Tal's Greatest Game?

GM Mikhail Tal is one of the greatest players who ever lived. You cannot call yourself a true chess fan if you have never looked at one of his games! He set the world on fire in the late 1950's and early 1960's with his dazzling brilliance and electric sacrifices!! 

But what was Tal's greatest game? One of his wins against the nearly unbeatable Botvinnik ... that gave him the World Title? (One game in the French Defense comes to mind.) One of his games, (I think it was in one of the Soviet Championships) ... where he sacrificed two pieces ... and left virtually everything hanging in the process? Or was it his positional masterpiece where he ground down a young Bobby Fischer in a King's Indian? (The list of potential "best games" is an almost endless one!) 

Many authors ... GM Andy Soltis, GM John Nunn and many, many others ... consider his win over GM J. Hjartarsson to be maybe his best game ever! 

Take a minute (or two) and play over this game. 

If you enjoyed this game, check out this page on the CG website. (Tal's games.) 

Check out my page on Mikhail Tal. (Also here.)