Test your chess: Reitstein problem 172

Black to play and win

A Goosen v N Vardi 1984

Solution

Reitstein gives this as a 'find a pleasing mate' problem, so I did: 1…Re3 is obvious (but I also looked at 1…Rg4+?? 1…Rc4, 1…Be3 and 1…Qd2+, to examine if not all biffs, most biffs). In a game, I would have played 1….Re3! with little thought. It is obvious that it wins (and, proving that we are in the year of the engine, I quickly evaluated the position as -10 or more; in fact, when I switched Stockfish on, it said -15).

If white plays 2 Qd5, black has at least 2…Nf4+, forking the king and queen: but it wasn't hard to see that even better is 2…Re2+ 3 Kf1[] Ng3 mate, which is indeed pleasing.

The other line to note is that if 2 Ne3 then 2..Re3, and again if then 3 Qd5, 3….Re2+ mates all the same.

However, the problem is slightly cooked because white can grovel with 3 Qe3, but then it is hopeless of course.

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