Paul Keres, the Estonian grandmaster and many times world championship contender, was born a hundred years ago this month. His record against world champions was very impressive: he defeated all nine in sequence from Capablanca to Bobby Fischer. Keres was probably the strongest player, pace Nimzowitsch, Rubinstein and Korchnoi, never to have won the world title.
The hallmark of a Keres win was a flowing initiative, often directed towards the opposing king, frequently converted into victory by a shattering sacrifice. Here he is at his best.
Keres-Spassky; Riga 1965
18 d5! Despite the two pawn deficit, Keres has a huge initiative against Spassky’s disorganised and undeveloped position. 18 … Kf7 19 e4 c5 20 Bb2 f4 Black is desperately attempting to keep the position closed but White’s attack is too strong. 21 e5 Nh5 22 Kg1 g6 23 Rg4 Rd8 This is hopeless, but so is 23 … Na6 24 dxe6+ dxe6 25 Rd1.
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