ETCETERA; CHESS

AS Mr "Vishy" Anand and Mr "Garry" Kasparov settle down to the second week of their sojourn at the World Trade Centre in New York, the time is ripe to look back at an earlier encounter bet-ween the two world title combatants.

White: Garry Kasparov

Black: Viswanathan Anand

Linares 1992

1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.e5 c5 5.a3 Bxc3+ 6.bxc3 Ne7 7.h4

As an experienced player, I have always preferred the positional niceties of 7.a4 here. Kasparov's vulgar 7.h4 is typical of a man who was, after all, only 30 years old when this game was played.

7...Nbc6 8.h5 Qa5 9.Bd2 cxd4 10.cxd4 Qa4 11.Nf3!

The more black-squared pawns he can sacrifice, the more effective his bishop will become on that colour.

11...Nxd4 12.Bd3 Nec6 13.Kf1! Nxf3 14.Qxf3 b6 15.h6 Ba6

It was well to avoid 15...g6 16.Qf6.

16.hxg7 Rg8 17.Bxa6 Qxa6+ 18.Kg1 Rxg7 19.Qf6 Rg8 20.Rxh7 Qb7 21.Bg5!

Now 21...Qe7 22.Qf4! Qxg5 23.Qxg5 Rxg5 24.Rh8+ wins for White. It is time for Anand to join in the fight.

21...Nd4! 22.c4 Ne2+ 23.Kh2 Nc3 24.Rh8 Rxh8+ 25.Qxh8+ Kd7 26.Qh7 Rf8 27.Bh6 Re8 28.Qxf7+ Re7 29.Qg6 Qb8 30.cxd5 Nxd5 (see diagram)

The champion has played the difficult part of the game with consummate skill and now has an extra pawn. By defending it with the obvious 31.f4, he would obtain a winning position. Instead he gets carried away with adventurousness.

31.Rd1?? Qxe5+ 32.f4 Qh8 33.f5

White's decision to return the pawn was clearly based on an over-optimistic assessment of this move. It looks as though the knight on d5 will be undermined, but...

33...Qe5+ 34.Kh1 draw agreed!

After 34...exf5 35.Qg8, Kasparov had overlooked the reply 35...Qe6!! when 36.Rxd5+ Kc6! leaves him nothing better than 37.Qxe6+ (37.Qa8+? Rb7! is good for Black) 37...Rxe6 38.Rxf5 Rxh6+ with a drawn endgame.