Festive violence

by Jonathan Speelman
12/20/2020 – “I couldn’t easily decide on what to do for the last column of this very difficult year and eventually fell back on some cheerful ultra-violence”, writes Jon Speelman. Our star columnist analyses the two most famous games by Rashid Nezhmetdinov and presents a couple of studies by French composer Henri Rinck. | Speelman’s photo: David Llada
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Nezhmetdinov and Rinck

[Note that Jon Speelman also looks at the content of the article in video format, here embedded at the end of the article.]

I couldn’t easily decide on what to do for the last column of this very difficult year and eventually fell back on some cheerful ultra-violence. It’s the sort of chess which is wonderful to watch from a distance and would be delightful to dish out but deeply unpleasant to be on the end of. And who better to follow than the wonderful Rashid Nezhmetdinov with his two most famous games?

Henri RinckI’ve recently played through a few studies by Henri Rinck [pictured] and have added these as well. The first I took longer to solve than I should, and indeed a very strong student I was working with beat me to the punch. The second was sufficiently “study-like” that I saw the key move pretty quickly (without really bothering to check the side variations).  

The next column will be on January 3rd 2021, and I thought that we might look back at some of the best games and/or game extracts from 2020 which I’ll give my take on. Perhaps readers would like to suggest what they’d like to see in the comments section, or you can email me directly at jonathan@jspeelman.co.uk.

A Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to everybody. Let’s hope that 2021 is less dire than 2020.

Rashid Nezhmetdinov’s masterpieces

 
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MoveNResultEloPlayers
1.e41,186,70654%2421---
1.d4960,56055%2434---
1.Nf3286,91356%2440---
1.c4185,11556%2442---
1.g319,90256%2427---
1.b314,60954%2428---
1.f45,95948%2376---
1.Nc33,91950%2383---
1.b41,79148%2379---
1.a31,25254%2406---
1.e31,08149%2409---
1.d396950%2378---
1.g467046%2361---
1.h446654%2382---
1.c343951%2425---
1.h328956%2420---
1.a411860%2461---
1.f310047%2427---
1.Nh39366%2506---
1.Na34762%2476---
1.d4 For some reason, when I lifted this from Megabase, there were a couple of rather general annotatons in French together with a reasonable quantitity of variations. I've rewritten the general stuff myself, and added a few lines too. Nf6 2.c4 d6 3.Nc3 e5 4.e4 4.Nf3 is more common. Black can try e4 5.Ng5 but Bf5 6.g4 Bxg4 7.Bg2 is a bit better for White. I played this once as Black against Kasparov and it went a lot better than most of my games against him. Be7 8.Ngxe4 Nxe4 9.Bxe4 c6 10.Qd3 Bh5 11.Qh3 Bg6 12.Bxg6 fxg6 13.Bf4 0-0 14.e3 Na6 15.0-0-0 Nc7 16.Kb1 a6 17.Ne4 g5 18.Bg3 Qe8 19.Ka1 Qg6 20.Qg2 Ne8 21.Rdg1 b5 22.c5 dxc5 23.Nxc5 Bxc5 24.dxc5 Rd8 25.h4 gxh4 26.Rxh4 Rd2 27.Rd4! Re2 28.Qh1 Qc2 29.Rb1 Qxc5 30.Qe4 Nf6 31.Qe6+ Kh8 32.Be5 h6 33.Rh1 Rxf2 34.a3 Qc2 35.Rdh4 Qg6 36.Qxc6 Qf5 37.Rf4 Rxf4 38.exf4 Kh7 39.Rg1 Rf7 40.Qxa6 b4 41.Qc4 Nd7 1/2-1/2 (41) Kasparov,G (2750)-Speelman,J (2625) Belfort 1988 4...exd4 5.Qxd4 Nc6 6.Qd2 g6 7.b3 Bg7 8.Bb2 0-0 9.Bd3 Ng4 10.Nge2 Megabase recommended Nf3 10.Nf3 Nge5 11.Be2 Nxf3+ 12.Bxf3 Nd4 13.h4!? Nxf3+?! but there's no need for this at all. 13...h5 14.0-0-0 a5 is fine for Black 15.Nd5 15.Ne2 Nxe2+ 16.Bxe2 a4 15...c5 14.gxf3 Qf6 15.0-0-0 Be6 16.f4± 10...Qh4 10...Nce5 11.Bc2?! Bh6 11...Qh4 11.Ng3 Nge5 12.0-0 f5
13.f3 This allows f4, after which Nezhmetdinov quickly develops a very dangerous attack. Instead 13.exf5 Qd4 14.Rad1 Nxd3 Not 14...Qxd3? 15.Qc1 15.Nge2 Qe5 16.Qxd3 Bxf5 17.Qd2 looks about equal. 13...Bh6 14.Qd1 f4 15.Nge2 g5 16.Nd5 g4 17.g3 Necessary.since if 17.Nexf4 Bxf4 18.Nxf4 gxf3 19.g3 Qg4 Black develops a huge attack without any material investment. 17.Nxc7 g3 18.hxg3 18.h3 Bxh3 splat! 18...fxg3 19.Nxg3 Be3+ 17...fxg3 18.hxg3 Qh3 19.f4 Be6! As the French annotaitons say (approximately), "Here the fun starts". Not 19...Nf3+? 20.Kf2 Qh2+ 21.Ke3 and Black is a tempo too slow. 20.Bc2 20.Nxc7 Bxf4! 20...Rxf4 also works 21.gxf4 21.Nxf4 Qxg3+ 22.Kh1 Bxf4 23.Rxf4 Qxf4 24.Nxe6 Qh6+ 21...g3 21.Rxf4 21.gxf4 g3-+ 21.Nxf4 Qxg3+ 21...Rxf4 22.Bxe5 Nxe5 23.Nxa8 23.Nxe6 Rf6 23...Rf7 Splat! 23...Rf6 24.Nc7 20...Rf7 21.Kf2 Qh2+ 22.Ke3 Bxd5 23.cxd5 23.Qxd5 Nb4 24.Qd1 Re8 25.Rh1 Nxc2+ 26.Qxc2 Rxf4! 27.Rxh2 Rf3+ 28.Kd4 Nc6+ 29.Kd5 Nb4+ 30.Kd4 c5# 23...Nb4 24.Rh1
Apparently 24.a3! holds according to engines. Houdini then gives Nxc2+ 24...Rxf4 25.gxf4 Qh3+ 26.Kd2 Nf3+ 27.Kc1 simply doesn't work 25.Qxc2 Qh3 26.Kd2 Nf3+ 27.Kd3 Qg2 28.Rh1 24...Rxf4‼ This beautiful move is completely forced, Of course Polugaevsky must have been hoping that it didn't work, but with the king forced to d4 it's not a surprise that it does. 25.Rxh2 25.gxf4 Bxf4+ 26.Nxf4 Nxc2+ 27.Qxc2 Qxc2 28.Bxe5 dxe5 29.Nd3 Qc3-+ should win pretty easily. 25...Rf3+ 26.Kd4 In fact Black can now fairly prosaically win with a line starting with c5+ followed by b5, but who wouldn't play the "quiet" Bg7 eyeing up his White majesty! Bg7‼
The French annotations quote Mikhail Notvinnik, who said that nobody saw combinations like Nezhmetdinov. In fact, Black could also win with the much more prosaic ...c5, but who could resist the quiet move with his White majesty so hopelessly leading the charge. 26...c5+ 27.dxc6 b5 28.Bd3 Nexc6+ 29.Kc3 Bg7+ 30.Kd2 Rxd3+ 31.Ke1 31.Kc1 Rxd1+ 32.Kxd1 Bxb2 31...Rxd1+ 32.Rxd1 Bxb2 27.a4 To prevent b5, closing the mating net, but Nezhmetdinov now found a forced sequence. In fact, Ng1 was a better chance: 27.Ng1 Rxg3! When the engine insisted on this , at first I couldn't understand why it was so important for Black to capture the g3 pawn, but then I followed the line and the penny dropped that the point is not to make f4 available but to open the diagonal from e5 to h2. 27...Ned3+ 28.e5 Bxe5+ 29.Kc4 Nxb2+ 30.Kxb4 Nxd1 31.Bxh7+ Kg7 32.Rxd1 is better for White 28.Ne2 Rf3 29.Ng1 Ned3+ 30.e5 Forced, to threaten Bxh7+. If 30.Kc4 Nxb2+ 31.Kxb4 Bc3+ 32.Ka3 b5 33.b4 a5 34.Ba4 axb4+ 35.Kb3 Nxd1 36.Rxd1 36.Nxf3 Ne3! 36...Re3 winning easily. 30...Bxe5+ 31.Kc4 31.Ke4 31...Nxb2+ 32.Kxb4 Nxd1 32...Bc3+ 33.Ka3 b5 34.Bxh7+ Kg7 35.Rxb2 33.Nxf3 gxf3 34.Bxd1 Bxa1 with excellent winning chances. 27...c5+ 28.dxc6 bxc6 29.Bd3 Nexd3+ 30.Kc4 d5+ 31.exd5 cxd5+ 32.Kb5 Rb8+ 33.Ka5 Nc6+      
And since 33...Nc6+ 34.Ka6 Rb6# is mate, Polugaevsky resigned. A quite magnificent example of sustained violence. 34...Ndb4# Which is prettier? 0–1
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Polugaevsky,L-Nezhmetdinov,R-0–11958A53RSFSR-ch 18th
Nezhmetdinov,R-Chernikov,O-1–01962B35Rostov on Don
Speelman,J-Martin,A-1–01982A38BCF-ch6
Petrosian,T-Spassky,B-1–01966E66World Championship 26th10

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Rashid Nezhmetdinov, Kavi Nadzhmi

Rashid Nezhmetdinov (left) with his brother, Kavi Nadzhmi | Source: kazan.aif.ru, retrieved from Douglas Griffin’s webpage

Two studies by Henri Rinck

 
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1.b3+ Kc5 2.Rh5 2.Nf6? Qg2 2...e5 3.Ng5 with a very pretty zugzwang 3.Nf6? Qg2 3...Qg2 3...Qd1 4.Ne4+ Kd5 5.Nc3+ 3...Qg8 4.Ne4+ Kd5 5.Nf6+ 3...Qd3 4.Ne6+ Kd5 5.Nf4+ 3...Qd2 4.Ne4+ 3...e4 4.Ne6# 4.Ne6+ 1–0
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Rinck,H-White to play and win-1–019331.p tn17
Rinck,H-White to play and win-1–019332.p tl35

In this first part, the emphasis is on themes and ideas as the viewer is armed with tactical and positional motifs and concepts after 1 e4 c5 2 Nf3 d6 3 d4 cxd4 4 Nxd4 Nf6 5 Nc3 g6.

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Jonathan 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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