A Hair-raising Game by Kamran Sharazi

     The 530 player 87th US Open was held in Somerset, New Jersey on August 3-15, 1986. Larry Christiansen was the first clear winner since 1979. His main rival was Boris Spassky, but he took too many short draws near the end and allowed Christiansen to surpass him. 

 

Leading scores 

1) Larry Christiansen 10.0-2.0 

2-7) Boris Spassky, Lev Alburt, Alexander Chernin, Victor Frias, Michael Rhodr and Michael Wilder 9.5-2.5 8-15) Boris Gulko, Dimitry Gurevich, Vitaly Tseshkovsky, Joel Benjamin, John Fedorowicz, Walter Shipman, David Strauss and Stuart Rachels 9.0-3.0 

 

     Today's game features a hair-raising encounter between IM Kamran Shirazi who defeated the Fidelity S2 Compx computer with the black pieces. Shirazi (born November 21, 1952) won the Iranian Championship in 1972. Born in Tehran, he has represented Iran, the United States and France. He moved to the United States in the late 1970s and quickly became one of the most active players in the country, winning many tournaments. He was known for playing strange and unorthodox openings. His rating rose rapidly and he became one of the highest rated players in the USCF. 

     For whatever reason, in the 1984 US Championship he finished last, managing only one draw from 17 games. He also achieved the dubious distinction of losing the shortest decisive game in the history of the US Championship; it's embedded in the featured game. 

     Shirazi also made a brief appearance in the movie Searching for Bobby Fischer where he was introduced as "Grandmaster Shirazi." He moved to France and in 2006 officially changed his FIDE status from representing the US to France. 

     Fidelity Electronics (Fidelity International Inc.) was a hearing-aid manufacturing company, founded in 1959, and in March 1970 purchased by Sidney and Myron Samole. Among its other cutting-edge technology, Fidelity Electronics produced high-tech bio-medical products, such as myo-electric hands, prostheses that could actually be controlled by the brain impulses of amputees. 

     In 1976, the company developed and produced dedicated chess computers when Sid Samole patented and produced the first commercial chess computer. He closely cooperated with Ron Nelson and later with Dan and Kathe Spracklen. 

     Samole decided to promote his chess computer at Chicago's Consumer Electronics Show in January 1977 and the success of the Fidelity Chess Challenger 7 computer was an amazing success. By 1989, a recession was brewing and Samole sold Fidelity Electronics. His son, Shane, took a loan from his father and started Excalibur Electronics in 1992. Sidney Samole died on July 30, 2000. Fidelity chess computers won the first four World Microcomputer Chess Championships (1980,1981, 1983 and 1984). They also won the four United States Open Computer Championships (1985, 1986, 1987 and 1988) The 1988 event being won by Chessmaster 2100.

Fidelity S-2 Compx - Kamran Shirazi

Result: 0-1

Site: US Open, Somerset, New Jersey

Date: 1986

Vienna Game

[...] 1.e4 e5

1...c5 2.b4 cxb4 3.a3 d5 4.exd5 ♕xd5 5.axb4 ♕e5+ White resigned. Kamran Shirazi-John Peters, US Championship 1984

2.♘c3 ♘c6 3.♗c4 ♗c5 4.♕g4 More solid is 4.Nf3. The text is risky. In my database white score +5 -5 =1, so apparently the game can go either way after 4.Qg4 4...♕f6 This has long been known to be bad. Better was 4...g6 or even 4...Kf8 5.♘d5 ♕xf2+ This looks dangerous to white, but because there isn't a strong follow up white actually has the advantage. 6.♔d1 ♘f6 After this black is (or should have been!) completely lost!

6...♔f8 Best, but white is still much better. 7.♘h3 ♕d4 8.♗b3 ♗d6

8...d6 9.♕h4 ♗xh3 10.♕xh3 White is much better. Mieses-Chigorin, Ostende 1906.

9.♖f1 ♘d8 10.c3 ♕c5 11.♘g5 ♘h6 12.♕h5 1-0 Alekhine-Lugovski, 1933

7.♕xg7 ♘xd5 8.♕xh8+ A typical computer move; Fidelity is hungry for material. Better was 8.exd5

8.exd5 ♘b4 9.♕xe5+ ♔f8 10.♕xh8+ ♔e7 11.♘f3 and wins. The threat of Re1 is just too strong.

8...♗f8 Shirazi's plan is to confine the Q, but 8...Ke7 was worthy of consideration. 9.exd5 ♕xg2 10.dxc6 d6 11.cxb7

11.h3 This was played in a game Caba,T (2138)-Walkusz,W (2257)/Polanica Zdroj 2004. It's OK, but not nearly as strong as the text. 11...♕xh1 12.♕g8 d5 13.♗b5 b6 14.d3 Here white had movers like 14.b3, 14.Be2 or 14.Bf1 that would have kept the advantage. But, after 14.d3 all of his advantage is gone. 14...♗xh3 15.♗h6 ♗g4+ 16.♕xg4 ♗xh6 17.c3 a6 18.♗xa6 ♕h2 19.♘e2 ♕h1+ 20.♘g1 ♕h2 and white agreed to the draw.

11...♗g4+ No better was 11...Bxb7 12.♔e1 ♕e4+ 13.♔f2 With this move Fidelity throws away all of its advantage.

13.♗e2 wins easily. 13...♕xb7 14.♗xg4 ♕xh1 15.♔f1 ♕xh2 16.♕f6 ♗e7 17.♕f5 and wins

13...♕f5+ 14.♘f3 But this is not the correct way to do it! (14.♔e1 ♕e4+ 15.♗e2 as in the last note. White wins.) 14...♕xf3+ 15.♔g1 ♖b8 This position is now drawn. 16.♕xh7 d5 17.♗b5+ c6 Nice! Black deflects the B from protecting the f1 square and then later gains a vital tempo by attacking the B on c6. 18.♗xc6+ ♔d8 This is Fidelity's last chance to draw. 19.♕h4+ This is a gross blunder that hands black the win, but apparently only a strong engine is aware of the fact!

19.d4 and black can draw with 19...♕d1+ 20.♔f2 ♕f3+ 21.♔g1 ♕d1+ etc.

19...♔c7 20.♕f2 ♔xc6 After this white can draw with 21.d4.

20...♗c5 leads to a forced mate. 21.♕xc5 ♕d1+ 22.♔f2 ♕e2+ 23.♔g1 ♕e1+ 24.♔g2 ♗h3+ 25.♔xh3 ♖h8+ 26.♔g4 ♕e4+ 27.♔g3 ♖g8+ 28.♔f2 ♖g2+ 29.♔f1 ♕e2#

21.c3 A losing move.

21.d4 ♕d1+ 22.♔g2 ♗h3+ 23.♔xh3 ♕xh1 24.♕f6+ ♔xb7 25.♕xf7+ and with correct play (per Komodo) the game is drawn.

21...♗c5 22.d4 exd4 23.cxd4

23.♕xf3 ♗xf3 24.h4 dxc3+ 25.♔h2 ♗d6+ 26.♔g1 ♗c5+ 27.♔h2 ♗d6+ 28.♔g1 ♖g8+ 29.♗g5 ♗xh1 30.♔xh1 cxb2 wins

23...♕d1+ 24.♔g2

24.♕f1 This leads to a pretty mate. 24...♗xd4+ 25.♗e3 ♗xe3+ 26.♔g2 ♗h3+ 27.♔xh3 ♕h5+ 28.♔g2 ♖g8#

24...♗h3+ White has a mate in 9. 25.♔xh3 ♖h8+ 26.♔g3 ♖g8+ 27.♗g5 ♖xg5+ 28.♔f4 ♕g4+ 29.♔e3 ♕xd4+ 30.♔e2 ♕xf2+ 31.♔d3 (31.♔d1 ♖g2 32.b8=♘+ ♔b7 33.a3 ♕d2#) 31...♕d4+ (31...♖g2 was a move quicker. 32.b8=♘+ ♔b7 Mate next move.) (31...♖g2 32.b8=♘+ ♔b7 33.a3 ♕c2#) 32.♔c2 ♖g2+ 33.♔c1 Here Shirazi saw that both 33...Qxb2+ and 33...Qd2+ mated in two, but he wanted to mate with his B. 33...♕e3+ 34.♔b1 ♕d3+ 35.♔c1 ♗e3# A hair raising game!

Powered by Aquarium