CHESS BY VICTOR STRUGO

Last week’s local news delayed news that the FIDE Grand Prix in Berlin decided the last two qualifiers for June’s Candidates tournament in Barcelona. Hikaru Nakamura (USA) and Richard Rapport (Hungary) will take their place alongside already qualified Fabiano Caruana (USA), Alireza Firouzja (France), Jan-Krzysztof Duda (Poland), Teimour Radjabov (Azerbaijan) and Ian Nepomniachtchi (Russia).

But with Russia’s Sergei Karjakin now disqualified for his outspoken pro-Putin views on Ukraine, the 8th spot is up for grabs again and looks likely to be filled by world No. 2, China’s Ding Liren. After missing the Grand Prix because of a visa snag, his chess federation hastily organized enough tournaments to facilitate his qualification. Favouritism, perhaps, but given Ding’s strength, he deserves to be there. After two years of virally suspended chess animation, Chess SA has allocated the 2022 South African Open to Cape Town. The nation’s premier Open will be held 9 - 17 July 2022. Venue and registration details will emerge in the weeks ahead, along with news of likely Grandmaster participation. Watch this space. The following miniature played in 1957 at

Sombor in (then) Yugoslavia shows what goes wrong when one tries to cling to an extra Pawn at the cost of natural development. To quote Monty Python, “It don’t work!”

Rabar, Braslav – Matulovic, Milan (French Defence, Tarrasch Variation): 1 e4 e6 2 d4 d5 3 Nd2 c5 4 exd5 exd5 5 Bb5+ Bd7 6 Qe2+ Be7 7 dxc5 Nf6 8 Nb3 (The start of his doomed materialistic aspirations which continue on move 12. 8 Ngf3 is more natural) 8 ... 0-0 9 Be3 Re8 10 0-0-0 a6 11 Bxd7 Nbxd7 12 Qf3 (Better 12 Nf3 Nxc5 13 Nxc5 Bxc5 14 Nd4 Rc8) 12 … a5 13 a4 Qc7 14 Ne2 Bxc5! Keeping both Knights to target the light squares) 15 Nxc5 Nxc5 16 Nc3 Rac8 17 Qf4? (Losing the plot. 17 Bd4 Nfe4 18 Nxd5 Qc6 19 Ne3 holds firm) 17 … Qxf4 18 Bxf4 d4 19 Nb5 d3 20 Nc3 Nd5 21 Bd2 Nb4 22 cxd3 Nxb3 and White resigned.

Matulovic (1935-2013) was twice champion of Yugoslavia and played tenth Board in the 1970 USSR vs Rest of World Match. He achieved notoriety in the 1967 Interzonal by violating the touch-move rule against Hungarian GM Bilek and thereby acquired the nicknamed “J’Adoubovic.”*