Everyone loves to win a miniature – a spectacular quick win as a result of opening preparation and cool tactics. It’s even better when you crush a strong opponent in such a fashion.
In Magnus’ Miniatures, American GM Ron W. Henley – the former second of Anatoly Karpov – analyzes 64 instructive miniatures from the reigning Chess World Champion Magnus Carlsen.
In the last 15 years, the Norwegian chess sensation has defeated countless strong opponents in 25 moves or less. Big names like Anand, Caruana, Svidler, Shirov, Karjakin, Mamedyarov and Ding Liren are among his victims.
How did Carlsen outplay these Super GMs so quickly? And what can we learn about direct attacking play from these games?