Chess
Palpable hit
Raymond Keene
CZ.ame 16 saw a great missed opportun-
ity for Kasparov. Faulty opening play by the champion left him facing defeat, but the challenger reacted too impulsively at move 26 and then against at move 30. After that, what had appeared a sure-fire victory vanished down the Moscow Metro. In the final position, Kasparov should have counted himself fortunate that the cham- pion, visibly shattered by the game's fluc- tuations, did not press for a win himself.
I had meant to return to London after the first session of Game 15, but an invitation from the USSR Chess Federa- tion persuaded me to stay on. I was, indeed, especially anxious to see at least one decisive game. The Federation gener- ously provided me with an official car and an interpreter, but there is one disadvan- tage of chess being viewed as a sport in the USSR. Sports Federation guests are put up in the Sport Hotel, in the southern suburbs of Moscow. I duly transferred there from the futuristic Cosmos and rapidly found myself surrounded by six-foot-high hulking footballers.
Kasparov-Karpov: Game 16, October 22; Queen's Indian Defence. 1 d4 Nf6 2 c4 e6 3 NO b6 4 g3 Ba6 5 b3 Bb4+ The Hungarian Grandmaster, Andras Adorjan, has
i been here in Moscow for some time, ostensibly
to aid Kasparov's group of analysts. It is understandable therefore that Karpov should wish to avoid Adorjan's own speciality, 5 . . . b5!? 6 cxb5 Bxb5 '7 Nc3 Bb4 8 Bd2 etc . . (Torre-Adorjan, Indonesia 1983). As it is, the world champion does not totally succeed in escaping the coils of Adorjanian analysis. 6 Bd2 Be7 7 Bg2 c6 8 Bc3 d5 9 Nbd2 Bbl 10 Ne5 0-0 11 e4 Na6 12 0-0 c5 13 exd5 exd5 14 Rel! cxd4 15 Bxd4 Nc5 16 Ng4 dxc4 17 Nxc4! Just tried in Torre-Sokolov, USSR-World match, London Docklands, 1984. This simple recapture im- proves on the game Torre-Adorjan (those two again!), Wijk aan Zee 1984, which had con- tinued: 17 Nxf6+ Bxf6 18 Bxc5 bxc5 19 Bxb7 Blal 20 Bxa8 Bc3 21 bxc4 Bxd2 and a draw was agreed. Critical is 17 Bxc5 but after 17 . . . Bxc5 18 Bxb7 Nxg4 19 Qxg4 Qxd2 Black is fine. 17 . . . Bxg2 18 Kxg2 Nxg4 19 Qxg4 Bf6 He must, of course, challenge the accumulated pressure against g7. 20 Radl Bxd4? Very risky. Averbakh proposed 20 . . . h5!? 21 Bxf6 hxg4 22 Bxd8 Raxd8 when Black's only concern is the slight weakness of the pawn on g4. 21 Rxd4 Qc7 22 Nd6 Ne6? Absolutely essential is 22 . . . Rad8 though 23 Nf5 retains a powerful initiative. After Karpov's error in the game, Kasparov at long last creates one of those colossal attacks for which he is famous. 23 Rxe6! When this sacrifice came thundering out, a massive cheer went up in the press room and total pandemonium broke out: meanwhile, the audience in the main hall, swollen by groups of tourists from the southern regions of the USSR, began to applaud and shout. 23 . . . h5! Karpov wakes up and finds the most resilient defence. If 23 . . . fxe6 24 Qxe6+ Kh8 (24 . . . Rt7 25 Rf4 Rf8 26 Nxf7 leading to a won endgame) 25 Rc4! Rf6 26 Qxf6 Qxc4 27 00 Cog8 (forced. to defend his Rook) 28 Nf7+ winning outright. 24 Qe4 fxe6 25 Qxe6+ Kh7 The first critical moment. Chief Arbiter Gligoric was adamant that 26 Ne4 would now win e.g. 26
. . Rae8 27 Ng5+ Kh8 28 Qg6 Qb7+ 29 Ne4! but after the best defence 26 . . . Qc1 it is not clear that White has anything concrete. The clincher, though, is 26 Rc4!! viz. 26 . Qd8 27 Qe4+ Kg8 28 Qd5+ forking g8 and h5; 27 Qe4+ Kh6 28 Nf5+ ; 27 Qe4+ Kh8 28 Qg6 threatening Nf7+ and QxhS. Finally, 27 0e4+ g6 28 Qb7+ Kg8 29 Rc7 Qf6 30 Qd5+ Kh8 31 Nf7+ followed by a devastating double check on g5. 26 Rd5 g6 27 Ne4 Rad8 28 Ng5+ Kg7 29 Qe4 Rfe8 Fortune beckons once more. With 30 Ne6+! Rxe6 31 Qd4+ Re5 32 Qxe5 + (32 Rxd8 Qc6+ 33 Kh3 Qe6+ ; 33 f3 Qc2+) 32 . . Qxe5 33 Rxe5 Kf6 34 Re2 White still has excellent prospects for a win. Perhaps Kasparov transposed moves in his head. 30 Qd4?? A terrible blunder, after which Kas- parov sat at the board sadly shaking his head in disbelief. 30 . . . Kg8 31 Rxd8? Failing to adjust to circumstances; 31 Qf6! Rxd5 32 Qxf6+ forces a draw by perpetual check. White's choice risks inferiority. 31 . . . Rxd8 32 Qf6 Rd6 33 Qf4 Qc6+ 34 Kh3 Qd7+ 35 Kg2 Qc6+ 36 KW Qd7+ 37 Kg2 Draw agreed on Karpov's proposal, but at an earlier stage of the match the world champion might have considered playing on with 37 . . . Qe7, when White's compensation for the exchange is not absolutely watertight.
A dramatic game, but Kasparov threw away his chances by playing too quickly at vital moments.
Game 17 over, I hastened to London for the world premiere of Tim Rice's new
musical Chess, written in collaboration with Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus, the male half of ABBA. Chess, showing consecutively this week in London, Paris, Stockholm, Hamburg and Amsterdam, is
inspired by the political intrigues and personal dramas of the world cham- pionship matches of 1972, 1978 and 1981. It was strange for me to witness a musical based so closely on my own experiences from Baguio 1978, the latter possibly the most exciting and eventful world cham- pionship of all time. The premiere, held at the Barbican Centre on 27 October, fea- tured Elaine Page, Murray Head and the massed LSO complete with glockenspiel - and judging by the tumultuous audience reaction, Time Rice has another hit on his hands.
Game 18 was an anti-climax, Kasparov forcing a draw when he stood better. Game 19 was adjourned with Karpov on top but a draw was agreed immediately on resump- tion. There has now been a world record sequence of draws in Moscow.
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