Daily chess puzzle: Check Mate #242

Another puzzle from Dragoslav Andric’s 1981 book “Matni Udar”.

White to play and win

Matanovic v Olafsson, Bled Olympiad 1961

Solution

Pretty, today, and somehow the tactics “all work” for White.

1 Rd8!!

If 1…Bd2 then 2 Rf8+ Kf8[] 3 Bd6+

and the cute point is that after 3…Ke8[], 4 Rf8+ is mate, since the Bg4 looks at d7.

In the game, Fridrik Olafsson played 1…Nd3, losing a piece after the exchange 2 Rf8+ Qf8 3 Qd3, when 3..Re1+ 4 Rf1

If 4…Qf4 then easiest is 5 Qe6+ Kf8 6 Qd6+! picking up the pinned Q.

FEN

5rk1/6pp/8/p2R4/1n2rBB1/qPb5/P2Q1RPP/6K1 w – – 0 29