6/21/2020 – Jonathan Speelman explores an overriding aim in most endgames — the promotion of passed pawns. He explains: “One could see this as a form of parthenogenesis, as the piece (like Athena from Zeus's head) springs fully formed onto the board, sadly and inevitably killing the pawn in the process”.
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A case of parthenogenesis
[Note that Jon Speelman also looks at the content of the article in video format, here embedded at the end of the article.]
After two weeks of death in the form of Reginacide we move on this week to rebirth: the promotion of passed pawns.
As far as I know, pawns have no sexual organs so one could see this as a form of parthenogenesis, as the piece (like Athena from Zeus’s head) springs fully formed onto the board, sadly and inevitably killing the pawn in the process: though perhaps metamorphosis would be a better metaphor.
Either way, the promotion of passed pawns is the overriding aim in most endgames and also features very heavily in some middlegames, endgame studies and problems.
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Every experienced chess player must at one time or another have suffered at the hands of a vicious passed pawn which totally changed the course of the game. This can lead to scarring and I’m beginning in a moment with a game which made me very wary of enemy infantry.
In a perfect world, it shouldn’t have had any long term effects, but even today, nearly 50 years later, I feel that I remain slightly over-concerned about enemy passers, and this can have an effect both on your level of risk-taking in the middlegame and endgame and choice of openings. For instance, I’ve hardly ever played the Grünfeld, a lovely opening but one which invites White to set up a passed d-pawn. Of course this can be weak or strong, but in the abstract it tends to give me mild conniptions as I imagine a vile late middlegame with a queen and rook each and the d-pawn deep in my guts — rather than a delightful ending in which my king in Venus-Flytrap mode digests the delicious morsel.
In any case, here first is a cautionary tale which begins with trapping the enemy queen but ends in disaster. I included it in my Best Games book (since it had such a formative effect) and I’m reproducing the notes here with just a couple of additions. (I have a feeling I may have used it in this column before but can’t find it in my list.)
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1.e4I'm publishing this traumatic game, partly for its therapeutic value. Following my the previous year in the Challengers, this marked the beginning of the tournament a year later, when I racked up the princely total of 3.5/10 - the collapse was to a great extent due to the trauma of the present encounter. Although I didn't play the opening well, I was quick: the one clock time I recorded shows me more than an hour ahead after 17 moves. Then my opponent played a desperate blunder, hurling his queen into a man (or woman) trap whence there was no escape. Queen for rook ahead and with a considerable time advantage, it looked like I should have been home and dry. But the blunder turned out to be, if not sound, at the very least inspired: for his rooks bishop and passed pawns were able to create enormous problems for my defenders. The conclusion, with it's initial double blunder in which I played a move losing immediately but he returned the compliment; and then he was still able to a promote s "space invader": left a scar, in the shape of a slight over-evaluation of such resources, whiich I am only exorcising today in April 1997: Though in the calm light of day it is clear that Black did have legitimate chances even before I allowed things to get out of hand.c52.Nc3e63.g3Nc64.Bg2Nf65.d3Be76.f4d57.e5Nd78.Nf3Rb89.a4a610.0-00-011.Kh1b512.axb5axb513.d4Steering into
something rather like the "Classical Variation" of the French.b414.Ne2Qb615.Re1cxd416.Nexd4Nc517.Be3Qc755 - 2:06!18.Nxc6Qxc619.Nd4Qc720.Qe2Ne421.Rf1Bc522.Nb3Bxe323.Qxe3
23...Qxc2??
Whte may have a pull but this is desperate. The lady is now devoured in just a
few moves.24.Rac1!Qxb225.Bxe4dxe426.Rf2Qa327.Ra1
27...Rd828.Rxa3One should always consider alternatives, even to a move as obvious as
this. But delaying capturing the lady doen't help since after28.Rd2Rxd2!29.Qxd2Bb7threatening ...e3+ White is forced to commit his queen to d629...g630.Qd6Ra831.Rxa3bxa3reaching an inferior version of a line he
could have in the game.28...bxa3
Despite or rather because of Black's
blunder the position has become extremely interesting. In formal material
terms, a rook and two pawns are totally insufficient compensation for the
queen. But both are passed and potentially extremely dangerous. The white
knight, at present en prise to ...Rd3 lacks an accessible support point; and
h1 is the very worst square which one could reasonably choose for the king. On
the other hand, Black's back rank is still vulnerable: so that he will have to
spend an invaluable tempo making "luft" in many lines. Somewhat to my surprise,
I have found no absolutely clear line for White but ratherbelieve that he can
choose between two rather unclear endings. Many lines lead to a generic
position with Black's bishop on d5 supporting the a pawn on a2, blockaded by
the knight on a1. Normally, Black will have shed his passed e pawn to arrange
this so the battle will be between the remaining major pieces. Lacking a
psssed pawn or any immediate target for the queen, White must try either to
penetrate with his king towards e7; or more likely a kingside attack probably
involving f5-6 followed by somnething on the black squares. Obviously only
White can be better but I'm not sure if it's enough. It seems that after the
game continuation, White could also force an ending with queen knight and
initially three pawns against queen and three. In order to evade perpetual,
White would have to jettison the g pawn but this would still leave queen
knight f4 and e5 against queen and four. White would have attacking chances
but on the other hand the passed h pawn might become a serious problem. It's
interesting to consider how the evaluation of the position would change if
either position were improved. With the White king on g1, I'm sure he'd be
winning: while if Black had played ...h6 then I believe that he would
correspondingly be quite comfortable.28...Rd1+?29.Kg2bxa330.Qa7!Rxb331.Qa429.Nc5!Trying to dominate the bishop and quite possibly the
best move.29.Rd2Rxd229...Bb7?!Black at best gets an inferior
version of the generic position mentioned above.30.Rxd8+Rxd831.Qa731.Qb6Rd732.Nc5?32.Kg1h632...e3+33.Nxb7e234.Qa5Rd1+35.Kg2h531...Ba8!is the only defence.31...Bd5?32.Qxa331...Bc6?32.Qc7Rd1+32...e3+transposes33.Kg2Be834.Qb8Kf835.Qb4+Kg836.Qxa3e337.Qa8Kf838.Kf3+-31...e3+?is what Black wants to play but the
back rank is his undoing.32.Qxb7e233.Qe4!Rd1+34.Kg2e1Q34...e1N+35.Kh3+-35.Qa8+32.Kg1e333.Kf1Bf334.Qxe3Bd5reaches the
generic position, though in a form where White has more tempi than usual. He
might, for instance, play35.Na1a236.g430.Qxd2g630...Bb731.Qb4e3+32.Kg1a233.Qb6g6!33...h634.Qc7Ra835.Qxb7a1Q+36.Nxa1Rxa1+37.Kg2e238.Qc8+Kh739.Qc2+34.Na1Kg735.Qxe335.Qa7Rd8-+35...Bd5
36.Qc336.Qd4Rb1+37.Kf2Rh138.h4Rh2+39.Ke3Rg236...Rb1+37.Kf2Rh138.h438.Ke3Rxh239.Kd4h540.Kc5Rh341.Kd6h442.Ke7hxg343.Qc8Rh8-+38...h539.Ke3Rd131.Kg231.Qa2Ra832.Nc5Ra531...Kg732.Qc3a233.Na1Black has even kept the e-pawn.29.Nc1Rb230.Kg2Bb731.Kh331.Na2g631...Rd332.Qa732.Rxb2Rxe333.Rxb7g534.Kf2Rf3+35.Ke2gxf436.gxf4Rxf437.Rb3Rf332...e3+33.Kh3g634.Rxb2axb235.Qxb7e231...Rxf231...Bd5?32.Rxb2axb233.Qb632.Qxf2Bd529...Rb2!30.Rxb2??30.Kg2a230...Rxf2+31.Kxf2a232.Qa3Rd2+33.Ke3Rc234.Nxe431.Qa3Rdd2!32.Rxd2Rxd2+33.Kh3e3!
34.Qa8!I thought that this didn't work until I checked it with an
engine much later.34.Qxe3?!Rxh2+!34...a1Q35.Qxd2Qf1+35...h536.Qd8+Kh737.Qxc8Qf1+38.Kh4Qe239.h335...g636.Ne4Qa337.Qd8+Qf838.Nf6+Kg739.Ne8+36.Kh4g6!37.Ne4!37.Qd8+Kg738.Qxc8Qe2=37...Kg738.Nf6h639.Qd8g5+40.fxg5hxg5+41.Kxg5Qf5+42.Kh4Qxe543.Nh5++-35.Kxh2a1Q36.Qd2
34...h635.Qxc8+Kh736.Nb3e237.Qc1Rb238.Qxb2e1Q39.Qxa235.Ne4‼In earlier analysis I looked at Qxc8+, but when I looked again in 2017
Houdini pointed out that this is winning by improving the knight first:35.Qxc8+Kg7Of course White can easily draw by perpetual but he doesn't seem to
have more since the two passed pawns are just too much.35...Kg735...Rc236.Nd636.Nf6Rc237.Qa437.Ne8+Kf837...a1Q37...Bb7to prepare
Rc838.Ne8+Kg838...Kh639.Qa339.Nd6Rc840.Nxc8Bxc841.Qxa237...Bd738.Nxd7e239.Qa838.Qxa1e239.Qa5Bb740.Ne8+Kg841.Nd6Bg2+42.Kh4+-30...axb2?30...Rd1+!31.Kg2axb2wins immediately!31.Qb3e332.Kg2?32.Nd3e233.Qxb233.Kg2?Rxd334.Qxd3e1N+33...Rxd334.Qxe2Bb7+35.Kg1Rd8and White is better since he can try to
mount a kingside attack. But without any queensdie left it must be drawn.32...e233.Kf2Rd134.Kxe2Rh1!35.Qb8h5!and not35...h6?36.Qxc8+Kh737.Nd7b1Q38.Nf8+Kg839.Nxe6+Kh740.Nf8+=36.Qxc8+Kh7
A queen and knight for a rook and pawn ahead, White is totally lost.37.Qb8b1Q38.Qxb1+Rxb139.Kf3Rb240.h3Ra241.Ne4Ra3+42.Kg2Kg843.Ng5Kf844.Kf2Ke745.Kg2f646.exf6+gxf647.Ne4Re348.Nf2Kf70–1
There are any number of examples of rampaging passed pawns and rather than take them too seriously I searched the MegaBase for positions with black pawns on d2 and e2. Those suffering from the relevant unnamed phobia (any suggestions for a new coinage readers?) should look away.
But I also found several hundred more, including one real game (a couple of kids played a game in a world under-16 championship where both sides got connected centre pawns on the seventh rank, but they were messing around) in which Black got pawns on e2 and d2 and resigned after White got passers on d6 and e6!
To conclude, a lovely study by the Polish mathematician and study composer Jan Rusinek.
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1.h8Q+Qxh82.g7+Qxg73.hxg7+Ke7
The study can start here, but in that
case there is no promotion to a queen. Over-the-board chess players tend to
prefer this version but apparently problem composers and solvers tend to
prefer to start here since the added introduction burns too many pieces too
qucikly and is too "unrealistic"!4.a7Ba6+5.b7Ne46.g8N+Ke87.Nf6+Nexf68.a8BNe59.Kb8Nc6+10.Kc8Bf111.b8RBa6+12.Rb7½–½
Apparently (after consulting a glossary) this is an example of an Allumwandlung — a problem or study in which there is promotion to all possible pieces (in fairy chess there would be more than the standard four).
If you want to play successful chess you must pay great attention to the endgame. On this DVD, Rustam Kasimdzhanov analyses the type of practical endgames which tournament players encounter on a daily basis. He explains what has to be known in order to make the correct strategic decisions and to find the correct plan in such endings. Kasimdzhanov’s outstanding and easily understandable explanations will certainly help you to substantially improve your own performance in the endgame.
Jonathan SpeelmanJonathan Speelman, born in 1956, studied mathematics but became a professional chess player in 1977. He was a member of the English Olympic team from 1980–2006 and three times British Champion. He played twice in Candidates Tournaments, reaching the semi-final in 1989. He twice seconded a World Championship challenger: Nigel Short and then Viswanathan Anand against Garry Kasparov in London 1993 and New York 1995.
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