM13/2: 3) White to play

The A rt

KM 13/2: 2) White to play

KM13/2: 4) White to play

Month 13/Week 3: The Softening Up Process It is rather difficult to win games with a direct assault due to the fact that the opponent will normally do his very best to briog over reserves for defence. Usually it is necessary to set about weakening the pawn structure around the opposing king and exchange off the key defensive pieces. This area of attacking play tends to require a higher level of skill than that of a simple breakthrough. The pieces must often be arranged so that they exploit the emerging wea­ knesses in the opponent's structure.

Keres - Unzicker Match, Hamburg 1 956

A 131?: a) White to play

A13/2: b) White to play

1 e4 e5 2 ttJf3 ttJc6 3 �b5 ttJf6 4 0-0 ttJxe4 5 d4 �e7 6 "i!fe2 lbd6 7 �xc6 bxc6 8 dxe5 ttJb7 9 ttJc3 0-0 10 ttJd4 �c5 1 1 l:td l �xd4 1 2 Ihd4 d S 1 3 exd6 cxd6 1 4 b4! An excellent move which fixes Black's pawn weaknesses, may eventua.lly Black's knight out of play. 14 ... ne8 15 �e3 �e6 1 6"i!ff3

1 6 ... 'ilVd 7 ?

ofAttack

15

A poor move which moves the queen away from the defence of the kingside dark squares. Keres recom­ mended 16 ... d5! after which White should keep a small advantage with 17 �f4! rather than play 17 bS cS! 18 nddl d4 19 "i!fxb7 'iVaS when, Black wins back the piece with good chances of equal ity. 17 ttJe4 �r5? A further mistake after which Black's position becomes desperate. He should play 17 . .. �dS after which 18 ttJf6+? gxf6 19 ng4+ f8 leaves White with no good follow­ up. The best would be to play 18 c4 �xe4 19 l:txe4, retaining an edge due to the poor position of Black's knight on b7, though Black could still obtain some counter-play with 19 ... as. 18 ttJg3! A very strong pawn sacrifice after which another Black piece is decoyed from the defence of the kingside. After 18 �g6 White can play the powerful 19 h4!, so he is obliged to capture the pawn on c2. '"

1 8 ... �xc2 1 9 ncl �a4 20 ttJh5 20 lbfS was even stronger be­ cause it would prevent Black's next move.

16 The Art ofAttack

20 ... fS! 2 1 1:1f4 1:1e7 After 2 1 ... 1:1f8 there follows 22 d4! lIf7 23 �xg7! with a fork on f6 should Black take the bishop. So he has to let the pawn on f5 go. 221:1xfS lIf7

The Art ofAttack 17

'it'xf8 28 'it'g4+ �h8 29 'itd4+ g8 (29 ... 'itg7 30 'ii'x a7) 30l:tc3. 271:[c4 1 : 0 A n impressive game by Keres i n the way that h e built u p an attack with minimal means. In the next game we see something even more remarkable with Alekhine conjuring up a devastating attack from what seems like thin air: Alekhine - Sterk Budapest 192 1 1 d4 d 5 2 ttJrJ It'lf6 3 c4 e6 4 ttJc3 ttJbd7 5 e3 i.d6 6 ttJbS Not one of Alekhine's happier ideas. Although it can claim to be original, it just loses time. 6 ... �e7 7 �c2 c6 8 ttJc3 0-0 9 �d3 dxc4 10 �xc4 cS! 1 1 dxc5 White's opening has not been a success ·and he can only claim to have a rather sterile equality. After 11 0-0 ltJb6 1 2 �d3 cxd4 1 3 exd4 �d7 White would have inadequate compensation for his isolated . d-pawn. . 1 1 ... jLxc5 12 0-0 b6

23 ltJxg7! A very unpleasant surprise for Black. After 23 . . . <jo>xg7 White wins with either 24 �h6+ or 24 'it'g4+ and the attempt to bring reinforce­ ments over with 23 ... l:taf8 is ans­ w ered by 24 It'le6! l:txf5 (If 24 ... 'ii'xe6 there is 25 'itg4+ 'i!Vg6 26 l:tg5+- or if 25 ... �h8 then 26 �d4+ ];[[6 27 ];[xf6 'it'xg4 28 ];[xf8#) 25 'it'g4+ r;t;>h8 26 It'lxf8 etc. Accordingly Black has very little choice. 23 ];[xg7 24 �h6 'ii'e7 After 24 . . . 1:1f7 there is 25 l:tg5+ <jo>h8 26 'itc3+- and 24 . . . lIe8 25 h4 is decisive due to the threat of 26 �xg7 and 27 1:g5. 2 5 �xg7 'it'xg7 25 . .. �g7 doesn't help either after 26 'ii' c3+ �g8 27 1:10 threaten­ ing 28 ];[g3+ and 28 ];[e 1 . 1 3 e4!? 2 6 h4 h6 Typical of Alekhine in that he There was no longer a good de­ tries to create complex problems fence to 27 ];[g5. 26· . . . 1:1f8 is ans­ despite h is unsuccessful opening. 1 3 wered by either 27 1:1e I or 27 1:1xf8+ b3 was the safe move.

a devastating blow on the other side 13 ... jLb7 14 �g5 of the board. Afte r It'lg4! 15 It'lg5 g 6 1 6 lDxe6 'ith4 1 7 h 3 'it'g3 followed by mate. 1 4 ... 'iVc8! 15 'ii'e2 jLb4! 16 �d3 16 e5 is still poor because of 16 . . . It'lg4 and 1 6 1:1ac l would b e met by 16 ... �xc3 1 7 �d3! It'lc5! 18l:txc3 �xe41 1 9 �xf6 �xd3 with a clear advantage for Black. Watch how Alekhine now creates problems from a position which seems to otTer him nothing. 16 ... �xc3 17 1:1fct! The saving resource, the point of 23 �f6! which is that after 1 7 . . . ttJc5 1 8 An unexpected and quite beautiful 1:1xc3 �xe4 1 9 �xf6 jLxd3 White idea which commences a mating at­ can play 20 �e31 (the point of 1 7 tack. The immediate threat is 24 l:tfc I rather than 1 7 l:tac I ) 20 . . . l:tg4! 'itxe2 25 l:txg7+ followed by gxf6 2 1 b4 jLg6 2 2 bxc5 bxc5 2 3 mate next move. l:txc5 After Black's queen moves 23 ... l:tfc8! 24 'ii'e5 there is 24 h4 with attacking chances for the pawn.

•..

24 1:1c5 There is no longer any defence for Black. After 24 ... "xc4 there is 25 'ifg5 �f8 26 "xg7+ '1t>e8 27 �g8+ c;t>d7 28 ltJe5+ �c7 29 "xf7+-, 24 ... 1:1xc4 is answered by 25 'fkg5 1:1g4 26 'ii' xg4 g6 27 'fk xa4+- and 24 ... gxf6 25 1:1g4+ leads to mate in two. 25 'ii'g 3! g6 26 ];[xa4 'ikd3 271:10 l:tac8 28 ];[d4 'ikf5 29 'ii'f4 'ikc2 30 'ii'h6 1 : 0 .•.

17 ... ttJxe4? Aft culties due to the exposed position of his knight on c5. 1 8 �xe4 �xe4 1 9 'ii'xe4 ltJc5,20 'ite2! �aS 2 1 lIabl "a6 22 nc4 ttJa4 An ingenious attempt to save the game, 23 b4?! would be met by 23 . . . ttJc3. But Alekhine has prepared

18

The Art ofAttack The Art ofAttack 19

KM I3/3: I ) White to play

KM 13/3:

2) White to play Month 1 3/Week 4 : The Tao O f Attack

KM I 3/3: 3) Black to play

A I 3!3: 4) White to play

who would crown masterly posi­ tional play on one side of the board with a sudden switch to the other flank.

"When you are concentrated into one while the opponent is divided into ten, you are attacking at a con­ Alekhine - Asztalos centration of ten to on e, so you out­ Kecskemet 1927 number the opponent. If you can strike few with many, you will thus 1 ttJrJ d5 2 c4 e6 3 d4 ttJf6 4 �g5 minimise the num ber of those with h6 5 .i.xf6 'i!i'xf6 6 ttJc3 c6 whom you do battle. These days this l ine is known as "Your battlegrou/ld is not to be the 'Moscow Variation ' and gives knowll, for when it cannot be Black a solid position with a pair o f known, the enemy makes many bishops but a certain lack o f mobil­ guard outposts, and since multiple ity. It is fascinat ing to walch how outposts are established, you ollly Alekhine keeps Black's position under control whilst gradually pre­ have to do battle with small squads. So when the front is prepared, the paring an attack. 7 ifb3 ttJd7 8 e4 dxe4 9 ttJxe4 rear is lacking and when the rear is prepared the front is lacking. Pre­ 'i!i'f4 10 .i.d3 �e7 1 1 0-0 0-0 1 2 paredness on the left means lack on nfel : d 8 1 3 nadl 'i!i'c7 1 4 ttJg3 the right, preparedness on the righ t ttJrs 1 5 We3! The idea behind this is to play means lack on the left. Prepared­ n ess everywhere means lack every­ ttJhS fol lowed by d4-dS Black where. " (Sun Tzu in The Art Of parries this threat but only at the cost of queenside weaknesses. War) 1 5 a5 1 6 a3 a4 1 7 4:JeS1/I'a5 1 8 Sun Tzu's book on military strat­ egy, The Art of War, contains many 'i!i'c1 � d 7 1 9 c5! useful insights for chess players. The passage above describes the concept of attacking the opponent where he is at his weakest. Translating this Into chess terms one o f the most effective weapons of attack is to decoy defenders away from their king. The normal method of doing this is to set up p ressure on one part of the board before sudden­ ly switching the direction of the at­ tack when the opponent's p ieces are tied down. Intending to plant a knight on b6 This is one of the most advanced strategies of attack which very few which virtua lly forces Black's reply. players have mastered. The greatest But new problems now arise due to exponent of this art was Alekhine the weakness of the c6 pawn . •••

AI3!3;

a) White to play

A13!3:

b) White to play

20 The Art of Attack

19 ... b5 20 �e4 'i!Ve7 21 'We3 �e8 22 tt:le2! Beginning a new and deadly plan. The idea of bringing this knight to b4 forces Black to exchange ofT one of the pieces attacking c6 (the knight on e5) with ... tt:lfS-d7. But this knight is needed to defend the kingside. , 22 ... 1:1a6 23 .!Del liJd7 24 liJxd7 1:1xd7 25 tt:ld3 1:1d8 26 liJe5 .ltfS i7 h4! 1:1aa8 28 .lt b l h5 29 'i!Vf3 g6 30 g4!

The Art of AlI(lck 21

Rather than having to actively decoy the opposing forces, similar effects can be obtained by simply having superior mobility. In his writings Sun Tzu expounded the benefits of superior mobility at some length: "Appear where they cannot go, head for where they least expect you. To travel hundreds of miles without fatigue, go over land where there are no people. To ·unfailingly take what you attack, attack where there is no defence...

In the next game Alekhine takes on one of the great masters of de­ fence, the Hungarian G randmaster Geza Maroczy and launches a dev­ astating attack simply because Ma­ roczy' piece� lack enough mobility to counteract Alekhine's sudden kingside a ssault.

Black should try to get his queen­ side developed with II . . . b51? 12 .ltd3 c5 or 1 2 ... ·.ltb7 A1ekhine's next move exploits this omission o f 1 1 ... b 5 and makes it difficu lt for Black to develop. 12 a4! 'i!Va5 13 'i!Ve2 exd4! 14 exd4 tt:lb6 15 .ltd3 ! �d7 16 LUeS 1:1fd8 17 f4 With Black's pieces rather pass­ ively deployed on the queens ide, White plays very sharply for an at­ tack on the opposing king. Alekhine pointed out tha t White could also try 17 'i!Vf3 !? in this position. 17 .ltc8 18 liJg4 1:1xd4 19 .ltxf6 .2.xf6 20 LUxf6+ gxf6 2 1 tt:le4 ...

Alekhinc Maroezy -

Bled 1 93 1

Finally Alekhine commences his attack, but just at the moment when Black is too passively placed to offer any real defence. 30 ... hxg4 31 'i!Vxg4 .ltg7 32 .lta2! b4 If 32 ... 'i!Ve7? there is an immedi­ ate win with 33 ltJxg6 fxl:6 34 1:1xeo etc. 33 �e4! bxa3 34 bxn3 'i!V1I5 35 'i!Ve4 'i!Ve7 36 'fi'f4 1:1ab8 37 h5 gxh5 38 �hl 1:1b7 39 1:1g1 "fie7 40 1:1xg7+! �xg7 4 1 1:1g1 + c;t>h7 42 liJxf7! 1 :0 After 42 ... 'it'xf7 there is 43 �d3+ 'iVg6 44 .ltxg6+ �xg6 �5 1:1xg6 Wxg6 46 'ite4+ Wg7 47 'i!Ve5+! which would soon pick up one o f Black's rooks.

1 d 4 d 5 2 tt:lf3 liJf6 3 c 4 e6 4 .ltg5 ltJbd7 5 e3 h6 6 .i.h4 .lte7 7 ltJc3 0-0 8 1:1e1 c6 9 �d3 a6 1 0 0-0 dxe4 1 1 .ltxe4

11

...

e5? !

2 1 ... 1:1ad8? Black should have held onto the f-pawn with 21 . .. f5'? 22 ltJf6+ c;t>f8 though after 23 b3! White nevertheless has very dangerous at­ tacking chances. Now his king gets driven into the m iddle o f the board. 22 liJx(6+ �fS 23 ltJh7+! C:;e7 Maroczy may have missed Alek­ hine's last move which has the point that 23 ... �g8? is answered by 24 'i'g4+ ct>h8 25 'i!Vh4 1:1xd3 26 'i'xh6 etc. 24 f5! 1:18d6 25 b4!

Typical Alekhine, the attack is crowned with a blow on another part of the board. The point of this move is that White's queen wIll penetrate the opposing position via e5 in the game or h5 after 25 ... J:!.xb4. Alekhine gave the line 25 J:!.xb4 26 'i'h5 ! e5! 27 f6+ ct>d8 28 'iVxh6 J:!.xd3 29 'IlffS 1:1d7 30 J:!.c5 'i!Vxa4 31 1:1xe5+25 ... 'Ilfxb4 26 'Ilfe5! ltJd7 27 'Ilfh8! J:!.xd3 If 27 ... �6 there is 28 a 5!+- or if27 ... 'Ilfa5 then 281:1c8+-.

28 (6+! 1 : 0 Black is mated after either 28 ... ltJxf6 29 'it'xf6+ Wd7 30 ltJfS# or 2 8 . . . c;t> d 8 29 "ihe8+! ct>xe8 3 0 J:!.c8#.

22 The Art ofAttack

KM 1 3/4:

I) White to play

KM J 3/4: 2) White to play

2

KM13/4: 3) Black to play

KM 1 3/4: 4) White to play

The Initiative

The initiative in chess roughly

initiative even if it meant taking cer­

equates to possession of the ball in

tain positional risks: "When he gets

soccer. The player who holds the

even the smallest initiative he starts

initiative is able to make threats and

to feel himself very good."

force his opponent onto the defens­

There are a number of players like

ive. This may prove to be a tempor­

this who simply love to force the

ary effect which dissipates after a

pace and the names of attacking

few accurate defensive moves or it

players such as Tal, Alekhine, Kas­

may be the prelude te a genuine at­

parov come to mind as well as those

tack. To use a hackneyed old prov­

of lesser lights such as Gofstein,

erb, it all depends on the position.

Kupreichik and Denker.

In week one of this month's ma­

The greatest of them all was, in

terial we will look at positions in

my opinion,

which one of the players takes the

His games involve a restless striving

initiative with decisive effect.

Alexander Alekhine.

In

for the initiative with either colour

week two we will look the concept

and to this end he was prepared to

of gambit play in which possession

take great risks.

of the initiative is paid for with material.

Here

are

two

masterpieces

in

which Alekhine took the initiative in

In week three we will see a fierce

the early middle-game and never let

struggle for the initiative in which. it go. both sides eschew defence in favour

A J 3/4: II) IJlack to plllY

A13/4: b) White to play

of pursuing their own threats. Week four

features

the

generation

Alekhlne - Euwe Amsterdam Weh 1935

of

another type of initiative which is more a case of supercharging the potential of your pieces rather than achieving any kind of direct attack.

Month 14IWeek I : Taking The Initiative

1 d4 d5 2 e4 e6 3 1t.If3 It.If6 4 It.Ie3 dxe4 5 a4 �f5 6 4Je5 4Jbd7 7 lll xe4 'ife7 Sg3 e5 9 d xe5 1t.1xe5 10 �f4 lllrd7 11 .i.g2 �e6 1 2 It.Ixe5 lllx e5 13 0-0 �e7 In view of what happens it looks sensible to firmly defend the knight

The Israeli Grandmaster Valery Beim once described our colleague, Leonid Gofstein, as an 'initiative player' and he felt that it was im­ portant to deprive Gofstein of the

on eS with 13 . .. f6.

1 4 ..we2 l:[dS 1 5 l:[fd 1 0-0 16 lObS :xdl+ 1 7 l:[xdl 'WaS I S liJd4 .i.eS The position seems quiet enough but

now

Alekhine

takes

the

24

The Initiative

initiative and keeps it. His next move sets about undennining Black's important pawn on c6 whilst gaining time on the queen.

1 9 b4! 'iVe7 After 19 ... �xb4? White wins with 20 �b3 'iVc7 21 'ilVe4 �c3 (21 ... �d6 22 'ilVd4) 22 11c l �b2 23 l:1c2 f5 24 'Wb4. So Black is forced to retreat. 20 b5 e5 2 1 �f5 f6? It is quite understa ndabl e that Black want� to def�nd his knight on e5 securely but now White's advan­ tage assumes dec is ive proportions. 21 ... �f6 was relatively best though still unpleas!!nt after 22 �d6 l:1d8 23 �c4. 22 �e3 �e6 23 �dS! �xd5 24 l:1xd5 �a5 After 24 . .. l:1d8 there is 25 �xe5 beeS 26 W't:S+- . 25 �rs 'iVel + 26 'iti>g2 �dS 27 �xe5 fxeS 2S l1d7 i.f6 29 �h6+! 'it>hS 30 'iVxeS 1 :0 If 30 ... 11e8 there is 31 �d5 gxh6 32 'Wf7 �e7 33 Ihe7 etc.

Aaron Nirnzowitsch wrote a lot about restric. ting his opponent's pussibilities and the concept o f zug­ zwang. It must have been embarras­ sing for him to find his own

The Initiative weap?ns used against him as they were In the following encounter. Alekhine - Nirnzowitseh San Rerno 1 930 1 e4 e6 2 d4 d5 3 �c3 .ltb4 4 e5 eS 5 .ltd2 �e7 6 �bS .ltxd2+ 7 'it'xd2 0-0 S e3 b6?! Rather than his somewhat passive move Black should probably prefer 8 ... �f5. Now White takes a lot o f space without having to worry about being counter-punched. 9 f4 �a6 1 0 �f3 'iVd7 I I a4 tDbe6 12 b4! cxb4 13 cxb4 �b7 1 4 It)d6 f5? Nimzowitsch might have felt that a blocked position would not suit the ferocious Alekhine but now White takes the initiative. He should have stopped the advance o f White's a-pawn with 14 ... a5!? after which Alekhine \\Tote that he would have preferred 15 �b5 axb5 16 0-0 to1 5 b5ltJb4.

15 as! l£le8 And not 15 ... bxa5? because of 1 6 b5! when Black's pieces would find themselves in an even more parlous state. Black hurries to ex­ change off White's monstrous

knight on d6 but finds h imself under tremendous pressure on the c-file. 16 �xb7 'iVxb7 1 7 a6

17 ... 'iVn If 17 .. . 'iVe7 there is 1 8 �b5! It)xb4? 19 llb I, trapping the knight. In the game continuation Black is unable to defend both the c6 and c7 squares in the long run. IS �b5 It)Se7 19 0-0 h6 20 l:1fct lUe8 2 111c2 'iVeS If Black tried to exchange rooks on the c-file with 21 ... lOd8 there would follow 22 llac1 llxc2 23 llxc2 llc8 2 4 llxc8 lOxc8 2 5 ""'c3 fol lowed by 'Wc7.

22 11ac1

25

White could have trebled major pieces on the c-fiIe more effectively by starting this process with 22 lla3. In any case Black cannot defend against this plan in the long run. 22 ... llab8 23 'il'e3 llc7 24 llc3 ! 'iVd7 With the desperate idea of making room for the king on d8 so that it can protect the rook on c7. Unfortu­ nately for Black even this cannot save him. 25 J:rle2 r;;t>f8 26 'iWc 1 J:rbeS Has Black managed to defend himself? White's next move pro­ vides the answer.

27 �a4! The threat of 28 b5 forces Black to give up a pawn in order to gain time to defen d the rook r1 c7. But then he finds himself in zugzwang' 27 .. , b5 28 �xb5 'it>e8 29 .ta4 'it>d8 30 h4! hS 3 1 Wh2 g6 32 g3 1:0 Black can play a couple of irrel­ evant moves but will then be forced to play ... 'ilVe8. After that b4-b5 will win a p iece because the rook on c7 is unguarded.

The Initiative

26 The Initiative

KM 14/ 1: I) White to p lay

KM 14/1 : 3) Black to p lay

A14/1 : a) White to play

KM 1 4/1

KM 14/1: 4) Black to play

A14/ 1: b) White tn piny

Month 1 4/Week 2 : Gambit Play

It is of course unlikely that any­ one will give you the in itiative on a plate and usually you have to fight for it. There is also the option o f paying for the initiative by sacrific­ ing some material though in this case you need to judge that your compensation will be adequate. Sacrificing material for the in itiat­ ive in the opening is called a gam­ bit, the best-known examp les of gambit being the King's, Queen's or Evans Gambits. It is also worth not­ ing that there are often gambit op­ portunities in many other openings which have no official name but offer the means of taking the initiat­ ive. Such lines are stock-in-trade for many masters o f the attack. As I noted in the previous section Alexander Alekhine eagerly sought the initiative with either colour and to this end would occasionally try out daring gambit lines. In the fol­ lowing game he plays a gambit of dubious merit but the suprise effect turns out to be devastating.

27

0-0 g5 1 3 b4!?, returning the pawn in order to open lines against B lack's king. Yet some p layers are still quite happy to play Black. 8 . . li:lf6 9 'it' d 2 h6 10 �xf6 'it'xf6 1 1 e3 0-0-0 1 2 O-O-O? White's king is very insecurely placed on the queens ide and Black quick ly develops a decis ive initiat­ ive. White should try Kotov's rec­ ommendation of 12 lZ:ld5! 'it'g6 13 li:le2 intend ing li:le2- f4, and 'it'c3. 1 2 ... �g4 1 3li:ld5

Pire - Alekhine Bled 193 1 1 d 4 d 5 2 e 4 e 6 3 tOe3 e 5 4 exd5 exd4! ? The Schara-Hennig Gambit which aims at fast development. The fol­ lowing queen manoevre leads to the same position as 5 'i!fxd4 tOc6 6 it'd I exd5 7 'it'xd5 �d7. 5 'it'a4+ �d7 6 'i!fxd4 exd5 7 'it' x d 5 li:le6 8 �g5 The accepted means of meeting this line is with 8 li:lf3 li:lf6 9 'it'dI �c5 10 e3 'it'e7 II �e2 0-0-0 12

.

13 ... l'bd5 ! 14 'it'xd 5 �a3! The briliiant poin t of Alekhine's exchange sacrifice which piles up the p ressure. Recovering the ex­ change with 14 ". �xd l I S 'it'xdl would be far less effective after 15 ... 'it'xf2 16 'it' g4+ f5 17 'it'e2.

1 5 �3!

:2

28

The Initiative

The best try. After 15 bxa3 Black wins with 1 5 ... 'li'c3+ 1 6 'it>b I lld8-+ and 1 5 lld2 is met by 1 5 ... ..Itxb2+ 16 llxb2 �c3+ 17 'it>b I �e l + 1 8 �c21ld8-+. 1 5 ... � xdI 16 �xa3 �xf2 1 7 W'd3

The Initiative 29 such openings. He recently brought back the Evans Gambit to the sur­ prise of some of his world class opponents:

a choice between 1 1 ... �c7 and 1 I ... b5!? 7 ... exd4? 8 �xd4! lDr6 9 c5 lDc6

Kasparov Anand Riga 1995 -

I e4 e5 2 lDo lDe6 3 ..Itc4 �c5 4 b4! This move distinguishes the Evans which for years has been the Cinderella of chess openings. White takes the initiative on move four at the cost of a pawn. 4 ... �xb4 5 c3 ..Ite7 6 d4 lDa5

1 7 ... ..Itg4! And not the immediate I 7 ltd8? because uf 1 8 lDh3 'li'f6 1 9 �c3. 18 lDo ..Itxo Once again timing is everything. After 1 8 ... lld8?! White has 1 9 'iWe2. 1 9 �f5+ c;t>b8 20 �xO iYe1 + 21 'it>c2 Or if 21 �u I there follows 21 ... 'i'xe3+ 22 'itd2 'WWe6 23 �f4+-+. 21 ... lle8 22 �g3 lDe5+ 23 'it>b3 �d 1+ 24 'it>a3 lle5 0: 1

Amongst the series of Soviet World Champions who foHowed Alekhine none of them were to in­ corporate traditional gambits in their opening repertoires, not even the brilliant Mikhail Tal. It was only Bobby Fischer who followed Alek­ hine's example by reviving the Evans and Bishups Gambits and more recently Kasparov has shown an appreciation of the benefits of

7 �e2! In conjunction with his next move this constituted a new idea at the tillle uf the game. In an earlier quickplay game against Nigel Short, Kasparov tried 7 lLlxe5 though this probably doesn't trouble Black too much after 7 ... .lDxc4 8 ltJxc4 d5 9 exd5 �xd5 IO ltJe3 'ii'd 8. It is difficult to believe that 7 �xf7+ Wxf7 8 lDxe5+ Wf8 will give White enough for his piece. After 7 ..Ite2 Blal:k's safest optioll may well be the solid 7 ... d6 after which 8 'ii'a4+ c6 9 dxe5 dxe5 I O lDxe5 lDf6 I I 0-0 leaves Black with

10 W'h4 ! Another improvement on theory from Kasparov's arsenal of ideas, this time improving on a game Melts-Gajewski, USSR 1 98 1 in which 10 �f4 lDh5 I I �a4 g6 was played. 1 0 ... lDd5 1 1 �g3 ! g6 12 0-0 lDb6 13 c4 In addition to this move White might try an immediate 1 3 �h6!?, preventing Black from castling kings ide. If Black then challenges the e5 pawn with 13 . . . d6 then 1 4 ..Itb5 will make it difficult for Black's king to find shelter. 13 ... d6 14 .l:[dl lDd7 Another possibility is 14 ... ..Itd7 when once again White can prevent Black from castling kings ide with 1 5 ..Ith6! ? White could now try 1 5 ..Itf4 with the idea o f meeting I S . 0-0 with 1 6 exd6 ..Itf6 1 7 �g5! but Black can play the irritating 1 5 ... dxe5 16 lDxe5 � h4! when 17 �e3 can be met by 1 7 ... lDcxe5 18 �xe5 0-0. 1 5 ..Ith6! ? lDcxe5 1 6 lDxe5 4Jxe5 1 7 lDc3 f6 18 c5! ..

Kasparov continues to pursue his initiative with great energy and in his notes did not comment on Black's next move. Yet according to GM Ian Rogers Black can play 1 8 ... ..Itd7 and emerge unscathed. If this is true it might be worth considering different methods of playing the at­ tack, Kasparov mentioned 17 c51? without further comment. 1 8 ... lDf7(?) 1 9 exd6 cxd6 20 �e3 lDxh6 21 'li'xh6 Ars 22 'tIVc3+ 1;f7 23 lDd5

23 ... Ae6?! The last chance to stay alive was with 23 ... ..Itd7 but then Kasparov gives both 24 ..Itc4+ 'it'g7 25 lld4 and 24 llac I �c6 25 �c4+ as being clearly better for White. 24 lDr4 �e7 251lel 1 :0 After 25 ... �h6 there is 26 .ltc4+ or 25 ... d5 then 26 �f3+-.

30 The Initiative

KM l 412: J ) White to play

KM 1 4/2: 3) Black to play

A 1412: a) Black to play

The Initiative 3 1 KM 1412: 2) B lack to play

KM 14/2: 4) White to play

A I 412: b) While In [liay

Month 1 4IWeek 3 : Diamond C u t Diamond So far we have looked at examples in which the initiative is the exclusive property of only one of the players whether or not he has to offer material for it. Yet such cases are not really the nonn in the modem game, todays players tend to dislike purely defensive roles and will try to counterattack. In order to obtain a position with cou'nterplay your choice of opening can be quite important. Modem Grandmasters rarely choose the most orthodox fonns of the Queen's Gambit Declined not because of any intrinsic defect with this defence but rather because Black is striving only to equalize. More aggressive l ines such as the King's Indian, Nirnzo­ Indian and Gruenfeld are far more frequently played. The most chal lenging opening of all may well be the Sicil ian Defence which accounts for its massive popularity. The following two games show why. The first features one of the great pioneers of the Sicilian, Mark Tai­ manov, use it with success in a criti­ cal Soviet Championship game. The second is the game in which GaIT)' Kasparov won the World title from Karpov and persuaded him to switch to the move I d4.

10 'We2 lLle7 1 1 f4 b 4 1 2 lLlbl lLlg6 1 3 iif2 i.d6!

Immediately glvmg White prob­ lems with his f4 pawn-after 1 4 e5 there follows 14 ... i.e7 IS 0-0 lLlh4 with tremendous pressure on the long diagonal whilst 14 i.xg7 is met by 14 .. lbxf4 15 i.xh8 lLlxd3 + 16 cxd3 iic l + 17 'it>e2 'iix h 1 . 1 4 i.e3 070 1 5 lLld2 l:tac8 1 6 .

h4!?

The struggle for the initiative is in full swing, White playing for the at­ tack in spite of the strong pressure on his game.

1 6 ... 'i'c7! 17 eS i.c5 1 8 hS i.xe3 19 iixe3 lLle7 20 lLle4

20 lLle4 lLlf5 2 1 'ilia d6 22 exd6 lLlxd6 23 lbxd6 ..wxd6 24 0-0-0 il'c5 would leave Black with an ex­ cellent game. White has no attack and his position has been seriously weakened.

20 ... lLlf5 2 1 'i'd2

Lutikov - Taimanov USSR Championship, Moscow 1 969

After 2 1 i.xfS Black could choose between the solid 21 . . . iixc4 22 i. d 3 'i'd5 and the more adventurous 2 1 ... exf5 ! ? 22 lbd6 il'xc2 23 lLlxc8 Itxc8.

1 e4 c5 2 lLlf3 lLle6 3 d4 cxd4 4 lLlxd4 e6 5 lbc3 ..we7 6 �e3 a6 7 �d3 b5 8 lLlxc6 'ilixc6 9 i.d4 i.b7

After 24 iVxc5 l:txc5 the endgame would favour Black. Rather than

2 1 ... i.d5 22 lLle3 lLlxe3 23 'tIVxe3 'ifc5 24 'ifg3

32 The Initiative The Initiative 33

surrender the initiative in such a way, Lutikov plays for the atUick. 24 h6 25 lih4 ! ? 'it'g l+? Throughout his career Taimanov was prone to impetuous decisions and here he gives a thoughtless check. 25 ... �h8 26 l:tg4 lig8 was stronger when White's is unable to strengthen his attack. •..

27 ... lixc2+ ! ! 28 �xc2 b3+ 29 �dl After 29 axb3 .txb3+ Lutikov probably assumed that 30 �xb3 was forced whereupon Black' s atUick continues with 30 . . . lIb8+. What he must have missed was that 30 �d2 'iWxb2+ 3 1 'it>e3 was possible when the outcome still isn't clear. A fter 29 'it>d l White's pieces lack coordination. 29 ... 'Wgl+ 30 'iWel �xg2 ! White's pieces are so poorly placed that Black can afford the lux­ ury of quiet play with one rook less. 3 1 .fl .tfJ+ 32 q.,e1 'ii'x b2! 33 lib! 'ii'xe5+ 34 �f2 bxa2 35 l:tel 'iWf6 36 �g3 .ig2! A study-like idea. If 3 7 'iWxg2 there follows 37 . . . a l =. or if 37 �xg2 then 37 ... .xh4. 37 'ii'g l edS 38 tvd4 'ire5 I· 39 �h2 .te4 40 nhxe4 fxe4 4 1 'i'xe4 'ii'x h5+ 0 : 1

26 'it>d2?! After 26 We2 Black would have to play 26 ... lixc2+ 27 �xc2 �c4+ 28 �d2 (28 �f3? 'irxa 1 29 lig4 'iW£1+ 30 �e3 'it'e2+ 3 1 �d4 'irxc2-+) 28 . . . 'ii'd4+ 29 'it>c 1 'it'g l + with a draw by perpetual check and not 26 ... 'ii'd4? 27 f5 'Mi'xb2 28 f6 l:l.xc2+ 29 �xc2 'Wxc2+ 3 0 1V£1 . 26 ... 'iWd4 Retracing h is steps. White's attack lJl !Jab thruugh nfter either 26 ... 'ii'xg2+? 27.'iWxg2 �xg2 28.11g1 i.d5 29 lihg4 or 26 ... 'Wxa I? 27.ltg4 whereas now Black can Karpov - Kasparov meet 27 ltg4? with 27 ... �e4 28 Moscow weh 1 985 ltxg7+ 'it>h8. 27 f5! 1 e4 c5 2 iLlfJ d6 3 d4 cxd4 4 Lutikov ct;Jfltillu!Js tu play with iLlxd4 lDr6 5 ltJc3 a6 6 .i.e2 e6 7 gusto and the game now approaches 0-0 .te7 8 f4 0-0 9 �hl 'We7 1 0 a4 its climax. With his queen attacked iLle6 I I .te3 lie8 and 28 f6 threatened, Black has only This is al l rather wel l-known one saving clause. theory which featured in the later

between Anand and match Kasparov. 1 2 jt,fJ lIb8 13 �d2 jt,d7 1 4 lLlb3 b 6 1 5g4 The battle- l i nes are now c l early drawn, W hite is aiming for a king­ side attack and first wants to drive Black's knight from f6, Black meanwhile must regroup his pieces in preparation for queenside or cen­ tral counter-play. This is the kind o f position i n which you must play act ively. 1 5 ... iLc8 16 g5 lLld7 1 7 �f2 iLfS 1 8 jt,g2 jt,b7 1 9 liad I g6 20 iLcl libc8 Kasparov later rccommended the immediate 20 . . . ltJc51 as being more precise. 2 1 lid3 lLlb4 22 lIh3 iLg7

A critical position which was sub­ jected to serious analytical scrutiny after the match. Without going into too much detail it emerged that 23 f5 would subject Black to serious pressure, Kasparov's intention of 23 . . . exfS 24 exf5 ltJe5 being strongly met by 26 1:f4! .txg2+ 27 �xg2 'i'c6+ 28 �g l gxf5 29 lLld4 'Wc5 30 .ie3 rather than the precipitous 26 'Ct'xh7+ 'it>f8 27 lLld2 jt,xg2+ 28 'it>xg2 �c6+ 29 ltJf3 gxf5 30 'i!lVxf5 ltJd5 3 1 �g l ltJxc3 32 bxc3 'iWC?+

33 lIf2 lIc7 when Black has counterplay. Yet in his notes to the game Karpov held that his move is also good. 23 iLe3 lIe7! 24 'it>gl lIce8 25 lidl f5 26 gxf6 ltJxf6 27 lIg3 According to Karpov White should play 27 .txb6 'Wb8 28 a5 I lIf7 29 'iWd2 lLlh5 30 ltJe2 followed by 3 1 c3 with a very unpleasant position for Black. 27 ... lIf7 28 .txb6 'it'b8 29 .te3 lLlhS 30 l:tg4 lLlf6 3 1 lIh4 And here 3 1 lIg3 lLlh5 would lead to a draw by repetition. However Karpov rejected this because he had to w i n .

3 1 . . . g S ! 3 2 fxg5 ltJg4! After 32 ... lLlxe4 White can sacri­ fice his queen with 33 'it'xf7+ 'it>xf7 34 lLlxe4 and obtain a dangerous attack. 33 'ii'd 2 ltJxe3 34 'Wxe3 lLlxc2 35 'i'b6 jt,a8 36 l:txd6? 36 'iWxb8 l:txb8 37 iLh3 I (Agzamov) was sti l l quite playable for White but Karpov bums his bridges in a final attempt to win. 3 6 ... lIb7 37 'it'xa6 lIxb3 38 lhe6 l:txb2 39 'Wc4 ..t>h8 40 e5 �a7+ 41 'it>hl .txg2+ 42 'Otxg2 iLld4+ 0 : 1

34 The Initiative

KM I 4/3 : I ) White to play

KM t 4/3: 3) White to play

The Initiative 35

KM I 4/3 : 2) Black to play

KM t 4/3 : 4) Black to play

Month 1 4fWeek 4 : Charging the Currents

In this last section I will attempt to deal with a rather less tangible form of the initiative in which a player 'charges the currents' of a position rather than sets up direct threats. When the sacrifice of ma­ terial is involved this is especially difficult to judge and very few players have really mastered this most difficult aspect of the game. I think that the greatest exponent of this art was Leonid Stein who would frequently give up light ma­ terial such as pawns or rook for bishop without any clearly visible return. Yet after a few moves it would become apparent that an in­ itiative was starting to develop and ultimately this would be trans­ formed into an attack.

Had it not been made by a great master such as Stein, this move would be condemned as a mistake because it gives White the e4 square as a base of operations. Yet Stein sees it as the start of a process of un­ deTIl'!in ing White's pawn structure. t t lbxe4 lbf4 1 2 �c2 lbr6 In a later game against Hort, Stein varied at this point with 1 2 . . . lbb6 1 3 b3 as 14 g3 lbh5 15 g4 lbf4 1 6 lbe2 a4 1 7 liJ2c3 �d7 t 8 Wb2 and should now have played 1 8 . . . 1!Vb81 rather than 18 . . lbc8. This would lend weight to the idea that his play in the present game was not entirely reliable. 13 lbc3 .

Korchnoi - Stein USSR Ch Tallinn 1965 ,

1 d4 lbf6 2 c4 g6 3 lbc3 �g7 4 e4 d6 5 1'3 0-0 6 �e3 e5 7 d5 itJh5 8 1iVd2 f5 9 0-0-0 lbd7 1 0 �d3

13 b5!? A brilliantly imaginative pawn sacrifice for which there seems to be very little return. A more normal way to prepare ... b7-bS would be with I 3 ... a6. 1 4 lbxb5 After 1 4 cxbS Black would gain a strong initiative with 1 4 ... a6, but it is difficult to see much compensa­ tion for Black after 1 4 g3 lb4hS 1 5 lbxb5 �a6 1 6 lbe2. 1 4 ... �a6 IS lba3 Apparently quite solid but this is not an attractive square for the ••,

KM t 4/3: a) White to play

A t 4/3: b) Block to pl.ay

10 ... fxe4 !?

?6

The Initiative

knight. At this point I S g3 is a move too late, Black can play I S . . . liJ4xd5 because the knight o n b5 is hanging. 15 . . . 1::I.b 8 16 g3 lll4 h5 17 b3 .ib7! Clearly announcing his intention to undermine the d5 pawn with 1 8 . ., c6 ! . By now it is becoming clear that Black has compensation for his pawn but this has been a distinctly gradual process. I s lll b l c6!

1 9 dxc6 .ixc6 20 �xd6 White goes a second pawn up but there are serious weaknesses around his king. Black also has pressure on both of the long d iagonal s. 20 ... �eS 21 1::I.e l 1::1. f7 22 Ji.d2 .irs 23 'i'd3 Sllatdlillg anuther paw l l wuuld be too much, 23 �xe5 l:te7 24 �c3 1::I.x e l + 25 �xe l .ib4 26 'i'xb4 lhb4 27 .ixb4 lllg 4 28 fxg4 �xh 1 29 gxhS 'i'e3+ picks up the knight on g l as well. 23 ... c4 24 'i'c3 Stubbornly refus ing to give back :my booty. 24 fxe4 lOg4 25 "00 lllf2 26 'i'el liJxh l 27 lhh l was White's best practical chance. 24 ... .ig7! 25 lll h 3

The Illitiative 3 7 25 'i'a5 l:te7 ' would increase the pressure.

quietly

25 ... lllg 4! 26 fxg4 White finally admits that he must return some material and gives up his queen in order to try and stem the tide of Dlack's attack. After 26 'lWa5 there would follow 26 ... llxD 27 liJg5 (Or 27 'i'xa7 e3 28 Ji.d llV) 27 . . . llf5 28 'ir'xa7 llxg5 29 .hgS 'i'e5 30 �d2 �2+ 3 1 �d I lla8 32 'i'b6 1ha2 etc. 26 ... Ji.xc3 27 liJxc3 liJf6 2S g5 liJd7 29 ltJxe4 'i'rs 30 �c3 lln 3 1 �b2 .!:reS 3 2 gS Or 24 ... f6 25 'irb8+-. 25 1:1a7! The point of White's combina­ tion. After 25 ... �c6 there follows 26 iLxd5 iLxd5 27 'i'xd5 We I + (Or 27 ... 'i'f8 28 1i'xb5 etc) 28 'it>g2 �e6 29 1!t'xe6 fxc6 30 WO+-. 25 ... liJe3 26 'i'xe3 SLxg2 27 �xg2 'i'd6 28 'i'e8+ 'i'rs 29 'i!fxbS c3 30 bxc3 h5 31 h4 'it>g7 32 'i'e5+ Wh7 33 'i'f6 1 :0

38 The Initiative

KMI 4/4: I ) White to play

KM 14/4: 2) White to play

3

KM 1 4/4: 3) White to play

A 1 4/4: a) White to play

KM 1 4/4: 4) White to play

A 1 4/4: b) Black to play

The Art of Defence

Good defensive play requires all round chess ability, from calculating ability to positional judgement, im­ agination and a cool nerve. Whilst chess literature has lavished atten­ tion on the art of attack, relatively little has been written about de­ fence. Yet good defensive play has been one of the outstanding hall­ marks of every World Champion since Steinilz. This month we will look at vari­ ous aspects of defence. In week one we will examine the simple method of exchanging off pieces whilst in week two we will see how it is poss­ ible to neutralise threats before they arise with the art of prophylaxis. In week three we shall look at the con­ cept of blockade of which Tigran Petros ian was the greatest master. Week four is devoted to what may be the most effective defensive strategy of all, taking the initiative away from the opponent with a timely counterattack.

the most dangerous opposing pieces for those which are relatively poorly placed can lead to a general im­ provement in your position and neu­ tralise any danger. Such a strategy is commonly used when one player gives up a pawn for piece activity. If his active pieces can be exchanged off he will be left with little or nothing for the pawn as, for example, in the follow­ ing encounter: Boleslavsky - Kotov Zurich Ct 1 953 1 d4 d5 2 c4 dxc4 3 lbf3 lbf6 4 e3 e6 5 �xc4 c5 6 0-0 a6 7 'i!l'e2 cxd4 8 exd4 i-e7 9 lbc3 bS 1 0 �b3 �b7 1 1 �gS 0-0 13 lladl

Month 1 5fWeek I : Arms Reduction

One of the most simple and effec­ tive methods of defence is simply reduce the number of arms. I do not advocate indiscriminate exchanges in which pieces are exchanged just for the sake of it and in fact this can lead to disaster. But to exchange off

13 ... lba5 Bronstein commented in his notes that everyone thought that this was a mistake as it allows White a break­ through in the centre. Yet perhaps

40

The Art ofDefence The Art of Defelice 1 1

Kotov saw that 1 3 . . . liJb4 is ans­ wered strongly by 1 4 dS! liJbxdS? I S liJxdS �xdS 1 6 i.xdS liJxdS 1 7 �xe7 'itxe7 1 8 l:txdS whilst after the text move he could give up a pawn and obtain compensation. 14 d5! liJxb3 1 5 dxe6 'i!ib6 1 6 axb3 fxe6 1 7 liJd4! iL d 6 I S �xe6+ 'it'hS 19 tLlf3 l:tadS It looks as if Black has excellent compensation for the lost pawn in the fonn of open lines, a menacing bishop pair and weakened White queenside pawns. But Boleslavsky neutral ises the danger by initiating a series of exchanges.

liJe4 ..t;g6 41 iLe5 iLd5 42 liJd2 'it'n 1 : 0

In a way this was a rather straight­ forward example, the next one is far more complex. After getting a poor position from the opening we see Bent Larsen fight for his life against Boris Spassky, who at the time of the game was the reigning World Champion. On move 1 3 we see a brilliant offer of an exchange sacri­ fice which forces the exchange of queens. And then Larsen fights for the full point in a complex endgame. Spassky - Larsen USSR-Rest of the World, Belgrade 1970 1 d4 liJf6 2 c4 e6 3 liJf3 b6 4 liJe3 i.b7 5 �g5 i.e7 6 e3 0-0 7 i.d3 c5 S 0-0 liJe6 9 d5 liJb4 10 d6 i.xd6

20 �f4 ! iLxf3 21 l:txd6 l:txd6 2 2 'ifxd6 �xd6 2 3 i.xd6 l:teS 2 4 l:txeS+ liJxeS 25 �e5! An excellent move which pins Black's knight to the back rank. Without this possibility the opposite coloured bishops would give Black excellent drawing chances. 25 ... i.e6 26 b4! h5 27 f3 <Ji>h7 2S liJe2 g5 29 'it>f2 h4 30 g3 hxg3+ 31 hxg3 ..t;g6 3 2 g4! iLb7 Or if 32 ... liJf6 there is 33 i.xf6 'it'xf6 34 'it>e3 'it>eS 3S lDc3+-. 33 '.t>e3 �e6 34 liJe3 �b7 35 liJe4 �d5 36 liJe5 'it>n 37 liJxa6 We6 38 i.e3 �aS 39 liJe5+ wn 40

A brill iant defensive idea which aims 1 0 exchange Black 's public enemy number one, the queen on d6. In playing this way Black offers an exchange sacrifice which Spassky quite rightly declines.

14 'tWe7! Spassky rightly makes a bee-line for Black's d-pawn rather than going for bigger fish. After 1 4 i.xd8?' liJxd6 I S �e7 liJxc4 1 6 iL x f8 lhf8 Black has excellent compensation whilst 14 �xf8 is met by 14 ... fixgs+ I S ..t;h I �fS after which rejecting a draw by repitition with 1 6 l:tg l looks too risky because of 16 ... 'i'xf3+ 17 l:tg2 tLld3 . 1 4 . . . 'itxe7 1 5 i.xe7 .l:[gS 1 6 l:tfd I tLlc6 1 7 .l:[xd7 tLle5 I S l:tb7 tLlxc4 19 tLle4 liJa5 20 l:td7 lDe6 2 1 f4 .l:[eS 2 2 l:tcl as 2 3 a3

A very risky move which aims to activate Black's king with the board sti ll full of pieces. In doing so he turned down the safe 23 '" tLlxe7 24 l:txe7 l:tc7 which would probably lead to a draw. Larsen is renowned for his fight­ ing qualities and given the choice between a safe line and taking a risk to try and win he would generally take the risk. On this occasion it pays off but it could so easily have backfired. 24 'it>g2 l:th8 25 'it>f3 In his notes to the game Spassky felt he could have put Black in seri­ ous trouble with 2S .l:[g I liJxe7 26 'it>f3+ ..t;h6 27 .l:[xe7 l:tc7 28 .l:[xc7 tLlxc7 29 tDd6 .l:[f8 30 liJ::4 .l:tb8 3 1 .l:[d l which ties up Black's pieces whilst preparing to infiltrate. 25 l:txh2 26 tDg5 e5! 27 .l:[g l exf4 2S i.d6! tDxd6 29 .l:[xd6+ f6 30 tDe6+ 'it>f5 3 1 tDxf4 tDe5+ 32 ..t;e2 .l:[eS 33 .l:[xb6 And here White could have played 33 tDe6! tDc4 34 tDxg7+ ..t;eS 3S lDxe8. 33 ttJc4 34 .l:[b3 g5 35 ttJd5 l:te5 36 .l:[dl g4 37 'it>n ?? A time-trouble blunder, giving away. a rook. Larsen's brinkmanship triumphs. ..•

.•.

I I i.xh7+ This appears to lead to a very at­ tractive position for White but I I iLxto gxio ( 1 1 . . . 'itxf6'l'l 1 2 i.e4+-) 1 2 i.xh7+ ..t;xh7 1 3 'i'xd6 was probably even stronger. Spassky might have overlooked Black's 1 3th move. 1 1 ... 'it;xh7 1 2 �xd6 �xf3 1 3 gxf3 tLleS! 23 ... 'it>g6?!

37 ... .l:[hl+ 3S 'it>e2 .l:[xd I 0 : 1

42 The Art ofDefence The Art of Defence 43 KM 1 5/1 : I ) Black to play

KM 1 5/ 1 : 2) White to play Month l S/Week 2: Prophylaxis

KM 1 5/ 1 : 3) White to play

KM I 5/l : 4) White to p l ay

In his brilliant writings on chess, Aaron Nimzowitsch introduced some rather mystical concepts such as overprotection and prophylaxis. In this section we shall look at prophylaxis, the art of inhibiting the opponent's active possibilities be­ fore they really arise. In a sense this is a kind of chessboard vaccination rather than attempting a cure once the disease has already developed. To some extent it is rather diffi­ cult to put such ideas into words. In­ stead let me show you one of the most famous of a l l prophylactic moves after which I really started to understand this concept. The player who played it was Anatoly Karpov, whose flair for snuffing out danger is legendary. It is taken from the 1 974 Candidates final which, because Fischer did not defend his title, effectively proved to be a World Championship match. Karpov - Korchnoi Moscow em 1 974

A I 5/ 1 : a) Black to play

A 1 5/ l : b) Black to play

1 e4 cS 2 tOo d6 3 d4 cxd4 4 ltJxd4 tOr6 S ltJc3 g6 This choice of opening . was dic­ tated by Korchnoi ' s wish to test Karpov out in sharp and murky positions. 6 .i.e3 .i.g7 7 0 tOc6 8 1i'd2 0-0 9 .i.c4 .i.d7 10 h4 Ac8 1 1 .i.b3 ltJeS 12 0-0-0 ltJc4 13 .i.xc4 :txc4 14 hS ltJxhS IS g4 tOf6

A well known Dragon position in which it was felt that the game would be won by whoever got their attack in first. Prior to this game White had tried various attacking moves such as 16 e5 or 1 6 �h6 though this latter move can be met by 1 6 ... �xh6 17 'fIxh6 Ihc3. In fact the c3 square is the focal point of Black's pressure on the h8-a I di­ agonal, which goes a long way to­ wards explaining White's next move. 1 6 ltJde2! Very untypical of the Dragon in that White usually goes hell for leather at Black's king. But the point is that it reinforces the c3 square and goes a long way towards neutral ising Black's attack. 16 ... 'i'aS A natural enough move but later on it was discovered that Black should also take prophylactic measures of his own with 1 6 . . . l:te8. preventing the exchange of his cru­ cial dark-squared bishop with 1 7 .i.h6. 17 �h6 �xh6 18 'iVxh6 llrcS 19 l:td3! l:t4cS 20 gS llxgS

44 The Art ofDefence

The A rt of Defelice order to meet them hal f way. This kind of thinking is rather typical of my favourite Modern Defence in which Black tends to adapt his strat­ egy to White's chosen set-up.

Baker - Davies Crewe 1 996

2 1 1:rd5! 1:rxd5 22 llJxd5 1:re8 Neither 22 . . . �d8 23 llJef4 'i'if8 24 llJxf6+ exf6 25 �xh7# nor 2 2 . . . llJ h 5 23 llJxe7+ � h 8 2 4 llJxc8 helps Black very much. 23 llJef4 �c6 23 ... �e6 is met by 24 llJxe6 fxe6 25 ltJxf6+ exf6 26 'Wxh7+ �f8

An unpleasant move for W hite to meet �fter which 1 2 e5 is answered by 1 2 . . . llJf5 and 1 2 �d3 by 1 2 . . . c4 ! . Rather than go for a passive and miserable defence White gamely sacrifices two pawns for piece activ­ ity. But it can never really be enough.

I e4 g6 2 d4 �g7 3 llJc3 d6 4 f4 e6!?

45

White's play. Not only does it de­ fend against the threat of 1 9 �xc5 but it prepares to ej ect a White bishop from d3 with the push c5-c4. 19 l:rfJ ltJg6 20 �h5 .!:!:I!! 2 1 l:rh3 �f8 22 1:rgl c4 23 g4 f4 24 �d4 eS 25 �c3 'ir'e8 ! Another key prophylactic move after which Black's defences are very solid and his central pawn mass can start to move forwards. 25 . . . d5 would be premature and could have been met by 26 g5 1" 5 2 7 �xe5 " ltJxe5 28 g6 .!:!:g7 2 9 �xh7+" etc.

27 'tIi'xh7+-.

24 e5! The coup de grace. 24 ... dxe5 is met by 2 5 llJxf6+ exf6 26 ltJh5 gxh5 2 7 1:rg l + followed by mate.

24 ... �xd5 25 exf6 exf6 26 'it'xh7+ �f8 27 'iWh8+ 1 :0 Games such as this, and Nimzo­ witsch's books, have made quite a big impression on my own style of play. In my ' mature' years I have become very conscious of trying to gauge my opponent's intentions in

Already a prophylactic idea against the possibility of White playing f4-f5. The way I see it is that if I prevent White from moving h is f-pawn forward his bishop on c1 will never be able to exchange itself for my bishop on g7. And in that case my king position should keep a v i llil ddt:lult:r. 5 llJfJ ltJe7 6 �e2 ltJd7 7 0-0 b6 8 fr'el ? ! The start of a somewhat primitive plan to mate Black on the kingsid e. I an!iwer thi3 charge 011 thc OHm. by hitting back in the centre. S ... �b7 9 �hl 0-0 10 'ir'h4?! White himself should adopt pro­ phylactic measures and try to pre­ vent the coming . . . c7-c5 lever with 1 0 � e3 and ) I l:rd 1. 10 .. c5 1 1 �e3 llJf6 ! _

12 l:radl �xe4! 13 llJxe4 ltJxe4 14 f5 gxf5! Assuring central control by cap­ turing towards the centre. In this particular position this is more im­ portant than the integrity of the kings ide pawn shield. I S dxc5 bxc5 16 ltJg5 ltJxg5 1 7 �xg5 f6 1 8 �e3 .!:!:c8!

A very important prophylactic move which effectively neutralises

26 g5 f5 27 �f3 �e6 Once again Black carefu l l y se­ cures his defe'· ces. He should not play 27 . . . e4 because o f 2 8 �xg6+. 28 .!:!:el �d7 The last prophylactic move which finally puts an end to any mating combinations b3sed on 'fr'xg6. The rest is fairly simple. 29 �gl d5 30 �h l e4 31 �g2 'WI! 32 �f6 fJ 33 �xfJ exfJ 34 'ii'x fJ d4 35 'itxf5 'itd5+ 36 �xd5+ �xd5 37 �d 1 .ltg7 38 1:!.fJ �xf6 39 gxf6 �I! 4 0 b3 cxb3 41 cxb3 nc6 42 1:!.h3 hS 43 1:!.hd3 1:!.cd6 0: 1

46 The Art of Defence The Art of Defellce 4 7 KM I S/2: I ) Black to play

KM I S/2: 2) White to play Month 1 5/Week 3 : B l oc ka d e

KM I S/2: 3)White to play

A 1 5/2: a) White to play

� I 5/2: 4) Black to play

A I S/2: b) White to play

One of Nimzowitsch's most fa­ mous phrases was: "First restrain, next blockade and lastly destroy." Whilst this was coined primarily with regard to enemy pawn wea­ knesses the same process can apply in part to the art of defence. Prophy­ laxis might be seen as restraining the opponent's aggressive intentions and this can develop into a block­ ade; the construction of a truly im­ pregnable position into which there are no inroads. A counterattack may or may not be the next development. Nigel Short put this process quite picturesquely in his book New Ideas In The French Defence: "More cau­ tious players like myself prefer to nullify our opponent's play and then blow their heads off." But the greatest master of this art was un­ doubtably Tigran Petrosian who sometimes seemed to understand N irnzowitsch 's ideas better than Nirnzowitsch himself. Petros ian had a rare gift for con­ structing quite impenetrable posi­ tio�.s and he would often find a delicate positional sacrifice of a pawn or the exchange in order to do exactly that. Witness for example this game against Polugayevsky in which he sacrifices the exchange to . construct an impenetrable line of defence on the dark squares.

The start o f a n interesting plan by Petrosian which he was later to cri­ ticise in his notes to the game. 8 �e2 c5 The consistent fol low-up to Black's last move though it does leave the d-pawn backward. Black is playing for an outpost on 44. 9 lLlc2 �e6

1 0 lLld5? After this Black gets time to im­ plement his plan. White should have taken this opportunity to play the dynamic 1 0 f4 after which 10 . . lLlxc4 I I fS gxfS 1 2 exfS �xfS 1 3 0-0 (and not 1 3 �xc4? 'ii'h 4+) would give White a winning attack according to Petrosian. Black would in fact be forced to retreat with 10 . lLlc6 after which I I iLe3 would leave him unable to occupy the d4 square. 10 �xdS 1 1 exd5 Whichever paWn White recaptures with he plugs the hole on dS. 1 1 cxdS lLle7 is also far from clear. lLle7! 12 0-0 0-0 13 l:tb 1 11 lbrs 14 b4? 14 b3 would have been better as now Black acquires an outpost on cS. Polugaevsky no doubt felt he should punish Black for his pro­ vocative opening play. .

.

...

.••

Polugaevsky - Petrosian Moscow 1 983 I lLlo g6 2 d4 �g7 3 c4 d6 4 lLlc3 e5 5 e4 lLlc6 6 dxe5 iDxe5 7 iDd4 a6! ?

.

48

Th e Art of Defence The Art of Defence 49 14 ... exb4 I S 1:xb4 'fie7

Preparing the fatal blunder. 23 ' 1:[b I is correct. 23 ... 'ii'e7

16 �b2 1:fe8 1 7 1Od4?! Continuing to play a mbitiously but probably already missing Petro­ sian' s 1 9th move. White should play 24 1:b6?? simply 17 g3 . Here it is, the losing move. Polu­ 1 7 ... lLlxd4 18 �xd4 lOd7 1 9 gayevsky was hoping for 24 ... �e3 �xe3+ 2 5 J:rxe3 'fixe3+ 26 'ii'xe3 After 1 9 �xg7 �xg7 Bhick 1:xe3 27 �f3 when White lifts the would simply stand better because blockade of dS. of his dark-square outposts. It now 24 ... lOa4 0: 1 seems that White is well placed with Here's another example of this two bishops and pressure on the b­ kind of exchange sacrifice which file. But with the sacrifice of the ex­ also shows what happens when an change Blaxd2 ttJd7 1 2 �bS 0-0 13 �xd7 �x d7 14 e4 fS I S eS e6 The real novelty, evidentl y pre­ pared by Kasparov for this game. Black allows White a supported passed pawn on d6 but hopes to get counterplay with his bishop pair.

IS ... lIac8 had been tried previ­

ously but then 16 c4 lIxcS

�e3

with the problem of how to find counterplay.

16 c4 1Ifc8 17 c6! bxc6 1 8 d6 c5? Black had to play 1 8 . . . gS but

19 �xgS St.xeS 20 cS ncb8 2 1 ltJf3 �b2 22 l:tc2 seems to leave

then

. Black without much play. 19 h4! h6 20 ltJh3 ! ! A

Karpov - Kasparov London Weh 1 986

17

lIaS 18 f4 e6 1 9 d6 leaves Bl ack

beautiful

ruins

move which

Black's plans.

Kasparov and his

seconds had apparently prepared the whole line up to this point but now

1 d4 iOr6 2 c4 g6 3 ltJc3 dS 4 �r4 �g7 S e3 cS 6 dxcS 'tWaS 7 Itcl ltJe4 8 cxdS ltJxc3 9 'Wd2 'i!ixa2 1 0 bxc3

they only looked at 20 ltJO . Over the board Karpov finds a stronger close the timely

idea

much

which prepares

a8-h 1

diagonal

to

with

f2 - 0 and manoevre knight from h3 to f2 and dJ .

a

the

60

Winning 'Won Positions '

Winning ' Won Positions ' 6 1 need to inhibit counterplay.

your opponent 's

from where it will intensify the pressure on d6.

28 ... 'i'g6

Stein - Bilek Moscow 1 967

28 . . . 4Jxf3 fails to 29 J:XfS ! . 2 9 'i'dl ltJe4 3 0 �d2 bS 3 1 axb6

J:Xxb6 32 nxb6 lDxb6 33 J:Xd3 fS

1 e4 c5 2 lDf3 g6 3 d4 �g7 4 d5 d6 5 lLlc3 ltJr6 6 �e2 0-0 7 0-0 �g4 8 lLld2 .be2 9 'ilt'xe2 lLlbd7

20 ... as 2 1 13 a4 22 J:Xhe l !

Another deeply instructive move by Karpov, protecting the e-pawn prepares lDh3- fJ . The immediate 22 lDf2 would have been met by 22 . . . gS.

22 ... a3 23 ltJn a2 24 lDd3 l::t a3 25 J:Xa l !

Another fine move. 2 S �e3 J:Xxd3+ 26 Wxd3 �xeS allows Black's king's bishop to breathe again.

25 ... g5

25 '" l::tb 8 was a suggestion of Ri­ cardo Calvo who gave the line 26 l::te c l gS 27 hxgS hxgS 28 Jixg5 J:Xbb3 29 lDxcs J:Xb2+ 30 �e 1 �xeS 3 1 tDxd7 �xd6 with complications. Probably this is all unnecessary as 26 We2! J:Xbb3 27 lDxcs looks good.

Black 's failure to get anything . lIke adeq�ate play in this game makes it necessary to look for im­ provements early on. 9 . . . ne8 is more interesting so that after 1 0 . . . e 6 I I dxe6 Black would b e able to put his knight on c6.

1 0 lLle4 ltJb6 I l ltJe3!

Avoiding the exehange of knights and preparing an advance of his a-pawn.

1 1 ... ne8 12 a4 e6 13 dxe6

And not 13 a5? ltJbxdS 14 exd5 exd5 which wins baek the knight with interest.

13 .Ihe6 14 as ltJbd7 1 5 13 J:Xb8 1 6 lld l .•.

By undermining the e4 pawn Black hope's to regain control of dS. But the further weakening of his pOSitIOn proves to be king intolerable.

A horrible move by Bilek which makes his position even worse. No doubt he was worried about his one well-placed piece, the knight on eS, being driven away with f3-f4. But the hole on fS is far too great a price to pay.

2 J l::ta 3 ltJc6 22 lLle3 Jid4

Black must eliminate the knight even at the cost of this vital bishop.

23 W h l �xe3 24 �xe3 'ilt'f6 25 l::td 5 h6 26 nb3

Threatening 27 a6, which could presently have been answered by 26 ... �xb2.

26 ... 36 27 h3 ltJeS

26 hxgS hxg5 27 �xgS fl lOf4 45 fig3+ el 'iVc2 5 1 'tlr'f3 lOg2+ 52 fl lOef4! 5 3 g 1 tLlxh4 54 1iVfl 'ii'x e4 55 lOc5 �e3+ 56 rlo> h l �xc5 57 ..td3+ f5 ! 0 : 1

66 Winning ' Won Positions '

Winning ' Won Positions ' KM I 6/3: I ) Black to play

KM I 6/3: 2) White to play Month 16/Week 4 : Never S a y Die!

KM 1 6/3: 3) White to play

KM I 6/3 : 4) White to play

It started to become clear from the examples given l ast week that the best way to pull off a ' swindle' is not just to try an isolated trick. The right thing to do is to make it as difficult as possible for your oppo­ nent to win the position, to put as many obstacles in his path as possible. One of the most inspiring books J have read is The Art of the Middle Gome by Paul Keres and Alexander Kotov. Keres wrote a superb chapter entitled ' How to Defend Difficult Positions' . The advice contained withir. this chapter has undoubtably helped me save many lost positions:

" When the player with the upper hand is continually confronted by new problems, when, at every mo­ ment, one renders the win as diffi ­ cult as possible, then it is likely that his powers will eventually weaken and he may make some mistake. " In the fol l owing game Keres prac­ ticed what he preached:

1\ 1 6/3: 0) B lack to play

67

A 1 6/3 :

b) Black to play

Bronstein - Keres Amsterdam Ct 1 956 1 e4 e5 2 liJf3 tDc6 3 �b5 a6 4 �a4 liJr6 5 0-0 �e7 6 :tel bS 7 �b3 d6 S c3 0-0 9 h3 tDaS 10 �c2 c5 I I d4 �c7 1 2 liJbd2 cxd4 13 cxd4 liJc6 1 4 liJb3 �b7 IS .i.gS h6 16 .i.h4 liJh5 17 d5 liJdS IS �xe7 .xe7 19 liJfd4! Black's opening has hardly been a success and White's pressure mounts move by move. 19 .. , liJr4 20 tDf5 ..wr6 21 I.te3 Wh7 22 a4 bxa4 23 I.txa4 SJ.cS 24 I.tb4 liJb7 25 I.tc3 g6 26 liJe3 as 27

J:rb6 �dS 2S liJc4 J:ra7 29 liJc l 't!Vg5 30 I.tg3 �e7 3 1 liJe2 liJxe2+ 32 'Wxe2 ndS 33 na3 �d7 34 �e3 ncs 35 �d3 �e8!

36 b4! Keres tried to lure White into tak­ ing the d-pawn but after 36 liJxd6 liJxd6 37 J:rxd6 'ii'xd6 3 8 'ii'x a7 'i!ib4 he would get good counterplay (39 't!Vxa5 can be met by 39 ... J:rc I + 40 It>h2 'Wxb2 4 t I.ta2 'i!ib3). 36 " . a4 37 '.t>h2 �aaS 38 iLe2 J:rc7 39 b5! 'WdS 40 J:ra2 Wg7 4 1 I.tc6! Bronstein's sealed move which was undoubtably the best. Black can hardly accept the exchange sacrifice as 4 1 ... �xc6 42 dxc6 liJc5 43 liJxe5 is hopeless. So Keres tries to distract White with the lure of the a4 pawn.

68

Winning 'Won Positions '

41 ... nb8 42 lld2! An excellent move which simply maintains the advantages of White's position. R ushing in with 42 nxa4 .liLxc6 43 dxc6 would allow Black to gain a tempo with 43 ... lDc5 and bring the knight to e6 and d4. 42 ... h5 43 lId I The most effective way to win would have been with, say, 43 'i!J'c3 ' after which White i s threa tening things like 44 lDxe5, 44 lDxd6 and even 44 f4. But Bronstein was get­ ting into time-trouble and doubtless wanted to keep it simple. 43 ... �g8 44 �gl �h7 45 'i'a3 'i!J'e7

46 'ii'x a4? A serious mi f6 43 J::!:b 5 .liLd6 44 .lie4 J::!:e8 45 llf5+ Wg7 46 .liLa llel + 47 b6. .

70

Winlling 'Won Positions '

KM I 6/4 : I ) White to play

KMI 6/4: 2) White to play

5

KM 16/4 : 3) B lack to play

KM I 6/4: 4) White to play

Endgame T h e m es

Mony peopl e bel ieve that becau se the open i ng come s fi rst i t is more im porta nt to study t h is phase of n game before onyth ing else, A fter a l l , to i f you c a n ' t get good posi t ions start w i t h then what ' £ the usc of know ing hoI\' to c on vel1 a sl ight ad ­ va ntage i n the endga me') [ se e this q u estion ra t her d i l'li:re n t ­ Iy, In the open ing we stal1 o u t w i t h t h e most comp lex posi t i on and

throu gh excha nges g ra dually deriv e si mpler on es , If one is unabl e to un­ dersta nd ful l y how a few piece s coop erate toget her then how can we appre ciate positi ons with a fu ll or­ chest ra o f piece s? I t is no accid ent that many of the greate st maste rs, notab ly Karp ov and Capa blanc a, have recom mend ed study ing the endg ame before other aspec ts of

'S " A 1 6/4: a) Black �o play

A 1 6/4: b) Black to play

chess, The proce ss o f study ing the end­ game can have a profo und intlue nce on one's whol e game by devel oping a gener al under stand ing of chess and enabl ing playe rs to think in a meth odica l and logic al more confi dent is who r playe A mann er. in his ability to win in the endg ame can play both openi ng and midd le­ game in a more restra ined mann er. Being unafr aid to enter on endga me can mea!l that stra i n ing t o ploy for m a t e w i l l be J t hing o f the past. I n week one of this mont h I w i l l touch upon t h e a rt of know ing

w h ic h p ie c e to excha nge ,,' h i \ ,: "'c'd

t wo is conce mcd w i t h s t rctc h i n ..: t h e defence by a t ta c k i n g sc\'.:r al �\'.:;t ­ kness es, In week t h re e w e w i l l look at the art o f redu c i n g the oppon e n t ' s active poss i b i l i t i es rather t h n n i m ­ media tely p u rs u i n g o ne ' , o\l'n a c ­ tive p l a ns , Week four i s de\'oh:cI t o the k i nd o f syst e m a t i c th i n k i l i � t h :l ; work s part i c u l a rl y we\ i In e l l d�all1 ':' :1 an d on bene ti t o ne ' s [! n ll1e :1 '; e, whol Mo n t h

l 7/Wcck

I:

The Art of E x c h a n g i n g Know ing w h ic h p icc.:s t o ex­ chan ge dnd w h ich ( 0 l e a v e 0 1 1 t h e board is one of (h e t h o n l lest issues ur p�rt icula r on the chessboard and i! impo rtanc e in the e ndg a m e w h ere ­ r e c rc � There , e v i s i c can even be d e tain confi gurat ions of piece s "'hich have draw ish tende ncies , other s will simp ly suit the pawn s t ructu re better. Generall y speak ing the b es t way to explo it a mate rial advan tage is throu gh simp lifica tion but thoug ht­ l ess excha nges can l ead to a draw , rook or oppo site colou red bisho p endga mes w il l hove draw ish ten­ denc ies whi l st the simp les! end­ games are those with pawn s I n the follow ing g�ll1c w e s e e the former Wor ld Cham p ion \l i k h a i i Botv innik make � bri l l i a n t decis ion

72 Elldgame Themes

Endgame Themes 73

calculations.

to exchange the rooks seeing t h a t

confidence in h is

the res u l t ing p J w n endgame

be t h e simplest to win but this one requires g re a t subtlety and finesse. 37 lI x g4 hxg4 38 Wg2 g5! 39 h5 B l ack is also w i n n i n g after 39 Wg3 'it>g6 40 'it>xg4 gxh 4 4 1 Wx h 4 'it>f5 42 Wg3 'it>e4 43 'it>f2 a5 4 4 'it> e 2 a 4 4 5 a3 e61 4 6 Wd2 Wf3 4 7 Wd3 e5-+. 39 ... Wg 7 40 Wg3 �h7! And not 40 . . . Wh6 4 I �xg4 a5 4 2 e4 when it is While who wins. 4 1 'it>xg4 �h6 0: 1

IS

a

Wtn.

Taimanov - Botvi n n i k Moscow 1 96 7 1 d 4 d 5 2 c 4 c 6 3 tZlf3 tZl f6 4 tf'lbd2 g6 5 e3 .liLg7 6 .liLe2 0-0 7 0-0 b6 8 b4 .liLb7 9 .liL b 2 tf'le4 10 tf'lxe4 d xe4 1 1 tZld2 f5 1 2 e 5 tf'ld7 1 3 �b3+ '\t>h8 1 4 d 5 cxd5 1 5 .l:t.xg7+ W x g7 1 6 .2.1>5 bxe5 1 1 bxe5 !;Ie8 1 8 '&e3+ J::l: f6 1 9 tf'lb3 �g8 2 0 !lac l a 6 2 1 .liL x d 7 't!¥xd7 2 2 !;I fd l .liLe6 23 tZlaS f4 2 4 e x f4 !l x f4 25 tf'lxe6 I;txe6 26 �e5 IH5 27 'i'xe4 dxe4 2 8 J::l: x d 7 z:rfxe5 2 9 �el lIc I 30 �f1 �f7 3 1 1ld4 ? Accord ing

to

Botv i n n i k

endgames

Paw n

can

Fischer · Petrosian Aires em 1971

Buenos

1 e4 c5 2 tZlf3 e6 3 d4 cxd4 4 It)xd4 a6 5 �d3 LDc6 6 It)xc6 bxc6 7 0-0 d5 8 c4! It)f6 9 cxd5 cxd5 1 0 exd5 exd5 1 1 It)c3 ·.2.e7 1 2 lta4+! "ii'd 7 1 3 l:[ell

Fischer heads for a clear endgame edge rather than taking a hot rook with 1 3 .2.b5 axb5 14 'i'xa8 0-0.

'i'xa4 14 LDxa4 .lte6 1 5 13 .2.e3 0-0 •..

White

shou Id ha ve p layed 3 I l:i:xc I !lxc I +

22 lt)xd7+!

Exchanging off B lack ' s bad bishop like this looks like a be gi n ­ ner's move. In fact it al lows White to further penetrate his opponent's defences. 22 ... 1:[xd7 23 1:[c1 Threatening 24 1:[c6.

23 ... l:[d6 24 1:[c7 lt'ld7 25 lIe2 g6 26 'it>f2 h5 2 7 f4

3 2 We2 Jdc2+ 33 We3 Jdxa2 34 1Id4 1 with a l i k ely draw. Now he drifts into trouble.

3 1 ... I he l + 3 2 W x e l �c2 33 !la4? A t t h i s p o i n t 3 3 lhe4 lIxa2 3 4 g4 1 fol lowed b y Wfl - g 2 was the best ch an ce . . 33 . . . e3 ! 34 fxe3 Yxg2 35 h4 h5 36 Wfl ng4 ! !

A b r i l l i a n t l y worked out move by gre a t shows which Botvi n n i k

Taimanov sealed the move 42 e4 · but h e re s ign ed when Bo tvinnik demonstrated a win with 4 2 ... a5 4 3 a 4 e5 44 W f5 Ito> x h 5 4 5 Wxe5 g 4 4 6 c;t;f� � h '1 '1 7 e5 g3 48 c6 g2 49 c7 g I =� 50 e8='i' 'tikf2+ 51 �e5 'i'e I + etc. Had White played 42 a4 th e n 42 . . . a5 43 e4 e5 wou ld lead to the same thing and nol 42 . .. t:6? 43 a5 or 42 . . . e5 43 a3. I n the n ex t game we see Bobby Fischer d e mo ns trat e the art of ex­ ch a n g ing in classic style. Fischer was simply outstanding when i t came t o fluently translating o ne type of advantage into another, even by t he

h igh

Cha mpions.

standards

of

World

16 �c5!

The exchange of Black's good bishop is rather a standard proceed­ ure and White thereby gains control of an outpost on c5 Black should probably have answered this with 16 . . , �x(.j 1 7 LDxc5 1:[fb8 ! , trying for counter-play on the b-file.

16 ... 1:[fe8 1 7 �xe7 1:[xe7 1 8 b4! ..tof8 1 9 lt)c5 �c8 2 0 f3 l:[ea7

20 . . . l:txe l + 21 l:xel lDd7 looks better but would nevertheless leave Black facing White's queenside pawn majority and the weakness of his a-pawn and the d4 square.

2 1 1:[e5 �d7

Clearly intending 22 . . . .ltb5 and sho u l d White prevent this with 22 a4 the b4 pawn would be a target. Fischer's reply is just brilliant.

2 7 ... h4?

Petrosian's resistance starts to crumble. 27 . . . It)b6 28 1:[ee7 1:[f6 was more tenacious.

28 �f3 rs 29 'i!i>e3 d4+ 30 'it>d2 It)b6 3 1 1:tee7 lt'ld5 32 l:[f7+ ..toe8 33 l:[b7 lt'lxb4 34 �c4 1 :0

There is nothing B l ack can do about the threat of 35 lIh7 1:[ f6 36 lI h 8+ l:[f8 37 �f7+.

74 Endgame Themes Endgame Th emes 75

KM I 7/ 1 : I ) White to play

KM 1 71 l :

2) White to play Month 1 7IWeek 2:

On The Rack

KM 1 71 1 : 3) Black to play

KM I 7/1 : 4) White to play

It is usually not enough to attack a single weakness. Your opponent de­ fends it and then what do you do? One answer to ihis problem is to create a second weakness in another part of the board. The superior mo­ bility of the attacking side will en­ able him to switch from one weakness to the other faster than the defender can respond. In the following two games Alek­ hine puts his opponents on the rack as his uses this strategy of creating a second target:

White has obtained a clear advan­ tage out of the opening. His knight is a tower of strength compared with Black's bad bishop on g7 and Black has weak doubled e-pawns. Yet how is White to convert these advantages into a full point? . 16 ... b6 17 nfd l Wf8 IS 'it>f1 !

'it>e7 19 c4! h6 20 'it>e2 l:[xd l 2 1 nxdl

Alekhine - Euwe London 1 922 1 d4 tOf6 2 tOo g6 3 .ltf4 .ltg7 4 tObd2 c5 5 e3 d6 6 c3 tOc6 7 h3 O�O S .ltc4! neS 9 0-0 e5 10 dxe5 iUxe5 1 1 �xe5! dxe5 1 2 iUg5! �e6 An unfortunate necessity

as

after

1 2 .-. nf8 1 3 lUde4 Black is in ter­

A17/l : a) Whill: to play

A 1 7/ 1 : h) White to play

rible trouble whether he chooses 1 3 . . . 'i'xd 1 1 4 nfxd 1 lDxe4 1 5 lDxe4 b6 1 6 lDd6, 13 . . . 'fie7 14 lDd6! or 13 ... tOxe4? 14 �xf7+! . 13 �xe6 fxe6 1 4 lDde4 lDxe4 I S

'iWxdS l:[exdS 1 6 lDxe4

21 ... n bS

By avoiding the exchange of rooks Black makes things much more difficult. Aleldtine noted that after 2 1 ... l:[d8? 22 l:[xd8 Wxd8 White plays 23 h4 ! intending to fix Black's kingside with g2-g4-g5. He can then play b2-b3 followed by 'it>d3, lDc3, We4 ; iUd3 and finally advance with f2-f4 ! . If B lack takes this pawn White recaptures with the knight and wins the pawn on g6. If Black doesn't capture he loses the e5 pawn.

22 l:!.d3 �hS 23 a4!

White sets about creating a weakness on the queens ide. Black cannot play 23 ... a5 since 24 nb3 would win his b-pawn. So he has to allow the opening of the a-file which White then occupies with his rook.

76

Endgame Themes Endgame Thellles 77

23 ... 1:tc8 24 J:tb3 �d7 25 as! �c6 26 axb6 axb6 27 1:1a3 iLg7 28 1:1a7! 1:1c7

Black now sees tlothing better than exchange the rooks but now White has a quicker way to win.

29 J:ta8! 1:1e7 30 J:tc8+ �d7 31 J:Ig8 �c6 32 h4!

systematical ly can White strengthen his position because Black has. no counterplay what­ soever. The idea now is to seal in B lack's bishop with g2-g4-g5

32 ... �c7 33 g4 �c6 34 �d3 J:Id7+ 35 �c3 1:1n 36 b3 �c7 37 �d3 J:td7+ 38 �e2 J:tn 39 4:lc3!

If 47 . . J:t£7 there is 48 l:tc8+ or if 47 . . . wb7 White wins with 48 4:ld6+ 'i;a7 49 J:tg8 . .

••.

White could also win by bringing his knight to h4 via e4, d2 and D. But he prefers to stick to the original plan.

42 ... J:td7+ 43 �e4 1:1c7 44 li'lb5 1:1e7 4S fJ �d7 The only move for after 4 5 . . . �b7 there i s 46 4:ld6+ fol lowed by 47 4:le8 winning the bishop.

46 J:tb8 �c6 47 1:1c8+ �d7

36 fxe5 fxe5 37 1:1a2 J:tb6 38 J:tb2 h6 39 �f2 �e6 40 �f3 4:ld5

In the next game Alekhine gives another masterful demonstration of this type of plan, this time setting about opening a second front on the kingside (32 g4! ) to exploit his extra pawn.

Alekhine - Vidmar Hastings 1 936-7 1 d4 d5 2 c4 e6 3 4:lc3 4:lf6 4 i.g5 4:lbd7 5 e3 Ji.e7 6 4:lfJ 0-0 7 lic1 c6 8 'itc2 a6 9 cxd5 4:lxd5 1 0 i.xe7 'itxe7 1 1 iLc4 4:lxc3 1 2 �xc3 c5 13 dxc5 �xc5?

1 4 i.b3! b6

39 lle7 40 g5 hxg5 41 hxg5 Wc6 42 �d3

It would have been better to ex­ change on f4 but then White would gain the d4 square for his rook.

48 J:tc7+ �d8 49 J:tc6! J:tb7 50 J:txe6 1 :0

Black should play 13 . . . 4:lxc5 after which 14 i.e2 4:le4 1 5 'itd4 4:lf6 16 0-0 leaves White with only a slight pull. An interesting a lterna­ tive would be 14 i.d5 ! ?

The beginning of the final stage. White intends to post this knight on b5, an even stronger square than e4. This latter outpost will be occupied by his king.

33 ... We7 34 b5! e5 3S f4! f6

After 1 4 . . . fr'xc3 1 5 .!:txc3 a White rook would cause B l ack seri­ ous problems by landing on c7. But now White pursues attacks his op­ ponent's queen until he gaims a ma­ terial advantage.

Reaching the kind o f position that Alekhine had in mind when he first played 1 6 SLd I . The bi�hop is very effective on this diagonal and B lack's queen cannot help come to the aid of his queens ide.

23 ... 1:1ad8 24 .!:td6 J:txd6 25 �xd6 �h4 26 a3 �c4 27 'i!¥xa6 4:ld5 28 a4! 4:lc7

Alekhine pointed out that 28 . . . �xb4 loses t o 29 iLxd5 exd5 30 �xb5.

29 �c6 'itxc6 30 SLxc6 bxa4 3 1 1:1a l .!:tb8 3 2 1:1xa4 � f8 3 3 g4!

15 �d2 fr'h5 16 i.dl !

4 1 ... 4:le7 42 Jt.e4 4:ld5 43 J:tb3 '>t>d6 44 g5! hxg5 45 hxg5 �e6 46 �d3 '>t>d6 47 na3 4:lc7 48 J:ta7 J:tb8 "9 �e4

49 ... g6 5 0 J:ta3 ! IIb6 51 il.c4 J:tb8 52 .!:td3+ 'iti>c5 53 J:td7!

Finally White's rook invades the opposing camp. Black is in no posi­ tion to defend the new weaknesses.

16 lDc5 17 b4! 4:le4 1 8 �d4 iLb7 1 9 0-0 •••

19 ... b5 20 4:le5 'iWh6 2 1 lDc6 i.xc6 22 J:txc6 4:lf6 23 i.f3

Natura l l y White avoids a rook endgame which would increase Black's drawing prospects. He chooses instead to consistently carry out his p l an .

The threat of 50 �f5 forces another weakness after which White begins the invasion.

The immediate 1 6 J:txc8? would have been bad because of 16 . . . .!:taxe8 1 7 'ir'xd7 .!:t fd8-+ but now it is a threat. B l ack's reply is forced.

Vidmar is trying to lure his oppo­ nent into departing from the logical path with 19 'iVxb6?! i.d5 20 a3 'i'g6 (2 1 0-0 li'ld2 ! ) . But Alekhine refuses to be tempted.

4 1 h4!

The start of the winning plan. White's b-pawn on its own can be blockaded so White sets about creat­ ing another weakness. He will achieve this objective with a gradual advance of his kingside pawns.

53 ... 4:le8 54 Jt.n li'ld6+ 55 �xe5 J:tb6 56 e4 li'lxb5 57 J:td5+! �b4 58 J:td8 lDa7 5 9 J:td6 4:lc6+ 60 ..t>d5 4:le7+ 61 �e6 4:lc6 62 'iPf6 '>t>c5 63 J:td5+ ct>b4 64 e5 �c4 65 1:1d l + '>t>c5 66 J:tc 1 + Wd4 67 e6 �e3 68 �xg6 4:ld4 69 iLn 4Je2 70 nel '>t>f2 7 1 1:1xc2+ 1 : 0

78

Endgame Themes Elldgame Themes 79

KM 1 7/2: I ) B lack to play

KM 1 7/2: 2) White to play Month 1 7/Week 3: Python Technique

KM 1 7/2: 3) White to play

KM 1 7/2: 4) Black to play

Last month we looked at the idea of restricting the opponent's counterplay in order to win won positions. This month we will take this idea one step further and look at the art of gradually running the op­ ponent out of decent moves, perhaps even going as far as to put him in zugzwang. This strategy of stran­ gulation is far from being negative, sometimes it can represent the only logical way to play a position and prove far more effective than a quick attack. If your opponent has no active moves it can have quite a depressing effect . Here are two examples on this theme, the first being a classic example of the minority attack in which Kotov gives Black a weak c­ pawn and then tightens his grip on the other side of the board. Pachman Venice 1 950

Kotov

A 1 712 a) Black to play

A 17/2: b) Black to play

-

1 d4 e6 2 e4 lbf6 3 lbe3 d5 4 itg5 ite7 5 e3 0-0 6 lbf3 lbbd7 7 1:.el a6 8 cxd5 exd5 9 �c:3 :e8 1 0 0-0 c 6 1 1 'iVc2 tlJ rs 1 2 a 3 g 6 1 3 b 4 tlJe6 1 4 itxf6 itxf6 1 5 a 4 lbg7 1 6 b 5 axb5 1 7 axb5 �f5 1 8 �xf5 tlJxf5 1 9 bxe6 bxe6 20 llJa4 A rather typical minority attack type position in which White has saddled Black with a weak c-pawn. The next part of the game shows White gradually trying to infiltrate the opposing camp. 20 ... :'c8 2 1 'iVc5 llJd6 22 llJd2 :e7 23 :bl :b7 24 :'xb7 lbxb7 25 �a7 llJd6 26 �a6 'iVc7 2 7 :el �d8 28 lbc5 'iVa5 29 �d3 'ifb5 30

g3 itb6 3 1 1:.bl �xd3 32 llJxd3 ita5 33 llJb3 .ltd8 34 llJbc5 .ltc7 35 lbd7 nc7 36 lbb8 llJc4 37 na t 1:.c8 38 lbd7 1:.c7 39 :a8+ �g7 40 llJ7e5 lbxe5 4 1 lbxe5 �d6 42 llJd3 '1t>f6? A serious mistake which al lows White to fix a second weakness. Had Black seen what was coming he would have pl ayed 42 . . . h5. 43 g4!

A very instructive move, reminis­ cent of Alekhine's 32 g4 in the previous section. White takes space on the kingside and sets about fixing a second weakness. 43 ... 'it>e6 White would meet 43 . . . Wg5 with 44 h3 h5 4 5 [4+ Wh4 46 g2. 44 'ot>g2 1:.b7 45 1:.e8+ 1:.e7 46 1:.h8 f6 47 h4 nb7 48 'i>f3 nf7 49 1:.e8+ :e7 50 nd8! Ib7 51 lbc5+ 'i>e7 52 1:.e8! After the immediate 52 nh8 Black would escape with 52 ... .ltxc5 53 dxc5 :a5 54 nxh7+ 'ot>f8. The point is that defending c6 with 52 . . . 'uc7 would be met with 53 1:.h8 so Black decides to go active in any case. 52 ... .bc5 53 d xc5 'ot>d7 54 : h8 '1t>e6 If 54 . , . 11a5 there follows 5 5 1:.xh7+ '1t>e6 56 11g7. 55 1:.d8 'ot>e7?!

80

Endgame Themes Endgame Themes 81

According to Speelman 55 ... l:c7 was a better defence. 56 �d6 1:a6 57 g5! Clearing the way for his king to enter the opposing camp. 57 fxg5 58 hxgs �f7 59 �g3 And not 59 �f4 �a4+ 60 �e5?? �e4#. 59 ... <J;e7 60 f3 l:a3 6 1 �f4 �a4+ 62 �e5 �a3 63 �xc6 �xe3+ 64 �xds �d3+ After 64 ... l:xf3 White wins with 65 �c7+ We8 66 �xh7. 65 �e4 �c3 66 f4 �c1 67 l:c7+ •.•

67 ... 'it'd8? The last mistake. Speelman pointed out that Black can still draw with 67 ... �e6 68 �xh7 nc4+ 69 �f3 lIxc5 70 1:g7 llcol 7 1 1:xg6+ (7 1 Wg4 Wd5 72 .tln l:re6 73 l:rf6 Wd6 fails to make progress) 7 1 Wf5 72 1:hc6 stalemate! 68 l:rxh7 nxcS 69 nf7 1 :0 The next example is a typical Kar­ pov performance-he gradually in­ creases the pressure until his opponent cracks. The exchange of minor pieces on move 57 is particu­ larly interesting. Rook �ntie�mes are traditionally thought of as having drawish tendencies but Karpov sees that it the way to penetrate his oppo­ nent's defences.

Karpov - Hort

Tilburg 1 979 I e4 c6 2 lLlc3 dS 3 lLlf3 dxe4 4 lLlxe4 lLlr6 5 ltJxf6+ exf6 6 i.e2 i.d6 7 0-0 0-0 8 d4 l:!.e8 9 l:!.el i.fS 10 i.e3 ttJd7 1 1 h3 i.e4 12 lLld2 f5 13 ltJxe4 fxe4 1 4 c4 'ifc7 I S i.n i.hH 16 �hl .i.f4 17 'iVd2 i.xe3 18 'iVxe3 This position looks fairly innocent but White has more space' and a bishop against knight. Slowly but surely Karpov sets about increasing these advantages. 18 ... lLlr6 1 9 l:radl nad8 20 nd2 h6 2 1 g3 'iVas 22 b3 l:[d7 23 i.g2 ned8 24 l:red l 'WigS 25 WgI a6 26 l:[e2 'it'fS With a bishop against a knight the exchange of queens favours White as queens work together well with knights. In this positon White would get added support for his d-pawn after 26 ... 'iVxe3 27 fxe3. 27 'ii'c3 'iffS 28 a4 �g8 29 'i'e3 l:re8 30 wn 'ii'a S 3 1 'ii'd 2

31

.•.

'i'xd2?!

Black should still decline the ex­ change of queens (with 3 1 ... 'ii'f5 for example) despite the fact that he no longer gives White and extra center pawn by doing so. Now

White is able to advance his king­ side pawns and improve the position of his king. 32 nexd2 e3 33 l:re2 exf2 34 nxe8+ lLlxe8 35 Wxf2 as 36 �e3 WfS 37 l:!.bl We7 38 g4 Wd8 39 b4 White has set gaining space on both sides of the board. His last move marks Black 's b-pawn out as a weakness. 39 ... l:!.e7+ 40 Wd3 axM 4 1 l:[xb4 We7 4 2 l:!.bl lLlf6 4 3 as Continuing the work started with 39 b4 by fixing Black's b-pawn to the.b7 square. 43 ... lLld7 44 l:!.al lLlb8 45 h4 lLla6 46 J:lb I lLlb8 47 .i.f3 lLld7 48 l:!.a l l:[e8 49 l:!.fl l:!.c7 50 i.g2 tUb8 51 lIf4 lLld7 52 l:fl lLlb8 53 i.e4 lLla6 54 l:!.b i lLlb8 55 i.fS lLld7 56 l:[a l g6?

The decisive m istake? Black should have avoided this weakening move and kept the m i nor pieces on the board with 56 . .. ttJbS. Karpov's reply must have come as a great surprise. 57 .i.xd7! l:!.xd7 58 ItO Wb8 59 l:!.f6 Wa7 60 hS This is the real point of W hite's exchange on move 57. His rook on f6 is powerfully placed to attack Black 's kingside.

60 ... Wa6?! Black shou ld play 60 . . . gxh5 6 1 gxh5 'it>a6 with chances to save the game. He might have missed White's reply.

61 gs! Deadly. Whether Black captures the g- or h-pawn White obtains a powerful passed pawn which lies Black's rook down to a hopelessly passive position. 61 ... hxgs 62 h6 �xaS 63 h7 l:!.d8 64 l:!.xf7 bs 65 cxbs Wxbs After 65 ... cxb5 White wins with 66 We4+-.

66 l:!.b7+! �a6 67 l:[g7 l:[h8 68 We4 'it'b5 69 Wf3 Wc4 70 nd 7 Wd3 71 f2 l:!:a7 37 l:te3 d 6 38 l:!:d3 We7 39 We3 l:!:a4 4 0 l:!:e3

Stage one is complete and White has to decide how to advance his passed a-pawn still further. For this he needs his knight on c3 and sets about bringing it there. 40 ... 'it.od6 4 1 l:!:d3 'it.oe7 42 nc3 'iild 6 43 liJe2 g6 44 l:td3+ 'iti>e6 45 'iti>d4 l:!:a6 46 l:!:e3+ 'iild 6 47 liJc3

Mission accomplished. The a­ pawn is immune because of (47 ... l:!:xa3) 48 liJe4+ and Black is actual­ ly unahle to hring his king to a better square. This allows Whitt: tht: time to bring his king across to sup­ port his a-pawn which ensures its further advance.

Elldgal/le Themes 85

47 ... fS 48 b5 11a8 49 c4 �e6+ 50 b4 c5+ 51 bxe5 .ig8 52 liJb5+ 'iilxe6 53 lId3 g5 54 l:td6+ �b7 55 fxgS hxgS 56 11g6 11m 57 lhg5 f4 58 liJd4 ne8 59 l:tg7+ c,tb6 60 l:!:g6+ b7 61 liJbS l:!:m 62 liJd6+ Wb8 63\h4 1 :0 Throughout his career Capablanca used his bri ll iant understanding of where his pieces belonged to guide him. Whilst in his match against Alekhine this was not enough he was considered unbeatable for many years and his pieces always seemed to be in hannony. It was a lmost im­ possible to lay a glove on him and in his whole career he lost just a h andful of games. Here is another example of Capa­ blanca's schematic thinking.

counterplay Black has a free hand to build an attack. White h;]d 10 play 2 1 exd5 exd 5 22 f4 intending

support it on this outpost. Accord­ ingly he assigns his bishop to pre­ pare the advance of the b-pawn and moves it from what seems like the more active square. Had lanowsky understood what Black wanted he would have ans­ wered this with I I �b 5 I I �e2 e6 1 2 0-0 �d6 13 l:!:fcl We7 14 jLc3 l:!:hc8 15 a3? Now it will be d i fficu l t for White .

ever to play b2-b3.

15 ... liJa5 16 liJd2 f5! First of all Capablanca stops any counterplay based on e3-e4. 1 7 g3 b5 18 0 liJc4

_

liJf3-e5. 21 ... JLe7 22 f4 b5 23 \tof2 l:!:a4 24 'iil e3 nea8 25 nabl h6! Now Capablanc;] aims 10 open ;] second front on the kings ide. The defender is unable to dea l wilh threats on both sides of t h e board due to his lack of manoeuvrability. 26 liJf3 g5 27 liJel ng8 28 \toG gxf4 29 gxf4 naa8 3 0 lLlg2 ng4 31 ngl nag8 3 2 .tel White wants to defend his king­ side by bringing his bishop to f2 and playing liJg2-e3. BUI t he l oss of coordi n at ion between his rooks a l ­ l ows Bl ack to pounce.

Janowsky . Capablanea New York 1 9 1 6 1 d 4 liJr6 2 liJ1'3 d 5 3 c 4 c 6 4 liJe3 .tf5 5 �3 'ib6 6 'ifxb6 axb6 7 cxd5 liJxd5 8 liJxd5 exd5 9 e3 liJe6 1 0 �d2

10 ... �d7! Beautifully thought out. Capa­ blanca sees that h is plan is to transfer his knight to c4 and he needs to play ... b6-b5 in order to

"Black's first plan is completed. White now will have to take the knight, and Black's only weakness, the doubled b-pawn, will become :. source of great ' strength at c4. Now for two or three moves Black will devote his time to improving the general strategic position of his pieces before evolving a new plan, this time a plan of attack against White's position."�apablanca. 19 .txe4 bxe4 20 e4 'iilf7 21 e5? Probabl y the losing move. With­ out the danger of any White

32 ... b4 33 axb4 33 JLxb4 JLxb4 34 axb4 hS leaves White helpless against the advance of the h"pawn. 33 ... .ta4 34 l:tal JLe2 35 �g3 JLe4+ 36 f2 h5 37 na7 �xg2 38 Ihg2 h4 39 JLxh4 nxg2+ 40 'iil1'3 Itxh2 4 1 .txe7 l:!:h3+ 42 \tof2 l:!:b3 43 �g5+ \tog6 44 l:!:e7 nxb2+ 45 G l:!:a8 46 1he6+ Wh7 0: 1

86

Endgame Themes

KM 1 7/4: I ) White to play

KM 1 7/4: 2) White to play

6

KM 1 7/4:

3) Black to play

K.M 1 714 :

4) White to play

Endgame Battles

This month we will continue looking at endgames and in particu­ lar some which can arise from major opening systems. In such sharp openings as the Si­ cilian Dragon and King's Indian Defence one would imagine that the endgame would be very far away. But in fact these lines can lead to typical endgame scenarios which we shall examine in weeks one and two. In week three we will look at one of the most common types of position is that in which both sides exchange their d and c-pawns. Finally in week four we will round off the treatment of endgames with two highly in­ structive games in which Karpov wins drawn positions.

more violent play which leads to an endgame in which Black has four pawns for a rook! Spassky - Stein USSR 1 967 I e4 cS 2 ttJO d6 3 d4 cxd4 4 lLlxd4 ttJf6 5 ttJc3 g6 6 �e3 �g7 7 o lLlc6 8 �d 2 0-0 9 �c4 �aS 1 0 0-0-0 .td7 1 1 h4 l:rfc8 1 2 �b3 lLleS 13 hS lLlxhS 1 4 'it>b 1 l:rxc3 ! This exchange sacrifice is one of Black's mam resources in the Dragon.

Month 1 8IWeek 1 : Dragon Endgames A 1 714: a) White to play

A 1 7/4: b) White to play

The Sicilian Dragon is renowned as one of the sharpest of openings yet it typically leads to endgames with an unusual material balance. Such scenarios often come about when White sacrifices a pawn in an attempt to accelerate his attack (h4-hS) and then Black defuses it by giving up material of his own. Most typical of all is the sacrifice of the exchange on c3 by Black which we shall see in the first game between Boris Spassky and Leonid Stein. In the second we see even

J 5 "xc3

Keeping queens on the board with I S bxc3 can lead to a draw after I S . . . l:rc8 1 6 .th6 lLlc4 1 7 �xc4 l:rxc4 1 8 .txg7 9;xg7 1 9 g4 ttJf6 20 eS dxeS 21 lLlb3 �xc3 22 'Ci'h6+ ..to>g8 23 l:rxd7 �xc2+ 24 'it>a I �c3+ etc as in Klovan-Zaitsev, lurmala 1 969 rf White plays 22 'i'xc3 instead with the idea of winning material after 22

88

Endgame Ballles El1dgam e Battles 89

... lhc3 23 g5, Black can obtain an overwhelming mass of passed pawns with 23 ... �c6 24 gxf6+ exf6 25 llld 2 :xD ! 26 lLlxD �xG. 1 5 ... 'Wxe3 16 bxe3 :e8

22 .. lll f6 23 lLlxe6 .ltxe6 24 .!ld4 .

24 ... h5! Another instructive move which safeguards the h'pawn so as to bring his king to the centre. Coming down An important type of posItion the h-filc is one of White's only which deserves close examination. hopes if he wants to activate his Black has a pawn for the exchange rooks. and has created serious weaknesses 25 q;cl q;rs 26 q;d2 .!la8 27 :b4 in White's pawn stlucture. The maiH :lI5 28 �e3 e6! problem with this structural damage Another instructive move, making from White's perspective is that he room for Black's king on e7. is unable to organise any effective . Spassky keeps playing for a few pawn levers and penetrate Black's more moves but there is hardly any defences with his rooks. As we saw prospect of breaking down Black's in month two, rooks really need to defence. break into the enemy ranks in order 29 c4 llld 7 30 c3 iLf6 3] �bl to show their full strength. j,g5 32 j,c2 �xe3+ 33 �xe3 �e7 17 'it>b2 34 �f2 lbe5 35 :bbl lDd7 36 l:lb4 After 17 SLg5 .Black can take the' lDc5 37 l:lbbl lLld7 'A-'A initiative with 17 . . . �f6' 18 �xf6 tDxf6 1 9 �b2 b5. In a game Scholl­ Westerinen- Ernst Tatai, B everwijk 1 967 Black grad­ Gausdal 1 99 1 ually assumed the iniiiative after 1 7 llle2 a 5 1 8 a 3 a4 1 9 �a2 �b5 20 1 e 4 e 5 2 lLl o d 6 3 d4 cxd4 4 :hel lllc4 2 1 .hc4 �xc4 22 �d4 lllxd4 lLlf6 5 lLlc3 g6 6 �e3 �g7 7 lllf6 23 lllc 1 e5 24 �e3 d5 25 �g5 f3 0-0 8 'iVd2 lbe6 9 �c4 �d7 1 0 dxe4 26 fxe4 �e6 27 �b2 lLld7 28 0-0-0 :e8 1 1 �b3 lbeS 1 2 h4 lLlc4 Jie3 :c4 29 .fl.f2 5. 13 Jixc4 .l:lxc4 14 bS lLlxhS 15 g4 ' 17 115 1 8 113 lLif6 1 9 �f4 Q1cR li'If6 1 6 li'1h1 20 .i.g5 a4 21 �a2 lLle6! 22 lId2 This quiet move has been quite 22 lllxc6 :xc6 23 .fl.xe7 :xc3 24 popular in this position. Black's best 'Ot> b l 11xa3 favours Black. reply may well be 16 ... 'Wc7 as the .••

text commits him to an extraordi­ nary l ine of play. 16 ... :e8 17 e5 lLlxg4! Forced! 17 ... dxe5 18 g5 leaves the bishop on d7 hanging. 1 8 fxg4 �xg4 19 :dg l �xe5 Once again this is the only way to play it. 1 9 . . . h5 is bad because of 20 e6' .fl.xe6 2 1 �d4 �g4 22 .!lxg4! hxg4 23 .fl.xg7 q;xg7 24 tr'h6+ with a strong attack and 19 ... dxe5 fa ils against 20 'Wxd8 :xd8 21 li.Jd2. 20 Jid4 Trying to remove the Dragon bishop in order to leave Black's kings ide weak. Black's reply is remarkable. 20 ... l:lxd4 ! 21 li.Jxd4 h5 22 li.Jd5 e6 23 llle3 tr'b6 24 c3 .fl.xd4 25 '+lfxd4 �xd4 26 exd4 f5

Do Black's connected passed pawns give him adequate com­ pensation for the rook? It would be a brave man indeed to stick his neck out on that one, perhaps in some fu­ ture game White will demonstrate a way to activate his rooks and halt the advance of Black's pawns. One thing that does seem fairly clear is that Black's position is easier to play in practice. 27 'it>d2

White might have eliminated the bishop with 27 lLlxg4 though Black retains his dangerous pawn mass. 27 . 'it>g7 28 :cl �f3 29 :h3 �e6 30 lLlc4 Wf6 31 llla 5 .fl.g2 32 :h2 .fl.d5 33 :e7 :e7 34 l:lxe7 q;xe7 Now only the bishop remains to support the Black pawns. Actually it does an excellent job from its out­ post on d5 which makes me wonder if it shouldn't have been eliminated earlier on. 35 q;d3 b5 36 lL\b3 '>t>f6 37 lLlc l f4 38 '>t>d2 q;f5 39 lLld3 q;g4 40 l:le2 g5 4 ] li.Jb4 cJo>o 42 lL\xd5 exd5 43 q;el h4 44 l:lf2+ q;g3 45 '>t>n h3 46 cJo>gl g4 47 l:lc2 q;h4 48 l:lc7 g3 49 l:lxa7 Wg4 50 l:lg7+ q;O 51 a3 The only way to create a passed pawn. 5 1 b3 is met by 5 1 . . . b4. 51 ... q;e2 52 l:le7+ '>t>d3 ..

53 l:l£1? Falling at the last hurdle, White could have held the game by cold-bloodedly creating a passed pawn with 53 b3 ! . After 53 .. . 0 54 a4 bxa4 55 bxa4 h2+ 56 '1t>h l f2 57 l:l£1 We2 58 l:le7+ q;d2 59 l:l£1 we would see a draw by repetition. 53 ... q;e3 54 l:le7+ '>t>xd4 55 11£1 q;e3 56 l:le7+ '>t>O 57 l:le6 h2+ 58 Whl q;f2 0 : 1

90

Endgame Battles Endgame Battles 9 1

KM I 8/ 1 : I ) White to play.

KM 1 8/2: 2) B1ack .to play

Month 1 8IWeek 2 : King's Indian Exchange

KM I 8/2: 3) White to play

A 1 8/ I : a) White to play

KM 1 8/2: 4) White to play

',,-

A I 8/ 1 : b) White to play

One of the best ways for Black to play for a win after I d4 is with the dynamic and complex King's Indian Defence. It is no accident that this opening' has appealed to such fight­ ing players as Bobby Fischer and Garry Kasparov. Some White players are loathe to get embroiled in the kind of com­ plex battle which the King's Indian usually leads to and instead have sought out simpler ways to p lay against it. One of these is to ex­ change pawns on e5 and then swap the queens as wel l. They hope for a slight initiative based on a lead in development and that Black's bishop on g7 will prove ineffective. But the downside is that by playing c2-c4 and d2-d4 White weakens his d4 square. In the following games we see Kasparov and then Fischer exploit this weakness, with a little help from their opponents of course!

Danailov - Kasparov Dortmund 1 980

In my own King ' s Indian days I l iked this move as well, inspired to some extent by the present game. Black develops another piece and the knight often heads for d4 via c5 and e6

1 0 ltJd5

A dubious reply after which Black is very comfortably placed. White should play 1 0 0-0-0 after whieh 1 0 . . . lIfB' 1 1 ltJd5 c6 1 2 ltJe7+ �h8 1 3 �e3 lIe8 14 ltJxc8 lIaxc8 1 5 c5 � fB 1 6 b4 b6 was about equal in Cvetkovic-Kuzmin, Linz 1 990. 1 0 ... c6 11 ltJe7+ �f8 12 lOxc8

lIdxc8

Black already stands very well as he can set about controlling the d4 square.

1 3 0-0-0?!

After Black's reply White is forced to capture on f6 which gives Black a clear edge. 1 3 ltJd2 1Oc5 14 f3 ltJe6 1 5 �e3 was relatively best.

13 ... l2Jc5 14 �xf6 �xf6 1 5 �d3 a5 1 6 lIhel lIe8! 17 i.n �d8!

The point of putting the rook on i:8-the bishop is being re-routed to a better diagonal.

18 g3 a4 19 �c2 �a5 20 lIe3 lIad8 2 1 lIxd8 lIxd8 22 �h3 f6

1 c4 g6 2 ltJf3 �g7 3 lOc3 d6 4 d4 ltJf6 5 e4 0-0 6 �e2 e5 7 dxe5 dxe5 8 'it'xd8 1hd8 9 �g5 ltJbd7 ! ?

A verj unpleasant move to meet, Black quietly protects his e-pawn

92

Endgame Battles Endgame Ballles 93

and asks White what he intends to do. White's problems stem from being unable to bring his rook round to challenge for control of the d-file. 23 l:te2 f6 0 : 1 White has no move. 3 1 'it>c2 is met by 3 1 ... g4, 3 1 iLh l by 3 1 .!:rd l + and 3 1 g7 1 9 .txcS bxc5 2 0 Ad3 i s equal. 18 f3 lLle8 •..

1 9 33? Over the next few moves White gradually goes astray due to his re­ luctance to part with his bishop pair. 1 9 �xc:'i bxr.5 20 .!:rb8 would give White chances because of his a ' pawn though the opposite coloured bishops would make this very diffi­ cult to advance. 19 ... lLld6 20 .l:[d8

20 .!:rb8 ltJd7 2 1 l:td8 ltJb7 22 l:tc8 lLld6 would draw by repetition, Larsen typically wants to win. 2 0 ... h6 21 lLlh3 lLle6 22 l:tb8 .!:re8 23 .!:rxe8 lLlxe8 24 Ab5 White should bring his knight into play with 24 ltJf2. 24 ... lLld6 25 .itn lLlb7! 26 lLla .tc5! 27 �xc5 lLlbxc5 28 nd l h5! Keeping White's knight out of the g4 square. 28 . . . ltJd4 is met by 29 lLlg4 f6 30 f4. 29 .!:rd5 29 lLld3 lLlxd3 30 �xd3 lLld4 3 1 'it>f2 would probably still hold the endgame despite Black's powerful knight. 29 ... c;t>r6 30 h4 'itte 7! 31 .tc4 And not 3 1 nxe5? c6 . 3 1 ... c6 32 .!:rd2 lLld4!

Mission accomplished. Black is clearly better now and White makes matters worse by failing to bite the bullet. 33 �n r5! 34 b4 34 lLld3 was a better chance to hang on.

34 ... b5! 35 �g8 Both 35 bxc5 bxc5 and 35 �xb5 lLlcb3 would lose for White. 35 ... fxe4! 36 rxe4 lLld7 37 .!:rd3 l:ta6! 38 l:tc3 c 5 ! 39 g4? 39 bxc5 b4 40 .!:rc I ! was better. Now Black's c-pawn will decide matters. 39 ... c4 40 gxh5 gxh5 41 .td5 lLlf6 42 l:tg3 ltJxdS 43 exd5 l:tf6 4.t 'it>g2 lLlf5 45 l:th3 l:tg6+ 46 'it>f3 lLld4+ 47 'it>e3 · After 47 'it>e4 there is 47 . . . 'it>d6 48 l:th2 l:t g3 47 .. , l:tg2 48 l:th 1 e6 .

Threatening 5 1 . . . l:tc2 and, after the knight moves, 5 1 .. , nc2 is mate. 51 .!:rcl .!:[-h2 52 a4 l:th3+ 53 'it>a lDb3 54 '1t �2 lDxcl 55 'it>xh3 bxa4 56 lLlxa4 lDe2 57 b5 c3 58 b6 c2 59 lDc5+ 'it>d5 60 lLlb3 60 lDd3 is met by 60 . . . lDf4+ 6 1 lDxf4+ exf4 62 b7 c I ='i' 6 3 b8='i' � h l # and 60 b7 by 60 . . . c 1 ='i' 6 1 b8='i' 'ii'h 1 #. 60 ... 'i»c6 61 g2 'it>xb6 0 : I

94

Endgame Battles Endgame Battles 95

KM 1 8/2 : I ) Black to play

KM 1 8/2: 2) Black to play Month 1 8IWeek 3: Open d-and c-files

KM 1 8/2: 3) Black to play

KM 1 8/2: 4) Black to play

Positions in which both sides have had the d- and c-pawns exchanged are very common indeed and often involve the exchange of queens as well . In many cases these positions will assume a drawish character be­ cause the exchange of rooks will also often follow. But should one side have a lead in development he might penetrate the opponent's de­ fences with a rook and develop a serious initiative. In the following two games this is precisely what happens.

Again very ambitious but rather weakening. 10 ltJf3 was better.

10 ... iLb6 1 1 'itxd8 1:txd8 1 2 ltJf3 iLd7!

Threatening to exploit the loose position of White's pieces with 1 3 . . . :'cS. Over the next few moves White has to be very careful.

13 iLd2 :'c8

Botvinnik - Balashov Hastings 1 966-7 1 c4 ltJf6 2 ltJc3 e6 3 d4 iLb4 4 e3 0-0 5 iLd3 dS 6 a3 dxc4 7 iLxc4 iLd6

A 1 812: a) Black to play

1 4 ltJeS

The only move, 1 4 iLd3 loses a pawn after 1 4 . . . iLxe3 Black's best move is now 14 ... iLeS! after which White could only keep the balance with 1 5 �e2 tOc6 16 ltJxc6 iLxc6 1 7 :'hg l iLxg2 IS iLxe6. The fol­ lowing simpli fication eases White's defence.

14 ... ltJg4 l S ltJxg4 :'xc4 1 6 4.JeS :'c7 17 4.Jxd7 ltJxd7 1 8 'it>e2 ltJf6 1 9 :'ac l :'d8 20 :'hd 1 :'cd7 2 1 iLel ltJdS?!

A I S/2: b) White to play

8 f4

An attempt to exploit the relative inexperience of his young opponent as Botvinnik admitted himself in his notes. In fact it turns out to be a psychological error as Balashov reacts very well . White should play

S 4.Jf3 .

8 ... c S ! 9 d xcS iLxcS 1 0 b 4

This loses time after which the ac­ tive position of White's king finally starts to become significant. Black should play something like 2 1 . . . 'it>f8 with a likely draw in prospect and not 2 1 . . . ltJg4 22 lhd7 Ihd7 23 ltJa4! etc.

22 ltJxdS :'xdS 23 :'xdS :'xdS

23 ... exd5 is better but Black didn 't want an isolated pawn. 24 a4 f6?

96

Endgame Battles Endgame Battles 97

This puts Black in serious trouble as White's rook now penetrates his ranks He should play 24 ... 1%d7 25 a5 �c7 with a defensible position.

35 e5+ �d7 36 ng8 (5 37 nxg7+ '>t>d8 38 J:g8+

d7 39 l:rh8 .lte7 40 �d4 ne2+ 41 'iii>d3 .l::{a 2 42 .l::{ a8 1 ;0

In the second game we see another World Champion in action, Anatoly Karpov. But on this occa­ sion we see the rare sight of him being on the receiving end of a masterly technical performance: Ribli - Karpov Amsterdam 1 980

25 as �d8 26 1%e8 �f7 26 ... a6 is met by 27 b5! axb5 28 a6 bxa6 29 �a5 etc. 27 e4 nd7 28 bS �e7 29 .id2 �d6 30 na8 b6 Now Black gets a weak a-pawn which with bishops on the board is hopeless for him. He should play 30 ... �c5 3 1 .lte3 .ltxe3 32 q.oxe3 b6 33 axb6 axb6 34 l:tb8 would offer better practical chances than the game. 31 a6 .ieS 32 .ie3 t>e8 24 .l::{cc7 is once again better for White. 23 b3

23 ... �b4 After 23 ... fLa3 White plays 24 nxc8+ nxc8 25 1%d7 .l::{c2 26 tLld4 and now 26 ... nxa2 is met by 27 tLlxe6 and 26 ... .l::{d 2 by 27 Ilb7' rather than 27 .l::{d 8+?! �f7 28 ltJxe6 Ilxa2! . 24 h3 24 .l::{x c8+ nxc8 25 Ild7 is no longer good as after 25 ... Ilc2 26 lDd4 nxa2 27 LDxe6 �e 1 · Black counterattacks a and 2 8 l:tg7+ �h8 29 l:rf7 can be met by 29 ... h5. 24

ts 25 tLld4 �f7 26 a4! bxa4 27 bxa4 fLcs ••.

1 9 ... .ltxg2 20 '>t>xg2 f6

If 27 . . . a5 there is 28 ltJb5 .l::{x c I (28 ... '>t>e7 29 tLlc7 nab8 30 nc6+-) 29 n xc I .l::{e 8 30 �O with advantage. 28 ne4! �a3 28 . . . �xd4 29 ncxd4 .l::{ e 8 30 nb4 is also very unpleasant for Black. 29 nxc8 nxc8 30 nb 1 .l::{ c4 30 ... nc7 3 1 .l::{b 8 sti ll sees White 's rook come in . . 3 1 .l::{ b7+ �e7 32 Ila7 es 32 ... nxa4?? 33 tLlc6 wins a piece. 33 fxeS fxeS 34 tLlfJ .l::{ x a4 35 lLlxes+ '>t>f6 36 tLle6 �cs 37 .l::[ x h7 JIa2 38 WfJ as 39 h4 a4 40 '>t>e4! Unexpectedly conjuring up mat­ ing threats.

40 ... �f8 40 ... JIxa 4 1 tLld8+- threatens mate with 42 JIf7. 41 JIa7 �d6 42 f4 JIh2 43 JIa6 �f7 44 tLleS+ fLxes 45 '>t>xes Wg7 46 JIa7+ �h6 47 JIxa4 nxh4 48 '>t>f6 Ilhs 49 e4 JIh4 SO es JIhs 5 1 e6 Ilf5+ 5 2 '>t>e7 '>t>g7 5 3 '>t>d6 nts 54 1%a7+ '>t>f6 55 JId7 1 ;0

98 Endgame Battles Endgame Ballles 99 KM I 8/3 : I ) W hite to play

KM I 8/3: 2) White to play

Month I S/Week 4: Winning 'Drawn ' Games

KM I 8/3 : 3) White to play

KM 1 8/3 : 4) White to play

This will be the final week de­ voted to endgames, I hope that the last couple of months have shown how difficult and interesting they can be. The greatest masters treat this phase of the game with the greatest care and attention and can often eek out wins from what seems like unpromising material. In the following games we see Karpov win two 'totally drawn' positions with logical and wel l di­ rected play whilst his opponents seemed to be somewhat at a loss as to how to proceed. There is nothing magical about what he did in these games, it was simply a question of patience, determination and excel­ lent technique:

Estevez - Karpov Leningrad Izt 1 973

A 1 8/3 : a) White to play

A 1 8/3 : b) White to play

1 d4 lOf6 2 c4 e6 3 �f3 d5 4 �c3 �e7 5 �g5 0-0 6 e3 h6 7 �h4 b6 S �e2 �b7 9 �xf6 �xf6 1 0 cxd5 exd5 1 1 b4 c6 1 2 0-0 a5 13 a3 'iVd6 14 1fb3 axb4 15 axb4 �d7 16 J:[fd l J:[xal 17 J:[xal �e7

Putting pressure on the b-pawn l ike this is a risky attempt to create some problems as it al lows White to activate his pieces. 1 7 ... J:[a8 1 8 J:[xa8+ �xa8 1 9 'it'a4 �b7 20 'it'a7 �8 would be rather drawish.

IS %%.a7 l:tbS 1 9 �a2 �cS 20 'ilrc2 �f6 21 lOci .!DnJ 22 �d3 �f5 23 'it'a4 tDd7 24 %%.as IhaS 25 'iVxa8+ c;i;Jh7 26 ika6 g6 27 ifb7 'it>g7 2S h3 h5 29 'iVa7 �dS 30 ikb7 'iVc7 3 1 'i'aS iLe7 3 2 �de5 iLxb4 33 'iVxc6?!

Assuming perhaps that a draw would be automatic after the queens come off; in fact it helps Black re­ lieve his position and the two bishops come inore into their own. 33 �xc6 was better when I prefer White.

33 ... 'iVxe6 34 �xe6 iLd6

The game has been simplified to what looks l ike a fairly even end­ game. White has the more harmoni­ ous pawn structure but Black's b-pawn is passed. Black has the two bishops though these are not es­ pecially effective given the clOSed nature of the position.

35 �b5?

The bishop proves to be a poor blockader of Black's b-pawn. White should play 35 tDa7 ! followed by tDb5 when the knight would be doing an excellent job.

35 ... �f6 36 �d2 ? !

White i s drifting. He should play 36 lOee5.

36 ... .!De8!

Setting about removing the b­ pawn's blockader in preparation for its advance.

37 f3 lOe7 38 �e2 iLc2 39 c;i;Jf2 iLa4 40 lLle5 b5 4 1 .!Dd3?

White's sealed move and another inaccuracy. He should play 4 1 g4!

100

Endgame Battles Endgame Hallies

and after 4 l . . . h4 advance his king­ side pawn majority with- 42 f4. Alexander Kotov suggested ariother good plan, the blockade of Black's b-pawn at b3 with 4l It:\c6 foil-owed by 42 lt:\a5 .

41

•..

h4!

Fixing g2 as a weakness.

42 lt:\b2?

Continuing to drift. Once again White can try to blockade the b­ pawn with 42 It:\c l . The other plan is a counterattack with 42 e4.

42 ... ..ib4! 43 It:\b l ..ib3 44 ..id3 �c4 45 e4? !

White finally understands that a plan is required but this rather be­ lated activity backfires. He should sit tight with 45 e2 or 45 f4.

48 It:\bc3 ..id7 49 It:\c4 �c7 50 It:\c5?

45 ... g5!

46 exd5 �xd5 47 lt:\dl R.e6!

With the structure having changed Kalpov sets about ,naking a new rlan. Over the next few moves he arranges his pieces So that they put pressure on White's isolated d-pawn whilst preparing the advance of the b-pawn.

Once again a careless move by White and this time the decisive mistake. White should play either 34 �h6 or exchange one of the kingside pawns with 34 h5.

50 ..ixc5! 51 dxe5 It:\e6 52 It:\e3 b4 53 ltJe4 b3 54 It:\d2 It:\xe5 55 i.bl �f6! 56 �e3 0: 1 . .•.

Ljubojcvic - Karpov Milan 1 975 1 e4 e5 2 It:\f3 It:\c6 3 i.b5 a6 4 .i.a4 lLlf6 5 0-0 .i.e7 6 d4 exd4 7 eS It:\e4 8 It:\xd4 0-0 9 It:\f5 d5 10 exd6 i.xfS I I dxe7 It:\xe7 12 �b3 'iVxd 1 13 nxdl nad8 1 4 nel

Further restraining White's king­ side. With his next move White leaves himself with an isolated d­ pawn and opens the position for Black's bishops a l ittle more.

34 �e4 ?

White cracks under the prcssure­ this leads to the loss of a pawn. He had to centralise the king with 50 �e3.

After playing 56 �e3 White's flag fel l before he could press his clock. Black could win either with 56 ... ..if5 ! or aim to mop up White's kingside pawns with 56 . . . �c6 57 �d4 lt:\e6+ 58 �c3 lt:\f4 .

It seems quite surprising that a draw wasn't agreed at this point: presumably neither player offered one, could it have been out of pride? The position is really quite equal and should not be lost by a strong grandmaster.

14 ltJe5 15 It:\c3 nd7 16 i.e3 "Llxb3 1 7 exb3 lUd8 1 8 lbd l (6 1 9 :txd7 l:bd7 2 0 ndl nxd l+ 2 1 It:\xd l ltJd5 •..

All of a sudden it isn't equal any more. The text threatens to win a pawn with 22 . . . !lL'b I 2J a3 .\teL Ilnd if White prevents thin with 23 It:\c3 Black can play 23 ... It:\xe3. Lj\1bojevic mllkes the right decision in giving up a pawn to reach an endgame with opposite colour bishops.

101

34 ... a4! 35 h5 gxh5 36 gxh5 f5+ 37 �c3 'iti>d5 38 h6 �c4 39 f4 �b3

22 �d2 �bl 23 a3 �e2 24 It:\e3 It:\xe3 25 i.xc3 �xb3 26 f3 �f7 27 �f4 e6 28 �d6

This still doesn ' t lose but White is getting careless. He should probably central ise his king with 28 �f2. 28 ... e6 29 �rs g6 30 �f1 as

31 'iti>e3?!

Again slightly careless as this gives Black the opportunity to put his pawns on dark squares. He should play 3 1 �c5 and 32 �b6.

3 1 ... b6 32 h4 e5! 33 g4?

This does l ittle but weaken the kings ide making it easier for Black to penetrate on this flank with his king. White should bring his bishop back into play with 33 �h6 fol­ lowed by 34 �f4.

33 ... i.d l

40 �g7?!

The best practical chance was 40 �d2 after which 40 ... �xb2 4 1 �xd l �xa3 4 2 �c2 �b4 4 3 �b2 holds on. Black needs to find 4 l . . . c 4 ! 42 �e7 b5 43 �f8 c 3 4 4 �g7 b4 ' 45 axb4 a3 46 �e2 �c2-+.

40 ... �c2! 41 �e5 �h5 42 .i.f6

iLf7 43 �e5 .i.b3 44 �g7 b5 45

iLrs

Or 45 .i.c3 b4 46 axb4 cxb4 47 i.xb4 �xb2 followed by pushing the a-pawn. .

45 ... c4 46 iLg7 b4! 47 �d4

47 axb4 c3 48 bxc3 iLc4 49 b5 iLxb5 would again cost White his bishop.

47 .:: c3! 48 bxc3 bxa3 49 c4 a2 50 �e5 Wbl 51 Wb4 a l ="ii' 52 iLxa l Wxa l 53 e5 Wb2 54 e6 a3 55 e7 .i.e6 56 'it>e5 a2 57 'iti>d6 �e8 0: 1

1 02

Endgame Battles

KM I 8/4:

I ) White to play

KM 1 8/4: 2) White to play

7

KM I 8/4 : 3) White to play

A I 8/4: a) Black to play

KM I 8/4 : 4) Black to play

A 1 8/4: b) Black to play

Masters of Attack

One of the best ways to improve talent with deep preparation and your chess is to study the games of a research. single great player whose style of Month 1 9IWeek 1 : play most closely resembles your own. In so doing you will get many Rudolf Spielmann-Gambiteer insights into how to deal with vari­ ous practical and theoretical Rudolf Spielmann ( 1 883 - 1 942) was the last gambiteer to be problems. The way that people think about successful at the highest levels of chess is extremely varied, in fact competitive chess. The construction everyone has their own way of try­ of Spielmann's games was old­ ing to find their next move. It can fashioned even by 1 920s standards, also be very difftcult to define his style being more reminiscent of someone's style of play as many the gambiteers of the romantic 1 9th great players are equally adept at all century. Spielmann ' s results were highly sorts of positions. In spite of this I have identified erratic due partly to his style of play what I consider to be the four main but mainly to his extremely sensi­ categori'es of player, masters of at­ tive temperament. He could easily tack, strategists, technicians and become depressed by a defeat and tacticians. i will look at each of sink to the bottom of a tournament these categories in tum, examining for good. But he could equally prothe styles of outstanding Grand­ . duce the most stunningly brilliant games: masters from each of them. My ' Masters Of Attack' are Ru­ Spielmann - Tarrasch dolf Spielmann, Leonid Stein, Mik­ Karlsbad 1 923 hail Tal and Garry Kasparov. This particular choice is designed to il­ 1 e4 e5 2 f4 lustrate the different ways in which Typical of Spielmann'S style. Tar­ players who like to attack set about building their game. In Spie lmann rasch declines the gambit in an at­ we have an old-fashioned gambiteer tempt, no doubt, to curb his whose methods were, to put it adversary's aggressive intentions. 2 �c5 3 lDn d6 4 c3 �g4 mildly, direct. Stein infused posi­ Opening theory doesn'! have a tions with tension, Tal would fluent­ ly pursue the initiative whilst very high opinion of this move, pre­ Kasparov backs up his great natural ferring 4 . . . ttJf6 instead. ...

104

Masters ofA ttack Masters

5 rxe5 dxe5 6 'ili'a4+ �d7 7 'ili'e2 ltJc6 8 b4 �d6 9 �c4 ltJf6 10 d3 ltJe7 I I 0-0 ltJg6 1 2 �e3 b5 13 �b3 as 1 4 a3 axb4 15 exb4 0-0 After 1 5 ... �xb4? White plays 1 6 ltJg5 0-0 1 7 ltJx f7 lhf7 1 8 �xf7+ h8. 29 d4 �xd4 30 �xf7! �xe5 Or 30 ... J:txfl 3 1 'ifxg6+ 'iPf8 32 ltJxd4 J:txf6 33 exf6 'i'f7 34 'ii'xh6+ �e8 3S 'ifxf4-+-. 3 1 'i'xg6+ 1 : 0 Later i n his can::t:r Spielmann made a conscious effort to play in a more mature and restrained style. In

this respect the following game can be seen as an abysmal failure: Spielmann - S.Rubinstein Vienna 1 933

of A ttack 1 05

and Black missed it when it was right under his nose . . 1 3 ... g6 1 4 h5!

lLIb4 with excellent counterplay-a' nother reason why 1 3 �c2 was better. 18 'ike2 g7 1 5 hxg6 J:th8 1 6 ltJxfl J:txh 1 + 1 7 'i.t>d2 J:txa 1 1 8 ltJxd8 �xd8 1 9 'ili'f5 �f6 20 �S is hopeless. Yet Black could have tried 1 4 ... 'i.t>xgS after which neither I S f4+ 'it>h6 1 6 hxg6 + 'it>g7 1 7 lIh7+ �g8 1 8 0-0-0 �g7 nor I S . . . 'it'g4 ! ? 16 ttJd l �h4+ 1 7 ltJf2+ �xf2+ 1 8 g7 16 lIh7+ 'it'f6 1 7 O-O-O! The best chance. Attempting to recover one of the p ieces with 1 7 f4 would be met by 1 7 . . . �h4+ 1 8 J:txh4 llh8, taking over the h-file. Had White played 1 3 'ifc2 he would have been able to meet this line with 19 'iff2! and maintained a strong attack. 1 7 ... e4? After this White's attack becomes irresistible. Black could have p layed 1 7 ... �a6! 1 8 'ifc2 ltJc6 1 9 dxc5

The decisive breakthrough. Black's king is now hopelessly exposed. 20 ... dxe4 Or 20 ... r.t>e8 2 1 eS �e7 22 gxfl+ 'i.t>d7 23 g4 with a massive attack. 21 lDxe4 r.t>d7 22 d5 ltJa6 23 g7! J:t g8 Or if 23 ... lIe8 there is 24 g8='iI' llxg8 25 J:txf7+ �e7 26 d6+24 lIh6! �xg7 25 lId6+ We7 26 'il'xc4+! An important check which de­ cides the game by breaking the coordination of Black's rooks. 26 . . . lLIcs i s met b y 2 7 llxd8 J:taxu8 (or 27 . . . 'it'xd8 28 lLId6+-) 28 b4+- so there is l ittle choice. 26 ... h2 f5 20 exf5 �xf5 2 1 11al

ofA !lack

J J3

25 . . . J.. x b 1 26 11x b I �c2 27 J.. e4 ' 11xe4 28 ltJxe4 ' 'i!fxb l 29 tiJ x d6 11fS 30 'i!fe6+ 'i!th8 3 I ltJf7+ lhf7 3 2 �xf7 'i!ff5 33 �xf5 gxf5 34 'oPg3) 26 'oPg2 J.. x b I 27 11xb I 'i!fc2 2 8 J..e4 ' nxe4 2 9 itJxe4 'ilixb I 3 0 ltJxd6! ! J.. xd6 3 1 'i!fe6+ 'i!tg7 3 2 �d7 + ' etc.

25 ... fxe2 26 11b3 11d4! 27 �el

Or 27 J.. e3 11xc3 28 l:tbxc3 11d I decides matters.

27 ... J..e 5+ 28 'i!tgl

23 . . . � x b 2 ?

Black in turns slips up. He should

have played first 23 . . . .ITl.e5 ! after which 24 f3 'i!fxb2 25 ltJd I "fId4 (25 . . . �xa l ! ? 26 l:txa l J.. xa l is also worth considering) 26 11xc4 11xc4 27 11c 1 l::rx cl 28 J.. x c I 'i!fxd5 29 �fl is approximately equal.

24 11ab l ! f3 !

The only move. 2 4 . . . J.. x b I i s bad because of 25 :Ixb l �c2 26 �e4 11xe4 27 �xe4 'i!fxd2 28 fi'e6+-.

26 11e7 fi'xd6+

Geller had missed that 26 . . . "fIxe7 is answered by 27 "fIg4 +. Now he is simply left a piece down.

27 "fIxd6 11xd6 28 11xel 11d2 29 11et l:lxfl 30 .ITl.e4 l::rx a2 31 �xc4 05 32 :c8+ g7 33 l:tc7 1 :0

Tal's win over Botvinnik in their match in 1 960 was a tremendous clash of styles and personalities, the serious, scientific Botvinnik against the devil-may-care Tal. Many lead­ ing Grandmasters were hoping that the defects in Tal's 'tricky' style would finally be exposed but the public were oveIjoyed when he emerged the winner.

The position looks slightly better for White, he has more space, there is a hole on e4 ond Block's p i ccc ac· tivity luuk:; lilt: a tt:mporary phe­ nomenon. Rather than surrender the initiative Tal finds an extraordinary idea: Giving up a piece in order to acti­ vate his Icing's bishop and weaken White's kingside. 23 a3! "fIb3 24 �xa7 ! was better after which Black should play 24 . . . J..e5 ! (and not 24 . .. b6? 2 5 .fi'd l !+-)

•..

J.. f4

Black could have won much more quickly with 28 . . . 11xc3 ! after which 29 11 bx c 3 11d 1 30 11c4 is met by 30 . . . J.. f4 ! (3 1 11xf4 11xc 1 3 2 f3 11xe I + 33 'i!tf2 11g l !-+). Tal may h :l ve missed this because the noise from the spectators forced the ar­ biters to move the game to a closed room.

29 ltJxe2 l:txcl 30 ltJxd4 11xel + 3 1 J..O J..e4 ! 32 ltJe2 J.. e 5 33 f4 J.. f6 34 11xb7 J..x d5 35 l:tc7 Or 35 l:txa7 lhe2 36 J.. x e2 J..d4+

2 1 ... ltJf41?

22 gxf4 exf4 23 J..d 2?

28

etc.

25 l:txb2?

Botvinnik fails to meet the chal­ lenge. Salo Flohr pointed out that White could have obtained a clear advantage with 25 J.. x f3 ! J.. e 5+ (or

35 ... J..x a2 36 11xa7 J.. c4 3 7 11a8+ <j;> f7 38 11a7+ �e6 39 1133 d 5 40 'i!t fl J..h 4+ 4 1 'i!tg2 <Ji>d6 42 4Jg3 J..xg3 43 J.. x c4 d xc4 44 �xg3 �d5 45 1137 c3 46 11c7 �d4 4 7 l:td7+ 0: 1

1 14

Masters ofAttack Masters

KM 1 9/3: I ) White to play

Month 1 9/Week 4 :

Preparation

A I 9/3: a) Black to play

1 15

KM I 9/3: 2) White to play

Garry Kasparov-Heavy Duty

KM I 9/3 : 3) White to play

ofA ttack

KM I 9/3 : 4) White to play

A 1 9/3 : b) White to play

The talent of Garry Kasparov (born in 1 963) was spotted at a very early age after which he received the very best training the Soviet Union had to offer. The result was the development of arguably the strongest player in history. Kasparov is the leading represen­ tative of the new generation of chess -player that has taken opening prep­ aration to fantastic new levels of de­ tail, aided not only by computer databases but a considerable amount of Grandmaster-power. Over the years he has assembled a team of seconds and opening analysts to de­ velop the most thoroughly analysed opening arsenal and he wins many games with home analysis alone. This factor, the chess equivalent of a virtually unreturnable tennis serve, has given Kasparov a clear advan­ tage in his games against his leading rivals. In addition to the analytical excel­ lence of his preparation, Kasparov is usually able to find the most un­ pleasant openings for his opponents to meet from a psychological per­ spective. In this he reminds us of his idol, Alexander Alekhine to whom he bears a great resemblance in his style of play. Here is the 7th game of his 1 993 World title match against Britain's Nigel Short in which he outplays his opponent from the opening and fi­ nishes matters with some brilliant attacking play.

Kasparov - Short London Weh 1993 1 e4 e5 2 4JO 4Je6 3 .i.b5 a6 4 .i.a4 4Jf6 5 0-0 .i.e7 6 J:rel b5 7 .ltb3 0-0

Threatening to play a Marshall . Attack (with 8 c3 d S ! ) was certainly good psychology on Short' s part so as to put Kasparov into the less comfortable role of defender. But Kasparov is having none of it and sidesteps Short's intention with the anti-Marshall l ine.

8 a4 .i.b7 9 d3 d6 10 4Jbd2 4Jd7

1 1 e3 4Je5 12 axb5 axb5 13 Iha8

.i.xa8 14 .i.e2 �f6 15 b4 4Je6 16 4J0 ! .i.b7

Black might have done better to play 16 ... dS ! ?

1 7 tOe3 g 6 1 8 .i.b3 .ltg7 19 h4 .i.e8

It was also worth considering 1 9 ... h S in order to prevent the further advance of White's h-pawn.

20 h5 h8 2 l liJd5 g5?!

This turns out badly. Black should probably have tried 2 1 ... gxhS, pre­ carious though this may be.

II 4Je3 4Jf4 23 g3 4Jxh5 24 4Jf5 �xf5 25 ed5 'it'd7

1 16

Masters ofAttack

26 .bg5 ! h6 Probably a mistake. After 26 . . . 'fixf5 White wins with 27 .i.d5 ' but Black had two superior possibilities in 26 ... .i.f6 and 26 ... lDf6. In either case the outcome would have been far from clear. Kasparov claimed that his next move was also a mistake, suggest­ ing instead that he should have played 27 'Otfg2 !? intending 28 J:[h I . His analysis continued: 27 ... 'fix f5 28 J:[h I 'i'g6 29 'bxe5 dxe5 30 'i'xh5 ! "xh5 3 1 J:[xh5 'Otfh7 32 .1l.e3 when White has a clear advantage. 27 (Dh4 (Df6 28 .i.xf6 .1l.xf6 29 'fih5 'Otfh7 30 (Dg2 Once again Kasparov was critical of his own play and suggested 30 (DO 'be7 3 1 d4 exd4 32 cxd4 after which 32 ... (Dg8 is forced. After 30 lDg2 the position is far from clear. 30 ... 0,e7 31 0,e3 0,g8 32 d4! exd4 33 cxd4 �xd4? The losing move. Black has to play 33 ... �g5 ! after which both 34 lLlfi and 34 f4 Af6 3 5 lLlg4 'iJg7 leave everything still to play for. 34 0,g4

Masters

40 'i!Vxg8+1 according to Averba kh. Also after the text White's attack comes crashing through.

35 0,xh6! �f6 Or 35 . . . lDxh6 36 'i'g5+ 'Otfh7 37 f6 inteliding 38 �c2+. 36 �xf7! 1 : 0 Both 36 . . . lDxh6 37 'i'g6+ and 36 ... J:[xf7 37 'fig6+ lead to mate. The following . game is a scary example of the depth of Kasparov's opening preparation. I t looks to me as if White's entire concept of 1 6 nb4 and 1 7 nxb7 had been pre­ pared beforehand 2nd it left Black with a deeply unpleasant positiul!. Perhaps Shirov could have defended better but he was clearly under ter­ rible pressure after the initial surprise. Kasparov - Shirov Horgen 1 994

34 ... 'Otfg7 After 34 ... �d8 there follows 35 f6! iLxf6 36 �f5+ 'iJg7 37 �c2 ne8 38 J:[xe8 'i'xe8 39 'ffh 7+ 'Otff8

1 c4 c5 2 lLlo e6 3 d4 cxd4 4 0,xd4 0,f6 5 0,c3 0,c6 6 0,db5 d6 7 �f4 eS Shirov, like Short, chooses a line in which Black tries to take the initi­ ative early on, ihis time at the cost of certain structural weaknesses rather than a pawn . Kasparov's

reaction is quite similar in that he chooses a line which limits Black's play rather than attempting to refute it from the outset. As the game proceeds it turns out that Kasparov has prepared this l ine in great depth. His original rook ma­ noeuvre on move 1 6 is followed by an astonishing exchange sacrifice. 8 �g5 a6 9 0,a3 b5 10 0,d5 .1l.e7 1 1 �xr6 .bf6 12 c3 .tb7 13 lDc2 lDb8 14 a4 bxa4 15 J:[xa4 0,d 7 1 6 J:[b4! Kasparov finally unveils a nov­ elty, deviating from the mundane 1 6 lDce3 0-0 1 7 J:[a3 .tg5 I S 0,c4 .txd5 1 9 'i'xd5 .te7 as played in Tatai-Iruzubiela, Cannes 1 992.

16 0,c5 Had B lack fully appreciated the strength of the following exchange sacrifice, he might have chosen 1 6 . . . J:[bS ! ? instead. 1 7 J:[xb7! 0,xb7 18 b4 No dramatic follow up, just a simple pawn advance to control the c5 and as squares. Black's knight is now a truly miserable beast which can only reenter the game via dS. •..

ofA llack

117

1 8 �g5 1 9 0,a3 0-0 2 0 lZ'lc4 as 21 .td3 axb4 22 cxb4 'i'b8 23 h4 �h6 24 lZ'lcb6 J:[a2 2 5 0-0 J:[d2 26 'i'f3 'i'a7 27 lZ'ld7 •..

27 ... lLld8? One can understand Shirov 's de­ sire to improve the position of his knight on b7 but this is the decisive mistake. He should have tried to hang tough with 27 . . . J:[a8! as the return of the exchange brings little in the way of relief. 28 lZ'lxfS �xfS 29 b5 'iVa3 30 'i'fS 'ii'e 8 3 1 �c4 J:[c2 32 'i'xh7 J:[xc4 33 'i'g8+ c;tJd7 34 0,b6+ 'Otfe7 35 0,xc4 'i'c5 36 J:[a l 'fid4 37 J:[aJ �c1 38 lZ'le3 1 :0

1 18 Masters

ofAttack

KM I 9/4: I ) White to play

KM I 9/4 : 2) White to play

8

KM I 9/4: 3) White to play

KM I 9/4: 4) White to play

The Strategists

Strategically minded players aim to outplay their opponents using a superior understanding of positions. By knowing the kind of action a position requires they hope to be able (0 outmanoeuvre opponents who play in a less consistent way. The four players under review this munth were at times able to mystify their opponents with the depth of their positional insight. Month 20/Week 1 : Wilhelm Steinitz -Reason and Plans

A I 9/4: a) White to play

A I 9/4: b) White to play

Wilhelm Steinitz is regarded by many as being the father of modem positional chess. His insight into the nature of chess strategy was well ahead of his time and enabled him to triumph over players who were arguably more gifted In other respects. Steinitz's teachings were studied by a number of younger masters of whom Siegbert Tarrasch tried to put them into a series of rather simplis­ tic rules, a fonn which could be readily um;lerstood by the general public. Yet in my opinion this led to the real genius and meaning behind Steinitz's ideas being lost. In his superb book, Lasker 's Manual of Chess, Emanuel Lasker paid tribute to the man he succeeded as World Champion and came much

closer to describing Steinitz's revol­ utionary way of thinking about chess. Lasker rightly claimed that Steinitz was the first player to un­ derstand that victory is not won by strength of will and genius alone but by making sound plans that conform to the requirements of the position. I can only add that in this way one's growth in chess mirrors reaching maturity in life, that someone grows up when the self-centred will of the child is finally tempered by reason, and objectivity. In the following games Steinitz uses ·reason and good planning to triumph over two of the greatest masters of combination, Anderssen and Zukertort. Anderssen - Steinltz, London 1 866 1 e4 e5 2 tOo lOc6 3 �b5 lOf6 4 d3 d6 5 �xc6+?! bxc6 6 h3

J 20 The Strategists The Strategists 121

White's last two moves might be explained by the fact that An­ derssen, like Chigorin, is reputed to have preferred knights to bishops. First of all he made an unprovoked exchange on c6 and then safe­ guarded his knight on f3 against 6 ... �g4. There is no logical reason for this preference for the knight and I can only guess that it was the combina­ tive properties of this piece that ap­ pealed to him. 6 ... g6 Already thinking in terms of a pawn advance on the kingside. In support of this plan Black's bishop will be well-placed on g7. 7 lile3 �g7 8 0-0 0-0 9 .i.gS h6 10 �e3 eS Preventing d3-d4 which would gi ve upeu the centre and give White some chances. l l J:[bl?! Andersson wants to activate this rook with b2-b4 but this idea has no strategic hasis. He should have con­ tinued trying to play for d3-d4 and to this end he should play 11 lilc3-e2 followed by 12 c3. 11 lile8 12 b4 exb4 13 lIxb4 eS 14 1:I.a4 •..

White continues 'attacking' by taking aim at Black's a-pawn. Un­ fortunately for Anderssen there is no justification for this and the rook is simply misplaced on this square . Meanwhile Steinitz continues his plan of a kingside pawn advance supported by his bishop pair. 14 ... �d7 IS J:[a3 fS 16 'iWbl �h8 17 �b7 as 18 J:[bl a4 Safeguarding the queenside by quite economical means. With White's pieces offside Black's kingside attack is' much mOre effective than it would otherwise have been. 19 "ifdS 'ife8 20 J:[b6 lIa7

Black's kingside breakthrough. Note the contrast between Steinitz's steady play and Anderssen's attempts to make superficial threats. 3 1 .i.e! �h7 32 d4 Desperately trying to get the hapless rook on a3 into play, even. at the cost of a-pawn. Steinitz declines these meagre gains and brings his plan to a successful conclusion. 32 ... gxf3 33 gxf3 iDh3 34 �11 lilxgl 35 d xeS �h3+ 36 �el lilxf3+ 37 lIxf3 'ifxf3 38 lile3 d xeS 39 �xeS lIe7 40 lildS J:[xcS 4 1 �xeS 'ifxe4+ 42 �11 J:[e8 43 liJe7 �e3+ 0:1 In his matches against Johannes Zukertort, Steinitz faced one of the most gifted players of his day. Yet Zukertort lost heavily on both occa­ sions because, like Anderssen, he lacked the positional understanding of Steinitz and his ability to create sound plans. Zukertort - Steinitz St Louis, Weh 1 886

The rook prepares to swing over to the kingside to lend further force to Black's kingside pawn advance. This alsu has the illl.:iueJ1tal tlu eat uf 21 ... fxe4 22 dxe4 �xh3 etc. 21 ..&th2 f4 22 .td2 g5 23 'i'c4 'ifd8 24 lIbi lilr6 25 'it>gl liJ h7 Mcthodically protecting the g5 pawn in preparation for a further advance. 26 'it>n h5 27 lilgl g4 28 hxg4 hxg4 29 f3 'i'h4 30 iDd 1 lilgS Once again Black plays his pieces to squares where they support.

1 d4 dS 2 e4 e6 3 lilc3 lilf6 4 lilf3 dxc4 5 e3 eS 6 .i.xc4 cxd4 7 exd4 .i.e7 8 0-0 0-0 9 "We2 lilbd7 10 �b3 lilb6 I I �f4 lilbdS 12 �g3 As in the Anderssen game it is difficult to detect the thread which ties White's moves to the require­ ments of the position. It is as if he is playing his pieces to active squares in the hope that a combination will eventually present itself. Steinitz meanwhile pursues a logi­ cal plan to put pressure on White's isolated d-pawn.

12 . �aS 13 J:[ael .i.d7 14 ttJe5 J:[fd8 15 �f3 .i.e8 16 lIfe 1 J:[ae8 1 7 �h4 ttJxc3 1 8 bxc3 'ifc7 19 'ifd3 Even now Zukertort does not seem to have constructed any kind of plan. Lasker recommended 19 �g3 �d6 20 c4 at this point to gain ' space with the hanging pawns. 19 lild5 20 �xe7 'ifxe7 2 1 .i.xds lIxdS 2 2 e4?! ..

.•.

By now the adyance of the hang­ ing pawns lacks force due to the ex­ change of two sets of minor pieces. White no longer has the kind of at­ tacking chances associated with this structure and should content himself with quietly trying to maintain his position. 22 ... 1:I.dd8 23 lIe3? 'i'd6 24 lIdl f6 2 5 lIh3?! h6 26 lilg4 'i'f4 27 lile3 �a4 28 lIf3 'i'd6 29 lId2 �c6 30 J:[g3 f5 31 J:[g6 Over the last few moves Zuker­ tort's rook has drifted ever further offside. He should retreat with 31 lild l . 31 .i.e4 3 2 "ifb3 Threatening 33 c5. 32 . �h7 33 c5 lhcS 34 J:[xe6 lIc1 + 3s lildl 'i'f4 36 'ifb2 nbl 37 'ifc3 ne8 38 lhe4 'i'xe4 0: 1 ..•

..

122

The Strategists The

KM20/ 1 : ) White to play

KM20/ 1 : 2) Black to play

Month 20/Week 2: AaroD Nimzowitsch -Prophylaxis

KM20/ 1 : 3) Black to play

A20/1: a) White to play

Strategists 123

KM20/1: 4) White to play

A20/): b) Black to play

The 1 920s was a period in which established concepts in many differ­ ent fields were challenged and re-evaluated. Chess was no excep­ tion and the so-called 'hypermod­ em' movement came to challenge the establishment. The leading representatives of the were movement hypermodern Gyula Breyer, Richard Reti and Aaron Nimzowitsch. They preached ideas which were considered heresy by the likes of Dr. Tarrasch. Amongst their shocking views they held [hat the ct:ntre did not need to be occupied with pawns but could instead be controlled by pieces. In his original books on chess strategy, My System and Chess Praxis, Nim­ zowitsch also introduced words such as 'prophylaxis' into the chess vocabulary. Many writers have implied that Nimzowitsch was an opponent of the classical view of strategy as laid down by Steinitz but I don't think this was really the case. I see them as being remarkably similar in spirit, both Steinitz and Nimzo­ witsch were tireless researchers into the nature of chess and were willing to stand alone against the rest of the world. The following two games show Nimzowitsch's great originality and profound insight which was years ahead of its time. Even today Nim­ zowitsch is regarded as being re­ quired reading by the leading players.

Johner - Nimzowitsch Dresden 1 926 1 d4 lUf6 2 c4 e6 3 lUc3 �b4 4 e3 0-0 5 i. d3 cS 6 1Of3 lDc6 7 0-0 �xc3 8 bxc3 d6

A plan of blockade which retains its popularity to this day. Yet the modem interpretation of this plan is to delay castling with 4 . .. cS S i.d3 lOc6 6 lUG i.xc3+ which retains the option of castling queenside. 9 lOd2 b6 10 lOb3?! An inaccuracy according to Nim­ zowitsch who suggested that White should play the immediate 10 f4 after which 10 ... eS is met by II fxeS dxe5 12 d5 with a balanced game.

10 ... eS 1 1 f4

I I d5 is strongly by met by I I e4 12 i.e2 lOeS. 11

.•.

e4 12 i.e2 'it'd7!!

A really extraordinary looking move which must have been con­ sidered quite eccentric at the time. This is where we see real depth of understanding in that Nimzowitsch knew he must restrain White's king­ side pawns from advancing with g2-g4. If he achieves this White will be left wilhout a good plan.

13 h3?! lOe7 14 'i'el ? hS!

J 24

The Strategists The Strategixts J 25

Continuing his plan of restraint and if fact White is soon reduced to complete passivity. He should have tried 1 3 �d2 followed by 14 ..tel and 14 ..id2 was also an improvement. I S ..id2 'i'f5! 1 6 q;h2 'i'h7! By now it's becoming clear that White will not be able to play g2-g4. With his next few moves Nimzowitsch saps the remaining en­ ergy from White's position by blockading his a-pawn and inducing d4-dS.

17 a4 lDf5 18 g3 as! Preventing the exchange of White's weak a-pawn at the cost of a slight weakening of b6. White didn't play 18 as because of 18 .. . lDg4+ 19 hxg4 hxg4+ 20 'iPh l g3 but 19 ..ixg4 hxg4 20 axb6 might havt:: ut::t::l1 a ut::llt::l l:ha.llCt: than the game. 1 9lIgI lDh6 20 .to .td7 2 1 .tel lIae8! 22 d5 After this White can do nothing but wait to see how Black will try to break through on the kings ide. 22 ... q;h8 23 lDd2 Itg8 24 ..ig2 gs 25 lDn l::t:g7 26. na2 lDf5 27 .thl l::t:eg8 28 'i'd l gxf4

An important decision which had to be well judged. It opens the g-file for Black and the e-file for White. 29 exf4 ..ie8 30 'itb3 ..ta6

In the next game we see Nimzo­ witsch play against one of the earliest examples of the Modern Benoni. Thrown onto his own re­ sources Nirnzowitsch shows a re­ markable insight into the position. Nimzowltseh - Marshall New York 1 927

31 lIe2 White makes a bid for counter­ play by attacking the e-pawn. After 3 1 il.d2 Black could play an attract­ ive combination with 3 1 ... l::t:g 6! 32 �el l[jg4 + ! 33 hxg4 hxg4+ 34 'ito>g2 �xc4 35 'i'xc4 e3 with the decisive threat of 36 ... 'ii'h3 + . 31 ... lL'lh4 32 l::t:e3 [fWhite went for the e-pawn with 32 4Jd2 �c8 33 4Jxe4 he would fal l victim t o the beautiful 33 . . . 'i'fS 34 4Jf2 'ii'x h 3+ ! 3S lDxh3 lDg4#. If White varies with 33 'i'd l, Black has 33 ... ..ixh3! 34 �xh3 'i'f5+ etc. 32 .ieS 33 'i'c2 �xh3! 34 ..ixe4

I c4lL'lf6 2 d4 e6 3 lDfJ c5!? In this tournament the ingenious Frank Marshal l introduced this opening which later became known as the Modem Benoni. Black con­ cedes some �pace in the centre in order to obtain a half-open e-file and a queenside pawn majority. 4 ds d6 5 lDe3 exds 6 exds g6

..ixc4 iLg7. The modem preference is for 7 ... �g7 . 1 0 lDe3! 0-0 I I il.d3 4Jh5 This quite reasonable move by Marshall came in for a lot of unfair criticism. The real mistake came later. 1 2 0-0 �es 13 a4 lDf4 14 as lL'ld7 IS . A typical Marshall move which undermines White's centre and acti­ vates Black·'s pieces. Unfortunately it proves too loosening. 1 7 exfS lIxfS 1 8 f4: �d4+ 1 9 �e3 il.xc3 2 0 'ii' xc3 4Jf6 2 1 'it'b3! nxdS? This is refuted with an elegantly conducted attack and after 21 . . . 4JxdS White has 22 nae I ! when 22 . . . il.e6 is answered by 23 �xc5. The only chance was 21 ... lDg4.

.•.

34 'ito>xh3 'i'f2+ 3S �h2 lDg4+

leads to mate. 34 . .. il.f5 35 .bf5 lDxf5 36 Ire2 h4 37 ngg2 hxg3+ 38 'iitg l 'ii'h3 39 lDe3 lDh4 40 q;n lIeS! 0 : 1 Black threatens 4 1 . .. lbxg2 42 Irxg2 'i'h 1 + 4 3 q;e2 'ii'xg2+ and if White defends against this with 4 1 'it'e 1 there is 4 1 . . . lDf3+ followed by 42 . . . 'i!¥h 1 + .

7 lDd2! Disregarding the rules about fast development, Nimzowitsch brings the knight to c4 where he feels it is best placed. 7 ... lDbd7?! 8 lDc4 lDb6 9 e4 JLg7? Black should take this opportunity to rid himself of his badly placed knight on b6 with 9 ... lL'lxc4 10

22 fS! gxfS Or 22 ... ..ixfS 23.tgS etc.. 23 il.gS l::t:d 4 After 23 ... il.e6 White plays 24 'ii'x b7 lIeS 25 Itae I! etc. 24 lDb6+ c4 25 'ii'c3 axb6 26 'ii' x d4 q;g7 27 nae l ! buS 28 J:re8! 'ii' x eS 29 'i'xf6+ q;g8 30 ..ih6 1 :0

126 The Strategists The Strategists 127

KM20/2: 1) White to play

KM20/2: 2) White to play

Month 20 IWeek 3: Mikhail Botvinnik-The Scientist

10 ... b6?!

According to Botvinnik this was probably the decisive mistake, such is the strength of the pressure he now obtains. Black should first ex­ change knights on c3.

When the Soviet Union emerged as the world's leading chess nation, its champion was Mikhail Botvin­ nik. Approaching chess from the 1 1 ttJxdS! exd5 12 �b5 �d7 point of view of a research scientist 12 . , ttJa5 might have been a Botvinnik thoroughly analysed cer­ better try though after 13 lDe5. tain types of positions which were White retains a significant edge. previously simply 'played'. The text leads to exchanges but As a result of his research he de­ White retains a clear advantage. 131i'a4 ttJb8 veloped a thorough mastery of The only move as 13 ... nc8 is every aspect of the game. Not only did he discover many new systems met by 14 �d2! threatening IS of development but worked them nac\. out thoroughly before the game 1 4 �f4 �xb5 1 5 1i'xb5 a6 1 6 even started. This new kind of prep­ 1i'a4 �d6 1 7 �xd6 'i'xd6 1 8 nacl aration couid at times leave even his na7 19 'irc2 1:[e7 White's last move ensures control most illustrious adversaries looking of the c-file and leaves Black with like amateurs. In the following two games Bot­ the problem of what to play next. vinnik triumphs over two of the The text move leads to a bad end­ greatest players in history. In the game as would 19 . f6 20 1i'fS fol­ first he beats the reigning World lowed by 21 1i'e6+. 20 lhe7 "'xe7 2 1 'fie7 "'xe7 22 Champion, Alexander Alekhine. .

KM20/2: 3) Black to play

KM20/2: 4) Black to play

..

Botvinnik - Alekhine Amsterdam 1 938

A20/2: a) White to play

A20/2: b) Black to play

1:[xc7

i ttJf3 dS 2 d4 lDf6 3 e4 e6 4 ttJe3 e5 5 exd5 ttJxd5 6 e3 ttJe6 7 �e4 exd4 8 exd4 �e7 9 0 -0 0-0 1 0 nel

22

•••

f6!

Alekhine is defending well, with the text move intending to drive White's took from the 7th rank with to 23 1:[b7 23 ... 1:[f7. The answer . would be 23 ... 1:[c8 .

128

The Strategists The Strategists 129

23 �f1 lIf7 24 lIe8+ lIf8 25 lIe3! Leaving Black with nothing to do but try to bring his king to the centre. In order to do this he has to make the following weakening ad­ vance of his kingside pawns. 25 g5 26 lbel h5 26 ... h6 would be answered by 27 lbc2 Wf7 28 llJe3 'it'e6 29 g4 fol­ lowed by 30 lbf5, but now Botvin­ nik finds a very unpleasant move. 27 h4! lbd7 There was little else to be done as 27 ... gxh4 is answered by 28 lbf3, recovering the pawn with advan­ tage. After 27 ... cj;f7 Botvinnik in­ tended 28 lbf3 g4 29 llJe I cj;e6 30 liJd3 'it'f5 31 g3 followed by 32 liJf4. 28 l:re7 l:rf7 29 liJfJ g4 30 llJel f5 31 lbd3 f4 The only defence against 32 lLIf4. Botvinnik could now have won a . pawn with 32 llJb4 but he . place Black in zugzwang. 32 fJ gxfJ 33 gxfJ as 34 a4 cj;f8 3S lIe6 d8 38 ..te2 lLIb8 .••

39 llg6! Resisting the temptation to play 39 lIxb6 which could be met by 39 ... Wc7 followed by 40 ... liJc6.

39 ... We7 40 lbe5 liJa6 41 l:rg7+ 'it>e8 42 lbg6 lIf6 43 liJe7+ cj;b8 44 liJxdS lId6 45 lIg5 liJb4 46 liJxb4 axb4 47 llxhS lIe6 White would answer 47 ... lIxd4 with 48 lIf5 Wb7 49 lIf6 Wc7 50 h5 etc. 48 lIbS f2 AxeS? Ridding himself of the annoying knight on e5 but the cure is worse than the disease. Black might have made more of a fight of it with 28 ... gS. 29 i.xes f6 30 i.b2 'i.t>e7 31 i.c4 i.g6 32 We3 i.f7 33 g4 'i¥c7 34 e5!

After a lengthy period of prepara­ tion and manoeuvre, Petrosian

132

The Strategists

finally begins a direct attack. Hav­ ing had his position reduced to such a passive state Black is in little posi­ tion to resist.

34 ... 'i'd8 35 exf6+ gxf6 36 h4 CiJc7 37 'ifc3 lDd5+ 38 .bd5 Wxd5 39 'ifxf6+ q;,e8 40 'iVh8+ 'it>d;'7 4 1 'i'g7

The Strategists 133

In the next game Petrosian man­ ages to outwit the man who replaced him as World Champion three years later. Note the cunning delay of cas­ tling by Black.

In view of the way things tum out it would have been better to ex­ change bishops and play f2-f4 . On f4 the bishop provides a target for Black's coming kingside pawn stonn.

1 I ... 'ikc7

41 ... �e8

.If 4 1 ... �3+ there follows 42 �c3 q;,e8 43 h5!+-.

42 .i.f6 'ii'b H 43 .i.c3 'i'd l 44 'ifh8+ �d7 45 fkb8 'ifc1+

The checks also run out after 45 ... 'i'g l + 46 'it>d2 'iff2+ 4 7 q;,dl 'ito + 48 �c2 'iVe2+ 49 .i.d2. 46 .i.d2 "'g1 + 47 q;,d3 'iff1 + 48

<Ji>c2 'iVa6

Or if 48 ... "'c4+ there follows 49 �b2 'iVd4+ 50 �c3 'iVf2+ 51 �a3. 49 h5! "a2+ 50 'iPd3 'ii'b l + 5 1 'it>e2 "e4+ 52 ¢> f2 'ii'd 4+ 5 3 .i.e3 "'xb4 54 'ikrs 'ii'b2+ 55 'it>g3 'iVf6 56 'ifd6+ q;,c8 57 �d4 'i'd8 58 'itxd8+ It>xd8 59 �g7 It>c7 60 .i.xh6 b6 61 cxb6+ It>xb6 62 'it>h4 1 :0

2S CiJxg4 hxg4 26 e4

Spassky - Petrosian Moscow Weh 1966 1 d4 CiJf6 2 CiJf3 e6 3 �g5 d5 4 CiJbd2 �e7 5 e3 CiJbd7 6 �d3 c5 7 c3 b6 8 0-0 .i.b7 9 CiJe5 CiJxe5 1 0 dxe5 CiJd7 1 1 .i.f4

The game was adjourned at this point with Black in a virtually hope­ less position. His only chance is that the exposed position of White's king may pennit perpetual check should he be careless.

24 ... CiJxeS! Giving up the exchange for mass­ ive compensation, Black has two pawns and his forces stand at the gates of the enemy palace.

The immediate 1 1 ... gS 1 2 .i.g3 h5 was even better, but Petros ian used to like to disguise his intentions.

1 2 CiJf3 h6 13 b4

White feels things are turning against him and tries to stir up trouble. After 13 . . . cxb4 14 cxb4 �xb4 15 CiJd4 he would get good play for his pawn.

13 ... g5 14 �g3 h5 15 h4

1 5 h3 g4 1 6 hxg4 hxg4 would leave White unable to hold the pawn on eS.

15 ... gxh4!

15 ... g4 16 CiJgS CiJxe5 17 �bS+ leads to wild position with Black's king in the centre. Petrosian prefers a line which minimises White's counterplay.

16 .i.f4 0·0-0 1 7 a4 c4!

Most players would reject this move because it gives White the d4 square but Petrosian has judged that it is more important to keep the queensidc closed.

Attempting to get some counter­ play before things get even worse.

26 ... �d6

And not 26 . . . dxe4?? 27 .i.xe5 'itxe5 28 'itd8 mate.

18 �e2?

The key moment. White should have played 18 �f51 sending the bishop en route for the h3 square from where it would defend the pawn on g2 The point is that after 18 ... exfS 19 e6 �d6 20 �xd6 'itxd6 2 1 exd7+ llxd7 White can play 22 CiJd4! with superb play for his two pawn deficit. Spassky rejected this move be­ cause he didn't want his bishop on h3. It was more important to defend the g2 pawn.

1 8 ... a6!

The logical follow up to the previ­ ous move. 1 9 as b5 seals things up completely and would leave Black free to attack White's king. 19 'it>hl lldg8 20 llgl llg4 2 1 �d2 llhg8 2 2 as b 5 2 3 lladl �rs!

24 CiJh2

27 'ife3 CiJd7 28 �xd6 �xd6 29 lld4 e5 30 lld2

30 ... f5!

Mobilising Black's pawns with deadly effect. 3 1 exf6 CiJf6 32 'i'h6 �d8 intending . .. llh8 would give Black an excellent attacking position .

31 exd5 f4 32 'i'e4 CiJ f6 33 'i'f5+ 'it>b8 34 f3

After 34 'i'e6 there is a nice vari­ ation in 34 . . . 'ii xe6 3 5 fxe6 CiJe4 when Black threatens a pretty mate with 36 ... CiJxf2+ and 37 ... g3#.

34 ... .i.c8 35 'iib l g3 36 llel h3 37 .i.n llh8 38 gxb3 .i.xh3 39 It>gl �xn 40.'it>xfl e4 4 1 'iidl CiJg4! 42 fxg4 f3 43 llg2 fxg2+ 0 : I After 44 'it>xg2 there might follow 44 ... llh2+ 45 'it>g I 'i'h6.

134

The Strategists

KM20/4: 1) Black to play

KM20/4: 2) White to play

9 The Technicians

KM20!4: 3) White to play

A20/4: a) Black to play

KM20/4: 4) White to play

A20/4: b) Black to play

The tenn 'technician' may sound rather dull but it isn't meant to be. 1 am using it to describe players who, rather than straining to discover any great new ideas or launch ingenious attacks, set about making the most efficient use possible of the knowl­ edge of their day. I would actually include most modem professionals in the 'techni­ cian' category. Forty years ago there was still a pioneer spirit in chess in which new concepts were constantly being discovered. Nowadays it is not entirely true to say that there is nothing new to be found, but it is much harder to find origin,,1 ideas which are actually playable. Amongst club players there are very few who are technically orien­ tated, most will tend to rely on sheer brain power to win their games, irrespective of technique. This makes the 'technicians' such par­ ticularly valuable models. Month 2 1IWeek 1 : Jose Raul Capablanca Much has been written about the ease and fluency with which Capa­ blanca played chess and popularised the game with his personal chann. He rose to the summit in record time, beating Lasker in their match in 1921 and it came as a shock to the chess world when he lost his

title just six years later. How could this have happened to the 'unbea­ table' Cuban, the so-called Mozart of chess? The fact is that although Capa­ blanca had a truly brilliant chess tal­ ent he didn't work on his game. As a result his play became increasing­ ly cautious as time went by; he tried to win by technique alone, avoiding sharp theory and complications alike. The following game shows Capa- . blanca at his lucid best. His pieces always seem to be on the right squares at the right time as he stead­ ily moves forward: Capablanca - Vidmar New York 1 927 1 e4 e5 2 lDf3 lDc6 3 �b5 a6 4 �a4 lDf6 5 0-0 �e7 6 Itel b5 7 �b3 d6 8 c3 lDa5 Nowadays it is generally accepted that 8 ... 0-0 is a more flexible ap­ proach after which 9 d4 is answered by 9 ... �g4. 9 �e2 c5 10 d4 'ike7 1 1 lDbd2 0-0

Black might have taken this opportunity to play I I ... �g4. 12 h3 lDe6 13 d 5 lDd8 14 a4 b4?! A serious positional mistake which concedes White a fine out­ post for his knight on c4. Black should play 14 ... l:tb8.

136 The Technicians The Technicia/1s 137

I 5 lLlc4 as? !

30 . . . na8 is met by 31 Jic7 but now there follows a decisive simplification.

After this Black finds himself in serious trouble. He should have taken the opportunity to exchange queens with 8 . . . dxc4. 9 'ita4+! 'itd7 10 lLlb5! lDc6 1 1 exdS exd5 B lack has little choice Qut to ac­ cept an isolated d-pawn as after I I . . lOxdS there follows 12 e4! fol­ lowed by 13 nd I . 1 2 .Jtf4 ne8 13 ncl .Jte5? Understandably Black wants to develop his kingside but this loses two pieces for a rook. 13 ... lLle4 was relatively best. .

16 lLlfxe5! A thematic tactical blow with 3 1 .Jtxe6 fxe6 32 nd8+ l:rxd8 33 which Capablanca forces a favour­ Jixd8 lLld7 34 i-xa5 lLlcs 35 b3! able endgame in which he has a lLlxb3 36 i.xb4 lLld4 37 as 1 :0 strong bishop pair and weak pawns to attack. Vidmar should have The tournament in New York was played 15 ... ltJe8 which avoids this one of Capablanea's greatest . problem and starts the preparation triumphs. His greatest defeat came for ... f7-f5. just a few months later when Alek­ 1 6 ... i-a6 1 7 i-b3 dxeS 1 8 d6 hine beat him in a gruelling �xd6 1 9 ifxd6 ifxd6 20 ltJxd6 struggle. lLlb7 Throughout this match Capablan­ Alternatively Black might have ca found himself at a considerable played 20 ... nb8 when White has a disadvantage in the opening where pleasant choice between 21 i-c4 Alekhine was much better prepared. �xc4 22 lLlxc4 lLlc6 23 f3 and 21 Only occasionally did the Cuban lOb5!? i-xb5 22 axh5 nxhS 23 reach a favourable middlegnme, ns �c4. In either cast White has a for example in game 3: clear advantage. 2 1 lLlxb7 �xb7 22 cxb4 cxb4 23 Capablanca - Alekhine f3 :Ud8 24 Jie3 h6 15 nedl i.c6 Buenos Aires WCh 1 927 2 6 l1acl Jie8 2 7 'itr>f2 nxdi 28 nxdl nc8 29 g4! 1 d4 lLlf6 2 lLlf3 b6 3 g3 i-b7 4 Staking out space on the kingside i.g2 c5 5 0-0 cxd4 6 lLlxd4 i-xg2 7 and threatening h2-h4 followed by '>t>xg2 d5? g4-gS and ndS. B lack defends A mistake which allows White to against this by hringing the hishop open the game while he holds an ad­ to e6 but this cure proves as deauly vantage in development. 7 ... g6 wa� as the disease. much safer. 29 ... i.d7 30 �b6 .Jte6 8 e4! e6

14 b4! i.xb4 14 ... lLlxb4 loses the exchange after I S lLld6+ 'iot>d8 16 �xd7+ Wxd7 17 lLlxc8. 1 5 l:rxc6! l:rxc6 16 ifxb4 lDe4 1 7 lLld2 lLlxd2 18 �xd2 A classic example of Capablan­ ca's tendency to avoid complica­ tions, even if they are favourable. It would have been even better to pre­ vent Black from castling with 18 .Jtxd2 as after 18 ... 'ife7 1 9 'ifb2 'ife4+ 20 f3 'ifxe2+ 21 �g l when there are too many threats. 18 ... 0-0 1 9 l:rd 1 nc5 20 lLld4 l:re8 2 1 lDb3 ncc8 22 e3 it'a4

23 'ifxd5! A finely judged decision. Capa­ blanca is planning to win with a di­ rect attack on Black's king and in exchange is prepared to give Black two united passed pawns on the queenside. The pawns in fact never really get going because of White's central control and active pieces. 23 ... nc2 24 l:rd2 l:rxa2 25 l:rxa2 it'xa2 26 it'c6! l:r18 27 lLld4 Wh8 28 i.eS! The first threat appears, that of 29 i-xg7+ Wxg7 30 lDfS+ followed by 31 'iff6. 28 ... f6 29 lLle6 l:rg8 30 .Jtd4 Continuing the restraint of Black's queenside and simulta­ neously threatening 31 lLlxg71 l:rxg7 32 it'xf6 it'g8 33 h4! followed by 34 h5 and 35 h6. 30 ... h6 31 h4! �bl 32 lLlxg7! A shattering blow. 32 ... nxg7 is answered by 33 'ifxf6 �h7 34 it'f8+. 32 ... 1!fg6 33 h5! �f7 34 lLlf5 h7 35 'ii'e 4 ne8 36 'iVf4 it'f8 37 lLld6l:re7 Or 37 ... nd8 38 �xf6! .trxd6 39 it'fS+ 'iot>g8 40 it'g6+. 38 i-xf6 1!fa8+ 39 e4 ng7 40 i.xg7 Wxg7 41 lLlf5+ '>t>f7 42 �c7+ 1:0

138

The Techn icians The Technicians J 39

KM21/\: I) White to play

KM2 11 1 : 3) White to play

KM2 l1l: 2) White to play

KM211l: 4) White to play

Month 2 1/Week 2 : Vassily Smyslov

Vassily Smyslov is one of the greatest post-war players and won a World Championship match against Botvinnik in 1 957 only to lose the return in '58 Since then he has re­ mained one of the world's leading players and at the time of writing is stil l an active competitor in tournaments. Smyslov's style of play is one of great technical brill iance yet there were also other facets to his play. Unlike Capablanca he has invented new plans of development in the opening and there are, for example, several l ines of the Gruenfeld De­ fence which bear his name. He was also noted for his combinative bril­ liance and would not be averse to a ferociously sharp struggle. The fol lowing two games show Smyslov's superb endgame tech­ nique in action as he beats former World Champion Max Euwe and the future champion Mikhail Tal. Smyslov - Euwe Groningen 1 946

A21 /1: u) White to piny

A21/1:

h) White to play

1 e4 e5 2 lLIfJ lLIc6 3 �b5 a6 4 �a4 lll f6 5 d3 d6 6 c3 g6 7 0-0 �g7 8 l:f.el b5 9 �c2 0-0 1 0 �g5 h6 1 1 �h4 1!i'e8 Black is aiming for play on the kingside. The Breyer manoeuvre of II ... lllb 8 and 1 2 ... lLIbd7 is an alternative. 1 2lL1bd2lL1h5 13 lLIfl g5 14 �g3 lLIe7?! In view of White's reply this looks like a mistake. Black had in­ teresting alternatives in 14 ... lLIf4!? and 14 ... fS!?

1 5 a4! lLIxg3 An unfortunate necessity as 15 . . . �d7? i s met by 1 6 lLIxe5, 1 5 . . . �e6? b y 1 6 lllxgS lLIxg3 1 7 lllxe6 whilst 1 5 ... l:f.b8 surrenders the a-file. 16 hxg3! �e6 1 7 d4 f6 18 �b3 �xb3 19 �xb3+ �f7 20 �xf7+ q;x f7 2 1 lLIe3

Over the last few moves White has made a lot of progress. The ex­ change of light-squared bishops in particular has weakened Black's light-squares and left him with a 'bad bishop' on g7. Smyslov's willingness to go into an endgame is instructive; he felt that this was the best way to set about exploiting his anvantage. . 2 1 ... l:f.fb8 22 axb5 axb5 23 d5 h5 24 �fl An instructive move which brings the king nearer the centre. Such de­ tails are easily overlooked. 24 g4 25 lLIh4 �h6 26 lLIef5 lLIg8 27 �e2 l:f.a4 28 l::t xa4 bxa4 29 l::tb l l:tb3 Attempting to force matters with 29 .. , a3 would achieve nothing but a weakening of Black 's a-pawn after 30 b4. 30 �d3 a3 31 �c2 J:1xb2+ 32 l::t x b2 axb2 33 �xb2 ..•

140 The Technicians The Technicians 141

Euwe has been fighting hard to .i.cl 47 a6 c8 48 a7 Jil.gS (or repair the earlier damage to his posi­ 48 ... Jil.d2 49 'it'a8 �el 50 g4 .i.f2 tion and he probably felt he had 51 CiJe7+ ¢>d7 52 CiJg8 .i.h4 53 . good chances to draw this minor �b8! .i.g5 54 ¢>b7) 49 ¢>a8 Jil.c I 50 g4 �g5 51 CiJe7+ ¢>d7 52 CiJc6�c8 piece endgame. 53 CiJa7+�d7 S4 ¢>b7 etc.

19 bxc3 lIe8 20 c4 e4

Black couldn't allow White's pawn mass to remain intact but the position is still bad for him. He has some temporary piece activity but White's superior pawn structure and bishop pair must count in the end.

4 1 'it'a4 .i.xg3 42 CiJxg3 �f4 43 CiJh5+ �xe4 44 CiJxf6+

2 1 d xe4 llxc4 22 tLld2 llc2 23 .i.d 1 lle3 24 �n CiJeS 25 .i.d4 lld3 26 �xcS dxc5 After 26 . llxd2 27 �e3 lIb2 28 lIcl Black's pawns start dropping . _ _

A brilliant decision. Smyslov has correctly forseen that the exchange of queens allows him to infiltrate Black's position on the c-file whilst the damage to his structure is j ust a temporary phenomenon. One of the critical lines occurs if Black exchanges off the remaining two minor pieces with 33 ... .i.g5 34 'it'b3 �xh4 35 gxh4 CiJe7 36 liJxe7 'it'xe7. In fact White is winning this king and pawn endgame after 37 �c4 f5 (37 ... �d7 38�b5) 38 D! (38 exf5�f6 39 Wb5�xf5 40�c6 g3! 41 D e4 ! gives Black counter­ play) 38 ... f4 39 'it'b5 �d7 40 c4 �d8 41 �c6 �c8 42 cS dxc5 43 WxcS �d7 44 �c4 We7 4S Wb4 'it>d6 46 ¢lb5 g3 47 ¢lb4! q;e7 (or 47 ... c6 48 dxc6 'it>xc6 49�c4�d6 50 b5) 48�e4�d6 49�b5�d7 . 50�c5 �c8 51 d6 etc..

33 ... .i.d2 34 �c2 .i.e l 35 f3 CiJe7 36 CiJxe7 ¢>xe7 37 fxg4 hxg4 38 CiJf5+ q;n 39 c4 q;g6 40 �b3 �g5

Seeing that passive defence is hopeless Euwe decides to launch a counterattack. After '10 ... q;f7 White would will wil11 41 �'a4 Wc8 42 ¢>bS ¢>d7 43 CiJh6 .i.xg3 44 CiJxg4 .i.h4 45 liJh6 .i.gS 46 liJfS

15 ... lUeS 1 611fc 1 �xd3

44 ... �f5

Or if 44 ... c..t.>f4 there follows 4S �bS e4 (or 45 ... f5 46 CiJh5 �g 5 47 CiJg3�f4 48 lllfl e4 49 ¢>c6 e3 50 CiJxe3 etc.) 46 CiJxe4 �xe4 47 �c6 with White queening first.

45 CiJe8 e4 46 CiJxc7 e3 47 CiJb5! �f4 Or if 47 '" e2 there is 48 lLld4+

�f4 49 CiJxe2+ etc.

48 lOe3 \i>g3 49 c5 1:0

In view of the difficulties Black experiences in the endgame it mig h t have been better to try 16 .. e4 1? After) 7 .i.xe4 CiJxe4 18 �xe4 �f6 19 llab 1 llc4 20 CiJd4 .i.xd4 21 J1l.xd4 llac8 22 c3 CiJf6 Black has some counterplay for the pawn. _

_

27 �e2 lhd2+ .

The best practical chance. 27 lId4 28 f3 leaves Black facing threats such as 29 lIbI or 29 tLlc4. �

28 �xd2 lLlxe4+ 29 �c2 lbd6 30 J1l.e2 J1l.f6 3 1 IIbl Wffl 32 �b3 �e7 33 J1l.d3 Wd7 34 f4 .li.d4 35 lIn J1l.e3 36 f5 .i.d2 37 fxg6 hxg6 38 lIa 1 �e7 39 lla2 .i.b4 40 h4 Wf6 4 1 g4 �el 42 hS gS 43 llal jLd2 44 lIhl gxh5 45 gxh5 e4+ 46 �xc4 Wh6 4711f l !

17 exd3 g6

The attempt to block the c- file with 1 7 ... lllCS?1 is refuted by 18 CiJxcs dxcS 1 9 d6 J1l.xd6 20 _ltxb7.

Smyslov Tal Bled Ct 1 959 •

1

e4 e5

2 CiJf3

Smyslov was also a great connois­ seur of the Closed Sicilian with 2 lLlc3 and 3 g3.

2 ... d6 3 d4 exd4 4 lll xd4 lLlf6 5 �e3 06 6 .i.e2 e5 7 �b3 .i.e7 8 0-0 U-U 9 ��3 ifc7 IU a4 ��6 II as 'We6 12 J1l.f3 CiJbd7 13 tLld5! .i.xd5 14 exd5 �b5 15 �d3!!

Giving up the h5 pawn to break . through Black's defences.

1 811c3! llxc3

Strategic capitulation, but then what else can Black do about the doubling of rooks on the c-file?

47 ... xh5 48 llf6 lDe4 49 .i.e2+ 'iti'g5 50 lhn .1Le3 5 1 l:te7 �f4 52 .i.d3 lbd6 53 ¢>b4 b6 54 axb6 .i.xb6 55 .i.xa6 .i.d4 56 lle6 .i.e5 57 �e5 lDn 58 .i.d3 .i.b2 59- .i.g6 CiJg5 60 l:te8 SLa3+ 6 1 Wc6 CiJf3 62 lle4+ �g5 63 .i.h7 �h6 64 �f5 �g5 65 .i.g4 1 : 0

142 The Technicians The Technicians '43 KM2112: I) White to play

KM21/2: 2) Black to play

Month 2 1 /Week 3: Bobby Fischer

10 d4 iLlbd7 1 1 lbbd2 .ltb7 1 2 .ltc2 lte8 13 b 4 i.f8 1 4 a 4 lbb6 1 5 a Slbbd7 1 6 i. b 2 'ti'b8

It was Bobby Fischer's sensa­ tional challenge for the World

Spassky is playing in very solid style, maintaining his centre like the

Championship

best

that

fanned

the

flames of my interest in chess. At the

time

of

the

1972

Fischer­

Spassky match in Reykjavik

I was a

Subsequent

17 Itbl

With the positional threat of 18

after a year or two. The Reykjavik

c4, when Black's queen looks un­ comfortable, staring down the b-file

chess was turned into a symbol of KM2112: 4) White to play

us.

whose interest might have faded

From being an interesting pastime

3) White to play

tell

however have tended to ' suggest that 16 ... llb8 is a better move.

boy of 12 who liked the game but

match changed everything.

KM21/2:

books

games

something much greater, the ideo­ logical

battle

between

East

and

West. In the mood of the time many young

players

developed

a

real

passion for chess which accounted

at a White rook. The immediate 17 c4 was also possible.

1 7 ... cS 1 8 bxeS d xcS 19 dxeS lLlxeS 20 lbxeS 'ifxeS 21 e4 'it'f4 22 i.xf6 'ii'xf6 Fischer's great U.S. rival, Samuel Reshevsky, suggested the ugly 22 ... gxf6 to keep the queen on its strong

for the boom in its popularity. brilliance allied to fanatical determi­

position. Black would then threaten 23 ... ltad8 and ... i.h6 is also in

nation. He didn't introduce anything

the offing.

Fischer's style is one of technical

very new but applied existing knowledge with tremendous energy

23 cxbS l:[ed8 24 'ifcl 'ifc3 25 lDf3 •

and a hithertG unseen degree of per­ fection. Not even the might of the Soviet chess machine could stand against this one brilliant man. A2112:

a) White to [lI llY

A21/2: b)

Whitt: to play

The best game of the Reykjavik match was the tenth:

Fischer - Spassky Reykjavik Weh 1972 1 e4 eS 2 iLlf3 iLlc6 3 i.bS a6 4 i.a4 lLlf6 5 0-0 i.e7 6 Itel bS 7 i.b3 d6 8 c3 0-0 9 h3 lLlb8

25 ... 'it'xa5

The Breyer Defence is Spassky's

A serious mistake which puts his

lifelong favourite. It was discovered

queen offside. Either 25 ... axb4 or

by

25 ... c4 would have been better.

the

Hu.ngarian

master

Gyu\a

Breyer who discovered that Black's queen's

knight

is

placed on d7 than c6.

much

better

26 i.b3! axbS 27 'iff4 Itd7

Already·an 'only move'. After 27 ... c4 White has 28 i.xc4 dxc4 29

144 The Technicians The Technicians 145

1:[xb7 and if 29 . .. f6 there is 30 e5! threatening 3 1 �xc4+, or 29 ... 'Wft'h5 30 g4! 'ii'xh3 31 ltJg5. 28ltJe5 'ii'c7 29l:Xbdll:Xe7 Black is already losing material but he hopes that his connected passed pawns on the queenside will give him chances in any endgame. 29 ... lb:d I would lose immediately to 30 �xf7+ h8 3 1 ltJg6+ hxg6 32 'ii'h 4#.

30 �xf7+ 1:[xf7 31 �xl7+ 'i!Vxf7 32 ltJxf7 �xe4 Black would lose immediately after 32 ... e2 1:[d5 42 f4 g6 4� g4 hxg4 44 hxg4 g5 45 f5 i.e5 46 :b5 q;f6 47 :exb4 ..id4 48 1:[b6+ f6 52 lbe6 ..tel 53 lLlxd4 .i.b4 54 lbe6 ..tel 55 <j;e2 .i.e3 56 '1td3 .i.el 57 'iPe4 <j;g5 58 lLlxaS! ..txa5 59 b4 ..td8 60 as <j;xh5 6 1 'iti>b5 ..tg5 62 a6 .i.e3 63 <j;e6 1 : 0 .

J 50

The Technicians

KM2 1 /4: I ) Black to play

KM2 1 /4: 2) White to play

1 0 The Tacticians

KM2 1 /4 : 3) White to play

KM2 1 14: 4) Black to play

A2 1/4: a) White to play

A2 1 14: b) White to play

Describing a player as a ' tacti­ cian' has often had a somewhat de­ rogatory tone to it. In my view this is quite unjustified when you look at the evidence that strong tacticians have always been one of the domi­ nant groups at the summit of world chess. One need only mention the names Emanuel Lasker and Viktor Korchnoi to understand that having a predominantly tactical style does not condemn someone to being a second rate player. Tacticians tend to win most of their games by seeing things that their opponents miss. Even at the highest level there are many tactical oversights buried within the players' calculations. Superiority within this department is. therefore the greatest weapon one can have and of far greater value than better strategic insight. This month we wil l see tacticians from different generations, Lasker, Korchnoi, Alexei Shirov and finally the computer. Computers in particu­ lar are out-and-out tacticians, their play being guided by pure calcula­ tion and relatively primitive evalu­ ation functions. In spite of this apparent handicap they are posing an ever greater threat to the all too fallible human brain.

Month 22/Week 1 : Emanuel Lasker Emanuel Lasker was World Champion for no less than 27 years after he wrested the title from Wil ­ helm Steinitz in 1894. Despite this incredible record he has been quite underrated and in his day was ac­ cused of everything from luck 10 witchcraft to attempting to poison his opponents with cigar fumes. His critics claimed that he contributed nothing to the theory of the game and left no disciples but I detect a note of envy and even anti-Semit­ ism in their words. When I first became interested in ehess Lasker was my idol. I admired the drama and courage contained within his outwardly unpretentious games. His writing too did not try to overwhelm the reader with over­ elaborate theories and a mass of information but relied instead on common sense. By attempting to show that chess was subject to laws which were more universal in their nature, it seemed to me that he touched the soul of the game. The following games show differ­ ent aspects of Lasker's style. In the first we see him win a lost position against Pillsbury during the latter's

152

The Tacticians Th e Tacticians 1 53

greatest tournament triumph In Hastings 1 895. In the second he overWhelms Bogoljubow with a dis­ play of superb technique.

Lasker - Pillsbur y Hastings 1 89S 1 e4 eS 2 ttJf3 ttJc6 3 �bS g6 4 d4 exd4 S ttJxd4 The modem preference is for 5 �g5 which certainly makes life more difficult for Black. S ... �g7 6 ttJxc6 bxe6 7 �e4 ttJe7 8 ttJe3 d6 9 0-0 �e6 1 0 .i.b3 0-0 1 1 �e3 cS 12 .be6?! This strengthens Black's centre. 1 2 'lWe2 was better. 1 2 ... fxe6 1 3 'it'd2 l:rb8 14 l:rabl And hcrc 1 4 b3 was more economical . 1 4 ... ttJe6 IS b3 'ff'h 4 1 6 f3 ttJd4 17 ttJe2 �eS 1 8 f4? Capping his previous poor play with the simple blunder of a pawn. 1 8 g3 had to be played. 18 ... ttJxc2+ 19 'ir'xe2 �xf4 20 . .axf4 In playing his 1 8th move Lasker might have thought that he could play 20 l:rxf4 l:rxf4 2 1 g3 at this point and orily now saw 2 1 . . . 'ii'g 4. 20 ... lhf4 2 1 l:rxf4 'it'xf4 22 l:I:n "�5

After 22 moves Black has achieved a winning position and after seeing his simple blunder of the pawn the reader might well wonder why I call Lasker one of the greatest tacticians in the history of the game. I started to understand Lasker when I realised that he was bored by plain sailing but stimulated by difficulties. Once faced with a challenge or a critical position he became utterly transformed. White is a pawn down but he has some counterchances in the vulner­ ability of Black's king and the weakness of his a-pawn. Just watch how he uses these factors over the following moves: 23 �'a6! 'ii'd4+ 24 '.Phi 'it'xe4 25 ' 'it'xa7 'ifb7 26 1Ia4 e6 27 'lW�4 'itd7 28 a4 eS 29 h3 l:rb4? Apparently aggressive but in real­ ity a poor position for the rook. Black should play 29 ... l:re8, getting behind the passed e-pawn whilst maintaining watch over the a8 queening square. 30 �el e4 3 1 as!

Suddenly White has genuine counterplay, his a-pawn is up and running. Black should still be better but his formerly simple task has

been transformed into a very com­ plex one. 31 ... dS 32 a6 'it'e7 Black should have brought his rook back with 32 ... .l:rb8. .His fail­ ure to admit this is his undOing. 33 'lWg3! e3 The vulnerablity of Black's king becomes apparent after 33 ... 'lWa7 3 4 'it'd6 but he could do better WIth 33 ... l:rb6 (34 a7 'lWxa7 35 'it'd6 l:rb8). 34 l:ral �f6? The decisive error. Black should play 34 .. ' 'lWg7 to guard the a7 square. 35 nel ! d4 36 a7 �d8 37 I!al �a8 38 �d6 nb7 39 �xc6 e2 40 �xb7 1 :0

Lasker - Bogolj ubow Ostrava 1 923 1 �4 eS 2 ttJf3 ttJc6 3 �bS a6 4 �a4 ttJr6 S 0-0 �e7 6 nel bS 7 �b3 d6 8 c3 0-0 9 d4 exd4 The immediate 9 ... �g4 is better as now White gets use of the c3 square. 10 cxd4 �g4 1 1 ttJc3 ttJa5 12 .l1l.c2 cS 13 dxc5! Spotting an opportunity to get a better endgame. 13 ... dxcS 14 eS! 'i!Vxdl IS nxdl ttJd7 1 6 h3! �e6 17 liJdS! .l1l.xdS 1 8 l:rxdS lLIb6 1 9 l:rdl nad8 2 0 .l1l.g5! f6 . . . . . Lasker is developing hIS inItiative with the aid of concealed combina­ tive ideas. 20 ... .l1l.xg5 2 1 liJxg5 nxd l + 22 l:rxdl h6 fails because of 23 e6! hxg5 24 e7 ne8 25 nd8 or 23 ... fxe6 24 .l1l.h7+ 'it?h8 25 lLIxe6 nf6 26 �e4 1 . . 2 1 exf6 �xf6 2 2 �xr6 gxf6 23 nacl ttJbc4 24 b3 ttJd6 25 nd5!

White's advantage is becoming decisive, this move attacks c5 and prepares to double rooks on the d-file. 25 ... ttJab7 26 ned l b4 26 . . lLIf7 is answered by 27 nd7 lLIbd6 28 iLxh7+ ! etc. 27 .l1l.d3 l:ra8 28 net as 29 ne7 nf7 30 l:rxf7 lLIxf7 3 1 l:rd7 ttJbd6 32 l:rc7 l:rd8! 33 �a6! na8 34 .l1l.e2! nc8 3S l:ra7 liJeS 36 ttJxcS! fxeS 37 .l1l.g4! l:re6 .

3 8 .l1l.d7! Very accurate play. Lasker forces Black's rook to a worse square be­ fore cashing in. 38 ." l:rb6 39 l:rxaS ttJe4 40 .l1l.rs lLIc3 4 1 l:rxcS l:rbS 42 l:rc8+ 'ito>g7 43 l:rc7+ '.Pf6 44 .l1l.xh7 l:rdS 45 l:rc4 lLIxa2 46 f4 exf4 47 l:rxf4+ 'ito>g7 48 �c2 nd2 49 l:rf2 l:rd4 50 �f5 lLIe3 S I �e6 1 :0

J 54

The Tacticians

KM22I 1 : 1 ) White to play

The Tacticians J 55 KM22/ 1 : 2) Black to play

Month 22IWeek 2: Viktor Korehnoi Viktor Korchnoi is one of the greatest post-war playe rs, many would say the strongest player never to become World Cham pion. He played two World Cham pionship matches against Anatoly Karpov and came desperately close to beat­ ing him in their Baguio City match

KM22/ 1 : 3) White to play

KM22/ 1 : 4) White to play

10 a4 b4 1 1 �dl eS 12 �e3 ltJe7

13 b3? ! 1 3 ltJc4! w a s prefera ble. The text weakens the c3 and d4 squares and Korchnoi makes an immedi ate bee­ line for these weaknesses by bring­ ing his dark-squared bishop to eS. 13 ... �e6 14 i.b2 i.d6 15 h3 .liLeS! 16 i.xeS lilxeS 17 £4 �e6 1 8 e S �d4 1 9 'WhS 0-0-0 20 �c4? Underestimating the follow ing combination. White should contin ue devel oping with 20 nad ) .

in 1 978. A particularly impressive feature of Korchnoi's career is his amazing longevity. He maintained a position at the summit of World Chess for some 40 years and even now re­ main s a force to be reckoned with. In this respect he show ed a remark­ able simil arity to. Lasker, his hero. Although his style has developed and matured over the years into more of an all-court player, Korch­ noi's most remarkable feature is the extent of his calcu lations. Every lilxb 3! 2 1 ltJd6+ nxd 6! 22 20 move is subject to deep calcu lation h. matc could nents exd6 ike6 23 d7+ �ci! 24 ikeS+ whic h few oppo In addition to this Korchnoi is noted 9txd7 25 ikxg7 �xa l for an almost fanatical will to win which sometimes drives him to push too hard but has certainly brought a greater �hare of succe ss than failure. are games following The first the In ce. defen of ces erpie mast game Korchnoi turns the tables on his opponent with a brilli ant counter-sacrifice, in the secon d the attacker is none other than Mikh ail Tal. ..•

A22/ 1 : a) White to play

A221 1 : b) Black to play

Krogius - Korchnoi USSR Ch, Riga 1 958 1 e4 eS 2 �f3 e6 J d4 exd4 4 �xd4 a6 5 �e3 bS 6 .liLdJ ike7 7 0-0 .liLb7 8 ike2 �c6 9 lilxe6 dxc6

26 £5 Krog ius certainly does n't intend to give up without a fight. Another dangerous attacking try was 26 .liLbS !? axbS 27 lld ) + but this can be

156 ' The Tacticians Tir e Tacticians J 5 7

defused with the spectacular 27 . . . b6 ! 29 J:td6 bxa4 30 J:txc6+ i.xc6 3 1 'i!Vxh8 lLlxc2 32 'i'd8+ 'it>b5 3 3 'ii'd 3+ c4 34 'ii'xc2 a3, when the bishop and pawns prove stronger than the queen. This brilliant variation shows the depth of Korchnoi's vision. In the game continuation too Korchnoi defuses the attack with a spectacular counter-sacrifice.

More neat play from Korchnoi . 34 .ltd3 is answered by 34 ... �d4 3 5 i.xc4 J:l.c8 3 6 J::rd 1 + 9;xc4 37 J::rc 1 + 'it'd3 38 J::rx c8 b2 when Black achieves a winning pawn endgame. Play m ight continue 39 l:tb8 'it'c2 40 :c8+ 'it'b3 4 1 J:tb8+ 'it'a2 42 'it>f3 b l ='i!V 43 J::rx b l 'it.>xb l 44 �e4 Wb2 45 �e5 'it'b3 46 'it>xe6 b3 4 8 'it>g7 a5 49 'it'xh7 a4 50 h4 a3 5 1 h5 a2 52 h6 a I ='i!V etc.

34 'it>r.t 'it>b4 35 'it'e3 c3 36 J::rb l 'it>a3 3 7 J::ra 1 + r3;b2 3 8 J::rb 1+ r3;a2 39 J::rg l c2 40 'it>d2 J::r d8+ 41 'it>c1 J::rc8! 0 : 1 During his glory years almost everyone was afraid of Ta l's daring attacking play, all that is except Korchnoi. Korchnoi was one of very few players who keep up with Tal ' s dazzling speed o f calculation and found the flaws that others missed.

26 ... Wxg2+! 27 'ilt'xg2 i.xg2 28 fxe6+ fxe6 29 d7 h l ='ii 56 a8='ii'

tOxe6

Alternatively White can play either 1 6 .!:lg I or 16 fxe6. 1 6 ... �xe6 1 7 fxe6 g6 1 8 exf7+ c2 We7 37 Wb3 c;t>fll 38 Wb4 Wg7 39 Wc4 would have been a more fitting and deadly conclusion.

1i'a4+ 'it>e6 35 h4!

The winning move, after 35 ... etl 36 1i'xe4+ 1i'e5 3 7 ii'g4+ Wrs 38 lle3+ .ie5 39 'i'e2 Black cannot meet all of White's threats. 3S ... 'it'e2 36 'i'xa5 lla8 37 'ifa4!

object lesson in wiIUliug a won game. White drives horne his advantage. 37 ... Wxf6 38 ii'd7 'it>g7 39 1113 An

'llic4 40 ii'xd6 llxa7 4 1 'ifxeS+ e2 (or 2 0 �d l ..w f2 2 1 �c l �e7 !) 20 ... 'itf3+ 2 1 '.!te l �e7 ! Black obtains a mating attack. 13 . hxg3 14 .l:[gl ..

Played instantly. How can Black continue his attack?

Larsen - Spassky USSR-Rest of the World, Belgrade 1970 1 b3 eS 2 .tb2 lLlc6 3 c4

Going for a kind of reversed Sicil­ ian. 3 e3 (intending 4 .tb5) is more common and arguably more logical. .3 ... lOf6 4 lOo e4 Taking up the gauntlet, 4 ... d6 would be more compact.

5 lOd4 �cS 6 lOxc6 dxc6 7 e3 .itfS 8 'ii'c 2 j/e7 9 �e2 0-0-0 10 f4?

21 ... 'itn 22 l1e7 c5

After 22 ... 1::tfe8 White can choose between 23 'ii'b 6 and 23 'ii'h4.

Larsen optimistically pursues stra­ tegic objectives by denying Black use of the e5 square but sadly ne­ gk\:!.l; his t1evt:lupment. He should develop with 1 0 lOc3 with an inter­ esting middlegame in prospect.

.

12 ... h4!

14 ... 1:I.hl ! !

The sensational climax o f Spass­ ky's brilliant combination. White must capture the rook because 1 5 '.!to is met by 1 5 ... 1:I.xg l + 1 6 �xg 1 �4 followed by mate. 1 5 1:1.xhl g2

This brilliant reply destroys all White's illusions. The knight is sacrificed for a huge passed g-pawn.

23 'ith4 g5 24 'itxg5+ 'itg6 25 'ii'd 2 1 :0

It i� certainly a hrilliant success to beat a player like Donner in just 25 moves. So would I recommend playing such 'anti-theory' to club players? This may seem very tempting in that it avoids the chore of studying a lot of theory. But there are also a .couple of serious drawbacks. The first is that it is much easier to learn classical middlegame tech­ nique by obtaining classical midd le­ game positions in your own games. The second is that not everybody has the positional understanding of

12 h3

White is already in desperate straits as the attempt to develop with 12 lOc3 runs into the shattering 1 2 . . . .lhd2! 1 3 'iix d2 ( 1 3 �xd2 i s met by 13 ... .he3+ 14 �d l l1d8+ 1 5 b8 29 iLc7+) 29 ..wxf4 l:txb6 30 'ifd4! 'it'd8 3 1 lla7 with a mating attack.

23 ... JtfS 24 Jtb6+ 'it'cs 25 laeS+ iLxeS 26 laxeS+ 'it'd7 2 7 llxfS 1 :0

2 1 11xg7!

The second sacrifice strips away the last defensive ramparts. Black is forced to accept. 2 1 ... xg7 22 'iff6+ �fS Or i f 22 ... 'it>g8 there follows sim­ ply 23 ,*xh6 f5 24 exf6 with no good defence againt the threat of 2S �·g7#.

12 ... tiJd7

12 . . . lLJds 1 3 iLxt:7 "ii'xe7 1 4 lLJe4 gives B lack a truly miserable position in which White's knight on e5 has unchallengable control over

23 �g6 1 :0 1 8 Uxd7!

After 23 . . . lae7 there is 24 "fih8#.

J 86

The Elements ofMastery The Elements ofMastery 187

KMP241 I : I ) White to play

KMP24/1 : 2) White to play

Month 24IWeek 2 : Intuition

uncastled. 1 0 ... exd5 1 1 lDxd5 lDxd5 1 2 l:[d l (followed possibly by 1 3 e4) and 1 0 . . . bxc3 1 1 �a4 �xdS 12 e4 both recover the material with advantage. 10 lDaS 1 1 �a4+ �d7 12 d xe6 fxe6 13 l:[d I ! ? Leonid' Shamkovich later found another strong line in 1 3 lDeS bxc3 14 lDxd7 ltJxd7 I S "ii'b5 + �e7 ( I S . . . g6 1 6 �e5) 1 6 l:ld l l:la7 1 7 e4. Alekhine's idea also seems good but he is about to make his material in­ vestment into a whole rook. 13 ... bxc3 14 lhd7! lDxd7 1 5 lDeS l:la7 1 6 bxe3!

It is difficult to decide whether vision or intuition is the most im­ portant facet of a chessplayer's make-up. These two modes of thought are intertwined at every mo­ ment of a game. Intuition, for example, tells us which candidate moves to calculate and sometimes not to calculate at all. These days I am inclined to trust intuition over lengthy calculations. If my 'gut instinct' tells me that a move is right or wrong I know from experience that this is probably the case. A player's intuition grows richer as he gains experience. It is imposs­ ible to acquire such positional feel­ ing overnight or by reading a book on the subject. It is rather acquired over a period of time when you im­ merse yourself in the art of chess. Alexander Alekhine had the most finely developed intuition, especial­ ly when it came down to a trade-off between material and position. In the following game he sacrifices a Alekhine had no doubt seen this whole rook on largely intuitive position when embarking on this grounds: l ine. It isn't easy to ascertain Alekhine - Book whether White has enough from cal­ Margate 1938 culation alone, Alekhine fel t that he had good compensation due to the 1 d4 dS 2 c4 dxc4 3 lDo lDf6 4 difficulty Black faces with his e3 e6 5 �xc4 cS 6 0-0 lDc6 7 .e2 development. a6 8 ltJc3 bS 9 �b3 b4? 16 �e7 Alekhine pointed out that 16 ... g6 This proves to be loosening and neglects Black's development. is answered by 1 7 .'id i' 3 cj;e7 1 8 e4 Subsequent games showed that 9 . . . ltJf6 1 9 'tWO and that 1 6 ... �d6 is met by 1 7 'ii'h S+ g6 1 8 lDxg6 hxg6 �b7 is better. 1 0 dS! 1 9 �xh8+ �f8 20 e4 with a con­ A suprising coup which tears the tinuing attack. Black's last move position open whilst Black's king is breaks the pin on the a4-e8 diagonal •..

KMP24/ 1 : 3) Black to play

KMP241l : 4) White to play

A24/1 : b) White to play

A24/1 : h) Black to play

..•

188 The Elements of Mastery The Elements

so Alekhine promptly sets up another one. 17 e4! liJf6 18 �gS 'ile7 19 �f4

Alekhine - Jung� Prague 1942

of Mastery 189

'ii'b7+ with a strong attack in either case. 21 �xd7+ f8 24 �xf6 �xf6 25 eS 1 :0 ...

In the following game Alekhine sacrifices just a pawn and the ex­ change but it seems by no means clear that he can catch Black's king in the centre.

18 'ua6! ! A brilliant exchange sacrifice that could only be made on intuitive grounds. Black 's king is caught in the centre for just long enough. 18 ... 'il'xa6 19 'ii'x cs 'ile6 1 9 . . . liJd7 is answered by 20 �c6 with a strong attack after either 20 ... 'uc8 2 1 'ilxe5+ q;d8 22 �xd7 or gives 20 . . . f6 2 1 'ii'd 6. 20 iLc6+ 1 1 ... .bf3?! 12 .i.xf3 cxd4 13 axbS axbS 1 4 l%d l 'ii'b 6 I S liJd2 eS A more cautious approach is 15 ... .i.c5 in order to get castled as soon as possible. 16 liJb3 lDcs Once again Black should think about king safety with 16 . . . iLe7. The text gives Alekhine that glimmer of opportunity be needs to catch Black's king in the centre. 1 7 liJxcS �xcS This ru ns into a stunning reply but by now there was little choice. After 1 7 ... 'ii'x c5 1 8 1!Vf5 White threatens things like 1 9 �c6+ ( 1 9 . . . 'i!Vxco 20 'ilxe5+) and 1 9 e3 .

20 ... lDd7 After 20 ... �d8 White continues his attack with 2 1 .i.d2 b4 22 'ii'a 5+ when 22 ... Q;c8 is met by 23 'uc I After 22 . . . Q;e7 White can cboose between 23 'ilc7+ lOd7 24 �xd7 'ii'xd7 25 'ii'x e5+ 'ii'e 6 26 'ilxg7 and 23 .i.xb4+ 'uxb4 24 'ilxb4+ 'ifr'd6 25

22 ... Q;c6 Having come under such a fer­ ocious attack it is bardly surprising that Black stumbles. 22 ... '>t>c8 is bad because of 23 �g5 which threatens 24 'uc I + but he had a better defence in 22 ... Q;d6 ! . White could force a draw with 23 �f4 exf4 24 'uxd4+ Q;c6 25 'ud I l:thc8 26 'uc I + etc and he might try to im­ prove on this by throwing in the moves 23 f4 f6 24 fxe5+ fxe5 be­ fore sacrificing a piece with 25 Jtf4 (25 ... exf4 26 'ilxd4+ Wc6 27 'uc I + Wb7 28 'ilxg7+ Wa6 29 'ua I + Wb6 30 'ii'a 7+ and 26 ... We7 27 'ii'xg7+ 'ii'f7 28 'ud7+ both win Black's queen). 23 �d2! 'uhe8 24 e4! Taking away the d5 square. The net is gradually tightening around the Black monarch. 24 'ii'b3 25 'ual ! b4 25 ... 'ub6 is answered by 26 'uc I + and 25 . . . Q;d6 by 26 'ua6+. 26 'ua6+ Q;bS 27 l:taS+ Q;c6 Or 27 ... Q;c4 28 'ii'a 6+ etc. 28 'ii'cS+ Wd7 29 'ua7+ 1 : 0 •.•

1 90

The Elements ofMastery The Elements of Mastery 1 9 1

KMP24/2: I ) White to play

KMP24/2: 2) White to play

Month 24!Week 3 : Creativity

KMP24/2 : 3) Black to play

A24/2: a) White to play

KMP24/2: 4) Black to play

A24/2: b) White 1.0 play

Creativity is a fundamental aspect of chess mastery in that the process by which we come to understand the game is essentially a creative one. It's no good simply reading a book which explains where to put your rook and which pawn lever to use. In order to make this dead knowl­ edge into living understanding you' have to ask questions, play about with the position, test and probe the different possibilities until you know what makes it work. Only then will you really start to under­ stand exactly what is happening. David Bronstein has one of the most brilliantly creative minds of any chessplayer that I've met. Bronstein loves the dynamics of argument which is fundamental to the creative process and has enabled him to produce so many original ideas. Never accepting the status quo, he is for ever trying to reinvent the wheel. Bronstein's nature is such that he is unable to play the same way, game after game. As a result he :.as frequently found himself at a disad­ vantage against players who have a limited but thoroughly worked out repertoire, at least in the early stages. Yet his lively mind is forever asking questions to which there are no standard answers.

Bronstein - Gligoric Moscow 1 967

1 e4 eS 2 lLlfJ lLlc6 3 �bS a6 4 �a4 lLlf6 S 0-0 �e7 6 .bc6

Bronstein varies from the standard 6 l:te I in order to create a different set of problems. Gligoric responds well and in the early stages builds up an excellent position. 6 '" dxc6 7 d 3 lLld7 S lLlbd2 0-0 9 lLlc4 f6 10 lLlh4 lLlcs 1 1 lLlfS iLxfS 1 2 exrs l:teS 13 b3 1fdS 14 iLb2 e4! ? A dynamic move which aims to activate Black's pieces. Black had a solid continuation in 1 4 . . . .lIad8. I S lLle3 1ff7 16 d4 lLld7 17 �g4 cS Continuing in the same dynamic style, giving up a pawn for play along the d- and e-files. IS jVxe4 cxd4 19 iLxd4 c6 20 l:tadl lLlcs 21 'Wg4 iL fS 22 lLlc4 .lIadS 23 �e3 bS 24 lOd2 l:tdS 25 c4 .lIddS 26 cxbS cxbS 27 lLlfJ .lIdS 2s lLld4 l:teeS 29 l:td2 ! ?

A dubious move according to the notes in lnformator 3 but Bronstein is laying a beautiful trap by luring Black into pinning the knight on d4. 29 ... 'Wd7 30 nel b4 3 1 h3! ? Continuing to pursue the brilliant idea that Bronstein conceived on his 29th move. 00jectively speaking White should simplify with 3 I lLlf3 . 3 1 ... lLle4 32 l:tdc2 .lIxd4 33 nc7 'WdS?

J 92 The Elements ofMastery The Elements ofMastery 1 93 The trap has been laid and Gligo­ ric falls right into it. In fact he could have played 33 . . . iDc3 ! after which 34 lhd7 l:rxg4 35 lhc3 bxc3 36 hxg4 c2 37 l:rxc7 i.c5 even wins for Black.

34 i.xd4 11fxd4 3S l:rxg7+!! A shattering blow which leads to . mate.

of playing B ronstein.

this

way

against

a

7 dS e6 8 iDc3 exdS 9 cxdS c4!

This move stems from one of the great specialists in Alekhine's De­ fence, Vladas Mikenas. Black opens up squares for his king's bishop.

10 iDfJ i.g4

Quite recently the move 1 0 i.b4 has become fashionable though whether this is only a tem­ porary phenomena remains ·to be seen. Lines such as this are subject to dramatic changes, depending on the assessment of the latest new move. 1 1 1i'd4 i.xfJ 12 gxfJ i.b4 13

games. It would take a brave man indeed to state definitively that this is bad for Black anyway though the onus is on Black to save himself after 1 9 �e4 'i'd4 20 l:td I 'i'xb2 2 1 lDf6+ �h8 22 l:ld2. In any case 1 8 .. , '-c5 is better than 1 8 . . . 'i'c8.

22 l:rxcS! By giving up the other rook Bronstein penetrates the dark squares around Black's king.

22 ... lDxcs 23 lDf6+ �h8 24 'ii'h 4 'l'bS+

1 8 ... 1i'c8?!

i.xc4 0-O 1 4 l:tgl g6!

3S ... i.xg7 36 l:rc8+ cj;f7 37 'i'hS+ xdS lDxgS 30 lDf6+ g7 31

i.c5? 2 0 lDe4 lD8d7 2 1 l:rcl

'ii'x g5 l:rfd8

Bronstein - Ljubojevic Petropolis Izt 1973 1 e4 �f6 2 eS lDdS 3 d4 d6 4 c4 ll'lb6 S f4 dxeS 6 fxeS cS A less usual option to the more standard 6 . . . i.f5 Ljubojevic's treatment is highly provocative and I can't help questioning the wisdom

It was in this position that the search for improvements for mack was the most diligent, with Black (Ljubojevic included) having tried 1 8 ... 'i'c5 in a number of later

Had Bronstein not been in time­ trouble, Ljubojevic would surely have resigned. 32 e6 fxe6+ 33 'it>xe6 ]:Irs 34 d7

_

as 3S ibg4 l:ta6+ 36 xg4 4 ¢>g2+3) 1 ... ltJb6! 0 : 1 Popov­ Emelyanenko, Corres. 1984-85 KM 15!2 4) 1 ltJe5! (threatening 2 �gS, 2 I ) 1 ... f5! prevented White from .!:[f7 and 2 ltJg6) +- Benjamin­ taking the initiative with e2-e4 in D1ugy, New York 1988 Karpov-Kasparov, London! Leningrad WCh 1986 KM1 4/3 2) 1 ... h5! 2 l%eO rlb6! prevented I ) 1 .-xf7+ 'it>xfi 2 �d5# Pape­ White from taking the initiative on Stanlce, W(\rnog('rodc 1980 th e kingsidtl with g2-g4 in 2) 1 ... l%bl+ 2 g8 5 �g6+Bondarevsky, Leningrad 1950 4) 1 ... h5! should be played in 4) 1 ... ltJf5+ 2 �d3 rbc3+ 3 order to prevent M-hS by White. In 'iPxc3 ltJe3! 4 l%xf2 ltJd l+! 5 'iPd4 Korchnol-Antoshin, Erevan 1 954, ltJxf2-+ Pirc-R Byrne, Helsinki 01 White to play won after 1 h5 rla5 2 1 952 g4 rla7 3 ':'c6 1%a3 4 f3 1%a5 5 ltc8+ h7 6 f4 rla2+ 7 ¢>f3 1:1.a3+ 8 d6 ':xb5 16 e7 ':e5 17 e8='i' .!:[xe8 1 8 .l:txe8 �g6 19 n 'it>h2 27 l%f4 h3 28 lhg4 h l 29 f2 h2 30 'iPg3 �gl 31 �h3+ 1 :0 KM1 5/3 1 ) 1 ... f5! prevents g2-g4 and

f4-fS and controls e4 2) 1 a4! b4 ( I ... bxa4 2 ltJxa4 and 3 b3 also blockades the queenside) 2 ltJb5 d5 3 c4 bxc3 4 bxc3 killed Black's queenside play in Spassky­

Larsen, Malmo Cm 1 968 3) 1 ." h2) 2 "i!r'b5 1i'xd l+ 3 'ii'o �h2+ 4 'it'n i.g3+ Lengyel-Davies, Budapest 1 993 2) 1 1:re8+! liJxe8 2 'ii' h7+! xh7 3 liJfS+ ¢>h8 4 tt:lg6+ Neumann-NN, 1 956 3) l 1:rxe5! 1:rxe5 2 g3 f4 3 g4+4) 1 g4+! hxg4 ( I . . . f4 e4 b4 �e6 9 d7=) 3 �f5 4 'Ot>e3 Wf6 5 'ittd 4 'Ot>f5 6 e4 c4 3 a4 c3 4 'iPd3 �xd5 0: 1 ) 1 ... �d6 2 a 5 c4 ( 2 ... f6 'ife6+) I/H-1 d6! xd6 5 bH 3) I ne7!! b l =*, 2 :Id8! 'ii'e4 (2 Portisch-Lengyel, Malaga 1 964 4) 1 1:rh8+! 'it'xh8 (I ... �g6?? 2 ... d l ='ii' 3 l:tb8+ a3 4 :a7+, 5 �e6#) 2 1:rb8+ 'it'h7 3 1:rh8+ r,t>xh8 nxa4+, 6 nxb l ; 2 ... 'ili'ft 3 1:rb8+ 4 1i'xg7+ = Stolberg-Pimenov, 'i'b5 4 nxb5+, 5 nd7) 3 nb8+ 'it'a3 4 l:ta7+ 'ifa4 S nxa4+ e8 7 l1xg7 n£4 8 h5 nxc4 9 'it>xh6+- Capablanca­ Kostic. Havana 1 9 1 9 2 ) I �e8! (zugzwang) 1 . . �d8 2 �xg6! liJxg6 3 �xb6 �d7 4 'ittxc5 tt:le7 5 b4 axM 6 cxb4 liJe8 7 a5 liJd6 8 b5 liJe4+ 9 �b6 c8 10 .

�c6 r,t>b8 1 1 b6 1 :0 Fischer­ Taimanov, Vancouver Cm 1 97 1 3 ) 1 l:tb2 ! ! (zugzwang) 1 ... f4 2 i.xf4 l:.f5+ 3 ¢>h6 b5 4 i.d6 b4 5 g4 1:rxO 6 g5 liJe6 7 �xg6 1:rd3+­ Fischer-Tal, Curacao Ct 1 962 4) 1 ... nb l ! ( I ... liJb4 2 nd2

l:tb l 3 liJb2 '1:rxb2 4 ttxb2 ltJd3+ 4 'iPe2 liJxb2 5 'ittd 2 ) 2 'itte2 (2 'itte 1 liJa5 3 'ittd2 1:rxb3 4 l:txb3 liJxb3+ 5 'itte3 was tougher) 2 1:rxb3! -+ =

Lasker-Capablanca, WCh 1921 KM17!4 1) 1 'it'g2!

White's

calmly posItIon in

Havana

improved

KarpovGligoric, Leningrad Izt 1 973 2) 1 .., i.d4! (preventing White

from using his king actively unless he further weakened his kingside with f2-f3 or f2-f4) 2 'it'e2 �g7 3 0

205

KM1 8!1 1 ) 1 1:rxe7! ( 1 . . . 1:rxe7 2 f6+ +-) 1 :0 Brooks-Kornfeld, Chicago 1 982 2) 1 ... nxc3! 2 fi'xc3 'ii'x c3 3 bxc3 1:rc8 gave Black excellent

compensation for the exchange in

Hol mes-Ward, London 1 99 1 3 ) 1 c4! e5 ( I . bxc4 2 �xc4 ; I .. lOc7 2 i.e4) 2 i.e4! l:iJc7 3 �xb7 1:rxb7 4 �e3+- Beliavsky-Watson, London 1 985 4) 1 h6! i.f8 ( 1 . . . �h8 2 1:[h l ) 2 'it'c3 (2 g5 seems strong after 2 . . . 1:[a5 3 nb I 1:[xa2 4 c5+- or 3 . . . l:ta3+ 4 1:[b3) 2 ... fxg4 3 �xg4 £6 5 �g8 nc7 6 �xh7 e6 7 �g8 exd5 8 h7 i.g7?? (8 . . . l1xc4+ 9 'it'd3 �g 7 ) 9 .i.xd S+- .i.h8 10 ¢>d3 'ittC5 1 1 'it'e3 1:[e7+ 12 'it'f3 a5 1 3 a4 1:[c7 14 i.e4+ 'ittf6 ] S 1:rh6 1:rg7 16 ¢>g4 1 :0 Karpov-Kavalek, Nice 01 1 974 ..

.

�d5 4 h3 r,t>f6 5 tt:le8+ 'ittf7 6 liJd6+ 'itte6 7 £4 i.c6 8 g4 �b6 9 KM1 8!2 lDc8 i.d8 10 'itte3 i.b7 1 1 liJd6 1 ) 1 ... cS! left White with horrific i.b6+ 1 2 ¢>d3 �a6+ 13 'ittc 3 i.c7 weaknesses in 14 gxf5+ gxfS 15 liJe8 �xf4 and dark-square Black won in Darga-Portisch, Guseinov-Muratov, Moscow 1 995 2) 1 ... d3 2 �xd3 i.xb2 3 nllbl Beverwijk ] 964 Buenos 3) 1 h3! calmly strengthened i.e5-+ Martin-Ivkov, White's position in Botvinnik­ Aires 1 955 3) 1 . g5! 2 g3 (Or 2 fxg5 �xe5) Langeweg, Hamburg 1 965 and he went on to win after 1 ... lOfe8 2 2 ... gxC4 2 gxf4 �h6 0 : 1 'it'g2 'ittfS 3 r,t>g3 'itte7 4 1:ra5 liJc8 5 Serebro-Frolov, .Kherson 1 990 4) 1 .., b5! 2 bxc5 bxc4 gave 1:[e5+ d8 6 i.bS ne7 7 l:I.xe7 'it'xe7 8 i.xe8 ¢>xe8 9 ¢>C4 'it'd7 1 0 . Black a strong initiative in the game Knezevic-I.Zaitsev, Dubna 1 976 i.c5 1 : 0 4) 1 ... a5! improved Black's KM18!3 position in Averbakh-Keres, USSR 1 ) 1 i.xc6! gave Black permanent Ch, Moscow 1 950 and he won after 2 �h4 liJxd4 3 i.h6 liJe6 4 �e3 c5 structural weaknesses in Larsen­ 5 q;>h5 'it'e5 6 .tel liJd4 7 .th6 ¢>f6 Huebner, Leningrad Izt 1 973 2) 1 �d6! ( I i.a3 liJf6 8 i.g5+ 'it'e6 9 i.h6 gxh6 1 0 'it'xh6 liJc6 1 1 g7 liJe7 12 'itth 7 'it'f7 1 3 Davies-Kinsman, Wrexham 1 997) keeps Black tied up as I . . l:iJf6 2 'it'h6 'ittg 8 1 4 f4 'it' f7 0 : 1 ..

.

�xc6 wins the e5 pawn

206

Key Moves Solutions Key Mo ves

3) 1 ItbS ! is an excellent technical move which tieD Black down to the a-pawn in Pol ugaevsky-Iv kov, Hilversum 1973 4) 1 �xe4! Itdxe4 2 Itxe4 Itxe4 3 Itxa6+ hS 4 f3! (threatening 5 g4) 1 : 0 Rubinstein Gruenfeld, Semmering 1 926 KM 1 8/4 1 ) 1 b6! axb6 2 a7! Itxa7 3 Itg7+ +- Buchers-Petri, Correspondence 1958 2) 1 g7 h4 2 f6 b6 (2 h3 3 We6 h2 4 c7 �b7 5 d7=) 3 �eS! h3 4 d4 �c6 6 84 Wb6 7 �xd5 'it>a5 8 oJrd6 �xa4 9 <j;e7 fS 1 0 <j;f7 1 :0 Kasparov-GaUe, Wattignies 1 976 4) 1 l:txc4! .ta3? (1 . . . liJxc4 2 liJxc4 �c5) 2 nxc7 �xb2 3 :ic5! (3 . . . llJb7 4 l:tc8+ <j;f7 5 Itc7+) 1 :0 Kasparov-Kharltonov, Leningrad 1977

KM20/1 1) 1 ItfS+! �xfS 2 d6+ �e6 3 .txe6# Steinitz-Wilson, London

1862

2) 1 ... 'ii'h 4! 2 J:tg2 (2 Itxh4 J:tgl#) 2 ... 'it'xh2+ 3 Itxh2 Itgl # Rainer-Steinitz, Vienna 1 860 3) 1 ... J:te3+! (\ . . . J:f.xd5 2 cxd5 �g6 3 c4=) 2 �f2 Itc3! 3 Itxcs Itxc2+ 4 f3 J:f.xh2 5 Itc8 Itc2 6 c5 0:1 Gelbfu hs-Steinitz, Itc3+ Vienna 1 873 4) 1 .txe7! lDxe7 2 .tf7! Wd6 3 �e3 �c5 4 'it>f4 'it>d6 5 b3 c5 6 .txg6 lOxg6+ 7 �xfS 1 :0 Steinitz-Chigorin, Vienna 1 898 KM20/2 1) 1 lDxe5! ( I . . . fxe5 2 'iWxe5 .tf6 3 ft'xf6! +-)+- Nimzowitsch­ Rubinstein, Semmering 1 926 2) 1 �f6!! 'iWxf6 2 Ithel + �e7 (2 ... �e6 3 ft'd7#) 3 �xc6+ WfS (3 ... bxc6 4 ft'd8#) 4 ft'd8+! �xd8 5 Ite8# Nimzowitsch-Alapin, St Petersburg 1913 3) 1 ... �xh3! 2 �f1 (2 'iPxh3 Ith l#; 2 gxh3 ibf3+ 3 'iWxf3 "iVgl#) 2 ... .td7 3 �gl �bS 4 Itdl ft'xe3 ! ! 5 'iixe3 It x d l 6 "iVb6 ibg4 7 g3 �xf1 0 : 1 Asztalos-Nimzowitsch,

Bled 1931 4) 1 . .. g5! 2 Itc2 (2 l%xb2 axb2 3 �c2 f4-+) 2 ... f4! 3 gxf4 gxf4 4 nc5+ �d6 5 exf4 1:txa2 6 J:ta5 e3 7 �e1 J:ta1 + S �e2 a2 9 f5 l:thl 10

xe3 a l =='iV 1 1 l h a l l:txa l 0 : 1 Tartakover-Nimzowitsch, London 1927 KM20/3 1 ) 1 . .. �xd6! (2 � xd6 b2-+) 0 : 1 Verlinsky-Botvinnik, Moscow 1931 2) 1 Itxg7+! q.,xg7 2 liJh5+ �g6 " (2 . . . �g8 3 liJxf6++-) 3 'iWe3 ! 1 :0

Solutions 207

Botvinnik-Keres, World Ch Tournament 1948 3) 1 'i'g3! fxeS 2 'iig7 :ifS 3 lIc7 'iVxc7 (3 . . . 'iVd6 4 J:txb7 d3 5 Ita7 'iWd8 6 'i!Vxh7+-) 4 'i'xc7+- 1 :0 World Botvinnik-Euwe, Ch Tournament 1948 4) 4 1 1Df7+! (4 1 b7?? Itb3 42 llJf7+ ..t>h7 43 lDd8 a5 44 d6 a4 45 d7 a3 46 1Dc6 a2-+) 1 : 0 (4 1 xh8 2 tLlxf7+) Petrosian-Spassky, Moscow WC h 1 966 3) 1 Itxg6! ii'eS ( 1 . . . fxg6 2 'iVc3+) 2 1!i'xh5# 1 :0 Petrosian-Korchnoi, Ciocco Cm 1977 4) 1 �xc4! �b2 2 Ite l a l ='iV 3 :ixal �xal 4 b5 �d7 5 b6 �c8 6 �d4 �b2 7 �e5 �c3 8 c,t>xf4 '.t>d4 9 'itlg5 �e5 10 'it>xh5 c;t;>f6 1 1 .g4 .tb7 12 'itlh6 1 :0 Petrosian­

Sm:'slov, Moscow 1951

KM2 111 1 ) 1 lDxh7! f5 2 lDhg5! 1 :0 Karlsbad Capablanca-Becker, 1 92 9 2) 1 Ite1+!! �e5 2 d6+! �e6 (Or 1 . . . 'iPd8 2 'it'b6+ �c7 3 'i'xa6+ etc) 3 'iVb3+ �f5 4 'iVd3+ �g5 5 'ii'e3+ 'it>f5 6 'ife4+ �e6 7 'iVc4+ �xd6 8 Itd l+ �e7 9 Itxd7+ �xd7 10 'ii'xa6 +- Capablanca-Zubarev,

Moscow 1 925 3) 1 �xg6! 'it>xg6 (I . . . lDxg6 2

lDfS ++-) 2 1!i'c2+ 'it.>f6 3 1!i'fS+ Wg7

208

Key Moves Solutions Key Moves

4 'i!r'xg4+ 'it>b7 was CapabJanca­ Kan, Moscow 1935 and now 5 l:te5! lLlf6 (or 5 . . . 'i!r'g7 6 J:[h5+ �g8 7 ng5+-) 6 'ii'h4+ �g8 7 l:tg5+ was the quickest way to win 4) I lLlxb7! lbb7 2 .bc6+ l:td7 3 c5 riJe7 4 .ixd7 lLlxd7 5 c6+­ Capablanca-Lilienthal, Moscow 1936 KM2 112 1) 1 lLlxf7! ll'lxf7 2 .ib6 'ifd7 3 .ixd8 �h7 4 .ixf7 'ii'xd8 5 .ig6+ 1:0 Smyslov-Ljublinsky, USSR Ch, Moscow 1 949 2) 1 ... lLle5! 2 dxeS (2 'i!r'f4 lLld3+) 2 ... 'ifxe5+ 3 'it>n 'it'xg5 4 .io 'i!r'f6 5 �xd5 (desperation) 5 ... 'ifxf7-+ ToJush-Smyslov, USSR Ch, Leningrad 1 947 3) 1 a6 bxa6 2 l:tc7+ q"g6 3 nd7 lLle7 4 �b4 ll'lf5 5 l:txd5!+­ SmysJov-Letelier, Venice 1 950. 4) 1 nb6! (I ri;d6 lLle8+ 2 '.t>xe6 l:te7+, 3 ... lIxe3) 1 ... 'it>c8 ( 1 ... lIf5+ 2 ri;d6 ll'le8+ 3 c6 1:[c2 45 l:tb7 lLle8 46 na7 xf6 '>t>xh5 1 1 e5 r;t>g4 1 2 f5 h S 1 3 na4+ �g3 1 4 e 6 h4 1 5 e7 nc8 16 �f7 1 :0 Korchnoi-Tal, Moscow Cm, 1968 4) 1 ... h5! 2 c2 3 'it>e3 ri;c3 4 '>t>0 'it>d3 0: 1 Smyslov­ Korchnoi, USSR CIi, Leningrad 1 960 ..

KM22/3 1 ) 1 SLh6+! 1 :0 Shirov-Leko, Belgrade 1995 2) 1 nxd6! 'ti'xd6 2 'i'xg7+ q"b6 3 i!i'xh8 'il'd 1 + 4 �n 1 : 0 Shirov-Hertneck, Bundesliga 1 995 3) 1 e5! dxe5 2 lLle4 lIe8 3 g5 lLlxe4 (3 ... lLlh5 4 lhh5 gxh5 5 lLlf6+ ri;h8 6 'il'xh7#) 4 fxe4 exd4 5 nxd4 1:0 Shirov-Ljubojevic, Monte Carlo 1995 4) 1 �d8! (threatening 2 lLlf6+) 1 . l:tfl+ 2 �c2 11fl+ 3 ri;b3 �c5 4 lLlf6+ ll'lxf6 5 l:tg7+ 'it>f8 6 gxf6 l:t0+ 7 c2 l:tf2+ 8 'it>d l l:tO+ 9 '.t>e2 nfl+ 1 0 '.t>e1 nxa2 1 1 .ie7+ .ixe7 12 fxe7+ ri;e8 13 d6 1 :0 in Shirov-Kamsky, Linares 1 993 ..

Solutions 209

KM22/4 I ) 1 g6! fxg6 2 SLb2 'il'd7 3 'il'e3!+- "Virtual Chess"-"Junior", Computer World Ch , Paris 1997 2) 1 ... l:rh4+! ! 2 '.t>xh4 (2 gxh4?? 'il'g2#) 2 ... 'ii h 2+ 3 ..t>g5 (3 �g4?? 'il'h5#) 3 ... 'ii'xg3+ 4 ng4 'ii'e5+= "Nimzo 3" - "MChess Pro", Computer World Ch, Paderborn 1995 3) 1 h4! gxh4 2 ..t>0 '.t>e8 3 ..t>f4 ..t>d7 4 ..t>g5 1 :0 Anand-"Pentium Genius2", London 1994 4) 1 h3 ? (1 h4!=) 1 ... h4! 2 Wb2 'ito>d5 3 '.t>a3 �c5 4 �b2 a4-+ "GandaIP' - "Chess Genius", Computer World Ch, Paderborn 1995 KM23/1 1) 1 'il'd6+! ( I .. , '.t>xd6 2 ll'lxc4+; I .. '.t>e8 2 'ili'b8+) 1 :0 Gonzales­ Villamayor, Philippines 1996 2) 1 'i!fxd8+! ( 1 . �xd8 2 ne8 'il'xe8 3 lLlc7+ etc) 1 : 0 Frohne­ Rosenberger, Dortmund 1995 3) 1 l:rxc5 nxc5 (1 ... fxe5 2 nxc8+ �b7 3 SLxe4++") 2 'il'xc5 l:tdl + 3 �n 1 :0 BeJiavsky-Palac, Bled 1 996 4) 1 ne8!! (I f7 ..t>xg7 2 ne8 lIh8) 1 ... l:tu8 2 f7 ng8 3 lLlf6+ 1 :0 Fedorowicz-Wolski, San Francisco 1997 .

..

KM2312 1) 1 l:rxg6! ..t>xg6 (I ... .ixd5 2 lLlxf5) 2 ll'lxf5 ..t>f7 (2 . . ,ixd7 3 lLle7+) 3 lLlfe7 'ii'b 7 4 'ili'g2 l:thg8 5 'i!fe4 l:tg7 6 lIel 1 : 0 Spassky-Ostl, Bundesliga 1989-90 2) 1 l:txg7! ( I . , �g7 2 l:re l 'il'xe3 3 l:tc7+) 1:0 Spassky-Gipslis, USSR Ch, Baku 1961 3) 1 �xh5!! gxh5 2 'ii'x h5 (threatening 3 l:th6, 4 1:th8#) 2 ... .

.

2/0

Key Moves Solutions Key Moves Solutions 2 1 1

lLlfB 3 l:th6 l:th7 4 l:tee6! 'i'd7 5 'it'd7 1 1 R.e6++-) 1 : 0 Keres-Fine, l:txh7 lLlxh7 6 rIg6+ �h8 7 rIh6 e6 Ostend 1 937 , 2) I d6! lLlxe5 ( I . . . lLlxd6 2 g6! 8 g6 1 : 0 Spassky-Robatsch, hxg6 3 ltJxg6 ':e8 4 'i'h5 ! , 5 'i'h8#; Bundesliga 1983-4 4) 1 l:tb7! f2 2 e6! 1:txd5+ 3 q;h6! 1 . . . exd6 2 ltJxf7 :Xf7 3 R.xf7+ (3 lLlxd5?? fl='iW 4 e7 'itf7!) 3 ... �xf7 4 'Wd5++-) 2 fxe5 (2 . . . lLlxe3 l:th5+ (3 ... fl=1Ii 4 l:tf7#; 3 ... R.h5 3 "d3+-; 2 ... R.h3 3 nxf7 ! ; 2 ... 4 l:tb8 ! +-) 4 �g6 1 : 0 Spassky­ cxd6 3 exd6 ltJxd6 [3 ... ltJxg5 4 R.xg5 1fxg5 5 d7+-] 4 R.cS+-) 1 :0 Larsen, Malmo Cm 1 968 Keres-Lilienthal, USSR Absolute Ch, MoscowlLeningrad 1 94 1 KM23/3 3) I . . . c3 ! 2 ltJc2 ( 2 �xd3 R.xe3 I) 1 ... 1Iia1+! 0 : 1 Sahovic­ 3 �xe3 e2; 2 �xe3 R.e l -+) 2 ... Matulovlc, Belgrade 1 969 2) 1 l:txn! �xf7 2 l:tfl + �f6 3 ltJel ! 3 ltJa3 (3 lOxe I R.xe 1 4 �d3 iLxf6 1 :0 Larsen-Eley, Hastings R.d2-+) Fine-Keres, Amsterdam 1938 and now 3 ... R.h4! -+ (4 nxe l i 972 3) 1 lLlxg6! (1 l:th7 lLlxg5) 1 ... R.xel 5 �xel e2 ! ) 4 ) 1 b4! axb4 2 as ""7 S O ab+ fxg6 2 l:th7 1 : 0 Gulko-Korelov, �xb6 51 1i'xd6+ a7 52 1i'xe5 b3 Odessa 1972 4) 1 f3 ! lhe3 2 g4# 1:0 Larsen­ 53 rIb3 ':f6 54 1i'd4+ nb6 55 nxb3 1 : 0 Keres-Euwe, Amsterdam 1939 Pomar, Palma de Majorca 1971 KM23/4 I ) 1 nd7+ ( 1 ... iLxd7 2 1Iie7+, 3 'i'f7#) 1 :0 Hodgson-Martin, British Ch 1 992 2) 1 1Oxf7! q;xf7 2 lLle5+ �g8 (or 2 . . . 'it>f8 3 1Iih5 etc) 3 1!fh5 R.f6 (3 ... nf8 is met by 4 1!fg6) 4 "f7+ �h8 5 lLlg6+ 'it-h7 6 lLle7+ �h8 7 'iWg6 'i'xe7 8 'i'h7# 1:0 Hodgson-Trevelyan, Paris 1995 3) 1 lOxrs! exf5 2 'it'd6 'Woo (2 ... "fIIe7 3 'it'd4, fl, h8) 3 'it'd4 1 : 0 Hodgson-Lukacs, Kecskemet 1 988 4) 1 nb8+! ( 1 ... "xb8 2 'i'h8+) 1 :0 Hodgson-Cerrajeria, Zara­ gosa 1 993 KM24/1 1) 1 lLlxb7! lOxh7 2 l:th3 'Wcl 3 'it'xh7+ 'it>f8 4 ne3 d4 S 1i'h8+ ",",e7 6 'it'xg7 ':f8 (6 ... R.dS 7 1!ff6+ �d7 8 R.xd5, 9 1i'xf7#; 6 ... �f8 7 e6) 7 "f6+ �e8 8 e6 (8 ... dxe3 9 exf7+ �d7 1 0 �e6+; 9 .. . nxf7 10 R.xf7+

KM24/2 I ) 1 lOe5+ (1 ... tDxeS 2 ':a7+ �c6 3 'ilke4#) 1 : 0 AIekhineBogoljubov, World Ch, 1 929 2) l lOxg7! �xg7 ( I ... lOce4 2 b4 'tixb4 3 lOh5+-) 2 R.d4! lOe4 (2 . . . lOd7 3 R.e3+-) 2 "xe4 ..rs 3 'ii'x f5 ed5 4 nacl nfe8 5 l:tc7 1:txe2 6 ':xb7 �g6 7 .bf6 'oi?xf6 8 l:td6+ (R . .. i;g7 9 l:tdd7 nf8 1 0 'itn rIe2 I I rIde7 l:td2 12 'ite3+-) 1 :0 Alekhine-Rabar, Pra2ue 1 942 3) 1 ... R.b3! 2 rId8+ (2 R.xh3 'l'e3+ 3 �hl 'ii'f3+ 4 �g l 1!ffl+ 5 'it'h I 'l'xh2#) 2 ... 'l'xd8 3 R.xh3 1fxa8 0.: 1 Opocensky-Alekhine, Prague 1 942 4) 1 ... h5! 2 fxg6+ (2 g5 fxg5 3 hxg5 R.xg5 4 fxg6+ �xg6 5 'itxe5 h4-+) 2 . . . q.,xg6 3 gxbS+ �r7! (3 ... 'iPxh5 4 �fS!) 4 h6 (4 ¢>h5 rIh8 5 c;t>g4 �e6) 4 ... �oo 5 rIgl nh8 6 ng6 R.f8 0 : 1 Wolf-Alekhine, Karlsbad 1923

KM24/3 1 ) 1 ... lLlxa2! 2 ltJxa2 R.xal 3 R.d3 l:td8 4 l:td 1 R.b2 0: I Baturinsky-Bronstein, Moscow 1946 2) 1 ... tDxa3! 2 1i'n (2 'it'xa3 R.xfl 3 �xfl 'it'xh3+) 2 ... lOc2! 3 de de 4 R.xb5 cxb5 6 1fn lOd4 7 �g2 a3 8 R.d2 82 9 "al 1Oe3+ 1 0 'it' g l 'tie2 1 1 "xa2+ � b 7 0: 1 Zagorjansky-Bronstein, Moscow 1 947 3) 1 �f7! 'i'xf7 (1 ... tDxf7 2 'i'xb8 xa7 +-) 2 11ixb8+ lLle8 3 'it'b7 'iWh5 4 h3 �h7 5 1!fxa7 e5 6 R.e3 e4 7 'i'e7 1 : 0 Bronstein-Szabo, Zurich Ct 1953 4) 1 rIb6! l:td5 (1 . . . axb6 2 a7) 2 l:[b7 tDc6 3 1Oc3 ':xd4 4 lilxb5 rId l+ 5 �f2 c3 6 1Oxc3 :d2+ (6 ... rIa1 7 lOb5 :a5 8 lOd6+ 'itf8 9

nf7+ �g8 1 0 lOe8+-) 7 'it'gl lOd8 8 nxa7 1 : 0 Bronstein-Taimanov Moscow 1951 KM24/4 1 ) 1 ... ':xe3! (2 'tixe3 R.f4) won a piece and the game in , Botvlnnik-Pachman, Moscow 1 947 2) In Kotov-Euwe, Groningen 1 946 White could have won immediately with 1 1i'c8! fxe6 (2 . . . nc2 3 �fl ! l:hc3 4 ltJ(7) 2 l:txe6 3) J ... R.xd6 2 R.xd6 rId8! (2 . . . nxd6 3 R.xh7+) 3 R.e2 'A- 'A Vidmar-Capablanca, San Sebastian 1 9 1 1 4 ) 1 �g2 ! ( 1 . . . rIxe4 2 ..t>f3) +AJekhine-Capabianca, Buenos Aires WCh, 1 927

Analysis Positions Solutions

Analysis Positions Solutions 2 1 5

Month 13 A13/1 a) Tal-Simagin, Leningrad 1 956. White is ahead in development and Black's king is still in the centre at the moment. White's Plan: Do I have a way to attack B lack's uncastled king? Black's Plan: I need to get my king to a safer place. Candidate Moves: 12 ltJxe6; 1 2 f5; 1 2 ltJxfl. Analysis: 12 ltJxfl! 'iti>xfl 1 3 f5 dxe5 ( 1 3 . . . ltJxe5 1 4 c7 1 7 l:tab l 'ir'a6 or I S 'iWc4+ �d6 1 6 �a3+ cj;c7 1 7 l:tab I .i.xa3 1 8 l:txb6 axb6) I S . .. 'iWxbl 16 'Wc4+ g4 ltJf6+! (32 l:tf8?! 33 ltJxf4 ltJf6+ 34 f5 l:th5+ 38 11g5 i.xg5 3 9 'i&g4! is not that clear) 33 'i&f5 and now 33 ... ltJg4 would have been the quickest way to win. Assessment: 30 'i'xh3+ gives Black a winning attack. A 13/2 a) Gurgenidze-Lein, USSR Ch, Tbilisi 1 966. Black's king is in the centre but the position is presently closed . White's Plan: If I can open the centre I might exploit Black's un­ castled king. Black's Plan: I need to complete my development and get my king into safety. Candidate Moves: 1 1 liJxf5; 1 1 g4. Analysis: 1 1 ltJxf5 ! ! ltJa5 (-1 1 ... �b7 i s hopeless after 1 2 ltJd6+ .i.xd6 1 3 exd6, 1 1 . . . exf5 1 2 e6 'i'xf4 [ 1 2 . . . d6 1 3 e7 i.xe7 1 4

2J6

Analysis Positions Solutions

�xd6 'i'i'd7 I S 'ii'd S ltfB 1 6 �xe7 liJxe7 1 7 'ii'xa8+-] 1 3 exd7+ d8 1 4 lte8+ 9;;c7 I S d8='if+ liJxd8 1 6 'ifxd8+ o r and 1 1 ... gxfS 1 2 'ii'h 5+ �d8 13 ltad 1 followed by 14 �xe6 will catch Black's king in the cross­ fire) 1 2 .i.d5! ( 1 2 lQd6+ �xd6 1 3 ed 'ii'c6 1 4 .i.d5 is also quite enough, but the text is more beauti­ ful) 1 2 ... .i.b7 ( 1 2 ... exd5 1 3 ltJd6+ d8 1 4 'ii'xdS leaves Black facing too many threats) 13 liJd6+ .i.xd6 14 exd6 'ii'cS (Or 14 . . . 'ii'd 8 1 5 .i.xe6 dxe6 1 6 ltxe6+ n 1 7 lte7+ 'Ot>g8 1 8 .i.h6) 15 �h6! ltgS 1 6 'ii'f3

�xd5 1 7 'ii'x d5 liJc6

IS ltad l

(threatening 1 9 ltxe6+ fxe6 20 d7+)

I S liJdS 19 'ii'g5 liJc6 20 'if£6 g5 2 1 IIe5 1 : 0 (2 1 'ifd 8 2 2 ltxe6+). Assessment: White can break through with a winning attack.

Analysis Positions Solutions 2 1 7 'iti>g7! [ 1 8 . . . Wg8 1 9 'i'i'dS+ Wh8 20 lte l ! �d4+ 2 1 'i'i'xd4+-] 1 9 d7 [ 1 9 110 .i.xc3 2 0 li b 1 'ii'x b I ! 2 1 'ii'xb I lte l +-+] 1 9 liJxd7 20 'ii'xd7+ 'iti>h8 2 1 ltxe5 'ii'xa l + when White would have to fight for a draw after 22 'i'd l [22 �f2? ltfB+ 23 �e2 'ii'xc3] 22 'ii'x d l + 23 liJxd l ltxe5 24 �f6+ g8 25 �xe5 lte8) 1 9 'ii' h 5+ 'it>f8 (and not 19 ... ctlg7? 2 0 �h6+ 'Ot>f6 2 1 ltfl when 2 1 ... 'i'c2 fails to 22 liJdS+! ctle6 23 'itfxe8+ 'ii;>x d5 24 d7! liJxd7 25 'i'i'xd7+ 'Ot>c4 26 ltc I +- and 2 1 . . . �d4+ to 22 r,th l lte5 23 'itfg5+ r,tn 24 'iWg7+ 'it>e8 25 liJd5! liJd7 26 'i'i'g8+ lUfB 27 liJf6+ !) 20

ltfl ! �d4+ 2 1 r,thl lte6 22 ltxf5+ .i.f6 23 �h6+ gS 24 'i'i'g5+! 'it>f7

(24 ... .i.xgS 25 ltfB#; 24 ... 'it>h8 25 .i.g7+ q"g8 [25 ... �xg7 26 'i'd8+] 26 �xf6+ 'Ot>fB 27 .i.g7+ e8 28 ltfB+ 'it>d7 29 'iWd8+ ctlc6 30 'iWc7#)

b) VIadimirov-Doda, Leningrad 25 lIxf6+! ltxf6 26 'i'g7+ 'Ot>e6 27 1 967. White is two pawns down but . 'ii'e7+ 1 : 0 (27 ... r,tfS 28 'i'i'e4#). has a big lead in development and a Assessment: A complex struggle

strong passed pawn on d6. White's Plan: I have to exploit my advantage in development be­ fore Black con·solidates. Black's Plan: If I can complete my development I should have a winning game. Candidate Moves: 1 7 ltxf5; 1 7 �xn+; 1 7 lDb5. Analysis: 17 �xn+ ( 1 7 ltxf5 ! gxfS 1 8 �xn+! was a more accu­ rate move order and Black in tum should avoid this with 1 7 .. . 'ii'xc3 1 8 .i.xn+ g7 1 9 :0 'ii'd4+! r 1 9 ... 'iit'x a 1 20 W'xa 1 �xa 1 2 1 �xe8] 20 'ii'xd4 �xd4+ 2 1 �fl ltfB 22 lte l 4.Jc6! [22 ... lIxf7 23 ltxn+ wxn 24 lte7+ Wg8 25 lte8+ wn 26 d7] 23 .i.dS ' when White has a dangerous initiative for the pawn) xn 18 ltxf5+ gxf5? ( l 8 ... 17 ..•

in which 1 7 ltxfS ! is the best.

A 1 3/3 a) Nezhmetdinov-Tal, USSR C h, Baku 1 96 1 . Black's structure looks quite nice but he is unable to castle kings ide. White's Pla n: I should open it up before Black makes his killg sart:o Black's Plan: I must get my king to safety. Candidate Moves: 1 7 lQd5; 1 7 g5; 1 7 ltxf6; 1 7 liJxn. Analysis: 1 7 ltxf6! ( 1 7 lQds would be met by 1 7 ... liJxdS 1 8 exdS lUf4 and 1 7 gS? is bad because of 1 7 ... .i.xh6) 1 7 .i.xf6 IS llJd5 'ifdS ( 1 8 . . . �xd5 19 exd5 liJd4 20 'ii'12 gives White dual threats of 2 1 d6 and 2 1 'i'i'xf6 and neither 20 ... irb6 21 .i.e3+- nor 20 . . . 'i'd6 2 1

g5+- is an adequate defence) 1 9 'itfl liJf4 2 0 .i.xf4 ef 2 1 e5! (2 1

.i.g5 'ii'a S 2 5 .i.f6 is not an im­ provement j 24 �g5 "ir'rs 25 LOr6+

'ifxf4 allows Black to escape after q;,h8 26 liJxd7 'ii' f7 27 liJf6 liJh5 28 li'lxh5 'i'i'xh5 29 iLf6+ �gS 30 �e4 2 1 ... .i.xdS 22 exdS irb6+ 23 9;; h 1 0-0-0 24 liJxf7 .i.xb2 2S ltb I llhfB h6 3 1 'ii' xd6 lteS 32 .i.d5+ 1 :0 Assessment: 1 9 ltxf6 wins by 26 ltxb2 J:td7) 2 1 ... �xe5 (2 1 . . . .i.h4! was better [and not 2 1 . . . .i.g7 . force. 22 li'lf6+ �xf6 23 exf6 �xg2 24 A 13/4 l::te 1 +- or 2 1 . . . .i.xd5 22 exf6 �e6 a) Tarrasch-Alekhine, Baden­ 23 .i.c6+ r,tfB 24 'i'i'cS+-] when 22 'ifcs is met by 22 . . . l::t c 8 and 22 Baden 1 925. White is temporarily a llJf6+ by 22 ... 'ifxf6 23 exf6 .i.xf2+ pawn up but Black can recapture either the pawn on a4 or play 2 1 24 xf2 .i.xg2 ! [24 ... O-O-O? 2S iLxb7+ r,txb7 26 liJxf7 lId2+ 27 .i.xh3. Black's pieces are quite ac­ 'Ot>e 1 +-] 25 l::te 1 + r,tfB 26 'Ot>xg2 lte8 tive and he has the two bishops, 27 J:td I leaves White with a bind but White's knight on b3 seems particu­ nothing very clear) 22 J:te l £6 23 larly poorly placed. White's Pl a n : I would l ike to free llJxf6+! 'ifxf6 24 'ilid4 'Ot>rs (Or 24 . . . .i.xg2 25 lIxeS+ 'itt fB 26 J:tfS ! ) 25 myselr with exchanges. Black's Plan: I can win my pawn ltxeS 'ifdS (2S ... ltd8 26 J:te8+) 26 l::t f5+ gxf5 27 'ifxh8+ <j;;e7 2S 'ilig7+ back in several different ways but would l ike to maintain the initiative 'Ot>e6 29 gx£s+ 1 :0 Assessment: 1 7 ltxf6 ! set a dan­ whilst doing so. This looks like a gerous attack in motion but there rather calculative position in which I need to find the most effective look­ were defensive resources. ing sequence of moves. Candidate Moves: 2 1 . . . 'i'i'xa4; b) Kavalek-Matulovic, Bucha­ rest 1 966. There is a whiff of a 21 ... iLxh3; 2 1 ... .i.fS; 2 1 ... ltxe l . Analysis: 2 1 . .i.f5! (2 1 . . . iLxh3 combination against the vulnerable f6 square if only Black's queen can 22 gxh3 'it'xo 23 iLg2) 22 �d 3 (22 'it'd2 'ilixa4 23 liJc 1 .i.c2 24 ltxe8+ be distracted. White's Plan: I should look at ltxe8 25 lte I liJe4 26 'it'f4 c4 27 things which try to exploit the liJd4 �xd4 28 cd 'ii'b4 ! is good for loose-looking position of Black's Black according to Alekhine's analysis) 22 �xh3 (22 . . . iLxd3 23 pieces. Black's Plan: When White de­ 'i'xd3 c4 24 'i'd2) 23 ... gxh3 'ii x f3 fends against the threat of 1 9 lUg4 I 24 ltxeS+ (24 .i.f1 ltxe 1 25 ltxe 1 can consolidate with ltfB and try to 'i'i'xd5 is also good for Black) 24 ...

..

plant a minor piece on eS. Candidate Moves: 1 9 LOxf6+; 1 9 ltxf6. Analysis: Kavalek won with 1 9

ltxeS 25 .i.fl lte5 26 c4 ltg5+ 27 q;,h2 liJg4+ 28 hxg4 ltxg4 0: 1 Assessment: Black has a strong if

.i.c3 (2 1 . . . 'ilih3 22 liJxf6+ 'Ot>n 23 .i.f1 ! wins Black's queen) 22 bxc3 dS 23 exfs liJg7 (23 . . . liJfB 24

b) Kholmov-Bronstein, USSR Ch, Kiev 1 964. White's pieces are

lhf6! .i.xf6 20 liJr5! gxf5 2 1 g3

!

not decisive initiative.

In

menacing

positions

around

218

Analysis Positions Solutions Analysis Positions Solutions 2 1 9

Black's king, Black has a tremen­ liJe4 liJg6 [20 ... liJd7 21 l1xd6 exf5 dous knight on e5 and the only 22 l:!.xf6 :g8 23 :xg8+ �xg8 24 dark-squared bishop on the board. lhf5 lOf8 25 liJf6+ 'tPh8 26 l:!e5! White's Plan: I must act immedi­ �e6 27 :g5+-] 21 liJxf6 'ihf6 22 ately for if Black defends against fxg6 'ifg7 23 ' 1i'xg7+ �g7 24 my kingside pressure his positional gxf7+ ¢>xf7 25 l:l.xd6; 1 9 ... �xe5 trumps will dominate. 20 f6 j"xf6 2 1 �d3 �g5+ 22 llxg5 Black's Plan : In the short term I f5 [22 f6 23 :g3 bxc3 24 .i.xh7+-] need to drive back White's aggress­ 23 %:tdgl lti7 24 ttJe2 liJe5 25 liJf4 ively placed pieces and safeguard %:tc7 26 .txf5 ef 27 lOd5+-) 20 my king position. l1xgS (6 21 exd6 1i'f7 22 :g3 bxc3 Candidate Moves: 1 8 lOe2; 1 8 . 23 .tc4 exb2+ 24 'tPbI liJd8 and l1d3 ! ?; 1 8 lDc6! ? now 25 d7! .txd7 26 %:txd7 was the Analysis: 1 8 liJc6! liJxc6 1 9 eS! most efficient way to win. Assessment: 1 8 lDc6! ! gives � gS+ ( 1 9 ... dxe5 20 lOe4 £l.g5+ 2 1 liJxg5 f6 2 2 liJxh7+-; 1 9 . . . lOxe5 20 White a winning attack.

Month 1 4 AWl Cap�blanca, a ) Alekhine Buenos Aires WCh 1 927. White's

position looks slightly preferable because of the poorly placed knight on b6, the vulnerable pawns on e5 and a7 and the slight weakness of Black's kingside. White's Plan: I would like to create pressure on the dark squares where Black has some weaknesses. Black's Plan: I would like to sim­ plify the position. Candidate Moves: 2 1 %:tfd 1 ; 2 1 'i'e3; 2 1 'i!i'd2. Analysis: 21 'i!i'd2! £l.e6? (Black's best defence was 2 1 ... liJa4 according to Emanuel Lasker; 2 1 . . . �c6 favours White after 22 liJh4 ! .txe4 23 'i!i'e3 ! , 22 ... �d7 23 'i'a5 or 22 ... liJxe4 23 liJhf5+ gxf5 24 ttJxfS+ 'tPf6 25 'i'xh6+ 'tPxfS 26 g4#) 22 �xe6 'ii'x e6 23 'i!i'aS lOc4

24 'tIt'xa7 liJxb2 25 %:txe8 :xe8 26 'i'xb7 winning a pawn and later the game.

Assessment: 2 1 'i'd2 gives White a strong initiative. b) Alekhine-Weenink, Prague

1 93 1 . White's pieces look men­ acingly placed and Black's king position seems vulnerable, especial­ ly on the l ight squares. White's Plan : The position cries out for action on the kings ide yet how exactly do I break through? 01,

Piece pressure alone may not be enough, could I use my pawns as well? Black's Plan:. I need to defend and exchange some pieces. Candidate Moves: 22 'i!i'g6; 22 �xh6; 22 g4. Analysis: 22 g4! 1i'd6 23 �g6! (and not 23 gS? 'ii'd S) 23 . 1:(1'8 24 gS �xd4 25 gxh6 liJdf6 26 hxg7+ h2 tOr6 34 'itc2 llb8 3S b4! with a powerful initiative for .•.

White.

Assessment:

After dampening down Black's piece activity White can take the initiative with a later b2-b4.

A IS/3 Bondarevsky-Lilienthal, a) USSR Ch, Moscow 1 94 1 .. White has a large space . advantage and the pin on the knight on f6 is very unpleasant. Wbite's Plan : I want to bring a rook or two to the f-file in order to increase the pressure against the p inned knight on f6. Black's Plan: This is looking nasty, I desperately need to find a way to break this pin on my knight. Candidate Moves: 1 9 ... 'it'f8; 1 9 ... exf4. Analysis: 19 ... ex(4! ( 1 9 . . . 'itf8 20 �xf6) 20 gx(4 gS! 21 fxgS (2 1 i.gJ gxf4 22 i.xf4 tiJg4 23 h3 'itfG 24 1:fl tLleS 2S 'ili'hs was White's best attempt to exploit Black's wea­ kened kingside) 21 ... lbg� 22 eS!

lbxeS 23 'i'hS higS 24 �xgS (6 2S .i.h4 'il'g7 26 �g3 �g4 27 �h4

�fl! when Black had turned the tables as was suddenly threatening 28 ... l:th8 !. Assessment: 19 ... exf4 and 20 ... gS gets Black out of trouble.

b) Yusupov-Timman, Tilburg 1 986. White has the two bishops

and a dangerous looking pawn centre but his c-pawns are doubled and make his position inflexible. White's Plan: I would like to use my pawn centre as a battering ram and open the position up for the two bishops. Black's Plan: I need to restrict the activity of White's bishop pair by keeping l ines closed and then at­ tack his weak pawns. Candidate Moves: 13 . . . �e7; 1 3 . . . f4; 1 3 . . . fxe4. Analysis: 13 ... fxe4 ! (Timman played 1 3 . . . �e1?! when White de­ veloped a strong initiative after 1 4 e S tLlfl I S f4 g S [ I S . . . d6!?) 1 6 dS I gxf4 1 7 lLlO tLlh8 I 8 llae I lLlg6 1 9 �c l >Ph8?! ( 1 9 . . . llae8) 2 0 �f2 �g7 2 1 h4 ! 'ifh6 [ 2 1 llg8 ! ?) 22 tLlgS ! �xh4 23 �xh4 lLlxh4 24 llxf4 tLlg6 2S llO l:rae8 26 llh3; 1 3 . . . f4 1 4 �e2 ! , 1 5 lLld3) 1 4 fxe4

llxfl+ IS �xfl e5 ! 16 tOo tOf7

would have kept the bishop pair finnly under control and given Black the somewhat better game. Assessment: Black can keep the position closed when White will struggle to find ful l compensation for his pawn weaknesses.

A 1 S/4 a) Neikirkh-Botvinnik, L e ip zig OJ 1 960. White is poised to launch a

fierce attack on Black's king with moves like l:th3, 'ifhS and f4-[S though his centre is in danger of collapse. White's Pl a n : I f I can't inflict immediate damage this position might tum against me. Black's Plan: If I survive the im­ mediate danger the weaknesses in White's game should leave him open to a counterstroke.

Candidate Moves: 12 ... lOxb3 ;

1 2 �b7; 1 2 . . . g6.

Analysis: 12 ... tLlxb3! ( \ 2 ... �b7 13 llh3 lLlxb3 1 4 'ifhS h6 I S tLlxb3 leaves White threatening ) 6 fS followed by 1 7 �xh6) 1 3 lOc6 ( 1 3 axb3 .i.b7 ) 4 llh3 g6! safe­ guards the kingside and would therefore favour Black) 13 �d7 14 tLlxe7+ �xe7 IS axb3 f6! 1 6 exd6? (according to Botvinnik White should have waited for Black to exchange pawns on eS) 16 .. . lOxd6 17 lld3 tOr5 1 8 11a4 it'e8! ( 1 8 . . . .i.b7 19 lld7 1 ) 19 lLle4 ( 1 9 11e4 �b7 2 0 lle I was relatively best) 19 .. . bS 20 11aS? (20 lla ) 20 .. �b7 21 lOd6 (2 1 lOeS .ixg2+ 22 >Pxg2 'i'c6+) 21 tLlxd6 22 11xd6 lld8! (threatening 22 . . . 'ifc6 ! ) 23 �d2 (23 llxd8 �xd8 24 it'e l �dS 2S �e2 l:rd8 26 �e3 it'd ) + 27 'i'xd I l:txd ) I- 28 �g I lld2-+) 23 ...

.

l:txd6 24 �'xd6 �d8 25 it'xe6+ 11n 26 'ife1 11e7 0 : 1 Assessment: Black cap. defend and then take the initiative.

b) Smirin-Davies, Tel Aviv 199 1 . White threatens 30 �b6 or

take the knight on eS which defends fl. On the other hand Black's pieces are quite actively placed in the centre. White's Plan: Continue my tacti­ cal threats . Black's Plan: I need to survive the next move! Candidate Moves: 27 ... 107c6; 27 . . . lOg8. Analysis: 29 ... t07c6!? (Lev Psakhis accused me of having a "too complicated brain" in the post mor­ tem and pointed out that Black can also play 29 ... ttJg8 after which 30 �b6 �e7 3 1 �xd8 llxd8 leaves /

226 Analysis Positions Solutions Analysis Positions Solutions 227 both of White's rooks under threat after ltJxc4 followed by either ..te5 or �xa l ) 30 ..tb6 'iIId 7 3 1 ..txd8 ltJd4! 32 ..td l ? ! (32 'ii'd2) 32 ... ltJxc4 33 ..tf6? (33 bxc4) 33 ... lhe4 34 'i'xe4 ..txe4 35 ..txh8 ltJe5 36 l:tel (5 37 (4 ltJec6 38 h4 ltJe6 39 �f3 ltJxf4! 40 ..txe4 ltJe2+ 4 1

�h2 ltJxel 4 2 .bf5 gxf5 4 3 l:tg8+ <j;e7 44 %lg7+ �d8 45 l%xd7+ <j;xd7 46 ltJxfS ltJxb3 47 g4 ltJc5 48 h5 ltJe5 49 g5 b3 0: I Assessment: Black's position contains suprising resources, after 29 ... ltJg8 he stands no worse and 29 ... ltJ7c6! ? is also interesting.

Month 16 A I 6/l a) Flohr-Keres, Moscow 1 950.

White has an extra pawn, strong pressure against e6 and d7 and Black's king stuck in the centre. White's Plan: Can I strike before Black recaptures on c5 or should I let him do this and put pressure on the defile? Black's Plan: I hope to recover my pawn with 1 6 ... bxc5 and then consolidate with 17 ... d6. Candidate Moves: 16 l%d2; 1 6 liJd4; 1 6 b4. Analysis: 16 b4! (Better than Flohr's quiet 16 Ad2 after which 1 6 bxc5 1 7 %:tfd l d6 was reasonably solid for Black; 1 6 liJd4 ! ..txc5 1 7 'iVa4 or 1 7 'ii'c l ! ? was a quiet but effective plan) 1 6 ... ltJc6 ( 1 6 ... ltJxc4 I 7 'ii'x a7! ..td5 [ 1 7 ... ..tc6 18 ..txe6+ ¢>xe6 1 9 liJd4+ �f7 20 ltJxc6 l:txc6 2 1 ltxd7 'ii'e8 22 cxb6 lbxe3 23 fxe3+-; 1 7 ... ltJxe3? 1 8 fxe3 ..txf3 1 9 l:txd7+-] 1 8 l:txd5 exd5 19 iVb7 �e8 20 'iVxd5 ltJxe3 2 1 fxe3 'iVc7 22 Ad] nd8 23 cxb6 'iVc6 24 b7 'iVxd5 25 l:txd5 �f7 26 b5) 17 cxb6 axb6 18 1fb3 ltJxb4 ( 1 8 ... ..txb4 19 c5) 19 ..txe6+ �xe6 20 ..txb6 'iVxb6 (20 ... 'iVe8 2 1 c5+ ltJd5 22 e4) 21 c5+ ..td5 22 lhd5 �xc5 23 l:lfd l ! ..txf2+ 24 <j;g2

lDxd5 25 'ii'x� 5+ �e7 26 'ii'x d7+

'it>f8 27 'ii'x c8+ wins.

Assessment: By taking decisive action White can. obtain a winning position. b) Stahlberg-Keres, Helsinki 1 935. Black is a whole piece up but

his king is sitting with the wind in his hair. White's Plan: I need to find a way through to Black's king. Black's Plan: I will have to deal with the threats as and when they arise. Candidate Moves: 30 Ab3; 3 0 l:!.f3. Analysis: 30 Am (Stahlberg got nowhere with 30 l:[b3? lDb6 3 1 ..td3 when Black could have consolidated immediately with 3 1 ... 'ifg5 f 32 'ifxg5 hxg5 33 ..tb5 �d5; 30 ..txd5?! ..txdS 31 Axd5? is bad because of 3 1 ... 'ii'a l +) 30 ... lDf4 (30 ... 'ifg7 3 1 .i.xg6+; 30 ... 'ife7 3 1 ..txg6+) 3 1 'il'b5 wins for White ac­ cording to Keres. Assessment: The right sequence gives White a winning game.

A 16/2 a) Karpov-Kasparov, London­ Leningrad Web 1986. White is the

exchange up but both 25 ... lDxd2 and 25 ... ..tb5 are threatened. White's Plan: If I cannot main­ tain my advantage of the exchange I

228

Analysis Positions Solutions Analysis Positions Solutions 2 2 9

need to give it back so as to en s ure the later advance o f the d-pawn. Black's Plan: It looks as ' if I shoul d win back the exchange after which I need to blockade the

d-pawn. . Candidate Moves: 25 l:td l ; 2 5 �f4 ; 25 �h6 . Analysis: 25 � f4! (25 %td 1 �a4) 25 ... �b5 26 fJ g5 (26 ... �xfl 27

�xfl ll'lf6 28 :xe8+ ll'lxe8 29 �e5 ! , 30 d6, 3 1 d7) 27 �xg5 �xn 28 f7 m ig ht keep Black alive) 29 ... ll'lc8 (29 . . . lLlc4 30 d6 ll'lb6 3 1 %tb I , 3 2 l:txb6, 3 3 d7) 30 �xc5 %td8 31 %te5 /6 32 %t;-5 b6 (32 rj;f7 3 3 g4 ll'le7 34 .l:[h5 lth8 also leaves alack

miserably placed) 33 �d4 ll'le7 34 i.xf6 ltxd5 35 ltg5+ lbg5 · 36 .txgS c!De6 37 �e2 'it>f7 38 'iti>d3 �e6 39 'i!i>c4 ll'le5+ 40 c;t;>d4 . lLlc6+ 1:0 Assessment: With accurate play White should win . b) Alekhine-Saemisch,' Baden­ Baden 1 925. White has' an extra pawn but his king is exposed and Black's coml>ination· of queen and �ight :-vork very well together. Whlte'R Plan: The immediate ad­ vance of my b-pawn would expose my king so I should create a secOnd weakness on the other flank by. ad­ , vancing my kingside pawns : , Black's Plan:' If White pushes his b-pawn I will harrass his with my queen and knight. CancUdate Moves: 34 'i'd4. Analysis: 34 'ifd4! 'ife7 35 i.d3! 'ike7 36 g4 'i>f7 37 h4 lLlb6 38 h5! gxh5 39 gxh5 'i'e6 40 �e4! (40 �xh7? 'i'xf3 4 1 -.xb6 'i'd l+=) 40

'i'b5 4 1 h6 'ti'b3 42 �c2! 'ti'b5 43 'i'd3! (exchanging queens under the most favourable circumstances) 43 'i'xd3 .4 4 �xd3 ll'lc8 45 �xh7 ll'le7 46 �cl fS 47 b4 ll'ld5 48 b5 'iti>e6 49 'iti>dl 'iti>d6 SO f4 ll'lxf4 5 1 � x fS ll'l d 5 5 2 �e4 1 : 0 Assessment: With fine technique White should be able to win. •.•

A16/3 a) Vadasz-Davies, Budapest 1993. Black's pieces look loose, his queen is en prise and the pins on the

h l -a8 diagonal mean that the pawn on d4 w il l probably drop. White's Plan: . When Black moves his queen I'll take the knight on fS and then recover the pawn on d4.

Black's Plan: Desperate times call for desperate means, I need to mix it at any cost . Candidate Moves: 1 8 ... 'itd7; 1 8

.,'. l:te4 .

.

Analysis: 18 ne4! ! 1 9 ll'lxfS (19 i.xe4 'i'xe4 20 ll'lxfS lLle5 2 1 f3 •..

ll'lxf3+ 22 ltxf3 ' 'itxf3 23 lLlh6+ 'i!i>g7 24 ll'lf4 'i'h 1 + 25 Wf2 'ikxh2+ 26 �el 'i'xb2 �tc). 19 '" 'i'xfS 20

ll'lxd4 lLlxd4 21 exd4 lte7! 2 2 · i.xb7 l:txb7 23 :adl �d8 24 l:[d2

lthd7= 25 'it'c.1 'ilff(i 26 :fd 1 :td!'

27 'e3 c;t;>g7 28 'i'e4 l:t8cJ7 29 l:td3 "d6 30 l:[et l:txd4 3 1 l:txd4 'ii'x d4 32 'ikxd4+ l:txd4 33 lte7 . �S 34 ltb7

l/z- 'h

Assessment: 1 8 . .. l:t¢4! pu� a large sp aiiner in the works . b) 'lfuhasz-. Davies, 1993. Black's position holes and weaknesses

. Budapest is full of and he is threatened with both 25 ll'lxb4 and

25 e5.

White's Plan: When Black re­ treats his rook from b4 I ' l l crush him completely with 25 e5. Black's Plan: I would do any­ thing to complicate matters. Candidate Moves: 24 .. . ll'lxe4.

Analysis: 24 ... ll'lxe4! 25 Jixe4 ltxe4 26 ll'lxb4 i.d4+ 27 .,phi cxb4 28 ll'lxd6 'i'xd6 29 ltxe8+ 'i!i>g7 30 f5 f6 3 1 i.h6+ 'i!i>f7 32 nh8?! g5 33 %tel (33 nxh7+ c,t>g8 34 ng7+ 'i!i>h8

leaves both rook and bishop are in no man's land) 33 ... ll'lc5 34 i.f8 (34 nc4? "'xh2+1 3 5 Wxh2 nh4+ 36 'i!i>g3 ll'le4+ 3 7 'i!i>f3 ll'lxd2+; 34 'i'xb4 lth4 3 5 h3 ltxh3+ 36 gxh3 "'xd5+ 37 c,t>h2 "'e5+ 3 8 c,t>g2 "'e4+ 39 c,t>h2 i.e5+) 34 ... 'ffe 5 35 i.xc5 �xc5 36 ne8 (36 llxh7+ 'i!i>g8 37 %th3 ne2 38 'i'dl' "'e4 39 'i'fl ltf2 40 'i'g l nc2 41 'i'fl 'Wxg2+) 36 ... i.d6 37 g3 lle2 38

"'d3 'irxb2 39 'i'f3 g4 40 'i'n 'ite5 0:1

Assessment: White must surely

be winning, or is he? But in White's shoes I would not have let Black take on e4 in the first place.

A 1 6/4

a) Vukovic-Iovcic, Yugoslavia 1 956. White is a pawn up and has a three to one majority on the king­

side. His bishop can simultaneously blockade the a-pawn and support the advance of his kingside pawns. White's Plan: I want to create two connected passed pawns on the kingside and shepherd them towards the 8th rank. Black's Plan : I need to break up White's pawn majority before he improves the position of his pieces. One hope is that his h-pawn is the opposite colour to his bishop and cannot promote on its own.

Candidate Moves: 3 5 . . . h5. Analysis: 35 ... h5! 36 g5+ (36 gxh5 would allow Black to sacrifice his knight for White's f-pawn as even an extra bishop White would be unable to promote one of his two h-pawns should Black ' s king hide

on h8) 36 ... 'i!i>f5 37 'i!i>e3 'ittg4 38 g6 ll'lf6 39 g7 'i!i>xh4 40 g8='it lLlxg8 41 i.xg8 and now Black actually

resigned in a drawn position! Black would indeed be lost after 41 . . . c;t;>g4? 4 2 �e6+ c,t>g3 43 f5 h 4 44 f6 h3 45 f7 h2 46 f8=fi h l ='CV 47 'CVf4+ 'i!i>g2 48 'Wf2# but with 4 1 . . . Wg3 1 h e would p u t White in un­ usual zugzwang and Black would draw after either 42 f5 c;t;>g4 43 [6 'i!i>g5 44 f7 a2 or 42 i.d5 h4 43 f5 h3 44 [6 h2 45 f7 h I ='tW! 46 �xh I a2 47 f8='" a l ='it. Assessment: A draw!

b) Tarrasch-Lasker, Dusseldorf Weh 1 908 . Things look grim for Black as after 1 5 . . . xg7; 1 5 . . . lDxf2. Analysis: 15 . . lD x f2 ! ( 1 5 . . . xf2?! ( 1 6 "'d4 ! ll'lg4 [ 1 6 . . . c 5 1 7 "'xt2 'i!i>xg7 1 8 lLlh5+ is hopeless after either 1 8 . . . 'i!i>h6 1 9 lIe3 or 1 8 . . . 'i!i>h8 1 9 'ikxV] 1 7 ll'lf5 'i'e6 1 8 "'xa7 [ 1 8 h3?! i.f6; 1 8 'itc3 �f6 1 9 �xf6 'i'xf6 20 '\tg3 ,iVg6 2 1 'ii'x g4) 1 8 . . . d5?! 1 9 h3 lLlf6 20 ll'lxe7+, 2 1 exd5+-) 1 6 ... Wxg7 1 7 ll'lf5+ 'i!i>h8 .

230 Analysis Positions Solutions Analysis Positions Solutions 23 1

1 8 'ifd4+ f6 1 9 'ifxa7 .i.f8 20 \Wd4 l:[e5 21 l:[ad l l:[de8 22 'ii'c3 ti'f7! 23 ll'lg3? (bringing the knight to a passive position, he should_ play 23 'ii'f3 intending 24 c4) 23 ,.. .i.h6 24 'iff3 (here White should bring his knight back to (5) 24 d 5 2S exd5 .i.�+ 26 �n cxd5 27 lId3? (27 ll)r5 was necessary but then 27 ... d4 would leave Black with adequate .•.

play for his pawn) 27 ... "'e6 28 l:le2 r.; 29 l:ld l (29 '\te l f4 30 ll'lfl .i.f2+!-+) 29 f4 30 ll'lb l d4 3 1 ll'lf2 'i'a6 3 2 lLld3 :Lg5 ! 3 3 :Lal .••

"'h6 34 �el "'xb2 35 �d l Wgl+ 36 liJel lIge5 37 "e6 lt5e6 38 Wxc7 l.'l8e7 39 'i'd8+ �g7 40 a4 f3 41 gxf3 .i.g5 0 : 1 Assessment: White i s winning but it isn't easy.

Month 1 7 A 1 7/l a) Chernin-Petursson, Norway _ 979. White's bishops are poten­ ially very strong due to the open lature of the position. White's Plan: If I could neutral­ se Black's temporary activity the .ishop pair would give me an edge. Black's Plan: I need to use my emporary activity before White's )ishops become a problem. Candidate Moves: 45 .i.e4; 45 ;4; 45 .i.e5; 45 lte5. Analysis: 45 lIeS! (45 g4 ll'le6 46 pf2 l:la5 gives Black counterplay Igainst f3 and a2) 45 ... lIxe5 (45 ... :rc l + 46 f2 :La 1 47 .l:[e2 drives 3lack's rook from its irritating posi­ :ion) 46 .i.xe5 .i.xf3 47 .i.b8 a6 48 ie8! (48. .ic7 b5 49 .ic8 b4, 50 ... id5) 48 ... .idS 49 a3 .i.e4+ 50 i'f2 ll'lg6 S I �e3! (5 1 - .ic7 ll'le7) 51 . l:iJe7 52 �b7 as 53 �d4 .ie6 54 �e7 ll'le8 55 �e5 g7 56 �d8 .th3 57 �e4 �e6 58 .id3 �h3 59 .te2 .i.e6 60 g4 �b3 61 �a6 .i.e6 62 .i.e2 .i.b3 (after 62 ... h6 White ..

plays for g4-g5, creating a passed h-pawn) 63 g5 .ie6 64 h4 .i.h3 65

h5 .ie6 66 .i.d3 .ig4 67 h6+ g8 68 .i.e7 �f3 (Black should be care­ ful to avoid either 7 1 ... �fS? 72 g6+- or 7 1 . . . �h8? 72 .i.xc8 �xc8 73 �xf7+-) 69 .i.c4 .ig4 70 a4?! (White should have avoided this as a fantastic defensive idea is now possible) 70 ... .i.dl 71 f6 .i.h5 72

.i.b5 .i.g4 73 .i.e4 .i. h5 74 .i.d5 �g6 (Or 74 coPfS 75 .i.e4 g8 76 .i.f5 etc) 75 .i.b7 .i.e2! 76 .i. c6 __

(Dvoretsky pointed out that White could also have won with 76 .i.xc8, ultimately infiltrating Black's for­ tress) 76 ... .i.d3 77 �d7 .ie2 ! ! 78

.ie8 .ib3 79 .id7 .ie2 80 e5 .idl 81 d4 .ib3 82 c3 .ie6 83 .i.xe6 fe 84 e4 �f7 85 'it>b5 �g6 86 .ixb6 �xg5 87 'itxa5? (87 .ic5) 87 ... f6 (87 ... lLlxb6! 88 xb6 eS=) 88 .i.e5 eS 89 �b5 �e6 90 �e6 e4 91 as ll'le7+ 92 f2 .i.f5 29 e4 .ie6 30 :Lc2 lt h 1 3 1 h4 h6 32 :Lc7 b1 46 lDf6 hS 47 h4 c6 48 'it>c3 (48 . . . 'itt b 5 49 lDd5 wins Black's remaining pawns) 1 :0 Assessment: 24 i.xc6! keeps an edge for White. ••.

A I 7I2

a) Von Gottschall-Nimzowitsch, Hannover 1 926. White's c5 pawn is weak because of the insecure position of his bishop on f2 Black ' s pieces are actively placed, especial­ ly the rook on D . White's Plan : Ideally I would like to exchange rooks but I would settle for neutralising my 'oppo­ nent's plans. Black's Pla n : I can't win this position with my passed e-pawn alone so I need to manoevre against White's weaknesses on c5 and his kingsid� pawns. But frrst of all I can . further improve my king position. Candidate Moves: 38 .. . �d5; 3 8

". WeS.

Analysis: 38 We5! (losing a . tempo, afit:r 38 . . . �dS 39 nM it isn't clear how Black can continue) 39 l:b4 Wd5 ! 40 h4 (40 l:rd4+ �xc5 4 1 l:rxe4 l1xf2+-+; 40 l:rb6 h4 41 gxh4 gxh4 42 .txh4 c;t>xcS-+) 4 0 ... gxh4 4 1 gxb4 l:th3 4 2 l:rd4+ 9;e5 43 l:d8 i.d5 44 l:relH iLe6 45 l:td8 �f4 46 llf8+ i.rs 47 l:rf7 l:rh2 48 l:re7 i.g4+ 49 9;e l �O 50 l:rf7+ 9;g2 51 �d2 9;0 52 We3 .io 53 i.g3 l:rxb2 54 i.d6 ltb3+ 55 'ittd 4 �f2 56 l:tg7 e3 57 .tg3+ 'it>0 5 8 nf7 e 2 5 9 ne7 i.c6 0: 1 .•.

Assessment: White can gradually be run out of moves. b) Von Holzhausen - Nimzo­ witsch, Hannover 1 926. Black is a pawn up but at present the extra pawn is blockaded by White'� knight on e3. White's Plan: I can't undertake much in the way of positive action so I need to sit tight. Black's Plan: White is tied to my passed e-pawn but to win' I need tc open up a second front . on th{ queenside. Candidate Mo v es : 32 . .. a6; 32 . . . J:th6. l:rh6! (starting thf A n alysis : 3 2 process of sof:':',ling up White'� kingside) 33 h3 l:tg6 34 l:re2 a6 3� J:[f4 b5 36 b3 l:rg5 37 g4 J:tge5 31 �c3 as! 39 l:tef2 84 40 bxa4 bxc4 4 1 l:tm l:tSe7 42 l:rxe8 l:rxe8 4: liJxc4 lDxc4 44 �xc4 lIa8 45 lIr (4S ¢'b3? �d5 !-+) 45 lIxa4+ 4( �b3 (46 Wc3 was better) 46 .. l:tb4+! 47 g6 45 llg5+ 'it>h7 46 �f4 f6 47 llrs 'it>g6 48 b6 :'d8 49 :'as .liLxn (49 ... �c6 50 'it>e3) 50 h5+ (50 . . . e7 (2S ... �b7 26 0) 26 'ii h8 gS (26 ... 'i'xg2+ 27 'it>xg2

�b 7 + 28 rt>fl l:1xh8 29 l:td7+, 30 l:1xb7) 27 f3 'ii'g 6 28 ltd8 'i'c2 (28 ... lDxd8 29 'i'xd8+ 'it>fl 30 'iWdS++-) 29 l:1e8+ 'it>f7 30 'iig8+ 'it>f6 3 1 l:1el (3 1 l:1fS+! lDxfS 32 'iWxfS+ rt>e6 33 ltd6+ 'it>eS 34 1*'f6#) 31 'iWc6 3 2 h4 h6 (32 . . . gxh4 33 f4 ! , 34 l:1 l xe6+) 33 hS 1 :0 Assessment: Sacrificing two pieces for a rook and a pawn in­ creases White's initiative to decisive proportions. ..•

A I9I2 a) Stein-Hort, Los Angeles 1 967. White has . a passed c-pawn and Black a central pawn majority. Black's bishop on d5 is impressive but his pieces look slightly loose. White's Plan: Black's pieces have come to effective squres and he threatens my knight on as. If I'm going to exploit the fact the loose­ ness of Black's po�ition it has to be now.

240

Analysis Positions Solutions Analysis Positions Solutions 241

Black's Plan : After White ex­ changes on c6 I will play for a cen­ tral advance with e5-e4. Candidate Moves: 22 liJxc6; 22 liJxd4; 22 liJxe5. Analysis: 22 liJxeS! (22 lDxd4 iLxg2 23 liJxb5 'ii'b 8 24 lOxc6 'Wxb5-+) 22 liJxb4 (22 . . . J:txe5 23 ..i.xd5+ J:txd5 and now both 24 'ifb3 liJxb4 25 iLa3 ! and 24 'if0 ! liJxb4 25 ..i.a3 leave B1:ick with enough pieces hanging to compen­ sate for the sacrificed piece) 23 .•.

liJxd7 'ii' xd7 24 c6 'ii' f7 25 J:txe8+ �xe8 26 liJb7 and White a strong game without material investment. Assessment: 22 liJxe5 leads to wild complications which look pro­ mising for White.

b) Savon-Stein, Sarajevo 1 967. From a strategic point of view White seems to be doing well but Black's pieces are active and there are gaping holes in White's lines. White's Plan: Having played c4-c5 I'd l ike to keep tight control of the position whilst aiming for . that weak pawn on c7. Black's Plan: I think I can stir up trouble if I open the position: My immediate problem is the rook on 87 but maybe I can sac the exc.hllnge somehow. Candidate Moves: 23 ... dxe5 .

Analysis: 2 3 dxcS! 2 4 lObS nuS 25 iLxcs 'W'd8 26 iLxm .xts 27 gxh5!? (after 27 liJc3 a sample •••

line is 27 ... l:la3 28 gxh5 liJgxh5 29 �a2 �xa2 30 lDxa2 liJf4 intending 3 1 ... 'i!ih6; 27 0xc7? is met by 27 ... J:tc5) 27 ... liJfxhS (27 ... iLxb5 28 iLxb5 J:txb5 29 hxg6 fxg6 30 lOe6 liJxe6 3 1 J:txg6+ etc) 28 J:tb2 liJf4 29 ..i.o ..i.xbS 30 iLxbS (30 llxb5 llxb5 3 1 iLxb5 'iWd8! wins the

knight on g5) 30 .; . .hgS! 3 1 'Wc3 (3 1 llxg5 'ii'a 3! leaves White unable to deal with the threats of llxb5 and 'ifxO+) 3 1 lla3 32 'ili'xe5 liJh3 33 llO ..i.f4 34 '6'd4 'ili'e7 35 lle2 ..i.e5 •..

36 'ili'c4 lObS 37 l:lil2 liJ5f4 38 J:txaJ 'ili'xa3 39 ..i.d7 'iib 2 40 ..i.xb3 liJxh3 0:1 Assessment: The inspired ex­ change sacrifice gives Black tre­ mendous pressure.

A I 9/3 a) Averbakh-Tal, Riga

1958.

Black has very active pieces, at least for the time being. In the long term the d6 pawn may become weak. White's Plan: I want to dampen down Black's temporary piece ac­ tivity with a2-a3 and then fix my attention on his weak d6 pawn. Black's Plan: I might do someth­ ing dramatic with my temporarily active pieces. Candidate Moves: 1 2 . . . 1OhS; 1 2 . . . liJxe4. Ana iysis: 12 ... liJxe4! ( 1 2 . . . liJtlS 1 3 ..i.gS f6 14 ..i.e3 fS 1 5 a3 ! fxe4 1 6 axb4 exO 1 7 ..i.xO cxb4 1 8 lOe4 would have been good for White ac­ cording to Tal's second Koblents)

13 liJxe4 iLf5 14 liJfd2 liJxdS 1 5 ..i.xd6? (the best line was J S iLg3 'ii'e7 1 6 iLbS when 1 6 ... iLxe4 1 7 liJxe4 'iWxe4 1 8 iLxe8 "'xe8 1 9 iLxd6 �c6 20 iLg3 c4 when Black has good compensation for the ex­ change; 16 iLO would be met by 1 6 J:tad8) 1 5 ... liJf6! 16 iL n ( 1 6 iLxcs liJxe4 1 7 lDxe4 ..i.xe4) 16 liJxe4 ..•

17 liJxe4 ..i.xe4 IS ..i.xe4 'ili'xd6 1 9 'ili'c2 l:te7 2 0 iL f3 llae8 2 1 ltad l ..i.d4 2 2 a4 b6 2 3 b3 tte5 2 4 :td2 hS 25 n� l:txe! 26 iLxe2 h4 27 'lrhl �f4 28 g3 'iWf6 29 'W'dl .l:[dS 30 ..i.g4 ..i.xf2 ! 3 1 'i'e2 lld2! 32

.-e8+ h7 33 gxh4 'iWd4 34 ..i.h3 'ifd3 35 iLg2 J:tdl 0: 1 Assessment:. Black gets excellent compensation for his piece.

b) Tal-Gligoric, Bled Ct 1959. Black has an extra pawn but is be­ hind in development and unable to bring his king to safety. White's pieces are quite menacingly placed. White's Plan: I really want to get at that Black king. How do I set about opening it up? Black's Plan: I must get my king to safety after which the extra pawn would be significant. Candidate Moves: 22 liJg6; 22 iLe6. Analysis: 22 ..i.e6! (threatening 23 'ili'f5) 22 ... J:tg8 23 iLc4! (23 'ili'fS dS) 23 'iPts (23 ... 0-0-0 24 'iff5+ lOd7 2S ..i.xf7 threatens to trap Black's queen with 26 J:tc4) 24 ..i.b5 'iii'c5 25 J:tc4 'iii'e5 26 J:txc7 re­ covering the pawn with continuing pressure. Assessment: The stunning 22 iLe6! sets the position alight and poses Black very serious defensive problems. .••

A 19/4 a) Kasparov-Gheorghiu, Mos­ cow Izt 1 982. Black's king is still in

the centre and White has a central pawn majority. White's Plan: I would like to catch Black's king whilst it is lan­ guishing in the centre. Black's Plan: I want to bring my king to safety and try to create counterplay on the c-fiIe.

Candidate Moves: 14 dS. Analysis: 14 d5! exdS 1 5 exd5 iLxd5 16 ..i.bS a6 ( 1 6 . .. �e6 1 7 '-a4 ltd8 1 8 iL f4 'ili'c8 1 9 liJeS+-)

1 7 ..i.f4! -.wxr4 1 8 ..i.xd7+ �xd7 1 9 lhdS+ 9ilc7 ( J 9 . . . .,pcB was a better try) 20 l:tel ..i.d6 (20 ... ..i.f6 2 1 lte4+-) 2 1 ttfS "'c4 2 2 l:[e4! 'iib5 23 ltxf7+ �b8 24 l:[e6! ttd8 25 c4 'ili'c6 26 liJeS -.we8 27 'Wb l ! 1 :0 Assessment: 1 4 dS gives White a strong if not decisive attack

b) Kasparov-Anand, Amster­ dam 1996. White has more space and manoeuvrability but Black's position seems quite solid. White's Plan : I would like to di­ rect my attention towards the oppos­ ing king position with ..i.d3, ..i.c2 and -.wd3 but Black will be able to defend against this with ... fl-f5 and then gain counterplay with ... b7-b6. Perhaps I need to take ac­ count of these defensive resources and proceed quite subtly. Black's Plan: My main idea is queens ide counterplay with b7-b6 . . Candidate Moves: 1 3 J:te I ; 1 3 ..i.d3; 1 3 :te l . Analysis: 13 :rei ! ! l:[e8! ( J 3 ... b6 1 4 c4! bxcS I S dxcS dxc4 16 ..i.xc4 ..i.xcs 17 ..i.bS wins material) 14 :tel ..i.f6 after which Kasparov later claimed he should have played I S ..i.d3 intending ..i.b I followed by 'i'd3 with a slight initiative. Assessment: The subtle 13 ltc I keeps a slight initiative. .

242

s Analysis Positions Solution

Analysis Positions Solutiolls 243

'1!fc6 43 l:th 7 + 'ifile8 44 �b5+-) 43 '1!fxb7+ 'ifild8 44 l:tdJ �d4 45 '1!fe4 ne8 46 l:txd4 1 : 0 Assessment� Who knows?

M on th 20 A20 /1 Bar dele ben , a) Steinitz-von an- ex�a has k Blac 5. Has ting s 189

er fi �e In pawn but his king is und actI vely ite's Wh the centre from que en and placed forces. Wh i�e's knight are both hanging. ack 's White's Pla n: With B l osed exp king his pieces so loose and nce s. sequ ing forc yse � anal to d I nee the Bla ck's Pla n: If I can surv Ive n paw a extr my sure pres te immedia ng. might count for somethi e Moves: 22 l:txe7+; 22

b) Bogoljubow-Nimzowitsch, Slm Remo 1930. With opposite side

uy Bla ck's Plan: Perhaps I can �

returning my �ay out of troubl� by just some of the matenai. . 20 Can dida te Moves: 20 ... Wd5, ... ""5 .

'\\lIt Xb5 Analysis: 20 ... 'ifb5! 2 1 8 :dZ- 23 cxb5 22 tDxb6 axb 6! (22 . .. :xd8 8+ tDxd 24 a41) 23 tDc6 + 'ifilb 7

ugh com­ Black had mor e than eno e. ang pensation for the exch Black Assessment: After 21 'i'b5 is clearly better.

A20/2 khi ne, C and idat a) Nimzowitsch - Ale tDe6. h king s �re Bot 6. 192 ing r6, mer ' Sem ( 2 ., . . A nalysis: 22 1be7+! ! ..... fB. 2 a wild-looking + r3;c7 coming under attack, + 'iff7 31 -'gR+ . �c7 31 bil 'ifd 3!§ oJiod7 + ll)f7 34 'i'eH "fS+ e the Assessment: Wh ite can forc win.

tings b) Chigorin-Steillltz, llas nd a 189 5. Black is two pawns up � On pan op bish l erfu ntially pow

. pote r senous the other hand he is unde ite's acpressure righ t now from Wh htS. knig . tive e Wh ite's Plan : I'm going to dnv e of enc def the from en que B lack 's rook. c6 and then fork his king and

positio

- . White's Pla n : With Black storm. d to hIt nee I en the ugh rr.e thro ing � him first on the klngslde. e Bla ck's Pla n: On my next mov king ite's Wh n I'll take on e4 whe looks hopelessly eXJlOsed. didate Moves: 33 llxc 3; 33 _

Can

lDg6+.

3 Analysis: 33 tDg6+! (33 :Xc 6 hxg ... 33 -+) 'iff2 c3 �xc3 34 'ifx es 34 1i'g4! l:tf7? (34 ... �g8 'produc

ns: 35 mind-boggling comphcatlo 7 37 .bd + lId7 36 �g7 fxg6 39 'iPh6 �d3 'i'xd7+ 'it>xg6 38 + 41 gl x 'ii' + lIgl 4U 7 g h8 (23 ... �xf7 24 11xa5 11xa5 25 �3+ rt;g6 26 l:le6+) 24 �xd6 .xn 2S l:re7 1Wrs 26 �cS

'i'f4 27 'We2 h6 28 11e4 ..n 29 l:eS !Dc4 30 11u8 11xa8 3 1 l%fS 'i'g6 32 1Ie4 '.t'h7 33 h3 11al + 34 rt;g2 11el 3S �b4 lDd6 36 �xd6 cxd6 37 .-d3 dS 38 f3 1 :0 Assessment: The surprising 22 g4! gives White a clear advantage.

b) Karpov-Rogers, Bath 1 983. Black's own bishop on d5 is a source of strength where it stands but doesn't have anywhere to go should White play c2-c4. White's Pl an : I would like to em­ barrass the bishop on d5 . by threatening c2-c4. B1ac�'s Plan: I need to get my king safe and secure the position of my bishop on d5. Candidate Moves: 18 !Dxd7; 1 8 �e l ! ? Analysis: Karpov played the im­ mediate 18 �el ! ! (after 1 8 lDxd7 �xd7 the king doesn't look so bad). Threatened with 19 c4 Rogers tried 1 8 ... !DxeS (after 1 8 ... �xa2 there is 1 9 11a3 �d5 20 �a5 trapping the queen) 1 9 dxeS lbfS but after 20 l:lh3 his position was hopeless. The game ended with 20 ... 0-0-0 (20 . . . c5 is refuted b y 2 1 l:xd5 exd5 2 2 'i'xfS) 2 1 c4 'WcS 22 b4 �f3 23

11xd8+ l:lxd8 24 'ii'xf3 "xeS 2S �c3 'ili'd6 26 �d3 !Dd4 27 'i'xn lbfS 28 �xfS 'ii'f4+ 29 ne3 1 :0 Assessment: 1 8 � 71 ! ! is a win­ ning move.

248

Analysis Positions Solutions Analysis Positions Solutions 249

Month 22 A22!1 a) Lasker-Pire, Moscow 1 935.

White is well ahead in developm�nt and Black's king is still in the centre. White's Plan: I would like to use my lead in development to launch and immediate attack, can I find a way to breach Black's defences? Black's Plan: If I can get safely castled I should stand quite well. Candidate Moves:· 13 l1xf6.

Analysis: 13 lhf6! gxf6 14 1Wh5+ �d8 ( 1 4 ... �d7 I S 'iWfi+ i.e7 16 lLl5! l1e8 1 7 l1d l dS 1 8

ltJxdS ; 1 4 ... rj;e7 I S ltJ5+! exfS 1 6 ltJdS+ �d8 1 7 .ltb6+ �d7 1 8 1Wf7+ c,t>c6 1 9 1Wc7++-) 15 . 'ifm i.d7 ( I S . . . ii.e7 1 6 ltJfS ! 'i!lc7 1 7 ltJa4! 11f8� 1 8 Wxh7 �e8 1 9 i.b6 'ifd7 20 1Wh5+ l:[f7 2 1 ltJg7+ rj;f8 22 ifb8#; 1 6 ... l:re8 1 7 lOxd6! i.xd6 [or 17 ... 1Wc6 18 ltJxe8 1i'xe8 19 i.b6+ c,t>d7 20 l:[d 1 +] 1 8 i.b6+ i.c7 1 9 � I ++-) 1 6 'Wxf6+ rj;c7 1 7 'i'xh8

i.h6 18 ltJxe6+! 'ifxe6 19 'ifxa8 ii.xe3+ 20 ¢>hl l :O Assessment: 1 3 lhf6 gives White

a winning attack.

b) Euwe-Lasker, Zurich 1 934.

White's pawn on eS controls f6 and gives Rlack's king some couse for concern. White's Plan: My pieces are quite well positioned for an attack on B lack's king I can use f6 as a

pivot for my attack and my queen might come into play after g2-g3 and 'Wh3. Black's Plan: Such a critical position normally requires crisp play. Public enemy number one is the pawn on eS, do I have a way to eliminate it? Candidate Moves: 3S . . . 1WxeS.

Analysis: 35 'ifxe5!! 36 lOf6+ 1Wxr6 37 lhf6 and now the cold­ •..

blooded 37 ... lLlxe l ! should have been played. After Lasker's 37 lLlxf6 White could have defended himself with 38 l1e2! l1dl 39 l1xc2 ...

l1xO+ 40 �xO . Assessment: Black's queen sacri­

fice gives him the initiative .

Al2!2 a) Korehnoi-Novikov, Antwerp 1 997. A difficult and tense position

in which Black's last move (20 ... e5) built a broad pawn centre and threatened the knight on d4. On the other hand it surrendcrs the £S square. White's Plan: Can I take pot­ shots at Black's expanded centre? Black's Plan: I want to intensify the pressure against Black's back. ward c2 pawn. Candidate Moves: 2 1 lOdfS; 2 1 ltJgfS. Analysis:;21 lOgfS! i.xf5? (21 ... i.f8 22 lLlb5 l:rcS ! 23 d4!? exd4 24 ii.xd4 produces a complex game) 22

1JxfS ii.f'8 23 ltJg3 1We6 24 d4 exd4?! (Black should keep it closed with 24 ... e4!) 25 ii.xd4 1Oe4 26 1Jh5! ltJc3 2 7 i.xc3 l1xc3 28 lOf4 ir'a6 29 i.xd5 ltJf6 30 l1xb7 'ihe2 31 i.xfi+ �h8 32 .ltJ xe2 l1xa3 33 !Ixa3 i.xa3 34 l1a7 l1xe2 35 l1a8+ 1l>h7 36 ltJf4 l1c i + 37 �g2 g5 38 )tg6+ �g7 39 l1a7+ �g8 40 ltJe6 l:te8 41 l:txa4 i.b2 42 l1a7 ltJd5 43 .lth7+ �h8 44 .ltfS 1 :0 Assessment: 2 1 lOgfS ! is the best

with chances for both sides.

b) Korehnoi-Greenfeld, Beer­ Sheva 1 995. White's h i rook is en arise. Black's knights are not se­

curelv placed.

White's Plan: If I defuse the im­

mediate threats my position would be very attractive. Black's Plan: I must keep the in­ itiative as White's structure is better. Candidate Moves: 1 0 'i!lc2; 1 0 iib3; 1 0 'ifa4; 1 0 h3. · Analysis: 10 h3! 1Of3+ ( 1 0 . . . 'iWxh 1 I I hxg4, 1 2 lOc7+, 1 2 i.xeS) 1 1 rj;e2 ltJge5 12 b3 g5 ( 1 2 ... a6 1 3 ii.g2) 1 3 ii.g2. gxf4 1 4 exf4 a 6 1 5

fxe5 nb5 1 6 i.xf3 Wc5 17 ltJxb5 1Wxe5+ 18 rj;o .ltg7 and now 1 9 a4! would have been the best, White having a clear advantage after 19 ... ..-xal 20 'it'xal ii.xa l 21 lLlc7+ c,t>d8 22 1Oxa8 ii.d4 23 �e2. Assessment: The cool 10 h3 de­

fuses Black's transitory activity.

A22!3 a) Salov-Shirov, Amsterdam 1995. White has an extra pawn but

the powerful bishop on bS prevents him from castling kingside. Black has a slight lead in development. White's Plan: After I coordinate my pieces this position will be good

for me. The main problem is king safety. Black's Plan: I have a temporary lead in development for my pawn minus but I need to strike now. Candidate Moves: 1 6 ... b6; 16 . . . lOf4. Analysis: 16 . . lOf4!? ( 1 6 ... b6 1 7 ii.c3 ltJf4 [ 1 7 ... lLlxc3 1 8 dxc3 �d3 19 'i'b2] 1 8 'ikfS! lLlxg2+ [ 1 8 ltJd3+ 1 9 'ltfl ] 1 9 c,t>d I is also far from clear) 17 ii.xd8 l:txd8 18 'it'c3! ( 1 8 1We4 ttJd3+ 1 9 �e2 'ii f6-+; 1 8 O-O-O? ttJd3+ 1 9 'it>b I lLlxf2) 1 8 ... 1We6! ( 1 8 ... ltJd3+ 19 �fl ) 1 9 f3? ( 1 9 rj;d l 19 lOd3 20 l:tfl lLleS! 2 1 l:tg l l:td3! is messy) 1 9 ... l:td3 20 .

. . .

'it'xe5 lOxg2+ 2 1 Wd l ltJxe3+! 22 �c1 b6! 23 'iic 7 l1d6! 24 'Wb8+ ii.e8 25 ltJe4 l:te6+ 26 ltJc3" lOd5 27 l:ta2 lieS 28 'iig3 ltJxc3 29 dxc3 �xb3 30 l:te2 ii.a4 31 'ikf2 'ir'xa3+ 32 rj;bl ii.xe2+ 33 'iWxc2 l:txc3 0 : 1 Assessment: 1 6 ... lO f4 i s certain­ ly the sharpest way to play it, but may not necessarily be stronger than 1 6 .. b6. .

b) Korehnoi-Shirov, Madrid 1 996. White is a pawn down but he

will win d4, has a nice central pawn chain and two bishops. Black's pieces are aggressively posted but there are no obvious inroads into White's camp. White's Plan: After recovering the pawn on d4 I'd. like to organise an eventual c4-c5 to free my duo of central pawns Black's Plan: In the long run White's position could become very good I ' d l ike to use my active pieces immediately. Candidate Move.: 20 ... gS ; 20 ... lOxe4.

250 Analysis Positions Solutions

Analysis: 20 ... liJxe4! 2 1 fxe4 "iVg4 (threatening 22 ., . f3 and 22 ... e4) 22 h3? (22 'i'h3 f3 23 'Wxg4 �xg4 24 h3 �h5 25 � h I lhe4 gives compensation for the pieCe but nothing special) 22 ... 'ii'g5 23 �h I "iVh4 24 �gl 1:tr6 25 �xd4 1:g6 26 �hl lIxg2! 27 �xg2 l:.xe4 J:[e2+ 28 �gl (28 �f2 J:[e2) 28 29 � h I �g6! 30 �f2 �e4+ 0 : 1 Assessment: After 20 liJxe4 •..

Black gets good compensation for his piece . .

A22/4 a) "MChess Pro" - "Quest", Computer World Ch , Paderborn 1 995. White is about to lose the trapped knight on a4, Black's pieces on the kingside are quite clumsily placed and there ' is a . pin on the knight on f6. White's Plan: I need . to do something to compensate me for the loss of the knight on a4. An advance of my f and e-pawns seems l ike the thing to do. Black's Plan: I want to take White's knight! Candidate Moves: 1 8 f4; 1 8 . liJg3. Analysis: 18 lOg3! ( 1 8 f4 �xe2) 18 ... g5! ? ( 1 8 ... bxa4 1 9 f4! J:[b5 20 c4 g5 2 1 fxg5 hxg5 22 cxb5 gxh4 23 lOxh5 lOxh5 24 'ii'f3 ! ) 19

f4 ! gxh4 20 fxeS hxg3 21 lIxf6 gxh2+ 22 'lthl bxa4 23 l:.afl '6'f8

(23 ... dxe5 24 "iVg3+ �f8 25 lIxh6) 24 e6! (24 exd6 �d8 ! ) 24 ... it'g7

25 exf7+ �f8 26 it'a6! �b6 27 ii'b7 lId8 28 lIe6! (28 ... �xf7 29 l:.ef6; 28 ... 'Wg5 29 it'd7 ! ! ) 1 : 0

Ana lysis Positions Solutions

Assessment: White's has more

251

than enough for the knight. "Dragon" b) " Stobor", Computer World Ch, Paderbom

1995.

The players have castled on opposite wings and there are opposite colour bishops. Black has weakened his kingside with h5. White's Plan: How do I open lines on the kings ide? to need . Black's Plan: I concentrate first and foremost on defence. Candidate Moves: 28 �xh5.

Analysis: 28 .i.xh5 ! ! gxh5 29 lOf5 J:[xfS 30 exfS l:.xfS 31 "iVe4! 'ii'f8 (3 1 . . . l:tf8 is met by 32 1i'd5+

�h7 33 lIg5 with a continuing attack and 3 1 . . . lIf6 would be answered by 32 'ii'a 8+ �h7 33 'ii'xa6) 32 J:[xd6! 'ii'x d6?! (32 . . . J:[fI+! 33 1Id i l:.xd l + was better) 33

1i'xfS 'i'd3+ 34 'ii'x d3 lOxd3 35 1%g6! lOe5 36 l:.g5 lOe6 37 lhh5 �f6 38 a4! bxa4 39 J:[a5 �xl\4 40 lha4 �e7 4 1 1%xa6 �f7 42 b4 �f6 43 �c2 �e5 44 l:tal liJf4 45 b5 �c5 46 l:ta8 tbg2 47 �b3 tbf4 48 1%b8 lbe6 49 �c4 �d6 50 l:ta8 �c5 51 J:[a2 �e3 52 l%e2 �e4 53 Irel lOd8 54 b6 lLlb7 55 �b5 �f3 56 :dl lbc� �7 l%d8 xb7 26 �xd4 a5 27 1:fe I +-) 26

�xd4! 'fhd4 27 lIfd l 'ill'x b2 28 lLld6+ �b8 29 l:tdbl 'ill'x g7 30 lIxb4+ xe6 35 l1el + 'ft;n 36 'i'd4 'ii'x a4 37 'it'g7 'ft;e8 38 lH6 ""d8 39 'ii'fS 'ii'e8 40 l1dl l:td7 4 1 �e7 1ilc7 42 'ii'e8 1 :0 Assessment: The. exchange sacri­ fice gives White a winning attack.

A23/3 a) Larsen-Kavalek, Lugano 1970.- The position is blocked but opposite side castling suggests viol­ ence. Who will open lines first? White's Plan: I would really like to lever Bhick's kingside open with something like f2-t1 or g3-g4 Un­ fortunately Black's knight on eS seems to stop these ideas or does it? I have to watch out for 20 i.xc4. Black's Plan: It isn't easy for me 10 lever open White's king with pawn advances but I llJight well be threatening to sacrifice a piece with 20 i.xc4. Candidate Moves: 20 LUcdS; 20 'ii'e 2; 20 g4. Analysis: 20 g4! LUxg4 21 O! exO .22 .ltxo LUeS (22 ... LUf6 23 'ii'h2 l:tfe8 24 LUbS LUc8 2S i.xf6 i.xf6 26 'ii'h7+ ct>f8 27 i.dS etc) 23 'ii'h 2 .\txc4! ? (23 ... l:tfe8 24 LUbS LUc!! 25 'ii'h7+ 'iit>f8 26 .\td5+-) 24 bxc4 LUxo 25 'ii'h7+ 'iit>n 26 LUcdS l:Ig8 27 l£Jxe7 nb8 28 Wal (28 'iit>c l !:t--) 28 ... 'ii'xe7 29 'i'xg6+ 'iit>fS 30 LUe6+ ",xe6 31 .\txg7+! (3 1 'i'xe6?? .ltxb2+ 32 ct>b I i.a3+ 33 1ilc2?? l1g2+ etc) 3 1 ... rtte7 32 i.fS+! l:rbxfS (32 l1gx fs 33 J:[h7+ l1n 34 l:txf7+ 'i'xf7 35 'i'xd6+ 'iit>e 8 36 1i'xb8+ 'iit>e 7 37 'i'd8+ 'Ote6 3 8 'ii'd6#) 33 l:th7+ ( 3 3 . . . l1 fl 3 4 l:txfl:t- 'i'xfl 35 'ii'xd6+ c;t>e8 3 6 'ii'd 8#) 1 :0 . Assessment: 20 g4! gives White a winning attack.

b) Spassky-Geller, Sukhumi Cm 1 968. Black has queenside pressure, White is trying to break through on the other flank. White's Plan: I Jleed to find a way to break through, how can J Black 's of some eliminate defenders? Black's Plan: Besides threatening 26 ... LUxb3 I have strong pressure agaInst c2. If I can force White onto the defensive this position should tum in my favour. Candidate Moves: 26 .ltxd4; 26 'ii'h4; 26 4JdS. Analysis: 26 LUd5! (I doubt that Spassky even considered 26 .ltxd4 cxd4 27 'i'xd4 and in fact this is met by 27 ... LUdS! 28 'i'f2 LUxf4 29 'ii'x f4 �b2) )6 ... llJxb3 2 7 e5! LUxc l (27 ... dxeS 28 lUxf6+ exf6 29 i.xb7 LUxc I 30 �xc8 LUxd3 3 1 iff) fxgS 32 cxd3 e4 33 de l1a3 and a rather equal final position) and now 28 exf6 was the right move with a strong attack. Spassky played the mistaken 28 .\txe l ? and after 28 ... .\txd5 29 .\txd5 LUxd5 3 0 'i'h4 LUf6 3 1 ' exf6 exf6 32 'ii'h 7+ �fS 33 LUe4 'i'eS 34 .ltf4 'i'd4+ 35 'ii'h l would have been in serious trouble had Black now played correctly b) Fischer-Andersson, Siegen with 3S ... nd8. 01, 1970. Black has more space, Assessment: After Spassky's 26 White has more centre pawns. LUdS both sides have chances in a White's Plan: Probably Black complicated struggle. can preveltt the thematic break­ throughs with either b3-b4 or d3-d4. _._

Another idea is to try and establish a knight on e4 and secure it against .. , f6-f5 with g2-g4. Black's Plan: I have more space but it's difficult to see how I should breach White's position. Candidate Moves: 1 3 l1fd l ; 1 3 l:tfe l ; 1 3 c,t>h I . Analysis: Fischer established his knight on e4 and supported it with g2-g4: 13 c,t>h l ! ? 'i'd7 14 l1g 1 l1ad8 15 LUe4 'ii'fl 16 g4 g6 17 l1g3 i.g7 18 l1agl LUb6 1 9 LUeS i.e8 20 LUh4 l£Jd7 2 1 LUe4 l£JfS 22 l£JfS .lte6 23 LUeS LUe7 24 LUxg7 'iit>xg7 25 g5 LUrs 26 110 b6 27 gxf6+ 'iit> h8 28 LUxe6 l1xe6 29 d4 ed 30 .ltc4 d3 3 1 .ltxd3 l1xd3 3 2 'ii'x d3 l1d6 3 3 'ii'c4 LUe6 34 i.e5 lId8 35 h4 ctJd6 36 'ii'g4 LUfS 37 hS lile8 38 e4 l:td2 39 l:th3 q;g8 40 hg LUxg6 41 f4 q;f8 42 'ii'g S lild6 43 .ltxd6+ 1 :0 Assessment: Fischer's 1 3 c,t>h l is a highly original concept and does create some problems. A23/4 a) Hodgson-Pia Cram ling, Bern 1 995. White _has an impressive build-up of forces on the kingside. White 's Plan: Can I sacrifice on h6? Black' s Plan: I need -to defend my king. Candi date Moves: 22 .txh6. Analys is: 22 i.xh6! LUe4 (22 ... gxh6 23 'i'xh6, 24 l1eS; 23 ... fi'b6 24 'iit>h I ! 'i'xd4 2S l1ad I ; 23 llJg4 24 .tgl ! +-) 23 'ii' h5 l£Jf6 (23 ... g6 24 'ii'e5 i.f6 25 'ii'f4 i.xd4+ 26 q;fl gS 27 i.xg5! i.xg5 28 l1xe4 'i'xf4 29 l1xf4 i.eS 30 l1h4 leaves White

with an extra pawn and good win­ ning chances) 24 'ii'g S LUe8 25 'ii'e3 .ltf6 26 i.f4 'i'b6 27 i.eS i.xe5 28 'i'xe5 'ii'xb2 29 llJa4 'tWa3 30 lilcs lilf6 3 1 lilxe6 ltae8 32 .tf5 fe 33 i.xe6+ c;t>h8 34 lte3 "ihJ2 35 l:Iael lDh7 36 'i'h5 g6 37 'ii'x dS LUf6 38 'i'e5 'iit>g7 1:0 Assessment: 22 i.xh6 is winning for White b) Hodgson-Jonsson, Reykjavik 1989. A wild position in which both players' kings are coming under pressure. White's Plan: I'd like to get my king off the e-file-it's starting to look very draughty . Black's Plan: If I can open a few more lines I might catch . White's king in the crossfire. Candidate Moves: 22 ... i.xc4; 22 . . . dS; 22 ... gS. Analy sis: 22 gS! 23 l1xb7 (23 fxgS 'tWxg5, 24 ... 'ii'g3+) 23 ... 'ii'x b7 24 fxgS .�g4! ! (24 ... lilh7 2S 'tWhS .tf5 ! 26 g6 i.xd4 27 c,t>d I ! :fl + 28 �d2 ltf2+= [29 i.e2? l:Ixe2+ 30 'Wxe2 .bg6-+] 25 gxf6! i.xdl 26 fl+ �xf7 27 l1h7+ 'iit>e6 28 l1xb7 i.g4 29 nxa7 l1a8 30 l1g7 l1g8 3 1 l1xg8 l1xg8 32 a4 i.h5 33 �f2 .td I 34 as l1b8 35 �e3 l:rb3 36 'ft;d2 l1a3 37 g3 i.b3 38 g4 l1a4 39 g5 q;f7 40 e5 dxe5 4 1 i.xe5 i.xc4 42 g6+ 'iit>g 8 43 i.xe4+ l:Ixc4 44 'iit>d 3 l1g4 45 a6 l1a4 46 a7 l1xa7 47 c;t>c4 lA-Vi Assessment: After 22 g5! the position explodes into action, objec­ tively speaking Black is probably winning. ..•

254

Analysis Positions Solutions Analysis Positiolls Solutiolls 255

Month 24 A24/1 a) Keres- Book, Kemeri l 937.

White has an extra rook for just two pawns but the knight on c8 looks trapped Black's other pieces are dis­ playing a menacin g level of activity. White's Pla n : Can I get my knight out safely or profitably let it go? Black's Plan: After capturing White's knight on c8 I might gener­ ate threats based on my passed d­ pawn and the invasion of my knight on the d3 square. Candid ate Moves: 22 t:'£Ja7' 22 'iib 5 ; 22 'ili'c2; 27 1:tc l ; 22 t:'£Je7 ; ; 22 Ji.xd4 . .:/i:'.. ": ;;Annlysis: 2 2 'ithS! (Keres re­ jected 22 !Da7 bec3use of 22 iib6 23 !Dxc6 f8 28 lldl ¢>fl 29 t:'£Jb6 lIh8 30 lIxg7+ ¢>xg7 31 a4 lIh2 32 .IIg I f4 33 d5 cxd5 34 �d4 g3 35 0 ¢>f6 36 bS nbS 37 nbS lIh5 38 c6 bxc6 39 bxc6 d6 41 c8=� �xc8 42 liJxc8+ 'ittd 7 43 ·lIc1 lIh2 44 lIc2 1 :0 Assessment: 1 3 g4 gives White excellent attacking chances.

A24/3 a) Botvinnik-Bronstein. Moscow WCh 1 95 1 . Black has an exra pawn but his structure is bad ly weakened. The pawn on dS looks doomed. White's Plan: After winning back the pawn on dS I will attack d7 and maybe a6. . Black's Plan: Can I make it diffi­ cult for White to recapture 0"'45? . Candidate Moves: 30 ... tlJxa3; 30 ... �h8.

Analysis: 30 ... '1t>h8! 31 lIe1 ( 3 1

lOxd5 is bad because o f 3 1 . . . �xdS 32 �xd5 t:'£Jxd5 33 lIxd5 g6 34 lhd7 [34 lOd6 !De3] 34 ... gxf5 3 5 c 6 tOe5 3 6 l:[c7 lI fl 37 lIc8+ c;t;g7 38 c7 '&t>f6 39 h8 created problems for White in what seemed like a strong positioh for him.

256 Analysis Positions SolrJlions

b) Tolush B rons tein USSR Ch, Riga 1 958. Black is the exchange . 'up and White's king is exposed. White's Plan : This position is desperate so I should try to stir up trouble. with my d-pawn and against Black's king. Black's · Plan: How can I finish things off? Candidate Moves: 30 ... lOd7; 30 -

,

.,. e4.

Analysis: 30 e4 (after 30 ... 1Dd7 31 liJe7+ Blade has to play 31 ... �h8 because other king moves are answered by 32 lIxf7+) 3 1 . lOe7+ lIxe7! 3 2 dxe7 exf3! 33 tvd8+ q"h7 34 e8='it 'ith3+ 35 �el lOd3+ 36 �d2 1i'h6+ 37 �c3 'ifxcl + (38 �d4 1fxb2+-+) 0 : 1 Assessment: Black can win quite cleanly with some sharp play. •..

(B!ack should definitely leave the rook on f8 to its fate with 26 .:. lOxb2) 27 .bg7 �xg7 28 (6+ �h8 29 tvg5 b3? (29 .. , J:[g8 30 J:[f4 1i'd8 3 1 J:[h4 "f8 32 lIh6, 33 '1th4) and now Bronstein could have won nicely with 30 J:[f4 bxa3 31 'ith6 axb2+ 32 'it>h2 1IgS 33 'itxh7+ etc. Assessment: The exchange sacri­ fice allows Black to defend. b) Bomnnik-Bronstein, Moscow WCh 195J . White has the slight ad� vantage of two bishops. Black's structure is slightly weakened. . White's Plan: I want to open the position up for my bishops. Rlack's Plan: Should I sit iight or win that b3 pawn? Candidate Moves: 35 ... ..txc l ; 35 . .. �f7. Analysis: 35 �xc l ? (Black should play 35 ...