Traps, Tricks & Mistakes: Irresistible Bait
We have seen traps where a pawn or a piece is offered as bait. But the most unusual is when the bait consists of two pieces!!
This uncommon situation occurred in today’s game, played in the 44th Chess Olympiad which took place in Chennai (India)
Round 7 saw the clash between teams Armenia and USA. In board 2 GM Wesley So (White) played against GM Hrant Melkumyan (Black).
Team Armenia was leading the competition and team USA was the top-seeded team, meaning that both teams consisted of seasoned players. Nevertheless, Wesley So caught his opponent in an unexpected wonderful trap that impressed the chess community.
The final combination in this game resembles those played in the romantic period of chess (XVIII-XIX centuries) when quick and tactical manoeuvres prevailed over long-term strategic planning. The beauty of So’s idea so impressed Peter Svidler when commenting the game, that he exclaimed: “This position will be in every single tactics collection from today until we no longer play chess!”
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