Open and Shut
Shaun Press
One of my earliest chess books was 12.Bc4! The key move in the attack
The World’s Great Chess Games by 12...Nd4 [12...Kg6 13.Nxa8 at least
Reuben Fine. It contained brief allows Black to extend the game.;
biographies of the great players 12...Na5 13.Nxf6+ Nxc4 14.Nfd5+ Kg8
throughout history, and a selection of 15.Nxa8+-] 13.Nxf6+ d5 14.Bxd5+
their games. Annoyingly there were Kg6? [14...Ke7 was a much better
very few brevities, but I did manage to move. Analysis by Zukertort and
find a few. Maroczy was unable to find a forced
Morphy,P - Anderssen,A [B44] win for Morphy. 15.Qh5 gxf6
Match (9), 1858 (15...Nxc2+ 16.Ke2 gxf6 17.Qf7+ Kd6
1.e4 c5 2.d4 cxd4 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.Nxd4 18.Nxa8 transposes.) 16.Qf7+ Kd6
e6 The Taimanov variation, named over 17.Nxa8 Nxc2+ 18.Ke2 Nxa1 19.Rc1
90 years after this game was played. Not considered at the time. 19...Qe7
5.Nb5 d6 6.Bf4 e5 A move strongly 20.Rxc8 Qxf7 21.Bxf7 exf2 22.Nc7
criticised by Fine, yet today it is Ke7 23.Bd5 Bg7 24.Rxh8 Bxh8
considered the best choice for Black. 25.Bxb7±] 15.Qh5+! Kxf6 16.fxe3
7.Be3 f5? This is the move that does Nxc2+ 17.Ke2 and Black resigned
deserve criticism. Once again Morphy's rather than be hunted down.[17.Ke2
opponents neglect development and pay Nxa1 (17...Qxc7 18.Raf1+ Ke7
the price. [7...Nf6; 7...a6; 7...Be6 are all 19.Rf7+ Kd8 20.Rxc7+-) 18.Rf1+ Ke7
playable.] 8.N1c3 f4 [8...Nf6 9.Bg5 19.Qxe5+ Kd7 20.Be6+ Kc6 21.Rc1+
shows Whites control of d5 eg 9...Be6 Kb6 22.Qb5#] 1–0
(9...Be7? 10.Bxf6 gxf6 11.Qh5++-)
10.Bxf6 gxf6 11.Qh5+ Bf7 12.Qxf5 a6 Janowsky,D - Schallop [D21]
13.Nd5! axb5 14.Nxf6+ Ke7] 9.Nd5! Nuremburg, 1896
fxe3 10.Nbc7+ Kf7 11.Qf3+ Passing 1.d4 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.Nf3 c5 4.e3 cxd4
up material to keep the attack going. 5.exd4 Bg4 6.Bxc4 e6 7.Qa4+ Nc6
11...Nf6 8.Ne5 Offering the d pawn for rapid
development. 8...Qxd4 [However Black
would have done well to refuse the gift
with 8...Bb4+ 9.Nd2 Bxd2+ 10.Bxd2
and only now take the bait 10...Qxd4
11.Nxc6 Qe4+ 12.Be3 bxc6] 9.Nxc6
Qe4+ 10.Be3 bxc6 [10...Qxc6??
11.Bb5+-] 11.Nc3 Qxg2 12.Bd5!! The
winning shot 12...exd5 13.Qxc6+ Kd8
14.Qxa8+ Kd7 15.Qb7+ Ke6
Retreating would have been more
circumspect. 16.Qc6+ Bd6 17.Bf4!
Offering both Rooks in return for an
unstoppable mate. 1–0 10.0–0 cxb2 11.Rb1 dxe5 12.Nxe5
Gruenfeld,E - Bogolyubov,E [E10] Bd6 13.Nxf7! Kxf7 14.Qh5+ g6
Vienna, 1922 [14...Kf8 isn't adequate as White mates
1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 e6 3.c4 c5 4.d5 b5 after 15.Rfe1 Bd7 16.Re3! Kg8 17.Rf3
5.Bg5 h6 6.Bxf6 Giving up the two g6 18.Bxg6] 15.Bxg6+ hxg6 16.Qxh8
Bishops for greater central control. Bf5 17.Rfe1 Be4 18.Rxe4 [18.Qf6+
6...Qxf6 7.Nc3 b4 8.Nb5 Na6 9.e4 also forces mate] 18...dxe4 19.Qf6+ 1–
Qxb2 Once again a quick loss can be 0
blamed on an early Queen excursion. Bisguier,A - Larsen,B [B07]
Zagreb, 1965
1.d4 g6 2.e4 Bg7 3.f4 d6 4.Nf3 Nf6
5.Bd3 0–0 6.0–0 Nbd7 7.e5 Ne8 Black
seems determined to curl up into a tight
little ball. 8.Qe1 c5 9.f5! dxe5 10.fxg6
hxg6 11.Qh4 going all out. 11...exd4
12.Bh6 Nef6 13.Ng5 Ne5 [13...Qb6
was a better move, forcing White to
prove that the attack is more than bluff.
14.Nd2 e5 15.Nde4! is the way to
continue. 15...Nh5 16.Bxg7 Kxg7
17.Bc4 gives White the advantage, but
not a quick knockout.]
10.Bd3 Qf6 [Black should have
tempted White with the line 10...exd5
11.exd5 Be7 12.Rb1 Qxa2 (12...Qf6
13.d6 Bd8 is a position White would be
keen to reach.) 13.Ra1 Qb2 14.Rxa6?!
Bxa6 15.Nc7+ Kd8 16.Nxa8 Bb7
where the coming ending favours
Black] 11.e5 Qd8 [11...Qe7 12.Nd6+
Kd8 13.Qa4±] 12.dxe6 dxe6 [12...fxe6
13.Bg6+ Ke7 14.Qd6#] 13.Be4 Qxd1+
14.Rxd1 Rb8 15.Bc6+! Ke7 16.Nxa7
Now White will win material due to the
tangle of pieces on Black's queenside.
16...g5 17.Bb5! Bg7 Deciding to end it 14.Rxf6! Bh8 [14...Bxf6 15.Bg7!
all. 18.Nc6+ Kf8 19.Rd8# 1–0 mates.] 15.Rf1 [15.Bg7? Kxg7
Keres,P - Winter,W [B29] 16.Rxf7+ Nxf7 17.Qh7+ Kf6 18.Qxg6+
Warsaw, 1935 Ke5 looks fatal for Black, but the King
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.e5 Nd5 4.Nc3 e6 isn't caught so easily.; but 15.Bxg6 is
[4...Nxc3 5.dxc3 d5 gives Black more direct. 15...Nxg6 16.Rxg6+ fxg6
equality.] 5.Nxd5 exd5 6.d4 d6 7.Bg5! 17.Bxf8+-] 15...Re8 16.Bf8! Bf6
Qa5+ 8.c3 cxd4 9.Bd3 Once again 17.Rxf6! exf6 18.Qh6 Rxf8 19.Qh7#
development over material 9...dxc3 1–0
