The Bishop on h3

The game, move by move

An Exchange Grünfeld

1. 1. d4 Queen’s pawn
2. 1… Nf6 The knight out
3. 2. c4 c4
4. 2… g6 g6 — the Grünfeld
5. 3. Nc3 The knight out
6. 3… d5 d5, at the centre
7. 4. cxd5 Taken
8. 4… Nxd5 The knight recaptures
9. 5. e4 e4
10. 5… Nxc3 The knights come off
11. 6. bxc3 Recaptured — the Exchange Grünfeld
12. 6… Bg7 Bg7 — the long diagonal
13. 7. Bb5+ Check from b5
14. 7… c6 c6
15. 8. Ba4 The bishop to a4
16. 8… O-O Black castles
17. 9. Ne2 Ne2
18. 9… Nd7 Nd7
19. 10. O-O White castles
20. 10… e5 e5, at the centre
21. 11. f3 f3
22. 11… Qe7 The queen to e7
23. 12. Be3 The bishop to e3
24. 12… Rd8 The rook to d8

Every piece traded off

1. 13. Qc2 The queen to c2
2. 13… Nb6 Nb6
3. 14. Bb3 The bishop to b3
4. 14… Be6 Be6
5. 15. Rad1 The rook to d1
6. 15… Nc4 Nc4
7. 16. Bc1 The bishop back to c1
8. 16… b5 b5
9. 17. f4 f4
10. 17… exd4 Taken on d4
11. 18. Nxd4 The knight recaptures
12. 18… Bg4 Bg4
13. 19. Rde1 The rook to e1
14. 19… Qc5 The queen to c5
15. 20. Kh1 Kh1
16. 20… a5 a5 — the pawn that decides it It goes to a5 on move twenty and reaches a4 on move forty-four, and at the end it is one of the two pawns White cannot both stop.
17. 21. h3 h3
18. 21… Bd7 Bd7
19. 22. a4 a4, at it
20. 22… bxa4 Taken
21. 23. Ba2 Ba2
22. 23… Be8 Be8
23. 24. e5 e5
24. 24… Nb6 Nb6
25. 25. f5 f5
26. 25… Nd5 Nd5
27. 26. Bd2 Bd2
28. 26… Nb4 Nb4
29. 27. Qxa4 The queen takes a4
30. 27… Nxa2 The knight takes a2
31. 28. Qxa2 And the queen takes back
32. 28… Bxe5 The bishop takes e5
33. 29. fxg6 Taken on g6
34. 29… hxg6 Recaptured
35. 30. Bg5 The bishop to g5
36. 30… Rd5 The rook to d5
37. 31. Re3 The rook to e3
38. 31… Qd6 The queen to d6
39. 32. Qe2 The queen to e2
40. 32… Bd7 Bd7

Down to bishops and pawns

1. 33. c4 c4, at the rook
2. 33… Bxd4 The bishop takes d4
3. 34. cxd5 Taken on d5
4. 34… Bxe3 And the bishop takes the rook
5. 35. Qxe3 The queen recaptures
6. 35… Re8 The rook to e8
7. 36. Qc3 The queen to c3
8. 36… Qxd5 The queen takes d5
9. 37. Bh6 The bishop to h6
10. 37… Re5 The rook to e5
11. 38. Rf3 The rook to f3
12. 38… Qc5 The queen to c5
13. 39. Qa1 The queen to a1
14. 39… Bf5 Bf5
15. 40. Re3 The rook to e3
16. 40… f6 f6, holding the rook
17. 41. Rxe5 The rooks come off on e5
18. 41… Qxe5 The queen recaptures
19. 42. Qa2+ Check from a2
20. 42… Qd5 The queen blocks on d5
21. 43. Qxd5+ And the queens come off, with check What is left is a bishop each and six pawns each, and every book watching called it a draw.
22. 43… cxd5 Recaptured with the pawn
23. 44. Bd2 The bishop to d2
24. 44… a4 a4 — one of the two pawns

The bishop on h3

1. 45. Bc3 The bishop to c3, holding the diagonal
2. 45… Kf7 Kf7 — the king sets off
3. 46. h4 h4
4. 46… Ke6 Ke6
5. 47. Kg1 Kg1
6. 47… Bh3 Bh3 — the move The bishop steps onto h3 where a pawn takes it for nothing at all. No check, no threat, nothing coming back. What it buys is the g2 pawn leaving g2 — one tempo — and with that tempo the black king walks f5, e4, d3, c4 and White cannot stop both pawns.
7. 48. gxh3 Taken — and it has to be Declining is no better: the bishop simply takes on g2 and the king comes anyway a move later.
8. 48… Kf5 Kf5 — the king starts walking
9. 49. Kf2 Kf2, trying to come across
10. 49… Ke4 Ke4
11. 50. Bxf6 The bishop takes f6
12. 50… d4 d4, the second pawn moving
13. 51. Be7 The bishop back to e7
14. 51… Kd3 Kd3
15. 52. Bc5 The bishop to c5, at the pawn
16. 52… Kc4 Kc4
17. 53. Be7 The bishop back to e7
18. 53… Kb3 Kb3 — and White resigned A king on b3 beside the pawn on a4, and the pawn on d4 running as well. Sixteen legal moves and not one of them stops both. The move that did it was eleven half-moves ago and it gave a bishop away for nothing.