Zuest (2015) – A. Wuest (1823)
Source: ChessToday.net
White played 10. Bxh7 and 1-0. Should black have resigned? Does black have a defense?
Chess Daily News from Susan Polgar
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Black should be ok after Kxh7 and Kg6. I don’t think black needs to resign.
1. Bxh7+ Kxh7
2. Ng5+ Kg8
3. Bf5!
1. Bxh7+ Kxh7
2. Ng5+ Kg8
3. Qh5 Bf5…
1. Bxh7+ Kxh7
2. Ng5+ Kg8
3. Qh5 Bf5…
Maybe black had an urgent appointment.
i must be missing something.
At the very least, after 10… Kh8 11. Bd3 g6 true black is an ugly pawn down but certainly not lost yet. Why give up?
But 10… Kxh7 seems OK. On 11. Ng5+ Kg8 12. Qh5 Bf5 seems to hold or 12. Qd3 g6 seems fine. Also, after 11. Ng5+ i can’t find the knockout after even the dangerous-looking 11… Kg6.
Maybe this is like that Byrne-Fischer game.
Somebody help.
White blundered with Bxh7, in my opinion. Black’s queen’s bishop is a big defender in this line, both of h7 and covering the square of h3 to keep white’s queen off of it in some lines. I faced this sort of position on both sides many times over the years- that sacrifice at h7 has to be well thought out.
10.Bh7? Kh7!
Even with Kh8, black isn’t quite dead, but hurting: [10. …Kh8? 11.Bd3! Bg4! and black is holding on, but has now lost a pawn and must still defend the king with white’s king bishop still on the board. Continuing:
11.Ng5
Ng5+ is the move I imagine black expected to come in the game, and feared. White has other moves here, but how could they really be much better? I don’t see it. Continuing:
11. ….Kg8!
Here, Kg6 is probably playable, but gives white more for his sacrifice than he/she deserved. I would imagine white’s best line might be 12.f4 threatening f5+, but I don’t see a real clear cut edge for white after black plays a move like 12. …Qe8 and 13. …f5 after 13.g4. It is complicated, however, and it is possible I am missing the win for white in that line- 11. …Kg8 just seems much clearer to me:
12.Qh5
Or [12.Qd3 g6! and now what for white?]. Continuing:
12. ….Bf5! and now black’s king looks very safe to me.
1. Bxh7??
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