Daily chess puzzle

Daily Chess Puzzle

Today’s problem is from the 1972 book “Chess Combination as a Fine Art”, a book based on articles published in the 1950s-1960s by Kurt Richter.

Since the start of 2018, I have decided to adopt the style of only saying which side is to play: and not giving an idea if the move wins or otherwise, unless on occasion I think signposting would be helpful. Instead, the problems are posed with the instruction to decide what you would play, as in a game.

Black to play

Moini v Mende, correspondence 1968

Solution

1 … Bg4! is the crushing first move.

2 gh? loses simply to 2…d2+ and if 3 Kd1, then 3…Bf3+. Or 3 Qd2 Qa1 mate; 3 Kb1 Rb8 mate.

2 fg loses equally simply to 2…Bg5+ and say 3Kd1 3…Qa1 mate.

2 Qh6 is met with 2…Qc2 mate, so White’s main try is 2 Rg4. Then 2…d2+ 3 Kd1 Qf3+

If 4 Qe2 (which would have worked against the immediate 1..d2+) then 4..Qh1+, since the Rh1 is now not protected by the Rg1 and is LPDO.

FEN

r1b5/5k1p/2p3pb/p3p1P1/P3P3/2qp1P2/P1P4Q/2K3RR b – – 0 1

Engine spoiler

My engine tells me that 1…Rb8 is mate in 5, so even better than 1…Bg4. As is 1…Ba6.