Sally Simpson: " All the Soviet players and officials took their seats on the front row awaiting my execution. But when Hamed played 34.Rb6, they all rose as one man and left the hall."  click for larger viewAn amusing anecdote. One can just imagine them all mumbling and grumbling to themselves as the they trundled out of the tournament hall. Reminds me of a 1977 league game. I was given the league result score card after the League Secretary had finished with it. It clearly shows S.Milne- G.Chandler 1-0 and is then scored out by the watching team captain to make it show what actually happened Milne - Chandler 0-1. I tempted my opponent into a Queen winning combination here.  click for larger viewWhite played 19.Ng6+ hxg6 20.RxQ (the watching away team captain writes 1-0 on the score card.) I then played 20...Nxa7 checkmate. (score card is hastily corrected.)  click for larger view---
Back to the Hamed - Short game.
I think it showed good composure by White to realise he had blundered and set a return swindle with 35.Rb8  click for larger view35...Rxb8 36.Nf7+ Qxf7 37.Qe5+
 click for larger viewAt the shallow end were I paddle about, a relaxed White, suddenly happy not to lose could easily have played 37...Qg7 when 38.Qxb8+ and Qe5+ is a perpetual. Then the Russian contingent would have cheered and carried Hamed shoulder high from the tournament hall. |