keypusher:  click for larger viewHere's the position where Hemingway launches his combination: 23....c5! 24.bxc5 Rxe3+, with the point that 25.fxe3 Bg3+ wins the queen. But there's a lot more to the combination than that. After 25.Kd1 Black promptly offers his other rook with 25....Rb1+!!. Now 26.Nxb1 Qxf3 is hopeless, while if White tries the tricky 26.Kc2, Black has 26....Qf5+ 27.Be4 Rxe4 28.Rhxb1 Rxd4+ 29.Kc1 Rxd2!! 30.Kxd2 Bf4+ 31.Kd1 Qxh3 and White, two exchanges up, is defenseless. Who knows how much of that Hemingway had worked out, but deeply impressive nonetheless. So, Basman plays 26.Rxb1 Ba4+ 27.Rb3 (27.Kc1 Rxc3+ 28.Kb2 Qxd4 forces mate) 27....Bxb3+ 28.Kc1 (28.Nxb3 Qxf3+) Rxc3+ 29.Kb2 Time for another diagram:
 click for larger viewHere Stockfish likes the hard-to-see 29....Rxc5 30.Nxb3 Rc4, and White can't handle the dual threats of ...Ba3+ and ...Qxf3. But Hemingway's 29....Rxc2+ 30.Kxb3 Rxd2 31.Bxd5 Qxd4 32.Qc4 Qb2+ 33.Ka4 Rd4, winning the queen, is more than good enough. At the end there is one more combination: 48.Kd6 Qxc6+ 49.Kxc6 h1/Q+ skewering the rook. Really a wonderful game; I'm happy that I was the one to upload it. It's a grand combination over the whole board, reminding me of V Wendel vs Nimzowitsch, 1921  click for larger viewor Bogoljubov vs J Mieses, 1925  click for larger view...but to me it's more impressive than either one.
I think Hemingway was with us briefly (User: teacake). |