It’s Your Move: daily chess puzzle # 111

Black to play and win

Kluger v Szilagyi, Budapest 1965

Solution

I first looked at the 'obvious' biff 1…Rh3+!, after which 2 gh [] Bf3+ 3 Bg2[] Bg2+ 4 Kh2, but couldn't visualise anything forcing in the resultant position.

Because I couldn't see 1…Rh3+! to a successful, conclusion, I instead turned to 1…Rf3!, discussed below, but Stockfish of course finds 4…Nc3! which is cute, especially since a subsequent N*d1 defends the Qf2. Black wins. So 1…Rh3+ does indeed win by force. In the answers in Teschner's book, they too don't see 4…Nc3!, saying instead that 'in reality, Black would be in difficulties'. Not in the engine age.

1…Rf3 is pretty if White behaves: 2 Qf2 is met not by the automatic recapture Rf2 but by 2…Rfh3+! with mate next move. This was the game continuation and the solution given in Teschner.

White can though be a spoil sport and play (1…Rf3) 2 Nd5 when Black is better after 2..Qd2 3 Rd2[] Rf1+ 4 Rf1 ed 5 cd Bb5 6 Rf3 Rd6:

Stockfish assesses this as -2.6, and who am I to argue, but it looks closer to me than that. White probably plays 7 Rd4 to protect his d Rook and also prevent 7…Bc4. Perhaps Black should first insert 6…Rf6 7 Re3 Rd6, to give his king access to the f file, presuming that it is not in White's interests to exchange a pair of rooks, since then White's remaining rook would be overloaded with too many duties.

I can't find the game on Chessbase online, and (writing this blog from Turkey in August) I don't have the Teschner puzzle book with me, so I can't presently check what in fact Black played.

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