Take enemy pawn, open lines for *HIS* line piece

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Take enemy pawn, open lines for *HIS* line piece
Compiled by notyetagm

When you take your opponent's pawns, you open lines for -his- line pieces to use, for all of the tactics that involve lines (pins, skewers, discoveries, and x-rays).

WHEN YOU TAKE YOUR OPPONENT'S PAWN, YOU OPEN LINES FOR -HIS- LINE PIECES

V Byvshev vs Tolush, 1954

Position after 35 ... ♗h8xe5:

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Position after 36 ♕e3xc5?:

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By taking the Black c5-pawn with 36 ♕e3xc5?, White has just opened the a7-g1 diagonal along which both his c5-queen and g1-rook reside for the -Black- pieces to use.

Black responds with 36 ... ♕b8-a7!!, exploiting to the maximum the <ALIGNMENT> White c5-queen + White g1-rook to create a devastating <SKEWER>.

Position after 36 ... ♕b8-a7!!:

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Note in particular how in the first diagram Black could not exploit the <ALIGNMENT> White e3-queen + White g1-rook with the Black c-pawn still on c5 precisely because this Black pawn was in the way and kept this important diagonal closed to the Black queen.

Event "Leningrad ch-city"
Site ""
Date "1954.??.??"
Round "?"
White "Bivshev, Vasily Mikhailovich"
Black "Tolush, Aleksandr Kazimirovich"
Result "0-1"
NIC "SI 4.1.9"
ECO "B94"
PlyCount "72"

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Bg5 Nbd7 7. Bc4 g6 8. h4 Bg7 9. Qd2 O-O 10. O-O-O Ne5 11. Bb3 Nc6 12. Nxc6 bxc6 13. h5 Nxh5 14. g4 Nf6 15. Bh6 Bh8 16. g5 Nd7 17. Bxf8 Qxf8 18. f4 Nc5 19. Rh4 h5 20. gxh6 Kh7 21. Rg1 Bf6 22. Rh2 a5 23. Qe3 a4 24. Bc4 Rb8 25. e5 Bh8 26. Bd3 Qd8 27. Qg3 Nxd3+ 28. cxd3 dxe5 29. fxe5 a3 30. Qe3 Bf5 31. d4 c5 32. d5 axb2+ 33. Rxb2 Rxb2 34. Kxb2 Qb8+ 35. Ka1 Bxe5 36. Qxc5 Qa7 0-1

Another great example of this theme occurred in a FICS game won by <you vs yourself> (Black) in the following position:

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Here White played the plausible 30 ♖xg7?. But in this particular position it turned out to be a game-losing blunder!

Why? Because by taking the Black g7-pawn with 30 ♖xg7?, White opened the g-file for the Black g8-rook. The capture of the Black g7-pawn allowed the Black g8-rook to <X-RAY> the tender g2-square though the White g7-rook.

The result of this <X-RAY> down the g-file is that 30 ♖xg7?, rather than being a strong move, actually allowed a mate in 4 by Black! Black mated after 30 ... ♕xg2+!! 31 ♖xg2 (extending the line of attack of the g8-rook to g2) ♖gxg2+ 32 ♔h1 ♖xh2+ 33 ♔g1 ♖ag2#.

22 Rc3xc4? opens c-file for the Black c8-rook, 22 ... Nd5-c3!-+
O Bernstein vs Capablanca, 1914
(D63) Queen's Gambit Declined, Orthodox Defense, 29 moves, 0-1
16 ... Bg7xNd4? opens a1-h8 diagonal for White b2-bishop, Qh8+!
Euwe vs R Loman, 1923
(A09) Reti Opening, 18 moves, 1-0
30 Qd3xd5? opens d-file for Black f8-rook and winning skewer
Kasparov vs Anand, 2001
(C78) Ruy Lopez, 37 moves, 1/2-1/2
25 ... Bf5xc2? +- opens c-file for White f1-rook, winning
Shirov vs E Vorobiov, 2009
(C41) Philidor Defense, 29 moves, 1-0
25 ... Qxd3?? opens d-file for White, plays 26 Rc2-d2 skewer
Short vs Karpov, 1992
(C86) Ruy Lopez, Worrall Attack, 28 moves, 1-0
38 Kxg2 opens g-file for Black g8-rook, 38 ... Nf7+ dis. check
Kasimdzhanov vs A Volokitin, 2003
(E81) King's Indian, Samisch, 37 moves, 0-1
9 ... Nf6xd5? opens h1-a8 diagonal for White and 10 Qd4! pin
Karjakin vs F Bindrich, 2007
(E17) Queen's Indian, 14 moves, 1-0
37 ... Rd7xd4? opens g1-a7 diagonal for White, creating a pin
Aronian vs Kramnik, 2007
(D45) Queen's Gambit Declined Semi-Slav, 43 moves, 1-0
25 Nxc4? opens c-file for Black, 25 ... Qa5-c7! and pin on file
Szabo vs Petrosian, 1953
(D58) Queen's Gambit Declined, Tartakower (Makagonov-Bondarevsky) Syst, 39 moves, 0-1
28 ... Be7xb4? opens the b-file for the White rook, 29 Rb1! PIN
Kramnik vs Carlsen, 2007
(E06) Catalan, Closed, 5.Nf3, 30 moves, 1-0
15 ... Nf6xg4?! opens g-file, White launches blinstering attack
Spassky vs Petrosian, 1969
(B94) Sicilian, Najdorf, 24 moves, 1-0
38 Bb7xa6?? opens a-file for Black rook pin a6-bishop,a1-rook
P Haba vs Morozevich, 2007
(E04) Catalan, Open, 5.Nf3, 37 moves, 0-1
29 ... Qf6xf5?! simply opens f-file for White rook, 31 Rd3-f3!
H Wang vs N Das, 2007
(B42) Sicilian, Kan, 31 moves, 1-0
36 ... d6xc5 opens the c-file for White c3-rook to pressure c8
Kasparov vs Gelfand, 1997
(E15) Queen's Indian, 37 moves, 1-0
27 ... Bd7xa4? opens the a-file for White f1-rook, 29 Rf1-a1
Euwe vs Alekhine, 1935
(D17) Queen's Gambit Declined Slav, 41 moves, 1-0
32 Qh3xh5? opens h-file for Black c8-rook maneuever Rc8-h8-h4-+
Nimzowitsch vs Capablanca, 1927
(B12) Caro-Kann Defense, 46 moves, 0-1
31 Nc3xd5?? opens a8-h1 line for Black d7-bishop, 31 .. Bd7-c6!
I Cheparinov vs Mamedyarov, 2007
(D38) Queen's Gambit Declined, Ragozin Variation, 44 moves, 1-0
29 Qa4xa6?! White opens a-file; Black later takes control of it
Kramnik vs Carlsen, 2008
(A30) English, Symmetrical, 57 moves, 0-1
28 Nc4xd6? opens d-file to White d1-queen, 28 ... Re8-d8! pin
Motylev vs Navara, 2009
(C41) Philidor Defense, 30 moves, 0-1
15 ... Qe7xa3 opens a-file for White and 17 Rd1-a1, 18 Ra1xa7
Carlsen vs Aronian, 2009
(D45) Queen's Gambit Declined Semi-Slav, 65 moves, 1/2-1/2
26 ... d4! Bu sacs pawn to open d-file, get a rook on 7th rank
Jobava vs Bu Xiangzhi, 2006
(D15) Queen's Gambit Declined Slav, 35 moves, 0-1
40 e7! Bxe7 sacs pawn to open and create a pin down the e-file
Avrukh vs S Megaranto, 2006
(A64) Benoni, Fianchetto, 11...Re8, 41 moves, 1-0
11 ... QxPd4? opens the d-file for the x-ray tactic 12 Nd6+!
Petrosian vs N Sorokin, 1944
(D33) Queen's Gambit Declined, Tarrasch, 23 moves, 1-0
36 Qe3xc5? opens the a7-g1 diagonal for skewer 36 ... Qb8-a7!!
V Byvshev vs Tolush, 1954
(B94) Sicilian, Najdorf, 36 moves, 0-1
46 ... Ka7xa6?? opens the a-file for White rooks, corridor mate
Kramnik vs Short, 2008
(D07) Queen's Gambit Declined, Chigorin Defense, 47 moves, 1-0
12 ... Be3xf2+??+- opens f-file for White f1-rook, mate threat
J Friedel vs M de Jong, 2009
(B43) Sicilian, Kan, 5.Nc3, 23 moves, 1-0
27 Qf5xe5?? opens e-file for Black d6-rook skewer 27 ... Rd6-e6
Rublevsky vs Grischuk, 2007
(C45) Scotch Game, 39 moves, 0-1
M Brunello vs Goryachkina, 2012
(B12) Caro-Kann Defense, 36 moves, 0-1
28 games

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