Endgames from Düsseldorf (1)

by Karsten Müller
2/23/2023 – A new super-tournament is taking place in Düsseldorf, with five vetted GMs facing five raising talents. Karsten Müller is keeping a close eye on the event, and has sent us a number of fascinating endgames, annotated. Find here six instructive positions. Time to learn and enjoy! | Photo: Lennart Ootes
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Rook against two knights

The fight rook against two knights can be very deep and is very difficult to play over the board. Andrey Esipenko ended up beating Vincent Keymer with the rook, but it was not straightforward at all.

 

Invite everyone to the party

Levon Aronian is having a great tournament in Düsseldorf. In round 4, he drew Jan-Krzysztof Duda with black after activating his rooks just in time in a double-edged position.

 

Opposite-coloured bishops

A remarkable battle was seen in the first round. Anish Giri and Gukesh reached a position with asymmetrical pawn structures, bishops of opposite colours and rooks. Deep analysis proved that Giri missed a chance to win the game.

 

The cut-off

King activity is often crucial in endgames, like Levon Aronian demonstrated in his round-1 game against Praggnanandhaa.

 

Queen and knight on the attack

Queen and knight are a strong attacking duo. White (Jan-Krzysztof Duda) cannot win here as Black’s (Ian Nepomniachtchi) counterplay is sufficient to draw.

 

A mighty weapon

The pair of bishops can be a mighty weapon in an endgame. Especially if the unopposed bishop is strong.

 

Let endgame expert Dr Karsten Müller show and explain the finesses of the world champions. Although they had different styles each and every one of them played the endgame exceptionally well, so take the opportunity to enjoy and learn from some of the best endgames in the history of chess.

Links

Karsten Müller is considered to be one of the greatest endgame experts in the world. His books on the endgame - among them "Fundamentals of Chess Endings", co-authored with Frank Lamprecht, that helped to improve Magnus Carlsen's endgame knowledge - and his endgame columns for the ChessCafe website and the ChessBase Magazine helped to establish and to confirm this reputation. Karsten's Fritztrainer DVDs on the endgame are bestsellers. The mathematician with a PhD lives in Hamburg, and for more than 25 years he has been scoring points for the Hamburger Schachklub (HSK) in the Bundesliga.

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