15-11-2013, 03:45 PM
It’s the penultimate game of Bronsteins’ tied world championship match vs Botvinnik in 1951. Bronstein was ahead by a point. Botvinnik had just played 57 Bg5.
What happened next was that Black controversially resigned, after a very long think (showing no regard for the game’s true importance, Andy
)
The background was awash with cold war politics. Amidst rumours that he had been coerced into throwing the match, Bronstein later said he was subjected to psychological pressure not to win the match. As if to add to the intrigue, at the adjournment earlier Botvinnik reportedly gave his second the wrong ‘sealed move’ to analyse.
It’s been written about entertainingly in Geoff Chandler’s blog
<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://textualities.net/geoff-chandler/grand-master/">http://textualities.net/geoff-chandler/grand-master/</a><!-- m -->
The final position by all accounts is lost for black, who is in zugzwang and has to shed a pawn - but the position is still difficult. Excerpt:
“...Kotov wanted to know why Black had not played 57. ... Nc6 58. Bxd5 Nd6 and Bronstein, "the picture of absolute dejection," apparently had not considered it much. "For the first time Konstantinopolsky was looking quite angry with his young protege." Bronstein later credited Smyslov with finding the win: 59. Bf3 (pause for a diagram)
[pos]8/1p6/1pnn2k1/6Bp/P2P3P/2K2B2/8/8 b - - 2 5[/pos]
Now 59 ...Kf5 60. Bc1! so that after 60. ... b5 61. Bxc6 bxc6 White's a-pawn promotes.> -- Soviet Chess 1917-1991 by Andrew Soltis" (quoted here, <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1032203">http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1032203</a><!-- m -->)
The game is covered in the early fities book The Chess Mind in which Gerald Abrahams cites a Russian analysis (which normally meant you wouldn’t argue with it) as a win for white. According to which, from the diagram position Black can also try 59 … b5! after which White needs to be careful, as after the natural plan Bxc6 and a5 B plays Ne4+ and (according to Abrahams) the P ending is drawn! (He does nevertheless argue with the Russian analysis, but only near the end where having got to a won position they later blunder it away). After 59 ...b5 White avoids this pitfall by the (only) move Bf4 first when Nf5 Bxc6 and a5 the a-pawn succeeds with reasonable play.
In the first line I mentioned (from the diagram after 59 ...Kf5 60. Bc1!) after moves other than 59 ... b5 eg Ne4+ there is still play though White is winning.
So the position was definitely not a gimme for white. My take is that Bronstein wasn’t absolutely forced to lose the game, but was just rather relieved to believe that the position was lost, and so resigned too early. By modern standards where a wrong draw offer or a mobile accident might forfeit the game, it seems absurd to have to play world championship chess under such distractions and pressures. It must have been surreal for Bronstein.
What happened next was that Black controversially resigned, after a very long think (showing no regard for the game’s true importance, Andy
)The background was awash with cold war politics. Amidst rumours that he had been coerced into throwing the match, Bronstein later said he was subjected to psychological pressure not to win the match. As if to add to the intrigue, at the adjournment earlier Botvinnik reportedly gave his second the wrong ‘sealed move’ to analyse.
It’s been written about entertainingly in Geoff Chandler’s blog
<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://textualities.net/geoff-chandler/grand-master/">http://textualities.net/geoff-chandler/grand-master/</a><!-- m -->
The final position by all accounts is lost for black, who is in zugzwang and has to shed a pawn - but the position is still difficult. Excerpt:
“...Kotov wanted to know why Black had not played 57. ... Nc6 58. Bxd5 Nd6 and Bronstein, "the picture of absolute dejection," apparently had not considered it much. "For the first time Konstantinopolsky was looking quite angry with his young protege." Bronstein later credited Smyslov with finding the win: 59. Bf3 (pause for a diagram)
[pos]8/1p6/1pnn2k1/6Bp/P2P3P/2K2B2/8/8 b - - 2 5[/pos]
Now 59 ...Kf5 60. Bc1! so that after 60. ... b5 61. Bxc6 bxc6 White's a-pawn promotes.> -- Soviet Chess 1917-1991 by Andrew Soltis" (quoted here, <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1032203">http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1032203</a><!-- m -->)
The game is covered in the early fities book The Chess Mind in which Gerald Abrahams cites a Russian analysis (which normally meant you wouldn’t argue with it) as a win for white. According to which, from the diagram position Black can also try 59 … b5! after which White needs to be careful, as after the natural plan Bxc6 and a5 B plays Ne4+ and (according to Abrahams) the P ending is drawn! (He does nevertheless argue with the Russian analysis, but only near the end where having got to a won position they later blunder it away). After 59 ...b5 White avoids this pitfall by the (only) move Bf4 first when Nf5 Bxc6 and a5 the a-pawn succeeds with reasonable play.
In the first line I mentioned (from the diagram after 59 ...Kf5 60. Bc1!) after moves other than 59 ... b5 eg Ne4+ there is still play though White is winning.
So the position was definitely not a gimme for white. My take is that Bronstein wasn’t absolutely forced to lose the game, but was just rather relieved to believe that the position was lost, and so resigned too early. By modern standards where a wrong draw offer or a mobile accident might forfeit the game, it seems absurd to have to play world championship chess under such distractions and pressures. It must have been surreal for Bronstein.