Notable Games
Rashid Nezhmetdinov
15 celebrated games · 232 in the full archive
◈The games that made the legend
Nezhmetdinov – Ermolin · 1946 · 1–0
Kazan 1946 — an early Sicilian miniature from Nezhmetdinov's own best-games collection: a straight-line attack that ends after 15.Nh6+ wins decisive material.
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Nezhmetdinov – Mikenas · 1948 · 1–0
Kazan 1948, game one of their match — Nezhmetdinov blows away Vladas Mikenas, then among the world's foremost experts on the Alekhine Defence, in a 17-move miniature.
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Levenfish – Nezhmetdinov · 1950 · 0–1
Soviet Championship semifinal, 1950 — defending with the Marshall Attack as Black, Nezhmetdinov outplays veteran two-time Soviet Champion Grigory Levenfish.
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Nezhmetdinov – Estrin · 1951 · 1–0
Soviet Championship semifinal, 1951 — a Ruy Lopez that becomes a king hunt against Yakov Estrin, later a World Correspondence Chess Champion.
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Nezhmetdinov – Geller · 1954 · 1–0
21st Soviet Championship, Kiev 1954 — one of Nezhmetdinov's finest scalps, a win over elite grandmaster Efim Geller (he beat Salo Flohr in the same event).
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Nezhmetdinov – Kasparian · 1955 · 1–0
Spartak Team Championship, Riga 1955 — against the celebrated study composer Genrikh Kasparian, Nezhmetdinov crowns a kingside build-up with the queen sacrifice 41.Qxg6+.
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Nezhmetdinov – Tal · 1957 · 1–0
24th Soviet Championship, Moscow 1957 — a French Winawer in which Nezhmetdinov outplays Mikhail Tal, the future eighth World Champion he famously held a lifetime plus score against.
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Nezhmetdinov – Spassky · 1957 · 1–0
Also at the 1957 Soviet Championship — playing the Sicilian line that carries his name (the Nezhmetdinov–Rossolimo Attack), he beats Boris Spassky, one of two career wins over the future World Champion.
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Polugaevsky – Nezhmetdinov · 1958 · 0–1
Sochi 1958 — the game Nezhmetdinov called the most beautiful he ever played: with Black he lands the immortal queen sacrifice 24...Rxf4, and Polugaevsky later said he would trade all his wins over Nezhmetdinov for this one loss.
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Nezhmetdinov – Bronstein · 1959 · 1–0
26th Soviet Championship, Tbilisi 1959 — a celebrated attacking win over David Bronstein, the 1951 world-championship finalist.
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Belov – Nezhmetdinov · 1961 · 0–1
Russian Championship 1961 — one of Nezhmetdinov's ten brilliancy-prize games: Belov grabs a pawn against the Two Knights and Nezhmetdinov's Black pieces overrun the white king (18...Nxf2!, 30...Rxf3+).
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Nezhmetdinov – Tal · 1961 · 1–0
29th Soviet Championship, Baku 1961 — often called his greatest game: Nezhmetdinov sacrifices both rooks and forces Mikhail Tal to resign on move 29, a highlight of his famous plus score against the eighth World Champion.
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Nezhmetdinov – Chernikov · 1962 · 1–0
Rostov-on-Don 1962 — the immortal positional queen sacrifice 12.Qxf6!!, long regarded as the standard by which such sacrifices are measured and shown fully sound by modern engines.
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Nezhmetdinov – Sergievsky · 1966 · 1–0
Russian Championship 1966 — a 20-move attacking miniature from his own best-games book, the white pieces crashing through with 20.Rxf6.
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Karasev – Nezhmetdinov · 1973 · 0–1
Riga 1973 — a late-career brilliancy and the closing prize game of his collection: Nezhmetdinov sacrifices the exchange and swarms Karasev with Black's pieces and central pawns.
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