Chessvibes.training 003 2011-05-21

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let's improve youR chess

Caruana-Zontakh

Russian Team Championship 2011

1.e4 c5 2.¤f3 e6 3.d4 cxd4 4.¤xd4 ¤f6 5.¤c3 ¤c6 6.¤db5 ¥b4 7.a3 ¥xc3+ 8.¤xc3 d5 9.¥d3 d4 10.¤e2 e5 11.0–0 0–0 12.b4 ¥e6 13.¥d2 a6 14.a4 £d6 15.£e1 b5 16.¤g3 ¦ab8 17.axb5 axb5 18.¦a6 ¥c8 19.¤f5 ¥xf5 20.exf5 £d5 21.f3 ¦fe8 22.¥e4 ¤xe4 23.fxe4 £d6 24.£g3 f6 25.¦f3 £d7 26.£h4 £b7 27.¦aa3

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Somehow it had happened that in the earlier phase of the game Black got steadily outplayed on some little nuances and finesses. And even though the strength of his centre was never in doubt, he now encounters real difficulties, as there seems to be no defense against the simple threat of ¦h3. Whenever Black goes h6, White just smashes through with ¥xh6! However, Grandmaster Zontakh found a final resource in mutual time trouble.

27...d3!

Here, playing on the table right next to them, I saw that even though Fabiano understood that the move was made more out of desperation, he nevertheless got nervous. Such little surprises

are always pretty unpleasant, especially in time trouble.

28.¦fxd3?!

And Fabiano immediately makes a mistake. It was better to take with the other rook as then White would have been able to get to the h3– square with his rook, without giving up the d-file. 28.¦axd3! but even here Black can continue fighting- 28...£a7+! 29.¢f1 ¦bd8! 30.¦h3 h6 and now Black has some compensation for the sacrificed pawn, although it

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s more practical in character. It would definitely not have been easy for Fabiano in time trouble, however, as the natural 31.¥xh6? surprisingly let

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s Black escape. 31...¦xd3 32.¦xd3 ¤xb4! 33.¦g3 ¦e7! 34.£xf6 ¤xc2! and after that brilliant sequence it becomes apparent that the White king is also very exposed. In fact, the position is drawn. 28...¦ed8

Now the move ¦h3 is no longer possible. Fabiano was probably just hoping to consolidate and later convert the extra pawn, but in fact it

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s really difficult to do so, and I must admit I already had some doubts about the outcome.

29.¥c3?!

Another inaccuracy, and now the advantage is gone. I must admit I liked the move at first, visually, but there

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s a concrete problem that all of us missed. 29.£f2!? was the way to keep fighting for an edge, though Black is not without resources- 29...¦d4! and even though Black hasn

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t fully equalized, his compensation is apparent- the Black pieces are excellent all of a sudden, the e4–pawn is weak, and there

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s no question of an attack on the Black king anymore. 29...¦xd3 30.cxd3 ¦d8?!

This move already spoils it, but Caruana hasn't seen the trick either. 30...£d7! was the trick and it turns out that the move is a double attack!- 31.£g3 covering d3, but... 31...¤xb4! (31...¦d8!?) 32.¥xb4 £d4+ 33.¢f1 £xb4 and White is lucky to have a draw with- 34.¦a7!.

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31.£g3? 31.¥d2!. 31...£f7?

Zontakh misses the trick again. Probably he just didn

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t believe his luck! 31...£d7! with the same idea- 32.¥e1 (32.¦a6 ¤xb4!) 32...¤xb4! (32...£d4+? 33.£f2 ¤xb4 34.£xd4 ¦xd4 35.¥c3! I think this was the line Fabiano was hoping for.

32.£e3

Now it

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s gone and Fabiano easily converts. 32...£h5 33.¦a1! h6 34.£b6! ¦c8 35.£b7! ¤e7 36.¥e1!

And Black is already lost, as the White bishop will inevitably land on the dominating c5–square. 36...£e8 37.¥f2 ¦b8 38.£c7 ¦c8 39.£b7 ¦b8 40.£a7 ¦d8 41.¥c5 ¤c6 42.£a2+ ¢h7 43.£e6 £d7 44.£xd7 ¦xd7 45.¦a3 h5 46.¢f2 ¤d4 47.¦a6 ¢h6 48.¢e3 ¢g5 49.¦b6 h4 50.¦b8 ¢g4 51.¢d2 ¤b3+ 52.¢c2 ¤d4+ 53.¥xd4 exd4 54.¦xb5 ¢f4 55.¢b3 ¢e3 56.¢c4 ¦c7+ 57.¦c5 ¦a7 58.e5 ¢f2 59.e6 ¢xg2 60.¦a5 ¦c7+ 61.¢d5 ¢xh2 62.¢d6 1–0

Believe in your luck!

In this game, played during the recent Russian Team Championship,

Zontakh tried to confuse Caruana in time trouble, but at the critical point

he didn’t believe he’d actually managed to do it!

giri's grab bag

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guess the move

In this game quiz you can get a maximum of 40 points by answering the eight questions that follow the eight diagram positions. More important than points though, is that you enjoy playing over the game and learn a few new ideas. If you feel that the quiz questions are generally too difficult for you, don't be discouraged by the point system. You can simply make a quick guess at the diagram positions and enjoy the beauty of the game.

Positional masterpiece: domination

Working for World Champion Anand has given Polish rising star

Radoslaw Wojtazek an enormous boost, making him an elite player.

Domination is a recurring theme in his games.

by IM MERIJN VAN DELFT

Wojtaszek,R (2711) - Hracek,Z (2631)

European Championship, 28.03.11 1.d4 ¤f6 2.c4 e6 3.¤c3 ¥b4 4.¤f3 4.e3 and 4.£c2 are important alternatives. 4...c5 5.g3 cxd4 6.¤xd4 ¤e4!?

Moving the same piece twice so early in the opening always involves a certain risk, since it slows down the development of the other pieces. The main alternative is 6...0–0.

7.£c2!?

As we will soon see, this approach is more flexible than the more common 7.£d3 ¤xc3 8.bxc3 ¥e7.

7...£a5

Indirectly defending the ¤ on e4 by counter attacking c3.

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Question 1

Would you play:

A) 8.¤db5 to combine attack and defence; B) 8.¥d2 to defend c3 and develop a piece at the same time;

C) 8.¥g2 to bring the pieces out as quickly as possible.

8.¥g2! This very elegant move gets 5 points and actually involves a couple of pretty tactical and positional ideas. Don

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t worry if you didn

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t choose this particular move, since it took the chess world a few decades and some creative minds like Kamran Shirazi to find and fully appreciate it. 8.¤db5 would have been a standard reaction and gets 2 points. 8.¥d2 gives up the pair of bishops without a fight, so doesn

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t get any points.

8...¤xc3

8...¥xc3+ 9.bxc3 £xc3+ (9...¤xc3 just loses a piece to 10.¥d2) 10.£xc3 ¤xc3 11.¢d2! ¤a4 12.¤b5 followed by ¥a3 and ¤d6 gives White a winning attack, even without queens on the board.

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Question 2

Would you play:

A) 9.bxc3 because White doesn

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t actually lose the ¦ on a1;

B) 9.¥d2 to win back the piece, while developing; C) 9.0–0 to further accelerate White

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s development.

9.0–0! 5 points for this amazing move, which is the idea behind White

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s previous move. In this case ultra-normal development is based on some very special ideas. 9.bxc3 indeed doesn

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t involve heavy material loss after 9...¥xc3+ 10.¥d2 but after 10...¥xd2+ 11.£xd2 £xd2+ 12.¢xd2 Black can get his pieces out with 12...¤c6 13.¤b5 ¢e7! leaving White with insufficient compensation for the pawn. Therefore no points. 9.¥d2 unfortunately doesn

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t win the piece back after 9...¤a4 so doesn

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t get any points.

9...¤c6

9...¤a4 10.a3 ¥e7 11.¤b5 ¤c5 12.b4 £a4 13.£b1 ¤ba6 14.¥e3 £b3 15.bxc5 £xc4 16.¤d6+ ¥xd6 17.cxd6 and White went on to win using the domination theme in the stem game, Shirazi-Zuckerman, New York 1990. 9...¤xe2+ 10.£xe2 also makes it difficult for Black to get his remaining pieces out.

10.bxc3 ¥xc3

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Question 3

Would you play:

A) 11.¤b3 to gain time by chasing the Black queen;

B) 11.¤b5 with a double attack against ¥c3 and the d6 square;

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The most effective way of keeping the initiative, getting 5 points. 11.¤xc6 dxc6 12.¦b1 does indeed avoid any further loss of time and gets 2 points. 11.¤b5 ¥xa1 12.¥d2 (12.¤d6+ ¢e7 doesn

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t lead anywhere.) 12...£d8 13.¦xa1 gives White some compensation and gets 2 points. 11...¤d4

The novelty. 11...£e5 12.¥f4 £f6 13.¦ab1 ¥e5 was Black

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s choice in Radjabov-Gashimov, Elista 2008, and may still be the more solid option. 12.¤xd4 ¥xd4

12...¥xa1 13.¤b3 £c3 fails to 14.¤xa1! £xa1 15.¥b2 £xa2 16.¦a1 trapping the £.

13.¦b1 Just like in last week

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s game, White manages to get his rooks into play quickly. 13...0–0

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Question 4

Would you play:

A) 14.¦b5 to be able to swing the rook across the board;

B) 14.¥xb7 to win back the sacrificed pawn; C) 14.¦d1 to bring the other rook into play as well.

14.¦d1! 5 points for bringing both rooks into play effectively. 14.¦b5 is not a bad idea and was played one move later in the game, 2 points.After 14.¥xb7 ¥xb7 15.¦xb7 d6 Black has solved all his problems, so no points.

14...¥c5 15.¦b5

This now looks even stronger. 15...£c7 16.¥f4

Again keeping the initiative. 16...e5

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Would you play:

A) 17.¦xc5 to keep the initiative at all costs; B) 17.¦d5 to keep the initiative while not giving up material;

C) 17.¥xe5 to win back the pawn.

17.¦xc5! 5 points for this powerful positional exchange sacrifice, one of the key moves in the game. Black will be terribly vulnerable on the black squares and still has enormous problems getting his pieces into play. 17.¥xe5 £xe5 18.¦d5 is not so impressive because of the desperado move 18...¥xf2+ and therefore gets no points. 17.¦d5 ¥xf2+ 18.¢xf2 exf4 doesn

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t really work either, so no points.

17...£xc5 18.¦d5 £b4 19.¥xe5 ¦e8

19...£e1+ 20.¥f1 only makes things worse, since the Black queen is about to get trapped. 20.¥e4 h6

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Question 6

Would you play:

A) 21.¥b2 to start building a menacing battery of £ and ¥;

B) 21.¥c3 to chase away the £ with gain of time;

C) 21.¥d6 to prevent ¥c8 from getting into play. 21.¥d6! 5 points, for paralysing Black

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s queenside. After this move White is strategically winning. 21.¥c3 £f8 is also good for White, but less principled (2 points).(21...£xc4 loses to 22.¥h7+ followed by ¥xg7.) 21.¥b2 fails tactically to 21...¦xe4! so no points.

21...£e1+ 22.¢g2 a5

Desperately trying to at least get the ¦ into play. 23.¦f5 ¦a6

(diagram) Question 7

Would you play:

A) 24.c5 further trapping ¥c8;

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B) 24.¦e5 to exchange a defender; C) 24.¥d5 to start the final attack.

24.c5! 5 points for further boxing in ¥c8, creating a pretty picture. 24.¦e5 ¦xe5 25.¥xe5 £b4 gives Black decent chances to defend, so no points. 24.¥d5 £xe2 25.¥xf7+ ¢h7! creates unnecessary complications, therefore no points. 24...¦e6 25.¥d5 £a1

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Question 8

Would you play:

A) 26.£d3 bringing the £ closer to the kingside; B) 26.e3 to emphasize that Black is completely helpless;

C) 26.¥xe6 simply winning material.

26.¥xe6! 5 points, since White wins much more than just the exchange. 26.£d3 is not a bad idea either and gets 2 points. 26.e3 would be in the right spirit and gets 2 points.

26...dxe6 26...fxe6 27.¦f8#.

27.¥e5 Black resigned, because after 27...£e1 White has time for 28.¦f4! followed by ¥c3 trapping the £.

Conclusion: The way Wojtaszek managed to dominate a 2600 grandmaster is amazing. It

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s certainly worth looking up more games by this

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improve your play

Tourkolias,D (1893) - Pagalis,G (1812)

Greek Team Ch (Athens), 30.03.11

1.e4 c5 2.¤f3 ¤c6 3.¥b5 £c7 4.0–0 g6 There are many lines in the Rossolimo where Black develops his ¥ to g7, but in this particular position it

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s probably not the best idea. In order to keep the white ¤ away from d5, Black has to play e6 anyway, and combining both g6 and e6 makes the dark squares a little vulnerable. Furthermore, Black has already spent a tempo on £c7 and has to be careful not to get behind in development. 4...e6 followed by ¤ge7 and a6 looks like the most natural setup for Black. 4...a6 is the most popular move, but it

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s hard to understand why. Didn

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t the ¥ go to b5 to take on c6 anyway? 5.¦e1 ¥g7 6.¤c3 e6

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7.d3

7.¥xc6 was the most principled continuation, as the Black ¤ is not yet on e7 to recapture. Like in most Rossolimos, White voluntarily gives up his ¥¥ and starts playing against the weakened black §-structure and the ¥ on c8. 7...bxc6 (7...£xc6 is simply too slow. White has almost finished his development and Black will even have to spend a third tempo with his £, as it

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s a bit exposed at c6. 8.d4 with a large initiative for White.) 8.¤a4 d6 9.e5.

7...¤ge7 8.¥e3

Rapid development in the Rossolimo

You’re about to see a typical Rossolimo game. White develops

quickly and tries to achieve something right out of the opening. If

Black survives, he gets two strong Bishops as a reward.

by IM THOMAS WILLEMZE

8.¥xc6 Is again interesting, but Black is doing fine after 8...¤xc6 , the best way to recapture. It prevents White from playing 9.e5 followed by 10.¤e4 aiming at the weakened dark squares. 9.¤b5 £b8 10.e5 ¤xe5 11.¥f4 d6 12.¤xd6+ £xd6 13.¥xe5 ¥xe5 14.¤xe5 0–0 and Black will eventually activate his ¥ by playing f6 and e5. 8...¤d4 9.¥xd4 cxd4 10.¤e2 a6 11.¥c4 b5 12.¥b3 ¤c6

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13.c3

As White has a lead in development it makes sense to open up the position. However, this advantage is only temporary. As soon as Black has brought his ¢ to safety and his pieces into play, his ¥¥ would love to have some space. Therefore it would have been better for White to keep the position closed and continue with the less ambitious 13.a4.

13...dxc3 14.bxc3 b4

A tempting move, but the simple 14...0–0! would have been much stronger. After Black finishes his development and his ¥¥ enjoy a certain amount of space, he will get a pleasant position.

15.¦c1

A coffee house player would certainly go for 15.cxb4!? ¥xa1 16.£xa1 0–0 17.a3 with good compensation for the exchange.

15...bxc3

15...a5! Would have been the best move,

based on an important principle: always try to maintain the tension as long as possible, hoping that your opponent will exchange. By recapturing, you can improve a piece or a pawn for free.

16.¤xc3

Now White is the one who improves a piece without using a tempo. Black has to be very careful as he still needs a few more moves to finish his development. All the White pieces are ready for action.

16...0–0 17.d4 £a7 18.e5

Very well played. The ¤ on c3 is now ready to go.

18...¥b7 19.¤e4 ¤a5 20.¥c2 ¥d5

20...¤c4 would have been stronger, followed by ¦ac8, after which all the black pieces are participating.

21.¤f6+ ¥xf6 22.exf6

From code orange to code red. With some of his pieces still out of play, Black has ended up with one of the most dangerous kingside-structures possible. 22...¥xf3

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After this move things develop really quickly. 22...¤c4 would have been better.

23.£d2!

White simply ignores the ¥ and goes for his main target: the ¢.

23...¢h8 24.gxf3

Simple and strong. It

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s impossible for Black to defend without active pieces.

24...¤c4 25.£h6 ¦g8 26.¦e4 g5 27.£xh7+ 1–0

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Spassov-Kru.Georgiev Sofia, 10.01.2009

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Biro-Bigalke Oberhaching, 07.08.2006

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Today we'll take a closer look at two themes. We start with two nice examples of a ¢ being mated on the dark squares, just as happened in our main game. Next, I'll show you some rapid development in the Rossolimo. 24.f6! By pointing lots of pieces at the d5–square, White controls the center. As his pieces are also much more mobile than the black ones, all the ingredients are there for a dangerous attack. The plan is simple. It starts with fixing the dark squares around the ¢ and removing an important defender. 24...¤ge6 25.¥xf8 ¤xf8 As you can see, the dark squares suddenly became very weak. Black is in serious trouble as his position is cramped and he can

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t get any defenders to his ¢. White, on the other hand, doesn

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t seem to have any problems moving his pieces. 26.£h6 ¤ce6 Now Black can

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t move a muscle. Patiently eliminating all the defenders will do the rest. 27.¤d3 ¦g5 28.h3 There

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s no need to hurry. Black doesn

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t have enough forces to react in the centre. 28...¤d7 29.¤f4 Eliminating defender number one. 29...¤dc5 30.¤xe6 ¤xe6 31.¤d5 And Black resigned. White is soon going to chase away the last defender, either by recapturing on d5 or by playing ¤f4. 1–0

White is a pawn down and has to be quick. Once Black gets the time to coordinate his forces and put them behind his strong center, the game is over. It's not so easy for White to decide what to do. Starting a pawn storm on the kingside by playing 16.h4, for instance, will not really help. Black simply plays 16...¥e5 and puts his ¥ on c7. As the Black kingside doesn't have any weaknesses, it will take White a lot of time to achieve anything there. In the game, White found a nice solution: creating a weakness with active piece play! 16.¥xd7! 16...£xd7 17.g5 17.¤xf6+ It

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s always tempting to force your opponent to recapture with the g-pawn on f6, as his ¢ looks a bit exposed afterwards. However, by doing so White ends his attack before it

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s started, as after 17...gxf6 18.£f4 e5 19.£xf6 £e6 Black has nothing to worry about because of his powerful center. 17...¥e7 18.¤f6+! A very effective way of opening up the kingside. 18...¥xf6 19.gxf6 g6 20.£f4 Back to our theme: the dark squares! 20...¢h8 This is not really helping. The only thing Black can do is go for f6. 20...£d8 21.¦xd4 e5 22.£xe5 £c8 Black could at least suffer a little longer. 21.£h6 ¦g8 22.¦d3 ¦ac8 23.£xh7+ ¢xh7 24.¦h3# 1–0

Ulibin-Akopian Santiago de Chile, 1990

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T.Willemze-Slingerland Leiden, 12.02.2003

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Black has a solid position and needs only two more moves to complete his development. White decided it was time for action. 7.d4! The exclamation mark is for the sequel. 7...cxd4 8.¤d5! Thematic, but always nice to see. From now on, White

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s main goal is to keep Black busy, never allowing him to get his ¢ safe and complete his development. 8...£d8 8...exd5 It

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s not hard to calculate the soundness of the sacrifice, as 9.exd5+ wins back the ¤ easily. 9.¤xd4 White takes his § back and the rest of the attack is for free, with no need to sacrifice anything. 9...¥d7 10.¥g5 ¦c8 11.¤f5 White increases the pressure with every move he makes. 11...a6 12.¥xc6 bxc6 13.¤xf6+ gxf6 14.£d4 14.¥h4 and simply taking the § on d6 afterwards would have been easier. 14...c5 14... exf5 was again inadvisable. 15.exf5+ ¥e7 16.¥xf6. 15.£xf6 £xf6 16.¥xf6 ¦g8 17.¦ad1 Black still can

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t take the ¤ and is experiencing trouble coordinating his pieces. 17...¦c6 18.¤e3 The ¤ is going for a little tour in order to create weaknesses. 18...h5 19.¤d5 ¥c8 20.¤f4 e5 21.¤d5 ¥h3 22.g3 ¦g6 23.¦e3 c4 24.b4! cxb3 25.¦xb3 ¦xc2 26.¦b8+ ¦c8 27.¦db1 ¥e6 28.¦1b7 Black is completely paralysed. 28...¥h3 29.¤b6 1–0

We finish with one of my own games from my younger days. Just as in the previous game, it started with a Rossolimo. Again, White's main goal is to keep Black busy all the time. It's very important not to let him coordinate his pieces, which would give him an edge due to his ¥¥. 12.£f3+ ¢e8 13.0–0 g6 Black makes his first developing move, while White has already brought his ¢ to safety. From now on, White will have to develop pieces and create threats simultaneously in order to keep Black busy. 14.d4 §§ are not important as we go for the ¢. 14...cxd4 15.¦e1 Threatening ¤f6. 15...¢d8 16.¥f4 £d5 17.c4 £f5 18.g4 £e6 19.£g3 Threatening ¥c7 and ¤d6. 19.¤d6 was, however, much stronger. 19...£c6 20.¤g5 ¦g8 21.¥c7+ ¢e8 22.£f4 ¦g7 23.¥e5 £xc4 24.¥xg7 ¥xg7 25.£d6 Is winning, but it

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s a pity White didn

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t find the way of finishing the game in style. 25.¦xe7+! ¢xe7 26.¦e1+ ¢d8 27.¤f7+. 25...¥f8 26.¦xe7+ ¥xe7 27.¦e1 £e6 28.¦xe6 dxe6 29.£e5 ¥xg5 30.£xg5 ¥d7 Black can struggle on a little longer, but the ending is lost. 31.£e5 d3 32.¢f1 ¦d8 33.¢e1 d2+ 34.¢xd2 ¥c6+ 35.¢e3 ¢f7 36.g5 ¦e8 37.£c7+ ¢g8 38.f4 ¥d5 39.b4 a6 40.a4 ¦f8 41.¢f2 ¦f7 42.£d6 ¦f8 43.¢g3 ¦c8 44.£e5 ¦c4 45.h4 ¦xb4 46.£b8+ ¢f7 47.£c7+ ¢e8 48.£c8+ 1–0



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tactics, tactics

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by IM ROBERT RIS

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Polgar,J (2686) - Guseinov,G (2584)

European Ch (Aix-les-Bains) 30.03.2011

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In spite of the limited material left on the board, Black has serious problems in this endgame. The pawn on g6 requires constant protection. White's pawn on d5, on the other hand, is a powerful asset, as it prevents the black ¢ from approaching the centre and also restricts the movement of the ¥ on d7. However, a second weakness needs to be created in order to make further progress.

36.a3 a5

Sooner or later this move has to be made, e.g. after 36...¢g7 37.¢c3 Black is forced to play 37...a5 to prevent an invasion on the queenside by ¢b4–a5.

37.¢d4

The immediate 37.b4?! axb4 38.axb4 seems to suit our plan well. However, the exchange of pawns usually helps the weaker side and hence Polgar delays the advance of the b-pawn in order to execute it under more favorable circumstances.

37...¢g7

Black is sadly doomed to passivity, as alternatives only decrease Black

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s chances of survival: 37...b4? 38.axb4 axb4 39.¢c4 simply loses a pawn. No better is; 37...e5+? 38.dxe6+! (After 38.¢c3? ¥e8 Black is out of danger.) 38...¥xe6 39.b4 axb4 40.axb4 ¥c4 (40...¥d7 41.¢d5 and Black has to give up either d6 or

48.¢xg4 Black loses the pawn ending after 48...¢f7 49.f5 ¢g7 50.fxg6 ¢xg6 51.¢f4 ¢g7 52.¢f5 ¢f7 53.g6+ and the ¢ will pick up the remaining pawns.

48.¥e2!

The transition into a pawn ending is now no longer advisable, since after 48.¥xf5? gxf5 49.¢h3 ¢h7 50.¢h4 ¢g6 White is unable to win.; Moreover, White doesn

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t have time to prepare the exchange on f5 with 48.¢h4? because of 48...¥d3! and the ¥ becomes active. 48...¥d7 49.¥f1 ¢f7 50.¥d3 ¢g7 51.¢h4 ¥e8 White

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s plan couldn

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t be prevented by means of 51...¢f7 52.¥e2 e6 because of the following forced sequence: 53.dxe6+ ¢xe6 (53...¥xe6 54.¥xb5 wins easily.) 54.¥g4+ ¢e7 55.¥xd7 ¢xd7 56.f5! gxf5 57.g6 ¢e7 58.¢g5 f4 59.¢xf4 ¢f6 60.¢e4 and again the outside passed pawn decides matters.

52.¥e2 ¢f8

After 52...¥d7 53.¥g4 Black can

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t play 53...¥f5 in view of 54.¥xf5 gxf5 55.¢h5! and the ¢ penetrates. 53.¥g4 ¥f7 54.¥e6!

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The cleanest solution. 54.¥d7 ¥xd5 55.¥xb5 might have given Black some counterplay. 54...¥e8

The pawn ending after 54...¥xe6 55.dxe6 is lost for Black. White

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s ¢ walks to c6 to pick up the pawns on the queenside, and if Black prevents that by putting his ¢ on c7, White can count on the breakthrough with f4–f5!

55.¢g4 ¢g7 56.¢f3

Polgar refrains from the tempting 56.f5!? and carries out another instructive plan.

g6.) 41.¥d5+ ¥xd5 42.¢xd5 ¢e7 43.¢c6 and the pawn endgame is easily won. 38.¥d3! An excellent spot for the ¥, from where it keeps an eye on both b5 and g6.

38...¢f7 39.f4 ¢g7 40.¢c3 ¢f7 41.b4!

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41...a4

The note about 37.b4 is illustrated by the fact that 41...axb4+ now drops a pawn, because of 42.¢xb4!.

42.¢d4 ¢g7

Black is unable to get rid of his backward e-pawn with 42...e6 because of the chronic weaknesses on b5 and g6. Since the ¢ has done its job on the queenside, it returns to the battle on the other part of the board.

43.¢e3 ¢f7 44.¢f3 ¢g7 45.¢g3 ¢f7 46.¥e2 ¢g7 47.¥g4!?

Checking whether Black will fall into the trap... 47...¥f5!

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The only correct response. In case of 47...¥xg4

practical endings

Same-coloured bishops not the same

Judit Polgar has always been feared for her outstanding attacking skills.

Recently she proved she had another aspect to her game as well,

displaying superb technique in the following bishop ending.

(8)

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solutions p.6

 32...¥f5!–+ 0–1 Chueca Forcen-Zamarbide Inarrea, Ch-ESP Selecciones Autonomicas Gijon ESP (1.4), 29.04.2011

 19.¥xb6! cxb6 20.f4+– 0–1 Trepat Herranz-Perez Calahorra, 34th Open Donostia ESP (7), 21.04.2011

 15...¤xd3+! [15...¤xd3+! 16.£xd3 (16.¢d1 ¤xf2+) 16...£xa1+–+] 0–1 Tirado Parra-Krulich, 34th Open Donostia ESP (7), 21.04.2011  55.¦xc6! [55.¦xc6! ¦xc6 56.¥xe4+ f5 57.¥xc6+–] 1–0 Smirnov-Huynh,

Sydney International Open AUS (4), 28.04.2011

 44...£xd4+! [44...£xd4+! 45.¥xd4 d2–+] 0–1 Mateo-Dgebuadze, 34th Open Donostia ESP (9), 23.04.2011

 29...¤e2+! [29...¤e2+! 30.£xe2 (30.¢f1 ¤xc1–+) 30...£xb3–+] 0–1 Bocharov-Vitiugov, ch-RUS Rapid Olginka RUS (9), 26.04.2011 7 24...¤d3+! 25.¢e2 ¤c5!–+ 0–1 Tregubov-Inarkiev, ch-RUS Rapid

Olginka RUS (7), 26.04.2011

 38.¦e6+! ¢g7 39.¤e8++– 1–0 Candela Perez-Bestard Borras,

TCh-ESP Selecciones Autonomicas Gijon TCh-ESP (3.3), 30.04.2011

 32.¦e8+! [32.¦e8+! ¢f7 (32...¦xe8 33.£xd3+–) 33.¤e5+! ¢xe8 34.¤xd3+–] 1–0 Gelashvili-Shen, Philadelphia Open USA (3), 21.04.2011

 59.¦h7+? [59.¦h8! ¦c1 (59...¢xh8 60.e7+–) 60.e7 ¦f1+ 61.¢g4+–] 59...¢f8 60.e7+ ¢e8 61.¢f6 ¦f4+ ½–½ Juanes Garcia-Gomez Dieguez, TCh-ESP Selecciones Autonomicas Gijon ESP (1.6), 29.04.2011

 26...¤f3+! 27.¥xf3 £g5+! 28.¢h1 [28.£xg5 ¦xe1+ 29.¢g2 fxg5–+] 28...£xd2 29.¦xe8+ ¢f7–+ 0–1 Velten-Elsness, 34th Open Donostia ESP (8), 22.04.2011

 37...¦g3+! [37...¦g3+ 38.¢h2 (38.¢xg3 £f3+ 39.¢h2 ¦h8+ 40.¢g1 £h1#; 38.fxg3 £xf1+ 39.¢h2 ¦h8#) 38...£h6+ 39.¢xg3 £h4+ 40.¢g2 £g4+ 41.¢h2 ¦h8#] 0–1 Aranaz Murillo-Baron, 34th Open Donostia ESP (5), 20.04.2011 56...¢f8 57.¢e4 ¢g7 58.¥c8 ¢f7 59.¢d4 ¢f8 60.¥b7!

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For the entire endgame the pawn on d5 has proven an annoying obstacle for Black, and

62.f5! and Polgar finally touches her f-pawn, after which Black resigned, in view of 62... gxf5 63.g6 and wins. White

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s handling of the endgame was exemplary. Saddling Black with a second weakness on b5, Polgar gave her opponent the impossible task of holding the position together. The threat of transposing into a pawn ending helped to push Black further back. It

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s noteworthy that White delayed moving her f-pawn until the very last move. 1–0