How to Study a Chess Book

Verica Nedeljkovic

    Before getting to the subject of today’s post I want to share a helpful site that translates entire web pages. On the site, simply copy the URL of the page you want to translate in the space provided and click on translate and the translated page is opened in a new window. Visit LEXICOL 

    Woman Grand master Verica Nedeljkovic (nee Jovanovic) was born September 16m 1929 and passed away at the age of 94 on December 13, 2023. From the mid-1950s to the late 1960s, she was one of the leading Yugoslav women's players winning the Yugoslav Women's Championship six times (1950, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1958 and 1965). 

    An excellent student throughout her education, she studied at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Belgrade and graduated with as the first woman in the country to have a naval engineering degree. 

    She first worked for shipping companies and then from 1961 to 1987 she lectured at the University of Belgrade and also taught engineering at other schools. She also independently published an engineering textbook. o-author of several scientific research papers. 

    She learned to play chess at the in elementary school and when she moved to Belgrade in 1948 she joined the local chess club which she belonged to the rest of her life. She received the title of National Master title after winner of the Yugoslav Championship in Skopje in 1950. She earned the WIM title in 1954 and the WGM title in 1977. 

     Her opponent in the following game was Maria Albuleț (1932-2005). Romanian doctor and WGM and winner of the Romanian Women's Championship in 1951, 1955 and 1956. She was also known as Maria Pogorevici and Maria Albuleț-Pogorevici. She was also a correspondence player. She took part in the Women's Correspondence Olympiad (1974-1979) where the Romanian team took 6th place. 

[Event "Team Match-Women, Bucharest"] [Site ""] [Date "1958.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "Verica Nedeljkovic (Yugoslavia"] [Black "Maria Pogorevici (Romania)"] [Result "1-0"] [Annotator "Stockfish 17"] [PlyCount "61"] [EventDate "1958.06.15"] [Source "Perpetual Check"] {B36: Sicilian: Maroczy Bind: Gurgenidze System} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 g6 5. c4 {At once time this was conce considered a refutation of the Accelerated Dragon, but black began losing fear of the Maroczy Bind back in the 1950s when ways were found for him to work himself loose from the Bind. White gets an advantage in space but black's position is fundamentally sound.} Nf6 {Thus move was advocated by GM Roman Dzindzichasvili because it allows black to draw white's Q to d4.} 6. Nc3 Nxd4 7. Qxd4 d6 {This prtevents white from playing e5.} (7... Bg7 {is met by} 8. e5 Ng8 9. Bf4 {and black lacks a really good reply.}) 8. Be2 (8. e5 {White can play this anyway because when black will not be able to castle.} dxe5 {By far the best.} 9. Qxd8+ Kxd8 10. Be2 Be6 11. O-O Rc8 {Black has full equality.}) 8... Bg7 9. Be3 O-O 10. Qd2 { Black usually plays 10...Be6 and ...Rc8 putitng pressutre on the P on c4. Another good option is ...a5 and ...a4 followed by ...Qa5 aimimh fpr Q-side counterplay.} Ng4 11. Bxg4 Bxg4 12. O-O Be6 13. b3 Qa5 14. Bd4 (14. Rac1 Rfc8 15. Nb5 Qxd2 16. Bxd2 a6 17. Nc3 b5 18. Nd5 {Kochiev,I (2053)-Klepikov,N (2063) chess.com INT 2023. The chances are equal.}) 14... Bxd4 15. Qxd4 Qg5 {This is not a good place for the Q as it results in a loss of time. 15...Rac8 was better.} (15... Rfc8 16. Rfe1 Qc5 17. Qxc5 Rxc5 {½-½ Casas,F (2350) -Sanguinetti,R (2530) Santa Fe 1973}) 16. f4 Qc5 17. Qxc5 dxc5 {At first glance this position ,ay look drawish, but it actually favors white as Nedeljkovic quickly demonstrates.} 18. f5 {An excellent nive!} Bc8 {A square too far; the B should have stopped at d7, but even the after 19.Nd5 white has a great position.} (18... gxf5 19. exf5 Bd7 20. Nd5 {There is no good way to meet the attack on the e-Pawn.} Rae8 (20... Rfe8 21. Nc7) (20... e6 21. Nf6+) 21. f6 e6 22. Ne7+ {and black is in a serious bind.}) 19. Rad1 {Not at all bad, but 19.Nd5 was even stronger.} gxf5 20. exf5 e6 {Again, black's position looks like it can be defended, but white's next move seals black's fate.} 21. f6 { An absolutely fantastic move. Black's pieces are all confined helplessly to the 8th rank.} b6 22. Rf3 Bb7 23. Rg3+ Kh8 24. Rd7 Bc6 25. Re7 Be8 26. Ne4 Rg8 27. Ng5 {Moving in for the kill.} Rd8 {Naturally black wants her R on the open file, but the fly in the ointment is that it allows a mate in 7!} (27... h6 { avoids the matem but loses to} 28. Nxf7+ Bxf7 29. Rxf7 Rxg3 30. hxg3 a5 31. Re7 Kg8 32. Rxe6 Rb8 33. Re7 {is obviously hopeless for black.}) {This wins, too.} 28. Nxf7+ (28. Rxe8 {One can harld bla,e white for missing this problem-like move, but it's a real beauty!} Rd1+ 29. Kf2 Rd2+ 30. Ke3 {Black can delay, but not prevent, the mate.} h6 31. Kxd2 b5 32. Nxf7+ Kh7 33. Rgxg8 bxc4 34. Rg7#) 28... Bxf7 29. Rxf7 Rxg3 30. hxg3 Rd2 {The ending is clearly losst after, say 30...a6, but apparently enthused by grabbing the d-file black played this hasty move getting her R to the second rank, but overlooking the obvious.} 31. Rf8# {Perhaps not a flashy game, but still a very impressive win by Medeljkovic.} 1-0

Dr. Srecko Nedeljkovic

    Dr. Streko Nedeljkovic (December 4, 1923 - January 2, 2011) was the outstanding cardiologist of Serbia. He received his medical degree in 1952 from Belgrade, specializing in internal medicine. became the principal investigator of the Serbian component of the Seven Country Study. The study investigated the relationship between die. Nedeljkovic was also well known in Yugoslavia for other studies and he was active in international cardiology as a Fellow of the American College of Cardiology, international exchanges with Baylor College of Medicine and Chairman of the Annals of the World Congress of Cardiology. 

    In the chess world he was an International Master. He learned the game at the age of 13 and his first teacher was his older brother. After World War II he moved to Belgrade where he achieving his first chess success in 1946 when he finished second in the championship of the Yugoslav People’s Army. He received the National Master title for his results in the indi finals of the 1949 Yugoslav Championship. His IM title came after he finished second behind Arthur Bisguier in Vienna, 1951. 

    Nedeljkovic was associated with the Yugoslav national team for 30 years as a player, coach and captain. Yugoslav players that he trained won gold medals in the 1950 Dubrovnik Olympisd, the 1966 Havana Olympiad and at the Olympiad in Buenos Aires in 1978. In 1947, he was the founder of the Crvena Zvezda (Red Star) chess club in Belgrade, of which he was a lifelong member. 

    From the mid-1950s to the end of the 1960s his wife, Vera Nedeljkovic (1929-2023) was a top female player who was the Yugoslav women's champion six times as participated in the Women's World Championship Candidates Tournament five times. In 1977 she was awarded the Women's Grandmaster title. 

 

[Event "Yugoslav Semifinal East"] [Site "Belgrade YUG"] [Date "1946.07.28"] [Round "?"] [White "Srecko Nedeljkovic"] [Black "Petar Carev"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "D19"] [Annotator "Stockfish 17"] [PlyCount "67"] [EventDate "1946.??.??"] [Source "Perpetual Check"] {D19: Slav Defence} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. a4 Bf5 6. e3 e6 7. Bxc4 Bb4 8. O-O O-O 9. Qe2 Bg6 10. Ne5 Nbd7 11. Nd3 Bd6 12. e4 e5 13. dxe5 { This is all book so far and 13.dxe5 is better than 13.d5} (13. d5 Nb6 14. Bb3 cxd5 15. exd5 Nbd7 16. Be3 {Black stands weell and eventually won. Vargas Maliqueo,I (2209)-Alonso,S (2466) Santiago de Chile CHI 2008}) 13... Nxe5 14. Nxe5 Bxe5 15. Bd3 Re8 16. f3 Qa5 17. Qc2 Nh5 18. Ne2 Bc7 19. f4 {Aggressive, but risky. A solid move was 19.Bd2} Nf6 20. Ng3 Ng4 {This attack on f2 and along the diagonal after ...Ba6 does not work out well. 20...Rad8 was a good alternative.} 21. Kh1 {Avoiding a bit of tactics.} (21. Bd2 Qb6+ 22. Kh1 Rad8 { is equal.} (22... Nf2+ {is deceptive.} 23. Rxf2 (23. Kg1 {meets with disaster.} Nh3+ 24. Kh1 Qg1+ 25. Rxg1 Nf2#) 23... Qxf2 24. Rf1 Qb6 25. f5 {with an excellent position.})) 21... Qb6 {There is nothing to be had on this diagonal and the attack on f2 so it was still best to play 21...Rad8.} 22. Qe2 {It's hard to believe that black's position is so bad that white is just a few moves away from winning.} Nf6 23. Be3 Qb4 {The attack black thought he had was an illusion and npw white has a decisive attack.} 24. f5 Bxg3 25. fxg6 Be5 { This meets with a quick end. He could have put up a manly defense with the obvious 25...hxg6 when white stands well, but he does not have a forced win.} 26. gxf7+ Kxf7 {Black has left his K faally exposed and Nedeljkovic begins to deliver sledgehammer blows.} 27. Bc4+ Kf8 28. g4 b5 {He could have held out a bit longer with 28...h6} 29. axb5 cxb5 30. Bd5 h6 31. g5 {Taking the R does not even come under consideration; white is going after the K.} hxg5 32. Qh5 { Threatening nate in f7.} Ke7 {Trying to flee, but there is nowhere to go.} 33. Qf7+ Kd6 34. Ra6# {An impressive final attack by Nedeljkovic!} 1-0

Seidman Knocks Out Reshevsky

    In the 1959-60 U.S. Championship it was 16-year-old Bobby Fischer again and he was clearly a world championship contender even though he had finished fifth in the Candidates Tournament in Yugoslavia earlier in 1959. 

    It was equally clear that while he was still one of the best players in the country, Samuel Reshevsky’s star was fading. In the following game veteran Senior Master Herbert Seidman administers a solid beating to the veteran Grand master. 

     The game does not appear in the Chessgames.com database of Seidman’s games. Reshevsky plays the opening in a credible fashion, but n move 16 he makes a small inaccuracy that leaves him in a difficult position. Then on move 19 he makes a big mistake and Seidman finishes him off with two knockout blows. Reshevsky played on for a handful of moves just to stretch out the game and avoid the embarrassment of being victim of a miniature. 

 

 

[Event "1959/60 US Championship, New York"] [Site "?"] [Date "1959.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "Herbert Seidman"] [Black "Samuel Reshevsky"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "B93"] [Annotator "Stockfiah 17"] [PlyCount "81"] [EventDate "1959.??.??"] {B93: Sicilian Najdorf: 6 f4} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. f4 {As usual Sideman Seidman avoids main line theory, but this move is by no means bad.} e5 {This move is considered to be the most aggressive.} 7. Nf3 Nbd7 {Today this is by far the most popular reply, but at the time black usually played 7...Qc7} 8. Bc4 {[%emt 0:00:09] The main alternative is 8.a4 hindering ...b5. The advantage of the text is that ot develops the B to its most active square.} Be7 {Reshevsky prefers to complete his development before playing ...b5} 9. O-O O-O 10. fxe5 dxe5 11. Kh1 {Getting the K off the diagonal is simply a safety precaution.} Qc7 12. Qe2 b5 {[%mdl 32]} 13. Bb3 b4 14. Nd5 Nxd5 15. Bxd5 Rb8 16. Bg5 {[%mdl 2048] This position is completely equal and black should now play either 16...Bxg5 or 16...Nf6, both of which are equally good.} Nb6 {A small error that eventually lands him in trouble. Reshevsky, no doubt, was playing for a win against his lesser opponent, but he has underestimated white's attacking possibilities.} 17. Bb3 {White thr eatens to win with 18.Nxe5} Ra8 (17... a5 {This may have been what Reshevsky originally intended, but then realized it fails badly after} 18. Nxe5 Bxg5 ( 18... Qxe5 19. Bf4) 19. Nxf7 Bf6 20. Ng5+ Kh8 21. e5 {There is no forced win, but white ios clearly better after, say, 21...Ba6. He must not play...} Bxe5 ( 21... Qxe5 22. Qxe5) 22. Rxf8#) 18. Qf2 {Thius time the threat is Bxe7} Bd6 { It is amazingly diffi c ult to parry threat} (18... a5 {A pass to show the threat.} 19. Bxe7 Qxe7 20. Qxb6 {winning a piece.}) 19. Qh4 {White has another winning threat which Reshevsky misses.} Be6 {[%mdl 8192] This loses.} (19... Nc4 {Blocking the Bs diagonal was the only defense he had, but white has the upper hand after} 20. Bh6 {Another offer which cannot be accepted. His best defense is the miserable 20...f6. After} gxh6 21. Qxh6 {Black still has to play } f6 {which is met by} 22. Nh4 Bg4 23. Rxf6 Rxf6 24. Qxf6 Rf8 25. Qg5+ Qg7 26. Bxc4+ Kh8 27. Qxg7+ Kxg7 28. Bxa6 {with a won ending.}) 20. Bf6 {This blow has a beautiful point behind it. The threat is Qg5} gxf6 (20... Nd7 21. Ng5 h6 22. Nxe6 fxe6 23. Bxe6+ Kh7 24. Bf5+ Kg8 25. Bxg7 Kxg7 26. Qg4+ Kh8 27. Qg6 Nf6 28. Qxh6+ Nh7 (28... Kg8 29. Be6+) 29. Bxh7 Qxh7 30. Qxd6 {and wins}) 21. Ng5 { [%mdl 512] Another sacrifice! It;s the only move that wins though.} fxg5 22. Qxg5+ Kh8 23. Qf6+ Kg8 24. Rf3 Rfe8 25. Qh6 {Threatening mate with Rg3+.} Bg4 26. Rg3 Qd7 27. Rf1 Bf8 {Reshevsky has baited a trap!} 28. Qg5+ ({allows black some hope after} 28. Qxb6 Kh8 29. Qf6+ Bg7 30. Qg5 f6 31. Qxg4 Qxg4 32. Rxg4 Rad8 {with a faint hope of salvaging the game.}) 28... Kh8 29. Rxg4 Qxg4 30. Qxg4 {What follows is only Reshevsky blitzing out moves to prolong the game. Or, perhaps Seidman was feeling some time pressure.} Bh6 31. Bxf7 Rf8 32. Qe6 Bg7 33. Qxb6 Rac8 34. Bc4 $1 {[%mdl 512]} Rfd8 35. Bd5 {My database shows Seidman's move as 35.Bd3 with the rest of the moves being identical. I have given the move as 35.Bd5 because that is the one that appeared in print.} h6 36. h3 {Rf7 is the strong threat.} Re8 37. Qg6 {White threatens Rf7 and mate.} Red8 38. Rf7 {[%csl Gf7][%cal Rg6g7]} Rg8 39. Rf5 (39. Be6 $142 Rcd8 40. Bf5 Rd1+ 41. Kh2 Rh1+ 42. Kxh1 Rf8 43. Qxg7#) 39... Rgf8 40. Rh5 Rf1+ 41. Kh2 { Black resigned.} (41. Kh2 Rf6 42. Rxh6+ Bxh6 43. Qxf6+ Kh7 44. Qf5+ Kg7 45. Qd7+ Kh8 46. Qxc8+ Kg7 47. Qg8+ Kf6 48. Qf7+ Kg5 49. Qf5+ Kh4 50. Qg4#) 1-0

A 1700 Sacs His Queen

    In 1975, we saw mood rings. They contained a “stone” that changes colors based on the temperature of the finger and the color was supposed to show your mood.

    Then there were pet rocks. They were just rocks packaged in custom cardboard boxes complete with ventilation holes and straw bedding.They didn't do anything.

    President Richard Nixon, who claimed he wasn't a crook, resigned over the Watergate Scandal. Then came the mass chaos when Americans evacuate from Saigon under President Gerald Ford, marking the end of the war in Vietnam. After Nixon's Vice President, Spiro Agnew, who was a crook, pleaded guilty to tax evasion, Nixon appointed Speaker of the House Forn to the VP position and when Nixon resigned Ford became President.

    The top rated players were 1-Bobby Fischer, 2-Anatoly Karpov, 3-Viktor Korchnoi, 4-Tigran Petrosian, 5-Lev Polugaevsky, 6-Mikhail Tal, 7-Lajos Portisch, 8-Bent Larsen, 9-Boris Spassky and 10-Robert Huebner. 

    Player lost that year were the legendary Paul Keres, Friedrich Samisch, Lajos Steiner, Nicolas Rossolimo, Karel Opocensky, Hans Johner, Vladimir Vukovic, Georg Kieninger, Abraham Baratz, Norman Whitake and John Morrison. 

    World Champion Bobby Fischer resigned his title when he and FIDE failed to agree on the terms for the defense of his title and the chess world went on without him. Nona Gaprindashvili successfully defended her Women's World Championship for the fourth time.

    Anatoly Karpov won in Milan, his first tournament since becoming world champion. He won again in Ljubljana. Ljubomir Ljubojevic of Yugoslavia, had a big year, winning three important tournaments. Tigran Petrosian made a comeback and dominated the USSR Chess Championship. Yakov Estrin, the Russian over-the-board IM, won the 7th World Correspondence Championship. There was a big scandal in England when Tony Miles and Stewart Reuben agree a draw at the Luton Congress without playing a single move. Their last round game was recorded as a draw, but the organizer notified both players requesting the return of their prize money. 

     The following non-Master game was played in a match for the championship of the Naval Station in Key West, Florida. It has some interesting tactics, but what caught my eye was the two exclamation marks white gave his 23rd move, sacrificing his Queen. Engines weren’t so kind...they slapped two question marks on it. Nevertheless, it was an exciting contest. 

    The opening, Bird’s Opening, is named after 19th century English player Henry Bird, is one in which white's strategic ideas involve control of e5 and it offers good attacking chances at the expense of slightly weakening the K-side. Although it is rarely played at the top levels, it’s not a bad opening for amateurs because it can lead to a quick and strong attack if black does not respond with precise play. 

[Event "US Naval Station Chp, Key West. Floroda"] [Site "?"] [Date "1075.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "Kevin Casey"] [Black "Jack Hayden"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "A03"] [WhiteElo "1726"] [BlackElo "1900"] [Annotator "Stockfish 17"] [PlyCount "75"] [EventDate "1075.??.??"] {] A03: Bird's Opening} 1. f4 c5 2. b3 {White could transpose into the aggressive Sicilian Grand Prix Attack with 2.e4, but most Bird players like to stick to the familiar Bird patterns.} d5 3. Bb2 Nf6 4. e3 g6 5. Nf3 Bg7 6. Bb5+ Nbd7 7. O-O a6 {The main option is 7...O-O} 8. Bxd7+ Bxd7 {Black has an edge.} 9. d3 O-O 10. Ne5 {A classic square for the N in the Bird, but here it's not sucj a good idea because it allows black to simplify into a position where he is slightly better.} (10. Qe2 Rc8 11. Nbd2 {offers equal chances.}) 10... Bc8 {Black wants to keep the two Bs, but here that idea confers no particular advantage plus it loses time. Simply} (10... Ng4 { Also playable is the solid 10...Rc8} 11. Nxd7 (11. Nxg4 Bxb2 {wins}) 11... Nxe3 12. Qc1 Bxb2 13. Qxb2 Qxd7 {with the better position.}) 11. Nd2 Ng4 12. Qe2 Nh6 {As soon becomes apparent, black has a faulty play in mind.} (12... Nxe5 13. Bxe5 Bxe5 14. fxe5 Qc7 {pretty much eliminates white's attacking chances/}) 13. e4 $11 d4 14. h3 f5 {Here is black's faulty idea, but it neglects development and opens up his K-side. His best move would have been to stop a square short with the f-Pawn and drive the N away with 14...f6 ir play `4...b5} 15. Rae1 Nf7 16. exf5 Bxf5 17. g4 Bc8 (17... Bd7 {is fatal strategically.} 18. Nxd7 Qxd7 19. Qxe7 Qxe7 20. Rxe7) 18. Ndf3 b5 {This blunders away a Pawn and leaves black fighting for his life. Best was 18...Nxe5 when white would only be slightly better.} 19. Nc6 Qd7 20. Nxe7+ Kh8 21. Nh4 Bb7 22. f5 {This is very inviting, but it allows black to equalize.} (22. Qe6 Qc7 (22... Qxe6 23. Rxe6 Nd8 24. Nhxg6+ hxg6 25. Nxg6+ Kg8 26. Nxf8 Nxe6 27. Nxe6 {wins}) 23. Nexg6+ hxg6 24. Nxg6+ Kg8 25. Ne7+ Kh8 26. Qg6 Nh6 27. Qg5 {Threatening Ng6+ leaves white with a decisive advantage.}) 22... Ne5 {At this point white thought his next move was crushing, but, in fact, black has equalized and the only move white has that keeps the chances equal is 23.g5} 23. Qxe5 {White incorrectly based this sacrifice on based on the idea that two defenders of bof wack's K are removed and the dark squares weakened, his N on e7 cramps black amd all white's pieces can be quickly brought to the attack on black's cornered K. White thought that even id the Q sacrifice was unsound he hoped for what Tarrasch called "sacrificial shock." It worked for Tal! Black has to find the precise defense which is not always easy.} (23. g5 gxf5 24. Nexf5 Rae8 25. Qh5 Nf3+ 26. Nxf3 Rxe1 27. Nxe1 Rxf5 28. Rxf5 Qxf5 {with equal chances.}) 23... Bxe5 24. Rxe5 Kg7 {[%mdl 8192] This move avoids any sacrificial checks on g6, but it gives white's attack new impetis.} (24... Rae8 {should prove decisive because white has no really good followup.} 25. f6 (25. fxg6 Rxf1+ 26. Kxf1 Rxe7 27. gxh7 { is much less effective because of} Rxe5 28. Ng6+ Kxh7 29. Nf8+) 25... Qd6 26. Nhxg6+ hxg6 27. Nxg6+ Kh7 28. Nxf8+ Rxf8 29. Re7+ Kh8 30. Rxb7 Qg3+ 31. Kh1 Qxh3+ 32. Kg1 Qxg4+ {and wins}) 25. Bc1 {[%mdl 1024] Adding the B to the attack makes all the difference!} Rae8 26. Bg5 {Even stronger was 26.Rfe1} Rf7 {Much better would have been 27.Rfe1 followed by Re6 increasing the pressure on g6.} 27. f6+ Kh8 28. Rfe1 {Now black could have equalized with either 28... Rfe8 or 28...Rd8.} Rfxe7 {[%mdl 8192] Instead, black plays a move that allows white's piece to swam all over his K.} 29. Rxe7 {Not 25.fx36 because the P would be held hp and further progress by white would be extremely difficult.} Rxe7 30. Rxe7 Qc6 31. f7 {The P is now an unstoppable threat. The following checks are harmless.} Qh1+ 32. Kf2 {[%cal Rf7f8]} Qh2+ 33. Ke1 {[%cal Rf7f8]} Qg3+ 34. Kd2 {[%cal Rf7f8]} Qf2+ 35. Kc1 Kg7 36. Bh6+ {[%mdl 512] White finishes up nicely.} Kxh6 37. Nf5+ {[%mdl 512] Allowing the P to queen.} Kg5 38. f8=Q {Black resigned. Not a perfect game, but an exciting one!} 1-0