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ANNOTATED GAME
Flights of Fantasy
L. Portisch (GM) vs. M. Tal (GM)
Annotated by: archduke_piccolo
(2334)
Chess opening: King's Indian (E60), 3.g3, counterthrust variation
L. Portisch (GM) vs. M. Tal (GM)
Annotated by: archduke_piccolo
(2334)
Chess opening: King's Indian (E60), 3.g3, counterthrust variation
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In my previous annotated game, someone referred to this amazing game. Tal livens up a rather pedestrian sort of game with a speculative knight sacrifice, and then seems to go completely crazy, giving up enormous amounts of material for the sake of attack. Portisch defends coolly, seeming to be weathering the storm comfortably. Wave after wave of attack surges against White's implacable defence. Nothing seems to break the iron fortress nor shake Portisch's steely aplomb. And yet ... Tal doesn't lose! What happened? | ||||||
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1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. g3 Bg7 4. Bg2 O-O 5. Nf3 d6 6. Nc3 |
So far a King's Indian Defence, Fianchetto Variation, with a slightly unusual move order. | |||||
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6... Bg4 |
(!?) More usual here is to move the c-pawn one or two squares, or to move the b8-N (to c6 or d7). | |||||
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7. O-O Qc8 |
Anchors the g4-B on its advanced square. White can not chase it off by h3 (supposing he would want to). Black might consider ...Bh3 to exchange the light square bishops (LSBs). | |||||
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8. Re1 |
Quite a well known device against Black's threat to force the bishop exchange by ...Bh3. The rook move obviates the half-pin, so that if 8...Bh3 9.Bh1! and Black can never dig the bishop off the long diagonal. | |||||
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8... Re8 9. Qb3 |
Further bolstering d5, with some incidental pressure on b7 and maybe f7 as well. However, it seems that 9.d5; 9.Bg5; 9.b3 or 9.e4 are more often played. | |||||
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9... Nc6 10. d5 Na5 |
"The knight on the rim is dim". Well, not always. The WQ doesn't have a wide range of options if the c-pawn is to be preserved, and one suspects that Black already has something in mind about the future of this knight... Having said that, 10...Bxf3!? had its points, with the Black knight coming in at d4 after the recapture at f3. | |||||
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11. Qa4 b6 12. Nd2 |
Steering for b3? Or merely to protect the c-pawn to free up the Queen? | |||||
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12... Bd7 |
If instead 12...Bh3!? White could choose between 13.Bh1 or 13.e4. | |||||
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13. Qc2 c6 |
The knight seems to be doing useful work on a5! Also playable was ...c5, which would have led to a whole different sort of game. At this point I will allow Alexandr Kotov [AK] and Ray Keene [RK] take up much of the story, as given in Barden, Hartston and Keene's "The King's Indian Defence" Batsford 1969/1973. | |||||
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14. b4 |
Alexandr Kotov [AK]: "It would hardly make Portisch think for a long time! The knight must retreat, following which 15.Bb2 would give White an excellent position. However, Tal can always surprise with a trick." | |||||
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14... Nxc4 |
(!) [AK] "The beginning of a series of sacrifices. Tal gives away nearly all his pieces. IS the sacrifice correct? Ask me another! Tal's sacrifices are irresistable, precisely because it's not so simple to prove them wrong!" To my mind there is a lot to be said for this sacrifice - as will emerge in my next note. Tal is still just chewing on his shield rim. The berserk charge has yet to come! | |||||
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15. Nxc4 cxd5 16. Na3 |
(!) The retreat to d2 isn't so attractive owing to this line: 16.Nd2 d4!! 17.Bxa8 dxc3 18.Bg2 cxd2 19.Qxd2 Ne4! 20.Bxe4 Bxa1 with a tough battle in prospect. Nor does 16.Nb2 prepossess. Black has two advantageous responses in 16...d4, or 16...Ne4! 17.Bxe4 Qxc3 and a whole series of exchanges that leave Black a pawn ahead with the bishop pair. #### It seems likely thal Tal thought that after 16.Na3 then ...d4 would be just as strong as against the other options. We'll have to see about that. However, Black could have baled out here by 16...Bf5 17.Qb3 Ne4 with a fine game... | |||||
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16... d4 |
(??!!) [AK] "If you said 'A' you have to say 'B'. The sacrifice of a N is followed by the sacrifice of a R." Now comes the berserker charge! I suspect, withal, that Tal hadn't looked though this line fully... | |||||
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17. Bxa8 |
(!) Cold bloodedly taking what's on offer, confident in his defensive technique. Nor does there seem any reason to panic... is there? | |||||
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17... Qxa8 |
Since after ...dxc3 the pawn would be striking at thin air, that capture doesn't seem so enticing as it does in the lines where the c4-knight had retreated to the 2nd rank. On the other hand, after the text move, the Black queen and light square bishop look handily placed to exploit the weak squares around White's king. Is that enough compensation for the material already given up? | |||||
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18. Ncb5 |
This is as good a place for the knight as any, and from b5 it strikes at Black's leading d-pawn. | |||||
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18... Rc8 |
Bringing the rook into action with gain of tempo. | |||||
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19. Qd1 Ne4 |
[AK] "Minus a rook, Tal plays as if nothing has happened. His threats of ...d3 and...Nc3 are serious." But it would seem that White could safely take the d-pawn here: 20.Nxd4 Ba4!!? 21.Qxa4 Bxd4 22.Be3! Bxa1 23.Rxa1 Nc3 24.Qc2 with an OK game. But that's not to depreciate Portisch's actual choice of move... | |||||
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20. f3 |
(!) | |||||
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20... a6 |
Extraordinary. You would think ...d3 would be a more urgent continuation, wouldn't you? | |||||
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