MARK RUBERY CHESS

During the 2013 Fide World Cup played in Norway the following position was reached in the game between the eventual champion, Vladimir Kramnik, and the talented French GM Maxime Vachier Lagrave. The diagrammed position appears to be a straightforward win for Kramnik but Black managed to escape with a draw after 125 moves. White is in fact winning, however, there is only one route to secure the victory and it contains a problem-like finale.

WHITE TO PLAY AND WIN

Kramnik,V (2784) - Vachier Lagrave,M (2719)

FIDE World Cup 2013 Tromso NOR 2013

62 Nd7! (Easy for a computer to see, less so for a super GM after hours of toil. Kramnik played 62 Ke4-harshly appended a ? by some commentators-when the French GM was miraculously able to hold after… Re1+ 63.Kf3 Rf1+ 64.Kg3 Rg1+ 65.Kf4 Rf1+ 66.Ke3 Re1+ 67.Kf3 Rf1+ 68.Kg2 Rf5 69.Nh7 Kg6 70.Rb7 Rf4 and White can make no realistic progress. He chose to give up the pawn but the resulting R + N v R led to its natural conclusion)…Rf5 63 Rf8+ Kg6 64 Rg8+ Kf7 65 Ke4! Ra5 66 Rf8+ Kg6 67 Ne5+!

(Giving up the pawn here is remarkably difficult to see. One wonders if a Kasparov or a Carlsen under similar conditions would have visualized this whole sequence?)…Kxg5 68 Rf5+! (And the imminent discovered check with the knight will pick up the rook)

‘The opponent who, especially when he has a bad game, continuously taps the table with his pencil, will readily desist on request. He is probably not aware of it – just tapping out his morose code.’ – D J Morgan