Tal Wins 1st Soviet Chess Championship And A Brilliancy Prize - Tal vs. Aronin, 1957
Tal sacrifices his queen and ties Aronin in knots.

Tal Wins 1st Soviet Chess Championship And A Brilliancy Prize - Tal vs. Aronin, 1957

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In his first Soviet Championship, Tal won a special prize for his game against Lev Aronin. In classic Tal fashion, he rejects simple lines and drives aggressively forward on the kingside.

Just as it seems Tal's attack might stall, he amps up the pressure with a spectacular queen sacrifice which places Aronin in near zugzwang.

Lessons from the game:

  • In opposite-sides castling positions, play with maximum energy.
  • When up material, but under pressure, seek to return the material to remove the pressure.

I've included my notes below. As is common in Tal's games, some interesting missed opportunities lurked behind the scenes.

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NM Sam Copeland

I'm the Head of Community for Chess.com. I earned the National Master title in 2012, and in 2014, I returned to my home state of South Carolina to start Strategery: Chess and Games. In late 2015, I began working for Chess.com and haven't looked back since.

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