Malcolm Pein on…Chess Curiosities

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Malcolm Pein presents a selection of chess curiosities in today’s Daily Telegraph chess column, all of which are – remarkably – from real games.

In one of them, White has a winning move immediately after a check by the opponent on the fourth move. It sounds unlikely, but it is true!

Malcolm Pein on…Chess Curiosities

Normally at this time, there would be some games from Hastings, but that has moved online and we will have some games to show soon. So instead we have a couple of chess curiosities.

A snippet from the game NN vs Macieja, quoted by Tim Krabbe in his online Chess Diary.

White played 1 Rxb7 and offered a draw, as rook vs rook and knight is a theoretical draw. Should Black stick or twist?

Den Broeder – Van der Ent
Correspondence 1977
Alekhine Defence

1.e4 Nf6 2.e5 Nd5 3.d4 e6 4.c4 Bb4+?

Chess Curiosity

White to play and win – and why does he win material

Hopefully the effects of The Queen’s Gambit in popularising the game will continue. Black misplayed the Queen’s Gambit in these two miniatures:

J. A. Petersen – T. Leifsson
Reykjavik Open 2013
Queen’s Gambit Declined

1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bg5 Be7 5.Nf3 h6 6.Bf4 0–0 7.e3 Nbd7 8.cxd5 exd5 9.Bd3 c6 10.Qc2 Re8 11.0–0–0 b5?

J. A. Petersen – T. Leifsson

12.Nxb5 cxb5 13.Bc7 1–0

A. Kotov – T. Petrosian
17th USSR Ch. Moscow 1949
Queen’s Gambit Declined

1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.cxd5 exd5 5.Bg5 Be7 6.e3 c6 7.Qc2 Ne4?? 8.Bxe7 Qxe7 9.Nxd5 cxd5 10.Qxc8+ Qd8 11.Bb5+ Nc6 12.Bxc6+ bxc6 13.Qxc6+ 1–0

Highlight the space below this line to reveal the answers to both puzzles.

Answer One: Twist. The game ended 1.Rxb7 Nc5+! 2.dxc5 0-0-0+! 0-1

Answer Two: The earliest example of a king move forcing resignation: 5.Ke2! 1-0 In view of 5…Ne7 6.a3 Ba5 7.b4 Bb6 8.c5 trapping the bishop or 5…Nb6 6.c5 Nd5 7.a3.

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