Solitaire Chess / Instruction
Averbakh Plays the Averbakh System One of the great endgame specialists shows his versatility in the opening.
By BRUCE PANDOLFINI
AMONG HIS MANY ATTRIBUTES, RUSS- ian Grandmaster Yuri Averbakh (born in 1922) is known, along with Grandmaster Pal Benko, as being among the great authorities on endgame play. His out- standing works include Chess Endings: Essential Knowledge, a wonderfully terse book much admired for the simplicity of its presentation, and a much more complete offering, the five-volume Comprehensive Chess Endings, generally considered as state of the art. But Averbakh has also dis- tinguished himself with novelty in opening theory. Indeed, the Averbakh System of the King’s Indian is his creation. We get a sense for Averbakh’s inventiveness in his game against Oscar Panno (Black), played in Buenos Aires in 1954. Relying on Aver- bakh’s King’s Indian line, the game began:
King’s Indian Defense, Averbakh Variation (E74) GM Yuri Averbakh IM Oscar Panno
ARG-URS, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 1954
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Be2 0-0 6. Bg5 c5 7. d5 a6 8. a4 Qa5 9. Bd2 e5 10. g4 Ne8 11. h4 f5
Sometimes points are also rewarded for second-best moves, and there may be bonus points—or deductions—for other moves and variations. Note that ** means that the note to Black’s move is over and White’s move is on the next line.**
12. h5 Par Score 5
This insures the opening of the h-file. It’s certainly better than taking on f5 (worth only 2 points part credit).
12. … f4 Black tries to keep the kingside closed.
Accept 1 bonus point if you intended to answer 12. ... gxh5? with 13. gxf5, pick- ing up the h-pawn at your leisure.**
13. g5 Par Score 6 Averbakh threatens to put Black’s king-
bishop out of play by playing h5-h6, forcing it to retreat to h8.
13.
f8.** 14.
… Bg4 Rf7 Black makes a space for the bishop at Par Score 5 White opts to trade light-square bishops.
Add 1 bonus point if you had it in mind when playing 13. g5.
14.
game.** 15.
15. Now make sure you have the above posi-
tion set up on your chessboard. As you play through the remaining moves in this game, use a piece of paper to cover the article, exposing White’s next move only after trying to guess it. If you guess cor- rectly, give yourself the par score.
44 October 2014 | Chess Life 16. 16. … Bxc8 … Nf3 … 17. Ke2 Qd8 Panno brings his queen back into the Par Score 4
White follows through on his plan. Black now has light-square weaknesses.
Qxc8
Black tries to cover up his light-square weaknesses with this queen recapture.**
Par Score 5
White develops his king-knight, while Black relocates his king-bishop.
Bf8 Par Score 6
Averbakh clears the back rank so the
heavy pieces can triple on the h-file. Add 1 bonus point if you realized that with the interlocking center pawns the white king will be perfectly safe on e2.
17. 18. …
Black vacates f7 for his king.** Rh4
Rg7 Par Score 5 White starts the tripling process; the
rook moves up the h-file, making h1 avail- able to the queen.
18. 19.
… hxg6 Nd7 Par Score 4 White could also play 19. Qh1 (full
credit). The capture on g6 is on the menu anyway.
19. … hxg6 Black concedes the h-file, but if the
pawn stays on h7 (after 19. ... Rxg6), it is just going to be attacked.**
20. Qh1 Par Score 4 Doubling precedes tripling. Meanwhile,
Black opens f8 for his knight, to cover h7 and g6.
20. 21.
21. … Rh8+ … 22. Qh6 22. … Be7 Par Score 5
White penetrates to the back rank, while giving the queen room to move up.
Kf7 Par Score 5
By moving up the file, White makes making h1 available to his queen-rook.
Nf8
And this retreat has been prepared by Black’s previous bishop move (20. ... Be7).**
23. Rh1 Par Score 4 Add 2 bonus points for noticing the
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