Chessville - Lost Gem - by GM Raymond Keene

With the Tal Memorial in Moscow just finished I have discovered a game by the so called 'Wizard of Riga' which had eluded me for over two decades. It was won by Tal against another former world champion, Boris Spassky, in a blitz event at Glenrothes in Scotland 1988. Tal won that tournament ahead of Spassky, followed by grandmaster Suba and then all of Scotland’s leading masters of the time.

Until recently I had no idea that two Soviet world champions had competed together north of Hadrians Wall – this event certainly kept it's light under the proverbial bushel.

Tal-Spassky; Glenrothes 1988
Pirc Defence, Suttles variation

1 e4 d6 2 d4 Nf6 3 Nc3 g6 4 f4 Bg7 5 Nf3 c5

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Now Tal accepts the challenge to enter tactical complications which Spassky avoided in one of his games v Fischer from their celebrated match at Reykjavik 1972: 6 dxc5 Qa5 7 Bd3 Qxc5 8 Qe2 0-0 and was eventually drawn, Spassky-Fischer, Game 17, Reykjavik 1972.

6 Bb5+ Bd7 7 e5 Ng4 8 e6

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8 Ng5 Bxb5 9 Qxg4 Bd7 10 e6 fxe6 11 Nxh7 Kf7 12 Ng5+ Kg8 13 Nxe6 was catastrophic for Black is Burger-Suttles, New York 1965. However, 10 ... Bxe6 is fine for Black.

8 ... Bxb5

Black has a sensational resource here namely 8 ... fxe6! 9 Ng5 Bxb5 10 Nxe6 Bxd4!! 11 Nxd8 Bf2+ 12 Kd2 Be3+ drawing, as in Sax-Seirawan, Brussels 1988. Spassky was trailing Tal by half a point in the final round here so he probably decided – with second place already secure – to gamble all on playing for a win as Black.

9 exf7+ Kd7

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This all looks very weird for Black with his king running around the centre of the board but I have tried it several times and it was originally championed by the Canadian grandmaster Duncan Suttles after his debacle v Burger.

10 Nxb5

10 Ng5 h5 11 Nxb5 Qa5+ 12 Nc3 cxd4 13 Qe2 dxc3 14 Qe6+ Kd8 15 b4 Qb6 led to a win for Black in Jensen-Keene, The Hague 1967.

10 ... Qa5+ 11 Nc3 cxd4 12 Nxd4 Bxd4 13 Qxd4

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13 Qxg4+ Qf5 14 Qxf5+ gxf5 15 Ne2 Nc6 16 c3 Bb6 17 Ng3 e6 18 Ke2 Rhf8 19 Be3 Bc7 20 Rad1 Rxf7 was fine for Black in Horton-Keene, Nottingham 1967.

13 ... Nc6 14 Qc4 Rhf8 15 Bd2 Qf5 16 h3 Nh6 17 0-0-0 Qxf7 18 Qb5 Rab8 19 g4 a6 20 Qa4 Ng8

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This position appears grim for Black as his king is stuck in the centre and his kingside forces are stymied.

21 Be3 Nf6 22 g5 Nh5 23 Nd5 Qf5 24 Rhe1 Rf7 25 Ba7 Rbf8

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Tal now probes for weaknesses around the black king.

26 Qb3 b5 27 Qa3 Nxf4 28 Nxe7 b4 29 Qxa6 Rxe7 30 Qb7+ Ke8

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Penetration of Blacks camp is complete.

31 Qxc6+ Qd7 32 Rxe7+ Kxe7 33 Qe4+ Ne6 34 Bd4 Rf5 35 Bf6+ Kf7 36 Qxb4 Nxg5 37 Bxg5 Rxg5 38 Qxd6 Qxd6 39 Rxd6 Rg1+ 40 Kd2 Rg2+ 41 Kc3 h5 42 a4 g5 43 a5 Rg3+ 44 Rd3 Rg1 45 b4 Ke6 46 b5 Ra1 47 Kb4 Kf5 48 b6 g4 49 hxg4+ hxg4 50 Kb5 Kf4 51 b7 Rb1+ 52 Kc6 g3 53 Rxg3 Kxg3 54 a6 Kf4 55 a7 Ke5 56 b8Q+ Black resigns