Mikhail Tal’s Magical Mate in French Defense

Mikhail Tal’s Magical Checkmate in French Defense About Mikhail Tal ** Mikhail Tal (9 November 1936 – 28 June 1992) is the eighth World Chess Champion. ** Mikhail Tal’s is considered a creative genius within the game of chess and one of its best ever players. ** Mikhail Tal played in an attacking and daring combinatorial style. ** Mikhail Tal’s play was known above all for improvisation and unpredictability. ** It has been said that “Every game for him was as inimitable and invaluable as a poem“. ** His nickname was “Misha“, a diminutive for Mikhail, and he earned the nickname “The Magician from Riga“. ** Both The Mammoth Book of the World’s Greatest Chess Games and Modern Chess Brilliancies include more games by Tal than any other player. ** He also held the record for the longest unbeaten streak in competitive chess history with 95 games (46 wins, 49 draws) between 23 October 1973 and 16 October 1974, until Ding Liren’s streak of 100 games (29 wins, 71 draws) between 9 August 2017 and 11 November 2018. ** In addition, Mikhail Tal was a highly regarded chess writer. ** Mikhail Tal died on 28 June 1992 in Moscow, Russia. ** The Mikhail Tal Memorial chess tournament has been held in Moscow annually since 2006. About The French Defence: The French Defence is a chess opening characterised by the moves: 1. e4 e6 ** This is most commonly followed by d5, with Black intending ...c5 at a later stage, attacking White’s pawn centre and gaining space on the queenside. ** The French has a reputation for solidity and resilience, although some lines such as the Winawer Variation can lead to sharp complications. ** Black’s position is often somewhat cramped in the early game. In particular, the pawn on e6 can impede the development of the bishop on c8. ** Following the opening moves e6, the main line of the French Defence continues d5. ** White sets up a pawn centre, which Black immediately challenges by attacking the pawn on e4. ** The same position can be reached by transposition from a Queen’s Pawn Game after e6 d5 or the declining of a Blackmar–Diemer Gambit after d5 e6. ** White’s options include defending the e4-pawn with or , exchanging it with , or advancing it with , each of which leads to different types of positions. ** Defending the pawn with allows Nf6, when Black gains either a tempo or the advantage of the two bishops. There are some famours variations in French Defence: French Defence:Main line: d5 French Defence::Winawer Variation: French Defence:Classical Variation: French Defence:Rubinstein Variation: French Defence:Rare sidelines after French Defence:Tarrasch Variation: French Defence:Advance Variation: