Chess Evolution Weekly Newsletter - e

Weekly Newsletter
Issue 18
29th of June 2012
Issue 18
29th of June 2012
Editorial Preface
The main event of the female chess came to an end.
The Grand Prix in Kazan had 2 winners, Muzychuk and
Koneru, they both scored 7,5/11. Third came Hou Yifan
and Cmilyte with 7/11.
Table of Contents
»» Editorial Preface 2
»» 4 best games of the past week 3
»» Puzzle section 18
»» Endgame section 21
»» Clash of the Titans 27
»» Surprise section / study 30
»» Solutions 31
Another interesting event is in progress. The qualification tournament for the Russian Super Final with players
like Nepomniactchi, Jakovenko, Vitiugov and many other
strong GMs participating in it.
Peter Svidler won his match against David Navara 3–1.
From this event we comment the two decisive games.
In the “special” section of the newsletter, we present You
a 3 vs 3 pawn endgame. Try to calculate till the end, there
is only one winning way. Such kind of exercises help a lot
to improve the calculating abilities!
Have fun and enjoy the CEWN Nr18!
Arkadij Naiditsch
Balogh Csaba
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29th of June 2012
4 best games of the past week
(1) Svidler,P (2741)
— Navara,D (2706) [C65]
Prague match Prague CZE (2), 21.06.2012
[Balogh Csaba]
Svidler comes up with a new plan against the rock-solid Berlin defense, but it appears to be just a „one-game
idea”. If Black would have reacted well, he seems to be
completely fine.
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 A surprise by Navara,
who is not really a Berlin specialist, he plays it only occasionally. Therefore, Svidler prefers to avoid the endgame
that arises after the main move 4.0–0, and goes for a line,
where all the pieces remains on the board — he hopes
to outplay his opponent by being more familiar with the
middlegame ideas.
9. Re1 This is the novelty. A really harmless-looking move,
with the typical Spanish plan to transfer the knight to g3.
It has the poison inside, that Black calms down, because
he successfully equalized the opening part of the game,
makes some „handy” moves and suddenly finds himself
in trouble. This happened in this game as well. [9.d4 is
a very sharp continuation with many recent games even
on the highest level. Navara was definitely very well prepared for this.]
9... Re8 10.h3 Another typical move to avoid the Ng4
and Bg4 ideas.
10... Bb6 Black quits from the d3-d4 tempo, this is also
a known plan.
11.Nf1 [11.Nc4 h6 12. Be3 Be6 seems to be nothing for
White.]
11...h6 Black also prevents the pin with Bg5. Both sides
made their useful moves so far.
12.Ng3
4.d3 Bc5 5.c3 0–0 6.0–0 d6 7.Nbd2 a6 8. Bxc6 [8. Ba4
was the stand ard move, but Berlin players already worked
out the right setups to achieve a comfortable position.]
8...bxc6
12... Be6?! I don’t like this move. Black decides the placement of his bishop too early. [I would clearly prefer the
standard 12...a5 13. Be3 (13.d4 Probably Navara wanted
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29th of June 2012
to avoid this move by 12... Be6, but Black seems to be
in time for undermining the center. 13...exd4 14.cxd4 c5
15.d5 Bb7 This plan is also known in the 9.d4 line. Black
needs to play c6. 16.Qc2 (16.Bf4 c6 17.dxc6 B xc6 18.Qxd6
Qxd6 19.B xd6 N xe4 with equality.) 16...c6 17.dxc6 Bxc6
18. Bf4 By playing c6, Black weakened the d6 pawn, but
also got a target on e4. From this point of view, the next
move suggests itself: 18... Re6! 19. Rad1 Qf8! followed
by Rae8, pushing the e4 pawn. Black has no problem.)
13...c5! This is another typical „Spanish” idea. Black fights
against the d4 push. On the other hand, it is always hard
to make this move, because the b6 bishop gets out of the
game, but all other pieces are doing well. Black can play
on d5, White will avoid this by pushing c4, closing the position. But after c4, Black has good maneuvering possibilities with the transfer of the knight to e6, or preparing
for an f5 push. Also the b6 bishop could be improved by
a4-Ba5.]
ture. As the principle says: „It’s better to have the smallest amount of pawn islands”. Now White has two against
three. 17... Bd7 18. Rc1 c5 19.Nde2 followed by Nc3 and
pushing the d6 pawn.]
15...Nd7 [The prophylactic 15... Bd7 was probably more
advisable, but still after 16.d4 (16.Rd1 one more preparation is also possible.) 16...cxd4 17.cxd4 exd4 18.Nxd4
White is better.]
16.d4! cxd4 17.cxd4 exd4 18.Nxd4 White is clearly
better now. We must admit that the e3 rook is excellently placed. It might be useful all along the 3rd rank.
We can see how difficult it is to play the Spanish opening. After the novelty in the 9th move, Black made very
logical moves and got into trouble, in 5 moves, right after
14. Rxe3.
13. Be3 [13.d4 was an alternative 13...exd4 14.cxd4 d5
15.e5 Ne4 Probably this pawn sacrifice is the reason for
12... Be6, if White accepts it, Black plays c5 and Bd5 and
obtains a confortabe position. But after 16. Be3! I think
White has some advantage, because of the poor b6 bishop and the weakness on the c-file.]
13... Bxe3?! After this move, I think White is better. Black
is not able to react well against the d4 push. [13...c5 was
the right move again. I am sure that Navara saw it, but
psychologically it is a difficult decision to close the b6
bishop.]
14. Rxe3 c5 15.Qc2 [15.d4 was possible immediately
as well 15...cxd4 16.cxd4 exd4 17.Nxd4 White is slightly
better. He has better pieces and a superior pawn struc-
18...a5 [Fighting against the c6 square with 18...c5 would
weaken the d6 pawn too much. 19.Ndf5; Computer suggests a nice idea on 18...Ne5 19.Qc3! eying at the g7
square after Ndf5 and f4. 19...Qf6 20.f4!! Qxf4 21. Rf1
Qg5 22.Ngf5 ! and the rook arrives to g3. 22... Bxf5
23.Nxf5 Qf6 24. Rg3 g5 25.Qxc7 +/-]
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19.b3 [19. Rd1 was probably even better. Svidler did not
want to allow a4 to fix his pawn structure on the queenside, but he could have launched a quick attack after that:
19...a4 20.Ngf5 Bxf5 (20...B xa2 21.Rg3) 21.Nxf5 and
Rg3 next.]
19...Nc5 20. Rd1 Bd7 This was Black’s aim, to consolidate his position with Qf6, but Svidler found a very
strong idea. It is not difficult to see the move, it is much
harder to judge its consequences correctly...
24.a4 Another human move. Fixing the weakness on a5,
Black has no useful move. [24.Qc3 with the idea of Nh5
was also good.]
24... Be6 [24...f6 in order to get rid of the strong e5 knight
25.Nxd7 Qxd7 26. Rc3 Ra7 27.Ne2 and the knight goes
to d4 with a big advantage.]
21.e5! White creates a lot of concrete threats connected
with Ndf5.
21...dxe5 [21...g6 22.Nf3 +/-]
22.Nf3 Really subtle play, but.. [The computer move
22.Ndf5! was even better 22... Bxf5 (22...Ne6 23.Nh5!
too many threats are in the air and if Black wants to ease
his task by 23...Nd4 24.N xd4 exd4 25.Rg3 wins, because
of 25...g6 26.R xg6+ +-) 23.Nxf5 Qf6 24.Nxg7! Kxg7
25.Qxc5 +- Despite the material equality, Black is lost. His
pawns and the king are just too weak.]
25.Qc3 Qg5 26.Nf3! Svidler does not want to give any
counter-chance. [26.Qxc7 Rec8 was Navara’s idea 27.Qb6
(27.Qxd6? Rd8) 27...Nf5 28.Nxf5 Qxf5 to get some activity for the pawn. Still, after 29.Nc6! White is better.]
26...Qd8 [26...Qe7 27.Nd4 +-]
27.Nd4 Black is in big trouble. The only „normal” move
27... Bd7 in order to simplify the position, loses.
22...Nb7! Only move! Black needs to block the d-file.
23.Nxe5 Nd6
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27...Kh8 [27... Bd7 28.Ndf5! +- White wins due to the pin
along the d-file.]
35. Re3! Rc1+ 36.Kh2 Rc2 37.f3 Now Black is forced
into passivity, otherwise he ends up two pawns down.
28.Nh5! White wins material now.
37... Rc6 [37... Rb2 38. Rxe6 Rxb3 39. Re5 +-]
28...Qg5 29.Nxe6 Rxe6 30. Rxe6 fxe6 31.Qxc7 Qxh5
32.Qxd6 [32. Rxd6 +- was better, White is a pawn up, he
has more active pieces and better pawns.]
38. Re5 Ra6 and now the position is easily winning. Svidler demonstrates it with perfect technique. [38... Rb6
39. Rb5!]
32...Qe2 33.Qd3 After playing a perfect middlegame,
Svidler transfers into a winning rook endgame.
39.Kg3 Kg8 40.Kf4 Kf7 41. Rb5 First, he activated his
pieces.
33...Qxd3 34. Rxd3
41...Kf6 42.h4 Ra8 43.g4 Then he limited Black’s counterplay on the kingside.
43... Ra7 44.Ke4 g5 45.hxg5+ hxg5 46.Kd4 Rd7+
47.Kc4 And he went to support his extra pawn on the
queenside.
47... Ra7 48.b4! and the final breakthrough decides the
game.
34... Rc8?! This eases White’s task, because the Black rook
gets into passivity soon. [34... Rb8 was a better chance,
but White seems to be winning after transferring the
king to the queenside. 35. Re3 Rb6 36.h4 gaining some
ground before starting the action. 36...Kg8 37.Kf1! (37.
Re5?! would be a bad idea. 37...R xb3 38.R xa5 Kf7 Black
has very good chances to survive. White has to exchange
the b3 pawn for a5 in a much better version.) 37...Kf7
38.Ke2 g5 39.hxg5 hxg5 40.Kd2 Kf6 41.Kc2 Rb8 (41...
Kf5 moves into 42.Rc3! followed by Rc5.) 42. Re4! Rb6
43.b4! This is the key, and the White king supports the apawn. 43...axb4 44.Kb3 +-]
48...axb4 49.Kxb4 Ke7 50. Rxg5 Kd6 51.a5 Rf7
52.a6 Kc6 53. Ra5 Rf4+ 54.Kc3 Rxf3+ 55.Kd2 A fantastic performance by White! Congratulations! 1–0
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(2) Navara,David (2706)
— Svidler,Peter (2741) [A15]
Cez Trophy 2012 Prague CZE (3), 23.06.2012
[Arkadij Naiditsch]
We are in the third of the 4-game mini match played in Czech
Republic between Navara and Svidler. This event is already
traditional; Navara plays different Super GMs each year. Svidler is leading at the moment with his nice win in the second game and it’s clear that Navara has to show something
with White, so we will see a very sharp game, where Svidler
shows once again how strong his „Grunfeld” is!
1.Nf3 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 d5 And we are in the AntiGrunfeld. The Grunfeld has been Svidler’s favorite defense for as long as I play chess, and he shows great results in it.
7... Bg4 The new trend of this line, not so long ago the
main line was: [7...0–0 8. Be3 Bg4 9. Rd1 This is a very
complicated and interesting position. 9...e6 (9...B xf3?!
10.gxf3 This would be just good for White. Now White
would have an extra plan with f4-f5 next, which is quite
unpleasant for Black.) 10. Be2 Nc6 11.Ng1! A nice tactical
trick to protect the d4 pawn, the main attacking pawn in
White’s pawn structure. 11... Bxe2 12.Ngxe2 Qe7 13.0–0
Rfd8 We are in the game Aronian-Kamsky, where White
managed to win. Probably White is doing a bit better
here, but of course, Black has a very fighting position.]
8. Bb5+!? A tricky move. White uses the chance to force
Black to play c6 — and to avoid Nc6 in the future.
8...c6 9.Ng5 This is the main point of 8. Bb5. White, of
course, can’t allow Black to play Bxf3 with Bxd4 to follow.
4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.Qb3 Lately, White is trying a lot of different lines, trying to break Black’s defense, but probably the
Grunfeld is one of the best standing openings nowadays.
During the WCC it was also Gelfand’s favorite choice.
9...0–0 10. Be2 We are still in the game Aronian-Navara
from Wijk ann Zee 2012.
5...Nb6 6.d4 Bg7 7.e4 Quite a fu nny thing: not so long
ago Navara played this position against Aronian with
Black and managed to win!
11...e5!? This is Svidler’s novelty. [11...Na6 12. Be3 Qd6
13.0–0 Qb4 and Black managed to reach an endgame,
10... Bxe2 11.Nxe2
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which is usually a good thing in the Grunfeld. This is how
Navara managed to win not so long ago. But we can be
sure that both players analyzed this position for some
time. I think that in case of 11...Na6, an option is to play
12.0–0 c5!? 13.d5 with a very complicated position.]
12.Qh3?! [12.dxe5! seems to be the critical move here.
12...h6! (12...B xe5? 13.Qh3! The winning move 13...h5
14.Ne6! and Black loses material) 13.Nh3! (13.Nf3 N8d7
and it looks like Black is doing fine. The e5 pawn will fall
and with it, the advantage of White.) 13...N8d7 14.f4 and
White is in time to defend the e5 pawn. 14...Nc5 15.Qc2
Nd3+ 16.Kf1 The position looks a bit dangerous for
White, but I think that the extra pawn should give White
better chances. 16...f5 17.exf6 Bxf6 18. Be3 The position
remains quite forced, but White should be doing better.]
12...h6 Now the position becomes very forced, but
I clearly prefer Black.
13.Nf3 exd4 Black managed to get the most important
pawn — this can’t be good for White.
14. Bxh6 Re8! A very strong and cool move. Black is not
afraid to start defending his king immediately. The White
pawn on e4 is hanging, and in some lines, the Black king
could use the f8 square to escape.
15.0–0–0 White starts to go all-in, which is logical. No
way back anymore... [In case of the simple 15. Bxg7
Kxg7 16.Nfxd4 Rxe4 17.0–0–0 Qf6 the position s seems
to be equal to me, but it’s clear that Navara needed the
full point, and an equal position with a draw as the most
likely result was definitley not an option for the top Czech
player.]
15...c5! Black remains very cool, again. Of course, this
move seems to be easy and logical, but things are by far
not that easy over the board. White has direct threats and
Black needed to calculate precisely to know that he won’t
get a lost position.
16.Ng5 The last chance to create something...
16...Qd7 17.Qh4 Of course White needed to avoid the
exchange of queens. In case of an endgame, Black would
be doing much better.
17...f6! This is the key move, which I think Navara blundered. The Black queen from d7 is now protecting the
bishop on g7! Not an easy thing to see from far away, but
Svilder seems to be in great shape.
18. Bxg7 Qxg7 It’s hard to give White an advice now.
Black got the central pawns, plus White’s attack came to
an end, and the pawn on e4 can fall any moment. Black is
doing clearly better now.
19.Nh3 Nc6 20. Rd3 White decides to „die with
a scream”. The position looks quite sharp now, but actually, it is quite easily winning for Black.
20...g5 Why not to win the pawn on e4 if it’s possible...
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21.Qh5 Rxe4
22.f4! The only chance for White. White tries to open the
position of the Black king at any costs. [22.Ng3 Rh4 and
Black kicks out the White queen, keeping his extra pawn.]
22...Qf7 Black is suddenly loosing the coolness, and
the full point was so closealready. [22...Nb4! would have
been the right choice. 23. Rg3 Qf7! and only now Qf7.
The knight on b4 is now the killer around the White king.
24. Rxg5+ Kf8! (Of course not 24...fxg5 25.Qxf7+ Kxf7
26.N xg5+ and the rook on e4 is falling.) 25.Qh8+ Ke7
and Black is winning.]
23.Ng3! Excellent move. White looks for chances in
a bad position. To take on f7 is not an option, to go for an
endgame with a pawn down would be similar to resigning the game.
23...Qc4+ [A more solid, though not a better choice
would be 23...Qxh5 24.Nxh5 Rf8 I have to admit that
this looks quite dangerous, but everything seems to
work. Black should be doing better. 25. Rg3 (25.fxg5 fxg5
26.Rg3 Re5! A critical move which is hard to see... 27.N xg5
Kh8 and the Black king is suddenly very safe on h8. Black
is doing clearly better, even though the position remains
dynamic and complicated.) 25... Re3! and Black should be
better again.]
24. Rc3! [24.Kd2? would be a mistake 24...Nb4! A very
beautiful move! Black gives mate first. 25.Qg6+ Kf8
26.Qxf6+ Ke8 The Black king escapes and White can’t
do anything against the double threat of Qxd3 and Qc2Nxd3.]
24...dxc3 We see a couple of forced moves.
25.Qg6+ Kf8 26.Qxf6+ Ke8 27.Qg6+ Kd7 28.Qxe4
cxb2+ 29.Kb1 Everything was forced until here. How to
evaluate this position? It’s not that easy. The only thing we
can say is that probably Black is still doing better thanks
the pawn and the dangerous position of the White king,
that is surrounded by the Black knights... However, things
are very complicated and an exact calculation is needed.
29... Re8?! This logical human move is a mistake. [29...
Nd4! would have been the right choice. The Black knight
on d4 dominates the game. 30.Qxb7+ (30.Re1 Nd5 It’s
amazing how strong the knights can be in the center.)
30...Kd8 31.Qe4 Nd5
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36. Rc1 A losing move in a position that was probably lost
anyway. [36.Ka1 would have been a better chance 36...
Rb6 37.Qc1 Nd6! Finally, the Black knight is coming into
the game, but Black has to exchange queens... 38.Qxc4
Nxc4 39.a3 Kc7 and probably Black should be winning
here. Two knights and a rook should be enough to mate
the White king.]
and Black is winning.]
30. Rd1+ White takes his chance.
36...Qa4! Black is taking the last preparation steps. It’s
getting very dark around the White king.
37.Ka1 Rb6 38.Qd2 Nd6 The mate is unstoppable.
30...Nd4 31.Qxb7+ Kd8 32.Qb8+ Kd7 33.Qb7+ Kd8
34.Qb8+ Nc8 Great fighting spirit by Black. It would be
a pity for Black to make a draw in this game, after having
a clearly winning position earlier. The main point is that
the White knights on h3-g3 are totally out of the game.
35.Qxb2
39. Rc3 Nc4 40.Qd3 Qb4 41. Rb3 Qe1+ A slightly crazy
game where White clearly didn’t have his best day, getting into big trouble almost out of the opening and not
managing to come back into the game. It would be very
interesting to know what Svidler actually planned to do
after his novelty 12...e5, 13.dxe5... 0–1
35... Re6! Black cont inue the attack. Of course, it is a pity
to have the knight on c8 instead of on d5, but it might still
be enough to mate the White king.
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(3) Kosteniuk,A (2457)
— Danielian,E (2484) [C13]
FIDE Women GP Kazan 2012 Kazan, RUS, 20.06.2012
[Balogh Csaba]
We are in the 9th round of the Women’s Grand Prix in Kazan, when the current leader, Danielian (with 6/8), faced
the former World Champion, Alexandra Kosteniuk.
1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4. Bg5 Recently, 4... Bb4
and 4...dxe4 are more popular.
4... Be7 5.e5 Nfd7
Here White has many different options. The following
line seems to be the best to me: 8.Qd3 g6 (Black quickly
collapsed after 8...Nc6 9.Nf3 Qg6 10.Qxg6! Black probably missed this „simple” move, since it is not obvious at
all to exchange queens while being a pawn down. 10...
fxg6 11.Nb5! and Black cannot protect the c7 pawn. 11...
Ke7 (11...Kd8? 12.Ng5 +- wins.) 12.Nxc7 Rb8 13.Nb5+/with a big advantage in Kasparov-Kortschnoj, Zuerich
(rapid) 2001.) 9.Nf3 Qe7 10.0–0–0 White already finished
the development, enjoys a nice space advantage due to
the e5 pawn and has a very simple plan against the h7
pawn... At the same time, Black is stuckedn his camp and
needs a lot of time to secure the king’s position. 10...Nb6
11.Qe3 Bd7 12. Rh6! Nc6 13. Bd3 0–0–0 14. Rdh1 +/Finally, Black finished his development, but White wins
back the pawn and holds a nice positional advantage.]
7. Bxe7 This is the defect of the 6...c5 move. Black cannot take back with the queen. However, White’s center is
under attack, the position is very far from clear.
6.h4 This very interesting gambit line is known since the
beginning of the 1900’s. It was the favorite of Euwe and
Alekhine. [6. Bxe7 Qxe7 7.f4 is the main line, with a small
advantage for White.]
6...c5 This is the most principled move. It tries to undermine White’s center and also to open the center against
the flank attack, but it has concrete problems... [6...h6
7. Bxe7 Qxe7 is the way the specialists of this line play
with the Black pieces nowadays.; It is not advisable for
Black to accept the pawn sacrifice. 6... Bxg5 7.hxg5 Qxg5
7...Kxe7 Black quickly wants to play Qb6, Nc6, so White
doesn’t have enough time to consolidate his center. [7...
Qxe7?! is met with 8.Nb5! and if Black does not want to
give up the right for castling, then he must play 8...0–0
9.Nc7 and Black does not get enough compensation.]
8.dxc5 We are sti ll in theory. I don’t know whether the
next move was still preparation or not, but it seems to be
an inaccuracy.
8...Nc6 [Black should have taken 8...Nxe5 9.Qe2 Nbc6
10.0–0–0 is the start of the line. Sakaev won a nice game
against French defense specialist Ulibin in Dubai 2000.
He analyzed this position in details over many pages. At
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the end he comes to the conclusion that position is very
unclear with chances for both sides. That game continued with 10...Kf8, but 10...Qa5 is an alternative as well.]
9.Qd2 White gives back the favor. [It would have been
logical to protect the pawn on e5 and achieve a typical
French defense structure, where generally White has
a small advantage. 9.f4 Qa5 10.Qd2 Nxc5 11.Nf3 Rd8
and here White has the important resource to stop Black’s
counterplay with d4. 12.Nd4! +=]
9...Nxc5? This is a clear mistake. From now on White’s
strategy starts to dominate. [Black could have gotten
a better version than the 8...Nxe5 line, because now the
queen is on d2 and it does not pin the king along the
e-file. 9...Ndxe5 10.0–0–0 Qa5 11.f4 and in this position,
a very „inhuman” move leads to a more or less forced
draw: 11...Ng4! (11...Nd7 12.Bb5! creates real problems,
because of the threat Bxc6 and Nxd5.) 12. Bb5 Nb4!
This is the point. It is hard to deal with the Na2 threat. It
arrives even after 13.a3 and Black takes the bishop on b5.
13.Qe2 Attacking the knight on g4 and preparing for a3,
but Black has... (13.a3 Na2+; 13.Kb1 a6 14.Ba4 Qxc5) 13...
Nxa2+! 14.Nxa2 Qxa2 15.Qxg4 Qa1+ 16.Kd2 Qa5+
17.Kc1 Qa1+ = and the one who avoids the perpetual
gets into an inferior position.]
10.0–0–0
10...Qa5 [Now 10...Nxe5?! is simply answered with
11.Qe3! and Black cannot hold the threats. Nxd5 is in the
air.]
11. Rh3! Very nice and strong move! I personally was always a fan of the h4-Rh3 or a4-Ra3 plans in the middlegame. The rook causes serious problems in Black’s camp
along the 3rd rank.
11...h6 Against the annoying Qg5 check. [11...d4 is countered by 12.Qg5+ Kf8 13.Nb5! Qxa2 14. Ra3! You see
the 11. Rh3 move. :) 14...Qd5 15.Nc7+- White wins.]
12.Nge2! Another spectacular and strong move. White
brings a blockader to d4 and keeps the 3rd rank open for
his rook.
12... Rd8 [12... Bd7 13.Nd4 is also horrible for Black. He
cannot even ease his position with 13...Nxd4 because of
14.Nxd5+! +-]
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13.Qf4 Prepares for an attack against the kingside pawns
with Rf3 or Rg3.
13...Nd7 This is a kind of desperation in a really bad position. [After the „normal” 13... Bd7 White simply plays
14. Rg3 Rg8 15.Nd4 Nxd4 16.Qxd4+/- with a big advantage. The king became really vulnerable on e7.]
14. Rg3 Rg8
17.Nc3! and Black cannot escape if the knight arrives to
d5, while 17...Nb6 loses after 18.e6! Bxe6 19.Qc7+ Kf8
20.Qxc6 +-]
16.Nd4 Nxd4 17. Rxd4 g5 Black’s only chance is to complicate the matters. [Stabilizing the d5 square with 17...
Nb6 is met with 18.b4! Qa3+ 19.Kb1 +- and the queen
is trapped on a3. Nb5 is coming next.]
18.hxg5 hxg5 19.Qg3 [It was better to play 19.Qg4 but
the text move does not spoil the advantage.]
19...Qc5 Now Black improved a bit with a tempo.
20.Qg4
15. Re3 Kosteniuk had the right idea in mind, to play Nd4.
First she protects the e5 pawn, but as we will see, it was
not necessary. [The tactical 15.Nd4! was even stronger
15...Ndxe5 (15...Ncxe5 is refuted elegantly by 16.Re3 f6
17.N xe6! Kxe6 18.Bc4!! Not the only win, but definitely
the nicest. 18...dxc4 19.Qxc4+ Ke7 20.Qxg8 +-) 16.Nf5+!
exf5 17. Rxd5 Qc7 18. Rxe5+! This is the point. White wins
the queen in both cases. 18...Qxe5 (18...N xe5? 19.Nd5+)
19. Re3 Qxe3+ 20.Qxe3+ Be6 21. Bd3 and Black cannot
avoid losing material, while his king is still in the danger
zone.]
15... Rb8 A waiting mo ve, because b5 did not work immediately. The position looks really terrible for Black, but
actually White must play powerfully to convert the advantage. [15...b5? 16.Nxd5+! exd5 and now the „silent”
20...b5 [20...f5 temporarily pushes back White’s pieces
21.exf6+ Nxf6 22.Qd1 +/- but the king remains in the
center.]
21.b4! Very strong response! Depriving Black of his only
counterplay with b4!
21...Qc6 22.Qh5 White prepares for the tactical blow,
which she managed to play in the game.
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22...a5? [The ugly 22... Ba6 was the only move according
to computer, but still after 23.f4 White launches an enormous attack against the f7 pawn.]
23.Nxd5+! exd5 24.e6! It is over now. Black cannot survive the opening of the lines.
24... Rg6 [24...fxe6 is simply met with 25.Qh7+ +- and
the rook falls.]
25.exd7+ Kxd7 White restored the material equality,
and continues the attack. The only question remains,
how long can Black prolong the resignation?
26. Bd3 Rg7 27.Qh8 Qf6 28. Rxd5+ Kc6 29. Rc5+
Kd6 30.Qf8+ A nice attacking game, after which Danielian collapsed and lost the last 2 games as well, dropping
back to the 6th place. 1–0
(4) Lahno,Kateryna (2546)
— Kosintseva,Tatiana (2532) [E56]
4th WGP Kazan 2012 Kazan RUS (11), 22.06.2012
[Arkadij Naiditsch]
We are in the last round of the Grand Prix. Both players
are out of contention for the medals, but this game was
very exciting anyway. After a good opening outcome,
Lahno made a great combination and... lost the game.
Let us take a look at what exactly happened.
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.e3 We are in the main
line of the Nimzo.
4...0–0 5. Bd3 c5 6.Nf3 d5 7.0–0 Nc6
8.cxd5 [8.a3 Bxc3 9.bxc3 dxc4 10. Bxc4 Qc7 would lead
to the very main position of the Nimzo.]
8...exd5 White has opene d the bishop on c8, but the
idea is to play against the isolated pawn on d5 now.
9.dxc5 Bxc5 [9... Bxc3 10.bxc3 Bg4 This is another typical way of handling these positions, but not with this
move order. Here White is a tempo up compared to the
main lines, so even after an easy move like 11. Be2 White
is doing a bit better.]
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10.h3 This is an often played position. Lahno will demonstrate perfectly White’s main idea. On the other hand,
Black’s play will not be great at the beginning. Usually, Black
looks for a fast d4, trying to force a draw by exchanging
a lot of material, and exploiting the isolated pawn.
10...a6 [10...Qe7 this should be the best way of handling this position. 11.b3 Rd8 12. Bb2 Ne4 13.Ne2 Nb4
14. Bb1 Bf5 with a fighting position, Roiz-Fressinet, 2011.]
11.b3 White needs the bishop on b2, this is clearly its best
place.
11... Be6 12. Bb2 Ba7 13.Ne2 Another correct strategical decision. White needs to take care of the d5-d4 threat,
and to keep the option of putting a „blocker” on d4 is
never a bad idea.
13... Rc8 From this moment on, the game starts to get
exciting. We can already say that White should be quite
happy with the outcome of the opening. If the White
player is not creative, by playing 14.Ned4, he would get
a typical slightly better position.
14.Ng5!? White uses the chance for tactical play! Suddenly, the Black king is quite in danger! White wants to
play Bxf6 and the pawn on h7 drops.
14...g6 [14...h6? would not help because of 15. Bxf6 Qxf6
16.Nh7 and White is a clear exchange up.]
15.Nf4 All the light White pieces are in the attack!
15...Qe7 16.h4! I like this move a lot! White’s h-pawn is
going to be „the” little extra White needs to make the
attack even stronger. [16.Qf3 would have been another logical continuation. 16...d4 Black is forced to act, to
close the bishop on b2 is the first priority. 17.Ngxe6 fxe6
18. Bc4 Kh8 White is doing better, but the position is still
a fighting and quite complicated one.]
16... Bb8 A nice move by Black! It’s clear that he needs to
do something about the bishop on b2, and will simply try
to play Be5 next.
17.h5 Bd7? This is a real surprise. A shocking move by
Black, giving White a few interesting opportunities. [17...
Be5! would have been the only move. 18.Bxe5 Nxe5
White needs to act quite fast as well... If Black gets a „free”
move now, White wouldn’t be doing better at all. 19.hxg6
This leads to the forced win of a pawn, but it’s not evident
that it leads to a clearly better position. 19...hxg6 20.Ngxe6
fxe6 21.Nxg6 If You say A, You need to say B and get the
pawn. 21...Nxg6 22.Bxg6 Qg7 It looks like Black is simply
a pawn down, but things are by far not that simple. 23.Bd3
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23...Qh6! A very important move, now White doesn’t
have 23. Rc1? because of 23... Rxc1 24.Qxc1 and Ng4!
The next Black’s move will be Kf7 followed by Rh8. In my
opinion, Black has enough compensation for the pawn.]
18.hxg6 With this move, White starts a very beautiful
combination. However, shed had many different moves
as well. Let’s take a look at a few of them! [The typical
18.Nxh7! would be a very interesting option. 18...Nxh7
19.hxg6 fxg6 20.Nxg6 The Black position looks really dangerous, but it seems that White doesn’t have any forced
win. 20...Qf7 (20...Qd6 21.Qh5 Rf7 22.f4! A key move
here, White wants to play Rf3-Rg3 next with a basically
killing attack. I would not like to be Black here...) 21.f4 And
again, the f4 move! The position doesn’t look simple at
all, but I think in a practical game it is almost impossible
to hold this with Black. White’s play is so simple — just to
go for the Black king with all You got. Objectively, I think
White is doing clearly better.]
18...hxg6 19.Nxd5!? This is what White wanted by playing 18.hxg5. A great tactical blow, very beautiful.
19...Nxd5
move would lose the game on the spot, and by accident
the game gets quite unclear now... [20...gxh5 21. Bh7#
What a mate!]
21. Bxg6 [21.Qxg6+!? Qg7 22.Qh5! It looks like White
is winning, but Black has a great defensive move: 22...
Rfd8! and we are in a really crazy position. I feel White
should be doing better, but to prove this would still be
very hard.]
21...Ne5?! [21... Be5 This move looks quite logical, but it
leads to some super deep complications as well. 22. Bh7+
Kg7 23.Qg6+ Of course, White tries to play for the mate.
23...Kh8 24.Qh6 Qg7 The only defense, White wanted
to play Be4. 25.Qh1! The only square for the queen. An
easy move to blunder. When was the last time you saw
the h-file open and the White Queen onh1?! 25...fxg5
26. Be4+ Kg8 27. Bxd5+ Rf7 with a very strange and unbalanced position. The game would just begin here, all 3
results are possible.]
22. Ba3! A beautiful move! Seems like White is close to
get the full point!
22... Bg4 The only move, freeing the d7 square for the
Queen, any other move would lose on the spot.
20.Qh5! What a great tactical mating idea!
20...f6! I have the eeling that Kosintseva was very lucky
— and happy — when she saw the move f6. Any other
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23.Qh1?? A horrible mistake. [23. Bh7+ This would have
been the other option 23...Kg7 (23...Kh8 is losing on the
spot due to the usual 24.Qh1! Qg7 25.Be4+) 24. Bxe7
Bxh5 25. Bxf8+ Kxf8 26. Be4 fxg5 27. Bxd5 The endgame is still not a simple one, but only White can be better here.]
23...Qd7 And suddenly White is very bad, probably close
to lost... How to avoid the loss of material? White is already a piece down... This is really a tragic end, and a very
beautiful combination.
24. Be4 What to do? White tries to keep some pieces on
the board, in order to have practical chances. [Doesn’t
help 24. Bxf8 fxg5 White will lose one more piece on the
next move, which would give Black 3 pieces for a rook
and 2 pawns, this is clearly easily winning.]
27...Qg7!? The safest move, Black forces White to exchange queens and get in a position where the best
choice is to resign.
28.Qxg7+ Kxg7 29. Bxb7 Nd3 The game is over! What
a position... The next 8 moves need no comments...
30. Rfd1 Ne2+ 31.Kf1 Ng3+ 32.Kg1 Ne2+ 33.Kf1
Ng3+ 34.Kg1 Rh8 35. Rxd3 Rh1+ 36.Kf2 Rxa1 37.e4
Rxa2+ 38.Ke1 Be6 We saw a very interesting game
with quite an interesting opening for those who are playing the Nimzo with White. From this game we have to
learn that not every beautiful tactical blow leads to a full
point... Chess is a cruel game :). 0–1
24...Nc3! Another very strong move by Black! Suddenly,
Kosintseva is the one who wants to give mate by playing
Ne2, and after Kh2, Nf3!
25.Qh6 This move saves White from a direct mate, but
not from a lost position.
25...fxg5 And another White piece has been taken.
26. Bxf8 Rxf8 27.f3
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Puzzle section
(7) Ziska,H (2450) — Hebden,M (2512)
Svein memorial, 25.06.2012
(5) Prizant,J (2524) — Nepomniachtchi,I (2716)
Russian Higher league, 24.06.2012
[CEWN]
1... –+
[CEWN]
1. +/-
(8) Gusain,H (2271) — Paragua,M (2521)
(6) Mokshanov,A (2429) — Inarkiev,E (2707)
Russian Higher league, 24.06.2012
[CEWN]
Mumbai Open, 08.06.2012
[CEWN]
1... –+
1. +-
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29th of June 2012
(9) Ram,S (2303) — Stupak,K (2513)
(11) Gabrielian,A (2573) — Grigoriants,S (2557)
Mumbai Open, 10.06.2012
Voronezh Open, 15.06.2012
[CEWN]
[CEWN]
1... –+
1. +-
(10) Gomez,J (2507) — Chadaev,N (2563)
(12) Kovalenko,I (2560) — Dmitriev,I (2393)
Mumbai Open, 14.06.2012
Voronezh Open, 15.06.2012
[CEWN]
[CEWN]
1. +-
1. +-
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(13) Fedoseev,V (2546) — Zubov,A (2617)
Voronezh Open, 16.06.2012
[CEWN]
1. +-
(14) Lysyj,I (2644) — Tihonov,J (2446)
Voronezh Open, 19.06.2012
[CEWN]
1... –+
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Issue 18
29th of June 2012
Endgame section
(15) Galliamova,A (2484)
— Hou Yifan (2623)
WGP Kazan, 20.06.2012
[Chess Evolution]
At this seemingly drawn position, Hou Yifan, the Women’s World Champion, found very good practical chances
to win.
27... Rxd4! [27... Rxe3?! with the idea of transposing into
a pawn endgame. This doesn’t work well for Black. 28.fxe3
f5!! In order to prevent e4 and prepare for Bb7. 29.Kf2
Bb7 30.Nc6! By precise calculations, White enters into
the simplifications. Now the correct defense is 30...Kg7f6 and then start passing with the bishop. Probably the
game would end in a draw in this case. 30...Kf8 31.Ke2!
31... Bxc6? Still, 31...Kg7 would hold the draw. 32.dxc6
Ke7 33.Kd3 The king arrives just in time. 33...Kd8 (33...
d5 34.Kd4 Kd6 is met with 35.c7! Kxc7 36.Kxd5+- when
the superior position of White’s king decides the outcome.) 34.Kd4 Kc7 35.Kd5 This had to be calculated
beforehand. Both sides can only move with their pawns,
but as we will see, Black loses the fight for a tempo.
35...b4 (35...g5 36.g4! is the easiest win. 36...f4 (36...fxg4
37.hxg4 b4 38.b3 h6 39.e4 +- and zugzwang.) 37.exf4 gxf4
38.Ke4+- and White wins with the help of the kingside
pawns. Black must hurry to catch them with the king, but
this leaves the queenside unprotected. Passed pawns are
very important factors in all the endgames, especially in
pawn endgames.) 36.b3 g5 37.g4! f4 38.exf4 gxf4 39.Ke4
Kxc6 40.Kxf4 +- White wins as it was explained in the
35...g5 line.]
28. Re8+ Kg7 29. Rxc8
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29...Kf6! Black uses the more active situation of his king
and tries to save the important pawns on the queenside,
sacrificing the less useful ones on the kingside. [29... Rxd5
leads to a more or less forced draw after 30. Rc6 Rd1+
31.Kh2 Rd2 Black takes one more pawn, but his complete queenside is vanishing. 32.b4 Rxf2 33. Rxa6 Rb2
34. Rxd6 Rxb4 35.a6 Ra4 36. Rb6 b4 37.a7 Rxa7 38. Rxb4
with an easy theoretical draw.]
30. Rc6 Ke5 31. Rxa6
31... Rb4 Here we ca n get the point of Black’s play. He
wants to save either the d- or the b-pawn, which could
become very dangerous with the support of the king.
The position is still drawn, but time trouble is approaching and White must make a difficult decision.
32. Rb6 [Creating counterplay by obtaining a kingside
passer would have been the right idea, but Galliamova was
afraid of losing too many tempi with the rook moves, allowing the b-pawn to promote. 32. Ra7! Rxb2 (32...f5!? is
an alternative, but White can hold the draw here as well.
33. Rxh7 Rxb2 34.a6 Kxd5 35.a7 Ra2 and here, I think
the best way to save the half point is to stop the b-pawn
with the king. 36.Kf1 b4 (36...Kc6 37.Ke1 Kb6 does not
win a pawn, because of 38.Rd7 =) 37.Ke1 Kc4 (37...b3
38.Kd1 = Just in time, the a-pawn gives enough counterplay. 38...Ra1+ 39.Kd2 b2 40.Rb7 Rxa7 41.Rxb2=) 38.Kd1
Kd3 39.Kc1 and the b-pawn is stopped, while going for
the kingside pawns is not dangerous. 39...Ke2 40.g4 Kxf2
(The tempting 40...f4? is too optimistic. Black causes problems only to himself. The h-pawn runs very fast. 41.h4 f3
42.h5 gxh5 43.gxh5 Kxf2 44.h6 Ke2 45.Rf7+- and White
wins.) 41.gxf5 gxf5 42. Rf7 =) 33. Rxf7 Ra2 Probably, Hou
Yifan would have tried this way, because now the a-pawn
does not reach the 7th rank, so it’s not that dangerous. Anyway, White holds the draw. 34. Rxh7 Kxd5
35.h4 Not the only way, but it seems to be the easiest one to create a passer on the h-file. 35...b4 36.g4 b3
37. Rb7 Kc4 38.h5 gxh5 39.gxh5 Rxa5 (On 39...b2 White
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must deal with the Ra1 threat first. 40.Kg2 Kc3 and here
comes a very important and often-seen motif in the rook
endgames. Black defended the b2-pawn and is ready
to activate the rook, but 41.Rc7+! White sends the king
away 41...Kd3 42.Rb7 and attacks the pawn again. Black
cannot make progress.) 40.h6 Rh5 41.h7 Just as in the
32...f5 line, White reaches the 7th rank. This always gives
very good counterplay, since it restricts the mobility of
the rook. 41...Kc3 (41...d5 42.Kf1 =) 42.f4 b2 43. Rc7+! The
same motif as before. 43...Kd3 44. Rb7 Kc2 45. Rc7+ =
and again, there is no way to progress.]
36. Rb7! = and this move is the point! In the game, with
the pawn on a7, White did not have this option.]
34... Rb1+ [34... Ra2 is also good.]
35.Kh2 Ra1 36. Rxb5+ [On 36. Rb7 Ke6 sooner or later
White has to exchange his a-pawn for the one on the bfile.]
36...Kc6 37. Rb2 Rxa7 And Black is winning with the extra pawn, which is supported by the king.
38.g4 [38.Kg3 d5
32...Kxd5?! This is an inaccuracy, which could have led
toan immediate draw. [32... Rxb2 33.a6 h5! evacuating the
7th rank 34. Rb8 Ra2 35. Rxb5 Rxa6 Despite the material
equality, Black still has chances because of the weak d5
pawn. 36. Rb7 Here we get the point of the 33...h5 move.
Black can save all his pawns. 36...f6 37. Rg7 Kf5 38. Rd7
h4 and Black still can press for a while, but the objective
result should rather be a draw.]
33.a6 Rxb2
39.Kf4 Re7! Very important move, to cut the White king
along the e-file. Now the d-pawn is practically unstoppable. 40.Kg5 d4 41.Kf6 Rd7 wins in similar fashion to the
game.]
38...d5 39.Kg3 Re7 Again, the same cut, but Black could
have delayed it by one move. The rest comes automatically. [39...d4 40.Kf4 Re7!]
34.a7? The most logical move, but it is a big mistake. We’ll
soon understand the subtle point... [34. Rb8! was the way
to draw. The a-pawn threatens to promote, so Black has
no choice. 34... Ra2 35. Rxb5+ Kc6 (35...Ke6 36.Rb6 =)
40.Kf4 d4 41.Kg5 Kc5 42.f4 [42.Kf6 Rd7]
42...d3 43.f5 Rd7 44. Rb1 d2 45. Rd1 Kc4 46.f6 Kd3
47.Kh6 Ke2 48. Rxd2+ Kxd2 Another instructive rook
endgame. 0–1
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(16) Lahno,Kateryna (2546)
— Koneru,Humpy (2589) [A25]
4th WGP Kazan 2012 Kazan RUS (9), 20.06.2012
[Chess Evolution]
44.Kf1 Bf6 45.Kg2 The best White can do is to wait —
every pawn move only creates weaknesses in the structure.
45... Rb2 Of course, the Black rook belongs in b2! This is
the right place for the rook.
46. Rc4 Be7 The second step of the Black plan should be
to bring the king to e1 or e2. This is the only way for Black
to create some threats.
47.Kf1 Bd6 48. Rc6 Bb4 49. Ra6 Rd2 50. Rb6 Bc3
51. Rc6 Be5 52. Ra6 Rd6 53. Ra7 Kf6 54. Rb7 Ra6
55.Kg2 Ke6 56. Rb4 Bc3 57. Rc4 Be5 58. Rb4 Kf5
59. Rb5 Ra2 60.Kf3 Ke6 61.Kg2 Bc3 62.Kf1
The position looks totally winning for Black, but is it so?!
The only attacking point in the White structure is the
pawn on f2, and it’s really hard to get a triple attack on
that square. An exchange of rooks would, of course, win
the game on the spot, but it is hard to achieve. Koneru
shows good technical play. Let’s take a look at the winning plan.
43... Rb4
62...Kd6 The last 15 moves were not too exciting and
Black didn’t make any progress, but now finally Koneru
decides to move the king forward. Probably, Black wanted to keep the f7-g6 pawn structure, but this is not possible. Another option for Black is to put the pawns on f5g4, but it would make the f5 pawn weak, so there is no
sense in doing that either.
63. Rb7 White uses the chance to put the pawn on f6,
which can be useful in the future. The g6-pawn is getting
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Issue 18
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weak and White will have some ideas connected with
Rg7 g5, and now f,4 trying to exchange as many pawns
as possible.
72... Rc2 [Anyway 72... Rf1! 73.f4 Rf2+! 74.Kh3 Kf3
63...f6 64. Rb3 Rc2 65. Rb5 Kc6 66. Rb8 Kd5 Finally,
the Black king crosses the 5th rank.
67. Rc8 The only move to fight. White can’t take the king
away from f1, because Be1 would win the pawn on f2 on
the spot. With the move Rc8, White finally gets the possibility of freeing the king.
67...Ke4 68.Kg2 Kd3
The entrance of the Black king decides the game. Black is
winning.]
73.f4 Black wanted to win the pawn on f2 by playing Ke1.
73...Ke1+ 74.Kf3 Kf1 Black slowly enters White’s defense lines. Now Black wants to play f5, followed by Rf2
mate.
75.g4 Rf2+ 76.Kg3 Bc3! A nice move. Suddenly, the
White king is in a deadly mating net!
69.Kf1 Again, the only move. In case of 69.Kf3, Be1 is
winning.
77.g5
69... Rc1+ 70.Kg2 Ke2 Finally, Black managed to bring
the king to e2. Half way is done! Now Black needs to get
rid of the pin on the c-file and threaten to play Be1 or Rf1.
71. Rc6 [71. Rg8 Rf1 loses for White immediately.]
71... Bb2 Black is ready for the final action. Rf1 and Rc2Ke1 are the main ideas.
72. Re6 White is trying to get as ready as he can to face
the Rf1 move.
77...f5! A great way to finish the game.
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78. Rxg6 Rg2+ 79.Kh3 [79.Kf3 Be1]
79...Kg1 Black wants to mate by playing Rh2-Be1–Rf2.
80.e4 The only chance, but nothing helps anymore.
80...fxe4 81. Re6 Be1! The last prec ise move. Black
wants to play Bf2 followed by e2. White has no moves.
Against 82.g6, Rg3 83.Kh4 Rxg6 is coming.
82.f5
82... Rh2+ Followed by Rh4 mate. What can we say
about the endgame? It’s quite easily winning for Black,
but it’s important to know the plan! 0–1
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Clash of the Titans
(17) Martinez,D — Steinitz,W [C45]
Philadelphia Philadelphia, 1883
[Balogh Csaba]
This week, we’ll examine a game from the first undisputed World Champion, Wilhelm Steinitz. He was the one
who established the positional play in chess. He was the
first who outplayed his opponents in a mainly positional
manner. However, in our present game, Steinitz decided
to play in „19th century style”. ..
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 White goes for the Scotch.
[3. Bb5 d6 was the favorite of Steinitz, and it was also
named after him.]
3...exd4 4.Nxd4
concretely, otherwise the queen gets to be misplaced on
h4. 5... Bb4 6. Be2! A pawn sacrifice for development. 6...
Qxe4 7.Ndb5 Bxc3+ 8.bxc3! and Black has serious problems with the c7 pawn, he has nothing better than 8...
Kd8 but after 9.0–0 White has very strong initiative for
the small material deficit. It’s very important for White to
have the bishop pair in such positions.]
5...Qxe4+?! A bit too greedy, but 139 years ago, theory was just about to develop. [5... Bb4+ is the right approach, and Black seems to be fine after every move.
The main idea is to defend the c7 pawn with the bishop.
6. Bd2 (6.c3 Ba5 7.Be3 Nf6 8.b4 a6! A nice in-between
move, which solves Black’s problems.; 6.N1c3 Ba5) 6...
Qxe4+ 7. Be2 Kd8! 8.0–0 Bxd2 9.Nxd2 Qf4 and compared to the 5.Nc3 line, Black managed to exchange the
dark squared bishops, which clearly improves his defensive chances. After one mistake by White, he might remain without any compensation.]
6. Be3?! A logical developing move, White intends to
play N1c3 and a quick 0–0–0, but after this, Black seems
to be fine. [6. Be2 is the critical move. 6...Kd8 7.0–0
4...Qh4 A tricky sideline compared to the two main
moves: 4... Bc5 and 4...Nf6.
5.Nb5 [5.Nc3 is probably the reason why we don’t see
this queen rush on the highest level. Black has to play
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7...a6 and here 8.N1c3! At first sight, a slightly suspicious
move, because the b5 knight has no retreating square,
but who said it has to come back in any case?! 8...Qe5
Black pinned his hopes to this move, but... (8...Qg6 9.Nd4
would be very nice for White. Black has no time to consolidate.; 8...Qh4? 9.g3! and the queen has no square, it
must move into the Nd5 tempo.) 9.Nd5! axb5 10. Bf4
Qd4 11. Bxc7+ Ke8 12.Nb6 +- and the game is over. This
could have been another very typical game for the 19th
century.]
6...Kd8 It sounds a bit strange, but now Black seems to
be all right.
7.Nd2 [7.N1c3 was definitely more logical, but Black is
alive after 7... Bb4 8.Qd2 (8.a3 forcing Black to give up his
good bishop 8...B xc3+ 9.N xc3 Qg6 10.Qd2 d6 11.0–0–0
Nge7 and undoubtedly White has compensation, but the
Black king soon finds a safe shelter on c8.) 8...Qe7 9.0–
0–0 Nf6 and here again, it is not clear how should White
continue...]
7...Qg6 8. Bd3 White plays in „Morphy style”! The legendary Paul Morphy has mated all his opponents in this
style (giving away his pieces) in the middle of the 19th
century, but at that time people could not defend very
well. Against Steinitz, such kind of chess did not pay off.
[8.Nf3 was an alternative, but Black can calmly finish his
development 8...d6 9.Qd2 Nf6 10.0–0–0 Bd7 and the
Black pawns are safely guarding the king.]
8...Qxg2! Steinitz is not afraid. He lures the bishop to e4,
in order to develop his g8 knight with tempo.
9. Be4 Qh3 10.Nf3 [10.Qe2 Nf6]
10...d6 A bit ugly, but effective defense. [10...Qh5 was
the computer’s suggestion 11.Ng5 (11.Nc3 Nf6) 11...
Qxd1+ 12. Rxd1 Nh6 White doesn’t have enough compensation.]
11.Ng5 Qd7 That is why I called it ugly. All the White
pieces look dangerous, but actually, Black threatens to
send them away one by one. First a6, then h6 and then
Nf6.
12.Qd5 [12. Bd5 was probably the only chance to stay
in the game, but Black has an advantage anyway after
12...Ne5 13.Nxa7 Be7 14.Nxc8 Kxc8 15.Nxf7 Nxf7
16. Bxf7 White won back both sacrificed pawns, but suddenly, his king gets in danger. 16...Nh6! with an advantage for Black.]
12...Ne5 With his last move, White made an aggressive
move once again. One more time losing time in a number
of ways, like c6 or Nf6. At first sight, it might be hard to
believe, but the objective evaluation of the position is
that Black is completely winning.
13.0–0–0
28
Issue 18
29th of June 2012
19. Bf3 After the big melee, White managed to restore
material equality, but his knight got trapped in the corner.
19... Bd6 Ke7 is the threat.
20. Rg1 [20. Bxa7 Rd8]
20...Kf8 Now Kg8 is the threat.
21. Bg5 [21. Bxa7 Rd8]
13...Nf6 14.Qxe5 White goes for a forced line, after
which the endgame clearly favors Black. [14.Qb3 was
not much better either, but definitely with queens on
board, White has more practical chances to set some
tricks against the d8 king. 14...h6 15.Nf3 Neg4! After this
strong defensive move, Black pushes back the remaining
attacking pieces and comfortably enjoys his two extra
pawns.]
14...dxe5 15.Nxf7+ [15. Bf5 is not better 15...Qxd1+
16. Rxd1+ Bd6 17.Nxf7+ Ke7 and White has no good
piece to take. 18.Nfxd6 (18.N xh8 B xf5; 18.B xc8 Rhxc8)
18...cxd6]
15...Ke8 16. Rxd7 Bxd7 17.Nxh8 Bxb5 [17...Nxe4??
18.Nxc7+]
18. Bxb7 Rb8
21... Bc4 [21...Ke7 was much easier. White cannot save
the knight.]
22. Bxf6 gxf6 23. Be4 Bc5 [Again, Black could have
won in a more accurate way: 23...f5! 24. Bxf5 Ke7! and by
getting rid of the f-pawn, Black has the Kf6 move against
25. Rg7. Black wins a piece.]
24.b3 [24. Bxh7 would have been more resistant, but
Black is winning anyway. The following line nicely demonstrates the power of the bishop pair: 24... Bxf2 25. Rg2
Be3+ 26.Kb1 Rd8 Black has good alternatives in each
move, but this line seems to be the most straight forward. 27.b3 Rd1+ 28.Kb2 Bd5 29. Rg3 Bf2 White must
be very careful not to lose immediately 30. Rg4 and here
probably the easiest is to play 30... Rh1 31.h4 Bd4+ 32.c3
Rh2+ 33. Bc2 Bf3! 34. Rg3 Be4]
24... Bg8 25. Rg2 Rd8! Ba3 threatens with mate.
26.c3 Rd7! The last strong move of the game. Rg7 is
coming next and the knight falls.
27.Ng6+ Instead of resignation.
27...hxg6 28. Rxg6 Bh7 29. Rxf6+ Kg7 30. Re6 Ba3+
0–1
29
Issue 18
29th of June 2012
Surprise section / study
(18) Damele
1966
[CEWN]
1. +-
30
Issue 18
29th of June 2012
Solutions
(20) Bezgodov,A (2508) — Andreikin,D (2700)
Russian Higher league, 16.06.2012
(19) Morozevich,A (2769) — Nakamura,H (2775)
[Solutions]
Tal memorial, 14.06.2012
[Solutions]
17. Bxh7+! Kxh7 18.Qh5+ Kg8 19. Rh6! gxf2+ 20.Kf1!
[20.Kh2? Qc7+ 21.g3 gxh6–+] 20...gxh6 21.Qg6+ Kh8
22.Qxh6+ Kg8 23.Qg6+ Kh8 24.Qh6+ Kg8 1/2–1/2
38...c3!! 39.bxc3 Ne3! 40.Qe2 [40.Qf3 Qa4–+] 40...
Nd5! [40...Qxg6 41.Qd3 Qxd3 42. Rxd3] 41.Qd3 a4!!
42. Rb2 [42.c4 Rb3–+; 42. Rh2 Qd7! 43. Rxh6 Nxf6!–+
(43...N xc3+? 44.Ka1!!+-) ] 42... Rxb2+ 43.Kxb2 Qb8+
44.Kc1 Qb3–+ 45.Qa6 Qxc3+ 46.Kd1 Ne3+ 47.Ke2
Qc4+ 0–1
(21) Swapnil,S (2445) — Esen,B (2568)
Golden Sands Open, 11.06.2012
[Solutions]
36... Rxf2+! [36...Qe5? 37. Rxg7+! Qxg7 38.Qxe8++-]
37.Kxf2 Qh2+ 38.Kf3 [38.Kf1 Rf8+–+] 38...Qe2+
39.Kg3 Re3+ 0–1
31
Issue 18
29th of June 2012
(22) Hayrapetian,A (2372) — Grigoryan,A (2581)
(24) Perunovic,M (2577) — Lenderman,A (2587)
Asrian memorial, 18.06.2012
Las Vegas Open, 16.06.2012
[Solutions]
[Solutions]
15... Bh3!! 16. Rg1 [16.0–0–0 Bxg2! 17.Nxg2 Qxf3–+]
16... Bxg2 17. Rxg2 Qxf3 0–1
36...Ng3+! 37.Kh2 Ne4! 38.Qh4 [38.Qg7 Ke7!!–+
39.Qxh7 Rh8 40.Qg7 Rcg8–+] 38... Rc2
(23) Lenderman,A (2587) — Zierk,S (2483)
(25) Koneru,H (2589) — Stefanova,A (2518)
Las Vegas Open, 16.06.2012
Kazan, 18.06.2012
[Solutions]
17. Bf6!! gxf6 18. Re3! e5 [18...Kh8 19. Rh3+-; 18... Rd8
19.Qh6!+-] 19.Qh6! [19. Rg3+? Kh8 20.Qh6 Rg8] 19...
Kh8 20.dxe5! Qd8 21. Rd3!! 1–0
[Solutions]
32. Rxf8+! Kxf8 [32... Bxf8 33.Nf6++-] 33.Qxe2!! Qe6
[33...Qxe2 34. Rc8#] 34.Nc3+32
Issue 18
29th of June 2012
(26) Al Sayed,M (2525) — Georgiev,K (2689)
(28) Gabuzyan,H (2457) — Cheparinov,I (2673)
Golden Sands Open, 12.06.2012
Golden Sands Open, 12.06.2012
[Solutions]
[Solutions]
20... Rb8! 21.Nxa7 Ba4! 22.b4? [22.Kf2 Rxb2] 22...
cxb4 23.axb4 Rb7 24.Nc8 Rc7 0–1
(27) Romero Holmes,A (2521) — Zelbel,P (2377)
Pula Open, 15.06.2012
65.Qh5! [65. Rh8+? Kxh8 66.Qh5+ Kg8 67.Qh7+ Kf8
68.Qh8+ Ke7 69.Qxc8 Bxb2!! 70.Kxb2 a) 70.Qd7+ Kf6
71.Qxf7+ (71.Qd8+ Ke5; 71.gxf7 Qa3+ 72.Kb1 Qa1+
73.Kc2 Qc1+ 74.Kb3 Qc3+=) 71...Kg5; b) 70.f6+ Kxf6!;
70...Qb4+ 71.Kc2 Qd2+ 72.Kb3 Qd1+=] 65... Bxh4
66.Qh7+ Kf8 67.Qh8+ Ke7 68.Qxc8+-
[Solutions]
29.Qxd5! [29. Rxb8? Bxc4] 29...Qxd5 [29... Rxb3
30.Qxf5+-; 29... Rxd5 30. Rxb8+-] 30. Rxb8+ Bf8
31.Nxf8+33
Issue 18
29th of June 2012
(29) Grigoriants,S
2012
[Solutions]
1.Qb2+!! Kxb2 2. Bc1+! Ka1 [2...Kxc1 3. Rxe1+ transposes to the game] 3. Bb2+! Kxb2 4. Re2+! Kc1
5. Rxe1+ Kb2 6. Re2+! Ka3 [6...Kc1 7.Nxa2+ Kb1
8.Nc3+ Kc1 9. Re1+ Kb2 10.Nxa4+ Ka3 11.Kc3 (11. Ra1+
Kb4 12. Rb1+ Kxa4 (12...Ka5 13.Nc6+ Kxa4 14.Kc3!!+; 12...Ka3 13.Kc3+-) 13.Kc3!!+-) 11...Qf7 12. Ra1+ Qa2
13.Nc2+ Kxa4 14. Rxa2#] 7. Rxa2+ Kb4 8. Rxa4+
Kc5 9. Rc4+ Kd6 [9...Kb6 10. Rb4+! Ka6 11.Ke4+
Ka5 12.Nc6#] 10. Rc6+ Ke5 11. Re6+ Kf4 12. Re4+
Kg3 13.Nce2+ Kf2 [13...Kh4 14.Nf3#] 14. Rf4+ Ke1
15.Nc2+ Kd1 16.Nc3+ Kc1 17.Na2+ Kb2 18. Rb4+
Kxa2 19.Kc3!!+-
34