Best Move Chess Puzzles: September 2014

Best Move for White

White presuming that the knight is pinned and there is no way to escape. Could you help him find a better move so he could save his knight at a3

Best Move for black

White pawn is marching towards f8 to become a queen. Black comes with an innovative move to stop and white resigned.

Black is played by Gary Kasparov and white is played by Larry Chrisitian

Best Move for black

White moved the Knight to c8, enticing black to capture the Knight using the Rook at e8.

What do you think black should do : capture it ?

If black captures the Knight, white would play Qf5 targeting checkmate or capture the Rook.

So you should not capture the knight.

Best Move for black to capture a pawn

Black Rook wants to capture the pawn at c5. Is it a good idea ?

Black to move

White has forked the rook and the pawn. The black marching down to become a queen...but black comes with a brilliant idea.

Rook checkmate in 5 moves

Black to move and checkmate in three moves

Best Move for white

This is a very precarious move for black. Find the sequence of moves for white to come on top...

Best move for white - Discovered attack and check

White to move

End game - advanced level - white to move

Black king is tossed between two end of the board...eventually losses...

End game - advanced level - Black to move

Here is the PGN file

[Event "30th ECC Open 2014"]

[Site "Bilbao ESP"]

[Date "2014.09.14"]

[Round "1.3"]

[White "Peng, Zhaoqin"]

[Black "Malakhov, Vladimir"]

[Result "0-1"]

[WhiteELO "2392"]

[BlackELO "2696"]

[Opening "Robatsch (modern) defence"]

[ECO "B06"]

1. d4 g6 2. e4 Bg7 3. Bc4 e6 4. Nc3 d6 5. Nge2 Ne7 6. O-O a6 7. a4 b6 8. Bg5 h6

9. Bh4 g5 10. Bg3 d5 11. exd5 exd5 12. Bb3 Be6 13. a5 b5 14. Qd2 Nbc6 15. Rfe1 Qd7 16. Na2 Nf5

17. Nb4 Nxb4 18. Qxb4 h5 19. f3 O-O-O 20. Qd2 Rdg8 21. c3 g4 22. fxg4 Nxg3 23. Nxg3 Bxg4 24. Qf2 h4

25. Nf1 Bh6 26. Kh1 Be6 27. Bd1 Qd6 28. Re5 f6 29. Rh5 h3 30. g3 f5 31. Bf3 f4 32. Re1 c6

33. Qe2 Bd7 34. Qe7 Qxe7 35. Rxe7 fxg3 36. hxg3 Bc1 37. b4 Rxh5 38. Bxh5 Rf8 39. Kg1 h2+ 40. Nxh2 Bd2

41. Nf3 Bxc3 42. Ne5 Bxd4+ 43. Kg2 Rf2+ 44. Kh1 Bxe5 45. Rxe5 Rb2 46. Rg5 Rxb4 47. Kg2 Re4 48. Kf3 b4

49. Bg6 b3 0-1

Black to move

White queen just captured a Knight at f5, pinning the pawn at g6 by the rook at g1.

But black came up a brilliant idea to counter this move and white resigned. Can you find out why ?

Can white capture the black queen

Can you give a check!!!

Best Move for Black

This problem uses deflection

Best Move for Black

Very interesting move by black. The white rook is trapped by its own pieces (Bishop and the pawn) and does not rescue the white king...

...Nd1
Ra7 Kf6
Rf7 Kf7
....Ne3

Best Move for white

In the actual game, black moved his Rook from d5 to c5 which is a mistake. What is the next move for white after which black resigned.

Best Move for Black (interference)

In this game Aronian vs Anand ( a spectacular game ), black pieces are active, while white pieces (rook and bishop at still their bases).

For black, queen is pointing to h3. H3 pawn can't capture the black knight.

g2 pawn is pinned too. The black bishop is also pointing to g1.

But the problem for black is white queen because it is guarding the h3 pawn like shown here

How would black respond to the white queen. When Vishy played this extraordinary move, white resigned.

Best Move for white

See how the knight brilliantly dances around trapping the black king...

White is queen less and yet managed to draw

White is down two pieces

But, How would you equalize ? White to move, in next couple of moves, white would come on top with better position. Can you find the sequence ?

Analysis : Best Move for White

Two Black rooks are guarding the g6 pawn. How would you reduce the number of rooks to one rook

Black to Move and checkmate - Good sequence

Qd1+, qf1

Qd4+ Kh1

Qh4+, Kg1

Qh2#

Except the h1 rook, almost all pieces are active for black, But for white, he kept on moving one or two pieces...White lost due to position

NOTE: The orientation of the board is wrong here

Qxq, nxQ\, Rd8 fork