DrGridlock: I'm surprised there hasn't yet been any kibitzing on this game. It's a nice end-game combination from Tal, and receives some analysis from Anthony Saidy in "The Battle of Chess Ideas" at White's move 45. 
click for larger viewSaidy writes,
"At this point it was time for Tal to seal his move. Although White is a pawn ahead, it is Black who has the advanced passed pawn and White's queen-side majority is blocked. Normal continuations seem not to work, e.g., 45 k(or r)h2, fxe6; 46 fxe6, rh5 and Black draws. In such a situation, after five hours of play, an ordinary player would seal exf6+ and retire to study the position for chances of winning. But Tal instead calculates a ten-move combination." Saidy is correct that e6 is the best continuation for White, but is incorrect that Black draws after Kh2. In Saidy's line, 45 ... exf6 is disastrous for Black, because white will respond not exf6, but instead Ra7, with a won position for White. (Analysis by Rybka)  (2.53): 46.Ra7 exf4 47.b5 Rc8 48.Bxh3 cxb5 49.Rxd7+ Kf8 50.Rd5 Ra8 51.Rd2 Ke7 52.c6 Ra7 In options at White's move 45, it is interesting watching Rybka solve the position, since through a calculation depth of 13 moves exf6 is the preferred continuation, but it is only at deeper depths that the advantage of e6 becomes clear. (More analysis by Rybka). 1. ² (0.67): 45.e6 Kxe6 46.Bxh3+ f5 47.Bf1 Rb8 48.Rb2 Ra8 49.Bc4+ Kf6 50.Rd2 Ke7 51.Bb3 Ra3 2. ² (0.46): 45.Kh2 Rh4 46.Ra7 Kd8 47.exf6 Rxf4 48.Bxh3 Bxh3 3. ² (0.29): 45.exf6+ Kxf6 46.Kh2 Rb8 47.Rb2 Be6 48.Be2 Kf5 49.Bf3 Rc8 Someday I'd like to undertake a study of these types of positions: where an inferior move seems to be the preferred move at a limited analytical depth, and only at deeper analytical depths does the better move emerge. It's my hypothesis that Tal's "magic" was knowing how to identify these positions, and created games where his opponents had an opportunity to play inferior moves. | 
Kibitzing
