Chapter 9 - Tests 22 1

Ziska - J. Kristiansen, Candidates Dorrington - Gordon, Combinational Vision

CD

a b c d e f g h a b c d e f g h

Tripoteau - Huschenbeth, Candidates Korchnoi - Yusupov, Candidates

8 ®
7 7

6 6

1 1

a b c d e f g h a b c d e f g h

Kasparov - Tal, Combinational Vision Salgado Lopez - Mamedov, Combinational Vision

@ 8 ®
7 W.(+)"�; IiiIII&I

a b c d e f g h a b c d e f g h
 222 G randmaster Preparation - Calculation

Klein - Gen, Prophylaxis Khairullin - Mamedyarov, Candidates

(jJ 7

a b c d e f g h

Wojtkiewicz - Wahls, Candidates Guliev - Grigorian, Imagination

@ s S
@
7 7

6 6

5 5

4 4

3 3

1 6
a b c d e f g h a b c d e f g h

Lalev - Ninov, Intermediate Moves Volokitin - Shishkin, Imagination

@ s S

4 4

3 3

1 6
a b c d e f g h a b c d e f g h
 Chapter 9 - Tests 223

Valenti - Del Nevo, Candidates Naroditsky - Altounian, Prophylaxis

@ 8
7

a b c d e f g h a b c d e f g h

Adhiban - Gao Rui, Intermediate Moves Kobese - Mamedov, Imagi nation

@ 8 ®
7

a b c d e f g h a b c d e f g h

Landenbergue - Pavlovic, Candidates Karjakin - Ivanchuk, Combinational Vision

@) 8 8
7 7

6 6

5 5

3 3

a b c d e f g h a b c d e f g h
 224 G randmaster Preparation - Calculation

Ragger - Alekseev, Prophylaxis Anand - Kasimdzhanov, Intermediate Moves

@) 8

7
8

6 6

5 5

4 4

3 3

2 2

6.
a b c d e f g h a b c d e f g h

Eljanov - Mchedlishvili, Candidates Topalov - Zvjaginsev, Candidates

@ 8

7
8

7
@
6 6

5 5

4 4

3 3

2 2

� 1 6.
a b c d e f g h a b c d e f g h

Korchnoi - Vallejo Pons, Elimination Moradiabadi - Ganguly, Imagination

@ 8

7
8

7
�
6 6

5 5
@
4 4

3 3

2 2

� 6.
a b c d e f g h a b c d e f g h
 Chapter 9 - Tests 225

Adams - Paragua, I ntermediate Moves Kulaots - Libiszewski, Combinational Vision

@ 8 @
7 7

6 6

5 5

4 4

3 3

T 1

a b c d e f g h a b c d e f g h

De la Riva Aguado - Caruana, Imagination Kasimdzhanov Predojevic, Combinational Vision

-

@ 8 _'.
II /�� '.�� �"
i\� • � � � � �
" @
�a
:;, � ,

U"\S �� � �
7 7

�� � �� �
�I
6 6

5 5
j!J%
�8 �""�'i� � � �fi �?r�'it
� �
� � ""
4 4

�< � !D.t.
��..... �I�
3 3

� � ;�
2 2
L'", "
1 6. 1
� / � � �
6.
a b c d e f g h a b c d e f g h

Vachier-Lagrave - Pelletier, Candidates Goganov - Khismatullin, Candidates

@ 8 @
7

1 1

a b c d e f g h a b c d e f g h
 226 Grandmaster Preparatio n - Calculation

Nguyen - Vrana, Candidates Dinstuhl - Aagaard , Imagination

@ 8

7
8

7
�
6 6

5 5

4 4

3 3

2 2

� �
a b c d e f g h a b c d e f g h

Topalov - Rapport, Imagination Gustafsson - Efimenko, Combinational Vision

@ 8

7
8

7
@
6 6

5 5

4 4

3 3

2 2

� 1 �
a b c d e f g h a b c d e f g h

Gashimov - Akopian, Candidates Sreeves - Gupta, Candidates

@ 8

7
8

7
@
6 6

5 5
@
4 4

3 3

2 2

� �
a b c d e f g h a b c d e f g h
 Chapter 9 - Tests 227

Xu Yuhua - T. Kosintseva, Prophylaxis Sasikiran - Calistri, Intermediate Moves

@ 8
7

a b c d e f g h a b c d e f g h

Bu Xiangzhi - Pelletier, Candidates Edouard - Stewart, Candidates

@ 8 8
7 7

6 6

5 5

4 4

3 3

2 2

1 1

a b c d e f g h a b c d e f g h

Movsesian - Zatonskih, Elimination Su.B. Hansen - Baramidze, Combinational Vision

@ 8 8
7 7

6 6

5 5

4 4

3 3
1'''''''''"" ,,, , ,

2 2

a b c d e f g h a b c d e f g h
 228 Grandmaster Preparation - Calculation

Portisch - Radulov, Prophylaxis Fischer - Larsen, Intermediate Moves

@ 8 8
7 7

6 6

5 5

4 4

3 3

2 2

a b c d e f g h a b c d e f g h

S. Ernst - Karisik, Candidates Naiditsch - V. Mikhalevski, Imagination

� 8
7

a b c d e f g h a b c d e f g h

Bologan - Naiditsch, Candidates Firman - McShane, Candidates

@ 8 8
7 7 �-; �

6 6

5 5

4 4

3 3

2 2

a b c d e f g h a b c d e f g h
 Chapter 9 - Tests 229

Markus - Perunovic, Prophylaxis Inarkiev - Diu, Imagination

a b c d e f g h a b c d e f g h

Smirnov - Timofeev, Candidates N. Kosintseva - Romanko, Imagi nation

a b c d e f g h

Williams - Genovese, Comparison Morozevich - Movsesian, Combinational Vision

a b c d e f g h
230 Grand m aster Preparatio n - Calculation

Fridman - Harikrishna, Prophylaxis Marholev - Rotstein, Intermediate Moves

a b c d e f g h

Dzagnidze - Danielian, Combinational Vision

a b c d e f g h

Grischuk - Aronian, Eli m ination Jobava - Wojtaszek, Combinational Vision

7
@
6

a b c d e f g h
 Chapter 9 - Tests 23 1

TEST !
1 . Ziska - J. Kristiansen, Helsi ngor (var) 20 1 2
Black avoided this position by not playing 3 1 . . . ltJ f6xe4? ? and instead won after 3 1 . . . !'1ae8!
followed by . . . !'1e5 ! . He did this because he was afraid of 32.Wlh8t, which does indeed lead to
a spectacular win , but White has an even stronger option in: 32 ..ig8t!! ( I point) 32 Jhg8 .•

32 . . . Wxg8 33 .Wlh8# 33JH'7t gg7 34.gxg7t �h8 35.gxc7t and wins.

2. Tripoteau - Huschenbeth, Medimont 20 1 1

Black trapped the queen in elegant fashion. 1 0 tll h 5!
•.. 1 0 . . . ltJ g4 1 1 .�f4 d4 is good for Black, but
the game is conclusive. I 1 .YlYe5 .if6! 1 2.YlYxh5 g6 (I point) Trapped. 13.J.xf8 gxh5 14.Lc5
c!LJc6 Black won on move 30 0-1 . ••.

3. Kasparov - Tal, Moscow (var) 1 983

29 c!LJ8t!! 30.gxa This leads to mate, but there were no real al ternatives . 30. W fI Wlb5t!
•••

3 1 .!'1ac4 ltJ d2 t and Black wins. 30 YlYeI t 3 1 .�g2 gxh2t! (I point) 32.�xh2 gh5t 33.gh4
•.•

gxh4t 34.�g2 YlYh l#

4. Dorrington - Gordon, H inckley Island 20 1 1

White should force a perpetual check with: 29.gdxf6! The game went 29 .Wld4? �g6+ and Black
won on move 39. 29 ... gxf6 29 . . . Wld3 ?! 30.g6f4;!; does not make a lot of sense. 30.c!LJxf6t �g7
And here White has two ways to make a draw. Either with 3 1 . ltJ xe8t Ei:xe8 32 .!'1xf7t ( I point) or
with 3 1 .YlYg5t .ig6 32.tll h 5t �g8 33.gxf8t gxf8 34.YlYd5t .tf7 35.YlYg5t= (I point) .

5. Korchnoi - Yusupov, Puhaj arva 20 1 1

White could have won the game immediately with a small combination. 32.,ixg7t! I nstead
Wh ite lost instantly after: 32.Wld 5 ? ? �xe7 0- 1 32 ... �xg7 33.YlYd7! ( I point) The pawn queens
and Black cannot give up his rook or bishop for it on account of the mate on h7.

6. Salgado Lopez - Mamedov, Moscow 20 1 1

53 c!LJ e2t! Instead the game ended in a draw
•.. after: 53 . . . Wle I t ? 54.Wh2 ltJ fI t 5 5 .Wg2 ltJ e3t
56.Wf2 Wld2t 57.Wg 1 Wle I t 5 8 .Wh2 ltJ f1 t 59.Wg2 ltJ e3t 60.Wh2 Wld2t 6 1 .WgI Wle I t 62.Wf2
Wld2t Y2-Y2 54.�f1 54.Wlxe2 Wlxe2 5 5 . a8 =WI Wle 1 t 56.Wg2 Wlxc3 and Black wins. 54 c!LJxf4! ..•

55.a8=YlY YlYcl t 56.�f2 tll d3t ( I point) Black wins after either 57 .We2 Wle l # or 57.Wg2 ltJ e l t.
232 Grand m aster Preparation - Calculation

TEST 2
7. Klein - Getz, Oslo 20 1 1
Black has obvious counterplay against g2 . But at times we need to understand that our opponent's
elaborate plans may not actually work: 4 1 .�h4!! .txg2t 42.i>h2 ( 1 point) White has no fear of
the discovered check. This is the joy of opposite-coloured bishops. 42 ... .tf3t Black has nothing
better. 42 . . . \tle8 43.lMlf6 i.c6t 44.\tlg3 lMlc5 offers a degree of resistance, but it goes down in
the end: 45 .lMlxe6t \tld8 46.Ei:gb l (46.lMlf7! ? and other moves win as well, though it may take
some time.) 46 . . . e2 47.i.f6t \tlc7 48.Ei:xc6t lMlxc6 49 .lMle7t lMld7 5 0 .lMlc5 t lMlc6 5 1 .lMla7t c;!,Jd6
52 .lMle7t \tld5 5 3 .lMle5 t \tlc4 54.Ei:c l t \tl b4 5 5 .i.e7t \tla4 56.Ei:xc6 Ei:xc6 5 7.lMle4t Black is mated.
On 42 . . . i.c6t 43.\tlg3 g5 White has 44 .lMlxh 5 t winning. 43.i>g3 g5! 44.�xg5! (2 points)
In this case Black's plans do not work! 44 ... Ei: gS 45.�xgSt i>xgS 46.i>xf3t i>h7 47. Ei: b7t
i>h6 4S.i.g7t i>h7 49 .tf6t i>h6 50 ..ig5t i>g6 5 1 .i.e7t i>f7 52.i.d6t i>f6 53.i.e5t i>f5
•

54. Ei: g5#

S. Wojtkiewicz - Wahls, Geneva 1 99 5

I t looks a s if Black has won the exchange, but actually the bishop on a l i s trapped! 19.�bl!!
(2 points) Easy to miss. 1 9 ...hc4 1 9 . . . lMlxb 1 20.Ei:xb 1 i.xc4 (20 . . . f5 2 1 .tLlg5 and White wins)
2 1 .Ei:xa l transposes. 20.�xal �xal 2 1 J�xal± White won on move 3 1 .

9. Lalev - Ninov, Bulgaria 20 1 1

29 ....tc5!! ( 1 poine) A really lovely combination when you check the details. 29 . . . Ei:xc8 30. bxc8 =lMlt
\tlxc8 3 1 .Ei:c 1 would have given White some chances in a roughly equal position. 30.,txc5 �xe4
White draws after 30 . . . Ei:xc8 3 1 .i.a7t! \tlc7 32.i.b6t! \tlb8. 3 1 .i.a7t i>xb7 White resigned,
real izing that his plan of winning the queen with 32.tLld6t c;!,Jxa7 3 3 . tLl xe4 was nothing more
than a nightmare: 33 . . . Ei:d8! (2 points) 0-1

10. Khairullin - Mamedyarov, Yurmala 20 1 2

The knight o n a5 looks to be i n trouble. O n the other hand Black is attacking b2 and potentially
f2 . Everything is solved with one move! 1 2,1!l� dl! ( 1 poine) 12 ... tlhe4 13 ..txa5 �a6? Objectively
better was 1 3 . . . tLlc5 l 4.lMla3 ( l 4.i.xb6 tLl xa4 1 5 .i.a5 cxd5;!; is less serious) 1 4 . . . tLl d3t 1 5 .i.xd3
i.xa3 1 6.i.xb6 i.b4t 1 7. tLl c3 cxd3 1 8 .i.c7 \tld7 1 9 .d6± White has good winning chances, but
the game is not yet over. 14.i.xc4 b5 1 5.dxc6! 1-0

1 1 . Guliev - Grigorian, Abu Dhabi 20 1 0

The first two moves are rather obvious, but the third takes a good deal of imagination. 2 1 .i.dl !
�xd4 2 2 .ib3t i>hS 23.�a5!! ( 3 points) The queen i s ideally placed here. White i s threatening
•

Ei:xg7, leaving Black in serious trouble finding a move. 23 ... b6 23 . . . i.f6 is refuted by many moves,
among them : 24.lMlc7! i.xe7 2 5 .i.e5 t i.f6 26.i.xd4 Ei:xd4 27.lMlf7 with mate. 24.�xa7 With the
threat of i.h6! . 24 ... i.d5 25.�c7 2 5 .i.xd 5 ! 25 ... hb3 26.:gxg7 :gcS 27.�xcSt i>xg7 2S.�c7t
1-0
 Chapter 9 - Tes ts 233

12. Volokitio - Shishkio, Baile Herculane 20 1 0

White is of course much better, but there is only one direct win: 25.i.g5!! ( 1 point) 25 ... h5
Whi te wins after: 25 . . . fXg5 26.�xh7t Q;> f6 27.�h6# 26 .ih6t!! ( 1 point) 26.1' h h 5 ? ! as played in
•

the game should also win. But instead of resigning Black could have tried 26 . . . E!:h8!, when White
needs to find 27 . .ih6tL However, after 27 . . . E!:xh6 28.E!:xh6 Q;> xh6 29 .�h3t @g7 30 .E!:d3 .id8
3 1 .E!:g3 t Q;>f8 32 .�h6t Q;> e7 33 .E!:g8 Q;>d6 34.�f8t E!:e7 3 5 .�xd8t �xd8 36.E!:xd8t .id7 there
would still be some work to do. 26 Q;>xh6 27.gxh5t! Q;> xh5 28.�h7t 'it> g4 29.�g7t 'it>xf4
••.

30.c!tle2t 'it> e3 3 1 .�g3t 'it> xe2 32.�el#

234 Grandmaster Preparatio n - Calculation

TEST 3
13. Valenti - Del Nevo, Arco (var) 20 1 0
I found this while analysing. I just loved the simplicity of opening of the a-file. That the line is
quite long without serious branching is only a bonus. 37 ... a2t! ( 1 point) 38. 'it> al 3 B . 'it>xa2 l'!aBt
39.'it>b3 Wb6t transposes. 38 ... Y;Yglt 39. 'it> xa2 13 a8t 40. 'it> b3 Y;Y b6t 4 1 . 'it> c3 13 c8t 42. 'it> d2
Y;Yflt 42 . . . !!dB? 43.!!hBt!= 43. 'it> c1 Y;Ye1 t 44.Y;Ydl 13 xc2t! (3 points) 45. 'it>xc2 c![} e3t Black
wins.

14. Adhiban - Gao Rui, Mashhad 20 1 1

White's wi nning combi nation is a perfect illustration of the "quiet move." 29. 13 xf6t! In the game
play was unclear after 29.!!c7? ttJ d B ! , although White won on move 4 1 . 29 ... gxf6 30 ..ih6t El g7
So far, so good. The next move is the one to surprise. 3 1 . 13 c7!! ( 1 point) White wins, as pointed
out by M ichel Rudolf. 3 I . .ixg7t? 'it>xg7 32.!!c7 is perhaps more normal-looking, but it would
be wrong. After 32 . . . !!hB! 33 . .ie2 ttJ d4 34.!!xe7t 'it>g6 35 . .id3 t f5 36.ttJe2 �f6 37.!!c7 ttJ f3t
3 B . 'it> f2 ttJd2 Black's drawing chances are at least as good as Wh ite's winning chances.

1 5. Landenbergue - Pavlovic, Biel 2007

One of the important thi ngs when we talk about candidate moves is to realize when you have
a choice. Here Wh ite clearly did not think he did. After 20.f3? �d5 Black was fine. 2 1 ..lxe7
c![} xe7 22.Y;Ye3 .la6 23 ..l e4 Y;Yc7 24.f4 h6 25.h3 Y;Yb8 1/2-%
Instead Wh ite could have reached a very favourable position with: 20.Y;Yf1 ! (1 point) 20 ... �d5
2 1 . .lxe7 c![}xe7 22 .le4 Black is lacking the check on c5 here. And after 22 . . . Wc7 2 3 . ttJ b 5 ! White
•

loses an exchange, so Black is forced to allow: 22 ... �d5 23.�xd5 exd5 24 .l f5 13 b8 25.Y;Y d3 g6
•

26.e6! and life is unpleasant.

16. Naroditsky - Altounian, Lubbock 20 1 1

24. 13 al!! ( 1 point) 24 . ttJ a2 Wa3 2 5 .!!a I ttJ xe4 does
not work in the same way. After 26.ttJ c l Wb4
27.!!xe4 l'!xe4 Wh ite needs to avoid 2B .c3 ? !!xd4! and instead play 2 B . ttJ xh6t gxh6 29.Wg4t
with perpetual check. 24.ttJ xh6t! gxh6 2 5 . f5 (1 point) 2 5 . . . d5! 26.ttJ a2! (26 . fxe6 .ic5 27 . .ixc5
Wxc5t 2 B . 'it> h2 Wxc3 29.e5 also wins, but is a bit shaky.) 26 . . . We7 27.fxe6 dxe4 2B . .ixf6! also
wins. 24 ... g6 25.�a2 Y;Y a3 26.�c1 ( 1 point) 26 ...Y;Yxal 26 . . . Wb4 27.c3 27 .lxal gxf5 28.exf5
•

13 xe1 t 29.Y;Yxel .lg7 30.Y;Yh4 1-0

17. Kobese - Mamedov, Khanty-Mansiysk (01) 20 1 0

White missed a lovely way to hold this awful position. 42.g4!! ( 1 point) 42 . .ic4 ? lost on move
5 5 in the game. This could have happened sooner after 42 . . . l'!b l ! followed by . . . !!b2. 42 ... 13 bl
4 2 . . . hxg4 43 .WdBt= 43.gxh5 13 b2 44 ..l e2! ( 2 points) 44...Y;Ye3 45.hxg6 fxg6 46.Y;Yd8t With
perpetual check.
 Chapter 9 - Tes ts 235

1 8. Karjakin Ivanchuk, Medias 20 1 1

-

1 8.c!LJf6t! 1 8 .�f6± 1 8 ....ixf6 1 8 . . J::!: x f6 1 9 .exf6+- 19.,ixg6!! ( 1 point) 1 9 .exf6 ttJxd3 20.1'l:xd3±
19 ... hxg6 20.i.xf6 gxf6 2 1 .exf6! The strongest. White also wins after 2 1 .�xf6 �e8 22 .�h4!
(or 2 2 . ttJ g 5 ! ? ttJ cd5 23 .�f2+-) 22 . . . �xf3 23.l"i:xf3 ttJ bd5 24.l"i:h3 with a decisive attack. 21 ..J3f8
22.%Yg5 1-0
236 Grandmaster Preparation - Calculation

TEST 4
19. Ragger - Alekseev, Khanty-Mansiysk ( 1 .3) 20 1 1
The opening has been a total disaster for Black. All attacking players would look for the knock­
out blow at this point. And even though the game is a rapid game, they would invest most of
their time trying to find it, with the certainty that a better chance to win the game is unlikely to
present itself. However, Ragger is more of a technical player and he did not approach the position
with the deep-down desire to include all of the pieces in the attack that a true attacki ng player
would. 17J3xc8?! This is an extremely tempting sacrifice and is not objectively wrong, but the
(very human) idea behind it is deeply flawed. 17 .. J3xc8 18.�xg4? Throwing away the chance of
a direct wi n, which existed after 1 8 .id3! llBb4t ( I 8 . . . g6 1 9 .ixg6 fxg6 20.llBxg6t llBg7 2 1 .llBe6t!
would j ustifY the sacrifice on c8) 1 9 .�d 1 ttJ c6 20.llBxg4 White has a winning attack. 18 ... �f8
19. c!l) e6 �kl t! ( 1 point) An important intermediate move. Black now escapes to an ending with
saving chances. 20.�d2 fxe6 2 1 .�xe6t �f7 22.�xf7t �xf7 23.�xcl White has a tech nically
winning position, but it is not without complications. In the game Black fought on valiantly and
eventually managed to hold the draw in 7 1 moves . 1f2-1f2
..•

The most flexible win was therefore: 17 ..id3! (3 points) , with the point that after 17 g6 •..

1 8.,ixg6 fxg6 19.�xg6t �g7 20.�h5 White wins. He is threatening both E:xg4 and ttJ f5 , both
entirely decisive. And 20 ... ttlc6, preventing them both (2 1 .ttJ f5 ? ixf5 22.llBxf5 ttJ e 5-+) , fails to
2 1 . c!l) xc6 bxc6 22. E:xc6 �f8 23. E: g6 with a winning attack.

20. Eljanov - Mchedlishvili, Konya (var) 20 1 1

Th is position arose in my analysis of the game and I thought it was a nice little exercise in
candidates. Black can of course play 3 1 . . .llBxfl , but after 32 .llBe 1 the path to an advantage is not
so clear. On 32 . . . E:g2t White can play 33 .E:xg2 llBxe l 34.E:c2! and the position after 34 . . . if8
3 5 .E:c8 offers no advantage. Black can try 34 . . . lt>g8 3 5 . exd6 id2 36.d7 ia5 , but the consequences
of this are far from clear. So 32 . . . if4t! is stronger: 3 3 . ttJ xf4 llBxf4t 34.�h 1 E:g3 3 5 .�h2 E:e3t
36.lt>g l E:xh3 37.exd6 1lBg4t 3 8 .E:g2 1lBxd4t 39.E:fl E:g3 t 40.�h l llBxd 5 t 4 1 .lt>h2 1lBxd6 42.E:f6
llBxf6 43.�xg3 �g7 and Black has chances to win the game. A long line and all superfluous if
Black j ust finds: 3 1 . ...if4t! 32.�h l .id2!! (2 points) , when . . .llBxfl comes with check.

2 1 . Korchnoi - Vallejo Pons, Gibraltar 20 1 1

28 E: xb6? 29. E: dal ?? Vallejo is saved by pure dumb luck. White was winning in one move with
•••

29.E:a7!! ( I point) , forcing: 29 . . . llBxa7 30.llBxe 5 t � f8 3 1 .E:d8t It>g7 32.E:g8 t! Probably the move
Korchnoi missed? 32 . . . �h6 33 .llBf4t It> h 5 and now both 34.g4t and 34.ie2t are mate in four.
29 ... �f8 Black wins. 30.i.d5 e2 3 1 .�f2 .id4 32.�xe2 ttlxd5 33J3a8t �g7 34.�f3 �h6
35. E: l a7 �f4 0-1
28 ...�xb6? 29 .llBxe5t It> f8 is refuted by 30.E:a6! (or 30.E:d6!, which wins in the much same
way) 30 . . . llBxb2 (30 . . . E:e8 3 1 .1lBc3 and wins) 3 1 .E:d8t! ( I point - whether with E:a6 or E:d6)
3 l . . .lt>g7 32.E:g8t �h6 33 .llBxe3t �h5 34.ie2t and Black is mated.
 Chapter 9 - Tests 237

So we need to find a new idea for Black. The only one around is 28.;.e2!! (3 points) , which
would disrupt White's play after 29.J.xe2 for example, where the bishop no longer covers the
vital g8-square. White's best move is therefore: 29J�el ! l hb6 30Jhe2 �d7 3 1 .�f7t 3 1 .1"1d2
�d4 32 .1"1e2t �e5 is a nice little repetition. 3 1 ...�d8 32. 1"1 a8t gb8 33. 1"1 d2 i.d4 34. 1"1 e2 i.e5
With a draw.

22. Anand - Kasimdzhanov, Tashkent (rapid) 20 1 1

1 8. ti:) f7t! ( 1 point) A small desperado that brings the rook to an inferior square. 1 8 ... gxf7 19.i.gG
ti:) xdl ?! This allows the World Champion to show his idea. A tougher defence was provided by
1 9 . . . f5 20.'lW x f2 1"1f8 , but White has a winning attack after 2 1 .1"1d4! ( I point) 2 1 . . . c;t>g8 22 .�g3!
all the same. For example: 22 . . . �e6 23.1"1h4 �f6 (23 . . . 1"1f6 24.1"1h7 �f7 2 5 .�xf5 also wins a
pawn for now and more later on.) 24.�h7t! Not the only tempting move, but this one wins
bits directly. 24 . . . c;t>f7 2 5 .�c7t �e7 26.�g6t c;t> f6 27.�g3! The black king is now in terrible .
danger. For example: 27 . . . �f7 28 .1"1h6! and White wins material . 20.�h4t �g8 · 2 1 .gel! ( I
point) Wh ite keeps the black king trapped o n the kingside. And please notice that i t i s important
this move is played now and not a move later. After 2 1 .�h7t? 'it>f8 22.1"1e l Black escapes with a
draw after 22 . . . lLl xc3 t 23. bxc3 �e6! 24.1"1xe6 �b6t with perpetual check. 21. ti:) xc3t 22.bxc3
••

i.e6 23.gxe6 �b6t 24.�cl Black resigned. 24 . . . �g I t 2 5 .1"1e l is the important difference from
the previous note. 1-0

23. Topalov - Zvjaginsev, Tilburg (var) 1 998

Topalov avoided this line, probably uncertain about what to do here. The solution is quite
stunning! 35.gb3!! axb3 36.�e6! ( I point) Threatening lLl h7#. There is no defence: 36 ... .th6
37.�xh6t �e7 38.�e6t �f8 39.�f6 Black is mated on the next move.

24. Moradiabadi - Ganguly, Mashhad 20 1 1

This was the last round of the Asian Championships and both players had to win to qualifY.
Black, seeing no other way, rolled the dice. Unfortunately it did not come up with a six, but
rather a zero . . . 4 1 .�e l !! ( I point) White has to find this move to do well. After 4 1 .1"1d2? �xh3
42.f4 �xg4t 43 .1"1g2 �d l t 44.c;t>h2 Black has a fine resource in 44 . . . g4! . (Whereas 44 . . . �f6
4 5 . e 5 ! �d8 46. fxg5 1"1xd5 47.�xh4 c;t>g8 48 .�xb6! would lead to a deadly attack.) 45.fxe5 g3t
46.1"1xg3t Forced. 46 . . . hxg3t 47.c;t>xg3 1"1a8'!' Black's chances are higher in this messy position.
41 ...�xe4 Desperation. White wins after 4 1 . . .�xh3 42 . f4!! (I point) , when the queen is trapped.
42.�dl gxd5 43.gd2 gxd2 44.ioxd2 ioxb2 45.i.g2 �d4 46.�c2 f5 47.gc3 a3 48.gc4 �f6
49.gxf5 �e7 50.gg4 .tf6 5 1 ..ic3 �h6 52.ge4 .ie5 53.i.xe5 dxe5 54.�c6t �d6 55.�e8 1-0
 238 Grandmaster Preparation - Calculation

TEST 5
25. Adams - Paragua, Khanty-Mansiysk ( 1 .2) 20 1 1
Black is much better here. He could take on b 5 and rely on technique. What he played was
not really bad, but slowly White was able to get back into the game and hold. The chance to
decide the game immediately was based on the following trick: 36 .if6! The game continued:
•••

36 . . . �bb3? 37.tt:l g l (37.tt:l ac3Ft=) 37 . . . �xb5 Black was wi nning, but m isplayed his advantage.
The game was drawn on move 1 1 4 and Paragua was eliminated. 37.�h6 37.Wf2 �xh3t 38.@gl
.ih4!-+ is an important point. White cannot defend the b6-g 1 diagonal . 37 .ig5!! (2 points) A
•••

standard deflection, but devilishly hard to see. White is j ust lost. 38.�xg5 �xh3t 39.�gl d3t
40.tLld4 l hd4!! ( 1 point) Very likely this is what Paragua m issed. The capture with the queen
immediately leads to a perpetual, as the rook cannot join the attack. 40 . . . Wxd4t 4 1 .�f2 �xb2
42 .Wxg6t = 4 UHl gg4-+ g2 falls and White collapses.

26. De la Riva Aguado - Caruana, Dresden (01) 2008

Wh ite needs to defend himself against mate in one, but he also needs to keep his counterplay
alive. This can only be done in one way: 23.gd5!! (3 points) I n the game White lost rapidly
after 23.�d4? a4 24 . tt:l c 5 and resigns without waiting for the obvious reply. Black also wins
after 24.�b4 Wa3t ! 2 5 .@d l �d8, where White cannot save the queen with �b8, as he would
have been able to had Black given the check on b2. 23 �b2t Black is lost no matter what, but
.•.

this makes most sense. 23 . . . a4 24 . .ic5 and 23 . . . exd 5 24 . .ic5 tt:ld3t 2 5 . cxd3 Wb2t 26.@d 1 c2t
27.@e2 c 1 =Wt 2 8 . @ fl both show the power of the white threat. 24.�dl �b I t 25. tt:l d �b7
26.gxe5! fxe5 26 . . . �d8 27.Wxd8t @xd8 28.�xa5 should win with best play. 27.�xe5 gd8t
28.�e2 Wh ite is winning in this very complex and difficult position.

27. Vaehier-Lagrave - Pelletier, Bid 20 1 1

23.gxe6! ( 1 point) Not a difficult first move. But as we shall see, it is hard enough to see the
winning line even if you are up close and personal. 23 fxe6 24.�g6t �h8 25.�xh6t �g8
.••

26.�g6t �h8 27.ge4! Forcing a clearance of the 6th rank. 27 £5 28.�h6t �g8 29.gxe6 gd7
•••

The only defensive try. 30.gg6t �f7 This position was probably already in Vachier-Lagrave's
mind when he took on e6. But he did not solve the last remaining problem then, nor did he
manage it once he reached the position over the board. 3 1 .gxe6? A horrible move. 3 1 .Wh 5 ! wins
easi ly. Black's best loses the queen for the rook. And after 3 1 . . .@e7 32.We2t! (3 points) mate is
very near. To call this a candidate move m ight surprise some, but really this is what it is. After
eight forced moves, we have reached the point where White needs to find something slightly
tricky. The tech nique of candidate moves comes in handy then. 3 1 .d5 also wins, but only because
of 3 1 . . . cxd5 32.Wh 5 ! , so this is a computer addition. White has to find this point. 31 ...�e8
32.d5 ge7 33.e4 iiii f4 34.�h5t gfF7 35.�g2 at 36.�h3 �d7t 37.g4 �d8 38.�g5 gg7?!
38 . . . We8 ! = 39.�f4� �e8 40.�g3 �b7? 40 . . . Wd8;!:; 4 1 .�£5± ge7? 42J�h6 gh7 43.ge6t 1-0
 Chapter 9 - Tests 239

28. Kulaots - Libiszewski, Aix-Ies-Bains 20 1 1

20.e5! ( 1 point) A typical move, winning the battle for the dark squares. 20.:gab 1 and 70.:gad 1
were both decent moves with a strong attacking position, but they are not immediately winning.
The same is the case with 20.ixc4 bxc4 2 l .:gab 1 , when Black has to play 2 1 . . . ih8 to get the bishop
back home. After 22.Wg5 ! he is forced into 22 . . . :gc7, when he does not have full compensation
for the exchange. But the game is not decided yet. 20 hal Walking the plank, but the bishop
••.

had no defensive powers anymore. 20 . . . ttJ 4xe5 2 1 . ttJ df6t exf6 (2 1 . . . �h8 22 .ig7t with mate)
22.ttJ xf6t �h8 2 3 . ttJ xe8 and Whi te wins with the double threat of Wf6t and ttJxd6. 20 . . . ixe5
2 1 .:gxe5 dxe5 22.ttJ df6t exf6 23 .Wxf6 is simply mate. 20 . . . ttJ 6xe5 2 1 . ttJ xe7t is even simpler,
with mate on the next move. 20 . . . Wd8 2 1 .ixc4 bxc4 also wins easily for White. A few lines
are possible, simplest maybe is 22.exd6 with the ideas 22 . . . f5 23.c3! and 22 . . . Wxd6 23.ttJxe7t!.
2 1 J�xal �d2 2 1 . . .Wd8 looks l ike a better defensive try, but White has a winning attack and
intends to execute it in one way or another. Here 22.if8 ! ? , 22.:gd l and 22.e6! all win. Th�
same is the case with 22.ixc4 dxe5 (22 . . . bxc4 loses to everything. For example: 23.exd6 Wxd6
24.ttJ df6t with mate in a few moves.) 2 3 . ttJ xe7t! Wxe7 24. ttJ f6t �h8 2 5 .Wh4 and White wins.
He is for example threatening if8 and 25 . . . bxc4 can be met with anything: 26.:ge l :gc7 27.if8
h 5 28 .ixe7 :gxe7 29 .Wg5 �g7 30.ttJxh5t �h7 3 1 .:ge4 and the attack has not stopped, but will
with the king's fast approaching decapitation . 22. ttJ xe7t! Black resigns; 22 . . . ttJ xe7 23 .Wf6 wins
the queen. 1-0

29. Kasimdzhanov - Predojevic, Germany (var) 2007

White has a fantastic breakthrough combination on the queenside based on gaining time.
20.a5!! �xb5 20 . . . Wa6 makes no sense. White plays 2 1 .ttJ bd6 with the idea b4-b 5. 21. ttJd4
( 1 point) 2 1 ...�g5 2 1 . . .Wxb4 10ses to 22.ttJxc6t! bxc6 23.Wxc6. For example: 23 . . . ttJc5 24.:gab l
2vl l hc6t �c7 And now: 23.�e4! ( 1 point) , which is j ust winning, or 23.ttJxd8t �xd8 24.Wc7t
�e7 2 5 .:gd l Wf5 26.:ga3 which gives a winning attack. For example, 26 . . . ttJ ge5 27.:gxd7t ttJxd7
2 8 . :ge3t � f6 29.:gf3.

30. Goganov - Khismatullin, Moscow 20 1 2

I n the game White missed the reasonably "simple" win with 39.g4! ( 1 point) , where after
39 fxg4 40.�xg4 White is winning. For example 40 ... g6 4 1 .�d7t and mate is near. Instead
•••

White played 3 9 .We6 ? ? , when Black escaped with a draw with: 39 . . . e3! 40.Wf7 exf2t 4 1 .:gxf2
ig3 42.:gdd2 :gxh4 43.Wxf5 t �h8 44.WfSt Y2-!h
 240 Grandmaster Preparation - Calculati o n

TEST 6
3 1 . Nguyen - Vrana, Novy Bor 20 1 2
28JU6! I n the game 2B.Ei:g5? liJ xc4 29.Ei:dg l Ei:O 30.e5 We7 left Black in a winning position,
even though the game ended in a draw on move 44. Also no good is: 2B.Ei:g2 ?! liJ xc4 29.Ei:dg l
Ei:O! 30.Wg5 Ei: ffB ! 3 1 .Wh6 Ei:O= 28 Ei: re8 29JU'7 ! ( I point)
•••

32. Topalov - Rapport, Vienna (clock simul) 20 1 2

A few days before this book went to print I had the chance to play against Topalov i n a simul in
Scotland. Knowing I was a G M he steered towards the draw from an early stage. However he did
not know that Andrew Greet was an 1M and thus avoided a perpetual only to drop his queen for
nothi ng! At the end Veselin was clearly tired, blaming this on the clock simul against talented
youngsters played the day before in Vienna. 3 1 ...tLlh4!! ( I point) 32.gxh4 g3 33.hxg3 fxg3
34 . .ie3?! 34.i.c5 is not met with 34 . . . i.xc5t? 3 5 . liJ xc5 Ei: fB ? 36.liJxd7 Ei:f2, although this may
look strong. The problem is that Black is not really threatening the queen (rather he is threatening
. . . Wxh4) . White therefore has a fantastic defence: 37.i.h3!! (2 points) 37 . . . Wxh4 3 B . liJ f6!t �h8
(3B . . . Wxf6 39.i.f5t i'hB 40 .Wc6 Wxc6 4 1 .dxc6 Ei:xa2 42.Ei:dBt Ei:gB 43.Ei:xgB t �xgB 44.i.e6t +-)
39 .Wc6 Ei:xf6 40.WeBt Ei:gB 4 1 .Wxe5 and wins. Therefore the correct move is 34 . . . g2! 3 5 .i.xg2
i.h3 36.Ei:fI (36.i.xb4 Ei:xg2t 37.Wxg2 Wxd l t-+ and 36.Wd3 Wxh4 both give a winning attack.
Here the conclusion could be 37.i.xb4 i.xg2 3 B . Ei:xg2 Ei:xg2t 39.�xg2 Ei:gBt with mate to come.)
36 . . . i.xg2 37.Wxg2 i.xc5t 3 B . liJ xc5 Ei:agB 39.i'h l Ei:xg2 40.Ei:xg2 Ei:xg2 4 1 .i'xg2 We2t 42.Ei:f2
Wg4t 43.<j;1fI Wd l t 44.i'g2 i'g6 Black wins. 34 J HS!! (3 points) 34 . . . g2 3 5 .i.xg2 i.h3+ is less
••

strong. 35.Wlb3 gfl 3 5 . . . Wxh4 also wins. 36.Ei:xf2 36.i.xf2 gxf2t 37.�xf2 Wxh4t is mate in
four. 36 gxf2t 37.�xf2 Wlxh4t 38.�e2 .ib5t 39.gd3 White resigned. It is mate in two. 0-1
•••

33. Gashimov - Akopian, Astrakhan 20 I 0

Wh ite is close to winning if he spots an important idea: 32.tLlf6t! The game ended: 32.�g l ?
Wa7t 33.<j;1h2 Y2- Y2 32.Ei:c7? looks promising until you spot 32 . . . liJ h 5 ! and White i s even in
trouble! 33 .Wc2 Ei:xd5 34.exd5 Ei:xe l 3 5 .d6 Ei:eB 36.Wc6 liJ f6+ 32 ... �h8 33.tLld7! (2 points)
33 ... tLlfl t 33 . . . Wf4 ? is worse. White can now play i'h2-g l , but even better is: 34 .Wd4t �g8
3 5 . liJ f6t <j;1f8 36.liJ xh7t i'gB 37.liJ f6t � fB 3B .Wb4t �g7 3 9 . liJ xeBt Ei:xeB 40.e5+- with full
control. 34.�gl Wla7t 35.�xfl gxd7 36.Wlb3 White has serious winning chances with his
extra pawn.

34. Dinstuhl - Aagaard, Budapest 1 992

This game was very depressing for me. I hated losing back then. But revisiting it now I can see it
was a treasure. 1 8.tLlxe5!! White missed this beautiful move. Instead in the game my opponent
went for: I B . liJ e7t? �hB+ 1 9 . 1iJ xe 5 ? ! liJ e2t 20.i'h I Wxd l t 2 1 .i.fI i.xe5 (2 1 . . .liJg5!) 22.liJxg6t
�gB 23.liJxe5 and here I could have won with: 23 . . . Wc2! 24.liJ xg4 Wxb2 2 5 . liJ xh6t i'g7 26. liJ f5t
�hB and Wh ite has no compensation . I missed this and later lost the game. 18 ,ixe5 19. Ei: xd4 .••

ixd4 20.Wlxd4 (3 points) 20 ... f6 2 1 .e5 Black is j ust busted. Very simple, but not so easy!
 Chapter 9 - Tests 24 1

35. Gustafsson - Efimenko, Porro Carras 20 1 1

This combination is in many ways straightfo rward. The beautiful move is the 29th move. 26Jhf6
\Wxf6 27.i.h7t �f8 28.i.g5 ( 1 point) 28 .. J�e5!? Trying to muddle things up, but Jan was
prepared. 2 8 . . . Wle5 29 .i.d3 is not too difficult. White wins. 29.J.f5! ( 1 point) The threat to the
queen persists. 29 ... g6 30.\Wh4 \Wxg5 3 1 .\Wxg5 .Lf5 32.\Wh4 1-0

36. Sreeves - Gupta, London (var) 20 1 0

Had White played the best move o n move 1 4 he would have won. O n move 2 1 he could have
set his opponent some serious problems and reached this position. 23 ...\Wxh2t! 23 .. ,l'%xd8?!
would leave Black under lasting pressure. A possible line here is: 24.e6 i.f3 25 .e7 E:e8 26.Wle6
i.xf2t 27.�xf2 i.xc6 28.Wlxc6 Wlxh2t 29 .Wlg2 Wlxg2t 30. �xg2 lLl b6 3 1 .�8;!; 24.�xh2 E:xf2 t
25.�gl gfl t! (2 points) A brilliant move. 26.�g2 26.�xf1 i.h3# 26 .. JU2t With a draw.
242 Grandmaster Preparation - Calculation

TEST 7
37. Xu Yuhua - T. Kosintseva, Sochi (blitz) 2009
White missed a special moment. I n blitz this is understandable, but most players would also miss
this shot in normal practice. Actually it is a case of prophylaxis in action. White does not want to
allow any of . . . lD xd S , . . . i.e6 and . . . lD g6. IS.�f4!! (3 points) This move has multiple aggressive
functions as well. The direct one is to play l3ad l and lDd3, winning the eS-pawn . White did
not get anything special after 1 8 .l3ad l ?! lD exdS 1 9.i.xdS Wie7 in the game and eventually lost
on move 33. 1 8 . lD e3 lD g6::t is also nothing special. IS exf4 1 8 . . . lD c6 1 9 .13ad l and Black loses
•••

a pawn , after either 1 9 . . . Wif8 20.lDg6 followed by l3xd8 or 1 9 . . . WicS 20.l3xd8 t lD xd8 2 1 .lDd3!.
19.e5 Y!? c5 20.exf6 and fxg7 with an almost decisive position advantage.

3S. Bu Xiangzhi - Pelletier, Khanty-Mansiysk 2009

22 Y!?eS! (2 points) Instead in the game Black was close to lost after 22 . . . l3ef7?? 23.cxdS l3xf2
•••

24.dxe6, but the game was drawn at move 89. 23.cxd5 23 .i.xe8 dxe4 and Black wins easily.
23 exd5 24.,ixeS dxe4 25J�d5 gfxeS 26.gxg5 lD d7 Black wins eventually.
•••

39. Movsesian - Zatonskih, Gibraltar 20 1 2

The game ended: 37 c l = Y!? ? 3s. lD f6t 3 8 .l3xc l ! l3xc l 3 9 . lD f6t
••• was the pristine move order.
3S gxf6 39.gxcl gxcl 39 . . . fxgS 40.WixgSt <j;>f7 4 1 .Wih S t <j;>e7
•.• 42.l3g7t <j;>d8 43 .Wigst lfie8
44.l3cxc7 also wins comfortably, but gives Black a bit more counterplay on the way. 40.Y!?f7t
c,!,> hS 4 1 .Y!? h7t!! ( 1 point) Black resigned. 4 1 . . . lD xh7 42.lD f7# 1-0
The only way to play for Black was therefore: 37 Y!?xgl t!! 3S.gxgl c l =Y!? 39.gxcl gxcl t
•••

(2 points) 40.c,!,>g2 Already we should have made the choice to go in this direction. Once we
have real ized that any other continuation loses, we give up the search. At this point Black has a
difficult choice; to some extent more difficult than the exercise itself. The point of the method
of elimination is that we avoid making such difficult choices - or even thinking of them - but
instead focus on making the easier choice of not being mated directly! It is possible that other
moves work here, but Black should not underestimate his opponent's attacking chances. 40 . . . b3?
for example loses to a brilliant combination that itself could have found its way into this book.
4 1 .Wif7t! (4 1 . f5 ? would be the wrong move order: 4 1 . . .l3g l t ! ! 42.<j;>h3 (42.<j;>xg l b2 and White
needs to give perpetual check asap.) 42 . . .l'l:c3t 43.lfih4 The white king m ight look safe on g4, but
at the same time White has also based his entire play on delivering mate on the kingside. When
this does not exist, he will find himself sold short. 43 . . . l3c7!! I give the exclamation marks here
rather than further down the line. 44.f6 l3xg4t Eliminating the dangerous knight. 4 S . lfixg4 g6!
46.Wih3 b2 47.Wifl l3c4t 4 8 . <j;>g3 l3c3t 49.<j;>g2 l3c2t and we have one of the coolest perpetual
checks I have ever seen .) 4 1 . . .lfih8 42.fS exfS (42 . . . l3g1 t 43.<j;>h3 l3c3t 44.<j;>h4 and White wins
easily. This is not possible if the rook can make it back to c7.) 43.Wih S t <j;>g8 44 . lD f6t gxf6
4S .Wif7t Ifih8 46.Wixf6t Ifig8 47.Wif7t <j;>h8 48 .e6 l3 1 c2t 49.<j;>g3 l32c3t SO.<j;>h4 l33c7 S l .Wif6t
<j;>g8 S 2 . lD f7 lD xe6 S 3 .Wixe6 bxa2 S 4 . lD d6t <j;>h7 S S .WixfS t <j;>g7 S6.WieSt <j;>g6 S7.lDxc8 l3xc8
S 8 .Wib2! and White wins. Instead he should play: 40 g 1 c2t 4 1 .c,!,>g3 g2c3t 42. c,!,> h4 g3c7
•••
 Chapter 9 - Tests 243

and Black will probably save the game. Whi te has a strong attacking pose, but he will have to
backpedal to stop the b-pawn.

40. Sasikiran - Calistri, Cap pelle la Grande 20 1 1

3SJ�xf7t I n the game Whi te played 3 B . f5 ? and the game was drawn on move 52 after a comedy
of errors. Black's correct response to this was 3B . . . i.xd5 39.exd5 g5! with chances for both sides.
3S .ixf7 39J�f3 @gS 39 . . . i.e6 40.Wlalt is j ust mate. 40.c!tle7t! Not so easy to see. 40.l"hh3
•..

would allow Black to draw the game after 40 . . . Wld l t 4 1 .�g2 i.xd5 42.exd5 Wlxd5t. 40. .. @f8
4 U�xh3 (3 points) 4I ...Wfdlt 42.@g2 Wf c2t 43.@g3 Wf b3 White is winning after 44.Wlf3,
which is p robably the simplest. But there is also a nice direct win: 44.Wfxb3 cxb3 45J�hSt igS
46.�xgS! Rook takes also wins, but this is best. 46 @f7 46 . . . b2 47.lLl h6# 47.c!tlh6t @�
•.•

4SJhbS b2 49J�b7! Black is mated in 1 3 moves with best play.

4 1 . Edouard - Stewart, Hastings 20 1 1

Black is doing well after 3 B . . . i.g l , but he had something even stronger: 3S Le5!! ( 1 point) A
•.•

desperado. Black will lose the bishop anyway so he sells it at a price. Mter 3B . . . lLlxd6?? 39.l"1xc4
dxc4t 40.�xd4± Whi te won on move 5 B . 39.fxe5 �xd6 40J�xc4 �xc4 Black just wins. For
example: 41 .@d4 c!tlxe5 42.c!tlc5t @f5 43.@xd5 c!tlg4 and so on.

42. Su.B. Hansen - Baramidze, Germany 20 1 2

Sune was quite disappointed that he did not win this game. On Facebook he talked (to so �any
"friends" that I consider it public information!) about this being an incorrect choice in terms of
style of play. This is in my opinion a bit of a cop-out. Sune has occasionally been 2600 rated and
would be so continuously (as well as haven beaten Lev Aronian - see Exercise 25 on page 2 1 7) if
he had done some tactical training. For this reason we are making sure that he will get a freebie
of this book on publication! 2 I J�c7! ( 1 point) This is a fairly direct shot. Black has rwo bishops
in trouble. He cannot move the one on e7 because of lLlxf6t and he cannot save the one on d7
because of lLl xf6t and b2-b3! 2 1 .lLl xf6t ? ! i.xf6 22.l"1c7 is a weaker version of the solution, the main
line being: 22 . . . i.xe5 23 .Wlh7t �f8 24.dxe5 Ei:bcB 2 5 .l"1b7± Instead in the game White played
2 1 .lLlxf7?! lLlxh5 2 2 . lLl xh6t 'kt> fB! 23 .Wlh7 i.f6 24. lLl g4 (24.i.g6!? �e7 2 5 . lLl f7 l"1dcB 26.l"1a l � )
24 . . . i.eB 2 5 . Ei:c7 Ei:d7 26.b3 Wlb5 27.Ei:xd7 Wlxd7 At this point White still had a chance to keep
a clear edge with: 2B.WlhBt (Sune played 2 B . lLl e 5 ? and lost on move 47.) 2B . . . 'kt>e7 29 .i.g6 i.xg6
30.WlxbB. The main line I have given is quite simple, but basically there are no deviations of
importance! 2 I ...g6 22.c!tlxf6t i.xf6 23. E!xd7 E! xd7 24.b3 ( 1 point) White wins.
244 G randmaster Preparation - Calculation

TEST 8
43. Portisch - Radulov, Nice (01) 1 974
Black needs to win the piece back, but there is a subtlety or two in the process to pay attention
to. 23 . . . Axg2 24.lLlxf7 !!xf7 2 5 .!!d8t !!e8 26.Ah6! with �g5 t coming next gives White a decisive
attack. 23 ... f6? was played in the game, but lost instantly to: 24 J�� e l !! ( I point) 24 ...Yfxd6
24 . . . !!fI t ! ? would be a very optimistic try for a trap. 2 5 .�xfI ! �xd6 26.!!xe5 �xe5 27.!!e l and
White wins. 2S .ixf4 Black resigned. 25 . . . !!xe l t 26.!!xe l �xf4 27.!!e8t �g7 28.!!e7t is mate.
•

1-0
The correct move was 23 ... h6!! (3 points) , which is easy to miss, as it looks as if the pawn is
j ust lost. However, this is not the case. 24.�cS! 24.�xh6? is bad because of 24 . . . !!e2!. Forced is
2 5 . lLl e4, which after 25 . . . !!fXe4 26.�xc6 Axc6 favours Black in the ending, but White has some
chances to hold. 24 ... hxgS Simple play is best. 24 . . . �xc8? 2 5 . �xh6 !!e6 26.�h5 !!e5 27.!!a3!
would give White a strong attack. 2S. lLl e7t gxe7 26.YfxgSt Yfg6 27.gxdS YfxgS 2SJhgSt
�f8 The ending still has to be played, but Black's chances are not really worse.

44. S. Ernst - Karisik, Belgrade 20 I I

White has various attractive options, but only one that wins in clear cut fashion. 33.gg7t 'it> h8
34.Yfg4!! ( I point) The really beautiful shot. 34.�h3?! !!xg7 3 5 .Axf5 is also strong, but after
35 . . . �g6!! 36.Axg6 Axg6 White will have a tough time breaking the black defences down .
34 ....thS 3S.hf5 ! Another nice shot, but taking on g8 and then h5 also works of course. 1-0

4S. Bologan - Naiditsch, Yurmala (rapid) 20 1 2

Naiditsch found a nice combination , which Bologan missed even when alerted by the first move!
1 ... c4!! ( I point) 2.dxc4?! Also poor is: 2.�a l ?! cxd3 3 . cxd3 lLl b4 4.Axb4 �xb4 5 .d4 f6 6.e6 !!d5
7.�e4 �b5 and White's position is falling apart. 2.�e4!? was probably best. After 2 . . . c3 3 .Ac l
cxb2 4 .Ad2 White can soldier on, even if his position is awful. 2 ... �c3t 3.hc3 Yffl!! (2 points)
White is losing the queen. 4.gxd7 Yfxe2 S.gxdSt 'it> xd8 and Black went on to win.

46. Fischer - Larsen, Palma de Mallorca 1 970

24 ... a4!! ( I point) This is a much improved version of the possible 24 . . . e 5 ? 2 5 . lLl e6 �a7 26.�g6,
when the position is rather complicated. 24 . . . �c8 ?! 2 5 .�g6 a4 also gave Black some initiative,
but has nothing on the game. 2S.bxa4 2 5 . � b l is not an improvement. Black would be able to
break through on the dark squares with 25 . . . a3! 26. bxa3 !!xa3 27.lLle2 �a7 with a deadly attack.
2S ... eS! ( I point) 25 . . . !!xa4? 26.lLlb3 would allow White to regroup and live to fight another
day. 26.�e6?! It was slightly more accurate to play 26.lLl f5 , but here Black can take advantage of
the intermediate moves in a better way. 26 . . . b3 (After 26 . . . Axf5 27.exf5 !!xa4 the black attack is
probably deadly as well, but not immediately decisive.) 27.c3 !!xa4 2 8 . lLl xh6t (The only chance,
as after 28 .�g2 .ixf5 29.exf5 �a7 30.�e2 !!d4! - not the only move, but it is quite attractive
- White is losing in way too many ways to cover any of them seriously.) 28 . . . �f8 29 .�g6 gxh6
30.�xh6t �e7 Black has excellent winning chances with his extra piece. White can resist, but it
 Chapter 9 - Tests 245

should be unsuccessful. 26 ... Y!fa7! The attack on the white king is combined with the threat of
. . . :B:eB . In the game Larsen played the most natural move: 26 .. .'IWc4!? 27.b3 (27.:B:xd6 b3 2B.c3
:B:xa4 would also win for Black. The main threat is . . . :B:a l t and . . . :B:xg l followed by . . . .ixe6 with
an extra piece. 29.'.t>d2 :B:a2 30.:B:b l also fails to keep the ship afloat. After 30 . . . :B:a6 Black wins
a piece.) 27 .. .'IWxe6 Black has won a piece and went on to win the game on move 52. 27Jhd6
oixe6 28J�xe6 b3!! (3 points) This is the key move. Without this Black's attack would not be
sufficient. 29.cxb3 29.:B:c6 'lWxa4 30.:B:cBt :B:xcB 3 1 .'lWxcBt 'kt>h7 32.'lWe6 :B:c7 and Black wins.
White can give up his rook on g7, but the checks run out. 29 ... Y!fe3t 30.i>bl Y!fd3t 3 1 . 'kt> a2
El fa7 Black wins. The threat of . . . :B:xa4t cannot be averted in a sensible way.

47. Naiditsch - V. Mikhalevski, Heviz 200B

White could have won with: 36.Y!fxe7 I n the game White did not deserve to win. After 36.:B:xc2 ?
'lWxc2t 37.'kt>h3 'lWcB t 3 B .'kt>g2 'lWc2t 39.'kt>h3 'lWcBt 40.\t>g2 Black could j ust give perpetual check,
but became greedy and lost after: 40 . . . 'lWdB ? ? 4 1 .hxg6 hxg6 42.tiJf2! d2 43.tiJg4t \t>h5 44.tiJe5+­
'lWb6 4 5 .'lWh7t 'kt>g5 46.'lWxe7t 'kt> f5 47.tiJg4! 1 -0 , in view of 47 . . . d l ='IW 4B .'lWe5#. 36 El xd2t
•..

37.i>g3! (2 points) The black king is in deep trouble. 37 Y!fgl t 37 . . . 'lWxb2 3 B .'lWfBt j ust wins.
••.

And 37 . . . a5 3 B .'lWfBt 'kt>xh5 ends with mate after: 3 9 . tiJ f6t 'kt>g5 40.tiJxh7t 'kt>h5 4 1 .tiJ f6t \t>g5
4 2 . tiJ e4t 'kt>h5 43.'lWhB# 38.i>f4 Y!fh2t 39.tll g3 Black is mated despite his extra material .

48. Firman - McShane, Germany 20 1 2

McShane is o n his way to becoming England's number one, even though he has a day job! A
team with Adams, Short, McShane and Jones, with David Howell as the reserve could do great
things, and hopefully will in the near future. Here Luke shows how inventive he is. 55 El xdl !! .•.

5 5 . . . .ig l t ! ? 56.'kt>h l ! :B:xd l ! transposes. 56.h8=Y!f .igl t 57.i>hl .ib6t 58.i>h2 .igH 59.'it> hl
,tflt 60.i>h2 Y!f c7! (2 points) White resigned, d u e t o the threat of . . . :B:h l t. 0-1
246 Grandmaster Preparation - Calculation

TEST 9
49. Markus - Perunovic, Vrnj acka Banja 20 1 0
It is not so difficult to spot Black's intended drawing combination, but i t is hard to see that it
does not work. 24.i.xb6! Yfcl t 24 .. .l:hb6 2 5 .�xd5 is not too relevant. White has j ust won a
pawn . 25.c;!.>h2 Yff4t 26.g3 �xg3 This is Black's idea. 26 . . . �f3 does not prepare . . . tLl xg3 as one
student suggested. Please notice �h7t as a reply! 27.i.c7!! (3 points) A brilliant move. White just
finishes a piece up. 27 ... �fI t 28.c;!.>g2 Yfxc7 29J�xe6 29.cj;JxfI ? �c 1 t would unnecessarily allow
a repetition. 29 Yfh2t 30.c;!.>xfI Yfxh3t 3 1 .c;!.>e1 Yfxe6t 32.c;!.>d2 b6 33.i.e2 Yfe4 34.Yfe3 f5
.••

35.i.f.3 1-0

50. Smirnov - Timofeev, Belgorod 20 1 0

Black won this game only because his opponent insisted on losing it. The solution should be
within the reach of a 268 1 grandmaster; but this does not guarantee a 1 0/ 1 0 achievement, of
course. And importan tly, in this case Black had won the first game of this mini-match, so White
had to win this game to remain in the tournament. Under such conditions you can easily look
only for draws. 30 axb2�! I have to give this a negative mark, even if it works well with regards
.•.

to progressing to the fourth round. 30 . . . �d5 ? also allows White to draw, this time with 3 1 .�e5!
�a7 32.�h7t cj;Jf8 33.�f5 t , when the repetition is forced, on account of 33 ... �f7? 34.�xg7t
with mate. 30 . . . a2t 3 1 . cj;Ja 1 �d5 also fails to win the game. White has two ways to draw, either
32 .�h7t cj;Jf8 33 .�h4! or 32 .d7! �xd7 33 .�h7t cj;Jf8 34.�f5 t . 3 1 .Yfh7t c;!.>fB 32.i.e5!� Going
all in with no chips. 32.�f5 t cj;Jg8 33 .�h7t was " best" . 32 i.d5 33.Yff5t i.f'7 34.i.e4 gal t
•••

35.c;!.>xb2 gxel 36.i.xg2 gxe5 0-1

But Black could have won the game with 30 i.d5!! (2 points) , preparing to defend the king
•.•

with . . . �f7 and to meet any active move, including 3 1 .d7, with 3 1 ...i.a2t! and mate is near.

5 1 . Williams - Genovese, Sunningdale 20 1 0

16.hc7! (2 points) I n the game Simon completely overlooked the combination and after 1 6.�g3
tLl f5+ he was worse. He still won the game on move 29 though . 1 6.�xf7t?! �xf7 1 7.tLlxf7 �xf7
1 8 .�xh6± was also strong, but not conclusive. 1 6. tLl xf7 �xf7 would still win if White then takes
on c7. After 1 7.�g3 ?! �xg3 1 8 .�xf7 �xf7 1 9 .�xg3 Black can generate some counter-chances
with 1 9 . . . tLlxd4! 20 .�xf7t cj;Jxf7 2 1 . tLl d6t cj;Jg8 22.cxd4 ± , when he is still fighting. 16 Yfxc7
•.•

17.i.xf'7t! Less strong is 1 7. tLl xf7?! �xf7 1 8 .�g3! �xg3 1 9. tLl xg3 \ilf8 20 .�xf7 �xf7 2 1 . d5
tLle5 22.b3±, though White is better. 17 gxf'7 1 8.gxf'7 i.xf'7 19.�f6t! (I point) 19 ... c;!.>fB
.••

1 9 . . . gxf6 20.�h7t \ilf8 2 1 . tLl e6t! is the first point of the combination. White wins the queen.
20.tLlgh7t c;!.>e7 2 1 .Yfe4t c;!.>d8 22.Yfxh4 gxf6 23.tLlxf6 White's attack is absolutely decisive. I
can understand if some players have a problem feeling this, but all I can say is to study attacking
play (I know two very good books on the subject!) . 23 ... Yfd6 23 . . . tLl e7 24.tLle4 and wins. 24.gfI
White wins. For example: 24 c;!.>c7 25.�e4 Yfd5 26.Yff4t c;!.>b6 27.tLlf6 Yfd8 28.d5 tLla5
.•.

29.Yfb4t c;!.>a6 30.�e4 b6 3 1 .gxf'7 and so on.

 Chapter 9 - Tests 247

52. Inarkiev - Diu, Taganrog 20 1 1

After 37.bxc3 ? ? as played in the game, the chances were about equal. Inarkiev did wi n the game
on move 54, but only after having been worse on the way. At this point he could have won
quickly with: 37.'iNf6t �eS 3S.i.flt �d7 39.i.e6t!! (2 points) This is the difficult move, but
the bishop is useless on f7 and has to be brought into play. 39 .We6t <J;; c7 40.'lWe7t <J;; b B! does
not offer more than perpetual check. 39 ... �c6 40.J.f5t! The nicest winning move (40.j,g4t is
similar) , but White is also winning after 40.j,d5t!? <J;; c 5 4 1 .We7t! <J;; d4 42 .We4t <J;; c 5 43.b4t!
and the queen is lost. 40 ... �c7 40 ... 'it>c5 4 1 .We5t wins easily. 41 .'iNe7t �c6 42.'iNe6t �c7
42 . . . 'it>c5 43.We5t and wins. 43.'iNd7t �b6 44.'iNd6#

53. N. Kosintseva - Romanko, Moscow 2009

My secret training method of "the 3 questions" includes: Where are the weaknesses? In the black
camp these are the d5-pawn and the g7-pawn. In the white camp it is the e2-bishop. Do you .
start to see the g4-g7/e2 pattern yet? 2S.h5!! (4 points) Besides preventing the threat of . . . :i'l:g6t,
there is the attack on g7. 2 B . 'it> fl ? would be bad. After 2B ... Wh2 29 .Wxd 5 (29.j,f3 Wh3t and
Black wins back the piece immediately.) 29 . . . Wh3 t 30.Wg2 Wxg2t 3 1 .'it>xg2 :i'l:xe2 32.:i'l:xe2 :i'l:xe2
Black should have enough compensation to draw easily. In the game White played the inferior
2B .Wxd 5 ? ! :i'l:xe2 29.:i'l:xe2 :i'l:xe2 30.:i'l:d2 :i'l:xd2 3 1 .Wxd2t, but still won on move 7B. 2S .. Jhe2
29.h6! f6 29 . . . gxh6 30.:i'l:xe2 :i'l:xe2 3 1 .Wg4t is elementary, and 29 . . . f5 30.:i'l:xe2 :i'l:xe2 3 1 .Wxd5t
'it>hB 32.Wxf5 wins quite easily as well. 30Jhe2 I'he2 3 1 .'iNxd5t �hS 32.'iNdSt 'iNxdS 33J3xdSt
�h7 34.hxg7 �xg7 35J3d7t White wins.

54. Morozevich - Movsesian, Sarajevo (var) 200B

Morozevich showed a brilliant win in this line from his chaotic game with Movsesian: 3 I J3c4!! (�
points) A brilliant move, clearing the c l -square for the bishop and at the same time bringing the
rook into the attack. Black only has one sensible way to go down: 3 1 ...hb2 3 1 . . . bxc4 32 .j,c l t
ends quickly in mate. 32.'iNh4t �g7 33. 13 g4t �f8 34.'iNh6t! ( 1 point) 34 ...J.g7 35. 13 xg7
ltlxg7 36.'iNhS# A beautiful combination .
248 Grandmaster Preparation - Calculation

TEST 10
55. Fridman - Harikrishna, Nancy (rapid) 20 I I
White has a lovely combination here, winning a pawn. What he does not have is a mating
combination. In the game White went for an attractive combination, which worked fine in
practice: 1 8.�xd5?! exd5 1 9.hxg6 hxg6 20J�xd5? 20 :�a2!� would still be okay, but White is
aiming for glory. 20 ... �xd5 2 1 .J.e5 Black was now hypnotized by his opponent's great idea and
failed to look at the position objectively. This is of course a forgivable mistake in a rapid game,
but would not be so if we had it in a real game. 2 1 ...Yfc5t? Letting his opponent off the hook.
Black could have won the game with 2 1 . . .i.h3!! ( I point) 22.WI'e4 (22Jl:xh3 Wl'e I t is obvious)
22 . . . WI'a l t 23.\t>d2 Wl'xh 1 24.i.xd5 i.b4t!! 2 5 .WI'xb4 i.xg2 and wins. 22.\t>d2 Yfb4t 23.J.c3
Yfxc3t 24.bxc3 gd8 25.�xf7 �xc3t 26.�xd8t 1-0
The solution was 1 8.hxg6! hxg6 1 8 . . . tthc3 ?! 1 9 .9xf7t gxf7 20. bxc3 Wl'xc3t 2 1 .WI'c2 would
lead to a win for White. 19 .ixd5! ( I point) 19 ...exd5 1 9 . . . tLl xd5 ? 20.gxd 5 ! exd5 2 1 .i.e5 is
•

mate. 20.J.e5 These are all simple moves. But sometimes this is what is takes. White is now
threatening 2 1 .gh6 with the point 2 1 . . . i.f5 22.gdh I ! . 20 ... .tf5 The other move that does not
lose immediately is 20 . . . d4, when White has a nice combination in 2 1 .i.xd4 i.f5 (2 1 . . .WI'xg5
22.tLle4 i.f5 2 3 . tLl xg5 gfc8t 24.\t>d2 gives White an extra pawn and better positioning of his
pieces in the endgame.) 2 2 . tLl ge4 \t>g7 Obviously we would stop here in our calculation - if we
had even made it this far. 23.g4! i.xg4 24.gdg 1 i.f5 2 5 .gg5! gac8 26.tLl xf6 i.xf6 27.gxf5! Wl'xf5
28 .WI'xf5 gxf5 29.gg 1 t White wins. 2 1 .gxd5! (2 points) 2 1 ... Yfb6 22.Yfa2 White has a winning
attack and an extra pawn. Mistakes are still likely to happen from both sides, but it is a good
starting point for White!

56. Haznedaroglu - Isaev, Khanty-Mansiysk (01) 20 1 0

Black has many tempting options, but only one that wins on the spot. I n the game Black managed
to take the full point with nice play after 17 ... d3?! 1 8.8 g3 19.Yff5t? White missed the chance
to offer resistance with 1 9 .WI'e3, although Black is going to be much better after: 1 9 . . . gd5 20.WI'g l
gdh5 2 1 . tLl e4 f5 1 9 ... �b8 20.Yfc5 20 .WI'h3 Wff4 and Black wins. 20 .. J�d4! 2 1 .Yfxd4 Yfxd4
22J�e8t �a7 0-1
Black is also much better after 1 7 . . . gh5?! 1 8 .WI'e4 d3 as suggested by Marina Brunello. 1 9 . f4
( l 9.g3? Wl'h 1 t j ust wins) 1 9 . . . WI'g3 20.\t>g l gdh8 2 1 .WI'e8 t gxe8 22.gxe8t rj{d7 23.tLl fl ! Wl'h4
24.ge3 gd5+ But White can put up a lot of resistance before the game is decided.
The winning line was: 17 ...Yfhlt! 1 8.�e2 gde8! ( 1 point) Very simple, but many find
this hard to see. Black wins a rook back and nobody has a problem seeing that his first rank
domination is decisive.

57. Grischuk - Aronian, Ohrid 2009

Grischuk found himself caught up in a nasty piece of home preparation and now had to look for a
way out. In such a situation the method of elimination comes in handy. 26.J.e5? .td6!! (3 points)
This is the direct refutation. 27 . .txf6 27.tLlc5t i.xc5 28.gxg8 Wl'h6 29.dxc5 Wl'd2 and Black wins.
 Chapter 9 - Tests 249

27 .. J�xaS 2S.c.1;>f1 2 B . lt:l xd6 l'!a1 t 29.\t>h2 \t>xd6 wins easily as well. The white pawns are all
targets. 2S J�al t 29.c.1;>e2 ga2t Grischuk resigned. 0-1
••

26. d 5 ? is quite easily refuted with 26 . . . exd5 27.exd5 .id6! and White is le ft stun ned and forced
to resign .
26.ctJa5 is quite easy to get rid of, at least as an equalizing option. After 26 . . . %Vxd4! ( 1 point)
White can play his idea 27.l'!dBt \t>xdB 2 B . lt:l xc6t \t>d7 29.lt:lxd4, but after 29 . . ..id6=t his position
is j ust unpleasant. For example: 30.e5 .ic5 (30 . . . .ie7 3 1 ..ie4! \t>c7 32.\t>fl l'!dB 33.lt:lc2 l'!d l t
34.\t>e2 l'!d2t 3 5 . \t> fl =) 3 1 . lt:l c2 gaB with the direct threat . . . l'!a3. Still White can fight on with
32. lt:l e 1 ! l'!a2 3 3 . \t> fl c;t{c6+ Progress is difficult for Black, but White's position is unpleasant.
26.l'!a7?! %Vxd4 27.lt:lc5t \t>eB 2B.l'!aBt %VdB 29.l'!xdB t \t>xdB 30.lt:la4+ is also unpleasant for
White. Compared to 26.lt:l a 5 , he has a pawn less. So this can easily be dismissed.
The solution was therefore: 26.e5! Wih6 27.ga7! (4 points) 27.lt:la5? is refuted by bringing out
the bishop. For example: 27 . . . .ic5 ! 2B.l'!xgB %Vd2 29.dxc5 %Vxd3 and the c-pawn will draw blood.
27 ... Wiel t 27 . . . \t>c7 2 B . lt:l a 5 t c;t{b6 29.l'!a6t! with a draw. 2S.c.1;>h2 c2 29.lll a 5t with perpetual
check after 29 c.1;>eS.
•••

5S. Marholev - Rotstein, Livigno 20 1 1

29.Wihl!! ( 1 point) Th reatening mate in two and forcing Black to advance the h-pawn , making
it impossible for Black to defend the h6-square with the queen. 29 .%Vc 1 does not work. Black
can play 29 . . . %Vh2! ( 1 point) 30.l'!fXg7 .ixg6 with approximately even chances. 29 ... h5 29 . . . %Ve3
should of course be considered. White wins after 30.l'!f3 %Vd2 3 1 .l'!f2! %Ve3 32 .l'!e2 %Vf4 and now
simply 3 3 .g3 or the accurate 3 3 . lt:l xd5! exd5 34.g3 %Vf5 3 5 .l'!xh6t .ixh6 36.%Vxh6t %Vh7 37.%Vf6t
and it is time to resign. 30.Wiel!! ( 1 point) Black resigned. For example: 30 . . . .ixf7 3 1 .l'!h6t .ixh6
32.%Vxh6# 1-0

59. Dzagn idze - E. Danielian, Mardin (2. 1 3 - analysis) 20 1 1

This arose in my analysis of the game. White is able to bring the last piece in quickly, using the
pin on the 7th rank one last time before the g7-rook disappears. 25.gf6!! ( 1 point) Black survives
after 25 . .ixh6?! %Vd6! 26.\t>h 1 %Vxh6 27.l'!xd7 %Ve3 2 B ."\We6 l'!gl t! 29.l'!xg 1 %Vf3t with perpetual
check. And 2 5 .%Ve6? l'!xg7 26.%Vxh6t l'!h7 j ust fails outright. 25 gxg7 Black is quickly mated
•.•

after 25 . . . hxg5 26.l'!xgBt l'!xgB 27.l'!h6t c;t{g7 2B .%Ve6!, which can be a bit difficult to see, but
is none the less the case. 26.gxh6t gh7 27.gxh7t c.1;>xh7 2s.Wif7t c.1;>hS 29 ..if6t ( 1 point)
29 lt:\xf6 30.Wixc7 White wins.
•••

60. Jobava - Wojtaszek, Khanty-Mansiysk (2. 1 ) 20 1 1

Black missed a great shot and a chance to take the lead i n this mini-match with: 27 lll xf1 ! The •.•

game ended: 27 . . . \t>xg7? 2B .l'!g3t \t>fB 29.%Vf4! It:l xfl 30.%Vh6t \t>e7 3 1 .l'!g7 lt:l e3 32.l'!xf7t c;t{xf7
33 .%Vh7t \t> fB 34 .%Vh6t \t>f7 3 5 .%Vh7t c;t{ fB 36.%Vh6t \t>f7 and a draw was agreed. 2S.lt:\xeS The
only difference after 2 B . lt:l xh 5 l'!c 1 ! is that Black has a rook more. 2S ... gel!! ( 1 point) This is the
trick shot. The f6-square is indirectly defended. 29.lt:\xf6t Wixf6! 29 . . . \t>f8? 30 .%Vg5 !+- 30.Wixf6
lll g3t 3 1 .c.1;>f2 lll e4t (2 points) Black wins.