Endgames from Astana

Using the active notation

You might be inclined to believe the game notations below are just to be looked at and the moves to be played through in your mind. But as most of you know you can click on the moves to get a separate replay board, which you can resize and move to the best place on your screen.

Magical Chess Endgames Vol. 1 & 2 + The magic of chess tactics

In over 4 hours in front of the camera, Karsten Müller presents to you sensations from the world of endgames - partly reaching far beyond standard techniques and rules of thumb - and rounds off with some cases of with own examples.

The popup board has full controls, and you can use the navigation buttons to advance the moves, as well as use an engine or save the game or position to your computer. In the engine window you can ask for multiple lines, or what the threat is, or see the positional evaluation of the position. 

Mutual zugzwangs

Zugzwang is one of the sharpest endgame weapons. And at times both sides can potentially make use of it. As was the case in the game between Polina Shuvalova and Zhu Jiner from round 4.

New queens for both sides

After opening, middlegame and endgame comes the fourth phase of the game, when both sides queen. The main guideline is that the first check wins! Check out this example from the encounter between Vaishali Rameshbabu and Elisabeth Paehtz.

The danger of far-advanced passed pawns 

Far-advanced passed pawns can be very powerful in an endgame. They might be so powerful that they justify giving up a rook to continue pushing them down the board. That is exactly what Tan Zhongyi did to beat Bibisara Assaubayeva in the eighth round.

The rook belongs behind the passed pawn

Vaishali played an excellent game against Aleksandra Goryachkina, but she failed to take advantage of her extra pawns in a rook endgame. In this case, as in many others, placing the rook behind the passed pawn was the way to win.

Master Class Vol.14 - Vasily Smyslov

Smyslov cultivated a clear positional style and even in sharp tactical positions often relied more on his intuition than on concrete calculation of variations. Let our authors introduce you into the world of Vasily Smyslov.

Links

• Topical endgames: Meltwater | Saint Louis
• Endgames from Miami: 1 | 2 | 3
• Endgames from Chennai: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4
• Endgames from Madrid: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5
• Notable endgames: Biel, Dortmund, Zagreb