[Event "New York Rice final"]
[Date "1916.??.??"]]
[White "Janowski, Dawid Markelowicz"]
[Black "Capablanca, Jose Raul"]
[Result "0-1"]
[pgn]{In this post I'm going to examine something that, as far as I know, hasn't
been covered in chess literature: the importance of the queen's bishop in
chess. For those of you too young to have read descriptive notation, the
'queen's bishop' refers to the bishop next to the queen. In this blog post
I'll show how the strategic essence of the position can frequently be
understood just by considering this piece.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. c4 c6 4. Nc3
Bf5 $2 {Modern theory confirms that this move is a mistake, but why it is
erroneous?} (4... dxc4 {is a better move if Black wishes to develop his bishop
outside the pawn chain. As we saw last week, Black is threatening to protect
his extra pawn with ...b5, but preventing that move with} 5. a4 {gives Black
time to play} Bf5 {.}) (4... a6 {is another move that keeps open the c8-h3
diagonal open for the light-squared bishop, though most of the time it will
actually stay on c8 for a while. I'll explore this concept in more detail
later.}) 5. Qb3 {This move is the right idea, attacking the b7-pawn, but it
has a slight fault.} (5. cxd5 $1 cxd5 (5... Nxd5 6. Nd2 {followed by e4 also
favours White, who takes over the centre.}) 6. Qb3 {is the strongest
continuation. Black doesn't really want to waste more time with 6...Bc8, but}
Qb6 7. Qxb6 axb6 8. e3 {is much better than the game, as the knights on c3 and
f6 have not been exchanged and therefore the b5-square is a firm outpost for
White's pieces. Bb5 and Ne5 is a likely followup to pin Black's queen's knight
when it comes to c6 or d7.}) 5... Qb6 6. Qxb6 {White decides to damage Black's
pawn structure.} (6. cxd5 {still looks strong as 6...cxd5 will transpose to
the previous variation, but} Qxb3 7. axb3 Nxd5 $1 {is a better way to play, and
} 8. e4 Nxc3 9. exf5 Nd5 {is fine for Black as the cramping f5-pawn will be
exchanged with ...g6 and meanwhile White has weak queenside pawns and no
particularly effective pawn break. It's a typical Slav situation where White
has the bishop pair but Black is solid with a better pawn structure.}) 6...
axb6 7. cxd5 Nxd5 $1 {This is the important difference - with 5.cxd5 White
forced Black to recapture immediately, allowing White to react accordingly.} 8.
Nxd5 cxd5 9. e3 Nc6 10. Bd2 {I want to set this position as a puzzle - how
would you play as Black? You already have a hint that it has something to do
with the f5-bishop. By the way, anyone who finds the move Capablanca played in
this position without having seen the idea before definitely has Grandmaster
potential.} Bd7 $3 {This move is so deep that even modern computers do not
understand it! But Black's plan is fairly simple: he needs the bishop to
support ...b5, which in turn prepares ...Na5-c4 to improve the knight's
position and put pressure on White's queenside pawns. You will remember the
prior variation where Black wound up in difficulties because White could play
a quick Bb5 and Ne5.} 11. Be2 e6 12. O-O Bd6 13. Rfc1 Ke7 14. Bc3 Rhc8 {While
Black executes the aforementioned plan, White has developed his pieces without
a specific idea in mind. However the position should still be balanced.} 15. a3
Na5 16. Nd2 f5 {This Stonewall makes sense as the d7-bishop already has a good
diagonal and it also establishes a space advantage on the kingside.} 17. g3 b5
18. f3 (18. Bxa5 Rxc1+ 19. Rxc1 Rxa5 20. Nb3 Ra8 21. Nc5 {is noted as being
equal by Lipnitsky.}) 18... Nc4 {Black has a comfortable positional advantage
here, as White's pawns are under pressure and his pieces aren't as well-placed.
Undoubtedly White felt that sitting tight with 19.Kf2 would leave Black free
to gain more kingside space, but it's not clear that he could have made real
progress.} 19. Bxc4 $6 bxc4 {Now Black gets the bishop pair to go with his
superior pawn structure (he has one less pawn island). Generally speaking,
pawns become more valuable as they move closer to the centre, except in a very
simplified position, where the value of an outside passed pawn increases (as
it ties the opponent's pieces from defending the other side).} 20. e4 Kf7 21.
e5 $6 {Gaining space in this manner is a mistake which leaves Black free to
play ...b5-b4 and increase his queenside space advantage. White should have
exchanged on d5 and tried to create counterplay, possibly with f4 and Nf3-e5.}
Be7 22. f4 b5 23. Kf2 Ra4 24. Ke3 Rca8 25. Rab1 {Now Black uses the principle
of two weaknesses: rather than rushing ahead with ...b4, Black pries open the
kingside to try and create a second weakness in White's position. In doing so,
Black will stretch White's defences in protecting both weaknesses, until
eventually one of them drops.} h6 26. Nf3 g5 27. Ne1 Rg8 28. Kf3 gxf4 (28...
g4+ {would be a mistake as it's much easier to defend h2 than it is to protect
f4.}) 29. gxf4 (29. Kxf4 Bg5+ {is not good!}) 29... Raa8 30. Ng2 Rg4 31. Rg1
Rag8 32. Be1 b4 $2 {This rushed move could have cost Capablanca half a point.
Remember, when you have full control of a position you don't need to hurry -
make sure all your pieces are on their best squares before making the final
breakthrough!} (32... Bd8 33. Bg3 Bb6 {ties White up to d4, and} 34. Rgd1 Be8
35. Ne3 R4g7 36. Nc2 Ke7 37. Rg1 Bh5+ 38. Ke3 Kd7 {offers excellent winning
chances.}) 33. axb4 Ba4 34. Ra1 Bc2 35. Bg3 $2 (35. Ra7 Be4+ 36. Ke3 {would be
fine for White, as White now has strong counterplay with his passed b-pawn and}
Rxg2 37. Rxg2 Rxg2 38. Bh4 {is a holdable opposite-coloured bishop endgame.})
35... Be4+ 36. Kf2 h5 {The advance of the h-pawn wins Black a copious sum of
material.} 37. Ra7 Bxg2 38. Rxg2 h4 39. Bxh4 Rxg2+ 40. Kf3 Rxh2 41. Bxe7 Rh3+
42. Kf2 Rb3 43. Bg5+ Kg6 44. Re7 Rxb2+ 45. Kf3 Ra8 46. Rxe6+ Kh7 {This is a
sparkling example of how to play such a symmetrical pawn structure, and
queenless middlegames in general.} 0-1[/pgn]
[Event "World Cup"]
[Date "1988.06.??"]
[White "Kasparov, Garry"]
[Black "Andersson, Ulf"]
[Result "1-0"]
[pgn]{With our next game, I want to show what I deem to be the fundamental
strategic problem with the Black side of the famous 'Carlsbad' pawn structure:
he is unable to find a good square for his queen's bishop.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6
3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 {This is probably White's best move, as it immediately
establishes a central majority (2 vs. 1).} exd5 5. Bg5 {It's very important to
develop your queen's bishop outside the pawn chain in these pawn structures.
After a passive move like} (5. e3 {this bishop has absolutely no scope and is
blocked in by the d4-e3-f2 pawn chain.}) 5... c6 6. Qc2 Be7 7. e3 Nbd7 8. Bd3
O-O ({Andersson later tried} 8... Nh5 {against Kasparov, simplifying the
position, but also lost that game.}) 9. Nge2 ({As a junior I emulated Ian
Rogers's} 9. Nf3 Re8 10. O-O Nf8 11. Rae1 {system, intending a quick Ne5 and
f4 in Pillsbury style, but with the benefit of wisdom I've come to realise the
knight is more flexible on e2.}) 9... Re8 10. O-O Nf8 {The idea of these last
two moves is that Black can now move his f6-knight without losing his h7-pawn
to Bxh7.} 11. f3 {As far as I know, Botvinnik was the first player to use this
setup in this pawn structure. The first point is that Black cannot trade
pieces and start a kingside attack with ...Ne4; the second is that White wants
to eventually play e4, so that after ...dxe4 fxe4 White has two powerful pawns
in the centre. Also note that if Black plays ...h6, White can play Bh4 and
tuck the bishop way on f2 to protect the e3-pawn if necessary.} Be6 {This is
the obvious place to put the queen's bishop, but here it gets in the way of
the half-open e-file, and as we'll see in the game, once White plays e4 the
e6-bishop does nothing to attack the centre and can be a target to a d5 break
(like in the recent game Carlsen-Anand, Tal Memorial 2013).} (11... Bd7 {is
another square for the bishop, but now the queen on d8 won't put any pressure
on the d4-pawn when White plays e4. Of course, you can keep the bishop on c8,
but then the a8-rook will be out of play!}) (11... g6 {followed by ...Ne6-g7
and ...Bf5 is a plan in some positions, but it completely fails here as White
will play e4 the instant ...Bf5 is played.}) 12. Rae1 Rc8 13. Kh1 {White
continues to improve his position to prepare e4, as the hasty} (13. e4 dxe4 14.
fxe4 c5 15. Bxf6 Bxf6 16. e5 Bg5 17. d5 Be3+ 18. Kh1 Bd7 {leaves White's
centre slightly overextended. He can still play with 19.e6 or 19.Ne4 but he is
not fighting for an advantage here.}) 13... N6d7 14. Bxe7 Rxe7 15. Nf4 {The
idea of this move is not so much to take on e6 as to clear the way for e4.} Rc7
16. Qf2 Nf6 17. e4 dxe4 18. fxe4 {As I discovered in my game against Niaz
Murshed in the 2011 Thailand Open, if Black can't meet White's e4 break with a
tactical device (such as ...c5) his position is extremely dodgy. He will get
crushed with e5 and Ne4 or d5.} Rcd7 19. d5 $5 {Kasparov tries to cash in his
advantage, but this allows a surprising device from Black.} (19. h3 {might
have been even more accurate:} Rxd4 {is exposed by} 20. Ncd5 $1 Rxd5 21. exd5
Nxd5 22. Nxe6 Nxe6 23. Qxa7 {and White is simply up an exchange for a pawn.})
19... cxd5 20. Bb5 Rc7 $2 (20... d4 $1 21. Bxd7 Bc4 $1 {would keep White's
edge to a minimum after} 22. Bf5 dxc3 23. Rg1 cxb2 24. Qxb2 {.}) 21. exd5 Bd7
22. Be2 Rc8 23. Qxa7 {Once White wins a pawn, the rest is plain sailing.} b6
24. Qa6 Ne4 25. d6 Nxd6 26. Nfd5 Re5 27. Qxb6 Nf5 28. Qxd8 Rxd8 29. Bd3 Rxe1
30. Rxe1 Ng6 31. a4 Nd4 32. a5 Kf8 33. Bxg6 hxg6 34. Rd1 Ne6 35. Nb6 Bc6 36.
Rxd8+ Nxd8 37. b4 Ne6 38. b5 {Black resigned.} 1-0[/pgn]
[Event "Thailand Open"]
[Date "2011.04.14"]
[White "Murshed, Niaz"]
[Black "Illingworth, Max"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[pgn]1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Bg5 Be7 6. e3 c6 7. Bd3 Nbd7 8.
Nge2 O-O 9. Qc2 Re8 10. O-O Nf8 11. f3 Be6 12. Rad1 Ng6 13. Ng3 Rc8 14. Nf5 Bf8
15. Nh4 Be7 16. Kh1 a6 17. Na4 Nd7 18. Bxe7 Rxe7 19. Nf5 Bxf5 20. Bxf5 Rc7 21.
e4 dxe4 22. fxe4 Nf6 23. Nc3 Re8 24. Qf2 Ne7 25. Bh3 Ng6 26. Bf5 Ne7 27. Rd3
Nxf5 28. Qxf5 Qc8 29. Qf4 Rd7 30. e5 Nd5 31. Nxd5 cxd5 32. Rc3 Qd8 33. h3 Ree7
34. Rfc1 Rc7 35. Qg5 Rxc3 36. Rxc3 h6 37. Qc1 Qd7 38. Rc8+ Re8 39. Rc7 Qf5 40.
Kh2 f6 41. exf6 1/2-1/2[/pgn]
[Event "8th Tal Memorial"]
[Date "2013.06.18"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[pgn]1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Nge2 d5 6. a3 Be7 7. cxd5 Nxd5 8.
Bd2 Nd7 9. g3 b6 10. Nxd5 exd5 11. Bg2 Bb7 12. Bb4 Nf6 (12... Bxb4+ 13. axb4 c6
) (12... c5 13. dxc5 bxc5 14. Bc3 Nf6 15. O-O Re8 16. b4) 13. O-O Re8 14. Rc1
c6 15. Bxe7 Rxe7 16. Re1 Qd6 17. Nf4 Bc8 18. Qa4 Rc7 19. f3 Be6 20. e4 dxe4 21.
fxe4 Qd7 22. d5 cxd5 23. Qxd7 Rxd7 24. Nxe6 fxe6 25. Bh3 Kh8 (25... Re8 26.
exd5) (25... Re7 26. exd5 e5 27. Be6+) 26. e5 Ng8 (26... Ne4 27. Bxe6 Rdd8 28.
Rc7) 27. Bxe6 Rdd8 28. Rc7 d4 29. Bd7 Ne7 30. Rd1 Ng6 31. e6 1-0[/pgn]
[Event "Belgrade m"]
[Date "1985.??.??"]
[White "Andersson, Ulf"]
[Black "Kasparov, Garry"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[pgn]{I've included this game to show how comfortable Black is in these Carlsbad
positions when he succeeds in exchanging his light-squared bishop. The bishop
will be very strong on f5 if it isn't exchanged, as White will not have a pawn
break in the centre (e4) and Black can easily start a kingside initiative with
...Ne4.} 1. Nf3 d5 2. d4 Nf6 3. c4 e6 4. Nc3 c6 5. cxd5 exd5 6. Bg5 Be7 7. Qc2
g6 8. e3 Bf5 9. Bd3 Bxd3 10. Qxd3 O-O 11. Bxf6 Bxf6 12. b4 Qd6 13. Rb1 Nd7 14.
O-O Rfd8 15. Rfc1 Nb6 16. Nd2 Qe7 17. Qc2 a6 18. a4 Bg7 19. Ne2 Bh6 20. Re1 Qe6
21. Nc1 Nc4 22. Qc3 Nd6 23. Nd3 Bg7 24. Nc5 Qe7 25. Re2 Re8 26. Rbe1 Qc7 27. a5
Re7 28. Qd3 Rae8 29. f3 Nf5 30. g3 h5 31. Kg2 Qc8 32. Ndb3 Rd8 33. Rd1 Bf6 34.
Qc3 Bg7 35. e4 dxe4 36. fxe4 h4 37. g4 Nxd4 38. Nxd4 Qxg4+ 39. Kf1 Rd6 40. Rd3
Qf4+ 41. Rf2 Qe5 42. Rfd2 Qf4+ 43. Rf2 Qe5 44. Rfd2 1/2-1/2[/pgn]
[Event "Istanbul ol (Men) 40th"]
[Date "2012.09.09"]
[White "Ivanchuk, Vassily"]
[Black "Wang Hao"]
[Result "1-0"]
[pgn]{In this next game I want to reveal one of the secrets of the Nimzo-Indian,
which I only understood recently - the best square for White's queen's bishop
is on c1! The explanation for this is as follows: In the Nimzo-Indian the pawn
structure and piece deployment for Black is very flexible, and Black can
adjust his setup depending on White's reply. Therefore, White needs to wait
until the pawn structure is formalised before developing this bishop.
Generally speaking the pin on the f6-knight (with Bg5) fails to cause Black
any problems (as we'll see in the next game); on f4 the bishop hits thin air;
on e3 it gets in the way of an e4 break and White's kingside development; the
bishop is passive on d2; and on b2 the bishop is banging its head against the
d4-pawn. Therefore, the bishop should stay on c1, where it is out of the way
of the other pieces!} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 (4. Bg5 {, the
Leningrad Variation, is considered strategically dubious with best play and
I'll show a game that illustrates why next.}) (4. Qc2 {is the positionally
most logical move, controlling the e4-square and preparing to win the bishop
pair with a3 Bxc3 Qxc3. However, the top players have almost refuted this as a
try for an advantage with} O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 $1 {, with the point
that White can't achieve his 'Carlsbad' advantage with} 7. cxd5 {and Bg5
because of the intermezzo} Ne4 $1 8. Qc2 exd5 {and in Carlsen-Kramnik, Black
managed to solve the problem of his c8-bishop, and it was even White who had
to fight for the draw. Meanwhile, if White plays 7.Nf3 instead, Black can play
7...dxc4 8.Qxc4 b6 to activate his light-squared bishop to a6 or b7.}) (4. Nf3
b6 5. Bg5 {is another variation that aims to solve the 'problem' of the
c1-bishop, but after} h6 6. Bh4 g5 7. Bg3 Ne4 8. Qc2 Bb7 {I was unable to find
an edge for White despite a lot of analysis, and even came to the conclusion
that it is White who must play accurately to equalise, as his initiative is of
a temporary nature whereas his pawn structure will be permanently damaged with
...Bxc3 later.}) 4... O-O 5. Bd3 d5 6. Nf3 b6 7. a3 Bxc3+ 8. bxc3 c6 9. cxd5
cxd5 10. Qe2 {White prevents Black from exchanging his bishop on c8 with ...
Ba6, which is a typical way to secure control over the light squares in this
pawn structure. Notice how the d5-e6-f7 pawn chain blocks in the c8-bishop -
this is why often Black will open up the centre with ...c5, ...dxc4 and ...
exd4, saddling White with an IQP and giving his c8-bishop an open diagonal
from a8-h1.} Nc6 11. O-O Na5 12. a4 {This is one of the main advantages
associated with provoking Bxc3 - often White will play Ba3 to take some
squares from Black.} Re8 (12... Nb3 13. Rb1 Nxc1 14. Rfxc1 {takes White's
bishop pair, but after a5 and axb6 he will succeed in leaving Black with an
isolated b-pawn. Meanwhile White can play c4 to secure a central pawn majority.
}) 13. Ne5 Ne4 14. f3 Nd6 15. Ba3 Bb7 16. Bxd6 {White exchanges on d6 before
Black can clamp down on c4 with ...f6 and ...Ndc4.} Qxd6 17. f4 g6 18. Qg4 Nc4
(18... Qe7 {was a better try, so that the queen could defend the Black king.})
19. Qg3 Qc7 $2 {After this blunder, Ivanchuk crowns his attack with great
precision.} 20. Bxc4 dxc4 21. f5 $1 f6 22. fxg6 $1 fxe5 23. Rf7 Qc6 24. gxh7+
$1 Kxf7 25. Rf1+ Ke7 26. h8=Q $1 Rxh8 27. Qg7+ Kd6 28. dxe5+ {Black is about
to get mated, so he resigned.} 1-0 [/pgn]
[Event "Geneve"]
[Date "1977.??.??"]
[White "Timman, Jan H"]
[Black "Dzindzichashvili, Roman"]
[Result "0-1"]
[pgn]1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Bg5 h6 5. Bh4 c5 6. d5 Bxc3+ 7. bxc3 d6 8. e3
e5 9. f3 Bf5 10. Qb3 b6 11. h3 Nbd7 12. g4 Bh7 13. Ne2 g5 14. Bf2 h5 15. h4 e4
16. hxg5 exf3 17. gxf6 fxe2 18. Bxe2 Qxf6 19. Rxh5 Bg6 20. Bh4 Qg7 21. Kd2 Bxh5
22. gxh5 Qg2 23. Rf1 Rxh5 24. Rf2 Qh3 25. Bxh5 Qxh4 26. Rf5 Ne5 27. Be2 O-O-O
28. a4 Rg8 29. Qb5 Qe7 30. Rh5 Qd7 31. Qa6+ Qb7 32. Qb5 a6 33. Qb1 Qc7 34. Rh6
Kb7 35. Qf5 Rg6 36. Rh7 Qe7 37. Qh3 Rg8 38. Kc2 Kc7 39. Bh5 Qf6 40. Kb3 Rh8 41.
Rxh8 Qxh8 42. Qf5 Qg7 43. Qe4 Qg5 44. Bd1 Qg6 45. Qc2 Qxc2+ 46. Bxc2 Ng4 47. e4
Ne5 48. Bd1 a5 49. Be2 Kd7 50. Kc2 Ke7 51. Kd2 Kf6 52. Ke3 Kg5 53. Bd1 Nxc4+
54. Kf3 f5 55. exf5 Kxf5 56. Ke2 Kf4 57. Bb3 Nb2 58. Kd2 c4 59. Ba2 Ke4 60. Kc2
Nxa4 61. Bxc4 Nc5 62. Kb2 Nd3+ 63. Ka3 Ne5 64. Ba2 b5 0-1[/pgn]
[Event "40th GM"]
[Date "2012.07.22"]
[White "Bartel, Mat"]
[Black "Caruana, F."]
[Result "0-1"]
[pgn]{In fact, it is not just the Nimzo-Indian where the queen's bishop is often
best placed on its initial square - this is a theme in several openings! If
you look at the trends of modern opening theory, you will find that the
majority of openings are centred around keeping the bishop on c1/c8 to protect
the b2(b7) pawn against an early ...Qb6(Qb3) attack, and avoid blocking
potential open files for the king's rook and queen. The entire Grunfeld is
based around this concept - Black is able to attack White's centre from a
solid foundation, as the c8-bishop is perfectly placed to defend the b7-pawn
on the half-open b-file (after e4 Nxc3 bxc3).} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4.
cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Nf3 c5 8. Rb1 {The idea of this rook move
is to immediately place the b7-pawn under pressure, and develop the rook so
that the c1-bishop can stay in its ideal position for as long as possible.
That's not to say that the bishop is badly placed on e3, but the e4-pawn is
subsequently harder to defend.} (8. Be2 Nc6 9. Be3 {is well met by} Bg4 {, but
this bishop move only works when White is forced to weaken his centre with e5
or d5, which outweighs the weakening of the b7-pawn.}) (8. Be3 Qa5 9. Qd2 O-O
10. Rc1 Rd8 {is completely fine for Black, which is why White has recently
been trying 9.Nd2!? to fight for an advantage.}) 8... O-O 9. Be2 cxd4 10. cxd4
Qa5+ 11. Qd2 {This move leads to an endgame where Black is completely fine, as
the d4-pawn comes under pressure quickly and White's minority attack loses all
of its sting due to the c8-bishop holding the queenside together.} (11. Bd2
Qxa2 12. O-O {is the best continuation, sacrificing a pawn to gain a large
lead in development and clear possibilities to create a passed pawn with d5,
e5 and d6. It is hard for Black to exert pressure on White's centre, but it is
noteworthy that Black's main continuation is} Bg4 {, returning the pawn to
stop White rolling Black over in the centre. If the a8-rook cannot enter the
game, the d-pawn will be very hard to stop! White will usually refuse the pawn
sacrifice in favour of} 13. Bg5 {, also improving his queen's bishop! There's
a lot of theory to study in this line, and I refer you to the books for that.})
11... Qxd2+ 12. Bxd2 e6 {This move prepares ...Rd8 and ...Nc6 without allowing
the d5 break in reply.} 13. O-O b6 14. Rbc1 Bb7 15. Rc7 {White tries to
trounce Black's position immediately with rapid central play, but Bartel soon
finds that it is very hard to break down Black's rock solid position so easily.
} Bxe4 16. Ng5 $2 {Sadly, this move is an error.} (16. Rfc1 a5 17. Ne5 {would
give White sufficient compensation for the pawn (due to Black's difficulty in
developing the queenside), but not an advantage.}) 16... Bd5 17. Bb4 Rd8 18.
Bb5 (18. Nxf7 Rd7 19. Rxd7 Nxd7 20. Ng5 Bxd4 {is hardly encouraging for White
either.}) 18... a6 $1 19. Nxf7 axb5 20. Nxd8 Na6 21. Rxg7+ Kxg7 {This is all a
brilliant sequence by Caruana - now the d8-knight is trapped and Black's
b-pawn will be very powerful.} 22. Be7 b4 23. Rc1 Bxa2 24. Rc6 {White goes
into swindle mode, but there's nothing he can do anymore.} b5 25. h4 b3 26. Ba3
Nb4 $1 {This tactic ends the game.} 27. Nxe6+ Kg8 {White resigned. That was
quick and brutal!} 0-1[/pgn]