A Fun Shirov Blitz Game

Going into the forest with a tactical legend is dangerous for your health.

Lots of chess players enjoy watching streamers; I rarely do. Instead, when I take the time to watch online “content” it’s generally to see blitz and rapid games without commentary, and I do my best to figure things out in real time. Tonight, I came across this game between an IM named Vladimir Poley and GM Alexei Shirov - an all-time tactical legend and one of the world’s absolute top players from the ‘90s into the ‘10s.

Poley, who is of course a very strong player in his own right, goes straight for tactical complications against his illustrious opponent. This is not the wisest strategy one might choose against Shirov, a player who in his heyday was often compared to Mikhail Tal, but then who can resist? What amateur basketball player could decline the opportunity to play one-on-one against Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, or LeBron James? The defeat might be ugly, but one simply must try.

And try IM Poley did. He came up with a very clever tactical idea, but there was a hole in it. What do you think - did Shirov find the problem? Watch below to find out or click here to replay the game with my notes. (Or do both.)