Your move! 9780713462906, 0713462906

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Your Move!

Your Move! Yakov Neishtadt Translated by Graham Patterson

B.

T.

Batsford Ltd, London

B. T. Batsford Ltd, First published 1990

London

© Yakov Neishtadt 1990 ISBN 0 7134 6290 6 A CIP 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 the prior permission of the publisher Typeset by Speedlith Photo Litho Ltd, Stretford, Manchester and printed in Great Britain by Dotesios (Printers) Ltd, Trowbridge, Wilts for the publishers, B. T. Batsford Ltd, 4 Fitzhardinge Street, London WlHOAH

A BATSFORD CHESS BOOK Adviser: R. D. Keene GM, QBE Technical Editor: Ian Kingston

Contents 1 2

3 4 5

6 7

An invitation to study Combinative motifs Illusory or insufficient defence of the first rank Attacking the exposed king Clear defects in the king's pawn cover Weakness of squares of a certain colour When the king is short of space . . . The pin Careful of the long diagonal! Heading for promotion Other motifs Combined motifs On well-trodden paths Ways and means Stalemate An exam . . . with no hints! Solutions to the exercises

1 3 3 6

8 10 13 14 17 19 21 25 28 35 43 45 94

1

An invitation to study

The purpose of this book is to help to perfect your tactics. In front of you are 344 positions. Each one shows the moment before the decisive turn of events. It is up to you to find the winning line or, in bad positions, to find the path to salvation. At first you should try to solve the exercises under conditions similar to those you would experi­ ence in a practical game. Think about the position without mov­ ing the pieces, and turn to the analysis only when you are sure that you cannot solve the exercise in your head. You can j udge how successfully you have managed this from the solutions in the back of the book. These thematic exercises are pre­ ceded by illustrative examples. And if this book should be opened by a reader familiar with my previous work Test Your Tacti­ cal Ability, let me hurry to assure him that Your Move! does not

repeat a single example from that book. Before we set about classifying types of combinations, let us repeat the definition of a combi­ nation : A combination is a forced vari­ ation involving a sacrifice, pur­ suing a definite aim and leading to a qualitative transformation of the position. We can classify combinations by the aims which they pursue; by the material which is sacrificed; by the pieces participating in the implementation of the combi­ nation; by the target against which the combination is directed; and finally, by the stage of the game. However, such methods of differentiation are rather aca­ demic; they do not get to the heart of the matter. It is more important to consider classifying combi­ nations by their content. Great benefit in the develop-

2

An Invitation to Study

ment of tactical vision can be obtained from the study of the combinative means*, which are used in the implementation of combinations : decoying, deflec­ tion, attraction, destroying defen­ ders, freeing a square or a line, pinning, line-closing and blocking. A chess player's memory holds many concluding positions from combinations and typical combi­ native mechanisms. We, however, will begin by cataloguing combi-

*The terms 'combinative methods', 'themes' and also the 'idea' of a combi­ nation are used in the same sense.

native motifs - the features of a position which indicate the direc­ tion of the search for a combi­ nation. From these many pointers we can single out illusory or insufficient defence of the eighth (or first) rank, exposed king pos­ itions, serious defects in the king's pawn cover, weakness of squares of a certain colour, and other fea­ tures.

2

Combinative Motifs other move) White will surely find the concluding combinative blow 2 l::l b7!! On any capture 3 'lWd8 + finishes the game. Black resigned.

Illusory or insufficient defence of the eighth (or first) rank Mileika-Petkevi�s Riga 1963

Mikenas-Bronstein Tallin 1965

W* 2 B

�--- .

�

. .

Here too the key is the first rank, or more accurately, the square e l . On 1 . . 'it' e l + White was intending 2 'i!ffl . However, with the move 1 . . . l::l xa3!! Bronstein put his rook en prise to three pieces, and the game ended. .

. .

.

:�

..

The black king has no breathing space. It's true that the key square d8, at which the white queen, backed up by a rook, is aiming, is twice defended. But what if one of the defenders were to be destroyed . ? Thus arises the idea of the move 1 l::ta7 ! And examin­ ing the position mentally after 1 . 'lW b6 (it's easy to see there is no

Capablanca-Thomas Hastings 1929/30 After 1 l::l xe8 'it'xe8 the move 2

.

* W o r B beside a diagram indicates White or Black to move.

3

4

Combinative Motifs

'llt'a4!, decoying the queen from the defence of the eighth rank, decides the game. Black cannot, of course, take the queen because of mate, and the counter-decoy 2 . . . l:t c l + achieves nothing in view of the simple reply 3 @f2. This little tactical operation could have happened, but didn't. Capablanca played the obvious move 1 'llf a8 , thinking that after this Black had to capitulate. And Thomas did, in fact, resign - wrongly. He had up his sleeve the counterblow 1 l:rxa2! decoying the queen, after which Capablanca would have had to play a heavy-piece ending two pawns down (for example 2 'llt' xa2 l:rxb8; 2 l:t xe8 l:t xa8 3 Rxf8 + Rxf8; 2 'llf b7 c5 3 'llf c7 l:t a8 4 l:t xa8 l:t xa8 5 l:t b7 l:rc8).

material equality with the move 1 l:l:xd5. But is his defence of the first rank sufficiently secure? By playing 1 'llt'f2 !! Portisch could have won the game immediately. If White now blocks the mate on fl and simultaneously defends the rook with the move 2 ll:l g3, then 2 'lit' el + leads to mate. But the Hungarian grandmaster did not spot 1 . . . 'llt' f2. He played 1 . . . 'llt' a6, and the reply 2 Ng2 allowed White to neutralize the danger. The game ended in a draw. Note that the basic method of exploiting the weakness or insufficient defence of the eighth (or first) rank is to decoy the enemy pieces which are fulfilling important defensive roles.

Teschner-Portisch Monaco 1969

Exercise I With the move 1 : b2 White offered an exchange of rooks. Your reply?

. . .

Black isn't threatening to take the queen, so White decided to restore

. . .

. . .

Exercises

Combinative Motifs

5

Exercise 4

Exercise 5 Exercise 2

Exercise 3 E3 w

Mate on c2 is threatened and the bishop on c8 is en prise. What should White do?

6

Combinative Motifs

Attacking the exposed king Stahlberg-Becker Buenos Aires 1 944

If the pawn on g2 were not pinned, White could deliver mate with g2g3. So the rook has to be decoyed with the move 1 W'el + ! Georgadze-Kuindzhi Tbilisi 1 973 6 B

White gets mated in three moves :

1 . . . 'ilff2 + (decoying the queen

which was pinning the rook on g5) 2 'ihf2 l:h h5 + (in this way the g5 square is vacated) 3 ..t xh5 g5 mate.

Now a more difficult example

whose solution moves.

involves quiet

Keene-Mortensen A rhus 1 983

In an enviable display of activity, the black king has fallen into a trap : 1 b4! (in order to deflect the c5 pawn and establish control over the d4 square) 1 . . . cxb4 (the threat was b4-b5) 2 f4!! This move deprives the king of the e5 square and creates a threat of J:t a 1 -d 1 d4 mate. Black cannot take the pawn on g3 because of 3 J:t xe7 mate. 2 . . . J:t h7 does not help either in view of 3 J:t xe7 + !! J:t xe7 4 l:t d l and mates. 2 . . . l:t c6. The pawn on c4 is attacked. One moment more and the Black king will be out of danger. There followed, however, the planned manoeuvre 3 J:tdl !, and on 3 . . . l:t xc4 . . . . . . the devastating 4 l:t c7!! The rook is decoyed from the defence of the critical �quare d4, so Black resigned.

Combinative Motifs

Exercise 9 E9 w

Exercises

Exercise 7 Exercise JO EJO B

Black accepted the offer of a draw, thinking that he had nothing better than perpetual check (1 . . . J:l g4 + 2 @h2 J:!. h4 + ). Has he?

Exercise 11

Exercise 8 EB

Ell

B

w

7

8

Combinative Motifs

Obvious defects in the king's pawn cover Heemsoth-Heisenbiittel Bremen 1 958

does not work because of 1 . . 'ii c5 + and Black exchanges queens), White plays 1 l:t e5!! (after 1 . . .txe5 2 f6 there is no longer any queen swap, and on 1 . . dxe5 there follows 2 'llr'g 7 mate). Black resigned. .

.

.

Shashin-Kolevit Moscow 1 974

By playing 1 J:tc5!, White opens a path for his queen to the g7 square and simultaneously defends against the threatened mate. There is no satisfactory defence against the second sacri­ fice - 2 l:t x h 7 + with 3 'ilg7 mate to follow, so Black resigned. Samisch-Ahues Hambur g 1 946

White cannot take the queen because of mate. On 1 'llr'e 2? there follows 1 . 'ilxe4. If 1 h3, then simply 1 . . . 'i/ xg4 2 hxg4 .:!.d l + 3 c;i;>h2 .te7. However the open position of the Black king allows White with a single move 1 .tf4! - to liquidate the mating threat and at the same time create his own decisive threats : mate (2 .:tel +) and taking the queen. Black defended his queen with 1 l:t d5, freeing the d8 square for his king, but after 2 .:tel + c;i;>d8 3 .tg5 + .t e7 White finished the game with the brilliant 4 ttid6! . .

-

. . .

In order to carry out the deadly threat f5-f6 (the immediate 1 f6

Combinative Motifs

Pillsbury-Tarrasch Hastings 1895

Exercises

Exercise 1 2

12 w

There followed 1 W' g 3+ @xh6. Acceptance of the sacrifice is forced, as after 1 . . . @f8 2 'W g8 + Black loses a rook. 2 'it>hl ! (the g l square must be freed for the rook) 2 'Wd5 (2 . . . c2 loses in view of 3 .1:1. g l with the threat of 4 W' h4 mate) 3 J:.gl 'Wxf5 4

Exercise 13 £13 w

. . .

'Wh4 + W'h5 5 'Wf4 + 'Wg5 6 J:.x g5 fx g5 7 'Wd6+. Black never

manages to play c3-c2, since the knight is taken either with check or with a threat of mate. 7 @h5 8 W'xd7 and White won. . . .

Exercise 14

9

JO

Combinative Motifs

Exercise 15

Exercise 1 8

£15 w

Exercise 16 £16 w

White is a piece down, and besides is threatened with 'iW d2-e 1 + fol­ lowed by 'iWe l -fl . Your solution? Weakness of squares of a certain colour Arkhipkin-Kuznetsov Kiev 1980 13 w

Exercise 1 7

The introductory move of the combination is 1 b4! The aim is to decoy the Black queen from the defence of the h5 square! On 1 'iW xb4 the outcome of the game is decided by a queen sacrifice 2 'iW h5! gxh5 (2 . . . h6 3 'iW xh6!) 3 . . .

-

Combinative Motifs

11

..t g7 4 l'lxg7 + �f8 (4 �h8 5 l'lg6 mate) 5 l'lxh7 . . . and mate is unavoidable. .l'lg3 +

Mnatsakanian-Prandstetter Erevan t984 14 w

not at all easy. White replied 2 'ii' a3 defending against the threat (if 2 . . . 'ii' e4, then 3 'ii' f3). There followed 2 : c8! (chasing off the rook and preparing to block the third rank) � : et (3 J:l xc8 'ii' b l + ) 3 : c3. '.T hus the queen is cut off from the kingside, after which Black succeeds in carrying out his original threat. 4 bxc3 'ii'e4 5 f3 11Ve3 + 6 � ht 'ii' f2 7 J:l gt . . .

In order to exploit the glaring weakness of the black squares on the kingside, the bishop must be brought into the attack : t J:l xc6! l'l xc6 2 J:l xc6 l'lxc6 3 ..txb4 'ii' ti. On 3 . . . : c8 4 ..te7 wins. 4 lllg5! 1hf6 5 exf6 : c7 (6 f7 + was the threat) 6 ..te7 : Black resigned.

. . •

'ii'x e2 8 cxd4 (16 ). 16 B

Kitanov-Baum Sterlitamak t949

The bishop on c8 has no opposite number, and White's kingside has been weakened by the move g2g3. This is sufficient to start exam­ ining the continuation t ..t h3. White cannot take the rook, in view of 2 . . . 'ii' e4 3 f3 'ii' xe2 and mates. However, accurate calcu­ lation of the whole combination is . • .

Now what? Surely the queen's links with the kingside have been restored? 8 e4!! A quiet move, which had to be foreseen earlier, when the rook was sacrificed. The . • .

Combinative Motifs

12

threats are 9 . . e3 and 9 . exf3 followed by .th3-g2+. The pawn on e4 cannot be taken because of mate. 9 f4 e3 White resigned. .

. .

Exercise 2 1 £21 w

Exercises

Exercise 19 £1 9 w

Exercise 22 £22 w

Exercise 20 £20 w

Exercise 23 £23 w

With his last move, . . . g7-g6, Black defended against mate. Con­ tinue the attack.

Combinative Mot(fs On 1 c5, with which White wins h is piece back with the aid of a pin, Black hit back with the tactical st roke 1 . . J:l:e4. How should the game finish?

Iii w

.

When the king is short of space . . . Atkinson-NN Manchester 1929

pay, so 1 "ilfxd4! and on 1 ..Wxd4 2 lbf5 Black resigned. Exercises Exercise 24

The black king has no room to breathe. But how to get the knight to f7? This square seems sufficiently defended, but the prob­ lem is solved nevertheless with 1 J:l:xe6! "ilfxe6 2 lbg5 "ilfg6 3 J:l: xh7+

�xh7 4 lbf7 mate.

Botvinnik-Alexander USSR-GB Radio Match 1946

Here the Black king is in a tight s p ot for other reasons : he hasn't a single flight sq uare. If White could deliver a check with the knight on h6, the game would be over. In order to play lbg3-f5 without allowing the exchange of knights, no price is too high to

Exercise 25

13

14

Combinative Motifs

Exercise 26 £26

.

B

Exercise 27

The pin

Let's begin with example ( 19).

White wins with the move 1 ..tc3, pinning the rook, and then attack­ ing it again (1 . . ..t>f6 2 f4). When pinned by an attacking queen, rook or bishop, a piece (or pawn) is fully or partially deprived of its mobility, since it is covering another piece on the same line (rank, file or diagonal) which is of greater value or unpro­ tected. When the pinned piece is shield­ ing the king, its mobility is maxim­ ally limited : movement is possible only along the line of attack. In our example the pin led immediately to the win of material. But, of course, this is far from being the case every time. In the most frequent case - the pin of a knight by a bishop - the attack on the pinned piece (the knight) and the defence balance each other out. Now let's look at positions where the pin itself does not bring any profit, but serves as the start­ ing point for a combination.

the simplest

19 w

Tal-NN ( 20) Simultaneous display, Tbilisi 1965

The pin on the c8 bishop allows White to decide the game with the elegant move 1 .J:[d7! Nimzovitch-Rubinstein ( 2 1) Berlin 1928 White played 1 •g6!, leaving his

Combinative Motifs 20

22

w

w

15

g5 bishop? 1 h4! (notwithstanding the fact that Black can take this pawn) 1 J: b4+ 2 @xe5 J: xh4 ( 23).

21 w

. . .

23 w

rook en prise, which can even be taken with check. So Black resigned. The g7 pawn is pinned and consequently 'ifg6xh6 mate is threatened. If 1 . . J:hd l +, then 2 @g2 J: d2 + 3 @h3. The only possibility to defend the h6 square is to play 2 . . . .J:lg l + instead of 2 . . . J: d2 + , in order to transfer the bishop to e3 with tempo. But then after 3 @xg l i.c5 + 4 @g2 .te3 the g7 square is undefended. .

Khalomeyev-lsakov Simferopol 1947

How to make use of the pin on the

3 f4! J: xf4 4 J: xg7+ @xg7 5 .:. xg5+ and 6 @xf4 finishes the

game. We have looked at cases where the pin (partial or total) serves as a pointer in the search for the decisive continuation. But a pin can also be the means of imple­ menting a combination (along with decoying, deflection, blocking and other methods). This distinc­ tion is well illustrated by the next example.

Combinative Motif's

16

Bogatirev-Zagoryansky Moscow 1947 24 B

found in Ways (Chapter 4). From the initial position, a pin arises as the result of a forced variation, deciding the outcome of the game. Black chased the enemy king from its shelter with 1 l:t al + 2 �h2 'if gl + 3 'iti>g3 and then played 3 l:t a3 + . If 4 'iti>g4 the chase would have con­ tinued with 4 . . . 'if b6 - Black makes use of the fact that the king cannot return to the third rank. For example, 5 l:t d6 (5 . . . 'ife6 + 6 @h4 'if f6 + 7 'iti>g4 h5 + was the threat) 5 . . . 'if b5 6 l:t d5 'ifb3. On 4 @h4 there also follows 4 . . . 'if b6. Therefore White blocked the check-4 l:t d3 ( 25). Here Black missed the chance to utilize the pin (arising in the moves of a forced variation) and win the game with the elegant move 4 'ifd4!! (4 . . . 'ifa7 was played, and the game finally ended in a draw. More examples of the pin in the moves of a combination can be • • •

Exercises

Exercise 28 E28 w

. . •

• • •

Exercise 29

and

Means

Comhinative Motifs

f;xercise 30 £311 w

Exercise 3 1

With his last move . . . h7-h6 Black chased off the knight. Your reply? Exercise 32 £32 w

17

Exercise 33 E33 w

Careful of the long diagonal!

Here we are talking about pos­ itions in which a bishop, standing on the long diagonal, is attacking (or aiming at) the squares in the immediate vicinity of the enemy king. The possibility of including the queen in the attack (especially placing her on the same diagonal) serves as a pointer in the search for a combination. Glass-Russell Belfast 1958

18

Combinative Motifs

White offered a queen exchange, but instead got mated in three : 1 . . . 'ilr'g2+ 2 @xg2 lllf4++ and 3 . . . lllh3 mate.

27

8 . . . J: xh8, and Black keeps his huge material advantage. Now though (after 5 g4!) 6 'llf h8 + is threatened (6 . . . @g6 7 'ilt' g8 +). Mate is unavoidable, since the bishop cannot move in view of 6 'ilt'g7 mate, and if 5 . . . h5, then 7 'iir' h 8 + @g6 7 'iir' x h5 mate.

w

Exercises

Exercise 34

1 lllf6+ ! After the black king is deprived of pawn cover, the batt­ ery ( ..t b2, 'ilr'c3) opens deadly fire. 1 . . . g xf6 2 'ilr'xf6 d4 3 l:t xd4 cxd4 4 ..txd4 @h7 ( 28). 28

.I

White played 1 lllfe5. Your reply? Exercise 35

£35 w

5 g4! It must be this, and not the other (more direct) move order 5 'ilt'h8 + ? @g6 6 g4, after which a counter-sacrifice saves Black : 6 . . . 'iir' x h2+ ! 7 �xh2 ..td6 + and

Combinative Motifs

Exercise 36

19

Heading for promotion

When a pawn, the private of the chess army, reaches the eighth (or first) rank, a fairy-tale elevation in status awaits it. The position of a pawn close to the promotion square suggests the idea of sweep­ ing away all obstacles preventing its onward march. Popov-Emelyanenko Correspondence 1984/5

Exercise 37 f.'37 w

Exercise 38

White is ready to give up his knight for the c-pawn, which leads to a draw. H owever, after the deflecting move 1 ll:ib6! he had to resign - the pawn cannot be stopped. . . .

Medina-Tai Mallorca 1 979

With his last move White offered the exchange of queens. Tai wil­ lingly agreed -1 . . . •xf3+ 2 >Pxf3, and then played 2 . ll:ie3! White resigned. . .

:!O

Combinative

Motifs

Black has prevented the appear­ ance of a new queen. But only for a moment. The blocking of the last rank 5 ..tg8! ensures that the pawn will promote. Black resigned.

30 B

-

Exercises

Exercise 39

Morphy-Fuller New York 1859

Looking at the diagram, one might suppose that there is a rook miss­ ing from a l . In fact the rook has been missing since the start of the game : Morphy gave his opponent odds. In the course of the battle he has won a bishop and now is only the exchange down. How to continue the attack? There followed 1 J: g6!! 'i'xg6. If 1 . . hxg6, then 2 h7. On 1 . . 'i' f5 White would reply 2 tll d 2, threatening 3 hxg7+. 2 'i'xg6 hxg6 3 h7 .!:I.el + 4 @xel @e7. By giving up a rook, .

.

Exercise 40

-

Combinative Motifs

Exercise 41 t:.4 1

w

Play went 1 'ilfb5 'ilff4! 2 'iti>gl and the game ended in a draw. But White could have won. H ow? 'llt' e3 + ,

21

Exercise 44 £44 w

Exercise 45 £45 B

Exercise 42 /::4 2 w

H aving attacked the rook, White sighed with relief. What do you advise Black to do? Exercise 43 Other motifs 1::4 3 B

The signs directing the chessplayer in his search for a combination are many. In each section we have looked at one feature of the pos­ ition which could be seen with the naked eye. This feature served as the initial piece of information in our thoughts. But no more. The combinations turned out to exist

Combinative Motifs

22

thanks to a whole range of factors conditional upon the particular disposition of forces. Besides the motifs already mentioned, things like undefended pieces, superiority in the forces attacking the king and actively positioned bishops can all serve as stimuli i n the combinative search. And last but not least we ought to mention the so-called geometrical motifs. Chekhover-Lutikov Leningrad 1950

to g4, the knight and the g2 square would be attacked simultaneously. Both threats cannot be parried, and so 1 d3! (deflecting the bishop) 2 .i.xd3 •g4. White resigned because he loses a piece. . . .

32 B

Boros-Szabo Budapest 1937 34 w

The white queen is undefended and is also on the same rank as the enemy queen. With the help of a rook sacrifice Black draws the king to g l and wins the q ueen with a discovered check : 1 . . .

.l:txh2 + 2 '1Pxh2 "ii'h 6 + 3 'iPgl .i.xd4 + . Ligterink-Belyavsky Wijk aan Zee 1985

The white knight is undefended, and if Black could get his q ueen

All White's heavy pieces, plus the bishop on d3, are aiming at Black's kingside and the bishop on b2 is ready to take part in the attack as soon as the knight on e6 leaves its post. The balance of forces in the critical sector of the board is clearly in White's favour, and by

Combinative Motifs

23

destroying the king's pawn cover he achieves his aim easily : 1 i:txh7 + c;f;>xh7 2 J:txf7 + l::l. x f7 3 '1Wxg6 + . Black resigned in view of the obvious 3 . . . @h8 4 '1W xf7

tt:lg5 5 e6 + .

Zinn-Sveshnikov D�cin 1974 35

ops, one of which is attacking the knight on c3, suggested to Black the move 1 . . . '1Wa7! A small, but important detail : the position of the rook on gl makes it impossible for the queen to retreat to b4 or along the c-file. White resigned.

B

One is immediately struck by the doubled heavy pieces on the g-file. The g2 square is defended only by the king, and if the bishop on g7 wasn't blocking the file, Black could deliver mate. This means that the bishop has to be shifted in such a way as not to allow White to play l::l. d l -d2 or l::l. fl ­ f2, and therefore 1 . . . l::I. ti! On 2 '1Wxf7 - and any other queen move meets the same fate --- there follows 2 . . . ..td4 + and 3 "ilr'xg2 mate. White resigned. Bivshev-Tolush Leningrad 1954

The powerful position of the bish-

Hiibner-Murey Sukhumi 1972 37 B

The black king is exposed. Hilbner could have utilized the power of his bishops with two decoying moves : 1 g5! ..t xg5 2 ..td4 + ..tf6 and 3 '1Wb8!! But the German grandmaster did not spot this possibility and played 1 '1Wf7.

Combinative Motifs

24

Hiibner-Penrose England 1971

38 w

---,, ,---.� m •• •

knight fork, on e2. This square is defended for the moment ( 1 . . . tll e 2 + ? 2 tll x e2), but after two sacrifices the defence turns out to be illusory : 1 'ilfxcl! 2 'ilfxcl .ct xc3 3 'iW e I. If 3 'iW xc3, then 3 . . . tll e 2 + . But even now White cannot avoid the fork. 3 . . . .!:tel 4 'ilfxcl tlle2 + and 5 . . tllxcl and Black has won a piece. . . .

.

Exercises

If White's knight was on c6 instead of the rook, Black would lose his rook because of the fork. To free the square occupied by his rook, White plays I lhg6! and after 1 . . . hxg6 2 tll c 6 + , 3 tll xe7 and 4 tll xg6 he obtains a winning ending. The intermediate move 1 . . . l::.Xe 5 doesn't help Black either, since after 2 fxe5 hxg6 3 e6 the pawn cannot be stopped. Ozsvath-Honfi Budapest 1953

Exercise 46 £46

On 1 f5 Black played reply? Exercise 47 £47 w

The leitmotiv of the position is a

1 . ef. .

.

Your

Combinative Motifs

To defend against the multiple threats, White played 1 fxg4. Con­

tin ue the attack. Exercise 48

25

insufficient defence of the first rank and the weakness of squares near the king. From the huge number of possible permutations we will select j ust two examples. Browne-Haik Reykjavik 1986

Exercise 49

There followed 1 ... lhel + (but not 1 . . lll e 2 + ? in view of 2 J:l. xe2 J:l. xe2 3 "iir' h6 and Black gets mated) 2 .lhel llle2+! and White loses his queen, since he cannot take the knight because of 3 . . . "iir' b l + . This combination was based on the use of the geometrical motif and insufficient defence of the first rank . .

Combined motifs

It goes without saying that a pos­ ition can contain not j ust one distinct defect, but two, or even several. This applies to the advan­ tages in a position as well. The combinations of factors can be extremely varied. Thus, the combi­ nation in Exercise I was based on

Korchmar-Ye. Polyak USSR 1938 How to penetrate to e8 with the rook? To do this the knight on d6 must be destroyed 1 lllb4! axb4 2 "ilr'xd6! The queen, of course, cannot be taken because of 3 J:l. e8 + , but it appears that Black -

26

Combinative Motifs

5 J:tg8+! �xg8 6 J:te8+ J:tf8 7 .1:1. xf8 mate. The insufficient defence of the first rank was exposed by the g-file pin and the overloading of the rook on 17.

Exercises

can defend his first rank against invasion with 2 ... 'Wd7. Now the straightforward 3 'W xd7 .l:l. xd 7 4 J:t e8 + �17 is in Black's favour. Hioever, the combination is not yet over. 3 'Wd5!! A gain the queen is untouchable. If she is taken, then 4 .l:l. e8 + .l::l.f8 5 .l:l. xg7+ and 6 .lhf8 mate. Meanwhile 4 J:t xg7 + is threatened. The direct 3 . . . g6 loses in view of 4 J:t ge3 ! There remains only a king move, unpinning the rook on 17. 3 ... �f8 ( 42). 42 w

4 J:txg7!! A diagonal pin comes into play. On 4 . . . J:t xg7 White just takes the q ueen. 4 ... 'ii'xd5

Exercise 50

Exercise 5 1

Combinative Motifs

r>.:ercise 52 JS!

w

Exercise 53 E53 B

27

3

On well-trodden paths

Chess is a creative game, not a contest to see who has the best memory. H owever, it is useful to know the most characteristic tacti­ cal operations. Many combi­ nations follow a previously work­ ed-out path. The initial position, the means of action and the final position are known to the chess­ player through chess literature or through his own experience. It goes without saying that every position has its own characterist­ ics, and the correctness of a com bi­ nation often depends on the finest nuance : the position of a single piece (or pawn) - one's own or one's opponent's. All the same, a combination known to a chessplayer, like the threads of Ariadne, can suggest to him not only an idea, but concrete moves, which have to be calcu­ lated. It even happens that the difference from the original turns out to be insignificant, and then we get straightforward copying

of the original- the combination goes down a path trodden many times before. Let's take a few classic examples. First, a combination as old as the game of chess itself. From Polerio's manuscript 1 585-90

1 .i.xh7+ @xh7 2 tt:lg5+ .txg5 (if 2 'iti>g$, then 3 'tlf h 5 .i.xg5 4 hxg5 f5 5 g6 and mate next move; on 2 . . . @g6 either 3 'tlfd3 + or 3 h5 + is decisive) 3 hxg5+ and then 3 . . . @g6 (3 . . . @g8 4 'tlf h 5) 4 'tlf h 5 + @f5 5 g6+ and mates. . . .

28

On well-trodden

Now here's the same combi­ nation in an almost modern game. Foltys-Mohila Praha 1940

paths

29

Three moves --- .txh7 +, 'ii h 5 + and tZ:lg5- separate Black from catastrophe. Instead of preventing the sacrifice with 1 . . . f5, the Span­ ish master naively attacked the bishop 1 ... c4?- and after 2 .txh7+, he thought a little, then resigned. -

Filchev-Padevsky Sofia 1952

..txh7+ 'it>xh7 2 tZ:lg5+ 'itig8 3 'iWh5 .txg5 4 hxg5 @f8 5 'l!Vh8+ @e7 6 tZ:lg6+! fxg6 7 �xg7 mate.

The other, perhaps more com­ mon, variation of the bishop sacri­ fice on h7 occurs without a pawn on h4 and the consequent opening of the h-file. Yates-Marin 3rd Olympiad, Hamburg 1930

1 ... .txh2+ 2 wxh2 tZ:lg4+ 3 @g3 (3 @ g t 'i!V h4) 3 ... 'iWd6+ 4 f4 'i!Vh6 5 f5 (mate on h2 was threatened) 5 ... 'i!Vh2+! 6 'it>xg4 h5+ 7 '>t>g5 'i!Vg3+ 8 'itixh5 g6+ 9 fxg6 'it>g7! A quiet move, after which there is no defence against the threats 10 . . . J:!: h8 + or 10 . . . 'llf h 2+ 1 1 'it>g5 'iWh6 mate. Let's look at another sacrifice on h7, not a bishop this time, but a queen. Abrosimov-Ambainis Daugavpils 1975 1 l:. l xd4! The introduction to the

30

On well-trodden paths

47 w

following sacrifice : White frees a path for his other rook to h5. 1 ... exd4 2 'ilt'xh7+! @xh7 3 .Uh5 mate. Note the role played in this combination by the knight on e7. Marco-Salter Chernovtsy 1922

by the knight, White delivers mate in three : 2 llle7+ @h8 3 'ilt'xh7+! @xh7 4 J:lhl mate. Everybody knows Legall's fam­ ous combinative trap, played in the middle of the eighteenth cen­ tury in the following game : 1 e4 e5 2 ll:lf3 ll:lc6 3 .tc4 d6 4 ll:lc3 .tg4 5 lllxe5? (Legall, evidently was sure that his opponent would not take the knight, but the queen . . . ) 5 ... .txdl?? (after 5 . . . lll xe5 Black would have been a piece up) 6 .txf7+ @e7 7 ll:ld5 mate. Variations on the sacrifice free­ ing a knight from a pin by a bishop are almost infinite. In such cases, the pin set up by one's opponent can serve as a pointer in the search for a combination.

48 w

The routine continuation of the attack would be 1 J:[ h 1 h6 2 g5. But White also has in his armoury a routine combination (with an original introductory move, it's true) : 1 .tb5! 'ilt'xb5. Otherwise he loses the queen to a fork. But now, with e7 securely controlled

Falkbeer-NN Vienna 1847 1 e4 e5 2 ll:lf3 ll:lc6 3 d4 exd4 4 .tc4 d6 5 c3 dxc3 6 lllxc3 .tg4 7 0-0. Black now played 7 ... Ne5, expecting the bishop to retreat to e2 ( 49). But the bishop did not retreat. By analogy with Legall's minia­ ture there followed 8 ll:lxe5 .txdt 9 .txf7+ @e7 10 ll:ld5 mate. Horwitz-Bledow Berlin 1837 Black mated his opponent with a stereotyped removal of his knight from the pin : 1 . .. lllxe4 2 .txe7

On well-trodden paths

.txf2+ 3 ..t;>fl tllg3 mate.

Under the heading 'Legall's theme' are usually grouped all cases where a knight is freed from an enemy bishop.s pin in which the queen is sacrificed. The conse­ quences of this can be ex tremely varied. Najdorf-NN Buenos Aires 1942 tllxe5! .txe2 2 tlld7+ ..t;>e8 3 tt:lb8+! (in this closing of the eig hth rank lies the heart of the combination) 3 . . . c6. If 3 . . . 'tixb5, 3 . . . .txb5 or 3 . . . ..t;>f8, then 4 J:l d8 mate. 4 tlld6+ ..t;>f8

31

5 tlld7 mate. This combination of Legall's (Legall was, as is well known, Philidor's tutor) is much younger than another famous combi­ nation. Its final position has been christened 'smothered mate'. Because of the cramping effect ol his own pieces, the king turns out to be defenceless against the knight. Smothered mate is achieved by means of a blockading queen sacrifice.

In front of us ( 5 2) is the first reference in chess literature to the suffocation of the king - an exer­ cise from Lucena's manuscript,

32

On well-trodden paths

dating from the end of the fifteenth century. Black gets mated ('in five moves at most' - as they say in problems) by a method which has since become old hat : 1 'lie6+ 'it>h8 2 lllfi+ @g8 3 lllh6++ @h8 4 'lig8+! J:txg8 5 lllfi mate. Zguchev-Mechkarov Sofia 1946

There followed 1 .td5+. Not wanting to get mated in such a common manner (1 . . . cxd 5 2 'lixd5 + etc), Black played 1 ... @h8. But then the game was fin­ ished by the move '2 'lifc3! Bernstein-Metger Ostende 1907 1 llleg5! fxg5 2 lhd7 'lixd7 3 lllxe5. The queen is attacked, and simultaneously 4 lllf7 + is threat­ ened. Black resigned. From the frequently-repeated combinations in chess praxis we have chosen four groups. We

54 w

could continue this review, adding to it a row of previously catalo­ gued ideas, for exam ple, mate with bishop and knight, with the two bishops, variations on the theme of dragging out and hunting down the king, etc. Note that a chess player's opinion on the standard nature or originality of any tactical operation is to a certain extent subjective, since it depends on experience and knowledge. Some­ thing that in the eyes of the novice is a display of chess fireworks can be a hackneyed technical example for the tournament veteran. But, as the reader has already been assured, even repeated combi­ nations have their own original features. This could be the intro­ ductory play, transforming, as it were, a position far from a tactical explosion into one ready for a typical blow. We have also seen that, in the carrying out of stereo­ typed plans, it is sometimes neces­ sary to look for far from stereo-

On well-trodden paths

typed methods - in comparison with the original, every position has its own special features, and that means its own attacking and defensive resources.

Exercise 56 £56 w

Exercises

Exercise 54 f54 w

Exercise 57 £57 w

Exercise 55 Exercise 58

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On well-trodden paths

34

Exercise 59 £59 B

4

Ways and Means

In the first chapter we looked at combinative motifs. The previous chapter was dedicated to typical combinations. Now Jet's look at means of combinative action. In commenting on game extracts, we have already used the terms 'deco­ ying', freeing a square', 'blocking', etc. Decoying forces one of the opponent's pieces or pawns to leave its post and give access to an important square (or line) or deprive the defence of another piece.

Two decoying blows decided the outcome of the game : 1 .J:l.d8! 2 'it'e3 (2 "if xd8 11hcl + ) 2 'it' xc2! The queen cannot be taken because of mate, and after 3 @fl .1:1. dl + the game ended (4 .1:1. xdl 11hdl + 5 'it' el "ifd3 + ). . . .

. . .

Varjomaa-Lundquist Sweden 1980 56 w

Barcza-Tal Tallinn 197 1 55 B

To defend against the mate, White played 1 f4. There followed 1 .J:l.d3! (decoying the queen from the defence of g2) 2 ..txe5 + dxe5 3 'it' b2 (if 3 'i!t' c2, then 3 . . . .1:1. xdl 4 .1:1. xdl Jt'.f3.+J (57). 3 11H3 + (but not 3 . . . .1:1. xdl . . .

. . .

35

36

Ways and Means

57 B

resign. On 2 � x f3 there follows 2 .td5 + 3 @f4 .i.h6 mate. Schewe-Rubinstein Ostend 1907 59 w

in view of 4 "Yi'xe5 + J:l. g7 5 "Yi'e8 + with a draw) and White was mated. With the help of a deflection (or attraction) one of the opponent's pieces or pawns iss;o!Tip_elJ�f7. On principle, Boleslavsky gave preference to the move 1 ... @f7 (the king attacks the pawn and guards the promotion square while the rook can serve other, more active, duties). However, after 2 e8('if)+! 'it>xe8 3 �a4 Black had to resign; he loses his rook because of the pin.

.

Perenyi-Brandics Budapest 1985 The g-pawn is ready to become a queen, and threatening mate with 1 'it>g6 doesn't work because the pawn promotes with check. How­ ever, the king move becomes poss­ ible after a preparatory bishop sacrifice to close the fi le 1 �g5!! On 1 . . . fxg5 2 'it>g6 wins, and if -

Ways and Means

1 . g 1 ( 'iif } there follows 2 .txf6 + and 3 h 7 + . Black resigned. . .

Miles-Pritchett London 1982

39

have led to victory : 2 .i:t bl (or 2 'iif xf7 + @h8 3 .i:t b l J:!. el ) 2 . . . .:t el 3 'iif xf7 + 'ith8 4 .i:t ddl .txc3. Blocking compels (or induces) the opponent to occupy a square which he has to keep free (most often as a flight square for the king. The opponent's own pieces are thus made to hamper him. Polyansky-Gerchikov Archangelsk 1949

Two methods of attack suggest themselves 1 'iif c2 and 1 . . .bc3. Which should Black choose? In the game the energetic move 1 .t xc3 was played, on which there followed 2 'iif xti + @h8 (68). How does White save himself from mate? 3 .te5!! The closing of the long diagonal and the e-file completely turns the tables : Black had to resign ! But 1 . . . 'iWc2 would -

.

. . .

How to cut off the Black king's escape? The e7 square must be blocked, so 1 'iifh7 + @f8 2 e7 + ! .i:t xe7 3 'iWh8 mate.

40

Ways and Means

Kwilecki-Reslinski Poznan 1953

ing the rook from the defence of the last rank) 1 J:txe7 2 'iiic8+ t?Jf8 3 'iiixf8+ ! (attracting the king) 3 @xf8 4 l:ih8 mate. . . .

. . .

There followed 1 t:!.e7 J:td7 2 'iiie5+ 'itf8.111ere White won the queen with the brilliant move 3 'iiif6!, since Black can only pre­ vent mate by playing 3 . . . 'iiie 8. lf Black takes the rook (with either his queen or rook), he blocks his king's exit and gets mated on h8. Often two combinative methods are used together in a single com­ bination.

With the move 1 l:te7! White put his rook en prise and Black had to resign. If 1 'iiix e7 the queen is deflected from the defence of the d5 square (2 'iiid 5 +) and if 1 . i.xe7 or 1 t?Jxe7 the seventh rank is closed (2 'iiif7 mate). . . .

,

.

. . .

·

Nikonov-Khadrin Kirov 198 1 71 w

There followed 1 t?Je7+ ! (decoy-

Gurevich-Kuzovkin Baku 1978

.

Ways and Means

There followed I J:[ I b4!! Closing the fourth rank forces Black to part with his queen, since on I . axb4 there follows 2 'ji'h6 + ! (deflection) 2 ... @xh6 3 US + @h5 4 ..te2 mate. It's easy to see that without the preparatory line­ closing, the combination doesn't work : on ..tfl -e2 + Black has the reply . . . 'jjfa 4-g4. . .

Exercise 62 £62 w

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Exercises

Exercise 60

Exercise 63

£60 B

Exercise 6 1

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Exercise 64

41

42

Ways and Means

Exercise 65

Exercise 66

5

Stalemate

And it's not j ust the king that must be stalemated, but his whole army. Here we are deiffr;-g wlth-combJ:.­ nations that save a lost game. To this category belong perpetual check (or some other repetition of moves), and the leading of play into a theoretically drawn ending (including the setting up of a so­ called 'drawing fortress'). A special place is occupied by combinations in which the weaker side achieves a stalemate position. The pointers to these combi-· nations are a lack of king moves (one's own king, not the opponent's) and the blockaded (or pinned) position of the few remaining pieces. The method is standard : the pieces still 'spare' (that is, not blockaded and not pinned) obstinately put themselves en prise. They hurl themselves forcibly (often with the help of a check) from the board. The follow­ ing examples show how this hap­ pens. 43

Karaksoni-Borbely Oradea 1948 74 B

White is four pawns up, besides which the Black king is exposed and "if b7-d5 mate is threatened. The struggle would be over were it not for the fact that the black king has no moves. So while he has nowhere to go (and the f6 pawn is blockaded) Black hurls his remaining pieces away : 1 ... lllf4+! 2 gxf4. 2 .;;in leads to the same result after 2 . . . "if e2 + ! 3 c;;ix f4 'ii"f3 + 4 c;;ix f3 - stalemate. 2 ... "ifxfl+! 3 �h3 "ifxh2 +

Stalemate

44

(that queen again!) 4 @ g4 �h3 + 5 @ x h3 stalemate.

Exercises

Exercise 67 £6 7

Stolberg-Pimenov

B

Rostov-on-Don 1941 75 w

Can Black save himself? By sacrificing a rook, Black has stripped the enemy king of his pawn cover and mate seems unavoidable. However White has a tactical counterblow. His king has no moves, both his pawns are blockaded and by sacrificing all his remaining material, he avoids defeat : 1 J: h8 + @ xh8 ( I . . 'iti>g6?? 2 _�e6 mate) 2 1:!.b8 +

Exercise 68

.

f'ith7 3 : hs + �xi11 4 �xg7 + .

However Black captures queen, White is stalemated.

the

Again, can Black save himself?

6

An exam

.

.

.

with no hints!

Or, more correctly, with no clear hints, for hints, of course, there are. They lie in the very nature of the exercises. When setting about solving the problems, the reader already knows that in the given position the maximum aim (a win or an escape from a lost position) is achievable, and with out-of-the­ ordinary methods besides. With this information at his disposal, he is pre-programmed to search for surprising continuations. Thus, there is a real difference between thinking about a move in a game and solving the exercises, even without moving the pieces around on the board. Imagine that Grandmaster X, who has been closely watching your tournament game, whispers in your ear : 'There's a combination here'. That is precisely the hint that you have - in every example. You will also, in contrast to the previous examples, not have any thematic hints, which to some

extent will make your task more difficult. Exercises

Exercise 69 £69

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Exercise 70 £ 70

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Exercise7 1

Exercise74

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Exercise82 £82 w

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Exercise84

Exercise86

Exercise87

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How should the game finish? Exercise85

Exercise88

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An Exercise89

Exercise90

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Exercise92

. With t '!Wb3 White offered an exchange of queens H ow would you have replied? ·

Exercise93

Exercise9 1 Exercise94

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Exercise95

Exercise98

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Exercise 99

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Exercise97 Exercise 100

How should the game finish?

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51

Exercise 104

Exercise 1 05

£102 B

1 Exercise 103 £103 w

. . .

tt:le5 was played. Your reply?

Exercise I 06

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Exercise 107

Exercise 1 10

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Exercise 108

Exercise 1 1 1 Ell/ B

Exercise 109

Exercise 1 1 2 £1 1 2 B

An exam

For the sake of an attack, Black has sacrificed a bishop and destroyed the enemy king's pawn cover. He could restore material equality with 1 . 'it' a l + and 2 'if xb2. But does he have anything better? .

Exercise 1 1 5 El/5 w

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Exercise 1 1 3

El/3 w

Exercise 1 1 6 El/6 w

Exercise 1 14 Exercise 1 17 1::1 1 4 w

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with no hints!

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There followed 1 llla4. How to reply to this move?

Exercise 1 2 1

Exercise 1 18

Exercise 1 22 Exercise 1 1 9

Exercise 1 20

Exercise 1 23

An Exercise 124

exam

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55

Exercise 1 27

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Exercise 1 25

Black bravely grabbed a pawn 1 ..txc4 2 'llt' xc4 ll:lxa5. Is this decision j ustified?

-

. . .

Exercise 1 28

With his last move Black decided to chase the queen off. Your reply? Exercise 1 26

Exercise 129 £129 B

56

An exam

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with no hints'

Exercise 130

Exercise 131

Exercise 133

Exercise 134

Can Black take the h2 pawn? Exercise 132

Exercise135

An

exam

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with no hints!

57

f,°xl!rc·ise 136

Exercise 139

Exercise 137

With his last move Black gave a bishop check, intending to reply to I tLixd4 with I i:txd5. Your solution? . . .

Exercise 140

Exercise 138 Exercise 14 1

58

An

exam

Exercise 142

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with no hints!

Exercise 145 £1 45 B

Exercise 143

Exercise 146 £1 46 B'

Exercise 144

Exercise 147

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Exercise I 48

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Exercise I 57

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Exercise 158 Exe rcise I 55 E/55 w

Black continued 1 .1:1.fe8, leav­ ing the bishop e n prise. What hap­ pens if it's taken? . . .

Exercise 156

Exe rcise 159

An

exam

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61

With h i s last move Black offered the exchange of queens. What should White do?

Exercise 160 E / 60

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Exercise 163 E / 63

Can White save himself? Exercise 16 1 t:l 6 1

Exercise 164 E / 64

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After regrouping h i s heavy pieces, White played 1 g5. What happens after the forced 1 fxg5? . . .

Exercise 162

. . .

Exercise 165

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Exercise 166

Exercise 169

Black is a kni g h t m . arrears. What should he do?

Exercise 170

Exercise 167

Exercise 168

Exercise 17 1

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Exercise 172

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Exe rcise 175

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Exercise 176

Exe rcise 174

Exe rcise 177 E/77

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Exercise 1 8 1

Exercise 1 79

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Exercise 190

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Exercise 193 E / 93 B

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Exercise 194

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Exercise 192

Exercise 195

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An exam

Exercise 1 96

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67

Exercise 1 99

Analyse and evaluate the continu­ ation 1 lbf4. Exercise 1 9 7

Exercise 200

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Exercise 201 Exercise 1 98

With his last move Black decided to chase the knight. Your reply?

An

68

exam

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Exercise 202

Exercise 205

Black is the exchange d own, but he can save himself. How?

Exercise 206

Exercise 203

£206 B

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Exercise 207

White offered to exchange rooks. What should Black do?

£207

Exercise 204

White is a rook up, but it's en prise and mate is threatened. What should he do?

An Exercise 208

Exercise 209

Exercise 21 o

exam

Exercise 2 1 1

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Exercise2 14

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Exercise2 15

Exercise 2 18

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Exercise216

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Exercise 223

Exercise 22 1

Exercise 224 £224

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Exercise 225

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Exercise226

Exercise228

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There followed 1 ltixd5 ..txg5 2 h4 1Wa5+ (2 . . . J.. e 7 3 ltig5). When preparing this intermediate move, Black did not fear 3 b4 because of 3 . . . cxb4 and if 4 ltixg5 (or 4 hxg5) then 4 . . . b3+, swapping queens and taking the d5 knight. Is this calculation cor­ rect?

White was aiming for this position. With two threats at his disposal, taking the rook, and ..tc l -d2, he is counting on regaining the piece. Your reply? ·

Exe rcise229 £229 w

Exercise22 7 £227 w

Exercise230 £230 B

The knight is attacked. Where's the best place for it to go?

An

Exercise 23 1

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73

Exercise 234

£23 1 w

Exercise 232

Exercise 235

By sacrificing a rook, Black has obtained a powerful attack. How can he finish it off?

.td2-g5 has j ust been played. Your reply?

Exercise 233

Exercise 236

£233 w

£236 w ·

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Exercise 237

Exercise 240

Exercise 238

Exercise 24 1 E24 1 w

Exercise 239

Exercise 242 £242 w

An

Exercise 243

exam

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75

Exercise 245

£243 w

Black has sacri ficed a pawn and achieved a big lead in develop­ ment. Continue the attack.

Exercise 244 Exercise 246

£244

B

Black carried out his planned cen­ tral advance 1 e5. The reply 2 c5 was met by a temporary piece sacrifice 2 Jtxc5 3 dxc5 e4. Eval uate the consequences. . . .

--

. . .

White has pressure on the d- and f-files, but how should he pursue the attack?

76

An

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Exercise 24 7

Exercise 250

Exercise 248

Black played t reply? Exercise 25 1

Exercise 249

Exercise 252

. . . tr' xf3. Y o u r

An

Exercise 253

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77

Exercise 256

E253 w

Exercise 254 E254

How would you have replied to 1 .tg5?

w

Exercise 25 7

Exercise 255 E255 w

In a hopeless position, White tried his last chance 1 t2Jxc8. What should Black take : the knight or the rook? -

An

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exam

Exercise 258

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Exercise 26 I £26 1

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Exercise 25 9

Using the idea of deflection, White took the pawn 1 .txdS. Your reply? -

Exercise 262 £262 B '

Exercise 260 Exercise 263 £260

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Exercise 264

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Exercise 267

E264

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Exercise 268 Exercise 265 £265

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Exercise 269 Exercise 266

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White offered a queen swap. The exchange of rooks would also suit him. What should Black do?

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Exercise 270

Exercise 2 7 1

Exercise 273

Exercise 2 74

Exercise 272

How should the game finish? Exercise 2 75

Black has a material advantage, and he is threatening mate. What do you advise White to do?

A n exam

Using Black's lag in development, White played acti vely with 1 f5 exf5 ( I . . . i.xf5 2 lLlxf5 exf5 3 lLlg5) 2 lLl h4 i.e7 3 lLlgxf5 0-0 4 W e2 n e8. Continue the attack.

. . .

with no h ints!

81

Exercise 2 78 E278 w

Exercise 2 76 f.. 2 7 6 B

With his last move (. . . l:H6-f7) Black offered the exchange of rooks. Your reply? Exercise 279 E2 7 9 B

White has an extra pawn, but is badly behind in development and with I . . . f4 Black commenced his attack. What follows 2 i. xd7 W xd7 3 'if xe5?

Exercise 2 7 7 f.. 2 7 7 w

Exercise 280

82

An

exam

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with no hints!

Exercise 28 I

Calculate the consequences of I

Exercise 284 £284

Can Black take the bishop'?

n xb6.

Exercise 282

White attacked with I

g5 hxg5

fxg5 lll g8 3 g6! lll gf6 4 gxf7 + 'Wt> xf7. Suggest how he should

How should the game finish? Exercise 283

continue.

Exercise 286 £286

What do you advise Wh ite to do?

An

E xercise 28 7

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Exercise 290

f,211 7

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Black offered a queen exchange. How to reply? Analyse and evalua te the position. Exercise 288

Exercise 2 9 1 £29 1

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Exercise 292 Exercise 289

E292 w

How should the game finish?

How can White save himself?

83

An

84

exam

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with no hints '

Exercise 293

Exercise 296 E:!96

w

How should White cond uct the attack?

Exercise 297

Exercise 294

How can Black save himself? Exercise 298 Exercise 295 E295

w

What do you advise White to do?

White's kingside 1s threatened. Can Black win?

An Exercise 299

exam

. . ·

with no hints!

85

Exercise 302

£299

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Exercise 303

How s h ou Id the game finish?

Exercise 304

Exercise 3 0 1

. k the Blac k decided to k1c ? knight h6 your reply · with I . . .

·

An

86

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.

.

.

with no h ints!

Exercise 305 £305 w

Black has left his bishop en prise, counting on exploiting the open position of White's king and, by checking, forcing a repetition of moves or regaining the bishop. Calculate the variations and evaluate the position. Exercise 308 £308 w

Exercise 306 £306 w

Exercise 309

Black's queen is en prise. What happens if its taken?

£309 B

Exercise 307 £307 w

1 g5 mate is threatened. What do you advise Black to do?

An

exam

. . .

with

110

hi11 ts 1

87

£3 1 3 w

To what does the tactical blow 1 tll xg4 lead?

Exercise 3 1 4

Exercise 3 1 1

£3 1 4

. . .

B

f:.'3 1 1 w

How can White save himself? Exercise 3 1 2

Black played 1 reply?

. . .

i.xg2. Your

Exercise 3 1 5

£3 1 2

1 tll f4

How should the game finish?

An

88

exam

. . .

with no hints!

Exercise 3 1 6

Exercise 3 1 9

£3 1 6

£3 1 9

B

B

Exercise 3 1 7

Exercise 320 £3211

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Exercise 3 1 8 £3 1 8 B

How would you have replied to 1 d3?

• • •

Exercise 321 £32 1

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How to conduct the attack?

An

exam , , ,

Exercise 322

Exercise 325

L322

£325

B '

Exercise 323

'i'g3xh3 mate is threatened. What should White do?

E326 w

How should the game finish? Exercise 324 Exercise 327

tt:l g4 ,

89

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Exercise 326

Analyse the position after 1

with no hints!

90

An

exam

. . .

with no hints!

Exercise 328

Exercise 33 1

Exercise 329 Exercise 332 £332 w

Exercise 330 £3311 w

Evaluate the consequences of the bishop sacrifice on h6.

Exercise 333

An t:xercise 334

exam

. . .

with no hints!

91

Exercise 3 3 7

U 34

E33 7

8

8

Exercise 335

How should the game finish? Exercise 336 1:336

B

Exploiting the pin, White played 1 b5, attacking the c6 pawn a fifth time. Evaluate the position after 1 c5. Exercise 339 . . .

£33 9

An

92

exam

. . .

with no hints!

White has destroyed the enemy king's pawn cover with a bishop sacrifice and is attacking. His queen is en prise, but he played I n e t . Taking on h6 is impossible because of 2 ll g8 +, and if I . . .i.xh3 there follows 2 ll e2. Black replied I n d2. H ow would you continue the attack?

Exercise 342 £342

.

. . .

Exercise 340

Exercise 343

How can the bishops show their strength? Exercise 34 1 E34 / B

Exercise 344

An

White is attacking. Black, who is

the exchange and two pawns up,

offered a queen swap, intendi ng, if

exam

. . .

with no hints!

93

White's queen retreats, to play . . . 'if d6-d2. How should the game finish? Give a detailed analysis.

7

Solutions to the exercises .t xc8 .t x b3 6 .td7 and Black resigned (Doroshkevich- Fedorov, K rasnodar 1 98 1 ) E4 1 W' f6 W' e5 ( E4a).

Combinative motifs

Illusory or insufficient defence of the eighth (or first) rank

E 1 After 1 . . . W'f3! White had to resign. If 2 'it' xf3, then 2 . . . l:l. a l + , and if 2 W'fl , then 2 . . . J: a l is decisive (Mechkarov­ Kaikamdzhozov, Bulgaria 1 969). E2 1 J: e l ! l:l. d8. If 1 . . . l:l. c8 then 2 'if b7, and after 1 . . . J: f8 Black gets mated : 2 l:I. xf8 + and 3 'it' b8 + . 2 'if b5! This is conclus­ ive, since on 2 . . . c6 there follows 3 'it' b7! (3 . . . l:t a7 4 'it'xd7 l hd7 5 l:l. e8 + ). The game ended 2 l:l. xg2 + 3 'iti> h l and Black resigned (Wehnert- Leiss, Sassnitz 1 962) I E3 1 W' e5! .td5 , (the only defence) 2 l:l. c2! (a so-called dou­ ble decoy : 2 . . . W' xe5 3 l:l. c8 + ; 2 . . . W' xc2 3 'if b8 + ) 2 W'd7 3 l:l. c8 + J: e8 4 'it' c7! This fresh decoy of the black queen from the defence of the eighth rank leads to the win of material. 4 'it' xc8 5

E4a w

2 J:t xa5! Decoying one of the pieces fulfi lling important defens­ ive functions : the rook, which is covering the eighth rank, or the queen which is guarding the g7 square. Black resigned (Zavyalov­ Apartsev, Moscow 1 985). It is worth adding that this little tacti­ cal operation has to begin with the move 1 W' f6. On the immediate 1 l:I. xa5, Black has the reply 1 . . . J: xb2 E5 By playing I J: xe5, White

• . .

'

• • .

. . •

94

Solutions to the exercises

can go into a rook ending a pawn up - 1 . . . l::t bxa6 2 l::t xa6 l::t xa6 3 @xb3. However, with 3 . . . l::t a l Black keeps drawing chances. But the move I .td3! immediately forces Black to lay down his arms. The rook cannot be taken because of mate, and if 1 . . . l::t e8 White decoys the rook from the defence of the eighth rank with the move 2 .:l. xe5 (Capablanca-Rossolimo, Paris 1 938). E6 I .US! (the doomed bishop decoys the opposing bishop from the defence of the e8 sq uare) I . . . .t xf5 ( E6a ) . E6a w

2 'ilt'c7!! (now the queen is deco­ yed from the defence of e8) 2 . . . 1 l::t xd l + 3 @ xd l .t xc2 + 4 @ c l :

( Black has no other moves in view of the threat of mate on the back rank) 5 'ilt' xc6 .t xc6 6 J:. e6. Now we see why White had to retreat his king to c 1 on move 4. If the king had been on d2, Black would have had a check with the knight on c4, and he .ia4 +

wouldn't have lost a piece.

95

6 ...

with a technically won ending for White (Khalifman-Ehlvest, Lvov 1 985) .i b5 7 l::t xb6 @ g8 8 J::t b7

A ttacking the exposed king

E7 Black was wrong to agree to a draw. He could have annou nced mate with I . . . l::t h3 + 2 @ f4 .:l. f3 + !

3

'ilt' xf3

'ilt' e5

.mate

(Stoltz- Pilnik, Saltsji::i b aden 1 952) ES Black cannot take the rook because of mate on f8. But, mean­ while, the white king, cut off on the rook's file, must beware of getting mated. Only the pin on the g5 rook is saving it. The outcome of the battle co uld be decided by the fine move I . . . f5!, after which White is defenceless against the threat 2 . . . 'ilt'g3 + 3 'ilt' xg3 .:1. h 5 mate. A splendid tactical possi­ bility overlooked by the Swiss master against Alekhine in a tour­ nament in Bern ( 1 932). E9 I .:l. xd5 + ! Thus White cuts off the enemy king's path of retreat to the sixth rank . I . . . cxd5 2 lL!d3 + ! This move fulfils two functions : it frees the f4 square and simultaneously decoys the pawn from e4 (so that Black cannot take the f-pawn en passant) 2 . . . exd3 3 f4 mate (Opocensky-Hromadka, Koshitse 1 93 1 ). E I 0 1 . . . .te4 + looks obvious, but after 2 @f4 there is nothing to

96

Solutions to

the exercises

attack the king with. 1 . . . J:l. a3!! ­ decoying the queen - is decisive. After the forced 2 'llt' xa3 the queen and bishop successfully cope with their task : 2 . . . ..te4 + ! 3 @f4 .i.g2 +

4

'it>gS

'llt' xeS +

5

'it> g4

'llt' fS +

6

'it>h4

'i!V h3 +

7

@gS

(Ivanov­ Sveshnikov, Chelyabinsk 1 973). E l I 1 'l!Y gS + ! ..t xgS 2 hxgS + 'it> hS. The g-pawn is pinned. Where is the mate? 3 l:t h8! A quiet move, forcing the queen to abandon the third rank . 3 . . . 'i!V xh8 4 g4 mate (from a game played in England in 1 962). 'llt' h6 + 8 @g4 fS mate

Clear defects in the king's pawn cover

E 1 2 White delivered mate in three moves : l J:l. h8 + ! .i. xh8 2

'if h7 +

@f8

3

'i!V xh8

mate

( Movsesyan-A. K uzmin, Lenin­ grad 1 985). E 1 3 There followed l J:l. g8 + and Black resigned. After 1 . . . .l:!. xg8 Black's queen hangs, and on I . . . @xg8 there follows 2 'llt' g3 + @f8 3 'liYg7 + @e8 4 ' 'i!Vg8 mate (Barczay- Erdelyi, Hungary 1 975). E 14 After 1 .i. dS! Black had to lay down his arms, since the zwischenzug capture I . . . J:I. xf2 fails because of mate on g8 (Euwe­ Thomas, Hastings 1 93 1 /32). E l 5 l J:l. g8 + 'i!V xg8 2 'llt' g7 +

'liY xg7 3 fxg7 + 'it> g8 4 ti:Je7 mate

(Virtanen- Bj orgqvist, corr. 1 9734). El6 1 .l:!. h8 + ! 'it> xh8 2 J:l. xc8 +

J:l. xc8 3 'llt' h3 +

'it> g8 4

.l:!. f8 5 'llt' e6 + 'it> h8 6 'i!V h3 + and mate next move ( Benini -Reggio, Rome 1 9 1 1 ). E l 7 1 ..th8!! 'it> xf7 2 'llt' xf6 + @g8 3 'l!Y g7 mate (Tai-Rantanen, Tallinn 1 979) E 1 8 If there was no rook on a8, Black would get mated on f8 or e8, therefore 1 .i.c8!! By blocking the action of the rook, White threatens 'i'c5-f8 mate. On 1 . . . J:l. xc8 there follows 2 'llt' xc8 + ti:Jxc8 3 .l:t e8 mate. The only move to defend the eighth rank is 1 . . . 'i!V d8. But then comes 2 'l!Y c3! There is no satisfactory defence against the threat 2 J:I. e8 + 'liY xe8 3 'liYxf6 mate. After 2 . . . ti:JdS 3 l:t xdS 'liY e7 4 l:t fS Black resigned (Van Scheltinga- Orbaan, Holland 1 954). 'llt' xc8 +

Weakness of squares of a certain colour

E19 1

't!V h8 + ! 'it> xh8 2 ..t f6 +

l:t xe8 mate (Butnoris­ Gutman, Riga 1 974). E20 1 .i. xg6! (on the immedi­ ate 1 'llt' h6 Black can reply I . . . .i.f8) l . . . fxg6 2 '!iY h6. Now that the rook is participating in the attack, Black has no defence 'it> g8

3

Solutions to the exercises

mate against (SchlechterPrzepiorka, Nuremberg 1 906). E2 1 1 ..tf5! •dS. Forced, since any capture of the bishop leads to mate : 1 . . . • xf5 2 'i' xf8 + ! 'itxf8 3 ..th6 + and 4 l:t e8 mate, or 1 . . . gxf5 2 • g5 + @ h8 3 'j;' f6 + @g8 4 ..th6 and mates, 2 ..tg5 f6 3 ..t xg6 'i'd7. Again forced. If 3 . . . hxg6, then 4 °jf xg6 + @ h8 5 l:t e8 ! 4 ..t x f6 l:t xf6 (4 . . . hg 5 -Wh8 + and 6 •g7 mate; 4 . . . ab 5 ll e7) 5 l:t e8 + • xe8 6 '!W xh7 + @fB 7 • hS + and mate next move (Chudinovskikh-Niku­ lin, Kirov 1 982). E22 1 l:t xh6! ..t xh6 2 • h4! It must be this move, and not 2 l:t xh6, to which Black replies 2 . . . • d4 and if 3 ..te3, then 3 . . . tll g4 4 ..txd4 tll x f2 5 ..txf2 l:t xb2. 2 . . . @ f8 3 • xh6 + @e8 4 'j;' fB + ! Whether Black takes the queen or runs to d7 with the king, he gets mated just the same (Kudrin-Suba, Beer-Sheva 1 984). E23 Black was counting on replying to 2 dxe4 with 2 . . . '!W g4 + . If the White king decides to go to f2, there follows tll d 6xe4 + . However, by freeing t he long diagonal for his queen, White delivered mate : 2 l:t g6 + ! fx g6 (2 . . . hxg6 3 'jfg7 mate) 3

'j;' h8 +

@ xh8

4

l:t xfB

mate

( Basman-Balshan, I srael 1 98 1 ).

97

When the king is short of space

E24 1 . . . J:l: g3! On 2 fxg3 (and the same thing happens if the queen moves) there follows 2 . . . • xh2 + ! 3 @xh2 ll h6 + , so White resigned (S. Pereira- R. Per­ eira, Portugal 1 978). E25 The move 1 tll d 5! forced Black to lay down his arms. 1 . . . 'jf xd2 is impossible due to 2 tll e 7 mate, and otherwise the queen is lost (Bonch-Osmolovsky- Rago­ zin, Lvov 1 95 1 ). E26 1 . . . l:t xh2 + ! 2 @ xh2 'j;' h5 +

3

@ g3

..t h4 +

4

@ x f4

(or 4 @h2 ..txf2 + ) 4 . . . • f5 mate (Smirnov-Shubin, Petro­ pavlovsk -Kamchatsky 1 977). E27 For the queen Black has more than sufficient material com­ pensation - a rook and two minor pieces. The king is not directly threatened with anything either. However the quiet move 1 • c7 forces resignation. There is no satisfactory defence against 2 'jf b8 + ! l:t xb8 3 tll c 7 mate (Zotov-Glebov, M oscow 1 975).

The pin

E28 White wins with 1 • g6! On 1 . . . fxg6 there follows 2 l:t xf8 + @h7 3 h5 and mate next move. 1 . . . f5 2 exf5 ..txf6 3 l:t xf6 and Black resigned (Sajtar- Dietze, Praha 1 943).

98

Solutions to the exercises

E29 With his last move White blocked the check with his queen, offering an exchange, but after 1 . . . J:t e2! he had to resign. On 2 'iWxc5 there follows 2 . . . J:t gxg2 + 3 'it> h l J:t h2 + 4 'it> g l J:. eg2 mate (Bannik -Cherepk ov, USSR 1 96 1 ). E30 The game finished with the move 1 J:t b8! ( Rosenblat- Volk, Biel 1 977). 'iWd3 Black E3 I After resigned . On I . . . hxg5 there fol­ lows 2 'iWg6! mating ( Bagi rov­ Machulsky, Chelyabinsk 1 975). E32 1 :t e l ! wins (Shumov­ Winawer, St Petersburg 1 875). E33 1 'iWdS! .txh3 (I . . . .td7 2' , 'iWa8 mate) 2 'iWa8 + 'it>d7 3 'iW xa7 + @c6 (3 . . . ..t>e6 4 tZ:ld4 mate) 4 tZ:ld4 + @cs 5 J:t b t tZ:l b3 6 'iWa3 mate (Cvetkov-Arnaudov, Sofia 1 9 56). Car(!ful of the long diagonal!

E34 1 . . . 'iW xg2 + ! was played and White resigned without wait­ ing for 2 '1t>xg2 tZ:lf4 + + 3 'tt> g l tZ:l h 3 mate (Karner- Mikkov, Tal­ linn 1 954). E35 1 'iW f6! J:t g8 ( 1 . . . .bf6 2 .txf6 mate) 2 J:t xe6 'iW xe6 (if 2 . . . fxe6, then 3 tZ:lxg6 + hxg6 4 'iWh4 mate) 3 tZ:l xg6 + ! Black resigned (Chepukaitis-Glyanets, Leningrad 1 980). E36 I 'iW xf3! 2 gxf3

J:t dg8 + 3 .tg3 J:t xg3 + 4 hxg3 .txf3 and mate next move (Johansson-Ekenberg, Sweden 1 974). E37 1 J:t xe5 dxe5 2 f7 + ! By freeing the long diagonal, on which the queen and bishop are waiting, White successfully con­ cludes the attack. 2 . . . J:t xf7 If 2 . . . .txf7 then 3 'iW xe5 @f8 4 'iW h 8 + 'it>e7 5 .t b4 + 'it>e6 6 'iW f6 mate. Or 2 . . . 'it.of8 3 .t b4 + J:t e7 4 'iW xe5 with mate on h8. 3 'iW xeS 'it>f8 4 'iWg7 + 'it.oe7 (or 4 . . . we8 5 'iWg8 + @e7 6 .t b4 + ) 5 .t b4 + and Black resigned (Panov- Makogonov, 1 0th USSR Championship, Tbilisi 1 937). , . ' x E38 1 . . . tZ:le2 + 2 wht 'iWf3! 3 J:t g l (3 .txf3 .txf3 mate) 3 . . . tZ:l xg l ! 4 .t xf3 tZ:l xf3 5 'iW b4. The knight was threatening to hop away and win the queen. But now the Black rook penetrates to the first rank. 5 . . . J:tdl + 6 @g2 J:t gl + 7 ..t>h3 g5! White resigned (Figler--Dubinin, corr. 1 978). ·

Heading for promotion

E39 1 .tc4! wins immediately, since c7-c8('iW ) is th reatened. On 1 . . . @f6 there follows 2 .txe6, and if 1 . . . J:t xc7, then 2 .txe6 + and 3 J:t xc7 (Kan-Chernov, Jaroslavl 1 950). E40 1 . . . J:t ft + 2 .txft -W e4 + ! 3 'iWxe4 exft ('iW) mate

Solutions to the exercises

( R ucheva- Eidelson, Tbilisi 1 976). E4 1 1 'iW f3!! 'iW xf3 2 gxf3 .i1 xft + 3 @g2 and wins (a vari­ at ion from the game Bone-Zui­ dema, Zurich 1 962). E42 1 .tc2 + @g8 2 .:lf8 + .i1 xf8 3 .tb3 + Black resigned ( Dikchit-Kalianasoundaram, India 1 96 1 ). E43 1 . . . .l ha4! 2 bxa4 b3 3 .i1 g4 .te 1 + ! By sacrificing itself, the bishop blocks the first ran k, ensuring that the pawn will pro­ mote. 4 @xel b2 and Black won ( K otloman-Tsinman, Leningrad 1 985). r ' E44 1 J:l. g5!! hxg5 If Black declines the sacrifice and blocks the promotion sq uare with 1 . . . J:!: g8, White puts his rook en prise again with 2 .i::t g6, and then if 2 . . . fxg6 3 f7 ensures that one of the pawns will promote, and otherwise the rook takes the h6 pawn and follows up with J:I. h6h8. 2 h6 b4 3 h7 bxc3 + 4 @cl J:l. ab2 5 J:l. xb2 cxb2 + 6 @bl .ta4 7 .tdt (otherwise 7 . . . ..t xc2 + ) 7 . . . f3 8 h8('iW) Black resigned ( Panov-Zagoryansky, Moscow 1 95 1 ). E45 White celebrated prema­ turely. There followed 1 . . . e2! 2 i.. xf2 ( E45 a ) . 2 . . . .te3!! The deflecting bishop sacrifice ensures that the pawn promotes (Voitsekhovsky-­ Sandler, Riga 1 982).

99

E45a B

Other motifs

E46 If the knight was on c4 instead of the bishop, Black would lose his queen, so 2 .txfi + J:l. xfi 3 tt:Jc4 (Botvinnik-Stepanov, Leningrad 1 9 3 1 ). E47 Black delivered mate in three : 1 . . . 'iW xh2 + ! 2 @ xh2 tt:Jg3 + ! 3 @ xg3 (3 @g t .i::t h l mate) 3 . . . f4 mate (K osolapov­ Nezhmetdinov, Kazan 1 936). E48 With 1 .tf4 White deflected the enemy queen from the defence of f7, and on 1 . . . 'iWc4 (if 1 . . . 'iWd7 2 .td6 + wins) he replied 2 J:l. cl ! 'iW xb3 3 .td6 + mating (Nenarokov-Smorodsky, M oscow 1 924). E49 I l hg6 + ! @ xg6 ( 1 . . . tt:Jxg6 2 tt:J xf5 + ) 2 l:1 h6 + ! @ xh6 3 tt:Jxf5 + @g6 4 tt:J xe7 + @f6 5 tt:Jg8 + and then 6 .t b3 with sufficient material advantage for victory. This is a variation from the game Lukin-Fedorov (Leningrad 1 983). White did not spot the combination, played 1

J OO

Solutions to the exercises

.U. c5? and the st ruggle went in Black's favour. Combined

motffs

E50 1 'ilf xd8! wins at once. On any capture of the queen there follows 2 tt:lf6 + (Hug-NN, 1 974). E5 1 1 . . tt:lf3 + If 2 tt:lxf3, then 2 . . . 'ilfxf3! with unavoidable mate either on g2 or on the first rank. The move 2 .l::tx f3 also leaves the first rank undefended (2 . . . .U. d l + ). White resigned ( Peturs­ son- Agdestein, Reykjavik 1 98 5). E52 1 'ilf xc6! bxc6 2 b7 'ilfd8 3 b8('ilf ) .U. d t + (White had to foresee this deflecting move) 4 .U. xd l 'ilf xb8 ( E52a ).

3 'it' fl .U. xfl + 4 @xfl tt:l xd 4 and Black is a knight up. The difficult part of the combination, however, is that White plays the unobvious 2 'it'ft ( E53a) (or 2 'it'e2). Now after the queen retreats he can calmly take the rook.

.

E53ct B

2 .i:t c8!! 3 .U. xd4 tt:l xd4. In calculating the variations, Black had found a tactical trick in this seemingly quiet position. The threat is 4 . . . .!:!. c l 5 'ilf xc l tt:le2 + . I n order to prevent the fork, White played 4 @ h t but Black reversed the order of his moves 4 . tt:le2! -- and in the end he merges with an extra knight (Ye. Polyak -- M . Levin, Kiev 1 949). . • .

E5 2ct

w

,

-

For the queen White has only a rook and knight, but the following quiet move immediately makes everything clear. 5 tt:l b7! Black resigned (Sliwa-Stoltz, Bucharest 1 953). E53 The queen is attacked, but Black plays 1 . . .:. xc3! On 2 .:. xd4 there follows 2 . . . .:. c 1 + .

. •

On well-trodden paths

E54 1 ..txh7 + ! @xh7 2 Wh4 + @g8 3 tt:l g5. On 3 .U. fd8 the decider is 2 'it' h 7 + @f8 5 W h 8 + @e7 6 .U. xe6 + ! fxe6 7 'ilf xg7 + mating, so Black

Solutions to the exercises

re signed (Kaufman-Reti, Vienna 1 9 1 5). E55 l .i. xh7 + ! @xh7 2 tiJ gS + 'it>g6 (2 . . . 'it>g8 3 -W h 5) 3 'tlkd3 + rs 4 'W g3! A deadly d iscovery by the knight is unavo­ idable. After 4 . . . J:t g8 S tt:l �4 + @f7 6 tt:led6 + .i. xd6 7 tt:l xd6 + @e7 8 'W gS + Black resigned ( R omanovsky-Belov, l vanovo 1 929). E56 1 A xh7 + ! @xh7 2 tt:l gS + @ g6. If 2 . . . .i.xg5, then 3 hxg5 + @g8 4 'W h 5 f5 5 g6 or 3 . 'it>g6 (instead of 3 . . . 'it>g8) 4 'ilr' h 5 + @f5 5 J::t h3! 3 tt:le2! ( th reatening tt:le2-f4 + ) 3 . . . ..t xgS 4 hxgS rs. On 4 . . . -W xg5 there follows 5 tt:lf4 + ! 'Wxf4 6 'llf" h5 mate. 4 . . . J::t h8 5 tt:l f4 + @f5 6 tt:lh3 does not stop mate either. S gxr6 l::t h8 (5 . . . gxf6 6 �d3 + ) 6 ttJr4 + 'it>f7 ( E56a). . .

8 'Wg4! J::t xhl + 9 @d2 gxr6 I O "W g6 + @e7 1 1 "W g7 + @e8

1 2 'Wg8 + @e7 1 3 'W xe6 + @f8 1 4 l::t xh l and Black finally got

IOI

mated ( Fritz- Mason, Nurem berg 1 883). E57 After l Ab4! Black had to give up his queen for two minor pieces ( I . . "W xb4 2 tt:lxb4 axb4), since I . . axb4 leads to mate (2 tt:le7 + @h8 3 'Wxh7 + and 4 l::t h2 mate). E58 l tt:lxeS Axd l 2 tt:ld7!! A brilliant variation on Legall's evergreen theme : Black gets mated on f6. 2 . . . Ae7 3 tt:lexr6 + .i.xr6 4 .il e8 + ! 'W xe8 S tt:lxr6 mate (Kazic-Vukovic, Yugoslavia 1 940). E59 'Wg3-h4 is the threat. However Black strikes the first blow with l . . . .i.xc2 + ! 2 'it> xc2 tt:lb4 + 3 @bl (3 @d2 � xb2 mate) 3 . . . 'llf" rS + White resigned (Dextre- Blees, H ungary 1 985). .

.

Ways and means

E60 Black replied to the offer of a queen exchange with the decoying bishop move l . . . .i.a6!, after which White had to resign (U hlmann- Larsen, Las Palmas 1 97 1 ). E6 1 Black wins queen for rook with l . . . .il d l + 2 @g2 l:t g l + ! 3 @xgl tt:lf3 + and 4 . . . tt:l xeS (Przepiorka--Ahues, Kecskemet 1 927). E62 l W xc8 + ! (but not I W xd3? in view of I . . . Axf3 + 2 Ag2 Wf2!) I . . . Axc8 2 exd3 Wxr3 + 3 Ag2 and White wins

1 02

Solut ions to the exercises

(U hlmann- Pahtz, Halle 1 984). E63 t f5! .t xf5 2 'iWc7! and Black resigned because he loses a rook (Cramling-M artin, Barce­ lona 1 985). E64 t 'i'a3 + 'ii e7 ( 1 . . . @g8 2 .txh 7 + ) 2 .tc6!! Black resigned (Evans- Bisguier, US Ch. 1 958/59). E65 White is threatened with mate. But after t l: d5!! it becomes clear that it is Black's king who is in trouble. On 1 . . . lll xd5 ( 1 . . . l: xd 5 2 exd5 gives White a won ending) there follows 2 .td7 mate (line-closing). So the only move is t . . . llie2 + . Then 2 @ h t ! l: xd5 3 exd5 g5 4 .td7 + g4 5 a5 lll c3 6 a6 l2:i xd5 7 a7 lll b6, and to finish with, the brilliant 8 a8('i')! lll x a8 9 .tc6. If the knight moves Black is mated on g2, and on a pawn move it's mate on d7 USSR (Sergeev- Panchenko, 1 984). E66 t lll e6 + ! fxe6 ( 1 . . . 'i!f xe6 2 'i' h8 mate) 2 'ii xg6. As a result of the blockade (the mechanical halting of the e7 pawn) the Black king's path to freedom is cut off. 2 . . . 'i' f6 3 : f3 'ii xf3 4 gxf3 d3 5 @ht ! Black resigned in view of unav o idable mate after 5 . . . d2 6 l::t g) (Gligoric-Smejkal, Manila ! " 9 75). Stalemate

E67 Black's king has no moves,

his only pawn is blockaded, and by sacrificing his queen, he saves the game : t . . . 'i!f g4 + ! 2 @h6 'i!f g5 + (if 2 @f6 then 2 . . . 'ii e 6 + etc.). This was how the game Por­ tisch- Lengyel (Malaga 1 964) ended. E68 t . . . h3 + ! (attraction) 2 @ xh3 ( E68a). E68a B

2 . . . 'iW f5 + ! 3 'i'xf5 .U. xg3 + 4 @h4 : g4 + . White can only avoid the checks on g3 and g4 by taking the rook, which results in stalemate (Ti berger- Drelikiewicz, Poland 1 970). An exam . . . with no hints! E69 t . . . 'iWf2 + 2 @xf2 .U. d t mate (Eckart-Tarrasch, N urem­ berg 1 887). E70 t . . . 'i'd4 + 2 @ht 'i'f2! On 3 'i' b5 there follows 3 . . . .U. e l . White resigned (Reshevsky­ Fischer, Mallorca 1 970). E7 1 With t 'iW g8 + White forced his opponent to 'wall in' his king. On 1 . . . : xg8 there follows

Solutions to the exercises

2 0if7 mate (Unzicker-Sarapu,

1 9th Olympiad, Siegen 1 970). E72 After 1 g5 + Black resigned, since on 1 . . . @xg5 there follows 2 it" f4 mate (Ustinov­ I livitsky, Frunze 1 959). E73 White won with 1 J:l. d7! The rook cannot be taken because the queen would be lost (2 0if6 + ) and otherwise the bishop is lost (Thelen-Chodera, Prague 1 943). E74 By putting his queen en prise - 1 "if cl + ! - Black got a draw (Titenko-Murej, Moscow 1 96 1 ). E75 Black played 1 ..t xe3, after which White resigned. On 2 "it" xe3 there follows 2 . . . bxc4 + with decisive material gains, since the pawn on c4 cannot be captured either by the rook or by the pawn because of the rook check on b3 (Naranja-Gheorghiu, Manila 1 974). E76 1 J:l. e l + 2 @h2. Now Black can't play 1 . . . J:l. xb l because the rook o n e 8 i s attacked. But, by playing 2 it"g6!, he can simultaneously attack g2 and the rook. White resigned (Fond-Bilbi, Los Angeles 1 983). E77 1 ..th7 + ! @xh7 2 it" xe6. The f7 square cannot be defended, so Black resigned (Kasparov­ Browne, Banja Luka 1 979). E78 1 "ifdl + ! 2 @xdl �g4 + + and 3 J:l.dl mate (S. Anderson-Knuttson, Sweden . • .

. . .

. • .

. . .

• . .

. • .

I 03

1 974). E79 After 1 J:l. f8 + ! Black resigned in view of t . . . J:I. xf8 2 1Wg8 + J:l. xg8 3 0if7 mate ( Niko­ lov-Slavchev, corr. 1 963). E80 1 f6! ..t xf6 2 J:I. xf6 1W xf6 3 ..tg5 Black resigned (Najdorf­ Bolbochan, Argentina t 965). E8 l After 1 0ie7! Black had to resign. If he takes with the bishop, he loses control over the square h8 and Black gets mated. Meanwhile the threat is 2 1Wg8 mate (Najdorf- Porath, 1 1 th Olympiad, Amsterdam 1 954). E82 1 J:l. e8! This move forces " Black to lay down his arms. He can't take the rook with the bishop because of 2 ..tg8 mate. This means he has to give up the queen - 1 . 1W xe8 2 ..t xe8 ..t xe8. Then White continues the attack with 3 it"e6 ..ta4 (3 . . . ..txg6 4 hxg6 + leads to mate) 4 1W xf5. For the queen Black has a rook, minor piece and passed pawn. But not for long. The threat to close off the bishop's route to f8 (5 0ie7 + @h8 6 1Wf8 + ) allows White to win the bishop back immediately after the forced 4 J:l. b8 5 0ie5 + (or 0if8 + ) 5 . . . @g8 6 1We6 + @h7 7 1W xd6 (Kirillov-Vatnikov, Vilnius 1 949). E83 With one move - 1 1Wc4! - White pinned the rook and bishop. Black cannot avoid material loss, since he can't defend • .

• • .

1 04

Solutions to the exercises

against both threats : J:t e 1 -d 1 and J:t e 1 -c 1 (Samkov-Yablonsky, Riga 1 978). E84 The end of this game shows us that no-one is immune from making even the simplest mistakes. In the game Ribli-Spas­ sky, Montpellier 1 985, from which the position we are now looking at comes, 1 'ii" h3 'li"d2 2 "i!ie6 would have won. But Ribli played 1 'iii> g5? and after 1 . . "i!V xh6 + he had to be content with half a point (if the queen is not taken and 2 @f5 is played, a theoretically dra�n queen ending is reached). E85 1 . . . J:t xd4! On 2 'i!Vxd4 there follows 2 . . . l:!. e l + 3 'iii> f2 "i'xd4 + 4 J:t xd4 J:t xa l White resigned (Tunik-Veingold, Lvov 1 984). E86 1 . . . J:t d t + ! 2 J:t xd t . If 2 'iii> x d l , then 2 . . . 'li"d6 + and . . . ..Wd6-d2xf2 mate. 2 . . . "i' xc4 3 J:!. d2 "i' c l + 4 J:t d l "i'c3 + . On 5 @fl "i' c2 is decisive. White resigned (Baturinsky-Romanov­ sky, M oscow 1 945). E87 1 ll:if6 + ! gxf6 2 "i' g4 + e7 ( I wxd8 2 tt:lxf7 + and 3 tt:l xe5) 2 J:l: xh8 W xg5 3 Wd2! and wins. On 3 . . . tt:ld5 there follows 4 c4 (Tai-Benko, Amsterdam 1 964). E l OO To the suggestion of a queen exchange White replied 1 .C. xh6 + ! after which Black resigned. If 1 . . . ..txh6, then 2 W xc3, and on 1 . . . @xh6 there follows 2 W h4 mate (Smej kal­ Adorjan, Vrnjacka Banja 1 972). E l O l 1 W xe4 .C. xe4 2 .C. l c6! Black resigned (Wijgerden-3

1 05

Donner, Holland 1 976). E 1 02 After 1 . . . ttJ f3 + ! White resigned. On 2 gxf3 ..td4 is decis­ ive. If 2 @h l, then 2 . . . Wxf2 3 .C. xf2 tt:lg3 mate! (Vasiliev-Yero­ feev, Pushkin 1 985). E 1 03 Black has an extra knight and threatening passed pawns. However, his king has no pawn cover and White concludes the attack with ease : l W g 8 + (on l .C. exe7 + Black plays not l . . . l:txe7 in view of 2 Wg8 mate, but 1 . . . 'ii' xe7) 1 . . . .C.f8 2 W g6! (deflection) 2 . . . W xg6 3 .C. exe7 + 'it>d8 4 .C. bd7 mate (Hartston­ Whiteley, England 1 974). E 1 04 1 tt:l xg7! (White destroys the enemy king's pawn cover) 1 ... @ xg7 2 ..t xh6 + @g8 (or 2 . . 'it>h8 3 ..tg7 + 'it>xg7 4 W xh7 + @f8 5 Wh8 + @e7 6 J:l: xf7 + etc) 3 l:!. g4 + l:!. g6 4 e6! Black resigned (Kotov-Unzicker, Stock­ holm 1 952). E 1 05 2 ..t xe5 fxe5 3 'it' d5 + ! This exchange forces capitulation. After 3 . . . W xd5 4 tt:l xe7 + and 5 tt:lxd5 Black stays a piece down ( Miles-Timman, Amsterdam 1 985). E 1 06 Black, who has an extra bishop, defended against the threatened mate on h7 by offering a queen exchange (c8 is guarded by the knight). White has to find a powerful tactical blow, since his rook and knight are attacked. The .

1 06

Solutions to the exercises

stunning 1 .:l f4!! deflecting the queen from the defence of h7 (if 1 . . . "ilr'xf4) or the defence of the eighth rank (if 1 . . . "ilr' xd3), forced Black to lay down his arms (Belov-Ongemakh, Narva 1 984). E l 07 1 tll f6 + ! gxf6 2 .:l xe8 + . On 2 . . . "iW xe8 3 .i.xf6 wins. If 2 . . . .i. xe8, then 3 "iir' h6 "ilr'd7 (4 .i.xf6 was the threat) 4 "i' xf6 (4 .i.xf6 "i'g4) 4 . . . @f8 5 .:l e I and mates. Black resigned (Tompa- Herrou, Val Thorens 1 980). E 1 08 Black is a piece up so White needs a powerful move to finish off the attack. 1 tlide7 wins, blocking the black queen's route to g7. Sim ultaneously the e6 bishop is attacked (Boleslavsky­ Dus-Chotimirsky, M oscow 1 942). E 1 09 Black is threatened with mate, but by giving up a rook, he opens the way for his queen to the critical square e3 and mates first : 1 . . . l:H3 + ! On 2 gxf3 (if 2 @g t , then 2 . . . "i' e l + 3 @h2 "i'g3 + 4 @ g t .:l e i + and mate next move) Black contin ues 2 . . . •e3 + 3 @g3 (or @g2 "i' xf3 + ) 3 . . . "i' xf3 + and mate in three (Kmoch-R ubinstein, Semmering 1 926). E1 10 1 tlif6 + .i. xf6 2 • xh6 + @ xh6 3 .:l h3 + and mate next move (Chevaldonnet­ Blanc, Val Thorens 1 977). E 1 1 1 The outcome of this

seemingly quiet heavy piece ending was decided with a decoying rook sacrifice : 1 . . .:l a2! 2 "ilr'cl .:l c2! (and not 2 . . . gxf4 + when White has 3 @f3) 3 "i'e3 gxf4 + (deflection) 4 • xf4 .:l xg2 + and White loses the queen (Orev-Spiridonov, Varna 1 984). E l 1 2 With 1 . . . .:l e2! Black deflected the bishop from d3, allowing him to control the d2 square and cut off the king's escape route. After 2 .i. xe2 tll e4 White resigned - mate is unavoidable (Slonim- Ryumin, M oscow 1 93 1 ). E l 1 3 1 .i. xh7 + ! @ xh7 2 .:l xf7 .:l g8. Inserting the moves 2 . . . : xf7 3 : xf7 changes nothing. After 3 . . . t:r g8 4 "i'h3 + White mates anyway. 3 "i' h3 + @ g6 4 "i'f5 + @h6 5 .i.e3 + and mates Slupsk (Bednarski-Adamski, 1 978). E l 1 4 1 tlid5 + ! cxd5 2 "i'a3 + . On 2 . . . �d8 there followed 3 •d6 + @c8 4 .:l c l + Black resigned (Kia vins-V. Zhura vlev, Riga 1 968). E l 1 5 1 .:l e6! The rook threa­ tens to destroy the defender of h7, and taking it leads to mate : 1 . . . fxe6 2 "i'xg6 + w h 8 3 "i' h6 + @g8 4 .i.h7 + @h8 5 .tf5 + @g8 6 .i.xe6 + . After 1 . . . .:l e8 2 .i. xg6! Black resigned (Dobias­ Podgorny, Prague 1 952). E 1 1 6 1 J:t xe5 (This temporary .

Solutions to the exercises

decoying sacrifice gives White a decisive material advantage) 1 . . . 'ilif xe5 ( 1 . . . .txe5 2 l:l. d8 mate) 2 J:t d8 + .t xd8 3 "i/i xe5 + 'iti>d7 4 '1Wd4 + @e6 (4 . . . @e7 5 .tc5 + and 6 "i/i xh8) 5 i. xd8 (Belyavsky­ Tavadyan, Jaroslavl 1 982). E 1 1 7 1 . . . ltJ f3 + ! 2 gxf3 J.xf2 + 3 @d2 "ill e3 + 4 @c2 J.. f5 + and mate next move. This could have been the end of the game Lundgren- Pared, Malmo 1 983. Black, however, overlooked this possibility. He played 1 . . . "ill a5 + 2 .td2 lt:le4(!) 3 lt:l xc5 (if 3 .ba5? then 3 . . . lt:lf3 + and 4 . . . .txf2 mate) 3 . . . 'llf xc5 4 lt:lxd4 '1W xd4 5 'ti'e2 "ill xb2 and Black finally realized his advantage. E1 18 1 J:I. xh7 + !'1· l::t xh7 2 l:I. xh7 + @ xh7 3 "i/i h l + 'iti>g7. The rook sacrifice has drawn the king to g7, cut off from the h-file. Now comes a fresh decoy, after which the queen perishes in a fork : 4 f6 + ! @xf6 5 lt:l xd7 + Tbilisi (Ebralidze- Lubensky, \ I_ ' • . 1 949). E 1 1 9 White wins with 1 .tb7 + ! "ill xb7 2 "i/ie8 + @a7 3 .td4 + and Black has to give up his queen, since on 3 . . . @a6 there follows 4 'llf a4 mate (Fricker-De Vita, Catanzaro 1 979). E 1 20 1 .txc5! 'llf xc5 2 ..tb3 + >t>h8 3 'llf f7 Black resigned (Titkos-Yompos, H ungary 1 98 5). E 1 2 1 1 e8("ii' ) + ! lt:l xe8 2 lt:\f5. '

1 07

The threat 3 "ill e 7 + cannot be parried. Black resigned (Dorosh­ kevich- Bali tinov, Orel 1 980). E 1 22 1 J:t c7!! i. xc7 (I . . . "ill xc7 2 .bd5 + and 3 i.xa8) 2 "ill e4! Black resigned ( Pidorich­ Chernusev, Tyumen 1 98 1 ). E 1 23 1 lt:\ f6 + gxf6. After 1 . . . .txf6 2 exf6 "ill xf6 White wins the bishop with 3 .tg5. 2 exf6 .txf6 3 .te4 l:l. e8 4 'll¥ xh7 + @f8 5 .tg6! This finishes the game. The bishop cannot be taken because of 6 .th6 + . If 5 . . . .tg7 then 6 .th6 "ill f6 7 J:t xd7 lt:le7 (7 . . . fxg6 8 "i/i h 8 mate) 8 'ii' h8 + @g8 9 'ii' xg7 + 'ii' xg7 10 J: xf7 mate 1 9th (Reshevsky- Matsumoto, Olympiad, Seigen 1 970). E 1 24 White's task - to get the queen to the h-file -- is achieved by 1 .tg6! On the slower 1 .t b l intending 'ilt' c6-e4-h4 Black can play 1 . . . 'ilt'e5. 1 . fxg6 2 "ii' g2, .txb4. Forced, since Black must create an escape route for his king. 3 'ii' h3 + @ g8 4 'll¥ h7 + @f8 5 'll¥ h8 + @e7 6 'ilt' xg7 + @e8 (6 . . . @d6 7 J:[ fd l + ) 7 'ii' g8 + ..tf8 (if 7 . . . @e7 then 8 "ii' f7 + and 9 "ill x e6 mate) 8 'ii' xg6 + @e7 9 'ii' xe6 mate. This variation could have occurred in the game Alek­ hine-Rubinstein (Karlsbad 1 923), if Rubinstein had accepted the sacrifice. Not wanting to allow a forced mate, he played 1 . . . 'it'e5. After 2 lt:lxf7 + J: xf7 3 i. xf7 . .

1 08

Solutions to the exercises

'i!f f5 4 .:l. fd l White, pawn up, won easily. E 1 25 1 'i!f xe5! dxe5 2 exfi + . On 2 . . . @f8 there follows 3 .th6 mate; on 2 . . . @d8 3 f8('i!f) + . There remains only 2 . . . @d7, when 3 .US + + @c6 4 .te4 + lll d5 5 .txd5 + wins (Tal-Suetin, Tbilisi 1 969). E 1 26 1 . . . .!:t e l ! 2 @ xe l (2 .t b3 .:l. e2 + ) 2 . . . .tg3 mate (Bialas- M ross, Berlin 1 9 54). E 1 27 The pawn capture is wrong. After 3 n d8 + ! Black had to resign because of unavoidable mate : 3 . . . .:l. xd8 4 .:l. xd8 + @xd8 5 'i!fg8 + (Juarez-Sangu­ inetti, Rio Hondo 1 950). E 1 28 1 . . . c3! 2 n xc3 (forced in view of the threat 2 . . . cxb2) 2 . . . .:l. xc3 3 'i!f xc3. Now 3 . . . b4 wins the knight and the game (Kottnauer-O'Kelly, Groningen 1 946). E 1 29 1 . . . 'i!f xb2 + ! (deflection, after which there follows a double check) 2 @ xb2 lll d3 + + 3 @a3. Or 3 @ b3 (3 @ b l .:l. eb8 + mate) 3 . . . .:l. eb8 + 4 @ a4 (4 'it>c4 lll b2 mate) 4 . . . .:l. b4 + 5 @a3 .tb2 mate. 3 . . . .tb2 + 4 'it>a4 ·

( E 1 29a ) .

4 . . . n xe4 + ! (decoying the queen - 5 'i!f xe4 lll c5 mate) 5 c4 n xc4 + 6 @b3 .:t c3 + 7 @a4 .:l. a3 mate ( Polees-Kremenetsky, M oscow 1 973). E 1 30 Black could play the pro-

t:J29a B

saic 1 . . . .t h 3 2 .:l. e3 .:t xe3 3 fxe3 'i!fxe3 4 'i!fxe3 J:!. xe3 with a won ending. However, he pre­ ferred mate in 6: 1 . . . .:I. e l + 2 'iii> g 2 J:t g l + ! 3 'iii> xgl 'i!f e l + 4 �g2 'i!ffl + 5 @xfl .t h3 + and mate next move (Netto-Abente, Paraguay 1 98 3). E 1 3 1 The pawn cannot be taken. On 1 . . . 'i!f xh2? White continues 2 l:t b8 + 'iii> d 7 3 .!:t d8 + ! If 3 . . . 'iii> xd8 then 4 .tb6 + and the queen is lost, and after 3 . . . @e6 Black is mated on d6 (Gudju--Wexler, Bucharest 1 923). E 1 32 White wins with 1 J:t xfi l hfi 2 'i!f xc7! (Ahues-Leopold, Dresden 1 903). E 1 3 3 1 . . . d3 2 c3 .!:t xe4! 3 'i!f xe4 .txc3. On 4 b3 there fol­ lows 4 . . . 'i!ff2. White resigned (Sax-van der Wiel, Biel 1 985). E 1 34 With 1 lll b6 White wins the exchange. The knight cannot be taken with the queen because of 2 .ta5 after which the queen

Solutions to the exercises

1 09

is lost (Freyman-I. Rabinovich, lt:Jf6 + @f8. Forced, since 2 . . . Leningrad 1 934). gxf6 3 'ilf h6 leads to mate. 3 'it' xh7 g6 ,4 .:t e l Black resigned (DusE 1 3 5 After 1 lt:J g5 Black Chotimirsky-Bannik, Vilnius resigned. If the knight is taken 2 ' ' , 1 :!. h 3 wins. The move . . . g7-g6 1 944). ' also doesn't save him, as the f7 E 1 40 1 . . . J:t xe5 2 dxe5 lt:J f3 + 3 @ h l . If gxf3, then 3 . . . 'ilfg5 + p awn is pinned (lvkov-Djuric, Yugoslav Championship 1 983). and 4 . . . 'ilf h4. 3 . . . 'ilf h4 4 h3 E 1 36 1 �xe7 l:t xe7 ( 1 . .,. , �xh3 5 g3 'ilf h5 White resigned @xe7 2 �xd5) 2 l::tx e6! ' A tern·� ·- (Lee-Ribero, 1 9th Olympiad, Seigen 1 970). p orary exchange sacrifice, with which White secures a won king E 1 4 1 1 �xf6 �xf6 2 b4! 'if xb4 3 ll:id5 'ilf xd2 4 lt:J xf6 + . and pawn ending : 2 . . . J:!. xe6 3 � ( Now 4 . . . @g7 is not on, since .t xd5 J:l e8 cxb3 axb3 5 Rel :!. e7 6 J:!. xe6 J:!. xe6 7 @b2 r:3/e7 the rook falls with check, and after 4 . . . @f8 (or 4 . . . @ h8) 5 ll:ixd2 .t xe6 @xe6 9 @b3 and White won easily (Belov-Zhalin, Narva Black has lost a piece ( PietzschRittner, Berlin 1 957). 1 986). E 1 42 1 . . . lt:Je4 + ! 2 fxe4 E l 3 7 1 . . . ll:i xg2! 2 @ xg2 fxe4 + 3 @el 'ilfxg3 + ! White lt:Jf4 + 3 @hl . If 3 @g l , then 3 resigned. On 4 J:!. xg3 there follows . . . lt:J h 3 + 4 @g2 'ilfxf2 + ! 5 4 . . . J:t h l + 5 �fl J:l hxfl + and @xh3 �c8 + 6 lt:Jf5 �xf5 + 7 6 . . . J:!. f2 mate ( Portisch-Hiibner, exf5 'it'xf3 + 8 @h2 l:t d2 + , and Bugojno 1 978) . on 3 @fl follows 3 . . . � a6 + . 3 . . . 'ilf xf2 White resigned (BolesE 1 43 1 lt:Je7 + J:l 8xe7 ( 1 . . . ll 2xe7 2 'ilf xe7) 2 J:!. d8 + l:t e8 lavsky-Nezhmetdinov, Vilnius 1 958). 3 'ilf f8 + ! l:l. xf8 4 J:l xf8 mate E 1 3 8 The bishop on e3 is (Chigorin-Znoski-Borovsky, Kiev 1 903). pinned, but with 1 J:!. d8 + ! White either deflects the rook from the E 1 44 1 . . lt:J g4 + ! 2 hxg4 (on 2 @g2 there follows 2 . . . � xd4 e-file and then takes the queen, or 3 'if xd4 lt:Je5) 2 . . . hxg4 3 f3 attracts the king into a fork ( 1 . . . @xd8 2 lt:J b7 + ) and wins the � xd4 4 fxg4 (4 'ilf xd4 l:l. e2 + ) 4 queen anyway (Duras-Spielman, . . lt:Jc3 and wins (a variation from the game Egin-Guseinov, Vienna 1 907). Tashkent 1 98 5). E 1 39 1 J:!. xd4! cxd4. Impossi ble is I . . . l:l. xd5 in view of 2 E l 45 After 1 . . d3! White .!hd5 (2 . . . 'ilf xd5 3 lt:J h 6 + ) 2 resigned because he cannot avoid ,

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J JO

Solutions to the exercises

material loss. If 2 exd3, then 2 . . . tll d 4 3 "ilfd l tll xd2 (4 'l!t' xd2 tll f3 + ) or 2 "ilfxd3 "ilfxd3 3 exd3 tll x d2 (Demetriescu-Nagy, corr. 1 936). E 1 46 t . . . tll f3 + ! 2 gxf3 "ilf g6 + 3 @ h t tll g3 + and then 4 . . . "ilf xc2. White has no real compensation for the queen (Lyublinsky- Baturinsky, Moscow 1 945). E 1 47 t . . . tll xf3 + ! 2 gxf3 .l:l. g5 + 3 @fl (if 3 w h2, then 3 "ilf xh3 + 4 @e2 :.· · 'i .:t g3j 3 . . . .:t g2 + . On 5 .tf2 there follows 5 . . . .:t xf2 + 6 @xf2 "ilfh2 + . White resigned (Quinteros-- Kou­ atly, Lucerne 1 985). E 1 48 t . . . tll xg2! 2 @ xg2 .:t xf2 + ! 3 @xf2 "ilf xh2 + 4 @e3 .1:1. eS + 5 tll e4. Running with the king doesn't help : 5 @f3 .1:1. f8 + 6 @e3 (6 @g4 .tc8 + ) 6 . . . "ilff2 + 7 'it>d2 .tf4 + 8 wc3 "ilfc5 mate or 5 @d2 "ilfh6 + 6 @c3 .t b4 + and mates. 5 . . . .tf4 + 6 @f3. After 6 tll xf4 "ilf xc2 White's position is hope­ less. If, for example, 7 .:t d2, then 7 . . . .l:l. xe4 + ! Now mate follows 6 @d4 J:t xe4 + ! 7 dxe4 (or 7 @c5 .te3 + 8 @xc6 "ilfd6 mate; 7 @c3 .te5 + 8 @d2 "ilf h 6 mate) 7 . . . "ilf f2 + and 8 . . . "ilfc5 mate. 6 . . . dxe4 + 7 dxe4 .t xe2 + . However the bishop is taken there follows 8 . . . "ilfg3 mate (A. Fer­ nandez-Santos, Portugal 1 979).

E l 49 t tll h 5! gxh5 (On I . . . .th8 2 tll g 5 is decisive) 2 tll g5 .t xg5 3 "ilf xg5 + @ h7 4 'l!t' xh5 + 'it>g7 5 "ilfg5 + . After 5 . . . @h7 6 t!.f3 Black is mated ( Pinter­ Hardicsay, H ungary 1 974). E 1 50 t . . . tll e 2 + 2 @ h t "ilf xg4! 3 hxg4 J:t h 5 + ! 4 gxh5 l::l. h4 mate (Gilg-Henneberger, Zurich 1 94 1 ). E 1 5 1 The rook on f3 is pinned and attacked. But after 1 l::l. g2!! Black had to resign. The threat is 2 "ilfxh7 + @xh7 3 .:t h3 mate . The rook cannot be taken because of 2 "ilf xf8 mate (Soultanbeieff­ Borodin, Brussels 1 943). Et 52 t .t xh7 + ! W xh7 2 "ilf h3 + 'it>g8 3 J:t g4! There is no defence to the threat ll g4-h4. On 3 . . . f6 there follows 4 g6. Black resigned (Szabo-Bisguier, Buenos Aires 1 955). E 1 53 t .tb2! (the black queen is deflected to b2) t . . . 'iW xb2 And now with 2 J:t d8 + the bishop is deflected from its defence. Black resigned (Lerner-Sideif-Zade, Frunze 1 979). r ) �1�Q ,A 12.o,1E 1 54 t .txe5 fxe5 2 l::I. xf7! @xf7 (2 . . . .1:1. xg2 + 3 @xg2 @xf7 4 @f2 etc does not change the result) 3 .td5 + @f6 4 .t xa2. The rest is simple technique. After 4 . . . a4 5 .tc4 we7 6 wf2 @d6 7 we3 @c5 8 wd3 Black resigned (Sandler-- Koops, Riga 1 983). •

Solutions to the exercises

E 1 5 5 I ..t fi ! @ xt7. On I . . . there follows, of course, 2 'iW xg6 + . If 1 . . . 'ilf xf7 then simply 2 .l:txd8. 2 .l:Xd8 'ilf xd8 3 'ilf b7 + @ g8 4 'ilf xa6 and White realized advantage (Stahlberg­ his Najdorf, Buenos Aires 1 947). E 1 56 The threat is 1 t:t xh2 + 2 @xh2 'iii h5 + 3 @g3 ..t h4 + mating. But White mates first with I J:! g8 + @a7 ( I . . .i.c8 2 'ilf b6 mate) 2 .lh8 + ! @xa8 3 'iW xa6 + @ b8 4 'iWxb7 mate (Heemsoth-Weber, corr. 1 973/4). E 1 57 1 'ilfc7! .I:!. xc7 2 exfi + and on any capture of the pawn, the rook mates on e8 (Wolf-Burn, Ostend 1 905). E 1 58 In reply to 2 i.. x c7 there followed 2 . . . .I:!. xf2 3 @ xf2 (if 3 'ilfg5, then 3 . . . l:!. ee2) 3 . . . J:t e2 + ! 4 @ xe2 'ilf xg2 + 5 @el 'ilf g l + 6 @d2 (6 @e2 ..th5 mates) 6 . . 'ilff2 + 7 @di ..th5 mate. This was the finish of a game by Morphy against Delannoy played in the Cafe de la Regence, Paris 1 8 58. Morphy gave his opponent odds of pawn and move. When Delannoy took the bishop (2 ..txc7), he permitted himself to remark : 'It wasn't worth coming to Europe from America j ust to play such a blunder'. Morphy's reply was to mate him in six. E 1 59 1 l:!. c5 + ! @b8 (on 1 . . . 'D.. c7 there follows 2 ..txb7 + ) 2 .t::! xd2

.

.

III

..txb7! Now on 2 . . . 'ilfxg3 White replies 3 ..tg2 + !, and if 2 . . . : xb7 3 J:! xb7 + @xb7 4 'ilfg2 + wins. Black resigned (Tar­ Hastings takower-Winter, 1 936/37). E 1 60 This textbook example contains two decoying sacrifices and a knight fork. White saves the game with J J:! f6 + ! 'ilf xf6 2 e5 + ! (2 . . . @xe5 3 lll g4 + or 2 . . . 'iii xe5 3 lll f7 + ). E 1 6 1 2 'ilf xf8 + J:! xf8 3 J:! xf8 'ilf xf8 (if 3 . . . 'ilfc5, then 4 d4) 4 h6 + ! The only move to win. After the naive 4 'D.. xf8 @xf8 the pawn ending is not won. Black creates a second passed pawn with . . . e5 -e4, after which the White king cannot support his g- and h­ pawns. Now, though, the game is over - 4 . . . @g8 5 h7 + @g7 6 (Tarrasch-Janowski, J:! xf8 Ostend 1 907). E l 62 The quiet move I i.. e 6!! (the bishop attacks g8 and frees the f-file) forced Black to resign. The queen cannot be taken due to mate in two, and the back rank is also undefended after other moves (Pisarsky-M ark ushev, Novosi­ birsk 1 983). E 1 63 After 1 f6! Black resigned. On 1 . . . hxg5 2 'ilfg6 is decisive (Arkhipkin - Prodanov, Albena 1 977). E l 64 J ..txti! + l:!. xti 2 'D.. d8 + 'D.. f8 3 'iii b3 + 'ilfti. The

Solutions to the exercises

I I2

threat of mate on gl has been liquidated, and the e-pawn marches on : 4 e6 'iWe7 5 J:t d7 and by continuing with e6-e7, White (Apscheneek- Landau, wins Kemeri 1 937). E 1 65 With 1 . . . J:t xe4! Black draws the king into mating net. 2 @ xe4 He can't play on a knight in arrears. But now the superbly coordinated black pieces chase the white king from the centre to the edge of the board. 2 . . . tll xc5 + 3 @d4 J:t d8 + 4 c.Pc3 J:t d3 + 5 @ b4 J:t xb3 + 6 @a5 tll x c4 mate Czechoslovakia (Filip- Bajar, 1 957). E 1 66 1 . . . � c l + 2 @ h2 'iWc2 + 3 @ h3 ( E166a ) El66a B

Taking the rook is impossible due to a deadly check on a7. But if we note that the black king has no moves and all five pawns are blocked, it's easy to find the saving combination : 3 . . . .1:1. h l + ! 4 J:t xh l 'iW g2 + ! 5 @ xg2 stalemate. Not for nothin_g did Tartakower

g8 4 ll:l xe5 + . On 4 . . . @ h 8 there follows 5 ll:l g 6 mate, and i f 4 . . . d5 5 'llt' f7 + and 6 ll:lg6 mate (Kinnmark-Olivera, Olympiad, Havana 1 966). E l 8 1 1 'lWd5! l::l a7 2 ll:lg6 + ! @g7 (2 . . . hxg6 3 J:l: h3 + and 4 ·iif xa2) 3 ll:lxf8 @xf8 4 e5 and Black is defenceless (Tal-Kolarov,

1 14

Solutions to the exercises

Reykjavik 1 95 7). E 1 82 With 1 .l:!. b6! White gets a decisive material advantage. Black has to give up his queen, since on 1 . . . axb6 the standard combi­ nation 2 Ci:Je7 + @h8 3 Wxh7 + 4 .1:1. h 5 mate is decisive. Without the blocking of the sixth rank the combination would not work, since on .l:l. e5-h5 + Black has the defence . . . Wa6-h6. 1 . . . i.xd5 (or 1 . . . 'i!t'x b6 2 Ci:Jxb6 axb6 3 W xc4 with the same result) 2 .1:1. xa6 bxa6 3 .1:1. xd5 and White won (Uchim ura-Schain, USA 1 980). E 1 8 3 1 .1:1. xh6. 1 'i!t' g6 threaten­ ing .!:!. h 1 xh6 doesn't work as Black replies 1 . . . i.e8 2 'llt' e6 + i.f7. Now the threat is 2 'llt' h7 + @f7 3 'llt' g6 + @f8 4 .1:1. h 7, so Black has to take the rook . 1 . i. xh6 2 'i!t'g6 + i.g7 3 Ci:Je6! i. xe6 4 i.d4! Black resigned (Pirisi-- Szalanczy, Budapest 1 98 1 ) E 1 84 1 . . . .l:l. a8! 2 l ha8. On 2 .1:1. a6, there follows 2 . . . 'lift + , then 3 . . . c3 + and 4 . . . 'iif xb5 just the same. If 2 .l:l. c3 then 2 . . . 'llt' e l + and 3 . . . 'ilt' a l mate. 2 . . . 'i!t' fl + 3 @ b2 c3 + winning the (Medina-Smederevac, queen Beverwijk 1 965). E 1 8 5 l �f6 + ! gxf6 2 .l:l. g4 + @ h8 3 .1:1. eg l (after this Black can't defend against the stock queen sacrifice on h7) 3 . . . i.xf5 4 'i!t'xf5 .l:l. b5 5 'ilt' xh7 + Black . .

(Nunn-Pritchet t, resigned FRG 1 98 5). E 1 86 1 Ci:J h5! i.xf6 ( 1 . . . gxh5 2 'i!t' g5) 2 Ci:J xf6 + @g7 (2 . . @ h 8 3 'i!t' h6) 3 Ci:J h5 + ! '1t>h8. If 3 . . . gxh 5, then 4 'llt' g5 + @h8 5 'i!t' f6 + @g8 6 .l:l. f3 . 4 'i!t'h6 .l:. g8 5 Ci:Jf6 .1:1. g7 6 i. xe6 fxe6 7 Ci:J xh7! .1:1. xh7 8 .1:1. f8 + .1:1. xf8 9 'i!t' xf8 mate ( Pribyl-Jablonicky, Bratislava 1 973). E 1 8 7 1 'i!t'e7 + ! .l:l. xe7 2 d7!! and Black is helpless against the pawn promotion (Zeipel-Arne­ gaard, corr. 1 902). E 1 88 1 Ci:J xd5 exd5. Note that Black can't j ust resign himself to the loss of a pawn by declining the sacrifice : 1 . . . 'llt' b7 2 Ci:Je7 + 'i!t' xe7 3 'i!t'xc8 + and so on as in the game. 2 'i!t' xc8 + ! .1:1. xc8 3 .l:l. xc8 + '1t>h7 4 .1:1. h8 + ! @ xh8 5 Ci:Jg6 + and 6 Ci:Jxe7 winning eas­ ily (Volkevich- Liskov, Moscow 1 958). E 1 89 After 1 . . 'llt' f3! 2 i. b l (on 2 gxf3 follows 2 . . . Ci:Jxf3 + 3 @fl i. h 3 mate) 2 . . . 'i!t' xg2 3 @d2 'i!t'xf2 Black has an over­ whelming advantage ( Peev-Haik, Bucharest 1 979). E 1 90 1 . . . Ci:J xd4 2 i. xd4 Ci:Jd3 + ! 3 exd3 (if 3 'i!t' xd3, then 3 . . . 'i!t' c l + 4 'i!t'd l 'i!t' xd l + 5 @ xd 1 i.xd4 and White loses a rook) 3 . . . i. xd4 and Black wins material (Pelts- Byelushkin, Chelyabinsk 1 975). .

.

Solutions to the exercises

E 1 9 1 1 . . . l hd3 2 cxd3 ..t g5! White resigned (ShamaevUfimtsev, Leningrad 1 949). E 1 92 After 1 .:t d7!! Black resigned. On 1 . . . ..txd7 there follows 2 'ii' d6 + ! .:t e7 3 'ii' h6 + e 8 4 .:t g8 mate (G. Popov­ Angelov, corr. 1 96 1 ). E 1 93 1 . . ..t xe4! 2 fxe4 (2 ..te2 i.d3 3 ..td 1 ..tfl ) 2 . . . f3! (freeing the king's path to the White p awns) 3 g5 e5 4 @c5 (this king march to the a6 pawn, sacrificing the bishop, is forced) 4 . . . @xe4 5 @b6 b4! 6 cxb4 (6 .ixc4 bxc3 and the bishop cannot cope with the pawns) 6 . . . c3 and Black won (Dittman- Padevsky, Dresden 1 956). E 1 94 1 ..tg5! hxg5 2 ll:i xe5 Black resigned (Lukovnikov-Ser­ geev, Voronezh 1 974). E 1 95 With 1 . . . .U e l ! Black wins. After 2 .ixel (or 2ll:ixe l ) 2 . . . ll:ib2! he threatens both the queen and the rook on fl (with mate!). Since mate has to be stopped, White must give up the queen (Jones- Dueball, 2 1 st Olym­ piad, Nice 1 974). E 1 96 1 J: xb6! Eliminating the knight controlling the c4 square allows White to create threats against the enemy king and emerge with a decisive material advantage. 1 . . . axb6 2 .i.c4 + @f8 3 ..tg5! J:l: el + 4 @h2 @e8. Black has escaped being mated, .

115

b u t after 5 .:t h 8 + @d7 6 .:t xa8 . White is a piece up (Antoszkie­ wicz- Kewicki, corr. 1 978). E 1 97 1 ll:if5! gxf5 (forced) 2 .ixf5 J: xg3. If 2 . . . ll:ig6, then 3 ..txg6 hxg6 4 J:l: xg6 .:t xg6 5 .t:l. xg6 + @f7 6 'ii' h6. 3 .:t xg3 + @f7. On 3 . . . @h8 4 'ii' g l ! wins. 4 'ii' h6 ll:id3 (loses, but so does everything else) 5 'ii' h5 + @e7 6 .:t g7 + @d8 7 'ii' a l + 'ii' f7 8 .:t gl Black resigned ( Plachetka­ Basagic, Sofia 1 979). E 1 98 1 ..txh6! gxh6 2 ll:ie7 + + @h8 3 i:t f8 + ! 'ii' xf8 (3 . . . ll:ixf8 4 'ii' g8 mate) 4 ll:ig6 + @g7 5 ll:i xg8 + @xf8 'ii' g6! Black resigned (Blanc-Bar-Om, France 1 979). E 1 99 1 ll:if4 is wrong because of 1 . . . ll:if3 + ! 2 gxf3 'ii' g5 + 3 ll:ig2 h3 4 'ii' xg7 + 'ii' xg7 5 .i xg7 hxg2! and White loses a piece (a variation from the game Euwe-Romanovsky, Leningrad 1 934). E200 Black mates in five : 1 . . ll'. h l + ! (deflecting the knight so as to free the diagonal) 2 ll:ixhl ..th2 + ! (attraction) 3 @ xh2 J:t h8 + 4 @g3 ll:if5 + 5 @f4 : h4 mate. This was how the game Schiffers-Chigorin (St Petersburg 1 897) might have ended, but instead of I . . . : h I + Chigorin played I . . . b6. E20 1 1 ll:i xf7! @xf7 2 ..txf6! 'i/ xc7. The bishop cannot be cap.

116

Solutions to the exercises

tured either by the pawn or by the king. On 2 . . . gxf6 3 '*' h 5 + wins at once. If 2 . . . @xf6 White hunts down the king : 3 'it' f3 + @g5 4 '*' g3 + @ h 5 (4 . . . @f6 5 '*' f4 mate) 5 ..tg6 mate. 3 "if h5 + @f8 (3 . . . @xf6 4 'it' g6 mate) 4 ..t xg7 + @ xg7 (4 . . . @g8 5 '*'g6) 5 '*' g6 + @f8 '*' xh6 + @f7 (6 . . . @g8 7 .th7 + @h8 8 ..tg6 + and mates) 7 ..tg6 + @f6 (7 . . . @g8 8 1t' h 7 + ) 8 ..th5 + @f5 9 '*' g6 + @f4 1 0 '*' g4 mate (Kallai-Radulescu, Hungary 1 980). E202 I . . . ..tgl + ! 2 '*' xgl •e2 + 3 '*' g2 'it' xg2 + 4 @ xg2 .te4 + 5 @f2 ..txb7 with a com­ pletely level ending (Lilienthal­ Tolush, Parnu 1 947). E203 I . . l::tx d 5!! 2 : xd5 tt::l f3 ! Mate can be prevented only by surrendering a rook. After 3 l:t 5d2 l:t xd2 4 .l:!. xd2 lll xd2 5 b5 lll c4 and White resigned (Rayner-Kouatly, Groningen 1 976/77). E204 I . . : xb2! 2 @xb2 l:t b8 + 3 @c2. If 3 . . . @c l , then 3 . . . ..te4! ! 4 '*' xe4 '*' xc3 + 5 '*'c2 (or 5 ..tc2 J:t b l + and mates) 5 . . . l:txb I + ! 6 @xb 1 '*' a l mate. 3 ..te4 4 '*' xe4 'it' xc3 mate (M undra- Seidel, Neustadt 1 984). E205 I .i.xf7 + ! @xf7 2 : d6! .i.xd6. This removes the defence of g7. However, moving the queen .

.

. . •

leads to mate after 3 lll xh6 + gxh6 (3 . . . @e7 4 '*'g5 mate) 4 '*' g6 + and 5 '*' f6 mate. 3 "if xg7 + @e6 4 lll xd6 '*' d8. Black's position is equally hop e­ less after other moves. If 4 . . . '*'c7 (4 . . . lH8 5 lll xc8 : xc8 6 'it'xh6 + ), then 5 '*' f6 + @d5 (5 . . . @d7 6 tt::l d xb5 threatening 7 J:t d l + ) 6 l:t d l + . 5 lll xe8 • xe8 6 'it'f6 + @d5 7 '*'d6 + @e4 8 J:t e l + 'it>f5 9 '*' f6 + @g4 1 0 h3 + @h5 1 1 g4 mate. This was the finish of a match game Lilienthal- Landau (Amsterdam 1 934). E206 1 . . . ..t xh6 (this exchange deflects the queen from the defence of c2) 2 1t' xh6 .:I. a l + ! On 3 'it>xa l comes 3 . . . 'it'c2! White resigned (Gasanov-Arakelov, Baku 1 960). E207 I l:l. h5! l:t xh5 2 l:t a6 + and 3 l:t a5 + leads to victory (a slightly adapted position from an ancient fifteenth-century manu­ script). E208 1 ..td7! (the bishop is decoyed from the defence of f3) 2 ..t xd7 '*'f3 + 3 @ g t l:t xg3 + and White gets mated : 4 hxg3 'it' xg3 + 5 @ h i • h 3 + 6 'it g l .1:1. g8 mate (Adorjan- Miles, Linares 1 985). E209 I . . . : f3! 2 tt::l xe4 (On 2 gxf3 follows 2 . . . exf3 with the unstoppable threat . . . 'it' h4xh3 2 .:r. xh3 3 gxh3 (if 3 tt::l g 3, then . . .

• • •

Solutions to the exercises

3 .!: h i + 4 lll xh l 'llt' h2 mate) 3 . . .!:!: f3! (blockading the f-pa wn . . .

.

a nd so stopping the White queen from coming to the defence) 4 lll g3 'llt' xh3. White is defenceless ( K onikowski -Gromek, Poland 1 97 1 ). E2 1 0 1 g6! hxg6 2 .U xd8! .!:!: xd8 3 lll g5 'llt' f8. On 3 . . . 'llt' f6 4 'lit' g3 wins - after the queen moves there comes 5 'llt' h4 + and 6 'llt' h7 + . 4 'llt' e4 Black resigned ( Kavalek- Bednarski, 20th Olym­ piad, Skopje 1 972). E2 l· I After 1 . . . lll d 3!! White resigned . On 2 'llt' xc7 comes 2 . . . �xf2 + 3 @ h i lll xe l and mate on g2 is unstoppable (Orayevsky­ Bubnov, corr. 1 926). E2 1 2 The f2 square cannot be defended. But White's attack gets there first : 1 'llt' e8 + @ h7 2 lll g5 + !

hxg5

3

.!:!: h3 +

'iti> g6

( E2 1 2a )

117

attraction (4 . . . @xh6 5 'llt' h8 + 'iti>g6 6 "iW h 5 mate). This was how the game Goltsov-V. M oiseev, Kaluga 1 970, ended. E2 1 3 The obvious .t xc3 + loses. After 2 bxc3 'llt' xc3 + White plays 3 'llt' d2! and on 3 . . . 'llt' xa 1 there follows . . . ( E2 1 3 a ) E2 1 3 a w

4 .t b t ! ! The queen is trapped ! There is no defence against 5 .t b2 (Nezhmetdinov- Konstantinov, Rostov-on-Don 1 936). E2 1 4 The game, still in the opening stage, is decided by l .t g6! On I . fxg6 2 'llt' f3 ! threat­ ening 3 'llt' f7 mate wins at once, and after 1 . . . 0-0 2 .U xfi Black has no satisfactory defence against the threat 'llt' d l xh5-h7-h8 mate (Lopez- Lemos, Cuba 1 984). E2 1 5 1 .t x h7 + ! @ xh7 2 i:i xd6! (deflecting the bishop from the defence of g7 is the basis of the combination) 2 . . . .t xd6 3 . .

4 .!:!: h6 + ! A powerful tactical blow on the themes of deflection (4 . . . gxh6 5 'llt' g8 mate) and

.U h4 + 5

@g8

4

'llt' h6 + ( @g8

.U h8 + ! 6

'llt' xg7

@ xh8 mate

1 18

Solutions to the exercises

(Sakharov-Cherepk ov, Alma Ata 1 969). E2 1 6 1 l2Jf6 + ! ..txf6. Forced, since on 1 . . . gxf6 2 ..txh7 + ! @xh7 3 "it' h 5 + @g7 4 'i!V g4 + @h8 5 l:!. d3 is decisive. 2 exf6 g6. The threat was 3 ..txh7 + (3 . . . @xh7 4 'i!V h 5 + @g8 5 "it'g5 g6 6 "it' h6). On 2 . . . h6 White gets a winning attack with 3 'llf g4 g6 4 'i!V f4 @h7 (4 . . . g5 5 'llf e 5) 5 J:l he 1 . 3 'iW e3 'IW d8. Defending against the deadly threat "it'e3h6. 4 'llf f4! On 4 ..txg6 Black plays 4 . . . 'l!fxf6. Now the capture on g6 really is a threat. 4 . . . e5 5 'i!V h4 ..td7 6 ..t b5 c6 7 .1:1. xd7. Deflecting the queen from control­ ling the f6 square (7 . . . "it' xd7 8 'i!V h6). Black resigned (Acers­ Calloway, USA 1 98 1 ). E2 1 7 The q ueen is pinned and mate is threatened, but after 1 .1:1. f8 + l2Jc8 2 'l!fxb7 + ! @xb7 3 a6 + the mating net closes around Black's king : 3 . . . 'it>b8 4 l2Jc6 + and 5 .1:1. xc8 mate (from Stamma's book, 1 73 7). E2 l 8 1 . . .l:t xe3 (uprooting the f2 pawn with the aim of clearing the path for his pawn on f3) 2 fxe3 ,,te4 (the bishop prepares an amb ush) 3 J:!. f2 (3 'i!Ve5 loses to 3 . . . f2 + 4 "it' xe4 fl ('iW) 3 . . . l:l. xa2! (decoying the f2 rook) 4 .1:1. gfl (4 l ha2 f2 + ) 4 . . . 'i!V xfl + The second decoy of the f2 rook leads to mate (Naumov- Petru.

shansky, USSR 1 978). E2 1 9 1 'i!V h5 g6 ( E2 1 9a ) .

2 l2J xe6! Black resigned. I f 2 . . . fxe6 then of course 3 'i!Vxd5 and on any capture of the queen comes 3 l2Jg7 + + @d8 4 J:1 e8 mate (Bareev-Yakovich, Tallinn 1 986). E220 1 l2Jc5! dxc5. If 1 . . . J:1 c7, then 2 l2Jxd7 % hd7 (2 . . . J:1 xc1 3 l2Jxb8; 2 . . . 'i!Vc8 3 l2J f6 + + h6 7 hxg5 + @xg5 8 'We3 + @ h 5 9 .C. h7 + @g4 1 0 'W f4 mate) 5 lll xh6 + gxh6 (or 5 . . . ..th8 6 lll f7 + ..tg8 7 lll g 5) 6 'ii' g6 + ..th8 7 l:t f7 and mates. 2 tt:lg5 + ..tg8. If the second sacri­ fice is accepted - 2 . . . hxg5, then 3 'W h 5 + wins : 3 . . . @g8 4 "ilf xf7 + @ h8 5 "ilf h 5 + ..tg8 6 hxg5 threatening g5 -g6 (on 6 . . . lll e 7 7 .i.xe7 wins) 3 lll x fi 'ii' b8 4 lll xh6 + gxh6 5 "ilfg4 + ..th8 6

119

J: ti Black resigned (Lisitsyn­ Ragozin, Leningrad 1 934). E224 The introductory move 1 :a. xh6 + ! clears the seventh rank. Taking the rook is forced, since on I . . . @g8 2 lll f6 + wins. After 1 . . . .i.xh6 a second rook sacrifice draws the king to h7, allowing White to play a double check : 2 J: h7 + ! @ xh7 (this sacrifice cannot be declined either, since if 2 . . . @g8 3 lll f6 + @f8 4 lll d 7 + wins) 3 lll g 5 + + @g7 4 'ii' h7 + @f6 5 "ilffi + @xg5 6 "ilf f5 + @h4 7 'Wh5 mate (Teschner-NN, Hamburg 1 960). E225 1 . . . lll f5 + 2 @d3 J: xc3 + ! 3 @ xc3 lll e3! 4 :a. xf2 lll d l + 5 @d4 lll x f2 with an easy technical win. The king is unable to head for the Black pawns (6 @e5 lll g4 + ) and Black can carry out the manoeuvre . . . lll f2 -g4h6-f7 unhindered ( Pi rc-R. Byrne, 1 0th Olympiad, Helsinki 1 952). E226 The calculation is wrong. 3 b4! was played and on 3 . . . cxb4 ( W226a ), not 4 lll xg5 and not 4 hxg5 either, but . . . 4 'ii' xh7 + ! Black is mated in the opening : 4 . . . @ xh7 5 hxg5 + @g6 (or 5 . . . @g8 6 lll e 7 mate) 6 lll e7 mate (Kasas-Piazzini, Buenos Aires 1 962). E227 With 1 lll g 6! White creates unstoppable threats. If 1 . . . lll x g6, then 2 "ilfa6 + �b8 3 lll a 5! (a double decoy : removing

1 20

Solutions to the exercises

E226u w

either the knight from the defence of the eighth rank, after which a7 is weakened) 3 . . . bxa5 4 .J: xd8 + lll xd8 5 ..txa7 + @a8 6 ..tb6 + and mate in two. In the game Black exchanged rooks, but this left the eighth rank insufficiently defended. 1 .J: xd 1 2 .J: xd 1 .l: g8 (of course the knight cannot be taken now either) 3 "if a6 + @b8 ( E22 7a ). • • •

E227u w

4 lll a5! lll xa5 (4 . . . bxa5 5 ..txa7 + ) 5 .J: d8 + . On 5 . . . lll c 8 comes 6 lll xf8. Black resigned (Foigel- Berenstein, Kiev 1 979). E228 1 ll:ld5 + 2 ..td2 "ii' b6! 3 "if xa8 + @d7. The threat is 4 • . .

. . . lll c7. 3 a4 lll c 7 4 a5 does n ot help White either in view of 4 . . . "ifxb2. 4 0-0 lll c7 5 ..ta5 lll x a8 6 ..txb6 lll xb6 and Black h as won two minor pieces for a roo k (N imzowitsch-Alekhine, Bled 1 93 1 ). E229 1 lll e7 + .J: 8xe7 2 ..txb7 + @b8 3 .J: a8 + @xb7 4 .J:l. da4! Black resigned (Laesson­ Parnpuu, Tallinn 1 986). E230 1 . . . g5 + ! 2 'it xh5 "ife2 + 3 g4 'ilt'e8 mate (De Roi­ K ramer, Beverwijk 1 962). E23 1 With 1 l: b6! White decoys the queen from the defence of h8. On I . . . 'ilt' xb6 (the same thing happens on 1 . . . .l:!. d6 2 .J: xd6 "ii' xd6) there follows mate in two : 2 'ilt' h8 + @g6 3 ..th5 mate (Mariotti- Panchenko, Las Palmas 1 978). E232 Black wins by force with 1 . . . .J: h l + ! 2 @xhl 'ilt'h8 + 3 'itgl lll f3 + 4 @fl . The queen has to be given up, since on 4 gxf3 there follows 4 . . . 'ilt' h2 + 5 @fl 'ilt' h l + 6 @e2 gxf3 + 7 d3 'ilt'xd l + 8 @c3 ..te5. 4 . . . lll xd4 5 .J: xd4. For the queen White has two rooks, a minor piece and . . . a completely hopeless position. After 5 . . . ..te5! 6 .J: b4 (otherwise 6 . . . ..txb2) 6 . . . 'ilt'hl + 7 @e2 g3! 8 fxg3 "if xg2 + 9 @di "ii' fl + 1 0 @d2 ..t xg3 1 1 c3 ..tf4 + 1 2 @c2 "if c l + 1 3 @b3 ( 1 3 @d3 "ii' d l +) 1 3 . . . 'ilt' d l + 1 4 'iti>a3

Solutions to the exercises

..te3 White resigned (N. Belyav­ sky-Rappoport, correspondence 1 977). E233 1 ..t xf7 + ! What should Black take the bishop with? Cap­ turing with the king is impossible due to 2 "i!t' xh7 + winning the queen. On 1 . . . : xfl there follows 2 'iWg5 + . If 1 . . . 'ith8 then 2 "i!t'f6 is mate. That leaves 1 . . . 'iW xf7. Now on 2 'iWg5 + Black has a defence - 2 . . . 'iWg7. But White can transpose moves. 2 : xd8. White is the exchange up, and realizing his advantage is a matter of simple technique. Dejected, Black played 2 . . . l2J a4 and after 3 b3 he resigned : on 3 . . . l2J xc3 4 J:l aa8 wins immediately (Alek­ hine-Junge, Krakow 1 942). E234 1 . . . lLi g3 + 2 hxg3 hx g3 + 3 'itgl ..tf6! The bishop prepares to free the queen's path to h4. 4 l2Jde2 ( E234a). If 4 l2Jce2, then 4 . . . ..t xd4 + 5 l2J xd4 .J:t h l + ! 6 'itxh l 'iW h4 + and 7 . . . 'iWh2 mate. E234a B

1 21

Now the neatest finish would have been 4 . . . ..td4 + ! with 5 . . . : h 1 + to follow. In the game Bonsch-Stefanov (Bucharest 1 98 1 ) Black w o n more crudely with 4 . . . ..txc3 5 J: fdl (if the bishop is taken, then 5 . . . J:l h l + ) 5 . . . ..txd2. On 6 : xd2 there follows 6 . . . 'iW b6 + . White resigned. E23 5 White was sure that Black had no option but to play 1 . . . .t xg5. There followed, how­ ever, 1 . . . .txd5 2 l2Jxf6 + "i!t' xf6! 3 .txf6. White is a queen up and threatens mate, but Black gets in first with 3 . . . .tc4 + 4 'it g l l2Je2 + 5 @fl llJcl + (blocking the first rank) 6 'it gl J:l el mate (Eckhart-Tarrasch, Nurenberg 1 888). E236 White gets a decisive material advantage with 1 .txg6! fx g6 2 "i!t' xe6! (Djuric-Gipslis, Vrnjacka Banj a 1 975). E237 1 . . . 'iWe2 2 : fl 'iW xf3! 3 gxf3 J: g6 mate (Albin-Bernstein, Vienna 1 904). E238 1 .tc4 + ! (opening a path to e8 for the queen) 1 . . . 'iW xc4 2 'iW e8 + !

l2J xe8 3

J: f8 mate

(Chigorin-NN, St Petersburg 1 894). E239 1 l2Je6! fxe6 2 dxe6 l2Je2 + 3 'it g2. The threat is 4 'iWfl + with mate or the further advance of the pawn. Black resigned (Shulesko-Ronis, Riga 1 98 5).

1 22

Solutions to the exercises .

E240 1 J:l. xd7! .txd7 (after . . . 'ili' xd7 2 lll f6 + Black has to take the knight and White wins with 3 'li' g4 + ) 2 lll f6 + @h8 (as in the previous variation, if 2 . . . gxf6 3 'li' g4 + wins) 3 'li' h5 h6 (now if 3 . . . gxf6 4 .te4) 4 'ili' xfi. Black resigned (Khalifman-Aseev, Borzhomi t 984). E24 1 White is threatened with mate (1 . . . 'ili'fl + ) but Black gets mated first : 1 J:l. c8 + ! .t xc8 ( 1 . . . @f7 2 'ili'c7 + ) 2 'ili' e8 + J:l. f8 3 J:l. xg7 + @xg7 4 'li'g6 + and 5 'li' h7 mate (Horowitz-NN, USA 1 94 1 ). E242 1 lll g6 lll h7 2 J:I. xe6! fxe6 ( E242a). E242a w

'if xf7 + @h8 5 lll f6! leads to victory. 2 J:l.fi + ! @xfi 3 'li' xh7 + @e6. On 3 . . . @f8 4 lll f4! is decisive (4 . . . J:l. ec8 5 lll x g6 + and 6 'ili'g8 mate). After the move played the king has to set off for the centre. 4 'li' xg6 + @e5 5 'ili' g7 + @ xe4 6 lll f6 + exf6 7 'li' xd7 Black resigned. In saving the rook, he loses several pawns (Ragozin-Veresov, Moscow 1 945). E244 Black has blundered, overlooking the fine reply 4 c6! bxc6 (4 . . . lll c 5 5 .tb5) 5 lll d4. Because of the threat 6 lll x c6 Black has no time to recapture the bishop (5 . . . .tb7 6 .te2), so he resigned. This was how the game Najdorf-Donner (Amsterdam 1 950) ended. E245 1 . . lll d 4! 2 cxd4 .tg4! 3 'ili' xb7. If 3 'ili'd5, then 3 . . . 'li' x b l + ! ! 4 J:l. xb l .t b4 mate. The game ends with the same combination. 3 . J:l. ab8 4 'li' xa7 ( E245a). .

. .

3 'li' xd8 + ! 'li' xd8 4 .t xe6 mate (Taimanov-Kuzminikh, Lenin­ grad 1 950). E243 By sacrificing a rook or two, White destroys the enemy king's pawn cover : 1 J:l. xg6 + ! fxg6. If 1 . . . @xg6 the second rook does not have to be sacrificed : 2 'li'g3 + @h6 3 'li' f4 + @g7 4

E245a B ·

Solutions to the exercises

4 . . . 'ihbl + !! 5 l:txbl i.b4 mate (Srinivas-Ravikumar, India 1 984). E246 1 e5! dxe5 2 'ilfc5 + 'it>e8

1 23

E249a w ·

E246a w

( E246a) 3 % hf6! On 3 . . . gxf6 4 tt:le4! is decisive. Black resigned (Nezhmetdinov-Sergievsky, Sara­ tov 1 966). E247 1 'ilf e7 + ! l:txe7 2 ll d8 + ! l::t e8 3 J::t g8 + 'it>xg8 4 ll xe8 mate (Krause-NN, Leipzig 1 93 3). E248 After 1 . . . tt:l g3 + ! White resigned. On 2 hxg3 there follows 2 . . . l::t a8 with the unstoppable threat . . . l::t a8-h8 mate (Karpov­ Taimanov, Leningrad 1 977). E249 1 l::t a8 + ! 'it> xa8 2 'ilf a l + 'it>b8 ( E249a) 3 'ilf a7 + ! and after the queen is taken 4 tt:lc6 + + and 5 l::t a l + mating (Wahls-Bjarnasson, M almo 1 986). E250 2 l::t h8 + 'it> g6 3 .:. xh6 + ! A false trail would be 3 'ilfe8 + (3 . . . 'ilf fl 4 'ilfe4 + �g5 5 'ilfe3 + 'ilf f4 + ). Now White

wins the queen. On 3 . . . 'it>xh6 there follows 4 'ilfh8 + 'it>g6 5 'ilfh5 + �f6 6 g5 + and 7 'ilf xf3. The same happens if 3 . . . gxh6 4 'ilf g8 + 'it>f6 5 'ilff8 + . The sacri­ fice cannot be declined : 3 . . . 'it>fl 4 'ilfc7 + 'it>g8 5 'ilf c8 + 'it>f6 6 'ilfe6 + and 7 J::t h8 mate. Black resigned (Bronstein-Korchnoi, M oscow 1 962). E25 1 1 i. h6! i.f8. The bishop cannot be taken : 1 . . . gxh6 2 'ilf xh6 i.f8 3 tt:lf6 + and 4 'ilf xh7 mate. If 1 . . . tt:l xd4 then 2 tt:l xd4 'ilf xd4 3 i.xg7 and Black's pos­ ition is hopeless. 2 tt:lf6 + ! gxf6 3 i. xf8! If now 3 . . . tt:lxf8, then 4 exf6 with the unstoppable threat 'ilfd2-h6. After 3 . . . l::t xf8 4 exf6 @h8 5 'ilfh6 l::t g8 6 tt:lg5 is decisive. Finally, if the king tries to save himself by running away : 3 . . . @xf8 4 exf6 l::t ec8, White wins with 5 'ilfh6 + 'it>e8 6 'ilf g7. In the game 3 . . . fxe5 was played, and after 4 i.c5 Black loses his queen (Harper-Damiano, Canada

1 24

Solutions to the exercises

1 980). E252 The elegant move 1 t2Jd6!! is decisive, since Black loses a rook : 1 . . . exd6 2 cxd6 or 1 . . . 'ith7 2 t2Je8 ( Peresipkin-Chek­ hov, USSR 1 976). E253 1 j_xe7 'ii' xe7 2 t2Jf6 + ! t2Jxf6 3 exf6 'ii' d6. If 3 . . . 'ii' d8 then 4 j_ xe6! 4 l he6 'ii' d 8. On 4 . . . fxe6 5 f7 + @f8 6 'ii' f6 wins. 5 'ill c7 (decoying the queen from the defence of the eighth rank) 5 . . . 'il/f8 6 l:l. e7. Against the threat 7 .l h f7 'il/ xf7 8 j_e6 there is no defence, so Black resigned (P. Nikolic-Hartman, FRG 1 979). E2�4 1 t2Jc6!! Closing the c-file and attracting the queen into a fork. The knight cannot be taken either with the bishop (because of mate) or the queen (2 t2Jxa7 + ). On 1 . . . t2Jd6 there follows 2 t2J bxa7 + 'itd7 3 l:l. e7 mate, and if 1 . . . J:t d7, then 2 t2J bxa7 mate. One defence remains - I . . . J:t g7. Then 2 t2J bxa7 + 'it>d7 3 'il/e5! j_xc6 (the threat was not only 4 'il/ xg7 + , but also 4 J:t xd5 + ) 4 'ii' xg7 + @d6 (or 4 . . . 'it>e8 5 t2J xc6 'ii' xc6 6 f3 staying a rook up) 5 f3. On 5 . . . t2J xd2 there follows 6 'ill e 7 mate. Black resigned (Herb-Bellas, France 1 978). E255 1 'ii' b2!! (a quiet move creating an unstoppable threat) 1 . t2Jc4. There is no other defence. The threat was 2 t2J xg6 + ! 'il/ xg6

..

(2 . . . hxg6 3 J:t h 3 mate) 3 J:t g3 + . By attacking the queen, Black p ar­ ries the threat. If 1 . . . h6 2 l:l. c7 ! 'ii' xb2 3 t2J xg6 mate. 2 t2Jxg6 + 'if xg6 3 .l:!. xc4 + 'if g7. Black has escaped mate, but after the prosaic 4 'ii' xg7 + 'it>xg7 5 .l:!. c7 + @f6 � is position is hopeless (Fur­ man-Smyslov, 1 7th USSR Cham­ pionship, Moscow 1 949). E256 The mistake 1 j_g5 was punished by the devastating tacti­ cal blow 1 . . t2Jc3!! (Rosenthal­ Makogonov, Moscow 1 936). E257 Correct is 1 . . . 'il/ xc8. After 2 J:t xe6 White has only two pawns for a knight. Taking the rook loses : 1 . . 'il/xf6? 2 'il/ xa7 + !! t2Jxa7 3 t2Jb6 + 'it> b8 4 t2J xd7 + @c7 5 t2Jxf6 and 6 t2Jxh5 and White has three extra pawns (from J. Mendheim's book Problems for Chess Players, 1 93 2). E258 After the single move 1 e6! Black resigned in view .of ttJ.e following variations : 1 - : : . '.t x d 5 2 exd7 + + 'it> xd7 3 l:l. e7 + and 4 'il/ xc7 mate; 1 . . . dxe6 2 j_xb7 t2J xb7 3 'i/ xc7 after which both 4 'i/xb7 and 4 tbe5 are threatened (Neumann-Anderssen, Berlin 1 864). E259 1 l:l. xe8 + 'il/ xe8 2 g4! (deflection with a double attack on two minor pieces by the queen to follow) 2 . . . j_xg4 3 j_xd6 t2Jxd6 4 'ill f4 'il/d7 5 t2Jc5 and Black loses either his bishop or knight (Naftalin-Petrukhin, Kish-

\t'!" )

.

.

Solutions to the exercises

in ev 1 985). E260 Mate on gl is threatened. After 1 g4 + @h4 the checks are over, so White forced a draw by perpetual check : 1 'ilt' g4 + @h6 2 'ilt'g7 + 'Wti>h5 3 'it' g4 + . This was how the game Gaprindash­ vili-Veroci (Beograd 1 974) ended. But White could have mated in four : 1 ll xe5 + ! (freeing the d8h4 diagonal) 1 . . . fxe5 2 g4 + @h4 3 'iWe7 + (that's why the rook was sacrificed !) 3 . . . 'ilt' g5 4 g3 mate. E26 1 1 . . . tll g 4!! The threat is 2 . . . 'iWh2 + 3 @fl 'iW h l mate, so hxg4 is forced. Then 2 . . . 'it' e3 + 3 @ h2 ll h8! Now 4 ..tf3 hxg4 + 5 'Wti>g3 does not stop the threatened mate in view of 5 . . . 'iff4 + 6 @f2 g3 + (Casas-Debarnot, Buenos Aires 1 972). E262 Black correctly rejected the obvious 1 . . . ..td5 + (in view of 2 ll xd5 ll xd5 3 tll xa7, and if 3 . . . ll a5, then 4 tll c 8 ll aa2 5 a7 ll xf2 + 6 'Wti> g l ) and found a forced win : 1 . . . f3 + ! 2 @xf3 tll h 4 + 3 gxh4 ll 4d3 + 4 @e4 f5 + 5 @xe5 ll e2 + 6 @f4 ll e4 (Ornstein-Schneider' mate Sweden 1 985). E263 1 ..i.xd7 tll x d7 2 tll xh5 + ! gh 3 'ilt' g5 + @f8 ( E263a). 4 tll g6 + ! fxg6 5 ll xe6 'ifc5. The threat was 6 'ilt'e7 + . If 5 . . . W' xc2, then simply 6 ll de l . 6 'iWh6 + @f7 7 'ilt' xg6 + @f8 and

1 25

a quiet move - 8 ll de l ! - fin­ ishes the game. Black resigned (Levenfish - Ravinsky, Leningrad 1 928). E264 1 'if f8 + @ h5 (if 1 . . . 'Wti>g5, then 2 'it' f4 + and 3 'iW h4 mate) 2 'it'f4! g5. If Black goes for the other defence 2 . . . 'ife7, he is mated by 3 g4 + @h4 4 h3 threatening 'ilt'f4-h6 mate. If 4 . . . g5 or 4 . . . 'iW g5, then 5 'ilt'g3 mate and if 4 . . . 'ilt' g7, 5 g5 + @h5 6 'ilt'g4 mate. 3 'ilt' f7 + @h6 (3 . . . 'Wti>g4 4 'if f3 mate) 4 'if f6 + @ h5. What next? Next comes 5 g4 + ! @h4 (if 5 . . . 'Wti>xg4 6 'iff3 + and 7 'ifh3 mate) 6 'if f3 ( E264a).

1 26

Solutions to the exercises

6 . . . We4 (a clever but nonethe­ less inadequate defence) 7 'li' xe4 dl('li') 8 h3! •d7 9 Wf3 and mate is unavoidable (Kartanaite­ Kutavicsiene, Vilnius 1 983). E265 l . . . lll g 3!! By unblock­ ing the f-file, Black wins a piece with the help of a few exchanges : 2 fxg3 W xfl + 3 Wxfl ll xfl + 4 @xfl ll xc l + 5 @e2 ..t xb2. White resigned (Bednarski­ Podayets, Varna 1 972). E266 l lll c 8!! Deflecting the knight from the seventh rank allows White to land a crushing blow : 1 . . . lll x c8 2 ..th5 + ! @xh5 3 W xh7 + 'it>g4 4 W h4 mate. If 1 . . . 'li' xc8, then 2 'li' xe7 and White must win in view of the threats 3 ..th5 + and 3 W xd6. The ending after 2 . . . ..te4 ..txe4 fxe4 4 W xe4 + is hopeless for Black. Since the c8 knight cannot be taken and the e7 knight is attacked, there remains only l . . . lll g 8. Then comes 2 lll xd6 and White wins with positional chess : 2 . . . Wf8 3 W d7 ..td3 4 We6 (Neibults-Kogan, Riga 1 957). From the game continuation it's obvious why White decoyed the knight with 1 lll c 8 and not 1 lll c 6. In the latter case the d6 pawn wouldn't have been en prise. E267 l . . . ll d5! 2 @bl lll a4! and White is defenceless against the threat of 3 . . . J: d l + 4 J: c l lll c 3 + . A possibility overlooked

in the game Tseshkovsky- Psakh is (Irkutsk 1 983). The game ended in a draw. E268 1 ..txf6! ..txf6. On 1 . . . gxf6 follows 2 'li' g4 + @h8 3 W h 5 with a double attack on h7 and f7. 2 Wf5! Using the pin on the e-file. Black has to allow the enemy queen to h7, after which White's attack becomes over­ whelming. 2 . . . ..t xb2. If 2 . . . h6 then 3 Wh7 + @f8 4 lll f5 ! g6 5 lll x h6. 3 'li' xh7 + @f8 4 'li' h8 + . White could also have continued the attack along lines similar to the previous variation - 4 lll f5 g6 5 h6 ..txa l 6 ..txg6. 4 . . . 'it>e7 5 'li' h4 + ..tf6 (5 . . . f6 6 W b4 + ) 6 W b4 + @d8 (6 . . . Wd6 7 lll f5 + ) 7 ll ad l . Black cannot avoid catastrophe on the d-file. After 7 ..tc3 (if 7 . . . ..td7, then 8 ..tb5 and on 8 . . . J: e7 - 9 ..txd7 l hd7 1 0 W f8 mate) 8 .t bs + ..td7 9 W a4 J: e7 1 0 : e3 e5 1 1 ll xc3 Black resigned (Lebredo -Chaviano, Cuba 1 980). E269 1 . . : f3!! Neither the queen nor the rook may be cap­ tured because of mate (2 gxf3 Wh2 mate; 2 'li' xa2 ll xfl mate), and 2 . . . ll xh3 + is threatened. 2 @ g l is no defence because o f 2 . . . Wa7 + 3 'it>h l J: xfl + 4 W xfl Wd7 5 Wf6 ..tc7 and Black wins the knight, since mate on the first rank is threatened. 2 lll b7 ll xh3 + 3 'it> g l . Here play could

¥

. • •

.

Solutions to the exercises

have ended with 3 . . . ..th2 + 4 h l ..te5 + 5 'it;> g l ..td4 + . Black chose 3 . . . llfa7 + 4 J:t f2 ..tg3 and White resigned (5 'ilf fl ..txf2 + 6 llf xf2 J:t h l + and 7 . . . llf xf2). This was the end of a game Pogats-Hever (Hungary 1 979). E270 1 ..td5! exd5. If Black defends e6 with 1 . . . lll f8 , White opens the diagonal for his bishop by sacrificin g a rook : 2 J:t xe6! lll fxe6 3 J:t xe6! lll x e6 4 ..txe6 + f8 5 llfh8 + 'it;>e7 6 llff6 + e8 7 lll f5 with unstoppable mating threats (7 . . . d5 + 8 h4). 2 llf xg7 + ! 'it;>xg7 3 lll f5 + g6 4 J:t e6 + lll f6 (4 . . . 'it;>xg5 5 h4 mate) 5 J:t xf6 + 'it;>xg5 6 J:t l e6! J:t g2 + 7 'it;>xg2 jt'd8 8 lll e 7. Black resigned (Rossetto-Car­ doso, Portoroz 1 958). E27 1 1 lll f6 + ! On 1 . . . gxf6 follows 2 h l + f8 3 'ilfd6 + J:t e7 4 ..th6 + and 5 J:t g8 mate, so the king has to move. 1 . . . f8 2 'ilf d6 + lll e 7. Now White could simply take the exchange. How­ ever, he has a more powerful tacti­ cal continuation. 3 ..th6! If the bishop is taken, the modest 4 h l leads t o unstoppable mate o n g8. 3 . . . J:t ed8 ( E2 7 1 a). The queen is en prise so White retreats . . . his king : 4 hl ! If the queen is taken (or even if she isn't), there follows 5 ..txg7 mate, and if the bishop is taken, then 5 J:t g8 mate. (Nasonov-Chistyakov,

127

USSR 1 978). E272 White draws with 1 J:t e8 + ! lll xe8 2 llf h7 + ! xh7 3 lll f8 + h8 4 lll g6 + with perpetual check (Neumann-NN, 1 9 56). E273 1 J:t xd4! (deflection with a discovered attack to follow) 1 . . . llf xd4 2 lll x d5 J:t xc l + (other­ wise the queen has nowhere to move to) 3 'ilfxcl jt' c5 4 llf g5! The point of the combination. With simultaneous threats of mate and taking the d8 rook, White wins back the sacrificed material and stays two pawns up. 4 . . . f6 5 ..txf6 (not 5 lll xf6 + 'it;>h8 6 llf h4 in view of 6 . . . lll xf6 7 ..txf6 J:t d 1 + etc) 5 . . . ..tg6 (forced) 6 ..t xd8 exd5 7 'ilf xd5 + 'ilf xd5 8 ..txd5 + f8 9 ..txb7 and White easily realized his material advan­ tage (Boneo-Rawson, Buenos Aires 1 924). E274 1 . . . J:t xg3 + ! 2 fl . If 2 'it;>xg3, then 2 . . . jt' xh4 + , and on 2 fxg3 the draw is obtained by

1 28

Solutions to the exercises

2 . . . 'ilt' b2 + with a queen sacrifice to follow. 2 . . . 'ifal + 3 @e2 l:t e3 + 4 @xe3 'ifel + 5 @f3 'ilt'e3 + 6 @ xe3 - stalemate (Danielson- Lange, 1 0th Olym­ piad, Helsinki 1 952). E275 5 lll xg6! hxg6. 5 . . . ..td6 loses outright to 6 lll x d6 (6 . . . l:t xe2 7 ..txt7 mate) 6 ..txfi + ! @xfi 7 'ifc4 + @f8 ( E275a).

E276a B

3 Wh5 + @g8 4 'ift7 + @h7 5 0-0-0! threatening 6 l:t h 1 + . Blocking the h-file with 5 . . . ..th3 does not save Black because of 6 l:t h l Wc8 7 g4! 3 W h5 + @f6 4 'ilt' xe5 + @ti 5 'if xg7 + Black resigned ( Palau-te Kolste, 1 st Olympiad, London 1 927). E278 1 l:t h8 + @d7 ( E278a). E278a

8 lll h6!! Black resigned. E276 3 . . : rs 4 W e2 f3! s gxf3 l:t e8 6 'iit' dl . Or 6 W'd3 l:t g5 + 7 @hl 'ifh3 8 l:tgl and now either 8 . . . l:t xg l + and 9 . . . l:t e l + or 8 . . . 'ilt' g2 + 9 l:t xg2 l:t e l + according to taste. 6 . . . l:t g5 + 7 @ht 'ilt' h3 8 l:t gl ( E276a). 8 . . . l:t e l !! This deflection of two of the pieces defending the king - the queen (9 'if xe l 'ilt' xf3 + ) and the rook (9 l:t xe l 'ilt' g2 mate) finishes the game (Dille- Pigits, corr. 1 98 5). E277 1 ..txg6 + ! @xg6 2 lll xe5 + ! fxe5. If 2 . . . @xh 7, then

W '

.

Black had calculated that this position was OK for him. If White's rook takes on c8 he can take the rook on g7, and if White takes on t7 he takes the h8 rook, but . . . 2 ..tc6 + !! The bishop is en prise to three pieces, but it can't be touched. If 2 . . . lll xt7 the t7

Solutions to the exercises

rook is taken with check, and on 2 . . . .C. xc6 follows simply 3 .C. xf7. If 2 . . . xc6, then 3 .C. xc8 + lll x c8 4 .C. xf7. 2 . . . e6 3 .C. h6 + l:t f6 4 ..td7 + ! That bishop again! Now Black has to take it, and loses the exchange. After 4 . . . @xd7 5 l hf6 J:[ e8 6 J:[ xg5 lll g8 7 J:l. g7 + lll e 7 8 g3 J: h8 9 J:[ fti J:l. e8 10 g4. White's win is j ust a matter of technique (Simagin-Zagoryansky, lvanovo 1 944). E279 1 . . . J: xel 2 J: xel ( E279a). E279a

B '

2 . . J: e2!! White resigned (Bagi­ rov-Kholmov, 28th USSR Cham­ pionship, Moscow 1 96 1 ). E280 1 . . . ..te4 2 'ilf b5 'ilfc8! Black threatens to win the queen after 3 . . . ..tc6 4 'ilf b6 lll d 7 or 4 . . . J: a6. 3 bxc5 'ilf h3! 4 ..te3 J: eb8 5 c6 J: xb5 6 cxb5 lll g4 7 J:[ fbl ..txf3 8 exf3 lll x h2 White resigned (Seirawan - Timman, Candidates Tournament, Mont­ pellier 1 98 5).

1 29

E28 1 On White's attempt to draw with the help of a deflecting sacrifice 1 J:l. xb6 ( 1 . . . 'ilf xb6 2 'i/e7 + ), Black replies with the following forced variation : 1 . . . lll f2 + 2 @gt (2 g2 lll x e4 + 3 @h3 lll f2 + 4 g2 lll g4 + 5 h3 J: xh2 + 6 xg4 'i/d4 + ) 2 . . . lll h3 + 3 hl (on 3 @fl it's mate in two) 3 . . . .i:t d l + 4 g2 (if 4 ..txd l 'ilf xd l + 5 g2, then 5 . . . 'i/ e2 + 6 @xh3 'i/fl + 7 g4 h 5 + ! 8 'i/ xh5 'i/ e2 + ) 4 . . . tZJf4 + 5 gxf4 'ilfd2 + 6 @h3 g4 + ! 7 ..txg4 (7 xg4 'i/ xf4 + ) 7 . . . 'i/ e3 + 8 @h4 (8 g2 J: g l mate) 8 . . . 'ilf f2 + and White gets mated (a variation from the game F. Olafsson-Simagin, Moscow 1 959). E282 Black can save himself with the brilliant 1 . . . J: a7!! (a possibility overlooked in the game Reshevsky-Boleslavsky, Candi­ dates Tournament, Zurich 1 953, where 1 . . . ..tc5? was played and after 2 J: d8 + ..tf8 3 J: db8 Black resigned. E283 After the paradoxical 1 c5!! Black cannot avoid mate. If 1 . . . bxc5, then 2 tZJc4 + @b5 3 a4 mate. The same sort of thing happens if 1 . . . tZJe6 2 tZJ b7 + @b5 3 a4 mate. But what happens after 1 . . . b5, keeping both critical squares, c4 and b7, under control? There follows the quiet move 2 a3!! and Black is in zugzwang -

Solutions to the exercises

1 30

any reply leads to mate (Bernstein-NN, 1 909). E284 Black cannot take the bishop with the knight, of course, because of 2 lLixf6 + and 3 lLi xd7. But he can take it with the rook! After 1 . . . l:txc4 2 lLixf6 + .t.oh8 3 lLi xd7 ( E284a). Black wins with the aid of a combination : E284a B

l:l. f5 + @d4 9 l:l. xd5 + @c4 10 .i.e2 + 'it>b4 1 1 a3 mate (Schul­ man-Feldmus, Riga 1 986). E286 With the brilliant 1 h4!! (threatening stalemate after 2 'iWg8 + ), White gets a draw (Zhdanov- Pigits, Riga 1 95 3). E287 The exchange of queens leads only to a draw. Let's look at the attempt to exploit the position of Black's king with 1 g4 + fxg3 2 'iW xf5 ( E28 7a ) . E287a B

3 . . . lLif3 + 4 gxf3 J:l. g8 + 5 @ h t 'iWxh2 + ! 6 @ xh2 l:l. h4 mate (a variation from the game Furman-Ubilava, USSR 1 97 1 ). E285 5 lLi xe6! @ xe6 ( E285 a ) E285a w

6 'iW d5 + !! lLi xd5 7 i.. g4 + (the black king has to go on a journey into White's camp) 7 . . . >t.oe5 8

Black can grab the rook - 2 . . . 'iW e l + 3 .t.og2 'iWe2 + 4 @xg3 'ilf xa6, but then follows 5 W f7 + 'ilf g6 6 'ilf f3 + g4 7 hxg4 + @g5 8 'iW f4 mate. But what if he doesn't go after the a6 rook and plays for stalemate? - 2 . . . g2 + 3 @xg2 'iWg3 + . But White doesn't have to take the queen, and after 4 @fl there's no stalemate. So does White win after all? No! Let's go back to the first variation - 2 . . . 'iWel + 3 >Pg2 'iWe2 + 4 >t.oxg3 and instead of 4 . . . 'ilf xa6? play 4 . . 'iW e5 + ! This saves the game .

Solutions to the exercises

(Green-Aitken, Sunderland 1 966). So neither the queen swap nor 1 g4 + wins for White. E288 1 l:td8 + ! �xd8 (1 . . . �f8 2 l:l.xf8 + @xf8 3 'it'd8 mate) 2 1W xd8 + �h7 3 �g5 + @h6 (Black could, of course, give up his queen but it wouldn't change the result) 4 �xf7 + ! 1W xf7 (4 . . . @h7 5 1W h8 mate) 5 1W h4 + @g6 6 1Wh5 mate (a mis­ sed opportunity from the game Kovacs- Deni, Vienna 1 950). E289 1 �d6 + ! 'it'xd6. On 1 . . . @a7 comes 2 1Wf7 + . 2 .J:l. e7 + 1W xe7 3 1Wc7 + ! Draw (Goldin­ Ryabov, Novosibirsk 1 972). E290 Looking at this position, it's difficult to believe that it arose in an actual game. Let's look, however sceptical we may be, at the following instructive combi­ nation with which White wins the queen. 1 �b6 + ! The knight is sacrificed to try to open the a-file and mate the king - 1 . . . axb6 2 .J:l. a2 + �b8 3 .te5 + @c8 4 .J:l. a8 mate. 1 @b8 ( E290a). 2 .J:l. h2! (two decoys followed by a knight fork) 2 1W xh2 3 i.e5 + 1W xe5 4 �d7 + @c8 5 �xe5 and in view of the threat to promote. iiie--pawli . Jn�c�J��S.-:)ii-::: give up-- the . knfgili: · · A pparently all thfs was . pfayec r in a game Fri�dm���-Th_