Test your chess: Reitstein problem 14

White to play and win

CCA de Villiers v MC Rubery, Cape Town 1981

Solution

A bit of thought needed for this one, in the sense of finding the most precise method of exploiting the bind. When one sees that black's only (but limited) hope is to advance the a and b pawns, the idea of 1 Be1! comes to mind, and then the are also ideas such as 1…a5 2 Ba5! exploiting the fact that the Ra8 is tied to the defence of the Bc8. Finally, ideas such as h4 and Bb4 come into view, with a mating net: the precise follow up dependent on how black tries to defend, but it is hopeless for him.

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