The Practical Endgame / Instruction Horns and legs
Each month GM Naroditsky will present two problems taken from actual games that illustrate the theme of this month’s column. Your task is to find the best line of play. Problem I should be solveable by a player at roughly a 1500 rating and Problem II by a player roughly at a 2000 rating.
See the solutions on page 71. WHITE TO MOVE WHITE TO MOVE
PROBLEM I: 1500 LEVEL GM Daniel Naroditsky (2628) IM Puranik Abhimanyu (2442) Qatar Masters, Doha, 12.24.2015
PROBLEM II: 2000 LEVEL IM Daniel Naroditsky (2472) GM Robin Van Kampen (2592) Philadelphia Open, 03.29.2013
Kd7 47. Ka5 Kc7 48. b4, and White will break through with b4-b5 (note that it is not important to continue calcu lating; it is clear that Black is on the verge of losing, so we will return to this position only if there are no better alternatives). Plugging the hole with 45. ... Kc7 loses to 46. Kd4, while 45. ... a5 seems to entail dire consequences after 46. Kd4 Ke6 47. c3 Kf6 48. b4 axb4 49. cxb4 and White crashes through with b4-b5, creating a deadly outside passer. It is entirely possible that Black can salvage
a draw within these complications (and she can, as we will see), but it is clear that she is hanging by a thread in every line. As a consequence, there is simply no reason not to at least consider declining the trade.
Step 2. There are obviously two ways of declining the trade: Black can retreat with his queen, or block the diagonal with 44. ... d4. Even without calculating a single variation, the first option does not seem particularly appealing: something like 44. ... Qg6 allows 45. Qe5, when White attains total domination. Once again, the objective evaluation ceases to matter until we have considered all the alternatives. Indeed, after 44. ... d4 45. Qd3 Kc7 we have another kettle of fish entirely. Black’s queen is ideally placed, and White’s own dame cannot depart her post on account of ... d4-d3+. White’s only conceivable way to make progress is by expanding on the queenside, but following 46. b4 Kb8 Black simply shuffles his king back and forth, and White has no way to make progress. For instance, 47. Kb1 (47. Kb3 Qe6+ 48. Qc4 Qe3+ 49. Kb2 Qxf4) 47. ... Kc7 48. b5 axb5 49. axb5 cxb5 50. Qxb5 Qa6 and White is the one who must tread cautiously.
And there it is, folks. Regardless of the com -
puter’s evaluation (which has little bearing in a game between two humans, unless one of them is cheating), 44. ... d4 is the move that maximizes Black’s chances for success. The game, of course, took a very different turn:
To me, finding a move of this sort several
moves deep into one’s calculations is a tremen- dously difficult task, even if it does not seem
44. ... Qxc3+?! Make no mistake: this move does not throw
the draw away, but it compels Black to find several very difficult ideas in succession, a tall order even for elite grandmasters. On the other hand, 44. ... d4 would have essentially “forced” Black to find the correct moves, since he physically cannot do anything but move his king around!
45. Kxc3 h5??
that way when the computer runs in the background. Indeed, White appears to triumph with 49. bxa5 (49. b5 Kf6 leads nowhere) 49. ... Kf6 50. c4 dxc4 51. Kxc4 Ke6 52. Kb4, when the threat of a6 looks devastating. But Black saves the day with 52. ... Kd5!, and the pawns promote simultaneously: 53. a6 bxa6 54. Ka5 Kxc5 55. Kxa6 Kd4! (but not 55. ... Kb4?? 56. a5 c5 57. Kb6 c4 58. a6 c3 59. a7 c2 60. a8=Q c1=Q and 61. Qa5+ picks up the f5-pawn and the game) 56. Kb6 c5 57. a5 c4 58. a6 c3 59. a7 c2 60. a8=Q c1=Q and it is time to shake hands. So, now does it make sense that 44. ... d4 was a more sensible move?
46. Kb4! The king reaches a5, and it is all over. The
presence of the pawn on c2 gives White a crucial extra move, which he will use to place Black in Zugzwang at the right moment.
46. ... Kc8 47. Ka5 Kc7 48. h4! Zugzwang numero uno!
After the game, commentators seemed
incred ulous that a player of Hou’s caliber did not find the path to a draw: 45. ... a5! 46. Kd4 Ke6 47. c3 Kf6 48. b4 and now, instead of the aforementioned (and outwardly forced) 48. ... axb4, Black simply ignores the “threat” with the paradoxical 48. ... Ke6!!
48. ... Kb8 49. Kb6 Kc8 Black has no choice but to passively await
her fate, since after 49. ... d4 White wins with 50. b4 Kc8 51. b5 axb5 52. axb5 cxb5 53. Kxb5 Kc7 54. Kc4, picking up the pawn.
50. b4 Kb8 51. b5 cxb5 52. axb5 axb5 53. Kxb5 Kc7 54. c3, Black resigned.
Zugzwang numero dos, and it is all over.
After every king retreat, White picks up the d5-pawn with Kb6 followed by c5-c6.
In almost every column, I have mentioned
the importance of remaining objective. While the pursuit of objective excellent should be the primary goal of every aspiring chess player, we should also occasionally acknowledge our own fallibility. It is our job as humans to find ways to limit the pos si bility of a mistake, even if it means occasion ally sacrificing a modicum of objectivity.
www.uschess.org 47
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