Win breaks world-chess deadlock

Press, 5 August 1978, Page 52

Win breaks world-chess deadlock

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The defending champion’ Anatoly Karpov, scored a| brilliant victory in the, eighth game of the world championship match at Baguio, the Philippines. In; the seventh game of the series, Karpov had taken the challenger, Viktor Korchnoi, to the brink of defeat before a draw was agreed on but yesterday Karpov played fine attacking chess to overwhelm the challenger in just 28 moves. When Karpov arrived at the board it seemed his whole approach to the game had changed. He sat staring at the board for 2min before Korchnoi arrived and extended his hand for the traditional handshake before the game. Karpov curtly

shook his head and immediately played his first move. For the third time in the match the Ruy Lopez Open Variation was employed, verifying that when Karpov opened P—QB4 in game six it was only to avoid a testing game while game five was still unfinished. It was Karpov who devi- ;

,’ated from their previous! (games at move nine but! (Korchnoi had yet another! ’innovation ready which he (sprung in move 10. However,! i’inevitably Korchnoi had tried! ; one too many new ideas! ; that had not been subjected , to the critical test of prac-! ; ticai play. Karpov countered with ai 1 fine pawn sacrifice which led ■to a crushing attack on ’ Korchnoi’s king stranded in ;the middle of the board. He concluded the attack with a : powerful rook sacrifice to go I—o in the series. Victory : will go to the first player to win six games. Game 8: Open Ruy Lopez. White Black (Karpov) (Korchnoi) rn p Wd p va.

(1) P—K4 P—K4 (2) N—KB3 N—QB3 (3) B—N5 P—QR 3 (4) B—R4 N—KB3 (5) o—o NXP (6) P—Q4 P—QN4 (7) B—N3 P—Q4 (8) PXP B—K3 (9) QN—Q2 Karpov deviates first from games two and four when

• ’he played P—B3 in this! position. ■| (9) N—B4 (10) P—QB3 P—KN 3? ; Korchnoi’s innovation. Although Black has played to; • ;exchange off the bishop on’ !|QN3 he cannot safely do so’ (now as was demonstrated in ;a game Kuzmin — Beliavsky ’played in the Soviet Union| last year: (10) ... N X B?; (11) NXN, B—K2; (12) N (B3)— Q 4, NXP, (13) R—KI, N—- • N 3; (14) NXB, PXN; (15) N—Q4, N—Bl; (16) Q—N4 , with a winning attack. The recommended move is’ 10 ~. P—Q5 but it is a sure bet Karpov had something |readv for that. (11) Q—K2 B—N2 (12) N—Q4! A fine pav.m sacrifice which

cuts right across the inten- . dons of Korchnoi’s new idea: 1 to put pressure on the KP to prevent the White KN moving and the crushing advance of the KBP. (12) NXP ’ What else? ' (13) P— KB4 N—Bs < (14) P— Bs PXP (15) R—KNI i

’ An ugly necessity. (15) ... o—o loses any number of (ways, the most straightI forward being (16) NXB, KXB; (17) NXN, NPXN; (18) Q—Ksch, K-Nl; (19) B—-R6. 1(16) NXN QPXi'r |(17) B—B2 N—Q6 Korchnoi knows he is in (trouble. This move is bound to lose his extra pawn but' ■ he must cut at the action of one of those bishops. (18) B—R6 B—Bl (19) QR—QI Q—Q4 (20) BXN PXB (21) RXP Q—B3 (22) BXB Q—N3ch! An excellent move in a hopeless position. If Black recaptures immediately he loses by N—Q4. If Karpov interposes N—Q4 now Black has R X B. (23) K—Rl KXB (24) Q—B3 R—KI This allows a pretty finish, but even after (24) ... R—QNI; (25) N—R6, R—N2; (26) Q —B6 White is winning on all lines. (25) N—R6 R—N2 (26) R—Q7!

A brilliant rook sacrifice that cannot be accepted because of the elegant economy of the mate that would follow: (26) ... BXR; (27) Q X BPchl, R X Q; (28) R X R mate. So Korchnoi makes a I bolt-hole for his king, but his I defences are breached. '(26) R—QNI (26) ... R—K2 loses a rook via (27) RXR, KXR; (28) Q—B6ch, K—Bl; (29) Q —QB mate). (27) NXP! Karpov has ripped Korchnoi’s defence apart and the king must die of exposure. Korchnoi shuts his eyes and takes the rook. (27) BXR (28) N—QB dis. check Korchnoi resigned. Any king move is answered by Q —BB mate so Black can ionly throw out “golden apples” which delay the end. After the game Korchnoi refused to sign the scoresheets of the game in what was apparently a retaliation to Karpov’s rebuff at the start. Asked about Karpov’s refusal of the handshake, one of his delegation said that

the snub was premeditated. Korchnoi had abused and insulted the champion and other Russian chess figures and recent events had shown that the challenger had not reduced his line of intensifying tensions. “Under such circumstances Mr Karpov does not wish to shake hands with Mr Korchnoi,” said the spokesman. It is always difficult to predict the effects such a breakthrough as this game will have. Certainly play will loosen up and a greater percentage of decisive games should result.

Word from the challenger’s camp was that Korchnoi thought he had taken a gamble which had not come off but was undisturbed by the loss and in high spirits. There was no word from Karpov’s delegation. Apart from having a I—o lead the champion is well on top in the match after reaching a nadir in game five. Once Karpov gets into his stride he will be a hard man to stop. Korchnoi must strike back soon.