Botvinnik on the Endgame

M IKHAIL BOTVINNIK
Translated by Jim M arfia

1985
C o ra o p o lis , P e n n sy lv a n ia
C h ess E n te rp rise s
® Copyright 1985 by Chess Enterprises

ISBN 0-931462-43-6

Editor: B.G.Dudley

Translated from an original manuscript

Cover Design: E.F.W italis, Jr.

Witalis-Burke Associates
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Typeset by: GM Editions

London, England
Contents

Forew ord 5
1 D ecades in Search o f the T ru th 7
2 G uilty W ithout Cause 10
3 An Exchange up, but a King dow n 13
4 Pieces on a Swing 16
5 Strength in Simplicity 19
6 When the K ing’s in the N et 22
7 Tw o Zugzw angs in a Single E nding 24
8 Even Piece-D own Endings M ay Be Saved 27
9 A Classic Zugzw ang Position 29
10 M ate in M idboard 32
11 No Rule W ithout Exception 35
12 H ow Endgam e T heory is M ade 37
13 Caissa Rew ards Effort 40
14 W hat We Call “ T rousers” 44
15 Som etim es Even Rook Endings M ay Be W on 47
16 Queen an d K night W ork M iracles 50
17 The Birth o f a Plan 53
18 Stalem ate - the Seed of Salvation 57
19 The Encircled King 60
20 Riddles in the G am e and A nalysis 62
21 The Subtleties o f a Simple Endgam e 67
22 The T rapped Queen 69
23 Paul K eres’ Study 71
24 A Resourceful King 74
25 Final V ictory 78
Foreword
The present collection consists of 25 endgames; what makes this
collection outstanding is that not one of these endgames is like another.
A lthough I have been a specialist of some renown in this particular genre
of the art of chess, I never attained complete mastery o f the technique o f
the endgame. As in the other phases o f the game as well, I tried always to
get to the ‘heart’ of a position. T hat’s probably why these examples are
so varied . . .
Since they are so varied, it’s hard to use this collection for the
enlargement o f endgame theory. There is one example which
undoubtedly deserves a place in the textbook, and that is the queen
ending of the game with Minev.
After studying this collection, the reader may come to understand why
there are many grandm asters who are not so strong in this phase of the
game (of course, this observation certainly doesn’t apply to such
champions as Lasker, Capablanca, Alekhine, Euwe and Smyslov). Here
one needs great accuracy in calculating long variations, as well as fantasy
and independent positional judgm ent. But most of all, the master in the
endgame must feel like a miner - he has no room for error; in the
middlegame, on the contrary, there are many more opportunities to
rectify one’s inaccuracies.
How the chessplayer enlarges his store o f experience is som ething no
one knows for certain. Nevertheless, one may hope that, having fully
analyzed these endgames, the reader will not merely obtain pleasure
from the beauty of the chess play, but perhaps will not play any weaker in
the endgame himself.
M. Botvinnik
Moscow, September 1982
1 Decades in Search of the Truth
Occasionally the secrets o f some
positions are not revealed until
many years after the game is
played. And sometimes the search
goes on . . . Going back to the
archives sometimes leads to dis­
coveries; sometimes the results are
unexpected.
T hat’s what happened with the
ending of what was probably the
first very im portant game o f my
life. This (see diagram 1) was
played in the Leningrad C ham ­
pionship Semi-final o f 1926. Only
the winner of this tournam ent
would advance to the Final. Prior
to this game my opponent, one of
the city’s strongest first-category
players, had won all his other
games, while I had drawn one.
Shebarshin
Botvinnik
The remaining participants, of
course, trailed far behind the two
of us. Thus in order to reach the
Final it was absolutely necessary
for me to win this endgame.
73 2 c7+
73 2a8 would lead to nothing,
of course, after 73 ... ^ b S 74 a7
&b6.
73 ... &b5
My opponent instinctively heads
towards the passed pawn with his
king, intending to restrict the
White king with his rook. However,
with this continuation I succeed in
exchanging my passed pawn for
both of my opponent’s pawns.
This gives me a theoretically won
position with the g-pawn, since
the Black king is unable to prevent
its advance.
W hat I would have done in the
event of 73 ... &d4,1 do not know,
since I was unable to find a winning
continuation. Indeed, the Black
king prevents its opposite num ber
from breaking in, while marching
the White king into the queen’s
wing appears to lead to the loss of
both g-pawns.
This is what I had calculated:
74 a7 2 a6 75 <&d2 &e4 76 &c3
&f3 77 &b4 (see diagram 2).
8 Decades in Search o f the Truth
Analysis
And now Black plays neither
77 ... <&xg4 78 &b5 S a l 79 2c4+
and 80 2a4, nor 77 ... £ ^ 3 78
S c3+ &xg4 79 Sa3 Sxa7 80
2xa7 * f3 (80 ... h5 81 &c4 h4 82
&d3 h3 83 &e2 h2 84 Sh7 &g3
85 & fl) 81 &c3 g4 82 &d2 g3 83
&el g2 84 Sa3+, which would
win for White, but instead the
clever continuation 77 ... &g2!
(and on 78 Ec2+, 78 ... &h31), in
order to give up his rook for the
a-pawn only after W hite’s king
has been drawn still farther from
the first rank. For example, 78
&b5 S a l 79 &b6 &xg3 80 2c8
&xg4 81 a8W 2xa8 82 2xa8 h5
83 &c5 h4 84 &d4 h3 85 &e3 h2
86 Sh8 &g3 and draws. Or if 80
2c4, then 80 ... &h4 81 &b7 h5
and White still cannot win.
And now for the misapprehen­
sion that persisted for decades:
more recent examination of this
game discloses that 73 ... & d4also
loses, since after 74 a7 Sa6 75 ^ 2
&e4 White, instead of the hasty
76 &c3, can prevent the incursion
of Black’s king by 76 Ef7!. After
this Black can only play 76... &d4
77 &c2 &C4, but now after 78
Ec7+ &d4 79 &b3 &e4 80 2f7!
White wins by supporting the
a-pawn with his king.
And now, back to the game (see
diagram 3).
3
w
74 a7 2a6
Here the game was adjourned
for the second time, and my pal
Seryozha Kamincr (who later
became known as a study com­
poser), who was older than I and
knew a lot about endgame theory,
quickly explained to me how we
would reach a won endgame.
However, my opponent was still
counting on my inexperience; by
means of a third party he offered
me a draw, explaining that he was
convinced that we would both be
admitted to the Final if we were
both to complete the tournam ent
 Decades in Search o f the Truth 9

without a loss. But after Seryozha’s endgames was to be explained

explanations I could see that I some years later by N.D.Grigoriev.
would be the only one admitted! The rest needs no further comment.
75 &f3 3 a4 78 ... 2g7
76 2h7 &c5 79 &e5 2g8
77 2xh6 Exa7 80 Se6 218
78 &e4 81 2g6 Se8+
Black’s king is now cut off from 82 &f6 2e4
the king’s wing both horizontally 83 &xg5 &d5
and vertically. The im portance of 84 216
the horizontal cut-off in rook Black resigned on move 97.
2 Guilty Without Cause
The year was 1927, and I was
playing in my first Soviet Cham ­
pionship. I had already fulfilled
the norm for the m aster’s title but
the battle for the top prize was still
raging and naturally I wanted to
win this adjourned game (see
diagram 4).
Botvinnik
Grigoriev
Here White sealed his 46th
move. He had two choices: either
to avoid the trade of bishops, or to
go into the knight endgame.
N.D.Grigoriev, the great master
of pawn endgames, decided to
carry on without the long-range
pieces. Apparently, in 1927 he was
still not aware that knight end­
games are very similar to pawn
endgames, in which the outside
passed pawn gives its possessor
good winning chances.
I spent the tournam ent sharing
a room in the Hotel Liverpool
with A.M odel (who scored a great
success in this tournament, sharing
3-4th places and also earning the
master’s title); we analyzed our
unfinished games together. Abram
Yakovlevich grew very upset with
me when I persisted in looking
only at a knight endgame in this
position, and showed no interest
in the variations after the bishop
retreats to a2. In that event, Black
would have good winning chances
with 46 ... 3i.c6 (threatening 47 ...
Jtd5) 47 £ic5 Axg2 48 £>c4+ &e7.
I could not bring myself to give
Model any explanation before the
end of the tournam ent. As a
matter of fact, one of the spectators
had seen Grigoriev write down his
sealed move, which was 46 £sd4.
At first I had been skeptical o f this
inform ation, as I believed that
46 A a2 was stronger. But my
admirer passionately insisted he
was right - he even confided that
my opponent had underlined his
move twice.
And so it was! And I, who had
only learned the moves some four
 Guilty Without Cause 11

years prior to the Championship,

was thus able to analyze my
adjourned position in detail - as
the reader can see for himself.
46 £sd4 £xb3
47 &xb3 a4!
The outside passed pawn must
advance as far as possible, restrict­
ing the White knight’s mobility.
48 £>c5
(see diagram 5)
53 &c4
On 53 &d5 Black replies 53 ...
g5 54 h5 £>c3+ 55 &d4 £ id l 56
&e4 £\f2+ 57 &f3 £id3 with an
easy win.
53 ... g5
54 hg+ &xg5
55 &b4 &xg4
56 &a3
If 56 &xa4h5 57 &a3h4 58 &xa2
h3 and the h-pawn is unstoppable.
48 ... a3 56 ... &c5
Also sufficient to win was 57 & a l £>e6
48 ... £)d5+ 49 &e4 £ixc3+, and if 58 &xa2 £>d4!
50 &d4 then 50 ... £ib5+ 51 &c4 (see diagram 7)
&d6+ 52 &d5 £lf5 53 S>xa4 ^ e 3 + ,
or 50 &d3 £sd5 51 &xa4 &f4+,
which would lead to the loss of
Black’s a-pawn, but the win of
W hite’s kingside pawns. But I was
unwilling to part with my outside
passed pawn.
49 g4 a2
50 &b3 £id5+
51 &e4 £lxc3+
52 &d4 <&a4
(see diagram 6) White resigned
12 Guilty Without Cause
A picture of a position. W hite’s
knight is stalem ated and the Black
pawn marches through unhinder­
ed: 59 <&b2 h5 60 &c3 h4 61 &xd4
h3.
When the adjourned session
was over, I went back to the hotel,
showed Model what had happened,
and made a clean breast o f every­
thing. Abram Yakovlevich laughed
heartily, and said that I certainly
knew how to keep a secret.
Later Grigoriev and I became
fast friends - we analyzed a lot
together - but 1 never got up the
nerve to tell him about what had
happened. And why not? What
had I done wrong - or, more to the
point, what else could I have done?
In other words, I had found myself
guilty without cause.
Thank G od, Grigoriev also
secured his m aster’s norm in this
tournament.
3 An Exchange up, but a King down
This was the first tournam ent of
my life in which only masters
played; th a t’s what it was called,
in fact - the “ Leningrad M asters’
T ournam ent” (1930). Obviously, I
wanted very much to finish first,
especially since it was my first
such opportunity. We played
twice a week, leaving plenty of
time to analyze unfinished games.
Botvinnik
Ragozin
One glance at this position,
however, would be enough for
anyone to see how difficult Black’s
situation is. His king is far away
from the queenside, where the
threat of b5-b6 seems unstoppable.
Although Slava Ragozin and I
were friends even back then, I
certainly did not want to lose to
him. The upshot was that I was
able to dem onstrate my first good
piece of analysis.
38 b5
My opponent had sealed this
natural move.
38 ... 2xf3
N aturally, Black’s only hope is
to advance his f-pawn.
39 b6 cb
40 cb 2d8+
This check must be given at
once, while W hite’s king cannot
go to c5. After 40 ... 2e3 41 b7
2 d 8 + 42 &c5! f3 (or 4 2 ... 2xc3+)
43 £sc4 White must win.
41 &c4
The continuation 41 &e5 2xc3
42 &xf4 2c5 43 b7 2b5 favors
Black.
41 ... 2e3
Clearing the way for his own
pawn and threatening the exchange
of rooks after 42 ... 2e4+, after
which the f-pawn would be
unstoppable.
42 £sc6
This looks very strong, but it
creates problem s for W hite as
well. It was better to avoid the
exchange o f rooks by playing 42
2a2!, which after 42 ... 2c8+! 43
&b4 2e6 44 &b5 2e5+ 45 & b4(if
14 An Exchange up, but a King down

45 & a 6, then 45 ... E a 8+) 45 ... draw. I saw this position in my

Ee 6! leads to a repetition of home analysis, and considered it
moves, and a draw. drawn. But upon seeing it over the
42 ... Ee4+ board, I knew the game was saved,
43 £)d4 f3 and decided to see if I could get
44 Sa2 2c8+ more out o f it . . .
(see diagram 9) 49 ... Ed8
(see diagram 10)

45 &b4!
The only move by which W hite 50 £ic6
is able to retain the b-pawn. 45 The obvious move, which leads
&d3 was bad on account of 45 ... in amazing fashion to a loss. Later,
Ee7 followed by 46 ... Eb7, or if N.Grigoriev showed that White
45 &d5 Ee7 46 £ x f3 2 d 7 + 47 could only have saved the game
&e6 Sb7. On 45 &b5 there with 50 £ b 3 2e2 51 E a l f2 52
follows 45 ... Ee5+ 46 &b4 E b 8, E fl SfB 53 b7 E b 8 54 £ a 5 , when
when Black once again succeeds in the Black pawn is stopped at f2,
winning the dangerous passed while the Black king holds W hite’s
pawn. c-pawn.
45 ... E el 50 ... Ee3+
46 c4 Forcing W hite’s king back to
On 46 b7 2b8 48 S a 8 Black the b-file.
would play 48 ... See 8. 51 &b4 2e2
46 ... Ee4 52 E a l f2!
47 &C3 Ee3+ (see diagram 11)
48 &b4 Ee4 Now 53 E fl E f 8 54 b7 Eb2+
49 &c3 loses, so White makes a desperate
White is willing to accept a attem pt to complicate.
 An Exchange up, but a King down 15

56 2 a7 + <&f8
57 b7 S b l+
58 &c5
(see diagram 12)

53 £lxd8 gel
54 2a8
54 b7 is bad too, o f course, in
view of 54 ... S x a l.
54 ... fl# 58 ... H 5+
55 £ic6+ and White resigned a few moves
After 55 <&e6+ s£?f7 56 2f8+ later. Interestingly, Black managed
&xe6 57 S x fl S x fl Black’s win is to win without the participation of
also clear. his king - in other words, against
55 ... &g7 his opponent’s superior force.
4 Pieces on a Swing

This endgame occurred in our in the suburbs of Nottingham),

second encounter, at N ottingham with the aid of my pocket set I
1936. In our previous game worked out the precise winning
(Hastings 1934/35), Sir George method. There remained but to
Thom as had won. So my rival for tell my wife that everything was in
first place, Jose Raul Capablanca, order, and off we went to the
had high hopes for my opponent, tournam ent hall.
who was also his card-playing 40 b4
partner. White will bring his knight to f4
(tying the pawn at c 6 to the
Thomas defense o f the d5 pawn); then,
after a4 and b5-b6, he will be
threatening to sacrifice on d5.
Therefore Black will have to bring
his king to the queenside, to
prevent the b-pawn from queening.
40 ... &g5
41 &g3 $ f5
42 £ h 3 &f6
43 a4 * f5
44 &f4 &f6
Botvinnik 45 b5 ab
46 ab
In the diagramm ed position (see diagram 14)
W hite has the material advantage
o f a knight for two pawns, b ut the
far-advanced protected passed
pawn on f3 ties down one White
piece, which makes the winning
plan far from obvious. But in the
interim period, after bolting down
a humble repast in the student
cafeteria (the tournam ent was
held in the old University building
 Pieces on a Swing 17

White already threatens 47

®ixd5+ cd 48 c6 be 49 b 6 and the
pawn queens.
46 ... &e7
47 b6 &d7
Otherwise 48 £>xd5+ cd 49 c 6.
48 ^Sh5!
This wins the h-pawn - Black’s
king is unable to defend it since it
cannot leave the queenside. F or
example, 48 ... &e7 49 ®g7 &d7
50 £>f5 &c 8 51 £)d 6+ & b 8 52 £>e8
&c 8 53 £T 6 and the rest as in the goes to f5 (or e8), and Black’s king
game. must retreat to defend the b7
48 Ad8 pawn.
49 £if6 h6 58 ... &e6
50 £ig4 h5 59 <£g7+ &d7
51 £>f2 60 £)f5 'S’cS
Now the knight restrains the 61 £id6+
f3 pawn, while the king deals with White repeats moves in order to
the h-pawn. gain time,
51 ... &d7 61 ... &b8
52 &h4 <£?d8 62 £if5 ^c8
53 ^>xh5 &e7 63 &f4!
54 &g4 Once again, W hite’s king and
The king has done its work by knight give each other freedom -
eliminating the im portant enemy trading places, as though on
h-pawn; now it returns to give the swings. Now the knight holds the
knight freedom o f action. f-pawn while the king crosses
54 ... &e6 the board to stalemate his opposite
55 &g3 &d7 number.
56 £>H3 &d8 63 ... &b8
(see diagram 15) After 63 ... &d7 64 &e5 White
57 ®f4 &d7 also achieves his goal.
58 £,h5 64 &e5 <&>c8
This is a position we saw before, 65 &e6 <&b8
aut this time without the h-pawn. 66 & d7 <&a8
Via the g7 square W hite’s knight (see diagram 16)
18 Pieces on a Swing
67 £sg3!
Naturally not 67 &c7 at once
because of 67 ... f2 68 £)g3 f l #
69 & xfl - stalemate.
67 ... &b8
68 & fl &a8
69 &c8 Black
resigned
Obviously after 69 ... f2 White
plays 70 <&d7 &b8 71 &e6, bringing
his king back to capture the f-pawn,
after which the win is not difficult.
Sir George accepted his mis­
fortune with distinction, and like a
true gentleman: he offered myself
and my wife a lift back to the hotel
in his ageing autom obile (other­
wise we would have had to avail
ourselves of the city buses). When
we entered the hotel lobby, we
found another bridge game in
progress. Capablanca turned, with
a hopeful glance at his friend.
Thomas only shrugged his shoul­
ders, and everything was clear . . .
For tru th ’s sake, I should add
that the next day Fine pointed out
another winning plan in this
position (from the next-to-last
diagram), namely: 57 £)g5 &e7
58 £>xf3 ef 59 &xf3 &f6 60 e4 de+
61 &xe4 &e6 62 d5+ cd 63 <&d4
&d7 (63 ... &e7 loses to 64 c6!) 64
&xd5 &c8 65 &e6 &d8 66 &d6
&c8 67 &e7 &b8 68 &d7 st?a8 69
c6 be 70 &c7 and Black has to
resign.
Thank Heaven I had little time
for analysis, and was able to find
only one secure way to win;
otherwise I would have spent a lot
of time trying to Find the best.
5 Strength in Simplicity
My only previous encounter with
Alekhine (Nottingham 1936) had
ended, after a brief but fierce
encounter, in a split point. And
now two years later we met again,
in a hall o f the Krasnopolis Hotel,
in the AVRO tournam ent. This
time the game followed a quiet
course, leaving my opponent, who
possessed an exceptional combin­
ative eye, no chance whatever to
complicate the game.
Alekhine
Botvinnik
White’s positional advantage in
this endgame is obvious. He holds
undisputed control of the c-file,
while Black’s rook has no way of
generating activity on the e-file. In
a difficult position Alekhine finds
the best chance: he drives the
White rook from the seventh
rank.
22 ... f6!
23 & n
A mistake, o f course, would be
23 2b 7 2c8! 24 &fl b5, which
loses control o f the c-file.
23 ... 2f7
24 2 c8+ Ef8
25 2c3!
Although White has no material
advantage, and the pawn structure
is virtually symmetrical, owing to
the differences in the placement o f
the pieces Black is on the verge o f
zugzwang. Thus, for instance,
after 25 ... £>d7, 25 ... 2e8 or 25 ...
^17 W hite’s rook returns to the
seventh rank, with a vengeance.
Black must therefore weaken his
own pawns, by advancing the g-
and h-pawns, in order to free his
king from the task of defending
them.
25 ... g5
26 £>el h5
In the end this makes the h-pawn
a welcome target. However, after
26 ... h 6 27 £ic2 &f7 28 £ie3 & e 6
29 g4 White also retains a clear
positional advantage.
Now, on the other hand, after
27 £>c2 &f7 28 2c7+ &e 6 Black
20 Strength in Simplicity

would have improved his position White disdains the win of a pawn
substantially. by 32 £ib4.
27 h4!
(see diagram 18)

32 f3 gf
33 gf a5
27 ... £>d7 Preventing 34 £>b4.
Black had an unpleasant choice. 34 a4 &f8
After 27... gh 28 Qf3 or 27 ... &f7 35 2 c6 &e7
28 £)f3 (Alekhine feared 28 hg fg 36 2f5
29 £if3 g4 30 £le5+, but this seems 37 b3 Sd8
less convincing to me) 28 ... g4 38 &e2 <£b8
29 Q el &e 6 30 «Sd3 * f5 31 g3 A transparent trick: after 39
(or 31 f3 )3 1 ... <&e4 32 &f4 Black’s Exb 6 &c7 followed by 40 ... £lc 6
position becomes critical. Black has improved his position at
28 2c7 the price o f a pawn.
W hite’s rook seizes the first 39 2g6 &c7
opportunity to return to the 40 £ie5 £ia6
seventh rank. (see diagram 20)
28 ... an
29 &f3 g4
30 £>el f5
31 &d3 f4
(see diagram 19)
The only way to prevent W hite’s
knight from occupying the f4
square. Now, however, the f4
pawn will need continual watching.
In order to fix this weakness,
 Strength in Simplicity 21

Here the game was adjourned,

and White sealed. Before the
adjournm ent Alekhine informed
me, through an intermediary, that
he would resign if I had sealed
41 Hg5.
R ather than mull over this offer
I sent back to my opponent that if
he thought I was going to seal an
inferior move then he had no
business making such an offer,
which could destroy the secret o f
the sealed move. 47 ... Ec6
White has more than one way to 47 ... Exd4 would have been
win here. hopeless in view of 48 Ef5! &b7
41 2g7+ &c8 49 2 f6 &c7 50 h5, when Black is
42 £>c6 paralyzed.
Black must lose material now. 48 Sb5 *c7
42 ... 2f6 49 Exb4 Eh6
43 &e7+ &b8 50 Eb5 2xh4
44 <£>xd5 2d6 51 &d3 Black
45 Eg5 £>b4 resigned
Black’s last hope is for a rook One of those endgames where
endgame. But his position is so there are neither pretty moves nor
poor that even with the knights complex calculations. All the
gone he will find no salvation. moves look simple, but not one o f
46 £>xb4 ab them may be left out, since all are
47 2xh5 tightly interconnected. In this lies
(see diagram 21) there strength.
6 When the King’s in the Net

This game was played at the

tournam ent in G roningen, 1946.
Here Black had to seal a move,
and he played the most natural
continuation.

Botvinnik

Analysis

45 fg hg 46 a7 g2+ 47 &h2 €>f3+

48 <&xh3 g l® 49 a 8® ® h2+ 50
&g4 £ie5+, mates the enemy king.
After 45 a7 (instead of 45 fg)
Black would win by 45 ... gf 46
Tartakower a8® fl® + 47 <&h2£>f3+.
42 £tc4T &d5
41 ... h5 43 £ie3+ &e4
Despite the material equality, (see diagram 24)
W hite’s position is critical in view
o f the terrible threat o f ... h4 and
... g3-g2 mate. He hasn’t much
choice. Either he brings his knight
immediately back to the defense,
as he does in the game, or he must
immediately create threats on the
queenside, with 42 a4. But here
also, by cutting the knight off
from the kingside with 42 ... £sd2!
(Bronstein), Black, after 43 a5 h4
44 a6 g3 (see diagram 23)
 When the King's in the Net 23

the kingside. Black has to bring

his own king into play in order to
set up a mating net.
44 a4
This line allows the maneuver
... &d3-e2xf2, which leads to
mate. A nother defensive try was
44 b4, so that after 44... &d3 45 b5
&e2 46 b6 &xf2 47 «}f5 h4 48
£ixh4 g3! (if 48... &xh4 then 49 b7
g3 50 b8W g2+ 51 &h2 g l # + 52 next move.
^ x h 3 , and Black has no win) 49 47 ... & fl
&xf3 &xf3 50 b7 &f2 51 b 8 # g2+ I could point out that Black also
52 &h2 glW 53 &xh3 White wins by 47 ... gh 48 a5 &g3 49 a6
defends the g3 square, and there &g5 50 a7 &e4 51 a 8 # £>f2+ 52
is no mate. &gl h2+ 53 * f l hlHr+ 54 # x h l
But in that event Black, instead & xhl 55 b4 £>f2 56 b5 £ie4 57 b6
of 44... ^ d 3 , would have continued &d6 58 &gl h4 59 & h lh 3 6 0 & gl
44 ... £id4!, preventing 45 b5, and h2+ 61 <£>hl £>e4, when mate is
the Black king reaches the f-pawn forced.
via f3, one tempo earlier. White But Black selects a more natural
faces disaster no m atter where he and simple plan.
turns, because the mating threats 48 £ f 4 g3
against his king give his opponent 49 £ g 2 &f2
the necessary tempi to win the 50 a5 h4
pawn chase. 51 £>f4 & fl
44 ... &d3 There is no defense to ... h3.
45 £id5 52 £>g2 h3
Trying to liquidate the threat of 53 &e3+ &f2
mate by the threat to sacrifice his 54 t£ig4+ &e2
knight for the h3 pawn. White resigned
45 ... &e2 Savielly T artakow er was an
46 £ f4 + &xf2 original and talented grandmaster,
(see diagram 25) who would venture courageously
47 &xh3+ into interesting complications.
Nor does White save himself by Sometimes he would keep his
47 £ixh5 g3 48 £>xg3 &xg3 49 a5 head above them; at other times,
h2 50 a6 £ig5 51 a7 ®e4 and mate he drowned.
7 Two Zugzwangs in a Single
Ending
This was the deciding game o f the
1951 match for the World C ham ­
pionship. At that point the match
score stood at W'A-lOVi in favor
of Bronstein. In the final, 24th
game o f the match I would have
Black, and had few hopes that I
could win back my point there.
Consequently, my back was to
the wall: I had no choice but to
win this endgame after adjourn­
ment. Even though Black has the
extra pawn, White’s advantage is
obvious: he has two powerful
bishops against his opponent’s
two passive knights.
Bronstein
Botvinnik
In the diagramm ed position
White had to seal his move. For
twenty minutes I mulled over
whether 42 ji.d 6 or 42 A b l was
better. On general considerations
I decided that 42 A d 6 was the
move to seal. But when I arrived
home and set up the pieces, I
concluded that after 42 ... £ic 6 43
A-bl &f6 W hite cannot strengthen
his position any further, e.g. 44 ed
ed 45 £.a2 &e 6.
At the same time, I saw that on
42 ji.b 1 (the move I had not sealed)
42 ... £>c6 (if 42 ... £ic4, then 43
JLf4 and 44 j«.a2) 43 ed ed 44 Jia2
£)ab4 45 Ab3 or 44 ... £ie7 45
Ah4 Black would lose a pawn.
And after 42 ... fe (instead o f 42 ...
£sc6) 43 fe de 44 _£.xe4+ &g7 the
game opens up and W hite’s
bishops dom inate the board. One
interesting variation was pointed
out by Salo Flohr: 45 J ix b l £sxb7
followed by &c4-b5xa6xb6, and
White gets a passed a-pawn.
Alas, however, it was the other
move I sealed . . .
42 £.d6 C.c6
43 A bl &f6
I spent the whole night looking
for a way to continue the fight. It
 Two Zugzwangs in a Single Ending 25

was eight o ’clock in the morning pawn. Black therefore decides to

before I stumbled on an amazing trade f-pawns (in order to free the
idea, which I succeeded in playing king from the f-pawn’s defense),
after adjournm ent. but this decisively increases the
H ad Bronstein suspected the activity of the light-squared bishop.
unpleasantness in store for him, 44 ... fe
then perhaps he might have found 45 fe h6
the continuation 43 ... £sa7 (in all This saves the h-pawn.
honesty, I underestim ated the 46 Af4 h5
strength of this move while analyz­ 47 ed ed
ing) 44 ed ed 45 SL'aI b5 46 a5 b4+ A useful exchange, in that
47 &d3 £sb5 48 Ae5 <&ac749 &c2 Black’s knight can no longer
&f7 50 &b3 £sa 6; in that event he occupy the central square d5 (after
would most likely have achieved a 47 ... £ie7 followed by 48 ... de).
draw, and probably have become 48 h4 &ab8
the seventh World Champion. 49 Ag5+ &f7
However, there was a surprise in 50 Af5
store for him. (see diagram 28)
44 £ g 3 !! White prevents 50 ... £sd7,
(see diagram 27) while also threatening to attack
the pawn at b7.

A zugzwang position has been

created. The point to this maneuver
is that after 44 ... 4lab4 45 JLe5+
&g6 (after 45 ... £ixe5 46 de+
Black loses a piece) 46 A d 6 £ ia 6
47 ed ed 48 A a2 White wins the d5
50 ... ®a7
50 ... <£se7 would have been
trickier, but White would have
had the choice then between 51
Axe 7 <&xe7 52 $Lg6 £\c 6 53 &xh5
26 Two Zugzwangs in a Single Ending

£>a7 54 &b4 and 51 Ah3 £ibc 6 52

Ag2 <&g7 53 Axe7 £lxe7 54 &b4
£sc6+ 55 &b5 ®xd4+ 56 &xb 6.
51 Af4 £ b c6
52 Ad3 &c8
53 Ae2 &g6
54 Ad3+
The experience o f the practical
player comes to the fore. I had
already foreseen the zugzwang
position, but decided to rid myself
first of all of the threat of time Although Black still retains his
pressure by repeating moves to extra pawn, he loses to another
reach the time control. zugzwang, the second in this game.
54 ... &f6 For example, 57 ... G c 6 58 Axd5
55 Ae2 &g6 G d 6 59 Af3 &f5 60 Ac 1! (pointed
56 Af3 G 6e7 out by Smyslov) 60 ... b5 61 Axc 6
After 56... G8e7 57 Ac7 G f558 be 62 a5.
Axd5 Gfxd4 59 A xb 6 or 57 Ag5 After forty minutes’ thought,
Gf5 58 Axd5 Gfxd4 59 Ae4+ Black resigned, and the match was
&g7 60 &c4 White wins easily. even. The 24th and last game
57 Ag5 ended in a draw, allowing me to
(see diagram 29) retain the title of World Champion.
8 Even Piece-Down Endings May
Be Saved
In the following position from a
game played in the USSR C ham ­
pionship (Moscow 1951), Black
has an extra knight, with what
seems to be an assured win. He
needs only to give his king air,
before starting the decisive action.
Keres
Botvinnik
49 ... g6
After this unfortunate move
White finds an amazing resource
to render Black’s win difficult.
Had Keres guessed what difficulties
awaited him, he would certainly
not have exposed the seventh rank
but instead have played 49 ... h5!
with an easy win, e.g. 50 c6 2c3
51 2b7 £sh6 52 2 d7 £sg4 53 2xd6
2 c l+ 54 &g2 2c2+ 55 &gl £ x h 2
or 50 2b8+ * h 7 51 2f8 dc! (but
not 51 ... &h6 owing to 52 cd) 52
2xf7 ef 53 gf 2xe4.
50 c6 2c3
51 2b7!
Here the rook occupies an ideal
position, as though in ambush.
51 ... &g7
Now White’s problems are over.
Black could still have won cleverly
with 51 ... &f8! 52 2b 8 + (but not
52 c7 because of 52 ... <&e8) 52 ...
&g7! (if 52 ... &e7 then 53 2b 7 +
&e8 54 2b 8+ <Sd8 55 2c8 &e7
56 2c7+ &e8 57 2c8 with a draw)
53 2b7 and Black has won a
tempo, by com parison with the
text, with decisive effect: 53 ... f5!
54 fe de 55 ef gf (see diagram 31).
31
w
Analysis
28 Even Piece-Down Endings M ay Be Saved

Now in the game, after 52 c7 f5

53 fe de 54 ef gf, W hite’s pawn
would already stand at c7 in the
diagrammed position, which would
allow him to continue favorably
with 55 d6. But in the line following
51 ... &f8 White must continue
(from diagram 31) with 56 2d7,
since 56 c7 is met by 56 ... ■Mb.
Before, the position after 56 Sd7
was mistakenly considered drawn;
52 2c2
however, Black plays 56... &f8! (if
53 &gl h5
now 57 c7 then 57 ... <&e8) and
54 h4 2c4
W hite’s game is hopeless.
52 c7! 55 &g2 Sc2+
56 &fl 2c4
(see diagram 32)
Now Black cannot improve the 57 &g2 2c2+
position of his pieces, since he is 58 &fl 2c4
tied down by the threatened c8W. Draw
9 A Classic Zugzwang Position
The majority of these chess episodes
start in positions where the task of
forcing the win or dem onstrating
the draw looks like it will be a
difficult one. But then something
rem arkable occurs . . .
Sometimes, however, it happens
the other way round. Here, for
example, is one of my games from
the 20th USSR Championship
(Moscow 1952). It was adjourned
in the following apparently easily
won position.
Botvinnik
^ ... 2g4+ 58 ^ h 2 . The winning plan
Moiseyev
Here White sealed his move.
Black is an exchange to the good,
with no counterplay at all for his
opponent. W hat more could any­
one ask for?
In fact, despite the White roo k ’s
passive position, Black’s win
involves great technical difficulties.
There are no passed pawns, so
there can only be play on one wing,
which diminishes the power of
Black’s rooks. Additionally, the
Black pawns are fixed on squares
the same color as W hite’s bishop.
However, home analysis un­
covered the winning method, which
is far from simple.
57 £ e 2
Note that 57 Eh2 2g4+ 58
jLxg4 (if 58 &f2 or 58 &h3, then
58 ... &f4) 58 ... hg 59 &f2 (or 59
h5 2 b 3 + 60 &h4 g5 mate) 59 ...
&f4 would lead to a quick loss for
White. O f course, I was not expect­
ing such an easy finish; at this
point, indeed, this combination
gives Black nothing, owing to 57
consists of the exchange of rooks
on h 1, keeping the White king from
getting to the h-file; then the g 6
pawn will be exchanged for the h4
pawn, after which Black’s king
reaches the square g3. It is interest­
ing that my opponent considered
the position after the exchange of
rooks to be drawn. Thus he was
more than willing to help me carry
out this plan, which speeded
30 A Classic Zugzwang Position

Black’s victory by a few moves bring his king to h2, setting up a

57 ... Ed2 drawing “ fortress”.
58 A O B fl 66 Ad 7 g5
59 Eh2 Paradoxically, in spite of the
On 59 &h2 Black plays 59 small num ber o f pieces left. Black
&f4, and if 60 Eg3 then 60 seeks further simplification: it is
B h l+ . necessary that he activate his king.
59 2c2 The h-pawn must queen!
60 Ad5 Ec3+ 67 hg+ &xg5
61 Af3 &e5 68 Ac8 h4+
62 2h3 Eccl 69 &f3 E el
63 Ab7 E hl 70 Ad 7
64 Exhl Exhl A clever trap. After 70... Ec3+
65 Ac8 71 &e4 Eg3 72 Ah3 (see diagram
(see diagram 34) 35) Black to move cannot improve

35
B

Analysis
Both sides have reached the
position they were aiming for. his position. With White to move.
65 ... &f6! Black has an easy win, as his king
Now the aforementioned pawn can get to f4.
exchange is unavoidable. White 70 ... 2c2
finds himself one tempo too late: if 71 Ae6
the bishop were already on h3 he 71 Ah3 Ec3+ 72 &e4 Eg3 leads
would play 66 &f4 here, when to the position from the previous
Black could only exchange pawns note - which is won for Black
by moving his rook away from h 1, since it is his opponent’s move.
which in turn allows his opponent 71 ... Bc7!!
(after the exchange of pawns) to (see diagram 36)
 A Classic Zugzwang Position 31

The reader already knows that

72 A.h3 loses. No improvement
is 72 &e4 2e7 73 &e5 2e8, and
Black’s king reaches the all-
im portant f4 square. White must
therefore help make a passed
pawn for his opponent.
72 g4 2c3+
73 &g2 h3+
74 &h2 <&h4
75 g5 Sc2+
White
A classic zugzwang position. resigned
10 Mate in Midboard
Towards the end of December 1952
the 20th USSR Championship was
drawing to a close. When this game
from the last round came to be
played off, my disposition was not
very pleasant. I had every hope of
winning to begin with, but I played
weakly; by Black’s 58th (diagram
37), it was clear that the game must
end in a draw: opposite-color is
opposite-color, after all. And only
a win in this game would allow me
to catch the leader Taimanov and
thus continue the fight for the title
o f National Champion.
Botvinnik
Suetin
And winning this title was just
about forced for me. Some months
previously, I had been voted off the
Olympic team by the team ’s other
members, on the grounds that I was
no longer playing good chess. This
was my first tournam ent after the
Olympics, and I naturally wanted
to show that the W orld Champion
had not yet lost his form.
But how does one retain winning
chances in such a position? First
of all, by keeping at least one
queenside pawn from being traded
off. Since White threatens a5
followed by b5, Black’s mo
obvious.
58 a5
59 ba Ac3+
60 &b3 JixaS
61 £ b 5 b6
My first aim is now achieved:
the b-pawn can no longer be
exchanged. Of course, in order to
ensure this, the bishop must be
kept at the edge o f the board,
where it stands none too actively.
But perhaps it was this very thing
which lulled my opponent's alert­
ness. In fact, the bishop does more
than merely defend the b-pawn
and blockade W hite’s a-pawn: at
the right moment it may well leap
from ambush to take an active
part in the struggle. N or is W hite’s
bishop very active: it must defend
W hite’s last pawn.
 Mate in Midboard 33

62 &c4 & f6 73 2h4

63 & d4 2f4+ 73 2 h 3 was simpler, defending
64 &e3 ■&e5 the third rank. White correctly
65 2hl 2e4+ considers the position drawn but
66 &d3 Sg4 fails to see that, while his king may
67 2h5+ &d6 seem stronger in the centre, it is
(see diagram 38) also in greater danger.
73 ... 2g3+
(see diagram 39)

Black’s only chance for activity

is to advance his passed pawn to
e4, where it will be close to the
queening square, which he controls.
F or the moment, however, there
seems to be no way to achieve this.
68 2h8 &e5
69 2h5+ &f4
Now ... e5-e4+ is threatened.
70 2h3
To meet 70 ... e5 with 71 _&c6,
and Black no longer has the move
71 ... 2g3+.
70 ... 2g8
Played prim arily to avoid the
three-time repetition of position
(after 70 ... &e5 71 2h5+). But
now Black’s king must go back.
71 2h4+ &e5
72 Sh5+ <&d6
74 &e4
74 * d 4 was more exact, meeting
74 ... jLc3+ with 75 &c4. The
natural desire to avoid putting the
king on a square where both bishop
and pawn may check it leads to
trouble this time.
74 ... £d2!
Finally the bishop gets back in
the game. Now Black threatens
75 ... 2e3+ 76 &f4 (76 &d4 e5+
77 &c4 2c3 F 78 &b4 2 h 3 + )7 6 ...
'fedS!, and the e-pawn inexorably
advances. It appears the only
salvation lay in 75 <&>d4, and if 75
... e5+- then 76 <&e4 2e3+ 77 ^ f5
&d5 78 £ c 4 + ; while after 75 ...
2e3 76 2 h 6 Black cannot improve
34 Mate in Midboard

his position. 78 Exg5 E d5+, but this will not

75 Ad3 prevent the inevitable loss. White
This move gives Black the tempo resigned.
he needs to set up an unexpected
mate threat in midboard. It may
be that White’s error had a psycho­
logical basis. With Black having
activated his bishop. White of
course strives to do the same. But
the a-pawn should not have been
left unprotected under any circum­
stances.
75 ... Ag5!
Driving W hite’s rook from the
fourth rank and closing off the Meanwhile my rival Taimanov,
fifth as well. along with his trainer Flohr. were
76 2h5 sitting in the cafe of the Central
White still does not see what Cultural Hall of Railroadmen
awaits his king. Otherwise he would (where the Cham pionship was
have continued 76 Eh8 Eg4+ 77 being played), waiting for the
^ f3 , giving up the a-pawn; still, draw to be announced. From time
Black’s two extra pawns make the to time the dem onstrator would
win only a matter of time. drop in with the latest moves.
76 ... &c5!! Finally he announced that Suetin
(see diagram 40) had resigned! “T h at’s a lie”, they
A rare position indeed! White said in chorus. But when the
may. of course, avert mate by dem onstrator showed them the
playing 77 E xg5+or77 &e5 Exd3 final position, silence reigned.
11 No Rule Without Exception
And so I began a match with
Taim anov for the title of USSR
Champion. The match was to con­
sist of six games and took place
in Moscow, February 1953. The
first game led to an endgame with
major pieces.
R o t v in n ik
Taimanov
Black has some advantage here,
chiefly because his king may
become more active than W hite’s
in the event that the queens are
exchanged. So, at the first avail­
able moment. Black must offer
to trade down into a four-rook
endgame.
42 ... be
43 Wxc3 #b4
44 # b 2
White is willing to exchange,
but not if it unites Black’s pawns.
However, this is what he should
have played, since he has chances
o f putting up a successful defence
after 44 Wxb4 ab 45 f4, for example:
45 ... f5 46 Sg2 2 h 6 47 S h i 2a8
48 & bl 2 ha6 49 Bh3 b3 50 2hh2.
44 ... fe
45 # x b 4
Now this is forced, even though
it loses an im portant tempo. 45
2xe5 would have lost after 45 ...
Wxe 1+, and on 45 de there follows
45 ... # c 5 ! and ... d4.
45 ... ab
46 2xe5
Black’s pawns advance quickly
after 46 de d4, giving him good
winning chances, but the pawn
ending is still worse for White. My
opponent was confident, however,
that his connected passed e- and
f-pawns guaranteed him a draw.
46 ... 2xe5
47 2xe5
47 de &g7 is bad too, since then
Black’s king has time to blockade
the e- and f-pawns.
47 ... 2xe5
48 de
(see diagram 42)
36 No Rule Without Exception

49 e6 &g7
50 f4 &f6
51 f5 d3
52 &b2 h5
(see diagram 43)

48 ... d4!
There is a rule that connected
pawns are stronger than split pawns;
here, however, the reverse is true.
Black’s king will easily hold the
connected enemy pawns, while
White has no way of preventing Zugzwang! After 53 & bl b3 54
Black from setting up isolated ab cb 55 ^ c l <&e7 one of Black’s
pawns at b3 and d3. Now Taimanov pawns will queen. This was the
saw what was in store for him: on position Black had in mind when
the preceding move he had offered he went in for the exchange of
a draw . . . heavy pieces. White resigned.
12 How Endgame Theory is Made
I had two wins in my game with
Minev from the 11th Olympiad,
Amsterdam 1954, but missed them
both. At last, after two adjourn­
ments, it was adjourned again, in a
position similar to one from which
I had won against Ravinsky a
decade earlier in Moscow, at the
13th USSR Championship. In
that game I did not play the ending
too convincingly, as was pointed
out by Keres, analyzing in the
collection Chess 1947-49. But the
general winning method for White
was dem onstrated neither in the
game nor in the article; and that
morning, I had to carry on in this
position.
Minev
Botvinnik
I spent several hours analyzing,
ending at 3 am. My wife of course
begged me to “come to bed, or else
you won’t have the energy to play
the adjournm ent.” But I had to
work it out to the end. At our villa,
the window opened out into the
garden; the peace and fresh air
m ade my brain work well in the
pursuit of truth.
74 'tf6 !
The only way! A fter 74 &h 6
# h 4 + 75 &g7 # h 3 White has a
much harder time o f it, since the
king’s position on the last ranks
gives Black’s queen more possi­
bilities. This was the mistake I had
m ade in my game with Ravinsky,
although Keres had not seen it.
But if the W hite king is on the
same rank as Black’s, or next to
it, then the enemy queen checks
must eventually become exhausted,
since White will have a queen
interposition which also offers
check!
This, however, was not the only
mistake Keres and I made. In
general, this type of queen endgame
is always analyzed with the pawn
on the 7th rank and the king on
the 8th. In this situation, a winning
maneuver was found with a pawn
at f7 that would not work with a
38 How Endgame Theory is Made

pawn at g7; therefore the endgame 82 &e4

was considered a draw. Such an (see diagram 45)
error may only be explained by
presuming that the researchers
acted as though it were a rook
ending.
In a queen endgame, however,
everything is different. Both queen
and king may operate at a distance
from the g-pawn - so long as they
keep close to one another, which
gives the queen support points.
The main thing is that the king
must be on the same file or rank as
its opponent, or next to it. This Once the checks have ended, the
“discovery” was, in fact, the chief further advance of the pawn is
result of my all-night analysis. assured.
74 ... #d5+ 82 #h6
75 W S *d8+ 83 # e 5 + &a4
76 &h5 #e8 84 g7 # h l+
Using his last check, 76 ... 85 &d4 #dl+
# 118+, would have left Black in 86 &c5 #cl +
difficulties after 77 &g4. For 87 &d6
example, 77 ... # g 7 78 #17! # c 3 87 &d5 is inferior: the a2-g8
79 g7!. He therefore makes it a pin diagonal must be left open for the
instead. queen.
77 # f4 + <&a5 87 ... #d2+
78 # d 2 + &a4 Or 87 ... # 116+ 88 &d5! - no
Now Black makes it easier for more checks, and the g8 square
White to bring his queen to d4 cannot be blockaded.
with tem po, but he erroneously 88 &e6 #a2+
follows the recom mendation of 89 m s #e2+
Keres in the aforementioned ana­ 90 &d6 #h2+
lysis: that Black should keep his 91 &c5!!
king at a4. (see diagram 46)
79 # d 4 + &a5 Black resigned. The final position
80 &g5 #e7+ provides a very clear example of
81 &f5! # f8 + the winning method.
 How Endgame Theory is Made 39

White wins by the method dis­

covered a decade later. In view of
W hite’s threat o f 124 Wg5+ and
125 gS1# Black has no other move.
124 'tfe5+ &a4
125 &g6 ®c8
Otherwise White’s queen reaches
f7 by force.
126 # f4 +
Black resigned, since the king
cannot retreat to the fifth rank
because of 127 'HT5+, or to the
third in view o f 127 # f8 + o r 127
And now let us see how I W (l+. Thus it was the final stage
m anaged to win the queen ending of the game here that suggested to
with a g-pawn the first time me the method I discovered later.
around. I might add that immediately
after the Olympiad 1 published the
Ravinsky game with Minev, with my
annotations, in which I outlined
the general winning method, in
the pages of Shakhmatny v S S S R
(No 1, 1955). It is not without
interest to note that A verbakh,
who published a book of queen
endgames in 1962, which went
through several printings, both in
the USSR and abroad, said not a
word about the game Botvinnik-
Botvinnik Minev or of my notes to it, in
which the winning method in this
123 ... t tg 8 complicated endgame was first
A fter 123 ... # 6 3 + 124 # g 5 + revealed.
13 Caissa Rewards Effort
I have been a devotee of Nimzo-
vich’s V ariation o f the French
Defense (1 e4 e6 2 d4 d5 3 £ic3
£ b 4 ). I was taught how to
play this line as early as 1927,
by Master A.Model. By 1934 the
main ideas were clear enough, and
I obtained my first success with
Nimzovich’s move at Hastings
1934/35. But against the West
G erm an G randm aster Wolfgang
Unzicker I had tremendous prob­
lems with this variation. In our
game from the Amsterdam Olym­
piad 1954, I fell into a difficult
position right off. Only a miracle
allowed me to adjourn the game
in a rook ending.
Botvinnik
Unzicker
White’s extra pawn, coupled
with the passive position of Black’s
king, assure him the win.
There followed a night of still
less sleep than when I analyzed the
endgame against Minev: only at
5 am did I lie down to sleep. At
first Boleslavsky helped me, but
by eleven o’clock I had to let him
go, having only managed to wake
him with great difficulty. Then
Flohr came to my assistance.
Sharp as ever, he awoke immedi­
ately. At 2 am we said goodnight,
with the understanding that he
would come back at 8 am to check
my analyses. Upon his return,
however, Flohr struck me a serious
blow: as he dem onstrated, there
was one line in which Black could
still lose.
To tell the truth, during the
adjourned session I found another
way for W hite to win. We finished
the game alone in the enormous
Apollo-Halle. Almost none of the
chess reporters showed up, so
convinced were they o f the hope­
lessness o f Black’s position. But
soon Paul Keres appeared; alone,
he paid close attention to the game,
leaving only when the result became
obvious.
And so . , .
 Caissa Rewards Effort 41

48 ... f5 &g3 E bl 55 Sxd4 E g l+ and

The sealed move. The attem pt Black has counterplay.
to play actively would not save 52 ... ' Ea5
Black: 48 ... E bl + 49 &e2 S h i Black can only await events. He
(still worse is 49 ... Eb2+ 50 &f3 loses quicker after 52 ... E b l 53
Ed2 51 h5 Exd3+ on account o f Se7 e4 54 Ed7 Eb4 55 de fe 56 g4.
52 &e2 and 53 h6) 50 g3 e5 51 &f3 53 h6 Eb5
f5 52 &e2, and there is no defense 54 Eg7+ &h8
to 53 Ea5. 55 Be7 Sa5
49 g3 56 &f3
On 49 h5 there follows 49 ... Finally selecting the right plan,
E b l+ and 50 ... S h i. and leaving me just one chance.
49 ... &f8 56 ... Sd5
50 Ed7 57 g4
As Smyslov pointed out, White (see diagram 50)
would soon have obtained the 57 h7 would leave Black less o f a
same position as in the game by choice: 57 ... Ea5 58 Ef7 or 57 ...
playing 50 h5 ^ g 8 51 Ee7! e5 52 c4+ 58 de fe+ 59 Exe4 - but perhaps
h6 &h8 53 &g2, since 50 ... E b l + my opponent was unwilling to give
51 &g2 <&g8 is bad for Black on up his h-pawn?
account of 52 Se7 Ee 1 53 h6 e5 54
^ f3 ^ h 8 5 5 g 4 e4+ 56 ^ f4 e 3 57fe
fg 58 e4 g3 59 Sg7.
50 ... e5
51 &g2 &g8
(see diagram 49)

57 ... e4+
58 de fg+
59 &e2
N aturally, I had not hoped for
59 &xg4? d3.
59 ... d3+
60 &d2
But not 52 f4 ef 53 gf S b2+ 54 On 60 & dl I would have played
42 Caissa Rewards Effort

not 60 ... 2 d4 , because of 61 &d2 69 &e5! 2 e2 + 70 * f4 2xf2+ 71

giving back the move, but 60 ... &e3. The text move prematurely
2a5!, as analyzed, with the same lets the opposing king out, which
idea as I later played. leads to a draw.
60 ... 2d4 61 ... &h7
(see diagram 51) 62 2e6 2a4!
Up until a moment ago, all
of Black’s counterplay centered
around the d-pawn, which he must
now give up!
63 &xd3 2a3+
64 &e2 2f3
A curious position, in which
two extra pawns are not enough to
win. White cannot improve his
position (65 2 a 6 2f4); after 40
61 2e8+ minutes’ thought, he decided to
61 e5! wins, since on 61 ... 2f4, give up his e-pawn.
which was the move White feared, 65 e5 2f5
F lohr’s maneuver 62 2g7! forces 66 & el 2f4
the e-pawn through. And after 61 (see diagram 53)
... 2 d5, as I discovered to my
great chagrin during the adjourned
session, White wins after 62 e 6
2 d6 63 2e8+! &h7 64 e7 2e6 65
&xd3 2e5 66 &d4 2e6 67 &d5
2c2 68 &d 6 2d 2 + (see diagram 52)

67 2f6
The try 67 &f 1 g3 68 2f6 (68 G
2xf3+ 69 &g2 2e3 70 &h3 2a3)
68 ... 2xf6 69 ef &xh 6 70 fg &g6
71 &g2 &xf6 72 ^ h 3 &g5 is a
Analysis draw; however, the pawn ending
 Caissa Rewards Effort 43

would prove to be a fatal miscal­

culation after 67 ... 2xf6 68 ef
&xh 6 69 &e2 “&g6 70 &e3 &xf6 71
* f4 g3 72 fg!.
67 ... 2e4+
68 & fl 2xe5
69 &g2 2a5
70 &g3 2g5
By the way, this position would
be a draw even without theg-pawn.
71 &h4 2g8
72 &h5 g3 the endgame by a miracle. But
Draw when, seven years later, I played
If 73 2f7+ * h 8 74 h7 (see dia­ this variation of the French Defense
gram 54) the most elegant draw is yet again (at the European Team
74 ... 2g4!, although Black could Championships at Oberhausen,
also play 74 ... 2 a8 75 fg 2 a5 + 76 1961), the G oddess’s patience had
&g4 2g5+ 77 &f4 2g4-h clearly run out. I had no oppor­
tunity even to bring the m atter to
And so this time the Goddess an endgame, since I suffered defeat
Caissa smiled upon me, and I saved while still in the middlegame.
14 What We Call “Trousers”
This was the 22nd USSR C ham ­
pionship, and it was to be the last
in which I would participate
(Moscow 1955). I had taken the
C ham pion’s title in seven, and was
close to the same achievement on
this occasion as well. Only a loss
to Keres in the final round kept me
from first place. But I did manage
to play several interesting games
in this tournam ent. Undoubtedly
my best achievement in this event
was the endgame against Kotov.
Botvinnik
Kotov
The position appears hopelessly
drawn, but let us see how events
developed.
55 £ c 7
This is not an attack on the
b-pawn (since the bishop is obliged
to defend the h-pawn), but simply
a waiting move.
55 ... ir s *
Black’s bishop re-positions itself
to the e 6 square, which appears at
first sight to be a more passive
position. In fact, from this square
the bishop will be able to defend
the b-pawn when it marches to the
third rank, as well as to cover the
g 8 square, where a White pawn
may end up queening.
56 £ f6 &f3
57 £ e 7 b3
58 &c3 &e6
Black could have won another
pawn here with 58... &xe3 59 &xb3
^xf4, but then the drawing facility
o f the opposite-colored bishops
would appear in full measure (60
&c3 <&e3 61 Ag5+ &e4 62 &d 2).
But now my b-pawn is taboo: 59
&xb3 d4+ 60 &c2 de 61 ^?dl ^ f2
62 ,£Lc5 jLb3+ 63 <&cl &f3 (see
16
w

diagram 56) and White loses the
f-pawn, which in turn allows Black
to break with ... g5 and win.
59 Ac5
(see diagram 57)
This appears to be an obvious
move, since White’s king must hold
the b-pawn, and consequently the
White bishop has to protect the
e3 pawn. But the truth in this
position lies in the paradoxical
continuation 59 &d2, with which
the White king appears to be
undertaking a hopeless chase after
two rabbits (defending the e-pawn
and holding the b-pawn). But the
fact of the m atter is that White
cannot capture the b-pawn on the
third rank, while on the second
rank he may do so (as in the vari­
ation after Black’s 58th move)
whenever he pleases. L et’s try this
continuation in our new version:
59 <&d2 b2 60 &c2 &xe3 61 &xb2
&xf4 62 &C3 and draws.
White’s decision not to keep
control of g5 leads to the creation
IVhat We Call "Trousers” 45
o f a passed Black h-pawn, and this
makes the defender’s position
hopeless.
59 ... g5!!
This was the possibility that
Black had in mind when he moved
his bishop to e 6. Capturing with
the h-pawn leads to a “prosaic”
loss: 60 hg h4 61 f5 (61 A d 6 £ f5 62
g6 ilx g 6 63 f5 A.xf5 64 &xb3 &g2)
61 ... A xf5 62 <&xb3 h3 63 & d 6
&xe3. K otov’s choice makes the
ending “poetic” !
60 fg d4+!
The central pawn, advancing
bravely into a triple crossfire,
sacrifices itself in order to ensure
the life of the outside passed pawn.
61 ed
C apturing with the king makes
no sense, as then the b-pawn would
queen; while after 61 jLxd4 <&g3
62 g 6 &xh4 63 <&d2 the win is
achieved by 63 ... <&h3!! 64 &e2
&g2 65 A f 6 h4 etc.
61 ... &g3
Black could still stumble into
the following drawing variation:
61 ... &g4? 62 d5 Axd5 63 &f2.
62 £ a 3
With the fall of the h-pawn,
all W hite’s hope of salvation is
destroyed.
62 ... &xh4
63 &d3 &xg5
64 &e4 h4
65 &f3
It’s not Black's fault that his
46 What We Call “Trousers"

opponent didn 't walk into the be invented, to achieve those

more spectacular finish 65 d5 “Trousers” !
AxdS-f.
65 ... A d5+
(see diagram 58)
White resigned
You see before you a standard
opposite-colored bishops endgame
position with widely separated
passed pawns, which in Russian
we commonly call "Trousers".
But oh, the finesses that had to
15 Sometimes Even Rook Endings
May Be Won

In 1956 there was widespread The exchange of queenside pawns

observance in the chess world of is forced. When there are pawns
the tenth anniversary of the death only on the kingside, then a minimal
of Alexander Alekhine. An inter­ material advantage in a rook ending
national tournam ent in Moscow does not guarantee a win. But here
was dedicated to the great player’s the weakness of the g6 square and
memory. And even though only a the passive position of Black’s king
few days had passed since the end increase W hite’s winning chances.
of the exhausting Moscow Olym­ 56 &f5 2 b 5+
piad, none of those invited felt After 56 ... 2xf3+ 57 &g 6 Black
they could refuse to play in this loses at once.
new tournam ent, dedicated to the 57 <&e6
memory o f the fourth W orld It is also possible for White
Champion. to find himself m ated here: 57 &g 6
This tournament was responsible 2g5.
for two interesting games to add 57 ... a3
to my collection. Herewith, the 58 f4!
first of them: White takes firm control of g5,
while also preparing to create a
Najdorf passed e-pawn.
58 a2
On 58 ... &h7 White would
exploit the king’s absence from
the battlefield with 59 <&d7 a2
60 2 a7 2xb6 61 2xa2, when the
e-pawn soon advances. And on 58
... 2a5 White has the reply 59
2a7.
59 2a7 2xb 6+
60 &f5
Botvinnik (see diagram 60)
 60 ... 2b7
The only chance to give his king
a little activity. The attem pt to
hold on to his passed paw n with
60 ... Sb2 leads to defeat: 61 <&g6
&f8 62 2 a8+ &e7 63 &xg7 2g2
64 2 a7 + ^ e b 65 f5+ &e5 66 2 a 5 +
&xe4 67 &xf6 &d3 68 g5!.
61 2xa2 &f7
62 2a5
The first order of business is to
bring the rook to the central square
d5, where it protects the White king
from checks. After the e-pawn
advances, the rook threatens to
move to the seventh rank, assuring
White a won pawn endgame.
62 ... Sc7
63 Sd5 2a 7
64 c5 fe
65 fe
(see diagram 61)
Already the abovementioned
threat is looming: 66 2 d7+! 2xd7
67 e6+ <&e7 68 ed &xd7 69 &g 6
etc.
65 ... &e7
66 e6
A game is not the same as a
composed study, in which the win
must be achieved by means of a
single variation. So Lilicnthal’s
discovery o f the more complex,
but similarly effective, continuation
66 2d 4 does not diminish the
value of the line that actually
occurred in the adjournment.
66 ... Sa4
If 66 ... 2 a6 White wins, after
67 2 d 7 + s&f8, with a king race:
68 ^ g 6! 2xe6+ 69 ^ h 7 a n d Black
loses both pawns.
67 g5
After 67 2d 7 + <&f8 the fifth
rank would be left unguarded,
which would render the g-pawn's
advance tem porarily impossible.
Let's examine A ronin’s curious
defensive idea, 67 ... 2 a7 , which
is based on the fact that now the
com bination 68 2d7+ 2xd7 69ed
<&xd7 70 &g 6 hg 71 &xg7 g4 only
 Sometimes Even Rook Endings May Be Won 49

leads to a draw.
However, White plays 68 Se5!
(see diagram 62).

im portant to secure his control of

Analysis
Now the threat is 69 £bg6 <&f8
70 e7+, which in turn forces the
exchange 68... bg 69 &xg5. Again,
White wants to play 70 ^>g6 - for
example, on 69 ... 2a6 o r 69 ...
<&f8 (a possible continuation in
the latter case would be 70... Se7
71 h6 gh 72 &f6). Thus: 69 ... S a l
70 &g6 S fl! 71 &xg7 S g l+ 72
&h6! Eg2 73 Sg5 Sf2 74 &g7
&xe6 75 h6 2f7 + 76 &g8 Sa7 77
h7.
But let’s return to the game.
67 ... hg
68 2d7+ &f8
69 S f7+ &g8
70 &g6
Here’s where Black’s own pawn
(on g5) is a burden!
70 ... g4
71 Ii6!
(see diagram 63)
The final finesse. White does
not need the h-pawn, and it is
f6. Now the mate is unavoidable.
71 ... gh
Or 71 ... 2 a 8 72 hg g3 73 e7
S a 6+ 74 S f 6.
72 e7 S a8
73 2f6
(see diagram 64)
Black resigned, since there is no
defense to the maneuver S d 6-d 8.
This endgame was interesting
for the way in which tactical
nuances were combined with
technical positions well known to
the theory of rook endgames. In
his day, Tarrasch once joked that
rook endgames cannot be won.
Sometimes, they are!
 16 Queen and Knight Work
Miracles
And now the second of my end­
games from the Alekhine Memorial
Tournam ent, Moscow 1956.
Botvinnik
Sliwa
Why is it difficult for Black to
win this position? The answer is
that White has pawn compensation
enough for the missing piece and
that additionally Black’s attacking
options are limited by the insecure
position of his own king.
Nevertheless, an extended search
allowed me to find a very fine
method, and the only way to win. I
was im measurably aided in my
work on this endgame by my friend
G.Goldberg, a highly skilled ana­
lyst.
The solution we worked out is
yet another proof of the variety of
chess. It would seem that Black
must seek to eliminate the enemy
passed pawns. But he cannot do
this, as the threat of mate on g 2
would thereby be lifted, freeing
the White queen to attack Black’s
king. The actual winning method
is paradoxical - Black seeks the
exchange o f his last pawns, in
order to lay open the position of
the enemy king. N aturally, this
approach works only so long as
the queens stay on the board, since
the one (Black) queen is so much
stronger than the other.
41 ... ® c6
I sealed this move, which m eant
that even during the first session I
had to decide not to take pawns:
41 ... Wxc2 42 g4+ hg (42 ... &g 6
43 # d 6+) 43 « x c 2 ©xc2 44 d5!
<&h4 45d6 <&xh3 46d7 g2 + 4 7 & gl
© el 48 d 8# © f3+ 49 * f2 g l # +
50 <&xf3 and Black has only the
draw.
42 Wgl
Now the greater part of the
analytical work is consigned to
footnotes; the reader, however,
 Queen and Knight Work Miracles 51

can see it here. The most unpleasant

continuation for Black would
have been 42 a4. Black would like
to eliminate the outside passed
pawn immediately, since after 42
... Wxc3 43 a5 # x a 5 44 g4+ hg 45
We2+ &h4 46 'B'xe3 Wd5+ 47 &gl
&xh3 48 & fl we have a queen
ending - even though it’s a good
one. Analysis
So that means 42 ... Wxa4 43
# g l! . N ot, however, 43 g4+ hg, For example, 42 ... # x c 3 is bad
which loses here (see diagram 66): in light o f 43 # e 5 # e l + 44 &h2
£)fl+ 45 <&gl. But Black wins
after 42 ... &g 6 43 g4 (or 43 a4 g4
44 hg W 6 45 & hl £lxg4 46 # g l
Wf4) 43 ... hg 44 Wxg3 W \c3 45 h4
g4 46 # d 6+ <&h5 47 ®e5+ &xh4
48 ^ 6+ &h3 49 Wh 6+ &g3 50
Wd6+ <&f3 51 W 6+ <2?e2 52 W 2 +
& dl 53 d5 # e 5 54 d 6 g3 55 W 3 +
&d 2 .
But now let’s return to the game
continuation (see diagram 68).
Analysis

44 # e 2 + &h4 45 # x e 3 # x c 2 46
Wgl &xh3 or 44 'i'xgS t a l T 45
# g l # 88+ 46 &h2 # f3 .
But even after 43 'S'gl! £>f5 44
W dlT &g 6 Black must win,
although he will first have to
surm ount considerable technical
difficulties.
Finding the win after 42 ^ g l
would also n ot have been so easy 42 ... #xc3
(see diagram 67). 43 a4 g4!
52 Queen and Knight Work Miracles

On 43... '§'xd4 44 a5 S x c2 45 a 6
the outside passed pawn becomes
an important trump card in White’s
struggle for the draw.
44 hg+
But here the further advance of
the pawn to a5 would lead to
catastrophe for White: 44 ... gh
45 gh 'B'c6+ 46 &h2 ^ x c 2+ 47
& hl We4+ 48 &h2 » f4 + 49 & hl
Wf3+ 50 &h2 £ ,fl+ .
44 ... &g5! An original final position. The
After 44 ... 5txg4 45 # f l the queen and the knight together
queen escapes from her imprison­ work miracles here. Capablanca
ment. was the first to point out the
45 a5 strength of these two pieces
White could also have extended w'orking together. After both 46
the game a little by 45 Wc 1 &xg4 gh Wc6+ 47 &h2 «T3 and 46 g3
46 a5 « x d 4 47 a 6 h3 48 gh+ &xh3. # c 6+ 47 &h2 l'x c 2 + 48 &hl
45 ... h3! £>xg4 mate soon follows. White
(see diagram 69) resigned.
17 The Birth of a Plan
Specialists affirm that the master
differs from the common run of
chessplayers in his ability to for­
mulate a plan. One may approach
this conclusion with some degree
of skepticism. Generally, a master
strives only for the correct evalu­
ation of a position, for which
purpose he examines various
possibilities (variations). More
than likely, the plan which is so
thoroughly explained in the com ­
mentaries to the game is only
form ulated after the game is over,
after detailed analysis o f the
adjourned position.
Smyslov
Botvinnik
The above is supported by the
conclusion of the rook endgame
of the 14th game of the World
Championship Return Match,
Moscow 1958.
When I sealed my move I knew
that White stood better, inasmuch
as Black’s king is tied to the defense
o f the weak pawn at h4, and thus is
more passive than W hite’s king.
White can set up a passed pawn in
the center, using his pawn majority,
while Black has a difficult time
doing this on the queen’s wing.
As a result of exhaustive analysis,
a subtle positional plan was for­
mulated, and it was with this that I
came to the adjourned session. In
fact, this plan was so subtle that
Smyslov himself overlooked it -
and he is the supreme specialist in
the realm of endgames and of
positional play in general (or
could it have been that he just
didn’t bother analyzing?!).
41 2h8
First, the king must be tied
down to the paw n’s defense.
41 ... &g5
42 &d4
The break ... b5 must also be
avoided - which would have been
less accurately met by 42 &b4 on
account of 42 ... Bd 6, when
Black’s rook may cause problems.
But now 42... Bd 6+ is unfavorable
54 The Birth o f a Plan
to Black because of 43 &e5, when
W hite’s king is too active.
42 ... 2c5
(see diagram 71)
And now for that plan. Since
White must always consider the
threat o f ... b5, his chief task must
be to bring about the advance ...
a5. If this were already played, for
example, White could win by
continuing 43 f4+ &g6 44 Exh4.
At the moment, however, that
would fail, due to the reply 44 ...
2a5 45 2h8 2xa4 46 2c8 c5+! 47
&d5 2a3.
How does White force Black to
play ... a5? N ot with 43 2 a8 , since
Black replies 43 ... 2a5. So White
must first take over the d-file, to
prevent Black's counterplay along
that file; and d4 is the best square
to occupy on that file, so as to
keep an eye on Black’s h4 pawn.
43 2h7 &g6
The right response was 43 ...
2c6!, and after 44 2d7 &f6 45
2d5 <&e6 46 ^?c3 2 d 6 Black
forces the trade of rooks, with a
drawn pawn endgame. But Black,
it would appear, has not yet guess­
ed the enemy plan. As for the
pawn sacrifice, White naturally
refuses it (44 2xh4 2a5 etc).
44 2 d 7 &f6
45 2d5 2c6
Black hurries to correct his
error, and get in ... &e 6 and ...
2 d 6; however, it is too late.
46 &c3
The king gives its place to the
rook, so the move 46 ... <&e6 is
now prevented, on account of 47
2d4. And the exchange of rooks -
46 ... 2 d6 47 2xd6+ cd - in this
situation leads to a loss: 48 >&d4
&e 6 49 f3 &e7 50 &d5 &d7 51 f4
a5 52 e4, with an easy win.
46 ... 2e6
47 2d4 &g5
48 2d7 2c6
49 &b4
Now this is possible, since Black
can no longer play 49 ... 2d6.
Now White needs only to bring his
rook to a 8, which will finally force
the advance ... a5.
49 ... &f6
50 2d4
Drawing the king to the wing.
On the immediate 50 2d8 Black
could play ... &e5-e4 etc.
50 ... <i?g5
51 2d8
(see diagram 72)
 The Birth o f a Plan 55

59 a5 h3 60 2g6+ &xf2 61 2 h 6
s&g2 62 a 6 2 e l 63 c5 2 a 1 was
analyzed by Averbakh to a win for
White: 64 &b5 2 b l+ 65 &c 6 h2
66 a7 2 a 1 67 &b7 2 b l+ 68 & a 8
2 c 1 69 c6 h i # (69 ... 2xc6 70
2xh2+ and 71 &b7) 70 2 x h l
^ & xhl 71 & b l 2 b l+ 7 2 & a 6 2 a l +
73 &b 6 2 b l+ 74 &c5 2 c l+ 75
&b4 2 b l+ 76 <&c3 S a l 77 c7.
56 ... b5
51 ... 2e6 57 ab
Now Smyslov too could see One would think that after the
what was going on, so naturally he second time control, at move 56,
tried to complicate. one would have more time to
52 2c8 f4 think, and consequently more .
If Black’s rook were not on the opportunity to avoid making
e-file, White could meet this with errors. But in fact, this is precisely
53 e4; now, however, a pawn when the reaction sets in to the
exchange is forced. pressures of time-shortage, and
53 ef+ &xf4 exhaustion makes its presence felt.
54 2xc7 &13 Here’s where the error came from:
55 2h7! 2e4 instead of 57 2xa6 be 58 2c6 c3+
56 2h6 59 &b3 &xf2 60 2xc3, followed
(see diagram 73) by bringing the rook to a3 and
advancing the a-pawn, White
decides to keep the c-pawn.
57 ... ab
58 2 f6+ &g2
59 &xb5
(see diagram 74)
When I played 57 ab, I had
expected that here Black would
continue 59 ... &xh3 60 c5 &g2 61
c 6 h3 62 c7 2e8 63 2 h 6 h2 64 &c 6
h 1W 65 2xh 1 &xh 1 66 ^ d 7 , with
Here, the continuation 56 ... resignation to follow. But here I
&g2 57 2xb6 &xh3 58 2xa6 &g2 saw something else: how does
56 The Birth o f a Plan

(alas!) - but he moved it only to

e2. Now it could no longer reach
hi (as in the preceding variation),
and everything would now be over
with soon. Not infrequently it
happens that one side’s mistake
almost seems to induce a responsive
error - a peculiar exchange of
courtesies.
59 ... 2e2
60 c5 2b2-f
White win after 59... 2 e l? If6 0 c 5 61 &a 6 2 a 2+
2 b l+ 61 <&a6 &xh3, then White Or 61 ... &xh3 62 Bf4.
gets nothing either from 62 2f4 62 &b7 2 b2+
B a l+ 63 &b7 2 b 1+ 64 &c7 63 2b6 2c2
2 h l!! (a fantastic move) 65 c 6 If 63 ... 2xf2, then 64 2b3 first.
&g2, or from 62 c 6 2 a 1+ 63 &b7 64 c6 <&xh3
2 b 1+ 64 &c 8 &g2 65 f4 (or 65 c7 65 c7 &g2
h3 66 &d7 2 d l+ 67 2d6 2xd6+ 66 2 c6 2 b2 +
and 68 ... *xf2) 65 ...h3 66 2g6+ 67 2b6 2c2
* f3 67 2h6 &g3 68 f5 h2 69 f 6 68 f4 Black
B fl 70 2g6+ &h4 71 c7 &h5 72 resigned
2 g 8 2 xf6. One of the deepest positional
My opponent thought, and plans I have ever found in adjourn­
thought, and reached for the rook ment analysis.
18 Stalemate - the Seed of Salvation
The W orld Cham pionship Return
Match o f 1961 was drawing to a
close, and to the surprise o f every­
one, the youthful World Champion,
whom all were calling a genius,
was losing. By the 20th game the
score stood at 11 / i - l / i . White had
the upper hand for most of the
game, but after the first adjourn­
ment I succeeded in analyzing the
game better, and could have
equalized. However, I erred in
turn, and Tal once again achieved
a winning position. Then White
played the rook endgame with
insufficient energy, and once
again the game was adjourned,
and once again 1 had to analyze.
Botvinnik
Tal
I was looking at my second
sleepless night in a row. F o r a few
hours, the position appeared to be
hopeless. The pawns at f5 and c 6
are weak, while the passed pawn
at a 6 is a serious threat. The most
terrible threat o f all, however, is
the advance of W hite’s king
towards the square b 6.
But tow ards morning I found
an unexpected tactical chance: if
White goes in for the natural
continuation, Black saves himself
with a stalemate! And then the
tortuous searching began again:
what if W hite sees the stalem ate?
At long last, I found drawing
chances here as well.
I had no doubts whatever that
my opponent slept soundly that
night; but Tal is Tal, and he might
easily see this tactical trick and
choose the correct and stronger
continuation. So, in order to lull
my p artner’s suspicions, I did not
even take my usual thermos o f
coffee to the adjournm ent - clearly
I would resign the game in a few
moves.
And now, the adjourned session
begins.
89 &a2 SbS
90 a7
My analysis (taking the stalemate
58 Stalemate - the Seed o f Salvation
combination into account) showed
that the strongest continuation
was to get Black's rook to a 6, as
follows: 90 2f8 2a5+ 91 <&b3
2xa6 92 2xf5 &d7 93 2f6 2 a 1 94
f5 2 d 1 95 &c3 2 c 1+96 &d2 2 fl
97 2f7+ &d 8 98 &c3 2 b 1 (see
diagram 76).
Analysis
But even here Black appears to
draw; for example, after 99 f 6 2 f l
100 &b4 &e 8, or 99 &c2 2 b 4 100
&d3 2 b 3 + 101 &e2 2 h 3 102 f6
2h4 103 &e3 2e4+ 104 &d3 2f4.
90 ... 2a5+
91 &b3 &b7
92 2f8 2b5+
(see diagram 77)
Here it was im portant to force
White to decide which way his
king would go, since this would
determine Black’s further course
of action. For example, on 93 &c3
Black would play 93 ... 2a5, to
check the king from the side.
However, W hite chose the more
“ natu ral” continuation.
93 &a4 &xa7
94 2xf5 2bl
Only now did Tal notice that on
95 2f7+ & a 6 96 2c7, which he
had intended, there follows 96 ...
2b4+!! 97 <&xb4 - stalemate (see
diagram 78).
Analysis
There is no other way to try to
win - but one can always hope for
a blunder from one’s exhausted
opponent.
95 2f6 &b7
96 f5 2 a l+
First, the king is driven away
from the queenside, so that there
can be no thought o f getting into
b 6.
 Stalemate - the Seed o f Salvation 59

97 &b4 2bl + Evidently, the World Champion

98 &c3 2 c l+ had not yet recovered from the
99 &d2 2 fl unexpected turn o f events, which
100 &e3 explains why he continued to play
(see diagram 79) on in a position where the result
was already clear.
105 &e2 2f4
106 &e3 20
107 2f8 + &d7
108 2f6 <&c7
109 2f7+ Kd8
110 &e2 2f4
III &d3 2f3+
112 &c2 &c8
113 f6 &d8
114 2 f8 + &c7
Now the king is safely cut off on 115 &d2 &b7
the f-file, and Black can sit and 116 <&e2 2f4
wait. 117 &e3 20
100 ... &c7 118 2 f7 + &c8
101 2f7 + &d8 119 &d2 213
102 &e2 Bf4 120 &c2 &d8
103 &d3 2f3+ 121 2f8+ &c7
104 <&d2 *c8 Draw
19 The Encircled King
In the first round of the European
Teams Championship at Ober-
hausen, 1961,1 lost rather badly to
Unzicker, as the reader will already
know from the endgame entitled
“Caissa Rewards Effort”. And
here we were, meeting for the
second time.
The diagrammed position arose
during the adjournm ent.
Unzicker
Botvinnik
Here White has a minimal
material advantage; but the ex­
change o f the f- and h-pawns is
unavoidable, and when the fight is
on one wing only, all the authorities
tell us that “ knights are stronger
than bishops”. Also, it can hardly
be difficult to exchange off knight
and pawn for both White pawns.
That leads to the endgame of
bishop and rook versus rook,
which certainly doesn’t always
end up in Philidor’s position. But
let’s see how events developed.
49 £ f l
Clearing the c-file for the rook,
while relieving it of the task of
guarding the g 2 square, where
Black’s knight might go later.
49 ... &I16
50 2c5!
Forestalling the advance ... a5-
a4, and tem pting Black into a
quick exchange of kingside pawns.
50 ... &h5
Unfortunately for Black, he has
nothing better.
51 2xf5+ &xh4
52 2 a5 2d 7
Black has achieved his aim of
exchanging pawns, but that’s only
appearances. The tragedy is that
his king is not just cut off from the
kingside, but also in some danger
itself.
53 &f2 2e7
Trying in turn to cut W hite’s
king off from the queenside - but
he wasn’t going there anyway!
54 &f3 £>g6
After 54 ... 2f7 55 £ c 4 Black’s
rook would be unable to defend

both knight and pawn.
55 jkc4
(see diagram 81)
Now one can guess what White
was after: the encirclement of the
enemy king. For this purpose it is
im portant to have control o f f7,
which will make it impossible to
drive the White king from the f-file.
55 ... £ie5+
56 &f4 ® g4
The rook endgame after 56 ...
£>xc4 57 be would have been hope­
less for Black, while 56 ... £sg6+
would leave the Black knight shut
out of the game.
57 2a6
The Encircled King 61
With the deadly threat of 58 2g6.
57 ... s£?h5
58 Ad5 Qe5
59 £ e 4
(see diagram 82)
Now 60 2 a5 is the threat. Black
has many moves here, but they all
do nothing except make his
position worse. F or example: 59...
^ h 4 60 2 h 6 mate, or 59 ... £)17
60 A f3+ &h4 61 2a5, or 59 ...
&g4 60 A f3 2 f7 + 61 &g3. The
rook must defend both the knight
and the pawn. So mate or heavy
loss o f material is unavoidable,
and therefore Black resigned.
20 Riddles in the Game and
Analysis
I had only one opportunity to
meet Robert Fischer over the
board. This was at the XV Chess
Olympiad in Varna 1962. There
was an effort by the Leyden Chess
Society of the N etherlands to
organize a training match between
us some seven years later, but these
efforts were unsuccessful.
Fischer
Botvinnik
Although the game had now
gone 42 moves, play continued.
I was in no hurry to adjourn, since
I considered over-the-board play
in such a position would give me
more chances than I would get
after adjournm ent analysis. And
Fischer’s whole being radiated
amazement that White would
continue to resist in such a
“hopeless” position. Clearly, he
was out to show both the Olympiad
participants and the spectators
that such a position requires no
analysis. But let’s see how the
game went.
43 2a3
From the continuation - and
with a glance at the following
diagram - it is clear that the
immediate 43 2c7 was correct,
without fear of the reply 43 ...
Sa4. The reader will soon see,
however, that finding such a dif­
ficult decision over the board was
practically impossible. But now
Fischer is the first to suffer from
his decision not to adjourn and
analyze the position: he passes up
the winning line 43 ... a5, and on
44 2b3, 2b4. The whole problem
lies in the fact that the pawn
ending after 45 2xb4 ab 46 f4+
<&f5 47 ^ f3 <&e6 48 &e4 &d 6 49
,&d4 b5 is lost; and if White
declines the exchange of rooks,
Black also wins the rook endgame.
43 ... 2e7
44 2f3 2c7
Riddles in the Game and Analysis
64 Riddles in the Game and Analysis

Fischer had at that moment filed a

protest with the Deputy Arbiter,
L.Bonevoy, that “ Botvinnik was
taking advice during the game” !
52 ••• 2a3+
53 &g2 gh
54 2 g 5 + &d6
55 2xb5 h4
56 f4 &c6
The reader should not be
surprised that play drags on so in
&d4, which is the most unpleasant a theoretically drawn endgame.
continuation for White. Sure of There are players who find it hard
victory, however, he slept soundly to readjust their thinking after an
that night - as his American unexpected turn of events.
team mates informed me after the 57 Sb8 h3+
adjournm ent. One can perhaps 58 &h2 a5
afford to sleep with other endgames, 59 f5 &c7
but not with rooks! 60 2b5 <&d6
51 ... b5 61 f6 ,&e6
For this continuation, I found a 62 Eb6+ &f7
sufficient answer near morning. 63 2 a6
52 h5! Here is where Black ought to
The surprising thing about this have offered the draw. F or I,
move is that, instead of taking the being a pawn down, could not,
undefended g-pawn, White tem­ according to the unwritten rules
porarily sacrifices one of his own. of chess, be the one to make the
Fischer acknowledges that he offer.
overlooked this reply when he 63 &g6
played 51... b5 - a rare occurrence 64 2 c6 a4
in the career o f the future World 65 2 a6 &f7
Champion. 66 Ec6 Ed3
By the way: at this point I was 67 Ea6 a3
no longer able to contain myself - 68 &gl
I went to our team captain, Lev Only now did Fischer, his face
Abramov, and said one word to white as a sheet, shake my hand
him: “ D raw ” . Imagine our am aze­ and quit the playing hall, with
ment when we found out later that tears in his eyes.
 Riddles in the Game and Analysis rtS

O ur battle over this game did

not end here, however, The main
theme was whether or not Black
could have won after 51 ... &d4
(see diagram 86).

Analysis
in by his king” . Fischer continued
this analysis: 64 ... # b 3 + 65 &e2
# d l + 66 &e3 2 b 1 (see diagram
88) and after the additional moves
Analysis

After 52 Exg6 Black starts push­

ing pawns: 52 ... b5 53 h5 b4 54 h6
b3 (a theoretical draw results from
54 ... 2 h l 55 &g2 Eh5 56 Ea6 b3
57 Exa7 Exh6 58 Eb7 &c4 59
&f3).
Now W hite will check the
opposing king. Since he does not
wish to allow Black’s rook on the
Analysis
b-file, he will have to take up an
inferior position: 55 Eg4+ ^ c 5 56 67 ^ 8 + <ii?a2 concluded that
2g5+ &c6 (56 ... &b4 57 Eg7 b2 “W hite’s king will be unable to
58 h7 2 h 1 59 2xa7) 57 2g6+ &b7 shelter from the fatal avalanche o f
58 2g7+ &a6 59 2g6+ &a5 60 checks”.
Eg5+ &a4 61 2g4+ &a3 (see There are two errors in this.
diagram 87). First of all, as I discovered, after
Now 62 Eh4 b2 63 h7 b l # 64 68 # c 5 White has a sufficient
hSW is forced. My evaluation of defense. This was later worked out
the position was as follows: “ Black in detail by Master A.Kremenetsky
cannot win, since his rook is shut in Shakhm aty v S S S R No 2, 1977.
66 Riddles in the Game and Analysis

And from diagram 88, Gary &d3.

Kasparov, then only 13, but now
known to all as an International
Grandm aster, found an elegant
drawing line: 67 Sc4! E b3+ 68
Sc3 'B'elT 69 <&d3 # 0 + 70 &d2
(70 &e3? W i3+!) 70 ... « x f2 + 71
This appears to be the final
word in the lengthy disputes
connected with this game. It gave
rise to some head-turning riddles,
during play and especially in
analysis.
21 The Subtleties of a Simple
Endgame
The Third USSR Peoples’ Sparta-
kiade of 1963 was my first tourna­
ment after the match with Petrosian,
at which time I had finally become
an ex-W orld’s Champion. A ppar­
ently, I had not yet had the time to
unlearn the game completely, as
shown by this endgame.
Botvinnik
Kholmov
What can be said of this position?
White will force his opponent’s
king to defend his queenside pawns;
after this, the exchange o f d-pawn
for g-pawn is inevitable, resulting
in an endgame of two pawns vs two,
all on the same flank.
Does this mean a draw? Certain­
ly it does - if Black fails to make
use of his last remaining trum p,
the opposing king’s absence from
the main battlefield. But how is he
to accomplish this?
56 2h7 &b6
57 2h6+ &b5
58 2h7 <&a6
59 Eh6+ b6
(see diagram 90)
At this point, it is only White
who has achieved anything, by
putting the enemy king as far as
possible from the passed d-pawn.
The logical way to continue the
struggle here would have been
with 60 d6. Then White would
probably have been able to ex­
change the d-pawn for one of
Black’s queenside pawns, or for
the g-pawn, but the Black king
would have ended up on the 7th
68 The Subtleties o f a Simple Endgame

rank, further away from the White finesse: now W hite’s rook is tied
pawns. to the a-paw n’s defense, while the
60 Eh7 third rank is closed to W hite’s
And this move is a mistake, for king as a path to the queenside.
the reasons outlined above. The Black’s king, meanwhile, may
immediate exchange o f d- and g- assist unhindered in the attack
pawns does not complicate Black's on W hite’s pawns.
task; as the game’s further course 64 &f4 &b5
will show, it simplifies matters. 65 &e4 &a4
60 ... Exd5 66 Eh7
61 &xg4 2d2 White enters an endgame which
62 b4 is theoretically lost, since he has
(see diagram 91) nothing else at his disposal.
66 ... Exa3
67 2xa7+ &xb4
68 Eh7 b5
69 &d4
(see diagram 92)

Now it looks as though Black

should attack the pawn at once,
but after 62 ... Ba2? 63 b5+ &xb5
64 Exa7 the draw is unavoidable.
So the trajectory o f the assault
must be more circuitous.
62 ... 2b2!
The first finesse: White can no
longer play 63 b5+, and the threat
of 63 ... Eb3 forces the White rook
to leave its active position. White
undoubtedly overlooked this quiet
move in playing 60 2h7.
63 Eh3 2a2!
Immediately there comes another
69 ... Ea8
White resigned here, since the
simplest reply to 70 <&d3 is 70 ...
&b3. But Black could also win by
“ Gregoriev’s M ethod” , cutting off
the king on the rank by 69 ... Eg3
70 2 h l &a3.
The simplest rook endgames
contain a lot of surprising little
secrets!
22 The Trapped Queen
The tournam ent that was held in
1965 in the D utch town of
Noordwijk was a happy occasion
in my life. I enjoyed some magnifi­
cent walks along the deserted
sandy beaches o f the N orth Sea;
and with good playing conditions
at hand, this grandm aster’s calcu­
lating/decision-making apparatus
(read: brain) was working beauti­
fully. This event was held to
celebrate the 70th anniversary of
the Leyden Chess Club.
Donner
Botvinnik
As for the diagrammed position,
it was probably a good time to
offer a draw. Indeed, from general
principles, Black’s pawn structure
might even be considered more
comfortable here.
But if we dig a little deeper into
the position, we might draw some
different conclusions. For example:
White may choose to give up his
h-pawn for the opposing a-pawn.
This will give him the opportunity
to create an outside passed pawn,
after which all pawn endgames
would tend to be in his favor. As
far as the blockaded pawns at f 2 ,
f3 and f4 are concerned, these
shield the White king rather well,
while restricting the activity of
Black’s queen. And that means
the passed h-pawn will not be so
dangerous, after all. In a word:
play on . . .
40 f d 7 + &g8
41 # c 8 + &h7
42 Wxa 6 Wg5+
43 & fl Wxh5
44 # d 3 +
(see diagram 94)
70 The Trapped Queen
Now Black cannot play 44 ...
©g6 because of 45 We4! 'B,xe4 46
fe, when White already has one
passed pawn (the e-), and will
soon create another (the a*), which
will decide the game.
44 ... &g8
The king tries to get nearer the
queenside, to stop the White pawns
there if necessary.
45 a4 #hl +
46 <&e2 h5
47 ®d5+ &h7
Now Black must step back from
the queenside again, since after
47 ... <&f8 White would use the
Black king’s exposed position to
assist in the prom otion o f the
a-pawn.
48 « d l!
Exploiting the fact that Black
cannot exchange queens (the king
is too far away to stop the a-pawn).
White drives his queen to a passive
position.
48 ... #h2
A positional error, since here
the queen stands poorly. Any other
retreat would have left Black with
more chances. My opponent still
was not aware of the dangers of
his position. He simply made a
move which defends the f4 pawn
and assures the h-pawn’s advance.
49 b4 h4
At the decisive moment, Black
still does not see the hidden trap.
50 't f l !
(see diagram 95)
Now the outcome is clear, since
50 ... h3 51 a5 b a 5 2 b a ® g2 53 a6
leads to the loss of Black’s last
trum p card, his h-pawn. However,
there is on other way to get the
Black queen out o f its im prison­
ment. My opponent therefore
decides on the desperate step of
throwing his g-pawn into the fray.
50 g5
51 a5 ba
52 ba
53 a6
Black resigned, since after 53 ...
g3 54 a7 g2 55 Wbl-f and 56 aS1^
even though he also gets two
queens, he is mated at once.
This will show the reader what
adventures are possible in what
would seem to be a drawn queen
endgame. This secured first prize
- along with a certificate of
honorary membership in the
Leyden Chess Club.
23 Paul Keres’ Study
In 1969 the traditional Beverwijk
Festival was held in the small
Dutch town o f Wijk aan Zee. At
First, things went well for Keres,
Geller and me. Then, one by one,
we fell back. At that point Lajos
Portisch made a strong bid for
first place, beating Keres and
obtaining a winning position
against me. When the game was
adjourned I didn’t even feel like
analyzing it, so hopeless did it
seem. The games were played off
in sessions of only two hours each,
and so it seemed that my sufferings
in this game would never end.
After the third adjournm ent, it
looked as though I was getting
some drawing chances, but there
was no time to look at the position
- we had to eat quickly, and then
sit down for the next round’s game.
And then came Geller, to tell me
that a zugzwang would soon finish
me off.
Portisch took a quick draw in
his next game and disappeared. Of
course, he would be analyzing our
endgame, so I hurried to follow
his example, since the next adjourn­
ment would begin in only five
hours. Here Keres came to my
assistance. 1 lay abed - I was
stricken with a terrific weakness,
as a result of an illness - and studied
the situation on my pocket set,
while Paul Petrovich sat at my
bedside table, using the fullsize
set.
Botvinnik
Portisch
At first, the endgame really
does look hopeless for Black.
W hite’s long-ranging bishop will
easily hold Black’s a-pawn, while
also taking an active part in the
struggle on the opposite wing.
With Black’s king afar off, the fall
of the Black g-pawn is inevitable,
after which one o f White’s pawns
will queen. But let us follow the
analysis.
73 Aa2
This is the most likely sealed
72 Paul Keres' Study

move; now, let us force White to

push his e-pawn.
73 ... £>c6
74 ^6 4 &e7
75 e6
Otherwise, White can’t break
through with his king. Now he can
go after the g5 pawn, but Black
has also achieved something: the
pawn stands at e6, where it
restricts the bishop, while also
giving Black’s king the square d 6.
75 ... &c5 via g 6.
76 &e5 a5 “ Paul Petrovich”, I said, weakly,
77 <&f6 &d6 “There is one drawing position.
78 <&xg5 &e5 When the White king comes to f7,
So now the the pawn is lost, but with the pawn on g5, we only need
Black’s king has gotten into the to play ... <&f5, and after g 6 we
game, resticting the White king’s check with the knight at e5; that
maneuverability; and the knight is draws, but how do we get there?”
a secure blockader for the e-pawn. An experienced study composer,
Now the roles appear to be reversed: Keres immediately put the idea
White’s king works alone against together: 81 ... £ic 6! 82 &g 6 £se7+!
Black’s king and knight, while it is 83 &f7 £ic 6 84 g5 (or 84 e7 £>xe7
now the bishop that is shut out of 85 &xe7 &f4 86 A e 6 a2) 84 ... &f5
the game! 85 g 6 £le5+!.
79 Ab3 We laughed for ten minutes,
Now White starts setting up the so simple and elegant did our new­
zugzwang position. found solution appear. And at
79 ... a4 the adjourned session, practically
80 £ a 2 a3 nothing new happened. The first
81 £b3! ten moves went exactly according
(see diagram 97) to our analysis.
Here Keres and I fell into silent 81 ... £c6 !
thought. Indeed, what is to be 82 &g6 £>e7+!
done? If Black’s king moves, (see diagram 98)
White seizes the square f 6; if the Only here did White change
knight moves, W hite’s king enters things at all:
 Paul Keres' Study 73

85 &h6 the!
86 4.a2 &e5!
87 &g7
O r 87 g 6 &f 6 88 g7 &f5+.
87 ... & f5
88 £ f7 f t g6
The knight could also have
returned to its accustomed perch,
c 6. Here a draw was agreed, in
light of the continuation 89 i b l 4 -
&xg5 90 £.xg 6 a2 91 e7 a l # 92
e m # f 6+.
83 &g7 As a result of this game, Portisch
But this caused no problems lost all hope of winning the
83 ... £ic 6 tournam ent, while Geller and I
84 g5 &f5 went on to share first place.
24 A Resourceful King
This was the position at the start
of my adjournment with the Yugo­
slav grandm aster Matanovic from
the 1969 Belgrade tournam ent.
B o tv in n ik
Matanovic
White has an extra knight, but
Black is going to win it back; both
sides have the option of seeking
either a rook or a pawn endgame.
The first choice is W hite’s: he can
play either 43 Sd6+ o r 43 2d5,
both o f which I therefore had to
analyze inside out. So first I turned
to 43 Ed5.
With the rooks on, Black has no
winning chances. For example,
43 ... ed 44 Exa5 ^ e 6 45 2e5+
&d6 46 &f2 d2 (if 46 ... S g l then
47 2e3) 47 &e2 S gl 48 &xd2
2xg3 49 2e3. That means Black
has to take the pawn ending: 43 ...
S d2+ 44 &fl 2xd3 45 3xd3 ed.
It might seem that Black has
enough to win here: 46 &f2 g5!
(but not 46 ... &e6 47 &e3 &d6 48
&xd3 &d5 49 g4! fg 50 hg h5 51 f5)
47 fg+ (here 47 &e3 is bad on
account of 47 ... gf+ 48 gf &e6 49
&xd3 &d5) 47 ... &xg5 48 &e3 h5
49 &xd3 h4 50 gh+ &xh4 (see
diagram 100).
Analysis
And in fact, after 51 &e2 <&g3
52 h4 (or 52 &e3 f4+) 52 ... &xh4
53 &f3 &g5 Black picks up the
a4 pawn, while simultaneously
keeping the enemy king off the
c-file. But Geller found a drawing
line for White: 51 <&>e3!! &g3 52
&e2 f4 53 & f l! &xh3 54 &f2 &g4,
and since Black has had to push
the pawn to f4, White has time,
 A Resourceful King 75

after the a-pawn falls, to get back Played to gain time, since 46 ...
to the c l square! * c 5 was possible at once.
White however selected the 47 2a5 * c6
other continuation, believing it to 48 2a8 *c5
be a draw. 49 * f2 Sal
43 2d6+ An excellent post for the rook.
The shortcoming of this move is From here it controls the queening
that Black’s king will now cut off square for the d-pawn while also
the e-file, which will be quite restraining the advance o f the
significant. enemy passed pawn. Not sur­
43 ... *e7 prisingly, White now undertakes
44 Ea6 ed drastic action in order to get the
The alternative - 44 ... Ed2+ 45 enemy rook to quit its post. Note
£>f2 e3 46 2xa5 Bxf2+ 47 * g l - that it isn’t possible to achieve
brings Black no blessings. this by 50 * e 3 on account o f 50 ...
45 2xa5 *d6 S g l.
(see diagram 101) 50 Bd8 * c4
51 * e 3
Now this move can be played,
since 51... S g l is met by 52 Ed4+.
Therefore Black must drive White’s
king to a less favorable square.
51 ... 2 e l+
52 * f2 2e2+
53 *13 2e6
This rook placement is also
quite useful, since it cuts the
enemy king off.
54 a5 * c3
Now the natural continuation 55 E c 8+ *d2
46 * f2 leads to immediate loss After 55 ... * b 3 Black’s pride,
after 46 ... S g l! (47 E a 8 * c 7 48 the d-pawn, perishes: 56 a 6! 2xa6
Ea7+ * c 6 49 E a 6+ * c5 50 2 a5 + (56 ... d2 57 E d 8 * c 2 58 a7) 57
*c4). So the rook must put an * e3 2d6 58 * d 2 .
immediate halt to the advance of 56 h4
the d-pawn, which means White (see diagram 102)
will have to let the Black king in. The other possibilities of counter­
46 2 a8 *c7 play will be examined below.
76 A Resourceful King

is similar: 58 ... &el 59 a7 d2 60

2e8+ * f l 61 2 d8 2 a3 + , and
mate next move. In the game,
White chose to win the h-pawn as
com pensation, but never had time
to exploit his kingside majority.
58 2c7 &el
59 &g2
Otherwise it’s the same mate
again.
59 ... 2xa6
60 2e7+ Mil
56 ... E el! 61 2xh7 2 a2 +
The elegant and quick way to 62 <&fl
win. The reader already knows that
57 a6 2al 62 ^ ( 3 & el! loses for White, due
W hat is White to do? After 58 to the mate threat.
2c6 « e l 59 2e6+ * f l 60 2 d6(60 62 ... d2
<&e3? 2 e l+ ) 60 ... d2 61 2xd2 63 2c7 2al
2 a3 + (see diagram 103) we have 64 &f2 2c 1
Here M atanovi 6 resigned, ex­
pressing the opinion that after
move 55 (see diagram 104) the

Analysis

that rare situation, in which the Analysis

rook delivers mate along the rank,
with the Black king located to the continuation 56 Ec7 would have
rear of the White king. led to a draw. Indeed, the rook can
The winning idea after 58 2a8 no longer be brought to a l (56 ...

E el 57 a6 S a l 58 a7 is a draw),
b ut there is another way to win:
56 ... h5 57 &f2 &d I 58 &f3 d2 59
&f2 Se2+! 60 * f l Se3. Now 61
&f2 is met by the maneuver ...
S a 3 -al-c l, while on 61 a6 there
follows 61 ... Sxg3 62 a7 Sa3 63
&f2 h4 64 & fl E a4 65 <&g2 &e2
A Resourceful Ring 77
66 Se7+ &d3 67 Bd7+ <&e3 etc.
The resourceful actions o f the
king have thus brought about a
situation perhaps unique in the
history o f rook endgames, in
which Black’s king is on the first
rank, while W hite’s king is mated
on the third!
25 Final Victory
With my appearance at the Leyden
Tournam ent of 1970,1 concluded
my participation in tournam ents.
The best that I was able to achieve
at this tournam ent was the follow­
ing endgame victory over the
Danish grandmaster.
Larsen
Botvinnik
W hite’s positional advantage is
obvious: he controls more space,
which assures him freedom of
maneuver; Black’s c-an d h-pawns
are vulnerable; and the threat of
b5 followed by the creation of a
passed White c-pawn is quite
serious.
44 &e2! &g7
Otherwise 45 2h3. Now Black’s
king must stew on the wing, in
order to be able to protect the
h-pawn.
45 k e l &g6
46 2a7 &d8
47 £ c3 h4
48 *d 3 h3
Larsen probably feared
transfer of the White king to a4,
followed by b5. Wishing to have
counterpiay in that event, he
sacrifices a pawn, in the belief that
the doubled h-pawns would prove
inconsequential. Black’s calcula­
tions, however, were not borne
out by events.
49 gh jLh4
50 &e2
Now White decides against
bringing his kingtothequeenside,
in favor of an attem pt to make use
o f the passed h-pawns.
In 1936, during the 3rd Moscow
International Tournam ent, I wit­
nessed the playoff of the adjourned
game Capabianca-Ragozin. The
form er World Champion had an
extra pawn, and soon a won
endgame. To my surprise, however,
Capablanca took no active mea­
sures, preferring a waiting game.
There finally came an inaccuracy
from his opponent, whereupon
the C uban won a second pawn
and quickly brought home the
 Final Victory 7V

win. &g7 would have been safer,

“ Why did you not try to exploit 55 & el f6
your material advantage right Black strives to activate his
away?” , I dared to ask the great bishop o r else obtain one more
chess virtuoso. W hereupon he passed pawn, while simultaneously
replied indulgently, “I found it ridding himself o f the doubled
more practical to w ait”. pawns. More im portant, however,
I played this endgame by the is the fact that now he will have
Capablanca method. one more weak pawn on the sixth
50 ... £.d8 rank - at e6.
51 &f3 Jth4 56 &f3 fe
52 &g2 Ed8 57 fe Sc7
Larsen seeks a double-edged In addition, it appears th a t after
situation, provoking White to the opening o f the seventh rank
play 53 Sc7. But then there would Black’s king is less secure. Black
follow 53 ... Ea8 or 53 ... d4 54 shelters it, but one rook cannot
£ d 2 Sa8. cover both ranks.
53 &f3 2 c8 58 Sa8 Ag5
54 &e2 59 2g8+ &h5
(see diagram 106) 60 h4+!
And now the h-pawn finally
advances. It’s taboo: 60 ... ,&xh4?
61 Eh8-k
60 ... £ h6
61 Sh8 &g6
62 jtd 2 was the threat.
62 h5+!
And again the pawn cannot be
taken -6 2 ... &xh5 63 & d2,w hich
leads to a catastrophic worsening
of the Black position.
62 ... &g7
Black was alm ost in zugzwang. 63 Ea8
54 ... f6 could have been followed To keep the opposing rook
by 55 Se7 fe 56 £xe6+. After the penned in.
bishop’s retreat this break is also 63 ... Ag5
possible, but the White h-pawn is 64 Ea6
now very mobile indeed. So 54 ... Aiming eventually at the pawn
Final Victory
 Index o f O pponents

A lekhine 19
B ronstein 24
D onner 69
Fischer 62
Grigoriev 10
Keres 27
K holm ov 67
K otov 44
Larsen 78
M atanovic 74
Minev 37
Moiseyev 29
N ajdorf 47
Portisch 71
Ragozin 13
Shevarshin 7
Sliwa 50
Smyslov 53
Suetin 32
Taim anov 35
Tal 57
T artakow er 22
Thom as 15
U nzicker 40, 60
$ 6.00

Former World Champion Mikhail Botvinnik is widely

recognized as one of the more skilled masters of the
endgame. In this book he gives us the benefits of his
years o f experience against an imposing array of chess
immortals: Alekhine, Fischer, Keres, Bronstein, Larsen,
Taimanov, Portisch, Najdorf, and many others. While
the te xt is filled w ith instructive material, it is above all
exceptionally readable and fu ll o f insights into endgame
play at the highest levels of competitive chess. This is a
chess book that w ill be appreciated and enjoyed by
every chessplayer.

ISBN 0-931462-43-6

9780931462436

97 8 0 9 3 1 4 6 2 4 3 6
B O T V IN N IK ON TH E E N D G A M E