Akiba Rubinstein vs Karoly Sterk (1912)

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Akiba Rubinstein vs Karoly Sterk
Bad Pistyan (1912), Pistyan (Piestany) AUH, rd 5, May-24
French Defense: Rubinstein Variation. Blackburne Defense (C10) · 1-0

White to move.

ANALYSIS [x]

1-0

rnbqkbnr/pppppppp/8/8/8/8/PPPPPPPP/RNBQKBNR w KQkq - 0 1

FEN COPIED

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Dec-09-07		keypusher: Black is a tempo behind a variation that is popular today. Because of that missing tempo, on move 13 Rubinstein has 13. Bxf6 gxf6 14. Qe4 f5 15. Qxa8 Bb7 16. Qxa7 Ra8 17. Qxa8+ Bxa8, which looks good to me. But he passes it up. After 13. Ne5 Sterk avoids 13...Bb7, which I think is playable: 14. Bxf6 gxf6 15. Bxh7+ Kxh7 16. Qh5+ Kg7 17. Rd3 Qxe5 18. Rg3+ Qg5 19. Rxg5+ fxg5 20. Qxg5+ and I don't think White has more than a draw. Am I missing something? 15....Bb7 doesn't work because of 16. Rd7, so Sterk tries 15....Bd6. Rubinstein's 16. Ng4! then forces an additional weakness because of the threat of a quick mate after Nf6+/Bxh7+. With 20...Bb7! 21. Bxb7 Qxb7 Sterk suddenly creates counterplay on the long diagonal a la the Kramnik-Morozevich game from Mexico earlier this year. Rubinstein gives the exchange back with 22. Rd3, retaining the extra pawn and a superior position, which proves to be enough to win. Maybe 20. Qe4 was better than 20. Qd4, though.

Dec-09-07		nescio: <keypusher: Black is a tempo behind a variation that is popular today. Because of that missing tempo, on move 13 Rubinstein has 13. Bxf6 gxf6 14. Qe4 f5 15. Qxa8 Bb7 16. Qxa7 Ra8 17. Qxa8+ Bxa8, which looks good to me. But he passes it up.> Perhaps Rubinstein was a better calculator than we are. Suspecting this, I took some time looking at your variation. After 13.Bxf6 gxf6 14.Qe4 f5 15.Qxa8 Bb7 16.Qxa7 Black can play 16...b5! and I don't think White has anything. He may improve things with 14.b4, chasing the bishop away from the diagonal. <After 13. Ne5 Sterk avoids 13...Bb7, which I think is playable: 14. Bxf6 gxf6 15. Bxh7+ Kxh7 16. Qh5+ Kg7 17. Rd3 Qxe5 18. Rg3+ Qg5 19. Rxg5+ fxg5 20. Qxg5+ and I don't think White has more than a draw. Am I missing something?> What about 14.Bxf6 gxf6 15.Nd7, attacking both f6 and f8, while still threatening Bxh7+ ?

Dec-10-07		keypusher: <Perhaps Rubinstein was a better calculator than we are. Suspecting this, I took some time looking at your variation. After 13.Bxf6 gxf6 14.Qe4 f5 15.Qxa8 Bb7 16.Qxa7 Black can play 16...b5! and I don't think White has anything. > You (and doubtless Rubinstein) are right! <What about 14.Bxf6 gxf6 15.Nd7, attacking both f6 and f8, while still threatening Bxh7+ ?> 15. Nd7 is a pretty move. I didn't see it.

Dec-10-07		nescio: <15. Nd7 is a pretty move.> Pretty, but alas, unnecessary. In your original variation 13...Bb7 14.Bxf6 gxf6 15.Bxh7+ Kxh7 16.Qh5+ Kg7 we both overlooked the elementary idea 17.Qg4+ Kh8 18.Rd3 and I see no satisfactory defence. It's too often like that: now I see clearly what I completely missed yesterday.

Dec-10-07		keypusher: <Pretty, but alas, unnecessary. In your original variation 13...Bb7 14.Bxf6 gxf6 15.Bxh7+ Kxh7 16.Qh5+ Kg7 we both overlooked the elementary idea 17.Qg4+ Kh8 18.Rd3 and I see no satisfactory defence.> Right again. This is the sort of attack we see in beginners' tactical manuals. I've certainly seen that exact Qg4+ manueuver before. But time goes on and we forget. Thanks for the reminder!

Nov-27-19		zydeco: Kind of a strange game to play through. Sterk tries to play Rubinstein's Variation against him, but Rubinstein can handle it from the white side as well. Sterk doesn't take adequate defensive precautions and ends up with a wind tunnel just blowing through his position: the rook on h8 is loose, the kingside is undefended, the knight is all the way over on b4, but Rubinstein's killer instinct doesn't quite seem to be there. <keypusher> The problem with 13....Bb7 is 14.Bxf6 gxf6 15.Qh6 f5 16.Bxf5 exf5 17.Qg5+ Kh8 18.Qf6+ Kg8 19.Rd7 and f7 is falling. (I needed the computer to see this.) 16.Rxd6 seems simple and perfectly adequate. Probably Rubinstein missed that after 16....Qxd6 17.Bxa8 f6 white has 18.Rd1! Qc7 and then 19.Bf4 fxe5 20.Bxe5 Q moves 21.Bd6 and white stays ahead in material. Also 19.Bd2. I guess black can more or less keep the material balance with 18....Qe7 19.Bh4 g5 20.Bg3 fxe5 but after 21.Bxe5 white's position is overwhelming. White is also up a clear exchange after 16.Bxa8 Bxe5 17.f4 16.Ng4 isn't bad, but it's far from the first move most people would look at in the position and it does give black some interesting tactical possibilities later on. 20....Bb7! is very pretty but after the straightforward 22.Rd3 everything is in order again.

Mar-06-23		kingscrusher: Rubinstein vs the Rubinstein French

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