- Daily Chess Improvement: Gashimov brilliant tactic

I remember this puzzle well. First posted here last Summer. There are probably more than one way to win from this position, but Gashimov found the most elegant method over the board. Below is the solution I posted in July, but with the typos fixed:

1. a6 Rd4 (alternatives later)
2. Rb4 Kb4
3. Kd4 Bc8 (Bd7 no better)
4. a7 Bb7
5. f5 gf5

If black doesn’t capture at f5, white just pushes e6 to force the issue. Black’s best bet now is to try to create his own passer, but white has the necessary time to put the kibosh on this idea:

6. h5 f4 (in for a penny….)
7. h6

Here, 7.gf4 also wins. Continuing:

7. …..fg3
8. Ke3! g2 (again, in for penny..)
9. Kf2 Be4(g3 10.Kg1 wins)
10.h7 and one of the white pawns queens safely.

So, the question is does black have a better reply at move 1? Black can try to maneuver the bishop to cover a8, or he can try to block the pawn at a8 with either piece. Blocking with the bishop is going fail on its face since white will put the pawn on a7 and the rook on b8 forcing the exchange of rooks on that square. So I see two plausible tries- 1. …Ra8 and 1. …Be6 (with the plan to come to d5, but these should lose:

1. a6 Ra8
2. Rd6

There may be other winning moves here, I just haven’t looked. This move is totally forcing and most limits black’s king and bishop (takes away d5 from the king). Continuing:

2. …..Be6 (nothing better now)
3. a7 Bd5

So, now black has established his last line of defense- he has blocked the pawn, has a8 double covered whenever the rook is moved along the 8th rank. However, this defense has fatally weakened the kingside pawns, and white now uses attacks on those to win the game:

4. Rd7 Rc8

What else can black do here? If black moves the bishop off of the g8/a2 diagonal, white just takes at f7. If black moves the bishop to e6, white then plays Rb7 followed by Rb8 then f5 to win similarly to the lines I described earlier where black captures at d4 on move 1: [4. …Be6 5.Rb7 Bd5 6.Rb8 Bf3 7.f5+-]. Of course, any king move drops the bishop, and any pawn move allows white another passed pawn to win the game. The point of 4. …Rc8 is that it prevents Rc7+ from white. Continuing:

5. Bb2

This is done to both threaten to maneuver the bishop eventually to b8 trapping the rook on a8, but also to free white’s king from guarding the bishop sitting d4. Black is totally tied up defending the a8 square and can do nothing:

5. …..Kc5 (what else?)
6. f5 gf5

Black may as well take it now. If he doesn’t, white will just exchange at g6 and then play Kf4 creating, eventually, two new passers. Continuing:

7. h5 Kc6 (again, what better?)

Black can’t threaten the h-pawn with the rook and capture it without allowing Rxd5 followed by a8Q, so black tries to relieve the attack on the bishop first. Continuing:

8. Rd6 Kc5 (or lose the bishop)
9. h6 Rh8 (no choice now)
10.h7 f6 (Rh7 11.Rd5 Kd5 12.a8Q)
11.Rd5! Kd5
12.ef6 Ke6 (what else?)
13.f7 and the discovered attack on the rook is fatal to black.

Lastly, at move 1:

1. a6 Be6
2. a7 Bd5 (Ra8 3.Rb7 etc.)
3. Rb8 Rd7
4. a8Q Ba8
5. Ra8 wins a bishop since

5. …..Rd4?
6. Ra4+ wins a rook.

8 Comments

Anonymous Reply

January 21, 2014 at 4:15 am

1.a6 RxB
2.Rb4+ KxR
3.KxR Bc8
4.a7 Bb7
5.f5 gxf5
6.Ke3!
and Pawn h queens.
Gashimov at his best.
Oleg Mezjuev Reply

January 21, 2014 at 7:41 am

1. a6 looks good…. 1. … Rxd4 (1. … Ra8 2. Rd6 followed by a7 etc.) 2. Rb4+ Kxb4 3. Kxd4 Kb5 4. a7 1-0
Anand Gautam Reply

January 21, 2014 at 8:39 am

The simple line below seems to be winning to me.
1. a6!! Rxd4 (What else?)
2. Rb4+!! Kxb4
3. Kxd4 Bd7
4. a7 Bc6
5. e6! fxe6
6. Ke5 Kc5 (What else?)
7. Kxe6 Kb6
8. Kf6 Be4
9. a8=Q Bxa8
10. Kxg6 1-0
I am pretty sure this is winning for White, especially with Black king being so far.
Anonymous Reply

January 21, 2014 at 9:32 am

Any news from this brilliant player ? It’s been a long time …
fajac Reply

January 21, 2014 at 10:27 am

His bishop seems to hang, but White can safely ignore that:
1. a6! Ra8
In case of 1. … Rxd4:
2. Rb4+! Kxb4
3. Kxd4 Bc8/d7
4. a7 Bb7/c6
5. f5! gxf5 (What else?)
6. Ke5 and one of the passed pawns will queen.
2. Rf6 Be6
3. a7 What can Black do now? The bishop must stay on e6 because of the threat f4-f5, getting another strong passed pawn, and to protect f7. The rook cannot move because of white’s Rb6-Rb8, winning at least the bishop. So
3. … Kd5 and now
4. h5! gxh5
5. f5 Bc8
6. Rxf7 +- Everything is safe and at least one of the white pawns will queen.
s.k.srivastava Reply

January 21, 2014 at 1:59 pm

Alas he is no more.
Thierry Silvain Reply

January 21, 2014 at 3:10 pm

I’ve just been told he passed away a few days ago . What a disaster . I cannot believe it .
Yancey Ward Reply

January 21, 2014 at 5:02 pm

I remember this puzzle well. First posted here last Summer. There are probably more than one way to win from this position, but Gashimov found the most elegant method over the board. Below is the solution I posted in July, but with the typos fixed:

1. a6 Rd4 (alternatives later)
2. Rb4 Kb4
3. Kd4 Bc8 (Bd7 no better)
4. a7 Bb7
5. f5 gf5

If black doesn’t capture at f5, white just pushes e6 to force the issue. Black’s best bet now is to try to create his own passer, but white has the necessary time to put the kibosh on this idea:

6. h5 f4 (in for a penny….)
7. h6

Here, 7.gf4 also wins. Continuing:

7. …..fg3
8. Ke3! g2 (again, in for penny..)
9. Kf2 Be4(g3 10.Kg1 wins)
10.h7 and one of the white pawns queens safely.

So, the question is does black have a better reply at move 1? Black can try to maneuver the bishop to cover a8, or he can try to block the pawn at a8 with either piece. Blocking with the bishop is going fail on its face since white will put the pawn on a7 and the rook on b8 forcing the exchange of rooks on that square. So I see two plausible tries- 1. …Ra8 and 1. …Be6 (with the plan to come to d5, but these should lose:

1. a6 Ra8
2. Rd6

There may be other winning moves here, I just haven’t looked. This move is totally forcing and most limits black’s king and bishop (takes away d5 from the king). Continuing:

2. …..Be6 (nothing better now)
3. a7 Bd5

So, now black has established his last line of defense- he has blocked the pawn, has a8 double covered whenever the rook is moved along the 8th rank. However, this defense has fatally weakened the kingside pawns, and white now uses attacks on those to win the game:

4. Rd7 Rc8

What else can black do here? If black moves the bishop off of the g8/a2 diagonal, white just takes at f7. If black moves the bishop to e6, white then plays Rb7 followed by Rb8 then f5 to win similarly to the lines I described earlier where black captures at d4 on move 1: [4. …Be6 5.Rb7 Bd5 6.Rb8 Bf3 7.f5+-]. Of course, any king move drops the bishop, and any pawn move allows white another passed pawn to win the game. The point of 4. …Rc8 is that it prevents Rc7+ from white. Continuing:

5. Bb2

This is done to both threaten to maneuver the bishop eventually to b8 trapping the rook on a8, but also to free white’s king from guarding the bishop sitting d4. Black is totally tied up defending the a8 square and can do nothing:

5. …..Kc5 (what else?)
6. f5 gf5

Black may as well take it now. If he doesn’t, white will just exchange at g6 and then play Kf4 creating, eventually, two new passers. Continuing:

7. h5 Kc6 (again, what better?)

Black can’t threaten the h-pawn with the rook and capture it without allowing Rxd5 followed by a8Q, so black tries to relieve the attack on the bishop first. Continuing:

8. Rd6 Kc5 (or lose the bishop)
9. h6 Rh8 (no choice now)
10.h7 f6 (Rh7 11.Rd5 Kd5 12.a8Q)
11.Rd5! Kd5
12.ef6 Ke6 (what else?)
13.f7 and the discovered attack on the rook is fatal to black.

Lastly, at move 1:

1. a6 Be6
2. a7 Bd5 (Ra8 3.Rb7 etc.)
3. Rb8 Rd7
4. a8Q Ba8
5. Ra8 wins a bishop since

5. …..Rd4?
6. Ra4+ wins a rook.

Daily Chess Improvement: Gashimov brilliant tactic

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