Hot Topics: chessbase magazine - page 1

The mysterious rook

12/6/2019 – From the diagram position, White has a remarkable way to bring to bear his g1-rook without even moving it! Can you think of what followed?

The last pawn

12/3/2019 – The endgame K+R+B against K+R is a theoretical draw. Therefore, the better side should take good care of its pawns before this endgame is reached.

Ding Liren through the microscope

11/30/2019 – Grandmaster Ding Liren needs no introduction. The young, unassuming talent from China has fans all over the world. He particularly distinguishes himself in blitz games. In the just concluded Tata Steel India Tournament, he beat Carlsen twice and came third after Nakamura and the world champion in the blitz event. PROF NAGESH HAVANUR takes a closer look at some of his games. | Photo: Lennart Ootes / Grand Chess Tour

The missing h-pawn

11/29/2019 – The missing h-pawn in the diagram position spells trouble for the black king, but in order to access it White needs to display some creativity. Be my guest!

Bodycheck

11/26/2019 – In pawn endings it is often crucial to stop the enemy king from getting to good squares. Here, the "bodycheck" is an important device that is good to know and to remember.

Petrov queen sac

11/22/2019 – Following 27.Rg5+! in the diagram position, the weakness of the dark squares will soon prove fatal for Black's king. A queenless mate attack - enjoy!

Catching pawns

11/19/2019 – Knights are versatile but slow. Sometimes they even have difficulty catching a single pawn.

A knight for a knight

11/15/2019 – In the diagram position White, being a pawn down, delivered a surprising strike: 18.Nxh7. Can you see how after 18...Kxh7 he intends to regain the Nb8 by force - or even better, how Black refutes the idea in the end?

In a choke

11/11/2019 – In a pure endgame a rook is usually much better than a bishop but winning often still requires good technique.

Asking for it

11/8/2019 – In the diagram position White had just played 12.Rac1 which didn't really threaten anything ... until Black replied 12...f6?? How would you take advantage of the new situation?

A luckless pawn

11/5/2019 – Usually, having material is good. However, sometimes one's own pieces are in the way or prevent stalemate ideas. In the diagram belowm how can Black save the draw?

A Maroczy unbound

11/1/2019 – In the diagram position the central pawns c4 and e4 guarantee White a typical space plus. But if he wants to play for an advantage, 12.b3 is not the way to go. Why?

A knight that changes sides

10/29/2019 – Knights are versatile and often cover surprisingly large areas of the board.