In this video I discuss a useful chess study by Abram Gurvich. It was composed in 1962. It shows a nice bit of “strangulation” on White’s part!
Leave your comments below!
Click on the moves below to start playing and show a diagram:
[pgn_compat]
[Event “?”]
[Site “?”]
[Date “2014.09.25”]
[Round “?”]
[White “Abram Gurvich, 1962”]
[Black “White plays and wins”]
[Result “*”]
[Annotator “Waldemar Moes, Better Your Chess”]
[SetUp “1”]
[FEN “r7/4k2K/1R3p2/1N6/8/8/8/8 w – – 0 1”]
[PlyCount “11”]
{In this position the material balance is in
White’s favor, but not necessarily losing for Black. Black can even give up
his f-pawn and thearetically draw the endgame of R+N v. R, were it not for the
fact that for the moment his pieces are in unfortunate positions. What White
must do is to put Black’s pieces in passive positions, keep them there and
strangle them even further. Then he has a chance of winning, because in the
end Black will run out of safe moves and then “Zugzwang” (a useful endgame
weapon) will do him in. For those of you who don’t know, “Zugzwang” is the
situation where every legal move you can make only makes your position worse.}
1. Rb7+ Kd8 (1… Ke6 2. Nc7+ {loses the rook.}) (1… Kf8 2. Nd6 {and mate on
f7 will follow.}) (1… Ke8 2. Nc7+ {again loses the rook.}) 2. Na7 {
Completely stalemating the rook, so Black has to move either the king or the
pawn.} Ke8 {The toughest defense.} (2… f5 $2 3. Rg7 {and White will win the
rook with Rg8+ and be able to stop Black’s passed pawn.}) 3. Kg8 {also
starting to stalemate the Black king! Now the threat is Nc6 and mate on e7.}
Kd8 {Again the toughest defense.} ({The win is easy after:} 3… Rd8 $2 4. Nc6
Rd7 5. Rb8+ Rd8 6. Rxd8#) 4. Kf7 {Simultaneously closing in even more on the
Black king and also attacking the f-pawn. Black can now only move his pawn.} f5
5. Re7 {Threatening to win Ra8 with Re8+ supported by Kf7. Black now really is
in “Zugzwang”.} Rb8 {Hoping to answer Re8+ with Kc7 but now the final blow
comes from the knight.} (5… f4 6. Re8+) 6. Nc6+ {winning the rook and the
game!} (6. Re8+ $4 Kc7 $10 {and Black escapes!}) *
[/pgn_compat]
PGN notation:
[Event “?”]
[Site “?”]
[Date “2014.09.25”]
[Round “?”]
[White “Abram Gurvich, 1962”]
[Black “White plays and wins”]
[Result “*”]
[Annotator “Waldemar Moes, Better Your Chess”]
[SetUp “1”]
[FEN “r7/4k2K/1R3p2/1N6/8/8/8/8 w – – 0 1”]
[PlyCount “11”]
1. Rb7+ Kd8 (1… Ke6 2. Nc7+) (1… Kf8 2. Nd6) (1… Ke8 2. Nc7+) 2. Na7 Ke8
(2… f5 $2 3. Rg7) 3. Kg8 Kd8 (3… Rd8 $2 4. Nc6 Rd7 5. Rb8+ Rd8 6. Rxd8#) 4.
Kf7 f5 5. Re7 Rb8 (5… f4 6. Re8+) 6. Nc6+ (6. Re8+ $4 Kc7 $10) *