SIMPSON'S

IN-THE-STRAND

CHESS

SIMPSON'S

IN-THE-STRAND

MIGUEL Najdorf, who died last month at the age of 87, was one of the great charac- ters of chess. Born in Poland in 1910, he went to the Buenos Aires Olympiad of 1939 and (being of Jewish extraction) wise- ly stayed there, rather than returning to war-torn Europe. During the late 1940s and early 1950s he was a leading contender for the world title. However, his rise to the top coincided with the almost assembly-line production of grandmasters, fuelled by the mighty resources of the Soviet state, which a private citizen, relying on his own efforts, could not realistically hope to challenge.

Najdorf loved to entertain and hold court in the grand manner in the press and hospitality rooms of great events. During the Olympiad at Buenos Aires in 1978, where he was, of course, one of the stars, I recall being invited to lunch by him in the London Grill. Fellow guests included the American grandmaster William Lombardy, the former second to Bobby Fischer, and the Czech emigre grandmaster Lubosh Kavalek, Nigel Short's ill-fated second in his 1993 match against Kasparov. Najdorf, naturally, monopolised the conversation and did not notice that Kavalek was look- ing somewhat off-colour and not attacking his lunch with the gusto which would have earned Najdorf s approval. Come the main course (it being Buenos Aires, this was steak, which Najdorf ordered for all of us without consulting our opinion), Kavalek was looking distinctly green around the gills and stopped eating completely.

By now, even in full flow, our host had realised that something was seriously wrong with Kavalek's appetite. 'What!' he yelled. 'You don't like steak? Argentine steak best in world!!' Najdorf searched wildly round the table and realised what was missing. He grabbed a huge mustard

Magnificent Miguel

Raymond Keene

pot. 'What you need is mustard.' Therewith he emptied a gigantic dollop of mustard on top of Kavalek's steak. Kavalek now turned an even brighter shade of green and fled the restaurant, much to Najdorf's astonish- ment, though the rest of us had rather been expecting this denouement.

On his day Najdorf could beat the best, and his victims included the world champi- ons Botvinnik, Euwe, Fischer, Spassky, Petrosian and Tal. Here are two extracts.

Najdorf–Spassky: Goteborg Interzonal 1955.

White's advantage is evident, central pawn majority and two bishops. However, it is surpris- ing that Black is squashed with such speed. 25 d5 exd5 26 cxd5 Bbl 27 Rbl Bf6 28 Qf4 Bg7 29 Qg5 R8a6 Black defends against the threat of d6, blasting open lines in the centre. But now White carries out an even more insidious manoeuvre. 30 Qe7 Qxe7 31 Bxe7 Bf6 If Spassky had hoped for 32 Bxd8 Bxd8 33 Rxb7, he was in for a rude surprise. 32 d6 A vicious thrust which wins mate- rial. Both 32 ...Bxe7 33 dxe7 and 32 ...cxd6 33 Bxf6 are utterly hopeless. Black tries his final trick. 32 ...Rxd6 A last-ditch defence. Certainly, White could win with 33 Bxd6 cxd6 34 Rxd6, but there is something stronger. 33 Bxf6 Rxf6 34 RxdS+ Kg7 35 f4 Black could now resign with a clear conscience. 35 ... b6 36 Rd7 Rc2 37 Bd5 c6 38 Bg2 g5 39 fxg5 RS 40 Be4 Black resigns.

Najdorf–Fischer: Santa Monica 1966.

Black's pawn structure is a mess but he is about to play ... Nd7 to dominate the dark squares. However, Najdorf strikes first. 21 e5 dxe5 22 Bf3 Now the threats are numerous, including d6, Nxe5 and Rxe5. Fischer is driven back in confu- sion. 22 ... Qf8 23 Nxe5 Bb7 24 Ndc4 RadS If 24 Bxd5 25 Bxd5 Nxd5 26 Nd7. 25 Nc6 Rxel 26 Rxel Re8 27 Rdl Rc8 28 h3 Ne8 Or 28 ... Nxd5 29 N6a5. 29 N6a5 Rb8 30 Qf5 Nd6 31 Nxd6 Black resigns After 31 ... Qxd6 32 Nxb7 Rxb7 33 Qc8+ White wins easily. An annihilating victory against a great opponent.

Najdorf's name, though, may be perpetu- ated through an opening variation rather than his games and tournament victories. The Najdorf variation of the Sicilian Defence has been a favourite of many top players, including Kasparov, Fischer and Tal. Najdorf didn't invent it but his ideas contributed to its acceptance by the very best. It is probably the single most popular variation in modern chess. The key moves are: 1 e4 c5 2 Nf3 d6 3 d4 cxd4 4 Nxd4 Nf6 5 Nc3 a6.