SIMPSON'S
IN-THE-STRAND
CHESS SIMPSON'S
IN-THE-STRAND
Ozymandias
Raymond Keene
THERE WAS a time when any loss by Karpov was news, while a win by a British player against him would have been a sen- sation. No longer. Over the past few years, Karpov's tournament record has been in steady decline, and losses to players such as Kramnik and Anand are no longer uncom- mon. In fact, it is now quite surprising when Karpov does manage to take first prize in an elite tournament. The pinnacle of his achievement over the past year or so was his gruelling match victory in the Fide (World Chess Federation) championship against Gata Kamsky. However, though some of Karpov's wins were minor master- pieces, Kamsky has never been considered a serious challenger and has reputedly given up chess completely after his defeat.
This perception of Karpov's waning pow- ers and reputation was reinforced when I realised I had forgotten to publish Short's win against Karpov in July. Formerly, I would have rushed this game into print. It was a fine win by Short, particularly notable for his sudden switch to queenside open- ings, but it no longer exerts the dramatic effect that a British win against Karpov would have elicited four or five years ago.
Short–Karpov: Dortmund; Nimzo-Indian Defence.
1 d4 The first surprise. Nigel Short almost never plays this move. He clearly had a special idea in mind, prepared specifically against Karpov. 1 ... Nf6 2 c4 e6 3 Nc3 Bb4 4 Qc2 0-0 5 e4 The second surprise. 5 a3 has been considered obligatory here, in order to institute a struggle between White's bishop pair and Black's flexible pawn structure. 5 d6 Even at his best, one of Karpov's problems was a refusal to tackle unusu- al openings head on. When faced with a theoret- ical novelty, Karpov's natural inclination was always to find an anodyne route that avoided complications. The next time it surfaced, of course, he would be fully prepared. Here, for example, 5 ... d5, instituting an immediate chal- lenge in the centre, must be the right way to take advantage of White's ambitious strategy with his pawns. Karpov's choice does little to disturb White's plans. 6 a3 Bxc3+ 7 bxc3 e5 8 Bd3 Nc6 9 Net b6 10 0-0 Ba6 11 f4 The upshot of the open- ing phase is that Short has succeeded in trans- posing into a kind of Saemisch Variation, where he enjoys an unfettered initiative on the king's flank. 11 ...Nd7 12 Be3 Nay 13 c5 White cannot protect his pawn on c4 but this temporary pawn sacrifice actually aids White's offensive. The exchange of light-squared bishops does him no damage at all. 13 ...Bc4 If 13 ...Bxd3 14 Qxd3 bxc5 15 dxe5 dxe5 16 Radi is unpleasant for Black. 14 cxd6 cxd6 15 Ng3 Short ferries his pieces over to the attack against the black king. Karpov's counterplay resides in his occupation of c4 and potential pressure in the c-file against White's weakling on c3. 15 ... Qc7 16 Nf5 Kh8 17 Rf3 Rac8 18 Rafl f6 19 Bf2 b5 20 Bg3 a6 Karpov clearly believes that his kingside fortress is sufficiently strong to repel any onslaught. Meanwhile he quietly strengthens his grip on the queenside light squares. 21 h4 Bringing up more reserves. 21 ... Bf7 22 Bel Black's last move stopped White's h-pawn in its tracks and simul- taneously forced White into this defensive retreat to cover c3. 22 ...Nb6 23 Qf2 Nac4 24 Rg3 g6 25 Nh6 Be6 26 f5 gxf5 27 Nxf5 Rg8 (Diagram) This is a terrible error. Karpov wilts under the pressure and allows a destructive com- binational stroke. Of course, his position on the queenside, with White's weak pawn on a3 virtu- ally indefensible, is dominant, but he must be careful about his king. One solution would be to play 27 ...13xf5, to eliminate a key attacker, whilst another way of staving off the threat of Rg7 would be to play 27 ...Rf7. Now Short strikes. 28 Nxd6!! A startling sacrifice which exploits the weakness of f6. If now 28 ...Nxd6 or
Position after 27 . . . Rg8 28 ... Qxd6, White wins with 29 Qxf6+. Altern- atively if Black plays 28 ... Rxg3 29 Nxc8 Rxd3 30 Qxf6+ Qg7 31 Qxe6 and wins. 28 ... Rcf8 29 Rxg8+ Kxg8 30 Nf5 Although he has torn out a key component from Black's defences, and won a pawn, Short must still be careful. If Black sur- vives to the endgame, his queenside grip could still be a powerful weapon. 30 ... Qd7 If immedi- ately 30 ...Nxa3 31 dxe5 Bxf5 32 exf5 with the threat of Qa2+. 31 Qg3+ Kh8 32 d5 Bxf5 33 RxfS Nd6 This was the last chance to play 33 ... Nxa3, when I do not see an immediate tactical win for White, though Black is obviously under a lot of pressure. Still, in spite of the fact that one black knight would have wandered far from the kingside battle, Black would have his passed a- pawn as long-term insurance. The text looks worse. 34 Rfl Nbc4 35 h5 Qg7 36 Qh4 Rg8 Black is now under heavy pressure and even if he cap- tures the pawn on a3 must face new threats involving h6 and Rf3-g3. The move chosen by Karpov looks to me like a time trouble error. He threatens mate, but overlooks that White can thwart this by capturing another pawn. 37 Qxf6 Ne3 38 Qxg7+ Kxg7 39 RE3 Nec4 40 Bh4 Black has survived to the endgame he wanted, and still has winning threats against White's pawn on a3. On the other hand, his kingside has been utterly shredded and there is no time for Black's strate- gic edge on the left flank to bear any fruit. 40 ... Kh6 41 Be7 KxhS 42 Rf6 Rg6 43 Rf5+ NxfS 44 exf5 Rg4 Black resigns The clearest win is with 45 Bet when White will inevitably queen a pawn.
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