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Josip Rukavina vs Viktor Korchnoi
Leningrad Interzonal (1973), Leningrad URS, rd 12, Jun-19
Semi-Slav Defense: Meran. Wade Variation Larsen Variation (D47)  ·  1-0

ANALYSIS [x]

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Kibitzer's Corner
Jun-08-04  uponthehill: For sure Korchnoi didn't like to mention that game. It was his only defeat at Interzonal tournament in Leningrad, 1973. This game decided that he finished on the 2nd place, behind Karpov, who have same ammount of points, but no defeat on account.

Rukavina showed nothing special at this tournament, finished it on 15th place (of 18), but he was the only competitor who won with Korchnoi.

According to the game itself:

26. Bf6 - Chessmaster 8000 showed that Bxf7 was better

35. Bd5? (better 35. Rxd7)

Korchnoi replied 35. ...Qxd2. At this moment on Korchnoi's clock there were only seconds so it is justified that he didn't notice good counterattack 35. ... g5! (36. hg , Nxg5 37. fg Qxd2 and white's position is critical).

36. ...Qd8?? black's decisive error. (36. ... Qd1! 37. Bxf7 Qg4+ and black secures draw)

Aug-29-08
Premium Chessgames Member
  GrahamClayton: Apparently there was a controversial finish to this game. Korchnoi played 39...Qd5+, but then retracted the Queen to d8 and played instead 39...Qb6.

Rukavina was stunned by Korchnoi's move, and his flag fell. The TD forfeited Korchnoi on the grounds that he had deliberately distracted his opponent.

Sep-03-08
Premium Chessgames Member
  GrahamClayton: Source: Andy Soltis "Chess Lists", McFarland Publishing, 2002
Sep-02-09  slomarko: <Apparently there was a controversial finish to this game. Korchnoi played 39...Qd5+, but then retracted the Queen to d8 and played instead 39...Qb6.

Rukavina was stunned by Korchnoi's move, and his flag fell. The TD forfeited Korchnoi on the grounds that he had deliberately distracted his opponent.> this story doesn't hold any water. If 39...Qb6 black gets mated in one with Qf8. why would Rukavina be stunned by such a patzerish move? Maybe you mixed the moves and Korchnoi played first Qb6 and then change it to Qd5.

Jan-01-10
Premium Chessgames Member
  Chessical: The possibilities of the wrong "Q1" square.

IF Korchnoi had drawn this game, IF then Fischer would not play him (as he did with Karpov) and IF the Soviet Federation would have supported Korchnoi as they were to do with Karpov, THEN Korchnoi would have been world champion.

Jan-01-10
Premium Chessgames Member
  keypusher: <Chessical: The possibilities of the wrong "Q1" square.

IF Korchnoi had drawn this game, IF then Fischer would not play him (as he did with Karpov) and IF the Soviet Federation would have supported Korchnoi as they were to do with Karpov, THEN Korchnoi would have been world champion.>

Now hold on just a cotton-pickin' minute! Both Karpov and Korchnoi qualified for the subsequent candidates matches from this tournament, and would have done so even if Korchnoi had finished in clear first. I don't know if Korchnoi winning would have affected the candidates match pairings, though (in the first round Korchnoi got Petrosian, and Karpov got Polugaevsky). Of course ultimately Korchnoi and Karpov met in the final.

Dec-09-16  Toribio3: Rukavina is a giant killer.
May-20-19  ZonszeinP: Brilliant Rukavina!
May-20-19
Premium Chessgames Member
  perfidious: This game was annotated in the volume which covered both IZ events from that cycle.

Part of the closing note went something to the effect that:

<...Then Korchnoi put his queen on b8 where it allowed four different mates on the move! The arbiter, Walter Kuhnle-Woods, promptly stepped in and awarded the game to Rukavina. No-one attributed anything to the incident other than that Korchnoi was completely confused. He spent the next few hours on the streets of Leningrad walking off his annoyance with himself.>

Please forgive any omissions or errors in this reproduction--the above is strictly from memory, as I have not seen my copy of this book in ten years or more.

Jan-27-21
Premium Chessgames Member
  Eggman: <<I don't know if Korchnoi winning would have affected the candidates match pairings, though (in the first round Korchnoi got Petrosian, and Karpov got Polugaevsky).>>

No, <KeyPusher>, Korchnoi played Mecking in the first round, and Petrosian played Portisch. Petrosian and Korchnoi met in the 2nd round. Perhaps you're thinking of the following two candidates series, in which Korchnoi and Petrosian did indeed get paired in the first round.

Jan-27-21
Premium Chessgames Member
  Fusilli: <perfidious> <Then Korchnoi put his queen on b8 where it allowed four different mates on the move!> I don't get it. I only see two. And if it is 39...Qb6, I only see three.
Jan-28-21
Premium Chessgames Member
  perfidious: <Fusilli>, believe 'four' should have been three instead.

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