Chess Puzzle #grxOA — Expert, Black to move, middlegame

Rating 2045 · Expert · advantage, middlegame, pin, short.

Position

White: king b1; queen d5; rooks d2/g1; bishop e3; pawns a3/b2/c2/e4/f3/g5/h4. Black: king h8; queen c7; rook b8; bishop f8; knight h5; pawns a4/d6/e5/f7/g7/h7. White is ahead by 3 points of material. Black to move.

Solution (2 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: g6 — pawn g5→g6. Now Black to move.
  2. Best move: Qc3 — queen c7→c3. Opponent replies Qa2 (queen d5→a2).
  3. Best move: Qxe3 — queen c3→e3, captures bishop.

Tactical themes

advantage, middlegame, pin, short. The key move is Qc3.

Position data

FEN: 1r3b1k/2q2ppp/3p4/3Qp1Pn/p3P2P/P3BP2/1PPR4/1K4R1 w - - 3 29

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Puzzle data from the Lichess puzzle database (CC0). Analysis powered by Stockfish 18 in your browser.