Daily Chess Puzzle

Today’s problem is from the current European Team Championships.

As is my custom, I only say 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.

White to play: how to defend? What happens after (say) 1 Ra1

Ami v McShane, European Team Championships, Batumi, Georgia, 27th October 2019

Solution

If 1 Ra1, then 1…Be6 is strong, netting a pawn, with a continuing attack. It might objectivrly be best.

But 1…Re6!? 2 de Bc6! might be better.

As Matthew Sadler and Natasha Regan have pointed out in Game Changer, one of the things to be learnt from AlphaZero is the impact of cross-fire: from the rook/queen onto g2 via the g-line, and also on g2 along the long diagonal from the Bc6.

I suspect best for White now is 3 Be4 but after 3…Qe6 the Be4 is pinned to the LPDO Qe2. I prefer Black as a result.

FEN

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