The Bishop: Danger on the Diagonal

Index

Introduction

Welcome, dear readers!

More than likely, we have already gotten acquainted from my previous books; or else we met at a tournament: Sergey Kasparov, Grandmaster (GM) from Byelorussia, at your service (Byelorussia being a Eastern European country between Poland and Russia.)

As usual, the technical work on this book is done by my wife Tatiana, a Woman International Master (WIM). You probably already know of her as well.

There are a few chess pieces, of different kinds; this book is devoted to one of them.

It is called by different names, in different languages; but the name it is usually called – and the one most people are familiar with – is Bishop. In Russian, it is Cлон or Elephant, which refers to one of the most powerful creatures on the planet:

On the chessboard, it looks like this:

This is the description given by Wikipedia:

The Bishop can move any number of squares along the diagonal, provided there are no pieces in its path. Each bishop may move only along the white squares, or along black; therefore, bishops are called ‘white-square’ or ‘black-square,’ respectively, according to the color of the square they are placed on originally.

We will consider the drawbacks and the advantages of this piece in various phases of the game, with various piece configurations, etc. I shall make it a point to have a comparatively large number of diagrams, in order that the lazier ones among my readership will not have to set up their own chessboards. This is a book you may read on the metro, on a train, or lying on your couch. Very rarely, in between the strictly chess problems, I will make lyrical digressions to give my readers a chance to take it easy.

Notice! The author does not pretend to be absolutely right; or to cover all the possible situations involving the bishop. The size of this book does not allow me to do exhaustive analysis; and besides, I do not want to overload your memory. If any questions for your author should happen to arise, or requests, or argumentative criticism, do not worry – you may write to tkasparova@rambler.ru.

I wish you a happy and useful way to pass the time.

Sergey Kasparov

April 2018

Part I

The Endgame

Chapter 1

Bishops of the Same Color

Let’s begin this book with the simplest situations, where you can familiarize yourself with the strong and weak qualities of the piece you’re studying.

And endgames are more logically considered to be the simple way, because there is not a lot of material in them; therefore, there will be fewer complicated variations, or even none at all.

And so, we have just one bishop, plus some pawns, for each side (it goes without saying that there is always a king, too).

I should like to point out that this book is not supposed to be an endgame manual; so I will not be examining every single theoretical position. I assume that our readers are familiar with the rules of chess. For instance, I assume that you know that when one side is left with just a bishop and an a-or h-pawn against the opponent’s bare king, that sometimes it is a draw – in just those cases where the queening square is the color opposite to the bishop’s color squares, and the defender’s king can get to it.

For this chapter, both bishops move on the same color squares. As we shall see later on, this is an important qualification, since the type of battle is significantly different from those in opposite-color bishop endgames.

Before I present this series of game fragments, I will note that, when you have bishops of the same color, it is a good thing to put your pawns on the opposite color squares from those controlled by the bishops. Then, your pawns will complement the action of your only piece. And besides, your opponent’s bishop will be totally unable to attack them.

(1) Yandemirov – S.Kasparov

Pavlograd 2000

62.Kg4

Let’s start with a comparatively simple game fragment. Material equality; and Black even has a spatial advantage, in view of the far-advanced queenside pawns. But if one evaluates this position objectively – why, then, White is winning! The problem is, that in endgames with same-color bishops, it is usually better to arrange one’s pawns on squares opposite the bishop’s color.

62…Bf6

I am trying to create a no-pass zone against the opposing king. The only thing that gives me any hope of defending is the pawn at e6, the only one standing on a light square.

63.Bf2 Be7 64.e5 Kd7 65.Bh4 Bxh4

65…Bf8 66.f5 is no cure-all: sooner or later, Black will fall into zugzwang, as a result of the passivity of his bishop.

66.Kxh4 Ke7 67.Kg4 Kf7 68.f5

The pawn ending is winning for White, since he will get a passed e-pawn, while the passed pawn on h5 holds back the h6-g7 pair.

68…Ke7 69.Kf4 Kf7 70.fxe6+ Kxe6 71.Ke4 Kf7 72.Kd5 1-0

From the start of this endgame, I never had any realistic saving chances. The Russian grandmaster easily exploited his positional advantage.

(2) S.Kasparov – Rinaldi

Cutro 2005

47.Bxf8

Once again there is material equality; and both sides have tried to set out their pawns precisely, on squares opposite to the color their bishops control. But there are holes in Black’s position: pawn islands on the queenside, plus the e5-pawn, fixed on a dark square, leave him no hope for a successful defense. Once White places his opponent in zugzwang, the white king will gradually get through to b6.

47…h5

One more pawn goes onto a white square.

48.gxh5 gxh5 49.Kc5 Kd7 50.Bg7 Bc7

51.Bf6+– (zugzwang) 51…a5

Everything else is worse: 51…Bb8 52.Kb6+–; 51…Bd6+ 52.Kb6+–; 51…Ke6 52.Kxc6+–.

52.Bg7

I just stand around, smoking…

52…Bd6+ 53.Kb6 Bc7+ 54.Kb7 Bd6 55.Ka6 Bc7

Or 55…a4 56.bxa4 Kc7 57.a5+–, and it is zugzwang again.

56.a4 Kd6 57.Bf8+

Of course, there is no need to allow the black king to get to c5. Notice that the e4-pawn is coordinating beautifully with the white bishop, making a c5-d5 barrier against the black king.

57…Kd7 58.Bc5 Ke6 59.Bb6 (D)

One way or another, the a5-pawn is going to fall; and then the game as well. Pawn islands (a6 and c6, for instance) can also be weak in the endgame. 1-0

In our next game, the Latvian grandmaster lacked the resources to protect his weak pawn at b6. And once that fell, so did Black’s entire queen’s wing.

(3) S.Kasparov – Meijers

Werther 2012

48…Bd8

On the queenside, Black’s pawns stand quite poorly – they are on the bishop’s color; so we need only think of a way to get the king in among them. Right now, Black threatens Kg6-g5xg4; and if White defends against that maneuver, then Black’s king has time to get to e6, his pawn to g6, and it is a draw.

49.Be5

49.Bf4? Kf6 50.Ke4 Ke6 51.Bg3 g6 52.Bf4 Kd7 53.Kd5 Bf6, and White cannot make any further progress.

49…Kg5 50.Bxg7 Kxg4

Or 50…Kf4 51.Bh6+, and the rest as in the game.

51.Ke4

Shouldering the black king aside, while simultaneously heading for the queenside himself.

51…Kg3 52.Kd5 Kf3 53.Kc6 Ke4 54.Kd7

See that? Such moments do sometimes occur. The king pushes the bishop off the short diagonal, and eliminates the b6-pawn.

54…Bg5 55.Kc7 Kd3 56.Kxb6 Bd8+ 57.Kxc5 Kc2 58.Kb5 Kxb3 59.c5 Bc7 60.c6 Kc2 61.Bd4 Kd3 62.Bb6 1-0

(4) Horcajada Reales – S.Kasparov

Alcala Henares 2006

38…Bxf2

In this example, one of the players has doubled pawns; but they do not spoil his position. It is more important that all of my pawns are on white squares, while the Spaniard has a few potential weaknesses – at a5, b4 and e5.

39.Bd4 Bg3

Naturally, I shouldn’t exchange, since the bishop is my guarantee of success.

40.Ke3 Kd7 41.Kf3 Be1 42.Bc5 Ke6

And so, at least one weakness collapses.

43.g4

43…Kxe5 44.gxf5 Kxf5

Converting the extra pawn is not overly difficult. White’s king is gradually moved aside.

45.Ke2 Bc3 46.Kf3 Ke5 47.Ke3 f5 48.Kd3 Be1 49.Ke2 Bh4 50.Ke3 Bg5+ 51.Kf3 Bh6 52.Bf2 Bf8 53.c5 Bh6 54.Be1 Kd4 55.h4 Kd3 56.Kf2 Ke4 57.Ke2 Bg7 58.Kf2 Kf4 Now the pawn at h4 perishes, too. 0-1

But in the next example, the situation was not quite so straightforward: White could have put up stubborn resistance, had he found the idea 33.Bxd4 and 34.b4!

(5) Hornsgaard – S.Kasparov

Rønne 2007

29.f4

This situation resembles the previous one, but is somewhat more complicated. My own camp features pawns on squares the same color as my bishop (g7 and h6). The a7-pawn plays no role, since it is not fixed, and can always move up to a6. Besides, Black’s king is quite passive, for now; and his doubled pawns on the c-file do not enhance his position. At the same time, the white pawn at h5 hinders the activity of the black monarch.

29…g6 30.hxg6

An important moment: I had to know what I was going to do after the tempting 30.g4. During the game, I found 30…f5!?

), 33.Bc3? does not work: 33…Bxc3 34.bxc3 Kf7–+.

30…fxg6 31.Kc2 Bd4

The bishop on d4, in combination with the pawn on c4, creates a no-pass zone: b3, c3, d3, e3 – something we will encounter frequently.

32.Bc3 c5

Here is where that doubled pawn comes in handy – supporting the centralized bishop.

33.Kd2

33.Bxd4 cxd4 34.b4! cxb3+ (if 34…Kf7 35.a4, it is immediately unclear whether Black will be able to win, since the pawns on a4 and b4 cannot be underestimated. At the very least, it would be a stretch for me) 35.Kxb3. And here too, White would still have to calculate the variations.

33…Kf7 34.Ke2 h5 35.Kf3 Ke7

The king sets off on a lengthy trek to the queenside.

36.Kg3

The Dane quite reasonably tries to execute the counter-maneuver Kg3-h4-g5; but once again, his unfortunately placed pawns interfere with this since they are on squares of his bishop’s color.

36…Be3

Tied to the pawn at f4, the bishop is unable to let the white king advance.

37.Kf3 Bc1+–

38.g3 Kd7 39.Kg2 Kc6 40.Kh3 Be3 Now, we rush after the pawn at g3 41.Be1 41.Kh4 Bf2 42.Kg5 Bxg3 43.Kxg6 h4–+ 41…Bd4 42.Bc3 Kd5 43.Kh4 Bf2 0-1

Sometimes, there are situations where the defending side is absolutely deprived of counterplay; at those times, one can think up plans.

(6) S.Kasparov – Michalek

Prague 2010

Looking at the preceding examples, you will have already come to understand these kinds of endings, and can properly evaluate this position. Yes, of course, White stands better; but the path to victory must still be found.

41.Kg3 Ke7

There is no time to set up the no-pass zone: 41…g5? 42.Bd3+– and Black loses his pawn.

42.Kf4 Bc6 43.Ke5 Bb7 44.g5 Bc6

The king is placed excellently (for this structure); now we must work on the bishop and pawns.

45.a4

Creating a weakness on the queenside, which Black’s bishop will have to defend.

45…Bd7

45…bxa4 46.Bxa6 Bd7 47.Bb7 loses – zugzwang!. 47…Be8 48.Bc8 Bf7 49.f3 Bg8 50.Ba6 Bf7 51.Bb5+–

46.axb5 axb5

The pawn endgame is even worse: 46…Bxb5? 47.Bxb5 axb5 48.b4 is again zugzwang.

47.b4 Be8

The presence of the bishops allows Black to shuffle in place (by …Bc6-d7-e8).

48.Bd3 Bd7 49.Bc2 Be8 49…Bc6 50.Bb1 Bb7 51.Bd3 Bc6 52.f3+– 50.f3 Bd7 51.e4

The win is still achieved by a pawn break.

51…dxe4 52.fxe4 Bc6 53.d5 exd5 54.exf5 1-0 An outside passed g-pawn has appeared, while pawns on d5 and b5 are potentially doomed. Black therefore resigned.

The following example comes from a tournament in the capital of Lebanon, and clearly demonstrates the potential possibilities of an outside passed pawn.

(7) S.Kasparov – Haydar

Beirut 2015

41…exd5

The simplest of examples on the theme of the outside passed pawn. Here, it is not important who is playing Black – even the world champion could not save a position like this.

42.a5 Bg1

Or 42…Bd8 43.Bf6+ Kd7 44.Bxd8 Kxd8 45.b5 Kd7 46.Ke3 Ke6 47.Kd4 Kd6 48.a6+–

43.b5 Kd7 44.Ke2 Bc5 45.Kd3 Bb4 46.Bc3 Bc5 47.Bd4 Kd6 48.a6 1-0

Even precisely placed pawns (f7, g6 and d5) cannot compensate for the threat to create a passed b-pawn.

And now, another example – this one is a little more complicated. Black let his concentration slip, and White’s outside passed pawn decided the outcome.

(8) S.Kasparov – Smetankin

Minsk 1997

22.Bd2

And another comparatively simple endgame: the position is drawn, of course; but it is not equal. Black has to act carefully, since his a5-pawn is fixed upon the color of his bishop.

22…Bf2

22…Bb6 is safer.

23.Bxa5 Bxg3

As we shall see later, this exchange is not an equal trade. White obtains a passed pawn; while on the opposite wing, I successfully prevent the creation of something similar for Black.

24.Bd2

White must set up a barrier against the advance …g6-g5-g4, because then I would have to agree to the draw, since wholesale exchanges would ensue.

24…Bh4 25.f4!? (D)

Fixing the enemy’s pawns. On f4, the pawn stands on a square that is the same color as the bishop; but this is an exception to the rule.

25…Bf2 26.Bc1

26.a5!?

26…Bg1 27.a5 Bf2 28.a6

A kamikaze, diverting the enemy forces onto himself.

28…Bg1?

It looks like Black has nothing to fear, since he has the no-pass zone b5, c5, d5, d4 and e4; however…

28…Kb6 never works: 29.Kd5+–, and the kingside pawns are lost. Considering what happened in the game, one might recommend the paradoxical 28…h4!

29.Kd3!+–

The bishop goes to e3, and the White monarch gets in among the pawns on the kingside.

29…Kb5 30.Be3 Bxe3 31.Kxe3 Kxa6 32.Kd4 Kb5 33.h4!

The only move that leads to victory – which White will not achieve after 33.Ke5? Kc4 34.Kf6 Kd3 35.Kxg6 Ke4 36.Kxh5 (36.Kg5?? h4 37.Kxh4 Kxf4 38.Kh5 Ke4–+) 36…Kxf4 37.Kg6 Ke4=.

33…Kb4 34.Ke5 Kc4 35.Kf6 Kd3 36.Kxg6 Ke4 37.Kg5 1-0

Sometimes it is not the material relationship that is the more important, but other factors.

(9) S.Kasparov – Pachia

Arad 2013

36…gxf6

And here, Black even has more material than White; but the difference in king activity and pawn placement is too great.

37.g4

Fixing the f5-square, to prevent the freeing break …f6-f5.

39…Kf7?

39…Bh6 40.Bb8 Bd2 41.Bxd6 lasts longer; although in this case, too, White should eventually win.

40.Bb6+– Bh6 41.Bxa5 Kg6 42.Kxd6 Be3 43.Bd8 Kg5 44.Ke6 Kxg4 45.Bxf6 Kf3 (45…Kf4 46.Kd5 Bd4 47.b4+–) 46.Kd5 Ke2 47.Bxe5 Kd3 48.b4 Bf2 49.b5 Bb6 50.Bd6 Kc3 51.e5 Kb3 52.e6 Bd8 1-0

My opening repertoire is such that, comparatively often, I get endgames with a space advantage for White. These kinds of structures come about in Dragon-esque variations. I submit that it is none too pleasant for Black to maintain a defense with no prospects, although, under ideal conditions, the game ought to end in a draw (which is, in fact, the way games of chess should always end).

(10) S.Kasparov – C. Mehar

Bhubaneswar 2011

32…Kxd7

And now, let’s see how the battle develops with a space advantage. Objectively, the game should end in a draw, but the position is not equal: Black has a lengthy defense ahead of him.

33.e5 b5

The Indian player, quite reasonably, lays out the greatest possible number of his pawns on squares opposite )

34.g4 f6?! (34…e6 was better) 35.e6+ Kc7 36.Ke4 Bc5 37.Ba5+ Bb6 38.Be1 Kd8

On the queen’s wing, there is a no-pass zone: a6-b5-c5; therefore, I try to break through on the king’s wing.

39.h4

First, I have to take the g5-square under control. 39.f5 g5 40.h4 h6 is weaker: now what?

39…Ke8

On 39…h6, I cut through on the light squares: 40.h5 f5+ 41.gxf5 gxh5 42.Bh4, and f5-f6 wins.

40.f5 Kf8

Now, 40…g5 41.hxg5 fxg5 42.Bc3 Bd8 43.f6 exf6 44.Kf5, and wins; however, there is 40…gxf5+!?

41.fxg6 hxg6

Now, White will always be threatening to create the passed h-pawn by h4-h5.

42.Bc3 Bd8 43.a4 bxa4 44.bxa4 Kg8 45.Kf3 Kh7 46.Kf4 Kg8 47.Bd4 Ba5

At the moment, I could not see how to continue the assault. So I sent my king over to the queen’s wing.

48.Ke4 Bd8 49.Kd3 Bc7 50.Kc4 Ba5

The no-pass zone: b4-b5-c5.

51.h5 gxh5 52.gxh5 Kg7 53.Be3 Kh7 54.Bc1 Kg7 55.Bf4+–

Note the zugzwang: Black has to cope with three threats at once: (1) the king breaking into the queen’s wing; (2) the h-pawn breaking