Games: Chess

If there is one thing above all others that characterises the play of great champions, it is how active they manage to keep their pieces. In the games of Bobby Fischer and Garry Kasparov, one constantly senses the high value they place on the initiative. Pawn weaknesses are tolerated, material is even sacrificed, all in the cause of maintaining the energy of the pieces. Even in the games of a champion such as Karpov - for whom positional correctness and control are more important than anything - one sees that his pieces may not be swaggering into threatening positions, but they are always within reach of something useful to do.

That is what makes today's game so impressive. A few days ago, we saw a game in which the BCF Girls' squad snatched a draw from a lost endgame against Garry Kasparov. Here, from the same event, is the way the BCF Boys' team achieved the same result - but they did it by playing just like Kasparov himself.

Moving from a King's Indian Defence into a Benoni - both Kasparov favourites - they found an interesting idea in 9...Bd7!? to tempt a4, giving the b4 square to the black knight. Its arrival there made 13...h6 possible, since 14.Bxh6 Bxh6 15.Qxh6 allows Nc2+.

Black fought for the initiative with 20...f5, but it was their 35...Qd4! that was most striking. White was allowed a combination that left him a pawn ahead, but 41...Nxd5! neatly forced a perpetual check from the queen on e1 and g3.

White: Garry Kasparov

Black: BCF Boys

1 d4 Nf6 23 exf5 gxf5

2 c4 g6 24 Qd1 h4

3 Nc3 Bg7 25 Bh5 Nxh5

4 e4 d6 26 Qxh5+ Kg8

5 f3 0-0 27 Bd2 Rxe1

6 Bg5 c5 28 Rxe1 Qd8

7 d5 e6 29 axb5 axb5

8 Qd2 exd5 30 Ra1 Qf6

9 cxd5 Bd7 31 Ra7 Be8

10 a4 Na6 32 Qe2 Bf7

11 Nge2 Nb4 33 Qxb5 Qd4

12 Ng3 Re8 34 Rxf7 Kxf7

13 Be2 h6 35 Qd7+ Kg6

14 Be3 Nh7 36 Qe6+ Bf6

15 0-0 h5 37 Qxc8 Qxf2

16 Rae1 Rc8 38 Qg8+ Bg7

17 Nh1 Qa5 39 Qe6+ Bf6

18 Nf2 a6 40 Ne2 Kg7

19 h3 Kh8 41 Bc3 Nxd5

20 f4 f5 42 Qxd5 Bxc3

21 Kh1 Nf6 43 Nxc3 Qe1+

22 Bf3 b5 draw