SIMPSON'S

IN•THE•STRAND

SIMPSON'S

IN-THE•STRAND

CHESS

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Raymond Keene

HARDLY a tournament seems to go by nowadays without yet another first prize by either the Fide world champion Anatoly Karpov or the rising Bulgarian star Veselin Topalov. In the Bank of Austria tourna- ment which finished last month, this victo- rious duo was joined in the lead by Boris Gelfand, who managed to inflict one of Karpov's rare defeats on him. The game I have chosen for publication, though, was Topalov's sole loss.

Topalov–Leko: Bank of Austria, Vienna, August 1996; Caro-Kann Defence.

1 e4 c6 As a result of Karpov's espousal of the Caro-Kann, it has become one of the most popu- lar defences in international practice. 2 d4 d5 3 exd5 cxd5 4 c4 Nf6 5 Nc3 Nc6 6 Bg5 More nor- mal is 6 NO but Kasparov used the bishop devel- opment to defeat Anand in the Amsterdam tour- nament earlier this year. 6 ...Be6 This looks like a beginner's move, blocking the black 'e' pawn and hence permanently impeding mobilisation of Black's king's bishop. It is the kind of move which I do my best to discourage in inexperi- enced players. However, here, paradoxically, it has some deep points, one of which is to rein- force the black pawn on d5, another, ultimately, to develop Black's king's bishop on the alterna- tive aqua e g7. 7 a3 (Diagram) Seemingly a waste of time, but Kasparov has played it, and White's intention is to play c5 and b4 with a massive queenside advance. 7 ...Qd7 An improvement on 7 ... Bg4 8 f3 Be6 9 c5 Kasparov—Dreev, Moscow 1996. 8 Bxf6 gxf6 9 g3 Too slow. The consistent 9 c5 is better. 9 ...0-0-0 10 Bg2 White's pressure against d5 appears formidable, but Black has an efficient way of derailing White's plans. 10 ...Bg4 The attack on White's queen forces him to block the long light-squared diagonal. 11 f3 Be6 12 c5 Bf5 13 b4 e5 Black's central counterattack is now the major force on the board. 14 Nge2 Qe6 15 dxe5 White is being swept away by the tide of events and now Black's passed 'd' pawn smashes through his position. If instead White tries to man the barricades with 15 1(12 Bh6 16 Rel then 16 ... Be3+ 17 Kxe3 exd4+ 18 Kf2 Qe3+ 19 ICf1 dxc3 is decisive. 15 ...d4 16 Ne4 d3 17 Nf4 d2+ (Diagram) White's

Position after 17... d2+

position is desperate, the black 'd' pawn is mow- ing him down. If 18 Nxd2 QxeS+ 19 Ne2 Rxd2 20 Kxd2 Bh6+ 21 Kel Rd8 with a slaughter. 18 Kf2 Qc4 19 Bh3 Bxh3 20 Nxh3 Qd4+ 21 Kg2 Nxe5 22 Qb3 Nc4 23 Rhdl f5 24 NegS Rd7 25 f4 Bg7 26 Nf2 Qd5+ 27 NO Bxal 28 Rxal Re8 White resigns A lemon in the folly of leaving one's king uncastled in the centre for too long.

Bank of Austria, Vienna, Final Crosstable

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

1. Gelfand • 1 V2 V2 1/2 1/2 1/2 1/2 1/2 1 5112 Karpov 0 • V2 V2 1/2 1 1 V2 V2 1 51/2 3. Topalov V2 V2 • 0 V2 V2 1 V2 1 1 4. Leko V2 112 1 • 0 V2 1/2 1 1/2 1/2 5 5. Polgar V2 112 V2 1 • 0 1/2 1/2 1 1/2 5

6. Kramaik V2 0 V2 42 1 • 0 V2 I 1

7. Shirov V2 0 0 y2 1/2 1 • 1/2 1 '/2 41/2 8. Yusupov 1/2 1/2 I/2 0 112 * 0 V2 31/2 9. Ehlveal V2 V2 0 V2 0 0 0 1 • 1/2 3 10. Korchnoi 0 0 0 V2 'h 0 1/2 I/2 112 2112

Spectator Chess Puzzle No. 6

The above position is a variation from the game Kramnik–Polgar, also from Vienna. White to play has an immediate and crush- ing win. Can you spot it? I require White's first move only.

Entries on a postcard, please, clearly marked 'Chess Puzzle No. 6', by 14 Oct- ober. Entries can also be faxed on 0171-242 0603. The prize is an invitation to lunch or dinner at Simpson's-in-the-Strand with me, plus a game of chess. All first-time entrants will also receive a complimentary copy of the British Chess Magazine.