Games: chess

The third game of the match between Etienne Bacrot and Viktor Korchoi gave the 14-year-old French grandmaster a win that equalised the score. And a very convincing performance it was, too.

Korchnoi tried an old idea of Bobby Fischer's in the opening with 9...b5!? In a game of the 1972 world championship match, Fischer had equalised without difficulty against Spassky after 10.Bd3 (not 10.Bxb5? Qa5+) Bb4+ 11.Bd2 Bxd2+ 12.Qxd2 a6 13.a4 Bb7! but later analysis came up with 10.Be2! as an improvement, keeping open the option of a quick d5, as seen in the present game.

When Bacrot pushed his pawn at high speed to d6, it was not immediately clear whether it would be a strength or a weakness. He must have calculated, when playing 13.d5, that 16...Rb6 could be met by 17.Bxb5+! Rxb5 18.Qe2+. As the game went, the pawn quickly arrived on d7, but the endgame after 24...a5 (see diagram) was still difficult to judge. If Black can play Kf8 and Ke7, then bring his knight via g6 to f8, the d-pawn may still prove too weak to survive.

Bacrot found the perfect plan. 25.f4 threatened to strand the knight by playing f5, and 26.h4! repeated the trick since 26...Nxh4? 27.f5 leaves horsemeat on h4. The real point, however, is that 26...Kf8 can now be met by 27.h5! burying the knight for ever on h8. Black's problem is that his king and knight both need to use the f8 square. Bacrot's clever play ensured that they would both need to be there at the same time.

Korchnoi's 29...Kg7 worked out badly, falling into an energetic attack with 28.h6+! and 29.g5+. The end result was a position with Blacks king tied to the back rank, his knight deprived of any potentially useful square, and a final triumph for the white d-pawn. After 37.Bxb5, the way is clear for Rcc8 and Black can no longer prevent the pawn's promotion.

White: Etienne Bacrot

Black: Viktor Korchnoi

1 d4 Nf6 20 g4 Bxf3

2 c4 e6 21 Bxf3 Nh4

3 Nf3 d5 22 Qxf6 gxf6

4 Nc3 c5 23 Be4 Rfd8

5 cxd5 Nxd5 24 Rd6 a5

6 e4 Nxc3 25 f4 Ng6

7 bxc3 cxd4 26 h4 Kg7

8 cxd4 Nc6 27 h5 Nf8

9 Bc4 b5 28 h6+ Kxh6

10 Be2 Bb4+ 29 g5+ Kg7

11 Bd2 Bxd2+ 30 gxf6+ Kg8

12 Qxd2 Rb8 31 Bc6 Ne6

13 d5 exd5 32 f5 Nc7

14 exd5 Ne7 33 Rd3 Rb6

15 d6 Nf5 34 Rc1 Na6

16 Rd1 0-0 35 Re3 Rf8

17 d7 Bb7 36 Re8 Rb8

18 0-0 Qf6 37 Bxb5 resigns

19 Qf4 a6