Chess
Interzonal 1
Raymond Keene
The two Interzonal tournaments in Riga and Brazil form the second stage of the three-yearly World Championship cycle. Roughly forty players qualify from zonal tournaments, which are held on a geographical basis, to make up the Interzonals, and the top three from each of these, together with the losing finalist of the previous Candidates' series (Spassky) and the defeated World Championship challenger (Korchnoi) will form the eight-player Candidates' tournament in 1980. The eventual winner of these knockout matches goes on to challenge Karpov in 1981.
The Interzonals constitute, therefore, an extremely important event, and this year, for the first time since 1962, when Harry Golombek competed at Stockholm, a British player is involved. Tony Miles is in the Riga section, supported by his second, Jon Speelman, whose subsidiary function is to supply the Spectator column with regular information on the progress of the competition. The position as we go to press is that after 5 rounds Tony has 2i points out of 4 and a lost position against Kuzmin, having defeated Rodriguez and Tseshkovsky, lost to Polugayevsky and drawn with Romanishin.
The most impressive start, however, was made by ex-World Champion, Mikhail Tal, who is still capable of 'immense, acts of destruction' (as Speelman eloquently put it In his cable to me). Tal leads with 4i/5 and has disposed of Tseshkovsky, Romanishin, Polugayevsky and Kuzmin! I cannot conceive of any chess enthusiast who would not put Tal in his list of those one would most like to see qualify.
The other main contenders are Ribli, Larsen, Ljubojevic and possibly Gheorghiu, who seems to be in tremendous form this year. Miles still has a fair chance, since his present score includes four games against Russians. It is sad to see that Hort and Kavalek have both had to withdraw. The reasons for Hort's absence are decidedly obscure (could it be connected with his present sojourn in West Germany away from his native Czechoslovakia?). But Kavalek's excuse is clear enough — a broken leg. It is to be hoped that a place may be found for him in Brazil, where the second Interzonal commences in a week and a half.
He is certainly number one on the reserve list.
Tseshkovsky — Mlles: Riga Interzonal-Round 2, Sicilian Defence.
1 P-K4 P-04114 2 N-KB3 P-Q3 3 P-Q4 PxP 4 NxP N-KB35 N-Q113 P-KN3WhileI was in New York last week, the American Grandmaster William Lombardy made a comparison between Miles's style and that of the aggressive Frank Marshall, the US contender for the World Championship at the beginning of this century. I must say, this was a thought which had never occurred to me, but, on reflection, Tony's predilection for the double-edged Dragon does lend weight to Lombardy's remark. 6 B-K3 B-N2 7 P-B3 0-0 8 Q-Q2 N-B3 9 B-QB4 B-Q2 10 P-KR4 R-B1 11 B-N3 P-KR4 White's plan, in the true tradition of 'coffee-house chess', is to play P-KR5, opening the KR file, and then to mate Black starting with B-KRO. With 11 . . . P-KR4 Black prevents this, but at the cost of weakening his K-side, which might possibly be assailed by a later P-KN4. 12 0-0-0 N-K4 13 K-N1 N-B5 14 BxN RxB 15 N-N3 Q-B2 16 B-Q4 B-B3 White was threatening BxN followed by N-05. Black's rook on 0115 now looks perilously -placed, but there is little White can do to exploit its isolated position.17 Q-K2 P-QN4 18 P-K5 Tseshkovsky had prepared up to here, but after 18. . . N-Q4 he sank Into deep thought. He was not unduly delighted to be informed after the game that Tony had already played all these moves against Kaplan at Hastings several years ago. 19 PxP QxP 20 NxN BxN 21 BxB KO 22 Q-K3 P-K3 23 QxRP This may look suicidal, but if he does not remove the QRP it may advance to R5 and embarrass White's knight. 23 . . . R-R5 24 Q-K3 KR-QR1 25 P-i R3 It is possible for i White to defend on the R file, but in doing so • he has to abandon the rest of his position. Black's untouchable bishop on Q4 is the key to his advantage, since it threatens White simultaneously on both wings. 25 . . . Q-N6 Not 25 . .. P-N5? 26 N-B5 R/5-QR4 27 N-N7, 26 N-115 RxKRP 27 IbtR QxR 28 N-Q7 R-Q1 29 Q-K5ch K-R3 30 P-KB4? In time-trouble White blunders away his KN pawn, Reasonable drawing chances would have been afforded by 31 0-06 followed by P-KN3 and P-KB4, 30. . , BxP 31 R-Q2 B-B3 32 N-US P-143 Not 32. . . RxR?? 33 Q-R8 mate. 33 Q-K3 RxR 34 QxR Q-Riich White resigns. After 35 K-R2 0-04036 OxQ Bx0ch Black rapidly promotes his KRP.
Pelugayevsky-Talc Riga Interzonal Round 3, English Opening.
1 N-K03 P-QB4 2 P-04 N-KB3 3 N-03 P-Q4 4 PxP NxP 5 P-K41? In the past Polugayevsky has done well against Tal, often by playing solidly and waiting for Tal to conjure up dubious adventures. In view of this, his choice of the risky 5 P-K41?, which positively invites complications, is hard to explain. In any case, this is a variation which I instinctively distrust from White's side. S. . . N-N5 6 11-84 B-K3 Standard procedure. Black allows his pawns to be split, but in return he displaces White's king and gains command of a variety of important squares in 4-file. 7 Bx1B N-Q6ch 8 K-111 PxB 9 NN5 Q-N3 Good psychology. As far as I know, a new move, and in my experience the well booked-up Polugayevsky tends to panic when faced with a novelty, in the opening. The most important game prior to this was Timman-Stean,Amsterdarn Zonal 1978, which had gone 9. .N-B3 10 NxKP 0-02 11 NxBP NxN 12 Q-R5ch P-N3 13 QxN, after which White won with his extra material. 10 Q-K2 P-195 11 P-QN3 P-KR3 12 N-B3 It would have been better to disorganise Black's development with 12 Q-R5ch K-Q2 13 N-R3. After the meek retreat chosen by Polugayevsky, Tal swiftly completes his mobilisation and proceeds to hammer White's unsettled king, 12 . .N-03 13 PO 0-0-0 14 P-N3 P-KN415K-N2 Q-B4 16 R-QN1 B-N2 17 N-QN5 QxBP18Q-K3 KR-RI 19 R-B1 If 19 NxPch NxN 20 QxN /R7 QxKP and White is lost. He therefore decides to take the precaution of reinforcing his KI32 square, but Tal still finds a way of breaking in. 19. . . P-N5 20 N-R4 NxBP 21 N-N6 If 21 RxN RxRch 22 KxR R-Blch or 22 QxR QxKPch. 21 . . . R-Q6 22 N-R3 Q-R5 23 Q-1U R/6-K06 24 NxR N-Q6 25 Q-Ql After 25 Q-K2 -Black wins with . . N-0526 0-01 QxQ 27 RxQ R-B7ch 28 K-Rl N436. 25. . . QxKP In spite of the fact that he is a rook down, Tal still appears to have far more pieces than his opponent, 26 RxR PxRch 27 K-B1 Q-B4 28 K-N1 B-Q5ch White resigns.
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