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ImproveyourChessin7Days

GaryLane

BATSFORD

FirstpublishedintheUnitedKingdomin2007byBatsford10SouthcombeStreetLondonW140RA

AnimprintofAnovaBooksCompanyLtd

Copyright©Batsford2007Textcopyright©GaryLane

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Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthispublicationmaybereproduced,storedinaretrievalsystem,ortransmittedinanyformorbyanymeanselectronic,mechanical,photocopying,recordingorotherwise,withoutthepriorwrittenpermissionofthecopyrightowner.

FirsteBookpublication2013ISBN9781849941310

AlsoavailableinpaperbackISBN9781849941310

Thisbookcanbeordereddirectfromthepublisheratthewebsitewww.anovabooks.com,ortryyourlocalbookshop.

Contents

Introduction

Day1–Soyouwanttoimproveyourchess?

Day2–Understandingtheopenings

Day3–Strategyversustactics

Day4–Creatinganattack

Day5–Avoidingblunders

Day6–Masteringtheendgame

Day7–Theartofswindling

Movingon

Glossaryofchessterms

Dedication

ForRyanandJasmine

Acknowledgements

WiththankstoFrançoisMertens,JonManleyandchesshistorianEdwardWinterfortheirhelp

inprovidingmaterialforthebook.

Introduction

Thechessboardconsistsof64squaresonan8x8board.Youshouldmakesurethattheboardissetupcorrectlybycheckingthatthesquareon the bottom right hand corner (looking at it from theWhite player’spoint of view) is light-coloured, which tends to mean white, yellow orbeigeonmostsets.

Eachpieceisrepresentedbyafigurineincommentariesonchessgames

–Pawn

–KnightorN

–BishoporB

–RookorR

–QueenorQ

–KingorK

The move of a piece is recorded by the symbol/letter of that piecefollowed by the square to which it moves. Thus f3 means that thebishop hasmoved to the f3 square. In case of a pawnmove only thesquareonwhichitlandsneedstoberecorded,forexamplee4meansa

pawnhasmovedfromsomewheretothee4square.Acaptureisdenotedbyan‘x’.Thus xb7meansthequeenhastakensomethingontheb7square–andfxe5meansthatthef-pawnhascapturedsomethingone5.

Charactersthathaveaspecialmeaninginchess

?!Adubiousmove

?Apoormove

?? A blunder that loses material or allows a change in the positionsuchasfromwinningtolosing.

!?Interestingmove

!Excellentmove

!!Brilliantmove

+Check.Attheendofthemove.Forinstance: e2+

0-0castlingkingside

0-0-0castlingqueenside

½-½Drawagreed

1-0Whitewins

0-1Blackwins

Day1Soyouwanttoimproveyourchess?

ChessTrivia–AtBrightonchessclubinEnglandduringthe1930s,aMrs Sydney was allowed to bring her dog along – but only if the dogjoinedtheclub.Later,thedog,calledMr.Mick,wasmistakenlypickedfortheclub’ssecondteam.Helostontime....

Chessisfunbutitisevenmorefunwhenyouwin!

Thoughmostpeoplewillneverhaveenoughtimetodevotetoadeepstudyofchess,itisstillpossibleforanyonetomakerapidandsignificantadvancesinthegame.Forexample,onewaytoachievebetterresultsissimplytocutdownonyourownmistakeswhilegrabbinganyopportunityto exploit those of your opponent. Easier said than done, perhaps, butyou can train yourself to reacha higher standard by adopting the rightattitude.

There is no shortage of chess playing sites on the internet but youshould resist the temptationonly toplaygameswithout thinkingandatbreakneckspeed–andtherebylearnabsolutelynothing. Infactmyfirstwordsofadvicetoafriendwhowantedtoimprovewastostopplayingfor

awhile.Iwantedhimtostudychessalittlebeforeplayingagainandalsorecordhisgamessothathecouldanalysethemoveslaterwithplentyoftime to think or consult a computer to check on possiblemistakes.Hehadfallenintothetrapofplayinggamesontheinternetwherespeedwasoftenmore important than accuracy and purposeful play. Sometimes itdidnotmatterifhewaslosingonposition–solongashewonontime.Hehadalsobeenplayingoffhandgamesoccasionallyagainstthesamegroupofplayersatthelocalclub,wherehehadnotonlypickedupbadhabits but also failed to identify and learn from his mistakes.Nevertheless his curiosity in chess was further aroused when hediscoveredtherewerechessopeningswithweirdandwonderfulnamessuch as the Frankenstein-Dracula Attack or the Dragon and greatchessplayerssuchasBobbyFischerandGarryKasparov.Howeverrealimprovementcameonlywhenhestarted tomake plans. This, togetherwithaknowledgeofsimpleopeningprinciples,agraspoftacticalthemesand key strategies in themost regularly occurring endgames really didproduce results. It may sound too good to be true but with a littleguidance players of every level really canmake rapid improvement atchess.

Howmanymovesdoyouthinkahead?

This is the question chessplayers are most frequently asked bynonchessplayers–andoursuggestedanswerisseven.Sure,youcouldtrytoimpresseveryonebysayingthatthenumberofmovesdependsonwhetherthepositionisahighlycomplexmiddlegameoramathematicallyprecisepawnendgamewithfewpiecesontheboard–butwhybother?Trueorfalse,sevenisagoodchoice.It’samagicalnumber–andchessistrulyamagicalgame.Andthereisnoneedtofeelguiltyaboutthefactthat really you can only see one move ahead, whatever the position.Historywill provide youwith reassurance and comfort. As long ago as1946 the New York magazine Chess Review related what happenedwhen formerworld champion JoséCapablanca had just lost a game–whichalwayscausedasensationbecauseitwassucharareoccurrence:in fact during one period of his career he didn’t lose for eight years –‘AproposisthestoryofthegamebetweentheinvincibleCapablancaandCharlesJaffe,prideof theEastSide.Capaforgothewas invincible:he

lost.AreporterwhowaspresentaskedtheCuban,“Howfardoyouseeahead?”Caparepliedimpressively,“Abouttenmoves”.Thenthereporterwent over to Jaffe: “How far do you see ahead?” Much to everyone’ssurprise,thereplywas,“Onlyonemove”.Thisdidn’tmakesense.“Howcould a playerwho can seeonly onemoveaheaddefeat anotherwhocandelvesodeeply?”HereJaffeexplained:“Iseeonlyonemoveahead,butitisalwaysthebestmove”.’

Choosetherightmove

Manyattemptshavebeenmade to provideplayerswith a procedurefor selecting the bestmove – someofwhich I find contrived and evenimpractical.SohereIwillprovideyouwithverysimplebuteffectivestepsto encourage you to think before you move. However be under noillusions.Itisverydifficulttocontroleventsonthechessboard–whichisawildworldwheremoreoftenthannot in theroughandtumbleofplay“thewinneristheplayerwhomakesthelastbutonemistake”asthewittygrandmasterSaviellyTartakoweronceproclaimed.

Butyouwillseeanimmediatedifferenceinyourplayifyourememberthefollowing:

1Tacticsandpredict-a-moveA forcing combination cuts down on calculation – giving you less to

think about while you increase the pressure on your opponent. Whenthereare fewer options it is easier to predict the replies, thus enablingyoutosetatrapwithourmethodandscoreaquickwinifyouropponentfallsintoit.

2Whichalternative?Onthechessboardyouwillseeanynumberofdecentlookingmoves–

so make a shortlist of alternatives by asking yourself the followingquestions:

DoIneedtodevelopmyforcesandcastlemykingintosafety?

Isthereathreat?

CanImakeathreat?

3PositionalneedsAre any ofmy pieces not taking part in the action – if so how can I

movethemtobettersquares?

4SticktotheplanBeconsistentinyourapproach.Ifyouthinkupaplan,staywithit–do

nottrotoutafewmovesandthengetdistractedorabandonitatthefirstsignofcounterplaybyyouropponent.

5StopyourselffrommakingamistakeDecideonamovebutbeonthe lookout forpossibledangercoming

yourway,forexample:

a)Checksthatstartaforcingcombinationagainstyou.

b)Threatstoyourpieces.

c)Threatsofcheckmatetoyourking.

Whybotherwithtactics?

Tacticsarethemostspectacularaspectofchess–butnotsodifficulttolearn.Theyarealsothemosteffectivewayofdecidingagame–eitherbywinningpiecesorcheckmatingtheopponent’sking.

Trying to work out test positions found in newspaper columns andbookscanimproveyourtacticalawarenessandcalculation.Itiswrongtoassumethatsolvingthesepuzzlesisuselessbecauseyouarenotlikelytoget thoseexactpositions in yourowngames.Thekey tosuccessfulattackingplayisto

a)Learnthevariouscombinationalmotifs

b)Learntoidentifythemwhentheyariseinyourowngames

This themewill beexplored later but a coupleof examples spring tomind:

VallejoPons–PerelshteynWorldJuniorChampionship,Yerevan1999

There is a lot of activity from both sides in this position but Whitespottedatacticcalledinchessparlanceaskewer.Hegaveuparookby33 b3uponwhichBlacksuddenlyresignedbecausehesawthataftertheforced33... xb3–otherwisehisqueenislost–therefollows34b8+ a535 xb3winningthequeenandthegame.

Atfirstsightthismightseemdifficulttospotbutitwillnottakelongforthemotiftostickinyourmindandyouwillbeabletonoticethepossibilityofsuchcombinations–anddeliverthemortalblow–inyourowngames.Forinstance:

Pintor–LeiteAveiro2002

Inthisposition,knowledgeofthepreviousgamewillhelpyoutofind38g8! when 38... xg8 39 a8+ c7 40 xg8 leaves White with a

winningmaterialadvantage.

Howtobluff

Youwould think that it isonly thepieces thatdo the talking inchess.But this is not so. Various forms of psychology are also used at bothamateur and master level and are an accepted feature of competitiveplay. Indeed such ploys can save you from defeat or even completelyturnthetablesinadesperatesituation.Ahaplessopponentwillprobablyhave no idea of what you are up to as he falls headlong into thepsychologicaltrap.

Emms–RyanIsleofMan2003

HeretheEnglishgrandmasterplayingWhitenoticedthathisopponenthadstarted to repeatmovesby ... h4+.Sohe took theopportunity togetupandstretchhislegswithseeminglynotacareintheworldandtheexpectationofasharedpointbythreefoldrepetitionofmoves.Well,that’swhathewantedhisopponent tobelieve–andhedid!Ryanpeacefullyended the gamewith37... h4+ 38 h3 f4+ 39 hg3 h4+ and adrawwasagreed.

Howeverthiswasallacunningploybythegrandmasterwhoknewthepositionwascompletelylostandhiswalkaboutwouldputpressureonhisopponent towaste nomore time but agree a draw.And so he did nothavethetimetofind37... f1-f3!whenWhiteactuallyintendedtoresignbecauseof the followup38... h4+39 g1 xg3winninga rook.And38 g6protectingtherookalsofailsto38... h4+39 g1 f1mate.

IaskedJohnEmmsimmediatelyafterthegamehowhecameupwiththis clever ruse and he replied: “Some years ago I was playing anAmerican grandmaster when I had a chance to repeat moves. At thatverymomentmyopponentgotupandwentforaleisurelywalk....”

Understandingtheopenings

Itisalwaysusefultovaryyouropeningmovesinaccordancewiththeopponentyouareplaying.Itwouldbefoolishtotrysomethingcompletelydifferent–alineinwhichyouhaveabsolutelynoexperience–butinthiseraofcomputerdatabasesasurprisevariationcanconfuseanopponentwhohas justspentanhourmemorisingopeningmoves toplayagainstyoubuthashadnotimetounderstandtheopening.

InChapterTwoIsuggestthattobeatastrongplayeryoudon’thavetoraise your game to the level of a world champion and carry out anamazing sacrificial attack, admirable though that may be. Instead Ipropose a safe opening – but one with the potential to irritate anopponent who will go to any lengths to avoid a draw. In the followinggame I found myself in just such a situation against a Hungariangrandmaster so played the psychology card – realising that a solidopeningwould frustrate himbecausehe could not afford to concedeadrawifhewantedtochallengeforthetopprizes:

Lane–FleschLondon1983

1e4c52c3This pawn push is a solid reply to the SicilianDefence and has the

basicaimofcreatingabigpawncentrewithd2-d4.

2...d53exd5 xd5Black doesn’t mind exposing his queen in the middle of the board

becausethepawnonc3preventsWhitefromattackingitby c3–andgainingtimeintheprocess.

4d4e65 f3 f66 e2!?Thisdeparturefromtheusual6 d3appearedtostartlemyopponent

buthecontinuedtorattleouthismovesatlightningspeed.

6... e770-00-08c4 f5?!Onsuchanexposedsquarethequeenisclearlyapotentialtargetbut

thegrandmasterwantstoexploitthefactthatmybishopisone2,andnotd3, to keep queens on the board. But in doing so Black is alreadyshowingsignsofrecklessness.Objectively,8... d8iscorrectandwouldleadtoamiddlegamebattleoranexchangeofqueensafter9dxc5 xc510 xd8 (10 c3 gives White a slight edge) 10... xd8 11 c3.Howeveralevelendgameisnotwhatthegrandmasterwants–thisisanOpentournamentandheneedsawin.

9 c3 d8??

Playedwithouthesitationbecausethegrandmasterassumedtherookonthed-filewouldforcemetodefendthed4pawn.Thislackofpatienceis typicalof topplayerswhocompetenon-stop in tournamentsand feelthe need to wrap up games against lesser opponents as quickly aspossible.

10 h4!Whoops!Only nowdoes it becomeapparent that theblackqueen is

lost.Theonetryis10... xd4but11 xf5 xd112 xe7+ f813 xd1xe7leaveshimarookdown.Apainfullessonforthegrandmasterwho

onmoveeightshouldhavereconciledhimselftoalongstruggle.

1-0

Strategyversustactics

Short and sharp tactics are the icing on the cake in chess butsometimesaslowerapproachisneeded–takingyourtimetoprepareasituationwhereyoucanattack.This is the timewhenyouneed toplaypositionalchess.

What is it? Well, when there is no obvious way of attacking theopponentandtherearenothreatscomingyourway–Positionalchessisthe art of improving your own position whilst weakening that of youropponent.

Onceyouhaveachievedsufficientpositionalsuperiorityalwaysremain

on the lookout for checks, capturesandother threats– they canhelpyouwinmoregames:

Sulskis–NickPertPortErin2003

White has massive positional superiority with two pawns on theseventhrankjustitchingtopromotetoaqueen.Henowswitchedtopuretacticsandfoundaningeniouswaytowin:

28 xa8Aqueensacrificebuttherearetwonewqueensontheway!28... xa829c8= + xc830 xc8+ xc831a8= xa832 xa8+withawinningmaterialadvantage.

Thisisallverywell,yousay–butsurelythesamethemeofvacatingasquare for a pawn couldn’t happen again? No, that is not true. Thefollowingpositionshouldencourageyou to learn the tacticalmotifsandpracticespottingtheminpracticalplay.

McShane–RichardPertBritishTeamChampionship(4NCL)2004

A ‘twin’ to the previous position – moreover Nick’s twin brother hadlearned the lesson taught by Sulskis to produce an uncannily similarqueensacrifice34... xa1afterwhichWhiteresigned rather than face35 xa1c1= whenBlackhasawinningmaterialadvantage.Soyoutoocanbeabrilliantplayer–justremembercombinationalpatterns.

Creatinganattack

Apositivementalattitudemaybeenoughtolaunchanattackrightoutoftheopeningbutitismorelikelythatyouwillfirstneedgoodpositionalplaytokickstarttheonslaught.

Lane–ReillyAustralianOpen1999

1e4d6This advance of the d-pawn heralds the Pirc Defence which allows

Whitetoconstructabigpawncentre,only forBlacktoattack it lateronwith blows from his own pawns – and with cooperation from his dark-squared fianchettoed bishop which is bearing down on the d4 and e5squares.

2d4And White does indeed take the opportunity to occupy the centre

becausehispawnscontrolimportantsquaresandprovidehispieceswithroomformanoeuvre.

2... f63 c3g64 e3 g75 d2

No secret. I am not hiding the fact that I intend to play e3-h6 toexchange Black’s important bishop which can be used for both attackanddefence.Thenextpartofmyplan is tocastlequeensideand thenadvancethekingsidepawnstoopenlinesinpursuitoftheblackking.

5...c66 h6 xh67 xh6Nowthequeen ison theh6square itpreventsBlack fromslidinghis

kingtosafetybycastlingkingside.

7...c5?Black is keen todistractWhite fromhis kingsideattackingplansand

starts a counterattack on the pawn centre. However moving the pawntwiceintheopeninglosestimeandwillbeseverelypunished.Instead7...a5shouldhavebeenconsidered.

8dxc5dxc59e5 d5Theknightmovesoutofdanger.After9... g4,10 g7forcesBlackto

movetherooktof8afterwhich11h3trapstheknight.

100-0-0The knight on d5 is nowpinned by the rook – if it moves away the

blackqueenwillbewhiskedofftheboardbytherook.

10...e6If he protects the knight by 10... e6 then White will increase the

pressurewith11 c4andlookforwardtowinningawholeknight.

11 c4 c612 xd5exd513 xd5Even more important than winning the pawn is the fact that I have

gained control of the f6 square. The early exchange of dark-squared

bishopshasleftBlackdefencelessagainstaknightinvasion.

13... a5Getting out of theway, otherwise f6+would uncover adiscovered

attackonthequeenbytherookond1.

14 g7Resisting the temptation to play 14 f6+ because there is amating

combination.

14... f815 f61-0

Thoughmyopponentresigned,aspectatingfellow-competitorinsistedthatBlackshouldhavecarriedonandplayed15... e6.Howeverhewasleft blushing after being shown 16 e7+! sacrificing the queen for acheckmateafter16... xe717 f6.

Nowyoumightthinkthatisaverydifficultcheckmatetospotbecausethequeensacrificetomatewithaknightlookscrazyandwouldnotevenbeconsideredbymostplayers.Butthisisnotthecase–onceyouhaveseenthemotifyoucanrememberitandwinwithitagainandagain:

Clemenz–EisenschmidtDorpat1862

I suspect youwill find the spectacularmovehasnowbecome ratherobvious.Yes–thesolutionis1 f7+ xf72 e6mate.

Ifyouarestilldoubtful thatyoucan trainyourself toseesuchmovesthenhaveagoatthefollowingposition,takenfromagameplayedoveracenturylater:

Hall–KingNorrkoping1988

Themovethatwashailedasabrilliancyatthetimeis1 g7+butbynowitshouldbecleartoyouthatitispossibletomastertheartofseeingsuchmoves.1... xg7ismetby2 h6mate.

Avoidingblunders

TheclockHaveyoueverheard thecomplaint: “Iwas twopawnsupbut loston

time”,givingtheimpressionthatitwasn’treallyfairandnotthatplayer’sfault? The truth however is somewhat different. Nowadays properhandlingofthechessclockisanessentialpartofthegameandneedstobetakenseriously.Therearewaystocopewithtime-troublebutit isfarbetter to takemeasures toavoidsuchasituationaltogether. I toohavehad personal experiences of the dangers of time pressure – which

inducesblundersthatwouldnotnormallyoccurandinaninstantcanruinagamethathasbeencarefullynurturedforhours:

Lane–VanLaatumBelgianTeamChampionship1997

Thisisfromanimportantgamewhich,hadIwon,wouldhaveputmyteam at the top of the division. Now I was fairly sure I hadmade therequired40movesbuttobeonthesafesideandtoputall theanxiousspectators’ minds at ease I decided to make one more move. Myopponent has just allowed me to play 41 xb7 but after a moment’sglance it looked somewhatmurky after 41... e1+ 42 h2 f4+. So Ithought–whynotstopthebothersomecheck?

41 f2??Yes,anythingcanhappenintime-trouble.

41... xg2mateThis was played with a loud thud – at which point my team-mates

blurtedoutsomethinginFrenchthatsoundedlikeahowlofanguish!SoIknow from bitter experience the perils of allowing my judgment to becloudedbytime-trouble.

Masteringtheendgame

Why bother learning more about the endgame when most playersknowsolittleaboutitanyway?Well,asyoumakeprogressitisnaturaltopickupmoreandmore information–andhavinga fewguidelinesmayhelpyoutoscoreafewmoreextrapoints.Astheysay:alittleknowledgeisadangerousthing:

Orr–VajdaChessOlympiad,Bled2002

PlayingthewhitepiecesisanIrishplayerwhowouldhavebeenhappy

tohavemadehisRomaniangrandmasteropponentsweata little longerbutwho thought it was now time to bow to the inevitable and agree adraw.IwaswatchingthefinishandrememberVajdausingpsychologytogreateffect–keepingastraightfaceandlookingremarkablyconfident.

63a8= + g164 g8+½-½WhenWhiteofferedadraw,Vadja’seyebrowsalmostjumpedupinthe

airwithsurpriseandhishandshotoutforthecustomaryfinalhandshake.Asageneralruleitisagoodideatomakethebigguysufferbyplayingon insuchpositions–afterall it isdifficult toseeseveralmovesaheadand youmayhavemissed somehiddenwinning idea.Moreover if youcannotseehowyoucouldpossibly lose thenwhynot carryon insuchendgamesuntilyouhave fullysatisfiedyourself that it really isadraw?Mark Orr is a useful player who must have vaguely remembered thatqueenversush-pawn isadrawand–witha largegroupof spectatorsgatheredaroundhisboard–assumedhewaswastingthegrandmaster’stime. But in fact this was not the case. On the contrary we werewonderingwhythegrandmasterwascarryingonbecausecruciallytheh-pawnisnotsufficientlyadvancedtodrawthegame.

Play continued 64... h1 If 64... h2 then 65 g4 wins the pawnbecausethekingmustmoveawayfromitsdefence.65 d5+ g165...h2losesto66 f3.66 d4+ h1Or66... g267 g4+ h268 f3

andBlackmust lose the pawn.Now the big differencewith having thepawnonh3isrevealed:

67 f2!ThisiswhatWhitemissedwhenheagreedtoadraw.Ifthepawnwere

already on h2 thenBlack could use it as a device forstalematewhich

wouldmean the position is drawnas f2 leavesBlackwithout a legalmove.

67...h268 f1mateNowitwouldbequiteafeattoseeallthisfromthepositionwherethe

drawwasagreed–butWhitehadnothingtoloseandeverythingtogainbycarryingon.

Itshouldbeemphasizedthatintheendgameitisequallyimportanttolook out for checks and threats. There are plenty of opportunities forcheckmate or winning material but sometimes players becomecomplacent:

Georgiev–JakovenkoWijkaanZee2007

Thepawnonf7looksratherominousbutBlackhasweavedamatingnet and now played 50... f2! after whichWhite resigned rather thanface51 g1(51fxe5 f4mate)51... xf4+52 g4g5mate.

Theartofswindling

Youmustmake your opponentwork hard for victory even though allseemslost.Astunningsacrificemightgiveyouamomentarythrillbut ifyouresignfivemoveslaterithashardlyhelpedthecause.Thereforethekeytoagoodswindleistofrustratethewinningsidebyputtingasmanyobstacles in hisway as possible. In chess the termswindle is used todescribe how a lost position has been converted into a win or draw.Carryingoffaswindleisasignofresourcefulplay–ashappenedhere:

Korchnoi–KrushGibraltar2007

Black has been struggling and after playing 26...g6 the Americanwomen’sinternationalmusthavebeenbracingherselffor27 f8+!whenshewouldhaveprobablyresignedinviewof27... xf8(also27... g728xd8 xd829 xc7+isgreatforWhite)28 d5winningthequeen.But

instead ‘Viktor the Terrible’ lived up to his name by making a terribleblunderwith27 f2?? 0-1 The veteran grandmaster realised his errorandresignedatonce,notwaitingfor27... xe4!28 xe4 d1+29 f1xf1mate.Perhaps theultimateswindle– theperpetratordidnoteven

havetomakeamove.

Thisbookisdesignedtomakeyouthink,improveyourplay–andwinmoregames.

Day2Understandingtheopenings

Chess Trivia – The first computer to play in the U.S Open ChessChampionshipwascalledSneakyPete.

Thefirstfewmovesofthegameareknownastheopening–althoughmastershavebeenknowntomakeover20movesoftheoryandstillbe‘in the opening’. However it is all very well for experts to memorise abaffling number of lines but this is hardly practical for the majority ofplayers. Anyway more important than memory is an understanding ofyourpreferredopenings.

Thenagain,everyonehastodealwith‘non-book’situationswheretheopponentwillplaysomepreviouslyunplayedorunknownmove.InmanyopeningpositionsthereareseveralgoodmovesbutbooksorDVDstendto showonlyoneor twoalternativeseven though theremightbeotherreasonable choices too. Moreover you may be faced with anontheoretical move that is in fact a howler – and if you can’t recallseeingtherefutationanywherethenyoumust findwhat iswrongwith itby yourself. This is where knowledge of general principles and tacticalthemes will serve as your guide so you can emerge from the openingwithadecentorevenwinningposition.

1DevelopyourpiecesThe player who mobilises his army first is more likely to gain the

advantagebecausehewillhave the initiativeandmanymoreattackingoptions.

2ThefirstmoveInthestartingpositiontheonlypiecesthatcanmovearetheknights.

Tomobilise any of the other pieces you need to advance one ormorepawns. The most popular opening moves are 1 e4 and 1 d4 whichimmediately free the way for the development of both the queen andbishop.

3UnderstandtheopeningSomeplayersrattleoff the firsthalfdozenmovesorso frommemory

and then don’t knowwhat to do next. After the fast start you can seethem time and again pausing for quite a while trying to work out apossibleplanofaction.Thereisalessontobelearnedhere.Youshouldfirst decide on a suitable repertoire and then gain an understanding ofyour opening choices by referring to a theory book or playing throughrelevant games with commentaries. Then the basic objectives andtactical tricksassociatedwiththeopeningwillbecomesecondnaturetoyou.Butalways remember thatopening theory ispublishedknowledgesoatheoreticallinecouldbeknowntoyouropponent.

4ImproveyourpiecesAgoodruleofthumbintheopeningistomoveeachpieceonlyoncein

the opening. That way you will mobilise most of your army in theminimumnumberofmovesandwithoutlossoftime.Roamingaroundtheboardwithalonequeenwhilstyouradversaryisdevelopingpiecesoneaftertheotherisasurerecipefordisaster.

5CastleDonotwaittoolongtocastleyourkingintosafety.Whetheryoucastle

on the kingsideor thequeenside your kingwill thenbeprotectedbyawallofpawns.Castlinghastheaddedbenefitofbringingyourrooksintoplay.Anuncastledkinginthecentreisnotonlyvulnerabletoattackbutitalsoprevents thecoordinationof thetworooks–which isan indicationthat your development has been completed satisfactorily. Though allgeneralprinciplescanbebrokenunderspecificcircumstances,Ialwaysadviseinexperiencedplayerstotakegoodcareoftheirkingandcastleatthefirstopportunity.

Howtochooseanopening

Whenselectingopeningsforyourrepertoireyoushouldaskyourselfiftheysuityourownstyleofplay.Thismaysoundobviousbutfartoooftencasual players pick up openings by chance rather than consideredchoice.Ionceknewastrongplayerwhoplayedquietlineswith1d4asWhitebutdefendedagainst1e4withthesuper-sharpSicilianDragonasBlack.Heinvestedahugeamountoftimelearningcomplicatedlinesandreferredtoweeklyupdatesontheinternettokeepabreastofnewmovesplayed around theworld. It was only after years of fruitless endeavourthat he finally decided to change his repertoire. Rather bewildered, Iaskedhimwhyhehadtormentedhimselfforsolongwithanopeningthatwasclearlyincompatiblewithhisstyle?Hisexplanationwasthatwhenhewasyoungand looking foranopening, the ‘Dragon’soundedexciting. Ithinkwehaveallkiddedourselvesatsomepointinourlivesbutyouhaveto be objective and drop any openings in which you do not really feelcomfortable.JustbecauseyouadmireaparticularlybrilliantwinfromtheRomanticeraofchess, thatdoesnotmeanyouhavetoplaytheKing’s

Gambit.NorshouldyounecessarilydefendwiththePetroffdefencejustbecause world champion Vladimir Kramnik employs it as Black. Thinkaboutit–withWhiteyouareplayingawildattackinggameyetwithBlackyouareadoptingadoursetupfavouredbyagrandmasterwhowantsadrawagainstafellowgrandmaster.

So an awareness of your style of play and personal preferenceswillhelpyoudecidewhichopeningsarebestforyou.Youmaynotbeabletoplay the opening perfectly but you will get a perfectly playable game.Practicallyallopeningshavethesameobjective:developmentofpiecesandcastlingthekingintosafety.

Thepositionalplayer

Positional players are usually conservative by nature and happy toimprove theirposition littleby littleandpatientlywait for tangiblegains.Theiroverallplanmaynotbeapparentforquitesometimebutmeasuredandrefinedpreparationwilleventuallyleadtocontroloftheboardandadecisive final attack. Masters of this art are former world championAnatolyKarpovandEnglishgrandmasterMichaelAdams.

Adams–SpraggettHastings1989/90

1e4c62d4d5Thesemovesconstitute theCaro-Kanndefencewhich isalsoagreat

favourite of Karpov. The advance of the d-pawn challenges the centreandclearsthewayforthedevelopmentofBlack’slight-squaredbishop.

3 d2dxe44 xe4 f6Blackwants to exchangeWhite’s only activepieceandhaveaquiet

life.Itmightseemstrangetovoluntarilyallowthedoublingofhispawnsbut at such an early stage this is not critical. However in a positionalsensethepawnsmaylaterprovetobeaweakness–providedWhitecanfindawaytoexploitthem.

5 xf6+gxf66c3Whitereinforcesthed4pawnratherthanplaytheobvious6 f3after

whichtheknightcouldbepinnedbythebishop–6... g4.

6... f57 f3Now that the bishop has been developed to the f5 square White

decidestobringouttheknightas7... g4wouldamounttothelossofamove – and the pin would lack menace as the d4 pawn is now wellsupported.

7...e68g3Akingsidefianchetto.Thebishopistobedevelopedong2whereitwill

provideextracoverforthewhitekingaftercastling.Moroeverthisbishopwillfindnewlifeontheh1-a8diagonal.

8... d79 g2 g7Blackdevelopshisbishopinlikefashionbutitslossofinfluenceonthe

queenside will encourageWhite to launch an offensive there. There isalsothedownsidethatong7thebishopisobstructedbythedoubledf-pawn.Howeverthereisapositivesidetoo–ong7thebishopwillprovidecover for theblackkingwhichmightotherwisebeexposedtoattackontheopeng-fileafterkingsidecastling.

100-00-011 h4!? g6

12a4The positional player at work. White wants to gain ground on the

queensidebya4-a5,therebyalsodeprivingBlackoftheb6squareforhisknight.A furtheradvanceof thispawn toa6willalsoundermine thec6

pawn and increase the scope of the fianchettoed bishop. IncidentallyAdams is not tempted to play 13 xg6, depriving Black of his bishoppair, as after 13...hxg6 Black can soon play ...f5 liberating his dark-squaredbishopwhilstestablishingasolidprotectivepawnbarrieraroundhisking.

On theotherhand,playing ...f6-f5prior toanexchangeong6wouldallowWhitetoreturnhisknighttof3andheadforthestronge5square–highlightingthefactthatitisnowthebishopong6thatisblockedin.

12...a5!?13 f4 b6IfBlackactivateshisqueenby13... b6,attackingtheb2pawn,White

could reply14 c1 followedby f4-e3 threatening tohassle theblackqueenbythediscoveredattackd4-d5.Healsohas f4-h6withaviewtoexchanging Black’s defensive bishop and following up with f2-f4. ThiswouldprovideWhitewithadangerousinitiativebecause...f6-f5,blockingthefurtheradvanceof thewhitef-pawn,would leavehisownbishopong6incarcerated.

14 b3!Preventing Black’s planned knight centralisation by 14... d5 which

wouldnowallow15 xb7.

14... d3?!Black jumps at the chance to utilise his bishop to remove White’s

annoyingqueen from theb-file.Butafter thegameSpraggettpreferredthe odd looking 14... a6! with the ingenious idea of playing ... d5followedby b6.Forexample:15 fd1 d516 xb7wouldallowBlackto win back the pawn by 16... b6 thanks to the double attack on thequeenandb2-pawn.Howeverafter16 d2!,intendingthespacegainingc2-c4,thebishop-pairprovidesWhitewithaslightedge.

15 fd1 c4?16 c2 d517b3! xf4?Blackreallyshouldhaveretreatedthebishopwith17... a6–although

after18 c1itbecomesclearthatthebishopwillremainoutofplay.

18bxc4 xg2After18... g619 xg6hxg620 ab1White’splanwouldbetotreble

piecesontheb-file,exertingmassivepressureby b3, db1and b2.

19 xg2

Themini-combinationisoverandasuperficialglancesuggeststhatthepositionoffersnoobviousattackingchances.HoweverastrongpositionalplayerlikeAdamsknowsthatitisonlyWhitewhoisabletoincreasethepressurehere.Thiscanbeachievedbytreblingtheheavypiecesontheb-fileandreturningtheknighttothefrayby e3or f4whereitwillnotonlyhaveopportunitiesforactiononBlack’slightsquaresbutitwillalsosupportthepawnadvanced4-d5.

19... c720 ab1b621d5!?ThispawnthrustisdesignedtoweakenandexposeBlack’sdamaged

pawnstructure in the knowledge that the knight ong2 is ready to leapintoaction.

21...cxd522cxd5 ac822...exd5would bemet by 23 f4, intending xd5, leavingWhite’s

knight very powerfully placed and Black’s kingside exposed and hisbishopdoingverylittle.

23dxe6fxe624 f4From this fine outpost the knight can exert pressure on Black’s

weakenedpawns.

24... fe824... xc325 xc3 xc326 xe6 b8(otherwiseWhitewillplay

xb6withasuperiorendgamethankstotheextrapawn)27 d7 f8(27...h6ismetby28 c7headingadvantageouslyforthed5square)28

xf8 xf829 xh7leavesWhiteapawnupwithallthewinningchances.

25 b3!

White’s position has become stronger move by move. This doubleattackontheb7ande6pawnsistheculminationofhismasterlystrategy.

25... h6InadifficultsituationBlackpinshishopesontheendgamewherehe

hasnoticedalinethatallowshimmaterialparity.

Alternativesare:

a)25... xc326 xb6(or26 xc3 xc327 xb6e528 h5whichalsolooksgoodforWhite)26... c627 b7 c728 b5 ce729 h5withthesuperiorchances.

b)25... f726 xb6 xc327 xa5givesWhiteanextrapawnandmuchbetterplacedpieces.

26 xe6 xc327 xc3 xc328 xb6 c4Black foresaw this positionwhere he ismaterially level. However he

forgot that White also has a number of attacking opportunities – andthesesoonbecomeevident.

29 d7! c1+After29... xa4Whitecandowellwith30 c7! f8(or30... e1+31g2 g732 b8+ f833 d5 e634 dd8leadingtoaneasyvictory)

31 d5 g732 e7+ h833 f5 g834 bb7 g435 h6winninginstyleas35... xh6allows36 xh7mate.

30 g2 c231 f3

The game is won so Adams can be forgiven this unnecessary kingmove–presumablymadetoavoidsomevaguepressureonhissecondrank.Immediatelydecisivewouldhavebeen31 c7! ee2(instead31...f832 d5 g733 bb7iscrushing)32 xf6 e333 d8+ g734

e8+ g835 d6+ g736 df8intending f5mate.

31... a232 c7 ee233 b8+ f834 g4 xf2

35h4White iswinningso isnomoodtoallowaseriesofchecks.However

hecouldhaveboldlycontinued35 e6when35...h5+36 xh5 xh2+37 g6! h6+38 f5 f2+39 f4 h5+40 e6 c541 dd8wins.

35... xa4+36 h3 aa237 e61-0Thereisnowaytoavoidmate.

Theattackingplayer

Theopeningstageisatimetodeployyourpiecesinanticipationofamiddlegameattack.Thisexplainswhynowadayssharptacticallinesarefavoured, trendyopenings embracedand stylish checkmates expected.Masters of the art are Viswanathan Anand, Magnus Carlsen, GarryKasparov,HikaruNakamura,NigelShortandVeselinTopalov.

Carlsen–GroennNorwegianChampionship2005

1d4d52 f3 f63c4c6

Blacksupportsthed-pawnandisreadytomeet4cxd5with4...cxd5,recapturingwiththepawninordertokeepanequalfootinginthecentre.If Black ever recaptures by ... xd5 then White gains time by c3chasing away the queen and following upwith e4. Alternatively, takingback by ... xd5 allows an immediate 5 e4 giving White a big pawncentre.3...dxc4isalsopossiblewhentheopeningwouldbetheQueen’sGambitAcceptedwhereWhitecanplay4e3oreven4 a4+towinbackthepawn.

4 c3e6This position is the starting point of an opening known as theSemi-

Slav.

5 g5h66 h4 b6?!WithWhite’squeen’sbishop faraway fromhomeBlackdeems it the

right time toattack theb2pawn.6...dxc4 isusualbutBlack is trying toconfuse his opponent with an offbeat choice. This can be an effectiveploy–butonlyifthemovehassomeuse.

7 c2 e48e3Asensiblereplywhichallowsthelight-squaredbishoptodevelopand

kingsidecastlingtotakeplace.Thereisnopointgrabbingahotpawnby8 xe4 dxe4 9 xe4?! because 9... xb2 allows Black to seize theinitiativeafter10 d1 b4+.

8... b4TheknightispinnedandBlackisnowreadytocastlekingside.

9 d3 a5

100-0!Teenager Magnus Carlsen is a world class player and gambiting a

pawnforaleadindevelopmentandanuncastledenemykingissecondnaturetohim.Butyoumightfeeltheneedtoweighupthesefactorsmorecarefullybeforeembarkingonsuchasacrifice–howeveryoushouldalsotrustyourintuitionasitplaysamajorroleinchess.

Afteracceptingthepawn,Black’skingwillremainonitsoriginalsquareand his bishop on c3 will be awkwardly situated. On the other handWhite’spiecesarewellplaced,hisqueenactivelydeployedandhisrooksco-ordinated.

10... xc3Tryingtotakethepawnandexchangequeensbackfireshorriblyafter

10... xc311bxc3 xc312 xe4winning.

11bxc3 xc312 ab1dxc4Only twelve moves have been played and Black is already under

immensepressurewhich indicates that theattackingplayerhaschosentherightopeningtoseizetheinitiative.Lookingatthealternativeshelpsustobetterunderstandthepawnsacrifice:

a)12...0-013 b3 b414c5(Notallowingtheblackbishoptoreturnswiftlytothekingsidefordefensiveduties)14... a415 b2 a516b1intending a3whenBlackisindesperatetrouble.

b) 12... b4 13 c5 b6 14 e5! (a clever idea to launch a lightningattack on the kingside while Black’s pieces are marooned on thequeenside)14...bxc5(or14...0-015 e7 e8??16 h7+ h817 xf7mate)15 g6!0-0(15...fxg616 xg6+ f817 f7mate)16 h7+h817 e7whenBlackcangiveup.

13 xc4 b4Black’s problem is that the obvious 13...0-0 allows 14 a3! when the

bishop on c3 is embarrassed by the threat of b3, leaving it with noescapesquare.

14 e5 d615f4Thismaintainsthemomentumbyensuringthat15... xe5canbemet

by 16 fxe5 opening the f-file for the king’s rook to participate in theonslaught.

15... c716 e4b6

17 xf7!!A sensational sacrifice to rip apart Black’s defensive pawn barrier.

SuchadaringmovewasonlymadepossiblebyBlack’sfailuretodevelopandcastle.NotsincetheeleventhmovehasGroennfoundtimetobringanotherpieceintoplay,whereasWhitehasrapidlyimprovedhispositioninreadinessforabreakthrough.

17... xf7ThepowerofWhite’swellplacedpiecesbecomesapparenton17...

xf718 f5 e8 19 fxe6 g5 20 g6+whenWhite has a forcedwinningcombination:20... d821 f7 e722 g3 b723 d6 e824 xe7xe725 f1!andBlackismated,e.g.25... e826 xe8+ xe827 f8

mate.

18f5Thepointoftheinspiredsacrifice.Thef-pawnisadvancedtoallowthe

king’srooktoenterthefray.PerhapsthekeytothesuccessoftheattackisthefactthatBlackcannotsafelycastle.

18... h5After18...0-019fxe6 h520e7+thediscoveredcheckisenoughto

persuadeBlacktoresign.

19 xe6 d720f6ThispawnpushthrowsBlackintototaldisarray.Theprimarythreatis

g4+winningthequeen.

20... xf621 xf6!Carlseneliminates theknightwhich isattackinghisqueenso thathe

canonceagainthreaten g4+.

21... xh4Or21... xe622 xe6+ e723 xc6+ d824 d6mate.

22 xc6+Thetimeisrightforaprettycheckmate.

22... e723 f7+ xe6Also23... d8offersnohopeafter24 d7+ e825 f7+ f826

xd6+ e727 xe7mate.

24 c4mate

Thecaveman

Thecavemanisanall-outattacker.Nosubtletywhatsoever–thetargetis theopposing kingand thewhole opening is geared to deployinghisforces in the most hostile manner. This style can lead to stunningvictoriesin25moves–butalsotoshatteringdefeats.Thereisathinlinebetween a properly orchestrated attack and a reckless attempt tocheckmateatallcosts.Ithinkwehaveallbeenthere...

Topclasscavemen:AlexeiShirovandMikhailTal.

Ribli–TalMontpellier1985

1 f3d52g3It is worth pointing out thatWhite can lure a careless opponent into

unknownterritoryhere.Ifyounormallymeet1d4by1... f6youwillbeshockedifWhitesuddenlyplays2d4leavingyouwithan‘alien’pawnond5.

2... g43 g2c6Constructingapawnbarrieron theh1-a8diagonal inorder to reduce

theinfluenceofWhite’slight-squaredbishop.

4b3A safe choice.White fianchettoes both bishops. This is all part of a

strategytodevelopsmoothly,castleandthenfightforsuperioritylateroninthemiddlegame.

4... d75 b2ThebishoppreventsBlackfromexpandinginthecentreby...e7-e5.

5... gf660-0e67d3 c5Astraightforwardapproach,directingthebishopatthewhiteking.

8 bd20-09e4Whitehasmanagedtobringhispiecesintoactionandnowfindstime

toadvancethee-pawnasawayofgainingspace.

9...dxe410dxe4e511h3

Ribliishappytogainthebishoppair.Blackisnowforcedtoexchangepiecesbecause11... h5allows12g4 g6 13 xe5winning a pawn.LaterTalsuggested11 e2asapossibleimprovement–withtheideaofc4-e3targetingBlack’sbishopong4.

11... xf312 xf3 e7

13 ad1A casual observer might venture the opinion that White is just

centralisinghisrooks.ThismaybetruetosomeextentbutthetextisalsomotivatedbyBlack’s lastmovewhichcontained thepositional threatof13... a3,exchangingbishopsinabidtoinfiltratelaterontheweakeneddark queenside squares. But now 13... a3 can be met by 14 a1preservingthebishoponthea1-h8diagonal.

13...b5!Rulingoutthepossibilityof c4andintendingtogenerateactiveplay

with...a7-a5-a4whichwillalsobringthequeen’srookintoplay.

14h4?!Anambitiousreactionwhichtriestocreatesomeattackingchanceson

the kingside. The drawback is that without a pawn on h3 Black caneventually plant a piece on g4with aggressive intent. Instead 14 fe1offersequalchances.

14...a515c3An ugly move, obstructing the bishop on b2. However White is

preparing tomeet15...a4with16b4, therebyensuring that therookona8cannot invadehisposition.Blackhasplayedveryenterprisinglyand

nowstepbystepreduceshisopponenttoabjectpassivity.

15... b616 fe1?!White does not knowwhat to do somakes awaitingmove. But the

rookmoveisapoorchoiceandinspiresTaltoexploittheunderprotectedf2pawn.

16... e6!Asimplebutaggressivewaytobenefitfromtheweakenedg4square.

Blackprepares... g4totargetthef2pawnandwill thenfollowupwith...f5tounleashthepoweroftheking’srookalongthef-file.

17 f5 g418 e2Any hope that an exchange of queensmight cut short the attack is

doomed to failure: 18 xe6 xf2+ 19 h1 fxe6 with a winningadvantage.

18... ad819 f3According toTal’snotes, theobvious19 h3 runs into19... d3with

similarplaytothegame.Howeverthereisanopportunityforafantasticwinwhich seems to have been overlooked. Black can play 19... xf2!!whenthegamemightcontinue:

a)20 xe6 xd1+followedbyacaptureone6winningeasily.

b)20 xf2g621 g4h522 xe6fxe623 xe6+ h7whenthepinon the f-filewinsmaterial –especiallyas24 df1?allows thedecisive24... xd2.

19... d3!

20 g2The king steps up to renew the attack on the knight. After an

immediate 20 xg4 Black wins a pawn and his piece back with thescintillating20... xg3+.

20... xf2Acavemancanhardlycontemplateplayingthesensiblebutmeek...

f6sohegoesbacktobasicsandcreatesaholeinWhite’sdefences.Thesacrificemaynotbe100%correctbutitdoescauseWhitehugepracticalproblemstosolveattheboardandtheforcingnatureofthecombinationmakesiteasierforBlacktoplay.

21 xf2Onceagainswappingoffqueensisnousebecauseof21 xe6fxe6

22 xf2? xf223 xf2 fxf3+exploitingthepinnedknight.Alternatively21 f1runsinto21... d6withaclearadvantage.

21... xf222 xf222 e2 loses to thespectacular22... d5!, threateninga forkone3,

when23 xe6 e3+24 xf2fxe6+25 g1 xd1iscrushing.

22... d623 c1g6Actually 23... c5+, intending ... xc3, is the more efficient path to

victory.

24 g5f625 h6f5

26 g2?A fatal nudge of the king in the wrong direction which allows an

ingeniouscombination.Theunlikely26 e2isthebestchance,although26...f4continuestheattack.

26... xf3!Destroyingthewhiteking’ssoleprotector.Capitulationisimminent.

27 xf3Thekingdiesofexposureafter27 xf3 d3+28 f2(if28 e3then

28...fxe4+willwinthequeen)28...fxe4+29 g2(or29 g1 xg3+30h1 f2leadingtomate)29... e2+30 h3 xd1winningcomfortably.

27... xd128 g50-1White decided not to wait for 28... h5 or 28... d7 which defends

againstthethreatonh7andleavesBlackwithabigmaterialadvantage.

Thepirate

Thepirate lovestoplayopeningsshunnedbythemajorityofplayers.These can include oddball lines which stand on the fringe ofrespectability and others that merely produce smirks of ridicule fromopponents.Agambitgivesawayapawnbut“Whystopthere?”saysthepirate who is happy to abandon pieces in his quest to checkmate.Thoughthepirate’sopeningplayischaracteristicallyriskyhewillrelishitsdubious reputation and count on the element of surprise. And hisswashbucklingapproachlacedwithblatant–oftenunsound–tacticshascreatedmanyasensation.

Mastersof theart:Everyonewill knowapirate inhis club, schoolorlocaltournament.

Vokac–BazantTurnov1996

1b4The Sokolsky or Polish Opening has some pedigree amongst the

lesser known openings. White grabs space on the queenside and

preparestofianchettohisqueen’sbishop.

1...d52 b2 d7The knight is developed as away of supporting ...e7-e5 and also of

reinforcing the knight so that 3 xf6 can be met by 3... xf6 withouthavingtodoublethepawns.

3 f3 gf64e3Thisisareliablemethodofactivatingthelight-squaredbishop.Asthe

blackqueen’s knight isnotonc6 it can’t bepinned–so the idea is topreparec2-c4.

4...g65c4dxc46 xc4 g7?

Oops–thisisthesortofmistakethatgivesirregularopeningsagoodname.

7 xf7+!1-0Blackcouldnotfacethebleakprospectof7... xf7(or7... f88 g5

withaclearadvantage)8 g5+ e8(8... g8allows9 b3+mating)9e6whentheblackqueenistrapped.

Theultimatepirateopening isonewherematerial is sacrificed in theopening.ArespectablepiratemightessaytheKing’sGambit(1e4e52f4)whereasthoseofthecut-throatvarietywillhappilyoffertheBlackmar-DiemerGambit.

Cullum–WojtowiczCorrespondence1965

1d4d52e4!?Black is already facing the problem whether or not to accept the

gambit.Itisamusingtonotethatthispositioncanevenoccurafter1e4when 1...d5 can be countered by 2 d4. Such obscure openings oftenhave a rich history – in this case Armand Blackmar (1826-1888) fromNew Orleans popularised the line after writing about it in Brentano’sChessMonthlyin1882.

2...dxe43 c3The idea of developing the queen’s knight was devised by the keen

GermanamateurEmil JosifDiemer (1908-1990)andquickly caughtonamongstgambitplayers.Blackmar’soriginal ideawas3f3butthatrunsinto3...e5when4fxe4?allows4... h4+andWhiteislosing.

3... f64f3?!exf35 xf3?Racapturing with the queen is very risky and relies on Black going

wrong in the complications. 5 xf3 has themerit of preserving the d-pawnandbringinganotherpiece intoplay–whichmakes it perfect forgames on the internet even if computer analysis hasmade it hard forWhitetobreakdownaresoluteBlackdefence.

5... xd4Blackacceptstheofferandtakesanotherpawn.

6 e3 b4?!This issuchanobviousmove thatmanypeoplehavecopied it–but

tryingtoenterawinningendgameby6... g4isasmarterchoice.

70-0-0 g4?

ThepointofBlack’splan.HeexpectsthattheattackonthequeenwillpunishWhiteforgivingawaytwopawnsandisnowpatientlywaitingforresignation.

8 b5!Thereiscertainlytreasuretobefoundintheopeningsifyoucanplay

like this.Captureof thequeenallows9 xc7mate– a tactic that hasbeenknownsincethe1930sandchristenedtheHalosartrap.

8...e5?ThoughitseemssensibleforBlacktogivehiskinganescapesquare,

thetextmoveprovestobethepreludetoaspectacularfinish.

Alsopossible:

a)8... a69 xb7 e410 xa6 xe3+11 b1andnow11... xd1?allows12 c6+ d813 xc7+ e814 d6+!exd615 b5+ d716xd7mate.

b)8... bd79 xb7 e4(desperatebut9... b6simplyallows10xc7mate) 10 xc7+ d8 11 xa8+ xa8 12 xa8 xd1 13 xd1when Black should count the pieces and then resign, N.Walker-R.Almond,Jersey2003.

9 xc7+ e7

10 xb7!A chance to win the brilliancy prize is a key motivation for every

Blackmar-DiemerGambitconnoisseur.

10... xb7

Whatelse?

11 c5mate

Whoareyouplaying?

‘Playtheman,nottheboard’isanoldadagebutonethatcanhelpyouscorepoints–evenagainststrongeropponents.

Inparticularyoumighttailoryourchoiceofopeninginaccordancewiththe character of your opponent. For example, if you know that hehabitually gets into time-trouble why not adopt an opening that invites

complications?Hewillthengointodeepthought,spendtoolongoverthepositionandrunshortoftime–whenheismuchmorelikelytomakeamistake.Tailoringyouropeningplayinthiswayisnotdifficult–mastersandgrandmastersdoitallthetime–sowhynotyou?

For example, Garry Kasparov would spend months working out theweaknesses of his world title challengers and plan his openingsaccordingly. It is therefore rather ironic thathiseventual lossof the titlewas due to being outfoxed himself in the openings. Vladimir Kramnikmade no secret of the fact that he had adopted the Berlin defencebecause it usually led to an early exchange of queens. And withoutqueens theworld’s best attacking player ... could not attack! Kasparovwasdisarmed,failedtowinasinglegameinthematch,losthistitleandretiredfromchessafewyearslater.

Apracticallife

Sotrytofindoutaboutyouropponent’sstrengthsandweaknessesandadapt your opening play accordingly. If you are not sure about youropponent, ask around. It may be easier than you think to gainintelligence. Time-trouble addicts quickly get a reputation as do thosewhoadoptbizarreopenings.Ionceaskedaratherdistinguishedforeigngentleman for a quick opinion onmy prospective opponent’s play – towhichhereplied:“Good”.AfteratediousgameIeventuallywonwithanobvioustrap.Iwentuptohimafterwardsandwithasmileonhisfaceheofferedmearevisedopinion:“Notgood!”

Ifyouropponentisapassive,defensiveplayerthenconfronthimwithan attacking system. If he is set in his ways and always plays oneparticular opening – use a move-order trick to get him into unfamiliarterritory. And be flexible yourself – break the all-too-common habit ofplaying the same opening lines irrespective of who your opponent is.Thusifyouarefacedwithajuniorwhoarrivesattheboardwithalaptopcaseslungoverhisshoulder,choosealinethatyouhavenotemployedforawhile tonullifyanyhomeworkhehasdoneonyourusualopeningpreferences.

Beatingstrongerplayers

Ifyouwanttobeatstrongerplayersyoumustnotonlyhaveself-beliefbutalsoarealisticplanofaction.Itisallverywelltosayyouaregoingtobamboozle thehighest ratedplayer in the tournament,attack likecrazyandthencheckmatehimwithbrillianttactics.Ifonlyitwerethateasywewouldallbechampions.HoweveronefinedayIhituponanothermethod– to adopt a safety first approach which nevertheless retains latentattackingpotential. I found thatevengrandmasters couldget frustratedandlosenotonlytheirpatiencebutalsotheirhead.

Lane–NunnStroud1980

1e4c52 c3AtthistimeJohnNunnwaswellknownforhisanalyticalwritingsonthe

complexopenSicilian:2 f3–soIoptedforthesolidclosedSicilian.AsIwasateenagerandheagrandmaster,Iconsideredithisjobtogoforthewinandminemerelytogetoutoftheopeninginonepiece!

2...e63g3d5Blackstrikesat thecentreat theearliestopportunity inordertocross

White’s usual plan of a kingside fianchetto, castling and gradualpreparationforanattack.

4exd5exd55d4cxd46 xd4

AsithappensIwashappytoexchangepawnsinthecentrebecausealready the position is clear enough forme to side-step any tricks andtraps intheopening.OntheotherhandBlacknowhastofindawaytogenerateactivityotherwiseIwillhavetheready-madeplanofpilingupontheweakisolatedd-pawn.

6... f67 g5 e78 b5+ c69 xf6 xf610 c5

WhenIplayedthisqueenmoveIcouldseefromNunn’sexpressionhewasnot impressedbecauseheknewIwashappytoheadforanequalendgame.ButBlackdoesn’twantanequalendgamenordoeshewantadraw.Beingthetournamentfavourite,hefeelsobligedtowininordertomake sure of first prize. However this is a hard task in the presentpositionandhewillhavetotakeriskstounbalancethegame.

Justfortherecord,Nunn’sdispleasurewasarousedalsobecauseherecognisedthepositionasonereachedintheGoringGambitDeclined.Apet line ofminewhich normally occurs after 1 e4 e5 2 f3 c6 3 d4exd44c3d55exd5 xd56cxd4 g47 e2 b4+8 c3 xf39 xf3c4. Here we have the same position as the game but with colours

reversed–apart fromthefact thatWhitehasplayedtheextramoveg3whichmakeslittleornodifference.

10... xc3+11bxc3Not 11 xc3when 11...0-0when 12 xc6 bxc6 13 xc6? e8+ is

fantastic forBlack. Iam in factstill followingacceptedpractice–at thecost of allowing doubled pawns I have prevented Black from castling.Nunnseesnootherwaytoproceedbuttoreluctantlyallowanexchangeofqueens.

11... e7+12 xe7+ xe7130-0-0The further simplification has seriously reduced any attacking

prospectsformyopponent.True,Ihavetokeepaconstantwatchonthedoubledc-pawnsbutBlackalsohasaweakness–the‘isolani’ond5.

13... e614 e2 d6Thekingtakesupresidenceond6whereitprovidesprotectiontothe

d5pawn.HoweverNunnisnotsatisfiedwithmeredefenceand intendstousethekingformoreactiveoperations.

15 he1 c516c4dxc417 xc6bxc6After17... xc6Icansteerthegametowardsalikelydrawby18 d4+c719 xe6+fxe620 xe6.

18 f4 g419 e5+ b4?In trying toohard towin,Blackgoesastray.Nunn later revealed that

his idea was to place the king on c3 in order to create his owncheckmating threats.But all this smacksof frustration, lossof patienceandanunjustifiedrefusaltoacceptthedraw.

20 d4!Now suddenly Black is struggling. The threat is 21 d3+ with a

discovered attack on the unprotected bishop – not tomention the factthatBlackisonthevergeofbeingmated.

20... e620... ae821 d3+ c322 xg4isalsohopelessforBlackbecause

22...cxd3allows23 c5mate.

21a3+!Though the black king is in a perilous situation anyway, this pawn

nudgeclinchesmatters.The combinationworksbecauseallmypiecesarecooperatingwhereastheloneblackkinghasnosupport.

21... xa3There is no escape from themating net: 21... c3 22 e2mate or

21... a422 xe6fxe623 xc4+ xa324 a5mate.

22 xe6 b4Whatelse?22...fxe6ismetby23 xc4a5(toprevent a5+)24 e3+a225 a4mate.

23 c51-0

So in my first ever game against a grandmaster my ‘safety first’

strategyworkedwonders.AndmanyyearslaterIhadtheopportunitytopullthesamestuntagain.

Lane–BologanCappellelaGrande1992

1e4c52 c3e63g3I am up against a world class player so decided to fall back on the

cheekyplanIhadadoptedagainstNunn.Thiswouldcomeasasurprisetomyopponentbecauseat this timeIwasregularlyplaying3 f3 andtransposingbackintotheopenSicilian.

The reason for this odd looking move-order is that it provokesconfusion.2...e6isapopularreplytotheClosedSicilianbutifyouareanadherentoftheDragonorNajdorfvariationswhichfeature2...d6youwillsuddenlyfindyourselfoutsideyourcomfortzone.AsithappensBologanplays2...e6anywaysoIdecidedonmypatent‘safetyfirst’approach.

3...d54exd5exd55d4cxd46 xd4 e6VaryingfromtheNunngame.Defendingthed5pawnwiththebishop

ratherthantheknightavoidsthepinby g5.ItisclearthatBlackalreadyrecognisesthatheneedstokeepalloptionsopen.

7 g2 c68 a4 b49 ge2a6100-0

This isnewterritory forbothplayersbut Iwashappy tohavecastledandproceededwithmydevelopment. In the long-term Iwill be able togenerate play against the isolated d5 pawn but more importantly mygrandmasteropponenthasnoobviouswayofdisruptingmypositionat

anearlystageofthegame.

10... ge711 f40-0It isamatterof tastewhether to try11... xc3. In factdoublingthec-

pawnsisonlyashorttermgainforBlack–forexample:12bxc30-013c4dxc414 xe6fxe615 xc4withthebetterchancesbecausethee6pawnisweak.

12 ce2 c513c3Iamnotgoingtoallowthed-pawntoadvance.

13...b514 d1 b615a4b416cxb4 xb417b3Istillneededtocompletemydevelopmentandsawthatafianchettoed

bishoponb2couldtargettheg7pawn.

17... c818 b2 f519 d4 e420 g4My firstmajor threat. I amnow ready to play e6with the threat of

mateong7.

20... g621 xe4dxe4?Bologan is all too casual and misses the essential 21... xd4which

wouldmaintainequalchances.Hemusthavebeenconfusedatmyplay– in the opening I seemed to be interested only in a safe and soundpositionbutnowIamplayinglikeacaveman!

22 f5 c523 h5Thedoubleknightattackontheg7pawnworkswonders.Ontheother

hand 23 xg7? allows 23... g5! when queen moves allow ... xf4winning and 23 xg7 runs into 23... xf5 when 24 xf5 xg7 allowsBlacktosurvivetheonslaught.

23...f624 hxg7 d5

25 e7+! xe726 f5+ f7IfBlackblocksthecheckby26... g6then27 e7+winshisqueen.

27 g7+ e628 xe7+ xf529 xf8 c6BlackhasawretchedpositionbutplaysoninthehopethatIwillslipup

intime-trouble.ButIdon’t.

30 d4 d331 g8h532h3 c733 c8+ g634 g8+ f535xc5 xc536 ac1 d637b4 d738 d5+1-0

It isamajor test toplayNigelShortwhowaswidely regardedas thestrongestBritishplayer of the20th century after contestingaworld titlematch against Garry Kasparov in 1993. Nevertheless my strategyremainedthesame–toplaysomethingsolidyetwithpotentialandhopethatIwouldsofrustratemyopponentthathewouldgowrong.

Lane–ShortChessOlympiad,Mallorca2004

1e4e62d4d53 d2h6!?

I was slightly shocked but at the same time amused by this move.Eagertoavoidadraw,Shorthasanaggingfeelingthathemightrunintoopening preparation if he follows themain lines. Hence the reason forplaying something unusual. In fact 3...h6 has also been adopted onoccasionbyafewotheradventurousworldclassplayers.

AtthispointIvaguelyrecollectedoneofShort’sgamesfromGibraltar2003wherehedefendedasimilarpositionagainstPavlovic.Thegamewent3...c54 gf3 f65exd5 xd56 b3 d7whenWhiteplayed7g5–soIguessyoucouldarguethatatleastthismovehasbeenruled

outbytheunusualmoveorder.

4c3Aflexibleresponsewhichhelpstosupportthed4pawn.

4...c55 gf3 f66exd5 xd57 b37dxc5mightalsobeconsideredinordertoopensomelines.After7...d78 c4 xc590-0givesWhiteaslightedgebecausehehasmore

roomtomanoeuvrehispiecestobetterpositions.

7... d78 d3 c7A simple developingmove which equalizes because of the threat of

...c4forkingtheknightandbishop.

9 c2b6100-0I had not played this line before but kept faith in the basic policy of

developandcastletoavoidanypitfallsintheopening.

10... b711 e1 e712 e5 xe513dxe50-0-0It makes sense to sharpen the position by queenside castling. The

immediatethreatis14... xc3withadiscoveredattackonthequeen,soIhavetotakeevasiveaction.

OntheotherhandBlackmustnotplay13...0-0?becauseWhitehasadirectattackwith14 g4threatening xh6.Then14... h815 h5g8(or15... ad816 xh6gxh617 xh6+ g818 h7mate)16 xh6!(rippingopenBlack’sdefence–alogicalsacrificewhenyouconsiderthatWhite’squeen’srookandbishoparealsoreadyforaction)16...gxh617xh6f518c4 b419 e3(intending g6+and h3)isverystrong.

14 g4h515 c4g5Blackrightlytriestocreatetherightconditionstoattackonthekingside

anddistractmyattention fromanyqueensideactivity.However there isnoobvious threat sinceBlackhasnot yetdeployedsufficient forcesonthekingside.

16a4a6Blackrealisesmyintentionistoplaya4-a5andisreadytomeetitby

...b5,drivingbackthewhitequeen.

17 d2 b818 ad1An all-out attack on the queensidewill not quitework so I decide to

developmyrookinthecentrewhereithasmoreinfluence.

18...g419 c1 dg820 e4Now that Black is ready for action I place my bishop on the h1-a8

diagonal toneutraliseanypotential danger from thebishoponb7.Thepolicyoffrustratingthegrandmaster’sattackingattemptsworkswellhere.

20...h4Thee-pawnistaboobecauseafter20... xe521 xd5 xd522 f4!

(thekeymovewhichpushesBlacktothebrink)22... xc423 xe5+c824 xh8withaclearadvantage.

21 d3g322h3Attentiontodefence.Byblockingtheadvanceoftheh-pawnIminimise

anydisruptiontomykingsidepawnstructure.My idea is tocontainanyactivitydirectedagainstmycastledpositionandthenturnmyattentiontothequeenside.Ofcourse,22hxg3?isamistakebecauseafter22...hxg3

Blackhasexcellentchancesofcheckmatealongtheh-fileafterafuturedoublingofrooks.

22...gxf2+23 xf2 xe5?Abigshockas Ihadassumedthismovewasnotpossible.However,

as shownby theprevious twogames, the strongerplayer canbecomefrustratedwithapassivepositionandact rashly in a radical attempt tochange the situation. I had the impression that Short was supremelyconfident about his position because he had left the board and didn’tcome back for ages. Moreover this is the position that attracted theattention of most spectators – who assumed I was in deep troublebecause theearlierdefensiveplanof24 xd5 xd525 f4no longerworksdue to25... xg2+26 h1 (26 f1allows26... xc4withcheckannounced in a loud voice) 26... xf2+ 27 xd5 xf4 and White canresign.

24 xd5 xd5

25 xd5!!Thoughthismaylookcrazyitisactuallyaspectacularwinningmove–

which leads toadecisiveadvantage in theendgame.After thegame Ifound out from one of the English players that Short’s disappearancefromtheboardwasduetothefactthatafterplayinghislastmovehehadimmediatelyspottedhiserroranddidn’twanthisbodylanguagetorevealanything.BythatIpresumehemeantthelookofhorroronhisface!

25... xd5If25...exd5then26 xe5leavesWhiteapieceup.

26 f4+ d6

After26... c8then27 xd5exd528 xe7issimilartothegame–theactivewhiterookgivesBlackseriousheadaches.

27 xd6+ c828 xd5exd529 e7Whitehasaveryfavourableendgamebecausethepassivepositionof

theblackkingmakesiteasyformetoconjureuptactics–especiallyifIcanaddtheknighttotheattack.

29... h630 f4 hg631g4TopreventBlack’srookschasingawaymykingfromtheg2square.

31...hxg332 g4

I have managed to fend off Black’s initial flurry of activity and nowShorthasadourdefensivetaskinprospect.

32... 8g733 g2d434cxd4cxd435 e5d3Thisisagoodexampleoftheresourcefulnessshownbytopplayers.If

Whitetakestherookthenthed-pawnpromotes.

36 c7+!Theeasiestwaytokeepguardoverthetroublesomed-pawnistobring

therookintotheaction.Intime-troubleInoticedthat36 xg7allowsthetrick 36... xg4 when after 37 hxg4 d2 I can’t stop the pawn fromqueening.LaterIdidfindadrawby38 e8+ c7(38... d739 e4d1=40 d4+wins)39 e7+ c8(or39... c640 e5d1= 41 c7+

d542 d7+ xe543 xd1andBlackcanresign)40 e8+ c741e7+witharepetition.

36... d837 c3 xg4

Thisisdesperatebutotherlinesarealsobleak:37... g838 f6+ e8(if38... d7 then39 e5+ isa killer fork)39 xd3whensuddenly thethreatofmateinonewinstheremainderofhispieces.

38 xd3+ e739hxg4 xg440 d4Iamapieceupbuteventhebestplayersintheworldtaketheirtime

resigning in the hope of amistake by their opponent – especially if hehappenstobeintime-trouble.

40... g541 f4 g642 xg3a543b3 c644 c4 d7

45 f3Ididnothavetospendanytimespottingthewinningidea–whichisto

increase the role of the king. But there is a need to be careful. Theobvious45 xc6??wouldbeatragicerrorofjudgement–evenifitdoesseemnatural to exchangewhen you are a piece up.Short had craftilyspotted that 45... xc6 46 f3 b5 draws because of 47 e4 (or 47axb5+ xb5 48 d6 a4 49 b4 a3 50 e5 xb4 51 f4 with a cleardraw)47...bxa448bxa4andthebishopisofthewrongcolourdiagonaltoforcethepromotionofthea-pawn.

45... f6+46 f4 c647 e4Thegamecontinues–butallIhavetodotosecurevictoryistomake

sureIdon’tloseontime.

47... e6+48 d5 f649 e5 f350 c7+ d851 c3 xc352xc3 d753 e5f554 f41-0

Day3Strategyversustactics

ChessTrivia– InNewYork1857PaulMorphy, thebestplayerofhisday, played Louis Paulsen. They decided to record the times for anymoveover5minutes.Morphy,renownedforhisbrilliance,consumed25minutesbuthisopponentusedupawhopping11hours.

Thoughyoumayhaveapreferencefortacticalplayyoucan’texpecttodeliver onebrilliancyafter another andassumecombinational positionsfromyourgameswillendupinaFindtheWinningMovespuzzlebook.

Soyoumustalsopayattentiontostrategy–whichischaracterisedbyplanning so you can achieve some goal or other, whether it be in theshortor long term. It isamost importantaspectof thegame–afterallyouhavetoplaywellpositionallytogetyourwholearmyinplacebeforeyouunleashthosewonderfulattacks.

Sowhenthereisnosignoftacticsyoushouldgraduallyimproveyourposition or weaken that of your opponent. Keep yourself busy in quiet

periodsofthegameandlookforapiecethatisdoingverylittle–itmayeven still be sitting on its original square – and try to bring it into theaction.Itisimportantnottomakeuselessmoves,whetheritbepushingarandompawnorshufflingyourkingfromsidetoside,becausethat isasignyouaredriftingandnotplayingpurposefully.

Predict-a-move

Predict-a-move – so often overlooked by improving players – is aprovenmethodofwinningmoregames.Quitesimplyyoutrytoanticipatewhat your opponent is about to do next and then find a move thatconcealsadeadlytrapifhejustblindlycarriesonwithhisplan.

Youcanoftencatchsomeoneoutbyfindingamovethatlookslikeitismerelyimprovingyourposition–butwhichinrealityintroducesatacticaltrap.Forinstance:

PositionfromagameplayedbetweentwoamateursYugoslavia1949Inreachingthisposition,Blackknewthathisopponentwouldneverbe

abletoresistplaying1 c7?‘winningthequeen’–becauseifshemovesthen xg7+mates in two – butwhen he did so hewas rocked by theprepared trap 1... c5!! which completely turns the tables. Blackthreatens a back rankmate: 2 dxc5 d1 mate or 2 xd7 c1 mate,while2 xc5 ismetby2... xb7whenBlack’smaterialadvantagewinseasily.

Schuermans–LaneLeTouquet1991

White has just taken a pawn on c4 with his rook and has a readilyavailable tactical plan of 23 d5, meeting 23...cxd5 with 24 Rxc7.BearingthisinmindIfoundamovethatsetatrapwhilstatthesametimeimproving my position. I played 22... b5 and my opponent suspectednothingbecausethe ideaseemedsolely tobethedoublingof rooksonthe b-file by means of a future ... eb8. There followed: 23 d5?whereupon 23... xd5! exploited the pin on the e-file and left White apiecedown.

Even the opening can go wrong as was the case in Nohut –Vandevoort,BelgianTeamChampionship2002:1e4c52c3d63d4f6 4 dxc5 4 d3 is the solid alternative. 4... c6 Not 4... xe4?? –amazingly this is a frequentlymademistake – since 5 a4+wins theknightone4.5 c4!?Asharp ideadesigned toprovokecomplications5... xe46 xf7+ xf77 d5+e68 xe4d59 f3+ f610 e3e511 e2 f5

Theobviousintentionofplayingthequeentof5istocontinue... d3+.HoweverWhiteseesthiscomingandquietlybringsanotherpieceintothegamewith12 f3whereuponBlackautomaticallycontinueswithhisplanof 12... d3+? thereby allowing 13 xd3! Only now does it becomeclearthatpredict-a-moveworkedatreatbecause13... xd3ismetby14e5+winningbackthequeenandleavingWhiteapieceup.1-0!

After the previous basic examples we now look at slightly moresophisticatedmethodswhichareevenmore likely to lure theunwary totheirdoom:

InthegameQendro–Shaw,ChessOlympiad,Turin2006,Whitehasjust advanced the b-pawn against his higher rated opponent. Thestraightforward idea is to play xc8 followed by c1 and a draw offer.TheScottish internationalnowshowedhisguileby lettingWhitegetonwithhisidea–becausehehadspottedsomethingratherspecial.17...a5! Shaw lays his trap.Allwill soon be revealed. The queen shift is ausefulmoveanyway–becauseitprepares...b7-b5exploitingthepinnedknight.

18 xc8+ xc819 c1 c2!

Astunningreplythatwasconcoctedafewmovesagowiththepredict-a-movemethod.Blackseemstoofferhisrookfornothingbutthen20xc2revealsthepointof... a5–20... e1mate!Theothertacticalpointisthethreatof... e7deflectingthewhitequeenfromitsdefenceoftherook.20g3Whiteavoidsthebackrankmate.If20 f1then20...b5winsbecausetheknightispinned.20... e721 xe7 xc1+AndthematerialadvantageledtovictoryforBlack.Thegamecontinued:22 g2 c823xb7 e824 c5 b525 xa6 xa626 xa6 a827 b4 f828f1 e729 e2 d630 d2g531a4 g832 d3f633b4 g634

b5 h635a5 xh236b6 c637 b4+ b738 d3 c639 c5xf2+40 c3 f141b7 c742a6 a143 b4h544 b5 b1+45a5h446 xe6+ b847 d8hxg348 c6+ c70-1

I usedpredict-a-move tomy advantage in the following gamewhichonceagaindemonstrateshoweffectivethismethodcanbe:

Solomon–LaneOceaniaZonal,Auckland2005

In this position White has just played 29 ga3 with the obviousintentionofcapturingthea4pawn.Apredict-a-movescenario–soIsetatrap.29... d8Thisworkswellbecause it looks likemyonlyconcern isthe d4 pawn but that hardly conflicts withWhite’s obvious reply. 30xa4?Whynot?Becauseof...30... xc5!ThisiswhatIwasplanning–todivertthewhitequeenawayfromthekingsidesoIcouldattack.31 xc5Ofcourse31dxc5isruledoutby31... xe5.31... d5!

It suddenly dawned on White that there is no satisfactory way ofdefendingagainstthethreatofcheckmateong2.Ihadtoplay29... d8tomake sure that the bishopwas protected on d5.Whitemanaged tostruggleonforafewmovesbutisahopelesstask.32 1a2 xa233a5 c1+34 h2 f4+35 h1 c80-1It is time to see how thepredict-a-move method worked in a recent

game.

Howell–NasriWorldJuniorChampionship,Yerevan2006

1d4d52c4e63 c3c6This is theNoteboomvariationof theSemi-Slavdefence.The idea is

that if White continues with 4 cxd5 then Black plays 4...exd5. ThedifferencefromQueen’sGambitlinesisthatthereisnoblackknightonf6so g5isnotanimmediateoption.

4e4dxe45 xe4 b4+6 d2This Marshall Gambit surrenders the d-pawn in return for a strong

initiativewheretheblackqueenischasedaroundtheboard.ItwasfirstplayedbyMarshallagainstSchlechter,MonteCarlo1902andtheexpertsarestilldebatingwhoisbetter.

6... xd47 xb4 xe4+8 e2

Whiteoffersanotherpawn–happy in theknowledge thathis lead indevelopmentwillensuretacticalchances.

8...c5!?Thoughthisiswellknown,nowadays8... a6isthefashionablemove.

After9 d6thegameBorovikov-Porper,Senden2006continued:9...e510 f3 g4110-00-0-012b4 f6(12... xb4!?isworthatry)13c5d5 14 e1 c3? (exchanging pieces by means of this fork seems sensible but Black hasmissedsomething)15 xa6! xf3(if15... xd1then16 xe4winsmaterial)16 b3 g417 f1gaveWhiteawinningpositioninBorovikov-Porper,Senden2006.

9 xc5 xg210 f3Thebishopdefendstherookandshoosawaythequeen.

10... g511 a3

ThebishopretreatsandinsomecasesWhiteisreadytofollowupwithd6.

11... d7RatherbelatedlyBlackfearsthathispieceswillbereducedtotherole

ofmerespectators.

Also possible is 11... e7? 12 e2 f5?! (perhaps 12... bc6!?shouldbetested)13 g1 d8?(13... f6ismetby14 d2intendingtocastlequeensidewithbrightprospects)14 xd8+! xd8150-0-0+ c7(or 15... d7 16 d4 xd4 17 xd4 e5 18 d6 intending to doublerookson thed-filewithanexcellentgame)16 d4! xd417 xd4d7?!(Blackistryingtocatchupondevelopmentbutthisissimplywrong)18 xg7 e819 d6+ c820 h4h621 h5 d722 a3 b623xf7 xf724 xf71-0Jobava-Portisch,Rethymnon2003.

12 e2 e5!?13 c313 e4,intending g1,lookslikeadecentalternative.

13... e714 e4 xf3+15 xf3This position is fine for White with his unopposed bishop exerting

naggingpressurealong thea3-f8diagonal–somethingwhichmakes itvirtually impossible for Black to castle kingside. In this difficult positionBlackmustdefendaccurately.

15... a5+16 f1 f517 d1 a4Thoughtheobviousmoveis17... d7?,toprepare...0-0-0,itbackfires

indramatic fashion:18 xd7! xd719 c5+ (thestartofakinghunt)19... e820 xb7 d821 c6+ f822 b3+whenBlackcangiveup.

18 d3 d719 e2 c6

20 d6!A classic continuation using the predict-a-move method. Black has

alreadyshownhisreadinesstoacceptanymaterialonofferbygrabbingacoupleofpawnssohewillhardlybeabletoresistthisrook–especially

as there is no obvious checkmate in sight. The conventional way tomaintaintheadvantageis20 g1–butthatwouldn’tscareBlack.

20... xd6?This totally justifies Howell’s imaginative play. 20... c7 would have

beenmoresensible.

21 xd6+ d7Black’spieceslackco-ordinationandhiskingisbadlyexposed.

22 g1Before continuing with the onslaught White moves his rook out of

danger.Blackunderestimatedthis‘quietmove’andnowcanonlysitandwatchasWhite’sattackingoptionsrapidlyincrease.

22... g8

23 xf7Theteenagegrandmasterisspoiltforchoice.23 d3!alsopromisesa

spectacularfinishinviewofthethreatofdiscoveredcheck:23... c7(or23... e724 e4+ e825 f6+!gxf626 xg8mate)24 b5+ b625c5+! a526b4+ a427 d4andmatewillsoonbeforced.

23... b623... e8doesnothelp.Whiteresponds24 h6when24... f825

xg7wins.

24 d3+ e825 d6+ d726 f5+1-0

Initiative

Whenyouareattackingorputtingyouropponentunderpressureyouhave the initiative. This can be crucial because when you are in thedrivingseatyouaremore likely tobeable tocarryouta forced tacticalsequence:

Miles–LaneBritishChampionship2001

Aknifeedgepositionhasbeenreachedwhereatfirstsightitisdifficulttoseewhoexactlyhas the initiativeasbothsidesareon theattack. Infact I am threatened with checkmate in one move by 39 d5 – butthankfully it ismy move and this gives me the chance to exploit myinitiative and commence a forcing combination. The key factors onmysidearetheexposedwhitekingandthefactthatmyqueeniswellplacedtoattack.Therefollowed:38... f4+Theknightcoversthed5squarebutmoreimportantlythewhitekingisnowforcedtotakeawalkaroundtheboard.39 e3Instead39 e1 xc3+leadsdirectlytomateafter40d1 f1+ 41 c2 d3+ 42 b3 d4+ 43 a2 c2+ 44 a3 b2mate. 39... d4+! The only way to force the white king into the openboard.Even though I only have a queen and knight in hot pursuit it isenoughbecauseWhite’spiecesaretoofarawaytoprovideanyformofcover.40cxd4cxd4+41 xd4 If41 xf4 thenWhite ismatedwithapawnafter41...g5+42hxg5+hxg5mate.41... xf2+42 c4 c2+43b4Thekingcannotescapeby43 d4dueto43... e6+44 d5(or

44 e3f4mate)44... c5mate.43... d3+

44 a5If44 a3then44... b2mate.44... d2+0-1After45 xa6comestheknightfork45... c5+winningthequeen.

Aneasier versionof theawesomepower of a forcing combination isthe following endgame where White uses his initiative to delivercheckmate:

Kuzubov–VanBeekGibraltar2007

White finished smartly with the forcing 57 h6! threatening 58 e6mate. This was enough for Black to resign because on 57... d6,stoppingtherookmate,comesamatewiththeknightinstead–58 d3mate.

Strategy

Youcanusestrategywhereapositionalplanisnecessarytoimproveyourposition.Subtlemanoeuvring,placingpiecesonmysterioussquaresandpatientlyprovokingpawnweaknessescanseemadauntingtaskbutdonotbedismayed–youareprobablyalreadyplayingstrategicallywhenyoumoveupyourqueentoamenacingattackingpositionandfollowupwith a flank pawnadvance to create a point of entry in the opponent’scastledposition...

But it isprobablyeasier toseehowasmallpositionaladvantagecanleadtoasubstantialplus:

Karpov–KasparovGame17,WorldChampionshipLyon/NewYork1990

Thisisatypicalexamplewherethepathsofpositionalplayandtacticscometogethertoimproveaposition.HereBlackhasjustplayed... c8towhichtheobviousansweristoexchangerooksandquicklyagreeadraw.HoweverWhitefindsawaytomaintainthetension:

26 c6! e5The problem with exchanging rooks is that 26... xc6 27 dxc6 gives

Whiteastrongpassedpawn– therebycondemningBlack tomiserabledefence after 27... c7 (or 27... xc6 fails to 28 d8+ f8 29 h6winningeasily)28 d7 e529 b4e630 e8+(thisisjustfantasticforWhitewhocangleefullychasetheblackking)30... g731 f8+ f632h8+! g533 d2+ f434h4+ xh435 f6+ g436 f3+ h537

g4+anditisfinallytimeforBlacktoadmitdefeat.

27 c3 b8In the space of a fewmoves it has become obvious that Black has

beenreducedtopassivityandnowhaslittlefreedomofchoice.After27...xc328 xc3(Whitecontrolsthec-fileandiftheblackrookmovesoff

the line then c7 is very strong) 28... xc6 29 xc6 White’s queendominatestheboardandthereisanimpendingthreatofe4-e5whichwillhelpcreateapassedd-pawn.

28 d4f629 a5

29... d6EventhegreatGarryKasparovcan’tconjureupamagicalsolutionand

mustsittightinhiswretchedpositionandadoptawait-and-seepolicy.Aspreviously,thepawncannotbewonbecauseafter29... xc630dxc6xc631 d8+ f732 xb8Whitehasaclearadvantage.Instead29...d7 encourages 30 c5 – an echo of the actual game where Whitedominated thec-fileand tried to forceanexchangeof rooks:30... xc631 xc6 d632 e8+(thestartofakinghunt)32... g733 d8h2+ 34 f1 h1+ 35 e2 h2 36 xe7+ h6 37 f8+ leads to aforcedmateafter37... h538g4+ g539 xf6+ h640 f8mate.

30 c3 e8Black finally concedes control of the c-file and is helpless to prevent

Whitefromsteadilyimprovinghisposition.

31a3 g732g3Maybe 32 c7! is the best choice. Black would then have to worry

about 32... xc7 33 xc7 b6 34 c6 b7 35 e5whenWhite has aclearadvantage.

32... e533 c5h534 c7KarpovdecidesthetimeisrighttoexchangeBlack’sonlyactivepiece.

34... a1So Black has avoided the exchange of pieces – but at a hefty cost

becausenowthebishopisoutofplay.

35 f4 d736 c7 d8TheendofabaddayforKasparovas36... xh3allows37 xe7+

xe738 xe7+ g839 h6whichleadstomate.

37d6g538d7 f839 d2 e540 b71-0I am quite sure many people would carry on but Kasparov is wise

enoughtorealisehecandolittleagainstthesimpleplanof c6followedby e3-b6winninghandsdown.

Yearslaterthesamepositionaltricktoavoidexchangeswasacclaimedastrulyinsightful.Howeveralittleknowledgecanworkwonders...

Kramnik–AronianChessOlympiad,Turin2006

20 c6!Noprizes for guessing the keymove–but it is agentle reminderof

how history can repeat itself. A canny player can watch out for suchpositionalnuancestohelpconvertaprobabledrawintoawin.20 xe7istemptingbutthen20... e821 f6(21 xd6? iscalamitousbecauseof21... xc122 xc1 xd6winningapiece)21... c8 givesBlack activeplay.

20... xc6?It seems that this response might have some merit because the c-

pawnmaybe roundedup laterandcaptured.However in reality this isnotsoeasyandinthemeantimeWhitecanusethepassedpawntoforceBlackontothedefensive.Aronianshouldhaveinsteadconsidered20...fc8when21 dc1e6offersequalchances–howeverover-the-board

pressurecaninduceeventheworldNo.3togowrong.

21dxc6 c822 c1e623 d2 c7ThequeenisawkwardlyplacedherebutotherwiseWhiteplays24

a5andadvancesthec-pawnonesquarefurther.If23... b6then24e7 is hard to meet. After 24... c7 (not 24... xc6? allows 25 e8+winning)25 xc7 xc726 a5 c827c7intending c6givesWhiteawinningendgame.

24a4NowthatBlackispreoccupiedwithhaltingtheadvanceofthec-pawn,

itmakes sense forWhite toweakenBlack’s pawn structure so he cantheninfiltratehiscamp.

24...d525axb5axb526 b4 b827 a3Whiteswitcheshisqueentothea-fileinordertothreaten a5–once

againBlackhaspracticaldifficulties.

27... d428 a6 e5After 28... b6 29 a5 White threatens e3 to exchange bishops

which would then enable the tactic xb6! when ... xb6 allows c6-c7winning.

29f4 d630 a5Whitehassucceededinhisstrategyof forcingthequeentogiveway

andthisheraldsthefurtheradvanceofthec-pawntotheseventhrank.

30... c831 a7 a832 b6 b833 d4!

The centralised queen is striking out in every direction and though ithasbeenchasedawayfromthequeensidewhereitwastryingtoassisttheadvanceofthec-pawn,itisnowperfectlyplacedforactiononthea1-

h8diagonal.

33...b4Preventing c3whenthequeenandbishopbatterythreatensmateon

g7orh8.

34c7 a8After34... b7 follows35 f6when the killer d8+ is hard tomeet,

especiallyas35... xc7losesto36 e7.

35 b6 f836 xb4 xb437 xb4 e81-0

Howmanymovesinaplan?

A plan refers to a series of moves to improve the position, not onesolitarymove.Naturally,whenyoustartplanningyoucangothroughtherulesoutlinedinChapterOne,payingparticularattentiontoforcedmovesand threats from your opponent. After you have satisfied yourself thatthereisnospectaculartactictohandandthatthereisnopredict-a-moveavailable then comes the time to think.This is themomentwhenmostmistakes occur because the temptation is to wait and see what theopponentisuptobymovinganypiecejustforthesakeofit.Thisisthewrongattitude–butyoucansignificantly improveyourperformancebysimply taking a little time decidingwhich piece is contributing the leastandthentryingtoimproveitsposition.

Benko–BotvinnikMonteCarlo1968

1c4g62g3 g73 g2e54 c3 e75e4d66 ge2ThereisatouchofironyhereinthatBenkoisemployingtheBotvinnik

systemoftheEnglishOpening–againstBotvinnikhimself!

6... bc67d3It is worth noting that White is playing the Closed Variation of the

SicilianDefencewithcoloursreversedandanextramove.Theargumentbeing that themove inhandmakes littledifference. Just for the record

theusualmove-orderisasfollows:1e4c52 c3 c63g3g64 g2g75d3d66 ge2e5.

7...f58 d5The knight moves to a square of influence and if Black employs

copycat tacticsandplacesaknightond4 then it caneasilybeshooedawaywithc2-c3.Alsopossible:80-00-09 d5(9 e3!?ismetby9...d4tostopthepossibilityofatimelyd3-d4)9...fxe4(Ithinkthisreduces

Black’s options such as ...f5-f4 so it is not as popular as Botvinnik’shandlingoftheopening–meanwhile9... e610 e3 d7 leadsto themaingame)10dxe4 e611 e3 d712 d2 f713 ad1 af814f3ledtoequalplayinStokke-Hammar,Stockholm2006.

8...0-09 e3 e6AtthemomentthepositionhardlylooksdangerousforWhitebutBlack

is engaging in positional chess by improving his pieces beforecontemplatinganattack.Thebishop comes to e6 in order to allow thequeen to occupy thed7 square so that the rooks canbe co-ordinated.Thiswillformthepreludetoamiddlegameplanbasedonthedoublingofrooksonthef-file.

10 d2 d7110-0 f712 ac1 af813f4

The position seems to be tense but what should Black do with noobviousbreakthroughinsight?InhisnotestothegameBotvinnikmadeitallseemsoeasybyoutliningaplanandthencarrying itout.Firstofalltheideaistoexchangepawnsone4whenWhiteisobligedtotakebackwith the d-pawnotherwise a knight occupies the useful f5 square. Thenextstageistoexchangethelight-squaredbishopswith... h3inordertoweakencontrolof thee4pawnandexpose thewhiteking.Then the

intentionistoexchangepawnsonf4whenWhitewilltakebackwiththeg-pawninordertohavesomecontroloverthee5square.ThiswillallowBlack tocontinuewith the taskofundermining thee4pawnwitharookon e8 andwhen a knight defends it from g3 then comes the advance...h7-h5, highlighting the weakness of the e4 pawn and exploiting theopenpositionofthewhiteking.

13...fxe414dxe4 c8!?Thismight lookstrangebut ifyouknowtheplantounderminethee4

pawnitislogical.Theideaistoplay... h3butifWhitetakesonh3thequeenwouldhavetorecapture,leavingthec7pawntoitsfate.Thereforetheknightretreatisdesignedtocoverthec-pawnbecausetherookonf7isnowdefendingit.

15c5 h316b4 xg217 xg2exf418gxf4 e819 g3This is all part of Botvinnik’s plan and is the obvious continuation

becauseitprovidesextracoverforthewhiteking,whileatthesametimedefending the e4 pawn. 19 ec3 is less impressive after 19... d8,intending...c7-c6trappingtheknightandgivingBlackthebetterofit.

19...h5

The plan has been smoothly executed by Botvinnik and the variouspositionalthemeshaveenabledBlacktocreateasituationwherethereisscopetostartanattack.

20b5Thoughitlooksawkward,necessaryis20h4,preventingtheadvance

oftheblackh-pawn–althoughthegameremainscomplicatedafter20...g4.

20... 6e721f5h422fxg6 xf123 xf1If23 xf1then23... g4+24 f2 xg6givesBlackwinningchances

becausethee4pawnisweakandthewhitekingbadlyexposed.

23...hxg324 f7Instead24 h6 ismet strongly by 24... g4! attacking the e4 pawn.

After 25 f4 xg6 26 xg7 gxh2+ 27 xh2 xd5 28 xd5+ xg7winscomfortably.

24... e5!Botvinnikmaintainshisadvantagebyholdingon tohiskeydefensive

piece.Insteadacasualmovesuchas24... e6?courtsdisasterby25xg7+! xg7 26 d4+ g8 (26... xg6 allows the knight fork 27 f4+winningtheblackqueen)27 f6+ f828 h6mate.

25 d4 g4The rook is offered as a sacrifice in the knowledge that 26... xf4?

allows27 f6+winninginstantly.

26 f4Or26 xe5gxh2+27 g3 xe4+28 xh2 xg629 xe7+ xe7

favouringBlack.

26... h5

Thebigthreatsare27... xh2+and27... xd5toprepare... xf4whenthegameisover.

27 xe5 xh2+28 f3 xd2BlackhasamaterialadvantagebutWhitestruggleson–moreinhope

thananythingelse.

29 f6+ g730 xe8+ xg631 f6+ h732 xg3 d3+33 f2xb5ItistimeforWhitetocountthepiecesbecausetheknightcannotmove

duetothethreatof... b2+,while34 f8looksuselessafter34... c5+.

34cxd6 xe80-1

Naturallystrategyandtacticstendtogohandinhand.InthefollowinggameWhitegetsagripon theposition,makes itawkward forBlack todevelopandthendeliversaneattacticalfinishtowininstyle.

Xie–Larsen

Monaco1994

1e4g62d4 g73 c3c6ThispawnadvanceprovidesBlackwithflexibility.Hecanfollowupwith

...d7-d5makingitaCaro-Kannorplay...d7-d6whichisaPirc.

4 f3d65h3XieJun,women’sworldchampionat the time,already takessteps to

restrictBlack’smovementsbypreventing... g4pinningtheknight.

5... f66a40-07 e3 bd78 e2Againweseethetriedandtestedpolicyofdevelopandcastle.

8...e59dxe5!?dxe5100-0 e711 d3a5Black makes an effort to stop White gaining more space on the

queenside.

12 c4 e813 fd1

13...h6?!Thestartofacleverbutflawedplantotransfertheknightvisf8-h7to

g5orevene6.However thismanoeuvre isvery timeconsumingand inthemeanwhileWhitecanproceedtoimproveherposition.After13... b4comes14 g5!when14... f815b3h616 f3 xc4 17 xc4 givesWhiteagreatendgameasitiseasierforhertomanoeuvrethepiecestobetterpositions.

14 d2Thismay lookoddbut the idea is tomove thequeen,play c4and

infiltratewiththewhiteknightond6.

14... h715 b3 g516 c4Whitehasmanaged togetaknight to theusefulc4square,whereas

theopponent’sknightong5hasnothelped to improveBlack’spositiononebit.

16... c5?Larsentargetsthequeenande4pawnbuthasmissedatacticalpoint

asthequeenscannowbeforciblyexchanged.Animprovementis16...e6,although17 d6maintainsWhite’sadvantage.

17 a3 ce6Instead17... cxe4?runsintotroublebecauseoftheline18 xe7

xe719 xe4 xe420 b6 b821 d8+ h722 xc8winning.

18 xe7 xe719 b6TheknightexertsapowerfulinfluencebyrestrictingBlack’squeenside

pieces – in particular the light-squared bishop will have difficulty inmoving.

19... b820 g4! e8The rook retreats in preparation for ...h7-h5 which if played

immediatelywouldallow21 xg5hittingtherookandwinning.

21 xg5!White exchanges pieces in order to keep a grip on the game.Black

hasahardtimegettinghispiecesintoaction.

21...hxg5

22 b1!Awonderfulstrategytobringtheknightintotheactionviad2-c4where

itwillincreasethestrangleholdonBlack’sposition.

22... f823 d2 c524 dc4 xb625 xb6Black has exchanged one of the knights but is still saddled with a

terrible position where he can hardly move a piece without losingmaterial.

25... f826 d2 e727 ad1StepbystepXieJunhaspatientlyimprovedherposition.Butnowthat

her strategy has succeeded in restricting the movement of Black’spieces,shehastolookforatacticalfinish.

27... f828 xc8+ fxc829 d7+ f629... f8ismarginallybetterevenif30 xe6fxe631 h7 g832

dd7leavesWhitewellontop.

30 xe6fxe631g4!

1-0Blackresignedratherthanfacethestylish 1d3and f3mate.

The strategy of improving the position of a knight to assist in a finaltacticalsolutionisalsothethemeofthefollowinggame:

Ftacnik–LaneAustralianChampionship,Brisbane2006

1d4f5ThisopeningisknownastheDutchDefence.Ittendstogoinandout

offashionbecausenotmanyofthetopplayersfavourit.However,ithasbeenemployedbyformerworldchampionsAlekhineandBotvinniksoithasgainedsomedegreeofrespectability.

2 f3 f63g3g64 g2 g75b30-06 b2I knew in advance that my grandmaster opponent from Slovakia

preferred this solid set-up which is supposed to stifle Black’s intendedpiecedevelopment.However thisdidnotdetermebecauseIknewthatWhitehadalottodoifhewantedtowinquickly–andIwasinthemoodforalongfight.

6...d670-0 e8The queen helps prepare a future ...e7-e5 and in some cases can

move to the g6 or h5 squares to promote an attack after the g-pawnadvances.

8 bd2 c69 c4e610a4h611e3g512 e1a5IwantedtorestrainWhite’squeensidepawnadvancealthoughthetext

doesmakeiteasierforWhitetoexploittheb5squarenowthat...a6hasbeenruledout.

13 d3b614 a3 b715 b5 c816c4 d8The knight goes into reverse gear in a bid to exchange White’s

importantdefensiveg2-bishop.

17f3

17... f7!

Inowcarriedonwithmyplantoactivatethequeen’sknightbutIlaterfoundoutthatFtacnikhadmissedtheideaof... h8-g6.Despitethetimespenton thismanoeuvre it justaboutworksbecause theposition issolockedthatWhitehasnoimmediatepossibilityofabreakthrough.

18 a3c519 a2 e720g4 h821 e1fxg422fxg4 e423d5?Ftacnik spots a tactic and tries to lure me into a trap by offering a

pawn.23 f2isthesensiblechoiceandprovidesequalchances.

23...exd524cxd5 g6

Inkeepingwiththestrategicalplan,theknightisbroughtbackintotheactionandincreasesBlack’sinfluenceonthekingsidebypreparing...h4.Instead24... xd5?justifiesWhite’stacticsdueto25 f2! c626xe4 xe427 xe4 xe428 xd6winningbecauseof the forkof thequeenandrook.

25 f4NoticingthatIwasgettingintotime-trouble,Whitecomplicatesmatters

byofferingmeaknightfornexttonothing.

25...gxf426exf4 xf427 xe4Or27 xe4 h3+28 g2 h4withastrongattack.

27... e528 b2 f629 xe5dxe530 c3White is in trouble due to his weak d-pawn and the powerful black

knight on f4but he carriesondefendingasbest ashe can inorder toplaceobstaclesinmyway.

30... cd831 d2 f732 e3 xg233 xg2 df834h3 f435d3 h836 e4?

FtacnikknowsthepositionfavoursBlacksoherusheshismovesinmytime-trouble.HoweveritbackfiresbecausenowIhavetheopportunitytogainabigadvantage.

36... c1+37 h2 f338 e2

Ididnotsee thismovecomingbutdecided tosimplifyas I thought itwasthesafestroutetovictory.

38... xd3?!Alittlemoretimemighthavehelpedmeto find38... f1!Carryingon

attackingisthebestplanofactionsince39 e3(if39 c2then39... f2leadstomate) fails to39... xd5! threatening... xe3and... xg2mateandwinningeasily.

39 xc1 d140 g1Whitegets intomoretroublebut if theknightmovesthen... xd5will

wintheexchange.

40... f2+41 g3 xg1+42 xf2 xc143 xe5 a6??Thisthrowsawaytheadvantageandmakestheendgameacandidate

for inclusion in the final chapter on swindles. The first thing I sawwas43... g8!44d6 d145 e8+ f746 e7+ f647 xb7 xd6drawingbut Imissedthefairlyobvious44... c6!whichprevents theadvanceofthe d-pawn and brings the game to an abrupt halt in view of 45 e2(otherwise... d1willroundupthepassedpawn)when45... c2+46d3 f2intending... f6winscomfortably.

44 e6c4Thegamenowfizzlesouttoadraw.

45bxc4 xc446 xh6+ g747 xb6 xd548 b5 c649 xa5c2+50 g3 c3+51 h4 g2½-½

Day4Creatinganattack

ChessTrivia–USpresidentGeraldFordofficiallydeclaredOctober9thasNationalChessDay.

Therearesomechessplayerswhoalwaysseemtobeabletocreateanattackeveninpositionswhichlookquiteharmless.Soithelpstoknowthepre-requisitesandprinciplesgoverningthepreparationandexecutionof a successful attack.By playing through the gamesand examples inthisbookyouwillnotice thatcertainattacking themesandmotifsoccuragainandagain–andbyabsorbingtheseandintroducingthemintoyourowngamesyouwillsignificantlyimproveyourlevelofplay.

Generalrules

1Exploittheopponent’sweaknesses.

2Eliminatetheopponent’sstrengths.

3Detecttypicalmatingpatternsandcombinationalmotifs.

4Removeyourownweaknesses.

5Promoteyourstrengths.

Oppositesidescastling

Youmight assume that when the two opponents castle on oppositesidesandgoforeachother’sking, thefirst to launchanattackwillwin.Howeverthis isnotnecessarilythecasesincenotonly isexpertiseandaccuracyrequiredto invadeanenemypositionandcheckmatethekingbut also a fair amount of luck.Moreover the opponentmight launch acounter-offensivewhichwillhavetobeputdownbeforecompletingone’sownfinalassault.

TherearefewplayerswhohavewonoverchessfanslikeformerworldchampionMikhailTal.Hisentertainingplayanddazzlingattackscastamagicspellandbrightenedupthechessboard.Contemporariessawhimasaone-offchessgenius–but,evenso,itispossibletoemulatesomeofhisbrilliantmethods.

Tal–KoblencsRiga1957

1e4c52 f3d63d4cxd44 xd4Thepresentpositionisstandardforthe‘open’SicilianandoffersBlack

avarietyofwaystodevelop,dependingonhistasteandstyle.

4... f65 c3 c66 g5This isknownastheRichter-Rauzervariationaftertwoplayers–one

GermanandoneRussian–whoadvocatedthelineinthe1930s.

6...e67 d2 e780-0-00-09 b3 b610f3The f-pawn not only supports e4 but also prepares g2-g4 with a

possiblepawnstormonthekingside.Thisschemeofplayiswellknownto masters and is all about whose attack arrives first. If the defenderplays too passively and his counterattack lacks punch he could findhimselfinbigtrouble.

10...a611g4 d812 e3 c713h4b5?!14g5 d7

15g6!AstrikingpawnsacrificethatforcestheopeningoflinesagainstBlack’s

castledposition.Ifthepawnisrefusedthenpawntakespawncheckwillfollow–ifitisacceptedthenWhitepusheshish-pawntoh5andafilewillbe opened for the king’s rook. A routine player might plod on with animmediateh4-h5-h6–butthisachievesnothingasBlackcanthenblockthekingsideby...g6makinganattackmoredifficult.

15...hxg6YouwouldthinkthatthepresentdaySicilianclanwouldhavelearned

fromTal’sgamesandavoidedthispositionatallcosts–butthisisnotso.The line is still being tested – as in the gameShort-Muir,CatalanBay2004whereplaycontinued15...fxg616h5gxh517 xh5 f618 h1(perhaps18 g5isalsoworthinvestigating)18...b419 a4 b820 f2f821 g1withworryingattackingchances.

16h5gxh517 xh5 f618 h1!?Therookreturnstoitsoriginalsquaretoallowthequeentogetinfront

ofitanddoseriousdamageontheh-file.

18...d5?!Opening the h2-b8 diagonal so as to meetWhite’s threatened h2

withaqueenexchange–butTalhasareadyretort.Maybe18... e5 ismoreaccuratetobringanotherpieceovertodefendthekingside.

19e5?!Tal’s caveman temperament, coupled with a wonderful imagination,

leads him to sacrifice another pawn to enable h2. Nevertheless itseemsthatabetterwaytodothiswasby19 f4!when19... d620xd6 xd621f4threatense4-e5afterwhich h2isagainonthecards–withoutfearofaqueenexchange.

19... xe520 f4 d621 h2 f8Thestartling21... d3+looksimpressiveuntilyousee22 b1!when

Black must stop the checkmate in one after which the knight can betaken.

22 h8+ g8?Ifyouhaveplentyof timeyoucanworkout that22... e7 is thebest

chancebut intheheatofanover-the-boardattackandwithlimitedtimeon theclock it isextremelydifficult for thedefender tocopewithall thethreats.

23 h7f524 h6

Amarvellousposition–sotypicalofTal’sattractivestyle.Thebishopisimmunetocapturebecauseofthedoublepin–againstkingandqueen.Black’sdefensiveresourcesarebeingstretchedtothelimit.

24... d7

Breakingthepin–nowthebishopisthreatened.

25 xb5!Talmaybemakingmagicbuthealsodoes logic too.Therearenow

twobishopsunderattackbypawnsbutneithercanbesafelytaken.ThesecondbishopofferclearsthewayforWhite’squeen’srooktotransfertotheg-filewhereitwillplacetheg7pawninmortaldanger.

25... f7Blackjustmovestherookoutofthebishop’slineoffire.

Alsopossible:

a)25... e726 g1 a727 e2isgoodforWhite.

b)25...axb526 xb5 b727 xd6 xd628 xg7+andit’stimeforBlacktoquit.

c)25... g6 looks like itwins the queen in the corner – but 26 d4threatening27 xe6+keepstheattackraging.

26 g1 a727 d4!

27... g4Just to give you some idea of the checkmating possibilities in this

position,hereisasampleline:27... c428 xf5! f4+(or28...exf529xd5 b730 xc4iswinning)29 b1exf530 xd5 e531 xc4

xh632 xh6 d433 gh1!(intending xg8+andthen h8mate)33...fd734 xg8+ xg835 e7+ f836 g6+ e837 h8mate.

28fxg4 e5AlternativescanbehandledwithconfidencebyWhite:

a)28... f4+29 xf4 xf4+30 b1 xd431 gh1!andonceagainthethreatis xg8+followedbymate.

b)28...gxh629gxf5 f4+30 d1 g5 (or30... g331 xf7+ xf732 xg3 wins) 31 xh6 f4 32 xg5 xg5 33 g6 and Black canresign.

29 c6 xc330 e3!Thebishop isnowpoised todeliveraknockoutblowbycheckingon

thec5square.If30 xa7then30... xa7hitstherookong1andcanbefollowedby...axb5,makingvictorymoredifficultforWhite.

30...d431 gh1!Relentlessattacking.Thelatesttrapis32 xg8+ xg833 h8mate.

ThatmayhavebeenenoughtosnaretheaverageplayerbutKoblencsisaqualityopponent.

31... d732 g5!axb5

33 1h6!!Do not adjust your chess set because this really happened. I would

have been ecstatic if I had been playing White in this game – andimmediatelymade enquiries about the $10,000 ‘BestGamePrize’. ButnotTal–heusedtoplaylikethisallthetime!Theintentionistoplay34f6+gxf635 h6+whenBlack’spositioncollapses.

33...d334bxc3d2+35 d1 xc636 f6+ f7After36...gxf6Whitehasacrushingattack:37 h6+ g738 xg7+

e739 xf6+ d640 e5+ d541 b8andthethreatof e5decides.

37 xg7+1-0

Though few, if any, can play like Tal, it is possible to look at suchgamesandlearnthetricksofthetrade.InthenextgameFrenchchessmagazinesravedoverWhite’s14thmove,butafterseeingTal’sbrilliancyitshouldcomeasnosurprisetous:

Apicella–CollasFrenchTeamChampionship1996

1e4c52 f3e63d4cxd44 xd4 f65 c3d66 e3 e77f3c68 d20-09 c4a6100-0-0 a511 e2 c712g4 e813g5d7

14g6!TheFrenchpresspraisedWhite’sattackingskill–whichisfairenough

–butApicellaisonlyfollowingTal’sexample.Aswesawinthepreviousgame this is a great way of opening lines against the castled king –especially here because 14...fxe6 allows 15 xe6 followed by thepowerfulentryoftheotherknightond5.

14...hxg615h4 e5Black signals his clear intention to establish a knight on c4. This is

sufficient forWhite to conjure up a dazzling trap – again linked to theinclusionoftheking’srookintheonslaught.

16h5 ac417 xc4 xc4

18hxg6!Acoolmove.WhatdoesWhitegetforthequeen?

18...fxg6Well, if 18... xd2 there is the stunning reply 19 h8+! whenWhite

winsafter19... xh820gxf7asthethreatsof h1mateandfxe8= arecompelling. For example: 20... d8 21 h1+ h4 22 xh4+ xh4 23fxe8= + h724 xd2winscomfortablybecausetheattackcontinuesunabatedwhileBlacksuffersfromalackofqueensidedevelopment.

19 g2 b6Youcan’tblameCollasforcheekilytryingtomateinoneafterhesaw

thealternative19... xe320 xg6 d7 (or20... f821 h7 f6 22dh1leadstomate)21 xe6 xe622 xe6+ f823 h8mate.

20 a4 d821 xg6 f622 h7b5Ifthebishopistakenby22... xe3theattackrageson:23 g1(23

dh1?allowsBlacktostruggleonwith23... f8)23... e7–andnowthatthee7squareisblockedWhitecanthinkaboutcheckmatingontheh-fileby24 gh1.

23 dh11-0

Whentoacceptasacrifice

I’mafraidtherearenohardandfastrulestellingyouwhenorwhennottoacceptasacrifice–butIcangiveyousomegeneralpointers.Howeveryoushouldnottakethesoundnessofanysacrificeontrustbutworkouttheconsequencesasbestasyoucanandmakeaconsidereddecision.Always bear in mind that a sacrifice might be the result of mistakencalculationorevensheerbluff.

Generalrules

1 If you are in danger of coming under increased attack bydeclining a piece sacrifice then provided you cannot see arefutation–takeit.

2 If accepting a pawn sacrifice would leave one of your piecestrappedoroutofactionforalongtime–declineit.Onlyifyoucanseeaclearlyfavourableoutcomeshouldyoutakethepawn.

3 If a pawn on offer allows your opponent tomobilise hismenquickly then provided you can see away to develop and castle –captureit.

4 If you canwin the exchange (rook for bishop or knight) then

accept itunlessitplacesyourownkingindangeror if therookispoorly placedor if youneed to retain your piece for a successfulattack.

It is not easy to make the right choice but if you are in unfamiliarterritory, weigh up the consequences carefully before coming to adecision.

Thefollowingposition–reachedafter1d4g62 f3 g73 g5d64e4c55c3 b66 bd2–illustratessomeofthepotentialdangers:

Blackhastodecidewhetherhecanaffordtograbthepawn.HeknowsthatWhitewill then be able to develop his pieceswith gain of time bychasing the enemy queen – but he might be able to live with thatprovidedhisqueendoesnotgettrapped...

6... xb2??7 c4White attacks the queen and offers to shed another pawn, which is

whatBlackobviouslymissed.

7... xc3+Instead7... b5–toescapetheattentionsoftheknight–ismetby8xd6+exd69 xb5+winningthequeenbyadiscoveredattack.

8 d2

AndBlack’squeenhasnosafesquaretogoto!

Thegeneralrulescanbeseentoapplyinthefollowinggame:

Spraggett–KomljenovicSeville2007

1e4c52 f3d63d4cxd44 xd4 f65 c3a6TheNajdorfVariationhasalwaysbeenafavouriteofthetopplayers–

includingworldchampionsBobbyFischerandGarryKasparov.

6 g5e67f4 b68 d2

8... xb2Blackacceptstheofferoftheso-called‘PoisonedPawn’inthehopeof

hanging on to his extra material. Meanwhile White is counting onexcludingtheblackqueenfromactionforalongtimetocome.ThereisstillplentyofdebateaboutwhoisbetterbutinpracticaltermsWhiteoftencomesoutontopbecauseasuccessfuldefencedemandsaveryprecise

knowledgeofspecificvariations.

9 b3Theknightprotectstherookandcutsoffthequeen’sretreatalongthe

b-file.Anotherlineis9 b1.

9... bd7Instead9... a3wasFischer’schoiceinhisworldchampionshipmatch

againstSpasskyin1972.

10 xf6gxf611 b1ThequeenisoustedbeforeWhitegetstherestofhispiecesintoplay.

Hecouldalsodevelophiskingsidealongthelinesofthemaingameby11 e2 c5 12 0-0 (all part ofWhite’s plan to increase his attackingoptions–heensures there isno threatof ... xb3followedby... xa1)12... d713 ab1 xb3?(13... a3 isessentialbut insuchpositions itis easy to go wrong) 14 axb3 a3 15 b4! (this is what Black missedbecausenowthequeenistrapped)15... c816 b31-0Luther-Kersten,BadZwesten2002.

11... a312 e2

Spraggetthasplayedaggressivelybutnowrevertstogeneralopeningprinciplesbycompletinghisdevelopmentandcastling.

12...b5130-0 b714f5Trying to weaken Black’s pawn shield so he can attack the king –

whichhasbeendetainedinthecentre.

14... c8

ItmightbewisertopreventWhite’snextmovebyplaying14...h5.ThegameLuther-Vouldis,Bled2002,continued:15fxe6fxe616 e3 c817a7 xc318 xb7 xc219 d3 c320e5!d5(or20... xd321 c8+e722exf6+ xf623 bc1threatening c7+wins)21 g6+ d822fc1(theattackworkswellduetoBlack’sweakdefence–aresultofhis

backwarddevelopment)22... c423 xc4bxc424 a8+ c725 d4fxe526 b7+ d627 b5+!1-0.

15 h5Blacknowhastodealwiththethreatof16fxe6exploitingthepinnedf-

pawn.

15... e716 bd1Thed6pawnisnowreliantonprotectionfromtheblackqueen.

16... e517fxe6fxe6

18 b1!Theknightgoesbacktoitsstartingsquaretodeflectthequeenaway

fromdefenceofthed6pawn.SuchasurprisingretreatiseasyforBlacktomiss.

18... c4Theblackknightcomes to the rescuebut thisonlypromptsWhite to

makeasensationalqueenmanoeuvre.

19 f2 b2Blackhasmanaged towriggleoutof the immediatedangerof losing

thed6pawnanddefendagainst xf6–butnowWhitecanexploithisleadindevelopment.

20 a7 c721 b8!

1-0Blackresignedasheisfacedwiththedoublethreatof e8mateand

thecaptureofhisrook.

Hownottoattack

Wemustnot forget thoseplayerswhopracticeoddballopeningsandthenadoptcavemantacticsbygoingforanall-outattack.Therightwaytodealwithsuchcharacters is to fendoff theirprematureattacks,curbtheir initiativeand launchacounterattack.Soundseasydoesn’t it?Andsometimesitiseasy–asinthenextgame.

Richardson–NakamuraBermuda2002

1e4c52d4cxd43 xd4?!

This is risky because the queen can be attacked by Black’s minorpieces – thereby giving him an advantage in development. You couldarguethatBlackhasbeensubjectedtotheelementofsurprise–butitisa pleasant one! Actually theMorraGambit – 3 c3 – is a better choicesince3...dxc34 xc3offersWhiteattackingchancesthankstohisleadindevelopmentanduseofthesemi-opend-filewhichcanbeoccupiedbyarook.

3... c64 d1 f65 c3g6BlackrespondstoWhite’sunusualqueensortiewithacooladherence

totheopeningprinciple:developandcastle.

6 e3 g77 c40-0NakamuraisatopAmericangrandmasterandhisrobustapproachto

White’squeensortieisworthnoting.

8h4This is thesortofwildattack thatcanproduceaquickwin–butnot

againstanastutedefenderwho isnot fazedbyhisopponent’sobviousintentiontoopentheh-fileforhisrook.8 ge2ismetby8... g4withanedgeforBlackso8h3isprobablyabetteridea–notparticularlyinvitingwhenyoudeclaredyourspiritofadventureonmovethree.

8...h5

Ano-nonsensereplywhichhaltstheadvanceoftheh-pawn.

9 d2 e510 b3d611 f3 eg4Though11... xf3+12gxf3saddlesWhitewithdoubledpawns italso

provideshimwith theopeng-file forhis rooks.Richardsonhasalreadyannouncedhisintentiontoattackanditwouldbeveryprovocativeindeedtoencouragehimfurther.

12 g5b5!

NakamuraknowsthatWhitewantstocastlequeensideandsoseizestheopportunity tograbthe initiative.Thethreat is ...b5-b4removingthedefenderofthee4pawn.

13 h2?!Well, you have to applaudWhite for his consistency in trying to find

waysofcomplicatingmattersonthekingside–butthislookshorrible.Heshouldnothavestrayedsofarfromgeneralopeningprinciplesbutplayed130-0-0(if13 xb5then13... xe414 d5 a5+!15c3 gxf2withaclearadvantage)13...b4?! (thisno longerworkswell forBlackbecausethequeen’srookismuchbetterplacedond1–however13... b7isanobviousimprovementwhenBlackretainstheinitiativethankstohisplayagainstthee4pawn)14 d5 xe4?15 xe7+ xe716 xe7 xd217 xd2andWhiteisbetter.

13...b414 d5 xh2IthinkBlackcangetawaywiththestartling14... xe4!because15

xe7+allows15... xe7!16 xe7 xd217 xf8(or17 xd2 e818ae1 xb2withbyfarthebetterchances)17... xb318axb3 xb219b1 c3+20 e2 xf8winningcomfortably.

15 xh2 xd515... xe4mightbestbemetby16 e3whenBlackhastocopewith

complications. But not 16 xe7+ h7 17 e3 xg5 18 xg5 e8winningforBlack.

16 xd5 xb217 d1After17 xa8Blackhasnoneedtotakeona1becausethewhiteking

israthervulnerableduetothebadco-ordinationofthewhitepieces.Forinstance:17... c3+18 d2 xd2+19 xd2 b620 d5 (20 f1d4+21 e1 c3+22 d1 a1+23 e2 a6+andwins)20... xf2+21 c1 g1+winsbacktherookwithafewpawnsinterest.

17... c3+Blacknowmakessurethejobofwinningisquicklydone.

18 f1Itisnotagoodsignthatthekinghastomovelikethis–but18 d2is

oflittlehelpinviewof18... g419f3 b6!threatening... g1+and...e3withaterrificposition.

18... c719 d3a5

20f4?In what is admittedly a bad position White fails to cope with the

pressureandmakesiteasyforBlack.

20... a6Winbypin.Thequeenislost.

0-1

Developandcastle

Developing your pieces quickly and castling your king into safetysoundseasy–but it issooftenneglectedatevery level.Thismightbedue to the difficulty in striking a balancebetweengrabbinga hot pawnandgettingthepiecesintoaction.Thenagainthereareplentyofpeoplewhosimplynevergetaround tocastling–achesssinwhichcanhavedireconsequences:

Bartel–FluviaPoyatosIllesMedes2007

1e4c52 f3 c63 c3WhitedeclinestheinvitationtoplayastandardopenSicilianwith3d4

and instead brings out the queen’s knight to keep Black guessing.Basically it is a move-order trick, hoping that Black will play aninappropriate pawnmove beforeWhite transposes back into the openSicilianwith4d4.

3... f64 b5

Bartelisstillside-steppingthemainlines–probablybecausehewantstoavoidthehighlytacticalSveshnikovvariationwhichwouldariseafter4d4cxd45 xd4e5.

4... c7BlackisreadytotakebackwiththequeenifWhiteexchangespieces

onc6.4...a6istheobviousmoveifBlackispreparedtoacceptdoubled

pawnsinordertodepriveWhiteofthebishoppair.HoweverWhitemighttake on c6 anyway so really there is no need to waste a moveencouraginghim.Forexample:5 xc6dxc66d3 g47h3 xf38 xf3e6 9 f4 e7 10 0-0-0 (White is able to develop his pieces easily,whereasBlackremainsratherpassive)10... d711d4cxd412 xd4a5(Ofcourse12...e5failssimplyto13 xe5takingadvantageofthepinonthed-file)13 hd1 d8(maybe13...0-0-0shouldbeconsidered.)14d3 (White certainly haspressureon thed-file – and it is sufficient to

make Black crack) 14... c5 15 xd8+ xd8 (or 15... xd8 16 g3wins)16 d6f617 e31-0Golubev-Guilbert,Bethune2002.

50-0 d46 e1a6Pushingbackthebishop.Instead6... xb5wouldallowWhiteaslight

initiativeashegains timeattackingtheblackqueen.Forexample:7xb5 b6 8 c4! (supporting the knight and helping to control thepotentiallyimportantd5square)8...d6(if8...a6then9 c3intendingd4isgoodbecausetheblackqueenismisplaced)9d4cxd410e5dxe511xe5e612 a4! (Whitenow threatens tomove theknightandgivea

discoveredcheck)12... d713 xd7 xd714 f4 c815 ad1ledtoanadvantageforWhiteinGeorgiev-Godard,Agneaux1998.

7 c4e6?!This attempt to reduce the influence of the bishop on the a2-g8

diagonalallowsWhitetotaketheinitiative.Preferablewas7...d6when8d5,8e5andeven8h3(tostoptheblackbishopcomingtog4)haveall

beentried.

8e5 g48...d5hasbeenmentionedasapossibleimprovementbutafter9exf6

dxc410 xd4cxd411 d5! d612 f3 the threatofd2-d3and f4causesBlackconsiderableconcern.

9 xd4 xe5?!By grabbing this hot pawn, Black is violating thedevelop and castle

principle. Hemay get away with it – if he has enough time to get hispiecesout–butitisariskybusiness.Alsopossibleis9...cxd410 xg4xc411d3(thisisthesortofmovethatiseasilymissed–Whiteresists

thetemptationtomovetheattackedpieceandinsteadfreesthewayfor

hisbishopwithgainof time)11... c512 e4 xc2(12... xe5 is notmuchbetterinviewofthecombination13 f4 d514 h6! g815f6+winning)13 d6+ xd614exd6givesWhitegoodplaybecausetheobvious14...0-0iscrushedby15 h6.

10 f5!White is temporarily a piece up so can play extravagantly andmake

gooduseofhisstrongrookonthee-file.

10... xc4Black’spositioncollapsesafter10...exf511 d5 d612d4cxd413

f4.

11 g4Thequeenentersthefraywithanattackonboththeknightonc4and

pawnong7.Black’sdefencelooksbleakwithhiskingstuckinthemiddleandonlytwopiecesdeveloped.

11... e512 xg7+ xg713 xg7 g614d4The gamemight be equal on pawns and pieces butWhite is clearly

winningonposition. Inparticularhecanexploit theweakdark squaresaroundtheblackking.

14...cxd415 d5 c516 e5Acraftymovewhichthreatensthediscoveredattack f6+winningthe

blackqueen.

16... f817 f6Thereisnoquestionofexchangingqueensintoanendgame–Bartel

isplayingforcheckmate.

17...d618 e1Simpleandstrong–onceagainthereisanimminentthreatof c7+.

18... b819 xd4b620 c3 d7

21 g51-0Black resigneddue to the threatof22 c7mate.Hisbrittledefence

canoffernomoreresistance:21... c822 d2 c623 f6+ d824xh7+winsthequeenand21... b522 c7threatening f6mateandxb8isdecisive.

InthenextgamethestrongestwomanplayerintheworldJuditPolgarplaysactivelyandmanagestoforceaconcessionintheopeninginthatWhiteisobligedtomovehisking–thusforfeitingtherighttocastle.Thisis enough for Judit to give a master class on how to exploit such anadvantageinthemostincisivefashion:

VanWely–J.PolgarWijkaanZee1997

1c4WhiteplaystheEnglishopening,whichhasareputationforbeingsafe

andreliable.

1...c52 c3 c63e3 f64d4d55dxc5ThisisonlyatemporarywinofapawnbutafteritisrecapturedWhite

gainstimewithaqueensidepawnadvance.

5...e66a3 xc57b4 d68 f3AtfirstsightitappearsthatWhitecanwinapawnbutthatisnotso:8

cxd5exd59 xd5? xd510 xd5? xb4+andthediscoveredattackonthequeenwins.

8...0-09cxd5exd5

Whitehasachievedaprincipalobjective:Blackhasbeensaddledwithan isolatedpawn–socalledbecause ithasno friendlypawnoneitherside toprotect it. The long-termplan is toundermineandattack it andusethesquareinfrontofit–d4–asanoutpostforhispieces.HoweverBlacktoohasaccesstosomegoodsquares–notablye4andc4.

10 b5?!An elaborate manoeuvre which threatens to exchange knight for

bishopandgainsuperiorityonthedarksquares–withthebishoponb2playingamajorroleonthelongdiagonal.Howeveritwouldbesimplertoplay10 e2followedby110-0beforeembarkingonqueensideplay.

10... b811 b2Afterplacing thed5pawnundersurveillanceWhitenow introducesa

latentthreattoremoveitsbodyguardonf6.

11...a5!Polgar finds an active continuation which undermines White’s pawn

structureandbringsthequeen’srooktolife.

12bxa5

Whitehas little choicebut to take thepawnbecause thealternativesarefineforBlack.

12 xf6isprematurebecauseafter12... xf6thed5pawncannotbetakenduetotheunprotectedrookona1.And13bxa5 f514 c1 xa5leavesBlackwith thebetterchances.Alsopossible is12 e2axb413axb4 xa1 14 xa1 xb4 (Black is a pawn up and although Whitecouldarguethathehassomecompensationbecauseofhiscontrolofthea1-h8diagonal–itisnotenough)150-0 f5withanedge.

12... e4!

Acleverideawhichpreparestotakeona5withthequeenandexploitthefactthatthewhitekingisstillonitsoriginalsquare.

13 e2 xa5+14 f1Thisalreadybreaksthegeneralruleofdevelopandcastlesoisnota

good sign forWhite. And blocking the check by 14 d2 leavesWhitesufferingafter14... e8 (perhaps the line14... e515 f3 c416 xc4dxc4isworthinvestigating)15f3(otherwiseWhiteistiedtothedefenceof d2 which puts him in a stranglehold) 15... xd2 16 xd2 xe3!winning.

14... d815h3White now has to waste time castling artificially so as to be able to

connecthisrooks.Ofcourseanimmediate15g3isnogoodbecauseof15... h3+containingtheking–soBlackhastobedeniedthatmove.

15... b6Animportantidea.Mostplayerswouldjustleavethequeenona5until

somethingturnedup.InsteadPolgardemonstratesherclassbydroppingthequeenbackinreadinessforitstransfertothekingside.

16g3 e817 e1 a5Theknightnotonlyheadsfortheaggressivec4squarebutclearsthe

sixthrankforthepassageoftheblackqueen.

18 d4 g619 g2IthastakensometimeforWhitetogethispiecesco-ordinated–andin

themeantimeBlackhasbuiltupaformidableattack.

19... c420 h4 c621a4 a622 g4f5!?

An inspired pawn sacrifice to open the f-file for the king’s rook andbolstertheattackagainstthewhiteking.

23 xf5If the pawn is not taken then Judit will further advance her kingside

pawnsandexposethewhiteking.

Forexample:

a)23 f3allows23...g5trappingtheknight.

b)23 e2g524 f3f4andWhite’spawncoverwillbebrokenup.

c)23 xf5andnowBlackhasapleasantchoice:

c1) 23... xf5 24 xf5 xg3! (a clever combination that works wellthankstosomeneattactics)25fxg3 xe3+26 xe3d4+27 h2 xe328 xd4 xe129 xc6 e2+30 g1 xc631 f1 b2withasuperiorendgame.

c2)23...h524 xg7hxg425hxg4 f8!26 a2 (or26 f5 xf5 27gxf5 e5andBlackisontop)26... xg4withabigadvantage.

23... f824 xc8?!It might be better to exchange the well placed knight with 24 xe4

whengoodchancesareofferedby24...dxe425 b4 e6followedby...e5and...g5-g4asinthemaingame.

24... xc825 a2 h6Therookiswellplacedtoexertpressureontheh3pawnandtooust

theknightonh4by...g5.

26 d1

26...g5This goes against the maxim do not expose your king but in the

present circumstances it is very effective. This is partly because thecentreisclosed–makingitdifficult forWhiteto launchaquickattack–andofcoursebecauseBlack’spiecesarewellplacedfortheonslaught.

27 f3g428hxg4IfWhiteretreatstheknightby28 g1then28...gxh3+!plungesWhite

intodeeptrouble:29 xh3(alternatively,29 xh3failsto29... xh3!30xh3 xf2+31 xf2 xh3+!32 xh3 xf2+33 g2 xd1leadingtoa

winningmaterialadvantage)29... xf2!30 xf2 xf2+31 xf2 xh332xh3 xh3wins.

28... xh129 xh1 xg4

Blackisnowthreateningtotaketheknightonf3aswellastostripthecastledkingbareby30... xg3.

30 h2 xf2+!0-1

Fightingchess

GarryKasparovisundoubtedlythemostadvancedchessplayerofalltime and successfully defended his world title five times during his 15yearreign.Hisstyle isdifficult to imitatebecausehe issuchaversatileall-roundplayer–buthisgamesarealwayscharacterisedby immenseenergy.Heretiredprematurelyfromtoplevelchessinhisearly40swhilststillratedNo.1intheworldandenteredthedangerousworldofRussianpolitics.

Afterhisofficialretirementheonlytookpartinonetournament–ablitzeventfromwhichwetakethefollowinggame.

Kasparov–KorchnoiZurich2006

1d4 f62c4e63 f3 b4+4 d2The standard way to meet the Bogo-Indian. Instead 4 c3 would

transposetotheNimzo-Indian,whilethe lesserknown4 bd2 isworthinvestigating.

4...a5Blackcanexchangeond2 immediatelybutoftenprotects thebishop

withthispawnmoveorbyplayinghisqueentoe7.Hisideaistokeeptheopponentguessingabouthisfutureplans.

5 c3After5 xb4axb4Blackhasaperfectlyplayablegame–hispawnon

b4issafeandhisqueen’srookcanbecomeactiveonthea-file.

5...b66e3

Kasparov now proceeds to complete his kingside development andcastle–onlythenwillheembarkonamiddlegameattack.

6... b77 d30-0Though7... xc3ispossible–withtheideaoftakingcontrolofthee4

squareandplantingaknightthere–8 xc3 e49 xe4 xe410d5f611 d4doesfavourWhite.Ontheotherhand7...d68 c2 bd79e4e510 d5! xd2+11 xd2exd4(or11...c612 c30-0130-0offersabalanced position) 12 xd4 c5 13 0-0 led to equal chances inKasparov-Tal,Niksic1983.

80-0d59cxd5exd5If 9... xd5 then 10 e4 gives White central control and the slightly

bettergameafter10... xc311bxc3 e712 e2.

10a3 d611 e5The knight takes up a very strong position in the centre andwill be

supportedbyf2-f4whichalsoopensupnewattackingoptionsforWhitesuchas f3-h3.

11...c512f4 c613 b5

Theknight iswellplacedonb5where itprotects thed4pawn.And ifthe bishop takes on e5, the knight on b5 can even look forward tooccupyingthed6square.13 f3isnotsogoodbecauseofthepressureagainst the d4 pawn: 13...cxd4 14 xc6 xc6 15 exd4 with a levelposition.

13...cxd414exd4 e715f5!

Theadvanceofthef-pawnpreventsanyemergenceoftheblackknightong6. It isaparticularlyunpleasantposition forKorchnoiwho isunderpressureandwithoutcounterplay.

15... e416 xe4dxe417f6The exchange of the black knight on f6 enables the f-pawn to find

anotherrole.NowBlack’scastlewallwillbeseriouslydamaged.

17... xe5Thecaptureofthepawnleadstolossofmaterialormate:17...gxf618g4+ h8(or18... g619 d7! c820 xd6 xd721 xe4witha

clear advantage) 19 h6 g6 (of course 19... g8?? would bedisastrousinviewof20 xf7mate)20 xf8winning.

18dxe5 g619fxg7NowWhitecangetattheexposedenemyking.

19... xg720 d6 a6

21 h6+!AbrilliantstrokewhichhighlightsthefragilityofBlack’sdefence.

21... g8Thealternative is towalk theplank–21... xh622 f5+ g523

c1+ h524 h6+ g425h3mate.

22 f5Kasparov can take the rookwhenever hewants because it dare not

move.Thereforeheimprovesthepositionofhisownrookbeforethinkingaboutanygainofmaterial.

22... h4?Anabruptend.Inadesperatesituationthequeencommitssuicide.

23 g51-0Thequeenhasnosafeescapesquares.

Predict-a-move

It isnatural thatattackingpositionsreapthegreatestbenefit fromthepredict-a-move method as they provide fertile ground for setting trapsagainstobviousreplies:

Vladimirov–MarreroGroningen1976

BlackmeetsWhite’s17 cd5withareflexactionexchangeofthedarksquaredbishops:17... xb2?andisstunnedby18 c8!afterwhich18...xc819 xe7+winsthequeenbyaknightfork.

Miezis–LelumeesTallinn2007

After 29 c6 Black can see nothing wrong with grabbing thedangerouslookingpassedc-pawn.29... xc6?Heshouldplay29... e6.30 xc6 xc631 xc6 xc6Butnowafter theforcedexchangesweseewhyWhitewassokeenonallthoseexchangesonc6...

32 f5+! A big shock.White’s king’s bishop suddenly springs to lifeafter32... xf533exf5+ f734 xc6andWhiteemergesapieceup.1-0

Intheheatofbattletherewillalwaysbeopportunitiestocatchouttheopponent with some trap or other. But you must always remember tomobilise your forces beforehand so you have a sufficient number ofcombat-readypiecestoachieveyourobjectives.

Day5Avoidingblunders

ChessTrivia–Afterthesuccessofanumberofhand-writtenvolumesontheroyalgame,thefirstprintedchessbookwasreleasedin1475.Itwascalled‘TheGameandPlayeoftheChess'.

In such a complex gameas chess it is inevitable that youwillmakemistakes.Howeveryoucancutdownonerrorsbyfollowingtheserules:

Rules

1Lookforsimplethreats.

Do not become so engrossed in your deep plans that you overlook

simple traps laid by your opponent – for example the kind set by thepredict-a-move method. Even grandmasters stumble – so remain in astateofhighalerttochecksandthreats.

2Searchforforcedmoves.

A forcingsequenceofmovescan leadyouunwittingly intoapositionwhereyougetstungbysometacticthathasbeencunninglypreparedbyyour opponent. So before thinking about what you want to do, take aquick lookaroundandseewhatyouropponent isupto.Givepriority topotentialmatingthreats,checksandcaptures.

3Avoidtime-trouble.

You have only yourself to blame if you blunder because of timepressure. So take steps to improve your handling of the clock. Forexample, agoodknowledgeof your favouriteopeningswill save youagreatdealoftimeintheearlypartofthegame.

IrecallEnglishgrandmasterWilliamWatsonregularlyspendingtwentyminutes or so before making even his first move! He was probablycontemplatingthebestplanofcampaignagainstthatparticularopponent.Agrandgestureperhaps–butitinevitablyledtotime-troubleandmixedresults.

Be practical – not theatrical.When there is only one sensiblemove,don’t think about it – just play it! If your opponent plays queen takesqueencheckandtheonlyoptioniskingtakesqueen–don’tspendfiveminutesgazingserenelyattheotherboardsbeforerecapturing.

4Catchupondevelopment.

Tryingtocopewithsurprisemovesintheopeningisacommoncauseofblunders– so youhave tobeextra careful.Never forget thegoldenrule ofdevelop and castle which will help you to avoid those stressfulsituationsthatcaninducemistakes.

5Takeiteasy.

Don’trushtomakeyourmovewithoutfirsttryingtofindoutwhatyouropponenthasuphissleeve.It isnotunusual foraplayertocalculatealong variation, find something wrong with it after 15 minutes and thendecide toplaysomethingelse inamatterof30seconds. If thissoundsfamiliar–calmlygothroughtherulesagainandyouwillprobablyavoidanyobviousmistakes.

Timetrouble

Youropponentisintime-trouble

Againandagainyouseeplayers,withplentyoftimeleftontheirclock,suddenly start to play quickly in anendeavour to hustle their opponentwhoisintime-trouble.Yes–itdoessometimesworkbutunlessyouhavea completely lost positionwhy rushand runa greater risk ofmakingamistake?

HerearetwoconsecutiveroundsfromtheWorldJuniorChampionshipinArmenia2006wheretheAustralianTomekRejtriestotakeadvantageofhisopponent’stime-trouble.

Hungaski–RejWorldJuniorChampionship2006

Blackcaneradicateanydangerofaswindlebycalmlyplaying38...

g7!!whichtrapstheenemykingandweavesamatingnet.

Forexample:

a)39 h2 b2(withthethreatof40... d4mate)40 f4 c141 c4c5+42 a4 a1mate.

b)39 f2c5+40 c4(or40 a3 a1+41 a2 xf1winningthankstotheextrapiece)40...b5+41 xc5 d4+)39... b240 f4 c141 c4c5+42 a4 a1mate.

InsteadBlackplayedthecautious38... d7andWhitewriggledoutoftrouble:39 c3c540 c2 c741g4 g742g5 d643 g3 e644f5withadrawagreedafteranother20moves.

Thoughtheysaylightningdoesn’tstriketwice,IthinkRejshouldavoidstormyweather because the next day hemissedanother checkmate –againwhenitwashisopponentwhowasintime-trouble!

Rej–BrandenburgWorldJuniorChampionship2006

Inthisposition,againstaDutchplayer,Rejcanclinchvictoryby37f3!whichthreatens38g4mate–oradelayedversionofitafter37...h538h3.Insteadtherefollowed:37 b4?a238 a8 b739 b2 g640f3 b141 axa2 xb642 xb1 xb1 43 g4 and the gamewas

eventuallydrawnin64moves.

I can also remember a game where my opponent, an Israeli

grandmaster,wasplayingsofastinordertocapitaliseonmytime-troublethathewenthorriblywrong:

Murey–LaneManchester1983

Iplayed30... g6tounpinthebishopandeasemywaytoadraw.Butback came31 c6?? towhich I replied31... g5+ The skewer!White’srookwillbecapturednextmove.Myopponentmissedthissimpletacticbyplayingsofastthatheforgotthatmybishopwasnolongerpinned.

Theseexamplesshowtheveryrealdangersofrushingyourmovesinthehopethatyouropponentwillloseontime.Thinkaboutit.Hehasonlytwominutes–youall the time in theworld.Yetyouarenoweffectivelyplayingwith the sameamount of timeas him– and you caneasily gowrong.Itisamuchbetterideatotakeyourtimetofindadecentplanoruse thepredict-a-movemethod to calculatea combinationand let yourstressedopponentplaytheobviousmovesandlose.

There isnothingnewinall thisasyoucanseefromthisextract fromthebookChessTreasuryoftheAirwhereBobWadewrites“Irememberplaying the German master Sämisch in a tournament in Germany in1949.After22moveshehadusedupsomuchtimethathehadonlytwominutes left forhisnext18–whichhewascapableof inhis tensed-upstate, amid the excitement of craning spectators. I viewed the difficultposition(andthespectators)sourly;butInotedthatIhadanhourandahalf formy ownmoves.My reaction? I ordered tea, waited till it came

(while my clock ticked), slowly stirred it and drank it, and slowlypondered;anddidnotmove foranhour.The frustratedspectatorshadlongbeforemovedon tomoreexcitinggames.Myopponent could notstay at the pitch of intensity to which he had raised himself an hourbefore; his thinking slowed and wandered, and he became visiblyrelaxed. After I hadmoved, he actually only made a couple of movesbefore overstepping the time, and thus losing. I had learnt a valuablelesson.”

So next time you find yourself in this sort of situation, follow BobWade’sexample–evenifyoudoorderacapuccinoinstead.

Iamintime-trouble

Butit’sbetteryouweren’t!Sotrytoensureithappensasinfrequentlyaspossible.On theotherhand ifyouarea time troubleaddictyouareprobably already used to the vultures that gather around your board.Those spectators are enjoying every moment of your panic-riddenpredicament!And in the long-termthisstateofaffairswillnotdoyouoryourchessanygood.However,knowinghowhard it is tokick the timetroublehabitIcanatleastofferyouthefollowingtips:

1Alwayshaveasafemoveavailable.

Thisisusefuliftheotherplayerisplayingitcoolandjustimprovingthepositionsofhispieceswithoutanyobviousthreats.

2Spotthetactic.

Youropponentmaywellbe tempted to tryablatant trickor two–soremainonredalert!

3Findaplan.

If you get the chance, use your opponent’s time to devise a

constructiveplan.

Youmight also use psychology. For example, if you have theworseposition thenwhy not offer a draw?Though itmay be rejected it doesusuallymaketheplayerwithmoretimestopandthink.Shouldheacceptitornotacceptit?Allofwhichcangainyouvaluablethinkingtime.

But just incaseyouarestilloptimisticaboutsurvivingtimescrambleshereisareminderofwhattoexpect:

Trent–EmmsSouthend2006

Black is two pawns ahead but has practically no time left andblunderedspectacularlywith45... f6??allowing46 f8mate.

Onetypical time-troublemistake is toassumethatwhenyouattackapieceitwillmove–andthenyoustarttocalculatewhatyouaregoingtodoonthesecondmove...Asurewayofmissingsomethingelse!

Chabannon–BauerFrenchChampionship1997

Whiteisworryinghimselfoveramovebytheblackbishopfollowedbyxh2mate.Soheplayed32 f5?? attacking thequeen.However he

overlooked32... xf5!andinsteadofthequeendeliveringacheckmate,theblackknighthasthisprivilege–33exf5 f2mate.0-1

Aspecialcase

Howell–WardGausdal2005

HerewehaveaclassicsituationwhereWhitehasnowinningchances–apartfromoneveryfainthope...Andindeedaftercarefulconsiderationof the pros and cons of the position and a measured look at variousendgamescenarios,Blacklostontime!

Whathappened?Well,thisisaspecialcasewhereaplayerhasfailedtowritedownhismovescorrectly. Inmyexperienceofcoaching juniorsandimprovingplayers,anerrorinwritingdownthemovesusuallyoccurswhenthingsbecomecomplicated,suchaswhenaplayerisfacedwithanunusualopening.AcoupleofmovesaremissedoutorWhitewritesdownhis move where Black’s should be – it’s all very careless. There is aschoolofthoughtthatsays“Justgetonwithit–makeoneextramoveatthe end of the time-control.” But, as shownby the example inChapterOne,Ididthisandblunderedintoamateinone!

Sogetintothegoodhabitofhandlingyourscoresheetproperly–itwillavoid upsets and reward you with a win every now and then that youmight otherwise not have achieved.You need all the help you can getwhen plunged into time-trouble – and knowing how many moves youhavetomakeisabsolutelyvital.

Iamtoogoodtomakeamistake

If you think your play is perfect – then dream on. Everybodymakesmistakes,evenworldchampions,sokeepalertfromthefirstmovetothelast.

Let’s lookatabadexperienceof formerUSchampionJoelBenjaminwhich showshoweven thebest intentions canend in disasterwhenaplayermovestooquicklyorloseshissenseofdanger:

Benjamin–GufeldHonolulu1998

The spectators could see that the extra pawn gives White winningchancesbutfewcouldhavepredictedBenjamin’smove80 e5??whichallowedtheshock80... e6mate.

Blunderofthecentury

Vladimir Kramnik had the dubious honour of making the mostexpensive mistake in chess history. In a match against the computerDeepFritztheworldchampionthrewawayhischancetowinthemillion

dollarprizewithanappallingblunder.

DeepFritz–KramnikManvmachine,Bonn2006

WithplentyoftimeontheclockKramniknowplayed34... e3??andwassoconfidentthathestoodupandproceededtomakehiswaytothecoffeearea.AtthismomenttheembarrassedgentlemanexecutingFritz’smovesontheboardwaspanickingbecause,infrontofalivecrowdandanInternetaudienceofhundredsof thousands, thereappeared tobeatechnicalhitch.Hesimplycouldnotbelievethattheworldchampionhadallowed mate in one! The operator played 35 h7 mate upon whichKramnikhurriedbacktotheboardinastateofshock.Justfortherecord34... g8leadstoadraw–andIhavethatongoodauthorityfromDeepFritzitself.

Theexcuse

AtthepressconferenceimmediatelyafterthegameKramnikhadthistosay:“Itwasactuallynotonlyaboutthelastmove.Iwascalculatingthisline very long in advance, and then recalculating. It was very strange,somekindofblackout.Iwasfeelingwell,Iwasplayingwell,IthinkIwasprettymuch better. I calculated the linemany,many times, recheckingmyself. I alreadycalculated this linewhen I played29... a7, and aftereachmove Iwas recalculating, again, andagain, and finally blunderedmate inone.Actually, itwasthefirst timethat ithappenedtome,andIcannot find any explanation. I was not feeling tired, I think I wascalculatingwell during thewholegame. It is just verystrange, I cannot

explainit.”

Translation:“Imissedit.”

Winningmoves

Theultimatemistakeistoallowcheckmate–butblunderingmaterialisfarmorefrequentlyseen:

Handke–PelletierGermanTeamChampionship2002

Whiteisaheadonmaterialbutgetscarriedawaywith40 xa6?whichallows the crushing 40... d3 and Black wins a rook. How could agrandmaster miss such a move?Well, the only rational explanation isthatheforgotthec-pawnwaspinnedbytherookonc8.

Hard to believe? Perhaps, but even world champions can haveblackouts.

Keene–BotvinnikHastings1966/67

InthispositionthemaestroplayingBlackcouldnotresist34... xe2?–therebymissing35 g4+winningmaterial.Keenecommented“atwhichpointBotvinnikgasped,raisedhishandtohisforeheadandresigned.”Infact34... f2wouldhaveledtoadrawbecause35 e6+ g736 d7+

isaperpetualcheck.

Predict-a-move

AthemethatIhavealreadyexploredishowitispossibletopredicttheopponent’smove and take advantage of it by setting a trap. Take thisposition:

LiShilong–WangYueWuxi2006

Blackhasjustmovedhisknightfromd6tob7.AtthispointWhite,nomean player, noted that 33... d8 does not win the ‘pinned’ bishopbecause it can safely retreat to a4 where it will protect the rook.Therefore White casually played 33 f2?? whereupon his positioncollapsedafter33...b3!whichblocksthea4-d1diagonalandinvalidatesWhite’splanneddefence.Playcontinued34axb3Whitehasno choicebecauseif34 c1thensimply34...bxa2threatening... xc6onthenextmove–sincerooktakesrookallowsthepawntoqueen.34... d8Now35 a4nolongerprotectstherookbecausethepawnonb3isintheway–soWhitemustloseapiece.35b4 xc60-1

AwinordrawsoIresign!

Ihavenoticedthatwhenaplayerhasabadpositionheoftengivesuphopeandletsthegameslipawayveryquickly.Butheshouldnotdothat.Evenagainstalltheoddsthereisalwaysalastditchchancetosalvagethegame–asweshallseeinthechapteron‘swindling’.

Bywayofexamplethefollowingpositionhasstuckinmymindforovertwentyyears–itisawarningtousall:

Dekhanov–K.YusupovUzbekistanChampionship1981

AtthismomentWhiteresigned,thinkingthatifheavoidedanexchangeof queens then he would be finished off by ... f1 mate. And if heswappedqueenshewouldhavenochanceintheendgamebecauseofhismaterialdeficit.But–miracleofmiracles–Whitecouldhavewonwiththesuperbcombination1g4+!!fxg42 xg4+ xb5(or2...g53 e8+f74 f6mate)3 f6mate.

Soasageneral rule: give thepositiona fewminutes thoughtbeforeyougiveuphope.Afterall,ifyouresignyouwillhavealongwaitbeforethenext round–sowhatdifferencedoesa fewminutesmake?Even ifyouonlydiscoverasavingmoveonce inevery fiftygamesyouwillstillimprove your chess awareness and become a far more resourcefulplayer.

Klinova–SpenceGibraltar2006

ItisaslightunderstatementbutBlack’sbestmovehereisnottoresignashedid in thegame. Instead,hecouldhavegloriouslysavedthedaywith42... g7+!! 43 xg7 (43 h4 xd7 is winning for Black) 43...xh3+!44 xh3stalemate.

Takeabreak

Sometimesyoucanget confusedandmuddleuppreviouslyplannedmovesofacombination.Itiseasytogetcarriedawayintheexcitementandberatherpleasedwithyourselfthatacombinationisgoingtoswingthegameinyourfavour–somuchsothatyouforgettoplaythemovesin the right order! In the old days I would have said “Write down yourmovebeforeyouplayit”butthelawsofchesshavechangedandthisisnow forbidden. Therefore it is best to make a mental note of all theopponent’sobviousthreats–thenreinforcethisbyrecitingyourintendedreplies inyourhead.Adoptingthissimpleprocedurewillhelpyouavoidconfusionanderror.

Shaw–S.WilliamsBritishTeamChampionship(4NCL)2005

In thisposition theEnglish internationalplayingBlack thoughtup thecrafty idea of 33... xg4! 34 xg4 f8 recovering the piece with goodwinning chances. So how do you explain 33... f8?? transposing the

movesof thecombinationandhandingWhiteawinonaplateby34xf8.

Ring,Ring...

If you want to be complete player then you must cover everyeventuality–whichmeanslearningfromthefollowingbadexperience:

Winants–AbolianinBelgianTeamChampionship2000

1d4g62e4c63c4 g74 c3d65 e3 f66 e2 a67f4 a58 d2 b69e5dxe510fxe5 g811 f3 g412c5 c713 a4

Thereisnoneedforustodiscusstherespectivemiddlegamechancesof the twosidesbecauseat thismomentWhitewon. But how?Well, alittle laterLucWinants toldme.After leaving theboard tobuyacupofcoffeehe returned to find all the chesspieceshadbeen reset on theiroriginal squares and his opponent had disappeared! Astonished, helookedaround to see if someonewasplayinga jokeonhim–whenateammatewhisperedtheominouswords“hisphonerang”.Tooright.Theofficialrulesofchessnowstatethatifyourmobilegoesoffduringagamethenyoulose.Andithappensmoreoftenthanyoumightthink.

Day6Masteringtheendgame

Chesstrivia–Thelongestgameever inaworldchampionshipmatchwas124movesbetweenViktorKorchnoiandAnatolyKarpovin1978.

Theendgameisthefinalphaseofthegamewherefewpiecesremainontheboard.Itcanbehardgraftstudyingtheendgamebecause,unlikeopenings,therearenoquickfixesandnoinstantrewards.Moreoveronlya relatively small percentageofgamesactually reachanendgame.Nowonder it is so often neglected. Grandmaster David Janowsky evenadmitted“Idetesttheendgame!”

It is not realistic to suppose that you will suddenly be prepared to

spend a great deal of time studying this part of the game – but as apractical player you will need to have a certain amount of essentialknowledgeinordertowinwonendgamesanddrawdrawnones.

So here are a few guidelines that will enable you to give a goodaccountofyourselfintypicalendgameswhereelementarymistakestendtoberepeatedoverandagain.

Basicinstincts

Thebasiccheckmates–forexamplewithqueenorrookversusking–areprettystraightfowardbutthereareotherswherethetechniquehastobe learned. Itmakessense toknowhow tocheckmatewithonlyminorpiecesontheboardbecausetheseendgamesreallydooccurinpracticalplay.Thenagainyouneedtoknowthebestwaytoprolongthegameifyouareonthedefendingside–becausetheattackerhasonly50movestocheckmateyouotherwiseyoucanclaimadraw.Bytheway,thatdoesnotmean25moveseachbyBlackandWhite–whichwas theviewofone recent tournament competitor whose claim for a draw was notupheld!

Checkmatewithtwobishops

Generalrules

1Thekingandtwobishopscombinetoforcethedefendingkingtotheedgeoftheboard.

2 The defending king is forced into any corner and thencheckmated.

1... d32 e5 d23 e4 c1 Theblack king is already forced totheedgeoftheboardandnowthetaskistocheckmateinanyoneofthecorners.4 e34 e2??isstalemate.4... d15 d3 e1After5... c1Whiteengineersamateonthea1square:6 f3 b17 c3 a28 d6b19 b3 c110 f4+ b111 e4+ a112 e5mate.6 g3+

f1Thekingshufflesalongthea-filebutcannotavoidmateinoneofthecorners.Or6... d17 f3+ c18 c3 b19 b3 c110 f4+ b111 e4+ a112 e5mate.7 e3 g18 f3 f1If8... h1then9f2mate.9 d3+ g110 f4 h111 g3 g112 e3+ h113 e4mate.

Checkmatewithtwoknights

Generalrules

1 It is not possible to force checkmate with a king and twoknights.

2However itwouldbewrong tosay thatyoucannotcheckmatewith two knights – it can be done but only with your opponent’scooperation!

1 f6+ h8?? Correct is 1... f8 and White cannot checkmatebecausetherearealwaysstalematepossibilities.2 f7mate.

Theexception

Itisstrangebuttruethatifthedefenderhasapawnontheboardinthetwoknightsvkingendgameitismorelikelyhewillbecheckmated.Thisisbecause thepawn isblockadedwhile theattacker is forcing thekingintoacorner.Only thenwill theblockadebe liftedand the fact that theopponentnowhasapawnmovekillsanychanceofstalemate.

1 d4 e2 2 c6+ It should be clear that 2 xe2would result in adraw.2... a83 a4e1= 4 b6mate

I oncehad this endgameat theHastings tournament –but it is veryrare.Myopponentseemedtohavenoknowledgeofitatallbecausehecomplained to the arbiter that I was carrying on in a drawn position. Ittookhourstowinandthiswasnothelpedbyanover-zealousorganiserwho – at one point when both players were away from the board –wrongly assumed that nobody would play on in such a position and

promptlyputallthepiecesbackontheoriginalsquaresreadyforthenextgame!

Bishopandknightversusking

Generalrules

1 The defending king is forced to the side of the board by theopponent’spieces.

2 The defending king is then forced along to the corner of theboardwherethecolourofthesquareisthesameasthebishop–toenablecheckmatetobedelivered.

As the player with the two pieces has only 50 moves to achievecheckmate Iwould recommend that youkeepplayingonandon if youare defending with a lone king – because it will be difficult for youropponenttocheckmateyouifhedoesn’tknowthepropermethod.

1 b3 c62 c4 b63 c5 c64 a4This ideaofmovingtheknight back in order to force the king to give way is crucial in thisendgame.Whiteusestheknightandbishoptocoverthesquarestotheleftandrightoftheking–whichiseventuallydrivenbacktotheedgeoftheboard.4... b75 b5 c86 c6 d87 d6 c8Headingforthedark-squaredcornerby7... e8 iswhatWhitewants–because that iswherecheckmatewillbedelivered,e.g.8 e6 f8(or8... d89 b6againensuringthatthekinggoestothedarksquaredcorner)9 e5e810 f6 f811 c5andmatewillsoonfollow.8 b6+ b79 c5

a610 c6 a5 11 d6 a6 12 b8 This forces the king out of thewrongcornerandalongthefiletowardsa1wherethebishopwillbeabletocheckmate.12... a513 d5!

Thisisthemostdifficultmovetoremember–onlyinthiswaycanyouachieve the mating formation. Though the knight appears to allow theblack king off the edge, itwill soon be driven back again.13... a4Or13... a614 b4+ a515 c5 a416 c4 a517 c7+ a418d3 a319 f4 a420 c5+ a321 c3andcheckmateisimminent.14 c5 b315 b4!Fromhere theknightprevents thekingheadingfor another corner of the board. 15... c3 16 f4 The mating net isalmostcompletedbecause thebishopcutsoff theking’s retreat.16...b3 17 e5 a4 18 c4 a5 19 c7+ a4 20 d3 a3 21 b6Whitewaitsfortherightmomenttofinallypushthekingintothecorner.21... a4Or21... a222 c5 b123 b3 a124 c2 a225 c1+a126 d4mate.22 b2+ a323 c3 a224 c2 a325 c5+

Now all White’s pieces are perfectly placed to give checkmate in thecornerthat isof thesamecolourasthebishop.25... a226 d3 a127 b4 a228 c1+ a129 c3mate.

Kingandpawnendgames

Thereareacoupleofbasickingandpawnendgamesthatyousimplymust know. They can also help you to understand more complicatedversionsonthesametheme.

Thispositionoccursfrequentlyininternationalcompetitionsyetplayerscan still get it wrong. It should be a draw irrespective of whether it isWhite or Black to move. Players who do not have knowledge of thedefensivemethodoftenassumethatWhitewillwinbecauseofhisextrapawn–butthisisnotthecase.

1e6 e8Theonlymove.Whentheattackingkingadvancesyoumustbeabletomovetoasquaredirectlyoppositeit.Sonot1... f8??2 f6e8(now–comparedtothemainline–Blackhastogivewayandcan

longerachievestalemate)3e7 d74 f7winning.2 f6IfWhitetriestobecleverwith2 e5then2... e7iscorrectwhen3 d5ismetby3...

e8!preparingtofacethekingafter4 d6 d8whereuponthegamewill finish 5 e7+ e8 6 e6 stalemate. 2... f8 3 e7+ e8 4 e6stalemate.Ifit isBlacktomovethenafter1... f72e6+ e73 e5onceagain

3... e8istheanswersohecanfacetheopponent’skingaftereither4d6or4 f6

Whitetomovewins–Blacktomovedraws

Whitetomove:

1 e5! Knowing that the previous example is a draw, White canchangehisstrategy.NowBlackwillhavetogivewayintheface-off.1...d7Or1... e82 e6 f83 d7! f74e5andthepawnmarchesonasWhitecontrolsthequeeningsquare.2 f6 e8Or2... d63e5+ d74f7andthepawnagainpromotes.3 e63e5alsowinsinviewof3...

f84e6 e85e7 d7 6 f7.3... d8 4 f7 The king is now ideallyplacedtoshepherdhomethee-pawn.4... d75e5 d86e6 c77e7andthepawnbecomesaqueen.

Blacktomove:

1... f72 e5Or2e5transposingto thedrawnendgamein the lastbutonediagram.2... e7Thekeymove.NowitisWhitetomovewhich,compared to thepreviousexample,makesall thedifference–becauseBlackisinapositiontoface-offtheenemykingwheneveritadvances.3d5If3 f5Blackreplies3... f7andbecauseWhitecannotforcethe

kingtogivewayhemustadvancehispawnandallowastalemate:3...d74e5 e75e6 e86 d6 d87e7+ e88 e6stalemate.

Morepawns

Whitetomoveandwin

Animportantdeviceinpawnendgamesistocreateapassedpawnbyusingotherpawnsasadecoy.Intheabovediagramitseemstheblackkingwill triumph bymoving across to the queenside and capturing thewhitepawns.ButinfactitisWhitewhocanwin–withastandardtrick:

1b6!TodeflectBlack’sa7orc7pawnfromitsrespectivefile.1...cxb6After1...axb6 there isaparallel finish toourmain linewith2c6!.2a6!Clearing a path for the white pawn to march on to the eighth rank.2...bxa63c6andthepawnpromotestoaqueen.OntheotherhandifitwereBlacktomovethenhewouldwinwith1...f5 intending to go over to the queenside and gobble up the white

pawns.Then2b6 fails because thedefending king is closeenough tostopanypawnpromotion.Thus:2...cxb6Butnot2...axb6?3c6bxc64a6and thedistantpassedpawnqueens.3a6bxa64c6 e6and theblackkingcatchesthec-pawnjustintime.

Rookendgames

Rookendgamesarefarmorecommonthanthosewithotherpieces.Ihaveselected fivebuildingblockswhich shouldhelp you tohandle thebasicsofthistypeofendgame.

Thetopfive

1

Whitetomovewins–Blacktomovedraws

TheWhitetomovewinisby1 h8!threateningtopromotethepawnand if Black captures 1... xa7 then comes the devastating 2 h7+followedby3 xa7winningtherookandthegame.

TheBlacktomovedraw isby1... g7 tostop theabove trickand tocontinueshufflingthekingfromh7tog7untilacriticalmomentarises.Ofcourse moves such as 1... f6 allow 2 f8+ followed by a pawnpromotion.

Playmightthencontinue2 d3 h73 c4 g74 c5 h75 b6Protecting the pawn – now the rook on a8 can vacate the queeningsquare.It isatthismomentthatBlackmuststartcheckingandsoforcethewhitekingtoretreat:5... b1+6 a5 a1+7 b4 b1+8 a3a1+9 b2 a610 b3 a111 b4andwewillsoonbebackwherewestarted.

2

Whitetomovewins

This is a little different because the white king has been allowed tosupport the a-pawn and hide from the checks by using the pawn as ashield.Thisisbecausethea-pawnisona6andnota7.1 b8 a12b7 b1+3 a8!Stillhidingfromthechecksbutallowingthea-pawntoadvance. 3... a1 4 a7 e7 5 b7 b1+ 6 c6 and Black willeventuallyrunoutofchecks–givingWhiteatempotopromotethepawn.

3

Blacktomovedraws

Hereisaneffectivedevicewhichcanhelpyoudrawagamethatmightseemlost.

If White is ever tempted to advance the a-pawn then ... a6 willtransposetothefirstdiagramandadrawwouldbetheresult.Therefore,witheitherplayertomove,theresultisadraw.Havingadefendingrook

on the sixth rankmakes it impossible forWhite’s king to hide from thechecksbygettingbehindthea-pawn.Forexample:1... f4+2 b5 f5+3 b6 If 3 d5 f5+ 4 e6 f6+ 5 e5 b6 – there are no morecheckssoBlackwaits–6 d5 f6!7 a7+ g68 a8 g7andWhitecannotmakeprogress.3... f6+4 a7 f7+Thekeyidea–thea-pawnprovidesnocoveralongtherank.5 b8 f8+6 b7 f7+7 b6 f6+8 b5 f5+9 c4 f4+whenadrawwillbeagreed.

4

Whitetomovewins

This is theLucenaposition–namedafterLuisRamirezLucenawhopublisheditin1497.Yes,ithasbeenknownforover500years!

1 f4White intends tobuild a bridge – a phrase conjured up by the great

playerandchessteacherAronNimzowitschinthe1920s.White’sbasicidea is togiveacheck todrive theblackkingone fileawayso thathisownkingcanmoveuptheboardandbeshieldedbyhisrook.

Aftertheobvious1 e1+ d72 f7Blackcanjustkeepchecking.Forinstance1... f2+3 g6 g2+4 h7 h2+5 g8 h36 f1 e7andWhite has made no progress. 1... h1 If 1... e2? then 2 h4 wouldcontrol the h-file and introduce the simple threat of h8 followed bypromotingthepawn.Or1... e72 e4+ d6(2... f6ismetby3 f8)3f7 f2+4 e8 g25 e7 g16 f7 intending f8 tohelpadvance

thepawn.2 e4+ d73 f7 f1+4 g6 g1+5 h6 h1+If5... g2then6 e5intending g5sealsBlack’sfateas6... h2+7 g6 g2+8

g5wins.6 g5 g1+7 g4wins.

5

Philidor1777

Blacktomove

The Frenchman François-André Philidor was considered the bestchess player of his time and in 1749 wrote a celebrated book entitledL’analysedesEchecswhereherevealedhismethodsofplay, includingtheabovewherehiswayofsecuringadrawhasnotbeenimproved:

1... a6! Preventing the king from coming to the sixth rank is theeasiestwaytosecureadraw.2 g7 b63 h7If3 g6tocontesttherankthenBlackcanenteradrawnkingandpawnendgameby3... xg64 xg6 e75 f5 f76e6+ e77 e5 e88 f6 f89e7+ e810 e6stalemate.3... a64e6 a1!Thisisthekeybecauseassoonasthepawnisadvancedtothesixthrank,therookzoomsdowntheboardreadytostartchecking.5 f6 f1+6 e5 e1+7 d6 d1+8 c5e1andWhitecannotmakeprogress.

Generalrules

1Thepassedpawnshouldbesupportedbytheking.

2Thedefendingkingshouldbekeptawayfromthepassedpawn.Thiscanbedonebycuttingitoffwiththerookontherankorfile.

3 If youare attackingordefending then the rook isbest placedbehindthepassedpawn.

It is possible to use these five important rook positions to gain anunderstandingofalargenumberofmorecomplicatedrookendgames–andwithouthavingtocalculatemanymovesovertheboard.

Awinner

UsinghisendgameknowledgeWhitewillavoidwastingtimemarchinghiskinguptheboardtob6–onlytohaveitcontinuallychecked.Insteadhewillplay1f6+! xf61... f7issimilartothefirstdiagramandallowsWhitetowinwith2 h8! xa73 h7+or1... h72f7andthepawnwillpromote.2 f8+ g73a8= andwins.

Howtodefendtwopawnsdown

Knowinghowtocopewiththepawnona7allowsBlacktocomfortablyseetenormoremovesahead.Hewillknowfromthepreviousdiagramthat when the white king draws close to the a-pawn, the rook can

continually check it and no progress can bemade.HereWhite cannotexploithis two-pawnadvantageasBlack justkeepsmovinghisrookupand down the a-file. Thiswould also apply ifWhite had a pawn on h6instead of one on g6. So you could save this endgame position withBlack–andperhapsavoiditatanearlierstageasWhite.

Howtowin

AcelebratedendgamehasprovidedmewithinspirationandIoftenuseitasacoachingtoolbecausethethemecanoccurinsomanyrookandpawnendgames.

ItwasplayedintheworldchampionshipmatchbetweenAlekhineandCapablanca in 1927 at a time when Capa was not only consideredvirtuallyunbeatablebutalsoa virtuoso in theendgame–whichmakesAlekhine’sachievementallthemoremeritorious.

Alekhine–CapablancaGame34,WorldChampionshipmatch,BuenosAires1927

White has followed general principles by placing his rook behind thepawnandnowneedstomovehiskingovertothequeensidetosupportthea-pawn.ButwhileWhiteisdoingthistheblackkingmightproceedtomopupthekingsidepawns.

54... f655 f3 e556 e3h5 57 d3 d5 58 c3 c5 Blackstopsthewhitekingfromadvancingviatheb4andb5squares.59 a2!WhitewaitstoseewhatBlackwilldo–soheretreats,whichisoneofthe

advantagesofhavingtherookbehindthepawnbecauseyoucanadoptawait and see policy without damaging your position. 59... b5 Instead59... d5?wouldonlyacceleratehisdefeat: 60 b4 c6 61 c4 andWhite can justmovehis rookupanddown the filewhileBlackhasnogoodwaitingmoves. This will allowWhite to advance the a-pawn anddeflecttheblackkingawayfromthekingsidepawns.60 b3 c561c3 b5

62 d4!Whiteisbackontrack.HeaimstotransferthekingtothetrioofpawnsonthekingsidewhileBlack isdealingwiththea-pawn.62...d6+Or62... b463 a1! b364 c5andthewhitekingwillassistwiththeadvanceofthea-pawn.63 e5 e6+64 f4 a6Nowtheroleofblockader has passed from rook to king. Instead 64...f6 would allow awinningkingandpawnendgameafter65a6! xa666 xa6 xa667e4.65 g5 e5+66 h6 f5

67f4?!Eventhebestplayersintheworldcanmakeamistake–67g7wouldhavewonquickly:67... f368 g8!(awaitingmove)68... f6(68...f569 g7f470 xg6fxg371fxg3 axg3+72 xh5wins)69f4f570 g7isdecisivebecauseBlackrunsoutofusefulmoves.Iftherook

moves–thef-pawnfalls.Ifthekingmoves–thea-pawnadvances.67...c5!68 a3 c769 g7 d7

70f5?! Imprecise.Heshouldplay70 f6!when70... c771 f5gxf5(or71... c6+72 xf7gxf573 f3wins)72 xf5 c5+73 f6 c774g8intending a3-f3andBlack’skingsideisbusted.70...gxf571 h6

f4Or71... b772 e5 xf473 g5 f174 f5!winning.72gxf4 d573 g7 f5If73... d7Whitehas74f5 c775f6withaviewto a3-e7winning.74 a4 b575 e4 a676 h6! xa5 77 e5 a1 78xh5 g179 g5 h180 f5 b681 xf7 c682 e71-0Thisisquitealengthyendgamebutitdemonstrateshowtowinwithan

outsidepassedpawn–invaluableknowledgeforpracticalplay.Itisalsowell worth remembering since this sort of situation occurs frequently.Black’s king is lured away to deal with the enemy passed pawn –whereuponthewhitekinginvadesanddestroysthekingside.

Rookversuspassedpawns

It is wrong to think that endgames are all work and no play. Evenapparentlysimplepositionscanhavetheirbeauty.

Saavedra1895

IfirstsawthispositionwhenIwasajunioratthelocalchessclubandthe question was “White to move, what result?” I thought it was anobvious draw but was surprised to find that the position had hiddenpossibilities:1 b5Both1 b7?and1 a7?allow1... d7pinningandwinning thedangerouspassedpawnon thenextmove–and securingthedraw.Ofcourse1 a5??ismetby1... c6andBlackevenwins.1...d5+2 b42 b6 d6+wouldmerelyrepeat theposition.And if the

kinggoestothec-file,therookretreatsandpreparestocheck:2 c6d13c8= c1+4 b7 xc85 xc8draw.2... d4+3 b3 d3+4c2 d4!5c8= !! The remarkable discovery of FernandoSaavedra, aSpanishmonkwhowasresidinginScotlandatthetime.Hemanagedtoachievechess fameby improvingon thesolution toanendgamestudythatoriginallyappearedintheGlasgowWeeklyCitizen:5c8= c4+6xc4stalemate.Butafterthepromotiontoarookthislinedoesnotwork.

5... a4OtherwiseWhitewillmateontheh-file,6 b3withthedecisivethreatof xa4and c1checkmate.

Blacktomovecandraw

Thisisthesortofpositionthatfrequentlyariseswhentheblackkingishelpingtoadvancethec-pawntowardsthepromotionsquareandWhitehastosacrificehisrookandconcedeadraw.Butit isnotquiteaseasyasitlooks.After1...c4??Blackislostinviewof2 f5!This isdecisivebecausetheblackkingisnowcutofffromsupportingthepawn.Naturally2 c8wastheexpectedmovewhenBlackwilleventuallydrawafter2...d5.2...c33 f3c24 c3andWhitewinsthepawnandthegame.

The way to draw is 1... d5!, keeping close to the pawn, when asamplelineruns2 d8+ e43 g7c44 f6c35 c8 d36 e5c27 d8+ e28 c8 d19 d8+ e210 c8 d1andWhitecannotmakeprogress.

Thereasonwhyapairofconnectedpassedpawnsisheldinsuchhighesteem is that they are difficult to stop even when you have an extrarook:

1h6Onceboth pawnsare on the sixth ranka rook cannot stop theadvance of at least one of them unless there is some other decisivefactorintheposition–suchasathreatofmate.1... c62g7 g63h7xg74h8= withawinningposition.

Nowforanexamplefrompracticalplay:

Lautier–KarpovLinares1995

Black played 42... xb1! andWhite resigned. A world champion likeKarpovwouldhaveinstantlydecidedonthissacrificebecauseheknowsinstinctivelythattwopawnsonthesixthrankbeatarook.Thereforethissortofmove thatnormallyappears inpuzzlebooks isnotasdifficult tofindasmight first appear.Anotherexampleof how theapplicationof afewendgametechniquesinpracticalplaycanhelptowinmoregames.

Thecreationof twopawnson thesixthcancomeabout insurprisingcircumstances,suchasthefollowing:

Carlsen–NavaraWijkaanZee2007

Even aworld class player likeMagnusCarlsen can forget about thepoweroftwopawnsonthesixthrank.Herehecontinued32a5andafter32...a6itwasBlackwhowentontowin.Instead32c6!wasimmediatelydecisive because the discovered attack on the enemy queen forcesexchanges toawinningendgame32... xb5or32... f733 xf5 xf534c7 c535d7wins33axb5bxc634bxc6 d835c7 c836d7andBlackcanresign.

Also bear in mind rook endgames often contain checkmatingopportunities. Here are couple of examples to show that anything ispossible:

Donner–SpanjaardLeeuwarden1961

Blackappearstobesufferingbuthespotsaclevermatingidea:1...h1+!2 xh1 g30-1White resignedashecannotavoidaback rankmate.

Indeed this particular back rank mate is well worth rememberingbecauseitisarecurringtheme.Inthenextdiagramthechessworldwassurprised when a former women’s world champion was beaten by acomputer.Theexpertssaidthefinishwasabrilliantmachinemovebutitwasinfactmerelyavariationonourtheme:

P.ConNers–ChiburdanidzeBadWorishofen2002

1 h8+!Thestarmovebutonewithwhichweshouldnowbefamiliar.1... xh82g6andBlackresignedbeforeshewasmatedby c8mate.

Thequeen

Some rook endgames end up as queen versus rook which istheoreticallywinning.Thisisallverywellbutthereisstillalotofworktodo–andrememberyouonlyhave50movestocheckmateotherwisethegameisdeclaredadraw.

Generalrules

1Activateyourkingandforcetheopponent’stotheedgeoftheboard.

2Forcetheopponent’skingintothecorner.

3Useyourkingandqueeninthecornertoforcetherooktomoveawayfromtheprotectionoftheking.

4AimforthePhilidorpositionknowntobewinningsince1777.

Theanalysisonhowtowin fromthisposition isbasedontheclassicworkofPaulKeres.TheEstonianwasaworldclassplayerbuthisnamealsosometimescropsupinquizshows–becauseheistheonlychessplayerwhoseimageappearsonabanknoteinhisnativecountry.Anywayplay proceeds... 1 f3+ e5 2 e4+ d6 3 d4 c6 Rather thanretreatimmediatelyBlackmoveshisrookalongtherankforafewmoremovesinanefforttofrustrateWhite’sintentions.If3... a54 g6+ d75 f6 b56 f7+ d67 f8+ d78 f6(Thepointofthislittledance

bythequeenistoensurethatitisBlacktomoveinthisposition)8... a59 c4 c710 e7+ c611 e6+ c712 b4andtherookisforcedbackbecause12... g5(12... h513 f7+wins)13 e7+wins.4 e5+

d75 d5Whiteisfollowingtheruleofforcingtheopponent’skingtotheedgeoftheboard.5... c7 In this particular position the sixth rankdefence –which is analysed later – does notquitework:5... a66 g7+ d87 f8+ d78 f7+ d89 c5because9... c8 iswellmetby10 e7.6 e6+ d87 g8+7 d6?looksconvincingbut7... c6+!forcesadraw.7... d78 g7+ d89 f8+ d710 f4 c8Or10... b711 f7+ c812e8+ c713 c5(Thegeneralruleofforcingtheblackkingintothecornermakesiteasiertoformtherightplan)13... a714 e7+ b815 d8+ b716 b5 a817 d7+ b818 b6withmate to follow.11 d6 b812 e5! b713 c6+ a814 a1+ThislooksoddbutwhenyoureachPhilidor’spositionitneedstobeBlack’smove.14... b8Itgoeswithoutsayingthat14... a7wouldsavealotoftimeforbothplayersbecauseof15 h8mate!15 a5

AnalysisbyPhilidor

ThisisimportanttoknowbecausePhilidorpointedoutaslongagoas1777 thatWhitecould forcevictory from thisposition.Armedwithsuchknowledgeitispossibleforthesidewiththequeentoheadforthecriticalposition.15... b1Therookcanrunbutitcannothide.Forinstance:15...h716 e5+ a817 a1+ b818 b1+and15... b316 d8+ a7

17 d4+ b818 f4+ a719 a4+bothwin.16 d8+ a7 17d4+ b818 h8+ a719 h7+winning.

Thegreatescape

Draw!

Thereisacertainpositionthatcansavethedayforthedefender.ButbeforeyougivethecomputerthecreditIhastentoaddthatitwasinfactfirst brought to the attention of the chess world in 1782 by DomenicoLorenzo,anItalianPriest.

The point is thatWhite sometimes just strolls the king up the boardwithout thinking. But the difference here is that the close proximity ofWhite’squeentothekingleavesBlack’skingwithfewmovesandallowshimtodrawbytacticalmeans:1... h7+2 g4 g7+3 h5Or3 f5f7+ 4 e5 e7 pinning the queen – a key featurewhich prevents thewhitekingescapingthechecks.Moreover4 g6 g7+6 h6 h7+!7xh7isstalemate.3... h7+4 g6 h6+!½-½Thestalemateappears

forasecondtime.

Soitisworthcarryingoninsuchendingsjustincasethewinningsidegoes astray. The next example demonstrateswhat can happen after alongbattle:

Morozevich–JakovenkoPamplona2006

111 f3??ItlookslikeWhiteisonthevergeofvictorybutinrealityhehasjustblundered.Hecaneasilywinbymovingthequeenawaytoallowtheblackkingsomebreathingspace, forexampleby111 e5.111...f2+!Onceagainthewaytoforceadrawisbyastalemate.112 e3e2+113 d3 d2+114 xd2½-½

Bishopendgames

Thebishopcanuseitslongrangetostayoutofreachofanopposingking. However in certain positions a passed pawn on the a or h-filecannotbepromotedunlessthequeeningsquareisofthesamecolourasthediagonalofthebishop.Otherwisetheopposingkingmaybeabletoblockadeit.Forexample:

1h6+ g8 2 d5+ h8 Not 2... f8?? when 3 g6 allows the h-pawntopromote.3 g6stalemate.

Thisisusefulknowledgebecausewhenyouarecalculatingfaraheadandvisualisingsuchaposition–youwilljustknowthatit’sadraw.

Oppositecolouredbishops

Theseendgameshaveverygreatdrawing tendencies.Even ifoneofthesidesisacoupleofpawnsahead,thedefendingkingandbishopcanusuallypreventtheiradvance.

ThenextpositionwasshownbyAverbakhtobedrawn:

1 d5 f6The priority for Black is to use his bishop to restrain the advance of

White’spawns–whilehewillusehiskingtostopanythingnaughtyfromhisoppositenumber.2 c5 e73 b5 d84 a6 f45 b7 c7andBlackcanholdthedraw.

Inanoppositecolouredbishopendgamethedefendingsidecanevenbethreepawnsdownandstillsavethegame.

White cannot find a way to safely advance his pawns. If his kingwandersovertod5–then... e7willstopanyinfiltration.Andifhetriestoenterviah5–then... g7alsostopsthewhitekingfrominvading.Asthewhitebishopisonthewrongcolourdiagonalitcannotousttheblackkingfromitsblockadeofthedarksquares.

Exceptions

Generalrules

1Theplayerwiththeextrapawnshouldtrytocreateactiveplayonbothsidesoftheboardinordertodistractthedefendingking.

2 The attacking player should use his active king to assist theadvanceofhisextrapawn.

Kotov–BotvinnikMoscow1955

59...g5!!Acleverwayofcreatingasecondpassedpawn.Ontheotherhandanimmediate59... g4couldbemetby60 e7protectingtheh4-pawnwith a likely draw.But now, if 60hxg5, this defence is no longeravailablebecausetheg5pawnisintheway.60fxg5After60hxg5h461d6(if61f5tomakeroomforthebishoptodefendthen61... xf562

d6 xe3winsbecauseBlackcannotstopthreepassedpawns)61... f562 g6 xg6 63 f5 xf5 64 xb3 xe3 Black can use his king toshepherdtheh-pawntothequeeningsquare–whichwillforceWhitetogive up his bishop.60...d4+! So as to preserve his important b3-pawnwhichtiesdownthewhiteking.Thiswillenablehisownkingtomopupthekingsidepawnswithoutinterference.61exd4 g362 a3 xh463d3 xg564 e4h465 f3 d5+0-1Whiteresignedbecauseifhestopstheh-pawnfromgettingthrough–

thentheb-pawn,assistedbythewhiteking,willcosthimhisbishop.

Thesing–LaneDutchTeamChampionship2000

Though material is nominally level, White’s doubled and isolatedpawns are weak and his king is stuck in the corner, preventing anypromotionofthepassedh-pawn.Whitemayhavethoughtthatbyputtingallhispawnsondarksquares,theycouldbedefendedbyhisbishop.Butthis plan backfires because the pawns actually get in the way of hisbishopandthelightsquaresareterriblyweak.

50... f3Ineedtoopenapathformykinginordertoinfiltrateonthelightsquaresandattacktheweakpawns.Thedefensiveresourcesofthewhitebishopwillthenbestretchedtothelimit.51c6Sacrificingapawnto activate his bishop.Aswe have already seen, being a pawn or twodown in an opposite coloured bishop endgame does not necessarilymeandefeat.After51 f8 e452 h6 d3Blackalsoyieldsapawnbutwithout improvinghisbishop.51...bxc652 c5 e4 53 d4 d354 g1ItseemsthatBlackishopingtodrawbysittingtightandshufflinghispiecesbackandforth.ButBlackhasaconcreteobjective–tocreatea passed pawn that is a long way from the defending king. I wasinfluenced in my thinking by the Kotov-Botvinnik position and startedlookingforagoodwaytoinvestmyextrapawn.54... c455 e5 b556 c7 c5 57 b6 c4 A committal move. It appears that White cansafeguardthecandd-pawnswith b6- d4but Ihadalreadyseentheforthcomingcombinationdesigned tocreateanewpassedpawn.58h2

58...d4! With Botvinnik’s play in mind, I found a way to reduce theinfluence of the defending bishop – which is overloaded withresponsibilities.When I playmy king to b3 Iwant to ensure thatBlackcannot defend the c3 pawn by d4. 59 exd4 Now White’s bishop isdeniedtheuseoftheimportantd4square–buthehadlittlechoice:59xd4allows59... xa5whentheblackkingwillassisttheadvanceofthea-pawn,while59cxd4isfollowedby59...c3andthepawnwillpromotetoaqueen.59... d560 c7 a4ItnowbecomesclearthatWhiteneedshisbishoptobeonb4todefendthec3pawnbuthecannotachievethiswithoutlosingthea5pawn.61 d6 xa562 c7+ b563 d6a564c7a465 d6 c6At thispoint I couldseeat leastadozenmoves

ahead–butthatisnobigdealwhenWhitecanonlymovehisbishop.I

now intend thekingmanoeuvre d7-e6-f5-e4-d3-c2-b3 toassist thea-pawn’sadvance–andthereisnothingWhitecandotostopthisplan.66a3 d70-1

Knightendgames

Knightendgamesshouldbetreatedlikekingandpawnendgames.Theknight isashort rangepiece like thekingand itcan takesome time toreach its destination –whichmight be criticalwhen there is an enemypassedpawnontheloose.

Indeed knight versus passed pawn is a quite frequent endgamescenario so it pays to know the drawing routine by heart – rather thantryingtocalculateitovertheboard.

1 g6 f8+ 2 f7 h7 3 g7 g5 4 g6 e6! This is theimportantmove to remember– theknightmoves furtheraway from thepawn but foresees a saving fork.5h7 f8+ and Black eliminates thedangerouspawn.

It is asking too much of a knight to defend against simultaneousadvancesofpassedpawnsonbothflanks–asthelimitationsofitsshortrangemovementsthenbecomeveryapparent.

Lane–RujevicFijiZonal2002

60 e5+!Dragging theblack kingonesquare furtheraway from thepromotionsquareonf8–andthereby leavingtheknight the impossibletaskofcopingonitsownwithtwopassedpawnsondifferentflanks.60...xe561 f7 e6 Theknight canstoponepawn...62a6 ...but not the

other.62... f663a71-0Naturally,thischangesifthedefendingkingiswellplaced:

Lane–IllescasCordobaChessOlympiad,Bled2002

In thispositionWhite’skinghas thea-pawnundersurveillancewhichallowshisknighttoconcentrateonsacrificingitselfforthef-pawn.64f7a565 g5+Theknightiswellplacedtocapturethef-pawn–therebyallowingthewhitekingtostrolloverandtakethea-pawn.65... d566b3 e5½-½

Chigorin–MarshallCarlsbad1907

Howdifficult is canbe foraknight tohandleapassedpawn is seenhere.

70 d5!White is happy to exchange pieces to allow the b-pawn torushtopromotion...70... d7 ...whileBlackispreparedtoexchangehisknight for theopponent’spassedb-pawn–butnot forhisknight.71g5Preventing the black king from fast tracking into the game via f6 in aneffort to eliminate all the kingside pawns. 71...h6 72 f6 b6 73 h4Maintaining the pawn wedge keeps Black’s king in jail. 73...hxg5 74hxg5 f875 c5 a4+76 d6!Chigorinprevents thereleaseof theblackking.76... g7Instead76... b6?allows77 d7+ xd778 xd7andtheb-pawnwillpromote.77 c6 f878b6 xb679 xb6Whiteisclearlywinningbutitisworthseeinghowthisadvantageisquicklyputtogooduse.79... e780 c7 f881 d7 g782 e7 h883 e8Not83 xf7??–whenitissuddenlyadraw!83... g884 f61-0

Generalrules

1 If the pawns are on one side of the board, the knight’s shortrangeisnotsomuchofaproblem.

2Knightsoperatewellinclosedorblockedpositions.

3Knightsdobadlywhentryingtodefendsimultaneouslyagainst

passedpawnsonbothsidesoftheboard.

Predict-a-move

Theendgameisfarfrombeingboring–infactthisphaseoffersplentyof opportunities for tactical possibilities. The practical player shouldalways remain alert to the opportunity of winning material or evendeliveringcheckmate.Andevenifyouhaveyourbacktothewall,don’tgiveup–thereisalwaysachanceofstalemate.

Nakamura–MuhammadSanDiego2004

Herethepositionseemstobeheadingforadraw.HoweverformerUSchampionHikaruNakamura isabig fanofplayingquickgameson theInternetwheretacticsreignsupreme–andhehasusedhisexperiencetolure his opponent into a trap by playing 27 c1-e3. This tempted hisopponent toattack thenowunprotectedb2pawnby27... b8??whichallowed28 xd6!1-0Blacksawtoolatethat28... xd629 f4+ d730xb8leavesWhitewithanextrapiece.

Keepingtheopponent’srookoff theseventhrank isgenerallyagoodpolicy–butbecarefulnottooverdoit...

Kramnik–ShirovWijkaanZee2007

Blackisalreadycoveringthec7squarewithhisknightbuttobedoublysureheplayed34... b7?only tobe rockedby35 xe6After realisingwhathehaddoneandnotbeingabletofacetheprospectof35... xe636 c5+ forking the kingand rookand leavingWhite apieceup–hedecidedtoresign.1-0

Themethodcanalsobeusedtoconjureupamatingattack:

Hamdouchi–MirzoevIllesMedes2007

Whitehasmovedhiskingintothecornerinordertoplay g1andthenf6 mate as the g-pawn is pinned. Black sees what is coming and

preparestomovehiskingoutofharm’sway.

21...h6Blackmakesroomforthekingtomovetoh7inordertoavoidthe tactical threatson theg-file.He couldhave tried21...h5 to counterWhite’s attacking ambitions but perhaps that looked rather tooweakening. On the other hand after 21... xe5? can follow 22 c7attacking the rook which cannot move without leaving the knightundefended.22 g1 h722...g5wouldallow23 f6+winningmaterial.23 xg7+!!andBlackresignedbecauseof23... xg724 g1+ h725f6mate. Thepredict-a-move systemworked becauseWhite foresaw

his opponent’smost obvious replies andhadprepareda crushing rooksacrificeagainstthem.

In the next position from the game Speelman-Velimirovic, Maribor1980, White had to keep a close watch on Black’s queenside pawnmajority where a passed pawn could be created at any moment.However he had seen a neat trick to cope with that eventuality andcalculatedtheconsequencesofanimpressivelookingsacrifice.After23xg7 xg7Whiteescapeswithadrawbyrepetitionafter24 h6+ h8

25 xf7+ g826 h6+.Sofar,sogood,butthenSpeelmannoticedtheannoying 23... xg7 24 e7+ f8 25 xc8 xb2 when Black isattacking another pawn on a3 and has ample compensation for thesacrificedmaterial–especiallyas26 d5?failsto26...c3whenWhiteisin trouble. Therefore,White used thepredict-a-move idea as a way ofriddinghimselfofhispotentiallyweaka3pawn.

23 c3! The bishop attack on the a-pawn prompted an obviousresponse.23...b4AccordingtoSpeelmanthiswasplayedafterjustthreeminutes thought – because it is such a natural move. However it fitsneatly into White’s plan... 24 axb4 axb4 25 xg7 ½-½ A draw wasagreedbecauseBlackwouldhave takenwith theknightandalloweda

repetitionofpositionafter25... xg726 h6+ h827 xf7+ g828h6+.Nowthatthea-pawnshavebeenexchangedweseethedifference:onthealternativerecapture25... xg726 e7+ f827 xc8 xb228b6c329 c4itisWhitewhonowhastheadvantage.

Generalrulesfortheendgame

1Ifyouareapieceupswapoffmorepieces.

Thefewerpiecesontheboardthemorelikelyitisthattheattackercancreate a passed pawn or capture more pawns. The chance of acounterattackbythedefenderisalsomoreremote.

2Ifyouaretryingtodraw–exchangeoffpawns.

The fewerpawnson theboard themorechance therewillbe for thedefendertosacrificeapieceforthelastremainingone.

3 Do not make pawn moves without good reason – especiallywhenyoushouldbetryingtoimprovethepositionsofyourpieces.

Such pawnmoves will create long-term weaknesses that cannot beeasilyrectified.

4Makesureyourpiecesarewellplacedbeforecreatingapassedpawn.

Apassedpawnmightbesurroundedandcapturedif itdoesnothavesufficientbackupofpieces.

5Inrookendgames–activatetherook.

Invadingtheopponent’ssecondrowisparticularlyadvantageousasitcan hit his pawns from the side where they most vulnerable. As a

corollarytrytorestrictthemovementoftheopponent’srook.

6Placeyourrookbehindthepassedpawn.

Itwill thenpromote theadvanceof thepawn to thequeeningsquarewithoutgetting in itswayandalso increase itsownrangeofmovementasthepawnadvances.

7Thekingisanidealblockaderofapawn.

Thereforestrivetocreateapassedpawnontheoppositeflankwhereitisoutofreachfromtheopponent’sking.

8Donotputpawnsonthesamecoloursquaresasyourbishop.

Youmaythinkitwillhelptodefendyourpawnsbutithasthedownsideoflimitingthescopeofthebishop.Alsoitdangerouslyweakenssquaresoftheoppositecolourtoyourbishop,leavingthemparticularlyvulnerableto invasion by the opponent’s king. If the pawnswere on the oppositecolourtoyourbishopthesesquareswouldhavebeenprotected.

9Activatetheking.

Intheendgamethekingbecomesastrongerpieceandislesslikelytofinditselfindanger.Soallowyourkinganactiverole.

10Beonconstantalertforcombinationsandmatingthreats.

Despite the reduced material the endgame still has plenty ofopportunitiestowinmaterialandcreatematingnets.

Day7Theartofswindling

ChessTrivia–FormerworldchampionJoséRaúlCapablancadidnotlose a game for eight years between 10February 1916 and 21March1924.

Whatisaswindle?

In chess parlance a swindle is when a player manages to trick hisopponentandtransformwhatappearedinevitabledefeatintoawin.It isalsousedinamoregeneralsensetoindicatethesavingofalostpositionby drawing or winning. In life the word ‘swindle’ tends to be linked tocheatingor fraud–but in chess it is considereda respectedartwhichdemonstrates fighting spirit and resourcefulness even when all seemslost.

Finegold–KuznecovOakham1986

The American Ben Finegold has always impressedme by his toughdefensive skills and never-give-up spirit. I suspect he was greatlyencouraged as a junior when, in the following amazing game, he wasable to convert a loss into an inspired victory. His Canadian opponenthadplayedafinegamewiththeblackpiecesandwaslookingforwardtoadvancinghis twoconnectedpassedpawns to victory.Howeverat thismoment he showed a sudden lapse in judgement and played theoverhasty41...a3?? It is understandable thatBlack can’twait to queenthepawn–buthissenseofdanger letshimdown.Actually there isnorushand41... e7! firstwouldhave forced resignation ina fewmoves.For example 42 g8+ h6 43 g7 (unlike the game43 h4 no longerworksbecausethebishopcontrolstheimportantf6andg5squares–so43...gxh4 stops anymating threats) 43...a3 44 xf7 d8 45 a7 a5winningeasily.42 xf8a2Blackhadseenthat43 a8failsbecauseof43... a5andassumedthathisnewqueenwouldbeenoughtowin.Evengivinghiskingaflightsquareby42...h6isnohelpdueto43 g8+ h744 f6mate.43 g8+ h644h4!a1= +44...f645 xf6threatening46hxg5mateissimilartothegame.45 g245 h2isanevenquickerwaybecauseitavoidsapawncheck.45...gxh4

46 f6!Onlynowdoesitbecomeobviousthatthethreatg4-g5matecannotbestopped.46...h3+47 h21-0

Thatwasaremarkableturnaroundandshouldencourageyounevertogiveup.Hereisanotherexample:

SanSegundoCarrillo–WojtaszekChessOlympiad,Turin2006

Despite its apparent complexity this position is actually hopeless forBlack. However, in true predict-a-move fashion, Black sees that hisopponent will find it hard to resist promoting the pawn. Play dulycontinued 40 d8= ?? The cool 40 f3 would have left him with a bigadvantage – but also 40 g6+ h7 41 e7 wins because Black ismatedafter41... xg642 g5+.40... h1+!andWhiteresignedinviewof41 xh1(or41 g3 g4mate)41... f1+42 h2 xg2mate.0-1

Houdini

TheEnglishgrandmasterTonyMilesdescribedhisplayinthefollowingpositionwith thewords: “Thismust rankasoneofmygreatestHoudiniimpersonations.”

Miles–SchneiderPhiladelphia1980

It ishardlysurprisingthatMileslikenedhimselftothemostfamousofallescapologists–HarryHoudini.Earlierhehadbeentwopawnsdownand forced to march his king precariously up the board. Then Blackreturnedoneofthepawnsinanefforttoweaveamatingnetandinthediagrampositionhehasjustplayed1... f1?–tomeet2 xb3with2...e5!when3 f4 xe4maintainshisadvantage.Howeverthismovetookthe rook away from the d1 squarewhere it was doing a good job andMilesexploitedthisby1 xf8+!whenthegamecontinued:1... xf82e7+ h73 xf8b2?Blackisnowlosingbutthisobviousmovehastenshisdemise.IfBlackhadseenWhite’sshockreplyhemighthaveinsteadtried3... e1althoughafter4 f5 f1+5 e5 g1(5... f66 d5 b6!7 c3 b2 8 b1 is also losing for Black although hemay be able togeneratesomeswindlingchancesofhisown)6 b8 xg37 f5 h38b7winscomfortably.4 g6!

1-0Theonlywaytoavoidcheckmateby h8is4...fxg6whichallows5xf1notonlywinningarookbutpreventingthepromotionoftheb-pawn

–toboot!

Time-trouble

It is only natural that players can go wrong when there are manymovesstill tomakeand theminuteson thechessclockare fast tickingaway.Ifyouarecompletelylostthenthisisprobablythebestmomenttolookforaswindle.Andsometimesyoudon’tneedtolooktoohard–asinthe next position which remains one of my most memorable gamesbecauseofitsunexpectedfinish:

Bradbury–LaneLondon1983

Ihadbeenstrugglingforsometimebutencouragedbymyopponent’sdesperateattemptstomakethetime-controlIcarriedon–moreinhopethan expectation –with57... e6+ At this pointWhite leaned over andplayed 58 c7 when I was embarrassingly forced to mutter “Check”.White resigned instantly because the touchmove rule obligesWhite tointerpose his queen to block the check – thereby losing instantly. Thisincidentcameaboutbecausetournamentetiquettedoesnotrequireyoutosay“Check!”asitassumesthatyouropponentwillnoticeitanyway.IhavetoaddthatNeilBradburytookthelosswithgoodgrace–whichistherightway todealwithsuchasituation. It iscertainlynotacceptablebehaviour to sweep the pieces from the board since you will get areputation for being a bad loser – as a consequence of which futureopponentsmaytryjustthatlittlebithardertobeatyou.

Ifyouropponentisstrugglingtomakethetime-limit,thereisevenmorelikelihoodofpullingoffaswindle.Butyouwillneedalittleluckaswell...

Ward–SummerscaleBritishChampionship1992

1d4d52c4c63 c3 f64e3e65 f3 bd76 c27b30-08d3dxc48...b6, intendingaqueenside fianchetto, isprobablyan improvement.

Thenhewouldretaintheoptionofexchangingonc4atamoresuitable

moment.

9bxc4c5100-0cxd411exd4b612 e5 b713 e1 e814 e3

Though this looks like the caveman approach, White’s rather crudeattack offers good practical chances because Black must defend veryprecisely.Alternatively,developmentby14 g5looksgoodsince14...f8 15 ad1 givesWhite a slight initiative since 15... xd4? 16 xh7+wouldwinthequeenwithadiscoveredattack.

14... f815 e2 6d716 h3 g617 xg6hxg6??Capturing towards the centre is the general rule but each position

shouldbejudgedonitsownmerits.Andhere17...fxg6iscorrect–sincethe weakness of the isolated e6 pawn is compensated by the activebishoponb7.

18 h8+!

Aneatcombinationthatsetsupa‘familyfork’ofthekingandqueen.AtthispointBlackmightwellhaveresignedbutinhisnotestothegameinKingpinmagazineAaronSummerscalesawthefunnyside.Hewrote:“Iwished the ground would open up and swallow me. I had a very

important choice tomake: resign nowand ease the pain or play on toavoidappearinginthenextbookofminiatures.”

18... xh819 xf7+ h720 xd8 axd8Black has a terrible position but if you are a fighter there is always

hope. Summerscale added his own thoughts “I played this move andresolved to resign at move 40 if he made the time-control. He had awhole half hour left but it gave me a goal to play towards. Strangelythough, from thismoment on he began to consume large quantities oftime.Maybehestillhadoneeyeontheminiatureandwaslookingforthemostbrilliantwin,butfromnowonIdefendedresolutely.”

Theshort-termgoalofmakingthetimecontrolandthefactthathehasrookandknightforthequeenprovidesenoughencouragementforBlacktocontinue.Itisevenacceptabletoplayonifyouhavelostaknightorabishop–butnotmore than thatunless youhavecompensation. In thepresentsituationthereisoneotherfactorthatmightcomeintoplay–hisopponentcouldgowrongintime-trouble.

The defender should remain calm and not make any recklesssacrifices. Though White’s task should be straightforward he has tochoose his method of attack carefully as there are several options –somebetterthanothers.

21 f4 f822 b2 g5Blackwaitspatiently...

23 h3 f624 d1 d725 a3Tactically this is a good choice and could cause problems if it is

followedupintherightway.However,withtheclocktickingaway,itmighthavebeenbetter toplay itsafewith25 f4– intendingtomeet25...ed8with26 e2tostopanysignofcounterplayandedgeclosertothetime-controlatmove40whenhewillhavemoretimetoplothisvictory.

25... xd4

26 a4Whitethreatens xf8followedby xd7butthisisobviousandeasily

rebuffed.Hecouldhavepressedhometheadvantagewith26 g5+!g8(26... h8isweakdueto27 a4with thethreatof xf8and xe6withsimilarplaytothegame–and27... dd8isuselessbecauseoftheknightfork28 f7+)27 h1stoppinganytricks.Thedifferencefromthegame is that the knight is active andmakes xf8 followedby xg6 adangerousthreat.

26... dd827 xa7 d728 a4 a829 b3 c6AtlastBlackhasatactic.Itisapitythat... a4caneasilybeprevented

butatleastheismovingintherightdirection.

30 g3e531 xf8 xf832 h1?

Thepressureonthef2pawninducesWhitetotuckhiskingawayinthecorner. A little more time would have enabled him to find 32 g4!maintaininghisclearadvantage.

32... xf2!Anicetricktogetrightbackintothegame–33 xf2 xd1+34 xd1

f1 is checkmate. The bishop move would certainly frighten any timetroubled player who is still reflecting: “What happened to my brilliancyprize?”

33 b3 e3!Crafty play. In time pressure Summerscale prevents his opponent’s

planned xd7–whichnowfailsbecauseof... f1mate.

34 e1 d2

Now it is Black who is having all the fun by bringing a rook to thesecondrankandtargetingtheg2pawn.

35 xe3 xg236 e4?The bishop looks deadly on the a8-h1 diagonal so Ward feels

compelled to block it – even though giving back the queen still loses.Withmoretimeontheclockhemighthavefoundthesurprising36 f4!e2+(iftheknightistakenthenWhitegetsoutoftrouble:36...exf4?37h3+ g838 e6+ h739 xc6or36... xf4?37 h3+ g838

c8+ h739 xc6wins)37 d5 f1+!38 xf1 xe3–withasuperiorendgamebutatleastWhiteishangingon.

36... xe437 xe4 xa238 xe5 f1+39 g1 ff20-1Aperfectswindle

Generalrules

1Inlosingpositionscontinuetoputupmaximumresistance.Donot resort to reckless tactics which will leave you in a hopeless

stateiftheyfail.

2 Try to lure the opponent into time-trouble where a blunder ismorelikely.

3Trytosetstalematetrapsintheendgame.

4Playactivelyanduseeveryopportunitytoattack.

5Rememberthatnobodyeverwonagamebyresigning!

Sometimesitcanbeafinelinebetweenswindlingandlosing.ThebestexampleIcanthinkofisthefollowing:

Schneider–TalChessOlympiad,Lucerne1982

Black has just played 29... g8 to avoid the draw by repetition after29... h730 g5+ h831 f7+ h732 g5+.But this shouldhavebackfiredasWhitecouldhavewonwiththespectacular30 xh6!!when30... xh631 xh6+ h832 xf8 ismate.ButTal’sopponentmissedhischanceandcontinued30g3?h531 g5 xb232 e6 xf1+33xf1 f634 d8+ f7!Not34... xd8?whichallowsaperpetualcheck

after35 f8+ h736 f7+ h637 f8+ h738 f7+.35 g5+ e736 xe4 xd80-1

Stalemate

Even though all may seem lost you can still set traps for youropponent.

Burmakin–IvanovSeville2007

Ina lostpositionBlackhasstartedchecking– tomakehisopponentworkforthefullpoint.AndremarkablyitpaidoffwhenWhitedecidedon58 c3?ratherthantheobviousandgood58 c2–blockingthecheckandremainingacoupleofpawnsup.Thencamethesensational58...f6+!whereuponadrawwasagreedbecause59 xf6isstalemate!

Acommitmenttocarryonuntilallpossibilitiesofsavingthegameareexhaustedhastobethebestpracticaladvice:

Chernin–DunningtonCappellelaGrande1994

ThepositionisquitehopelessandWhitecouldnotunderstandwhyhis

opponent was playing on. I was watching the game and noticed hisimpatience.41...bxc4ThisisacleverreplybecauseBlackisrefusingtogiveupandnowfindsawaytohangontothegamebyathread.42f6?? Though this looks like the end because of the threatenedcheckmateonh8,alittleextrathoughtwouldhavefound42 e5!leavingBlackwitha lostposition.42...h4+Adesperatecheckbut ithashiddenqualities.43 xh4Instead43 f4runsinto43... f2+winningthequeenwhile43 f3 xd5+44 g4 d1+(44... xa845 xf7+ h846 f6+leadstoadraw)45 xh4(45 f4allows45... f2+)45... e1+46 g4g2+winning.43... b8!

White missed this amazing move and now realised he had thrownawaythewin.Ifthewhiterookretreatsthen... xd5securesequalitysohedecided toallow thespectacularstalemate finish.44 xb8 xh3+!45 xh3½-½

Sonevergiveup.Youcouldscorequiteafewmorepointsbypullingoffaswindleeverynowandthen.

Movingon

Agoodway to improve is to play lots of games – especially againstopponentswhoareslightlystrongerthanyou.If that isnotpossibleyoucangoontotheinternetwhereyouwillfindareadysupplyofopponentsfromallovertheworld.Chesssoftwarealsoprovidesusefulmaterialforstudyandtestingyourskills–butmakesureitisdesignedforyourlevelofplay.

Morebooks

Forimprovingplayers:

FindtheWinningMovebyGaryLanepublishedbyBatsford.

Acollectionofpuzzlestotestyourstrength.

http://www.papertiger.co.uk/category/chess/index.jsp

Foradvancedplayers:

ThinkLikeAGrandmasterbyAlexanderKotovpublishedbyBatsford.

Aguideonhowtoimproveyourthinkingduringagame.

Chess: The art of logical thinking by Neil McDonald published byBatsford

Aselectionofinstructivegameswithexplanationsaftereverymove.

Computersoftware

Forimprovingplayers

LearnChesswithMartika

A stylish, animated girl guides you through over 400 puzzles. Aninteractive programmewhereMartika speaks and gives tips on how toimprove.

http://www.learnchess.info

Foradvancedplayers

Fritz10producedbyChessbase.

This is thecomputerprogrammeusedbytopplayers toanalysetheirgames.Itcanalsobeusedtopracticeandimprove–anditevenmakeswittycommentswhenyouplaybadmoves!

ChessBase9producedbyChessbase.

A programme to store, sort and analyse games. Themain databasehasover3milliongames.

Usefulwebsites

PittsburghUniversitychesssite–FreeSoftwareavailable

www.pitt.edu/~schach/Archives/index2.html

Newsonhowtoplaychessbypostore-mail.www.iccf.com

HistoryofChess

http://www.chesshistory.com

TheWeek inChess –Acomprehensive roundupof themost recentinternationalnews,gamesandgossip.

www.chesscenter.com/twic/twic.html

ChessToday–Adailychessnewspaperwithannotatedgamesissenttoasubscriber’se-mailaddress.Freesamplecopiesareavailable.Theservice has been running since 2000 by Russian grandmaster AlexBaburinwhonowresidesinIrelandwhereheistheNo.1player.

3EagleHill,Blackrock,Co.Dublin,Ireland.

http://www.chesstoday.net/

ChessFederations

Ifyouwanttoobtainmoreinformationonchessclubsortournamentsinyourareathenpleasecontactyournationalorganisation:

TheWorldChessFederation

www.fide.com

TheAustralianChessFederation

No permanent address but information available from national chessmagazine:

AustralianChess

POBox370

Riverstone

NSW2765

http://www.chessaustralia.com.au

CanadianChessFederation

E1-2122GladwinCrescent,

Ottawa

OntarioK1B5N1

http://www.chess.ca/

TheEnglishChessFederation

TheWatchOak,

ChainLane,

Battle,

EastSussexTN33OYD

http://www.englishchess.org.uk/

TheIrishChessFederation

1TempleviewLawn

ClareHall

Dublin13

http://www.icu.ie

TheNorthernIrelandFederation

http://www.ulsterchess.org/

TheScottishChessFederation

39MorningsidePark

Edinburgh

EH105EZ

http://www.chessscotland.com/

TheWelshChessFederation

http://www.welshchessunion.co.uk/

TheNewZealandChessFederation

No permanent address but information available from the nationalchessmagazine:

NewZealandChessMagazine

POBox1627

Taupo

http://www.nzchess.co.nz/

TheUSAChessFederation

USChessFederation

POBox3967,

Crossville,TN38557

http://www.uschess.org

Glossaryofchessterms

BlitzSpeedchesstimedbyachessclockthatisnormallysetatfiveminutes

perplayerfortheentiregame.

BlunderA bad mistake that usually leads to a loss of material or being

checkmated. A blunder can instantly convert a winning position into alosingone.

CaptureTheactofcapturingapieceorpawn.

CastlingTheonly time inchesswhenyouareallowedtomaketwomoveson

oneturn.Fromitsstartingpositionapreviouslyunmovedkinggoestwosquares to the leftor rightand the rook jumpsover itsheadand landsnexttoit.Youcannotcastleoutofcheck,intocheckorovercheck.

CavemanAblatantattackingplayerwhoseaimistocheckmateyou–comewhat

may.

CentreThesquarese4,d4,d5ande5–inthemiddleofthechessboard.

Check

Whenthekingisattacked.

CheckmateWhenthekingisattackedandcan’tgetoutofcheck.Gameover.

DevelopmentTheactofmovingthepiecesfromtheiroriginalsquaresandintoplay.

EndgameThefinalphaseofthegamewherefewpiecesremain.

EnpassantA special rule which enables a pawn on the fifth rank (or fourth for

Black) tocaptureanopposingpawnthathas justmovedtwosquares–thustreatingitasifithadjustmovedonesquare.

EnpriseApawnorapiecethatisexposedtoattackandcanbecaptured.

EqualityApositionwithequalchances.

ExchangesacrificeWhenyougiveuparookforaknightorbishop.

FianchettoWhenabishopisdevelopedintheopeningonb2org2(orb7org7for

Black)within thepawn trianglea2-b3-c2or f2-g3-h2 (ora7-b6-c7or f7-g6-h7forBlack).ItisanItaliantermandispronounced‘fyan-ket-to’

FIDE

An acronym for the World Chess Federation which is known by itsofficial French title: ‘Fédération internationale des échecs’. It ispronounced‘fee-day’.

FileAverticalrowofsquaresontheboard.

ForkWhenonepieceattackstwoormorepiecesatthesametime.

KingsideThesideoftheboardonwhichthekingstartsthegameandconsisting

ofthesquaresonthee,f,gandhfiles.

GambitWhenmaterialisgivenawayforinitiativeorattack.Itusuallyrefersto

anopeningvariatione.g.King’sGambit,ScotchGambitetc.

ManoeuvreAsequenceofmovesbyonepiece–withanobjectiveinview.

MateAshortenedformofthewordcheckmate.

MiddlegameThephaseof the game that follows theopening. It is the timewhen

attackingordefensiveplansareusuallymade.

NotationThecodeforrecordingchessmoves.Theofficialnotationusedtoday

isthealgebraicversion.

OpeningThe first phaseof thegamewhereusually thepiecesaredeveloped

andthekingscastled.

OpeningtheoryKnowledge of the chess openings contained in books and computer

databases.

OpponentThepersonyouareplayingagainst.

PatzerAhumorousorevenderogatorytermforabadchessplayer.Howeverit

is relative because there is always somebody worse than you. Otherpopularwordsforanineptchessplayerarerabbitandfish.

PerpetualcheckWhenaplayer’s king is caught inanunendingseriesof checks–at

thispointthegameisdeclaredadraw.

PinApieceisattackedandifitmovesamorevaluablepiecebehinditwill

betaken.

Predict-a-moveForeseeing the opponent’s intended moves and laying a trap

accordingly.Iftheopponentblindlyfallsintothetraphewillusuallysuffersignificantdamage.

Queen’ssideThesideoftheboardwherethequeenstartsthegameandconsisting

ofthesquaresonthea,b,canddfiles.

RankAhorizontalrowofsquaresacrosstheboard.

RatingAnychessplayerwhoplaysintournamentsorclubcompetitionshasa

rating. The international standard is the Elo rating system named afterthe Hungarian Arpad Elo who devised it. Theworld champion is ratedabout2800,agrandmaster2500,aninternationalmaster2400andclubplayer1800.

ResignTogiveupthegameasalossbeforebeingcheckmated.Thiscanbe

donebyreachingoutforahandshakeandsaying“Iresign”orthemoretraditionalmethodofknockingoveryourking.

SacrificeWhenapawnorapieceisgivenupwithsomeulteriormotiveinmind.

SkewerApiece isattackedand if itmoves thenoneof lesservaluebehind it

canbetaken.

SimultaneousdisplayAstrongplayer takesonanumberof opponents–usually twentyor

more– at the same time.Theboardsare arranged in a circle and themastermovesfromoneboardtothenext–makingonemoveatatimeuntilhecomesroundagain.Themasterusuallytakesthewhitepiecesinallgames.

StalemateWhenthekingisnotincheckbuthasnolegalmove.Atthispointthe

gameisabandonedasadraw.

StrategyAplanofactiontoachieveaconcreteobjective–eitherintheshortor

long-term.

SwindleTrickinganopponentwhenthechipsaredown–therebyconvertinga

lossintoadraworawin.

TacticsA forcing sequence of moves that leads to checkmate or

positional/materialgain.

Time-troubleInagameplayedwithachessclockaplayerhastocompleteacertain

numberofmoveswithinthetimeallocated.Ifyoustillhaveanumberofmovestomakeandthereishardlyanytimeleftontheclockyouaresaidtobeintime-trouble.

TouchmoveIfyoutouchapiecewhenitisyourturn–youhavetomoveit.

ZugzwangAGermanwordmeaning‘compulsiontomove’.It isaplayer’sturnto

move–butallmovesleadtotrouble.Itisofparticularimportanceinkingandpawnendgames.

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