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1994-01-05
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Evans On Chess. December 10, 1993. Copyright by GM Larry Evans.
THE BRILLIANT TOUCH
A thunderbolt that shatters the enemy is always wondrous to behold. Yet the
beauty of a game is assessed not only by a brilliant sacrifice, but also by
the strength of the resistance.
Reuben Fine noted: "Chess is more than just a lifeless mathematical exercise.
Combinations are the most intriguing aspect of the game; they represent the
triumph of mind over matter. The master seeks them, the public applauds them,
the critics praise them. They are the poetry of the game; they are to chess
what melody is to music."
Alexander Alekhine and Mikhail Tal were two great attacking geniuses of the
20th century. Their best games are characterized by sheer will, originality,
and pulsating energy. Both were obsessed with chess. Both explored flights of
fancy by taking risks that other masters feared.
"I like to grasp the initiative and not give my opponent peace of mind," said
Tal. "I won't hide the fact I love to hear spectators react to a sacrifice. I
don't think there is anything bad in such a feeling; no artist or musician is
indifferent to the reactions of the public."
Tournaments have awarded brilliancy prizes for 150 years to gems that dazzled
judges with their beauty. But it's all in the eye of the beholder and Wilhelm
Steinitz, the first world champion, groused that flashy wins achieved by dint
of unsound combinations filled him with "artistic horror."
Indeed, the brilliancies of yore are impossible when the enemy won't stumble
into a silly pitfall. A rise in the standard of defense produced a rise in
the standard of attack, and a universal player like Bobby Fischer was equally
at home in both worlds.
When Gary Kasparov won the crown in 1985, fans greeted his brilliant touch as
a welcome relief from the dry positional style of Anatoly Karpov, who held
the title for ten years. Karpov was a boa constrictor who squeezed opponents
to death, yet we tend to forget that he snared no less than 18 brilliancy
prizes.
This exciting game won a "torero" prize in a field of 1236 players at the
25th Biel chess festival in Switzerland. White rejected 23 Qxd6 Nc4! 24 Nxc4
Rxe1 25 Rxe1 Rxe1 26 Nb6 Rxf1 27 Kxf1 Bxg2 28 Kg1 Qe4. Later White found no
good defense after bagging a Queen and walked into mate instead of prolonging
his agony by 46 Kf1 Nxg5.
White: P. CLADOURAS Black: D. GUREVICH Sicilian Defense 1992 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6
3.Bb5+ Nd7 4.0-0 Ngf6 5.Re1 e6 6.c3 a6 7.Bf1 Be7 8.d4 cxd4 9.cxd4 b5 10.a4 b4
11.a5 0-0 12.Bg5 Bb7 13.Nbd2 h6 14.Bh4 Ra7 15.h3 Re8 16.Qa4 Qa8 17.d5?! exd5
18.exd5 Bxd5 19.Qxb4 Ne5 20.Nd4 Rb7 21.Qa3 Nh5 22.Bxe7 Rbxe7 23.Nf5 Re6 24.Nxd6
Rg6 25.N2e4 Ree6 26.Rac1 Kh7 27.Rc8 Qa7 28.Nf5 Qb7 29.Qf8 Qxc8 30.Qxc8 Nf3+
31.Kh1 Nxe1 32.Neg3 Nf4 33.Ne3 Bc6 34.Kh2 h5 35.h4? Nfd3 36.Nd1 Rg4 37.Qd8 Ne5
38.Ne3 Rf4 39.Nxh5 Rxf2 40.Ng3 Rg6 41.h5 Rg5! 42.Kg1 Rxb2 43.Bd3+ N1xd3 44.Qxg5
Rxg2+! 45.Nxg2 Nf3+ 46.Kh1 Nf2++ mate