This version of the book is the first English translation of the second edition (1993) of the first edition (1980). The second edition was never published in english. The 1997 edition contains all of the material from the 1993 edition and some further minor corrections.

All Grandmasters are able to devote themselves body and soul to actually playing a game of chess, but few indeed are able to the same when analysing the games of their fellow Grandmasters. Yet it was by this method that

Timman, following the teachings of Botvinnik, trained himself to become one of the finest analysts in the world - and why his annotations to this carefully selected collection of games are acknowledged to be of a depth and quality rarely seen in chess literature. Each game is critically dissected, and each claim of a mistake backed up by hard analysis. In striving for perfection, Timman seeks to discover the truth of each game; to provide not just a wonderful annotated game, but to present the definitive evaluation behind a top-class struggle between two great minds. This book, long hailed as classic, has been fully revised by Timman for this enlarged new edition. Dutch Grandmaster Jan Timman has been one of the world's leading players since the mid-1970s. His outstanding tournament record includes victories at Linares, Wijk aan Zee, Amsterdam, Tilburg and numerous other top-class events. He is also an exceptional match player, and has been a permanent fixture in the final stages of the World Championship cycle over the past 10 years