2/16/2015 – Each "New in Chess Magazine" contains 106 pages full of chess: portraits, interviews, chess history, tournament reports, book reviews, and lots of material to improve your chess. In the "Just Checking" questionnaire "New in Chess" asks chessplayers to reveal tastes, thoughts, fears, and convictions. ChessBase author and editor Alejandro Ramirez gave the answers.
Winning starts with what you know The new version 18 offers completely new possibilities for chess training and analysis: playing style analysis, search for strategic themes, access to 6 billion Lichess games, player preparation by matching Lichess games, download Chess.com games with built-in API, built-in cloud engine and much more.
Tata Steel 2025 with game analyses by Praggnanandhaa, Abdusattorov, Giri and many others. Opening videos by Ganguly, Blohberger and King. 10 opening articles with new ideas for your repertoire. Special on Korttschnoj and much more!
€21.90
Cover of the 2015/1 "New in Chess" issue
The "Just Checking" Column
What is your favourite colour?
Some shade of blue.
What kind of food makes you happy?
Mexican aguachile, Peruvian ceviche, Sichuanese Hot-Pot. I like spicy and full of flavour. Please no bland Euro-food.
And what drink?
What drink or how many?
What is your favourite book? A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson.
And your all-time favourite movie? Amélie, with Audrey Tautou.
Who is your favourite chess player?
As a chess player, Kasparov always struck me as what every chess player should strive to be. However, to relax, have a drink and go over a chess game with, the best player by far is Morozevich.
Is there a chess book that has had a profound influence on you?
I read Think Like a Grandmaster maybe 30 times when I was nine years old. I’m not sure if that was a good thing or not. Benko’s Endgame Laboratory compilation book is the reason I knew endgames as a kid.
What was the most exciting chess game you have ever seen?
Morozevich-MVL from Biel 2009 is the most WTF game I’ve ever seen.
New ...
New Game
Edit Game
Setup Position
Open...
PGN
FEN
Share...
Share Board (.png)
Share Board (configure)
Share playable board
Share game as GIF
Notation (PGN)
QR Code
Layout...
Use splitters
Swipe notation/lists
Reading mode
Flip Board
Settings
Move
N
Result
Elo
Players
Replay and check the LiveBook here
Please, wait...
A lot has already been said about this game, but fortunately there still
remain many tricky moves to explain!1.e4c52.Nf3d63.d4cxd44.Nxd4Nf65.Nc3a66.f3e67.Be3b58.Qd2Nbd79.g4h610.0-0-0b4I decided to
play a different variation from the one I chose against Nakamura recently in
San Sebastian.10...Bb711.h4b412.Na4Qa513.b3Nc514.a3Rc811.Nce2Qc712.h4d5Up until this point there has been absolutely nothing new,
though at that moment Morozevich began to think for 25 minutes. Nevertheless,
I thought it was probably some kind of bluff because I had already played this
variation and coming into this variation unprepared would be tantamount to
suicide...13.Nf4!NProving that I was right. Though this strong
novelty doesn't seem to deliver a crushing blow to a variation in which Black
anyway doesn't seem to be in trouble, it is really unpleasant to face it over
the board.e5!Clearly the best practical choice. I thought about it for a
while to check that at every turn I could have a back-up variation, in case my
calculations were wrong at some point.I think I had planned to play13...dxe414.Nfxe6fxe615.Nxe6Qc616.Nxf8Nxf816...Rxf8?!17.g5!Nh518.gxh6gxh619.Bxh617.Qxb4exf3if he had played 13.Nf4, but I didn't
take this move seriously enough and so I didn't check the variation thoroughly.
It was over the board that I realised that this position was extremely
dangerous, e.g :18.Bf2!?Be618...Nd519.Qd4Ne720.Qxg7Rg821.Qe5Rxg422.Bd319.Rd6Qe420.Rd4Qe521.Bd3All the white pieces
are converging on Black's king which is unsafe everywhere. Furthermore, some
pawns can fall at anytime, and so the position is very difficult to play, even
though it is probably OK if Black plays well.14.Nfe6The obvious
continuation of the novelty.fxe615.Nxe6Qa516.exd5Qxa217.Qd3Here I
got lost in thought, seeing that my first idea was losing by force... Except
that it didn't lose !Kf7?I was not keen on17...e4because of18.Qd4!18.fxe4?Ne518...Bd619.Bc4b3!20.f4Qa1+21.Kd2Qa5+22.c3Qa223.Ke2!Here one can feel that something is wrong: my queen
is out of play and my king unsafe. The kingside pawns are going to roll
forward with crushing effect (beginning with g5).17...Ke7?18.d6+!Kxe618...Kf719.Qc4!Qxc420.Bxc4Kg620...Rb821.Ng5+Ke822.Bf7+Kd823.Ne6#21.h5+Kh722.g5+-19.Qc4+Qxc420.Bxc4+Nd521.Bxd5+Kxd622.Bxa8++-17...Bb7!was probably the strongest, but I thought
that after18.Qg6+18.g5!?is a very interesting idea which offers the
opportunity to keep on playing, even though aftere4!19.Nc7+!?19.Qc4Qxc420.Bxc4hxg521.hxg5Rxh122.Rxh1Nxd523.Bxd5Bxd524.Nc7+Kf725.Nxd5exf3=19...Kd820.Ne6+Ke821.Qd4!?hxg522.Nxf8Nxf823.Bc4Qa524.Bxg5N8d725.fxe4Qa1+!25...Qc5?26.e5!Qxd427.Rxd4Nh728.Bd2±is clearly bad: soon there will be 3 pawns all threatening to queen.26.Kd2Qa5probably holds; I don't see a better idea (even if it's still
possible to play on a piece down with some compensation) than to take a draw
with27.Kc1Qa1+28.Kd2Qa5=18...Ke719.d6+!Kxe620.Bh3!I
was just lost, but after the very cool20.g5?Qa1+21.Kd2Qxd1+!22.Kxd1Bxf3+23.Kc1Bxh1-+20...Qa1+!20...Bd5?21.g5+Kxd622.gxf6Nxf623.Rxd5+!Qxd523...Kxd5?24.Qf7++-24.Rd1+-21.Kd2Qa5!White has no other choice but to repeat moves.22.Kc122.Ke2?Qb5+23.Kf2Bd5!24.g5+Kxd625.Bxd7Kxd726.gxf6gxf6-+And Black just
remains a piece up...22...Qa1+=18.g518.Nd8+?didn't work, and
I had even seen the best continuation for Black :Ke7!19.Nc6+Kd6!20.Nxb4?20.Nd8!Ke7=And Black gets at least a draw.20...Qa1+21.Kd2Qxb222.Qc4Bb723.Ke1Rc824.Nc6Kc7!18...Nxd519.Bh3!
Here I saw that my problems were anything but over!Nxe3Probably the best
practical choice, even though this move loses by force.19...N7f6was my
idea when playing 17...Kf7, but after20.Nd8+Kg820...Ke8?21.Qg6+Kxd822.Bb6+Ke723.gxf6+gxf624.Bc5+Kd825.Qxf6+21.gxf6Nxf6I had
rightly thought22.Bf1!was the only move. The only problem was when I
understood it was winning because of the threat 23.Qc4+, e.g :Bf522...Be723.Nc6!+-22...e423.Qc4+Qxc424.Bxc4+Kh725.Nf7Rg825...exf326.Ng5+!hxg527.hxg5+Kg628.Rxh8Ng429.Rxf8+-26.Ng5+Kh827.Bxg8Kxg828.Nxe4+-23.Qxf5Qa1+24.Kd2Rxd8+25.Bd3+-with a winning
attack.20.Nd8+Ke7!20...Ke8was the best choice according to the
computer, but only at the beginning. In fact il loses automatically after21.Bxd7+Kxd822.Bxc8+!First the computer thinks this leads to draw.22.Be6+Nd523.Bxd5Qa1+24.Kd2Qxb225.Bxa8+±leaves some hope for Black.22...Kxc822...Nd523.Be6Rb824.Qe4!Qa1+24...Rb525.Qxe5!+-25.Kd2Qxb226.Ke2!+-with a winning attack.23.Qd8+Kb724.Rd7+Kc625.Rc7+Kb626.Rc8+Kb527.Rxa827.Qd7+Ka528.Qc7+Kb529.Qb7+Ka530.Rxa8+-is probably simpler.27...Qa1+28.Kd2Nc4+29.Ke2Qxh130.Qd7+!Kb631.Rb8+!Kc531...Ka532.Rb5+‼axb533.Qa7#32.Rc8+Kb633.Rc6+Ka534.Qc7++-21.Nc6+Kf722.g6+!The simplest, and perhaps the
most powerful, although there was a well-hidden spectacular win.22.Be6+‼Kxe622...Qxe623.Nd8+Ke724.Nxe6Kxe624...Nxd125.Rxd1!+-25.Qxe3+-and the lack of coordination among Black's pieces leaves him no hope
of saving the game.23.Qg6+Nf624.gxf6gxf625.Qe8+Kf526.Nd4+!Kf427.Ne2+Kf5Here I had thought this was a draw, but...27...Kxf328.Qc6+!+-28.Rd4‼+-The move we probably had both missed. Both threats (29.
Ng3# and 29.Rf4+ exf4 30.Qe4#) are simply too strong.22...Kg822...Kf6?23.Qd6+!Bxd624.Rxd6+Qe625.Rxe6#23.Qxe3Bc524.Qe4!The
simplest, and what I was expecting.24.Be6+!Qxe625.Qxc5Bb725...Qxg626.Rxd7!Kh727.Nxe5+-26.Ne7+Kf827.Rxd7Qxd728.Nc6+Kg829.Qc4+Kf830.Rd1!Qc731.Qc5+Ke832.Rd6+-is another brilliant win, but is
as tough to foresee as 22.Be6+.24.Qxc5?Qa1+25.Kd2Qxd1+26.Rxd1Nxc527.Bxc8±is still better for White, but 24.Qe4 is just much stronger.24...Nf825.Rd8Bb7Losing on the spot, but there was no other choice.25...Bxh326.Rxa8Be627.Qxe5!Qd528.Re1!Qxc629.Qxe6+Qxe630.Rxe6+-is totally hopeless.26.Rxa8?Here Morozevich misses probably the
simplest shot for a win, even though it is not completely obvious. I had also
missed it.26.Rxf8+!Bxf826...Kxf827.Qf5+!Kg828.Qxe5+-26...Rxf827.Qxe5Bc828.Bxc8Rxc829.Qxc5+-27.Qxe5Bc828.Qe8+-26...Bxa827.h5!The logical follow-up, my pieces are all tangled up, and so
I'm still lost !27.Rd1??Bxc628.Qxc6Be3+29.Rd2Qa1#27.Bf1!?Bxc628.Bc4+Ne6!29.Qf5!Be3+30.Kd1Bxf3+31.Qxf3Qb1+32.Ke2Qxc2+33.Kxe3Qxg634.Rf1+-and despite being 3 pawns down, the Ne6 is going to be
lost, leaving a winning ending for White because Black's pawns are going to
fall.27...Rh7!A strong defensive move, played because of the necessity
of giving up the h8-square for the king; otherwise I'm just going to be mated
one way or another.28.Re1Bxc6Unfortunately the only move...28...Kh829.Qxe5!+-29.Qxc6Bd430.Kd2?!30.Kd1!Bxb231.Bf5Bc332.Ke2!Bxe133.Qc8!wins on the spot :Kh833...Bc334.gxh7++-34.Qxf8+Qg835.Qxg8+Kxg836.gxh7+Kh837.Kxe1+-30...Qxb231.Qc4+Kh8
Black's Rh7 is buried alive. And it will remain there for a while. Indeed why
would White take the rook instead of continuing to have mating threats?32.Kd3!a5An interesting try, but best was32...Qa3+!33.Ke4Qa5with
some counterplay with the queen coming back into play.33.Qc8?After
this move, I'm not worse anymore !33.f4!Bf233...Qc3+34.Qxc3Bxc335.Re4!Kg836.Rc4+-34.Ke2!Qa335.Kxf2Qxh336.Rxe5Qh4+37.Ke2Qd838.Qf7Qc839.Re8+-33...Qa3+34.Ke4b335.cxb3a4!Maybe the
move in the game of which I'm the most proud... and it was found in big time
trouble.35...Qb4?36.Rc1Bc5+37.Rc4!Qe1+38.Kd5±36.Rb1A
very dangerous move.36.bxa4Qb4!36...Bf2!=is also a draw
because 35...a4 opened the third rank!37.Rc1Bc5+!and 38.Rc4 is no
longer possible.38.Kd5Qd4+39.Kc6Qd6+40.Kb5Qb6+=36...Qb436...Qd6!?is an interesting try for the win, but it is not enough :37.bxa4Bc538.Rd1!Qxd139.Qxc5Qe2+40.Kd5!Qxf3+41.Kc4e442.Bf5!=37.Qc4!Qb7+38.Qd5Qb438...Qxd5+??39.Kxd5a340.Rc1!a241.Rc8+-39.Qc4Qd2!?40.Bg4?The decisive mistake, on move forty.40.Qc8!Qe2+41.Kd5Qb5+42.Ke4=And the best choice is to get the draw.40...a3!-+41.Qf7Qc2+42.Kd5Qc5+43.Ke4a244.Rc1a1Q!45.Rxc5Bxc5
Now I'm a rook and a knight up. So, it's all over, even if Black loses the
rook, isn't it?46.Qd5!?Qe1+47.Kd3Qd1+48.Kc4Qxd5+49.Kxd5Ba3?!
The following endgame is still winning, but I had a simple tactical shot:49...Nxg6!50.hxg6h551.Bh3Rh652.Kxc5Rxg653.b4Rg3-+wins
easily, because even if the rook has to be sacrificed for the b-pawn, the 3
remaining pawns helped by the king will win as White's king will be far from
the kingside.50.Bf5!50.Kxe5?Nxg6+!51.hxg6h5-+50...Kg851.Kxe5Obviously White doesn't take the rook, or else the win is easy with a
knight up and all the pieces back in play.Rh8Finally the rook remains
alive after having been en prise for 24 moves. It will even deliver the final
blow!52.Kd5!Here I understood that I couldn't free my rook and my king
without leaving White with a strong passed pawn on h7.Nh7!52...Nxg6??53.Bxg6Kf854.Ke6=Even without the b3- and f3-pawns, White would draw
easily!53.gxh7+Kf754.Bg6+Kf6Here I was still 90% sure that the
position was winning, as the winning idea is easy to find: stalemate White's
king to force the Bg6 to move, when g5 wins because the rook is freed from the
protection of the h8-square. In fact it's even easier to apply than I thought
it was during the game.55.f4Bc1!I want to get the e5-square for the
king.56.f556.b4!?To push the b-pawn was maybe the most interesting,
but afterBxf457.b5Rb8!58.Kc6Ke759.b6Bh260.b7Rh8White
will be in zugzwang: either Black's king comes to the queenside, or Black can
play g5...61.Kb661.Bb1g5!62.hxg6Kf6-+61...Kd662.Bf5g5!63.hxg6Be564.Bc864.Ka7Kc7-+64...Bd4+!-+56...Bd257.Kd6Be158.Kd7Bb4!Cuts White's king off from the kingside before taking the pawn
on b3, leaving White no counterplay.59.Kc7Ke560.Kd7Ba361.Kc6Kd462.Kc7Kc363.Kd7Kb4The first zugzwang of the game; I prevent unnecessary
counterplay.63...Kxb364.Bf7+Kc365.Bg8Kd466.Ke6Ke467.f6gxf668.Kxf6Kf4!69.Kg6Bb2-+was also winning anyway.64.Kd6Kxb3+65.Kd5Bb266.Kd6Going to the kingside didn't change anything:66.Ke4Bf667.Bf7+Kc368.Bg668.Bg8Kd269.Kf4Kd370.Kf3Kd471.Kf4Be7-+68...Kd269.Kf3Kd370.Kf2Ke471.Ke2Rd8!72.Kf2Rd2+73.Ke1Bc3!74.f6+Kf3-+66...Bf667.Kc5Kc368.Kd6Kd469.Kc669.Ke6Kc570.Kf7with
stalemate ideas, doesn't work:Kc6!71.Ke6Rd8!72.Kf772.Bf7Rd6#72...Kd673.h8QRxh874.Bh7Rxh7-+69...Rd8!70.Kb670.Kb5Kd571.Bf7+Kd672.Bg6Rc8!73.Kb4Kd574.Bf7+Kd475.Bg8Rb8+-+70...Kd5!Zugzwang!71.Kc771.Bf7+Kd672.Bg6Rb8+-+71...Kc572.Bf7g573.fxg6Rd674.Be8Be575.Kb7Rb6+76.Kc8Kd6A very exciting game, but also
quite frightening! I experienced all sorts of states of mind during this game,
and even if I think I got quite lucky, I also found all the moves to remain
alive in the game.0–1
What is the best chess country in the world?
Probably still Russia, though I hope some other country takes up this baton soon.
What are chess players particularly good at (except for chess)?
Thinking they are right when they are not, and making a compelling case for it.
Do chess players have typical shortcomings?
They generally know nothing outside of chess. This, of course, has strong exceptions, as there are players with immense cultural and academic knowledge, but they seem to be the exception that confirms the rule more than anything else.
What is it that you appreciate most in a person?
Honesty. Also, and relevant since I’m from Latin America, punctuality has never hurt anyone.
What is it that you dislike in a person?
Ambivalence.
Who or what would you like to be if you weren’t yourself?
I like being myself actually. How about myself and some extra money in the bank account and a house in WaikikiBeach?
Which three people would you like to invite for dinner?
John Oliver, Rex Sinquefield and Elizabeth Warren would be a nice hotpot.
Is there something you’d love to learn?
Chinese, dancing Salsa, how to cook more ethnic food, how to differentiate one wine from another… come on, there’s so much in this world…
What is your greatest fear?
Hurting people I care about due to stupidity.
What would you save from your house if it were on fire?
My cats!
How do you relax?
If I ever feel too relaxed, I start up Hearthstone or Starcraft and get my stress levels up. I do enjoy the occasional read or binge-watching anime.
Is a knowledge of chess useful in everyday life?
Up to a point. Tournaments teach harsh life lessons fast in a brutal but civilized way, while solving puzzles seems to keep a brain active. Knowing the latest theory on the Najdorf? Not so much.
What is the best thing that was ever said about chess?
‘You can check out any time you like, but you can never leave!’ Wait, maybe that was about something else…
Alejandro Ramirez at the US-Championship 2012
The "Just Checking" column comes at the very end of each magazine. The cover story of the current issue of New in Chess is "Miguel Najdorf: A Life of Tragedy and Triumph". Adam Feinstein looks back on an exciting life full of ups-and-downs.
Portrait of Miguel Najdorf
The issue also includes reports about the Qatar Open, the Mind Games festival in Beijing, musings of Nigel Short who told what happened in his "Burmese Days", book reviews by Matthew Sadler, and much more.
Chess Festival Prague 2025 with analyses by Aravindh, Giri, Gurel, Navara and others. ‘Special’: 27 highly entertaining miniatures. Opening videos by Werle, King and Ris. 10 opening articles with new repertoire ideas and much more.
Experts examine the games of Max Euwe. Let them show you which openings Euwe chose to play, where his strength in middlegames were, which tactical abilities he had or how he outplayed his opponents in the endgame.
This interactive video course of over 8 hours, provides an in-depth exploration of the Pirc Defence, a favoured opening for people looking to play for the win with the black pieces.
Pirc Defence Powerbase 2025 is a database and contains a total of 10027 games from Mega 2025 or the Correspondence Database 2024; of these 874 are annotated.
The Pirc Defence Powerbook 2025 consists for a greater part of engine games (168 000), to which has been added high value material from Mega and the Correspondence Database (115 000).
The free app from ChessBase! ChessBase Mobile has everything you need as a chess player on the go:
access your chess data in cloud databases - and 13 million games.
€0.00
We use cookies and comparable technologies to provide certain functions, to improve the user experience and to offer interest-oriented content. Depending on their intended use, analysis cookies and marketing cookies may be used in addition to technically required cookies. Here you can make detailed settings or revoke your consent (if necessary partially) with effect for the future. Further information can be found in our data protection declaration.
Pop-up for detailed settings
We use cookies and comparable technologies to provide certain functions, to improve the user experience and to offer interest-oriented content. Depending on their intended use, cookies may be used in addition to technically required cookies, analysis cookies and marketing cookies. You can decide which cookies to use by selecting the appropriate options below. Please note that your selection may affect the functionality of the service. Further information can be found in our privacy policy.
Technically required cookies
Technically required cookies: so that you can navigate and use the basic functions and store preferences.
Analysis Cookies
To help us determine how visitors interact with our website to improve the user experience.
Marketing-Cookies
To help us offer and evaluate relevant content and interesting and appropriate advertisement.
