The McDonnell-La Bourdonnais encounters marked the beginning of modern chess -- a set match of serious games, all of which were recorded and published. This was the Frenchman’s most famous win of the match (really a series of six matches, won by La Bourdonnais +45, =13, -27), in which we have the unusual spectacle of a swarm of pawns overcoming a Queen.
McDonnell - La Bourdonnais
62nd Match Game, 1834
B32 SICILIAN DEFENSE, La Bourdonnais Variation
1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 e5 5. Nxc6
A positional error, strengthening Black’s central pawns, but such niceties were little known in the 1830s.
5. ... bxc6 6. Bc4 Nf6 7. Bg5 Be7 8. Qe2 d5 9. Bxf6 Bxf6 10. Bb3 0-0 11. 0-0 a5 12. exd5 cxd5 13. Rd1 d4 14. c4 Qb6 15. Bc2 Bb7 16. Nd2 Rae8 17. Ne4 Bd8 18. c5 Qc6 19. f3 Be7 20. Rac1 f5
Not 20. ... Bxc5? 21. Nxc5 Qxc5 22. Bxh7+. Black offers an Exchange sacrifice to get his central pawns moving.
21. Qc4+ Kh8 22. Ba4 Qh6 23. Bxe8 fxe4 24. c6 exf3 25. Rc2
And not 25. cxb7?, as 25. ... Qe2+ 26. Kh1 fxg2+ 27. Kxg2 Rf2+ would lead to mate.
25. ... Qe3+ 26. Kh1 Bc8 27. Bd7 f2
In turn threatening 28. ... Qe1+ 28. Qf1 Qxd1 30. Qxd1 f1=Q+.
28. Rf1 d3 29. Rc3 Bxd7 30. cxd7 e4 31. Qc8 Bd8 32. Qc4 Qe1 33. Rc1 d2 34. Qc5 Rg8 35. Rd1 e3 36. Qc3
(Diagram)
36. … Qxd1 37. Rxd1 e2, White resigns
No comments:
Post a Comment