No.

2, May 14, 2011

TRAINING
let's improve youR chess

Pawns or pieces?
From the third game of the Gelfand-Mamedyarov match one can learn
that White’s attack in the Sicilian is often not as dangerous as it looks, as
long as Black keeps on finding strong counter-attacking resources.
by GM ANISH GIRI

giri's grab bag
Mamedyarov-Gelfand
Candidates, game 3 (Kazan) 2011
1.e4 c5 2.¤f3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.¤xd4 ¤f6
5.¤c3 a6 6.¥c4 e6 7.¥b3 b5 8.0–0 ¥e7 9.£f3
£c7 10.£g3 0–0 11.¥h6 ¤e8 12.¦ad1 ¥d7
13.f4 ¤c6 14.f5 ¤xd4 15.¦xd4 ¢h8!?
This is the first new move but it is, however,
quite logical. The big expert of the recent past,
Garry Kasparov, chose another viable move
15...¥f6!? in a game against Morozevich back
in 2001. However, I’m sure Mamedyarov was
well prepared, so the text move was yet another
clever decision by Gelfand.
16.¥e3?!
Meeting a novelty, Shakhriyar decided not
to enter complications... That’s often a good
strategy, especially for club players, but at the
top-level if you don’t fight for the initiative you
can get punished. And that’s what happened.
16.f6!? ¥xf6 17.¦xf6 £c5 18.¥xg7+ ¤xg7
19.£f2 £e5 20.¦h6 f5.
16...¤f6! 17.£h3
XIIIIIIIIY
9r+-+-tr-mk0
9+-wqlvlpzpp0
9p+-zppsn-+0
9+p+-+P+-0
9-+-tRP+-+0
9+LsN-vL-+Q0
9PzPP+-+PzP0
9+-+-+RmK-0
xiiiiiiiiy
17...d5!
A thematic break. Note, it’s very rare that such
simple.
 22...a5
From now on Boris is merciless.
23.¦d3 £c6 24.c3 a4 25.¥c2 e5!
a break is possible in the Najdorf (look at the Starting the pawn-push.
e4 pawn and the knight on c3), but once it 26.¥g5 b4!
is, it usually brings White a lot of trouble and Powerplay!
headaches. 27.£h4 bxc3 28.¦h3 ¢g8! 29.¦e1
18.e5! 29.¥xf6 ¥xf6 30.£xh7+ ¢f8 leads nowhere.
Yet another typical reply. White wants to Black’s king is as solid as it could possibly be.
keep the center as closed as possible and 29...e4 30.g4 ¢f8! 31.¥e3 £c4 32.g5
concentrate on the kingside attack. A good XIIIIIIIIY
concept, but Gelfand had something prepared 9r+-+-mk-+0
in reply... 18.exd5 is unprincipled and after 18... 9+-+lvlpzpp0
exf5 Black has everything; all the white pieces 9-+-+-sn-+0
are stupid and misplaced and Black will soon
9+-+p+PzP-0
take over with moves like ¥d6, ¦ae8, ¤g4 and
whatever else he chooses.
9p+q+p+-wQ0
18...£xe5 19.¦h4 ¦fc8!
9+-zp-vL-+R0
Using the fact that the white king is a bit 9P+L+-+-zP0
unfortunate on g1. It is often the case in the 9+-+-tR-+K0
Sicilian that you should defend your kingside, xiiiiiiiiy
paradoxically, via the queenside! 32...¥xf5!
20.¢h1?! Boris obviously understands that it’s not about
A natural and in general useful move, but pieces here, but pawns, and above all the
here Black is just in time to kill off all White’s safety of his majesty!
ambitions. 20.¥g5! was cleverer. Now Black 33.gxf6 ¥xf6 34.£h5 ¥g6!
has a lot of ways to defend, but none of them is The bishop here is stronger than the miserable
clear. 20...¢g8 21.¥xf6 £xf6 22.¦xh7 g6! The rook on h3!
only way to guard against mate! Now, believe 35.£g4 £xa2
it or not, the position is balanced. Don’t ask me You can see that the more experienced you get,
why, that’s just the way it is... :-) the more greedy you become. Note that after
20...¦xc3! 21.bxc3 £xc3! move 3 Boris took 6 white pawns and managed
Now White’s idea of ¥d4 is neutralized and thus to save all the Black ones. I’m jealous... 36.¥b1
his attack is doomed. £c4 37.£g2 a3 38.¥a2 £c6 39.¦g3 ¦b8 and
22.¦d4?! here Shakhriyar, with almost no time on the
Shakh keeps on trying to complicate the game, clock, resigned. And rightly so - it’s obvious
but objectively he should have tried to save the that nothing other than a disaster was awaiting
worse endgame that arises after 22.¥d4 £xh3 him. A great counterattacking game, typical of
23.¦xh3. Black is clearly better, but it’s far from Boris Gelfand’s style! 0–1

1 of 8
ChessVibes TRAINING Let's improve your chess No. 2, May 14, 2011

An instructive pawn sacrifice

For this second issue I picked out a pretty game played in the 6th
Women Grand Prix. Dzagnidze very convincingly used her lead in
development against Mkrtchian to create a direct mating attack.
by IM MERIJN VAN DELFT

of the game. As we go through the remainder

guess the move  of the game the exact nature of White’s
compensation will become clear. The basic idea
is to shut the black pieces on the queenside out
Dzagnidze,N (2550) - Mkrtchian,L (2475) A) 13.a3 to push the ¥ back; of the game, leaving you a free hand on the
Doha, 02.03.11 B) 13.¦ad1 to centralise the ¦;. kingside. It’s essential in such cases to forget
C) 13.¥xf6 to ruin Black's kingside position. about materialistic thinking. 14.a3 is still not a
1.d4 ¤f6 2.c4 e6 3.¤f3 b6 very good idea and gets no points. 14.¤h4 is
This is called the Queen's Indian, a basically 13.¥xf6! overly cautious and therefore gets no points.
solid opening, but as we will soon see, it’s open 5 points, White should definitely jump at this There is no need to defend, White is the one
to different interpretations. opportunity. Black clearly underestimated the who will start an attack here.
4.g3 ¥a6 5.b3 b5 dangers connected with her weakened king 14...exd5
This surprising pawn thrust is not without risk, position. 13.a3 allows the neutralising 13...¥xc3 14...¥xd5 15.¤xd5 exd5 (15...£xd5 16.¤h4
because Black will temporarily lag behind in 14.£xc3 ¤e4 and therefore gets no points. leaves ¦a8 hanging.) 16.¦ad1 gives White the
development. 5...¥b4+ is considered the main 13.¦ad1 ¤e4 gets no points for the same same type of compensation.
line. reason. 15.¦ad1
6.cxb5 ¥xb5 7.¤c3 13...gxf6 Only now does White bring his ¦ into play.
7.¥g2 is the more common alternative here. XIIIIIIIIY 15...¦e8
7...¥b4 8.¥d2 ¥c6 9.¥g2 0–0 10.0–0 a5 11.£c2 9rsn-+-trk+0 XIIIIIIIIY
£c8 12.¥g5 £b7? 9+qzpp+p+p0 9rsn-+r+k+0
XIIIIIIIIY 9-+l+pzp-+0 9+qzpp+p+p0
9rsn-+-trk+0 9zp-+-+-+-0 9-+l+-zp-+0
9+qzpp+pzpp0 9-vl-zP-+-+0 9zp-+p+-+-0
9-+l+psn-+0 9+PsN-+NzP-0 9-vl-+-+-+0
9zp-+-+-vL-0 9P+Q+PzPLzP0 9+PsN-+NzP-0
9-vl-zP-+-+0 9tR-+-+RmK-0 9P+Q+PzPLzP0
9+PsN-+NzP-0 xiiiiiiiiy 9+-+R+RmK-0
9P+Q+PzPLzP0 Question 2 xiiiiiiiiy
9tR-+-+RmK-0 Would you play: Question 3
xiiiiiiiiy A) 14.a3 to push the ¥ back; Would you play:
An unfortunate novelty that is met with very B) 14.d5 to cut Black's pieces off from the A) 16.¦d4 to further bring the rook into play;
powerful play by White. 12...¥xc3 13.£xc3 ¤e4 kingside; B) 16.¤xd5, based on a nice tactical idea;
14.£c2 ¥d5 15.¥f4 ¤c6 as played in Van der C) 14.¤h4 to neutralise Black's pressure along C) 16.¤h4 to manoeuvre the ¤ to f5.
Sterren-T.Horvath, Bundesliga 1996, is the the long diagonal.
right way to get the Black pieces into play. 16.¦d4!
14.d5! 5 points, an excellent rook shift that blocks the
Question 1 5 points, this is a very instructive positional d-pawn and thus basically shuts all the black
Would you play: pawn sacrifice and the most important move pieces out of the game. The golden rules in the

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.

2 of 8
ChessVibes TRAINING Let's improve your chess No. 2, May 14, 2011

opening are well-known: 1. Control the centre 20.£f3! 23.£h5 unfortunately blunders a piece to the
(pawn in the centre), 2. Develop the pieces A white ¤ on f5 is deadly, so it’s well worth simple 23...£xf5 and gets no points.
(minor pieces first) and 3. Bring the king to safety aiming for, 5 points. 20.¦g4+ also keeps the 23...¢xh7 24.£h5+ ¢g8 25.£g4+ ¢f8
(castling). Giving the rooks a proper function is initiative and is worth 4 points.; 20.£d2 is the Otherwise £g7 is checkmate.
the next challenge (number 4, if you like) and isn’t alternative £ manoeuvre and gets 3 points. 26.£g7+ ¢e8 27.£g8+ ¢d7 28.£xf7+ ¢d8
always very easy. Here Dzagnidze meets that 20...d6 21.¤f5 ¢h8 So far so good, and the next move is also
challenge impressively. 16.¤h4, heading for the XIIIIIIIIY obvious.
inviting f5 square, gets 2 points. If you calculated 9r+-+-+-mk0 29.£xf6+ ¢d7
16.¤xd5 ¥xd5 17.¤g5 fxg5 18.¦xd5 you get 2 9+qzp-+p+p0 29...¢e8 30.¤g7+ ¢d7 31.¥h3+ ¦e6 32.¥xe6# .
points, since even after the only defence 18... 9n+lzp-zp-+0 XIIIIIIIIY
c6 19.¦xg5+ ¢f8 White has decent attacking 9r+q+-+-+0
9zp-+ptrN+-0
chances. 9+-zpk+-+-0
16...¤a6 17.¦fd1
9-+-tR-+-+0
9+P+-+QzP-0 9n+lzp-wQ-+0
Activating the other rook as well.
9P+-+PzPLzP0 9zp-+ptrN+-0
17...¥xc3 18.£xc3 ¦e4
18...¦xe2 19.¦g4+ loses right away. 9+-+R+-mK-0 9-+-+-+-+0
XIIIIIIIIY xiiiiiiiiy 9+P+-+-zP-0
9r+-+-+k+0 Question 6 9P+-+PzPLzP0
9+qzpp+p+p0 Would you play: 9+-+R+-mK-0
9n+l+-zp-+0 A) 22.¤xd6 to open the way to f6; xiiiiiiiiy
B) 22.¤h6 with the same idea; Question 8
9zp-+p+-+-0
C) 22.¦h4 to start focusing on h7. Would you play:
9-+-tRr+-+0 A) 30.¤xd6 because the position is asking for
9+PwQ-+NzP-0 22.¦h4! tactics;
9P+-+PzPLzP0 5 points, this swinging rook will be too much for B) 30. £f7 to continue the attack in the most
9+-+R+-mK-0 Black to handle. 22.¤xd6 cxd6 23.£xf6+ ¢g8 forceful way;
xiiiiiiiiy 24.¦g4+ ¢f8 25.£xd6+ ¦e7 (25...£e7 26.£h6+ C) 30. ¥h3 to bring another piece into the attack.
Question 4 ¢e8 27.£xc6+ loses the house.) 26.¥xd5 ¥xd5
Would you play: 27.¦xd5 is a rather complicated win (White is 30.¥h3!
A) 19.£d2 to transfer the £ to the kingside; threatening £h6 followed by ¦g8) but if you After this silent move Black is completely
B) 19.¦xe4 to exchange a defender; calculated this, you deserve 4 points. 22.¤h6 is defenceless and will lose all her pieces (5
C) 19.¤h4 to manoeuvre the ¤ to f5. also strong and gets 4 points as well. points), therefore Mkrtchian resigned.30.£f7+
22...£c8 doesn’t spoil anything (2 points), but after
19.¤h4! XIIIIIIIIY 30...¢d8 White should return to the initial
This move is strong because it brings the white 9r+q+-+-mk0 position with 31.£f6+ ¢d7 and then play
pieces closer to Black’s king while still keeping 9+-zp-+p+p0 32.¥h3! anyway. 30.¤xd6 may be very
the d-pawn blocked, 5 points. The simple 19.¦xe4 9n+lzp-zp-+0 tempting, but after the only defence 30...£h8!
dxe4 20.¤h4 is not bad either and gets 2 points.; White is actually no longer winning. Therefore
9zp-+ptrN+-0
19.£d2 gives White a nice attack as well and gets this move doesn’t get any points.
2 points.
9-+-+-+-tR0
19...¦e5
9+P+-+QzP-0 Conclusion: the positional pawn sacrifice d5! is
XIIIIIIIIY 9P+-+PzPLzP0 a key idea to remember. Once you know the
9r+-+-+k+0 9+-+R+-mK-0 idea, you have a fair chance of being able to
9+qzpp+p+p0 xiiiiiiiiy use it yourself in your own games. 1–0  
9n+l+-zp-+0 Question 7
Would you play:
9zp-+ptr-+-0
A) 23.¤d4 with double threats against c6 and
9-+-tR-+-sN0 f6;
9+PwQ-+-zP-0 B) 23.£h5 to threaten mate on h7;
9P+-+PzPLzP0 C) 23.¦xh7+ to start a whole sequence of
9+-+R+-mK-0 checks.
xiiiiiiiiy
Question 5 23.¦xh7+!
Would you play: 5 points, in fact the long sequence of checks
A) 20.£d2 to transfer the £ to the kingside; leads to a clear win. 23.¤d4 is of course
B) 20.£f3 to renew the idea of ¤f5; winning as well (4 points). Normally one has
C) 20.¦g4 to keep Black's options limited. to sacrifice a piece to reach such a position.

3 of 8
ChessVibes TRAINING Let's improve your chess
Using the pawn on h6 as a door knob
The move h7–h6 is often useful to keep pieces away from g5 or to
create some luft for the king. However, when facing an attack on the
kingside, it can be a serious weakness.
improve your play
Fuatai,F (1840) - Deen Cowell, N
Oceania Zonal (New Zealand), 26.01.11
1.e4 c5 2.¤f3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.¤xd4 ¤f6
5.¤c3 a6 6.¥c4
The Fischer attack
6...e6 7.0–0 b5 8.¥b3
XIIIIIIIIY
9rsnlwqkvl-tr0
9+-+-+pzpp0
9p+-zppsn-+0
9+p+-+-+-0
9-+-sNP+-+0
9+LsN-+-+-0
9PzPP+-zPPzP0
9tR-vLQ+RmK-0
xiiiiiiiiy
8...¥e7
8...¥b7 was the famous game of Fischer
himself against Gadia in 1960. The game is
without a § on h6, but illustrates White’s main
plan in this opening perfectly. 9.f4 ¤c6 10.¤xc6
¥xc6 11.f5 White puts maximum pressure on
e6 to provoke 11...e5 after which White’s plan
is clear: exchange two pairs of pieces and play
with a ‘good’ ¤ vs the ‘bad’ ¥ on f8. 12.£d3
¥e7 13.¥g5 £b6+ 14.¢h1 0–0 15.¥xf6 ¥xf6
16.¥d5 White has almost achieved his goal.
16...¦ac8 17.¥xc6 ¦xc6 18.¦ad1 ¦fc8 19.¤d5
£d8 20.c3 ¥e7 21.¦a1! Fischer starts creating
a second weakness on the queenside. (21.f6
¥xf6 22.¤xf6+ gxf6 23.£h3 is tempting and
also strong.) 21...f6 22.a4 ¦b8 23.¤xe7+ 1–0
Fischer-Gadia, Mar del Plata 1960.
9.a3
This looks normal as it seems as though 9.f4 is
simply losing a pawn after 9...b4 However, as
White is much better developed he can simply
give up the pawn and crush his opponent in
return. 10.¤a4 ¤xe4? 11.f5! exf5 (11...e5 If
Black doesn’t move his e-pawn, White will
simply take it with a large advantage. 12.¥d5
¤f6 13.¥xa8 ¥d7 14.b3 exd4 15.£xd4 and
White is an exchange up.) 12.¤xf5 Threatening
£d5, attacking a8, f7 and the ¤. Black can
only save one of them. 12...¥xf5 13.¦xf5 ¤f6
14.¥xf7+ Black can´t take because of £d5,
winning the ¦. And after 14...¢f8 15.¥d5 his
position is hopeless.
9...0–0
White lost some time with a3 and Black now
starts pressing against e4 as quickly as possible
in order to prevent White from executing his
plan.
10.f4 ¥b7 11.£e1
11.¦e1 Looks more natural, as now the £ will
keep an eye on d5.
11...¤bd7 12.f5
There´s no way back.
12...e5 13.¤f3 ¤c5
The pressure on e4 has become unbearable for
White. He has no option other than exchanging
on d5, without the opportunity of taking back
with a piece at the end of the variation.
14.¥d5 ¥xd5 15.exd5
XIIIIIIIIY
9r+-wq-trk+0
9+-+-vlpzpp0
9p+-zp-sn-+0
9+psnPzpP+-0
9-+-+-+-+0
9zP-sN-+N+-0
9-zPP+-+PzP0
9tR-vL-wQRmK-0
xiiiiiiiiy
Black played really well and got a comfortable
edge. There isn't, however, any time to
celebrate. As the center is closed, action on
the flanks will be legitimate and time is very
important. Black will only keep the upper hand
No. 2, May 14, 2011
by IM THOMAS WILLEMZE
if he achieves something on the queenside
before White is ready to launch an attack on the
Black ¢.
15...¤cd7
Black starts playing for d5, which would give
him the center. White, however, manages
to defend the § and simultaneously gets his
pieces ready for an attack. 15...¤a4! Keeping
White busy immediately would have been the
right plan. After 16.¤xa4 bxa4 Black has a
strong initiative.
16.¥e3 ¤b6 17.¦d1 ¤c4 18.¥c1
A nice manoeuvre. After the ¦ has become
active, c1 is by far the best square for the ¥.
18...£b6+ 19.¢h1 £b7 20.£g3 ¢h8 21.¤g5
¤b6 22.£h3 ¦ac8
XIIIIIIIIY
9-+r+-tr-mk0
9+q+-vlpzpp0
9psn-zp-sn-+0
9+p+PzpPsN-0
9-+-+-+-+0
9zP-sN-+-+Q0
9-zPP+-+PzP0
9+-vLR+R+K0
xiiiiiiiiy
A strange kind of dynamic balance has arisen.
Black has pressure on d5 and White on h7.
Black is still slightly better, but one mistake on
his side will lead to his ¢ being mated.
23.¤ce4! h6
It looks like this move chases away the ¤ and
releases the pressure a bit. However, it loses
instantly, as White finally finds the door knob he
needed to open up the ¢'s fortress.
24.¤xf6 ¥xf6 25.¤e4 £e7
The ¥ must stay on f6 to block the §.
26.¥xh6 ¢g8 27.¥xg7!
Very thematic. First White gently opened the
door at h6, but now he’s breaking in with force.
Black is lost.
27...¢xg7 28.£g4+ ¢h7 29.¦f3 ¦g8 30.¦h3+
¥h4 31.¦xh4+ £xh4 32.£xh4+ ¢g7 33.£g5+
¢f8 34.£h6+ 1–0
4 of 8
ChessVibes TRAINING Let's improve your chess No. 2, May 14, 2011

further examples
Aberbach - Driz
Villa Ballester, 06.01.2005
XIIIIIIIIY
White has three different ways of exploiting the move h7–h6: 1) playing g4–g5 and opening files in front of the ¢, 9rsn-+-trk+0
2) entering the Black position via h7 and 3) sacrificing a piece on h6, just like we saw in our main game. Let’s start 9+pzp-+pzp-0
with the first option. 11...¤e4 Would have been the best move. White won’t lose a piece because of 12.h5 ¤xc3 9p+-wq-snlzp0
13.bxc3 ¥e4 14.f3 f6. 12.g5 Now White is making serious contact and Black won’t be able to keep the files in
9+-+psN-+-0
front of his ¢ closed. 12...¥h5 12...hxg5 13.¤xg6 fxg6 14.hxg5 also isn’t a nice prospect. 13.£b3 ¤h7 14.¤xd5
14.£xb7 ¤d7 15.¤xd7 £xd7 16.£xd5 Simply grabbing some pawns would have been perfectly sound. White,
9-+-zP-+PzP0
however, is going for the Black ¢! 14...¤c6 15.¤f4 ¤xe5 16.dxe5 £c6 17.¦g1 The ¦ is getting ready for an
9+-sN-zP-+-0
open g-file. As Black has to save his ¥ first, he can’t avoid this. 17...¥g6 18.gxh6 ¥c2 19.¦xg7+ ¢h8 20.£c3 9PzP-+-zP-+0
£xh6 21.¦g3 ¥f5 22.0–0–0 Very well played. There’s no need to hurry! 22...b5 23.e6+ f6 24.¥d3 1–0 9tR-+QmKL+R0
xiiiiiiiiy

Krasevec - Wicklund Hansen

Rogaska Slatina, 24.07.2009 White is aiming for an attack on the ¢ and starts by provoking a weakness. 11.£c2 h6 Definitely better than
XIIIIIIIIY g6, after which h4–h5 would follow very quickly. Black could have refrained from playing h6 for a while, but
9r+-wq-trk+0 after 11...£c7 12.g4!? ¢h8 13.¦g1 he has the unpleasant choice between 13...h6 or giving up the h-pawn with
9zpl+pvl-zpp0 13...¥d6 14.g5 ¤g8 15.¥xh7. 12.¦g1 White doesn’t hide his intentions. 12...d5 12...¤e8 13.g4 ¥f6 would have
9-+n+psn-+0 been the toughest defense. 13.g4 ¤d7 14.g5 h5 15.¥h7+ ¢h8 16.¥g6 White’s play has been very sharp and
accurate. This would have been the moment to pick up his reward with 16.¥xg7+! ¢xg7 17.£g6+ ¢h8 18.£xh5
9+-zp-+-+-0
¦f7 19.¥g6+ ¢g8 20.¥xf7+ ¢f8 21.£h8+ ¢xf7 22.g6# Luckily, the move he played doesn’t spoil anything. 16...
9-zpP+-+-+0 d4 17.¥xh5 A bit slow, but White still keeps the attack going and wins convincingly. 17.£d1 would have been
9+P+LzPN+-0 the most elegant way to finish the game. 17...dxe3 18.¤e5 exf2+ 19.¢f1 fxg1£+ 20.¢xg1 and as the checks
9PvL-sN-zPPzP0 are over, Black can only avoid being mated on h5 by sacrificing all his pieces. 17...¤ce5 18.¦g3 ¤xf3+ 19.¥xf3
9tR-+QmK-+R0 ¥xg5 20.¦h3+ ¥h6 21.¥xb7 dxe3 22.¦xh6+ ¢g8 23.£h7+ ¢f7 24.£xg7+ ¢e8 25.¦xe6+ 1–0
xiiiiiiiiy
Decoster-Tiggelman
In this game White demonstrated yet another example of sacrificing a piece on h6. Although the combination had Belgium, 09.10.2005
been played before, it is still very elegant. 17.¤f5 ¦fe8 Black doesn’t like allowing a White ¦ on the 7nd rank after XIIIIIIIIY
taking the ¤, but he should have done so. 17...¥d8?! wouldn’t have helped either. Black simple can’t defend his 9r+-+-trk+0
¢ with a £ on a6. 18.¤xh6+! gxh6 19.¥xh6 ¦e8 20.¤e5 The White pieces are cooperating perfectly. 20...¤xe5 9zpp+nvlpzp-0
21.dxe5 ¤g4 22.£g3 ¢h7 (22...£xc4 23.¥f4 White wins back his piece.) 23.£xg4 ¢xh6 24.£f4+ ¥g5 25.£xf7 9q+p+psn-zp0
¦g8 26.£xe6+ ¢g7 27.¦ad1 White has four pawns and an initiative for the piece. More importantly, the Black
9+-+-+-+P0
£ is still out of play. 18.¦xe6 fxe6 19.¤xg7! ¢xg7 A more stubborn move would have been 19...¥f8 although
White had too much compensation for the piece after 20.¤xe8 ¦xe8 21.£g6+ ¥g7 22.¥xh6 ¦e7 23.¥f4 in the
9-+PzP-+-+0
game A. van Beek - Speelman Gibraltar 2007. 20.¥xh6+ Three sacrifices in a row! A very thematic Caro-Kann
9+-+Q+NsN-0
attack. All pawns are removed, after which the £ will have a clear path to the Black ¢. 20...¢h8 21.¥g7+ In 9PzP-vL-zPP+0
order to get the £ to g6 with tempo. 21.¤g5 is also winning. 21...¢g8 22.£g6 ¤xh5 23.¥e5+ ¢f8 24.£h6+ ¢g8 9tR-+-tR-mK-0
25.£h8+ 1–0 xiiiiiiiiy

Smyslov-Ribli
Candidates, 1983
XIIIIIIIIY We finish with a typical isolated d-pawn position. In the famous game Smyslov-Ribli, from their candidates
9r+-tr-mk-+0 match in 1983, Smyslov first provoked h6, after which he switched the £ and ¥ and entered the black position via
9zpp+-snpzpQ0 h7. It seems as though Black has enough defenders, but Smyslov proves they lack coordination. 22.¥xh6! This
9-+-+pvlnzp0 thematic sacrifice is again the prelude to a very beautiful attack. 22...¤xe5 23.¤h5 ¤f3+ 24.gxf3 ¤f5 25.¤xf6
¤xh6 26.d5 £xb2 26...gxf6 27.£xh6+ ¢e7 28.dxe6 is hopeless for Black. 27.£h8+ Unfortunately the simple
9+q+-sN-+-0
27.dxe6 fxe6 28.¤h5 would also have been decisive. 27...¢e7 This would be the right moment to think for
9-+-zP-+-+0 yourself. Can you find the forced win? 28.¦xe6+! fxe6 It’s still very hard to see where this combination is going.
9zP-+-+-sN-0 29.£xg7+! ¤f7 A trained eye will now spot the undefended £ at b2 and the battery of a White £ and ¤. White
9-zP-+-zPPzP0 is going for a discovered attack! 30.d6+ 30.¤g8+ ¦xg8 would have ruined everything. 30...¦xd6 31.¤d5+ ¦xd5
9tR-vL-tR-mK-0 32.£xb2 Black tried to hang on a little longer, but lost without a chance. 32...b6 33.£b4+ ¢f6 34.¦e1 ¦h8 35.h4
xiiiiiiiiy ¦hd8 36.¦e4 ¤d6 37.£c3+ e5 38.¦xe5 ¦xe5 39.f4 ¤f7 40.fxe5+ ¢e6 41.£c4+ 1–0 
5 of 8
ChessVibes TRAINING Let's improve your chess No. 2, May 14, 2011

tactics, tactics by IM ROBERT RIS

XIIIIIIIIY XIIIIIIIIY XIIIIIIIIY
9-+-+-trk+0 9-+r+-+k+0 9-trl+r+k+0
9zp-+-+pzpp0 9zpp+-+psnp0 9zp-+-+-+p0
9-+-+-+-+0 9-+-zp-+p+0 9-+-+p+p+0
9+-+L+-vl-0 9+-zpPtr-+-0 9wq-zppvl-+-0
9-tR-zPP+-+0 9P+PvlPzp-wq0 9-+-+-+P+0
9zP-tr-+Q+P0 9+P+Q+P+-0 9+-sN-+-+-0
9-+-wq-+P+0 9R+-sNL+PzP0 9PzPPwQ-+-+0
9+-+-+RmK-0 9+-+R+-+K0 9mK-+R+LvLR0
xiiiiiiiiy xiiiiiiiiy xiiiiiiiiy
XIIIIIIIIY XIIIIIIIIY XIIIIIIIIY
9-+-+-trk+0 9r+-wqr+k+0 9rsnlwqkvl-tr0
9zp-+-+rzpp0 9zplzp-+pvlp0 9zpp+-+-zpp0
9-zpp+lsn-+0 9-zp-zp-snp+0 9-+p+psn-+0
9+-zp-+-+q0 9+-+N+-+-0 9+-+p+p+-0
9-+-+PvL-+0 9-+P+P+-+0 9-+PzP-+-+0
9zP-sNP+-wQP0 9+P+-+-zP-0 9vLP+-+NzP-0
9-zPP+-tRP+0 9PvLQ+-zPLzP0 9P+-+PzP-zP0
9+-+-+RmK-0 9+-+RtR-mK-0 9tRN+QmKL+R0
xiiiiiiiiy xiiiiiiiiy xiiiiiiiiy
XIIIIIIIIY XIIIIIIIIY XIIIIIIIIY
9r+-trn+k+0 9r+-+r+k+0 9-+-+-+k+0
9+q+-vlpzpp0 9+-wq-vlpzpp0 9tr-+q+-zp-0
9pzp-zpp+n+0 9p+l+-sn-+0 9ptRn+p+-zp0
9+-+-+-+-0 9+-+-zp-+-0 9+-zPpzP-+-0
9-+P+Q+-+0 9p+-+P+-+0 9-+pzPlsN-+0
9vLPsN-+NzP-0 9+LsN-vL-+R0 9zP-+-vL-+P0
9P+-+PzP-zP0 9-zPP+Q+PzP0 9-wQ-+-+P+0
9+-tRR+-mK-0 9+-+-+RmK-0 9+-+-+-mK-0
xiiiiiiiiy xiiiiiiiiy xiiiiiiiiy
XIIIIIIIIY XIIIIIIIIY XIIIIIIIIY
9-+-+-tr-+0 9-+-+-+k+0 9rsnl+k+-tr0
9zp-tr-+pmk-0 9+-+-+p+-0 9zppwq-vlpzpp0
9-zp-+-+pzp0 9p+-+pzPp+0 9-+p+-sn-+0
9+-wqLzp-+-0 9+q+-zP-zP-0 9+-+p+-vL-0
9-+-+P+-+0 9-zp-zPl+-+0 9-+-zP-+-+0
9+Q+R+RzPP0 9+-+-+-tR-0 9+-sN-zP-+-0
9PzP-+-zP-mK0 9-+-wQ-+-+0 9PzPQ+-zPPzP0
9+-vl-+-+-0 9+-mK-+-+-0 9tR-+-mKLsNR0
xiiiiiiiiy xiiiiiiiiy xiiiiiiiiy
6 of 8
ChessVibes TRAINING Let's improve your chess
Bishop dominates knight
Malaniuk’s handling of the endgame is a perfect illustration of the
superiority of a ¥ in an open position with pawns on both flanks. Enjoy
the calmness with which Black converts his endgame advantage.
practical endings
Zmarzly,A (2118) - Malaniuk,V (2518)
Karkonosze Open, 22.02.2011
XIIIIIIIIY
9-+-+-+k+0
9+-+-+-zpp0
9-zp-+l+-+0
9zp-zp-+-+-0
9P+-+-+-+0
9+-zP-+-+-0
9-+PsN-zP-zP0
9+-+K+-+-0
xiiiiiiiiy
The following endgame was played between
a little-known amateur and a grandmaster
from the former Soviet Chess School. One
may wonder whether the latter didn't fear the
resulting endgame to be drawish in view of the
limited material left on the board. In fact, Black
has a clear advantage, due to the following
factors:
1) He has a better pawn structure, as his
pawns are connected. White's formation, on
the contrary, is completely demolished and
hence he has problems defending all the pawns
(especially a4).
2) Black's ¥ is superior to White's ¤. Why?
The position is open and since there are pawns
on both sides of the board, it's easier for the
¥ to switch locations. If e.g. all the pawns on
the kingside were removed, then White would
have serious drawing chances as the play
would be limited to one wing. In such cases the
¤ is usually the stronger piece, as it has the
advantage over the ¥ of being able to cover all
the squares, while the ¥ controls only half of
them.
3) It's important to note that White's pawns on
a4 and c2 are placed on light squares, which
means they're targets for the black ¥. Had they
been placed on the opposite colour then Black
 together with an active ¢, ensure White good
wouldn't have been able to exploit them. The
only vulnerable point in Black's camp could be
b6, but for the moment Black has completely
cut off the road towards it (via c4). Before
undertaking concrete operations, Black first
brings the last piece to the battlefield.
27...¢f7!
Black is in no hurry and so first activates his ¢,
which is generally a good idea in endgames.
Less convincing is 27...¥d7?! 28.¤c4! ¥xa4
29.¤xb6 and although Black remains better, he
has to be careful that too many pawns don’t
get exchanged (as a rule, the defending side
should strive to exchange as many pawns as
possible to get closer to a draw).
28.¢e2 ¢e7
Also possible is 28...¢f6 , but we’ll soon see the
idea behind the text.
29.¢e3 ¢d6 30.¢e4
Perhaps a better practical attempt would have
been to become active with 30.¤e4+ though
after 30...¢d5 31.¤g3 ¥d7 32.¤h5 ¥xa4
33.¢d2 (33.¤xg7 ¥xc2 favors Black too.)
33...¥e8 34.¤xg7 ¥g6 the ¤ remains out of
play.
30...¢c7!
XIIIIIIIIY
9-+-+-+-+0
9+-mk-+-zpp0
9-zp-+l+-+0
9zp-zp-+-+-0
9P+-+K+-+0
9+-zP-+-+-0
9-+PsN-zP-zP0
9+-+-+-+-0
xiiiiiiiiy
Black reveals his plan: b6 needs to be protected
first, before the ¥ goes to attack a4. It's worth
noting that Black is in no hurry to pick up the
pawn on a4, for the simple reason that it can't
be defended. Still, less accurate is 30...¥d7?!
in view of 31.¤c4+ ¢c7 32.¤b2 b5 33.¢d5!
No. 2, May 14, 2011
by IM ROBERT RIS
bxa4 34.¤c4 ¥b5 35.¤a3 and the blockade,
drawing chances.
31.c4 ¥d7!
All the preparatory measures have been taken
and so, finally, the time has come for the
harvest.
32.¢d3 ¥xa4 33.¤e4 ¥d7 34.¤c3
XIIIIIIIIY
9-+-+-+-+0
9+-mkl+-zpp0
9-zp-+-+-+0
9zp-zp-+-+-0
9-+P+-+-+0
9+-sNK+-+-0
9-+P+-zP-zP0
9+-+-+-+-0
xiiiiiiiiy
Black has won a pawn, but it looks like White
can still build up a kind of fortress. However, the
experienced GM Malaniuk shows an instructive
plan to increase his advantage. The ¥ will keep
an eye on c4, forcing the ¢ to protect the pawn.
Moreover, the ¤ has to stop the march of the
a-pawn. This frees the way for the black ¢ to
invade on the other part of the board.
34...¥f5+!
A typical strategy: Black gains a tempo by first
giving check.
35.¢d2 ¥e6 36.¢d3 ¢c6 37.¤b5 g5!
As White’s pieces are tied up on the queenside,
Black has time to improve his formation on the
kingside.
38.¢c3 a4!
Another instructive moment. Black doesn’t allow
the ¢ to come to the queenside and maintain
the protection of c4. Black doesn’t need to fear
the unprotected pawn becoming a weakness
because of the simple reason that White is
unable to attack it.
39.¢d3 h6 40.¢c3 ¢d7 41.¢d3 ¥h3!
Aiming to place the ¥ on f1, where it also
attacks c4 and further restricts the movement
of the ¢.
42.¢e2
7 of 8
ChessVibes TRAINING Let's improve your chess No. 2, May 14, 2011

XIIIIIIIIY
After 42.¢c3 ¥f1 White’s pieces are totally h-pawn, while the ¥ on c6 takes care of affairs
paralyzed: 43.¤a7 g4 44.¤b5 h5 45.¤a7 h4 on the queenside.
9-+-+-+-+0
46.¤b5 ¢e6 47.¤a7 ¢e5 and the ¢ walks to 45.¤a3
9+-+-+-+-0
the kingside. It seems White enables himself to eliminate the 9-zpl+-+-zp0
42...¥f5 43.¢d2 ¥e4 44.¢c3 ¥c6 a-pawn by 45.¢b2 though this allows Black 9+-zp-+kzp-0
XIIIIIIIIY to transform his advantage with 45...¥xb5! 9p+P+-+-+0
9-+-+-+-+0 46.cxb5 ¢e6 47.¢a3 ¢d5 48.¢xa4 ¢c4 into a 9sN-+K+-+-0
9+-+k+-+-0 winning pawn endgame.; 45.¤a7 wouldn’t have 9-+P+-zP-zP0
9-zpl+-+-zp0 altered events either: 45...¥g2 46.¢b2 ¥f1 9+-+-+-+-0
47.¢a3 ¥xc4 48.¢xa4 and now the simplest xiiiiiiiiy
9+Nzp-+-zp-0
move is 48...¢c7 49.¤b5+ ¥xb5+ 50.¢xb5 g4
9p+P+-+-+0 with a winning pawn endgame. will continue on its path towards the h-pawn,
9+-mK-+-+-0 45...¢e6 46.¢d3 ¢f5 when Black will obtain a second outside passed
9-+P+-zP-zP0 pawn. It's important to note the superiority of
9+-+-+-+-0 (diagram) the ¥ (participating on both wings) over the ¤
xiiiiiiiiy (who is just bound to the a-pawn). When such
Black has significantly improved the position of and White resigned, as he can't cope with all a battle takes place on the whole board, the ¤
his pieces. The black ¢ threatens to pick up the the threats on both sides of the board. The ¢ is generally worse than a ¥. 0–1 

solutions p.6
 32.£xf7+! [32.£xf7+! ¦xf7 33.¦b8+ ¦c8 34.¦xc8+ ¥d8 35.¦xd8#] 1–0
Bojkov- Zulfic, Doeberl Cup Premier Canberra AUS (1.4), 21.04.2011
 26...£xh2+! 27.¢xh2 ¦h5# 0–1 Oliver-Bliznyuk, Doeberl Cup Premier
Canberra AUS (1.23), 21.04.2011
 20...¦xb2! [20...¦xb2! 21.¢xb2 £b4+ 22.¢c1 (22.¢a1 ¥xc3+–+)
22...£a3+ 23.¢b1 ¥d7–+] 0–1 De Fatima Sousa- Quintiliano Pinto,
Joao Braga Open Sao Paolo BRA (1.31), 20.04.2011
 22.¥d6! [22.¥d6! ¦e8 23.¦xf6 ¦xf6 24.¦xf6+–] 1–0 Martins-Dos
Santos, Joao Braga Open Sao Paolo BRA (3.23), 21.04.2011.
 17.¤xf6+ ¥xf6 18.¥xf6 £xf6 19.e5! dxe5 20.¥xb7+– 1–0 Aoyama-De
Oliveira, Joao Braga Open Sao Paolo BRA (3.62), 21.04.2011
 6...¥xa3 7.¤xa3 £a5+ 8.£d2 £xa3–+ De Paula-Nunes, Joao Braga
Open Sao Paolo BRA (4.71), 22.04.2011
 19...d5! 20.cxd5 ¥xa3–+ Choma-Gallo Ponce, Joao Braga Open Sao
Paolo BRA (6.10), 23.04.2011
 19.¥xf7+! ¢xf7 20.£c4+ ¢f8 [20...¢g6 21.¦g3+ ¢h5 22.£e2+
¢h4 23.¥g5#] 21.¦xh7 ¥d5 [21...¥d6 22.¦xf6+! gxf6 23.¥h6++–]
22.£xc7+– 1–0 Loureiro Martins-Mourao, Joao Braga Open Sao Paolo
BRA (6.34), 23.04.2011
 33.¦xc6! [33.¦xc6! £xc6 34.£b8+ ¢h7 35.£xa7+–] 1–0 Matsuura-
Barbosa, Joao Braga Open Sao Paolo BRA (7.6), 23.04.2011
 32.¦c3! £e7 33.¦xc7 £xc7 34.¦c3+– 1–0 Song-Durand, ch-FRA
u18b Montlucon FRA (2.2), 18.04.2011
 58...£f1+! 59.£d1 [59.¢b2 £b1#] 59...£f4+ 0–1 Petrov-Lyashenko,
ch-Southern FR Men Armavir RUS (1), 12.03.2011
 8.¥xf6! ¥xf6 9.¤xd5! £a5+ 10.¤c3± Danielyan-Saveleva, ch-
Southern FR Men Armavir RUS (3), 14.03.2011

ChessVibes.com/training

ChessVibes Training is a weekly PDF magazine that is focused on chess improvement for the club player. Editors GM Anish Giri, IM Merijn van Delft,
IM Robert Ris and IM Thomas Willemze provide instructive material every week on the middlegame and endgame phase of the game. Why not subscribe
for € 40 a year (that’s less than € 0.80 per issue!). More info can be found at ChessVibes.com/training.

© 2011 ChessVibes. Copyright exists on all original material published by ChessVibes. Any copying or distribution (reproduction, via print, electronic format, or in any form whatsoever), as
well as posting on the web, is strictly prohibited without prior written permission.

8 of 8