Test your chess: Reitstein problem 89

White to play and win

J Tsalicolgou v RF Griffiths 1975

Solution

As a teenager in the 1970s I devoured the few chess books that were available to me at the time. One of which was David Levy's Sacrifices in the Sicilian:

I haven't checked, but think it is true to say that I never played the Open Sicilian with white; or, if I did, I never played any of the miscellancy of sacrifices David taught me: Bb5!, Nb5!, Nf5! or Nd5! (I did though as black play Rc3!).

Forty years on, this puzzle, which could easily have arisen from an Open Sicilian- in fact, I would lay good odds that it did. So, 1 Nd5!! and it is game over. Black has two defences. Moving the queen, when 2 Ne7+ and Qd8 mate, and 1….ed 2 Qd5+ Kh8[] 3 Qd8+! mating: 3…Qd8 4 Rd8+ Bd8[] 5 Rf8 mate.

Thank you, Sacrifices in the Sicilian.

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