Tal-Korchnoi

It makes sense to kick this off in style, so I think I'll begin with one of the all-time entertaining personality clashes, Mikhail Tal vs. Viktor Korchnoi. In this match we had the magical master of offensive wizardry paired with one of the most creative, stalwart defenders to ever play the game. True to form (and consistent with most sports—alas!) the defender tended to win!

Tal-Korchnoi
25th USSR Championship
Riga 1958, Round 9
French Defense

1. e4 e6
2. d4 d5
3. Nc3 Bg5
4. e5 c5
5. a3 Bxc3+
6. bxc3 Ne7
7. Qg4 Nf5!?



The opening variation is a Winawer French, a fairly pugnacious defence from Korchnoi where black parts ways with his "good" dark-squared bishop in return for the opportunity to play against white's shattered pawn structure. In this case, Korchnoi played the odd and perhaps dubious move 7...Nf5 to hold his kingside together instead of the more standard 0-0, Kf8, or the always popular gambit Qc7, abandoning the kingside altogether in favor of counterattack on the queenside. The move Nf5 is seen as comparatively stodgy, lacking the vitality of the alternatives, but in this case, Korchnoi (who seemed to enjoy playing slightly dubious opening variations in his younger years, to goad his opponents) had prepared a surprise that he hoped to spring on Tal.


Mikhail Tal


Viktor Kochnoi

8. Bd3 h5
9. Qh3 cxd4
10. Nf3 Qc7
11. Rb1




True to his creative creed, Tal sacrifices material to throw fuel on the fire of his attack. Here, he prepares g4 with a coming initiative.

11 ... dxc3

Alternatively, Qxc3 would lose a tempo to Bd2.

12. g4 Ne7
13. gxh5 Nbc6
14. Bf4

This was the theoretical position that Korchnoi had anticipated, with analysis continuing 14... g6 15. h6 Nf5 16.0-0 Nce7 17.h7 etc. with a continuing initiative for white.

14. ... Ng6!




Forcing white back, as 15. Bxg6 fxg6 would stop the advance of the h-pawn, grinding white's attack to a halt.

15. Bg3 Ngxe5
16. Nxe5 Nxe5
17. Kf1 Bd7
18. Qh4?

Tal scrounges for activity, seeking to reinitiate his attack, but this move underestimates the powerful rejoinder (which Korchnoi overlooked) 18... Nf3 with wild complications that ultimately favor black.

18. ... f6?
19. Bxe5 Qxe5
20. Rxb7 Rb8
21. Rxb8 Qxb8
22. Qg4

And Tal has regained his balance, inspite of all of Korchnoi's ingenuity, and it back to sowing mischief.




22. ... Kf8
23. Rg1

And here, white's attack appears quite intimidating, but Korchnoi has already surveyed the defensive resources and found the sort of answer that a class player like me can only whistle at:

23. ... g5!



Black returns all of the sacrificed material and calmly shelters his king behind the enemy's own forces.

24. hxg6 Kg7
25. h4 a5

A thoughtful little move, keeping the white queen out of b4, from whence she might begin to gaze at the juicy e7 square.

26. Rg3 Qb1+
27. Kg2 Qb7
28. h5 d4+
29. Be4 Bc6
30. Bxc6 Qxc6+



The attack has spent itself with the piece exchanges and a sort of dynamic equilibrium has spread over the board, black's center pawns balancing white's kingside. The most logical outcome would probably have been a draw, but Tal soon saw a ghost and acted quite impulsively:

31. Kg1 Qd5
32. Qf4 Qe5
33. h6+?? Rxh6
34. Qxh6+ Kxh6
35. g7



Missing the killer blow:

35. ... Qxg3+!

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