Test your chess: daily chess puzzle # 59

White to play and win

E Kromhout v J Wilkin 2004

Solution

I got the correct idea, choosing 1 Re3+ Qe3 2 Nd5, which wins a piece, and should win the game comfortably (black's king is exposed, and he only has two pawns for the piece) but far better is to reverse the move order and play 1 Nd5! which wins far more neatly.

The main line is the same: if the Knight is captured, 2 Re3+! followed by 3 Bb5+ wins the queen. But if black doesn't play ball, say by 1…Be6, then white wins a piece nevertheless with 2 Nc7+ Kd7 3 Qe6+ Kc7 4 Re3, with an attack to boot.

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