The Queen Given on h3

The game, move by move

An Old Indian, and a closed centre

1. 1. d4 Queen’s pawn
2. 1… Nf6 The knight out
3. 2. c4 c4
4. 2… d6 d6 — the Old Indian Black builds behind his pawns and waits for a chance at e5. It is a slow opening and this is not a slow game.
5. 3. Nf3 The second knight
6. 3… Nbd7 Nbd7
7. 4. Nc3 The knight out
8. 4… e5 e5, the freeing move
9. 5. e4 e4
10. 5… Be7 Be7
11. 6. Be2 Be2
12. 6… O-O Black castles
13. 7. O-O And White
14. 7… c6 c6
15. 8. Qc2 The queen to c2
16. 8… Re8 The rook to e8
17. 9. Rd1 The rook to d1
18. 9… Bf8 The bishop back to f8
19. 10. Rb1 Rb1
20. 10… a5 a5
21. 11. d5 d5 — the centre closes And it stays closed. With no play in the middle both sides go for a wing, and the wings decide it.
22. 11… Nc5 The knight to c5
23. 12. Be3 The bishop to e3
24. 12… Qc7 The queen to c7
25. 13. h3 h3 — the pawn the queen is given for A perfectly ordinary move. Thirty moves later Black’s queen takes it and the white king has to take her back.
26. 13… Bd7 Bd7
27. 14. Rbc1 The rook to c1
28. 14… g6 g6

g4 and f5

1. 15. Nd2 The knight to d2
2. 15… Rab8 The rook to b8
3. 16. Nb3 The knight to b3
4. 16… Nxb3 The knights come off
5. 17. Qxb3 The queen recaptures
6. 17… c5 c5, shutting the queenside too
7. 18. Kh2 Kh2 The king steps to h2. Twenty-three moves later he is on h4, having been to h3, g4, f5 and g5.
8. 18… Kh8 Kh8
9. 19. Qc2 The queen back to c2
10. 19… Ng8 The knight to g8, regrouping
11. 20. Bg4 The bishop to g4
12. 20… Nh6 Nh6, at it
13. 21. Bxd7 The bishops come off on d7
14. 21… Qxd7 The queen recaptures
15. 22. Qd2 The queen to d2
16. 22… Ng8 The knight back to g8 Its fourth move without leaving the back two ranks. It ends up on f6 and stays there for twenty moves giving check.
17. 23. g4 g4 — White starts on the kingside
18. 23… f5 f5, meeting it
19. 24. f3 f3
20. 24… Be7 Be7
21. 25. Rg1 The rook to g1
22. 25… Rf8 The rook to f8
23. 26. Rcf1 The second rook to f1
24. 26… Rf7 The rook to f7

The queen on h3

1. 27. gxf5 The pawns come off on f5
2. 27… gxf5 Recaptured
3. 28. Rg2 The rook to g2
4. 28… f4 f4 — the pawn seals the diagonal And it seals the white king in as well. From here the king’s only squares are h2, h3, g4 and f5, and Black is about to use all four.
5. 29. Bf2 The bishop to f2
6. 29… Rf6 The rook to f6, coming across
7. 30. Ne2 The knight to e2
8. 30… Qxh3+ Qxh3+ — the queen, for a pawn Not for a mate and not for material. It is for the king: taking her puts him on h3, and on h3 the rook on f6 has a check.
9. 31. Kxh3 He has to take her
10. 31… Rh6+ The rook to h6, with check

The knight checks, and checks

1. 32. Kg4 Kg4 — the only square
2. 32… Nf6+ Nf6+ — and now it begins The knight cannot be taken: gxf6 opens the g-file, and the king cannot come back. From here the checks run for twenty half-moves.
3. 33. Kf5 Kf5 — the king on the fifth rank
4. 33… Nd7 The knight steps back to d7
5. 34. Rg5 The rook to g5, trying to break out
6. 34… Rf8+ The rook to f8, with check
7. 35. Kg4 Kg4
8. 35… Nf6+ Nf6+ again
9. 36. Kf5 Kf5
10. 36… Ng8+ The knight to g8, with check
11. 37. Kg4 Kg4
12. 37… Nf6+ And back to f6
13. 38. Kf5 Kf5
14. 38… Nxd5+ The knight takes d5, with check The same knight, and this time it collects a pawn on the way. Every check has been free.
15. 39. Kg4 Kg4
16. 39… Nf6+ Nf6+
17. 40. Kf5 Kf5
18. 40… Ng8+ Ng8+
19. 41. Kg4 Kg4
20. 41… Nf6+ Nf6+
21. 42. Kf5 Kf5
22. 42… Ng8+ Ng8+ — the eleventh check by one knight The king has been on g4 and f5 six times each. Black has used the time to bring a rook to f8 and take a pawn on d5.
23. 43. Kg4 Kg4
24. 43… Bxg5 The bishop takes the rook on g5 The checks stop, and what is left is a bishop and two rooks against a rook and a knight with the white king in the open.
25. 44. Kxg5 The king takes back
26. 44… Rf7 The rook to f7
27. 45. Bh4 The bishop to h4
28. 45… Rg6+ The rook to g6, with check
29. 46. Kh5 Kh5
30. 46… Rfg7 Both rooks on g7
31. 47. Bg5 The bishop to g5
32. 47… Rxg5+ The rook takes it, with check
33. 48. Kh4 Kh4
34. 48… Nf6 The knight to f6, cutting the king off
35. 49. Ng3 The knight to g3
36. 49… Rxg3 The rook takes it
37. 50. Qxd6 The queen takes d6
38. 50… R3g6 The rook to g6
39. 51. Qb8+ Check from b8
40. 51… Rg8 Rg8 — and White resigned The rook blocks the last check. Averbakh is a piece and two pawns down with a king on h4 and two black rooks and a knight round him, and there is nothing to be done. Twenty-four legal moves, and none of them a game.