DAVID R. SANDS: Promising Russian chess star Ivan Bukavshin dies of stroke at 20

“Smart lad, to slip betimes away/
From fields where glory does not stay…”

A.E. Housman’s sad lines accompany the sad news out of Russia that talented young GM Ivan Bukavshin has died suddenly of a stroke, still four months shy of his 21st victory.

Bukavshin, the national junior champion in 2014 and 2015, was one of the most promising young talents emerging from the rising generation of Russian stars. His strong results just in the past year included a third-place finish — with no losses — in the always strong Aeroflot Open in Moscow and a dominating win in the 16-player Russian Cup knockout finals just last month in Khanty-Mansiysk.

Mark Gluhovsky, executive director of the Russian Chess Federation, praised the Rostov-born Bukavshin as an “interesting player with a specific style,” original in the openings, creative in the middlegame and strong in the ending. One of his more memorable efforts came when he was just 16, paired up with veteran Russian GM Alexander Lastin. A timely exchange sacrifice by the young Bukavshin removes White’s best defensive piece, clearing the way for a decisive attack.

Black gets a cramped but solid position out of this Sicilian Paulsen, with his bishop on c6 doing yeoman’s defensive work while putting strong pressure on the long diagonal. Bukavshin uses his f-pawn as a battering ram to open up holes in the White game, striking a key blow just when it appeared Lastin was ready to break out himself.

Thus: 25. Nd4 fxg2 26. Be2 (see diagram; if Black’s rook retreats, White trades on c6 with a pronounced edge) Rxf2! 27. Kxf2 Qf8+, driving the White king back as 28. Nf3? Bc5+ is too strong. A tempo-winning finesse, 29…Bb4! 30. Qb6 Bc5, gets the other Black bishop quickly into the game, and a final combination exploiting the brutal pin on the d4-knight wraps things up.

The finale: 33. R1d2 (White’s pieces are awkwardly placed, and Black now exploits an unexpected back-rank weakness) Bb5 34. Qg3 Rxd4! 35. cxd4 Bxd4+!, and White resigns as 36. Rxd4 Qf1+!! 37. Bxf1 gxf1=Q is mate.

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The game has lost many promising players over the years before they could reach their full potential, but perhaps the greatest “What if?” was the 19th century Hungarian star Rudolf Charousek, who was just emerging as a potential world title contender when he succumbed to tuberculosis at the age of 27 in 1900. Charousek in his brief career had a plus score against world champion Emanuel Lasker and against Harry Nelson Pillsbury, the American phenomenon who was just a year older and who himself would die too young at 33.

“Playing over [Charousek’s] early games is like reading Keats poetry,” GM Reuben Fine later observed. “You cannot help felling a grievous, oppressive sense of loss, of promise unfulfilled.”

Charousek had some epic battles with the Russian romantic great Mikhail Chigorin, going 3-4-1 against the man who lost two tough title matches to Wilhelm Steinitz. The Hungarian’s best win came at an event in Budapest in 1896, a swashbuckling affair which remains a source of analytical debate 120 years later.

In the true spirit of this King’s Gambit, White pitches a piece with the startling 12. Bxc6+!? to flush out the Black king. After 12…bxc6 13. Qxc6+ Ke7 14. Nxf4 Nxf4 15. Bxf4!!?, it looks like Black can get away with 15…Bxf1! 16. Nc3! (the computers later found that 16. Bg5+? f6 17. exf6+ Kf7 18. fxg7 Qxg5! gives Black the clear edge after 19. gxh8=N+ Kg7 20. Kxf1 Qf4+ 21. Ke2 Nc7) Bxg2 17. Kxg2 Nb4 18. Bg5+ f6 19. Qb7+ Ke6 20. exf6 Nxc2 21. Rf1 Rb8 22. Qa6+ Rb6 23. Qe2+ Kd7 24. Qxc2 gxf6.

Instead, the Black queen is lost after 17. e6! Rc8 18. Bc7! fxe6 (Qxc7 19. Rxf7+ Kd8 20. Rxc7 is crushing) 19. Bxd8+ Rxd8 20. Qb7+ Rd7 21. Rf7+! Kxf7 22. Qxd7+ Be7 23. Re1; Chigorin has only two minor pieces for his lost queen and his king remains in mortal peril. With 23. b3 (trapping the bishop) Kf8 24. bxc4, the material deficit is overwhelming and Black gave up.

Lastin-Bukavshin, Russian Higher League Championships, Taganrog, Russia, June 2015

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. Nc3 Nc6 4. d4 cxd4 5. Nxd4 Qc7 6. Be2 a6 7. O-O Nf6 8. Be3 Be7 9. f4 d6 10. a4 O-O 11. Kh1 Nxd4 12. Qxd4 Bd7 13. e5 Ne8 14. Qb4 Bc6 15. Bb6 dxe5 16. Qa5 Qc8 17. fxe5 g6 18. Rad1 Ng7 19. Rd3 Nf5 20. Rfd1 Nh4 21. Bf1 f5 22. Bf2 f4 23. Kg1 Rf5 24. Ne2 f3 25. Nd4 fxg2 26. Be2 Rxf2 27. Kxf2 Qf8+ 28. Kg1 Bb4 29. Qb6 Bc5 30. Qa5 Rd8 31. Qe1 Qf4 32. c3 Bxa4 33. R1d2 Bb5 34. Qg3 Rxd4 35. cxd4 Bxd4+ White resigns.

Charousek-Chigorin, Budapest, October 1896

1. e4 e5 2. f4 exf4 3. Bc4 Nc6 4. d4 Nf6 5. e5 d5 6. Bb3 Bg4 7. Qd3 Nh5 8. Nh3 Nb4 9. Qc3 Na6 10. O-O Be2 11. Ba4+ c6 12. Bxc6+ bxc6 13. Qxc6+ Ke7 14. Nxf4 Nxf4 15. Bxf4 h6 16. Nc3 Bc4 17. e6 Rc8 18. Bc7 fxe6 19. Bxd8+ Rxd8 20. Qb7+ Rd7 21. Rf7+ Kxf7 22. Qxd7+ Be7 23. Re1 Re8 24. b3 Kf8 25. bxc4 Black resigns 1-0.

• David R. Sands can be reached at 202/636-3178 or by email at dsands@washingtontimes.com.