(1) Botvinnik,Mikhail - Bronstein,David I [D71]
Moscow Match 1951 Moscow (23), 08.05.1951
[My Great Predecessors, Part II, pp. 208-211]

One of the most famous games in chess history, this penultimate encounter from the 1951 World Championship match still has many analytical surprises. For example, Kasparov covers the last 16 moves in My Great Predecessors, Part II (Everyman, 2003) and makes several mistakes.

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.g3 c6 4.Bg2 d5 5.cxd5 cxd5 6.Nc3 Bg7 7.Nh3 Bxh3 8.Bxh3 Nc6 9.Bg2 e6 10.e3 0-0 11.Bd2 Rc8 12.0-0 Nd7 13.Ne2 Qb6 14.Bc3 Rfd8 15.Nf4 Nf6 16.Qb3 Ne4 17.Qxb6 axb6 18.Be1 Na5 19.Nd3 Bf8 20.f3 Nd6 21.Bf2 Bh6 22.Rac1 Nac4 23.Rfe1 Na5 24.Kf1 Bg7 25.g4 Nc6 26.b3 Nb5 27.Ke2 Bf8 28.a4 Nc7 29.Bg3 Na6 30.Bf1 f6 31.Red1 Na5 32.Rxc8 Rxc8 33.Rc1 Rxc1 34.Nxc1 Ba3 35.Kd1 Bxc1 36.Kxc1 Nxb3+ 37.Kc2 Na5 38.Kc3 Kf7 39.e4 f5? [Bronstein's move looks awful, and it is. Much better is 39...Nc6 40.exd5 exd5 41.h4 (or 41.Bd3 Ke6 42.Bb1 Na7 and if 43.Ba2? then 43...b5! is good for Black) 41...Ke7 42.h5 Kd7 with a rough equality]

40.gxf5 gxf5 41.Bd3 Kg6










42.Bd6? [This was the sealed move. Botvinnik says he could not decide whether 42.Bd6 or 42.Bb1 should be played first. Correct was 42.Bb1! I have spent many hours trying to save this game for Black, but White's two bishops are too strong and Black's pawns are too weak. An example "best play" line is 42...dxe4 43.fxe4 Nc6 44.exf5+ exf5 45.Ba2 (A slower winning method begins 45.Kc4 Ne7 46.Bh4 Nc8 47.Kd5 Kf7 48.Ke5 Nb8 49.Kxf5 b5 50.axb5 Nd6+ 51.Kf4 Nxb5 52.Bf2 ) 45...Kg5 46.Bd6 Kf6 47.Bb3 Ne7 48.h4 Nc8 49.Be5+ Ke7 50.h5 Nd6 51.Bg8 h6 52.Bf4 Ne4+ 53.Kc4 Nd6+ 54.Kb3 Ne4 55.Bd5 Nd6 56.Bxh6
Analysis Diagram








and White's position is clearly decisive.]

42...Nc6 43.Bb1 Kf6 [Some commentators have called this the losing move and suggest that 43...Na7 would have been better. However, it seems to me that after Karsten Müller's suggestion of 44.Bd3 Nc6! 45.Bg3! we simply transpose back into the game by 45...Kf6 46.Bb1 fxe4 47.fxe4 (this is the position after White's 45th move). So 43...Na7 is basically equivalent to the move played in the game.]

44.Bg3 fxe4 Kasparov's [mistaken] comment: "After this, to the delight of the bishops, the position is opened up and now there is definitely no way of saving the game."

45.fxe4 h6 46.Bf4 h5 47.exd5 exd5 48.h4 Nab8 [Kasparov: "or 48...Ne7 49.Bg5+ Ke6 50.Bxe7 Kxe7 51.Bg6 b5 52.axb5 Nc7 53.b6 Na8 54.Bxh5 Nxb6 55.Bf3 Kf6 56.Kb4 "and wins." But Kasparov has overlooked 56...Nc8!!
Analysis Diagram








57.Bxd5 (No better is 57.Kc5 Ne7! 58.Bxd5 Nf5!! 59.Bxb7
Analysis Diagram








59...Nxd4! and White's bishop is the wrong color to force a new queen) 57...Nd6! 58.Bf3 Nf5! 59.d5 Nxh4 60.Bg4 Ke5 61.Kc5 Ng6 62.d6 Nf8
Analysis Diagram








and Black can prevent the d-pawn from queening -- draw!]

49.Bg5+ Kf7 50.Bf5 Na7 51.Bf4 Nbc6 52.Bd3










52...Nc8? [As far as I know, nobody has even made a comment about this move, yet here is where Bronstein finally hands to Botvinnik his important victory. Black can hold the position with 52...Ne7! 53.Be2 Kg6 54.Bg5 Nec6 55.Bd3+ Kf7 56.Bf1 Kg6 57.Be2
Analysis Diagram








57...Kf5! 58.Bxh5 b5 59.Bd1 bxa4 60.Bxa4 b5 61.Bc2+ Kg4 62.Bd1+ Kf5 63.Kd3 b4 64.Ba4 Kg4 65.Ke3 Kf5 (Even 65...b3 66.Bxb3 Nb5 67.Bxd5 Ncxd4 looks like a dead draw) 66.Bc2+ Kg4 67.Bb3 Nb5 68.Bxd5 Ncxd4
Analysis Diagram








and Black draws; A variation which shows the knights to good advantage is 52...Ne7 53.Bc7 Ke6 54.Be2 Nf5 55.Bxb6 Nc8 56.Bd8
Analysis Diagram








56...Nce7! 57.Bxh5 Nxh4 and this should be a draw]

53.Be2 Kg6 54.Bd3+ Kf6 55.Be2 Kg6 56.Bf3 N6e7 57.Bg5








[After 57.Bg5, Bronstein thought for 40 minutes and resigned. A sample finish is 57...Nc6 58.Bxd5 Nd6 59.Bf3 Kf5 60.Bc1! (found by Smyslov) 60...b5 61.Bxc6 bxc6 62.a5 Ke4 63.a6 Nc8 64.Bd2 Kd5 65.Bf4 c5 66.dxc5 Kc6 67.Bd6 Na7 68.Bf8 Kd7 69.Kb4 Kc7 70.Bd6+ Kc6 71.Bb8 Nc8 72.a7 Kb7 73.Kxb5 Ne7 74.Kc4 Ka8 75.Kd4 and White wins easily] 1-0