Endgame Strategy

226 Pages·1985·20.77 MB·English

by  M.I. Shereshevsky

M.1. SHERESHEVSKY

ENDGAME STRATEGY

By
M. I. SHERESHEVSKY

Translated by
K. P. NEAT

©

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English translation copyright © 1985 K, P. Neat

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First edition 1985

Library of Congress Cataloging In Publication Data
Shereshewsky. MI.

Endgame strategy

(Pergamon Russian chess series)

Includes indexes,

Chess — End games, 1. Title, HM, Series.
GVIESO.T SSE INKS MND $iLI902

British Libeary Catalogs
Shereshewsky. M. I.

tn Publication Data

Endgame strategy. — (Pergamon Russian
chess series)
Chess — End games

1 Tile
Test2s — GV14807

ISBN 0-08-029746-3 Hardsover
ISBN (-08-129745-5 Flexicover

This is @ tansation of the Russian edition, published in 1981
by Polimya, Minsk.

Printed in Great Britain by A. Wheaton & Co. Lid, Exeter
CONTENTS

Foreword to the English edition (A. Yusupov) . . vii
Introduction «2.0... .600seeeeseeeeee ix
Basic principles of endgame play (S. Byelavyenets) i
Centralization of the king ... 4
‘The role of pawns in the endgame .....2....02e00 00+ 2

‘The problem of exchanging

“Do not hurry” ..

‘Schematic thinking

The principle of two weaknesses...

‘The struggle for the initiative 80
‘Suppressing the opponent's counter-play 96
Positions with an isolated d-pawn .. a snes
|. The two bishops Penner es
The 3-2 Queen-side pawn majority - 143
. Complex endings ... . 152
Index of players comin BE
Index of material . . worst
FOREWORD TO THE ENGLISH EDITION

M. Shereshevsky’s book Endgame Strategy was published in the USSR in 1981
in an edition of $0,000 and was immediately sold out.

‘The author, one of the strongest players in Byelorussia, has recently been working
as a trainer. In his lessons with young players Shereshevsky has made use of the end-
game teaching methods of one of the country’s leading trainers, M. Dvoryetsky, and
has worked out a definite system.

This book contains an interesting selection of endings. Along with classic ex-
amples there are endings both of leading modern grandmasters, as well as of less well
known players. The author aims in the first instance to explain the course of the
struggle, penetrate into the psychology of the players’ actions, and to focus the
readers” attention on the turning points and characteristic mistakes. In contrast to
the majority of works on the endgame, the book is divided into chapters not accord-
ing to material, but according to the playing methods which are most characteristic
of the given group of endings. The names of certain chapters have an unusual ring:
“Do not hurry”, ‘The problem of exchanging”, “The principle of two weaknesses”,
and so on. For this English edition the author has added a number of endings played
in recent times, as well as endings from games by the strongest English players.

The main value of the book, in my opinion, lies in the fact that it contains
specific advice and recommendations on how to improve endgame technique, for
which the practical player will sometimes search in vain when studying multi-volume
reference books on the endgame.

A. Yusupov
International Grandmaster
INTRODUCTION

From the practical point of view, the endgame is the least well studied stage of
chess. Chess literature contains very few works on the endgame, and in the main
these are reference works, in which theoretical and not practical positions are
analyzed.

The present book is an attempt to study and systemize certain basic practical
principles of the playing of chess endings.

‘The necessity for a systematic approach to the study of chess endings occurred
to me mainly as a result of my teaching experience. It is no secret that, in the pre-
paration of young players, many trainers and teachers devote most attention to
the study of numerous opening systems and the forms of middlegame resulting
from them. The endgame is always allotted very little time.

Some trainers give their pupils the most elementary conceptions of the end-
game, assuming that with the general development of a player his mastery of end-
game play will also rise. Others demonstrate long and complex analyses from refer-
ence books, although the probability of such positions being repeated in a practical
game is slight. It is evident that both approaches are a long way from the truth: the
mastery of a player is directly dependent not so much upon his amount of theo-
retical knowledge, as upon his understanding of the general principles of conducting
chess endings

In 1976 I happened to be the second of international master Mark Dvoryetsky
during the USSR Championship 1st League in Minsk. Dvoryetsky adjourned his
game with grandmaster Taimanov in a superior position. In one of the lines of
analysis a rook ending with f- and h-pawns was reached. Dvoryetsky referred to a
book on rook endings, and began studying the appropriate chapter. I was surprised:
after all, Dvoryetsky is a great expert on the endgame. To my question he replied
that he knew the basic principles of playing such endings, but did not even attempt
to remember lengthy concrete analyses. Later during the tournament we frequently
discussed the question of how to study the endgame. Dvoryetsky considers it
essential to know the classics, to analyze complicated practical rather than theo-
retical endings, and to find general rules and principles of play in complex endings.
‘And in theoretical endings it is sufficient to know whether the ending is won or
drawn, and to have a rough impression of the plan of play.

Of course, every trainer has his own style of working, and his own system for
preparing players. But it is worth recalling that Mark Dvoryetsky, an Honoured
Trainer of the Russian Federal Republic, has prepared three Junior World Cham-
pions. And all three — Valery Chekhov, Artur Yusupov and Sergey Dolmatov ~ are
very strong in the endgame.

Of course, the role of exact knowledge in the endgame should not be under-
estimated. It'is no accident that Fizkultura i Sport has begun publishing a second
edition of the multitome study of the endgame edited by grandmaster Yuri
x INTRODUCTION

‘Averbakh*. And even so, in the introduction to this series it is emphasized that a
sure indication of a strong player is good playing technique in complex endings.

The present book studies such basic principles of play in complex endings as
centralization of the king, schematic thinking, prophylaxis, and the principles of
“do not hurry” and of two weaknesses. The majority of these were formulated with
amazing precision and conciseness in an article by a talented Soviet master who was
killed during the Second World War, Sergey Byelavyenets, an extract from which is
given after this introduction. Also examined are typical endgame positions with the
advantage of two bishops, an isolated d-pawn, and a 3-2 Q-side pawn majority.
Some examples are given to study the problem of exchanging, and ways of battling
for the initiative in the endgame. In conclusion we give a number of complex end-
ings, in which the various principles expounded in the previous chapters are put into
practice,

The knowledge of many rules, and the choice of a specific plan based on them, is
mainly of a psychological nature. Therefore in certain examples, especially where
Byelorussian players are involved, I have laid particular emphasis on the competitive
situation in which the game was played.

OF course, the rules and recommendations given in the book cannot be regarded
as unshakeable and universal endgame laws. Chess is too complex and diverse for
that. Latent or manifest in each position are its rules, principles and regularities,
many of which a player will often sense intuitively.

Without pretending to offer universal recommendations, the author has aimed
mainly to help players to be better oriented in endings, and to be more correct and
accurate in taking the necessary decisions in practical play.

‘Comprebensve Chess Endings, is curently being published in five volumes by

Pergamon Press.
CHAPTER 1

BASIC PRINCIPLES OF ENDGAME PLAY

S. BYELAVYENETS

During the fierce battles of the middle-
game, passions are aroused. Sacrifices
and striking combinations are in the ai
and each of the players watches intense-
ly for tactical blows, clever traps, and
subtle unexpected moves. Then sudden-
ly, mass exchanges take place, the heated
combinational skirmishes come to an
end, and a prosaic endgame ensues,
Sometimes the transition into the end-
game occurs at the will of one of the
players, who assumes that here it will
be easier to exploit his advantage.

In the endgame, technique becomes of
primary importance. First of all a player
must retune his thinking and his mood.
One can virtually forget about ‘brilliancy’
and tactics. 1 would advise every player,
if time on his clock permits, to spend
several minutes on ‘calming the passions
aroused in him’. Subsequently this loss
of time will without fail be justified,
since the player will be examining the
position correctly, from the ‘endgame’
point of view. What does this mean?

This question must be dwelt on in
some detail, since multi-tome endgame
books, with their countless examples
and positions, do not devote sufficient
attention to ‘the course of a player's
thinking in the endgame.

In the middlegame his thoughts are
mainly occupied by the calculation of
variations, which are subordinate to
some aim. The main things that a player
is occupied with in the middlegame are
the checking of all kinds of tactical
blows, and the calculation of combina-
tions ‘and variations. In the endgame

things are different. Only in rare, so-
called combinational endings, must the
attention be focused on calculation, on
tactics. In the overwhelming majority of
endings it is essential to think in terms of
plans. Variations play a secondary role.
‘The main role belongs to schematic
thinking, and the possibility of setting
up this or that position is checked by
calculating variations. We plan the de-
ployment of our own pieces that we re-
quire, taking account, of course, of what
the opponent may do. Then we check by
a calculation of variations whether it is
possible to achieve this position. For
example: in the following position from
the game Capablanca—Ragozin, Moscow,
1936, White formulated his tasks very
concisely.

| ial 2
r

Capablanca writes about his thoughts
during the game:

“White’s plan is to prevent the ad-
vance of the c:pawn (after which the b-
pawn could become weak) and to con-
tol the entire board up to the fifth rank.
Endgame Strategy

This is achieved by moving the king to
¢3, and by placing the rook at c3, the
knight at d4, and the pawns at b4 and
£4. After he has attained such a position,
White will be able to advance his Q-side
pawns.”

‘As we see, variations did not interest
Capablanca, and he was not even inte-
rested in the time and speed with which
the planned position would be attained,
‘The main thing was that the required
type of position had been selected, and
the subsequent play followed according
to plan.

1 Not Rb7
2 bt Bd7
3 ft Ke7
4 Kf2 Ra?
5 Re3 Kd6
6 Rd3 Ke7
7 Ke3 Rat
8 Re3 Kd6

The setup planned by White is com-
plete. He is now faced with a new
problem — that of advancing his Q-side
pawns. To do this he must first take his
king to the aid of the pawns which are
to be advanced.

9 Rd3
10 Re3

Ke7
Kd6

‘A few words about repeating moves.
A basic rule of the endgame is: do not
ony Uf dete & a posstilny of duane
ing a pawn two squares or one, advance
it first one square, look carefully around,
and only then advance it a further
square. Of course, you should not hurry
in quiet positions, whereas in combina-
tional endings things are different. To
many the rule of “do not hurry” may
seem paradoxical, but in fact it is seen in
practically all the endings of games by
{great masters of the endgame. Look care-
fully at the endings of Capablanca and
Flohr, and you will see with what slow-

ness, sometimes bordering on tedium,
they realize an advantage.

‘The repetition of moves in the end-
game plays an important role. Distegard-
ing the fact that it gains time for think-
ing, it can be mentioned that, by repeat-
ing moves, the active side acquires
certain psychological gains. The defender,
whose position is inferior, often cannot
stand it, and creates a further weakening
which eases his opponent’s task. In addi-
tion, repeating moves enables the posi-
tion to be clarified to the maximum ex-
tent. We know that many upholders of
‘pure’ chess will severely criticize us for
this advice. But we cannot refrain from
advising players: you should sometimes
repeat moves in the endgame! In the
struggle every chance has to be exploit-
ed, and there is nothing ugly or unethical
in repeating moves.

11 Nez #6
12 Rd3+ Ke6
13 Kd4 Ra6
14 Re3+ Kd6
15 Ne3 {5
16 bs

‘The pawns begin their advance and
the white pieces are able to support
them. It should be noted that Capa-
blanca began advancing his pawns only
when his pieces had occupied their
strongest possible positions. Of course,
now Black cannot capture on a3 due to
17 Net+.

16... Ra8
17 Ket Be6+
18 Kbt 5+

19 bxe6 Bgs

20 Nb5+ Kxe6
21 Rds

White can now manage without the
advance of his apawn, Black’s K-side
pawns are weakened, and one of them
falls,