Endgame Lesson From Basel

ONLY one of my five games at Basel reached an ending, but it is quite instructive.

Position after a black capture on c4 in Jeremias Stark (1599) - Spanton (1814)

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Black is a pawn up and has two protected passed pawns. But this is a rook-and-pawn ending, and White has compensation in the shape of an outside passed pawn, a juicy square at e6 and targets at e7 and h6. Nevertheless the analysis engines Stockfish14 and Komodo12.1.1 reckon Black is clearly winning.

45.a3

It makes sense to get the passed pawn off the same rank as the king, and the move gives White the option of following up with Ra2 or Re6. Note that 45.Kg3?! Rc3+ 46.Kg2 Ra3 helps Black.

45...h5?!

A radical and unnecessarily complicating way of dealing with the weakness at h6. Black is still much better after the text, but simpler is 45...d5, not least because 46.Re6 d4 starts a race White cannot win.

46.gxh5 Rf4?

White gets drawing chances after this. The engines reckon 46...Rh4 leaves Black in control.

47.Kg3?

Much better is 47.h6 Rh4 48.Re6, although after 48...c4 Black has the upper hand, according to Stockfish14; just a slight edge, according to Komodo12.1.1. Note that 47...Rxf5? runs into 48.h7 Kg7 49.Rxe6+, although Black has a draw after 49...Kh8, according to the engines.

47...Rxf5?!

More clear-cut is 47...Rh4.

48.Rf2!?

Stockfish14 reckons this is best, but it seems pointless in that the pawn-ending is winning for Black despite White having passed pawns on the a and h files. Komodo12.1.1 wavers between the text and 48.h6, although the latter is easily met by 48...Rf6.

Perhaps the best practical chance is 48.a4!?, when the engines reckon only 48...d5 maintains Black's advantage.

48...e6 49.Rxf5+?

The pawn-ending is lost, so White should have tried pushing the a pawn or relocating the rook.

49...exf5 50.h4?!

This comes to be Komodo12.1.1's choice, at least for a while, but it makes Black's task easy. A better practical try is 50.a4, but 50...c4 wins after 51.a5 c3 52.a6 c2 53.a7 c1=Q 54.a8=Q Qg1+ 55.Qg2 (55.Kf3 Qh1+) Qxg2 56.Kxg2 and after 51.Kf2 c3 52.Ke2 f4 53.a5 (what else?) f3+ etc.

50...gxh4+ 51.Kxh4 c4 (1-0, 58 moves).