% BOOKTITLE = Chess Secrets: The Giants of Strategy
[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "????.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "About this Publication"]
[Black "?"]
[Result "*"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "1"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{'Chess Secrets' is a brand new series of books which uncover the mysteries of
the most important aspects of chess: strategy, attack, opening play and
gambits, classical play, endgames and preparation. In each book the author
studies a number of great players from chess history who have excelled in a
particular field of the game and who have undeniably influenced those who have followed. --- The chess world has been blessed with some wonderful strategists,
innovators of the game with their instructive play and profound teachings. In
'The Giants of Strategy', Neil McDonald chooses his selection of the most
prominent ones and highlights the major contributions they have made. He
examines their differing approaches and styles, and from Nimzowitsch to
Kramnik, how they followed in each other's footsteps. A careful study of this
book will help you to understand and improve in one of the most crucial
elements of the game. --- *An entertaining and instructive guide to chess
strategy -- *Learn from the greats of the game -- *Discover how famous chess
minds work.} 1. -- {English Grandmaster Neil McDonald has firmly established
himself as one of the world's leading chess writers, with many outstanding
works to his name. He is also a respected chess coach, who has trained many of
the UK's strongest junior players.} *

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "????.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Introduction"]
[Black "?"]
[Result "*"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "1"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{Have you ever heard someone use the terms 'blockade' or 'prophylaxis' and
nodded wisely while wondering what they really meant? (Don't worry: the person
using these words probably doesn't understand their true meaning either.) Or
have you always associated the ideas of prevention and restraint with
defensive play? If so, you are missing out on a whole area of chess strategy.
--- The aim of this book is to reveal genuine secrets of strategy; for despite
the huge rise in chess knowledge over the last decades, there are areas of
technique which are still at best only vaguely understood by the chess public.
--- We will have to be patient and start with more familiar concepts such as a
rook on the seventh rank. Although, even here, many players who are aware of
the excellence of a rook on the seventh rank would fail to make the sacrifices
that Capablanca and Petrosian make in Chapter One to get their rook to its
dream square.} 1. -- {Introducing the Giants of Strategy: -- The strategic
ideas will be discussed using the games of five superb chess masters: four
World Champions and one crown prince. --- In an interview on his website,
Vladimir Kramnik states: "If you want to reach the heights, you should study
the entire history of chess. I can't give any clear logical explanation for it,
but I think it is absolutely essential to soak up the whole of chess history."
--- Although Kramnik offers no definitive reason why we should study the
players of the past, his games provide a compelling answer. Here is just one
example which shows how he has borrowed various techniques from the four other
strategists considered in this book, and then shaped them according to his own
unique creativity.} *

[Event "Moscow Olympiad"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1994.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Apicella, M."]
[Black "Kramnik, V."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "B58"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "122"]
[EventDate "1994.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 d6 6. Be2 e5 {Petrosian was
also fond of this variation of the Sicilian. It blocks the centre, after which
Black can indulge in manoeuvres on the wings: and there was no greater expert
at outflanking an opponent than iron Tigran.} 7. Nf3 h6 $1 {'Your eye on the
wings, your mind on the centre, that is the deepest meaning of positional play.
' - Nimzowitsch. White is prevented from increasing his grip on the d5-square
by exchanging bishop for knight with Bg5 and Bxf6.} 8. h3 Be6 9. O-O Be7 10.
Re1 Rc8 11. Bf1 Nb8 $1 {A Karpovian retreat. No other player has ever been
more skilled at using the back rank to increase the energy of his pieces than
the 12th World Champion. The knight is well placed on c6, but there is an even
better square waiting for it on c5 - and so the knight spends three moves
getting there. Karpov is king of the short manoeuvre.} 12. Nd5 Nxd5 13. exd5
Bf5 14. c4 O-O 15. Qa4 a5 $1 {Black begins a plan to seize control of a
complex of dark squares on the queenside. A light square/dark square strategy
involving restraint occurred frequently in Nimzowitsch's games, but it
received greatest expression in the games of Petrosian.} 16. a3 Bd7 17. Qd1 a4
$1 {Depriving the c4-pawn of the chance to be solidified by b2-b3. Philidor
was doing this in the 18th century!} 18. b4 axb3 19. Qxb3 Na6 20. Be3 Qc7 21.
a4 Nc5 $1 {Blockade! Was this pawn sacrifice borrowed directly from the game
Sultan Khan-Nimzowitsch or via Taimanov-Karpov (see Chapter Eight)?} 22. Bxc5
Qxc5 23. Qxb7 Rc7 24. Qb3 Ra8 {The frontal pressure exerted by the black queen
and rooks against the a4- and c4-pawns, which culminates in an invasion of the
enemy camp, is reminiscent of the classical play of Capablanca.} 25. Nd2 f5 $1
{An essential advance, or else 26 Ne4 will break the blockade.} 26. Nb1 Bh4 {
A probing move that forces a slight loosening of the white pawn structure,
followed by a retreat: a hit-and-run technique perfected by Karpov.} 27. g3 Bf6
28. Nc3 e4 29. Ra2 Qa5 30. Rc1 Be5 31. Rcc2 Rc5 {'First restrain, then
blockade, and lastly destroy!' - Nimzowitsch. Black methodically cements his
hold on the dark squares.} 32. Nb5 Kh8 33. Qe3 Qb4 34. Nd4 Rcc8 35. Ne6 Rxa4
36. Rxa4 Qxa4 37. Rd2 Qa1 $1 {Now begins the 'Capablanca' phase, with the
black queen and rook penetrating via the open files onto the opponent's back
rank. Step by step the white pieces are ousted from the squares they need to
defend.} 38. Kg2 Rb8 39. Nf4 Rb1 40. Qe2 {There now follows what Capablanca
called 'une petite combinaison' - a little combination of the kind that fills
his games. With the help of a zwischenzug (an in-between move) Black wins a
pawn.} Re1 41. Ra2 Rxe2 42. Rxa1 Rxf2+ $1 43. Kxf2 Bxa1 44. Ke3 Kg8 {Black now 
has a winning endgame. It still requires some work, but none of Kramnik's four
'advisors' were lacking a fabulous technique in so-called simple positions.}
45. Ne6 g6 {Black only plays ...Bxe6 when he is assured of creating connected
passed pawns, as opposite-coloured bishop endgames are notoriously drawish,
even when one player has a substantial advantage in pawns.} 46. c5 Be5 47. g4
Bxe6 48. dxe6 d5 49. gxf5 gxf5 50. Bb5 Kf8 51. Bc6 d4+ 52. Kd2 Bf4+ 53. Kc2 d3+
54. Kc3 Be3 55. Kc4 Ke7 56. Kd5 Bxc5 $1 {Another little combination.} 57. Bb5 (
{If} 57. Kxc5 {,} e3 {and 58...e2 will queen.}) 57... Bd6 58. Bc4 Bc7 59. Bb5
Kf6 60. h4 Bg3 61. h5 Bc7 {. --- So what is uniquely 'Kramnikian' about the
above game? -- First of all, it should be said that this isn't a typical
Kramnik game. If you want to see an archetypal Kramnik game, give him the
white pieces and watch as he dismantles his opponent's queenside pawn
structure with moves like a2-a4, or else arranges a breakthrough in the centre
with d4-d5 or e4-e5. He rarely plays a 'blockade' game. --- Even so, there are
some trademark Kramnik features: above all, the dynamic twist he gave to the
theme of blockade. Kramnik is perhaps the greatest exponent of the two bishops
who has ever lived; and because the pawn structure in the centre retained
flexibility, he was able to put them to good use. Whereas in a Nimzowitsch or
Petrosian blockade game, with its locked centre, the emphasis is on the
knights. --- At a more specific level, the creation of a passed pawn or passed
pawns as the reward for a well thought out strategy is a regular occurrence in
Kramnik's games, far more so than in the games of the other four masters.
Anyone who wants to learn about the handling of passed pawns should study his
games deeply. --- Like all knowledge, it seems that the necessary information
to allow a talent for strategic chess to unfold is handed down from one
generation to the next. The first chess book that Karpov read as a young boy
was by Capablanca; Petrosian is said to have slept for a time with a book by
Nimzowitsch under his pillow; and Kramnik relates that books on Petrosian were
among the few available to him. Every creative player eventually finds their
own style of play, but the influence of other great minds seems a vital part
of the process.} 0-1

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "????.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "100 Years of Chess Strategy"]
[Black "?"]
[Result "*"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "1"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{What is the difference between chess as played in 1907 (the year of the
oldest game in this book) and as played in 2007 (the year of the newest game)?
--- The old masters prior to 1907 certainly knew how to attack the king. They
could make long and wide-ranging combinations, and find the most surprising
tactical resources. In fact they knew how to handle the queen, rook, bishop,
knight, and king as well as modern players.} 1. -- {But what about the humble
pawn? Yes, here is a big difference! --- Capablanca won game after game
against the best players in the world because he was far more sensitive to the
needs of the pawn structure. He made chess look easy, and it probably was
pretty effortless for him most of the time; but it took genius to have an
understanding that was so superior to that of his contemporaries. ---
Nimzowitsch developed and classified the science of restraining a pawn front.
He made chess much more colourful by showing that pawn structures besides the
'classical' 1 e4 e5 and 1 d4 d5 were fully playable for Black. As with
Capablanca, he must have left many opponents bewildered as well as beaten. ---
Petrosian specialized in blocking the centre and outflanking his opponent with
pawn moves on the wings. Fischer has talked about the Petrosian 'bear hug'
that grips a careless opponent. --- Karpov is brilliant in the 'jockeying' or
manoeuvring phase, neither forcing matters nor blocking things up, but gently
probing his opponent's pawn structure from a safe distance until it suddenly
falls to pieces. --- Kramnik aims for a subtle positional attack that put his
opponent's pawn structure under unrelenting pressure. Nothing serious seems to
be happening, but then the defence unexpectedly buckles under, often allowing
the creation of a passed pawn which proves decisive in the endgame. It is
quite remarkable the number of wins that Kramnik has squeezed out of
'equal'-looking positions: such is the refinement of technique these days.} *

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "????.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Aaron Nimzowitsch"]
[Black "?"]
[Result "*"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "1"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{Aaron Nimzowitsch (1886-1935) was born in Riga, Latvia. After the upheaval of
the First World War and the Russian Revolution, he went to live first in
Sweden and then in Denmark, where he was based in Copenhagen for the rest of
his life. --- In 1926 Nimzowitsch won a tournament in Dresden with 81/2/9,
finishing 11/2 points ahead of soon-to-be World Champion Alexander Alekhine.
Also in that year Capablanca expressed a willingness to play a match for the
world title with the Latvian on the proviso that the challenger raise the
stipulated stake money. Alas, there was no international chess federation in
those days and finding the necessary financial backing was beyond Nimzowitsch.
--- Nimzowitsch's greatest tournament success was at Carlsbad 1929, where he
finished half a point ahead of Capablanca and Spielmann, with players such as
Rubinstein, Euwe and Vidmar trailing further in his wake. It must have been
galling for Nimzowitsch that Bogoljubow, who came eighth in that tournament,
found the means to challenge Alekhine for the World Championship later in the
year. --- Nimzowitsch's own title bid never got further than carrying business
cards describing himself as the 'Crown Prince of Chess'. --- Even though as a
practical player Nimzowitsch was never quite the match of the 'big three' -
Emanuel Lasker, Capablanca and Alekhine - he was an original thinker with an
extremely interesting personality. His books include 'Die Blockade' (1925),
'Mein System' (1925) and 'Die Praxis meines System' (1929), with English
translations 'Blockade', 'My System' and 'Chess Praxis' respectively. 'My
System' became one of the classics of chess literature and a bestseller in
many countries.} 1. -- {Nimzowitsch's style: -- Nimzowitsch in general played
different types of position to Capablanca, as he eschewed the classical 1 d4
d5 or 1 e4 e5 in favour of hypermodern openings, including the Nimzo-Indian to
which he gave (half!) his name. --- The accent in his games was on restraint
of the enemy pawn structure, which made him a particularly dangerous player as
Black. Nimzowitsch had a fertile imagination, and knew how to utilize all the
squares on the board for his pieces. We see moves - like Nh1! (as White) or ...Qh8! (as Black) - which most players wouldn't even notice are possible. ---
Nimzowitsch also invented an entire vocabulary to describe chess technique
(see the section on Nimzowitsch's writings below).} *

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "????.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "José Raúl Capablanca"]
[Black "?"]
[Result "*"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "1"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{José Raúl Capablanca (1888-1942) was born in Havana, Cuba. With his victory
at San Sebastian in 1911, where he triumphed over most of the best players in
the world (only Emanuel Lasker was absent), he became one of the very few
players in the history of chess to win the first international tournament in
which they participated. --- Capablanca became World Champion in 1921 through
beating Lasker in a match with the score of four wins, ten draws and no losses.
--- Between 1916, when he lost to Chajes at the Rice Memorial event in New
York, and 1924, when he was downed by Réti at the great New York International
tournament, Capablanca was undefeated in serious play, scoring 40 wins and 23
draws. --- His greatest tournament success was at New York 1927, where he
finished with eight wins and twelve draws; this was no less than three and a
half points ahead of Alekhine and four and a half points ahead of Nimzowitsch,
who came second and third respectively. --- However, to the astonishment of
many in the chess world, later in 1927 Capablanca lost his World Championship
match against Alekhine by six wins to three with 25 draws. He was never to be
allowed another shot at the title, though he remained a potent force, as
demonstrated at Nottingham 1936, where he came equal first with Mikhail
Botvinnik. Besides the two winners, Euwe, Alekhine and Lasker were also in the
field, making a total of five present, future or past world champions. ---
Capablanca wrote several books, including 'My Chess Career' (1920) and 'Chess
Fundamentals' (1921). Botvinnik thought that the latter was the greatest chess
book ever written.} 1. -- {Capablanca's style: -- Capablanca was able to win
game after game against top notch opponents because his intuition was a more
valuable weapon than the imperfect level of technical understanding prevalent
in his heyday. --- In so-called clear 'classical' positions he could see at a
glance where he needed to undermine the enemy pawn structure. Capablanca also
knew instinctively which pieces he had to exchange and which pieces he needed
to keep; likewise he could grasp instantly which squares he needed to
relinquish control of and which squares he had to fight for at all costs. His
games are therefore fantastic models of how to handle different pawn set-ups.}
*

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "????.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Tigran Petrosian"]
[Black "?"]
[Result "*"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "1"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{Tigran Petrosian (1929-1984) was born in Tbilisi, Georgia (which was then one
of the Republics of the Soviet Union). His parents were Armenian, and he in
fact won the Armenian Championship early in his career in 1946. --- By 1959 he
had progressed enough to win the USSR Championship, a feat he quickly repeated
in 1961 (in the years 1958 and 1960 he had to be content with 'only' coming
second in the World's hardest national championship). Then in 1963 came the
biggest prize of all: he became World Champion by beating Botvinnik with five
wins, two losses and 15 draws. --- Petrosian successfully defended his title
against Spassky in 1966, scoring four wins, three losses and seventeen draws.
But in 1969, Spassky challenged him again and this time was victorious by six
wins to four with 13 draws. --- Despite this setback, Petrosian won the USSR
Championship again in 1969 as well as 1975. He reached the Candidates final in
1971, having beaten Korchnoi in the semi-final, but lost to a rampant Fischer.
He did, however, have a brief moment of glory when he brought to an end
Fischer's record of winning twenty games on the trot by demolishing the
American's Grünfeld in the second game of the match. Thereafter Petrosian was
thrice frustrated by Korchnoi in his bid to regain his title, losing to him in
the semi-final of the 1974 Candidates and the quarter-finals in both 1977 and
1980. --- Petrosian had a truly fantastic record playing for the Soviet Union
at Olympiads. In ten Olympiads from 1958 to 1978, he only lost one game (to
Hübner at Skopje in 1972), compared with 79 wins and 50 draws! --- It is also
noteworthy that Petrosian beat Kasparov in their first two games and had an
overall record of 2-2 against him (no draws!).} 1. -- {Petrosian's Style: --
Petrosian took the ideas of restraint and prophylaxis (prevention) from
Nimzowitsch and greatly refined them. He improved our understanding of how to
play in blocked centres. He is probably the greatest exponent of all time in
the art of outflanking the opponent. Again and again as White we see him lock
the centre pawn structure and then play moves like b2-b4! or g2-g4! to eat
away at the edges of his opponent's central pawn edifice. --- He was an expert
at sucking the energy from the opponent's position with a series of apparently
innocuous moves. Fischer wrote in 'My Sixty Memorable Games' that 'Petrosian
likes to play cat and mouse, hoping that his opponents will go wrong in the
absence of a direct threat. The amazing thing is - they usually do!'} *

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "????.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Anatoly Karpov"]
[Black "?"]
[Result "*"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "1"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{Anatoly Karpov was born in Zlatoust in Russia in 1951. He was declared World
Champion in 1975 when Fischer declined to defend his title. Karpov had become
the challenger through beating Korchnoi in their Candidates Final match by a
score of three wins, nineteen draws and two losses. Prior to this he had
comfortably disposed of Spassky in their semi-final match. --- Karpov then
successfully defended his title against Korchnoi in 1978 (a tense 6 wins, 5
losses and 21 draws) and 1981 (a far more comfortable 6 wins, 2 losses and 10
draws). --- Karpov won or shared first in nine consecutive tournaments
beginning with Tilburg 1977 and culminating in Tilburg 1980 (for comparison,
Fischer won eight in a row up until his retirement from chess, while Kasparov
holds the record with 15 in a row). --- In 1984-85 Karpov faced Kasparov in a
long and gruelling match that was aborted after 48 games, with the score at
five wins to three in favour of an exhausted Karpov and no less than 40 draws.
Karpov then lost his title in his second match with Kasparov in 1985 (he
needed to win the last game of this match to remain Champion, but lost in
dramatic style). --- Overall Karpov played world championship matches with
Kasparov in 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987 and 1990: a grand total of 144 games, with
the overall score of 19 wins to Karpov, 21 wins to Kasparov and 104 draws.
Karpov came closest to resuming his World Championship tenure in 1987, when he
only needed a draw in the final game to regain his title, but Kasparov rose to
the occasion with a fine victory. --- After Kasparov and Short broke away to
play a world championship match outside of the auspices of the World Chess
Federation (FIDE), Karpov regained the FIDE version of the world title in 1993
by beating Timman; he then defended it successfully against Kamsky in 1996 and
Anand in 1998. Karpov then resigned his title in 1999 due to his unhappiness
at the regulations for the 1999 event. --- Karpov's result at Linares in 1994
is considered by many to be the greatest tournament result in the history of
chess. He scored nine wins and four draws (85%) against a field that included
Kasparov (who came a distant second), Kramnik, Topalov, Anand, Kamsky, Polgar,
Gelfand and Shirov. --- For almost 25 years Karpov could claim to be either
the best or second best player in the world.} 1. -- {Karpov's style: -- In
Karpov's games we see what might be described as a 'baseline style' - an
attempt to dominate his opponent from a distance, with a series of short
manoeuvres, often on the back rank. Whereas Petrosian preferred to block the
centre, Karpov likes to keep the situation there open but fixed. Not that he
tries to force matters in the centre: on the contrary, he makes little moves
in his own half of the board and suddenly his opponent's position falls apart!}
*

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "????.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Vladimir Kramnik"]
[Black "?"]
[Result "*"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "1"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{Vladimir Kramnik was born in 1975 in Tuapse, Russia. He progressed at a
steady rate and already at seventeen years old Kasparov regarded him as the
player most likely to be his successor as World Champion. --- This prediction
came to pass in the year 2000, when Kramnik beat Kasparov in London by a score
of two wins, thirteen draws and no losses. This was the first time since
Capablanca's match with Lasker that a world champion had lost his crown
without winning a single game. The result could have been even more convincing,
as Kramnik missed a couple of wins in other games whilst never looking in
serious danger of losing any of them. --- However, the match wasn't part of
the FIDE World Championship structure, due to Kasparov's earlier breakaway
with Short mentioned above. Meanwhile, FIDE had been creating world champions
of its own, in the most part by hosting annual knockout tournaments that
consisted of mini-matches. --- Despite this, the chess public generally
accepted Kramnik as the real World Champion because he had beaten the
legendary Kasparov in a match at a classical time control. Subsequently some
poor tournament results, combined with the lack of a re-unification match with
the FIDE World Champion, lessened to some extent Kramnik's claim to be the
true World Champion. --- Nonetheless, in 2004 in Switzerland, Kramnik retained
his title by drawing with Peter Leko: it finished level at two wins each with
ten draws, though Kramnik needed to win the final game of the match to achieve
this (see Chapter Five). --- In 2006, Kramnik played Topalov in his second
defence of his title. Topalov was the holder of the FIDE version of the world
title, which he had won in a double-round tournament against most of the
World's elite in 2005. Therefore this was the long-awaited re-unification
match. The games at slow play finished with three wins each and six draws,
though one of the games Kramnik lost was by default as a result of an
off-the-board dispute. In the quickplay tiebreak games that followed, Kramnik
triumphed 21/2-11/2. At last he was the undisputed World Champion. ---
Kramnik's career is also remarkable for a run of 82 games undefeated, between
losing to Shirov in Belgrade (January 1999) and to Adams in Dortmund (2000).} 
1. -- {Kramnik's style: -- In Kramnik's games we witness what might be
described as a 'breakthrough style': he aims for a space advantage and then
tries to smash the pawn barriers in his path. Typically this leads to the
creation of a passed pawn. His build-up is direct but patient, until the
moment arrives for aggressive action. --- Kramnik is the World's leading
expert at extracting wins from 'equal but not quite equal' positions. Perhaps
it is because he is so attuned to the value of tiny advantages that he is such
a brilliant defender of worse positions - he sees danger very clearly and so
knows exactly how to neutralize it.} *

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "????.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Nimzowitsch's writings"]
[Black "?"]
[Result "*"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "1"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{GM Raymond Keene, who has studied Nimzowitsch's life and writings in great
depth, has concluded: -- 'Nimzowitsch's major contribution to chess literature
[was] his elaboration of a new chess vocabulary which made intelligible the
hitherto but vaguely articulated strategy of master-players. Nimzowitsch
possessed an unrivalled facility for capturing the essence of an already known
operation or structure with a memorable and meaningful word or phrase, which
thereby increased speed of comprehension and assisted clarity of thought.
Nimzowitsch introduced into chess terminology such phrases as "the passed
pawn's lust to expand", "mysterious rook move", "prophylaxis", "7th rank
absolute" and "hanging pawns".' [Actually, Steinitz used 'hanging pawns'.] --
Penguin Encyclopaedia of Chess (1981) --- In fact it could be said that
Nimzowitsch goes too far - there are too many technical expressions and too
much unnecessary systematizing in his books. (I challenge you to find one
player who knows the five special cases of the seventh rank.) --- It's
interesting to compare Nimzowitsch's approach to chess theorizing with that of
Capablanca. The Cuban believed in commonsense, and didn't want to use a host
of technical expressions - not even 'fianchetto'. --- On the other hand, Keene
is spot on about Nimzowitsch's contribution to our understanding of chess. It
reminds me of the time that International Master Bob Wade went on tour to
South Africa. He visited small villages, and his lessons were translated into
the local indigenous languages. But there was no word in one of these
languages for 'diagonal'. So it became hard to teach the move of the bishop
(let alone talk about abstract concepts such as 'diagonal pressure').
Capablanca possessed technique at least as good as Nimzowitsch's - I would say
much superior - but it was Nimzowitsch who gave us the vocabulary to discuss
games.} 1. -- {An example of Nimzowitsch at his worst and best: -- In Chess
Praxis there is a section entitled 'Asymmetric handling of symmetrical
positions'. A very worthy heading with a lot of big words that implies we are
going to learn some general principles about handling non-symmetrical
positions. --- But, basically, all this means is: in the Exchange Variation of
the French Defence, if your opponent plays Nf3 as White, reply ...Nge7; while
if he goes Nge2, reply ...Nf6. That way you create a livelier, more imbalanced
position than the one you would get if you just copied White's moves.
Nimzowitsch gives four games, all in the French Exchange. --- The introduction
to the section takes a swipe at Tarrasch and his generation for preferring the
symmetrical 1 d4 d5 to the non-symmetrical 1...Nf6; he also castigates 3...c5
in the Queen's Gambit Declined (after 1 d4 d5 2 c4 e6 3 Nc3). --- There is a
lot of propaganda, but ultimately no system here; there is nothing of value
for the student that he can apply as a general principle. In fact, the attempt
to systematize has been positively harmful, as it has lead him to condemn 3...c5, an opening used by Spassky, Korchnoi, Kasparov and Grischuk. Tarrasch
espoused 3...c5, believing that the mobility of the black pieces outweighed
the defect of the isolated queen's pawn (IQP). Tarrasch was of course
Nimzowitsch's enemy, so it is no wonder 3...c5 gets short shrift. --- All that
remains of value is the specific advice of how to make things lively as Black
against the French Exchange. --- Which is, of course, excellent advice! And
Nimzowitsch played these types of positions with great skill. Nowadays, many
players baulk at playing the French as Black because of the 'boring' French
Exchange. A study of Nimzowitsch's technique in these games - and, just as
importantly, his enthusiasm for the positions - can only be a great tonic for
the modern French Defence player. --- That is why it is possible to be both
delighted and annoyed by Nimzowitsch at the same time. His books consist of
brilliant gems of chess advice mixed with a wearisome over-systematizing.
Nimzowitsch's writing has humour and colour, and his boastfulness is touching,
rather than irritating; but at times it is heavy going.} (1. -- {Having introduced these five giants of strategy, it is time to let their games speak for
themselves. I hope you enjoy this excursion through a hundred years of
positional chess. There will be some steep paths to climb and you will
occasionally feel lost, but you couldn't have better guides to call upon than
Capablanca, Nimzowitsch, Petrosian, Karpov and Kramnik. --- All the best, Neil
McDonald, Gravesend, Kent, July 2007.}) *

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "????.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "1. The Seventh Rank"]
[Black "?"]
[Result "*"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "1r3k2/1p3ppp/1P2p3/3p4/3P4/4P3/5PPP/2R2K2 w - - 0 1"]
[PlyCount "2"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{In order to understand the ideas of our five chess heroes we need to proceed
from the simple to the complex, from the concrete to the abstract. A good
place to begin is by examining the power of a rook on the seventh rank. ---
After} 1. Rc7 $1 {the black rook is tied down to the defence of b7, and the
black king to f7. White has excellent winning chances. He might for example
put his king on d3 and play in the centre with f2-f3 and e3-e4. Thereafter if
Black responds ...d5xe4+, he can recapture f3xe4 followed by the creation of a
passed pawn with d4-d5. If Black ignores the attack on d5, then after the
exchange e4xd5 and ...e6xd5, the d5-pawn can be won with Rd7 and Rxd5. Nor
would it help Black if after f2-f3 he played ...f7-f5, as e3-e4 follows in any
case, when a double exchange on e4 would clear the way for the white king to
cause havoc with Ke5 and Kxe6. The black king would remain tied down all the
same, in this case to the defence of g7 rather than f7.} -- {This apparently
straightforward analysis reveals no less than four important aspects of chess
strategy. -- 1) Having the better rook makes White's king a better piece as
well. --- It can roam the board at will, whereas the black king remains stuck
on the back rank defending the f7-pawn. In effect, from the point of view of
attack, White has an extra piece. It will be noticed again and again
throughout this book that a well-placed piece is not only strong in itself,
but also increases the flexibility and power of its team-mates. -- 2) Having
the better rook energizes the white pawns. --- The pawn structure on the
kingside and in the centre is completely symmetrical. Why then are the white
pawns so much more alive? It is because they draw energy from the rook being
on the seventh rank. They are full of spirit and imbued with an eagerness to
advance. In contrast the black pawns are dead wood, mere targets that need to
be defended. More will be said about 'living' and 'dead' pawn structures in
Chapter Four. -- 3) The pawn on b6 fixes the b7-pawn as a target. --- If
White's pawn were back on b2, Black could ease his game somewhat by playing ...b7-b5, when at least the b-pawn would be out of the range of White's rook.
Instead, the pawn is obliged to remain on a square where it ties down its own
rook to a cumbersome defence. In essence, the complex theories of blockade and
restraint discussed later in this book all boil down to the idea of not
letting a pawn move away from a vulnerable square. -- 4) A strategic plan
consists of ideas, not a series of individual moves. --- Thus we said that the
white king could go to d3: we didn't need to mention that it would be via e2.}
(1... -- {Pawns Sacrifices to Seize the Seventh Rank: -- In 'My System',
Nimzowitsch discusses the power of a rook on the seventh rank in some detail.
He coined the expression 'the seventh rank absolute', meaning that the rook
cuts off the enemy king on the back rank (as occurs in the example above after
1 Rc7). Nimzowitsch states that it is worth the attacker making a serious
material investment to achieve this. His opinion has been vindicated by
countless games, in particular those featuring pure rook and pawn endgames.
Despite being a pawn or more up, the defender has often been entirely lost due
to his king being shut out of the game by an enemy rook on the seventh rank.
--- See Capablanca-Tartakower and Petrosian-Portisch.}) (1... -- {Don't be in
a Hurry to grab those Pawns! -- When it comes to gaining control of the
seventh rank, just as important as the willingness to offer your own pawns is
the strength of mind to resist the temptation to snatch your opponent's pawns.
You saw above how Capablanca offered two pawns and ended up capturing four
once he got his rook to the seventh rank. Good things come to those who wait,
as shown by a game played in the final year of Nimzowitsch's career. --- See
Nimzowitsch-Stahlberg and Petrosian-Uusi.}) (1... -- {Capablanca's Best Piece
of Advice: -- With more pieces on the board, the power of a rook on the
seventh rank can generate an abrupt mating finish. One of Capablanca's best
pieces of advice is that every move should be checked, no matter how obvious.
--- See Alatortsev-Capablanca.}) (1... -- {Control of the Seventh Rank as part
of a Complex Strategy: -- See Capablanca-Treybal.}) (1... -- {Deep Positional
Manoeuvres to get a Rook to the Seventh Rank: -- See Karpov-Uhlmann.}) (1... --
{The Immortal Zugzwang Game: -- After the hard games above, I hope what
follows is more relaxing. Once the black rook bursts through to the seventh
rank, the white pieces became so demoralized that they feel obliged to commit
hara-kiri. It isn't often that a move like 25...h6 provokes resignation! ---
See Sämisch-Nimzowitsch.}) *

[Event "New York"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1924.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Capablanca, J."]
[Black "Tartakower, S."]
[Result "1-0"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "4k3/p1p2r1p/1p4p1/n2p4/P2P1P1P/2PB2P1/6K1/R7 w - - 0 27"]
[PlyCount "51"]
[EventDate "1924.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{This is perhaps the most famous example of a rook on the seventh rank
triumphing over material odds.} 27. h5 $1 {
A typical pawn thrust in this type of endgame.} Rf6 ({Generally speaking,} 
27... gxh5 {would be wrong as it grants White a protected passed pawn on f4.
Furthermore, after the reply} 28. Rh1 {intending 29 Rxh5 it is difficult to
see how Black can avoid the loss of a pawn on d5 or h7.}) 28. hxg6 hxg6 29. Rh1
{The black rook is tied down to the defence of the g6-pawn, which means that
the white rook can seize the seventh rank unopposed.} Kf8 ({Definitely not} 
29... Rc6 $2 30. Bb5 {.}) 30. Rh7 Rc6 31. g4 $1 Nc4 ({After} 31... Rxc3 32.
Bxg6 {the advance of White's kingside passed pawns, beginning with 33 f5 and
34 f6 if permitted, would soon oblige Black to resign.}) 32. g5 $1 ({
It would be a mistake to play} 32. f5 $2 {
as it allows Black to get rid of his weak pawn: after} gxf5 33. gxf5 Nd6 $1 {
(now the c3-pawn really is in danger)} 34. f6 $6 Nf7 {
White's passed pawn drops off.}) {The correct strategy is to fix the black
pawn on g6, where it can't escape from the attentions of the white bishop.
Already Black has to deal with the threat of 33 Rh6 Kg7 34 f5.} 32... Ne3+ 33.
Kf3 Nf5 {It looks as if Tartakower has found the answer to all his problems:
the f5-square is 'plugged' by the black knight, blocking the attack on g6,
which means that 34...Rxc3 is menaced.} 34. Bxf5 $1 {Capablanca trusts in the
power of the seventh rank absolute to triumph over material. He will give up
several pawns in order to get his king to f6, where it will introduce both
mating and queening threats.} gxf5 35. Kg3 $1 {
A nonchalant move that lets Black capture a pawn with check.} Rxc3+ 36. Kh4 Rf3
37. g6 $1 {
Letting another pawn go with check in order to continue his king's journey.}
Rxf4+ 38. Kg5 Re4 ({
Tartakower finds that a third pawn would give him indigestion: if} 38... Rxd4
39. Kf6 Kg8 ({running away with} 39... Ke8 {
lets the passed pawn get through after} 40. g7) 40. Rd7 {
leads to mate on the back rank.}) 39. Kf6 Kg8 40. Rg7+ Kh8 41. Rxc7 {In revenge
for the earlier slaughter on c3 and f4, the white king and rook now massacre a
goodly number of black pawns.} Re8 42. Kxf5 Re4 43. Kf6 $1 {The decisive move.
By threatening mate, Capablanca obliges the black rook to let his king cross
over the e-file.} Rf4+ 44. Ke5 {
Now the d5-pawn is doomed and the rest is easy for White.} Rg4 45. g7+ Kg8 ({Or
} 45... Rxg7 46. Rxg7 Kxg7 47. Kxd5 Kf6 {, when one way to win is} 48. Kc6 {
and 49 Kb7, capturing both black pawns and then queening the a-pawn.}) 46. Rxa7
Rg1 47. Kxd5 {White has garnered four pawns in return for the two he
sacrificed to get his king to f6 - a very good investment.} Rc1 48. Kd6 Rc2 49.
d5 Rc1 50. Rc7 Ra1 51. Kc6 Rxa4 52. d6 {. The passed d-pawn is unstoppable.}
1-0

[Event "Palma de Mallorca"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1974.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Petrosian, T."]
[Black "Portisch, L."]
[Result "1-0"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "3r2k1/p4pp1/1p2nq1p/3p4/3P3P/1P1Q1NP1/P4PK1/2R5 b - - 0 21"]
[PlyCount "38"]
[EventDate "1974.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{Petrosian has a minimal advantage due to his control of the open c-file. If
it were his move he could continue 22 Ne5, putting the knight on an excellent
central square from which it could be dislodged only by ...f7-f6 - a move that
is both difficult to arrange and weakening. --- Portisch found a surprising
way to prevent the knight's intrusion with} 21... Qf4 {, putting the queen en
prise. Now 22 Ne5? would leave the white rook hanging, and meanwhile Black is
ready to ease his game with 22...Qe4, pinning the white knight and offering
the exchange of queens. --- Very clever reasoning by Black, which shows why
Lajos Portisch was playing in a World Championship Candidates match.
Nevertheless, Petrosian found a way to set him problems with a brilliant
positional pawn sacrifice:} 22. gxf4 $1 Nxf4+ 23. Kg3 Nxd3 24. Rc3 $1 {
The golden rule in such situations is: don't hurry! ---} ({
The rook is itching to seize the seventh rank, but if immediately} 24. Rc7 $2 {
then} Rd6 $1 25. Rxa7 $6 Rg6+ 26. Kh2 Nf4 $1 {
coordinates the action of the black pieces and threatens 27...Rg2+.}) {
The point of the pawn sacrifice was not only to empower the white rook, but
also to force the black knight to an inferior square where it cannot co-operate
with its rook. It may sound mean spirited, but chess strategy is about
frustrating the opponent's dreams as much as furthering your own.} 24... Nb4 ({
It is understandable that the knight heads backwards, as after} 24... Nb2 $5 {
it looks in danger of being trapped. However, there doesn't seem to be a way
for White to surround the knight, and so this active method of defence should
have been preferred. White could then press on with} 25. Rc7 {,} ({
or else force a draw with} 25. Rc2 Nd3 26. Rc3 Nb2 {, etc.})) 25. a3 $1 {
The black knight becomes a target of White's space-gaining pawn moves on the
queenside.} Na6 26. b4 Nb8 {
Portisch concedes the seventh rank in order to reactivate his knight.} ({
After the game, Petrosian suggested the gritty defence} 26... Kh7 27. b5 Nb8
28. Rc7 Rd7 29. Rc8 Rb7 {, though} 30. Ne5 {keeps up the pressure. Both in
this variation and in the game you will notice that, despite his pawn deficit,
White is never in danger of losing. It is only ever a question of whether he
wins or Black holds on for the draw. Such is the difference in power between
the white and black pieces: the white knight has a central post, whereas the
black knight is crawling about on the edges of the board; the white rook
dominates the c-file, whereas the black rook can only defend its pawns and
knight.}) 27. Rc7 {The rook touches down on its dream square and cannot be
challenged, because if 27...Rd7 then 28 Rc8+ wins the knight.} a5 {In such situations, every pawn exchange tends to help the defender. Hence White's reply,
which also keeps the black knight out of a6.} 28. b5 Nd7 {It looks as if
Portisch has succeeded in organizing a solid defence: the black knight is
keeping its white counterpart out of e5 as well as guarding the b6-pawn...} 29.
Kf4 $1 {It would have been very easy to forget about the white king. But it is
precisely his contribution that will overturn Black's defence. It is worth
recalling Reuben Fine's maxim that in the endgame: 'the king is a strong piece:
use it!'} h5 ({If} 29... f6 {, securing e5 once and for all, White replies} 30.
h5 $1 {with ideas such as: Kf5 and Ke6; or the knight raid Nh4, Ng6, Ne7+ and
Nxd5; or finally Nh4 and Nf5, pinning the knight on d7 against g7 and, with
ideas of Ne7+ or Ne3, going after the d5-pawn.}) 30. Ne5 $1 Nf8 ({
Here we see the point of White's previous king move: after} 30... Nxe5 31. Kxe5
$1 {the dominant position of the white king and rook leads to a decisive
advantage for White. He would then threaten 32 Rb7, picking up the b6-pawn} ({
in contrast,} 31. dxe5 $2 {ruins White's build-up, as after} d4 {he has to think about how to hold back the passed d-pawn; that is why it was vital to put
the king on f4}) {, while} 31... Rb8 32. Kxd5 {is abject for Black - the white
king can help shepherd home the passed pawn without any disturbance.}) 31. Rb7
f6 32. Nc6 Ng6+ 33. Kg3 {The king can happily retreat as he has done his duty:
a breach has been forced in the black defence leading to the win of the
b6-pawn.} Rd6 34. Rxb6 Re6 35. Rb8+ Nf8 36. Ra8 Re1 37. Nd8 Kh7 38. b6 Rb1 39.
b7 Nd7 40. Rxa5 1-0

[Event "Gothenburg"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1934.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Nimzowitsch, A."]
[Black "Stahlberg, G."]
[Result "1-0"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "r5k1/1p3pp1/5b1p/1p1R4/4B3/4PP2/PP3P1P/6K1 w - - 0 25"]
[PlyCount "13"]
[EventDate "1934.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

25. Rc5 $1 ({
White has an extra pawn and there is another one hanging on b5, but after} 25.
Rxb5 Rxa2 26. b4 ({Black has great chances to draw after} 26. Rxb7 Rxb2) 26...
Bh4 $1 {, Black's rook on the seventh rank gives him a lot of counterplay. So
Nimzowitsch wants to stop his opponent getting his rook to the seventh rank
whilst getting his own rook to its ideal location.}) 25... Kf8 ({If Black tries
} 25... Rxa2 {,} 26. Rc8+ {will mate (the back rank mate is only possible on
the c-file, as the black bishop guards d8 - that's why the white rook shifted
one square sideways).}) ({Meanwhile after} 25... Bxb2 26. Rxb5 Bf6 {
(taking on a2 with the rook always leads to a back rank mate)} 27. Rxb7 {
White has his rook on the seventh rank whilst keeping a passed pawn on a2.})
26. Bd5 $1 {Denying the black rook entrance to a2 in a more direct manner. At
the same time the white bishop aims at f7 - a key factor once the white rook
gets to the seventh rank.} b4 27. Rc7 {
At last the white rook reaches the seventh rank.} Bxb2 28. Rxf7+ Ke8 29. Rxb7
Bc3 {He can't let the b4-pawn be taken, but...} 30. Rxg7 $1 Bxg7 31. Bxa8 {
. --- Despite the drawing propensities of opposite-coloured bishops, the
massive clump of white passed pawns is decisive. --- Yes, Nimzowitsch was
right to point out that the seventh rank absolute is worth a serious material
investment. He didn't give up pawns, but he avoided grabbing them impulsively.
He was rewarded for his patience in not snatching pawns, as the b7-, f7- and
even g7-pawn quickly fell into his hands, once the rook was on the seventh rank.
} 1-0

[Event "Vilnius"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1958.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Petrosian, T."]
[Black "Uusi, G."]
[Result "1-0"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "r6k/2R3pp/8/p1pR4/2r5/P5P1/5P1P/6K1 w - - 0 34"]
[PlyCount "15"]
[EventDate "1958.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{Here is an example from Petrosian, which shows that all the years he spent
sleeping with Nimzowitsch's 'Chess Praxis' under his pillow were of great
value. White could capture the pawn on c5 and be a pawn up, but Petrosian
preferred the probing try} 34. Rg5 $5 {
and was quickly well rewarded for his patience:} g6 $2 ({
Even though it's passive,} 34... Rg8 {
is a tougher defence, when White would capture on c5 after all.}) 35. Re5 $1 {
Suddenly White is after bigger game than the pawn on c5.} Rc3 36. Ree7 Rxa3 {
Black is temporarily a pawn up - indeed he has two passed pawns - but now
comes a massacre typical of two rooks on the seventh rank:} 37. Rxh7+ Kg8 38.
Rcg7+ Kf8 39. Rxg6 Re8 ({The black c-pawn is doomed because} 39... Rc8 {
is answered by} 40. Rh8+ Kf7 41. Rxc8 Kxg6 42. Rxc5 {, when White wins easily
by putting his rook behind Black's a-pawn and advancing his kingside pawns.})
40. Rc6 Kg8 41. Rhc7 {
. White captures on c5 and then his passed pawns are irresistible.} 1-0

[Event "Moscow"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1935.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Alatortsev, V."]
[Black "Capablanca, J."]
[Result "0-1"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "2r3k1/1q3p1p/pp2p1p1/8/P2P4/Q3P2P/2r2PP1/RR4K1 w - - 0 22"]
[PlyCount "4"]
[EventDate "1935.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{White hit on the plan of attacking Black's queenside pawns, but he totally
underestimated the dynamic power of a rook on the seventh rank. The game
continued...} 22. Qd6 $4 Rxf2 {...and White is suddenly lost:} 23. Qg3 ({If} 
23. Kxf2 Rc2+ 24. Kg3 (24. Ke1 Qxg2 {leads to a quick mate}) 24... Rxg2+ 25.
Kf4 Rf2+ {and the white king is doomed, for example} 26. Kg5 (26. Ke5 Rf5#)
26... Qg2+ 27. Kh4 g5+ 28. Kh5 Qxh3+ 29. Kxg5 f6# {. I doubt if Capablanca
calculated to a mate before playing 22...Rxf2; he would have known that with a
rook and queen attacking a defenceless white king, there could only be one
outcome.}) {
In the game, White declined the rook offer, but then resigned next move:} 23...
Re2 0-1

[Event "Carlsbad"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1929.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Capablanca, J."]
[Black "Treybal, K."]
[Result "1-0"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "6rr/1pqb1nkp/p1p1p1p1/2Pp1pPP/PP1P1P2/2QBPN2/5K1R/7R w - - 0 34"]
[PlyCount "49"]
[EventDate "1929.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{Capablanca has a suffocating space advantage on both sides of the board. Two
pawn moves for White spring to mind at first glance: b4-b5 on the queenside,
and h5xg6 on the kingside. --- Still, Treybal's pieces are all developed, and
his rooks are working together - a good sign for the defender, as a lack of
space often forces a cluttering of the back rank, with a resulting loss of
contact between the rooks. There is also no serious weakness in Black's pawn
structure. --- However, there's no denying that all the black pieces are
entombed in a sepulchre made of pawns rather than stones. The bishop might be
the most obvious 'victim', but the black knight has little scope either, being
denied any squares on the third or fourth rank (with the white pawn back on c4
the knight would spring out with ...Nd6, answering c4-c5 with ...Ne4+). The
black queen is also terribly cramped, and the rooks have no open files along
which to show their talent. --- Black therefore has zero counterplay. It is a
wretched position to defend, especially against an opponent with such a
fantastic feel for strategy. A great master of defence/manoeuvre such as
Petrosian might have found a way to survive such a position as Black, but
probably not against Capablanca. --- Black's move to reach this position was
33...Ra8-g8. Capablanca replied with:} 34. Qa1 $3 {One of Capablanca's
weaknesses as a practical player was that he never embarked on double-edged
tactical adventures or 'bluffed' his opponent with speculative pawn sacrifices
in the style of Alekhine. Undoubtedly the Cuban wouldn't have remained
undefeated for seven years if he had taken such risks. On the other hand, he
was a fine calculator of variations and a resourceful attacker, and with more
spirit of adventure he would have avoided many of the colourless draws he
conceded to weaker opponents. --- However, in the realm of positional chess,
Capablanca could be cunning. Thus in 'Chess Fundamentals' he writes in regard
to the game J.Capablanca-A.Kreymborg, New York 1910. --- Back to our main game,
Capablanca senses that Treybal intends to oscillate his rook between b8 and g8
on the back rank (paying homage to White's space advantage on the kingside and
queenside respectively).} ({If he plays} 34. Qa3 {
at once, then continuing as in the game with} Rb8 35. b5 axb5 36. h6+ Kf8 37.
axb5 Ke7 38. b6 Qd8 {, we see that Black has his rook on b8 rather than his
queen. This difference favours Black as he is ready to answer} 39. Ra1 {with}
Ra8 {, contesting the open file. --- Therefore, Capablanca delays Qa3 for a
move so that Treybal replies with ...Rbg8. It was shrewd to choose 34 Qa1 as
the waiting move, as it gives the false impression that White might be
planning a breakthrough on the kingside by shifting his queen to h1 at some
point (after vacating the square, of course, perhaps with the moves Rh3 and
Rh1-h2).}) ({You may well ask why Capablanca rejects the plan of attack down
the h-file, when he already has his rooks doubled there, and the black king
might become a target. --- In reality, it wouldn't achieve that much for White:
imagine if he got his queen to h1, with rooks on h2 and h3 (as with the
contrived sequence} 34. Qc1 Qd8 35. Rh3 Qc8 36. R1h2 Qc7 37. Qh1 {). --- After}
Be8 $1 38. hxg6 hxg6 39. Rxh8 Rxh8 40. Rxh8 Nxh8 41. Qh6+ Kg8 {Black defends -}
42. Nh4 {does nothing since the g-pawn is well protected. One of the main
reasons that an attack down the h-file wouldn't be effective is that Black has
his main body of pieces grouped there, including the king, who is a useful
defender. And even the bad black bishop finds a role in this scenario by going
to e8 to defend the g6-pawn. In contrast, the white bishop on d3 can't join
in the attack along the h-file. Whereas we shall see that the bishop has an
important role in an attack along the a-file, albeit a brief and violent one.
White should choose the plan that involves all his pieces, rather than a plan
that leaves a piece out.}) 34... Rb8 35. Qa3 Rbg8 $2 ({Needless to say,} 35...
Ra8 {was more resilient, when Capablanca might have waited with} 36. Kg3 $5 ({
of course not} 36. b5 $2 axb5 {with a pin on the a-file}) {. Here we see the
problems caused by Black's lack of space. He would like to leave the rook on
a8, but just what other moves are available to him? Moving the other rook from
h8 leads to problems after 37 hxg6 opening the h-file, while any other piece
move would interfere with the coordination of the black rooks along the back
rank. Thereafter White would still get in the b4-b5 advance by playing Qb3,
assuming that no better opportunity arose along the h-file. --- So Black might
play} 36... Rab8 37. b5 axb5 38. h6+ Kf8 39. axb5 Qd8 ({if} 39... cxb5 $4 {
, then} 40. c6+) 40. Ra1 Ke7 41. b6 {and we have the position discussed in the
analysis above where it is the black rook rather than queen on b8. As we saw
there, this improves Black's survival chances as there are no tactical ideas
in the future based on Ra8, trapping the black queen. But in the version here
White has gained the move Kg3, which helps to cement his control of the a-file
as the rook can swing over to a2; for example, if} Ra8 42. Qb2 Rxa1 43. Qxa1
Qa8 $6 {White keeps his bind by playing} 44. Ra2 {.}) 36. b5 $1 {
Perfect timing, as usual!} axb5 37. h6+ ({White could have played} 37. axb5 {
, as} cxb5 ({while} 37... Ra8 $4 {is met by} 38. h6+ Kf8 39. Qxa8+) 38. h6+ Kf8
39. c6+ {wins the bishop.}) {But Capablanca is confident he can win the game
on the a-file, and so closes the position on the kingside. This means he can
transfer his rooks and minor pieces to the queenside without worrying about
any future Black counterplay based upon ...g6xh5 or ...h7-h6.} 37... Kf8 38.
axb5 Ke7 (38... cxb5 {still loses to} 39. c6+ {.}) 39. b6 {
The white pawns now form a massive V for Victory sign.} Qb8 {Capablanca has
achieved the configuration of black pieces he wanted, with the queen trapped
on b8. Now his plan for the moment is: triple the major pieces on the open
file, with a rook on a7 and the white queen at the rear.} 40. Ra1 Rc8 41. Qb4
Rhd8 42. Ra7 Kf8 43. Rh1 Be8 44. Rha1 Kg8 45. R1a4 Kf8 46. Qa3 Kg8 ({With the white queen at the rear, using the black rook to defend the b7-pawn along the
second rank is ruled out:} 46... Rd7 47. Ra8 {wins the black queen for a rook
(whereas had the white queen been the second-in-line, Black could have
exchanged off with 47...Qxa8 etc).}) 47. Kg3 {There now follow some
semi-waiting moves while Capablanca decides what square he wants his king on -
he finally settles for g2. Of course it is possible that White was short of
time hereabouts. Capablanca was a phenomenally fast player during his youth,
but by 1929, when this game was played, he was in his forties and slowing down.
} Bd7 48. Kh4 Kh8 49. Qa1 Kg8 50. Kg3 Kf8 51. Kg2 Be8 ({There is no
satisfactory way for Black to arrange to defend b7 with ...Bc8 without
inviting disaster. For example:} 51... Re8 52. Nd2 Rcd8 53. Nb3 Bc8 54. Ra8 {
and White wins the queen;}) ({or} 51... Ke7 52. Nd2 Re8 53. Nb3 Rcd8 54. Na5
Bc8 55. Nxc6+ {.}) 52. Nd2 $1 {Finally Capablanca embarks on the next stage of
his plan: the knight heads for a5 to attack b7.} Bd7 53. Nb3 Re8 {The rook make
s a space for the knight on d8, but in doing so leaves the bishop undefended -
a fact that won't escape Capablanca's notice.} 54. Na5 Nd8 55. Ba6 $3 {
The entrance of the bishop crowns White's strategic masterpiece. The long row
of white pieces along the a-file makes a lovely aesthetic impression.} ({
Just in case you are left with the impression that Treybal blundered by
leaving his bishop on d7 hanging, let's see what happens if we 'pass' with} 55.
Kg3 $5 {, so giving Black the chance to guard his bishop:} Ke7 ({or} 55... Re7
56. Nxb7 Nxb7 57. Ra8 {winning the black queen}) 56. Nxb7 Nxb7 57. Ba6 Nd8 ({
after} 57... Rc7 58. Bxb7 Rxb7 59. Ra8 {White again wins the queen}) 58. Bxc8
Qxc8 59. Ra8 Qb7 60. R4a7 {and yet again the queen is trapped.}) 55... bxa6 56.
Rxd7 Re7 57. Rxd8+ $1 {A simple but elegant finish.} Rxd8 58. Nxc6 {. White regains the exchange and is left with connected passed pawns on c5 and b6 - a
decisive advantage.} 1-0

[Event "New York"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1910.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Capablanca, J."]
[Black "Kreymbourg, A."]
[Result "*"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "4r3/p4kpp/2p2r2/3p1p2/3R4/1PP1PP2/2K2P1P/5R2 w - - 0 25"]
[PlyCount "0"]
[EventDate "1910.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{In the realm of positional chess, Capablanca could be cunning. Thus in 'Chess
Fundamentals' he writes: --- 'Ra1 should have been played now, in order to
force Black to defend with ...Re7. White, however, does not want to disclose
his plan at once, and thus awaken Black to the danger of his position, hence
this move [Kd3], which seems to aim at a disruption of Black's queenside pawns.
'} *

[Event "Madrid"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1973.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Karpov, A."]
[Black "Uhlmann, W."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C09"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "83"]
[EventDate "1973.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nd2 c5 4. exd5 exd5 5. Ngf3 Nc6 6. Bb5 Bd6 7. dxc5 Bxc5 8.
O-O Nge7 9. Nb3 Bd6 10. Bg5 O-O 11. Bh4 Bg4 12. Be2 Bh5 13. Re1 Qb6 14. Nfd4
Bg6 15. c3 Rfe8 16. Bf1 Be4 17. Bg3 Bxg3 18. hxg3 a5 19. a4 Nxd4 20. Nxd4 Nc6
21. Bb5 {We have seen a typical French Tarrasch in which Black accepts an
Isolated Queen's Pawn (IQP) in return for a rapid development of his pieces to
promising squares. Unfortunately for Uhlmann, Karpov is adept at subduing the
activity of his opponent's pieces. Here Black played} Red8 {, breaking the pin
on b5 with the evident intension of easing his game by exchanging on d4.
Karpov was shrewd enough to let him carry out his plan, as he added poison to
the mix with...} 22. g4 $3 {A pawn move of this type doesn't dazzle us like a
storming piece sacrifice or an 'acrobatic' piece manoeuvre. On the other hand,
it plays a vital role in the defeat of the strongest ever Grandmaster of the
former East Germany. You should try to find these quiet, unobtrusive pawn
moves in your own games as they are the hallmark of positional understanding.}
Nxd4 {Beginning a simplification which will prove fatal for Black.} ({
I assume Uhlmann didn't let the knight live on the grounds that after} 22...
Rac8 {,} 23. Nf5 {is possible, and following} Bxf5 24. gxf5 {White has attacking ideas against the black king based on 25 f6. Here we see the first good
point of 22 g4: it provides a base on f5 for the white knight, with the g-pawn
being converted into an attacking weapon on the f-file if the knight is
eliminated. --- In avoiding this danger, Uhlmann falls into something far
worse.}) 23. Qxd4 Qxd4 ({If Black plays} 23... Qd6 {, White replies} 24. Re2 {
followed by 25 Rae1 and then 26 f3 forces open the e-file, leaving the white
rooks in charge. Black would be unable to block the e-file with ...Be4-f5-e6
due to the pawn on g4 - this is the second virtue of 22 g4!!.}) {Two other observations about open files should be made here: -- 1) If the black and white
rooks are engaged in a fight for an open file, as a rule it is the player with
the superior minor piece(s) who will gain control of it. --- Here it is no
contest once White doubles rooks and arranges f2-f3, as the white bishop is
preventing the black rooks from going to e8. -- 2) An open file tends to be of
special value if it is the only one on the board. --- The reason is self
evident: if you control it, the enemy rooks lack alternative inroads into your
position to use for counterplay.} 24. cxd4 Rac8 {You might be wondering what
all the fuss is about when it is Black who is first to seize an open file. The
point is that, thanks to 22 g4, White can combine his operations along the
e-file with threats to the black bishop, which will eventually lead to a
breakthrough on the f7-square. Put another way: White's attack is supported by
his pawns, which can harass the black bishop, whereas Black's counterplay
along the c-file has no such help and so never gets off the ground. --- In
what follows, the inviolability of the white bishop on the b5 outpost, where
it surveys all the action in the centre, creates a huge contrast with the
beleaguered black bishop.} 25. f3 Bg6 26. Re7 {
At last the white rook reaches the seventh rank.} b6 27. Rae1 h6 ({
Making an escape square for the king, as} 27... Rc2 $2 {allows mate in two.})
28. Rb7 {The white rook clears the way for his comrade to reach e7, and thanks
to the bishop on b5 there can never be a challenge by Black with ...Re8. ---
It might seem all too easy, but this doesn't mean that Uhlmann is a weak
player - he would have found all the moves for White and won the game if he
and Karpov had now swapped seats. The difference between Karpov and Uhlmann is
seen in the ultra subtle move 22 g4!! - the sort of positional device with
which Karpov caused problems, not just for the leading grandmasters of the
1970s, but also for all-time greats such as Kasparov and Korchnoi.} Rd6 29.
Ree7 {Double the rooks on the seventh rank and you double their power! There
now looms the threat of 30 f4 and 31 f5 when, after 31...Bh7, 32 Rxf7 tears
Black apart.} h5 ({If} 29... Rf6 {, the prosaic} 30. Red7 {
wins the d5-pawn, though Karpov wouldn't necessarily have rushed into this.})
30. gxh5 Bxh5 31. g4 {As soon as Black gets rid of the monster pawn on g4,
another one takes its place.} Bg6 32. f4 $1 {
The long-feared threat of 33 f5 emerges from Black's nightmares.} Rc1+ ({
Uhlmann tries to generate counterplay, as} 32... Rf8 {
would leave him completely tied up. For example,} 33. f5 Bh7 34. Be8 $1 {
(enticing the black rook to f6)} Rf6 35. Bd7 {(making possible his next move)}
Kh8 36. g5 Rd6 37. Kf2 {and White can leisurely advance his king to e5. Black
can hardly breathe, for if} Kg8 {then} 38. Be6 $1 {wins the f7-pawn, because}
fxe6 39. Rxg7+ {mates next move.}) 33. Kf2 Rc2+ 34. Ke3 Be4 35. Rxf7 Rg6 36. g5
Kh7 37. Rfe7 Rxb2 38. Be8 $1 {After sitting on b5 for 32 moves, the bishop
finally has its moment on centre stage. Now the g7-pawn is going to drop and
the game is over.} Rb3+ 39. Ke2 Rb2+ 40. Ke1 Rd6 41. Rxg7+ Kh8 42. Rge7 1-0

[Event "Copenhagen"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1923.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Sämisch, F."]
[Black "Nimzowitsch, A."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E06"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "50"]
[EventDate "1923.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Bb7 5. Bg2 Be7 6. Nc3 O-O 7. O-O d5 8. Ne5
c6 9. cxd5 cxd5 10. Bf4 a6 11. Rc1 b5 12. Qb3 Nc6 13. Nxc6 Bxc6 14. h3 $4 {
As Lasker remarked, a pawn move without a clear purpose should always be
criticized.} ({Let's pause and think about the piece configuration. White's
queen is on b3, a queenside square; his rook sitting on c1 has seized the only
open file which also happens to be on the queenside; and the bishop on f4
controls c7 and b8 which, yes you guessed it, are queenside squares. --- Okay,
White has his pieces aiming at the queenside, but are there any black pieces
or pawns he can attack there? Well, there is a pawn on b5, and a potentially
hanging black bishop on c6... --- Whereas the pawn move on the kingside is
useless, a pawn thrust on the other wing would serve a clear purpose:} 14. a4
$1 {generates chances by hitting b5. --- And after} b4 15. Na2 {both the black
pawn on b4 and the bishop on c6 are suddenly hanging. --- Why did Sämisch not
play this? Why did he choose the planless, pointless, plainly embarrassing 14
h3 move? --- Looking through a large database of games, it's not difficult to
conclude that even a top player in the 1920s, outside of the 'big three'
Lasker, Capablanca and Alekhine, could play fine positional chess in one game,
but then in another game play like an infant. The standard of play fluctuates
wildly. --- A modern 2200 Elo player is unlikely to play 14 h3; but then again
is he likely ever to rise to the heights of positional creativity and beat a
world champion? Certainly Sämisch could play like an idiot on occasion, but in
his career he beat players like Nimzowitsch, Réti and Capablanca: how many of
the players of today who laugh at 14 h3 could dream of getting even a solitary
draw against a Topalov, Kramnik or Anand? --- No, players like Sämisch were
grandmasters because 'with the wind behind them' they could play in very
creative and positionally sound style. It is wrong to pretend that the players
of the 1920s were as steady or technically well rounded as modern top players;
but it is equally wrong to dismiss their creativity.}) 14... Qd7 15. Kh2 Nh5
16. Bd2 f5 17. Qd1 b4 18. Nb1 {Later on we shall see some inspired Nb1
retreats in this book: Petrosian's 19 Nb1 against Ivkov and Karpov's 24 Nb1
against Spassky. However, this definitely isn't in the same league. What on
earth was White trying to achieve by letting his knight be pushed back? Even
if he didn't want to attack he could have played 17 a3 on the previous move.}
Bb5 19. Rg1 Bd6 20. e4 $4 {Having played the opening lamely and allowed his
pieces to drift on to passive squares, Sämisch now breaks a cardinal rule of
strategic chess: Don't open up lines when the opponent's pieces are more ready
for the fight.} ({The solid} 20. e3 {
, to ward off ...f5-f4, was much to be preferred.}) 20... fxe4 $1 21. Qxh5 Rxf2
22. Qg5 Raf8 {In return for the piece, Black has: -- 1) Two pawns, including a
gigantic protected passed pawn on e4 which dominates the centre and shuts out
the white bishop on g2. -- 2) Dominance of the f-file. It's important that the
bishop on b5 prevents a challenge of this control by keeping the white rooks
out of f1. -- 3) Attacking chances against the white king. The pin on g2 is
highly unpleasant and makes the g3-pawn all the more an attractive target.
Already White has to reckon with 23...R8f3 when the pawn drops (or, even
stronger, 23...R8f5 24 Qe3 R5f3). -- 4) The continuing inactivity of the white
pieces, which has become a crucial factor now that lines have opened.
Nominally, White has an extra piece, but what does the knight do on b1? The
white rooks and bishops are also suffering various degrees of paralysis. ---
In view of all this, it is no wonder the game only lasts another three moves.}
23. Kh1 {Getting out of the pin to prevent the attack on g3 with ...R8f3.} R8f5
24. Qe3 Bd3 $1 {Completing the stranglehold on the white centre with the
threat of 25...Re2, nabbing the queen.} 25. Rce1 h6 $3 {. --- Apart from his
game with Johner (see Chapter Eight) this is probably Nimzowitsch's most
famous effort.} ({Poor Sämisch is tied hand and foot and can't move anything
without dropping material. --- Consider:} 25... h6 26. -- (26. -- {
The white queen is boxed in with no safe move.}) (26. -- {
The knight can't move from b1 on pain of instant death.}) ({. If} 26. Bc1 {
, then} Bxb1 {wins the knight (good riddance, White might think, but he is
then two pawns down for nothing).}) ({. If the rook moves from e1 with} 26. Rc1
{(or to d1), then} Re2 {wins the queen.}) ({
. If either of the rooks or the bishop on g2 goes to f1, as with} 26. Bf1 {
, then} Bxf1 {wins.}) ({. If} 26. Kh2 {, then} R5f3 {wins the queen (here we
see the value of 25...h6 in preventing the reply 27 Qg5).}) ({
. That only leaves pawn moves. If White plays} 26. g4 {
, the diagonal of the bishop on d6 is opened up, allowing} R5f3 $1 27. Bxf3
Rh2# {.}) ({. If} 26. a3 {, Black replies} a5 {to keep the status quo on the
queenside. If necessary Black can waste moves with ...Kh7 or ...Kh8 to force
White to self destruct.} (26... --)) ({. The same goes for} 26. h4 Kh7 {etc.}))
0-1

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "????.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "2. The Outpost and Open File"]
[Black "?"]
[Result "*"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "0"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{In Chapter One we examined the methods by which our chess giants planned the
invasion of the seventh rank and, once it was achieved, the techniques that
they used to exploit their well-placed rook or rooks. --- 'That's all very
well,' you might be thinking, 'but what if my opponent stubbornly refuses to
let my rook get anywhere near the seventh rank? What else is the open file
good for?' --- In this chapter, our giants of strategy will show us how
control of an open file can be converted into another strategic advantage,
with the emphasis being on the creation of a passed pawn.} *

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "????.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Defining an Outpost"]
[Black "?"]
[Result "*"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "3k2rr/ppp5/3b1p1p/4pP1P/3pP2N/3P3P/PPP5/2KR2R1 w - - 0 1"]
[PlyCount "1"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{The key thing is to recognize a special type of square along the file where
the rook and one or more of its pawns can energize each other. There seems to
be no absolute definition of the concept of an 'outpost' but the following
comes close: --- An outpost is a square of strategic importance, usually
located on an open or semi-open file. This square hosts a piece which is
supported by a pawn and cannot be dislodged by an enemy pawn. --- That's quite
a mouthful so let's look at a concrete example:} 1. -- {Nimzowitsch gives this
illustration of an effective use of an outpost square in 'My System'.} ({
If White occupies the outpost square by playing} 1. Ng6 {, Black replies} Rh7 {
and the knight doesn't achieve anything on g6.}) ({In contrast,} 1. Rg6 $1 {
is far more potent, as it attacks f6 and h6 and prepares to double up rooks
with 2 Rdg1.If} Rxg6 {in reply, then} 2. fxg6 $1 {is the best recapture, as it
clears the f5-square for the white knight. We saw that the knight is
ineffective after 1 Ng6, but here after 3 Nf5 it rules the roost: already the
plan of 4 g7, 5 Rg1 and 6 Nxh6 is on the cards. --- Generally speaking, a
knight has more power of action the closer it is to the centre of the board
(compare the number of squares a knight on h1 controls to a knight on e4).
Therefore it is no wonder in the example above that the knight has more to do
on f5 than on g6. Nevertheless, a knight particularly likes to be cemented on
a square where it is safe from pawn attack; and if White hadn't had the strong
move 1 Rg6 at his disposal he would have gladly settled for 1 Ng6.}) *

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "????.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Outposts and bishops"]
[Black "?"]
[Result "*"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "3k2rr/ppp5/3b1pBp/4pP1P/3pP3/3P3P/PPP5/2KR2R1 w - - 0 1"]
[PlyCount "1"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{Whereas rooks and knights thrive on outpost squares, they are generally far
less attractive for a bishop. Let's remove the white knight from h4 and
instead put a white bishop on g6:} 1. -- {The bishop itself feels miserable
and makes the rooks sitting behind it pretty miserable too: it has little
scope, and White would be thinking about moving it away in search of a more
active square. Only rarely does the bishop prove a star piece on an outpost
square. --- The term 'outpost' isn't used in regard to the queen or the king.
I assume this is because both pieces are too valuable to be placed so near or
even inside the enemy camp; they have to orchestrate the battle from a safe
distance rather than be in the forward patrol.} *

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "????.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Outposts and open files"]
[Black "?"]
[Result "*"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "1"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{It is time to return to the theme of this chapter: how control of the open
file can be converted into another advantage. See Karpov-Andersson.} 1. -- (1.
-- {How to crush Kasparov in 13 Easy Steps: -- The victim of the outpost
doesn't come much stronger than the 13th World Champion. Here's how to beat
him in 13 'easy' steps. See Karpov-Kasparov.}) (1. -- {Kramnik copies the
Karpov Model: -- The game above was a very convincing demonstration of the
power of the outpost. --- Taking the basic idea, could you defeat the World
Number Three Levon Aronian? Kramnik managed to do so by borrowing Karpov's
general plan, though it should be pointed out that he interpreted it in his
own distinct style. On the whole, Karpov likes to focus on one sector of the
board, or indulge in a quiet piece manoeuvre, whereas Kramnik's games are
characterized by a wider ranging strategic vision which leads to operations on
both sides of the board. Hence it isn't a surprise that Karpov's strategy
begins and ends in the vicinity of the c-file, whereas Kramnik switches from
the kingside to the queenside to implement his plan. --- See Kramnik-Aronian.})
*

[Event "Reykjavik"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1991.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Karpov, A."]
[Black "Andersson, U."]
[Result "1-0"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "r2rq1k1/pp3ppp/1np1n3/4P3/5P2/1N4P1/PP4BP/2QRR1K1 w - - 0 23"]
[PlyCount "3"]
[EventDate "1991.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{The 12th World Champion exploited the outpost with} 23. Rd6 $1 {. If now 23...
Rxd6 24 exd6 the outpost has been converted into a passed pawn and an open
file for the other rook (with the immediate threat of 25 f5, as well as 25 Bh3
to boot). So Andersson tried} Nc8 {
, but the outpost was then converted into a material advantage:} 24. Rxc6 $1 {
and Black resigned at once.} (24. Rxc6 bxc6 25. Bxc6 Qf8 26. Bxa8 {
leaves Black two pawns down.}) 1-0

[Event "World Championship (Game 17), Lyon"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1990.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Karpov, A."]
[Black "Kasparov, G."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D85"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "79"]
[EventDate "1990.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Be3 c5 8.
Qd2 O-O 9. Nf3 Bg4 10. Ng5 cxd4 11. cxd4 Nc6 12. h3 Bd7 13. Rb1 Rc8 14. Nf3 Na5
15. Bd3 Be6 16. O-O Bc4 17. Rfd1 b5 18. Bg5 a6 19. Rbc1 Bxd3 20. Rxc8 Qxc8 21.
Qxd3 Re8 {The position looks fairly equal; in fact you might even think that
Black could get the advantage with his queenside pawn majority. But Karpov
shows us how to exploit the open c-file with some awesome technique. It all
begins simply enough: --- Step 1: put the rook on the open file.} 22. Rc1 Qb7 (
{Of course if} 22... Nc4 {, then} 23. Nd2 {wins a pawn.}) {
Step 2: advance the d-pawn to create an outpost square for the rook on c6.} 23.
d5 Nc4 ({If} 23... Rc8 {,} 24. Rxc8+ Qxc8 25. Bxe7 {wins a pawn for White, so
Black brings his knight back into the game. If he left it on a5 White would,
after suitable preparation, be able to create a passed pawn with e4-e5 and
d5-d6. Note that on d6 the pawn would support Rc7 - an outpost on the seventh
rank!}) {Now we have Step 3: remove the obstruction from the c-file.} 24. Nd2
$1 Nxd2 {Step 4: prevent Black creating an outpost of his own on the c-file.}
25. Bxd2 $1 ({If} 25. Qxd2 {then} b4 $1 {followed by 26...Bc3 blocks the
c-file. By recapturing with the bishop, White keeps control of the c3-square.})
25... Rc8 {Step 5: seize control of the outpost square.} 26. Rc6 $1 {
We should congratulate the rook on reaching its ideal square.} ({
The tactical justification is that if} 26. Rc6 Rxc6 27. dxc6 Qxc6 $2 {, then}
28. Qd8+ Bf8 29. Bh6 {forces mate: a splendid example of tactics supporting
strategy. Otherwise Black has no wish to allow White a passed pawn, and so
cannot budge the rook from the c6-square.}) 26... Be5 {
The bishop vacates the g7-square so that 27...Rxc6 is now a threat.} 27. Bc3 $1
({If} 27. Qc2 Rxc6 28. dxc6 Qc7 {, it's difficult to see how White can break
through the blockade on c7. That is why we now have: Step 6: force the black
bishop from the excellent e5-square.}) 27... Bb8 ({
There is no time to take on c6:} 27... Rxc6 28. dxc6 Qc7 29. Bxe5 Qxe5 30. Qd8+
Kg7 31. c7 {and the pawn queens.}) ({After} 27... Bxc3 28. Qxc3 {,} Re8 ({or} 
28... Rxc6 29. dxc6 {again with a giant passed pawn}) 29. Qc5 {leaves Black
under lethal pressure - the immediate threat is 30 Rc7 winning the e7-pawn.}) {
It's time for Step 7: put the queen on d4, not only to get her in touch with
the c5-square, but crucially to make Black weaken his kingside.} 28. Qd4 f6 ({
Now after} 28... f6 {Black threatens} 29. -- Rxc6 30. dxc6 Qxc6 {
, planning to meet} 31. Qd8+ Kf7 32. Qxb8 {with} Qxc3 {. White should prevent
this by removing his bishop from the c3-square so it doesn't hang to ...Qxc3
at the end of the sequence. And so we have:}) {Step 8: put the bishop on a5
where it fights for control of c7, the crucial seventh rank invasion point.}
29. Ba5 Bd6 ({No better is} 29... Be5 30. Qc5 {
. The white queen is going to get to either c3 or c5.}) {
Step 9: support the rook and so gain control of the open file.} 30. Qc3 Re8 (
30... Rxc6 31. dxc6 {is too wretched to contemplate.}) {Step 10: Black is
powerless, so make some useful consolidating moves before increasing the
pressure on the c-file.} 31. a3 Kg7 32. g3 Be5 33. Qc5 h5 {Kasparov has had to
move his rook away (30...Re8); but we aren't yet in absolute domination of the
open file, as our rook can't invade on c7. So... Step 11: drive the black
bishop from the defence of c7.} 34. Bc7 $1 Ba1 ({If} 34... Bxc7 {, White plays}
35. Rxc7 {and e7 drops.}) {Step 12: clear the c7-square for the rook without
allowing the black bishop to return to the defence.} 35. Bf4 $1 Qd7 ({Of course
} 35... Be5 {is met by} 36. Bxe5 fxe5 37. Rc7 {.}) {
Step 13: seize the seventh rank (and celebrate!).} 36. Rc7 {We have reached
Step Thirteen, and all Black's opposition down the c-file has been crushed. As
a consequence, Kasparov is unable to prevent the decisive advance of White's
d-pawn.} Qd8 37. d6 {Incidentally, here we see the value of Step Seven, which
induced Black into weakening his kingside with 28...f6. Otherwise, there would
be no pin on f7 and ...e7xd6 would have been possible.} g5 38. d7 $1 {
No counterplay is to be given to the opponent (especially when his name is
Garry Kasparov).} ({There are other moves, but why get involved in} 38. Bxg5) (
{or} 38. Rxe7+ {when 38 d7! keeps the black queen and rook entombed?}) 38...
Rf8 39. Bd2 $1 {Heading for a5.} Be5 40. Rb7 {. White can win at his leisure
with 41 Qa7, 42 Qxa6 and 43 Ba5 against any reasonable move that Black chooses.
If his queen ever goes from d8, Ba5 will win at once in reply.} 1-0

[Event "Turin Olympiad"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2006.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Kramnik, V."]
[Black "Aronian, L."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A30"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "74"]
[EventDate "2006.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 b6 3. g3 c5 4. Bg2 Bb7 5. O-O g6 6. d4 cxd4 7. Qxd4 Bg7 8. Nc3
d6 9. Rd1 Nbd7 10. Be3 Rc8 11. Rac1 a6 12. b3 O-O 13. Qh4 Rc7 14. Bh3 Qb8 15.
Bg5 {This move was a surprise at the time, and caused Aronian to seriously
overestimate his chances on the queenside:} Bxf3 $6 ({The solid} 15... Re8 {
was called for.}) 16. exf3 b5 {All looks well with Black, as he has slightly
damaged White's pawn structure on the kingside and is now in the process of
undermining the c4-pawn: after 17 cxb5 axb5 he already has a passed d-pawn.
--- However, with a couple of judicial exchanges, Kramnik is now able to
establish the 'rook on c6, pawn on d5' control of the open file that we saw in
the Karpov-Kasparov game above.} 17. Bxd7 $1 {Kramnik loves the bishop pair,
but he is astute enough to know when it should be renounced in favour of a
more definite positional edge.} Rxd7 ({Unfortunately this is necessary, as} 
17... Nxd7 $2 18. Bxe7 Ne5 19. Kg2 $1 {is the end of the road for Black.}) 18.
Nd5 $1 Nxd5 19. cxd5 {Structurally speaking, it is the black pawns which are
the more compact mass, being divided into only two clusters or 'islands'. In
contrast, the white pawns are split into three islands, including an isolated
pawn on d5 and doubled pawns on the f-file. --- But when we forget about
structure and think about dynamics, we see that the 'scruffy' white pawn on d5
is working hard for the white pieces in providing an outpost for the rook on
c6. Meanwhile, the 'neat and tidy' black pawns aren't doing any work; on the
contrary, the pawn on e7 is a target.} Rc7 $5 {Aronian, who as stated above
was the World Number Three at the time of this game, realizes the danger and
so is willing to give up a pawn in order to activate his rooks. ---} ({If now} 
19... Rc7 20. Bxe7 Re8 21. Bxd6 $4 ({while after} 21. Bg5 Re2 {
White faces enormous difficulties in exploiting the extra pawn}) {, then} 21...
Rxc1 22. Bxb8 Rxd1+ 23. Kg2 Rxb8 {and Black has too much for the queen.}) {
Therefore Kramnik refuses the offer in order to keep the black rooks passive:
control of an open file is all the more valuable when there is only one on the
whole board!} 20. Rc6 $1 Rxc6 ({Black didn't have much of a choice as, to say
nothing of a6, he cannot leave the e7-pawn forever hanging, and} 20... f6 {
would weaken the kingside and shut in the bishop.}) 21. dxc6 {The outpost
didn't last long, but its effect will be felt until the end of the game, as
White has been granted a passed pawn only two steps from queening. --- In the
teachings of Steinitz, considerable emphasis is put on the concept of an
accumulation of advantages: you first acquire the two bishops, then give the
opponent doubled pawns, then create a queenside pawn majority and so on and so
forth, until it is time for the opponent to resign. Or, being cynical, it is
time for you to resign, because while you have been gathering little
advantages, he has put all his efforts into gaining one big advantage, such as
a mating attack on your king or pushing a passed pawn all the way down the
board from e7 to e1. --- Today Steinitz's concept seems rather schematic - the
sort of artificial, dogmatic approach to positional play that caused
Nimzowitsch's hackles to rise when it was expounded by Tarrasch. --- On the
other hand, the related idea of a conversion of advantages is a cornerstone of
modern chess strategy. Even while conducting a fierce kingside attack, a top
player will be on the lookout for a favourable endgame; conversely he or she
will seize the chance for a direct attack on the opponent's king if the
opportunity arises in the middle of an otherwise purely positional campaign
against a weak pawn on a6. It depends what the position requires. Flexibility
of thinking is the key to successful chess. A great player is always ready to
swap one advantage (or opportunity) for another, more favourable one. ---
Incidentally, for this reason it is difficult to find games played by modern
world-class players with one consistent strategic thread running throughout
them. No one worth his or her salt sticks stubbornly to one line of play when
another more favourable scenario offers itself. --- To return to the Aronian
game: White's outpost has been converted into a passed pawn, which allows him
to maintain his positional pressure.} Rc8 22. Rc1 $1 ({The exchange} 22. Bxe7
Rxc6 {would be the entirely wrong approach for White.}) 22... e6 {Perhaps Aronian was feeling rather confident hereabouts. The pawn on c6 is separated from
his fellows and about to be surrounded by moves like ...Qb6 and ...d6-d5 etc.}
23. Bd2 $3 {An unobtrusive retreat of enormous strength. The threat is 24 Ba5,
followed by 25 c7, when the passed pawn is beyond all danger.} Qc7 {
Blocking the pawn for the moment. ---} ({If Black plays} 23... Qb6 {then} 24.
Qe7 {saves the pawn and guides it to c7, as in reply} Rxc6 $4 25. Qe8+ Bf8 {
gives White the delicious choice between taking the rook on c6 or finishing
the game off in cavalier style with} 26. Bh6 Rxc1+ 27. Kg2 {
when mate follows on f8.}) {Kramnik now devised the following strategy: break
open the a-file and support the passed pawn with an eventual Qa6 followed by
Ba5. An attack on the weakness on b5 that results from his next move will gain
vital time for this plan to be implemented.} 24. a4 $1 {Every plan requires
the use of pawns at some point or other. The major and minor pieces would be
quite helpless without the support of their foot soldiers. Here the pawn is
required not only to clear the a-file but also to create a target on b5.} d5 ({
Black is already being squashed against the edge of the board after} 24... bxa4
25. Qxa4 Ra8 26. Ba5 Qc8 27. c7 {.}) 25. axb5 axb5 26. Qb4 Rb8 27. Qa3 {
Kramnik methodically carries out the plan outlined after 23...Qc7 above.} Bd4
28. Qa6 Be5 29. f4 $1 {Again the intervention of a little pawn move has a
decisive bearing on the outcome of the game.} Bd6 {Now to add to his problems
on the queenside, Black is perilously weak along the a1-h8 diagonal.} ({
However, Black's bishop has no choice but to retreat to d6, as} 29... Bg7 30.
Ba5 Qc8 31. c7 $1 Rb7 ({or} 31... Ra8 32. Qxa8) 32. Qxb7 $1 {
forces through the pawn.}) 30. Ba5 Qc8 31. Qa7 $1 {Kramnik gradually wriggles
his queen out to d4. Black's reply is forced in view of the threat of 32 c7
Ra8 33 Qxa8.} Ra8 32. Qb6 Rb8 33. Qd4 $1 {We defined one of the
characteristics of Kramnik's style to be the switching of attention from one
wing to another. Here the sudden threat of 34 Bc3, intending to mate the black
king on g7 or h8, obliges Aronian to submit to a fatally weak pawn on b4.} b4
34. c7 Ra8 35. Qb6 $1 {
The most clear cut. The queen returns to b6 and forces the win of the b4-pawn;}
({
without allowing Black to fight on with the queen sacrifice which occurs after
} 35. Bxb4 Bxc7 36. Bd6 Bxd6 37. Rxc8+ Rxc8 {etc.}) 35... Bf8 36. Bxb4 Bxb4 37.
Qxb4 Qe8 {. --- Two passed pawns down versus Kramnik, it's time to shake hands.
} 1-0

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "????.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Overprotection"]
[Black "?"]
[Result "*"]
[ECO "B22"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "19"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{According to Nimzowitsch, a strong point (which is basically a square in your
possession which is of key strategic value) should be overprotected. That is
to say, it should be protected in excess of any possible threat against it.
Nimzowitsch explains that the relationship is mutually beneficial: the strong
point gains the greatest possible security from being overprotected, while it
radiates a constant source of energy from which the overprotecting pieces can
draw new strength. Overprotection is also associated with prophylaxis, the
restraint of the opponent's ideas, as by making key points invincible it
frustrates any plan of attack he might devise. --- We don't hear much about
overprotection these days. The word centralization often has the same function.
Consider the following position which is reached after the moves:} 1. e4 c5 2.
c3 d5 3. exd5 Qxd5 4. d4 Nf6 5. Nf3 Nc6 6. Be2 cxd4 7. cxd4 e6 8. O-O Be7 9.
Nc3 Qd6 {White has an isolated pawn on d4 that is attacked twice, but it is
ably defended by the white queen and the knight on f3. If he now plays 10 Be3,
defending the d4-pawn a third time, we tend to say 'White centralizes/develops
his bishop'. In fact it could be useful to overprotect d4, as Black might
attack the pawn again with 10...0-0 and then 11...Rd8. On the other hand,
overprotection (or indeed centralization) should never be used as a substitute
for a well thought out plan. For example, in this position, we can keep on
overprotecting d4 to or heart's content with} 10. Be3 {, 11 Qd2 and 12 Rad1.
But is our queen better on d2 than on d1? And is the rook happier to be stuck
behind the pawn on d4 rather than sitting on c1 where it enjoys more of a
view?} ({In blindly overprotecting d4, we are missing out on the chance to
activate our bishop with} 10. Nb5 $1 Qd8 11. Bf4 Nd5 12. Bg3 {
. The white bishop is better placed on g3 than on e3. The game might continue}
a6 13. Nc3 O-O 14. Rc1 Nf6 15. h3 b6 16. a3 Bb7 17. Bd3 Rc8 18. Bb1 b5 19. Qd3
{when White has a powerful attacking set-up (this actually occurred in J.Polgar-S.Tiviakov, Madrid 1994). --- The rook on c1, the queen on d3 and the
bishop on g3 all enjoy far more freedom than if they were on d1, d2 and e3
respectively. --- In defence of overprotection, it might be said that in this
case, by putting the bishop on g3, a more important square than d4 is being
overprotected: namely e5, which becomes a strong post for the white knight. On
the other hand, it is all too easy to see the workings of a 'system' where
there is just coincidence. --- It seems to me that Nimzowitsch never hampered
himself as a practical player by trying to fit everything into a rigid system
whilst he was actually playing his games. If he had done so, he would have
developed as dogmatic an outlook as his great rival Tarrasch, the master (and
slave) of general precepts. --- I don't mean to imply that Nimzowitsch only
thought about his System when he had to describe his games in books (though
some commentators have gone as far as to suggest this!). During his games, all
the strategic principles of 'My System' were no doubt present in Nimzowitsch's
mind at a subliminal level, so to speak, whilst he was concentrating on
calculating variations and finding the best plans. I doubt very much that
technical jargon such as 'I should apply the fourth special case of the
seventh rank absolute' was running through his consciousness whilst he made
his decisions. --- My own opinion is that you should study Nimzowitsch's rules
in 'My System', but let them sink into your chess subconscious: it can be
positively harmful to have all Nimzowitsch's rather heavy prose running
through your mind during games. Incidentally, I think that is why some players
have described 'My System' as the most harmful book ever written, that is
guaranteed to damage your chess if you study it!}) *

[Event "Semmering"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1926.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Yates, F."]
[Black "Nimzowitsch, A."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "C01"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "92"]
[EventDate "1926.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{In this game, a form of overprotection occurs - but only as part of a logical
plan, not for the sake of it.} 1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. exd5 exd5 5. Bd3
Ne7 6. Nge2 O-O 7. O-O Bg4 8. f3 Bh5 9. Nf4 Bg6 10. Nce2 Bd6 11. Qe1 c5 12.
dxc5 Bxc5+ 13. Kh1 Nbc6 14. Bd2 Re8 15. Nxg6 hxg6 16. f4 Nf5 17. c3 {Black has 
pressure down the e-file, but he needs to turn it into something concrete.
Nimzowitsch played:} d4 $1 {If now 18 cxd4 Ncxd4 White has problems due to the
pin along the e-file and a possible discovered attack by the black queen on
his bishop(s) down the d-file. Yates therefore decided to block things up with.
..} 18. c4 {...but this means that Black's pressure in the centre has
solidified into something that is more permanent: an outpost on the e3-square
and a passed pawn on d4.} Qb6 {Now the black pieces are defending d4 four
times - a mighty overprotection. But as we shall see, the black queen goes to
b6 with a clear strategic idea in mind, not just to stare at the d4-pawn.} 19.
Rf3 Bb4 $1 {The game continuation gets rid of White's dark-squared bishop and
so creates an outpost square on e3 for the black rook.} ({Instead} 19... Qxb2
$2 {is a forced draw at best for Black after} 20. Rb1 Qxa2 21. Ra1 Qb2 22. Rb1
{etc, as his queen can never slip out via a3 or b3 because Bxf5 wins a piece})
({while} 19... Rad8 {would be overprotecting, developing and centralizing.
Nimzowitsch himself despised such moves - a rigid adherence to rules that
takes no notice of the specific features of the position.}) 20. a3 Bxd2 21.
Qxd2 a5 $1 {Restraint: White is prevented from expanding on the queenside with
22 b4 followed by 23 c5 and 24 b5, after which the black knight and queen
would be driven from the defence of the d4-pawn (and White's queenside
majority gets uppity, as Nimzowitsch once quaintly described it).} 22. Ng1 Re3
$1 {As was discussed at the beginning of the chapter, in such positions it is
the rook rather than the knight that should take possession of the outpost
square.} 23. Qf2 Rae8 {Now the e3 strong point is attacked twice and protected
four times: the rook on e8, the knight on f5, the pawn on d4 and (through the
pawn) the queen on b6 are all doing defensive duty. --- The task for Black now
is to remove the blockade on the d3-square, so that the passed pawn can
advance. As usual, Nimzowitsch hits on the correct idea: ...Qb3, ...Nd6 and ...Nc4.} 24. Rd1 Qb3 $1 25. Rd2 Nd6 26. c5 Nc4 {
Now White has to exchange off his bishop or else lose it.} 27. Bxc4 Qxc4 28.
Rc2 Qd5 29. Rc1 Qe4 {Black has absolute domination of the e-file and can think
about pushing the passed pawn. Yates has endured enough of this slow torture
and tries for a counterattack which, however, only leads to the loss of too
many white pawns.} 30. f5 Rxf3 31. Nxf3 Qxf5 32. b4 axb4 33. axb4 Nxb4 34. Qxd4
Nd3 35. Rc2 Rc8 36. Rc3 Nxc5 37. h4 b6 38. Ng5 Rf8 39. Rf3 Qd7 40. Qc4 Ne6 41.
Rd3 Qc8 42. Qb5 Qc1+ 43. Kh2 Qf4+ 44. g3 Qf2+ 45. Kh1 Qf1+ 46. Kh2 Nc5 0-1

[Event "World Championship (Game 11), Moscow"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1969.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Spassky, B."]
[Black "Petrosian, T."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E12"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "111"]
[EventDate "1969.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{We have already seen Karpov use the outpost to beat Kasparov in a game from
the 1990 World Championship. Let's see how Petrosian managed the same trick 21
years earlier in his match with Spassky.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. a3
Bb7 5. Nc3 d5 6. e3 Nbd7 7. cxd5 exd5 8. Be2 Bd6 9. b4 O-O 10. O-O a6 11. Qb3
Qe7 12. Rb1 Ne4 13. a4 Ndf6 14. b5 Nxc3 15. Qxc3 Ne4 16. Qc2 Rfc8 17. Bb2 c6
18. bxc6 Bxc6 19. Qb3 Qd7 20. Ra1 b5 21. a5 Bb7 22. Ne5 Qd8 23. Rfd1 Qh4 24. g3
Qe7 25. f3 Ng5 26. h4 Ne6 27. f4 {The first question we might ask is: 'What is
White supposed to be doing in this position?' It is difficult to imagine how
he can arrange e3-e4 without his position falling apart. Likewise, he would
endanger his own king without causing Black any discomfort if he ever got it
into his head to advance f4-f5. --- It is clear that, as regards finding a
plan, White's pawns on the kingside offer him no real opportunities, despite
outnumbering his opponent's pawns 5-4. This is bad news for Spassky, as it
means he can only play consolidating moves and respond to his opponent's
threats: there is nothing constructive for him to do. Things are much
brighter for Black. His 2-1 majority on the queenside is an important asset,
as it takes the form of a protected passed pawn. --- Furthermore, there are
two light-squared holes in the white structure that Petrosian can try to turn
into outposts for his pieces. The black pawns on b5 and d5 have a pincer like
grip on the c4-square, making it the perfect outpost for a rook. Meanwhile,
the black knight would be delighted to be sitting on e4, where it would
dominate the centre. --- 'That's pie in the sky,' you might protest. 'How
exactly can Petrosian get the knight from e6 to e4? And as for the other
outpost, well Spassky is no fool - he is going to keep his bishop trained on
c4 to keep out the black rooks!' --- Actually, the occupation of the c4- and
e4-squares is perfectly feasible, but it will require some positional
imagination from Black. --- It is certainly a long and laborious task, but it
isn't impossible. And remember that we concluded above that Spassky has no
good way to improve his position. Therefore Petrosian can take as long as he
wants (and it is a case of the longer the better when your opponent can only
sit and wait - he is more likely to self-destruct out of frustration at your
long-winded manoeuvres). --- Let's see how Petrosian achieved his aims in the
game:} f6 $1 {The white knight is immediately driven from e5. In contrast, no
white pawn could ever return the compliment to a black knight if it landed on
the e4-square, even if the game lasted 200 moves: such is the difference in
value between an outpost square (e4) and a normal central square (e5). --- At
the same time as ousting the white knight, Black is vacating the f7-square for
his own knight (see the next note).} 28. Nf3 Nd8 $1 {The first step: the
knight heads for f7, after which moving the bishop from d6 will clear the way
for ...Nd6 and ...Ne4. So getting to e4 is easy after all? Unfortunately, the
'moving the bishop from d6' phase will prove problematical.} 29. Kf2 Nf7 30.
Nd2 ({After} 30. Nd2 {,} -- ({, if now} 30... Bc7 {, then} 31. Ba3 {. White would be happy to exchange his lame dark-squared bishop for the black knight, for
example after} Nd6 32. Bf3 Qf7 {(intending 33...Nc4)} 33. Bxd6 Bxd6 {.}) ({
. Playing} 30... Bb4 {is reasonable, but Black's advantage dissipates after}
31. Bf3 Rd8 {(to defend d5)} 32. Ba3 Bxa3 33. Rxa3 {, when he still can't play
...Nd6 because d5 drops. --- However, Black has a third alternative that adds
dynamism to his set-up:} (33. --))) 30... Rc4 $3 {The rook occupies the c4
outpost at once. This was one of the many positional exchange sacrifices for
which Petrosian was celebrated.} 31. Qd3 ({If White plays} 31. Nxc4 {
(31 Bxc4 is no better) Black replies} dxc4 $1 {when he has connected passed
pawns on the queenside that are worth far more than the exchange. Besides, the
diagonal of the bishop on b7 has been opened and it cuts right through White's
kingside. --- After the subsequent} 32. Qc2 {Black can build up with moves
like ...Re8, ...Bb4, ...Nd6 and then ...Ne4+; or else he could just mass his
pieces in support of the advance of the passed pawns with ...Rc8, ...Bd5 (or ...Qe6) and ...b5-b4 etc. White would be powerless against either plan, not
least because his rooks don't have any open files along which to become active.
}) {Spassky not surprisingly declines the sacrifice. But with the rook on c4
blocking the queen's contact with d5, White no longer has counterplay against
the d5-pawn based on Bf3. This facilitates Black's plan of ...Bb4 and ...Nd6,
when the knight finally has contact with e4. Thus we see that 30...Rc4!! has
allowed Black to seize both the c4- and e4-squares.} 31... Re8 32. Bf3 Bb4 33.
Ba3 Bxa3 34. Rxa3 Nd6 35. Re1 f5 {Black cements his hold on the e4-square.} 36.
Raa1 Ne4+ {Petrosian is anxious to cash in on his pressure and so exchanges on
e4 in order to clear the way for the black queen to infiltrate on the kingside.
} ({Nonetheless,} 36... Rec8 {
looks more logical, followed by the eventual advance of the passed b-pawn.})
37. Bxe4 fxe4 38. Qb1 Qd7 39. Ra2 Rec8 40. Nxc4 {
Spassky finally succumbs to temptation.} ({A better try was} 40. Nb3 {
intending 41 Nc5 to block the c-file, but Black can then invade with} Qh3 {when
} 41. Rh1 {is strongly answered by} Rc2+ $1 {(as given by Gufeld). After} 42.
Rxc2 Rxc2+ 43. Qxc2 Qxh1 44. Qc7 {
(the only try for counterplay as g3 is doomed)} Qf3+ 45. Kg1 Qxg3+ 46. Kh1 Qh3+
47. Kg1 Qxe3+ 48. Kf1 Qf3+ 49. Ke1 Qe3+ 50. Kf1 Qh3+ 51. Kg1 Qc8 {
Black is two pawns up and should win easily.}) 40... dxc4 41. d5 {Despite Spassky's best efforts, Black's queen invasion on the kingside and connected passed
pawns on the queenside prove to be a lethal cocktail.} Bxd5 42. Rd1 c3 43. Rc2
Qh3 44. Rg1 Qg4 45. Kg2 Qf3+ 46. Kh2 Qxe3 47. f5 Qc5 48. Rf1 b4 49. f6 b3 50.
Rcf2 c2 51. Qc1 e3 52. f7+ Kf8 53. Rf5 b2 54. Qxb2 c1=Q 55. Qxg7+ {
Never say die.} Kxg7 56. Rg5+ ({
Spassky resigned, as he trusted his opponent not to 'find'} 56. Rg5+ Kh6 $4 {.}
) 0-1

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "????.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "3. Planning on a Grand Scale"]
[Black "?"]
[Result "*"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "1"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{So far we have looked at rooks rampaging on the seventh rank in Chapter One,
and ways of exploiting an outpost to create a passed pawn in Chapter Two. But
what if there is no outpost square and our opponent stubbornly refuses to let
our rook(s) infiltrate his camp? In that case, we will need to devise a plan
which utilizes not only our control of the open file but also other favourable
features of the position. We have to be ready to combine one idea with another
in a flexible strategy that looks across the whole board.} 1. -- {It is with pleasure that I introduce the absolutely wonderful games in this chapter.} (1. --
{Combining the Open File with Threats to the Enemy King: -- What do the games
of the great positional masters have in common? Above all, the flexibility of
thinking to utilize every available square on the board for their pieces,
including unlikely back waters such as a1 and h1. This often gives their
pieces more power - perhaps an extra 5% that makes the difference between a
win and a draw, or a draw and a loss. --- See Nimzowitsch-Rubinstein and
Petrosian-Unzicker.}) (1. -- {Combining the Open File with an Attack on Weak
Pawns: --- See Kramnik-Bareev and Kramnik-Krasenkow.}) (1. -- {Combining the
Open File with an Attack on Weak Pawns and the King: --- If anyone doubts that
the young Karpov could have given Fischer a hard time defending his title,
just take a look at the following game from the Russian's 4-1 demolition of
Spassky in their 1974 World Championship semi-final match. --- See
Karpov-Spassky and Karpov-Gligoric.}) (1. -- {Exploiting Superior Mobility by
switching the Rooks to the other Wing: --- See Janowski-Capablanca and
Kostic-Capablanca.}) *

[Event "Dresden"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1926.??.??"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Nimzowitsch, A."]
[Black "Rubinstein, A."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A34"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "91"]
[EventDate "1926.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{This is a striking illustration of Nimzowitsch's enormous resourcefulness,
not just in his in original 18th move but also in his subsequent queen
manoeuvres.} 1. c4 c5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nb4 6. Bc4 e6 7.
O-O N8c6 8. d3 Nd4 9. Nxd4 cxd4 10. Ne2 a6 11. Ng3 Bd6 12. f4 O-O 13. Qf3 Kh8
14. Bd2 f5 15. Rae1 Nc6 16. Re2 Qc7 17. exf5 exf5 {White has a positional
advantage in view of the following factors: -- 1) His rook controls the only
open file on the board. -- 2) The d4-pawn is somewhat cut off from the rest of
the black pieces and might become a target in the future. -- 3) The white
bishop on c4 enjoys an open diagonal, and should White develop a kingside
attack in the future, the black king might find it awkward that it can't
escape via g8. --- The above assessment may sound vague and unconvincing.
After all, Rubinstein is poised to play ...Bd7 and ...Rae8, and then it's
goodbye to White's control of the open file. As for the d4-pawn being weak -
well, it is soundly defended by the black knight and not even attacked.
Furthermore, why should the black king be worried about the unavailability of
the g8-square, when there is no direct attack in sight? It is easy to imagine
that the rooks are going to be exchanged off along the e-file in a few moves
time, with a dead draw in sight. --- It is easy to sympathize with such doubts.
It feels like White has three assets - an open file, control of the diagonal
aiming at g8 and a potential attack on d4 - but they don't join together to
form one big advantage. But Nimzowitsch, the positional maestro, found a way
to thread together all three factors in one brilliant positional onslaught.}
18. Nh1 $3 {A fantastic move. The knight is doing nothing on g3, as it is
barred from the e4-square. Therefore Nimzowitsch intends to reroute it to the
g5-square via f2 and h3. Imagine for a second that the knight were already on
g5. Then the white bishop's control of the c4-g8 diagonal suddenly has fangs:
after Qh5! there would be the double threat of Qxh7 mate and Nf7+.} Bd7 19. Nf2
Rae8 20. Rfe1 Rxe2 21. Rxe2 Nd8 ({
As predicted, Rubinstein has challenged for control of the e-file, but if now} 
21... Re8 {White replies} 22. Rxe8+ Bxe8 23. Qd5 $1 {
. The only decent way to defend against 24 Qg8 mate is with} Ne7 {, but then}
24. Qxd4 {gobbles up the d4-pawn. I hope you are beginning to see how the
three strands of Nimzowitsch's strategy are coming together: control of the
e-file, attack on the black king and the exploitation of the d4-pawn. (Note
that had Black stood his ground on the e-file by avoiding 20...Rxe2, he would
still have been forced to reckon with a double rook exchange on e8 combined
with the move Qd5.)}) ({Instead, with} 21... Nd8 {Rubinstein intends to keep
the white queen out of d5 by playing ...Bc6, and then challenge rooks with ...Re8. Of course, it won't have escaped Nimzowitsch's attention that the d4-pawn
is losing its natural defender...}) 22. Nh3 Bc6 23. Qh5 {
Stopping Black from playing 23...Re8.} g6 ({Black agrees to the weakening of
his dark squares on the kingside because if he plays} 23... h6 {, then} 24. Ng5
{is very threatening:} Bxf4 (24... b5 {is met by} 25. Qg6 $1 hxg5 26. Qh5#) 25.
Bb4 $1 Rf6 26. Re8+ {leads to a back rank mate.}) 24. Qh4 Kg7 ({
You can choose which black piece to capture after} 24... Re8 $2 25. Rxe8+ Bxe8
26. Qf6+ Qg7 {.}) 25. Qf2 $1 {The attack on d4 is used to compel Black's
dark-squared bishop to move away to b6, where it is cut off from the main
action.} Bc5 ({Of course,} 25... Qb6 {was also possible, but then Black's
queen has been obliged to desert her consort.}) 26. b4 $1 Bb6 {The exile of
the bishop to b6 is a significant loss to the defence of the black king, whose
residence has become significantly airier on the dark squares. As will be seen
on move 28, Black's fight for the e-file has also been compromised.} 27. Qh4 $1
{The black bishop has been forced out of the fray - it cannot return to c5 -
and so the white queen returns again to the attack on the kingside. In some
ways I find Nimzowitsch's to and fro manoeuvres with his queen even more
admirable than 18 Nh1!!.} Re8 28. Re5 $1 {Again we see how the three aspects
of White's plan are mutually supporting each other. The attack on d4 has
driven the black bishop away from the defence of e5, which empowers White's
plan of controlling the e-file; which is in turn empowered by the plan of a
direct attack on the black king.} Nf7 ({If} 28... Rxe5 29. fxe5 Qxe5 $2 {
(even without this mistake White has a winning attack with an invasion by the
bishop on h6 or the queen on f6 in mind) White can finish the game with} 30.
Qh6+ Kh8 31. Qf8# {.}) 29. Bxf7 Qxf7 30. Ng5 Qg8 31. Rxe8 Bxe8 {So the white
bishop on c4 and the white rook have both been exchanged off. However, in
giving up its life, the bishop has cleared the way for the white knight to
take up a strong attacking post. Neither did the rook die in vain as on the
next move the white queen assumes the role of dominating the e-file. --- That
is what happens when you carry out a correct strategic plan from an initially
favourable position: one advantage flows into another.} 32. Qe1 $1 {Nonetheless
, I don't wish to suggest that converting one advantage into another is always
a straightforward business. On the contrary, it takes a great deal of
precision and flair from Nimzowitsch to keep control against a positional
genius like Rubinstein. In particular, the white queen has had to make a
remarkable series of moves along the e1-h4 diagonal.} Bc6 {Rubinstein's pieces
have been left wrong-footed and are unable to prevent an invasion by the white
queen on e7 or e5.} 33. Qe7+ Kh8 {Now the white queen and knight are eager to
strike a deadly blow against the black king, but they can't do it by
themselves: they need the help of the dark-squared bishop.} 34. b5 $1 {
A fine clearance move.} ({Incidentally, my computer program points out a win
of a piece that would delight anyone interested in geometry:} 34. Nf7+ Kg7 35.
Ne5+ Kh8 36. Nxc6 bxc6 37. Qe5+ Qg7 38. Qb8+ Qg8 39. Qxb6 {.}) 34... Qg7 ({
If instead} 34... axb5 {then} 35. Ne6 $1 h5 {
(the black king needs air, as otherwise 36 Qf6+ will mate him)} 36. Bb4 $1 {
(a star entrance by the white bishop after sitting for 22 moves on d2)} Bd5 ({
giving up a piece with} 36... Bd8 {would just stave off mate for a while}) 37.
Qf6+ Kh7 38. Ng5+ Kh6 39. Bf8+ {
wins the black queen and mates at the same time.}) {Rubinstein's choice simply
surrendering a piece, after which the game ended quickly as follows:} 35. Qxg7+
Kxg7 36. bxc6 bxc6 37. Nf3 c5 38. Ne5 Bc7 39. Nc4 Kf7 40. g3 Bd8 41. Ba5 Be7
42. Bc7 Ke6 43. Nb6 h6 44. h4 g5 45. h5 g4 46. Be5 {. --- A brilliant
strategic game. I guess it's no surprise that Nimzowitsch's games as Black
versus 1 d4 receive the most attention, as they begin with the 'hypermodern'
openings he did so much to develop. Nevertheless, as we can see he was also
capable of a polished positional masterpiece with the white pieces.} 1-0

[Event "Hamburg"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1960.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Petrosian, T."]
[Black "Unzicker, W."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D30"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "109"]
[EventDate "1960.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{In this game, Tigran Petrosian combines control of the open file with mating
threats in an equally awesome display as Nimzowitsch's.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3.
Bg5 d5 4. c4 c6 5. Qc2 Be7 6. e3 O-O 7. Nc3 h6 8. Bf4 Nbd7 9. cxd5 cxd5 $2 ({
Black should play} 9... exd5) ({or} 9... Nxd5 10. Nxd5 exd5 {.}) {The move play
ed in the game is a serious mistake. If Black's knight were still on b8 then
he could develop with ...Nc6 and ...Bd7 etc, but as things stand, he is simply
handing over an open file to White's queen and rooks. --- Wolfgang Unzicker,
who was born in 1925, was the best player to emerge in West Germany between
the end of the Second World War and the appearance of Robert Hübner in the
late 1960s. If he had been part of the Soviet School of Chess, errors like 9...
cxd5 would have been drummed out of him in his early youth. Alas, for all
their unquestionable talent, players from the West such as Unzicker, Ivkov and
Najdorf never quite managed to perfect their style enough to mount a serious
challenge for the World Crown, which in the 1950s and 1960s was very much the
private property of an empire ruled from Moscow. Only in 1972 did the
super-brain Bobby Fischer break the mould, and it is worth remarking that
Fischer himself greatly benefited from the teachings of the Soviet training
system: from the age of 15 he was being 'educated' by all the top Soviet
players in tough games at World Championship qualifying tournaments.} 10. Bd3
a6 11. O-O b5 $6 {Now Black's queenside pawns become targets.} ({
Perhaps it was time to play like Karpov with} 11... Nb8 $5 {and 12...Nc6.}) 12.
a4 $1 b4 ({After} 12... bxa4 13. Nxa4 {Black has to worry about the weak pawn
on a6 as well as the open b- and c-files.}) 13. Na2 $1 {
Heading for b3 via the c1-square.} ({The same end could have been achieved with
} 13. Ne2 {, but on principle it's worth keeping the e2-square free for the
white queen so that if she is ever hit by ...Rc8 she can slide there and
threaten Bxa6.}) 13... Ne8 14. Nc1 a5 {Black doesn't want the support of the
b4-pawn cut off by 15 a5, a move which would also fix the pawn on a6 for a
later attack with Qe2 etc. On the other hand, the white knight is delighted
that when it lands on b3 it has a ready target on a5.} 15. Nb3 {A beautiful
post for the knight. Remember the 'rule' that the player with the better minor
piece normally wins the battle to control an open file which is being
contested by rooks. Here Black wants to play ...Rc8 at some point to fight for
the c-file, but can he afford to remove a defender from the vulnerable
a5-pawn?} Ba6 16. Bxa6 Rxa6 {This exchange must be considered a small victory
for Black, who gets rid of his 'bad' bishop. Even so, his light squares are
now more accessible to the white queen.} 17. Qd3 Ra7 18. Rfc1 Nd6 {
What should White do now?} 19. Bxd6 $1 {Congratulations if you understand why
this is a good move - you have a deep sense of positional play. White gives up
his strong bishop in order to prevent Black plugging the c-file with 19...Nc4.
You might recall similar exertions to keep a file from being obstructed in the
game Karpov-Kasparov from Chapter Two.} Bxd6 20. Rc6 $1 {
A neat gain of a tempo, as Black cannot tolerate the rook on c6.} Nb8 21. Rc2 {
Now Unzicker has nothing better than to return his knight to d7, so White has
gained time to double his rooks on the c-file.} Nd7 22. Rac1 Nb6 23. Qb5 {
Defending a4 and forcing Black's hand by attacking a5.} Nc4 24. Nfd2 $1 {
The last minor piece that can oppose White's domination of the c-file is
dragged from its post.} Nxd2 25. Rxd2 Qa8 26. Rdc2 Rd8 27. Rc6 g6 {White's control of the open file has reached its apex. But what now? The black bishop is
guarding against an invasion of the seventh rank; the a5-pawn is out of the
range of the white rooks and is soundly defended; and there is no white pawn
that can be transmuted by the magic of the open file into a passed pawn. Does
the game therefore have to be given up as a draw as White's pressure along the
c-file is merely 'symbolic'? --- No: White's advantage on the c-file cannot be
exploited directly, but it is more than symbolic as it transmits its power to
the other side of the board. --- The superior mobility of the white pieces
somehow rubs off on their monarch. Or putting it less mystically, White's
stranglehold on the queenside allows his king to cross the board to a2 with
impunity. --- Once his king is safely tucked away on the queenside, White can
advance pawns to open lines against the black king, who has of course to stay
put on the kingside. The superior agility of the white pieces will then be
decisive: they will be able to rush over to the kingside and strike a deadly
blow before the black pieces have composed themselves to fight a battle on a
second front. --- Let's see how these abstract ideas worked out in the game:}
28. g3 Kg7 29. Kf1 {The beginning of a long journey, with White's control of
the c-file guaranteeing the king a safe passage.} Kg8 30. h4 h5 31. R1c2 $1 {
The king will cross behind the rook via c1, rather than in front, so as not to
allow Black to exchange off a rook with ...Rc8.} Kh7 32. Ke1 Kg8 33. Kd1 Kh7
34. Kc1 Kg8 35. Kb1 Kh7 36. Qe2 {Having completed his king manoeuvre,
Petrosian now turns his attention to opening lines on the kingside. The queen
move suggests he is planning g3-g4.} Qb7 37. Rc1 Kg7 ({
White's task is easier if Black tries to stop g3-g4 with} 37... f5 {, as the e6
-pawn becomes a target and in any case White can manoeuvre for a breakthrough
with an eventual f2-f3 and g3-g4.}) 38. Qb5 {Back again. --- 'That's all very
well going back to b5 with the queen', you might be thinking, 'but whatever
happened to the plan of a kingside attack?' Don't worry, it's still there, and
you will soon get to see it! --- As usual Petrosian is taking his time, and in
doing so he is giving his opponent as much opportunity to go wrong as possible.
For example, Unzicker might have despaired of saving himself from the future
kingside attack and exchanged queens with 38...Qxb5?, thereby greatly
simplifying White's task; or on the previous move, he could have panicked
about the looming g3-g4 advance and rashly weakened himself with 37...f5.
Petrosian has done his own chances no harm at all by repeating moves, whilst
testing his opponent's powers of resistance to the maximum.} Qa8 ({If} 38...
Qxb5 39. axb5 {
, the passed pawn decides matters. Chernev gives the plausible variation} a4
40. b6 Rad7 ({or} 40... Raa8 41. b7 Rab8 42. Na5 {etc}) 41. Na5 Ra8 42. Rxd6 $1
Rxd6 43. b7 Rb8 44. Rc8 Rd8 45. Rxd8 Rxd8 46. Nc6 {
and the passed pawn costs Black his rook.}) 39. f4 $1 {
At last the kingside action starts.} Kh7 ({Black continues to wait as} 39... f5
{is too loosening - the immediate} 40. Nc5 {might be a strong reply.}) 40. Qe2
Qb7 {It is likely that the game was adjourned at this point (assuming that the
time control was at 40 moves). Therefore we can see a pragmatic value to
Petrosian's patient play: he has delayed committing himself to a kingside
attack so that he can work out the tactical variations in the quiet of his
hotel room.} 41. g4 $1 {
The pawns in front of the black king will be gradually stripped away.} hxg4 42.
Qxg4 Qe7 43. h5 Qf6 44. Ka2 Kg7 45. hxg6 Qxg6 46. Qh4 Be7 47. Qf2 $1 {
Here we see the superior mobility of the white pieces that was discussed at
move 27 above. White threatens 48 Rg1 winning the black queen.} Kf8 48. Nd2 Rb7
49. Nb3 {
Even here Petrosian can't resist playing cat and mouse with his opponent.} ({If
} 49. Nf3 $4 {then} b3+ {
followed by 50...Rb4 is a crushing reply, so knight returns to b3.}) 49... Ra7
50. Qh2 {Renewing the threat of 51 Rg1, when 51...Qf6 52 Qh7 would be decisive.
} Bf6 51. Rc8 $1 {The winning breakthrough occurs on the c-file after all, but
it is White's kingside pressure that has made it possible by driving the black
king into the centre.} Rad7 ({If} 51... Rxc8 {, then} 52. Rxc8+ Ke7 53. f5 Qxf5
54. Qb8 Rd7 55. Re8# {.}) 52. Nc5 $1 b3+ ({Or} 52... Rxc8 53. Nxd7+ Ke7 54.
Rxc8 {.}) 53. Kxb3 Rd6 54. f5 $1 {
With the double threat of 55 fxg6 and 55 Qxd6+!.} Rb6+ 55. Ka2 {. There is no
good defence to the double threat of fxg6 and Nd7+. --- A marvellous game in
which Petrosian showed his mastery of all sorts of strategic devices.} 1-0

[Event "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2003.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Kramnik, V."]
[Black "Bareev, E."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "B19"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "95"]
[EventDate "2003.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Bf5 5. Ng3 Bg6 6. h4 h6 7. Nf3 Nd7 8. h5
Bh7 9. Bd3 Bxd3 10. Qxd3 Ngf6 11. Bf4 e6 12. O-O-O Be7 13. Ne4 Nxe4 14. Qxe4
Nf6 15. Qd3 Qd5 16. c4 Qe4 17. Qxe4 Nxe4 18. Be3 {The natural retreat square
for the black knight is f6, where it has influence over the important
d5-square. But Bareev had a more ambitious plan...} Nd6 $5 {
Attacking c4 in order to provoke the response b2-b3. There followed:} 19. b3
Bf6 20. g4 b5 {Attacking c4 again. Bareev reasons that if White responds to
the pressure with Nd2, then his knight is tied to a defensive role; if he
exchanges with cxb5, ...cxb5, the d4-pawn is left isolated; while finally if
he advances the pawn to c5, a hole is left on d5.} 21. Nd2 Kd7 $6 {
The black king will prove to be a target on the d-file.} ({
If Black is going to justify the plan behind 18...Nd6, it seems to me that} 
21... O-O-O {is the way to go about it, followed by ...Rd7 and ...Rhd8 to
restrain White's centre.}) 22. Kc2 Bd8 $6 {Perhaps Bareev missed White's reply.
} ({Instead} 22... bxc4 23. bxc4 Rab8 {
, intending 24...Rb4, gives Black some activity.}) 23. Nf3 Bf6 ({
Back again, but} 23... bxc4 24. Ne5+ {is highly awkward for Black - White
regains his pawn with b3xc4 while developing an initiative against the black
king.}) 24. Ne5+ Kc7 25. c5 $3 {An ugly-looking move, but Kramnik knows what
he is doing. The opening of the d-file is a vital facet of his strategy. He is
aware that Black is obliged to exchange on e5, so there won't be a weak white
pawn on d4; and secondly, he has judged that the black knight will never get
the chance to sit in majesty on the d5-square.} Bxe5 ({This is forced, as if} 
25... Nc8 {,} 26. Nxf7 {wins a pawn.}) 26. dxe5 Nc8 {Now Black is only two
moves away from having a great position after 27...Ne7 and 28...Nd5. So
Kramnik has to act forcefully:} 27. Rh3 $1 {Heading for f3 to tie down a black
rook to the defence of f7. Many players forget that rooks can be developed
vertically as well as horizontally. Keep a watch out for these possibilities.}
Ne7 28. Rf3 {All according to Capablanca's advice in such situations: use your
rooks to harass the opponent and make him defend his pawns with his big pieces.
} Rhf8 29. Rd6 $1 {The rook jumps into the outpost square before Black can
shut it out with 29...Nd5.} a5 ({
So what would have happened had the knight gone to d5? Let's see:} 29... Nd5
30. Bd2 $1 {(threatening 31 Ba5+ when in order to keep c6 defended, the black
king has to go to b7, but then Rd7+ invades; here we see why the rook is so
much better on d6 than on d1: the black king is overloaded with defensive
duties)} a5 31. g5 $1 {
(the rook finds an alternative way to break into the black camp)} hxg5 32. Bxg5
a4 33. h6 $1 {. If now} gxh6 ({likewise,} 33... g6 {is met by} 34. h7 {
and there is no answer to 35 Bh6, with the same idea of crashing through with
Rxf7+ if the black rook saves itself}) 34. Bxh6 {
, Black loses material, as moving the rook from f8 allows 35 Rxf7+.}) 30. g5 $1
{With intentions of the kind discussed in the previous note.} hxg5 31. Bxg5 Nf5
{To rule out the h5-h6 breakthrough, the black knight is obliged to renounce
the d5-square. Still, the f5 outpost doesn't look too bad at all: a four star
hotel rather than the Paris Hilton. Yes, the knight is in great comfort on f5,
and by blocking the f-file it frees the rook on f8 from having to defend f7.
So what exactly are we complaining about? --- The point is that on d5 the
knight would have a blockading function independent of its own worth as a
piece. In that respect a black pawn on d5 would be equally valuable: shift the
black pawn from b5 and put it on d5, and suddenly Black has an excellent game.
--- You may have noticed that the white bishop on g5 is, according to general
principles, a 'bad bishop' because White's centre pawns are on the dark
squares c5 and e5. However, it controls one square of exceptional importance
that overrides all its other disabilities: the d8-square. Black is prevented
from challenging for control of the open file. --- The black knight has been
prevented from blocking the d-file; the black rooks are prevented from
disputing its control. Therefore the stage is set for an invasion by the white
rooks.} 32. Rd1 a4 ({There is no time to attack h5 because if} 32... Rh8 33.
Rfd3 Rxh5 $2 {, then} 34. Rd7+ {is lethal.}) 33. b4 $1 {Of course it would be
lunacy for White to let Black open the a-file with 33...axb3+. The golden rule
is: no counterplay for the opponent!} Kc8 34. Rfd3 Ra7 35. Rd8+ Rxd8 36. Rxd8+
Kb7 {White has triumphed along the d-file, but Black's position remains solid
on the light squares. The next step is to bring the king to f4.} 37. Kc3 Ka6
38. Kd3 Rc7 39. Ke4 Kb7 40. Rd1 {As will be seen, Bareev can only await events,
which allows Kramnik to indulge himself with one or two superfluous moves
before plunging in the dagger. --- A repetition of moves can be a useful way
to get through a time scramble without making a committal decision, or a way
to clarify your thoughts about a position, or a psychological ploy to
demonstrate to the opponent his helplessness. This final reason isn't just
smug sadism with no objective merit: in the heat of the moment the opponent
might lash out wildly, perhaps because he wants to avoid a supposed draw by
repetition, even if he stands worse, and in doing so simplifies the winning
process.} Kc8 41. Rd8+ Kb7 42. Kf4 Rc8 43. Rd7+ Rc7 44. Rd3 Kc8 45. Rd8+ Kb7 {
Question: How is White going to break through the solid wall constructed by
his grandmaster opponent? Answer: By exploiting the weakness of a knight when
facing a passed pawn on the edge of the board:} 46. Bf6 $3 g6 ({If} 46... gxf6
47. exf6 {, there is no way to meet the plan of Kg5 and h5-h6, which forces a
king and pawn endgame that is winning for White. Thus if} Rc8 {, then} 48. Rxc8
Kxc8 49. Kg5 Kd8 50. h6 Nxh6 51. Kxh6 Ke8 52. Kg7 {and White wins the f7-pawn.}
) ({Meanwhile after} 46... Rc8 47. Rxc8 Kxc8 {
we again see just how helpless a knight can be against a rook's pawn:} 48. Bxg7
$1 Nxg7 49. h6 {
and there is no way for the horse to stop the pawn from queening.}) 47. hxg6
fxg6 48. Kg5 ({Here Bareev resigned as the g6-pawn is about to fall. Now
imagine that he had tried} 48. Kg5 Rc8 {
, and White, eager to get his hands on the pawn, had replied} 49. Rxc8 Kxc8 50.
Kxg6 {. Then after} Kd7 {the knight has the last laugh after all: there is no
way for White to break through the light-squared blockade.} ({And looking more
closely at the position, we see that Black could even play to win with} 50...
a3 $5 {, fixing the white pawn on a2 with the idea of ...Nd4, ...Nc2 and ...Nxb4, and meeting} 51. Kf7 {with} Kd7 {. White's bishop has suddenly become a
poor piece compared to the knight due to the blocked pawn structure and lack
of passed pawns for it to support. Thus 49 Rxc8?? would be a dreadful exchange,
well deserving the two question marks, as the white bishop needs the help of
the rook to function properly.})) ({So after} 48. Kg5 Rc8 {
White should keep the rooks on the board.} 49. Rd7+ $1 {looks the way to do it}
({if} 49. Rd3 {Black has the option of} Rg8) {
, forcing the black rook back to c7 to rule out the ...Rg8 defence. Then} 49...
Rc7 50. Rd3 $1 {and all is ready for Kxg6. Two possible finishes are:} -- ({
a) Black waits:} 50... Kb8 51. Kxg6 Kb7 52. Bd8 $1 {
, clearing the way for 53 Kf6 and 54 Kxe6.}) ({
b) Black tries for the rook exchange:} 50... Kc8 51. Rd8+ $1 {
(to prevent ...Rd7)} Kb7 52. Kxg6 Rc8 53. Rd6 $1 {
(White exploits the d6 outpost in some style)} Nxd6 54. exd6 {
and Black will be forced into another trivially lost king and pawn endgame:}
Ra8 55. d7 Kc7 56. d8=Q+ Rxd8 57. Bxd8+ Kxd8 58. Kf6 Kd7 59. f4 {and e6 drops.
--- When Bareev loses, it is almost always because he is caught by a prepared
variation in his rather predictable opening repertoire. He might lose to a
mating attack, but hardly ever is he ground down in this fashion. --- It's no
wonder that Svidler described Kramnik as the greatest positional player in the
world.})) 1-0

[Event "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2003.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Kramnik, V."]
[Black "Krasenkow, M."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C54"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "159"]
[EventDate "2003.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. c3 Nf6 5. d3 a6 6. Bb3 O-O 7. O-O d5 8. exd5
Nxd5 9. h3 Nb6 10. Re1 h6 11. Nbd2 Qxd3 12. Nxe5 Qg3 13. Qf3 Qxf3 14. Ndxf3 Ne7
{With a virtually symmetrical pawn structure and a minimal lead in development,
it is hard to imagine that White will be able to set his opponent any serious
problems. It is therefore highly instructive to see how Kramnik manages to
ratchet up the tension and maintain it right until the end of he game. The
secret is his willingness to exchange one advantage for another.} 15. Nd3 $1
Bd6 16. Bf4 Ng6 ({After} 16... Bxf4 17. Nxf4 Nc6 18. Ne5 Nxe5 19. Rxe5 {
White can't be prevented from seizing the seventh rank with 20 Re7, when both
the c7- and f7-pawns will become targets. Note that if} Bd7 20. Re7 Rae8 21.
Rae1 {there is the double threat of 22 Bxf7+ Rxf7 23 Rxe8+ and - even better -
22 Ng6!, picking up the f7-pawn in a more favourable way.}) 17. Bxd6 cxd6 {
So White won't get a rook to e7, at least not for the moment. On the other
hand, Black has conceded an isolated pawn on d6. Here is the first exchange of
advantages: White's potential piece activity on the e-file has been transformed
into a structural advantage. Kramnik now sets about exploiting the weakness,
with his rook heading straight for d4.} 18. Re4 $1 a5 19. Rd4 Rd8 20. Rd1 {
White is ready to uncover an attack on d6 by moving his knight from d3, and so
Krasenkow advances the pawn to d5, where it is easier for his knights to defend.
} d5 21. Nc5 Ne7 22. a4 $1 {Kramnik intends to retreat the rook from d4 but
doesn't wish to allow Black to drive his bishop backwards with ...a4, when the
pressure on d5 is eased.} Re8 23. R4d2 $1 {White clears the way for the
manoeuvre 24 Nd4 and 25 Nb5, when the knight would be poised to make a
powerful entrance on c7. Even if Black had in the meantime evacuated one of
his rooks to avoid a fork, it would still mean that a fourth white piece would
be joining the attack on the d5-pawn. Furthermore, after 25 Nb5, Black would
also have to reckon with 26 Nd6.} Nd7 {Krasenkow feels compelled to deal with
the threat described above, but in doing so he has to let the d-file be opened
for the white rooks.} 24. Nxd7 Bxd7 25. c4 $1 dxc4 26. Rxd7 cxb3 27. Rxb7 {
At move 17, Kramnik converted his (potential) activity advantage into a
structural advantage. Now White's structural advantage has been converted back
into an advantage in activity: namely a rook on the seventh rank. --- It might
be argued that the b3-pawn is a structural defect, but any weakness of the
pawn is inextricably linked with White's dominance of the seventh rank. After
all, if Black rather than White had a rook on the seventh rank, we might be
describing White's b2-pawn as a structural weakness and the b3-pawn as an
asset for Black: a far advanced pawn with the potential to become a queen. In
fact, any judgement about the weakness or strength of a pawn structure has to
take into account the activity or passivity of both sets of pieces. We must
always bear this in mind when we talk about an advantage in activity or an
advantage in structure: they aren't two mutually exclusive assets - indeed,
the fact that one type of advantage is so readily converted into the other
type shows their interconnectedness. Having said all that, for the sake of
clarity we shall continue to refer to structural and activity advantages as
distinct entities.} Rab8 28. Rdd7 Nc6 ({The b3-pawn is lost after} 28... Rxb7
29. Rxb7 {. Krasenkow prefers to give up the f7-pawn in order to gain
counterplay on the queenside.}) 29. Rxf7 Rxb7 30. Rxb7 Re4 31. Rxb3 Rxa4 {
White's advantage has undergone a third transformation: piece activity has
been converted into an advantage in material. Nevertheless, the game remains
finely balanced between a win for White and a draw for Black. If Black
succeeds in liquidating the queenside pawns without suffering any misfortune
on the kingside, White's 3-2 majority of pawns is unlikely to be enough for
victory: Black would only need to give up his knight and two pawns for White's
three pawns in order to achieve the theoretical draw of rook versus rook and
knight (with no pawns on the board). --- Therefore, Kramnik is planning
another conversion of advantage, for which he will need to utilize his
kingside pawns.} 32. Rb6 Rc4 33. g3 $1 ({Only thus: White needs to keep the
knights on the board in order to carry out his attacking scheme on the
kingside, but if} 33. h4 $2 Nd4 34. Ne5 $6 Ne2+ 35. Kf1 Rxh4 $1 36. Kxe2 Re4+ {
and 37...Rxe5 draws.}) 33... a4 34. h4 Nd4 35. Ne5 $1 {
The vital preservation of the knights.} ({After} 35. Nxd4 Rxd4 {Black would
have no trouble drawing once he had forced the exchange of queenside pawns
with 36...Rd1, 37...Ra1 and 38...a3. A 3-2 advantage of pawns in a 'normal'
kingside set-up is insufficient to win in a rook endgame.}) 35... Rc5 36. Rb8+
Kh7 37. Nd7 {Kramnik's plan begins to unfold: the white knight and rook are
gradually encroaching on the black king, and after the looming h4-h5 the
monarch will have even less air.} Rb5 38. Ra8 $1 ({Again Kramnik has to avoid
an exchange if he wants to keep up the pressure: upon} 38. Rxb5 Nxb5 39. Nc5 a3
{the elimination of the queenside pawns would leave White with only tiny
winning chances.}) 38... Ne2+ 39. Kg2 Rxb2 40. h5 $1 {Now that the extra pawn
has vanished, we might say: White's material advantage has been converted into
piece activity - that is, pressure against the black king. Already there is a
threat to mate with 41 Ne5, 42 Ng6 and 43 Rh8. --- Of course, it has been
apparent for some moves that Kramnik has been weaving a mating net around the
black king rather than trying to exploit his material advantage. Does this
mean that the extra pawn has therefore been an irrelevance? --- Not at all: it
is precisely the favourable material balance that has given Kramnik the
freedom to build up his attack unopposed on the kingside. If Krasenkow hadn't
been preoccupied with the need to eliminate White's queenside pawn, he could
have directed all his attention towards safeguarding his king. There are more
ways to exploit an extra pawn than by queening it.} Nc3 ({
Black could have opened things up for his king with} 40... g6 {, when} 41. Nf8+
({perhaps Kramnik would have made do with} 41. Rxa4 gxh5 42. Ne5 {, when he has
a passed pawn and the chance to attack the doubled h-pawns; in that case, we
might say that piece activity has been converted into a structural advantage})
41... Kg7 42. Nxg6 Nc3 {
isn't entirely clear as Black has an advanced passed pawn.}) 41. Ne5 Rb5 {
Slowing down White's initiative, as 42 Ng6? Rxh5 costs him a pawn. Kramnik
therefore calls on the services of his other kingside pawns.} 42. f4 Ne4 43. g4
$1 ({Black was hoping for some respite after} 43. Rxa4 {in the shape of} Nf6
44. g4 Nd5 {(threatening 45...Nxf4+ followed by 46...Rxe5)} 45. Ng6 Rb4 $1 {
, when White is compelled to exchange rooks because} 46. Ra8 {is met by} Nxf4+
{. But Kramnik is relentless.}) 43... Nf6 44. Ng6 Ng8 {The need to prevent the
mate on h8 has paralysed the black knight. There follow some superfluous
repetitions of moves as Kramnik deals with time pressure or works out the best
way to increase his advantage. Finally he decides on the set-up: white pawn on
g5, white king on g4, and white knight on f4 which is reached at move 57:} 45.
Nf8+ Kh8 46. Ng6+ Kh7 47. Kf3 Rb3+ 48. Ke4 a3 49. Nf8+ Kh8 50. Ng6+ Kh7 51. g5
hxg5 52. fxg5 Rb4+ 53. Kf5 Rb5+ 54. Kg4 Rb4+ 55. Kf5 Rb5+ 56. Kg4 Rb4+ 57. Nf4
a2 {Krasenkow decides to jettison the passed pawn.} ({If} 57... Rb3 {
the white knight is freed from the pin and can strike a deadly blow:} 58. g6+
Kh8 59. Ne6 a2 60. Ng5 a1=Q 61. Nf7# {.}) 58. Rxa2 {So White has restored his
material advantage. But in this case the nature of his advantage doesn't
really change: he is still trying to exploit the black king's entombment on
the h-file. In fact, as we shall see in the next note, the demise of the
a-pawn actually improves Black's defensive chances by introducing ideas of
obtaining a draw by stalemate.} Ne7 59. Ra8 Ng8 60. Ra7 ({If White tries} 60.
g6+ Kh8 61. Kg3 {, aiming to win with 62 Ne6, 63 Ng5 and 64 Nf7 mate, give or
take a few checks by the black rook, then he is in for a shock after} Rxf4 $1 {
. Because} 62. Kxf4 {is stalemate} ({and} 62. Rxg8+ {doesn't win either:} Kxg8
63. Kxf4 Kh8 64. Ke5 Kg8 65. Ke6 Kh8 66. h6 Kg8 $1 67. Ke7 ({or} 67. h7+ Kh8 {
with stalemate next move}) 67... gxh6 {.})) 60... Kh8 61. Ra8 Kh7 62. Rf8 Kh8
63. Kf3 {At last Kramnik hits upon the winning scheme: put the king on e5 and
shelter it from checks with Nd5. White will then be threatening Ne7, winning
the pinned knight on g8, so the black rook will have to keep the white knight
pinned. At this point a winning breakthrough will be possible using the
kingside pawns.} Rb3+ 64. Ke4 Rb4+ 65. Ke5 Rb5+ 66. Nd5 Ra5 ({Or} 66... Kh7 67.
g6+ Kh8 68. h6 $1 {, as in the game.}) 67. Rd8 Kh7 68. g6+ Kh8 69. h6 $1 {
The decisive move.} Ra7 (69... gxh6 {is met by} 70. Rd7 {threatening mate on
h7, when the black knight can't vacate g8 without losing its life. Trivial
would be} Rxd5+ 71. Rxd5 ({but not} 71. Kxd5 $4 Nf6+) 71... Kg7 72. Rd6 {
and White follows up with 73 Kf5 and 74 Rd7+, as} Ne7 {loses at once to} 73.
Rd7 Kf8 74. g7+ {.}) 70. Ne3 $1 ({Avoiding the stalemate trick} 70. h7 $2 Re7+
71. Kd6 Re6+ $1 {etc.}) 70... gxh6 71. Nf5 $1 {Another winning schema for
White is: knight on f5, king on h5, rook on f8, with the black rook tied to
its second rank to prevent Ne7, when Rf7! is decisive.} Ra5+ ({
If Black waits with} 71... Rb7 {
then White just carries on with his plan by playing} 72. Kf4 $1 {.} ({However,
} 72. Nxh6 $2 {lets it burn out to a theoretical draw after} Kg7 $1 73. Nxg8
Kxg6 {.})) 72. Kf4 Ra4+ 73. Kf3 Ra3+ 74. Kg4 Ra4+ 75. Kh5 Ra7 76. Rf8 Rb7 77.
Kh4 ({Playing it safe, but} 77. Rf7 {already wins:} Rxf7 78. gxf7 Nf6+ 79. Kg6
Nd7 80. Kxh6 Nf8 81. Nh4 {(zugzwang!)} Nd7 82. Ng6# {.}) 77... Rb4+ 78. Kg3 Rb6
({Again if} 78... Rb7 {, then} 79. Rf7 $1 {.}) 79. Ne7 Kg7 80. Rf7+ {. It's mate next move. --- Control of the seventh rank only played a limited role in
Kramnik's winning plan. However, if those parts of the plan are removed from
the process, White's strategy would come to a dead end. --- That was a very
hard game, which reflects great credit on the Polish Grandmaster Michal
Krasenkow. He forced Kramnik to apply his positional powers to the maximum.}
1-0

[Event "9th Matchgame, Leningrad"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1974.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Karpov, A."]
[Black "Spassky, B."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "B83"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "69"]
[EventDate "1974.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 d6 6. Be2 Be7 7. O-O O-O 8. f4
Nc6 9. Be3 Bd7 ({More popular nowadays is} 9... a6) ({or} 9... e5 {.}) 10. Nb3
$1 {A typical restraining move. Karpov sees that his opponent intends to ease
his game with 10...Nxd4 11 Bxd4 Bc6, and so he retreats the knight to leave
the black bishop passively placed on d7.} a5 $6 {Spassky seeks dynamic play on
the queenside, even at the cost of loosening his pawns. The verdict seems to
be that such an approach is not quite good enough for equality, though it is
also far from being the forced loss that Karpov's play makes it appear to be!}
(10... Qc7 {or}) (10... a6 {is sounder.}) 11. a4 {Another important
restraining move. Black mustn't be permitted to undermine White's queenside
with 11...a4 and 12...a3. At the same time, Karpov consolidates his hold on
the b5-square, which is a hole in the black pawn structure.} Nb4 {On the other
hand, the black knight has acquired a fine 'outpost' in the white camp from
which it seems well nigh impossible to dislodge (but as we shall see, not
impossible for Karpov!). Black also clears the way for the bishop to be
brought to c6 after all.} 12. Bf3 {Prophylaxis against Black's next move,
which will add a second attacker to the e4-pawn. Also, the way is cleared for
the rook to defend the c2-pawn, thereby releasing the white queen from
defensive duty (see move 14).} Bc6 {This seems promising at first glance, as
Black is poised for a breakout with 13...d5 14 e5 Ne4, fully activating his
game.} ({However, in later games Black preferred} 12... e5 $5 {
, preventing the white knight from returning to the centre.}) 13. Nd4 $1 {
The ever alert Karpov squashes Black's hopes of freeing his game.} g6 ({
Black changes tack: he now decides to equalize the space balance in the centre
with ...e6-e5, but doesn't want to allow the white knight to get to f5, as
occurs after} 13... e5 $6 14. Nf5 {. Therefore this preventive pawn move makes
sense, but it does create a significant weakness in his kingside pawn
structure.}) ({Meanwhile, if now} 13... d5 $2 {, White replies} 14. e5 {
and Black would be compelled to retreat the knight to d7 with a passive
position, as} Ne4 $2 {just loses a pawn to} 15. Nxc6 bxc6 16. Nxe4 dxe4 17.
Bxe4 {.}) 14. Rf2 $1 {Karpov anticipates his opponent's reply and intends to
gain the maximum benefit from the change in the pawn structure.} e5 15. Nxc6
bxc6 16. fxe5 dxe5 17. Qf1 $1 {The white queen takes up the post that the rook
has so kindly vacated. There is no player in the history of chess as adept at
dominating his opponent from the back rank as Karpov. --- Let's pause a moment
and take stock. White's pawn structure isn't perfect, but his pawns are harder
to attack than Black's, whose a5- and c6-pawns are split, and e5-pawn
unprotected. In contrast, White's isolated pawn on e4 is well defended. The
fact that Black has played ...g7-g6 makes him more vulnerable on the f-file:
if the pawn were back on g7, the black knight on f6 would be on a rock-solid
platform, and there would also be no ideas of Bh6, driving the black rook from
f8, followed by a direct attack with the white queen and rooks against f7. ---
Thinking about squares, Black is somewhat fragile on the light squares due to
the exchange of his light-squared bishop. In this regard we see that the
c4-square would make a very attractive post for the white queen, or possibly
the white bishop. On c4 the queen would have an eye both on the f7-square and
on the c6-pawn. --- To summarize, Karpov will be looking to build up pressure
along the f-file as his main plan of campaign. As what might be described as a
diversionary tactic, he will also try to interfere with the smooth operation
of the black pieces by forcing them to defend pawns on the queenside.} Qc8 18.
h3 {As yet there was no threat of ...Ng4, but Karpov decides to prevent it in
the long term. His little pawn move has a curious psychological effect - see
the note to White's 19th move.} Nd7 $2 {With the noble intention of 19...Bc5,
exchanging off bishops, when White would start to look vulnerable on the dark
squares - notably d4 might become a base for a black knight or even a rook.} ({
But as White's reply defeats this plan, he should have tried} 18... Kg7 {.})
19. Bg4 $1 {Karpov carries out a favourable exchange: he is glad to get rid of
his inactive bishop for a black knight that was likely to have been a staunch
opponent to his plan of attack along the f-file. I wonder if Spassky
underestimated this move because he felt (erroneously) that with 18 h3 Karpov
had in effect said to him, 'I want to keep my light-squared bishop and so I
won't allow Black to exchange it for a knight with 18...Ng4.' So Spassky
played 18...Nd7 thinking, 'Oh, don't worry about 19 Bg4; Karpov doesn't want
that exchange to happen!'} h5 {Still not appreciating the danger. Why weaken
the kingside further? He should move the queen to c7.} 20. Bxd7 Qxd7 21. Qc4 $1
{At last the queen reaches her ideal square. If Black had been able to
exchange dark-squared bishops, he could have challenged the white queen
immediately with ...Qd4!; but as things stand he has no counterplay.} Bh4 22.
Rd2 Qe7 23. Rf1 $1 {There is no need to enter complications when simple moves
will increase White's advantage.} ({Hence Karpov rejects} 23. Bc5 Qg5 24. Rd7
Nxc2 25. Bxf8 Rxf8 {, even though he wins the exchange.}) 23... Rfd8 ({
Instead of weakening the f7-square, Black should have calmly played} 23... Rad8
$1 {. Then if} 24. Bc5 {,} Qb7 $1 {holds on, so I guess that Karpov would have
played the same brilliant move as in the game, though without quite as big an
advantage.}) {Back to the game, and what should White play here?} 24. Nb1 $3 {
A famous retreat. The knight clears the way for c2-c3, driving Black's only
well-placed piece into obscurity on the a-file. Then the c6-pawn becomes a
target and Black is left seriously undermanned in the defence of his kingside.
As for the white knight, it can quickly be brought into action with Nd2 and
Nf3 - a far more aggressive deployment than on c3, where it was held back by
the little pawn on c6 which denied it the d5-square. --- It is very easy to
sing the praises of 24 Nb1!! once you have seen the move - but very hard to
conceive the idea in the first place.} ({The problem is that as we get better
at chess, we tend to filter out such moves from our chess comprehension, as in
most cases they are simply bad: after all, we shouldn't waste our energy
considering the type of moves that only a beginner would make! It reaches a
stage where we don't even notice moves like 24 Nb1, as they are rejected by
our unconscious mind in the same way that we don't even for a second consider
a move like} 24. Nd5 {, as it so obviously loses a piece. But even in the
cases of 'impossible' moves like 24 Nd5 we have to keep an open mind, as
elsewhere in the book we will see two examples of Capablanca playing Nf5, just
offering his knight to a pawn on g6! --- It is Karpov's unique gift that he
can see ideas and resources that are beyond the comprehension of the ordinary
chess player - and indeed I would say beyond the ordinary chess genius. How
else could he have been for almost 25 years either the number one rated player
in the World or the second highest (second only to Kasparov, naturally a chess
phenomenon in his own right)?}) 24... Qb7 25. Kh2 $1 {Another completely
innocuous-looking move that increases the pressure on the opponent. The white
king secures himself against a check on the back rank or along the a7-g1
diagonal, and at the same time forces Black to take measures against a
possible g2-g3, when retreating the bishop to e7 would drop the f7-pawn.} Kg7
26. c3 Na6 27. Re2 $1 {So passive and yet so powerful! With great humility the
rook quietly sidesteps the challenge on the d-file in order to keep b2
defended and clear the way for the white knight to enter the fray.} Rf8 28. Nd2
Bd8 29. Nf3 {The powerful white knight charging towards the kingside makes a
startling contrast to the poor lame nag on a6. Already Spassky feels obliged
to weaken his pawn front further in order to defend e5.} f6 30. Rd2 $1 {
Now that the knight has completed its journey to f3, the white rook resumes
its role on the d-file. And it is handsomely rewarded for its patience, as the
black rook that was its mortal foe on d8 has in the meantime vanished.} Be7 31.
Qe6 $1 {The white queen finds an even better light square has opened up to her
(and remember, this would never have happened but for the Nb1 manoeuvre that
eventually provoked ...f7-f6). On e6, her majesty is able to use her power to
simultaneously support two ideas: an invasion along the d-file with Rd7 and a
winning breakthrough from a culmination of the pressure on the f-file with
Nxe5!. Black doesn't have enough defensive resources to deal with both ideas,
as his kingside is weak and his knight on a6 is out of the game.} Rad8 32. Rxd8
Bxd8 (32... Rxd8 {is met by} 33. Nxe5 $1 {, when there is a quick mate after}
fxe5 ({or if Black counters with} 33... Qc7 {, pinning the knight, White has}
34. Qf7+ Kh8 35. Qxe7 $1 Qxe7 36. Nxg6+ Kh7 37. Nxe7 {
emerging a piece and two pawns up}) 34. Rf7+ {.}) 33. Rd1 Nb8 34. Bc5 {
Complete positional domination: the former World Champion has been totally
outplayed.} Rh8 35. Rxd8 $1 ({Black is soon mated after} 35. Rxd8 Rxd8 36. Be7
{; for example,} Re8 37. Qxf6+ Kh6 ({or} 37... Kh7 38. Qf7+ Kh6 39. Bg5#) 38.
Nh4 Rg8 {(or else it's mate on g6)} 39. Nf5+ Kh7 40. Qf7+ Kh8 41. Bf6+ {
. --- One of Karpov's very best games.}) 1-0

[Event "San Antonio"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1972.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Karpov, A."]
[Black "Gligoric, S."]
[Result "1-0"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "6rr/1bqnkpp1/p2b4/2pPpPP1/1pP1P1B1/4B3/P1QN1K2/2R4R w - - 0 41"]
[PlyCount "23"]
[EventDate "1972.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{Black has just played 40...Rcg8. White has an impressive space advantage on
the kingside, but everything in the black camp appears to be in order. The
black rooks are contesting the only open file on the board; the preparation of
a pawn advance such as f5-f6+ or g5-g6 is more likely to expose the white king
than cause his black counterpart any discomfort. --- It takes a little
imagination to see that the c5-pawn would be attacked three times after Nb3, a
move of the white king somewhere, and then Qf2. But so what? The pawn is
defended three times. It is also possible to open a second front on the
queenside with 41 a3 when Black should reply 41...a5, keeping his queenside
pawns intact, when it is hard to see what White has gained: his pieces aren't
able to profit from the open a-file after 42 axb4 axb4, and he mustn't allow
his rook to get distracted from the business of the h-file. --- Okay, the plan
of a2-a3 doesn't achieve anything for White; the plan of attacking c5 three
times is similarly fruitless; and there is nothing to be gained on the h-file.
But what if White combined all three ideas together? --- That's exactly what
Karpov did in the game. Let's see what happened:} 41. Qd1 $3 Kd8 {Gligoric sees
that White is planning 42 Qg1, 43 Rh2 and 44 Qh1, when Black would be obliged
to relinquish control of the h-file to the white queen with 44...Rxh2 45 Qxh2.
Not wishing to do so, the Yugoslavian GM clears the way for his own queen to
get to f8, so that after Qh1 in this scenario Black can gain control of the
h-file himself with ...Rxh2 and ...Rh8 thanks to the support of his queen.
Unfortunately for Black, clearing the furniture out of the way of the black
queen has a disastrous secondary effect, as will soon be seen.} 42. Qg1 {
Despite his massive space advantage, Karpov doesn't despise the back rank. He
sees that on g1 the queen is perfectly placed to fight for the h-file and also
attack c5.} Nb6 43. Rh2 Qe7 {
The black queen arrives in time to staunch the kingside.} 44. Nb3 (44. Qh1 Qf8
45. Rxh8 Rxh8 {can only favour Black. So now White switches to Plan B: the
attack on the c5-pawn.}) 44... Kc7 45. Kf3 Nd7 {So how have things changed
since move 41? Black is still holding the balance on the h-file and the
c5-pawn is still defended three times. The main strategic difference is that
the black king and queen have swapped places. In our initial position, the
pawn stab 41 a3 achieved nothing for White, because Black could reply 41...a5,
keeping every solid. In contrast, after...} 46. a3 $1 {...Black can no longer
play 46...a5 as the white knight simply takes it. Furthermore, the black queen
is much less able to hold together the queenside on e7 than on c7; and the
black king is far more exposed to attack on c7 than on e7. --- Here we see the
magnificence of Karpov's planning that has completely wrong-footed a player of
Gligoric's class.} bxa3 47. Ra2 $1 {Even the move 43 Rh2, which appeared
designed solely to fight for the h-file, proves a masterstroke, as the rook is
able to swing over to the queenside and join in a direct attack on the black
king.} Rh4 48. Rxa3 Rgh8 49. Rb1 {The open h-file has become an irrelevance
because there is a king on c7 in danger of being mated.} Rb8 50. Qe1 $1 Rxg4
51. Kxg4 Bc8 52. Qa5+ {. The white queen has won the positional battle by
swinging along the back rank. Now she ends the game with a decisive tactical
blow on a5.} ({If} 52. Qa5+ Rb6 {, then} 53. Nxc5 $1 Bxc5 54. Rxb6 Bxb6 55.
Bxb6+ Nxb6 56. c5 {is a massacre.}) 1-0

[Event "New York"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1916.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Janowski, D."]
[Black "Capablanca, J."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D15"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "92"]
[EventDate "1916.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. d4 Nf6 ({Capablanca's 10...Bd7 below is a very modern type of move: the
strategically best move is played with no qualms whatsoever about breaking
general precepts. For players of Janowski's generation, who learned their
trade under the teachings of Tarrasch, with its emphasis on rapid development
and mobility, the way Capablanca retreats what seems to be a perfectly
well-placed piece instead of developing must have seemed bizarre. There is
much talk of a hypermodern revolution in the 1920s, but we tend to
underestimate the striking effect on the chess world of Capablanca's arrival
in the 1910s. Despite his 'classical' style, Capablanca had a hypermodern
spirit in that he never let his genius be bound by rules. --- Only once did he
allow rules to get in the way of playing the best move. It was such an
exceptional case that he even described it in 'My Chess Career'. It was
against the very same Janowski: J.Capablanca-D.Janowski, San Sebastian 1911,
began} 1... d5 2. e3 Nf6 3. Nf3 c5 4. c4 e6 5. Nc3 Be7 6. dxc5 O-O 7. a3 Bxc5
8. b4 Be7 9. Bb2 a5 10. b5 b6 11. cxd5 exd5 12. Nd4 Bd6 13. Be2 {. Here Capablanca writes: "'A mistake, the cause of most of my future trouble. I saw at the
time that 13 g3 seemed the proper continuation, but I became afraid of being
criticized for creating such a formation of pawns on the kingside, and hence
the selection of this bad move against my better judgment. --- It must be
remembered that I was playing my first big tournament, and I did not want to
be criticized for doing what poor players so often do.' - 'My Chess Career'
(Macmillan 1920). --- After 13 g3 and 14 Bg2 the bishop on g2 would be safe
from attack and threatening the d5-pawn. At the same time, the power of the
bishop on d6 would be blunted as the g3-pawn would shield h2 from attack.} {
The actual game went} Be6 14. Bf3 {(as Capablanca remarks, the bishop is soon
driven back to e2, so this is another imprecision)} Ra7 15. O-O Rc7 16. Qb3
Nbd7 17. Rfd1 Ne5 18. Be2 Qe7 19. Rac1 Rfc8 {
(Black's dynamic build-up has been admirable)} 20. Na4 Rxc1 21. Rxc1 Rxc1+ 22.
Bxc1 Ne4 23. Bb2 Nc4 24. Bxc4 Bxh2+ $1 {(Black is able to carry out the Greek
Gift sacrifice, something which would have been impossible after 13 g3)} 25.
Kxh2 Qh4+ 26. Kg1 Qxf2+ 27. Kh2 Qg3+ {and Janowski had a guaranteed draw by
perpetual check, but he battled on, spurning various draws and even missing a
win before blundering and losing after a long endgame. --- I hope this extract
illustrates what a dangerous attacker Janowski could be if given the chance.
He even managed to win a game against the Cuban at Havana in 1913. But overall
he was outclassed by Capablanca when it came to positional chess, and the
Cuban was shrewd enough not to give him the sort of position he liked to play.}
) 2. Nf3 d5 3. c4 c6 4. Nc3 Bf5 5. Qb3 Qb6 $1 {It is well known that Janowski
loved making combinations in the middlegame whilst absolutely despising the
endgame. As our love for a skill is usually a reflection of our competence in
carrying it out, it won't surprise you to learn that Janowski was a rotten
endgame player.} 6. Qxb6 axb6 7. cxd5 Nxd5 8. Nxd5 cxd5 9. e3 Nc6 10. Bd2 Bd7
$1 {A move of great strategic beauty.} ({Instead of the routine} 10... e6 {
, Capablanca retreats his bishop as he has hit on the plan of ...Na5, ...b6-b5
and ...Nc4. For this purpose he needs to defend the b5-pawn against capture by
Bf1xb5.}) 11. Be2 ({A more aggressive development was} 11. Bb5 e6 12. Ke2 {
, keeping the king in the centre and fighting against Black's plan of queenside 
expansion.}) 11... e6 12. O-O Bd6 13. Rfc1 {Another routine move of the type
often played by Capablanca's opponents. The rook is placed on the only open
file because that is where rooks are 'supposed' to be placed - no matter that
there is nothing for the rook to do there!} ({He might have played} 13. Bc3 {
at once.}) 13... Ke7 {Of course!} ({The rook on h8 needs a way into the game,
but Capablanca doesn't play the routine} 13... O-O {
as his king might prove a useful defensive and aggressive piece in the endgame.
}) 14. Bc3 Rhc8 15. a3 {Weakening the light squares, but this move will be
necessary at some point if White is to free the rook on a1 from the defence of
the pawn.} Na5 {At last the plan hinted at with 10...Bd7 comes into fruition.}
16. Nd2 {White plans an expansion in the centre with 17 e4, but Capablanca
puts a stop to it straightaway. Not to be deterred, Janowski prepares f2-f3
and e3-e4.} f5 17. g3 b5 18. f3 Nc4 19. Bxc4 {
White cannot tolerate the knight sitting permanently on the c4-square.} ({
More obvious was} 19. Nxc4 {, but after} bxc4 {White cannot play e3-e4 for the
time being and meanwhile Black can prepare the pawn advance ...b7-b5-b4 after
supporting it with ...Rcb8 etc. Black could combine this with kingside action
via ...g7-g5 as occurs in the game. 19 Bxc4 must therefore be regarded as a
good decision, but Janowski followed it up in poor style.}) 19... bxc4 20. e4
Kf7 21. e5 $4 {It is when you see a leading grandmaster of 1916 play such a
move that you appreciate the debt we owe to Capablanca and other pioneers of
positional chess such as Rubinstein. Janowski thinks he is gaining space in
the centre, but in reality with this and his next move he is creating a mass
of dead wood in the centre that can be chopped down with ...g7-g5.} ({
Chernev suggests} 21. exd5 exd5 22. f4 {, creating an outpost square on e5 for
the white knight. After the subsequent 23 Nf3 and 24 Ne5+, removing the knight
with 24...Bxe5 leads to an opposite-coloured bishop and rook endgame that
should be a draw. Capablanca would no doubt have found a way to test Janowski
after 22 f4, but White looks okay. In that sense f3-f4 and Ne5 would be
White's 'revenge' for Black's ...b6-b5 and ...Nc4.}) 21... Be7 22. f4 b5 {
Here Black has two pawn rams available to him: ...b5-b4 on the queenside, ...g7-g5 on the kingside. In contrast, White can only fortify his position and
wait for the attack. The apparent space advantage conferred by the pawns on d4,
e5 and f4 is meaningless.} 23. Kf2 Ra4 24. Ke3 Rca8 25. Rab1 h6 26. Nf3 g5 27.
Ne1 {You will notice that Black has resolutely refused to hit his opponent
with the pawn stab ...b5-b4, despite the apparent build-up towards it: one
rook going to a4 to directly support the pawn advance, the other going to a8
to seize the open file after the a3xb4 exchange. --- But the breakthrough
hasn't come: instead Capablanca has shifted his attention to the g-file. ---
Why is this? The threat is stronger than the execution. By making a feint to
play ...b5-b4, Capablanca has tied all the white pieces down on the queenside.
Certainly these pieces will be well placed if ...b5-b4 actually happens - even
the bishop on c3, which is shut in by all its pawns, would find a useful role,
if only in exchanging itself for the far more powerful bishop on e7. --- So
why should Black open the queenside to the benefit of the white pieces? It's
much better to open lines on the kingside away from the main body of defenders.
Moreover, because Black has extra space on the queenside, the white pieces are
more or less crammed together, and so aren't as mobile as their black
counterparts. This means that they will be less capable of responding to the
opening of a second front on the kingside.} Rg8 $1 {
The change of direction begins.} 28. Kf3 gxf4 29. gxf4 Raa8 $1 {The black rooks
race to double on the g-file before the white rooks arrive on the scene.} 30.
Ng2 Rg4 31. Rg1 Rag8 32. Be1 {Capablanca has managed to exert strong pressure
down the g-file, but how can he overturn the defence?} b4 $3 {Only now. The
second pawn thrust clears the way for the light-squared bishop to enter the
fray.} 33. axb4 Ba4 34. Ra1 $2 ({Instead} 34. Rc1 {
would prevent the bishop manoeuvre that follows. Then} Rxf4+ {
is a clever way to win the pawn back, meeting} 35. Kxf4 ({however,} 35. Nxf4
Rxg1 36. Ra1 Bc2 37. b5 {offers White some counterplay}) {with} 35... Bg5+ 36.
Kf3 Bxc1 {.}) ({Perhaps after} 34. Rc1 {the simple} Bb3 {intending 35...Ra8,} (
{or possibly} 34... Rb8 {and 35...Bxb4 is the best way to maintain control. In
any case, White should have tried this as he quickly comes to grief in the
game once Black's bishop gets to e4.})) 34... Bc2 35. Bg3 Be4+ 36. Kf2 h5 $1 {
The third pawn ram looms with 37...h4, and White must lose at least the
exchange.} 37. Ra7 Bxg2 38. Rxg2 h4 39. Bxh4 ({Slightly more resistant was} 39.
Rxe7+ Kxe7 40. Bxh4+ {.}) 39... Rxg2+ 40. Kf3 Rxh2 41. Bxe7 ({Or} 41. Rxe7+ Kf8
{.}) 41... Rh3+ 42. Kf2 Rb3 43. Bg5+ Kg6 44. Re7 Rxb2+ 45. Kf3 ({If} 45. Kg3 {,
} Rb3+ 46. Kf2 Ra8 $1 {intending 47...Ra2+ and mate next move.}) 45... Ra8 46.
Rxe6+ Kh7 ({
The end can only be delayed for a couple of moves, because if White plays} 
46... Kh7 47. Kg3 {then} Ra3+ 48. Kh4 Rh2# {.}) 0-1

[Event "4th Matchgame, Havana"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1919.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Kostic, B."]
[Black "Capablanca, J."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A46"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "107"]
[EventDate "1919.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{Having played through the Capablanca-Janowski game, you should have some idea
of the correct strategy for Black in a game that Capablanca played three years
later.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. Bg5 c5 4. e3 Nc6 5. c3 Qb6 6. Qb3 d5 7. Nbd2 Bd7
8. Be2 cxd4 9. exd4 Bd6 10. O-O h6 11. Bh4 Nh5 12. Qxb6 axb6 13. Rfe1 g5 14.
Bg3 Nxg3 15. hxg3 f6 16. g4 Kf7 17. Nh2 {Black carried out a familiar knight
manoeuvre to strengthen his pawns and fix a space advantage on the queenside.}
Na5 $1 18. Nhf1 b5 19. a3 Nc4 20. Nxc4 bxc4 21. Ne3 {Having carried out a
little three-move strategic plan, it is now time for Black to devise a plan on
a grand scale. --- He undoubtedly has the better of it, with the bishop pair,
more room to manoeuvre and more compact pawns. On the other hand, in
comparison with the Janowski game, things seem healthier for White. He doesn't
have a vulnerable chain of pawns in the centre; and besides, how is Black
going to attack him? The pawn thrust ...b5-b4 fails as White simply takes it;
while on the kingside the advances ...h6-h5 and ...f6-f5 aren't feasible, or
at least not for the time being, as they would both drop pawns. ---
Nevertheless, even though circumstances aren't as favourable for Black as in
the game above, we can still borrow our basic strategy from it. Namely: tie
the white pieces down to the defence on the queenside and then open up a fresh
line of attack on the kingside. The white pieces won't be able to adjust to
the needs of a second front as quickly as the more active black pieces;
therefore an invasion will be possible which, abetted by the bishop pair,
promises Black reasonable chances of success. --- In order to tie down the
white pieces, Capablanca first of all began a siege of the b2-pawn:} Ra6 $1 22.
g3 Rb6 23. Ra2 Ra8 24. Bf3 Ra5 25. Kg2 Rab5 26. Re2 {The next step involves
bringing the light-squared bishop to g6. This will introduce the threat of ...Bb1, driving the white rook from a2, when ...Rxb2 wins a pawn. The manoeuvre
takes three moves.} Be8 27. Rd2 Kg7 28. Bd1 Bg6 29. Ba4 Ra5 30. Bc2 {Kostic deals with the threat of 30...Bb1, but after the bishop exchange he has lost his
grip over the f5- and h5-squares. As a consequence, the breakthrough moves ...
h6-h5 and ...f6-f5 become feasible.} Bxc2 31. Rxc2 Kg6 32. Re2 Rab5 33. Nd1 Bf8
$1 {The bishop retreats in order to allow the rook to swing over to the
kingside once lines are opened there.} 34. Ra1 h5 {Capablanca decides that he
has all his pieces on their optimum squares and that he can't cause the white
pieces to be any more disorganized. Therefore the time is right to open lines
on the kingside.} 35. f3 hxg4 36. fxg4 f5 $1 {
Refusing to let things remain quiescent.} 37. gxf5+ exf5 38. Rc1 Rf6 {
It will be seen that, from a dynamic point of view, White's four pawns on the
queenside are no more effective than Black's three pawns. Meanwhile Black's
2-1 majority on the kingside is full of energy.} 39. Rcc2 Bd6 40. Re8 Kf7 41.
Re1 f4 42. g4 {If given the chance, White will naturally set up a defensive
blockade on the light squares with 43 Kf3 and 44 Nf2 etc. Therefore,
Capablanca prepares to sacrifice the passed pawn in order to open lines for
both his rooks and bishop.} f3+ 43. Kf2 Rh6 $1 {
Now White will be forced into a highly unpleasant pin.} 44. Kxf3 Rh3+ 45. Ke2
Rh2+ 46. Nf2 Bg3 47. Rf1 $2 ({White misses his one chance: it seems that} 47.
Kf1 $1 {would have held the draw as things burn out to equality after} Rxf2+ ({
while an attempt by Black to keep up the pressure with} 47... Rb6 {
could easily backfire:} 48. Re3 $1 Bh4 $2 49. Rf3+ Rf6 $2 50. Rxf6+ Kxf6 51.
Ne4+ {and suddenly White is winning}) 48. Rxf2+ Bxf2 49. Kxf2 Rxb2+ 50. Re2 {
. --- In some ways it is infuriating that Capablanca played with so much more
imagination and skill than his opponent, and yet White still had a draw
available to him even at this late stage. --- On the other hand, Kostic has
defended resolutely and up until this point has kept his head above water. I
find it reassuring to know that even if we play someone as good as Capablanca
or Karpov our destiny is in our own hands: it certainly doesn't help our cause
that they pressure us by making great moves, but ultimately our success or
failure depends on the quality of the decisions we make.}) 47... Rb6 {
The entrance of the other black rook signals a decisive strengthening of the
pin and the attack on the white king.} 48. Kf3 Bh4 $1 49. Re2 Rf6+ 50. Ke3 b5
51. Rd2 Ke7 52. b4 {A desperate move.} ({With the white pieces in a monumental
pin, Black only has to bring his king to b3, exchange off all the pieces on f2,
then capture on b2. It really is that easy: for example,} 52. Re2 Kd7 53. Rd2
Kc7 54. Rc2 ({there is an amusing mate after} 54. a4 bxa4 55. Rc2 Rg2 56. Re2 (
{or} 56. Rd2 Re6+) 56... Rf3+ $1 57. Kxf3 Rg3#) 54... Kb6 55. Rd2 Ka5 56. Rc2
Ka4 57. Rd2 Kb3 {.}) 52... cxb3 53. Nd3 Rxd2 54. Kxd2 {
. White resigned as he has lost a rook.} 0-1

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "????.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "4. Understanding Majorities"]
[Black "?"]
[Result "*"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "1"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{In order to improve your game, you must study the endgame before anything
else; for whereas the endings can be studied and mastered by themselves, the
middle game and the opening must be studied in relation to the endgame. --
Capablanca.} 1. -- {In the next three chapters we will be focusing on the
various roles that pawns play in the implementation of a strategy. Following
Capablanca's advice we should begin with the endgame, and gradually introduce
more complex examples.} (1. -- {The Power of an Outside Passed Pawn: --- See
Lasker-Nimzowitsch and Illa-Capablanca.}) (1. -- {Working and Non-Working Pawn
Majorities: -- You might have noticed that White's passed pawn in the Lasker
game above, once blocked by 49...Ne5, lost all its dynamism. It became dead
wood, a target and a source of anxiety for the defender, rather than a threat
to Black. The pawn didn't do any work, it just sat their helplessly. It
contrast, Black's h-pawn was working hard throughout the whole of the endgame.
--- In order to develop this theme, we should check a position with a couple
more pawns that was reached in one of Karpov's games: --- See Karpov-Browne
and Petrosian-Gurgenidze.}) (1. -- {Creating a Pawn Majority: -- Let's look at
an example featuring two of our giants in battle: --- See Kramnik-Karpov.}) (1.
-- {The Perils of Pawnless Play: -- In the extracts above, the loser was
either saddled with a non-working pawn majority or else had healthy pawns but
no time to utilize them. In the following games, no such excuse for defeat can
be permitted. Grandmasters like Marshall, Barcza and Portisch surely know that
pawns are the soul of chess, yet they chose to ignore the pleas of their foot
soldiers and engaged in futile manoeuvres with their pieces. Is it any wonder
that it ends in catastrophe? --- See Marshall-Capablanca, Barcza-Karpov and
Portisch-Kramnik.}) *

[Event "Zürich"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1934.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Lasker, Em"]
[Black "Nimzowitsch, A."]
[Result "0-1"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "8/1p2k2N/6n1/p6p/4P3/P3K3/1P6/8 w - - 0 49"]
[PlyCount "34"]
[EventDate "1934.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{Nimzowitsch's opponent in this position is Dr Emanuel Lasker, who was World
Champion from 1894 to 1921. Lasker was one of the greatest endgame players of
all time but he wasn't able to hold on in this innocuous-looking endgame, with
only three pawns each. --- Here we should mention that being very skilled in
so-called 'simple' technical endgames is the hallmark of a master strategist.
--- What is the nature of Black's advantage? In a nutshell: he has an outside
passed pawn on h5. This pawn is at the furthest distance possible from the
main body of pawns which is on the queenside. In contrast, the white pawn on
e4 is much nearer to the queenside pawns. This means that White can never
allow the exchange of knights.} 49. Ng5 ({
Imagine if White played the obvious-looking move} 49. Kd4 $2 {
, advancing his king up the board. There would follow} Nf8 $1 {
, forcing White into the exchange after} 50. Ng5 (50. Nxf8 Kxf8 {
would be similar}) 50... Ne6+ 51. Nxe6 Kxe6 {. The white king can head off the
passed h-pawn, but meanwhile the black king can capture on e4 and then
massacre White's queenside pawns before their own king can return to their
defence. For example,} 52. Ke3 a4 53. Kf4 h4 54. Kg4 {
(or else Black pushes the h-pawn and puts his king on e5)} Ke5 55. Kxh4 Kxe4 {
and the black king will gobble up the b2- and a3-pawns. --- So any pure king
and pawn endgame is winning for Black. This means that the black knight can
'bully' its opposite number by offering an exchange in the knowledge that it
must be refused. The white knight must therefore always concede ground. --- If
that wasn't trouble enough, the knight is a piece that is peculiarly ill-equipped to fight against a passed pawn on the side of the board (the a-file or
h-file). This is because the lack of squares for manoeuvre on the edge of the
board tells against it. As will be seen in the denouement, the white knight
can't even sacrifice itself to eliminate the passed h-pawn.}) 49... Ne5 $1 {
The knight takes up a blockade square in front of the white pawn. More will be
said about the blockade in Chapter Eight, but suffice to say here that the
knight dominates the centre and immobilizes White's passed pawn.} 50. Kd4 Kd6
51. Nh3 a4 {Fixing White's queenside pawns with a view to attacking them with ...b5-b4. The general idea is to cut a way through for the black king to attack
the pawn on b2. If White fends off this attack by putting his king on c2, the
black king, abetted by his superior knight, will be able to swing back towards
the kingside, outpacing the white king and so capturing the e4-pawn and
forcing home the passed h-pawn. It is easier said than done, especially when
facing a genius such as Lasker.} 52. Nf4 h4 53. Nh3 b6 $1 ({
Imagine that Black plays} 53... b5 {immediately. Then after} 54. Nf4 Nc6+ {
White can retreat his king to c3, keeping the queenside pawns defended:} 55.
Kc3 $1 {and if} Ke5 {, then} 56. Ng6+ {picks up the h-pawn. Therefore
Nimzowitsch dallies for a move, so that he can drive the king back while the
white knight is on h3 rather than f4.}) 54. Nf4 {
Naturally White tries to avoid conceding ground with his king.} b5 55. Nh3 Nc6+
56. Ke3 ({Thanks to the tempo loss with 53...b6, if now} 56. Kc3 {Black replies
} Ke5 {and White has no Ng6+ move to win the h-pawn.}) 56... Kc5 57. Kd3 b4 {
Here you might ask: 'I can appreciate that Black has the advantage on the
h-file, but why does this mean that White's queenside pawns have to become
targets?' It is one of the features of simplified positions that an advantage
on one side of the board 'transmits' itself to the other wing. Here the fact
that the white knight is so far away from the queenside tells against White:
the black knight can keep the passed e-pawn paralysed and aid the attack on
the queenside pawns.} 58. axb4+ (58. Nf4 {is met by} bxa3 59. bxa3 Ne5+ 60. Kc2
Nc4 {and the a-pawn goes.}) 58... Kxb4 59. Kc2 Nd4+ 60. Kb1 ({If} 60. Kd3 Ne6
61. Kc2 {(or else 61...Kb3 wins)} Kc4 {etc, going after e4.}) 60... Ne6 $1 {
One of Nimzowitsch's mottos when opposing a passed pawn was, 'First restrain,
then blockade, and lastly destroy!'} ({He could have reverted to a blockade with
} 60... Nc6 {and 61...Ne5, but now is the time for stage three, the
destruction of the pawn, which he can carry out with ...Kc4 and ...Kd4. With
the black knight on e6, the pawn can't be defended with Ng5. Furthermore, as
we shall soon see, the fact that the white knight is denied the f4- and
g5-squares makes possible the final winning sequence.}) 61. Ka2 ({If} 61. Kc2
Kc4 62. Ng1 {then} Ng5 {intending 63...h3 does the trick,} ({but not} 62... Kd4
$2 63. Nf3+ {.})) 61... Kc4 62. Ka3 Kd4 $1 {White is permitted a passed pawn
as Nimzowitsch has long ago calculated everything to a finish.} 63. Kxa4 Kxe4
64. b4 Kf3 65. b5 Kg2 $1 ({The white knight is trapped, and if} 65... Kg2 66.
b6 Kxh3 67. b7 {then} Nc5+ {picks up the passed pawn. --- This was
Nimzowitsch's only win against a genius who had dominated the chess scene
during his childhood and indeed for many years after. Therefore Nimzowitsch
was no doubt anxious not to let the win slip through his fingers. He had
gained a significant positional advantage in the middlegame and had then been
presented with the chance to simplify into the endgame above. How could he be
sure that he wasn't letting Lasker off the hook, as Black's advantage - an
outside pawn on h5 versus a pawn on e4 - doesn't appear that significant?
After all, White only needs to arrange the liquidation of the three black
pawns to draw and can throw his knight into the bargain. --- It would appear
that Nimzowitsch had made a risky choice in simplifying, as if there was even
the slightest chance to draw it, an endgame wizard like Lasker was sure to
find it! --- It may be that Nimzowitsch had worked everything out for himself
over the board, though this would be an incredible feat of calculation, or was
hoping for the best based on his general endgame knowledge: 'the outside
passed pawn gives me winning chances'. --- But more likely his courage and
assurance came from having a specific model to follow. Twenty-three years
earlier Capablanca had demonstrated that the following endgame was winning for
Black. (See Illa-Capablanca.)}) 0-1

[Event "Buenos Aires"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1911.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Illa, R."]
[Black "Capablanca, J."]
[Result "0-1"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "8/8/4k3/7p/p1N2p1P/2P3P1/4K1n1/8 w - - 0 54"]
[PlyCount "30"]
[EventDate "1911.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{Here White played} 54. gxf4 {. Now rather than the obvious recapture 54...
Nxf4+, Capablanca took the correct pawn:} Nxh4 $1 {It turns out that Black's
widely-spaced a- and h-pawns defeat their counterparts. The game continued:}
55. Kf2 Nf5 {The black knight cripples the f4-pawn in the same way that
Nimzowitsch's knight blocked Lasker's e4-pawn.} 56. Kf3 Nd6 57. Na3 Kd5 58. Kg3
Nf5+ {Back again: Capablanca realizes the knight needs to remain on f5. If the
play here is more ragged than in Lasker-Nimzowitsch, it should be remembered
that the Cuban was feeling his way in this type of endgame, and didn't have a
model on which to base his winning strategy. He toys with an attempt at
zugzwang or a knight transference to the queenside before finally hitting on
the winning plan on move 65.} 59. Kf3 Kc5 60. Kg2 Kc6 61. Kf2 Kd5 62. Kf3 Nd6
63. Kg3 Nf5+ 64. Kf3 Kc6 65. Kg2 h4 $1 {
At last Capablanca pushes his pawn and the game is soon over.} 66. Kh3 ({Or} 
66. Kf3 Kd5 {.}) 66... Kd5 67. Kg4 Ke4 68. c4 Kd4 {. Black's next two moves
will be ...Kc5 and ...Kb4, when the white knight must move, after which ...Kxc4 followed by advancing the a-pawn is decisive. --- It can't be stressed
enough how valuable it is to have a brain stocked with models of how to handle
various pawn structures, not only in the endgame but also in the middlegame
and opening. Even the great Capablanca was hesitant when confronted with the
unknown scenario above!} 0-1

[Event "San Antonio"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1972.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Karpov, A."]
[Black "Browne, W."]
[Result "1-0"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "8/n3kp1p/6p1/p4p2/8/1P2N1P1/P4PKP/8 w - - 0 33"]
[PlyCount "53"]
[EventDate "1972.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{White has a 2-1 majority of pawns on the queenside. Meanwhile on the kingside,
Black has a majority of 4-3. In general, it favours White to have a majority
on the other side of the board to the main body of pawns. This is because the
black king and knight are likely to be dragged away from the kingside by the
necessity of dealing with a white passed pawn on the queenside, real or
potential. Whilst they are thus distracted, the white king can slip in amongst
the black kingside pawns and cause a slaughter like that of the celebrated fox
in a hen house. --- In the specific position, Karpov enjoys another important
advantage. Due to the defect of doubled pawns, Black's majority can never
yield a passed pawn by advancing, assuming that White makes no mistakes.
White's own pawn majority, on the other hand, can easily create a passed pawn.
--- Thus we can say that White's queenside pawns work, whereas Black's
kingside pawns merely exist. It is vital to grasp the concept of a working or
non-working pawn majority. It will often help you to understand why one
player's game goes from strength to strength without any apparent blunder by
the opponent, not only in the endgame but also in complex middlegame positions.
Pawns that are restrained in the middlegame tend to become targets - but more
of that in Chapter Seven. --- Karpov's opponent is many times US Champion
Walter Browne, who isn't going to give in without a fight. In order to beat
him, the future World Champion needs to devise a plan with many short steps.} 
33. Nc4 {First of all, White ties down the black knight to the defence of the
a5-pawn. In any endgame, it's almost always a good idea to force your
opponent's pieces to defend pawns, as it restricts their freedom of action.
Here White is also clearing the e3-square for his king.} Nc6 34. Kf3 {
And now Karpov centralizes his king with a view to supporting the future
advance of the queenside pawns.} Ke6 35. Ke3 Kd5 {When he chose to enter this
endgame, Browne might have imagined that his more active king would compensate
for his worse pawn structure. Indeed, if he could play 36...Kc5 and 37...Kb4
it is doubtful White could win. Therefore the next stage in Karpov's plan is:
curtail the activity of the black king.} 36. a3 $1 {
A little move, but it achieves a lot.} Ke6 ({If} 36... a4 {
, which seeks to undermine the c4-knight, White has} 37. Nb6+ $1 {and 38 Nxa4.}
) ({Even more crucially, the black king is denied the c5-square: if he plays} 
36... Kc5 {White replies} 37. Nxa5 $1 Nxa5 38. b4+ Kb5 39. bxa5 Kxa5 40. Kd4
Ka4 41. Ke5 Kxa3 42. Kf6 {, and notwithstanding his extra pawn Black is
utterly lost because the white king is going to capture all his kingside pawns.
--- The primary power of an outside passed pawn lies in its threat to queen.
However, as already discussed above, in practical play even more vital can be
its secondary value in distracting the enemy king long enough for a massacre
to occur on the other wing.}) 37. Kd3 Kd5 {Now comes the subtle part. We can
see at a glance that the black knight is tied down to the defence of a5, and
so cannot move. We also know that the black king can't go to c5 because of the
Nxa5! fork trick discussed in the previous note. Nor does the black king want
to retreat to e6, as this will clear the way for White to continue Ne3 and Kc4,
when his king infiltrates on the queenside (whereas at the moment Ne3 can be
answered by ...Kc5, blocking the white king's entrance to c4 - as soon as Ne3
is played, there is no Nxa5 fork trick, and so this square is safe for the
black king). --- In other words, neither Black's king nor knight can move
without awful consequences. Karpov therefore can use zugzwang to force him to
weaken his kingside pawns.} 38. f3 h6 39. Kc3 h5 40. Kd3 f6 41. f4 $1 {
Up until here Black has avoided any serious structural damage to his kingside,
but now he has run out of solid pawn moves, and is obliged to give himself a
weakness on f5.} g5 ({We repeat: moving the black knight loses a pawn;} 41...
Kc5 {allows} 42. Nxa5 $1) ({while if} 41... Ke6 {,} 42. Ne3 {and the white
king penetrates with 43 Kc4. Thus Browne, a fine chess player, is forced to
play a move that he would probably have recognized as a positional blunder
while at Kindergarten. Such is the power of zugzwang.}) {Now Karpov's plan is
as follows: tie the black king to the freshly minted weakness on f5, block the
advance of Black's kingside pawns, and then win with the king on the queenside.
} 42. Ne3+ Ke6 43. h4 $1 {Karpov fixes Black's kingside pawns in such a way
that they can never use their 4-3 numerical superiority to create a passed
pawn simply by advancing. The upshot is that Browne has to carry out a long
manoeuvre with his king in order to remove the white pawn barriers, but
meanwhile the situation on the queenside becomes hopeless.} gxh4 44. gxh4 Ne7
45. Kc4 Ng6 46. Ng2 {The knight holds the fort long enough to allow the white
king to get at the queenside pawns.} Kd6 47. Kb5 $1 {Karpov had to calculate
the finish precisely before allowing the black king access to the d5-square.}
Kd5 48. Kxa5 Ke4 49. b4 Kf3 50. b5 $1 {Knights are notoriously bad at dealing
with an advancing passed pawn that is supported by the king. Hence Karpov can
afford to jettison his own knight in the knowledge that his queenside pawns
will prove too much for the black horse.} Kxg2 51. b6 Nf8 52. Kb5 Nd7 53. a4
Nxb6 ({If instead} 53... Kg3 {, you can easily verify that White's a-pawn
would advance to a8 before Black has time to capture on f4 or h4 and make his
own passed pawn dangerous.}) 54. Kxb6 Kf3 55. a5 Kxf4 56. a6 Ke3 57. a7 f4 58.
a8=Q f3 59. Qe8+ 1-0

[Event "Tbilisi"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1956.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Petrosian, T."]
[Black "Gurgenidze, B."]
[Result "1-0"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "4k3/5pb1/pp1p2p1/2pB1n2/2P5/1P4P1/P2B1PKP/8 w - - 0 27"]
[PlyCount "41"]
[EventDate "1956.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{Black has a 4-3 pawn majority on the queenside; White has a 3-2 majority on
the kingside. But whereas the white pawns are free to advance, the white
bishop on d5 is crippling the black pawns by preventing them from expanding
with ...d6-d5. In addition White has a strong pair of bishops. Overall,
Petrosian therefore has excellent chances to win. --- There followed:} 27. g4
$1 Nd4 ({Unfortunately for Black he can't return the compliment by blocking
White's h-pawn, as if} 27... Nh4+ $2 28. Kh3 Bf6 29. g5 {the knight is lost.})
28. h4 Ke7 29. Bb7 $1 {Even in the endgame Petrosian is first and foremost
concerned with the annihilation of his opponent's potential counterplay, no
matter how unlikely to succeed it might be. Before continuing with his
kingside advance, he forces Black's next move, after which ...b6-b5 becomes
unfeasible because it would leave a5 hanging to the bishop on d2. Furthermore,
the seriousness of an attack on the b6-pawn by a future Bd8 is increased once
there is a pawn on a5 that can be targeted as well.} a5 30. Bd5 Be5 31. Be4 {
Before committing himself to a definite plan, Petrosian often makes semi-waiting
moves in order to see how his opponent will respond. As a result he sometimes
gets 'free presents'. --- Here, for example, he puts the bishop on d5, then
moves it back to e4, apparently intending to advance f2-f4; so Gurgenidze
retreats his knight back to e6 to prevent the pawn advance, after which the
white king gains access to the f3-square.} Ne6 32. Kf3 Bf6 33. g5 $1 {
Petrosian keeps control. He wants to create a passed pawn, but at the same
time he is anxious not to give the black pieces any unnecessary freedom.} ({
Thus he avoids conceding the g5-square with} 33. h5 gxh5 34. gxh5 Ng5+ {, when}
35. Bxg5 $2 {would be a serious mistake because the presence of
opposite-coloured bishops negates the advantage of having an outside passed
pawn.}) 33... Be5 34. Kg4 Bd4 35. f4 {Intending 36 f5, when Black would either
have to concede White a passed pawn with 36...gxf5+ 37 Bxf5, or else retreat
his knight to f8. In the latter case a passed pawn would emerge all the same
on the g-file after h4-h5 etc.} f5+ 36. gxf6+ Kxf6 37. f5 $1 ({
Much stronger than} 37. h5 $2 gxh5+ 38. Kxh5 {, as White wants to create a
passed pawn as far distant from the queenside as possible in order to
overstretch Black's defence. It is well known that a knight has trouble
fighting against a rook's pawn.}) 37... gxf5+ 38. Bxf5 Ng7 39. Bg5+ Kf7 40. Bd7
$1 {Threatening to grab b6 with 41 Bd8.} ({If at once} 40. Bd8 {then} Bf6 $1 {
gives Black some hope.}) 40... Ne6 41. Bxe6+ $1 {The simplest way to win, as
the b6-pawn now drops. You can bet that Petrosian would never have swapped his
dark-squared bishop for the knight, not only because of the drawing
possibilities for the defender in opposite-coloured bishop endgames, but also
because he wants to be left with the bishop that controls the queening square
of h-pawn.} Kxe6 42. Bd8 a4 43. Bxb6 d5 44. cxd5+ Kxd5 45. Kf5 axb3 46. axb3
Be3 47. h5 {. White can put his bishop on g5 to drive the black bishop to d4,
advance h5-h6-h7, and then play Bf6 to force the pawn through.} 1-0

[Event "Monte Carlo (rapid)"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1999.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Kramnik, V."]
[Black "Karpov, A."]
[Result "1-0"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "1r4k1/p3bppp/1pn1p3/1N2P3/8/P3B1P1/1P3PKP/R7 w - - 0 20"]
[PlyCount "23"]
[EventDate "1999.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{In the middlegame, a centre pawn is almost always of more strategic value
than a pawn on the edge. However, the assessment gradually reverses with every
exchange that brings an endgame closer. This is because the queenside pawn
majority becomes a more significant factor. Here Kramnik played:} 20. Rc1 $1 {
He is more than happy to exchange the e5-pawn for the a7-pawn.} Nxe5 ({
Black cannot stand his ground, as} 20... Rc8 $2 {loses a piece after} 21. Nd4
Bc5 22. Nxc6 Rxc6 23. b4 {.}) 21. Nxa7 Bf6 22. b3 $1 {Making sure that after
the exchange on c8 Black can't hit the b2-pawn with ...Nc4.} g5 23. Rc8+ $1 {
Astute. A queenside pawn majority tends not to be decisive in rook and pawn
endgames, whereas in a minor piece endgame it is far more deadly.} Rxc8 24.
Nxc8 b5 25. Nd6 b4 26. a4 $1 {The right decision, for three reasons: -- 1)
White wants the passed pawn on the a-file, as far away as possible from the
black king. -- 2) A defender's knight hates having to fight against a passed
pawn on the rook's file, as the lack of space to manoeuvre greatly hinders it.
-- 3) There is no need to let the black bishop get involved in things after 26
axb4 Be7.} Nc6 27. Nb7 {The win is now very, very easy. The white bishop and
knight simply escort the passed a-pawn towards the eighth rank.} g4 28. a5 Nb8
29. Kf1 Kf8 30. Nc5 Nc6 31. a6 ({After} 31. a6 Ke7 32. Nd3 {and 33 a7 Black
must part with his knight. --- A drastic defeat for Karpov, but to be fair
this was a rapidplay game at the Melody Amber tournament - not the most
friendly time control for a player approaching 50 years old. Nonetheless, from
the mid 1990s onwards, Kramnik has had something of the Indian Sign over
Karpov, beating him on several occasions.}) 1-0

[Event "New York"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1909.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Marshall, F."]
[Black "Capablanca, J."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D33"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "98"]
[EventDate "1909.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 c5 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Nf3 Nc6 6. g3 Be6 7. Bg2 Be7 8. O-O
Nf6 9. Bg5 Ne4 10. Bxe7 Qxe7 11. Ne5 Nxd4 12. Nxe4 dxe4 13. e3 Nf3+ 14. Nxf3
exf3 15. Qxf3 O-O {Black has a 3-2 majority of pawns on the queenside; White
has a 4-3 majority on the kingside. In what follows, Capablanca does
everything possible to exploit the value of his majority, whereas the
potential of White's kingside pawns is entirely wasted.} 16. Rfc1 $2 ({
We cannot recommend} 16. Qxb7 $2 {, as after} Qxb7 17. Bxb7 Rab8 18. Bg2 Rxb2 {
Black has regained his pawn with not only a rook on the seventh rank but also
a well-defended passed pawn.}) ({Remember what we said above about working and
non-working pawn majorities? Marshall should have set his pawns to work with} 
16. e4 $1 {, planning 17 Qe3 followed by a surge in the centre with 18 f4, 19
e5 and 20 f5. Naturally Capablanca would have taken measures against this, but
in doing so he would have been distracted from the smooth exploitation of his
queenside majority. A lively game would have resulted with, in the phrase so
beloved of chess commentators, 'chances for both sides'.}) 16... Rab8 17. Qe4
$2 {Her majesty blocks in the e-pawn, and all for the sake of a one-move
positional threat that Black easily sidesteps - 18 Bh3 forcing the weakening
18...f5 due to the pin on e7.} ({Once again Marshall prefers to play with the
heavy pieces rather than use his foot soldiers to seize space, which could be
achieved with} 17. e4 {etc, as described above. No matter that it would be
less effective with the rook misplaced on c1, the pawn majority must be
brought to life at all costs.}) 17... Qc7 $1 18. Rc3 b5 {Capablanca's plan for
the moment is perfectly simple to understand. He will advance his queenside
pawns as far as is compatible with their safety. One of the white rooks will
be tied down to the c-file to prevent a breakthrough with ...c4-c3, which
means that Black's own rooks can assume control of the d-file.} 19. a3 c4 20.
Bf3 Rfd8 $1 {You will notice that thanks to Black's 'pawns first' strategy,
the d-file has fallen into the hands of his rooks without any apparent effort.
That is what happens when you have chosen the right strategy - the pieces and
pawns give presents to one another. In contrast, White's heavy pieces for all
their multiple moves are floundering around on passive squares.} 21. Rd1 Rxd1+
22. Bxd1 Rd8 23. Bf3 g6 $1 {By threatening to win a piece with 24...Bd5 25 Qg4
h5, Capablanca manages to dislodge the white queen from her central post.} 24.
Qc6 Qe5 $1 {Intending to invade the seventh rank with 25...Rd2, and so forcing
Marshall to exchange queens in order to be ready to defend with Rc2.} 25. Qe4
Qxe4 26. Bxe4 Rd1+ {
The black rook has found an alternative way to break into White's position.}
27. Kg2 a5 {It's almost too easy. White's 4-3 majority on the kingside is an
irrelevance, whilst Black's queenside pawns are building up an unstoppable
energy.} 28. Rc2 b4 29. axb4 axb4 30. Bf3 Rb1 31. Be2 b3 32. Rd2 Rc1 33. Bd1 c3
$1 {At last the breakthrough comes. White will have to give up his bishop to
prevent a black pawn queening.} 34. bxc3 b2 35. Rxb2 Rxd1 36. Rc2 Bf5 37. Rb2
Rc1 38. Rb3 Be4+ 39. Kh3 Rc2 40. f4 {Only now do White's kingside pawns rouse
themselves, but it is only in a futile bid to avoid capture.} h5 41. g4 {
Or else 41...f6 and 42...Bf5+ builds a mating net.} hxg4+ 42. Kxg4 Rxh2 43. Rb4
f5+ 44. Kg3 Re2 45. Rc4 Rxe3+ 46. Kh4 Kg7 47. Rc7+ Kf6 48. Rd7 Bg2 49. Rd6+ Kg7
{. Mate with 50...Rh3+ and 51...Rh5 is the winning threat.} 0-1

[Event "Caracas"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1970.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Barcza, G."]
[Black "Karpov, A."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A37"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "68"]
[EventDate "1970.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{The Hungarian Grandmaster Gideon Barcza has been described as having a dry,
almost arid, style. Harry Golombek relates that Barcza was once heard to
remark, apropos a dead drawn-looking position, 'My king is better than his.'
--- In the present game, he was in no mood for a hard fight against the young
Karpov. He doesn't play any moves that actually lose material or rip the heart
out of his pawn structure; instead his downfall is provided by a series of
moves that are characteristically given the '?!' sign.} 1. Nf3 c5 2. c4 g6 3.
g3 Bg7 4. Bg2 Nc6 5. Nc3 e5 6. d3 Nge7 7. O-O O-O 8. Ne1 Rb8 9. Nc2 a6 10. Rb1
d6 11. b4 Be6 12. bxc5 dxc5 13. Ne3 b6 14. Ned5 {At first glance, White has an
excellent game: a well-supported knight on the d5 outpost, no structural
weaknesses, and a safe king. As for the black queenside majority - well, the
pawn on b6 looks like a liability, as it is attacked twice and restrained from
advancing to b5. Yet in the space of ten moves, Karpov will have established a
scenario similar to the Marshall-Capablanca game above, with a passed pawn
rushing forwards against passive white forces. Let's see how he does it:} Bd7
$1 {It appears that Black is neglecting the fight for the important d5-square,
as he withdraws his bishop, and at the same time cuts off his queen's
influence along the d-file.} ({In reality, Karpov is preparing to exchange
knights without allowing a fork as would occur after} 14... Nxd5 $4 15. cxd5 {.
}) ({Also unattractive for Black would be} 14... Bxd5 15. cxd5 {, when he is
deprived of his bishop, an important light square guardian, to say nothing of
the knight on c6 being driven from its post. --- Therefore, Black pays homage
to the importance of the d5-square by withdrawing his forces from the fight
for it: a paradox that would have delighted Nimzowitsch.}) 15. Bd2 $6 {
White will ruin his game with a series of non-committal, stereotyped moves.} ({
Here} 15. Bg5 f6 16. Bd2 {was an interesting way to play it, when Black has
been provoked into weakening his kingside and shutting in his dark-squared
bishop (the conclusion of the game will demonstrate why curbing the activity
of the black bishop in this fashion would have been a good idea).}) 15... Nxd5
16. Nxd5 Ne7 17. Qc1 $6 {Too slow.} ({One can be certain that the great master
of restraint Tigran Petrosian would have played} 17. a4 $1 {here (or possibly
he would have played it a couple of moves earlier). In that case, the plan to
create a passed pawn with ...b6-b5 would have been thwarted.}) 17... Nxd5 18.
Bxd5 $6 {White continues with a series of inferior 'looks right' moves that
lead him gradually downhill. ---} ({He had to seek a double-edged game with} 
18. cxd5 {.}) {The exchange of both pairs of knights has removed the bonds
restraining the black queenside pawns. The only difficulty now is that the
c5-pawn will be hanging to White's queen after ...b6-b5 and the capture c4xb5.
Karpov easily solves the problem.} 18... Bh3 $1 {Karpov uncovers an attack on
the bishop on d5 by his queen in order to facilitate the ...b6-b5 advance.
Therefore White should seek its exchange with 19 Bg2 Bxg2 20 Kxg2. Then Black
can choose to build up on either the kingside with ...f7-f5 or on the
queenside with ...b6-b5. --- Barcza should have chosen this path because,
although he would have had no activity, he would also have been a long way
from actually losing.} 19. Re1 $6 b5 $1 {Black's queenside pawns are finally
ready to advance, as White can't take on b5 without leaving the bishop on d5
hanging.} 20. a3 Qd6 21. Bf3 $6 {The final in the long list of '?!' moves,
after which I doubt if White's position can be saved. Black's light-squared
bishop will prove powerful on e6 in the coming fight on the queenside.
Therefore its opposite number should have stayed on d5, keeping it out of that
square.} Be6 $1 {Exactly! Now White has little choice but to take on b5 in
view of the pressure on the c4-pawn.} 22. cxb5 axb5 23. Be3 Rfc8 {Black has achieved his ideal set-up, with both rooks, the queen and the bishop on e6 all
supporting the advance of the queenside pawns. And as will be seen, once a
black pawn has reached b2, the bishop on g7 can be brought into the game with
decisive effect thanks to the clearance move ...e5-e4. The black pieces are a
picture of coordination and all is now ready for the black pawns to surge
forwards. --- The white bishops will try to harass the black rooks, but they
can't alter the strategic flow of the game. Barcza's solid but planless play
has left his rooks and queen with nothing constructive to do.} 24. Qd2 b4 25.
axb4 cxb4 26. Ba7 Rb5 27. Rec1 Rxc1+ 28. Qxc1 b3 29. Qc6 Qxc6 30. Bxc6 Ra5 31.
Be3 Ra2 32. Bb5 b2 33. Kg2 e4 $1 {Defending the b2-pawn with the bishop on g7,
and so releasing the rook to go to a1.} 34. d4 ({If} 34. dxe4 {, then} Ra1 35.
Bd3 Ba2 {wins.}) 34... Bb3 {. Next move 35...Bc2 is fatal. --- An object
lesson in the power of a passed pawn and the inadequacy of pawnless/planless
play.} 0-1

[Event "Biel"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1993.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Portisch, L."]
[Black "Kramnik, V."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D13"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "84"]
[EventDate "1993.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{Lajos Portisch was for many years one of the absolutely best players in the
world, but in this game, against Kramnik, he seems to lack the energy for a
hard fight.} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. cxd5 cxd5 4. Nf3 Nf6 5. Nc3 Nc6 6. Bf4 Ne4 7.
e3 Nxc3 8. bxc3 g6 9. Be2 Bg7 10. O-O O-O 11. c4 dxc4 12. Bxc4 Bf5 13. Rc1 Rc8
14. Qe2 a6 15. h3 $2 {White has clearly set out his stall for a draw by
playing the Slav Exchange Variation, but Kramnik has managed to create an
imbalanced pawn structure. --- If Kramnik were sitting on the opposite side of
the board, he would doubtless be working out how to utilize White's central
pawn majority in order to create a passed pawn. However, Portisch doesn't want
to advance e3-e4 and d4-d5, as he hopes keeping the pawns solidly on d4 and e3
will avoid all danger. But in fact the most dangerous thing in such positions
is to do nothing. --- Everyone agrees with Capablanca's observation that the
win of a pawn between good players of equal strength is sufficient to win the
game. If White fails to use his 5-4 majority of pawns in the centre/kingside,
whilst Black uses his 2-1 majority on the queenside, then Black is in effect a
pawn up! --- At the time, many commentators were surprised at how easily
Kramnik managed to win as Black against a player bent on making a draw. But
it's no surprise at all when you consider he is being given pawn odds by his
opponent.} ({After the game, Kramnik recommended} 15. d5 $1 Na5 16. e4 {
with a slight advantage to White.}) 15... Na5 16. Bd3 Bxd3 17. Qxd3 Qd7 18. Rc3
b5 19. Rfc1 Nc4 20. Qe2 Nb6 21. Rc7 Qe6 22. Bg5 Nd5 23. R7c5 h6 24. Bh4 b4 25.
Qb2 Nc3 26. Rxc8 Rxc8 {Threatening 27...Ne2+, so White can't take on b4.} 27.
Kh1 Kh7 $3 {Kramnik was very proud of this move and gave it two exclamation
marks in his annotations. It is indeed amazing that moving the king to h7 can
have such a decisive bearing on the struggle on the queenside.} 28. Ra1 ({
The strength of Black's last move lies in preventing Rxc8 coming with check,
so that if} 28. Qxb4 $2 Nxa2 {wins a rook.}) ({A more subtle point is that} 28.
-- Na4 {was threatened, when after} 29. Qb1 Rxc1+ 30. Qxc1 Qxa2 {it is all over
. White is therefore forced to move his rook away from the fight for the
c-file and into the dark corner on a1 in order to defend a2. It proves the
truism that if two rooks are contesting an open file, the player with the
superior minor piece will win control of it.}) 28... a5 29. Qb3 Qxb3 30. axb3
g5 31. Bg3 a4 $1 {The decisive breakthrough.} 32. Nd2 ({If} 32. bxa4 {then} b3
33. Nd2 b2 34. Re1 Nxa4 {, intending 35...Rc1.}) 32... a3 33. Rc1 {White is still alive for the moment, but Kramnik is about to utilize an idea seen above in
Barcza-Karpov.} e5 $1 {Black needs the help of the bishop on g7 in order to
force home the passed pawn.} 34. d5 ({If} 34. dxe5 {
then the open d-file destroys White; for example,} a2 35. Ra1 Rd8 36. Nc4 Rd1+
37. Rxd1 Nxd1 {and the pawn queens.}) 34... a2 35. Ra1 e4 36. d6 Ra8 37. Nc4
Nb5 38. Be5 Nxd6 $1 {White's passed pawn is devoured in pretty fashion.} 39.
Rxa2 ({If} 39. Nxd6 {then} Bxe5 {wins instantly.}) 39... Rxa2 40. Bxd6 Rxf2 41.
Bxb4 Rf1+ 42. Kh2 Rb1 0-1

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "????.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "5. The Power of Pawn Breaks"]
[Black "?"]
[Result "*"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "1"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{Capablanca has provided us with perfect models of how to handle classical
positions. By classical I mean semi-simplified positions with a fixed or
static pawn centre. In such quiet situations the emphasis is on long-term
planning and far-sighted manoeuvres, rather than the feverish calculation of
moves typical of a quickly evolving tactical struggle. On the other hand,
these types of positional struggles are often resolved in an extremely violent
manner once the preparatory phase is over.} 1. -- {When making a plan on a
large scale, it is essential to take into account the requirements of the pawn
structure. You should ask yourself not only, 'Which pawn advances - or pawn
breaks - should I be striving for?' but also, 'What changes in the pawn
structure should I be doing the utmost to prevent?' See Alexander-Thomas .} (1.
-- {The Golden Rule concerning a Strategic Pawn Advance: -- Is there any rule
of thumb concerning which pawn you should be trying to push in a given
position? Yes, and we'll let Nimzowitsch reveal it! --- See
Nimzowitsch-Bernstein.}) (1. -- {
The Battle between Pawn Breaks: --- See Capablanca-Blackburne.}) (1. -- {
The Explosive Pawn Break: -- We have seen that the pawn break or breakthrough
is an extremely important theme in the games of the great strategists. It is
the method by which barriers are removed in order to exploit a positional
advantage. It can take a violent or mild form; it can arise spontaneously from
the demands of the position, or it can be the culmination of long and painstaking preparation. Let's look at a couple of extreme instances. --- See
Capablanca-Dus Chotimirsky and Capablanca-Menchik.}) (1. -- {Switching the
Scene of Action: The Double Pawn Break: --- See Capablanca-Spielmann.}) (1. --
{A Pawn Centre Investigated: -- It might be interesting to see how Capablanca
handles a specific pawn structure, with the strength of his opponents
gradually being raised. For this purpose I have chosen the structure d4/e5 for
White versus d5/e6 for Black, one that is typical of some lines in the French
and Caro-Kann defences. --- 1) Capablanca versus three amateurs (see Puig,
Ardevol & Puntas-Capablanca); -- 2) Capablanca versus a master player -- Puig
and his consultation partners were strong amateurs, but obviously no match for
Capablanca in the realm of strategy. Let's see how Capablanca handled the same
type of set-up against the master player Henry Atkins at the London 1922
tournament (see Atkins-Capablanca); -- 3) Capablanca versus a great player --
So far we have seen Capablanca handle this pawn structure as Black firstly
against three strong amateurs, and secondly against a master player. Now let's
see what happens when he faces a world-class grandmaster - one of our own
giants of strategy (see Nimzowitsch-Capablanca; round 15).}) (1. -- {Kramnik shows the Way: -- Here is an example of the dynamic, pawn-based handling of the
3 e5 Caro-Kann which is typical of modern chess. It creates quite a contrast
with the 'develop rapidly and castle kingside quickly' ethos of Capablanca's
opponents. --- See Kramnik-Leko, 14th matchgame, Brissago 2004.}) *

[Event "City of London Chess Club"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1919.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Alexander, F."]
[Black "Thomas, G."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D52"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "88"]
[EventDate "1919.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{I have always been very impressed by Capablanca's comments to this game,
which can be found in 'Chess Fundamentals'.} 1. d4 d5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. c4 e6 4.
Nc3 Nbd7 5. Bg5 c6 6. e3 Qa5 7. Bxf6 Nxf6 8. a3 Ne4 9. Qb3 Be7 10. Bd3 Nxc3 11.
bxc3 dxc4 12. Bxc4 Bf6 13. O-O O-O 14. e4 e5 15. d5 Qc7 16. Bd3 b6 17. c4 Bb7
18. Rfc1 Be7 19. Rc2 Bc5 20. Qb2 {
Here Black defended the hanging pawn on e5 with} f6 {
, prompting a sharp retort full of wisdom from Capablanca:} ({'Black's play
hereabouts is poor: it lacks force and there seems to be no well-defined plan
of attack. It is true that these are the most difficult positions to handle in
a game. In such cases a player must conceive a plan on a large scale, which
promises chances of success, and with it all, it must be a plan that can be
carried out with the means at his disposal. From the look of the position it
seems that Black's best chance would be to mass his forces for an attack
against White's centre, to be followed by a direct attack against the king. He
should, therefore, play} 20... Rae8 {, threatening ...f5. If White is able to
defeat this plan, or rather to prevent it, then once Black has fixed some of
the white pieces on the kingside he should quickly shift his attack to the
queenside, and open a line for his rooks, which once they enter in action
should produce an advantage on account of the great power of the two bishops'.
--- Capablanca talks of a plan on the grand scale, but it doesn't remain an
abstraction as he then suggests what it should be. But he doesn't give
variations - he just makes very general suggestions of where the pieces should
go. --- There is a sense of easy authority behind such comments that I find
breathtaking. I never met Capablanca, of course, but I can appreciate the
impression that he made on his contemporaries. No wonder his great rival
Alekhine described Capablanca's 'flabbergasting quickness of chess perception'.
--- And yet such a way of annotating games causes abhorrence amongst modern
variation mongers. They would mutter darkly about Capablanca's vague
generalizations and yearn for a few columns of closely analysed variations
after 20...Rae8, with a sprinkling of =+ or -+ signs to show them how to think.
}) 21. Rb1 Rad8 22. a4 Ba6 23. Rd1 Rfe8 24. Qb3 Rd6 25. Nh4 g6 26. Be2 cxd5 27.
exd5 e4 28. g3 e3 29. f4 Bc8 30. Nf3 Bf5 31. Rb2 Re4 32. Kg2 Qc8 33. Ng1 g5 34.
fxg5 fxg5 35. Rf1 g4 36. Bd3 Rf6 37. Ne2 Qf8 {
. The game finished in some style with:} 38. Rbb1 ({Capablanca analyses} 38.
Nf4 Qh6 39. Qc2 {.} -- ({. Now} 39... e2 {would be a trivial win, e.g.} 40.
Nxe2 (40. Bxe2 Rxf4 {exposes an attack on the white queen}) 40... Qh3+ 41. Kh1
Qxf1+ {and mates.}) ({. Instead Capablanca writes: 'I take pleasure in
offering the position to my readers as a most beautiful and extraordinary win
for Black beginning with} 39... Qh3+ {
!!!. I leave the variations for the student to work out.'}) ({. Now Capablanca
only gave a move two exclamation marks once in a blue moon, so a move
deserving three must be something special. As a matter of fact, it is a
blunder:} 39... Qh3+ $4 40. Nxh3 gxh3+ 41. Kh1 e2 42. Rbb1 $1 {(the only move
but good enough) and the black attack has faltered. --- Armed with a chess
computer, a 10-year-old could refute a move that the greatest natural chess
genius gives three exclamation marks. Now that is food for thought. Though I
hope the reader doesn't think me immodest if I remark that I found 42 Rbb1 not
long after I got 'Chess Fundamentals' as a 13th birthday present, when
computers were still a laughing stock. --- Capablanca would never have
blundered with 39...Qh3+ if faced with this situation in a tournament game. He
advised that you should always play the most straightforward winning move, the
one that finishes the game most quickly. Undoubtedly he would have preferred
39...e2. --- Despite the faults of 39...Qh3+ we can see that for all his
(wonderful) talk of logic and commonsense in 'Chess Fundamentals', Capablanca
was still an artist who wasn't indifferent to a queen sacrifice. And we can
all find 42 Rbb1 if we look hard enough at the position, but we could study
chess for a lifetime without achieving the level of comprehension Capablanca
shows in his spontaneous, 'lazy' comment at move 20.})) 38... Qh6 39. Qc2 Qh3+
40. Kh1 Rxc4 41. Qxc4 Bxd3 42. Rxf6 Bxc4 43. Nf4 e2 44. Rg1 Qf1 0-1

[Event "Carlsbad"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1923.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Nimzowitsch, A."]
[Black "Bernstein, J."]
[Result "*"]
[ECO "E51"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "47"]
[EventDate "1923.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. d4 d5 3. c4 e6 4. Nc3 Be7 5. e3 O-O 6. a3 a6 7. c5 c6 8. b4 Nbd7
9. Bb2 Qc7 10. Qc2 e5 11. O-O-O e4 {
White has to decide what to do with his knight.} 12. Nh4 ({
Keeping the knight centralized with} 12. Nd2 {appears to be reasonable, as} Ng4
{can be met by} 13. Nb3 {. --- Instead Nimzowitsch decided to first of all
decentralize his knight and then bury it on the g2-square.}) 12... Nb8 {
Black is tempted by the bait: he guards the f5-square in order to threaten 13..
.g5 winning the knight.} 13. g3 Ne8 14. Ng2 f5 15. h4 {So what has been the
reasoning behind these moves which Tarrasch would no doubt have branded as
bizarre? We need to look again at the position after Black's 11th move. The
spearhead of Black's pawn structure is on e4. This confers a space advantage
on the kingside. Therefore the correct strategic plan for Black is to engineer
the advance ...f7-f5-f4, putting another pawn alongside his most advanced pawn.
Nimzowitsch, the master of prophylaxis extraordinaire, decides he is going to
prevent this. Hence he puts the knight on h4, plays g2-g3 and then retreats
the horse to g2, thereby putting up three barriers against the advance ...f5-f4. And then, in order to deter Black from playing ...g7-g5 in support of
the advance, he plays h2-h4. --- The upshot is that Black's natural plan (as
regards the needs of the pawn structure) has been prevented, or at least made
highly difficult to arrange. The strategic motif of moving a pawn up alongside
your most advanced pawn is very important, but curiously it doesn't seem to
have a name - one would have thought that Nimzowitsch would have found a
memorable label for the device. Incidentally we see it on move two: 1 d4 d5 2
c4! --- But we haven't finished with the Bernstein game yet. If the e4-pawn is
Black's spearhead, where is the apex of White's pawn structure? Obviously it
is the c5-pawn. It requires the advance b4-b5. --- One can only admire
Nimzowitsch's sangfroid in playing according to system, as it requires him to
strip all the pawn protection in front of his king. The game continued:} Bd8
16. a4 b6 17. b5 Nf6 18. Nf4 {The white knight finds an excellent outpost on
what should have been Black's breakthrough square - a sign of a successful
blockade.} axb5 19. axb5 Qf7 20. Be2 Bc7 21. cxb6 Bxf4 22. gxf4 Bd7 23. Kd2
cxb5 24. Ra1 {. --- With his king having found safety in the centre,
Nimzowitsch went on to win after some adventures. --- Nowadays it isn't
uncommon for White to castle queenside in a blocked position and then edge his
pawns forwards in front of his own king. Such a scenario frequently occurs in
the King's Indian Sämisch for instance. But as a rule, if possible the great
strategic masters prefer to send their king off on a journey to the other side
of the board before carrying out the required pawn advances.} *

[Event "St Petersburg"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1914.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Capablanca, J."]
[Black "Blackburne, J."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C61"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "61"]
[EventDate "1914.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{In this game, Capablanca carries out the plan of putting a pawn alongside his
furthest advanced pawn, while being astute enough to prevent his opponent from
doing the same thing - see moves 17 and 18.} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nd4 4.
Nxd4 exd4 5. O-O g6 6. d3 Bg7 7. Nd2 Ne7 8. f4 c6 9. Bc4 d5 10. Bb3 O-O 11. Nf3
c5 12. e5 b5 13. c3 c4 14. Bc2 dxc3 15. bxc3 {Here Black does best to prevent
White establishing a solid centre with 15...cxd3, despite the fact that it
leaves him with an isolated pawn on d5. Instead Blackburne embarked on a
queenside adventure:} Qa5 $6 16. Bd2 Bg4 $6 ({
This was the last chance to break up White pawns with} 16... cxd3 $1 {.}) 17.
d4 $1 {Now White has a massive phalanx of pawns, with its apex at e5. The
correct strategy in such situations is known from the discussion in the
Nimzowitsch-Bernstein game above: White has to advance a pawn in order to put
it adjacent to his furthest advanced pawn. Here it involves engineering f4-f5,
putting the f-pawn next to the e5 point. --- First of all, however, like all
great strategists, Capablanca is at pains to prevent himself being disturbed
by any counterplay.} Qb6 18. Rb1 $1 {Black is prevented from disrupting the
white centre with ...b5-b4, putting a pawn alongside his furthest advanced
pawn in thematic style, when after the capture c3xb4 he has ...Bxf3 followed
by ...Qxd4+. He is also restrained from utilizing his queenside pawn majority
with ...a7-a5 and ...b5-b4, when he might have created a passed pawn. Black's
cause is greatly hampered by the fact that his king's bishop is buried on g7:
White's own dark-squared bishop has no rival when it comes to restraining any
counterplay on the queenside.} a6 {Blackburne takes up a purely defensive
posture on the queenside. This is a sure sign of a looming positional disaster,
as it means that his own pawn majority has no value, whereas White's centre
pawn majority is full of latent dynamism. As Emanuel Lasker would describe it,
the white pawns work, while the black pawns don't work.} 19. h3 {Satisfied that
Black is devoid of counterplay, Capablanca begins to roll his pawns forwards.}
Bf5 $2 {Blackburne allows the white pawns to gain even more time by attacking
this bishop.} ({Perhaps he should have bitten the bullet with} 19... Bxf3 20.
Qxf3 f5 {.}) 20. g4 $1 {I can sympathize if you feel somewhat reluctant about
pushing all your kingside pawns in this fashion. After all, in books the moves
h2-h3 or ...h7-h6 are often condemned as a thoughtless weakening of the king's
shelter - so goodness knows what the same experts would make of a move like
g2-g4! However, there is nothing thoughtless or gratuitous about Capablanca
pushing his pawns here. He is carrying out a strategic plan that suits the
requirements of the position; and with an invincible centre and the initiative
on the kingside, his monarch has nothing to fear from the black pieces. On the
contrary, it is the black king who has to be afraid of White's pawn roller.
--- You will see many instances in this book of the aggressive use of pawns in
front of the king.} Bxc2 21. Qxc2 f5 {Necessary, or else 22 f5 would be
overwhelming. Blackburne has set up a blockade of sorts on the light squares,
but it is by no means the solid barrier that we see in the best games of
Nimzowitsch. --- Capablanca now has a clear plan to break through and
reinvigorate his kingside pawn majority: move the king out of the way (22 Kh2);
double the rooks on the g-file; play Nh4; and then the manoeuvre Bc1 and Ba3
followed if necessary by Bxe7 to remove the defence of the f5-pawn (remember
it is attacked by both the white knight and queen). Even if Black succeeded
somehow in bolstering the f5 point, after the Bxe7 exchange and g4xf5 the
white rooks would come crashing down the g-file. Alternatively, if Black
played ...f5xg4, then after h3xg4 the plan of f4-f5 would be reborn. Let's see
what happened in the game:} 22. Kh2 Nc6 {This speeds up Black's defeat, as the
knight gives up its protection of the f5-square. Blackburne is toying with the
idea of putting his knight on e6, a fine blockade square in itself, but
useless in this case as White is going to break through on the kingside.} 23.
Rg1 Nd8 {The preparatory work of doubling rooks on the g-file and manoeuvring
Bd2-c1-a3 has become unnecessary, as in the absence of the black knight White
already has enough power to sweep all before him on the kingside.} 24. gxf5
Rxf5 25. Nh4 Rh5 {Now a piece sacrifice decides at once;} ({but if} 25... Rf7 {
then} 26. Rbf1 {(no need to rush!) followed by 27 f5 is crushing.}) 26. Nxg6 $1
hxg6 27. Rxg6 Qb8 ({Or} 27... Qb7 28. Rbg1 Rh7 29. f5 {
followed by 30 f6 which is carnage.}) 28. Rxg7+ Kxg7 29. Rg1+ Kf8 30. Qg6 Rxh3+
31. Kxh3 {. --- A drastic example of the power of an unrestrained pawn advance.
This is what Nimzowitsch was trying to avoid as Black when he developed his
theory of the blockade.} 1-0

[Event "St Petersburg"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1913.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Capablanca, J."]
[Black "Dus Chotimirsky, F."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C90"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "93"]
[EventDate "1913.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3
Na5 9. Bc2 c5 10. d4 Qc7 11. Nbd2 Nc6 12. Nf1 cxd4 13. cxd4 Bg4 14. d5 Nd4 15.
Bd3 O-O 16. Be3 Rac8 17. Bxd4 exd4 18. a4 Qb6 19. axb5 axb5 20. h3 Bxf3 21.
Qxf3 Nd7 22. Rec1 Nc5 {
In this position White fixed the pawn on b5 as a target for his bishop with}
23. b4 $1 {. If now 23...Nxd3 24 Qxd3, Black has no dynamism to offset his
fractured pawn structure. White's plan might include attacking b5 with Ra5 at
the appropriate moment, or the knight manoeuvre Nd2, Nb3, Na5 and Nc6 in order
to dominate the c-file (he would have to be careful not to allow Black to
exchange off his poor bishop for the knight with ...Bg5). --- Therefore Dus
Chotimirsky tried to maintain the energy in his position with} Na4 {. But Capablanca had one of his 'little combinations' waiting, as we shall soon see.} 24.
Rxc8 Rxc8 {At first glance you might imagine that Black is doing rather well.
His rook controls the only open file on the board, and there is an outpost
square for the knight on c3. ---} ({If after} 24... Rxc8 {,} 25. Qe2 {
, attacking b5, then} Nc3 {is a complete answer,} ({or even} 25... Bf6 {as} 26.
Bxb5 $2 Nc3 {wins the bishop.})) {Therefore White had better do something fast,
or else he will find himself in a cramped position after ...Nc3 and ...Bf6 etc.
Capablanca had it all worked out:} 25. e5 $3 {Unexpected and yet entirely
consistent with the theme of putting another pawn next to the furthest
advanced pawn: the e-pawn moves up to the fifth rank to join its comrade on d5.
--- Nevertheless, no matter how desirable from a strategic point of view, such
a move is useless unless it can be justified tactically. It is essential that
25...dxe5 can be answered by 26 Qf5! which ends the game at once due to the
double attack on c8 and h7. --- So what has White achieved with his pawn
breakthrough? First of all we notice that he has cleared a diagonal for his
bishop; also that he is poised to create a passed pawn with e5-e6 which will
be far more mobile than the black one on d4. --- These are the obvious
benefits, and they are indeed important. But looking more closely, you will
find that 25 e5!! has changed the relative value of virtually all the pieces
on the board. A significant shift has taken place in the 'gravity' of the
struggle: away from the queenside and over to the centre and kingside, which
means that pieces previously considered to be well placed are now badly placed,
and vice versa. --- Thus before 25 e5 you might have said that the white
knight was passive on f1, while the black knight was active on a4; whereas now
the white knight is poised to join in a kingside attack (see White's 28th move)
and it is the black knight that looks irrelevant far off on the outer rims of
the queenside. Similarly the black rook looked good on c8, controlling an open
file, whereas now it is exposed as a target and has to hurry to f8 to help
defend the king. Meanwhile the white rook on a1 seemed out of things but can
now be activated along the e-file. Likewise the white queen is nicely poised
for the coming attack, while the black queen seems cut off from the action;
one move ago you might have said that the black queen was in the thick of
things on b6, defending d4 and b5, while the white queen was sitting idly on
f3. --- Hence we see the enormous power of a pawn breakthrough. It can change
the whole nature of a game; and here it was only possible because Capablanca
had foreseen the tactic 26 Qf5!. --- It is only possible to play good
positional chess if you are alert to tactical possibilities. As Richard Réti
famously remarked, 'tactics are the foundation of positional play'.} g6 26. e6
{The pawn powers forward.} Rf8 27. Ng3 $1 Qb7 ({
White can afford to ignore the threat of a discovered attack on his queen, as} 
27... fxe6 {is met by} 28. Qg4 e5 ({Black has to try} 28... Kg7 {, although}
29. dxe6 {maintains White's advantage}) 29. Bxg6 $1 {
with a crushing attack, e.g.} hxg6 30. Qxg6+ Kh8 31. Nh5 Rg8 32. Qh6# {.}) 28.
Nf5 $1 {Once again Capablanca exploits the weakness of the h7-square.} fxe6 (
28... gxf5 29. Qxf5 {leads to a quick mate: for example,} Kg7 30. Qxh7+ Kf6 31.
exf7 Rxf7 32. Qg6+ Ke5 33. Re1+ Kf4 34. Re4# {.}) 29. dxe6 $1 Qc7 ({
Black's queen was hanging, and he loses a piece after} 29... Qxf3 30. Nxe7+ Kg7
31. gxf3 {.}) 30. Qc6 $1 {Another tactic allows the white queen to boss her
counterpart, as 30...Qxc6 would drop a piece to the fork on e7.} Qd8 31. Nxe7+
Qxe7 32. Bxb5 {The tactics have come to an end and Black could resign.} Nc3 33.
Qd7 Qxd7 34. Bxd7 Rb8 35. e7 Kf7 36. Re1 Re8 37. Bxe8+ Kxe8 38. Re6 d5 39. Kf1
Nb5 40. Ke2 Nc7 41. Re5 Na6 42. b5 Nb4 43. b6 d3+ 44. Kd2 Kd7 45. e8=Q+ Kd6 {
I wonder how many other players would have had the nerve to play on the
exchange and a queen down against Capablanca.} 46. Qe7+ Kc6 47. Qxb4 1-0

[Event "Moscow"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1935.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Capablanca, J."]
[Black "Menchik, V."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E85"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "63"]
[EventDate "1935.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. f3 O-O 6. Be3 e5 7. Nge2 a6 8. Qd2
Bd7 9. d5 Ne8 10. g4 h6 11. h4 Kh7 12. Ng3 c5 13. Bd3 Qa5 14. Qe2 Rh8 15. a3
Qd8 16. b4 b6 17. Qb2 Bc8 18. Ke2 Nd7 19. Rag1 Rb8 {
Here Capablanca has a promising build-up on the kingside. The game continued:}
20. b5 a5 $2 {With the queenside completely blocked, White can concentrate all
his firepower on the kingside without the slightest fear of a Black
counterattack on the other wing. Besides, the white king will be able to
shelter on the queenside, where it won't get in the way of the manoeuvres of
the other white pieces or become a potential target once lines are opened up
on the kingside.} ({Menchik should have tried} 20... axb5 {
keeping at least a semblance of queenside activity, when} 21. cxb5 ({while} 21.
Nxb5 {is answered by} Ba6) 21... c4 $5 22. Bxc4 Nc5 {
gives Black a little air for her pawn.}) 21. Kd1 Kg8 22. Qd2 Nf8 23. Kc2 f6 24.
g5 {Capablanca prepares a violent breakthrough on the kingside.} ({Not} 24. h5
$2 g5 {, when it is all blocked up - White has to keep some open lines.}) ({
It would also be too soon for the pawn break} 24. f4 {, as after} exf4 {
the black knight gets to e5 via d7.}) 24... fxg5 25. hxg5 h5 26. Nf5 $3 {
This piece offer is part of a knight manoeuvre to h4. It is also consistent
with our golden rule concerning strategic pawn advances, as after 26...gxf5 27
exf5 White would have a second pawn sitting on the fifth rank, adjacent to the
g5-pawn. Black's king would then be quickly murdered by 28 f6 etc.} Kf7 27. Nh4
Qe7 {Now Capablanca plans to advance f3-f4 with his pieces on the most optimum
squares.} 28. Qh2 Nc7 29. Rf1 Ke8 30. f4 $1 {At last it is time for the
breakthrough. Black must capture on f4 or else 31 f5 is crushing. --- We saw
above that after 24 f4 the Women's World Champion could manoeuvre her knight
to e5 via d7. By putting his own knight on h4, Capablanca has tied down the
black knight to the defence of g6.} exf4 31. Bxf4 Kd7 32. Bxd6 $1 ({
The queen is lost after} 32. Bxd6 Qxd6 33. Rf7+ {.}) 1-0

[Event "New York"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1927.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Capablanca, J."]
[Black "Spielmann, R."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D38"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "51"]
[EventDate "1927.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{In this game, White has not one but two pawn breaks available to him. We
could easily remodel Capablanca's words about the Alexander game to fit the
new situation: -- 'From the look of the position it seems that White should
prepare the pawn advance e3-e4. If Black is able to defeat this plan, or
rather to prevent it, then once White has fixed the black pieces on the
kingside he should quickly shift his attack to the queenside, and attack b5
with a2-a4.'} 1. d4 d5 2. Nf3 e6 3. c4 Nd7 4. Nc3 Ngf6 5. Bg5 Bb4 6. cxd5 exd5
7. Qa4 Bxc3+ ({More fighting was} 7... c5 {. Spielmann is rather generous in
giving up his dark-squared bishop without inflicting any real structural
damage on White's queenside.}) 8. bxc3 O-O 9. e3 c5 10. Bd3 c4 11. Bc2 Qe7 12.
O-O a6 {White has completed his development and needs to choose his plan. If
he succeeded in advancing e3-e4, blasting open the e-file, he would gain a
dangerous initiative, which could easily be converted into a direct assault on
the black king: after all, White has a powerful pair of bishops as well as two
rooks that could easily be brought into the attack. Alternatively, just
dominating the e-file with the rooks after e3-e4 would give White excellent
winning chances. --- In order to achieve his aim, White needs to play Rfe1 and
Nd2, and then all is ready for e3-e4. The game continued:} 13. Rfe1 Qe6 14. Nd2
{Spielmann, himself a master of attack, is aware that if he does nothing, 15
e4! will give the white pieces an irrepressible energy. Therefore he has to
block the advance at all costs.} ({
The only way is by sticking his knight on e4, but unfortunately} 14. Nd2 Ne4 {
just loses a pawn to} 15. Bxe4 dxe4 16. Qxc4 {
. So first of all, he needs to defend the c4-pawn a second time.}) 14... b5 15.
Qa5 Ne4 16. Nxe4 dxe4 {Black has successfully accomplished his mission, as the
e3-e4 advance is no more. However, in order to carry out his plan, he has been
obliged to play 14...b5, which has exposed his queenside pawns to attack.
Capablanca exploits this factor straightaway.} 17. a4 $1 {A classic example of
the conversion of one advantage into another. A grandmaster class player like
Spielmann would never have dreamt of playing 14...b5 if it hadn't been an
essential component of the plan to stop e3-e4. --- Black now has severe
difficulties in defending the b5-pawn, as he has no wish to be left with split
pawns on a6 and c4 after 17...bxa4.} Qd5 {Nonetheless, it looks as if
Spielmann has found the saving move: the white bishop on g5 is attacked and
when it retreats 18...Bb7, followed by 19...Bc6 if necessary, will hold
together the queenside. But Capablanca has a little surprise in store...} 18.
axb5 $1 {Here we see the conversion of the white bishop into three pawns - one
of which will be an unstoppable passed pawn.} Qxg5 19. Bxe4 {
So White conquers the e4 point after all.} Rb8 20. bxa6 Rb5 ({After} 20... Qxa5
21. Rxa5 {the passed pawn will cost Black a piece, leaving him two pawns down
in the endgame.}) 21. Qc7 Nb6 22. a7 Bh3 23. Reb1 $1 {White has no need to
queen the pawn immediately, as if he is patient he can get more than a knight
for it.} Rxb1+ 24. Rxb1 f5 25. Bf3 f4 26. exf4 {. --- A splendid display that
won the first brilliancy prize at the New York tournament. --- The moral is:
if you believe you have made preparations for a pawn advance (or indeed any
other plan) that suits the requirements of the position, and the opponent
prevents it, look around to see what other opportunities have arisen for you.}
1-0

[Event "Consultation Game, Barcelona"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1920.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Puig, Ardevol & Puntas"]
[Black "Capablanca, J."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "B12"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "68"]
[EventDate "1920.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{Before looking at the game in detail, please play through the whole game
quickly, and then ask yourself: why did White lose? --- I expect that most of
Capablanca's contemporaries were baffled by such a game, in which the three
consultation players made a series of sensible-looking moves, and then had to
resign. No wonder they thought the Cuban was a genius! --- If I may be allowed
the digression, I remember that when I played through this game as a young boy
I also marvelled at the smooth, clockwork efficiency of Capablanca's technique.
In fact I wrongly concluded that White's position was already worse after 3 e5,
which perhaps explains why I started playing the French Defence as Black,
hoping after 1 e4 e6 2 d4 d5 for the 'positional blunder' 3 e5. As a matter of
fact, for a while it became a self-fulfilling prophecy in the sense that I did
succeed in proving 3 e5 was a bad move in a lot of games. The reason for this
was that I knew Capablanca's technique for handling such positions as Black,
whereas my inexperienced opponents didn't have any similar helping hand when
it came to choosing a strategy for White. In other words I could only see out
of one eye (I knew the plan for Black, but not White), whereas my opponents
were blind. --- Things started to change when I became a stronger player, and
players like Michael Adams played 3 e5 against me in junior events. But even
so, I have always retained a preference for the black side of a d4/e5 versus
d5/e6 centre pawn structure. --- Capablanca was indeed a genius, but remember
that chess is a game of logic, and you have to make mistakes before you lose,
whether or not you are playing a genius. So let's investigate the demise of
Messrs Puig, Ardevol and Puntas.} 1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. e5 Bf5 4. Bd3 Bxd3 5.
Qxd3 e6 6. Ne2 Qb6 7. O-O c5 8. c3 Nc6 9. f4 cxd4 10. cxd4 Nh6 11. Nd2 Nf5 12.
Nf3 h5 13. Bd2 a5 14. a3 Qa6 15. Qxa6 Rxa6 16. Rac1 $2 {This shows a
fundamental misunderstanding of the needs of the pawn structure. White reasons
that the key factor is the only open file on the board: so the correct plan
must be to double rooks along it. Wrong! --- Elsewhere in this chapter we have
talked about the strategic device of advancing a pawn to stand alongside the
furthest advanced pawn. Here the spearhead of White's pawn structure is e5:
and so the correct idea is to engineer the advance f4-f5.} ({I expect the
three consultants thought about this idea, but then threw up their hands in
despair: it would be much too difficult to arrange! Sure enough, at moment
there is a black knight sitting on the f5-square, which would have to be
dislodged by g2-g4. But if White plays} 16. g4 $2 {Black of course just takes
the pawn (here we see that Capablanca was clever in playing 12...h5! to cement
his knight on f5).}) ({So, if White wants to play g2-g4, he has to begin with
h2-h3. But again Black would have a strong riposte to the immediate} 16. h3 $2
{in} h4 $1 {, crippling the g2-pawn.}) ({So finally we get to the end of the
tale, and the move that suits the requirements of the position:} 16. g3 $1 {
. White plans 17 h3 (when 17...h4 in reply has lost its purpose, as after 18
g4 there is no en passant capture) followed by 18 g4, dislodging the black
knight with a view to an eventual f4-f5. Let's see what might have happened
had Black played the same moves against 16 g3! as in the game:} Be7 17. h3 Kd7
({or} 17... Bd8 18. Kf2 Bb6 19. Bc3 {, safeguarding d4 and all set for 20 g4})
18. Kf2 Bd8 19. g4 {
. White has managed to achieve the g4 advance, and following} hxg4 20. hxg4 {
Black has to be careful as he falls into a pin after} Nh4 21. Rh1 {. --- Thus
e see that the utilization of the kingside pawns would have given White a
fully acceptable game. In contrast, the plan of doubling rooks along the
c-file that occurred in the game led to a gradual erosion of his chances. He
was always acting on the defensive, with no counterplay.}) 16... Kd7 17. Rc2
Be7 18. Rfc1 Bd8 19. Kf2 Bb6 20. Be3 a4 21. Rd1 Rc8 22. Nc3 Na5 23. Ke2 Nc4 24.
Bc1 Bd8 25. Kd3 Rb8 26. Rg1 b5 {Whereas White failed to grasp the plan of
advancing a pawn next to his most advanced pawn, Capablanca carried out the
idea on the queenside. First of all he was careful to neutralize any possible
White counterplay along the c-file. And then, having as it were disguised his
strategic intentions, he suddenly went for action on the b-file with 24...Bd8!,
25...Rb8 and 26...b5. --- And then all was ready for 27...b4, achieving the
strategic end we have been discussing. The b2-pawn was then a target, whereas
Black's a4-pawn was in no danger, because the queenside is where Black held
the initiative. Right at the end, White made a desperate bid for counterplay
with 26 Rg1 and 27 g4, but it only succeeded in misplacing the rook on g4,
when it should have stayed on the queenside helping to defend b2. Besides,
there is no point in advancing g2-g4 unless White can recapture on g4 with a
pawn.} 27. g4 hxg4 28. Rxg4 b4 29. axb4 Rxb4 30. Nd1 Rc6 31. h4 g6 32. Bd2 Nxd2
33. Rxd2 Rb3+ 34. Ke2 Ba5 ({White's position collapses after} 34... Ba5 35. Rd3
({or} 35. Nc3 a3) 35... Rc2+ {.}) 0-1

[Event "London"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1922.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Atkins, H."]
[Black "Capablanca, J."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "B12"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "134"]
[EventDate "1922.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. e5 Bf5 4. Bd3 Bxd3 5. Qxd3 e6 6. Ne2 Qb6 7. O-O Qa6 $1 {
Capablanca was always a brilliant practitioner of the art of exchanging -
compare this move with 14...Qa6! in the consultation game above. With queens
still on the board, the possibility of a direct attack against the black king
gives an extra boost to White's strategic advance f4-f5; and besides Capablanca
wants to utilize his king in the centre without being bothered by mating
threats. Hence he is keen to exchange queens.} 8. Qd1 c5 9. c3 Nc6 10. Nd2 cxd4
11. cxd4 Qd3 $1 {Refusing to take no for an answer. White must defend his
d4-pawn, after which Capablanca gets to exchange queens after all.} 12. Nb3
Qxd1 13. Rxd1 {Here we see an illustration of the difference between a piece
that is uselessly centralized and one which is well placed for the
implementation of a strategic plan: the white rook is now on the wrong square
to support an f4-f5 advance.} Nge7 14. Bd2 {As we shall see, Atkins is
intending to take up a purely defensive posture on the queenside, with no
thought of the f4-f5 advance.} ({
It is true that conditions aren't very promising here, but nonetheless} 14. f4
{was worth a try: if then} h5 ({or} 14... Nf5 $6 15. g4 Nh4 16. Be3 {
and White has a kingside initiative}) 15. Be3 Nf5 16. Bf2 {and White is ready
to edge forwards with 17 g3 (but not 17 h3? h4! with the characteristic
blockade of White's kingside pawns) followed in time by a plan such as h2-h3,
Kg2 and Kf3, Rh1 and g3-g4. --- Note that White wouldn't rush into h2-h3 and
g3-g4 if, after the exchange ...h5xg4 and h3xg4, the retreat ...Nh6 forces him
into the ugly anti-positional advance g4-g5. No, he supports his pawns with
Kf3 and if possible Rh1. --- White's kingside action wouldn't have needed to
do any serious damage to distract Black from his queenside strategy. In the
game, White is forever defending and reacting to his opponent's threats. As
the saying goes, Black 'is playing without an opponent'. And when Black is as
massively strong in technique as Capablanca, letting the opponent do as he
wishes is a fatal approach.}) 14... a5 $1 15. Rac1 b6 {Excellent positional
play: the black pawns take away squares on the queenside from the white bishop
and the knight on b3.} 16. a4 Kd7 $1 {The king can guard the c-file without
any danger of being disturbed thanks to Black's 15th move.} 17. Nc3 Na7 18. Kf1
Nec6 19. Ke2 Rc8 20. Be1 Be7 21. Nb1 {To be fair to Atkins, he may have chosen
to defend passively, but he is at least aware of the danger on the b-file,
something of which the consulting players in the previous game were oblivious.
He eventually brings his knight to a3 to fight against the ...b6-b5 advance,
which would have made the b2-pawn a potential target.} f5 $1 {If White ignores
this pawn thrust then, after ...g7-g5 etc, his kingside pawns will eventually
be rammed by their black counterparts, leading to the creation of fresh
targets in his position. He therefore chooses to capture on f6, which
dissolves the spearhead of his pawn structure. With the e5-pawn gone, Black's
bishop has more freedom and can put pressure on d4. Moreover, White has been
forced to admit that he will be on the defensive for the rest of the game.} 22.
exf6 Bxf6 23. Bc3 Nb4 24. Bd2 Nac6 25. Be3 Na2 $1 26. Rc2 Rc7 27. Na3 Rhc8 {
White feels that he has to evacuate his rooks from the c-file, but it is still
by no means obvious how Black will exploit his more active pieces. A gritty
manoeuvring battle lies ahead.} 28. Rcd2 Na7 29. Rd3 Nb4 30. R3d2 Rc6 31. Rb1
Be7 32. Ra1 Bd6 33. h3 R6c7 34. Rad1 Na2 $1 {At last Capablanca accepts that
he needs to eliminate the white knight on a3. It may look like a passive piece,
but in fact it is doing a sterling job in opposing the ...b6-b5 advance and
keeping the black rooks out of c4 and c2.} 35. Ra1 Bxa3 36. Rxa2 Bb4 37. Rd1
Rc4 38. Rc1 Nc6 39. Rxc4 $2 {After a long hard fight Atkins collapses. He has
suffered so much anxiety about an invasion of the black rooks that he snatches
at the first opportunity to close the c-file. In doing so he has overlooked
the greater danger that comes from handing over a complex of light squares.} ({
He should have stood his ground with} 39. Raa1 {.}) 39... dxc4 40. Nd2 ({If} 
40. Na1 {then} Bd6 $5 {
looks a strong reply, intending to harass the white rook with 41...Nb4. Then}
41. Nc2 Nb4 42. Nxb4 axb4 {, followed by moves like ...Kc6, ...Kd5 and ...Ra8
etc, looks tremendous for Black.}) 40... Bxd2 $1 {A key exchange: Black
eliminates the only white pieces that can fight against his plan of putting
the king on d5 and then exposing the b2-pawn to attack with ...b6-b5. At the
same time White is left with the infamous 'bad' bishop, which simply can't
compete with the fleet-footed black knight.} 41. Kxd2 Kd6 42. Kc3 Kd5 {
A superb square for the black king: it attacks d4, defends c4 and can never be
harassed by the white pieces.} 43. Ra1 g6 $1 {Capablanca is in no hurry as his
opponent can't escape from the positional bind. Therefore he takes a time out
to put a pawn on a light square where it can't ever be attacked by the white
bishop. In doing so he also ensures that his kingside pawns aren't lined up on
the second rank as targets for the white rook. --- Such a precaution might
seem unnecessary - how is the white rook or bishop ever going to attack the
kingside!? Nevertheless, such moves can't do any harm and can turn out to do a
lot of good. And jumping ahead, the white rook does get to the seventh rank,
though it is true that it doesn't spend a long time there...} 44. f3 Rb8 {
The winning plan is similar to that seen in the Puig game above: namely to
break through on the b-file and victimize the b2-pawn.} 45. Ra3 b5 46. axb5
Rxb5 47. Bf2 {Unfortunately for Atkins his rook will be unable to prevent an
invasion by the black rook on b3 and guard the b2-pawn. This is due to his
light square weaknesses: if White had picked up his bishop and played 47 Be2!?
without Capablanca noticing things would have been very different!} Nb4 $1 {
The knight heads for the outpost square on d3 where it will attack b2.} 48. b3
{White gets rid of the weak pawn, but this means conceding an outside passed
pawn.} ({However, waiting was no better: for example,} 48. Bg1 Nd3 49. b3 ({if
} 49. Ra2 Rb3+ {White loses either the b2-pawn or the exchange after} 50. Kc2
Nb4+) 49... cxb3 $1 {. If now} 50. Kxd3 ({or} 50. Rxb3 Rxb3+ 51. Kxb3 Ne1 {
and White's kingside pawns start to drop}) {, Black replies} 50... b2 {
and queens.}) 48... cxb3 49. Kxb3 Nc6+ ({Not getting involved in} 49... Nd3+
50. Ka4 {.}) 50. Kc3 ({Here} 50. Ka4 Rb4# {would save White a lot of pain.})
50... Rb1 {There are three facets to Black's winning plan: -- 1) Advance the
passed pawn when it is safe to do so. -- 2) Attack the d4-pawn. -- 3) Achieve
these ends by bullying White into conceding ground by offering the exchange of
rooks. Any 'pure' knight versus bishop endgame is entirely hopeless for White
due to his wretched bishop and the black passed pawn, so the white rook must
always run from an exchange. --- There is also a fourth factor that adds to
White's dire defensive task: namely the latent threat of invasion by the black
rook on the kingside followed by the massacre of White's pawns there.} 51. Ra4
Rc1+ 52. Kd2 Rc4 $1 {
As predicted, the offer to exchange rooks pushes White backwards.} 53. Ra1 a4
54. Ra3 Na7 $1 {The knight heads for b5 where it both attacks d4 and supports
the further advance of the passed pawn.} 55. Ra1 Nb5 56. Rb1 Kc6 $1 {
An instructive moment.} ({With} 56... Nxd4 {Black would win a pawn, but he
would also liberate both the white bishop and rook, and} 57. Rb7 {might follow.
Capablanca prefers to keep the white pieces shut in. As always, the golden
rule is 'do not hurry!'}) 57. Kd3 Rc3+ 58. Kd2 Rb3 $1 {
Another variation on the theme of the bullying offer to exchange rooks.} 59.
Rc1+ Kb7 60. Rc2 a3 61. Bg3 {A last bid for activity: if White just waits
Black can bring his king up the board via a6 and a5 to b4 and support the
advance of the passed pawn.} Nxd4 62. Rc7+ Kb6 63. Rc4 ({Obviously, if instead
} 63. Rxh7 {, Black replies} a2 {and the pawn swiftly promotes.}) 63... Kb5 64.
Rc8 Nc6 65. Ra8 Rb2+ 66. Ke3 Rxg2 67. Bf2 Nb4 $1 {. The a3-pawn is immune due
to the fork on c2, and besides White is two pawns down. --- A great display of
technique against a stubborn opponent.} 0-1

[Event "New York (round 15)"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1927.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Nimzowitsch, A."]
[Black "Capablanca, J."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "B12"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "92"]
[EventDate "1927.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. e5 Bf5 4. Bd3 {As we shall discuss later, this early
bishop exchange isn't really to modern taste.} Bxd3 5. Qxd3 e6 6. Nc3 {
In contrast to the games above, rather than setting up a rigid pawn chain
based on c2-c3, Nimzowitsch permits his d4-pawn to be liquidated with ...c6-c5
so that he can use the d4-square as a centre post for his knight. --- One of
Nimzowitsch's idioms was that the 'centre consists of squares, not pawns'.
Therefore, as long as the pieces control centre squares, the actual terrain
there doesn't necessarily have to be occupied by pawns.} Qb6 7. Nge2 c5 8. dxc5
Bxc5 9. O-O Ne7 10. Na4 {In some books the bishop is valued at 31/4 pawns, the
knight at 3 pawns, but the great Dane never thought in such abstract terms.
Rather he intends to eliminate the black bishop which is opposing his plan of
dominating the d4-square.} Qc6 11. Nxc5 Qxc5 12. Be3 {Continuing the plan of
gaining mastery over d4. 'You should protect your weak points and overprotect
the strong ones in the centre,' wrote Nimzowitsch.} Qc7 13. f4 Nf5 14. c3 {
'The leitmotif of a true strategy should be to overprotect the centre, instead
of the all too frequent habit of swerving to the flanks,' wrote Nimzowitsch.
(A leitmotif is a recurrent musical phrase or short theme associated with a
person or situation.) Here the pawn does its bit to control d4.} Nc6 {
Even though Capablanca wasn't interested in elaborate technical expressions
like 'overprotection', he was of course fully aware of the need to fight for
the centre squares. Thus his knights find themselves opposing White's hold on
d4.} 15. Rad1 g6 $1 ({Having cemented his grip on d4, White needs to find a
plan. Capablanca might have played} 15... h5 {to fix the knight on f5, or
perhaps castled kingside, but he is shrewd enough to give his opponent the
chance to ruin his position with a natural move.}) 16. g4 $2 {The pawn advance
White is meant to play in this type of position: he gains space on the
kingside and evicts the black knight. Puig and Atkins had to spend the whole
game defending because they missed the chance to prepare and then carry out
this pawn advance. In principle 16 g4 is a high-class move that shows the hand
of the Grandmaster. Unfortunately it also proves to be a disaster as
Capablanca is able to block up the kingside, leaving the white pawn structure
there devoid of energy and full of holes.} ({
In 'Chess Praxis', Nimzowitsch says he should have played} 16. Bf2 {
followed after} h5 {by g2-g3, h2-h3 and eventually g4. In that way the white
pawns get to edge forwards on the kingside whilst maintaining their dynamism.
Nimzowitsch claims that White would have good chances after 16 Bf2; personally
I think 'balanced chances' is a more accurate assessment. Still, it certainly
leads to a different type of game: if Black castles kingside, the plan of
preparing g4 looks good; if Black doesn't castle, what else does his king do?})
16... Nxe3 17. Qxe3 h5 $1 {The tactical refutation of White's plan.} 18. g5 ({
White needs to play} 18. h3 {to maintain the health of his pawns, but after}
hxg4 19. hxg4 {Black has two promising options. Firstly,} O-O-O {, followed by
20...Rh4 etc, would give him an attack against the exposed white king, though
I feel that modern players with their greater defensive knowledge would be
willing to endure this;} ({or secondly} 19... g5 $5 {would break up White's
kingside pawns, leaving e5 irreparably weak. --- In any case, Nimzowitsch
feels obliged to commit positional hara-kiri on the kingside by advancing his
pawn to g5.})) 18... O-O $1 {Only now. White's kingside pawns have lost all
their mobility and so cannot threaten the black monarch.} 19. Nd4 Qb6 20. Rf2
Rfc8 21. a3 Rc7 22. Rd3 {Having been robbed of the plan of a kingside pawn
advance, Nimzowitsch finds himself facing the same thankless defence that Puig
and Atkins had to endure.} Na5 {One of the dangers that comes from being
experienced with a particular pawn structure is that you can end up making
stereotyped decisions. It seems that not even the great Capablanca was immune.
In the earlier games with Puig and Atkins, Black won by building up pressure
on the queenside, and so Capablanca toys with the same plan: he moves the
knight to a5, aiming to play ...Nc4 followed in time by ...b7-b5, ...a7-a5 and
...b5-b4. But in these earlier games the queens had been exchanged, so there
was no danger of a White counterattack on the other wing. Here after
Nimzowitsch's reply...} 23. Re2 {...Capablanca realized that White's dynamic
potential is by no means exhausted if Black devotes his attention wholly to a
queenside pawn advance.} ({For example,} 23. Re2 Nc4 24. Qh3 Qc5 $6 25. Kg2 b5
({or if} 25... Re8 {(to deter the sacrifice on e6), then} 26. f5 $5 ({
White might in fact do better to prepare this with} 26. Rf3 {etc}) 26... exf5
27. e6 {with real counterplay: after} fxe6 $2 28. Rxe6 {
Black has no good move because e8 and g6 are both hanging and} Rxe6 29. Nxe6 {
loses the exchange.}) 26. Nxe6 $1 fxe6 27. Qxe6+ Kh7 28. f5 {and White's pawns
come alive again with a vicious attack on the black king. --- Therefore
Capablanca realized that 22...Na5 and the plan behind it were wrong.
Committing himself to a queenside pawn advance takes up too much of Black's
resources, allowing White the chance for a counterblow on the kingside with
the sacrifice f4-f5 or Nxe6. --- Instead Black needs to engage in some
prophylaxis to neutralize all the danger.}) 23... Re8 $1 {Nimzowitsch coined
the expression 'the mysterious rook move'. By this he meant the transfer of a
rook to a file blocked by a pawn of its own colour in order to oppose an
anticipated enemy breakthrough.} ({It may look odd to put the rook on e8,
where it stares at a brick wall on e6, but Capablanca is keen to put the
knight back on c6, and if immediately} 23... Nc6 {then} 24. f5 $5 {
is possible, when} exf5 25. e6 {
gives White an attack. Therefore he begins by deterring White's pawn break.})
24. Kg2 Nc6 $1 {Capablanca is objective and courageous enough to admit his
22nd move was a mistake. --- There is a Russian proverb often quoted in chess
books to the effect that, 'once you've said "A" you have to say "B".' In other
words, once you have committed yourself to a plan it is psychologically very
difficult to change tack, even if it starts to look dubious, as you have
invested your energy and ego into it. Even world champions have been known to
cling stubbornly to an incorrect plan with their chess genius blinded by their
fixation with a certain idea.} 25. Red2 ({
According to Alekhine, the best defence was} 25. Nxc6 Qxc6 26. Rd4 {
. The reason why becomes clear in the note to Black's 32nd move below.}) 25...
Rec8 {With the white rook having left the e-file, Capablanca is no longer
alarmed by the f4-f5 idea and so puts his rook on the more active c8-square.}
26. Re2 Ne7 $1 ({Rather than repeat the position with} 26... Re8 {
, Capablanca gets his returned knight to take over the duty of deterring f4-f5.
}) 27. Red2 Rc4 28. Qh3 {Nimzowitsch sees the threat posed by Nf5, challenging
his knight, and hopes to prevent it by putting pressure on h5. ---
Nevertheless, keeping the queen on e3 seems a better defensive set-up, so that
if Black ever plays ...Nf5 White can respond Nxf5+ followed by Qxb6,
exchanging queens, and then Rd4 keeping out the black rooks. --- In the game,
Capablanca succeeds in dislodging the white knight with ...Nf5 without being
obliged to exchange queens, which means he can attack White's open king.} Kg7 (
{If immediately} 28... Nf5 $2 29. Nxf5 gxf5 $2 ({Black has to play} 29... exf5
{, but then d5 will drop}) 30. Qxh5 {, the threat of 31 Rh3 is decisive.}) 29.
Rf2 a5 30. Re2 Nf5 $1 {At last Capablanca is ready to remove the obstacle on
d4, after which he can attack the f4-pawn.} 31. Nxf5+ (31. Red2 Nxd4 32. Rxd4
Rxd4 33. cxd4 ({not} 33. Rxd4 {, as the b2-pawn drops}) 33... Qc6 {would be extremely unpleasant for White, with the black pieces invading down the c-file.})
31... gxf5 32. Qf3 ({If now} 32. Qxh5 {then} Rh8 33. Qf3 Rh4 34. Rf2 {
(or else f4 falls)} Rhxf4 35. Qxf4 Rxf4 36. Rxf4 Qxb2+ 37. Rf2 Qxa3 {
and Black has good winning chances in the endgame.}) 32... Kg6 {The change in
pawn structure with 31...gxf5, rather than damaging the value of Black's pawn
structure, has actually strengthened it: an invincible outpost has been
created on e4 for a black rook, where it is defended by both the d5- and
f5-pawns. Incidentally, this is why Alekhine's idea of exchanging with 25 Nxc6
would have been better - no strong post on e4 is created for the black rooks.
--- It is important to comprehend that ...g6xf5 has increased the dynamic
power value of Black's pawns, despite the fact that, formally speaking, it
causes structural damage by giving Black an isolated h-pawn and doubled
f-pawns.} 33. Red2 Re4 34. Rd4 Rc4 $1 {
The black rooks invade along the fifth rank.} 35. Qf2 Qb5 36. Kg3 Rcxd4 37.
cxd4 ({Not the recapture White wants to make, but} 37. Rxd4 {is met by} Re2 {.}
) 37... Qc4 {Now White is completely tied up and soon falls prey to zugzwang.}
38. Kg2 b5 39. Kg1 b4 40. axb4 axb4 41. Kg2 Qc1 {
Zugzwang: the black queen has to be allowed into h1.} 42. Kg3 Qh1 43. Rd3 Re1
44. Rf3 Rd1 45. b3 Rc1 46. Re3 ({Or} 46. Kh3 Rc2 $1 47. Qxc2 Qxf3+ {
and mate next move.}) 46... Rf1 0-1

[Event "World Championship (Game 14), Brissago"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2004.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Kramnik, V."]
[Black "Leko, P."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "B12"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "2004.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{This is an encounter of some historical importance, as Kramnik had to win the
game to draw the match and so retain his title.} 1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. e5 Bf5 4.
h4 {In the Capablanca games above, White rather generously offered the
exchange of bishops with 4 Bd3. Kramnik, following modern theory, prefers to
use the bishop on f5 as target practice for space-gaining pawn moves.} h6 5. g4
{It's only the fifth move, and already Kramnik has carried out a key strategic
pawn advance. Back in the 1920s such play would have seemed very risky: after
all, White has yet to develop a single piece, having made five pawn moves; and
where is his king going to find safety when White's kingside has been
completely uprooted? --- Capablanca would never have played like this as White.
Nimzowitsch might have done if he were in an experimental mood, though it is
fair to assume that the loosening effect of multiple pawn moves in the opening
would have given even the arch hypermodernist pause for thought. And without
the benefit of 80 years of master games at his disposal, Nimzowitsch could
easily have lost control if he had ventured to play like this. --- In contrast,
Kramnik can afford to do so because, compared to Capablanca or Nimzowitsch, he
comes to a game armed with another 80 or so years of theory. Plus Kramnik's
own private research is likely to be far superior to the level Capablanca or
Nimzowitsch ever attained, if only because he is armed with a world-class,
blunder-proof oracle in the shape of a chess-playing program. --- To conclude,
opening theory, supported by any private work he may have done with the
computer, has shown Kramnik that his king doesn't get wiped out by a Black
counterattack. Nor does Black succeed in demolishing White's kingside pawns
before they can be supported by the pieces. --- Nowadays it is impossible to
become a chess giant without profound and original work on opening theory.
Commonsense (Capablanca) or maverick ideas (Nimzowitsch) are not enough on
their own.} Bd7 {A rather strange retreat;} ({but Leko doesn't want to risk
being hit by a disruptive pawn sacrifice as might have occurred after} 5... Bh7
{, with} 6. e6 $5 fxe6 7. Bd3 {etc. The bishop on f8 would then be boxed in.
It should be remembered that Leko only needed to draw this game to become
World Champion, so his overly cautious play is perfectly understandable.}) 6.
Nd2 {Whatever would Tarrasch, the arch-priest of law and order in chess, have
made of this position? He would probably have assumed that both masters were
drunk! What else could account for the fact that after six moves White has
only managed to get a knight to d2 and Black a bishop to d7? --- In fact, the
move 6 Nd2 is based on a concrete assessment of the position: Black is
planning to free his game with the advance ...c6-c5, after which the response
d4xc5 and Nb3 will enable White to seize the bishop pair (and Dr Tarrasch knew
all about the value of the bishop pair).} c5 7. dxc5 e6 $2 ({More fighting was
} 7... Nc6 $1 {hitting e5. Leko's move attempts to play solidly, but Black
shouldn't hand over his important dark-squared bishop in such a lame fashion.})
8. Nb3 Bxc5 9. Nxc5 Qa5+ 10. c3 Qxc5 11. Nf3 Ne7 {A 'classical'-looking
position of the kind that Capablanca and Nimzowitsch would have understood is
gradually emerging. White has good chances thanks to his space advantage and
the bishop pair.} 12. Bd3 Nbc6 13. Be3 Qa5 14. Qd2 Ng6 {
Continuing to play in a passive vein.} ({Kasparov suggested the pawn sacrifice
} 14... d4 $5 15. cxd4 Nb4 {, which wins the d5-square for the black knights
and a great diagonal pointing at h1 for the bishop after ...Bc6 etc. This
would be a typical 'modern' pawn sacrifice to add dynamism to a position. But
when you need a draw to become World Champion, it is no doubt psychologically
difficult to give up a pawn.}) 15. Bd4 {Necessary to defend e5. Black can now
eliminate the enemy dark-squared bishop, but in doing so he consolidates
White's centre and allows him first say over the c-file.} Nxd4 16. cxd4 Qxd2+
$2 {Giving Kramnik the type of complex endgame that he always plays so well.
After the exchange of queens the safety of the white king also ceases to be
any long-term issue.} ({Instead,} 16... Qb6 $1 {was to be preferred.}) 17. Kxd2
{Now we have the same d4/e5 versus d5/e6 pawn centre with queens exchanged as
in Capablanca's games with Puig, Atkins and Nimzo, but what a difference! -- 1)
Here White has retained his king's bishop so he isn't languishing on the light
squares. In contrast, Black is still saddled with an ineffective queen's
bishop. -- 2) Black hasn't been able to double up rooks on the c-file or make
any other progress there. On the contrary, White's rooks will be the first to
see action. -- 3) White's kingside pawns have maintained their dynamism. They
haven't been clogged up (Nimzowitsch game) or rendered inert (Atkins, Puig).}
Nf4 18. Rac1 h5 19. Rhg1 $1 ({In contrast to the Nimzowitsch-Capablanca game,
Kramnik is able to avoid blocking the kingside with} 19. g5 $2 {
. Instead he opens it so that his rook can attack g7.}) 19... Bc6 20. gxh5 Nxh5
21. b4 $1 {Kramnik has the initiative on both sides of the board. With his
pieces on their optimum squares, it is now time to use the queenside pawns to
create an inroad for the white rook along the c-file.} a6 22. a4 Kd8 ({If} 
22... Bxa4 {then} 23. Rc7 Bc6 ({still, in this sequence} 23... Bb5 {
might have been the best chance to survive}) 24. Ng5 $1 {looks crushing:} Rf8 {
runs into} 25. Nxf7 $1 Rxf7 26. Bg6 {.}) 23. Ng5 Be8 24. b5 Nf4 25. b6 $1 {
Creating an outpost on the seventh rank for the rook. Of course if now 25...
Bxa4 there is a fork on f7.} Nxd3 26. Kxd3 Rc8 27. Rxc8+ Kxc8 28. Rc1+ Bc6 ({
Allowing the white knight to invade proves fatal, but Black couldn't endure} 
28... Kb8 29. Rc7 {.}) 29. Nxf7 Rxh4 30. Nd6+ Kd8 31. Rg1 Rh3+ 32. Ke2 Ra3 ({If
} 32... Rh7 {Black is entirely passive, allowing White to prepare the f4-f5
advance at his leisure - see the game continuation.}) 33. Rxg7 Rxa4 34. f4 Ra2+
35. Kf3 {The king advances to support the final attack based on the
breakthrough f4-f5, not only to create a passed pawn but also mating threats.}
Ra3+ 36. Kg4 Rd3 37. f5 Rxd4+ 38. Kg5 exf5 39. Kf6 Rg4 40. Rc7 Rh4 41. Nf7+ ({
It is mate:} 41. Nf7+ Ke8 42. Rc8+ Kd7 43. Rd8# {
. --- A great display by Kramnik to save his World Title!}) 1-0

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "????.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "6. How to Use the Pawn Ram"]
[Black "?"]
[Result "*"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "1"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{Pawns are the dynamos that transform and energize a player's position.
Without their help there is at best inertia and in most cases rapid
deterioration: you saw what happened to Marshall and the other grandmasters
when they neglected their pawns in Chapter Four. --- I have used the term
'pawn ram' to describe an aggressive thrust by a pawn to stop the opponent's
pawns working: that is, break them up and leave them weak; or restrict them to
stop them functioning, so that they become passengers rather than contributors
to the player's strategy. In this chapter we will look at the many uses of a
pawn ram.} 1. -- {Pawn rams were a speciality of Tigran Petrosian, who liked
to block the centre and then strike out with his pawns on the wings. He must
have played b2-b4 and g2-g4 more than any other great master.} (1. -- {
Destroying an Advancing Pawn Phalanx: --- See Petrosian-Hort and Kevitz-Capablanca.}) (1. -- {The Minority Attack: -- Probably the most well-known form of the
pawn ram is the Queenside Minority Attack. It perfectly suited Petrosian's
style, as it meant he could put pressure on his opponent without taking any
unnecessary risks. --- See Petrosian-Rossetto and Karpov-Kharitonov.}) (1. -- {
Opening a Line for the Rooks: --- See Petrosian-Pilnik.}) (1. -- {
Creating a Passed Pawn: --- See Kramnik-Leko (Dortmund 2006).}) (1. -- {
Provoking a Reckless Reaction: --- See Kramnik-Adams.}) (1. -- {
Opening Lines of Attack on a Pawn Complex: --- See Capablanca-Vidmar}) (1. -- {
Gaining Light Square Domination: --- See Petrosian-Ivkov.}) (1. -- {
The Pawn Ram as a Defensive Weapon: --- See Keres-Capablanca.}) (1. -- {
Neutralizing the Pawn Ram : --- See Spassky-Petrosian (7th matchgame, Moscow
1966).}) *

[Event "Oberhausen"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1961.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Petrosian, T."]
[Black "Hort, V."]
[Result "*"]
[ECO "A25"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "51"]
[EventDate "1961.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{When I was about 15 I started playing flank openings with 1 Nf3, but I was a
bit worried about Black's attacking chances in the King's Indian set-up of the
kind we see in this example.} 1. c4 e5 2. Nc3 Nc6 3. g3 f5 4. Bg2 Nf6 5. d3 g6
6. Rb1 Bg7 7. b4 d6 8. b5 Nd4 9. Nh3 O-O 10. O-O h6 11. f4 Kh7 12. a4 Rb8 13.
Nf2 Bd7 14. Qd2 Nh5 15. e3 Ne6 16. Bb2 {
It was a study of Petrosian's play in such games that assuaged my fears. Upon}
g5 {, the wily Armenian neutralized his opponent's attacking aspirations by
smashing up his attacking pawn front:} 17. fxe5 dxe5 18. g4 $3 {I love this
move! The white g-pawn takes the fight to its opponent on f5 rather than
waiting passively to be attacked. After} fxg4 19. Nxg4 {the black pieces were
like attackers besieging a castle, but ones who had had their battering ram
snatched away from them. What's more, the e4-square has become a wonderful
base for the white bishop or the queen's knight. Hort was positionally busted
and had to play for complications with} Nef4 {
, but after the dust settled he was a pawn down for not much:} 20. Be4+ Kh8 21.
exf4 Bxg4 22. fxg5 Nf4 23. gxh6 Bxh6 24. Kh1 Qh4 25. Qe1 Qh5 26. Qg3 {
and White eventually ground out the win on move 55. --- Petrosian is a great
defender, or more precisely a master of preventive play. In this example the
black pawns were wrecked before they could even dream of attacking the white
king. And it was all thanks to the pawn ram. --- Not that Petrosian has a
monopoly on the technique, as we can see from our next example.} *

[Event "New York"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1931.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Kevitz, A."]
[Black "Capablanca, J."]
[Result "0-1"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "2r3k1/5p1p/4b1p1/2q5/4PP2/p5PP/P2RQ1BK/8 w - - 0 32"]
[PlyCount "18"]
[EventDate "1931.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{Capablanca had carelessly blundered a pawn earlier in the game, but he had
fought back well (with some help from his opponent, it must be added). The
pawn on a3 gives Black full compensation. It fixes the white pawn on a2 where
it is a perpetual target for the bishop, and also provides a potential base on
b2 for the black rook: for example, given time, the plan of ...Rb8, ...Qc1 and
...Rb2 would win for Black because White could never take on b2 without
conceding a decisive passed pawn, while otherwise a2 would drop. White also
has to reckon with ...Rb8 and ...Rb1, threatening ...Qg1 mate.} 32. g4 $4 {
A really dreadful move.} ({
If I were White here I would be tempted to give back the pawn with} 32. f5 {
, when} gxf5 33. exf5 Qxf5 $6 ({so Black plays} 33... Bxf5 $1 {, but then} 34.
Qh5 $5 {gives White counterplay against Black's rather open king; in any case,
White could hardly lose such a position}) 34. Qe3 $1 {attacks a3 and reclaims
control of the dark squares from the black queen. --- Of course it would have
been psychologically very difficult for Kevitz to give back the pawn, as it
would have meant renouncing all the hopes he had entertained of beating a
former World Champion. But a draw against Capablanca is also something you can
tell your grandchildren about!}) 32... g5 $1 {
Paralyzing the white pawn chain by gaining control of the dark squares.} 33.
Qf2 ({Black invades after} 33. f5 Qe5+ 34. Kh1 Rc1+ {.}) 33... Qxf2 34. Rxf2
gxf4 35. Rf3 ({If} 35. Rxf4 {Black replies} Rc2 {followed by 36...Rxa2, when
the rook helps the bishop to shepherd home the passed a-pawn.}) 35... Ra8 36.
Rf2 f3 $1 {This is a nice interference move.} 37. Bf1 (37. Rxf3 {is answered by
} Bxa2) ({or} 37. Bxf3 Rb8 {planning ...Rb2, when White doesn't have the
response 38 Rf3 because his bishop is blocking that square.}) 37... Rb8 38.
Rxf3 Rb2+ 39. Kg3 Rxa2 40. Rc3 Ra1 0-1

[Event "Portoroz"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1958.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Petrosian, T."]
[Black "Rossetto, H."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D35"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "77"]
[EventDate "1958.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. c4 e6 4. Nc3 Be7 5. cxd5 exd5 6. Bf4 c6 7. Qc2 Na6 8. a3
O-O 9. e3 Nc7 10. Bd3 Ne6 11. Be5 g6 12. O-O Ng7 13. b4 $1 {The Minority
Attack begins. White will engineer the pawn advance b4-b5 in order to ram the
c6-point. If Black then responds with ...c6xb5, he is left with an isolated
pawn on d5; while if he lets White play b5xc6, and he recaptures with ...b7xc6,
the backward c6-pawn becomes a target.} a6 {Damage limitation: Black doesn't
want to be left with a weak pawn on a7 after the queenside is opened with
b4-b5, and so prepares to exchange the pawn off.} 14. Bxf6 $1 ({A somewhat
rising decision until you realize that the exchange on f6 not only speeds up
the queenside pawn advance by deflecting the black bishop (as if immediately} 
14. a4 $2 {, Black has} Bxb4 {), but also removes the black knight which might
otherwise have helped generate counterplay on the kingside via ...Ng4 etc.})
14... Bxf6 15. a4 {Full steam ahead!} Bf5 16. Bxf5 Nxf5 17. b5 axb5 18. axb5
Qd6 {Rossetto prefers to have one weak pawn on c6 rather than two on b7 and d5,
as occurs if he captures on b5.} ({Besides, if} 18... cxb5 {(Black would have
to give up the a-file first with 18...Rxa1 if he intended such a move), then}
19. Rxa8 Qxa8 20. Nxd5 {is crushing.}) 19. bxc6 bxc6 20. Na4 $1 {Having given
Black a weak pawn on c6, Petrosian's first priority is to prevent him from
dissolving it with ...c6-c5. Hence he asserts his control over the c5-square.
--- It might be argued that White shouldn't fear ...c6-c5, as after the reply
d4xc5 Black is left with a weak pawn on d5 anyway. However, in that case the
black bishop on f6 has increased in scope; and besides, on the whole it is
preferable for White to have a pawn structure c6/d5 to besiege rather than
just an isolated pawn on d5. As things stand, Black has to be afraid of losing
both the c6- and d5-pawns; whereas if it were just one stand-alone pawn under
attack, Black might be able to jettison it and still hold the endgame.} Rfb8
21. Nc5 Qe7 22. Nd3 $1 {With ...c6-c5 ruled out, Petrosian is less interested
in occupying the c5 blockade square than in attacking the backward pawn on c6.}
Qb7 23. Nfe5 $1 Bxe5 24. Nxe5 Rxa1 25. Rxa1 Ne7 {The c6-pawn remains a serious
weakness, but in view of the overall solidity of the black position and the
considerable simplification that has taken place, Rossetto might still have
been very optimistic about achieving a draw. --- Here is one of the secrets of
positional chess: one weakness on its own is not enough to lose a game. Here
the black pieces are by no means overstretched by the need to defend the
c6-pawn. In fact, they can do it and also keep some activity down the b-file.
--- Therefore, in order to create real winning chances, Petrosian has to
create a second weakness in Black's position. For this purpose he will open
lines on the kingside to attack the black king. Then Black will have the
prescribed two weaknesses in the shape of the pawn on c6 and an unsafe king.}
26. g3 $1 {As Black is only huffing and puffing on the queenside, Petrosian
can build up his kingside initiative at a leisurely pace.} Qb2 27. Qd1 {
Naturally he has no wish to exchange queens given that he plans to assail the
black king.} h5 28. Rc1 Rb6 29. h3 $1 {
The white pawns edge forwards, with g3-g4 in mind.} Kg7 30. Kg2 Qa3 31. Ra1 {
Black has enough resources to hold the kingside if the queenside is quiet, and
likewise he can defend on the queenside adequately if he doesn't have to worry
about his king; but having to deal with a possible breakthrough on both wings
simultaneously causes grave problems. --- Thus here the black queen would like
to return to d6 to bolster the kingside, but then 32 Ra7 is very uncomfortable.
Hence Black puts his queen on b2 so that if 32 Ra7, he can repel the invading
rook with 32...Rb7; but in safeguarding the queenside he is giving White a
free rein on the kingside.} Qb2 32. g4 hxg4 33. hxg4 Rb7 $2 ({White's knight
has been allowed to sit with impunity on e5 for far too long. It is an ideal
post from which it attacks the c6-pawn and eyes the f7-pawn. In other words,
it is attacking on both wings without needing to budge. Therefore, despite the
loosening of his kingside pawns, Black should have evicted the horse with} 
33... f6 $1 {.}) 34. Rc1 Qb5 35. Qf3 $1 {Petrosian skilfully switches play
between his two targets - the c6-pawn and the black king. Nimzowitsch coined
the word alternation to describe this strategy.} f6 {
Too late, as Petrosian has a tactical blow ready.} 36. g5 $1 {
A neat parallel pawn advance to 17 b5.} Nf5 ({If} 36... fxe5 37. Qf6+ Kg8 38.
Rh1 {and mate follows on h8}) ({or similarly} 36... fxg5 37. Qf7+ {
and mate next move.}) ({The h-file also proves the black king's nemesis after} 
36... f5 37. Qh3 Ng8 {(to prevent the check on h6)} 38. Rh1 {
with a deadly invasion on h7 or h8.}) 37. gxf6+ Kxf6 38. Rxc6+ {So in the end
the c6-pawn dropped, but only because of Petrosian's decision to start a
kingside attack. This is a wonderful illustration of the Minority Attack and
Nimzowitsch's theory of alternation.} Ke7 39. Qf4 1-0

[Event "USSR Championship"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1988.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Karpov, A."]
[Black "Kharitonov, A."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D36"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "83"]
[EventDate "1988.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{The 12th World Champion was also attracted by the small but safe advantage
that the Minority Attack bestows. Here is a rather more sophisticated version
of the technique.} 1. c4 e6 2. Nc3 d5 3. d4 Nf6 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Bg5 Be7 6. e3
Nbd7 7. Nf3 c6 8. Bd3 O-O 9. Qc2 Re8 10. O-O Nf8 11. h3 Be6 12. Rfc1 N6d7 13.
Bf4 Nb6 14. Rab1 Bd6 15. Ne2 Ng6 16. Bxd6 Qxd6 17. a4 $1 {This move might give
the impression that Karpov meant to play 17 b4 but accidentally picked up the
wrong pawn! ---} ({However, after} 17. b4 {Black has} Nc4 {, threatening a
fork on a3, followed by 18...b5 solidifying the knight on its outpost square.
Unless of course White plays} 18. Bxc4 {, but then} dxc4 {looks fine for Black.
}) {White shouldn't allow Black to block the attack on his queenside pawns by
putting a knight on c4 (this is discussed later on in the game Karpov-Yusupov
- see Chapter Nine). Therefore Karpov keeps b2-b4 in reserve. It remains to be
said that ...Nc4 would be a useless move for Black before White has committed
himself to b2-b4, because in that case he can arrange b2-b3 to chase the
knight back. --- With the move played in the game, Karpov prepares an
excellent regrouping of his pieces. Black also has to reckon with the idea of
a4-a5, chasing the knight away from b6 so that it loses contact with the
c4-square, perhaps followed by a5-a6 to undermine the defence of the c6-pawn.}
17... Rac8 ({After} 17... a5 18. b3 {
the pawn on a5 is a fixed target that can be assailed by 19 Qd2 and 20 Rc5.})
18. Qc5 $1 Qb8 (18... Qxc5 {is met by} 19. dxc5 $1 {
, when the knight has to retreat, but after} Nd7 (19... Nxa4 $2 {
drops the knight to} 20. b3) {White can build up the pressure with} 20. b4 {
without needing to worry about ...Nc4 any longer. --- The change in pawn
structure means that the white rook on c1 is blocked from attacking c6, as the
pawn on c5 is in the way, but in return a white knight has acquired the d4
outpost square which it can occupy with Ned4, when the idea of b4-b5 looms
over Black's head.}) 19. Qa3 {A familiar sight in a Karpov game: the white
queen is hugging the edge of the board. --- With the manoeuvre a2-a4, Qc5 and
Qa3, White has pushed the black queen to a worse square while getting his own
queen out of the way of his rooks on the c-file - see White's next move. On a3,
the queen defends the a4-pawn and prepares to support it in a charge to a6,
where it would undermine the b7-pawn which is a vital defender of c6 - White
would probably double rooks on the c-file before playing a4-a5-a6. With his
next move Black blocks the a4-a5-a6 advance, or at least for the time being.}
a6 20. Rc3 Qc7 21. Rbc1 Ra8 22. Nd2 {One of Karpov's chief characteristics is
enormous patience. Most of us would have advanced b2-b4 a long while ago, but
the 12th World Champion is keen to gain control of the c4-square first, to
prevent any ...Nc4 invasion by Black once and for all.} a5 {The upshot of
Karpov's refusal to hurry is that he gives his opponents plenty of time to
become demoralized and crack under the pressure. So over and over we see him
win a game with a secondary plan which has been devised to take advantage of
his opponent's weakening attempt to escape the threat of the original plan.
--- Here Kharitonov can't bear the pressure of waiting for b4-b5 any longer
and so rules out the possibility. Karpov is by no means upset: on the contrary,
he sees that he can revive the plan of the pawn ram a5-a6 discussed in the
note to 19 Qa3. Nevertheless, it has to be stated that if Black had avoided 22.
..a5, the plan of b4-b5 would have been very strong.} 23. Rb1 {Now Karpov's
basic plan is: advance b2-b4, put the knight on c5 and then break up the black
queenside with a5-a6.} Nc8 24. b4 axb4 25. Qxb4 Nd6 26. Nb3 Bc8 27. a5 Ne7 28.
Ng3 {Of course, as it is Karpov there won't be any hurry to play a5-a6. Here
he prevents Black from freeing his game somewhat with 28...Bf5.} g6 29. Rcc1 h5
$2 ({Black should have persevered with the plan of exchanging off some pieces
on f5 to ease his game:} 29... Nef5 $1 30. Nxf5 Bxf5 31. Bxf5 Nxf5 32. Nc5 Reb8
{, with only a small advantage to White says Karpov.}) 30. Ra1 h4 {You will recall from the Petrosian-Rossetto game that Black perished because he had
weaknesses on both sides of the board - namely the c6-pawn and his unsafe king.
Here Black's unwise advance of the h-pawn has presented White with a potential
second target on h4, to go with the one on b7.} 31. Nf1 Bf5 32. Be2 $1 {
Excellent! Black has spent two moves advancing his pawn to h4 instead of
grasping the moment for 29...Nef5!. Therefore White has had time to evacuate
his rook from b1, so that he can avoid the exchange of bishops and leave the
black minor pieces on ineffective squares.} Ne4 33. Nc5 Nxc5 34. Qxc5 Be6 35.
Nd2 Nf5 36. Nf3 {The knight aims at e5 where it can join the attack on c6, and
also gives the pawn on h4 a threatening sideways glance.} Qd8 37. a6 $1 {
The long-awaited pawn ram finally occurs.} bxa6 38. Rxa6 Rxa6 39. Bxa6 Qa8 {
Just giving up the pawn.} ({
On the website Chesspublishing.com, GM Scherbakov gives} 39... Bd7 40. Bd3 Ng7
41. Ne5 Re6 42. Qa7 Be8 43. Rb1 {'and White is dominating'. The winning
procedure would involve creating threats against the black king with 44 Rb8
etc, as well as attacking the c6-pawn.}) 40. Qxc6 Qxc6 41. Rxc6 Ra8 42. Bd3 {
. If the black h-pawn were still on h7 Black could fight on, but here he is
already one pawn down and is faced with the loss of a second after 43 Bxf5 and
44 Nxh4. --- A very fine game.} 1-0

[Event "Amsterdam"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1956.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Petrosian, T."]
[Black "Pilnik, H."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A56"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "99"]
[EventDate "1956.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 e5 4. Nc3 d6 5. e4 g6 6. Nf3 Bg7 7. Bg5 {Petrosian has
his beloved c4/d5/e4 pawn triangle in the centre, plus his bishop on g5
restraining Black's counterplay. The fact that Black has played ...c7-c5 means
that a future b2-b4 by White will find a ready target.} Na6 {Pilnik intends to
gain play by preparing...b7-b5, and so wants his knight on c7.} ({
Perhaps it was better to challenge the white bishop immediately with} 7... h6 {
, when} 8. Bh4 g5 9. Bg3 Nh5 {intending ...Nf4 is interesting.}) 8. Be2 Nc7 9.
Nd2 Bd7 ({An ungainly bishop move, but after} 9... a6 10. a4 {White has the
positional threat of 11 a5. Then if Black ever engineers ...b7-b5, say after ...Rb8, the en passant exchange a5xb6 will not only deprive Black of his
counterplay against c4 but also leave the black pawn on a6 marginally weaker
than the white one on b2. Black might try} b6 {
, but he would have to reckon with} 11. a5 {anyway, when} bxa5 12. Nb3 $5 {
intending 13 Nxa5 followed by 14 Nc6 is ugly for him. So Pilnik avoids
loosening his pawns with ...a7-a6 until he is in a position to advance ...b6-b5.}) 10. a4 $1 b6 {Now Black is ready to edge forwards.} 11. Nb5 $1 {
'Castle because you want to or because you have to, not just because you can.'
- Harry Nelson Pillsbury. --- White has all the time in the world to castle,
whereas he only has one chance to obstruct Black's queenside strategy.} ({If} 
11. O-O $6 {then Black replies} a6 {
and the ...Rb8 and ...b6-b5 plan can't be averted, as} 12. a5 $2 b5 {
is excellent for Black.}) 11... Bxb5 $2 ({Black should play the modest} 11...
Bc8 {, when he has lost time with the bishop but not opened any lines to
White's advantage on the queenside. Of course it is psychologically very hard
to play 9...Bd7 and retract it two moves later with 11...Bc8. We go back to
our Russian proverb: 'Once you have said "A" you have to say "B".' --- We need
to remind ourselves in such situations that every position should be judged on
its merits, not on the past history of moves leading up to it. If a retreat is
required, so be it: we should make it without any qualms. Retreating a piece
isn't as embarrassing as losing (and how many players find it hilarious when
Karpov plays 'ridiculous' moves like Nb1 and Qb1 against them and then
trounces them?).}) 12. cxb5 $1 ({
Chess dogma says that you should capture towards the centre. However, after} 
12. axb5 $2 O-O {Black is ready for 13...a6.}) {By taking away from the centre,
White: -- i. clears the c4 outpost square for his knight; -- ii. dissuades ...a6, as the bishop on e2 has influence on the queenside; -- iii. prepares to
open the c-file for the rooks.} 12... O-O 13. b4 $3 {
The pawn ram is not to be delayed.} h6 ({If} 13... cxb4 {White will easily
regain his pawn with Qb3 at some point, as occurs in the game.}) 14. Bxf6 $1 (
14. Be3 $2 {would be a serious mistake, after which Black could put his knight
on an outpost square on the c-file with} cxb4 $1 {followed by ...Nd7 and ...Nc5. White's queenside initiative would be greatly dissipated.}) 14... Qxf6 15.
O-O {Petrosian takes the chance to castle as there is no other strategic
necessity that requires immediate action.} ({In fact,} 15. bxc5 $2 {would be premature. We saw above that White made the 'anti-positional' recapture 12 cxb5
partly to free the c4-square for his knight. Here it would be Black's turn to
recapture 'the wrong way' in order to vacate a fine post for his knight that
would cancel out its counterpart: thus} dxc5 $1 16. O-O Ne8 $1 17. Nc4 Nd6 {
. --- Here Black has a dark square blockade to match White's light square
stranglehold. White would still have some initiative, but the exchange of
knights and the presence of opposite-coloured bishops make a draw the most
likely result.}) ({Imagine if after} 15. bxc5 {Black hadn't understood the
importance of challenging the white knight on c4 with ...Ne8 and ...Nd6; or
had feared giving White a protected passed pawn on d5; or had simply been too
lazy to look beyond the 'obvious' recapture. In this event he might have
replied} bxc5 $2 {. --- Here White's 2-1 pawn majority on the extreme edge of
the board gives him excellent winning chances, as it can easily yield a passed
pawn. You might be wondering why this is so good for White - doesn't Black
have a protected passed pawn on c5? Yes, he does, but it is dead wood. The
pawn can never advance as the c4-square is 100% in White's hands. In contrast,
Black has no comparable blockade to stop White gaining a passed pawn with
a4-a5 and b5-b6, after suitable preparation of course. Why is the situation so
bad for Black despite his unobjectionable pawn structure? The point is that
White's minor pieces are much superior: the bishop on e2 supports the
queenside pawns, whilst the bishop on g7 just sleeps; White's knight can go to
c4 and help the pawns advance, whilst the black knight has little scope and is
a target for an a4-a5 and b5-b6 advance.}) {--- He has no intention of
capturing on c5 until he has neutralized the reply ...d6xc5.} 15... Rfd8 16.
Nc4 Bf8 17. g3 $1 {This little pawn move persuades Pilnik to capitulate on the
c-file. If Black carries on waiting, then after Kg2, Qb3, and Rad1, or
whatever other preparations Petrosian cares to make, White can play b4xc5 and
answer d6xc5 with f2-f4!, bulldozing his way through the centre after the pawn
exchange ...e5xf4; g3xf4 followed by e4-e5 and d5-d6. By delaying b4xc5 until
he is absolutely ready for f2-f4, Petrosian denies Black the chance to play ...Ne8 and ...Nd6 to exchange off knights before the pawn advance occurs. The
f2-f4 advance would be much less powerful if the knights were gone and Black
were able to play ...Bd6, keeping control of the dark squares d6 and e5.} cxb4
18. Qb3 $1 {From now on Petrosian shows no interest in the f2-f4 advance. And
rightly so: the game can be won with a minimum of risk by dominating the
c-file, whereas a kingside pawn advance, no matter how impressive it looks,
will always hand Black counterplay.} Kg7 19. Rfc1 {
No time is to be wasted in putting a rook on c6.} h5 ({If} 19... Rdc8 {
, hoping to get in 20...Ne8 and 21...Rc5 to block the c-file, White has} 20.
Bg4 $1 {.}) 20. Ne3 Ne8 21. Qxb4 Rdc8 22. Rc6 $1 {
The rook seizes the outpost square - the key move in exploiting the c-file.}
Qd8 (22... Rxc6 23. bxc6 {would give White a massive passed pawn,} ({but not} 
23. dxc6 $2 {
, which would be nice if White could get in 24 Nd5, as it allows the riposte}
d5 $1 {freeing the black bishop.})) 23. Rac1 Nf6 24. Bf1 $1 {Ruthless positional play: the bishop makes it known it is heading for h3 in order to control c8,
which is enough to persuade the black rook to give up the fight for the c-file.
} Rcb8 25. Bh3 a6 {Pilnik is desperate for counterplay down the a-file, but
now the b6-pawn becomes a target. On the other hand, who could bear to defend
passively such a wretched position, especially when their opponent is a
strategic genius?} 26. Re1 $1 {
A logical move, though one that is rather hard to find.} ({
White wants his knight on c4, but} 26. Nc4 $2 {is met by} Nxe4 {
. Therefore the rook is temporarily consigned to defensive duty.}) 26... axb5
27. axb5 Nh7 28. Nc4 {White has a decisive advantage on the queenside, as the
pressure on b6 can be increased if necessary with the manoeuvre Qc3 (or Qb3)
and Qe3.} Ra2 29. Bg2 ({Of course it would be madness to play} 29. Nxd6 $2 {
, putting the knight and queen into a terrible pin. Instead Petrosian concerns
himself with patient defence, as he knows that, with the b6-pawn about to drop,
fending off Black's counterattack is equivalent to winning the game.}) 29...
Qf6 30. Rf1 Ng5 31. Qb3 Rba8 32. h4 Nh7 33. Rxb6 Ra1 34. Rc6 R8a2 35. Qe3 $1 ({
White still has to be vigilant as} 35. Rxa1 $4 Qxf2+ {leads to mate,}) ({
or likewise} 35. b6 $4 Qxf2+ $1 {.}) 35... Qd8 36. Rxa1 ({
After the game Petrosian considered} 36. b6 $1 {to have been simpler.}) 36...
Rxa1+ 37. Kh2 Nf6 38. f3 Qb8 39. Qb3 Nd7 40. b6 Nc5 41. Qb2 Ra4 42. Qb5 Ra2 43.
Rc7 {With the threat of 44 Na5, 45 Nc6 and 46 b7 - so Black makes one final
lunge on the kingside.} g5 44. Ne3 $1 {
Of course Petrosian isn't going to miss the chance to put his knight on f5.}
gxh4 45. Nf5+ Kg8 46. gxh4 Ra6 47. b7 Ra7 48. Rc8 Qxb7 49. Qe8 Nd7 50. Nxd6 {
. The double attack on the queen and f7 ends the game. --- This game might
seem rather one-sided, but the Argentine Grandmaster Herman Pilnik was no
slouch. He actually beat Petrosian in their first game in 1952 and had a +1,
=6, -1 score against him going into the present encounter.} 1-0

[Event "Dortmund"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2006.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Kramnik, V."]
[Black "Leko, P."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E32"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "95"]
[EventDate "2006.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{In this game, Kramnik gains some pressure on the queenside in a symmetrical
position. It doesn't seem too serious, but then suddenly he has a winning
breakthrough and a passed pawn. Another example of Kramnik's tremendous
technique and the power of the pawn ram.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2
O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 b6 7. Bg5 Bb7 8. f3 h6 9. Bh4 d5 10. e3 Nbd7 11. cxd5
Nxd5 12. Bxd8 Nxc3 13. Bh4 Nd5 14. Bf2 c5 15. e4 Ne7 16. Ne2 Rac8 17. Nc3 cxd4
18. Bxd4 Nc5 19. Rd1 Rfd8 20. Be3 Rxd1+ 21. Kxd1 e5 22. b4 Ne6 23. Kc2 Nc6 24.
Kb2 Kf8 {Many players of international standard if asked to assess the
position might well surmise: 'White has a tiny advantage due to the bishop
pair.' But Kramnik in fact gave up the bishop pair with:} 25. Bc4 $1 Ncd4 ({
And not} 25... Nxb4 26. Bxe6 {, winning a piece.}) 26. Bxe6 $1 Nxe6 {Let's imagine a conversion about the position between Chris, an average club player, and
the mysterious Tom (perhaps his name is an acronym for 'Tired Old Master').
--- Chris: Well now it looks totally equal. The black knight is well
centralized on e6, so why did Kramnik go to the trouble of exchanging the
bishop for a knight? Unless he wants a quick draw, that is... --- Tom: The
point is that the knight has been dragged away from c6, where it defended the
a7-pawn and helped to deter a future advance of White's queenside pawns. ---
Chris: But again I would say, 'So what?' The symmetrical pawn structure and
the presence of opposite-coloured bishop surely make it impossible for White
to generate any real pressure. --- Tom: In fact, the bishops of opposite
colour are a great help to White here. The black bishop is staring into a
brick wall on e4, whereas the scope of the white bishop on e3 can be increased
with a future a4-a5: there are natural targets on a7 and b6 for this bishop.
--- Chris: Funny how in books they always tell you to put your pawns on the
opposite colour squares to your bishop, and yet here the pawns could do with
some protection from the bishop! --- Tom: Yes, chess is a funny game, isn't
it! White has another small, but important advantage: his king is on b2 where
it holds together the queenside and deters any Black attempt to counterattack.
It negates the value of Black having a rook on the c-file: if instead the king
were on f2, White's next move, 27 Nb5, could be answered by 27...Rc2+, when
the black rook seizes the seventh rank.} 27. Nb5 Ra8 ({
The black rook is forced to defend a7, because if} 27... a6 {White replies} 28.
Nd6 {when c8, b7 and b6 are all hanging.}) 28. a4 $1 {Kramnik utilizes his
pawns to ensure that the black pawns remain fixed on a7 and b6. If Black now
plays passively, White can take command of the c-file with 29 Rc1, with ideas
of 30 Nd6 or 30 Nc7 etc.} Ba6 {Black ousts the white knight so that he can
return the rook to c8. In fact the knight is happy to retreat as it clears the
way for White's 30th move.} 29. Na3 $1 {
Highlighting the accuracy of a super-strong technician.} (29. Nc3 {
was natural, but then} Bc4 {activates the black bishop. Besides, after his
next move, White has the option of Nc4 with pressure against both b6 and e5.})
29... Rc8 30. b5 $1 {A key move in Kramnik's strategy and it comes with gain
of time by attacking the bishop.} Bb7 31. Rc1 $1 {Kramnik eliminates the black
rook so that it can't defend the queenside pawns or prevent White from playing
Nc4.} Rxc1 32. Kxc1 Ke7 ({Black's queenside pawns have been fixed by 30 b5 on
squares where they are a target of White's bishop. They have lost all mobility,
as} 32... a6 {obviously allows} 33. Bxb6 {.}) ({
Nor can the attack by White's bishop be blocked, as after} 32... Nd4 33. Bxd4
exd4) ({or} 32... Nc5 33. Bxc5+ bxc5 {, Black is left with a fatally weak pawn
on c5 or d4. Nor can Black's bishop support the pawns, for the obvious reason
that it only moves on light squares whilst the pawns have been locked on dark
squares.}) {Incidentally, the white knight may appear to be badly placed on
the edge of the board, but in fact it is doing an excellent job in
overprotecting the b5-pawn. This helps prevent a counterattack against the a4/b5 pawns by the black knight and bishop which, combined with an ...a7-a6
breakout, might otherwise have liquidated all the queenside pawns. We mustn't
forget that the a4/b5 complex might easily have become a target if Kramnik
were careless, as White's dark-squared bishop can't support them, in the same
way that the black bishop can't defend a7 or b6. --- As Black's minor pieces
and queenside pawns cannot hold the line by themselves, Leko tries to bring
his king over, but it is too late. After the text, Kramnik must act fast.
After all, White's own king is a long way from the fight, so the imminent
arrival of its counterpart on the queenside would tip the balance of power in
Black's favour.} 33. a5 $1 {Let's go back to Nimzowitsch's words: 'First
restrain, then blockade, and lastly destroy!' The pawn ram doesn't actually
win a pawn, or at least not immediately; on the other hand, it destroys the
black queenside in the sense that it can no longer act as a barrier against
White creating a passed pawn.} bxa5 34. Bxa7 {
Now there is no good answer to the threat of 35 Nc4, hitting a5 and e5.} f5 {
Leko gives up a pawn in order to activate his bishop. If he can liquidate all
the pawns, throwing a piece into the bargain, he would draw: an endgame of
bishop and knight versus a bishop (or bishop and knight versus knight) without
pawns is a book draw. However, Kramnik is superb at exploiting a material
advantage in such technical endgames, and makes sure he keeps at least one pawn.
} ({If} 34... f6 35. Nc4 a4 36. Kb2 Nf4 37. Ne3 {
and the white king soon gobbles up the a4-pawn.}) 35. exf5 Nf4 36. g3 Nh3 37.
Nc4 Ng5 38. Nxa5 Bd5 {Keeping the option open of capturing on f3 with the
knight, when h2 hangs, but it isn't enough to save Black.} 39. b6 Nxf3 40. h3
Ng5 41. b7 Bxb7 42. Nxb7 Nxh3 43. Bb6 $1 ({
A fine decision: White would like to play} 43. Be3 {
in order to paralyse the black knight, but then the black king can go to f6.})
43... Kd7 ({Now if} 43... Kf6 {there follows} 44. Nd6 $1 {
with the threat of 45 Bd8 mate. Then Black has to play} Kg5 ({
he doesn't have time for} 44... g6 {, as} 45. Bd8+ Kg7 46. f6+ {
forces the pawn through}) {, when after} 45. Be3+ Kg4 46. Kd2 $1 {
the white king joins the fray. At this point} Kxg3 {is hopeless for Black:} 47.
Ne8 {and the g7-pawn drops allowing the f-pawn to advance.}) ({
Or alternatively, if} 43... Ng5 {then} 44. Bd8+ Kd7 (44... Kf7 45. Nd6+ Kf8 46.
Bxg5 hxg5 47. g4 {is also utterly lost is for Black}) 45. Bxg5 hxg5 46. Kd2 {
etc, and again White wins by bringing up the king. The upshot is that Black is
in a form of zugzwang and has to lose time with his king.}) 44. Be3 $1 {
Only now does Kramnik play this, when Black can't reply with ...Kf6.} Ke7 45.
Nc5 g6 ({What could be done? If} 45... Kf6 {(a move too late!),} 46. g4 h5 $6 {
(speeds up the end)} 47. Ne4+ Kf7 48. gxh5 {and Black can resign.}) 46. fxg6
Kf6 47. Bxh6 Kxg6 48. Be3 ({If} 48. Be3 Ng5 {, then} 49. Bxg5 Kxg5 50. Kd2 Kg4
51. Ne4 Kf3 52. Kd3 {etc.}) 1-0

[Event "Linares"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1999.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Kramnik, V."]
[Black "Adams, M."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E32"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "75"]
[EventDate "1999.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 b6 7. Bg5 Bb7 8.
f3 h6 9. Bh4 d5 10. e3 Nbd7 11. cxd5 Nxd5 12. Bxd8 Nxc3 13. Bh4 Nd5 14. Bf2 c5
15. Bb5 N5f6 16. Ne2 a6 17. Ba4 cxd4 18. Nxd4 Nc5 19. Bc2 {There is a
al pawn structure and all Black's minor pieces are developed. Surely he is in
no danger here? Looking more closely, we see several tiny advantages for White:
-- 1) He hasn't castled. Therefore, his king can influence the struggle along
the c-file and d-file by protecting white pieces and pawns, or attacking or
keeping at bay any black piece that ventures near him. This might seem
insignificant but in the game it becomes crucial. -- 2) White has kept the
bishop pair. In particular, the dark-squared bishop can bring its pressure to
bear on the b6-pawn after a future e3-e4 (though White won't rush to play this
move as the pawn on e3 is doing a nice job at present in guarding the knight).
-- 3) This brings us to the third tiny advantage: the black knight can be
pushed back by b2-b4, whereas the white knight is more stable on d4 - as we
shall see, in the game Adams gets into trouble when he tries ...e6-e5. -- 4)
Do you remember Leko having a bishop on b7 staring into space in the game
Kramnik-Leko above? Here the black bishop on b7 also has little scope. --- In
the game, Adams didn't want to be subjected to continuous, even if non-lethal
pressure, and so went for an immediate breakout which made matters far worse.
I guess this shows that if you have a reputation for grinding out wins from
equal-looking positions then even your strongest opponents are going to resort
to desperate measures to avoid being subjected to your technique. Indeed, some
of the quick collapses by strong players throughout this book might be due to
a disease called 'Capablanca fear' or 'Karpov fear' etc. But let's see what
happened here:} e5 $2 {Although it never actually occurs on the board, the
threat of the pawn ram beginning with b2-b4 is what wins the game for Kramnik,
as Adams is provoked into reckless action to prevent it from happening.} 20.
Nf5 Rfd8 21. Bh4 $1 {
Kramnik demonstrates he has no need to fear the check on d3.} ({If instead} 21.
Ke2 {, Black can choose between} Nd5 {
, avoiding the pin on his knight that occurs in the game,} ({or else} 21... a5
$5 {aiming to activate his bishop by 22...Ba6+ with a strong counterattack.}))
({After Kramnik's move,} 21. Bh4 {
, White is threatening to win a pawn with either} -- 22. Nxh6+ ({or} 22. Bxf6
gxf6 23. Nxh6+) 22... gxh6 23. Bxf6 {.}) 21... Nd3+ ({Instead} 21... Ncd7 {
could be answered by} 22. Bb3 $5 {, when Black is terribly passive.}) 22. Ke2
$1 {A fine temporary pawn sacrifice. Here we see the value of the white king
being in the centre, as he helps defeat Black's attempt at activity.} Nxb2 {
So the feared pawn is strangled at birth, but the white pieces will get ample
revenge.} 23. Rhb1 Nc4 24. Bd3 $1 {It is ironic that Black grabbed the pawn on
b2 to escape the potential pressure, and as a consequence finds himself so
besieged that he can't even escape by giving back the extra pawn - he is bound
to lose at least two pawns.} Nd6 ({If} 24... b5 {then} 25. Bxc4 bxc4 26. Rxb7 {
,}) ({or} 24... Bd5 25. Bxf6 gxf6 26. Ne7+ Kg7 27. Nxd5 Rxd5 28. Bxc4 {
, and in both cases Black has lost a piece,}) ({while} 24... Rac8 25. Ne7+ {
costs him the exchange.}) 25. Nxh6+ Kf8 ({Even worse is} 25... gxh6 26. Bxf6 {
, when e5 or b6 drops.}) 26. Bxf6 gxf6 27. Rxb6 Bc8 28. Rc1 {White is now a
pawn up with a huge positional advantage to boot. The rest isn't too difficult
for Kramnik:} Be6 29. Rcc6 Ke7 30. e4 Nb5 31. Ke3 Nxa3 32. Nf5+ Kf8 33. Bxa6
Rd1 34. Be2 Ra1 35. Rb2 Rd8 36. h4 Nb1 37. Kf2 Nd2 38. Rd6 $1 ({If} 38. Rd6
Rxd6 39. Rb8+ {forces mate.}) 1-0

[Event "New York"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1927.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Capablanca, J."]
[Black "Vidmar, M."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C98"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "73"]
[EventDate "1927.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3
Na5 9. Bc2 c5 10. d4 Qc7 11. Nbd2 O-O 12. h3 {The main line Ruy Lopez has been
a great favourite of strategic players throughout the ages. Both Capablanca
and Karpov were happy to defend it as Black, despite frequently making it seem
like a forced loss when they had the white pieces.} Nc6 {
Vidmar adopts a rather passive plan.} ({Nowadays} 12... cxd4 13. cxd4 Nc6 {
is the usual approach, followed by putting the knight on b4 if it is attacked
by d4-d5.}) 13. d5 Nd8 {For this slow knight manoeuvre to work it is essential
that the position remains closed until Black has reorganized his troops. But
after just one probing move from Capablanca, Vidmar gratuitously allows a
violent breakthrough.} 14. a4 {A pawn ram with undreamt of success.} b4 $2 {
Once again we see that Capablanca's rivals, for all their imagination and
tactical prowess, lacked the positional understanding of modern players.
Vidmar gives away the c4-square to the white knight and exposes his queenside
pawns to attack.} ({Forty-six years later, Spassky played} 14... Rb8 {
against Karpov in the 1973 USSR Championship, and drew a hard-fought game.})
15. Nc4 a5 ({After} 15... Ne8 16. a5 bxc3 {
(otherwise White himself captures on b4, leaving Black with a weak pawn)} 17.
bxc3 {White has a base for his knight on b6 which he can use to dominate the
open b-file.}) {Vidmar fixes the queenside. If nothing happens fast, he will
have time for a plan such as 16...Ne8!? followed by ...g7-g6, ...Ng7 and ...f7-f5 with his own pawn ram against e4. The knight on d8 could then be
reactivated via f7. In that case, Black's play would have been justified. ---
Capablanca crosses his opponent's intentions with one of his trademark short
tactical operations - 'une petite combinaison'.} 16. Nfxe5 $1 {Clearing the
way for a pawn ram on d6 that will gain the bishop pair and open up lines for
the benefit of the white pieces.} Ba6 ({The immediate} 16... dxe5 17. d6 {
is similar to the game.}) 17. Bb3 dxe5 18. d6 Bxd6 19. Qxd6 $1 {You might be
thinking, 'typical Capablanca: going for the endgame edge rather than keeping
the queens on the board and playing for an attack with the two bishops!' In
fact, it isn't a question of style: it is essential for White to recapture
this way in order to remain in control of the c4-square.} ({After} 19. Nxd6 $2
c4 20. Bc2 b3 21. Bb1 {White is totally lost, as he has a bishop entombed on
b1, with no way of getting the rook on a1 into the game either.}) 19... Qxd6
20. Nxd6 Nb7 21. Nxb7 Bxb7 22. cxb4 cxb4 ({White has various good replies to} 
22... Nxe4 {; the simplest might be} 23. b5 {with a protected passed pawn.})
23. f3 Rfd8 24. Be3 h6 {The violence has abated for a while, and it is time to
ask what Capablanca has gained from his simplifying combination with 16 Nfxe5.
The position is somewhat similar to Kramnik-Leko above. Black has a rather
useless bishop staring at the invincible barrier on e4 (Nimzowitsch liked to
say the bishop was 'biting on granite' in such situations). In contrast, White
has two powerful bishops, and the dark-squared one is going to terrorize the
a5-pawn. Already the idea of Bb6 is looming. --- As a rule, the further up the
board the base of a pawn chain is, the more vulnerable it is to attack. Here
the black pawn is fixed on a5, with no chance of advancing, and will require
the defence of a black rook. This, however, will mean that Black is a rook
short when it comes to contesting control of the open c-file and d-file. Also,
as in the Leko game, Black has a knight that is soundly centralized, but can't
offer him any succour where it is truly needed - that is, not on the kingside,
but on the queenside. --- Hence we see that the opening of the centre with 16
Nfxe5 has been a strategic disaster for Black. His position is lost, and I
doubt that even a great defender like Kramnik would have been able to save it.}
25. Red1 Bc6 {To be fair to Vidmar, we should remark that this is a stout
defensive manoeuvre: he puts the bishop on e8, where it obliges a white piece
to remain guarding a4, and at the same time protects the f7-square against a
future attack with Rc7 in combination with the bishop on b3.} 26. Rac1 Be8 27.
Kf2 {White builds up in methodical style. There is nothing constructive Black
can do to repair the weakness on a5, so why not centralize the rooks and bring
the king a little closer to the centre?} Rxd1 28. Rxd1 Rc8 {Alas for Black,
the white bishop on b3 prevents any invasion on the seventh rank. Nonetheless
Vidmar is continuing his gritty defence.} 29. g4 $1 {A very typical advance
that we see in the games of all the other great strategists described in this
book. Capablanca wants to drive the black knight from the f6-square with a
well timed h3-h4 and g4-g5. Then his rook will be free to invade on the
d5-square, inevitably winning the a5-pawn.} ({If} 29. Bb6 $2 {
, going after the a5-pawn at once, then} Nd7 $1 30. Bxa5 Nc5 31. Bd5 Bxa4 {
and Black escapes from his troubles. Therefore a direct approach by White
won't work; he needs to soften up Black's position first. How can this be done?}
) 29... Bd7 ({Here is what might happen after the voluntary knight retreat} 
29... Nd7 {:} 30. Rd5 Ra8 31. Rb5 $1 Kf8 32. Bd5 Ra6 33. Bb7 {
and the a5-pawn is lost.}) ({If Black replies} 29... g5 {, his kingside pawns
are seriously weakened and can be undermined by an eventual h3-h4; while} 30.
Rd6 {attacking the knight and intending Ra6 might do the trick immediately.
--- Therefore Vidmar forces matters with a simplifying sequence which on the
face of it appears to offer a chance to escape.}) 30. Bb6 Be6 ({Or} 30... Ra8
31. Bc7 $1 {
and the black rook can't be in two places at once defending a5 and e5.}) 31.
Bxe6 fxe6 ({If} 31... Rc2+ {,} 32. Ke3 fxe6 33. b3 Rb2 34. Rd3 {keeps things
nice and tidy in the white camp, after which 35 Bxa5 wins the key pawn.}) 32.
Rd8+ $1 {The exchange of rooks nips in the bud any Black play on the c-file.}
Rxd8 33. Bxd8 Nd7 34. Bxa5 Nc5 {The point of Black's inspired, if insufficient
defence: the a4-pawn is hanging, and if 35 Bxb4? then 35...Nd3+ wins the white
bishop - Alekhine fell for this trap in his notes to the game in the
tournament book!} 35. b3 $1 {
An alert move that forces a decisive simplification.} Nxb3 36. Bxb4 Nd4 37. a5
{. The passed pawn soon costs Black his knight. --- A fine game by Capablanca
against a redoubtable defender.} 1-0

[Event "Bugojno"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1982.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Petrosian, T."]
[Black "Ivkov, B."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A42"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "98"]
[EventDate "1982.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{The following is a beautiful game by Petrosian in that his opponent doesn't
appear to make any fatal errors, but still ends up losing.} 1. c4 g6 2. e4 Bg7
3. d4 d6 4. Nc3 Nc6 5. Be3 e5 6. d5 Nce7 7. c5 $5 {This pawn ram is a very
aggressive response to Black's offbeat opening. White normally has to spend
some moves preparing the c4-c5 breakthrough in the main line King's Indian, so
Petrosian is pleased to be able to play it at once.} f5 $6 {
Black counterattacks with his own pawn ram against e4.} ({
A thematic idea, but even so} 7... Nf6 $5 {might have been preferable so that
he can block the bishop check with his knight:} 8. Bb5+ Nd7 9. cxd6 cxd6 {
and Black is all set to play 10...f5 with counterplay.}) 8. cxd6 cxd6 9. Bb5+
Bd7 $2 {The vitality quickly drains out of Black's position after the exchange
of light-squared bishops.} ({It was better to renounce castling by playing} 
9... Kf8 $5 {with an intriguing battle ahead.}) 10. Bxd7+ Qxd7 11. f3 Nf6 12.
Nh3 $1 {Already Petrosian has his attention focused on the light squares. The
immediate threat is 13 Ng5 and 14 Ne6, so Ivkov's reply is more or less forced.
} h6 13. Nf2 {If White had played the routine 12 Nge2, Black would have
generated bags of counterplay with 12...fxe4 13 fxe4 Ng4 etc. Instead the 9th
World Champion has been astute enough to put his knight on f2 where it wards
off ...Ng4 ideas and overprotects e4. Note that if it didn't overprotect e4,
White's next move would lead to the loss of the pawn. The moral is: treat the
pawn ram with respect, even when your opponent plays it!} O-O 14. Qa4 $1 {
More prophylaxis, and this time of a game-changing nature: an offer to
exchange queens is made before Black has even had the chance to even dream
about starting a kingside attack with 14...f4 and 15...g5 etc. Perhaps Ivkov
should have declined it with 14...Qd8.} Qxa4 15. Nxa4 Rac8 16. Nc3 a6 {
Dealing with the double threat of 17 Nb5 and 17 Bxa7.} 17. Ke2 $1 {White's king
can happily stay in the centre now that the exchange of queens has removed any
danger of mate.} Kh7 {Ivkov intends ...h6-h5 and then ...Bh6 to activate his
passive bishop or, better still, exchange it for its counterpart. Nonetheless,
there is something not quite right about a passive king move to the edge of
the board in the endgame, especially when it is contrasted with White's
'centralist' king move.} 18. Rac1 Nd7 {At first glance Petrosian has three
obvious advantages: a lot more space in the centre, an active king and a
better bishop.} 19. Nb1 $1 {To the list of advantages we can add a fourth:
more mobile knights. --- The black knight on e7 is a feeble piece with only
the g8-square at its disposal. The knight on d7 isn't quite so hamstrung, but
it still can't do much. In contrast, the white knights have more squares to
choose from because their pawns on d5 and e4 are further up the board than the
black pawns on d6 and e5. With this splendid knight retreat Petrosian intends
Na3 and Nc4 threatening, amongst other things, Nxd6. We therefore become aware
of a fifth advantage: the e4-pawn is well protected whereas the base of
Black's centre pawn chain on d6 has no defenders. --- So that's five
advantages to White we have counted. None are of any great significance in
themselves, but they are of a complementary nature: that is to say, they can
be weaved together in a plan that utilizes all five of them to form one
greater advantage. --- Not all advantages are complementary: for example,
possession of an open file on the queenside won't necessarily combine with
mating chances on the kingside to form one bigger advantage. Nevertheless,
advantages of a seemingly unconnected kind do often combine in a surprising
way. See, for example, the game Petrosian-Unzicker in Chapter Three, though in
that particular case White's control of the c-file already represented a
near-crushing advantage, not just a small plus.} Rxc1 {
Black exchanges rooks so that his knight can defend d6 from c8.} 20. Rxc1 Rc8
21. Na3 Rxc1 22. Bxc1 h5 ({After} 22... b5 {White can go after the a6-pawn with
} 23. Nc2 {followed by 24 Nb4 etc.}) 23. Nc4 Nc8 24. Bd2 $1 {Ivkov's plan of
24...Bh6 is now bankrupt because White has 25 Bb4 forcing 25...Bf8, when the
black bishop remains passive. Petrosian's technique for attacking a weak pawn
structure should be compared with Kramnik's play versus Leko earlier on in
this chapter.} Bf6 25. Na5 $1 {
The white knight forces the creation of a powerful outpost for itself on c6.}
b6 ({If} 25... Nc5 $2 {then} 26. b4 {wins the b7-pawn.}) 26. Nc6 Kg7 27. Be3 {
The bishop aims at the b6-pawn in order to restrain the black knights.} Kf7 28.
Nd3 Ke8 29. a4 $1 {Are the black pawns going to be rammed by a4-a5 at some
future point? No, Petrosian's intention is more insidious here.} Bd8 ({
Not that the pawn won't go to a5 if it is invited: if} 29... b5 $2 30. a5 $1 {
Black has no defence against 31 Ndb4 and 32 Nxa6} ({
much inferior, albeit still excellent for White, would be} 30. axb5 $6 axb5 {
when the b5-pawn is very weak.})) {Thus we see that the black pawns have been
restrained by a2-a4 as they are denied the ...b6-b5 move.} 30. Ndb4 $1 a5 {
Now the black queenside pawns have lost all their flexibility: in other words,
they have been restrained. The next step in White's plan should be to blockade
them: so to which square should the white knight retreat?} 31. Na2 $3 {
Bravo! The knight heads for c3 and then b5. Here we see that one of the points
of 29 a4 was to vacate the a2-square for the knight. A lot of strong players
wouldn't have even noticed that the a2-square existed; giants of strategy are
aware of all the squares on the board, not just the 'interesting' ones!} f4 32.
Bf2 g5 33. Kd3 $1 {First things first. A wonderful outpost beckons the white
knight on b5, but Petrosian wants to keep the route open for his king to reach
a6 where it can add to the pressure that the bishop is already exerting on b6.}
Nf8 34. h3 Ng6 35. Nc3 Bf6 36. Kc4 Kd7 37. Kb5 Kc7 38. Ka6 g4 {This counter
pawn ram is just desperation, because if Black waits the white king can cause
havoc by invading on the light squares;} ({for example,} 38... Bg7 39. Nb5+ Kd7
40. Kb7 ({White doesn't have to get involved in} 40. Bxb6 Nxb6 41. Kxb6 Nh4 {
when g2 drops, though that wins for him as well}) 40... Bf6 41. Nc7 {
and the threat of} -- 42. Nb8+ Kd8 43. Ne6+ {
winning the knight on c8 is decisive.}) 39. hxg4 hxg4 40. fxg4 Bh4 41. Nd1 {
Petrosian concentrates on preventing a Black counterattack against g2.} Bxf2
42. Nxf2 Nce7 ({If} 42... Nh4 43. g5 {
and White's passed pawn is unstoppable after} Nxg2 44. g6 {.}) 43. Nxe7 Nxe7
44. g5 Ng6 45. Ng4 Nh4 46. Ka7 Ng6 47. Nh2 $1 {
An echo of Petrosian's 31 Na2 above.} Nh4 48. Nf3 Ng6 49. b3 $1 {
Black is destroyed by zugzwang. Ivkov tried} Nf8 {, but then resigned.} (49...
Nf8 50. Nh4 {
, followed by 51 g6 etc, will force the win of the knight for the passed pawn.}
) 1-0

[Event "Buenos Aires Olympiad"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1939.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Keres, P."]
[Black "Capablanca, J."]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "C71"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "66"]
[EventDate "1939.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{What follows isn't the sort of game that usually makes it into game
collections, but it does help to explain why Capablanca lost fewer games than
any other great player. He neutralizes every attempt by Keres to force him
into a passive position.} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 d6 5. c4 Bd7 6.
Nc3 g6 7. d4 exd4 8. Nxd4 Bg7 9. Be3 Nge7 10. O-O O-O 11. h3 {White's pawns on
c4 and e4 exert a pincer-like grip on the d5 square which is known as the
Maróczy Bind. Practically speaking, Black has no chance of arranging ...c7-c6
and ...d6-d5 to free his game - it will just lead to the loss of a pawn. But
if he does nothing, then White can build up his pieces and follow up with Nd5.
If Black lets the knight on d5 live, he would be under suffocating pressure;
while if ...Nxd5 in reply, c4xd5 will open up an attack on the c7-pawn (if
White is clever he will already have played Rac1). Instead of the Nd5 plan,
White would also have the option of c4-c5 after careful preparation to ram the
black centre. --- So what is Black's best plan? There is another way besides ...c7-c6 and ...d6-d5 to undermine the white centre: namely with the pawn ram ...f7-f5! But before carrying out this plan, Capablanca forces some
simplification, following the classic rule that in a cramped position, you
should aim to free your game by exchanging pieces.} Nxd4 12. Bxd7 ({After} 12.
Bxd4 Bxa4 {White is obliged to displace his knight with} 13. Nxa4 {
in order to keep d4 defended.}) 12... Ne2+ $1 {
An excellent zwischenzug (in-between move).} ({Capablanca sees that after} 
12... Qxd7 13. Bxd4 {, White will exchange bishops whilst keeping his knight
on the c3-square. So he checks on e2, when White will either have to take back
with the queen, when the plan of Bd4 is no longer possible, or else put his
knight on a worse square.}) 13. Nxe2 Qxd7 14. Bd4 {You may be wondering why
Keres is keen to exchange bishops, when we have just said that exchanges
favour the player with less space. The point is that the bishop on g7 is a
strong piece, and this is the overriding factor here.} Bxd4 15. Qxd4 Nc6 16.
Qd5 Rae8 17. Nc3 Qe6 $1 {Not only breaking the pin on f7 and so clearing the
way for ...f7-f5, but also challenging the white queen. Naturally Capablanca
has no wish to play 18...Qxd5? when 19 cxd5 strengthens the white pawns and
opens the way for an attack on c7 by Rac1 etc. No, Capablanca is preparing to
exchange queens on his own terms.} 18. Rad1 f5 $1 {This had to be calculated
precisely, as it appears at first glance that Black might be dropping material.
} 19. exf5 Rxf5 20. Rde1 $1 {
Keres had relied on this crafty move to set Black problems.} ({But not} 20.
Rfe1 $2 Rxd5 21. Rxe6 Rxd1+ {, when Black wins a rook.}) 20... Rxd5 21. Rxe6 {
It looks as if Keres is going to win material as 21...Rxe6 is met by 22 cxd5,
but...} Re5 $1 {The completion of one of Capablanca's 'little combinations'.
His rooks defend each other and a further exchange is forced.} 22. Rxe8+ Rxe8
23. Rd1 Kf7 $1 {
The black king will prove a useful defender of the d6-square in what follows.}
24. Kf1 ({There is no time for} 24. Nd5 {in view of} Re2 $1 {.}) {Now there is
the positional threat of 25 Nd5, when Black will be obliged to defend c7 with
25...Rc8. Capablanca has no wish to see his rook reduced to such a passive
role, and so carries out an instructive regrouping of his pieces:} 24... Ne5 $1
25. b3 Nd7 {Ready to guard d5 with 26...Nf6, and so forcing White's hand.} 26.
Nd5 c6 $1 {From a structural point of view, this is a significant weakening of
the d6-pawn. However, dynamically speaking it preserves energy in the black
pieces, and takes it away from the white pieces: White's knight is evicted
from its strong centre square, and Black avoids having his rook tied down to
c7. Meanwhile, the black king can be brought to e7 to defend the weak pawn.}
27. Nf4 ({White loses the knight after} 27. Nc7 $2 Rc8 {.}) ({If instead} 27.
Nc3 {, then} Re6 {is solid for Black.}) 27... Re4 $1 ({Much better than} 27...
Ke7 {
. Capablanca makes another little combination, this time only one move long.})
28. g3 ({If} 28. Rxd6 $2 {,} Ke7 {wins the exchange. Precise moves like this
can make all the difference when defending slightly inferior positions.
Putting the rook in front of the king along the e-file also ensures that the
black king gets to e7 without being disturbed by Re1+ and also keeps the white
king from entering the game via e2.}) 28... Ke7 {Now the d6-pawn is safely
defended and the white knight is denied the d5-square.} 29. Ne2 Nc5 30. f3 Re3
31. Kf2 Rd3 32. Rxd3 Nxd3+ 33. Ke3 Nb4 {. Here a draw was agreed.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "World Championship (Game 7), Moscow"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1966.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Spassky, B."]
[Black "Petrosian, T."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D03"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "86"]
[EventDate "1966.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. Bg5 d5 4. Nbd2 Be7 5. e3 Nbd7 6. Bd3 c5 7. c3 b6 8. O-O
Bb7 9. Ne5 Nxe5 10. dxe5 Nd7 11. Bf4 ({With hindsight, the more cautious} 11.
Bxe7 Qxe7 12. f4 {was to be preferred.}) 11... Qc7 12. Nf3 {In this seemingly
innocuous position, Petrosian suddenly began a pawn storm on the kingside.} h6
$1 13. b4 $1 {A useful pawn ram. Spassky anticipates that Black will castle
queenside and so strives to open a line for his rooks there.} g5 ({
White has ample dynamic play for the pawn after} 13... cxb4 14. cxb4 Bxb4 15.
Nd4 {, with ideas such as Rc1, Qg4 and Nb5 followed by Nd6+ in the offing.})
14. Bg3 h5 15. h4 ({The attack rolls on after} 15. h3 g4 {etc, so Spassky uses
a kingside pawn ram to break up the advancing pawn front, even though it opens
up the g-file for the black rooks.}) 15... gxh4 16. Bf4 O-O-O 17. a4 $2 {
Now Petrosian is able to neutralize White's queenside pawn ram.} ({
He had to try} 17. bxc5 $1 bxc5 ({if instead} 17... Nxc5 {
, then White continues} 18. Nd4 $5 {and the white knight sits on its dream
square; in contrast to the game continuation, Black can't respond ...Nxe5 as
his knight is no longer on d7}) 18. Rb1 {
when the b-file affords White counterplay.}) 17... c4 $1 {At first glance this
appears to be a positional mistake: Black hands over the beautiful d4-square
to the white knight: an outpost in the centre from which it would be virtually
impossible to evict. At the same time, Black is renouncing the plan of ...d5-d4, supported by the pawn on c5, which would free the bishop on b7. ---
Petrosian, however, knows better. He has seen that he can block the queenside,
taking away White's attacking chances, after which he can focus on his own
attack down the g-file. And crucially, White's knight never gets to d4: it has
to remain defending the e5-pawn.} 18. Be2 a6 $3 {We are all taught not to move
pawns on the side of the board where we are being attacked, lest they provide
a hook for the opponent's pawn storm. However, Petrosian's crafty little pawn
move completes the blocking strategy that began with 17...c4. If 19 a5 Black
replies 19...b5!; or 19 b5 a5! and the pawns become interlocked, forming an
invincible barrier to a white attack. --- Try to remember Petrosian's method
of blocking the white attack - it is sure to save your king in one of your
future games.} 19. Kh1 {The attacking hopes generated by the pawn ram 13 b4
have vanished because Black was allowed to block the queenside. With no
dynamic play on that wing, the pawn ram 15 h4 is rendered dubious. Spassky can
only brace himself for the assault along the g-file.} Rdg8 20. Rg1 Rg4 21. Qd2
Rhg8 22. a5 b5 23. Rad1 Bf8 24. Nh2 Nxe5 $1 {One of Petrosian's celebrated
exchange sacrifices. The doubled h-pawns are transformed into a pawn roller
against the white king. And in contrast to the situation on the queenside,
there is no way for White to block them.} 25. Nxg4 hxg4 26. e4 {A desperate
attempt to puncture a hole in the wall of black pawns, but Petrosian quite
rightly ignores it.} Bd6 $1 27. Qe3 Nd7 {The knight retreats to force the
exchange of White's dark-squared bishop, which is obstructing the onrush of
the black pawns. A path is also cleared for the e-pawn to join in the
onslaught.} 28. Bxd6 Qxd6 29. Rd4 e5 30. Rd2 f5 $1 {
A fine pawn ram to break up the white centre.} 31. exd5 ({If} 31. exf5 {
, Black replies} Nf6 $1 {with the idea of} 32. -- h3 $1 33. g3 d4+ {
, uncovering a check by the bishop and giving Black a huge attack.}) 31... f4
32. Qe4 Nf6 33. Qf5+ Kb8 34. f3 Bc8 35. Qb1 g3 36. Re1 h3 {
The black pawns just keep on rolling forwards.} 37. Bf1 ({\/If} 37. gxh3 {
, then} g2+ 38. Kg1 Qd7 $1 {and the black queen comes crashing through on h3.})
37... Rh8 38. gxh3 Bxh3 39. Kg1 Bxf1 40. Kxf1 e4 $1 {This is a dramatic
illustration of Nimzowitsch's colourful phrase, 'a passed pawn's lust to
expand'.} 41. Qd1 ({If} 41. fxe4 {,} f3 {threatens mate on h1.}) 41... Ng4 $1 {
It's not unusual to see a black pawn sacrifice itself to create a blockade
square for the knight (see for example Apicella-Kramnik in the Introduction).
Here the black knight returns the compliment by sacrificing itself to remove
the last barrier facing the foot soldiers.} 42. fxg4 f3 {Shades of the
McDonnell-La Bourdonnais games of the 1830s. Who can claim that Petrosian was
a boring player after seeing this wonderfully dynamic performance?} 43. Rg2
fxg2+ 0-1

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "????.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "7. Restraint"]
[Black "?"]
[Result "*"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "1"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{When all is said and done, positional struggle is nothing but a fight between
the mobility of the pawn mass and a restraining tendency on the opposite side.
-- Nimzowitsch.} 1. -- {In Chapters 3-6 we learned about the potential power
of an unchecked pawn advance. It can splinter a pawn structure, create a
deadly passed pawn, or open the way for an attack on the opponent's king. ---
The purpose of restraint is to spoil the opponent's chances by preventing him
from making a strategically vital pawn advance. Restraint is by no means an
exclusively defensive technique: on the contrary it can be used to destroy a
position just as effectively as more overtly aggressive strategies. ---
Nimzowitsch introduced the term prophylaxis to describe stratagems that
prevent the opponent from freeing his position. These include the methods of
restraint seen in this chapter, as well as the blockade (the subject of
Chapter Eight), overprotection (discussed in relation to Yates-Nimzowitsch)
and mysterious rook moves (see, for example, 23...Re8 in
Nimzowitsch-Capablanca (round 15)) --- Every pawn structure yearns to expand
in a certain way in order to function properly. This chapter and the two that
follow will show you how to stop your opponent carrying out manoeuvres that
are either essential to the health of his position, or detrimental to your own
position.} (1. -- {Restraint of the Pawn Ram: --- See Behting-Nimzowitsch,
Chajes-Capablanca, Petrosian-Botvinnik (7th matchgame, Moscow 1963), and
Lautier-Kramnik.}) (1. -- {Freezing a Pawn Structure so that the Pawn Ram
destroys it: -- Petrosian used the technique of restraint to great effect in
becoming World Champion. We have recently seen Game 7 of his match with
Botvinnik; now let's take a look at the position reached after 28 moves in
Game 19. --- See Petrosian-Botvinnik (19th matchgame, Moscow 1963).}) (1. -- {
Preventing a Freeing Pawn Move: --- See Nimzowitsch-Capablanca (round 2) and
Kramnik-Anand.}) *

[Event "Informal Game, Riga"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1910.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Behting, K."]
[Black "Nimzowitsch, A."]
[Result "*"]
[ECO "B07"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[EventDate "1910.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. e4 d6 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. f4 e5 4. Nf3 Nbd7 5. d4 exd4 6. Nxd4 Be7 7. Bc4 O-O 8.
O-O a6 9. Nf5 Nc5 10. Ng3 b5 11. Bd3 b4 12. Nd5 Nxd5 13. exd5 {If allowed the
opportunity White will encroach on the kingside with 14 f5! followed by 15 Nh5,
with ideas of 16 f6 breaking up the black kingside; or 16 Qg4 threatening mate;
or even a combination of the two ideas with the pseudo sacrificial 16 Bh6!.
--- Nimzowitsch nipped the threat in the bud with:} f5 $1 {
Not only restraining f4-f5 but also beginning to fight for the e4-square.} 14.
a3 bxa3 15. Rxa3 Rb8 16. c3 Bh4 $1 {After a brief interlude on the queenside,
Nimzowitsch turns his attention once again to the centre. He aims to increase
his grip on the e4-square by eliminating the white knight and putting a rook
on e8.} 17. Qf3 Bxg3 18. Qxg3 Re8 19. Bc2 Qf6 20. b4 Ne4 {Thanks to Nimzowitsch
's mastery of restraint, the white bishop on c2 has never had any chance
whatsoever of contributing to a kingside attack. Instead it has found its path
blocked first of all by the pawn on f5 and then by the black knight. Back on
move 13, it would have been very easy for Black to have been tempted into
playing 13...Nxd3, 'to remove the dangerous white bishop'. Nimzowitsch's
method has been much superior: the knight is dominant, and 21 Bxe4 Rxe4 leaves
the black rook equally well placed on the open file.} 21. Qd3 {Nonetheless,
Black can't afford to go to sleep: White is about to carry out the manoeuvre
22 Be3 and 23 Bd4, when the bishop is excellently centralized and helps
solidify his queenside.} Qf7 $1 {A very deep defensive idea. Nimzowitsch plans
to put so much pressure on d5 that White is obliged to play c3-c4, after which
the Bc1-e3-d4 manoeuvre is no longer viable.} 22. Be3 Nf6 {Even the knight is
required to retreat from its dream square in the interests of prophylaxis.} 23.
Bb3 Bb7 24. Rd1 $2 {
Unfortunately White's blunder prevents Nimzowitsch demonstrating his idea. ---}
({After} 24. c4 Bc8 $1 {(threatening 25...Rxb4)} 25. Bd2 Ne4 26. Be1 Qf6 {
the black pieces have all returned to the squares that they occupied at move
20. The difference is that White's Be3 and Bd4 manoeuvre has been frustrated
due to the white pawn being on c4 rather than c3: the dark-squared bishop has
to defend b4 rather than head for d4. A wonderful example of prophylaxis. One
of the secrets of good chess is to prevent your opponent playing good moves.})
{In the actual game, Nimzowitsch got to show another facet of his chess
strength: a flair for tactics. He saw that he could grab a pawn with...} 24...
Bxd5 $1 {...and emerge unscathed from the complications:} 25. Bxd5 Qxd5 26.
Qxd5+ Nxd5 27. Ba7 Ne3 28. Rd3 Ng4 {
The threat of mate on e1 spoils White's day, and after} 29. Rd1 Ra8 30. Bd4 Re4
{, Black eventually won.} *

[Event "New York"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1915.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Chajes, O."]
[Black "Capablanca, J."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "B01"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[EventDate "1915.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. e4 d5 2. exd5 Nf6 3. d4 Nxd5 4. Nf3 Bg4 5. Be2 c6 6. O-O e6 7. c4 Nf6 8. Nc3
Nbd7 9. h3 Bh5 10. Bf4 Nb6 11. Qd3 Be7 12. Rad1 O-O 13. Ne5 Bxe2 14. Qxe2 {
The black pieces are restraining White's centre in so far as that they control
the d5-square, preventing a breakthrough with d4-d5. But Black's position is
nevertheless passive and there doesn't appear to be a good plan in sight. Not
so: Capablanca found a way to activate his game and take the fight to his
opponent's centre with the paradoxical...} Nc8 $1 {
This clears the way for the queen to go to a5.} 15. Rd3 $1 {An aggressive
posture with the idea of Rad1 followed by the thematic centre advance d4-d5.
Unfortunately for Chajes, he never gets to carry out his plan.} Qa5 {The queen 
takes up a post on the queenside where she will be well placed to probe the
white pawns and monitor the d5-square. At the same time she vacates the
d8-square for a rook as a further 'anti d4-d5' measure.} 16. a3 Nd6 17. Bg5
Rad8 18. Rfd1 Qa6 $6 ({Perhaps} 18... Rfe8 {
, to take the sting out of the reply} 19. d5 {, was better.} ({
It would also avoid} 19. Ng4 {as the bishop on g5 would be left hanging. But
as Capablanca himself said, 'the good player is always lucky', and his
imprecise move provokes a horrible reply!})) {Black threatens the c4-pawn...}
19. c5 $4 {...and White moves it to safety. In doing so he robs his centre of
its mobility and leaves a massive hole on the d5-square. If crimes against
positional chess were a criminal offence, Chajes could expect to get 20 years
of hard labour for such a move.} ({
White should have completed his plan with the sharp} 19. d5 $1 {
, when play might continue} cxd5 20. cxd5 Nxd5 21. Rxd5 $1 Qxe2 22. Nxe2 f6 $1
{(other moves lose material)} 23. R5d3 fxg5 {with unclear chances.}) ({
Another sharp idea was} 19. Ng4 {, when the best reply seems to be} Kh8 {.}) ({
Alternatively, if he was unsure about 19 d5, Chajes should have settled for
the non-committal} 19. R3d2 {, safeguarding c4 and keeping his options.}) 19...
Nf5 20. Qf3 Nd5 {Beginning a plan to exchange off all the minor pieces, which
will not only clarify Black's structural advantage but also reduce White's
capacity to start a successful kingside attack to zero.} 21. Nxd5 Rxd5 22. Bxe7
Nxe7 23. Qe4 Ng6 24. f4 ({White might as well bite the bullet with} 24. Nxg6
hxg6 {, when at least his kingside would remain solid.}) 24... Rfd8 25. Kh2
Nxe5 26. fxe5 {White has no compensation for what is one of the most notorious
positional defects: a backward pawn on an open file. Remembering Nimzowitsch's
dictum of restrain, blockade and destroy, we see that the first two criteria
have been fulfilled. It now remains for the luckless pawn to be eliminated.} b6
$1 27. cxb6 axb6 {Capablanca has cleared the way for the pawn ram ...c6-c5. It
is a fact of chess life that if a player has the initiative his pawns are
somehow protected from becoming victims. Here, for example, the c6-pawn stands
on an open file just like White's d4-pawn, but its role is one of an aggressor.
} 28. Rg3 c5 29. Qh4 g6 30. Rf1 $2 {A terrible blunder, but in any case there
would be no hope a pawn down against Capablanca once d4 dropped.} Qxf1 0-1

[Event "World Championship (Game 7), Moscow"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1963.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Petrosian, T."]
[Black "Botvinnik, M."]
[Result "*"]
[ECO "A10"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "53"]
[EventDate "1963.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{In this game Petrosian prevents Botvinnik's kingside pawn ram with 19 Nf4!
and then wins the game on the queenside with his own unrestrained pawn ram 24
c5!.} 1. c4 g6 2. Nf3 Bg7 3. Nc3 e5 4. g3 Ne7 5. Bg2 O-O 6. d4 exd4 7. Nxd4
Nbc6 8. Nxc6 Nxc6 $2 {
A natural recapture, but it gives up the fight for the d5-square. ---} ({After
} 8... bxc6 $1 {, Black could develop his game with 9...d6, 10...Rb8 and 11...
Be6 (or possibly 11...c5 and 12...Bb7), when he has counterplay along the
b-file and is contesting the centre. White could try to throw a spanner in the
works with} 9. c5 {, but} d5 10. cxd6 cxd6 {looks okay for Black. In any case,
if Botvinnik had intended the ...b7xc6 recapture he could have avoided this
possibility by tweaking the move order with 7...d6 8 0-0 Nbc6 9 Nxc6 bxc6. ---
It must be admitted that, after 8...bxc6, if it came to an endgame Black would
suffer because of his isolated pawn on a7. However, as Tartakower remarked,
before the endgame the gods have placed the middlegame; and in the middlegame
a cluster of pawns c6/c7/d6 would be of more value to Black than the perfect
pawn structure he maintains in the game, because he has one more pawn fighting
for the centre.}) {The move played in the game avoids damage to the queenside
pawn structure, but hands White the d5-square on a plate.} 9. O-O d6 10. Bd2 $1
{A necessary overprotection: White isn't afraid of 10...Bxc3 but he wants to
be able to play b2-b3 in reply to ...Be6 without dropping the knight.} Bg4 11.
h3 Be6 12. b3 Qd7 13. Kh2 Rae8 14. Rc1 f5 15. Nd5 $1 Kh8 {So Black has fully
developed all his pieces and they are straining at the leash: but what can
they do?} ({Actually, Black does have one plan of activity, which involves the
preparation of ...f5-f4, for example after ...h7-h6 and ...g6-g5. With this in
mind,} 15... h6 $5 {
might have been tried, angling for a quick ...g6-g5. If then} 16. h4 {in reply,
} Ne5 {with ideas of ...Ng4+ generates counterplay. --- But it soon becomes
clear that Botvinnik has no wish to advance his h-pawn, perhaps because he was
afraid that his king, or his kingside pawns themselves, would become
dangerously exposed. He therefore pursues a 'pieces only' strategy which aims
to achieve ...g6-g5 without touching the h-pawn. As will be seen, this plan is
effectively destroyed by White's 19th move.}) 16. Be3 Bg8 17. Qd2 $1 {
Just in case his opponent suddenly changes his mind about advancing his
kingside pawns, Petrosian has hurried to prevent 17...h6.} Nd8 18. Rfd1 {
Black's queenside is looking ominously devoid of defenders as he has concentrated his forces on the other wing.} Ne6 {Botvinnik has spent four moves
regrouping his pieces - ...Kh8, ...Bg8, ...Nd8 and ...Ne6 - in order to
activate his game with 19...g5. But it is White's move, and...} 19. Nf4 $3 {
Petrosian's priority is the restraint of Black's kingside counterplay - in
other words, he is anxious to prevent the black pieces being energized by the
use of the pawns.---} ({
Let's see what might have happened if White had allowed Black to play ...g6-g5:
} 19. b4 g5 $1 20. Bxg5 Nxg5 21. Qxg5 Rxe2 {when Black has a kingside attack})
({while even worse for White is} 19. Qa5 g5 $1 20. Qxa7 $2 f4 21. gxf4 gxf4 22.
Bd2 Nc5 {
with the double threat of 23...Ra8, trapping the white queen, and 23...Rxe2.})
{With 19 Nf4, Petrosian is able to paralyse Black's kingside pawns, after
which he can turn his sights to the queenside.} 19... Nxf4 20. Bxf4 Qc8 21. h4
$1 {There goes the ...g6-g5 advance forever. Black's plan of kingside
counterplay has been defeated and he is left wide open on the queenside.} Re7
22. Bf3 Bf7 23. Qa5 $1 {So simple: Black can't deal with White's next move and
defend a7 at the same time.} Be8 24. c5 $1 {The most logical move. The white
pieces are being helped by their pawns to carry out their queenside strategy,
whereas the black pawns are targets on the queenside and moribund on the
kingside.} ({It should be pointed out that the crude} 24. Qxa7 {
is also decisive, as} Bc6 {fails to} 25. Bxc6 bxc6 26. Bxd6 $1 cxd6 27. Qxe7 {.
}) 24... d5 ({Hopeless, but if} 24... dxc5 {White replies} 25. Qxc5 {, when the
rook on e7 is hanging and 26 Qxa7 is looming, to say nothing of the pressure
on c7.}) 25. Bd6 $1 {Winning the exchange, as 25...cxd6 26 cxd6 attacks the
black queen. Botvinnik battled on gamely with} Qd7 {, but after} 26. Bxe7 Qxe7
27. Rxd5 {he eventually had to resign on move 52.} *

[Event "Tilburg"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1997.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Lautier, J."]
[Black "Kramnik, V."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E58"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "106"]
[EventDate "1997.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Bd3 c5 6. Nf3 d5 7. O-O Nc6 8. a3
Bxc3 9. bxc3 Qc7 10. cxd5 exd5 11. Nh4 Qa5 12. Bb2 Re8 13. Re1 c4 14. Bc2 Ne4
15. Rc1 Qd8 16. g3 g5 17. Ng2 g4 18. f3 $2 ({
Kramnik points out the possibility of} 18. h3 $5 gxh3 19. Nf4 {with interesting
play. Instead Lautier made a poor decision which allowed Kramnik to seize
control of some important light squares:}) 18... Ng5 $1 19. fxg4 Nh3+ 20. Kf1
Qg5 {The point: Black regains the pawn with excellent chances.} 21. Nf4 Bxg4
22. Qd2 {If Black plays a routine move like 22...Rad8 then White can break out
with 23 e4!, when he will acquire a protected passed pawn on d4 after
disposing of Black's d5-pawn. In other words, Kramnik would be the victim of
one of his own favourite stratagems: the central breakthrough to create a
passed pawn! --- Not surprisingly, the future World Champion took measures to
restrain the e3-pawn. His policy of light square domination began with...} Bf5
$1 {...which not only controls e4 a third time, but also forces White into a
most unwelcome exchange of light-squared bishops.} 23. Qg2 ({If} 23. Nxd5 {
Black replies} Bxc2 {followed by 24...Qxd5, so Lautier attacks d5 again as
well as the black knight. To be honest there isn't much White can do besides
make tactical threats once he has been deprived of the e3-e4 advance in
perpetuity.}) 23... Nxf4 24. gxf4 ({The alternative} 24. exf4 Qg6 25. Bxf5 Qxf5
{is also very unpleasant for White. The bishop on b2 is a useless piece: give
it a nudge on to c2 or b1 and it suddenly becomes the star of the show, with
an untrammelled diagonal stretching towards h7. But on b2 it is no more than a
'big pawn'.}) 24... Qxg2+ 25. Kxg2 Bxc2 26. Rxc2 ({Now after} 26. Rxc2 b5 {
White could try} 27. e4 $5 Rxe4 ({or} 27... dxe4 28. f5 $5) 28. Rxe4 dxe4 29.
f5 $5 {with complications. It may not look terribly good for White, but at
least he has escaped the slow death of the game. Kramnik doesn't allow even
this possibility.}) 26... f5 $1 {Clamping down forever on the e4-square. ---
Besides the wretched bishop, White is suffering from another positional
infirmity. That is, from a strategic point of view Black has in effect an
extra pawn: the white pawns on d4, e3, f4 and h2 are restrained by the black
pawns on d5, f5 and h7. In contrast, on the queenside, Black has a 3-2
majority with the capacity to break through and create a passed pawn on the
c-file with ...b7-b5, ...a7-a5 and ...b5-b4 etc. However, Black will certainly
not rush to advance his queenside pawns, as he doesn't want to give the white
rooks any targets.} 27. Kf3 Kf7 28. a4 {
The last hope of activity for the bishop is along the a3-f8 diagonal.} Rg8 29.
Ba3 Ke6 30. Rb1 b6 ({The alternative was} 30... Na5 $5 {followed by 31...Nb3,
which utilizes the outpost on b3 to block any counterplay against b7.}) 31. Bb4
{Lautier has a plan of sorts: double rooks on the b-file, then play a4-a5 as a
pawn sacrifice to break through to the b7-square with a rook. Kramnik's first
task is therefore to neutralize his opponent's attempt at activity; his own
plan of attack on the g-file can wait until a later date.} Rab8 $1 {A splendid
piece of restraint begins with a mysterious rook move (see 23...Re8 in
Nimzowitsch-Capablanca in Chapter Five for an explanation of the term).} ({
Black's chances on the g-file won't run away, so the priority is to stop White
achieving anything on the b-file. If instead} 31... Rg6 {then White should play}
32. a5 $5 b5 ({or} 32... bxa5 33. Ba3 {with counterplay for White}) 33. a6 $1 {
, according to Kramnik writing in 'Chess Informant'. The black pawn on b5 is a
possible target.}) 32. Rcb2 ({Of course if} 32. a5 $2 {, then Black will reply}
bxa5 {and White loses his bishop.}) 32... Rb7 $1 33. Rg2 {
Lautier loses heart on the queenside.} ({Indeed, if} 33. a5 {Black replies}
Rgb8 $1 34. axb6 ({or if White chooses} 34. a6 {, then} Rg7 {and, in contrast
to the line discussed in the notes to 31...Rab8, the black pawn is on b6, not
b5, so Black is rock solid along the b-file and the a6-pawn is vulnerable to a
future attack with ...Nb8 etc; in the meantime, Black can build up his attack
along the g-file in complete peace}) 34... Rxb6 {, and after 35...a5 etc, he
has good chances to win due to the outside passed pawn and the absolute
superiority of the knight over the bishop (compare the situation here with the
finale of the Atkins-Capablanca game in Chapter Five).}) 33... Rxg2 34. Kxg2
Rg7+ 35. Kf3 Rg8 36. Ra1 h5 {The next stage in Kramnik's plan is to create an
outpost for his rook on the seventh rank by advancing the h-pawn to h3.} 37.
Rb1 h4 $6 ({Even so, after the game Kramnik suggested that it was still too
soon to be carrying out his own plan, and recommended instead} 37... Kd7 {
in order to continue the restraint of White's counterplay. If then} 38. a5 b5 {
(keeping everything blocked and intact)} 39. a6 Nxb4 40. Rxb4 Kc6 {, the black
king can attack the a6-pawn with 41...Kb6. White wouldn't have the slightest
activity.}) 38. a5 bxa5 ({Again hindsight convinced Kramnik that he should
have kept everything solid with} 38... Kd7 $1 {; for example,} 39. axb6 axb6
40. Ba3 Ra8 41. Bc1 Kc7 42. Rb5 Ne7 {.}) 39. Bc5 Rg7 40. Ba3 h3 41. Rb5 {
Suddenly Lautier has real counterplay. He intends 42 Rc5!, when 42...Kd7?
drops d5, moving the knight loses the a5-pawn, and 42...Rc7 puts the black
rook into a pin.} a4 $1 {Nonetheless, the fundamental advantages of Black's
set-up haven't vanished. He loses the pawn on a4, but maintains the other pawn
on the a-file and, besides, his rook is poised to invade on g2.} 42. Rc5 Nb8
43. Ra5 ({A tougher way to resist was} 43. Rc8 Kf6 {
, but it wouldn't have saved White.}) 43... a6 44. Rxa4 Rg2 {
An outpost on the seventh rank is a dream for any rook.} 45. Bb4 Rxh2 46. Kg3
Re2 47. Kxh3 Rxe3+ 48. Kg2 Nc6 $1 {Kramnik returns the extra pawn as he sees
that the base of White's pawn structure on c3 is going to crumble.} 49. Rxa6
Kd7 50. Kf2 Rd3 51. Bc5 ({Black's connected passed pawns carry the day after} 
51. Ra3 Nxb4 52. Ra7+ Kc6 53. cxb4 Rxd4 {.}) 51... Rxc3 52. Rb6 Rb3 $1 {
Not letting the white rook get to the seventh rank.} 53. Ra6 Rd3 0-1

[Event "World Championship (Game 19), Moscow"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1963.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Petrosian, T."]
[Black "Botvinnik, M."]
[Result "1-0"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "1n2r1k1/2p2q1p/1p2p1pb/p3P3/2PRQ3/BP3NP1/P4PK1/8 w - - 0 29"]
[PlyCount "75"]
[EventDate "1963.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{White has control of the d-file and the more active minor pieces. However, an
advantage in mobility means nothing unless it can be converted into something
more tangible. As there is no material en prise for White to grab, and the
black king is too well defended to allow a mating attack, White's only plan is
to inflict some long-term damage on Black's pawn structure. That means
undermining Black's queenside pawns; but if immediately 29 c5 then 29...b5 is
a safe reply, intending 30...b4 to shut the white bishop out of the game. So
Petrosian played:} 29. Qb7 $3 {
A surprising lunge that paralyses Black on the queenside.} Bg7 ({
White's last ties down the black knight, as if} 29... Nd7 {White has} 30. Qxc7
{;}) ({it also prevents} 29... c5 {, because} 30. Qxf7+ Kxf7 31. Rd6 {
wins the b6-pawn;}) (29... Bg7) (29... -- {and finally it it prepares} 30. c5 {
without allowing} b5 {in reply, as the queen would gobble up the pawn. Hence
Botvinnik has been restrained from making two pawn moves that might have
safeguarded his queenside: ...c7-c5 or, in reply to c4-c5, ...b6-b5.}) 30. c5 {
The pawn ram is very powerful thanks to the preparatory queen move.} bxc5 31.
Bxc5 {Black has had to submit to split pawns on the queenside. The reigning
World Champion made the best of it with...} Nd7 $1 32. Qxc7 Nxe5 33. Qxf7+ Nxf7
{...when he was rid of the weakling on c7. However, he eventually lost the
endgame as Petrosian was able to create a strong protected passed pawn. The
game continued:} 34. Ra4 Bc3 35. Rc4 Bf6 36. Bb6 Ra8 37. Ra4 Bc3 38. Bd4 Bb4
39. a3 Bd6 40. b4 Bc7 41. Bc3 Kf8 42. b5 Ke8 43. Rc4 Kd7 44. a4 {Incidentally,
this shows the conversion of advantages typical of a well thought out strategy:
an advantage in mobility became converted into a structural advantage on the
queenside, which solidified into pressure on the weak pawn on a5, and then
finally transformed into a strong passed pawn. Black's defence eventually
buckled under:} Rc8 45. Nd2 Nd6 46. Rd4 Ke7 47. Rd3 Nb7 48. Ne4 e5 49. Bb2 Bb6
50. Ba3+ Ke6 51. Ng5+ Kf5 52. Nxh7 e4 53. g4+ Kf4 54. Rd7 Rc7 55. Rxc7 Bxc7 56.
Nf6 Bd8 57. Nd7 Kxg4 58. b6 Bg5 59. Nc5 Nxc5 60. Bxc5 Bf4 61. b7 Bb8 62. Be3 g5
63. Bd2 Kf5 64. Kh3 Bd6 65. Bxa5 g4+ 66. Kg2 1-0

[Event "New York (round 2)"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1927.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Nimzowitsch, A."]
[Black "Capablanca, J."]
[Result "0-1"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "2rr2k1/p4ppp/1p2pq2/2b5/8/P3P3/1P2QPPP/1RB1R1K1 b - - 0 20"]
[PlyCount "43"]
[EventDate "1927.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{In this game White had tried to force a draw by exchanging off pieces at
every opportunity. --- Black's rooks have been allowed to take control of the
c- and d-files, but it seems to be merely a temporary state of affairs: after
all, White is poised to play 21 b4, hitting the black bishop, and then 22 Bb2,
completing his development with more gain of time by attacking the black queen.
So in only two moves, White will be ready to arrange an exchange of rooks
along the open files, followed by a confident draw offer. --- As we said above,
an advantage in mobility, such as Black enjoys here, needs to be converted
into something more permanent, or else it will simply fade away once the
opponent consolidates his position. Above all, White must be restrained from
freeing his game with b2-b4 and Bb2. Capablanca found a way to do so by
putting his queen... on a2!} 20... Qe5 $1 21. g3 ({If} 21. b4 {, Black replies}
Bd6 {(attacking h2)} 22. g3 Qe4 23. Rb2 {(otherwise 23...Rc2 invades)} Be5 24.
Rd2 Rxd2 25. Bxd2 Bb2 26. a4 Rc2 {, when Black has a rook on the seventh rank
and the chance to attack White's queenside pawns.}) {With 21 g3, Nimzowitsch
was perhaps hoping to get the chance to play 22 e4 and 23 Bf4.} 21... Qd5 $1
22. b4 ({If now} 22. e4 {,} Qa2 23. Bf4 Bd4 $1 {
and the white pieces remain tied down to the defence of b2.}) 22... Bf8 23. Bb2
({The endgame after} 23. e4 Qc4 24. Qxc4 Rxc4 {is very uncomfortable for White.
}) 23... Qa2 $1 24. Ra1 ({
Not surprisingly, Nimzowitsch avoids challenging the black rooks with} 24. Rbd1
{, in view of} Rxd1 25. Rxd1 a5 $1 26. bxa5 bxa5 {
, when the threat of 27...Bxa3 is unappetizing.}) 24... Qb3 25. Bd4 ({If} 25.
Rec1 {, then still} a5 $1 {.}) 25... Rc2 {The potential attack on White's
queenside pawns is now forgotten as the attention shifts to the centre and
White's beleaguered second rank. Nonetheless, without the latent threat of ...a7-a5, Capablanca's whole strategy would have failed. That is why it is so
hard to understand the games of top-class players without deep study. Often it
is ideas like ...a7-a5 which remain invisible but decide the outcome of games.}
26. Qa6 e5 $1 {A wonderful investment: Black gives up a pawn to get doubled
rooks on the seventh rank.} 27. Bxe5 Rdd2 28. Qb7 ({Instead} 28. Rf1 {
allows a spectacular finish:} Qxe3 $1 29. fxe3 (29. Bf4 Rxf2 $1) 29... Rg2+ 30.
Kh1 Rxh2+ 31. Kg1 Rcg2# {.}) 28... Rxf2 29. g4 {We should perhaps commend
Nimzowitsch for managing to find a way to hang on in such a wretched position.}
Qe6 $1 30. Bg3 Rxh2 $1 31. Qf3 ({If} 31. Bxh2 Qxg4+ 32. Kh1 Qh3 {
White can only defend against mate on h2 by allowing mate on g2.}) 31... Rhg2+
({A somewhat curious decision as} 31... Rhd2 {was crushing, but Capablanca
prefers to play it safe by simplifying to a winning endgame.}) 32. Qxg2 Rxg2+
33. Kxg2 Qxg4 34. Rad1 h5 35. Rd4 Qg5 36. Kh2 a5 37. Re2 axb4 38. axb4 Be7 39.
Re4 Bf6 40. Rf2 Qd5 41. Re8+ Kh7 {. Material down with an open king and weak
pawns, Nimzowitsch decided to call it a day.} 0-1

[Event "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2007.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Kramnik, V."]
[Black "Anand, V."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E05"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "105"]
[EventDate "2007.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{'It's all about Black trying to get in ...c7-c5 and White trying to stop it',
was Kramnik's succinct summary of the early middlegame in this encounter.} 1.
d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 Be7 5. Nf3 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Qc2 a6 8. Qxc4 b5
9. Qc2 Bb7 {A standard position in the Catalan Opening. Everything is solid
and comfortable about Black's position as regards king safety, speed of
development and control of the centre. Notably his light-squared bishop, which
often proves difficult to activate in other queen's pawn openings, here enjoys
an open diagonal. --- But theory dictates that Black never quite equalizes in
any opening unless White has gone wrong, and here the price Anand has to pay
for the above blessings is in the shape of the runt on c7. It is a backward
pawn on an open file - one of the worst defects possible in a pawn structure.
Nevertheless, if left undisturbed, Black only needs to play 10...Nbd7 and 11...
c5 to be rid of the weakness, when he is fully equal. Therefore Kramnik takes
immediate action to restrain the pawn.} 10. Bd2 $1 {The bishop vacates c1 for
the rook and aims at the a5-square where it will pin the pawn against the
black queen.} Ra7 {Anand removes his rook from a square where it could become
the target of the white bishop on g2 and prepares a lateral defence of the
c7-pawn.} 11. Rc1 Be4 {Attack and defence: Anand meets the threat to c7 whilst
driving away the white queen.} 12. Qb3 Nc6 ({If} 12... Nbd7 {
, an interesting reply is} 13. Bb4 {, continuing to restrain ...c7-c5.}) 13. e3
Qa8 14. Qd1 ({
The white queen retreats to prevent a tactical break planned by Anand:} 14. Nc3
$6 Bxf3 15. Bxf3 Nxd4 $1 {
when both the white queen and bishop on f3 are hanging.}) 14... Nb8 {Thwarted in its bid for glory with ...Nxd4! above, the black knight retreats in order to
clear the way for ...c7-c5 after the preparatory 15...Nbd7 or 15...Rc8.} 15.
Ba5 $1 {If Black is allowed to play ...c7-c5 he will be completely equal, or
more. Therefore it is imperative that Kramnik engages in prophylaxis.} Rc8 16.
a3 $1 {An essential move, and not just because White wants to play b2-b4
making permanent his grip on the c5-square. No, there was the positional
threat of 16...b4! to deal with, when the bishop would have been cut off on a5
and then destroyed by 17...Nc6 and 18...Nxa5.} Bd6 ({
Here we see a drawback of Black's otherwise excellent 10...Ra7 move: if} 16...
c5 {he is undone by} 17. Bb6 $1 {, hitting both the rook and the c5-pawn.}) ({
Nor would} 16... Nbd7 {
facilitate ...c7-c5, even though it prevents Bb6, as White has} 17. Nc3 Bd5 18.
b4 {in the style of the game. --- Therefore Anand switches his attention to
carrying out the alternative pawn advance ...e6-e5.}) 17. Nbd2 ({Note that as
long as the black knight is on b8, it would be a grave mistake to play} 17. b4
$2 {because} Nc6 {and 18...Nxa5 would be fine for Black, who acquires the
bishop pair, wrecks White's queenside pawns and can play ...c7-c5 at his
leisure.}) 17... Bd5 18. Qf1 $1 {Kramnik plays in Karpovian style. By quietly
sliding his queen to f1, he breaks the pin that the black queen and bishop are
exerting on f3 and so takes the sting out of Black's ...e6-e5 advance.} Nbd7 {
The black knight has vacated b8 and there is the threat of 19...c5, so it is
time for White to clamp down on the c5-square:} 19. b4 $1 e5 ({The quixotic} 
19... Nb8 {, aiming to capture the bishop after all with ...Nc6 and ...Nxa5,
can be answered by} 20. Bb6 $1 Rb7 21. Bc5 {
when the bishop returns to the centre and emphasizes White's grip on c5.}) {
You will have gathered that an amazing battle of wills is taking place. Anand
is straining to the maximum to snap the cords that are binding him, while
Kramnik is fighting grimly to avoid letting his opponent escape.} 20. dxe5 Bxe5
({More natural-looking was} 20... Nxe5 {, but Black remains in a bind after}
21. Nxe5 Bxe5 22. Bxd5 Qxd5 ({or} 22... Nxd5 23. Ra2 {etc}) 23. Rc5 Qxd2 24.
Rxe5 {when White remains in control of the c5-square.}) 21. Nxe5 Nxe5 {
Anand has freed his game somewhat, but he is still saddled with the ugly
duckling on c7, which, despite the removal of White's d4-pawn, is showing no
signs of becoming a swan on c5.} 22. f3 $1 {After the spotlight being on the
restraint of Black's queenside pawns for so long, White's 4-3 pawn majority on
the kingside finally asserts itself. Black is prevented from easing his game
with exchanges; on the contrary, his minor pieces are going to be pushed back
with e3-e4 etc.} Nc4 ({After} 22... Nc6 23. e4 Be6 24. Qf2 Nxa5 25. bxa5 {
, despite his doubled pawns White has a definite edge as he can aim both his
rooks against the c7-pawn. If then} Nd7 {, trying for 26...c5,} 26. f4 $1 {
is highly awkward as the white kingside pawns become mobile with the threat of
27 f5 trapping the bishop. In fact, the plan of ...Nxa5 has lost much of its
lustre for Black: it can no longer be construed as a stepping stone towards
domination of the dark squares, as Black's own dark-squared bishop has been
exchanged off.}) ({Another possibility for Black was} 22... Bc4 {
, which meets with the tactical response} 23. f4 $1 {; for example,} Bxf1 24.
Bxa8 Nc4 25. Nxc4 Bxc4 26. Bc6 {
when Black is still lumbered with the impediment on c7.}) 23. Nxc4 Bxc4 24. Qf2
Re8 ({It's the same old story: if} 24... c5 {, then} 25. Bb6 {.}) 25. e4 {
White's advantage is becoming more substantial. The black minor pieces are
being squeezed as they are denied both the e4- and d5-squares.} c6 {Anand wants
to get his rook on a7 into the game. On the other hand, he has by no means
diminished the power of the bishop on a5 by removing the pawn from c7. On the
contrary, the bishop now controls the d8-square and so prevents Black from
ever contesting the open file with ...Rd8. Therefore it is natural that the
next stage in White's plan should involve bringing his rooks to the d-file.}
26. Rd1 Rd7 27. Rxd7 Nxd7 28. Rd1 Qb7 29. Rd6 {Now Black has to attend to the
threat of 30 e4 and 31 e5, when c6 will be menaced by the bishop on g2.} f6 30.
f4 Re6 31. Rd2 $6 ({Possibly} 31. e5 $1 {was even stronger:} Rxd6 (31... fxe5
$2 {is met by} 32. Bxc6) 32. exd6 {gives White an enormous passed pawn plus
the chance to infiltrate with his queen down the e-file.}) 31... Re7 32. Qd4
Nf8 33. Qd8 Rd7 ({Instead} 33... Kf7 34. e5 Re8 {has been recommended as a
tougher defence. It puts Black's king in some peril, but as the endgame that
occurs in the game is so horrible for him it was surely worth taking the risk.}
) 34. Rxd7 Qxd7 35. Qxd7 Nxd7 36. e5 $1 {
Finally the bishop on g2 is unleashed against Black's fragile queenside.} fxe5
37. Bxc6 Nf6 38. Bb7 exf4 39. gxf4 Nd5 40. Kf2 $1 {
The king rushes to the centre.} ({It wouldn't be easy to win after} 40. Bxa6
Ne3 $1 {, when the knight defends c4 so that a3-a4 doesn't work; while if} 41.
Kf2 {,} Ng4+ 42. Kg3 Ne3 {repeats.}) 40... Nxf4 41. Ke3 g5 42. Bxa6 Kf7 43. a4
{The decisive breakthrough: the b5-pawn is pinned and so cannot maintain a
blockade.} Ke7 44. Bxb5 Bxb5 45. axb5 Kd7 46. Ke4 Ne2 47. Bb6 g4 48. Bf2 Nc3+
49. Kf5 Nxb5 50. Kxg4 Ke6 51. Kg5 Kf7 52. Kf5 Ke7 53. Bc5+ {. If the black
king stays on the kingside, the white king will force the win of the knight
for the passed pawn; while if the black monarch heads for the queenside, the
h7-pawn will be the victim. Note that the white bishop controls the h8
queening square, so he has the 'right' rook's pawn. --- This was a very tough
battle, typical of modern chess at the highest level.} 1-0

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "????.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "8. Blockade"]
[Black "?"]
[Result "*"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "1"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{Nowadays the term 'blockade' is often used loosely in the same way as
'restraint' to describe a manoeuvre or a piece/pawn configuration that
prevents the opponent from carrying out a pawn ram, a pawn break or some other
positionally desirable manoeuvre. --- In this chapter I wish to return to
Nimzowitsch's original meaning of blockade, which involves the physical
blocking of a potential pawn ram or pawn break by putting a piece directly in
front of the pawn - though some flexibility has been allowed, as the potential
to put a piece on the blockade square is often more important than actually
occupying the square. --- Blockade is closely associated with dominance over a
complex of squares of the same colour. When it is said that a player is
suffering from a light square bind, that could well be due to a blockade by an
immovable enemy knight. We shall see many such examples in this chapter.} 1. --
{Before looking at games by the Big Five, I can't resist giving the following
gruesome example of a blockade. --- See Feigin-Monticelli.} (1. -- {The Power of a Blockading Knight: -- It is an enigmatic fact that the blockade square
tends to become a strong point for yourself and a weak one for your opponent.
-- Nimzowitsch. --- See Sultan Khan-Nimzowitsch and Portisch-Spassky.}) (1. --
{Sacrifice for Blockade: -- An absolutely secure blockade may very well be
worth a pawn sacrifice. Previous theory only recognized the connection between
a sacrifice and an attack. -- Nimzowitsch. --- We saw in the game Sultan
Khan-Nimzowitsch above that, despite his extra pawn, White was always
struggling because his centre pawns were crippled by the blockading knight.
Nimzowitsch had made an imaginative leap in realizing that a blockade can be
worth a material investment. Let's see how Karpov has applied the idea. ---
See Taimanov-Karpov.}) (1. -- {Two Petrosian Exchange Sacrifices for the
Blockade: --- See Reshevsky-Petrosian and Polugaevsky-Petrosian.}) (1. -- {
Blockade that targets an Enemy Pawn Complex: -- We have already seen some
examples of White's queenside pawns being blockaded and then destroyed in the
discussion above. Blockade is by no means a passive technique. --- See
Matisons-Nimzowitsch, Bisguier-Petrosian, and Matanovic-Petrosian.}) (1. -- {
Blockade that targets a Centre Pawn or Pawn Complex: -- An immovable centre
tends to become a weakness. -- Nimzowitsch. --- See Mannheimer-Nimzowitsch.}) (
1. -- {Blockade on a Global Scale: The most instructive game of chess ever
played? -- As stated above, the blockade is often associated with control over
a network of squares of the same colour. This is in no small part due to some
magnificent games by Nimzowitsch as Black, in which he typically seized the
light squares and reduced White's attacking chances to absurdity. --- See
Johner-Nimzowitsch.}) (1. -- {
The Blockade versus an Open File: --- See Sadvakasov-Karpov.}) (1. -- {
A Partial Blockade versus the Pawn Ram: -- The restraining qualities of a
blockade can still sap a lot of the energy from a pawn breakthrough, even if
they are unable to prevent it. The defender won't always escape unharmed, but
he has a fighting chance. The moral is: it's never too late to try to restrain
the opponent! --- See Istratescu-Karpov.}) (1. -- {Breaking a Blockade: ---
See Leonhardt-Nimzowitsch, Kramnik-Shirov, Karpov-Kasparov (9th matchgame,
Moscow 1984), and Kramnik-Yusupov.}) *

[Event "Munich"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1936.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Feigin, M."]
[Black "Monticelli, M."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E38"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "45"]
[EventDate "1936.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 c5 5. dxc5 Nc6 6. Nf3 Bxc5 7. Bg5 Nd4 8.
Nxd4 Bxd4 9. e4 Bxc3+ 10. Qxc3 O-O 11. e5 Ne4 12. Bxd8 Nxc3 13. Be7 Re8 14. Ba3
Na4 15. b3 Nb6 16. Bd6 {Material is equal; Black's king is safe and his pawn
structure is compact. He has a lead in development, having already castled
with a rook centralized and a knight off the back rank. In contrast, White has
only one piece in the game, the bishop on d6. --- So nothing is wrong with the
black position - apart from the fact that he is utterly lost, and could resign
with a clear conscience. --- Why is this? It is because White's dark-squared
bishop, supported by the pawn on e5, is enforcing a total blockade of the
d6-square. It can never be removed. This means that Black can never free his
queenside pieces with ...d7-d6 or ...d7-d5. The other way to develop the
queenside is with ...b7-b6 and ...Bb7. But to achieve this, Black has first to
move his knight from b6. But where can it go? He we see the strength of
White's queenside pawns, which are preventing the knight slipping out to a4,
c4 or d5. --- Even worse for Black is the fact that White is threatening 17 a4
and 18 a5, trapping the black knight. So he can't wait patiently in the hope
that White will mishandle the positional build-up. Therefore Monticelli took
the bull by the horns with} a5 {, but was soon gored to death, as there is
simply no time for the convoluted manoeuvre ...Ra6, ...Na8, ...b7-b6 and ...Bb7.} 17. Bc7 Ra6 {There is no other way of saving the knight.} 18. c5 Nd5 19.
Bxa6 Nxc7 20. Bc4 {It is very frustrating for Black that, despite giving up
the exchange, his bishop on c8 is still entombed.} b6 21. cxb6 Na8 22. O-O-O
Nxb6 23. Rd6 {. Black has had enough.} ({A possible finish is} 23. Rd6 Nxc4 24.
bxc4 Bb7 25. Rxd7 Bxg2 26. Rhd1 {and then 27 Rd8, exchanging off rooks
followed by shepherding home the passed c-pawn - the help of the white king
probably won't be necessary.}) 1-0

[Event "Liege"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1930.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Sultan Khan, M."]
[Black "Nimzowitsch, A."]
[Result "0-1"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "8/5pk1/3p2pp/2nP4/2P3P1/r6P/P2R2K1/5B2 b - - 0 45"]
[PlyCount "31"]
[EventDate "1930.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{An optimistic player with the white pieces might assess the following
position like this: -- 'Things are looking great. I'm a pawn up against a
grandmaster in an endgame. What's more, it's an outside passed pawn - I've
read in books that an outside passed pawn is especially powerful. My extra
pawn is defended by my rook; in fact all my pawns are safely defended by my
pieces. I've heard that having a bishop versus a knight is a good thing in an
endgame: the bishop acts well with an outside passed pawn. And finally, my
bishop and rook are both centralized. My king isn't far from the centre and in
no danger of being mated by the tricky Grandmaster.' --- After such a verdict,
it might be a surprise to hear that Sultan Khan, the strongest player from the
Indian sub-continent before the rise of Anand, was unable to hold a draw with
White, let alone play for a win. Why is this? Let's compare the white and
black pieces one at a time. --- The minor pieces: -- Black has a superb knight
on c5, which has blockaded White's centre pawns and so paralysed them. As long
as the knight stays on c5, they have no chance of creating a passed pawn. ---
In contrast, the white bishop is 'protecting' the pawn on c4, or perhaps 'the
white bishop is manacled to the pawn on c4' is a better way of putting it! It
is a classic 'bad' bishop, impeded by its own pawns and with no aggressive
value. Move the white bishop from f1 to f2, and straightaway it is Black who
has to try to save the game. The bishop already threatens Bxc5, eliminating
the black knight and acquiring a second passed pawn on d5. --- The rooks: --
The black rook is excellently placed, tying its counterpart down to the
defence of the a2-pawn. It also prevents the advance of the white king beyond
the second rank. --- The kings: -- Whereas the white king is restricted by the
black rook, its opposite number can easily advance up the kingside in the wake
of the f-pawn via the dark squares f6 and g5. --- The pawns: -- Here is the
nub of the matter: the white pawn on a2 is paralysed by the black rook; the
white pawns on c4 and d5 are paralysed by the black knight. That's three white
pawns rendered useless by the black pieces and the black pawn on d6. Meanwhile,
Black has three pawns against two on the kingside, and there is nothing to
stop him creating a passed pawn which can advance freely up the board with ...f7-f5. So, in numerical terms, White is a pawn up, but judging from the
perspective of 'what value do the pawns have?' we have to say that Black has
an extra pawn! --- Let's see what happened in the rest of the game:} 45... f5
46. gxf5 gxf5 47. Kg1 Kf6 48. Rb2 f4 49. Re2 Kf5 {All as expected: Nimzowitsch
advances his king in support of the passed pawn. Left to his own devices Black
will put the pawn on f3 and his king on g3, when mating threats will begin to
emerge against the white king. Therefore Sultan Khan jettisons the a2-pawn in
a desperate search for counterplay.} 50. Re8 f3 $1 {
Black isn't interested in a2 for the moment.} 51. Rh8 ({If} 51. Kf2 {,} Ne4+ {
pushes the white king backwards.}) 51... Kg5 52. Rd8 Rxa2 $1 {The attacking
power of the black king, knight, rook and passed pawn against the white king
is such that he can afford to allow d6 to be captured.} 53. Rxd6 Ne4 54. h4+
Kf4 55. Rd8 Ra1 56. Rg8 {Losing the bishop;} ({but if} 56. Rf8+ {then} Kg3 57.
Rg8+ Ng5 $1 58. hxg5 ({or} 58. Rf8 Nh3+ {and mates}) 58... f2+ 59. Kh1 Rxf1# {.
}) 56... Ng3 57. Kh2 Nxf1+ 58. Kh3 Ne3 59. Rf8+ Nf5 60. Rxf5+ Kxf5 {. Back in 1930 I'm sure White's downfall in this game must have perplexed many strong
players. Like our naively optimistic commentator above, they would have
assumed that White's extra pawn gave him the better chances (or at least equal
chances bearing in mind he had a bad bishop). Certainly if the game had been
played ten years earlier in 1920, before the hypermodern ideas of the blockade
and restraint had kicked in, even masters might have been confused by the
nature of White's defeat. --- Nimzowitsch has given us the terminology to say
that 'White lost due to the restraining effect of Black's strong blockading
knight'. In his fairly intuitive manner Capablanca also understood the concept
of the blockade, as did Lasker, but they never systematized their
understanding. Thanks to Nimzowitsch we have the words and expressions we need
to discuss chess strategy and therefore improve our understanding of it. ---
Finally, is it worth asking whether White could have saved the game? It's
certainly a very unpleasant defence, especially against a top endgame player
like Nimzowitsch.} 0-1

[Event "Amsterdam"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1964.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Portisch, L."]
[Black "Spassky, B."]
[Result "0-1"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "1r6/1p6/8/2RPn1k1/2B5/1P3p2/1P3K2/8 b - - 0 40"]
[PlyCount "23"]
[EventDate "1964.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{34 years after Sultan Khan-Nimzowitsch, Lajos Portisch, a world-class
grandmaster with very good technique, was unable to survive a similar type of
position against the then future World Champion Boris Spassky:} 40... Kf4 41.
Rc7 Ra8 $1 {It is essential to get the rook to the seventh rank.} 42. Rxb7 {
White is now three pawns up, but the important thing is the quality of passed
pawns, not the number; and the f3-pawn is far more powerful than anything in
White's locker.} Ra2 43. Ke1 Ke3 44. Kd1 Nxc4 45. bxc4 Ra1+ 46. Kc2 f2 47. Rf7
f1=Q 48. Rxf1 Rxf1 49. Kc3 Ke4 50. Kb4 Ke5 51. Kc5 Rf8 {
. The black king helps the rook pick off the pawns after 52...Rc8+ etc.} 0-1

[Event "Moscow"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1973.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Taimanov, M."]
[Black "Karpov, A."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E54"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "78"]
[EventDate "1973.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 c5 5. Bd3 O-O 6. Nf3 d5 7. O-O dxc4 8. Bxc4
cxd4 9. exd4 b6 10. Qe2 Bb7 11. Rd1 Nbd7 12. Bd2 Rc8 13. Ba6 Bxa6 14. Qxa6 Bxc3
15. bxc3 Rc7 16. Rac1 {If left undisturbed, White would carry out the
following plan: -- 1) Occupy the c4-square and control the d5-square with 17
c4. -- 2) Activate the bishop with gain of time by hitting a black rook with
18 Bf4, or alternatively with 18 Bb4. -- 3) Create a passed pawn in the centre
with d4-d5, or perhaps if possible with Bd6 and c4-c5. --- A very promising
plan for White - a strategy of this type has been used many times by Kramnik
with great success. It is therefore worth Black making a concerted effort to
pre-empt it. Let's see what Karpov came up with:} Qc8 $1 17. Qa4 ({After} 17.
Qxc8 Rfxc8 {White can't advance} 18. c4 {
and, even worse, there is the threat of 18...Nd5 and 19...Nxc3.}) {After Taimanov's move, however, it appears that 18 c4 is unstoppable, as moving the rook
to c4 drops the a7-pawn. But there nevertheless followed:} 17... Rc4 $1 {
The rook in the role of blockader.} 18. Qxa7 Qc6 {
Threatening to trap the white queen with 19...Ra8.} 19. Qa3 Rc8 {So what has
Karpov achieved with his pawn sacrifice? --- He has blockaded the white c3/d4
pawns, turning them into a mass of dead wood in the centre. They no longer
have the vitality to create a passed pawn, so White's plan outlined above has
been defeated. --- Having been prevented from advancing c3-c4, White can't
activate his bishop, which is a sorry sight on d2. Nor can he challenge the
black knight that is about to take control of d5, which thanks to the blockade
of c4 is in effect an outpost square. --- For the rest of the game Taimanov is
acting on the defensive, responding to direct threats with no good plan in
mind. Meanwhile Karpov can probe White's pawn weaknesses both on c3 and a2.}
20. h3 h6 21. Rb1 Ra4 22. Qb3 Nd5 23. Rdc1 ({
White intends to give back the pawn to gain some air with} 23. Rdc1 -- 24. c4
Rxc4 25. Rxc4 Qxc4 26. Rc1 Qa6 {(forced)} 27. Rxc8+ Qxc8 {, when the exchange
of both pairs of rooks gives him good drawing chances, notwithstanding the
slight blemish in his pawn structure on d4.}) 23... Rc4 $1 {Perhaps Karpov
hasn't gained anything over the last couple of moves, but neither has he lost
anything. White can't change the basic nature of the position unless he is
allowed to advance 24 c4. There now follows a series of cat and mouse
manoeuvres until finally Karpov decides to capture on c3.} 24. Rb2 f6 25. Re1
Kf7 26. Qd1 Nf8 27. Rb3 Ng6 28. Qb1 Ra8 29. Re4 Rca4 30. Rb2 Nf8 31. Qd3 Rc4 ({
Of course Black avoids} 31... Rxa2 {, when the blockade is at an end after} 32.
Rxa2 Rxa2 33. c4 {.}) 32. Re1 Ra3 33. Qb1 Ng6 34. Rc1 Nxc3 {Finally cashing in
on his positional advantage. It is possible that Karpov had waited until
Taimanov was in desperate time pressure before enlivening the game.} 35. Qd3
Ne2+ 36. Qxe2 Rxc1+ 37. Bxc1 Qxc1+ 38. Kh2 Rxf3 $1 {Another shrewd decision.
With hardly any time to think, Taimanov wasn't going to find a good defence
after this sacrifice, which is nevertheless also objectively very strong.} 39.
gxf3 Nh4 $1 {. Taimanov lost on time.} ({After} 39... Nh4 $1 40. Rb3 (40. Rxb6
$2 Qc7+ {wins the rook}) 40... Qg5 41. Qf1 Qf4+ 42. Kh1 Nxf3 {
it will be mate upon} 43. Qg2 ({while} 43. Kg2 Nd2 {
will leave White at best a pawn down in a queen endgame}) 43... Qc1+ {.}) 0-1

[Event "Zürich"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1953.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Reshevsky, S."]
[Black "Petrosian, T."]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "3rq1k1/4rppp/2n3b1/pp2P3/2pP1QB1/P1P1R3/1B4PP/4R1K1 b - - 0 25"]
[PlyCount "32"]
[EventDate "1953.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{White has mobile centre pawns and, given the chance, could advance with 26
Bf3 followed by 27 d5. However, it is Black's move, and Petrosian came up with
a famous exchange sacrifice:} 25... Re6 $3 ({
The rook puts itself en prise to the white bishop. After} 25... Re6 26. Bxe6
Qxe6 {Black can manoeuvre his knight to a brilliant blockade square with ...Ne7 and ...Nd5. He would then have a grip on the light squares and could even
play actively to create a passed pawn on the queenside with a future ...b5-b4.
--- There are two factors which are vital to the success of Black's plan.
Firstly, the presence of opposite-coloured bishops after 26 Bxe6 Qxe6 means
that Black is substantially stronger on the light squares than the material
balance would suggest. White's bishop on b2 can never help overthrow Black's
blockade and is a very poor piece in itself, being shut in by the pawn chain
and having little to do except defend c3. The other key factor is that the
white rooks are also limited in scope: there isn't a single open file on the
board for them. In the game, Reshevsky manages to open the f-file, but finds
his rooks cannot do anything useful with it.}) ({When I was young I saw this
game in both David Bronstein's book of the Zürich 1953 Candidates tournament
and Kotov's 'Think Like a Grandmaster'. Considerable praise was lavished on 25.
..Re6, but I couldn't quite see why the exchange sacrifice was necessary. ---
My reasoning was that the basic idea behind} 25... Re6 {was to clear the
e7-square for the black knight so that it could prevent White playing} 26. Bf3
{and 27 d5.}) ({Therefore} 25... Ra7 {
seemed a perfectly reasonable alternative.} 26. -- ({If} 26. Bf3 {Black has}
Ne7 {,}) ({while} 26. e6 f6 {seemed to hold for Black. It wouldn't be entirely
pleasant, but then Black wouldn't be the exchange down either!}) ({Only on seeing the position again many years later do I realize that 25...Re6 isn't just
an anti- 26 Bf3 and 27 d5 measure: Petrosian is presenting the rook as bait to
dissuade his opponent from building up an attack on the g-file with moves like
26 h4, 27 h5 and 28 Rg3, etc. Nor is it just pure psychology of the kind, 'My
dear Mr Reshevsky, why should you bother with a slow build-up on the kingside
when I'm offering you the exchange for free?!' It also has some technical
merit as the rook might play a part in the defence of the king if allowed to
live, say with ...Bd3 and then ...Rg6. In contrast, after 25...Ra7 there is
nothing either psychological or technical to deter White from attacking with} 
26. h4 {etc.})) 26. a4 {Reshevsky resists the rook for a move as he wants to
grab it under more favourable circumstances. On the other hand, he has been
deflected from the very promising frontal attack with 26 h4 etc.} ({After} 26.
a4 {,} bxa4 $4 {would be entirely wrong as it wrecks Black's queenside pawns,
removes any chance of undermining d4 with ...b5-b4 and lets the white bishop
spring to life with} 27. Ba3 {.}) ({More reasonable after} 26. a4 {is} b4 $2 {
, but that idea is refuted by} 27. d5 $1 Rxd5 28. Bxe6 fxe6 29. Qxc4 {
when Black has little to show for the exchange. Therefore Petrosian hurries to
restrain d4-d5.}) 26... Ne7 $1 27. Bxe6 fxe6 28. Qf1 ({Black has been forced
to recapture on e6 with the pawn, but White doesn't have time to exploit the
open f-file, for if} 28. Qf2 {then} Nd5 29. Rf3 b4 $1 {and Black's queenside
pawns burst through. In that case 26 a4 would appear to be a misjudged release
of the restraints on Black's queenside pawns rather than a successful bid to
undermine them.}) {In the game Reshevsky decides to return the exchange in
order to reanimate his centre pawns.} 28... Nd5 29. Rf3 Bd3 30. Rxd3 cxd3 31.
Qxd3 b4 $1 ({I hope you have learnt enough from the knight blockade games in
this book to realize that} 31... bxa4 $2 32. c4 {
would be positionally wretched for Black.}) 32. cxb4 ({If} 32. c4 Nb6 {
, when 33...Nxa4 will give Black connected passed pawns. In that case, any
result is possible.}) 32... axb4 (32... Nxb4 {
was fine too, but by now Petrosian was feeling optimistic.}) 33. a5 Ra8 34. Ra1
Qc6 35. Bc1 Qc7 36. a6 Qb6 37. Bd2 b3 38. Qc4 h6 39. h3 b2 40. Rb1 Kh8 41. Be1
{. White still has his extra pawn, but the black knight and pawn on b2 are so
strong that Reshevsky was probably relieved when Petrosian agreed to call it a
draw during the adjournment.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "USSR Championship, Moscow"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1983.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Polugaevsky, L."]
[Black "Petrosian, T."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A42"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "48"]
[EventDate "1983.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. Nf3 g6 2. d4 Bg7 3. c4 d6 4. Nc3 e5 5. e4 Nc6 6. dxe5 Nxe5 7. Nd4 a6 8. Be2
c5 9. Nc2 Be6 10. Nd5 Bxd5 11. exd5 Ne7 12. O-O O-O 13. Rb1 Nf5 14. b4 cxb4 15.
Rxb4 Qc7 16. Bb2 Rfe8 17. Nd4 Nxd4 18. Bxd4 Nd7 19. Be3 {In view of the
strength of a blockading knight on c5 witnessed in the Apicella-Kramnik and
Sultan Khan-Nimzowitsch games, it shouldn't come as too great a shock that
Petrosian played:} Rxe3 $1 ({Imagine for a second that Petrosian had avoided
the exchange sacrifice and made do with} 19... Nc5 $2 {
. Things would have been very different after} 20. Bxc5 $1 dxc5 $2 (20... Qxc5
{is met by} 21. Rxb7 {
, though in fact that looks the lesser evil by far for Black}) 21. d6 $1 Qd7 (
21... Qc6 $2 22. Bf3) 22. Rb6 {. Here White has a passed pawn. After 23 Bf3
his bishop becomes an active piece, attacking b7 (or he might throw in 23 Bg4
to persuade Black to weaken himself with 23...f5, when 24 Qd5+ or 24 Bf3
follows). Meanwhile the rook is finely placed on b6 with the b7-pawn a ready
victim.} ({Moreover,} 22. Bg4 $1 {might be even stronger.})) 20. fxe3 Nc5 {
There are three factors that justify the exchange sacrifice: -- The white
rooks have no activity. There are no open files for them to seize, and
although they sit on semi-open files, the b7 and f7 points are unshakeable (if
it ever became necessary Black could add to the defence of f7 with ...Rf8).
--- White has no good pawn breaks. He can't ever advance c4-c5, or use his
pawns to help the rooks, as no pawn can get near to attacking b7 or f7.
Similarly in the centre he only has a feeble pawn on e3 that can't do anything
to hurt Black. --- There are opposite-coloured bishops... and White has got
the worst of the deal, as his bishop is impeded by the pawns on c4 and d5,
whilst the black bishop enjoys an open diagonal. Generally speaking, if you
make a sacrifice to establish a blockade on squares of a certain colour, the
presence of opposite-coloured bishops is good news, assuming that you have the
bishop that controls the squares on which the blockade has been erected. It is
much more difficult for the opponent to overturn a blockade if he can't enlist
the help of his bishop in a direct manner. Hence it is no accident that
Petrosian gave up his rook for White's dark-squared bishop. --- Even if Black
avoided the blunder 19...Nc5? in favour of another alternative to the exchange
offer, he would still be facing an attack against b7 with moves like Qb3 or
Rfb1 etc. Thus we see the excellence of the 19...Rxe3 sacrifice. Once White
has been deprived of the plan of attacking b7, all the dynamism leaks out of
his position. --- So White has no plan. Should he therefore lose? Black can
certainly play for an advantage by piling up on the sickly e3-pawn - assuming
it drops to ...Bxe3 the weak dark squares around the white king invite a
mating attack. --- The game actually finished abruptly as it seems Polugaevsky
couldn't stomach a prospectless defence.} 21. Qc2 Re8 22. Rf3 Bh6 23. Qc3 Qe7
24. Rb6 $2 ({So that if} 24. Rb6 $2 Bxe3+ {, White replies} 25. Rxe3 Qxe3+ 26.
Qxe3 Rxe3 27. Kf1 {and has counterplay against d6 - if the black knight
defends it, then b7 drops. But he had missed a blow from another direction...})
24... Na4 $1 0-1

[Event "Carlsbad"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1929.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Matisons, H."]
[Black "Nimzowitsch, A."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E21"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "46"]
[EventDate "1929.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{In this game, Matisons is completely busted before the middlegame proper has
even begun: the black knights are dominant, while White's dark-squared bishop
is useless and his queenside pawn structure full of light-squared holes. It is
clear that players in the 1920s simply didn't understand how to play against
the Nimzo-Indian Defence.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 Bxc3+ 5. bxc3
d6 6. Qc2 Qe7 7. Ba3 $2 {Matisons develops the bishop to a diagonal where it
will face a brick wall on c5.} (7. e4 {was better.}) 7... c5 8. g3 b6 9. Bg2
Bb7 10. O-O O-O 11. Nh4 ({Here Nimzowitsch pointed out that} 11. Nd2 {
was more straightforward. It defends c4 and covers e4 as a prelude to a centre
expansion with e2-e4.}) ({
In his book of the Carlsbad tournament, Nimzowitsch explains that after} 11.
Nh4 {he spent a long time examining the consequences of} Nc6 12. e4 $1 {
, as he had no wish to play 11...Bxg2, handing White a tempo for the manoeuvre
e2-e4 and Ne3. In the end, after enormous reflection, he wasn't satisfied with
11...Nc6 and so he captured after all on g2 'with a heavy heart'.}) 11... Bxg2
12. Kxg2 $2 {Nimzowitsch's comment at this point will strike a chord with most
chess players: -- 'Upon seeing this totally unexpected reply, I had to laugh
(inwardly of course - not at my opponent): I simply found it comical that I
should have sat there racking my brain over 11...Nc6, afraid to play 11...Bxg2
lest I should bring his knight from h4 to g2 - and now suddenly to see that my
opponent had never thought of the Nxg2 and Ne3 manoeuvre (after a preparatory
e2-e4) and that I had therefore exercised myself over nothing whatever. "How
vain are our fears!" I thought to myself. "Sometimes we fear that which our
opponent (or fate) had never even considered!" After this then is it any
longer worthwhile to rack one's brains to find new ghosts to fear? No. Indeed:
all hail optimism!' -- ('Carlsbad International Chess Tournament 1929',
Translation Jim Marfia) --- Capablanca would never have written such a
visceral account of a chessboard experience. The Cuban seemed to take pride in
the logic and objectivity of his writing, and would probably have simply
written: 'A serious mistake. White should recapture with his knight so that he
can guard the c4-square after e2-e4 and Ne3.' Nevertheless, reading between
the lines you can detect emotion in Capablanca's writing. For example, when he
describes his famous loss to Emanuel Lasker in 'Chess Fundamentals', his
annoyance both with himself for playing so indecisively and with other
commentators who misunderstood the flow of the game comes through very clearly.
And in 'My Chess Career', he often talks about the artistic aspect of chess.
Nevertheless, he never mused in philosophical terms about the connection
between life and chess. --- Regarding our other heroes, Karpov is a concise
and lucid writer in the style of Capablanca, while Petrosian has described his
game as being like old friends. Kramnik has also expressed a deep love of
chess in artistic terms. --- But none seemed to have been as obsessed with
chess as Nimzowitsch. For the Latvian Grandmaster, chess was far more than a
mere game, or even a compelling livelihood. He seemed to believe that chess
was a microcosm of life ('the centre of the chess board is like the Balkans -
acts of war may burst out at any moment') and often gave the pieces human
qualities in his writings ('Master Rook appears in the office, bows to the
boss, nods to his fellow employees'). Whereas Capablanca lived the life of a
playboy and Karpov collected stamps, it is hard to imagine Nimzowitsch doing
anything that didn't have some bearing on chess. Incidentally, at the time of
the Carlsbad tournament, Nimzowitsch was engaged in a physical exercise
regimen based on a book of gymnastic exercises by a certain Jorgens Peter
Mueller. According to Nimzowitsch they helped him both to concentrate and stay
optimistic. The book was called 'My System'.} Qb7+ 13. Kg1 Qa6 {With the white
knight stranded on h4, there is no way for White to prevent a positional
catastrophe on the c4-square.} 14. Qb3 Nc6 15. Rfd1 Na5 16. Qb5 {
Anything else and the c4-pawn just drops off.} Qxb5 17. cxb5 Nc4 {The black knight reaches the blockade square where it absolutely dominates the white bishop.
The only way it can be challenged is with the manoeuvre Ng2 and Ne3, but
White's position will be dead and buried before that can be carried out. This
is because White's queenside pawns have lost all their energy and can only
wait to be mown down over the next couple of moves.} 18. Bc1 a6 {
So simple: the a-file is opened in order to attack the a2-pawn.} 19. bxa6 Rxa6
20. dxc5 bxc5 21. Ng2 Nd5 {Preventing 22 Ne3 and hitting c3.} 22. Rd3 Rfa8 {
Now the a2-pawn is doomed.} 23. e4 Ne5 ({It's carnage after} 23... Ne5 24. Rd1
Nxc3 25. Rf1 Rxa2 {. --- A very easy win for Nimzowitsch once he achieved
dominance over the c4-square.}) 0-1

[Event "New York"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1954.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Bisguier, A."]
[Black "Petrosian, T."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A33"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "84"]
[EventDate "1954.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. Nf3 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nc6 5. Nc3 e6 6. g3 Bc5 7. Nb3 Be7 8.
Bg2 O-O 9. O-O d6 10. e4 Ne5 11. Qe2 Qc7 12. Nd2 a6 13. b3 b5 $1 {Black achieves a thematic advance in the Sicilian thanks to the pin on the c-file.} 14. f4
Nc6 15. Bb2 ({The pawn was still taboo, as if} 15. cxb5 Nd4 16. Qd3 $2 ({or} 
16. Qc4 Qa7 $5 {and the threat of discovered attack gives Black the initiative}
) {,} 16... Qxc3 $1 {wins a piece thanks to the fork on e2.}) ({
Now, however, after} 15. Bb2 {Petrosian has to do something about the threat
to b5. The normal Sicilian move would be} bxc4 {to undermine White's pawn
control of the centre (as well as being positionally undesirable, the
recapture 16 bxc4? would drop a piece to 16...Qb6+). However, thanks to the
white bishop on g2, even after} 16. Nxc4 {White maintains a firm grip on d5;
in fact the presence of the white knight increases the pressure on the black
centre. It is impossible for Black ever to break out with ...d6-d5 and
meanwhile White can build up effortlessly with Rac1 and Rfd1, or even
speculate with e4-e5.}) 15... b4 $1 {Black prevents White from getting a
square on c4 for one of his knights, and drives the other knight from its
central post, at the same time closing the c-file (hence no potential
embarrassment for the black queen after Rac1). Meanwhile, a wonderful blockade
square for the black knight has appeared on c5.} 16. Nd1 a5 {Black's plan
unfolds. With this thrust he intends to open the a-file for his rooks and
undermine the b3-pawn. The value to the knight of the blockade square on c5
will be increased by there being a vulnerable white pawn on b3.} 17. Ne3 ({
White could eliminate the knight before it gets to c5 with} 17. Bxf6 $2 {
, but then he has handed over all the dark squares in the centre after} Bxf6 {.
}) 17... a4 18. Rab1 axb3 19. axb3 Ra2 {There are no immediate threats, but an
enemy rook nestling on the second rank drains the energy of both the white
position and the player of White. Bisguier starts an attack on the kingside,
but all the time he has to be looking over his shoulder, so to speak,
wondering if the black rook is going to break out somehow perhaps with a
sudden ...Rxb2!.} 20. g4 Nd7 {It is also rather dispiriting when the opponent
shows contempt for your attacking aspirations by moving his knight to the
other side of the board.} 21. g5 $1 {Nevertheless, the advance of the white
pawns prevents Black from exchanging bishops with 21...Bf6!, when he would win
the battle to control the d4-square and remove an obstacle from the rook on a2.
} Re8 22. Kh1 Nc5 {Finally the knight reaches c5. It can never be dislodged by
a white pawn, has influence over the e4 and d3 centre squares, and attacks b3.
In other words, this is paradise for a knight! --- The next stage in
Petrosian's plan is to increase his grip on the dark squares in the centre by
creating a base for his other knight on d4. This can be achieved with ...e6-e5,
but first of all he makes a couple of vital preparatory moves.} 23. h4 Qd8 $1 {
In order to play ...e6-e5 without allowing White to hit the queen with Nd5.}
24. Rf3 Bf8 $1 {The bishop gets out of the way of a possible f5-f6 advance in
reply to Black's next move. As will be seen, it is also useful to clear the
e-file for the rook on e8.} 25. Rg3 e5 $1 {You will have noticed that all
Black's positional joy is occurring on the dark squares. This is what is meant
by a (successful) dark square strategy. Once you have control of a couple of
key squares of a certain colour, it often happens that there is a kind of
chain reaction, and all the rest of the squares of that colour become
sympathetic to your cause.} 26. f5 Nd4 {If it wasn't for this counterattack,
White would have a promising position and the chance to attack with Nd5, h4-h5
and g5-g6 etc.} 27. Qf1 {In order to avoid disaster in the centre, Bisguier
has to forget about his kingside attack. Instead he is obliged to make a
considerable number of queen moves in order to avoid losing material. The
mixture of wasted time and the opening of lines on the queenside will prove a
fatal cocktail for the health of White's position.} ({If} 27. Bxd4 exd4 28. Nd5
{,} Bxf5 {destroys White's attack and then wins the e4-pawn. Here we see the
importance of the moves ...Qd8 and ...Bf8, without which Nd5 by White would
have gained time by hitting the black queen, and ...Bxf5 wouldn't have been an
option (there is no pin on the e-file with the bishop still on e7). --- Little
moves like ...Qd8 and ...Bf8 reveal great strategic vision. They also show the
mind of a brilliant defender: Petrosian has prevented the attacking moves Nd5
and f5-f6 before his opponent could even dream of making them.}) 27... Ndxb3
28. Nxb3 Nxb3 29. Qe1 Nc5 30. Qxb4 Bb7 $1 {Once you have gained ascendancy
over squares of one colour, the winning method usually involves an attack on
an enemy pawn or piece which is on a square of the opposite colour. For
example, if you have launched a mating attack, and you control the dark
squares around the enemy king, the winning method will frequently be to
sacrifice a pawn or a piece to tear away the pawns on light squares that are
sheltering the besieged monarch. --- Here the winning method is more subtle,
but according to the same principle it targets the pawns on light squares - c4
and e4. --- First of all, Black attacks e4 to force White to play Nd5, and
then he attacks the c4-pawn that has become weak as a consequence. This clears
the way for a lethal pin along the b-file.} 31. Nd5 Ra4 32. Qd2 Bxd5 33. Qxd5 (
{The white queen is dragged away from the defence of the b4-square because} 33.
cxd5 {is met by} Nxe4 {,}) ({and Black also wins a pawn after} 33. exd5 Rxc4 {.
}) 33... Rb4 $1 34. Bf3 ({White might as well have tried} 34. g6 {
, though after} Qf6 {
, guarding f7 and threatening 35...Reb8, he is in terrible trouble.}) 34... Qa8
$1 {Offering an exchange of queens that would kill off any last hopes of a
kingside attack. The unhappy white queen has spent most of the second half of
the game being harassed, and is now reduced to defensive duty.} 35. Qd2 Qb7 36.
Rg2 Rb8 {A powerful tripling of the heavy pieces on the open file. Black's
threat of 37...Na4, winning the bishop, forces Bisguier to give up his e4-pawn.
After this his position quickly crumbles, shedding two pawns and a bishop on
successive moves.} 37. Bd1 Qxe4 38. Bc2 Qxc4 39. g6 Rxb2 40. gxh7+ Kh8 41. Rbg1
Qxh4+ 42. Rh2 Qf4 0-1

[Event "Kiev"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1959.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Matanovic, A."]
[Black "Petrosian, T."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "B17"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "1959.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{In this game, Petrosian once again combines a blockade in the centre with the
undermining of the enemy queenside pawns.} 1. e4 c6 2. Nc3 d5 3. d4 dxe4 4.
Nxe4 Nd7 5. Nf3 Ngf6 6. Nxf6+ Nxf6 7. Bc4 {It is hardly possible to criticize
such a natural developing and attacking move, but it mustn't be forgotten that
the bishop is now blocking White's own c2-c4 advance, which means that he has
less control over the d5-square.} Bf5 8. Qe2 e6 9. Bg5 Be7 ({On reaching the
same position two years later against Fischer, Petrosian reduced White's
options even further with the immediate} 9... Bg4 $1 {. Then} 10. O-O-O Be7 {
transposed back to the present game.}) 10. O-O-O Bg4 $1 {
A typical example of prophylaxis in the style of Petrosian.} ({After} 10... O-O
11. Ne5 {White would be ready to attack with 12 g4 etc. Therefore the Armenian
Grandmaster eliminates the white knight forthwith.}) 11. h3 ({
Fischer thought that} 11. Kb1 {
might have been better in order to avoid simplification after} Nd5 {with} 12.
Bc1 {; for example,} O-O ({and not} 12... Bxf3 13. Qxf3 Bg5 {
aiming for the bishop exchange after all, because of} 14. Qg3 $1 Bxc1 $2 15.
Qxg7) 13. Bd3 {when White keeps some initiative.}) 11... Bxf3 12. Qxf3 Nd5 $1 {
The exchange of bishops will remove any remaining chance of White conducting a
successful kingside attack.} 13. Bxe7 Qxe7 14. Rhe1 ({Before we look at the
Matanovic game, let's see what happened in R.Fischer-T.Petrosian, Bled 1961:} 
14. Kb1 Rd8 15. Qe4 b5 $1 {(this queenside encroachment is a vital part of
Black's strategy; its initial value is as a means to prevent the knight being
dislodged from d5 by c2-c4, but it soon becomes part of a general plan to
undermine White's queenside pawn structure)} 16. Bd3 a5 17. c3 $1 {(this is necessary before Black plays 17...b4, which would not only fix the c3-square as a
weakness in the white queenside, but also prevent White from ever protecting
the d4-pawn with c2-c3 or attacking the knight with c2-c4)} Qd6 18. g3 b4 19.
c4 Nf6 20. Qe5 {
(already Fischer needs to use tactical means to hold the balance)} c5 $1 ({
having undermined the d4-pawn, Petrosian proceeds to eliminate it; but not} 
20... Qxd4 $2 21. Qxa5 {- White is more than happy to be rid of the d4-pawn
for the a5-pawn, especially as b4 is left seriously weak and} O-O $2 {allows}
22. Bxh7+) 21. Qg5 h6 $1 {(despite being renowned for his positional play,
Petrosian had a sharp eye for tactics)} 22. Qxc5 ({if} 22. Qxg7 $2 Ke7 {
and there is no good way to meet the threat of 23...Rdg8 trapping the queen})
22... Qxc5 23. dxc5 Ke7 ({or Black could play} 23... Rc8 {
and 24...Rxc5 at once, but he is in no hurry as the c5-pawn can't escape him})
24. c6 Rd6 25. Rhe1 Rxc6 {(Petrosian regains his pawn and hopes to put his
knight on c5 via d7, with the sort of semi-blockade that we saw in his game
with Bisguier; therefore Fischer has to act fast)} 26. Re5 $1 Ra8 27. Be4 $1 {
(being a great defender, Fischer knows all about blockade knights and so
doesn't miss the chance to force the exchange of knight for bishop - or so he
thought...)} Rd6 $4 ({Petrosian is loath to part with his knight and ends up
making a losing blunder; the endgame would be equal after} 27... Nxe4 28. Rxe4)
28. Bxa8 $1 ({according to Fischer in 'My Sixty Memorable Games', Petrosian
had missed the strength of this obvious move, having spent his thinking time
absorbed in the variation} 28. Rxd6 Kxd6 29. Rxe6+ fxe6 30. Bxa8 Kc5 31. b3 Nd7
32. Kc2 Kd4 {, where White has an extra pawn but the black king and knight
form a complete blockade on the dark squares}) 28... Rxd1+ 29. Kc2 Rf1 30. Rxa5
Rxf2+ 31. Kb3 Rh2 32. c5 $1 {(so there will be no blockade on the c5-square in
this game; it's no surprise that, as White already has a passed pawn on the
queenside, Black's kingside counterplay proves too slow)} Kd8 33. Rb5 Rxh3 34.
Rb8+ Kc7 35. Rb7+ Kc6 36. Kc4 $1 {1-0. The black king will be mated by a
discovered check. Despite the unfortunate outcome for Petrosian, he has given
us a valuable lesson in positional play.}) ({Now let's return to} 14. Rhe1 {
and see what happened when Petrosian faced a strong opponent, but one lacking
Fischer's legendary positional guile. --- Matulovic preferred to centralize
his king's rook.}) 14... O-O 15. Kb1 {Matulovic makes a series of
decent-looking but passive moves and soon ends up in a positional bind. I hope
it has become clear through reading this book that a plan isn't a luxury that
you only need to think about if you can't find a tactic. There is a grim
future ahead for your position if you are just pottering around making vaguely
useful moves whilst the opponent is improving the layout of his pieces through
following a sound idea.} Rad8 $1 {Meeting the threat of 16 Bxd5 cxd5 17 Qxd5.
Did Matulovic really hope Petrosian would fall for this cheap trick?} 16. Bb3
$1 {Despite being a powerful base for the black knight, the d5-square isn't an
outpost, as it can be attacked by a white pawn. With this in mind, Matulovic
clears the way for c2-c4 to challenge the black horse.} Qf6 ({The immediate} 
16... b5 $5 {in the style of the Fischer game looks more appropriate.}) 17. Qe2
$2 {White may have been planning a kingside attack with his pawns but it is
far too slow.} ({Instead, the exchange with} 17. Qxf6 {looks best, when} Nxf6 {
is equal,} ({while after} 17... gxf6 {
the white centre can burst its bonds with unclear play:} 18. c4 Ne7 ({or} 18...
Nc7 19. d5) 19. d5 $1 cxd5 20. cxd5 {etc.})) 17... Rd7 18. c3 b5 $1 {The black 
b-pawn will be used as a battering ram against c3 in the style of the Fischer
game.} 19. g3 {White's kingside action is painfully slow compared to events on
the other side of the board.} Rfd8 20. f4 b4 21. Qf3 $6 ({Here we might ask
ourselves, 'What would a great defender have played as White here?' The move
Qe5 might be borrowed from the Fischer-Petrosian game above, namely} 21. c4 Ne7
22. Qe5 {when White is alive as Black cannot capture on d4: if} Rxd4 $2 23.
Rxd4 Rxd4 24. Qb8+ {and mates.}) 21... bxc3 22. bxc3 c5 $1 {Yet again we can
turn to Nimzowitsch's motto: 'First restrain, then blockade, and finally
destroy!' White's queenside pawn structure is gradually dismantled, after
which his king's safety becomes a more pressing issue than the health of his
pawns.} 23. Re5 cxd4 24. Bxd5 Rxd5 25. Rxd5 exd5 $1 {Black wants to create
threats down the b-file against the white monarch and so keeps the last pair
of rooks on the board.} ({If instead} 25... Rxd5 26. Rxd4 $1 Rxd4 27. cxd4 {
White has escaped the worst as} Qxd4 $2 28. Qa8+ {mates.}) 26. Rxd4 h6 {
A useful move in view of the back rank mate idea floating around.} 27. g4 ({
After} 27. Rxd5 Rb8+ 28. Kc2 Qb6 ({or} 28... Qa6 {a computer program might
find a way for the white king to survive, but it would be too much for a mere
human.})) 27... Qe7 28. Qf2 Rb8+ 29. Ka1 Qa3 30. Qc2 Re8 31. Rb4 $2 {Matanovic 
is anxious to block the b-file, but it was more important to keep the first
rank safe.} ({Nonetheless, after} 31. Rd1 Re3 {
, hitting c3 and h3, White remains in a bad way.}) 31... d4 $1 {White must
missed the strength of this pawn thrust, which leads to a queen endgame a pawn
up for Black.} 32. Rxd4 Re1+ 33. Rd1 Rxd1+ 34. Qxd1 Qxc3+ 35. Kb1 Qxh3 36. a4
h5 $1 {A neat move that allows Black to recentralize his queen and create a
passed pawn on the f-file.} 37. gxh5 Qf5+ 38. Kb2 Qxf4 39. Kb3 Qf5 40. Kc4 Kh7
41. Qd2 0-1

[Event "Frankfurt"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1930.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Mannheimer, N."]
[Black "Nimzowitsch, A."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "C01"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "88"]
[EventDate "1930.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 Bb4 {Nimzowitsch was always more than willing to
exchange a bishop for knight if it meant he could inflict some damage on the
enemy pawn structure. He developed the technique of playing against a doubled
pawn complex into a fine art, as we shall see in the present game.} 4. exd5
exd5 5. Bd3 Ne7 6. Nf3 {A sound, routine developing move that you would expect
of a game played back in 1930.} ({
Nowadays White prefers to play in more concrete style with} 6. Qh5 $1 {
- the queen takes up an aggressive post and prevents Black from challenging
bishops with ...Bf5.}) 6... Nbc6 7. h3 {Preventing 7...Bg4, but the black
bishop has a perfectly good alternative development on f5.} Bf5 8. Bxf5 Nxf5 9.
O-O Bxc3 10. bxc3 O-O 11. Qd3 Nd6 12. Ng5 $6 {A futile attacking gesture that
allows Nimzowitsch to start his standard policy against a doubled pawn
structure.} ({White should have bailed out with} 12. Ba3 $5 Re8 13. Bxd6 Qxd6
14. c4 dxc4 15. Qxc4 Rad8 16. Rfe1 {
, when he has no advantage but has escaped any attempt at blockade.}) 12... g6
13. Bf4 $6 Qf6 $1 14. Bd2 ({
Demonstrating that White has just wasted time with his bishop: if now} 14. Bxd6
Qxd6 15. f4 $2 {, Black wins a sound pawn with} f6 16. Nf3 Qxf4 {.}) 14... h6
15. Nf3 Kh7 16. Nh2 Qh8 $3 {Nimzowitsch's pieces achieve magical things
because he uses squares on the board that the rest of us barely notice even
exist.} ({After} 16... Qg7 17. Ng4 {
Black isn't able to play the strategically desirable} f5 $2 ({likewise} 17...
Nf5 18. Qb5 {would be awkward for Black as both b7 and d5 are hanging}) {
because it loses material to} 18. Bxh6 {, when the black queen is attacked.})
17. Qe3 ({If} 17. Ng4 {Black replies} f5 $1 {
- this time, since the black queen is on h8 rather than g7,} 18. Bxh6 ({
alternatively,} 18. Nxh6 Ne4 {
would leave the white knight hopelessly stranded on h6,}) ({while upon} 18. Ne5
Nxe5 19. dxe5 Qxe5 20. Rae1 Qg7 21. Qxd5 Ne4 {Black is very close to a win}) {
can be answered simply by} 18... Rfe8 {
, when White will drop either his hanging knight or bishop.}) 17... Qg7 {
The queen is happy to go here now that there is no danger of a Bxh6 thrust. So
should putting the queen on h8 be described as a purely defensive manoeuvre?
No: because there is no such thing as a 'purely defensive manoeuvre' when the
opponent is trying to offset the structural deficiencies in his position with
dynamic counterplay against your king. If you neutralize the attack, you are
on the path to victory, not merely a draw. In fact, White's attempt to land a
blow on the kingside has led him to neglect the central light squares c4 and
e4, which means that his centre pawns are well and truly bogged down.} 18. Qf3
{Still hoping to generate some activity: Mannheimer not only attacks d5 but
also intends 19 Ng4 to reintroduce the idea of 20 Bxh6. Nimzowitsch easily
squashes both threats.} Ne4 $1 19. Bc1 f5 $1 20. Qd3 Na5 $1 {
'First restrain, then blockade...' The black knight heads for the c4-square.}
21. f4 $2 {A horrible move that represents a complete surrender of the light
squares. White's bishop cannot rejoice either at seeing its last window on f4
being covered up.} ({He had to play} 21. f3) ({or perhaps} 21. Bf4 Nc4 22. f3 {
in order to repel the black knight and maintain even a semblance of dynamism
in his structure.}) 21... Qd7 $3 (21... Nc4 {would be extremely natural and
'according to system'. However, Nimzowitsch comes up with a subtle
psychological approach to the position. It is obvious from his previous move
that Mannheimer is planning to put his knight on the 'excellent' e5-square...
which is actually a foolish decision that will make it easier for Black to win
the game. And so the great Dane deliberately wastes time with his queen to let
his opponent achieve this positional 'victory'.}) 22. Nf3 Qc6 23. Ne5 ({
It appears that Nimzowitsch has overlooked that if} 23. Ne5 Qxc3 $2 {,} 24.
Qxc3 Nxc3 25. Bd2 $1 {wins material for White by spiking the two black knights.
But in fact it is all part of the ploy to make Mannheimer put his knight on e5.
}) 23... Qe6 {Having got his knight to the e5-square with gain of time, White
is naturally loath ever to retreat it to f3. Certainly the horse makes a good
visual impression on e5; but if we look at things from the perspective of
blockade, we see that back on f3 it would be performing a useful function in
helping to restrain the undermining ...g6-g5 advance that Nimzowitsch has in
mind. And, as will be seen, on e5 the knight becomes a liability that will
prevent White gaining any freedom of action with f4xg5 once the ...g6-g5
advance has occurred.} 24. Rb1 b6 25. Kh2 Nc4 {Nimzowitsch finally puts his
knight on its ideal square as a prelude to a pawn advance on the kingside. The
pressure it exerts against the white knight will be significant in reducing
White's resistance.} 26. Be3 g5 $1 {'First restrain, then blockade, finally
destroy.' It is time for the black pawns to start eating away at the rotten
white structure.} 27. g3 {Another horrifying weakening of the light squares.
If White had kept his knight on f3 he could have prevented ...g6-g5 for a
while, until Black arranged it with ...Rg8 etc, and then replied with f4xg5.} (
{Here, however,} 27. fxg5 {just allows} Nxe5 28. dxe5 hxg5 {
when e5 falls with check (} 29. Bd4 {is met by} c5 {),}) ({
Nor can he even exchange the knight, as} 27. Nxc4 dxc4 28. Qe2 Nxc3 {
wins the exchange.}) 27... Rf6 28. Rbe1 Rg8 29. Bc1 b5 30. Nf3 {At last the
knight realizes the e5-square has been a poisoned chalice, but it is too late.}
g4 $1 {Not giving his opponent any chance to play 31 fxg5, when his bishop
would still have influence on the kingside. Now it will be a dead piece, shut
in by a wall of White's own creation. Furthermore, the black rooks gain a
clear target on g3.} 31. hxg4 Rxg4 32. Ng1 Rfg6 {
It is rare to see such a picture of total light square domination.} 33. Rf3 Qg8
34. Ne2 h5 35. Kg2 h4 36. Rh1 Rh6 37. Rh3 Qg6 38. Be3 Qa6 $5 {A sensible
on: White can do nothing active so why not simply capture the a2-pawn and
create a passed pawn with which to win the game?} ({On the other hand,} 38...
hxg3 {would have decided the game in a couple of moves:} 39. Rxh6+ ({or} 39.
Ng1 Rgh4 40. Rxh4 Rxh4) 39... Kxh6 {
and White cannot prevent an invasion down the h-file:} 40. Ng1 Qh5 41. Nh3 Rh4
{etc.}) 39. Bf2 Qxa2 40. Be1 a5 41. Kf1 Qb1 42. Ng1 a4 43. Ke2 a3 44. Rf1 a2
0-1

[Event "Dresden"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1926.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Johner, P."]
[Black "Nimzowitsch, A."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E50"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "80"]
[EventDate "1926.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 {It is fitting that Nimzowitsch's most famous
game should begin with an opening that he did so much to pioneer and is now
named in his honour: the Nimzo-Indian Defence. --- This sequence of moves was
known before Nimzowitsch was even born, having, for example, been played by
Blackburne back in the 1880s. But the great English Master would always follow
up with a quick ...d7-d5 in order to direct play into a form of the Queen's
Gambit. It is Nimzowitsch who was the first to grasp that Black doesn't need
to rush to put a pawn on d5. As he remarked, 'the centre consists of squares,
not pawns'. And these squares can be controlled by the pieces, without the
necessity of occupying them physically with pawns. --- With 3...Bb4,
Nimzowitsch is embarking on a strategy that aims to restrain the enemy pawn
front. Only when he is satisfied that White has lost all power to act
dynamically will he begin an attack of his own utilizing the black pawns.
Nimzowitsch's adage 'first restrain, then blockade, and finally destroy!'
which he mentioned in regard to a passed pawn, is also a neat summary of the
hypermodern approach to the pawn centre. --- It is a misconception that the
so-called hypermodern chess movement of the 1920s involved a rejection of the
use of pawns in favour of piece play. Instead, the idea is to allow the
opponent to establish a pawn centre which is then undermined by the action of
the pieces and flanking blows by the pawns.} 4. e3 ({
Having been restrained from immediately setting up a broad centre (} 4. e4 $2 {
just drops a pawn), White satisfies himself with developing his kingside
pieces with a view to playing e3-e4 in the future.}) 4... O-O 5. Bd3 c5 6. Nf3
Nc6 7. O-O Bxc3 8. bxc3 d6 9. Nd2 b6 {
Modern theory regards this as a superfluous move.} ({More direct was} 9... e5 {
when play might continue} 10. d5 Ne7 11. Qc2 {- White asserts his control over
e4 and can prepare the f2-f4 advance leading to double-edged play.}) 10. Nb3 $2
{Misplacing the white knight.} ({Nimzowitsch considered} 10. f4 e5 11. fxe5
dxe5 12. d5 Na5 13. Nb3 Nb7 14. e4 Ne8 {- avoiding a pin with 15 Bg5 - to be
about equal. White enjoys space but Black has an impressive blockade square on
d6 for his queen's knight.}) 10... e5 {Black has established a solid barrier
in the centre that restricts the mobility of the white pawns. However, he
still needs to fight against White's potential pawn advances on the kingside.}
11. f4 e4 $1 {The consistent move;} (11... -- {
The centre is blocked before White has the chance to play} 12. fxe5 dxe5 13. d5
Ne7 ({note that in this sequence} 13... Na5 {is answered by} 14. Nxa5 {
, preventing Black from playing ...Nb7 and ...Nd6 as occurs in the note to 10
Nb3 above; incidentally, it was this possibility, made irrelevant by 11...e4,
which cajoled Johner into misplacing his knight onb3}) 14. e4 {, when the open
f-file and the chance to attack with 15 Bg5 would give White a clear advantage.
}) 12. Be2 {White intends 13 g4 as the first step in a vigorous pawn advance
on the kingside. If that were to occur Black's policy of restraint would be
swept away in a tide of dynamism. Therefore over the next three moves Black
makes a concerted effort to control g4.} Qd7 $1 13. h3 ({
Here Szabo points out that White could have tried} 13. f5 $5 {in order to
prevent the blockade that occurs in the game. He finds it curious that
Nimzowitsch makes no mention of the idea, and suggests that the reason might
be that he thought} Ne7 14. g4 h5 {to be a convincing riposte.}) 13... Ne7 14.
Qe1 $2 {The white queen takes her eye off the g4-square and at the same time
blocks a possible route for the bishop on c1 into the game via d2 and e1 to h4.
} ({Instead, after} 14. Kh2 {Black is unable to prevent White's kingside
expansion which might occur next move with 15 g4.}) 14... h5 $1 15. Bd2 {
Black isn't out of the woods yet. Given time, White will play Kh2, Rg1, Qf2
and Raf1 when he can power forwards with g2-g4. In fact, some of these
leisurely preparatory moves might be unnecessary, as the basic Kh2, Rg1 and
g2-g4 looks strong. --- We all know the power of an unrestrained advance like
g2-g4 in such situations - see for example the Capablanca-Blackburne game in
Chapter Five. Here it could quickly develop into a mating attack against the
black king once the f-pawn and g-pawn advance to the fifth rank and beyond.} ({
Black could try to restrain it by playing ...g7-g6, ...Kg7 and ...Rh8, when
the white king would be a target on h2 if White ventured g2-g4.But} 15. Bd2 g6
$2 {would be a horrible weakening of the dark squares around the black king
and, as a consequence, would fail to} 16. f5 $1 {
. White smashes Black's blockade as} Nxf5 ({while} 16... gxf5 17. Qh4 {
is too horrible to contemplate for Black}) 17. g4 {wins a piece. --- Instead
Nimzowitsch found a brilliant way to hold back the g2-g4 advance.}) 15... Qf5
$1 16. Kh2 {Placing the king on the h-file plays into Black's hands.} ({
White should try Szabo's suggestion of} 16. Qh4 {.}) 16... Qh7 $1 {This is the
idea: putting the black queen on h7 adds vital steel to the restraint of g2-g4.
If the white king stepped into a time warp and remerged on b2, Black's queen
manoeuvre would be ridiculous: the straightforward Rg1 and g2-g4 would break
the blockade of the g4-square, when Black would face a fearsome attack on his
king. But unfortunately for White, his king is on h2, which gives him more
than a pause for thought when it comes to advancing g2-g4.} 17. a4 {
Having been frustrated on the kingside, White hopes for counterplay with 18 a5.
} Nf5 18. g3 ({Alas, there is no time for} 18. a5 {because of} Ng4+ $1 19. hxg4
$2 {(but otherwise e3 drops)} hxg4+ 20. Kg1 g3 {
and the mate threat on h2 is decisive.}) 18... a5 $1 {Bolting the door against
19 a5. White will be unable to exploit the backward pawn on b6 as it can never
be attacked by any of the white minor pieces or pawns - and frontal pressure
from the white queen or queen's rook can easily be met by ...Rb8 should it
prove necessary. In contrast, Black's light-squared bishop can attack a4 or c4.
} 19. Rg1 {After a little queenside interlude the idea of advancing g3-g4 has
begun to re-emerge: White might play 20 Kg2 and 21 g4. Nimzowitsch kills it
once and for all.} Nh6 $1 {Now Black has four units directly guarding the
g4-square: a bishop, two knights, and not least the pawn on h5 ('not least'
because the pawn has the queen lurking behind it, waiting to terrorize the
white king in its wake). --- White has no source of counterplay elsewhere on
the board, and the plan that the pawn structure dictates - the advance g3-g4 -
has been permanently prevented. Therefore Johner can only shuffle his pieces
around and await an attack from Black. It soon comes:} 20. Bf1 Bd7 21. Bc1 Rac8
{Before carrying out his plan of attack along the g-file, Nimzowitsch tries to
persuade his opponent to block the centre by introducing the idea of ...c5xd4
followed by pressure on c4.} 22. d5 {Rather compliant, as now Black can
concentrate on kingside action without worrying about any White counterplay in
the centre with a future d4xc5.} Kh8 23. Nd2 Rg8 24. Bg2 g5 $1 {To add insult
to injury, Black effortlessly achieves the pawn advance that White has striven
to carry out for most of the middlegame. Once a pawn structure has been
successfully restrained it automatically becomes vulnerable to attack. Thus
the g3-pawn - which in a parallel universe where 15...Qf5 was never played was
the hero of a kingside attack that culminated with 28 Qg7 mate - is a forlorn
figure that is going to bear the brunt of an attack by the black rooks down
the g-file.} 25. Nf1 Rg7 26. Ra2 Nf5 27. Bh1 Rcg8 28. Qd1 gxf4 29. exf4 Bc8 30.
Qb3 Ba6 31. Re2 Nh4 32. Re3 Bc8 33. Qc2 {The pressure on White's kingside has
reached an intensity at which a sacrifice becomes possible.} Bxh3 $1 34. Bxe4 (
{If} 34. Kxh3 {then} Qf5+ 35. Kh2 (35. g4 Rxg4 {soon leads to mate}) 35... Ng4+
36. Kh3 Nf2+ 37. Kh2 Qh3# {.}) 34... Bf5 35. Bxf5 Nxf5 36. Re2 h4 $1 {
The black queen, who went to h7 with restraint in mind, suddenly finds herself
ideally placed to finish off the game with an attack on the enemy king. There
is nothing unusual in this, as the chance to attack flows naturally from a
successful restraint strategy.} 37. Rgg2 hxg3+ 38. Kg1 Qh3 39. Ne3 Nh4 40. Kf1
Re8 {. --- Whilst a modern player can grasp the flow of Black's strategy
without too much difficulty, even if some of the points remain obscure, I'm
sure a lot of Nimzowitsch's contemporaries were completely baffled by moves
like 16...Qh7 and 19...Nh6, which seem to bury the queen gratuitously on the
edge of the board and decentralize a knight. It is hard nowadays to appreciate
the revolutionary nature of such play back in the 1920s.} 0-1

[Event "Hoogeveen"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1999.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Sadvakasov, D."]
[Black "Karpov, A."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "B17"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "130"]
[EventDate "1999.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nd2 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Nd7 5. Ng5 Ngf6 6. Bd3 e6 7. N1f3 Bd6 8.
Qe2 h6 9. Ne4 Nxe4 10. Qxe4 Qc7 11. Qg4 Kf8 12. O-O c5 13. Qh4 b6 14. Be4 Rb8
15. Rd1 c4 16. Ne5 Nf6 17. Bf3 Bb7 18. Bxb7 Rxb7 19. b3 cxb3 20. cxb3 Nd5 21.
Bf4 Qe7 22. Qg3 Bxe5 23. Bxe5 Qg5 24. Qd3 Rd7 {White has an isolated pawn on
d4 and his bishop, although visually impressive on e5, isn't really capable of
attacking much. Meanwhile, Black has a superb blockade knight on d5. --- On
the other hand, Karpov still has a rook sleeping on h8 and his king is
awkwardly placed on f8. --- This means that his opponent will be able to seize
control of the open file. Therefore the 12th World Champion has to be
extremely careful: we have seen numerous examples in this book of the power of
unchecked rooks on an open line. It is White's move and he played the obvious}
25. Rac1 {, whereupon Karpov began an excellent regrouping of his pieces:} Qd8
$1 {The queen adds her weight to the defence of both the c7- and c8-squares.}
26. Qa6 Ne7 $1 {There was no choice as 27 Rc8 had to be prevented. Still,
White's attempt at infiltration to the seventh or eighth rank has failed.
Sadvakasov has now more or less run out of constructive ideas and resorts to
short-range threats - which still, however, have to be handled with great care.
} 27. Qc4 Kg8 {Having secured the queenside for the moment, Karpov finds time
to improve the position of his king. If he is allowed to play ...Kh7, the rook
on h8 will enter the fray, after which the superior mobility of the white
pieces will be gradually eroded. Sadvakasov therefore tries to do something
fast on the queenside.} 28. Bc7 Qa8 29. Qa4 Qe8 30. Bb8 Kh7 $1 ({
No such luck: if} 30... Kh7 31. Bxa7 $2 {, then} Rb7 $1 {(incidentally, here
we see the first use by Black of the rook on h8 as it defends the queen)} 32.
Qa6 Qa8 33. Qd3+ Ng6 {, and White has lost the bishop.}) 31. Bc7 Nd5 32. Be5
Qe7 33. Qc4 {Black still has to play precisely: the threat is 34 Qd3+ when
Black would have to weaken his e6-pawn with 34...f5 or else let his king be
pushed back to g8. Karpov finds the most active solution.} Qg5 $1 34. Qd3+ Qg6
{The queen not only defends the light-squared diagonal but also shields the g7
point, which is the most likely target of attack in Black's kingside pawn
structure.} 35. Qe2 Rhd8 {Black finally achieves full development after 35
moves. When facing a player with Karpov's colossal technique, you don't want a
quiet position in which you have an isolated pawn and an inferior minor piece.
Sadvakasov therefore makes a brave attempt to mix things up.} 36. h4 h5 37. Rd3
Qg4 $1 {Meeting the threat of 38 Rg3 in the most aggressive manner by offering
White a most unwelcome exchange of queens.} 38. Qd2 f6 39. Bg3 Ne7 $1 {
The d4-pawn has been restrained and blocked, and now it is time to destroy it.}
40. Qe3 ({Something has to give: if} 40. Rd1 {,} Nf5 {
hits the d4-, g3- and h4-squares.}) 40... Rxd4 $6 {Something of a pity after
Karpov's flawless display. The Karpov of the 1970s or 1980s would never have
made such an impulsive move, but in 1999, and on the last move of the time
control...} ({Instead} 40... e5 $1 {, meeting} 41. Rcd1 {with} Nf5 42. Qe1 Nxd4
{, would win the d4-pawn in a 'clean' way.}) 41. Rxd4 Rxd4 42. f3 $1 Nf5 43.
Qxe6 Qxg3 44. Qxf5+ Kh6 {So White has managed to take play into an endgame,
but he is still going to lose a pawn. Karpov's technique eventually triumphed.}
45. Qc2 Qxh4 46. Rd1 Qf4 47. Rd3 h4 48. Kh1 g6 49. Qc3 Rxd3 50. Qxd3 h3 51.
gxh3 Qg3 52. Qd2+ Kh5 53. Qe3 Qxh3+ 54. Kg1 Qf5 55. Qe2 Qe5 56. Qd1 Kh4 57. Kf2
Qh2+ 58. Ke3 Qe5+ 59. Kf2 f5 60. a4 Qg3+ 61. Ke3 Qe5+ 62. Kf2 Qh2+ 63. Ke3 g5
64. Qd5 Qg1+ 65. Ke2 Kg3 0-1

[Event "5th Matchgame, Bucharest"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2005.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Istratescu, A."]
[Black "Karpov, A."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "C29"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "74"]
[EventDate "2005.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. f4 d5 4. fxe5 Nxe4 5. Nf3 Be7 6. Qe2 Nxc3 7. dxc3 c5 8.
Bf4 Nc6 9. Qf2 h6 10. Be2 Qb6 11. Rb1 Bf5 12. Bd3 Bxd3 13. cxd3 Qa6 14. Rd1
Qxa2 15. O-O d4 16. c4 ({Karpov has gone pawn hunting at a cost of development.
White's pieces are poised for an attack against the black king. If} 16. c4 O-O
(16... O-O-O 17. e6 $5 fxe6 18. Qe2 {opens up lines against the black king,
who cannot run away from c8 due to the white bishop on f4; a drastic finish
would be} Rd7 19. Qxe6 Qxb2 $2 20. Rb1 Qc3 21. Qxc6+ $1 bxc6 22. Rb8#) {, then}
17. Nh4 $5 {is a dangerous attacking move, when} g5 $2 ({or} 17... Bxh4 18.
Qxh4 Rae8 19. Bxh6 $1 gxh6 20. Qxh6 Re6 21. Rf6 {
, when White's attack guarantees him at least a draw}) 18. Nf5 {
gives White a winning attack after} gxf4 19. Qxf4 Bg5 20. Nxh6+ Bxh6 21. Qxh6
Nxe5 22. Rf5 Ng6 23. Rh5 Rfe8 24. Rf1 {etc. --- Black's problem in these
scenarios is that he is playing without his queen, whereas the white queen is
in the thick of the action, supporting a piece sacrifice if the black king
goes right, and even sacrificing herself if he goes left. Black needs his own
queen to counteract the excesses of her counterpart.}) 16... Nd8 $1 {You might 
think that the last thing Black should be doing is retreating a knight to the
back rank when he is already behind in development, but it is an excellent
decision. The black queen is offered a route back into the game and
furthermore the f7-square, the weakest point in Black's position, is bolstered
by the knight.} 17. Bc1 {The bishop retreats not to defend b2, but rather to
clear the f-file as a prelude to White's sacrifice next move.} Qa6 $1 {
If left undisturbed Karpov will complete his redeployment with 18...Qg6, 19...Ne6 and 20...0-0, when White has no compensation for the pawn. So Istratescu
offers a second pawn in order to stop his attack fizzling out.} 18. e6 $5 O-O
$1 {A cool and clinical riposte. There is no rule in chess that says a
sacrifice has to be accepted (though of course if a sacrifice isn't quite
sound, the way to refute it usually involves its acceptance).} ({
There is no reason at all for Black to get involved in} 18... Qxe6 19. Rde1 {
when White has an attack down the e-file}) ({or} 18... fxe6 19. Ne5 {
when the f-file is open}) ({or} 18... Nxe6 19. Ne5 {
when f7 is attacked three times.}) {Karpov is blessed with the technique of an
ex-World Champion, and so one pawn up is quite enough for him. In the game his
opponent generously gave him a second pawn:} 19. Qg3 $2 Nxe6 20. Rde1 ({
White must have missed that if} 20. Bxh6 {,} Bd6 21. Qg4 f5 {
wins a piece, after which} 22. Qh5 gxh6 23. Qxh6 Bf4 24. Qg6+ Ng7 {
is the end of the white attack. The rest is straightforward.}) 20... Qd6 21.
Ne5 Bg5 22. Bxg5 Nxg5 23. h4 Nh7 24. Qf3 Rae8 25. Ng4 Rxe1 26. Rxe1 b6 27. Re5
a5 28. Rd5 Qe7 29. Re5 Qxh4 30. Re2 Qg5 31. Nf2 Nf6 32. Qc6 Ng4 33. Nxg4 Qxg4
34. Re1 Qg3 35. Qe4 f5 36. Qe6+ Kh7 37. Re5 Rf6 0-1

[Event "San Sebastian"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1912.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Leonhardt, P."]
[Black "Nimzowitsch, A."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "C41"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "80"]
[EventDate "1912.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{Here is a startling demonstration of the power that is unleashed when a
blockade is removed. Once Leonhardt's bishop loosens its grip on Black's
queenside, White is quickly swept away.} 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 Nf6 4. Nc3
exd4 5. Nxd4 Be7 6. Be2 O-O 7. O-O Nc6 8. Nxc6 bxc6 9. b3 d5 10. e5 Ne8 11. f4
{White threatens 12 f5, after which his advancing pawns would jeopardize Black
on the kingside - already a sacrifice with 13 f6 would be on the cards.
Therefore Nimzowitsch blocked the pawn with:} f5 $1 {Structurally speaking,
Black has conceded a protected passed pawn on e5. But Nimzowitsch isn't too
concerned. His position remains solid on the light squares and he has spied a
way to get his knight to e6 - a blockade square.} 12. Be3 g6 $1 {Any apparent
weakness created on the dark squares by this move is immaterial compared with
the importance of getting the knight to e6. --- Left to his own devices,
Black's general plan would be ...Ng7, ...Ne6, ...Bb7 and finally ...c6-c5,
seizing space in the centre (we assume of course that White would have taken
measures to prevent ...d5-d4 forking his pieces). Such a central expansion
would energize the black pieces and pawns, and put in the shade as it were
White's 4-3 pawn majority on the kingside with its 'pretty' passed pawn on e5.
The black 4-3 majority on the queenside would actually be doing something, not
just looking neat and tidy! --- From this we can conclude that the c5-square
is of strategic importance. If White is able to stop the advance ...c6-c5,
then Black's light-squared bishop when placed on b7 would remain shut in.
Furthermore, the c5-square itself would make an attractive base for White's
knight or dark-squared bishop: no black pawn could ever dislodge it. If White
gained mastery over the c5-square, then the d4-square would almost
automatically fall into his hands as well (remember that Black cannot fight
for it with ...c6-c5). Then we could speak about White having control of a
complex of dark squares in the centre. --- So there is clearly a lot at stake
in this position, and it focuses on the c5-square.} 13. Na4 {Leonhardt is no
slouch and realizes the importance of the c5-square. He intends to add the
weight of his knight and queen to that of his bishop on e3 in the fight for
the control of it.} Ng7 14. Qd2 Qd7 15. Qa5 Ne6 {The black knight has finally
reached its ideal square. On e6 it can influence matters on both sides of the
board - the possible pawn breaks ...c6-c5 and ...g6-g5 are both within its
remit. White can't attack the knight with pawns or harass it with his rooks.}
16. Rad1 Rd8 17. Nc5 $2 {The wrong piece.} ({With} 17. Bc5 $1 {White would
plug the c5-square whilst keeping his own knight to fight the blockading
monster on e6. Then} Bxc5+ $2 ({so probably} 17... Bb7 {
, ignoring the commotion, is the best reply}) 18. Nxc5 Nxc5 19. Qxc5 {
would be excellent for White.}) 17... Bxc5 $1 18. Bxc5 Bb7 {Black keeps the
knight rather than the bishop, a highly instructive decision that teaches us a
great deal about chess strategy. --- At first glance you would imagine that
White had an excellent game: protected passed pawn, two bishops, fewer pawn
islands and a dismal black bishop to laugh at on b7. It looks as if Black has
surrendered the dark squares, and to some extent this is true; but in doing so
he has made himself even stronger by comparison on the light squares. Moreover,
the invincible knight on e6 is a wonderful asset which can help spread Black's
light square superiority on to the dark squares.} 19. Rf3 ({
Perhaps White should have tried the pawn ram} 19. g4 $5 {
to generate kingside activity, even though it costs a pawn after} Nxc5 20. Qxc5
fxg4 {. In the event Leonhardt shows a marked refusal to push any of his
kingside pawns, which allows Nimzowitsch to develop his own initiative on that
wing.}) 19... Kf7 20. Rh3 Kg7 21. Rf1 Re8 22. Rhf3 ({
Instead of floundering with the rooks,} 22. g4 {was more incisive, e.g.} Nxc5
23. Qxc5 fxg4 24. Rg3 h5 25. h3 {
. Whatever the assessment, White should have taken the risk.}) 22... Rad8 23.
Rd1 a6 24. b4 Kh8 25. Qa3 Rg8 26. Qc3 Rg7 27. Kh1 Rdg8 {Black has been given
time to double rooks on the g-file and hide his king away on h8. The upshot is
that he is now threatening to burst forwards with 28...g5. Leonhardt returns
his bishop to e3 to oppose the onrush, but ends up letting Black carry out two
pawn breaks.} 28. Be3 $2 {A positional disaster. White should simply let Black
advance ...g6-g5 and take his chance in the resulting complications.} ({
Alternatively} 28. h4 {is an interesting restraining move: Black can then
prepare the advance ...g6-g5 with ...h7-h6 etc, but his own king might end up
exposed on h8. Play might continue} Qd8 29. g3 h6 30. Kg1 g5 31. hxg5 hxg5 32.
fxg5 {etc with obscure play. It should be remembered that, however impressive
Black's build-up is on the kingside, he is minus the services of the bishop
shut in on b7. The bishop will prove a very different type of piece in the
game.}) 28... c5 $1 {
Nimzowitsch wastes no time in carrying out the freeing move.} 29. Rg3 {
Getting out of the way of a discovered attack by the bishop on b7 after
Black's next move.} d4 30. Qa3 g5 $1 {And now the second pawn break comes to
fruition. Black's position seems to have progressed enormously, while White
has been standing still - a feeling you often get looking at a game by
Nimzowitsch.} 31. Bc4 gxf4 32. Bxe6 {
It appears that White might survive after all, but...} Bxg2+ $5 ({An even more
fitting tribute to the new found freedom of the bishop on b7 was possible with
} 32... Rxg3 $3 {and now:} 33. -- ({. After} 33. Bxd7 Rxg2 {
White is defenceless against a discovered checkmate:} 34. h4 Rf2+ 35. Bc6 Bxc6#
{.}) (33. hxg3 Qc6 ({not} 33... Qxe6 34. Bxf4) {, and now} 34. Rg1 ({or} 34.
Rd2 dxe3 35. Re2 f3 36. Rxe3 f2 37. Rf3 f1=Q+ 38. Rxf1 Qxg2#) 34... Rxg3 35.
Bxf4 Rxg2 {wins for Black.})) 33. Kg1 ({Not} 33. Rxg2 Qc6 {
, with a quick mate as g2 is collapsing.}) 33... Qxe6 34. Bxf4 Bb7 {Simplest: once the black queen gets to d5 there will be no hope for the white king.} 35.
bxc5 Qd5 36. c6 Bxc6 37. Kf2 Rxg3 38. Bxg3 Qg2+ 39. Ke1 Bf3 40. Qxa6 ({Or} 40.
Rd2 Qg1# {.}) 40... Qg1+ 0-1

[Event "Tilburg"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1997.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Kramnik, V."]
[Black "Shirov, A."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E97"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[EventDate "1997.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. d4 O-O 6. Be2 e5 7. O-O Nc6 8. d5
Ne7 9. b4 Nh5 10. Re1 f5 11. Ng5 Nf4 12. Bxf4 exf4 13. Rc1 Bf6 14. Ne6 Bxe6 15.
dxe6 Bxc3 16. Rxc3 fxe4 17. Bf1 e3 18. fxe3 fxe3 19. Rcxe3 c6 20. Qd2 d5 21.
cxd5 cxd5 ({Before we look at the game continuation, lets imagine what might
happen if White plays aimlessly with} 21... cxd5 22. a3 $6 {
. Then Shirov has the chance for} Qb6 {, seizing the long dark-squared
diagonal for his queen and introducing the threat of 23...Nf5. After} 23. Kh1 {
he can build up along the f-file with} Rf6 24. Bd3 Raf8 {. --- The black
pieces are then all solidly entrenched on the dark squares, where the white
bishop cannot touch them. The black knight is inviolate on e7; true, Black
would prefer it if the action were taking place further up the board, with the
black knight on e5 blockading a passed pawn on e4. But overall Black isn't
complaining, with his queen and rooks all actively placed. In contrast, the
e-file is a dead end alley for the white rooks, as all they can do is stare at
the e6-pawn, which has no hope of advancing. --- Such is the danger facing
White if he plays passively: the energy will be drained from his position, and
he will have to settle for passive defence, with a draw at best. Let's return
to the position in the game after 21...cxd5 and see how Kramnik managed to
invigorate the white set-up:}) 22. Qd4 $1 {Not many players would willingly
put their queen on a post where she is inviting a fork with ...Nf5. But
Kramnik understands the importance of denying the black queen the b6-square.}
Qd6 ({If} 22... Qb6 {then} 23. Qc5) ({or} 22... Nf5 $6 23. Qe5 Qb6 $6 24. e7
Rfe8 25. Qxd5+ Kg7 26. Qe5+ Kh6 27. Kh1 {, threatening 28 Rh3+, and White has
a winning attack. Incidentally, this variation shows why Black might have
wished that his knight were blocking the white pawn further up the board on e5.
The passed pawn's 'lust to expand', as Nimzowitsch memorably described it,
puts more stress on the defence the further up the board the pawn has been
able to advance.}) 23. Qc5 $1 {The white queen avoids the fork on f5 and
continues to harass her opposite number.} Qf4 $2 ({After} 23... Qxc5 {
(the move Black should play)} 24. bxc5 {, the white rooks can suddenly attack
b7 along the newly opened b-file, though Kramnik claims that Black has
reasonable drawing chances after} Rfc8 25. Rb1 Rab8 {. --- The question of
whether after the queen exchange the position remains equal, or White gains a
small, big or decisive advantage, probably didn't trouble Kramnik much; he
knew the important thing was that his rooks would escape the moribund
situation described in the hypothetical line discussed in the notes to Black's
21st move. In contrast, Shirov has no wish to acquiesce in a worse endgame,
and tries for counterplay along the f-file. Unfortunately for him, he only
succeeds in provoking an assault against his own king.}) 24. Rf3 ({
Of course not} 24. Qxe7 $2 {, allowing} Qf2+ {and mate in two.}) 24... Qg5 25.
Rf7 $1 {Once again we see the principle of the conversion of advantages that
runs through the whole of chess strategy: White gives up the passed pawn in
order to activate his pieces and put the black king in an unpleasant pin.
Shirov proves unable to adapt in time to the changed circumstances and quickly
goes under to a mating attack:} Rxf7 26. exf7+ Kxf7 27. Qc7 Qh4 28. Re3 Qxb4 $2
({The only move was} 28... Rf8 {, though} 29. g3 Qg5 30. Re2 $1 {
, with the threat of 31 h4 (Kramnik), is very unpleasant for Black.}) 29. a3
Qh4 30. Qxb7 Re8 31. Qxa7 d4 32. Bc4+ Kf8 33. g3 Qg4 34. Be2 Qc8 35. Qxd4 Qc1+
36. Kg2 1-0

[Event "World Championship (Game 9), Moscow"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1984.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Karpov, A."]
[Black "Kasparov, G."]
[Result "1-0"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "8/8/p2k1p2/1p1p2pp/1P1P3P/P3NPP1/5K2/1b6 b - - 0 46"]
[PlyCount "48"]
[EventDate "1984.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{One of the dangers of a blockade strategy is that you might do the job of
shutting up things up too well. That is to say, if the arteries of the
position become too clogged, it might be that not only are the opponent's
pieces stymied, but so are yours. Even the pawn-jumping knight needs some room
to manoeuvre. Here is an example of such a case, although there is a happy
outcome. --- The white knight is incontestably superior to the black bishop
due to the blocked nature of the position. In particular, Black's pawns are
mostly fixed on light squares where they not only hinder the bishop's mobility
but also fail to cover dark-squared holes that the white knight can try to
exploit. --- Nevertheless, the young Kasparov could probably have drawn with
46...Bg6, as there are no inlets for the white king and knight. Instead he
played the careless:} 46... gxh4 $2 {No doubt expecting 47 gxh4, when 47...Bg6
etc maintains the barrier to an invasion. Instead Karpov pounced:} 47. Ng2 $3 {
A temporary pawn sacrifice to allow the white king access to the h4-square.}
hxg3+ 48. Kxg3 Ke6 ({If there were still a white pawn on h4, Black could play
48...Bg6 when 49 Nf4 Bf7 holds firm. But with the pawn missing, if} 48... Bg6 {
then White replies} 49. Nf4 Bf7 50. Kh4 Be8 51. Nxh5 {
when the king and pawn endgame is a trivial win for White:} Bxh5 $6 52. Kxh5
Ke6 53. Kg6 Ke7 ({or} 53... f5 54. f4) 54. f4 Ke6 55. f5+ Ke7 56. Kg7 {
and f6 drops. Kasparov therefore gives up the h5-pawn straightaway.}) 49. Nf4+
Kf5 50. Nxh5 Ke6 51. Nf4+ Kd6 52. Kg4 {
The advance of the white king is unstoppable.} Bc2 53. Kh5 Bd1 54. Kg6 Ke7 (
54... Bxf3 55. Kxf6 {is hopeless, as White can arrange a knight check on f5 to
drive the black king from d6 and then put his own king on e5. Thereafter the
knight can go to c5 to attack a6, when if the pawn is defended with ...Kb6,
the white king gains further ground with Kd6. The white knight could then
return to f4, when the d5-pawn finally falls to Nxd5. --- Kasparov isn't
interested in such a long but inevitable demise and so sacrifices the d5-pawn
in order to gain some breathing space for his king.}) 55. Nxd5+ Ke6 56. Nc7+
Kd7 $2 (56... Kd6 {, keeping the option of going to d5 to attack d4, was a
tougher defence, though White has good winning chances after} 57. Ne8+ $1 Ke7
58. Nxf6 Bxf3 59. Kf5 {etc.}) 57. Nxa6 Bxf3 58. Kxf6 Kd6 59. Kf5 Kd5 60. Kf4 $1
{The attack on the black bishop gains White just enough time to save the
d4-pawn from capture. The rest isn't too difficult, though Kasparov fights on
grimly.} Bh1 61. Ke3 Kc4 62. Nc5 Bc6 63. Nd3 Bg2 64. Ne5+ Kc3 65. Ng6 Kc4 66.
Ne7 Bb7 67. Nf5 Bg2 68. Nd6+ Kb3 69. Nxb5 Ka4 70. Nd6 {. --- This endgame was
probably the finest hour of Karpov's chess career, as it meant he took a 4-0
lead against Kasparov after only nine rounds of their first World Championship
match in 1984/85 (the first player to win six games would be declared the
victor). --- Subsequently Karpov extended this score to 5-0 by winning Game 27,
but by that time the 'drawing rot' had set in. When the match was infamously
abandoned after 48 games, an exhausted Karpov had let his amazingly resilient
opponent claw back to 5-3, with 40 draws.} 1-0

[Event "Dortmund"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1998.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Kramnik, V."]
[Black "Yusupov, A."]
[Result "1-0"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "1r6/6k1/p3Q1pp/P7/2pq1P2/3n2P1/2B2P2/5RK1 w - - 0 32"]
[PlyCount "11"]
[EventDate "1998.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{Sometimes a blockade that is able to resist force of arms can be removed with
a little guile. --- White would like to attack the g6-pawn with his bishop
along the b1-h7 diagonal, but alas the knight on d3 is immovable as it is
supported by the pawn on c4. White can't even increase the pressure on the
knight, as 32 Rd1?? Qxf2+ would be frankly embarrassing. Nor can White attack
the pawn on c4, the knight's protector, as it is amply defended by the black
queen. --- There are no normal means by which White can break the blockade on
d3. So Kramnik came up with an ingenious solution: he would persuade his
opponent to do it for him! Let's see what happened:} 32. Ba4 {
Introducing the idea of 33 Be8 Qf6 (or else g6 drops) 34 Qxc4.} c3 (32... Rf8 {
should hold the draw, when} 33. Be8 {can be met by} Rf6 {. Instead Yusupov,
who was getting short of time, saw the chance to save his pawn on c4 and
advance it one square closer to queening.}) 33. Bc2 $1 {Kramnik's trick has
worked! Unlike bishops, pawns can't move backwards, so the knight on d3 is
permanently deprived of its guardian. All sorts of tactical ideas have
appeared for White, including the barbaric 34 Bxd3 Qxd3 35 Qe5+ picking up the
black rook, as well as the insidious 34 Qe2 in the style of the game, combined
after 34...Rd8 with 35 Rd1 to pin and win the knight, or should the horse flee
from d3, with 35 Qe7+ and 36 Bxg6.} Rb2 {An impressive-looking move, but the
magic of the white queen and bishop attacking the black king is stronger.} 34.
Qe7+ Kg8 35. Qe2 $1 Nxf4 ({Desperation, as} 35... Nc5 36. Qe8+ Kg7 37. Qxg6+ {
is intolerable,} ({and} 37. Re1 $1 {is even stronger.})) 36. gxf4 Kf7 37. Rd1
1-0

[Event "?"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "????.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "9. Provocation & Prophylaxis"]
[Black "?"]
[Result "*"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "1"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{Here is one of the most important secrets we learn from our giants of
strategy: -- Prophylaxis is not only a technical device to prevent the
opponent playing good moves, it is also a psychological ploy to entice him
into careless or impulsive decisions. Quiet play often makes the opponent
overreach himself. --- Many years ago I had the privilege of playing against
Karpov in a simultaneous display. Before the game began, I mentally braced
myself to endure a tough defensive task. After all, I was a young boy and he
was the reigning World Champion, playing White to boot, so if he couldn't
attack me, who could he attack?! --- Instead things turned out rather
differently. I opened with the Pirc Defence and within a dozen moves Karpov's
knights had retreated almost apologetically to the back rank, nestling on e1
and d1. 'World Champion, or not, that can't be right', I thought to myself and
started a decidedly rash attack with ...g6-g5. Within a few moves the white
knights sprung forward again, my attack was rebuffed and I was a pawn down in
the endgame. --- I had my first experience of the Karpov style: a unique
ability to control a game from a distance. It reminded me of a British
Champion boxer who was renowned for keeping his arms at his side during a bout:
his speed of reaction and anticipation was such that if his opponent tried to
land a punch he would always manage to raise his guard in time to block it.
Meanwhile the opponent would huff and puff trying to land a decisive punch
until he had exhausted himself, after which he became easy prey.} 1. -- {
Before we look at some of Karpov's games, let's see how his predecessor
Nimzowitsch used prophylaxis as provocation. --- See Schlechter-Nimzowitsch.} (
1. -- {Now we shall look at six of Karpov's games which demonstrate how quiet,
prophylactic means can be employed to provoke a reckless reaction. --- See
Karpov-Geller, Karpov-Yusupov, Karpov-Illescas Cordoba, Karpov-Savon,
Karpov-Gelfand, and Karpov-Ribli.}) (1. -- {The Technical and Psychological
taken to an Extreme: -- Finally, I wish to reveal that there are two very
different methods of trying to win an endgame: the technical and the
psychological. --- The Czech Grandmaster Oldrich Duras had to defend the
endgame of rook and three pawns versus rook and four pawns against both
Capablanca and Nimzowitsch. The Cuban, true to his chess style, went about
winning it in a methodical way. --- See Duras-Capablanca. --- Alternatively
you could try to handle the endgame like Nimzowitsch. Poor old Duras had been
obliged to defend the same endgame one year earlier against Nimzowitsch. The
approach of the maverick master from Riga was very different to that of the
technician from Havana, to say the least. --- See Duras-Nimzowitsch. --- Most
of chess lies somewhere between Nimzowitsch's bizarre manoeuvres and the
coldly clinical play of Capablanca in the examples above - and thank goodness
for that most of us would say!}) (1. -- {It's time to say goodbye. I hope you
have enjoyed the games in this book and are thirsting to try out some of the
many ideas in your own games.}) *

[Event "Carlsbad"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1907.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Schlechter, C."]
[Black "Nimzowitsch, A."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "C77"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "64"]
[EventDate "1907.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{In this game, Schlechter plans an attack on the wrong side of the board. This
attack is against the king and could become dangerous if left unopposed. In
contrast to the aims of the blockade, Nimzowitsch doesn't want to close the
door entirely on Schlechter's plan - on the contrary, he combines restraint
with aggressive means to provoke an unprepared and weakening pawn advance.} 1.
e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. Nc3 Bb4 6. Nd5 Be7 7. O-O O-O 8. Re1
d6 9. Nxf6+ Bxf6 10. c3 h6 11. h3 Ne7 12. d4 Ng6 13. Be3 Kh7 14. Qd2 Be6 15.
Bc2 Qe7 16. d5 Bd7 {Having played 16 d5, the pawn structure suggests that
White should prepare a queenside pawn advance with 17 c4, 18 b4 and 19 c5 etc.
Instead Schlechter chose the inferior} 17. Kh2 $2 {with the evident intention
of gaining space on the kingside with moves like Ng1, g2-g3 and f2-f4.
Nimzowitsch put up barriers against this plan with:} Nh8 $1 {A characteristic
retreat by Nimzowitsch, who knew how to use all the squares on the board to
energize his pieces, not just the obvious ones.} 18. Ng1 g5 $1 19. g3 Ng6 {
The knight returns having cleared the way for the pawn to go to g5. The
advance f2-f4, even if he could safely engineer it, which is doubtful, is no
longer attractive for White: for one thing, the e5-square would become a hole
in his pawn structure after the double exchange ...g5xf4; g3xf4 e5xf4 etc, to
say nothing about the opening of the g-file and the compromising of the white
king's safety. --- Therefore Schlechter changes his plan: he will prepare the
advance h3-h4 to attack the black king. For this purpose he will put a rook on
h1. But first of all, he takes measures with his queen to prevent Black
freeing his position with ...f7-f5.} 20. Qd1 Bg7 21. Qf3 a5 $1 {Even so, Nimzowitsch is still concerned that White might revert to the strategically correct
plan of gaining space on the queenside. He therefore puts up a barrier against
b2-b4 after c3-c4.} 22. Ne2 Bb5 $1 {And here he provokes White's reply, after
which the white queenside pawns are no longer in the proper shape to do any
damage to Black. Schlechter, on the other hand, is unconcerned as he is
focusing all his attention on the kingside.} 23. a4 Bd7 24. Rh1 Qe8 $1 {
You can only admire Nimzowitsch's refined use of the back rank, a skill he
shares with Karpov. The queen heads for c8 where she will support the freeing
move ...f7-f5. This precipitates Schlechter into carrying out his pawn advance
before he is completely ready:} 25. h4 Qc8 $1 {
Threatening to win a piece with 26...Bg4 27 Qg2 Bxe2.} 26. Bd3 Bg4 27. Qg2 gxh4
28. f3 h3 $1 {Blocking White's attack down the h-file...} 29. Qf1 f5 $1 {
...and carrying out his own thematic advance on the f-file.} 30. fxg4 fxe4 {
The point: Black regains his piece with a crushing position.} 31. Qxh3 exd3 32.
Bxh6 Rh8 $1 ({White's bishop and knight are both hanging, and if} 32... Rh8 33.
Bxg7+ Kxg7 {White loses his queen. --- In this game we saw what can only be
described as a very aggressive form of prophylaxis: in fact, with 24...Qe8
Black was positively goading White into advancing the h-pawn due to the
positional threat of 25...Qc8 and 26...f5 rather than trying to prevent the
move. Hence there is a thin line between prophylaxis and provocation. In
'Chess Praxis', Nimzowitsch himself remarks that (24...Qe8) 'illustrates a
very definite form of prophylaxis, in which part of the plan is to drive the
opponent into accelerated action.'}) 0-1

[Event "USSR Championship, Moscow"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1983.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Karpov, A."]
[Black "Geller, E."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C88"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "61"]
[EventDate "1983.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 O-O 8. d3
Bb7 9. Nbd2 h6 10. Nf1 Re8 11. Ne3 Bf8 12. Bd2 d6 13. a4 Nd7 14. c3 Ne7 {
If White wants to play d3-d4 he needs to protect his e4-pawn, but after 15 Bc2
there follows 15...d5 and Black has fully equalized. Karpov being Karpov there
shouldn't be any surprise at his next move:} 15. Qb1 $1 {The queen defends the
e4-pawn so that expansion in the centre with 16 d4 becomes a possibility. At
the same time the bishop remains on b3 to obstruct the ...d6-d5 breakout.} ({
Less good is} 15. Qc2 $2 {because} Nc5 {
will remove White's valuable bishop on b3 next move, as} 16. Ba2 {allows} Nxa4
{.}) 15... Nc5 16. Bc2 d5 $2 ({Here Karpov assesses} 16... Nxa4 17. Bxa4 bxa4
18. Rxa4 Qd7 19. Qc2 {as very slightly better for White due to the weakness of
the a6-pawn. Nevertheless, this is how Black should play, as he maintains a
safe position. Geller's choice in the game is far too ambitious. He should
have reflected that no one ever gets to equalize this easily as Black against
Karpov in the Ruy Lopez, so why should he be the lucky man? --- In his book
'Chess at the Top', Karpov himself explains things as follows: --- 'Geller is
a great expert on the Ruy Lopez, and whenever his opponent leaves the
well-trodden theoretical path he considers himself obliged to achieve the
maximum, and sometimes, as in the present game, he oversteps the bounds of
risk.' --- In other words Geller was straining at the leash to punish the
'passive' 15 Qb1. Hence the rush of blood to his head which led to 16...d5?.
Once again, Karpov achieves a winning position by the most unobtrusive of
means - he simply manoeuvres in his own back yard, and 16 moves later he is
sacrificing his queen to force checkmate!}) 17. exd5 Nxd5 18. Ng4 {Back at move
15, if instead of 15 Qb1 Karpov had played 15 Bc2 d5 16 Ng4, Black could have
kept everything nice and solid with 16...Ng6 when e5 is defended by three
black pieces. In contrast, here the pawn on e5 is attacked three times and
defended only once. Black has no wish to play 18...f6, when his kingside is
riddled with light-squared holes: after 19 d4 in reply, the white queen and
bishop are already aiming at the defenceless g6- and h7-squares. --- Geller
tries to save himself with a counterattack against g2, but he just ends up
with a tatty pawn structure:} Nf4 19. Bxf4 $1 ({Not} 19. Ngxe5 Nxg2 20. Kxg2
Qf6 {, with the highly awkward threat of 21...Rxe5, when f3 drops.}) 19... exf4
20. Nge5 Bd6 21. d4 {With the black e-pawn deflected to f4, White is able to
seize space in the centre and bolster his knight on the excellent e5-square.
The opening of the b1-h7 diagonal is also ominous for the black king.} Bxe5 22.
Nxe5 Qg5 23. f3 Rad8 24. axb5 {I hope you hadn't forgotten about the a-file,
as it is the key to White's victory. Black is just about holding things
together in the centre, but the sudden attack on his queenside by the white
rook will prove too much for his fragile pawn structure.} ({Instead,} 24. dxc5
$2 {would be just dreadful, as it would throw away White's command of the
centre and more after} Rxe5 {.}) 24... axb5 25. Ra7 $1 {White is threatening
26 b4 or 26 dxc5 now that the bishop on b7 is hanging. Therefore Geller has to
give up the c7-pawn and allow the white rook to rampage on his second rank in
order to save his piece.} Bd5 ({
The white queen plays a key role in the variation} 25... Rb8 26. b4 $1 Ne6 27.
Bh7+ Kf8 (27... Kh8 28. Nxf7#) 28. Nd7+ Ke7 29. Nxb8 {.}) 26. Rxc7 Na6 27. Ra7
Nc5 28. Bh7+ Kf8 29. b4 Na4 30. Qd3 Bc4 31. Qxc4 $1 ({If} 31. Qxc4 bxc4 {,} 32.
Rxf7# {. --- A spectacular end to the game, but we could all find 31 Qxc4 if
we looked hard enough; it is the little moves like 15 Qb1 that define Karpov's
greatness.}) 1-0

[Event "USSR Championship, Moscow"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1983.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Karpov, A."]
[Black "Yusupov, A."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C82"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "87"]
[EventDate "1983.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Nxe4 6. d4 b5 7. Bb3 d5 8. dxe5
Be6 9. c3 Bc5 10. Nbd2 O-O 11. Bc2 Bf5 12. Nb3 Bg6 13. Nfd4 Bxd4 14. cxd4 a5
15. Be3 a4 16. Nd2 a3 17. Nxe4 axb2 18. Rb1 Bxe4 19. Rxb2 Qd7 ({
Yusupov's last move,} 19... Qd7 {, indirectly defends the b5-pawn, as} 20. Rxb5
$2 ({alternatively, if} 20. Bxe4 dxe4 {the d4-pawn is weak and} 21. Rxb5 Nxd4
22. Rb2 c5 {leaves the black knight strongly entrenched in the centre}) {
loses the exchange to} 20... Bxc2 21. Qxc2 Nxd4 22. Bxd4 Qxb5 {.}) ({
Let's imagine that White had responded to} 19... Qd7 {with a routine move like}
20. Qe2 $6 {. In that case, Black has available a very strong manoeuvre:} Bxc2
21. Qxc2 Na5 $1 22. f4 f5 $1 {(preventing White advancing 23 f5, when his
kingside pawns would be dangerously mobile)} 23. Bd2 ({if} 23. e6 Qe7 {
the e6-pawn is weak}) 23... Nc4 $1 {
(not giving White the chance to play 24 Bxa5)} 24. Bb4 Rfe8 {. --- Here the
black knight's dream has come true as it is cemented on an excellent outpost
square. The knight not only dominates the centre, but also blocks any attempt
to attack the c7-pawn with the white rooks. --- A backward pawn ceases to be
weakness if it is sheltered by a knight on an outpost square. As White no
longer has pressure down the c-file, Black only has to worry about the advance
g2-g4, and can exert himself to the maximum to prevent it, or render it
useless. In fact Black has such a firm grip on the light squares that g2-g4,
even after careful preparation, is unlikely to cause him any harm. On the
contrary, it might lead to Black's advantage by exposing the light square
deficiencies of White's position. Once the black knight gets to c4, it is too
late for White to do anything about it. He must form a plan to prevent it
getting there in the first place. That's what we mean by prophylactic (or
preventive) play. Note that 19...Qd7 prevents 20 Rxb5, but we wouldn't call
it a prophylactic move - the queen move is rather a form of indirect defence
to a tactical threat. --- So let's return to the position after 19...Qd7 and
see how Karpov went about preventing the ...Nc4 manoeuvre in the game.}) 20.
Bd3 $1 {Karpov aims a second piece at the b5-pawn.} Bxd3 ({
Black has little choice but to exchange bishops, as} 20... b4 21. Bb5 Rfb8 22.
Rxb4 $1 {costs him a pawn.}) 21. Qxd3 Rfb8 22. Rfb1 {Karpov keeps on forcing
his opponent to defend the b5-pawn so that he hasn't a single free move to
play ...Na5, when the knight inevitably reaches c4.} ({Note that if} 22. Rxb5 {
,} Rxb5 23. Qxb5 Nxe5 24. Qb7 Qc6 $1 {defends solidly for Black.}) 22... b4 {
We begin to see the fruits of Karpov's prophylactic play. Even if the black
knight now reaches c4, Black's queenside won't be as solid as it would have
been with a Nc4, b5, c6, d5 diamond shape.} 23. h3 h6 {White has loosened
Black's grip on the queenside, but how is he to make any further progress? If
his rooks are redeployed away from the b-file, for example to support an
attack along the f-file with f4-f5, Black is going to reply ...Na5 and ...Nc4
as soon as possible, when all White's good preventive work will be undone.
Karpov of course finds the answer:} 24. Rc1 $1 Rb6 ({
Alas for Yusupov he can't quite play} 24... Na5 {because of} 25. Qb1 $1 Nc4 {
(the knight does better to return to c6 in ignominy)} 26. Rxb4 Rxb4 27. Qxb4 {
. Now it looks as if Black can equalize with} Rxa2 {
, but then comes the tactical shocker} 28. Qb8+ Kh7 29. Qb1+ {and the black
rook drops off! Was Karpov just lucky that this tactic justified all his
prophylactic play, or is there some innate justice in chess that rewards a
well thought out plan with tactical favours?}) 25. Qb1 $1 {The white queen
retreats to the back rank in order to take over preventive duty from the rook:
once again 25...Na5 can be answered by 26 Rxb4. Karpov's chess games certainly
teach you the value of humility. If there is a job to be done, the high and
mighty queen is as willing as any of the other pieces to get her hands dirty.}
Rab8 {'Can I finally play 26...Na5, please??'} 26. Rc5 $1 {'No!'} Nd8 27. Rcc2
Nc6 {The position has been repeated, except that the white rook has edged
forwards to c2, vacating the c1-square.} 28. Qc1 {
Preventing 28...Na5 in yet another way, as now the pawn on c7 would drop off.}
R8b7 29. Rc5 $1 {Back again, and this time not only is 29...Na5 prevented, but
there is finally an active threat: 30 Rbc2, when after the knight retreats
from c6, 31 Rxc7 wins.} Ne7 {Yusupov finally renounces the plan of ...Na5.} 30.
Kh2 $1 {Having ruled out ...Na5, Karpov now turns his attention to the
kingside, where he has a space advantage thanks to the strong pawn on e5. He
intends 31 g4 as the first stage in the familiar plan of f2-f4 and f4-f5 (as
in Capablanca-Blackburne - see Chapter Five).} Nf5 $2 ({
Objectively speaking, Black should play the waiting move} 30... Rb5) ({or} 
30... c6 {with, according to Karpov, 'a slightly inferior, but perfectly
defensible position'.}) {Yusupov has had enough of the unrelenting defensive
grind on the queenside, and stakes everything on a kingside attack that is
doomed to fail. Even very strong and level-headed grandmasters can crack when
they are subjected to Karpov's seemingly endless positional manoeuvring. After
all, everyone likes to be doing something, and world-class players reach the
top of the tree by winning a lot of games: so it is no wonder that they can't
stand the slow torment of playing Black against Karpov!} 31. Rbc2 $1 {
There is a time for manoeuvring and a time for attack: Karpov goes after the
c7-pawn.} Rg6 {Nonetheless, White has to be careful, as his major pieces are
some way from the defence of his king, and he suffers from a slight light
square weakness - in particular the g2-pawn is a target.} 32. Rxc7 Rxc7 33.
Rxc7 Qb5 34. g4 $1 {The thematic advance is both defensive - sheltering the g2
point against a frontal attack - and aggressive: the black knight is attacked
and, as will soon be seen, has no safe post.} Nh4 (34... Nxe3 35. Qxe3 {
is entirely hopeless, when Black has no more attack and is a pawn down. It's
always better in such cases to take the path Yusupov chooses - risk a quick
loss in the hope that the opponent will slip up.}) 35. Rc8+ Kh7 36. Qd1 $3 {
Once again the white queen proves to be a star on the back rank. She staunches
up the light-squared holes in White's kingside by preventing the black queen
going to e2 or d3 (in the latter case followed by ...Qe4). The black knight is
also kept out of f3, which soon proves fatal for its health.} Qa6 37. Rc2 f5
38. Kg3 $1 {The white king unexpectedly leaves his mansion to feast on the
black knight: a lunch under dangerous conditions, as Nimzowitsch would have
said, but Karpov has everything worked out.} fxg4 39. Kxh4 gxh3 40. f4 $1 (40.
Kxh3 {would have been risky after} Qe6+ 41. Kh2 Qf5 {
, with the threat of 42...Qe4 (Karpov).}) {The move played in the game not
only allows the white rook to join in the defence of the king, but also
prepares to snuff out Black's temporary light square ascendancy with 41 f5.}
40... Qe6 41. Qh5 $1 {Once again the white queen is at her optimum strength
whilst hugging the edges of the board.} Qe7+ 42. Kxh3 Qf7 $5 {The last chance:
Black threatens to check on g3 with a discovered attack on the white queen.}
43. Rh2 $1 {A quiet move but killing, as the white rook defends the queen
after 43...Rg3+ 44 Kxg3.} Qd7+ 44. f5 1-0

[Event "Lanzarote"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2003.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Karpov, A."]
[Black "Illescas Cordoba, M."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D77"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "77"]
[EventDate "2003.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nf3 Bg7 4. g3 O-O 5. Bg2 d5 6. O-O dxc4 7. Na3 c3 8. bxc3
c5 9. e3 Nc6 10. Qe2 Bf5 11. Rd1 Qb6 12. Nd2 cxd4 13. cxd4 Rac8 14. Nb3 Rfd8 {
Black has placed all his pieces on active squares, and is now looking around
for a suitable pawn break to increase their scope. The obvious advance is ...e7-e5, but it is Karpov's move and he played:} 15. Bd2 $1 h5 {Not necessarily
a bad move, though it is the prelude to a second, and more risky, pawn lunge
that follows.} ({White's last unobtrusive little move deters} 15... e5 {, as}
16. dxe5 Nxe5 17. Ba5 {would be awkward for Black. Therefore, Illescas feels
obliged to find an alternative plan and he settles on the vigorous advance of
his kingside pawns.}) 16. Be1 {Another quiet move, but it has the virtue of
uncovering a defence of d4 by the rook on d1, thereby facilitating a future
expansion in the centre with e3-e4 and then d4-d5 etc. It also gives Black the
chance to go wrong.} g5 $6 {
An attacking gesture that amounts to a weakening of Black's kingside pawns.}
17. Nc4 Qb5 18. Rac1 $1 {Chess feels like a lovely game when simple developing
moves are enough to gain the advantage. Now Black has to reckon with White
powering through the centre with 19 e4 and 20 d5, etc.} e5 $2 {Illescas nips a
white pawn expansion in the bud, but despite the complications it eventually
becomes clear that the weakness of the pawns on g5 and h5 ruins Black's
chances.} ({Grandmaster Glenn Flear has suggested the quiet} 18... Bg4 19. f3
Be6 {.}) 19. dxe5 Nxe5 20. Rxd8+ Rxd8 21. Nd4 {The black queen and bishop on
f5 are both hanging, so Illescas has to rely on tactics to stay alive.} Bd3 22.
Qd2 Ne4 (22... Bxc4 {is met by} 23. Nxb5 Rxd2 24. Bxd2 Bxb5 25. Rc5 Nc4 26.
Rxb5 Nxd2 27. Rxb7 {
, 'and critically Black will lose the a-pawn and thus the ending.' (Flear).})
23. Qd1 $1 {The white queen has evaded the attacks, and both the black queen
and the h5-pawn are hanging. Through the mists of tactics we can see the
damage done by the strategic misjudgement 16...g5.} Qa6 24. Nxe5 Bxe5 25. Qxh5
{With the black king wide open, the rest isn't too difficult for Karpov.} Bxd4
26. Bxe4 Bxe4 27. Qxg5+ Kh7 {The only way White could be swindled is on the
light squares if Black managed to get his queen to f3. Therefore Karpov goes
after the e4-bishop.} 28. Qh4+ Kg7 29. Qxe4 Bb2 30. Qg4+ Qg6 31. Bc3+ Bxc3 32.
Qxg6+ Kxg6 33. Rxc3 Rd2 34. a4 Ra2 35. Rc7 Rb2 36. a5 a6 37. Kg2 f6 38. g4 f5
39. h3 {. --- The dubious decisions made by Illescas didn't happen in a vacuum.
Believe me, if you ever sit down to play against the strong Spanish
Grandmaster, you won't beat him just by shuffling your bishop between d2 and
e1. In the meantime he'll prepare a queen sacrifice that leads to smothered
mate. --- On the contrary, Illescas's mistakes were directly influenced by his
opponent. Firstly, with 15 Bd2 Karpov was astute enough to deter him from
playing 15...e5, a more natural pawn advance; and secondly, by introducing
vague fears of a white expansion in the centre with e3-e4 (16 Be1) he
precipitated the loosening pawn advance 16...g5. Illescas felt obliged to do
something, but the only active thing to do turned out badly. --- The moral:
sometimes the threat is stronger than the execution. If Karpov had hurried to
advance his centre pawns Black would have had enough resources to defend; but
by holding them back he gave his opponent enough time to find a remedy that
was worse than the disease.} 1-0

[Event "Moscow"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1971.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Karpov, A."]
[Black "Savon, V."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C82"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "47"]
[EventDate "1971.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Nxe4 6. d4 b5 7. Bb3 d5 8. dxe5
Be6 9. c3 Bc5 10. Nbd2 O-O 11. Bc2 Bf5 12. Nb3 Bg6 13. Nfd4 Bxd4 14. cxd4 {
Here Savon, who incidentally was the 1971 USSR Champion and had an Elo rating
superior to Karpov's at the time this game was played, decided to play
vigorously for an attack on the queenside:} a5 15. Be3 Nb4 16. Bb1 a4 17. Nd2
a3 {White has been pushed around, and it seems that after 18 bxa3 Rxa3 Black
can look to the future with confidence. But the young Karpov came up with one
of his trademark quiet moves:} 18. Qc1 $1 {Simply defending b2, but it is
defence with considerable poison in it, as after 18...axb2 19 Qxb2 Black's
initiative is ebbing and he has problems with the hanging knight and the weak
b5-pawn. Like so many opponents who fell under Karpov's spell, Savon has been
provoked into an attack which his position doesn't have enough resources to
maintain.} Ra6 19. bxa3 Rc6 20. Qb2 Nc2 21. Rc1 $1 {
Calm, quiet, clinical - and killing.} ({White wants nothing to do with} 21.
Bxc2 Nxd2 22. Bxg6 Nxf1 {.}) 21... Nxe3 22. Rxc6 Nxf2 23. Nf1 $1 ({And not} 23.
Kxf2 $4 Nd1+ {, winning the queen.}) 23... Qd7 {Losing a piece;} ({
but Black is also the exchange down after the alternative} 23... Nfg4 {.}) 24.
Nxe3 {. --- A game that is emblematic of the typical 'Karpov' style: White
destroyed his opponent with a series of quiet moves on the back rank: Qc1, Rc1
and Nf1.} 1-0

[Event "6th Matchgame, Sanghi Nagar"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1995.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Karpov, A."]
[Black "Gelfand, B."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A59"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[PlyCount "97"]
[EventDate "1995.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 b5 4. cxb5 a6 5. bxa6 g6 6. Nc3 Bxa6 7. e4 Bxf1 8.
Kxf1 d6 9. g3 Bg7 10. Kg2 Nbd7 11. Nf3 O-O 12. h3 Ra6 13. Bg5 h6 14. Bd2 Qa8
15. Re1 Rb8 16. b3 Ne8 17. Re2 Nc7 18. Rc1 Ra7 19. Qc2 Na6 20. Na4 Nb4 21. Bxb4
Rxb4 22. Qd3 Ra5 {A typical Benko Gambit scenario. White has an extra pawn,
but his knight is offside on a4, and any attempt to recentralize it will lead
to the loss of the a2-pawn: thus if 23 Nc3?!, Black replies 23...Bxc3 24 Rxc3
Rxa2. The chance of White carrying out a successful queenside pawn advance is
therefore slim, not only because of the paralysed knight but also because
there is an array of black pieces opposing him. On the other hand, if the
black queen and rooks are waiting on the queenside, that means they aren't
guarding the kingside or centre, right? Therefore White might consider a plan
such as Nd2, f2-f4, and then Nf3 (again), when he might be able to break
through in the centre with e4-e5 as the prelude to a kingside attack. --- But
still, such a strategy looks both risky and difficult to implement. The black
knight and bishop are both guarding the e5-square, and even if it were
successfully carried out, the e4-e5 advance would weaken the d5-pawn, which
becomes a target of the black queen. We also mustn't forget that the black
rook on b4 might get involved in the battle. --- So what does Karpov do? He
decides to wait patiently for his opponent to weaken his position, and in the
meantime makes some semi-useful manoeuvres.} 23. Rec2 h5 24. Rc4 {Driving the
black rook from b4 means that it will be less well positioned if an e4-e5
breakthrough ever occurred - see the previous note. In contrast, Karpov's next
11 moves can only really be described in vague terms as 'waiting moves' or
'jockeying for position'. --- Meanwhile Gelfand is also obliged to kill time
with a series of 'decent-looking moves'.} Rb8 25. Qd2 Rab5 26. R1c2 R5b7 27.
Qe2 Ra7 28. Rd2 Ra5 29. Rd1 Qa6 30. Rd2 Bh6 31. Rdc2 Bg7 32. Qe3 Qa8 33. Rd2
Ra7 34. Rd1 Rb5 35. Qe2 Rb8 36. Nd2 {
At last a sign of activity from White: the way is cleared for f2-f4.} Nb6 $2 {
Gelfand seems to have been mesmerized by his opponent's placid manoeuvres, and
can't adjust to the sudden change in pace implied by the move 36 Nd2. He may
also have been in time trouble, and it is difficult to keep on doing nothing.
Still, giving up a well-centralized knight for one adrift on the edge of the
board is a rotten decision.} 37. Nxb6 Rxb6 38. a4 $1 {
White's pawns and pieces are now all well coordinated.} Bh6 {This is the idea
behind 36...Nb6: Black threatens 39...Bxd2 and then 40...Rxb3, while after
Karpov's reply he can ram White's kingside pawns. But it soon becomes clear
that the logic of the position is against him. Black cannot hope to prosper
through action on the kingside when none of his major pieces are able to
support it.} 39. f4 h4 ({Black should have made do with something like} 39...
Bg7 {
, but in any case, strategically speaking, his position would have been losing.
}) 40. Qg4 $1 {Gelfand must have missed the strength of this move.} hxg3 41. h4
$1 {Excellent: Karpov ignores the g3-pawn and uses his h-pawn as a battering
ram against Black's kingside.} Kh7 42. h5 Qg8 43. Rc3 $1 {Heading for g3. The
white rooks find it far easier than their counterparts to join in the battle
on the kingside: a natural consequence of the enhanced mobility that a space
advantage confers on pieces. The results are soon fatal for the black king.} f5
44. hxg6+ Qxg6 45. Qh4 $1 {White will only exchange queens on his own terms,
which entail a lethal pin on the black bishop.} Qf6 46. Rh1 fxe4 ({Or} 46...
Qxh4 47. Rxh4 {, intending 48 Rxg3 and 49 Rgh3,}) ({while} 46... Qxc3 47. Qxh6+
Kg8 48. Qh7+ Kf8 49. Qxf5+ {gives White a winning attack.}) 47. Rxg3 Rb4 48.
Qg4 Ra8 49. Rgh3 ({It is carnage, as} 49. Rgh3 Rg8 {is met by} 50. Rxh6+ $1 {
etc.}) 1-0

[Event "Dubai Olympiad"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1986.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Karpov, A."]
[Black "Ribli, Z."]
[Result "1-0"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "1qr1n1k1/1brn1ppp/pp1pp3/8/1PP1PP2/PN1Q2PP/1NR3BK/2R5 b - - 0 30"]
[PlyCount "52"]
[EventDate "1986.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{Karpov has managed to secure a space advantage against Ribli's Hedgehog
set-up. Black can advance neither ...b6-b5 or ...d6-d5, his two typical
breakout moves in this type of centre structure, without dropping a pawn.
Still, Black's position is very solid and it is difficult to see how White can
make any progress. --- But Karpov didn't need to find a plan: he just waited
patiently and let Black ruin his own position. There is a saying by Tarrasch
that Fischer quoted in 'My Sixty Memorable Games': 'If you don't know what to
do, just wait for the opponent to get an idea - it is sure to be wrong!' ---
Here Ribli decided he should be doing something, and as he couldn't advance ...b6-b5 or ...d6-d5, he tried a third pawn advance:} 30... Qa8 31. Nd1 {
Of course, Karpov isn't going to do anything to interfere with his opponent's
intentions.} a5 $4 {Here it is: the instinctive urge to do something that has
driven human progress in the arts and sciences for thousands of years here
proves the undoing of a strategically gifted chess player. Black should simply
wait and ask his opponent, 'Mr Karpov, what do you intend to do here?'} 32. Nd4
{Exactly: the white knight immediately pounces on the b5-square. We know all
about the power of a knight on an outpost in enemy territory from earlier
chapters in this book. Ribli, a one-time World Championship candidate, wasn't
deficient in such strategic knowledge either. But he still couldn't stop his
hands from making his impulsive pawn move.} Rd8 33. Nb5 Rcc8 34. Ndc3 Qb8 {
With the b5-square firmly in his hands, Karpov now realigns his rooks along
the d-file, not only to increase the pressure on the d6-pawn itself but also
to deter any breakout with ...d6-d5.} 35. Rd1 Ndf6 36. Rcd2 h6 37. Qe2 Ba8 {
Ribli may be suffering, but he is still far from lost. It seems that Karpov
will have to work hard and take some risks if he wants to win, as the black
pieces are all ready to spring into action if White loses control. So what
does Karpov do? Will he attempt to engineer a pawn advance g4-g5 on the
kingside to get at the black king, or try to arrange c4-c5 or e4-e5 to crack
the d6-pawn? No: Karpov comes up with the manoeuvre 38 Kg1 and 39 Kh2 - and
wins the game!} 38. Kg1 Bc6 39. Kh2 e5 $4 {Collapsing under the pressure.
Evidently Ribli was keen to put an end to the latent threat of e4-e5, but now
his centre loses all its flexibility.} ({
Again we have to recommend a waiting move such as} 39... Ba8 {.}) 40. f5 $1 {
Such a move would have been very double-edged had the black pawn still been on
e6 in view of the reply ...e6xf5, forcing the recapture e4xf5, when the black
pieces would benefit from the opening of lines in the centre and down the
a8-h1 diagonal. But as things stand, thanks to 39...e5 White can focus his
attention on a kingside assault without needing to loosen his grip on the
centre.} Qa8 41. g4 Qb8 42. h4 Qb7 43. Bf3 Qe7 44. Kg3 axb4 45. axb4 d5 {
A desperate bid for activity before the roof caves in on the kingside.} 46.
cxd5 Bxb5 47. Nxb5 Qxb4 48. g5 $1 {
The tactical sequence that follows had to be carefully calculated by Karpov.}
hxg5 49. hxg5 Nh7 50. d6 $1 {With the threat of 51 d7. Also, on d6 the pawn
takes away the e7 flight square from the black king - a factor that will soon
prove crucial.} Rc5 51. Rb2 Qc4 52. Qh2 $1 {
Preparing a fine mating finish with a queen sacrifice.} Rxb5 53. Qxh7+ $1 Kxh7
54. Rh2+ Kg8 55. Rdh1 f6 ({If} 55... Kf8 {,} 56. Rh8# {
is mate thanks to the pawn on d6 preventing the black king's escape.}) ({
Alternatively if} 55... g6 {,} 56. Rh8+ Kg7 57. R1h7# {.}) 56. Rh8+ ({
Black resigns because after} 56. Rh8+ Kf7 {the king is checkmated by a pawn:}
57. g6# {. It may be a white pawn that administers the coup de grâce, but it
is Black's own restless foot soldiers that were the real cause of his defeat -
31...a5 and 39...e5 showed a fatal lack of discipline. --- So is simply
marking time with moves like Kg1 and Kh2 the key to Karpov's success? No, such
waiting moves have to be combined with prophylaxis - Karpov's meticulous
prevention of the freeing moves ...b6-b5 and ...d6-d5 played a key role in
Black's defeat. At move 31, keen to do something, but with nothing useful to
do, Ribli lashed out with a weakening move. And at move 39, anxious about the
storm clouds gathering over his position, the Hungarian Grandmaster felt
pressured into doing something - but again Karpov had made sure there was
nothing positive for him to do except weaken himself. That is why prophylaxis
may be described as a form of provocation. If you prevent the opponent playing
good moves, he is more likely to play bad moves.}) 1-0

[Event "New York"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1913.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Duras, O."]
[Black "Capablanca, J."]
[Result "0-1"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "5k2/5pp1/R3p2p/8/1r6/7P/5PP1/6K1 w - - 0 38"]
[PlyCount "76"]
[EventDate "1913.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{Duras played} 38. Ra7 {, which appears sensible as it cuts off the black
king's entrance to the game. However, the black king cannot be held back
indefinitely, so this is rather an irrelevant delaying move. ---} ({
Of lasting value would be the seemingly illogical move} 38. Ra8+ $5 {, as after
} Ke7 {White has} 39. g3 $1 {intending 40 h4. Setting up the pawn structure f2/
g3/h4 is now known to be the best way to defend this type of endgame. It makes
it difficult for Black to create a passed pawn. For example,} f5 ({
Black can't respond} 39... g5 {because then} 40. Rh8 {nabs the h6-pawn,
whereas if 38 g3 immediately, Black could have played 38...g5, when after 40
Rh8+ he now has the option of 40...Kg7}) 40. Kg2 f4 41. h4 fxg3 42. Kxg3 $1 {
, and notwithstanding the split pawns White should hold the draw,} ({
while not allowing Black to have a passed pawn as occurs after} 42. fxg3 {.}))
{After Duras's 38 Ra7, Capablanca made slow but steady progress in advancing
his king and creating a passed pawn:} 38... h5 $1 39. g3 h4 {Stopping White
from playing 40 h4. Perhaps 40 g4 would have been the best response, despite
the hole on f4.} 40. gxh4 Rxh4 41. Kg2 {The difference between this position
and the drawing one indicated in the note to move 38 is that Black has pawns
on e6, f7 and g7 here rather than on e6, g7 and h6. This means that, as
Capablanca demonstrates in the game, he has the capacity to create a passed
pawn with an eventual ...e4-e3 supported by a pawn on f4. --- The process is
laborious but fairly easy to understand and so we'll jump forward to move 64.}
e5 42. Kg3 Rd4 43. Ra5 f6 44. Ra7 Kg8 45. Rb7 Kh7 46. Ra7 Kg6 47. Re7 Rd3+ 48.
Kg2 Rd5 49. Kg3 f5 50. Ra7 Rd3+ 51. Kg2 e4 52. Ra4 Kg5 53. Ra5 g6 54. Rb5 Kf4
55. Ra5 Rd2 56. Ra4 Kg5 57. Kg1 Kf4 58. Kg2 g5 59. Rb4 Ke5 60. Rb5+ Rd5 61. Rb8
f4 62. Rg8 Kd4 63. Kf1 Kd3 64. Ra8 e3 {Here Duras played...} 65. Ra3+ $2 ({
According to analysis by Smyslov and Levenfish, White had a last chance to
draw with} 65. Re8 $1 {putting the rook behind the enemy passed pawn. Then} Kd2
66. Re7 Rd3 67. Re5 Kd1 68. Re8 exf2 69. Re5 Kd2 70. Kxf2 {is drawing,} ({
but not} 70. Rxg5 $2 Ke3 $1 {
, defending f2 and threatening a killing check on d1.})) {...and lost after:}
65... Ke4 66. fxe3 f3 $1 {The most clinical, as it ensures that the white king
is trapped on the first rank.} ({After} 66... fxe3 {
White could continue to resist with} 67. Ra8 Rf5+ 68. Ke2 {.}) 67. Kg1 ({
The white king is paralysed: if} 67. Kf2 Rd2+ 68. Kg3 {,} Rg2# {.}) 67... Rd3
68. Ra8 Kxe3 69. Re8+ Kf4 70. Rg8 Rd1+ 71. Kf2 Rd2+ 72. Kf1 ({
Unfortunately for White, if} 72. Kg1 {then} g4 $1 {is a pretty win after} 73.
hxg4 ({or} 73. Rxg4+ Ke3 74. Rg8 Rd1+ 75. Kh2 f2 76. Re8+ Kd2 77. Rf8 f1=Q 78.
Rxf1 Rxf1 {and Black wins}) 73... Kg3 {when mate follows on the back rank.})
72... Rh2 73. Kg1 Rxh3 74. Rg7 g4 75. Rg8 Kg3 ({White resigned, as if} 75...
Kg3 76. Rf8 {, the simplest win is} f2+ 77. Rxf2 Rh1+ 78. Kxh1 Kxf2 {etc and the pawn queens. --- A complicated endgame to understand, but if nothing else
you can at least memorize the drawing method with g2-g3 and h3-h4 and hope
that some of Capablanca's virtuosity rubs off on you.}) 0-1

[Event "San Sebastian"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1912.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Duras, O."]
[Black "Nimzowitsch, A."]
[Result "0-1"]
[Annotator "Neil McDonald"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "8/1R3pp1/4pk2/4r2p/7P/6P1/5P2/6K1 b - - 0 33"]
[PlyCount "69"]
[EventDate "1912.??.??"]
[Source "Everyman Chess"]
[SourceDate "2012.05.18"]

{Duras has been able to set up the drawing pawn chain f2/g3/h4. All the same,
you would expect Nimzowitsch to push some pawns and try to advance his king.
Instead he engaged in some extremely tedious and senseless manoeuvres:} 33...
Ra5 34. Kg2 Ra8 35. Kf3 Re8 36. Rb5 Kg6 37. Rg5+ Kh6 38. Ra5 Re7 39. Rb5 {
Now Nimzowitsch came up with a quite novel strategy: to give a check on a3,
then b3, then c3...} Ra7 40. Rc5 Ra3+ 41. Ke2 Ra7 42. Kf3 Rb7 43. Ra5 Rb3+ 44.
Ke2 Rb7 45. Kf3 Rc7 46. Rb5 Rc3+ 47. Ke2 Rc7 48. Kf3 Rd7 49. Ke3 {Spoiling Nimzowitsch's fun by preventing a check on d3. Nimzowitsch finds another way to
bore his opponent:} Rd1 50. Ra5 Kg6 51. Rg5+ Kh6 52. Ra5 Rb1 53. Rc5 Ra1 54.
Rb5 Ra4 55. Rc5 Ra8 56. Rb5 Rh8 57. Rg5 $4 {Driven to distraction by his
opponent's utterly pointless moves, White lets his rook be shut in.} f5 $1 58.
Kf4 Ra8 59. Ke5 Ra6 $1 {Suddenly White is in zugzwang. His king has to retreat,
after which the black rook gets to the fifth rank with check.} 60. Kf4 Ra4+ $1
61. Ke5 ({If} 61. Kf3 {,} Rg4 {forces a king and pawn endgame.}) 61... Re4+ 62.
Kd6 g6 63. f3 ({Or} 63. Ke7 Kg7 {
etc. With the white rook paralysed, Black can win as he pleases.}) 63... Re3
64. g4 fxg4 65. fxg4 Rg3 66. gxh5 Rxg5 67. hxg5+ Kxh5 {. --- This was an
extreme example, but 'doing nothing but doing it well' is a strategy that is
often rewarded with remarkable success. Would Duras, a doughty defender, have
lost the game from the 'ideal pawn structure' if he hadn't been hypnotized by
Nimzowitsch's moves?} 0-1

