Hello Chess Lovers
I wish to explore a line which has been called rare.1.d4g6 2.e4d6 3.Nc3Bg74.Bg5!? Yet top Russian GMs have used it. Svidler, Dreev and Tiviakov have played some very good games with it.Peter Leko has also tried it. The point of the move is to provoke black into making awkward moves like 4...h6. Also white wants to relocate his king to c1 so the move makes sense in that regard. Paul Keres showed that 4...c5 is met with a poisonous line:
5.dc5Qa5 6.Bd2Qc5 7.Nd5e6? 8.Bb4Qc6 9.Bb5 winning. Of course you can also look for alternatives to 7...e6.
So let us get into the inspirational game of Dreev vs Azmaiparashvili Moscow 1989
I will give credit to Dreev for some of the following analysis and then add some of my own commentary.
1.d4g6 2.e4d6 3.Nc3Bg7 4.Bg5!?Nf6 5.f4 this move takes advantage of black's concession in space.
I should remark here that most Super GMs as white, go for a spatial advantage because it is a lasting advantage.
5...c6 Black was at a serious junction here.
5....c5?! 6.e5Nh5 (6.cd4?7.ef6ef6 8.Qd4Qe7 9.Nce2Nc6 10.Qc3 winning) 7.dc5de5 8.Qd8Kd8
9.0-0-0Bd7 10.fe5h6 11.Be3Be5 12.Nd5Nc6 13.Nf3Bg7 14.Bb5 with a pleasant position for white.His pieces find very natural squares.
5...h6?! 6.Bh4c5 7.e5Nh5 8.dc5Nf4 9.ed6g5 10.Bf2
6.Qd2b5 7.Bd30-0 8.Nf3Bg4 9.e5!b4 10.Ne2Bf3 11.gf3Nd5 12.Bc4a5
Here we can look at the position in depth. White has completed development, got the two bishops and also knows the address of the opponent's King.He has straightforward possibilities against the fortress on the right side of the board. Over on the left side of the board, black has not completed development but his pawns are well advanced. If white castles queen side, he must always reckon with ...b3 followed by ...a4.Nevertheless Dreev played :
13.0-0-0Qd7 In 1996 Dreev vs Zakharevich featured : 13...f6!? 14.ef6ef6 15.B4Bh6 16.Bf2Nd7 17.h4N7b6 18.Bd3Na4 and now 19.Kb1 is a good prophylactic move getting the king off the h6-c1 diagonal and then preparing to move the queen as well. You can look at this in detail with any of the software programmes available. The game lasts only 11 more moves after black's queen move.
14.f5! White wastes no time and proceeds to create a crisis. The plan is simple : take on g6 and then push the h-pawn.
14....Qf5 15.Ng3 sustaining the initiative. 15...Qe6
If the black queen gets a hefty appetite for pawns the punishment is spectacular:
15....Qf3 16.Rdf1Qg4 17.Nf5!? - Fritz- 17...gf5 18.Rhg1Qh5 19.Bd5cd5 20.Be7Nd7 21.Bf6Nf6
22.gf6b3 23.a3!? I leave the rest to everybody who wants to analyse this.
16.f4! Wave after wave. Its tough to face this pressure. 16....de5
(16...h6 17.f5gf5 18.Bf4 -white will go for Rhg1/Nh5)
17.f5!Qd6 18.fg6hg6 19.Rdg1 white is planning a very spectacular move. 19...ed4?!
Black stumbles.This is understandable. He is under pressure and he goes for an active continuation. If 19...f5 20.h4 is also very critical.
20.Nf5! A spectacular move hoping to rip open black's fortress and pressuring e7 and d6.
20...Qe5 21.Ng7Ne3?! 22.Be3de3 23.Qd3Kg7 24.Bf7!! Destruction of the pawn cover!
24...Qh5 25.Rg6 1-0 Black had enough.
What was so instructive was the way in which so many things happened on the f5 square.
In the meantime the black pawns on a5 and b4 are frozen not doing a thing.Its important to note that a move like 20.Nf5 could only come to an open mind. Dreev is a disciple of Dvoretsky and no doubt had seen many attacking motifs before.
Sunday 19 June 2011
In the spirit of Paul Keres 4.Bg5 vs. the Pirc Part One
Hello Chess Lovers
I wish to explore a line which has been called rare.1.d4g6 2.e4d6 3.Nc3Bg74.Bg5!? Yet top Russian GMs have used it. Svidler, Dreev and Tiviakov have played some very good games with it.Peter Leko has also tried it. The point of the move is to provoke black into making awkward moves like 4...h6. Also white wants to relocate his king to c1 so the move makes sense in that regard. Paul Keres showed that 4...c5 is met with a poisonous line:
5.dc5Qa5 6.Bd2Qc5 7.Nd5e6? 8.Bb4Qc6 9.Bb5 winning. Of course you can also look for alternatives to 7...e6.
So let us get into the inspirational game of Dreev vs Azmaiparashvili Moscow 1989
I will give credit to Dreev for some of the following analysis and then add some of my own commentary.
1.d4g6 2.e4d6 3.Nc3Bg7 4.Bg5!?Nf6 5.f4 this move takes advantage of black's concession in space.
I should remark here that most Super GMs as white, go for a spatial advantage because it is a lasting advantage.
5...c6 Black was at a serious junction here.
5....c5?! 6.e5Nh5 (6.cd4?7.ef6ef6 8.Qd4Qe7 9.Nce2Nc6 10.Qc3 winning) 7.dc5de5 8.Qd8Kd8
9.0-0-0Bd7 10.fe5h6 11.Be3Be5 12.Nd5Nc6 13.Nf3Bg7 14.Bb5 with a pleasant position for white.His pieces find very natural squares.
5...h6?! 6.Bh4c5 7.e5Nh5 8.dc5Nf4 9.ed6g5 10.Bf2
6.Qd2b5 7.Bd30-0 8.Nf3Bg4 9.e5!b4 10.Ne2Bf3 11.gf3Nd5 12.Bc4a5
Here we can look at the position in depth. White has completed development, got the two bishops and also knows the address of the opponent's King.He has straightforward possibilities against the fortress on the right side of the board. Over on the left side of the board, black has not completed development but his pawns are well advanced. If white castles queen side, he must always reckon with ...b3 followed by ...a4.Nevertheless Dreev played :
13.0-0-0Qd7 In 1996 Dreev vs Zakharevich featured : 13...f6!? 14.ef6ef6 15.B4Bh6 16.Bf2Nd7 17.h4N7b6 18.Bd3Na4 and now 19.Kb1 is a good prophylactic move getting the king off the h6-c1 diagonal and then preparing to move the queen as well. You can look at this in detail with any of the software programmes available. The game lasts only 11 more moves after black's queen move.
14.f5! White wastes no time and proceeds to create a crisis. The plan is simple : take on g6 and then push the h-pawn.
14....Qf5 15.Ng3 sustaining the initiative. 15...Qe6
If the black queen gets a hefty appetite for pawns the punishment is spectacular:
15....Qf3 16.Rdf1Qg4 17.Nf5!? - Fritz- 17...gf5 18.Rhg1Qh5 19.Bd5cd5 20.Be7Nd7 21.Bf6Nf6
22.gf6b3 23.a3!? I leave the rest to everybody who wants to analyse this.
16.f4! Wave after wave. Its tough to face this pressure. 16....de5
(16...h6 17.f5gf5 18.Bf4 -white will go for Rhg1/Nh5)
17.f5!Qd6 18.fg6hg6 19.Rdg1 white is planning a very spectacular move. 19...ed4?!
Black stumbles.This is understandable. He is under pressure and he goes for an active continuation. If 19...f5 20.h4 is also very critical.
20.Nf5! A spectacular move hoping to rip open black's fortress and pressuring e7 and d6.
20...Qe5 21.Ng7Ne3?! 22.Be3de3 23.Qd3Kg7 24.Bf7!! Destruction of the pawn cover!
24...Qh5 25.Rg6 1-0 Black had enough.
What was so instructive was the way in which so many things happened on the f5 square.
In the meantime the black pawns on a5 and b4 are frozen not doing a thing.Its important to note that a move like 20.Nf5 could only come to an open mind. Dreev is a disciple of Dvoretsky and no doubt had seen many attacking motifs before.
I wish to explore a line which has been called rare.1.d4g6 2.e4d6 3.Nc3Bg74.Bg5!? Yet top Russian GMs have used it. Svidler, Dreev and Tiviakov have played some very good games with it.Peter Leko has also tried it. The point of the move is to provoke black into making awkward moves like 4...h6. Also white wants to relocate his king to c1 so the move makes sense in that regard. Paul Keres showed that 4...c5 is met with a poisonous line:
5.dc5Qa5 6.Bd2Qc5 7.Nd5e6? 8.Bb4Qc6 9.Bb5 winning. Of course you can also look for alternatives to 7...e6.
So let us get into the inspirational game of Dreev vs Azmaiparashvili Moscow 1989
I will give credit to Dreev for some of the following analysis and then add some of my own commentary.
1.d4g6 2.e4d6 3.Nc3Bg7 4.Bg5!?Nf6 5.f4 this move takes advantage of black's concession in space.
I should remark here that most Super GMs as white, go for a spatial advantage because it is a lasting advantage.
5...c6 Black was at a serious junction here.
5....c5?! 6.e5Nh5 (6.cd4?7.ef6ef6 8.Qd4Qe7 9.Nce2Nc6 10.Qc3 winning) 7.dc5de5 8.Qd8Kd8
9.0-0-0Bd7 10.fe5h6 11.Be3Be5 12.Nd5Nc6 13.Nf3Bg7 14.Bb5 with a pleasant position for white.His pieces find very natural squares.
5...h6?! 6.Bh4c5 7.e5Nh5 8.dc5Nf4 9.ed6g5 10.Bf2
6.Qd2b5 7.Bd30-0 8.Nf3Bg4 9.e5!b4 10.Ne2Bf3 11.gf3Nd5 12.Bc4a5
Here we can look at the position in depth. White has completed development, got the two bishops and also knows the address of the opponent's King.He has straightforward possibilities against the fortress on the right side of the board. Over on the left side of the board, black has not completed development but his pawns are well advanced. If white castles queen side, he must always reckon with ...b3 followed by ...a4.Nevertheless Dreev played :
13.0-0-0Qd7 In 1996 Dreev vs Zakharevich featured : 13...f6!? 14.ef6ef6 15.B4Bh6 16.Bf2Nd7 17.h4N7b6 18.Bd3Na4 and now 19.Kb1 is a good prophylactic move getting the king off the h6-c1 diagonal and then preparing to move the queen as well. You can look at this in detail with any of the software programmes available. The game lasts only 11 more moves after black's queen move.
14.f5! White wastes no time and proceeds to create a crisis. The plan is simple : take on g6 and then push the h-pawn.
14....Qf5 15.Ng3 sustaining the initiative. 15...Qe6
If the black queen gets a hefty appetite for pawns the punishment is spectacular:
15....Qf3 16.Rdf1Qg4 17.Nf5!? - Fritz- 17...gf5 18.Rhg1Qh5 19.Bd5cd5 20.Be7Nd7 21.Bf6Nf6
22.gf6b3 23.a3!? I leave the rest to everybody who wants to analyse this.
16.f4! Wave after wave. Its tough to face this pressure. 16....de5
(16...h6 17.f5gf5 18.Bf4 -white will go for Rhg1/Nh5)
17.f5!Qd6 18.fg6hg6 19.Rdg1 white is planning a very spectacular move. 19...ed4?!
Black stumbles.This is understandable. He is under pressure and he goes for an active continuation. If 19...f5 20.h4 is also very critical.
20.Nf5! A spectacular move hoping to rip open black's fortress and pressuring e7 and d6.
20...Qe5 21.Ng7Ne3?! 22.Be3de3 23.Qd3Kg7 24.Bf7!! Destruction of the pawn cover!
24...Qh5 25.Rg6 1-0 Black had enough.
What was so instructive was the way in which so many things happened on the f5 square.
In the meantime the black pawns on a5 and b4 are frozen not doing a thing.Its important to note that a move like 20.Nf5 could only come to an open mind. Dreev is a disciple of Dvoretsky and no doubt had seen many attacking motifs before.
Saturday 18 June 2011
Crisis Point in the Kings Gambit 3...Ne7 Part Two
Hello Chess Lovers,
In this part, I will be looking at the unusual reaction of white to 3...Ne7. Black emerges with good development and then proceeds to gain concessions from white. In the end he demonstrates good endgame skill which really is a premium requirement for further progress especially with black.
Michalzak v Svetushkin
1.e4e5 2.f4ef4 3.Nf3Ne7 4.Bc4Ng6 5.h4?! A seemingly logical move but the pawn ends up being a target.
Black responds in a logical and good way:
5...d6!? There are two points to this move. If 6.h5Ne5! comes in. The second point is that ...Bg4 will be coming soon with good effect.
6.c3Be7 7.Qb30-0 8.Qb5!? indirectly defending the h pawn.If black takes on h4 then Qh5! is available.
However this means a delay in development. When white has to spend tempi like this in a Kings Gambit the trend favours black.
8....Nd7 9.d4Nb6 10.Bb3Bg4! 11.h5Nh4 12.Kf2d5! freeing d6 13.Bf4Nf3 14.gf3Bh4! 15.Kg2c6! Now white has to retreat without really being able to pressure black. This change in the overall situation -switching from the offensive to the defensive- is simply too much sometimes.
16.Qd3Bh5 17.Nd2Bg6 18.Qe3Be7 19.Nf1Re8 And black is definitely better here.However the creation of targets or pressure points is important.
20.Ng3de4 21.fe4Bh4 22.e5Nd5 23.Qf3Bg324.Kg3a5 25.a4Qb6 and black has reached another high point in the game. His pieces have been optimized and there is a lot of harmony. Now for the creation of pressure points and entry points.
26.Ra3Rad8 27.Bg5Rd7 28.Rh2Qc7 29.Bf4Qd8 now black prepares c6-c5.
30.Ra1c5! 31.Rd1cd4 32.Rd4Ne7 33.Rd7Nf5! a good Zwischenzug. 34.Kf2Qd7 35.Bd5Qa4! finally
a favourable change occurs where entry points have been created. The game gets easier for black.
36.Bb7Rb8 37.Kg2Ne7! With the idea of Rb7 and Be4.
38.Kg3Nf5 39.Kh3Qd7 black regroups with purpose : he can focus on the white king.
40.Bc6Qe7 41.Rd2h6 42.Qg4Rd8 43.Bd5Kh7 black prepares for exchanges and moves out of danger.
44.c4Rb8 45.Kh2Rb3 46.Re2h5 47.Qg5Qg5 after the queen exchange the game reaches another stage. Black works on the white king.
48.Bg5Nd4 49.Rf2Ne6 50.Be7Re3 51.Bd6Kg8 52.c5Be4 53.Bc4Ng5!! black has created a mating net.
54.Rf7Nf7 55.e6Bg6 Black responds to desperation in a cold blooded manner.
56.Bf4Re4 57.Bd3Re6 0-1 From the response to 5.h4 to the ending black played good practical chess.
Nothing spectacular but slowly grinding down the resistance. This is a vital part of being strong-being prepared for a long grind with black.
Blessings
John
36.
In this part, I will be looking at the unusual reaction of white to 3...Ne7. Black emerges with good development and then proceeds to gain concessions from white. In the end he demonstrates good endgame skill which really is a premium requirement for further progress especially with black.
Michalzak v Svetushkin
1.e4e5 2.f4ef4 3.Nf3Ne7 4.Bc4Ng6 5.h4?! A seemingly logical move but the pawn ends up being a target.
Black responds in a logical and good way:
5...d6!? There are two points to this move. If 6.h5Ne5! comes in. The second point is that ...Bg4 will be coming soon with good effect.
6.c3Be7 7.Qb30-0 8.Qb5!? indirectly defending the h pawn.If black takes on h4 then Qh5! is available.
However this means a delay in development. When white has to spend tempi like this in a Kings Gambit the trend favours black.
8....Nd7 9.d4Nb6 10.Bb3Bg4! 11.h5Nh4 12.Kf2d5! freeing d6 13.Bf4Nf3 14.gf3Bh4! 15.Kg2c6! Now white has to retreat without really being able to pressure black. This change in the overall situation -switching from the offensive to the defensive- is simply too much sometimes.
16.Qd3Bh5 17.Nd2Bg6 18.Qe3Be7 19.Nf1Re8 And black is definitely better here.However the creation of targets or pressure points is important.
20.Ng3de4 21.fe4Bh4 22.e5Nd5 23.Qf3Bg324.Kg3a5 25.a4Qb6 and black has reached another high point in the game. His pieces have been optimized and there is a lot of harmony. Now for the creation of pressure points and entry points.
26.Ra3Rad8 27.Bg5Rd7 28.Rh2Qc7 29.Bf4Qd8 now black prepares c6-c5.
30.Ra1c5! 31.Rd1cd4 32.Rd4Ne7 33.Rd7Nf5! a good Zwischenzug. 34.Kf2Qd7 35.Bd5Qa4! finally
a favourable change occurs where entry points have been created. The game gets easier for black.
36.Bb7Rb8 37.Kg2Ne7! With the idea of Rb7 and Be4.
38.Kg3Nf5 39.Kh3Qd7 black regroups with purpose : he can focus on the white king.
40.Bc6Qe7 41.Rd2h6 42.Qg4Rd8 43.Bd5Kh7 black prepares for exchanges and moves out of danger.
44.c4Rb8 45.Kh2Rb3 46.Re2h5 47.Qg5Qg5 after the queen exchange the game reaches another stage. Black works on the white king.
48.Bg5Nd4 49.Rf2Ne6 50.Be7Re3 51.Bd6Kg8 52.c5Be4 53.Bc4Ng5!! black has created a mating net.
54.Rf7Nf7 55.e6Bg6 Black responds to desperation in a cold blooded manner.
56.Bf4Re4 57.Bd3Re6 0-1 From the response to 5.h4 to the ending black played good practical chess.
Nothing spectacular but slowly grinding down the resistance. This is a vital part of being strong-being prepared for a long grind with black.
Blessings
John
36.
Crisis Point in the Benko Gambit Part Three B) The Argument for 9.Nh3
Hello Chess lovers, here I will look at game in which white gets in the thematic e4-e5 thrust. We will see the impact of two main events in a Benko: the exchange of the dark square bishops and the decision to play c5-c4
Pogorelov v Magem Badals 2000
1.d4Nf6 2.c4c5 3.d5b5 4.cb5a6 5.ba6Ba6 6.Nc3g6 7.g3d6 8.Bg2Nbd7 9.Nh3Bg7 10.0-00-0
11.Qc2Nb6 12.Rd1Qd7 13.Rb1Rfb8 14.Nf4 Another possibility with Nh3.The knight can be transferred to
e2 or d3.
14....Bb7 15.b3Qd8 16.h4 a useful move stopping g6-g5 ideas. 16...Bc8 This move is an admission that the job on a6 is done.
17.Bb2Bf5 18.e4Bg4 black is probing looking for some activity. 19.Re1Ne8 ready to face off on the a1-h8 diagonal.
20.Nd3preparinf e4-e5. 20...Bd7 21.e5Bf5 22.Be4Be4 23.Re4Nc7 24.ed6ed6 25.b4 A key moment -the pawn structure changes.Black has to reckon with a defensive ending in which there is no compensation for the lost pawn.
25...c4 Black concedes the d4 square.This turns out to be a key moment as white gets to use the d4 square.
26.Nf4Qd7 27.Rbe1Qf5 28.Qd2h5 29.a3With a series of simple moves white shows that he understands he is better in the long run. Exchanges favour him. Black cannot find another point to attack.
29...Ne8 30.Nb5 pressuring d6. 30....Qd7 31.Bg7Ng7 33.Nd4 and now the drawback of c5-c4 is shown.
27.Rbe1Qf5 28.Qd2h5 29.a3Ne8 30.Nb5Qd7 31.Bg7!Ng7 after this exchange its easier to work on the dark squares.
32.Nd4Ra3 33.Nc6Rf8 34.Qd4 white uses the d4 square very well.
34....Na4 35.Qc4 and white's pieces are more coordinated.
35....Nf5 36.Ne7Ne7 37.Re7Qg4 38.R7e3Re3 every active black piece is coming off making the ending easier.
39.Re3Rc8 40.Qd4Qf5 41.Kg2 one of the useful moves to make in positions like this.The king comes off the back rank. 41...Qc2 42.Qf6Nb6 43.Re7Maximum pressure. The exchange of the dark square bishops made the game quite easy.
43....Rf8 44.Qd6Nc8 45.Qc7Ne7 and black resigned here rather than continue. 1-0
That was a technical game in many ways. White made extremely practical moves and black made some commital moves and concessions. Two key moments often come in the Benko Gambit:
1) The exchange of the dark square bishops
2) The pushing of the c-pawn to c4.
Pogorelov v Magem Badals 2000
1.d4Nf6 2.c4c5 3.d5b5 4.cb5a6 5.ba6Ba6 6.Nc3g6 7.g3d6 8.Bg2Nbd7 9.Nh3Bg7 10.0-00-0
11.Qc2Nb6 12.Rd1Qd7 13.Rb1Rfb8 14.Nf4 Another possibility with Nh3.The knight can be transferred to
e2 or d3.
14....Bb7 15.b3Qd8 16.h4 a useful move stopping g6-g5 ideas. 16...Bc8 This move is an admission that the job on a6 is done.
17.Bb2Bf5 18.e4Bg4 black is probing looking for some activity. 19.Re1Ne8 ready to face off on the a1-h8 diagonal.
20.Nd3preparinf e4-e5. 20...Bd7 21.e5Bf5 22.Be4Be4 23.Re4Nc7 24.ed6ed6 25.b4 A key moment -the pawn structure changes.Black has to reckon with a defensive ending in which there is no compensation for the lost pawn.
25...c4 Black concedes the d4 square.This turns out to be a key moment as white gets to use the d4 square.
26.Nf4Qd7 27.Rbe1Qf5 28.Qd2h5 29.a3With a series of simple moves white shows that he understands he is better in the long run. Exchanges favour him. Black cannot find another point to attack.
29...Ne8 30.Nb5 pressuring d6. 30....Qd7 31.Bg7Ng7 33.Nd4 and now the drawback of c5-c4 is shown.
27.Rbe1Qf5 28.Qd2h5 29.a3Ne8 30.Nb5Qd7 31.Bg7!Ng7 after this exchange its easier to work on the dark squares.
32.Nd4Ra3 33.Nc6Rf8 34.Qd4 white uses the d4 square very well.
34....Na4 35.Qc4 and white's pieces are more coordinated.
35....Nf5 36.Ne7Ne7 37.Re7Qg4 38.R7e3Re3 every active black piece is coming off making the ending easier.
39.Re3Rc8 40.Qd4Qf5 41.Kg2 one of the useful moves to make in positions like this.The king comes off the back rank. 41...Qc2 42.Qf6Nb6 43.Re7Maximum pressure. The exchange of the dark square bishops made the game quite easy.
43....Rf8 44.Qd6Nc8 45.Qc7Ne7 and black resigned here rather than continue. 1-0
That was a technical game in many ways. White made extremely practical moves and black made some commital moves and concessions. Two key moments often come in the Benko Gambit:
1) The exchange of the dark square bishops
2) The pushing of the c-pawn to c4.
Sunday 12 June 2011
Crisis Point in the King's Gambit -3...Ne7 Part One
Hello Chess Lovers
I move now to one of the most romantic of chess openings-an opening that from move 2 breaks the balance of the game in material terms and seeks gains in time and quality and hopefully leads to all out offensives on black's king.As with many openings the quick victories gave way to new defenses which included a contribution from the late Robert Fischer. After 1.e4e4 2.f4 white invests material in the hope of building a big center and getting an open f-file.However the drawback is that black also gets chances as early as move two to give a check on the white king -Qh4 and then go back to e7.
A few GMs will pull it out as a surprise every now and then and some like Federov insist on trying to find some edge in it.However most GMs would rather develop some pieces and then go for another Gambit which does not compromise the security of the white king. Many attacking players simply do not like being attacked.Kasparov has never played it in a serious game and he is known for securing his king before he launches all out assaults on his opponent's king. Now we will look at the sequence 1.e4e5 2.f4ef4 3.Nf3Ne7!? -Black's move is a departure from the pawn moves like 3...d6-favoured by Fischer- or 3...g5 or 3..h6-favoured by Leko or 3...d5.It has two meritorious points. Firstly, it is ready to relocate to g6 where it will have an interesting function in delaying the recapture of the f4 pawn and inviting white to play h2-h4 which in turn gives black a target when he plays ...Be7. Secondly it makes ...d5 even more sound and this cuts across white's plan of Bishop to c4. A third point could be made in that black avoids a commital pawn move.
Lets see how this might work in practice:
Blom v Bok 2010
1e4e5 2.f4ef4 3.Nf3Ne7 4.d4d5! This poses a serious question to white: will he alter the pawn structure in such a way that the game takes on a closed character?
5.e5 In this game he answered in the affirmative. 5...Ng6 6.Bd3Be7 Now white faces the task of removing the annoying f4 pawn. 7.0-00-0 8.c4 and here we have a departure from the typical King's Gambit. A center crowded with pawns.
8...dc4 9.Bc4Nc6 Black has managed to develop his pieces to good squares and d4 will become a target.
10.Nc3Bg4 -A crisis point has been reached.Black confronts white with another problem-defending d4.
11.Bd5Bb4 Now the black queen has more scope and the white knights are under pressure.
12.Bc6bc6 13.Ne2Bf3 14.Rf3Ne5! Black's central strategy has been a success. White tried to defend d4 by removing the c6 knight but lost an essential attacking unit in the shape of the white-square bishop.What is more troubling is that he is two pawns down.He cannot be thinking about an attack at the moment.Therefore this switch from an offensive mode of thinking to a defensive mode will have an impact on him.
15.Rb3Be7 16.Bf4Ng6 17.Bg3Bd6 going for the exchange of white's active pieces. 18.Rc1Qd7 19.R3c3Rb8 20.Qc2Ne7 21.Bf2Nd5 This knight has been a star!! 22.Rh3f5! cutting across white's intentions. 23.b3Rbe8 24.Kf1Qe6 For the next few moves black improves his queen's scope. 25.Re1Qe4! 26.Qc4Kh8 27.Nc3Qf4 28.Ne2Qg5 and black has found an good address for his queen.
29.Qc6f4 30.Rf3Re6 31.Nc3Re1 32.Ke1Bb4!After this the game favours black.Notice that the play has no intensely tactical character to it.
33.Kf1Bc3 34.Rc3Nc3 35.Qc3Qh5! The double attack on h2 and d1 is decisive. 36.Qc7Qd1 ! 37.Be1Re8! and white had enough 0-1
It is interesting to note that the game had a positional character in which both sides were trying to improve their pieces.
The move 8.c4?! -Changed the structure and the trend of the game.Black got a clear target in terms of hitting d4. Instead of attacking black's king, white ended up trying to defend d4 and then hitting queen side targets on the c-file.The queen side migration meant that black could go to the king side for counter play- this is against the spirit of the King's Gambit.Therefore black's strategy succeeded. Hopefully 3...Ne7 will see many more practical tests.
I move now to one of the most romantic of chess openings-an opening that from move 2 breaks the balance of the game in material terms and seeks gains in time and quality and hopefully leads to all out offensives on black's king.As with many openings the quick victories gave way to new defenses which included a contribution from the late Robert Fischer. After 1.e4e4 2.f4 white invests material in the hope of building a big center and getting an open f-file.However the drawback is that black also gets chances as early as move two to give a check on the white king -Qh4 and then go back to e7.
A few GMs will pull it out as a surprise every now and then and some like Federov insist on trying to find some edge in it.However most GMs would rather develop some pieces and then go for another Gambit which does not compromise the security of the white king. Many attacking players simply do not like being attacked.Kasparov has never played it in a serious game and he is known for securing his king before he launches all out assaults on his opponent's king. Now we will look at the sequence 1.e4e5 2.f4ef4 3.Nf3Ne7!? -Black's move is a departure from the pawn moves like 3...d6-favoured by Fischer- or 3...g5 or 3..h6-favoured by Leko or 3...d5.It has two meritorious points. Firstly, it is ready to relocate to g6 where it will have an interesting function in delaying the recapture of the f4 pawn and inviting white to play h2-h4 which in turn gives black a target when he plays ...Be7. Secondly it makes ...d5 even more sound and this cuts across white's plan of Bishop to c4. A third point could be made in that black avoids a commital pawn move.
Lets see how this might work in practice:
Blom v Bok 2010
1e4e5 2.f4ef4 3.Nf3Ne7 4.d4d5! This poses a serious question to white: will he alter the pawn structure in such a way that the game takes on a closed character?
5.e5 In this game he answered in the affirmative. 5...Ng6 6.Bd3Be7 Now white faces the task of removing the annoying f4 pawn. 7.0-00-0 8.c4 and here we have a departure from the typical King's Gambit. A center crowded with pawns.
8...dc4 9.Bc4Nc6 Black has managed to develop his pieces to good squares and d4 will become a target.
10.Nc3Bg4 -A crisis point has been reached.Black confronts white with another problem-defending d4.
11.Bd5Bb4 Now the black queen has more scope and the white knights are under pressure.
12.Bc6bc6 13.Ne2Bf3 14.Rf3Ne5! Black's central strategy has been a success. White tried to defend d4 by removing the c6 knight but lost an essential attacking unit in the shape of the white-square bishop.What is more troubling is that he is two pawns down.He cannot be thinking about an attack at the moment.Therefore this switch from an offensive mode of thinking to a defensive mode will have an impact on him.
15.Rb3Be7 16.Bf4Ng6 17.Bg3Bd6 going for the exchange of white's active pieces. 18.Rc1Qd7 19.R3c3Rb8 20.Qc2Ne7 21.Bf2Nd5 This knight has been a star!! 22.Rh3f5! cutting across white's intentions. 23.b3Rbe8 24.Kf1Qe6 For the next few moves black improves his queen's scope. 25.Re1Qe4! 26.Qc4Kh8 27.Nc3Qf4 28.Ne2Qg5 and black has found an good address for his queen.
29.Qc6f4 30.Rf3Re6 31.Nc3Re1 32.Ke1Bb4!After this the game favours black.Notice that the play has no intensely tactical character to it.
33.Kf1Bc3 34.Rc3Nc3 35.Qc3Qh5! The double attack on h2 and d1 is decisive. 36.Qc7Qd1 ! 37.Be1Re8! and white had enough 0-1
It is interesting to note that the game had a positional character in which both sides were trying to improve their pieces.
The move 8.c4?! -Changed the structure and the trend of the game.Black got a clear target in terms of hitting d4. Instead of attacking black's king, white ended up trying to defend d4 and then hitting queen side targets on the c-file.The queen side migration meant that black could go to the king side for counter play- this is against the spirit of the King's Gambit.Therefore black's strategy succeeded. Hopefully 3...Ne7 will see many more practical tests.
Saturday 11 June 2011
Crisis Point in the Benko Gambit Part Three A) The argument for 9.Nh3
Hello Chess lovers.
I want to share with you a line that is not as popular as 9.Nf3 and 10.Rb1 which is the defacto main line.
I had success with this line myself and I noticed how it really shook my opponent during and after the game.
It appears to be sound and also a great labour saving device and for creative imaginative players. There are a number of merits to the move. Firstly, it does not obstruct the g2 bishop. Secondly d5 can be overprotected easily against a black assault with moves like Ra7/Qa8/Bb7/Ne8-c7.Thirdly, the knight on h3 allows the f-pawn to come in handy either on f3 or f4. Lets see how this worked in practice.
Ivanov vs Sakaev 2000
1.d4Nf6 2.c4c5 3.d5b5 4.cb5a6 5.ba6Ba6 6.Nc3g6 7..g3d6 8.Bg2Bg7 9.Nh3!?Nbd7 10.0-00-0 11.Rb1 This is the crucial line. White plays useful moves. The rook comes off the a1-h8 diagonal and b3 and a4 will soon come.
11...Qa5 12.Qc2 freeing d1 for the rook and over protecting c3. 12....Rfb8 `13.b3Ne8 14.Bb2!? The bishop will face off against the g7 bishop and its usually a small victory to get the dark squared bishop.
14....Nc7 This queenside migration means that the king side is a man light. Now watch how Ivanov works on this. 15.Rfc1 white is ready for action on c3 and also leaves f1 open for the g2 bishop. 15....Ne5 16.Ng5Bc8 17.h3 square denial. Black's pieces are being limited.
17...Bf5? This active move leads to an assault on the black king with a gain of a tempo. 18.e4Bc8 19.f4Nd7 20.e5! Cutting the board in two.The majority of the black pieces are on the left side of the board and the black King looks isolated.
20...de5 21.f5!Ne8 and now to look at some alternatives :
a) 21....gf5 22.Qf5Nf6 23.Qe5h6 24.Nge4Nfd5
25.Qh5 with an attack.
b) 21...h6 22.fg6hg5 23.gf7Kf7 24.Ne4 and white has two good attacking options : a hit on g5 or the move d4-d5.
22.Rf1Nef6 23.fg6hg6 24.Nce4Qb6 25.Nf7Nd5 26.Ned6!! The virtues of Nh3 have come to the fore:
The f-pawn played a role, now the bishop on g2 looks powerful and the knight on g5 plays an aggresive role.
26....c4 (if 26...ed6 27.Qg6N5f6 28.Nh6Kh8 29.Nf5Bf8 30.Rf4!!ef4 31.Qh5Kg8 32.Bd5Nd5 33.Qg6 winning)
27.Kh2Ne3 This show of aggression is shot lived. 28.Qg6Nf1 29.Rf1ed6 30.Nh6Kh8 31.Rf7 and black had enough 1-0
In this game, every virtue of 9.Nh3 came out. The Knight went to g5 and was ready to go to e4 and d2 as well. The bishop on g2 made a pseudo-sacrifice on d6 possible.The f-pawn went on into the attack as a battering ram. You cannot ask for more from 9.Nh3.
I want to share with you a line that is not as popular as 9.Nf3 and 10.Rb1 which is the defacto main line.
I had success with this line myself and I noticed how it really shook my opponent during and after the game.
It appears to be sound and also a great labour saving device and for creative imaginative players. There are a number of merits to the move. Firstly, it does not obstruct the g2 bishop. Secondly d5 can be overprotected easily against a black assault with moves like Ra7/Qa8/Bb7/Ne8-c7.Thirdly, the knight on h3 allows the f-pawn to come in handy either on f3 or f4. Lets see how this worked in practice.
Ivanov vs Sakaev 2000
1.d4Nf6 2.c4c5 3.d5b5 4.cb5a6 5.ba6Ba6 6.Nc3g6 7..g3d6 8.Bg2Bg7 9.Nh3!?Nbd7 10.0-00-0 11.Rb1 This is the crucial line. White plays useful moves. The rook comes off the a1-h8 diagonal and b3 and a4 will soon come.
11...Qa5 12.Qc2 freeing d1 for the rook and over protecting c3. 12....Rfb8 `13.b3Ne8 14.Bb2!? The bishop will face off against the g7 bishop and its usually a small victory to get the dark squared bishop.
14....Nc7 This queenside migration means that the king side is a man light. Now watch how Ivanov works on this. 15.Rfc1 white is ready for action on c3 and also leaves f1 open for the g2 bishop. 15....Ne5 16.Ng5Bc8 17.h3 square denial. Black's pieces are being limited.
17...Bf5? This active move leads to an assault on the black king with a gain of a tempo. 18.e4Bc8 19.f4Nd7 20.e5! Cutting the board in two.The majority of the black pieces are on the left side of the board and the black King looks isolated.
20...de5 21.f5!Ne8 and now to look at some alternatives :
a) 21....gf5 22.Qf5Nf6 23.Qe5h6 24.Nge4Nfd5
25.Qh5 with an attack.
b) 21...h6 22.fg6hg5 23.gf7Kf7 24.Ne4 and white has two good attacking options : a hit on g5 or the move d4-d5.
22.Rf1Nef6 23.fg6hg6 24.Nce4Qb6 25.Nf7Nd5 26.Ned6!! The virtues of Nh3 have come to the fore:
The f-pawn played a role, now the bishop on g2 looks powerful and the knight on g5 plays an aggresive role.
26....c4 (if 26...ed6 27.Qg6N5f6 28.Nh6Kh8 29.Nf5Bf8 30.Rf4!!ef4 31.Qh5Kg8 32.Bd5Nd5 33.Qg6 winning)
27.Kh2Ne3 This show of aggression is shot lived. 28.Qg6Nf1 29.Rf1ed6 30.Nh6Kh8 31.Rf7 and black had enough 1-0
In this game, every virtue of 9.Nh3 came out. The Knight went to g5 and was ready to go to e4 and d2 as well. The bishop on g2 made a pseudo-sacrifice on d6 possible.The f-pawn went on into the attack as a battering ram. You cannot ask for more from 9.Nh3.
Wednesday 8 June 2011
Crisis Point in the Benko Gambit Part Two
Hello Chess lovers and serious players, I will now look at a sideline which Topalov himself had to face and
we can open up a debate as to whether white can improve on the line. Using the game Topalov vs Leon Hoyos Mexico City 2010 as a starting point of a discussion, we can look at the merits of different setups in this sideline which has been Championed by GM S Kasparov.
Topalov v Leon Hoyos
Mexico City 2010
1.d4Nf6 2.c4c5 3.d5b5 4.cb5a6 5.ba6g6 6.Nc3Ba6 7.g3d6 8.Bg2Bg7 9.Nf3Nfd7 Here black plays a logical move.The bishop on g7 improves its scope and like a sniper, overlooks movement on the h8 -a1 diagonal.The knight can move to b6 and then there is one possibility Ba6-b7 and N8a6-b4/c7.White has to delay Rb1 and b3 for a moment.The drawback which Avrukh has pointed out is that this migration to the queenside leaves the black kingside almost bare. In this game Topalov chose :
10.0-0 -Natural but now white must take time to get the rook on to d1 after Qc2. Avrukh is of a different view and puts forward the following idea:
10.Qc2Nb6 (10...0-0 11.h4Nf6 12.h5Nh5 13.Rh5gh5 14.Ng5f5 15.Ne6 with a big advantage to white)
11.h4!?h6 (11...h5?! 12.Ng5; 11...Bb7 12.e4Na6 13.h5Nb4 14.Qd1Ba6 15.Bf1!?) 12.Nh2N8d7 13.h5g5 14.Ng4Nc4 15.0-0Qa5 16.a3!? with the idea of Ra2 and then b2-b3.
I hope people will try it so we can see how the battles went.
Topalov's decision is natural.
10...Nb6 11.Qc2N8d7 12.Rd1 now e2-e4 can be played. 12...0-0 13.Rb1 13.Nd2 has been tried without practical success. Topalov gets into a setup he faced against Kramnik in 2003 where he was outplayed in the ending.
13....Bc3 Crisis point-Black goes for the return on his investment of a pawn.However this turned out to be a massive concession in the game.Topalov is in his element with the 2 bishops. 14.Qc3Be2 15.Bh6! Its important to note how very strong players always go for the equal or stronger threat. Fischer was a major advocate of this.
15....Nf6 16.Rd2Bf3?! another concession.The problem is that white's two bishops will face off against the two knights and facing Topalov in this situation is not mentally comfortable.Computer evaluations do not matter in this practical scenario.
17.Bf3Re8 18.b3Nbd7 19.a4 -This outside passed pawn often consumes massive energy on the part of black and with the possession of the two bishops, white's chances look very good.
19...Qa5 and here black probably feared some white aggression on the kingside and so goes for a queen exchange-quite understandable.Interestingly Topalov does not resist this exchange and goes for it. There is scope for improvement here.
20.Qa5Ra5 21.h3 at this point Topalov adopts the patient approach expecting black to do something about the a4 pawn.He wants to take away squares from black's knights.
21...c4 This move is typical in these types of lines.When we look at the main line we shall see how this is also played.
22.bc4Ra4 23.Rc2Rc8 24.Rbc1Ne5 25.Be2 notice the patient unhurried buildup play in the ending.
25...Ne4 26.Kg2f5 27.Be3Kf7 28.g4Nf6 29.f3Ra3 30.Bh6Ra7 31.c5Rc5 32.Rc5dc5 33.Rc5Ra2
34.Kf1fg4 35.hg4Ra3 36.Bc1! Topalov is showing how much he has grown since 2003 when Kramnik beat him as white in this line.His experience of playing equal positions here tells.
36....Rb3 Black makes a slip which Topalov punishes.The black king position on f7 makes a double attack threat with Bc4 likely.
37.d6! opening the a2-g8 diagonal. 37...Nfd7 38.Rc7Rb6 39.f4!Rd6 40.fe5Ne5 and Topalov's patience is rewarded.This is where the difference in the strength of the GMs is shown.
41.Bg5Rd7 42.Rc5Nd3 43.Rc3Nb4 44.Kg2 these are the simple things super GMs do-improve their pieces when there is no massive battle going on.
44...Nd5 45.Bc4e6 46.Rf3Kg7 47.Kg3Rf7?! a natural looking move which Topalov punishes.
48.Bh6!Kg8 49.Rb3Rc7 50.Bd5ed5 51.Rd3Rd7 52.Kf4 the king's entry is decisive. 52....Kf7 53.Ke5g5
54.Rf3 and black gave up as he loses by mate or by the torture of seeing his pawns being fed to the bishop.
I hoped to show two approaches at move 10. Topalov goes the natural way.Avrukh wants to punish this migration to the left of the board by black and so hit black on the right of the board. I hope that like Avrukh I have opened the debate to more people. Take care and enjoy chess!!!
we can open up a debate as to whether white can improve on the line. Using the game Topalov vs Leon Hoyos Mexico City 2010 as a starting point of a discussion, we can look at the merits of different setups in this sideline which has been Championed by GM S Kasparov.
Topalov v Leon Hoyos
Mexico City 2010
1.d4Nf6 2.c4c5 3.d5b5 4.cb5a6 5.ba6g6 6.Nc3Ba6 7.g3d6 8.Bg2Bg7 9.Nf3Nfd7 Here black plays a logical move.The bishop on g7 improves its scope and like a sniper, overlooks movement on the h8 -a1 diagonal.The knight can move to b6 and then there is one possibility Ba6-b7 and N8a6-b4/c7.White has to delay Rb1 and b3 for a moment.The drawback which Avrukh has pointed out is that this migration to the queenside leaves the black kingside almost bare. In this game Topalov chose :
10.0-0 -Natural but now white must take time to get the rook on to d1 after Qc2. Avrukh is of a different view and puts forward the following idea:
10.Qc2Nb6 (10...0-0 11.h4Nf6 12.h5Nh5 13.Rh5gh5 14.Ng5f5 15.Ne6 with a big advantage to white)
11.h4!?h6 (11...h5?! 12.Ng5; 11...Bb7 12.e4Na6 13.h5Nb4 14.Qd1Ba6 15.Bf1!?) 12.Nh2N8d7 13.h5g5 14.Ng4Nc4 15.0-0Qa5 16.a3!? with the idea of Ra2 and then b2-b3.
I hope people will try it so we can see how the battles went.
Topalov's decision is natural.
10...Nb6 11.Qc2N8d7 12.Rd1 now e2-e4 can be played. 12...0-0 13.Rb1 13.Nd2 has been tried without practical success. Topalov gets into a setup he faced against Kramnik in 2003 where he was outplayed in the ending.
13....Bc3 Crisis point-Black goes for the return on his investment of a pawn.However this turned out to be a massive concession in the game.Topalov is in his element with the 2 bishops. 14.Qc3Be2 15.Bh6! Its important to note how very strong players always go for the equal or stronger threat. Fischer was a major advocate of this.
15....Nf6 16.Rd2Bf3?! another concession.The problem is that white's two bishops will face off against the two knights and facing Topalov in this situation is not mentally comfortable.Computer evaluations do not matter in this practical scenario.
17.Bf3Re8 18.b3Nbd7 19.a4 -This outside passed pawn often consumes massive energy on the part of black and with the possession of the two bishops, white's chances look very good.
19...Qa5 and here black probably feared some white aggression on the kingside and so goes for a queen exchange-quite understandable.Interestingly Topalov does not resist this exchange and goes for it. There is scope for improvement here.
20.Qa5Ra5 21.h3 at this point Topalov adopts the patient approach expecting black to do something about the a4 pawn.He wants to take away squares from black's knights.
21...c4 This move is typical in these types of lines.When we look at the main line we shall see how this is also played.
22.bc4Ra4 23.Rc2Rc8 24.Rbc1Ne5 25.Be2 notice the patient unhurried buildup play in the ending.
25...Ne4 26.Kg2f5 27.Be3Kf7 28.g4Nf6 29.f3Ra3 30.Bh6Ra7 31.c5Rc5 32.Rc5dc5 33.Rc5Ra2
34.Kf1fg4 35.hg4Ra3 36.Bc1! Topalov is showing how much he has grown since 2003 when Kramnik beat him as white in this line.His experience of playing equal positions here tells.
36....Rb3 Black makes a slip which Topalov punishes.The black king position on f7 makes a double attack threat with Bc4 likely.
37.d6! opening the a2-g8 diagonal. 37...Nfd7 38.Rc7Rb6 39.f4!Rd6 40.fe5Ne5 and Topalov's patience is rewarded.This is where the difference in the strength of the GMs is shown.
41.Bg5Rd7 42.Rc5Nd3 43.Rc3Nb4 44.Kg2 these are the simple things super GMs do-improve their pieces when there is no massive battle going on.
44...Nd5 45.Bc4e6 46.Rf3Kg7 47.Kg3Rf7?! a natural looking move which Topalov punishes.
48.Bh6!Kg8 49.Rb3Rc7 50.Bd5ed5 51.Rd3Rd7 52.Kf4 the king's entry is decisive. 52....Kf7 53.Ke5g5
54.Rf3 and black gave up as he loses by mate or by the torture of seeing his pawns being fed to the bishop.
I hoped to show two approaches at move 10. Topalov goes the natural way.Avrukh wants to punish this migration to the left of the board by black and so hit black on the right of the board. I hope that like Avrukh I have opened the debate to more people. Take care and enjoy chess!!!
Monday 6 June 2011
Crisis Point in the Benko Gambit Part One 5...e6 line.
Hello Chess lovers.
Having noticed the tendency of players of a certain rating range to play the Benko gambit I thought I would try and examine why the Benko is not played at the highest levels. In this series I will look at key games and the analysis of Boris Avrukh as well. I hope this can give a clearer picture on the problems faced by black in different lines. First we will look at the 5...e6 line where black aims for the disintegration of the white center.
Sahovic v Rogers Nis 1985
1.d4Nf6 2.c4c5 3.d5b5 4.cb5a6 5.ba6e6 6.Nc3Nd5 7.Nd5ed5 8.Qd5Nc6 9.Nf3Be7
-Here black has another move 9....Ba6 10.Bd2Be7 11.e4!Qb6 (11...Bf112.Kf10-0 13.g3Nb4 14.Bb4cb4 15.Kg2Ra5 16.Qb3Qa8 17.Rhe1 and white holds on to the extra pawn without suffering) 12.Ba6Qa6 13.Ne5! this move comes up frequently. 13...0-0 14.Nc4Nd4 15.0-0Nc2 16.Rac1Nd4 17.Rfe1Qa2 18.Qd7Ra7 19.Qg4 white is well coordinated and also a pawn up.Avrukh
10.Ne50-0 11.Nc6dc6 12.Qd8Rd8 This is a critical point. When the minor pieces come off, black will have problems with the c-pawns. 13.e3Bf6 14.Bc4Ba6 15.Ba6Ra6 16.Ke2c4 17.Rd1Rb8 18.Kd2 and the difference between the two sides is quite apparent.White has the better King and the c-pawns are easy targets.In practical terms the endgame is easy here.
18....Kf8 19.Kc2Ke7 20.a3 -Avrukh suggests 20.f4!?
White has a secure outside passed pawn-one of the best types of passed pawns in practical games.
20...Ke6 21.Ra2R6b6 22.a4Rb3 23.a5c5 black is left with few active options. 24.a6c3 25.bc3Rc3 26.Kd2R3b3 27.a7Ra8 28.Ra6Ke7 29.Ba3 -White has accomplished a lot.The passed pawn has reached a7 tying down black's rook.The bishop on a3 is going to c5.
29....Ke8 30.Bc5 This is important.Rb7 31.Ke2Rc7 32.Rd5Be7 33.Bd4Now the bishop increases its radius of action 33...f6 34.Rb5Kd7 35.Rb8 penetration after preparation. R7c8 36.Ra8Ra8 37.Kf3 1-0
When looking at the pawn structure following move 12 one can understand white's policy- take off many minor pieces and then improve the King.The involvement of the white King was decisive.Note the power of the outside passed pawn.
Having noticed the tendency of players of a certain rating range to play the Benko gambit I thought I would try and examine why the Benko is not played at the highest levels. In this series I will look at key games and the analysis of Boris Avrukh as well. I hope this can give a clearer picture on the problems faced by black in different lines. First we will look at the 5...e6 line where black aims for the disintegration of the white center.
Sahovic v Rogers Nis 1985
1.d4Nf6 2.c4c5 3.d5b5 4.cb5a6 5.ba6e6 6.Nc3Nd5 7.Nd5ed5 8.Qd5Nc6 9.Nf3Be7
-Here black has another move 9....Ba6 10.Bd2Be7 11.e4!Qb6 (11...Bf112.Kf10-0 13.g3Nb4 14.Bb4cb4 15.Kg2Ra5 16.Qb3Qa8 17.Rhe1 and white holds on to the extra pawn without suffering) 12.Ba6Qa6 13.Ne5! this move comes up frequently. 13...0-0 14.Nc4Nd4 15.0-0Nc2 16.Rac1Nd4 17.Rfe1Qa2 18.Qd7Ra7 19.Qg4 white is well coordinated and also a pawn up.Avrukh
10.Ne50-0 11.Nc6dc6 12.Qd8Rd8 This is a critical point. When the minor pieces come off, black will have problems with the c-pawns. 13.e3Bf6 14.Bc4Ba6 15.Ba6Ra6 16.Ke2c4 17.Rd1Rb8 18.Kd2 and the difference between the two sides is quite apparent.White has the better King and the c-pawns are easy targets.In practical terms the endgame is easy here.
18....Kf8 19.Kc2Ke7 20.a3 -Avrukh suggests 20.f4!?
White has a secure outside passed pawn-one of the best types of passed pawns in practical games.
20...Ke6 21.Ra2R6b6 22.a4Rb3 23.a5c5 black is left with few active options. 24.a6c3 25.bc3Rc3 26.Kd2R3b3 27.a7Ra8 28.Ra6Ke7 29.Ba3 -White has accomplished a lot.The passed pawn has reached a7 tying down black's rook.The bishop on a3 is going to c5.
29....Ke8 30.Bc5 This is important.Rb7 31.Ke2Rc7 32.Rd5Be7 33.Bd4Now the bishop increases its radius of action 33...f6 34.Rb5Kd7 35.Rb8 penetration after preparation. R7c8 36.Ra8Ra8 37.Kf3 1-0
When looking at the pawn structure following move 12 one can understand white's policy- take off many minor pieces and then improve the King.The involvement of the white King was decisive.Note the power of the outside passed pawn.
Violent overthrows of kings in modern chess part two
Hello Chess Lovers,
I hoped you liked the I Sokolov vs Dreev game. Now I want to present a game which features a sustained initiative which lasts beyond a queen exchange and still ends up with a mating attack against the king.Again the game is not played by the elite but nevertheless the 2 GMs are outstanding:
Khalifman vs Van Wely Wijk aan Zee 2002
1.e4c5 2.Nf3d6 3.d4cd4 4.Nd4Nf6 5.Nc3a6 6.f3e6 7.Be3h5?!
-This was a favourite of Topalov's.Black anticipates whites g2-g4 thrust and insists on trying to dominate on the queen side.The problem with this is the address of the black king.Its a fixed address on e8 for quite some time.This allows white to draw on his major firepower and aim for a breakthrough with pawns.
8.Qd2Nbd7 9.Bc4!? This natural move was new at the time.Khalifmann simply pursues a policy of centralisation followed up by some very concrete tactics. The move Nbd7 temporarily interferes with the c8 bishop and its ability to protect e6.
9...Ne5 A good choice bad was 9...b5? 10.Be6fe6 11.Ne6Qa5 12.b4Qb4 13.Nc7+-
9...d5 10.ed5Nb6 11.Bb3Nfd5 12.Nd5Nd5 13.0-0-0 with a promising position that looks like Sozin line.
In the English attack the bishop stays at home on f1 for some time before deploying to h3 or g2 sometimes.
10.Bb3b5 11.0-0-0 Here Khalifman gives himself a small advantage. His centralised pieces gave him the force necessary for a breakthrough in the centre.Most attacking players centralise.
11....Bb7 12.Bg5Qa5?! This move was to be the cause of a lot of problems for black.The problem is the lack of adequate cover for the d7 square in some variations. Van Wely should not be blamed for facing a novelty like 9.Bc4 with some active moves.
13.Kb1 -Like most attacking players, Khalifman makes his prophylactic move.
13...Nc4?! Once again Van Wely shows a desire to be active but now there is a positional concession.
14.Bc4 Khalifman follows the general principle of removing the opponent's active pieces. 14....bc4
15.Rhe1 centralisation before all hell breaks loose.Of course many players would ask how Van Wely was to come under such pressure at this stage. Most of black's queen side pieces have been mobilized. Its clear black wants to hold up as much as possible in the center and on the right side of the board.
15...Rb8? This is a step too far on the left of the board. If 15...Be7 16.f4 is good with the idea of a breakthrough with e4-e5 and Bf6 then hitting black on d7.
16.Nf5ef5 (16...Rd8 17.Bf6gf6 18.Nd5Qd2 19.Nf6#- A beautiful mate with two knights)
17.e5!! Breakthrough. At this point it is important to go through black's choices.
A) 17...de5? 18.Bf6 and Qd7 follows.
B) 17...Nd5 18.ed6Kd7 19.Nd5Qd5 20.Qd5Bd5 21.Rd5+-
C)17...Kd7 18.ef6g6 19.Bf4Qc5 20.Bd6Bd6 21.Re7Kc8 22.Na4+-
D) 17..Nh7 18.ed6Kd7 19.Re7Be7 20.de7Bd5 21.Qf4!
17....Bc8 This is an admission of the need to defend d7. 18.ef6Be6 19.fg7Bg7 20.Qd6!Rb2
Black lashes out.Van Wely is known to be an optimist.
21.Kb2Qc3 22.Kc1Kb2 23.Kd2Qd4 24.Qd4Bd4 -Van Wely has done well to reach this stage of this game.Khalifman simply turns up the pressure.
25.Ke2Bb6 26.Rb1Bc7 27.Rb7!!Bh2 28.f40-0 The black king appears to have eluded his pursuers.
Khalifman showed this to be an optical illusion:
29.Rh1Bg3 30.Rh5Kg7 31.Bh6Kg6 32.Rg5!
In view of the moves Rg3 and Rb1-h1 mate Van Wely resigned. So what were the key points in this game?
A) 7...h5?! Keeps the King on e8 a bit longer.
B) 9.Bc4 kept up pressure on e6 and also removed a good active black knight.
C) 15.Rhe1 completed centralisation.
D) 17.e5! Was the key to the breakthrough.
E) 27.Rb7 was the key move removing a defender.
I hope this was enjoyable and instructive.
I hoped you liked the I Sokolov vs Dreev game. Now I want to present a game which features a sustained initiative which lasts beyond a queen exchange and still ends up with a mating attack against the king.Again the game is not played by the elite but nevertheless the 2 GMs are outstanding:
Khalifman vs Van Wely Wijk aan Zee 2002
1.e4c5 2.Nf3d6 3.d4cd4 4.Nd4Nf6 5.Nc3a6 6.f3e6 7.Be3h5?!
-This was a favourite of Topalov's.Black anticipates whites g2-g4 thrust and insists on trying to dominate on the queen side.The problem with this is the address of the black king.Its a fixed address on e8 for quite some time.This allows white to draw on his major firepower and aim for a breakthrough with pawns.
8.Qd2Nbd7 9.Bc4!? This natural move was new at the time.Khalifmann simply pursues a policy of centralisation followed up by some very concrete tactics. The move Nbd7 temporarily interferes with the c8 bishop and its ability to protect e6.
9...Ne5 A good choice bad was 9...b5? 10.Be6fe6 11.Ne6Qa5 12.b4Qb4 13.Nc7+-
9...d5 10.ed5Nb6 11.Bb3Nfd5 12.Nd5Nd5 13.0-0-0 with a promising position that looks like Sozin line.
In the English attack the bishop stays at home on f1 for some time before deploying to h3 or g2 sometimes.
10.Bb3b5 11.0-0-0 Here Khalifman gives himself a small advantage. His centralised pieces gave him the force necessary for a breakthrough in the centre.Most attacking players centralise.
11....Bb7 12.Bg5Qa5?! This move was to be the cause of a lot of problems for black.The problem is the lack of adequate cover for the d7 square in some variations. Van Wely should not be blamed for facing a novelty like 9.Bc4 with some active moves.
13.Kb1 -Like most attacking players, Khalifman makes his prophylactic move.
13...Nc4?! Once again Van Wely shows a desire to be active but now there is a positional concession.
14.Bc4 Khalifman follows the general principle of removing the opponent's active pieces. 14....bc4
15.Rhe1 centralisation before all hell breaks loose.Of course many players would ask how Van Wely was to come under such pressure at this stage. Most of black's queen side pieces have been mobilized. Its clear black wants to hold up as much as possible in the center and on the right side of the board.
15...Rb8? This is a step too far on the left of the board. If 15...Be7 16.f4 is good with the idea of a breakthrough with e4-e5 and Bf6 then hitting black on d7.
16.Nf5ef5 (16...Rd8 17.Bf6gf6 18.Nd5Qd2 19.Nf6#- A beautiful mate with two knights)
17.e5!! Breakthrough. At this point it is important to go through black's choices.
A) 17...de5? 18.Bf6 and Qd7 follows.
B) 17...Nd5 18.ed6Kd7 19.Nd5Qd5 20.Qd5Bd5 21.Rd5+-
C)17...Kd7 18.ef6g6 19.Bf4Qc5 20.Bd6Bd6 21.Re7Kc8 22.Na4+-
D) 17..Nh7 18.ed6Kd7 19.Re7Be7 20.de7Bd5 21.Qf4!
17....Bc8 This is an admission of the need to defend d7. 18.ef6Be6 19.fg7Bg7 20.Qd6!Rb2
Black lashes out.Van Wely is known to be an optimist.
21.Kb2Qc3 22.Kc1Kb2 23.Kd2Qd4 24.Qd4Bd4 -Van Wely has done well to reach this stage of this game.Khalifman simply turns up the pressure.
25.Ke2Bb6 26.Rb1Bc7 27.Rb7!!Bh2 28.f40-0 The black king appears to have eluded his pursuers.
Khalifman showed this to be an optical illusion:
29.Rh1Bg3 30.Rh5Kg7 31.Bh6Kg6 32.Rg5!
In view of the moves Rg3 and Rb1-h1 mate Van Wely resigned. So what were the key points in this game?
A) 7...h5?! Keeps the King on e8 a bit longer.
B) 9.Bc4 kept up pressure on e6 and also removed a good active black knight.
C) 15.Rhe1 completed centralisation.
D) 17.e5! Was the key to the breakthrough.
E) 27.Rb7 was the key move removing a defender.
I hope this was enjoyable and instructive.
The violent overthrow of Kings in modern chess. Part One
Hello chess lovers,
I want to share with you a game that has been mostly overlooked but yet is a masterpiece.Chess is often presented as a game where we can only learn from champions or the elite top ten Grandmasters in the world.Everyday some attacking gem is played online or in a tournament around the world.Today we will look at a clash between two GMs with high pedigree: Ivan Sokolov and Alexey Dreev has they have a go at each other in a manic frenzy of attacking chess.
Here is my account of this magnificent clash.
Sokolov I v Dreev 2001 D43
1.d4d5 2.c4c6 Dreev has been a major exponent of this defense for many years. He has earned a living from developing deeply the theory of the Slav and writing on it.
3.Nf3Nf6 4.Nc3e6
-This is a non verbal challenge to Ivan-come and try Bg5.Dreev has shown a reluctance to play Bc8-f5 because he has been an expert at chasing that bishop from the white side.
5.Bg5h6 the Moscow variation
6.Bh4dc4
Black throws down the gauntlet and takes a pawn while white seeks compensation by taking space in the center.To play such a line as black takes a certain willingness to accept a period of pressure but also a knowledge that his best winning chances may lie in creating imbalances.
7.e4g5 8.Bg3b5 9.Be2Bb7 10.h4
-An idea of Khalifmann's.Rather than give any more information on where his King will reside, white hopes to open more lines.Dreev's response is to attack on the other flank removing the defender of e4.
10...b4 11.Na4Ne4 and now Ivan has to show a return for his investment. 12.Be5Rg8 -One achievement for Sokolov: black's King needs to find a secure address.
13.Qc2!?
After this move the game moves into a vortex of complications literally having an impact on the 4 corners of the boars.
13...c5! Activity is at premium here. 14.Bc4g4 And Sokolov faces a tough choice. Does he meekly retreat the knight or counter with some aggression?
15.Bb5+ (15.Nd2Nd2 16.Qd2Nc6 is very good for black.Development is completed and there is pressure on d4 and e5?
15...Nd7 16.dc5?
This probably the decisive mistake.However it has its logic.Having played Bb5 white wants to go for c5-c6.Its quite probable that Ivan saw nothing else to keep the momentum. Stohl analysed 16.0-0-0gf3 17.dc5fg2 18.Rg1Bd5 19.c6Bd6 20.cd7Ke7 21.f3 as unclear.It is a position worth analysing in depth as it gives rise to fascinating complications.The d7 pawn is white's big asset.
16....b3!! Dreev pinpoints the flaw with white's plan and opens up the a5-e1 diagonal.He is aiming at the white King.This black's most active and threatening move.I believe that in this position Dreev looked at forcing possibilities for both sides.
17.Qd3 It turns out that 17.ab3?gf3 18.Bd7Qd7 19.gf3Nc5 20.Nc5Bc5 21.Qc5Bf3 22.Rf1Rd8 is great for black as d2 is pressured. 17.Qb3Bd5 18.Qd3gf3 19.c6Bb4 20.Nc3Ne5 21.c7Qd7 22.Bd7Kd7 23.Qb5Kc7
is also good for black.Black's king turns out to be safer than his opposite number.
17...gf3 18.c6Bb4 and Dreev shows the skills of an Aikido master on the board.White pushed as far as possible with the c-pawn and then Dreev finds the counter stroke.
19.Bc3Bc3 20.bc3fg2 21.Rg1b2 an amazing position arises: After 21 moves black has two passed pawns on the second rank while the white king is marooned in the center.
22.Rd1Qh4!!Dreev finds the time to attack the white kingside. 23.Qd7Kf8 24.Qd4b1=Q 25.Rb1Rd8 and now black's remaining forces take on active posts with a tempo.
26.cb7Rd4! In one grandmaster game three pawns reach the 7th rank! 27.b7-b8=QReincarnation!! Rd8 28.Qa7Qh2 Now black completes his coup d'etat: 29.Ke2Rd2 30.Ke3Rg3! 31.Ke4Rg4 and white resigned in view of the impending mate.
This has to be one of the most exciting games of the 21st century filled with strokes and counterstrokes.
I hope you enjoyed this as much as I did.
John
I want to share with you a game that has been mostly overlooked but yet is a masterpiece.Chess is often presented as a game where we can only learn from champions or the elite top ten Grandmasters in the world.Everyday some attacking gem is played online or in a tournament around the world.Today we will look at a clash between two GMs with high pedigree: Ivan Sokolov and Alexey Dreev has they have a go at each other in a manic frenzy of attacking chess.
Here is my account of this magnificent clash.
Sokolov I v Dreev 2001 D43
1.d4d5 2.c4c6 Dreev has been a major exponent of this defense for many years. He has earned a living from developing deeply the theory of the Slav and writing on it.
3.Nf3Nf6 4.Nc3e6
-This is a non verbal challenge to Ivan-come and try Bg5.Dreev has shown a reluctance to play Bc8-f5 because he has been an expert at chasing that bishop from the white side.
5.Bg5h6 the Moscow variation
6.Bh4dc4
Black throws down the gauntlet and takes a pawn while white seeks compensation by taking space in the center.To play such a line as black takes a certain willingness to accept a period of pressure but also a knowledge that his best winning chances may lie in creating imbalances.
7.e4g5 8.Bg3b5 9.Be2Bb7 10.h4
-An idea of Khalifmann's.Rather than give any more information on where his King will reside, white hopes to open more lines.Dreev's response is to attack on the other flank removing the defender of e4.
10...b4 11.Na4Ne4 and now Ivan has to show a return for his investment. 12.Be5Rg8 -One achievement for Sokolov: black's King needs to find a secure address.
13.Qc2!?
After this move the game moves into a vortex of complications literally having an impact on the 4 corners of the boars.
13...c5! Activity is at premium here. 14.Bc4g4 And Sokolov faces a tough choice. Does he meekly retreat the knight or counter with some aggression?
15.Bb5+ (15.Nd2Nd2 16.Qd2Nc6 is very good for black.Development is completed and there is pressure on d4 and e5?
15...Nd7 16.dc5?
This probably the decisive mistake.However it has its logic.Having played Bb5 white wants to go for c5-c6.Its quite probable that Ivan saw nothing else to keep the momentum. Stohl analysed 16.0-0-0gf3 17.dc5fg2 18.Rg1Bd5 19.c6Bd6 20.cd7Ke7 21.f3 as unclear.It is a position worth analysing in depth as it gives rise to fascinating complications.The d7 pawn is white's big asset.
16....b3!! Dreev pinpoints the flaw with white's plan and opens up the a5-e1 diagonal.He is aiming at the white King.This black's most active and threatening move.I believe that in this position Dreev looked at forcing possibilities for both sides.
17.Qd3 It turns out that 17.ab3?gf3 18.Bd7Qd7 19.gf3Nc5 20.Nc5Bc5 21.Qc5Bf3 22.Rf1Rd8 is great for black as d2 is pressured. 17.Qb3Bd5 18.Qd3gf3 19.c6Bb4 20.Nc3Ne5 21.c7Qd7 22.Bd7Kd7 23.Qb5Kc7
is also good for black.Black's king turns out to be safer than his opposite number.
17...gf3 18.c6Bb4 and Dreev shows the skills of an Aikido master on the board.White pushed as far as possible with the c-pawn and then Dreev finds the counter stroke.
19.Bc3Bc3 20.bc3fg2 21.Rg1b2 an amazing position arises: After 21 moves black has two passed pawns on the second rank while the white king is marooned in the center.
22.Rd1Qh4!!Dreev finds the time to attack the white kingside. 23.Qd7Kf8 24.Qd4b1=Q 25.Rb1Rd8 and now black's remaining forces take on active posts with a tempo.
26.cb7Rd4! In one grandmaster game three pawns reach the 7th rank! 27.b7-b8=QReincarnation!! Rd8 28.Qa7Qh2 Now black completes his coup d'etat: 29.Ke2Rd2 30.Ke3Rg3! 31.Ke4Rg4 and white resigned in view of the impending mate.
This has to be one of the most exciting games of the 21st century filled with strokes and counterstrokes.
I hope you enjoyed this as much as I did.
John
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