Nezhmetdinov's "Most Beautiful" Chess Game? - Best Of The 50s - Polugaevsky vs. Nezhmetdinov
"It seems to me that this is the most beautiful game of any that I have played." - Rashid Nezhmetdinov
"I must have beaten him a dozen times, but I would trade them all for this one game." - Lev Polugaevsky
Rashid Nezhmetdinov played many brilliant and beautiful chess games, but in his own estimation, his victory with the black pieces against Lev Polugaevsky is the most beautiful of them all.
Nezhmetdinov was never a grandmaster, but he was a five-time Russian champion and one of the most feared attacking players of his day. He was a friend and sometimes second of Mikhail Tal's and aided the Magician from Riga in his victory over Mikhail Botvinnik in their World Championship match. Tal himself characterized the day he lost to Nezhmetdinov as the happiest day of his life.
Top 10 Games of the 1950s
- #1: Polugaevsky vs. Nezhmetdinov, 1958
- #2: Byrne vs. Fischer, 1956
- #3: Geller vs. Euwe, 1953
- #4: Bernstein vs. Najdorf, 1953
- #5: Bronstein vs. Rojahn, 1956
- #6: Stoltz vs. Steiner, 1952
- #7: Botvinnik vs. Smyslov, 1954
- #8: Beylin vs. Lipnitsky, 1950
- #9: Keres vs. Szabo, 1953
- #10: Moran vs. Franco, 1955
- See also: Top 10 of the 1960s, Top 10 of the 1970s, Top 10 of the 1980s, Top 10 of the 1990s, Top 10 of the 2000s, and Top 10 of the 2010s
This game is most known for the dazzling queen sacrifice at the end and the beautiful quiet moves that keep the white king perpetually sealed in the center of the board as his executioners make ready. However, the game is a full-throated affair with Nezhmetdinov demonstrating many excellent attacking ideas such as 19...Be6!! to keep the pressure on Polugaevsky. For his part, Polugaevsky daringly pushes forward with 17.g3! and 19.f4! to challenge Nezhmetdinov to the maximum. Ultimately, the only successful way forward is for Nezhmetdinov to offer the amazing 24...Rxf4!!, a queen sacrifice that has emblazoned this game in the chess annals forever.
Annotations are below. Credit to Douglas Griffin's incredible translations of Nezhmetdinov's notes. Griffin's blog is well worth your time and support.
I also highly recommend "Nezhmetdinov's Best Games of Chess" by Nezhmetdinov himself. [affiliate link supports channel]
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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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