Hello Chess lovers,
We will look at the theme of chasing bishops in the Slav defence where the consequences are more long term.
In the following game Dreev demonstrates truly original opening play and uses his pawns to generate a king side attack which then lead to an ending where he won by a small margin. This leads to a brief exploration of what
Jonathan Rowson likes to call practical subjectivity.During a game of chess at any level, various emotions are experienced. Stress levels can fluctuate. Often dealing with the pressure of an attack and then bailing out of the attack can really be a stressful experience. I had to endure that in a recent tournament. I managed to bail out and then I found that the calculation of the ending was another mental barrier to be broken. One has to prepare physically for this especially when playing black.
Now unto Dreev v Huebner Essen 2000
1.d4d5 2.c4c6 3.Nf3Nf6 4.e3Bf5 5.Nc3e6 6.Nh4 That move again.Bg4 7.Qb3Qb6 8.h3Bh5 9.g4Bg6
10.c5!?Qc7 11.g5Ng8 12.Ng6hg6 White has got a space advantage and the two bishops. Lets see how Dreev builds on this. 13.e4Rh4 (13...Be7 14.Bf4!Qf4 15.Qb7;13...b6!?) 14.ed5ed5 15.Ne2! With the idea of Qg3.
15...Na6 16.Qg3Rh8 17.Bf4Qa5 18.Bd2Qc7 19.h4Ne7 20.Bh3Nf5 21.Bf5gf5 22.Bf4Qa5+? 23.Kf1
Dreev does not really explain why his position is better but there are a few indicators.The white pieces are very harmonious,the e-file is ready for a rook and the f4 square can also be used for a knight.Black has difficulties with his king. If for example 23...0-0-0 24.g6!.
23...Be7 24.g6Qd8 25.h5Qd7 26.gf7 The g-pawn has reached the end of its journey.Kf7 27.Qg6+Kg8 28.h6 The h-pawn goes as far as it can.Rh7 29.Be5Qe8 29...Bf8?30.Qh7
30.Qf5Qf7 31.Qf7Kf7 32.Bg7Bf6 33.Bf6Kf6 34.Re1Rah8 35.Rh3?!Rh6 36.Rf3+Kg5 37.Ng3Rf6
38.Re5Kg6 39.Rb3Rh2 40.Re2Rf7
White has an extra pawn but black has active defensive possibilities. As the ending goes beyond the scope of the article I will make some general comments from this point onwards.
41.Kg1Rh4 42.Re6Kh7 43.Ne2Rg7 44.Rg3Rf7 45.Ree3b6 46.cb6abc6 47.Re6Rh6 48.Rh6Kh6 49.Kg2c5 50.Rb3Rf6 51.Nc3Nb4? The one serious misstep by black. 52.Na4Rg6 53.Kf3Na2 54.dc5bc5
55.Nc5Rc6 56.Nd3Nc1 57.Nc1Rc1 58.Ke3 and here black missed the active ...Rc2 and played instead
58...Rc4? 59.Rb5Re4 60.Kd3Rf4 61.Rd5Rf2 62.b4Kg6 63.Re5Kf6 64.Re1 1-0
It would be interesting to divide the game into 3 phases:
The opening phase involved waiting for 5...e6 to pounce with 6.Nh4. White then chased the bishop till he got it on g6.The next phase involved manoevring the queen to g3 after after 15.Ne2. Once the queen got to g3, Dreev set in motion the pawns on g5 and h4 and then targeted g7.Its interesting to note he un doubled the pawns on the g-file in order to get another advantage.The final phase occurred after getting the extra pawn.
I may be speculating on Dr Huebner's condition here but he faltered in the ending after a long period of defense.Its very important to bear this in mind when playing and also when selecting a defense to play.
Hopefully this was instructive and of value.
Cheers, John
Saturday, 26 March 2011
Chasing bishops in the opening Part Two-The Trompovsky
Hello Chess lovers,
In this part, I will explore one opening which has proven to be rich and fertile for imaginative players
who wish to pose opponents and themselves with new challenges. The exotic school of chess includes
Julian Hodgson, Luke McShane,Igor Miladinovic and Stefanova as well as Chernyshov and Moskalenko.
Today we will look at one of McShane's games and see how he grabs space boardwide
while chasing a bishop.
McShane v Jansa Bundesliga 2003
1.d4Nf6 2.Bg5Ne4 3.Bf4d5 4.e3Bf5 5.f3Nf6 6.c4e6 Black is trying to be as solid as possible and get the
pieces out.White realises that the black pieces are in the way of a tsunami of pawns. So he grabs space all over.It should be noted that all the great GMs grabbed space.
7.Qb3b6 8.Nc3c6 9.g4Bg6 10.h4h5 11.g5Ng8
Now we can assess what has been achived by this. Black has played his king knight to f6,e4,f6,g8 in the first 11 moves.The black bishop went from c8 to f5 and then to g6. So two black pieces moved a total of 6 moves within the first 11 moves.Incredibly the rest are pawn moves.White is poised to castle, and has moved out his queen,c1 bishop and knight to c3.
12.cd5ed5 13.e4 grabbing more space and denying f5 to black. 13...Bd6 14.Nh4Nge7 15.0-0-0 0-0
finally black has made some progress but only as far as getting the pieces out his concerned. Mcshane continues to engage in what I like to call square-denial.
16.Bd3a5 17.Rhe1Na6 18.a3 Square denial. The great Karpov always insisted on removing active possibilities from the opposition.
18...b5 19.ed5b4 20.Bd6Qd6 21.Ne4Be4 22.fe4 and a great transformation has occurred.White has centralised rooks and a highly mobile centre.
22...a4 Black is worried about being squeezed in the centre so he tries to be active.
23.e5! Mcshane comes up with the equal or stronger threat following the great Fischer who was a master at that. 23...ab3 24.ed6 and black is not out of the woods. White has an e-file and an entry point on e7.
24...Nd5 25.a4g6 26.Nf2 with the idea of Ne4. 26...Nb8 27.Bc4Ra4 28.Bb3Ra5 29.Kd2! The amazing aspect of this game is how simple the following moves are. 29...Nd7 30.Ra1Ra1 31.Ra1 in 4 simple moves,
white has improved his position tremendously. Every piece is active and poised for action.
31...f6 -Almost inevitable. Black has had enough of passive defense and whats to activate something-anything! 32.Ne4fg5 33.Ng5Rf6 34.Ra8Kg7 35.Ra7Rd6 36.Ne4 1-0 And there is a simple ending. Black will lose a piece.
The deeper point of showing this game is that the chasing of the bishop led to more squares being denied to black.This is what can happen when pieces are in the way of the pawns.I hope this part will be of value and inspire you.
In this part, I will explore one opening which has proven to be rich and fertile for imaginative players
who wish to pose opponents and themselves with new challenges. The exotic school of chess includes
Julian Hodgson, Luke McShane,Igor Miladinovic and Stefanova as well as Chernyshov and Moskalenko.
Today we will look at one of McShane's games and see how he grabs space boardwide
while chasing a bishop.
McShane v Jansa Bundesliga 2003
1.d4Nf6 2.Bg5Ne4 3.Bf4d5 4.e3Bf5 5.f3Nf6 6.c4e6 Black is trying to be as solid as possible and get the
pieces out.White realises that the black pieces are in the way of a tsunami of pawns. So he grabs space all over.It should be noted that all the great GMs grabbed space.
7.Qb3b6 8.Nc3c6 9.g4Bg6 10.h4h5 11.g5Ng8
Now we can assess what has been achived by this. Black has played his king knight to f6,e4,f6,g8 in the first 11 moves.The black bishop went from c8 to f5 and then to g6. So two black pieces moved a total of 6 moves within the first 11 moves.Incredibly the rest are pawn moves.White is poised to castle, and has moved out his queen,c1 bishop and knight to c3.
12.cd5ed5 13.e4 grabbing more space and denying f5 to black. 13...Bd6 14.Nh4Nge7 15.0-0-0 0-0
finally black has made some progress but only as far as getting the pieces out his concerned. Mcshane continues to engage in what I like to call square-denial.
16.Bd3a5 17.Rhe1Na6 18.a3 Square denial. The great Karpov always insisted on removing active possibilities from the opposition.
18...b5 19.ed5b4 20.Bd6Qd6 21.Ne4Be4 22.fe4 and a great transformation has occurred.White has centralised rooks and a highly mobile centre.
22...a4 Black is worried about being squeezed in the centre so he tries to be active.
23.e5! Mcshane comes up with the equal or stronger threat following the great Fischer who was a master at that. 23...ab3 24.ed6 and black is not out of the woods. White has an e-file and an entry point on e7.
24...Nd5 25.a4g6 26.Nf2 with the idea of Ne4. 26...Nb8 27.Bc4Ra4 28.Bb3Ra5 29.Kd2! The amazing aspect of this game is how simple the following moves are. 29...Nd7 30.Ra1Ra1 31.Ra1 in 4 simple moves,
white has improved his position tremendously. Every piece is active and poised for action.
31...f6 -Almost inevitable. Black has had enough of passive defense and whats to activate something-anything! 32.Ne4fg5 33.Ng5Rf6 34.Ra8Kg7 35.Ra7Rd6 36.Ne4 1-0 And there is a simple ending. Black will lose a piece.
The deeper point of showing this game is that the chasing of the bishop led to more squares being denied to black.This is what can happen when pieces are in the way of the pawns.I hope this part will be of value and inspire you.
Chasing bishops in the opening Part One
Hello Chess Lovers
I want to continue the theme built up with g-force: chasing bishops in opening theory. Bishops can be chased
from active positions by both sides and my aim is to demonstrate how this is done with gains of space and time or complex positions. Rather than go through entire games in part one, I will present excerpts from different openings. Lets get into the meat of the matter:
Egger vs Papaioannou
1.e4d5 2.ed5Qd5 3.Nc3Qa5 4.d4c6 5.Nf3Nf6 6.Bc4Bf5 7.Bd2e6
8.Nd5Qd8 9.Nf6gf6 10.Qe2 - A standard position. White is aiming at the e6 point.
Its always nice to develop bishops to active squares like f5, however they come under attack quite quickly.
10....Nd7 (Black had 10...Bc2!?) 11.0-0-0Qc7?! 12.Nh4 here white does not use a g-pawn.
This type of knight move is common in the Slav as well.
12....Bg6 13.Be6!fe6 14.Qe6Kd8 (14...Be7? 15.Rhe10-0-0 16.Qe7Qh2 17.Rh1) 15.Ng6hg6 16.Rhe1Bd6
17.d5c5 18.Bh6 with the idea of Bg7. 18...Bf4? Understandably black is concerned about Bg7.
19.Bf4Qf4 20.Kb1Kc8 21.d6Rd8 22.Qf7Qg4 23.f3Qa4 24.Re8Qa5 white went on to win here.
However he played 25.Rd8? instead of 25.f4 which would have definitely posed black serious issues in terms of surviving in a passive position. The point of this article however, is to highlight the dangers involved in posting bishops where they can be attacked and that players need to take account of this in preparation. This means that over the board the surprise factor is diminished.
The next example is concerned with the Semi Slav systems where very commital pawn moves are made chasing bishops by both sides:
Atalik vs Dreev Sarajevo 2001
1.d4d5 2.c4c6 3.Nf3Nf6 4.Nc3e6 5.Bg5h6 Black puts the question to the bishop. 6.Bh4dc4 7.e4g5Once black chooses this course the game enters a highly commital phase where the pawn structure changes radically. 8.Bg3 b59.Be2Bb7 10.h4b4 11.hg5bc3! Notice that black goes for the equal or stronger threat.12.gf6cb2 13.Rb1Qa5 14.Nd2c3 15.0-0Ba6 16.Nb3Qa2 17.Nc5Bb5 18.Qc2Qa3 19.Rfd1Rg8!
An amazing unbalanced position arises.Dreev admitted to feeling uneasy about keeping his king in the centre.
However a d4-d5 thrust is really tactically wrong now because of the knight on c5.
20.Bb5cb5 21.Qe2..the point of Qe2.Qb4 22.Ne6Qc4!! 23.Nc7Kd8 24.Qh5 the only active move.
24....Rg5 25.Qh3Rg3 26.Qg3Qc7 and black went on to win. A truly thrill-a-minute game. One important guide is to calculate and assess the consequences of making commital moves like ..g5 and ...b5.The emphasis here was on finding active moves like...Rg8, ....Qa5,....Ba6,Qc4!!
The next example is quite famous.
Shirov v Nisipeanu 1999
1.e4c6 2.d4d5 3.e5Bf5 4.Nc3e6 5.g4Bg6 6.Nge2 in this line of the Caro-Kann Advance the idea is to gain both time and space with attacks on the g6 bishop.Shirov takes it to extremes:
6...c5 7.h4 (7.Be3Nc6 was featured in Grischuk v Shirov) 7....h6 8.f4!Be7 9.Bg2!clearing f1 for the King.
9...Bh4 10.Kf1 Shirov has made a very big commitment. What this means is that his concept has to work with very sharp lines coming up. 10..Be711.f5! no turning back now....Bh7 (11...ef5? 12.Nf4Nc6 13.Ng6fg6 14.gf5) 12.Nf4Qd7 13.Nh5!?Bf8 14.dc5Nc6 15.Nb5Bc5 (15...Ne5 16.Qe2) 16.c4!!
A brave choice in view of the fact that he had Ng7. Shirov is preparing for the moment black castles Queenside but he also shows how he values momentum over material.John Watson is quite effusive
in his praise of Shirov because it is clear he has gone way beyond calculation and into the realm of
intuition.He grasps that opening the position is of great importance here and open lines are needed.
16...Ne5! Active defence which hits at the c4 the pawn that supports the knight on b5. 17.Qe2Nc4 18.Bd5!Qb5 19.Bc4Qb6 20.fe6?! after this move black fought hard and went on to win with
20...0-0-0 21.ef7Ne7 - Had Shirov played 20.Ng7Kf8 21.Nh5 with the idea of Qe5 -d5 and Nf5 the game
would be totally different. However its one of the most marvellous examples of fantasy at the highest levels.
Finally I will present an example from one of my games:
Tobisch v O'Gorman
Christmas Congress 06
1.d4d5 2.Nf3Nf6 3.g3Bg4 4.Bg2e6 5.0-0Be7 6.c4c6 7.b3Nbd7 8.Bb20-0
9.Nbd2h6 10.Ne5Ne5 11.de5Nfd7 12.Kh1 This a slow version of the Catalan.
12...Nb6 13.f3Bh5 14.Rc1dc4 15.Nc4Nc4 16.Rc4Qd1 17.Rd1Rfd8 18.Rcd4Kf8
19.Ba3!! This possibility occurs because of the back rank weakness.
19...Rd4 20.Be7+ the check makes it work. 20...Ke7 21.Rd4Rd8 22.Rd8Kd8
23.Kg2Kc7 24.Kf2c5 25.e4Kb6 26.Ke3Kc5 27.g4 here I found that I could entomb the
bishop. 27...Bg6 28.a3b5 29.Bf1Kb6 30.f4a5 31.f5Bh7 and the bishop was entombed.
White won in 20 moves.
So, from all of these examples we can see how chasing bishops with pieces or pawns
by either black or white creates space and gains time. However there are very commital aspects
to such moves. The side which moves a lot of pawns to do this loses time. The side which retreats the bishops
has to understand how to exploit the long term weaknesses inherent in such pawn moves. I hope the examples given were enjoyable.
Cheers, John
I want to continue the theme built up with g-force: chasing bishops in opening theory. Bishops can be chased
from active positions by both sides and my aim is to demonstrate how this is done with gains of space and time or complex positions. Rather than go through entire games in part one, I will present excerpts from different openings. Lets get into the meat of the matter:
Egger vs Papaioannou
1.e4d5 2.ed5Qd5 3.Nc3Qa5 4.d4c6 5.Nf3Nf6 6.Bc4Bf5 7.Bd2e6
8.Nd5Qd8 9.Nf6gf6 10.Qe2 - A standard position. White is aiming at the e6 point.
Its always nice to develop bishops to active squares like f5, however they come under attack quite quickly.
10....Nd7 (Black had 10...Bc2!?) 11.0-0-0Qc7?! 12.Nh4 here white does not use a g-pawn.
This type of knight move is common in the Slav as well.
12....Bg6 13.Be6!fe6 14.Qe6Kd8 (14...Be7? 15.Rhe10-0-0 16.Qe7Qh2 17.Rh1) 15.Ng6hg6 16.Rhe1Bd6
17.d5c5 18.Bh6 with the idea of Bg7. 18...Bf4? Understandably black is concerned about Bg7.
19.Bf4Qf4 20.Kb1Kc8 21.d6Rd8 22.Qf7Qg4 23.f3Qa4 24.Re8Qa5 white went on to win here.
However he played 25.Rd8? instead of 25.f4 which would have definitely posed black serious issues in terms of surviving in a passive position. The point of this article however, is to highlight the dangers involved in posting bishops where they can be attacked and that players need to take account of this in preparation. This means that over the board the surprise factor is diminished.
The next example is concerned with the Semi Slav systems where very commital pawn moves are made chasing bishops by both sides:
Atalik vs Dreev Sarajevo 2001
1.d4d5 2.c4c6 3.Nf3Nf6 4.Nc3e6 5.Bg5h6 Black puts the question to the bishop. 6.Bh4dc4 7.e4g5Once black chooses this course the game enters a highly commital phase where the pawn structure changes radically. 8.Bg3 b59.Be2Bb7 10.h4b4 11.hg5bc3! Notice that black goes for the equal or stronger threat.12.gf6cb2 13.Rb1Qa5 14.Nd2c3 15.0-0Ba6 16.Nb3Qa2 17.Nc5Bb5 18.Qc2Qa3 19.Rfd1Rg8!
An amazing unbalanced position arises.Dreev admitted to feeling uneasy about keeping his king in the centre.
However a d4-d5 thrust is really tactically wrong now because of the knight on c5.
20.Bb5cb5 21.Qe2..the point of Qe2.Qb4 22.Ne6Qc4!! 23.Nc7Kd8 24.Qh5 the only active move.
24....Rg5 25.Qh3Rg3 26.Qg3Qc7 and black went on to win. A truly thrill-a-minute game. One important guide is to calculate and assess the consequences of making commital moves like ..g5 and ...b5.The emphasis here was on finding active moves like...Rg8, ....Qa5,....Ba6,Qc4!!
The next example is quite famous.
Shirov v Nisipeanu 1999
1.e4c6 2.d4d5 3.e5Bf5 4.Nc3e6 5.g4Bg6 6.Nge2 in this line of the Caro-Kann Advance the idea is to gain both time and space with attacks on the g6 bishop.Shirov takes it to extremes:
6...c5 7.h4 (7.Be3Nc6 was featured in Grischuk v Shirov) 7....h6 8.f4!Be7 9.Bg2!clearing f1 for the King.
9...Bh4 10.Kf1 Shirov has made a very big commitment. What this means is that his concept has to work with very sharp lines coming up. 10..Be711.f5! no turning back now....Bh7 (11...ef5? 12.Nf4Nc6 13.Ng6fg6 14.gf5) 12.Nf4Qd7 13.Nh5!?Bf8 14.dc5Nc6 15.Nb5Bc5 (15...Ne5 16.Qe2) 16.c4!!
A brave choice in view of the fact that he had Ng7. Shirov is preparing for the moment black castles Queenside but he also shows how he values momentum over material.John Watson is quite effusive
in his praise of Shirov because it is clear he has gone way beyond calculation and into the realm of
intuition.He grasps that opening the position is of great importance here and open lines are needed.
16...Ne5! Active defence which hits at the c4 the pawn that supports the knight on b5. 17.Qe2Nc4 18.Bd5!Qb5 19.Bc4Qb6 20.fe6?! after this move black fought hard and went on to win with
20...0-0-0 21.ef7Ne7 - Had Shirov played 20.Ng7Kf8 21.Nh5 with the idea of Qe5 -d5 and Nf5 the game
would be totally different. However its one of the most marvellous examples of fantasy at the highest levels.
Finally I will present an example from one of my games:
Tobisch v O'Gorman
Christmas Congress 06
1.d4d5 2.Nf3Nf6 3.g3Bg4 4.Bg2e6 5.0-0Be7 6.c4c6 7.b3Nbd7 8.Bb20-0
9.Nbd2h6 10.Ne5Ne5 11.de5Nfd7 12.Kh1 This a slow version of the Catalan.
12...Nb6 13.f3Bh5 14.Rc1dc4 15.Nc4Nc4 16.Rc4Qd1 17.Rd1Rfd8 18.Rcd4Kf8
19.Ba3!! This possibility occurs because of the back rank weakness.
19...Rd4 20.Be7+ the check makes it work. 20...Ke7 21.Rd4Rd8 22.Rd8Kd8
23.Kg2Kc7 24.Kf2c5 25.e4Kb6 26.Ke3Kc5 27.g4 here I found that I could entomb the
bishop. 27...Bg6 28.a3b5 29.Bf1Kb6 30.f4a5 31.f5Bh7 and the bishop was entombed.
White won in 20 moves.
So, from all of these examples we can see how chasing bishops with pieces or pawns
by either black or white creates space and gains time. However there are very commital aspects
to such moves. The side which moves a lot of pawns to do this loses time. The side which retreats the bishops
has to understand how to exploit the long term weaknesses inherent in such pawn moves. I hope the examples given were enjoyable.
Cheers, John
Friday, 25 March 2011
G-Force in chess: The rise of the g-pawn thrust in chess theory Part Three
Hello Chess lovers
I will now go to a famous example played by Indian World Champion Anand.
Anand v Lautier
1.e4d5 2.ed5Qd5 3.Nc3Qa5 4.d4Nf6 5.Nf3c6 6.Bc4Bf5 7.Ne5e6 Whenever black develops
his bishop to f5 and then plays the commital move ...e6 the g-pawn always comes handy for white.
8.g4!?Bg6 9.h4 white can do this because black cannot develop a sufficiently potent counter attack
in the center.
9...Nbd7 10.Nd7Nd7 11.h5Be4 12.Rh3!Bg2 13.Re3 it is this move that sets the stage for what is
to come....Nb6? at this point Lautier could still have played 13...Bd5 14.Bd30-0-0.
14.Bd3Nd5 15.f3! entombment.Bb4 16.Kf2Bc3 17.bc3Qc3 18.Rb1 Anand goes for the open lines.
Its amazing that black seems unconcerned about his King.
18...Qd4 19.Rb7Rd8 and here Anand sees the black King in danger and finds a way to connect some dots...
20.h6!! gh6? -This is a sign that Lautier has not sensed danger.The loose black Queen and the bad black King are key factors. Lautier stilll had 20...Ne321.Be3Qe5 22.hg7Rg8 23.Qg1Bf3 24.Kf3 according to Anand. 21.Bg6!! Lovely -the black queen is under attack and the f7 pawn is pinned which means that e6 is
under attack.
21...Ne7
21...Qe322.Be3fg6 23.Bc5
21....Qf6 22.Bf7Qf7 23.Rf7Ne3 24.Qd8Kd8 25.Be3Bh3 26.Ra7
21...Qd1 22.Re6Kf8 23.Bh6Kg8 24.Bf7#
22.Qd4Rd4 23.Rd3Rd8 24.Rd8Kd8 25.Bd3 1-0 The g2 bishop will be trapped. Here is a summary:
Black seemed solid but then the g4-h4 advance forced black to move his bishop several times.
Eventually the bishop was entombed.Then black lashed out seeking active play by piling pressure on c3.
Taking the pawn on c3 was a turning point as Anand got activity for his rooks.The trouble really began after ...Qd4.
Its important to see how much pressure the g-pawn put on black's position.
Hopefully this was instructive.
I will now go to a famous example played by Indian World Champion Anand.
Anand v Lautier
1.e4d5 2.ed5Qd5 3.Nc3Qa5 4.d4Nf6 5.Nf3c6 6.Bc4Bf5 7.Ne5e6 Whenever black develops
his bishop to f5 and then plays the commital move ...e6 the g-pawn always comes handy for white.
8.g4!?Bg6 9.h4 white can do this because black cannot develop a sufficiently potent counter attack
in the center.
9...Nbd7 10.Nd7Nd7 11.h5Be4 12.Rh3!Bg2 13.Re3 it is this move that sets the stage for what is
to come....Nb6? at this point Lautier could still have played 13...Bd5 14.Bd30-0-0.
14.Bd3Nd5 15.f3! entombment.Bb4 16.Kf2Bc3 17.bc3Qc3 18.Rb1 Anand goes for the open lines.
Its amazing that black seems unconcerned about his King.
18...Qd4 19.Rb7Rd8 and here Anand sees the black King in danger and finds a way to connect some dots...
20.h6!! gh6? -This is a sign that Lautier has not sensed danger.The loose black Queen and the bad black King are key factors. Lautier stilll had 20...Ne321.Be3Qe5 22.hg7Rg8 23.Qg1Bf3 24.Kf3 according to Anand. 21.Bg6!! Lovely -the black queen is under attack and the f7 pawn is pinned which means that e6 is
under attack.
21...Ne7
21...Qe322.Be3fg6 23.Bc5
21....Qf6 22.Bf7Qf7 23.Rf7Ne3 24.Qd8Kd8 25.Be3Bh3 26.Ra7
21...Qd1 22.Re6Kf8 23.Bh6Kg8 24.Bf7#
22.Qd4Rd4 23.Rd3Rd8 24.Rd8Kd8 25.Bd3 1-0 The g2 bishop will be trapped. Here is a summary:
Black seemed solid but then the g4-h4 advance forced black to move his bishop several times.
Eventually the bishop was entombed.Then black lashed out seeking active play by piling pressure on c3.
Taking the pawn on c3 was a turning point as Anand got activity for his rooks.The trouble really began after ...Qd4.
Its important to see how much pressure the g-pawn put on black's position.
Hopefully this was instructive.
Wednesday, 23 March 2011
G-Force in chess: The rise of the g-pawn thrust in chess theory Part Two
Hello Chess Lovers,
In the second part of this series I will look at a game of the very strong GM, Ivan Sokolov.
This player once defeated Kasparov and is especially lethal with the white pieces in the Slav
and Semi-Slav lines. He can play a very good variety of lines and at the board he is quite deep.
He does not simply search for single moves he searches for conceptual approaches which
involve a line of moves.
We will see how he handles Devereaux in the Reykjavik Open 2011
Sokolov v Devereaux D18
1.d4d5 2.Nf3c6 3.c4Nf6 4.Nc3dc4 5.a4Bf5 - A very popular line. In return for conceding e4 by ...dc4 black gets piece activity and to hit at the d4 square from the d-file.
6.e3e6 7.Bc4Bb4 -Fighting for e4 indirectly. 8.0-00-0 9.Nh4!?This move comes up in many Slav lines.
White wants to get the bishop pair. 9....Bg4 10.f3Bh5 11.g4Nd5 12.Ng2Bg6 so once again we see how theory is built around chasing bishops. Modern theory suggests that space and time can be gained in one move.
13.Na2Bg6 14.e4Nb6 15.Bb3a5 - 16.Be3N8d7 17.Nc3Bb4 18.h4h6 19.Qe2 when building up a space advantage, positioning the pieces behind the pawns for a breakthrough is very important.
19...Bh7 20.Rad1Re8 21.g5! This puts black on guard and it means having to look out for assaults on
the h-file.
21....hg5 22.hg5Nf8 23.Qf2Ra6 24.Bc2Nc4 25.Bc1Nd6 26.Na2 a funny sequence. Both knights retreat.
26...b5 -A sign that black has had enough of shadow boxing. Its a hallmark of experienced 2600+ GMs that they do not always force the issue against the lower rated player who may make pseudo active moves that go nowhere.
27.ab5Nb5 28.Nb4ab4 -There has been a positional transformation. c4 is now available for white.
The dark squares in black's camp may need more protection. 29.Be3Nd6 30.Bc2 Where as white has this scope for manoevering black has to wait in passivity.
30....Qe7 31.Bd2Nb7 32.Rc1Na5 33.Bd1Rb8 34.Qg3Rd8 -Both sides are making the most useful moves.
35.Be3Nb7 36.Ne1Nd6 37.Nd3 and now white dominates c4 and c5. Note how the SuperGM does simple things.
37....Nb5 38.Rc4c5!? This is the sign that black is tired of sitting behind weaknesses.39.Nc5Rd6 40.Nb3R6d7 41.Na5Nd6 42.Rc1Ra8 43.Nc6Qe8 44.Nb4Qb8 45.Nd3 Sokolov is patient.The knight went on a holiday trip and he is not losing on time. In the meantime black struggles to find an idea.
45...Qb5 46.Be2Rd8 47.Rc5Qb6 48.Qf2Nd7 49.Rc3Qb7 50.Rfc1 all very logical. Rooks are doubled and
the bishops are poised. 50...Bg6 51.Rc7 -penetration. ....Qb8 52.Bf4Nf8 53.Rc6Ra4 54.Bf1Bh5
and the desperate bishop seeks action. Its actually going to meet its fate on this square.
55.b4!Rb4 56.Nb4Qb4 57.Kg2Ng6 58.Bg3Ne7!? 59.Rc7Ng6 60.Be2Ne8 61.Rc8Qe7 62.Qe3 Sokolov holds on to g5 and prepares an eventual Rh1.
62...Qd7 63.Rd8Qd8 64.Rh1 1-0
So what can we take from this game:
1) The gain of space and time in chasing a bishop.
2)Using the g-pawn as a battering ram.
3)After gaining space regrouping the pieces. Now this takes schematic thinking not calculation.
4)Preserving the two bishops.
5)Not forcing the game
6)Piece coordination
I hope this was helpful and instructive.
Blessings John
In the second part of this series I will look at a game of the very strong GM, Ivan Sokolov.
This player once defeated Kasparov and is especially lethal with the white pieces in the Slav
and Semi-Slav lines. He can play a very good variety of lines and at the board he is quite deep.
He does not simply search for single moves he searches for conceptual approaches which
involve a line of moves.
We will see how he handles Devereaux in the Reykjavik Open 2011
Sokolov v Devereaux D18
1.d4d5 2.Nf3c6 3.c4Nf6 4.Nc3dc4 5.a4Bf5 - A very popular line. In return for conceding e4 by ...dc4 black gets piece activity and to hit at the d4 square from the d-file.
6.e3e6 7.Bc4Bb4 -Fighting for e4 indirectly. 8.0-00-0 9.Nh4!?This move comes up in many Slav lines.
White wants to get the bishop pair. 9....Bg4 10.f3Bh5 11.g4Nd5 12.Ng2Bg6 so once again we see how theory is built around chasing bishops. Modern theory suggests that space and time can be gained in one move.
13.Na2Bg6 14.e4Nb6 15.Bb3a5 - 16.Be3N8d7 17.Nc3Bb4 18.h4h6 19.Qe2 when building up a space advantage, positioning the pieces behind the pawns for a breakthrough is very important.
19...Bh7 20.Rad1Re8 21.g5! This puts black on guard and it means having to look out for assaults on
the h-file.
21....hg5 22.hg5Nf8 23.Qf2Ra6 24.Bc2Nc4 25.Bc1Nd6 26.Na2 a funny sequence. Both knights retreat.
26...b5 -A sign that black has had enough of shadow boxing. Its a hallmark of experienced 2600+ GMs that they do not always force the issue against the lower rated player who may make pseudo active moves that go nowhere.
27.ab5Nb5 28.Nb4ab4 -There has been a positional transformation. c4 is now available for white.
The dark squares in black's camp may need more protection. 29.Be3Nd6 30.Bc2 Where as white has this scope for manoevering black has to wait in passivity.
30....Qe7 31.Bd2Nb7 32.Rc1Na5 33.Bd1Rb8 34.Qg3Rd8 -Both sides are making the most useful moves.
35.Be3Nb7 36.Ne1Nd6 37.Nd3 and now white dominates c4 and c5. Note how the SuperGM does simple things.
37....Nb5 38.Rc4c5!? This is the sign that black is tired of sitting behind weaknesses.39.Nc5Rd6 40.Nb3R6d7 41.Na5Nd6 42.Rc1Ra8 43.Nc6Qe8 44.Nb4Qb8 45.Nd3 Sokolov is patient.The knight went on a holiday trip and he is not losing on time. In the meantime black struggles to find an idea.
45...Qb5 46.Be2Rd8 47.Rc5Qb6 48.Qf2Nd7 49.Rc3Qb7 50.Rfc1 all very logical. Rooks are doubled and
the bishops are poised. 50...Bg6 51.Rc7 -penetration. ....Qb8 52.Bf4Nf8 53.Rc6Ra4 54.Bf1Bh5
and the desperate bishop seeks action. Its actually going to meet its fate on this square.
55.b4!Rb4 56.Nb4Qb4 57.Kg2Ng6 58.Bg3Ne7!? 59.Rc7Ng6 60.Be2Ne8 61.Rc8Qe7 62.Qe3 Sokolov holds on to g5 and prepares an eventual Rh1.
62...Qd7 63.Rd8Qd8 64.Rh1 1-0
So what can we take from this game:
1) The gain of space and time in chasing a bishop.
2)Using the g-pawn as a battering ram.
3)After gaining space regrouping the pieces. Now this takes schematic thinking not calculation.
4)Preserving the two bishops.
5)Not forcing the game
6)Piece coordination
I hope this was helpful and instructive.
Blessings John
Tuesday, 22 March 2011
G-Force in chess: The rise of the g-pawn thrust in chess theory. Part 1
Hello everyone
I would like to cover the topic of the use of the g-pawn in modern opening theory and how it ties in with another topic not discussed by many books: the danger of certain openings for black where the pieces are in the way of a tsunami of pawns.
We will start with Dautov v Lputian Istanbul 2000 Olympiad
1.d4d5 2.c4e6 3.Nc3Be7 4.cd5cd5 5.Bf4c6 6.e3Bf5 7.g4!? GMs never talk about this a lot but the
paradox of developing the black bishops out to active squares involves them being later chased by pawns which gain both time and space.
7...Be6 8.h4c5 here Lputian goes for the standard procedure. He hits out at the centre in response to a flank attack. In another game he tried 8...Nf6 9.g5Ne4 10.Bd3Qa5 11.Kf1Nc3 12.bc3Nd7 13.Ne20-0-0 14.a4h6 15.ghgh6 -Georgiev v Lputian 8....Bh4 9.Qb3b6 10.Nf3Be7 11.Ne5Nf6 12.g5Nfd7 13.g6!
would be nice for white.
9.Be5! At the time this was new. The idea is to provoke ...f6 and thereby protect h4. 9....Bf6
10.Bb8 White takes away a crucial counter attacking piece.Over the board its not easy to meet this sequence. If one plays the g4 advance one is burning bridges with such a commitment.It means that the King position requires some deep thought.Rb8 11.g5Be7 12.Bg2h6 13.Nge2hg5 14.hg5Rh1 15.Bh1Bg5 16.Qa4Kf8 (16...b5?17.Qa7b4 18.Nd5 winning) 17.dc5Ne7 18.Qa7Nc6 19.Qb6Qf6 20.Qc7Rc8 21.Qh2 Its remarkable how the queen finds so much work in this game....Nb4 22.Rd1Kg8 23.a3Nc2 24.Kd2Nd4 25.Nd4Qd4 26.Ke1Qc5
27.Bd5Qb6 28.Be6Qe6 29.Qg2Bf6 30.Qb7Bc3 31.bc3Rc3 32.Qb8Kh7 33.Qh2Qh6 34.Qh6gh6 and now Dautov shows his technique. 35.Ra1h5 36.a4Rc6 37.a5Ra6 38.Kf1Kg6 39.Kg2Kg5 40.Kh3f6 41.f4Kg6
42.e4 1-0 So what can we take from such a game?
1) Its important as black not to naively place pieces on pseudo active squares when they can be chased back.
2)If you play with g-pawns like this then you have to calculate the variations thoroughly beforehand and work out the follow up.
3)Playing such moves involves an understanding of momentum in chess.
I would like to cover the topic of the use of the g-pawn in modern opening theory and how it ties in with another topic not discussed by many books: the danger of certain openings for black where the pieces are in the way of a tsunami of pawns.
We will start with Dautov v Lputian Istanbul 2000 Olympiad
1.d4d5 2.c4e6 3.Nc3Be7 4.cd5cd5 5.Bf4c6 6.e3Bf5 7.g4!? GMs never talk about this a lot but the
paradox of developing the black bishops out to active squares involves them being later chased by pawns which gain both time and space.
7...Be6 8.h4c5 here Lputian goes for the standard procedure. He hits out at the centre in response to a flank attack. In another game he tried 8...Nf6 9.g5Ne4 10.Bd3Qa5 11.Kf1Nc3 12.bc3Nd7 13.Ne20-0-0 14.a4h6 15.ghgh6 -Georgiev v Lputian 8....Bh4 9.Qb3b6 10.Nf3Be7 11.Ne5Nf6 12.g5Nfd7 13.g6!
would be nice for white.
9.Be5! At the time this was new. The idea is to provoke ...f6 and thereby protect h4. 9....Bf6
10.Bb8 White takes away a crucial counter attacking piece.Over the board its not easy to meet this sequence. If one plays the g4 advance one is burning bridges with such a commitment.It means that the King position requires some deep thought.Rb8 11.g5Be7 12.Bg2h6 13.Nge2hg5 14.hg5Rh1 15.Bh1Bg5 16.Qa4Kf8 (16...b5?17.Qa7b4 18.Nd5 winning) 17.dc5Ne7 18.Qa7Nc6 19.Qb6Qf6 20.Qc7Rc8 21.Qh2 Its remarkable how the queen finds so much work in this game....Nb4 22.Rd1Kg8 23.a3Nc2 24.Kd2Nd4 25.Nd4Qd4 26.Ke1Qc5
27.Bd5Qb6 28.Be6Qe6 29.Qg2Bf6 30.Qb7Bc3 31.bc3Rc3 32.Qb8Kh7 33.Qh2Qh6 34.Qh6gh6 and now Dautov shows his technique. 35.Ra1h5 36.a4Rc6 37.a5Ra6 38.Kf1Kg6 39.Kg2Kg5 40.Kh3f6 41.f4Kg6
42.e4 1-0 So what can we take from such a game?
1) Its important as black not to naively place pieces on pseudo active squares when they can be chased back.
2)If you play with g-pawns like this then you have to calculate the variations thoroughly beforehand and work out the follow up.
3)Playing such moves involves an understanding of momentum in chess.
Sunday, 13 March 2011
A pretty queen sacrifice in the French Tarrasch C03
Hello Chess lovers
Iam happy to share with you this short game in which I was able to find the most unusual
Queen sacrifice:
NN v Tobisch Playchess.com
1.e4e6 2.d4d5 3.Nd2Be7 4.e5Nh6 This move has served me very well.5.Bd3c5 6.c3Nc6 7.Ne2cd4 8.cd4Qb6 9.Nf3Nf5 10.Bf5ef5Moskalenko has written about this. 11.0-0Be6 12.Rb1h6 13.Nf4Rc8 14.Ne6fe6 15.Be3g5 16.Qa4Kf7 17.Rfd1f4 18.Bc1Rcg8 19.g4h5 20.h3hg4 21.hg4Rh3 22.Kg2Rfh8
23 .Bd2 I was happy to find this mating idea: 23....Nd4 24.Nd4Qd4 25.Qd4f3+ 0-1 And white resigns.
Chess brings these gifts!!
Iam happy to share with you this short game in which I was able to find the most unusual
Queen sacrifice:
NN v Tobisch Playchess.com
1.e4e6 2.d4d5 3.Nd2Be7 4.e5Nh6 This move has served me very well.5.Bd3c5 6.c3Nc6 7.Ne2cd4 8.cd4Qb6 9.Nf3Nf5 10.Bf5ef5Moskalenko has written about this. 11.0-0Be6 12.Rb1h6 13.Nf4Rc8 14.Ne6fe6 15.Be3g5 16.Qa4Kf7 17.Rfd1f4 18.Bc1Rcg8 19.g4h5 20.h3hg4 21.hg4Rh3 22.Kg2Rfh8
23 .Bd2 I was happy to find this mating idea: 23....Nd4 24.Nd4Qd4 25.Qd4f3+ 0-1 And white resigns.
Chess brings these gifts!!
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