Checkpoint
by Alexander Baburin

While this column started off as a place where books on openings
were reviewed, this month I have something quite different in the
basket, as among three books being reviewed, two are not about
openings, but endgames. Personally, I am very glad that there are
books about endings, emerging now - I always felt that too much
emphasis was placed on opening monographs. Surely it's crucial to
have a well-prepared opening repertoire for a chess professional,
but in my opinion most club players would actually benefit more
by investing their time studying endgame. So, let's see what chess
books can help you, should you decided to improve your endgame
technique.

The Survival Guide to Rook Endings by GM John Emms 1999
Everyman Chess, 160pp., $

If the claim that is made on the back of this book is true - that rook
and pawn endings occur in about 20% of all chess games - then it's
certainly very important to know such endgames at least reasonably
well. Different books use different approaches presenting the vast
material available on this subject. Some (like the Yugoslav
'Encyclopaedia of Chess Endings') offer massive amounts of
positions and almost no explanation, some explain principles, but
don't go into much detail in analysis. Then there are books like this
one, which is somewhere in the middle. In 160 pages Emms gives
many very important positions and offers a good deal of
explanation. In this regard the book is well-balanced and I think
that its title is also very appropriate. Indeed, if you can take your
time and diligently study the material given in the book, you should
be able to make it through in most rook and pawn endgames
without making too many mistakes.

The book starts with the chapter called 'Basic Rook Endings',
which takes up 30 pages. It first shows very basic examples of the
rook fighting against a single pawn. They can be still very difficult.
In fact, some of them are beautiful studies like, for example, this
one (See Diagram): 

White: Ke7, Rd4 
Black: Ke5; pawn - d5. 

White to move wins. As a coach, I offered this study by Richard
Reti, which is featured on page 13 of Emms' book, to many club
players and up-and-coming juniors, and I must say that nobody got
it right... This is a good example when you are much better off
knowing the right principles of endgame play rather than hoping
you can work out everything over the board. White wins by playing
1 Rd2! (or 1 Rd3!) d4 2 Rd1! Kd5 3 Kd7! Ke4 3 Kd6, when his
king outflanks his black colleague. The more obvious line 1 Rd1?
d4 2 Kd7 only leads to a draw after the stunning 2...Kd5!!, as then
White has to worsen his position. In total Emms gives 13 positions
with rook vs. pawn(s). They are quite well explained and give a
fair idea how one should play such endings. Then the author
proceeds to the endgame rook and pawn vs. rook, which is the
backbone of all rook endgames. This type of ending is so
complicated that Dr. Nunn at some point wrote a massive book
about it. Emm's aim is quite different, as he cites only the most
important positions (e.g. by Lucena and by Philidor) and explains
the key ideas in them. This coverage is very adequate for this type
of book. Chapter One then includes a few positions with rook and
2 pawns vs. rook and ends with an exercise section. There Emms
gives 6 positions to solve. While I like this idea in principle
(readers immediately get a chance to test their understanding), I
think that the selection of some of these positions is sometimes less
than convincing. For example (See Diagram): 

White: Kd4, Rh7 
Black: Kf3; pawns - e4, g4, h3

White to move. Here White can choose between 1 Rh8 or Rf7+ -
what should he prefer? I am not going to spoil your fun by
disclosing the answer, but I don't really think that this particular
example teaches much. What are the odds that you or I would ever
get such a position? I guess that the chances are minimal and even
if you do get one, then it's mostly down to calculation, rather than
knowledge. Instead of showing this ending, Emms could have
given a simpler, yet more instructive example. The other point is
that in many places in this chapter Emms talks about 'enough
checking distance', but does not quite explain what makes that
distance sufficient for a draw. Also, the coverage of the "Frontal
Defense" should have been more extensive - to include at least a
couple of positions where the defender's king is cut off from the
enemy pawn by more than one file. Still, this is very good chapter
and the one not to miss. Such endings are notoriously difficult and
even grandmasters often err in them.

Chapter 2 deals with situations when both players have pawns on
the same side of the board. I like the systematic way in which
Emms deals with this topic. He compares different positions and
explains what make them special. For example, here you may learn
that e- and f- pawns vs. defender's f-pawn offer much better
winning chances than, let's say, f- and g- pawn versus single
g-pawn. Recently John Emms had to defend one of such endings -
against Rahman in the British Championship. (See Diagram)

White: Kd6, Rc6; pawns - e5, f6
Black: Kg8, Rb8; pawn - f7. 

White to move. The defender's task here was very difficult,
particular after a few hours of play, and eventually Emms lost.
While that game was still in progress, GMs Peter Wells and
Jonathan Rowson, alone with IM Mark Heidenfeld and myself had
a chat over dinner about whether it should be a draw. Later John
himself said that he could have saved the game, but slipped. After
the British championship I could not find much information about
this ending in existing books and therefore I was particularly
anxious to see what Emms' book had to offer. Alas, he does not
draw a clear line between those positions which are lost and those
which are drawn. For example, on page 67 he gives the game
Fokin- Kalegin, USSR 1987, which at some point reached the
following position (See Diagram):

White: Kg1, Rb5; pawn - f2 
Black: Kd4, Ra2; pawns - e4, f4

White to move. In the game Black eventually played ...f3 (making
it look very similar to the Rahman-Emms, 1999) and won, but still
not clear to me whether White can draw here and if so, what is the
best defense? I think this is something Emms should clarify in the
later editions of his work. Apart from that, this is a really good
chapter with many very instructive examples. One of them is the
case when the superior side has 4 pawns vs. 3 on the same flank - a
very common ending indeed and the one to know. Emms claims
that his database shows 37% decisive results in this type of ending.
I am not quite sure what to make of such statistics. It's very trendy
nowadays and Emms uses it often in book, but probably many
games were played by relatively weak players. Still, this figure
indicates that defensive task isn't always simple. Even strong GMs
don't always save such positions. For example, on page 74 Emms
gives very instructive analysis for almost two pages of the endgame
I.Sokolov-Chernin, 1991, which is very instructive (See Diagram): 

White: Kg1, Ra1; pawns - f2, g3, h4 
Black: Kg7, Rb3; pawns - e6, f7, g6, h7. 

Black to move. Careful study of this example might help you to
earn you a few extra half-points.

Chapter 3 covers positions with pawns on both sides of the board.
Here the most important positions from a practical point of view
are those with 3 pawns vs. 3 pawns on one side and an extra passed
pawn on the other flank. Emms does a very good job explaining
which pawn (a-, b-, c- or d-) gives the superior side most chances
and why. He also covers different positions of the rooks (behind
the pawn, in front of it or on the side) and shows how this affects
the result. According to Emms (page110), the superior side has the
best chances in positions like this one (See Diagram): 

White: Kg2, Rb7; pawns - b6, f2, g3, h4 
Black: Kg7, Rb3; pawns - f7, g6, h5

White to move. Here White's king has a shorter distance to his
passer than in the positions with the a-pawn. Moving that passer
one file to the right would make the defense easier, as then Black's
king would be rather close to the c-pawn. All these nuances are
pretty well explained in the book.

In Chapter 4, Emms shows some typical endings with four rooks
on the board. This is a very welcome addition to a book on rook
endgames, as the presence of an extra pair of rooks often makes a
lot of difference. Yet, most endgame books do not cover such
situations very well, which makes this chapter very useful. I'd like
to illustrate my point with just one example (See Diagram): 

White: Kg1, Rb7, Rc7; pawns - e3, f2, g3, h2
Black: Kg8, Ra2, Rf8, pawns f7, g7, h6

White to move. Here White has much better winning prospects
than in a situation with just one pair of rooks. In Tukmakov-
Wojtkiewicz, Bern 1993, White played 1 g4! and went to win the
game.

At the end of the book there are answers to the training questions
and an index of players, composers and analysts. In the book there
are 20 of Emms' own rook endings, which is valuable - most
authors write better from their personal experience. All in all, this
is a very nice work, which can be of use to amateurs and
professionals alike. Personally I went through it with great interest.
My assessment of this book: ****. 

Chess Endings. Essential knowledge by GM Yuri Averbakh. 1999
Everyman Chess, Softcover, Figurine Algebraic Notation, 160pp.,
$14.95

This is quite a different book compared to the one that was just
reviewed. First of all, it deals with all different kinds of endings,
rather than with just one. Secondly, it is aimed at beginners rather
than experienced players. In the Introduction Grandmaster
Averbakh, who is a renown endgame expert, clearly outlines his
goal: "I thought that it was important to select the minimum which
any chess enthusiast should know in order to handle competently
the concluding phase of the game. It turned out that it was not
necessary to know such a great deal."  In this book Averbakh gives
147 positions, which, in his opinion, are most important to know in
the endgame. As this book has had several editions and this
algebraic version, which first appeared in 1993, is now reprinted
for the second time, it's obvious that Averbakh's approach has been
successful.

Indeed, this is a very good book, which smoothly guides the reader
through various types of endings, beginning with the most simple
one, like checking the lone king with queen, rook or two bishops.
When it's necessary, Averbakh spends a greater deal of time
explaining ideas in a particular endgame. For example, he devoted
almost three pages to explaining how to mate a lone king with
bishop and knight, which is very reasonable. However, I believe
here he made a slight inaccuracy, claiming that "the king can only
be mated in a corner of the color the bishop controls." Of course,
he meant 'if the defender plays correctly'. But if he does not, then
the defender can find himself in a position like this (See Diagram):

White: Ka6, Be5, Nd5
Black: Ka8. 

White to move. Suppose that Black has just played ...Kb8-a8, not
wanting to leave the corner where his king 'cannot be mated'. Then
a move like 1 Nb6# may come as a major surprise to him! I was
also a bit surprised not to find in the section called 'The Properties
of the Pieces' any word about the king. Surely, the king is an active
piece in most endgames and therefore its role and functions should
have been outlined as well.

Introducing simple positions is not always easy, as there is a danger
of boring your readers. However, Averbakh handles this task very
nicely, showing many beautiful studies, which also have a great
practical value. I particularly liked the following one by Grigoriev
(page 31) (See Diagram):
 
White: Kh2, Nb5
Black: Kd5; pawn - b4. 

White to move and draw. This position may look simple, but the
play here is not trivial at all: 1 Nc7+ Kc4 2 Ne8! Kc5 3 Nf6! Kd4 4
Ne8! Ke5 5 Nc7! and White holds the position.

The chapter 'Practical Endings' contains many important rook and
pawn endgames, king and pawn endgames and positions with
bishops, knights or queens on the board. One example (See
Diagram):
 
White: Kc3, Bc5; pawns - e3, f4, h4
Black: Kf3, Be6; pawns - b3, d5, g6, h5

Black to move. Here Black needs to create passed pawns on the
opposite flanks, which is most important in such endings. In the
game in the game Kotov-Botvinnik, Moscow 1955 (page 91 in the
book) Black sacrificed two pawns in order to achieve his goal:
1...g5!! 2 fxg5 d4+! 3 exd4 Kg3 4 Ba3 Kxh4 and soon won. This is
an excellent example that explains a lot about play in the endgame
with bishops of opposite color.

Of course, Averbakh had to be very selective and economical with
the material he gives in this chapter, but perhaps he should have
showed more king and pawn endings. I also think that he could
have included some typical situations of a rook versus a minor
piece - for example, rook and 3 pawns versus bishop and three
pawns (with all pawns on the same side). Yet, this is a rather
subjective view and it does not change my opinion of this book as
a very useful guide to endgames. I trust that most players would
enjoy reading this book and will greatly benefit from studying it.
My assessment of this book: ****. 

The English Defence by GM Daniel King, 1999 Everyman Chess,
Softcover, Figurine Algebraic Notation, 144pp., $19.95

Now it's time to depart from my beloved endgame material and
have a look at one opening monograph. I feel that, overall, the
quality of opening books is improving, mainly thanks to British
chess publishers and their excellent range of chess authors. One of
them is GM Daniel King, whose book English Defence has just
been released. The book has 144 pages of a slightly larger than
usual format, and it retails for $19.95.

Danny King is well-known as a TV commentator and a chess
journalist. Many readers might also recall that he was the
moderator of the recent Kasparov vs. the Rest of the Word
challenge. Apart from that, he is a strong and very experienced
Grandmaster, who has a wide opening repertoire. In this book he
covers a significant part of it - the English Defence. This opening
usually arises after 1 c4 b6 2 d4 e6 or 1 d4 e6 2 c4 b6. In the latter
case Black has to be prepared for the French Defence (after 2 e4
d5), but, as King correctly points out, not many 1 d4 players would
opt for 2 e4 here. Besides, after 2 e4 Black might try something
like 2...c5. 

The English Defence is a very interesting opening, which would
perfectly suit those who want to unbalance the game and break
away from classical openings. Thus, it's hardly surprising that this
opening was pioneered by Tony Miles, who is renown for his
original style. Tony remains a keen practitioner of this opening,
along with such GMs as Speelman, Kengis, Ehlvest, Short,
Bischoff, Gulko and Shabalov. This list could be easily extended. I
faced this opening a few times as White and confess that it's not
easy for White to keep things under control and to play in the
academic style - a sharp battle usually breaks out anyway. So, this
is a good opening if you are looking for counter-play in the
opening. For example, see what you might get here (See Diagram):

This position occurred in the game Babu-Miles, Sakthi 1996 after 1
d4 e6 2 c4 b6 3 e4 Bb7 4 f3 f5 5 exf5 Nh6 6 fxe6 Nf5. After only
six moves White already has to deal with serious problems and
certainly cannot hope for a quite life. Examples like this are
plentiful in the book.

The book is built around 79 annotated games and consists of eight
chapters. After each chapter there is a short summary with a kind
of a map, where the author shows how those games, that are cited
in the chapter, relate to each other. I find such summaries and
'maps' very useful. Games are not heavily annotated - that in fact
would not be appropriate for this book. Instead, King highlights
most important moments of each game, shows critical variations
and often comes up with possible improvements or at least with
worthy alternatives. For example, on page 57 after 1 d4 b6 2 c4
Bb7 3 Nc3 e6 4 e4 Bb4 5 Bd3 f5 6 Qh5+ g6 7 Qe2 Nf6 8 Bg5 h6
(See Diagram)

King writes: "If you are looking for a 'sound' way to play for a win,
then this is the move. 8...fxe4 is fine, but it releases the tension;
and the queen sacrifice from the previous game is great fun, but
can go wrong at a stroke. 8...h6 holds the tension but bags the
bishop. It makes a virtue out of having the pawn on g6: the f5-
pawn is bolstered, and the queen can slip back to g7 if necessary."
The book is full of such comments and I feel that this is its great
asset - Danny King does not lecture his readers on how to play this
opening - instead he shares his thoughts and let's them to decide
what to play. Here is another example: in the Chapter 'Main Line
with 3 e4 Bb7 4 Bd3: other moves for Black' King writes about 1
c4 b6 2 d4 e6 3 e4 Bb7 4 Bd3 Qh4 (See Diagram):

"Mad. Although this move is seen regularly in the English
Defence, in this particular position it isn't justified."

The position after 3 e4 Bb7 occupies the most space in the book
and is covered in the first five chapters. King believes that 4...Nc6
is a sound way of dealing with 4 Bd3 (chapter 1), while 4...f5 is
also worth investigating. Then after 5 exf5 Bb4+ 6 Kf1 White
currently does well according to King, so he recommends that
Black look deeper into the wild positions that arise after 5...Bxg2 6
Qh5+ g6 7 fxg6 Bg7 8 gxh7+ Kf8. After 4 Qc2 King recommends
both 4...Qh4 and 4...g6!?. Against 4 f3 he gives 4...e5!? (game 38)
as in interesting alternative to 4...f5 (game 37). One attraction of
this opening for Black is that he has many different ideas and set-
ups available and can switch between them. There is also plenty of
room for imagination and new findings. I am particularly
impressed how Jonathan Speelman plays this system - you will see
his original ideas in many places in this book.

The system with an early a2-a3, which is the preferred choice for
many players, is dealt with in chapter 6. Here King provides an
adequate coverage as well. After 1 d4 e6 2 c4 b6 3 a3 Bb7 4 Nc3
(See Diagram)

Black can choose 4...Nf6, which might transpose into the Petrosian
Variation of the Queen's Indian Defense if White plays 5 Nf3.
Alternatively Black can play 4...f5 or 4...g6, although the latter is
rather risky from the strategic point of view. The last two chapters
deal with lines like 1 c4 b6 2 Nc3 Bb7 3 e4 and 1 c4 b6 2 Nc3 Bb7
3 Nf3 e6 4 g3. In the latter case King recommends Black consider
...Bxf3.

The book is very well written - with lively language and
entertaining passages. I will certainly keep a copy of this book in
my library. In fact, I have been thinking for quite some time about
including the English Defence into my repertoire and this book will
be of great help to me.
My assessment of this book: *****. 

