Chess no. 392
PHILIDOR
Black White
I I men 10 men
H. Weenink (Nederlandsche Schaakbond, 1918). White to play and mate in three moves; solution next week.
Solution to no. 391 (Melnichenko): P – B 4, threat R – Kt 3 or R. – R 4 mate. 1 . . . R x P; 2 R – Kt 3. 1 . . B x P; 2 R – R 4. 1 . . P x R; 2 R – R 2. 1 . . . K x R; 2 B– K 6. Note the thematic try 1 R– B 4 with variations. 1 . . . R x R; 2 R– R 2 and 1 . . . B x R; 2 B– B 6 defeated only by 1 . . . Q – R 7! Beautiful example of the modern two- mover.
The world championship
The quarter-finals in the series of matches to select a challenger to Tigran Petrosian are over, with the expected results if not quite the ex- pected scores. Spassky beat Geller 51-2f, Tal beat Gligoric 54-3+, Larsen beat Portisch 51-4+ and Korchnoi beat Reshevsky 54-2f.
Spassky's was the most impressive performance; in his three wins (all with White against the Sicilian—see game 388 in the SPECTATOR for 24 May) he outplayed Geller in complex struggles of the kind that show a player's class. Tal's form was rather less impressive; he lost the first game and was very nearly two games down—later in the match Gligoric seemed to lose heart, but this was not a world champion's performance by Tal. Larsen always finds Portisch a difficult opponent and this should be borne in mind when assessing what must be regarded as a disappointing result; Larsen went off with a bang and led 24—#. He then lost a game after refusing a draw. Portisch levelled the score by winning the seventh game and the match was only decided in the final game. In this, to the pleasure of all players of the game over seventy, Larsen won with the Vienna. Not a convincing match. In the fourth match, Korchnoi was far too good for Reshevsky, whose age showed more than it usually does; Korchnoi did what was required efficiently and decisively.
The semi-final matches are Spassky v. Larsen and Tal v. Korchnoi. On current form, one must take Spassky to beat Larsen (54-4+ or 6-4 would be my guess), despite Larsen's brilliant series of tournament successes; I think that Larsen is basically a tournament player (where what counts is winning as many games as possible and not letting the weaker player escape) rather than a match player (where what counts is not losing— draws don't matter). I hope that I am wrong in this.
In the other match I think that Korchnoi will beat Tal (6-4 is my guess). At one time Korchnoi had a huge plus score—about the time that Tal was world champion, Korchnoi was asked what the score in their individual games was. 'Five— five,' replied Korchnoi, 'five wins for me and five draws.' Since then Tal has done a little better but he was beaten again by Korchnoi in Holland this Year.
When these matches are over there will be a twelve-game match between the winners. Last time. in 1965, this was Spassky v.. Tal, Spassky winning 7-4 and then losing the title match against
Petrosian; this time, I think it will be Spassky v. Korchnoi, with 7-5 for Spassky, followed by victory instead of defeat against Petrosian. But the best thing for the game would be for Larsen to come through and win the title.
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