The Chess Mind

A chess acquaintance and reader of this blog played a game with a very nice finish the other day and wanted me to see it. I'm glad I did, and am happy to pass it along to you.



Black's king is in big trouble, and there is more than one way for White to win. But what's the fastest and most elegant means to that end? The solution may not be so difficult, but it is (1) attractive, (2) was found in a blitz game, and (3) was found without someone standing there telling him to look for something special.

The answer is available if you click below.

In this post, I presented the following position:


Kaidanov-Anand, Moscow 1987

It's Black to move, faced with the simple but significant threat of 25.Qh8#. What should he do? The answer, along with comments to this entire, most interesting game, are here.

Gregory Kaidanov is one of the U.S.'s strongest grandmasters, though over the past few years he has spent more time as a trainer than a player. He just turned 50 this past Sunday, and to commemorate the occasion we'll have a look at one of his biggest scalps:


Kaidanov-Anand, Moscow 1987

White sacrificed a piece several moves ago, and now threatens 25.Qh8#. What should Black do? Try to support your conclusion with variations.

The solution will be given tomorrow.

This is not from the super-GM event, but a concurrent women's tournament. Here's the position:



It's White to move in the game Shen Yang - Zhu Chen; Black has just played 25...Na5. Assess the position, trying to get the most you can out of White's game.

The answer, and the whole game, are here.